Chapter 2 Krystal awoke the next morning to the sound of loud music blasting from the room next door. Darn it! Who�s the idiot who woke me up? For a moment, she wondered where she was, then remembered what happened the day before. Glancing at the clock, she realized it was only 9am. Turning to her side, she tried to drown out the music. I guess getting sleep is an impossible feat now. May as well get up now and check out what Ash is doing. She got up and tied her hair into a ponytail as she walked to Ash�s room. As she approached the room, she heard music coming from the room. The song wasn�t familiar to her but it made me want to jump up and dance. It had a catchy beat and soon, she was moving her body to the beat. You got no choice babe but to move on And you know there ain't no time to waste The future's too bright to see But in the end you know it's gonna be me And you can't deny So just tell me why Every little thing I do Never seems enough for you And you don't want lose it again But I'm not like them Baby when you finally Get to love somebody Guess what? It's gonna be me �Hey Ash. Good morning. Guess who woke me up this beautiful sunny Friday morning? Oh yeah, this song�s great. Where�d you get it? Who�s it sung by? I love it! It�s so catchy and cute!� �Hey Kris. Woah! First thing in the morning and you�re already bombarding me with questions. My brain isn�t used to this so I�ll answer slowly. Good morning to you too and I�m sorry for waking you up today. This song? It�s by *N Sync. Got it from Jesse. Great huh? I love it too. The other CDs are great too. The best part is, they aren�t only talented, they�re also cute. Go take a look, the posters are on the desk. I wonder if they look this good in person.� Ashley said, grinning broadly. Krystal picked up the posters that were on the desk and took a peek. The group comprised of five gorgeous guys. She scanned their faces one by one, and couldn�t believe the fact that she was going to spend the next 4 months on tour with them. Her eyes stopped at the tall curly blond haired, blue eyed wonder. Somehow, he seemed really familiar. But she had no idea where she had seen him. Maybe I saw his poster before or something. I didn�t believe I actually met him before. If I did, I would have remembered him. He didn�t seem like someone who you could forget easily, she thought. Shaking her head, she glanced at the guy next to him. He too had blond hair, except it was spiked. He had the most amazing green eyes she had ever seen. �That guy�s cute huh?� Krystal jumped at the sound. She had forgotten that Ash was in the room. For a while, she had forgotten everything except the poster. She didn�t even hear the music until Ash pulled her back into reality. �Erm� yeah. He has amazing green eyes. So, anyway, who do you think is the cutest here?� �I�m not sure. I�d say either the spikey haired, green eyed guy or the curly haired blond.� �Ahh� I thought as much. So, wanna hit the mall today? If I�m not wrong, we passed one on the way back from the airport. We could get a cab and ask the driver to bring us to the nearest mall. I need to get some clothes for tonight. How about you?� �Yeah, good idea. Let�s go hit the mall. What time you wanna go?� �How about now? More time to cruise the mall. I wonder if we�ll leave anything for the other customers.� Krystal said as she laughed and walked out the room. After she was done changing into loose pants and a baggy shirt, the pair hailed a cab and they were on our way to the mall. At the mall, they went crazy, stopping at every shop they saw, trying on tonnes of different clothes, having so much fun. �Ash, how about this?� Krystal asked modeling a pair of leather pants and a baby blue sleeveless shirt that showed off her navel ring. �Nice� I think you should get that for tonight. Put on a little lip-gloss and do your hair and you�ll be drop dead gorgeous. What do you think of this outfit?� � Hmm� hold on. I think I got something that�ll look fabulous with that shirt.� she replied, passing Ash a black knee length skirt. �Hey, you�re right. Plus, the yellow in my shirt brings out the colour of my eyes. Let�s get these.� �Alright. Why don�t you pass me your clothes and I�ll pay while you go downstairs and get a table?� �Fine. Now that you mention it, I�m feeling really hungry. See you in a few. Bye!� �Bye!� Hmm� Ash�s birthday is coming up soon. What can I get for her? Does Jesse know? Are we gonna have a party for her? Oh well, I guess I still have another month to think about it. Still, what if I forget? I can�t get another CD for her. I got that for her last year. Hmm� how about� Oww! That hurt, Krystal thought. �Oh, I�m sorry. I didn�t mean to knock into you. I guess I was thinking about too many things and didn�t watch where I was going. I seem to be making this into a habit. I�m sorry.� she apologized as she bent down to pick up the things that dropped. �Hey, you know, a beautiful girl like you doesn�t have to knock my socks off, literally, to grab my attention. Nah, just kidding. It�s ok. Accidents happen and no one�s seriously hurt or anything. Stop apologizing. It�s partly my fault too since I didn�t move out of your way. I guess I had some things on my mind too.