An hour had passed and that was the last time I saw or spoken to Chris and his ignorant friend. Justin had to be the most pathetic guy I've ever met. He's disrespectful towards women and I know for a fact, just by the way he treated me. He looked like the type of person who wanted people to wait for him hand and foot. Like some King. But not me. I would be a stupid fool to cater to someone like that.

After bathing Kyle and feeding him, I decided to take him downstairs to meet his cousin for the first time. We both sat on the sofa, putting all of our attention on him. And just by the look on Kyle's face, I could tell he wasn't familiar with Chris. He eyed him as if he was some Alien.

"Don't you think he's a little too...big for a two month old?" that familiar voice spoke behind me. I looked away, gazing at Justin who stood by the sofa with a hot dog in his hand and a soda in the other. "He's cute though. Looks nothing like you." he kneeled down, scrutinizing Kyle carefully. "This baby is just too cute to be yours. You sure you didn't adopt him or something?" Oh no he didn't. He didn't just try me like that.

"And what is that supposed to mean?" I asked, trying hard not to go buck wild on his ass.

"He doesn't favor you. The only thing that looks like yours is his ears. The rest..." he shrugged his shoulders. "I don't see it."

"Well that's just too bad." I rolled my eyes, slowly peeling my eyes off him. "Any way...before we were rudely interrupted, Kyle was just getting to know his great cousin. Ain't that right, cutie? Haha." Justin took a seat on the opposite sofa, watching the three closely. "What's been going on in Memphis? You still doing your lil'...singing thing?"

"Well, yeah. But not too much like I used to. Justin here is writing my songs for me. He's great." the last person I wanted to talk about was him.

"How's Aunt Lucy?" I decided to hop on another subject. "She's still cooking and sellin' those chicken and fries at that store house? Haha, a lot of people used to talk about how good her cake was. Boy..." I shook my head as memories slowly came to mind. "...those were the days."

"Aunt Lucy died."

"What?" I sat there in total shock. "Wh..."

"She's been dead for a year now." Now I couldn't have been hearing correctly.

"How come I'm just now finding this out? Damn, Chris." I stood to my feet, angry as I don't know what. My aunt has been dead for a whole year and I'm just now finding this out. "Why didn't you call to tell me? God, this is like...am I even a part of this family? Normal, average people would call a relative when someone close to them has died."

"Obviously she wasn't too close to you if you're just now finding out she's been dead for a whole year." I slowly gazed his direction, never breaking a smile. He had pushed my buttons too far and now, I was gonna give him a piece of my mind.

"Was anybody talking to you? This is between me and my family. You could go jump off a bridge for all I care."

"See...I told you all fine women have nasty ass attitudes." he stood up, walking pass me towards the stair case.

"Excuse me? Nasty ass attitudes? The only person with the nasty ass attitude is you, white boy." he froze, slowly looking my direction with this evil look on his face. It had to be the evilest look I've ever seen. And it begin to make me a little nervous because, first of all--I didn't know him and I had no idea what he was capable of.

"White boy? Let me tell you something, tramp." he approached me. "If you have a problem with white people, you let me know. 'Cause I'm no different than you or anybody else in this fucked up world."

"Haha, well that's where you're mistaken. Because you are. You're rude, obnoxious and ill-mannered. You're disrespectful and I don't like you. Jerk." he sized me up with this disgusted look on his face. Might I add, looked cute in a way.

"Maybe if you pulled that stick out of your ass, you wouldn't look so stuck-up, which you are. Fucking..." he trailed off. "I don't even know why I'm wasting my time on you. You're not worth it."

"Pish. Whatever." he ambled back up the stairs, still muttering to himself.

"I feel so sorry for that kid. He's too cute to be stuck with some bitch like you for the rest of his life." Okay, if I didn't keep myself tamed, I would've kicked his ass. Literally kicked his ass.

"How could you let him talk to me that way?" I asked, turning around to face Chris who seemed to be out of it. He sat there in a daze and for some reason, his attitude begin to scare me. "Chris? You okay? Maybe you need to...rest or something." his eyelids hung lower. "You don't look too good. Why don't you go upstairs and sleep it off. I'll go cook something." he forcefully stood up, making his way up the stairs.

I ambled towards the kitchen to prepare a meal for me and Kyle. Oh yeah, and his ass-of-a friend.

After I finished cooking dinner, we all sat at the table and begin to eat. "I'm really sorry no one called to tell you about Aunt Lucy." Chris broke the silence between us. "Truthfully, I thought you knew."

"It doesn't matter now. It's over and done with. All we can do is let her rest in peace."

"Amen." Justin spoke up with a smirk on his face. I hope he wasn't trying to be funny, because if he was--he sure as hell failed.

"Any way..." I took a sip of my cherry flavored juice as began another sentence. "What do you do in Memphis? Besides...singing. Do you have a paying job? Or something that keeps you with money in your pockets."

"Yeah. I work at the parlor...cutting hair." he gazed at Justin who glanced at him off and on with this interesting look on his face. "I get big tips too. Sometimes fifty bucks. Or maybe even more."

"Wow. That's good. I didn't know you could cut hair." the silence around us began to make me a little nervous, so I decided to turn up the baby monitor to hear the baby more clearer. I could hear him making cooing sounds off and on.

"Where's the baby's father?" Justin asked curiously. "Is he still around?" the nerve of him to ask me a question like that right after he disrespected me. In my own house.

"Don't you think you're getting a little too personal? I don't even know you." he shrugged his shoulders, slowly sliding his half eaten plate aside.

"I was just asking. Damn." he arose from his seat. "You don't have to catch an attitude about it." I watched as he left the table without excusing himself. What an ill-mannered person.

"What is up with your friend? Why is he so concerned and curious about my life all of a sudden?" he shrugged his shoulders.

"I dunno. Truthfully, I think he likes you." now that had to be the funniest thing I've ever heard.

"Yeah right. The boy hates me, and you know what? I'm starting to hate him too." I stood up, collecting the empty plates on the table. "I'm gonna go wash up. I'll see you later." I pre-washed the dishes, sitting them in the dish washer afterwards. I then proceeded up the stairs to my room where I was gonna reside for the night.

That night, I got a call from Kyles father. He wanted to come see me and the baby. So, I finally decided to put my bitterness away and let him come see us. I invited him to my room where we hung out for a few hours talking and paying special attention to Kyle.

"...so he was gonna be here for a while. Probably two weeks." he held the baby close to his chest, never taking his eyes off him. "He looks just like you."

"Yeah." he agreed with a smile on his face. "Um..." he lifted his head to gaze at me. "I know I haven't been around, but you're not seriously thinking about taking him away from me, right? I mean, I am entitled to come see him ever so often."

"I'm not gonna stop you from seeing him. I just wish you were more responsible and...committed. You abandoned us. For nine months. And you weren't around when I gave birth. I was expecting to see you. Kyle doesn't even know you. And I know he's only two months, but...babies are never too young to understand. He knows who is who."

"I know. And I'm sorry. I just...I'm a busy man."

"I've heard this shit before." he always had some type of excuse. "You're never too busy to come see your family. You couldn't even pause your..."busy schedule" to watch me give birth. You were so busy all right." she spoke sarcastically. "Doing what? Fucking some other bitch? Is that what you were busy doing?"

"Look, now you're getting ridiculous. I was not fucking some other woman, okay? I was out on a business trip. It was impossible for me to make it there in time. Do you even remember where I was? I was all the way in China helping..."

"I don't wanna hear this. Just...maybe it's time for you to go." I pulled the bedroom door open and stood aside, clearing his path. "Goodnight, Seth."

"All right um..." he carefully laid the baby in the crib, leisurely approaching me. I watched closely as he shut the door, bolting it. "Maybe we can work this out."

"It's too late for all that." I spoke, crossing my arms over my chest. "You can leave now."

"Brown eyes? Pretty...brown eyes?" I just hated when he would call me that. This was his way of sweet talking me into forgiving him. And most of the time, it worked.

"Don't call me that. I told you about..." he pulled out a diamond bracelet. This here, immediately got my attention.

"Four carrets. Diamond filled bracelet. It cost a fortune so please don't ask me to take it back."

"Seth?" it was like I was completely drawn to it because I had never seen so much diamonds in my entire life. "You don't just buy me things like this. Wh...what's gotten into you?"

"You deserve it. For all the shit I put you through." now this had to be the nicest thing anybody has ever done for me...so far. "Here, I'm just gonna sit it here." he sat the bracelet on the dresser. "Whenever you feel like wearing it, it's here. You don't owe me anything, okay? Just take care of our baby." he placed a soft kiss on my cheek. "I'll send you some money next week. Just to help out a little." now this was not like him to be this generous. "I'll see you around." he yanked the door open.

"Wait." I grasped his arm, stopping him in his tracks. "Why are you doing this? I mean, wh..."

"I'll call you." with that, he departed the room, shutting the door behind him. I stood there, slowly gazing in on the expensive bracelet that he bought for me. His Architect job must've paid off.

The following morning, I decided to take Kyle for a stroll in the park. On my way out the door, I was stopped by Justin. He seemed to be in an energetic mood from the way he moved around the place. "Going somewhere?"

"I think that pretty much looks obvious from here." he lowered his eyes at me, flashing me a serious look. Something I was already familiar with. He gazed around, checking us out.

"Going for a walk? Mind if I join?" Just great. I try to get away from him, now look what happens. He somehow finds me.

"Knock yourself out." I turned, strolling Kyle out the door and down the sidewalk that led towards the park three blocks away. Why all of a sudden, he wanted to hang out with me? Especially after the way he treated me the other day.

"Was that your boyfriend who came over last night?"

"Maybe. Why?" he shrugged his shoulders while stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"Just wondering." I slowly gawked to the side to stare at him. He wore this calm, peaceful look on his face as if he was at ease. And this definitely wasn't the side I've seen yesterday. "We spoke briefly on his way out the door."

"Oh really?" now this seemed interesting. "About what?"

"Well...he was just telling me that you guys have been going out for a few years now. And that he cares for you and shit like that." he looked away, peering in my eyes. "Seems like a pretty nice guy. Why did you guys break up?"

"Ha." the nerve of him to get all up in my business. "Why would you ask if he's my boyfriend if you knew already?" a smirk slowly formed across his lips. "That's just like you men to try and pretend like you know a thing." I looked away, putting my focus back on our surroundings. "If you must know, Seth and I have been through a lot of shit. He's just like you. He doesn't care about the people he hurt."

"Excuse me? That's not true. I do care about people's feelings. You're just too stuck up to even see that."

"Oh...so is this the reason why you wanted to walk with me? So you can start a fight with me again?" he sighed heavily, nibbling on his bottom lip in thought.

"No. That's not why I asked to join you. I didn't know you were the type of chick who dates all races. You know, being that your ex was white. I was starting to think you were...kinda racist. But..." he licked his lips, quickly trailing his eyes down my figure. "I guess I was wrong. I wanna apologize for that. For...assuming things." was he actually serious?

"Wow. I didn't think...you were apologetic." he chuckled softly.

"Well yeah. I have a heart whether you want to believe it or not." we had finally made it to the park and took a seat on a nearby bench. "I dated a black girl once. Might I add, was the worse relationship I've ever been in. And my recent one."

"You guys just broke up?" he nodded while intertwining his fingers together.

"Yeah. She ended up being one of those controlling chicks. I just couldn't deal with that. But it lasted for a little over a year though."

"Really? Wow. You don't look like the type who would date a black girl. Well...sorta." he bit his lip, never peeling his eyes off me. I happened to lock eyes with his, realizing he was hawking me down as if I was his prey. This sort of threw me off because I wasn't expecting him to be looking at me. "What?" he quickly shook his head.

"Nothing." he looked away, gazing around in thought. "You would never consider going out with a guy like me, huh?"

"Pish. Yeah right." he gazed at me with this questioning look on his face.

"What's wrong with me? I think I'm a pretty decent guy." I shook my head, disagreeing with him.

"Well I don't. How do I know this isn't your way of trying to sweet talk me into bed? You think we're friends now? Especially after you disrespected me in my own house yesterday? Haha." I stood up, proceeding further in the park with Kyle. "Try again."

Later on that day, I decided to invite a friend over to chill. Lucy was a girl I knew since highschool. Ever since then, we kept in contact. Calling each other and hanging out.

We both sat in the living room talking and watching television. She was telling me about her new boyfriend and such and such. "You have to meet him. I told him about you too. So he's looking forward to meeting you as well."

"Hmm." I sat back, resting my feet on the coffee table. "He sounds too good to be true. Like Seth for instance. He's good looking and rich. Men like that you just can't trust." Justin entered the living room, taking a seat on the opposite sofa from theirs. I sat there watching as he put all of his attention on the television. And the odd thing about it was that he didn't even look my way once since he'd been sitting there. He completely pretended as if I wasn't there.

"Ooh. Who's your friend over there?" Lucy whispered. But what she didn't know was that he heard every word she said.

"I'm Justin." he introduced while extending his hand out to shake hers. "Please to meet you." I lowered my eyes at him, noticing how courteous and nice he was towards her. She shook his hand in response, flashing him a huge smile.

"Lucy. Bee never told me she had a friend named Justin."

"That's because he isn't my friend. He came here with Chris." he took a moment to scrutinize me before saying a word. I already knew he had something smart to say which was something I was waiting for. That way, I'd have a reason to kick him out.

"She never told me she had a beautiful friend like you." he flirted. "How long have you been friends?"

"Ummm, 'bout eight years now. We knew each other since high school. Ninth grade year." he nodded interestingly.

"Chris and I knew each other 'bout that long. But I'm just now getting to meet his cousin." he spoke, glancing at me. "How old are you? If you don't mind me asking." this whole thing was starting to get to me. I didn't appreciate how rude he was towards me when we first met. But then ends up being nice towards my friend. I had a feeling he was just trying to get me jealous. But why?

"I'm gonna go get a drink." they both watched as I left their sight. "What a jerk." I mumbled on my way towards the kitchen.

Hours later, Lucy had finally decided to leave. It was going on nine o'clock and I still hadn't token a bath. After putting Kyle to sleep, I prepared a tub full of nice warm water. I carefully sunk in, tilting my head back in pleasure. What a relief. This was exactly what I needed. A nice warm bath to relax my nerves.

As I sat here thinking about a few things, Justin had popped up in my head. He was very handsome, but he had this cocky ass attitude. As if he was too good for anybody. And lately, whenever I look over my shoulder he would be there. Like he was following me or something. It just felt as if he was watching me. Then come to think about it, why would he be watching me any way. He hates me.

Then again, if he really hated me. Why would he ask that question about me considering him as a boyfriend?

Just thinking about all of it started to give me a headache. I needed to get away. Maybe take a nice long vacation. Because lately I've been feeling stressed and tired.

And that's exactly what I was gonna do. Take a nice vacation

Three long days had passed and I finally got a chance to get away from the stressful life. Lucy and I decided to go to Orlando studios for two days and Justin and Chris ended up coming as well. I don't even know how that happened. My plans were just to basically spend some time alone, but she ended up talking me into all of this. But besides all of this, my mother agreed to watch Kyle for me. She was such an angel and some points.

After the long flight to Florida, we finally made it to Orlando and took a cab to our hotel. "This is gonna be so much fun." Lucy spoke excitedly. "I can't wait to get on the rides."

"Look at you. You sound like a big child." I teased. "I'm kinda excited also. I'm finally free and able to enjoy myself for a few days." I happened to look away, automatically gazing at Justin who sat on the other side where Lucy was located. He sat there talking on his cell and just laughing up a storm. "I wonder what's so funny. He's been talking on that phone for hours now." I whispered to Lucy.

"I think he said it was his mother. He's really close to her. I've never seen a guy so respectful towards his mother like he is."

"Haha. Kinda hard to believe. Especially how the way he behaved towards me. You know how the saying goes. If a man disrespects his mom, that means he'll disrespect you." she chuckled at my response. "What's so funny?"

"He only acts that way because he likes you. It's really obvious. And you're an idiot if you haven't noticed."

"Oh come on. You and Chris sound the same. He only acts that way because he likes you." I mocked. "I don't believe it because for one, he doesn't show it. Why treat someone bad if you like them? That's so...backwards."

"Well...you know how men are. They don't even like to admit when they're wrong, so why would they want to admit that they like someone?" she spoke, shrugging her shoulders. "It is backwards though."

Moments later, we had finally made it to the hotel. After collecting our luggage, we entered the building heading straight for the lobby desk. "Hi." Lucy greeted with a huge smile on her face. "This is an amazing hotel you have here." she spoke to the clerk.

"Thank you." the woman responded with a smile. "You want to rent out a room?"

"Um, yes. How much for two days?" she asked.

"It's five hundred a night. So that would be a thousand total."

"Damn." I stood there in surprise. "Why is it so expensive here?"

"What's wrong?" Justin asked, locking eyes with mine. "You can't afford a thousand bucks? Especially since your ex is this...rich Architect." he spoke smartly.

"If you say another word to me..." I warned.

"All right, guys. Not now." Lucy suggested. "Uhhh, we'll rent out two rooms. One for me and Bee and one for you guys. That way it'll be cheaper for all of us. Five hundred a piece."

"Sounds fare to me." everyone begin counting their money for the rooms.

"We have two available suites right next to each other on the fifth floor, but they don't include the mini fridge. And then there's two other ones that do. But it's on the fourth and first floor."

"Uhh, that'll be fine. We'll take the one on the first floor since it's closer to the pool and spa." Lucy spoke with a massive smile. "And you guys...I could care less what room you take. As long as it's not the one on the first floor." she teased.

"Whatever. I think I've had a change of heart. I think I'm gonna rent out my own room." Justin informed. "I'll take the one on the fourth floor."

"You big ballin' like that?" Lucy asked nosy like. He shook his head pathetically, slowly handing the clerk a credit card.

"That's none of your business. Can you ummmm, send a bellhop up with my things? Thank you." after collecting his key, they all watched as he ambled down the hall towards the elevators.

"Since when did he get too good to carry his own things?" I spoke with a little attitude. Something just wasn't right with that boy. He seemed to have a split personality. First he's this angel and all of sudden he's the devil. "He has issues. For real."

Later on that day around six, Lucy and I decided to take a dip in the pool. We both ambled down the hall towards the two double doors that led out on the patio. "This is gonna be so much fun." she blurted out the closer we had gotten. As soon as we stepped out on the patio, my eyes immediately focused in on two familiar looking men. They both were swimming in the pool and one was busy talking to a woman.

That was just like him. Always flirting with someone. "Just great. I don't even know if I wanna swim anymore." I spoke, following Lucy towards two resting chairs.

"Why?"

"Lucy!!" she quickly looked away to gaze at Justin who was motioning her over. "Hop in! The water's warm." she gazed my direction with a smile on her face.

"I'm gonna go hop in. Come!" she grasped my hand, tugging me along.

"Lucy..." I followed her towards the huge twelve feet pool. All of this was starting to get to me. My plans were to take a vacation and this definitely wasn't one. Not with Justin around to aggravate me.

I sunk in the water, tensing up a bit. He had to be joking if he called this warm. This shit felt like an ice box. To me at least. I happened to look away, meeting eyes with Justin who had his back against the wall at the sixth feet. The nerve of him to try and take everyone I knew away from me. First it was Chris. Now it's Lucy. What the hell did they even see in him? He was a friggin' jerk. A five star asshole. Someone I could never see myself with. But...I can see a one night stand with him. I dunno. He just looks like that type who uses his lips well.

Look at her over there looking at me. I know she likes me. She's just too damn stuck up to admit it. But I will beat it out of her one day. And you know what I mean by beat. On second thought, she looks like the type who wants to settle down. And I'm not sure if I'm ready for that yet. But I can see a relationship with her. If she's willing.

Oh boy, this was starting to get uncomfortable. Him and his nosy eyes. Why was he looking at me? It was really starting to make me edgy. So, I decided to go sit in the Jacuzzi to relax my nerves. I stepped out of the pool and ambled towards the bubbly Jacuzzi a few feet away from me. His eyes followed her in the Jacuzzi where they remained for a few moments. Studying her every move. "Mmm. Now this was exactly what I needed." I tilted my head back, unsuspectingly gazing at a body standing over me. "Shit." I pulled away, holding my hand to my chest in fright. "What the...who the hell are you?" I watched closely as the stranger sunk in the tub beside me.

"Leroy. And you?"

"Um..." I sat back, forcing a smile on my face. "Beyonce." he nodded, slowly trailing his eyes down my figure. Something that started to make me nervous. "Are you...staying at this hotel?" I decided to hop on another subject. Hopefully that would've turned his attention off my body.

"Yep. You?" what is up with this guy? All of his answers were short.

