One Day At a Time ✔️

Ch. 8 The Long Road Ahead

Crosshairs' P.O.V.
This is heartbreaking to see Jamie become distraught as Autobots visit to show their support. Only Bumblebee, Jazz, and Sideswipe came by before Jamie became distraught, and Ratchet had to tell the others to stay away.
"It's ok; they want to support you," Drift says as he hugs Jamie.
Of course, Sunstreaker doesn't listen to Ratchet telling him to leave. The two go back and forth for a few minutes before Sunstreaker gives up and tells Ratchet to give Jamie something. 
"For a bot who hates humans, I can't believe how much he cares about Jamie," Ratchet comments as he hands Drift the paper.
He drew the three of us having a good time. I'm not sure if this is too soon with what Sunstreaker wrote;
You have amazing support and will get through this.
I try to hand Jamie the drawing, but she pushes it away. She loves Sunstreaker's art, but this one might have been too soon, though he meant to cheer her up. She tears up.
"You need to relax," Drift says while hugging Jamie.
Ratchet watches, not liking what he's seeing. There's nothing he can do. Jamie still depends on the ventilator at a high rate. 

Jamie is asleep ten minutes later. Drift is heartbroken that Jamie is having a hard time with this, and I can get him to come for a walk with me. 

Drift is quiet during our walk through the park. I'm not sure what to say. Watching Jamie go through this hurts, but I know it hurts a lot more for him. Drift stops in front of the pond; tears roll down his face as he watches the ducks before falling to his knees. Jamie loves watching the ducks. I sit on my knees beside him and hug him.
"Jamie will be ok; it's going to take time."

Drift's P.O.V.
I hate how much Jamie is struggling. Recovery is going to be a challenge. First, we need to get Jamie to relax. The process Jamie must undergo to have the trach removed will be hard if she can't relax. 
"Ratchet, can Jamie use an oxygen concentrator and return to our room?" I ask.
"Not until she's off the ventilator."
I'm not sure what else to do to keep Jamie relaxed. 

Three hours pass before Jamie wakes up. Crosshairs and I do all we can to keep her calm. I end up holding her.
"You need to relax. You're pausing your recovery by not relaxing," Ratchet tells her before injecting a relaxant. Enough to calm her, but not to have her sleep.  
I got Jamie's tablet, hoping to distract her. 

It's a challenging three days before Jamie relaxes and Ratchet can stop using the relaxant. He's also able to decrease how much oxygen she's getting, but it's going to be at least a week before we can begin the weaning process.
Jamie doesn't need much physical therapy on her legs, and Jolt can work with her while sitting on the bed and on the ventilator. Jolt believes Jamie won't have trouble walking when she's off the ventilator. At least Wheeljack's device worked.

Jamie doesn't want anybot visiting. Everyone is worried about her mental state. 
I try all I can to keep Jamie distracted. I'm unsure if the trach is uncomfortable or if she's not happy about everything she's been through. Jamie wouldn't say anything if she could. I can hold her in a comfortable position while sitting on a chair, which is when her short stature is a good thing. 

Crosshairs and I talk about how scared Jamie still looks once Jamie is asleep. Ratchet hates this and is very concerned about Janie's mental state Crosshairs and I worry about when we remove the ventilator tube, even though there are steps to ensure a patient isn't gasping for air soon after the tube is removed; I know it can still happen.

Ratchet's P.O.V.
Three days have passed, and Jamie is ready to be taken off the ventilator but will still need oxygen support. This is good, though; Jamie can breathe on her own. I must follow the weaning process. The good news is, Jamie can go to Crosshairs' and Drift's when we're not working on the weaning process. Though I don't know if she'll leave the room. I know I said she needs to stay here, but I'm hoping the room with Crosshairs and Drift will help Jamie. It's going to be a few days before I can begin the process. I need to make sure Jamie can keep her oxygen level up. I also need to do a couple of other tests.
Crosshairs and Drift can keep Jamie busy while I monitor her, listening to her breathing every half-hour. Within a few days, she might not need oxygen support during the day, but during the night, while she's asleep will take a little longer. 

Jamie does not want to go up to Crosshairs and Drift's room. We know the issue is that others will see her. I don't want to let her stay here, as it'll be at least a week before I can remove the trach. I don't want to tell the others to avoid her either. Not even Drift could convince her.  
Crosshairs brings up another problem; Jamie being able to eat food. Between the period she wasn't getting food at the so-called hospital, twelve weeks in a coma, and the period it'll take to remove the trach, Jamie will struggle with keeping food down even if she's been able to keep the little water I've given her down. I don't know how if it'll be short-term or not. I don't know how to explain this to Jamie or when.
Damn, Megatron, I'd love to kill you myself for putting Jamie through this. 
Both Crosshairs and Drift hate there's still more for Jamie to deal with.

Drift's P.O.V.
Damn, I hate how much more Jamie has to deal with. It's bard to think of the good that Jamie's bladder and kidneys aren't damaged. Ratchet might take the catheter out soon. I know that the medically induced coma ending after twelve weeks instead of twelve months is good.  

I don't want to leave Jamie alone, but I will not eat in front of her. Ratchet will lecture us, especially when he finds out Crosshairs and I haven't eaten in days and had little Energon. For tonight, we lucked out.  Jamie falls asleep, and Ratchet puts her on oxygen.
"Now go! Can't help her if you're going to neglect yourselves."

The others want to know how Jamie is doing. I hated telling them about the long road and how she wants to avoid everyone. Sunstreaker talks about a mission to find Megatron and make him pay for this. Several others agree and start planning until Prime walks in. He has difficulty convincing the others to cease making plans for a revenge mission, but they eventually drop the idea. 

Optimus Prime's P.O.V.
I watch Drift walk away as the others change the subject from revenge to what could they do to help Jamie feel better. I tell Crosshairs to stay before going to catch up to Drift. 

He goes into the conference room. I watch him sit at the table and let himself cry before walking in.
"I failed to protect her," he sobs, not caring who just walked in, "she is dealing with scrap because I failed to protect her."  
It's hard to know what to say; nothing will change his mind. 
I leave him alone and talk to Ratchet about Janie's progress. I can tell Jamie made some progress, seeing she's not on the ventilator. I find out the long road Jamie still has. Crosshairs is not liking this either, but I understand why this is hurting Drift more. Ratchet and I both worry about Jamie's mental state as she recovers. Though Crosshairs and Drift's mental state isn't in a good place, they're doing ok compared to Jamie.  
"She doesn't want to leave the medbay, even though I said she could," Ratchet sighs, "Drift couldn't convince her to leave." 
"I know she can't stay in bed either, but after what she's been through, we can't force her to leave the medbay."