If I Told You That

As she waited patiently, thoughts flooding her mind, she couldn't help but think of that fateful last meeting.

"It's kinda weird, isn't it?" Lance smiled. His eyes lit up like a child's eyes on Christmas morning as he continued, "Maddie, I can't believe it's 1998, and suddenly, I'm a huge success. Remember a few years ago?" Lance stared into Madison's crystal blue eyes that began to fill with tears.

"I remember," she closed her eyes for a moment, then looked back to Lance's shining green eyes, the source of her comfort.

"Maddie," Lance's face softened when he saw the look in his best friends eyes. He wrapped his arms tightly around her when he heard a knock on the limo window.

"Dude, we gotta rehearse NOW. Opening night is in two days," JC's voice sounded.

Lance sighed, "Gotta let the driver take you to the airport..."

"Lance?" Madison got that glimmer in her eye, and Lance knew that some silly comment would result.

"Whaaaat?" he laughed.

"I liked it better when you were big in Europe and just came home as my best friend," Madison said as she hugged him tight, breathing in the scent of his cologne, remembering everything she could.

"Let's GO," JC shouted. Lance did nothing but growl, then smoothed a hand through Madison's hair.

"I'm ALWAYS going to be your best friend, Maddie. Never forget that," Lance said with great emotion, placing a feathered kiss on her forehead, "Wish me a good show?" he smiled.

Madison wrapped her arms around Lance once more and whispered softly in his ear, "I hope that every show you have is a great one."

Lance felt the tears sting his eyes as she placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. With one more look into his best friend's eyes, he opened the limo door and was greeted with a guard. He peeked his head back into the limo.

"I love you, Maddie. Don't forget, always best friends," he smiled, before he was pulled in the opposite direction, and the door slammed in her face.

JC smiled with understanding. Reassuringly, he said, "Lance, you've gotten these letters consistently throughout the past two years, and ya'll pour your hearts out. Things couldn't have changed that much. I think you two know each other better now then you did when you were kids."

"She does know everything about me," Lance looked down, sorting through ideas in his mind.

"And?" JC asked, knowing that there was more to that statement. JC and Lance always seemed to understand each other, could talk like this openly, knowing that there would be no wise crack, just honesty.

"And, well," Lance struggled with his feelings, "I don't really know."

"You want to see her, don't you?" JC asked curiously as their limo got closer to the secluded little hotel that the guys were lucky enough to find.

"I do," Lance confirmed, wide eyed, "I guess I'm just..."

"Scared?" JC patted Lance's back as he nodded with some laughter.

"Exactly, and I don't know why," he said, trying to avoid the inevitable.

JC smiled, "Just do whatever is right for you, man."

"Here you are, miss," the bar tender smiled widely, placing two umbrellas in their seemingly obvious nonalcoholic drinks.

"Thank you," she returned a courteous smile, and went to sit where she had been sitting previously.

An enormous grin spread across her sun kissed face as she lifted one of the small paper umbrellas and twirled it between her fingers.

"What has gotten into you? Your mother is gonna kill ya," Madison shouted as she watched her 16 year old friend dance around in the rain.

"Come oooooon, Maddie. You know you want to dance around in the rain. I'll sing if you come out here." Lance reached his hands out to Madison, who was standing on her porch, umbrella in hand.

"Fine," she huffed, putting her umbrella up, going to Lance.

"What is this?" Lance chuckled, taking her umbrella and holding it to the sky, twirling it several times.

"Lance!!" Madison squealed as the rain soaked her body. Lance grabbed her hand and grinned.

"I'm siiiiiiiiiiiiinging in the rain...just siiiiiiiiinging in the rain," Lance sang out with a grin, and Madison couldn't help but smile.

"What has gotten into you?" She asked again, a sparkle in her eyes. She watched as the water dripped down and fell off of Lance's nose, and she giggled once more.

"Yes? I'm sorry," Madison apologized as it must have been obvious she was lost in a daydream.

"Are you waiting for a Lance Bass?" she asked politely.

"Yes," a smile spread across Madison's face as she looked around the area, "Is he here?"

"Not yet, dear. Running a bit late, but I was to tell you, he's on his way and hasn't forgotten you," the woman smiled, nodded, and headed back to the hotel doors.

"Thank you," Madison called out, as the woman waved behind her.

"Come on, Lance. You better hurry," Madison sighed, glancing at a picture she had pulled from her pocket, "Before I lose my nerve."

"How do you know? See the pool from our window?" he asked as he plopped down on the bed, "Damn these bad hotel room beds, I swear."

