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Time Marches On; Het, James/OFC, 2004, Sequel to 'The Shortest Week'
Topic Started: August 18, 2012, 1:22 pm (12,219 Views)
Sol
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Frantic
[ * ]
Oh my god! I just loved the entier chapter, from the beginning to the final point.

You're such a good writer! :dance

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CarpeDiemBaby
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// Sunglasses indoors.
[ * ]
Great chapter!
I love the baby's name! :heart:

Moar! :D
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Phantomlady
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Blackened
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That was so cute :heart: :heart: :heart:
More, more, more pleeeease :biggrin
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-DJ-
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Blackened
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Thanks girls! :heart:


The sound of Maddison crying from the baby monitor woke me from my second hour of sleep of the night. I took James’ arm off my stomach and looked at the clock, 6.17am.

“I’ll go” I whispered.

“Mm”

I went to check on my baby lying on her back kicking her legs. We were home from the hospital five days now and both of us were exhausted. James helped with anything he could. He held her when she cried, fed her, bathed her and used her as excuse to watch cartoons. I only hoped we could keep this up…

“You hungry, little one?”

I got a bottle of formula and sat in the chair in the nursery feeding Maddison. The window over looked a lake nearby but the dark foggy morning made it almost invisible apart from the reflections of the moon on the surface of the water.

While Maddison sucked on the bottle, I thought about the fact that Lars and Kirk were coming over later. I hoped they didn’t mind James and I walking around with bags under our eyes.
She finished a small bottle and I burped her, changed her diaper then went back to bed to try and grab some sleep.

“Everything okay?” he mumbled into his pillow.

“Yep. You’re going next”

I caught about an hour’s sleep before the alarm clock went off.

I showered to try and wake myself up a bit. I walked into our bedroom after getting dressed and James had Maddison lying on his bare chest humming something while his thumb rubbed her tiny back.

“You’re Papa Het for real now, huh?” I sat on the bed beside them.

“Yip”

“How does it feel?”

“Pretty damn good” he smiled.

“I have a funny feeling you’re going to spoil her”

“Of course I will”

“I can just picture you chasing her first boyfriend out of here too”

“No dating until she’s thirty…maybe thirty five” both of us laughed but I could actually see that happening.

“What time are the guys coming over?”

“Around three I think”

“Do you wanna sleep for a while and I’ll take her downstairs? You’ll need energy if you’re gonna be talking to Lars all evening” I laughed.

“You sure?”

“Yeah. I’ll wake you in a few hours”

I took our daughter off his chest after he placed a tiny kiss on her forehead and brought her downstairs. I collected the mail from the hall and went to the kitchen to make myself some breakfast. I strapped Maddison into her little rocking chair beside the table and sifted through the mail. I separated my stuff from James’, our bills and such. Before I threw the junk mail out something caught my eye; a leaflet for warehouses to rent and buy in downtown San Francisco. They looked the same as the gallery Lars took me to last year. I folded up the piece of paper and put it in the back pocket of my jeans.

I decided to get some work done and went up to my art room and put Maddison down to sleep for a while. I opened up a sketchbook and started sketching out a plan for a warehouse, separating it into rooms, upstairs and downstairs. I had a feeling James wouldn’t approve of me doing something so soon after having a baby but it still wouldn’t be for a while yet, it was only an idea. I’d have to corner Lars about this later. I stayed in my room for about an hour before I heard James getting up and into the shower. I quickly closed the book I was drawing in and put it away.

“I thought you were gonna stay in bed” I said walking into our room and caught him pulling a shirt over his head.

“Nah, I can’t leave you on your own with her; it’s not fair” he shrugged. “Anyway I don’t like being away from here for too long” he walked towards the door to leave the room.

“No leave her; she’s asleep” I pulled his hand towards me.

“Oh yeah?”

He fell on top of me on the bed and kissed me deadly. He smelled fresh after his shower. It was the first time we’d had a moment to ourselves since we came home. As things were getting heated, a cry crackled through on the baby monitor.

