CHAPTER 7
"Zoe? Are you awake?" Ayla asked from the doorway of the darkened room.
"Unfortunately."
"Phone's for you. It's Justin."
Zoe picked up the extension in her room. "Hello," she sighed. She really wasn't ready for another conversation. The last one had ended with both of them crying because of some ridiculous fight. There was no way she was going to make a repeat of last time.
"Hi there," Justin said into the static-trimmed cell phone. "How are you?"
Depressed, angry, sad as hell, Zoe wanted to say. "Fine."
"No you're not. I can tell."
"Justin, please. I miss you o.k. I don't want to get into another fight like last time."
"I know. Look, are you going to come see us over Thanksgiving?"
"No, Justin. I'm not. I told you before I have to go home for Thanksgiving. My family hasn't seen me in seven months. As much as I don't want to, it's just something I have to do."
"I understand," he replied quietly, not letting his anger and disappointment show in his voice. Zoe and Ayla had come out to see them two weeks before when they were in Mississippi. Ayla had gotten the chance to meet all of Lance's family and friends from back home. "Is Ayla coming out?" Before Zoe could answer she heard a voice yell in the background. "When's Ayla coming? Are you talking to Ayla?"
"No, let Lance know that Ayla isn't coming either. She has to see her family too."
"No, Lance, she isn't coming," Zoe heard Justin whisper to the side. There was an awkward silence when Justin came back on the line.
"So, how are you doing?" Zoe asked, hoping to lighten the mood of the conversation. "Met any crazy fans in the past two weeks that you haven't told me about?"
"I'm exhausted and the other day, a fan tried to climb into J.C.'s suitcase, but that's pretty normal for us," Justin said. "And I miss you."
"I miss you too," Zoe said, trying to control the lump that was quickly forming in her throat. "God, why does this have to be so hard?"
"That's life, I guess," Justin replied not really knowing what else to say. "Nightingale, I hate to cut this short, but we're at the hotel and I need some sleep."
"O.k., I'll talk to you later then."
"I love you."
"I love you too," Zoe whispered as she hung up the phone and sobbed herself to sleep.
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"Lance, did you not get enough sleep or something? You're starting to lose your temper and that's not like you," Ayla said hoarsely into the phone. Zoe watched as her friend's face tensed, obviously due to something Lance had said.
"Look, when you decide to be in a better mood, call me back!" Ayla cried, hanging up the phone as her face crumpled into tears. Zoe got up walked over to her friend. Ayla turned and cried into her shoulder.
"I hate this long distance shit," she sobbed.
"So do I," Zoe replied. It was a week before Christmas and both the girls hadn't seen Lance or Justin since October. Over Thanksgiving, their families had begged them not to go back to Florida. Zoe had been furious when her mom told her she had sent in a couple applications to really great colleges back home. She was not about to let her mother plan the rest of her life. Ayla had spent the past few days after Thanksgiving sleeping and crying. The depression both of them were feeling was not enjoyable. I didn't think love hurt this much, Zoe thought to herself, still holding her friend's shaky frame. She realized that what she really wanted was to lay in the arms of someone who was fond of every inch of her skin. "And I'm going to do something about it," she whispered.
"What?" Ayla asked, wiping the last of her tears away.
"I'll tell you later. Right now, I've got a few phone calls to make."
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"How are you guys holding up?" J.C. asked.
"Fine," Justin replied.
"Never better," Lance said with a fake smile.
J.C. looked to Joey and Chris, then back at Lance and Justin. He knew that those two just gave him the biggest B.S. of the entire century.
"When are the girls coming to see us again?" Chris asked tentatively.
"I have no idea," Lance responded. "Ayla and I got into a fight last time I talked to her. I called her back and apologized for being an asshole but she didn't say anything about coming to see me very soon."
"Neither did Zoe," Justin added. "In fact, she told me she wasn't sure if they were even going to make it to see us on Christmas. I can't believe we have a concert on Christmas," he said disgustedly. "I just want to go home."
"I know how you're feeling, man," Joey said, giving him a pat on the back. "Don't worry though. I'm sure the girls will find some way to come and see you guys."
"Let's hope so," Lance said, walking out of the room so the others wouldn't see the tears that were threatening to fall from his eyes.
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"Thanks, Johnny................ I really appreciate this.........No, no, they won't see us until after the show...........Look, I promise, o.k.?...........See ya soon. Bye," Zoe sighed as she hung up the phone. Arguing for the past three hours was not something her body was up for. But it had paid off and now she had a plan. All she had to do was figure out how it was going to work.
"Ayla?" Zoe called into the kitchen.
"Yeah?"
"Pack your bags. We've got a plane to catch tomorrow."
"WHAT??" Ayla cried, slowly walking into the living room. "What do you mean, 'we have a plane to catch?'"
"I've just spent the last three hours hassling Johnny to let us tour with the guys for a week. I just figured you'd need some clothes," Zoe shrugged.
Ayla stared at her in shock. The next instant Zoe found herself tackled on the floor with Ayla yelping for joy.
"How did you do it, Zoe? Do they know we're coming? We get to spend Christmas with them? Oh, God, what am I going to wear?"
"Well if Lance were answering the last question, the answer would probably be "nothing," Zoe laughed. She laughed even harder as Ayla joined in, and soon, the girls found themselves rolling on the floor, with tears of joy falling down their faces. Neither of them had laughed like this in weeks.
"What about my photo shoot?" Ayla asked, gaining control of herself once more.
"C'mon Ayla. What's more important? You doing an ad that you could always do again later, or seeing Lance for the first time in two months?"
"No contest," Ayla said with a grin as both girls ran to quickly pack their bags.
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"Damn it," Justin cursed as he slammed down the phone. No one was answering at Ayla and Zoe's apartment.
