We sat around the conference room table where we had begun to have our school classes. Sheila had proven herself an excellent teacher, not letting us forget tests and homework. If we didn’t understand something, she took the time to explain it until we did.

I sat there, stirring my hot chocolate with my head in my hands, breathing in the steamy vapors. My cold was still trying to wear off from two weeks ago when strep throat swept out half of each of our bands. Kate nudged me and I looked up.

“Hey, what’s the matter Liv?” She asked me, eyebrows furrowed into a straight line. I shook my head and went back to sipping the scolding hot chocolate.

Sheila stepped up to the front of the room and cleared her throat for attention. Scott and Clint continued their conversation about the rugby game they watched on TV last night. Natalia and Dave were arguing about who was more talented--Garth Brooks or Foo Fighters.

“The Foo Fighters-you’ve got two talented drummers right there. Dave Grohl is a god,” Natalia said, raising her arms into the air as if she was praising a higher being.

“He’s no Garth Brooks. The man had an album at number one for four months. People actually waited outside stores to buy it,” Dave said, ignoring Sheila’s desperate signs for attention.

“People waited outside stores for Backstreet Boys CDs, that doesn’t mean its right!” Natalia shrieked. Dave shook his head.

“Dave this isn’t a discussion. You’re trying to say that some random country guy is even remotely better than the drumming god Dave Grohl is. He can sing, he can play guitar, he can play drums, he’s cool. There is no contest,” Bob said, defending Natalia as she defiantly raised her head and crossed her arms over her chest.

Dave stared open mouthed. “Bob, you reject, you like Garth Brooks too!” Bob smiled meekly and laughed.

“I’m not obsessed with him like some people I know,” Bob said and rolled his eyes. Dave opened his mouth again but was cut off as Sheila passed out papers to them all.

“Can I please have your attention? For one moment,” Sheila bargained with us. Sara sighed and put down the story she was writing to listen.

“I’ve decided to try something different for a change,” Sheila told us. Something different? What’s that supposed to mean?

“We’re going to start a new section in anatomy. The human reproduction system,” Sheila said, and turned around to the dry erase board we had set up for writing on. Scott choked on his bagel.

“Oh really?” Clint asked and raised his eyebrows. Exactly how much are we going to be learning?

“It’s going to be a mixture of anatomy, health, and SexEd. I believe everyone can approach this topic with utmost maturity,” Sheila said, and opened her teachers’ book. Clint and Scott made eyes at each other and snickered. Yeah right, utmost maturity.

Sheila pulled a rather descriptive and colorful poster of the female reproductive out of a bag and taped it up on the dry erase board. She pulled a pen out from behind her ear and pointed to a part of the body. “What part is this, here?” She asked us. Clint and Scott snickered at each other but avoided eye contact with their stepmother. Obviously, they did not want to answer the question.

“Anybody? Anybody?” Sheila said. I was half tempted to answer “Bueller? Bueller?” No one attempted to answer her.

“It’s the fallopian tube.” Natalia answered bluntly. Sheila nodded for her to go on. “Ok, well, the egg is released every month.”

“And then what? Could you describe to us what happens?” Sheila asked us. Scott and Clint were shaking with laughter. Dave looked a little sick. Bob just sat there quietly.

“Well, after that you have a couple of options. Is the egg fertilized or not?” Natalia asked her, an eyebrow raised in question. Scott lost it. He burst out laughing and fell off his chair.

“Scott, Clint, is there a problem? I thought out of anyone you two would most be able to deal with this discussion maturely,” Sheila reprimanded her stepsons. They attempted to recover and sat down in their chairs calmly.

“Tell me, Natalia, what happens to the egg after fertilization?” Sheila asked, and checked the boys’ faces for signs of laughter but none were to be found.

“Um, the egg is released two weeks after your period and that’s when you are ovulating, you know, prime time to make the baby. It is fertilized in the uterus by the sperm and its attached to the linings of the wall where it is nourished,” Natalia easily told her. Sheila smiled at her and showed us the route of the egg on the poster.

