DRAGO'S STORY

Drago's Late Nights

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: 2018

Time× 2:02 am

With closed eyes, Viktor heard the sound of gagging and vomit falling into the toilet. He laid in bed, debating on whether to get up and check on Natalie or just force himself back to sleep. He heard the toilet flush and the sound of water pouring from the sink as she brushed her teeth. Both of them had yet to talk to one another and the news they got the week prior, just added to the stress.

Since Salim decided to extend his stay, because he was concerned for his daughter, Natalie was back to sleeping in the main bedroom. She'd been different these past few days. She stayed in the room all the time now, with the blinds closed as she sulked in the darkness. She barely ate, she barely watched television... it was as though the light that used to be in her... left... and everyone was unsure if it'd ever come back.

Viktor had spent the entire week, listening to her puke her guts out in the middle of the night, and then proceeded to cry soon after. She'd use a bathroom towel to suppress the sound of her sobbing, but it did nothing. If you'd listen closely, as Viktor had, you'd hear it through the closed door. The medication that the doctors had prescribed her, had side effects that included a lot of vomiting and lack of appetite. The result of that was Natalie spending the majority of her day in the bathroom, not able to keep the little snacks she ate down.

When Viktor heard Natalie sniffle, his eyes snapped open. She was crying again. Viktor sat up on the bed and ran a hand through his hair. He sighed and stood up, walking in the direction of the bathroom. "Nat." He called lowly, twisting the doorknob only to find that it was locked. He pressed his forehead to the door, saddened. They'd never done locked bathroom doors before. "Nat, let me in."

Natalie removed the towel she had pressed against her mouth and wiped at her face frantically. She didn't want him to know that she'd been crying. "I'm... I'm fine. It's just the meds... go back to bed." She said quickly, trying to sound normal.

Viktor rolled his eyes. She sucked at lying sometimes. "Let me in, so I can help you."

"Viktor." She sniffed. "I'm fine, honestly."

"I've known you all my life Natalie, I know when you aren't fine." He told her. "I'm not leaving this spot until you open up." He turned around, leaning his back against the door as he slid down on the cold floor. "I'll stay here all night waiting, even though I've got practice in the morning." Since his fight with Adonis Creed was finally confirmed, he'd been back in the gym, training again.

"I... I don't want you to see me like this." She confessed, tears streaming down her face. "I'm... I'm not right. I don't look right and I don't feel right... and... and you shouldn't have to see me like this." She cried, leaning against the door.

"Nat, baby. I've seen you at your best and I've seen you at your worst, just like how you've seen it when it comes down to me. I promise you, it's nothing I can't handle." He said, softly. When she didn't respond, he pressed his ears to the door again. "You know... I went to therapy for the first time in years last week."

"Really?" She asked, surprised. "How was it?"

"It was... relieving. I got to talk about many things, you most importantly." He paused. "I wanna apologize to you."

"Viktor you shouldn't have to apologize, you didn't do anything wrong. It's my fault that all of this is happening and it's my fault that we even got into that argument. I'm the one that's sorry." More tears fell from her eyes. "I... I should've told you sooner about the miscarriage and... I... I was scared because I didn't want you to blame me. Hiding it was wrong. And... and I shouldn't have gotten mad when you were expressing your pain. It was so selfish of me." She cried harder. "I'm so selfish."