Living On A Prayer

Eloise sat at her desk at work texting Brian while her students took their first test of the semester. Glancing up, she saw McKenna in the second row, biting her lip and drumming her fingers. No doubt was a trait she picked up from her brother and father.

It had been a five weeks since Eloise and Brian slept together. Three week since he left for tour until the first week of November. The week following up to tour, Brian used any chance he could to be with Eloise intimately. Brian decided he had wanted to show Eloise how things could be sexually between them. After the week was out, Eloise knew that she would’ve never done something like that with her late husband.

Once the bell rang, everyone placed their test in the bin on her desk and rushed out of the doors to get home. Eloise waved at McKenna who gave her a smile as she left. She gathered the test and put them in her sixth period folder. Grabbing all her things, she quickly walked through the halls waving at her co-workers and students. Quickly getting home she set her things down when she heard James running towards her.

“Mama!” Eloise grinned as she picked up James and squeezed him.

“Hi baby.” She kept placing kisses on his cheek making him giggle as she walked into the kitchen. “Hey mom,”

“Hello sweetie, how was work?” Jane asked as she poured some hot water into a mug.

“It was good, just had the kids take their unit test.” Eloise sat down adjusting James on her lap. He rested his head on her chest as his fist gripped onto the neck of her tank top. “Did he take his nap today?”

“No, he refused to sleep. So I figured you’d take one with him since you stay up so late talking to that boyfriend of yours.” Jane teased as she finished making her tea. Eloise rolled her eyes.

“Mom you know it’s after he gets off stage,”

“Oh I know honey and I’m glad he’s that committed to you two.” Jane told her as she sat across from her. “But there is something I wanted to talk to you about.” Eloise glanced up before she looked back down at James who was drifting off to sleep against her.

“What is it?”

“Are you and Brian having sex?” Eloise looked at her mother wide eyed. “You’re a grown woman; I just want to make sure you’re being safe.”

“Of course we are, we use condoms . . .”

“Good but you know—”

“Mother, I’m a biology teacher; I do have to explain the human body.” Jane just nodded her head. “I was thinking about getting on birth control,”

“Really now? You never used it before, why now?”

“Well, I didn’t have sex until Wyatt and I were married and at that point I didn’t see the point in taking something that would prevent me from getting pregnant. But since Brian and I have taken this step, I thought maybe since we are just boyfriend and girlfriend, I should take that extra step.” Eloise explained.

“That is a good reason and if you feel you should then you should.” Jane told her. “I know if it was me, I’d do the same thing.”

“I really don’t want to think about . . .” Eloise mumbled as she stood up. “But we are going to nap and then grade some papers and wait for Brian to call.” Jane just smiled as Eloise left the kitchen with James. Once she reached her room, she set James on the bed then changed into her sweats and loose tee shirt. Then crawled into the bed, holding James against her.

Hearing a constant ringing, Eloise cracked her eyes open to see her cell phone was going off. She grabbed her phone seeing it was just a text message from Brian. Groaning she read glanced at the time seeing how late it really was. Eloise read through the text, him just telling her they’d talk in the morning. Pulling herself out of bed, she noted that James wasn’t in there anymore and that it was dark out already. Frowning, Eloise walked towards the living room to see her mom on the couch reading her book.

“Have a nice nap?” Jane asked not looking up from her book. Eloise just nodded looking around. “Your father is already asleep and I put James down about twenty minutes ago.”

“What time is it?” Eloise asked rubbing her eyes.

“A little after nine.”

“Goodness,” Eloise mumbled as she stood in the living room.

“Do you want something to eat honey?” Jane set her book down and looked over at her daughter.

“No I think I’m just going to back to sleep.”

“Okay, night sweetie.”

“Night,” Eloise walked back into her room and laid on her bed with a groan. Lying on her back she rubbed her stomach not liking the feeling that was coming over her. The only part of her job she didn’t like, when kids came to school sick and get everyone else sick, including her. She kept drifting in and out of sleep until she heard the baby monitor go off.

