"I should be working, not hanging out at a club watching random men throw themselves at Adri. Great, now I shound like a jealous boyfriend. When the hell did that happen? Why the hell and I talking to myself?" He slumped down on the couch because he didn't know what else to do. It was ten minutes later when his cell phone began to ring, startling him.
"Well look at that...my ass is ringing." He took the tiny contraption out of his back pocket and brought it to his ear.
"Talk to me."
"Hey there, baby."
"Hannah...hello, um, what's up?"
"Well, I'm at the airport and I'm wondering if you can come get me? I wrapped up my shooting early and I wanted to see you." JC groaned inwardly. He really didn't want to deal with Hannah and the things she always semed to stir up when she came into town.
"You're going to have to give me about twenty minutes, Hannah. I need to change."
"But Joshua..."
"Don't call me that. You're not my mother. I'll be there when I can." He hung up the phone before she could say anything else.
"I don't want Hannah hanging around on Friday night causing trouble. Why did I even agree to pick her up? Her house is on the other side of town, which means that she's looking to stay here for the night. Damn it! I made plans with Adri. This should go over like a porno in a convent when I tell Hannah she's going home." It took JC forty-five minutes to get to the airport where he found a very perturbed Hannah.
"Oh my God...he really is alive! At least I know what to get you for your birthday. What kind of chain would you like for the pocket watch I'm going to buy?!"
"It's called a watch fob, Hannah. I'm sorry you had to wait here, but there was an accident and traffic was rerouted. At least you didn't have to stand out in the storm, right?" She huffed and swept around him as if she was wearing a queen's finery and he was a dirty peasant.
"Sure, Hannah, I'll get the bags. Makes me feel slightly better though that I have the keys to my locked car in my pocket and you'll be standing in the rain," he finished quietly as she stalked off. JC took his sweet time walking through the airport terminal before making a mad dash to his car.
"I'm sorry, I should have told you I had the keys. Oh...wait...you didn't give me a chance to cause you thought throwing a fit would be better," he said as they pulled out of the parking lot.
"You haven't seen me for the last month and this is how you treat me? Jesus Christ, JC...the least you could do is show your girlfriend some respect!" JC pulled over to the side of the road.
"Okay, we need to get a few things straight. First, we are not a couple anymore. Second, swearing is really unattractive. Third, I'm sick of you thinking I'm at your beck and call. That said, I'll finish driving you home. I have plans with Adri tonight."
"The sex must be great for you to spend time with her instead of me..." JC couldn't have been happier to see Hannah's driveway than he was at that exact moment.
"Hannah, if I ever hear you speak ill of Adri like that again, I will make you regret it. Now get the hell out of my car."
"JC, I..."
"No, Hannah, I don't want to hear it. I don't like you treeating my friends like crap. When you can act like an adult around me, I'll consider talking to you again." She stared at him before grabbing her lugguage and walking her into the house.
"Man, why did I ever agree to bring her to the AMAs," he asked himself. He drove the rest of the way in silence. When he got home, he found that Adri was already there.
"Adri?"
"Dinner and movie night, Disney. Did you honestly think I'd let you get away with ordering just a pizza? Hell no, man, I made a real dinner. I hope you like good ole fattening southern cooking. JC, are you okay? You're kinda spacing out on me here."
"You...you made me dinner?"
"Is it really that hard to comprehend? Fried chicken, mashed potates and gravy, buttermilk biscuits, peas, carrots and collard greens aren't that difficult to make. Have a seat, it's almost done." He sat down at the table in his kitchen.
"How's Hannah?"
"What? How did you know?"
"The look on your face...it just says woman trouble."
"Let's not ruin the evening talking about her."
"Look, JC, not talking about the problem is going to ruin the night cause you'll keep thinking about it."
"She is constantly insulting my friends. When she does that, it fells like...almost as if..."
"Like she's insulting you? That's probably normal since you and the guys are close, not to mention all the other good friends you have."
"She was bad mouthing you Adri and it made me so angry. I told her to stay away until she adjusted her attitude."
"Oh, well, thank you, JC, but you really didn't have to. I can take care of Hannah quite effectively. Why do you still talk to her if her attitude turns you off so much?"
"Because like it or not, the public sees her as my "romantic interest" and believe me, Hannah would make the break up a nasty one. Could we just...not talk about her anymore? We're supposed to be having a nice dinner and watching a movie."
