The air in the room was getting more stuffy with each passing hour. I could smell the unpleasant body odor, which irked me more than anything at this moment. The large cruise ship was swaying on the waves in the ocean, causing some people to turn green. Thankfully the ships maintenance crew was on all the incidents quickly leaving no sign that someone had gotten sea sick.

But despite all of that, I was having a blast. Singing karaoke with my friends in front of tenths on strangers turned out to be more fun than I had at first anticipated. The alcohol that we had consumed probably did it's part. Some people were dancing to the song we sang together in the free space between the tables and the stage.

It was the middle of October, just the start of our senior year in college, but me and friends, Tara and Beatrice, decided to skip studying for one weekend and instead go on a cruise. All we wanted was something crazy we could remember our college years by. After all, it was our last year together. After that, who knows were we each wind up.

"Thank you! Thank you!" We call called out to the audience after we had finished out karaoke song. The crowd cheers and applauded to us as everyone was in great mood and had enjoyed our performance. After we left the stage, next people in line, a group of 5 guys around our own age, stepped on the stage and set their song.

"Colleen!" Beatrice grabbed onto my hand as we walked back to our table "Lets get another round!" She suggested as she slumped down on her chair. Her cheeks were flushed, hair was no longer neatly combed. Yes, we were having the time of our lives.

"You read my mind!" I giggled back, the alcohol clearly influencing my behavior. Usually, I'm not big on drinking, but I was out with my girls, on a cruise ship and I was sure going to enjoy every minute of it."This one will be on me!" I told my friends, when I grabbed my wallet

"Next one will be on me!" Tara called, when she took a seat on Beatrice's lap, making them both explode in giggles

The bar was at the side of the room. I walked to the bar, to the clear spot between all the seats, leaned on it and waved at the barman. He saw me waving and came over to me after he had served the other clients "What can I get you?" he asked while cleaning a glass with a towel

"Another round for me and my girls," I looked over my shoulder to my friends, who were now too occupied by swooning over the guys on the stage who were singing the karaoke. They were probably deciding, who would date who. Who could have a six pack. Who could be the bad boy. Who could kiss the best kisser. Just silly girl stuff.

"Coming right up," the guy behind the bar smiled at me before turning around and getting the drinks

"That will be 13.65," he said as he put the drinks on the plate, ready to carry them over to us

I was searching my wallet for the appropriate bill for the drinks, when I heard a voice "Put that on my tab!" I looked up, curious as to who was this kind and helpful mystery man. The man, who was leaning at the bar on the far left, smiled at me, when our eyes met.

"You don't have to-" I wanted to decline politely, not wanting to show that I was actually so thankful for his gesture.

"I insist," he took a sip of his whiskey with ice "I enjoyed your performance very much. Much better than..." He nodded to the stage, where the guys were trying to sing YMCA song. They were off beat, off notes, they were not signing together. They were yelling, not singing. As a music student, it was hard to listen to it. It actually hurt my eardrums, but at least it was something to laugh about. The guys clearly knew how bad they were, but they didn't care. Neither did everyone else in here.

"Thank you. You are too kind," I replied averting my eyes back to the kind stranger. The first thing I noticed was his smile. He was very charming, handsome even. By the looks of his suit, I believe he was from the higher class passengers, the one's who have A level suite, not a C class, with no windows and the small bunk beds.

"It's my pleasure," the man said, before I walked back to my friends

Tara leaned closer to me and whispered, when I sat down "Who was that?"

"No idea. But he paid for our drinks," I smiled, when I reached for one of the cocktails. My friends took the other two.

"He certainly has his eyes on you, Colleen," Beatrice tapped on my arm gently and then nodded towards him

"No, he doesn't..." I denied it as I raised the drink up to my lips

"Oh, honey...he so does!" Tara placed her hand over mine as I licked my lips

"Don't be silly...I'm way out of his league," I replied, but, when I sneaked a look at the mysterious man at the bar, our eyes met again. My heart started to beat faster. Unknowingly, I had bit my lip as I had watched him as I had wondered about the body underneath his clothes. When I averted my eyes back to my friends.

"You should go talk to him," Beatrice urged me "You clearly are thinking about it!"

"No...no!" I shook my head, not liking the idea at all. I was too shy for that. Not confident enough.

