Ezra opened the car door and pulled Jessa out. He moved her easily to his chest and kissed her. I led him up the porch stairs to the house and unlocked the door. The house was quiet and he went straight upstairs to my room. I followed him up the stairs and broke off to go check on my Dad.

I opened my Dad's door and he was still sleeping. He looked so peaceful earlier and I was glad he was going to be able to get some rest while Jessa was out too. I crossed over his room to close the shades to get the sun out of his eyes and looked back at him. He looked off. His skin was gray in the dim light. I walked over to the bed and placed my hand on his shoulder to shake him. He felt slightly cold and didn't respond to me when I touched him.

"Dad." I shook him softly.

He didn't move.

"Dad, we're back." I shook him again.

Nothing.

"Daddy." I shook him harder, whispering.

His eyes were slightly open and looked cloudy.

"Wake up, Dad." I choked out.

His skin felt like cool leather.

"Dad, we are home now. Jessa is sleeping." I tried to smile.

He didn't smile back.

"Daddy, please, I need you."  I couldn't breathe.

Tears were running down my face and I leaned into him, begging him to wake up.

"Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!" I cried louder as I shook him. Why won't he wake up?

"Please wake up. I don't know what to do."

Someone in the room began screaming.

Ezra burst into the room and his eyes were fixated on my face. He looked down at the bed and began to run around it to catch me as I collapsed to the floor. He held my arms as I fought and scratched at him so he would let me go. I needed to go try to wake him up.

Why wouldn't Ezra let me wake him up?

Ezra turned me towards his chest and pushed my head into him. I bit him as hard as I could to try to get him to let me go to my Dad. He used one arm to hold me in place and the other reached in his pocket to pull something out.  His phone was in his hand and pressed to his ear.

I couldn't make out what he was saying to the person on the phone other than emergency. I punched him and smacked him as I cried for my Dad into his chest.

Without another word, he picked me up and carried me down the stairs and sat me on the couch. I stared silently at the wall as the sirens came closer and closer.  All I could hear was the sounds whirring and screeching through my ears.  It was too loud. 

Ezra was kneeling in front of me saying something to me.  He was holding my head in his hands and his lips were moving. His eyes were a gray-blue instead of the light ice.  Gray, my Dad's skin was gray.  Ezra began tapping my cheek with his hand, but I couldn't feel it.  Just like my Dad, I didn't feel anything. 

Ezra jumped up quickly and ran towards the stairs.  There was a small imprint in the carpet where his knee had been.  My Mom would want me to go get the vacuum to make sure no one saw the carpet looking like this.  I stood up and Ezra was standing in front of me, holding Jessa.  They were so sweet together, she was crying and he was soothing her.

"I need to vacuum." I said and tried to walk past him to the hall closet where my Mom kept it.  I looked up and his mouth moved again, but there were no words. He grabbed my arm, trying to hold me in place. 

The front door opened and I watched silently as two paramedics walked in. They looked like nice people.  My Mom would tell me I should offer them something to drink.

"Upstairs, back bedroom." Ezra mouthed in slow motion pointing to the staircase. He sounded like he was screaming in a big bowl of gelatin. I heard footsteps thudding up the stairs.  Ezra was still cradling Jessa and it was the last thing I saw before my vision went black.

"When I came to, there were a few guys standing around me with flashlights in my eyes.

"She's back. She just fainted." One of them said. I looked around the room, not remembering what was going on. I saw Ezra in the hallway with Jessa in his arms and she was whimpering. He had my pink phone pressed to his ear and was frantically talking to someone.

I heard him say, "Anna, I don't care if you hate me. You need to get your ass on a flight and get JD here now. It's about his Dad."

Some men began walking down the steps and with a black bag on a stretcher. Ezra shifted his eyes towards the noise and saw the same thing. In a flash, he turned to lock eyes with me. All I could see any longer was the black bag. My dad was in that bag.  I had to get him out of there.  He wouldn't want to be in there.

I jumped to my feet.

Ezra threw the phone down and darted towards me.  I was in midair lunging for the stretcher when his arms wrapped around me and he tackled me back into the couch. He blocked my view and surrounded me.

"Don't look, my beautiful girl. You don't need to see this. Look at Jessa, baby, look at our daughter. She needs her Momma right now."

I felt the little girl whimpering and shaking, causing my instincts to take over. I grabbed her in my arms and buried her in me.

"Shh, sweet pea. It's ok. We will be ok." I whispered as I ran my hands over her hair and back.

"Momma, too loud." She cried against me.

"I know, baby.  It will be over soon. Momma thinks they are too loud too." I held as close as I could as she shook against me.

"Hey, man."  Ezra climbed off the couch and I watched him walk over to one of the paramedics who was just standing around waiting for the others to finish. "Do you think you can shut off the sirens?  They are bothering my daughter and my girl... her mother." 

"I'll go turn them off.  They usually turn them off by now anyway."  He said as he walked out the door.

Ezra sat back down next to us and wrapped his arms around Jessa and me to shield us from the horror story unfolding in front of our eyes. Jessa stayed limp against me and I looked up into Ezra's eyes as he looked down at her with a worried look. She was always so bubbly and full of energy.  Quiet, crying Jessa was heartbreaking.  It was like she knew her Papa was gone.

"Did anyone call my mom?" I asked. I would never be able to tell her myself. She would be broken; my Dad had always done everything for her until he got sick. She wouldn't know how to survive without him.

"I called her Riley. One of her coworkers is driving her home now." I wanted to say thank you to him, but the words wouldn't come out. I leaned my head into his shoulder and he stroked my hair, trying to comfort me.  We sat there for a long time, just waiting for what would come next.  I had no clue what I was doing.

Aiden ran through the open door and headed straight for the couch. Ezra stood up to let Aiden wrap his arms around Jessa and me.

"Thanks for calling me." Aiden said to Ezra and he nodded back at him. "Riley, I'm so sorry." His words released a flood of tears and I began crying. Aiden cradled us, whispering how sorry he was over and over again.

Ezra looked up and flew to the door in a flash. I saw my Mom run through the door. He collided with her and pulled her into him to stop her from going any further up the stairs. He wrapped his hand around the back of her head and she collapsed into him, crying my Dad's name. He held her close and tight, whispering his condolences in her ear.

Aiden and I sat and watched as Ezra held my Mom, trying to keep her on her feet. He stroked her hair and turned to look in the living room at me. I passed Jessa to Aiden, who took her lovingly in his arms and got up off the couch. I ran over to them and Ezra shifted his arms to let me in to hug her as he clung to her to keep her from falling over. She felt me near her the same way I felt Jessa when she was near me. Her motherly instinct took over, just like mine did when Jessa was crying.

"Peanut, I'm so sorry you found him." She said into my ear. "He has been putting on a brave face for a long time. He's not suffering anymore." I choked back a sob at her words. I knew it was the truth, but it still hurt so badly.