Third person point of view:

"Coulson! Where the fuck is he?" Fury yelled once they got in the car, leaving Maria at the tower to lead the search from there.

"I don't know. I called him seven times and the location of his phone says its still at the tower. He doesn't have it." Coulson said while trying to call him again.

"God fucking dammit Clint!" Fury said hitting the dashboard and letting the car take over driving so that they could look for Clint out of the windows.

Coulson was ignoring Fury's screaming and leaving a fourth voicemail for Clint. "Clint I know you're hurting right now, but you need to call us back. We need to know you're OK. If you don't want to talk right now that's fine but send us something and get back to Natasha, she needs you right now." Coulson finished as Fury went on another tirade.

"That fucking piece of shit!"

"Nick cut him some slack."

"No. Why should I? He left my daughter and now I can't get a hold of him. He's a piece of shit!"

"Nick, his daughter just died, your granddaughter by the way, I think you are taking some of your anger out on him."

"You know what you're right. I am because I'm pissed that my daughter is in a coma after giving birth to her daughter, who died, and the only thing she ever fucking wanted in life was a baby and a family!"

"Nick I know how you feel, but taking it out on Clint isn't going to do anything. When he comes back, because I know he will, it's just going to make it worse for everyone. We need to stay together for Natasha."

"You know what one more thing about that fucking idiot! He never fucking deserved her and you know what? I think that they never should have gotten together in the first place because none of this never would have happened!" Nick screamed blinded by rage.

"Nick that is too fucking far take it back right now!"

"No I won't because I feel this way!"

"Stop the damn car right fucking now!" The car screeches to a hault in the middle of the deserted ally. "Nick you don't feel that way and you know it. You told me that all you ever wanted was Natasha to be happy and I never seen Natasha happier than I have in the past seven months. All of that is because of Clint. And if you really didn't want any of that to happen then you wouldn't have sent My Son after Your Daughter to save her her life and she'd be dead anyway. Is that what you really want?"

"So you blame Natasha for all of this?"

"No absolutely not, but she should have been more careful. We all should have, because we both know that the Red Room did this to her."

"God dammit Coulson!" Nick screams as he throws a water bottle into the dashboard. "This is my fault god! I should have known, I should have known." Nick says as tears start to fall from his eyes as he keeps screaming in anguish.

"Nick that's not what I meant. I didn't mean...."

"No Coulson you're right. Natasha is going to die and it's going to be my fault all over again just like in Budapest, just like in New York. It always comes back to me."

"Lets go."

"Go where?" Fury asks as his phone starts to ring and the car answers.

Maria Hill's somber voice comes through the speaker. "Barton's back he's at the tower. He's safe. Everything is as good as it can be on our end."

"Thank you Maria. Try and hold down the fort over there if you can. Let us know if anything changes at all." Coulson said relieved.

"Yes sir."

"Hill. We won't be available tonight for anything involving S.H.I.E.L.D. We are taking tonight off to take care of an urgent matter." Fury said trying to compose himself.

"Yes sir. Goodnight sir."

"Well now that that fiasco has somewhat taken care of itself for the moment, we're going home." Coulson said inputting the coordinates to a safe house. Fury nodded unquestioningly and let the car take them to their destinination. When they arrived at the small house on the corner they walked in and Coulson went straight to the liquor cabinent. 

"Coulson. What are you doing? This isn't the time to be celebrating!" Fury said screaming again. 

"No it's not, but there is nothing else we can do right now, so I'm having a drink."

"I thought we said we weren't opening that bottle until she turned eighteen." Fury said as Coulson pulled out the bottle of whiskey from the cabinent and the tonic from the fridge. 

"I also thought we said we would drink it on Natasha and Clint's wedding night, but circumstances change." Coulson said as he opened the bottle. 

"We didn't open it then because you said we should wait and let it be her first drink of alchol." 

"Well Nick none of that is ever going to happen now so I'm going to fucking drink it!" Coulson said as the glass he was holding shattered against the wall. 

"I'm sorry. That was unnecessary."

"No it was justified. Get me out a glass and I'll make the drinks. You're too stingy with whiskey." Fury said walking over to the kitchen counter. Coulson brought over another set of glasses and Fury opened the bottle. 

