Howie entered the house, Mason was already up and about, crawling all over the place “Hey there…” he said as the child clung to his pants. Picking him up, he walked towards the voices in the kitchen.

“We are in here Howard” he heard Kristen say, remembering that when Kristen called him Howard it wasn’t a good thing. Kevin had probably already informed her about the whole AJ and Millie dilemma. Entering the place he found Kevin and Kristen seated at the table, both held matching cups. “Hi there…” she raised her eyebrow.

“Morning?” he tried saying, but it came out more like a question. “Your up early it’s barely seven in the morning.” Howie tried avoiding the conversation that his two new parents were waiting to have with him “Here…” he handed Mason over to Kevin “I’m gonna lay down, I’m pretty tired” he said walking away.

“Howard you can’t keep avoiding this…you have to face it…face AJ, and Millie. It was horrible what you did, but we all know that your not like that. Do you have feelings for her?” she tilted her head waiting for a response.

Howie stood staring at Kevin and then Kristen, his hands stuffed deep into his pockets. “Uh…I think so. Listen I faced it last night, and I’m not sure how to make it better, but I’m still thinking. Alright?” he faked a smile and turned back around.

“Oh…one more thing, Kevin and I are meeting Nick and Sarah for dinner tonight. Thought you might want to come.” she smiled.

“No thanks, I‘m really tired and I think I’m just gonna hang out tonight. ” He headed up to his room and laid down instantly closing his eyes.

Millie woke up to a sharp pain in her belly, she gasped looking around, but found herself laying on both sides of her bed. “Was I dreaming?” she asked out loud. She laid her head back on the pillow, taking in the traces of cologne left on the pillow. As she laid there, the memories of the night came back to her, and she shook her head shamefully “Oh no!” she laughed to herself, but went back to groaning as she felt her stomach cramping.

“Hey there…sleeping beauty.” her fathers voice made her jump, “So Prince Charming slept here?” he asked his arms crossed over his chest and his left eyebrow raised.

“He was just bringing me home dad and I asked him to stay with me. I was scared that you weren’t here and well I was REALLY wasted. Nothing happened I promise. That was Howie by the way.” she clarified with a huge smile “Isn’t he cute?”

“Uh…I guess…he‘s a smart man leaving before anyone could supposedly see him.” there was a familiar knock at the door, my father shook his head “I hear trouble coming” he grunted as he headed down the hall to open the door. As he opened there stood Sarah all smiles like always “More clothes than last night” he smiled back at her.

“Well it’s daytime Mr. Nunez, the freaks come out at night. Is Millie up…” he just nodded as she made her way to Millie’s room “Hello there party girl who showed all her belongings to the world.” she giggled as she sat on the bed. “Hum…smells like man in here?” she teased.

Millie sat in the closet doorway, and looked up at her “Ha…ha…very funny! He just stayed here nothing happened. I was being an idiot and crying ok. A guy doesn’t want to sleep with a girl that is weeping the whole time.” she continued to look through the closet.

“Introduce me to the men you know, cause the ones I know don’t really care.” she giggled. “So I heard that you and AJ made out and Howie was so pissed of f he knocked him on his ass? What‘s up with that?”

“Nothing, he’s acting really weird. He said he loves me and that he still wants to marry me”

“Hum…sounds like quite the dilemma there. I opt for Howie but it’s your choice.” Sarah scorned while Millie stood up and struggled with a pair of jeans “Wow girl that zipper doesn’t go up“ she giggled at Millie‘s face, her tongue sticking out from the side of her mouth as she sucked in her belly and tugged at the zipper.

“I…can see that” she sucked in her stomach again and laid on the bed insisting on pulling up the zipper “I was just wearing these last week. That’s not cool…I’m those girls that when they get depressed GAIN weight instead of losing it.” she let out a squeal as she, kicked off the pants and flung them across the room. “So how was your night?” she asked pulling on a different pair of jeans.

“Uh…nice…I got laid, by none other than Nick Carter!” she batted her eyes and smiled “He’s quite the charmer, and we are going out to dinner tonight with Kevin and Kristen. Soooo…I thought you might want to come, we are ALL going to be there. Yes AJ and Howie…well if they decide to come.”

The twosome sat side by side, Sarah gave Millie a playful shoulder shove “No…I just can’t really face anyone after my display last night, plus I really hate to see Howie and AJ mad at each other because of me. Maybe next time, but you go and have fun with your new honey!” they giggled.

