Jo stared out the window of the jet. She thought about home (wherever that was), Lee, her parents, Shane, Julie, Buster, and herself. People always look at Rachel as the one who gets homesick; she wasn't the only one. Jo was, but she never showed it. To her, showing emotion meant letting your guard down, which she never did. The only two people who saw THE Joanne Valda O'Meara, were Rachel and her mum. Lee had never seen her cry, but her mum and Rachel had given her a shoulder to weep on. Rachel may as well be her sister. Tina's wrong when she says that the band isn't as close as they appear; Rach and Jo are best mates. She sighed and turned to face Ratz, who was asleep. She was surprised to see her sleeping since she hated flying so much. At that moment, she woke up, raised the armrest that separated herself and Jo, and laid her head in Jo's lap. She must have still been asleep. Jo looked down at her and laughed under her breath. Rachel was the only person, other than Lee, who she would let do that. She looked back out the window. Through the clouds she could see the Atlantic Ocean. It looked so clean and clear. Rachel rustled in her lap, evidently trying to get comfortable. Jo looked around the rest of the plane, seeing what each member was up to. As per usual, Jon and Tina were talking to each other and Bradley wasl asleep with his headphones on his head. Hannah was looking through a magazine and Paul was playing on his laptop. He stretched, closed the computer, and walked over to Jo. He sat down in front of the two ladies and set his chin on the top of the seat, facing them.
"Did you give her something to knock her out?" he asked, referring to Rachel.
"No, she didn't get any sleep last night. She was up all night packing and re-packing," Jo replied.
"Wow. At least she's comfy," he said with a grin.
"HaHa, Paul Cattermole. No, I don't care, just as long as I don't have to hear her bitch about flying. I love her and all, but it tends to get annoying sometimes,"
"You've got a point there, mate. So are you two going to share a flat once we get back to LA?" Paul asked.
"I don't know. Maybe, if we could find a space big enough for all our shit, " Joanne answered.
"Yea, I swear, Rachel packs more than me, Jon, Hannah, Tina, and Bradley combined. You pack a load as well ya know,"
"We can't help it, we're female. Besides, we don't wear the same thing over and over, either, " she snapped. Paul's mobile rang, so he jumped back to his seat to answer it. By the way he was talking, Jo could tell he was talking to Neil. The ringing woke Rachel up.
"Whoa, how did I end up down here?" Rachel asked.
"Well, you pulled up the armrest and just made yourself cozy. I figured you either needed the sleep or was just bored out of your goard." Jo replied.
"I'm glad I slept. Where are we?"
Jo looked out the window. "I'm guessing just over the United States. We just flew over land, so we'll probably be there in another 2-3 hours. Sleep good?" she said.
"Yea, actually, I did. Paul's mobile woke me up. He's talking to Neil isn't he?"
"Yea, he is. They're talking about footie, I think. Paul placed a few bets and he's getting the update I reckon,"
"More than likely. Oh well, much sadness. Can I go back to sleep now?" Rach asked.
"On my lap? I guess. You seemed to be pretty happy down there," Jo said with a mischevious grin on her face. Rachel returned with her patented 'look' and laid her head back in Jo's lap. She finally got comfortable and went to sleep again. Jo soon dozed off as well after about 20 minutes of watching Rachel sleep. Paul got off the phone with Neil and looked up at Rachel and Jo. Rach's legs were hanging over the armrest into the aisle and Jo had her seat laid back a bit. Paul grabbed his Polaroid camera and took a picture. The flash didn't wake either sleeping beauty. He took it over to Jon, who just chuckled. Tina glanced over and rolled her eyes. The three talked about LA for an hour. Paul saw Rachel move out of the corner of his eye. She moved her legs onto her body. *She must be cold,* Paul thought. He got up, went to the storage bin just of the rear of the cabin, and got out a blanket. He took it back to the two girls and spread it across them. An hour later, the captain of the plane came on the in cabin radio and announced their landing at LA International Airport. Jo woke up but Rachel didn't. She shook the brunette gently and Rachel leaned up. Without a word being spoken, both girls leaned their seats into the upright position and buckled up. Rachel got her purse out from under her seat and popped a breath mint in her mouth. She handed Jo one, who took it gladly. At that moment, the plane touched the ground as Rachel simultaniously grabbed Jo's forearm in fear. This was the worst part for Rachel. Jo gently tapped her hand, signaling that she needed relief from Rach's nails digging into her skin. Jo let out a sigh. The plane taxied off the runway and toward an awaiting limousine. Jo grabbed her backpack from the over-head storage compartment. She followed Rachel out of the seating area and stretched. It was a long 10 hours. The flight attendant opened the door and let the steps down. It was nearly 7 AM in Los Angeles, which meant that the group left London at 9 PM, Pacific Time. Rachel yawned and headed for the black limo. Silence lingered throughout the group until Simon stepped in the front.
"Rise and shine, sleeping beauties. We have a crammed pack schedule today. We have an interview and photoshoot with Seventeen magazine, plus we visit the set of Back To LA. Any questions? No? Alright then, off we go!" he said, wayyy to enthusiastically for Jo's tastes. He must have flown in earlier in the week.
"Hey, Simon?" Bradley piped up.
"Yea Brad?" Simon replied.
"When will we get acclimated to the time change?" Brad said.
"Whoa, you used a big word, go Tosh," Hannah said.
"Um, whenever you can get some sleep," Simon answered.
"Great. Now I definately know the meaning of over worked and under paid," Bradley said with an emphasis on the last two words.
"Keep your trousers on, mate. Try to get some sleep on the way. It's a 45 minute drive from here." Jon said, looking up from his and Tina's conversation.
"OK. Sounds good. You's two just try to keep quiet, 'right?"
"Yea, sure. We'll try."
"Yea, Rach, I'm going back to sleep. I didn't get enough." Jo said to Rachel.
"OK. That doesn't sound like a bad idea at all, " she replied and laid her head on Jo's shoulder. Jo leaned her head on Rachel's and quickly dozed off. They were at the hotel in no time (or so it seemed). Jo and Rachel groggily stepped out of the car, stretched, and grabbed some of their luggage from the trunk. Slowly, the rest of the band emerged from the sleek roller. The got their keys and headed straight for their rooms. Jo, Rachel, and Hannah were to share a room while Jon and Tina shared a room. As usual, Paul and Bradley split a room. Once they got settled, Rachel, Hannah, and Jo unloaded all their gear.
“Well, I’m off. Paul and I are going out to breakfast,” Hannah said.
“Alright, be careful, especially if HE’S driving. Make sure you buckle up,” Rachel replied.
“Cheer, Rach! We’ll be OK. Besides, I don’t think he as a car out here just yet,”
“Oh, ok, but make sure Simon knows where you are, ok?” Joanne stated.
“Yes, mum. Take care!” Hannah said as she stepped out the door of the room.
“Right, I’m going back to sleep.” Jo said and crawled into bed.
“Me too. I should probably take a shower though,” Rach insisted.
“Ok, whatever. Night.”
“Night.”
