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Out of Control, Part 16

The impact made him sit up, waking up Cathy. He ran a hand over his face as he took several restorative breaths. He had never felt this much pain from any one of the children before. It was like the time…He cut off that thought as the sheer pain made his temples throb.

"Quatre?" Cathy asked as she sat up, placing her hand on his shoulder. "What is it? What's wrong?" Her voice was laced with worry and curiosity.

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "Something's happened. Something so horrible, I don't even want to think it, much less feel it." Wrapping his arms around her, he breathed in the lingering scent of cinnamon and spices against her neck. His fingers enmeshed themselves in her thick russet curls. The pain didn't subside. "It's only a matter of time," he said against her skin.

"What is?" she asked as she held him tight. She understood his empathic abilities enough to know that this was something he hadn't felt before, or else he wouldn't be reacting the way he was. "Quatre, please tell me?"

A yell echoed down the hall.

"That's what I was waiting for," Quatre said as he pulled himself out of his wife's embrace. He flung the door open and ran down the hall.

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Pain shredded through his nerve endings, making it feel like his insides were being ripped out. He couldn't even hear the sound of his breathing over the thunderous pounding of his heart in his ears. He gripped his head, trying to keep it from coming apart. "No," he moaned once as he bent over, the sheets were twisted around him. "No," he repeated as he squeezed his eyes shut until tears managed to trickle out of the corners. Vaughn had never felt something like this before. This wrenching, this kind of pain, was all of a sudden blasting him with devastating impact. "Veronica," he whimpered.

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Quatre watched his son double over again. He knew that Vaughn was probably wishing he were dead about now so he wouldn't have to feel it. He knew whom it was coming from. He made his way over to the bed. "Vaughn, breathe," he instructed as he lay a hand on his son's shoulder. "You have to breathe."

"I can't, I can't," Vaughn wheezed, "It hurts…God it hurts…I feel like I'm dying inside. Its getting worse and I can feel…him too…he's scared…he doesn't know what to do…"

"I know it hurts. I feel it too. But you have to, Vaughn. Breathe. It'll relive some of it," Quatre insisted, knowing that if he didn't, his son would black out.

With a shuddering breath, Vaughn inhaled. It still felt like dull knives were tearing up his insides.

Quatre turned and glanced at his wife over his shoulder. His other children were standing there too. And like Vaughn, and him, Mira was the only other of his children to inherit any sort of empathic abilities. Hers, however, weren't as powerful as Vaughn's or his own. Her eyes were wide and there was a noticeable pallor to her skin. "Breathe, Mira."

The eighteen year old nodded her head, taking deep breaths, making the pain recede inside of her.

"Go back to bed now, Mira. Cathy…make sure she takes something," Quatre said, looking at her.

"All right," Cathy said as she gave her younger son a sympathetic smile. She led her youngest from the room. "Come along you two," she murmured to Damien and Quatrina, who passed Vaughn concerned looks before following her out.

Quatre turned his attention back to Vaughn. "You feel better yet?"

"No."

"It'll go away eventually," he said, in which he hoped was a reassuring tone.

"Veronica," Vaughn whimpered again as his eyes remained clenched shut with tears still trickling down his cheeks.

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It had happened so fast, she didn't realize it, but she knew what it was. Her insides twisted, making her cry out again. She could feel his hands on her shoulders, trying to calm her down. "Daddy," she cried out as she fell back against the pillows, the pain searing through her stomach.

Heero felt helpless. Never in his life had he ever felt that way. He tried his best to calm her as doctors and several nurses rushed into the room. Tears were spilling down her cheeks from under her lashes, which were now plastered to her cheeks as well. "Veronica, daddy's here."

"We have to get her to trauma, now, Mister Yuy."

Heero nodded. "Just go. Just go." He watched as they wheeled her from the room, following them to the door, as they wheeled her down the hallway and out of sight. Agony at not being able to do something for her, made him feel sick. He slumped against the door raking his hands through his hair in abject despair. It was a sight he had thought he would never have to see again in that amount or even coming from his own child. Blood. Crimson red beginning to stain the white hospital sheets. He knew what it meant. He knew where it was coming from. He bent over, wrapping his arms around his stomach to hold himself together. "I have to stay together for her. For myself," he whispered. "I can't fall apart right now."

For what it seemed like hours to him, she was wheeled back into the room. Fresh white sheets only heightened the paleness of her skin. Her gold hair spilled across the pillowcase. She looked so unearthly pale to him. He looked up at the doctor, his gaze unflinching and impassive. "Tell me."

"Your daughter miscarried the fetus. It's more than likely the result of her fall the other day. We had to perform a…"

Heero held up his hand. "You don't have to explain. I know what you had to do. Is she all right now?"

The doctor sighed and nodded his head. "She lost a lot of blood, but we transfused her. Her color should improve in an hour or so. Otherwise, she should be fine. She'll be sore for quite some time, but that will go away. After she's all healed up, she should be physically capable once again. But I do recommend she get therapy to cope with this."

"Understood," Heero replied as he glanced back at the sleeping face of his daughter. "When will she wake up?"

"She won't wake up until morning. The IV has morphine in it to take away the pain and it will keep her sleepy. I'll come by and check on her later," the doctor said as he nodded towards Veronica. He paused in the doorway and looked back at Heero. "I'm sorry for her loss," he said, his tone compassionate.