"Yeah." I looked away, sneakily moving a few inches away from him. "I uhhh, I didn't know Orlando was this expensive. Hotel wise. I was always told that it was much cheaper down here."

"It is. Except their hotels. That's how they make their money." I slowly looked away, meeting eyes with his. "How else will they be able to pay their associates?"

"You...work here, don't you?" he nodded.

"I'm the janitor." Just great. First Justin tries to embarrass me in front of the clerk in the lobby now I meet up with the hotel's janitor. This wasn't my day at all.

"I don't get it. You just said you were staying..."

"I am. This is where I live. I use my checks to pay for my room." poor guy. Living day by day off his checks. And I'm pretty sure they don't pay too well. Especially for Janitors.

"Hello." I quickly looked away to gaze at Justin who sunk in across from me. "Mind if I butt in whatever you guys are talking about?"

"Yes. We mind." he was so nosy. And that was something I hated about him. He had a nasty attitude and a nosy mind.

"So you're speaking for him now?" I gawked to the side to gaze at Leroy who had his focus on Justin. "I'm sure he can speak for himself. Right, Leroy?" I flashed him a confused look.

"How did you know his name?" he shrugged his shoulders.

"I dunno. Maybe because for a fact that he was someone who used to bully me in school. But look at him now. He's not so tough afterall. Working as a Janitor at a...shit hole place like this. Always said I wouldn't be anything."

"Would you leave him alone? Damn. You're always bothering someone. The only person who looks like a bully to me is you. Jerk." he watched as I climbed out of the tub, heading straight for the double doors. I grabbed my things on my way towards the hotel.

"It's okay to be mad at me, baby!" he shouted. I turned, flipping him the bird. "Ahaha. No problem. I'll meet you at your hotel in five minutes!"

"Asshole. Ugh." I entered the building, quickly heading down the long hall that led to our hotel. If he kept that attitude up, he was definitely gonna see the other side of me.

That night, I decided to take a quit visit to the vending machine across the hall. I slipped a dollar in the slot and pressed the button to my selection, watching as a snicker bar fell down the tunnel. I reached in, grabbing the bar. This was just exactly what I needed. Some chocolate to cool my hormones down.

For some reason, I've been in the mood for sex. And I was always warned that my hormones would go haywire right after having a baby, but I didn't believe any of it. Now eight weeks after giving birth, I was dying for a good lay.

Why was Justin the first person to pop up in my head? Damn. This was not a good sign. Why couldn't I have a decent man who wanted a decent relationship with a decent girl? Ugh, I hated my life.

I entered the hotel, immediately freezing by the door. "Umm..." I peered out the door to gaze at the number on the outside of it. 714. I could've sworn that was the number to our hotel suite. But if it was the correct number, what was Justin doing here? "What the hell is going on? Why are you laying on my bed?" he stood up, leisurely approaching me.

"We need to get something straightened out between us." he froze in front of me. "Why are you giving me this nasty attitude...trying to make me look stupid in front of everybody?"

"Oh?" I looked away, shaking my head in pity. "You have a lot of nerve to ask a question like that. I don't even wanna discuss this. So just do me a favor and leave." I brushed pass him, unsuspectingly feeling a hand grasp my arm.

"No." he turned to face me. "We're not finished talking."

"Excuse me?" I asked, yanking my arm away. "Who the hell do you think you are touching me like that? First of all, I can treat you any which way I please, okay? You don't own me. And if you must know, the reason why I'm giving you this attitude is because of your sorry ass. You don't know how to talk to people. You're rude and obnoxious. So before you ask me some...stupid question like that, you ask yourself that. You were the one to catch an attitude with me first."

"Damn." he shook his head while eying me closely. "Why are you so stuck up? You're too fine to be acting this way."

"Pish. I am not stuck up. I'm just not the one to be token for granted. You can't talk to me any way and expect for me not to respond." he held his head down, stuffing his hands in his pockets. There was a moment of silence between us before anybody decided to speak up.

"All right. You're right." he lifted his head, peering in my eyes. "I was the one who started this whole thing. So..." he took a step closer. "I only see that it's fair that I finish this." I surveyed his face, immediately erupting into laughter.

"You gotta be outta your mind if you think I'm gonna sleep with you."

"Who said that was the only way to finish this? If I gave you that impression that I wanted to fuck you, then I'm sorry. You can't blame me though." he quickly sized me up. "It's not my fault you're so..."

"Don't even start that. Just leave. You don't owe me anything, all right?" I climbed in bed, covering myself with the sheets. "I'm pretty sure you have a long day ahead of you tomorrow."

"And what is that supposed to mean?" she shut her eyes, not bothering to respond to his question. "Okay, fine." he yanked the door open. "I still think you're stuck up." he mumbled.

"Yeah. And I still think you're an asshole. Now get the hell outta my room!." he stepped out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

That following morning, everyone headed out to the amusement park which was better known as Islands of Adventure. Lucy and I decided to stop in a jewelry shop on our way there. "Look at this bracelet."

"Whoa." I gazed at it in amazement. "Wait a minute." I pulled up my sleeve, gazing at the bracelet Seth bought for me the other day. "This looks like..." I glanced back and forth at the two bracelets in bewilderment.

"Holy shit, Bee. That's the same bracelet you're wearing." we both gazed at the price in awe.

"Fifty thousands dollars?!" we both spoke in shock.

After getting the shock of my life, I decided to take a seat on a chair to rest my nerves. This was just too much for me. Where the hell did he get fifty thousand dollars from? I didn't know Architecture paid so well. And why would he spend that much on me to begin with? He was what you called cheap and stingy as I don't know what.

I looked up, watching Lucy and Justin ram each other in the go-carts. This sight immediately put a smile on my face. They both looked like two big kids. Two...big kids secretly in love. Hmm, I hope she wasn't seeing this bastard behind my back. Now that would've been the biggest news of my entire life.

"Oh boy, that was fun! Ahaha." Lucy laughed hysterically. "I kicked your ass." she spoke, pointing to Justin who followed behind her.

"Yeah, you got me. You're an excellent driver." he spoke, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "So, what are you gonna do now? You wanna get on another ride?" she shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't care. But I have to pee first. Haha, I'll be back." I took my seat, waiting patiently for her. Justin decided to take a seat on the available seat beside mines. He gazed around, putting all of his focus on his surroundings. I desperately wanted to talk about him and Lucy. I had to know if they were secretly dating.

"Um, so..." he looked away, meeting eyes with mines. "You're enjoying yourself, huh?" he shrugged his shoulders, leisurely peeling his eyes off me.

"I guess. Why?" I shook my head, hesitant to go any further.

"Are you and Lucy seeing each other?" he quickly gazed my direction with this hilarious look on his face.

"Hell no. I mean...it's not like there's something wrong with her. I just...I don't have time for a relationship right now. She's a beautiful girl though." yeah right. He was just at my hotel last night trying to talk me into having sex with him. Well those weren't his exact words, but I knew what he meant with his slick ass.

"I see. So what was last night about? You know...when you tried talking me into letting you finish what you started?" he lowered his eyes at me, giving me this sternly look. I then knew that I had gotten on his bad side which were my intentions to begin with.

"I think you're getting a little outta hand with this. You and your bitchy attitude is gonna earn you an ass whoopin' one day." he stood up, ambling towards Lucy who had departed the bathroom.

"Oh yeah? And by who? Sure as hell not you." he looked over his shoulder to gaze at me. His mood had slowly changed when he realized she was heading towards the exit of the park.

"Damn." he mumbled, almost regretting his foul behavior towards her.

As soon as I made it back to my hotel, I prepared me a nice tub full of warm water. I was gonna enjoy my vacation. Even if it was the last thing I do. No one was gonna ruin it for me. Not even that asshole out there.

Who the fuck do he think he is? Cocky ass muthafucka.

Hours later, Justin and Lucy had finally decided to call it quits. They entered the hotel building, slowly ambling down the hall towards their rooms. "Where's Chris? I haven't seen him around?" she asked. He shrugged his shoulders in response.

"I dunno. He's probably out getting wasted like the usual." they stopped in front of her room. "So..." he began.

"Um..." she glanced at her watch, realizing what time it was. "It's eight o'clock." he stuffed his hands in his pockets, finally meeting eyes with hers. "You sure you wanna call it a night? Maybe there's room for something else." he knew what she was thinking from the look on her face.

"I...I dunno. Maybe we can...go to my room and um...maybe watch a few movies. Order a pizza or something." this was definitely what he wanted, but not with her. All he could think about was Beyonce and what she was up to.

"No problem." she grasped his arm, pulling him further down the hall.

"Uhhh, I have an idea. Here..." he handed her his key. "Why don't you go to my room and order the pizza. I'm gonna get something from the vending machine."

"Okay." he watched as she disappeared right before his eyes. He then turned, rushing back to her hotel where Beyonce was.

Beyonce stepped out of the bathroom, wrapping a towel around her drenched figure. She was immediately startled by a knock on the door. "Who the hell...damn Linda. You forgot your key again?" I asked, yanking the door open. My eyes focused in on someone other than Linda. "Justin?" he quickly invited himself in, shutting the door behind him.

"Your friend Lucy is at my hotel waiting for me." I flashed him a questioning look. "We're planning on sleeping with each other, but..." he paused. "I don't want to if it's not okay with you."

"Excuse me?" I spoke, resting my hand on my hip in attitude. "What do you mean you're planning on sleeping..."

"Are you even listening to me? You should know why I'm telling you this. I like you, and..." he bit his lip in thought. "I just don't wanna do anything you disagree on. If you think I shouldn't do it, then I won't." I looked away, taking in all of his words. This was starting to be too much for me. Him and Lucy? In this position, I would normally give him the O-K but something was holding me back. Something deep within.

I think I'm actually falling for this guy.

"I dunno." I met eyes with his. "I can't...tell you what to do. We don't even see eye to eye so why should you care how I feel?"

"I like you, that's why. And I know you like me too. You're just afraid to fess up." he took a step towards me. "Yes or no. Do you care if I sleep with your friend? If so, I'll end all of this right now. If not...I'm gonna go on with my plan." I gazed in his eyes, hesitant to respond. My emotions were going haywire. First, I could care less what he did but now, everything was different. I knew for a fact that I didn't want him sleeping with my best friend because I wanted him for myself. Well at least that's how I felt right now.

"I...I don't care." I turned, taking a seat on the bed.

"You...don't care? I mean..." he ran his hand over his uneven hair. "Great umm..." he licked his lips. "What am I doing? I don't even know why I'm telling you this." he turned, pulling the door open.

"Wait." I grasped his arm, holding him back. He turned, watching as I slowly pulled him towards me. "If you already know that I like you, why would you ask me a question like that?" he shrugged his shoulders, leisurely peering in on her luscious lips, curious to how good she tasted.

"I dunno. Maybe I just wanted to see what was your response was gonna be." she chuckled, hesitantly inching her face closer to his. What was I doing? Was this something I really wanted? Or was this just my mind talking?

I slowly begin to come to reality. I couldn't give in that easy. Especially not to some guy I've only known for two days. "I can't." I took a few steps back.

"What's wrong?" he reached out, resting his hand on my cheek. "What's on your mind?" I peered in his eyes. "You can tell me."

"Who...are you?" he returned a questioning look. "I don't understand. Is this the real Justin or just the Justin who tries to sweet talk women into bed with him?"

"What?"

"Just go. Go fuck Lucy and I hope you have fun." he stood there, shaking his head pathetically. "I can't believe you thought about doing that in the first place. If you really liked me, you would've told her no. I can't...I can't believe I almost fell for it."

"Oh my god. Unbelievable." he ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. "Fuck it. This is getting me nowhere." he reached out, pulling the door open. "Stuck up bitch." he mumbled, shutting the door behind him.

"Whatever."

That following morning, we got dressed and took a visit to one of the best diners up the street. After ordering our food, we sat at the table waiting patiently for our food to arrive. "So any way, that's what happened." Justin spoke to Chris who both sat across from us. "She was cool about it. No arguments, just..."

"That was sweet of her." he nodded, slowly looking away to gaze at Lucy.

"You okay?" he asked, reaching out to touch her. I watched closely as he rested his hand on top of hers. I immediately knew that they had gotten too close for their own good. And this was beginning to make me sick.

"Excuse me." I stood up, quickly rushing towards the nearest restroom.

"What's her problem?" Chris asked, looking away to gaze at Justin who had his fingers intertwined with Lucy's.

"I dunno." he answered while shrugging his shoulders. "Maybe it's that time of the month. I wouldn't be surprised with the attitude she's been in." he reached out, grazing Lucy's cheek delicately. She met eyes with his, smiling in return.

"You guys seeing each other? I mean..."

"No." he answered quickly. "We're just...friends." Beyonce took her seat at the table, covering her face with both palms. She had to get away from this before it made her even more sicker.

She then knew that he was who she wanted to be with. She just couldn't get herself to give in for some reason.

They finally got their food after waiting a whole half an hour. Justin stuffed a portion of eggs in his mouth as he kept his gaze on Beyonce. The main reason why he was doing all of this was to get her jealous. He knew it was a childish way of behaving, but he didn't care. He had to get her attention somehow. "You okay, Bee?" she quickly looked up to gaze at Chris. "Lately, you've been quiet." she shook her head in response.

"Like I said, maybe it's that time of the month." Justin spoke up. I slowly lifted my head, gazing directly at him with the meanest look.

"You're gonna get enough of doggin' me. Say another god damn word to me and see what happens." she warned, pointing her fork his direction. "I'm not even hungry anymore." I stood up, ambling towards the exit.

"Shit. See what you did." Lucy stood up, hastily following behind her. He slowly gawked to the side to gaze at Chris who sat there staring at him.

"What? I didn't even say anything. Damn! She's the one with the...bitchy attitude." he dropped his fork to his plate and arose from his seat. "I gotta use the restroom." he made his way towards the men's room.

"Bee?" Lucy wrapped her arm around her. "What's wrong?" she stood there crying inaudibly. "I know you're not crying over him. You never let a man put you down like this now why?" she sniffled, quickly wiping the tears from her eyes.

"I just don't understand. I mean...why is he always on my case? He doesn't even care how I feel. I can be on my death bed and he'll still have something smart to say. God!! I just wish...ugh!" she sniffled. "I wanna kick his ass."

"Calm down. He just likes you, that's all. Believe what I say."

"Really? Well why would he try and sleep with you if he likes me? He's nothing but a fucking dog." I spoke angrily, crossing my arms over my chest.

"What are you talking about?" oh no. What have I done?

I hesitantly gazed at her with this cautious look on my face. "You...you didn't sleep with him?" she shook her head.

"Of coarse not. We just...hung out. We watched a few movies...ordered a pizza. I have to admit though. We kissed. We were even close to taking it to the next level, but he changed his mind right in the middle of it. I dunno. Maybe he realized he was making a mistake."

Oh my god. He really did like me. But why would he treat me so cold if he had these deep feelings for me? He was so backwards and he just didn't make any sense whatsoever. All I could think about was getting back home to my baby before he drove me even more insane.

A week had passed and Justin actually stayed out of my way. He didn't say a word to me which was very odd of him. I haven't seen Lucy since the vacation. She didn't even call which was very odd of her. Everything just seemed awkward around here. Chris was even in his room more often and he would only come out when it was time to eat.

On my way down the hall, I could hear the sound of music. It was coming from one of the rooms.

My eyes slowly focused in on the door that belong to Justin's room. What the hell could he have been doing?

I rested my ear against the door, listening closely. I could hear singing then music. If I had to guess, I would say it was the sound of a guitar. I decided to rest my shoulder against the door, not even realizing it was cracked open. And before I knew it, I was laying face first on the floor in his room. He sat there with this strange look on his face.

"You okay?" he stood up, rushing towards me.

"Um..." I stood up, brushing down my outfit. Words couldn't explain how embarrassed I was. I could actually feel my cheeks burning from blushing so hard. "Yeah. I'm fine." I looked up, peering in his eyes. For some reason, I thought he would've given me this look of attitude, but he didn't. Instead, that familiar smirk was plastered on his face as if he wanted to laugh, but didn't want to because if he did, he would've hurt my feelings.

"What were you doing?"

"Well..." should I tell the truth or lie my ass off? "I was...I was passing by and I guess I wasn't looking because all I could remember was tripping over Kyle's toy and...this is where I ended up." a soft chuckle escaped his lips. "Sorry. I'm gonna go now."

"No, no. Wait." he reached out, grasping my arm. "I want you to hear something. Here..." he pulled out a seat for me. "Have a seat. I was just..." I sat down, watching as he took a seat on the bed. "...working on this song for myself. It's..."

"You can sing too?" he nodded.

"Somethin' like that." he picked up his guitar and begin playing. "Feel free to let me know if something sounds off or..." I chuckled in response. "You know. Well, here it goes." he cleared his throat and begin singing. "Hop in the car and go with meee. You don't have tooo pack everything. Don't you wanna feel the breezeee? And forget everything, baby. Got laid off at your job todayyyy. You been working at this place for yearssss. And though you were under paiddd. Mami, that place isn't worth your tearssss no, no. I know the life is harddd on youuuu and you can't seem to find out whyyyy. I'll explain just grab your coattt, girl. And just join me on this rideeee. Let's take a rideee on the country sideeee. Let's just get awayyyy. We can spend the nightttt 'til the morning lightttt. Let's just get awayyyy, yeahhh." he paused, slowly lifting his head to gaze at me. "That's all I got so far. So..." he sat the guitar down. "...what do you think?"

"I..." truthfully, I had no idea what to say because for one I didn't think he had it in him. "I'm speechless." he broke out laughing.

"And is that a good or bad thing?"

"No, no. Definitely good. It was wonderful. I really didn't think you had that...you know? I didn't think you had that side in you..."

"I get what you're trying to say." he stood up, walking towards me. "I'm sure you have a clue who the song refers to." I sat there lost with words. I had no idea what he was trying to say.

"Umm..." he kneeled in front of me, never peeling his eyes off me. The way he looked at me begin to make me nervous so I had to think of something quick before something happened. "Maybe I should go. I have to go check on Kyle." she stood up, ambling towards the bedroom door.

"I'll see you at dinner." he stood up, watching as she departed the room, shutting it behind her.

What an awkward moment, she thought on her way down the hall.

Around eight o'clock that night, Beyonce decided to put Kyle to sleep. She stood over the crib, gazing down at him as he slept peacefully. She didn't understand how Seth could abandon such a beautiful child. His child. How could someone be so heartless?

A knock on the door woke her out of her thoughts. She quickly looked over her shoulder to gaze at the door. "Uh, one moment!" she tied her robe on her way to the door. As soon as she reached there, she yanked the door open, gazing at a familiar guy. "Justin?"

"Hey. Um..." he bit his lip in thought. "Are you busy?"

"I...I was just putting Kyle to sleep." he gazed at her figure, realizing she was only wearing a robe.

"I must've caught you at a bad time. I guess..."

"Was there something you wanted?" he looked away, hesitant to ask because for one, he knew their relationship wasn't on a friendship level.

"Can I talk to you?" she looked away, crossing her arms over her chest. What could he possibly want to talk about?

"About what? You got bored talking to Chris? Now you wanna come bother me?" a soft chuckle escaped his lips.

"It's not even like that. I just thought...maybe we could talk. You know, get to know each other a little better." she scrutinized his face, trying to read what was on his mind. For some reason, she had a feeling that he didn't just want to talk. He had to have something else in mind.

"What is this really about, Justin? Why do you wanna talk to me all of a sudden?" he shrugged his shoulders.

"I dunno. Maybe...you've gotten interesting all of a sudden. Damn. Why all of these questions? Just let me in so we can talk." he spoke in a playful tone.

"Excuse me?" she smirked, slowly standing aside and inviting him inside. "Come in." he entered the room, gazing around interestingly. "What do you wanna talk about?" she asked, taking a seat on the bed.

"You." he leaned against the dresser, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "I wanna talk about you and this little...grudge you have on men. Why do you hate men so much?" I sat there in complete surprise.

"I beg your pardon? Who in the hell..."

"The way you look at me like you hate my guts. And you don't even know me so why...give off that impression that you dislike me?"

"You're right about one thing. I don't know you so why would I hate you? And you're wrong about the other because I love men. I'm not gay and I never will be. Dick is what makes the world go around for me, okay? So don't be assuming things. 'Cause when you do, you make an ass outta you." she spoke with attitude.

"Okay." he shrugged his shoulders. "I'm glad we got that out of the way. But I still think you hate me." I looked away, refusing to give him eye contact because he was right. For a change. Well in a way.

"You're sorta wrong. I hate that...nasty vibe you give off towards me. But you as a person is differently." he lowered his eyes at me. "I actually think you're cute." he stood there, never peeling his eyes off me. And I knew just what he was going to say about my comment. It was like I could read his mind.

