Since they were all staying in New York for a few days, they checked into a hotel so they would not have to stay on that cramped thing they happened to call home 6 days a weeks, 36 hours a day, ahhh the lovable tour bus.
Liz was still in her room pissed off at the world with the loud and sometimes annoying Linkin Park drowning everyone else’s hearing. If she couldn’t yell, she sure as hell could annoy the shit out of them. She stayed dormant on the bus while everyone was unpacking in their rooms.
All the girls were chillin’ in Rachel’s room when they heard an expected knock on the door. Rachel went over to the door still laughing from something one of the girls had said. She opened the door and found Lance standing there.
“We’re leaving for the venue in an hour, are you guys coming?”
“No offense or any thing, but we’ve seen the show every night and we‘ve had about enough. I think we’re just gonna chill here for the night.”
“Okay. But after the concert, we’re gonna come back here and shower and change and all that stuff, then we’re ALL going over to see Carson for a little bit.”
“And then to the clubs we go! Right?”
“Of course.”
“Woohoo! But shit, you guys or gonna de so friggin tired. The concert, then MTV, and clubbing?”
“That’s why we made it an early concert. Well, anyways, I gotta get going.”
“Have a good show!” Rachel yelled down the hall to Lance’s figure disappearing round the corner at the end of the corridor.
She went back inside and closed the door. “So here’s the deal, after the show, the guys are gonna come back here to get changed and shit, then we’re off to Times Square baby! Then after that we go to a club to party the year away.” She let out a high pitched squeal of joy.
“Someone else drives us right?” Chelsea asked raising her hand.
“Yup, we share a limo with the guys.”
“Ok good, cuz Erika and me are gonna spend the whole time at the bar!”
“Hellz ya baby!” Apparently Erika was in a better mood.
After an hour of goofing off, everyone went to their room to get ready for that evening.
It took Erika a good hour to get dressed. A half an hour to pick out the clothes and then another half an hour to actually get dressed. She finally decided on a cute purple sequined halter and tight black pants. The only problem was that she wouldn’t be able to put them on cuz of the knee brace. It was too big and clunky with bolts and wires. It would only tear a giant hole. After looking through all of her bags, she decided on a black mini shirt with shorts underneath. Since she would be sitting down with one leg out, or hobbling around on crutches, her skirt would eventually flip up. She would freeze her ass off but it was in the name of beauty. Not only that, she couldn’t wear pants until August when she would get the knee brace off.
I’m not gonna last another six months.
She internally screamed. Once she was fully dressed she put on her one black strappy-heeled sandal.
I look like a friggin fool!
“Screw it, I’m just gonna wear shorts and the halter. No matter what Imma look like a freak, I might as well be comfortable.”
Erika started laughing but stopped when she heard someone else behind her also laughing. She quickly turned around and let out a huge sigh when she realized that it was only Chelsea.
“What are you laughing at?” Erika said it defensively but obviously joking.
“You’re right.”
“’Bout what?”
“You do look like a freak.”
“Thanks. How did you know I was thinking that?”
“Looking like that, what else would you be laughing at?”
“Love you too.”
Chelsea just gave her a giant smile as she started fidgeting with her blow dryer.
Erika went into the bathroom and began the daily battle with her hair.
“You son of a...ahhh, I hate you!”
“Did you lose again?”
“How can you tell?”
“The fro.”
Erika turned back towards the mirror and frowned. “You may have won the battle, but you haven’t won the goddamn war!”
Once Chelsea finished straightening her hair, she started to help Erika with hers. “So, what would you like to do today? Straight again?”
“Actually, I want it curly. I figure I’ll let my hair do what it normally does, but try to tame it.”
“Let’s try and tame the beast.”
A half an hour later, Erika’s hair was full of bouncy ringlets that came just below her chin.
“Chelsea, you are my God! You need to like, live with me and do my hair every morning!”
“I know, I know. No.”
“You guys almost ready?” Came Christi’s voice from behind the door.
“Almost, give us five more minutes.” Chelsea and Erika put on the finishing touches of their make up and went out the door.
Erika went on her crutches so it would be a little bit easier to get around, but she put the wheelchair in the trunk of the limo incase her arms got too tired.
Everyone met in the lobby and made their way towards their silver limo.
The limo was long enough for everyone to fit on comfortably. The seats were covered in black leather, and there was a TV in front of them next to a mini bar.
“Ok guys, we’re almost there.”
The girls were all giddy and excited to be meeting Carson. They finally arrived in front of MTV studios and got out. They were greeted by a large group of people in the streets by where the famous giant windows were. The wonderful spot where Joey couldn’t help but continually shake his ass to the hundreds of pre-pubescent girls below. Memories.
“Girls, we’re all gonna go on up, but y’all are gonna be in the audience. We’re only gonna stay for about an hour. At around eleven we’ll start for the club.”
Lance was only met with slight nods from each of the girls.
“Are you ok Rach?” Rachel awoke from her daze as Lance placed an arm around her shoulders.
“What? Yeah, I’m fine.”
