**Thank you all for the birthday wishes! Enjoy Nathan getting what's coming to him!**

Nathan

Stupid, stupid stupid! So fucking stupid! How the hell could I say something like that to her!? Where the fuck is my brain to mouth filter when I need it!?

Not like that would've done much good...I still thought it. And technically it's true. Those kids aren't mine. You can easily tell their Gabe's and Vic's, but they're not mine. They don't know me. I haven't even been around them a full day and already I have them crying. That's not a father. Not a good one anyway.

Fuck!

Chugging down my third beer, I continue to wallow in my self induced pity party.

There's no way they'll let me back around those kids after what I said. Sang'll never speak to me again, not that I can really blame her. I was a complete bastard to her, and why? Because she hurt my pride. Fucking shit, that's stupid!

Reaching down for another bottle, I'm slightly blinded by the headlights turning into the overlook. After leaving Sang's place, I looked up secluded places nearby on Google, and it directed me to this overlook point off the highway. It gives a really nice view of the city, and it's the perfect place to just be alone and wallow in self pity.

Please just let whoever it is keep driving!

Nope! No such luck. The fucker just parked. The engine turns off and the world is dark again as whoever it is gets out of the car and walks over to me.

Should've figured one of my brothers would come out here to find me. Wonder which one they sent?

Looking over my shoulder as he sits down, I'm shocked to see Axel. I almost wish it was one of my brothers instead, but Axel's always been one of the calmer ones. I'd be more worried if they sent Raven.

"You don't have to say anything, Axel, I know I fucked up." I say before he can say anything.

"Oh?" he chuckles. "You think you fucked up? That's funny. You have no idea how royally screwed you are."

"I kno-"

"Shut up!" he cuts me off. "You had your time to talk. It's my turn. This Sang you just pissed off? She's nothing like the Sang you left back in Charleston, if you haven't already figured that out. She's not the same girl that would do anything to keep you guys happy, and gets uncomfortable when there's fighting. Hell, most of the time, she's the one arguing. Because that's how we trained her. You all babied her, and when you left, we put her back together and made her stronger than ever. We gave her the thick skin she needed to be able to make it in this world, and when the twins came, she found the perfect balance. She is the perfect mix of strength and love, and you just...you just couldn't stop your hot headed nature."

"I know she's not the same!" I tell him. "That girl back there is not the same girl I fell in love with."

"No, she's not. She's better. And if all of you would get your heads out of your asses for five seconds, and try to get to know the new her, you might've actually stood a chance at getting her back."

"Who says we want her back?" I mumble.

He's quiet for a minute before replying, "I'm going to do you a favor and pretend that's the beer talking."

"What are you even doing here, Axel? Huh? Why are you here? If she's so much better the way she is now, why are you here? Why aren't you back there with her? Why haven't you been with her? Not man enough to be with a woman with kids that's not yours?"

"I'm only going to let your slick mouth slide so many times, Nathan. You should be very careful about what you say next, and install that filter you so desperately need."

His hands clench into fists and I know that I'm about one more asinine comment away from being splayed out on the gravel. It's a good thing my need for self preservation knows when to kick in.

I take a deep breath before asking again, "Why are you here, Axel?"

"I convinced Owen to let me come and talk to you, since I know how to deal with hotheads. There's something you need to listen to."

He takes his phone out of his pocket and presses a few buttons. After a few seconds, Sang's voice is heard. Her voice is stronger than I remember it being. Her voice would always tremble a bit whenever there was a lot of attention on her. She really has changed. It's the last line of her speech that really shows me how cosmically I've fucked myself. She's right. Whenever we'd talk about the far off future, we all promised that we'd be better parents than ours were. And dammit if I wasn't the exact replica of my own father.

She's never going to forgive me, not this Sang. Hell, maybe not even the old Sang would've forgiven me. I questioned the legitimacy of her children. I basically just called her a whore. Just like her mother, and my father, Victor's dad. I wish I could say that I'm like them, but I'm so much worse. I claim to love her, to be in love with her, and I treated her just like our parents have. My God! What the fuck is wrong with me!?

"Glad you now understand the issue," Axel says, breaking the silence between us. "To answer your previous shithead question, the main reason that we're not with her, is because she's carried a torch for you nine for the last five years. You're the fathers of her children and she doesn't want anyone else. But hey, who knows, maybe you fucked that up too. Maybe now we've got a chance, she already lets us sleep in her bed."

"Axel please, don't. If not for me, then for the rest of the guys. Let Victor and Gabe have an actual chance to be with the mother of their children. Don't ruin that chance for them because I fucked up."

"Relax, Sang's like our sister. But I'm glad you see the seriousness of the situation, means you're actually ready to work and fix it."

"I am, please, tell me what I need to do."

