Chapter Text
The smell of chamomile always had a soothing effect on Jean, along with the familiar sound of the kettle heating up on the stove. After the chaos of their wedding, she was grateful that her life was beginning to get back to its normal rhythm with her family.
The living room felt serene and even though Emily and her family had moved out, she was never gone long enough for Jean to fully feel the weight of her absence. She was back in her usual spot on the sofa with her two mothers fussing over her as she pushed into the final month of her pregnancy with her full sized twins. Sighing softly, she picked up the kettle and began pouring the boiling water into the four ready mugs with tea bags set for steeping.
“Aunty Jean! Come and feel! They’re both kicking me, it’s like they’re a crazy little pair in there ganging up on me,” Emily cried while reaching over to place both of her mothers’ hands on the top of her stomach. Jean swiftly picked up the tray and hurried into the living room and sat herself on the sofa where she waited patiently until Dana removed her hand and urged her closer.
“You’re getting closer, darling. They’re both so excited to finally meet you on the outside,” Jean offered. Emily chuckled and pushed all of their hands away before struggling forward on the sofa, grabbing her mug of tea that was steeping.
“You’re so silly, Aunty Jean. Now, what is the plan for this Christmas, given that I pop on time and we are all home to celebrate,” Emily questioned while taking a sip out of her milky tea. Stella grimaced at the thought of her daughter being incapacitated from the brutality of childbirth, but swiftly recovered when a sleeping Eloise snuffled from her spot in her lap.
“Well, this year is mine to host and I know Alex and Lydia are going to enjoy not having to split time since we are inviting Lane,” Jean shrugged. Emily nodded and leaned further into Dana before pulling the blanket over her gravid body.
“Ola is in Sweden this year and Otis took Maeve and Elsie to the states to visit Remy so we will be down a few people,” Jean frowned softly, prompting Emily to squeeze her hand gently. She knew that her aunt was nothing but flexible, but it was hard when everyone left to go and spend their year with their other family members. Ola had offered to stay behind given her already strained relationship with her father and sister, but Jean insisted that she still go and take some time to herself at least.
“I know it’s rough having to share them, but hopefully we can still have a good time,” Emily tried. Jean smiled at her attempt to cheer her up and nodded, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
“You’re right, darling. I think we should liven things up with a house decorating contest, the winner gets a trophy or something,” Jean suggested while pressing a hand on the spot where she felt her niece’s more lively twin prod at her. Emily nodded with anticipation whilst holding her hands out to her mothers to help arrange her against Jean in a more comfortable position. “Plus I’ll have two new babies to snuggle and spoil.”
Once settled, Emily motioned for her mug and took another thoughtful sip out of it. She was taking advantage of all of the toddlers napping at the same time whilst Dylan and Alex picked up dinner.
“I think Jean should be excluded from the contest because she always goes so above and beyond with her decor, it’s almost ridiculous,” Stella scowled whilst running her fingers through Eloise’s strawberry curls. Jean snorted at the suggestion and shook her head in disbelief.
“You wish, don’t be upset that you’re terrible at decorating and lose every year. There are no friends when it comes to competitions, Stella,” she gloated, already feeling more like herself. Stella grumbled and stuck her tongue out at her, perpetually the little sister. Dana groaned at her wife’s bickering and nudged her as Jean’s phone began to ring loudly.
Eloise jumped at the sound, her Scully-like face screwing into a scowl as she lifted her head from Stella’s soft leggings and reached for her older sister. Stella frowned even harder over their daughter’s unwavering preference for Emily despite not even living with them.
Emily snickered at her mother and scooped up her younger sister with a hearty grunt, laying her over her stomach in order for her twins to soothe Eloise with their rhythmic tapping. The toddler settled with the knowledge that she was embraced by her older sister, shoving her thumb into her mouth only to be removed by her redheaded mother moments later. Nothing could upset the little one when she was in the arms of her most favorite person in the world.
Jean brushed off her bickering family and pressed her phone to her ear whilst mindlessly playing with Eloise’s curls just the way she liked it. Once the line connected she felt her blood run cold when she heard frantic tears on the other line.
“Hello?” she demanded, her heart rate increasing as she quickly put the phone on speaker for the room to hear. Both Dana and Stella perked up, the law enforcement in them instantly kicking in as they leaned in to try and hear who was speaking.
