the story of your life;

Kassie dripped her head into her knees, her body curled into a ball. "I screwed up so bad Whit..." she spoke lightly, fearing for what the doctor would tell her tomorrow. If she was pregnant she'd have to tell Alex, who was in no way shape or form ready for a child. The band was RIGHT in the thick of it all, leaving for a six month tour in two weeks. And then she and Alex would have to tell Rian that not only have they been sneaking around his, and everyone else's, back, she's also pregnant with his child. Then there's the fans... the press... she honestly didn't know what to do.

---

"You... you're fucking kidding me." Jack's jaw dropped, in awe of what his best friend had just told him. "So you're telling me that not only did she lie to him about having his kid, and leaving him the way she did. That... that.... bitch knew you were sneaking around and kept that from him too? Is anything she says the fucking truth or is it all lies... fucking snake." He couldn't believe that Alex would tell her of all people, and not his own best friend.

Whitney leaned over and rubbed Kassie's back. "If it's any consolation, you didn't screw up nearly as bad as I did. Jack doesn't wish death upon you. So you got that goin' for you." She whispered, leaning against her friend. She knew exactly how Kassie felt, seeing as she'd been in that spot two or so years prior. "Hey.... everything's gonna be fine. You know how you helped me through all of my shit? I'm gonna help you. It's all gonna be okay." Whitney gave her a squeeze and a soft smile. "No matter your decision, I'll one hundred percent support you. And I won't say anything to anyone until you want me to."

--

"Dude-- fucking chill. Seriously, you're pissing me off. I didn't tell her anything. She literally walked in while Kass and I were having sex, and Kass begged her to keep quiet. I'm honestly surprised that she didn't turn right around and tell him. " Alex spoke the first half of his sentence pointedly. "We didn't tell ANYONE. Until now. And for a good damn reason."

"Thank you Whit... I don't know how I could do this without you." Kassie leaned her head on her friends shoulder. "Come on, if we spend too long up here Rian will start asking questions, plus I wanna see my niece." Kassie stated, rising to her feet and wiping at her eyes, making herself look presentable to her brother.

---

"What reason Alex? What reason could you possibly have for lying to your BEST FRIENDS for three years? Cause I can't think of one that is worth it." Jack glared, tired of Alex defending Whitney. "You didn't even tell me - I figured it out. I'm your best friend Alex, or at least I though I was. You didn't think I'd be happy for you? That I'd ruin your little secret romance? You ever think that maybe the only reason you guys are even together is because its this huge secret. I bet that once it comes out the thrill is gonna die out and she's gonna leave. Just like her BITCH of a so called friend did." The words flew out of his mouth faster than he could stop them, but the moment his voice stopped flowing throughout the room he knew he had made a huge mistake.

"That is if we can get her away from your mother." Whitney laughed, knowing just exactly how mama Dawson was. She took a packet of makeup wipes out of her purse and gave one to Kass, letting her wipe her face before following her best friend downstairs.

--

Alex clenched his fists before standing up, resisting the very strong urge to punch Jack right in the face. "Get the fuck out of my house right now before I do something I regret. The only reason I'm not knocking you the fuck out right now is because you're my best friend in the world." Not even waiting for Jack to sputter out an apology, the vocalist turned on his heel and headed upstairs to his bedroom, slamming the door behind him.

Jack watched quietly as Alex rose to his feet, reasonably angry at what he had just said. He nodded at Alex's order to leave and watched as he stormed upstairs. Fuck he had screwed up. Jack stood, grabbing his things and leaving quickly.

---

"Thanks Whit." Kassie smiled, cleaning up around her eyes a bit before heading downstairs to meet the eyes of her parents, Rian, and her favorite little girl. Once again, when their eyes met, Charley's face lit up and she rose her arms toward Kassie 'Assie Assie'.

"So that's what you didn't tell your brother." Her mother stated, looking at the young girl who clearly loved her aunt. Seeing how much Charley wanted to see Kassie, she handed her over "I need to finish dinner. Are yous all staying?"

