Giving Up

Chapter 12 part 2

Lillie was having a really emotional time being in the hospital. She hated that James still had to go to work for a couple hours each day and that he wasn't allowed to spend the night with her. She knew that the bills needed to be paid and that he needed to be able to lie down and sleep but she was feeling really lonely. Kay was working a lot of hours at "JACKSONS", and was helping Jackson open the new restaurant, so she wasn't able to go visit Lillie very often. Seth was finished with school, but had also been working a lot. Lillie was thankful that Seth was able to come see her for about an hour each day.

After three days in the hospital, Lillie was finally released and able to go home with strict orders to stay in bed. She was only allowed to be up for about an hour each day to shower and eat, but the doctors told her that she needed to rest as much as possible if she wanted her baby to be full term. She got home to see that her mother-in-law was there cooking and cleaning. Lillie was happy that she wouldn't be alone, and she loved Jamie's mom.

Every day when James got off work, he stopped off to pick Lillie flowers from the beautiful flower beds that his mother had grown. He would visit with his dad for a few minutes, then go home to allow his mother to leave. When he came home, supper was always ready for him, and he would sit with Lillie on the bed while they ate and watched a movie. He noticed that Lillie was sleeping more than usual, but knew that the doctors wanted her to get her rest. The doctors had advised James to make sure that Lillie was not stressed out at all, because it could cause her to go back into early labor and they were afraid that if it happened again, they wouldn't be able to stop it.

About two weeks after Lillie came home, James was getting ready to go to work when he got a call from his mom. He could tell something was wrong because she wasn't there yet and she was talking erratically and he couldn't understand what she was saying. He prompted her to slow down and start from the beginning.

"James, it's your father. He was out in the fields mowing, and he had a heart attack. I called an ambulance. James, oh James! Your father didn't make it honey, I am so sorry. I can't sit with Lillie today. It's so hard. James he's gone." He heard his mother crying. James felt like the world stopped. His dad was his role model. His dad taught him everything he knew from fishing, to hunting, to how to treat a woman. His heart broke listening to his mother cry.

James sat the phone down, and then picked it back up. As he was getting ready to call Jackson, the phone rang. "I was just about to call you. I take it you heard from mom. I can't go to work; I have to stay with Lillie. I'd really like to go by mom, she needs us. Jackson, what are we going to do?" James wiped tears from his face.

"It's okay James. I sent Kay home; she should be there in about twenty minutes so that you can meet me by mom. Kay will sit with Lillie. I just hope the stress of the news doesn't put her back into labor. We will be okay James; we will stick together, because that's what families do. I just got a text from Kari that she will meet us at moms soon. I am headed there now; just get there when you can. Take care of Lillie, and then we will do what we need to do to take care of mom." Jackson was trying to hold back his emotions.

James hung up with his brother and tried to regain control of his emotions. He knew that he wasn't supposed to get Lillie worked up, and was trying to figure out how to tell her the news without upsetting her. He was hoping she wouldn't take it too hard, because although she loved his family, she wasn't as close to Jack. James felt bad about his thoughts. He couldn't believe that a part of him was grieving the loss of his father, the other part was hoping that his father's death didn't upset his wife. He wanted to go cry in Lillie's arms, but he knew that he had to be the strong one.

James made his way down the hallway slowly. He stopped to admire all of the family photos that he had hanging on the walls in the hallway. There was a picture of his parents on their wedding day, pictures of him with his brother and sister, and his favorite picture, which was the one of his dad holding him when he was a baby. He didn't know how his mother was going to survive the loss of her husband. They were truly a match made in heaven. His dad looked at his mom the way he looked at Lillie, and his mom looked at his dad the way Lillie looked at him. After thirty five years of marriage, they still looked at each other with a great love shining in their eyes.

James opened the bedroom door to find that Lillie was awake watching TV. She immediately turned to look at him with a curiosity in her eyes. She knew right away that something wasn't right. "Come sit with me baby, something's wrong, come and tell me." Lillie tapped the bed next to her and, without saying a word, Jamie sat down next to her with his head hung low. "I love you Jamie. Something is bothering you, talk to me." Lillie tried to say the words but they came out in a whisper. She hated seeing her husband this way.

"Try to stay calm Lillie. We have to think about the baby, so you need to stay calm." He held her hand and looked her straight in the eyes. "Mom isn't coming today. She probably won't come for a while. Dad was out working in the fields today, and he had a heart attack." He stopped before he started crying, took a deep breath and continued. "Lillie, my dad didn't make it." Lillie instantly wrapped her arms around her husband and pulled him to her. She held him and he burst into tears. Lillie quietly cried with him.

"I am sorry baby. Let's go to your mom's house. Give me a few minutes to put some clothes on." Lillie started to get out of the bed, but James grabbed her hand and pulled her back. She looked at him with shock in her eyes. "Jamie, we have to go! Your mom will need us there, we are family and we have to go!" She practically yelled at him as she was trying to pull free from his grip.

"Baby, listen to me. Kay is coming home to stay with you so I can meet with Kari and Jackson at my moms. We will handle it, but we all need you to stay here and take care of that baby inside you. We need you to keep her in there as long as you can so she is healthy. That is your first priority right now. Please just get back into this bed." He looked at her with a new sadness. He was having a hard time trying to keep her in bed, because he desperately wanted her there with him, but knew that it was defying the doctor's orders if she was up all day.

"James Lucas! How dare you? I am your wife, and I am a part of your family. I will not stay home plastered to this bed when you clearly need me with you. This is a very tough time and I can keep myself calm and still be there with you to support you and your mom and brother and sister. I can tell you don't really want me to stay home, and you can't make me! Now stop being stubborn and help me get ready to go!" Lillie gave him that look that says I love you but if you argue with me, I will slap you silly. James didn't argue.