A/N: Hi everyone! Sorry for the little cliffhanger I left you all on. Here is our next chapter!


April 22, 2005

Angel Grove, CA

"Hush, little baby. Don't say a word. Daddy's gonna buy you a mockingbird." A voice sang softly. It sounded far away and I couldn't quite grasp where it was coming from as the darkness I was swimming through began to thin. I felt my eyes flutter open and I saw a dim light was lit over my head. Squinting, I tried to focus on it and slowly, the image cleared. It was the hospital light over me, a TV to the left. Lowering my head, I felt foggy almost as if I had slept for days on end. I turned my head towards the source of the voice and saw that a figure was standing by the window. Their back was to me but I could see the long hair of Tommy's pulled back into a ponytail. He wore a white t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants as he rocked back and forth, his hips swaying. His attention was on something in his arms and as he turned, I saw it was a bundle of blankets. And in them, I could see a small hand poking out and it tried to grab at his shirt.

The baby.

My baby.

Our baby.

I could slightly remember pushing and hearing people yelling. I had been trying to push her out. Why couldn't I remember anything after that? Everything was fuzzy and I could feel a dull achy pain throughout my body. As I shifted, I felt a sharp pain in my torso. I put my hand over the source of the pain and felt thick bandages under the gown. Had I been cut open? Did they do surgery on me to remove the baby? Panic began to set in. Has something gone wrong? Was there something wrong with her? I don't even know what I would do if something had happened to cause her harm.

"Hey." Tommy whispered when he saw that I was looking at him. "How are you feeling?"

"Is the baby okay?" I asked, my voice sounding hoarse. Tommy smiled, nodding as he sat on the edge of the bed.

"She's perfectly healthy, Kim." He said. A wave of relief washed over me as I tilted my head back into the pillow. She was okay.

"What happened?" I asked, a tired feeling replacing that of relief. I felt like I had run a mile backwards while wearing heels and being turned inside out, belly button first.

"You passed out and they had to rush you into surgery. It got a little dicey there but the both of you came out just fine. Doctor said you might be here for a couple days but you'll both make full recoveries." He said in a hushed tone. Shifting, he held out the baby to me. "But she does want to meet her Mommy." Sitting forward, I took her in my arms as he gently set her there. She was sleeping and stirred a bit as I leaned back into the bed. Tommy put another pillow behind me to help me sit up straighter before settling back into his spot on the edge of the bed.

As I settled back, I looked down at her. She was wrapped in a white blanket with little pink and blue rabbits printed on it. On her head, there was a knitted pink hat that covered her scalp with a pink bow sewn into the front of it. The moment my eyes saw her face, tears started to stream down my own. I could see my mother's nose in her, the pink and warm nostrils looking tiny on her face. Chubby cheeks rested against my chest as I held her, her tiny hand grabbing into my finger in her slumber. They reminded me of my father, especially when he would get excited or would be sunkissed from working outside all day. Under the hat, I could see dark brown hair, almost black but thick locks of it. I could see all the features of myself in her face, the miniature version of myself in my arms. I sniffled, causing her eyes to open. When she did, I saw deep brown orbs look up at me. They were the same exact shade as Tommy's. She had his eyes. His deep brown and perfect eyes. There were flecks of amber gold in them, making them shimmer like the surface of the pond in Angel Grove park on a warm sunny day. She was perfect in every sense of the word. I had been so scared about what her arrival would mean and what would happen. None of that matters though. She was here. The missing piece of my heart was right here in my arms and everything else seemed so small in comparison. Granted, how she came to be wasn't the best circumstance but there was nothing in the world I would do to change the outcome of that.

"She's beautiful." I whispered, wiping a tear away with the back of my hand. Looking up, I saw that Tommy nodded.

"She looks just like you." He said, putting his hand on my knee. "I couldn't believe it when I first looked at her but she's your carbon copy."

"Well, hopefully she doesn't resent me for that." I replied. "I can't believe she's here."

"She is. All 8 pounds and 8 ounces of her. She was about 20 inches when they measured her too. I took a bunch of video on your camcorder during everything since they had you under. I didn't want you to miss a thing. She still needs a name though."

