A Mistaken Identity

When I first heard what my uncle said, my eyes shot wide open. How could he have possibly known that I wasn’t Karleigh? No one—other than Betsy and Amanda—knew that. And, no one was supposed to either. This definitely made no sense. Somehow, my uncle was able to realize the truth; he was able to realize that I was not who everyone thought I was. I was not Karleigh Mackenzie Fox as everyone expected me to be. No, my name was Kimberleigh Melanie Fox. There was a difference, a difference that few knew about. I sighed and looked over at the Jonas girls, wondering if they had anything to do with my uncle knowing who I was. “How?” I asked. “How’d you know I wasn’t Karleigh?”

My uncle grinned. “Your sister, from the moment she started dating Nick Jonas, would always greet me by telling me what was going on out in California. Since you didn’t do that, I knew it was you. But, how did you get here from California? I thought you were in…”

Not wanting to waste any time, I cut my uncle off and told him what happened to cause me to come out to New York along with Betsy and Amanda rather than Karleigh. He would need to know if he knew who I was. “Karleigh’s dead, Uncle Vance. She has been since the end of October. My parents—your asshole brother included—abandoned me and I was trying to go out and find them. As I was, I came across a dead body, one that I soon realized belonged to my twin sister. Realizing this, I began impersonating Karleigh in the hopes that I would get to know my parents. I was sorely disappointed when I realized how little time they spent with their own daughter. So, for the past month, I’ve been impersonating Karleigh, at the request of one young woman, namely the patient you’re getting ready to see. This is all despite the fact that I hate the Jonas Brothers.”

“Your parents don’t know you’re here?” he asked.

“No,” I said.

“Kimberleigh, you need to tell them,” my uncle insisted. “Your parents need to know of the fact that one of their daughters is dead and that the other one is unknowingly living in their house, masquerading as her twin sister in order to spend time with after having been forced to live at an orphanage for the past seventeen and a half years along with her…”

“Dr. Fox!” the receptionist called before he could finish his sentence. “Your next patient is waiting in room eleven. It would be wise not to make her wait, particularly considering whom it is.”

Uncle Vance rolled his eyes. “Is it Ms. Weimar?”

“Yes, it is,” the receptionist replied.

My uncle turned to me. “Kimberleigh, you should probably head over there. I’ll be back there in a minute. I just have a few things to take care of before I go in to see Amanda.”

After speaking with my uncle, I headed over to room eleven and slipped in, turning to the Jonas girls. “Did either of you happen to mention who I really was to my uncle?” I asked. “Somehow, he knew who I was immediately—that I wasn’t Karleigh, something that only the two of you knew about. I need to know if either of you mentioned anything about what was going on to my uncle since he greeted me as Kimberleigh and not as Karleigh like everyone else has. Like I said before, you two were the only ones to know who I really was and that Karleigh is dead. So, did you tell him anything?”

Both girls shook their heads. “We told no one,” Betsy said. “Not our husbands. Not our parents. Not our in-laws. No one outside of us was aware of what’s really been going on. So, I don’t really know how your uncle could have possibly known about you being here with us. Maybe he just knows you better than anyone. That is a possibility, you know.”

“It is,” Uncle Vance said as he came into the room. “Hello, Elizabeth. So nice to see you again. You too, Amanda. So, I hear you’re finally married the Jonas boys. How’s that going?”

Amanda laughed. “Considering how long it took for me to get to this point, it’s going pretty well. There is one thing though that I need to talk to you about. I’ve only ever shared it with Betsy, merely because I need to talk with you about this before anyone finds out.”

My uncle nodded, knowingly. “And, how has everything been going?” he asked. “Still taking your pills, I hope. We don’t want you to be having yet another seizure, not after what Betsy and Kevin went through the last time that happened. Neither of them could take it. Betsy especially. I remember a few years ago when you went into that coma; Betsy refused to leave your side for more than a second. Only once did Betsy ever do that, and that was only because Kevin forced her to leave, promising to watch over you. So, remember, Amanda: you need to take your pills every day or risk losing the ones you love.