“Jean? I–It’s me, Ola,” she cried. Her tone made Jean shiver with the memory of Emily calling in a similar fashion just a year prior, making her blood run cold. “I just didn’t know who to call.”
“Darling? Are you okay? Did something happen?” Jean demanded while scooting closer to the phone that now sat idle on the coffee table. The muffled sound on the other line sounded distorted, making her stomach lurch. “Ola, answer me please.”
A sobbing noise ravaged the phone, making Jean even more nervous as she went to try again. Before she could speak, the young woman cleared her voice, rendering Jean quiet again.
“We hit black ice. I was mad at dad and I told him that I didn’t want to finish our conversation and left his house to go back to my hotel but he got in his car to follow me so we could finish talking so I sped up when I saw his car but he hit the black ice and–” she sputtered out another sob, unable to finish her sentence.
Jean felt her heart screech to a stop, her eyes wide as she stared at her family in front of her. She willed for Ola to keep speaking, to say the unthinkable so her mind could stop running ramped as she stared at her.
“Ola, darling, what happened after you hit black ice,” she demanded, her voice shaking as Dana and Stella caught on to what was happening, swiftly getting up to sit on the coffee table in front of her.
There was more sobbing on the other line, making Jean shudder and quickly move the phone away from her ear and switch it to speaker phone. She felt as if the burden of hearing her ex’s fate would be shared if everyone heard Ola reveal it.
“He skidded and hit my car, but he was going fast and when he hit me he knocked me off the road and into a ditch, but he kept going and hit a phone pole…I’m here at the hospital because I broke some ribs and I need screws and a plate put into my leg, but I also have to decide what happens to my dad.”
Jean’s heart broke as she stared up at Dana and Stella, at a loss for words. Stella nodded at the news and swiftly began scrolling through her phone, scanning for something while silently conversing with Emily for her help. Dana leaned in and made her presence known to the young, scared girl on the other line.
“Ola, sweetie, what do you mean decide what to do? What condition is your father in? Did the doctors tell you?” Dana prodded while Jean’s mind went into overdrive.
“Yeah uh…they said he’s in ett vegetativt tillstånd–” she paused for a moment, the small group of women forgetting that Ola was bilingual, and after this trauma, must be going crazy trying to keep everything straight. “Sorry, he’s in a vegetative state. I have to figure out whether or not to keep him on life support or not.”
Dana squeezed her eyes shut and nodded, fearful that she was assuming correctly when she asked for clarification. Jean faltered for a moment and pressed her fingers to her lips as she tried to help her step daughter over the phone.
“Darling, is there anyone else who can make this decision? Any other next of kin?” Jean tried, her heart breaking for the kind girl whom she loved so dearly. She could hear Ola sob on the other line before pulling it together to answer the question.
“My dad has a sister, Freja, but she won’t help me or even talk to me ever since I chose to stay in the UK with you. Carina, my sister feels the same and is putting this all on me, plus she is out of town with her husband and stupid kid and doesn't want this kind of responsibility. My extended family just doesn’t like me enough to step in and help me out. Regardless, I am his daughter and it is my job to make this decision.”
Jean nodded and felt a rogue tear slip down her cheek as she pushed herself to her feet, doing her best not to jostle her gravid niece who had finally gotten Eloise to sleep.
“I’m coming to help. I will stay as long as you need, but you should not be alone or without someone in your corner while you do something like this,” she declared. Ola sobbed loudly at the declaration, her call clearly serving as the ask that she couldn’t verbalize to the woman who she saw as a mother.
“I found a flight that will get Jean to you in two hours tops. Just ask the doctors to hold off until then,” Stella declared. Ola sniffled on the other line and thanked her softly, her voice cracking as she perked up.
“Jean, maybe bring Joy…I know my dad was an asshole about her to you, but if you want her to say goodbye or anything like that…now is the time,” she declared. Jean felt her blood run cold as she considered Ola’s warning. She didn’t know what would be best, how would she even begin to explain something like this to her four year old who never knew her biological father, let alone his untimely death.