“Actually the opening to the uterus, called the cervix, is only five inches long. Anything longer than that doesn’t fit,” Sheila told us. Sara gave me look like she didn’t need to hear this.

“The man’s penis also doesn’t go into the uterus. The opening is the size of a pen. If you are having rough sex, and the guy is ramming it in there, you can get very badly bruised,” Sheila said, not wincing. The boys looked at her with gaping mouths. I guess they didn’t need to hear that from their stepmother.

“I didn’t know that!” Sara exclaimed. I don’t think most people do. It’s not something you go around yelling throughout the hills.

“Well, in your case Sara, how would you know?” Kate said, rolling her eyes. Natalia slapped a hand over her mouth as she began to rock with laughter. I began to laugh too, the first time I had laughed all day. Bob looked at Kate with hatred in his eyes. Oh well.

“Don’t feel bad Sara. They are identical twins. Liv’s in the same predicament,” Nati said between gasps of laughter. Oh, die scum. I hope Sheila didn’t hear that. Scott leaned over to Kate.

“Hey, Kate, I guess its better we haven’t done anything. Might be painful,” He said with a smirk. Kate sneered.

“They are talking about inches, not centimeters,” She said to him. Scott leaned back in his chair, silenced by her comment.

I looked at Sheila, who was busy putting a putting in some movie. Oh god, I knew it.

“Everyone’s attention to the TV screen please? I have a movie you are going to watch now. It’s a bit graphic so just be aware,” Sheila told us as she pressed play. I looked at Kate who’s face was drained of all color when she heard it was graphic. She knew what it was too.

“This is the Miracle of Life video. It follows a mother from conception to birth. Please, be mature about this. Yes I’m talking to you Scott, Clint,” Sheila pointed to the boys and thinned her lips. Scott shook his head and snickered.

“I’m not watching this movie again. This would be the third time I’ve had to see this. I really don’t want to see it again,” Kate said as she hid behind Nati. I walked up to Sheila.

“Sheila, I’ve seen this already, can I be exempt?” Kate asked in a pitiful voice. She has got such a weak stomach its not even funny.

“No, honey, You have to stay in here. If it gets disturbing just shut your eyes, ok? Now sit down and watch the movie., Sheila said. Kate was going to plead, but she realized Sheila was on her last nerve. She sat back in her seat and put her head down.

OLIVIA

“That... was interesting,” Scott said, mouth gaping. He didn’t have anything funny to say now, did he?

“Liv, is it over?” Kate said, raising her head from the table. She rubbed her eyes. Not everyone can fall asleep during labor.

“Yeah, it's over. God if I have to go through that movie one more time, I swear I’m declaring celibacy,” I said, giggling. Clint looked at me in horror.

“Uh uh. Never again. I’m sorry Liv,” He said, realizing what we women had to go through. Ha ha. Bastard.

“If that’s what you want to call a miracle, I’d beg to differ from your definition,” Sara said, shaking her head.

“I don’t ever want to have children. I’d end up killing them probably,” Nati said. Oh, yeah I can see that. She kills the plants in our house, how the hell is she gonna keep a kid?

“On that note...” Sheila said, placing a big bag on the table. We stared at the bag, wondering what was in it.

“We’re going to start today with a new project on responsibility. You girls might have done this before, or at least heard of it. I will be splitting you up into groups of two. Each group will have a flour baby, and it will be your responsibility to keep track of the flour baby for a week. You will have to act like real parents and share the work,” She told us. Clint looked at me and squeaked.

“We get babies! That’s so cool! Can we name them?” Dave asked. Natalia put her head in her hands and groaned.

“Dave, no. That’s all I have to say,” Natalia said.

“Actually, I’ve already picked your groups. I knew who you would be with, and I decided that you would work better in different teams,” She said, and pulled out slips of paper. “Here are your marriage licenses.”

I do not want to know, I do not want to know. I do not want to know. I DO NOT want to know.

She handed a paper to me. “Olivia and Dave, congratulations.”

“WHAT??” Natalia, Dave and I shrieked at the same time, at the same pitch. It was scary. Kate was laughing so hard; she almost fell off the chair. Clint was just shaking his head. Scott didn’t seem to notice anything but himself; he was trying to see if he had a bald spot in his hair.

