[chapter 1]

"Didn’t you see my breaks?" the man exclaimed as he got out of his car.

"I’m sorry, I wasn’t paying much attention." Kat said kicking herself in the butt.

The young man walked behind his car to look at the damage.

"Here is my name and phone number and all my insurance information. Just send me the bill." Kat said handing the man a piece of paper with scribbles on it.

"Look the damage isn’t that bad, I’ll just pay for it." The man said.

"No really, I hit you, I should pay for it." Kat said.

"Well what about your car?" he asked.

Kat looked at the damage and saw it was nothing really, "It will survive."

"Are you sure?" the guy asked.

"I am paying for the damage I did to your car, yes I am sure." Kat said.

"Ok well I have all the info I need, oh, and by the way my name is JC." The guy said and reached out his hand.

"Kat" she shook his hand. For the first time Kat got a real good look at him. He was tall, dark hair, killer eyes, and a very firm handshake.

"Well it was nice meeting you Kat." He said and got in his car.

"Uh, yea. You too JC." Kat said and headed back to her car.

"Ok so maybe this morning was as bad as I thought it was." She thought to herself and headed off to class.

"JC man, what happened to your car?" Justin asked as JC pulled in.

"Oh I got hit at a red light this morning." He informed Justin.

"That sucks man." Joey said looking at the damage.

"Not really, the girl that hit me was…well…"

"Hot?" Justin smiled.

JC looked at him, "Pretty."

"Pretty huh. You got a phone number?" Joey asked.

"Actually yea. She insisted on paying for the accident after I told her not to worry about it." JC said.

"So are you going to make her pay for it?" Justin asked.

"No, of course not." JC said sticking the piece of paper back in his pocket.

Justin and Joey just looked at each other and smiled.

When Kat got home from class there was a message on her machine,

"Hello Kat. This is JC the guy from the accident. I was just calling because there is a little problem. Just give me a call back at 555-8808. Thanks."

"Oh, of course there is. Nothing can go right for me right now." Kat said to herself as she dialed the number.

"Hello." She heard a voice go.

"Yea, is JC there?" Kat asked.

"This is he. Is this Kat?" JC asked.

"Yes. So what is the problem?" Kat asked not really wanting to know what else she had to pay for.

"Actually the problem is you paying." JC informed her.

"I’m lost." Kat said.

"I don’t want you paying for it. My car is already in the shop and paid for, by me." JC told her.

Kat sighed, half thankful, half frustrated. "I told you I would pay for it."

"I know, but you aren’t getting out of it that easy." JC said.

"Oh great, Now what." "Ok." Kat said confused.

"Since I paid for the car, you have to go out to dinner with me." He said.

"You want to go out to dinner with a girl that you haven’t even known for 12 hours because she hit her your car. Do you get in many accidents?" Kat asked.

JC laughed at her comment. "No actually this is the first one. And yes I want to go out to dinner with you."

"Um…ok." Kat said. "Hey he’s good looking, what could go wrong." Kat thought to herself.

"Cool. One thing. You have to come over here." JC told her.

"Ok, where?" Kat asked.

"The Paradise Plaza." JC told her.

"Isn’t that a hotel?" Kat asked.

"Yes, I’m from out of town." JC said.

"Oh, that makes sense." Kat replied.

"How about you be here at 6:45 tonight. Sound good?" JC asked.

"Sure." Kat said getting a bit nervous.

"Ok, see you then, oh and wear something really nice." He said before he hung up.

"Really nice eh." Kat thought to herself and headed upstairs.

"Ok let me get this right. You hit a car this morning that just happened to belong to a really good looking guy and not only did he pay for the damage you caused, but he is taking you out to dinner?" Kat’s best friend Whitney asked as she hung over the side of Kat’s bed.

"Well, yea. Kind of weird isn’t it." Kat said looking through her closet.

"Weird can’t even describe it Kat." Whitney joked.

"Just shut up and help me out ok." Kat said as she threw a shoe at her friend.

"Ok, ok, ok." Whitney said rolling off the bed.

LIFE

Kat arrived at the hotel at 7:00 and saw JC coming out of the elevator.

"Perfect timing." He said as he walked over to her.

"I do try." Kat said. "So are you ready?"

"Of course." JC said escorting Kat outside a limo.

"You’re taking me to dinner in a limo?" Kat asked puzzled.

"Well I would take you in my car, but it is kind of in the shop right now." JC joked.

"Oh funny." Kat said as she slipped into the car. "So where are we going?"

"You’ll see." JC said as they drove off.

"You look really nice tonight." JC told her.

"Well thank you. You look very handsome." Kat replied.

"Well thank you." He said.

Kat was extremely nervous on the way to the restaurant and she wasn’t talking unless JC asked her a question.

"You aren’t going to be this quiet all night are you?" JC asked.

"Truthfully. Probably" Kat said.

"Well how can I change that?" JC asked.

"Um...tell me more about yourself. You keep asking me questions, its my turn to learn about you." Kat said.