"Nobody home?" Lance asked from the other side of the hotel room.
"Not a goddamned soul," Justin sighed. "Christmas Eve is tomorrow and I have no clue where Zoe is or where she's going."
"Well, she's a big girl, Justin. I'm sure she can take care of herself."
"Easy for you to say. I know you're thinking the same thing about Ayla, so don't try to pull any crap with me." Justin turned as there was a knock on the door.
"You guys ready for the soundcheck?" J.C. asked from the doorway.
"Yeah, we're coming," Justin replied, leaning his head against the doorframe.
"Justin, I know you and Lance aren't in the greatest of moods but we do have a show to put on and...."
"We know, J.C. We know. The personal life doesn't go onstage. It hasn't yet and we're not about to start now," Justin said, shutting the door angrily in J.C.'s face.
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"We've got exactly one hour before they get back to the hotel. They're on a schedule tonight because tomorrow is their only day off for the holiday," Zoe informed Ayla as they rode the elevator to the floor where *NSYNC was staying. "So, whatever you're going to do, you'd better make it fast."
The elevator stopped and Zoe and Ayla filed out. Looking around, they found the suite where the guys were staying.
"I think we should just wait in the main living room until they get here," Ayla said.
"Good idea," Zoe agreed. "I can't wait to see the look on their faces. I hope it's a happy look and not an angry one though."
"I think they'll be happy," Ayla assured her. "You're sure Johnny didn't say anything to them?" she asked, seating herself on the gigantic sofa.
"Positive. I made him promise me as part of the deal. He wouldn't tell the guys we were coming and we had to wait until after the show tonight to see them."
"I wish we could have gone to the concert," Ayla complained. "I haven't seen a good show in a long while."
"I know what you......" Zoe paused and turned her head. She heard slowly approaching footsteps, but there was definitly more than one person. "Ayla, I think they're coming," Zoe whispered as she ran to hide behind one of the curtains over the balcony window. Ayla jumped behind the couch just as the door was opening.
"That was a great show," Ayla heard Joey exclaim as he entered the room.
"Yeah, it was," Justin agreed with a small smile. "Except for when Lance fell."
"That was not my fault!" Lance cried. "The stage was wet from Chris spilling his bottle of water."
"I didn't spill it!! J.C. did!!"
"Don't even blame me!" J.C. yelled as the five men laughed together. Zoe wasn't sure if she could take much more, knowing that Justin was only a few feet away from her arms. She peeked around the edge of the curtain and saw that Justin and J.C.'s backs were completely turned to her. Lance was standing at an angle with his back to the couch while Joey and Chris stood next to him to complete the circle. She ducked back behind the curtain as she saw Johnny walk into the room.
"Great show tonight, guys. You all did very well," he said, looking at each of them in turn.
"Thanks, Johnny," Lance said, the others following soon after. "Is it alright if we turn in now?"
"No, actually it's not."
"What?" Justin questioned. "Why can't we go to sleep?"
Come on Johnny. Zoe prayed. Don't blow this now.
"Because I think I need to have a talk with all of you, that's all," he replied lamely. His statement was met with five curious looks.
"Well, start talking," Lance said as he seated himself on the couch. Ayla stood up slowly behind him and watched the shocked expressions of the other four men as she placed a finger to her lips to keep them quiet. She was trying hard not to burst into uncontrollable laughter. She leaned down in what seemed like slow motion to whisper in Lance's ear.
"Fine, I will."
Lance jumped and twirled around. The expression on his face changed from shock to sheer delight in about one microsecond. In the next microsecond he was over the couch and picking Ayla up off the ground.
"WHEN DID YOU GET HERE?" he hollered. Before she could answer he was kissing her and spinning her around.
"If you'd let me breath for a minute, I'd tell you," she said as she pulled away from him. "I've been here for about an hour, waiting for you slowpokes to get finished with your teenyboppers." She scanned the rest of the men's faces, all of whom were smiling, except Justin.
"Is Zoe here?" he asked quietly, gazing around the room.
"She didn't come with me," Ayla said, acting as upset as she possibly could without laughing her ass off. "I'm sorry Justin."
"Hey, that's o.k.," he replied, looking towards the door. He really wanted to run out of it before he started screaming.
Zoe knew it was her cue to come out. Stepping stealthily from behind the curtain, she shushed the guys with a look and tiptoed up behind Justin.
"Penny for your thoughts," she whispered, wrapping her arms around his waist. She felt him stiffen, then heard him laugh.
"You sure do know how to torture a guy," he said, shaking his head as he spun around and kissed her. She tried to pull away and explain what was going on, but he pulled her closer and slipped his tongue into her mouth. She succumbed to the moment as the other guys hooted and hollered.
"Hey, Hey, HEY!!" Chris yelled. "You kids shouldn't be doing stuff like that!"
Justin and Zoe laughed against each others lips and slowly pulled apart.
"Now, would you mind explaining what the hell is going on?" J.C. asked.
Zoe and Ayla both started to speak, but Johnny beat them to it. "The girls are going to tour with you guys for the next week," he said, his face breaking out into a wide grin.
"Are you SERIOUS?" Lance asked increduously. Ayla nodded as Lance grabbed her in another huge hug.
The next couple hours the girls spent with all of the guys, laughing and catching up on the past two months. The boys had all sorts of interesting fan stories to tell the girls about, not to mention some of the more nuttier interviews. J.C. was the first to break the merriment with a yawn.
"I'm definetly ready to turn in," he proclaimed, stretching his arms above his head. "I'm glad you ladies are coming with us and I'll see you in the morning.
"Goodnight, J.C.," the others called to him. After that, it was a collective agreement that everyone should retire for the evening. Zoe kissed Justin goodnight before she and Ayla headed off to their room and fell asleep dreaming about their boys.