Here's chapter 74! I hope you like it! Please R&R! I do not own anything from The Secret Life Of The American Teenager! Thank you! I really appreciate everyone's reviews! :)
Italics=Grace
Bold=Ricky
Plain=Other characters
Meanwhile in California...
Ricky, Jack, Tom, George and Reverend Stone were at the Lakers game.
"Man this game is intense...We're down by two..." Jack said smiling.
"Yeah it is...If they improve their defense then I think they'll be able to win...I need to go to the bathroom so I'll be back." Ricky said nicely.
"All right...Do you want some more food? I want some more nachos." Jack said as he stood up.
"I'm good..." Ricky said kindly and he got up from his seat and walked up stairs.
"I'll take some more nachos Jack...Here's a ten..." George said happily as he handed Jack a ten dollar bill.
"Ok...I'll be back..." Jack said smiling and he walked up some stairs.
"So how are things with Grace and Ricky going? I'm actually surprised that those two are together..." Reverend Stone said intrigued.
"They're doing pretty well...I never thought they would be together either..." George said seriously as he looked at Reverend Stone.
"Yeah...I'm really happy that Ricky wants me to baptize him on Sunday...It's going to be great..." Reverend Stone said kindly.
"It sure is...That kid has came a really long way...I'm really proud of him...Even though he didn't marry Amy...I really thought they would make it..." George said honestly.
"So did I...And I thought Jack and Grace would have made it too...I guess God had different plans for them..." Reverend Stone said nicely.
"No kidding...He did for me too...I can't believe Kathleen took me back..." George said smiling.
"Me either...You're...crazy...George..." Tom said sarcastically.
"Heh...So are you Tom..." George said smiling.
"No...I'm...not..." Tom said sternly.
"Don't take it personally...I'm just joking with you..." George said happily.
"I'm really happy for you and Kathleen...I think you two bring out the best in each other." Reverend Stone said kindly.
"Thanks Sam...The time out is finally over..." George said nicely.
Meanwhile Ricky walked out of the bathroom and he saw Brandon with Chloe.
"Hey Brandon! What are you doing here with Chloe?" Ricky said surprised as he walked over to them.
"What's up Ricky? It's nice to see you again." Brandon said happily as he gave Ricky a hug.
"I'm just watching the game with some friends...I guess you two are too?" Ricky said nicely.
"Yeah...It's a pretty good game...We just got a couple big pretzels with cheese." Brandon said kindly.
"Those are good...I hope you two enjoy the game and I'll see ya later." Ricky said smiling and he walked back into the stadium.
"How do you know Ricky?" Chloe said concerned.
"He's an old friend of mine...We played baseball together...A long time ago...Heh...Let's go..." Brandon said nicely as he took his pretzel with cheese from Chloe.
A couple hours later the game was over and the Lakers won.
"Wow! That was amazing! I love basketball!" Jack said excited as they walked out of the stadium.
"It is really fun to watch...Maybe you should try out for it next year." Ricky said smiling.
"I don't know about that...I really like wrestling too..." Jack said happily.
"Ha ha...I haven't been to a game like that in a long time...I had a lot of fun with you fellas...We should do this again sometime." Reverend Stone said nicely.
"Yeah we should...Tom and I need to get going so I'll see you guys later." George said kindly.
"Bye Ricky and Jack!" Tom said smiling and he walked outside with George.
"See ya later Ricky! I'll go find the car Dad." Jack said nicely and he walked outside.
"Before I leave, I just wanted to remind you that your last baptism class is tomorrow night...And I'm really proud of you for getting baptized, Ricky." Reverend Stone said seriously.
"Thank you sir...I'm really excited to get baptized...Jesus defiantly has changed my life a lot...And I couldn't do it without your help as well as Grace's and Jack's." Ricky said honestly.
"You're welcome...We'll always be willing to help you with whatever you need. See you tomorrow." Reverend Stone said smiling and he walked outside.
The next morning in New York...
Amy and Ben walked into the cafeteria to get some coffee.
"Thank you for last night Ben...It was amazing..." Amy said happily.
"Heh...Yeah it was but...I think we need to talk..." Ben said concerned.
"About what?" Amy said intrigued as they moved up in the line.
"Uh...Let's get our coffee first..." Ben said nervously.
A few minutes later Amy and Ben got their coffee and then they sat at a table.
