The Elastic Heart Trilogy: Roads Untraveled

"Look at the smile." Jen said as she tickled Riley. Today was her twentieth birthday and since she wasn't going out to celebrate the guys took it upon themselves to bring dinner over to her condo. They hadn't arrived yet which gave her time to change out of her sweatpants and over sized t-shirt she had been wearing all day.

Riley was laying in the middle of her mother's bed with pillows on either side of her. Jen wasn't taking the chance of her rolling off of the bed.

"Okay, I look like a human again." Jen mumbled as she looked at her reflection in her floor length mirror. "What do you think Riley? Does Mommy look human?"

The three and a half month old smiled and cooed as if to say yes and Jen climbed up onto the bed to leave kisses all over her faces.

"Cupcake? Where are you?"

Riley's eyes lit up at the sound and she began looking around for the owner of the voice.

"In here Bri!"

A few seconds later Brian walked in and set a gift bag down on Jen's dresser. "Happy birthday gorgeous." He said pulling her into his arms.

"Thank you."

He slowly pulled away and made a face at Riley who giggled. "Hi my little peanut." He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "Daddy missed you."

"She missed you too. You should have seen the look on her face when you yelled for me. She lit up like a Christmas tree."

"Did you miss me Peanut? Huh?" Leaning over Brian was practically right in Riley's face but she didn't seem to mind. She just cooed and placed her tiny hands on his face. He gently nibbled on her fingers which caused her to laugh.

"When are the guys suppose to get here?"

"They're getting the food right now and stopping at the video store to rent a couple of movies. That's okay right?" He asked standing back at full height.

"Yeah just as long as they keep it down when Riley's sleeping."

Cali was the next to arrive. She was carrying two gift bags. One was purple with the words Happy Birthday written all over it in different colors. The other bag was pink and much smaller. Jen assumed it was something for Riley.

"Happy birthday Jenna." Cali said handing her the larger bag. "Hi Riley. I got something for you."

Riley watched as Cali reached into the bag and pulled out a pink Giraffe. Her eyes lit up once again and she tried to reach for it getting angry when she realized it was too far away. Once the stuffed animal was finally in her hands she smiled and held it tight in her hands. She loved her Giraffe so much that she didn't even pay attention to the doorbell that was ringing.

"I'll get it." Brian offered and walked out of the room. Cali's cell phone was in her hand and she was taking a picture of Riley who was trying to shove the Giraffe's foot into her mouth.

"That Giraffe much taste really good or someone is hungry." Cali picked Riley up and placed her into Jen's arms. She didn't mind feeding her but she didn't want to wear it later on if Riley spit up.

Walking out of the bedroom they headed into the kitchen to get Riley a bottle. There was no way that Jen was going to breast feed her daughter in front of everyone. The counters were filled with boxes and bags of food and even a large pink box was set off to the side with a birthday cake inside. Brian had called earlier in the day to ask Jen what she'd like for dinner. She wanted pizza. She'd been working hard to lose the baby weight and since it was her birthday she thought that one night of junk wouldn't hurt.

"I can feed her if you want? That way you can eat." Brian offered.

"Alright."

Jen made herself a plate and headed into the living room with everyone else. The guys had rented three movies so they decided to watch one while they ate. After the movie was over it was time for cake and presents. She had already received presents from her dad that morning which included a pink and silver Hermes bracelet, a Louis Vuitton Agenda along with refills, and a new Vuitton Handbag.

Her gifts from the guys were all over the place ranging from art supplies to Ray Ban's and everything in between. Cali's gift being the most expensive. A pair of black Valentino shoes, a gift card for a day at the spa, and a make-up bag from Louis Vuitton.

"You actually went inside Vuitton?" Jen asked.

"Well yeah, how else was I going to get it? I may think it's ugly but I sure as fuck wouldn't trust any of them to get it."

"Hey!!!" The guys seemed offended but they all knew she was right. While they'd have no problem going in to get something they wouldn't know what to get.

"So what did you get her Gates?" Johnny asked.

"A present dumbass." He glared at the bassist and handed a gift bag to Jen. "Happy birthday Cupcake."

Inside the bag was a travel sized bottle of Chanel perfume. Brian had went into the make-up boutique with Cali and stood at the counter smelling each perfume that Chanel had to offer. This was the only one that he liked. It was also the only one that Jen liked. He also made Cali go into Tiffany & Co. with him. He wanted to get Jen a bracelet. It took a while but he finally found one he liked. It was simple and he liked that. It wasn't as flashy as some of the others he had looked at and knew it was the perfect one.

