Gina shook her head. "Not that I know of. If we forgot anything it’s small so we can buy it when we get there." She shrugged. "And if it’s clothes I’m sure the guys won’t mind us borrowing a shirt or something. It’s all good."

Lisa smiled at her friend and looked around the room again.

"Isn’t it time you two should be going? It’s a long drive to Bowie."

Lisa and Gina turned to see Kristen sticking her head into the room.

"Maybe then the rest of us who have to go home can get ready for departure. And we also don’t have to hear the phone ring every thirty seconds because JC wants to see his woman."

"When you’re good, you’re good." Gina gave her friends an evil grin.

Kristen rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Just leave soon. As much as I like the boy I’ve talked to him way too many times today. I might even get to talk to TJ soon if you don’t leave."

"Hey, there’s nothing wrong with my boyfriend," Lisa exclaimed defensively as she threw a pillow towards the door. "Trust me on that one."

Kristen stuck her tongue out at her friend. "How do you know? You haven’t seen him in over three months and you two weren’t even dating then. What do you say to that one? Huh?"

Lisa thought for a moment. "I say, let me at him. Then I’ll have some knowledge on that subject. I think we’re ready? Are we, Gina?"

Gina nodded and picked her bag up. "Yeah, we are. See you on Sunday, Kristen."

Lisa followed Gina out the door. "Bye, Kristen. Bye, Sharon," she raised her voice to Kristen’s roommate.

As Gina and Lisa were walking out the door the phone rang. Kristen groaned.

Gina smiled. "Don’t worry we’re leaving. Just tell him that we’re gone and I’ll call him in a bit. If he says he’s going to call me tell him I have the phone off, which I will. Bye, Kris." Gina hugged her friend and walked down the hall.

Kristen closed the door behind her friends and answered the phone.

"Hi, JC."

"How’d you know it was me?"

"Because it’s been about," she paused to look at her watch, "about a half hour since you last called. So to make this short, they just left."

"Just as in how long ago?"

"About one minute ago, Jace. They heard the phone ring and got the hell out of Dodge."

"So I’m guessing they’re probably about to get in the car now. I guess I’ll call her in a few minutes."

"Oh, she also said to tell you that she’ll call you in a bit and don’t try to call her because she’s going to have the phone off." Kristen sat on the chair awaiting his obvious next question.

"Why would she have her phone off?"

"I don’t know. Maybe she wanted to get some mileage under their belts before talking to you. Maybe she wants to stop somewhere you wouldn’t like her to go so she doesn’t want to chance telling you. How should I know this, JC? I don’t know. Ask her for yourself when she calls you."

"But what if I’m not there when she calls?"

"Not there when she calls?" Kristen laughed. "JC, you’ll be sitting by the phone waiting for her call."

"Now isn’t that a bit pathetic? To sit by the telephone, not even contemplating doing something else, because someone’s going to call sometime today."

"Yeah, you’re right, JC."

"I know I am. Well, now Tyler and I know they are on their way. Now you don’t have to talk to me again today."

"Thank god for that."

"Now don’t I feel special. I bet you have to get going also."

"Yeah, I do. I still have to pack."

"Well, bye, Kristen."

"Bye, JC." Kristen hung up the phone and got an idea. She smiled as she pressed the numbers on the phone. It was answered after one ring.

"Gina?"

She laughed. "Pathetic, JC, pathetic."

~~~~~~ ~~~~~~ ~~~~~~

JC hung up the phone and shook his head with a smile on his face.

"What’s so funny, Josh?"

JC turned toward his brother. "Nothing, Tyler. Oh, the girls just left and for some reason Gina’s not putting her phone on until later. So I can’t call her."

"I think she just needs to concentrate on the road right now. Personally, I would like my girlfriend to arrive in one piece and I’m worried that if Gina’s driving and talking to you that an accident might occur. Love ya, bro, but you’re an accident waiting to happen." Tyler smiled snugly.

JC shot his own wicked smile. "Well, you’re an accident that did happen. Now, is there anything else we need to do before the girls come?"

Tyler laughed and put his hands on JC’s shoulders. "You need to relax. Everything’s going to be fine. They’re on their way and as soon as they get here you can grab Gina and not let go of her all weekend. Well, maybe at night. I don’t think mom and dad would like that very much."

"I could say the same for you, lil bro. Why are you so calm? It’s been even more time since you’ve seen Lisa and, to my knowledge, you two haven’t even kissed or anything like that. Have you?"

"First of all, I’m calm because it’s been those three months and I can wait a few more hours. Secondly, no, we haven’t kissed, but that’s all going to change this weekend."

JC watched his brother smile peacefully and it made him happy. Even thought there was a big age difference between Lisa and Tyler he trusted them together and knew she wasn’t out to get him, or have any other ulterior motives.

