The big screen rolled down and the lights lowered. Lance and the rest of the group slipped from behind the partitions to in back of the screen. Music filled the auditorium and the sweet voices of *NSYNC filled the speakers of the sound system. Elaine sat with Lynne on one side and Rickii on the other and they starred at the handsome faces they had come to love and adore over the last six or seven years. Each time Lance was on the screen, Elaine looked with longing into those absolutely sexy eyes of his and wished with every fiber of her being that he was there to see her graduate.
About halfway into the song, the screen went blank, but the sound continued. Everyone just thought something was wrong with the screen. All of a sudden, the screen lifted and there stood five angels in white singing their hearts out. As the song ended, they walked over to where Elaine sat and their famous closing from years before was directed at her. She could not contain herself any longer. They had totally blown her away. She jumped up and hugged each and everyone of them. She purposely saved Lance for last. He got the longest hug and she whispered in his ear, "Thank you for being here for me, always."
"Where else would we be," Lance whispered as he took in the scent of her perfume. Somehow, it felt different hugging her now. She felt different, somehow.
The applause thundered in the auditorium and the guys took their seats with Gwen and her two sons. Mr. Dennis thanked the guys for making it a memorable graduation and then invited everyone to join them for refreshments in the fellowship hall afterwards. They had a closing prayer and the new graduates marched out.
Elaine waited by the door for the guys to come into the fellowship hall. Joey and Chris were the first. They saw her and grabbed her for a group hug.
"We are so proud of you, Sissy. You have done so well and we are so glad we could make it." Chris was emotional about this.
"You look awesome, little one," was Joey's comeback. "Except, you are not so little anymore. You're all grown up, now."
"Where's the graduate?" bellowed JC, as he came through the door. "Come here and give me a hug." Elaine was so happy to have them there for this special time in her life.
"Where are Lance and Justin?" inquired Elaine.
"They are talking to the pastor," offered JC.
Finally, Justin came through the door with a big grin on his face. "Now this is a graduation, not as big as mine was," he puffed out his chest recalling the surprise graduation they had for him in 2000 in Memphis, TN. during their concert tour, "but, this is definitely some graduation."
"Thank you Justin, I'm so glad you guys could be here. But how did you manage it? Mom said you had so many things to do at the last minute for the tour."
"We made your Mom promise not to let you know we were coming," said Chris.
"Oh my, you guys are real devils, ya know?"
Just then, the door opened and Lance came through, still talking to the pastor. "Thank you so much for adding to the graduation ceremony," Pastor Jeremiah expressed. "You have made this a memorable evening for all of us."
"It was our pleasure, Pastor Jeremiah. We wouldn't have missed this night for anything. Gwen and Elaine are very special to us," Lance commented as he looked for Elaine in the room. He spotted Justin's curly head and figured they must be with Elaine. "Thank you again, Pastor, for allowing us to be part of this."
As they shook hands, Pastor Jeremiah offered Lance and the group a blessing. "May God keep you safe on the road and give you the desires of your heart as long as you stay focussed on Him."
"Thank you." Lance turned to walk to where he hoped Elaine would be. He was still feeling the strangeness he felt when he hugged her after the song. Somehow, there was something different about Elaine and it unnerved him. Finally, he saw her smiling and talking with the rest of the guys. Her smile was even different, more knowing, more mature.
Elaine's maturity had always amazed him. There were times she was more mature than some of the girls he had dated. "Well, there is my star Science Student," complimented Lance. He was grinning from ear to ear.
Upon hearing his deep voice, Elaine felt as though her heart had jumped into her throat. She turned and gave him the biggest smile she could muster. "I could not have made it without you, Lance. You kept me together and kept me going," she said as she ran towards him and threw her arms around his neck in a long, lingering hug.
