Prologue

She opens her eyes to be met with the walls of a sterile white room. Her mind is foggy and she can't make the annoying beeping noise stop. As things start to become clear she realizes the beeping noise is coming from a heart monitor, she's in a hospital. Why is she in a hospital; why can't she remember anything? Just as she is about to push the call button on the side of the bed the door opens and a woman walks into the room.

"I see you are finally awake" the woman says.

"I am, but where am I? Who are you and why am I here?" She says starting to interrogate the woman but is cut off by the woman's raised hand.

"I am Dr. Hastings. You are here because you've been injured. 'Here' is a hospital in West Virginia. You were found outside of a burning building along with five others but you are the only one who survived. What is the last thing you remember?" Dr. Hastings asked.

"I don't know. I honestly can't remember anything." She says.

"Can you tell me what year it is?"

"I think it is 2001."

"Ms. it is 2015 you've been in a coma for seven months. I think you are suffering from temporary amnesia caused by the traumatic events you've endured."

No it can't be 2015, that's not right. She tries to sit up but then she realizes that it is extremely hard. When she looks down she doesn't see a flat abdomen like she would have expected instead she sees a rather large, round, pregnant looking belly.

"What is that?"

"Like I said you've been in a coma and when you were brought in we discovered you were pregnant. Everything has been fine though, the pregnancy has progressed normally and the babies are fine."

Pregnant she just said I was pregnant. How can I be pregnant when I don't even know who I am? What... wait did she say babies!

"Babies, as in plural, more than one?" She exclaims.

"Yes, two to be exact. You are carrying fraternal twins, one baby girl and one baby boy." Dr. Hastings informs her with a sweet smile. She reaches into the nightstand beside her bed and pulls out a small bag. "This was around your neck when you were found, I'm guessing that whoever gave it to you is still looking for you."

She takes the bag from the doctor and turns it upside down to have a beautiful ring fall out and into the palm of her hand. As she examines the ring closer she sees an inscription inside -Rick & Kate Always-. When she reads the word 'Always' she hears the sweet sound of a man's voice in the back of her mind that calms her instantly. She knows that voice, she just can't put a face and name with it. She slides the ring onto her left ring finger and the weight is a familiar and welcomed feeling. The hand then drifts to her stomach were her unborn children reside.

"When are they suppose to be born?" She.. (no it's Kate now), Kate asks.

"A c-section was scheduled for today actually because it is time for them to meet the world and you weren't waking up so we had to make a decision." The doctor replies.

"If I hadn't have woken up what would have happened to them?"

"They would have stayed in the hospital for as long as needed and then sent into foster care." At the doctors words Kate's grip tightened around her swollen belly.

"Well it's a good thing I woke up then." Kate says with a fake smile.

"Yea it is but we still need to deliver the babies today because..." Dr. Hastings paused mid sentence because of the look that has taken over Kate's face. "Kate what's wrong?"

Kate is staring at her belly with a look that can only be described as awe. Her hands are pressed firmly against the sides of her stomach. "I think I just felt them kick." Once she finished speaking she feels it again on the opposite side. "They aren't even born yet and they are already fighting!" She says with a huge smile plastered to her face.

"As I was saying Kate the babies need to be born today." Kate looks at the doctor with a mix of worry and anxiousness clear on her face.

"Ok what do I have to do?"

"We will induce the labor and give you some drugs to speed the process along and once you are dilated the rest is up to you."

"Alright then let's get this going." Kate replies as the doctor leaves the room to ready the others. She looks down at her stomach and whispers quietly "I hope I can be a good mommy to you and that I can remember soon who your daddy is. I can't wait to meet you." She feels her babies kick in reply and the worry that had been slowly overtaking her begins to fade at the feeling of them moving inside of her. Then she feels a sharp pain in her abdomen and then a rushed feeling of release. She quickly pushes the nurses button as she begins to feel the bed and her legs get wet.

A nurse comes rushing into the room "What is it ma'am?"

"I... um I think my water just broke."

The nurse walks over to her bed and pulls the blankets back. "You definitely have. Let me page Dr. Hastings so that we can deliver your babies."

"Okaayyyy... OH. HOLLY SHHH" the rest of her sentence gets cut off by the forceful contraction that takes over. A minute later it subsides and Kate looks at the nurse and asks "Is it going to feel like that the whole time?"

"Oh no darling," the nurse pauses and Kate lets out a breath "It's going to feel much worse when they start getting closer together!"

"Oh okay Great." Kate replies sarcastically.

The moment Dr. Hastings walks into the room another contraction hits Kate like a wall of bricks.

"GOOD LORD!" Kate yells as the contraction ends. "That hurts!" She lets out on a huffed breath.

"Okay Kate I'm going to be back to check on you to see how dilated you are and since your contractions are so close together this birth might be shorter than expected." Dr. Hastings tells her as she sets up the stirrups at the end of the bed so that she can examine Kate. "Put your feet in these." Kate does as she is told. "Now lean back and just rela..." Her words get drowned out by the groan that Kate releases as yet another much more painful contraction comes. Kate pushes her self up from the bed as it gets stronger and an undeniable pressure sets itself low in her belly. "KATE! Kate listen to me don't push, don't push!"

"I... I can't, I need to push!" Kate says her words coming out between her ragged breaths. "It HURTS!"

"I know it hurts just wait." Dr. Hastings then turns to the nurse "Go get everything we will need it's time to deliver these babies! Now, hurry they are coming fast."

A few minutes later everything is ready and Kate is writhing in the hospital bed trying not to push.

"Ok Kate next contraction you feel push as hard as you can, we need to do this as quickly as possible." Dr. Hasting says from her seat at the bottom of the bed.

As the next contractions hit Kate bares down pushing against the pain. Her teeth grind together and her hands grip the nurses hands that stand on either side of her.

She continues to push with each contraction and after what feels like hours a shrill cry pierces through the air.

Kate falls back into the bed trying her best to get her breathing back under control; her strength drained.

"Kate its a boy!" Dr. Hastings tells her.

A nurse walks over with the crying baby and as soon as Kate sees her baby boy something in her subconscious clicks and she knows her baby's name.

"Alexander James." She whispers under her breath in awe.

Her thoughts were interrupted by another searing pain in her abdomen.

"Ok Kate we got one more to go are you ready?" Dr. Hastings asks.

"Yea.. um I think so." Kate replies breathlessly.

"Ok then push."

Kate begins to push and push but nothing is happening and her energy is just about gone.

"I... I can't, it's too much. I need him here with me. Why isn't he here?" Kate cries out with tears pouring down her face. "Who is he?"

"Kate the head is right here you can do it." Dr. Hastings yells over her cries.

When the pain comes Kate pushes once more with everything she has and the cries of her child are once again heard.

"It's a girl!" One of the nurses says happily.

Kate sees her baby girl and just like with Alexander the name clicks."Nichole Johanna." The last thing she sees is her baby's face before she slips into darkness once again.