AN: After someone wrote a flame review on all my stories, I am requesting that if my stories are not too your taste then simply write me a PM and let me know or simply offer me some constructive criticism instead. I would do the same for you and I think it is better manners that way.
Stress was piling itself upon Ianto, Jack and Imogene in different ways. The rift was going haywire on them and the Weevils had taken to rioting in the streets. This meant the five of them were sprinting all over the city until all hours fighting, hunting and retconning. All-day sickness had kicked in for Jack in place of morning sickness which meant meetings and directions on hunts had frequently been interrupted with Jack rushing to vomit. Then when he was sick he would be in a bad mood and blame Ianto for getting him pregnant which would led to a row which would lead to Jack's hormones to play up and he begins crying which would lead to them generally making up before the whole thing would start again the next morning. Add these domestic spats between Jack and Ianto to all of the teachers Imogene had for her different subjects taking delight in piling coursework, modules, revision classes and extra homework onto them, despite the fact it would be another year before the GCSE exams would be taken. With the schoolwork added with having to hunt and fight aliens meant that while every other teenager her age would be out having fun at the weekends, Imogene was sat in her bedroom surrounded by books, worksheets and a laptop working until one or two in the morning to get the stuff ready for Monday morning only to get it handed back to be corrected by Imogene and handed up again. Basically life was being a bitch to the three of them.
The hub was empty except for the three of them. Jack and Ianto were having another blazing row and Imogene was re-finishing her 'Romeo and Juliet' coursework on the balcony scene for what felt like the tenth time. She'd caused a bit of a scene herself when they started looking at Shakespeare wondering why they couldn't use a more interesting play and scoffing the idea that a pair of teenagers who marry the day after they meet and then kill themselves was hardly the most romantic stories of all time. The way the girls in her class reacted you'd have thought Imogene had done something terrible like shot a puppy in front of them.
As Ianto walked out of Jack's office alone, Imogene knew it'd be another night of bad temperament and Ianto sleeping alone. Imogene knew from her and Ianto's own personal experience that it was better to just stay out of the way. The twins got into the car and Imogene couldn't keep her thoughts on the current situation to herself any longer.
"You're just like Mum and Dad."
Ianto looked at his sister. "What?"
"The constant fighting and the making up and then fighting again the next day; it's just like Mum and Dad. You know how that tears a family apart. And the way you two have been going on recently is affecting all of us. Not just us three." Imogene replied.
"We're nothing like Mum and Dad. They were unemployed alcoholics whereas me and Jack are hardworking, sober people." Ianto disagreed.
"The situation may be different but it's still the same. You both pick a fight over something small and it escalated and lasts for hours on end. You remember what it was like when Mum and Dad fought as well as I do and the same thing we went through as kids is what me, Tosh, Owen and Gwen are going through now. We're the ones who have to listen and try to ignore your constant yelling and to be fully honest; we're all sick of it." Imogene snapped.
"Look we'll talk about this tomorrow alright?" Ianto said.
"Whatever." Imogene said and looked out the window. 'I know we won't.' she added to herself. It was something they'd both seen too many times as kids. Their parents would scream abuse for hours on end before passing out with drunkenness. The next day they'd be hung over and order the twins to clean the mess they had made before the next battle of World War III kicked off again. They never sat down and tried to get to the roots of what was really behind the fights and when Ianto and Imogene would try to talk to them about how the arguments affected them, their parents never listened so they learnt to stay out of the house.
What happened after that was a bit of a blur for both of them. All Ianto remembered was a pair of headlights appeared from nowhere and a loud crash before he hit his head and everything went dark. All Imogene remembered was a loud smash and an agonising pain in her left arm as she passed out.
Jack was woken from his doze as his phone rang. It was almost midnight and he bit back a yawn as he answered his phone. "Captain Harkness?"
"Yes? Can I ask who's calling at this time?" Jack asked.
"My apologies sir, this is Dr Masterson from St Helen's Hospital in Cardiff. We've got your husband and sister-in-law in here. They've been in a car accident." The woman said.
Jack stood up, fully awake now. "Are they alright?" he asked.
"I cannot give those details over the phone sir." Dr Masterson said and hung up.
Jack pulled on his coat, hiding a wince as it stretched over his growing stomach and hurried out of the hub and got into the SUV. This was all he needed on top of everything else. When he arrived at the hospital Jack jumped out of the car and hurried into the reception area where he asked about Ianto and Imogene. Jack was led to a waiting area by a receptionist where a doctor approached him, introduced herself as Dr Masterson and led Jack away to speak in private in private.
