Little Girl Don't Grow Up Too Fast

Brings Back Memories

Days turned to weeks, and before the family knew it, those weeks turned into two months that Charlotte had ended up on the road with Carrie. Mike visited whenever he could to check up on the both of them. Every visit he made, it made him realize how much those girls are better together than apart. It was like both women had been revived.

    Carrie felt whole and at peace above anything else. While performing concerts every night for thousands of fans was an incredible feeling that not many people would ever understand, her favorite part of her day she looked forward to was when she was going to see her daughter next. She had a new happiness that a few years prior to that moment, she never knew existed.

    Being on the road with her mother allowed Charlotte to finally breathe, and not have to think about the social norms of middle school. She was able to be herself for once without fear of judgement because the people that were around her every hour of the day were people that loved her unconditionally, especially her mother.

    It was a hometown crowd when Carrie's tour rolled into Tulsa, Oklahoma. She hadn't been able to go to her hometown in ages and because of that she missed her parents and the rest of her family terribly. She planned on spending a lot of time at home while she had made her record in between tours, but that was when Mike and Charlotte came back into her life, meaning there was a lot for her to have to figure out in Nashville. After this show, she was finally going to get to spend a few days with her family and they were going to get to see Charlotte for the first time since she was a baby.

    "When are you getting here? I don't want to meet Grandma and Grandpa without you," Charlotte worried. Charlotte was always nervous when having to meet new people, let alone her grandparents that she's meeting for basically the first time. Charlotte was so much like her mother in having that trait of social anxiety.

    "I'll be there in a couple hours," Mike assured her over the phone. "There's nothing to be worried about, Charlotte. They already love you so much and are super nice people. If anything goes wrong, your mom will be with you the whole time."

    "Not during sound check and her meet and greets though," she replied.

    "They probably won't come until dinner and hopefully I'll be there by then," he told her.

    "You better."

    "Charlie!" Carrie called from the back of the bus.

    "I've gotta go. Mom's calling for me," Charlotte told her father. "Have a safe flight."

    "Thanks. See you soon."

    Charlotte said her goodbyes to her father over the phone before making her way to the bedroom in the back where her mother was making her bed. "What's up," Charlotte said to her mother once she entered the room.

    "Who were you talking to out there?" Carrie asked.

    "Just Dad," Charlotte shrugged.

    "What time is he supposed to get here?"

    "He said hopefully in time for dinner," the young blonde told her mother.

    The older blonde groaned as she plopped herself on top of her newly made bed. "I just want him to be here already. I miss him so much."

    "You're telling me," Charlotte plopped down beside her. It had been two weeks since Mike had been on the road with them last. Both of them were having so much fun on tour, but it was so much better when he was there. Their family felt complete.

    "I've loved having you with me though," Carrie wrapped her arm around her daughter bringing her closer to her and kissed her on the forehead. "You've made the road a lot less lonely. I love you so much, Charlotte Marie."