A/N: Oh yeah. Chapter 4 is up� finally. This is definitely my favourite chapter. You�ll find out why soon enough. But somehow, I don�t think I can reproduce something as good as this for the rest of my chapters. I was feeling really devilish that day. ? Read and you�ll understand why. Chapter 4 Ashley slowly crept into the room, hoping to be able to calm Krystal down. She had seen Krystal in this state before, although not many, plus not over small matters such as these. She wasn�t sure what had gotten into Krystal. Justin seemed like an okay guy to her, except for what she had heard about him on the plane. Maybe he was having a bad day? It was possible. Everyone had one of those once in a while, although some more than others. �Cut the guy some slack, Kris. Anyway, he�s not worth your energy. You seldom get this worked up over simple matters like this. Why the sudden change?� �Please don�t tell me that you�re not HIS side. Yes, I am aware that I am sort of immature now, but I can�t help it. He just gets under my skin. I don�t know why, but he does. I wish I could strangle him. I don�t why I even bother with him! He is such a waste of my time!� Krystal felt like screaming, like her head was about to explode any minute. She had no idea why she even bothered. Who would have thought that THE Justin Timberlake would be so idiotic? She wished his fans could see him for who he really was- the egoistic, irritating pig, instead of the charming, sweet gentleman they thought he was. How wrong they really were! I mean, charming, sweet gentleman? Krystal felt like puking at that statement. They were so dead wrong and they didn�t even know it. She pitied them for being so trapped in their little world that they couldn�t face up to the reality. It was sad really, how they really thought of him that wonderfully, like he was some sort of god or something. She shook her head and buried it in her hand, the effect of their fight finally getting to her. It was only the first day of the tour and already they had made a scene and cause more trouble to brew between them. She knew that it would take a miracle to help her get out of the tour alive and not in jail for killing Justin Timberlake. Besides, if she did kill him, she would have to deal with thousands of teenyboppers. Now that thought in itself convinced her that killing Justin was a bad idea, however appealing to was to her. ��� Justin needed to get out immediately, like as in right this minute. The bus was feeling strangely small and it was making him claustrophobic. He sighed. The bus really needed thicker walls. He could never have any decent privacy around here. Of course, the fact that all the people on the bus were extreme busybodies didn�t help either. He needed to find a place to escape from everything- life, the crew, his buds and his career. He knew what he wanted, but also knew it was impossible. Chris entered the room and Justin knew what was coming. He had been through it too many times to remember. Chris was going to deliver one of his psychology speeches again. Seriously, Chris was a great psychologist and advice giver, but now, all Justin wanted was to be alone. He didn�t need any advice from anyone at this point in time. If he wanted it, he would have asked, but of course, these guys didn�t understand. �Justin. What are you doing? Why are you being so petty? You should be nice to Krystal since she�s a guest here and will be for the next few months. I seriously doubt you two will be able to get along if the both of you continue like this. Learn to get along with her. It isn�t that hard. She�s a great person once you get to know her. I�m greatly disappointed in your poor behaviour, Justin. You should know better than to have acted like that. Where�s the charming Justin that I know?� Chris said. Justin immediately felt bad. He knew that he was in the wrong, but Chris didn�t understand how hard it was to get along with Krystal. Of course he didn�t, everyone thought Krystal was great. He rolled his eyes. Great my foot. Bitchy? Definitely. Irritating? Of course. Spoilt? No doubt about it. Undeniably cute? Unfortunately. So she was cute. Big deal. There were so many chicks cuter than she was, so why act like a spoilt brat and irritating bitch? He simply couldn�t stand her. She stood for everything he hated- bitches who thought that just because they were cute, they owned the world. He knew them all. He had even dated a few. Disgusted, Justin kicked the wall. It hurt, but it went away quickly, unlike some things. He wasn�t going to be fooled again. He had enough and for once, he was going to be prepared. He learned his lesson well, painfully, but well. Susanna would have been proud. Too bad she counted as nothing to him. Flashback: � Wait a minute, did I hear you correctly? I swear I just heard you break up with me.