� �Ok, let�s just say we�re even then.� Krystal replied, finally looking up, a grin spreading on her face. �Hey, do I know you or something? You seem really familiar though I can�t place where I met you.� �No, I�m sure I haven�t met you before. I never forget a beautiful face, especially one as unique as yours.� He replied with a wink. She gave a laugh and asked what his name was. �My name�s Joey. Yours?� �Krystal, but my friends call me Kris.� �Ahh� but why shorten it to Kris? The name Krystal is lovely, just like you.� �Lovely? I don�t think so. It doesn�t suit me at all and I bet you use that line on every girl you meet.� she replied, smirking. �Hey! I take offense!� then he smiled. �Well, Kris, why don�t you have lunch with my friends and I? That way I can feel better for crashing into you. We�re just having lunch downstairs.� �I�d love to, but I�m having lunch with my best friend.� �Then invite him or her to come and eat with us. It�ll be cool and my friends won�t mind. The more the merrier. So what do you say?� �Oh�ok, since you�re so charming. I simply can�t resist your charms.� she said, laughing and winking at him. �Just let me pay for this stuff and call Ash and ask her if she wants to come.� �Yeah, that�s fine.� Krystal picked out her cell phone and called Ash. �Yo Ash, I bumped into someone, literally, and he invited me to lunch with him and his friends and you�re invited. So, what do you say? Wanna come?� �Erm� is the guy nice? He won�t try anything right?� �Nah, he won�t. It�s just downstairs anyway. Come on�� �Oh, alright! Meet you at the exit of the store in a few minutes ok? I�m on my way right now.� �Ok.� After paying for the clothes, Joey and Krystal proceeded to exit, where Ash was waiting. �Wow, my luck must be really good today to be able to meet two beautiful ladies in the same hour. How I wish everyday would be like this.� Joey said with a wink. �Kris, aren�t you going to introduce me to your dazzling friend?� Joey asked, giving Ash a confident smile. �Ashley, Joey. Joey, Ashley. There. Now can we go?� �Yeah. Lead the way Joey.� The three of us walked to the pizza parlor that was just one floor below and approached a table of 3 guys, all of whom were wearing hats and looked strangely familiar. �Hey guys. This is Krystal and Ashley. I invited them to lunch to make up for the fact that I bumped into Krystal, literally.� �Hi, I�m JC. Nice to meet you.� �Lance.� �Chris.� �Hi. I�m Krystal but my friends call me Kris and this is Ashley but call her Ash.� �Hey! You have my name!� Chris exclaimed, laughing. �Maybe we should get you a nickname so we won�t get confused.� �How come you get the name Chris when I have to get a nickname? That�s not fair!� �Yeah, Chris. You should be a gentleman and give up the name. That way, we can call you grandpa.� Joey retorted. �Joey, do you have a death wish or something? �Cause you�re really asking for it!� The two continued bicker while Lance leaned over and said, smiling, � Just ignore them. They�re always behaving like this, like immature 3 year-olds. IQ wise, that isn�t far from the truth.� Immediately, the two of them stopped bickering and stared at Lance, and immediately ganged up and shot as many playful insults as they could think of at him. �That isn�t fair, the both of you ganging up against him and bullying him:� Ashley said. �Ohhhh� I think I know who her favourite is�� Chris said and started making kissing noises and Joey joined in. Krystal just rolled her eyes and asked JC if they were always like this. �Oh yeah. ALL the time. When J is around, it�s even worse. But, J�s sick today so he�s resting and decided not to join us. We knew he was REALLY sick when he passed up on a day at the mall. That boy� you never want to go shopping with him. I swear, he can shop for 3 hours straight and buy a ton of stuff. Shopping with him is� worse than hell.� JC replied with a laugh, shaking his head. �So, what do you do for a living?� Just then, the pizza that they ordered came and JC sighed a sigh of relief. He didn�t want to lie to Kris since he found her really nice, but he couldn�t exactly tell her either. Plus, today was their day to be regular guys, not popstars. He was being treated like a normal guy and not a popstar and he enjoyed it. It gave his life a sense of normalcy and it was a great change from the usual girls surrounding him and screaming and crying. Yes, he loved making music and performing, but by doing that, he gave up a part of him- his privacy. He missed the times when he could walk on the street with no bodyguards or a disguise. How he wished he could just be another face in the crowd, an ordinary adult, living an ordinary life but being as practical as he was, he knew it was impossible. It was no point wishing, but a guy can dream, can�t he? �Wow� this pizza�s good!� Joey said, snapping JC back into reality. �Hey Joey. The pizza kinda looks like you, you know?