“Settle down, please. Now, Sara and Scott, congratulations,” Sheila said, and handed the paper to a confused Scott. Kate slumped down in her chair, shaking with laughter and hit her head on the table. Still laughing, mind you.

“No way, uh uh. There is no way,” Sara said, waving her hands.

“If Kate can do it, so can you,” Nati said, putting her head on the table. Kate began to laugh even harder.

“Natalia and Bob, congratulations,” Sheila handed the paper to Bob. Oh god, oh god. I feel pity for their child already.

“This is too much, I have to leave,” Kate gasped and got up from the floor. She was laughing so hard; she almost walked into the door.

“Wait, that means, oh Jesus Christ she’s with me,” Clint said, and hit his head on the table. Well, they’re the only ones with the chance of passing this damn project.

“Scott you are NOT naming the child Elvis. I don’t care what you think, he’s not being called Elvis,” Sara said, dead expression on her face. Scott tried to plead with her some more.

“Then how about Little Scotty? Scott Jr.?” He asked her.

“Sheila, you wanted the project to be realistic? Sign the divorce papers!” Sara shrieked. Sheila was shaking from laughter herself. Now, look what she’s done.

“Actually this would be a good learning experience. You know, joint custody,” Sheila said, and signed the divorce paper. Sara sighed as Scott fell back in his chair.

“Ok, I think I’m alright now. What did I miss?” Kate said, as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

“Scott and Sara are divorced,” Natalia said blandly. That set Kate into fits of laughter again. She sat down next to Clint and they discussed their baby.

“Hey, Sheila, do we have to buy Huggies?” Dave asked his step mom. She looked at him with unbelieving eyes.

“No, honey. Fortunately, you don’t need to do that. Um, why don’t we take a break for a while? I think its almost lunchtime,” She said to us. We gathered our stuff and left the conference room.

I was feeling sick. I didn’t know whether it was the movie, or the fact I had to work with Dave, or what. But I just didn’t need anyone’s shit right now. I pushed the door open and it slammed back.

“Woah, easy there Liv,” Sara said to me as I rushed into the bathroom. I pulled my hair back quickly as I upchucked into the toilet.

“What the fuck? What’s the matter Liv? Morning sickness?” Kate said jokingly and leaned against the doorframe. I looked up at her with menacing eyes.

“Maybe,” I answered her back. Her face drained of color and she stared at me.

“You’re joking right?” She said and looked me straight in the eye. I tried to look back at her, but felt the overwhelming urge to throw up again.

“I’m late,” I said, and slumped against the wall by the toilet in case I felt the urge again. Kate slammed the bathroom door and faced me.

“My god. Ever heard of protection Liv?” Kate snapped at me. I felt my eyes burn with tears and I looked down to keep them from flowing.

“I didn’t mean it...” She rolled her eyes and bent down to me to give me a hug. What was I going to do now? I was having Clint Moffatt’s baby.

“Are you sure? I mean, that you’re really pregnant?” Kate asked me and handed me a tissue.

“Well, I think so. I haven’t gone to the doctor’s or anything,” I said. I calmed down a bit and began to think. Clint would make a good father. We would have to get married.

“Liv! You have to make sure. We have to schedule an appointment,” She said in a scolding tone. I shook my head furiously and shot down her suggestion.

“No way. Absolutely not. We’d have to tell Frank and Sheila,” I told her. No way in hell are we telling them.

“Well at least get an at home test. Come on, we can get one now before class starts again,” She said and picked me up off the bathroom floor. I wiped my red eyes with another tissue and we went back into the bedroom.

“Kate,” I pleaded. “Will you go for me? I can’t go down there. What if Clint sees? Or Frank? Or Scott? Damn it! What if a reporter notices me?” I said, beginning to panic. Sara looked at us as if we had three heads.

Kate sighed. “Oh and I suppose it would be ok for me to get it huh?” I gave her puppy dog eyes and she broke down. “Fine I’ll get it. Wait here. I’ll be right back.”