"Come on! Colleen, he is clearly into you!" Beatrice added after she finished sucking her cocktail through the straw

"I'm not here to get a boyfriend!" I argued back, trying to make them stop the direction this conversation was going

"Who said anything about a boyfriend," Tara argued back with a naughty smirk on her lips

"After how the idiot Gabriel dumped you two months ago, you deserve some fun!" Beatrice chimed in

"And he-" Tara continued glancing to the man "-seems like he could be lots of fun!"

I sneaked another look at him before I tried to resist again "No, I can't. I can't leave you. This is suppose to be our time together. Girls weekend...or whatever-"

"Girl...we will be fine!" Tara wrapped her arm around Beatrice "Now, go!" she ushered me as Beatrice wrapped her arms around her friend, trying to convince me that they will be fine

"Nice of you two both gang up on me," I said as I started to think about going over to him. I raised the glass up, took another sip of the drink to gain some more courage to walk over to the man. But all of a sudden I saw my friends smile, while looking at something over my right shoulder.

"Ladies," I heard the same voice I had heard at the bar. Slowly I look over my shoulder only to see the man stand right behind me "I don't mean to intrude-"

"You aren't!" Tara blurred out and grinned at him "You aren't!" She repeated slowly reaching over to touch his arm "We were just talking about you, actually!" she said averting her gaze to me

The guy raised his eyebrow at my friend, getting the hint "May I have this dance with you, please?" he put his hand in front of me. Both of my friends tried their hardest from squeaking in excitement.

"I'm sorry, I don't dance with strangers," I was very curious as to who he was. Or maybe I was trying to play hard to get.

"I'm sorry, where were my manners. I'm Robert Quinn," he answered holding his hand out to me and waiting for me to greet him back "And you are-?"

"Colleen Decker," I shook his hand, but he kept a hold of it. Not forcefully. My hand fit perfectly in his. His skin was not rough, like Gabriel's had been. He must be taking good care of himself.

"May I have this dance with you, Miss Decker?" He repeated the invitation

"It would be my pleasure, Mr. Quinn," I replied and saw how Tara grabbed onto Beatrice arms, while with her other she covered her mouth as a small squeak escaped

I placed my hand in his and got up. We walked to the empty space in the room. I set my palm on his shoulder also feeling his strong shoulder. In return I felt his right hand on my lower back, he pulled my body a bit closer to his. His left held mine firmly in his, our bodies close. He started to lead me across the clear space, spinning me around and around, clearly knowing how to dance.

"You have truly beautiful voice," he whispered to me in my ear, when he pulled me close in one of the spins.

The flirting started out from there on and it continued throughout the whole night. We danced for hour, but when my feet finally gave up, we went to get couple of cocktails. That lead to us wandering around the cruise ship, talking about life and laughing our butts off during the night, but eventually he was so kind to show me his A class suite. His room was thrice the size of our (my friends and I). It had it's own bathroom. A TV and DVD collection. There was mini fridge with drinks, a couch, books and magazines. There was a huge window that out looked to the ocean. But most importantly a king size bed, which was as comfortable as it looked. And both of us, together tried it out.

~o~o~o~

I was sitting on the bed, looking down at the positive pregnancy test in my hand. There were two more positive pregnancy tests on the bed behind me. Beatrice had gotten me multiple at the pharmacy.

"Who's the father?" Tara asked, when she sat down next to me on the bed

"You know who it is!" I mumbled back still not being able to take my eyes away from the test. They were glued to it. For a while I thought this was a dream. That I would wake up and not be pregnant. But that hasn't happened. I was just too stunned...to shocked.

"Didn't you use condoms?" Beatrice asked from being crouched down in front of me. Her hands rested on my knees.

"Does it look like we were?" I raised my head up and waved the pregnancy test in the air "We didn't have any. He said he would...you know...pull out," my cheeks got warm, I was so embarrassed about this. I knew better than that, but at that moment I hadn't made the smartest decision. The alcohol had clouded my judgment. We had acted like a horny teenagers even thought we were both adult. I'm sure we could have gotten condoms from the store, but it was too far and it would take too much time. We wanted to have sex, then and there. Nothing was going to stop us. And nothing did. Not even the ship swaying in the stormy ocean.

Getting pregnant was not in my Senior year plan. But while this pregnancy came as complete surprise and I was having a small panic attack about it, I also couldn't help but feel excited about it. After losing my mom to the heart attack 6 years ago and my father to suicide 4 years ago because he couldn't take the pain of loosing mom, I was all alone. I had no other family. My grandparents died when I was just a baby and I don't have any siblings. My mom didn't have any siblings, but my dads brother died in war. He never had been married, never had any children.

