When we had arrived back at the hospital Willow handed the signed consent forms to the doctor. The wait had been long but eventually we had watched as Charlie was rolled down to the operating room. Jack, Willow and I sat in the waiting room for hours as we waited for any news of how the surgery was going. Willow was pacing in front of me biting her manicured nails and it was making me dizzy. Without thinking I tugged at her arm and pulled her down to my lap.

"Thank you for that Henry. I was just about to do it myself."Jack groaned.

Willow glared at me trying to get out of my lap but I had a strong grip on her.

"Be honest, is pacing even helping at all?"I asked looking at her face.

"No but it's wearing me out which is what I need. I can't relax knowing he's in there, lying on that operating table, being cut up like a pig in the slaughterhouse."Willow lamented burying her face in my chest.

"Well that's quite the imagery there Willow but the surgeons know what they are doing. Charlie is under the best care possible so stop worrying. He'll be okay."I replied hoping to comfort her.

She nodded without saying anything and relaxed in my arms. Five minutes later her breathing slowed down and I realized that she had fallen asleep. I kissed her forehead and adjusted our position so that she was sleeping much more comfortably.

She had been a wreck ever since we met her father and I was glad to see that she was taking a much needed rest.

"So her dad really is Colton Reeves?"Jack asked after a few minutes.

Everyone in the tech and gaming industry knew who Colton Reeves was. He was a multi-billionaire tech genius who ran one of the biggest technology firms in the country. His company sold gaming equipment and since that was a very big industry he cashed out big. They even bought and sold games too. I'd sent my game design to his company a few months back but never got any feedback. Now that I knew the kind of man he was I was glad his company didn't buy my game. It would have felt like a betrayal to Willow if I'd taken money from the man who hurt her most.

"Yeah and honestly he's not all that great."I replied.

"You know now that I really think about it, he really does look a lot like Charlie. There's no denying that he's their dad."Jack commented.

"It takes more than looking alike and being a sperm donor to be ones dad. Colton Reeves is not deserving of Willow and Charlie at all."I argued.

"You're right, it's his loss. They are wonderful kids and we can both admit that out lives changed for the better when they moved to Crescent."Jack admitted.

"No arguments there."I concurred.

The circumstances that led Willow to me had been less than ideal but I was grateful to her mom for picking Crescent. It gave me the chance to meet the most wonderful girl and her adorable younger brother.

"You could get in trouble for hacking into his private files you know."Jack pointed out.

"I'm good at what I do so I covered my tracks properly, it's like I was never even there. For a tech genius, the guy have very poor security around his privacy."I commented.

"Well just be careful and no more going around hacking into things."Jack scolded.

"I won't. I know I can and I've done it before to test my skills but never for my own selfish gain and I've never stolen anything. This time I knew it was wrong but I did it for the right reasons."I defended.

"It's okay just be careful. You and Willow are starting to build something powerful and I'd hate for her to lose you before she's even gotten the chance to enjoy being with you."Jack advised.

"I'd never do anything to jeopardize what Willow and I have."I hummed kissing my girls hair.

"Good."Jack replied.

Now that I'd sold my game and made the money I had been seeking out everything was falling into plan about my leaving Crescent for good. All that was left was to convince Willow to go with me. Getting her to agree to me paying the rest of the money for Charlie's surgery had not been easy but I had managed it. Willow was proud and independent so it had been hard for her to take money from me but she had been desperate and out of time. She'd never ask Robert for help and Jack was still recovering from paying his debt so she didn't want to put that burden on him.

I had the money now and even if Willow had been hard to convince she'd come around eventually. The royalties I would be getting as soon as the game picked up would be more than enough so set me, Willow and Charlie up for life. All that was left was for me to wait for Charlie to get better, convince Willow to say yes and it would be bye bye Crescent. I had no idea where we would go but as long as the three of us were together we would figure it out.

