Chapter 1: Our Lives in One Night

It was a Friday evening in early May of 2004. The temperature was gradually getting warmer and warmer every day. Even at sunset, New York City could feel the heat approaching.

Princeton jumped on the subway as fast as he could. It was crowded. Summer would be here next month, but he could already feel the warm air beginning to make its way into the subway line. Soon he probably wouldn't even need his jacket anymore. The subway doors closed and it began to move on its way. Princeton grabbed a metal pole to hang onto, and he lightly started to bang his forehead on it. He cursed himself for being such an idiot. It happened again. It happened again! Why did this always happen? He was in trouble this time for sure. Kate wasn't going to be pleased. She wasn't before, why on Earth would she be now? He dreaded that he had to face her and tell her once again that, for the third time now, he got fired from his job.

It had been six months since he and Kate Monster got back together after their brief separation, and just four months since they decided to move in together. It may have been a little soon to be making such a big jump in their relationship, but Princeton knew that it was a good idea in the end. Right now he couldn't imagine himself with anyone else, and he really did care about Kate a lot, so he felt pretty lucky to be where he was. Besides, it wasn't a hard task. Basically, Princeton just moved whatever he could into Kate's apartment, and either sold or got rid of everything else.

And he couldn't lie, Princeton really loved living with Kate. He loved waking up next to her. He loved seeing her when he came home. He loved that they were learning more and more about each other every day. And of course, he loved her. He loved her ambition, her kind nature, her wit, how bright she was, how often she went out of her way to make him happy…

Princeton smiled, thinking about her. He also loved that being with Kate made him happier than he ever thought he could be. He knew he didn't deserve her, and she definitely made him work for it after they reconciled, but in the end, they managed to make it work. She really was the most wonderful person he had ever met. Even now, he was so blown away by how amazing and special she was, as well as how much she loved and adored him. He had made a promise to himself to always give that love back to her every day, and to make sure she always knew how much she meant to him. So in a way, moving in together felt more right than it probably should have.

Still, it wasn't always happy and sunshine. Living together did have its cons as much as it did pros. They sometimes had an occasional fight about stupid little things, which eventually felt normal to them.

Princeton knew he wasn't getting into a normal fight though. Kate was definitely going to be pissed. It wasn't that he didn't try, but just about every company that hired him- from the temp agencies to the editorial companies to the public relations offices- none of them had worked out as well as he had hoped. He needed more experience to work at the higher paying jobs, and none of the starting positions seemed to last long either. As it turned out, that B.A. in English really was fucking useless. He really was trying, but maybe he just wasn't cut out for this kind of work.

Kate currently didn't have a job. Ever since Princeton helped raise the money to make her dream come true, she was so busy with preparing the Monsterssori School, that alone was a full-time job. She had a little money that came in from preparing it, but not enough to live off of. That's one of the reasons they decided to move in together as quickly as they did. If they were going to make the school happen, sharing the rent just made it a lot easier for both of them.

Princeton wanted to help as much as possible with the school too, but right now they needed more coming in than Kate could provide. They still had their other expenses and bills to pay, so if Princeton didn't have a job, they were financially in trouble. Maybe in the future, he'd be able to help with the school more, but right now it was not easy with what little money they both had. For the time being, he had to be the main source of income. And now he had to break it to her again that they could be in jeopardy. He tried to tell her earlier that day, but she never picked up the phone.

Kate didn't own a cell phone, and there were no phones set up at the school yet, so he always had to rely on calling her at home. He had called her earlier, asking her to meet him in front of the Empire State Building later that evening. She didn't answer, so most likely she was working over at the school. He began to wonder why she hadn't called him back. Usually she would have been home by now, so maybe she had already gotten the message and decided to go meet him?

Princeton gulped when he realized the subway was coming to his stop. He was so close to confessing that he was fired for the third time in six months. Getting off the subway, up the stairs, and walking into the crowded Manhattan streets, every step was getting harder and harder to do.

He dialed Kate's number again to see if she would answer. The phone kept ringing, and he was soon greeted by the answering machine again. Princeton hung up before there was time to say anything. He hoped that Kate had gotten the message, but there was also a small part of him that hoped she hadn't. He knew that it was going to hurt her knowing that he was unemployed once again.

