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Everything Your Heart Desires Chapter 43 Kevin and Howie rejoined the rest of their bandmates on the road still thinking about their romantic weekends with their girlfriends. A.J. wasted no time in getting the details and sat alongside his best friend at the back table in the Boys� tourbus. �So, how�d it go?� �J, man, it was wonderful,� Howie paused before telling A.J. about the major step they�d taken. �We said we loved each other.� �It�s about time!� A.J. slapped Howie on the shoulder. �Bro, everyone else knew it, we were just waiting for you to figure it out!� Howie grinned sheepishly. �I just wanted to make sure it was right. Now I don�t know why I waited so long. I really love her, J.� �She�s terrific, D. Sweet, funny, smart, beautiful, successful... Why�s she with you, again?� A.J. teased his buddy, then chuckled as he saw Kevin walking down the isle of the bus. �But seriously, I�m glad to hear you had a great time� and if Kevin�s perma-grin is any indication, I�d guess that your relationship wasn�t the only one that moved to the next level this weekend!� Howie chuckled with his friend. �Don�t even get me started. Those two barely left their cabin all weekend! And when they did, they barely acknowledged anyone else�s existence.� �Ahh� young love,� A.J. sighed dramatically. �Hey guys!� Kevin said with an unusually bright smile as he joined his friends in the back of the bus. �Hey Kev! Have a good weekend?� A.J. asked, barely containing his laughter at Kevin�s look of contentment. �Probably the best of my life,� Kevin said sincerely. �Yes, but now the question is � how long is this after-glow going to last?� Brian teased as he joined the conversation. ��Cause, my guess is you�re going to start getting pretty cranky real soon.� �Oh, like you guys are any better?� Kevin retorted, not seriously upset by his friends� harassment. �Kev, I already discussed this with Cher, but you were difficult to deal with when Kristy wasn�t around BEFORE� I don�t think any of us are prepared for what you�re going to be like now. We may all have to chip in to fly Kristy out more often, just to keep you civil,� Howie suggested with a wry smile. �Glad to know my sex-life is the topic of everyone�s conversation,� Kevin huffed. �But if it makes you feel any better, the girls are coming to New York with us and Kristy�s going to join us when we go to Portland so I can meet her family.� �Whoa, another big step! Think Daddy Butler is going to like the idea of his little girl hooking up with some musician?� asked Nick as he too joined the group. �From what Kristy�s told me about her family, I don�t think I need to worry about her parents as much as her brother and sister.� Kevin explained further as he saw the questioning looks on the other guys� faces, �Erin and Mark aren�t exactly fans of ours. So, needless to say, I�ve got some extra hurdles to jump.� �As if meeting your girlfriend�s family for the first time isn�t hard enough, but you also have to deal with critics? Harsh!� Brian felt for his cousin. But if anyone could win their way into Kristy�s family, Brian was sure it would be Kevin.Kristy and Cheryl struggled to get back to their normal routines after their �kidnapping�. Even though they both spoke with Kevin and Howie daily, they both missed being with their boyfriends. So when Denise called them and asked if they�d still be interested in helping out at the BSB Fanclub Headquarters, both girls jumped at the chance to have some contact with their men. Denise met them at the Headquarters and introduced them to Brandon at the start of the tour. �If you girls have any questions, Brandon�s your man.� Brandon smiled at the two pretty women. �Don�t I wish! But from what I�ve heard, Howie and Kevin would certainly have some problems with that idea.� �Oh, poor Brandon... always the bridesmaid, never the bride,� Amanda teased as she joined the group in the conference room. �Hey girls, like the fancy furnishings?� she quipped, looking around the room at the throw pillows on the floor. �I like it,� Cheryl defended. �It�s definitely not stuffy.� �We like it, too. And everyone has their very own pillow,� Denise said, grabbing hers. �Ooh, lemme guess... this is A.J.�s, right?� Kristy giggled as she held up a zebra striped cushion with purple fringe. �Like anyone else would admit to something like that?� Amanda said with a roll of her eyes. �So let�s see how well you know YOUR men... which is D�s and which is Train�s?� Cheryl wandered the perimeter of the room and back, stopping to pick up a standard-sized pillow with a purple silk pillow-sheet. �This one�s all Howie,� she said confidently. �So far, so good. Kristy?� Brandon asked Kristy who hadn�t even moved yet. Kristy pointed across the room. �The navy-blue, yellow, and white plaid one.� �Wow, I�m impressed! He just replaced his old one with that one a month or so ago.