Justin opened his eyes slowly against the bright glare of the sun that was entering through the windows of the aircraft Johnny had chartered for their return to Orlando. Yawning, he stretched his long arms above his head, arching his back as he loosened his aching muscles. As he started to bring his arms back down, he felt two hands grab his wrists tightly. Justin moved his head back slightly, and looked up at the hands that had a hold on him. "Mo?" he questioned, his voice laced with slight confusion.
"Yes?" she replied sheepishly, peeking over his reclined seatback.
"Is there a reason you are holding my wrists captive?"
Mo propped her chin up on the seat, "Not really, no." she giggled, looking down at Justin as he sat with his curls mashed against the seat, his chin in the air as he looked at her, his arms still above his head. "Ya know you look really funny sitting with your arms like this."
Justin grinned up at her. "Well the good thing is that I'm SURE today." he said, referring to the popular deoderant commercial.
"Are you sure you're SURE?" she teased gently, removing one hand from his wrists in order to plug her nose. He huffed a reply, causing Mo to laugh out loud before she bent over and despite his squirming and protesting, blew a raspberry on his forehead.
"Can I please have my hands back to wipe your saliva off my face?" he whined, not even attempting to free himself from her grasp.
"Fine ya big baby. You really are just an overgrown toddler aren't you?" Mo pondered, releasing her hands from his wrists and shaking her head as he quickly wiped her spit from his forehead.
As she sat back in her seat, Mo sighed, rubbing her temples as the long morning she'd had seemed to catch up with her. Turning to her left, she noticed JC stretched out in his chair, his head propped up against the window as he slept soundly.
"Mmphf"
"Excuse me?" Mo asked, her pretty face confused as she struggled to translate the muffled ramblings of the lump occupying the seat next to her.
The lump stirred slightly before speaking again. "Mmpfh pfhpsh blmpfh."
Mo smiled and with a swift movement, removed the blanket from the lump's head, revealing a crop of brown hair with vibrant red tips. "Now what were you saying?" she grinned down at him as he squinted up at her against the light filtering in through the cabin windows.
"I was asking who put the blanket on my head." he replied, yawning as he scratched at the stubble surrounding his groomed facial hair.
"I did." Lance drawled as he swiveled around in his chair to look at Joey.
"Oh..." the Italian stated, raising an eyebrow. "Why?"
"I hoped it would smother the snoring coming from that big schnozz of yours. You were sawin' logs there buddy. Not to mention your nostrils were flaring uncontrollably...Mo was probably fearing she'd get sucked in!"
Joey grinned and ran his hand through his messy locks, "I picked my nose a lot when I was younger, therefore I have large nostrils. Whatcha gonna do?" He shrugged, tossing an apologetic glance at Mo as she wrinkled her nose at his explanation.
Justin laughed out loud, joining the conversation. "So that explains SOME of it, but it's still not an excuse for the snores that were registering on the Richter scale."
"Oh pssh." Joey rolled his eyes.
As the boys continued their conversation about obnoxious sleeping habits, Mo leaned forward and rested the side of her head on Justin's seatback. Dangling her hand over the edge of his chair, she giggled when her fingers wandered upon a tuft of bouncy curls. Listening quietly as they changed topic from sleeping to what their plans were upon returning to Orlando, she absentmindedly began twisting Justin's curls into spikes that resembled corkscrews atop his head.
"Woman?"
"Kiddo?" She mocked him as she continued to twirl curls around her index finger. Laughing playfully as he attempted to swat her hand away, she released a fingerful of curls. "BOING!" she shouted triumphantly as the corkscrew she created bounced into place.
"Just what do you think you're doing?" he asked, patting the top of his head gingerly.
"Playing?" she replied sheepishly.
****
As the long white limosine pulled into the studio backlot where "Poor Little Rich Girl" rehersals and filming would take place, Jordan was jolted out of her daydream by her sister.
"Ooh! We're here!" Rachel squealed with excitement, seemingly unfazed by the events that had taken place just hours earlier.
The five girls filed out of the limo, greeting everyone with smiles and hellos as they entered the closed set. Upon entry, the girls placed their bags down in a corner and were quickly herded onto couches as Wayne Isham, the director for "PLRG" explained the video concept to them.
Donning dark sunglasses, Wayne smiled as the five women took their seats. He greeted them quickly before introducing himself and showing them the storyboard that would map out the concept. "The video starts out with some dialogue. You drive up to poor little rich girl's home and knock on the door, ask her to go out clubbing with you, she refuses. You all are upset, you get in your car and head to the club. Once in the car is when the song begins, you arrive at the club, cut to dance sequence. Then cut to poor little rich girl, watching TV, she stops on a channel and Eternity takes over her TV. As the song comes to a close, poor little rich girl wakes up, realizes it was all a dream...hears doorbell, opens it...it's Eternity, wanting her to go clubbing. She agrees, girls walk to car--fade out."