"I can't tell you how to fix your relationship with Sang, that's on you to figure out. But I can tell you how to get the twins to forgive you...for a price."

"Name it, anything. They may not be biologically mine, but I still want to be in their lives. I know that I need to work for that title, and I'm willing to do the work."

"Good. How drunk are you?" he asks suddenly.

"Surprisingly sober."

He waits for a second before deciding that he probably doesn't care, and says "Meet me at Raven's gym in an hour. I'll send you the location."

"How am I supposed to get there?" I ask as he walks back to his car.

"You got here right?" he says as he opens his car door. "Figure it out."

And with that parting advice, he gets in his car and drives off. A text comes to my phone a few minutes later with the location of the gym. After counting the money I have left in my pocket, I pull up the uber app on my phone, and wait for it to get here.

I get to the gym with ten minutes to spare, and see that the gate is already unlocked. Opening the heavy door, I walk down the dimly lit hallway, into a massive warehouse structure. It's like he bought out the building, and then gutted the place to get the most space available. In the center there's a giant boxing ring, off to the left are mats for sparring, to the right are punching bags and free weights, and in the back are the treadmills and ellipticals.

Out of a secret hallway in the back, comes the Toma team. And I mean secret. There's no dip in the wall, no curve to show that there's a hallway, nothing. It's like in that creepy puppet movie Dead Silence.

"Glad you made it, Nathan," Axel comments, "And with ten minutes to spare. I'm impressed."

"I'm not," Raven grunts. "Let's get this over with before kids wake up."

"What are you talking about?" I question, "Get what over with?"

"I told you that I'd tell you how to get the twins to forgive you right? For a price?" At my nod Axel continues. "This is that price. Two minutes in the ring with each of us. We get to knock out our aggression, and you learn not to make our niece and nephew cry. I think it's a win-win, don't you guys?"

Of course the rest of his team gives sounds of agreement, and that's when I notice their clothes have changed. They're now all in movable clothing, sweatpants, basketball shorts, ribbed tanks, or in Raven and Brandon's case, shirtless. Even Axel has changed from the jeans and button down he was wearing just an hour ago at our meeting and is now in sweatpants and a ribbed tank.

They've planned this thoroughly.

As the realization that I've been set up, smacks me across the face, Brandon throws me a pair of fighting gloves. With looks that could kill directed at me, I pull on the gloves and step up to the ring.

"Alright, the rules are simple." Axel announces as Brandon and I get in the ring. "No face shots, we don't want to scare the kids. No hitting below the belt. Besides that, anything goes. You've got two minutes on the clock. You must stay inside the ring for the full two minutes, if not, we'll throw you back in. You two ready?" We both nod. "Begin."

Brandon wastes no time in faking left and throwing a punch to my stomach, and because of my slight inebriation, I move too slow to block it. I double over as he continues to throw body shops, not bothering to aim anywhere else. I finally get my hands up to block, and as my temper comes back full force, I throw a punch to his jaw. He takes a step back before bringing his hand up to his lip and checking for blood. Thankfully, there is none, but it is going to swell.

"Axel?" Brandon asks.

"He broke the rules. One punch to retaliate, and then continue. There's still forty-five seconds on the clock."

"What!" I call out. "I'm just supposed to stand here and let him hit me in the face?"

"You knew the rules! You broke them, and now you have to pay up. Be lucky I'm only letting him get the one."

"Fine," I grumble.

Right as I turn back around, Brandon's fist comes flying towards my face. I stumble back and have just enough time to get my hands up before Axel starts the clock again and Brandon's continuing his body shots. I get in a couple of hits of my own, but nothing as powerful as what he's throwing. I almost give a sigh of relieve when Axel calls time.

Brandon walks backwards out of the ring, only to be replaced by Marc.

"Whoa, what's going on?" I ask Axel. "Don't I get a break?"

"Nope."

That's all I get before he starts the clock again and Marc is coming in closer to take a few shots at my chest before working his way down to my stomach. I manage to get more hits in with Marc than I did with Brandon, and succeed in not hitting him in the face or below the belt. Soon enough, the two minutes are up and Marc is making room for Corey to enter the ring.

I'm not really too worried about Corey. That is, until he sweeps out my legs from under me, having me land flat on my ass. From then on, it's two minutes of absolute hell as he puts my legs in the figure four submission hold. Anytime I tap out, he'll let me rest for a few seconds before taking a few jabs to my stomach and putting me back in.

This time, my sigh of relief is very audible as Axel calls time and replaces Corey in the ring. He gives me a few moments to get my feet under me before he takes a couple shots to my stomach. I manage to get a few jabs in, but before I can do any damage, he's knocking my feet back out from under me, and locking my arms behind my back.

Another submission? Where the hell did these guys learn how to perform submission moves like this?

