Disclaimer: I don't own anyone, other than Lily and Madison.
Rated: M
Warning(s): Slash, Past Mpreg, Storyline Fanfic, etc.

A/N: So… the time has finally come. There are officially six chapters left of Letters of Hate. The reason I'm announcing this here instead of over at Letters of Hate is because my next project is actually a spin-off of this – a Mark/Hunter fic revolving around the Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam. It will feature an older Lily and Madison as well.

"Randy…" Hunter offered the younger man a sympathetic look. He knew that the man's world revolved around that little boy. He would've gladly done anything for his sake.

Randy twisted his hands on his lap uselessly, just needing to do something, anything. It was clearly taking everything he had to remain as still as he was. "They told me they had the best doctors on his case. They told me… he'd make it."

"Randy… there are some variables that just can't be controlled, even with the best doctors on the case." It sounded so painfully hollow, but it was the best he could offer. There was no good reason why Dexter didn't make it off the table.

Randy didn't seem to hear him. "I've called John sixteen times… left him so many messages… but I know he won't call back."

No, John was probably out rolling around in the sheets with some cute young prospect. He was probably feeding him all sorts of ideas, making him think that he actually stood a chance in the big leagues, that John himself would put in a good word with the higher-ups… John was busy pounding him into the mattress, while his son died on the table.

And what hurt the most was the fact that he thought maybe, just maybe, John might make an effort to show up because Dexter was concerned. Despite how Randy and John felt about each other, he'd hoped that John had actually loved his little boy. But, just like everything else lately, he'd been wrong about that, too.

"I had a miscarriage." Randy announced suddenly, his voice painfully flat. Hunter looked at him, wide-eyed.

"You were pregnant?" The news hit him like a ton of bricks. How had he not known that his own talent was pregnant? Heading into this match at WrestleMania, he and the baby could've been seriously hurt – or worse.

"Not very far along." Randy brushed it off a little too easily.

And even though it was absolutely none of his business, Hunter decided to push a little harder. "Did John know about the baby?" He knew that John and Randy had been having problems, so it didn't seem likely. But still…

Randy shook his head, confirming his earlier thoughts. "No, he didn't. I didn't even really know until I saw all the blood…" Randy trailed off. "It must've been the stress of everything… with Dexter. He'd been sick for a very… very long time."

None of the doctors had been able to say for sure what was wrong with him, and nine times out of ten their best guesses only made Dexter's condition worsen. It took a toll on a person's body and mind, being forced to sit back, unable to do anything, as your child continues to deteriorate thanks to a condition nobody can name.

"He's in a better place now, Randy." The customary words meant to provide comfort seemed terribly hollow in this instance. "He's not in pain anymore."

Randy choked back a sob, the only emotion he'd allowed to leak through during the entire conversation. "I want to be with him." He swallowed hard. "A place with no pain… sounds pretty nice right about now."

Hunter frowned. "Dexter wouldn't want you to be thinking like that."

"I hope he knows how much I loved him." Randy said brokenly, the tears falling freely now. "Everything was so awful in the last few days of his life, and oh God, he was so scared…"

"You were an amazing parent to him, Randy." Hunter said firmly, leaving no room for debate. "That boy practically worshipped the ground you walked on. There is no doubt in my mind that he knew he was loved, and loved you just as much."

"Really?" Randy seemed to suddenly become aware of the tears and wiped them away angrily.

Hunter nodded, smiling softly, "Really."

The two settled into a comfortable silence, broken only by the occasional sniffle from Randy. Hunter silently offered up the box of tissues as a sort of peace offering, and Randy accepted it with a broken smile. He'd never fully recover from the loss of his son. That wasn't expected. But somehow, just hearing that his son knew he was loved had set him on the path toward healing.

When he was back in commission, the first thing he planned on doing was having a long talk with John Cena. While he was more than happy to sit and comfort Randy in his time to need (especially since it showed just how much Randy had come to trust him over the last couple of weeks), he knew that the other man needed John. He'd deliver John's head on a silver platter.

"Once I'm out of this place, why don't you come over and we'll have a few drinks." What he really wanted was to make sure that Randy wasn't alone, that he had someone to turn to in his time of need, but he couldn't come right out and say that.

"I'm not sure…" Randy trailed off uncertainly, staring down at his shaking hands.

"It'll make you feel better." Hunter said. "You can even spend the night, just so I know nothing happened to your drunk ass." They both laughed a little at that, and laughing felt good. It was a healthy, comforting release.

After several moments of silence, where Randy mulled the idea over in his head, he finally nodded, "Alright."

Phil had just returned from the walk, and Kofi handed his friend a bottle of water. "Feeling any better?"

"Exhausted, actually." Phil actually seemed relieved to be able to confess this. "I wish I could take a nap, but I can't. If I sleep too much now, I probably won't be able to catch a wink tonight."

"Well, strange as this may sound, I'm glad to hear it." Kofi smiled. "Oh, and by the way, you're phone's been ringing nonstop since you left. It doesn't sound like whoever called left a message, though."

Phil swallowed back half the bottle, before making his way over to the counter where he'd left his phone. "Cool, thanks."

He unlocked the phone and went to recent calls. He wasn't surprised to find Daniel's name at the top of the list, with a small number eight in parenthesis beside it. Daniel had called him eight times in the time it had taken them to make it three miles around Kofi's neighborhood. What the hell was his problem?