"Thank you. Right. I suppose she does." I looked back down at her. "I don't even know where to start though. I've been thinking about it but I'm not sure what sounds right for her."

"The nurse said that it doesn't need to be right now. There's still time." He said, reassuring me.

"Where's my mom? I figured she'd be glued to this one for at least the first few hours or so."

"She went to get some fresh air and something to eat. You were knocked out for a few hours. She said she would be back though. I sent Marci home with Trini and Jason after you came out of surgery. She's a bit bummed cause she couldn't see the baby yet but Trini said she'd bring her in the morning."

"What time is it?" I asked. He glanced at his watch.

"A little after 3 am." He replied. I groaned, the pain from my torso was causing some cramping in my back. I leaned back more, taking the weight from it.

"You have to be tired too, Tommy. Why don't you try to get some sleep?" I offered. He laughed, shaking his head.

"I tried while she was sleeping but I can't stop looking at her. I didn't think I could be so attached to someone I just met. I know it's silly but…" He trailed off and I could hear the heavy emotion in his voice. Tears shined in his eyes and he sniffled, doing his best to blink them away. "Sorry." He said, clearing his throat.

"You have no reason to be sorry, Tommy. I'm so glad that you have a connection with her already." Reaching over, I grabbed his hand in mine. I had to tell him. It was only right and he needed to know the truth. He couldn't get upset with someone holding his adorable newborn baby girl, right? "Tommy, I want you to have the best relationship with her as possible. There's something I need to tell you that I should have told you a long time ago. And I'm so sorry it's taken me this long to do it. I didn't know how you would react when I did so I kept it from you."

"You're scaring me." He said, leaning in. "What's going on?"

"Tommy, I-" I started but was cut off by the door of the room opening. My mother entered, carrying a cardboard cup carrier in hand. Her eyes widened when she saw I was awake.

"Oh, I am so glad to see you with your eyes open!" She said, setting the drinks down. Tommy stood up, taking a few steps from the bed to allow Mom to take his place. "How are you feeling? Are you in any pain?" She put her hand on my forehead but I pulled my head out of her reach.

"Mom, stop it. I was in the middle of talking to Tommy about something. Do you mind giving us a minute?" I asked. She clasped her hands together.

"Did you tell you the good news then?" She asked. I looked at her, confused.

"What good news?" I asked.

"When the doctor was getting you stitched up, he said that he could see no issue as to why you couldn't get pregnant before. It seems as if this little precious baby was your miracle cure. He said that you can probably have as many children as you want now with no issue!" She said, smiling widely. "Isn't that fantastic?"

"Sure." I replied. I had just given her a grandchild and she was asking for the next one already. My mother was something else alright. "Maybe we can let this one get rid of that new baby smell before you start harping about another one, shall we?"

"Visiting hours are going to start in a few hours and Trini said the whole gang would be popping in. You should get some more rest, honey." She turned towards Tommy who was standing off to the side of the room. "Tommy, why don't you take some time to squeeze in a nap? There's a little room down and around the corner that has a couch and some blankets in it. The nurses were telling me about it. I can take over watch here for now."

"Mom, I just told you we were talking." I said, injecting.

"It's alright, Kim." Tommy said, smiling. "We can talk after we both get some sleep. I'll be up the hall if you need anything, okay?" He walked over and kissed the top of my head. I nodded.

"Okay."

"I'll see you in a little bit." He gently kissed the top of the baby's head before walking out of the room. Once the door was shut, I glared over at my mother. Was she really that tired that she couldn't see that I was trying to get a private moment with Tommy?

"That was a bit rude, don't you think?" I asked. Mom scoffed, taking the baby from my arms and setting her in the bassinet. She was still sleeping, her eyes shut as she snoozed. Mom smiled down at her, tucking her blanket around her. She kept the bassinet within arms reach before sitting in the chair next to the bed. She grabbed one of the cups from the carrier and opened the lid. The smell of coffee filled the room and I could see it was hot, steaming rising up from the liquid.

"Pardon me from stopping you from breaking that poor boy's heart again." She said, sipping her coffee.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, eyeing her. What did she mean by that? More importantly, what did she know?

