Disclaimer: The Secret Life of the American Teenager and all its characters are the sole creation of Brenda Hampton…I own NOTHING....

Summary: Amy gets into an accident and falls into a coma. What happens when she eventually wakes up to a world in which she is a stranger to? How does she adjust when everyone around her has grown up and possibly moved on?

AN: Thanks to those who read and reviewed: IloveSecretLife, br00kel0veswildfire, myranda, :D, edward-and-bella-forever, Candice, secretlifexxx, DMC, soren919v, smitty235, hollowmeadow

And of course thanks to my awesome friend and beta Jazzy…

FYI: according to a book called The Unexplained, or something like that…the longest coma in which the person did wake up was 29 years…WOW…

Thoughts will be in Italics

Chapter 2: Welcome Back…To A Strange New World

I was in a coma, is all she could think, I was in a coma for 10 whole years. Amy is sitting up in her hospital bed, watching as nurses and doctors bustle around her, but she isn't really paying attention to whatever they are doing.

What have I missed, she sighs. My little John, she thinks as an image of a 4-year-old John pops into her head. But he's not 4 anymore, she laments, shaking her head of the image. I wonder what he looks like now – like me maybe...

Or Ricky, she blushes as images of her baby's daddy fills her head. I wonder if he ever got his MBA, she smiles. Or did he have to devote all his time to being John's only parent, Amy frowns at the thought.

And what about mom, dad, Ashley and Aaron, a small smile returns at the notion of her family. I bet Aaron's big now like John probably is, and Ashley – did she go to college, what is she doing with her life now?

10 years – I must have missed so much, a deep frown has now settled on her features. Birthdays, first days of school, graduations, Amy closes her eyes, ignoring the tears falling down her cheeks, as she thinks about the past and a future she slept through.

Ricky and John are, of course, the first to arrive at the hospital. Rushing to the nurses' station and inquiring about Amy, they are told to wait in the waiting room until further notice since Amy is still being checked on by her doctors.

Next to arrive is George and Ashley, quickly followed by Anne and Aaron. Finding their way to the waiting room, they all exchange hugs with Ricky and John, before sitting and anxiously waiting for some news.

A short time later, Grace, Jack and Ben arrive at the hospital. No hugs are exchanged, just hopeful smiles as the waiting continues.

It isn't long until a doctor finally approaches them. "Are you all here for Amy Juergens?" he asks.

"Yes," George answers as they all stand and gather around the doctor.

"Well, the good news is that all the tests we've run on Amy have come back looking very good." Everybody sighs in relief. "All the swelling in her brain has gone down and there isn't any sign of brain damage. And, of course, all her injuries sustained during the accident – her broken leg, ribs and arm – are now completely healed."

"When can we take her home?" Anne asks.

"Well…" the doctor starts slowly.

"Can we see her?" John interrupts.

"Well, there's also some bad news," says the doctor, cautiously.

"What do you mean?" Ricky speaks up, wrapping a protective arm around John.

"Physically, Amy is a 100%. It's her mental state, however, that has us worried. For anyone who has been in a coma for a significant amount of time, it's going to be hard for them to readjust once they finally wake up. The same goes for Amy."

"So, what can we do?" George questions.

"All you can do is be supportive of Amy and be patient during her process of rediscovering everything. For now, we would like to keep Amy here until we can be sure of her mental stability."

"Can we see her?" John repeats.

"Yes but no more than two people at a time – we don't want to overwhelm her. She has been placed in room 235." With that said, the doctor offers a quick smile before retreating the way he came.

"You should go first, John," Anne suggests, smiling at her grandson reassuringly.

John looks up in surprise. "Are you sure?" Anne just smiles as everyone else nods. Taking a few steps forward, he stops, turning back to look at Ricky. "Dad?" he implores, looking up at his father pleadingly.

"I'm here, buddy," Ricky says. With a nod to George and Anne, he follows his son back to Amy's room.

Upon reaching the room, they see Amy sitting up in the bed with her eyes closed. Ricky remains in the doorway, watching teary-eyed, as John runs over to his mother and throws himself at her, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Mom," he chokes out as he buries his face into her neck.

