One More Chance (Chance, Part 2) (15 page)

“You need to get back here asap,” she shrieks.

“What’s going on?  Is
Hails in labor?” I ask excited.

“No, she’s been in a car accident,” she says
, as I now realize she’s crying.

“What?  Is she alright?”
I ask panicking.

“I-I don’t know, the doctors won’t tell me anything.  It’s bad Quinn
, it’s really bad.”

“What hospital?”

“University,” she stutters

“We’re on our way.  Keep me posted Kenzie,” I say before disconnecting the call.

“What happened?” Brody asks worriedly.

“Haley was in a car accident, we need to hurry and get to University now,”
I say shaking.

“
Shit,” he says as he pushes on the accelerator, “Is she all right; what about the baby?”

“She doesn’t
know anything, we need to hurry,” I plead.

“
Call Liam,” he says as he hands me his phone.

“Shit,” I say as I take his p
hone with shaky hands to call Liam.

“You need to use the bathroom again?” Liam jokes.

“No, I don’t need to use the bathroom.”

“What’s up then?” he says laughing.

“We need to head to University Hospital,” I say shakily.

“What’s up?  Is Haley in labor?” he asks
shocked.

“No
, she’s not in labor,” I hesitate, “Liam, she was in a car accident.”

“What?  Is she okay?  Is the baby okay?” he
asks worriedly as his car accelerates.

“I don’t know, Kenzie hasn’t been told anything. Just go to the hospital.”

“Okay,” he says before disconnecting the call and driving faster.

Liam

I barely get out of my car, as I race inside the hospital.  “Haley Lawrence, what floor is she on?” I ask the receptionist as I’m panicking.

“Hold
on, Sir, let me check,” she says happily.  “It looks like she’s still in surgery.  You can go to the waiting room on floor 5,” she says as I run towards the stairs. I race up the stairs to the entrance for 5.

“Liam,” Kenzie rushes towards me as she’s crying.

“What happened?”

“A car crashed i
nto her driver side, they rushed her into surgery,” she says through tears.

“How long has
she been in surgery?”

“An hour maybe,”
she stutters.

“Have they told you anything about Lily?”

“They were going to have to cut her out because she was in distress,” she says gravely.

“Shit,” I say pulling on my hair,
panicking, “It’s too early.”

A
n hour later a doctor comes walking our way, “Any news on Haley Lawrence?” I ask as soon as he enters the room.

“I’m her sister,” Kenzie speaks up
, as she stands beside me.

“She’s still in surgery.  We had to deliver the baby, she’s
breathing, but it’s labored,” the doctor states.

“What floor?”
I ask.

“Rig
ht now she’s on the 6
th
floor.”

“Can I see her?” I ask.

“He’s the father,” Kenzie says quickly.

“Come with me,” the doctor says as I follow him out. We go up one floor to where he leads me to a nurse who shows me where my daughter is.

“As of right now, you can only see her through the glass,” the nurse says.

“Why can’t I go in?  I want to see her,” I snap.

“Please let him go in, he’s her dad and her mom’s in surgery fighting for her life,” Kenzie pleads for me.

She lo
oks at us both sympathetically, “I could get into so much trouble for this,” she says, “Come with me.” I quickly follow.

“Wash your hands good,” she says after she hands me
a blue suit thing to put over top of my clothes.  I hurry and change, making sure to wash my hands.

“Ready,” I say nervously.

“You won’t be able to pick her up, but you can touch her through the machine,” she says as she walks me towards my baby girl.

“Okay.”

“Here she is.  I’ll let you have some time with her,” she says before walking away.

Lookin
g down at this tiny little girl breaks my heart.  There are wires and tubes hanging from her body.  She looks so fragile.  I reach my hand in the front circle and touch her tiny little fingers.  I didn’t know fingers could be so small.  The first tear falls before I even realize it. “Hey Lily, it’s me, daddy.  I need you to be a fighter Lily, just like your mommy.  I love you sweet girl,” I say as I rub her tiny fingers.

After a half hour
, I head back down to the fifth floor to see if there’s an update on Haley.  I walk through the waiting room doors to see Haley’s parents and my parents sitting there along with Isaac, Spence, Max, Quinn, Brody, and Kenzie.

