A/N: Well here's the next chapter to the sequel. I hope you enjoy it. PLEASE read AND REVIEW!!!! I only have 1 review on chapter 1 so far.
Disclaimer: I own nothing except for what I have made up.
Two months had passed since Kevin had found out about Lucy's pregnancy. She was now almost five moths along in her pregnancy, and it had been a rough five months. SHe still had morning sickness every day; it hadn't gotten much better. The days that she had it all day were few and far between now, but it still lasted into the late afternoon most days. Just a few weeks ago, her ankles and feet had started to become very swollen, so he had taken her into Matt's office. Although he didn't find anything wrong, he put her on bed rest for afternoons to be on the safe side. He had also discovered that Lucy and Kevin were expecting twins. Although they were happy, it only complicated things more and made her pregnancy even more high risk.
Kevin opened the door to his and Lucy's house. He had just gotten back from picking up Erin and Savannah at Annie's. As soon as she found out that Lucy would have to go on afternoon bed rest, she offered to watch the girls, and Lucy and Kevin had gladly agreed. He took Savannah and Erin to their playroom, then went to his and Lucy's room to check on Lucy.
"Luce, are you awake?" he called softly, opening the door.
Lucy sat up. "I'm awake, Kevin. How was work?"
"It was fine. I picked up the girls from Mom's. They're in the playroom right now. How are you feeling today?"
"These two have been awfully active. They've been kicking like crazy all day long."
Kevin noticed how she tried to avoid answering his question. "Lucy, what's wrong. You need to tell me."
"It's nothing serious, Kevin. My back's been a little sore all day, that's all. Matt said that it's normal, considering the fact that I'm almost six months along with twins."
"So you called him? It was bad enough that you had to call him?" Kevin asked worriedly.
"No, it wasn't that bad. He called me to check up on me, so I told him about my back."
Just then, Kevin's cell phone rang. "Kinkirk speaking," he answered.
"Kinkirk, it's Michaels. Can you come in? We have three men out sick and the criminals seem to know it because we've been swamped with calls all day."
"I don't know. Let me check with Lucy." Kevin replied.
"I'll be fine, Kevin. Just take the girls back over to Mom's and go on into work. I'll be over later to pick them up."
"Are you sure?" he asked.
Lucy nodded. "Yes, it's fine. I'll be fine. If I need anything, I'll call."
"Okay, if you're sure." He got back on the phone with Sergeant Michaels, who was now Chief Michaels. "Chief, it's me. I'll be in. Just give me about fifteen minutes."
"Sounds good, Kinkirk."
Kevin went into the girls' playroom. "Savannah, Erin, we need to go back over to Grandma's house. Come on." He picked up Erin and carried her out to the car. Once she was strapped into her car seat, he made sure that Savannah had gotten safely strapped into her booster seat, then got in and drove to Annie house.
Annie met them when he pulled up. "Does she suspect anything?" she asked.
Kevin shook his head. "Not a thing. She thinks that I'm going into work. I had Chief Michaels call me and act like he needed me to pull an extra shift. She should be over in about forty-five minutes or so."
Kevin and Annie had planned a surprise birthday party for Lucy. It hadn't been too hard to keep a secret from her. Most of the planning had been done in the afternoons while she was on bed rest.
"When is everyone going to start getting here?" he asked.
"Matt, Sarah, Keller, and Liam are already here and so are Simon and Rose. Peter and Ruthie should be getting here any time now. Carlos and Mary said that they probably wouldn't be here until the last minute. They have to wait for Charlie to get done at soccer practice. Of course, Chandler and Roxanne are still working on the cake over in the garage apartment. Chandler just called me and said that they're putting the finishing touches on it, so they should be here pretty soon," Annie replied, ticking everyone off on her fingers as she said their name.
"Good. Everyone should be here in plenty of time to surprise Lucy then. Where are you having them all park? If they park in the driveway, Lucy's going to see all of their cars." He looked around. "Where's Simon and Rose's car?"
Simon and Rose parked in the garage, which is why I have the van sitting out. You're going to park next door in Mrs. Simmons' garage. Everyone else can park in the driveway. Lucy will probably walk over here, so she more than likely won't see all the cars, and even if she does, it won't be unusual for me to have everyone over."
Annie and Kevin had gotten the girls out of their car seats and had just entered the Camden house. They were met at the door by Liam, Keller, Sam and David. "Hi, Kevin." Sam greeted him. Erin immediately reached for him. "Hi, Erin," he said, taking her from Kevin. "I'll take the kids upstairs to play so you guys can finish setting up without them underfoot." He took Keller's hand and took him and Erin upstairs. David followed with Savannah and Liam.
