Everyone looked up at Diana, who seemed surprised upon seeing Ashley there.
She looked at her for a moment, not really knowing what to say. It had been so
long since she had even thought about her.
Ashley looked at her nervously. " Hi Diana. How are you?"
" Pretty good.A little surprised to see you. How are you?"
" Well, considering I have a son in the hospital, I'm okay. He got pretty
banged up in the tornado."
Diana nodded. " I would be worried too. Will he be okay?"
" Yeah. They are just running some more tests before letting him out."
Taylor got out of his seat, and hugged his mom. " I have someone for you to
meet, mom." He nodded towards Arielle.
Hugging her son back, she looked over at Arielle. She automatically saw the
resemblance to Ashley. And when she looked closer, she could see a little bit of
Taylor in her. " I have a feeling I know. Your Ashley's daughter with my
son?"
Arielle nodded nervously, and shook Diana's hand as she introduced herself.
Then she shook her grandfather's hand, who stood by Diana's side.
There was lots of tension, as Ashley hadn't been around the family for so
long, and for a good reason. Diana and Walker had agreed with her parents that
both had been too young to have such a serious relationship. Now they were
finding out that she hadn't aborted the baby after all. It was quite a
shock.
No one said anything for a few minutes, unsure of what to say. The moment of
silence was finally broken when Arielle's phone rang. She started to answer it,
but her dad stopped her. " I think whoever this is can wait, Arielle. You have a
family to spend some time with, that you need to get to know."
" But what if it is Christopher? I can't just ignore him." Arielle asked.
" Take a look. But if it is anyone else, don't asnwer it." He told her.
She didn't listen. hen she saw it was the guy in high school she had been
with the one time, she couldn't help herself. The two hadn't talked since then,
and she missed him. But her mom was right there, and she grabbed it from her,
hanging up on him. " You heard what your dad said."
" Mom, I need to talk to..."
" No. You can talk to Mark later." Ashley interrupted her. " Speaking of, was
it him that you..."
" I'm not telling you who I slept with, mom!" She exclaimed, feeling
embarrased. Her face turned a bright shade of red, and she had to look away from
her grandparents, who were now looking at her in shock.
Diana shook her head, unable to believe what she was hearing.Ashley saw her
reaction, and completely lost it. " Don't even beging to judge my daughter
because of what I did, or who you think she is! You have no right."
" Don't yell at my mom, Ashley. She has every right to be concerned." Taylor
snapped at her.
Natalie let out a loud whistle before another word could be spoken. " I think
we all need to take a step back, and think before we speak. Taylor, just go make
your daughter an appointment for a pregnancy test. Ashley, why don't you take
Arielle to go see her brother. I bet he would be happy to see her."
Taylor nodded in agreement. " Sounds like a good idea to me. Just... don't go
anywhere else, Ashley. I'll give you a call when I know what time the
appointment is." He walked into the house.
Without another word, Ashley took her daughter by the hand and they left.
___________________________________________
Isaac and Nikki were working around the house together. He was mowing the
lawn and picking up branches from the storm the other night, while she cleaned
up the kitchen. Monroe and Everett were in the living room playing video games,
enjoying spending some time together. They had been asked to clean up their
rooms after breakfast that morning, and neither had wanted to. But Nikki had
told them there would be no video games until they did. Isaac had agreed with
that, and both had to go upstairs and watch as they picked up their rooms. Now
they were more than happy to be done and playing.
But the peace and quiet over there was short lived when Kate showed up. She
was stressed out from her morning at home, and wanted someone to talk to.
Letting herself in after saying a quick hello to Isaac, she entered the kitchen
and sat down at the table. " Hey Nikki."
" Hey. You want a cup of coffee or something?" Nikki asked, as she continued
to wipe the counters down.
" Maybe something a little stronger if you got it. It's been a rough
morning."
That got Nikki's attention, and she turned to look at her. " What's wrong,
Kate?"
" Everything. Taylor wants for Arielle to live with him and Natalie, but they
are of course staying with us because of that stupid tornado. So all the drama
of that is being brought in." She sighed. " Not to mention it turns out Arielle
might be pregnant."
Nikki looked at her in surprise. " Who is the father? Did she say?"
" Here is a shocker for you. Ashley's ex husband raped her. Althought
apparently she had already lost her virginity to some guy. So it could be either
one of them."
" That is insane." Throwing the towel down, Nikki went into the fridge. " I
do have an open bottle of champagne if you want a mimosa."
Kate nodded her head to say yes. " We're all taking a break from each other
right now. Diana and Walker showed up, and things got a bit heated up. Ashley
went off of Diana."
" Spend as much time over here as you need. We have nothing going on over
here."
Isaac came into the kitchen then, and Taylor was right behind him. " I just
heard the big news, Kate. Tay told him his daughter may be pregnant, which I am
guessing you already told Nikki about?"
" Yeah." She looked up at Isaac. " It's all pretty insane right now."
