A Twist in My Story

Danielle’s stomach twisted in knots as she ran the doorbell to Spencer’s apartment. Sure, she had agreed to this, but now she was second-guessing herself. She didn’t think she was ready to spend an entire evening with Spencer and his son.

She heard yelling from behind the door and shortly after it was pulled inward, revealing Spencer holding an upside-down Ian over his shoulder. “Elle, you made it. Please, come in,” he invited with a smile, stepping aside to allow her to enter.

Danielle timidly stepped inside as Spencer put Ian back down on his feet. She turned to look at them—Ian was staring at her from behind Spencer’s long legs. Even though she had seen Ian twice now, when she first met him and that day they were at the beach, she hadn’t interacted with him either times.

“Hi Ian,” she smiled down at him, hoping to coax him out from behind his father’s legs.

“Say ‘hi’ buddy,” Spencer encouraged, pulling the toddler up into his arms. Danielle smiled at them—Ian looked so much like Spencer, especially when their faces were side-by-side this way.

“Hi,” he mumbled before burying his face in Spencer’s shoulder.

“Sorry. He usually isn’t this shy around people. He must be intimidated because you’re so pretty,” Spencer stated.

Danielle rolled her eyes good-naturedly but smiled at the compliment. “So, what exactly are we going to be doing tonight?” she asked as she pulled off her light jacket. They were in October now—it was definitely starting to get chillier.

Spencer set Ian down and he took off down the hallway leading off the living room. “Well, I was thinking we could make dinner. Ian will undoubtedly warm up to you and then brace yourself. He’ll be making you watch his shows, play with his toys, and read him his bedtime story. You can also help me with his bath. He’ll jump into the beach no problem but when the water is in a tub, he throws a tantrum.”

“Wow, you’re really throwing me to the wolves here,” Danielle teased.

“Hey, you wanted a crash course in parenting didn’t you?” he challenged back.

Danielle shrugged. Spencer motioned for her to follow him into the kitchen. She already saw a few ingredients out on the counter. “Let me guess, it’s spaghetti and meatball night?”

“Yup. It’s his favorite meal. Usually I can’t get him to sit down for a meal, but if its spaghetti and meatballs, no fuss,” Spencer responded. “Just a mess.”

“Is he naturally fussy all the time?” she asked as she leaned against the counter and watched him stir sauce in a pot.

“He still has his terrible-two’s tendencies, but he’s definitely getting better. I’m hoping that since you’re here tonight, he’ll behave himself,” he replied.

“I see, you’re using me to your advantage,” Danielle mused.

“Oh definitely,” he replied with a smirk. “And right now I’m going to request your exquisite culinary work. Wanna help with a salad?”

Danielle laughed freely. “Sure,” she responded before pulling her sleeves up and getting to work around the kitchen. After five minutes Spencer excused himself to go check on Ian. Shortly after Ian came running back down the hall and into the kitchen. He stopped in front of her and looked up at her.

“Hey Ian,” she said, pausing what she was doing to get down to his level.

“You daddy’s friend?” he asked.

“Yea.”

“And Katie’s sister?” he asked, his ‘r’ sounding like a ‘w’.

Danielle’s lips lifted in a gentle smile at his adorableness. “Uh-huh.”

That seemed to be all the approval the three year-old needed. He smiled up at her before reaching for her hand and pulling on her arm. She straightened up and allowed him to lead her into the living room. There were toys littered all over the floor—trucks, cars, trains, and a giant red wagon. Ian sat down in the middle of all of it and looked up at her expectantly. She saw Spencer come back down the hall out of the corner of her eyes and turned to look at him.

“Sorry, but looks like you just lost yourself your kitchen helper,” she said with a shrug.

Spencer smiled softly. “It’s okay.” Danielle smiled down at Ian before settling in next to him. For the next thirty minutes, she listened as he told her the names of all his trains and explained how they helped the other toys that were in trouble. She played along with him, pretending to be a toy in distress and allowing him to rescue her toy. She smiled at the look of pride that brightened up his face when Thomas the Tank Engine rescued her, just like he did on the TV show, which thanks to her lunch with Spencer the other day, she knew was among his favorites.

