Unexpected (Chicago Med) Under Editing

Chapter 7

(Edited)

"Zach?" I whisper to the boy beside me. I was aware of everyone watching us. "Yeah?" He whispered back. "I will do everything I can to make sure you never see them again." I had made a promise with myself. I planned on keeping it. "Let us go!!" I heard a voice shout causing both of us to flinch. The dad somehow got loose, and pushed past everyone running towards Zach. I threw myself in front of him feeling something come into contact with my back causing me to shout in pain. I kept feeling it, it wouldn't stop.

When it finally stopped, I stayed in front of Zach just in case he tried again. "Tiffany, he's done now. You can move if you'd like." I heard Zach whisper in my ear. I pulled back and sat back on the ground trying to look around me. Everything is blurry. "Tiffany? Tiffany! Tiffany?!" I heard three different voices, who I could recognize as Hank, Connor, and Zach, call out as everything went black.

"Is she gonna be okay?" I heard a small voice ask. I think they are talking to themselves since there is no reply. They sound like they have been crying. I want to help them. I felt someone squeeze my hand tightly in their own. "Please wake up, I need you. You promised you would help me. I need your help." I heard the same voice as before said. It came from what I thought is the right of me. I need to open my eyes. Willing myself to open my eyes. I opened them a tiny bit only to see a bright light and shut them again. 'Crap I died.' I thought. 'That's what happens when you die right? The bright light. But then who was crying and squeezing my hand?' I opened my eyes again seeing the same bright light. I let my eyes adjust looking around the room realizing I wasn't dead. I was just in the hospital. I looked around the room seeing Hank sitting in a chair fast asleep. Looking past him, towards my hand, I noticed Zach crying while holding my hand.

"Zach." My voice came out hoarse and barely there although he seemed to have heard it and looked up in surprise. "You're awake!" He shouted happily throwing his arms around me. Since he was yelling it caused Hank to wake up in a hurry. "You scared me kid." He says wrapping his arms around me after Zach let go. "I'm sorry." I said looking down at my hands in my lap, voice still scratchy. "Do you want some water?" Zach asked. "Yes, please." I tell him watching him rush out of the room.

"The kid was worried about you, you know?" Hank asks looking at me with soft eyes. "He blamed himself for this because it was his parents." He continues. At that moment a few other detectives walked in the room. "Ms. Rose, we need to ask you a few questions." The female officer stated. "Okay." I answered. Zach entered with the water and handed it to me. "We need to speak with her alone. Could you go wait somewhere else." The male cop said to Zach.

Seeing the boys fear I calmed him by saying, "It's okay. Hank will you stay with him?" I started speaking asking Hank. He nods so I continue. "You can trust Hank, he's a friend of mine. He won't let anyone hurt you." I tell Zach. He nods and walks out with Hank. "Do you know what caused Mr. Smith to attack you?" The female detective asks looking in my eyes. I nod my head before saying, "I wouldn't let him near Zach." They share a look. "Zachary is their son. Why would you not let them see him?" The male said. "They abused him." I tell them quietly. "I promised him I wouldn't let them hurt him again. I plan on keeping that promise." I tell them

"Why do you think he was being abused?" She asked me. "He told me. Also, if you look at his arms and face, the marks and bruises all over him." They both nod. "I'm sorry, I didn't get your names?" I said in a questioning tone. "Oh right! I'm Erin Lindsey, and this is Jay Halstead." Erin introduced herself. "Any relation to Will Halstead?" I asked turning my attention to Jay. "Yeah, he's my brother." Jay says surprising me. "Really?!" Wow.

After Erin and Jay asked a few questions they both left the room allowing Hank and Zach to come back in. "Hey, I've got to go back to work. Call me if you need anything." Hank tells me giving me a hug. "Alright, I will." I tell him watching his retreating back as he leaves the room before turning to Zach. "You feeling alright?" I ask him. I haven't brought up the cuts on his arm yet. I want to but I don't know how to approach it. Thinking for a minute I reach out and take his hand. "Zach?" I whisper my voice cracking. " Yeah?" He asks. "Please don't ever hurt yourself. Ever." I say a few tears falling down my cheeks. "What?" He asks trying to act innocent. "I saw them. I saw the marks." I tell him pulling him into a hug.