"So...Did you have sex with me again to help you with Mimsy again?" Ben said worried.
"No...I love you...Did you not enjoy it?" Amy said seriously.
"Heh...I really enjoyed it but...I'm just afraid that you're...starting to become like...Adrian..." Ben said sadly.
"What the hell are you talking about? I am not like Adrian!" Amy said stubbornly after taking a sip of her coffee.
"I know...But...She liked to have sex when she was feeling hurt...Whatever is bothering you, you can tell me..." Ben said honestly.
"If you didn't want to have sex with me last night, you could have said no..." Amy said a little irritated.
"I did want to do it...but I think you wanted to do it because of some other reason, besides the fact that you love me...Tell me the truth, Amy..." Ben said sternly.
"Fine...I wanted to do it because...it helps me feel better about...my break up with Ricky...I didn't actually think about it that much until after Mimsy's funeral...When he said that he knows what it's like to lose someone...He was talking about me..." Amy said sadly.
"But...I thought you were over Ricky...And why does it matter that he talked about you at Mimsy's funeral?" Ben said concerned.
"I am over Ricky but...those feelings of breaking up with him came back to me...along with losing Mimsy...I'm so sorry Ben..." Amy said honestly as her eyes started to get watery.
"It's ok Amy...We'll get through this..." Ben said kindly as he moved his chair closer to Amy and then he gave her a hug and rubbed her back.
"I...I don't want to use you..." Amy said seriously through her tears.
"I know...Thanks for telling me the truth..." Ben said nicely as he let go of Amy.
"Of course...Do you forgive me?" Amy said sweetly as she wiped her cheeks.
"Yes...Maybe we should...Get rid of our condoms...That way you'll be less tempted to sleep with me..." Ben said seriously.
"Oh...I don't know...I think...we should talk to Ricky..." Amy said concerned.
"Why does Ricky need to be involved in this? This is between you and me...Besides...he's got a lot going on right now since Bob's trial is soon, right?" Ben said honestly.
"You're right...And it's in a few weeks...We should get to class..." Amy said sincerely as she stood up and grabbed her coffee.
"Yeah...I love you, Amy..." Ben said sweetly as he grabbed Amy's hand and they walked out of the cafeteria.
"I love you too, Ben..." Amy said happily as they walked outside.
A few hours later at Grace's school...
Grace was walking out of the library when she bumped into Jason.
"Hey Jason! How are you?" Grace said nicely.
"Hey Grace...I'm doing pretty well...I had to get all my financial aid stuff all sorted out today...It was pretty easy since I'm getting a scholarship...Not a full ride one but it's better than nothing..." Jason said smiling.
"That's really great! Do you want to get lunch? I am pretty hungry." Grace said sweetly.
"Sure...I don't have any classes today anyway..." Jason said happily.
"You're lucky...Where do you want to go? You can't eat in the cafeteria cause you're not an official student here yet..." Grace said kindly.
"Right...Ha ha...How about the burger place down the street?" Jason said smiling.
"Sounds good...You want to drive?" Grace said as they walked towards a parking lot.
"Yeah...Do you have anymore classes today?" Jason said nicely as he opened his car.
"I have one at two...And it's only eleven so we have plenty of time to eat." Grace said kindly as she got in Jason's car.
About a half an hour later Grace and Jason arrived at a burger restaurant and they were eating.
"These burgers are so good..." Jason said happily as he took a bite from his burger.
"Yeah they are...I've never been here before..." Grace said sweetly after taking a bite from her burger.
"Me either...So...How is Ricky?" Jason said intrigued.
"Oh...He's doing really well...He went to the Lakers game last night with Jack, Tom, George, and Reverend Stone." Grace said kindly.
"Oh man! They're so lucky! It was an awesome game! I watched it with some friends on TV last night..." Jason said surprised.
"Yeah...That's what Ricky said...And they had court side seats so they were really close." Grace said happily.
"That's awesome! Maybe I can go with them some other time...Heh...Why didn't you go?" Jason said intrigued.
"Um...I'm not really into sports...I had a lot of anatomy homework last night...And they didn't invite any other girls to go..." Grace said seriously after eating some of her fries.
"Gotcha...Human anatomy is pretty hard...At med camp the anatomy stuff was the hardest for me..." Jason said nicely after eating some of his fries.