Fuck, he thought. This is not going to end well.

His heart began to pound faster as he approached the Empire State Building. Princeton looked around to see if Kate was there like he asked her to be. It didn't take long. He spotted her right away on the corner of 34th and 5th, waiting for him. She looked out at the busy street, aimlessly looking in all different directions, obviously searching for him. Princeton figured he better get it over with while he could still breathe air. She wasn't going to let him live it down this time.

He approached her from behind, still hesitant about letting her know he was there. He gulped and decided to make himself known.

"Kate?" he asked. She didn't react, he was obviously too soft. "Kate?!" This time he spoke loud enough to be heard in the noisy street.

Kate turned when she heard her name being called. She found Princeton right behind her, his brown eyes meeting her bright blue ones. A smile appeared quickly and effortlessly on her face.

"Princeton!" she exclaimed. "Hi!"

"Hi Kate," Princeton said nervously.

"I got your message. I didn't even think of calling you back until after I was on the subway."

"Yeah, that's okay. Don't worry about it."

"So, what did you ask me to come all the way out here for?"

"I…" Princeton was still too nervous to say it. He looked at the curious expression on her cute face, and he just couldn't tell her the truth yet. He really didn't like the idea of lying to her either, though. He knew that he couldn't keep the secret from her forever, but maybe he could stall for a little while longer.

"I…" Princeton began again, "I'm… taking you out to dinner tonight, Kate!"

"Beg pardon?" Kate asked with confusion.

"Surprise! I'm treating you to a specialty dinner, on me!" Princeton smiled weirdly at her, trying to seem convincing.

"What's the occasion?" Kate asked with a little suspicion.

"Do I need a reason to treat my girlfriend? Common, let's go!"

Princeton grabbed Kate's hand and began pulling her down the street into the heart of Manhattan. He had no idea where they were going or where he was supposed to take her. Manhattan was one of the most expensive places to eat in the world. It was going to be near impossible to find something they could afford. Or at least something date-worthy they could afford.

He looked around, trying to find any place that wouldn't kill his bank account. The sun was gone now, and soon it was going to be impossible to find anywhere to even sit down at right away. Then finally, they came to a place that didn't look quite as expensive as the ones they had passed. Princeton decided to take this one before he could think to stop himself.

"Here we are!" he announced.

"Here?" Kate asked with shock.

"Yeah… What's wrong? Don't you like it?"

"No, it's not that. It just looks a little out of our price range…"

"Don't worry about that, Kate! This is my treat! You worked really hard this week and you deserve it!"

Princeton felt bad telling her all this. Of course she deserved it, but he wasn't so sure they were going to be okay after paying for it.

Kate, unknowing, felt flattered by all this attention he was giving her, but was still hesitant about this whole arrangement.

All the same, they entered the fancy place and approached the podium at the front.

"Good evening," the hostess cheerfully said when she noticed them. "How many?"

"Two, please," Princeton replied.

"Right this way."

She showed them to a two-seater table in the middle of the restaurant and then handed them their menus as they took their seats.

"Princeton, are you sure it's okay to eat here?" Kate asked as the hostess walked away. "This looks kind of expensive."

"Kate, don't worry about it," Princeton replied. "We both deserve a break. It's been too long since we treated ourselves. Trust me."

"Princeton, I do trust you. I just don't know if I trust all of our bills."

"Kate, I promise, it's all taken care of. You don't have to worry about it."

Before Kate could say anything else, a well-dressed waiter approached them, notepad in hand.

"Good evening, can I get you two anything to drink?" he asked.

"I'll have a beer, whatever you recommend," Princeton said. He knew he needed it.

"And you ma'am?" the waiter said, turning to Kate.

Kate noticed a drink that a woman had at another table.

"Iced tea, please," she answered, pointing to the drink.

"Alright, I'll be back in a minute with your drinks."

As the waiter walked away, Kate turned back to her boyfriend with a concerned look.

"Are you sure?" she asked again.

Princeton looked back at her. No, he wasn't sure, but there was no turning back now.

"Yeah, of course," he said, giving her the most convincing smile he could muster. And then it suddenly dawned on him. This was probably only going to make things worse, wasn't it? Not only would she find out he's unemployed, but they were also about to blow his money on an unnecessarily expensive meal.

