*~*Chloe’s POV*~*

Honestly I felt a little nervous leaving Jayden at home with Zacky, but I knew deep down that Zacky could handle it. I remembered how good he was with Brian’s baby sister, McKenna back in high school when Brian called us frantically not knowing what to do to get her to stop crying when his parents left him to babysit one night. Zacky and I had walked in to find the house in shambles and McKenna screaming her little head off before Zacky took her from Brian’s arms and softly rocked and soothed her to sleep. Brian’s look of shock was priceless as he explained that he did that for over an hour and it hadn’t worked.

Finally a group of guys were hauling my brother back out of the bar, his arms draped around their shoulders as I got out and stood outside of my car.

“SIS! There you are! I was waiting forever for you…” He slurred as the guys brought him closer, “Guys, this is my sister Chloe…”

“Funny, because you said you were going to the bathroom and disappeared for another 20 minutes…” I said as I opened the passenger side of the car for them to throw Jake inside.

“Don’t I know you?” One of the guys said as he looked at me.

He was a handsome looking guy with light brown hair and black rimmed glasses framing his dark brown eyes. His body was pretty muscular but nothing compared to the build of Matt or Brian. I looked up at his taller frame and recognized him.

“You work at the coffee shop in Huntington right? Just off Main Street by the high school?” I asked.

“Yeah, I do. You came in last week didn’t you?” he questioned as he shut the passenger door.

“Yeah, you guys have great coffee… I’m sorry I don’t remember your name.” I said feeling my face blush and thankful that it was dark and we were out of the street lights.

“Sorry, I’m Corey.” He said as he came around the car and extended a hand out to me. “I’ve been meaning to call you.”

“Oh-uh… that’s okay.” I stumbled over my words feeling nervous.

“It’s really not. I asked you for your number and then haven’t even called you yet. Pretty rude on my part.” He replied.

“It’s okay. I’m pretty busy anyways.” I said trying to not make him feel bad.

“I thought you were a pretty cool chick the other day but now that I know you are the cool sister that Jake always talks about, I’ll definitely be giving you a call soon.” He smiled before Jake threw the door open and tumbled out of the passenger seat.

“Jake! What the fuck!?” I yelled as I went around to his side of the car.

He looked up at me bleary eyed, “Hey Chloe! When did you get here?”

“Are you fucking kidding me?!” I exclaimed as Corey came around and put him back in the car.

“You sure you can handle Jake on your own?” Corey asked.

“Yeah, I can. Scrawny fucker weighs 90 pounds soaking wet… Thank you though.” I said as I buckled Jake in this time before shutting the door.

“Well, I better get going before my ride is out of here. Be careful going home.” Corey said as he walked backwards towards his friends’ car.

“Thank you. I will.” I said as I went back around to the driver’s side of my car and got in.

“So Zacky’s at your house?” Jake slurred as I turned on the car.

Oh fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck… Why did I have to give Corey my phone number at the coffee shop last week? Wishful thinking of a date maybe? Ugh… I’m so stupid sometimes.

“Yeah, he’s with Jayden.” I said as we pulled out of the parking lot.

“What were you talking about with my friend, Corey?” Jake asked.

“I met him earlier this week at the coffee shop and I kinda gave him my number. He hadn’t called me but he said that he definitely will now.” I told him.

“That’s good. You need to go out on a date.” He replied before slumping lazily onto the window.

“I don’t know about a date Jake…”

“Why not? Corey is a cool guy. He has a job and his own place…” Jake sat up and said.

“Well, Zack wants to have another go…” I start to say.

“What?! You can’t be serious?!” Jake exclaims.

“I am serious. He’s Jayden’s father and I think I should give us another try.” I answer.

“Chloe, I know I’m drunk and shit but have you really thought about this…”

“Yes…” I sighed heavily knowing this conversation was bound to happen.

“I mean have you REALLY thought about this? Zacky never did you wrong and I’m not saying he is or isn’t going to, but Chloe, he’s a rockstar now. He goes on tour for months at a time with women throwing themselves at him and the other guys…”

“I know that Jake. Zacky wants to be a part of Jayden’s life…” I snapped.

“And that’s all fine and good. He should want to be a part of his life. That is his son after all.”

“He wants to be a part of my life too.”

