For Better or For Worse

Chapter 16

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*****Trigger Warning: mentions of bullying*******

Wanda felt a stab of pain.

It shot through her stomach, more towards the side, and in an upwards motion.

She cried out and collapsed onto the carpeted floor of her Austrian apartment.

The pain blossomed and spread throughout her stomach. It was nearly unbearable and it made it hard to breathe.

The bowl of oats that she was carrying towards her kitchen table (yes, quite a sad excuse for a lunch) was now splattered across the floor, making a huge, sticky mess.

But that, of course, was not Wanda's top concern at the moment.

She wanted to choke... She felt like she had to choke... but there was nothing to choke on but her own sobs and fear.

Luckily, all of this was rather instantaneous, and the pain quickly began to subside to a resounding, dull, ache.

She carefully reached up to her face and wiped away the tears of pain and shock that had managed to squeeze themselves passed her anguish, squinched eyelids.

Although many in this situation would have desired to be around others, for help or comfort's sake, Wanda was grateful that she was in her apartment alone so that she didn't make any scene...

Wanda couldn't afford to make another scene... Or any public display of her power...

After lying on the floor for another couple of minutes, the ache was still very much present, but much less pronounced. So, she worked up the courage to carefully sit up, and scoot backward so that she could lean up against the wall and investigate the cause of the pain.

She looked down at her side, where she believed the source of the pain would present itself. However, there was nothing there...

No oozing open wound.

No torrent of blood.

Hell, not even a bruise was there to be seen.

She had been feeling phantom pains for the past two weeks, however, none had hurt as badly as this one.

Wanda was far from stupid. She knew what these pains meant, and up until now she thought that Peter was just being a jerk.

Tasing himself or running into walls or something of that sort to try to get her to come back...

Trying to get her to come back home...

But this pain was different.

It was no quick zap or headache. It wasn't the feeling of a cut or a punch.

This pain was deep.

Both internal and external at the same time.

Something must be really wrong and she knew Peter must be really hurt.

But could she risk going back to him? Back to her mother and little sister?

Wanda had left to protect them.

She had left to protect her mother, her little sister...

And Peter...

Even though Peter was older than her (only by a couple of minutes, of course), Wanda had always been Peter's source of comfort. If he was bullied in school he would go to her. If their mother yelled at him he would go to her, and if he ever got hurt...