"I noticed you told Dr. Newman to send a copy of your sonogram and report to Kevin. Does that mean you've made up your mind?" Victor sat on the sofa next to Lucy.

"I don't know. I'm not sure I can handle it. That sounds selfish, doesn't it."

"I know you still have feelings for him. It won't be easy, raising children with him."

"Children. I still can't get over that." Her eyes filled with tears again. When Dr. Newman had told her she was carrying twins, she spent the next ten minutes alternating between laughing and crying. Every time she thought about it, her reaction started all over again. "I bet Kevin got a kick out of it. You know, he mentioned it, when he was making a case for me to give them his name. He said if I had twins that everyone would suspect him, anyway." Sighing, she wiped her eyes and put her head back. "He's right, you know."

Someone knocked on the door and Victor opened it to reveal Luke.

"Hi, got your message on the machine, but I was close by, so I thought I'd take a chance." Kissing her forehead, he sat next to her. "What's up?"

Taking his hand, Lucy stared at him. "I've been thinking about your offer."

"It still stands." Luke's eyes went from her to Victor.

"Lucy has told me what's going on. And your offer. There aren't many men who would willingly jump into a situation such as this." Victor smiled.

"I'd do just about anything for Luce."

She leaned against him. "I know. And I appreciate it, Luke, I really do."

"But..."

"But, I found out something that could pretty much make everyone point fingers no matter what I say." She smiled and began to cry again. "I'm going to have twins."

Laughing, Luke put his arms around her. "Keep acting like that and I won't know whether to say congrats or I'm sorry."

"I know. I can't stop. Every time I think about it, I get like this."

"You're entitled. I guess this helped make up your mind?"

Finally getting herself under control, she looked at him. "Come on, Luke. I have twins, and no one would believe Kevin wasn't the father no matter how much we both said you were."

"Besides, from what you've told me, he wants to do the whole 'daddy' thing. That would probably be better for the kids. If he sticks with it." Luke shot a look at Victor.

"I don't agree with what Kevin has done to Lucy in the past. But I do know that if he were to be named the babies' father, he would do his best to take care of them." Victor met Luke's eyes. "Not that I blame you for having doubts. I know as well as you do what he's done to her."

"Okay, he gets to play the proud Daddy, what about you, Luce? What do you want?"

She just looked at him.

"That's what I'm talking about. You want the whole thing, don't you? The family thing."

Standing, she walked toward the kitchen. "It doesn't matter what I want. These children deserve a better father than I offered them biologically. He would be a good father, Luke. Even if he doesn't want me, he'll take care of the babies."

After she was gone, Luke looked at Victor. "I know that look in her eye. She wants the whole fairytale."

"I know."

"She's going to get hurt again, and I'm not going to be happy with either of your sons."

"Believe me, Luke, I'm very unhappy with one, and not to thrilled with the other at the moment myself where she's concerned."

"Victor!" Lucy's voice called from the kitchen.

"Yes?"

"When did the pharmacy say my 'script would be ready?"

Victor headed for the kitchen. "In a few minutes. Are you sick again?"

Luke followed, and they found her leaning on the counter. "I'm going to be, and these crackers aren't helping."

Touching her head, Victor looked at Luke. "I'll run to the drugstore, if you can handle her here."

Nodding, he reached for Lucy. "In this condition, I think I can handle her. She can't bite." She smacked him. "Ow."

"Don't bet on it."

After Victor left, Luke took her arm. "Okay, now what?"

"The sofa." He started to help her, but she laughed. "Luke, I can walk. I just feel sick."

About half way through the kitchen, she ran to the bathroom.

He'd been waiting for her to come out for a couple minutes when someone knocked at the door.

Mary looked at him when he opened it. "Hello, Luke, I haven't seen you in ages. I think the last time was at the Recovery Room."

"Mary Sca- Collins. Sorry."

"Can't get used to that myself, sometimes. How is she? I didn't want to wait to see Victor to hear how her appointment went."

"At the moment..." Luke pointed to the bathroom door.

"She sick?"