Waiting patiently for the girls' comments or questions, Wayne sat the drawing board on the table next to him.
"That's a great idea!"
"Very cool."
"I can't wait to start filming it!" The girls raved enthusiastically.
"Who's playing poor little rich girl?" Leigh spoke up.
Wayne smiled, "I wondered when you were going to ask that. Her name is Airyn Bailey and she'll be here tomorrow so you all will be able to meet her then."
The five women nodded at the mention of Airyn's name and then Wayne quickly excused himself. "Girls, enjoy rehersals and I'll see you again bright and early tomorrow. That's when I'll show you the set for the video and all that good stuff. I'm glad to hear you like the concept, but right now I've got some preparations to do before we begin shooting." Then, gathering up his belongings, he left Eternity to start on wardrobe and dance rehersals.
Digging through racks of clothing with their wardrobe women, as well as two professional stylists Johnny had hired for the video, the girls searched for the perfect outfits.
"Agh!" Jordan said, stumbling out of the dressing room. Collecting herself, she giggled slightly. "This is SO me. How do I look guys?" she asked, twirling around.
Leigh stared at Jordan's ensemble with an open mouth, taking in the mirrored pants and rhinestone adorned shirt. "It's...a little much?" she offered hesitantly.
Jordan supressed a laugh, placing a large pair of aviator sunglasses over her hazel eyes. "You don't like it?" she pouted gently.
"It's not that...it's just..." Leigh struggled.
"It's just that you look like Elvis." Rachel prompted, bending down slightly to place her chin on top of the long clothing rack as she stared at her sister.
Jordan's face fell before erupting into a wide smile. "I was thinking disco ball myself, but yeah...Elvis works."
Leigh sighed in relief as Jordan disappeared back into the small dressing room. Turning to Tressa, who was holding up a pair of rubbery looking pants, she laughed. "I thought for a minute there that she actually liked that god awful outfit."
Making a face at the pants she held in her hand, Tressa gestured to the rack of clothes nearby. "I can't believe some of this stuff." Placing the black pants back on the bar, she plucked a furry red tube top out of the mass of clothes. "I mean seriously, did they skin Elmo for this thing?"
"Okay guys, how's this for the dance sequence?" Jordan asked as she re-emerged from her changing room. The stylists stopped to nod their approval at the fit, and the girls still in the room agreed it was perfect. The black fitted pants clung to her long legs and the zebra print shirt was cropped slightly to display her tan, taut stomach.
"Very cute Jor." Ashlee smiled, stepping out of her dressing room. "Wait'll Justin gets a load of that." she winked.
Blushing, Jordan's smile quickly dissipated into a thoughtful frown. "I wonder if the guys are back in Orlando yet." she pondered out loud.
"I'm sure J will call you the minute he gets home okay? Now no more sad stuff, just take a look at Rach." Ashlee stated firmly, placing a slender arm around Jordan's shoulders and pointing at the tall blonde across the room.
Rachel stood in front of the full length mirrors that lined one wall, her back to the reflective surface as she glanced over her shoulder.
"What ARE you doing girl?" Tressa chided from her position on the floor as she tried on shoes.
Rachel stuck out her tongue slightly in concentration as she bounced from tiptoes to flat feet. "I'm trying to see if my ass looks good in these pants." she stated, totally serious as she turned to face the girls.
"So you're checking yourself out huh? How's that goin for ya?" Ashlee teased.
"Quite well thanks, I've come to have a special love for my ass." Rachel replied, crossing her eyes at her groupmates as she slapped her rear end lovingly.
"Ahh, I see."
"So what do ya'll think?" she asked, striking a "Vogue" like pose. The pink sleeveless shirt she wore complimented her skin tone well and the flecks of glitter shimmered in the light. The flared black pants she wore matched the ones Jordan had chosen as well.
"Very cute."
"Sexy, sexy, sexy."
"Rachie, you a hottie too!" Jordan squealed, mocking one of Chris' favorite sayings as she bounded over to her sister and pinched her cheeks.
"Love it. Pink is mah favorite color..." Leigh sang as the rest of the group joined in.
"Pink it's the color of passion, cuz pink it just goes with the fashion."
****
"So what do ya suppose the girls are doin' right now?" Lance asked quietly.
"Nursing broken hearts...well that or they're probably at their rehersals." Chris commented, resting his head on the arm rest so he could look at Lance from the seat he occupied in front of them. Kicking his feet up, he placed them on the seatback in front of Justin.
