"I wish you weren't going on tour," Nate told Ashley as he prepared to go back to Pennsylvania.
"Me neither. Once it's over, we'll start planning the wedding." Ashley wrapped her arms around his waist, and leaned against him. "I'll be thinking about you all the time."
"I don't think I'll be able to think about anything besides you." He rested his chin on her head. "You're always in my mind."
"I'll try to call every other day."
"You better. Otherwise I'll start thinking you don't love me anymore, and then become depressed, and you'll have to rush to Pennsylvania to see me." He smiled. "Hey, that's a good idea. Maybe you shouldn't call that often. I'll get to see you when you come up to make sure I'm not gonna do something stupid."
"You better not do anything stupid, Nate," Ashley warned. "And I think I'm gonna call everyday just to make sure you don't."
"You can do that, too."
Ashley laughed. "I love you so much."
"Same here, babe."***
"You don't have to leave," Justin began, giving Alex a puppy dog face. "You can stay here and go to college. Or not go to college and write. Or not do anything and let me spend the rest of my life supporting you."
Alex laughed, folding another shirt. "Justin, it's just for six months. And I've already promised I'll spend my Spring Break with you. I'm gonna transfer to USF [University of Southern Florida, in Tampa], so after the next six months, I'll be here."
"And you'll always be with me."
"Except when you go on tour."
"I'll find a way to get you on tour with me."
"Justin, I'll be in school. I won't be able to ho on tour with you during the school year."
"During the summer, then, and all of your breaks." He began massaging her shoulders. "I want you with me as much as possible."
"Possessive, aren't you?"
"Very." He dropped a kiss on the nape of her neck. "You're mine, and don't you forget it."
"Then you're mine, and you better not forget it."
"Always, angel."***
Ashley went on her first tour in February. It lasted four months, then they had a two month break. She was in Tampa when Alex arrived.
"Want to spend a day shopping?" Ashley asked Alex three days after she arrived.
"Yeah, sure, that'd be cool. We need to catch up on old times."
"You bet. And we need to start planning my wedding."
"Ah, your wedding. What fun."
"I've already talked to Jasmine, and a few old friends from back home. The wedding's gonna be after we finish the tour, in New York. I have four six months to plan everything. But three months of that's gonna be while I'm on tour. So we need to start doing it now. I was thinking that you, Jasmine, and I could fly out to California, and get together with my mom, Jessalyn, Rose, and Sarah, and we could do as much planning as possible."
"What does Nate think about all of this?"
"He told me that I can do whatever I want. He doesn't mind. He just wants us to get married, and for me to be happy."
"So do you want to go shopping tomorrow, and we can make a few plans tomorrow, like when we're going to California?"
"Ok. See you at ten?"
"Where do you want to meet?"
"The mall closest to Justin's."
"Kay. See you tomorrow at ten."
"Bye."
Alex tossed the phone down on to the bed. "I'm going shopping tomorrow," she told Justin.
Justin looked up at her. "I want to go."
"No. Ashley and I have some things to plan. And I'm gonna be going to California soon. I'll probably be there a week."
"A week? Why? I want to come."
"We have to start planning Ashley's wedding. And I don't care if you come. Ashley might, though. And if you do go, you'll have to meet my family."
"I'm already looking forward to the trip."
Alex laughed, and kissed him.
Justin wrapped his arms around her, and they fell back on the bed. Justin felt the phone in his back, and rolled over, so he could move the phone off the bed. He straddled Alex, his hands wandering over her body.
Alex ran her hands up his chest. "Justin, make love to me."
The words he'd been dying to hear. Justin pulled away from her for a minute. "You sure?"
"Yes."
"I love you." He kissed her again.
The doorbell rang.
"Ignore it," Justin muttered, as Alex shifted under him. "They'll go away."
Whoever it was pressed down o the doorbell, and the buzzing of the doorbell filled the house. After five minutes, they started pounding on the door.
"Justin!!" Justin and Alex could hear Chris call. "Open up. We know you're there."
"Damn them," Justin muttered against Alex's lips.
Alex giggled.
"Oh, you thinks it's funny?" Justin asked, glaring at her. "Damn interfering friends."
"You know you love them."
"Not right now." He rolled off her and stood up. "Come on, we better go see what they want."
They walked downstairs together. Justin yanked the door open. "What do you want?"
"Just to say hi, and see what you two had planned for today," Chris said.
"We hadn't seen Alex yet," Joey told him. "And we wanted to say hi."
"You picked a really great time." Justin glared at them. "Really wonderful timing."
"Were you two doing something?" JC asked.
Alex replied before Justin could. "Not really." She grabbed Justin's hand and leaned closer to him. "We can do it tonight," she whispered into his ear.
"I know, but they always interrupt at the worst moments."