~~~~~~ ~~~~~~ ~~~~~~

"I’m walking on sunshine. Woah-oah-oh. I’m walking on sunshine. Woah-oah-oh. And it’s time to feel good."

Lisa watched the scenery pass before her and smiled when she saw a big sign. "Hey, look at that. ‘Welcome to Connecticut.’ Two states down and," she counted on her fingers, "five to go. Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware and, finally, Maryland. It’s weird not going home this year. My first Thanksgiving away from home, away from family."

"Well, no matter where I was for Thanksgiving it was like there was no family there. They were there physically, but not mentally." Gina looked at the gas gauge. "At this rate we can go about another two hours before we need to fill up. Unfortunately we won’t be in New Jersey by then."

Lisa studied her friend’s face as the topic was changed and knew to follow Gina’s lead. "And why would you want to stop in New Jersey? Know any hot guys from there?"

"First of all, I have JC and I only have eyes for him. Secondly, Dean’s the only guy I know from Jersey, and I don’t need to explain that one. And lastly, New Jersey only has full service gas stations. It’s illegal to pump your own gas in that state."

"Really? Imagine never in your life having to pump gas. Never having the chance to have gas flow on your hands before a date. Damn I wish I knew this because I would have went to school in that state."

"Then you wouldn’t have met me and then you wouldn’t have Tyler and you wouldn’t be going to the Chasez household for Thanksgiving and then a million girls wouldn’t be dying to be where you are." Gina glanced to the left before changing lanes.

"Use a blinker much?" Lisa teased. "That’s right. I wouldn’t be going out with this guy who just turned eighteen and wouldn’t have had to put up with you and ‘sleepygoof’ slash JC. What was I thinking?"

Gina nudged her friend’s arm. "That you are going to have the best time with your roomie and have time to spend with your boyfriend of three months that you haven’t seen in almost four. Oh, and did I forget to mention that my wonderfully annoying boyfriend will be there?"

Lisa scrunched her eyebrows. "Wonderfully annoying? Anything I should know about?"

"Oh, come on, Lisa, you know how the two of us are. We care for each other but we still manage to fight. I don’t mind though. It’s just the way we are. It shows that we care."

"I know. I’m just busting your chops, as always. I hate to say this but I have to go to the bathroom. Can we stop at that rest area up ahead?"

Gina nodded. "Sure. I think I could use a pit stop too."

Gina pulled into the rest stop and the girls went in to use the bathrooms. When Gina walked out of the ladies room she found Lisa in the gift shop.

"What’cha lookin’ at?"

Lisa looked up from the magazine. "This magazine actually has a picture of Tyler in it. Of course that goofy brother of his is in it too, but not all pictures are perfect."

Gina lifted the cover of the magazine to read the name. "’Hot Hipsters’? Why are you looking in a magazine like that?"

Lisa threw Gina an ‘as-if-you-don’t know’ look. "So you’re telling me that you have never picked up one of these magazines with JC’s face gracing the cover? Before you answer you have to swear to be honest."

Gina sighed. "I swear to be honest."

"Hold up your right hand when you say that."

Gina held up her right hand. "I swear to be honest."

Lisa smiled. "Okay. Do you swear that you’ve never had the urge to pick up one of these lovely and informational magazines with your boyfriend’s mug plastered all over them?"

"You never said if I had the urge to pick one up. Only had I."

Lisa released a big sigh. "All right already. Have you ever picked one up?"

"No, I hav-"

"Remember your oath," Lisa reminded her friend.

"Okay. Okay. So I have picked one up! So sue me. Why wouldn’t I pick up great pictures of a boyfriend I hardly see? How could I resist that smile?" She pointed to the magazine for emphasis.

"Excuse me." Gina and Lisa looked down and saw a young girl next to them. "Did you just say you were going out with JC Chasez?"