"Ok. Shoot." JC said turning to her.

"What are you doing here in town?" Kat asked.

"Actually, I’m in a band and we released our first CD and we are out here doing some promotional stuff." He told her.

"Really? That’s awesome. Which band?" she asked.

"NSYNC. Our first single is called "I Want You Back." JC said

"I love that song! It bugged me for the longest time that I didn’t know what group sang that. So tell me more about you guys." Kat said.

"Well there are 5 of us, myself, Justin, Joey, Lance, and Chris. We got together a couple years ago and here we are releasing our first CD." He said just as they arrived at the restaurant. JC helped her out of the limo and they headed inside.

Once they were seated Kat asked him more questions about his music and a lot of questions about the music industry.

"If you don’t mind me asking. Why are you so interested in the industry?" JC asked.

"Well I’m a business major and I want to work for the music industry." Kat informed him.

"Really. Where do you go to school?" JC asked.

"University of California at San Diego. This is my last year there." Kat told him.

"That’s awesome. Do you know what you want to do once you are in the industry?" JC asked.

"Truthfully…no. Ok, you know when artists wins an award and during their speech they thank a whole bunch of people and you just think to yourself ‘who the hell is that person and what did they do?’ I want to be that person." Kat told him.

"Sounds like a plan to me." JC said.

"Yea, I just hope it works out." Kat said.

"If you put your mind to it, it will. Believe me." JC assured her.

After dinner JC decided to head back to the hotel so Kat could meet the rest of the guys. They just happened to be all in Chris’s room playing cards.

"Knock, Knock." JC said as they walked in.

"Hey JC, and hello to you too." Justin said as Kat walked in. "You must be the girl that hit JC’s car this morning."

"Yup. That’s me." Kat said.

"Hi, I’m Justin." He said and shook her hand.

"Nice to meet you." Kat said.

"Over there sitting next to the TV is Chris, the one sitting on the bed is Joey, and the one sitting on the far side is Lance." "Everyone this is Kat." JC introduced them and Kat said hi to all of them.

"Do you two want to join in?" Lance asked Kat and JC.

JC looked at Kat and asked her.

"Sure, what are you guys playing?" Kat asked.

"Poker." Chris said.

"Cool, deal us in." JC said and he and Kat sat on the floor.

LIFE

"Full House! Ha, I beat you both again." Kat yelled.

"I am so out of money." Justin said pulling his pockets out.

"Well we will let you sleep. See you in the morning." JC said helping Kat stand up.

"It was nice meeting you Justin." Kat said.

"The pleasure was mine Kat. I hope to see you around again." Justin said and they left.

"I should probably get going so you can get some sleep." Kat said to JC.

"Do you want to go for a walk with me?" JC asked.

Kat looked at him, "Sure." She said and he led her back outside.

"Where do you want to go?" Kat asked.

"I have no idea, let’s just walk." JC answered. So they started walking and it felt like they walked all over the town when a park came in sight.

"Wanna sit?" JC asked.

"Oh yeah!" Kat exclaimed with a smile.

They took a seat in the park next to a beautiful water fountain.

"I all most forgot how beautiful the stars are at night." JC said

"Well the view isn’t very good because of all the trees and the city lights." Kat replied.

"I like the view and I like the company even more." JC added.

All Kat could do was smile at him. His eyes were the most beautiful blue she had ever seen in her life and she realized how easy it was to get lost in them. She quickly tore her eyes from his gaze.

"What’s wrong?" JC asked.

"Um… nothing we should probably head beach." Kat suggested.

"If you want to we can." JC said standing up sounding disappointed. The walk back to the hotel was long and Kat started to get extremely tired and her feet were killing her. All of a sudden Kat slowed down immensely and slowly started to fall. JC turned around and caught her just in time.

"Kat, are you ok?" JC asked trying to wake her. Kat woke up and saw JC over her,

"What happened?"

"I’m not quite sure. I turned around and you were falling." JC answered as he helped her up.

"I must have fallen asleep." Kat said starting to laugh. JC put his arm around Kat’s waist to help her balance.

When they got to Kat’s car Kat turned to JC and said, "Thank you very much for a terrific night."

"You can’t drive home in your condition." JC said

"I’ll be ok. Don’t worry." Kat told him.

"No, the last thing I need is you falling asleep at the wheel and getting into a car accident. I would never be able to forgive myself." JC insisted.

"Well what do you want me to do? Sleep in my car?" Kat asked.

"No, you can spend the night at the hotel." JC said.

"I can’t afford a hotel room." Kat told him.

"It’s on me." JC said.

"Your amazing you know that." Kat said

"How’s that?" JC asked.

"Not only do you pay for damage to your car that someone else did, but you take that person out to dinner and put her up in a hotel for the night. Is there anything you won’t do when you first meet a girl?" Kat asked.

JC just kind of smiled at her. "So is that a yes?"

"Are you sure? This is an expensive hotel." Kat said.

