Classes started back up on the Monday after Spring Break, but I felt no more rested than when Spring Break started. As the next couple of weeks dragged on, I was still feeling tired and was getting more and more irritable. I was so irritable I was getting on my own nerves; I had no idea how Tim was even able to be around me.

I was sitting on the couch in our common room, with a textbook in my lap, reading when Tim walked through the door, "Honey, I'm home." His baritone voice echoed against the walls.

I briefly looked up from my book, glaring at him, the lack of amusement I felt clearly evident on my face. "Geesh, what's up with you? You grouchy today? " He said innocently.

"Sorry if I don't have sunshine and rainbows all the time." I snapped, returning my attention to my book.

Tim ever the fun-loving person that he is always felt the need to try to cheer me up and make me happy. However, today I wanted to just be left alone, I was having no parts of his joyous attitude. "Nemo." I ignored him, "Oh, Nemo." Continuing to ignore him, he started nipping at my neck, "Noeemmmmmoooo." He said, drawing out the ungodly nickname he had given me.

I finally snapped. "What?!? What could you possibly want? " I jumped up and started walking to my room, thankful that at this point we had chosen to stay in our dorm, even though we were technically married we both thought that maybe slowing things down a bit would be okay. Tim had said he still wanted to woo me whatever that was supposed to me. I can tell you at this moment he was not doing a very good job at it.

Apparently, my response had given him exactly what he wanted, "Hi." He was all said with a smile on his face, as if he had won a prize.

"Are you being serious right now? I'm trying to do homework, and you're being annoyed. " I closed my textbook that I had in my hand, getting ready to throw it at him, only to be pulled into his arms. This only proved to further my annoyance and frustration.

"Is it like your time of the month or something?" My eyes got really big on this question, I couldn't believe he asked that and by his stuttering afterward he knew he shouldn't have, "Nev..Ne..Nevermind. Forget I said anything. "

Suddenly I was crying, alarm instantly on Tim's face. He pulled me into his lap on the couch, wrapping his arms around me. "Shh... Shh ..." He tried to soothe me, "Tell me what's wrong? You are really scaring me. Do I need to call McKenna? "

I just sobbed into his shoulder shaking my head, I was a complete and utter snotty mess for no reason at all. Tim continually whispering sweet sentiments to me, rubbing my back, trying to calm me down. After about ten minutes, I was able to start controlling my emotions and calm my cries. "Allison, talk to me sweetheart. What's wrong? "

I was sniffling now, "I..." closing my eyes I took a deep breath, "I don't know, Tim. If I knew I would tell you. My emotions are everywhere. "

"I know, I can feel them, remember?"

I rolled my eyes at him, "Do you want me to talk or not?" I said, pausing for him as he made the zipper motion across his lips, letting me know he wouldn't say anything else. "I'm tired all the time and not normal tired, like falling asleep standing up tired! I want to be with you one minute, but then the next I just want to rip your eyes out. I can't concentrate on anything ... UGH! What's wrong with me? "

Tim then had this look, you know the one that says I know something you don't know, "You're studying to be a doctor, right?" Tim asked, I glared at him giving him a look that said, 'Are you stupid?' and he continued, "Think about it. You are tired ALL the time. You are emotional... "Tim was trying to coax me to whatever conclusion he had drawn, but I was still at a loss for what he was getting at.

Thinking back over the last several weeks I was trying to figure out what I had complained about. I then jumped off of Tim's lap, "No. This cannot be. No. I don't believe it. " I grabbed my calendar and started counting days, because now weeks, "How could I be this stupid? How could I have missed this ?! "

I was frantic now, pacing around our small living room pulling at my hair. Truthfully, I was acting like a maniac, Tim came over to me and forced me to stop, "Come on, lets go for a ride."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Not long after, we were pulling up to the Clinic. "Nope!" I defiantly said, "I'm not going in there. If I go in there everyone is going to know in minutes. Nope!" Shaking my head quickly.

Tim wasn't giving me an option, "First, it's after hours, so no one but Doc is in there. Second, Doc can't tell anyone why we're here. Plus, she will cover for us, tell people she called you in to help with some patient file errors. And third, yes you are. We are finding out. "

I rested my head on the headrest of the car, and sighed. I wasn't ready to know, but Tim wasn't going to relent, "Fine." I said, pouting now hoping that this would get me out of going inside, but alas it didn't. Tim had already come to my side of the car and opened the door for me.

Reluctantly I climbed out of the car and trudged my way into the clinic where Doc was standing. "Hey Doc!" Tim greeted the aging woman, her dark brown hair now littered with grays.

"Good Evening you two. How are you Allison? " An innocent question, but one I didn't want to answer.

"I am in a regular ray of sunshine, doc. I'm miserable, I'm tired, I'm bitchy. " She laughed, walking ahead of us towards and exam room. Stopping outside the door, she turned and handed me a plastic cup.