Nodding, he followed Mary into the living room. "Victor went to pick up something the doctor gave her for it."

"Well, how long has she been in there?" Immediately, she began to question Luke.

"A few minutes. I'm not exactly timing her."

Mary went to the door and knocked softly. "Lucy? It's Mary. You okay, honey?"

"I can't stop throwing up." Lucy sounded like she was crying.

Glancing at Luke, she opened the door and went inside.

Luke was a split second from yelling his goodbye through the door when Mary reappeared, holding Lucy's arm to steady her. Lucy was white as a sheet, and soaked from sweat.

"You're not gonna pass out on us here, are ya, Luce?" His was teasing, but both women could tell he was worried.

Shaking her head, Lucy reached for his arm. "You don't look like you could handle it."

Slowly, they helped her to the sofa, where she laid back, but not down. "Dr. Newman promised this would stop soon. I can't do this for the next 5 months."

Mary disappeared for a minute, and returned with her arms full. "You can, and you will, if that's what you have to do for the baby. Now, relax. That's the most important thing." Wiping Lucy's face with a damp cloth, she handed her a glass of water and a couple crackers. "These should help until Victor gets back."

Lucy recognized the 'mothering' tone in Mary's voice, and the look on her face made Luke laugh. Leaning on the back of the sofa, his face near Lucy's, he looked at Mary. "You'll have to excuse her. She's better at taking care of the wounded than being the wounded."

"Shut up! If I ever get up off this sofa again, you'll be the wounded."

"I think I'm safe, babe." He looked at Mary. "Is she going to be okay?"

"Yes, she'll be fine." Mary smiled. "She needs to take her meds and get some food in her."

"And you'll make sure she does, right?" Luke was thoroughly enjoying this. He was about to make another smart remark when Lucy's hand came out of nowhere and almost collided with his nose. "Sorry! Just teasing." He kissed her hand. "It's about time someone takes care of you. I have to go. I've got nine million things to do and a few hours to do them in. I'll drop by the end of the week and see how you're doing."

Her voice stopped him as he reached for the door. When he turned back, she was staring at him. "Thank you. For coming, for offering,..." She was about to start crying again.

"It's okay. You need something, call. Now I'm going to leave before the waterworks start again." Smiling, he left.

"Victor tells me you have a very good friend in him."

"He's the best." Lucy sounded as tired as she looked.

Wiping her face again, Mary looked at her. "I came by to find out how your appointment went."

As tired as she was, Lucy grinned and told Mary, in great detail, about the appointment. As soon as she said the word 'twins', Mary stopped her. "Twins! Oh, I bet you're thrilled."

"Thrilled, scared, happy, paranoid, the list goes on."

"And the lucky father...."

"I'm going to talk to Kevin soon. I just hope he hasn't changed his mind."

"No. He was over a couple nights ago, asking Victor to talk to you about it." She handed Lucy the water. "You look like you could use some."

After drinking some of the water, she leaned back and closed her eyes. "I wish Victor would hurry up. I don't want to get sick again. My stomach hurts, my throat hurts, my back hurts... I'm getting whiny." She also broke out in another sweat.

"Well, we'll just have to send Victor back out to the store to pick up some cheese. You already have crackers for the whine." Mary smiled. "You need to lay back. Not down, but enough to put your feet up. You need to relax."

The cool cloth felt good on her face. She realized she was actually getting used to this 'mothering' thing. It definitely had it's nice points.

Serena knocked on Lucy's door and jumped through it when Lucy opened it.

Leaning over, Lucy held Serena and looked at Scott. "I've missed you so much, pumpkin."

"Daddy said I could spend the night with you if you said it was okay."

Tears came to Lucy's eyes and she held Serena tighter. "Of course it is. Come on, lets go see the rest of the house. Scott, do you want to come in?"

"Lucy, are you getting fat?" Serena put her hands on the babies and looked up at Lucy.

"No, guess what! I'm going to have a baby!"

Scott finally looked down at her, and decided to mess with her. "Damn, woman, you sure you're only having one?"

Laughing, Lucy shook her head. "Actually, I'm sure I'm not having one. Twins."

