TWIST OF FATE
By Kim
PART SIXTEEN
Sara sat on her bed trying to read her history book for a test the following day. She began thinking about Lance, once again. It has been over a week since the guys left to finish their tour. "Lance still hasn't called," Sara thought to herself sadly. She knew it was too good to be true.
"Why did I have to get so attached to him?" She asked herself. The phone rang, interrupting her thoughts, and she leaned over her bed to grab it off the night stand. It was Jenn.
"Hey girl, it's me Jenn! What are you doing?" She asked cheerfully.
"Trying to study for my history test tomorrow."
"Uugghh, that sucks!" Jenn replied. "Well put down your books and come eat pizza with me and Michelle. We're going to meet Ashley, Michael, and David up at Hero's Pizza." Ashley, Michael, and David were their other really good friends. All six of them have been friends for a long time. They all grew up together and have remained close friends throughout the years.
"I really should be studying," Sara said. "But ok, I'll go."
"Cool. I'll come pick you up in about 15 minutes." Jenn told her. They hung up the phone and Sara went to the bathroom to freshen up while she waited on Jenn.
Jenn arrived right on time in her 98 red cavalier. She pulled up the drive and honked her horn just as Sara came out. Sara climbed in the car and they were off to meet the gang at Hero's.
~*~*~*~
"Has Justin called you lately?" Ashley asked me, picking up a piece of pepperoni pizza. Ashley was constantly asking me questions about Justin and the guys from 'N SYNC since we met them. She was really jealous when we told her. She was planning on going with us to the concert last weekend, but her work wouldn't let her off.
"Yep, he called me just last night actually." I informed her. Last night was the fifth time Justin has called me since they left last Sunday.
"So, what did y'all talk about?" Ashley inquired.
"None of your business!" I told her laughing.
"So when are we gonna get to hang out with these guys?" Michael interrupted. "I bet we can get a lot of chicks hanging out with them!"
We all laughed. Michael was the biggest flirt I've ever met. All he ever thinks about is girls. Just then, I spotted Jenn and Sara coming our way. We all said hi as they sat down to join us.
"You're looking lovely tonight Jenn." David said sarcastically noticing the sweat pants she had on and her lack of makeup.
"Aaawww thanks David! I got dressed up just for you." Jenn retorted, laughing.
"Seriously though, when are you gonna take us to hang out with these guys?" Michael asked Michelle again.
"Well actually, Justin asked me if Sara, Jenn, and I wanted to fly upto New York and come see them. They're doing a concert there in two weeks and they are going to stay there for a couple of days. I could ask him if he minds if I bring a few more friends."
"Hell yeah, I wanna go to New York!" David said excited.
"I wanna meet JC. He is too cute!" Ashley added.
"Did he mention anything about Lance?" Sara asked curiously.
"Actually, he did! I can't believe I forgot to tell you." Jenn said excited. "I asked him if he thought Lance liked you and he told me Lance always talks about you, but that he is just nervous to call you."
Sara looked happy for the first time since the guys left. I was really worried about her. She gets so attached to guys and she always ends up getting hurt. I hope, for her sake, Lance is a nice guy and doesn't do anything to hurt her.
"Aaawww isn't that sweet," David joked, taking a bite of his pizza.
"Shut up David!" Jenn said laughing as she threw a piece of ice David's way.
We finished our pizza and decided we better get home. We all said goodbye and I caught a ride home with Jenn and Sara.
"So, do y'all wanna go to New York next weekend?" I asked.
"Are you kidding? Of course we're going!" Jenn exclaimed. "I can'twait to see Joey. He is such a cutie!"
"Hell yeah, are they paying for the trip cause I'm broke?" Sara asked.
"Yeah, Justin said he would fly us up there and all that." I informed them. We made our plans and I told them I would call Justin and tell him we're going.
"Don't forget to ask if Ashley, David and Michael can come!" Sarare minded me as Jenn pulled up to my house.
"I won't." I replied as I got out of the car. "See y'all tomorrow!"
~*~*~*~
After I washed my face and slipped into my flannel pajamas, I pulled out my address book and flipped to the T's. I dialed Justin's cell phone number and waited for him to answer. He answered on the third ring.
"Wassup?" He said into the phone. My heart beat immediately sped up, as it always did when I heard Justin's voice.