Rian glanced at Whitney before nodding. " Yea Ma, if Whit doesn't mind then we're gonna stay. Let you and dad get a bit more time with Charley." He stated, looking over at Kassie with Charley and he smiled. They clearly had a band and that was something he couldn't be mad at.

Whitney nodded her head to indicate that she wanted to stay. She was always a sucker for Rian's mom's cooking. A grin took residence on her face as she watched Charley rest against Kassie-- those two definitely had a special bond, just as if not more so than the one Whitney shared with her daughter.

"She already has Pops wrapped," Whitney announced, laughing slightly as she looked over at Rian's father. "It was the same way with my mom, though. One look and she was done for."

Kassie smiled down at Charley, who now happily rested in her arms, and began playing peek-a-boo with the young girl. It was her favorite game to play and Kassie couldn't help but love the giggles it produced. Her dad watched fondly, the smile not leaving his face and his eyes not leaving Charley.

---

"You should've seen my mom down here earlier." Rian grinned. The fact that his parents were so accepting of Charley, and they welcomed back Whitney without even a second thought, made him the happiest guy in the world. The only person he had left to tell was his brother, and he had no doubts it would go just as smoothly as this.

Whitney beamed as she watched Kassie with Charley, her baby girl erupting into giggles as they played Peekabo. She always loved watching those two interact, ever since Kassie was the first person to hold her after Whitney. It warmed her heart. "Burn up some of that energy so she'll actually sleep tonight." The young mother joked, getting up to go help Rian's mother in the kitchen.

--

A few hours later, when the sky was dark, Whitney and Rian finally headed back for Rian's place. Charley was fast asleep in the backseat, and Whitney gently held Rian's free hand in her own. She was kind of dreading getting back to Rian's house because she had no idea what was going to happen after that. Whitney knew they still had a ton to talk about, and truth be told she didn't want to leave Rian's side now that they had spent the whole day together. But she wasn't sure how to approach the subject.

Kassie closed the door after Rian and Whitney left for the night, locking it swiftly. Her parents had gone to bed about an hour earlier and had left the job of locking up and turnimng put the lights to Kassie. She walked around the house, making sure all the lights were off and back door was locked before heading back upstairs to her old bedroom. She looked at the unanswered text Alex had sent her before sighing and setting her phone on the nightstand beside her. She just couldn't talk to him until she knew for sure.

---

Rian pulled into his driveway slowly, having finally come to a decision about how to handle the rest of the evening. He had been debating in his head the entire drive on whether or not he would ask her too stay. "So... listen," he started, cutting off the engine "I would love it if you could stay the night with me... I just got you back and the last thing I want is to be apart. But... we've gotta think about Charley... and I don't have a crib. I think you should goo back to your mom's tonight.... and then tomorrow you and I can go out and you can help me baby prep my house."

Whitney nodded her head, looking into the backseat at her sleeping daughter. As much as she wanted to sleep next to Rian, she knew that he was right. They were parents now and Charley had to come first. "You're right." She whispered, nodding her head. "I'll be over tomorrow morning... and I'll bring coffee." She reached out and rested a hand on Rian's cheek for a second before letting it drop. "I love you." Whtiney leaned in to give Rian a kiss before the two got out, hooking Charley's carseat back up in Whitney's car. Once the baby was secure, Whitney turned and gave Rian a tight hug, only letting go when she had to. "I'll text you when I get home. I love you. I love you." She gave him another kiss before climbing into the car and heading back to her mother's place.

--

The next morning, Whitney woke up before Charley so she could get dressed and put on some makeup. Mercifully, Charley didn't wake up until Whitney had just finished her eyeliner. "Hey there, muffin-- you ready to go see daddy?" Whitney asked her daughter, kissing her forehead. She snapped a quick picture of Charley, crazy bedhead and all, to Rian along with the text Hope you're awake, because your girls are about to be on their way. As soon as I get cranky ass here ready<3
--

Alex woke up, frowning when he saw that Kassie hadn't texted him back. He was worried-- they normally never went this long without some sort of communication. He quickly sent her another text. Good morning, princess. I love you. Please call me ASAP. xoxoxox He knew he was probably going a bit overboard, but Jack's words were still heavy in his mind. What if he was right? As much as Alex hated that he was thinking that, his anxiety started to creep into his brain. He didn't know what he would do without Kassie.