"Wow! You're going to have two babies? Will I get to play with them this time?"

It was an innocent question, and Serena had no way of understanding the effect it had on Lucy. But Scott did, and he pulled Serena inside. "Let's check out the rest of this place. I bet if you go ahead, you can guess which room is yours!"

After Serena ran up the stairs, Scott turned to Lucy, who'd turned white and was shaking. "Calm down. This isn't like last time."

"Or the time before that, or the time before that, right? You don't think that goes through my mind every single day?"

"What else did Dr. Newman say?"

"She said everything's fine right now. I'm seeing her every two weeks because of..." She couldn't finish.

"Stop. Look, if you're not up to Serena tonight, I'll-"

"Don't you even think of taking her home. I've been dying to see her. I miss her so much." She took his hand for a moment. "And I know this is hard for you." Not wanting to make it worse, she let go of him and went to the sofa. "I do find I'm more tired this time."

"Twins?"

"That, or my age. But Dr. Newman said it's normal."

Serena came back downstairs. "I know which room is mine! It doesn't have any furniture in it, yet. When can we go get some?"

Patting the sofa for her to sit, Lucy hugged her. "I don't know, honey. How about you just sleep with me tonight?"

"Okay! Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

Serena stared at her for a moment. "Daddy won't tell me. Why did you move out?"

Lucy's eyes met Scott's and she took a deep breath. "It's not easy to explain. I love you, and I love your daddy very much. But it's not.... it's not like... to get married, you know? It's more like.... well, your daddy is the best friend I've ever had."

"Grown up stuff, right?"

"Yes. You know, you're growing up more and more every day."

"Is Daddy going to be the babies daddy, too."

Neither adult could help it. They both laughed. "No, he's not." Lucy waited for the next question, wondering if she was ready to start living the lie.

"So who is?"

Lucy looked at Scott when she answered. "Kevin." The confusion on Scott's face made Lucy continue. "You know, Kevin had a twin brother, right?"

"Yes. But he died."

"Well, twins run in families. So, it makes sense that I would have twins with Kevin." Her eyes searched Scott's face for understanding. "Serena, would you go in the kitchen and get me a glass of water, please?"

As soon as Serena left the room, Scott sat next to her. "I take it he feels responsible."

"Yes. He also wants to protect them." She put her hands on the babies. "You know what would happen if.." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "Ryan ever found out."

"So you raise children of the brother you hate with the one you love while he lives with someone else? Good God, Lucy, how in the hell did you get yourself into this?"

Serena came back, and Lucy looked at Scott. "I didn't plan everything in advance, I'll tell you that."

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Serena opened the door the next morning, and smiled when she saw Kevin. "Hi!"

Picking her up, Kevin hugged her. "I haven't seen you in so long? How are you?"

"Fine. You're here to see Lucy, right?"

"Gee, you're smart."

Lucy came down the stairs and stopped when she saw Kevin. He saw the uncertainty cross her face. "I came to see what your package day before yesterday meant."

Visibly relaxing, she went to the sofa. Kevin couldn't believe how much she'd changed since he'd seen her last. She was showing twice as much as she had been.

Still carrying Serena, Kevin crossed the room.

"Lucy told me you and her are going to have two babies!"

Unable to answer, his eyes locked with Lucy's and he nodded.

"Serena spent the night with me last night. We stayed up and watched old comedies. Hey, Pumpkin, I'm really tired, do you think you can forge for yourself in the kitchen?"

Kevin realized she really did look exhausted. "I can help her, if it's okay with you."

"You mind?"

"No, I'm sure the two of us can find something for her to eat. How about you?"

Actually turning slightly green, Lucy shook her head. "No, I don't do food in the morning anymore. There is a 'script bottle in the top cabinet over the coffee maker. Would you?"

A few minutes later, Kevin appeared with a glass of water, and Lucy's prescription bottle. "I was hoping the report from Dr. Newman meant that you'd made up your mind."

