It wasn't a call he was expecting to get at three o'clock in the morning. TK was doing better after getting out of rehab but he still had his moments. When he realized that it was Matt calling him he figured that's what it was about. Matt sounded upset, and he was beating around the bush and not just coming right out with why he'd called. When he realized Matt was calling from a hospital dread worked its way into his veins. He couldn't deal with another shooting, not right now.

"Matt, just tell me what's wrong alright, it's three in the morning I don't have time for your games," Matt cut him off.

"Nico its Dani, she was in a car accident."

He suddenly felt as if he was under water, things started moving in slow motion, he could barely think straight.

"Where is she?"
"Look I am sending you the address of the hospital, just get here as soon as you can okay?" He had so many more questions to ask but Matt hung up on him. He was up in an instant, threw on a pair of jeans and a sweater, grabbed his jacket and car keys and was en route to the city in a matter of seconds.

The waiting room was surprisingly empty for three thirty on a Saturday; He saw Matt and TK and walked over to them quickly.

"Is she alright?" TK glanced up at him then turned his attention elsewhere. Matt nodded and Nico was finally able to relax.

"The doctor came out a few minutes ago, she's in surgery now, apparently her appendix burst during the accident, they don't foresee any problems, we just have to wait." Matt told him.

"What exactly happened?" Nico asked, he really wanted to know why she was driving around the city so early in the morning. Matt sighed,

"She had an appointment with TK at his place, it lasted longer than planned, when she was on the way home her car was t-boned by a drunk driver." He explained.

"And what about the other guy?"

"It's being taken care of, don't worry about it right now." Nico sighed, If the man had survived Nico decided he would find out who he was, if anything he'd make him pay for damages and medical bills.

They sat in silence for a while before a nurse came into the waiting room.

"Are you all for Dani Santino?" She asked, the three of them stood up and nodded.

"She's out of surgery now; everything went well, no complications. She should be waking up soon if you'd like to go see her." She turned around and led them down a hallway; she opened the door to her room for them and then went back to work. Matt stepped in first with Nico and TK behind him. Nico stood still as he looked at her, she seemed so small and fragile lying in the hospital bed. Her eyes were closed and machines were beeping around her, tracking her progress. TK slumped in a chair by her bedside and Nico joined him.
"I am gonna go get some coffee, anyone else want some?" The other two didn't answer.

"Look I know this is my fault." TK said as soon as Matt left.

"What do you mean?" Nico asked, turning his attention away from Dani.

"The session was supposed to be at her place but I insisted she come to my place instead, I was the one that kept talking after our time was over, if it wasn't for me she never would have even been in the city today." TK explained quietly.

"Terrence, you didn't do this, it was in no way your fault and I don't want you to blame yourself alright?" Nico told him. TK nodded and smiled.

"Doc's been rubbin off on you, your startin to sound like a therapist." Nico shook his head and looked back at Dani. He took her hand in his gently and closed his eyes. He thought back to a moment a few weeks ago, the night he'd found out Marshall had died. He thought about what he'd said to her that night. That she was the only one who knew him, and she was. He was a secretive person but with Dani he felt like he could let his walls down, she knew things about him no one else did. He sighed and gave her hand a light squeeze. He couldn't lose her, not now. She would wake up and everything would be okay, she'd make some rude comment about the drunk driver, they'd laugh and everything would go back to normal, it had to.

Matt was just stepping back in the room when she started to stir. She gave a groggy moan and squinted her eyes against the light as she woke up; she blinked a few times and looked around.

"Where am I?" She asked quietly.
"You're in the hospital Dani, your okay." Nico said, placing a hand on her shoulder. Dani's eyes widened as she took in her surroundings and the people in her room. Nico could tell instantly that something was wrong. Dani shook her head a few times and then panic crossed her face.

"Who are you?" She asked quietly.

Matt was already in the hallway calling for a doctor.

If Nico had had a heart it would have shattered into a million pieces, as it was he'd given his to Dani, and now it seemed she'd lost track of it.

"Dr. D are you okay?" TK said, stepping up to her bed.

"No, who are you two, where are my kids?" Her voice rose and Nico could tell she was getting agitated and confused.

"Go into the hall Terrence." He told him.

"Tell me where my kids are now!" She shouted as TK left.

"Mrs. Santino, your kids are fine, there on their way here." The doctor said as he stepped into the room.

"It's Miss. Santino now, for your information, my husband and I are getting a divorce." She snapped at the doctor.

"Of course my apologies."
Nico watched her carefully. She'd told the doctor she was getting a divorce, not that she'd already gotten one. How much time had she lost?"

"Sir I am going to have to ask you to take a seat in the waiting room please." A nurse said as she stepped up behind him.

"I am not leaving her." Nico insisted.

"She'll be fine; the doctor will be out in a few minutes." She insisted. Nico sighed and nodded, he took one last glance at Dani before he left but she didn't even look back.

"What's wrong with her?" TK asked as he paced the waiting room.

"She has amnesia." Nico said.

"How bad?" Matt questioned. Nico shrugged,

"The doctor will know soon enough." He said quietly.

Seconds later the doors flew open and Lindsey and Ray Jay rushed in. Ray Jay stood silently at the door but Lindsey rushed over to Nico and sat down next to him.

"She's okay right?" She asked, tears filling her eyes.

