Time went by very slowly for Linda. She and Howie were almost attached at the hip, the best of friends, wanting more even though circumstances wouldn't allow it. The guys still continued to use her at their disposal and Brian still couldn't make it past 5 minutes.
Now that they were on tour they were even more tired, and aggravated. And when you’re tired and aggravated, you take it out on someone; most of the time that someone was Linda. They explained to the press she was a long lost cousin of Howie's since they had the same racial background.
One day somewhere between New York and Virginia, Linda got up went into the kitchen; she didn't say anything. Alex had established a rule that she wasn’t to speak to one of the guys unless spoken to. Of course that didn't apply to Howie, because they spoke all the time. The guys were not on good terms with Howie… after several escape attempts they figured out he was helping her.
The guys were all eating breakfast in the tour bus kitchen; Howie got up and made room for her to sit down. She didn't look so good to him.
"Yuck Linda you look like shit." Nick said.
"I know kinda...green." Brian said and made a disgusted face. Kevin simply glanced her way, he didn't say much to her anymore. He was seeing someone although that didn't stop him from sneaking into her bunk every now and then.
"Maybe that’s what happens when you don't serve your men the way your suppose to.” Alex said and went back to attacking his frosted flakes.
"Fuck you." Linda said to him. Just because they treated her so badly didn't mean she hadn't lost her spunk. All the guys went back to eating their breakfast. Howie offered her some cereal but she didn't want it. Her tummy was a little upset. No big deal to her, the guys always made her feel sick. The guys began to get into a heated argument over a woman’s place in America. Linda let her mind wander off, she tried to think of something else besides the nauseous feelings she was having.
She snapped back out of it to hear Alex say, "All women should be like Linda. There when you need them and pretty much behaved."
That was it!! Linda was going to throw-up, and she had no trouble choosing her target...Alex. She hurled all over him and Nick had to hold him down because he looked ready to take a life.
Howie helped her to the little tiny bathroom on the bus and held her hair back for her while she threw-up some more.
Linda continued to be sick off and on for the next month and a half. One night she stood under Howie’s bunk at 11:30 like she always did. And as usual, Howie pulled her up. They snuggled next to each other.
"Are you feeling any better?" Howie asked her.
"Not really, it's probably just a bug or something that I keep catching." Linda said and yawned.
"If I didn't know any better I would say you were pregnant." He laughed while he said that.
Linda laughed with him. It wasn't until later on that night she realized that was a possibility. She had never thought about it before, she had always been irregular. It bugged her so much that she insisted that Ed the bus driver stop at the next store he saw. She got off the bus when the reached a Sav-On. Alex made Nick go in with her. She told Nick she needed tampons so he followed behind her slowly...very slowly. She swiped the pregnancy test off the shelf. ‘Old street habits die hard.’ She thought to herself. She stuck it in her purse and picked up any old box of tampons and told Nick to give her some money. He handed her a fifty and tried to get out her way. For someone who didn’t have problems having sex with her, he sure was shy when it came to women troubles. Hell he was one of her troubles.
When they got back to the bus Alex inspected her Sav-On bag and let her go; he was like a fucking jail warden to her. She went into the bathroom, making sure the rest of the guys were occupied.
‘Well here goes nothing.’ She thought to herself and followed the instructions very carefully. The 5 minutes she had to wait seemed like 5 hours and she swore she wouldn't look until they were up. She had about a minute and a half left. Suddenly Brian burst into the restroom, Linda jumped a mile. She tried to snatch up the test before he could see, but it was too late he grabbed it.
"Oh God Linda I'm telling on you." Brian said and opened his mouth to scream something. She quickly put her hand over his mouth.
"Wait Brian, I don't know if its positive yet, so just don’t say anything."
"Well I will tell you if it’s positive or not, just read me the instructions." He said. He seemed eager to spill the beans.
Linda read them to him, "Pink positive, blue negative." She said and closed her eyes.
The second she opened them; she could already hear Brian’s big giant mouth telling all the guys she was "knocked-up".
Then she heard Alex coming toward the bathroom…