"Kevin, who would believe I would have twins and they weren't yours? I don't call that a decision. It's more like backed into a corner." Immediately, she shook her head. "I didn't mean it that way. I'm tired, I'm queasy, and..." She shrugged. "I'm scared. So many things can go wrong, here. From Ryan right down to my medical history."

"Stop. Don't make things worse. Dr. Newman is very happy with your condition right now. She's going to see you every two weeks. And she knows your medical history. If she sees something she doesn't like, she'll see it early and deal with it. Unless you have a problem with it, I would like to go next time."

"Well, since you're taking the blame...." He shook his head and she smiled. "I'm kidding. You're going to be their father. I'm hoping you understand what that means. If you want to go, that's fine with me. I haven't said anything to Dr. Newman, but, considering the obvious," She put her hands on her stomach. "I don't think she'll be surprised."

Before Serena came back, Lucy had to ask him something. "How is Eve taking this?"

It was obviously a question Kevin didn't want to answer. "If I told you she was thrilled, would you believe me?"

"If you can't do this, I would understand." She wasn't about to let him see how much it would affect her.

"I'm going to do this. I made that clear to Eve. Those babies are all that matter right now. More than you, or me, or even Eve at this point. Making sure Ryan doesn't find out they're his. When he called you, what did you say to him?"

"I called him 'daddy'. What the hell do you think I said? Nothing. He thinks you came running to my rescue. He asked me if you wanted me now that he'd...." Shaking her head, she took few deep breaths and wiped her eyes. "I didn't tell him if you did or didn't. I think he assumed you did."

"Good. I hope we can-" He realized she wasn't listening to him. "Lucy, did you ever... talk to anyone about what happened?"

"You're still in the habit of deflecting the conversation. I asked you about Eve. What are you going to do?"

Before he could tell her she was the one deflecting the conversation, Serena reappeared. "I put my dish in the dishwasher, and put the milk away."

"Thank you, sweetie. Maybe next time, we can go shopping for the furniture for your room. That sound good?"

"Yes. But I liked sleeping in the big bed with you, too." She grinned. "Think you'll ever get all the crumbs out of the blanket?"

"Popcorn in bed is out next time, kiddo." But Lucy was smiling, and Serena knew she was kidding.

"Can you paint my nails?"

"Sure. Go pick a color."

Watching her run up the stairs, Kevin turned to Lucy. "How is she adjusting to the fact that you don't live with her and Scott anymore?"

"Actually, pretty well. I'm kind of surprised. She seems to accept it. Maybe. I guess time will tell."

"The important thing is that she knows how much you love her. I think she'll be fine."

"She doesn't understand why. And I can't explain it to her." She sighed.

"How is Scott?"

"How do you think? He's torn between wanting to never speak to me again and not wanting to lose his best friend. Which brings me back to the original question. How bad will this be on you and Eve?"

"It's not going to be easy. You're on Eve's list of favorite people right about the same place she is on yours. But she understands what it's about. I think once we make some decisions concerning the way we're going to handle this she'll be all right."

Any reply Lucy was going to make was interrupted by Serena running back down with a bottle of bright blue nail polish. Shaking the bottle, Lucy opened it. Before she could even start to paint the child's nails, the smell of the polish hit her. "Honey, this isn't going to work." Jumping up, she ran into the bathroom.

Serena looked at Kevin. "Is Lucy okay?"

"The smell of the polish made her sick. She'll be fine." Kevin hoped he was telling Serena the truth.

Closing the bottle, Serena stared at it. "It never made her sick before."

"It's only because she's pregnant. Come on, let's go get your stuff packed. When's you dad coming?" Kevin did not want to run into Scott.

"Not until later. Can you paint my nails?"

Kevin laughed. "I might paint your fingers more than you nails. I don't paint nails very often." The look on her face made him reconsider. "Let's go outside. So we don't make her sick again."

"Okay!"

Serena ran out the front door, Kevin knocked on the bathroom door. "Lucy? You okay?"

"Yes. I'll be out in a minute."

