"Jude."

"Tommy?" Jude asked confused. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm a producer here," Tommy said. "Darius gave me my job back."

"Oh," Jude said rolling her eyes. "Well just to let you know, I am not going to be one of your artists."

"Okay," Tommy sighed.

"So, why'd you come back?" Jude asked crossing her arms with attitude. She was still standing at the lobby entrance and he was still just outside the studio.

"I, uh," he started.

"Typical Tommy," Jude sighed and shook her head. "Have you seen this girl named Nikki?"

Nikki winced quietly behind Tommy and bit her lip.

"You know Nikki?" Tommy asked. "She just started here almost two months ago."

"I know her pretty well," Jude said. "How do you know her?"

"She's my artist," he said. "You?"

"We go way back, to when I gave birth to her actually," Jude said sarcastically.

"You have a daughter?" Tommy asked in shock.

"Yeah. I'm Nikki's mom," Jude said. "And she isn't just my daughter."

Tommy had an extremely confused look on his face.

Jude looked down then back at Tommy. "She's yours," she said her voice cracking. "Your Nikki's dad."

"What!"

"You," Jude pointed at him and then to herself. "And I. Have a kid. Nikki."

"Nikki?" Tommy turned around expecting to see her behind him but she wasn't there. "She was right there."

"Guy!" Jude yelled at SME. "Find Nikki, she has to be around here somewhere."

"Got it, dude," Speed said as he, Kyle, and Wally split up.

"God, where could she be?" Jude said and started peering in all the studios. Tommy walked quickly down a hallway. He knew exactly where she was.


He closed the door and started walking on to the roof.

"Nikki," Tommy sighed. "I know you're up here."

"Right here," Nikki said leaning against the brick wall of the edge of the roof. He slid down next to her.

"Think we should have a talk?"

She nodded and sniffled.

"How long have you known?" he asked.

"Since I moved in with you," she said. "I found out that afternoon."

"And when were you planning on telling me?" Tommy asked.

"Never?" She bit her lip. He gave her a confused look. "We were doing good. You were taking care of me, acting like a parent, being my dad, I never had that, and when SME has been the only good male role models for you, you kinda want to hang on to it." She sighed. "I thought if I told you, you might..."

"What Nikki?"

"... you might... leave again. And hurt us, again," she choked out."

He hugged her. "Look, I'm here to stay, and I'm not going anywhere. I won't leave you, I promise." He then chuckled.

"What?"

"I'm surprised I didn't figure it out," Tommy shook his head. " Jude is a rockstar, you look so much like both of us, and most of all... you're music. It reminded me so much of your mom, I couldn't believe it. And that song today," he smiled. "Brought back some memories."

"Why'd you do it? Leave in the first place?" she asked.

"Nikki," he said. "I know you want to know, but I'm not ready to talk about it with you yet, I need to talk to your mom first."

"Fine," Nikki said."Let's go back down."

"Okay," Tommy said starting to get up.

"On one condition," she said. "I get to call you Dad."

He smiled and pulled her up from the ground. "Let's go."


Tommy and Nikki walked back into the lobby.

"There you are!" Jude said. "We've been looking everywhere for you!" She ran and hugged Nikki and kissed the top of her head.

"Yeah, Dad found me," Nikki said pulling away.

Jude glared at him.

"I figured it out weeks ago, I'm not stupid."

"Sorry," Jude said. "So, you got a record deal, Ms. Nikki Stewart."

"Yeah, I kinda needed an alias," Nikki shrugged.

"How many songs have you recorded?" Jude asked excited.

"I'm working on my fourth," she said. "One of yours actually." Jude gave her a confused look. "I kinda borrowed one of your old journals."

Tommy smiled. "Yeah, she's definitely my daughter."

"Which one?" Jude asked.

"'Why Can't I'."

Jude closed her eyes and sighed. She decided to change the subject. "So, how's Dave?"

Nikki bit her lip. "Actually, it's a funny story. I don't know how he is because I don't live with him."

"What?" Jude asked filled with shock and confusion.

"I moved in with Dad a month ago," Nikki said.

Jude looked up at Tommy. "She what?"

"I think you should talk," Nikki said. "Privately." She whispered to Jude, "This conversation will involve a lot of yelling."

"Studio C," Tommy said and walked off. Jude followed him.

"So," Jude said closing the door behind her and then crossed her arms. "Care to explain how my daughter ended up living with you?"

"One, she's our daughter. Two, it what was best for her."

"What's best for her! You think you know what's best for her!" Jude started yelling.

"Jude," Tommy said calmly, she kept ranting.

"You walked out on me and her for fifteen years! And now you're saying you know what's best for her!"

"Jude!" Tommy tried to get her attention.

"She belongs at home with her family! Dave is a great guy!"

"JUDE!" Tommy finally yelled in her face. "Dave hits her! It go bad enough that half her face was bruised and her arm was in a sling!"

"Oh my god," Jude said and sat in a chair. She put her forehead in her hands. "Are you telling the truth?"

"Yes!" Tommy said taking a seat next to her.

"If you're lying..."

"Jude, I wouldn't joke about this," he said seriously. "You can even ask Nikki, I'm sure she has the scars to prove it."

"No," Jude shook her head. "It's not true. Dave wouldn't do something like that, he wouldn't."

"Jude, he would," Tommy said. "And he did."

"I've gotta go," she said and burst out of the studio. She saw Nikki sitting on a couch in the lobby. "Nikki, let's go."

"Where?" she asked.

"Home," Jude said and started walking to the door.

"No," Nikki said. "I'm staying with dad."

"Nikki," Jude said.

"Mom," Nikki said. "I'm not gonig back there, I can't."

At this point Tommy had come into the lobby. "Jude, she can stay with me, I want her to stay with me."

"Tommy, Dave won't hurt her."

"Yes he will!" Nikki yelled.

"Jude, I don't want either of you going back there," Tommy began.

"Since when are you the boss of me Tommy?" Jude asked. "I'm an adult."

"Jude," Tommy said with worry. "If you go back there, he'll hurt you."

"No he won't," Jude said. "He loves me. He loves us."

"Go back if you want, Mom," Nikki said. "But I'm going home with Dad."

"For tonight only, then if you don't come home, we'll think about alternative plans."

"Alternative plans?" Tommy and Nikki asked confused.

"Sadie works at the studio down in Miami, I'm sure Darius wouldn't mind the move," Jude said.

"What!" Nikki yelled. "I'm not going to Miami!"

"Then maybe you won't be recording at all!" Jude yelled.

"I'm staying," Nikki said firmly.

"Fine," Jude said. She walked over a kissed her cheek. "I'll talk to you in the morning about it."


"Miami! Out of all the places, she thinks about sending me to Miami!" Nikki yelled chopping up tomatoes. She and Tommy were maknig spaghetti for dinner. "And then she wants me to stop singing!"

"Alright, maybe you shouldn't have a knife while ranting," Tommy said taking the knife from her hands.

"Sorry," she sighed.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I guess," Nikki said and grabbed a bread stick and started eating it.

"Because if you want to talk-"

"Man you are having way too much fun with this parenting thing," Nikki smiled.

"Speaking of which, you're grounded," he said. "Two weeks."

"Why?"

"For not telling me I was your parent," he said.

"Fine," she sighed.

"Nikki, your mom is difficult sometimes. She'll come around eventually, but she's stubborn."

"Tell me about it," Nikki sighed. Then the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it," Tommy said, wiping his hands on a towel. He opened the door to find Jude. "Jude?"

"Just don't say I told you so," Jude said. She had a cut on her forehead, a bruise on her cheek, and a bloody lip.