"I'm sure I don't need to tell you what to do with this. Just bring it right in with you once you're done. " I rolled my eyes and grabbed the plastic cup.

I was back in the exam room a few minutes later, handing my sample to the doctor, who had put on a pair of rubber gloves before taking it over to her workstation that she had setup on the metal instrument tray. "While we wait for that hop up here." Doc said, patting the paper covered exam table. She took my temperature, blood pressure, and pulse. Checked my eyes, ears, and nose. All the good stuff doctors do.

Once she was done with her quick exam she walked back over to the dreaded test, she turned back around a steady poker face, damn this woman is good, I can't read her. "Well congratulations are in order." She said, "You're pregnant."

Those three words stopped me in my tracks, suddenly I was speechless, sounds incoherent. "How? Why? No? " The only words I was able to get out.

"Well dear, I think you know how and why. You are a student after all. " She said with a chuckle. "Trust me I get that things are a bit stressful with school and you are newly married and mated, but I am sure you will figure it out. Most wolves have their pups young. "

I gawked at Doc Stella, unable to wrap my head around her words, "We can do an ultrasound if you would like."

"That would be great!" Tim said.

If the doctor was doing the ultrasound, I only had one question that was gnawing at me, "Hey, Doc. Silver Falls... you know... "

Doc Stella just nodded at me, "Yes, I know about what happened. I would say everything should be alright, it was one time and I suspect it was a low dose. We will just take things slow and monitor you and once the pups are born do a full evaluation. That is all we can really do. " She tried to reassure me, however, it did little to ease the doubts in my mind.

Fifteen minutes later Doc was done, printed a few pictures and gave them to us. We were on our way out, Doc walking us to the door. "Hey," Tim said. "I'm going to use the bathroom real-quick."

I nodded my head; I had a few questions I wanted to ask the doctor before he got back. "Hey, Doc. How far along am I, exactly. "

"Well it's not an exact science, as you know. But by the size of the pups, I would say 6-7 weeks. Give or take. " A wave of panic washed through me.

You gulped, "Pups?"

"Yeah, puppies. You have two of them in there. See. " She pointed out the sonogram pictures. "Guess you two were so excited you didn't hear me talking about twins." She smiled at me. "You know Allison you and Tim are going to be great parents."

I gave her a weak smile, "Yeah, thank you. This is just a bit overwhelming. A lot to take in. "

"Well, of course that is understandable. And considering everything else going on for you I completely get it. " At this point Tim was walking back towards us, "Now you Mister, make sure this girl is getting plenty of rest and eating healthy meals. She needs to take her prenatal vitamins and no heavy lifting. "

"Got it! Thanks Doc. Oh, and no one knows why we're here, so please don't spill the beans. " Tim said.

Doc laughed "Still with that same joke, Tim. I thought you would have gotten over using it after all these years. " A warm smile crossing her face, "Now you two get going."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

I had been feeling for about a week now that Allison was pregnant, but every time I tried to bring it up, I chickened out. She was quite scary lately and I didn't want to be in the line of fire if I could help it. So, I did my best to steer clear unless she got to the point where she needed me to swoop in and be her knight in shining armor, which I was always happy to be.

When I had come home tonight Allison was at her lowest of lows and I couldn't in good conscience let it go anymore. One second I had been joking around or trying to and the next Allison was in absolute hysterics. I was doing anything I could think of to calm her down, but in the end, it was only time and holding her that helped. For about ten or so minutes Allison just sobbed into me, gripping my shirt like it was her lifeline. I was completely lost as to what I could do for her, my heart breaking with every sob and tear that she shed. "Allison, talk to me sweetheart. What is wrong? You've been off for a couple of weeks now, tell me what's wrong. " I cooed in her ear.

Finally, after a couple of attempts and some stuttering through her sobs, she finally answered me, "I don't know, Tim. If I knew I would tell you. My emotions are everywhere. "

"I know, I can feel them, remember?" Again, trying to use humor to lighten the mood. Allison rolled her eyes, letting me know that was a dumb move.

Allison then snapped at me, "Do you want me to talk or not? I'm tired all the time and not normally tired, like falling asleep standing up tired, but I'm sleeping at night. So, I don't get it. "

After she finished talking, I figured this was the perfect time to get her thinking, I didn't want to say it out loud and risk her crying again, so I thought maybe if she came to the conclusion on her own it might be for the best. "You are studying to be a doctor, right?" Allison gave me the stink eye, so I continued. "Think about it. You are tired ALL the time. You are emotional. What else is going on? "

Allison glared at me and then jumped off my lap, like she was on fire and immediately ran across the room to her desk, "No. This cannot be. No. I don't believe it. How could I be this stupid? How could I have missed this ?! " She was rifling through her agenda book.