� Justin questioned, unable to believe his ears. No way this was true- No way on earth. His ears must have deceived him. �Of course you did. Did you seriously think I�d stick around with you? I mean pleaseee� Look at you, you may be rich, famous and handsome, but you�re nothing without your fame, face and money. Wait a minute, did you really think I loved you? Did you really believe those words? Come on, boy. Wake up to reality. There�s no such thing as love, just the cruel world out there. The words �I love you� don�t mean a thing. They�re just words- words to fool people, just like all the other words we have. Get used to it, you�ll be getting more of it very soon, I guess. Wisen up and stop being so ignorant. I never loved you and I never will. You must have been more of an idiot than I thought you were if you seriously believed all that crap. I found another guy who�s older, richer and definitely gonna die faster. It was fun while it lasted though.� Susanna stated as she laughed evilly. Justin couldn�t believe it. Things had been going so well. For a while, he even felt as if he loved her. He gave their relationship everything he had. He gave her everything she could possibly want- money, plenty of it and love. What had gone wrong? Obviously his mind had fooled him into thinking she was perfect. Now, he could see her true colours- who she truly was and now he realized it wasn�t a beautiful sight. He had been a fool. No, fool didn�t even cut it. He had been a blind, ignorant fool who believed all her lies and scams. She never loved him. He didn�t mean a thing to her. Only one thing did- his money. He should have known better than this. He should have seen this coming. He gave a bitter laugh. Of course, he was worthless- his money and fame, on the other hand, was not. He sweared that he was never going to fall into that trap again. No one, and he meant no one, was going to make a fool of him like that again. Never. And he meant every single word of it. ��� Krystal wondered around aimlessly, wanting to find something to do. Ashley didn�t understand why she didn�t get along with Justin. How could she not? Krystal wondered. She walked to the couch and sat down, wanting to find something to do. She spied JC, who was reading a book. Now she was going to have some fun. She pitied JC, the poor victim. He really had no idea what was going to happen in a few seconds. Guess he�s gonna have to find out the hard way. Krystal smiled as she threw a pillow from the couch at JC. Bull�s eye! Krystal ran behind the sofa and ducked. JC turned and looked around, wondering who or what hit him. There was no one around when he turned, yet he could feel someone�s eyes on him. He continued to read him book, although looking out for the culprit at the same time. Krystal threw another pillow, just for fun but this time, JC was smart. He caught it immediately. There was not the only thing he had caught however. He had also caught Krystal. Now that he knew who was the culprit, he wanted a little revenge. He threw the pillow at Krystal and heard her laugh. She had a nice, melodious laughter that he found cute. For the next few minutes, the two played, throwing pillows and ducking, laughing at the same time. JC was having a lot of fun. He hadn�t had this much fun in a while due to the fact that the new album was coming out in a few months, meaning he only had a few months to write the songs. He hated the deadlines Jive gave him. It was just so pressurizing knowing he had to finish writing the songs in such a short time, especially when he hadn�t even started. Little words were exchanged between the two, but a bond had started to form. Krystal had always felt comfortable with JC. She didn�t know why, but she just did. Even with him at lunch, they had become great friends even though a few minutes before that lunch, they didn�t know the other existed. When they had stopped throwing and ducking pillows and basically messing up the whole place, they sat on the couch in comfortable silence. �So, tell me about yourself.� JC asked. �There�s not much to tell.� Krystal said as she shrugged. �Okayy� how about how old you are, where you live, about your family etc� things like that, you know?� �Let�s see� 19, California, No siblings, only parents� yeah. Anything else u need to know, oh wise one?� �Nope. That would do for now.� �What about you?� �What about me?� �Answer your own questions. You know, the age, home, family� etc?� �Why do you wanna know? Besides, you can just search the net. You�ll find everything you need there.� Krystal laughed. �I forgot. All I need to do is call up a few teenyboppers, ask them if they know *N Sync and a whole lotta facts about you guys will come tumbling out, probably more than I need to know, down to what underwear you guys wear or is that ESPECIALLY?