"Hey Justin!" I shouted into the phone, trying to be heard over the loud music in the background.
"Hey, who is this?"
"It's your girlfriend." I replied a little offended he didn't recognize my voice.
"Which one?" He asked sarcastically.
"The one you can't stop thinking about!" I replied laughing.
"Ain't that the truth," he said sweetly. "So what's up baby?"
"Not much. Are y'all having a party?" I asked.
"Yeah, the guys invited a couple of people to the hotel. You know Joey, he has to invite people up after every concert!"
"Are you drunk?" I asked noticing how he kept slurring his words.
"What makes you think that?" He asked laughing. "Yeah, I've had a few beers." He admitted.
"Don't get too drunk. We wouldn't want any of those girls to take advantage of you!" I joked.
"Ok baby. As long as you promise you'll take advantage of me next time we're together."
Laughing, I told him, "I think that could be arranged."
"I'll be looking forward to it."
"Speaking of that, I talked to Sara and Jenn tonight and said they wanna go to New York next weekend. So it looks like we're coming."
"Hell yeah. I can't wait! I'll send your plane tickets and everything in the mail so you should get them the next couple of days." He informed me.
"Are you sure you want to pay?" I asked, feeling bad that he was paying for everything.
"Of course! It's not a problem at all." he assured me.
"Ok, well I have three other friends that want to come with us. Would that be ok?" I asked. "You won't have to pay for them." I added.
"Sure, that's fine. Whatever you want!" He said.
"Hey Justin, come on you gotta check this out. This girl can down a whole beer in 6 seconds!" Chris yelled in the background.
"I better get going." Justin said. "I'll call you later."
"Ok, have fun."
"Bye baby, you be good." Justin said.
"Aren't I always?"
"Yep, and you better keep it that way." Justin joked.
"See ya soon!" I said.
"I can't wait! Bye Michelle."
~*~*~*~
"Wow, that was pretty impressive!" JC said after watching Kayla finish her beer in 6 seconds.
"Thanks, I have many other hidden talents, as well," she said putting her hand on JC's leg.
"I bet you do." He replied, uncomfortable.
"The real question is, can you do it again?" Justin asked as he walked into the room. Kayla responded by grabbing another beer and popping it open.
"Who's gonna count?" she asked, ready to down another beer. JC agreed to count as Kayla began drinking her beer.
"1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8....Aaahhh 8 seconds!" JC announced as Kayla sat down her empty beer can.
"That's not bad!" Justin said, impressed. "I don't think I can even down a beer that fast!"
"Maybe you better slow down." JC told her after she almost fell out of her chair.
"You gonna take me to bed now?" She whispered in JC's ear. JC had never liked girls who were as forward as she was. He liked it when girls let him make the first move.
Joey sensed JC's discomfort and said, "Hey JC come with me to the store real quick."
JC gladly stood up and he and Joey left.
~*~*~*~
"God that girl wouldn't take a hint!" JC said annoyed.
"Yeah, she was pretty drunk." Joey said. "Have you talked to Christie lately?" He added.
"I called her a couple of days ago. I told her I didn't want anything serious since I was on the road so much. She said she understood."
"Did Justin tell you he invited Sara, Michelle, and Jenn to come see us in New York?" Joey asked.
"Yeah he mentioned it. He has really fallen for that Michelle girl."
"I know, I haven't seen him this serious about a girl since Jessica." Joey replied.
"Yeah, hopefully she will handle the whole long distance thing better than Jessica did." JC replied.
Jessica was Justin's first love. They met at a party about 3 years ago and fell head over heals in love. Justin was crazy about Jessica. When his career took off, they tried to keep a long distance relationship, but it didn't work out. She broke it off after two years, saying that she wanted a boyfriend she could see as much as she wanted. She couldn't handle the distance between them and so she ended it, just like that. Justin was heartbroken, but he went on with his life. The touring and being in 'N SYNC helped take his mind off Jessica, but he never forgot her.
PART SEVENTEEN
The next week went by slowly. I went to school and work, counting the days until I got to see Justin again. It's been two weeks since I've seen him and I was starting to miss him really badly. I thought about our weekend we had spent together as I twirled the ring he had given me around my finger.