"First of all, Ianto seems to be alright. Apart from cuts, bruises a possible concussion and a badly sprained wrist he should make a full recovery. He's asleep now." The doctor said.
"What about Imogene?" Jack asked. Dr Masterson looked at Jack.
"The car was hit full on at her side. Most of her injuries are superficial but the main problem is her arm. The damage to the bones and muscles and nerves is so extreme that the only solution is to amputate her arm to the elbow." Dr Masterson explained.
"Amputate?" Jack repeated.
"It's either that or months of operations, physiotherapy, treatments and even then the recovery of the limb is unlikely." Dr Masterson explained.
"Can I see Ianto?" Jack asked.
"He's behind you."
Jack turned around to see Ianto walked towards him with a slight limp. There was a bandage on his wrist and a few white plasters on his face over the grazes. Jack wrapped Ianto into a tight hug, grateful that his husband was alive. When Ianto broke the hug, he looked at Jack and Dr Masterson.
"What about my sister?" Ianto asked.
"I've explained to your husband. There is extreme damage to her arm and we're going to have to amputate it." Dr Masterson explained.
"Are you sure?" Ianto asked.
"We're sure. She's been taken to the children's ward and we're going to operate tomorrow." Dr Masterson said.
"Can we see her?" Ianto asked.
"Follow me." Dr Masterson said and she led them up to the seventh floor to the children's ward. The large room was darkened and the sound of children's deep breathing in sleep was the only sound in the room. The bottom bed on the right had curtains drawn around it and Dr Masterson pulled them back to show a paediatrician who was with a nurse who was dosing Imogene with pain killers.
"Oliver this is Imogene's brother and brother-in-law." Dr Masterson explained.
"You know the situation?" Oliver asked and they both nodded. "The surgeons will operate tomorrow morning as soon as possible." With that the doctors left and Ianto and Jack sat next to Imogene.
"How are you sis?" Ianto asked.
"Drugged up to my eyes with meds, what about you?" Imogene asked the painkillers kicking in.
"Alright apart from my wrist but it'll be alright. The doctors have told you about the operation haven't they?" Ianto asked.
"Getting it lopped off right?" Imogene replied. Ianto and Jack nodded. "Might as well; look at it under the bandages if you've got the guts."
Ianto and Jack resisted the temptation to look at her mangled arm and when she fell asleep left the hospital as they drove back to the flat. Ianto was tired but he couldn't sleep. Imogene's words in the car before it crashed. He and Jack needed to talk about this. All of these arguments between them had to stop. He and Jack sat on the sofa and talked well into the night about the problem their relationship was facing and agreed that they'd have to control both of their tempers before finally going to bed at quarter to three. The next morning they went to the hub and told the others about the accident and Imogene's operation. Tosh looked shocked and worried and Owen reassured them that the operation was a simple one and Imogene would most likely have a prosthetic limb fitted but it would be a while before she'd be fully up and about again and voiced his doubts about her going onto the field again.
Gwen agreed and suggested that she fetch Imogene some of her clothes. As she left the hub and drove to the flat she thought about what had happened. It was an eye-opener to say the least. The twins had could have died last night. Sure they both went onto the field and faced aliens but that was different. When fighting aliens they were always armed. Last night they were in just in their car. Gwen mightn't get along with Imogene and had envied Ianto for getting married to Jack and being the father of his child but that didn't mean that she wanted them dead! As Gwen picked out some jeans and tops for Imogene to wear, she stopped and took a good look at herself in the mirror on the inside of the wardrobe. What had she become? She used to be really kind. At school if a kid was being bullied, she was the kid who stepped in and got them to stop. At college she was the one who solved spats in her group of friend between boys and drunken nights out and on the force she was the one who dealt with the families because she was nice, supportive and kind. Now she was… well what was she? She'd become this self-centred manipulative bitch who didn't care who she hurt as long as she got her way. She always fobbed of all her work to Tosh and Imogene and Ianto who had their own work to do. Then there was Rhys. Rhys… she had someone who adored her, who treated her like a princess and what did she do? Pushed him aside like an unwanted toy because she was lusting after Jack and ignoring his relationship with Ianto completely. Gwen stared at the woman in the mirror. They may have a physical resemblance but Gwen still felt that she was staring at a stranger. A cruel and cold parody of herself who was selfish and heartless and for the first time she began to realise what the others must have seen every time they looked at her. Through this moment of epiphany, Gwen made her choice; this ends today.