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Everything Your Heart Desires Chapter 47 Once again the New York shoppers arranged for their things to be sent to the hotel and had a cab hailed for them. Kevin glanced at his watch and nodded. "We should make it on time." "Make what?" Kristy asked as she glanced around at the three men. No one said anything, but she could tell from their smiles that they were up to something. "Kev-in," she said in a sing-song voice as she scooted closer to him. "Baby, where are we going?" "Uh-uh, you're just going to have to wait a little bit. But I think this may be another 'fan moment' for you." Kristy contemplated Kevin's answer as the taxi made its way up Broadway towards Times Square. It pulled to a stop in front of building 1515 and Kristy's face lit up. "You're kidding!" Kevin laughed and kissed her lightly. "Nope... We're meeting Nick and Bri for some PR obligations and to do a couple of spots for some of our upcoming stuff. And we may 'drop in' on TRL." Kevin chuckled again as Kristy's eyes widened further. Kristy shook her head. "I just can't believe it. A year ago - hell, even three months ago - I never would've imagined I'd be 'dropping in' on MTV, let alone with you. It's kinda surreal sometimes." Kevin and his friends nodded. They felt the same way sometimes. Inside the MTV studios, the five guys gathered and chatted with some of the VJ's about the Into the Millennium tour and plans for the next video. Kevin introduced Kristy to everyone and all the guys watched with pride as she instantaneously charmed even the most uptight of the news reporters. Kristy and Kevin were talking with Dave Holmes - one of her favorite VJ's - when Carson Daly approached her and asked her if she wanted to be the "guest VJ" for TRL and announce some of the video requests of the day and meet the �surprise� guests. Much to the guys' surprise, she didn't immediately agree. She wanted to make sure it was okay with the Boys - especially Kevin � which it was. Kristy ultimately decided to do it, and headed outside with Dave to be a fan on the street.Cheryl and Polly finished their own shopping adventure mid-afternoon and headed over to the Dorough�s early. Shortly after their arrival, the doorbell rang. Paula and Polly implored Cheryl to get it as they busied themselves with dinner preparations. Cheryl wiped her hands on her apron as she wandered to the front of the inviting home. She opened the door to see a large bouquet of long-stemmed red and yellow roses and the delivery boy attached to them. �Hi! These are for...� the young man paused to check his clipboard, �Cheryl.� �I�m Cheryl,� the redhead replied with a dazed look on her lovely face. She took the incredible arrangement and searched for the card. �Sparky ~ Watch TRL. Love, Sweetie� Cheryl glanced at the mantle clock precisely as it chimed 3:30. Howie never ceased to amaze her with his attention to detail. She flipped on the television and turned to see Polly in the doorway. �What did you know about this?� Polly laughed guiltily. �D told me I could spend the day with you, but whatever I planned, I had to get you back to Mom and Dad�s by 3:30.� Cheryl smiled as she inhaled the fragrant blossoms, thinking about how much she loved that man. The opening segment of TRL flashed across the screen and she and Polly sat down in front of the Dorough�s television, dinner preparations temporarily put on hold. John soon entered and joined his sister and brother�s girlfriend as they speculated on what the Boys had planned. They watched the first part of the show with mild interest, only perking up as Carson would allude to some special guests. �Wonder if Kris is there,� Cheryl mused aloud, scanning the crowd as the camera panned the audience. �She�s probably backstage with the guys,� Polly guessed. �Or back-backstage with Kevin,� John cracked right before Paula and Hoke joined their children and Cheryl in the livingroom. Cheryl bit back a smile and shot John a squelching look. �Oh, c�mon... like you weren�t thinking the same thing,� he laughed. Cheryl shook her head and joined Polly�s laughter. �Yeah, maybe I was.� �And if you were there, I�d bet you and D would be somewhere similar.� Cheryl blushed but wouldn�t answer him, instead turning her attention back to the TV.Carson went through the countdown, while the Boys watched from monitors backstage and Kristy �befriended� Dave on the street. Carson kept teasing the fans in the studio with talk of surprise guests, then went to the street. �Let�s talk to our good friend Dave Holmes outside. Dave, who do you have there with you?