"I'm gonna miss quiet nights like these really soon."
"I know what you mean. We're supposed to start practicing to take this tour out again."
"I doubt you're as nervous as I am. If I don't take first at Worlds, I don't go to Salt Lake City."
"I'm sure you hear this from Dean, but with that negative attitude, you won't get anywhere."
"You're right, JC. I have heard that on more than one occasion. I'm being realistic though. I use that knowledge to make sure that I do everything perfectly so I don't miss Salt Lake. I hate settling for second best. Maybe you should learn how not to settle, JC." He needed to change the subject and he had to do it fast.
"So what movies do we have?"
"I have off the wall humor courtesy of Monty Python and Harrison Ford running from Germans in The Last Crusade."
"Monty Python? You can't be serious, Adri."
"Don't knock it until you watch it." Five hours later, Adri was curled up in JC's lap on the couch. She'd fallen asleep during the last hour of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and he didn't feel like making her move.
"You have no clue how stunning you are, Adri," he said softly. He gently ran a finger over her cheekbone to the corner of her mouth when she flinched. Her whole body tensed and that was JC's only warning before she cried out and jerked awake. He pulled her close to his body so she wouldn't fall to the floor.
"Your parents?" Adri wiped away a tear as she nodded her head.
"I'm too stressed out."
"We're all stressed, Adri."
"Yeah, but you've never had to go to therapy because of it."
"My parents were never killed. Seeking help and talking to someone isn't a bad thing. I have my music to turn to when I need to release some emotions."
"I should probably head home."
"You have to talk about them to make them stop, Adri," he said kissing her forehead.
"I'm plagued by demons you don't even want to know exist, JC. Not even Dean knows."
"I'm willing to listen if it will help you sleep at night."
"Do you honestly think talking to you will will make the image of my father's lifeless body go away?? I was four-years-old, Josh. I didn't understand the concept of my parents' bodies being there but not breathing. So when everyone else had left the room, I pulled a chair up to my father's closed casket. I...I pushed the cover up and there he was. His face was contorted in pain and fear and his eyes were wide open and staring. I let the lid drop and hid in a corner for the rest of the wake. You live with that image for a while and then tell me that talking about it will make everything better!!" She had been pacing in front of him, but stopped when the tears came.
"Just let it out, Belle," he said taking her into his arms.
"I just want to be able to sleep through the night without having to take medication, JC."
"I'll help you in any way that I can."
"I know. I'm just not sure that it will ever get better."
"Do you need to be up early tomorrow morning for any reason?"
"No, I'm not scheduled to be on the ice until the afternoon."
"Good. I'm going to walk you home, tuck you into bed and make you promise not to get up until nine at the earliest. When you wake up, we're going to go out for breakfast, veg out by my pool until lunch, eat here and then we'll go to practice. You're required to have a stress free day until you get on the ice."
"You know, I think I'll let you get away with bossing me around just this once. I'm really sorry you had to see all that just now, JC."
"Adri, I'm glad you were able to talk about it. Now come on, you need some rest." He walked her over to her house and waited with Renzo out in the hall until she changed into pajamas.
"You can come in now, I'm decent," Adri called through the door.
"Damn! And I hoped to sneak a peek through the key hole. Come on, Renzo, let's put Mommy to bed." He opened to door and walked into Adri's bedroom for the first time since she unpacked.
"Nice place, Belle."
"Thanks, the girls helped me paint and all that fun stuff."
"Come on, let's get you into bed, little girl" Adri stuck her tongue out before slipping under the covers. JC tucked the blankets around her shoulders and kissed her forehead.
"Now remember, you're only allowed to have good dreams tonight. Ya know...like dreams about my sexy and ripped self..." Adri smacked him in the face with a pillow, causing to fall backwards off the bed.
"Damn it, woman! I think you broke my ass," he whined rubbing the sore spot.
"Oh quit your bitching, popstar. You're fine. Maybe Hannah can kiss it better for you. She seems to be a pro when it comes to kissing your ass."
"That's it! Take it back!" He jumped on the bed, pinned her down and tickled her.
"JC, are you on crack?? Stop that!"
"Take it back then and I will."
"Never!" They tussled for ten minutes before tiring themselves out. After letting his breathing get back to normal, he noticed that Adri had fallen asleep on his shoulder. He carefully shifted her head to a pillow and kissed her cheek before standing.
"Goodnight, Belle."
