Norman picked up the pencil and prepared to write in his journal, but the thoughts wouldn't come, or actually, they could come, but he just couldn't seem to organize them. He decided to write at least the first sentence.

How anything like this is possible, I will never know.

He nodded as he felt reassured by that sentence, he just needed to get the rest out, and the rest was complicated, but as he picked up the pencil once again his hand knew exactly what to write.

My girlfriend of two years, Cassandra Sally Lici-Bates, is pregnant with my child.

Norman dropped the pencil and stared at the sentence.  It was true that Cassie had been his girlfriend of two years and it was true that she was pregnant. For three months Cassie had been pregnant.  In fact, she had come home this afternoon looking quite worried. Norman, in his own way, had walked up to her and asked,

"Cassandra, what's wrong?" She looked at him with eyes that seemed so blank. He had never seen them so vacant, not even when she had her flashbacks. She had ignored him and headed to her room. He thought it was strange and followed her.

"Cassandra! What's wrong?" he asked her when he reached her room. She looked up at him.

"Oh Norman!" Cassie cried and then began to cry. Norman cocked his head to the side and looked at her.

"Cassandra, what is it? What's happened?" he asked again. Cassie sighed and looked up. Straight into his eyes and into his heart, she said the words,

"I'm pregnant."

Norman, startled at such words took a step back. He wondered how, but he knew. Three months ago, when Cassie had first come to the motel, she had seduced him in such a subtle way; he never knew what was going on. That night was such a blur to him now, but he relieved the emotions every time he thought of it. How soft her body was. How good he had felt with her against him.

"...how..." he stuttered out in a whisper. Cassie, her face tear stained, looked up to him.

"Norman, three months ago you and I shared a night of bliss. Three months ago, you and I became one. And I'm afraid three months ago our one night of happiness will soon bring us another client for the motel." Cassie put as simply as she could. Norman walked over to Cassandra.

"A...child. You're going to have a baby?" he asked.  Cassandra nodded. Norman put his arms around his friend. He held her close. He didn't know what else to do.

"Norman, are you all right with this?" Cassandra asked.

"We'll...be parents." he said flatly. Cassie nodded.

"Mother isn't going to like this." he said. Cassie pulled away from Norman, her eyes seeming to flare with anger.

"You tell your mother to stay down in the fruit cellar where she rightfully belongs! She is not getting our child! Do you hear that Norman!? Do you hear that Norma! My child is staying with me! It will not end up like you! Keep away! Or else suffer the consequences, BATES!" Cassie screamed out. Norman, or, more appropriately, Norma, stood.

"Cassandra, I will want that child. You could never possibly take care of the child. Norman and I will take care of it." Norma said. Fresh tears streamed down Cassie's cheeks and she screamed.

"No Norma! No! Norman and I can take care of ourselves! Leave us alone!" Cassie screamed. Cassie pushed "Norma" and she fell onto the ground. Cassie looked up, as if she had been broken from a spell. The same happened to Norman as he got up from the floor.

"Cassandra?" he asked.

"Oh Norman! Your mother wants our baby! Promise me she won't get out child." Cassie said as she ran into Norman's arms. He smoothed out her hair as he held her.

"I promise. Mother won't get our child, and to make sure she won't, Cassandra, marry me." Norman said. Cassie looked up into his eyes.

"Do you mean it? Do you really mean it?"  Norman nodded.

"I do."  Cassie smiled.

"All right." Norman leaned in and kissed Cassie. She kissed him in return, and then it broke.

"I love you Cassie." Norman said. She frowned, but smiled.

"I love you Normy."

    Cassandra and I married within the week. It was a simple wedding. In fact, all we did was drive into Fairvale and went into the Courthouse. We were married, May 8th at 11:30am, before noon.  The sheriff was witness along with his wife. I've never remembered myself being more happy at that moment.  Cassandra still refuses to live in the house though.  She has insisted on living in room six, but she says that when the child is born, then we will live as a family in the house.  I think she's still weary of mother.  To be honest, I think I'm weary of mother as well. She's a very commanding woman, but I've told her that if she doesn't want to go to the retirement home that she must live in the fruit cellar and not bother me or Cassandra.  Mother has agreed, but...we're not sure.