"JC Chasez?" Gina cursed herself for giving into Lisa’s antics.

The girl nodded and pointed to the magazine cover. "Yeah. Did you just say you were JC’s girlfriend?"

Gina shook her head. "No, I didn’t. I’m not going out with JC Chasez."

"Do you swear on the oath you gave your friend?"

Gina glanced at Lisa with a helpless look and gulped. She turned to the girl and did the only thing she should do, no matter how much she hated it. "I swear on my oath to my friend that I am not going out with JC Chasez," she slowly lied.

The little girl gave a triumphant smile, grabbed a copy of the magazine and went to the register so her mom could pay for it.

Gina watched the girl walk out of the store, closed her eyes and sighed.

Lisa saw her friend’s expression and put a comforting arm around her shoulders. "That must have been hard."

"You have no idea." Gina sighed once more and opened her eyes. "It’s hell not to be able to tell people about the wonderful relationship I’m in. To tell people, in Justin’s words, that I’m ‘single and ready to mingle’."

Lisa put her head on Gina’s shoulder and laughed. "Now that was bad."

Gina smiled. "Oh geez. Yes it was. Sorry about that." By the end of her apology she was holding onto the magazine rack for balance because of the laughter that overtook her. She straightened her body. "I’m okay now."

"You sure?"

"Not really, but we have to get going. We have two incredible guys waiting for us. I bet J-one of them is freaking because I haven’t called him yet." She looked her watch. "I guess now that it’s your turn to drive that it’s as good of time as any to do it."

Lisa nodded. "Good plan. Now let me grab a few things," she grabbed a few magazines and tape, "and we can go."

"I don’t even want to know what you’re planning to so with those. Do we need anything else?"

Lisa shrugged. "How about some water and maybe some pretzels or something?"