"You know, this bottle is what started it all." Nick said distractedly looking at the label. 

"Yeah Nick I know." Coulson said with a sigh taking his glass.

"Clint and Natasha brought this to us after we decided to let her stay. She was so confused as to why Clint wanted to get us liquor as a gift. She's come a long way in the past ten years."

"We all have Nick. We never thought that we would have to activate the Avengers, or have gods come from other planets, and I sure as hell didn't think that Natasha and Clint would ever have a kid." Coulson said with a chuckle.

"They didn't even get to have a kid Coulson. The only thing that they have gotten is disappointment and heartbreak. They wanted this baby so bad. They wanted a chance at a new life, I mean Natasha even wanted to quit S.H.I.E.L.D so she could raise her little girl and give her the best life possible. It broke my heart when I had to tell her no, I haven't seen her that mad since Clint got captured in Bogota." Fury said then took a long slow drink. 

"Nick, they had her for as long as they could. It simply wasn't meant to be right now. I know Natasha wanted to quit S.H.I.E.L.D because she called me right after she talked to you and I had to talk her down from going rouge and never speaking to any of us ever again. I think that we all wanted this so bad that we would have done anything to make it happen." 

"But what if we didn't do everything possible? What if Natasha didn't get the best care which is why she lost the baby and is laying in a coma right now? What if we stressed her out so much that her body couldn't support the baby and it's all our faults? What if we never sent Clint on that mission this morning so he was with Natasha for the whole labor? Maybe we aren't sitting here right now trying to drink away the pain." Fury said somberly while making himself another drink. 

"Nick we can't think about the what if's or the what might have happened's, we'll drive ourselves crazy. It wasn't our fault Nick and it especially wasn't yours. You did everything you could to give Natasha and the baby the best chance possible, everyone knows that. There was nothing more we could have done, now we just need to be here for what happens next." 

"Coulson why aren't you more upset? Why aren't you furious? Why isn't that heart you always wear on your sleeve bleeding out right now?" 

"Because Nick!" Coulson screamed. "I have been preparing for this to happen since I found out. I never had as much hope as you all did that Natasha was going to make it through this pregnancy with her and the baby intact. I knew the odds were slim to none that this was going to work out so I prepared. I cried myself to sleep most nights that May wasn't home because I knew that this wasn't going to work and I prayed to god that I would be wrong!" Coulson took a breath.

"You want to know why I don't seem upset Nick? It's because I'm so upset that I have past that point that I am just so hopeless that I don't even know what to do anymore. My family is falling apart. My daughter-in-law is in a coma after losing her and my sons baby. The Avengers have scattered and they are going to start fighting soon. I mean this baby wasn't only a chance for Clint and Natasha to finally have a firm sense of family but it was all of ours." Coulson said letting the tears fall and the emotion finally come through.

"What?" Fury asked softly. Coulson only nodded his head as the two then continued to drink in silence 

"Shit!" Fury said shooting up from his chair. 

"What? What happened?"

"I left Clint a really nasty voicemail when you were searching the tower for him because I was pissed and should probably call him back to apologize." Fury said getting out his phone. 

"Nick! Really?" 

"It was in the heat of the moment. I'm going to call him. Do you want to call May or wait until tomorrow, well technically its today, but you know what I mean." Fury said walking away to call Clint. 

"Clint. Clint. Pick up, look I need to talk to you." Fury said to the voicemail machine and then dialed the tower.

"Hello director Fury. I would assume that you have been properly notified of what happened here today."

"Yes I have Jarvis. How's everyone holding up?" 

"We are here sir, we're here." 

"I figured. Can you put me through to Clint please."

"Um, sir Clint has very specifically asked me not to allow anyone to reach him."

"I don't care Jarvis I need to talk to him. Put me through." Fury said sternly 

"Sir I cannot."

"Director override. Fury, Nicholas, J." 

"Umma..." Jarvis was cut off by Clint's screaming.

"What the hell Jarvis? I told you not to let Fury through!" 

"Clint we need to talk." 

"Yes sir, I'm sorry sir." Clint said going into the kicked puppy tone you get when you get chastised by an authoritative figure. 