Crinkling his nose in disgust, Justin tried to push Chris' feet down off the chair. "Dude! Your feet smell like rotten cheese. Get em outta my face!" he complained loudly, laughing as Chris wiggled his toes in Justin's general direction.
"By the way man, what happened to your hair?" the dark haired man asked, raising an eyebrow as he gazed at the corkscrew spikes protruding from Justin's head.
Justin rolled his eyes and gestured behind him, "Mo happened to my hair." he smirked, glancing over his shoulder through the crack in the seat only to see her curled up into a ball, her head resting comfortably on Joey's shoulder.
"I heard that Timbo." Mo stated dryly, opening one eye to stare back at him, the new nickname causing the others to burst out in laughter.
Chris sat straight up as he guffawed loudly. "I wouldn't piss her off J, she's vicious with a pillow."
Justin smiled widely as he turned back to Chris, "And considering the fact she's using Joey as a pillow right now, I better keep my mouth shut." Shaking his head, he leaned his head back against his seat, closing his blue eyes as the others continued their teasing.
*****
Locking eyes with Jordan, a questioning look in her eyes as a beep resonated through the silent room once more, Justin stood up from his spot on the couch.
"I wonder who that could be? I thought the guys weren't gonna be back in here for awhile." Justin muttered as he stepped around the couch and started toward the door.
The door inched open at first, and Justin supressed a laugh as Mo appeared in the crack, her eyes and forehead visible. Hearing muffled giggles and hushed voices, he shook his head and turned back to Jordan. Bending over the couch, he whispered into her ear, "Looks like we've got company."
Suddenly the door burst open and Mo ran in, "NO SEX IN THE N SYNC ROOM!" she shouted, peeking through the hand she had covering her eyes.
Unable to see much through the small cracks between her fingers, she continued bolting through the room until she ran smack into a steadfast object. Bouncing off of Justin, she fell to the floor, landing on her back with a thud. "Ow." she said dryly, looking up at the ceiling.
Jordan giggled uncontrollably from her position on the couch as Justin leaned over and peered at Mo. "You alright?" he asked, trying not to laugh.
Mo squinted up at him before shouting back toward the door she had just come from. "All clear you guys, they're dressed!" she yelled happily, not making any motion to get to her feet.
Before Justin could comment, the remainder of the groups bounded into the room talking loudly. Chris flipped over the side of the couch, landing next to Jordan who was still staring at Mo, an incredulous look on her delicate features. Turning to look at the bundle of energy that had plopped down next to her, she smiled brightly. "I only wish I had your energy level Christo."
"Well if you can't be an athlete, be an athletic supporter." he said, wiggling his eyebrows as he laughed loudly at his off the wall comment.
"Where did that come from?" she asked, then cut him off before he could answer her. "Nevermind, I don't wanna know."
Chris leaned over and blew a raspberry on Jordan's cheek before bouncing off of the couch and straddling Mo, who was still laying on the floor.
"Ugh, get off me. I'm mad at you." she groaned as he sat on her stomach.
"What happened Momo?"
"Well let me see if I can remember. Ah yes. SOMEBODY forced me to peek into the room because they wanted to see what was going on. THEN, after arguing with me about who was going in first, shoved me through the door...possibly exposing my virgin eyes to something not so virginal."
Chris laughed as she poked him in the stomach, emphasizing her words as she talked. "Then you ran blindly into the room...you're running, you're running, you're running and BOOM..." he interjected, hitting her gently on the forehead. "You hit a tree."
"Well more like a Justin, but yeah...that's pretty much how it went." Mo smiled up at Chris before raising her hips to throw him off balance so she could twist out from under him easily.
Justin stood in the middle of the room in awe. His friends and group mates had turned the quiet moment Jordan and he were sharing into a whirlwind of chaos within a matter of moments. Noticing Jordan had removed herself from the couch that she was sitting on just moments before, he glanced around the large suite looking for her. Finally he spotted her in the doorway to one of the rooms, leaning against the frame, tossing her head back in laughter as she watched the antics occuring inside of the bedroom. As Justin made his way over to her, Joey reached out from within the bedroom and swiftly grabbed Jordan's legs, tossing her over his shoulder like a rag doll despite her squeals of protest.
"Whatcha doin with mah woman?" Justin asked, peeking into the room. Joey stood near one of the beds, Jordan hanging over his right shoulder. Chris had made his way into the bedroom as well and stood on the other bed, flexing and making menacing faces at Joey. Rachel bounced next to Chris, her ponytail dancing crazily atop her head.
"She's MY woman now!" Joey growled playfully, placing Jordan down on the bed. "I'm making her my Nitro girl!" he said proudly, turning to Justin and flexing.