But then, he took a deep breath and swallowed hard. He couldn't be thinking like that. If Kofi was right and that was how he'd been understanding what Phil had been trying to say, then he couldn't really be angry at Daniel for how he'd been acting. Daniel was just trying to do what he thought was best for their family. But his efforts to help were only making things worse.

"It was Daniel." Phil said, looking at the phone uncertainly.

Kofi raised an eyebrow. "You gonna call him back? Whatever it is must be pretty important for him to call you nonstop like that."

"I'm not sure that I'm ready -," and then it happened. A sharp pain in his abdomen caused him to wince, and he looked down at his swollen belly, startled. The pain was gone as quickly as it had come.

Kofi was by his side in an instant, having seen him wince. "Is something wrong, Phil?"

Phil shook his head, rubbing a hand over his distended belly in absentminded wonder. "No, nothing's wrong. I think…" he felt a sudden kick against his hand, confirming his earlier suspicion. "I think the baby just kicked."

Relief flooded over Kofi. "You mean he's never kicked before?" He laughed.

"Not this hard." Phil confirmed.

"Maybe he's trying to tell you something."

Like get your act together and go call my father, maybe. Phil looked at his phone again. The most recent call couldn't have been from more than five minutes ago. And, knowing Daniel, he probably hadn't gone very far from the phone in such a short period of time. Grabbing his phone, he excused himself to go and call his fiancé.

Daniel nearly jumped out of his skin when he realized that his phone was ringing. He looked at the Caller ID, at first unable to believe what he was seeing. Phil was calling him. Quickly, he answered, "Hello?"

"You rang?" Phil asked wryly, doing a decent impression of Lurch from the Addams Family.

"I honestly didn't think that you'd call me back." He said. "Um… how have you been, if you don't mind my asking?"

There was a pause, and Daniel worried that he'd pushed too hard, too fast. But then, Phil answered, "I've been okay, I guess. My insomnia is kicking my ass, so I've taken up taking walks."

Daniel's heart sank, hearing that Phil hadn't been sleeping properly. "I wish that I could be there with you." He said softly. "I hate that you're suffering alone. That's why I wanted you to be on the road with me."

"I'm not alone." There was a pained intake of breath on the other end of the line, and Phil realized how Daniel must've misinterpreted what he meant. "I'm here with Kofi. He agreed to let me crash here for awhile."

"Oh…" Daniel trailed off. He still didn't seem too sure about things. "Well, if that's what is best for you and the baby…"

That was all he wanted, after all – to ensure that his fiancé and his unborn son were safe and sound. If that meant that they couldn't be with him, then so be it. He would wait an eternity for them, if that was what it took. But that didn't mean that he would stop trying. Daniel wasn't about to just give up, not without a fight.

He'd known Phil since their time in OVW – knew this his trust was hard to gain and easy to lose. Daniel didn't think that he'd completely lost his trust, Phil wouldn't be talking to him right now if that was the case, but he was walking the fine line between Point A and Point B and he could teeter over the edge at any time. And that terrified him.

"I called because what's best for our son is for both of us to be together, regardless of how I currently feel about you." Phil said firmly. "So you will win that match at WrestleMania, and you will become World Heavyweight Champion."

"Of course I will." Daniel said firmly. "I will win. There's no other option."

He thought he could almost hear Phil chuckle, "And when you do, then we'll talk about the future."

Phil hung up without another word, leaving Daniel to his thoughts. So his relationship with Phil was riding on this WrestleMania match? He felt like the weight of the world was upon his shoulders – the match was already going to be one of the most important moments of his still fledgling career, but now, it would decide the fate of his relationship as well.

He might argue that it wasn't fair, but what the hell? Life wasn't fair. And he was never one to back down from a challenge. If Phil was laying down the stipulations to winning him back, then that meant there was still a chance he'd get him back. And even if the odds were stacked against them – a million to one was better than zero.

"How are you feeling, sweetie?" Mark looked down at the little girl, who shoved the last spoonful of strawberry ice cream into her mouth. He'd given it to her to console her after a particularly hectic day.

Instead of answering him, she held the bowl out in question, "Can I have more ice cream, Daddy?"

He took the bowl and ruffled her messy blonde locks affectionately. When he returned, a fresh bowl of ice cream in hand, she eagerly devoured the messy confection. While this wasn't exactly ideal, she was talking, and that was a start. And he noticed that she still had her dolly in her little Beauty and the Beast carry-on – so she wasn't too far gone.

He felt awful, knowing the toll that everything must be taking on her. But he wasn't sure how to fix it, either. Right now, he knew that the chances of reconciliation with Hunter were slim to none. Hunter was so focused on getting in shape for this match at WrestleMania that he didn't have time to focus on anything else. So his family had been put on the backburner.

Mark turned to Madison, who was fast asleep in her swing. He silently thanked whoever was listening that she was too young to understand what was going on. She didn't realize that her family was crumbling around her – and so she didn't hurt like Lily was hurting. Lily put her now empty bowl of ice cream aside, before climbing onto the large bed.

"Will the three of us be happy, Daddy?" She was still avoiding his earlier question, which didn't sit well with him for some reason. But again, talking in general was better than silence.

He nodded firmly. "Of course we will, sweetie. We'll be happy together, and nobody will ever take you away from me again."

"Not even Mommy?" She asked. It was the first time she'd mentioned Hunter since he'd picked them up from the hospital, and from the sound of it, she didn't seem like she'd miss him too terribly.

Mark climbed into bed beside her, holding her tight and ruffling her hair affectionately. "Not even Mommy."