"He is such a nice guy," I thought to myself. Most of the guys I date turn out to be jerks. It was refreshing to date a sweet and romantic guy like Justin. I got the plane tickets in the mail a couple of days ago, and he had sent six tickets. Even though I told him he didn't have to pay for my other friends, he did anyway.
~*~*~*~
"So are you all packed?" I asked Sara over the phone.
"Yep, pretty much." she replied.
"Me too. I am so excited. I can't wait! Justin called me last night and he told me to tell you Lance is really excited about seeing you."
"Yeah I bet." Sara said sarcastically. "He hasn't even called me once since he left."
"Don't worry about it. Justin told me that Lance is just weird about stuff like that."
"I guess we'll see soon enough." Sara said. "I called Ashley and Jenn and they said they will be at your house at 8 in the morning!"
"Ok, I'm gonna call Michael and David and make sure they know what time to be at my house." We decided to all meet at my house at eight in the morning and my mom would drive us to the airport.
"Alright, I'll see you in the morning." Sara said before hanging up the phone. I called David and Michael's apartment and David answered.
"What do you want now?" David said into the phone, knowing it was me after reading the caller ID.
"Just checking up on you boys." I joked. "Are you all packed?"
"Yep, we're all ready to go. We'll be at your house in the morning."
"Ok, see ya then." I said and hung up the phone.
~*~*~*~
We arrived at the airport in New York around 2:30 p.m. The guys couldn't be there to pick us up because they had a concert tonight. We got our baggage and went to pick up the car Justin had rented for us. We all piled into the 99 Ford Explorer and drove out of the airport parking lot.
"I'm staving!" David said.
"Me too. Let's go eat!" Jenn added. Michael drove for an hour before we finally decided on a place to eat. We all got out of the car and went inside Wendy's. We ordered our food and sat at a table by the window.
"Ok, Justin said we could go to their hotel and hang out until the show starts. So I say we go there after we eat and get showered. Then we can go to the concert." I told them.
"You brought the backstage passes and all that, right Michelle?" Ashley asked.
"Yep, I got it all in my bag." I assured her.
"Sounds good." David said as he dipped a fry in his ketchup. We finished eating and headed toward the hotel. It was already 4 o'clock. The concert started at 7 o'clock so we had about 3 hours to get ready. We arrived at the hotel finally, after being lost for an hour. We went to the room and the bodyguard's stopped us at the door. I told him who I was and showed him my ID. He said he was expecting us and let us in the hotel room.
~*~*~*~
Justin gave his autograph to the next girl in line and smiled at her. The guys held a meet and greet before the show to get to know some of their fans. "Why hasn't Michelle called me yet?" He asked himself, worried. "Her plane was supposed to be here an hour ago and she still hasn't called." He continued visiting with his fans and signing posters, ticket stubs, and other things they wanted him to sign. Just as he was about to call the hotel and see if Michelle and them had arrived yet, his cell phone rang.
"Hey Justin." a familiar voice said.
"Baby where have you been? I've been worried sick!" Justin said, filled with relief.
"I'm sorry, we got into town and it was so hectic, I forgot to call." I apologized.
"It's ok. I was just worried."
"That's sweet. I'm really sorry you had to worry." I said sincerely.
"Did you get to the hotel ok?" he asked, changing the subject.
"Yep, we're here now."
"Good. The show starts at seven so if you want, y'all can come up here and hang out with us while the opening acts are on." Justin offered.
"Sure!" I replied, excited to finally see him again.
"Ok, just use the backstage passes I sent you and you should be fine. I told the guards to watch out for y'all, but if they give you any trouble, just have them call me."
"Ok, see ya soon." I said and hung up the phone. We all took showers and by 6:15, everyone was ready to go. We got in the explorer and Michael drove us to the venue where Justin and the guys were waiting for our arrival.
~*~*~*~
"We are friend's of 'N SYNC!" I told the guards impatiently. "They are expecting us!"
"Yeah, I'm sure they are." The guard said sarcastically.
"Listen, if you don't believe us, just call them and ask them." Sara told him.
"If I called them every time some kids tried to get through security, I wouldn't have a job." He said rudely. I told everyone to come with me and I walked to the bathrooms to use the pay phone. I called Justin on his cell phone and explained to him what happened.
"I'm so sorry," he told me. "Go back to where that guard is and I'll meet you there." The same guard was still there as we walked down the hall. He saw us coming and sighed.
