Hello everyone! Apologies for the lack of updates but my laptop is broken and I have exams in May so I've been really busy. Anyway, I don't know if you guys think this but I was worried that this fic was moving quite slowly so hopefully this chapter will move it along a bit. Enjoy! I'll try and get another update up within the next week or two seeing as I'm off for Easter! Enjoy!

Ronnie sighed deeply. It had seemed like it was going to be a peaceful night after she had put Mia to bed after calling Roxy. But it had been anything but…

First it was a headache. Then it was a nose bleed and vomiting. And before Ronnie knew it, she was in an ambulance with her daughter saying the prayer that she completely relied on whenever she wasn't sure of what going to happen to her, over and over again in her head.

It had been terrifying…

Mia had deteriorated so quickly that Ronnie had barely had time to figure out what was happening. But her brain sub-consciously registered what was going on and she had quickly dialled 999 as her daughter began to fit and shake violently in her arms.

It hadn't been this bad in so long…

And now Ronnie was at Mia's beside in the nearby children's hospital that she had just visited only a few days ago. It had been the longest night ever. Ronnie stroked Mia's tiny hand gently, making sure she avoided the IV drip that was feeding blood into the little girl's body after she lost so much just a few hours ago. It was so scary. Mia had tubes being fed through countless areas of her body; she had oxygen tubes fitted in her nose and her tiny eyes were clamped shut and creased as though she was having a nightmare as she slept.

And though Ronnie liked to pretend that she was a strong person, her eyes were red raw and painfully sore from the continuous hours of crying that night. Even now as Mia's condition had been stablised, she couldn't stop crying at the thought of what had just happened. There had been so much blood…Ronnie had no idea how it happened so quickly and her heart was still pounding violently from the fright…

Ronnie jumped as the nurse came into Mia's room.

"Sorry Ms Mitchell, I didn't mean to startle you, I just need to take Mia's temperature," said the nurse quickly, not wishing to stress this poor mother out anymore than was needed.

Although it couldn't be helped, she always hated it when their patients were children. Truthfully, the parents usually find it harder to cope and she always tried to make sure that their time in hospital was as easy to handle as possible for both the children and their parents.

"Ms Mitchell….," she began, after checking Mia's temperature.

"Ronnie…" the distressed mother replied quietly.

"Sorry..Ronnie, why don't you take a walk and get some fresh air?"

Ronnie looked up, surprised at this random suggestion. She gripped Mia's hand tighter.

"Only, Mia's doctor won't be down for another half an hour or so and I just thought that maybe…you could do with a break," the nurse said, sensing the awkwardness in the room and immediately wishing she had kept her mouth shut.

Ronnie hesitated and looked back at her daughter. She was sound asleep, just as she would be at home. Even after all the trauma of the previous night, Mia looked surprisingly peaceful and it even made Ronnie smile. She hadn't even called Mia's school to alert them as to where she was. Ronnie thought carefully about it for a few minutes.

"Okay," she eventually replied, giving a small smile to the nervous nurse.

The nurse smiled back and carefully opened the door for Ronnie.

"We'll alert you immediately if there is any sudden change in Mia," she said, trust ignited in her massive brown eyes.

"Thank you…" began Ronnie.

"Abby," she shyly filled in.

"Abby," repeated Ronnie, exiting the room and taking one last look at her daughter.

"Stay safe, baby," she whispered, blowing a tiny kiss to her with her first finger and turning to walk down the long, shiny hospital corridor. She exhaled deeply and closed her eyes for a moment as she walked.

She barely knew where she was going but before she knew it she was on the ground floor beside the small shop that is always at the entrance of hospitals. You could instantly tell that this was a children's hospital. Every seating area was surrounded by toys and games; cheerful music played quietly in the background and there were cartoon characters painted all over the walls which Mia loved. But Ronnie did her best to walk past them quickly. The giant brown bear on the wall always freaked her out. And whilst it didn't really look the one she had, it reminded her too much of her father and what he used to do to her…

Ronnie jumped. Strangely, a bouncy ball had just hit her on the back of the leg. She picked it up quickly and looked around the reception to found out where it had come from. Sure enough, a tiny figure appeared behind her and tugged on her black jacket.

Ronnie turned around. She knew this child. It was Jake. Mia's friend from the children's ward. She hadn't seen him in a long time but she knew it was him because of his gorgeous green eyes. But she couldn't help being surprised. The last time she had seen him, he had a full head of sandy, curly hair and now…nothing.

Jake smiled politely and said "Hi Ronnie," in his adorable, sing-song voice.

"Hi there, Jake," she smiled quietly, not wanting to let the tears that were forming escape at the thought of how much his cancer had also deteriorated.

"Can I have my ball back please, sorry it hit you?"

"Of course you can sweetheart," she gushed, gently placing it in his tiny hand.

"Thank you, say hi to Mia for me," he called as he ran back to sit beside his mum who was waiting at the reception.

Ronnie swallowed deeply. It was such a shock to see such a drastic change in Jake.

"It won't be long before Mia looks like that," hissed the voice inside her head.

Ronnie jumped.

"It won't be long before she loses all of her lovely blonde hair," it whispered again.

"Shut up," Ronnie thought. "Shut up, shut up,"

"You know you can't avoid it Veronica, it's going to happen," spat the voice.

"No!" she yelled, right in the middle of the waiting room, causing people to stare.

Ronnie looked around, embarrassed.

"You better get back to her, Veronica, you never know when she might just…..slip away," it laughed, causing a pulse to form in her temple.

"I won't let you," she thought. "You're not taking my little girl away from me,"

Ronnie broke into a sprint. She ran towards the stairs. Mia was on the 7th floor but she didn't have time to wait for the lift. She charged up the steep flights of stairs, giving it all the energy she had left. She couldn't let the voice get there before her.

Several other people were using the stairs and she could feel them staring at her unusual actions but she didn't care. Mia needed her…

She reached the 7th floor. She burst as hard as she could through the double doors, ignoring the searing pain now running through her arm.

She turned the corner and WHAM!

"Oww," she cried, stroking her head where she had bumped into someone coming round the corner and breathing heavily after the huge run. She didn't even bother to look up at the poor person as she picked up her belongings and placed them back in her handbag.

"You ought to watch where you're going, you know," said a man's voice, as he began to help her pick up the things.

"I'm sorry, I just..," she looked up, ready to face the music, but suddenly dropped the bag in surprise…

The man gasped. "Ronnie….?" he gasped.

Ronnie couldn't believe what she was seeing. It couldn't be….but it was. She triggered her mouth into action…

"Jack?"….., she whispered, unable to believe her eyes…..

*gasp* Haha. I couldn't wait to add this bit of the story in :D I really hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sorry if things have been moving a bit slowly and sorry for the lack of updates but hopefully that cliffhanger has shocked you all a bit :D

Hope you enjoyed it :D

Erin xxx