CLINT

“Hey guys I’m going to go get a magazine at the corner store. Anyone want anything?” I asked the lazy asses I like to call my brothers. Nobody answered me back.

“Ok, I’ll take that as a no,” I said and left the room. I walked down the hallway and noticed Kate a little ways in front of me. Hmmm, I guess she was going to go there too.

I fought back the urge to run up to her. She’s Scott’s girl. Liv’s mine. Gotta keep it that way, no matter how horny I am.

I kept following her to the corner store, wondering what she was going to get. Now me on the other hand, I was looking for the latest shipment of booty mags. Oooh, those English girls, so flexible, so imaginative.

She entered the corner store and zipped down the third aisle. I went down the second, getting ready to scare her. She got what she needed and went to the cash register.

“Here’s your change. Hey, you look a lot like that girl from Nine Lives. What’s your name?” The cashier asked her.

“Oh, um, Rachel. I get that a lot actually. Thanks!” Kate said and ran out of the store as quick as she could. I went down the third aisle to about where Kate was. Hanging on the shelves were pregnancy tests.

“WHAT??” I shrieked loud enough for the cashier to notice me. I ran back to the front of the store and dashed out to catch up to Kate.

“I can’t believe it. She’s pregnant. Oh my god,” I whispered to myself as I bolted into the lobby and ran up behind Kate.

“Hey,” I said, catching my breath. I startled her and she quickly thrust the package behind her.

“Hey Clint, whatcha up to?” She said, voice not telling me anything. We walked into the elevator and I pushed the button for the floor.

“What’s in the bag?” I asked her, hoping she would tell me so I wouldn’t have to beg.

“OH, um. This bag?” She held it up. I snatched it out of her hands and opened it to confirm my suspicions.

“No! Clint, give that back. Stop!” She said. But I threw the bag back at her and glared at her. I can’t believe her.

“Kate you slut. Did you think you couldn’t fool us? Don’t think I’m not telling Scott,” I said to her.

“What? No it’s not what you think really,” She tried to make her way out of the situation. But I was on to her.

“I can’t believe you. I can’t believe you would do such a thing to Scott. He loves you! Why would you cheat on him? I know it’s not his child cause he ain’t getting any,” I said angrily.

“I’m not cheating on Scott. And how do you know he isn’t...ok, well he isn’t but that’s not the point. Listen, if I tell you, you have to promise not to tell anyone else,” She bargained with me. Come on I want to hear the lie you have.

“I’m listening,” I said, and hit the stop button on the elevator. Kate took a deep breath.

“Liv’s pregnant.”

My mouth hit the floor. What?

“It’s gonna be ok. She doesn’t know if she really is or not. She’s been sick and she’s late, so I decided to go get a test for her,” Kate explained to me. I put my hand against the side of the elevator to brace myself.

“Are you, you’re not joking are you. Oh my god…” I breathed. Liv, pregnant.

“Clint, Clint, are you gonna be ok?” Kate came up to me and tried to help me. I pushed her hand away.

“You can’t say anything to her,” She added. Oh yeah, that’s helpful.

“No, no. I won’t. Oh god,” I wiped my forehead as Kate hit the up button on the elevator. We got to our floor and the door opened.

“Watch out!” Nati shouted. A ball of white powder flew over Kate’s head as she ducked and it hit me.

Nati fell back onto Bob in spasms of laughter. They were both covered head to toe in the white dust.

“What the hell happened here?” Kate asked them. Bob recovered long enough to explain.

“Meet our child, Rachel,” He told us. Natalia began to laugh even harder. Oh Jesus Christ I feel sorry for her children.

“Sheila’s gonna kill you!” Kate shrieked at them after she had finished laughing at me. I shook my head and the white powder floated down off my head and onto the carpet.

“Clint, um. I gotta go. You promised remember? Bye,” Kate said to me and disappeared into Liv’s room. I was left alone in the hallway as Natalia went down to the store to get more flour and Bob ran to his room. I went into the room behind him.

“Hey Clint. Try not to get flour all over the carpet ok? The cleaning lady just was in here,” Scott said. He sat down on the couch and quickly got up again.

“What’s the matter?” Dave asked him.

