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Vanessa was pondering if she had developed a heart defect as she raced to St. Thomas as she ran through the hallways. She was surprised she didn't get a speeding ticket as she raced through the streets of Charming. A part of her was pissed at Heath for messing with her phone making her miss the initial phone call, but she was really pissed at herself. She was mad at herself for not being there when her baby boy needed her. Instead, she was with Heath. Something she knew shouldn't have done.

Nearly breaking her ankles in her booties as she ran through the hallways ignoring staffs shouts for her to walk, she nearly collapsed when she caught sight of leather vests taking up a bulk of a waiting area.

Chibs, Jax's Sergeant at arms, was the first person to notice her as her heels slapped against the linoleum floors and she nearly began crying when she engulfed him in a hug. The scene was similar as the club was here once again for support for her and Jax.

"It's going to be okay, luv," he told her as he gave her a kiss on her head.

Tears were already spilling in her brown eyes as she looked at the Scotsman before she was engulfed by hugs and well wishes by the club members. She was prepared to ask what happened when her attention was taken back by Gemma with her tearstained face as she held an upset and cranky Thomas.

Her stomach dropped at seeing Gemma's appearance. Vanessa couldn't recall Gemma ever crying so publically, not even when Clay had his accident. Gemma always kept herself composed for appearances and she knew whatever happened couldn't have been good.

Gemma transferred Thomas into her hold. Vanessa pressed a lingering kiss to Thomas' head as she inhaled the scent of his shampoo in his curly hair before she turned her gaze back to Gemma.

"What happened?" She asked with a shaky voice.

"The kids were playing when he stopped and began clutching at his chest. He's in surgery. Opie's in the room with Jax where you can see the operation."

Vanessa nodded her head and she knew she surprised Gemma when she unexpectedly crushed her into a hug being mindful of Thomas. Even though she knew as a mother this was hard for her, but Gemma knew this pain. She knew the terrible symptoms of the family flaw that was passed down to her son's and now grandson.

Gemma gave her a tight hug and she could tell the biker matriarch was trying to hold back an onset of tears when she eventually broke away. "You should go with Jax. We've got Thomas."

"Come on darlin'," Chibs called from behind her. Vanessa pressed one last kiss to Thomas' head, who was reluctant to let her go, but settled into Gemma's arms before she let herself be escorted by Chibs.

"Oh wait, I need to call my parents."

"We already took care of it. They're on their way." Chibs informed her. This time the tears were pouring freely down her face in show of gratitude for the club. Chibs gave her another hug and pressed a kiss to her head as he led her down to the room where Jax and Opie were.

...

The room was dark. The only light that highlighted the room was from the operating room that was visible from the glass window that let loved ones observe. Her baby boy – her oldest boy – was lying there on the operating table with doctors hovered over his small body.

It was a familiar and honestly unwanted scene she recalled when Abel was born. Her pregnancy with Abel wasn't bad, despite the early diagnosis of him having the family flaw, the pregnancy was smooth. Except until they got to the birth, Vanessa was scheduled for a C-Section as the doctors, her, and Jax were worried about the stress of going through a vaginal delivery. But Abel was an eager boy, and her water broke two weeks before he would be considered full term, and immediately after the birth Abel's heart condition was worse off than the doctors believed and she only got to hold her boy for a couple minutes before he was whisked off to surgery. She remembered watching a similar scene while her baby boy's life seemingly hung on a balance.

Opie immediately greeted her with a strong hug which she greatly returned. "Donna is sorry she couldn't be here, but the kids –"

"It's fine Opie." Vanessa amended.

He gave her another hug before he looked back at Jax, a message passing between their eyes, and he silently made his way out of the room giving her and Jax privacy.

She hastily wiped away the hot tears while she looked at her husband whose distraught gaze was focused on her.

She could tell Jax was trying not to cry, his hair was wrecked from his hands going through it so much. His brows were pinched together as his hand rubbed over his lips, but the wall he had built up was slowly crumbling.

It only took her two seconds of her looking at her husband – the father of her children – before she smacked into his chest, their arms immediately wrapped around each other. Her tears smeared against his leather vest. Jax's arms were a welcome weight and anchor she needed for something like this. Vanessa wasn't oblivious, she knew Abel's heart would always be concern even with Abel seemingly getting a clean bill of health, but she clung to the hope her and Jax would never have to go through something like this again.

It was silent between them as they both knew words were futile at this point and they would only matter if Abel made it through this episode. Plus knowing Jax, he never made promises he knew he couldn't keep or didn't believe. It wasn't them being pessimistic about their boy because they weren't but after losing Sophia, they knew losing a child was a very real thing they could go through again.

