The little girl and the boy were now a little older but their dreams were still as fervent and their friendship just as strong. But their lives were about to change in a few days. The girl knew this as she walked miserably down the streets of the neighborhood that she had grown up in. She was going to leave everything behind and more importantly, she was leaving him behind.

She arrived at the park and sat by the familiar fountain. The fountain where she had formulated many of her dreams and nursed many a skinned knee.

"Hey." She heard a voice behind her and turned to face it. A voice she knew better than her own and that she had sat many hours listening to as it delivered childhood songs that they had sung together. "Your mom was looking for you. I thought I'd find you here." The boy said to her as he sat down beside her.

"I was just saying goodbye to everything." She didn't dare look at the boy, the one person she needed to say her goodbyes to the most.

"Don't you dare," he said.

"What?"

"Don't you dare say goodbye to me. I won't let you do it. You can't get rid of me that easily. I'm not letting you go just because we're not going to be in the same country anymore." One could tell that the young boy was struggling to keep his emotions under control. He looked at the girl then and realized that not only was she younger than him, but also, she had more reason to cry that he did. And yet she was more composed than he was at that moment and he decided to put on a brave front for her sake.

"What do you plan to do? Fly out and see me once a week?" She was joking, but a part of her was hopeful.

"Whatever it takes. Even if I have to save all my money for the next 20 years," he looked seriously at her. "You're my best friend," he whispered, as if that in itself was the explanation to everything.

And it was ,in a way. He had been teased by all the boys in his neighborhood for having a girl for a best friend, and a younger one at that. But he had kept on being her friend because even at such a tender age, he had realized that they shared their dreams and understood each other perfectly.

"Promise me something," the girl said as she watched the sun sink beneath the horizon, bathing everything in hues of orange

"What?"

"You’ll never stop singing, ok? You have to keep going. You have to make those dreams of yours come true," the girl spoke with a wisdom that belied her youth.

"I promise. But you’ll have to promise me the same thing. You can’t stop singing either and your dreams are just as important as mine."

"I promise," she said with a smile.

The two children hugged each other desperately, holding on to the remnants of their limited time together in the only way that children knew how to. One blue-eyed, brown haired boy and a dark-haired Asian girl.

"So what are you going to do when you become famous, Joshua?" the girl teased as she pulled away from the comforting hug.
"I’ll buy you a plane ticket to come and visit me whenever you want," the boy said it half-bragging.

The both of them burst into giggles as the impending separation was forgotten momentarily.

A separation that would take one of them to a faraway island nation known as Singapore.

Liza smiled to herself as she floated back to the present. That youthful promise was what had kept her going all these years when she found it hard to go on without her best friend beside her.

Oh he’d been there for her alright. Maybe not physically, all the time, but he was with her in spirit constantly. She could still remember vividly how he’d looked like as a little boy and over the years, he’d hardly changed much. Except for when he had entered teenagehood and insisted that everyone around him call him by his initials because it was cool.

Or so he thinks, she thought as she stifled a giggle.

Somehow, miraculously, despite the distance and the other pressures, the two of them had kept their friendship alive. On one hand, she marveled at the fact that they had made it this far as friends. But on the other, she wasn’t really surprised.

Their friendship was rare and special and obstacles like time and distance did nothing to shake it because they both knew it was meant to be.

Her mind had been wandering a lot that day since it was a pretty big day for her. She was at a talent agency to take part in a singing competition. After all this time, she was finally going to do something about her talent. She was finally going to keep her promise to him.

In a way, he had spurred her into action. He had never given up on his own singing and had sung in small talent competitions, until he had joined the Mickey Mouse Club some years ago. She had thought that MMC was his big break. But nothing had prepared her for what was to come after that.

His success as a singer in a group hadn’t come easy. She still remembered all the late night phone calls from Germany when he’d sounded so young and scared and strangely enough, so full of hope. She knew he was talented, but she didn’t really think he would make it big.