� Dave turned to the pretty blond standing next to him. �Carson, this is Kristy... she�s visiting for the weekend with some friends.� He turned deliberately to the people surrounding them. �So, Kristy, where ARE your friends?� The guys watched the monitors with amusement as Kristy shrugged sadly, widened her eyes, and pouted slightly. �They had some �prior obligations� related to work.� �So they just abandoned you?� Dave asked with mock-amazement. �I�m appalled! Carson, can you believe anyone would leave her behind?� Carson bit back a smile. �They must be inconsiderate jerks.� �HEY!� Kevin and Brian grumbled from backstage. �So, Kristy, would you like to come upstairs? I�ll keep you company,� Carson said with a mischievous smile into the camera. Kevin frowned slightly. �He�d better not get any ideas.� �I�d love to!� Kristy said with a bright smile for the camera.Cheryl, Polly, and John were laughing hysterically at Kristy�s little acting job. �I�m sure the guys are loving this!� Polly giggled. �Oh, yeah. I�m sure Kevin�s thrilled at the way Carson was talking!� John chuckled, imagining the hot-tempered member�s reaction. Cheryl smiled. Something about Kristy�s smile told her that her friend was up to something. While the rest of the world might not have caught it, Cheryl had definitely noticed a gleam of mischief in those big hazel eyes. And knowing Kevin, he�d probably seen it too.Dave introduced the next video from the street, then he and Kristy made their way inside. Carson brought her forward after the commercial and after referring to their �mystery guests� again, asked her a couple of questions. �Kristy, do you like *NSync?� The audience members cheered wildly and the guys groaned backstage. �Does she?� Nick asked. Kevin paused. �Ya know, we�ve never talked about it. She likes a lot of types of music, but I�ve never heard her listen to any of their stuff.� �I could see her saying �yes� just to get a rise from you, Train,� Brian laughed. The guys turned their attention back to the monitor and watched Kristy�s �performance�. She wrinkled her nose slightly and with an almost apologetic smile answered Carson, �No, not really.� She looked directly into the camera and smiled shyly, though her eyes were twinkling. �I�m a die-hard Backstreet Boys fan!� A.J. laughed loudly. �I knew she had great taste!� Carson continued to play along, �So, which is your favorite BSB and why?� Kristy blushed slightly, directing her answer to Carson and Dave. �Kevin.� She paused as the audience screamed and applauded. �His voice is just so incredible... very sexy.� She turned briefly to the camera and smiled. �And I love those amazing green eyes...� she sighed dramatically, then continued, �and his dimples when he smiles.� Kevin and his friends watched the monitor with various reactions. A.J. and Howie thought she had a future in acting as she batted her eyelashes and flashed a bright smile at the camera again. Nick and Brian were also vastly entertained, but they were watching Kevin�s reactions even closer than Kristy�s performance. Kevin stood smiling and blushing as Kristy looked directly into the camera to finish her detailed explanation of why Kevin was her favorite Boy. �And...� Kristy glanced down, a faint blush coloring her cheeks, then looked back up and directly into the camera and bit her lower lip slightly, �He has the most absolutely incredible body.� Carson grinned as Dave struggled to contain his laughter, both imagining Kevin�s reaction to his girlfriend's description. �I think that serves as the perfect introduction for our mystery guests. Kristy, and the rest of the TRL audience, please welcome Nick Carter, A.J. McLean, Brian Littrell, Howie Dorough, and... Kevin Richardson.� Each of the guys hugged Kristy briefly as they came out, trying to act casual in front of the camera, but each chuckling or whispering something as they embraced her. When she got to Kevin, both struggled to maintain their �roles� as fan and Boy. Kristy bit the inside of her cheek to stop herself from smiling too brightly... also managing to maintain her �blush� as she fought to contain her laughter. Kevin hugged her, still blushing himself, and murmured in her ear, �Just you wait till I get you home.� Kristy�s eyes widened slightly at the seductive and mischievous tone in Kevin�s voice. They were brought back to reality as Carson addressed their flushed faces. �I don�t know who�s blushing harder, Kristy or Kevin.