“Thank you darling, I will be there soon,” she all but whispered before hanging up. All three women looked back at her as she began to run around the house, throwing various items into a suitcase whilst Stella and Emily picked out four reasonable ensembles and one mourning outfit just in case. They did a quick search to see what was customary when it came to Swedish funeral practices and breathed easily when they read that black was standard.
“I’m coming with you, Emily declared as she took over Jean’s packing and began with Joy’s. The older woman, who seemed to be moving at a less than ideal speed, turned to face her niece and began to argue with her, but the younger woman shook her head and silenced her.
“You’re too big to fly, darling,” Jean tried, making Emily sigh and shake her head.
“It will be a short trip and you are going to need the support. I know you are going to be there for Ola, and believe me she needs it, but you are going to need some too. I’m good with Joy and you can leave her with me when you need to help Ola out with the funeral arrangements, and I can do all of the harder stuff that neither of you should be doing. I will get my doctor to sign off on it, especially since it is an extenuating circumstance.”
Jean faltered and knew that having help would be ideal, but still worried about having her niece take on such a heavy load.
“I will come too, I can help with the medical jargon and be an extra set of hands. Plus if anything acts up with Emily I will be there,” she declared as well. Jean knew that there was no sense in fighting with either of them, simply nodding and letting the three women engulf her in a quick, but needed hug.
Before Jean could even process what was going on, Emily was calling Dylan and running over the logistics of everything while demanding that he pack her a bag for Sweden. Dana and Stella had also sped home to get her packed and ready for their last minute flight, the whole family racing around the small radius in which they all lived for reasons just like this.
“Jean, I will be there in a few days for the service, and I will get in touch with Otis and Maeve and all of their friends to see if they can get that support for Ola and the service,” Stella rambled whilst flinging the trunk open to shove Dana’s bag, Jean’s, and Emily’s that Dylan was physically running over from up the road. Everyone did a last minute check for ID cards, passports, and other items for the plane, especially Joy’s baby dramamine to help her sleep given the last minute accommodations.
Emily had printed out the faxed note that her midwife had signed and tucked it into her purse before giving Dylan one last kiss goodbye. The pouty young man embraced her and palmed her stomach as he warily watched her climb into the car.
Alex had dropped off Dylan to get Emily’s bags ready after picking up the food, and managed to come crunching up the driveway at an impressive speed. His eyes were wild and filled with concern for his wife, the older woman melting as he immediately pulled her stress-riddled body into his arms. Jean blubbered an overwhelmed sob into his chest as she allowed him to hold her, rubbing his hands up and down her arms.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to come with you? I can get a later flight out tonight?” he offered, but Jean shook her head and swiftly pulled herself together as she pulled away from her husband.
“No darling, but thank you. I want this moment to be about Ola, and I don’t want to bring any more drama into this than I already am. I know her family won’t be thrilled with me showing up at all, but it would be an even bigger shit show if I brought my new husband.”
Alex nodded understandingly and pressed a kiss to her lips, not wanting to let go of her when she was clearly under so much stress. However, his worries would have to be put on the back burner given the tight time crunch they were on to make their flight.
Swiftly, all of the couples said their goodbyes as the three women piled in Stella’s car while Joy muttered her discontentment of the whole ordeal. The younger blonde began speeding them down the road, conscious of her sleeping niece in the backseat but also the time that they had to get there in order to make it through security and onto the plane.
What should’ve been a twenty minute drive turned into a brisk ten as she skidded to the curb of the small airport, the women shocked that they were offering flights out of there to Sweden. Swiftly, Stella hopped out and began unloading the luggage onto the curb, the blonde wasting little time before reaching into the car to help her daughter find her footing.
“Okay, all of you need to be safe and mindful on this trip. No over-stressing, and no being a hero, we don’t need anything else happening to any of you, okay?” Stella lectured sternly. She gave a knowing glare to each of them, not wanting to make another emergency out of the current one that they were already dealing with.
“We promise,” Emily finally agreed, reaching out to hug her mother as close as she physically could. Stella huffed and pulled her close, kissing the top of her head and swaying for a moment before pulling away.
“Don’t go having those babies without me,” she half teased, half demanded, recalling that Emily had said the same thing to her before Henry had been born. Emily chuckled at her request and nodded, placing her Stella’s hand on her stomach for assurance.