"There's one more present."

Jen looked at Brian confused. "There is? From who?"

He smiled. "Riley."

She watched Brian get up and walk out of the room with Jimmy and Matt hot on heels. They came back a few minutes later each carrying three very large and heavy looking presents. All of them the same size.

"What did you get me?" Jen asked kissing Riley's cheek.

Cali took the baby so Jen could open her presents and her eyes filled with tears when she saw what they were. Brian had taken Riley to get her pictures taken with him and the guys. The first one was of her and Brian. The second one was Riley laying on a pink blanket with the rest of the guys all around her. A sign was directly behind her with the saying 'Overprotective Uncles: You must get passed us to get to her'. The last picture was just Riley. It was just a close up of her face but she was smiling and Jen felt her heart melting right then and there.

"I figured these would mean more down the road than anything else." Brian said as she wiped her tears away.

"Thank you." She whispered as she hugged him tightly. "I love them."

"You're welcome."

After the living room was cleaned up and the presents put in a safe place Zacky moved the coffee table out of the way so he could lay down on the floor to watch the next movie. By this time it was Riley's bedtime and Jen was softly singing her to sleep. She kissed Riley softly on the cheek and laid her down in her bassinet and waited a few minutes before walking out of the room.

"She's out so can you guys keep it down so she won't wake up please?"

Matt smiled at her. "Of course."

Jen hadn't been paying much attention to the movie. Not that she didn't want to watch it but she was having a hard time keeping her eyes open. The lights had been turned out when the movie started and now all she wanted to do was go to sleep.

"You tired?"

She looked to her left and saw Brian looking at her. "A little but I'm alright."

"You can use me as a pillow if you want?" He suggested grabbing the blanket that she always kept on the couch.

"You sure?"

"Yes now come here."

Brian practically pulled her down on top of him. She was resting comfortably between his legs and her head on his chest. He placed the blanket over them and kissed her forehead.

"How's that?"

"Much better."

The movie finally ended and Matt was about to start the next one when he looked over at the couch and saw that Jen was sound asleep.

"Should we go?" He whispered to Brian.

"Yeah I'm pretty sure that she's out like a light."

Brian was carefully when he moved her so he could get up. Since having Riley her entire sleep pattern had been screwed up so he wanted to make sure she got as much sleep as she could. He picked her up bridal style and carried her to her bedroom. After gently placing her onto her bed he wondered if he should change her clothes. He wanted her to be comfortable but at the same time he didn't want to cross any lines. Would she be okay with him changing her into something more comfortable?

He decided that he'd just change her out of her jeans. He wasn't exactly sure where she kept her pajamas but he he eventually found them and went over to the bed to take off her jeans. He bit his bottom lip the entire time and breathed a sigh of relief when he had successfully changed her into the pajama pants. He kissed her forehead and wished her a good night before heading into the kitchen the put all of the food away.



Jen smiled at Riley as she got her dressed for the day. Easter had came and went and it was now Mother's Day. Jen hadn't made any plans. All she wanted was to spend the entire day with her now six month old daughter. She thought she might take Riley to the park and let her play in the sandbox. She already loved the sand at the beach so Jen hoped she'd like to play in it at the park.

"Knock knock."

Looking up Jen was surprised to see Brian. She knew he had plans to spend the day with both sets of parents and figured he'd already be on his way to Lakewood to see his mom.

"What are you doing here?" She asked as Brian knelt down to give Riley a kiss.

"It's Mother's Day isn't it?"

"Yeah.."

"So I'm kidnapping you and the Peanut. You're spending the day with me and my family."

"We are?"

He grinned and nodded. "Yes. It's your first of many Mother's Day's and we're spending it as a family. Now go put your shoes on, grab what you need and let's go."

"You are such a pain in the ass." She said handing Riley to him.

His grin grew as she walked passed him to grab a pair of shoes to wear. "I love you too."

The morning was spent with Brian's mother, step father, Brian's brother Brent, and their step brother Johnny. They only stayed a few hours before heading back to Huntington Beach to spend the rest of the day at Brian's Dad's house. His family had accepted Riley into their family with open arms. All they were waiting for was Brian to once again man up and pop the question. They wanted Jen to officially be apart of their family.

