2-22: Name

Six Months Later

--------------------------

Storm shut the door to the bathroom behind her, taking deep breaths. She might have hidden it better than her little sister, but she had the same anxious demons in her head.

They just didn't take her over in quite the same way.

Until lately it seemed.

Discord was something else. Hot one minute and cold the next. And the way things were turning out weren't helping anything. Her sister had been gone for so long she'd lost count on the months. She'd heard so many stories, come to be aware of so many things she hadn't known. It was a whirlwind of information all dropped into her life at once.

Rain swept by her into the bathroom, and the vacancy of her eyes never went unnoticed. But Rain wouldn't talk about it. Rain didn't talk to anyone. She stayed holed up in her room unless she was eating or showering. And she wasn't doing much of either.

Not even Ryan could seem to get through to her. And if he couldn't, Storm knew damn well that she never could.

She opened her mouth to say something to her little sister, but the door shut before she could. The sound of water filled the quiet of the upstairs hallway, and Storm sighed. At least she wasn't in her room.

She made her way downstairs to the kitchen, dizziness touching the edges of her vision. Speaking of eating, Storm couldn't seem to do much of that either. Not without feeling uneasy. Because her entire life seemed to be a massive question mark right now. 

And Discord saying he wanted to talk to her, tonight, out of nowhere, was something new. He usually just showed up. It was probably a good thing, though. Because she had something to tell him too. 

She filled a glass with water from the sink and boosted herself onto the surface of the counter, waiting. He would appear like he usually did, without knocking. Without warning.

Much the same way that he had sidled back into her life in the first place.

"Hey."

She didn't even jump anymore. She expected the unexpected from him so much, it was never a surprise.

"Hi."

Storm sat the glass down next to her, running her hands over the tops of her legs. But, Discord was being quiet. A lot quieter than usual, considering it was hard to get him to shut up.

"You acted like this was important, and yet, you aren't saying anything."

Discord nodded, looking around the kitchen. His eyes seemed to examine everything except the girl sitting on the counter two feet away from him.

"No one's here. But Rain. But she's basically a ghost, so she's not really here either. Speak, Discord. What the fuck is going on?"

Something settled in her chest, besides anxiety. Something new she wasn't used to. Something close to doubt. And she thought at first that it didn't have a reason, but it occurred to her that it stemmed from the look on his face.

"I need to tell you something."

Storm raised an eyebrow, pushing the glass into the sink with a soft clink.

"This isn't going to work."

Storm looked up from the sink, her mouth dropping open. That... That she hadn't expected.

"What?"

Discord rocked back on his heels, finally looking Storm in the eyes. They seemed far away, but when did they not?

"You and I. Not working. I've been trying to figure out why, and I finally did.

You want something from me that I don't know how to give. You make me feel something, but it's not the same thing that I can feel coming from you.

Have you not noticed the difference?"

Storm put a hand on her stomach, nausea rolling through her system. 

"I noticed the difference... I just thought it was because... You're-"

"Because I'm me?"

Storm nodded once, pushing herself back further onto the counter until her shoulders hit the cool surface of the wall.

"Storm... Do you love me?"

Her eyes lifted from the floor and she blinked at his question. Mostly because it was a stupid one. She'd cared about Discord Hunter since she was a teenager. 

Did she love him?

If she had ever loved anyone, it would be him.

"Why does that matter? If it's not working then it's not working. You're breaking up with me, I'm pretty sure that's not the moment you're supposed to use your mind games. Or ask that fucking question."

Discord looked like he was desperately trying to hold back a venomous comment. And the fact that he managed made Storm feel as if she should commend him.

"Okay. You don't have to tell me.

But I will tell you that I care about you, but, I don't love you. 

And that might suck to hear, but you need to know."

Storm squeezed her eyes shut, trying hard to be understanding. Trying to calm the rolling anger in her chest. She could handle a lot, but this was the last thing she needed right now.

"I get it, Discord. I don't need your speech and I don't need your explanations. Just... Go.

It's not like you've never left me before."

