Date: Sun, 04 Jun 2000 19:17:29 -0400 From: Rachel Subject: Little Earthquakes Hi everyone! This is a new story so it has nothing to do with anything I've written in the past. Hope you guys enjoy. Disclaimer: In this day in age, homosexual relationships are common. However if you are in a part of the world that does not let you read material that is erotic in content, do not continue. Back away from the story. May I suggest Disney.com. If you are under 18, Disney.com is the place for you as well. Also as a non-psychic I do not know for fact the sexualities of any members of the Backstreet Boys. All I can tell you is that they are all male. Past that, it's all a mystery to me. Enjoy! Little Earthquakes Prologue His hands traveled down my back as he kissed me passionately. I leaned into his lips, pulling him down on top of me. I ground my hips up into him. He pulled back slightly and opened his mouth to speak. All that came out was a loud wail. He began to scream and cry. I squirmed my way out from under him and stared at him in surprise. Slowly I began to realize the crying was not part of this dream. I peeled one eye open and looked around. Yup, it was the baby crying. I slowly pulled myself from the comfort of my nice warm bed and staggered down the hall to the baby's room. "Ryan. Shhh...sweetie. Stop crying." I leaned over and picked up the infant. I carried him over to the rocking chair and sat down in it. I slowly began to rock him, quieting him down quickly. "That's better." I closed my eyes again, keeping up the slow rocking that Ryan enjoyed so much. I had just started to drift off when I heard a soft voice. "Uncle Robby?" I opened my eyes back up and saw my four year-old niece Maggie standing in the doorway in her pajamas. She was clutching her stuffed dog Lucky in her arms. "Yes sweetie?" "I had a bad dream. Can I sleep with you tonight?" Her bottom lip quivered as she spoke to me. "Of course you can. I'm going to put Ryan back in his crib and just look in on Gram for a second. Go climb into bed and get comfy. I'll be there in a minute." Maggie nodded and scampered down the hall. I stood up and put the sleeping infant back in his crib. I left his door slightly open and walked across the hall to Gram's room. I pushed it open slightly and peered inside. My grandmother was sleeping peacefully thankfully. Ryan's crying hadn't woken her up this time. Whenever he wakes her up, I usually spend the rest of the night trying to get her to lay back down. I was too exhausted to do that tonight. I shut her door again and stood in the hallway for a moment. I stretched my arms up and cracked my back. Hopefully Maggie would fall asleep quickly. I had to be up for work in a few hours and I couldn't be late again this week. "Hey Magster slid over." I lifted the covers and slid into bed, resting my head on the pillow and looking at the young girl. "I had a bad dream." She said again, her voice filled with sleep. "Don't worry about it. Uncle Robby is here. He'll make sure everything is okay." "Okay." She said sleepily, slipping her arms around my right arm and clutching tightly. Her eyes closed and she was out. I closed my own eyes and let myself drift off again. Unfortunately the man in my dreams wasn't going to be back tonight. Oh well. Chapter One "All right. Gram's medication is in the upstairs cabinet. You have my number at work in case you need anything right?" Kari nodded and rolled her eyes at me. I ignored it, knowing that she was just annoyed at me for telling her the same thing for the millionth time. "Rob calm down. Gram and I will be fine." She pushed me towards the living room. "Just get in the car and take the kids to daycare. Then get yourself to work on time today." "Thanks Kari." I gave her a peck on the cheek and ran into the living room. Maggie was sitting on the floor, playing quietly with her little brother. Ryan was giggling as he tried to grab the puppet from her. Gram was sitting in the armchair, her eyes lost in a faraway world. "Is your bag all packed Maggie?" I asked, picking up Ryan's diaper bag. She nodded and stood up, smoothing the wrinkles in her sundress. Her curly brown hair was pulled back with a headband. Maggie grabbed her Barbie backpack and gave Gram a kiss on the cheek. I picked up Ryan and gave Gram a kiss on the cheek too. "Bye Gram. I love you." She didn't move. "Have a good time with Kari today. We'll see you later." Gram blinked and focused on me for a moment. "Bye Mikey." Her eyes lost focus and she was gone again. I sighed, switching Ryan to my other side. At least she said something even if it was to call me Mikey again. I quickly patted down my pockets with my free hand. Okay there's my ID badge. I needed that. "Let's