"We're here!" Brian yelled to get everyone's attention. Riley started to fuss at the sudden loudness causing Brian to frown. "I'm sorry Peanut." He took her from Jen and kissed her cheek. "Daddy didn't mean to scare you."

Jen smiled at him just as his Dad walked into the room. He gave her a kiss on the cheek before taking Riley out of Brian's arms.

"Hello to you too Dad."

"Where's my great granddaughter?" Brian's grandmother Florence asked as she walked into the living room. She wasted no time in taking her from Brian Sr.'s arms and watched him pout just as Brian had a few seconds before. "Jenna, honey, come out back with us."

"Alright."

"Come on Grandma you can't steal her too?" Brian pouted.

"Yes I can Junior. It's Mother's Day. I can do anything I want."

Jen smiled at Brian as McKenna ran into the room followed by Suzy who hugged her. She was then pulled out of the room and into the backyard where the rest of Brian's family was.

Hours passed by and Jen was glad that Brian had 'kidnapped' her. Even though she was planning a quiet day with Riley she couldn't keep the smile off of her face when she saw how much Brian's family loved her little girl. She had been passed around to practically everyone there and now that she was back in Jen's arms she didn't want to let her go.

"Happy Mother's Day Cupcake." Brian said as he present Jen with a small purple gift bag.

"What's this?"

"A gift from Riley and I. Open it."

Brian took Riley and handed Jen the gift bag. He watched as she opened it and smiled when she gasped at the all too familiar Tiffany blue box. Tears instantly filled her eyes when she took off the lid and a sterling silver necklace was staring back at her. There were two silver hearts one of them was blank while they other had the word 'MOM' engraved on it.

"Riley helped pick it out."

"She did?"

"Yeah. They had one in gold and I figured whichever one she reached for would be the one we'd get. Apparently she likes silver."

"Thank you."

He smiled. "No need to thank me. We should be thanking you for being such a kick ass Mom."

"You know, we better be careful what we say around her. With our luck her first word will be a cuss word."

"I'll try to be careful what I say around her from now on but I make no promises."

Jen smiled at him and put on her new necklace. Riley reached forward to try and grab it. "I think you're right Bri. She definitely likes silver."



Brian smiled as Riley sat in the middle of the living room floor playing with her toys. Jen was up in Brea for her photography class and he couldn't have been happier than that to have his little Peanut for the entire day. Most of Jen's classes only lasted three hours but this one was an all day event. Riley had been dropped off just before eight that morning and Jen would be back to get her just before five. Depending on traffic of course.

It was a hot day so Brian had the A/C cranked in his apartment. He'd also changed Riley's clothes after having the unexpected surprise she'd left him after her afternoon nap. He'd given her a bath and was thankful he had purchased some onesies for her. The one he chose was long sleeves but he didn't bother with any shorts. He wasn't going anywhere and he was a little nervous that she may get cold with hot high he had the A/C but she seemed to be fine sitting on her pink blanket.

"You know what Peanut?" Brian started. He was laying on his stomach next to Riley who had one of her Minnie Mouse blocks in her hands. "I can be a real idiot sometimes. You see.. I've never admitted this to anyone before but.. I'm crazy in love with your mom. I have been for as long as I can remember. Your Aunt Cali and all your Uncles tease me about it all the time saying I need to grow a pair and ask your mom out on a date. They don't realize that.. your mom and I are friends. She'd never look at me the way I look at her. I mean.. I think about it now and I wonder if I had just told her how I felt that maybe I would be your real dad instead of Mike."

Riley handed him the block and looked stared at him. She looked like she was listening but he knew that even if she was she didn't understand anything he was saying.

"I want you to know something though. You're my little girl no matter what and nothing will ever change that. These last eight months have changed me for the better. You make me want to be a better person. You bring out the best in me and I love you so so much." She smiled and he couldn't help but smile back. "It's a good thing that you can't talk yet Riley. I don't want you repeating this to your mom but.. I want her. I want us to be a family and.. I'm afraid that if I don't say something some other guy is going to swoop in and take her from me. I can't lose her again."

"Brian?"

His eyes grew wide and he quickly sat up. Jen had just walked in the front door and was heading right towards them.

"How was she?.. That's not the same outfit I put her in this morning.."

"Someone made a pretty stinky mess earlier and needed a bath. I washed everything though."