He stared at her for a moment, and something hung in the air between them. It felt as untouched as it always had. As dissonant. 

"Goodbye, Storm."

He was gone before she could respond to his words, and the moment she was sure that he was, she began to cry. Silent tears. The only kind she'd ever known how to cry. 

The front door opened and shut, the heavy sounds of her father's footsteps echoing down the hallway. She wanted to move, wanted to go back upstairs and deal with this alone, but she couldn't. She was frozen in place. Unsure of what kind of reaction she was even having.

Real emotion, real loss? Or just final understanding?

When Xavier came into view, he stopped in the doorway, his eyes widening slightly.

"Storm?"

She still didn't move, didn't respond. Xavier walked over to her, bending his head to look at her face.

"Why are you crying? What happened?"

She finally found her movements, drying the tears on her cheeks with the sleeve of her shirt. She met eyes with her father, and forced the words she'd been planning to tell Discord out of her mouth.

"Dad, I'm pregnant."

--------------------------

The news of Storm's pregnancy rocketed through the Nile household. But not for normal reasons. It came back to land on Rain. How she had just lost a baby, how she still hadn't dealt with everything that was going on in her life.

How she couldn't handle it.

But little did her family know, she heard every argument they had about not telling her. She knew before Storm pulled her aside to tell her a couple of weeks later.

She knew, and she wanted to care, but she couldn't. She couldn't pull herself out of the fog that she was in enough to even pretend.

It was different than anything she'd ever experienced. Feeling nothing was almost worse than feeling everything all at once.

Feeling hollowed out wasn't ever something she thought she would ever go through. But it was taking over her entire life.

"Rain, are you going to talk to me at all?"

Rain continued to stare at the blankets between her and Ryan, not speaking. She didn't know what she was supposed to say to him. It was like the moment she stepped off the plane in Bridgeport, she went mute. Incapable of emotion, and incapable of speech.

Ryan's frustration wasn't on the surface, but she knew it had to be bubbling underneath. Every few days, he showed up, and every few days, he got nowhere.

He let out a small exhale, but he didn't touch her. He didn't disturb her catatonic state.

"I still love you, Rain. I'm still here."

His whisper was loud in the room, but it didn't seem to affect her. He got to his feet, and she didn't stop him. He'd convinced himself that that wasn't going to happen. She didn't want anyone near her. 

She didn't really seem like she wanted to exist at all.

He took the stairs down to the ground floor three at a time, stopping at the landing when Storm brushed past him. She didn't really speak to him anymore, either. And there wasn't a reason for that.

Not one he knew of, anyway.

 Ryan made his way to the front door, trying like hell to avoid anyone else that could possibly be in the Nile residence. But between he and the door, was Xavier. 

Which presented a problem. He didn't know what Xavier knew, and that made him nervous. Her father was the biggest reason he'd told her all that time ago, that they couldn't happen. 

That and the eight year age difference.

But that had all seemed to go out the window somewhere along the way.

Xavier's face was stoic, but that wasn't abnormal. The words out of his mouth were, though. And Ryan was sure he could have went his entire life without hearing them. 

"I need to talk to you about my daughter."

Ryan hesitated, wondering just how horribly this could go.

"Alright."

He followed behind Xavier into the kitchen, watching him pull out a beer.

"This must be serious. You never drink."

Xavier pulled the top off of the beer, putting the cap on the counter.

"It is. Sit."

Ryan did what he said, sitting on the bar stool across from Xavier. He waited for him to talk, the silence stretching a lot longer than he bargained for.  

"You seem like you really care about Rain."

He wasn't sure exactly what he was supposed to say here. What was the right answer?

So he nodded, maintaining eye contact.

"You brought her home to us. And from what I understand, you did more than that."

Something shifted in Xavier's eyes, so quickly Ryan almost didn't catch it. But he did.

"Thank you, Ryan."

"You don't have to thank me, Xavier. That's what you do for someone you love. You protect them."

Xavier stopped as Ryan spoke, the bottle next to his lips. 

"Love, huh? 

I guess I should have known. I saw you at that wedding. I see you in here all the time, trying to get her to say something."

