Author's Note: Thank you all for your response to the last chapter! I got comments from several people wondering about the early days of Erin's recovery. I have a few things in mind for how to work some of that into the next few chapters, and I started with a little bit here. Let me know what you think!

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Chapter 38-You're My Family

The day after their engagement, Erin and Jay joined Hank and Jenna for lunch at their house. Sunday lunches at the Voights' had become a tradition over the last year since Erin and Jay were staying with them through Erin's recovery. Oftentimes Jenna's son and his family would join them, but on this particular day, it was just Jay and Erin.

"So, you've had a pretty big week, haven't you?" Jenna said to Erin.

Erin smiled. "It definitely wasn't what I pictured happening my first week back at work, but felt pretty good. I just wasn't sure that I would ever make it back to the unit."

"We always knew you'd be back," Jay said, grinning at her.

"He's right," Hank said. "I don't think any of us felt relief until we knew for sure that you were coming back, and I wasn't going to rest until you were back. I wish I could give you more, but we'll get there."

"It's ok, Hank," Erin said. "I'm just glad to have been let back into the unit at all. I just keep thinking back to those first few days in the hospital."

Erin could hear someone calling her name. She tried for a moment to open her eyes, but she just wanted to sleep. After a few moments, her head cleared a little, and she could tell it was Jay's voice that she was hearing.

Jay. She missed him. Even though she was sleepy, she wanted to see him. It was hard, but she was finally able to open her eyes. The first thing she saw was Jay's beautiful eyes looking back at her. He was crying, but it was so good to see his face. Jay was still talking to her, and she wanted to say something back, but it was hard to form words.

Finally, she managed to choke out a small "hi".

Doctors came in, and Jay was rushed out, and once she had time to process, the next thing she felt was pain, in her head and in her throat. While her doctors conducted their tests, all she could think about was seeing Jay's face again. When the tests were finished, Jay was allowed back in, and Hank and Jenna were with him. Her whole family was there, and she was so happy to see them, but she could see a relief on their faces that worried her. What happened to her, and just how long had she been asleep?

When everyone was gone and she was left alone with Jay, she decided to try to get some of her questions answered. Words were still hard, so she hoped that her deep connection with Jay would help convey to him what she needed to know.

Jay sat down on the bed next to her. "How do you feel?" he asked.

"Throat. Hurts."

Jay softly stroked her forehead, brushing her hair away from her face, needing to touch her and reassure himself that this was real. "I know. You were on a ventilator for awhile. It'll get better soon."

She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to gather strength to form words. "How. Long. Asleep?"

Jay looked down, afraid to give her the answer. He met Erin's eyes when she squeezed his hand. "Tell."

"Erin, you've been in a coma for fifteen days."

Tears came to her eyes. Fifteen days. Two weeks. She'd missed two weeks of her life. "No," she said softly as her tears finally fell.

Jay leaned forward and kissed her forehead several times. "Please don't cry, babe. You're here, and you're ok, and now we just keep moving forward and getting you better. I'm going to be with you every step of the way."

Erin nodded as Jay wiped her tears. She could do this. She would be ok.

Erin shook her head, pulling herself out of the flashback. "I remember being so scared when I found out how much time I'd lost, seeing all of your faces, and realizing how everyone must have felt."

"Don't think about that stuff, Sweetie. Not today," Jenna said, squeezing Erin's hand.

"I have to, Jen. I came so close to dying that I can't truly appreciate how far I've come without acknowledging where I started. Those first few days were so scary, and I didn't know how I would ever be normal again, and I didn't know how Jay would still want me."

Jay put his arm around her, pulling her close and kissing the side of her head. "But I did, and I do, and now we're getting married."

Erin leaned into him. "We are."

"Speaking of getting married," Hank said. "I know that things just happened last night, but we've got some wedding things that we need to talk about."

Erin nodded. "We have some things to talk to you about, both of you, about the wedding."

"You first," Hank said.

Erin took a deep breath. "Ok. Obviously we have a long way to go since we just got engaged last night, but there are a few things we know for sure, and we didn't want to wait to talk to you about them. The biggest thing...Hank, I know I've told you, multiple times through the years, that you're my family."

Hank nodded. "You have, and you know I feel the same way about you, Erin. I've told you before that you're one of the best things that's ever happened to me, and I stand by my words, and I always will."

Tears came to Erin's eyes, and she fought hard to keep from breaking down. "I know. That's why I...Hank, I really want you to be the one to walk me down the aisle."

Jenna wiped at her tears, squeezing Hank's hand as he fought his own tears. "I'd be honored," Hank said, hugging Erin tight.

"Thank you," Erin said tearfully.

Hank held her face in his hands for a few moments. "I'm so proud of you, kiddo. Camille was too."