This little human being, who was growing inside me, was the only family I had now. As weird as it sounds, I already love him/her. And while the thought of having a baby was scary, I believed I could do it. I was feeling positive about it. I haven't heard from Robert Quinn since the cruise, but if I find him and tell him the news, he might help me raise the baby. The little I got to know him, he had seemed like a person, who wouldn't run or leave me to do this alone.

"What do you need us to do?" Beatrice wondered, wanting to help any way she could.

"I'm really craving some chips," I said making both of my friends to laugh out

"I'll go buy them," Beatrice stood up "Any specific flavor?" she asked, when she was by the doors

I shook my head "Thanks," I smiled sadly at her

"Of course. Be back in 20," she said before leaving my dorm room

"Can I do anything?" Tara asked rubbing my back softly

"Help me find Robert," I answered "It's his baby as well. He should know," I said looking down at the two stripes on the test. Who could have guessed, that two little pink stripes could change a persons life so drastically.

"Sure thing. Where do we start?" Tara stood up "What do you know about him, other than his name?" At that moment, nothing came to mind. My memory of that night was pretty blurry, I was missing parts of it. I remember standing at the edge of the deck and Robert was holding my hands like in the movie Titanic. But one of the crew had called us back inside, because it was not safe. I remember the dancing, the drinking, the sex part. But much of the conversation we had was a mystery to me.

"Does he live in California at least?"

"Yes!" I pointed to my friend, when she asked about the state "He said he started his own business here in San Diego. Something about constructions..."

~o~o~o

I was sitting in a waiting room. The secretary was looking at me with a stink eye every now and then. She made me feel very uncomfortable and nervous. Like I wasn't enough anxious about this meeting already. Robert Quinn was a charming man, no doubt he was a real woman's man. With his store growing, he was getting more cash in his bank account. And money is something a lot of woman look for in a man. I had a feeling this woman had a crush on Mr. Robert Quinn.

The doors to the cabinet opened and two men, carrying what looked like blueprints, came out. Instantly I sat up straighter, ready to be called in. While one of the man walked straight out, the other man stopped at the secretary desk and they talked about setting up another meeting in a month. When the other man left, the secretary received a call from Robert Quinn to ask for the next person from his meeting list to come in.

The secretary stood up and gestured to the doors "Robert Quinn will have you now!"

I quickly got up to my feet and walked inside his office. He was sat behind a large desk. There was a computer at one side of it, documents and papers on the other. Two brown leather chairs in front of his desk. A bookshelf covered the whole wall behind him. At my right there was a conference table, which had empty tea cups on. Clearly the men had discussed their business at that table.

Robert was so occupied by the paperwork in front of him he hadn't raised his head up, yet. He was scribbling something down. His pen moved so fast, I felt a cramp in my hand.

I remained standing few steps away from his desk, because that's how I felt more comfortable with "Hi. I hope you remember me. Colleen Decker -we met on the cruise," I said rather shyly not knowing how will he react to seeing me after almost two months.

At the sound of my voice his head snapped up. His eyes stopped on mine and for the moment it felt like the time froze. It reminded me of the night on the cruise ship.

"What are you doing here?" he asked standing up. His tone of voice was not welcoming. His eyes didn't hold the flirtatious gaze it had on the cruise, instead it was cold and fierce.

"I need to talk to you," I replied, moving my purse to my front as I shifted my weight to my other leg

"No, you need to leave!" Robert walked around the table "Now!" I was taken aback by how different he was. This was not the man I met on the ship. No longer he seemed charming and kind, and sweet. I got a very cold, ungracious feeling from him. Suddenly I felt used and cheated by him. By his act he had put on the night of the cruise, because I was sure, I was now seeing the real him.

"It's important!" I insisted without backing down, because I had vowed to myself that I won't leave here until I told him the truth. I still needed to give him a chance to be in this babies life.

"We spent one night together. That's it! Nothing else is going to happen between us," Robert stated as he walked towards me. He put his hand on my shoulder, ready to guide me out of his office. And that's when I saw it. When he was gesturing towards the big oak doors behind me.

The gold ring on his left hand ring finger.

I grabbed his hand and held it up "You're married?" I questioned, shocked by the news. On the cruise, I had seen no ring. There was no ring on his finger. I had held his hand, I had danced to him for hour. I thought he was single. I would have never done anything if I had known he had been married. I don't want to be his mistress. That's not who I am!

