Ned: �Hello?... Monica... what happened... Oh God... we�ll be right there...� he hangs up and nudges Alexis awake. �Alexis, wake up... It�s Kimberly... Alexis...�
Alexis: (opening her eyes) �Ned, what happened?�
Ned: �That was Monica. Kim was brought into the hospital tonight, bleeding profusely. She had a hemorrhage and she lost the baby.�
Alexis: �NO! She couldn�t have!�
Ned: �Come on, we need to get over there now. Scott needs us, and so does Kim.�
Alexis: (crying) �I�ll go get Hannah and Avery up.�
Ned: �I�ll call Mackenzie to come get them and Serena at the hospital.�
They race to get dressed, and get the girls up.
Once they reach General Hospital, they race to the elevators, Ned carrying Avery, and Alexis holding Hannah in her car seat.
Scott: (seeing them when the doors open) �Thank God you�re here.� He has tearstains on his cheeks. �There was so much blood.�
Alexis: (putting her arms around him) �Scott, I�m so sorry.�
Just then, Julia and Jax come out of the elevator, their clothes thrown hastily on.
Julia: �Mackenzie called. She has a flat tire, and asked us to come get the girls.� Turning to Scott. �Scott, I am so sorry about Kimberly.�
Scott: �How could this have happened?�
Julia: �We�ll take Serena, Avery and Hannah back to your house, okay?�
Alexis: �Thanks you guys.� She hands Hannah�s carseat to Jax. �She�s going to need to be fed in an hour. You can reach us on my cell phone.� Julia takes Avery�s hand, and then reaches for Serena�s.
Serena: �Is my Mommy going to be okay?�
Scott: �Serena, Mommy is going to be just fine. Now can you be a good girl and go with Julia and Jax? They�re going to stay with you so I can be with Mommy.�
Serena: �Okay.� She takes Julia�s hand and they leave.
Monica comes walking out just then, wearing surgical scrubs.
Scott: �Monica, how is she?�
Monica: �Well, we managed to stabilize Kimberly, but her blood pressure is way too high. She�s sedated, and quite groggy. You can see her now. But Scott,� he face falls. �Kim had to have a hysterectomy. She isn�t ever going to be able to have children.�
Scott: �No. You�re lying.� He gets up and goes down the hall.
Kimberly is lying in the bed, her face deathly pale, an IV hooked up to her arm.
Scott: �Kimberly, how are you?�
Kimberly; �What happened to the baby?�
Scott: �Angelface, you lost the baby. I�m so sorry.�
Kimberly: (beginning to cry) �Scott, no. How could I have done this to our baby? To you? I�m so sorry!�
Scott: (putting his arms around her) �Kimberly, you didn�t do anything wrong. Women have miscarriages everyday. This isn�t your fault.�
Kimberly: �Scott, when I first found out I was pregnant, I didn�t know what to think, but the more I thought about it, the more I wanted this baby. Seeing Alexis with Hannah made me realize what I�ve been missing out on.� She takes a deep breath. �Scott, I want to have another baby after a while.�
Scott: (not sure how to tell her) �Kimberly, I�m sorry, and I know that you shouldn�t have to hear this, but, well, Monica said they had to perform a hysterectomy on you.�
Kimberly: (borderline hysterical) �You mean I can�t ever have a baby? I can�t have kids?�
Scott: �I�m sorry.�
Kimberly: �They have to be wrong! This can�t be happening to me! This is all my fault! If we hadn�t made love tonight...� her voice breaks as she begins to sob.
Scott: (holding her tightly) �Kim, this isn�t your fault. Don�t you dare blame yourself.� He tries to smile. �Besides, you know that pregnant women can have sex. Look at Alexis. You know what was happening during Christmas dinner.�
Kimberly: �But, this was going to be my first child. Hannah is Alexis� second.�
Scott: �Kim, I�m so sorry about this. I love you, you know.� He holds her against him as they both cry for their lost child.
Later that night.
Alexis� Mercedes as she and Ned drive home.
Ned: �Alexis, are you okay?�
Alexis: (looking out the passenger window) �I�m fine.�
Ned: �No, you aren�t. Alexis, talk to me.�
Alexis: �I just feel so bad for Kimberly and Scott. She�s been the closest thing I�ve ever had to a sister, and I can�t stand to see her in pain. This is tearing her apart.�
Ned: �I know how you feel. We�re very lucky to have both of our children.�
Alexis: �Ned, there�s something I�ve never told you.� She takes a deep breath. �When I was living in Manhattan, I had a false pregnancy.�
Ned pulls the car over to the side of the road.