But now they were the biggest musical sensations in America and the world. And she near burst with pride whenever she thought about how far he’d come.

When he had hit the big time, he’d offered to pull a few strings and get her a recording deal. But she had put her foot down and insisted that if she was going to do this, she was doing it her own way, the hard way. And he had respected and understood her decision.

But then again, no one else in the world understood her like he did.

JC Chasez was her best friend.

"Liza Lopez?" A lady with a clipboard read her name from the list.

She looked up expectantly at her.

"It’s your turn, dear. They’re waiting for you," the woman said smiling at her briefly before writing something down on her clipboard.

She stood up and picked up her bag off the seat. Looking around at her fellow competitors one last time, she took a deep breath and walked the short distance to the door before opening it and disappearing behind it.

They were waiting for her.

JC shifted his feet into another pose, as the camera clicked away at him, the bright flashes a common occurrence in his life. He was at yet another photo shoot, for yet another magazine to do yet another promo for the new album.

It wasn’t that he didn’t appreciate the fame and success that the group had attained this far. Lord only knew how often he thanked his lucky stars for the opportunity of a lifetime that he got to live out everyday. Only the other day, JC and the others had been inducting Michael Jackson into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It didn’t get any better than that.

But sometimes he wished that he could do nothing but make music and perform. In fact, he would like nothing better that to do just that for the rest of his life. Unfortunately, with the touring and recording, came other responsibilities and if it meant doing them would give him more chances to make music, then he would grin and bear it.

Literally so, in this case, he thought to himself, amused.

"Thanks, man. I think Tracy has your next outfit ready for you to change into, now," Tommy, the photographer said ,as he handed him a bottle of chilled water.

JC grabbed the bottle gratefully and made his way into his dressing room. As much as the guys got on his nerves at times, it was totally boring to do photo shoots without them frolicking around. He was on his own today and that thought wore him out a little more. Thankfully, Tracy wasn’t in his dressing room yet and that gave him a few more moments of peace.

He grabbed his cell phone and contemplated pressing the altogether too-familiar speed dial button. Should I call her, he thought to himself as he unscrewed the bottle of water and downed half its contents.

He then realized that she had told him earlier today that she was going for a singing competition. He grinned at the thought.

Liza had not been living up to her part of the promise all these years. She had been busy with school and an active social life, although that didn’t stop JC from nagging her to take up singing again.

He knew that it put pressure on her, but he didn’t want to see that talent of hers go to waste. At least now, she’d finally come to her senses.

According to her, the winner of the competition would be flown to the States to audition for several record companies. He knew that she couldn’t ask for a better opportunity.

All these years that JC had been singing, he had felt gratified, but not fully contented because he knew that Liza had yet to find her niche. And it looked like this was going to be it.

He checked his watch and mentally calculated the time difference eager to call her and find out how it had gone.

"JC, are you there?" Tracy’s voice called out from outside his dressing room.

JC groaned inwardly as he emptied his bottle of water.

"Yeah, I’m here....."

Liza exited the audition studio and sighed heavily. The judges had on unreadable expressions and she had no idea what they had thought of her performance.

It wasn’t that Liza was an insecure person. Rather, her singing was very personal to her and the thought of the judges criticizing and ripping apart her technique, pitch or whatever, made her physically ill.

She decided that what she needed right then was to go home and vent to her mommy, neighbors, pet goldfish, or anyone who would listen. Her feet carried her past the receptionist at the entrance of the building and out the building, towards the bus stop.

They had told her that if she did make it into the final 3, she’d get a call from them by the end of the week.

Great. More pressure. A girl could never have enough pressure in her life, she thought as she rolled her eyes.

Her cell phone cut through her mental tirade and she cursed under her breath at the interruption.

"What??" she practically growled into the phone.

"Is it that time of the month already? Have the put out a public service announcement to warn the people about you yet?" a familiar voice chuckled at her, over the phone.

"Oh, Jace, it’s you," she muttered as she sat down on the bench waiting for the bus.

"Are you okay, Pet?"