“I think we just got a glimpse into our future” he laughed in my ear. “I’ll go”

We sat in the living room waiting for Lars and Kirk. James had Maddison lying on his long thighs and she held his fingers as we talked on the couch.

“She’s so lucky” he spoke.

“How?”

“Well she gets to sleep for like, twenty hours a day then all she has to do is cry and she gets fed”

“Twenty hours sleep sounds good right now. Where did she get that headband from?” I noticed she was wearing a pink headband with a small flower on it.

“I dunno. It was just in the nursery” I wasn’t surprised he didn’t know where it came from since there was so much stuff in there. “Her hair’s so spiky” he chuckled as the doorbell rang.

I opened the door and Lars and Kirk walked through into James.

“Hey there’s my goddaughter!” Lars chimed and took her into his arms.

“Congrats!” Kirk kissed me on the cheek.

Lars cooed over Maddison in his arms.

“You’re a pretty girl, huh? Thank god you look like your mommy and not your daddy”

“Hey, dick!” James kicked his foot.

“I’m kidding man! Chill the fuck out!”

“You guys want tea or coffee or something?” I asked them.

“Coffee” all three of them answered.

I went to the kitchen and left the three guys to talk.

Lars came in not long after and sat at the kitchen table.

“What’s the mommy thing like?”

“I love it!”

“Love those sleepless nights too?”

“Well not that part but I love actually being a mom. I need to talk to you by the way”

“About?”

I pulled the piece of paper from my pocket and he looked at it.

“Ah you wanna start your own gallery huh? I knew you would eventually”

“Yeah…you think I should?”

“Hell yeah!”

“I mean, it’d get me out of here and I’d sell stuff a lot quicker too. I’m afraid to say it to James though. I think he wants me here y’know. It wouldn’t be for another year or so though”

“Yeah give it time. But I know a few people that can help you out, just let me know. Make sure you talk to him eventually and sooner rather than later”

He helped me carry the three cups back into the living room. Kirk was holding Maddison when I went back in with his signature smile on his face.

“She’s so quiet!” Lars observed.

“And stinky” Kirk laughed.

“I’ll change her” James carried her upstairs to change her.

“Seems like he’s a great dad” Kirk told me.

“He’s awesome! He does everything” I smiled.

We chatted for a little while before the guys left around 7pm. I was laying Maddison down to sleep and remembered Lars telling me to talk to James about my idea. I just didn’t want him to react badly.

“Zara!” he shouted up the stairs.

“Ssshh!” I walked into the living room and he was sprawled on the couch. “Um…I need to talk to you about something” I watched worry set in on his face.

“Is something wrong?”

“No…I was just wondering what pizza you wanted” I held up the pizza menu.

Dammit.
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Sol
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Frantic
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Oh my god! I love it! :heart:

The couple of last lines made me laugh. I was picturing James acting this way! :lol:

Thanks for the great story and I truly cannot wait for the next chapter!
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CarpeDiemBaby
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// Sunglasses indoors.
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Great chapter!
I love how James is acting like a loving daddy! :heart:

More! :D
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-DJ-
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Blackened
[ * ]
Seven months later and I was still stuck at home. I hadn’t mentioned the idea of opening a gallery. Piles of canvas were piling up in the art room in the house. It seemed the idea just fizzled away. Metallica were back in the studio writing a new album but had a tour coming up in a few days. Summer festivals needed to be played. It would be the first time James would be away from us. He was wary about being away for so long; he didn’t want to miss a minute of Maddison’s childhood. Our days were more centered around routine now and we were getting a little more sleep these days.

I heard James laughing from the back garden as he had Maddison in the shallow end of the swimming pool. I was in the kitchen preparing her lunch as she could eat solids now. Even if solids were a bowl of mush.

“Lunch!” I shouted out to him and he gave me a thumbs up to let me know he’d be in.

He walked in dripping wet, soaking the kitchen.

