"THIS is where you wanted to go?" Justin asked a very excited Liz.

She looked at him and gave the infamous pout that he had used on her several times before. "Justin…" She started as she walked up to him, put her hands on his chest and batted her eyelashes sweetly. "You said that we could go ANYWHERE to celebrate my job offer from your mom."

Justin couldn't help but laugh at the site of her. She had learned far to fast how to get what she wanted from him. He smiled down at her and leaned in to kiss the tip of her nose. "I know that's what I said but I didn't think you wanted to go HERE to celebrate."

He pulled her closer to him and wrapped his arms around her waist. He leaned in and placed a loving kiss on her neck before raising his head and whispering in her ear. "I thought you'd like to go somewhere a little more private…" He started as he ran his tongue across her earlobe. "So I could show you how happy I am for having you stay here in Florida."

Liz giggled against his body as he continued to try to convince her to change her mind and leave this place.

She felt his arms tighten around her even more and his chest pressed up against hers. If she stayed in this position another second, she would jump back in the car and take him home so he could show her his appreciation – but she was on a mission. She really wanted to go to the place they were at since she arrived in Florida and she was determined to have Justin be here with her.

She sighed heavily as he breathed into her ear, sending her senses into overdrive. She took a deep breath and with all the strength she had, pushed him away from her. She placed her hands on her hips and glared at him.

"Justin, we have plenty of time for that later, now come on. They just opened and there's not a lot of people here."

Justin rolled his eyes and slumped his shoulders in defeat. He stepped forward and latched his fingers with hers allowing himself to be dragged towards the ticket booth.

After Liz paid for the two of them – much to Justin's protesting, then made their way through the park.

"Ebby, why wouldn't you let me pay? This is suppose to be YOUR day." He said as they rounded a big maple tree and leaned against the railing by the pond.

Liz placed both her hands on the rail and spoke to him but didn't take her eyes off the Flamingos that were swimming in the water. "Justin, because if I let you pay, then you'd say that it was your money and you weren't going to waste it by coming here and doing what I'm about to make you do."

Justin was confused and didn't like the sound of that. He turned his body to rest his hip on the wooden rail and crossed his arms over his chest. "And exactly WHAT are you going to make me do?"

She grinned evilly at him as her face slowly slid towards him and she pointed over his shoulder.

He gave her a questioning glance before looking at the place she was pointing to. His eyes widened in shock when he read the sign outside the building she was talking about.

He returned his eyes to Liz and violently shook his head in protest. "NO WAY! There's no way in HELL that you're getting me in there." He yelled as he started to walk away from her.

She laughed whole heartily at him and caught up to his retreating form, grabbed his arm and drug him towards the building.

He tried to beg her to change her mind but she kept telling him that the more he argued, the more people would look at him and possibly recognize him.

For the first time since joining 'Nsync, he took that as a GOOD thing and yelled again. "AH, LET ME GO!" He looked at her smiling face and did it again. "HELP! GET THIS LUNATIC OFF ME!"

Liz just pulled harder on his arm. "Justin, would you just be quiet. We'll walk through it really fast and you can even keep your eyes closed if you're that much of a chicken."

Justin did NOT like being called that. "Ebby, I'm not a chicken, I just don't like….OH NO!" He yelled as the two of the entered the building – against his will. "Where's my bodyguard when I really need him?" He said and got a few questioning looks from the people at the entrance.

Liz stopped midway through the door and let go of his arm. "Justin, if you insist on making a fool of yourself and causing everyone in here to know who you are, then go right ahead but I'm going inside to look around."

She slid her body through the door, leaving Justin behind. He looked around, debating if he really wanted to go in there. He gave an elderly woman a nod when she smiled at him.

"Dear, never go against a woman. Think about how happy she will be later if you follow her in there." The lady said to him as she patted him on his shoulder.

He watched her walk away and it took all of a second for him to realize he could use this to his advantage if he went in there with Liz. He took a deep breath, put his fears aside and walked in the building.

He looked around the place and shivered at what he saw. The long, slimy looking bodies of the inhabitants inside made him shake with fear but he knew he HAD to find Liz.

He searched very carefully for his girlfriend, trying not to look into the glass boxes that surrounded the area. When he finally found her, his eyes lit up.

She was standing by another guy and was smiling warmly at the stranger. Justin crept closer to her but kept his distance. He was beyond disgusted at what they were doing. He wanted to turn and run out of the building but the MAN in him wouldn't allow himself to run now. He had come this far and couldn't turn back.

