A Fighting Chance (Tom Holland AU) [2]

Twenty-Eight

The days were all blurring together now. Before I knew it, we were a month into this mess. It was just a constant wave of tests, nerves, and tears. On April 28th, Tom and I were told that we had a visitor trying to come in through the staff entrance. "She says her name is Lesley."

"Let her in." I smiled gently. Minutes later, I was hugging my big as tightly as I could.

"I brought something for you guys." She smiled as we let go, holding up a paper bag.

"You didn't have to." Tom smiled as he hugged her and I took the bag.

"Oh, come on. It's been a rough month for the two of you, plus we have something to celebrate." Tom raised an eyebrow, but I smiled as I noticed cupcakes in the bag she brought.

"Lesley..."

"There's a chocolate peanut butter one in there for you Gracie." I smiled gently at her, finding it sweet that she remembered my favorite flavor. "We have a one-month birthday to celebrate, right?"

"That is super sweet, Lesley. Thank you." Tom smiled, and she grinned.

"Anything for you guys. This past month has probably been the worst of your lives." When we nodded, she sighed and pulled us both into a hug. "I love you guys."

"We love you too." I smiled, and Tom nodded. He had grown close to her after we reconnected.

As we enjoyed our cupcakes, she looked at me. "Your Brooklyn 99 episode aired yesterday, babe. I caught it at my hotel, and it was incredible."

"You saw it?" She nodded, and I grinned gently. "What did you think? We didn't get a chance to see it."

"You didn't?" We both shook our heads, and she gasped playfully. "You guys have to watch it! Did either of you bring a laptop?"

"Yeah..." I leaned down to my purse and pulled it out. We had started bringing things to entertain and distract ourselves as we waited.

"You guys should watch it. There's something you guys will really enjoy." She gave us a gentle smile.

The episode was one of the best, and I'm not just saying that with bias. It was funny, yet deep and touching, and I loved it to pieces. The thing that touched me the most though was the screen that showed at the end.

To Grace, Tom, and Annabelle:

All of our love goes to your family as you go through this difficult time. NINE NINE!

"Wow," I whispered, wiping a tear with a smile.

"Made me cry too." Lesley smiled, and I looked up at her gently. "I know how much this show means to you."

"You're the best, seriously." I could hear a sound coming from where Annabelle was, and Lesley grinned widely. "Wanna meet her?"

"I'd love to."

A few days later, we were told that a major test would be performed on Annabelle. The ones they had been doing for the past month were relatively small, but this one had a lot riding on it. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to go back as they performed the test. We were told it would take several hours, so we didn't leave our chairs.

"What do we wanna do for lunch?" Tom looked at me, and I shrugged.

"I don't care. I'm not leaving this spot, though. Not until we find out the results." Every result we had gotten was vague, and I hoped that with this major test we would get a more precise result.

"Okay, baby." He nodded, showing that he would accept that.

Admittedly, we had gotten in a fight last night. I don't even know what started it, and it was probably something small and stupid, but the stress, anxiety, and sadness I felt toward the situation all come to a head and sent me over the edge. There was a lot of screaming and crying, and before the sun came back up, we had agreed to not let stupid disagreements fuel our emotions.

I leaned into Tom as he pulled me close, and I took a deep breath. "Get some sleep, darling. I'll be right here the whole time."

"I love you, baby."

"I love you more." He grinned, pressing a kiss to my head.

As I woke up a few hours later, I saw a nurse approaching with a to-go bag from the restaurant and market right next to the hospital. "I heard you guys talking a little bit ago, and I just wanted to make sure you would get a chance to eat."

"Thank you," I whispered, and I could feel tears forming as I pulled her into a hug.

"Of course. I know you guys are trying your best, but it's okay to show emotions sometimes. This is a lot."

"It is." I nodded, and she smiled as we pulled away.

"I have to get back to work, but I want you two to know that we're all doing our best to make sure Annabelle's okay." We smiled as she stood.

"Thank you so much." Tom smiled, and she nodded as she waved and made her way to her next patient.

"That was super nice." I smiled as Tom opened the bag, and he nodded.

"It is."

Just as we finished our lunch, the doctor came back. "We have the results on Annabelle."

"Yes?" She took a deep breath, and any hope I had immediately flew out the window.

"Her lungs have been increasing in strength, that's true. But, at this point, she's halfway between where she was at birth and where she needs to be to go home."

"Halfway?" What the fuck? "Only halfway?!"

"Yes. She was bordering on severe underdevelopment at birth, and now she's on the border of mild."

"Why the fuck didn't we know it was that bad?!" I was pissed off.

"Well, we didn't want to alarm you about her situation at that point--"

"So you hid it from us?! You didn't disclose something that big because you didn't want to scare us?!" Tom was just as pissed as I was, and it was clear.

We probably spent an hour yelling at that doctor, and the other hospital staff could see just how pissed we were. As soon as I saw a nurse bringing Annabelle back, I excused myself and went to hold her. I looked down at her, and her beautiful little eyes immediately called me down.

I could hear Tom still yelling, but just holding my daughter was enough. For now.

;-) Thoughts?