Kevin and Annie went into the kitchen where Matt and Sarah were doing last minute preparations for the party. "Hi, Kevin," Matt greeted him.
"Hey, Matt, Sarah. What still needs done?" he asked, not really talking to anyone in particular
Annie was about to answer when a knock sounded on the kitchen door. "You can get the door. It must be Chandler and Roxanne with the cake."
Kevin opened the door. It was, indeed, Chandler and Roxanne. Chandler held a beautiful cake with Happy Birthday, Lucy! written on it.
"Wow!" Kevin exclaimed. "The cake looks delicious."
"Thanks, Kevin," Roxanne replied. "I hope it tastes as good as it looks."
"I'm sure it will, babe," Chandler quickly reassured her. "Annie, where do you want the cake?" he asked as he and Roxanne entered the kitchen.
"Just set it here on the table. We're going to be having the party outside, but we'll just leave the cake in here for now." Annie replied.
"Mom! We're here!" Ruthie called, coming into the kitchen with Peter.
"Hi, Ruthie, Peter. Ruthie, can you go outside and help Simon and Rose decorate?" Annie asked.
"Sure, Mom," she replied.
When Ruthie had gone outside, Peter asked, "What do you need me to do, Mom?"
She glanced around the kitchen. "Umm, you can take the presents outside, I guess, then help decorate. There's really not very much left to do." Annie glanced up at the clock. "Carlos and Mary had better hurry up and get here or Lucy's going to beat them here."
"Did I hear someone mention me name?" Mary asked, coming into the kitchen with Ava and Charlie. Carlos was behind her with Erica.
Annie smiled. "Yes, I was just saying that if you guys didn't get here soon, Lucy would beat you here. But that's now going to happen now, thankfully. Go on outside. Everyone else is already out there, putting the finishing touches on the decorations." She then turned to Kevin. "Kevin, can you go up and get Sam and David? Tell them to bring the kids down. Lucy should be here any minute now."
Kevin, Mary, and Carlos did as Annie had instructed. Before long, everyone was gathered outside, waiting for Lucy to arrive.
They had only been out there a couple of minutes when Sam ran over to everyone and whispered, "She's coming!" They had had him watching over the hedge to give them some warning.
A minute later, when Lucy walked into the yard, everyone shouted, "Happy Birthday, Lucy!"
She stopped, shocked. "How did you guys pull this off?" she asked. "When did you plan it?"
Kevin walked over to her and put his arm around her, leading her over to where everyone else stood. "Mom and I planned it in the afternoons when I picked the girls up and on my days off. It wasn't that hard to keep it a secret from you."
Matt pulled a chair out for Lucy. "Here, Luce. Why don't you sit down?"
Lucy frowned. "Matt, I've been sitting or laying down all afternoon. Can't I stand for now?"
"Lucy, why don't you do as Matt says? Please?" Kevin asked.
Lucy sighed and sat down. "I can't fight both of you," she said.
While Matt and Kevin had been trying to convince Lucy to sit down, Annie had slipped into the kitchen. She reappeared a few minutes later, carrying the cake.
Lucy jumped up from her chair when she saw the cake. "Ooh, that looks delicious! I've been craving cake all day!"
"You're not going to get any unless you sit down, Luce," Mary joked.
Matt shot her an annoyed look. "Mary, you're not helping matters."
"Oh, come on, Matt. You remember how it was when I was pregnant with the twins and on bed rest. The times that I was allowed out of bed, I wanted to do anything but sit or lay down. Come on, let her stay up." Sarah convinced Matt.
"Yeah, come on, Matt. She'll be fine," Ruthie added.
Matt held up his hands in a gesture of mock surrender. "Okay, okay," he laughed. "I can't fight all three of my sisters and my wife. You win, Lucy."
She squealed and threw her arms around him. "Thanks, Matt," she said, giving him a peck on the cheek."
"Are we going to eat the cake or not?" asked Sam. Being a typical sixteen year old boy, he was always hungry.
Everyone laughed. "Hold your horses, David. Lucy has to blow out the candles first," Ruthie reminded him.
Lucy laughed. 'I can't blow the candles out until you light them , Ruthie," she reminded her. Ruthie had been holding the lighter in her hand while she was reprimanding David.
"I know, I know. I'm getting ready to light them now," she laughed. A few seconds later, all the candles were lit.
Lucy stepped up to the table that Annie had put the cake on, took a deep breath, and blew. She managed to blow all of the candles out in one breath.