� JC laughed. Indeed it was true. Sad, but true. He wasn�t exactly fond of the idea that so many people, whom he knew nothing about, knew about his life but that was just the price he had to pay for making his dreams come true. ��� (A few weeks later, maybe about 3?) 3 weeks had passed since the day that Ashley and Krystal joined the tour. Lance and Ashley are still best friends while JC and Krystal seem to be getting on well. Things between Krystal and Justin have worsened. The two were always fighting, always arguing over small things, making the group more annoyed. Yes, they understood that the two couldn�t get along, but this was too much. Ever conversation they had together always ended with the two screaming and shouting, cursing at one another. The group�s patience was running thin but both parties were too caught up in other things to notice. ��� Krystal rubbed her tired eyes. She was so drained, yet she couldn�t sleep. She got out of her bunk and walked to the bathroom. She pulled on her shirt and opened the door, unaware of the fact someone was inside. ��� Justin stared at his reflection in the mirror as he shaved. He had just come out of the bath and was soaking wet, a towel loosely tied round his waist. He reflected on the last few months, surprised at how much he had changed. True, it wasn�t all that obvious, but in his heart he knew he really had changed. He was more tense now than before and it was tiring him, pulling him now, together with his spirits. He wasn�t sure what had caused the sudden change in him, but something told him it was Her. He still didn�t know what to think of her. She was just really complicated, too complicated for him to try to understand. Just as he thought he understood her, she did a complete 180 degree turn, leaving him there to pick up the pieces. Women. He just couldn�t understand them. He shook his head at the thought, shrugging his shoulders. Justin was too caught up in his thoughts. He wasn�t aware that he was not alone. Krystal had opened the door, thinking no one was in there and was surprised she was wrong. She stood, amazed. He was gorgeous, a fact that she already knew well before this, but nothing could have prepared her for the sight of Justin, half naked, shaving in the toilet. She took in a sharp breath. He was a god. From the side she could see droplets of water trickling off the set of washboard abs and clearly defined biceps, a spectacular sight indeed. She knew he worked out, but this� this was just plain sexy. So sexy it should be illegal. He wasn�t just hot; he practically defined the word. She knew that she could never see another half-naked guy and not compare him to Justin. That guy was just so desirable, extremely appealing. He looked so cute standing there, with his hair all wet and messy, an adorable expression on his face as he concentrated on his shaving. She could see his tan arms and the rippling muscles as they moved, mixed in with the sweet smell of soap and shampoo, it was enough to make Krystal�s mouth water and make her want to jump him there and then. Justin turned at the sound. Now he was aware he wasn�t the only one in the room. There was another presence behind him. He simply stood there, an amused expression on his face, waiting for Krystal to realize he knew she was there. She was looking extremely alluring in her shirt that stopped at mid-thigh, with the sleepy expression on her face and her silky hair let down. HE could tell she was shocked, drinking in the sight of him. He saw her eyes widen when she realized she was not alone. He felt a tad embarrassed, but not as self-conscious as Krystal would feel in a few minutes time when she was caught. He knew she didn�t walk in on him on purpose, but he could help but grin at the idea. Thank god she didn�t come in when he had just got out of the shower. That would have been interesting. Not necessarily a bad thought though. Justin grinned and cleared his throat. This was going to be fun. He just couldn�t wait to see her reaction and how she was going to handle this. �So I�m thinking you enjoy the view?� Justin asked huskily, his voice deep, giving him even more sex appeal. Krystal blushed for a minute, turning a lovable shade of pink. Justin just loved it. It made her more beautiful than she already was, if that was possible. He had to remind himself to make a habit of this- making her blush. It was fun, plus, he was enjoying it tremendously. She was still gaping at his body, looking him up and down. She mumbled an apology, not really putting much thought into it, her mind wondering elsewhere, wishing she was anywhere but there, in the same room as HIM. She was pulling on her shirt uncomfortably, for it was revealing more than she would like it to. �I asked if you liked what you see. Not bad if I do say so myself.