"Really? I think it's pretty easy...I use a lot of pictures and diagrams to help me study...Speaking of med camp...Do you remember Arnold?" Grace said sweetly.
"That's probably a good idea to use pictures and diagrams...Ha ha...Oh man...I do remember Arnold...That guy was hilarious." Jason said happily after he took another bite of his burger.
"Yeah...Well...He broke the butcher shop window the other night to get food for his dog...And he paid for it yesterday...He remembered you..." Grace said honestly.
"Wow...That's pretty crazy...I always thought he was kind of weird...I wonder why he only went to med camp for one summer..." Jason said concerned.
"Heh...I don't know...I guess he changed his mind about being a doctor...And he even remembered that you...liked me at med camp..." Grace said awkwardly.
"Yeah...Oh...Heh...That's kind of funny..." Jason said nervously.
"Why do you say that?" Grace said suspiciously.
"Because he...uh...dared me to kiss you...He thought it would help you to like me..." Jason said seriously.
"Oh...I guess that is pretty funny...I thought I liked you for a short time while we were at med camp but...after it...I wanted to stay with Jack..." Grace said honestly.
"Yeah I know...Don't worry about it...It happened years ago...I'm happy to have you as a friend." Jason said nicely.
"I'm happy to have you as a friend too...Have you been thinking about going out with someone else?" Grace said sweetly.
"Well...I did want to go out with Madison again...But I think she also likes Jesse...I guess we'll see..." Jason said seriously.
"Hmm...Madison is...nice...And Jesse is too...You are too but...if Madison doesn't work out, then maybe you could go out with my friend, Chloe...She's not single right now but if and when she is, you should meet her...I think you would really like her." Grace said a little irritated and then kindly.
"Heh...All right, Grace...What do you have against Madison? And I don't like to be set up on dates...But Chloe does sound great..." Jason said smiling.
"Uh...I have nothing against Madison...Heh...She's an awesome girl..." Grace said nervously.
"Yeah, right...You don't like her because she hurt your relationship with Jack..." Jason said firmly.
"That doesn't matter...Even if she hadn't interfered, Jack and I wouldn't have worked out anyway...We didn't want the same things..." Grace said sadly.
"I'm sorry...I thought he really loved you...Before every football game in high school, he loved talking about you...It was kind of our good luck charm...Ha ha..." Jason sincerely as he smiled.
"Heh...I know...But...hopefully we can be friends..." Grace said honestly.
"Even if you can't be friends with Jack, at least you have Ricky...You can't spend too much time worrying about Jack though...If you do, then you might take Ricky fore granted..." Jason said seriously.
"Wow...You're right Jason...Thank you...How's Lauren, by the way?" Grace said surprised and then nicely.
"No problem...Lauren is doing really great...She really loves Dante...I don't know if I like him that much though..." Jason said kindly and then concerned.
"Why do you say that?" Grace said intrigued.
"I don't know...He just seems like...not her type...I thought she really liked Jesse and Frank...Those guys were both really nice but Dante has...a wild side...Or he used to..." Jason said seriously.
"I get it...You're being overprotective of her...That's so cute...Heh...Well...Dante did have sex with Adrian..." Grace said nicely and then awkwardly.
"Heh...I can't help it...She's my sister and I want her to be with a good guy...Lauren deserves it...And I know he slept with Adrian...I'm afraid he'll end up doing that with..." Jason said smiling and then sadly.
"Yeah she does...Well...I think you should just trust them...And whatever they do...is really none of your business...Unless they want to tell you about it...I was worried about Tom sleeping with Tammy...But that doesn't really matter...They're happy now..." Grace said kindly.
"You're right...That's great about Tom and Tammy...And I'm ready to go when you are." Jason said smiling.
"Ok...I can pay if you want..." Grace said sweetly.
"You don't have to do that Grace...I can do it..." Jason said nicely as they stood up.
"No...I insist...I invited you to eat with me anyway..." Grace said happily and they walked over to the cashier at the front of the restaurant.
Meanwhile in New York...
Adrian got out of her car and she got the mail from her mail box and went into her house. She noticed that Omar wasn't home and she sat down at the kitchen table and looked through the mail. Her eyes widened as she saw an envelope from Casey and then she opened it.
"Why did Casey write this to Omar?" Adrian said intrigued as she took the letter out of the envelope and she started to read it.