"I would rather have you here then getting in a car accident." He replied.

"Okay." Kat said and locked her car back up

They got her a room and she got settled in. JC came back down with a pair of Adidas shorts and a tee shirt that said baseball on the front and has JC on the back with the number 8.

"What’s this?" Kat asked.

"PJ’s. I know you aren’t going to sleep in your dress." JC said.

"Number 8 is my lucky number." Kat said taking the clothes.

"Mine too." JC smiled.

"You know you really didn’t have to do this." Kat told him. "I really could have driven home."

"Not the way I saw you. Get a good nights rest and I will see you later." JC said.

"Ok, thank you." Kat said.

"Your welcome. Good night." JC said and walked away.

"Goodnight." Kat whispered as he left. "Oh Kat what have you gotten yourself into?"

The next morning the phone ringing waked JC up. He turned over and grabbed it, "Hello?"

"Wake up sunshine! We have lots to do today!" Chris yelled.

"Thanks Chris." JC said then hung up. He laid there for a second then decided to head down and see how Kat was this morning. When he opened his door and saw the clothes he lent her sitting in front of his door with a note.

KAT

JC had to smile, but then sighed. He wanted to see her so bad this morning and she just left.

LIFE

Kat walked in her door and threw her keys on the end table and plopped down on the couch.

She got up and decided to take a shower and cook herself some breakfast. As she was cooking breakfast her phone rang.

"Hello."

"Where the hell are you Kat?! You are 2 hours late for work on the biggest day of this company!" Her boss screamed at her.

"Oh Mr. Chelly I am extremely sorry. I will be right there!" Kat cried.

"No, don’t bother. Kelly is here. Just come in today after 6:00 to get your pay check and to turn in your stuff." He replied and hung up.

"I’M FIRED!" Kat yelled standing there in shock. She walked up to her room and got all her uniform stuff together and just laid down on her bed. An hour later her phone rang again and Kat thought twice about answering it this time. "Hello" she answered.

"Kat this is JC. Are you ok?" Justin said.

"Hi JC, no not really, but what’s up?" Kat replied.

"Well we have a rehearsal for our concert tonight and I was wondering if you would like to come and watch, unless you have to work or have something else going on." He said.

Kat just sat there for a second, "No I don’t have to work today because they gave me the day off." She wasn’t completely lying to him, she thought to herself.

"So are you in?" JC asked excited.

"Yeah, I’m in. Where are the rehearsals and I’ll meet you there." Kat replied.

"It’s at Sandstone Amphitheater and just give the security guard your name and he will let you through. Be there in about an hour and a half." JC informed her.

"Ok, I’ll be there." Kat replied and hung up.

At Sandstone

"Is she here yet?" JC asked.

"Nope not yet." Joey told him.

"Whom are we talking about?" Justin asked.

"Kat" Lance answered.

"What about her?" Justin asked with a smirk on his face.

"I invited her to come and watch us rehearse. She was supposed to be here 10 minutes ago and she still isn’t here." JC told him.

"Hey guys, we have to start." Chris told them. They sung about 3 songs and still no Kat. They all were facing the keyboard and has their backs to the crowd and started God Must Have Spent a Little More Time on You. About halfway through the song Lance turned around and saw Kat sitting in the audience. He started to tap JC on the shoulder when Kat waved his off. After they had finished the song they heard clapping and they turned around to see Kat yelling and applauding them.

"Well look who decided to show up." JC joked.

"I am so sorry I am late. Something came up that I had to deal with." Kat said apologetically as she walked to the stage. "Hey you guys."

"Hey girl." Chris said and jumped off the stage. The rest of the guys followed.

"Hey" JC said.

"Hi" she said with a big smile and hugged him.

JC didn’t expect her to hug him, but he felt this huge rush go through his body when she hugged him and all he could so was sigh.

"So how far along are you in the rehearsal?" Kat asked.

"Well we have about 4 more songs left." Lance answered her.

"Do you mind if I stay and watch?" Kat asked.

""That’s why I invited you here silly." JC said.

"Well then I am going to just sit back down and let you guys finish." Kat said and walked back to where she had been sitting. They finished the rest of the set and then all 6 of them went to grab something to eat.

"Man I am starving!" Joey exclaimed as he grabbed a sandwich.

"Hey Kat, can I talk to you for a second?" JC asked.

"Yeah sure. I need to talk to you too." Kat replied.

They walked back and sat on the edge of the stage.

"You left before I got to say good-bye this morning." JC started.

"I know I am really sorry. I didn’t want to cause anymore trouble, so I left early." Kat told him.

"I thought I had done something wrong or said something that scared you." He told her.

"OH NO JC, you were nothing but a perfect gentleman and I had a great time with you." Kat reassured him. JC smiled at her and that made Kat just want to melt.

"I had a great time too." He told her. "Well we better get back." He added and just as he said that they heard Rob their publicist talking to one of the security guards quietly.

"Have the guys been seen with her yet?" Rob asked.