“Okay,” Amanda nodded, her fingers running over the locket around her neck. “But, there’s one problem with me continuing to take my pills. Honestly, I don’t know if I can.”

“Why not?” he asked.

“Because,” Amanda said, “I’m pregnant.”

“You’re pregnant?” my uncle and I asked.

“I am,” Amanda said. “My period was supposed to have been a week and a half ago, but I missed. The pregnancy was confirmed earlier on in the week when I took a pregnancy test which came out positive, as well as the fact that I’m starting to get morning sickness. Betsy is the only one to know though since I knew that I would have to talk with you about the possibility of my pills affecting my unborn child. As a result of that, I really don’t know about whether or not I’ll be able to continue taking my pills as I have.”

“That does seem to be quite a dilemma,” my uncle said. “Of course, it might be best for you to speak with an OB/GYN about all of this. You are right though Amanda; it’s going to be hard for you to keep your seizure disorder under control when you can’t take your pill as it may affect the baby. And, if you don’t take your pills, there’s a chance of you having a seizure and letting it affect the baby. You were right to speak with me about this before alerting anyone other than your sister about the pregnancy. And, I can think of someone right now who might be willing to help. I’ll have an appointment set up for you while you’re here in New York. That way, you’ll be able to figure this out before going back to California so that you might be able to alert your new husband that he is about to become a father so soon after marrying the girl he loves so dearly, the girl would do anything for."

Betsy winced. It was as if she knew something. “Dr. Fox, while you’re at it, I think that it’s probably worth mentioning that I will be needing that appointment as well.”

“You’re pregnant too?” I asked.

“Guilty,” Betsy said.

“How is that even possible?” I wondered. “I mean, I can see two sisters marrying two brothers, but both couples getting pregnant at the same time? That is way too improbable.”

“And, yet, that is exactly what happened,” Betsy said with a certain air of authority in her voice. “Somehow, my sister and I happened to get pregnant at the exact same time. Plus, since the Jetsy/Kevanda Jonas-Weimar wedding occurred at the exact same time as a double wedding, as well as the fact that our period often coincide, I have a feeling that these Jonas cousins will be born within days of each other.” She looked over at her older sister. “Du, you know perfectly well that such a thing is possibility. Why, our kids could even be born on the same day. Now, wouldn’t that be a fascinating occurrence?”

“Double cousins born on the same day?” Amanda asked. “You know what, that would be pretty cool. They would have a bond that no other person in the world can ever say that they have. Although, to further elaborate on your idea, what if it was at the same minute, right down to the second. The bond our kids have would be amplified by that, almost to the point where when they grow old and one of them dies, the other could lose the will to live.”

I could only roll my eyes at what I heard them talking about. “Do you have any idea as to how improbable this idea of yours is?” I asked them. “I mean despite the fact that certain aspects of this whole situation do happen to be working in your favor, the chances of something like that happening are extremely slim. You must know that there is really no chance of something like that ever happening. It just won’t. I’d even go so far as to bet against that happening, but I’m not going to be here when the next generation of Jonas kids begins to form.”

“Yes you will,” they said.

I am?” I asked.

“Yeah,” Amanda nodded. “The fact is that we don’t want Karleigh’s death to be revealed until after the kids are born. You must continue to impersonate her until they’re born.”

But, that’s nine months from now!” I objected.

“Eight,” Betsy corrected.

“So, I have to stay until then?” I asked.

“Afraid so,” they said in unison.

“Kimberleigh, come here for a moment,” my uncle said.

“What is it?” I asked, coming over.

“Your aunt is the OB/GYN I’m setting up the appointment for the girls with. I want you to go with them to the appointment to see your aunt. For nearly eighteen years have you lived at that orphanage, and I do believe that it’s time for you to get to know your family. That includes your parents as well. Plus, I think that it’s time for your mother’s brother to reveal himself. You need to know who he is,” my uncle said, knowingly.

I nodded. “Thanks, Uncle Vance.”

“You’re welcome, Kimber,” he said.