  Norman stopped there on his journal and closed it.

Norman kept up with his journal, he always did, but today, today was something different.  He opened it and began writing.

Something...bad has happened. Something horrible.

He dropped his pencil and rubbed his face.  He reviewed what happened in his mind.

    Cassandra had driven into the driveway, gotten out of her car and headed immediately to her room.  Norman watched as his wife scurried to her room. She had just been to the doctor's, he knew that, but he wanted to know what news the doctor had given Cassie about their child.  He walked into her room and found his wife sitting on her bed looking perplexed.

"Something wrong Cassandra?" Norman asked as he stood in the doorway.  Cassie looked up at him, but said nothing.

"Cassie?" Norman asked.

"Twins Norman. Twins." Cassie said simply.  Now Norman was confused. Twins?

"I don't understand." Norman said.  Cassie nodded.

"I went into the office and had my checkup. The doctor smiled and said that we're having twins. Two children Norman. Two. Not one, but two. I'm carrying two of our kids in me Norman." She explained. Norman sat on the bed next to Cassie.

"How?" he asked, this time not stuttering.

"I...I dunno. But we're having two kids. A boy and a girl.  And they're twins." Cassie said looking confused.

"We're gonna what?" Norman asked.

"We're having two kids."

The two parents sat in a confused silence.

What are we going to do with twins?  Norman asked his journal.

"Ms. Lici, do you want us to call the father of the children?" the nurse asked as she brought in an extra blanket for Cassandra.  Cassie shook her head.

"It's all right.  He...he won't want to hear the news just yet." Cassie said as she sipped at her orange juice. The nurse nodded.

"If you don't mind me asking, who is the father?" the nurse asked.  Cassie smiled dreamily.

"You'd never believe me if I told you, but let me tell you that's he warm, and caring, and that I love him very much." Cassie said. The nurse nodded.

"Well, I just thought it'd be nice to know.  You are pretty young to be having kids." The nurse said nonchalantly.

"I'm only sixteen and a half." Cassie said, giving a fake pout.  The nurse nodded again.

"May I see my children?" Cassie asked.  The nurse smiled.

"Of course, I'll bring them to you." The nurse said.  She left and within a few moments Cassandra was holding her two children.  Twins, a boy and a girl just like the doctor had said.

"What are you naming them?" the nurse asked.  Cassie smiled.

"Lucy Anne and Ethan Osgood." Cassie said, her smile bursting with joy.  The nurse smiled.

"Those are good names, but do they go with their last name?" the nurse asked.  Cassie nodded and said,

"Lucy Anne Bates, and Ethan Osgood Bates. I think it does." Cassie said.  The nurse gasped and stood.

"Bates?" the nurse, asked.  Cassie nodded.

"These...these are Norman's children?" the nurse asked, stunned.  Cassie nodded. The nurse backed out of the room and left.  Cassie held her sleeping babes close.

"Do not worry my children, mother..." Cassie trailed off, then said, "Cassie will protect you." Cassandra said.  They will not call me mother.  They will never call me mother. Cassie thought.

Cassandra brought the children home, and with the children home, the lives of the Bates grew. Of course they still had their, "differences" but when a family has children for the first time, love always prevails.

"Cassie! Cassie! Come see what we did!" Lucy called out as she ran up the steps to the house. Cassandra came from the door.

"What Lucy? Where's your brother?" Cassandra asked curiously.

"With father, they're gathering wood." Lucy said happily as she stopped in the middle of the steps. Cassandra walked down to her daughter.

"What did you do?"

"Father is looking at the swamp. He seems...scared." Lucy said.

Cassandra looked worried.

"Lucy, what did you do to your father?"