�"Kevin!" Cheryl and the Doroughs all answered Carson through their laughter. "I'm not sure if he looks like he wants to strangle her or kiss her," John mused as they continued to watch the looks exchanged between the pair while Carson and Dave chatted with the other guys. "Knowing them, it might be a toss up!" Cheryl giggled. As Nick introduced the Limp Bizkit video in the number three spot, the group recounted the scene prior. Cheryl smiled, thinking of her friend's acting debut. "Did you see the way she played to the camera? I never knew she had it in her!" "You could tell she had it all planned out ahead of time," Polly laughed as she batted her eyes and flashed a bright smile. "Not bad, not bad... but I personally liked this part the best," John said, then attempted to imitate Kristy's wide-eyed-innocent look - complete with him biting his lower lip. The rest of the group laughed loudly. "Uh-uh," Hoke chuckled, "Not even close." "Maybe with some practice," Cheryl teased. "Don't feel bad though, it takes years to get it right." She proved her own expertise as she proceeded to demonstrate it perfectly. John and Hoke shook their heads as the women laughed. "Howie and Kevin don't stand a chance."Even with the cameras off of them, the Boys, the VJ's, and Kristy had to maintain appearances for the studio audience. Kristy ended up talking to Dave and Brian, with Kevin standing near her. Every time he caught her eye he had to fight the urge to wrap his arms around her and hold her close. He could tell she wanted the same thing as the looks exchanged between them became more frequent and longer. "And we're back in 5, 4, 3, 2..." the director counted down for the studio audience with his fingers, and the camera turned back to Carson and his guests while the audience was cued to cheer. Considering who the guests were, it wasn't really an issue since the predominately female audience hadn't stopped screaming since the Boys' introduction. The Boys discussed the success of their second U.S. album, Millennium, and the singles released thus far, then Carson turned to Kristy. "Kristy, will you help us out with the totals for our number two video? I've heard you and your friend have a special fondness for this one..." Kristy smiled apprehensively at the smirks on Brian, Nick and A.J.'s faces, then giggled as she turned to the cue cards. She composed herself somewhat and smiled into the camera. "With 22 percent of your phone calls and 25 percent of your emails, the number two video is Britney Spears 'You Drive Me Crazy.'" She winked into the camera. "We miss you, Sparky!""Spill Sparky!" John demanded with a wicked grin as Cheryl tried to hide her head behind a couch cushion. "Uh-uh," came the muffled protest as the form behind the pillow shook its head. "This is a long song and we're completely prepared to bug you about it until you tell us," John teased. "Besides," Polly giggled, "You know we're going to ask D about it the next time we talk to him if you don't tell us yourself." Cheryl groaned and peaked around the edge of the cushion. She smiled reluctantly as she watched the video on the TV and thought back to her and Kristy's performance during the guys' rehearsal. By the end of the explanation, the entire Dorough family was nearly crying they were laughing so hard, picturing Howie and Kevin's girlfriends' improvised routine. John raised an eyebrow as Britney and her dancers drug their chairs into position, and Cheryl simply nodded, sending the group into another fit of laughter. Cheryl groaned again, but giggled as she pictured Howie's reaction at the time. Her only comfort was that Kristy was also watching the video - and having to deal with the guys.After the video and a commercial break, Carson and Dave brought up the U.S. tour and asked the Boys numerous questions about it, before introducing the number one video request of the day - Larger Than Life. Howie took the microphone and answered for all of the guys. "We're really proud of this tour. We've worked really hard on making it a great show... incorporating the music, choreography, lighting, and some 'special touches'," he paused as the much of the audience cheered in recognition of those "extra touches" that the Boys had added to their concert. "We've had an amazing year with this album and now the tour, and we'd like to thank all of our fans for their support." Howie then looked directly into the camera and smiled. "And we'd also like to thank our families and friends for all of their love and support. We love our jobs - our lives - but we do miss our loved ones back at home... and we're sorry if sometimes we don't say it enough."Cheryl sat frozen, watching Howie's image on the television, while tears ran down her cheeks. The rest of the group quietly left the room as Polly handed her the phone. She dialed Howie's cellular number as soon as TRL went to the Boys' video. He answered immediately. "H-howie... I love you."Next: Chapter 48 |