[Karie]

It’s been a month since I found out that my boyfriend was going to be a father. It’s been almost two months since I interviewed the group for the first time and Nick and I went out.

It’s been a weird ride, that’s for sure.

I’ve been busy with work. The CMA Fan Fest took place here in Nashville which involves me working almost 24/7 during that week because so many artist are here, so many concerts are going on and I have to be at them all, reporting them, going back to the office and writing to make the deadline.

Thankfully during that week, Nick and the guys were in Los Angeles recording with some new producers. In fact, he’s been gone a lot but he always comes back to Nashville every chance he gets.

Last weekend I flew out to Los Angeles for the weekend and to say the least, it was an eye opener. Nick took me out to eat at The Ivy, which is a paparazzi filled place that you hear Lindsay Lohan going to all the time. I even got to meet Becca, the girl that is pregnant with his baby. She wasn’t what I expected her to be. I expected some slutty girl with big boobs and platinum blonde hair.

She’s nothing like that.

She’s tall with dark hair and curves. She’s the sweetest girl and is actually going to school for journalism, so we had a lot to talk about. She kept gushing over me to Nick, telling him that he had found his match. It’s kind of weird to sit and talk to someone who’s pregnant with your boyfriend’s baby, but in a way, it wasn’t. You could tell that they were just friends who had slept with one another a few times. For some reason, it was all okay with me.

Becca and I also talked about the baby and to be honest, I still don’t know what Nick should do. He doesn’t know what he should do.

We invited Brian, his wife Leighanne, and their little boy Baylee over to my apartment for dinner one night before the guys stopped recording in Nashville to tell them the news. We talked about the baby and they want to have another child. Leighanne just doesn’t want to give birth again. I guess she had a really tough time with Baylee or something. They said that depending on what Nick decides, that they would be willing to open their home to the baby.

So again, it’s all up to Nick.

It’s weird that my life has changed so much in the past two months. Sure, since Nick has been gone some, I’ve been going out and singing after I get out of the office like I used to do and my life has become somewhat normal again. I’ve found peace with my past thanks to my mother and Nick’s insistence on going to the reunion and I’ve found love which is something I didn’t think I would find anytime soon. Even though I’ve got back to my normal life a little, it’s still weird to come back home late at night and be alone.

Alone.

Ah, I’ve been alone for most of my life so I’m pretty used to it. Unfortunately, being alone isn’t due to the lack of things that I have to do.

Some of Nick’s fans have found out that he is dating a journalist from Nashville and have pretty much tracked me down online. Because my e-mail address is listed in the paper and on the website, I’ve gotten some e-mails asking if I’m Nick’s girlfriend and if they can set up a website for me.

What. The. Fuck?

Nick laughed it off, telling me to get used to it, but for some reason it freaks me out a little. Of course I told Gary, my boss, about it and he suggested that I start an online blog, discussing the things that I’m writing for the paper, thus bringing more people to the paper’s website. It’s always about readership.

Nick said it was a good idea… so I started a blog. Nick’s posted a video on there, talking to the fans, and of course, I post about the things I do, such as my articles, interviewing people, things that are going on in Nashville and within the past two weeks that I’ve been doing it… it’s become a bit of a hit.

“Prue! Scarlett!” I yelled as I stood up from putting their food down on the mat in the kitchen. I watched them from my bedroom and sighed, watching them as they started eating. I walked into the dining room where my laptop was set up on the table and smiled, seeing an email from Nick.

Hey babe,

Have I told you that I miss you? I think I have but I just wanted to make sure I told you again.

I’m bored. I think we’re almost done recording out here.

How’s the blog coming? Don’t let them get to ya, they mean well.

I miss you. I miss your lips. I miss your smile. I miss your thighs. I miss your hips. I miss your pu……….. hehe. I’m not going to say, but I miss you.

Love Nick.

I sighed, smiling at the e-mail and looked back at the cats who were still eating. He sent the email hours before and I had just gotten the chance to read it. Work has been so busy lately that I hadn’t had time to check my personal email, which Nick had started emailing me at since we started seeing one another.

I opened my media player on my laptop, hit random and opened an e-mail so that I could reply to Nick when suddenly I was taken back by the song that came on.

All he could think about was I’m too young for this.

Got my whole life ahead.

Hell I’m just a kid myself.

How’m I gonna raise one.

All he could see were his dreams goin’ up in smoke.

So much for ditchin’ this town and hangin’ out on the coast.

Oh well, those plans are long gone.

And he said,

There goes my life.

There goes my future, my everything.

Might as well kiss it all good-bye.

There goes my life…….

A couple years of up all night and a few thousand diapers later.

That mistake he thought he made covers up the refrigerator.

Oh yeah……….he loves that little girl.

Momma’s waiting to tuck her in,

As she fumbles up those stairs.

She smiles back at him dragging that teddy bear.

Sleep tight, blue eyes and bouncin’ curls.

He smiles…..

There goes my life.

There goes my future, my everything.

I love you, daddy good-night.

There goes my life.

I sat there, not having heard the Kenny Chesney song in a while, especially since my life took a drastic change. It sounded like Nick… kind of… in a way, it did.

Kind of like me too, a little.

I closed my laptop and sat there listening to the song, the music, the notes, the slow rhythm and Kenny’s voice as the song started to fade to a close. Was the reason I didn’t want a child or a family because I would be afraid my life would be over? My career? Hell yes. It’s always the woman who has to take care of kids.

Suddenly another song, by Phil Vassar came on, and I smiled, opening my laptop back up. I didn’t need anymore baby songs right now.

