Casual Layovers

Chapter Eleven

Ryan is able to easily purchase her and Avery each a one-way ticket from Seattle to JFK. The only flight out however, has a departure time of right before ten, so they eat as quickly as they can, and immediately afterwards, Ryan shuffles through her bag once again and tries to repack some of it. Most of items she had previously packed were for the ski trip and even though she is sure that it will be fairly cold in New York, she is not anticipating that they will be spending very much time outside while they are there. She makes a quick decision to pack a few extra shirts for Avery too, just in case she needs them She guesses that the blonde has probably only packed enough for what they had originally planned for the weekend as well. When she is finally finished, they lock up the apartment and make their way out of the building.

Avery offers to drive them to the airport and leave her car there while they are away since Ryan insisted on paying for her plane ticket. Ryan argues, naturally, but Avery refused to take 'no' for an answer. By the time they finally reach the airport, and make it through the security check, their flight has already started boarding.

As soon as the plane takes off, the lights in the main cabin are dimmed and most of the passengers begin making themselves more comfortable so that they can try to get a bit of sleep. Ryan was only able to shut her eyes for a short while, mostly because her nerves are getting the best of her, but she does keep a close eye on Avery, making sure that she sleeps through the majority of the flight because she knows how much the younger woman hates flying. It is not until they touch down onto the runway in New York that Avery finally slowly wakes.

Because it is so early in the morning, they are able to make it out of the airport swiftly and jump into the first available Yellow Cab towards the hospital. Ryan is playing with her hands almost as soon as the cab driver starts driving, and Avery senses her anxiousness, so she reaches over and gives Ryan's hands a reassuring squeeze which earns her a grateful smile from the brunette.

Ryan had phoned Harry the second they landed and was told that Tatum's contractions are currently just about seven to eight minutes apart. The doctor mentioned the last time he was in the room that they are still waiting until the contractions become more frequent. Harry certainly sounded calmer on the phone than she is feeling right now, and she is suddenly very relieved that she asked Avery to come along. The other woman's presence has had such a calming effect on her. "I'm just so nervous." She says quietly, more to herself than to Avery.

"Hey... it's alright to be nervous. It's your sister. Family in the hospital, no matter the circumstances is always really nerve-wracking." Avery thinks about her own experience, and how she should have gone to see her grandfather when he was there that very last time. She pushes the guilt back and focuses her attention back to Ryan. "She's going to be fine. All of her family is here, and she will be so happy to see you." She says.

Ryan smiles again before taking Avery's hand and intertwining their fingers. "Thank you. And thank you for coming with me. I will make this up to you. I promise."

"You don't have anything to make up for. I'm glad to be here with you for this." Avery says.

When they reach the hospital at last, Ryan rushes inside and straight to the courtesy desk hoping to get directions for where they need to go. She looks around, but there is no one there. "What good is an information desk if there is no one sitting at it?" She says in frustration.

Avery walks over to her and lightly touches the small of her back, urging her towards where the elevators are located. "Come this way. I think that we will be able to find it on our own." Avery knows her way around hospitals. The truth is, she has spent a lot of time in them when she was growing up. That happens when you have family that is practically hospital royalty. She walks them over to a directory where she sees that the obstetrics area is in the West wing of the hospital on the first floor. "Aha. There we go. It's this way." She says as she takes Ryan's hand again leading her in the correct direction. "Did your brother-in-law tell you what room they are in?"