****
“How you doin’?” Joey teased as he screeched to a halt next to Mel in the empty hall. He was driving one of the motorized security carts with Lance seated in the passenger side. “Would you like a ride little girl?” Joey asked with a wink.
“It’s about time. I was beginning to think everybody left me here. I’ve been walking around for ages looking for a face I recognized,” Mel explained with her hands on her hips. “But I’m afraid I’m going to have to decline your offer. My mother told me never to associate with strange men such as yourself,” she said turning up her nose and preparing to walk away only to be nearly run over by another cart, this one being driven rather erratically by Chris.
“Look who I found!” he squealed as he parked the vehicle and bounced off. “I don’t think you two have met yet have you?” Chris asked Mel. “Wade Robson this is Mel…Sam’s friend, you remember Sam right?”
“Yeah, she’s your assistant right Lance?” the young blonde man asked.
“Among other things,” Joey snickered as Lance blushed and gave a wide smile as conformation of the changes in their relationship.
Wade smirked as he greeted Mel. “Nice to meet you.”
“You too,” the tall brunette said with a polite smile.
“OH MY GOSH, WADE! I’M SO GLAD TO FINALLY MEET YOU!” Jen shouted as she came out of nowhere and jumped on his back.
“Uh, hi,” he said with a worried tone. “I thought you guys had better security than this,” he said to Joey as they all laughed.
“Don’t worry Wade, she introduced herself to me the same way,” Lance chuckled.
“That’s right I did,” Jen said hoping down to the ground. “It must be my thing,” she reasoned. “Oh, I’m Jen by the way. I work for Johnny and I’m also a friend of Sam’s but let’s keep that little tidbit on the down low k? It’s not something I like to brag about,” she joked.
“What in the world has made you so cheerful today?” Mel asked.
“I guess I’m just over-excited with all the hysteria that is going around here lately,” she shrugged.
“Why don’t I believe you?”
“I don’t know. Why don’t ya?” Jen laughed giddily. “So where’s Sami?”
“Funny, I was just going to ask you guys that,” Lance said stepping off the cart.
“What’s funny about that?” Chris quipped shaking his head with confusion. “Did you guys think that was funny?” he asked the others. “Cuz I sure didn’t.”
“He’s right, it wasn’t funny,” Joey agreed.
“So you haven’t seen Sami then?” Mel asked. “That’s odd. She left me with the toddler quite awhile ago to come find you.”
“The toddler?” the four men chorused.
“Justin,” Jen answered for Mel. “Well I wonder where the Samster is.”
“I guess I’ll go find her,” Lance pouted sarcastically as he walked off, leaving the rest of them in conversation.
****
Justin stomped back into the toy room with a frown on his face, not even noticing a sleeping JC reclined on the couch. After he’d left this room earlier Britney had called him on his cell phone to wish him good luck with tonight’s show. She had sensed the forlorn tone in his voice and he, hoping he would find the sympathetic ear of a friend, told her the reason for his mood. He quickly realized his mistake when she became upset upon learning of the birthday gift he’d given Sam. Looking back on it now, it probably wasn’t the smartest thing to tell her about the earrings.
“I swear to God, if I had known the damn things would cause this much trouble, I never would have bought them,” he muttered out loud as he began to bang furiously on the keys of the arcade game in front of him. “I should’ve known she’d get all pissy and jealous…not that she has the right to…it’s not like she’s my girlfriend…not really anyway…” Justin continued to babble to himself as he abused the helpless machine. “There is nothing exclusive about our relationship at this point…I’m absolutely allowed to pursue someone else if I want to…not that I’m pursuing Sami…because I’m not…I’M NOT!” he shouted, giving up on the video game after pounding his hand on the screen one last time.
“Well now that you’ve beaten the machine into submission and showed it who’s boss, do you think you could shut up so I can get back to sleep?” JC asked, his eyes still closed as Justin took a seat in the chair opposite him.
“I didn’t even see you.”
“That’s good because I’d much rather that thing take the beating than me,” JC teased as he slid up and propped his head on the arm of the couch.
Justin let out a small laugh. “I thought you were going back to sleep.”
“I will in a minute, first lets talk about those earrings.”
“Not you too,” the younger man grumbled. “They were just a gift for a friend, that’s it.”
“A rather extravagant gift, you have to admit,” JC pointed out.
“So what, it’s not like I’m exactly strapped for cash,” Justin shrugged.
“Just because you have the means doesn’t mean you have to use them. I’m sure Sam would’ve enjoyed a small, simple gift just as much.”
“I didn’t buy them to impress her. I just thought she would like them. And the gifts Lance bought her weren’t exactly small,” Justin reminded.
JC sighed. “Yes, but he also does the little things for her too. And besides, that’s different, they’re in…”
“Love. I know. He loves her. She loves him. I KNOW this. Why does everyone feel the need to keep pointing it out to me?” he questioned, his tone becoming more agitated. “Does everyone think I’m some kind of threat to them? That I’m some horrible person that would deliberately break them up? When did I become the bad guy?”
“Whoa, calm down there Sparky,” JC said gesturing with his hands. “Nobody thinks you’re the bad guy. The feelings you have for Sam are…”
“I DON’T HAVE FEELINGS FOR HER! Not anymore.”
“Okay, lets say hypothetically then,” he corrected. “IF you had feelings for Sam, it’s not something you would exactly have control over anyway and it wouldn’t make you a bad person. The only way you end up the bad guy is if you were to act on those feelings.”
“And that’s not gonna happen. I would never do that,” Justin stressed.
“Right, because you don’t have feelings for her,” JC smirked.
“Right. So are we done?”
“We’re done.”
“Good. Now where did you disappear to after the meeting?” Justin asked curiously.
