Morgan jumped gratefully into the shower and let the warm water cascade over her. She was enjoying the relaxing feeling of the steam against her as it washed away all of the stress of the airport, the plane ride and Nick especially.
Drying herself off, Morgan pulled out something to wear from her suitcase. She quickly dressed herself in her blue pants suit and pulled her hair off her face, preparing for the day of press appearances and interviews the group was scheduled to make. She grabbed her briefcase and her cell phone and set off to meet everyone for breakfast.
**************
"Yeah, yeah Jules it's on my desk. Yeah the folder on top of my desk" Morgan said as Julian whinged to her from the office in Florida. "Calm down Julian it'll be fine."
"I can't find it. Your desk looks like a bomb hit it" Julian complained.
"It's there" Morgan assured. "Just keep looking. If Curtis wants it right away tell him to take a chill pill and you'll get back to him."
"Oh yeah" Julian laughed. "I can see myself saying the words chill pill to the guy who decides whether I get paid or not."
"You know what I mean Julian. Now are you gonna be alright or do you need me to hold your hand?" Morgan teased, while boredly scribbling on a pad of paper. She'd been sitting outside in the waiting room while the girls got their interview done and she'd run out of things remotely interesting to do.
"Morg, I've been trying to hold your hand for the past two years. You won't let me remember?" Julian said, half stating the truth and half joking. He'd had a crush on Morgan that she was vaguely aware of but all that had ever come of it was a brother/sister relationship.
"Hey that was actually quite subtle Jules, I'm proud of you" Morgan giggled. "Now if you're finished with the whining I think I'll go check up on the interview. Sasha may have made up some grossly ridiculous bullshit that's irreversible and unprintable and you know how hard that is to clean up."
"Ahh, young Lolita strikes again" Julian laughed.
"Yeah, but she's actually been on her best behaviour today."
"Yes, but will it last" Julian said philosophically.
"Sasha!" Morgan heard someone screech out in surprise.
"Oh man, that did not sound like a 'Sasha' I wanted to hear" she muttered to herself. "Jules.."
"Yeah, yeah I know you gotta go. I'll talk to you later Morg."
"Later Jules."
"Please don't let her have saud anything too incriminating" Morgan muttered to herself as she knocked on the door of the interview room.
**************
Morgan was staring open-mouthed as soon as she spotted what the commotion had been about. Sasha was showing off what looked like a tattoo on her right shoulder blade. Morgan rushed in and bit back the urge to yell. The girls' image was really their management's concern but Morgan knew that as the person in charge of publicity and their appearances, a tattoo on a 16 year old was not the best message to be sending out.
"Sasha!" Morgan grimaced.
"What?" Sasha said boredly glancing at Morgan who had her head in her hands.
"What is that?"
"What does it look like?"
The reporter was sitting, watching the whole scene before her. She waited, pen-poised, getting ready to write down any interesting turn of events. "I take it you didn't know?"
"You could say that" Morgan struggled to smile. "Explain Sasha, like right now."
"It's small, no biggy, just calm down Morgan" Sasha said with a wave of her hand.
"Do your parents know?"
Sasha nodded. "Yeah, they don't care."
"They don't care! You're 16!" Morgan said with a restrained scream. "Wait, you're not even old enough to get a tattoo."
The other girls at that point began to giggle at Morgan's reddened face. Sasha then proceeded to laugh even harder, even the reporter joined in. Morgan looked around to see if she'd missed something. "What?"
"It's okay Morgan, it's not real" Sasha said with a smile.
"What do you mean...? It looks real" Morgan said, slowly trying to figure out if she should be angry or happy.
"It's just a henna tattoo. I was just showing Anna cause she asked us what we thought of earrings and tattoos and stuff" Sasha shrugged. "It'll come off."
"It's not real?" Morgan let out a sigh of relief.
"No" the girls shook their heads, trying not to laugh at Morgan.
"Great, great" Morgan said, a little embarrassed. "Uhh so are you guys almost finished with the interview?"
"Yeah if you'd just let us get on with it" Claire said with a roll of her eyes.
"Okay I'll be out there then" Morgan said as she exited the room, with the girls' waving her out.
"You do that Morgan" Sasha said with a little sarcasm.
Morgan closed the door and slumped down into a seat. She grabbed her organiser and noted down how many more outings she'd have to accompany the girls on. "One down.. too many to go."
**************
Morgan changed her suit for something a little more comfortable as she slipped on a skirt and a white collared shirt. Grabbing her wallet as she headed out the door she stepped into the elevator, heading for the nearest bar.
**************
Nick was in the lobby of a hotel, undecided as to what he should do. He had no one to hang out with so he found his way into a bar, where people were also dancing and belting out a few tunes on the karaoke machine. He cringed as he heard one girl sing ridiculously off key and tried not to laugh when he noticed it was an old Journey song he used to sing as a solo for concerts when the group had just started out.
He ordered a beer and looked around as he waited for it. Instantly he spotted a familiar looking girl sitting on her own, playing with the umbrella in her drink. He knew it was Morgan and was debating whether to approach her when she looked up, spotted him and tried to subtly hide herself. Nick grabbed his beer and made his way over to her, if he was lucky maybe annoy her even more.
"Well long time no see" Nick commented as he took a seat opposite Morgan.
"Do you have to sit? I didn't even ask you to sit" Morgan groaned, rolling her eyes in annoyance.
"Is it just an attitude problem or do you have some form of chemical imbalance?" Nick said to her while drinking his beer.
Morgan stirred her umbrella and looked at Nick with sheer exasperation. "What are you doing here anyway? I thought you're be busy doing whatever it is you do."
"I was at a loss for something to do and I thought I'd stalk you" Nick joked.
Morgan raised her eyebrow at him. "Whatever with a big fat capital W." She knew it was juvenile but she didn't know how else to deal with Nick, he seemed like he was going through a severe Peter pan syndrome.
"So what are you doing here?"
"Nothing what about you? Not that I care but I thought you'd be with the Backside Boys." Morgan asked seriously.
"Street" Nick corrected looking annoyed. "The Backstreet Boys. We don't deal with rear ends as you seem to think."
"Same diff" Morgan said as she burst into laughter.
"So what do you do anyway" Nick asked, trying to steer the conversation away from him.
"None of your business" Morgan answered.
"Why? Are you ashamed of what you do?" Nick smirked, causing Morgan to look at him with a thoroughly annoyed expression.
"No, I don't want to tell you."
"Sure" Nick said knowingly.
"Oh fine, I'm a publicist" Morgan snapped.
"Oh one of them" Nick nodded.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Morgan said defensively. "One of them?"
"Nothing I was just messing with ya" Nick smiled, holding his hands up in surrender.
"Well I'd rather you didn't" Morgan frowned.
They both sat in silence with Nick looking over at Morgan's glass. "What's that?"
"Pina Colada" Morgan answered flatly.
"Wimp" Nick teased.
"What?!" Morgan said in exasperation. "What now?!"
"Can't you handle anything stronger?"
"Yes I can" Morgan answered. "Why I'm having this conversation with you of all people I don't know."
"Bet you can't" Nick said, enjoying the defensive look on Morgan's face.
"Bet I can."
"Bet you can't."
"I can."
"Can't."
"Can."
"Can't."
"Can..Hang on, we sound like five year olds."
"Well if you really think you can handle it..."
"Which I can" Morgan said.
"I dare you to drink whatever I choose then" Nick said.
"I don't know..I've gotta work tomorrow" Morgan hesitated.
"Chicken" Nick mouthed.
Morgan was determined to wipe the smile off his face once and for all. "You're on Backside Boy."
Chapter Five
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