When she came out, she looked around for them. Through the window, she saw Kevin trying, and from the looks on their faces, not succeeding, to paint Serena's nails. Once again it hit her how good a father Kevin was going to be. How good a father he would have been if... The tears that always followed thoughts about their baby didn't fail her. Wiping her eyes, Lucy stood there, watching them. This would be the second time Kevin accepted her children by another man. Of course, this was different. He felt responsible this time. But it didn't mean he would love them any less.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Ryan couldn't figure out why he'd ended up back in Port Charles. Why he couldn't get Lucy out of his mind. Driving up the street to her house, he drove past it and stopped a few houses down. Getting out of the car, he walked back towards her house. The darkness would hide him from anyone who would be looking. The risk was stupid to take, and he knew he could be caught, but he couldn't resist. As he approached the back of her house, he saw her standing in the kitchen. When she turned around, his breath caught in his throat. She was pregnant. His first thought was that the baby was his.

Getting closer, he watched her fix herself something to eat. It was impossible, but Ryan could smell traces of her perfume as he watched her.

After almost an hour, Ryan decided he was pushing his luck too far. Going back to his car, he drove away from the house and decided he was going to stick around Port Charles for a while. The thought that Lucy might be pregnant with his child brought out feelings he never knew he was capable of having. A baby. It scared him at first, but the more he thought about it, the more the idea intrigued him. The fact that she was living alone told him a lot. Maybe Kevin hadn't come running to her rescue, after all. So, apparently she was planning on having the baby by herself. He had to know if her baby was his.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

For the next several days, Ryan followed Lucy from a discreet distance. Victor and Mary had been by to see her, but no one else. Ryan had begun to believe that she was on her own when Kevin came to see her. He couldn't tell what they were saying, but they stayed a distance apart. That told Ryan a lot. She got in his car and they left.

Taking the chance, he slipped into her house. The house was definitely her. He searched for some clue to her life. No trace of a man anywhere. Nothing in the bathroom, or the bedroom. She was alone. Why that made him happy, he had no idea. A few toys, but not baby toys, she must have the kid visiting her.

It surprised him there were very few baby things. He would have expected Lucy to start shopping for baby things the instant she found out she was pregnant.

When he got to the kitchen, he found numerous bottles of prenatal vitamins and prescriptions. Some were normal for pregnant women, but there were far too many prescriptions for a normal pregnancy. He wondered what was wrong, the concern he felt surprising him.

The front door opened, and he panicked. He hadn't heard the car pull into the driveway. As he stepped out the back door, Kevin and Lucy came through the front door. As they walked into the kitchen, Ryan couldn't help himself. He stayed right outside the door to hear what they were saying.

"Are you going to stop being so paranoid now? Dr. Newman is very happy with the way you're going." Kevin smiled at her.

"I can't help being paranoid. You should be able to understand that." Lucy opened the refrigerator and surveyed the contents.

Standing behind her, Kevin looked in the refrigerator. "Looks like you need to get to the store."

"I know. I haven't really felt up to it. Mary said she'd come by later today and maybe we'll go."

"Victor and Mary have taken this grandparent thing to the extreme. I'm supposed to call him and tell him everything when I get home."

"I know." Lucy laughed. "Mary has decided it's about time someone mothered me. It's almost a little too strange for me."

"I haven't had the pleasure, but it's okay. I'll take your word for it."

Shutting the refrigerator, she leaned back and put her hands on her back. "I need to sit down. My back is killing me."

Ryan watched Kevin put his hands on her lower back and massage her. He found himself losing his temper as she smiled and sighed.

"That feels great. I laid on my back too long for the exam." She winced slightly. "I don't think they liked it, either."

"Why?" Kevin's face showed concern.

"They're really moving."

"Really?" He put his arms around her.

Taking his hands, she laughed. "You can't feel them yet, it will probably be another month before you can."

"What does it feel like?"

Ryan held his breath. He was as intrigued as Kevin. It would have sent him into an uncontrollable rage if he'd known they had the same expression on their faces.

"Like.... little.... I don't know. Twitches, maybe? It's inside me, but it's not me." She shook her head. "I don't know how else to explain it."

"That's amazing." Kevin's voice was low.

