Corey breathes on her own | (Groffchele one shot)

We walked hand in hand. "Oh no, what if it's bad news?" He whispered, the worry evident in his voice. "I'm sure it's not," I whispered, although the uncertainty in my voice was all but reassuring. I felt Jonathan's hand quiver in mine, uneasily. "How aren't you worried, you have to be worried," he chanted in a whisper, furiously biting his lower lip. "I don't know," I whispered. I knew there was a chance they had called us in to tell us something bad, that something was horribly wrong with our daughter. That she'd never be able to breathe on her own, probably. We all knew there was a chance of this, that she was born too early and even with the great medical care that she wouldn't be okay.

I somehow managed to block that out thought for the time being as the doctor scurried into the hallway to meet us, before we could even get into the right room to have our meeting. "Doctor Strauss," Jonathan said, worry filling his voice again. "Hello Mr. Groff, Ms. Sarfati," he greeted, an eagerness in his voice that I'm sure Jon heard too. "What's wrong, just tell us, is she not going to make it?" He asked, his voice completely exhausted. "I have some..important news about your doctor," the doctor explained. "And I think we should sit down and talk about it." Jon's face turned to agony. "Please, just, please can we see her?" He asked, frowning. Dr. Strauss nodded. "Yes, I'll take you to her now," he said softly, leading the couple down a long hallway and into the proper part of the hospital. I gave Jon's hand a gentle squeeze, feeling some sort of hope in the pit of my stomach, as if something was guiding me and letting me know everything would be okay.

After what felt like an eternity, the doctor led us into a small nursery. "Why aren't we wearing our usual clothes when we visit the NICU?" I asked with a small frown. "Well, that's because your daughter isn't in the intensive care unit anymore," he said, smiling brightly. The doctor gestured to a very small pink bundle in a little baby warmer. "She's still very small, but today she breathed on her own for the very first time. She'll need to stay in the hospital so we can help her grow more, but her vital organs are intact and your daughter will be just fine. It's truly a miraculous situation, no premature baby I've delivered has gotten so much accomplished in only one week of being alive," he explained. My facial expression changed almost instantly to a bright grin and I finally felt Jon relax. "I'm so happy," he said, tears filling his eyes quickly to match mine. He grinned brightly and pulled me into a tight hug, lifting me off the ground. "Did you hear that Lea? She's going to be completely okay!" He exclaimed, almost jumping with glee. "I'm so happy," I managed to whisper, holding onto my best friend as tightly as I could. "Would you like to hold her?" Dr. Strauss asked. "Oh my..I can do that now?" I whispered, surprised. "I-I'd love to hold her, my sweet baby," I whispered, a few tears trickling down my cheeks. "Please, please give her to me," I said, sitting down in a chair near her bed. The doctor carefully pinked the small pink bundle up and set her in my arms. "My little Corey," I whispered, sniffling softly as I cradled her close to my chest. "Hi baby girl," Jon whispered, leaning over so he could see her too. "We're going to take good care of you, okay?" He whispered, reaching his hand over to stroke Corey's little arm. I bowed my head, crying softly with joy for the first time in the longest time. She was going to be okay, it was official.