"He's Fire and I'm Ice." Chris said loudly, pointing to the blue boxers he had placed on his head. "See? Blue...Ice." Then gesturing toward Joey, "Red...Fire."
Justin shook his head and grimaced slightly, "I just hope those boxers are clean and that they're yo.." Before he could finish, he was startled by a soft object hitting him in the back of the head. "Okay whoever did that had better..." he started, turning around as he spoke. His threat was short lived, however, as another pillow hit him square in the face. "Run." he finished, darting toward a giggling Mo.
"Take THAT afro boy!" she laughed evilly, bopping him over the head with a large white pillow. Ashlee and Tressa quickly joined forces with Mo and not only attacked Justin, but JC, who up until then had been an innocent bystander.
Seeking refuge from his tormentors, Justin ran into the bedroom where he collapsed on the bed at Jordan's feet.
"Ooh, poor baby." she cooed, kneeling down beside him and planting a kiss on his forehead.
Justin nodded and looked up at his girlfriend, a pitiful look painted on his handsome face. Suddenly he sprung up off the bed and grabbed Jordan by the waist, taking her by surprise. Before she could say a word, Justin moved quickly into the adjoining bathroom and shut the door. Setting Jordan back down on her feet, he leaned against the door, breathing a sigh of relief as he appreciated the silence.
"What was that all about?" Jordan asked, adjusting her shirt which had bunched slightly when Justin picked her up. "I was having fun playing Fire...I mean, Joey's Nitro girl!"
Justin smiled broadly as he reached out for her, and pulling her in close, replied. "It's kind of hard to have alone time when there's a room full of people."
"With friends like ours, who needs alone time?" she laughed.
"Well if we didn't have alone time then we wouldn't have..." he trailed off, leaning in close as he tipped her face up towards his own, "Moments like this." he concluded, his voice barely audible as his lips lingered over hers before pressing against her warm mouth and indulging in a heated kiss.
As they broke apart, they heard a loud crack from the bedroom, interrupting the silence in the small bathroom. Sighing, Justin opened the door and the two emerged to see Rachel and Chris laughing maniacally on the far bed. Wiping tears of laughter from their eyes, they attempted to talk through ragged breath.
"Joey..." Rachel sputtered.
"Broke..." Chris managed to squeak out.
"The bed!" they finished simultaneously.
As the pair continued to roll around, clutching their stomachs in laughter, Justin scanned the room for Joey. Moments later, a fiery head peered over the bed at Justin and Jordan, a sheepish look on his face.
"Oops?" was all he had to say, shrugging his shoulders as he held in his building laughter.
Jordan smiled warmly at Joey. "What happened? You alright Joe?"
"Yep, I'm great. Wish I could say the same for this bed though." he replied, patting the bed lovingly as he stood upright. Glancing over his shoulder at Rachel and Chris who just laughed harder in return, he finished, "Sure don't make 'em like they used to!"
Justin kneeled down on the floor and lifted up the covers as he looked under the bed. Bringing his head back up, he raised a questioning eyebrow at his Italian friend. "You busted a board in half...and put a soda can in it's place?"
Joey nodded proudly as the lunatics behind him were still immersed in their fits of giggles. "It's an empty one too!"
Jordan giggled as Justin burst out in laughter as well. "In that case, I wouldn't go jumping on that bed anymore Joey." She said, shaking her head slightly in disbelief.
Before Joey could respond, shouts of protest and laughter followed by deep voices, resonated through the suite. The five people in the bedroom shared questioning glances before making their way into the main room where they stopped short.
"Awww, Lonnie, you're ruining all our fun! Come on..it's only 4 am!" Ashlee pouted as he picked her up and tossed her over his broad shoulder.
"I'm under strict orders Ash, I'm sorry." Lonnie stated gruffly as he stuck out his free arm to stop Mo as she ran by.
Chris shouted gleefully, "He clotheslined her! Did ya see that? That was AWESOME."
Lonnie chuckled, wrapping his arm around Mo's waist and tossing her over his other shoulder. "I'm gonna clothesline you in a minute Chris if you don't get to bed!" he teased.
Mo stuck her tongue out at Chris, raising the pillow she still grasped as she prepared to throw it at the dark haired man.
"I'll take that." Dre interjected swiftly, plucking the pillow she was weilding out of her hands and placing it on the couch.
Finally, the four bodyguards had successfully gathered up the five rambunctious women and began making their way out of the boys' suite. The girls pouted and waved forlornly from the broad shoulders they occupied as the boys yelled goodnight to them before shutting the door and quickly collapsing on their beds in tired heaps.
*****
Smiling at the memory of their last night in the hotel with Eternity, Justin shifted in his seat before drifting off to sleep as the plane continued on it's way to Orlando.