"With who?" the security guard asked.

"The girl, what’s her name, Kat." He replied.

"Why does it matter?" the guard asked.

"Have you seen her? They guys can’t be seen with her! All we need is *NSYNC on the front cover of Teen with a butt ugly girl with them!" Rob stated.

Kat turned around and JC turned to her and started to say something, but Kat cut him off.

"You know what, I have some errands I have to run that I forgot about so I better go."

"Kat, that guy is a jerk. He doesn’t know what he is saying and he is dead wrong about you." JC said trying to comfort her.

"Oh I don’t care about him JC I just have to get these things done." Kat said not looking at him. "Will you tell the guys bye for me?"

"On one condition." JC replied while trying to make eye contact with her.

"And what would that be?" Kat asked.

"You have to come to the concert tonight." JC told her.

"Um…I don’t…." Kat started, but JC interrupted

"Please" with the puppy dogface.

"No not that face, I can’t take that face." Kat exclaimed. "Ok, I’ll come."

"All right. Just do the exact same thing you did today except this time someone will bring you back stage." JC informed her.

"OK’ Kat said and started to walked away.

JC headed back to the food tent. "Where is Kat?" Chris asked.

"She said she had some errands to run and wanted me to tell you guys bye and that she will see everyone tonight." JC relayed.

"That’s weird. She told me she had nothing to do today." Justin said puzzled.

"Well, I think that was an excuse to leave because asshole Rob offended her." JC told them.

"To her face?!" Joey asked.

"No" JC said and them what happened.

"That dude is so gone." Justin said mad.

"That’s what I was thinking." JC replied.

LIFE

"Maybe I shouldn’t go tonight, but I promised JC I would." Kat thought to herself. "I am not falling for him. I can’t be, I’ve only known him for like 2 days! Remember what happened last time Kat." She kept thinking. "JC isn’t like that though. Neither was Brad in the beginning. What am I going to do?!" Kat argued with herself. He fell onto her bed and ended up falling asleep. When she woke up it was 4:30.

"Oh crap. I need to get ready." She threw on her favorite jeans and her hottest looking tank top she had, put on some make-up and headed out. When she got there she did exactly as she was told and I a matter of minutes she was led backstage in front of a door.

"They are waiting for you." The man said and walked away.

"Here we go." Kat said to herself and knocked on the door. When she heard someone say come in she slowly opened the door. When it was fully open she saw 5 pairs of eyes staring at her from the couch.

"Ok you guys are really freaking me out so will you please stop staring at me. What did I do?"

"Wow" Lance said.

"Sorry Kat, but you look, may I say HOT!" Chris exclaimed. Kat just blushed and looked at the floor.

"I’m really glad you could make it." JC said while walking up to her and gave her a hug and the whole time never taking his eyes off of her. After she gave everybody hugs Justin asked,

"Would you like a tour of backstage?"

"I’d love one." Kat replied. They showed her everything then they got to their playroom that had clowns and a pool table and an entertainment center. The first thing that caught Kat’s eye was the monkey sitting on the thrown. She left the guys and walked over to the monkey.

"Oh man. She left us for the monkey!" Chris exclaimed.

Kat got not 5 feet away from the monkey and it ran over to her and pulled on her jeans. Kat bent down and shook his hand, then he looked at her for a second and then wrapper his arms and legs around her. Kat laughed and stood up with her new friend.

"He must really like you." Joey said walking over to her. "He won’t even shake our hands." At that moment the monkey gave Kat a small kiss on her cheek.

"Oh thank you." Kat said laughing.

"What’s not to like about her." Justin added.

Kat just smiled at Justin. After the monkey finally let go of Kat it was time for the guys to change. Kat waited outside the door for them and JC came out riding a little scooter.

"Hey sexy lady. You wanna ride?" He asked in and Elvis voice.

"Maybe if it was a 2 seater." Kat replied laughing.

"Man I love her laugh." JC thought to himself. The rest of the group came out and they did their pre-performance rituals then it was show time. Kat watched the show from backstage and she was blown away. She loved watching JC because he had so much energy and she could just tell how huge a passion he had for music and singing because he put so much emotion into it. After the concert was over Kat gave them all a hug.

"I think you are the only person that will hug us when we are this sweaty." Joey exclaimed.

"Are you kidding me? Do you know how much I can sell this outfit for on E-bay! I’ll be rich." Kat exclaimed with a smile. They all shook their heads at her as they walked to the bus.

"Well I guess this is good-bye." Kat said

"No, it is a see ya later." Justin corrected her.

"Ok, see ya later then." Kat said with a smile.

"I will give you a call Monday because we have to fl to LA for some promotional stuff and we won’t get back until really late." JC told her.

"I hate going to hotels late, no one is ever there to check you in and those uncomfortable beds." Chris complained.

"Well if you want, you guys can stay at my house tomorrow night, I have plenty of room." Kat offered.

"Hey don’t give us any ideas." Joey yelled.