He took another deep breath and glared at the two of them as he closed the distance between them. Liz changed her line of vision from the guy beside her to Justin. She smiled brightly, glad he had come inside.

She moved her hands around and nearly lost what she was holding when she waved him over to her.

Justin cringed as he took those last few steps to her. "Um, okay, I've seen this place. Now, can we go?" He asked hesitantly, hoping she was ready to leave. It gave him the creeps.

She smiled as sweetly as she could to him. "Oh, honey, but I thought you'd like to hold my friend here." She said as she held her arms out and placed her 'friend' on his outstretched arms that he had lifted to try to protest – for the umpteenth time.

The guy beside Liz walked up to Justin and helped him with her 'friend'. Justin froze and thought he was going to have a heart attack at that moment. "Oh my Lord, get this thing off me." He whispered, not wanting to raise his voice any louder than that.

Liz stepped back from him and changed her sweet smile to an evil one. She reached inside her bag and brought out a camera. She pointed it at him and took several photos of him and his new 'friend'.

When she was satisfied with the shots she got, she lowered the camera and came up to him. She reached her hand up to his face and lightly smacked him on the cheek several times. "You know, I never did thank you properly for that little plan you went along with that the guys had going."

His face lit up and he knew he was in BIG trouble. "Um, but I…" He started to apologize but she wasn't hearing any of it.

She placed her fingers up to his lips to keep him quiet. "Honey, don't even try to weasel your way out of this. You went along with those goons and let me make a complete fool of myself in front of Britney and so many other people. Now, I couldn't think of how to repay you for that but I think this was pretty good on my part, what do you say?" She asked, raising an eyebrow to him.

He slumped his shoulders but almost dropped the object in his arms and jumped a little when it moved. "Oh Ebby, PLEASE, whatever I have to do to make it up to you I will. Just get this SNAKE off me."

Liz busted out laughing. Justin stood in front of her with a 5 foot Columbian Boa Constrictor in his arms. The snake was harmless but to Justin, it was the scariest thing he had experienced. She knew he hated snakes and figured this would be the BEST way to get him back.

They had come to the zoo for that one reason only.

She chuckled to herself a second more before nodding to the guy beside Justin. The animal keeper slowly lifted the snake off of him and walked away to place it back in its cage.

Justin shook the feeling of it off him and began dancing around. "Ugh, I'm gonna have snake slim on me all day."

Liz just rolled her eyes. "Justin, snakes aren't slimy. Gees. You really are a baby." She said as she came up to him and placed both hands on his shoulders to make him stop moving.

He looked at her and stuck out his lower lip. He put on his best pout and asked for forgiveness. "So, does this mean you forgive me now?" He asked, hoping she wasn't mad at him any longer.

She smiled at him and slid her arms from his shoulders to the back of his neck. She pulled him down to her level and before her lips touched his, she said to him: "I never was mad, I just wanted to see how long you'd keep that snake on you." She grinned as she leaned closer to kiss him but he pulled away.

"WHAT? You weren't even mad at me for going along with that lame idea that Lance started?" He couldn't believe she said that.

Liz's eyes merged together and she got a determined look on her face. "So, it was Lance's idea, huh? Well, I'll have to have a talk with him later." She said as her face softened. "But back to what you asked, yes I was mad at first but I got over that. I just wanted to see how sorry you really were."

Justin pulled her back to him and got an evil look of his own on his face. "So, I guess its my turn to see how sorry you are for making me hold that huge snake a minute ago." He said as Liz tightened her hold on his neck.

"What did you have in mind?" She asked raising an eyebrow to him.

He merely smiled and kissed her gently on her lips. "Oh, I'll think of something – maybe involving a long weekend somewhere tropical, a string bikini and lots of sunscreen?"

Liz loved the idea of that. "I'm liking that plan. Make me sorry, Justin. PLEASE make me sorry." She said as Justin busted out laughing at her.

"Oh, you have no idea what I have in store for you now." He said as he leaned closer to her and touched her lips with his.

She smiled against his mouth and knew she was in for an adventure now.

For the past few months, so much had happened to her that she never expected. She had changed everything she THOUGHT was right and replaced it all with what FELT right. She was doing the things that made her happy and made a mental note to give her old classmate Autumn a call and thank her for not taking the summer internship.

If it hadn't been for her declining the job, Liz would probably be living out her life unhappy and alone but instead, she had a new outlook on life and in her arms, had the man of her dreams.

THE END…Well, not really. Stay tuned for what happens next >>>>>>>

Continue the story here:A Cry in the Dark
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