“We’ll change and we’ll be down in a few minutes”

I set up Maddison’s high chair and put the bowl of warm orangey goo next to it. I cleaned up the water from the floor and sat with a magazine at the dining table

The pair of them came into the kitchen in fresh clothes.

“What is this?” James grimaced looking at her lunch in the plastic bowl while his daughter played with a stuffed animal.

“Carrot and potato”

“Alright little lady open up!” he pulled a chair in front of her.

It was the funniest thing watching James attempt to feed her because she never cooperated with him. She just sat there laughing. Both of us did.

“C’mon sweetie, please” he begged but she kept throwing her toy on the floor that he picked up every three seconds. He was successful with a few spoonfuls but I didn’t blame her not wanting it, it was gross.

“I give up” she sat there gurgling and laughing at him with most of the food around her mouth and on her bib. “You doing anything today?”

“I have a few phone calls to make but that’s it. You?”

“Have to start packing for the tour” he sighed. I knew he didn’t want to leave.

“It’ll fly by; you’ll be back before you know it”

“I just don’t want to miss anything. Anyway, naptime for you”

He cleaned her mouth and scooped her up into his arms while she chewed on her fingers.

“I’m gonna start to pack after she falls asleep so I’ll be upstairs if you need me”

I tidied up the kitchen, again, and headed upstairs. I saw him coming out of Maddy’s room wiping his eyes.

“James?” he looked at me then walked into our bedroom. “James? Are you okay?”

“Yeah I’m just gonna miss her. She’s growing up so fast that I don’t want to miss anything” he confessed throwing black t shirts into a suitcase. “And it’s going to be tough for you too on your own with her for so long” I took some pictures out of my drawer and handed them to him.

“Take those with you”

“I didn’t know you had these” he said flipping through the photos. Photos of him and Maddison, Maddison and I and her on her own. “Thanks” he smiled and put them on his dresser.

“How would you feel if I were to set up my own gallery?” I bit the bullet and asked him the question that’d been on my mind for over half a year.

His head shot up from his suitcase.

“Now?”

“As soon as possible”

“Well…yeah it’d be good I guess. How long have you been thinking about this?”

“Since just after Maddison was born but I couldn’t tell you because I knew you’d want me here”

“Obviously I want you here but I don’t want to hold you back from doing anything either, you know that. It’d save me the hassle of clearing out another room here anyway. I noticed your room is getting kinda full”

“So you’re okay with it?”

“Sure why not” I felt like he wasn’t paying that much attention.

“Where’s the first stop on your tour?”

“England”

“Wow. Long flight”

“Yep”

“I’ll leave you to it”

There was no point in me being in the room if I was getting one word answers. I knew it was just because he was going on tour, he loved touring but now it was just tougher.

Later when James was finished packing and his cases were by the door he settled down to watch the football game after he put Maddy to sleep for the night. I ran a bath for both of us but it was always a chore getting him to move from in front of the tv especially when there was a game on.

“Hey…whatcha doin’?”

“The game”

I tugged on his hand to try and get him to come upstairs.

“Baby, the game”

I turned off the tv from the remote.

“They’re gonna lose anyway. C’mon”

He followed me to the main bathroom.

“Trying to tell me something?” he smirked looking at the full bath.

“No. But it’s probably gonna be the last time you get to relax for a while, right?”

He shrugged and tugged shirt over his head.

We soaked in the foamy bath with my back against his chest.

“Will you come to the airport with me tomorrow?”

“Sure”

“Will you miss me?”

“Of course I will”

“What will you miss?” it was clear he wanted his ego massaged.

“I’ll miss the little things about you”

“Like what?”

“Like that little nervous laugh you do when you don’t want to answer a question…the way your beard is all messy until you fix it in the mornings…and your hands” I took one of his hands off my stomach and traced the veins on top. “And I’ll miss that” I laughed.

“Miss what?” I could feel him smile him against my neck because he knew what I was talking about.