“Okay you two, it’s time for dinner,” Spencer proclaimed as he came into the room.

“No daddy. We play wif Tom,” Ian pouted, holding up the blue train.

“No, it’s time for dinner,” Spencer repeated calmly.

“NO!” Ian yelled. “Elle play wif me,” he said defiantly.

Danielle exchanged a look with Spencer and decided to step in. “Why don’t we eat dinner now and later we can watch Thomas on TV? Your daddy made spaghetti and meatballs. He said that’s your favorite.”

Ian glanced at her speculatively. “Tom eat too?” he questioned.

“Yes, Tom can come too,” Spencer replied after Danielle looked at him for a response.

“Ok,” Ian said, standing up. Without thinking about it, Danielle bent down to scoop him up into her arms. He wrapped his arms around her neck and continued to talk to her as if his father hadn’t interrupted them. Glancing at the place settings, Danielle settled Ian into a chair with a plate that had cartoon vegetables on it and upon his insistence, sat at the head of the table so she’d be next to him.

Ian dominated most of the conversation, talking about childish things that had Danielle smiling and subconsciously rubbing her stomach. She was finding that she was enjoying having a child’s company. Her thoughts drifted off to the baby growing within her. She wondered if they were having a boy or a girl, what their baby was going to be like, and whether things between her and Kevin would be fine before the child was brought into this world.

“Elle!” Ian’s exasperated tone snapped her back to the moment. She looked at him and raised her eyebrows, signaling he had her attention. “We watch Thomas now,” he repeated.

She looked down and saw that his plate was cleared, most of the sauce on his face. She looked back at Spencer and he gave a brief nod of acceptance. Danielle turned and smiled back at Ian, using her napkin to wipe the sauce around his mouth. “Yes, we watch Thomas now,” she responded.

He nearly fell off his chair in his rush to drag her into the living room. “Ian, go set up the TV and Danielle will be right in ok? Daddy has to talk to her,” Spencer said, standing to clear the table. Ian shrugged and left the room without her. “You’re doing great so far, Elle. He didn’t even flinch when you wiped his face. He really likes you.”

“You really think I’m doing ok?” she questioned.

“Oh yea. Just look at him in there.” She turned and saw that Ian was kneeling on the couch facing her, bouncing in anticipation of her joining him.

“Wow, he can set up a DVD already?” she questioned.

“He was watching it earlier so he just had to turn on the TV but yea, he can set it up. Sometimes I wake up and find him sitting on the couch watching it on his own. It’s scary how fast kids pick things up these days.” Spencer saw her staring at his son curiously. “I’ll clean up in here and be with you in a little while. You probably shouldn’t keep him waiting much longer if you want to stay in his good graces.” With that Danielle joined Ian on the couch, smiling softly to herself when he snuggled into the crook of her arm and settled in to watch the cartoon about trains.

Once Spencer cleaned up the kitchen he walked into the living room and found Ian snuggled closely to Danielle and her arm strung loosely over his smaller frame. He stared at them for a moment, forcing down the emotions the sight of them together stirred within him. He had never had a woman around his son before—at least not a woman that he was involved with. Not that he was involved with Danielle either. He knew she was married and, despite their current separation, very much in love with her husband. And they were expecting their own child! But seeing Danielle and Ian together made him wonder what it would be like for Ian to have a mother figure. Sure he got plenty of attention from his grandmother, but Spencer’s mother wasn’t always around.

Or maybe it was just having Danielle around that was making him have these thoughts.

Danielle glanced up and smiled warmly at him. Spencer cleared his throat, and shook his head ridding himself of his previous thoughts. “Ok, it’s time for your bath Ian,” he claimed, walking fully into the room.

Ian looked up at him and instead of screaming that he didn’t want to, asked, “Can Elle do it?”

Spencer looked at her surprised face and shrugged, letting her know it was all up to her. Danielle smiled at Ian and nodded. “Sure, I’ll give you your bath. But you have to promise you won’t try giving me a shower. I already took one today,” she winked.

“Okay!”