"What now?" He said impatiently. Just then, Justin walked up behind him and told him we could come back.
"Sorry about that sir." He said to Justin as he stepped back to let us through. I smirked at him as Justin grabbed my hand and led us to their dressing room.
When we got inside, he turned around wrapped me in his arms. I returned his hug, happy to be in his arms again.
He pulled his head back to look at me and said, "I forgot how beautiful you are."
I smiled and kissed him eagerly. Jenn and Sara had found their way over to the rest of the group and introduced everyone to Ashley, Michael and David. Justin and I joined the rest of the group, and I introduced Justin to our other friends.
"So you're the guy who Michelle won't shut up about?" David joked as he shook Justin's hand.
"That would be me." Justin replied laughing. Justin sat down on the couch and pulled me down in his lap. We all sat there, talking and laughing, for about thirty minutes. Someone came in the room and informed the guys that they were due on stage in about 45 minutes and so they needed to get ready.
"Y'all can all sit on the side of the stage and watch us from there." Justin told me as we said goodbye. I didn't want to part with him again. Seeing him and having him hold me again felt so good. I didn't want to ever leave his side. I agreed and kissed him goodbye.
"Good luck on your show," I told him between kisses. "I love you!"
"I love you too sweetie. Enjoy the show!"
PART EIGHTEEN
We all sat on the side of the stage, cheering and screaming, as we watched 'N SYNC perform for the crowd. When they guys first went out on stage the screams were so loud, I could barely hear myself think. It reminded me of the concert we went to a few weeks ago, before we actually knew the guys.
The guys kept looking at us and making funny faces and we were trying our hardest to make them laugh! We were having a blast. When the guys ran off stage before singing "For The Girl Who Has Everything," a man came up to us and asked Sara, Jenn, Ashley, and I to come with him. We followed him to the back where the guys were. All the sudden they came out of their dressing room and Justin came up to me and put his arm around me.
"Wanna go on stage with me?" He asked grinning.
"Are you serious?" I asked excitedly.
"Yep...we're about to sing "For The Girl Who Has Everything" and we want you girls to sit on the stage with us."
"Of course we will!" I said as the girls came up behind me screaming.
"We get to go on stage!" Jenn screamed.
"I know, I know!" I screamed back. The guys were all laughing at us.
"Ok, let's go then." Justin said as he took my hand. We lined up behind the stage with some other girls who were picked to go out there as well. Justin, Lance, Sara, and I were on one side of the stage and Joey, Chris, Ashley, Jenn, and some other girls were on the other side of the stage.
Justin held my hand as we waited for JC to finish the introduction to the song. They told us it was time to walk out on stage and Justin held my hand as he led me onto the stage. I looked out into the crowd and was overwhelmed. There were so many people out there. Justin led me to the steps were we all sat and they started the song.
I sat by Sara as we watched the guys perform the song, and do the number with the chairs. That was more than we could handle. Justin came back and sat between Sara and I and put his arm around me as he sang. He whispered "I love you baby" in my ear before getting up again to finish the song. When the song was over, they helped us up and led us backstage.
"That was incredible." I told Justin, still excited.
"I thought you'd like that!" He told me, smiling.
The guys were rushed back out on stage and we returned to the side of the stage, where we sat for the rest of the concert.
~*~*~*~
"I can't believe we were on stage with them!" Ashley exclaimed. "I was right in front of JC when he did the chair part. All I can say about that is, damn!" We all laughed as we walked through the parking lot to our car.
"You should have seen Jenn's face when Joey kissed her on the cheek!" Michael said laughing. "I've never seen her smile that big before."
"Shut up Michael!" Jenn said laughing as she playfully shoved Michael. We found the car and I climbed into the driver's seat and drove us back to the hotel, where we were to meet up with the guys.
The guard told us the guys were already in there as we approached the hotel room and to go on in. The guys were all sitting on the couch laughing.
"What's so funny?" I asked, sitting on Justin's lap.
"Nothing, we were just laughing at the girl who through her bra up on stage." Justin told us.
"Yeah I saw that," David said. "I was hoping you'd save it for me." He joked.
"So what are we doing tonight?" Jenn asked as she sat down beside Joey.
"Well, we have an after party to go to later at some club." Joey said. "Y'all are gonna come with us, right?"