Everyone clapped and cheered. "Let's eat!" Colin piped up from where he was standing by Sarah. Everyone laughed.
"He's right," David said. "Who's going to cut the cake?"
"I'll cut it," Rose offered. A few minutes later, the cake was cut and pieces were being passed around.
Lucy had just taken a bite of her cake when a look of pain flashed across her face. Although it was only there for a few seconds Annie noticed. Not wanting to make a big scene over it, she waited until every one else was busy and not paying attention, then she went over to Lucy. "Lucy, are you okay?" she asked.
"I'm fine, Mom. My back's been bugging me all day. It's nothing to be worried about."
Lucy tried to pass it off as nothing, but Annie could tell it was more than a just her back "bugging" her. She went over to Kevin. "Kevin," she whispered quietly, "something's wrong with Lucy. I've been watching her, and I've seen her wince several times. She claims that it's just her back bugging her, but I think it's something more."
Kevin glanced over to where Lucy was standing. The first thing he noticed was that Lucy looked pale. He then saw that she looked very unsteady on her feet.
Kevin had just started towards her when she started to fall. He broke into a run, but Simon, who had been standing next to her, noticed and caught her before Kevin got there.
"Matt!" Simon shouted. Matt was already on his way over there. He and Kevin reached Lucy at the same time.
"Mom, call 911," he said. "Sarah, get my bag out of the car. Simon, why don't you hold her head in you lap, that way she's not lying totally on the concrete. Everyone else, move back."
Annie turned to Sam and David, who were watching the commotion with pale faces. "Sam, David, take the kids inside. They don't need to see this," she commanded. They quickly moved to obey.
Sam picked up Erin and told Charlie to take Ava's hand while he grabbed Erica's hand. HE then made his way inside the house. David had a hold of Keller and Liam's hands and was doing his best to convince Savannah to come inside, but she was refusing. Finally, Peter came over to help. "Savannah, come on, let's go inside and play."
Savannah, at almost six years of age, was old enough to realize that something was wrong with her mom. "No, I want to see Mommy!" she cried.
Peter picked her up and carried her inside the house. "Look, Savannah, Mommy's going to be just fine, okay? Mommy and Daddy need you to help Uncle Sam and Uncle David with Erin, okay? You need to help take care of her so that Daddy can help Mommy."
Savannah had quieted down by now, but tears were still rolling down her cheeks. She nodded. "Okay."
Peter gave her a hug and set her down. "Go on, go play now." He watched to make sure that she went to where Sam and David were keeping the other kids busy, then went back outside.
When he made it outside, eh went over to where Ruthie was standing, her eyes wide with fear. Kevin and Lucy had told everyone a month ago about the risks involved with this pregnancy. "Honey, she's going to be okay," he soothed. "Don't worry." He put his arm around her.
"Peter, she's still not conscious. Last time she did this, with Erin, she regained consciousness after just a minute or so."
The EMTs had arrived while Peter was inside, and as he watched them work on his sister-in-law, he started to become scared. Why wasn't she waking up?
After a several minutes, the EMTs, with Matt's help, placed Lucy on a stretcher and loaded her into the ambulance. Matt turned around and said something to Kevin, then he and Kevin hopped into the back of the ambulance. As soon as the everyone was in, the ambulance took off, it's sirens blaring.
Sarah, who had been assisting Matt and the paramedics, walked over to where everyone was standing. "They're taking her to the hospital. She started to regain consciousness when they were loading her into the ambulance. Matt said that Lucy will definitely be in the hospital at least overnight. He recommended that you all just go home. We'll call if we find out anything."
"I don't know about the rest of you, but I am not going to just go home when my sister was just taken to the hospital!" Simon exploded. Rose laid a hand on his shoulder in an attempt to calm him down, but he just shrugged it off. "The rest of you can do what you want, but I'm going to the hospital."
"I agree with Simon. Why should we have to just sit around and wait for news at home? I'm going to wait at the hospital," Mary announced.
Everyone else agreed with Simon and Mary, so Annie turned to Chandler and Roxanne. "Would you two mind filling Sam and David in on what's going on?"
"No, not at all," Chandler said quickly. "DO you want us to stay with the kids?"
Annie smiled sadly. "No, thanks for the offer, but I think it'd be best if Sam and David were watching their nieces and nephews right now. It'll give them something to do besides worry and it will also be better for the kids. With Charlie being six, Savannah almost six, both sets of twins almost four, and Erin two, they understand enough of what's going on that if we left them with you, they'd be quite upset."