Amazed at how willingly he was cooperating, Spencer went to the bathroom and filled the tub up with warm water, adding all of the toys Ian usually liked to play with during his bath. Ian came running ahead of Danielle and stopped beside the tub. “Take your clothes off bud,” Spencer instructed, walking out to talk to Danielle. “Elle, you don’t have to do this if it’s too weird. Honestly I’ll do it and you can sit on the toilet seat and just talk to him and distract him,” he offered.

“Don’t be silly Spence. The whole point was for me to experience parenting. This is definitely part of it. I don’t mind at all,” she assured.

“I ready!” Ian called shortly before they heard a splash. Both adults poked their heads into the room and saw that Ian was already sitting in the tub and playing with an inflated yellow tug-boat.

“Now why do you want your bath when Elle is here but you have to fight me every time I give you one?” Spencer asked, walking in behind Danielle. He motioned to the kid toiletries on the counter and sat down on the floor, letting Danielle take the toilet seat so she wouldn’t be uncomfortable.

“I like Elle,” Ian responded with a shrug.

“Ouch kid,” Spencer responded over Danielle’s melodic laughter. Ian shrugged again and continued playing with his tug-boat, creating an elaborate story that involved it and the rubber duck. Danielle squeezed a bit of body-wash on a blue wash cloth and started washing Ian up while she talked to him, asking him what was going on with his toys. Soon enough his hair had been shampooed, the backs of his ears had been cleaned, and underneath his fingernails had been brushed clean. Spencer was only slightly jealous that Ian had sat calmly through it all when he always fought him. But he was mostly glad for Danielle—everything was natural to her. She was taking care of Ian without second thoughts. She definitely had that maternal instinct that Emma had lacked with their son.

“Daddy, I brush my teeth,” Ian said, showing off his clean baby teeth before scooping more water into his mouth and spewing it out like a water fountain.

“This has to be a new record,” Spencer mumbled. “I guarantee you it won’t be like this tomorrow,” he added, shaking his head. Grabbing Ian’s towel he stood and motioned for his son to get out. Spencer wrapped him up in his towel and lifted him out of the tub, water trickling onto his shirt as he pressed Ian to him and carried him to his room. He set him down on the floor and dried him off. “Go put your jammies on,” he instructed.

“Can Elle read me a story?” he asked.

“Yes, she can. Jammies. Now.”

Ian hurriedly put on his pajamas and was soon on his bed, a book on his lap and an expectant look on his face. Danielle, who had been cleaning up the bathroom, came into the room and was informed by Spencer that Ian also wanted her to read him his favorite bedtime book. She flashed both males a smile before crawling into bed with Ian. He was asleep before she was even done the book.

Without jostling the bed, Danielle climbed out from underneath the covers and tucked Ian in. Spencer, who had been sitting in the rocking chair in a corner came over as well and bent down, pressing a kiss to his son’s temple. “Night son,” he whispered before leading Danielle out of the room.

“So, what’s the final verdict?”

Danielle turned to look at Spencer and raised her eyebrows. “What do you mean?” she asked.

“Do you think you’re ready? Are you going to be able to handle this?”

Danielle shrugged. “Luckily it’ll be a while before my baby gets to that age, so I’ll have practice with him or her,” she responded, her hand subconsciously falling on her expanding abdomen.

“Well I think you did great. You’re going to be absolutely fine,” he stated with a small smile.

“Thanks. And thank you for having me over tonight.”

“Anytime. Really.”

“Well, it’s getting late. I should go. I’ll see you around.” With a quick hug Danielle left the apartment.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Kevin was exhausted. He had so much on his mind already and didn’t particularly feel like dealing with the young, moody artist charged to him, but she had been off today and it was up to him as her producer to find out what was going on with her. After a quick knock on her hotel room door, she opened it and glanced up at him expectantly.

“Hey kiddo,” he started. “Mind if I come in? We need to talk.”

Brittany’s eyebrows scrunched together but she stepped aside and let him in. “What’s going on?” she asked, plopping down on her bed and crossing her legs underneath her. Kevin grabbed the chair in the room and pulled it up to her bed, sitting in front of her.

“I was hoping you’d tell me. Is everything okay?” he questioned, leaning back in his seat.

“Yea, everything’s fine. Why?”

