“Okay spill it. Who did you take on vacation with you?” Justin drilled JC as they rode to their next destination. Chris heard the question and instantly joined the conversation.
“Yeah, who’d ya take?”
“No one.” JC said simply.
“Yeah right. We know you went away with a girl because you didn’t tell us a word about your break. So fess up and tell us who you took.” Justin said and JC looked at the two and knew they weren’t going to give in.
“I went away with someone, so what?”
“Who was it? Do we know her?” Chris asked,
“Yeah, you know her. In fact you two have known her a pretty long time.”
“Aw come on C! You have to tell us who she is!” Justin whined,
“No, because she’s skitterish as it is and I don’t want you ruining it for me.”
“So this is serious then huh?”
“For me yeah.” JC smiled when he thought about Izzy.
“Aw man he’s in love, look at his face!”
“Yeah I love her.”
“When did this happen? How come we didn’t know about it?”
“Maybe because you guys were off playing match maker and weren’t paying close attention.”
“She’s on this tour?”
“Yeah.”
“And we’ve known her a long time?”
“Yep.”
“How long is long?”
“Long time, very long time. As in since we began.”
“Holy shit and you just fell in love with her?”
“Um, let’s just say that we noticed each other when we first met and then we, uh, rediscovered each other again.”
“So what’s she like?”
“She’s brilliant, beautiful, funny, sexy, charming, witty, amazing…” He drifted off,
“I can’t believe we missed this whole thing!”
“Believe it buddy boy.” JC laughed,
“You’re not going to tell us who it is?”
“Nope, but I’m sure you’ll figure it out soon enough.”
JC searched through Justin’s stuff for his CD case. He was sick of his music and wanted to listen to something different. He found the case and flipped through it. His eye caught one CD, ‘Izzy’s sleeping music’. He quickly pulled it out, popped it into his CD player and settled into his bunk to sleep. He hit play and closed his eyes. Loud heavy metal pounded through his head phones and made him sit up straight, hitting the top of his head on the roof of his bunk.
“Ow! Shit!” He exclaimed and threw off the headphones.
Izzy’s heard him and peeked into his bunk,
“You okay?” He looked at her still rubbing his head,
“I think so.”
“What happened?” She asked sitting on the edge of his bunk. He held up his CD player,
“I thought I was going to sleep when someone oh so nicely labeled this CD wrong.” He flipped his CD player open and showed her,
“I’ve been looking for that.” She said plucking it out of the player, “It’s not labeled wrong, this is my sleep CD.”
“You sleep to that? It’s all loud and loud.” He repeated making a face and she laughed,
“It drowns out all the noise around me. I always need it when I travel to sleep. I take it you don’t like loud music to sleep to.”
“No, God I would go deaf listening to that. I’m surprised you haven’t.”
“Good ears I guess.” She shrugged and then left the bunk and came back a few moments later with a CD case. She flipped through a couple of pages and pulled a CD out. She held it out to him,
“Here try this one, it has a lot of soft rock on it. Probably suits your needs.” JC went to take the CD from her but grabbed her hand and pulled her in for a silent kiss. After a few seconds she pulled away but stayed close,
“Junior’s right down stairs.” She whispered,
“I know but he is sleeping.” He said moving in for another kiss,
“If you two are plotting against me, so help me God I will kick your asses in!” Justin shouted from below.
“Do you fucking have sonic hearing?” Izzy yelled down.
“All I heard was Junior and is sleeping. I put two and two together.” Izzy laughed and then hung down over the edge, pulling back the curtain and looking into Justin’s bunk.
“Aw Squirt, don’t ya trust me? I’d never do anything to you, well nothing that would cause permanent damage.” Her eyes twinkled with mischief and Justin groaned,
“I knew it! Anytime you and JC get together and you’re not arguing it’s because you’re up to something.”
“All I have to say is that it was all his idea.”
“Hey!” JC shouted and placed his hands on her legs, “Careful what you say Mariani. You’re not in a position to be throwing blame!”
“Chasez, I swear if you even think of pushing me out of your bunk…”
“You’ll what? Fall out of my bunk and on your ass?”
“I will kick your ass so hard you won’t be able to sit for weeks!” She shouted back and he laughed,
“Empty threats, empty threats.” He chuckled as he moved his hands up her legs,
“You think? Just wait till I get back up there JC!” She braced herself on the edge of Justin’s bunk with her hands and flipped down, landing on her feet.
“Uh oh, now you’re in trouble.” Justin snickered as Izzy rose to stand,
“Iz, you know I was just kidding, right?” JC smiled at her and she rolled her eyes at him. She reached into his bunk as if to grab him and he jumped back smacking his head on the roof of his bunk again. She smiled and grabbed her CD case and sleep CD pulling it out.
“Ow! God the same spot.” JC said rubbing his head,
“Serves you right, now if you kids don’t mind, I’m going to bed now.”
“Ow.” She said and reached for her head as the room came into focus. She was laid out on the back room couch.
“Well look who decided to join the living again.” It was JC,
“JC?” She asked and he pushed her hand away from her head.
“The one and only.” He replied holding the ice pack to her forehead. Izzy looked at him,
“What am I doing here?”
“Looks like you took a nasty spill from the bump on your head. Are you hurt anywhere else?”