Liza smiled at the familiar nickname. It was god to hear JC’s voice again. He always brought sanity to her whenever her mind was in turmoil.

Like it was now.

"I’m ok. It’s just..."

"What?" JC asked.

"I feel stupid telling you my problems, when you’ve got so much more important things to deal with on your end."

"Both our lives are just as important, Li. I don’t have more important problems than you do. Now spill..." JC chided.

"I just finished singing for the judges."’

"That’s great! Did they sign you on already? Can I buy you your first diva costume?"

She laughed at his eager tone. If there was one thing that could get JC more excited than his singing, it was her singing. "No, you can save the costume for now. I won’t know the result till the end of the week."

"Then what is it?"

"I’m scared of what the judges thought of my voice," she admitted.

JC chuckled at her forlorn voice. "Is that all? I was worried for a moment there. Liza, hun, it’s ok to be scared. Your voice is your gift and so it’s the most precious thing you’ll ever own. You are entitled to be insecure when it comes to your voice."

"I am?"

"Yep. But let me just tell you one thing."

"What’s that?"

"You rock. Hell, if you didn’t, I wouldn’t have wasted my energy bugging you to take up singing again all these years, would I? I have faith in you, your parents have faith in you, your friends have faith in you. Now go find some faith in yourself."

"How do you do it?" Liza asked with a smile.

"Do what?"

"Make me feel better about myself so quickly."

"It’s a skill, Li," he chuckled. "I learned it at the Protective Best Friends Academy."

"Well, you’re good at it. Where are you anyway?"

"I’m in LA and I’m in the middle of a photo shoot. In fact, Tracy is gonna kill me soon if I don’t go find her now. Can I call you tonight? I need to know how your performance was," JC looked around hurriedly.

"Do I have a choice? You’ll bug me whether I give you permission or not," Liza said laughingly.

"Don’t ya know it! Talk to you later, Pet! Take care."

"Bye."

Have faith in myself, Liza thought as she clicked off her cell phone. That’s not too hard, now, is it, she asked as she chewed thoughtfully on her lower lip.

I sure hope not.

CHAPTER TWO

Who am I kidding, Liza thought to herself as she hung up the phone after answering the millionth call that week. It seemed like everyone was calling her home all at once.

That is, everyone but the people whom she needed to hear from the most.

A week had come and gone and still there was no sign of a call coming from the talent agency regarding the competition. For a while there, with JC's words still fresh in her mind, she'd hung firmly to the belief that she actually stood a chance. But now she knew for a fact that she wasn't good enough for them. How could she have even dared to believe otherwise?

Her only regret was in disappointing JC himself. She knew how much faith he had in her and how happy he'd been when she'd told him that she was going to audition.

A tear slid down her cheek as she absently wiped it away. Let's face it Jace, I'm not meant to be a singer like you. I don't have what it takes.

(The next day)

The sound of the phone jangling awakened her. She squinted against the light that was filtering through the curtains. Her eyes felt swollen and sensitive and her throat was scratchy from crying the night before.

Liza rolled over and ignored the phone as best as she could, hoping that her mother would answer it instead. True enough, the incessant ringing was stilled a moment later.

Smiling, Liza turned her face into the pillow and snuggled deeper into the warmth of her bed. She fully intended to sleep through the weekend.

Just as she was about to fall back asleep, she heard her mother screaming her name.

"Liza???"

She sighed as she opened her eyes slowly. "Yes, mom?"she groaned.

"The call's for you."

"Can you tell whoever it is to call back later?" She didn't feel like being sociable to any human being just then.

There was a slight pause as her mother conveyed her wishes.

"It's urgent," came her mother's response.

Liza cursed under her breath as she pushed herself off the bed and leaned back against the headboard. Reaching out, she picked up the receiver off the cradle of the phone.

"Hello?" she asked wearily.

"Hi, is this Liza?" an unfamiliar voice spoke.

"Yeah, this is she. Who's this on the line?"