"Okay. We'll come to the hospital as soon as we can." Chandler replied. He and Roxanne headed inside to do as Annie had requested while everyone else headed to their respective cars.
Simon and Rose were the first to reach the hospital. They got out of their car and ran into the emergency room. Simon went up to the front desk. "Do you know if Lucy Kinkirk has been admitted?" he asked.
The receptionist looked up and said curtly, "I'm sorry, I can only give that information out to immediate family members."
"I am an immediate family member. My name is Simon Camden. I'm her brother."
Without looking at him, the receptionist's cold reply was, "Come back later and ask. I'm busy."
With shoulders slumped, Simon walked over to where Rose had sat down. "They won't give me any information. I guess we'll just have to wait for Matt or Kevin."
Before long, everyone else had arrived as well. When Simon told Annie what the receptionist had told him, she marched up to the desk with a determined, "don't mess with me" look on her face. "Excuse me," she said. "My name is Annie Camden. My daughter, Lucy Kinkirk, was brought here by an ambulance about half an hour ago. She's five and a half months pregnant and passed out. Could you tell me if she's been admitted and how she is?"
The receptionist glanced up at her, ready to tell her what she had told Simon, but when she saw the look on Annie's face, she changed her mind. She entered something into her computer, then said, "She's being looked at right now. I don't know what condition she's in."
Annie turned to go back to her seat when she spotted Kevin walking into the waiting room, obviously looking to see if anyone was there about Lucy. "Kevin! Over here!" she called.
Kevin hurried over to where Annie had rejoined the rest of the group. "They just moved Lucy up to the maternity ward. She regained consciousness on the way here. Matt and the other doctors think that this could be the beginning stages of toxemia, so they're going to keep her overnight while they wait for the results of the tests. After they get the results, they'll know better what they're going to do. Matt said that they'll probably put her on bed rest."
"Can we see her?" Ruthie asked.
"Yes, you can, in a few minutes. They just have to finish up a couple of tests first. You can all come on up to the waiting room in the maternity ward. Matt should be waiting there for us."
Everyone followed Kevin up to the waiting room in the maternity ward, and sure enough, Matt was waiting for them. "Kevin, we're all done running tests now. Lucy's asking for you."
"Okay, Matt. Thanks." Kevin went down the hall to Lucy's room. He opened the door and went in. "Luce? It's me. How are you feeling?" he asked, sitting down on the edge of her bed.
"I'm feeling fine now that they got the contractions stopped. I didn't even realize until the party that I was having them. At least it was just a false alarm."
Kevin attempted to smile. "Yes, at least as far as labor goes. We still have to wait for the test results to come back."
Kevin wrapped his arm around Lucy and she snuggled into his side. "I know, but I feel fine. I don't feel any different than I have been feeling. I'm almost positive that the tests will all come back negative."
Kevin changed the subject. "Are you up for some company? You have a waiting room full of people out there."
Lucy smiled. "Sure. Send them on in."
Kevin went out to tell everyone that they could see Lucy now and caught the tail end of Matt's conversation with them. "I don't think it's toxemia. In fact, I think she's well enough now that she won't even have to be on bed rest in the afternoons anymore. I'm not sure what caused this, but I have a suspicion that it might be sugar-related. Lucy said that she hadn't been able to keep anything down all afternoon."
Kevin was relieved. He had automatically thought the worst when he saw Lucy collapse at the party. He walked over to where everyone was standing. "Lucy's up for some visitors now. I don't think she can handle all of you at once, but I'm sure that a few at a time will be okay."
Soon, everyone but Matt and Sarah had been in to visit Lucy. Matt went in by himself first. He had asked Sarah and Kevin to give him some time alone with his sister.
Matt slowly opened the door to Lucy's room, calling out softly, "Luce, it's Matt. Can I come in?"
"Come on in, Matt," Lucy replied.
Matt fully entered the room and walked over to Lucy's bed. He sat down on the edge. "How are you feeling?" he asked.
"I'm feeling okay now that the Braxton-Hick's contractions have stopped. Have you gotten the test results back yet?"
Matt shook his head. "No, not yet, but I'll let you know as soon as I get them. I'm sure that everything's going to turn out fine," he encouraged her.
"Oh, Matt, I'm so scared! What if something really is wrong with the babies? I don't think I could stand losing another baby," Lucy cried.
Matt hugged her to him. "Luce, it's okay. They're fine. We just did an ultrasound, remember? Nothing's wrong with the babies." He pulled back and looked her in the eye. "Lucy, I will do everything I can to make sure that you and the babies are okay. I promise."