After an hour of holding Willow my legs started cramping so I got off the sofa we were sitting on and placed Willow back on it. I shrugged off my hoodie and put it under her head like a makeshift pillow. She snuggled into it and a relaxed sigh left her lips. It made me smile seeing that I brought her comfort.

"Young love, takes me back."Jack commented as I took the single chair opposite him.

"To what? The 1900."I teased with a grin.

"Ha ha, very funny but for a hundred and twenty something year old man, I definitely look good don't I."Jack replied looking smug and proud of himself.

"Sure old man, whatever floats your boat."I said with a laugh.

Jack hit my leg with the magazine he had been reading which made me laugh even harder but not loud enough to wake Willow up. She needed all the rest that she could get and I would wake her as soon as we got any news from the surgeons.

Jack and I continued making small talk until his girlfriend Hannah arrived. Jack and Hannah were going strong and had even made their relationship official a few days after valentines day. She made Jack happy and that's all I ever wished for my oldest friend and role model.

"I thought you guys might be hungry so I brought sandwiches." Hannah said after we got pleasantries out of the way.

"You are a godsend."Jack exclaimed kissing her cheek soundly as he took his sandwich from Hannah.

"Thanks Hannah."I said taking a wrapped sandwich from her.

"You're both welcome."She smiled taking a seat next to Jack.

Hannah was a beautiful brunette in her mid thirties. She was shorter than Jack which made their height difference adorable. She was a kind soul who made Jack very happy. It had taken a while for them to find each other and I was glad they finally had.

"How long has Charlie been in Surgery?"Hannah asked.

"Too fucking long."Jack grunted earning him a disapproving look from Hannah.

He smiled sheepishly and kissed her cheek mumbling a quick sorry. The mighty god of Asgard had been tamed at last.

"Four hours without any word."I answered Hannah.

"No news is good news."Jack mumbled trying to console himself.

"How is she holding up?"Hannah asked looking at Willow's sleeping figure.

"She wore herself out pacing and fell asleep about an hour ago. She's nervous, worried and scared, as we all are just on a higher scale."I replied.

"I've honestly never met anyone as strong as the two siblings in my life. If anyone can make it through such a hard surgery it's Charlie and Willow will be right there with him to help him through it."Hannah said.

She was right, everyone who knew Willow well enough could see how strong she was and having raised Charlie, it was evident that she had passed on similar traits to him. From the beginning I had known that the two siblings could overcome anything and the accident was going to prove that.

Willow woke up half an hour later when Jack dropped a can of soda on the ground startling her. After eating her sandwich from Hannah we passed time and tried to distract ourselves by listening to Hannah tell us stories of some of the most ridiculous ailments students had gone to see her with.

She was in the middle of telling us about a kid who thought he had dengue fever when Doctor Kim came to us. We all immediately got to our feet with nervous looks on our faces as we waited for the news. Willow was visibly shaking so I took her hand in mine hoping to offer her comfort. She squeezed my fingers which was her wordless way of telling me thank you. Doctor Kim didn't need for us to ask her the results, our faces did all the talking.

"The surgery was long and we had a few close calls but it was a successful one."Doctor Kim announced to us.

Everyone sighed in relief happy that our prayers and well wishes had worked. Willow sagged like a deflated balloon and I was quick to catch her before she fell. A few tears escaped her eyes and I knew they were happy tears from the smile on her lips. I was happy that Charlie was going to be okay but mostly relieved that Willow would not have to mourn and bury her brother. I'm not sure she would have recovered from losing him. Their bond was like no other.

"The recovery process will be long and will require a lot of strength from Charlie and a lot of support from his family but I believe that he will be okay."Doctor Kim added with a smile.

"Thanks for making my brother better Doctor Kim."Willow cried leaving my arms to hug her.

Doctor Kim was surprised at first but she hugged Willow back with a smile on her lips.

"Just doing my job."The doctor replied.

