Chapter 40-We Weren't Planning for This
Hank was having the worst day. There was a big case that was taking up everyone's time, and it seemed as though every lead was just sending them on a wild goose chase. He wanted to just abandon everything, go home, and hold his wife until everything felt better.
He wasn't sure how he'd become this person. For so many years he'd thrown himself into his work, spending every moment of his time focusing on protecting his city. Now, two years after Jenna walked into his life, she consumed nearly every one of his thoughts.
When his phone rang, he quickly grabbed it, hoping it was Jenna reading his thoughts and knowing he needed to hear her voice. He was disappointed when, instead of her name, the phone showed an unknown number.
"Voight," Hank said, answering his phone.
"Sergeant Voight, this is Wallace Boden."
Hank was surprised to hear from the Fire Chief. "Good morning Chief. What can I do for you?"
"I just thought you should hear this from me. We just responded to an injury accident where the victim was pinned in the car. Hank, it's your wife."
Hank's stomach dropped to the floor. "What? Jenna? She's hurt?"
"Don't worry," Chief Boden said. "She's going to be ok, but she was pinned in the car for awhile. She may have a broken leg, maybe a broken foot too, but we couldn't tell right away. We just got her loaded into the ambulance, and she's being transported to Med."
"Is she conscious?" Hank asked.
"She is. She probably has a little bit of a headache, but she's awake, she's coherent, she's good."
"Thank you for letting me know Wallace. I appreciate it."
"Take care Hank."
As he hung up the phone, Hank grabbed his jacket and headed out of his office. The rest of the unit could immediately tell that something was very wrong.
"Sarge, everything ok?" Antonio asked.
"Jenna was in an accident and is being taken to Med. I have to go," he said quickly.
Erin gathered her things and followed him out. "Give me your keys."
"I'm fine, Erin."
She grabbed his arm, stopping him from taking another step. "Give me your keys Hank."
He glared at her for a moment. "Fine," he said, shoving the keys at her before storming out to his car.
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When they arrived at the hospital, Hank rushed up to Maggie, Erin not far behind him. "Where's my wife?"
"Sergeant Voight. She's getting an X-ray right now. I can take you to a room to wait on her," Maggie said.
"She's ok?"
Maggie nodded, putting her hand on Hank's shoulder. "She'll be fine. She's banged up pretty good, and she'll be in some pain, but she's going to be fine. Follow me."
Hank waited impatiently in Jenna's room, pacing the floor, unable to stop his fear. He'd been told repeatedly that Jenna was fine, but the walls of this hospital hadn't been kind to him.
A few minutes later, he was relieved when Jenna was returned to her room. When Jenna was fixed back in her bed, Hank was allowed back in, and he sat down on the bed next to her, kissing her softly. "Hey beautiful."
"Hey," Jenna said softly. "You got here fast."
"CFD called me when they got you out of the car," he said, gently stroking her forehead. "How are you feeling?"
"A lot of pain. Floating a little because of the meds, but still hurting. I'm ok though."
"I'm sorry you're hurting," he said, kissing her again.
"It'll be ok," Jenna said, smiling up at him. "You know, this feels really familiar. I get hurt, and then a hot cop shows up at my bedside," she said teasingly.
"We've got to stop meeting like this," Hank said, kissing her again. "It's not good for my blood pressure."
Just then, Will walked into Jenna's room. "Jenna, Sergeant," he said, nodding to both of them.
"How's she doing?" Hank asked.
Will pulled up a chair next to Jenna's bed. "Well, thankfully there's no concussion, but unfortunately Jenna, your left foot is broken. I don't think it will need surgery, but we'll check again in a week when the swelling has gone down a little."
Just then, Hank's phone rang. He looked over at Jenna apologetically.
"Go ahead, babe. Take the call. I'm ok."
Hank kissed the top of her head before stepping into the hall to take his call.
"There is one other thing we need to talk about and do some further testing," Will said.