"I don't know if you remember, but you came down for a singing audition about a week and a half ago. I'm sorry it took us so long to get back to you.

"No, that's ok," she said quietly as she prepared herself for the 'better-luck-next-time' speech.

"Well, we have really important news for you. So we wanted to iron out a few details before we got back to you on the competition." The lady on the line paused as if for effect. "We just wanted to inform you, Miss Lopez, that you're one of the three selected to fly down to Los Angeles to perform for selected record companies. Congratulations!"

"Excuse me?" Liza choked out the words.

The woman laughed knowingly. "I'm saying Liza, that you're one of the winners!"

Liza sucked in her breath sharply as the full implication of the words hit her. She listened to the rest of the conversation in a daze as the woman made arrangements with her to come down to their office to make the necessary travel arrangements.

As she hung up the phone, she stared at a random spot on the wall. She couldn't believe it. She'd gotten in.

I need to call JC, I need to call JC. She repeated it like a mantra in her head. Almost instinctively, she felt her fingers dial JC's number.

Ignoring the time difference, Liza drummed her fingers impatiently on her nightstand, waiting for him to answer.

"You're dead," a groggy and annoyed voice stated matter-of-factly once the call was placed.

"I'm so sorry, Jace but I needed to tell you this. I haven't even told my mom yet."

"You're pregnant.....you're dying.....you're giving me a million dollars. Those are the only three answers that will prevent me from flying out there right now and whooping your ass."

"Think again, hotshot!" Liza said smugly. "I won the singing competition! They're flying me to LA to sing for some record companies!"

"Oh my god....wow! That's great news, Li! When is this?" JC asked as he came fully awake.

"Next week. I'll be in LA for an entire week!" She felt giddy just thinking about it.

"That's fantastic. I'm free next week."

"What....?"

"You didn't think I was gonna let you do this on your own, did you? This is your big break and I want to be there for you."

"You mean that? You'll come with me?"

"Definitely," JC chuckled.

"Thank you, 'C, you don't know how much this means to me."

"Oh, I think I do. Now, go and tell your mom! You have to share this with your family," JC shouted patronizingly.

"Ok....ok, I will! Sheesh. 'Nite ,Jace."

JC looked at the illuminated dial of his watch. "Good morning, Li. Bye, Pet."

Liza hung up the phone with a satisfied grin.

"Oh , mom ?"

(The next week)

"Thank you for flying with Singapore Airlines," the flight attendant greeted politely as Liza stepped off the plane along with the other passengers.

It still hadn't sunk in completely that she was in LA about to make her first tangible step towards a career in music. As far as she was concerned, she wouldn't be too bothered if she didn't actually get signed on, since she was thrilled at the opportunity to even audition.

And yet, a small part of her subconscious yearned for the fame, glamour and the daily involvement with music that being a signed recording artiste would mean. She had watched JC over the years and although she was unbelievably proud of him and all that he had achieved, she was secretly envious too.

"Have you got all your things?" Rina, the escort from the talent agency ,asked.

Liza nodded and smiled at her. She turned as she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Can you believe this?" It was Priscilla, one of the other two girls who had also been chosen.

"I know! This is crazy! I'm so excited and nervous at the same time, Cilla," Liza exclaimed to her new friend.

"I know what you mean."

The two of them had promised to stick by each other during this trip since the third winner, Anita, was totally cold and stand-offish towards them both.

Both Anita and Cilla had brought chaperones with them, namely, a family member. Liza's mom however, was content in the knowledge that JC would be there to look out for her daughter, since he was a trusted friend of the family.

But the trusted friend was nowhere in sight just then and Rina was getting impatient.

"Where is this friend of yours, Liza?" She asked as she referred to her Palm Pilot for her schedule.

"He'll be here.... I hope...." she added under her breath.

Just then, a flushed and out of breath JC ran towards the two ladies.

"I'm soooo sorry..... I...."JC panted.

"Are you Liza's chaperone?" Rina asked curtly.