“I get it Chloe, I really do. You have always loved Zack and you probably always will. You two have a kid together but that doesn’t mean you have to be together. I just think you need to really think about this.” Jake said seriously.

“I know. I told Zacky I needed to think about it.” I sighed.

“And what did he say?” Jake asked.

“He told me to take my time and that if I give him a chance we’d take it slow.” I answered.

“Yeah right…” Jake said rolling his eyes sarcastically.

“I think he would. Give him more credit Jake.”

“It’s not him I’m thinking of. I’m thinking of you. You and my nephew. You guys are my priority. I’m your older brother, I’m supposed to be looking out for you. I know you and you never take anything slow. That’s how Jayden was made in the first place…” Jake answered.

I reached over and slapped the back of his head, “Shut up, ass. That was the only time we didn’t use prote-”

“BLAH-BLAH-BLAH!” Jake started screaming with his hands over his ears until I stopped talking, “I don’t need to hear any more about my little sister’s sex life.”

“Alright. But seriously, I want to give Zacky another chance. Not just because of Jayden though. I haven’t been on a date since Zack. I never had the time and I can’t help feeling, what if we’re meant to be together?” I glance over and ask my brother at a red light.

“What if you aren’t Chlo? You’ll never know if you don’t get out there. Hold off on Zacky for now and go on a date with Corey. You could really like him.” Jake said as the light turned green again.

“I guess I could go out for coffee or something with Corey…” I said to myself more than to Jake.

“That’s the spirit… give the other fish in the sea a chance to bite.” He said as he closed his eyes and leaned against the cool window again as we got closer to his house.

“Only if Corey calls me. Don’t you dare tell him to call me Jake…” I said looking over at him.

“I won’t. I promise I won’t.” He said as we pulled into his driveway, “Look, I don’t want you to think that I don’t like Zack or something. Zack is great and he always treated you right, better than the other guys before him that’s for sure, but I just don’t want you to have an unrealistic fantasy of what it would be like for you and Jay. A life with Zack isn’t going to be white picket fences and mini-vans, you know? I don’t think Zack would run out on you two, but his life is different now from when we used to know him and I don’t want you or Jayden to get hurt.”

“I know Jake. I need to do what’s best for Jayden.”

“And what’s best for you Chloe. Don’t forget you. You deserve to have a life too.” Jake said as he undid his seatbelt.

I nodded as he reached over and pulled me into a hug.

“I love you sis and just think about what I’m saying…” He said as he pulled away.

“I will. I love you too.”

“Thanks for the ride and be safe going home.” He said opening the car door and stepping out.

“I will. I’ll talk to you later.” I replied as he shut the door and stumbled his way up to the front door.

I sat and watched him fumble into the house before backing out of his driveway and heading home.

Jake was right, I had to think about this more. Before there was even a chance of me and Zacky getting back together, I needed proof that he was serious about being Jayden’s father. He seemed to be serious, but this was still only day one. I needed more time before even telling Jayden that Zacky was his father. Having Zacky change his mind and bail out on us would break our son’s heart as all he’s ever wanted was for his daddy to come home. I’d rather Jayden find out later and hate me then tell him too soon and Zacky leave him crushed when he decided he didn’t want the responsibilities of raising a child.

Then there was this whole ‘Other fish in the sea’ business… I guess while I waited to see if Zacky was serious about being a father to our son I could go out on a date or two. It wouldn’t hurt to see what it’s like to date someone else.

Shit, I’m thinking of going out on dates that haven’t even been made yet. Corey might not even call…

I pulled into the driveway, seeing the living room light still on. I made my way to the house, quietly turning the key and opening the door to find a mess of pillows and blankets where my couch once was. I silently put my things down and kicked my shoes off as I made my way around the overstuffed chair to see Zacky’s feet sticking out from the bottom of the pillow fort he had made with our son. I crouched down and peeked inside to find the two of them sleeping together, in nearly the same position, Zacky’s arm wrapped around Jayden, keeping him close to his side. I stood up and turned the TV off before my phone started blaring from my jacket pocket. I rushed to answer it before it woke them up.

“Hello?” I said just above a whisper as I went into the kitchen.

“Chloe? It’s Corey… I know it’s late but, I was just making sure you got home okay?”

“Oh, yeah. I did. Thank you…”

“Hey, sorry, I guess we fell asleep…” Zacky mumbled, rubbing his eyes as he came into the kitchen.