Ryan tried to backtrack. To take back the words he'd said, but Xavier shook his head.

"You don't have to do that."

Xavier put the bottle down on the counter beside him, his eyes somewhere else. He spoke with certainty. And with a depth Ryan had never seen him use.

"I'd never say I'm good at knowing how people feel. With Eden it took your sister almost breaking down my door to get me to pay enough attention.

I didn't know Rain was in trouble, and I didn't know Storm was in love with your brother.

I didn't see enough in my own son.

I can be blind at times.

But I know how you feel about my daughter. It's clear in the way you look at her.

I know, because I look at her mom the same way."

Xavier rubbed his face with his hands, shaking his head.


"I actually sound a lot like your sister did on that night in question right now."

Ryan stared at him for a moment, lost for words.

"I think that's the most I've ever heard you say at once."

 Xavier let out something that sounded a lot like a laugh.

Ryan had no idea where this conversation was headed, but he was in the middle of confusion when Xavier spoke again.

"I think you're the only one who has any chance of getting through to her."

Ryan tried to mask the frustration in his words, in his expression.

"I keep trying. I'm not getting anywhere. That guy ruined her fucking life. 

I can't fix that. And even if I could, she won't talk to me to let me."

Xavier looked at Ryan for such a long time after he spoke, he half wondered if he was going to kick him out. Or yell. Or something else un-Xavier-like.

"If you could? You know that you can. You haven't given up on her this far, you can't do it now.

She needs you, Ryan. You're the only one who has a chance, because she trusts you.

Maybe you should try something other than talking, because right now Rain isn't very good at listening."

Ryan shook his head, exasperated. 

"Yeah, like what? What am I go-"

He stopped speaking, looking up at Xavier.

"I have to go."

He got to his feet, heading back for the front door. It slammed, but Xavier didn't mind much. Whatever was going through that boy's head was worth something. He could tell by the look in his eyes.

He pulled the bottle back to his lips, glancing toward the staircase that led to Rain's room.

He was right, it had been a lot like Kiara's speech back then. The difference being that Ryan wasn't as naive as Xavier had been. And judging by the way he just left, it had affected Ryan exactly the way it had him.

I hope you're everything you seem to be. 

God knows she needs it.

-------------------------

And even though the moment passed me by
I still can't turn away
Cause all the dreams you never thought you'd lose
Got tossed along the way

2-21: Eyelids

(A/N: There are a complete lack of screenshots in this chapter, but for good reason.
I didn't want to take away from the actual writing.
Okay, bye.)

I can't sleep
That's when you're torn away from me
While I'm dreaming, I feel you leaving
I'll face my fear of the sunrise, when I wake up with your hand inside mine
It's hard to say "good morning" when it's followed with "goodbye"

----------------------
Ryan pushed through Rain's hospital door so hard, it slammed against the wall, leaving a handle sized hole in it. He glanced at the broken door stop, and then up at Rain as she pulled on her sweater.

"What are you doing?"

Rain brushed her hair out of her face gently, giving him a small smile.

"Going home. You're a little late. They released me."

He looked at the wide eyed nurse behind Rain, running a hand through his hair.

"I'll pay for that."

His eyes traveled to Rain and he walked over to her, taking a seat on the bed next to her.

"Home as in California, right?"

Rain shook her head slowly as the nurse made her way out of the room, mumbling something under her breath.

"You know I can't do that, Ryan."

"The hell you can't. Rae told me what happened, Rain."

Rain squeezed her eyes shut. Her hands shook as she lifted them to her face, a small sigh leaving her lips.

"Of course she did."

Ryan took one of her hands in his, lifting her chin to look at him.

"You can't do this. Rain..."

She fought hard not to look in his eyes, but eventually conceded. They looked angry, but they also looked hurt.

"I'm sorry, Ryan. I'll be okay. It was probably an accident. He-"

Ryan pressed his lips to hers, silencing her words. She didn't even try to push him away. Didn't try to continue on with her statement that she knew was a lie. She folded beneath his kiss, returned it. When he pulled away, she was crying. 

