Mercedes thought that she would be miserable. No one would let her move. Every step she wanted to take was instantly denied and the last two weeks should have been horrible for her. But instead it was also great because though she couldn't move, she was getting to know her in laws and finding that Austin was getting more and more excited about the prospect of the baby. The only damper was the stories flying around about Sam and Brittany. But Mercedes tried to put it out of her head, she trusted him. He was her life and she was his.

Stacey knocked gently on Mercedes' bedroom door and stuck her head in. "Can I come sit?"

Looking u from her phone she smiled. "Of course you can! How are you liking the house?"

"It's amazing!" Stacey declared as she climbed into the bed beside Mercedes and leaned back against the headboard. "There's so many rooms. Hayden's gonna love it."

"I sure hope so, we did work pretty hard to make it perfect for him." Mercedes turned towards her. "Ok so tell me more about you how has it been?"

Stacey stretched her legs out in front of herself. "Pretty good. I'm glad to be done with school for awhile. Stevie's glad to be done with school period," she laughed.

"I bet!" Mercedes sighed. "I am just glad that you get to be here, I can't imagine bringing Hayden into the world without you here."

"I'm excited to meet him." Stacey chewed her lip slightly, looking terribly like her brother when she did. "Um... I was talking to Sammy about something and he said I should make sure it's okay with you first."

Mercedes looked at her. "Uh huh. I know that look. What's going on?"

"Well, we went to Stevie's graduation ceremony before we left and he had his big bro night out or whatever last weekend. I don't really understand how boys work," she admitted with a shrug. "But I thought maybe when he and Mama get here, we could have a little family party for him here at the house. If it's okay with you. I could do everything for it!"

Mercedes smiled. "Yes! I say yes let's do it. This would be the best place to have it. We can even fly put some of his friends."

Stacey smiled brightly and clapped with excitement. "I love parties!" she declared. She leaned down and picked Penny up onto the bed since the puppy had been following her around since she'd gotten there. "We could do it in the backyard and you can lay out on the lounge chair so you don't miss anything."

"That sounds perfect. We can get all his favorite foods and it's gonna be great!"

Stacey giggled as Penny climbed up and licked her face. "I can make a cake! Mama taught me how." She picked her phone up when it buzzed. "Sammy sent me another cat video."

"Oh I could go for some cake. " stacey watched the video and Mercedes sighed. "Yeah Brittany keeps sending them to him."

"There's always room for cake," Stacey declared. She nodded over at Mercedes. "She does seem to like cats a lot. They are pretty cute. Have you met her?"

"I met her and she seemed nice." Mercedes kept her thoughts about the rumors, she knew they had to be lies.

Stacey nodded, still scrolling through her phone like any teenager. "My brother thinks she's hot," she said with a shrug.

Mercedes looked at her. "He said that?" Her heart racing as she wondered if he really did.

"Yeah. More than once," Stacey said with a roll of her eyes. "But he says that about a lot of girls."

Mercedes took a deep breath. "Yeah I mean I get it." She went back to her phone looking at the article. It was a photo of Sam and Brittany looking like they were in love. "Sam Evans and his Costar Brittany Pierce were seen having a romantic dinner for two. Wonder what Mercedes Jones has to say about this." she read to herself. Sam was gonna leave her...

"I don't. I don't get boys at all, especially teenage ones. He does have this new girlfriend though, so she's kept him pretty distracted," Stacey went on, oblivious to anything Mercedes was thinking.

Mercedes sat up in the bed. "He has a new what? He has a wh-ow." She swallowed shaking her head.

Stacey went on full alert and sat up with her, instinctively reaching out. "Are you okay? Sammy says you're supposed to stay relaxed."

"Stay relaxed?!" She held her stomach trying to breath through the pain. "I knew it. I really did. But I tried my best to just not believe it."

Dwight made his way in at the sound of the commotion. "Hey, hey, now. What's going on in here?"

Mercedes closed her eyes at the sound of Dwight, "Its fine." she said softly.

Stacey shrugged, entirely confused. "I told her about Stevie's girlfriend and she got all upset. I mean, I don't get why anyone would wanna date him either, but still."

"Go check on the casserole, little girl," Dwight told her, turning back to Mercedes once Stacey had rushed off. "Now, let's try this again. What's going on?"

Mercedes frowned opening her eyes and looking at Dwight. She handed him her phone so he could see the Articles.