Dear Omar,
I just wanted to say it was great seeing you again after all these years at the toga party. I know it was pretty crazy. And thanks for giving me your address! I love writing letters even though not many people do it anymore. I hope we can continue to be friends even though we're thousands of miles away from each other. Who knows? Maybe Cappie will get a job offer in New York someday. I would love to live there. I hope you and Adrian are doing really well and I sent a little something to you for the baby. I'm sure you both will be amazing parents. Good luck and talk to you soon!
Your friend,
Casey Cartwright
"Wow...I did not see that one coming...What did she send Omar?" Adrian said surprised and then she looked in the envelope and saw some cash. She counted the money and there was one hundred dollars in tens.
A few minutes later Omar walked in.
"Hey beautiful...What are you doing?" Omar said happily as he put his brief case on the counter and then he sat next to Adrian.
"Um...Your friend Casey sent us one hundred dollars for the baby...In cash..." Adrian said sweetly.
"Oh wow! That's really great! And she sent a letter too!" Omar said excited and he grabbed the letter.
"Yeah...So...When did you give her our address?" Adrian said intrigued.
"Aww...She is too sweet...Uh...At the toga party...We talked for a while there...I hope you're not mad..." Omar said smiling and then nervously.
"Uh huh...And what was I doing?" Adrian said concerned.
"You were talking to Grace...She gave us money for the baby...You can't be mad right now..." Omar said honestly.
"No...I'm not mad...I just wasn't expecting an old friend of yours to send us one hundred dollars in cash...This is really great!" Adrian said happily.
"I know...You can hang on to it if you want..." Omar said nicely.
"All right...How was your day?" Adrian said sweetly.
"Really good...I got a lot of important papers done...How was yours?" Omar said kindly.
"Pretty good...My classes were all right as usual...I'm so glad this semester is almost over...And I saw Mr. Molina...He's doing well..." Adrian said smiling.
"Yeah...His wife is pregnant too, right?" Omar said intrigued.
"She is...and her baby is doing really great too...Do you think we should try birthing classes? I never tried them with Ben..." Adrian said happily and then awkwardly.
"Oh...I don't know...If you want to...But aren't they expensive?" Omar said concerned.
"I have no idea...I'm not sure how much they would help though...It's not like I haven't been through this before..." Adrian said honestly.
"True...Whatever happens, everything is going to be fine...But...maybe you should ask the doctor about them." Omar said kindly.
"That's probably a good idea...What do you want for dinner?" Adrian said happily.
"I was thinking fish...That sounds really good..." Omar said nicely.
"Mmm...Yeah it does...Then we could go...swimming..." Adrian smirked.
"Heh...By swimming do you mean...that one thing we do..." Omar said as he smiled slowly.
"Ha ha...No...I mean we could really go swimming...I wanted to go awhile ago on that night that Dante came over..." Adrian said smiling.
"Oh..All right...Sounds good to me..." Omar said happily and he gave Adrian a long kiss.
"Yeah...I love you..." Adrian said sweetly.
"I love you too...Do you want to do a quickie before we eat?" Omar said seductively.
"Heh...I think we should save it for later..." Adrian said kindly as she licked her lips.
"Ooooh...I don't know if I can wait that long..." Omar said sarcastically and then he gave Adrian another long kiss.
"Ha ha...You're too funny...Let's get cooking..." Adrian said happily and she stood up with Omar.
Later that night in California...
Grace was reading her literature book when Ricky walked into his apartment.
"Hey Grace..." Ricky said kindly as he walked into the kitchen.
"Hey Ricky...How was it?" Grace said sweetly.
"It was really great...We went over what it means to be baptized and how Jesus has changed our lives...I'm really excited for Sunday." Ricky said smiling as he sat down.
"I'm really excited too! And I am so proud of you for getting baptized...It means a lot to me...And to God of course..." Grace said happily.
"Yeah...It means a lot to me too...How was school?" Ricky said nicely and then intrigued.
"It was really good...I had lunch with Jason...It was really nice..." Grace said happily.
"Oh...What was he doing there?" Ricky said concerned.
"He had to do financial aid stuff cause he's going there next semester...We talked about a lot of stuff...It was great catching up with him. And he would like to go to a Lakers game with you and other guys sometime." Grace said sweetly.
"That's really great...Weren't you thinking of setting him up with Chloe?" Ricky said nicely.