Nikki turned around to give Taylor a hug. " I know you have had alot to take
in, Taylor."
" Yeah." He noticed the bottle of champagne. " Isn't it a bit early for
that?"
She laughed. " I am mixing up a mimosa for Kate. You want one?"
" No thanks. Another hug sounds good though." He sighed. " I am just... I
feel like I am about to lose it. I mean, first I find out that Ashley didn't
abour our daughter after all, and now not only are they here in town, but...
Arielle might be pregnant. It's all just too much."
Nikki gave him another hug. " It's okay, Taylor. You will get through
this."
Isaac poured two cups of coffee, and handed one to Taylor. " Nikki is right.
You have us to hold you up, man."
Taylor took a sip of his coffee, and set it down for a group hug from the
three of them.
_______________________________________________
Christopher was more than happy when his mom returned to see him again, and
thrilled to see Arielle with her. The tv had started to bore him, as nothing
good was even on. They even brought him one of his favorite snacks, a chocolate
chip cookie dough blizzard from Dairy Queen. Arielle had gotten herself a
snicker's blizzard and their mom had gotten a triple berry fruit smoothie.
" Dad showed up here looking for us, mom." Christopher told her, getting
goosebumps just thinking about it. " He was screaming for anyone to tell him if
they had seen us."
" He... he really was... here?" Ashley asked, nearly choking on a sip of her
smoothie.
" Yeah. I was so scared he would find me. I hid in the bathroom until I was
sure he was gone."
Arielle took a bite of her blizzard, and looked at her brother, noticing the
goosbumps. " I am not going to let him hurt either one of us again, Christopher.
Especially you." She gave him a little hug. " Your my little brother always,
even if we do have different dad's. And I will always protect you."
Christopher hugged her back, and smiled. " I love you, sis. Your the best."
The doctor came in just then with papers for Ashley to sign, which she did.
He told her that Christopher was well enough to go home, but to keep an eye on
him to be on the safe side.
To hear the news that he could go home made him happy. He finished off his
ice cream quickly so he could get dressed and get out of there.
The moment that they stepped out of the hospital though, they saw Brian
standing right there. Coming face to face with her ex husbamd, Ahsley threw him
a good punch to the face, and he staggered backwards. " If you ever come near me
or my kids again, I swear I will kill you."
Arielle took Christopher's and rushed him into the backseat of the car.
Ashley quickly got into the fron seat and drove away. She could tell that Brian
was really pissed off now, but she did not care. She had done what was needed to
get away from him before he could harm them.
She looked at her for a moment, not really knowing what to say. It had been so
long since she had even thought about her.
Ashley looked at her nervously. " Hi Diana. How are you?"
" Pretty good.A little surprised to see you. How are you?"
" Well, considering I have a son in the hospital, I'm okay. He got pretty
banged up in the tornado."
Diana nodded. " I would be worried too. Will he be okay?"
" Yeah. They are just running some more tests before letting him out."
Taylor got out of his seat, and hugged his mom. " I have someone for you to
meet, mom." He nodded towards Arielle.
Hugging her son back, she looked over at Arielle. She automatically saw the
resemblance to Ashley. And when she looked closer, she could see a little bit of
Taylor in her. " I have a feeling I know. Your Ashley's daughter with my
son?"
Arielle nodded nervously, and shook Diana's hand as she introduced herself.
Then she shook her grandfather's hand, who stood by Diana's side.
There was lots of tension, as Ashley hadn't been around the family for so
long, and for a good reason. Diana and Walker had agreed with her parents that
both had been too young to have such a serious relationship. Now they were
finding out that she hadn't aborted the baby after all. It was quite a
shock.
No one said anything for a few minutes, unsure of what to say. The moment of
silence was finally broken when Arielle's phone rang. She started to answer it,
but her dad stopped her. " I think whoever this is can wait, Arielle. You have a
family to spend some time with, that you need to get to know."
" But what if it is Christopher? I can't just ignore him." Arielle asked.
" Take a look. But if it is anyone else, don't asnwer it." He told her.
She didn't listen. hen she saw it was the guy in high school she had been
with the one time, she couldn't help herself. The two hadn't talked since then,
and she missed him. But her mom was right there, and she grabbed it from her,
hanging up on him. " You heard what your dad said."
" Mom, I need to talk to..."
" No. You can talk to Mark later." Ashley interrupted her. " Speaking of, was
it him that you..."
" I'm not telling you who I slept with, mom!" She exclaimed, feeling
embarrased. Her face turned a bright shade of red, and she had to look away from
her grandparents, who were now looking at her in shock.
Diana shook her head, unable to believe what she was hearing.Ashley saw her
reaction, and completely lost it. " Don't even beging to judge my daughter
because of what I did, or who you think she is! You have no right."
" Don't yell at my mom, Ashley. She has every right to be concerned." Taylor
snapped at her.