"Yes ma'am, that would be me," JC said smoothly, flashing his trademark grin as he removed his sunglasses.

"Oh my..." Rina said in recognition.

"I'm sorry for holding you up," he offered.

"No, that's ok. Our flight was a little early."

Liza rolled her eyes as she watched JC lay on the charm and what's worse, their escort fall for it.

As Rina led the way to the awaiting hired coach, JC grinned at Liza and helped her to carry her bags.

"How's my favorite diva?"

"I feel nauseous from that shameless display, Mr Chasez," she said ,sarcastically.

"Well, it worked ,didn't it?" he grinned. "I missed you."

"Me too."

Silently, the two wrapped their free arm around each other's shoulders as they made their way towards the coach.

Once inside, the two of them sat at the back of the hired coach, as Anita and Cilla finally noticed the newcomer and gaped at him.

"I think you're shocking my competition," Liza said with a giggle.

"I try," JC replied with a modest shrug.

"So, you're here alone?"

"I came to the airport alone, but Dre's at the hotel just in case a situation arises on this trip."

"But you came to the airport on your own???" she asked disapprovingly.

"I didn't think I'd get recognized."

"Yeah right. Have you looked at a mirror lately? Ever since you got that new lion's mane hairdo of yours, you've made it easier for you to BE recognized, you big doofus!"

"You like it?" JC asked, totally oblivious of the earlier part of her comment.

"I give up." Liza rolled her eyes. He may be her best friend and an international heartthrob, but there was no denying that he was also stupid.

"So what's the plan this week?" JC asked as he leaned back against the seat and stretched his legs.

"Well, starting tomorrow, I go to a couple of record companies and perform for them. We do that for a couple of days. And then we spend the rest of the week waiting for their responses and generally growing stomach ulcers."

JC could tell that although she was excited, she was also scared out of her mind about this. And he didn't blame her.

He remembered what that was like for him and even then, at least he only had to sing in front of one board of record company executives. She was going to have to repeat the nightmare for a number of record companies.

And he didn't envy her. Even now, as an established singer in a well known pop group, something about record company executives just gave him the creeps.

"I know how you feel, Li, and I can't tell you of a way to lessen or eradicate the fear. But what I can tell you is that if you want it enough, then it'll be worth it, y'know?" he squeezed her shoulder reassuringly.

"I know what you mean. Thanks, Jace, for coming here with me."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world."

(The next day)

"Do I look okay?" Liza asked JC for the hundredth time that day, as she adjusted her black leather skirt and white top.

"You look fine," JC mumbled absently as he chewed on his fingernail, hardly looking over at her.

He was only as nervous as she was and that was saying a lot.

Just then, Cilla and her mom came out from the conference room. Liza stood up as she looked worriedly at her friend.

"Are you okay?" Liza asked.

"I'm fine. I'm nervous as hell, but I'm fine," she said as she smiled bravely.

"How was it, sweetie?" JC asked, concerned.

"I have no idea. I can't remember what happened in there. My mind's a blank."

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure you did great." JC reassured her.

Rina's head popped out from the conference room and she beckoned for Liza ,now.

"Miss Lopez, it's your turn."

JC cursed under his breath as he escorted Liza into the conference room. There were several boringly dressed men around the conference table and they looked as though they had never heard of pop music much less be capable enough to select a new voice in the pop music industry. Some of them recognized JC and nodded in his direction or smiled at him.

"Gentlemen," JC greeted politely as he headed to an inconspicuous corner of the room.

The man at the head of the table motioned for Liza to move to the front of the room. There was to be no musical accompaniment since they wanted to hear the full quality of her voice.

Liza looked pale but serene as she looked at the faces around the table. When she started singing, it was shaky and unsure but soon it filled the room as it reverberated with its confidence and clarity.

She was in her element again.

Lying beside you
Here in the dark
Feeling your heartbeat with mine, mine
Softly, you whisper
You're so sincere
How could our love be so blind?
We sailed on together
We drifted apart
And here you are by my side....

