On The Road

Chapter 7

Five years passed, and although she was now seeing someone, Kaitlyn often thought about Zac. She couldn't help it. It just felt like a part of her belonged to him. The guy she was seeing now knew nothing about her past relationships or crushes, and she knew nothing about his. That was one thing he didn't seem to like talking about. His name was Troy. He stood at five feet eight inches tall, and had dark brown hair and blue green eyes. They had met through her friend Amber, who had just moved out of town with her own boyfriend for his job. He was a very sweet, gentle, caring man who seemed to love her very much. She loved him too, but it was different with him. She didn't feel the same connection she had felt with Zac.

Miranda now had a four and a half year old son she had named Brett. He was a very cute little boy with light brown hair like her, and hazel eyes. She proved to be a good mother, and really had settled down after all this time. She now worked at one of their favorite coffee shops, but was working towards her main goal of becoming a singer. That was what she always wanted to do to begin with.

When Kaitlyn came home that evening from work, she saw Troy standing at the doorway waiting for her. He smiled at her, and she smiled back. " Hey Troy. What brings you here?" She asked, kissing him.

" I know it is short notice, but I hoped I could take you out tonight. Would that be possible?" He kissed her back. " I have nothing better to do tonight and I was hoping you didn't either."

" I totally would if I could, but I promised to watch Brett tonight. Miranda has a meeting today. Someone heard her sing last night at the club we went to last night, and they wanted to meet with her. She's hoping this means a record deal or something like that."

" That would be great for her, but what would that mean for you? You wouldn't go away with her if that's what it meant, would you?" He asked.

" Of course I would. Someone needs to watch over Brett when she starts recording an album and all that. She can't do both."

He wrapped his arms around her. " But then what about us?"

" Nothing would change, Troy. We would still be together. It would just be a long distance relationship is all." She unlocked the door, and let him in. " It's not a big deal. You know I love you."

" I guess. I just don't want to lose you, Kaitlyn." He entered the apartment, and took her into his arms.

She smiled. " You won't." She kissed him, and wrapped her arms around him.

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Zac had stayed true to his word. He had lost all contact with Kaitlyn the day her and Miranda flew back home to Michigan. Not that the thought of trying didn't cross his mind a few times. He thought about her often, wondering what she was up to and how she was dealing with things. But he knew doing so would cost him his wife and his family, so he never followed through with looking her up. Him and Kate now had two daughters and a son. They had named their daughter Langston.

Him and his brothers were in the studio working on their next album, going back and forth between California and their hometown of Oklahoma. They had just come back from New York City, as they had done a members only show there.

He was now playing with his daughter Langston when Kate came into the living room. She smiled at the sight. " Hey, dinner is just about ready." She told him.

" Great. I'll tell the kids to get washed up." He got up from his spot on the floor, and handed Langston off to Kate.

" Sounds good." She smiled and kissed him.

He went into the playroom where Shepherd and Juina were playing video games. " Time to wash up for dinner, kids." He walked up to the tv, and turned it off. "You can finish this level later."

Shepherd started to whine about his turning the tv off, but Zac gave him a look that told him he better do as he is told. He walked out of the room with Junia, and they went to wash up before joining everyone at the kitchen table. He poured the kids some juice to go with their meals, grabbing a can of mountain dew for himself before sitting down. " What did you make for dinner, sweetheart?" He smiled up at his wife.

" Terayaki chicken, fried rice, and dinner rolls." Kate smiled back, serving him a plate of food. She kissed him on the cheek, and then started to serve up food for the kids as they came in and sat at the table.

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Miranda had just gotten out of her meeting, and she was so excited. She had been offered a recording deal and would be leaving for California in just a week. She couldn't wait to get home to give her sister the big news. Wanting to celebrate, she stopped and picked herself up a treat. She picked up an ice cream cake on the way home. It wasn't too often she treated herself to stuff like that, and she knew her sister and Brett would enjoy it as well.

When she got home, she saw that Troy was over. She smiled to see that Kaitlyn had company to keep her busy while watching Brett. She knew that after a long day of teaching that her sister had to be tired. Those kids were a lot for her to handle some days, and then to come home and baby sit wasn't her most favorite thing to do as she knew. Very often she tried to keep her son busy in a seperate room to give her a break.

She entered the house and saw Brett sitting in Troy's lap on the couch. They seemed to be watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. " Hey, where is my sister?" She asked, with a smile on her face.

" In the bathroom. How was your meeting?" He smiled back, brushing his hair out of his face.

" I will tell you when she comes out. It may or may not be good news." She brought the cake into the kitchen and put it into the fridge so it wouldn't melt. Coming back into the living room, she sat next to Troy and took Brett into her arms. " Hey, baby boy." Kissing him on the cheek, she smiled at him.

" Mommy!" He smiled back at her, and gave her a kiss on her cheek.

Kaitlyn came into the room, and smiled when she saw Miranda. " Hey sis. How was that meeting of your's?"

" Actually, it went better than I expected it too. I've been given a record deal, Kaitlyn. We're going to California and we leave next week." She said excitedly. " After taking five years to settle down and really work on it, it's finally happened."

Kaitlyn jumped up and down happily for a moment before giving her a big hug. " This is so exciting! I am so happy for you, Miranda." She smiled. " I have to put in my notice tomorrow if we leave next week."

" Are you sure you don't mind..."

" Someone needs to watch Brett for you while you record, Miranda. And that person will be me. Don't worry about it." Sitting down next to her sister, Kaitlyn gave her another hug. " You deserve to be happy and if doing music is what does it for you, that is great. Besides, this will give me a chance to really work on my art."

" This is very true." Miranda nodded, a big smile on her face. " I got an ice cream cake to celebrate. Who wants some?"

The only one not excited was Troy. He really didn't want Kaitlyn to leave. But he didn't say a word. He pretended to be happy for Miranda, and joined them for some ice cream cake.