Upstead comfort fics

9.13 pt 2

9.13 pt 2:
(I got a request for a follow up of my chapter 9.13 to cover Jay helping Hailey get stronger and more confident in the water)
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Since the near drowning experience Hailey'd been through in February, she'd become more and more nervous about getting in any body of water. She didn't even want to be on a boat, and she'd grown incredibly upset and anxious when they'd been at the river when it was died green for St. Patrick's Day. There had been so many people around and getting bumped into the railing had been too much for her.

As it got closer to summer and things started warming up (somewhat, it was Chicago after all), they were getting called to the beach and lake more often. There was also talk of trips to lakes or a beach on the coast during the summer, ans Hailey's anxiety spiked each time. She'd leave the room during discussions about it, and would often wake up in a panic, remembering the accident from when she was little or the one from a couple months before.

Jay had noticed, how could he not? But he wasn't sure how exactly he could help his wife other than by reassuring her and comforting her each time she got upset. He knew he needed to do something before summer hit, but it wasn't until Hailey had broken down after dinner with Will and Natalie one evening after extensive talk about a trip to some island with snorkeling and lots of swimming. It was basically planned, and they'd planned a weekend trip to the cabin with boat riding and all the lake activities, and she hadn't said much during dinner, but once the door shut, she burst into tears.

"Hails," Jay opened his arms and she ran into them, craving the warmth they provided.

"I can't!" She cried, rapidly working herself into a panic.

"Shhh, it's going to be okay. We don't have to go to the beach trip. But, Hailey, this isn't healthy. I think we need to work on your swimming. I know it scares you, but I know you know how to swim. It's just been a long time, and you've had two traumatic experiences in water. You're fear is completely valid. But I would hate for something else to happen and you get hurt because you weren't strong in the water," Jay swayed as he spoke, and Hailey knew he was right. She didn't enjoy being afraid of bodies of water.

She had loved the water as a kid, her mom would joke she was part fish. Her blonde hair had even turned slightly green the summer she was 6 because she'd spent so much time in the pool in their neighborhood. But then they'd been in Greece and her dad had been yelling at her for not wanting to swim far. So she'd kept swimming, and then a huge wave pulled her under and she got caught in the under current. She was only 7 and had struggled to find the surface, inhaling a lot of water in the process, until her cousin had grabbed her and pulled her up. It had been traumatizing, and she'd thrown up a ton of water before spending the day glued to her mom in the emergency room, trying to make sure she was okay.

Now, all these years later, after a second terrifying experience in water, Hailey was more than a little nervous about trying to get in a lake or ocean. But Jay was right, she needed to build up her strength and confidence in the water. She took a shaky breath and stepped back from Jay.

"You're right. I wanna be able to have fun, not be scared all the time near water, and I guess the only way to get better about it is to get in water," she sighed, frowning.

"I can help, or we can hire someone," Jay kissed her forehead.

"You. It's embarrassing enough, I'm 30 and can't swim super well," Hailey said quickly, leaning into Jay's chest again.

"I've got you. We can use the pool at the gym to start, then we we go to the lake with Will and Nat, we can work on it some more," Jay rubbed her back and she nodded once more.

Once they were ready for bed, Hailey cuddled up to Jay. They were planning to try and get her in the water early the next morning, and she was scared. Jay knew she was, so he held her all night and comforted her through the nightmares she had.
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Come morning, Hailey was a bundle of nerves that Jay had absolutely no luck coaxing any food into. "Let's just go and get this done," she said, growing annoyed.