"Look Clint, I was absolutely in the wrong, I shouldn't have said all of those things. I was wrong and I truly am sorry." 

"Yes sir, I accept your apology sir. Is that all sir?" Clint said trying to end the conversation quickly. 

"Clint cut the bullshit and listen to me!" Fury screamed "I'm trying to get you to understand that I'm sorry. I was wrong. I was upset because I just wanted you guys to have a family. I wanted us to be a family and I took my anger out on you and I'm sorry." Fury said much softer. 

"Nick you'll always be our family no matter what. I shouldn't have left, but I didn't know what else to do."

"I know Clint and I'm sure that my message didn't help. You deserve Natasha, I've never doubted that and the both of you deserved the baby. I don't expect you to forgive me, but please just know that what I did was stupid and I shouldn't have done it and I really am sorry."

"OK Nick. I'll keep you updated on Tasha. I kinda got kicked out of the room for a while, but it'll be fine."

"How'd you manage to do that?"

"It's a long story and I don't want to talk about it. Nick I've got to go. I'll talk to you later." Jarvis ended the phone call and Nick sat on the couch in silence while Coulson was in the other room talking to May. 

Coulson sat in the bedroom, on the edge of the bed, looking at his phone trying to work up the courage to call May. As he was sitting he thought back to the first time he introduced Clint and Natasha to May. 

"Agent Romanoff, seeing as you are now an official member of S.H.I.E.L.D, you will be assigned a supervising officer." Coulson said with a smile. 

"Wait, Coulson I thought that you were me and Clint's S.O.?" Natasha asked. 

"Well technically I wasn't, I was just acting as your guys S.O. until we found someone brave enough to take on the challenge of Strike Team Delta." 

"Well who is it?"

"She's right over there, her names agent May. I think you'll like her, she'll give you a run for your money." 

Coulson was awakened out of his daydream by Fury screaming on the phone. He shook his head and pushed the button to dial her. 

"Phil? Is that you? Its nearly three in the morning in the states! What are you doing up?" May asked as she picked up the phone. 

"May are you flying right now?" Coulson asked seriously.

"Yeah, why? Phil tell me what's going on I don't like the sound of this." 

"Put the plane on autopilot and leave the cockpit, I don't want you distracted while you're flying." 

"Phil I don't like the way this is sounding. What happened? Are you OK?" May said as she shut the door and walked into her office. 

"I'm fine. There was an issue and there still is an issue though."

"Coulson stop beating around the bush and just tell me. You're scaring me."

Coulson took a deep breath and sighed. "Tasha went into labor today." He took another breath

"What? That's amazing. I mean a little early, but we don't know exactly how her body works so that's fine. I'll turn the jet around right now. I'll come home to see her and the baby. Has the baby been born yet or is she still in labor? What's going on?" May jumped up with excitement and cut in before Coulson could finish. 

"May you can't turn the jet around!" Coulson screamed trying to stop her before she did. 

"What? Why? Is Nat freaking out and not letting anyone see the baby? I kinda thought that would happen, I mean she's bound to be overprotective of the baby after everything that she's been through. Wel..." 

"May, Tasha lost the baby. She's in a coma right now, they aren't sure if she's going to wake up. Clint, he's heartbroken and the avengers aren't dealing with this well, neither is Nick."

"What? No, that can't be. They said everything was going fine, that there wasn't, what?"

"We don't know what happened, just don't come home, please? We have to take care of this. I'm sorry Melinda, I don't know what else to say."

"Melinda? Melinda are you there?"

"Yeah Phil, I'm here. I just, I don't know. Do you think Clint needs me to come home? I know we were never as close as the two of you are, but I think you're going to need all of the help you can get." 

"No May, S.H.I.E.L.D needs you more right now. Fury and I already pulled Clint and the rest of the avengers off of active duty, me and him are taking the night off and I don't know what Maria is doing. We'll be fine. We need you to hold down the fort out there."

"Phil do you need me to come home?"

"No May I'll be fine."

"OK. Fine. I'll be here." May said and then hung up the phone. Coulson walked out of the bedroom as Fury was ending another phone call and they both flopped down on the couch together.

"Fuck me!" They said at the same time.