"Am I ok?" Jenna asked.
Will took a deep breath before continuing. "Jenna, tests show that you're pregnant."
Jenna looked at him, stunned, unable to speak for a moment.
"Pregnant? Will, are you sure?"
"According to the blood test, yes. We'd like to do an ultrasound to check and see how things are. With the trauma you went through, we want to make sure everything is ok."
"Wow," she said, wiping at the tears rolling down her face. "Is it…is there any chance that this baby is ok?"
Will shrugged. "There's a chance, but there's no guarantee."
"Ok. Can we…not tell Hank just yet? I don't want to get his hopes up if we're going to find out in a few minutes that the baby didn't make it. We…weren't planning for this, we never imagined this could even happen, so…I don't want to break his heart."
"That's fine. We need to get a splint put on your foot, so we'll leave him here while we do that, and we'll do an ultrasound while you're up there. You can tell him when you're ready."
"Thanks Will. I appreciate it."
Will stood and said, "We'll get you up there in just a few minutes."
When Will was gone, Jenna let her hands drift down to her stomach. "Hi baby," she said softly through her tears. "I'm so sorry I didn't know you were here. I love you so much, and I know your daddy will too. I just need you to hang on for us, ok? Please, hang on."
A few minutes later, Hank came back in. He rushed over when he saw that she'd been crying. "Honey, what is it?" he asked, wiping her tears.
"I'm fine. Just in a little bit of pain."
"You're sure?" he asked, not completely convinced by her answer.
She forced a small smile. "Yeah," she said softly.
"Ok," he said, kissing the top of her head. "What did Halstead have to say after I left?"
"They are coming to get me in a few minutes to put a splint on my foot. When that's done, we'll get to go home."
"Good," he said, kissing her softly. "Need anything?"
"No, just you," she said, squeezing his hand.
"I'm so glad you're ok. I was really worried when I got that phone call."
Jenna gently stroked his hand with her thumb over and over. "I know, babe. I'm sorry you were worried."
Just then, a nurse came in to take Jenna to get her splint. "Mrs. Voight, we're going to get you all fixed up. Sergeant, we'll get her back to you in just a few minutes."
"Take good care of her," Hank said, kissing Jenna's hand as they rolled her away.
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After getting her splint, Jenna was taken for her ultrasound.
"Ma'am, how far along are you?" the doctor asked.
"I don't even know," Jenna said, tears coming to her eyes. "I didn't know I was pregnant until today."
"Ok. Let's take a look at your little one and see what's going on."
A few minutes later, their baby popped up on the screen. "Oh my goodness," Jenna said, as her tears started falling again.
"It's too early to hear the heartbeat, but if you look right there, it's beating strong. Congratulations."
"Wow, I just…can't believe this," Jenna said, wiping at her tears. She couldn't tear her eyes away from the little flutter on the screen. A baby. She couldn't believe this was happening at this time in their lives, but she was thrilled at the thought of raising a child with the man she loves.
"We're going to have you take it really easy for a couple of weeks. The baby is alive, but because of the trauma that your body went through, there's a chance that something could happen in the next few days. If something is going to happen, there's really nothing that we can do, but rest is the best thing you can do right now. You need to come in for another ultrasound in a week, bed rest for the next two weeks, but for now, we can let you go home."
"Thank you so much."
"Does your husband know?" the doctor asked, handing her the ultrasound pictures she printed.
Jenna could barely see the pictures through the tears in her eyes. "No. I didn't want to tell him until we knew for sure about the baby. I'll find a way to tell him when we get home."
"Well, I know things are a little scary, but try to relax and enjoy the fact that you and your husband created a new life together."
"Thank you," Jenna whispered, as her hand drifted down to rest on her abdomen.
A baby.
Was this really happening?
How would she tell her husband?
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When they got home, Hank helped Jenna into the house.
"Do you want to go to the couch, or do you want to go to bed?" Hank asked.