Natalie let out a loud whistle before another word could be spoken. " I think
we all need to take a step back, and think before we speak. Taylor, just go make
your daughter an appointment for a pregnancy test. Ashley, why don't you take
Arielle to go see her brother. I bet he would be happy to see her."
Taylor nodded in agreement. " Sounds like a good idea to me. Just... don't go
anywhere else, Ashley. I'll give you a call when I know what time the
appointment is." He walked into the house.
Without another word, Ashley took her daughter by the hand and they left.
___________________________________________
Isaac and Nikki were working around the house together. He was mowing the
lawn and picking up branches from the storm the other night, while she cleaned
up the kitchen. Monroe and Everett were in the living room playing video games,
enjoying spending some time together. They had been asked to clean up their
rooms after breakfast that morning, and neither had wanted to. But Nikki had
told them there would be no video games until they did. Isaac had agreed with
that, and both had to go upstairs and watch as they picked up their rooms. Now
they were more than happy to be done and playing.
But the peace and quiet over there was short lived when Kate showed up. She
was stressed out from her morning at home, and wanted someone to talk to.
Letting herself in after saying a quick hello to Isaac, she entered the kitchen
and sat down at the table. " Hey Nikki."
" Hey. You want a cup of coffee or something?" Nikki asked, as she continued
to wipe the counters down.
" Maybe something a little stronger if you got it. It's been a rough
morning."
That got Nikki's attention, and she turned to look at her. " What's wrong,
Kate?"
" Everything. Taylor wants for Arielle to live with him and Natalie, but they
are of course staying with us because of that stupid tornado. So all the drama
of that is being brought in." She sighed. " Not to mention it turns out Arielle
might be pregnant."
Nikki looked at her in surprise. " Who is the father? Did she say?"
" Here is a shocker for you. Ashley's ex husband raped her. Althought
apparently she had already lost her virginity to some guy. So it could be either
one of them."
" That is insane." Throwing the towel down, Nikki went into the fridge. " I
do have an open bottle of champagne if you want a mimosa."
Kate nodded her head to say yes. " We're all taking a break from each other
right now. Diana and Walker showed up, and things got a bit heated up. Ashley
went off of Diana."
" Spend as much time over here as you need. We have nothing going on over
here."
Isaac came into the kitchen then, and Taylor was right behind him. " I just
heard the big news, Kate. Tay told him his daughter may be pregnant, which I am
guessing you already told Nikki about?"
" Yeah." She looked up at Isaac. " It's all pretty insane right now."
Nikki turned around to give Taylor a hug. " I know you have had alot to take
in, Taylor."
" Yeah." He noticed the bottle of champagne. " Isn't it a bit early for
that?"
She laughed. " I am mixing up a mimosa for Kate. You want one?"
" No thanks. Another hug sounds good though." He sighed. " I am just... I
feel like I am about to lose it. I mean, first I find out that Ashley didn't
abour our daughter after all, and now not only are they here in town, but...
Arielle might be pregnant. It's all just too much."
Nikki gave him another hug. " It's okay, Taylor. You will get through
this."
Isaac poured two cups of coffee, and handed one to Taylor. " Nikki is right.
You have us to hold you up, man."
Taylor took a sip of his coffee, and set it down for a group hug from the
three of them.
_______________________________________________
Christopher was more than happy when his mom returned to see him again, and
thrilled to see Arielle with her. The tv had started to bore him, as nothing
good was even on. They even brought him one of his favorite snacks, a chocolate
chip cookie dough blizzard from Dairy Queen. Arielle had gotten herself a
snicker's blizzard and their mom had gotten a triple berry fruit smoothie.
" Dad showed up here looking for us, mom." Christopher told her, getting
goosebumps just thinking about it. " He was screaming for anyone to tell him if
they had seen us."
" He... he really was... here?" Ashley asked, nearly choking on a sip of her
smoothie.
" Yeah. I was so scared he would find me. I hid in the bathroom until I was
sure he was gone."
Arielle took a bite of her blizzard, and looked at her brother, noticing the
goosbumps. " I am not going to let him hurt either one of us again, Christopher.
Especially you." She gave him a little hug. " Your my little brother always,
even if we do have different dad's. And I will always protect you."
Christopher hugged her back, and smiled. " I love you, sis. Your the best."
The doctor came in just then with papers for Ashley to sign, which she did.
He told her that Christopher was well enough to go home, but to keep an eye on
him to be on the safe side.
To hear the news that he could go home made him happy. He finished off his
ice cream quickly so he could get dressed and get out of there.
The moment that they stepped out of the hospital though, they saw Brian
standing right there. Coming face to face with her ex husbamd, Ahsley threw him
a good punch to the face, and he staggered backwards. " If you ever come near me
or my kids again, I swear I will kill you."
Arielle took Christopher's and rushed him into the backseat of the car.
Ashley quickly got into the fron seat and drove away. She could tell that Brian
was really pissed off now, but she did not care. She had done what was needed to
get away from him before he could harm them.