Dwight pulled his glasses out of his front pocket and took a look at the phone, frowning at it. "We both know this is nonsense. At least, I hope you do."

Mercedes sighed. "I know that he is working with her and everything but I have just been feeling so insecure lately. I went from being on top of the world to not really having anything of my own."

Dwight nodded slowly. "I understand that. I do. I'd suggest you find something new to make your own, but you're kind of in a tough position to do that right now. The burdens of parenthood, I'm afraid. The children always come first."

Mercedes wiped her eyes. "I think I am failing at parenthood too. Hayden isn't ready to be born and yet here I am unable to keep him safe until he is ready."

"What do you mean unable? From where I'm sitting, that's exactly what you're doing right now," Dwight pointed out. "Sometimes it takes a little extra work, but you're putting it in. Every one of Mary's pregnancies was different from the last. It's not something you can predict, hon."

Mercedes nodded. "I suppose you are right." SHe wanted to say more but she couldn't.

Hurried footsteps came down the hall and into the room. "Stacey said she got you upset. Are you okay?" Sam asked with worry, looking between Mercedes and his father.

"I'll let you two talk."

Mercedes looked at Dwight. "Can you tell Stacey she didn't upset me it was the Article, please?" She looked at Sam and frowned. "Its fine I had a moment of sadness in good "

Dwight gave her a nod and patted Sam's shoulder on his way out.

Sam sighed, scratching the back of his head as he walked in further. Perching on the side of the bed, he looked at her. "Are we doing this thing again where you don't tell me how you're really feeling?"

"Fine you wanna know?" She tossed him, her phone. "Enjoy."

Sam picked up the phone where it fell on the bed, sighing again when he looked at it. "Cedes. Really?" He looked her in the eye. "You, of all people, who have had every conceivable thing written about you, are gonna believe this shit?"

"Don't cuss at me! I never said I believed it but it bothered me, then Stacey said you found her hot and excuse me for feeling like a beached whale compared to her! And why were you even out to dinner with her?"

Sam took a deep breath as he tried to unpack everything she just said. "Okay, first of all, I was cussing at the writer of this... nonsense, not you," he explained. "And I don't know what Stacey is talking about because I never said that and I don't know why she would. And we had a break from filming, we were hungry, we're friends. So we got dinner!"

Mercedes stood up from the bed opting to take her five minutes now. "Why are you even putting yourself in these situations. Sam is dating Brittany and poor little Mercedes is losing it all. You may think it's not a big deal but it is!"

"Situations? I had dinner with a friend and because she happens to be female, the paparazzi decided it surely must mean something, which you and I both know is ridiculous," Sam insisted. "If I had dinner with one of the other guys in the movie would we be having this conversation right now?"

Mercedes walked into the bathroom. "I don't know do you find them hot!? DO they text you all hours of the night cat videos?! Do you have a kissing or sex scene with them!"

Sam followed her because she wasn't going to get away from him that easily. "I never said I found her hot! What did Stacey even say?" he asked in frustration. "And, yes, they do text me. We're all friends. We text each other. And, no, because that would be a different movie. But, who knows, a movie I might make one day. Are we going to do this every time?"

"Sam did you see the picture? You two were close I don't blame them for thinking you guys were together. And did you read "A source close to the pair says that sparks flew the moment they met." Mercedes scoffed. "Sounds familiar."

Sam bit down on his tongue to keep from exploding. The last thing she needed was him getting her more upset. The more times she threw this at him, the more it hurt though. She really didn't trust him. He nodded slowly and stepped back. "You... take your shower. I'll send Stacey in with your dinner."

Mercedes didn't even look at him, she couldn't. Why didn't he get that it looked bad. She knew he wouldn't cheat and so did he but it looked bad having him and Brittany being that close. She walked and sat on the shower chair they got her but didn't undress just yet. Her body was aching and the cramps were back. She needed to calm down and crying wasn't going to help her.

Sam headed back out to the kitchen with a huff, dragging a chair out to plop in. "Stacey, what did you say to her?"

Stacey looked up in distress again. "I don't know. I was just complaining about Stevie."

"You weren't talking about Brittany?"

"Oh, well, yeah. Mercedes brought her up when you sent me that video. And I said Stevie thought she was hot, but he had a new girlfriend who was distracting him anyway," Stacey explained with a shrug.

"Stevie? You said Stevie?"