“I sat on the flour sack. It’s my weekend to watch him I guess, ” Scott said, and he picked it up. “Hey, Dave feel like babysitting?”

“I’ve got my own right here, thanks. One’s enough,” Dave said as he rocked the flour baby in his arms. Scott shook his head and put the bag next to him to watch TV.

I brushed the rest of the flour off me and onto the floor, ignoring Scott’s remark. My mind was still with Olivia. What were we going to do if the test showed she was pregnant? We were extra careful, every single time. I made sure there was protection. I don’t need to be a father so quickly.

“Hey guys, um, can I ask you something?” I said, needing advice, but wondering if it counted as telling someone.

“What about?” Scott said, not taking his eyes off the British cartoon on the television. Dave put the flour baby down. Bob went into the bathroom. Wow, I love how my brothers care.

“Well, say you had sex with a girl. And you used protection and were really careful and stuff, but somehow the girl you had sex with, well she finds out she might be pregnant. And you know you’re the only one she’s fucked lately. And then what do you do?” I said to the silence. No one acknowledged my question. Dave continued playing with the baby. Bob flushed the toilet. Scott flipped the channel.

“Does that mean we should keep the child?” I feebly asked them. Dave dropped the baby. Bob slammed open the bathroom door. Scott turned off the TV.

“Excuse me?” Bob shrieked at me. I felt my face and ears turn bright red. I knew I shouldn’t have said anything. Nothing at all. But they were my brothers!

“Clint, are you joking? Tell me you are,” Scott said very seriously. I swallowed but didn’t answer him. He got up and rubbed his eyes in confusion.

“Clint! How could you have been so stupid!” Bob yelled at me. I opened my mouth to object.

“I didn’t mean to!” I defended myself.

“Good, at least you’re taking responsibility,” Scott said. He narrowed his eyes at me and threw his hands up into the air.

“Wait, do you know? Do you know for a fact that Liv is pregnant?” Dave asked me, the first thing he had said in a while.

“Well, she’s late and she’s been sick in the morning. Kate went to get her a test at the drug store,” I told them. Right away, I felt I shouldn’t have mentioned Kate’s name.

“Wait, what? Kate had something to do with this?” Scott turned to me and prodded me. Oh shit. I hope I didn’t get her in trouble.

“Forget it Scott, she was just helping Liv,” I said, brushing away his question. “Can we get to the original question? What are we supposed to do?”

“You can’t keep it. That’s it. No way,” Scott said to me. My mouth dropped open. I got up ready to slap Scott clear across the face, but Bob stopped me.

“He doesn’t mean kill it. He means give it up for adoption. Right Scott,” Bob said through his teeth, thoroughly mad at our brother for saying that too. I restrained myself from jumping on Scott’s back and kicking his ass.

“But he’s right. It’s your responsibility. You have to deal with the problem. You can’t depend on Dad and Sheila to watch it,” Bob said. I understood what he meant and turned to Dave for his opinion.

“I’ll baby-sit it,” Dave said quietly. I wondered what he was thinking and smiled at his offer to help.

“Fuck no, Dave. This is Clint and Olivia’s responsibility and they need to deal with it,” Scott said nastily. He walked up to me and looked me straight in the eye.

“Do you have any idea what this would do to the band? While in the heat of passion, you totally fuck up and throw all of our futures away, not to mention Nine Lives’. How could have been so utterly selfish?” He got up into my face and Bob positioned himself to pull us apart if we ended up lurching for each other’s throats.

“Are you finished?” I said to Scott, glaring down my nose at him. He nodded.

“Get out of my face. You disgust me. Do what you want. I’m through with you,” Scott said. He turned around and left the room, letting the door slam behind him.

KATE

My mind raced. I paced outside the bathroom door as Olivia finished up inside. Sara and Natalia were in the room watching TV. I looked at them. I wonder how much they realize.

“Hey Liv, how you doing in there?” I said through the door. I heard a muffled cough and Olivia cracked the door.

“I’m just trying to make sure I didn’t forget anything,” She said and stepped outside the room to wait with me.

