CHAPTER 33: Hurt

Ryan stood in shock as Nicole fell to the floor. He froze, unsure of what to do.

"What the hell?"

Looking up, Ryan watched as a nurse walked in the room and rushed to Nicole's side. He watched as she felt for a pulse and called other doctors in to help.

"Nic!"

Ryan's head turned in the direction the voice had come from, noticing Jeff standing in the doorway, tears already staining his face. He made a move to go over to Nicole, but was stopped by Matt and Chris. Jeff tried to fight them off but finally gave up, turning his head away from Nicole and to Ryan.

"You... you son of a bitch!" Jeff yelled, making everyone jump. "You bastard! This is all your fault!"

Still not moving, Ryan responded. "It's not my fault."

"Then whose fault is it?" Jeff questioned.

Smirking, Ryan replied, "Yours."

Without thinking, Jeff lunged for Ryan, knocking him down. Letting all his anger out, he started punching Ryan with all his power. "Son of a bitch! I didn't do this! You were in the room with her!"

After a few seconds, Matt, Chris and Jay pulled Jeff up, holding him back so he wouldnt go after Ryan again.

"What happened?" A voice asked. They all turned to see a confused Britney and Adam in the doorway.

"Something happened to Nicole." Amy explained quietly.

"We need you all out of here." A doctor instructed. "We have to work on her. We don't know exactly what happened."

"Come on Jeff." Matt said calmly, holding Jeff by the arm. Taking one last look at Nicole, Jeff followed his brother out of the room, leaving the doctors to try and save Nicole's life.

*~*~*~*~*

Two hours later, they were all in the waiting room. Matt was holding Amy in his arms as she fell asleep, Jay was sitting in a nearby chair, reading a book. Chris was in a corner alone, he hadn't talked to anyone since Nicole had passed out.

"You okay?" Adam questioned, looking over at Britney who was biting her lower lip in an attempt to not cry.

Nodding slowly, she turned her head and met Adam's eyes. "I... I'm so worried. I don't... I don't want anything to happen to her." She replied, a tear falling from her eye.

Reaching up, Adam wiped her tear away with the pad of his thumb. "I'm sure she'll be okay." He said soothingly.

"I hope so." Britney responded, biting her lip again.

"Don't worry. I know she will be." Adam assured, leaning in close to her and pulling her into a hug. Sighing as he felt her wrap her arms around him, he only hoped he hadn't lied when he had promised Nicole would be alright. Looking up, behind Britney, Adam noticed Jeff pacing, his hands were shaky and it was obvious he was crying. Adam couldn't imagine how much Jeff was hurting.

"Jeff, man you okay?" Jay questioned, walking up to Jeff.

Glancing up, Jeff looked at Jay. "No." He replied quietly, not wanting to say more.

Jay continued looking at Jeff, his face was pale, his eyes were red, his hands were shaky. Jay couldn't help but worry for Jeff's health. A few hours ago, Jeff was lying in a hospital bed with a head injury. All of this couldn't help make him any better. "I'm worried about you man, I don't want you to get sick."

Jeff stopped pacing and looked at Jay. "Don't be worried about me, be worried about Nicole."

"I am, but I don't want you getting sick too. Nicole will be fine."

"You don't know that!" Jeff exploded, causing everyone to look up at him. "She... she's lying in a hospital bed, she could be dying!"

"I... man, I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to make you mad." Jay replied softly, placing a hand on Jeff's shoulder.

Pushing his hand away, Jeff walked away and sat down in one of the nearby chairs. Placing his head in his hands, he let his tears fall freely, not caring who was watching.

"Jeff?"

Looking up at the tiny voice, Jeff attempted to smile at Britney. Meeting her eyes, he could see that she was crying too.

Sitting down in the seat next to him, Britney pulled him into a hug, both of them breaking down in tears.

The group sat in silence, except for Britney and Jeff's occasional sobs until they heard yelling.

"No! Let go of me!"

They all watched as a cop made his way into the waiting area with Ryan. They watched as Ryan struggled to break free as the cop attempted to put handcuffs on him.

Jeff went to stand up but was stopped by Britney. "He isn't worth it." She said quietly, holding onto his arm.

"No!" Ryan yelled again. "Nicole needs me! I have to go back in there with her! She's carrying my baby!"

Jeff shook his head and watched Ryan struggle, trying to keep his temper in check. He didn't want to get in trouble, Ryan wasn't worth it. He had to be there when Nicole woke up, if she woke up.

"Hardy."

Jeff looked up at Ryan when he heard his name.

"I will get her, she will be mine." Ryan replied, a grin on his face. "When she has that baby, we'll be together. Mother, father, and baby."

Giving up on keeping his cool, Jeff jumped up and went after Ryan. Ignoring Matt's yells, he kept attacking Ryan. He didn't care about getting in trouble anymore, he just wanted to kill Ryan.

"Jeff!" Matt yelled, trying to get him off. Jeff continued fighting until Matt, Shannon, and Shane all grabbed him and pulled him off Ryan. "Calm down." Matt ordered, trying to hold Jeff back.

"Um... excuse me, Mr. Hardy?" A nurse asked, walking up to them.

"What?" Matt questioned, answering for Jeff.

"Um... Nicole..."

"What about her?" Jeff questioned quietly, focusing his attention on the nurse in front of him.

"Um... we have some news on her condition..."

"Is she okay?" Chris questioned, joining the group.

"Well..."

A/N: Cliffhanger... hehe I'm evil. Thanks again for the reviews so far! I appreciate it lots! R&R! :)Nicole***