"Can we see him?"Willow asked pulling away from the hug and back into my arms.

"He's being transferred to a recovery room right now. You can see him in a short while. I'll send the nurse to get you."Doctor Kim replied before leaving us.

We all sat back down and you could tell by the change in our facial expressions and body postures that we were all feeling relieved after receiving the good news.

"He's really going to be okay."Willow whispered as if she couldn't really believe it.

"We knew he would be. Now we just have to be there for him during the healing process just like the doctor has advised."Jack replied.

Willow nodded as she sniffed, wiped off her tears before facing all of us.

"You guys have no idea what it means to me to have you all here with me. It's just been me and Charlie for a really long time but now we have a real family that can stand with us during tough times like this. So thank you guys."Willow expressed with a bittersweet smile.

"Always."I mumbled into her hair kissing her cheek and hugging her.

Jack got up and held his arms out for her. Willow smiled and got up to hug him. Hannah joined in the hug and after they all gave me a pointed look, I joined in. Jack had been the only real friend and family I'd know for a long time before Willow and Charlie came in and joined in our little family. Hannah was the latest welcome addition and I was really lucky to have them in my life just like Willow had said.

The nurse came to get us sometime later and led us all to Charlie's new room. Willow immediately went to his side and you could see the relief on her face as she held him. He was still unconscious but the nurse had informed us that he would be waking from his anaesthesia in a few minutes. He looked the same but he was wearing a brace that was visible since he wasn't wearing anything from the waist up.

"What if he has amnesia and can't remember us all?"Jack asked once we noticed Charlie's eyes start to flutter open.

"Shut up Jack."The three of us scolded simultaneously.

"Come on, I can't be the only one thinking it."Jack mumbled.

"You are."I replied.

Finally Charlie opened his eyes and we were all relieved when he spoke up recognizing Willow and rendering Jack's point moot.

"Willow?"He mumbled his voice rough.

"Yes bud."Willow answered.

"The room smells funny and my back hurts."Charlie moaned trying to move around.

"Henry stop moving, you're going to hurt yourself. You're in the hospital and you just underwent serious surgery."Willow replied pushing him back on the bed.

"Hospital? Why?"Charlie asked looking confused.

"You were in a car accident? You don't remember?"Willow asked.

Charlie went silent for a while, his eyes losing focus which showed he was trying to remember. Suddenly his eyes widened and he looked at Willow frantic and scared.

"The blue blur."He mumbled.

"You got hit by a blue car?"Willow asked and Charlie nodded.

"The police are definitely going to need to hear that."Hannah said and we nodded in agreement.

The police had been waiting for Charlie to wake up so he could give his statement. They were hopeful he'd give information that could help them catch the driver responsible for the accident.

"Is Alex okay?"Charlie asked looking concerned for his best friend.

"Yes Charlie, Alex is okay. He didn't get badly injured like you. I'm sure when he feels better he'll be here to see you."Willow replied and Charlie nodded.

"Charlie there's something you need to know about the surgery you just went through."Willow started.

"What?"

"You remember when you asked me if you can ever be able to walk and I said yes but the surgery is very expensive?"Willow explained.

"Yes."Charlie nodded.

"Well I've been saving for it for a while now and because of the accident you had the surgery much sooner than expected."Willow explained.

It took a few minutes for the words to register in Charlie's mind and when they finally did his eyes widened in excitement.

"So I'll be able to walk now?"Charlie asked.

"You'll need a lot of physiotherapy and you'll be in pain a lot but yes you will be able to walk."Willow replied.

Charlie didn't say anything just hugged his sister and cried. It was such a heartfelt moment even Hannah shed a few tears. Jack tried to be strong but everyone heard him sniffle.

After everyone calmed down we all got something to eat and made sure that the doctor approved Charlie's food first. After three days of worry, little to no sleep and a lot of nail biting we could all relax and take comfort in the fact that the surgery was successful and Charlie would be okay.