"I'm exhausted and want to go to bed, but we need to talk first. Help me to the couch?"
Hank got Jenna settled on the couch, her leg propped up on the coffee table in front of her. He sat next to her, pulling her as close as he could, softly kissing the side of her head a few times. "You really scared me today, Jen."
"I know, babe. I'm so sorry. That truck just came out of nowhere. I didn't see it coming until it crashed into me. But I'm ok."
"I know, I just…I was worried. So what do you need to talk about? We really need to get you upstairs to bed."
Jenna took his hands. "When you stepped out to take a phone call, Will told me something else that was discovered while they were running tests. When I went to get my splint, they took me for another test for confirmation, and they were right."
Hank felt like he was going to be sick. He had just let himself relax from finding out about Jenna's accident. There couldn't be anything else wrong with her. He couldn't handle something happening to her.
"Honey, what's wrong? What did they find? Please tell me you're going to be ok."
Tears came to Jenna's eyes again as she put her arm around his neck, pulling him closer. "I wish I'd been able to find a special way to tell you this, but I can't wait any longer. Hank, babe, I'm…I'm pregnant."
Hank stared at her for a few moments in shock. "Jenna, I…what did you just say?"
Jenna leaned forward, resting her forehead against his. "I'm pregnant. We're having a baby."
Hank turned away, covering his face with his hands for a moment, processing this news. When he turned back to her, he asked, "How? How did this happen?"
Jenna couldn't help her smile. "How? If you have to ask that, I must be doing something wrong."
Hank shook his head. "Funny, Jen. I just…this is real?"
Jenna reached for her purse, pulling out the ultrasound pictures and handing them to him. "Wow," he said, running his finger over the pictures.
As Hank stared at the pictures, Jenna tried to read him, tried to figure out how he was feeling. A baby was never a conversation they had. They both had grown children; they both had grandchildren. Neither even considered a baby as an option, never a thought in either of their minds. They were older to be starting over, and in some ways it would be harder, but after raising five children, Jenna knew what to do with a baby. They would make it, and everything would be fine. She just hoped that Hank would be as happy about this as she was, and she hoped that she would be able to maintain the pregnancy. Being older meant she was at a greater risk for complications, but she would do everything she could to keep her baby safe and healthy.
When Hank still hadn't said anything, she put her hand on his leg. "Babe, how do you…are you ok with this?" she asked.
"What?" Hank asked.
A couple of tears rolled down her face. "You just haven't said much of anything yet. I know we haven't talked about a baby, and I never even thought this could ever happen, but I'm so happy to be having a baby with you."
Hank put the pictures down and took Jenna's face in his hands. "I love you, so much, and while there is a part of me that is completely terrified, I couldn't be happier." He wiped at the tears that were falling down Jenna's face, tears of happiness and relief. "I can't wait to do this with you, Jen."
"I love you," she whispered.
"How far along are you?"
"Seven weeks. But honey, there is one other thing we need to talk about. When they did the ultrasound, they were able to see the heartbeat, and things looked good. But, because of the trauma of the accident, there's a chance that I…there's still a chance of a miscarriage."
Hank's face fell. "We may lose the baby?"
Jenna nodded sadly. "It's possible. I have to go back in a week for another ultrasound. I'm on bed rest until then, which would basically be happening anyway because of the broken foot, but I have to really take it easy for the next couple of weeks."
"Ok. Bed rest is something we can do, and we're not going to think about the alternative. This baby is a miracle, and I refuse to believe that we were given this gift just to have it ripped away from us."
Fresh tears rolled down her face. "We just need to guard our hearts for the next couple of weeks."
Hank moved to his knees in front of her, his hands moving to Jenna's stomach. "Hi baby," he said softly, his voice shaking as he fought back his own tears. "It's your daddy. Your momma and I love you so much, and we can't wait to meet you." He gently kissed Jenna's stomach before moving to kiss her lips, his hand cradling the back of her head. "I love you so much Jenna."