"Definitely amazing. But wait until YOU feel them move." Facing him, she stared into his eyes. "I want these babies to have everything I didn't." She smiled. "That sounds like a line in a bad movie. But that's how I feel. I want them to know how loved they are. I don't want them to ever wonder about who they are. I want them to know their mother AND father wanted them."

"They will. I promise." Kevin touched her cheek briefly. "Come on. Mommy needs to lie down, and Daddy needs to get home."

As soon as they were out of the kitchen, Ryan ran to his car. He was almost screaming at himself in a rage. "Twins? She's going to have his twins? What is it with women? Why can't they care about a man that would stand by them and take care of them and their children? She's no better than Felicia. He came to her rescue, all right. Saves her from me, then leaves her with two babies and keeps his little Evie. Some knight in shining armor, Kevin." He didn't know what made him angrier. The fact that Kevin apparently suffered no consequences of his plan, or the fact that he'd stepped in, and 'helped' Lucy by getting her pregnant, and leaving her.

For the first time, Ryan considered the thought that he would be better for Lucy then Kevin.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

"Penny for your thoughts? You're a million miles away." Kevin smiled at Eve over the table.

"I'm actually thinking of your 'arrangement' with Lucy."

His smile faded. "We're not going to fight again, are we? We planned this night for two weeks, I really don't want to spend it fighting."

Now she smiled. "No. We're not. I'm actually surprised."

"At...?"

"I thought it would turn into Lucy calling you every minute of every day, 'can you?' 'would you?' 'I need you'. You haven't let her, and I appreciate that."

Kevin sighed. "I don't have a lot to do with this. Lucy's pretty intent on being on her own right now. I'm not saying I would let her, if she tried. But she hasn't. Contrary to everyone's belief, even hers, I think she's actually enjoying being on her own. Besides, she has Victor and Mary doing the grandparent thing. They can't wait until they get to babysit."

"I didn't realize how close Victor and Lucy were until this started."

"Victor cares about you, too."

Shaking her head, Eve tried to explain. "I know. I just never thought about how you're breaking up with Lucy affected Victor. He really loves her."

"To be honest, she's the reason he's here. He knows that. I told you all about it. I believe I also told you that they could get into trouble when they were left to amuse themselves." He laughed. "But I have to admit, they're crazy about each other."

"And I'm crazy about you, you know that?" Holding his hand, she kissed him.

"Are you sure you want to stay here and eat?"

"Can we take it home?" She stood.

"If we can't, we can get take out somewhere else." Kevin signaled the waiter.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

"Hey, babe. Whoa, big babe!" Luke kissed Lucy and put his hand on the babies. "Giving Mommy hell, I hope!"

"You don't know the half of it."

"No, YOU don't know the half of it. Wait until they're teenagers."

"Gee, Luke, I hadn't thought of that. Thank you for pointing it out."

Leaning down a bit, Luke spoke to them. "Just make sure you take after your mommy and Uncle Luke."

"Actually, saying that and teenagers in the same sentence made me remember something. I need to call my Aunt Charlene and apologize."

Putting his arm around her, he whispered in her ear. "I wish I'd known you when you were a teenager."

"I bet you do." She licked her lips and they both laughed.

"Let me guess. You need food."

"When don't I?" They sat at a table and Luke yelled at Clyde to get Lucy a salad.

Before it arrived, Lucy excused herself and stood. Before she got to her feet, a strange look crossed her face and she sat back down.

"What's wrong?" Walking around the table, Luke kneeled beside her.

A look of total panic crossed her face. "I don't know. But I don't think it's good."

Trying not to panic himself, Luke took her hand. "Are you in pain?"

"Not really. A little. I just don't feel right. I'm dizzy." She started to cry. "This isn't happening. Luke, please tell me this isn't happening."

"Calm down. That's the first thing I'm going to tell you." Pulling a chair next to her, he put his hand on the back of her head gently. "Listen to me, babe. You got to not panic, here. I'm going to get you up, and take you to GH, okay?"

She nodded and let him lead her out the door. The fact that she said nothing told Luke how terrified she was.