** Hey Doc ** I mind linked our pack Doctor Stella.

** Oh, Tim. What can I help you with? Is anything wrong, dear? **

** I was wondering if you might be able to meet Allison and I at the clinic? **

** Of course, is Allison bad? **

** Just need a pregnancy test. **

** Ahh, that's so sweet. A pup! Of course! I haven't left for the day, so I'll just wait for you. **

** Thank you ** I said, severing the mind link

I walked in front of Allison, making her stop her pacing and said, "Come on, let's go for a ride."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Once we got to the clinic it took a good ten minutes to get Allison out of the car. She kept arguing about going inside. I could tell that she didn't want to face facts, but I wasn't letting her out of this one.

Doc was waiting for us as we walked through the door, "Hey Doc!" You smiled that here; she had been a doctor here ever since I was young. I have been coming to see Stella for years. She was one doctor I would trust implicitly.

"Good Evening you two. How are you Allison? " She asked looking over to Allison, which made me hold my breath. I was waiting for the explosion that was Allison, the explosion typically happened when asking that question.

"I am in a regular ray of sunshine, doc. I'm miserable, I'm tired, I'm bitchy. " Phew, that was better than I expected.

Doc said something to Allison, but I wasn't really paying attention to it. Allison walked away holding a plastic cup and I followed the doc into the exam room.

"So how is she really Tim?" Doc questioned.

"Falling asleep sitting up, emotions are all over the place. She is complaining about aches and pains. She just isn't herself. To be honest Doc, she scares me. " Doc nodded her head laughing at my description of my mate.

"How are you?"

"Happy." I honestly answered, "Just happy." Doc once again nodded, the undertone of the question she asked not escaping me.

Allison came walking back in handling her sample to the doctor. I spun around on the chair, while the doc did her thing, and gave Allison the once over, I was spinning again when I heard her say, "Well congratulations are in order. You are pregnant. "

A pup! We were having a pup! This was awesome! Allison, however, was pale, her face looking like all the blood had drained from it.

"We can do an ultrasound if you would like." Doc offered.

Not wanting to miss out I jumped at it, "That would be great!"

"Hey, Doc. Silver Falls... you know... "Allison started asking about the use of Silver Falls, not fully being able to get the question out. It was something that was weighing on me as well and not something that was easy to think about.

Doc Stella just nodded at me, "Yes, I know about what happened. I would say everything should be alright, it was one time and I suspect it was a low dose. We will just take things slow and monitor you and once the pups are born do a full evaluation. That is all we can really do. " She tried to reassure me, however, it did little to ease the doubts in my mind.

I watched carefully as the black and white screen lit up, odd otherworldly shapes displaying on the screen. "This is your baby. Look right there, that flashing, that's the heartbeat. " Doc said pointing to the screen. My eyes lit up, how could something so wonderful exist? I looked at Allison, her eyes glazed over, void of emotion.

"Oh, look, two!" Allison was so out of it; she didn't even respond. I am not sure she even heard what Doc had said. "Baby A and Baby B." A toothy smile now adorned my face. We are having two.

Doc continued her scan and said, "Um... looks like you are about 6 weeks, possibly 7." My heart sank a bit, but I knew before she even said it. I knew in my gut I knew these weren't my pups, they were Tate's. Tate just never would be out of our lives, he was always ruining something, never letting his claws out of Allison.

I know Allison wasn't listening to anything the doctor was saying, she was completely zoned out and not focusing on anything. I looked at my wife, she was shattered right now. I know what she was thinking and what fears she had, even though she was doing her best to hide what she was thinking and feeling I just knew. I always knew with her.

"Would you like pictures?"

"Yes, Doc thank you. We would love them. " I said, giving her a smile. Allison still not responding. Doc was then printing a couple of pictures off and thrusting them at Allison, who jumped a bit at the sudden movements in her face, but carefully took the ultrasound pictures. Doc got up and turned the exam room light on, as I helped Allison up from the table.

"You two are all set. We will set up an appointment in about a month. Allison you can put it on the books the next time you are working, alright. " Allison nodded her head, though it seemed more of an automatic response to hearing her name versus actually listening to what Doc had said.

As we walked out, I figured it would be the perfect time to go to the bathroom and give Allison time with Doc, alone. There were probably questions that she wanted to ask that she didn't want to ask around me.

"Well, of course that is understandable. And considering everything else going on for you I completely get it. " I heard Doc say as I walked up to her and Allison, turning to me she said, "Now you Mister, make sure this girl is getting plenty of rest and eating healthy meals. She needs to take her prenatal vitamins and no heavy lifting. "

"Got it! Thanks Doc. Oh, and no one knows why we're here, so please don't spill the beans. " I reminded here

Doc laughed at me, since it's the same joke I make every time I see her, "Still with that same joke, Tim. I thought you would have gotten over using it after all these years. " A warm smile crossing her face, "Now you two get going."