JC smiled as he listened to her voice. God, how he missed her talent. It was all too familiar and reminiscent of what their childhood friendship had been based upon. He felt privileged to have been privy to that talent since he was a young boy.

He watched as the men sat transfixed by her bewitching voice. He knew those expressions so well. He saw it on the faces of all who came into contact with Liza's voice. It was one of awe.

So now I come to you
With open arms
Nothing to hide
Believe what I say
So here I am
With open arms
Hoping you'll see
What your love means to me
Open arms...

(Mariah Carey - 'Open Arms')

Liza closed her eyes as she sang the last few notes. How she missed the emotional release that singing gave her. Even as nervous as she was, she derived immense pleasure and satisfaction from the singing.

Opening her eyes, she came face to face with the people who had intimidated her initially , but who were now a part of her singing. They had been connected by the music.

The man shook Liza's hand unemotionally and led her to the door, JC not far behind.

"Thank you, Miss Lopez. We will be in touch."

CHAPTER THREE

Liza lost count of the number of record companies that she had auditioned with in those first two days. And it amazed her how despite the frequency of the auditions, the nervousness was never quite shaken off.

What she'd also come to realize was how much she had missed performing for an audience. She hadn't done that since she was a little girl, and now doing it again made her remember just how addictive it was.

At least now it was all over but one would expect the rest of the week to be easy sailing. But rather, this was merely the beginning of even greater heights of nervousness.

JC had tried his best to take her to the movies or shopping. Anything to take her mind off the auditions, but to no avail. She was a bundle raw nerves. She only wished someone would call her already and reject her, if only to put her out of her misery.

She lay on her stomach in front of television, its volume muted so that she could stare blankly at the moving pictures on the screen without disruption. The silence in the room belied the turmoil that was going on within her.

"Liza??" came a tentative knock on the door. It was Cilla.

"Yeah?" she asked ,listlessly.

"We're having a meeting in Rina's room in ten minutes. I just thought I'd remind you," she said through the door. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Cilla. Thanks for the reminder. Can you drop by JC's room and let him know ,too?"

"He knows. He said he'll see you later."

"Thanks, hun. See ya in ten."

This was probably a 'rejection' meeting. They had approached the end of the week and with it came the pending results from the record companies. She was going to turned down. Politely, but turned down ,nevertheless. This was not a good day.

"I feel sick," she said aloud to the television screen. "And I'm talking to a goddamned television!"

She sighed as she picked up the remote control and switched off the TV, getting up, off the bed. She went to the mirror and pulled her hair up into a ponytail.

It was depressing how at the moment that she was about to be rejected, it finally hit her how much she wanted this. She had deluded herself into believing that she didn't really want it. But the truth was, she needed this like she needed to breathe. Even if she never went on to become as successful as JC was, she needed to sing and make music. How could she deny that this was where her heart lay?

A sharp rap on the door disrupted her reverie.

"Li, it's me JC. Are you ready?"

"Yeah. Hold up."

She mentally psyched herself before opening the door and facing JC. She knew that he knew what this meeting meant, but he didn't seem to be particularly bothered by it. He could have been heading for a stroll in the park with the expression that he had on.

She smiled weakly at him and the two of them made their way into Rina's room. The both of them were the last to arrive since everyone else was seated somewhere in the room.

"Hey guys, take a seat," Rina told them as they walked past her.

Liza sat beside Cilla on the bed as JC sat beside her. Cilla took hold of her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze of reassurance.

"Good, now that everyone's here, we can discuss the first order of business. I'm sure you guys know what you're doing here, so I shan't keep you in suspense any longer. As of last night, we started getting faxes from the record companies stating whether they're interested in offering recording contracts to any of you ladies. We received our last few faxes prior to this meeting. So I shall announce which of you three have been offered singing contracts." She looked around at the expectant faces with a smile before looking down at the sheets of papers in her hands.

"Personally, if it were up to me, I'd give every one of a you a recording deal since I know how hard you guys worked to get here. But it's not up to me. Before you guys kill me with your glares, I shall stop rambling." She paused amidst chuckles across the room.