"We really did nothing. Daddy was driving pass the swamp and Ethan told daddy to look out the window.  I looked too and a car was floating on top of the swamp. Daddy stopped the car, got out and now he refuses to move. He keeps saying something about Mother's revenge." Lucy said. Cassandra gasped.

"Lucy, run into the house and get me the butcher knife."

"But Cassie..." Lucy seemed to plead.

"Don't argue Lucy Anne, go get me the knife."  Lucy nodded, went into the house, grabbed the butcher knife, came back out and handed it to her mother.

"Take my hand Lucy." Cassie said as she held out her hand. Lucy took it and the two walked to the swamp.

Norman stood at the edge of the swamp, and looked out at the green car that seem to float on top of the swamp.  He waited and waited, but the trunk wouldn't pop open.

"Father, please, Cassie's going to get worried." Ethan pleaded with his father. But it was no good, Ethan's father would not move. Ethan sighed and turn to see his mother and twin walking down the path.  He ran to them.

"Cassie, why won't daddy move?" he asked. Cassie's eyes were on Norman now.  She handed Lucy's hand to Ethan's and moved to her husband.

"Norman, please, come home. Forget about it." Cassie whispered in Norman's ear.

"It's her fault.  It's because I married you.  She wants the children. She wants to scare them.  Just watch.  The trunk will pop open and Mother will carry out the body and spill it on the ground.  She'll scare the children, kidnap them and we'll never see them again." Norman rambled in a whisper.  Cassie took Norman's clenched hand and opened it.  She placed the butcher knife in his hand and reclosed the fist.

"Kill it Norman. Kill the memory.  The children don't understand our lives.  They'll know nothing.  Kill the memory Norman, kill mother if you have to, but don't wreck this, not our marriage, our children, not what we had years ago. Please Norman. Let's go home." Cassie whispered in a pleading voice to her husband. Norman looked to his wife, into her blue eyes, into her spirit and soul.

"How?" he asked in a whisper.

"With whatever. Leave the car.  She's gone, the town doesn't know, the children won't know." Cassie whispered as she caressed his cheek with her hand. Norman leaned his face into the hand, into the touch he had felt so many years ago. A tear slid down his cheek.

"After I kill mother, then what? What about your memory?" Norman asked after he came from the touch.

"I...I will remember." Cassie said, sounding somewhat brave.  The children watched on in confusion.

"Lucy, what's happening?" Ethan whispered to his sister.  Lucy watched, her eyes wide and seeming to be blank and she watched the touching between her parents.

"Cassie's compromising."

"With what?"

"Reality. Ethan we have been born into a family that is seeming to be cursed.  If Cassie breaks father from his problems, then grandmother, as it would be to us, will die, and if Norman can help Cassie with her amnesia, Cassie will realize that she is not who she really is." Lucy tried explaining.

"And what about us?"

"In a matter of seconds Ethan we will either become orphans, or the luckiest children in the world."

So the twins waited to see what would happen to their parents.

   Cassie looked into Norman's eyes.

"Come on. You'll scare the twins. What are you going to do?" Cassie asked, knowing that her husband was really scaring her more than he was scaring the twins.

Norman looked into Cassie's royal blues and then to the knife. For a split second Cassie thought that Norman was planning to kill her and she readied herself to feel the plunge of the knife into her heart, to hear her children screaming, and to finally loose consciousness.

Norman pulled away from his wife, raised the knife, gave her the thought that he was to commit suicide, and then threw the knife. It sailed over the swamp, bounced off the trunk of the car and landed into the swamp to be lost forever.

The trunk popped open and revealed that nothing was in it. Norman looked stunned while Cassie smiled with delight.

The car, in response to all this suspense, slowly started it's descent back to it's underwater home.

"It's over Norman, you're free."

Norman smiled and felt that a great weight, one that had been on his shoulders since he was born, had been lifted off.

"Let's go home Cassandra. Our children are waiting for us." Norman said as he took Cassie's hand. The two walked back home with the twins in tow.