� Justin said, a smirk evident on his handsome face. Oh yes� If that was what he called not bad, she just couldn�t wait to see what he called great. Of course, she wasn�t going to say that aloud and admit that he was indeed hot, hotter than he actually thought he was. Besides, it was Justin she was talking about. Why would he need more ego boosting? He had half the female population of America bowing down to him, worshiping him. Not wanting to be teased, Krystal decided to be bold. She took a step back and apologized. �Sorry, had to step back. Your ego was choking me� As usual. It�s taking up too much space, but of course, being as ignorant as you are, you really have no idea what�s happening around you, do you?� �Oooh� feisty one, aren�t ya? Besides, I think I understand perfectly what is going on. And it doesn�t have anything to do with you being feisty. More like along the lines of you walking in on me in the bathroom, gaping at the sight.� �Firstly, I do not gape. I never gape and even if I did, I wouldn�t gape at you. You, of all people? Second, I�m only feisty when I�m with you. No one else needs it more than you do, congratulations.� �Aww� you just broke my heart. Are you going to kiss and make it all better?� Krystal stepped forward until she was so close to him, she could practically feel the heat of his body and the smell of his hair and soap. It was heavenly but she was on a mission. She stopped moving forward, put her hand on his cheek and tiptoed, whispering in his ear softly. �In your dreams, Justin. In your dreams.� And she was right. In his dreams indeed. She haunted his dreams constantly, every time he closed his eyes, she would be there. He couldn�t escape her. Krystal took a step back and looked at him expectantly, waiting for his reply. And yes, she was still gawking at his divine physique, unable to take her eyes off it. �Is it just me or are you captivated by the view? Care to share you thoughts?� �Huh?� �Okay, I think that proves my point. Let me ask you this one more time. What do you think?� �You want my honest opinion?� �Oh, most definitely.� �Can you handle the truth?� �I certainly can.� �Okay� I think�. I think that if you lose the towel�� Krystal let the sentence trail off suggestively as she reached out and fiddled the knot of the towel, sending shivers down Justin�s spine as her fingers grazed the surface of his skin. �You think I should, huh?� �Well� it�s up to you. It would most definitely be more interesting though.� �Oh yes, I�ll bet it would.� �Undoubtedly, it would be more entertaining.� �For me or for you?� Justin teased, raising his eyebrow. � I�m not too sure. What do you think? I guess it would depend.� �Depend?� � uh-huh.. It would depend if you want to find out.� Krystal twirled a lock of her hair around her finger, giving Justin an almost enticing look . �Hmm.. I think I�ll have to think about that one. It�s a great offer though.� Krystal laughed. � I�ll take that as a no. Too bad. It�s your loss.� �But I haven�t given an answer. � �Ever heard of the saying �the early bird catches the worm�?� �Ever heard of the line �good things come to those who wait�?� �Sorry. Doesn�t apply here. Another time then.� Krystal grinned. Before Justin had a chance to reply, Krystal left the room, winking at him. When she closed the door, she giggled. That had been� interesting. Yes, interesting and fascinating. She knew she had been mean, dangling an opportunity in front of him and taking him just as he was about to take it. It was all part of the game, though. She knew he was joking too, enjoying it as much as she was, if not, even more. This had been the first real conversation they had exchanged without it ending with someone walking out, mad at the other, and it had been fun. Suddenly, realization struck her. She had actually been flirting with Justin, Justin the Jerk. Plus, she had been enjoying every second of it, silently wished it had lasted longer. It was ironic really. They had always fought but when they talked, they ended up flirting. She didn�t know if she wanted to laugh at the statement or puke. It was certainly comical. Maybe Justin Timberlake wasn�t as bad as she had thought. ��� Meanwhile, Justin had been playing the previous conversation over and over again in his head, trying to grasp it�s meaning or whether they were friends or not. It was confusing, but he found himself wishing it had lasted longer. He didn�t know what to think except the fact that she was the most captivating and fascinating woman he had met in a long, long, long time. In the mists of all his thoughts, he was unaware of the most vital piece of information he needed. He was falling for her� hard. |