A/N: So the muse is kinda being stubborn on the next chapter of AWAFD, but she loves making up new scenarios where A) John gets to be an ass and get it kicked by someone with the name Buchanan somewhere in their name and B) Jolie find their way back to each other.

I'm seeing this as being 3 chapters, but it could be longer. And the Natalie rant in the first part is me projecting my feelings about that whole storyline. Yeah, I'm still a little bitter about it. ;)

Enjoy!

The noise that came out of Natalie's mouth was a mixture between a groan and a gag. She'd come to Rodi's to talk to John-to at least get Gigi her job back if nothing else. Not to watch John and Kelly making out like teenagers under the bleachers at a school function.

Looking down at her left hand she realized how over the pain she was-he didn't want her, and she was starting to feel the same way for him. Taking the ring off, she walked over and tapped him on the shoulder-interrupting them, "Take it," she said shoving the ring in his hand before he could react.

"Natalie," spoke Kelly as she wiped her mouth.

"Stop, Kelly. I don't care. I'm over it-you two do whatever you want, Liam and I will be fine on our own-I was raised by a single mother, I think I know how to do it without a man in my life," she said as she looked at John.

"Seemed to me that you and Lovett were getting reacquainted the other day when I came by," he snapped.

Natalie stopped-she didn't remember acting that way towards Brody at all-or John being around her at the same time as Brody. She thought back to the other day-the day that she found out Tess was alive and talked to Brody. She'd been scared that her sister had let her alter out to try and kill her again. He'd sat there and listened to her fears while she fed Liam a bottle. Sighing she decided he was worth the explanation, "It's not what you thought-I was talking about my fears where Tess is concerned."

"Sure. What you two do isn't my business, Natalie-not anymore."

She wasn't sure where it came from, or if asked later why she dredged it up, but what came next was a flood of hurt she'd felt before from John, "You remember when she kidnapped me, locked me into a soundproof cage in my mothers basement and nearly blew me up, right John? Oh yeah, that's because you never looked for me.

"I knew early on that Jared told you I was missing, and at first I kept imagining you were trying to find me, that one night you'd figure it out and rescue me. But you never did-you never cared enough to even believe him when he said I hadn't left on my own.

"So there John-you wanted the whole truth-there it is in black and white-you used you be my white knight, but haven't been in a very long time. Have a nice life," she said as she turned and left the bar.

"Do you need to go after her?" questioned Kelly who felt extremely awkward in the middle of that fight.

"No, she said it all," he said as he turned from Kelly and went towards the bar to get something stronger to ease the pain.

John was walking through the bull pen lost in his thoughts. Before the wedding-before his life crumbled to nothing more than dust, they'd talked about Natalie coming back to work this week. But he'd heard someone say she had taken more time off and would be back in a few weeks.

He'd spent the past few days since he saw her last going over what she said-how when Tess had her before he hadn't looked. Hadn't even batted an eye when she didn't show back up after Rex was shot. And he was wrong for doing that-she deserved to hear him admit that much.

He turned as he saw Bo come out of his office on his cell, putting his coat on quickly. When he heard him ask how Liam was doing he felt his heart drop.

"Bo?" he asked and stopped him from leaving the station.

"I'll meet you at the hospital, Joey," he said and hung up.

Bo sighed at having to tell John this, even though he understood the pain of feeling you'd been betrayed by the one person you never expected, he knew John was a lot like him and had kept hoping John would find his way back to Natalie faster than he did to Nora.

"Natalie had gone up to Viki's cabin for a few days-needed to find someway to relax and couldn't with the thought of Tess around. We don't know what happened-Joey went up there to check on her-make sure she'd gotten settled in. The car wasn't there-so he headed back down the mountain and that's when he saw the tire tracks going off the road and down an embankment."

"Natalie and Liam?"

Bo smiled, "He said Liam was in the back just talking to himself. Natalie was unconscious-wasn't responding to Joey. The EMT is on their way up there-I-I need to go get Viki and meet Joey at the hospital."

"I'll go with you."

"You sure?" he asked, knowing how things had been tense with him and Natalie and her family. The last thing he needed was John causing tension when the focus needed on Natalie. But then-John was always at his best when he was focusing on Natalie being in danger-maybe this would snap him back to reality and what really matters.

John paced the ER doors as he waited for the sounds of the ambulance siren. Bo had to yet make it with Viki, so he was left to his own thoughts. And prayers. He kept praying for her to be safe-to be conscious by the time they brought her in.

Finally hearing the siren he stood there as the ambulance doors opened and Joey came out safely with Liam in his arms while they lowered Natalie down. He remembered when he rode with her after getting her out of the pit-being her white knight that night.

And here he was watching as an outsider and wanting to help.

"What the hell are you doing here?" asked Joey as he came up to John holding Liam. John sighed at how much he'd grown-he almost wasn't a baby anymore, but a little man.

"I was with Bo at the end of the call-I wanted to see how Natalie was, and Liam too."

"They are both fine without you-you can leave," spoke Joey as he heard the doctor ask for the next of kin and he had to come forward. "Hold him-I know your feelings about him, but just do it for Natalie," he said as he passed off his nephew to a man he hated.

John looked down at Liam and smiled when he recognized him-with only a few visits here and there the boy still recognized him-that had to mean something. "Hey. Mom's getting checked out, but she's going to be fine," he said as he looked towards the exam room. Hearing a commotion he turned to see Viki coming in with Bo and Brody behind her.

"John? Where is she?" asked Viki and he gave a nod towards the room that Joey had gone in.

After Viki left he looked at Brody, "I-I was just holding him," he said, angry that he had to explain himself to this man he once saw as a friend.

"It's fine-John, she loves you and the kid loves you too."

John looked down into the blue eyes and saw something for a second-almost a mirror of himself, but instead of embracing it he sighed and handed the kid over, "But he's not mine, Brody," and walked out of the hospital.