"Sure," we all replied. The guys went to take showers and get ready while Michael and David went to the store to get alcohol.
~*~*~*~
Michael and David came back with the alcohol about fifteen minutes later. They carried in a big bottle of Vodka and a bottle of Crown.
"Damn, did you guys get enough?" I asked looking at all the alcohol the bought.
"This should last us for an hour or so." David joked. We poured our drinks and sat down at the table.
"We don't have much time before we have to leave, so y'all drink fast." Michael told us.
"Let's do shots!" Jenn suggested.
"No way!" I said. "Last time I took shots, I ended up passed out on the bathroom floor." Everyone laughed remembering the night that happened.
"Come on Michelle, just one." David begged.
"All right, all right." I agreed. "Do we even have any shot glasses?" I asked.
"I don't think so, but we'll just use a glass." Jenn said. She poured me a shot and I took it. We passed the glass around the table until everyone had taken a shot. We drank our mixed drinks until the guys came out and were ready to go around 11:30.
"You doing alright?" Justin asked as he came up behind be and rested his chin on my shoulder.
"Yep, I'm fine." I lied, feeling a strong buzz. We finished our drinks and left the hotel room.
We had to take separate cars because the guys couldn't show up in the limo with a bunch of girls. We followed them to the club and parked the car. By the time we reached the club, most of us were pretty drunk already. A large man met us at the front and escorted us into the club. Jenn and I went to the bar to order another drink as soon as we got inside.
"I'll have a margarita and she'll have a..." Jenn stopped. "What do you want Michelle?"
"I'll take a sex on the beach," I told the bartender. We got our drinks and watched as Justin and the rest of the guys stepped up on the stage and began to work the crowd. The guys stayed up on stage and sang, while my friends and I danced.
The music stopped and they said they were going to come down and dance in the crowd. The came down and all the girls rushed to the front of the dance floor. We made our way to the front to see the guys. Justin spotted me and came over to us and grabbed my hand. We all went and danced with the guys and had a blast.
The club was about to close and the guys said goodnight to the audience.
"Meet us back at the hotel." Justin told me and kissed me goodbye.
~*~*~*~
"Man, that was wild!" Joey said as they climbed in the limo and took off for the hotel.
"I know, I had fun!" Chris added. "What was up with you and Ashley, JC? Y'all looked a little close tonight." He asked.
Laughing, JC told them, "nothing is up with us, I was just dancing with her!"
"Well, she's hot man, you should go for it!" Joey added. They pulled up to the hotel and walked up to their room. They stepped off the elevator and ran into Sara and Ashley.
"What's up ladies?" Lance said in a deep voice.
"Hey guys! We were just going to the store to buy some more sprite! We ran out and there's still a lot of Vodka left." Jenn informed them.
"Cool, see y'all in a little while." Joey said as the guys stepped off the elevator.
~*~*~*~
I looked up from the card game to see Justin and the guys walk in the door. I was feeling pretty drunk by that time. Justin sat beside me and asked what we were playing.
"Scategories, and I'm losing really bad." I told him pouting.
"Aaaww you poor thing," he said laughing. I told Justin I was really tired and was ready to go to bed. He agreed as he helped me up and took me to bed.
As soon as my head hit the pillow, I felt exhausted. Justin laid beside me and I fell asleep in his arms.
~*~*~*~
JC walked in the living room just as Ashley and Sara came through the door with bottles of sprite. JC couldn't take his eyes off Ashley. She was so beautiful with her short, light-brown hair and big brown eyes. He watched as she confidently walked to the kitchen and put the drinks in the fridge. She came back to the living room and stood next to JC.
"Want a drink?" She offered.
:Sure," he replied. "I'll help you make it." As Ashley reached for the vodka bottle, JC did also and ended up grabbing her hand. He held onto it for a brief second before quickly pulling his hand away and apologizing.
"For what?" She asked innocently. JC loved that she was so confident and relaxed. She didn't seem to get embarrassed about anything. They fixed their drinks and sat back down at the table with the rest of the party.
After about an hour of playing games and laughing, Ashley needed some air.
"I'm going for a walk." She announced as she stood up. "Anyone wanna come?" She asked suggestively, looking straight at JC.
