"Ah! My stomach is killing me!" Cayleigh cried out. Her father Johnny, and mother, Lisa run into the little girls room. Her eyes are filled with hurt as she clutches her stomach. "We have to take her in Lisa. There's something wrong." His normal southern drawl was filled with worry. Johnny picked Cayleigh up and carried her to the car. He sat in the backseat with his daughter, while Lisa speeds to the hospital. They get there and Johnny carries the frightened child in. A doctor takes Cayleigh and her parents go to follow her. "I'm sorry but you must stay here." A nurse tries to hold them back. "No! My daughter is scared shitless! She needs us!" Johnny fought with the nurse. "I'm sorry sir, but it's the rules." "Ma'am, I understand that, but I'm not going to let my daughter be scared any longer. Please let me go to my baby." Johnny had tears pricking in his eyes. "Yes sir." She wrote down the room number and Johnny took off. "Thank you." Lisa smiled and followed her husband. Johnny didn't need the room number from the nurse. All he had to do was follow Cayleigh's screams for him. He ran into the room and he held his daughter's hand. "Mrs. Van Zant?" The doctor asked. "Yes?" "Your daughter needs her appendix out. Do we have your permission to preform this emergency surgery?" "Yes." "I'll leave you to say goodbye for a moment." Lisa nodded her head. "John." The tired man picked his head up. "Yeah Lis." Even his voice sounded tired. "Shrimp, has to have her appendix out. We have say goodbye and then head to the waiting room." Johnny pinched the bridge of his nose. "Don't worry daddy. I'll be just fine. Cause I'm a superhero." Lisa raised her eyebrow. "The morphine has kicked in." Johnny muttered. "We'll see you in a little bit shrimp." Lisa leans over and hugs Cayleigh. "Bye mommy." "You'll be just fine little one. Dad loves you." "I love you too Papa." They went into the waiting room and Johnny started to shake his leg. "She'll be fine John." Lisa put a hand on his arm and squeezed it. "I know babe. It just scares me." "That's how you know you're a good parent." Johnny gazed off into space. They sat for what felt like days but was only a couple hours. "Van Zant?" Someone called. Johnny jumped up and Lisa had a hard time following her husband. "She's asleep. You can stay as long as you like." "Thank you." Johnny put his chair right next to the bed and Lisa streched out on the couch. "We'll go in shifts. We'll sleep in shifts too." "John, she's okay. Just relax." "When she's back home, then I'll relax."
