Caught Up // Jimmy Butler

Chapter 18

Jimmy and his mother sat in the waiting room together in silence as the time passed. One hour...three hours...they were finally approaching five hours when two nurses emerged to the waiting room.

"We're looking for Allison Walker's family?" The older nurse called.

"Me," Jimmy got up, as his mother followed in tow, "I'm her fiancé." He said weakly.

"We have an update." The younger nurse continued, "Surgery was mostly successful and she is stable."

"Mostly successful?" His mother interjected.

"Sorry," The older nurse said, "We cannot disclose the rest, you'll have to talk to the doctor for that." She said, "Sir you could go back and see her, if you like?"

"Yeah." Jimmy breathed, as his Mother gently patted him on the back. The nurses led him behind the double doors as his Mom stayed behind. His heart was beating fast, he just needed to see her.

"Right in here." The nurses led him, opening the door for him.

"A," Jimmy's heart dropped. She was laying in the hospital bed with bruises and bandages all over, she looked so weak, "Jesus." He said, walking over to her.

"Jimmy." She managed to get out, moving her head slowly to face him.

"I'm so sorry." He said, as he softly took her hand in his.

"Jimmy." She repeated, bringing her other hand up slowly to his face. She looked exhausted as she held back the tears that were glossing her vision.

"What the hell happened, are you okay?" He asked, pulling the nearby chair close to her so he could sit with her.

"I don't really remember." She whispered, "It's all sort of a blur." She said, "Taj." She remembering, feeling alarmed, "Is he okay?"

"Yeah, he's fine-"

"He pushed me out of the way at the last second," She recalled, "He got his arm stuck..."

"He's gonna be okay." Jimmy said, giving her a weak smile.

"J," She cried, "I'm so sorry." She said, letting the tears fall.

"Hey, c'mon now." Jimmy said, stroking her face with his free hand, "What are you talking about?"

"They had to take out the baby." She blubbered, "And now I don't know if he's going to be okay, it was way too early and..."

"Hey, shhh." Jimmy said, rubbing her hand softly, "What happened?"

"The doctor told me that when I came in they had to take the baby out during my surgery because the heart rate was dropping, but it still needed time in there Jimmy, and I don't know if he's going to make it and it's all my fault." She closed her eyes, feeling like a failure.

"Babe." Jimmy frowned, wrapping his arms around her carefully, "This isn't your fault, okay?" He said, rubbing her back.

"No it is, I-"

"Stop." Jimmy said, "This is not your fault okay?" He said, looking into those eyes he'd fallen in love with so many times. He brought his hand back up to her face again, that face he thought he lost forever. He couldn't help himself and just had to gently press his lips against hers, "I love you." He reminded her, pulling away.

"I love you too."

"Sorry, to interrupt." An older man, in a white doctor's coat entered, "You're the father, I presume?" He asked to Jimmy, who turned to face him.

"Yeah." Jimmy breathed, "Can you tell me what's going on?"

"Your child is currently in surgery, he is very premature so a lot of his organs are very small and cannot fully sustain his body yet." The Doctor explained, "There's a fifty-fifty chance of survival," He said bluntly, "But for now he seems stable, we have him in an incubator and if he is able to maintain himself I see it very likely for him to be alright."

"He?" Allison said, from behind Jimmy as a soft smile spread across her face.

"As for you, Miss. Walker." The Doctor began, walking closer to her, "You're another story."

"Sorry, what?" Jimmy asked in confusion, he thought she was going to be fine – that the baby was the biggest concern.

"While in surgery we found a hematoma in your brain – which is essentially bleeding in the brain." He disclosed.

"What?" Jimmy asked in shock, looking back at Allison who just closed her eyes and laid her head back.

"I know it's been a traumatic 24 hours," The Doctor said, "But, we need to go into another surgery to stabilize it in the next few hour, otherwise..." He trailed off, "It could be fatal."

"Why wasn't this something you guys could've stabilized the first time?" Jimmy asked with frustration, as Allison just reached out to grab his hand to calm him down.

"Look, Sir," The Doctor said, "This is an experimental procedure and we cannot perform it without consent of the patient, there is no guarantee it will work either, it's your best option and I need you to make a decision as soon as you can. The sooner the better."

"Well you have her consent, so let's go." Jimmy rushed, "Right?" He asked, looking down at Allison.

"I don't know..." She trailed off.

"I'll give you two a little time," The Doctor nodded, "I'll come back in 15."

"What do you mean, 'you don't know'?" Jimmy asked, sitting down, her hand still in his, "A, I can't lose you. Our baby boy can't lose you either."

"I know." She sniffled, looking up at the ceiling, "I'm just scared." She frowned. Jimmy hated to see her like this, he'd give anything to trade places with her – seeing her in pain was the worst feeling.

"Walker," He smiled, trying to life her spirit, "I want to marry you." He smiled down at her, "And I need you to be here for that to happen."

"Jimmy..." She sighed, as tears began welling up.

"Please." He pleaded with her, he knew she was scared but she had to understand this was their only other option.

"What if..." She trailed off.

"Those few hours when I didn't know where you where or if you were okay?" Jimmy began, "Those were the worst hours of my life, I can't do this without you."

Soon enough there was a knock on the door, as the Doctor popped his head in.

"Have you come to a decision?"