Lance laughed at the look on Justin's face and shook his head, "No, can't tell from this view, but Tracey, the woman at the front desk, delivered a message to Maddie that I'd be here soon. She told me that there was a young woman who had been waiting for me."

"Maddie...aww how cute," Justin mocked and flinched as Lance chucked a pair of balled socks in his direction. "Hey! I was just playing," Justin laughed.

"Yeah, I know," Lance sat down, running his hands through his hair.

Justin looked on, "Umm Lance? If your girl is waiting for you outside and you've had her waiting for a while, what are you doing sitting here?"

"I know. I'm going down to the pool," Lance said, reaching into his bag, retrieving a stuffed animal.

"What the hell is that ratty old thing?" Justin laughed again, picking on Lance for his own entertainment.

"Pookie," Lance couldn't help but laugh as he looked at Madison's old stuffed possesion, a dog that she had given him when he left for Europe with the group.

"POOK-IE," Justin said in a loud tone, "Is that named after you Lancey Wancey?" Justin giggled, holding up a pillow to shield his face, "Please, no more of those stankin socks." The two laughed.

"She gave this to me, before we left for our first tour. She had it forever, Justin," Lance suddenly grew serious, and with that, so did Justin.

"You love her?" he asked.

Without hesitation, Lance answered, "Yes, I do." Justin's eyes widened and Lance just smiled, repeating, "I love Madison."

"Tell her yet?" Justin smiled, his dimples showing.

"I'm on my way," Lance grinned, nervously walking towards the door.

"Good luck, Lance, and details!" Justin laughed as Lance smiled, closing the door behind him.

'God knows how beautiful she is,' Lance thought to himself. He had seen pictures but nothing could do her beauty justice. She had grown so much, changed so much, and he didn't know how he would react once her eyes gazed into his.

Her eyes fluttered open and fixated on the man coming towards her....her best friend. She smiled and stood up, not thinking as she ran into his arms.

"Lance!" she shrieked as his arms wrapped tightly around her waist, "I missed you so much."

Lance breathed in the scent of her shampoo, the same pear shampoo she had been using for years and reveled in the feel of Madison's face buried in his neck, "I missed you, too, Maddie," he paused, holding her as tightly as he could, "So much."

Lance kept the boldness he promised himself he'd have as he stared into Madison's eyes, "You're beautiful. Everything about you, Maddie, you're..."

"Oh my gosh!" She giggled as she reached for her stuffed dog, "Pookie!! You still have him!" she excitedly said. Lance could do nothing but smile at the pure happiness that was between them.

"Of course I do, sweetie. That's part of you," Lance's words left his lips and went straight to Madison's heart. She wanted to tell him so desperately how deeply she had fallen in love with him, but fear over took her.

"Always a gentleman," she giggled as she passed Lance the glass of iced tea, "Kinda warm now. I expected you earlier, Mr. Smooth."

Lance grinned at the playful way she flirted. She always was like that, always brought that flutter to his stomach, "I'm sorry," Lance sipped his iced tea, "Just the way I like it."

"Lance?"

"Madison?" They both seemed to want to talk at the same time.

"You first," Madison said politely.

"No, please, Maddie, go ahead," Lance reassured, nervously catching Madison's eyes with his own.

"Okay," Madison looked down, "Well," she paused again.

"What is it? Whatever it is, it's alright," Lance placed his hand on Madison's leg to console her and sent a jolt of energy through her body, feeling his touch.

"Maddie, sweetheart," Lance moved to her, pulling her close to his chest, "What is it?" he asked gently, stroking her hair the way he did that night in the limo two years ago.

'I love you with all my heart,' she thought to herself, and was angry that she couldn't just say it. Silence fell between the two for several moments.

"Maddie?" Lance whispered, "Come on, what is it?" he gently asked once more.

"Lance," Madison looked up to meet Lance's bright eyes. He looked genuinely concerned, worried, and though Madison had reviewed and played this conversation over in her mind so many times, it wasn't working out the way she'd hoped it would. She always knew what she would say, what she thought Lance would say, but somehow that order was vanishing before her eyes.

As she stared into Lance's eyes, those words were non existant and she wondered to herself how he couldn't feel the love pouring out of her body, "Lance," her lip trembled just slightly, "I love you, and I've been in love with you for the past two years."

Madison buried her head into Lance's chest as quickly as she let that sentence flow all at once. She could hear Lance's heart beating rapidly, could feel his nervousness.

"Madison," Lance spoke her full name as he never had, "I feel the same way." Lance tightened his arms around the girl that he had been in love with for so long and let a tear roll down his cheek, "I love you, too."

Back To Laura Nicole's Stories
Home