They paid for their items and continued on their journey.

~~~~~~ ~~~~~~ ~~~~~~

JC nervously looked at the microwave clock. "Why hasn’t she called me? They’ve been on the road for a long time."

"Stop pacing, Jace. I’m sure one of them will call soon."

"How can you be so calm at a time like this? Aren’t you worried about Lisa?" JC sat down at the kitchen table and bounced his knee.

Tyler smiled. "Of course I’m worried about Lisa. I really do wish they had already called but I’m sure they’re fine. Knowing them they have the radio blasting and, hopefully, are just concentrating on the road. I’m sure they’ll call soon." The phone on the wall rang. "I’m sure that’s Gina now."

JC raced to answer the phone. "Hello?"

"Hey, babe. Miss me?"

By JC’s smile Tyler knew who it was.

"But of course. Always, sweetheart. What’s wrong, Gina? Don’t lie to me."

"I’ve had my share of lying for today," she muttered.

"What was that, Gina? You’ve had enough of lying today?" JC leaned against the counter.

"Yeah." Gina leaned her head against the window and stared out. "Lisa and I just stopped at a rest stop and when I came out of the bathroom she was in the gift shop looking at magazines."

"Let me guess. She was looking at teeny-bopper magazines."

"Yup and the conversation got to where I said something about seeing pictures of my boyfriend."

JC smiled at her calling him her boyfriend. He knew he was lucky and was glad to have her confirm their relationship. "Where did the lying come in? I hope that wasn’t it."

Gina chuckled. "Thanks, Jace."

"For what?"

"For making me laugh. You know I wasn’t lying about you being my boyfriend. Then…" she trailed off as tears formed in her eyes.

JC sighed. "I can’t help you unless you tell me what’s wrong. I don’t see anything wrong yet. Tell me what happened next."

"Well, I guess a girl in the shop overheard me saying that and asked me if that was what I actually said and I hated to tell her what I had to."

"You hated to have to lie." JC’s words were a statement, not a question.

Gina nodded her head against the glass. "Yeah. I know you so don’t start feeling guilty about it. I knew this is what it would have to be like when I got involved with you."

JC sat at the table and Tyler took this as a signal to leave. JC mouthed a thanks to him. Tyler waved and walked out of the room. JC took a deep breath before speaking again.

"You know I’m going to feel bad. It’s my fault that you have to lie. If you were going out with anyone else you wouldn’t have to. I feel bad that I’m making you be untruthful. If it’s any consolation I hate not being able to tell the world that I’m going out with such an amazing and smart-"

"Pain in the butt?" Gina interrupted him.

JC smiled. "Well, I wasn’t going to put it that way, but since you did, why not. Anything else noteworthy happen on the trip?"

"Nah. Just your normal getting numbers from guys that pass you on the road and all."

"Getting numbers from guys who pass you on the road?" JC raised his eyebrows.

Gina giggled and looked at Lisa. "Yeah. We were just innocently driving along and-"

"Innocently my foot," JC heard Lisa scream. He laughed as Gina tried not to yell at her.

"As I was saying," she continued, "we were just innocently driving along and these greasy guys drove up next to us. They must have been at least forty. Well, all of a sudden the driver is taking his hands off the wheel and signing out his phone number."

"You have got to be kidding me. Please tell me there’s more to the story. Actually, don’t. I don’t know if my sides can take much more laughing." JC put his head on the table as he doubled over.

"Well, if you don’t want to hear the end."

JC took a deep breath. "Give it to me. I have to know."

"Well, since Lisa was in the passenger seat she pretended to take out a piece of paper and write it down. His exit was the next one so she pointed to the paper in front of her and blew him a kiss. I swear if there was someone next to him on that ramp there would have been an accident."

"That’s too good. Hey, Tyler, you’ve got some competition," JC told his brother as he walked back into the room.

Tyler grabbed an apple and washed it off. "What are you talking about, my demented older brother?"

JC tried to keep a straight face as he talked to Tyler. "Well, it seems like Lisa was flirting with a forty year-old today. She even wrote down his phone number." JC’s will to be serious broke when his brother’s face turned white.

Tyler lunged at JC and grabbed the phone out of his hands. "Gina?"

Gine wiped the tears from her eyes. "Yeah, Tyler?"

"Is what my brother saying true? He’s laughing so I know there’s a joke in there somewhere. Either tell me or get Lisa on the phone," he demanded.

"Touchy, touchy. Are you sure you want to talk to Lisa, TJ? She’s driving."

Tyler sighed. "I know but since I know my brother won’t tell me the truth," he sent JC a death look, "and I don’t know if you will, I want to speak to her. I’m sure she can talk to me. She can stay in the lane and talk to me at the same time."

Gina shrugged. "If you insist. Here she is." Gina handed the phone to Lisa. "It’s your boy toy."

Lisa shook her head and took the phone. "Hello? With whom am I speaking?"

"It’s Tyler, but I think you already knew that. Now what about this getting a forty year-old’s number? I know there’s a story somewhere, and by the looks of JC a funny one, but I don’t know it. Care to clue me in?"

"Yeah, I will." She checked her mirrors before continuing. "What happened was that some old guy was signing his phone number from his truck and I pretended to write it down. That’s the gist of it."

Tyler let out a sigh of relief. "So my competition, as JC put it, is a forty year-old in a truck on the highway? I think I could take him."

"That’s nice to know, TJ. Now I would love to keep talking to you but I’m driving and it looks like traffic ahead and I’d like to be alert for it."

"I understand. I’ll see you in a few hours. Drive safely."

"I will. Bye, Tyler."

"Bye, Lisa."

Tyler hung up the phone and was immediately hit in the arm.

"Ouch, Josh, what was that for?" he asked as he rubbed his sore arm.

"Let me see. Could it be because I didn’t get to say good bye to my girlfriend? That might be it. I think we’ve found a winner."

"I’m sorry, Josh. I wasn’t thinking. If you want to talk to her, call her cell. You know the number by heart and now you know it’s on. Just call and please don’t hit me again. I’m gonna have a bruise from this."

JC shrugged. "Oh well. It was your fault for hanging up. I think I’ll go upstairs and call Gina again. See ya."

Tyler shook his head as he watched his brother almost skip out of the kitchen and up the stairs.

~~~~~~ ~~~~~~ ~~~~~~

"How much longer do you think you’re going to be?"

"I don’t know, Jace. Let me put it this way. The car is not moving."

JC’s face fell. "You mean you’re still stuck on the highway? They haven’t cleared that accident yet?"

"Yup. And after that I still don’t know how much longer until we get there. I’ve never been here before. But, again, we are in Maryland so it shouldn’t be that long after the traffic clears up."

"That’s good to know. Well, I hope the traffic clears up and I can’t wait for you to get here. I want you to meet the normal people in my family. You’ve only met my brother. Speaking of him he’d like to speak to Lisa. That okay?"