"Sure," he said, happy that she wanted to be alone with him. As they walked out the door, David yelled after them, "Don't do anything I wouldn'tdo," followed by everyone laughing. JC looked at Ashley, and she smiled at him.
"Don't worry about him, he's always like that!" She said laughing.
~*~*~*~
"I'm sorry I haven't called you." Lance apologized to Sara, once he finally got her alone in his room.
"It's ok. I understand." Sara said. "Maybe you outta give me your number this time, so I can call you." She joked.
"I promise I'll call you next time. I don't know why I didn't call. I guess I was just scared you didn't want to talk to me."
"Are you crazy?" Sara asked, laughing. "I'd love to talk to you." Lance laughed and moved closer to Sara on the bed.
"You really are beautiful." Lance said, moving a strand of hair out ofher face.
"Thanks." she replied, looking down. Compliments always made her blush.
"I think your friend likes JC." Lance said laughing.
"Yeah, Ashley's pretty forward. When she likes a guy, she goes for it."
"Well, I like you." Lance said as he leaned in to kiss Sara.
"I like you too." Sara replied between kisses.
~*~*~*~
"So, you were born here in New York?" JC asked Ashley.
"Yep. I moved to Atlanta when I was about 12. I met Michelle shortly after I moved because we lived on the same block. She introduced me to her friends and that's how I met Jenn, Sara, Michael, and David." Ashley informed him.
"Wow, so y'all have been friends for a long time?"
"Yep, almost 10 years." Ashley replied. The had left the party to take a walk and ended up sitting on a bench in a park they found around the corner. JC reached out and grabbed Ashley's hand.
"You have really soft hands." JC said, realizing how lame he sounded. He was intimidated by Ashley and couldn't seem to say anything right.
"Thanks." Ashley said reaching up and running her finger over his lips. "You have really soft lips." She replied, smiling.
JC took that as an invitation and leaned in to kiss her. She returned his kiss eagerly.
"That was nice." She said as she pulled away.
"Yeah. That's what all the girls say." JC joked.
"I bet they do." Ashley said as she kissed him again.
After about thirty more minutes, Ashley suggested that they started walking back to the hotel. JC agreed, and they began to walk back.
"I had fun with you tonight." Ashley said as they walked hand and hand down the street.
"I had fun too." JC admitted. "We'll have to do this again sometime."
"Definitely." Ashley agreed with a smile.
PART NINETEEN
"What do you want to do today?" Justin asked me between bites of his cereal.
"I don't know. We could go see a movie." I suggested.
"Yeah we could do that. I want to see that new James Bond movie."
"Uugghhh, you can go by yourself then. I hate those kind of movies." I replied just as Chris and Lance walked through the door.
"What kind of movies?" Chris asked, grabbing a handful of Justin's Apple Jack's.
"Hey! Get your hands off my cereal!" Justin yelled as Chris attempted to grab the box. He succeeded and threw it to Lance.
"Go long, Lance!" He yelled. Lance caught the box and returned it to Justin laughing.
"Y'all are stupid." Lance said.
"So what's this about a movie?" Chris asked, changing the subject.
"We were going to go see one in a little while," I informed them. "Do y'all wanna go with us?"
They said yes and we picked out a movie. Justin, Chris, Lance, Sara and I piled in the car and drove to the movie theater.
After the movie, we went back to the hotel and found Jenn and Joey laying on the couch together, watching tv.
"Where's everyone at?" I asked sitting down in the chair.
"David and Michelle went to the store and Ashley and JC disappeared somewhere." Justin came and sat by me and whispered in my ear to come with him. We stood up and I followed him into his bedroom.
"What's up?" I asked him curiously, as he shut the door behind him.
"I have been wanting to do this all day." He said as he wrapped his arms around me and kissed me tenderly. I returned his kiss as he walked backward, leading me to his bed. I laid there, enjoying the gentle kisses Justin placed on my neck.
"Justin," I began, as he nibbled on my earlobe.
"Yes baby?"
"Make love to me." I whispered in his ear.
"Are you sure?" He asked, surprised by my sudden request.
"Yes. I love you Justin and I want to be with you."
"I love you too baby," he replied, kissing me again.
~*~*~*~
Justin woke up around 8:30 a.m. to find Michelle still wrapped in his arms, like she was when he fell asleep last night. He laid there, watching her sleep, and thinking to himself how lucky he was to have found her.