“So… I was thinking maybe we could go out for coffee sometime?” Corey asked.

“Uh, yeah… I think that would be okay…” I replied looking at Zacky who wore a curious expression, “Why don’t you text me tomorrow and we can figure out the details?”

“Okay that sounds good. Have a good night.” He answered.

“You too.”I said before quickly hanging up.

“Who was that? Everything okay with Jake?” Zacky asked.

“Yeah everything is fine. He was a little obnoxious, but nothing too serious.”

“So, who was that on the phone? They made you awfully nervous…” Zacky commented.

“Oh, that was Corey… He’s Jake’s friend that I actually met at the coffee shop last week. He was just checking to make sure I got home okay.” I said quickly as I went into the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water. “How was Jayden?”

“He was fine. I gave him some more medicine around 9. He fell asleep a little bit after you called.” Zacky answered.

“That’s good. Sometimes he can be really difficult when he doesn’t feel good. I’m glad he behaved himself for you. Sorry to have woken you up.” I said taking another sip of water.

Zacky looked at his watch yawning, “Well, do you want me to take Jayden up to his room and head home?”

I set my water bottle down and looked at him. His eyes were red from being woken up, his hair a mess, it was well past 11, and he had been drinking earlier.

I smiled at him as he stared waiting for my answer, “Why don’t you grab Jayden and I’ll help you get him in bed? I’d like it if you’d stay tonight.”

“Really Chlo? I don’t want you to be uncomfortable having me here.” He replied.

“Yes really. Don’t tell me that your mother’s couch is calling your name?” I giggled.

“Haha… well, your’s is probably much more comfortable since I haven’t been sleeping on it for 2 years.” He chuckled.

“2 years! Zack, you’ve been crashing on your mother’s couch for 2 years?” I asked shocked.

“Well, I moved out but I broke up with the girl I was living with and we still weren’t making much money so I had to go back home. My room had been taken over by my dad so I just put all my stuff in the garage and sleep on the couch. I didn’t want to end up being like Jimmy sleeping at the Laundromat…” He said shamefully as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“Aww, Zee. I’m sorry…” I said feeling bad for him, “Well, you don’t have to sleep on the couch here. I have an extra room. As long as you don’t mind the boxes everywhere you’re more than welcome to sleep there.”

“I don’t mind if you don’t mind.” He said stretching his arms out wide, “Hell the last bed I slept in was some grungy ass motel in Arizona that I had to share with Jimmy… that’s if you don’t count the sad excuse of a mattress in the back of the van.”

“Geez Zack. This will definitely be an upgrade from that.” I said as I reached over and patted his forearm resting on the counter.

“Well, it doesn’t smell like stale piss in here, so that’s already a good sign.” He laughed.

“Ew… I’m so glad.” I shuddered as I laughed lightly with him.

“Alright, I’ll grab little man and then we can go to bed.” Zacky smiled as I yawned, “You look tired.”

“I am…” I said as I followed him into the living room, “Nice fort by the way.”

“I can’t believe you never did this with him. I’m a little disappointed in you Chloe.” He said quietly.

“This is the first time we have had a nice place to do this kind of thing…” I whispered as he crawled inside and emerged with our son in his arms.

I grabbed Jayden’s blanket and Ralphie from the ground and followed Zacky up the stairs and into Jayden’s room. I turned on the small lamp and nightlight in the room before pulling back the little covers as Zacky carefully laid Jayden down on the pillow. I put Ralphie down on the bed next to Jayden just as he started to stir, reaching out and finding the stuffed animal, clutching it to his little chest and settling back to sleep. I folded his small blanket and left it at the foot of his bed before turning back to see Zacky standing over the bed looking down at Jayden, his green eyes shimmering in the dim lights as a few tears rolled down his cheeks. I stood next to him and he wrapped his arm around my shoulder pulling me closer to him before wiping his face.

“We made this Chloe. This little person is you and me. He’s perfect.” He turned to me and whispered.

I was a little surprised at his reaction but at the same time I wasn’t, “He is. He’s my little piece of heaven… and that will never change.”

He nodded before bending down and brushing Jayden’s hair from his face and kissing his forehead gently, “I love you my son.”