� Kristy grinned. �I know.� �But how?� Brandon asked. �I mean, there are a bunch of others that are more �Kevin�... like that all black one.� �That�s the old Kevin. The �new and improved Kevin� is this one,� Kristy said, hugging the pillow to her and inhaling the lingering scent of D&G. �Besides the fact that this one matches the others we bought with his new snuggle chair!� she said with a bright smile as the others laughed. �So next time you two will have to bring your own...� Brandon trailed off as Kristy and Cheryl disappeared from the room and promptly returned with two large bags. �Amanda clued us in!� Cheryl said with a laugh as she removed an identical pillow to Howie�s, except that the pillow-cover was green silk instead of purple. Denise, Brandon and Amanda chuckled as Cheryl placed her pillow next to Howie�s. �How sweet. You sorta match!� Denise laughed. �Oh, then you guys are going to LOVE Kris�s,� Cheryl giggled, tossing her friend a mischievous grin. Kristy�s eyes twinkled as she withdrew a navy-blue, yellow, and white floral print pillow that was designed to compliment Kevin�s plaid one. �Thank you, Ralph Lauren!� �Lord help us!� Brandon groaned. �We now have coordinating pillows for BSB�s and BSG�s?! What�s this place coming to?�After their tour of the rest of the Headquarters, Cheryl and Kristy were left under Brandon�s supervision to help sort though the Boys� mail. Amanda grabbed a binful of Nick�s mail, much to Kristy and Cheryl�s surprise. Each of the �new girls� sat down with a bin of their respective boyfriend�s fanmail. �Are you sure you want to do that?� Amanda asked Cheryl as she glanced at the pile of letters the other girl had before her. �Yes... Why wouldn�t I want to read what people are saying to D?� Cheryl shook her head in confusion. �Listen, I used to think the same thing, but quickly found it... well, SIMPLER to sort one of the other guys� stuff � ANY of the other guys� stuff.� Kristy and Cheryl exchanged a wary glance, then Kristy shrugged and started in on some of Kevin�s letters. She smiled at the childlike innocence of some of the letters � even the ones that asked Kevin if he�d marry their moms. She was touched by the letters from people who�d also lost their parents and were able to find inspiration in Kevin and his music. The group continued to sort through the contents of the mail � accompanied by familiar tunes from a local Top 40 station. Each one put aside pictures, artwork and other special items and cataloged the names and addresses of each fan. They worked companionably, sharing noteworthy items and chatting occasionally, but mostly just keeping to themselves as they read. A half-an-hour into the process, they were disrupted by a yell from Kristy. �What the hell is this?!� The rest of the group froze as Kristy emerged from behind a stack of mail bins in the corner of the room with a small piece of fabric � that with some imagination might be considered underwear � dangling from the tip of her forefinger. Amanda was torn between laughing and feeling sympathy for her new friend. Brandon re-entered the room and bit back a smile. He had been waiting for such an outburst... he was just surprised that it�d taken this long. �Lemme guess, Kristy just found some girl�s underwear?� �If you could call it that!� Kristy huffed as she glared at the stringed material hanging from the end of her nail. �Does this happen often?� Brandon shot Amanda a look that said �I�m probably going to regret this� and nodded. �Actually, it does. All the guys get their share of... um, undergarments, but Kev definitely gets the most... although A.J. gets more interesting ones!� Kristy slowly nodded her head and took a deep breath, although Cheryl could still see that her friend was upset. �And what other kinds of things are we going to run across?� she asked, watching both Brandon and Amanda�s reactions carefully. �Well, I�m sure you�ve already read the proclamations of love and the marriage proposals,� he paused as Kristy and Cheryl both nodded with some exasperation. �You can also expect more panties, bras and other assorted lingerie.� Amanda jumped in, seeing that Brandon wasn�t enjoying having to educate the girls like this. It was fun to see the expressions of interns or volunteers the first time they came across some of the more �adult� gifts that the Boys received, but it wasn�t as entertaining when it happened to one of the girlfriends. �And... um, sometimes there are pictures.