“Any update?” I ask to no one in particular.

“Not yet sweetie,” my mom says.

“It’s been hours, they have to be able to tell us something,” Kenzie yells.

A doctor walks in as Kenzie ends her rant, “What’s going on?” I ask the doctor promptly as her parents stand up.

“Haley is in a coma.  She has some swelling in the brain so we
are monitoring her closely, but we hope the swelling will go down.

“How long is she going to be in a coma?”
Mrs. Lawrence asks.

“We aren’
t sure.”

“Where is she now?” I ask frustrated.

“They are moving her to ICU on the sixth floor.”

“Is she going to be okay?” Becky asks.

“The next 48 hours are critical for her; we are doing everything we can.”

“She could die?” Kenzie asks as tears fall.

“We are doing everything we can to help your sister,” the doctor says.  “You can go up to the sixth floor, but its only immediate family that will be able to see her.”

We rush to the elevator as it takes us to where we need to go to see Haley.

“How’s Lily?” Becky asks me in the elevator.

“She’s beautiful, but she has lots of wires and tubes hooked to her.”

“Haley told me that Lily’s yours,” she says, surprising me.

“She is mine, they both are.”

“Your mom and dad told us about your wedding not happening,” Mr. Lawrence says.

“I couldn’t get married; I’m not over your daughter.  I thought I could come back and tell her, but instead
, here we are.”

“She’s going to be okay and so is Lily,” Becky says, “They have to be.”

We head off the elevator and towards the ICU area.  “Only one person at a time,” the nurse says.

Mrs. Lawrence
rushes inside.  I’m hoping I get to see her; I need to make sure she’s okay.   Mrs. Lawrence comes out about ten minutes later crying.  Shit.  Mr. Lawrence goes in and when he comes out he has tears in his eyes too.  Kenzie is bawling by the time she comes out.

“Can I go in?” I ask nervously.

“Yeah,” Becky says, “Just be prepared, she’s pretty banged up.”

I walk inside to find Haley hooked to so many machines.  Some of them are making annoying beeping sounds
, while others flash numbers.  She has bruises on her face, neck, and arms that I can see and her face is swollen on the left side.

“Hey
Hails, I’m here,” I tell her as I take a seat on the chair beside her bed.

“Baby
, I need you to please wake up,” I say as a few stray tears fall, “You gave birth to our daughter today.  She’s beautiful and she looks just like you.  She’s so tiny.  I didn’t know fingers and toes could be so small, but they are.  Hails, you need to wake up so you can see our baby girl.” I say as more tears fall. “I’m not getting married.  I can’t, I’m still in love with you Hails and I want us to raise our daughter together.  Please wake up.  Please.  Baby, I need you to come back to me,” I say as a fresh wave of tears fall.

I’m not sure how long I stay in the room with
Hails until I’m told I have to leave, so they could run some tests.  I walk out and find the Lawrence’s sitting outside.  “You can go to Haley’s house, I’ll stay here,” I say as it’s getting later and later.

“I’m not leaving,” Kenzie replies.

“We aren’t either, but thank you Liam,” Becky says.

“I’m going to go check on Lily.”

“May we come with you?” Becky asks looking worried.

“Sure, she’s your
granddaughter,” I say with a smile.  I lead us to where Lily’s at.

“I figured you would be back,” the nurse says with a smile, “we moved her to the green area, which is over here,” she says leading us to where they moved my
daughter.  “I can’t let you all in, I’m sorry.”

“That’s okay, we can look through the glass,” Becky says kindly.

The nurse walks into the room and moves the machine that Lily’s in closer to the window so we can see her.

“Oh my, she’s beautiful,” Becky says as she starts crying.

“She’s beautiful,” Mr. Lawrence agrees.

“Look how small she is,” Kenzie says as she touches the glass.

“She’s tiny, but perfect,” I say as I smile at my little girl.

“
She’s a miniature you and Haley,” Kenzie says with a smile.

“Well
, she is our baby,” I say laughing.

“She’s definitely got the blonde hair from both of you, I bet her eyes are blue too,” Kenzie says.