"I don't know. I guess I said my brother. But it's not like I'd be talking about you!"

Sam sighed and rested his elbow on the table, rubbing at his eyes.

Mercedes stood and her body froze as sharp pain shot through her. "Oh God." She tried to find the chair but missed it as everything around her went black.

Quinn walked into the house with a few things that she thought might make Mercedes day. Looking over and seeing Sam and Stacey se smiled. "Hey guys."

Sam just grunted. He'd been filming since before the sun came up and now his wife thought he was cheating on her and he really just wanted to sleep for three days.

"Hi, Quinn," Stacey offered. She gestured at Sam and towards Mercedes' room before making fighting moves with her hands. "Um... also dinner's ready."

Quinn looked at Stacey and nodded moving to sit next to Sam. "Sooo what am I walking into this time?"

Sam just shrugged, knocking restlessly on the table. "Same as usual. Doesn't trust me. May never trust me. Obviously doesn't believe in how much I love her, not that I'd ever be able to stop anyway."

Quinn ran her hands through her hair. "Sam she trusts you, She loves you and she wants you. Take it from a woman who never ever doubted her husband before... matter fact hold on." She pulled out her phone. "Baby turn around. I think it's time you and Sam had a talk about your crazy pregnant wives...this is the only time I will let you do it too." she hung up and looked at him. "Mike will be here in a minute. I think this would be better coming from him than me."

Sam just shrugged. "Will you take her some of the casserole, please? I'm pretty sure she'd rather see you right now."

Stacey cut out a piece and plated it, setting one of the rolls beside it before she gave it to Quinn. "I'm gonna bring Dad some."

Quinn nodded as the door opened and she heard Mike coming in. Kissing him she moved over to Mike. "Please talk to him." Picking up the plate she smiled at Stacey. "I want a plate too." Walking towards Mercedes room she laughed sneaking a forkful.

Mike sat down. "Let me guess, you have been accused of one of three things, not understanding, not caring enough or cheating?"

Stacey smiled and nodded. "Plenty for everybody!" she promised.

Sam's head fell to the table, surrounded by arms as he hid from the world. "Try all three," he muttered.

Mike nodded. "Quinn hit me with all three on the drive over here. She thought I was cheating with a dancer from the studio, cried about it because she trusts me but not the girl or whatever that means."

Quinn walked into Mercedes room and looked around seeing it empty. "Mercy?" She placed the food down and walked towards the bathroom. "Girl come on I am sure the blow up wasn't that bad." She walked towards the door. "Mercy?" Walking in and seeing Mercedes on the floor she ran to her, "Oh my God Merce!"

Sam lifted his head and rested his chin on his hands. "I'm gonna have to tell her the thing I'm not supposed to tell anyone," he muttered mostly to himself. He shot up at the sound of Quinn's distressed called and went running back towards their room.

Quinn reached down to gently shake her. "Mercedes please wake up. Sam! SAM!"

Sam rushed in and felt his heart drop down into his stomach. "Shit," he whispered as he fell to the shower floor beside her. "Call an ambulance," he instructed to anyone who would listen as he carefully lifted Mercedes' head into his lap. "Baby? Baby, c'mon, it's me. Come back to me."

Quinn grabbed her phone, shaking as she did. Mike and Stacey ran into the room. "Stacey could you take Quinn to the bedroom."

Quinn shook her head. "No! I am not going anywhere."

"Baby please, here let me help Sam and you go call 911. We will bring her right into the room okay.?"

Quinn grabbed her phone, shaking as she did. Mike and Stacey ran into the room. "Stacey could you take Quinn to the bedroom."

Quinn shook her head. "No! I am not going anywhere."

"Baby please, here let me help Sam and you go call 911. We will bring her right into the room okay.?"

Quinn hesitated before walking into the room with Stacey. "Hi um we have a 29 year old female she is almost 30 weeks and was on bedrest, she uh... she passed out."

Mike looked at Sam as he checked her pulse. "She's got a pulse so that is a good thing."

"Get... um, there's clothes in that cupboard there," Sam said, pointing at it. "Grab one and put some cool water on it." He leaned forward and rested his hands on Mercedes' stomach to see what he could feel. He ducked his head down and silently prayed as he looked at her. "C'mon, my love. I need you."

Mike jumped up and grabbed the cloth wringing it out and placing it on Mercedes head. He watched Sam and could see movement. "The baby is moving that's a good sign..."