“Something hard poking me in the back every morning”

“C’mon I’ve been good up until now. Can we get out?” his nose nudged my cheek and he kissed
my neck but that was interrupted by Maddison beginning to cry.

“I don’t think we have a choice!”

“I’ll get her”

He got out and wrapped a fluffy white towel around his waist and wiped his chest.

I changed into some shorts and a tank top and hopped into bed while he was with Maddison.

“Was she okay?”

“Yeah, she just wanted to be held for a while then she calmed down” he came back into the bedroom with his erection still making a bump under the towel. He pulled back the covers I had over me and placed himself between my legs.

“So” he breathed heavily against my ear and bit down on his lip. “You going to say goodbye to me or what?”
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Shayniz21
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Poor Twisted Me
[ * ]
I can't wait for Zara to start her own gallery! I love art! James is just so damn cute. He is being so good with Maddison and its touching to know how much he is going to miss them. They are both really good parents. I have a feeling that something is going to happen soon. It may just be me but I can't help the feeling I have :P

More please! :horns2
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CarpeDiemBaby
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// Sunglasses indoors.
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Yes, Zara! Say goodbye to James! :drool :drool
Great chapter! It's really cute how James treats Maddison. :heart:
Wanna see how's going to be her art gallery.

More! :D
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-DJ-
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Blackened
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I was up earlier than I thought I would be; I didn’t even wait for the alarm. I dressed Maddison and gave her her breakfast of a different color bowl of mush. I brought her up to wake James because we had to be at the airport for 10am.

“James” he was lying on his back and I poked his belly.

He grunted and stretched and I placed Maddy on his chest.

“Hey, baby! Wow you’re getting heavy aren’t you!”

“Ready for tour?” his reply was just a mere shake of the head.

“I better get up” his tone was far from happy.

I took Maddison off him and took her down to the living room where she could crawl around on the thick carpet. She was teething now and everything was being put in her mouth and chewed and drooled on. I needed eyes in the back of my head.

“You guys set to go?” James’ boots hit the tiles at the bottom of the stairs with a thud.

“Yep”

I grabbed my keys and carried Maddy out to the car on my hip. James put his luggage in the trunk and I strapped her into her car seat.

The drive to the airport was mostly silent apart from both of us laughing at our daughter’s gibberish.

We met the rest of the band and crew at a quieter area of the airport. James bounced Maddy in his arms and he fingers toyed with his messy goatee until his flight got called then pulled us in for a tight hug.

“I’ll call you okay?” he assured me then left us with kisses on our foreheads. “Be good for mommy! Love you” he turned to leave us and head towards the plane. Lars ran over to me and handed me a piece of paper full of names and numbers.

“Everyone you’ll need is on there” he told me.

“Everyone for what?”

“For your gallery. You’re still going for it, right?”

“LARS!” Kirk shouted for him.

“I gotta go. Call them and tell them I sent you. See you soon”

“Bye Lars”

When I got home I called everyone on the list. There were contractors, movers, directors of already established and successful galleries and people who wanted to commission me. I would have to give an enormous amount of credit to Lars at the end of this project. My diary for the next month or so was completely jam packed with meetings so long as they didn’t mind a baby tagging along to each one.

--

I headed downtown to check out the warehouse where the gallery would be the next day. It was in a nice enough area and the guy who I would be buying it off met me there and showed me around. There was a huge ground floor which would be the main exhibition area. Then upstairs were smaller rooms which I would use for an office and a room I could actually work in.

“So we have a deal then?” he offered me his hand.

“Yes we do!” we shook on it.

I had to sign some paper work to make it official and to seal the deal.

“Hope it goes well for you!” he took a copy of the signed papers and left me at the warehouse.

“Da…da” Maddison played with my hair as she attempted to speak.

“I know, I miss him too honey”

I stood on the large ground floor and took note of work that needed to be done. Walls needed to be painted and filled in, more lights needed to be installed and the place needed a name.