She was always crying.

"You can't kiss me like that and tell me that you'll be okay with him."

Rain bit down on her lip, her hand still tightly in his.

"Ryan, I love you. But I'm sorry, I have to go home."

"That is not your home."

Rain wiped the tears off of her cheeks roughly with her free hand, dropping her eyes to the floor.

"It has to be."

Ryan's groan almost echoed in the room. He got to his feet, dropping her hand from his. And all she wanted was for him to take it again.

This entire situation was blurry. She didn't know why she thought she had no choice but to return to the man that had destroyed her life, but she did.

She followed his lead, standing so tiny next to him, it made her feel almost invisible. Not that she needed any help with that.

"I'm taking you home."

Rain pulled the zipper up on her sweater and chanced one more glance at him.

"Okay."

The worst had already happened. Nothing Thorne could do in reaction to Ryan taking her back to him could be worse than what he'd already done.

---------------------

The front door shut behind them and Rain's body screamed from the ache that resulted in her muscles when she made her way up the stairs. She didn't know why Ryan couldn't have just left when they got there, but he had refused.

Thorne was at the top of the stairs, leaning against the balcony that overlooked the first floor.

And his eyes showed nothing close to mercy.

"Why is he with you?"

Thorne's eyes met with Ryan's and the tension was tangible. It radiated between the two of them, and Rain knew Ryan didn't want to leave her here. She knew she shouldn't stay here. That this couldn't end well. The moment he left, it would be back in the frozen hell she was so used to.

Ryan's hand was on hers, and she could tell by the way he let it go that he didn't want to do that either.

"I don't think you should stay, Rain. Not right now. Come back to California with me, your family. At least for a little while."

His words were directed solely at Rain, like Thorne wasn't there at all.

Tears stung at her eyes, like they always did, and she acted on impulse. She wrapped her arms around him and cried the emptiness in her chest onto his.

"I can't. I can't leave. I can't because he won't let me.

He'd follow me back. He'd make me return anyway. He'd hurt me, or you, or someone.

I can't, Ryan."

Ryan pulled her away enough to look down at her, shaking his head.

"He won't touch you."

Thorne let out a scoff, exasperation filling the spaces between himself and his wife.

"She's my wife. I can touch her as much as I wish."

Ryan tightened his arms around her, his glare heated.

"I'm pretty sure that the way you've been touching her is far from the way you should touch your wife."

"Ryan. Stop. It won't help. It's just going to make things worse."

She released her hold on him, walking over to the man that she was supposed to spend her entire life with.

But why? Why should she? She was going to leave him before the baby, and that was the reason she tried to stay. 

The baby was gone now. He made sure of that. 

When she reached Thorne, his hand found her back and she shivered.

She was in love with Ryan. Real love. The kind that made her feel whole. The kind that melted ice instead of creating it. 

Her chest filled with the weight of it, and she struggled to breathe. She didn't want to be with Thorne. 

She didn't want to do this anymore.

She didn't want to be trapped in this endless prison of cold and mechanics. 

"You need to say goodnight, now, Rain. Before this turns out worse for you than it already is."

Thorne's muttering voice in her ear didn't help the amplifying feeling in her chest. His cold touch on her back didn't help either. She looked at Ryan over her shoulder, his eyes filled with worry. It made her sick.

He shouldn't have to look at her like that, because she shouldn't be making this choice.

Not again.

Her voice shook with the words she finally gave Thorne.

"I'm sorry. I can't. I can't this time."

She pulled away from him, but his hand locked around her forearm. 

"Excuse me? You do what I say.

You're mine."

Rain whimpered from the pain, trying her hardest to pull away.

"I'm not! Not anymore!

You've ruined my entire life. Everything that I am, everything I stood for!

You killed our child.

You are so empty that no matter what I give you, it will never be enough. You are made up of nothing. Bones and ice. You look at me and all I want to do is run away from you.

You're killing me, Hawthorne. And I can't do this anymore.

I don't love you.

I don't have anything left for you to take.