“I promise.”
Stella winked and pulled away before pulling her wife into one last embrace and kiss, the pair exhaling shakily to try and keep their composure in order to help Jean pull all of this off in order to support Ola through Jakob’s death.
“I love you, keep them safe for me,” Stella murmured into her ear. Dana nodded and reciprocated the kiss, lingering for a moment before pulling away. She knew she had a long night ahead of her, and wanted to mentally prepare herself for what she was about to endure.
Last but not least was Jean, the two sisters silently embracing, knowing that this was not going to be easy for her at all. After everything Jean had endured, she never imagined that she would be at Jakob Nyman’s bedside as he took his last breath. He had made her want to take her own after he had left her, and this felt like a cruel fate that she was being subjected to, to make sure that his was done with dignity.
“I know. I will be there when I can. Just hang on and lean on Dana and Emily until I get there. Once you land I’ll have your accommodations sent to you, just get on that plane and focus on getting there, we will handle everything else.”
Jean nodded at her sister and grabbed her luggage, watching as Dana grabbed hers and her daughter’s, adamant that she not carry anything heavy while on this trip. The three of them raced away from the curb as Stella swiftly leapt into the car and drove off, making their way to the security stop where the agent checked their tickets that had been printed.
Dana had managed to pull some last minute strings and had gotten the three women around the security checkpoint with her federal clearance that she had obtained while working at the FBI. An electric people mover was waiting for them as they went through the quick metal detector, and pat down for Emily, whisking them right to their gate where the passengers were still waiting to board.
With the hustle and bustle of everything, Jean felt herself finally begin to process what she was going to be walking into once the plane touched down in Sweden. She hadn’t seen her ex in four years, and the hurt that he had caused her made her feel sick to her stomach, despite all of the emotional work she had done to move past their relationship.
He had left her, simply because he didn’t trust her. He saw a woman who was confident in herself and her situation and could only manage to turn his nose to it. When her doctor had told her that she was pregnant, the fear was overwhelming, but she couldn’t help but feel a flutter of excitement knowing Jakob would be a part of this future. So his disownment and anger towards her felt like an astronomical blow to her chest when he stated he wanted nothing to do with her.
She had wailed over the life that they had built together, not even the little baby that she was carrying, but the love they had with each member of their respective families. She loved Ola like a daughter, and Otis had begun seeing Jakob as the father figure that he always craved, and Jean was devastated that Jakob was willing to tear it all apart due to his insecurity.
Jean had gotten the paternity test done, and had shown him the results in black and white, but he still argued that she had doctored it in some way. He didn’t see her as the trustworthy woman that she knew she was, and in his eyes that made her unworthy.
She recalled how heartbroken she had been when he declared that he would not be present for the birth, and when he had proven himself right as she laid bleeding out on the table after delivering their daughter completely alone. It was an ache that hurt deeper than her divorce, and she had required the love of her entire family to pick herself back up again.
It had taken her village, but she had done it, but she didn’t know if this trip would rip her open again and leave her raw and bleeding.
On top of that, she knew that this wouldn’t be like any other reunion, but she still felt rattled knowing that she would be seeing his face once again. She hated how much it was impacting her, but she knew deep down that dismissing her feelings would only make this worse, so once she was in the comfort of her accommodation, she would let the tears fall.
Before she could continue wallowing, she felt her niece frantically shake Jean with panic lacing her face. The older woman grimaced, not wanting to already put out one of her niece’s fires before they even got the chance to take off.
“We forgot Joy.”
Her blood went cold. Joy.
Joy Franklin Milburn.
She was supposed to be flying with them and she was nowhere to be found.
“Joy…” Jean began to whimper, her knees nearly giving out despite her being seated at the gate.
She could make out Dana frantically talking on the phone, but her panic didn’t lessen knowing her sister in law was taking care of it.
“What do you mean we forgot Joy?!? We can’t just forget people!” Jean shouted as she shot out of her seat in complete and utter terror. The room began to spin, and she quickly realized that her legs were not steady enough to hold her, prompting Emily to grab onto her arms and pull her back into her seat before shoving her head between her knees.