I awoke with a feeling of someone watching me. Much to my surprise, Justin was propped up on his elbow, starring at me.
"What are you doing?" I asked, barely awake.
"Just watching you sleep." He replied. "You always look so beautiful when you're asleep."
"What are you saying, I look ugly when I'm awake?" I teased.
"Shut up babe, you know what I meant." Justin said laughing.
"Yeah, I know. I just like giving you a hard time."
"Do you regret what we did last night?" Justin asked, concerned.
"Not at all. I loved being with you. I wouldn't change anything about last night. It was perfect."
"Yeah, perfect. Just like you." Justin said as he placed a kiss on my forehead. "I wish you didn't have to leave today." he said, pouting.
"Me too. Why don't you just quit 'N SYNC and run away with me?" I joked.
"Ok, let's do it. Go get dressed and let's go." He joked back.
Just then, there was a knock on the door. Justin got up and opened it to find Joey standing there. "Hey man, y'all get up. It's already 11:30 a.m."
"Yeah, yeah, we're up." Justin said laying back down next to me.
"We're gonna go get something to eat if y'all wanna come." He informed us.
"You wanna go Shelly?" Justin asked me.
"Sure, just give me a minute to get ready."
"Ok, well, hurry up! I'm starving!" Joey said as he left the room. I quickly got ready and returned to the room to put my shoes on.
"You sure you don't wanna just stay in bed with me all day?" Justin asked as he sat down beside me on the bed.
"In bed with you all day? That's pretty tempting." I said and kissed him on the cheek.
"What, that's all I get?" He replied, pouting.
I kissed him again on the lips and asked, "Are you happy now?"
"I could use another one."
"Nope, that's all you're getting until I get some food!" I teased.
We met the other's in the living room and headed out of the hotel to the nearest restaurant.
~*~*~*~
The rest of the day went by really fast. After we ate, Justin and I went back to the hotel and took a walk outside. We made plans for when we were gonna see each other again and how much we were going to miss one another.
Then, it was time to go home again. The guys came with us to the airport to see us off.
"I wish you could stay with me." Justin said as held me tight.
"Me too." I replied. Justin pulled back to look at me one last time and saw the tear escape my eye that I had been holding back ever since we arrived at the airport. Justin cupped my chin in his hand and lifted my head so he could look at me.
"Don't cry baby. I'll see you again soon." Justin assured me, placing tiny kisses on her face.
I hugged him one last time and said goodbye as I made my way to my friends waiting for me at the gate. I turned around and looked at Justin once more. I mouthed "I love you."
"I love you more." he mouthed back and blew me a kiss.
PART TWENTY
"So, how has your week been?"
"It was alright." I replied, talking to Justin on the phone. It has been almost a month since I got back from visiting Justin in New York. We talked on the phone regularly and he called me at least twice a week.
"I have a surprise for you." Justin said.
"Oh yeah? What is it?" I asked curiously.
"First you have to tell me how much you love me." Justin teased.
Laughing, I joked, "I don't love you. I've just been pretending all this time because I felt sorry for you."
"That's too bad then. I guess you don't get your surprise."
"I'm just kidding sweetie. You know I love you more than anything!"
"Well, since you put it that way..." Justin began. "I am coming to see you in three weeks."
"Are you serious?" I asked, excited.
"Yep. We have a break from the tour for a week, so I am going to fly out there for the weekend."
"That is so cool! I can't wait!" I told him. "Are the guys coming with you?"
"Nah, everyone is going home to visit their families for the week. I am going to stay with my mom during the week and fly out to see you over the weekend."
We made our plans and then said goodbye. As I hung up the phone I thought about how much I loved Justin. I have had several relationships with guys that all ended badly. Most of the guys turned out to be jerks. But Justin was different. He was sweet and caring and not afraid to express his feelings. He told me he would never do anything to hurt me, because he loved me too much.
I looked down at my hand and played with the ring Justin had given me. I thought back to the day he left Atlanta, when he put this ring on my finger and told me how much he loved me.
The phone rang, interrupting my thoughts. I answered the phone to discover it was Jenn.
"Hey girl!" Jenn said into the receiver.
"Hey! What's up?" I asked.
"Not much. Me and Sara were about to go shopping. She saw some shirt in Dillard's that she has to have. Do you wanna go with us?"
