The Halsteads

𝐩𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝗼𝐮𝐠𝐡, 𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐲 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥

"If she makes it through the night"

That was the exact thought that raced through both Hailey and Jay's heads as they sat by Kolly's hospital bed. They hadn't left her side, they couldn't bear to. What if something would've happened and they weren't there? What if they couldn't say goodbye? As much as they didn't want to think about the worse side of things, Will was right. Kolly was in bad shape, and ultimately, she needed a miracle, and a strong will to fight through it.

And so there the two parents sat. Waiting, and watching, over their six year old. This was any parents worst nightmare, and something that Hailey and Jay never expected to be going through.

"Come on baby girl. Pull through. Make it through the night. Fight for us." Jay quietly said to Kolly, before placing a gentle kiss on her cheek.

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The night seemed to pass all too slowly for the Halsteads. But, bright and early that very next morning, Will made his way in.

"Last night was uneventful for Kolly. Which is much better than we ever would've asked for, especially with this much head trauma. She pulled through, and honestly, as much as I hate to say it, we didn't think she would for a while last night. But she did. She's a fighter. And she's going to need to be a fighter through this." Will assured them.

"We just got the last of her results back. It turns out, she's fine, except for her head. As much as we wanted to avoid having to take her in for surgery, we've got too. Even though she made it through the night, she's still in bad shape. This surgery is our best, and maybe our only shot at fully saving Kolly."

Jay and Hailey listened to Will, and nodded. "Do what you need to do. But please, save our Kolly. We need her." Hailey told him. "Hailey, Jay, you two know we'll do our absolute best." Will told them.

At that next moment, Hailey and Jay both placed kisses on Kollyns' cheeks, as the nurses came in to wheel her down to the operating room. Jay and Hailey watched as they rolled the bed down the hall, until they no longer could see Kolly, Will, or the nurses. And so, the waiting game began once again for the worried parents.

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Hours on top of hours passed as Hailey and Jay waited in the surgery waiting area. Waiting for news. Good or bad, they wanted to know.

Soon enough, Will approached the two of them, as both Hailey and Jay immediately stood up.

"She made it through. We accomplished everything we were trying to, and she did great. We had no complaints or complications from it. She's back in the room now. She's still heavily sedated for now, but tomorrow or the next day, we'll wean her off of it. After that, her head will still be very swollen, and she'll still have pain. But, once it gets managed well enough, she'll be able to go back home. She's gone through a lot these last twenty four hours, but she's going to make a full recovery." Will told the two, as both of them hugged him. "Thank you Will, for everything" Jay told his brother.

At that time, Will walked back to Kolly's hospital room. Kolly looked good for what she had been through. She looked significantly better than she did only the night before. Jay and Hailey were fully relieved she was going to be just fine after a while.

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A couple of days later, Kolly was weaned off of the sedation. This came with confusion, pain, whines, and, as expected, many tears from the young girl.

The doctors and nurses began to work to manage Kolly's pain, and help the swelling go down. After they had successfully helped her pain, Jay and Hailey were able to see a smile on Kolly's face.

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Soon enough, Kolly was released from the hospital. She was thriving well enough that there was no issue with her returning home. Jay and Hailey would continue with her medications, and Kolly would still have to rest for quite a while.

Once they arrived home, Jay and Hailey helped Kolly settle in to her nice, warm, bed. They gave her the next dose of medicine, before tucking her in, so she could rest, and maybe sleep for a bit.

Jay and Hailey sent Jess on home for the day, as they went to care for Finn. They switched off who would check in on Kolly, and even gave her a visit from her "Finny baby".

It was a struggle for them, keeping up with a now mobile, almost one year old, along with a recovering six year old. But, like always, Hailey and Jay made it work. Honestly, they were just happy and thankful they had both of their children home. Safe, happy, and on the mend.