~*~*Chapter 3*~*~
"Home at last!" Nick said, walking into his house in Tampa. Brian turned on the light of the dark house and jumped onto the couch.
"Home for four months!" Brian corrected him. Nick nodded with a smile. All he wanted to do was sleep in his own bed, take showers in his own shower, eat in his own kitchen.
"Oh, I have to check my messages!" Nick remembered. He walked over to his machine and was not surprised to hear a message from his mother.
"I'll call her tomorrow," Nick said. When he finished he took a seat next to Brian on the couch.
"So, Nick. We have off for two months. What do you want to do for two whole months?" Brian asked. Nick shrugged.
"AJ had a good idea, Nick. He found a brochure in the airport for a world cruise. Sound good?" Brian asked.
"A cruise? Sounds cool. When do we leave?" Nick asked.
"AJ said that he would call today," Brian said.
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"I can't take it anymore!" Riana said five days later. She had been in the spotlight for a non-stop for the past four months. A ton of reporters stood at her doorstep, waiting for the second she steps out the door. She looked out the window of the apartment that she now shared with Leah and sighed. How come no one told her before about being a celebrity?
"You ready to go?" Leah asked, coming into the living room with her luggage in hand.
"Yeah, let me double check, ok?" Riana asked. Leah had offered Riana tickets to go on a world cruise that day at the mall, to get away from all the press and relax. Riana as a little hesitant to accepting considering her career had just taken off, but, looking out the window now, she was glad she said yes.
"OK. Let's go," Leah said, before running into the limo that was waiting.
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"Are we there yet?" Nick asked in the car.
"Yes, Nick. FINALLY!" Brian said, getting out of the car. Brian looked up at the huge boat that laid before him. "Woah, guys! Check this out!" he exclaimed, pointing towards the big ship.
"Damn! That is big!" Nick said.
"Well, I bet our rooms are even nicer. Let's go!" AJ said and walked up the ramp onto the ship.
"Tickets please," a woman asked at the entrance to go onboard. The boys handed her their first class suite ticket and they embarked on their "World Cruise".
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"Look at this room!" Riana exclaimed once they had gotten onto the ship.
"That's what you get when you're first class!" Leah exclaimed. She gazed at the room that lay before them. It had two separate bedrooms for the two of them, joined in the middle by a shower and bath. In the living room stood a big screen TV with plush couches.
"We get over 120 channels!" Riana exclaimed, looking at the TV guide. The two girls gushed about their rooms and the two months of summer that was in store for them.
"You know what, Ree? All this talking has made me thirsty. I saw a vending machine down the hall. Want me to get you a drink?" Leah asked.
"We can call for some drinks!" Riana rushed and grabbed the phone.
"Nah, its OK. You want anything?"
"I'll pass. See ya!" Riana said and flipped through the channels. Leah smiled at her best friend and quietly shut the door. She walked into the little snack area and inserted .75 and pressed a Dr. Pepper. After about twenty seconds of waiting, she realized that her soda was not coming.
"Damn! Come on!" Leah replied, kicking the machine.
"I doubt that will work," she heard a voice behind her say. She turned around quickly, and found herself staring at a brown-eyed stranger.
"Well, this is well earned 75 cents!" Leah joked.
"The name's AJ." He said. He stuck out his hand and Leah shook it.
"Leah," she replied, smiling.
"Well, Leah. The best way to get your soda is by kicking it even harder," AJ said and kicked the vending machine.
"That didn't work," Leah told him the obvious. The two of them continued to kick the vending machine until AJ gave it one last kick, sending all types of sodas to pour out.
"Oh, shit!" AJ exclaimed as the cans of soda overflowed them.
"Hey! You two!" a staff member called.
"Run!" Leah screamed and they two of them ran down the hall.
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"Where is she?" Riana asked herself. Leah had left to get her soda about an hour and a half ago, and still hadn't returned. It was nearly 11:00 and Riana was tired from their ride to the dock, so she got dressed in her pajamas and snuggled into her waterbed in her own room and fell into sleep.
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"REE! ARE YOU SLEEPING??" Leah asked her friend.
"Yes!" Riana whispered.
"You will never believe me! I met the most AMAZING guy tonight!" Leah gushed.
"Tell me in the morning, Leah." Riana mumbled and rolled onto her stomach.
"How can you be tired?"
"It's 3:30 in the morning. Leave me alone." Riana said.
"Ok, ok, chill! I'll see you in the morning," Leah said and walked into her room. __________________________
"Nick!! Wake up!" AJ said, jumping onto Nick's bed.
"Oh, AJ what the hell do you want? It's 3:30 in the morning," Nick grumbled.
"I just met the most amazing girl tonight!" AJ said.
"Yeah yeah. Tell me in the morning."
"And she also has a single friend...."AJ hinted.
"That's nice. Brian is single, go ask him."
"Grouchy. We'll talk in the morning."
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