Quinn sat on the bed. "Is she okay? Someone please tell me something?" She held her stomach trying not to freak out.

"But she's not waking up! And that is a very bad sign, Mike," Sam snapped, shutting his eyes tightly as soon the words were out. "Sorry," he muttered as he moved the cloth around her face. "Where the hell is the ambulance?"

Stacey sat beside Quinn fretting. "Don't get upset too, please. The poor babies!"

Mike nodded. "I know. I know Sam." There really wasn't anything else that he could say. There was a commotion outside and Quinn looked over to see the Ambulances. "Im calm Stacey. I promise. She's in there." Quinn said pointing to where they can go.

Dwight followed the EMTs into the room, the sirens having woken him from his snoozing spot on the couch. "What's happening?"

"Mercedes passed out," Stacey answered, ringing her hands in her lap before going to her father and wrapping her arms around him. Sixteen years old or not, this was scary.

"She won't wake up," Sam repeated frantically to the EMTs when they came into the bathroom.

The EMT's moved over to Mercedes as Quinn stood by the door. Mike went over to her and held her.

The EMT checked her vitals and looked at the other. "She is non responsive. Elevated blood pressure and heart rate." He moved down to her stomach using the fetal monitor. "The baby's heart rate is at about 165 and holding. Lets get her onto the gurney and to the hospital."

"I'm going with her," Sam told them. "I'm her husband." He followed them out as they rolled her on the gurney and looked at his father. "You guys stay here for now. I'll call you when I know what's going on."

Quinn moved to him. "You can't be there by yourself someone should go with you."

"Only one person can ride along," one of the EMTs informed them.

Sam turned to Quinn. "You guys can meet me there if you want. But only if you're up to it. We don't need two sets of mamas and babies in danger, okay?"

Quinn nodded. "I want to go. It's better for me to worry there then at home." Mike could have argued but he didn't, she wouldn't have listened.

Knowing Sam would need him, Quinn shot Austin a text.

Quinn: Meet us at the hospital, its Mercedes.

"Be safe, you guys," Dwight advised. "All of you. We'll hold down the fort, but call us if anything changes."

Sam was instructed to sit in the front of the ambulance, but he kept looking behind him the whole way, trying to will Mercedes to wake up.

Once they arrived to the hospital Sam was asked to sit in the waiting room while they worked on Mercedes. After 15 minutes or so Dr. Ramsey came out the room. "Sam."

Sam jumped out of his seat. "Is she okay? Is Hayden okay? Please tell me they're okay," he begged her, his stomach turning like a clothes dryer.

Dr. Ramsey moved closer. "Mercedes condition has worsened. We have been monitoring her blood pressure every week because I was worried about preeclampsia, her last one was a little elevated and that's why she was due in, tomorrow. It looks like unfortunately Mercedes suffered a seizure. She is showing signs of Eclampsia which is the onset of seizures in a woman with preeclampsia." She could tell Sam was trying to follow along so she slowed. "What you need to know is this an emergency situation and immediate treatment is needed to stop the seizures, treat her high blood pressure and try to wake her up. The only way we can do that is to deliver the baby. I need your permission to do a c-section."

"Seizure?" Sam repeated in awe. He felt like his whole body had gone numb. He barely even felt the hands on his shoulders.

"It's alright, mate," Austin told him as he walked up. "Take a deep breath."

"What are you doing here? I thought you had a date," Sam muttered, still half in shock.

"I did, but don't worry about that right now. Tell the doc here what she needs to hear."

Sam nodded slowly. "Yeah. Do whatever you need to do to keep her safe. Is Hayden going to... will he be okay?"

Dr. Ramsey nodded. "We will. He is about 30 weeks but heartbeat is great and so far he isn't in distress. Those are all good things. But I do have to ask you, not to worry you but because eclampsia can be tricky, if it came down to you wife or son, do you want us to put all our efforts into saving him?"

"Don't!" Sam turned around and sat in the chair, leaning forward and hiding his face in his hands. "I'm not doing that. You keep them both safe."

Austin sighed and turned back to the doctor. "Just keep us updated, yeah? I'll talk to him."

Dr. Ramsey nodded. "That's the plan Sam, it's just a precaution we have to ask." She sighed looking at Sam then Austin. "We will do everything we can to keep them safe." She walked away.