"She's fine Lindsey, a few cuts and bruises but she's alright." Nico told her.

"She's not okay; she doesn't even know who we are!" TK shouted. Nico shot him a look and he shut up.

"What does he mean?" Ray Jay asked.

"Are you all for Dr. Santino?" A doctor asked as he stepped out of a set of double doors.

"Yes, is my mom okay?" Lindsey asked.

"Physically your mom is fine, she had a minor surgery to remove her appendix that burst during the crash but other than that she was very lucky. Mentally however." He stopped and cleared his throat.

"She seems to be suffering from a case of amnesia."
"How bad?" Ray Jay interrupted.

"The last thing she told me she could remember was finding out that her husband was cheating on her and kicking him out of the house." Lindsey instantly started crying.

"She's lost a whole year?" Matt asked.

"It would seem that way."
"So what do we do?"

"Unfortunately there's no cure for amnesia, we just have to do our best to try and introduce things that will cause her to remember little bits at a time. Another option I can give you is to try a hypnotherapist, sometimes there able to pull memories out. If you know of anyone I can make a referral."

"Yeah, we know someone." The doctor was clueless and pulled out a pen to take note.

"Her name's Doctor Danielle Santino." Nico told him. The doctor sighed,

"Look, we'll do the best we can for her but unfortunately there's not much we can do about fixing her memory." He told them. "She's calmed down now, she wants to see her kids."
"Alright." Ray Jay nodded and moved to stand next to the doctor.

"You'll come with us?" Lindsey asked, turning to Nico, he nodded.

"Yeah, come on." Lindsey held onto his hand tightly as the doctor led them down the hallway.

"Dani, your kids are here to see you." He said as he stepped into the room.

Dani smiled and held out her arms, Ray Jay and Lindsey both wrapped her in a hug.

"You okay mom?" Ray Jay asked.

"I am fine baby, don't you worry. Is your aunt Janette here, how did you get here?" She asked. Lindsey and Ray Jay looked at each other quickly. How were they going to explain that Jeanette was pregnant in Barcelona?

"Um, we took a cab mom." Ray Jay said instead. Dani smiled and nodded.

"You were in here before right?" She said, suddenly turning in Nico's direction. He nodded.

"Who are you?" She asked again. Lindsey and Ray Jay turned to watch him answer.

"Nico." He said.

"Oh, and what do you do Nico?" He smiled to himself, this exchange seemed awfully familiar.

"Whatever needs doing." He answered.

"So you're like security for the hospital or something?" She guessed. He smiled and nodded.

"Something like that."

A knock on the door broke her train of thought.

"I am afraid it's time to let Dr. Santino here get some rest." One of the nurses said as she stepped into the room.

"You're more than welcome to come back tomorrow, visiting hours start at 10." She said.

Ray Jay and Lindsey gave their mom one last hug.

"Get a good sleep okay you guys." They nodded quietly and moved to the door.

"Nico." She said, getting his attention. "You'll make sure they get home okay?" He smiled.

"Of course." She nodded then turned her gaze elsewhere.

Nico closed the door behind them and gave the kids the best smile he could.

"She'll be okay." He said. "Come on, I'll give you a ride home."

The drive was silent, every now and then Lindsey would start to cry, Ray Jay would give her a hug and try his best to calm her down. By the time Nico pulled into their driveway both kids were emotionally numb.

"You're gonna make sure she's okay right?" Lindsey asked.

"I am going to do everything I can to make sure your mom is alright." Nico told her. She nodded.

"Give me your phone." He told her. She pulled it out of her pocket without question and handed it to him.

"If you ever need anything, any time day or night you call me okay?" He handed it back to her after programming his number in. She nodded,

"Thank you."

"Go get some rest; I'll be back tomorrow around nine to take you back to the hospital alright."
They both nodded then slid out of the car. Nico watched them walk up the drive and into the house. He knew this was going to be hardest on them, how were they going to deal with the fact that their mom had lost a year of their life, not to mention that all of her own memories were gone. He sighed to himself as he pulled back out on the highway. He'd help her find her memories again, he owed her that much.

Dani was restless that night. The hospital bed was uncomfortable, and it was difficult to find a good position to lay in when you have IV needles hooked to your arms. Eventually she gave up trying to sleep and grabbed the TV remote and turned it on. She flipped around the limited amount of channels until she ended up at the news. She was instantly assaulted with images of a car accident; a drunk driver had run a red light and t-boned a car. Her head suddenly started to hurt and as she closed her eyes she started to see flashes, she saw shattered glass, heard car horns going off and people shouting. She quickly turned the TV back off. Something was wrong; those weren't her memories, were they? Her right hand reached out to grab at her cell phone but was met with air; she forgot she wasn't at home. She needed to call someone though, she couldn't remember who. She knew it was someone important, and that if she called him she'd be alright. She just couldn't think of his name, couldn't even remember his face. Suddenly she realized she was crying, why couldn't she remember? She sank down in the bed and let exhaustion pull her under.

Alright so, love it, hate it, let me know. I know Nico was a bit out of character but let's think about this, he really loves Dani and now he's kind of lost her so I think he has a right to be slightly OOC. updates will come as frequently as they can. Work will delay me alot but I promise that when I put out a new chapter it will be as good as it can be! :D please forgive any grammer or spelling errors, I am going un beta on this, either way let me know what you think! thanks!