"Hi, I'm here to see Hank Fitzgerald." 

The petite blonde nurse looked up at me with a warm smile. It was the same smile that every receptionist and nurse I've talked to on the way up to the third floor has given me. It was the same one that said 'your relative is probably not going to make it'. 

"Hi," she said, "are you family?" 

"Yes, I'm his daughter." 

The nurse typed something in her computer before she looked back up at me. "Okay, great. Do you have ID?"

I handed her my driver's license and she continued her typing. Damn typing. I looked around the large waiting room of the ICU at Tampa Genreal Hospital. There were people sleeping, crying, and pacing. I knew how they felt. I've never been in a situation like this before. I never had a family member sick. But now...now I knew how they felt. I was restless and agitated the whole plane ride over here. When I got the phone call from my mom was worse. 

I had just gotten home from hanging out with Harper and Lanie. I barely had time to open a bottle of wine and over-analyze how I felt about Nathan kissing that blonde before the phone rang. It was my mother. She called me from the hospital and told me that my dad had a heart attack. He was stable, but in the ICU. I told her I was going to be on the first flight out in the morning. She insisted that I didn't need to come all the way here, but there was no way I wasn't going to be there for my father when he needed me. 

After I hung up with my mom, I lost it. I broke down with every emotion you could imagine. I felt scared, alone, relieved that he was okay, and fear that he wouldn't make it out of the hosiptal. That was probably one of the few times in my life that I felt that alone. I could barely sleep that night. I kept waking up, pacing, going back to sleep, having nightmares...

I called Lanie when I had gotten up this morning. I didn't want her to think I was running away again. I was coming back. I was starting a new life in New York and I wanted to get back to it. I liked working at the hospital. I liked the few patients I had. I've only been there a few weeks, but I really cared about them. Well, most of them. There was one in particular that threw my emotions around like a pinball machine. And that wasn't a good thing. Being around Nathan Jenkins was never an easy thing. 

I told myself over and over again that I was over him. Sometimes I believed it...other times I didn't. When I was alone, or away from him, it was easy to convince myself that there wasn't anything between us anymore. But when I was near him, my heart did that little flip thing. I would get butterflies. Memories from our time together back in the day would plague me. I would hear the sweet things he used to whisper in my ear and it would send chills down my spine.

Then I would remember that fucking note he left me. I would remember how I tried to call him over and over again. Lanie didn't know where he went. No one did. He vanished. I spent months missing him. Crying over my lost love. People said I was young and immature; that what we had wasn't real. Eventually, I believed it and I put it behind me. I put him in a little box and tucked him away in one of the dark corners of my heart. Almost thirteen years had went by before I saw him in that bar in New York City. 

"Please smile into the camera so I can get your picture for your visitor's pass," the nurse said, drawing me back to my current situation. 

I looked into the small black camera. I felt the corners of my lips lift in something resembling a smile before the flash went off. She handed me my newly printed visitor's pass. I didn't even look at the picture. I probably looked like death itself. 

"Okay, Ms. Fitzgerald, go straight down that hall and it's room 1312."

"Thank you." 

I walked to my dad's hospital room in a daze. The heavy smell of antiseptic filled my nose and it made me nauseous. I've always hated hospitals. There was just something about them that made me feel dark and icky. 

When I found room 1312, I closed my eyes tight for a moment and tried to collect myself. I had no idea how my mom was going to be, and I wanted to be strong for her. After I took a few deep breaths, I entered the hospital room. 

My eyes immediately went to my father. He was laying in bed with an oxygen tube in his nose and multiple wires that seemed to be coming from everywhere. His eyes were closed and it appeared like he was sleeping peacefully. I knew better. The nurse told me that he was under sedation until tomorrow. 

The door to the bathroom opened and I saw my mother walk out. She was dabbing her eyes with a tissue. 

"Mama?"

She gasped and turned towards me. We ran at each other in the small room and embraced. 

"What are you doing here, Karma? I told you that you didn't need to come." 

I squeezed her even tighter. "I want to be here, mama." 

She pulled way from me and smiled as she took in my appearance. She brushed my hair back from my face before she took my chin in her hand. "You came straight here from the airport, didn't you?"

I nodded. 

"You need some rest, Karma." 

"Not yet." I glanced to my unconscious father. "How is he?" 

She walked over to my father's bedside and took his hand in hers. My parents had met in the eighth grade. My father had been crushing on her, but was too nervous to ask her out. So, my mom invited him for ice cream. They've been together ever since. Their story was one that I idolized. I wanted what they had ever since I was a little girl. Instead of bedtime stories, I had my mom tell me the story of her and my dad. 

"He's okay," she said quietly. "It was a major heart attack, but they said that he should make a full recovery. It took a lot out of him and they want to monitor him for a few days to be on the safe side."

I sat down in the small chair on the other side of his bed. "Where did it happen?" 

"We were having dinner at our favorite restaurant." 

"Maggiano's?"

She nodded and kept her eyes on my dad. "Yes. He grabbed his chest and I could tell he was in pain. I called 9-1-1 and, thankfully, we were close to Tampa General." 

Thank God, indeed. Tampa General was the best hospital in Tampa. Especially when it came to trauma cases. They also had a great cardio team. When I went to school at University of South Florida, I originally wanted to be a nurse. I did my clinicals here at TGH. I new some of the staff and it helped lessen the blow a little. I knew he was in great hands. 

I stayed with my mother for a few hours before I started falling asleep in my chair. She pestered me to go home to her house and get some rest. When I put up a fight, she said for me to come back in the morning and we would switch off. It seemed like the best idea. My mom needed more rest than I did. Tomorrow I would come stay with my dad during the day.

After valet brought me my car, I climbed inside and made my way through Downtown Tampa until I merged onto I-275 north. Thankfully, my parents only lived about eighteen minutes from the hospital. Good thing, too. I was beyond exhausted and jet-lagged. 

As I turned onto my parents' street in Lutz, I couldn't remember even driving here. I was sleep-deprived, upset, and confused. Have you ever had one of those days? When you drive home from work or something and you don't actually remember making the trip? That's what happened to me tonight. I turned onto my parents driveway and put the car in park. I felt gross and wanted to take a shower immediately. 

I got out and collected my bags from the trunk of the rental car. I pushed the little alarm button and waited for the beep-beep so it wouldn't get stolen. That's all I needed. I started up the driveway and took the steps of the big porch one at a time. That shower was sounding better and better the closer I got to the door. Maybe some food, too. And wine. Yessss. Definitely wine. 

I slid the key to my parents' house in the lock when I heard a noise that drew my attention. I looked to the right and saw...

"Nathan?" 

It was dark and the porch light wasn't on, but I could tell it was definitely Nathan. He got up from the porch swing and stepped forward. 

"Hey, Karma," he said quietly. 

I bit back a sob as tears started streaming down my face. How was he here? What was he doing here? How did he know that I needed him here? Overwhelmed with confusion and relief, I dropped my luggage and threw myself into his arms. 

Nathan Jenkins...was here.