“Come sit over here,” I said and sat on the bed. I wondered what Liv and Clint were going to do with the child if they really had it. I decided to ask Liv, she looked a bit calmer. The color had come back to her face a little.

“Liv, have you thought about what you guys are going to do if you really are pregnant?” I asked her. Liv looked thoughtful with her head hung down. I thought she was going to start crying again and immediately yelled at myself for asking her so soon.

“I don’t know. I know for one thing thought, I can’t kill it. That’s just immoral and it goes against everything I stand for. And I think I’d like to keep it. I am 17. In a year, it would be legal. And Clint is the kind of a guy who would be by me all the way. He wouldn’t leave me,” Liv said. She says that so calmly. I feel as if I’m doing the worrying for her.

“Well, don’t you think you should maybe, tell Clint?” I said, trying to sound as if I didn’t already do that. Liv shook her head furiously.

“I don’t want him to worry until I’m absolutely sure,” She said. I looked at Liv and smiled.

“I admire how brave and calm you are during this whole thing. I mean, if it was me, I’d be nervously convulsing the whole time. And I’d never let Scott touch me again,” I said, laughing.

“KATE! GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE I NEED TO TALK TO YOU!” Scott pounded on the door. I jumped in shock. Natalia and Sara’s heads perked up and they looked scared. I’d never heard Scott sound so mad before. I gingerly got up to answer the door.

“Yes Scott? What’s the matter, honey?” I asked him sweetly. His face showed no signs of tenderness.

“Get out here. I want to talk to you now,” He grabbed my arm and pulled me outside into the hallway.

“Hey, watch it!” I tried to wrestle free from his grip, but unfortunately, he had a tight one. A million things were racing through my head. Did Clint actually believe me that Liv was pregnant? Did he tell Scott that I was cheating on him? Oh god, oh god.

“No you watch it. Damn it Kate! Why the hell didn’t you tell me? Don’t you get it! This isn’t one of Olivia’s little selfish binges, this are more people that her at stake. You say you have to learn to trust me more, but I think I need to worry about trusting you. Too many futures are at stake here. I’m not going to let my own life go down the drain because she can’t control her urges,” Scott spewed out a rancid line of insults. I didn’t know whether to cower with fright or to burst out laughing. I’d never seen this side of Scott before.

“This will bring it all crashing down. Everything we have ever worked for. Nine Lives and the Moffatts will never be able to be seen together again without massive controversy and problems. Nothing will ever be the same,” Scott glared at me from two inches away. I was getting madder and madder at his selfish demeanor.

“You say Olivia is being selfish? Take a look at yourself. Your brother and one of your best friends need you right now; they need all the support they can have. And you can’t open your mind for one second, get it off the fucking media, and try to understand what they are going through. Fuck what other people think! So what if we lose fans, it’s better than losing family and friends,” I said to him before turning around and beginning to enter the room.

“AAAAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!!!” A shrill scream came from inside. I flung open the door to see Olivia sprawled out on the floor.

“What happened?” I asked Natalia who was coming back from the bathroom with a wet facecloth.

“She fainted. She screamed and fainted. Try to wake her up Kate,” Sara said. She looked worried. Maybe we should have told her.

“Well this is just fucking great. I’ll go get Clint,” Scott muttered. I didn’t look at him as he walked down the hallway to the boys’ room. I never wanted to look at him again.

“Did she say anything?” I asked the girls. They shook their heads. I looked to the bathroom door, which was slightly ajar. “I’ll be right back.” I said and got up.

“Oh shit, is she ok?” Clint said as he rushed into the room. I forgot about the test and went back to him.

“She just fainted. I guess she was feeling really sick or something,” I said, trying to warn him that Sara and Natalia didn’t know.

“Oh, I guess that’s normal, huh?” He said quietly. He kneeled down to Olivia and caressed her face tenderly. I felt a twinge of jealously at Olivia and Clint’s relationship and realized I’d never have anything like that with Scott.

Olivia slowly revived. Her eyelashes fluttered open dramatically. Oh Jesus Christ. Of course.

“Olivia? Are you ok? How are you feeling?” Clint bombarded her with questions. Olivia looked around confusedly.

