A blessing in disguise

Twenty Eight

Today was my 18th birthday. It felt good to finally be legal, especially after having a baby with a 22 year old man. Our son John is now well over a year old. It felt like yesterday, the first night Zach and I told each other that we loved one another. We were brought together when our son went into ER for emergency intensive care. I was so scared and alone, I thought that I had no one. Zach helped me get through that night in one piece and I am forever thankful for that.

All of these thoughts overwhelmed me while I was in line to check out at the fancy overpriced store. Zach dropped me off here and told me to get something nice to wear tonight. He didn't leave any room for me to argue and had to practically push me out of the car. I'm not one to by expensive clothes, if it covers everything I need to be covered then I'm happy. I decided to not care about how short or slutty my dress is, tonight was all about Zach and I and that's all that mattered. The dress I picked out was a short shiny silver dress that rested above my knees, it was tight and fit perfectly over my body. I paired the dress with a simple pair of heels and pearl accessories.

"That will be $4,500 in total." My mouth dropped as the cashier spoke. I swiped Zach's credit card and immediately felt guilty. He told me to get whatever I wanted and not to hold back because of money, but just the thought of spending $4,500 made my stomach turn.

The cashier handed me my bag and thanked me for my service. I was tempted to roll my eyes at her, but instead I walked out of the store and headed down the parking lot. The venue tonight was a few blocks from the store, so I decided to walk instead of calling Zach. I knew he would want to see what I bought, but I want him to be surprised tonight. I have no idea what he's planning but it's driving me crazy.

The bus was parked neatly in front of the venue. Tons of girls were lined up already, as this was a sold out show tonight. I couldn't be more proud of the boy's for selling out the venue tonight, especially considering this venue is huge and selling out is selling over 8,000 tickets. As I made my way closer to the bus fans started to recognize me. One pair of girls approached me, I was afraid they might gang up and punch me because this was the perfect opportunity, I had no one around to help me. Much to my surprise all they wanted was a picture with me. I politely declined and told them to meet me after the show because I look terrible right now. They agreed and happily skipped back to their spot in line.

I knocked on the tour bus door and was quickly let in by Dillon. I was greeted by everyone on my way to the back lounge. I was going to miss this, the easy days and fun nights with the band and crew. Everyone was always so friendly and kind to other another. It made me feel safe and at home. Eventually the boys will be back out on tour, but Zach has recently talked about make a more "stable and constant life back home" I'm not sure what he means by that, I guess only time will tell.

"Hey babe." Zach greeted as I entered our room. He pointed to the sleeping John in the crib and placed his finger over his mouth warning me to be quiet or else we'll have a grouchy toddler on our hands. He made his way over to me and pushed a loose strand of hair behind my ear. "I have to go to sound check now, the shower is all yours. Can't wait to see you tonight." He whispered to me. He shoved his phone in his pocket and left the room. I sat down on the edge of the bed and took a deep breath. I was relieved that he didn't want to see what was in the bag. On my way back I passed a local drug store and stopped in real quick to buy some condoms. I turned 18 today, which means I can legally have sexual relationship with Zach.

I smiled and took the bag out of my other bag from the dress store. I shoved it under the bed and made my way to the shower.

Grandma and Grandpa Porter where on the bus when I got out of the shower, they were in the front lounge waiting to collect John and his things. I totally forgot that they wanted to take John off our hands for a few nights. I quickly threw on one of Zach's old t-shirts and some sweatpants before inviting the Porter's into the back lounge.

"Happy birthday hon." Mrs.Porter said while give me a hug. "Thank you and thank you for taking John for a couple of nights. I love him, but having a break once in awhile is really nice." She gave me a smile and a pat on the back before picking up the sleeping John. Mr.Porter grabbed John's bag and followed Mrs.Porter out of the room. I waved to them and shut the door to the back lounge. I pulled my dress and shoes out of the bag and quickly changed into them. I moved on to the bathroom and put my make up and accessories on. I looked at myself in the mirror and thoughts overwhelmed me. How am I so lucky to be dating Zach Porter? Just a year or so ago I was a normal fan attending an Allstar Weekend concert. Now look at me, I'm dating the lead singer!

I gave myself a quick smile in the mirror and grabbed my clutch off of the bed. I turned off the bedroom lights and made my way to the door. I turned around to take one more glance at the room. Tonight will be fun.

- - - - - -

The boy's had a very good set so far tonight. The crowd was loud and enthusiastic. I was enjoying the show from the right side of the stage. Everyone has been acting strange around me tonight, especially Ricky when he told me that it was important I was to the right of the stage during the show. The boy's usually end the set with Not your birthday and run off stage, but tonight only Cameron and Mikey ran off stage. Zach remained behind the mic stand.

"You know" Zach began "This past year and a half has been really crazy for me. Most of you know that I had a baby two Novembers ago. It wasn't planned and I didn't even know until a couple of weeks before he was born. Watching him grow and play, watching him learn how to walk, teaching him new words, I really love being a father. Although there is one thing that I love more than being a father." The crowd fell silent "That's the mother of my baby, Grace." He smiled and turned towards my side of the stage. "Grace, will you come out here please?"

My heart raced and my breathing became abnormal. I could feel the palms of my hands sweating. I readjusted my dress and stood up. I moved up to the curtain and took a deep breath. I slowly walked onto the stage watching my every step. I could feel thousands of eyes watching me. Zach walked towards me and met me halfway. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into a hug. He pulled away and looked into my eyes. The spotlight illuminated his blue eyes perfectly and I felt like I was melting in his arms. I watched his expression change from a smile to something serious. He took a deep breath and shut his eyes tightly. When he opened them he sank to one knee.

Oh. My. God.