“Mom is handling it, Aunty Jean. Stella said she is safe and sound, we just forgot to grab her out of her car seat before we left, with all of the chaos she was still in the back and she had fallen asleep so she didn’t make any noise,” Emily tried to soothe, but Jean gave in and began to sob.
“Jean, Jean…shh shhh, it’s okay sweetie. Stella has Joy and she’s taking her back to your house, and she’s getting a flight for tomorrow morning to bring her out to you,” Dana tried to soothe while rubbing Jean’s back. The older woman shook her head as she began to cry openly at the airport gate. Thick wails spilled from her lips as she clutched at her chest whilst openly sobbing.
Frowning at her reaction to this slip up, Dana quickly hung up the phone and crouched in front of the wailing woman who was one my gasp away from a full-blown panic attack. She wanted to listen to her sister in law, but the overwhelming feelings of panic, shame, and guilt were too much to bear as she felt the weight of her mistake.
“I’m a terrible mother!” Jean managed to gasp frantically. Both Emily and Dana shook their heads at the frantic declaration, but Jean only continued to wail as everyone stared in uncomfortable judgment.
“Okay…okay, shhh Aunty Jean. Take a deep breath and look at me,” Emily tried, figuring her birth affirmations she practiced with her clients would come in handy. Jean whimpered at her words, but Emily managed to gently tilt her aunt to face her completely while her mother pressed a comforting hand to her clavicle.
“I–I forgot my baby…how can a mother forget her own child?!” Jean exclaimed, making Dana sigh and give her hand a squeeze to get her to focus on her.
“I forgot Emily at the grocery store when I first adopted her. It was a complete mistake, but I did it and it was the scariest moment of my entire life, but I did it and it happened. You are facing much more than I was back then, and the important thing is that she is safe and was never in harm’s way. She is going to get to sleep in her own bed and then in the morning she is going to get to fly on the airplane with her Aunty Stella and have way too many airplane snacks.”
Jean nodded at her words and calmed a bit, no longer in the frantic hysterics that she was in moments ago, but her tears still continued to fall down her cheeks as she glanced at Dana.
“Joy’s father is going to die tonight, and I didn’t know if bringing her was the right decision, but at least having her with me in Sweden would give me the option! I know she’s only four right now, but I keep thinking…when she’s older, what am I going to tell her when she asks about him? When she asks if I took her to say goodbye to her father on his deathbed, I won’t be able to look her in the eye and tell her I did what I thought was best.”
Dana winced at her words and gently embraced her sister in law, gently shushing her whilst rubbing her back. Jean burrowed into the comfort of her jumper and sobbed, clearly overwhelmed with the notion of doing what she felt was best.
“It was an honest mistake, Jean. Plus, not to be crass while he is literally on death’s doorstep, but Jakob was never a father to Joy. She is only four and doesn’t understand what is going on, and seeing him like that would probably do nothing but frighten her. Bringing her to the funeral is what is appropriate, and when she asks you about it later in her life you will be able to tell her that.”
Jean sniffled into Dana’s shirt and nodded, trying her hardest to catch her breath as she stared at the redhead. The younger woman carefully wiped her face off with a tissue that Emily handed over, wanting her to still look presentable as their boarding groups began to be called.
“You are doing your best right now, Aunty Jean, and I promise it will all work out.”
…
The harsh sting of cold smacked Jean in the face as she stepped outside of the airport in what she thought was her good winter coat. The wind pierced through the porous fibers of the wool, making her teeth chatter as the three women huddled together whilst waiting for a taxi. Stella had kept her word and managed to book them a large and extravagant cabin for their stay, given that they had no clue when they would be leaving. Their luggage rolled around their feet as the blistering wind pushed the wheeling objects if they did not keep a secure grip on them.
“Oh god even I’m freezing and I have two babies providing extra blood in my body to keep me warm,” Emily frowned while wrapping her arms around herself. Their misery was palpable, prompting both women to shuffle close as they watched their taxi pull to the curb with ease.
Given Jakob’s general aesthetic and style, they had assumed that he resided out in the countryside, but they were shocked at the bustling life of Stockholm. Swiftly, Dana and Jean loaded the taxi with the driver’s help, assisting Emily into the backseat with ease. They didn’t want to start the trip off with any additional injuries, so they had agreed to keep one hand on the gravid woman at all times when snow or ice were present.