“Well, that performance today wasn’t exactly your best. You seemed a bit distracted. So are you sure that everything’s alright?” he asked again.

Brittany Nicole released a heavy sigh and flopped down on her bed. “Sorry about that. I didn’t mean to let you down.”

“Hey now, no one said anything about you letting anyone down. But talk to me kid, what’s on your mind? Or is it girl issues?” he asked as an afterthought. He hadn’t thought about that being a possible cause for her distraction—she had been moody all day.

Kevin just managed to catch her rolling her eyes as she sat back up and looked at him. “No, it’s not girl issues. I don’t know why men automatically have to jump to that conclusion. We can have issues that aren’t related to that you know.”

“Okay, so then what is it?”

Britt sighed again. “I’m just in a fight with my boyfriend is all.” Kevin’s eyebrows rose. He wasn’t aware she had a boyfriend. Before he could probe about the cause of their argument, she elaborated. “One of his cousins is getting married next week and I was supposed to go with him to the wedding but that was before all of this—the record deal, the tour—happened. But I’m supposed to perform the day of the wedding. He wants me to just reschedule the date and go to the wedding with him. But he doesn’t understand that I can’t reschedule the date. It’s not like I can fly back out to Chicago on a different date to make up for that day. So he tried telling me to just skip that tour date then, but I don’t want to do that either. My music is my life and if playing as many shows in small clubs or malls will expand my fan base then I’m going to do that. I’ve wanted this, my whole life and I’m not going to take for granted the opportunity you guys are giving me,” she finished her rant with a gasp for air.

“Now I’m sorry I asked,” Kevin teased.

“I’m kind of glad you did. I needed someone to talk to about this but since my mom is working overtime today I haven’t been able to get a hold of her. I’d usually go to her with this kind of stuff.” They were both silent for a while. “What do you think I should do?”

“He’s asking you to choose between him and your career. You have to decide which is more important to you,” Kevin replied with a shrug.

“As if it’s that simple?! Like I said, I’ve wanted to make music since my grandfather taught me how to play guitar as a little girl. But Blaine, he means the world to me too. We’ve known each other since grade school. He’s been my best friend almost my entire life and I can’t imagine my life without him. I just don’t understand why he’s being like this. He’s always supported me in my dream to be an artist and now he’s making me choose?! It’s not fair!”

Kind of like him and Dani.

“Well, did he really give you an ultimatum? Either you go with him to the wedding or you’re not together anymore?” Kevin questioned.

“No, I guess not,” Britt responded.

“Well then why don’t you call him up again and tell him that you love him and that you really wish you could make it for the wedding but that this is your dream and that you wished he would be more supportive of you?” Kevin suggested.

Brittany Nicole was silent for a while, mulling over his words. Finally she looked up at him and asked, “we have the following day off…do you think we could just make the show for that day instead? That way I can fly back to Boston for the wedding and then come early in the morning and do the show at the club at night. We can do that, right?”

“You want to reschedule?” Kevin was surprised.

“Yea, I do. It just occurred to me why Blaine was getting so upset. He doesn’t want to come second to my music. He doesn’t want to be forgotten or replaced now that my dream is coming true.”

“And you know this because…?”

“He mentioned something about it in passing once. People always say ‘Don’t forget the little people when you’re rich and famous’ and I think even though he said it as a joke to me, he was being serious. I’d hate for him to think that he’s not important to me because he’s always been there for me. He’s helped me get to where I am. So yea, if we can reschedule I’d like to do that. And if not, well, I guess I’ll be okay with that.”

Kevin was barely listening to what she was saying. He was already thinking of the things he had to do in order to make this happen. He doubted they’d have a problem switching the dates, which was a good thing because they’d already paid the club to do the gig.

But once he was back in his room and all the phone calls that needed to be made had been made, he was left to think about what had just happened. Here was a sixteen year old girl with her entire future ahead of her, sacrificing what she’s always wanted to please her partner, someone who had been there for her through thick and thin.

And he was ashamed to think that he hadn’t been able to do that for his wife, who had been his best friend for years, had supported him in his ambition to become a music producer, and who he had made feel second best to his career for months.