I have to first acknowledge a problem I created. sometimes I get a little wound up when I write and I still feel more comfortable in FTL than I do in AU Storybrooke so I inadvertently called Gavin Gaston and I didn't even realize it. I'm sorry. Maybe his name is Gavin Gaston Avonlea? That would work right? lol! Oh well, sorry.:{

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Steady beeps of the machines that monitored Belle's vital signs were something Nick would dream about for a long time. He wasn't kin to her, Not her husband, not her brother so he had to wait. fortunately Dr. Whale took pity on him and had one of the nurses inform him that Belle was going into surgery for a ruptured spleen.

His throat was so tight that he was actually surprised that he could even draw breath as he went out behind the hospital and wretched. He tried not to run as tears streamed down his eyes. Self remorse was not something new to Nick. He had been responsible for so much. Ruined so many lives that this was not some kind of new emotion. He had almost been responsible for the death of another woman that he dearly loved. He didn't even know when the feelings he felt could have even fallen into the love category, but they had.

He lite a cigarette after he got done and stood there, leaned up against the wall and waited for them to finish putting the woman he loved back together and plotted his revenge. His leg hurt bad, it was screaming from his sprint behind the building so that no one saw him buckling under the pressure of almost losing his Belle. He leaned heavily on his cane on his way back up to the floor they had Belle on. He sat in one of the metal chairs in the hallway. He only raised his head up when he heard Ruby holler his name as she ran toward him. Tears streamed down her face as she all but fell into his arms, shaking in fury.

He told her everything he knew. He left out the part where him and Belle had made love in her house, that was probably what had gotten this whole thing blown out of proportion. Ruby could see the stricken look on her friends face. She could only guess what was running through his head. She might have been young and naive but she wasn't stupid. she could see that he obviously cared for her friend, and Belle had come to him. Ruby wiped tears away from her face. She blamed herself, she should have been there. If she had been at home this would have never had happened. She needed to find Gavin. She was going to kill him. He wouldn't be alive long if she had her way. She had a knife at home, a kissing crane, it would make short work of that asshole.

The police were useless around here, Ruby thought. Sheriff Swan was a good sheriff but hunting down Gavin was going to take brains and Ruby knew him too well. She had been Belle's friend for some years and she knew Gavin's friends, Mike and Gus. She knew were he went and were he worked, she would find him. She looked over at Nick. He was pale as he sat there. No doubt the incident from his teenage years running rampant through his head. She put her arms around him.

"She's tough you know, She'll be alright. She's very lucky that she came to you. Guess since I wasn't at home she just thought of you huh?" Nick looked over at her and a revelation hit Ruby as she took in his posture, his expression. She gasped."You and her, am I right?" Nick slowly closed his eyes before nodding. "Oh." Ruby looked down at the floor as she tried to sort through her feelings. So they were more than just friends, they were IN to each other. It was starting to make sense. She looked back over at Nick.

"Did he catch you two together?" Nick shook his head no but didn't offer anymore explanation than that because the Doctor came around the corner. Nick and Ruby both stood up.

"She's alright. She's going to be here for several days though. We removed her spleen and..." He looked hesitant for a moment before continuing, "She lost the baby, but she will live, she's a very tough lady, a very lucky one too." Dr. Whale put a sympathetic hand on Nick's shoulder. "Your quick thinking saved Belle's life, you both can go on in and see her but she's pretty out of it." He patted his shoulder a couple of times before leaving.

Ruby looked over at Nick, "You saved her life Nick, thank you." Nick shook his head trying to keep the emotion out of his voice but it cracked anyway as he spoke.

"Saved her Ruby, I'm the one who almost got her killed."

Ruby went in a head of Nick and pulled up one of the chairs close to the bed so that she could hold Belle's hand. She looked so small and helpless laying in that bed with all the machines around her, their whistles and beeps monitoring all of her vital signs. Nick felt so helpless. He didn't know what to thank about the baby. He assumed Belle knew about it, but why she hadn't told anyone was anybody's guess. He wouldn't have thought any different about her. He hoped she would have known that. He wondered if she had told anyone."Ruby, did you know anything about a baby?" Ruby shook her head.

"It's news to me, she called me several times while I was in New York. Maybe that's what she wanted, but I was being stupid and I didn't even give her a chance to tell me anything." Ruby felt incredibly guilty about all of this. Maybe it wouldn't have happened if she had been there. Belle lay there with a busted lip and a swollen face, her eye was dark with an angry bruise and now they had gutted her like a fish, removing her spleen and a baby. Ruby wondered if Belle even knew herself about the baby, maybe she didn't that would make it easier when she awoke and they told her.

Belle made a small moan that had her two worried friends snap to attention around her. Slowly her eyes opened as she gave a little cough trying to find her voice. "Belle, can you hear me? It's Ruby, and Nick is here too."

"Nick?" Belle said weakly. She gripped Ruby's hand.

Nick placed his hand on her forehead, rubbing her softly with his thumb. "Hey, How do you feel?" Belle smiled up at him, then a frown took its place as she grimaced in pain.

"Are you hurting, I can call the Doctor, he can take care of any pain, love."

"What happened?" Ruby started crying at the pitiful sound of her friend's raspy voice.

"You were hurt Belle. Gavin hurt you. Nick saved your life but they had to operate, you were bleeding internally." A single tear ran down Belle's cheek.

"What about the baby?" Ruby choked back a sob, so she did know about the baby.

"They did all they could to save you Belle, but the baby, it didn't survive." A strangled sound emerged from Belle's dry throbbing throat. Nick got a glass of water with a straw and helped her take a sip.

"Did this happen because of us Belle? Can you tell me where the bastard is now? How did he find out, how did he know?" Belle felt weak, she desperately wanted to sleep, she suspected it was all the medication they had her on. Her baby was dead and it was all her fault. How could he have done this, now an innocent life had paid the price.

"Ariel. I think it was Ariel. That's all I know." Ruby leaned back and eyed Nick. He could see what she was thinking clearly, she was going to hurt somebody.

"I'll be back Belle, but Nick is going to stay here with you." Belle tried weakly to shake her head no.

"You'll only get in trouble, just let it go, it's done." Ruby gripped her hand before kissing it and standing up.

"Nobody does this and gets away with it Belle, they will both pay that I guarantee it." Belle tried to cling to Ruby but she was too tired, Ruby left Nick to come sit by her side and hold her hand. Belle cried while Nick whispered soothing words into her ear, trying to calm her.

"I don't want her to get hurt Nick." Belle feared that what had happened to her could easily happen to Ruby and she just didn't know if she could live with herself if that happened.

"Ruby knows how to take care of herself and plus the sheriff is on the case Belle. She'll handle Gavin." Nick didn't want to tell her what he planned for Gavin, it would only upset her more. He'd let Ruby have Ariel first then Gavin would get his, Nick thought.

Dr. Whale walked in and after checking Belle's machines he decided that Belle needed a little pain management, which Nick thought was an excellent idea. She needed to rest and forget about everything for a while except getting well. Nick vowed not to leave her side.