| Chapter Twelve |
| �I�m sorry, I might have overreacted a little.� JC had told her over the phone that night. The word �might� stuck out like a swore thumb. �Look, I would really appreciate it if you let me handle things with my own family, I know what�s going on, and I don�t need your help in the matter. I hope you understand?� Oh Alexis understood all right, his personal life and his family, were things he kept locked up tight, and he wanted no one to butt in, no one to tell him what he so obviously didn�t see. He didn�t want to believe that an outsider knew more of what was going on then he did. He still hated the fact that Alexis had gone to talk to his mother, he hated what that insinuated. But he looked past that and saw Alexis for who she was, that is until she tries to help him with his family problem. That�s when the spark gets lit. �Yeah JC I understand.� Alexis had said. What else was she supposed to say? It angered her so much she was at the point of never wanting to talk about it again. She couldn�t push the matter any further. He made it clear what he wanted. So she just sucked in the hurt that this caused her and kept on going. The hurt that JC had no idea he caused her by telling her she couldn�t help. �He�s not opening up to me,� Alexis had thought. �The only person he�s listen to is his mother, and she hasn�t told him anything.� After that was settled, or at least to JC it was, he quickly changed the topic and things were back to normal between the two. �I guess I just have to accept his decision and wait till he is ready to share this with me. If he doesn�t want me to help then I won�t, simple as that, I�ll let his mother fix this.� Alexis thought bitterly. Alexis turned on her side and tucked her arm under the pillow. Their conversation swarmed through her head and wouldn�t let her sleep. It had been days since they talked about it but it still haunted her. Things between them were great. It was just at times like these when Alexis was alone with her thoughts that she thought about his situation and how she could help if only he let her. This frustrated the hell out of her. She contemplated tieing him down and telling him what was going on so he could go fix it, but she quickly threw that idea out the window. A moan came from Alexis as she looked at her clock; it was time for her to get up if she was to be ready in time. �Oh come on Alexis you have to come with us, it will be so much fun, I can�t believe you�ve never been to Disney World, such a deprived child.� Chris had told her. So here she was at 6am getting ready to go with Nsync. She treaded toward the bathroom still half asleep wishing she could crawl back into the warmth of her bed. The phone rang a few minutes later. �Who the hell is calling at this time?� She said, not bothering to go pick it up. The answering machine clicked on and a voice filled the room. �Hello sweetie, it�s your mother. So when were you going to tell me about this JC boy I heard about? I know you�re there; it�s too early in the morning for you to be gone. Pick up the phone.� Alexis gave a loud sigh and slowly made her way toward the phone as she cursed Marissa and her big mouth. �Hello mom.� She said when she picked up the phone. �Oh hi, you�re home.� Her mother said. Alexis rolled her eyes and plopped down on the bed. �Yes mom I�m home, as you said it�s too early for me not to be.� �So tell me, what�s going on and why didn�t you mention this to me before?� Alexis rubbed her tired eyes and gave a slight yawn. �Tell you what?� �Don�t be a smart ass Alexis you know what I�m talking about. And before you go blaming Marissa it was an accident she thought I knew, and please tell me why I didn�t know?� �I don�t know why I didn�t tell you mom, I guess its cuz I didn�t really wanna hear what you had to say. So you know what let me just tell you everything now and leave nothing for you to say. I�m dating Joshua Chasez of Nsync, that�s a huge popular musical group.� �Yes darling, I know who they are, remember I�m a middle school teacher.� �Yeah ok, well I met him here and we�ve been seeing each other for almost two months now and everything is going great. He�s leaving on the 17th for a tour but we�ll manage, cuz.. well we want to. And yes I know about the fans and the reporters and I�m ready to deal with it all. Does that about cover it mom?� �Wow that serious in such a short of amount of time?� Her mother asked questioningly � Yeah I know it surprised me too.� Was Alexis�s answer as she stared at the ceiling. �You sure you are ready for this, you just broke up with David not too long ago?� �Mom my relationship with David ended long before I stepped out that door to move here. I�ve moved on and I don�t want to hear about him anymore, please.� �Ok Alexis that�s fair, I�m sorry. So is this JC as cute as he looks in pictures?� Alexis laughed at her mom�s question. �Oh yeah mom all that and a bag of chips, and so are the rest of them.� �You�ve met them too?� �Yes and now I have to go finish getting ready because I�m actually going to Disney with them.� Alexis said with a smile. �Well ok Alexis have fun and be safe, call me when you get back I want to know more. I love you.� �Love you too mom.� And she hung up the phone. ************************************************************************ �You see those gates over there Alexis?� Chris began to tease as he put on his hat and sunglasses. �When we walk through those we�ll be in Magic Kingdom followed by the other parks.� �No really? Thank you for telling me Chris, I don�t think I would have known.