“Mama,” James voice cried through the monitor. Quickly getting out of her bed as she heard the tone of his voice, Eloise hurried across the hall to his room. She flipped his light on and saw him standing in his crib, his head tilted to the right with his hand covering his ear. “Mama,”

Eloise picked him up feeling he was warm and frowned. “Does your ear hurt?” James nodded his head as he pouted. “Okay let’s get you some medicine.” She walked into the bathroom, ignoring the uneasy feeling in her own stomach as she placed the medicine in his ear.

“Everything okay honey?” Isaac asked appearing in the bathroom doorway.

“I think he’s coming down with something. He has an ear infection I think,” Eloise told him as James went to rub his ear. She grabbed his hand so he wouldn’t rub it.

“Okay do you need me to get anything?”

“No, thanks though dad.” Isaac nodded then left to go back to his bedroom. Eloise shut off the bathroom light and made her way down the hall when she stopped. Closing her eyes she took a deep breath as James shifted in her arms. Quickly turning she made her way into her parents room.

“El what’s—” Isaac didn’t finish as he took James and Eloise ran out of the room. “Jane, Jane!” Isaac said shaking his wife.

“What’s—why is James in here?” Jane asked as she sat up.

“Eloise just dumped him in here and ran out of the room,” Isaac explained making Jane jump out of bed and run out of the room to the hallway bathroom. She saw Eloise hunched over the toilet groaning. Jane brushed the hair off of her daughter’s forehead and tisked.

“You’re burning up, come on.” Jane helped her up and let her wash her mouth out before leading her back to her bedroom. Eloise lay on her bed and breathed in deeply. “I always hated flu season.” Jane murmured as she cracked one of the windows open to let in fresh air. “Don’t worry about James, we’ll watch him. You just feel better.”

Eloise eventually fell asleep after her mom gave her medicine and some peppermint to settle her stomach. She woke up the noise of her phone going off again, but this time I was Brian’s ringtone. Stretching her arm out to blindly reached for her cell before grabbing it and pressing talk.

“Hello?”

“Ellie, are you okay? You don’t sound too good.” Brian asked on the other end. He glanced over at his clock seeing it was nearly noon in California.

“Not really,” She mumbled in response.

“What’s wrong?” Brian asked as he flicked the butt of his cigarette to the ground.

“Just the usual flu that goes around school this time of year,”

“I’m sorry babe—Eloise? Ellie you still there?” Brian pulled away from his phone seeing that the call was still connected. “Hello?”

“Brian?”

“Sam, what happened to El?”

“Oh she’s currently bent over the toilet puking her guts—ow shit dad!” Brian heard Eloise’s younger brother complain to Isaac. “Yeah but she’s tossin her cookies right now,”

“Okay . . . how’s James doing?” He felt guilty that he wasn’t able to get on Skype last night to talk and see them. He always felt bad not talking to them every day.

“Woke up with an ear infection in the middle of the night, small fever but he’s taking a nap right now.” Brian groaned as he walked back onto the bus and sat down on the couch. “Don’t worry Bri, it’ll all pass. El usually catches what the kids get at school and well James is a baby, they get sick sometimes.”

“Yeah I know . . . have Ellie call me when she’s feeling up to it okay?”

“Sure thing, I think moms making her take a bath so I’ll leave a note for her." Brian hung up the phone and rubbed his face. He heard the guys all climb onto the bus chatting away about something.

“What’s wrong Gates?” Zacky asked sitting down across from him.

“El has the flu and James has an ear infection,” He muttered feeling completely useless to them. He knew he couldn’t do anything across the country but Brian knew if he was at home he could be the one taking care of them.

“You didn’t knock her up did you?” Johnny joked making everyone else start laughing.

“We use protection short shit,”

“Whoa when did you guys have sex?” Matt asked wide eyed. “I thought Val would’ve told me seeing as she can’t shut up about you too.” Brian just shook his head with a smirk.

“I’m going to take a nap before the show.”

“Gates you can’t just leave us hanging here!” Zacky hollered at his retreating form. Arin popped his head out from his bunk with a confused face.

“What’s he yelling about?”

“They think I knocked up El ‘because she has the stomach flu from her students.” Brian told him making Arin shake his head with a grin then go back to what he was doing. Brian got into his bunk and sighed. He didn’t know what he’d do if the guys were right but he knew it wasn’t possible for her to pregnant. Shuttering Brian rolled over onto his stomach burying his face into his pillow, trying to elude the thoughts.