I can't be with you, I can't even look at you."

The force of the slap went through her entire body, and she tasted the blood that filled her mouth. 

What happened next was so fast, Rain couldn't begin to piece it together. Hawthorne's grip left her, and Ryan's arms were around her. The banister in front of them was split in two and the sound of cracking was all that she registered. That and a breeze that slowly faded into nothing.

She made to look over the railing, but Ryan pulled her head gently against his chest.

"Don't."

Rain's chest filled and emptied, but she didn't think she could still be breathing. How could she be? She wasn't even sure that what was going on was reality. Her words were muffled in the fabric of his shirt.

"Did you do that?"

Ryan stiffened, his fingers tracing the length of her spine.

"Yes."

She swallowed the coppery taste down her throat and her body went limp in his hold. 

What she had said to Thorne was true. She had nothing left for anyone to take.

His body on the ground below them meant nothing to her. 

Because he hadn't been hers anymore. Hadn't for a long time.

Maybe he never had.

-----------------------

The detectives that had been dispersed to her house after Thorne had fallen, had ruled his death an accident. Mostly because Rain had told them they had found him that way. He'd been drinking, fell on his own.

That was the probable situation she was given. 

And one she agreed to.

What was she supposed to say? That her vampiric friend had somehow caused him to fall? She wasn't even one hundred percent sure how it had happened in the first place.

And now she was a widow.

His family had called her cell phone an innumerable amount of times. But she couldn't bring herself to even answer it. She couldn't face any of them.

"Are you sure that this is what you want, Rain?"

Ryan's voice cascaded through her thoughts, bringing her back into her head. She kept finding herself lost in her thoughts more and more. It had been two days, and she hadn't processed everything. She wasn't sure she ever could.

"I am. I don't want to go. I just want to go back to California."

Ryan nodded once, putting his hand out so that she could take it. 

Skipping her late husband's funeral. Something she never thought that she'd be doing. 

What would his family think?

And why did she find herself not caring much about what it would be?

Ryan let go of her hand once they were out in the cold London air, shoving the last of her luggage in the trunk of some random rental car.

Rain wasn't even sure she knew what was going on. She just knew this car would take her to the airport. Take her far away from the house she shared with Thorne.

Far away from her dream school, her dream marriage, her dream life.

Except, all of those had turned into the things of her nightmares.

And she wanted nothing more than to leave it all behind.

--------------------------

2-20: Forest Fires

-----------------------------

"Twelve weeks doesn't really feel any different than six did, Nash."

Rain tried to force some happiness into her voice, but it wasn't easy. She wasn't ready to have a baby, and Thorne hadn't changed. That stunt in the hospital had a reason, of that she was sure. But it wasn't because he actually cared about her, not from the way he was still talking to her.

But at least he wasn't hurting her. That had come to an abrupt stop.

Maybe he had something against hurting children. At least he drew the line somewhere.

Nash was the only one who knew about the baby. She had sworn her to secrecy. She wasn't ready to tell her family yet. She had left California after two weeks, and when she did the wounds were still raw. For everyone.

She had just started to feel slightly healed recently.

Thaddeous' death weighed heavily on her mind, almost consistently.

Unless Thorne was weighing on her mind instead.

Why do I suck at making things work out? This baby probably won't work out either. It'll probably hate me, just like he does.

She listened to Nash chatter away on the other end of the phone, wishing she could join in on the mindless banter. But she couldn't. She had too much going on.

She was still in too much pain. Or too apathetic. 

It was one or the other now.

She barely noticed when Nash said goodbye, giving one of her own in response and hanging the phone up. She sat on her bed for a moment, letting out a sigh.

She didn't know where Thorne was, and she wanted to call Ryan. But she wasn't sure she could risk it. It just seemed like his voice was one of the only things getting her through the days.

And sneaking around to call him was probably messed up. But she did it anyway.

She made her way up the stairs, heading for the bathroom. She would take a shower and then call Ryan afterward. Somewhere downstairs in the library, where Thorne didn't go often.