I softly rubbed his back as he stood back from the bed and played with one of his lip piercings and watched Jayden sleep for a minute. I couldn’t help but smile at his adoration for our son even though he’d only spent one day with him. I bent down and kissed Jayden’s forehead as well before cutting the small lamp off and pulling Zacky with me out into the hall.

“I wish you had told me sooner.” Zacky said as I silently closed the bedroom door.

“I’m sorry Zacky. I wish I did too.” I replied feeling the wave of guilt from earlier wash over me as we walked down the hallway, “Are you still mad at me?”

“Yes and no… I understand why you did what you did, but I just wish you hadn’t. We can’t go back in time and change it, so really all I can ask is that you let me be a part of his life now.” He answered quietly as I stopped at the guest room door.

I put my hands over my face as I tried to hold back my tears, but it was no use as I spoke, my voice cracking between my sobs, “I’m sorry Zack. I’m so, so sorry. I made a huge mistake. I never should have kept him from you. It was so stupid of me…”

He wrapped his arms around my shaking body, softly rubbing my back, “It’s alright. We were young and pretty dumb then. You did what you thought was best. At first I thought you were being selfish, but I realized you were doing the most unselfish thing by putting our child first… I change my answer Chlo. I’m not mad at you. You were right. What would I have done with you pregnant on tour, crammed in the van with all of us? I know your parents never would have let you stay in their house pregnant with my baby. I didn’t have any money then and I sadly don’t have much more now either but on your own you’ve done better than me.”

“I want you to be a part of his life Zack. I really do. I just want you to be sure first… you understand don’t you?” I asked breaking away from him and looking up into his eyes.

“I do. It’s a lot of responsibility and he deserves only the best. You do too. We’ll wait until you want to tell him. I just want to be around if that’s okay?” He asked wiping my tears from my cheek with the calloused pad of his thumb.

“I’d like that. I’m sorry Zee.” I said as I opened the guest room door and turned on the light.

“We can’t change what happened.” He said walking around the stacks of random boxes of things I hadn’t put away yet, over to the bed and having a seat, “But thank you Chlo. Thank you for giving me a chance. I promise I won’t let you down.”

“You deserve a chance and he deserves his father.” I said sitting down next to him.

He pulled me into a tight hug, kissing my cheek as he pulled away, “Thank you, for everything.”

“It’s the least I could do after being so horrible about all of this.” I said putting my head down in shame.

“I know girls who could have been much worse. I’m actually pretty lucky that it’s you and not someone else.” He said grabbing my hand in his.

“Why is that?” I asked quietly.

“Because you were my first love and I couldn’t have asked for a nicer, sweeter, more beautiful woman to be the mother of my child.” He said and I felt my face get hotter.

“Thank you Zack. You’re giving me much more credit than I deserve.” I replied.

“I don’t think I am. We all make mistakes and my biggest mistake was not coming after you in New York. We played there and I wanted to find you, but the guys said I should just leave you alone since that’s what you wanted. I shouldn’t have listened to them but I did.” He said softly rubbing the back of my hand.

“It’s alright, we learned our lessons… Are you busy tomorrow?” I asked him.

“No, I’m free.”

“Let’s do something tomorrow. All three of us. I know Jayden would love for you to spend the day with us.” I said.

“I’d love that. That little guy has me wrapped around his finger already.” He smiled.

“He has that effect on people.” I replied kissing Zacky’s cheek, “Get some sleep Zack. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Goodnight Chlo… thanks again.” Zacky said as I walked to the door.

“Goodnight Zee. You’re welcome.” I smiled as I walked down the hall to my bedroom.

I laid down on my bed and stared at the ceiling, thinking of the crazy day as I let my body relax.

My son’s father, the love of my life, was here in my house just a few doors down. My son wanted nothing more in life than for his daddy to come home and here he was, yet my son didn’t even know it. I want to tell him and make his dreams come true but at the same time I don’t want his dream to become a nightmare if Zack can’t handle it. I’ll give it a few weeks. That should be long enough for Zacky to decide if this is really what he wants…

Notes

Thank you all for being so patient with me lately! It has been a busy 2 weeks and I haven't been able to dedicate my time to things like I would like. I hope you all enjoy this chapter and all its warm feels. What do we think of the introduction of Corey? What should Chloe do? I'd love to hear what you all think. Thank you for all your comments, votes, and subs, I appreciate each and every one of them! Much love and Aloha! <3 <3 <3 XoXo