"Yes, dear," Gina rolled out sarcastically. "I’ll see you soon. Bye, JC."

"Bye, Gina. Can’t wait to see you. Here’s my bro." He handed the phone to Tyler. "You’re girl wants to speak to you."

Tyler took the phone. "Lisa?" He heard shuffling for a moment before getting an answer.

"TJ?"

"Yup. What’s up?"

"Well, I was hoping you’d help me with something."

"What?"

"Well, turn to JC and look behind him. Don’t give anything away."

"How do you know that my back’s to JC?"

"Just do as I say and you’ll find out."

"Yes, ma’am." Tyler turned around and smiled.

"Whatcha smiling at, Tyler?" JC started to turn around.

"Nothing," Tyler rushed out. "Just something Lisa said about Gina."

Now he had JC’s attention.

"What did she say about Gina?"

"Umm…Well…," Tyler paused and listened to Lisa. "Well, after Gina got off the phone she decided that she couldn’t take it anymore and jumped out of the car."

JC’s eyes widened. "The car was still stopped right?"

Tyler nodded. "Of course. She’s not that crazy. Well, after that she began to run and said she wouldn’t stop until she saw you."

"Didn’t Lisa try to stop her?"

"Well, she didn’t see any point in it. She’d catch up with her at some point." Tyler turned to hide his smile.

JC placed his hand on the counter and leaned on it. "I wonder what Gina was thinking."

"Well, I don’t know. She must be blinded by her love for you, Jace."

"Very funny, bro."

Tyler opened his mouth to answer but someone beat him to it.

"Well, I thought so."

Before JC’s mouth could form any words a pair of arms slipped around his waist from the back and a face was pressed in his back. JC looked behind him and smiled when he saw the top of a familiar head. He grabbed the hands squeezing his stomach and hugged them to his chest. "So you thought that was funny?"

Gina nodded her head against his back. "Yup."

JC lifted his arms in the air, turned around and hugged Gina to his chest. Gina smiled and glanced over his shoulder.

"Tyler, I believe if you go out the front door you’ll find something you’ll like."

Tyler nodded and left the couple alone. He opened the front door and found Lisa loaded with Gina’s and her bags.

"Want some help?"

She shook her head, carried them inside and dropped them in the foyer. "Well, am I going to get a hug or what?"

"Or what?" he asked coyly.

Lisa shook her head and opened her arms. They both hugged the other tightly before stepping back a little. They stared at each other before awkwardly kissing each other’s cheek. Lisa raised her brown eyes to his hazel ones.

"What do you say we break up the couple in there?"

Tyler nodded and put his arm around her as they turned. "It looks like we were beaten to it."

~~~~~~ ~~~~~~ ~~~~~~

JC watched his brother walk away. "I can’t believe he’s going out with a twenty one year-old. My little brother."

Gina raised an eyebrow. "Anything wrong with going out with a twenty one year-old?"

JC smiled. "Of course not. It’s just that he’s my little brother. Do you understand what I’m saying?"

Gina nodded. "I was just giving you a hard time. You know how much I love to do that."

"Of course I do. Now it’s my turn to do that to you."

She raised both eyebrows at this. "And how are you going to accomplish that one?"

He smiled evilly. "Like this." He leaned in and gave her a soft kiss. He began to increase pressure on her lips but pulled back suddenly. Before she could open her mouth his was on hers again, but, again, before she could respond he removed his.

"Oh, come on, JC. Don’t you think you’ve done enough?"

He kissed her left temple. "Nope." He kissed her right temple. "This," he kissed her forehead, "is," he kissed her left cheek, "what," he kissed her right cheek, "you," he kissed her right eye, "get," he kissed her left eye, "for," he kissed the left corner of her mouth, "teasing," he kissed the right corner of her mouth, "me." He kissed her mouth quickly.

"Damn, boy," Gina groaned. "You’ve made your point. I can’t take it anymore." She led him to one of the kitchen chairs and pushed him on it. Before he could try to get up she sat on his lap. "That’s better. Now if you’d excuse me there’s something I have to do." Without another word she lowered her head to his and placed her lips on his.

JC’s eyes widened at her boldness but relaxed as the electricity surged through his body. He wrapped his arms around her waist, securing her on his lap.