go Magster." I opened the door and she followed me out quietly. I cringed at the sight of my minivan in my driveway. The very idea that I owned a minivan kind of made me sick to my stomach. However with the two kids and Gram it made sense. I opened the side door and Maggie jumped in. She quickly buckled herself in. I put Ryan in his car seat and quickly strapped him in. Leaning over the car seat, I checked Maggie's seatbelt before shutting the door. I paused before opening my door to look at the house in front of me. I really needed to mow the lawn this weekend. I slid into my seat and turned to look at Maggie and Ryan. I put on a big smile. "You ready to have some fun today Maggie?" I put the car in reverse and slowly backed out of the driveway. She didn't answer me. I wasn't really expecting an answer. Maggie only talked when she really wanted to these days. We drove in silence through Orlando to the daycare near the hospital I worked at. It was one of the best in Orlando which meant it was also one of the most expensive in Orlando as well. However it was also the closest to my work, so it won. I was sitting at a red light when Ryan began to make some noise. I turned to look at him when it happened. Thud! The van jerked forward into the intersection. Not far thankfully, but enough for me to panic. I quickly put the van into reverse and pulled out of the intersection. A man in a black Toyota 4Runner was waving to me, pointing for me to pull over. I sighed, knowing that I was going to be late for work again now. The light changed and I pulled into the parking lot. He pulled in after me. Ryan began to wail. Maggie began to cry. I just put my head on the steering wheel and shut my eyes for a moment. Why me? There was a knocking on the window that I couldn't ignore. I turned my head and opened my eyes to look at the man who had rear-ended me. Standing at my window was one of the most incredible men I have ever seen in my life. And he had a very upset expression on his vaguely familiar face. I opened up the door and stepped out of the van. "I am so sorry. Are you okay?" He apologized immediately. I nodded and started walking to the back of the van. He looked slightly confused but he followed me to the back. "I was on the phone and I guess my foot slipped off the break. I didn't mean to hit you." I turned to look at him. "I know you didn't." I gestured for him to follow me while we talked. I needed to calm down Ryan and Maggie. "The damage doesn't look too bad. I know we need to exchange insurance information, but I really don't have the time right now. I have to calm the kids down, get them to daycare, and get to work myself." "Kids?" His voice was filled with guilt and dread when I said that. I nodded and opened the door. Maggie had stopped crying and she had started to try to calm Ryan down as well. I leaned over and undid the buckles holding Ryan in. I picked him up and turned to face the man who had hit the van. His face was white. "Calm down. I'm not going to sue you or anything. The kids are fine, just a little shaken up." He nodded, letting out a sigh of relief. I felt someone tugging on my shirt. "Uncle Robby. That's K...K...Kevin." She stuttered her eyes wide as she stared at the man. "Kevin who?" I had no clue who Maggie meant. "Kevin Richardson." The man said softly. Maggie nodded frantically, practically beside herself with excitement. I looked at him and then back at Maggie. "The Backstreet Boy?" They both nodded. "Well it's nice to meet you Kevin. I'm Rob. That's my niece Maggie and this is my nephew Ryan. And we're still running late." Maggie's lip quivered slightly when I said that. Kevin nodded. "This is going to sound stupid, but what if I met you for lunch so we can exchange insurance information. I intend to pay for the damage I caused to your minivan." I winced when he said your minivan. "I guess that would be okay." I gave Kevin the information he needed to find me once he got to the hospital. I put Ryan back into his car seat since he was calm again. "Bye Rob." Kevin stuck his hand out to me. I shook it firmly, smiling at him. "Until lunch Kevin." "Until lunch." His eyes sparkled as he spoke. "Bye Maggie." He waved to Maggie, causing her to blush fiercely. "Put your seatbelt back on Magster." I said as I slid into the front seat. I put the van in drive and took one last look at the handsome man standing outside his car talking on a cell phone. -It's just a start. More will come. Promised. If you feel like it, email me. If not, don't. It's all on you. I for one will always love to hear from any of you. So just so you know, my email address is rel24@drexel.edu or rachelelewis@hotmail.com. The choice is yours. I answer to both. Bye for now!