"I think you're cute too." I knew he was going to say that. I just knew it. "You have a bad attitude though."

"Pish. Whatever." he took a seat beside me, leisurely looking away to gaze my direction. "So..." I began, having no clue what to say. Why did I have a feeling something was going to happen?

"Wow." he reached out, grasping her wrist in his hand. "I bought my girlfriend a bracelet sorta like this the day we broke up." I immediately gazed in his eyes. "She gave me back everything I ever bought her except for that. Haha." now I had to laugh because I thought it was hilarious. "Seth bought it, right?"

"Yeah." I answered, gazing at it. "I don't understand why he would all of a sudden buy me something so expensive. He never spends money on me."

"Hmm. That's ashamed." he gripped a portion of her hair, twirling a few strands around his finger. "Someone like you should get treated like the queen you are." now why did those words make my heart flutter? Was it because it was the first time hearing it come from a man? Well, the first time a man has said it to me. This was the type of stuff said in fairytales and so that was the reason why it was kind of hard for me to believe a word he said.

"..." a knock interrupted me before I was able to say anything. "Um, come in!!" the door crept open and someone I didn't expect peered in.

"Hey..." his smile slowly faded when he gazed in on Justin.

"Seth? What are you doing here?"

Seth entered the room, sizing Justin up in questioning. And I already knew what he was going to say. And it wasn't going to be anything nice. "I'm gonna..." he stood up. "...leave you guys." I watched as he ambled towards the door with this urge to stop him because he was who I wanted to stay. Not Seth.

"Jus..." I began, hesitating for some apparent reason. Maybe for the fact that Seth was there. "Um, what are you doing here?" he shut the door behind him.

"Who was that guy? You seeing other people now?" he asked with a slight bit attitude.

"Excuse me?" I stood to my feet. "Who do you think you are showing up here like you own this place. You don't live here, okay? And first of all, it's none of your concern who he is. It's not like if he was my boyfriend you could do something about it. We're through, remember? Or do you have STD?"

"What?"

"Short term memory." he stood there, crossing his arms over his chest. "It's going on nine o'clock. What are you doing here? I was heading to bed." Justin stood by the bedroom door, eves dropping in on their conversation.

"I came to see you. AND the baby of coarse."

"Haha." he flashed me a confused look. "Now why am I having a hard time believing that. You know damn well why you came here. I'm not liking this one bit. First you abandon me and the baby for a whole nine months. You don't even show up during labor and birth. And now, two months later you come back with this expensive ass bracelet..." she yanked the bracelet off and threw it at him. "...that I won't accept. You can't buy my love, Seth. I'm not one of your...gold digging girlfriends. I don't want money and fancy shit. I wanna be loved and you're not giving me that. And that's the reason why we can't be together. So don't think showing up here at nine o'clock for some coochie is gonna work. Because it isn't." he stood there lost with words. "Now would you please leave." he kneeled down, picking up the bracelet from off the floor.

"I hope you know how expensive this is and how expensive it's gonna be to get it fixed." she rolled her eyes.

"Unbelievable. Is that the only thing you can think of? How expensive it's gonna be to get it fixed? Just get the hell outta my house. And if I have to repeat myself, I'm just gonna go talk to Chris and he'll make sure you leave." she threatened. "It's over, Seth. It's been over a long time ago. Now goodbye."

He stood there for a good long minute burning a hole into her. "All right, fine." he turned, pulling on the door. "You were never worth my time any way." he departed the room, shutting the door behind him. For some reason, those exact words brought tears to her eyes. She never understood what she ever did to end up with someone like him. She didn't deserve how he treated her. Especially after all the shit she'd been through with him.

She took a seat on the bed, holding her head down as the tears poured down her cheeks. She hated her life and the only reason why she was still up and running is because of Kyle. He was the reason why she was living.

A knock interrupted her out of her thoughts. "God damnit!" she stood up, quickly heading towards the door. "Didn't I tell you to leave?" she yanked the door open, coming face to face with Justin. "Oh..." she quickly wiped the tears from her eyes. "Um...what do you want? I...I should really be getting to bed." she sniffled, slowly lifting her head to peer in his eyes. He stood there with a concerned look on his face. And that was actually the first time she had ever seen him look that way.

"I was wrong about him. He's a complete jerk." a soft chuckle escaped her lips.

"It takes one to know one." she spat out. "Good night, Justin." she pushed in the door, but he held it open with his foot.

"You're right. It does and..." he invited himself in. "...at least I can admit that I was being a jerk. But what about mister Architect?" he asked, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "He's not a real man if he can't fess up to his wrong doing. That's one of the reasons why my African American girlfriend and I broke up. Because she thought that I was a softy just because I apologized every time we got into an argument. And she was wrong half the time, but she could never admit to it. The same for you women. It takes a real one to apologize and admit to their wrong doing. And she wasn't. She wasn't a real woman. But I can tell you something that you are." he paused, scrutinizing me closely. "You are. Especially if you put up with an asshole like that. And how long have you two been together? Maybe three or fours years?" he shook his head pathetically. "You deserve better." I stood there, refusing to shed a tear in his presence. But it was a little hard to.

"I have to..." I forcefully kept my emotions in. "I'm going to bed." he could hear the cry in her voice, knowing deep down that something wasn't right. "Lock the door behind you." she turned, climbing in bed and covering herself with the blanket. As soon as she shielded her face, she released everything bottled up inside her. As he stood there listening closely, he could hear her sobbing faintly. But was it right of him to leave her there in pain and sorrow? Because one thing he hated and that was seeing a woman cry.

But then again, she didn't seem like she wanted him there. Especially while she was in this condition. "Bee..." he hesitated. "You know you can talk to me. Whenever you're...in need of a shoulder to lean on or...maybe cry on. I'm here." he pulled the door open, taking a step out of the room. "I'll be in my room if you wanna talk." with that, he left the room, shutting the door behind him.

Justin sat on his bed playing his guitar as he finished up on his song. "Let's take a rideeee. Hmm hmm hmmm." he song, being interrupted by a knock on the door. "Uh..." he looked up to gaze at the door. "Come in." the door slowly flew open and a familiar woman stood there still in her robe. "Hey." he sat his guitar down, watching as she entered the room, closing the door afterwards. "Is everything okay?" she stood against the door with her arms over her chest.

"I don't know." her voice cracked from the tears taking over her. "I feel...like I've lost the most important thing in my life. But he wasn't, which is the bad thing about it." she sniffled inaudibly.

"Come here. Have a seat." he patted the area next to him. She leisurely took a seat beside him and gawked to the side to meet eyes with his. He reached out, wrapping his arm around her. "It's okay to feel that way." she rested her head on his shoulder as she begin to break down in tears. "Did you love him?" she nodded meekly.

"Yes." she spoke faintly. "I did. But..." she lifted her head, slowly locking eyes with his. "It feels like something is missing. I'm so used to being with him and around him. It's like...even though he treats me like shit...I still need his presence because I'm used to it."

"I understand where you're coming from. I used to feel that away about one of my exes. I thought I couldn't live without her." he chuckled just thinking about it. "It was pathetic, but I ended up getting over her. It took some time. A few dates and partying completely made me forget all about her. So, that's what you probably need to do. You need to get out. Date a few people and just...have fun. And believe me, in a few weeks or even months...you'll be over him. Seth won't even come to mind. And..." he licked his lips. "...that maybe a good thing for me." he teased. Her smile slowly faded when she noticed the serious look on his face. He may have tried to make it seem like a joke, but she knew better and she knew when a man was interested.

She gazed in on his lips, hesitant to kiss him. She knew she wanted to but something was holding her back. What if she was reading him all wrong? What if he wasn't interested in her? And what if Lucy was the girl for him?

He bit his lip, slowly inching his face closer to hers. She met him half way, moments later meeting lips with his. She instantly felt this chill run down her spine. Because for one, she hadn't kissed a man or had sex in god knows how long. And two, he was just the person she wanted to experience this with. "Mmm, wait..." she broke away, panting heavily. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have." she stood up, quickly ambling towards the door. "I should go check on Kyle. Make sure..."

"Hey." he grasped her arm, stopping her in her tracks. "You and I know that Kyle is okay. He's probably sleeping." she slowly turned to face him. "What's wrong? You seem like this is all...new to you."

"I...I just..." she fiddled with her fingers nervously. My heart was thumping dramatically and not because I was scared. But because I desperately needed this and I just didn't want to look it. "I don't know if this is right. I mean..." she gulped down. "...we hardly know each other. You're..." he leisurely pulled her towards him. "It's not like I don't want to. It's just..." he stood there, scrutinizing her closely as she tried explaining herself. "God..." she exhaled heavily. "This is what I want, but...I can't." she cried. "I can't." he nodded timidly.

"Okay. I'm not gonna force you to do anything you don't wanna do." he leaned in, pecking her on the cheek. "That offer still stands. If you wanna...still talk." she nodded, not budging one bit. He knew she didn't want to leave. She was just behaving like a woman with respect would.

"Um, so I guess I'll see you in the morning." he nodded, slowly releasing her hand. She turned, yanking on the door.

"I just...I can't hold back anymore." he pulled her towards him, instantly locking lips with hers. She moaned softly, slowly wrapping her arms around his neck. "Mmm." he groaned, quickly backing her into the wall.

"Oh..." she moaned, enjoying the touch of his teeth nibbling on her neck sweetly. "Jus...Justin mmm. Maybe we should...maybe we should take things a little slow." he pulled away from her, slowly gazing into her eyes. "Why don't we just...start off by being friends. And then we can..." he smirked, knowing that it was all a bunch of crap. Her body wanted it. She just had too much pride. "What the hell..." she gripped his collar, pulling him towards her to meet lips with his once more. "Mmm." he threw her on the bed and hovered over her.

Her heart paced as she felt his tongue trail down her chest. And the closer he had gotten to her classified area, the faster her heart would pound. He leisurely trailed his hands up under her robe, tugging down her underwear. He pulled her further towards the edge, parting her legs with his hand. Her eyes lit up the moment he had went down on her. "Oh...godddd. No." she moaned, biting her lip in pleasure. "What are you...what are you doing?" he darted his tongue up and down her clit. "Fuck." she threw her head back as she felt this rush of pleasure spread throughout her body. "God, this is...no." she pulled away from him. "This isn't right." she quickly sat up, looking around for her underwear. "Where's my underwear?"

"What's not right?" she finally met eyes with his. "I don't understand."

"You...I mean..." she hesitated, immediately getting distracted by the bulge in his pants. She could tell then that he was definitely in the mood. "No one's ever...did that to me. And it just doesn't feel right that..."

"It's okay. I don't mind doing it. As long as you're clean down there. Haha." she chuckled softly.

"You know what I mean. We hardly know each other and you...should only do that with someone you're with. Someone you're in love with. That's the most honest thing you could ever do to a woman. You should only do it with someone you love. 'Cause I could never see myself give a guy head if I don't love him." he nodded. "I'm sorry if I...disappointed you. And from this view...I can really tell you were looking forward to it." she referred to the bulge in his pants.

"Haha well..." he looked away. "It's okay. I'll be fine. I still have the option of taking a cold shower." she broke out laughing.

"That's exactly what I'm gonna do." his smile slowly faded. "Well um, I guess this is good night...friend?" she extended her hand out to shake his.

"Yeah." he answered, shaking her hand in response. "Friend."

The following day, Beyonce sat at the kitchen table writing a few words down in her notebook. She was startled by loud laughter. Immediately, she met up with Chris who was talking on the phone. "Oh...you're in here." she looked up to gaze at him.

"Somethin' wrong?" he shook his head, taking a seat at the table. She hadn't seen Justin that whole morning and she was actually starting to get worried. "Where's your friend?" he shrugged his shoulders.

"I dunno. Probably upstairs jacking off to one of your pictures." he joked.

"Chris..." I sat there a little taken back by his words. "Um...listen what are you doing? I need to run out right quick. Maybe..." she trailed off when she realized he wasn't paying attention to her. "Nevermind." she stood up, departing the kitchen.

After getting her and Kyle dressed, she put him in his stroller and strolled him outside. They proceeded down the sidewalk towards the park two blocks away. On her way further down the sidewalk, she could hear yelling coming from behind her. She froze, slowly looking over her shoulder to gaze at a man who jogged her way. "Justin?" he slowed down his pace the closer he had gotten to her.

"Hey." he exhaled heavily. "What are you...where are you going?"

"Um..." she didn't wanna admit that she was actually going to look for him so she decided to make up something. "I was taking Kyle for a stroll...in the park."

"Oh." he smiled warmly. "Well can I come? I was actually on my way there any way." he lied as they proceeded towards the park. "I was gonna go work out. Do some...push ups and sit ups. Whatever."

"Really?" she looked away, scanning his figure. "I didn't know you worked out. I just thought...it came natural." she referred to his thin figure. "Listen, um...about last night..."

"First..." he interrupted. "...I would just like to say that I had every intention on doing that. I wasn't drunk or simply caught up in the moment. And it wasn't planned. I just saw an opening so I went for it. I thought maybe...that's what you wanted." he stuffed his hands in his pockets.

"Well, I did. But...like I said..."

"I know. We hardly know each other and you wanna be friends. And I can't agree more. I would love to get to know you...better." she nodded in agreement, slowly peeling her eyes off him.

"What about...when you leave? Which is in another week. Will we ever see each other again?" he took a seat on one of the benches at the park.

"I dunno. Would you like to see me again? It's really all up to you. I don't wanna do things you disagree on. If you wanna hang out and maybe...go dating every once in a while then we could. Just call to let me know. But of coarse...it won't be every day since you know..."

"Yeah. You live in Texas." he chuckled softly.

"Yeah." he held his head down, intertwining his fingers together

"Truthfully, there isn't a girl waiting for you back home, is it?" he met eyes with hers, realizing how serious she became. "'Cause if there is, I will kill you. Especially after what happened last night."

"Of coarse not. One thing I'm not and that's a cheater. I never cheated and I have no intentions on doing it." he paused, gazing around at his surroundings. "There is uhhh, a man waiting for me back at home though. He's...six five. Nicely built..." she noticed the smirk on his face. "Very cute and..."

"Oh god. Shut up. Ahaha." he broke out laughing. "That is so disgusting."

"I couldn't agree more. 'Cause that's another thing I'm not. A fruity boy. Haha."

"Which one do you prefer?" Justin asked while holding up two different types of bologne. "Chicken or beef?"

"Both. Haha." she sat at the table as he prepared a sandwich for them. Quickly, their relationship begin to change dramatically. First from being enemies to friends.

"So, you want both bolognes for your sandwich?" she nodded with a smile. "All right. Maybe I'll try it too. It's always good to try new things." she watched as he spread a layer of mayonaise on a slice of bread. "You ever had mayo sandwiches?"

"Oh yeah. You ever had sugar water?" he broke out laughing.

"Hell yeah. A couple of times at that." she sat there, shaking her head pathetically.

"And what the hell do you know about sweet water and mayo sandwiches? A southern boy like you should..."

"That question is gonna earn you an ass whoopin'." he joked. "Nah, seriously...I learned from your cousin. Haha. You know he's so ghetto. He even smoke blunts with..." he trailed off, realizing he had blurted out the secret he told him not to tell her. "Uh, nevermind."

"Excuse me?" he quickly slapped her sandwich together and slid it in front of her. "My cousin smokes?"

"Would you like milk or juice with that?"

"Wh...no, no. I wanna know what you just said. What the hell did you just say?" he shook his head, never looking her direction.

"I said it was nothing. Just a little...miscommunication." he answered while squeezing mustard on his bread.

"Oh, so is that what you wanna call it?" he gazed at her, taking a bite out of his sandwich. "I can't believe he's smoking. He better not be doing that shit in my house. You tell me, is he smoking in my house! Is he?" he didn't want to lie to her because if he did and she found out the truth, it would've made him look bad. Not only that, it would've definitely ruined his chances of being with her. "Is he...smoking in my house? Now, I'm not gonna ask you again. I'm just gonna go ask him myself."

"All right." he looked away, chewing on his inner lip in thought. "Maybe he smoked a few cigarettes while he was here. But..."

"Oh my god. I knew it." she held her head down, still in a state of shock. "My cousin is a pot head. He's a..." he stood there, regretting ever telling her because he knew it would've started some drama between him and Chris.

"I wouldn't...exactly describe him as a pot head. He's..."

"Just...shut up. You both are...friggin' jerks! How could you guys keep something like this from me? It's one thing to go behind my back and smoke in my own god damn house. And it's another to lie about it." she stood up. "I know he's not smoking cigarettes. Not from the way his eyes look. Cigarettes do not make you look high. Drugs do."

"Bee..."

"Shut up. Don't...don't fucking talk to me." she turned, exiting the kitchen. From that moment, he knew things were going to get ugly. It was only a matter of time.

After finding out Chris's secret, Beyonce decided to stay out of his way. Because she knew if she met up with him and they started talking, she would've ended up mentioning his drug handling.

She sat in a tub full of warm water, just thinking about her life and what she was going to do with Seth. Then she begin to think about Justin and how generous he became. Was it just a front to win her over and once he got with her, he change back into the old him? Most men would pull that on her and she was always stupid to fall for it. Like Seth for instance. He was nice to her at first, then begin to change dramatically a few months into the relationship.

What was she going to do? Why did she always have to have a man in her life? Why couldn't she just go out and date a few people and just leave it at that? Why did it always have to be about long term commitments with her?

She simply wanted to be in love. She wanted to see how it was being with someone who felt the same for her. And believe it or not, all she could see was Justin when she thought about that. All she kept thinking about was him and his visit back to Texas.

Should I let him leave or tell him how I truly feel about him?

A knock on the bathroom door startled her. That moment, she knew someone had came into her room. But who? "Um, who is it?"

"It's me." she definitely knew who that voice belonged to and for some reason, she was a little happy to hear it. "Is it okay if I come in?"

"Yeah." she sat up, keeping herself concealed with her hands. The door crept open and the familiar guy peered in.

"Hey." he entered the room, shutting the door behind him. "We need to talk." he kept his position pinned against the door. "I'm sorry for keeping the...you know, Chris's smoking from you. I just didn't want to hurt you. I thought maybe we could just come here for two weeks and leave without telling you. It's not like you see him all the time. The last time you guys seen each other was about what? Three years ago?" she looked away. "Think about it. So um, what I was thinking. I was thinking maybe you can just try and...keep it to yourself. I'll talk to him and ask him not to smoke in here for the mere fact that there's a baby here. And before you know it...he'll be gone. We'll be gone and you won't have to worry about it anymore."

"That's what I wanna talk to you about." she met eyes with his. "I don't want you to go back. At least not in another week."

"And why not?" he asked, taking a seat on the toilet stool.

"How else are we gonna be together if you're...miles away? I hate long distance relationships. Those are the ultimate no no's for me."

"Hmm." he bit his lip in thought. "I wasn't aware that we were together to begin with." she returned a smirk.

"And you think I would let a complete stranger come in here while I'm naked? Of coarse I wanna be with you. There's one thing you have to do for me though. You have to promise you won't keep secrets from me. I know we're not married or anything. I just feel that, if we ever want this relationship to go somewhere...we have to be honest with each other. There's no relationship if you don't have trust. Now, I wanna be able to trust you."

"Well you can." he peered deeply in her eyes. "I won't hurt you. I promise."

"All right." she arose from the water, revealing her naked figure. His eyes followed her on the other side of the bathroom where the towels were. Words couldn't explain how turned on he was. Just by looking at her. "I'm glad we got that token care of." she spoke, wrapping the towel around her. She stood there, noticing how quiet he became. "You okay?" he nodded quickly.

"Yeah. I'm...I'm fine." he lifted his head to gaze at her.

"Why are you lying to me? I thought we agreed not to keep things from each other." she stood in front of him. "Was is it?"

"Come here." he gripped her waist, pulling her towards him. "It's nothing. Really." he rested his head against her tummy. "My hormones are just...going haywire. That's all." she ran her fingers through his hair.

"Is there something I can do?" of coarse there was. "Something to make you feel better." he lifted his head to gaze at her.

"Maybe." his eyes slowly trailed down her figure. "You mind?" she stood there, watching closely as he slowly removed her towel, dropping it to the floor. He licked his lips, scrutinizing her delicious looking breasts. "I haven't...seen a pair of these up close in a long time."

"Haha. Well..." she tugged on his jeans. "I hope you don't mind if I take a peek at...junior."

"Not at all." she leisurely unbuckled his belt, unbuttoning his jeans afterwards.

"I was told that...most white men have small penises. Seth proved me wrong in that department and..." she unzipped his jeans and thrust them down. "Hopefully you'll do the same. She swiftly yanked his boxers down, automatically gazing in on his size. A smile slowly formed across her lips. "Um, ahem..." she stood to her feet. "I'm not even gonna...comment on yours. From now on, I'm gonna keep my mouth shut. Haha."