Amy was lost in thought when she felt something fall onto her. Instinctively, she wraps her arms around the other body. Hearing the choked out word, Amy holds on tighter as a fresh wave of tears start to fall. My John, eyes still closed, she holds her son firmly against her as they both continue to cry.

Ricky gradually makes his way over to the bed. As much as he'd like to, he can't stop the few tears that manage to fall from his eyes, as he watches the emotional reunion between mother and son. Reaching out steadily, he gently runs his hand over Amy's hair.

At the soft touch, Amy slowly opens her eyes. Looking up, she finds herself staring into deep eyes, glinting with unshed tears. Ricky, she thinks, giving him a small smile. Ricky returns the smile faintly before glancing down at John, securely wrapped in his mother's arms.

Amy continues to stare at Ricky for a while longer before hesitantly lowering her eyes to her son. "I love you, so much," she declares, kissing the top of his head.

"I love you, too," John pulls away slightly, and for the first time in 10 years, Amy sees her son's precious face, which is the perfect combination of both her and Ricky.

"Wow," she breathes, "you're all grown-up," she pulls John into another hug. Suddenly, Amy burst into tears, causing John to jump a little. "I've missed out on everything," she sobs.

Ricky gazes down at Amy, his eyes full of sympathy. "Oh Amy," he soothes, running his hand through her hair, "it'll be ok."

Amy glares up at Ricky. "It is not ok, Ricky," she shouts. "It will never be ok – I MISSED 10 YEARS," she yells through her tears as John tightens his grip on her. "I've missed taking John to school; I've missed 10 years worth of birthdays and doctor's appointments. I'VE MISSED EVERYTHING!" she screams, her sobs increasing with every word. "And you know what," she gasps, choking over her words. "I don't even know my son anymore," she cries, holding onto John tighter. "I don't know what his favorite color is or…or…or what his favorite subject in school is…or…or what his…" Amy's ranting is cut off as her body is overcome with heaving sobs.

Ricky can only stare down at the mother of his son, his eyes a mixture of sadness, compassion and affection. Soon, Amy's crying becomes quiet as he watches her breath deeply in an attempt to control her weeping.

"His favorite color is hazel," Ricky whispers after a few minutes. "He told me it's because it reminds him of your eyes," he adds, using a finger to push back some of her hair. "And his favorite subject is band. What can I say," Ricky shrugs, "he takes after his parents." Amy grins at this.

"I play the French horn like you, mom" John exclaims, looking up at his mother's face.

"And the drums," Ricky says proudly.

"Is that so?" Amy beams, ruffling John's hair.

"Mom," he whines, ducking out from under her head.

"Ok, well, tell me about that," Amy smiles, her eyes shining with curiosity, "tell me about school."

"Actually, why don't we give everyone else a chance see to your mom first," Ricky cuts in, "and then you can come back and tell her everything," he quickly adds, watching as relief washes over both of their faces.

As soon as the two of them left, she instantly misses the feel of her son in her arms. On the verge of another breakdown, Amy is immensely grateful when her mom and, who she assumes is her younger brother, walk into the room.

"Oh my gosh, Amy," Anne gushes, rushing to the bedside to hug her eldest daughter. "I've missed you…I love you."

"I love you, too, mom," Amy holds onto her mother like a lifeline. After a few seconds, Amy opens her eyes, looking over her mom's shoulder at her brother. "Wow, Aaron," she chuckles, "and I thought John had gotten big." Anne laughs as she steps back, making room for Aaron to hug his sister.

"How are you holding up?" Anne asks.

"Not too good," Amy groans. "I'm almost…scared, I guess."

"I understand…"

"No, actually you don't," Amy snaps, reaching up to wipe at the tears that slip out. "I'm sorry, mom. It's just that…I feel like a stranger here. Like I just popped into all your lives and I have to get to know you all for the first time, which is basically true. It's been 10 years, and no matter what anyone says, people are bound to change in that amount of time. And I'm afraid to learn how much all of you changed."

"I'm so sorry, Amy," Anne urges. "You're right, I don't understand what you're going through, but I am here for you. We all are."