"Thanks. Another thing. Jay and I discussed it earlier today, and we're not including Bunny in anything, and we're not even telling her that we're getting married. We don't want her involved in our lives at all. This family right here…this is who Jay and I want our family to be."

"We love you both so much, Erin," Jenna said tearfully.

"We love you too. Jenna, I know I've told you this before, but I'm so thankful you walked into our lives. You've been more of a mother to me in this short time than Bunny ever was, and I'm so grateful. Since she's not involved, and since Camille isn't here, I'd really like you to help me with planning the wedding."

"Oh Sweetie," Jenna said, hugging Erin as they both cried. "I love you like you're my daughter, and it means a lot that you want me as a part of your family, and I'd love to help you."

"I love you too."

Jay squeezed Erin's hand, wiping a few tears rolling down his own face.

"I have something for you," Hank said. "Wait here, and I'll go get it." He walked into the kitchen and came back with an envelope, handing it to Erin.

"What's this?" she asked.

"Open it."

Erin opened the envelope, finding a check with a large amount of money made out to her. Her eyes widened in shock, and she was sure she was reading something wrong. "Hank, what is this? I-I can't accept this."

"Yes, you can," he said.

Erin shook her head in disbelief as tears rolled down her face. "No, I...you don't have to do this."

"I didn't, at least not all of it," Hank said, taking Erin's hand. "When Camille got sick for the last time, when we knew, and I mean KNEW that we were at the end, she gave me an envelope full of money. She told me that since you moved in with us, she had been saving money back, and she told me that she wanted me to continue, so I have. She told me that the money was to be given to you for your wedding."

"What?" Erin asked, her tears coming harder.

Hank couldn't hold back anymore, letting a few tears roll down his face. "Camille said 'I want you to give that girl a beautiful wedding someday, and I want you to make sure she knows how much I love her.' So I kept adding money to it. I don't know how much weddings cost these days, so if that doesn't cover it, I'll take care of anything else. If you don't spend it all, put it toward a down payment on a house."

Erin's tears were coming in sobs now, and she let Hank pull her into his arms, clinging to him as she cried into his shoulder. Erin was so overwhelmed by this gift, and she was desperately missing Camille, wishing she was a part of this exciting time in her life. Jay put his arm around Jenna as she laid her head on his shoulder, her own tears falling.

Finally, Erin pulled back a little to look at Hank. He wiped at her tears with his thumbs. "Camille loved you so much, kiddo. She would've loved Jay too."

Erin smiled through her tears for a moment. "I think she would've loved him too. She would've yelled at you for how mean you've been through the years."

Hank chuckled. "I haven't been mean, just protective."

"Yeah yeah," Erin said, rolling her eyes. She looked down at the check before finding Hank's eyes again. "I miss her so much."

Hank nodded. "I know you do. I do too."

"I wish she was here. I wish she was a part of all of this. It hurts so much not having her here."

Hank pulled Erin close again. "I know it hurts. It's hard for me too, because I know how happy she would be to see where your life has gone. But I know she's looking down on us, and I believe that she has been right by your side through your recovery. I know she's so proud of the woman you've become, and I know she'll have a front row seat on your wedding day."

"I love you Hank."

"I love you too Erin."

Hank held Erin for awhile as she cried. When she finally pulled away, she whispered a small "thank you" to him. Jay took that opportunity to walk over to them and shook Hank's hand.

"Thank you Hank. It means a lot, to both of us."

Hank put his hand on Jay's shoulder for a moment. "I meant what I said, that Camille would've loved you, and I appreciate the way you've stood by Erin through her recovery, and the way you've taken care of her. I've known for a long time that you loved her, and you've more than proven that over the last year. We're lucky to have you in this family."

"Thank you for saying that. I love her, and I'm going to stand by her, no matter what," Jay said.

"I know you will."

Erin's sniffles interrupted them. "I'm just…I need a minute, so I'm going to step outside for a little while," she said as she wiped fresh tears, watching the exchange between the two most important men in her life. As she walked away, Hank looked at Jay and nodded toward Erin, indicating Jay should follow her.

When they were gone, Hank turned to Jenna, opening his arms as Jenna walked into them. They held each other in silence for a few minutes. Finally, Jenna pulled back to look at him.

"That was an incredibly special gift for Camille to give Erin," Jenna said.

Hank brushed Jenna's tears away with his thumbs. "It was. She sure loved Erin a lot."

"I wish I could've met her. I mean, I know if she were still here, we wouldn't have this life together, but…still."

Hank gave a small smile. "You two would've been great friends. I'll always miss her, but I'm very happy that you're here with me now."

"Me too," Jenna said as she kissed him.

They kissed for awhile, but stopped themselves before they could get carried away, knowing Erin and Jay were just outside.

Hank took her face in his hands as her arms slipped around his waist. "You'll help her figure out her dream wedding?"

"If she'll have me, I'm thrilled to help her."

"Ok then. Let's get our girl married."