'Travis. Travis! Wake up. Something's wrong with Mia'.
Taylor shakes her husband attempting to rouse him from his sleep, but to no effect. He'd been out the previous night with Patrick and the guys, rolling into bed only an hour or so ago, and his soft snores continued to fill the room. 'Trav!', rips from her throat even louder, disturbing the baby she's holding in her arms, and he eventually rubs his hand over his face, blinking his eyes open at her. 'Tay? What's wrong? It's like 3am'.
'Travis, there's something wrong with Mia. Please, please just come with me'.
The tone of her voice and the use of his full name has Travis jumping out of bed, pulling her and Archer towards Mia's room down the hall. When he opens the door he finds his oldest daughter curled in a ball on the floor, her breathing shaky and uneven, her lungs sucking in air like she can't quite get enough.
He quickly crosses the floor and kneels beside her, touching her side gently as she whimpers. 'Mia, princess, what's wrong?'
'It hurts, daddy', is her answer, and he can see how much she is struggling to get the air in and out, and he turns to Taylor, her face pained with worry, attempting to quieten the baby in her arms. 'I got up to settle Arch, and I found her like this Trav. What do we do?'
Sensing someone has to take control of the situation, Travis instructs her on the rest of the night. 'You go and put Archie to bed, and then go into our room and phone Molly. She should be here soon enough for the kids. I'm going to phone for an ambulance, and then we're taking her to the hospital'. Taylor doesn't move, watching Mia seemingly paralysing her to the spot, and Travis gets up, placing his hands on her shoulders.
'Tay. Listen to me. She will be okay, but we have to do these things first. Do you think you can?'
Snapping out of it, Taylor nods her head. 'Yes. Yes I can'.
Travis breathes a sigh of relief when she turns and he can hear her go to the twins' nursery, and he is able to turn back to his little girl. 'Okay Mia, we're going to help you, okay? Mommy and Daddy are going to get you help', he informs her as he pulls up her pyjama top, the sight of her stomach sucking in under her lungs worrying him even more.
He gently picks her up, bringing her into his and Taylor's bedroom and lying her on the bed, pulling some clothes on himself before reaching for his phone and calling for an ambulance. They dispatch one right away, and as he's pulling together some of Mia's favourite things - her stuffed bunny rabbit, her purple blanket - and putting her slippers on her feet, the doorbell goes.
Taylor beats him to it, running down the stairs to open the door to find Molly on the doorstep, the medical crew waiting behind her. 'God, Molly, thanks. The kids are all in bed. Guys, she's upstairs', she calls to the paramedics, gesturing for them to follow her as she leads them to their room.
When they enter Travis is cradling Mia in his arms, tears falling down his face. 'She got worse, I don't know what to do', he informs them, handing her over to the friendly doctor, and as they check her over he stands to pull Taylor into his side and she interlocks their fingers, squeezing tight, no words fitting the moment.
They watch as they place a tiny oxygen mask on Mia and then carry her out to the waiting ambulance, informing them that only one extra person can travel with her. 'You go, I'll follow behind. You were drinking last night, Trav', Taylor says, shooting him a look that dares him to disagree, so he just nods, climbing in beside Mia and holding her hand.
Travis thinks it's simultaneously the longest and shortest drive of his life to the hospital, when in reality it's only a mere 20 minutes away - even less with blue lights and sirens flashing. He can think of nothing else than the way Mia looks so tiny next to him, her breathing having gone from exaggerated and difficult to ragged and short, almost like if he wasn't watching her chest move up and down, he would be concerned if she was breathing at all.