He discarded his shirt, tossing it aside. "You shouldn't believe everything people say." he moved in closer to her. "It only makes you look ignorant as well." she nodded in agreement.

"I'm sorry. Did I offend you?" she reached out, grabbing a part of him. "Maybe I can make it up to you."

"You better." he spoke, leaning in to meet lips with hers.

Beyonce sat up breathing heavily. She gazed around the dimmed room, realizing it was all a dream. Her and Justin in the bathroom. It was all just a...bad dream. Well she couldn't say bad, because she felt disappointed all of a sudden. Which was a big sign that she wanted it to happen.

She stepped out of bed, quickly checking on Kyle who remained in his crib sleeping noiselessly. She threw on a robe and departed the bedroom. On her way down the hall she could hear the sound of a TV. She entered the living room, gazing at a body laying on the sofa. "Who the hell..." she leaned in to get a better look. "Chris? Damnit." she tapped him on the arm. "Chris? Get up." he stirred, slowly fluttering his eyes open. "What the hell are you doing?" she whispered. "I told you about sleeping in here. You have to go to your room." he sat up, stretching his arms and legs.

"I didn't realize I fell asleep." he stood up, staggering towards the stair case. She immediately begin to think about the dream and Justin asking her not to tell him about the secret. That dream had to be telling her something. Something good or even bad.

"Um, you sure everything is fine with you? Is there something you would like to talk about?" he froze, slowly turning to face her.

"Like what?" she shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't know. Maybe the reason why you've been sleeping everywhere. Why your...eyes are always blood shot red like you haven't gotten any sleep in ages." he shrugged his shoulders.

"I dunno. Why should you care?" he proceeded up the stairs.

"Maybe because I'm your cousin and I love you." he continued up the stairs, not bothering to answer her. "I just wanna help you."

"Goodnight, Bee." he entered his room, shutting the door behind him.

"Shit." she mumbled, taking a seat on the sofa. "Fucking...bastard. If he think he can do whatever he wants in my house, he got another thing comin' to him."

"You're so selfish." a voice spoke behind her. She quickly looked over her shoulder to gaze at Justin who stood behind the sofa where she sat. "You don't care who you hurt. You're so stuck on this little...innocent godly act of yours. You're willing to hurt the ones who care about you. What about me? Do you even care what will happen to our friendship when you tell him?"

"I..." she had no idea what to say or do.

"I'm about ready to go back home. I'm tired of trying to win your trust. All I'm doing is wasting my time." he ambled up the stairs. "And on top of that, you're trying to ruin my frienship with Chris. What a big...bad witch you are."

"Excuse me?" she quickly followed behind him. "First of all, I do care about you and Chris's relationship. You guys are the selfish ones for not telling me. You knew I had a baby here but did you even bother telling me that he was doing drugs here? No! You just..." she followed him in the guest room where he was sleeping. "...walked around here...trying to sweet talk me into bed with you."

"I beg your pardon?" he turned to face her. "I was trying to sweet talk you into bed? See that's where you're wrong. I don't need to sweet talk anybody into bed with me. All I had to do was buy you into it. But no. I was just trying to be honest with you. If you wanna call it sweet talking then go right ahead. I could care less. Because as soon as next week is here, I'll be gone. You won't have to worry about me ever again, because I will never come here again. This has been the worse vacation I've ever had. And you don't have to worry about me recommending it to anybody. They'll have to be a fool to stay here with some...bitch like you. No wonder the other side of your family hates you. You're a complete bitch towards people." those exact words brought tears to her eyes. She had no idea they actually felt that way about her. Then again, maybe he was just lying to get under her skin. She would never know the truth unless she asked.

"So is that how everybody feels about me? They hate me?" he looked away, crossing his arms over his chest. "Well what about you? You hate me too?" he slowly met eyes with hers, realizing the tears in her eyes. "Thank you." her bottom lip trembled with emotions. "Thanks for helping me make my decision." she turned, departing the room.

"Damnit. Bee?" he quickly followed the way she went. "Beyonce?"

"No." she turned to face him. "See I actually thought you were this decent guy. I thought you were different than Seth. But I was wrong. You're all the same. You hurt women and don't even care. It's like you guys have no heart."

"No." he reached out for her. "You're wrong." she broke from his embrace, quickly swinging her hand, and slapping him across the face.

"Don't touch me! Jerk. I can't wait 'til next week comes. Both of you assholes will be gone. Out of my life for good!" she entered her room, slamming the door behind her.

The following morning, Beyonce entered the kitchen to meet up with Chris and Justin. They both immediately stopped talking when they recognized she was in their presence. "Oh I'm sorry. Did I interrupt something?" she rolled her eyes. "I'll be out of your hair in a minute." Chris departed the room without saying a word.

"Sorry about last night. I didn't mean what I s..."

"It doesn't matter. Just like you said. By next week, you guys will be gone. Out of my life for good." she turned, unsuspectingly feeling a hand grasp her arm.

"You know I didn't mean that. I don't wanna be away from you. I wanna..."

"Will you stop this whole act of yours? If you wanna fuck me just say it. Don't try and pretend like you want more. Because you don't. Assholes like you only want one thing and one thing only. And that's pussy."

"Assholes like me? See that's the thing I hate about you women. You judge people before you even get a chance to know them. You just go by assumptions. And that's dull and ignorant of ya'll."

"Yeah? Well that's what you get for thinking you had a chance. Sorry ass muthafucka." she departed the kitchen, leaving him furious. Her attitude only made him want her more. But he was getting tired of it and he wanted her to stop treating him as if he had anything to do with the drugs.

On her way up the stairs, the doorbell had went off. "Will somebody answer the fucking door?" Justin walked right pass it, not bothering to answer it. All he was focused on was straightening things out with her.

"We need to talk." a voice spoke behind her. "I don't understand why I'm getting all of the heat. If you're pissed with Chris, don't take it out on me. I don't deserve this."

"Will you stop whining like a little baby? I have just as much right to be pissed with you too because you knew and didn't bother telling me." he shut the door behind him. "And did I say you can come in here? This is my privacy and you're invading it."

"What do you wanna do? Tell me..." he leaned against the dresser. "What do you want? Do you wanna be friends or continue being enemies with me? 'Cause I..."

"I don't want anything to do with you. All I want is to be left alone with my baby." he watched as she took a seat on the bed. "Now please leave."

"You know what your problem is? You're heartless. And I'm starting to believe you were the cause for the break up. You're willing to hear one side of the story but not the other. You only go by what you see and it shouldn't be like that. You should be willing to give a guy a chance especially if he's being real to you. And you would never know how true he is if you don't try. Why won't you just put that...guard down and give it a chance? Why is it so hard for you? You don't know me to be judging me and calling me all of these names. And you never will if you keep acting like this bitch. It's not attractive. Not one bit." she looked away as the tears slowly blinded her.

She could only blame Seth for making her that way. He used and treated her like this piece of meat. And she was so used to being treated like that. It was making it harder for her to trust men. And she knew the only way to end this is by putting her guard down like he said. Because one day, a good man is gonna come along and she is gonna run him away. All because of her past experiences with men.

And he could've been that man who would change her life forever. But she wouldn't know unless she gave it a try.

That day around one, Lucy showed up and her and Beyonce decided to go out shopping. "I came over earlier but no one answered the door. So I left."

"Hmm. I thought I heard a knock. I must've been busy with Kyle." she knew the real reason why she didn't bother answering the door. For one, she was too upset to do anything. And she didn't want company over at the time while her, Justin and Chris were having their problems. "What are you cooking tonight? I was thinking about..." her phone interrupted her. "Damn." she grabbed it from out of her purse and turned it on. "Hello?"

"Bee? Hey. Um...you know who this is, right?" she definitely had a clue.

"Yeah. Why?" she scrutinized a pack of chicken thighs on sale. "Girl, they have chicken on sale this week." she spoke to Lucy.

"I was wondering if you were busy tonight." she gazed at Lucy who was in the seasoning aisle. "I sorta...had plans for us if you were up for it."

"Plans? Like what?" she sat a pack of drumsticks and thighs in her basket and proceeded towards Lucy.

"I was hoping I can take you out to dinner." she immediately froze. "You know, just to do something special for you. Since you've been working so hard and...oh I already have a babysitter for Kyle. So you don't have to worry about that."

"Excuse me? You think I'm gonna leave my baby with just anybody? You gotta be outta your mind. I'm sorry but..."

"Lucy agreed to watch him." she slowly locked eyes with Lucy who stood there shrugging her shoulders.

"Is there something I should know?" she asked her.

"Well...Justin asked if I could watch Kyle for the night because he wanted to take you out to dinner. He was gonna pay me and everything."

"Is that...true? You agreed to pay Lucy to watch Kyle?" there was a slight pause before anyone responded.

"Yeah. It's no big deal. So...what do you think? Do you wanna...do this or what? Just like I said, Kyle will be token care of. All you have to do is agree to meet me here at seven." she bit her lip as she thought hard about it. No one ever offered to take her out to dinner so this was something new to her. And she knew she would've been stupid to say no.

"All right. I'll go. Seven, right?"

"Yep. So, I'll see you then. Bye."

"Bye." she turned the phone off. "Hmm." she looked up, meeting eyes with Lucy's. "He's gonna take me out."

"Oh great! So that means you don't have to cook tonight. Haha." a smile slowly formed across her lips.

"I guess you're right." they both continued down the aisle.

Around seven that night, Justin and Beyonce headed towards a restaurant somewhere in town. While driving down the road, there was no word spoken during the first few minutes. "Ahem, I..." he looked away to gaze at her who sat on the passengers side. "I just want to say that...you look beautiful." she leisurely peeled her eyes off the road to gaze at him. "That's...that's basically it." he put his focus back on the road.

"Why are you doing this? You know...being so nice to me. Especially after the way I treated you." he bit his lip in thought.

"I dunno. Maybe because I like you. Duh." she released a soft chuckle. "I dunno. Seriously, I just think that you're...different then any other woman I've ever been with."

"And what makes you think that? How do you know I won't...cheat on you just like the other girls you've been with?" he shrugged his shoulders.

"I will never know that answer until I give it a try. But that's the difference between me and you. I like to give people chances before...judging them." she looked down to gaze at his hand. Her eyes focused in on a thick high school ring that he wore.

"Wow. What year did you graduate?" he made a stop at the red light.

"You said something?" he asked, gazing her direction.

"Your ring. What high school did you graduate from?"

"Umm..." he looked away, pulling off when the light turned green. "Jefferson high. In Orlando. Class of ninety-nine."

"Me too." she spoke in surprise. "You never said that you lived in Florida. When did you move? You know...to Texas?"

"I...I don't live in Texas. I live in LA. I just go there to see Chris when we're doing our...music thing."

"Oh..." she paused as thoughts wandered her mind. "Well I see we're starting to make some progress." he chortled softly. "You know what you said...the other night? Is it true? You know, about my family...hating me?" there was a moment of silence between them before he decided to speak up.

"No. I was just trying to make you feel how I felt. You were really pissing me off and I just...I'm not used to being rejected by a woman. Most women croon over me and you...you're the total opposite. I guess that's why you're so different."

"I see. Because I don't drool over you like most women. Tell me..." she turned his direction. "...why do they drool over you? Is it because of your looks? Huh? Or maybe it's because of the way you talk to them. You know...all demanding and shit." she teased.

"You're gonna get enough of teasing me." he threatened. "I'm only demanding towards you because I like you."

"Ha. Really? And why are you so backwards? Most men who like someone treats them nice and smiles at them. But you..."

"Like what I'm doing now?" she lowered her eyes at him. "I'm smiling and being nice to you."

"You know what I mean. You make a bad first impression. Then a terrible second one. But the seventh...I actually like your seventh one." he broke out laughing.

"Well what about the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth one?" she bit her lip interestingly while scanning his figure

"I dunno. I guess those fall under the terrible ones as well." he rolled his eyes, slowly looking away to gaze back at the road.

"You're one...sexy ass bitch, you know that?" her eyes lit up in surprise. "And that's why I like you." she sat there, shaking her head pathetically.

"Like I said, you're completely backwards. But I guess that's what makes your world go around. Being backwards."

"Beyonce is what makes my world go around. You and your sexy ass ways." he frolicked.

Moments later, they pulled up in front of a restaurant and parked the car in an available parking space. "Wow." she spoke, gazing at the building in surprise. "I didn't know you were ballin' like this. Only wealthy people come here."

"Is that so? Stay right there." she watched as he hopped out, quickly jogging over to her side of the car. He pulled the door open and extended his hand out to accept hers.

"Hmm. You are making progress." she accepted his hand as he helped her out. "It's either that, or you're desperately in need to get laid."

"Very funny." he pulled the door open for her. "After you." she entered the building, gazing around interestingly. "I paid a shit load of money to get a table in the back so...let's hope everything turned out as planned."

"May I help you?" the lady behind the stand asked.

"Uh yes. Reservations for Timberlake and Knowles." he watched as the woman scanned the list for their names.

"Hmm. You guys happen to be in the VIP section. Right this way." Beyonce flashed him a confused look as they followed the woman further in the back.

"VIP section? Is there something I should know that you're...perhaps keeping from me?"

"Here you are." he pulled a seat out for her. "Is there anything I can get you while you decide?" she sat down, watching as he took a seat across from her.

"Yes. I'll have a glass of wine. And could you have someone bring us a bucket of ice with an extra bottle inside?" she nodded, slowly peering in on Beyonce.

"You miss?" she smiled slyly.

"Uhhh, I guess I'll have a glass of water for now."

"Right away." she turned, ambling the opposite direction. Justin gazed in on her, watching closely as she checked out the menu in front of her. He could tell by her actions that she had never been to an expensive restaurant like this. And he definitely didn't have a problem being the first to show her.

"Everything okay?" he asked, intertwining his fingers together.

"Yeah. Except for the fact that their selections are expensive as hell. Fifty six bucks for a burger and fries. I can just take my ass over to burger king and pay three bucks." he chuckled softly. "Ooohh." she moaned. "They have fudge brownies with whip cream on top. And it's only seventeen bucks." she spoke hilariously. "Everything looks delicious though."

"Well, I just want you to know that you can have whatever you want. I don't mind. Why don't we choose an appetizer for now. What about the hot wings with celery and cheese sticks? Only thirty two bucks. Hahaha." she bit her lip while peering in his eyes. For some reason, he seemed like a different person. And she had to admit, she loved this side of him. She was just hoping he wasn't frontin' just to win her over.

"You're different. Really." he licked his lips, never taking his eyes off her. "I just hope this is really you. God knows, I can't take anymore surprises. My heart can only take so much." he now had this serious look on his face.

"Mines too." she held her head down in thought. "Why don't we try and figure out what we want before the waitress comes back." she nodded in agreement.

"Yeah."

After eating, they hopped back in the car and headed towards their destination. "It's nine ten. You wanna go somewhere else before we head back home? There's this huge beach I saw on our way here."

"That will be nice." she smiled, slowly gawking to the side to stare at him. "You treat all of your dates like this? You know...all high and mighty." he met eyes with hers.

"Only the ones that I really like." the look he gave her drove her up the wall. For some reason, she was feeling turned on. And maybe for the fact that she hadn't done it in a while.

"What do you mean really like? You pretend to like people?" he shook his head.

"No. There are just some women who I like as in...the friend type. And then there are the ones who I really like as in getting with. Like you for instance. Believe it or not, me and my friend girls hang out. We go places, clubbing or whatever. I don't have many though because...I've come to realize over the years that women can be real gold diggers."

"Ahaha. Yeah." he parked on the side of the road near the beach and turned the car off. "Here we are." she reached out for the door.

"Don't. I'll get it." he stepped out and walked over on the other side where she was located. "Watch your step." he grasped her hand, helping her out.

"Thank you." she thanked, following him towards the beach. "It's cool out here. Maybe..."

"Here." he removed his jacket, covering her with it. "Better?" she nodded, blushing slyly. "I can't remember the last time being here. I think it was probably...ten years ago."

"Why so long ago?" he shrugged his shoulders.

"I dunno. Maybe because I moved. Ahaha." she rolled her eyes mischievously. "Seriously, when I did have the time...I would go hang out with a few friends instead. The beach wasn't really my hang out spot. What about you? You and Seth come here? Well..."

"No. We...we hardly went places. I would be home most of the time while he was at work...drawing or sketching buildings. Whatever." he gazed at her. "He just didn't seem like the type to go out." he slowly gazed in on her wrist, realizing something was missing.

"What happened to the bracelet? The one that he bought you?" a soft chuckle escaped her lips.

"I gave it back." she froze, slowly turning to face the ocean. "I don't want anything to do with him. Except for Kyle. Kyle is my world. I can't go on without him. And I hate to admit, but that's the only reason why Seth and I will always be connected. Because of him."

"Yeah." he nodded, hesitantly wrapping his arm around her. "Believe it or not, things will turn out okay. Just have faith and believe." he assured. "You'll find mister right one day." she peered in his dark blue eyes, scrutinizing his face closely.

"What about you? Are you looking for misses right?" he gazed out at the ocean, chewing on his inner lip in thought.

"For a long time now. It just seems so...hard to find someone you can trust. I've been with women who only wanted me for money. Then I've been with some who didn't want money, but was too jealous. Like Shirley."

"Who's Shirley?" he shook his head.

"It's nothing." he kneeled down, picking up a seashell.

"Ever been in love?" he threw the shell, watching as it fell into the water.

"I maybe now." she looked away, crossing her arms over her chest. "Come on. There's one more place I wanna go before it gets too late." he grasped her hand, leading her towards the car.

They pulled up in front of a night club, quickly searching for a spot. "Where are we? I don't..." she stepped out of the car, following him towards the building. "This is a club. Justin..." she grasped his hand, stopping him in his tracks. "I can't. I don't do clubs."

"Come on. It'll be fun." he led her inside. The moment they entered the building, they were blown away by loud music. "I think I found us a table." she followed him to an empty table and took a seat. "Damn it's packed in here." he sat down, gazing around the thick club.

"Justin..." she began. "Maybe we should go some..."

"You wanna dance?" he asked, standing up in his seat.

"Well, I..." she loved dancing, but this wasn't exactly the place she had in mind. "Okay." she held his hand, following him out on the dance floor. He circled her, sizing her up teasingly. "Stop it." she blushed massively.

"It's okay." he spoke in her ear. She slowly begin to let loose, moving to the music. He stood behind her, attaching his arms to her waist. "So, what's the deal with you? You never been to a club before?" she shook her head.

"No. This is all new to me." he reached out, brushing a few strains of hair out of her face and behind her ear.

"You're really different. Not the twenty-four year olds I know." she turned, pushing her butt against him.

"And how?" he flashed her a surprised look as she begin booty dancing up against him. "I look too innocent?" she turned his direction. "Well you'll be surprised." he bit his lip, only wanting her more. If only they were alone.

"You surprise me everyday. Come on." he grabbed her hand, leading her towards their table. "I...I didn't know you had it in you. You know..." he sat down. "That lil thing you did with your ass back there." she rolled her eyes. "I have to admit, it was really sexy."

"I'm sure it was." he slid his chair over, closer to her.

"You wanna know a secret? You're the first mother I've ever tried getting with. All of the women I dated or...talked to never had children. Well that's what I was told, but...they could've been lying. Some of 'em could've had a few babies stashed away somewhere."

"Haha. And I'm guessing that is a bad thing."

"What? About you being the first mother?" she shook her head. "No. It's not." he looked away, gazing at a woman who was staring at him a few tables away from theirs.

"How long did your longest relationship last and why did it end?" he slowly peeled his eyes off the woman to gaze at her.

"Um...maybe we should go." he stood up, pushing in his chair. "Come on." she quickly followed him towards the exit.

"What's the rush?" she asked, ambling towards his car.

"I'll explain later. Right now, let's just..."

"Justin?!" a voice shouted. He quickly turned, gazing at a woman who approached him. "Oh my god. It's really you." Beyonce watched as the woman embraced him in a hug.

"Billie? What...what are you doing here?" she pulled away from him.

"I moved back. What are you doing here? I thought you said you will never come back. Especially..."

"I have to go." he unlocked the doors to his car. "Bee?" he called, watching as she sat in on the passenger's side.

"Is she who you came back to see?" he rolled his eyes. "Tell me. I mean..." she crossed her arms over her chest. "It's not like it would matter any way." he sat in, conveying the car to life.

"I'm sorry, Billie." he apologized, quickly pulling off, leaving her there alone and confused.

During the first few minutes of their drive home, there wasn't a word spoken between the two. That woman at the club kept running through her head. She had to know who it was.