"So don’t be surprised when 5 guys with A LOT of suitcases show up at your door tomorrow night at 2 AM." Lance exclaimed.

"I would like the company." Kat replied. Ten Kat walked to her car. When she got home she remembered that she forgot to turn in her uniform and pick up her "last pay check" as her boss put it.

"Oh well, I will do it tomorrow morning." She said to herself.

The radio interview was gong great and then the DJ asked, "Do you guys have any girlfriends." All the guys answered no and when it got to JC all he could think of was Kat, and sadly said no.

Kat got up and took a shower and then looked at her uniform and decided to take it back. She stepped into the building she had worked in for years and found Mr. Chelly and handed him the uniform.

"I am really sorry Mr. Chelly." Kat said to him.

"So am I Kat." He replied and handed her, her paycheck. As she was walking out Kelly stopped her and said,

"Hey Kat, thanks for getting fired. I know have your management job!" and ran off.

Kat hated Kelly ever since she was hired because she was a blond ditz and now she had Kat’s job that she had worked her ass off for 2 years to get to get. That just made Kat even madder and she decided she needed to take a walk. Working out always cleared her mind. Before she knew it she was standing in front of the park that her and JC had spent that night in. She looked at the bench they had sat on and there was a young couple sitting there looking into each others eyes and the guy would kiss the girl’s forehead and nose every once and awhile. All Kat could do was smile and then she felt a tear start to fall down her cheek and she quickly wiped it away and walked back to her car. On her way home she thought, "I wish they were serious about coming over tonight. Ever since I met them, I haven’t felt lonely."

"Do you think Kat was serious about what she said about staying with her?" Lance asked as they headed back to San Diego.

"I really hate checking into hotels this late and I don’t think I can stand anymore screaming fans." Joey added.

"Well I am sure there was some seriousness I her voice." JC replied "Let’s look her address up on the computer." After they found it, they gave the driver the address and told him to drop them off there and pick them up there tomorrow at the regular time.

Kat couldn’t sleep so she had decided to watch a movie on TV. Of course there weren’t any really good ones on at 1:30 AM. All of a sudden there was a knock on her door.

"Who the hell would be here this late?" she asked herself as she threw on her SDU sweatshirt on and opened the door. When she opened it all she could do was smile.

"We hope you were serious because our driver has already left." Justin told her.

"Come on in." Kat said smiling. So they all piled in. "How did you find out where I live?" she asked.

"The Internet does wonder." Joey answered her.

"Oh I see." Kat replied. "Well let’s get you guys set up because I know you are tired." She said heading upstairs

"2 of you guys can stay in this room." She said pointing to one room.

"That’s me" "And mine." Lance and Joey chimed.

"One of your guys can stay in here." Kat said pointing to the other room.

"I’ll take this one." Justin said.

"And then you two have a choice." Kat said turning to JC and Chris. "You can either sleep in my room because there is a pull out couch in there, or you guys can sleep downstairs on the pull out couch and the futon there."

"We don’t wanna kick you out of your room." Chris replied.

"Yeah, we’ll sleep downstairs." JC added.

"You sure?" Kat asked.

They both nodded their heads.

"Ok, I’ll set you guys up then." Kat said. "Then the rest of you guys go ahead and come out and I will give you the tour." she added. She started upstairs. "The bathroom is there, the linen closet is there, and if you need anything my room is right there." Then they headed downstairs. "Here is the kitchen and dining room. The bathroom is over there and it includes a shower." She finished.

"This is a beautiful house Kat." JC exclaimed as she ran up the stairs to get some sheets.

"Thank you it was my parents. That’s why there are so many rooms. My little brother and I grew up in this house." She told them as she ran down the stairs.

"Well I am going to head to bed" "I’m right behind you." Joey and Justin said.

"Thank you again. You are an angel." Justin said as he gave her a hug and headed upstairs. Joey and Lance followed him.

"Ok, let’s get you guys set up." Kat said to Chris and JC. Kat set up the futon first and Chris jumped into it and automatically fell asleep. AS Kat pulled out the bed and started to put sheets on it JC asked,

"Where re your parents now?"

Kat paused for a second, "Um… they moved a month before I graduated high school, and so did my brother." She said. "They didn’t like it here in California and my dad got out of the Marine Corps and I didn’t want to heave a month before I graduated so my dad let me stay here and finish. I had a job and they paid for the house and when I got accepted to USD I didn’t want to move." Kat elaborated.

"I see. Do you see them very often?" he asked.

"Every once and awhile and during holidays I visit them." Kat answered.

"Cool" JC said. Hey are you tired because I’m not and I would like to get to know you better."

"Are you sure? You must have had a long day and it is not that exciting getting to know me." She said.

"We have a late start tomorrow and for some reason I highly doubt you are not exciting." JC said smiling.

"Ok you asked for it." Kat said and they headed for the kitchen.

"So what is your major at school?" JC asked first.

"Music." Kat responded. " I want to work in the recording studio and be hands on with the artists." She added.