� Chris said, his eyes twinkling. �What do you MEAN, Chris?!? It looks more like you than me.� �Hey! That�s not true! Every female in this room knows I�m better looking than you.� �Fine! Ashley, who do you think looks better?� �Hmm� I don�t know. I think none. I�M the best looking.� She replied, sticking her tongue out. �Oh fine. You just keep telling yourself that and you might start believing it.� Joey said with a smirk. �Kris, who looks better? Me or Chris?� �Kris� � Krysal replied. �What?!?!� Joey said, his jaw dropping to the ground. �Oh, Krystal! I never knew you felt that way about me. Marry me and let�s move to the Bahamas.� Chris said, laughing loudly and winking. �Naha. I didn�t get to finish off my sentence. What I meant was Kris, as in Krystal.� she retorted, laughing. �Oh no, not another egoistic female. I wonder who said males were the egoistic gender. Must have been a woman.� Joey said, grinning broadly. �How could you, Krystal? I�m SO heartbroken. I think I�m going to end my life. Life isn�t worth living now that I�ve lost my one true love.� Chris said, clutching his heart and dramatically pretending to be in pain. �Do not fear, Superman�s here! I�ll save you and we can run away to Paris and live in the Eiffel Tower.� �Yuck! How could anyone want to run away with YOU?� Chris answered. �Say that again Chris, and you�ll regret it.� Joey said, pretending to be mad. �Ok. Eek! How could anyone want to run away with YOU?� Immediately, Joey threw an onion in Chris� direction, but instead, it hit Ashley�s hand. �Oops? Forgive me.� Joey apologized, giving the sweetest smile he could muster. �Too bad. It hit my hand Joey, and I�m not letting you get away with it that easily.� � Oh. I see. Would now be a good time to tell you that you�re the most breath-taking female I�ve ever laid eyes on?� �I already know that, but no, it wouldn�t be a good time to say that. Any last requests Joey?� �How about letting me go?� � Nah, that�ll just spoil my fun.� Joey gulped audibly and Ashley, who was sitting next to Joey, reached over and took off his hat and put an onion in his hair. �Hey! That isn�t fair! You put onion in my hair when I only threw one piece of onion at you!� Joey said, before throwing a french fry at Ash. Soon, a full fledged food fight started. Lance saw this coming and tried his best to escape it by crawling under the table but Ash caught him and asked, �Now, what do we have here? Is someone trying to escape? No way are you going to, mister�, then threw a small piece of pizza at him and laughed when he cringed. �Bad move, Albino boy. Never mesh with Ash.� Chris said and laughing out loud while Krystal stifled a laugh. Splat! A piece of pie hit JC in the face. Krystal gave an innocent smile as he slowly turned to her. �You will pay for that, Krystal whatever-your-last-name-is.� �I wonder who he�s talking about. That isn�t my last name. � Krystal said cheekily. JC�s eyes narrowed at her. �How could you suspect poor, innocent, pure little me? I�m too angelic to do such deeds.� Krystal replied, blinking her eyes. Ashley snorted at her best friend�s statement. �I think that pretty much sums up my answer.� JC retorted, picking up some ice cream and flinging it at Krystal. Before long, food was everywhere. �WHAT DO YOU PEOPLE THINK YOU�RE DOING?!?!� the manager said, looking extremely angry, his eyes narrowing at them and frowned. �Please LEAVE now. After you PAY for your food, of course.� JC, being the most responsible, got the check and paid, before the whole group scrambled out. Outside, people stopped and stared at the bunch, pointing and whispering, while some just laughed or smiled. It was indeed a really comical sight. As the six of them passed a mirror, they looked at their reflections and started laughing. Joey had an onion stuck in his hair and tomato sauce on his shirt while Chris had a piece of pineapple from the pizza that was stuck on his sleeve. Lance, who had the least food on him, only had bits of pizza on his shirt. Ashley had ketchup in her hair and T-shirt. Krystal had a fry in her hair and a patch of ice cream on her tank top. JC, who had the most entertaining look, had pie covering his face and some in his hair. When he saw what he looked like, he sweared loudly. �Did you HAVE to throw the pie at me? Why didn�t you throw it at Joey or something?� Hearing this, Joey protested. �You deserved it more than he did.� Krystal replied simply, giving him an innocent look. �Now I know why I like this girl, JC.� Chris said, grinning madly. �Oh shut up, Chris. You�ll get payback soon, I tell you.� �Erm� guys, I need to ask how me and Krystal are going to get home. We can�t very well get a cab looking like this, can we?� �Yeah, you have a point. How about if we give them a lift?� Lance suggested. They all agreed with that idea and headed to the carpark. Soon, it was decided that Krystal would ride with Joey and Chris while JC, Lance and Ash would ride in JC�s jeep. ��� (In JC�s Jeep) �You know, I think we made a big mistake by letting Krystal ride with Chris and Joey. Now all the mischief-makers are together with no one to keep them out of trouble. I hope they don�t stop and do something drastic.