When I got home more phone calls were made and things seemed to be underway. I was in my art room bubble wrapping paintings to be moved when my phone rang. An unfamiliar number flashed on the screen.

“Hello?”

“Hi. Is this Zara Dean?”

“Yeah. Who’s this?”

“I’m a friend of Lars’”

“Okay…?” I was totally confused. Apparently Lars gives my number out to strange men now though his voice was somewhat recognizable.

“Anyway I hear you’re an artist…and a good one at that”

“Yeah um…thanks. Can I help you at all?”

“Yes you can” Jeez. The guy’s deep voice had me almost hypnotized. “I need some work done.
Can we meet some time and talk things over? Prices, ideas and stuff?”

“Yeah—ugh can you hold on a second please?” Maddy chewing on a paintbrush snapped me out of my trance. “No sweetie we don’t eat the brushes, okay?”

“Hello?”

“Yeah I’m here”

“When is convenient for you?”

“Well if you’re in the area, is Starbucks on 43rd Street and tomorrow at 2pm good for you?” I wrote it down in my diary.

“Perfect. See you soon, Zara”

“Bye. Wait! I didn’t—“

The guy hung up before I could catch his name.

I climbed into bed later that night and noticed James had left the photos I gave him on his dresser.

I tossed and turned most of the night and the stormy rain crashed off the window. Even though it was summer, the bed was freezing with only one person in it. I could see this being a long six weeks.

My phone vibrated angrily at 4.35am.

James.

“Hello” I answered groggily.

“Hey! How are you?”

“You know it’s very early in the morning here, right?”

“Oh shit! Sorry! Do you wanna go back asleep and I’ll call you back or--?”

“No I can talk. How are things?” I switched on the lamp and sat up in bed.

“Good. Sorry it took so long to call; things are a bit crazy. What have you been up to? How’s Maddy?”

“She’s good. I bought that warehouse for my gallery so I’m in the middle of getting everything prepared. She’s been tagging along to meetings and stuff”

“That’s awesome!” he sounded really happy. None of the depressed tone that was in his voice when he left was there now.

“You forgot the photos by the way”

“What photos?”

What photos?

“Of Maddy, of me, of us together”

“Fuck. Yeah, those photos”

“Listen, I have a meeting tomorrow so call me tomorrow or whenever you get a chance alright? Have a good show. Love you”

“Yeah love you too. Wait-“

I snapped the phone shut and hung up.
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CarpeDiemBaby
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// Sunglasses indoors.
[ * ]
Ugh! Why is James acting so strange?! :ugh:
Zara has all the right to be a bit mad at him.
And who will be that mistery man on the phone? o.o

Update soon, please! :heart:
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Powerslave
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Bad Seed
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Sooo I've missed a couple chapters :rolleyes:

Who's the dude on the phone?!

What's wrong? I love this :heart: :heart:

Update! :horns2
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Shayniz21
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Poor Twisted Me
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I have a REALLY bad feeling about what is to come. How could he have forgotten the pictures of his family? That's a bad thing James. Something is not right :(

I need to know what happens next :dance I'm waiting
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-DJ-
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Blackened
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Thanks for the comments, they make me continue writing :heart:


I pulled up to the Starbucks I had agreed to meet the anonymous guy at and put Maddison in her stroller hoping she’d fall asleep in there. I sat at a table for two with a newspaper and a large latte. I had no clue what the guy looked like so I was counting on him to recognize me. The thought of meeting a new client after being in the house since Maddy was born was unnerving yet liberating at the same time.

At 2.20pm I was still sitting on my own. I flicked through the newspaper mindlessly and a small article in at the bottom of a page with the title “Metallica Party in Bordello’s Nightclub, Dublin” with a picture of James and Kirk in the club beside it. Nice. James was having a great time partying and I was here busting my ass trying to make a name for myself with a baby to care for too. I folded the paper in half and slammed it on the table.