"Awesome." JC said. "Do you do anything else at school besides learn?"

"I play softball. That is how I can go to college. I am on a full ride scholarship."

"Are you kidding? I’ll have to come and watch you play sometime." JC told her.

They ended up talking until 5:00AM and JC had to carry Kat up to her room because she could barely walk.

"Man what I wouldn’t give to wake up next to this face every morning." JC thought to himself. Then he went downstairs and fell asleep with her face in his head.

LIFE

Around 9 or 10 o’clock Justin woke up and headed downstairs to find Joey and Lance in the kitchen.

"Hey you guys." Justin said.

"Hey" they replied.

"Hey Justin. Lance and I were thinking that we needed to do something for Kat letting us stay here." Joey stated.

"Good idea… how about we make her breakfast?" Justin suggested.

"Great idea." They both agreed.

"What’s a great idea?" Chris asked as he walked in.

"We are gonna make Kat breakfast." Justin exclaimed.

Chris just looked at Justin and said, "When was the last time you made breakfast?"

"Hey I can do it." Justin retorted.

"You better let me handle the cooking." Chris said.

"So what are going to make her?" Lance asked.

"Well let’s see what have to work with first." Chris said. So they searched around the kitchen and finally decided on French toast, bacon, and a bagel with cream cheese.

About 10:30 Joey woke up JC so all of them could bring it to her and they filled him in on what they were doing. Justin put the final touch on it by adding a red rose to the tray and they headed upstairs.

"Knock, Knock" Chris said as he opened the door. Kat was all ready sitting up and was about to get up when she saw the tray.

"Oh you guys. You really shouldn’t have." She said.

"Just read the card." Joey said. So Kat picked up the card and this is what it said;

Chris Lance Justin Joey JC

"Oh you guys." Kat said "Thank you. I really don’t need anything in return, Just being with you guys is enough."

"It’s not enough for us." JC replied.

Kat smiled and said, "You know I can’t eat all of this alone."

"Oh we know, that’s why we made so much of it." Justin said.

"You guys gotta help me." Kat pleased and all 5 of the them showed the forks they were holding in the their hands and Kat had to laugh. "I should have known."

So they all sat on Kat’s bed and are. After they were done they took everything down so Kat could get dressed. When she came down all the guys were sitting in the living room.

"Kat, that futon was so freaking comfortable." Chris yelled.

"Good, did the rest of you sleep ok?" Kat asked.

"I haven’t slept so hard in a LONG time. It felt just like home." Justin explained and the rest of the guys agreed.

"Well I aim to please." Kat replied as she sat on the floor next to Lance and talked with them.

"We better get our stuff together, the van will be here at one." Lance said.

"When do you guys leave California?" Kat asked afraid of the answer.

"Thursday." JC answered sounding extremely tired.

"What is today?" Justin asked.

"It’s Monday." Kat answered

"So 3 more days to spend with our girl." Justin exclaimed.

"Our girl." Kat thought in her head. She never felt so welcomed by anyone else then she did with these guys.

"I bet you guys have a full schedule though." Kat said as she stood up.

"Yeah we do." Chris said, as she was packing. Then the 3 guys ran upstairs to pack and Chris ran to the bathroom. So Kat sat next to JC who was half asleep. Kat kind of giggled and JC turned his head and said,

"What?"

"Oh nothing. You tired?" she asked.

"Am I? They woke me up at 10:20 this morning so I didn’t get much sleep." JC answered.

"I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have babbled on last night." Kat said looking at her hands.

"No, no, no. I would go through a hundred sleepless nights just as long as they were spent with you and hearing your voice." JC said sweetly. Kat looked at him and smiled and they made eye contact, then Joey chasing Justin down the stairs broke it.

"Dude you better give that back." Joey shouted.

"What does he have?" JC asked.

"My superman figure." Joey answered.

"Oh yea. J is dead now." JC said. All Kat could do was laugh as Joey chased Justin around her house and then he finally tackled him. BEEP, BEEP

"That must be the van." JC said.

"Yeah or my door bell have really changed." Kat added.

As each guy walked out the door Kat gave them a hug and thanked them.

"We’ll call you." Justin said as he hugged Kat.

When JC stepped in front of her she smiled and hugged him.

"Hope we can do that again soon." She said.

"Me too." JC agreed and he left. Kat waved goodbye as they pulled out of her driveway.

LIFE

The next two days went by extremely fast and she hadn’t talked to them ever since they left her house. It was Wednesday and she hadn’t heard from them and she wasn’t expecting to, but she did want to say good-bye before they left Thursday morning. Then the phone rang. Kat was kind of hoping it was one of the jobs she had applied for but when she answered the phone the voice goes,

"What are you doing tonight around 7:00?"

Kat had to think for a second before she answered, "Nothing, why?"

"Well, we leave tomorrow morning and we want to see you before we leave and we figured what better way to spend our last night together then to take you out to dinner."