� Alexis said sarcastically as she watched the guys put on their disguise. She was standing next to Steve and two of Chris�s sisters who had come along for the trip. �Ok guys some rules before we enter the happiest place on earth,� Mike began, and the guys moaned. �Not like we haven�t heard this a hundred times before.� Justin muttered. Mike ignored his comment and continued. �Try not to draw too much attention to yourselves, no let me re-phrase that, don�t let yourselves be known that you�re here.� Alexis looked around at each of the guys as Mike said this. Chris had an evil spark in his eye and so did Joey. She had a feeling that soon enough the whole park would know just who had strolled in for a visit before they start their tour. �You got it?� Mike asked when he finished his little speech. All he got were 5 nodding heads in response. �Come on Mike loosen up we are 5 grown men who want a day of fun before we go on tour.� Justin said. Chris snickered in the background. �5 grown men? I see about 4.� Justin glared at him. �I�m not doubting that Justin, I trust you guys but I can�t trust the thousand or so fans you can run into in there. Let�s go.� Alexis walked next to JC and leaned in to ask him something. �Is Mike always like that? It�s not like you don�t have enough body guards around you to protect you guys.� Alexis said as she looked around at the 1:2 ratio of Nsync members to bodyguards. �He�s always like that when we go to a public places like this, and there are a lot more of us to protect this time.� He said as he grabbed her hand and squeezed. �You excited?� �Yes,� she said as a smile came to her face. �I feel like a little kid!� She beamed. �I want to ride and see everything.� JC smiled at her happy face. �Glad I can say I was a part of a first in your life.� JC said and brought the back of her hand to his lips. She had a feeling in the pit of her stomach, or was it in her heart that JC would be another first in her life. The big group sneaked in a side entrance to avoid the crowd. It wasn�t long before Alexis felt the staring eyes of fans around her. She heard the giggles from the girls who were being kept at least ten feet away by security who were strategically placed around the guys. Her eyes looked in every direction as they walked along the park. Her excitement had drained a little after noticing the stares and the commotion they were causing. A flash of light went off towards Alexis�s right; she immediately turned that way and saw a girl standing there with a camera pointed directly at her and JC. Another flash of light shinned before her. This time Alexis jumped a little and quickly let go of JC�s hand worried of what the picture could cause. JC turned from his conversation with Lance to look at her and soon noticed her worry. He saw her staring at the girl with the camera in her hand who now seemed to be following them. �Its ok sweetie, come on ignore them and have fun.� He whispered in her ear. Easier said then done she thought, and gave him the best smile she could. She relaxed a little when JC grabbed her hand again and began stroking the back of her hand with his thumb. �Hey JC, it that your girlfriend?� A scream came from the crowd, the same girl with the camera. Alexis�s eyes widened with disbelief, she looked at JC who just smiled at the girl and waved without saying a word. They picked up their pace a little. �I didn�t want to�I couldn�t say..� JC began in a calm low voice. �I wouldn�t want you to.� Alexis finished for him. �As long as we know.� She gave him a warm smile and took a deep breath. And pretty soon they will know too, she thought with slight dread. Chris came running from behind them and grabbed Alexis�s arm pulling her along. �Come on, come on!� He screamed. �Off to Space Mountain, you�re gonna love that ride!� Alexis gave JC a strange look then gave into Chris with a laugh letting him drag her along. �That boy never gets tired of that ride!� Joey said. �Come on Joey, let�s go!� Chris screamed over his shoulder. Joey looked at Lance and JC shrugged his shoulders and dashed after Chris who was still tugging Alexis along. �And they call me a kid, HA� Justin said as he trailed behind with Steve. �I still say you�re really older then Chris man.� Lance told him. �Ok, Chris slow down, the rides not going anywhere and I can�t feel my arm anymore!!� Alexis screamed at him. �Oh hehe, sorry,� he said as he let go of her arm. �What did you two stop for, come on!� Joey said coming from behind them then jogging past. �Oh hells no, you go ahead Chris I�ll make it don�t worry.� Alexis said �You�re no fun!� He screamed as he tried to catch up to Joey. �You tell these kids to keep a low profile and it goes in one ear and right out the other.� Mike said as he picked up his pace to catch up to Joey and Chris. �I hope they get caught by a mob of fans up there�� He continued to walk, mumbling along, leaving Alexis behind him laughing. ************************************************************************ �Hey Alexis you look kind of sick there.� Justin said walking around the bench she was seated at under a tree. He handed her lemonade. �Thanks, Yeah that last roller coaster sorta did me in.� She replied taking a sip of the lemonade. �Yeah I needed a break too, I was getting hungry.� He lifted the hot dog he was holding in his hand then took a bite. They were now sitting there waiting for the rest of the group to get off a roller coaster. It had been a long fun day and she wouldn�t take it back for the world. These guys were a trip to hang out with, and a mission to keep up with. Aside from the stares and occasional screams and even faint spells from fans the day had been a blast. �There shouldn�t be too many pictures of me with JC on the internet,� Alexis thought, remembering the various flashes of light that were set off in her direction. �At least they don�t know my name or anything.