Alexis: �Gregory and I were always careful, but we slipped up, and I thought I was pregnant. I was two weeks late.�
Ned: �What did you do?�
Alexis: �I freaked out completely and went to the doctor. It turned out that I had mis- calculated the period before that, and I wasn�t late, but still...�
Ned: �I don�t really see what this has to do with anything...�
Alexis: �It has plenty to do with this. Kim helped me through everything. Gregory and I broke up shortly before I thought I was pregnant. I was terrified at the prospect of raising a child alone. She kept me from going crazy. I need to be there for her now. It�s my turn to be the best friend.�
Ned: �I don�t blame you one bit.� He smiles bitterly. �Sorry, it�s just a lot to stomach, hearing about you making love with another man.�
Alexis: �Ned, that was a million years ago. Almost sixteen, to be exact.� She smiles shyly. �You know, you are only the second man I�ve slept with.�
Ned: (teasingly) �Well, you�re pretty good in bed for only having slept with one other man.�
Alexis: �I hope you aren�t jealous about me and Gregory. Especially since he�s supposedly moving here to work as council for the hospital.�
Ned: �He is? Well, he had better keep his eyes and hands off of my wife.� He restarts the car and pulls back onto the road.
Alexis: �Believe me, the only man I�ll ever want is you.�
Ned: �That�s good, because I was just thinking the same thing about you.�
Alexis: (innocently) �I�m the only man you�ll ever want?�
Ned: �You know, you could have a nice walk home.�
Alexis: �I love you.�
Ned: �I love you too.�
Meanwhile, at the Ashtons� house.
Jax is sitting on the couch when Julia comes downstairs with Hannah in her arms.
Julia: �Do you have the bottle?�
Jax holds it up and she takes it from him and begins feeding the baby.
Jax: �You know, you look pretty great with a baby.�
Julia: �Me? Julia Barrett with a child? I don�t think so.�
Jax: �Oh come on, Julia. I know that under that tough exterior is a mother�s instinct.�
Julia: �Oh yeah? How do you know that?�
Jax: �Because I see how you react when Alexis is with Avery, and Kimberly is with Serena. You get this look of longing on your face.�
Julia: (not looking at him) �Jax, I never said I wanted children. Why are we even discussing this?�
Jax: �Primarily because you�re looking at this baby as if she�s the one sacred thing...�
Julia: �You know, Brenda always wanted a baby.�
Jax: �I know. And we had just started trying when she died. I�ll always regret that.�
Julia: �Do you ever think it�s wrong, being involved with her sister?�
Jax: �Julia, you are not Brenda. You�re an entirely different person. Each of the Barrett sisters is her own person. You, Brenda, and Mackenzie.�
Julia: �I can�t get over the fact that Mackenzie is my sister. Ned�s too.�
Jax: �Julia, there is no doubt that I will always love Brenda. She was my first true love. But she�s gone now, and she would have wanted me to be happy. And if falling in love with her sister is what makes me happy, than...�
Julia: (softly) �You just said that you�re falling in love with me.�
Jax: �No I didn�t.� He blushes. �Okay, so I did. And I am. I hope I�m not scaring you off.�
Julia: �No, not at all, because I was just thinking that I�m starting to fall in love with you too.� She leans over to kiss him.
Just then, the front door swings open and Ned and Alexis come inside.
Ned: �Hey, hey, no kissing in front of the child. What kind of baby-sitters are you two?�
Julia: �How�s Kimberly?�
Alexis: (in a low voice) �They had to perform a hysterectomy on her. She can�t have kids now, and she�s taking it pretty rough.�
Jax: �Poor thing. I�ll send some flowers in the morning.�
Ned: �I�m sure she�ll appreciate that.� He looks at Hannah, who has fallen asleep in Julia�s arms. �And how did the Princess behave?�
Julia: �Impeccably. She�s an angel.� She hands her to Alexis. �Avery and Serena are asleep in Avery�s room.�
Alexis: �Thanks for watching them. We wanted to stay with Scott.�
Jax: �No problem. We would be more than willing to baby-sit anytime.�
Ned: �You? I can�t believe what I�m hearing.�
Julia: �Alexis, I�ll call you in the morning.�
She and Jax leave as Ned turns to Alexis and puts her arms around her.
Ned: �Do you want to go to bed?�
Alexis: �Actually, I�m not really tired. We could watch TV or something.�
Ned: �Like a normal couple? Are you kidding?�
They sit down on the couch and Ned turns the TV to Jay Leno.