JC smiled smugly, closing his eyes and folding his hands behind his head as he answered. “I was around.”
****
Sam sat at the end of the stage, her legs crossed in front of her as she stared absent-mindedly out into the venue. Lance stood watching her for a moment before announcing his presence. She was still wearing the red bandana over her hair. It was a well matched accessory to her old, worn out pair of denim, short overalls and the red ringer tee with white piping around the collar and sleeves that she had chosen this morning. She had begun twisting the laces of her white canvas tennis shoes around her fingers, as her thoughts still seemed to be somewhere else.
“I heard you were looking for me,” Lance said startling her as he took a seat next to her.
Sam smiled, slightly embarrassed that he had caught her so off guard. “Yeah, I was.”
“Did you just give up and figure that I’d eventually show up out here?” he teased.
“No, I just kind of ended up here,” she shrugged.
“Hmm, and you’ve just been sitting here all this time for no reason?”
“Is this a formal questioning Detective Bass?”
“No,” Lance chuckled, gently nudging her arm with his own. “I’m just saying that I think there’s probably a reason you were drawn to this particular area of the venue.”
“So now we’re playing psychoanalyst huh? Do I get to play a role too?” Sam asked excitedly clapping her hands together.
Lance smiled. “This could all be yours someday you know,” he said gesturing out to the venue and the many workers preparing for the live broadcast.
“I doubt that,” she said rolling her eyes. “Who said I wanted it anyway?” she asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Don’t even try it,” he said shaking his head. “I know you and even more, I know that look in your eyes when you’re singing. I noticed it right away that night at the karaoke club. You love it, that feeling of being onstage, the adrenaline rush, losing yourself in the performance, all of it. I even saw it last night at the club when you were doing your little table dance,” he laughed.
“Are you sure that wasn’t just the alcohol?” Sam retorted. “That is definitely not one of my most proud moments. I’m sorry for being such a drunken, teasing whore.”
“Oh hush. You’re not a tease and you are certainly no where near close to being a whore. Stop worrying about it. It was a fun night. Everybody had a good time, probably not as good as you though,” he kidded as she let out a small laugh. “But stop trying to change the subject.”
“Was I doing that?” she smiled innocently.
“Yes,” he answered, sliding his hand under hers and interlocking them together. “I know we’ve joked around about it and everything, but I’m completely serious when I say that you have the talent and I’ll do anything I can to help you if you decide to pursue a music career. Or stay completely out of it, whatever you want. The only thing I can’t do for you is give you is the passion to make it happen, that has to come from you,” he finished, locking his vibrant, green eyes with the deep brown of hers.
“Do I have to decide right now?” Sam asked sheepishly.
“Nope. I’m not going anywhere,” Lance smiled warmly before leaning in to give her a light kiss. “But there is something you do have to do for me right now,” he said standing up and pulling her with him.
“What?”
“Tim, can you turn this mic on please?” Lance shouted to their sound engineer who was standing at the boards as he left Sam standing at the front of the stage and walked back to the five microphone stands and selected one.
“All set,” Tim hollered back as Lance handed the microphone to an unsuspecting Sam.
“Sing for me,” Lance said simply.
“Sing for you? Why?”
“Why not?” he replied hopping off the stage and taking a seat in the front row. “It’s been a while since you’ve really sang for me. I sing for you every night.”
“Yeah, me and twenty thousand other people, and that’s your job,” Sam replied.
“Well since I’m your boss I just decided that it’s part of your job too. Now sing for me. Please?” he begged, pouting his lower lip.
“Fine,” she exhaled. “What do you want me to sing?”
“Whatever you want. It’s your show,” he answered with a wink.
Sam closed her eyes and took a deep breath as she searched her mind for a song. She reopened them and smiled brightly at Lance as she thought of the perfect expression and began singing. Lance was also beaming as he felt all of the emotions she was vocalizing in her rendition of “Music of My Heart”.
Kevin, one of the keyboardists, had been onstage awaiting sound check and joined in with Sam as she continued through what had always been one of her favorite songs. She tried not to be distracted as all of the crewmembers and HBO representatives slowly stopped what they were doing to listen. Lance kept eye contact with her continuously and somehow made her feel like they were the only two people in the venue. Eventually the rest of the guys along with Dani, Jen, and Mel joined Lance in the audience.
As she finished the crowd gave her a generous applause. The most energetic, and humorous, coming from her friends seated directly in front of her. They were all standing on the chairs whistling and clapping enthusiastically. Chris was comically pumping his fists in the air calling for an encore as Jen and Mel shouted a continuous round of “Go Sami”. The young brunette blushed severely and did a silly curtsy bow before blowing kisses and mockingly wiping away fake tears.
“Wow, she really can sing,” Joey commented. “You guys weren’t lying.”
“She’s definitely more than his assistant too,” Wade laughed as Lance jumped back on the stage and wrapped his arms tightly around her waist, lifting her feet of the floor.
“That was so good,” he praised, kissing her cheek.
“Thank you, it was pretty fun for me too. But you already knew that didn’t ya?” she smiled as he sat her back down.
“I had a hunch,” Lance giggled.
“That was wonderful Samantha,” Johnny said placing his hand on her back as he walked onto the stage. “You’ve really got something there.”
“Back off, she’s already got representation,” Lance joked with his manager.
“Oh that’s how it is?” the man chuckled. “Now I hate to break up the party, but you guys do need to do a run-through.”
“Yeah,” Justin said, the whole group now onstage with their choreographer. “So give me my microphone and get off my stage woman!” he said playfully shoving her.
Sam pushed him back and tapped him on the head with the mic before returning it and joining the girls in the front row to heckle the guys as they rehearsed.