"Our lucky lady of the day to have an offer from RCA is none other than Miss Liza Lopez!"

Liza sat stumped as she heard her name. Almost immediately, she felt Cilla hugging her and screaming with excitement. Even Anita came over and gave her a congratulatory handshake.

But JC sat motionless and he looked almost bored at the occurrences around him. It hurt to think that the one person whose opinion mattered to her the most just then was unaffected by this amazing turn of events.

After all the congratulating and the hugging was over, Rina informed Liza that she was to have dinner with a record company representative from RCA that night to iron out the finer details. She was also expected at the head office the next day for further discussions about her pending career.

Her mind was whirling from all the events that were taking place and Liza needed to breathe right then. She needed to call her mom and make some sense of everything that had just happened to her. After thanking everyone, she excused herself to the privacy of her room and JC followed wordlessly after her.

When they reached her room, she whirled around at him, in anger.

"I know you're a little jaded by all this Jace, but couldn't you even pretend to be happy for me? It is a big deal to me, you know?"

JC looked confused by her sudden outburst. "I am happy for you, Li...."

"Then how come you didn't react when Rina told me the news," she said accusingly.

JC chuckled to himself as he put his hands on her shoulders. "Because I knew that you were gonna get in. I didn't think for one minute that you weren't getting picked. It was just a question of who picked you. And you couldn't ask for a better label that RCA."

"Oh," she said sheepishly.

"Yes, 'oh'," he teased. "Congratulations, Pet. You know I've always been your number one fan. It's about time the rest of the world took notice of you too."

"Thanks, 'C. For everything," she whispered as she hugged him.

She was about to embark on the journey of a lifetime and she couldn't ask for better company along the way.

(That night)

Liza and JC arrived at the reserved table in the hotel restaurant in time to see Rina talking to a middle-aged man whom Liza remembered from the audition at RCA.

JC squeezed her hand for courage before they made their way towards them.

"Ah, Miss Lopez! It's lovely to see you again. My name is James Reid and I believe we met a couple of days ago. I'm the rep from RCA. Congratulations, by the way," the man said as he stood up and shook Liza's hand warmly, before turning to JC. "How are you Mr Chasez?"

Both JC and Liza greeted him politely before taking their places at the table.

"I must say of course that we were blown away by your talent, Liza. I know this must sound, cliche, but a voice like yours doesn't come along very often."

"Thank you for your kind words, Mr Reid."

"Please, call me James. By the way, we've lined up a management team for you as well as a production team for your first album. All you need to do now before we get to work is to come down to our office tomorrow and go through the contract with us and sign it. You are above 18 right?"

"Yes, I am," Liza responded.

"Good. Now, I would ordinarily ask for an attorney to be present at the signing tomorrow, but seeing as you are so far from home, maybe Mr Chasez could go through your papers instead."

"That's fine. But I'll call on my attorney to come down tomorrow just as a formality." JC replied.

"Great. Oh and you need to be in LA for another week or more. We'll handle your accommodation and things. You'll be working on your first single and doing a couple of photo shoots and other stuff, too."

Liza nodded and looked at JC expectantly.

"I'm sorry, Li, but I won't be around next week. I have to go back to preparing for our tour. But I'll call you to check up on you, ok?" JC felt really bad about leaving her alone at such a crucial time but he couldn't get out of his commitments
and the tour was approaching.

"It's ok, Jace. I can handle it by myself." Liza smiled at him reassuringly.

"Don't worry, Liza. We'll make you feel as comfortable as possible. And you'll get to meet your manager, Kelly. She's really nice and I'm sure you'll get along great with her."

James looked on proudly at her. "I have a feeling that you're going places Miss Lopez. So buckle up for the ride."

(The next week)

Liza removed her headphones as she rubbed her sore ears. She'd been in the sound booth recording the first verse of her first single for over four hours now and she was tired and hungry, but satisfied. Now, she understood the constant craving for music that JC had and why he loved being in a recording studio so much.