Alexis: �This show is beyond stupid.� She grabs the remote and changes channels, careful to not wake Hannah up. �Now, here�s some real TV.�
Ned: �I don�t think so. I hate the foreign channel.�
Alexis: �Aw, come on. It�s Greek week.�
Ned: �Too bad.� He changes the channel again. �Here. Spanish soap operas.�
Alexis: �Um, no. Isn�t there a news channel somewhere?�
Ned: �Yeah... here... CNN.� He groans as the news goes to commercial. �Okay, what else is on at one in the morning?�
Alexis: �We could look at the TV Guide.�
Ned: �Too easy.� He flips through about twenty channels. �Okay, here�s a show that looks your speed.�
Alexis: �What is it?�
Ned: �Uh... Law and Order, I think.�
Alexis: �Just because I happen to be a lawyer doesn�t mean I want to watch fake ones. Would you like to watch a show about CEO�s?�
Ned: �Fine. Let�s just turn the TV off.�
Alexis: (laughing) �I guess you were right. We can�t watch TV like a normal couple.�
Ned puts his arms around her and pulls her close, her head on his shoulder.
Ned: �We may not do things normally, but we do them pretty damn good.�
Alexis closes her eyes and soon is asleep.
Ned watches her as she begins to breathe deeply, and then takes Hannah upstairs and puts her in the bassinet in their room.
He then goes back downstairs and carefully picks Alexis up and carries her up to their room, where he puts a tank-top and flannel pajama bottoms on her, and tucks her into bed.
Ned: �Good night, sweet Princess.� He smiles, looking at Hannah. �Both of you.�
The next morning. General Hospital Room 534.
Alexis: (walking into Kimberly�s room) �Hey, Kim. How are you feeling?�
Kimberly: �Didn�t you hear? I can�t ever have children.�
Alexis: �I know. Scott told me.� She takes her hand. �Kim, it�s going to be okay.�
Kimberly: �No it isn�t. How can you say that? You have a family, your own children. You actually gave birth to your daughters.�
Alexis: �Serena is your daughter in every sense of the word. You adopted her last month.�
Kimberly: �Alexis, I�m never going to know the feeling of giving birth. Of holding a baby in my arms and thinking, �I made this child.� Do you know how that feels?�
Alexis: �You aren�t the only one with a daughter who isn�t yours. Remember Brooke? Do you know how it feels for her to call me Mommy and I know that I�m not?�
Kimberly: �I�m aware of that, Alexis, and I know you�re just trying to help, but I don�t feel like company now.�
Alexis: �Kimberly, what is going on here? Remember when I thought I was pregnant? Back in Manhattan? You helped me get through that, even though I didn�t want any help. Now it�s my turn. I want to be here for you.�
Kimberly: �I know you are here for me. But, really, I�m fine. You should just get home to Ned, and your new daughter.�
Alexis: �Kimberly, don�t do this. You can�t use Hannah as an excuse for being mad at me. You have no idea how sorry I am about what happened to you, but you can�t be angry at me for having children.�
Kimberly: �I�ll talk to you later.�
Alexis: �Fine.� She leaves.
Kimberly breaks down in sobs as Alexis walks out of the room.
A few minutes later, there is another knock at the door.
Kimberly: �What the hell is it now?�
Scott: �Whoa, Angelface, watch it.�
Kimberly: �Sorry. Just between well-meaning friends and doctors using me as a lab specimen, I�m not in the best mood.�
Scott: (handing her a bouquet of red roses) �I hope that these make you feel better.�
Kimberly: (managing a smile) �Thanks. How�s Serena?�
Scott: �Well, she�s at school. She was very worried about you last night. She loves you so much, Kim. And so do I.�
Kimberly: �I love both of you too. And I�m so sorry Scott.�
Scott: (sitting down on the bed with her) �Don�t be sorry. This isn�t your fault.�
Kimberly: �But I was thinking last night after you left. Scott, I want a baby still.�
Scott: �Kim, you know that you can�t have children.�
Kimberly: �I know that.� She sighs. �But I�m sure that there�s some other way. What about adoption? Or a surrogate like Lucy was for Serena?�
Scott: �Kim, we don�t have to decide any of this now. Let�s take some time out and recover from this loss.�
Kimberly: �Scott, I can�t. This is going to eat at me until we do something about it. All I can think of is, �Will I ever have a baby?� This feeling isn�t going to go away.�
Scott: �I know it won�t. And I�m behind you a hundred percent.�
Kimberly: �Scott, do you think we�ll ever have a baby?�
Three months later.
The phone rings in the middle of the night at the firehouse.
Scott: �Hello...? It is... Are you sure... sure... I�ll get Kimberly up... Yeah... we�ll be there as soon as we can... bye.� He leans over and shakes Kimberly.
Kimberly: �Scott, go away. I want to sleep.�
Scott: �Kim, you have to get up. We have to get to New Haven. The baby is coming.�
Kimberly: �Baby? What baby? Oh, the baby?� she jumps out of bed and races to the closet. �What am I supposed to wear?�
Scott gets up and goes over to her, putting his arms around her waist.