"Thanks, mom,"

"You're welcome, sweetie," Anne states, squeezing her hand. "We'll let your dad and Ashley come see you now. I love you and I'll see you later."

Moments later, the door bursts open to reveal George and Ashley. "Welcome back, Ames," George calls out, walking into the room.

"Yea...to a strange new world," Amy mutters under her breath.

"Hey sis," Ashley greets, going to hug her sister. "How are you?"

"Forget about me," Amy stares at her sister in shock, "I can't even remember a time when you weren't wearing black and now look at you," she laughs, gesturing at Ashley's outfit, "is that pink?"

"It's fuchsia, thank you very much," Ashley growls causing Amy to howl in laughter.

"It's good to hear you laughing again, Ames," George claims.

"So what's new with you two?" Amy asks once her laughter has died down to a few giggles.

"I'm a teacher," Ashley announces, ignoring Amy as her jaw drops in surprise. "English at Grant."

"I bet you make a great teacher," Amy sighs in awe.

"Teacher of the year – 2 years running," George beams proudly, wrapping an arm around Ashley in a one-arm hug.

"That's amazing, I'm proud of you, Ash."

"Thanks," Ashley replies, hugging her sister again.

"Well, there are still a few more people who'd like to see you," George says. "So, we'll leave you to it, love you."

"Yea, later," Ashley says, walking out the door.

Next to visit her are Jack and Grace. Amy was happy to discover that at least their relationship hadn't changed the last 10 years, although she wishes she hadn't missed their wedding. Grace even told her the exciting news that she was pregnant. It made Amy feel less of a stranger to be the first to know of the couple's good news.

A few minutes after they leave, she hears a knock at her door. Ben, she smiles as he walks into the room.

"Amy," he breathes, as he reaches her bed and places a kiss on her cheek, "how are you?"

That's weird, Amy gives him a small smile. A kiss on my cheek?...no 'I love you' "I'm good," she answers, "now that you're here."

Ben smiles, "I've missed you."

"Well, I'm here now," Amy grabs Ben's hand, intertwining their fingers. "So, what have you been up to the last 10 years?"

"Nothing much," Ben shrugs, looking down at their entwined hands.

"Oh," Amy huffs incredulously. That's hard to believe, she snorts silently, 10 years and he's done nothing.

"Well, I made VP," he proclaims, obviously pleased with himself.

"That's good," Amy replies, lost in thought.

"Are you ok?"

"Oh yea, I'm fine, just thinking?"

"About what?"

"Um…about everything I've missed these last 10 years," she says absentmindedly.

"Well, I think I'm going to go,"

"What?! So soon?" she asks, snapping out of her thoughts.

"Yea, I got some work to do."

"Ok, well, I love you" she says softly.

"Me too," he says, leaning over and lightly kissing her lips. Amy watches him walk out the door, staring after him suspiciously.

The second Ben was out of her sight, John was running into the room and to her side. "Mom," he exclaims, hugging her excitedly. Amy chuckles, her suspicions over Ben instantly forgotten in the presence of her son.

"Where's your dad?" Amy asks, noticing Ricky's absence.

"Umm…"

"I'm right here," Ricky answers, walking into the room holding a bag of food. "Your son ran all the way in here when he saw Ben leave. He forgot that I'm an old man and can't keep up with him," Ricky laughs.

Amy rolls her eyes, smiling brightly. "What's that?" she inquires, pointing to the bag.

"I remember 10 years ago, before all this happened, when I came back from my business trip, the 3 of us were suppose to go out for Chinese. Well, better late than never, right?" Ricky smiles as he starts to pass out the food.

"That's sweet of you," Amy exclaims, "I can't believe you actually remembered that," Amy looks up at him, smiling gently.

"I remember a lot of things," Ricky smirks, gazing into her eyes.

"Let's eat," John shouts, breaking the moment.

Amy chuckles, looking at her son lovingly, "So, John, tell me about school." As they eat, John proceeds to enthusiastically tell her about everything from school to music, eager for his mom to know him.

AN: that chapter ended up being longer than I originally anticipated. Well I hope you liked this chapter…Let me know what yall think…I hope I can update sooner than later…the next chapter is mostly likely gonna be called 'Escape'

-Nichelle-