Tabitha walked slowly down the steps of Justin's house, on her way to her receptionist's job. She couldn't believe how huge she had gotten. At first she had been convinced that she was having twins, but the ultrasound had confirmed that she was only carrying one child. She had finally accepted the fact that she was going to raise this child on her own. She hadn't talked to Lance since the day he broke up with her and she flew back to Orlando to live. Tabitha had decided to quit her job and move to North Carolina to live near some friends from college after her baby was born. Justin had tried to convince her to stay in Orlando near him, but the thought of being that close to Lance any longer hurt too much. She had thought that time would change his mind, but obviously she had been wrong.

Just as Tabitha opened the door to her car, she felt a sharp pain in her back. She'd been having some pain in her back all day, but she thought it was just because of how much weight she had put on. The next wave of pain nearly made her fall to the ground. She got in the car slowly and leaned back in her seat. Great, she thought as she gritted her teeth against the pain, I would have to go in labor when no one's around. Justin and the other guys were performing a benefit show in Jacksonville and wouldn't be home until late. Britney was coming in the next day to spend a week with Justin for Thanksgiving. Tabitha sighed heavily and started the car. Fortunately, the hospital was only a few miles away so she could drive herself. She couldn't believe that she was going into labor a month early, but apparently she was. As she drove, she dialed Justin's cell just to let him know that she was going to the hospital so he'd know where she was.

"Hello, this is Justin's phone," a deep voice answered. Tabitha winced. Why did HE have to be the one that answered, especially at a time like this.

"This is Tabitha, I need to speak to Justin. It's an emergency," Tabitha spoke quickly.

"Oh," Lance replied as he put down the phone. Justin picked up a few seconds later.

"I'm really sorry about that. Tabbers, what's going on ?"

"I'm in labor," she replied simply.

"WHAT ??? You're having the baby now ?" Justin screamed as everyone looked at him curiously. "It's Tabbers. She's in labor," he explained to everyone in the room. Lance just glared at him and walked away.

"Jujubee, it's OK, I just wanted you to know so that you wouldn't worry. I'm driving myself to the hospital right now."

"You're driving yourself to the hospital ?"

"Juju, you've got to stop repeating everything I say. Look, I'm fine. I'll see you tonight after the show, OK ?"

"OK," Justin repeated slowly as she hung up. Justin turned to look around at everyone else. "We have to cancel the show or postpone it. Tabbers can't have this baby alone."

"Justin, we can't cancel or postpone. This is a benefit show. I don't want Tabitha to be alone, but we cannot leave right now," JC stated.

"Fine, then you can do the show without me," Justin retorted.

"Justin, think about it. Labor takes a long time. We can do the show and still get back before she has the baby," Joey reasoned.

"Fine, I hope you're right," Justin conceded reluctantly. He knew who should go be with Tabitha, but that person wouldn't do it.

Meanwhile, Tabitha had reached the hospital and was struggling to get out of the car. Her water had broken while she was driving to the hospital and she was disgusted by her wet clothes and the wet seat in the car. The pain was growing more intense and each contraction was closer than the last one. She knew that Justin was probably trying to convince the other guys to cancel the show, but she also knew that no one else would agree to that. They were all friends with Tabitha, except Lance of course, but they were still dedicated to their work. Tabitha waddled into the emergency room and had to fill out a ton of paperwork before they would even admit her. It took so long that she was afraid she was going to have her baby in the waiting room. Finally, a nurse wheeled her upstairs to the delivery room. After an hour, the doctor came in to check her progress and determined that she was ready to deliver.

"It's about damn time," Tabitha shrieked. "This kid's head is practically between my knees and YOU decide that I'm ready to deliver. Great," she concluded sarcastically.

"Now, Miss Whitman, when I tell you to, I want you to push, OK ?" the doctor instructed.

"Look, Dr. Doolittle, I've watched enough of the "Baby Story" on TLC to know what to do here. Besides, this kid's coming out whether I push or not," Tabitha yelled.

"Ok, Miss Whitman, just calm down," the doctor chuckled.

"CALM DOWN ??? I'm giving birth to a GREAT DANE !" Tabitha screamed. She continued screaming until her baby's head finally popped out. Everyone in the room was holding their ears.

"Congratulations, it's a baby girl," the doctor told her as he held the baby up to show her.

"Can I hold her ?" Tabitha asked, much calmer now.

"Just a minute, let the nurses clean her up."

A little while later, Tabitha was finally allowed to hold her baby. She began crying when she saw that her little girl looked a lot like Lance. She had similar facial features, except that her eyes were a pale blue like Tabitha's. The little bit of hair that she had was pale blond, almost white. Tabitha caressed her baby's face gently and talked to her.

"Hey sweetie, it's your mommy. I guess you're wondering what your name is. Well, I'll tell you. It's Ariel Nicole Whitman. A pretty big name for such a little thing, huh ? It's OK, you'll grow into it." Tabitha continued stroking Ariel's face and crying softly. She wished that she wasn't alone right now. Just as the thought entered her mind, someone entered the room.

"I knew that I'd miss her being born," Justin commented as he hugged Tabitha gently. "I'm sorry I wasn't here."

"It's OK. You're not the one that should have been here anyway."

"Yeah, I tried to get the guys to cancel the show, but you know how they are sometimes."

"It was a benefit show. You couldn't have canceled it anyway. Do you want to hold Ariel ?"

"She's beautiful, just like her mama," Justin whispered as he picked her up carefully.

"You mean, like her daddy, don't you ? She looks exactly like Lance," Tabitha murmured.

"Not exactly. She has your eyes."

"Did you come by yourself or did the other guys come with you ?" Tabitha asked hopefully.

"Sorry hon, they all had other plans, but we're going to have a party for you before you move."

"Sounds like fun," Tabitha yawned.

"I think I'd better go and let you get some rest," Justin decided.

"No, don't go. I don't want to be alone. Can you stay for a while ?"

"Sure. I won't leave you," Justin assured her. He watched as she fell asleep within minutes and he put Ariel back in her bassinet. He sat watching the both of them for a long while before he fell asleep.

"I still can't believe you're leaving us, Tabs," Chris commented as he gave her a hug.

"You know I can't stay here. I have to move on and start off fresh. There's too many bad memories here."

"Will you come back to visit us ?" Joey broke in. When the guys wanted to, they could really sound like little kids.

"Of course. You guys are Ariel's uncles and I want you to see her grow up. You'd better come visit me when you do a show in North Carolina, too."

"You know we will," Justin promised as he kissed her cheek. He picked up Ariel in her carrier and put her in the backseat of Tabitha's car. The rest of the car was packed to the hilt with boxes and suitcases.

Tabitha gave the guys one last hug and then turned to leave. Justin stood by the car door sadly. He hated to see his best friend leave. Tabitha had been with him through everything and now she was going to be a thousand miles away. "Tabbers, are you sure you can't stay a little longer ? It's only been two weeks since Ariel was born."

"I know, but I need to start my new job and get away from here. You understand, I know you do."

"I know, but I'm going to miss you," Justin whined.

"Juju, you have all your friends here. I'm the one that's making a new start, not you. OK, one more hug and then I have to go."

"OK, call me when you get there."

"I will," Tabitha promised as she drove away.