I was sitting in the car, breathing quicker by the second. Everyone but Dad, Alex, and Hayden had stayed home wanting to give me space.

I was in the back seat of Dads car next to Hayden while Alex was in the passenger seat and Dad was in the drivers. By the time we pulled in front of the hospital and I was having a full on panic attack.

All I've done since I met these people is cry.

Hayden put a hand in my shoulder but it did nothing to calm me down. I barely noticed that the car had stopped until Dad opened my door and crouched in front of me from outside the car

"Thea, honey I need you to calm down baby girl. Can you do that for me?"I nod hesitantly and attempt to calm my breathing. "That's it princess. Just follow me."He whispers demonstrating slow breathing.Once I'm calmer, Dad takes my small hands in his big ones

"Do you trust me Thea?" I look at him skeptically.

I've never really trusted anyone in my life.Could I put my fear aside and trust this man?I wasn't sure but I was willing to try so I slowly nodded. He smiled"Can you trust me that I won't let anyone do anything bad to you and I'll stay with you the whole time?" His big blue eyes lock on mine

"I'll try." I whispered."That's all I can ask for sweet girl." He puts his hands under my arms and lifts me onto his hip.Alex goes to the desk and checks me in while Dad, Hayden and I sit in the waiting room. Hayden keeps making jokes I guess to cheer me up and it sort of works. I could see his spirit lift every time I laughed at a lame doctor joke he made.

I was sitting on Dads lap and he would whisper reassuring words every now and then which made the whole waiting process so much easier. But unfortunately I was soon called back and my grip on Dads shirt only grew tighter. He must have noticed because he kissed my temple

"I'm not going anywhere. I'm right here baby."I nod but don't look up at him from where my head rested on his shoulder we enter the room and the doctor smiled at us

"How can I help you folks today?" My arms are still around Dads neck with our chest touching so I can't see the doctor"Thea just moved in with me yesterday and this morning I noticed her ribs were horribly bruised and she has many other injuries that I'm worried about." Dad tells him.

The doctor nods"Can I see her ribs?" I shake my head and look up at Dad teary eyed"I'm gonna be in trouble." I whisper.

Moms words are still swirling in my brain and I didn't want to be in trouble

"Sweetheart I promise you won't be in trouble. Doctor can you assure her that she won't be in trouble?" Dad says rubbing my back"Yes, Thea no one will be upset if you show us your injuries." I nod and slowly turn myself around on Dads lap. Cautiously, I lift up my shirt. I wait for someone to start yelling at me but no one does

"Mr.Mason can you lay her on the table?" Dad nods and stands up with me in his arms.He lays me down as the doctor asked and I start to cry at the loss of contact. I was scared out of my mind about what was going to happen. The unknown if always scary. "Hey I'm right here baby girl. It's okay." Dad kneels next to the bed holding my hand

"I'm just gonna push on your ribs to see if they're broken or not." The doctor tells me. I didn't respond and train my eyes on the ceiling.He pokes my bruises and I cry out in pain. Dad squeezes my hand to remind me that he's still next to me, which I'm very thankful for. The doctor pushes again but harder this time.

"It's okay baby. It's almost over honey." Dad whispers in my ear after the 5th time.Finally after what felt like an eternity of painful pushes and pokes to my ribs, the doctor stopped. Dad picked me up and cradled me like baby to try and calm me down.

That was some of the worst pain of my life. I normally have a pretty high tolerance for pain but holy crap that hurt like hell. "Well, they're not broken just very badly bruised. She'll be alright with time and such but until then, keep activity to a minimum and get lots of rest. Painkillers will help and so will ice."

Dad nods and I barely register what the doctor had said, still reeling from the continuous pain still shooting threw my ribs.I zoned out of the rest of the conversation (I think it was something about me needing to eat more but I wasn't sure) and eventually Dad stood up with me and we went into the waiting room to get Hayden and Alex.

They were both falling asleep but snapped to attention when they saw us come in"Are they broken?" Alex asks immediately.Dad shakes his head. "Just very badly bruised." Both boys let out a sigh of relief. Hayden comes up to us and smooths down my hair

"Are you okay baby girl?" I don't answer and bury my head in the crook of Dads neck"I think she's just tired." Dad says. Hayden nods and we go outside and I'm sat in the car. In the first 5 minutes of the drive, my eyelids get heavy and I slip into a peaceful sleep.

Maybe this time it will last a little longer.