"You need to leave! My wife is going to be here at 12! She can't know about you!" Robert pulled his hand out of my hold as his voice got more demanding

"Wow!" I covered my mouth with my hand "I can't believe you!" I took a step back, trying to wrap my brain around all of the lies he told me. I was surprised that Robert Quinn is actually his real name. The story about his company and the newly opened stores was true only because he liked to gloat, he liked the compliments, he liked that people envied him of his success and his wealth.

"Leave!" He glared down at me "And never come-"

"I came here to tell you that I'm pregnant!" I interrupted him "Congratulations. You're the father!"

There was a long pause from him after my statement "You're lying...you can't be!"

I reached in my purse and pulled out the ultrasound I had gotten few days ago. He grabbed the ultrasound of of my hands and examined it.

"How far along are you?" he inquired still gazing down at the picture. I was hoping he would change back to the polite and friendly guy I had met on the cruise, but little did I know, that I couldn't have been further away from the truth.

"Almost 7 weeks," I said, my eyes averting to the ultrasound in his hand "I have a feeling it's a girl," I smiled to myself as I rested my right hand on my stomach. It was a feeling that I couldn't explain. Maybe this was the first time I experienced a mothers intuition. A mother knows, right?

He handed me the ultrasound back, but then marched over to his table. From the top drawer he pulled out a check book.

"This should be enough," He told me as I watched how he wrote something down. Robert signed the check, ripped it out of the check book and came back to me.

"Enough for what?" I questioned slowly reaching for the check. He had written me a check for five thousand dollars. I looked up to him with frowned forehead.

"For all of the costs you need to abort it!"

I could not believe what I was hearing. He was trying to force me into abortion. I was standing in front of him, still holding the check out, in complete and utter shock.

"You will abort this baby and we will never see each other ever-"

"I'm not doing that!" I stated back ripping his check up in half. That felt like some sort of blood money. "I'm having this baby!" He had no right to tell me what to do. It was my baby as well. The baby is in my body. I was carrying it and I will carry it for 9 months. Ultimately it was my decision, not his. If he didn't want to support me and his child, that's fine, but he will not force me into doing something I do not want.

"It's my reputation-"

"Reputation?" I laughed at him the second the words left his mouth "I don't care about your reputation. I care about this baby and it's my choice, whether or not I will keep the-" I was interrupted by a sound coming form the phone on Robert's desk

"Mr. Quinn, your wife is here," we both heard the secretaries voice

Robert Quinn hurried to the phone and replied "Tell her to wait a minute. I have to finish this meeting Ms. Goldblume."

"Yes, sir!" Came a reply from the phone. Robert Quinn turned back to me.

"I'm keeping the baby!"

"If the press or my wife, or anyone finds out, I'm going to sue the living hell out of you. Is that clear!" he threatened as he pointed his finger to me. He was not joking around. The man could not be any more serious. I'm not exactly sure what he could sue me for, but I had no intention of finding out. I was done with him.

"Don't worry, Mr. Quinn...I wouldn't want my child to know he or she has a father like you, anyway," I napped at him, before I turned on my heel and walked out of the office

As I opened the doors to the hallway, I saw a petite woman around my age sitting on the couch with her purse in her lap. As I walked by her we looked at one another in what almost felt like a slow motion, but we did not exchange any words.

If only the woman knew what kind of a man she had married.

I simply left and never looked back.

~o~o~o~

On July 11th a healthy baby girl was placed in my arms.

I was scared at first, when the nurse put her in my arms. Scared that I was holding her wrong, that I was going to hurt her, that I'm not good enough. But all the troubles, all the worries were gone, when I got the chance to really look at her little face. Her small, cute button nose. I was lost in her. Just like that, she was my whole world and I loved her more than I have ever loved anyone.

For weeks, months even, I had pondered what her name could be. No name seemed to fit. No name seemed right. But, when I finally had her in my arms, the name came itself.

"Callie," I said keeping my eyes on my daughter "Her name is Callie," I raised her closer to me and pressed my lips gently to her forehead, giving her the first ever kiss

AN: I had thought long and hard about how I would tell the story about Colleen and Robert. Decided on little time travel to past, seen from Colleen's perspective. Robert turned out kind of the bad guy in this. It seemed like the only way I could explain, why he wasn't fighting for Callie like he had in the show.

Next chapter will pick up where I left off in previous one.

Hope you enjoyed it :)