"You were about to tell him he was the father, right?" She questioned. I shook my head.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I responded. Disbelief was coursing through me. Had Marci told her since she had come back to town? Did something slip that I was unaware of?

"Kimberly, I am your mother. I know how you are and I know how to tell when you're lying. Tommy's the father of that baby and we both know it."

"How did you know?" I asked quietly.

"Well, I had my suspicions when I was here last. I could tell that Marci knew something about the baby that you didn't want other people to know about. And after I saw you and Tommy on the couch that night, I started thinking. I honestly didn't know until you and Marci about demanded that he be in the room for the delivery. That's when I put it all together. I commend you for not wanting him to miss the birth of his child."

"Mom, I didn't mean for this to happen." I whispered, feeling tears in my eyes. "Tommy is so sweet and he's been there for me. He was there for me when Nick was beating me. One thing led to another and we ended up sleeping together. He wanted to get back together but I just couldn't bring myself to leave Nick. I was terrified he'd hurt Tommy. And then when I found out I was pregnant, I knew it was Tommy's. I kept telling myself that I should tell him but I kept coming up with reasons why I couldn't. Then Marci found out and I didn't know what to do. I promised to tell him after Nick's trial but then I got scared again. I literally just gave birth to his child and he has no idea that she's even his. I have to tell him now. Like right this very moment. He can't go any longer without knowing." I shifted to climb out of bed but she put a hand on my shoulder and pushed me down.

"Kim, I know you think you're doing the right thing by telling him but I don't think you are. Think about it. If you tell him, all you're going to do is break his heart. After everything the two of you have been through together, do you want to see him go through something like that again?"

"I can't just keep lying to him, Mom!" I exclaimed, trying to keep my voice down.

"I'm not telling you to." She grabbed my hands. "Listen to me. You didn't see Tommy when you were under. At one point, they told us that there was a chance you weren't going to make it. If you could have seen the look on his face, you'll realize just how much you mean to that boy. He would go to the ends of the earth for you and back again. If you tell him the truth, all it's going to do is break his heart and tear the two of you apart. There's no reason why you can't just keep moving forward. Get back together with him and let him think he's her stepfather. His name will be on the birth certificate already. Him not knowing won't stop him from being the best Daddy in the world to her. He's always going to consider her his daughter and she never needs to know any different. Sometimes, ignorance is the best thing for everyone involved."

"Mom-." I started but she shook her head, cutting me off.

"If you tell Tommy the truth, he's going to take her away from you and all the hope of you two getting back together will be gone. This is the only way that both of you will get what you want in the end. Do you remember what it was like when your father and I first split up? I don't want to see you two go through that sort of thing. And I definitely don't want to see Tommy take her away from you because of this. Marci and I are the only ones who know. There's no reason why it can't stay that way."

"I don't think I can keep doing this." I whispered. "What if he finds out later on? He will never look at me the same way again."

"Take it to the grave then." She said. "Tommy is going to be a great father to this baby. You're going to be a great mother. Once the two of you are ready, you'll get back together and raise her in one happy home. Him knowing that he shares blood with her won't make much difference except for the fact it would put a wall between the two of you. Nick has done so much to you and Tommy too. Don't let him be the reason that your true love slips away again." I looked over at the baby sleeping in the bassinet, her chest rising and falling with each breath. Was she right? Was it too late to tell Tommy the truth? Would letting him just believe he was her stepfather be the best way to resolve all of this? I didn't want to lose Tommy and I didn't want to risk destroying our future especially now that I was close to having him back and our family whole.

"Mom…" I whispered, trailing off. She stood up, putting her coffee down on the table.

"Get some sleep. You've been through a lot and you need the rest. We can talk about it more when you wake up, okay?" She helped me lay back in the bed and ran a hand over my hair. "I just want what's best for you and what's best for the baby, Kim. I've been in the situation where I had to raise my daughter by myself. I don't want to see you in that same spot. Sometimes the right thing to do is doing nothing at all. Think about it, won't you?"

"Yeah. I'll think about it." I said, nodding. She smiled, kissing my forehead before turning the light above my head off. She walked over and sat in the chair next to the bassinet. I could see my daughter's little face sticking out of the blanket, her eyes closed and her breathing deep.

Whatever I decided, it was going to have to be for her.