Then one night you came to me, with tears and an EPT

You said guess what, ready or not

I just smiled, scared to death

How am I gonna have a kid when I’m still a kid myself?

“Seriously!” I yelled at my computer as I turned my music off and glared at the laptop. “Stop it!”

[/Karie]

“You know, I feel bad for Karie,” AJ said as I looked at him and back at the television screen in the restaurant we were sitting in. “She’s got those fans ragging on her ass now, dealing with you being gone a lot now, and this possible b-a-b-y thing.”

“You don’t have to spell it out,” I said, taking a sip of my soda.

“Have they started any shit about her weight yet?” he asked as I shrugged.

“Better not.”

“Think she’s going to say its okay for you to keep the kid,” AJ asked as I shrugged again. “It’s not like a puppy and you know damn well she’s going to be the one taking care of it.”

“Seriously, AJ,” I said, staring at him. “I’m trying to eat here and you constantly badger me about shit,” I hissed, leaning back in the chair. I was aggravated, annoyed, and simply wanted out of Los Angeles. “Why can’t we go back to Nashville tomorrow to record?”

“Because these guys are here.”

“Fuck, I’ll pay for them to stay in Nashville,” I hissed.

“Whipped.”

He was right. I was whipped and I didn’t give a shit if I was. I missed my girlfriend. Does that make me a bad person? No it doesn’t.

“Just buy her something and that way it’ll make up for you being gone when you see her,” AJ said as I looked at him questionably. “You know, something nice, like a necklace, a bracelet, earrings, but don’t buy a ring. Never buy a ring.”

“She doesn’t like for me to spend money on her,” I said, playing with the food on my plate with my fork. “I’m thinking about buying a house in Nashville because her place is kind of small.”

“If she’ll get pissed over a necklace, then she’d go ballistic over a house,” AJ said as I laughed. “Buy her a bracelet or something, something with some meaning.”

“Like your tattoos?”

“Fuck you. Never gotten a girl’s name on my body though.”

“Fuck you,” I said, causing AJ to snicker.

“What is she into?” AJ asked.

“She loves music and computers and all of those gadgets and shit,” I said as he nodded. “She’s got keyboards and two guitars…”

“Get her a custom guitar made,” he said as I looked at him. “If she’s into music and has that stuff, she’d probably love it. Make it her favorite color and have her name on it or something.”

“Why am I taking relationship advice from you?” I asked as he grinned. “You’re 29 and change girlfriends more than underwear.”

“At least I change underwear,” he shot back. “Okay, so she doesn’t like for you to spend money on her or buy her stuff. Do something that doesn’t cost you a dime except maybe flying to Nashville.”

“Suprising her?”

“Sure, that and what is something that you two have in common? Like a food or music or…”

“Bon Jovi,” I said as AJ smiled. “You know that song ‘I’ll Be There For You’? It’s our song, I think.”

“That’s it!” AJ exclaimed, practically jumping out of his seat. “Fly to Nashville and be in her apartment when she comes home from work or wherever and be there playing that song when she walks in.”

“Already thought of that one and I’m not using that yet,” I said as AJ glared at me. “I thought about proposing to her that way, but you know, it’s too soon and stuff and I want to wait and see what’s going to happen with the baby. But that’s a good way, right?” I asked as AJ continued to glare at me. “AJ?”

“You’ve seriously thought about asking her to marry you?” AJ asked in a serious tone.

“Yeah, that’s weird, isn’t it?” I asked as he nodded. “It’s hard to explain, man. I don’t want to get married or anything like that but I can see myself doing that with her and it kind of excites me and intrigues me.”

“So you’re waiting until you guys decide about the baby to do that?” he asked as I nodded. “Really, it’s up to her. Either way the kid will be in my life if Rok and Leighanne adopts her, but it’s up to Karie.”

“But..” AJ said as my phone started to ring. I smiled, seeing Karie’s name on the screen and held my hand up for AJ to hold on.

“Hey babe, what’s up?” I asked, answering my phone.

“Hey,” I heard Karie’s voice and smiled. “Just sitting here at my computer and all of these weird having baby songs keep coming up in media player so I turned the music off,” she said as I snorted. “So, when are you coming back? Do you know yet?”

I sighed. “I don’t know. I’m going to try to come this week or this weekend for sure.” I heard her sigh. “What’s up? You don’t sound like your normal self.”

“I’ve just been thinking about this baby thing a lot and with the music and just,” she said, pausing. “I just need to sit and talk with you about it because it’s driving me crazy, I think.”

“The decision?” I asked.

“Yeah,” she said. “Nick, I think we need to go ahead and decide what you, or we, or whatever is going to happen. It’s just constantly there on my mind and it’s driving me crazy, especially sitting here alone.”

“Do you want me to go ahead and tell Brian and Leighanne that they, can, you know…”

“No.”

“So you want to keep it?”

“I didn’t say that either,” she whispered. “I just, I need to talk to you face to face about it and I know you’re out there working and that you’ll come as soon as you can.”

“Yeah, I promise, I will,” I reassured her. “Just try not to think about it, okay?” Silence. “Karie?”

“Okay, I promise,” she said. I smiled, knowing that she was smiling on the other end. “I love you, Nick.”

“I love you too,” I said before telling her goodbye.

“What was that about?” AJ asked as I looked at him. “What?”

“Pay for this and I’ll buy next time,” I said, getting up from the table.

“Where the hell are you going?” he asked as I grabbed my backpack that I had with me.

“Nashville. I’ll call the others, but I need to go,” I said, smiling at him before rushing out of the restaurant.

[/Nick]