� �So you�ve had fun today?� Justin said wiping his mouth clean after inhaling the hot dog. �Yeah I really have, thanks for asking me to come along.� She said with a smile. �But of course, you know you�re a part of us now, we�ve sucked you in.� �Is that good or bad?� She asked with a laugh. �It depends on how you wanna look at it, what do you think it is?� �I�d say it�s good.� She said nodding her head. �Then it�s good,� he said with a laugh as he stretched out his legs in front of him. Justin squirmed a little in his seat next to her, tried to relax then began talking. �You know JC and Tyler still haven�t spoken a word to each other.� He began as calmly as he could. Oh boy, Alexis thought as she drew in a deep breath and turned her head to face Justin. �I don�t understand why either, all I know is that it�s killing him, he�s been so depressed about it. The only time he�s really happy is when he�s with you.� He turned his head to face her now and smiled. All she could do was smile back. �There has to be a reason why Tyler hasn�t spoken to JC and vice-versa, but I just don�t know what it is. Tyler knows what it is, that much I know, what he said at the party proves that, but does he really think it was JC�s fault? I don�t see how that�s possible.� Justin stopped now. He had been staring off into space and sating everything that came to his mind. �You�re smarter then you think Timberlake.� Alexis said under her breath. �What?!� �Oh no nothing, I�m sorry continue.� �What I�m trying to get at is I know you and JC have become really close, and I don�t know I was thinking maybe you can help him and Tyler. They need it. I know you can help, you�re a psychiatrist.� �Easier said then done Justin. JC has made it very clear he doesn�t want me involved in this in any way shape or form. I�ve tried to help, I�ve tried to get him to talk to his mom, but it just hasn�t worked. I can�t force what I know on him to help him. Plus we all know he wasn�t too pleased with me when he first met me. Don�t want to go through that again.� �JC�s pig-headed and stubborn, you just need to show him whose boss, talk to him, he might not like it at the moment but he�ll get over it and thank you for it later.� �I�ll take that into consideration Justin, thank you.� �Please do, I can�t help him like you could, I�ve tried also, but I don�t know everything that�s going on, you on the other hand, you might know, you�ve talked to his mom.� Alexis avoided his eye contact thinking this kid might know too much for his own good. �I can�t promise you anything but I will sure try, again, I hate to see him so upset.� �Thanks.� Justin said as he sat up in the seat a little at the sight of the group headed in their direction. �You two have a nice talk?� JC asked as he approached them and grabbed Alexis�s lemonade from her hand. �Oh did you wan some, here.� Alexis said sarcastically as JC took a gulp of her drink. �Yeah actually I did, thank you,� he said as he gave her back her cup and placed a kiss on her cheek.� �Ok so what�s next?� Justin asked as he stood up after being re-energized. �What do you mean what�s next?� Lance asked as he came up from behind. �It�s 6pm and I for one am tired and hungry, and I wanna go eat.� And with that Lance fell onto the bench taking Justin�s place. �And I totally agree with Lance.� Alexis said. �Ok guys I think, I think it�s time to go now, these two have had quite a day.� Chris said referring to his sisters. �Oh and when Chris says he wants to leave we all know it�s time to leave.� JC said, as he stood there finishing off Alexis�s drink. �Where�s Joey?� Lance asked �Over there talking to that fine girl he just met.� Justin said his gaze leading the others to where Joey could be found. �Man I tell you he can�t let one pass him by.� Alexis sat there waiting for the men around her to decide where they wanted to dine for the evening. She looked around, watching all the young girls pass them by and see their jaws drop as they realized whom they had just walked past. She saw girls pass by them at least three times just staring in amazement. Then she saw the faces of the girls who had seen her sitting there surrounded by four fifths of Nsync. She saw their faces as they turned from excitement and awe into jealousy and hate. She turned away from these girls and their evil eyes; if only looks could kill she would have been dead a long time ago. Alexis looked to her left and saw a man standing near by holding a camera, which was pointed in their direction. The man looked oddly familiar to her, but she shrugged it off, only living here for two months who could she possibly know? She veered her attention back to the guys who were still talking only to look back over to where that man was standing still taking pictures. This time she was certain he was taking pictures of them, and she still had that feeling like she knew him. But the camera was covering most of his face. �Must be part of the press or something.� She thought as she rolled her head. �Just ignore it, no big deal.� She closed her eyes and stretched her head back, lightly messaging her shoulder for a second. The man with the camera zoomed in closer as JC�s hand went to Alexis�s shoulder to message the area that was evidently bothering her. Her face showed pleasure at the soothing touch of JC�s hand. And snap went the camera with a grin on the face of the man taking the picture. �Oh Alexis,� came a whisper from his lips. Chapter Thirteen |