Breathless

Play The Notes On My Heart Strings

"Brian, I swear I can explain," I promised him, holding my shaking hands up. The look on his face terrified me, a mixture of terror and confusion. His brows were furrowed together, and he wouldn't seem to meet my eyes.

"Why didn't you tell me?" He asked, tossing the pregnancy test into the trashcan before finally looking at me.

"I was going to tell you, Bri. I didn't even find out what the result was until you showed me," I explained to him. "I took it before I left, and put it on the sink. I didn't think you'd be home before me, so I didn't try and hide it," I kept going, hoping that if I continued to talk, he wouldn't have a chance to get mad at me. "Please don't get angry, Brian."

"Angry? Why would I be angry? I'm going to be a father!" He exclaimed, wrapping his arms around me and picking me up, spinning me in circles until we were both dizzy.

He set me down and rested his hands on my shoulders, a beautiful, ecstatic look in his eyes. We both stood there for a few moments, looking into each others eyes as we both processed what this meant for us both. Things seemed to be coming together beautifully now, and I hoped that nothing spoiled these moments for us.

"I have some more good news," I mentioned, finally breaking the silence. "I was out at the club, and they were having karaoke night, right? So Alex finally convinced me to go up and sing, so I did, okay? And after I'm done everybody is cheering and clapping and on their feet for me, right? And I get off of the stage and this man comes up to me, his name was Gary. He said he was a manager and producer, and he made me an offer, and wanted me to come into his studio and sing a few more songs for him!" I rambled, my eyes lighting up as I spoke. I watched Brian's reaction, which went from excitement to complete shock, then excitement again.

"You're kidding, right?" He breathed, barely able to get the words out, and when I shook my head, clarifying that I was telling the truth, he shouted in joy. "I can't believe this! I told you that you could make a career out of this!" He bragged, pulling me into a warm embrace. "I'm so proud of you, baby," He mumbled into my hair, tears of joy and love and excitement running down both of our faces.

We stood like that for a long time, not really saying much, but we didn't need to say anything. Brian finally pulled away and looked down at me, his eyes were glittering and he was smiling so wide I could see the corner of his eyes start to wrinkle.

"What are you looking at, Quinn?" I snickered, talking in the snottiest voice I could muster.

"Well, right now I am incredibly captivated by this insanely beautiful woman that I somehow managed to convince to spend the rest of her life with me," He sneered back, flipping his dark hair dramatically, earning a long, bubbly laugh from me.

"She sounds insane, then!" I giggled, trying my best to sound as annoying as possible.

"She probably is, but so am I. So, we're perfect for each other," He said, his tone growing a bit more serious. I saw something shift deep inside his eyes, a small flicker that I couldn't pick up on, almost like an absence of light.

"What did you say that producers name was?" He asked suddenly, a frown spreading across his face, poisoning his usually joyful features.

"Uh, Gary. Why?" I asked, feeling the air between us grow colder. I shivered suddenly, fearful of what might happen next. Was he going to say that he didn't want me going? Why does it matter who the producer was? Suddenly, I couldn't quite think straight, my thoughts growing fuzzy and blending together, soon becoming indiscernible from one another. A massive pressure rested on my chest as Brian stayed silent, seeming to think for several minutes.

"Okay, just... promise me you'll be careful, okay babe?" He whispered, worry tainting his face, making his eyes seem much darker than they normally would.