� Amanda remembered her first such fan-encounter as Kristy and Cheryl�s eyes widened. Cheryl turned to watch her friend, knowing she was a little more sensitive to being a �BSG� since their Boston trip. She saw Kristy eye the garment in her hand with distaste and an air of sadness, then glance around at the numerous larger packages in the designated �Kevin bins� around her. At that moment she didn�t envy her friend. Cheryl had been feeling somewhat frustrated with the distribution of the mail. While everyone had their favorite Boy, the amount of mail each received was not proportional. Nick and Brian tended to be the quantity leaders, although with Kevin�s growing popularity among older fans, he was certainly gaining on them. A.J. had his loyal following and likewise had a large stack of mail bins. To Cheryl, Howie was the most wonderful man on the planet � how come everyone couldn�t see that? Now as she saw Kristy struggle to come to terms with this new aspect of being one of the �Girls�, Cheryl was thankful she wasn�t in her place. She still wished Howie would get more letters, but at least she didn�t have to deal with as much of the �other� mail. �So,� Kristy started, trying to keep the jealousy and pain she was feeling out of her voice, �I know Denise likes to save everything, so where do these go?� Brandon grinned and pushed a large trashcan across the room. �Our special filing bin!�Kristy continued to sort through Kevin�s mail, and although she refrained from any more outbursts, each time she ran across another piece of lingerie she couldn�t help but groan. With each �adult gift� Kevin received, Kristy�s mood got worse. She was secure in their love, but she�d admit it was hard not to get jealous when millions of women wanted to be with her boyfriend. Needless to say, she was thankful to take a break when her cellphone rang some hours later. �Hello?� �Hi, Angel.� �Oh Kev, I needed to hear your voice right now. Your timing is perfect,� she sighed as she disposed of another picture and made her way out of the room. Amanda and Cheryl exchanged grins as they watched Kristy�s posture relax and her smile return as she heard Kevin�s voice. �How are you guys doing?� Amanda asked Cheryl, now that Brandon had left to go get them some lunch. �I won�t lie... it�s hard sometimes. I miss D so much.� �A.J. said the guys took you and Kris away for the weekend. Did you have a good time?� Cheryl smiled contentedly as she thought back to the wonderful weekend they�d shared, then sighed. �It was so incredible, Manda. But sometimes I think it makes it that much harder the rest of the time, ya know?� Amanda nodded and smiled sympathetically. �Oh, I know EXACTLY what you mean. So, do you think Kris will be okay?� �You mean about the underwear? Yeah, she�ll be fine... after she vents to Kevin. Their relationship is solid... they are SO in love. But I think she still gets frustrated with the idea of sharing her boyfriend... I know I do.� Amanda nodded again. �It�s only natural. We�ve all felt it... hell, sometimes I STILL do.� Amanda and Cheryl turned towards the door as they heard Kristy�s laughter drift down the hall. Cheryl smiled. �See? She�s fine. Even Kris will admit she has a bit of a temper...� �Yeah, I�ve heard!� Amanda chuckled, recalling what A.J. had told her after the Boston trip. �But anyone who can clash with Kev and remain standing gets my respect!� Cheryl giggled. �It�s a good thing those two get along so well most of the time... �cause they are possibly BOTH the most stubborn people I�ve ever met!� �Then it�s really good they have you and D around as the peacemakers.� Cheryl smiled as Kristy wandered back into the room. �I will... Uh-huh...� Kristy rolled her eyes slightly and giggled. �Cheryl, Howie told Kevin to tell me to tell you he loves you.� Kristy gave a dramatic sigh after she got that out. Cheryl giggled and shook her head. �Well you can tell Kevin to tell Howie that I love him too.� Kristy groaned, �Okay, here goes... Cheryl told me to tell you to tell Howie that she says she loves him too � I think.� All three girls laughed at the ridiculousness of the phone conversation. Kristy groaned again. �Uh-uh... tell him to call her himself!� Cheryl and Amanda laughed while Kristy smiled and listened to what Kevin was saying on the other end. �Yes... Yes...� Kristy�s eyes sparkled and a faint blush spread over her cheeks. �I remember... Mmhmm...� Cheryl and Amanda exchanged amused glances as Kristy shut her eyes and unconsciously licked her lips while she silently listened to Kevin continue to talk softly. �Yes... Uh-huh... I love you, too.� She hung up and took a deep breath as she dropped to the floor. �Damn!� Cheryl chuckled at her friend. �Lemme guess... you either need a cold shower or a jog.� �Or a flight out to meet up with the guys,� Amanda teased. The three girls glanced at the clock on the wall, all mentally calculating the logistics of joining their men on the spur of the moment. They exchanged looks and burst into laughter as they realized they�d all had the same thought. Brandon entered the room, carrying an array of salads and sandwiches from the nearby deli. He saw the guilty looks on the faces of his �helpers� and shook his head. �I suddenly feel sorry for Bone, D, and Train.� The women all smiled mischievously and replied in unison, �Don�t!�Next: Chapter 44 |