“Mmm, the back of my head hurts like a bitch too. Did I pass out?”
“Uh huh, you were completely out when I found you after you fell.”
“Where’s Justin?” She asked and JC moved the ice pack to the back of her head.
“Sleeping, I was the only one who woke and that’s cuz you hit me on the way down.”
“Justin didn’t wake?”
“Nope.”
“Wow he must be tired, flicker a light and he wakes up.”
“I know. Do you want any aspirin?”
“God yes.” She said and tried to get up. JC pushed her back down,
“I’ll get it, just sit tight, I think we have some in the bathroom.”
“Just get my bag. It’s hanging by my bunk.”
“Okay.” JC said leaving the room and coming back a few minutes later with her bag,
“Where is it in here?”
“Second pocket from the front in a brown bottle.” He opened it the pocket and looked around,
“Damn Iz, you’ve got a pharmacy in here.” He said and pulled out the bottle of aspirin.
“It’s mostly vitamins.” She said as JC got her a glass of water and handed her the aspirin.
“Thanks, you’re being awfully sweet.” She took the aspirin and JC took a seat on the edge of the couch,
“Yeah well it’s repayment for the CD, it worked like a charm.” He smiled and she felt her head, there was a nasty bump, but also a bandage.
“Did I cut my head?” JC moved over and kneeled in front of her face. He pushed her hand away,
“Yes, you were a mess when I found you.” He moved the ice pack back to her forehead and held it there. Izzy looked at JC and saw Josh staring down at her. She smiled,
“Hi Josh, it’s nice to see you again.” JC looked at her strangely,
“You must have hit your head hard if you’re calling me Josh.” He teased and she smiled to herself knowing that it wasn’t the bump on her head that caused her to call him that.
“Are you hurt anywhere else beside your head?”
“No.”
“Well you’re pretty hard headed so I think you’ll be okay.”
“Ha, ha, JC. You think you’re so funny.” She rolled her eyes, “It’s just like you to crack jokes when I’m in pain.”
“Well I learned from the master. Joey’s never gonna trust you in our care when he finds out about this.”
“I can handle him, trust me. Plus if I get attention like this, I might spend more time on this bus.”
“You’re just a spot light hog.” He joked,
“Oh, look who’s talking.”
“I get paid to hog the spotlight.” He teased back. Izzy took a hold of his shirt and pulled him in for a kiss. JC didn’t resist, he moved in closer and climbed on top of her, never breaking their kiss. Then JC pulled back,
“Maybe we shouldn’t.”
“Why?” She said pulling him down for another kiss,
“Because you’re injured.”
“Well maybe you need to kiss me and make it all better.” She mused kissing him again,
“Fine but if you’re worse don’t blame me.”
“I won’t I promise.” She said and they kissed. Everything fell into place for her. He was her Josh, the one she had left so long ago. His kiss had been the one she had been searching for all these years ever since their first and only kiss before they left for college. This is why she had such a strong attraction to him, it had been just as strong as it was six years ago. Only one question remained in her mind. Did he feel the same way?
JC suddenly appeared in the door way as she tried to sit up. He came over and pushed her back down,
“Lay down, the doctor’s coming on board to check you out.”
“I don’t need to see a doctor, I’m fine.”
“Uh huh, sure that’s why you passed out in the middle of sex.” He raised an eyebrow at her teasingly, “I mean I really don’t see how we can add any more excitement to sex unless you want to start doing it on top of the bus.” He joked and she laughed,
“I didn’t.”
“You did, I didn’t know whether or not to be upset, worried, or disappointed.”
“What did you settle on?”
“A little of each, but really, really, disappointed.” He smiled,
“Aw, that’s kind of sweet. I’ll be sure to make it up to you later.”
“You better.” He winked, she went to say something but Joey and Lance rushed into the room.
“Izzy are you okay?” Joey asked worriedly,
“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine. Turns out Chasez’s a god nurse.”
“Don’t worry, I’m gonna get you for that whack you gave me on your way down.” JC joked and she groaned,
“I think I’m gonna ask for another nurse, any takers?”
“Wow she must have hit her head hard if she’s being civil to C.” Chris said suddenly showing up in the back room.
“I know,” JC said, “All this time, she only needed some sense knocked into her.”
“Yeah, I just wish it didn’t hurt as much.”
“Oh my God they’re joking around even! Joey I’m scared!” Chris said hiding behind Joey making Izzy laugh really hard till she grabbed her head,
“Ow.” She said still laughing, “God that hurts.”
“Well don’t laugh genus.” JC commented and she rolled her eyes at him,
“Stop trying to make me laugh.”
“How am I making you laugh?”
“Trust me there’s enough about you to keep me laughing for the next century or more.” She retorted and Chris came out from behind Joey,
“You know next time I’m just gonna leave you.” He said getting up from her side,
“Thank God this is more like it! Don’t scare me like that!” Chris said wiping his forehead, “You had me so worried that you two would get to be like friends or some shit like that. And that would totally screw up my fight plans.”
“Chris, I don’t care if I’m injured, I can still beat you down. You better start running old man before I get up!” She shouted and Chris took off making everyone laugh.
The doctor came on and checked Izzy out. She was fine and just had to take it easy for a couple of days and get some rest.