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“Your girls here, bro.” Misha called from the hallway that evening. He was greeting the kids when they came in and had noticed the Armada pull up outside. Within seconds Kenny was standing beside him.

"Where is she?" He asked.

"You're pathetic, dude." Misha rolled his eyes.

"Whatever." Kenny bounced on his heels as he waited for Darien to step inside. He had been trying to text her ever since she had left and after just a few, she had stopped. He was worried. And then he became even more so when he saw Darien's face. She looked like she had been crying all afternoon, her eyes were red and swollen and her cheeks were ruddy. "What happened to you?" He put his hands on her cheeks and lifted her eyes to his.

"It's nothing." She sniffled and looked away. "I'm fine."

"You're not fine, Darien. You're breaking my heart here." Kenny pulled her in close and wrapped his arms around her. Luckily, Ainsley had wandered off. Kenny drew her into the breakroom and grabbed a tissue. "What happened?"

"I got into a huge fight with Nick and I feel so damn guilty." She sobbed, her head sinking down.

"Did you fight about me?" Kenny hated being the bone of contention.

"You and me and dancing and everything else. Nick's so depressed and it's killing me. We went through this before and he got help, but being on the road alone is hard on him." Darien wiped her face and shook her head. "And I keep telling myself that it's not my problem anymore, but I know that the only reason he's feeling that way is because of me."

"It's not your fault." Kenny tried to soothe her.

"It is my fault. I left him and he didn't even know I was going to." She sank into a chair and put her head on the table. "I ruined his life to make mine better. Is that fair?"

"Life isn't fair, Darien. Nick's gonna have to man up and deal with this. You can't take all the blame." Kenny rubbed her shoulders and wished he knew what to say. "If he had been everything he was supposed to be, would you have left him?"

"It wasn't him, Kenny. He was a great husband." Darien shook with sobs.

"Then why are you here with me, Dare? Why aren't you in Canada somewhere on a tour bus?" Kenny turned away from her. Seeing her crying over another man broke his heart.

"Because I wanted more. I've always wanted more. When will it be enough?" She wondered and wiped her face with her sleeve.

"I don't know, Darien." Kenny turned and looked at her. "But you better figure this out. Go home and get some rest. Call Rochelle and talk to her. Hell, talk to Nick again. I'll bring Ainsley home after class."

"You don't have to do that. She's my responsibility." Darien stood up and tried to compose herself.

"Don't start that shit. She's fine with me and she definitely doesn't need to see you like this." Kenny brushed her hair away from her face. "Go home and work it out. You need to."

"She hasn't eaten yet." Darien could see the wisdom in Kenny's words and agreed with him. Ainsley had been through enough. She didn't need to be witness to her mother's breakdown.

"I'll feed her." Kenny said softly. "Go home."

"Ok." Dare nodded and smiled softly at him. "Thank you."

"It's not a big deal. I'll text you when we're heading that way." Kenny watched her walk out of the studio and sighed deeply. He leaned against the counter and got his pounding heart under control before joining his class that was already started. Ainsley gave him questioning looks, but he managed to put her off until class was over. She made a beeline for him when he called for dismissal.

"Where's my mom?" She asked, sweat dripping down her face.

"She's having a bad night, kid. She went home. You're stuck with me." Kenny explained as best he could without giving everything away.

"She's fighting with Dad again." Ainsley rolled her eyes and walked over to her bag. Kenny wasn't surprised she had it figured out.

"You babysitting tonight?" Misha asked, a towel draped around his sweaty neck.

"Yeah. I'm gonna get her dinner and then take her home. Think you can lock up?" Kenny asked.

"Sure." Misha nodded. He had heard a little from the breakroom and he really hoped his friend knew what he was getting into. Divorce was never easy on anyone, no matter how much they said they wanted it. Especially when there was a child involved.

"Ainsley? You ready to get out of here?" Kenny called across the room.

"Can we wait awhile? I'd like to dance some more." She asked, her eyes troubled. Kenny understand what she wanted and nodded.

"Sure. Studio 4 is empty. Take all the time you need. I'll be in my office." He touched her head as he walked off. Dancing had always been his way to blow off his frustration as well so he could respect that she wanted some time alone. He got a bottle of water and went to his office. He had a few movie scripts that his agent wanted him to look over and he had been putting it off. This would be a perfect time to get caught up. Leaning back in his chair, he propped his feet up and started reading. An hour later, he looked up when Misha knocked on the door.