He made a stop at the light, tapping his fingers on the stick shift. "Um...that woman..." she began. "Who was she?" he quickly pulled off when the light changed.

"Nobody. Just...an old friend." she looked away, putting her focus on the road. She knew better, and an old friend wouldn't be concerned about the woman he was with.

"Why was she interested in knowing who I was?" he made an instant turn at a stop sign. "She looked like she really..."

"All right. Maybe she was more than a friend." he interrupted. "It doesn't matter now. What she and I had is in the past. It's over and done with. Now can we move on? Or do you wanna know more about us?"

"I wanna know what happened." he stopped at another red light. "Please." he looked down, gazing at her hand that was positioned on top of his.

"Um..." he hesitated. "Well...we met at my cousin's funeral. She somehow...knew him for years and she came to pay her respect. We started talking and we even decided to start seeing each other. Six months into the relationship she started getting calls from men. Asking for her and where she was. So I decided to confront her about it one day and she lied of coarse. Then weeks later, a guy showed up with an envelope. And not just any ole' guy. A doctor. So..." he pulled off. "When she got home, I gave her the envelope and what do you know? I catch her crying in the bathroom. So, you know me. Being concerned and all...I asked and you know what she said? She's HIV positive." her eyes lit up in shock.

"Oh my god." she covered her mouth, still in a state of fright.

"Yep." they finally made it back to the house. He parked in the drive way and turned the car off. They both sat there in silence as thoughts wandered their minds. She had to ask. Especially if this was the guy she wanted to be with.

"You slept with her?" he slowly gazed her direction to stare at her.

"Yeah. With protection of coarse. But being me, I had to be on the safe side. So I went to go get an AIDS test any way. I was lucky, because the results came back negative." She sighed in relief.

"Hey." she reached out, placing her hand on the back of his neck. "I'm sorry." he watched closely as she leaned in, slowly placing a soft kiss on his lips. He searched her face for a sign before going any further. And within seconds, they were sharing an intimate kiss.

"Bee?" he broke away. "Why don't we...go inside." they stepped out and headed towards the house. As soon as she stepped foot inside, a strong aroma had caught her attention.

"What the hell is that smell?" she could've guessed it smelled like someone was smoking. "Chris!!!!" she shouted.

"No...I'll handle it." he assured.

"No." she followed him up the stairs. "I can't believe he's smoking in my house again." she brushed pass him, quickly yanking the door open. Her eyes instantly zoomed in on Chris who laid sprawled out in bed. The room was filled with smoke thick as clouds. "What the fuck are you doing?!!" she yelled. "Chris?" she rushed towards him. "Chris?!" he leisurely fluttered his eyes open to gaze at her. "What are you doing? Why are you smoking in my house? Are you crazy? There's a baby here!!"

"Hmm." he sat up, rubbing his red, swollen eyes. "What's going on?"

"My god." she ran her fingers through her hair in frustration. "He's completely out of it."

"Bee..." Justin began.

"You know what? I want you out. Now." she ambled towards the door. "I'm tired of going through this. Leave Chris. And when I come back, your ass better be gone." she departed the room, slamming the door behind her.

Beyonce departed the bathroom, wrapping a towel around her drenched figure. She froze, listening closely to the sound of screaming voices. "What the..." she quickly through on a robe and departed the room.

"Maybe if you took it easy and stop smoking then you wouldn't be in this position to begin with. It's not like she's asking you to quit. She just doesn't wants it here. Especially with a baby around." she overheard Justin talking.

"I don't fucking care. I'm in the room twenty-four seven minding my own god damn business. I smoke there. Not all around the house but in the room. So why..."

"It's still considered her house, man." she peered over the railing to gaze at the two sitting on the sofa. "You have to understand the situation. I mean, it's a two month old baby in here. And you know smoking is not good for the baby. Smoking is not good period. If you really care about her you would listen. Stop acting like your family. They're the ones who don't care. Not you."

"Whatever. I'm just...leaving. At least I could do anything at my house. Without somebody tellin' me what to do. I'm a grown ass man for Christ sake. I'm entitled to do whatever the hell I wanna do."

"Yeah well...not in someone else's house. You wouldn't want someone coming to your house doing any and everything they please." he stood up, ambling towards the stairs.

"I'm gonna go find a hotel 'til tomorrow. I can't stay here any longer. I miss Texas any way." he remained seated, watching as he proceeded up the stairs. When he made it to the second floor, his eyes focused in on Beyonce who stood against her bedroom door with her arms over her chest. He didn't bother saying a word. Instead, he just entered the room, closing the door behind him.

She decided to take a trip downstairs where Justin was. He remained on the sofa, flipping through the channels on the television with a remote. "Hey." he quickly looked away to gaze at her.

"Oh..." his eyes slowly trailed down her figure, realizing the wardrobe she wore. "Wanna sit..." he slid over, allowing her to take a seat beside him. "What's up?" she sat back, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I overheard you and Chris talking." he looked away, gazing back at the TV. "I can't believe he's so careless. He's no different then that family of his."

"Believe it or not but they're your family too."

"No. I don't consider them my family. My family is Kyle. He's the only one I can trust." he bit his lip, leisurely gazing back at her. "He wouldn't betray me like they would."

"Why do you guys have so much hate for each other? Is that how ya'll was raised?" she shook her head. "Then what is it? You guys should show love for one another. Not walk around here bad mouthing each other." she looked up, watching as Chris ambled towards the door with luggage in his hands. He paused, gradually turning to face them.

"You comin', man?" he asked, gazing at Beyonce then back at him.

"Umm..." he hesitated. "I think I'm gonna stay a bit longer. I'll meet you back at Texas in a few days." he stood there with this mean look on his face.

"So what are you tellin' me? You're standing me up for her? We came together. I thought we were gonna leave together."

"Look, man. You're outta control. We were supposed to be leaving in five days. But no, you had to go fuck things up by bringing your...drugs in here. Well I'm not gonna take it anymore. I'll leave when I'm good and ready to."

"Pish. You think you slick. You just tryin' to get some pussy." he yanked the door open.

"Excuse me?" he stood up, slowly approaching him. "You don't know what the fuck you're talking about. So you need to keep your mind out of the gutta."

"Whatever. I know you like her and all week you've been trying to get in her pants. You think I'm stupid? Pussy beggin' nigga. You need to take your ass somewhere else. 'Cause you ain't gettin' nothin' from her." before he could blink, he felt a fist fly across his face.

"Bitch. It's over. Our friendship..the music...everything!"

"Justin..." she quickly stood between them. "Don't. Chris?" she slowly turned to face him. "You have to go. I'm sorry." she shut the door in his face.

"I'm sorry." a voice spoke behind her. She leisurely turned to face him. "Maybe I should leave too." he turned, ambling up the stairs.

"What? But..." she quickly followed behind him. "I thought...I thought we were trying to..."

"No." he entered the room. "I've been a burden as well."

"What are you...talking about?" she asked, watching as he collected a few things.

"He's right. For the first few days of trying to be your friend and...getting with you...I was seeking for pussy as well." she shook her head, still in a state of confusion.

"I don't understand." he lifted his head to gaze at her. "I thought you really wanted to be with me."

"I do. Now, but..." he approached her. "I don't think I'm the one for you. You deserve better. I shouldn't have thought about sex the first time I saw you. It should've been more than that. I've realized that you're special and you deserve someone who's gonna treat you with the utmost respect. Someone who wants to marry you and have a family..."

"But I thought that was what you wanted." she spoke with tears in her eyes. "I don't get you."

"I don't get myself." she held her head down as the tears slowly fell down her cheeks.

"All right." she cleared the lump in her throat. "Fine." he watched her exit the room, shutting the door behind her.

Justin ambled down the stairs with his things. As soon as he made it to the front door, a voice called him. "Where are you going?" he turned, gazing at Beyonce who stood by the stairs. "You're just gonna...run away from everything? What about us? I thought you wanted to work something out."

"Bee..."

"You son of a bitch." she spat out. "How could you trick me into liking you? You can't do stuff like this. It's not funny. Not funny at all." she wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Listen..." he sat his things by the door and approached her. "I didn't trick you into liking me. You think I like hurting people? No. That's the last thing I wanna do to you."

"Sure." she spoke sarcastically. "I told you...I don't want anymore surprises. If you wasn't serious about us, you shouldn't have did what you did. Taking me out and..." she held her head down as the tears slowly took over her. "Just forget it." she headed back up the stairs.

"Wait. Beyonce, listen..." he followed her.

"No." she pointed at him. "Stop it. You've made your point. So leave. Go." he reached out, grabbing a hold to her waist.

"Don't. Don't say things you don't mean. You know I wanna be with you. I just don't think I'm good enough for you."

"Why don't you let me decide who's good enough for me." he stood closely behind her, inhaling her wonderful aroma.

"You reallly wanna make this work between us?" he spoke by her ear. "Just say yes and...we can do this." she slowly turned to face him.

"What do you think?" he gazed in her serious eyes, hesitantly leaning in to kiss her but she held her hand out, stopping him. She took his hand, leading him up the stairs. He followed her in her room, watching as she backed up further towards the bed while untying her robe. She removed it, dropping it to the floor. His eyes slowly trailed down her naked figure, feeling himself get hard by the seconds.

She sat on the bed, sliding up where the headboard was. He gulped down, never taking his eyes off her. He knew what was the next step, so without further thinking, he begin to undress himself. She watched as he got naked in front of her. Her eyes slowly trailed down his figure, instantly stopping at his size. She felt her heart skip a beat for the mere fact that he wasn't what she expected. His size at that.

He climbed over her, searching her face before leaning in for a kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck as they kissed slow and gentle. His tongue slid in and out of her mouth, grazing hers delicately. "Mmm." she moaned, enjoying the touch of his teeth nibbling on her neck.

He kissed down towards her breasts. A soft moan escaped her lips as he sucked sweetly on her nipples. She didn't remember this feeling so good.

His tongue trailed down her tummy below her abdomen area. A soft gasp escaped her lips the moment she felt his tongue graze her sensitive spot. "Oh goddd." this was even better than the dream.

Her chest heaved in and out of excitement the longer he explored her. She knew she was close to climaxing when she felt that tingly sensation run up her spine. "Fuck." she felt herself exploding seconds later. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her further towards him. "Yes, oh godddd..."

He looked up, pecking her on the lips. "First time?" she nodded meekly. "How was it?" a soft chuckle escaped her lips.

"I can't even...explain it. Haha." he laughed along with her. "I haven't...done it in a while so..." he nodded.

"I know. If it's too much for you, just let me know. We can always do it some other time." he ran his fingers through her hair, pecking her on the forehead. She bit her lip in pain as she felt him inch his way into her.

"Whew, whew." she panted heavily.

"You okay?" he asked in concern. She quickly nodded.

"Yes. It just...it feels like I'm a fucking virgin again." he laughed faintly.

"That's a great way to put it." he slid half of his length into her, hearing her whimper in response.

"Oh..." she inhaled sharply. "It hurts like hell." he slid the rest of his size into her, kissing her neck tenderly. "Fuck." she arched her back as he begin moving into her. "Fucking...hurts." he held her hand, intertwining his fingers with hers.

"I'm sorry." he peered in her eyes. "You want me to keep going?" she nodded.

"Yeah." she lifted her head, meeting lips with his.

"What I wanted to ask you before we were interrupted by your ex." she positioned herself on top of him. "How long did your longest relationship last and why did it end?"

"Well..." he bit his lip, slowly trailing his hands down her back. "My longest relationship lasted three years and that was with Shirley, the black chick I was telling you about. It ended because she was too jealous and demanding."

"Hmm." she nodded. "Okay, well...did you love any of the girls you've ever been with?" he thought hard for a second.

"Almost." she raised her eyebrows in questioning.

"Almost? Well were you ever in love?" he shook his head.

"No. Never. At least not yet." he cleared his throat. "Like I said, whenever I thought I'd find the right person, she will end up being the total opposite. I knew this girl who used to work with me at the studio. She was the only girl who knew how to rap in town. And...we hooked up one night to celebrate her birthday. It was me, two of the engineers who worked their and this mixer guy. We all went to this bar and ordered some food. So an hour had passed and she decided to call it quits because she was getting tired. So I offered to take her back home since she didn't have a ride. Any way, while we were driving down the road she started to talk about the things she did with men. Now, I'm sitting here thinking to myself. I'm like, what the hell. I could've sworn this was a decent girl but after all the shit she told me, it completely turned me off. I dunno. She must've thought I liked stuff like that."

"Well she must've thought wrong. Ahaha." she joked.

"You damn right." he peered deeply in her eyes, debating on whether to tell her how he truly felt about her. "Through all the relationships and the women I've been with, I can't believe I never gotten close to loving them. And I'm starting to think because...I was seeking for it. And it's like most of the time when you're seeking for love...it's kinda hard to find. But when you're not..."

"Like me." she interrupted. "Love finds you. It found me." a smile slowly formed across his lips.

"Me too. Haha." she leaned in, locking lips with his. "Mmm." he reached up, gripping a portion of her hair. "I think I'm slowly falling in love with you." he spoke between kisses.

"You think?" she asked, pausing to gaze at him.

"I know." she lifted herself, guiding his entry. He gripped her hips, thrusting up, plunging deeper into her.

"Ohhh..." she moaned, moving on top of him. She bit her lip, tilting her head back in pleasure.

"Oh..." his toes curled up in excitement. "Damn, baby." he reached up, groping both her breasts in his hands.

"Justin..." she whimpered, meeting lips with his once more. She picked up her speed, hopping vigorously on top of him.

"Ohh...fuck! Baby...baby girl..." he bit his lip the closer he had gotten to cumming. "Shit. Bee, I'm gonna cum."

"Yessss." she moaned. "I want it in me." he flashed her a surprised look.

"What? No. I...I mean...are you sure? This could get you pregnant. And you just had a baby." he could feel himself slowly releasing his seed. "Ohh." he groaned, gripping her thigh firmly.

"Mmm haha." she pecked him on the lips. "That was great." she slid off him, rolling over on her back to gaze up at the ceiling. He laid there a little lost with words because he had no idea what he just did. He wasn't sure if it was the right thing to do.

"I just...you...you realize I just cummed inside you." she looked away, smiling at him.

"Yeah. And it felt great." he gawked to the side to stare at her. Her smile slowly faded when she realize the serious look on his face.

"Why is this so amusing to you?" he rolled over on his side to face her. "This could get you pregnant. Especially after just having a baby. It's much easier now. And I just...I'm not sure if it was the right thing to do."

"And why aren't you sure all of a sudden? You just told me that you're falling in love with me. People in love have children together. Right?" he held his head down, slowly realizing how right she was. "You shouldn't even worry. Especially if I'm the one you wanna be with." he nodded.

"Yeah." he lifted his head to peer in her eyes. "You're right." she smiled warmly. "I'm sorry."

"No. It's okay." she placed her hand on his cheek. "You were just being courteous." she leaned in, kissing him on the lips. "I think I'm falling in love with you too." she spoke in this playful tone.

"Oh shut up. Ahaha."

The following morning, Justin and I woke up to the sound of Kyle's voice. "I'm sorry. Go back to sleep." she assured, rocking the baby in her arms. "Let's go get you something to eat." he laid back, watching the two depart the room. Moments later, she entered the room with a blow pop in her hands. She gazed in on Justin who was still sleeping in the same position she left him. "Awww." she climbed on top of him. "Lookie...still sleeping." he fluttered his eyes open to gaze at her. "Tired?" she pecked him on the lips.

"Mmm." he gripped her waist, quickly reversing positions. "What's that...smell?"

"Food." his eyes lit up. "Which reminds me." she quickly pushed him off her. "The biscuits!" she ran out of the room.

"Damn." he stepped out of bed and entered the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. Within ten minutes, he was downstairs where Beyonce was.

"We um..." Beyonce paused, blushing massively. "You have to promise not to tell him." she whispered to Lucy.

"What? Tell me!" she spoke impatiently.

"Morning." he greeted, locking eyes with Lucy who stood beside her. "Haven't seen you in a while." he over exaggerated. "How you been?" she nodded.

"Good. You?" he nodded, taking a seat at the bar. She turned fully around to face Beyonce with this psyched look on her face.

"Ahem, so..." he watched the two wander around the kitchen, stopping here and there. "That was really fucked up what Chris did. I knew he was a jerk but not a big of a jerk like that."

"Yeah." she prepared a plate of food. "He wasn't even willing to quit for Kyle." she sat the plate in front of him. He smiled in return.

"Thanks."

"You welcome." he intertwined his fingers together, never peeling his eyes off her. He was digging the little outfit she wore. A pair of short shorts and a t-shirt. After they finished fixing their plates, they joined him at the bar. "I thought he changed a little. But I was wrong. He's the same jerk I knew a few years ago. Especially when we were little. Oh my god." she shook her head pathetically. "Did I tell you that the boy was having sex when he was twelve?"

"No. You for real?" Justin sat there, keeping to himself as they continued talking about his former friend.

"Mmm hmm. And he has the nerve to say I'm a sex addict. Who in the hell gave him a right to say something like that to me? He don't even know me. And we're supposed to be related. I'm ashamed to even call him family because of his obnoxious behavior. Smoking, cursing around children, fucking everything that walks. He's so stupid sometimes."

"Try all the time. Ahaha." they both laughed in response.

"You know, he quit smoking at one time." they both gazed in on him. "When I met him he wasn't doing the drugs. I think it was after he met that chick. She was crazy." Beyonce sat there, slowly holding her head down in thought. "She made him go cuckoo so I guess the only way he thought would keep him sane is by smoking. And that's what he started doing."

"Wow. That's..." Lucy began.

"I didn't know." Beyonce blurted out. He shook his head.

"It's okay. You didn't know." he assured. "Um, you wanna know how we really met? Chris knew my friend Lance. And Lance somehow was dating the same girl he was with. Of coarse, they were living in different states. And um..." he hesitated. "You know that chick you met at the club? She's Lance's sister. That's how we met. Through Lance. Chris slept with her when she was HIV positive." she gasped. "Yeah. I forgave him because he claimed he was drunk and stoned at the time."

"No. Wait, wait..." she shook her head. "Please don't tell me...he's..." he nodded.

"Yeah."

"Oh no."

"The doctor gave him another month to live. So that's the reason why he came here. To pay a visit to you before..." he trailed off, realizing how much it affected her.

"How stupid could I have been? Shit." she stood up, departing the kitchen.

"Bee?" he shot up, following the way she went. "I'm sorry." he apologized.

"Why didn't you tell me this before? Why did you wait 'til he was gone? God damn you, Justin." she cried frantically. "How could you keep something like this from me?" he watched her storm up the stairs and enter her room, slamming the door behind her.

"Bee?" he twisted the knob to realize it was locked. "Damnit. Bee, open the door. Please."

"Go away!!!" she shouted. He held his head down, shaking it pathetically.

"This is crazy. Um..." he thought for a second. "I love you, Bee and...I can't see you like this. So please open the door. Please." seconds later, he could here a clicking sound. He slowly twisted the knob, pulling the door open. He gazed at Beyonce who sat on the bed sobbing faintly. He hesitantly entered the room, taking a seat beside her.

"I shouldn't have kicked him out." she cried. "He was right. It wasn't like he was smoking around the whole house. It was in his room."

"Bee..."

"He came here to visit me for the last time before he pass away. Why would I be so mean to him for that?"

"What is wrong with you? You realize this is not your fault. First of all, you didn't know. And secondly, it doesn't matter if he wasn't smoking around the house. You might as well say he was. This whole house had that smell. And it wasn't good for the baby." she sniffled inaudibly. "You're blaming yourself for something you had know part in. He slept with an unhealthy woman and so did I but I got lucky. I guess it wasn't meant for me to catch it. It was meant for me to meet you and...be with you." she looked away to peer in his eyes.

"You don't know what was meant for us." she spoke angrily. "How could you sit here and act like nothing is wrong? My cousin is gonna die because of your...your stupid girlfriend." she spat out.

"Excuse me? I...I don't understand how you can put all of this on me. You act like I told Billie to go out and have sex with someone unhealthy. And then come back and have sex with me and Chris. It's not my fault I was smarter than him and decided to use protection." she swung her hand, slapping him across the face.

"Bastard." he ran his hand over his throbbing cheek. "You're no different then him. Especially if you had sex with me without using protection." he burned a hole into her, gritting his teeth furiously.

"And you're no different either. You threw yourself all over me AFTER I informed that I was about to cum. How do you know if I was telling the truth about being HIV negative? Huh? I could've been lying just to get in your pants." her bottom lip trembled with emotions.

"I swear to god...if you were lying...I will hunt you down and kill you myself." she threatened.

"Bee..."

"I want you out. Now! And don't come back until you've token an HIV test." she pushed him towards the door.