� Ash commented. �Relax, they can take care of themselves. I don�t think they would do anything rash cause we got somewhere to go after this.� JC answered. �We do? How come I don�t know anything about it?� �Didn�t Johnny tell you?� �Erm� no? I thought today was our day off?� �Oh no. Does that mean Joey and Chris don�t know? I though Johnny told all you us. He didn�t tell me that I was supposed to inform the guys. Darn.� �Very likely Joey and Chris don�t know anything about it. All I have to say is that I don�t wanna be the one to wake J up. You know what a monster he is when he�s disturbed from his precious sleep.� �Ok, I�ll call Joey and tell him that we gotta go before 3 since Johnny needs to see us.� JC replied with a sigh. It was moments like this that made him wonder if he had made the right choice by joining N sync. He sometimes questioned if he would ever have a normal life. But of course, normal was different in everyone�s eyes. In his eyes, it was having a girlfriend who truly cared about him and not about his fame or money and being able to walk down the street without a disguise or bodyguard. �Hello? Joe, it�s already 2.30 and we gotta go and meet Johnny at his office at 3, so we gotta make this quick ok?� � WHAT DO YOU MEAN WE HAVE TO SEE JOHNNY?!? I thought today was our day off! When did he tell you this?� �This morning. I thought he told the rest of you but I guess he didn�t. Anyway, we gotta be there soon and we cant be late. You know how he fumes when we�re late. The last time you, Chris and J got into enough trouble to find out the hard way so we have to be on time today.� �I cannot believe he didn�t tell us. He probably knew we were gonna fume, like I am now. Fine fine, we�ll leave after we drop the girls off. I was looking forward to spending some time with our new friends.� �Ok, then. See you guys later. And Joey?� �Yeah?� � Don�t get into any trouble ok?� �How could you suspect poor little innocent me to get into trouble?� Joey asked, pretending to be hurt. �For one, you sure aren�t poor, little and definitely NOT innocent Joe. Besides, Lance and I have no time to clear up your mess.� �Fine, whatever.� Joey said, ending the phone call. �What did JC say, Joe?� � We gotta be at Johnny�s office at 3.� Joey said with a dull expression. �Oh. I thought it was our day off?� �Well, so did I, but Johnny had other plans.� �So, I�m guessing you guys don�t have time to come in huh?� Krystal said, finally breaking the silence. �As much as we�d like to, I don�t think we have the time to do that.� Joey said. �Oh, ok, I understand.� �Don�t worry. It isn�t personal. It�s just that we have some business to attend to and well, the last time we were late, we got into quite a lot of trouble, right Chris?� �Oh yeah. A lot, a lot of trouble. Our boss is really cool, but sometimes he can be a little touchy and after that episode, I think we won�t be late for another few times.� �Nah, it�s ok. I totally understand.� When they reached the house, they dropped Krystal off after giving her a hug then rushing to where ever they had to go. She stood and watched her new friends go, and headed inside. These guys were really nice. Too bad i would probably never see them again, she thought. Ash came in a few minutes after Krystal went to her room. As Ash entered, she asked Krystal if she had gotten hold of their cell phone numbers or anything cause she had forgotten all about that. Unfortunately, Krystal had forgotten about too. Oh well� maybe in time, we might meet again, though it was highly unlikely. ��� (Meanwhile, in JC�s car) �What do you think of them?� Lance asked. �I think they�re really nice. It was a well-deserved change from the normal screaming and crying. It made me miss being normal, you know?� �Yeah, I know what you mean. I felt like a normal guy with them. Of course, that�s what we were to them. I don�t think they knew who we are. I wonder how they would have reacted to the news.� �I think they would take it quite calmly. I mean, they don�t really look like the screaming or crying types right? They�re more cool, calm and collected. But you never know. They might hate us for all we know. Most people think we don�t know how to sing and only use our faces to earn fans.� �In a way, I guess that�s partly true, not the part about us not having talent, but the part about us using our faces to earn fans. Sometimes I wonder if it�s our talent or our faces that make us as big as we are today. I wish I could say it was definitely our singing and music, instead of our faces, but I can�t. It�s kinda sad, I guess. We have to rely on our looks to get fans when we are so talented. It was our looks that got us here. If we didn�t look like this, I doubt we would have so many fans.� �Yeah.� JC replied, lapsing into silence. For the entire ride back to the studio, the car was in silence, both guys deep in their thoughts. ��� |