HEARTBEAT, Carrie Underwood

3. CHAPTER

CARRIE sits there at her dinner table staring at her laptop, reading and rereading and reading again. Life Style Magazine god, she barely even has her ring off! Did she even want her ring off? You know what of course she does. He's been cheating on her for over a year.. she has to get over it.. but she loved him- really really loved him, and oh there baby boy. Hell screw how she feels, how could he possibly do that to him!

She slams the laptop shut. "Ughh! God!" she puts her head in her hands, and takes a few shaky deep breaths. "Mama?" She hears a soft little voice and jumps a little looking up, there he is her little boy sitting by her feet playing with her rat terrier Ace. "Oh-! hi baby, im sorry. Everything's ok mama's just a little frustrated that's all." She picks him up and cuddles him, he nods and hugs onto her. Her sweet boy if she has nothing else she has him, and she could never ask for anything better. "Are you excited for aunty Riley to come play?!" She smiles big and tickles him, he giggles she may be a music star but his little laugh is the sweetest sound she's ever heard.

"Yes mama! But I'll miss you." He cuddles up to her, "oh baby- I know, I'll miss you to but it's only a couple hours I promise. Come on let's go play with your cars!" He gets excited at that, she puts him down he rushes into the other room closely followed by Ace and his mom.

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Carrie leans over her sink looking into her mirror, eyes wide as she applies mascara. She's quietly thinking which isn't always a good thing, when she stops and puts her hands down on the bathroom counter still holding the mascara wand in her hand. She huffs a little and turns her body a bit waving the mascara wand around, "they didn't even get my hight right ry!"

Her best friend and god mother to her son gets up off the stool she's sitting on behind her. "I don't think them not getting your hight right is why your so mad care. I think it's the fact they got everything else right." She walks towards her then pushes herself up onto the counter to sit in between the his and her sinks. Carrie sighs and gives her a nod, Riley is right she's not mad about her hight! She's furious with her soon to be ex husband.

"Maybe I just shouldn't go.. I should stay with Isaiah. This is a bad idea.." she nods at herself in the mirror, Riley sighs. "Carrie stop it." Carrie puts the mascara wand down and turns to her friend, "No- no I won't stop, I shouldn't leave him I'm being selfish Riley! His dad didn't even come to his birthday.. he's gonna think I'm abandoning him." she just can't grasp how Mike could do that, and she's freaking out about it a little.

"Alright.. I get that, but you're not being selfish Carrie, and Isaiah knows you'd never leave him." She moves over and squeezes her friend's arm, "listen you haven't gone out without Isaiah in months.. the last time was the week after you came home from tour. You deserve a night for you- plus you can't back out now you're singing the national anthem." Carrie rubs her face and turns to walk back and forth a little. "Is that it.. is that why you're freaking out? care you're going to be phenomenal it's.." Carrie cuts her off waving her hand a bit.

"It's not that.. it really is Isaiah, and I know he'll be fine. I know I'll be fine but.. it's also.." she sighs. "I've been rooting for the Senators for years.. it feels.. wrong?" She questions herself, Riley nods. "Right.. that. Listen you may have been rooting for them for six years- but baby you're in Nashville! You're a country singer for gods sake! So the predators are now your team, and you know what- you're going." She grabs the mascara wand.

"But- I- faith, tim, Brad! They're gonna be there- they can do it!" Carrie shakes her head, her best friend isn't taking no for an answer. Riley puts her fingers under her friend's chin and holds her face still, doing the mascara for her. "I've never known you to give up.. and I know you're not going to." She nods finishing up Carrie's mascara, grabbing a lipgloss.

"So you are gonna go. You're going to perform the national anthem. You're gonna sit in that box in your gifted predators jersey! You're going to have a night out with some adults, and you're going to have fun while you do it! While I sit here. Spend some much needed time with my nephew watching the hockey game, in which I know nothing about. So your son can spot you and watch you perform on tv, because he loves you that much. Okay!?" She finishes up her friends makeup and Carrie lets out a breathy laugh, looking at her shaking her head for a moment then hugging her best friend. "What would I do without you." Riley pulls back and holds her friend face. "Don't worry about that, you'll never have to know."

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Carrie takes a deep breath taking one last look in the mirror, gazing at herself from head to toe. Black ankle boots, skinny jeans, long sleeve black T-shirt, her recently gifted Nashville Predators jersey when she agreed to do this in the first place, and hair cascading down around her shoulder. She nods at herself, "You got this." She does another once over. Her eyes land on her wedding ring.

She lifts her hand up and looks at it for a minute, she lets a tear fall down her face. quickly wiping it away she slides it off her finger, and places it in her jewelry dish the night stand. She nods walking to the door, she stares at her nightstand for a minute debating it. Then shakes her head shutting the light off, walking out of her bedroom and down her stairs. As she comes down she sees Riley on the couch and Isaiah chasing the dog.

"Ok so.. dinners ready, there's juice in the fridge. Ace is fed and walked- we have craft stuff in that cabinet.. *she points* um what else-" Carrie speed runs through all the things going on in her head as she steps off the last step. "Oh! I can't have my phone while I'm on the ice so if anything call Faith- or Kim.. even Tim- just not Brad he won't pick up!" Riley grabs Carrie's arms. "Girl calm down. Nothing is going to happen. Ok- I've done this before." Carrie nods a lot. "Right your- your right." Isaiah runs up and hugs her leg.

"It will be ok mama! We are going to watch you on tv!" He smiles big, god she loves him. She bends down and fixes his hair then holds his face. "Be good ok- I'll be back as soon as I can alright." She kisses his head and he hugs her, she wraps her arms around him and rests her chin on his head. "I know mama! Have fun! Oh and don't worry I'll watch aunty Wiley!" Carrie busts out laughing, Riley gasps. "Hey!" Carrie stands up and pats her friend shoulder. "He's right. He's the babysitter."

Riley shakes her head and walks Carrie to the door. "Bye mama! Love you!" He giggles and waves, Carrie smiles and waves back. "Bye little bear, I love you to!" She watches him run off with Ace, and then looks at Riley. "It's gonna be great. Have fun. Maybe pick up some hot hockey boys!" She practically pushes her out the door. "Oh I'm so done with hockey boys." Riley just smiles wiggles her eyebrows and waves, Carrie shakes her head and walks down her front steps to the car that's picking her up.

Her security guard gives her a warm smile that she sends right back, while he opens the door for her. She takes one last look up at her house. "Well, no going back now." She takes a deep breath and gets in the back seat, she fidgets with her hands the whole way to the stadium. Running her middle finger around the tan line on her ring finger, getting used to the new found feeling of it being empty. Almost like it was never there to begin with. Almost like it never mattered at all.