Case by Case Love

Chapter 43: Fainted Worries

Jay stood in the hall outside of the room, leaning back against the glass as he could only ponder what could be happening in the room behind him.

He had been so caught off-guard in seeing the color escaping from her face. He was even more caught off-guard when she slouched and fell over into his hands, surprised he had been able to catch her with how suddenly it happened. 

He remembered the ride over in the ambulance with her. He remembered seeing just how far out of it she seemed to be - unable to concentrate, asking a lot of questions, glancing around everywhere. She was also very dizzy and nauseous, even throwing up just before they had arrived. They had tried to give her fluids on the way in hopes that would help, but it did not change anything.

He was happy it was Natalie who met them at the doors, with a promise to take care of Erin. She assured him they were going to run every test they could to determine the case of her symptoms. She even promised she would be okay, which Jay believed as Erin was strong beyond anything - no matter what was going on.

He was broken away from his thoughts when there was a pat on the wall by where he stood, indicating that he was welcomed into the room. He did not hesitate on entering the premises, immediately walking up to her beside and taking her hand with his own. He then traces the back of it, eyes focused on her. He could see there was a lack of improvement - perhaps getting worse as the eyes would not focus back on him in return. 

She had been feeling great that morning. She had been ready to tackle the day with him, just like any other day of the week. They even had a great night of chemistry together the night before. How could all that seemingly be wiped away in a matter of hours?

"Did you run a pregnancy test?" Will asks as he peaks in the doorway, concern written on his face for the condition Erin was in right now. However, there was also an underlying smirk in the intention of the question. 

Jay remembered the text message he had sent to the team - well, wait. It started off with a phone call to Hank in detailing what had happened, before sending a mass text to the rest of the team. It was Adam that texted him back saying, Hank is going to kill you if she is pregnant.... 

He had heard about morning sickness affecting people tremendously. He had heard about the nausea being so bad they could not do anything and were stuck on bed rest. He remembered one of the men in his unit detailing it from the letters his wife would write him while they were overseas. What if that was why she was here today? Let's face it, they hadn't been able to keep their hands off of each other since she had returned to Chicago.

"She is on the pill.....well, she was before she left for New York," Jay comments, having remembered that coming up one morning when they had forgotten to use a condom. There was total fear when he woke up the next day in knowing how quickly they had undressed each other - but yet the comment caused him to relax. Since then, he had not bothered to worry or wonder about this being possible. Should he have asked about it before the rekindled together? 

"A lot has also changed in those years," Will quickly reminds his brother, as Jay just nods his head in return. That was over 10 years ago. He had grown a lot himself as a person, and became a better detective in knowing the signs to look for with suspects. He had began to trust his instincts even more and approach to interrogation. There was also a trip overseas to Bolivia and divorce mixed in the time frame.

"You don't need to remind me." Jay was actually surprised by the comment, as if anyone knew how that struck the cords it would be his own brother. His brother knew what he was dealing with mentally more than anyone else. He knew about the PTSD, nightmares, and occasional flashback. Why was he adding fuel to the fire with reminders of the past? That was going to make falling asleep later that night impossible. Of course, there would be no sleep if they did not discover what was wrong with Erin. 

"I know...." Will then walks in the room, placing a supportive hand on Jay's shoulder as he takes in Erin's appearance. He knew the pregnancy test had been ran, as well as series of other tests -various tox screens in trying to see what was in her system. If that did not result in any others, they would be sending a camera down her throat next. "Think back to the past 24 hours. Is there anything she did that caught you off-guard? Did she eat something which did not agree with her? Did she go out with any old friends?" 

"If you are trying to imply she may have resorted to her old ways, that is not the case William." Natalie could not help but look towards the brother with a little shock in Jay's tone of voice. She had not seen Jay utilize his brother's full name in all of the time she had seen them together. She understood the validity of Will's questions, as it was par for the course in these situations. Why was Jay being more hostile than normal? he was not even this demanding when it came to past experiences with his father, or Hailey.

"Tox screen results are back," Natalie interrupts the banter as her Ipad lights up with a notification. She then pulls them up on the screen, looking over what it said as her jaw drops with a bit of shock. Maybe Will's comment was not that far off base as Jay thought. "She has traces of methamphetamine in her system, enough to result in an overdose. We'll begin a series of drugs to counteract the symptoms she is affecting, while managing her oxygen, heart rate, and other things. It should leave her system and wear off in the next six or eight hours." 

Jay just nods his head in return, accepting that as he reaches in his pocket for his phone. He had promised Hank an update as soon as he heard something. However, how was he supposed to share this? 

You need to get down to Chicago Med asap. Erin overdosed on meth.