"You alright?" He asked and stepped inside.

"Yeah. She still dancing?" Kenny asked.

"Yeah. She never gets tired." Misha smiled. "She reminds me of you that way."

"I'm tired now, bro." Kenny sighed and put the papers down.

"Didn't realize what you were getting into?" Misha asked.

"I don't think so."

"I think you're ready for it. You'll be a good dad." Misha said, surprising Kenny completely.

"Dude, I'm not having any kids. What are you talking about?" His eyes looked scared.

"Bro, she's out there doing an angry dance. You gonna be with her mama, you gonna be her dad. Carter's gone all the time. Who do you think that girl's gonna look up to?" Misha rolled his eyes. Sometimes Kenny was an idiot.

"I haven't thought about it."

"I know, but you're already doing it. You've been ready to settle down for awhile now." Misha gave him a puzzled look. "I don't know why when we're young and hot and successful, but I can see that the one night stands and late nights at the bar aren't exactly for you anymore."

"You're right." Kenny nodded. "It is all getting exhausting to me."

"I know. We all know." Misha said. "Just make sure this is for sure what you want before you get in too deep and can't get back out."

"She's what I want." Kenny said with conviction. "She's what I need."

"Well then good luck, brother." Misha stood and left the office. Kenny watched his friend leave and thought about how sometimes Misha surprised him. With a wry smile, he grabbed his things and went to interrupt Ainsley.


Kenny dropped Ainsley off and decided not to go in. He turned his music up and sped all the way back to his apartment. There were some things he needed to think over. He was really concerned that Darien still had feelings for Nick. They had been together for a long time and he knew from experience that it was hard to turn those feelings off. He had been young and stupid when he had broken up with Ashley for all the wrong reasons. It had taken him years to deal with his regrets and it had only gotten better when she had started to date someone else. Seeing her move on, made him face facts.

Kenny turned into his complex and wondered if maybe that's what Nick needed. Someone new in his life. Then he could see that Darien wasn't the only woman out there for him. He got out of his car and locked it before heading upstairs. Kenny got his phone out and a sent a quick text to Darien as he stepped into his apartment. i miss u. please call when u figure ur shit out. remember we have class in the morning. He added a winky face and tossed his phone on the counter. His apartment smelled funky since he hadn't been spending a lot of time here lately. He flipped some music on and set about cleaning it. Never his favorite chore, but one that needed to be done. As he was putting laundry in the washer, his phone rang. He couldn't stop the relief from flooding his body when he saw it was Darien.

"Hey. How are you?" He asked, cradling the phone next to his shoulder.

"I'm ok." Darien was curled in her bed with soft music playing in the background. A pile of used Kleenex were next to her. "Thanks for bringing Ainsley home."

"You're welcome." Kenny wanted to ask her if she had taken care of her stuff, but he knew it wasn't his place to pressure.

"I was surprised at your text."

"Why?"

"I didn't figure you'd want to dance with me anymore after I flaked out earlier."

"It happens to everyone, Darien. It's not a big deal." Kenny closed his eyes and leaned against the washer.

"It is a big deal, Kenny." Darien rolled over and stared at the ceiling. "I know I don't love Nick anymore, but every time I think about him I'm eaten up with guilt."

"Why do you feel guilty?" Kenny wondered.

"I ruined his life."

"What about your life? You gonna live it for someone else? Don't you deserve to be happy, too?" Kenny rubbed his head and sighed. "Haven't you ever heard the saying the ends justify the means?"

"Yeah." They were silent for a few minutes before Dare spoke again. "I wish you were here with me."

"Me too." Kenny stalked to the kitchen and got a beer from the fridge.

"Then come back over." Darien pleaded.

"I can't, Dare. It's not right." It killed him to turn her down.

"Why not?" She groaned.

"Because you're not ready and I don't want to be that guy."

"What guy?"

"The guy who takes advantage of an emotional girl. I refuse to be that guy with you." Kenny took a long swallow of beer. "When I make love to you, I want to be the only man in your thoughts. And I sure as hell don't want there to be any regrets."

"I wasn't asking for sex." Darien squeezed her eyes shut, knowing she was lying to herself.

"No, but we both know that's what would happen if I came over there tonight." Kenny hated being the voice of reason. "So, I'm gonna let you go and get to bed. We've got a busy day tomorrow."

"Ok." Darien said. She couldn't help feeling disappointed. "I'll see you in the morning then."

"Good night, Darien."

"Good night, Kenny." And she hung up the phone.