Vanessa relished in Jax's hold as his hand cradled her head while his lips ghosted over the crown before she loosened her own hold and turned around to face the procedure that was taking place before them.

Jax's arms wrapped around her front as he held her tightly with her back to his chest as they watched the team of doctors and nurses work diligently on their boy. Her hands were frantically trying to wipe away the tears before Jax's own rough calloused hands wiped away the steady stream and he leaned down and whispered in her ear. "We'll get through it, Nes."

Vanessa let herself believe it.

Jax released a shaky breath as he pressed a hard, but relieved kiss to Vanessa's forehead as the doctor relayed that the operation was successful and explained to them how Abel's heartbeat became irregular, most likely due to over excursion and they just needed to practically restart the heart to get it back to the right rhythm. Still Jax clutched Vanessa tightly in his arms as both of them were probably praying to God and Jax contemplated in starting to go to church.

Vanessa hurriedly thanked the doctor and a nurse quickly came over to escort them to the post operation room that Abel would be staying in.

Vanessa made way to walk away, but he grabbed her arm bringing her and the nurse to a stop.

"I'm going to tell the guys and my mom everything went well and I need a cigarette after this."

Vanessa nodded her head understandably. "Just don't take too long."

Jax nodded his head while he walked down to the waiting room only to stop and pause when he realized the hallway was empty. He leaned against the wall and sagged against it as he buried his face in his hands as he waited for his heart to stop racing as he felt it was close to busting out of his chest.

He didn't know how long he leaned against that wall as he tried to compose himself, as for what felt like forever, that he might have come to terms to losing another child – his oldest son. He knew if they would've lost Abel, he knew neither he nor Vanessa would ever recover from something like that and it wouldn't just be their marriage at risk.

He took another deep breath as he needed to be strong for Vanessa, his boys – his family – and the club.

It was only a minute walk to where his family was at where he found them in the waiting room. Thomas being the first one to see him became a slippery ill and jumped out of Annabeth's hold and into his arms. Jax immediately kissed his baby boy on the head and closed his eyes as he held his boy close. He thanked God Thomas didn't inherit the family flaw.

"Is Abel okay, daddy?" His son asked in a small voice.

Jax looked at his son before he turned to his club, to his mother who had gotten up from her seat and embrace from Clay and stood in front of him. "Abel's fine. He is in recovery, still knocked out." Gemma and Annabeth both cried in relief while everyone muttered thank gods. "They're going to keep him a few days as a precaution. So you guys can go home –"

"No, Jax, until that boy wakes up we're going to be right here." Bobby said firmly speaking up from his seat.

"Anything you and Vanessa need right now brother, we're on it," Tig added on.

Jax threw all his brothers a grateful smile and even brought his mom into a hug as he knew for her to watch her grandson collapse probably almost had her go into her own episode.

Jax's eyes looked at his mom then to Annabeth, "Vanessa is in the room right now. You two or all of you really should go see here. I need a minute."

Both Gemma and Annabeth looked at him with understanding and Jax was luckily able to pass over Thomas to his mother without much of a fit.

...

He quickly made his way outside immediately lighting his cigarette and felt some of the lingering tension leave his body. As he stood outside of St. Thomas and watched people seemingly for once ignore him as he smoked his cigarette. As his mind was relived about Abel, he kept wandering back to why it took her so long to answer her phone. He knew if she was out it still didn't take that long for her to answer her phone. Even if she was pissed at him, it only took at least a second ring before she answered especially knowing he was watching the boys.

He had just took another long drag of his cigarette when he heard the doors to the hospital open and from the sound of the heavy trek approaching him he knew it was one person. Opie.

Opie didn't say anything at first. He only leaned against the wall next to him while they watched the slow late night traffic.

"I'm sorry you and Van had to go through this."

Jax nodded his head a humorless chuckle escaped his lips, "It's just one thing after another, right?"

Opie didn't reply to his comment and only took a long drag of his cigarette. "You know you can talk to me brother."

Jax threw his smoked cigarette in the garbage bin as he contemplated if he should voice his thoughts to Opie considering the more pressing matter at hand. However, if he didn't say anything he knew he would drive him crazy. It was never good for him to stay inside his head for too long.

"I'm just thinking about why it took so long for Vanessa to answer her phone. I sent Rat to the house and she wasn't there –"

"Do you really want to focus on this now?" Opie asked softly, no judgment in his tone despite what his words were saying.

"Her hair was wet Ope and she wasn't showering at the house." Jax replied as he thought back to Vanessa's damp brown hair and how it didn't even smell like her usual raspberry and vanilla scent.

Jax waited for Opie to respond with something, but his friend didn't seem to have anything to say that would either extinguish his suspicions or confirm it even though Jax knew in his gut there was someone else. Jax pushed himself off the wall and was going to head back inside the hospital when Opie's voice stopped him.