"But, wh..."

"Go!!!!!" she shouted, pushing him out of the room and closing the door behind him.

Three days had passed and Justin and Beyonce hadn't spoken or saw each other since then. She decided to take Kyle for a stroll in the park for her morning exercise. She strolled Kyle down the sidewalk towards St.Luicie park. She could hear someone whistling at her. She looked away, gazing at a guy sitting out on his porch on the opposite side of her.

She looked away, shaking her head pathetically. Men and their raging hormones. The only thing they cared about was fucking women.

She finally made it to the park and took a seat on a nearby bench. Her eyes gazed around, watching as a few kids played out on the swings. For some reason, she couldn't get herself to stop thinking about the horrible situation that happened three days ago. Finding out that her cousin had full blooded AIDS and that he had a month to live. Then on top of that, getting into a fight with Justin because he had cummed in her.

She had a feeling this wasn't the end of their drama. Within a few months, something else was going to happen. She could feel it in her bones.

After walking around the park with Kyle, she decided to call it quits and head back home. As soon as she made it home, she was blown away by loud music coming from somewhere in the house. "What the hell?" she peered in the living room to gaze at Lucy. "Lucy?" she looked over her shoulder to gaze at her. "What are you doing here? I thought..."

"Just coming to pay my friend a visit." she lowered the volume down on the entertainment center. "You okay?" she shrugged her shoulders, taking a seat on the sofa.

"I dunno. I...things just been crazy for me. I told Justin not to come back until he's token another aids test. It's been three days and no phone call or nothing. So I'm assuming he has bad news or something." a knock on the door interrupted her. "You...you expecting someone?"

"No. You?" she stood up, approaching the door. "Who in the world could this be?" she pulled the door open, gazing in on a familiar guy. "Justin?" her heart skipped a beat the moment she laid eyes on him. All she could think about was the test and if it came back negative.

"Hey. Um..." he pulled out a folded up sheet of paper from out of his pocket. "This is for you." he handed it to her. She slowly accepted it, gazing at it interestingly. She had a feeling what it was, she was just hoping everything came out okay.

He watched as she unfolded the paper, scanning the information on it. "See, I told you I didn't have it." she leisurely lifted her head to peer in his eyes.

"Justin..." she wrapped her arms around his neck, resting her head on his chest. "I'm sorry. I just..." a tear slowly escaped her eye. "This is something new to me and I just...I just wanna be on the safe side." she pulled away to gaze at him. "I know it wasn't your fault for what happened to my cousin. Everybody is responsible for their own actions. I just didn't understand why you waited so long to tell me. Right after he left."

"It really wasn't my responsibility to tell you. It was his business and..." she sniffled, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Come in." she stood aside, allowing him to enter the house. "I was gonna cook something. Did you have something in mind that you want?" he moved in, attaching his arms to her waist.

"You." he teased, meeting lips with hers.

"Haha. Stop." she broke away. "We have company." he looked up, gazing at Lucy who stood by the sofa waving at him.

"Oh. Hey, Lucy." she grasped his hand, pulling him further in the house. "I didn't know you were here."

"It's okay." she assured, watching the two enter the kitchen.

"I spoke to Chris yesterday. He made it back to Texas that following morning." she pulled out a pack of frozen turkey meat.

"Is it bothering him? You know, finding out that he only has a month to live. Has he been acting different?" he leaned against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest.

"No. Not that I've noticed." he watched as she prepared a skillet with oil.

"I still can't believe..." he noticed the change in her voice. "This is unbelievable."

"Hey." he ambled towards her. "Come here." he embraced her in a hug. "It's okay. Everything's gonna be okay." he skimmed her back soothingly.

"We grew up together. I should've spent more time with him. I should've..." she sniffled profoundly. "How could I let things get this far?"

"It's not your fault for the thousandth time. Stop blaming yourself." she lifted her head to gaze in his eyes. "It's not too late to go and see him." now why didn't she think of that at first. "We can fly to Texas tonight. We should be there in the morning."

"I'm gonna go pack." she turned, exiting the room. On her way towards the stairs, there was a knock on the front door. She quickly approached the door and peered out the peep hole. To her surprise, it was someone she wasn't expecting. "Oh my god." she yanked the door open. "Chris? Wh...my god." she pulled him in a hug. "What are you doing here? I thought you...went back to Texas."

"I couldn't go back until I told you my secret." she shook her head.

"It's okay. I already know." he held a confused look.

"You do?" she nodded meekly.

"I just wish you told me earlier." he held his head down, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Come in. Have a seat." he brushed pass her, entering the house. "I was just talking about going to Texas to see you." Justin gazed at him in surprise.

"Chris? Man, I thought you said you were back in Texas." he ambled towards him.

"Nah. I couldn't go back until I told Bee about my...situation." he watched closely as she wrapped her arm around him.

"We were just talking about you." he mentioned, realizing how serious he became.

"I don't get it. You guys are seeing each other?" he gazed at her, smiling sweetly.

"Yeah." she leaned in, pecking him on the lips.

"I'm sorry. This was a mistake. Coming back here." they watched as he rushed towards the door.

"Wh...Chris?" she ran after him. "Chris?"

"What is wrong with you? Giving yourself to...some guy less than a week of knowing him." he spoke angrily.

"Chris...don't talk like that, okay? This shouldn't even be important to you. What's important is us spending some time together before...you leave."

"No." he pointed to Justin. "How could you be fucking my cousin? Right after coming out of a relationship with that whore girlfriend of yours. I told you not to touch her. Before we came here, those were my exact words. You're not finna hurt her like you did that other bitch." he spoke ghetto like.

"You listen, bastard." he approached him. "She hurt me. She cheated on me so before you say shit, you get your story straight. I caught her in bed with another guy. Just like I caught my other girlfriend in bed with you."

"Mutha..." he charged for him.

"No!" Beyonce stood in between them. "Don't, please. Stop it."

"Muthafucka. You just stay the hell away from me. You got that. I better not see your ass in Texas. I'ma fuck your ass up, bitch."

"It's so stupid of you to walk around talking and behaving this way like you have years to live. You're gonna be dead in another month. Me fucking your cousin shouldn't be important to you at a time like this. What you should be worrying about is getting things straightened out with your family before it's time." he turned, heading the opposite direction.

"He's right." she cried, covering her trembling mouth. "Oh god, he's right."

"Beyonce..." he reached out for her.

"No." she rushed up the stairs to her room. He looked away to gaze at Justin who was eying him with this sternly look on his face.

"Thanks for coming back and making things worse. She was already mourning over your stupid ass for fucking my girlfriend who had aids. Now you just had to come back and fuck things up even worse." he followed the way she went.

Justin laid next to Beyonce, comforting her as she continued shedding a few tears. "You have to stop this. You're gonna kill yourself if you keep it up." he assured. "You still have someone to live for. What about Kyle? He needs you right now."

"Why does he have to be a jerk?" she sat up, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Doesn't he realize he don't have much time left?"

"I know. Some people just don't care." he replied, continously running his fingers through her hair. She laid there, gazing up at the ceiling as thoughts wandered her mind. "Are you going to his funeral? You know, when it's time."

"I don't know. I don't know what I should do." she rolled over on her side to face him. "I'm not a bad person by not going to his funeral, am I?" he shook his head.

"Of coarse not. Some people don't go because they can't handle the fact that they've lost a loved one." she bit her lip in thought. "So, you're not gonna go? No one's gonna hate you if you don't go." she met eyes with his.

"There's something I should tell you" he noticed how fast her face expression changed.

"What is it?" she laid back on her back, hesitating to continue. "You okay?" she shook her head as the tears slowly formed in her eyes.

"I don't know." she spoke, clearing the lump in her throat. "I just...ahem, I could never build up the courage to tell anyone." she sniffled, gradually wiping the tears from her eyes. "I feel that I should tell you since...you're the only person here. Haha." a soft chuckle escaped her lips. "I dunno. Seriously..." she sat up, resting her back against the headboard. "I've realized that keeping it to myself hasn't gotten me anywhere, so that's why I'm gonna finally...put all of my worries aside and just come out and tell you."

"Okay." he sat there, waiting patiently for her to continue.

"Um...a long, long time ago when I was about five..." she paused. "My mom hooked up with this guy, who...might I add is in jail now. Any way, he seemed like your average boyfriend, you know? He was nice, caring, sharing...well mannered. But he just had to be too good to be true. One night...this was when my sister wasn't even thought of. She's eighteen now. Any way, one night...my mom left him in charge to watch me while she went out shopping for the house. So, I was in the room coloring in my book that I got for a birthday present. Talk about being poor." he chuckled in response. "Any way, George came in my room. He said that he wanted to watch and see how I was doing. So, he stayed in there with me for a few minutes and..." she trailed off as the tears slowly begin to take over her. "He...he said that I should take a shower before my mom had gotten back home. So..." she held her head down, sobbing faintly. "I did and..."

"What did he do to you?" he asked in concern.

"He..." she sniffled. "He raped me." his eyes lit up in shock.

"He what?"

"He told me to never tell anyone, because if I did...he would hurt me. And...I just can't believe I kept it to myself all these years. No one knows but you and I."

"Why didn't you tell anyone? Do you realize something like this can scar you for life?" she nodded.

"Yes." she cried. "I know and...I was gonna tell when I found out he was arrested for drug abuse, but I couldn't for some reason. Whenever I got close to telling my mom, it just wouldn't come out. I dunno. I guess I felt ashamed of myself for letting him do that to me. I could've stopped it. I could've done anything but I didn't and that's why I give men a hard time. Because of him." he looked away, still in a state of shock. "He gave me that impression that all men were bad."

"You should've told someone. You shouldn't have kept something like this to yourself." he gazed at her, her face drenched in tears. "I'm sorry you had to experience something like that. And I'm sorry that he made you believe that all men were bad. Someone like him shouldn't even be considered a human being." he reached out, grasping her hand in his. "Come here." he wrapped his arms around her. "I'm really sorry." he apologized once more. "Everything's gonna be okay. You have to try and let that go. I know it's hard to, but...that's the only way it will help you move on. Okay?" she nodded meekly.

"Yeah."

A week later, the two were becoming closer as the days went by. Within the seven days of being together, they went out every night. Having fun and just enjoying themselves. "Haha." Beyonce laughed, watching as Justin pretended as if he was drowning. "Stop that. You're gonna drown for real." he swam towards the three feet where she was located.

"Why are you sitting there? I thought you wanted to swim." he stood in between her legs.

"I'd rather watch you make a fool out of yourself." he gripped her waist, pulling her in the water. She attached her arms and legs to him as they proceeded further towards the deep. "How long have we been in here? I'm getting hungry."

"Me too. But for something else." he spoke teasingly.

"Oh shut up." they finally made it to the eleventh feet.

"So..." he backed her into the wall. "The past week has been a lot of fun. Is there anything in mind that you would like to do? Wanna go out tonight?" she shrugged her shoulders.

"Maybe we should stay in tonight. You know, take a break from the city life." he rested his hands on each side of her, blocking her path. "Guess what?"

"What?" she quickly tugged on his boxers, yanking them down. His mouth hung open in shock.

"Haha." she pointed. "I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me. I think my hands have a mind of their own."

"Oh really?" he grabbed his shorts, tossing them out of the pool. "Well junior has a mind of it's own. So don't be mad when he decides to wake up and rape you."

"Ahaha." she quickly swam pass him towards the three feet. He stood there, shaking his head pathetically because he knew within a few strokes he'll been had caught up to her.

As soon as she made it to the three feet, she turned, gazing around for him but he was no where in sight. "What the..." she gazed down at the water for a silhouette but still nothing. "Justin?"

"I'm right here." a voice spoke behind her. She quickly turned, gazing in the pair of dark blue eyes.

"Shit." he stood there with a grin on his face.

"Guess what?" she backed a few feet away from him. "Junior's up now. And you know what that means. He wants to come out and play."

"Justin..." he grabbed her, pulling her towards him. "All right, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to take your boxers off." he shook his head.

"I think it's a little too late for apologies."

"Well look at this." they quickly looked away to gaze at a guy standing out on the patio. "The two love birds at it again."

"Chris?" Beyonce gazed at Justin then back at him in questioning. "What are you...doing here? I thought...you said you were going back to Texas." he took a seat on one of the resting chairs.

"I been doing a little thinking. I'm not going back. I'm gonna stay here until my dying day." she looked away, shaking her head pathetically.

"Is this what you call funny? God, sometimes I hate you." she stepped out of the pool, quickly grabbing a towel on her way towards the sliding door. "You can be a real jerk sometimes." Justin stepped out of the pool, covering his manhood with both hands.

"Hmm, did I interrupt something?"

"Fuck you, man." he spat out, following the way Beyonce went.

"He's just being a dick. I guess because he's sick and he just...feels that he should take it out on everybody else." Justin spoke to Beyonce.

"Well he's not making anything better when he behave that way. I don't wanna remember him this way. I wanna...try and bond and remember him as this happy person, ya' know?" she responded, quickly removing the top to her bikini.

"Ummm..." he burned a hole into her. "So, what do you wanna do? You want me to talk to him? See if I can...talk some sense into..." a knock on the door interrupted him. "Yeah?!"

"We need to talk!" a voice yelled from the other side.

"I guess he read my mind." he stood up, approaching the door. "Um..." he stepped out of the room, shutting the door behind him. "What is it?" Chris stood there with his arms over his chest and a serious look on his face. "Don't fuckin' look at me like that, man. You offend me when you do."

"I can look at whoever HOWEVER I want. And for you..." he took a step towards him. "How could you do this to me? I thought we spoke about this. No dating our relatives which meant..."

"What do you mean no dating our relatives? I..."

"You know what I'm talking about. Before we came here, what we spoke about. This thing between us is just business so whenever this is all over with, we're supposed to go our separate ways. I don't want you fuckin' my cousin. She's..."

"So this is what this is all about? Me fucking your cousin? For your info, our relationship is not just about sex. We communicate on a more deeper level unlike you with your girlfriends. And this I here about our relationship being just business..." he shook his head pathetically. "...I didn't know it was like that. I actually thought we were friends but since I know now...it'll be easier for me to move on once you're gone." he stood there with his hands in his pockets. "And you can't do anything about me dating her. She's a grown ass woman and she can make her own decisions. We wanna be together and that's how it's gonna stay." he looked away, thoughts wandering his mind. "I never felt this way about a woman. I think I love her and..." he met eyes with his. "...I'm not gonna let some...cousin take her away from me."

"She has a baby from another man. Does that mean anything to you?"

"Yes. That means I'm gonna help her take care of him. You shouldn't get with a woman if you're not going to accept their children. And that's something I was taught. And no, I'm not gonna let some ex-boyfriend take her away either. He should've treated her better...with respect. But you know what? I will treat her with respect if it's the last thing I do. No woman should be treated less than a human being. Especially someone like Beyonce."

"Hmm. You sound like you're in love." he shrugged his shoulders.

"I dunno. Maybe I am." he shook his head in pity.

"And was that before or after you fucked her?" he gritted his teeth angrily, forcing his emotions in.

"I pray you get your act straight before it's time. 'Cause no one wants to be remembered as in asshole. No one human." he corrected.

"So you're saying I'm inhuman?"

"You figure it out." he entered Beyonces' room, shutting the door behind him.

Later on that day around seven, Justin decided to surprise Beyonce with a candle lit dinner to tell her his surprise. Big surprise. "Don't open your eyes yet." he held her hand, leading her towards a table. "Not yet. We're almost there."

"What is going on?" she asked, keeping her eyes shut.

"You'll see." he stopped, quickly turning to face her. "You ready?" she nodded anxiously. "All right. You can open your eyes now." she fluttered her eyes open, instantly gazing in on a table officially set for two. Her eyebrows lifted in surprise.

"Wow." she gazed around, realizing there were lit candles everywhere. "I'm...I don't know what to say. No one's ever done this for me before." he smiled warmly.

"Here, have a seat." he pulled out a chair for her.

"Thank you." she sat down, blushing massively. "God, I..." she held her head down in a shy like manner. "I'm sorry. This is just...it feels like a dream. Haha." he took a seat across from her.

"I didn't over do it, did I? I just...wanted...well thought you deserved a break and..." she reached out, grasping his hands in hers.

"Thank you. I...really appreciate this." he nodded timidly.

"No problem." she watched as he prepared a plate of food for her.

"Everything looks delicious." she gazed at the food on her plate, rubbing her hands together. "Mmm haha. I didn't know you could cook. You're just...full of surprises, aren't you?" he shrugged his shoulders.

"I guess." she stuffed a portion of the scallop potatoes in her mouth, moaning in satisfaction. "You like?" she nodded surely.

"Now this is almost as good as my potatoes." he chuckled in response.

"You know how to make a fella feel very good." he eyed her teasingly. "Excluding what you got between them thighs." her eyes lit up in surprise.

"Excuse me? Now don't you have a dirty mouth?" she fiddled with her food, never taking her eyes off him. "Besides, I know there's a reason for all of this. Right?" his smile slowly faded.

"Yeah. Um..." he pulled out a folded up paper from out of his pocket. "This is a...record contract." he slid the paper in front of her.

"Record...contract?" she unfolded the paper, scanning the paragraphs.

"This guy at Jive records heard my demo and he liked it." she lifted her head to gaze in his eyes. "He faxed that contract to me early this morning. I looked over it and I even got a good friend back in Memphis to check it out. He was a lawyer so..." he nodded. "He said everything looks good and that I should go for it. So any way, I signed the contract and faxed it back to Johnny. He wants me to fly in tomorrow to start on my album."

"What? Oh my god! Haha." she covered her mouth in shock.

"Yeah, but...I won't be back for a couple of months." her smile faded that instant.

"Oh...I see." he noticed how quick her mood changed from happy to sad. "Well what about us? What's that...gonna do to us?" a smile slowly formed across his lips.

"Nothing because...you're coming with me. You and Kyle." her mouth hung open in surprise.

"Really? Haha." she jumped up excitedly, embracing him in a hug.

"Haha." he skimmed her back soothingly. "From this day forward, you won't have to work another day in your life. And that's a promise." she pulled back to gaze in his eyes.

"I underestimated you and I'm so..." he placed his finger over her lips, hushing her.

"It's okay, really." he leaned in, meeting lips with hers. "Mmm. I love you." she peered in his eyes, realizing how serious he had become. He was actually the first guy to ever tell her that. In so little time at that.

A year being famous and engaged to Beyonce was like a dream. I had everything I wanted. The big house; the girl of my dreams and most of all--the best fans in the world. But there was something missing. A family. Which I had, but I was ready for a child of my own with my beautiful fiancé.

I sat at my new piano in my new mansion, writing lyrics down on a notepad while Beyonce and Kyle played in the pool. Later that day, I had a interview to attend for 98.1 and I was nowhere near ready. I had to find a wardrobe and the whole nine yards.

The passing of Chris made me realize how important he was to me. Our relationship and what we'd been through. He was a good person, but he just didn't know how to control himself when it came to taking care of responsibilities. I song at his funeral. His favorite song, and if I had a chance to tell him how I felt, I would've told him that I loved him and that he would always be in my heart.

Believe it or not, the last time we spoke was the day he confronted me about being with his cousin. And I didn't want him to think that I hated him, because I didn't. He was like a brother to me and even though he was a selfish person, he was an angel in my eyes.

Beyonce followed Kyle inside, shutting the sliding door behind her. "Go wash off, okay? And don't get any soap in your eyes again. I'll be up there to check up on you." Justin looked from his piano to stare at her. "How's it goin'?" he smiled warmly.

"Okay, I guess." she glanced at his written sheet of paper.

"Writing again?" he nodded. "What about that interview? Still goin'?"

"Yeah. I gotta go find something to wear." she tightened the towel around her. "You think you can hook me up one of those chicken sandwiches before I leave?"

"Yeah."

"Thanks." he continued with what he was doing. Before he knew it, he was out the door and on his way to the interview. In the limo, his cell phone went off. "Hello?" he answered, resting it beside his ear. "Hey, how's it goin'? Ummm, no. On my way to this interview. I dunno, why? Tonight? I dunno, I'll have to see. If I get out of this interview on time and if...everything turns out okay. Well you know. If no one pisses me off. Haha yeah. All right, I'll do that. Mmm hmm, yeah." he turned off his phone.

Moments later, he had made it to the building where the live interview was being held. He stepped out of the limo, following his two bodyguards inside. "Right this way, mister Timberlake." he followed the woman further inside. "I'm sorry. How are you?" she asked. "I'm Gina." she extended her hand out to shake his.

"Hi." he responded, shaking her hand in response.

"I'm just in a bit of a rush. We have to get you on stage in five minutes." he nodded.