Sarah chuckled “Uh your sweating…” she took Millie’s hands into hers “And your hands are very clamy. Are you ok?” she looked at Millie concerned still holding her hands.

Millie smiled, and bit her lip to keep her from screaming from the exaggerated pain in her belly. “I’m good…it’s probably just that time of month cause I’m dying of cramps.” Sarah gave her a look “Really girl you go and have fun. I’ll be ok.”

“Fine, I’ll see you at the birthday party then…love ya…oh and you look pale, might want to get some color. Bye” she waved and was out the door.

“Some color my ass…” Millie huffed, feeling her pants ride into her sides “What the hell is going on.” she entered the kitchen. “Dad do I look fatter?” she asked standing in the door way.

Her father stopped abruptly with his knife in hand, as the question registered in his mind, he stared at her for a second and answered slowly “Uh…no…you look the same to me. Since when do you worry about that? Listen your mother called said she wants you to call her. She wants to know if you want her to send you an invitation.” he gave his daughter a weak smile, hoping that she would turn it down.

“Well first I’m not calling her, and second if she calls again and asks you that stupid question! Tell her I said to shove it.” she turned around and walked back to her room. It was already midday and she had nothing to do but lay around and listen to music, she turned up the radio and continued to sing along to her favorite song “HE’S THE REASON FOR THE TEAR…DROPS ON MY GUITAR”

AJ held the phone in his hand, sighing in frustration he dialed the number and let it ring once then again and hung up. “What will I say…there is just no way to make this right.” he smacked himself with the phone and put it back where it went. Suddenly the phone began to ring, he looked at it for a while and then slowly picked it up “Hello”

“Did you call?” the voice asked a little hastily.

“Yeah…it’s just I couldn’t find my balls…so I hung up” there was a small laughter on the line and AJ joined in. “It sucks that we are in this situation over a girl.”

There was a pause “…no shit! Remember we all including Kevin, made a pact that, that would never happen. You know it’s not really cause of the girl. It’s more cause of our stupidity”

AJ let out a loud sigh “Listen I’m sorry for kissing Millie last night, I deserved that busted lip. I’m so confused lately…it’s like I feel like I love her…but I know I don’t, not like you do. Cause you do right?”

There was another pause of silence on the line, AJ could practically hear Howie thinking “I don’t know…I think I do.”

“You can’t think you do, or you’ll end up like me. You either know or you don’t. Anyways, I was just worried about her and she doesn’t want to talk to me. So…how did it go last night?” he asked curiously.

“Fine, she was a mess. But I got her to sleep and I fell asleep myself. You know I was racking my damn brain all night…I know that she will forgive us by just saying sorry. I’m just afraid of that not being enough…then I saw Leigh a couple of days ago and I’m all confused.”

AJ cleared his throat “You want to get a beer and talk about it, like adults?” he held his breath waiting for the answer.

“…Ok…I’ll meet you at Saddle Ranch around five. Cool?”

AJ smiled anywhere was ok, as long as he had the chance to get one of his best friends back. “Cool.” the twosome hung up.

That night Millie hung out with her dad, playing board games, sipping on sodas and eating popcorn. She would never let her mother have the satisfaction of bringing her father down, he would always have her by his side. “I love you dad” she smiled as she moved her black checker over her dad’s red one. “Got you again” she giggled.

“I love you too sweetheart.” he smiled. “So you going to forgive the guys?” he casually asked moving his game piece.

She shrugged and bit on her nail “I suppose so, it was a stupid thing for them to do. But AJ has been my best friend for a long time and well Howie is genuinely a sweet man. I’ll forgive them, but that’s it. I wont give way to be hurt by either one of them again.” they continued to play.

Howie and AJ met at the bar and drank a couple of beers trying to come up with a plan on how to get Millie to forgive them, shard a couple of laughs about some of their memories of past tours, then moved on to the new tour starting in the middle of August.

“Well if things don’t work out for you and Millie now, maybe you should invite her to the opening concert and say something over the mic. That should get her attention” AJ laughed taking a sip of his beer “Ok maybe that would be a little to much.”

“The inviting her to the concert is a good thing, but I would die before saying something in front of thousands of girls…women…grandmas…” The twosome began to laugh again and continued their conversation into the night.

Meanwhile Kevin, Kristen, Nick and Sarah had a peaceful and romantic dinner including Mason that put in his two cents every so often with his gurgles and giggles, making the table break into an occasional laughter.