"Thank you," Heero replied with a slight tilt of his head. He pulled up a chair, close to the bed. He picked up her limp hand from the cream colored blanket. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. I'm so, so sorry," he whispered as he brought her hand to his lips, clasping it with both of his. His insides were still shaking, making him want to throw up still. But he knew he couldn't. He still had to inform Relena, and he had to be strong for her as well as Veronica. "Daddy loves you, Veronica. I wish there was something I could've done for you," he said as he kept her hand against his lips until the sun peaked up over the horizon. 

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Quatre opened his eyes and peered at his son from the desk chair on the other side of the room. The morning light was just beginning to spill through the paned windows and striping the bed. He stood and stretched his hands over his head. The pain was a dull ache now as he walked across the room. He frowned a bit when he looked down at Vaughn. He was curled up into a ball with a grimace on his sleeping face. It had taken the powerful medication that Damien used for his migraines to put him to sleep. It had been restless sleep though, and being the concerned father, he had sat in the chair to make sure that he would be ok. "The pain was more than he could handle. I never prepared him for that feeling. I never thought I would have to," he murmured as he continued to look down at Vaughn.

Vaughn peeked one eye open. The light nearly blinded him and made him clench them shut again. He hurt all over, but the effect of the medication was still on him, dulling the sharpness of it. He could still feel her though. Her body had undergone serious trauma, but he didn't know why. All he knew was that late yesterday he felt a brief shooting pain, but it blanked out before he could accurately pinpoint it. Deep down, he knew it had been from her. "But what's causing this? What caused her to feel that much pain in the middle of the night?" His muddled mind ran around in circles a he tried to come up with a reasonable explanation. It couldn't and it made his brain pound. He slowly opened his eyes again to see his father looking down at him. "Dad, what happened last night?"

Quatre raked his teeth over his bottom lip, debating whether or not to tell his son what had transpired. He looked down at the squinting amethyst eyes. "It was Veronica."

"I know it was her. But what caused her to feel like that?"

The older Winner turned away from the younger, and didn't reply.

When his father didn't respond, a panicked look dropped over his features. "Dad, what the hell happened last night to cause her enough pain to make me feel it and make it seem like it was happening to me too?"

Quatre sighed, knowing that he would have to tell him because he had been so wrapped up with Veronica's pain, that he hadn't felt the twinge of life slip away. He turned and gave his son a level look. "Veronica lost the baby last night. She miscarried."

His face went white. "You can't be serious. How do you know it was that?"

"I felt it, the same as you did. But you were concentrating on her and pay attention to anything else. She miscarried the child due to her falling down the steps yesterday afternoon."

"How did she fall?"

"From what Relena told me, she got into a fight with Bobby on the steps. She apparently slipped on the steps and fell, knocking herself out in the process."

"Bobby?" Vaughn growled.

Aware of the anger now rising in his son, he shook his head. "It was an accident."

"That bastard provoked her on the steps and you're telling me it was an accident!"

"She slipped, Vaughn. According to Veronica, Bobby did try to catch her, but he missed. He made sure she got to the hospital," Quatre explained, trying to calm his son down. "But now is not the time to worry about him. Veronica needs you."

"At the moment, she can't stand the sight of me," Vaughn replied with a mirthless laugh. "The woman that I love can't stand me because of some stupid incident with Randy."

"She was worried about you that day. It's clear that she cares for you and women are emotional creatures. She flew off the handle before she rationally processed the information," Quatre said as he stared at the now lusterless amethyst eyes.

"She may care for me, but at the moment she hates me. I don't say that I would blame her and Heero is in no way going to let me near her. Especially not now," Vaughn snorted as he sat up, making him wince from the feeling still inside of him. The pain was definitely still there, but it was at a constant. It hadn't gotten worse, but it hadn't gotten better either. He searched out Heero and all he could feel was helplessness, anger, and pain. He took a deep breath, his lungs aching with the effort. "I'll go to her when she asks for me. I don't want to hurt her more."

"I understand that," Quatre said, nodding his head. "Why don't you stay in bed longer and get more rest. You'll need it to get though the day. I'm sorry I never prepared you for something like this, Vaughn. I never planned on you ever having to feel something like this. Just hope you never have to feel it again," he said as he locked his aquamarine eyes with his son's before turning and leaving the room. He leaned against the door. "Things have just gotten even more complicated," he sighed as he made his way down the hall.

Vaughn fell back onto the pillow and stared at the white plastered ceiling. He touched on Veronica again. "I'm so sorry, sweetheart. I couldn't be there for you when you needed me. It's my fault, just as it's Bobby's. But you're strong, you'll get through this and if you ask, I will be there for you. My love, my support, anything you need," he said in the silent room. He closed his eyes and with incredible effort, tried to reach out and touch her with anything he had inside. "I love you," he whispered as he reached her for a brief moment, before gasping for breath as the connection ended. "I hope you felt that because I meant it with all my heart."

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A warm feeling infused her spirit for a brief moment. She thought she heard someone say, "I love you." But it hadn't been in her father's voice. It sounded so distant and far away. However it made her feel better inside. "Who was that?" Veronica wondered as she continued to sleep under the influence of the morphine, dripping soundlessly into the IV nearby.

A/N: Sad, yes? More will be coming soon and it will get lighter, I promise. XOXO!!