“I haven’t seen her eyes yet, she’s had them closed the entire time.”

“How long does she have to stay in there?” Becky asks.

“Until they can make sure her lungs are fully developed and that she can breathe on her own.”

“Hopefully that’s soon,” Kenzie says.

“I know.  I want to hold her.”

“Me too,” Becky says with a smile.

For the next few weeks, I stay with Haley and Lily at the hospital.  I only leave to go to Hails’ house to shower and change before coming right back to the hospital.

“Baby, please wake up. I know I messed up, I should have given you the stupid break and then everything would be fine, you wouldn’t be here.  God
, baby I miss you, please open those pretty blue eyes for me.  I don’t want to raise our daughter without you; you need to wake up so you can meet her.  She’s beautiful Hails.”

“Hails
, please wake up,” I say as I rub her hand allowing tears to fall.

“You’re crying again?” Kenzie asks as she walks into the room, “I’ve never seen a grown man cry as much as you have.”

“I love her.  She shouldn’t be in here,” I say slightly annoyed.

“I know you do, and I’m sure she can hear you.  She is going to wake up Liam.”

“Is everything okay?” I ask, wondering why she barged in, she doesn’t usually do that.

“The nurse wanted to
know if you wanted to go see Lily.”

“Yes,” I shout as I stand up quickly, “Baby I’m going to
see our daughter, I’ll be right back.  I love you,” I say as I kiss her forehead before heading to get our daughter.

Haley (5
weeks Later
)

“Baby
, please come back to me. Open your eyes baby,” I hear someone say, as something gets my arm wet. “I love you Hails, please wake up,” he pleads as he squeezes my hand.

Everything’s blurry.  What is that beeping sound?  I try opening my eyes again
, “Liam,” I struggle to say.

“
Hails you’re awake. Holy shit, baby, you’re awake,” he says ecstatically.

My throat is so hoarse, “Drink.”

“Sure,” he says as he grabs something and pours it into a cup and brings it over to me holding the straw at my mouth.  I take a few gulps enjoying the coldness on my throat.  “Where am I?” I ask as I try to look around.

“You’re in the hospital
, Hails.  You were in a car accident,” he says to me. “Let me go grab the doctor,” he says as he exits my room briefly.  He comes right back in with a doctor and nurse on his tail.

“How are you feeling Haley?” the doctor asks.

“Sore.”

“That’s to be expected.  Do you remember what happened?” he asks.

“Not really.”

“You were in a bad car accident.  We had to do surgery on you and then you went into a coma,” he says.

It takes me a few more minutes of listening to the doctor talk to me before I realize I was pregnant. “Where’s my baby,” I scream as I clutch my stomach realizing there’s nothing in there.

“Calm down babe, she’s okay.  Your mom’s with her,” Liam says as he comes up beside me and grabs my hand.

“She’s okay?” I ask as tears start to fall.

“She’s perfect.”

“Can I see her?” I ask the doctor through tears.

“Let me check your vitals and then you can have visitors.”

“I’ll go get her,” Liam says as he walks out of the room.  The doctor checks my vitals and before I know it, I watch as Liam enters holding this tiny bundle of joy in his arms. “Hey Lily, mommy wants to meet you,” he says to her as he places her into my hands.

“She’s beautiful,” I say through tears, not believing I’m holding my baby girl.

“Just like her mommy,” Liam says as he sits on the edge of the bed.

“How long was I in a coma?”

“Five weeks, Hails.”

“
Five weeks?” she shouts causing Lily to start to cry, “Shhh, its okay baby, mommy didn’t mean to yell, Shh, go back to sleep baby girl. When did I have her?” I whisper.

“
Five weeks ago.”

“She’s
five weeks old already?  But she’s so tiny,” I say as I stare down at her.

“She was 3 pounds 2
ounces when she was born, but now she’s 5 pounds 8 ounces.  She was in the Nicu for the first four weeks babe. She’s actually grown quite a bit,” he says with a smile, “She’s quite the eater.”

“I guess we know who she gets that from,” I say with a smile.