Axel keeps me in the arm bar for the full two minutes, and once time is called, I can do nothing more than lie on my back panting for breath.

"Please, no more," I breathe out.

My legs can barely hold me up, and my arms feel like they're going to fall off. Breathing is getting difficult with how much they aimed for my stomach. Hell, even my tongue is in pain from how long I had to bite it to keep from screaming out in those submission moves. I don't think I can take much more. The only saving grace is that nothing's broken.

"Oh come on tough guy," Brandon mocks, "You've only got one of us left."

"And besides," Raven begins as he enters the ring. "I only want one shot. In the face."

"Raven..." Axel warns.

"You said I couldn't shoot him, I say fine! But he made nemnogo soroki (little magpie) cry! I get to hit him in face!"

"Fine," Axel sighs.

"What!? You said no face shots!"

I'm not sure I can take a face shot from a pissed off Russian, he might break my face!

"And you broke that rule in the first round! Now stand up and let him hit you in the face!"

Pulling myself up with the rope and a loud groan, I manage to make it to my feet, only to be knocked back down by the punch that Raven throws.

I'm pretty sure he cracked my jaw with that one.

Turning my head to the side, I spit out blood as I lean up on my elbows. Breath panting like a dog. I rotate my jaw a few times just to make sure it's not broken and glare at Raven.

"Spit again, and you'll be cleaning it with your shirt." he growls.

"You could've broken my jaw!"

"Be glad I didn't. You deserve much worse for what you said. But you can't apologize with broken jaw, so be thankful."

He turns and walks out of the ring, going into that secret hallway before coming back out with a small bucket and a rag.

"Get out of the ring, Nathan," Axel tells me, "You're done for now."

"What do you mean for now?"

"There's someone else who wants to see you."

"Oh great," I grumble. I turn over on my back to bring in a few deep breaths and to center myself before rolling to the edge of the ring and tumbling out of the ropes. I grab the bottom rope to stop myself from falling and slowly lower myself to sit on one of the steps.

Damn, even my ass hurts from being knocked on it so many times.

"I should've known better. Alright, which one of my brothers is gonna rip me a new one? North or Silas?"

"Neither," Axel replies with a smirk.

Just then, the voice of Dr. Roberts carries down the hall saying, "Sorry I'm late. The twins woke up and Sang needed help putting them back to sleep."

"Why didn't she just call one of the others?" I ask, unable to stop myself from standing up, wincing in the process.

"Perhaps it's because none of you seem to have remembered that you've been gone for the past five years, Nathan," he replies with ice in his voice. "Now sit down and shut up, because I'm only going to say this once. I am deeply ashamed of you. All nine of you. Nevermind her being pregnant when you left, there's no way you could've known, but the way you boys left was irresponsible and unforgivable! You nine were some of the brightest minds the Academy had to offer, and what do you do? You leave your bird, that you've sworn to protect, in the middle of the night with nothing but a letter! And then, you don't even inform your families of where you're going or why! Tunnel vision or not, you boys know there was a way to get in contact with someone! You could've been bleeding out in a ditch somewhere and we would've been none the wiser. Did it ever occur to you boys that that was something that would've crossed our minds, hmm? Did it never occur to you that many times we thought you boys dead? How many times Erica Lee prayed for the safe return of you boys just so she could tan your hides herself? And then, you go and disrespect Sang in the worst possible way! What were you thinking Nathan!?"

"I didn't-"

"That's right!" he cuts me off. "You weren't thinking! It seems the lot of you haven't been thinking for the last five years! Now, I don't know, nor do I care how you do it, but you will beg for those children's forgiveness as well as their mother's. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir," I say in a clear determined voice.

"Good," he visibly calms down. "Now, one last thing. Do you see this, Nathan?" He pulls a syringe out of his coat pocket. At my nod he continues, "This syringe is filled with enough morphine to subdue the pain I'm sure you must be going through. Would you like it?" I give a hesitant nod. It can't be that easy. "Too bad," he frowns.

Dr. Roberts lets the syringe roll out of his hand and onto the floor, and just for good measure, steps on it hard enough for the glass to shatter.

"Maybe now you'll learn to think before you do or say anything. Remember this pain, Nathan," he says as he gets in my face. "Remember this, because I swear to you, this pain is nothing if you ever hurt those kids and their mother again. Do I make myself clear?"

"Ye-ye-yes sir."

"Good." He smiles and gives my cheek a pat, heavy enough for me to feel it, but not enough to leave another mark. "I think we're done here. See you boys back at the apartment."

As Dr. Roberts leaves the gym, I'm now reminded why he's on the board of directors for the Academy. That man is scary when he wants to be. I'll have to do everything in my power to set things right with my family. And I vow on my life, that I will.

I'll fix this. I have to.