"Cool." he took a seat on a chair as the stylist tended to his hair. "It really doesn't need much work. I had my fiancé hook it up before I left." he explained.

"I can see that. Well...there's no point in wasting our time, right?" he smiled.

"Thank you." he stood up, ambling towards the stage area.
__________

"What's this we hear about you working on a album with Rodney Jerkins and Kanye West?" he flashed a surprised look.

"Wow. I didn't know I was...that good. Ahaha." he joked. "Seriously, that's somewhat true. Except for the Kanye West part. I am working with Rodney Jerkins right now, but I don't know where Kanye West came from. So..."

"Oh, and is that gonna be on the new album?" he bit his lip in thought.

"No. Well actually, in a way. The track that I'm doing now with Rodney is for a soundtrack, but I do plan on working with him on my next album."

"Great. Well we can't wait for that. Um, this is what the women fans of yours are dying to know. What is the main aspect you look for in a woman?"

"Uhhh..." he gazed out in the audience. "Okay women fans..." he spoke hilariously. "Um, ahaha. I don't...look for too much. I want a girl who's confident. She has to have a great personality. I like a woman who smiles alot. If she can cook then that's even better." a few people laughed at his comment. "Uhhh, I mainly look for the lips because...I'm a big fan of kissing. She has to know how to have fun and keep herself happy as well. Because I don't want a miserable...nagging woman."

"I hear ya'." the host responded.

"Yeah and...that's basically it...right there." he scanned the audience. "Anyone out there like that?" women quickly raised their hands in the air. "Haha, I'm just jokin'."

"Yeah, and let's get that clear before your fiancé thinks something."

"Oh yeah. We wouldn't want that. How is the fiancé by the way?"

"Umm, she's good. Thanks for asking."

"She's a very beautiful woman. She should be doing modeling or something. Looks like that shouldn't go to waste."

"I was telling her the same thing, but...she says she's not ready for that. So..." he shrugged his shoulders.

"Well whenever she is. I'm sure she'll be a beauty like Halle Berry. Haha." he chortled softly. "Let's get this rumor out of the way. You are now...officially bachelor of the year. Congratulations, man." he shook his hand. "How does it feel to be single and not engaged?"

"Um, well..." he had no idea. He wasn't sure if he should tell them the truth.

"We hear you're getting engaged. Now, you've been the number one bachelor in your fans eyes for months now. They even voted you number one bachelor of the year. But all of that will change if the rumor is true." he bit his lip, hesitant to respond.

"Well...unfortunately, it is. I am engaged. And I've been for four months now." everyone held surprised looks. "So I guess you guys can demote me from bachelor of the year."

"Awww, man. You would've actually been one of the first pop slash r&b singers to break that record being that you've only been in the professional music business for a year."

"And is that like a good thing?"

"Definitely!"

"Hmm, well maybe I should just call off the whole engagement so I can keep that title." he spoke with a little sarcasm. "I'm sorry, I just don't see the whole point. Why do people nominate artists as bachelor of the year any way? Being a bachelor is not always a good thing. Sometimes it's hard to find the right person. Especially for the people who are looking for love. They don't wanna hear that they were promoted to bachelor of the year. I know I wouldn't if I'm looking for love."

"You do have a point. But that's how things are. The whole entertainment business."

"I know and I'm not saying it's your fault. It's the people who came up with this nonsense. I'm actually happy with my relationship and I can't wait to go back home to see my beautiful fiancé."

"Well, she is beautiful. Lucky you." he broke out laughing.

"Yeah. Lucky me."

The following morning, Justin decided to surprise Beyonce with breakfast in bed. He entered the room with a tray of food in his hands. He sat the tray beside her laying body, scrutinzing her closely. She remained sleep, resting peaceful. And he hated to wake her, but he didn't want the food to get cold.

He leaned in, placing a kiss on her cheeks. She slowly fluttered her eyes open, peering in his. "Hey." she moaned softly, leisurely sitting up and resting her back against the headboard. "I made breakfast." he sat the tray on her lap. She gazed at the food in disgust. For some reason, she felt sick and had no appetite to eat. "What's wrong?"

"I..." she ran her fingers through her hair. "I don't feel too good. I'm sorry." he removed the tray, sitting it on the beside dresser.

"What's wrong?" he asked, brushing her cheek delicately with the tip of his thumb. She shook her head, unsure herself.

"I don't know. I just...I haven't been feeling myself lately. I lost my appetite. I...believe or not, but I missed my period by a few days and...I just don't know what to think." he held a confused look.

"So what are you...trying to say?" she looked away, slowly feeling the urge to shed a few tears. "You think you're pregnant?" she nodded, quickly wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Yeah." she cried. "I know so." she sniffled inaudibly.

"Okay, well...this should be a good thing. I mean, we've been working on this for a long time now." she sobbed faintly. "I thought this would make you happy. Why are you crying?"

"I am happy. I'm..." she sniffled. "I'm real happy." he smiled sweetly.

"So these are happy tears?" he reached out, wiping the tears from her eyes. "I can't believe you're pregnant." she rolled her eyes playfully.

"Yeah well that's just more drama. You better hope this one is not a girl."

"I'm hoping for a boy, but...it really doesn't matter. As long as the baby is healthy." she covered her mouth in disgust. "What's..." he watched as she hopped out of bed, quickly running in the bathroom. She kneeled over the toilet stool, disgorging all of her fluids.

"Ugh." she reached out, flushing the toilet.

"You okay?" she stood up, turning on the faucet and splashing her face with cool water.

"What do you think? I feel disgusted." she departed the bathroom, discarding her bra and underwear. "I'm gonna take a quick shower. Oh and um..." she pecked him on the cheek. "Thanks for breakfast. I'm sorry I couldn't..."

"It's okay." he took a seat on the bed. "I'll um...I'll just go put this up." he grabbed the tray, ambling towards the door.

"Baby?" he froze, leisurely turning to face her. "I don't mean to act pushy and...disgusted. I'm just...going through a faze right now and I just need you to be supportive." he nodded.

"I know. It's a woman thing." she giggled softly. "I'm gonna go put this up."

"Okay." he left the room. On his way down the stairs, his doorbell went off. "Damnit." he sat the tray down, quickly approaching the door. He unbarred the door and yanked it open. To his surprise, it was his long lost friend from high school.

"Justin? Justinnnn!!!" she spoke excitedly, quickly hopping on him. He stood there in complete shock. And before he knew it, his bodyguard came running out moments later. The woman hopped off him, still in a state of surprise. "I can't believe it's you." he flashed her an odd look.

"Do I...know you?"

"Is everything okay in here?" the bodyguard asked in concern.

"Ummm, I think." he answered, unsure himself.

"You don't remember me? Lil' Jessica from sixth grade. The girl who had the major crush on you." he shook his head.

"No, I'm sorry. I...I don't remem..."

"I was your partner for our science project. I was the reason why we got an A. Remember you kept joking around and you wouldn't..." his eyes lit up in surprise.

"Yeah. I remember you now. I remember kicking you off my property after you tried conning yourself into my life. Gary...please do the honors."

"No, no. Wait, I can even prove it. See..." she quickly pulled out a picture from her purse and handed it to him. "There. Just...look at it." he scrutinized the picture closely. "That's you and me when we were in sixth grade."

"Hmm." he glanced back and forth at her and the picture, slowly realizing it was her and him. But why didn't he remember her?

"Oh..." was all he managed to say. "I'm sorry. I...I don't remember. What's your name?"

"Jessica. But you used to call me Jessie. I...liked Jessie better." she spoke teasingly.

"Okay." he nodded interestingly. "Well um...why don't you come in, Jessie and...have a seat. I want you to meet someone any way." she followed him in the living room. "Have a seat. Babe?!" he shouted. "She'll be down in a minute."

"She?" she asked in confusion.

"Yeah. My fiancé." she flashed a surprised look. Beyonce ambled down the stairs wearing her robe.

"What in the world is wrong with you? Screaming like a..." she trailed off, meeting eyes with Jessica. "Oh...I wasn't aware that we had company."

"I wanted you to meet someone. An old...very old friend of mines. Jessie...meet my wife, I mean...Beyonce, my fiancé." he corrected.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." she stood up, extending her hand out to shake hers.

"You too." Bee responded, shaking her hand in response. The three of them stood there, eying one another. For some reason, this was a very awkward moment for her because she had no idea he was engaged. Her plans were to come there for one thing and one thing only.

Him.

Justin led Jessica out on the back patio where the pool and Jacuzzi was located. "And this is the...pool. It goes up to twelve feet. The Jacuzzi...you can change the temperature in here." he pointed. "There are these kick ass buttons on the side of the wall...water proof and all. So you don't have to be worrying about getting up everytime just to go change the temperature whenever it's...too hot or...too cold." he met eyes with hers. "So, what do you think?" she nodded interestingly.

"I'm impressed. Really. I...didn't know you would get this far. Not that I'm saying...you know." he chuckled, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"I know what you mean." he kept his eyes on their surroundings. "What about you? What are you doing now-a-days?" she shrugged her shoulders.

"Nothing much. Going to college part time."

"Oh really? What are you taking up?" he asked interestingly.

"Uhhh, journalism. I wanna be a writer." his eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Wow. You don't...look like the type." he spoke, eying her figure. "What's that?" he referred to the tattoo on her inner wrist.

"Uhh..." she quickly concealed it with her sleeve. "Nothing." he lowered his eyes at her, knowing that she was hiding something.

"Oh come on. Can I see?" she shook her head. "Please."

"No."

"And why?" she turned, facing her back to him. "Is it...a sexual icon or something? Ahaha." she chuckled softly.

"No. It's..." she paused. "It's old and I was...young; stupid and confused when I got it."

"Can I?" he gripped her arm, slowly turning her to face him. "It shouldn't be that bad." he twirled her arm to the opposite side, gazing at a tattoo with the name 'Kitty' engraved on her wrist. "Kitty?" he lifted his head to gaze in her eyes. "Who's Kitty?" she shook her head.

"No one. Just...a big mistake. That's all." she looked away, gazing out at his pool "You have a very big...beautiful house, Justin. I'm really happy for you. You...deserve this, I'm sure." he smiled warmly.

"Thank you. I worked hard to get where I'm at. And I'm gonna continue working hard to keep a roof over my family's head. I love them too death." she nodded, never peeling her eyes off the crystal clear water in the pool. "I know your intentions weren't to come...catch up on old times." she leisurely met eyes with his. "What's the real reason why you're here?" she had a feeling he knew the reason why. He just wanted to hear it come from her mouth.

"Maybe I should...go." she turned, ambling towards the sliding door. "It was a mistake. Coming here and..."

"Jessie?" he called, following her inside the house. "Jess?"

"It was nice meeting everyone, but...I have to be on my way now." she departed the house, quickly ambling towards her car.

"Kitty's your girlfriend, isn't it?" he spoke, stepping out on his porch. "You're bisexual."

"Was..." she turned to face him. "...bisexual." she corrected. "Just like I said, it was a mistake." she sat in her car, conveying it to life.

"So why did you come here? You want money?" she flashed him an offensive look. "I mean, for the past decade...you haven't called or had any interest in coming to see me. But now, all of a sudden...when I've gotten a record deal, you show up. There must be something you want." she stepped out of the car, slamming the door behind her.

"Don't you dare try and flip the script." she pointed to him. "You said you would come for me. Sixth grade, last day of school." her voice cracked from the tears controlling her. "You lied. You lied to me. And..." she sniffled inaudibly. "Year after year, I cried and...hoped you would come but you didn't. Now, you're standing here pretending like you never knew me. How could you forget me? How could you forget someone you liked at one point in time? We were best friends. Do you even remember?" he looked away, feeling down all of a sudden because he remembered saying those words to her.

"I...I tried finding you..."

"Don't..." he peered in her teary eyes. "Don't lie to me. You never went looking for me, because if you did...you would've knew that I never moved. I'm still in that same house you used to hang out at. I still sleep in that same bed we made out in."

"Jessie..." he was completely lost with words. "I...I don't know what to say. What do you want me to do? You want me to drop my family and come with you? Is that what you want?"

"No!" she snapped. "What I want is my friend back. The one who cared about me."

"It's...kinda hard to care about someone who's trying to force you into dropping everything and catering to their needs." she returned a confused look. "Oh, so now you're lost? Maybe that's the reason why I didn't come back. You were too bossy and mean towards me. And yeah, I remember the good times we've had but do you even realize how old we were. I was eleven and you were ten. We were too...sixth graders. Two kids in puppy love. It was nothing serious. But now is different, and I refuse to stand here and let you boss me around anymore."

"I...I hate you." she spoke with tears in her eyes.

"Yeah well...I hate you too." she sat back in her car, slamming the door afterwards. "Wait. Jessie..." he reached in, turning off the ignition. "Maybe we got off on the wrong foot." she watched as he yanked on her door, pulling it open. "Come on." he held his hand out for her. She stepped out, following him towards the house. "You wanna join us for dinner? I'm cooking spaghetti with...garlic bread. Mmmm." she giggled softly.

"I didn't know you could cook."

"Well there are a lot of things you don't know about me. Damn!" he tugged her closer to him. "I can't believe you were a lesbian." he whispered.

"Oh shut up." she slapped him on the arm mischievously.

Beyonce entered the bedroom, immediately gazing at Justin who laid in bed talking on the phone. He looked up from the TV to gaze at her. "I'm serious. I was gonna call her but...something happened. Mmm hmm." he peeled his eyes off her to gaze back at the TV. "No, but maybe...yeah." she removed her overalls, tossing them in the closet. "Okay, yeah. Well, mmm hmm. Okay we'll talk later. Right now..." he lowered his voice. "...I gotta take care of some business." he spoke, gazing in on Bee. "All right. Bye." he turned the phone off. "Mmm mmm mmm." he stood behind her, attaching his arms to her waist. "Damn, when was the last time we had alone time?" she shrugged her shoulders.

"I can't remember." she twirled around to face him. "And I definitely know for sure that we won't be having any alone time anytime soon since you met back up with your long lost friend." she brushed pass him, approaching the bathroom.

"And what is that supposed to mean? What does she have to do with me and you?" he slipped off his boxers and joined her in the tub. "You know what we haven't done in a long time?" he kissed her neck sweetly. "Come here." he backed her into the wall, instantly locking lips with hers. "Mmm." his hand slid in between her inner thighs, parting her legs.

"Justin..." he pulled away to gaze in her eyes. "What is wrong with you? Why are you this big...sex machine all of a sudden?" his flashed her a confused look.

"Excuse me?" she slid from under him.

"I don't wanna fuck right now. Sorry." a smirk slowly formed across his lips.

"So what are you saying? I have to jerk off tonight? Again, for the thousandth time." he over exaggerated.

"Would you stop making this all about you." she turned to face him. He shook his head.

"I don't understand. Lately, you've been a complete bitch. I try to kiss and touch you and you just...push me away. Like I'm unattractive to you. What's wrong?" she rolled her eyes.

"It's nothing. I just...I'm not in the mood." she turned her back to him, running water through her hair. He stood there for a few seconds before making a move.

"Fine. I'm gonna go jack off now." he stepped out of the tub, grabbing his boxers on his way out the room. It took her a moment to realize how mean she was being towards him so, she decided to go talk to him before things got out of hand.

"Baby..." she stood against the door, tightening the towel around her. "Listen..." she immediately noticed the bulge poking through his boxers. "I thought you loved me. People who love each other understand the things that they're going through."

"Oh yeah? Okay, well why don't you start explaining to me what type of 'things' you're going through. Because I'm having a hard time seeing it. I mean...for the past few weeks it's been about you and your lack of intimacy towards me. It's not like I ask for pleasure all the time. But when I do, you always brush me away. I had to jerk off to pornos to get my pleasure, but I'm tired of doing that. What I wanna do is make love to my fiancé. But if that's not possible then..." he looked away, hesitating to finish his sentence. "Nevermind. I'm going to bed." he threw back the sheets and laid in bed, covering himself with the comforter.

"Justin..." she took a seat beside his laying body. "I don't mean to be like this, but...it's like...ever since I've gotten pregnant, I just haven't been in the mood for sex. I'm sorry. That's just how things are for me in the first trimester, but I can promise you I will be all over you around the second and third trimesters." she spoke surely. "You just have to be patient with me." he fluttered his eyes open to gaze at her. "Okay?" she reached out, grasping his hand in hers.

"Yeah, whatever." she laughed faintly at his childish behavior.

"Aw, boo boo." she leaned in, pecking him on the lips. "I'm sorry. Ahaha."

"Can I at least get a flash?" she teasingly untied her towel, flashing him her breasts. "Ooohhh. Mmm." he groped both breasts, gripping them firmly. "I'm sorry. I just...I..." he leaned in, placing a soft kiss on each nipple. "I can't take this anymore. I'm taking me somethin'. If I have to rape you..." she broke out laughing. "...I will." he pulled her on top of him. "So, what do you say? This once?" she nodded.

"Okay." he met lips with hers, quickly reversing positions. She bit her lip in pleasure, moaning of satisfaction as he went down for a taste of her. "Mmm fuck." she gripped a portion of his hair, arching her back as she felt this rush of pleasure spread throughout her body. "Justin...ohhh oh god." her chest heaved in and out with excitement. "Mmm." he ravaged her desperately as if he hadn't had it in months. "Ohh!!" she whimpered stridently.

"Mmm you see what happens when you withhold sex from people." she ran her fingers through her hair. "Damn, you taste good. Mmm." he bathed his face in her juices.

"Come here." he hovered over her, meeting lips with hers once more. She pushed him on his back, leisurely trailing her tongue down his chest. A gutteral groan escaped his lips at the touch of her mouth sucking on him.

"Oh..." he shut his eyes, groaning in satisfaction. "Now this has to be the best feeling in the world."

Two weeks later

Another typical day filled with interviews. He had one at twelve, three and six. And he knew the type of questions that were going to be asked. The same questions of every interview.

Sometimes he thought they were just trying to torture him by asking him the same questions all the time. After being asked ten times about his past relationship with women, he thought they would've had common sense not to ask again. AFTER the first time.

"There's this rumor going around that you were diagnosed with AIDS." the host mentioned.

"Wow, really?" he asked in a state of surprise. "Well that rumor is one hundred percent false because I practice safe sex. Everytime." he made clear.

"That's the smart way. No wonder you have no kids." he chuckled softly.

"Actually..." he hesitated. "Maybe I should clear something up. I practice safe sex with women I have no intention on spending the rest of my life with. Women I see no future with."

"Oh! So..." he nodded.

"Yes. Beyonce and I are expecting a baby. We've been working on it for a few months now and finally..." he smiled. "...it all paid off."

"Congratulations man." he thanked while positioning the head phones more comfortably over his head.

"I can't wait to see the lil' fella. Hopefully it's a boy." he spoke, gazing at the radio host across from him.

"What makes Beyonce so different from the other women you've been with?" he cleared his throat.

"Well...first I just wanna say that she has a heart. And that's one of the things that most of the women I dated lacked. They were rude and they thought only about themselves. Selfish is the best word to describe them and Bee is nothing like that. She's respectful, caring, sharing and loving. And I love her. And she will probably be the only woman I love for a long time. But, there was one woman who was close to her. The only thing that messed her up was her demanding attitude. Boy..." he shook his head. "She was very controlling."

"I hate women like that. I know she made up for that in the bedroom though. Haha." he blushed slyly.

"I uhhh, I prefer not to talk about that. Ahaha. I wouldn't wanna...get in trouble back at home. Haha." he broke out laughing.

"Yeah. I forgot you were a married man now. Well...engaged." he nodded in agreement.

"I have a question for ya'. What's the difference between black and white women...in bed? What are their differences."

"Damn." he sat up. "You had to put me on the spot. I have to answer this question?" he asked in a baby like manner.

"Just try to answer it the best you can."

"Umm..." he bit his lip in thought. "Well, I just...well first I just wanna say that I'm sorry to my fiancé and I know she's gonna probably kick my ass when I get back home. But um, these are the things I love about white women. Most white women will do anything you ask 'em in bed. If I was to tell 'em to...go down south they would without hesitation." he broke out laughing. "I'm serious. With black women, you have to try and talk them into it. But that's what I love about them. They're strong willed and out spoken. And Bee is definitely out spoken. She won't let you talk to her any type of way. I do...prefer black women though. I'm not saying anything's wrong with my own kind, I just...there's always something you prefer over something else. Like ice cream for instance. I prefer cookie dough over plain vanilla. But both are good!"

"Yeah, I know what you mean. And with boobs...you prefer big or small ones?"

"Hahaha!" he laughed hysterically. "Umm, I'm gonna have to go with big. Well...medium sized."

"Cool. And one more before we go on commercial. Have you ever given a girl head before?" he slammed his fist on the table.

