Chibs' head was still reeling from the bomb that Tania had dropped on him earlier that day. "I have cancer." Why the hell hadn't she told him that earlier? Not that that would have changed the way he felt about her, but he had obviously thought their relationship was deeper than it actually was. Even if they weren't together, they were still friends and had always been close.

He sat on the couch in his apartment and stared up at the ceiling. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The last thing Tania needed right now was another obstacle. She had been through enough and then to top it all off, all he could do was look at her in stunned silence and then walk away.

FLASHBACK

"You..." Chibs ran a nervous hand through his hair and stared at her in disbelief, "Cancer..."

Tania looked up at Chibs with tears in her eyes and it broke him to see her hurting so badly, but he had no idea how to react in this sort of situation. She reached out for him and he took a step back. He was confused, scared, but he was also very hurt that she hadn't told him earlier.

"Tania," he whispered, "I can't right now. I don't know what to say...I have to go."

With that Chibs took one more look at Tania and then walked away from her.

Tania was curled up on the spare bed at Gemma's house and she hadn't spoke a word to anyone since Chibs had left her standing there at TM alone. She understood that she hadn't confided in him right from the beginning and that hurt him. Of course he would walk away, what else did she expect him to do in that situation.

She lifted her head when she heard a knock on the bedroom door.

"Come in," she said quietly.

Jax walked in to the room, closed the door and sat down on the bed and pulled her into his arms. They sat in silence for a little while and he ran his hand through her hair while she let the tears fall from her eyes.

"I know I should have told him when he first got to Phoenix," Tania whispered, "But I had no idea that I had those feelings for him. When I realized that I was in love with him, I was afraid that the news would ruin what was starting to develop."

"You're definitely in love with him?" Jax asked with a small smile on his face.

"I thought that I might be falling in love with him," Tania replied, smiling back, "But it was confirmed as I watched him walk away from me when I needed him most. Jax, that hurt so much."

"I know darling," he responded quietly, looking into his cousin's eyes, "I'm sure it just came as a huge shock to him Tania. He will come around after he has time to process the news. You two have too much history for him to walk away from you now. Doesn't matter what kind of relationship you have."

"I hope so Jax," she mumbled, "I need him right now. I realize that now."

He kissed her on the forehead and they sat in a comfortable silence. Tania felt herself begin to calm down and she started to feel relaxed. No matter what happened, she knew that she needed to be strong and get through this journey in her life. That's all that mattered.

"Did you want to come out for something to eat?" Jax asked her a little while later, "Gemma made lasagna for dinner."

"I'm actually not feeling very hungry," Tania replied sleepily, "And I'm feeling really tired. I think I might just go to bed. I have a consultation appointment with the cancer doctor first thing in the morning."

"Ok," he replied, "I'm headed home, but I'm going to take Savi and Hunter with me. They can keep Abel and Thomas entertained."

Tania smiled up at him as he stood up and leaned down to kiss her one more time on the forehead. He quietly left the room and she rolled over so that she was facing the wall. She tried so hard to be strong for everyone else, but the moment the door closed she lost all control and the sobs racked her body. She was sick, her husband was dead and the man that she fell in love with so quickly wasn't speaking to her.

A little while later there was a banging on Chibs' door. He got up off the couch and walked over to the door swinging it open in frustration.

"What the hell is your problem?" Chibs growled seeing Jax on the other side, "Why the hell are you trying to bang me door down Jackson?"

Jax glared at his Vice President and pushed his way into the apartment.

"Make yourself at home," Chibs mumbled angrily as he slammed the door shut, "To what do I owe this surprising visit?"

"I think you know man," Jax said sitting down on the couch.

"I don't need a lecture from you about this Jackson," Chibs snarled, "In fact, if that's why you're here, you can just leave."

"I'm not here to give you a damn lecture," Jax stated, looking up at him, "I just want to know what happened? I understand that Tania probably could have handled the situation better considering that you two have a friendship that "should" be unbreakable. But Chibs, she is absolutely terrified and she is 100% in love with you. She needs you by her side during this."

Chibs sat down on the chair across from Jax and looked over at him with sad eyes. His heart broke the moment she said the "c" word, but he had no idea how to deal with that. There was no instruction manual for how to be the man she needs while she goes through cancer. He wished that he could just take it away, he wished it was as simple as reaching in and taking out the bad stuff and then it would be over, but it wasn't.

"I feel horrible for walking away from her when she needed me most," Chibs said quietly before putting his head in his hands, "She needs better than me. My actions today were proof of that. When things get hard I turn into a coward and run away. She tried to push me away today by telling me the news and she succeeded. I let her succeed in pushing me away."

"Chibs, she pushed you away because she didn't want to hurt you," Jax stated, "She knows there is a possibility that this could turn out badly and she knew that if that happened or happens, it will destroy you."

"So what do I do?" Chibs asked, lifting his head and looked at his good friend.

"I know this hard for you," Jax stated, "But you need to push your fear to the side and support her. You need to be there for her, you need to take care of her. She has her first doctor's appointment at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow at St. Thomas. Be at the hospital waiting for her when she gets there, show her that you are ready to go through this with her. That is if you really love her."

Chibs clenched his fists as he felt the anger rise inside him and he glared over at Jax.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" he spat, "I have loved that woman for two years and haven't stopped. Besides the club, Tania and Savi and Hunter are the best part of my life. When I heard they were coming back to Charming, I damn near shouted my excitement from the roof tops, and we all know that that's not the type of man I am."

Jax smiled at him and stood up. "I know man," he said, grinning at him, "I said that because I knew it would get a rise out of you. I just wanted you to express how you felt out loud and it worked."

"Punk," Chibs grumbled before smiling at him.

Jax walked up to Chibs and they hugged before Jax left Chibs alone with his thoughts. He knew what he had to do and he hoped to God that he had the strength to watch her go through the hell she was about to endure.

*It's a shorter chapter, but I hope you guys enjoyed it. It is good to be back writing this story again. I hope to hear some good reviews and maybe some ideas for upcoming chapters.