Scott: �Chill, Angelface. It�s going to be fine.�
Kimberly: �Well, I�m nervous! We�re about to get our baby! This is what I�ve been waiting for all this time!�
Scott: �I know. You haven�t talked about anything else for the last month other than the fact that we�re going to adopt this baby.�
Kimberly: �Well, come on, let�s go!�
After they get dressed and quickly get Serena up, they get into Scott�s Pathfinder and head for New Haven.
Kimberly: (on her cell phone) �Alexis, it�s me... We�re on our way to New Haven.�
Alexis: (half-asleep) �Is the baby coming?�
Kimberly: �Yep! I am so excited!�
Alexis: �I�m so happy for you! Did you remember the car seat?�
Kimberly: �Yeah. Serena reminded us.�
Alexis: (laughing) �Call us as soon as the baby is born! I want to know all about my godson or goddaughter!�
Kimberly: �We will.� She hangs up and turns to Scott. �Can�t you drive faster?�
Scott: �Kim, I know you aren�t going to be too happy if we have to spend the night in jail because I was speeding.�
Serena: �Daddy, you should follow the rules.�
Scott: �Thank you, Serena.�
Serena: �So, do I get a brother or a sister?�
Kimberly: �We don�t know yet.�
Serena: �Who�s giving us the baby again?�
Scott: �A woman named Rachael Baker is pregnant, and since she can�t take care of the baby, we�re going to adopt it, remember?�
Serena: �Why can�t she take care of it?�
Scott: �She�s just too young, Serena. She�s only twenty.�
Serena: �Than it�s good that you and Mommy are old.�
Kimberly: �Old? Thanks a lot, Serena.�
Serena: (laughing) �That�s not what I meant. I meant you�re old enough to have a baby.�
Scott: (to Kimberly) �Good. There�s nothing like the approval of a nine year old.�
He and Kimberly start laughing.
The next afternoon. University Hospital, New Haven.
Scott and Kimberly watch in amazement as the nurse in the nursery carefully washes their new daughter off.
Kimberly: (crying) �She�s so beautiful!�
Scott: �She looks like you.�
They look at their daughter, who has pale blonde hair and blue eyes.
Kimberly: �Rachael, we can never thank you enough.�
Rachael: �It�s a great relief for me to know that she�s going to be raised by people who love her and can take care of her.� She smiles wistfully. �Have you thought of a name yet?�
Scott: �We�ve decided to name her Olivia Paige Baldwin.�
Rachael: (handing them a sheaf of papers) �Here are the papers terminating my parental rights.� Her eyes fill with tears. �May I hold her just once?�
Kimberly: (her eyes wet) �Sure. We have to find Serena anyway. She�s down in the pediatrics floor playing with the other kids. One of the nurses took her down there.�
They leave and go downstairs.
Serena, who is playing with a little girl her age, who has her leg in a cast, looks up.
Serena: �Well, how is my sister? Does she have a name yet?�
Kimberly: �Your baby sister is named Olivia Paige Baldwin. What do you think?�
Serena: �I like it. Can I see her?�
Scott: �Sure. We�re going to be taking her home in a few hours anyway.�
Serena: �Already? Isn�t she too little?�
Scott: �Nope. She weighs eight pounds, which is plenty enough. She�s healthy, and we can take her home in just a little while.�
Three hours later. The highway between New Haven and Port Charles.
Kimberly turns around to look in the back seat.
Serena is fast asleep, her head against the window. Olivia is asleep in her carseat.
Kimberly: (her eyes filling with tears) �I can�t believe this. We finally have our baby. And she�s so beautiful.�
Scott: �If I didn�t know better, I�d swear that Olivia was your birth child, she looks so much like you.�
Just then, Olivia starts to cry.
Kimberly:(looking at her watch) �It�s time for her to eat.�
Scott pulls over to the side of the road, and Kimberly carefully takes Olivia out of her car seat and takes out a bottle of formula, which was prepared at the hospital.
Scott: �I am so amazed seeing you with a baby. You were meant for this.�
Just then, Scott�s car phone rings.
Scott turns it on the speakerphone.
Scott: �Hello?�
Ned: �Hey! It�s Ned...�
Alexis: �...And Alexis.�
Ned: �How is it going?�
Scott: �We�re about halfway back to Port Charles. Kim is feeding Olivia right now.�
Alexis: �I love that name! Can we come see her today?�
Kimberly: �Of course. We�ll call you when we get home.�
Just then, Hannah starts crying in the background.
Alexis: �Oops, gotta go. Hannah is hungry.�
Ned: �We�ll talk to you later. Bye.�
Scott: (turning the phone off) �Those two are such a trip.�
Kimberly finishes feeding Olivia, and then puts her back in her car seat.
Scott: (starting the car) �Are you ready to get home and start forever?�
Kimberly: �I�ve never been so ready for anything in my life. I love you Scott.�
Scott: �I love you too, Kimberly Corday-Baldwin. You truly are an angel.