"Next question. Haha. I'm gonna have to pass that one up. Sorry."

"Hahaha!! Okay. No problem."

The following day, Beyonce and Justin decided to go out for dinner at a restaurant in town. "So, I didn't think to check the fridge and when I looked in there, guess what I found?" he nodded. "The coke. Ahaha now wasn't that kinda stupid of me? I mean..." he sat there, listening to every word she had to say. And for some reason, she was very talkative and she would normally get that way when she was nervous. "The fridge should've been the first place to look at. But, instead I chose to check every place in the house. Like an idiot." she chewed on a shrimp.

"Everything okay?" he asked, intertwining his fingers together. "You've been a bit...talkative today. You normally get that way when...something's bothering you." she held her head down, fiddling with her food in thought.

"Nothing's bothering me, really. I just...I get this way sometimes." he burned a hole into her.

"Okay, well..." he glanced at his watch. "It's been an hour and um...I think I should tell you what I've been dying to get off my chest all day." he rubbed his hands together with this huge smile on his face. "The label just informed that my album is doing incredible so...they want me to go on tour. Hahaha. Isn't that great? This is what I've been dying to do for a long long time."

"Wow, that's...that's wonderful. Congratulations." she reached over, placing a kiss on his lips. "I'm proud of you. Really."

"Thank you." he held her hand in his. "Tours is where your...real money comes from. I'll be traveling thirty cities and twenty-nine states. So, it should be fun. Real fun." he took a sip of his wine.

"Yeah." she looked away, running her fingers through her hair. From the look on her face, he could tell she had something on her mind. "I..." she hesitated. "I have one question to ask. When it's time for me to give birth to our baby...are you going to be there? Because...Seth ditched me that day and the whole time I was pregnant and I just...I wanna be prepared so I won't have any surprises. If you're not gonna be there during labor and delivery, then..."

"Oh no. No." he shook his head. "I will be there. And you can count on it. Nothing is gonna come in the way of that." she smiled warmly. "Okay?" he placed a kiss on her hand.

"How long is this tour?"

"Three months." he spoke simply. She flashed him a shocked look.

"Three months? Okay, and what am I supposed to do for three months?" she dropped her fork to the plate. "I will be six months when you come back. Considering that I'm three months now and that there..." she shook her head. "That's just not right."

"Baby?" she swallowed the last bit of her juice. "Listen um...I can see if I can get you to come with us."

"What? Ahaha, so I can bring Kyle along? A tour bus is not a suitable home for us. Besides that, I have check-ups to attend every month. How is that gonna be possible if I'm traveling from city to city and state to state with you?"

"I...I don't understand. First, you're saying going on tour is wonderful, now...you're against the whole thing!"

"I am NOT against the whole thing. I am happy that your album is doing well and that you're going on tour, but I don't know if I can do this while...I'm in this condition. You know...three months pregnant."

"You don't know if you can't or you won't?" she rolled her eyes.

"That's the problem with you. Everything is all about you. And let me guess, you brought me here to tell me the wonderful news about going on tour, right? Is this the reason why we're here?"

"I thought you would be happy for me. I thought you would have my back on this."

"I've been having your back for months now. Keeping my mouth shut whenever you threw something like this at me. But I just can't this time. It's like, we're not even together because you do things without talking to me about it first. How in the hell are we supposed to get married if you won't talk to me about the things you're gonna do? That's not a real relationship. And frankly, I'm starting to think you're not ready for one. Maybe you should go back to being bachelor of the year."

"Wh...and what is that supposed to mean?" she shrugged her shoulders.

"I dunno. You figure it out." she stood to her feet. "I gotta go use the restroom." he watched her turn, leaving him there all alone.

This definitely wasn't a good sign and he knew it wasn't over. As soon as they got home, they would've been talking about it again. Maybe even fighting.

When they made it home, she decided to hop in the shower. Justin on the other hand went to visit the gym for a few minutes to blow off some steam. "How does he expect this to work if he's throwing surprises in my face all the time?" Beyonce spoke on the phone while departing the bathroom. "It's not right and...people in love don't do things like that."

"Yeah." she looked away to gaze at Justin. "People in love understands their partners' problems and they try to work them out." she looked away, resting her hand on her hip.

"Let me call you back. Mmm hmm. Yeah." she turned the phone off.

"Having fun discussing our problems to your friend? How would you feel if I went and told all my homeboys about the things we do in the bedroom? Hmm? Would that make you want to marry me even more?"

"Oh...fuck you, okay? This is all your fault." she pointed to him.

"All my fault? What's all my fault?" she shook her head pathetically.

"Oh, so now you wanna play dumb with me? You know what the hell I'm talking about. If it wasn't for you and this...big tour we wouldn't be in this position right now."

"Oh really? Well you're lucky I even told you. 'Cause I could've just left without a notice while you're...stuck here wondering what the hell happened to me."

"Oh!" her eyes lit up. "So you would do something like that to me? Huh?"

"No!" he snapped. "I won't! And that's why I told you." he spoke in frustration.

"Well thanks for telling me, but that still doesn't make things better between us." she went through her drawer for a pair of underwear.

"How did you know I was...bachelor of the year? At one point in time." she gawked to the side to gaze at him.

"You are my fiancé, right? I probably was the first person to know. Besides the network who...promoted you to bachelor of the year." she slipped on a pair of underwear. "I just can't believe you didn't tell me. I had to find out from the network. And they even offered you to keep the position if you called the engagement off."

"And I told them no."

"You sure about that?" she tossed a magazine at him. "I'm so glad this whole...tour thing came up, because it gave me a chance to mention that to you. I thought you would have common sense to talk to me about it, but you didn't. Silly ole me for thinking that." he stood there, scanning the paragraphs in the magazine, all of a sudden feeling this rush of heat spread throughout his body.

"I don't know what this is."

"Just...shut up. I'm tired of your excuses. They're starting to get old."

"Well it's not an excuse. It's the truth. I have no idea what this is. I specifically told them that I was gonna keep the engagement. They must've...took it the wrong way."

"Well that's convenient. How could they take it the wrong way? Do you even remember what you said to them?"

"Yes! That's a...stupid question to ask. If you don't believe me, then...I really don't know what to say. Why would I lie to you?" she shrugged her shoulders.

"I dunno." he tossed the book aside and approached her.

"Listen to me..." he reached out, grasping her waist. "I had nothing...nothing to do with this. You hear me?" she peered in his eyes. "You have to trust me. What's the use of having a relationship if you're not gonna trust me?" she looked away, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I do. I just..." she paused. "Maybe I need some rest." she climbed in bed, covering herself with the sheets. "It's been a long day."

"All right um..." he scratched his irritant chin. "We really need to finish this, so...just let me know when you feel like talking." he pulled the door open and departed the room. On his way down the hall, the doorbell went off. He quickly jogged down the stairs and towards the front door. "Who is it?!" he shouted, peering in the peep hole. To his surprise, it was Seth. Him, himself and himself only.

Justin stood there eying him down. What could this man possibly want? And how did he know where they lived? "Can I help you?" he asked, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah. I need to speak with Beyonce." he gazed at a gift wrapped box in his hand, wondering who it belonged to.

"Just a second." he turned, making his way further in the house. "Bee?" he spoke over the small intercom in the living room.

"Yes?" she answered back.

"Come down here for a second. Someone's here to see you." he gazed back at Seth who remained on the porch. "Why don't you...come in. She'll be down in a few." he entered the house, shutting the door behind him.

"Something wrong?" he looked up, gazing at Beyonce who ambled down the stairs.

"Nah. Your um...Seth is here. He came to see you." he spoke, forcing a smile on his face. "I'm just gonna...go fix something to drink. What about you, Seth? Would you like something while I'm in there?" he shook his head.

"I'm good." he gazed at Beyonce who kept her position by the stairs. "So uhhh..."

"It's been a while." he nodded in agreement. "Where have you been? Kyle's been...asking me every day about you."

"Umm, I got him something." he handed her the gift. "It took me a while to figure out what boys his age likes now-a-days." she accepted the gift from him. "Give that to him for me."

"Hmm, okay. So is this why you came all the way down here? To give him a gift?" she shook her head pathetically. "What is wrong with you? You think you can just...abandon us for months at a time and then show back up with gifts? First it's a diamond bracelet. Now it's...I don't even know." she sat the gift down on the coffee table. "Kyle knows Justin more than you. He even calls him daddy because he's around more than you are. And I don't bother telling him who is real father is because...he will never have a chance to get to know him any way. He's too busy...traveling from country to country or wherever he goes because his Architect job is more important than spending time with his own son."

"Do you even know how long it took me to find you? Why didn't you tell me you were moving all the way up here in...god forsaken LA? You just...disappeared."

"Maybe because I wanted you out of my life...for good. Kyle deserves better. I deserve better and Justin is willing to be a father to him and...a husband to me." he looked away, completely absentminded.

"So now you're engaged?" he gazed at the ring on her ring finger. "TO a rich celebrity." he nodded interestingly. "Hmm, well you know what? You can have him. I don't care what you two do. And just because you're marrying this dude doesn't mean he has custody of my son. Kyle will always be my son and I will come here whenever I please to see him." she shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't care. As long as you leave the drama at home." he gazed around the house, checking things out.

"Nice place. How much was it?"

"Ten and a half million dollars." Justin answered. "Six bedrooms and five bathrooms. It's worth fifteen mil but I got a discount." he took a seat on the sofa.

"Cool." he nodded. "Well..." he gazed back at Beyonce. "I guess I should be going. Got a flight at four." he proceeded towards the door. "Tell Kyle I stopped by." he looked over his shoulder to gaze at her. "I'll see you around." with that, he departed the house never looking back. And believe it or not, that would've been the last time she saw him. This, she having no clue of.

Months had passed and Beyonce survived the long three month tour of not being with Justin. She was now six months and fat as a pancake. Well in her own words.

Justin entered the house, kicking the door closed. He dropped his things by the door and proceeded up the stairs towards the bedroom. "Bee?" he entered the room, gazing around for her. "Bee?" he repeated.

"Lucy..." she wrapped a towel around her and departed the bathroom. "I thought I told you..." she trailed off, realizing who it was. "Oh my god." she covered her mouth in shock.

"Hey!" she rushed towards him. "Look at you." he embraced her in a hug. "You've gained a few pounds." she shrugged her shoulders.

"Yeah. Fat, huh?" he shook his head.

"No. Nooo of coarse not. You're just...full now. Complete." she rolled her eyes. "Yeah, but any way...I got you some stuff. For you and the baby. Did you go shopping?" she nodded.

"Yep. The baby's room is finished. We just need a car seat and stroller." he took a seat on the bed, removing his shoes one by one. "So, how was tour? Did you...have fun?"

"Oh yeah. We had real fun. You should've saw how the dancers were. They were buck wild in the hotels. They were throwing water balloons at people from the third floor. Haha. It was crazy."

"I'm sure it was." she spoke, taking a seat beside him. "And what about you? Were you throwing balloons at people too?" he shook his head with this sneaky look on his face.

"Me? Throwing balloons. Oh no. Haha. At least not with the dancers." he mumbled.

"Justin..." she hit him on the arm. "You are so bad. Haha."

"What?" he spoke innocently. "Any way..." he turned her direction. "I wanna know about you and...the things you were doing. I know Lucy was over here every day..."

"Actually...no. She came probably three times since you've been gone. And that was it. I kept myself busy straightening out the baby's room. And Kyle kept me busy running around after him. I'm due in...November around thanksgiving and..." a smile slowly formed across her face. "We're having a girl!! Hahaha." she laughed excitedly.

"What? Damn." he mumbled. "I was praying for my boy but...I guess we'll just have to keep working for one." her head jerked back offensively.

"What do you mean, keep working? I hope you don't think we're gonna have a house full of kids. I only want three. Three is the max. If I don't have a boy within the third child then that's just too bad for you."

"Oh be quiet." he reached out, grabbing a few strains of her hair. "On the real tip..." he met eyes with hers. "...I missed you. I couldn't stop thinking about you while I was on tour. Not one day passed without you...popping up in my head." she blushed slyly.

"I missed you too. I'm just so happy everything turned out okay."

"Come here." he wrapped his arms around her. "Mmm. You were okay while I was gone? You weren't...scared, were you? Ahaha." she rolled her eyes playfully.

"No. I was okay." she stood up, instantly feeling a hand grasp her arm.

"Just a second." he turned her to face him. "I wanna see something." she watched as he removed the towel, dropping it to the floor. Both his hands traced the structure of her round belly, scrutinizing her closely. "I can't believe my baby is in here. Our baby." he corrected. "You ever wonder how she would look? You know, like...what features of ours would she have." he lifted his head to gaze at her.

"Yeah. It passed my mind a couple of times." he leaned in, placing a soft kiss on her stomach.

"Mmm." he moaned, resting his face on the area. "I can't believe I left you for three whole months." she ran her fingers through his hair, massaging his scalp soothingly.

"I'm just glad that it's over." he looked up, gazing in her eyes.

"Me too." he stood to his feet, examining her facial expressions closely. She begin to get a little nervous by the way he eyed her. For one, she didn't remember the last time he stared at her like that. "I just wanna say...thank you for being so supportive. You know, with this whole touring thing." she nodded.

"You don't have to thank me. In that case, I should be thanking you for every time you've been supportive towards me." he bit his lip.

"Yeah. I guess you have a point." he inched his face closer to hers, slowly locking lips with hers. She hesitantly attached her arms to his neck while stroking tongues with his. He carefully placed her on her back and hovered over her, never parting lips.

Moments later...

A soft moan escaped her lips as he moved in and out of her with steady strokes. "Oh..." he groaned, intertwining his fingers with hers.

"Mmm." she whimpered softly. "Justin...mmm." he pecked her on the lips.

"You okay?" she nodded in response. "Three whole months without this..." he shook his head pathetically. "I don't even know how I survived." she chuckled softly.

"Shut up."

Three months later (Thanksgiving day)

Nine months pregnant and still no baby. This was beginning to make Beyonce frustrated because she was tired of walking around looking like this big, fat pig. She wanted to give birth and get it over with. "Here's some more muffins." Beyonce sat a bowl of blueberry muffins in the center of the table. "Anything else?" she asked, gazing around the huge table where the family remained.

"Girl, just sit down. You've done enough." Lynn, Justin's mother assured. "You're gonna end up going into labor."

"That's the whole idea." she responded while taking her seat next to Justin. He gawked to the side to gaze at her.

"How you feelin'?" she shrugged her shoulders in response. He looked away, chuckling to himself. "Any way, the label wants me back in the studio next week." he mentioned.

"Didn't you just come out with an album a few months ago?" Lucy asked.

"Well yeah, but every year or so...you're supposed to come out with an album. Next year would be the second year since my first album was out. So, if I go in the studio now, I should be finished within a couple of months."

"Cool. Your first album was hot." Solange, Beyonce's sister replied. "Especially the song you did for Chris. In memory." he smiled slyly.

"Oh yeah. That was a nice song." Lynn added in. "Were you two close?" he nodded, taking a sip of his drink.

"Yeah. Pretty close." he gazed at Bee who had her hand on her stomach with this look of agony on her face. "Babe...you okay?" she quickly shook her head.

"I don't know. I'm...having contractions again." she panted heavily. "I'm just gonna..." she whimpered stridently. "God...damnit."

"You okay?" Tina, her mother asked.

"I think I'm gonna take her to the hospital. Just to be on the safe side." he stood up, carefully helping her out of her seat. She leaned over, holding her stomach from feeling so much pressure.

"Call us to let us know what's going on." Lynn suggested.

"All right." they both proceeded out of the room.
_________

"Uhhhhh!!!!!!" Beyonce whimpered, squirming furiously on the hospital bed. "Jusssttiinnnnnn!!!!" she shrieked.

"She's gonna have the baby." he looked from the phone to stare at her. It took four nurses to hold her down while the doctor tried delivering the baby.

"Miss Knowles, you're gonna have to keep still. I can see the baby's head." the doctor informed. "Push again." Justin stood there in shock.

"Oh my god. I see her head." he spoke over the phone. "You guys gotta get down here. It's almost time." she used all of her strength to push once more. "I gotta go." he quickly sat the phone back on the receiver.

"Justin..." she called, reaching out for him. "Jusstinnnn!!!"

"I'm here." he rushed towards her.

"Okay. Give it another push. You can do it." the doctor assured. "One more push and we're done." she reached out, gripping Justin's hand in hers.

"You hear that? One more and we're done." with all of her strength she pushed, feeling a big relief. "There she is." he smiled massively. "Oh my god. Look at her."

"Wow. She's beautiful just like her mother." one of the male nurses blurted out. The doctor cut the umbilical cord and handed her to the nurse beside him so she could go clean her up.

"We did it!" Justin spoke animatedly.

"What do you mean, 'we'?" he laughed faintly.

"You know what I mean."

Hours after having the baby, they finally moved her to another room. Justin sat on one of the seats, gazing at the baby laying in a transparent crib. Not in a million years he would've thought of being a father so soon. And in love to top it off.

Not only that, he was young, rich and wanted. So being in love at his age was kind of rare.

Lynn, Tina, Lucy and Solange quickly entered the room one by one. "Where's the baby? Oh!" Tina spoke in excitement. "There she is! Hahaha."

"Shh. She's sleeping." he assured.

"Can I hold her?" Solange asked.

"Did you wash your hands?" Tina asked. "Wash your hands first." she rushed towards the sink a few feet away from them.

"This is so neat how they set up a room just for you." Lynn spoke, gazing around the spacious room.

"Yeah. The celebrities get special treatment." Justin replied.

"Oh quiet." Solange cautiously held the baby to her chest.

"Aww, look at her. Ma' look! Haha, she's got Justin's lips. So cute." they all surrounded her, putting all of their focus on the baby.

"Ahaha look at how she's sucking the air." Lynn pointed out. "She must be hungry. Bee, are you gonna breast feed?"

Pisss Pissss!!

Justin looked away to gaze at a woman standing outside the room. She stood there, motioning him over.

"Uhh. Excuse me for a minute." he ambled towards the exit, squinting his eyes to get a better look at the person. "Jessie? Hey!" he embraced her in a hug. "How you been?" she nodded.

"Good. How's...how's Bee? Everything okay?" he nodded while stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah. She's great. Exhausted though."

"I can understand." she took a seat on the bench outside the room. "So...how's the baby? Healthy?"

"Mmm hmm. One hundred percent. Thank god." he gawked to the side to stare at her. "What about you? Everything's okay with you?" she nodded.

"I guess." he eyed her closely. For some reason, he had a feeling she was keeping something from him. "I'm happy for you. You and...Bee. I hope you two really hit it off."

"Thank you." he watched as she stood up, positioning her purse more comfortably over her shoulder.

"I'm gonna go now. I'll...stop by the house to see the baby."

"Oh..." he stood to his feet. "Okay, well...why did you come? I mean, if you didn't come see the baby...why did you even come?" she brushed a few strains of hair out of her face and behind her ear.

"I don't know. Maybe...maybe because I can't stop being near you." she shrugged her shoulders. "I came to see you. I mean, Isn't it obvious?"

"..."

"I don't understand why you walk around pretending like you have no clue on how I feel about you. I'm crazy for you. I've been since the day you left me."

"Why are you saying it like I had anything to do with it? It wasn't my fault my parents weren't getting along. That's the reason why I had to leave. They divorced and..." he paused, realizing the hurt look on her face. "There was nothing I could do."

"Yes there was. You could've came to see me. That's the least you could've done." she sniffled, quickly wiping the tears from her eyes. "Any way, the reason why I came here is to tell you that...I'm going back to Memphis. There's no future here for me. I thought I could've came to win you back but I was wrong. You...were taken and...I just wish I came a bit sooner." she pulled out a business card. "Here..." he accepted it from her. "If you decide to change your mind." a tear slowly escaped her eye. "I guess I should be going now. My flight leaves in another hour."

"Jessie..." he reached out for her. "Why do you have to be like this? Why can't we just be friends?"

"You will never understand." she turned, heading down the hall.

"Jessica?!" she ignored him while proceeding down the hall. Moments later, he entered the room where his family was located.

"Where have you been?" Lynn asked. "You just missed it. She was just sucking the air." Beyonce held the baby in her arms as she sucked on her nipple. For some reason he felt sad and happy at the same time. Sad because he lost his best friend again and happy because he had just witnessed his fiancé give birth to his first born child. He couldn't have been happier because he finally got what he wanted.

A family and a big house for his family. But he would always have Jessica in his heart. No matter how much he's in love. His old child hood friend will be in his heart 'til the day he die.

The End
By Shona All Rights Reserved 2005
BABY-J.ORG 2003-05

Hope you guys liked it. I know it was short and simple lol. Don't hesitate to leave a review. Thanks!
Shona