She stiffened instantly when Thorne's voice sounded from next to her at the top of the stairs. She hadn't been paying enough attention to even notice he was up there.

"Going somewhere?"

Rain backed up against the bathroom door, nodding once.

"Just to the shower. I didn't know you were home."

Thorne swirled the amber liquid in his glass and sat it on the railing of the staircase, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Why wouldn't I be? It's Sunday. I don't work on Sundays."

He approached her, and everything in her wanted to go in the bathroom and shut the door in his face. She didn't want him to touch her. But instead, she froze in place, her pulse racing.

He leaned down to kiss her, but she turned her face at the last second almost out of instinct. His lips landed on her cheek, and he halted close to her face as he pulled away. She could smell the cognac on his breath and it made her stomach turn.

"What was that?"

Rain looked up at him, her eyes widening at the tone of his voice.

"Nothing. I'm sorry. I just don't like it when you drink, Thorne. You know that."

Thorne's vice grip was on her arm and there hadn't been bruises there in a while... but there would be now. She winced from the pressure, pressing her back into the door behind her.

"I'm pregnant. Don't do this."

His laugh was cold, cruel. His words matched it perfectly.

"I'm not doing anything. I love you, and I love that baby. With all my heart."

Rain knew he had to be drunk now. He never said anything like that unless he was. It was almost as if he had to be drunk to even try to love her. Not to mention, his words were slurring.

She looked up at him, tilting her head. She stared at him for a long time without saying anything, the alcohol from his breath sweeping across her skin as he smiled that cruel smile he saved just for her. 

She did love him. With everything she could give, she did. But it was fading. Every time she looked at him, it faded a little more.

He leaned his face down closer to her and she put her hand on his chest. His pulse was calm. Maybe from alcohol, maybe because he was already almost dead inside. She felt a single tear slip down her cheek as she spoke, the feelings in her chest splintering. 

"What heart, Thorne?"

He released her arm and stood up straight, his face stoic. He swatted her hand away from his chest and she put distance between them. As much as she could. He ran a hand through his hair, and she tried to process his reaction. How casually he was acting in response to her words.

 And then he hit her. So hard that her vision blurred and she took a step to the side.

"Just because you're pregnant, you think that I won't discipline you? That you don't have to listen to me?"

Rain covered the place on her cheek where he had slapped her, trying everything she had not to give him any more emotion. To be the mechanical way he always seemed to be.

"Discipline me? Thorne, I'm not a child! You're supposed to love me."

He shook his head, pulling her closer to him by her forearm.

"I do love you. Do you think I would have brought you here, given you all of this, if I didn't?"

She tried to break his contact with her skin, but he was too strong. He always had been.

"You have a really terrible way of showing it. You don't do what you do to me to someone that you love."

She took a step away, but his grip still didn't leave. He shook his head at her, his final statement clipped, emotionless. Not even ice seemed to touch it.

"If that's what you think, that's what I'll show you."

Rain had always been balanced. Ballet required it. But the one moment she truly needed it, she didn't have it. All it took was a soft push, and she tipped over the edge of the stairs.

Her entire body seemed to hurt all at once. She couldn't think through it, couldn't breathe.

She blacked out before she even made it to the bottom.

---------------------------

Rain felt cool fingers on her face, and God, did it hurt. Her entire head did. The last thing she remembered was talking to Nash on the phone. She opened one eye, the other one popping open in surprise at the sight of Rae's face.

She tried to sit up, but she couldn't. The pain in her head was too severe.

"Oh, thank God. You need to stay awake now, Rain. The concussion you got from the fall was really bad. You fractured your skull.

I thought you were a ballerina. Aren't they supposed to not be clumsy?"

That wasn't the first time she'd heard that joke, but this time it wasn't funny. She closed her eyes for a second, trying to remember what happened. But it was all a blur. She knew she probably didn't fall though. Thorne had to be to blame.

But how?

A memory flashed through her head, brief. Thorne's cold hands on her arms, muffled words.

She cleared her throat, looking around the room. It was empty except for Rae. When did she get to London anyway?

"Did they say what happened?"

Rae nodded, once.