"Justin, just relax." She kissed him. "I'm gonna go shopping. See you guys in a little while." She ran upstairs to grab her purse.
"But we came to see you," Joey complained, when Alex came back downstairs. "We don't want to see Justin."
"Too bad. I need to get a few things." She smiled at Justin. "Bye, babe."
"Don't I get a kiss?" Justin asked.
Alex sighed, and kissed him. "Laters."
"Bye," everyone called.
Joey turned to Justin after Alex left. "So what did we interrupt?"
"Stuff."
"Just stuff?" Chris asked. "You got mad at us for interrupting stuff?"
"Yeah."
"Then that stuff must have been pretty good," Joey commented, laughing.
"It was. And you guys interrupted it." He glared at all of them. "You should have gotten the hint when we didn't answer that we were busy."
"Oh, you were busy," Chris said. "If we'd known that we wouldn't have bugged you."
"No," Lance commented. "We still would have bugged."
"Some friends you guys are," Justin commented.***
"You look happy," Alex commented, as she hugged Ashley.
"I am. So very, very happy. I can't believe all of this. I didn't even know it was possible to be this happy." Ashley looked at Alex. "You look just as happy as I am. Are you engaged? Please tell me you two didn't elope."
Alex laughed. "No, to both. But yes, I am happy. Very, very happy. I had the most wonderful night. The guys came over yesterday, after I got off the phone with you, and I went out shopping. The house was dark when I got back, and I went up to our room, and everything was just so perfect."
"You had sex."
"No. We made love. I called it sex this morning, and Justin jumped down my throat for calling it that, and then made me swear I would never call what we did last night, or any other time, anything other than making love. And then-" Alex broke off, blushing.
"Girl, don't tell me the rest. I think I can guess. But god, how sweet."
"What?"
"I said it was sweet."
"I know. What's sweet?"
"Justin calling it making love, not sex, like mst guys."
"What does Nate call it?"
"Everything, but mostly making love."
"And that's sweet, too."
"Ok, we must shop now. And make our plans."
"When do you want to go to California?"
Ashley thought for a minute. "The week after next."
"That's fine with me. Oh, I should warn you that Justin's coming, too."
"Oh joy. He gets to meet your family."
"I told him that, and he said he wants to."
"Oh god, I can just see it now. Your sister is gonna freak."
"Just meeting him will make her day. Finding out I'm dating him will probably make her year. And knowing Shawna, she'll probably be blunt and ask, in front of Justin, if I'm gonna marry him."
Ashley laughed, picturing Alex's little sister, who was a huge *NSYNC fan, finding out her sister was dating Justin Timberlake. "God, I feel sorry for you already."
"Gee thanks."
"And I feel really sorry for Justin. Poor guy. He's gonna have to put up with your family."
"They're not that bad. And we're not gonna be staying with them, thankfully."
"Then where are you two gonna be staying?"
"At a hotel."
"Oh. Together?"
Alex nodded her head.
"And how is your father gonna take that?"
"Dad knows Justin and I share a room. He called one day when we were still asleep, and Justin answered it. Dad asked for me. Justin shook me awake and handed me the phone. Dad's cool with it. He understands."
"You're lucky to have such an understanding father," Ashley grumbled. "My dad would flip if I was sharing a bed with Nate before we're married."
"Which is why you're not gonna tell him, right?"
"Tell him what?" Ashley asked with an innocent expression.
Alex laughed. "Trying to be innocent?"
"Trying?" Ashley looked at Alex. "No, I'm not trying. I am."
"Sure you are."
"Ok, so I'm not that innocent."
"That's what I thought."
They burst into laughter.***
"I miss you even when you've been gone for only a few hours," Justin told Alex, pulling her into his arms the minute she got home.
"I wasn't gone for only a few hours," Alex told him, laughing, dropping her bags, and wrapping her arms around him. "I was gone for eight." She and Ashley had met up at ten, and it was after six.
"I know. It seemed like forever for me."
Alex kissed him. "Every time you say something like that, I fall in love with you all over again."
"And I fall more in love with you every time I talk to you, or see you, or even think about you."
"Oh God." Alex felt tears well up in her eyes. Those were words she'd always dreamed about hearing said to her, words she never thought she'd hear. And hearing them from Justin.... The feeling they created inside her was incredible.
"Don't cry, Alex, baby." Justin kissed her again. "I don't want you to cry. I want you to be happy."
"I am. I'm so very, very happy. That's why I'm crying."
"What do you mean?"
"I never thought I'd be this happy. I love you so much Justin. At times it hurts. I hate being away from you, and you're always in my thoughts. I'd do anything for you."
"I feel the same way, Alexandria. You're my life." He'd finally found his other half, his soul mate. He wasn't ever going to lose her.