Jason took a quick shower at the station, changed into clean clothes, and finally headed out. Thest thing he wanted was for Monica to see him dirty and banged up.
He picked a long-sleeve shirt to hide the bruises on his arms.
On the way, Jason swung by the store and grabbed Monica''s favorite: chocte- dipped strawberries. Lately, work had swallowed up all his time-he''d barely managed a meal with Monica, and her texts piled up on his phone, unanswered.
He drove straight to the Franco house. With his fingerprint code, he let himself in. At the door, he paused to straighten his shirt, took a breath, and checked the strawberries-hoping, just this once, to surprise her.
"Monica, I''m home!" he called out.
The house was dark and silent.
Weird. Jason flicked on the lights and nced at the clock. Past ten, and Monica wasn''t home?
"Monica? Monica?" he called, setting the strawberries down, then walking room to
room.
Nothing. The ce was empty.
Jason sank onto the couch, pulled out his phone, and tried calling Monica. Maybe she was stuckte at the salon.
The call rang and rang, but she didn''t pick up. Jason''s nerves started to fray. He tried again—still nothing. Growing anxious, he called Anastasia.
At the hospital.
Chase''s surgery had just finished, and he''d been wheeled into the ICU. Monica''s whole family followed close behind. Anastasia saw Jason''s call and slipped away to answer.
"Jason?"
"Anastasia, do you know where Monica is? I''ve tried calling-she''s not picking
up."
"She''s at Hope Hospital. Monica''s dad had an ident..."
Anastasia quickly exined. Jason''s face fell. "I''ming now."
He grabbed his keys and hurried out.
Thinking back to Monica''s missed calls earlier, it all clicked into ce.
After hanging up, Anastasia returned to the ICU.
No visitors were allowed. Chase was still unconscious. The family could only look in through the ss.
Abby was in tears. Jackson and Monica looked like they''d aged overnight— suddenly calm, suddenly grown up.
The two of them spoke quietly with the doctors about Chase''s condition. The surgery had saved him, but he''d lost
ateg. For now, they had to wait
and see if he stabilized before
moving to a regr room.
It was a lot. Monica looked pale, but she stood tall. With her dad down, she was
the oldest-she had to hold it together.
She asked Jackson to take Abby
home. Only one of them was allowed to stay, and Abby was a
mess. Jackson helped their
and tumed to Monica. "I''ll take home. I cane backter if you want."
up
Monica shook her head. "Stay with her tonight. Switch with me tomorrow."
Once they left, Monica finally let herself lean on Anastasia and broke down. "Ana..."
Anastasia had seen iting-Monica had been holding back tears for hours. Now, she just let it all go.
"It''s okay. Let it out," Anastasia whispered, rubbing Monica''s back. "The doctor said the surgery went well. The most important thing is, he''s alive."
Chase hade so close to not making it. Monica couldn''t help but shudder at what could have happened if someone hadn''t pulled him out in time. The thought made her sick to her stomach.
She was scared.
"My dad''s busted his back his whole life. Now, when he should be enjoying things, this happens, Ana." Monica cried, showing Anastasia her most vulnerable side-she didn''t have to pretend to be strong here.
Anastasia''s eyes welled up. "Monica..."
She hugged her tight, trying to offerfort.
Just then, Jason burst into the waiting area, out of breath. "Monica! How''s your dad?"
Monica heard his voice and straightened, quickly wiping at her cheeks. She was still upset with Jason her eyes went cold, and she didn''t answer him.
Anastasia felt the tension and quickly found an excuse to leave. "Jason, stay with Monica, okay? Pattie''s still here at the hospital—I''ll go check on her. Monica, I''lle by tomorrow morning."
Monica nodded. She understood-Pattie neededpany, too.
As she left, Anastasia shot Jason a meaningful look: Don''t mess this up. She needs you.
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