Great, really good planning there you idiot, Princeton thought to himself. He may have been saving face, but on the inside, he definitely felt like dying.

Kate, on the other hand, was definitely buying it. She sighed and smiled at how generous Princeton was being. It's true what he said: It had been a while since they went out like this, just the two of them. She was used to spending her Friday evenings with everyone on the avenue, usually at a bar, socializing and watching the men get drunk. It was so sweet that Princeton thought to take her out.

A minute later their drinks arrived. Kate took a sip from her straw.

"Mm, that's yummy!" she said.

"Glad you enjoy it, ma'am," their waiter replied. "Are you ready to order?"

For a good half hour, Princeton and Kate caught up, laughed, and talked about their week while they waited for their food. By the time their dinner arrived, they had both already gone through the second round with their drinks.

"Kate do you like your food?" Princeton asked.

"Mmmm… this is, like, probably the most orgasmic stuff I've had in a loooooong time," Kate replied rather loudly.

"W-What?" Princeton asked, suddenly startled by this comment.

"You heard me! Oh, I think I need another one of these teas, they're tasty!" Kate said while shaking her glass in the air. "Waiter, get me another one of these, chop chop!"

"Kate, are you okay?" Princeton asked, a little worried.

"I… am more than okay! I am GREAT!" Kate said, almost yelling.

Princeton suddenly realized that she wasn't being herself. He looked at her glass and saw that her second tea was almost completely gone.

"Waiter," Princeton said as the man approached, "I think there's alcohol in my girlfriend's drink."

"Well of course," the waiter replied, "a Long Island Iced Tea is what she ordered, right sir?"

"Right!" Kate said, raising her hand righteously.

"Oh shit," Princeton said with disbelief after the waiter walked away. This is exactly what got them in trouble the first time they went out. Kate could take a little alcohol but Long Island Iced Teas were just too much for her. Especially two of them.

"Woo! Is it hot in here? I think I need to get a little cooler," Kate said as she reached for the bottom of her shirt.

"Kate cut that out!" Princeton replied as he stopped her.

"What's wrong?" she asked, teasing. "Awwww, you don't like seeing me naked anymore, do you, Princeton?!"

"What?! No, it's not that at all!" He leaned closer to whisper. "Kate… uh, I think you're a little drunk right now."

"Oh, Princeton, I'm not drunk!" Kate said with a laugh. "If I was drunk would I be able to do this?"

Kate stood and was about to take a step, but then immediately fell to the floor with a loud thud. Princeton quickly stood to make sure she was ok. Kate was in the process of rolling over onto her back.

"Ow… Okay maybe I am drunk," she said from the floor before attempting to blow her hair away from her face.

"Oh, God…" Princeton buried his face in his hands. He shook his head in embarrassment, sitting back in his chair. Some of the other customers were starting to watch. Already the night was going bad. Could it possibly get any worse?

"Princeton, you have the cutest butt EVER!" Kate yelled in her drunken state, still on the floor. "I could just watch it all day!"

"Ok!" Princeton was starting to get humiliated. As best he could, he help her back into her chair. They needed to leave right now. With embarrassment, shaking, he called out, "Waiter, uh… check please!"

Once the bill was paid, they quickly got out of the restaurant and headed home. Having a drunk girlfriend hanging off his shoulder wasn't exactly how Princeton saw this evening panning out, and he could only pray that they would get home without attracting a lot of attention. Unfortunately, they did. On the way there, he was stopped by the police three times, then had to somehow prove that they were together and that he was safely taking her home. Kate even almost insulted an officer, but they were able to avoid it. Not only that but on the subway Princeton had to stop Kate countless times from putting her hand up his shirt or down his pants. It was hell. It was like being around a three-year-old. When they finally reached Kate's apartment, Princeton had a splitting headache.

"Princeton, I wanna go somewhere!" Kate said happily as she sat on the bed.

"No... No going anywhere for you, missy," Princeton said as if he was speaking to a child. "I have a headache and it's all-your-fault!"

"Oh, Princeton, you need to loosen up! Common, just loosen up everything! Let's go out tonight!"

"No thank you…"

"Hey that's a song, isn't? I'm gonna sing it for you!"

"Please, don't."