“Vart skulle du vilja åka?”
The three women stared blankly at him as their exhausted brains tried to make sense of the language that they had heard Ola speak every once and a while.
“Oh, do you speak English?” the young woman asked while turning the heat up for the three of them in the car. Jean nodded gratefully and pulled out her phone, apologetic for not being prepared in a new country.
“Yes. I need to get to Södersjukhuset Hospital…” Jean attempted to pronounce whilst offering her phone to the eager young woman who nodded attentively. “I am getting dropped off, but my family will be heading to…”
Dana shook her head as Jean fumbled for the cabin’s address, frowning at the woman incredulously.
“We are staying with you tonight, Jean. That’s why we came,” Dana assured the older woman. Jean wanted to argue, knowing how exhausted they must be and how uncomfortable she knew Emily was, but the selfish part of her knew that just once they had come with her to be her moral support while she helped Ola. Resigning, she simply nodded and took their hands, allowing the driver to pull away from the curb and begin their silent drive.
…
Jean couldn’t help but feel like she was pulling up to the gallows as the taxi pulled up to the front of the hospital. Dread filled in the pit of her stomach, rendering her completely still as Dana and the driver worked to get the trunk unloaded and onto the curb.
Her hands shook as she felt Emily’s gentle touch on her wrist, coaxing her out of her nervous trance. Jean managed to muster whatever remaining strength she could find in her body and helped her niece onto the curb while her twins kicked actively after the flight where she wasn’t permitted to walk around due to the turbulence.
The trio quickly shuffled inside and out of the snow, holding onto one another until the warmth enveloped them completely. Jean pulled her greasy hair back and managed to wrangle the snow-soaked tresses into a clip as she tried to gather her thoughts regarding how to go about this.
“Why don’t we ask reception where Ola and Jakob are and then head up there?” Dana suggested upon noticing how they were just lingering in the lobby. Jean swallowed and nodded in agreement, grateful for her sister in law’s presence and ability to take charge when it came to emergencies like these.
“When we get there I think I should go in first, I don’t want to overwhelm her and if there is family there I don’t want to cause a scene with our entourage,” Jean explained warily. Her nerves rattled knowing that she was probably the least popular person in the Nyman family and that if anyone from that family was waiting in the waiting room she would only be messing things up further.
“Okay,” Emily agreed softly, nudging the two older women towards the desk. Jean stepped forward and cleared her throat, unsure whether or not she would sound like a fool asking for their rooms in English.
“What rooms are Ola and Jakob Nyman in?”
The receptionist looked up from her computer and smiled, brushing her green plant aside in order to see them more clearly.
“Oh dear, I’m going to have to ask you for your names and a form of identification. They are in the ICU and we need to make sure that you are who you say you are.”
Jean marveled at how her accent eased her worries as she slipped her ID out of her wallet along with Dana and Emily who slid them across the counter.
“Of course,” Jean whispered whilst feeling her stomach twist into a pit of nerves knowing how injured Ola had been and how much she had downplayed it for her on the phone.
“Okay, thank you. Dr. Milburn and Dr. Scully, you are permitted into both rooms, but unfortunately Miss Scully-Clarke you are only permitted in Ola’s room. I have written the numbers down on this little slip, follow the maps on the walls to the fourth floor.”
Emily frowned after hearing that she would not be permitted inside, but figured she had no reason to go in with them after all. No matter how delicate the situation, Emily did not like Jakob one bit, and knew she would not have enough sympathy towards the man to have an appropriate demeanor inside the room.
The small trio shuffled to the fourth floor, the elevator dinging and announcing the level in Swedish. Jean exhaled slowly as she stepped ahead of the group, glancing down at the number of the room and followed the pattern of numbers down the hall.
“Here is Ola’s room,” Jean finally breathed as she came upon room 407. The other two women nodded and urged her to knock, holding their breaths collectively until a faint and weary “come in” sounded from the room.
Jean pushed the modern-looking door open and pulled back the privacy curtain, gasping at what she saw when she stepped inside.
Ola had two deep circles beneath her eyes, webbing down to her cheekbones and nose, she had clearly hit her nose against the steering wheel which looked to be the cause of the bruising. They were swollen and her arm was tucked inside a sling to stabilize whatever sprain she had sustained. Tears coated her cheeks as if she had been crying constantly for hours, which Jean knew she had most likely been doing.