"I love you Hank. So much."
"Let's get you to bed. We've got to make sure you're taken care of."
Hank got Jenna fixed in bed, water and pain medicine within reach. As he started to leave the room, assuming she would want to nap, Jenna said, "Wait."
Hank turned around, and she was holding her hand out to him. He walked back over, taking her hand as she pulled him close. "Please hold me."
He nodded, climbing into bed carefully to not jostle her broken foot as he scooted close to her.
As his arms went around her, Jenna leaned back against his chest. She took one of his hands, placing it on her stomach and looking up at him, tears in her eyes. "I can't believe we're having a baby."
"I can't either."
"I didn't think that it would ever be possible for me to get pregnant again. I don't know if I've ever told you this, but a couple of years after Taylor was born, I had a miscarriage, and there were some serious complications. I almost died, and my doctor told me I probably wouldn't be able to have another baby. I'm just…shocked."
"Me too. I hadn't even thought about this as a possibility. I'm...Jen, I'm old."
Jenna elbowed him as she laughed. "You're not old."
"You're 44, you're young. I'm old to be starting over with a newborn. When this baby graduates from high school, I'll be in my seventies. Elderly!"
"Oh stop. We may be the older than others, but it's going to be fine. We'll make it work, babe."
Hank gently rubbed his hand over her stomach. Jenna put her hand on top of his, intertwining their fingers. "I'm so happy Jenna."
"I am too, Hank."
"I have Erin, and I love her, and she's mine, regardless of that stupid test, and I love your kids, but after losing Justin...to be having another child...a child that's ours...I can't even tell you how happy I am."
"Me too," she said as she kissed him. "I love you so much."
"I love you babe."
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When he was sure Jenna was asleep, Hank moved down in the bed to where his head was even with Jenna's abdomen. He pulled the covers down and carefully raised Jenna's sleep shirt a little, trying not to disturb her. He gently placed his hand on her stomach, still in shock that the baby they created was laying just below his hand.
"Hi little one," he whispered. "It's your dad. I'm still...I guess I'm in shock that you exist, but I'm really happy you're here. You have the most incredible mom, and she's so happy you're here too. We love you very much, and I hope you can hang on for us. I know your mom getting hurt might have hurt you too, but she's going to get better, and we want you to be ok too. Please, stay with us." He couldn't speak anymore because he was afraid of the tears that were threatening to come, so he softly placed several kisses on Jenna's stomach. He looked up when he felt Jenna's hand on his head, and his hand instinctively took its place back on Jenna's stomach.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't mean to wake you."
"It's ok," she said, her other hand slipping down to cover his over their baby. "Are you ok?"
Hank shrugged, looking back down at their joined hands. "I'm scared, Jen."
"Of what, babe?"
Hank sighed. "Scared I'm too old, scared I won't be good enough, scared that..." He stopped, trying to calm his shaking voice before he fell apart. "Scared that this will be over before it's even really started." He closed his eyes as a few tears made their way down his face. "I'm scared to want this with every fiber of my being."
Jenna wiped at his tears as her own fell. "Oh honey. I'm scared of all of those things too. I never thought about us having a child together, but now...I want it so badly, but I'm scared of the heartbreak that will come if something happens."
Hank placed one more kiss on Jenna's stomach before moving back up to lie next to her. He pulled her close and held her as they cried together. This baby was such an unexpected gift they never dreamed of, but now so desperately wanted.
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Author's Note: I just wanted to quickly address a couple of reviews that I've received over the duration of this story. I had one reviewer say they would like to see Hank and Jenna have a baby, and one reviewer explicitly ask me not to give them a baby. The scenes in this chapter and the next couple of chapters to follow were written long before I ever posted a chapter here, and I couldn't abandon this part of the story. I actually have several friends who had children later in life, so I feel like it's definitely a realistic possibility. I had a lot of fun writing these scenes, as well as the chapters that will follow. Let me know what you think!