She'd signed her contract a few days ago and met her manager, Kelly, as well. The two hit it off right away, eventhough Kelly was old enough to be her mother. There was just something youthful and energizing about her and Liza found her attitude contagious.

Kelly had explained to her the world of music, touring, promoting and recording and Liza was fascinated. She felt like pinching herself every few minutes just to make sure this was really happening.

"Liza, I think we can call it a day, now. You've had a busy first day. So, I'll see you bright and early tomorrow, alright?" Jake, her sound engineer spoke through the mike. She smiled and flashed him a thumbs' up sign.

Liza had fallen in love with the song that had been given to her as her first single. She hoped that eventually she would be writing her own material, but the song that was to be her first single, was a great choice.

Alas, one could still get tired of your favorite song, as she found out after singing it one too many times that day. Now, all she wanted to do was to go home and get the song out of her head so that she would be able to look at it again tomorrow without turning green.

It was an understatement to say that she was tired, but she didn't complain because she knew that as an up and coming singer, she had to work doubly hard. And if it meant that working this hard would ensure the success of her music, then she was willing to pay the price. She knew from JC that work ethic was very important and it could make or break a musician's career. And she intended to take that advice, after all, it came from the best.

"You ready to head back to the hotel, hun? I'll give you a lift," Kelly said as Liza stepped out from the soundbooth.

"Sure. I can barely move my lips," She said with a weak smile.

"This is just the beginning. Just wait till you start recording your album."

Liza groaned just thinking about it. She picked up her bag and searched for her bottle of water. Gratefully, she drank the cool liquid down, before following Kelly out of the studio and into her car.

"So, I spoke to James today and he says you're gonna get an apartment here in LA. You don't have to move right away. After this week's recording stint, you go home for a few weeks, tell your mom you love her, get lotsa rest. Then, you come back out here and we'll start work on preparing you for your promo tour and recording your new album."

"Wow. That's a lot to handle in one day!"

"I know it is sweetie, but you're gonna have to be aware of these things."

"When I go on tour, will you be there?" Liza asked expectantly.

"Liza, I'm your manager. Duh!"

The two ladies giggled as they pulled up at a McDonald's.

"Do you want anything?" Kelly asked.

"Just a regular fries and a Coke."

"Ok."

Liza slumped back in her seat and thought about her day. Things were looking good. She wanted to share her excitement with JC then smiled to herself as she rummaged through her bag for her cell.

"Hello, Jace?"

"Hello?"came an unfamiliar male voice.

"Uh.....JC?"

"Nope. JC's in the shower. This is Justin."

"Oh." It was one of the *NSYNC guys. She'd never met any of them personally but she knew that Justin was one of JC's closest friends.

"Who's this?" he asked.

"It's Liza."

"You're his friend from China ,aren't you?"

Liza giggled uncontrollably. "Yes, Justin. I'm his friend. But I'm from Singapore NOT China."

"Oops.....sorry bout that. Geography was never my strong point," he said as he laughed.

Just then, there was the sound of struggling as JC snatched the phone out of Justin's hands.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Jace."

"Li! Was Justin bothering you?" He asked worriedly as he glared over at his friend.

"No, he wasn't. He was just sharing with me his vast knowledge of the world."

"Huh? Whatever, anyway, how's it goin?"

"Everything's great. I love recording and I just heard they're getting me an apartment here in LA."

"That's great news, Pet," JC said with a smile.

"Listen, I gotta go now. Kelly's back with my food so, I'm gonna head back to the hotel and crash now. I'll talk to ya soon, ok?"

"Sure. Call me if you need anything."

"Stop worrying, Jace. I'm fine!"

JC chuckled. "'Nite, Pet."

Kelly held out a paper bag with Liza's food in it. "I have everything you need!" she said with a giggle.

Liza thought about her family, her friends and JC. "I already have everything I need, Kel...."

CHAPTER FOUR