"What time are ya'll going to be finished?" I asked. "I have to work at six tonight."
"Oh we'll be done by then. It should only take an hour or two."
"All right, cool. Come pick me up then." I told her before hanging up the phone. Jenn and Sara pulled into my driveway ten minutes later and we were off to the mall.
~*~*~*~
"Ok, how does it look?" Sara asked, coming out of the dressing room wearing black pants and a low-cut red shirt.
"Your breasts look huge in that shirt!" I said laughing.
"No shit," Jenn added. "You are definitely buying that shirt!" Sara waited in line to buy the shirt while Jenn and I sampled perfume from the testers they had out on the counters.
"So have you talked to Justin lately?" Jenn asked, spraying Hugo for women on her wrist.
"Yeah. He called me today. He is coming here in three weeks to visit."
"Really?" She asked. "That's cool. Y'all are so cute together!" Laughing, I thanked her as Sara joined us.
"I know. Y'all make me sick. You're all in love and shit." Sara said, joining in on our conversation.
"What's up with you and Lance?" I asked, changing the subject.
"He called the other day. I don't really know what's up with us. I like talking to him and hanging out with him, but it's more like we're friends than anything. He's just one of those guys that makes a better friend than boyfriend, you know?"
"So you don't want to be with him anymore?" Jenn asked.
"Yeah, I still want to be with him. I don't know, I can't explain it."
"You're so weird." Jenn teased as we left the department store.
"I'll see y'all in psych class tomorrow." I said as we approached my house and I climbed out of the car.
"Bye." They called out as I shut the car door. Winter was on it's way and it was starting to get cold outside. I ran inside to escape the frigid air. I quickly changed into my work clothes and grabbed my car keys off my night stand on my way out the door.
"Bye mom!" I called out as I ran outside.
~*~*~*~
"Hey. Is this JC?" A familiar voice asked after JC answered his cellular phone.
"You got him." JC replied.
"Hey there. Long time no talk."
"Who is this?" JC asked curiously.
"Aaawww, forgotten me already?"
"Oh my god! Hey Christie!" JC said, recognizing her voice. "What are you doing?"
"Not much, just thought I'd call and say hey." Christie replied.
"I'm glad you did. I've missed hearing your voice." JC said sincerely. JC and Christie kept in touch after he left Atlanta for a while, but eventually they stopped calling. It has been over a month since they talked last.
"I missed you too. So what have you been up to?" Christie asked.
"Not much. We're still on tour and so we've been pretty busy with that. We're in California right now. We have a concert tonight in Sacramento and then we're heading to North Carolina." JC informed her.
"Sounds busy."
"Very!" JC added. They talked for a while longer about the tour and everything going on with JC.
"So have you met anyone yet?" Christie asked, curious to know if JC had found another girl he was interested in.
"Not really." JC lied. "We've been so tired from the tour lately we haven't been out much." JC felt he should tell Christie about Ashley, but he couldn't. He told her after he left Atlanta that he didn't want to get serious with anyone, but he still liked her a lot and didn't want to hurt her.
"So I still have a shot to win you over and make you fall madly in love with me?" Christie asked sarcastically.
Laughing, JC joked back, "Yep, but you better hurry cause some lucky girl could catch my eye any day."
"Well, I guess I'm going to have to arrange and emergency visit before it's too late." She told him, laughing.
"That sounds good. Seriously though, I should come out to Atlanta when I get some free time."
"That'd be great!" Christie said. "I'd love to see you again."
"Me too. I'll see what I can do and I'll call you sometime this week and let you know." JC said, eager to see Christie again. When they met in the club, they had instantly connected. JC felt like he'd known Christie all his life only after talking with her for thirty minutes. They said their goodbye's and hung up the phone.
"Who was that?" Justin asked, walking into the room.
"Christie." JC answered.
"Oh yeah? I didn't think you talked to her anymore."
"Well, we kinda stopped for a while, but she just called me. I told her I was going to try to come see her in Atlanta soon." JC told Justin.
"Hey, you should come with me! I am flying down there when we get a week off to go home." Justin offered.
"Yeah, that sounds good. How long are you staying?"
"Just the weekend. I want to spend some time with my mom and everybody back home too."
"Cool. Yeah I'll go with ya." JC decided.
TO BE CONTINUED