I feel something wet land on my cheek. "You're gonna leave me now too aren't you?!" Zach half shouts while crying. "No Zach, I would never." I tell him in a soothing voice. His face turned into one of shock as I grabbed him and pulled him into another hug. "I promised I would help. This doesn't change anything." I tell him in the most serious voice I could muster through my crying. I feel him nodding as he wraps his arms around me squeezing me back. "Oh, I'll come back." I heard a voice say awkwardly. I looked over Zach's shoulder to see Dr. Halstead standing about to walk out the door. "Wait!" I say before he can leave, Zach releasing me from his hold and standing next to me.

"What is it that you were gonna say?" I ask him. "Right, you don't have any serious injuries. You fainted due to hitting your head and a major panic attack. Can you tell me what caused that?" He asks taking a sit on the spinning wheely stool. "Umm, it must have been because I was worried for mine and Zach's safety." I lie averting my eyes from his. "Okay..." He hesitantly gets up, clearly not believing my lie. "You can go home, Dr. Rhodes said he would take you." He says before leaving the room. "What about me?" I heard Zach say from my right. I looked at him to see tears in his eyes. "I will ask Connor to take a detour on the way home, so you can stay with me." I tell him softly. He nods and gives me another hug. "You ready to go?" Connor walks in the room.

I had asked Connor to make a stop along the way like I said I would. The three of us walked up to the front desk area once in the building. "Hello, how can I help you?" A middle aged women asks from behind the desk. "Umm, yeah. I work at Gaffney hospital. Zachary here, has been abused by his parents. I would like to be his legal guardian." I tell her shocking both Zach and Connor. "Okay. What is his full name?" She asks typing something on her computer. I turn to Zach expecting him to answer her. Instead he just turns to me and whispers, "My middle name is Anthony." I laugh before turning to her.

"Zachary Anthony Smith." I tell her. She types something on her computer before continuing her questioning.

"Age?"

"16"

"Birthday?"

I turn to Zach on that one. "March 20th." He answers for me.

"Birth year?"

"2000"

"Okay, that's all of the information I need about him. What is your full name?" She asks me.

"Tiffany Hope Rose." I tell her.

She went through all of the same questions with me. "I'll need both of you to sign here and then we should be good to go." The lady said handing me a sheet of paper that had just finished printing.

The both of us signed the papers and handed them back to her. "Okay, you Tiffany Rose now have full custody of Zachary Smith." The lady told me handing me the 'official papers.' The three of us walked out of the building before I was engulfed in a big hug by Zach. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!!!" he exclaims still hugging me.

"I'll see you tomorrow." Connor says as he walks to his apartment. "I'll see you tomorrow. Bye." I said to him before he closed his door. "Are you ready to meet my best friend?" I asked Zach. He nervously chuckled nodding. "Don't worry. She's a lot like me. I'm going to keep you home from school for a few days. Just until we are sure you are fully recovered. Then you can go back to school." After I had finished telling him that he shook his head really fast. "I don't want to go back to that school." He says still shaking his head. "Why not?" I ask him curiously. "They bully me. I don't like it there." He tells me looking slightly worried. That caused a new form of worry to set inside me. "How would you like it if we set you up for an online school?" I ask him while unlocking the door to the apartment. "I would like that." He says. "You'll have to get used to Genesis though. As you will be spending a lot of time with her." He nods before walking in behind me.

"Genie we're home!" I half shout into the house. "We're?!?!" She shouts back. "Yes we're." I say walking into the living room area with Zach following closely behind me. "Oh! You must be Zach." She says getting up and walking towards us with her hand out. He shakes her hand before pulling back and turning to me. "Would you like to see the rest of the apartment?" I asked him as nicely as I could. "Yes please."

Hey guys! Thanks for reading. I am aware that the way I did the adoption thing wasn't accurate, at all. I didn't know how to go about that so I just did it this way. If it bothers any of you, I can always change it. As always feedback helps for faster updates and better chapters. :)