“Oh darling girl,” Jean frowned after Ola folded under Jean’s shocked stare. Swiftly she pulled the shock off of her face and raced to her bedside and gently pulled her into a hug. She didn’t want to hurt her any more than she already was, but she knew that this poor girl was in desperate need of support.
“Thank you for coming…I’m sorry I made you fly here for your ex boyfriend,” Ola began to cry, her voice heavy with shame as she tried to shield herself with her blanket. Jean tutted and gently stroked her back as she shook her head.
“I’m here for you, darling. Now that I’m here, how can I help with all of this,” Jean urged while looking at Dana momentarily. The injured girl winced and tried to move herself off of the bed, her leg now revealing its swollen and inflamed state.
“Oh sweetheart, should you be out of bed before your surgery?” Jean inquired while looking at Dana for guidance. The redheaded doctor stepped forward and grabbed a pair of gloves from the box that was hanging on the wall beside her bed. Gently, she prodded at the shiny skin and waited for Ola to wince. However, the young girl didn’t even flinch at the sensation.
“They gave me strong pain medication in my foot. I can’t walk or feel anything, so I am fine to see my dad and do what we have to do…” she declared quietly, her voice catching in her throat as she thought ahead to what she was going to be forced to do.
Emily’s bottom lip quivered over her cousin’s clear pain, moving between her mother and aunt to embrace Ola. Jean watched as the two girls held one another, the unorthodox nature of their friendship making both women smile slightly at how they cared for one another.
“Okay then, let’s go and take Ola to see her dad and we are going to make sure her leg is elevated at all times. I don’t like how swollen and shiny it is, and I’m shocked that the doctors left you here,” Dana frowned while effortlessly lifting Ola into the wheelchair that had been left in the corner. Ola sniffled at her judgment and allowed Dana to prop the foot rest up and stack it high with pillows from the cupboard.
“I told them to let me be until I saw my dad through…I haven’t agreed to surgery until he is cared for,” she admitted softly. Jean could see the slight panic in Dana’s eyes over how long her leg had gone without care.
“Okay then, if you’re ready then we are,” Dana nodded, Jean exhaling slowly as she stepped beside her once-stepdaughter, taking her hand.
“It’s weird, the only link between the two of us is going to die tonight,” Ola observed while clinging to Jean’s icy hand. The older blonde felt her heart struggle with the beat that followed that statement, prompting her to glance down at Ola as Dana began to guide them down the hall without Emily.
“Nonsense, we still have Joy, and we still have one another. I don’t need your blood running through my veins or a man to connect us. We are our own family, and we built that all on our own.”
Ola nodded as a silent sob spilled out of her chest, her only tell giving her away being her tighter grip on Jean’s hand.
Before they could even realize it, they rolled in front of room 411, the word härbärge written in black letters on the sign beside the door.
“That means hospice,” Ola translated, her tone flat yet trembling as she maintained her grip on Jean like a vice. The older woman swallowed back the initial shock of hearing that with her own ears, knowing that the man she once felt such love for, was just behind the door.
“I don’t think I can do it,” Ola finally admitted quietly as the three of them took their moment to try and compose themselves before heading inside. Jean clung to her hand as if it were the only thing keeping her anchored to the Earth, but knew that she had to be that centering force for Ola.
“I know, it seems truly impossible, but we are here, and you aren’t going in alone.”
At that, Ola began to cry. Thick, heavy tears of grief fell down her face as she shook in her chair, alerting the nurses to poke around the corner and gasp when they saw that they had arrived. Their quiet pages to the doctor filled the room, and soon the quiet commotion would engulf them completely.
Without missing a beat, Dana sprinted into action and began whispering to the nurses, taking care of the logistics that were being so loudly discussed in front of the grieving family. The commotion began to quickly lull, prompting the redhead to return to their small huddle outside of the room.
“The doctor is coming, you can go inside if you want or we can wait out here,” Dana reported softly. The two adults could see the cogs turning in Ola’s mind, her courage shining through her pores as she sucked in a deep breath and glanced up at them with her swollen eyes.
“Let’s go in.”