Just then Kenzie walks into the room rushing over to Haley.  “God, it’s so good to see you awake,” she says giving her and Lily a loose hug. “Liam, your mom wants to talk to you,” Kenzie says to Liam.

“Oh, okay, I’ll be right back,” he says with a look of longing before walking out of the room.

“What’s going on?” I ask Kenzie.

“He loves you.”

“He’s married,” I state, as I stare down at my beautiful baby girl.

“No, he’s not. He called off the wedding.  Hails
, he wants to be with you.  He was on his way to tell you that when he found out you were in an accident.  He hasn’t left your side the entire time.”

“What?” I ask not believing what she’s telling me.

“He loves you Hails.  You can have the family you’ve always wanted,” she says as she sits on the edge of the bed, “This little girl is so beautiful,” she says as she rubs Lily’s head.

“He didn’t get married?” I ask still not believing it.

“No, he didn’t.  Haley he sat in here talking and crying, begging for you to wake up, that he’s going to make things right and you guys are going to be the family you both want.  Hails, I knew he loved you, but I never knew how much until I saw him talk to you day after day.”

The tears start to fall.  I can’t help but look down at this beautiful little girl and hearing what Liam’s done and said.

“Hails, Liam would bring Lily in here and talk to you, describing her to you.  I’ve caught him a few times saying how he can’t live without the two of you,” she says with sadness, “It was beautiful Haley; you need to give him another chance.”

“How do we just go back though?” I ask, wanting nothing more than to spend my life with Liam, but he left, he didn’t want to be with me.

“You don’t go back, you move forward together. Start here with Lily, go home and be a family.”

“
Hails, there’s something I want to tell you,” he says softly as he reenters my hospital room.

“I’ll let you two
talk,” Kenz says as she rushes out of the room.

“We will
talk and figure everything out,” I say interrupting him.

“I didn’t get married Hails,”
he says as he sits on the edge of the bed.

“
Why not?” I ask curiously.

“Because I’m in love with you.
  I tried to move on, I thought I could, but I can’t.  I love you and I want us to raise Lily as a family.”

“Are you sure?” I ask.

“I’m positive baby,” he says as he comes up beside me and Lily.  “This right here is our family, the way it’s supposed to be,” he says before kissing my temple.

“I love you,” I whisper through
tears.

“I love you too sweetheart.  Now
, I know your family is waiting to see you, so let me tell them so they can come in,” he says as he gives me a quick kiss on the lips before heading towards the door.

Everyone comes rushing in hugging me and Lily, with smiles and excitement.  I end up staying in the hospital for
another three weeks before I’m finally released to go home.

The final week I was in the hospital, Liam and I talked a lot and we’ve decided to give us another c
hance.  A chance to be a family; a chance to show each other how much we love one another.

“What’s wrong?’ I ask Liam for the third time as we head home.

“I have to leave in a few days.”

“Training camp
starts already,” I say forgetting the day.

“
The season started babe,” he says as he runs his hands through his messy blonde hair “I don’t know how I can be away from you two right now.”

“It will be okay.  We can talk on the phone ev
ery day, I can send you videos; we can do this Liam.  You won’t miss anything that Lily does, I’ll get it all recorded.”

He pulls in the driveway and puts the car into park, “She isn’t the only reason I don’t want to leave
Hails,” he says piercing me with those sexy blue eyes.

“Oh.”

“I meant it when I told you, I love you.  I want us to be a family babe, you, me, and Lily.”

“I love you to
o,” I say as I lean in and give him a kiss, “How soon do you have to leave?”

“Coach
gave me a break, so I only have a couple days.”

“Okay, we can do this,” I say as I unbuckle the seatbelt and get out of the car.  Liam rushes over to my side, “Are you okay?” he asks. “I’m fine.”

“Alright, I’ll get Lily out then,” he says as he opens the back of Quinn’s car to get Lily and her car seat out of the car. He throws the small diaper bag over his muscular, sexy shoulder after he unhooks her car seat.  He carries her and her things like they weigh nothing, “Ready to head inside?”

“Definitely.”

We head inside to find both our families sitting in the living room looking excited to see us.  With hugs and kisses and sweet, kind words, the rest of the evening has everyone hanging out and feeling blessed.