Opie looked at him when a blank expression, but he took a painful breath. "Now isn't the time brother."

Jax didn't say anything, but made his way inside the hospital and kept repeating Opie's words to himself.

Jax was lounging in the chair next to Abel's bed as they waited for him to fully wake up. He woke up for a little while before he fell back to asleep no doubt because of the exhaustion his body felt post operation. They had been at the hospital going on a day and he could admit his back and ass was hurting from being in the pleather hospital chair.

His eyes flickered from Abel to Vanessa, who was entering his hospital room with a bag from the local bakery and a drink carrier. He immediately sat up and grabbed the drink carrier from Vanessa's hands.

She gave him a tired smile. "I got you – or I should say Rat Boy picked it up - two glazed donuts and a breakfast sandwich and coffee."

"Thank you," Jax said softly.

They both sat down in the uncomfortable chairs and Jax made quick work on his breakfast. After he practically inhaled his breakfast and was working on his second donut, he glanced over to Vanessa only to find her nibbling on her own donut.

"Is that all your eating?" He asked gruffly.

Vanessa looked over at him with wide eyes and down to her donut. "I'm not really hungry."

Jax was on the verge of telling her she needed to eat in a tone that left no room for an argument. But as his eyes trailed over her, he took in her tired eyes and the dark spots that seemed to be setting in beneath her dark orbs. Her nose, the one thing that gave away her emotions, was tinted in red giving away everything she was trying to hide and keep in.

Jax grabbed a napkin wiping the grease of his fingers and around his mouth before he brought his hand on her back. "You okay?"

She abandoned picking at her donut as she rubbed her tired eyes with her fingers and released a shaky breath and turned to him with watery eyes, "Are you?"

Jax nodded slowly. "I will be when Abel wakes up."

Vanessa looked back at their sleeping boy and he could see her lips beginning to tremble before she closed her eyes and took another deep shaky breath. "Going through this it kills me Jax."

"I know," Jax agreed as he began rubbing her back hoping to relieve some of the tension that was building.

He was surprised when Vanessa took his free hand into her own hands and pressed a tender kiss to his knuckles and continued to hold it as some type of anchor, as she leaned into him causing him to abandon rubbing her back and instead wrapped his arm around her bringing her into his side.

They stayed in that position even when a knock came at the door and Gemma walked through.

"How's he doing?"

"Still sleeping," Jax replied to Gemma.

"Matt and Annabeth offered to take Thomas to their house to eat and sleep. You two should go home and freshen up as well." Jax felt Vanessa about to protest, but his mom cut her off with a meaningful look and didn't give Vanessa a chance to speak. "Just go home and change your clothes. Clay and I will be here with Abel. Trust me, you'll feel better. You two should go say goodbye to Thomas."

Arriving back at the house, Vanessa quickly announced she was going to jump in the shower while Jax, she assumed, nodded his head as she didn't receive a verbal reply. As she took an extremely hot shower and proceeded to change into a pair of black leggings and an cream colored oversized sweater, Gemma was right in saying taking a shower and changing would make her feel somewhat better. But she knew she wouldn't be alright until Abel fully woke up and the drugs left his system. Better yet, she would really be okay once he was home where she knew she was going to let her boy along with Thomas probably sleep in the bed with her just to have both of them close.

Vanessa quickly put some mousse in her hair and considering she was only going to the hospital she was going to let her hair air dry into its natural waves. She slipped on some socks with a pair of her black converse and walked down the hallway where she found Jax sitting in the kitchen. She thought as soon as she turned the water off, he would have quickly hopped in after her. A part of her thought he was even going to join her.

Instead as she walked closer to him, he was sitting at the wooden table quietly smoking a cigarette while he played with his Reaper Zippo lighter.

As she reached behind him, she placed her right hand on his leather clad shoulder while she moved to his side where he stopped playing with his lighter.

"Jax, are you going to get in the shower?"

He didn't respond to her question and instead he extinguished his cigarette. His hand now free reached across him and he grabbed her left hand that held her wedding and engagement rings. The position drew her body closer to him as he pressed his lips to her warm skin. Her right hand that was on his shoulder slid into his blonde hair that was askew from his hands wrecking it.

Her brows furrowed as she cupped his chin to try and force him to look at her. "Jax – "

"Can you sit down for a minute?" Jax asked her but he still wasn't looking at her. His gaze was focused firmly on her rings before he released her hand to sit down.

She took a sit across from him as she looked at him with concern.

His jaw was clenched and she realized his nostrils were flared that only meant one thing. He wasn't sad, but angry. And the words that left his lips made her world spin off its axis.

"Who is he?"

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