"Well you are a sweet talker Chris." Kat replied.

"Why thank you." Chris remarked. "So…"

"So does this mean I have to get all dressed up again?" Kat asked.

"You know it hot stuff." Chris replied.

"Ok, I’m in for it." Kat told him.

"Great we will pick you up at 6:45. See you later." Chris said.

"Bye." Kat said and hung up. "Their last night, oh man." Kat thought. So she went upstairs to find a dress, "This will probably be the last time I will see them so I want to leave a good impression." She thought to herself. The minute she opened her closet she knew which dress she was going to wear. She had worn it for the party her parents threw her when she received her scholarship. "I just still hope I can still fit in it." She said laughing. So she got her make up all done and was working on her hair when the phone rang. "Hello>’ Kat answered with a bobby pin in her hand.

"Hey sweetie." The voice said very cocky.

Kat dropped the hair she was working on and the pin. "What do you want Brad?" she said very angry.

"Well I heard you lost your job and I know your daddy got it for you so I thought you might want a little comfort." He replied.

"You are the last person I would go to for comfort and besides I’m fine and if you don’t mind I have something to get ready for." Kat said impatiently.

"Ok sweetie, I will call you later to check up on you." He said.

"Do me a favor and DON’T!" Kat yelled and hung up. "GOD why can’t he just leave me be!" Kat screamed. She regained herself and restarted on her hair. She was all most done when the doorbell rang. "Crap." She said. "JUST A SECOND!" she yelled and got the last piece up and grabbed her robe and answered the door. When she opened the door she got blown away by 5 amazing looking guys.

"Kat, I really hope you aren’t wearing that." Justin smirked.

"No sorry. I got a little side tracked. Come in, I’ll be done in a few seconds." She yelled as she ran up the stairs.

"You know, I actually missed this place." Joey said as they stepped in.

"Yeah, me too." JC agreed.

Kat put on her dress and shoes and looked in the mirror and smiled. She looked just like she did a couple years ago. She just sighed and grabbed her purse and ran downstairs.

"Ok, I am ready." She said out of breath.

"WOW. You look um… nice." Justin said lost for words.

"Well I do try and you 5 look very nice too." Kat smiled.

"Shall we?" Lance asked as he held out his arm. Kat just smiled and took his arm as they walked to the limo. Inside the limo Kat sat next to Joey and JC sat across from her and he couldn’t keep his eyes off her.

"I don’t want to know how hard it is going to be not being able to see that face everyday." He thought to himself. They got to the restaurant and they got seated and order their food.

"So what is next for you guys?" Kat asked and they started gong off about their music. Kat loved to watch them talk about it because they had so much passion for it. After they were done eating Justin asked Kat to dance so they got up and danced.

"Thank you for everything you have done for us Kat." Justin told her.

"I haven’t done anything though." Kat replied.

"You would be amazed to see what you have done. We haven’t met many people like you and it’s nice to see someone that we can just click with who isn’t screaming in our ear." Justin added.

"Well I should be thanking you guys. I’ve really needed the company lately and you guys turned a light on in my life." Kat told him.

"That’s what we are here for." Justin said smiling. The song ended and JC walked up,

"May I cut in?"

"I guess." Justin said smiling.

Then All At Once came on by Whitney Houston and they started to dance.

"This is a great song, especially for this occasion." Kat said looking at JC.

"What do you mean?" JC asked.

"Well I guess you can kind of say I am scared that I am never going to see you guys again. You have brought so much fun and joy back to my life and now you are leaving." Kat said getting depressed.

JC thought for a second and then wrapped his arms around her tighter and whispered, "If it was up to me I would stay longer just to see you, but this won’t be the last time, I promise you. This is only the beginning."

Kat looked up at him and it caught him off guard because she looked so sad. It hurt him to see her like that.

"I promise you." He said again.

Kat just smiled and rested her head on his shoulder as the song ended.

"We should probably go." Kat said all of a sudden.

"Huh?" JC asked.

"I mean you guys need to get your rest since you leave so early." She added.

"Um…ok. .Are you ok?" JC asked her.

"Yea I a fine." Kat said smiling.

"Ok." He said.

On the way back to her house, Kat was very quiet. When they got there they all got out of the limo to give her a hug.

"Thank you again for a great week." Kat said as she hugged them, "And let me know the next time you are in California."

"We will." Justin said and handed her a piece of paper. "Whenever you need some company give us a call." He added. It had their entire cell phone numbers.

"Thank you." Kat said getting a tear in her eye but quickly brushed it away. Kat stood at the door as she watched them drive away. The only thing she could think about was the dance with JC. How right it felt to be in his arms.

"Well JC, looks like someone has fallen." Joey said nudging him.

"Huh?" JC said prying his eyes off the window.

"You really have fallen for her haven’t you?" Joey added.

"I don’t know what you’re talking about." JC said going back to the window.

"I saw you two dancing and the way you looked at her." Justin said.

"I don’t know, She is so hot and cold like she is scared of something." JC said confused.