Jen smiled and sat down on the floor with them. "Thank you."

Riley abandoned her toys and crawled over to Jen. Not stopping until she was where she wanted to be. Her mother's lap.

"Well hello Riley. Did you leave a big surprise for your Daddy?"

She smiled and the next thing she did shocked Jen and Brian more than finding out about her pregnancy.

"Dada."

"Oh my god! Did.. did you hear that?" Brian asked.

Jen nodded. "She.. she said her first word."

Brian scooted closer and reached over to take Riley's tiny hand in his. "Say it again baby girl."

Riley suddenly became shy and buried her face in Jen's neck but it only lasted a few seconds before she turned to look at him. "Dada."

His heart had melted the first time he held her but now he was nothing but a puddle on the floor. He was so happy that a single tear fell from his eye.

"Are you okay?" Jen asked moving Riley so she was sitting on her lap. Riley was now facing her Dada.

"Yeah I'm.. I can't believe that she.. I thought for sure that she'd say Mama first."

"Yeah me too but.. you know what this means right? Now that she's starting to talk we really have to watch what we say or she'll be repeating everything she hears."

His eyes went wide before he groaned. "I'm never going to be able to say fuck again."

"Brian!!"

"Sorry!!"



"Happy birthday dear Riley, happy birthday to you!"

The past year seemed to fly by for Jen but it was by far the best year of her life. Motherhood came naturally to her and she hoped that one day down the road she'd be able to give Riley a younger brother or sister. She had dropped out of college and gotten a job but on her off days she took photography classes to get her license in Digital Arts. Her dream of being in the fashion industry had been replaced with an even bigger dream. Jen knew she since was a kid herself that she wanted to be a mother someday and no other dream would ever top that for her.

"Where did the time go?" Brian asked coming up behind Jen who was taking photos of Riley. She was sitting in her high chair with a small version of her birthday cake in front of her.

"I have no idea. She's growing up way too fast. Pretty soon we'll be looking an eight year old that we can't control."

He chuckled and wrapped his arms around her, resting his chin on her shoulder. "No, the eight year old we'll be able to handle it's the sixteen year old that I'm worried about."

She smiled and leaned back into his chest. "I don't want to think about that yet. Let's just get through the terrible two's first."

Brian smiled and kissed her cheek as Riley finally took a handful of cake and shoved it into her mouth. He let go of Jen and and walked over to Riley who was going in for another handful. She smiled as he knelt down beside and he smiled back.

"Is that cake good Peanut? Can Daddy have some?"

Riley looked at the cake and grabbed some more but instead of offering it to her Daddy she shoved it right into his face and giggled.

"I'll let this slide because it's your first birthday but if you do that again you're going to be in a lot of trouble young lady." He said and got up to go clean off his face.

"Brian!"

"What?" He turned and glared when he saw Jen standing there with the camera in her hand. "Don't you dare!"

She smiled innocently at him. "Oops, too late."

"You better run." He warned before taking off after her.

"So how long do you think it'll be before they finally get together?" Jimmy asked Matt who was standing beside him.

"Brian's still too much of a chicken shit to say anything and well all know that Jen never forgets anything that's said to her so.. I give it about ten more years."

"No way. I give it five."

"What are you guys talking about?" Cali asked.

"How long it will be before Brian and Jenna finally get together.."

Cali turned her head to see Brian chasing Jen around the room. "Well.. we all know what happened the last time he rejected her. Brian's not going to let any guy get within a thousand feet of her so.. I'll go with two years. He can't go without sex for that long. I'm still surprised he's gone this long."

"And what if we're all wrong and they never get together?" Jimmy asked.

Cali snorted. "Then we do what we should have done all along. Lock them in a fucking room together."

"I got you!" Brian said as he grabbed Jen and pulled her back to him. They happened to be standing next to the table with the food so Jen grabbed some napkins and wiped the cake off of Brian's face. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"No, well yeah thank you for cleaning my face but that's not what I meant."

She looked at him confused. "Then what did you mean?"

"Thank you for letting me be her father. I can't tell you enough how happy she makes me. How happy both of you make me. She's just.. she's an amazing kid and I know she's going to be even more amazing the older she gets."

Jen smiled. "I should be the one thanking you. You've made all of this so much easier on me. You stepped up to be her father when you didn't have to. Thank you Brian."

He licked his lips and smiled. "Thank you Jen."