Kassie laid in bed, blinking a few times as she gathered her surroundings. It didnt take long for that same overwhelming nausea that took over her body yesterday to rear its ugly head again. She threw the covers off her body so fluidly it was as if they had never been on her in the first place as she ran into the bathroom, emptying the contents of her stomach. She stood, turning on the shower after flushing the toilet. It was roughly 9 am, so she had just under 3 hours until her appointment.

After getting out of the shower, Kassie returned to her room and grabbed a set of spare clothes out of her closet. Looking through the closet she found some old jewelry and a pair of boots she hasn't wanted to get rid of. She finished getting dressed and grabbed her phone, noticing another text from Alex. Cant talk, will try to stop by after drs appt. Love you She replied before slipping it into her back pocket. Whitney would probably be at Rian's so she figured she'd meet her there.

---

Rian smiled at the picture on his phone, saving it immediately and making it his phone background. Cant wait - see you soon :*.

Looking around his kitchen he sighed, there was a lot of things he'd have to do to really get the place ready for a baby to live there. One of them was talk to Kassie about moving out and giving Charley her room, he felt terrible about it but it was something he had to do. He'd help her find a place... maybe if he found some nice places first it wouldn't make the blow seem so hard... He didn't want her to think he was doing it because she had lied about Charley

Just then, Kassie walked through the door, dropping her keys in the little jar by the door. "Hey... thought you had a doctors appointment today."

Whitney smiled brightly at the sight of the text from Rian. "Your daddy's so excited to see you, even with your crazy bedhead." She spoke, kissing Charley's head. The young mother quickly got her daughter bathed, changed, and dressed before loading her up in the car. Whitney left a note for Bev on the fridge telling her where the two were going. When she'd gotten home the previous night, Whitney and her mother had stayed up half the night talking about all that had happened hat day. Bev agreed that it would be best for Charley if she and Whitney moved back in with Rian. It wasn't like they were moving across the country, only about ten minutes down the road.

Once Whitney wrangled Charley into the carseat, she handed Charley her sippy with milk in it before climbing into the front seat and beginning the drive toward's Rian's place. They were about three quarters of the way there when Whitney heard a splash, and Charley immediately started crying. Whitney glanced in the rearview mirror and groaned audibly when she saw that Charley managed to unscrew the lid and spill the milk all over herself. "Seriously, kid? You had to do that while I'm driving?" She shook her head. Of course, Whitney packed another outfit him the diaper bag-- but she was driving. It wasn't like she could change her daughter's clothes while she was navigating the neighborhood.

Kassie looked up as she dropped her keys in the little dish by the door, closing it behind her. She nodded to her brother, walking into the kitchen to make herself a cup of coffee. "I do..." she confirmed, trailing off as she opened the fridge "Its not until noon though, plus Whitney is coming with me and i figured she'd be here. " She finished just as the Kuerig finished, pouring in her creamer and returning it to the fridge.

"Where is Whit anyway, I thought for sure she would've stayed the night." Kassie questioned, leaning against the counter opposite Rian. They looked identical in their stances, almost as though they were looking in a mirror. She took a sip of her coffee as her eyes scanned the house, there was no sign of life other than the two of them.

---

Rian watched her pull her things out, making a cup of coffee for herself as she explained. His eyebrows raised a bit at the mention of Whitney going to the doctors appointment with Kassie, but figured it was just Kassie being Kassie in her hatred of doctors offices.

" She and Charley are on the way. I don't have a crib here and I need to baby proof the place so I sent her back to her mom's last night and we're going out to get me everything I need. " Rian explained, taking a sip of his own coffee "By the way, Matt wants to know if you can do merch for us on this tour, Vinny's wife is due any day now and he doesn't wanna leave. "

---

Kassie nodded, his explanation making sense. She'd have to offer her room up for Charley. After all the only reason she had moved in was so Rian wouldn't be alone, now he's got Whitney and Charley and it'd just be awkward. "Yea not a problem. " She agreed, it'd give her sufficient time to find a new place.