"What's the time? Well, it's gotta be close to midnight!"

As Kate stood on the bed and sang the RENT song at the top of her lungs, she began dancing as best could in her drunken state. Before long, she proceeded to take her coat off. And then her skirt. Princeton couldn't take it and walked out of the room and into the kitchen, leaving her behind.

This was one fucking bad night gone completely wrong. It was supposed to be just a nice, normal romantic evening, just like he knew she liked it. After dinner, a walk down 5th Avenue would have been perfect. Then he could break the news to her and it would be over. But no, Kate had to get a wrong drink order and now everything was ruined. Princeton reached for some Tylenol in the cupboard and swallowed it down with some water. Kate's over-the-top singing voice still echoed from the bedroom. There was just no stopping her.

Princeton began to worry about the outcome of the next day. Not only did he have to break it to her that he was fired, but now he had to tell her that she had gotten drunk in the middle of a fancy restaurant and humiliated them both. All he tried to do this evening was make everything work out better, but it didn't.

Princeton sighed and decided to go back to the bedroom before Kate ended up hurting herself. He turned the lights out in the kitchen, confident he wouldn't be coming back for the rest of the night. Princeton entered the bedroom, greeted by Kate's singing all over again.

"Take me ooooouuuuuuuuuut tonight!" she sang loudly. She stood on the bed, wearing nothing but her bra and underwear, with one of her bra straps falling off. She swung her shirt in the air like a whip. As hot as she looked dancing around like that, it wasn't the right time or mood to be encouraging it.

"Kate, please stop! I have a headache!" Princeton yelled.

"Oh, Princeton," Kate said, sitting on the bed, "I'm just getting started! You should join me."

Kate tugged on Princeton's sleeve and urged him to come onto the bed with her. He followed, naturally, not knowing what else to do. She lay him down so his back, relaxing his head on the pillow. She kissed him and began to tug at his shirt, but Princeton stopped her immediately.

"Kate, we can't do this," he said seriously, looking in her eyes.

"Aw, why not?" Kate asked with a pout.

"Because you're drunk, and it wouldn't be right."

"Princeton, haven't we been over this? I am not drunk!"

"Yes, you are. I'm sorry but I just can't."

"Aw…" Kate complained. She lay her head on his chest and snuggled her furry body closely into him. Princeton was able to allow this. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and just let her lay on him for a while. Princeton stared at the ceiling and waited for something, anything to happen.

"Princeton," Kate said after a long silence, "do you love me?"

"What kind of a question is that?"

"I need to know. Do you love me?"

"Of course I do."

"Oh. Well, I love you too."

"Why do you ask?"

"Just wondering…"

Princeton frowned and continued staring at the ceiling. Was she okay? Was it possible she was finally sobering up?

"Kate?" he asked. He listened but didn't get an answer. "Kate?"

Princeton looked down to find Kate's eyes were now closed. She had fallen asleep in his arms. The ruckus she made must have worn her out. Princeton let out a huge sigh, feeling relieved. He gently moved her off of him, careful not to wake her up. She now lay next to him, oblivious to everything that happened in the past hour. Princeton sat up and looked at Kate's sleeping face. She looked so peaceful and innocent lying there.

Innocent, yeah right, Princeton thought with a chuckle, shaking his head.

"You drive me so crazy sometimes, but I love you," he said out loud as he moved a strand of hair from her face.

Princeton sat up and got off the bed. He yawned and suddenly realized how tired he was. It wasn't even midnight, still early for a typical Friday night, but after everything that happened today, he didn't want to do anything but sleep. He decided it was time to hit the sack and be done for the night. Besides, the only way his headache was really going to get any better was by getting some proper rest. He got himself ready for sleep and moved Kate, still in her underwear, under the covers before he crawled into bed beside her

Once the lights were out, Princeton looked over at her one more time with the light coming from the street lamps outside the window. Kate continued to sleep peacefully next to him, comfortable and warm under the sheets. She had no idea what she had put him through, and no idea of the news she would have to receive tomorrow morning.

Princeton sighed again. He leaned over and gently kissed her forehead, adoring how lovely and precious she really was to him.

"I love you," he repeated. He then lay his head back on the pillow, closed his eyes, and soon let sleep take over.