"What does she have to be afraid of?" Chris asked.

"I don’t know. I mean it sounds like she has a great life. Softball scholarship, loving family, job, and school." JC said.

"Well I guess you are going to have to be the one to bring the real Kat out." Lance added.

LIFE

For 6 months the guys and Kat stayed in close contact. They called her in their free time and she called them during lunch or before softball practice for good luck. Through that time JC and Kat talked the most. They talked about anything and everything and they were learning more and more about each other everyday. Kat got a new job and was so swamped she barely had more time than they did to talk, Every time she would call or think about it, it was either too late or no one answered. It was around Christmas time when Kat finally had a day off and she got a very nice phone call.

"Hello."

"YOUR HOME!" the voice yelled.

"Yes, Joey. How are you?" she asked laughing.

"Great and you?" Joey replied.

"Um, not too good." Kat answered.

"Tell Uncle Joe all about it." He said.

"Well I’ve been swamped with school work and practice and work that I am so worn out and I don’t have a date to our Winter Formal the softball team holds." Kat said with a sigh.

"Oh man. Anything I can do?" Joey asked.

"Well one of you can go to school, one can play softball, one can go to work, one can clean my house, and one can be my date for the formal. Sound good?" she asked.

"We will do that if you wanna take over for us." Joey answered.

"Maybe I’ll just stay here." Kat said laughing.

"What day do you start Winter Break?" Joey asked.

"3 weeks." Kat answered.

"When is the formal?"

"2 weeks."

"You know what, how long are you going to be home?" Joey asked.

"All day." Kat replied.

"Ok, I’ll call you right back." Joey said.

"Ok, bye." Kat said and hung up. A couple of minutes later her phone rang again and it was JC.

"What are you dong in 2 weeks?" JC asked.

"Um…I don’t know why?" Kat asked confused.

"Well Joey tells me a beautiful girl needs a date for a dance and I was offering if she is willing." JC told her.

"Are you kidding me?" Kat asked excited.

"Nope. We are supposed to be in town 2 days later, but I can sneak out early." He said excited.

"No, I don’t want you to do that." Kat said.

"Well too bad because I am going to do it. I will give you a call later on to get more details, ok." He said.

"Ok, are you sure? Kat asked again.

"Positive. Talk to you later." JC said and hung up. Kat hung up with a smile the size of Texas.

Kat’s phone rang and Kat had to sprint to answer it in time, "Hello."

"Hey Kat." JC said sounding very depressed.

"What’s wrong?" Kat asked concerned.

"God I can’t believe I am doing this." He said softly.

"Doing what?" Kat asked getting scared.

"Rob, Our publicist forgot that he added a concert tomorrow night and a TV interview the next morning." JC told her.

"So that means you won’t be here for the dance." Kat said on the verge of tears.

"I tried everything I could. I swear. I am so sorry Kat." He said upset.

"It’s ok." Kat said trying to hide the tears from JC. "I’ve been dumped before." She added softly not meaning for JC to hear it, but he did.

"Kat, I feel terrible. I wish there was something I could do." JC said sounding more and more upset every second.

"Don’t please JC, it isn’t your fault and plus that’s your career. Your music comes first and foremost always." Kat said trying to get her composure back.

"Are you going to be ok?" JC asked softly.

"Yes. I’ll be fine. I need a day off." She answered him. "JC, I have to get to work. Are you still coming here next week?" Kat asked.

"Yea. Will I get to see you?" JC asked.

"I’m not going anywhere." Kat replied.

"Ok, I will see you later. I’m sorry again." He said.

"It’s ok JC. Bye." Kat said and hung up. She ran her fingers over the dress she had bought and then put it back in her closet. "That’s why you have to stop falling for him, but he such a great man." she said to herself.

The next night she was sitting at home watching TV when the doorbell rang. Kat’s eyes lighted up and ran to the door, but the minute she opened it her smile fell.

"What do you want Brad?" she asked.

"Can I come in?" he asked.

"No, what do you want?" Kat asked again getting very angry.

"Well I know tonight is the formal and I know you don’t have a date and it was tradition for us to go to it so here I am." He said.

"That was last year so go away. Haven’t you figured out that I don’t want anything to do with you!" she yelled.

"Ok, ok. I’m gone, but you know you still love me and want me back and it is killing you!" he yelled.

All Kat did was slam the door in his face and locked the door. The past 2 days hadn’t been the best ones and she just wanted to crawl into bed and sleep.

[Same night]

"JC man, are you ok?" Lance asked as he watched JC pace back and forth.

"I bet you she had a beautiful dress all picked out and a hair appointment and the hole 9 yards!" JC exclaimed. "She hates me, I know it." He added

"Did she actually say JC I hate your guts never come close to me ever again?" Lance asked.

"No, but I know she was thinking it." JC replied.

"Dude, she doesn’t hate you. So let’s just get this stuff done with ok." Lance pleaded.

"Ok." JC replied sighing.