Whitney finally rolled into the driveway, Charley's screeching nearly driving her up the wall. Charley was such a primp and proper little one, she always hated being messy-- so, naturally, she was freaking out right then. "Chill out, nugget! I'll change your clothes when we get inside." She cut the engine before getting out of the car, slinging her diaper bag over her shoulder and freeing Charley from her carseat with her free hand. "Aunt Kass is here, nugget! See her car?" Whitney pointed to the car before heading up Rian's driveway, gently bouncing Charley to console her while she knocked on the door.

"Hey, you." She stood on her tip toes and gave Rian a kiss as she entered the house. "Someone spilled milk all over herself and my backseat on the way here... give me a sec. Hey, Kass!" Whitney called into the kitchen as she headed to the bathroom. She quickly bathed Charley the best she could with a wash cloth and some lukewarm water from the sink before changing her into a different onesie and some little pants. Once that was done, Whitney put Charley down so she could crawl/walk and followed her daughter out of the bathroom.

"Fuck, I forgot coffee." She slapped her hand to her forehead as she remembered, shaking her head. "Your daughter was singing the song of her people and I couldn't concentrate on anything."

"Hey yourself." He smiled as she walked off into the bathroom with Charley, calling out a quick hello from his sister.

Rian chuckled, shaking his head as he watched the dishelved young mother realized her mistake. "It's alright Whit, besides we can just get lunch when you two get back. Give me Charley, stop for a coffee for yourself on the way to the doctors and when you get home we can go shopping okay." Rian grinned, kissing her on the forehead, just as he always had.

---

"Hey Whit!" Kassie called back, waiting for her best friend to finish washing up and changing her niece. She came back down, Charlie in tow, and Kassie laughed to herself when Whit realizes she hadn't brought coffee.

"Rian has a great idea, why don't we pass over the little angel and you and I could get going. We have a tiny drive ahead of us."

Whitney beamed as soon as Rian's lips touched her forehead. While she was gone, it was the little stuff like that that she missed. She realized that she'd taken everything for granted-- and now that she was back, Whitney was never going to do that again. Whitney looked down at the now clean baby in her arms, handing Charley over to Rian. "That sounds like a good idea. I could use a coffee the size of an oil drum." She laughed before giving Charley a kiss on the head. "Be good for your dad, kid. Don't give him too much trouble." Whitney smoothed back Charley's hair before turning her attention to Rian, giving him a kiss as well. "Everything you could possibly need is in her diaper bag. If you have any questions about anything, or if she's just being a little shit, just call me. I love you." Whitney gave Rian another kiss before readjusting her purse on her shoulder. "Okay, Kass, let's hit the road. We're taking your car because mine smells like milk." She laughed.

because I hate my life and this button

" Sounds good to me. Bye Charlie, see you Ri." Kassie called back as the duo walked out the door. After they were safely in her car and on the road, Kassie glanced over at Whitney as she chewed on her lip. " What the hell am I going to do if I am... they want me to go on tour for merch. I can't hide it from Rian of I'm on tour and we both know he's gonna throw a fit about me going. Alex too "

"Well, we all know what my immediate reaction is to finding out about a pregnancy. So I'm probably not the best person to ask for advice on that subject. But honestly, Kass, first thing to do if you found out that you were pregnant would be to tell Alex. Then, you two make a decision together about what to do. But ultimately, it's your choice. And then once you and Alex talk, you need to talk to your brother. I'm gonna be there to prevent Rian from committing homicide, but it needs to happen."

"Homicide. Right." Kassie breathed out, her hands tightening against the wheel as she pictured telling Rian about her relationship with one of his best friends. To be honest, she and Alex had brought it upon themselves by waiting 3 years, possibly more, before telling everyone. "Fuck." She muttered as she went through the drive-thru. The pair got their coffee and it seemed like seconds before they were at the gynecologist. This was it.

---

Rian grinned to himself as Charlie crawled around on the floor, exploring his living room. Keeping a close eye to make sure she didn't get into anything she shouldn't, he grabbed his phone and called Alex - wanting to check in on the singer.