Making amends (An Upstead story)

Chapter 19

This will be the last chapter about the attack, I promise :)  The next two will be focusing more on Jay & Hailey again. And I have a few more lighter, sweeter, and funnier chapters ready, just so you know... :) 
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Because of the sedatives, Sky had slept through most of the night peacefully. When she wakes up, she sees Hailey laying down next to her. She doesn't see Jay, - he had left halfway through the night so Kim could go home -. She smiles at Hailey (who's still asleep), she's extremely grateful to have her in her life. Ten minutes later Hailey wakes up, she sees Sky staring at her. "Everything okay honey?" she asks, still sounding sleepy but looking worried. "Yes... Thank you for being there for me, Mom." Sky says the first words with a warm smile on her face. But with the last word she looked a little hesitant, it's the first time she has ever called Hailey 'mom', and doesn't know how Hailey will react. Hailey smiles from ear to ear, hearing Sky call her 'mom'. She always felt like she had given up on that title when she gave Sky away. She feels a tear leave her eye, she's so damn grateful to have her child back in her life.

An hour later Natalie came back to check everything for one last time. She gave Hailey some cremes, painkillers, anxiety medication, and explained to her when and how to use them. After that, they were allowed to go home. When Sky stands up, her head starts to pound, making her whimper at the pain. Hailey gives her some painkillers while Natalie gets her a wheelchair. When they get home, they are greeted by Jay and JJ. JJ looks up at Sky, a little confused, she has some strange thing on her foot again and a big bump on her head. "Aah ooh," JJ says with her sweet toddler voice, assuming Sky had fallen. Sky smiles at her, somehow JJ always manages to make her feel better whenever she's sad.


After breakfast, Jay brought JJ to daycare, knowing he had a case to work today. But before he left, Sky walked over to him and gave him a hug. "Thank you for last night..." she says, holding on to him for a moment, when she lets go she gives him a sweet. He smiles back at her, "I.., We will always be there for you, Always" he says confidently, before giving her a kiss. Voight came over shortly after Jay had left, he had a few pictures with him. "I will understand it if you're not up for it, but it will be easier for us if you can identify the offender." He says carefully, gauging her reaction. After she had identified the offender, Voight left again. He informed the unit and made a quick stop on his way back to the precinct. He planted some additional evidence at the boy's house, making sure he would go to prison for a long time.

Hailey stayed home with Sky that day. After Voight had left, it was easy to see that Sky was struggling again. Sky went upstairs to take a bath, but when Hailey didn't hear anything after 20 minutes, she went upstairs and ran in, worried that she might have passed out. When she opens the door she sees Sky sitting on the floor, shivering, pale, and staring at the opposite wall. Sky had taken off her shirt but didn't get any further because of the flashbacks. So instead of taking a bath, she had hurt herself again, desperately trying to find some sort of distraction. Hailey gasps at the sight and grabs a towel to cover the wounds. Sky's mind had wandered off again, and she didn't react at all until Hailey forced her head up to look her in the eye.

Hailey looks upset, and Sky immediately feels guilty, she had made Hailey a promise, and now she has broken that promise. Sky buries her face in her knees and sobs softly, "I'm sorry, Please don't hate me." Hailey takes a deep breath, trying to figure out how to deal with this. "I don't hate you honey, and I never will. But you can't do this..." she whispers, managing to keep her voice calm and soft. She sits down next to Sky and folds her arm around, but Sky flinches at the touch, which surprises Hailey. "I-I can't, I can't handle anything that touches my skin... S-sorry..." she sobs softly, feeling guilty, scared, and confused at the change. Hailey gives her a kiss and hands Sky her shirt, "No need to be sorry, honey."

After Sky had put her shirt back on, she snuggled up to Hailey. She really needed that comfort, still afraid that Hailey might hate her now. Hailey folds her arms around Sky again, this time she didn't flinch at her touch, so Hailey strokes her back for her while. After a moment, Sky looks up at Hailey, "I'm really sorry," she whispers with a shaking voice. "I know honey, it just scares me when you do this. I know the struggle, but I want you to learn healthier ways to cope with your emotions." Hailey explains with a gentle voice, looking Sky in the eyes. There's something about Hailey's eyes and voice that immediately takes away all of Sky's worries, and makes her feel loved instead.

Hailey has also struggled with self-destructive behavior when she was younger. Other than drinking, fighting, screwing around, and taking drugs, she too has thought about hurting herself multiple times. "Did you know something similar has happened to me once?" Hailey asks, a little unsure about whether or not she should tell her. Sky shakes her head, so Hailey tells her about what Booth did to her on that specific new year's eve. After Hailey had finished her story, she noticed Sky was staring at her. Hailey gave her a small smile, letting her know that she's okay now. But Sky still feels really bad for her and pulls her into a hug, now trying to comfort Hailey. Shortly after that, Hailey took Sky back to the hospital, knowing she needed stitches.

On their way back home Sky felt tired. She still wanted to take a bath but didn't want to get another flashback. So this time she asked for help, "Hailey?" she says softly, turning her face to look at her. "Yes, sweetie?" Hailey says, looking back at her. "I want to take a bath, but I don't want to get another flashback or disappoint you again. And I'm really tired, do you have any advice?" her voice breaks halfway through her question. Hailey reaches for her hand, stroking it gently, "I'm not completely sure, but I do know that what you're doing right now - asking for help - is really important." She looks at Sky with a sweet smile and gives her a quick kiss before the traffic light turns green again.

When they get back to the house, they walk upstairs. Sky stops at her bedroom door, feeling a little uncomfortable. Hailey notices and places one hand on her shoulder, "everything okay?" She asks, looking more and more concerned as she sees Sky's face. Sky is staring at the bed, her breathing becomes more rapid and her hands start to shake. "I don't remember how I got there, but he had taken me into a bedroom, t-that's when I knew what he was going to do..." She tells Hailey with a trembling voice as her eyes become watery again. After Hailey had calmed down Sky, she took her to their room for a nap. Hailey lied down next to Sky, trying to keep her calm while she thought about what Sky had told her.


I hope you enjoyed reading it.