"Your driver called the ambulance. Apparently you fell down the stairs."

She got to her feet, heading for the door.

"I'm going to go let the nurse and your husband know that you're awake now."

"No!"

Rae closed the door as quickly as she'd opened it, her eyes startled when she looked at Rain. 

Rain tried to calm the panic in her chest, her breathing rapid.

"Is something wrong, Rain? The nurse needs to know, and I'm sure that Thorne will be relieved."

Rain's face crumpled and tears slipped down her cheeks. She hurt everywhere.

"I don't want him in here until he has to be. I didn't fall down the stairs on my own, I know I didn't."

Rain had spoken without thinking, and Rae walked over to Rain, hesitation clear in her movements.

"What? Rain... what are you saying?"

Rain took a breath, shifting her eyes to the blankets covering her body.

"Nothing. It's nothing."

Rae raised an eyebrow, sitting on the bed next to her, reaching out the way she had that had woken Rain up in the first place.

"Tell me, Rain. Why did your voice do that when I mentioned Hawthorne? Why do you seem so scared?"

Rain couldn't get the words out. Couldn't tell her. She could never tell anyone. 

Somehow, she still couldn't tell on the man she loved.

"Rain... Did he push you?"

Rain was silent for a few minutes, tears falling quietly and joining her hands on the blankets. Maybe it was the pain killers in her system... or maybe it was the fact that she'd known and trusted Rae all of her life. 

But something made her finally admit the truth to someone.

She nodded, once. Even that was enough to send pain rocketing through her skull. Rae got to her feet again, her voice rushed.

"I'm going to tell the doctor, I have to. He can't be around you. He can't."

Rain grabbed her arm, her voice weak, broken.

"No! Rae, you can't tell anyone. I don't want to hurt Thorne."

Rae's eyes widened, and she didn't move. 

"Rain... he pushed you down a staircase."

The door opened and halted the conversation, a young female doctor entering the room. She glanced between the two of them, her face forlorn.

"I have some news for Mrs. Campbell. Are you family?"

Rain and Rae exchanged a look and Rain said yes before Rae could even respond. The doctor looked down at her chart, walking over to the bed next to the two of them. Rain realized, finally, that she was still holding Rae's arm. She let it go and stared up at the doctor.

"What kind of news?"

The doctor barely looked at her, her eyes mostly on her charts.

"You sustained some pretty serious injuries, and we would like to keep you for a few days. Monitor your concussion, and your condition."

She looked up at Rain, in the eyes, finally.

"However, It seems that in the fall, you lost the baby."

She reached out, her hand squeezing Rain's lightly.

"I'm extremely sorry for your loss, Mrs. Campbell. 

But as far as you were in your pregnancy, we may need to schedule a D&C." 

Nausea tore through Rain's system in seconds. 

Rae leaned down and whispered something in the doctor's ear and she nodded at Rain, heading for the door again.

"Rain... You were pregnant? I had no idea."

Rain's tears were silent, disbelieving. 

"No one did. No one but Thorne and Nash."

Rae pressed her lips to Rain's forehead, wiping the tears off of her cheeks with her fingertips.

"You can't go back to him, Rain. Not after this. Promise me you won't go back to him."

Rain's chest was hollow, drained. She couldn't respond. Even if she wanted to.

Why was it that one bad thing kept happening to her after another? Thorne being abusive was bad, but this was worse.

This was her child.

And now it was gone.

Just like Thaddeous. 

Just like everything she had loved before she knew Hawthorne Campbell.

"I think I hate him."

She whispered the words monotone, barely registered Rae's responses. The way she stroked her hair and rubbed her back.

She didn't know what to do. She didn't know what to say.

She had no idea where to go from here.

She had to do something, anything.

She couldn't do this anymore.

Could she?

--------------------------

The stranger, his sorrow 
Must be fault of my own And whilst I watch in silence You're starting forest fires You start them just to feel the heat And whilst I keep my quiet You're running with the tigers You're running just to run from me I don't blame you And I don't blame you I don't blame you Who would wanna be around me?