"Yeah I was but...she's with Brandon...And Jason said that he likes Madison..." Grace said honestly.
"Hmm...Maybe they'll work out..." Ricky said concerned.
"I don't know...Madison also likes Jesse...How was...Jack last night?" Grace said awkwardly.
"I'm sure she'll figure out who she likes best somehow...And Jack was really into the game...He loves basketball...Heh...Why?" Ricky said seriously.
"I was just wondering...And...I got you a little something for finishing the baptism classes." Grace said smiling as she pulled out a small box from her backpack.
"What is it?" Ricky said surprised.
"Open it..." Grace said happily.
Ricky opened the box after taking the wrapping paper off.
"It's a journal?" Ricky said confused.
"Not just any journal...It's a prayer journal...Since I already gave you a Bible, I thought it would be good for you to have a prayer journal...I had one and used it shortly after I got baptized...It really helped me to connect with God...When I got older, I just wrote in my diary and I just pray out loud to God...I think it will help you to get to know God better and the Bible will too..." Grace said sweetly.
"Oh...Thank you, Grace...I really like it...And...I was wondering if you want to go out tomorrow night? I know it's a school night but...we don't have any tests this week..." Ricky said nicely.
"You're welcome...I would love to go out tomorrow night...What are we going to do?" Grace said intrigued.
"I was thinking we could...Try the batting cages again and then go for a walk on the beach..." Ricky said smiling.
"Ha ha...I don't know about that...I'm not very good at baseball..." Grace said sweetly.
"I know...Ha ha...We could do some of this too..." Ricky smirked and he gave Grace a long kiss.
"Heh...Yeah...The batting cages and the beach sound like fun...I need to shower and get ready for bed." Grace said happily as she stood up.
"Ooooh...Is that an invitation?" Ricky said smiling.
"Ha ha...I wish..." Grace said sarcastically and she walked into the bathroom.
"Aaaah...How did I get so lucky? I need to study some for economics..." Ricky said happily and then seriously as he took his economics book out and then there was a knock on the door. Ricky stood up and he answered it.
"Hey Ricky...I know it's late...But can we talk?" Ethan said seriously.
"Of course Ethan...Come on in..." Ricky said nicely.
"So...I don't know what to do about...Kathy..." Ethan said concerned as he sat on the couch.
"Oh...Well...What do you want to do?" Ricky said intrigued.
"Uh...I wish I could forgive and forget what she did with Brian but...I don't know if I can...My heart is broken..." Ethan said honestly.
"I know...It really hurts...But you'll be ok...Maybe you should...pray..." Ricky said sadly.
"Pray? Why?" Ethan said surprised.
"God can help you through anything, Ethan...If you put your faith and trust in Him, I guarantee that you'll feel better." Ricky said seriously.
"You're probably right...I will try praying about Kathy...Thanks Ricky...I just don't know if...I can be friends with her..." Ethan said nicely.
"No problem...I think you can if you really try...I know what she did was wrong but everyone deserves another chance..." Ricky said kindly.
"Even...your father?" Ethan said concerned.
"Uh...That's different...Bob is mentally unable to live in a humane way..." Ricky said sternly.
"Oh...I'm sorry...Well...I'll try my best to forgive Kathy...And is Grace in the shower?" Ethan said sincerely and then confused.
"Thanks...She is...Why?" Ricky said intrigued.
"You are too lucky...Why aren't you in there with her?" Ethan smirked.
"You're disgusting...Heh...I need to do some studying before bed and you should go home before it's too late so Margaret doesn't worry..." Ricky said as he smiled.
"I was joking...Ha ha...I'll see you tomorrow..." Ethan said nicely and he walked out the door.
Ricky sighed and he walked back over to the kitchen table.
There's chapter 74! It sounds like Ricky and Jack had a great time at the Lakers game. What's going to happen next with Brandon and Chloe? Is Amy going to talk to Ricky about why she's been sleeping with Ben? Who's Madison going to pick? Will Lauren and Dante stay together? Will Omar keep talking to Casey? Will Adrian and Omar try birthing classes? How did swimming go for them? How are the batting cages and the beach going to go for Grace and Ricky? And will the prayer journal help Ricky to get closer to God? Will Ethan try to be friends with Kathy? Stay tuned to find out! Let me know what you think! Thank you! :)