“Hey, are you Zara?” a tall, muscular man with short black spiky hair, wearing dark jeans and a red top tapped me on the shoulder.

“Yeah. Are you the guy from the phone?” I laughed not knowing his name.

“Trent” he offered his hand to shake with a shy smile. His strong handshake was admirable.

“Sorry I took so long; I had to drive from LA and you know what the traffic is like”

“No problem. So do you have any ideas as to what you want done?”

He pitched me the concept of a government in ruin in the future and the story being told by different people. It was something I’d never done before and it sounded pretty cool. I took out a large sketchbook and a thick pencil and drew him some rough ideas. He seemed to like them but had something to say and some input about all of them.

“What exactly is it for if you don’t mind me asking?”

“It’s gonna be on the screen behind us when we play the songs off the new album live”

“You’re in a band?”

“Yeah; Nine Inch Nails. I’m just going to get some coffee”

Holy fuck. The last time I listened to a Nine Inch Nails album was when I was an angry teenager and now I’m about to do a project with the singer and composer.
I knew I recognized that voice from somewhere and being a friend of Lars’…yeah, it all made sense now. He didn't have the floppy haircut anymore nor was he all skin and bone. He was tidy and beefy now.

“So you think it’ll work?” he sat back down with his fresh cup of coffee.

“I don’t see why not. Should be fun” I smiled at him. He was a charming guy.

“Sorry for calling you out of the blue yesterday. I got talking to Lars and James at an awards thing a while ago and Lars said you’re awesome and that I should ”

Lars said.

“Is she yours?” he pointed to Maddison asleep in her stroller with a pacifier in her mouth.

“Yep she sure is” I grinned at my daughter.

“Wow you look way too young to have kids”

“Uh…thanks?” I laughed nervously. I didn’t know if that was a compliment or what.

“Do you do all your work at home?”

“I do at the moment but I’m in the middle of setting up a gallery at the moment so I’d like to get working from there”

“Ambitious! You’re with James right?”

“Yeah. We’re married”

“Must be tough with him being away a lot and a baby that young to look after”

“This is the first time he’s been away since she was so yeah it’s hard but we’re getting by. How did you know what I looked like by the way?”

“I did my research” he raised an eyebrow. “I’m kidding. Lars told me” he finished the last of his coffee with one gulp. “Here’s a rough cut of the album; you might get some inspiration from it” he put the CD on the table then opened a page of my sketchbook and wrote down his number.

“Gimme a call when you open your gallery, I’d love to check it out”

“I’ll call you when I have your stuff done”

“Perfect” he smiled.

When I got home Maddison wouldn’t stop crying. She had two teeth about to come through on her bottom jaw and I knew they were hurting. I called James knowing he’d probably be busy but I called one of the bands PA’s and left a message to call me back and that his daughter might like to hear his voice, it might calm her down a bit.

I put her to bed and went to get started on Trent’s project. I put on the album in the background and got some large pieces of thick white ink paper and calligraphy ink and set to work with a paint brush.

It was taking my mind of James until my phone vibrated in my back pocket.

“Hello?”

“Got your message” his tone was rude.

“Well she’s asleep now”

“Oh…what are you listening to?”

“The new Nine Inch Nails record”

“That’s not out yet”

“Yeah but I had a meeting with Trent today and he gave it to me”

“What the fuck, Zara?!” he shouted so loud I had to pull the phone away from my ear.

“Calm down! What’s your problem?!”

“I leave and you’re meeting up with other guys?!”

“He wants me to do the artwork for his tour and that’s it! I’m not fucking sleeping with him, James!” he was breathing so heavily down the line that he was almost grunting. “Anyway, it’s alright for you to be out partying while I’m taking care of our daughter?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about”

“Oh really? So you weren’t in a club in Dublin with Kirk?”

“NO! Listen I don’t have time for this, I have a show to do”

The line went dead.
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CarpeDiemBaby
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:o

What the heck it's wrong with James?!

Need to know it! Moar! :heart:
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