Note: To Angus; wow! I had no clue that Kazuya is Steve's dad! It makes sense though seeing as how both he and Nina were incapacitated at that time. But it's just so wierd! That means Jin and Steve are half brothers! To JC-1225; I'm glad your likin' it! I respond well to reviews and you keep me going! To Thunderxtw; cool beans, man!

Chapter 4: In Denial

She saw him that much was certain. What she didn't see or more like what she didn't want to see was her son. All that trouble she went through just to avoid him, even during the tournament and he'd come to her. Saved her. There was a huge lump in the assassin's throat as she watched Steve walk up to her.

"Hey, you're that actress aren't you? The one from Bad Blood?" he wondered.

"Huh?"

Nina almost forgot about the film she'd starred in along with her sister. She wondered why it was already out so early…

"You're a pretty good actress ma'am, and an even better fighter. I would think you'd be the kind of person to enter a tournament or something."

When he said this it reminded her of the Iron Fist. She couldn't allow him to recall her in any way otherwise it might jeopardize her mission.

"Uh, no I'd never be in anything like that. I went through training before the movie and haven't taken anything else since. I'm sorry I don't know what you're talking about."

Steve fell silent for a moment then flashed a bouquet of flowers. "Here you are. I hope you like irises."

No way…how in the world could he…it's got to be a coincidence that he'd give me these!

Meekly Nina took them and sank into her bed. Steve understood that she was still not feeling well and decided to leave.

"You'll be in my prayers…Nina Williams." He said with softness while exiting the room.

Taken aback, Nina gracefully squeezed the flowers in her arms and put them aside. She put her hand to her head and sighed.

"Curse him! I shouldn't feel anything towards him, towards anyone! Why is he changing me!"

There was too much pressure on her and with the wounds on her body it was taking a toll on her life. An intervention was needed.

"I need to call a nurse up here." She said struggling to reach the call button.

Downstairs, one of the newest nurses was assigned to her room in place of the previous one who mysteriously disappeared. She was the youngest of the nurses. Taking her clipboard, the woman rode aboard the elevator to Nina's room where she was impatiently awaiting her arrival.

"Hello is everything alright?" she asked politely.

"No I'm not, and I wouldn't have called you otherwise." Nina grumbled.

"Well what seems to be the problem?"

"I'm a little stressed out and it's not doing me good with these wounds I have. Can you maybe give me something to take care of it?"

"Sure. Just wait one second." She went over to the window and prepared medicine for Nina. "So what was it that made you stressed out?"

Nina hesitated to say it, but since it was only her nurse and a total stranger she figured it wouldn't make a difference.

"My…relative…my son came in here just a while ago and gave me these flowers. The thing is it was the first time in 21 years that I'd actually met him face to face."

Baffled, the nurse turned to her and stared in disbelief. "But you barely look like you're in your twenties! How can you manage to stay looking so young?"

"Uh, I just stay fit is all. A little surgery here and there…"

With the medicine in hand, the nurse leisurely gave it to Nina. "Really? I heard that even in plastic surgery it's easy to tell a woman's age. Yet you seem unchanged. Could it be that you were…preserved?"

Ugh, so many questions…and that last one nipped her in the heel.

"Preserved, no. I don't-"

"I mean cryosleep. The frozen slumber that keeps everything intact: The fleshes, blood, even the innards like maybe a woman's ovaries. So perfect…"

How would she even know something like that? This was really bothering her. Swallowing her pills was more a task than listening to the conversation.

"So how'd it happen then? The man who left earlier was indeed your son but no records in this hospital or any in the world state you giving birth."

"And why would you need to know about his birth! It's none of your damn business so why don't you get out while I'm still stable!"

The nurse heaved a sigh and said, "Oh, dear sister. There's nothing you can do to me now; in a few minutes you'll be dead."

That voice! She instantly recognized it as Anna and forgetting that she was injured attempted to attack her. It failed miserably.

"I grow so very disgusted with you every second of my life, so much I couldn't wait to kill you myself since Lee's a traitor and Raven's a failure. I was shocked to find out that you'd been with child all that time we were in stasis, and that he ended up being in the tournament! Not only that but now I'm an aunt…me of all people an aunt to one of your children! There's no forgiving you after this Nina, just like you Steve is a gift from hell and neither of you shall be allowed to live. The so-called medicine I gave you was actually a poison that'll first paralyze and then cause instant death!"

"D-da-am-n…" she struggled to breath.

"I wish I could say it's been fun but, it hasn't. In any case the first thing to go is your voice then it slowly travels down, so unless you can make that call button Nina death is eminent. Ta ta!"

In a casual sense she exited with a snicker. Nina's eyes grew wide and shocked as she could feel the poison take effect. No longer could she speak, not even scream. Panicking she made for the call button once more and barely grazed it when her closest arm finally fell numb. Her eyes glazed over and she began to lose sight of the room. Toppling over the bed she laid there, as the rest of the paralysis occurred. A sadness never felt in twenty years came over her though she could not cry now.

I shouldn't have let Steve go, she told herself, none of this would have happened if I didn't let him leave…

Note: Thanks for the reviews friends! To Thunderxtw, I just realized that my story and yours had similarities and I think I actually was having yours in mind when I wrote this. That's my bad! I was trying to go for a similar concept but with a different plot. I'll change it more so it's not so close. Now Nina's dying and Steve is out of reach, and things are going great for Anna (which isn't good…) I'll update quicker is I get a speedy review(s).