Every Time You Fall Apart You Can Hide Here In My Arms

"Austin, how many is that?"

Austin stared down at the small Dixie cup of strawberry ice cream in her hand. "Three," she muttered sheepishly before taking another bite.

Mica frowned and stole the cup from her boss. "Seriously, I'm cutting off your supply."

Austin watched in horror as her best friend took a seat on the edge of her desk rather than in the chair, and began to finish her ice cream.

"Now come on, tell me what happened at this pary last night that was so horrible you have to drown yourself in ice cream?" she took another small bite, "this is delicious by the way."

Austin frowned and leaned back in her chair. "Well, Mica, I never really told you about how I got where I am today."

Mica smiled and hopped off Austin's desk, taking a seat in one of the chairs. "Did James sit in this chair? Cuz he's totally hot."

Austin couldn't help but laugh. "Mica, focus for just a second alright sweet heart," she filled her in on everything from her and Matt's toddler years to last nights events. She figured the whole story must've been pretty good because Mica had quit eating the ice cream, and was now staring at her wide eyed.

"You know the guys in Avenged Sevenfold?"

Austin nearly laughed out loud. Leave it to Mica to for go the most important components of the story to focus on her one true obsession, A7X.

"Yes, I do."

"Oh my god! How could you not tell me?"

Austin twirled around in her chair, like it was going to erase hard feelings, before facing her desk and her best friend again. "Because I'm a big baby, and I didn't feel like re-living everything again,"

"Well you could have at least..."

Mica was cut short by a soft knocking at the door.

"Who is it?" she whispered to Austin.

Austin looked at her and laughed. "I don't know, that's why I have a secretary," she winked and looked up at the door. "Come in!"

The door clicked and opened slowly and revealed a very petite but visibly pregnant girl.

"Austin?" she asked softly, closing the door behind her.

"Oh my god," Austin jumped out of her chair. "Leana?" She looked slightly different than she had the other night at the party, but it was undoubtedly her.

Leana smiled awkwardly at Mica then at Austin. "You know it," she held her arms out, hugging Austin to the best of her abilities.

She let go after a moment and gestured to one of the free chairs near Mica. "May I? There are alot of stairs in this building,"

Austin cocked an eyebrow at her long time friend, "and you didn't use the elevator why?"

Leana smiled between the girls. "Trying to stay in shape and do things for myself I guess. I thought this rug rat would give me one hell of a time before he got here, but so far he's been pretty good."

Austin shivering in excitement, "oh my god, it's a boy?"

Leana nodded and slid a hand over her stomach. "Yes, but don't tell Jimmy, he doesn't know."

"You know Rev to?" Mica asked, somewhat amused.

Laughing Austin gestured between the two girls and introduced them. "Leana, this is Mica, my best friend and secretary, Mica, this is Leana, Jimmy's wife...and son," she added.

"Oh wow," Mica shook Leana's hand and grinned like a moron. "So how much longer? If you don't mind me asking."

"About three months."

"Are you ready to be a mom?"

Like Val was a mom. Austin still couldn't believe that.

"No," Leana was shaking her head, but laughing lightly. "I'm not ready for this. I've already told Jimmy this might have to be one of those situations where I go here Rev, it's yours, you have to deal with it for the next nine months."

"Well you look very good my dear."

Leana smiled at Austin. "So do you. I wasn't sure if I should come visit you today or not, you know, after everything that happened last night."

"It was alot to handle I admit that."

A phone rang and Mica answered it sheepishly, embarassed for interrupting the conversation. She suddenly stood up and flipped her phone shut, "I'm sorry Austin but I have a few errands to run if that's alright?"

Austin looked her friend over, then nodded, "alright, are we still on for dinner tonight?"

Mica nodded. "Absolutely, Leana, it was a pleasure to meet you, and if you're not doing anything tonight you should come over with Austin...it's my turn to make supper."

Leana laughed and nodded. "Sure I'll see what's happening."

"Alright, bye ladies," she excused herself and slipped out the door.

"She seems like quite the girl."

"Yeah," Austin nodded. "Mica's about as sweet as they come. Next to you of course."

"Oh jeez," Leana smirked before the lines in his face appeared as she gave Austin a worried look. "So are you and Matt are alright?"

That caught Austin off guard and she looked directly at her friend. "Alright?"

"Yeah, as in friends?"

"I don't know," she really didn't constitue last night's little trip down memory lane the spark to rekindle their friendship. "It's just so weird around him now you know? And then when he told me about Val, and Maddison, I nearly hauled off and smacked him."

Leana's look was sincere. "Well, I think you should meet Mattie. She's a real sweetheart."

"I bet," Austin said sourly. It wasn't that she didn't think Mattie would be a sweet heart, because after all, the product of Matt and Val would be nothing but sweet, it was just too soon for her. "I don't know, Leana. I don't know if Matt even wants to see me again, let alone have a meet the family night."

"Oh he does," Leana assured her. "Last night when he finally got back to the house he wouldn't shut up."

"He was hammered."

"No, Brian was hammered," she interjected, "but Matt still has the hots for you."