“Huh? Oh, I’m ok I guess,” Her voice drifted off. She sat up slowly and put her hand to her head. She sat for a moment thinking, then suddenly the color drained from her face.

“What is it? Are you gonna be sick again?” Clint said nervously. Olivia shook her head and stood up, Clint helped her. Liv looked at me pathetically.

“Kate, I’m pregnant,” She meekly said. My eyes popped out of my head. I couldn’t believe it. Olivia was the last person I’d truly think would be pregnant.

”You are? You are?” Clint said excitedly. He almost jumped up and down with happiness. “The test was positive?”

“Yeah. I got a blue line,” Liv said, cracking a half smile. My mouth dropped. I ran into the bathroom and checked the test.

“Kate. Kate what is it?” Liv peeked her head in. I threw the test at her.

“Hey! Stop it! What was that for?” She said and backed up as I charged at her, arms reaching for her neck.

“You read the test wrong! You’re not pregnant! You need two lines to be pregnant! Not one! You’re fine!” I threw my hands into the air. She looked at me unbelieving.

“What? Oh no,” She said to me. She looked at Clint who was trying to make sense of the whole situation.

“I guess I’m not pregnant. Sorry honey,” Liv whimpered. Clint came over to her and hugged her.

“It’s better this way. So much easier,” He said to her. I breathed a sigh of relief and then watched as Bob and Dave came into the room.

Dave ran up to Liv. “Oooh! Little baby,” He rubbed her tummy and smiled. Olivia smacked him upside the head.

“I’m not really pregnant. The test was negative,” She said with relief. Dave actually looked disappointed. He walked over to Natalia and gave her puppy dog eyes, knowing she couldn’t resist them at all.

“Don’t you dare even think about it David. I’m not even going to answer you,” She said to him. He grinned and kissed her.

“I’m just kidding. Although wouldn’t you love a little kid to play with and love?” Dave reasoned with her.

“Why do I need a little kid when I have you, sweetie?” She said mockingly. Bob laughed. Scott came into the room, but I couldn’t tell whether he was still mad or not.

“Hey. She isn’t pregnant. Can you go on with your life now?” Clint said in a low voice. He sounded as if he was mad at his brother. I wouldn’t blame Clint. Scott was acting incredibly stupid.

“Clint, I’m sorry for how I acted but you have to understand, you guys acted very irresponsibly. I was thinking of the bands, I believe they are extremely important to us right now. If suddenly something happened and altered our lives to make it difficult to continue with the bands, then what would we do? We’d be screwed, for lack of a better word. Almost getting pregnant was one of the stupidest things you could have done,” Scott made his point. I thought for a moment. He was right and almost immediately, I felt horrible for yelling at him.

“Scott,” I took his hand and led him outside. Clint was kicking everyone out of the room so Olivia could rest. She was very tired from being worried for so long and it had given her a very large headache.

Scott pulled his hand away and shoved it in his pocket. Oh, god. I feel so low. “Scott, I’m so incredibly sorry. I’m sorry for yelling at you. I was so upset that Olivia would be pregnant I was doing the worrying for her. I didn’t mean to get you mad at me,” I hung my head, preparing myself for whatever may come.

“Do you get it now? Do you get why I was so disturbed by Liv and Clint’s predicament? I knew that if they really had the child, and people found out, Nine Lives and the Moffatts would never be able to play together again. We wouldn’t be able to be seen together again. All the friendships and relationships we’ve made in the past few years would be gone because of one little mistake. I didn’t want that to happen,” Scott said to me, and stared down the hall with his arms crossed. He had gone on long enough with me hurting him, mistrusting him, accusing him, and using him. This was my turn to apologize.

“I’m sorry Scott. I truly mean that,” I swallowed to keep from crying, because I knew any moment it would happen if he didn’t take me in his arms.

“I accept your appology. Come on. Let’s go get lunch. It’s almost one. If we leave soon, Sheila can’t find us when class starts again,” He said, a smile cracking across his lips. He took my hand and led me down the hallway. I had never seen this side of Scott before. He was taking over. I loved it.