“We were half way up the stairs when we realized that you weren’t with us any more. I come back down here and your still staring up at the window. You know, instead of looking up there from down here like all these teenyboppers, you could be up there looking down.”
She giggled a little bit and began walking back towards the building along side her friend.
“So what had you so deep in thought?”
“Hehehe, I just had a very ‘Taina’ moment.”
“A Taina moment?”
“Yea, you’ve never seen that commercial for her show? Ok, so you see Carson on TRL and he introduces this tight brand new star on stage. Taina comes out and starts singing into the microphone. Then you see her down her on the street looking up at the window and she’s singing into her soda.”
“Ohh, I get it, she was day dreaming!”
“For being the businessman that you are, you’re really slow.”
The two finally met up with the rest of the group upstairs in the studio. JC was introducing the girls to Carson.
“This is Liz.”
“Nice to meet you Liz.” Carson said with a smile on his face while shaking her small hand.
“This is Chelsea, the girls’ hairdresser.”
“Hey! I’m their friend too!”
Carson let out a small chuckle and shook her hand as well.
“This is Christi and Rachel.”
“Rachel had a Taina moment!” Lance decided he just HAD to say that.
Rachel blushed a little at the comment but hoped Carson either wouldn’t understand or wouldn’t ask.
“A Taina moment?” And of course, he asks.
“Um..”
“Wait; hold up, lemme guess. Like the commercial for the show?” Rachel found a sudden interest in her shoes as she nodded her head yes.
“So you wanna be a singer?”
“Yea, but mainly an actress.”
“Very cool.”
That was the first time Rachel, the smallest yet the most out going of the group was embarrassed.
“And lastly,” JC could sense Rachel was uncomfortable so he tried to change the subject, “this is Erika, our gimp.”
“Yup, that’s me all right.”
“So you’re the one that made them reschedule dates for the tour.”
“Uh huh, I broke my knee and ankle on purpose cuz I didn’t like the tour schedule. Damn Carson, you revealed my secret.”
“Uh...”
“Dude Carson, chill, she was just being a snotty brat again.” He returned his gaze back to Erika and the girls, “I think you should all dance or something while we get interviewed or sit by the cameras.”
“Kay.” The girls all said together. They all split up and went their separate ways for a while to dance.
Erika stood by the wall watching her friends enjoy themselves.
Why am I just standing here? I’ve dont it once I can do it again.
She rested her crutches against the wall and hopped over onto the dance floor. Erika was able to put her toes down to have a sense of balance. The started to dance with the first cute guy she saw that was not wearing pleather. They were swaying and grinding to Ludacris ‘What’s Your Fantasy’.
Joey looks up from his seat to make sure the girls were all okay. He looked along the walls and couldn’t find Erika anywhere.
“Crap.”
“What was that Joe?” Asked Carson diverting his attention from Lance.
“Oh nothing, sorry man.” Chris leaned over to Joey and asked what was wrong.
“Where’d the gimp go?”
“Did you check the dance floor?”
“C’mon Chris, she’s on crutches, she can’t dance.”
“Doesn’t look like that’s stopping her much.” He pointed to the middle of the floor to where Erika was grinding with some random guy.
The two just started laughing and went back to their interview.
“So who were those girls you guys brought in here with you? They’re kinda young for most you, aren’t they?” Carson shoved the microphone in Justin’s face for an answer.
Goddamn people always sticking that goddamn mic in my goddamn face... “Huh?”
“The girls?”
“Oh, they’re our friends and they were our back up dancers.”
“Can we talk to one of them?”
“Um, yea I guess let me go find of ‘em.”
Justin got out of his chair and went in search of one of the girls. He was more than happy to go find them. All he wanted to do was dance and party. The sooner the interview was over, the better.
“Yo! Chel!”
Chelsea looked over towards where she heard her name being called.
He jogged up closer so he wouldn’t have to shout and draw more attention to himself then he already had.
“Carson wants to talk to you.” Justin leaned in to whisper directly in her ear so she would be able to hear. His lips lightly brushed against Chelsea’s earlobe sending shivers up and through out her entire body. Chelsea’s mind went elsewhere.
“Chel? You in there?” He waved his hands frantically before her face. When there was still no response, he gently grabbed her shoulder and slightly shook her. She quickly snapped out of her daze and was taken back when she realized she was practically nose to nose to Justin.
“What?” Her chest rose and fell quickly and her heart beat so hard that she thought it was about to bust out.
“You’re kidding me! I get to meet Carson!” Nice save there Chelsea.
She quickly brushed past Justin and made her way to where Carson sat. On her way to her destination, Chelsea had only one thing on her mind. ‘His lips are so soft.’ Never once turning back, she continued towards the host.
Justin stood still where he was and watched as Chelsea’s figure disappeared through the dense sea of people moving and swaying to the steady beat of the music. Almost as if he could read her mind, he reached into his pocket and took out a small cylinder tube. He removed the cap with a small ‘click’ and brought the slender tube up to his mouth. Justin spread it smoothly across his lips and put the tube back in his pocket after recapping it.
“I love my Chap Stick.”
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ch 13