"He's a dad," Austin agrued, trying everything she could think of. If Matt truly liked her, he wouldn't have taken off that quickly and abruptly. And he wouldn't have left her without so much as a goodbye.

"That's not going to change the way he feels about you, Austin."

Sure it did, because somewhere along the line, she lost him, and he grew some obviously intense feelings for Val.

***

Matt rolled over in bed onto his stomach and groaned when his insides churned in protest. If he moved any further, he was going to need the bathroom, and quickly.

Tucking his arms underneath one pillow he rested his kickass headache on his other pillow. The previous night's events were a jumble of bits and pieces randomly stuck together. Though one thing stuck out in his mind like a sore thumb. He had seen Austin again, he had told her about Val and Mattie, and she'd looked truly and compltely one hundred percent heart broken. That thought alone made him fly out of bed and to the bathroom, making it to the toilet just in time.

There was a knock at his bedroom door but there was no way in hell he would be able to make it to the door and back. He might be able to by crawling, but there was something about a grown man crawling on the floor that didn't sit right with him.

Unable to stop it, the door opened anyway and he was relieved to see his sister, Amy. Her blond hair tied was tied back into a slick pony tail and she was wearing loose fitting shorts and a T-shirt. She'd obviously been out playing basketball.

"Jesus, what happened to you?"

Rolling his eyes must have been answer enough for her because she started laughing. "You had that good of a night, huh?"

"Absolutely," he muttered.

"Here," she reached out and grabbed her brother by the hand, helping him up off the floor. "Well you better get better quick, because you have alot to deal with downstairs."

Oh hell, what had he done now? His mother was probably ready to kill him.

Amy recognized the look on his face and patted him on the arm. "No, I mean, Val and Mattie are here."

He groaned and placed his hands on the counter top. Just what he needed to deal with when he was so hung over he could barely stand on his own.

Amy left him and he looked at his reflection in the mirror, a sinking feeling began in the pit of his stomach. Amy had been right, he couldn't have looked worse had he been hit by their tour bus.

Even though he was absolutely sure he stunk, he couldn't quite bring himself to shower. He slowly went in search of new clothes and got dressed as slowly as possible. He then returned to the bathroom, wetting his hair with his hands, then using a bit of gel to fix it to the best of his abilites. He wasn't going to bother with shaving either. After all, there wasn't anyone down stairs he wanted to really impress.

Halfway down the stairs his daughter noticed him from her postition on the couch beside Val.

"Daddy!"

Matt smiled as she moved as fast as her little legs would carry her, her light brown hair in pigtails bounced happily as she ran. He stopped at the bottom of the stairs and she lifted her arms eagerly so he could pick her up, and he did so, carefully. Her little arms snaked half way around his neck and she hugged him tightly as he held onto her with one arm, resting her on his hip.

Val looked up at him from the couch and they locked eyes. "Afternoon, Matt."

"Val," he acknowledged her briefly. "And who's is that, missy?" he pointed to the small acoustic guitar on the couch beside Val knowing very well to whom it belonged.

Mattie let go of her dad and turned in his arms, "that's mine!"

"Where did you get that?" Matt asked her with a smile on his face.

Mattie smiled back and gently tugged on his lip ring, inspecting it's entrance through his lip as she spoke, "Uncle Brian buyed it for me, but Uncle Jimmy says I'm gonna be a drummer, not play one of those," she let go of his lip and pointed back to her guitar.

Matt laughed and sat down in the recliner with Mattie perched on his lap.

"Can she stay with you for a while?" Val asked softly as she brushed her blonde hair behind her ears.

"I thought you were mad at me."

She frowned. "I was upset because you're always gone, Matt. You and I both agreed that we wanted to be around all the time when it came to kids."

Matt let Maddison down off his lap and she hurried over to her mother, snatching up the guitar that was a little to big for her and dragging it back towards him. "Well I didn't expect a kid this soon, Val."

Val sighed, she wasn't about to get in another fight with him. And definitly not in front of Maddison.

"Michelle and Gena want me to go shopping with them for Leana and Rev's baby," Val watched intently as Matt helped Mattie put the guitar strap over her shoulder, the little girls pudgy fingers randomly pulled and plucked the strings making an incredibly undesireable noise.

"Yeah she can stay here," Matt leaned back in his chair watching Mattie stumble awkwardly about the room pretending to be the rockstar that her 'uncles' no doubt taught her how to be.

"Thank you," she smiled before turning to Mattie. "Can mommy have a kiss? You're gonna stay with dad for a while."

Mattie quit bouncing around and returned to her mom, giving her a kiss, then wrinkling her nose and whispering, "but daddy smells like beer."

Val laughed and looked up at Matt. "Well I'm sure he'll shower and you can visit with Aunt Amy."

Mattie smiled and gave Val a hug before returning to 'rocking out'. Val headed to the door and Matt followed.

"Thanks again."

"She's my kid to, Val. Don't worry about it."

She smiled softly and tapped her hand on the door frame before leaving. Matt closed the door behind her and smiled at Mattie who was now busy digging through 'her' movies.

Yep, this whole, more-involved-full-time-dad thing was going to be an experience.