Katie stood backstage, chewing on her lip nervously. �Ali, I�m too nervous, what if I screw up?� Ali rested her arm on her shoulder reassuringly. �You�ll do fine. Your song has been hitting the airwaves a lot. They like you. You�ll do fine.� Justin walked up smiling. �Hey, guys, come on. Katie it�s time for you to hit it.� Katie shook her head. �Oh, gosh.� She walked out as Steve introduced her, and she began her set. Justin watched from the side. �Wow, they love her.� JC nodded. �Yeah.�
�And they�re not the only ones.�
Katie finished her 3 songs and walked back to where Ali waited. Ali grinned from ear to ear. �That was so great! I swear!� Katie smiled, wiping a bead of sweat from her forehead. �Thanks. Mom would be so proud.� Justin came up behind her and hugged her. �You did great!!� Katie turned, taking one look at his outfit and began cracking up. �Nice clothing choice.� JC shook his head from behind Justin. �It goes with the show.� Ali jumped excitedly. �Oh! Speaking of! Let�s go! Front row! We�re gonna play the role of excited fans now.� Katie laughed as Ali dragged her away.
(down in front)
Katie looked around in wonder. �Man, this is crazy. Obsessed teenagers all around.� Ali nodded happily. �Yeah! This is fun!� Katie nodded. �Yeah, it is.� Ali smiled. �Man, you should�ve seen the way JC�� She trailed off. �Right, sorry.� Katie looked at her. Ali held up her hands. �I forgot! I said I was sorry!� Katie shooki her head. �It�s fine, don�t worry about it.� The guys came on stage and by now everyone was screaming. Katie covered her ears. �Great! I�m gonna go deaf!� Ali laughed. �That�s a good thing!� Katie smiled. �Of course I�d never admit it to them, but they�re one of my favorite bands.� Ali laughed. �Your horrid secret is safe with me!� Katie grinned as Just Got Paid comes on. �Whooo! Nice n� tacky!� Ali grinned. �The outfits are hilarious!� Katie smiled knowingly, as Ali stared at Justin onstage.
�Dang! Your cousin knows how to shake it!� Katie laughed. �If you say so�� Ali sang along, happily. Katie laughed as Chris came over to their side and winked at them. Ali and Katie burst out giggling at how funny he looked. �Psycho!� Katie yelled up to him. Katie grinned and turned to Ali. �Yay. This I Promise You. I love this song� I should get them to sing acapella for me one night.� Ali nodded eagerly. �Wow! That boy can SING!� she said referring up to JC. Katie nodded silently, just watching.
I�ve loved you forever
In lifetimes before
And I promise you never
Will you hurt anymore
I give you my heart
I give you my word
This is a battle we�ve won
And with this vow
Forever has now begun
Katie stood watching him in a daze, until she felt a hand hit her. �Hey! What are you doing?� Katie broke her gaze and looked at her. �Huh? Nothing, why?� Ali hid an amused grin. �Well, you can wipe the drool now.� Katie shot her a dirty look. �I was not drooling!� Ali grinned. �Suuuure, ya weren�t. You both were.� Katie�s mouth dropped open. �Huh?!� Ali gave her a look. �Hel-lo! You didn�t see the way you two were staring at each other! I swear, every girl in this stadium hates you now.� Katie shook her head, feeling slightly embarrassed. �I wasn�t staring, I was thinking.�
�Ok, then thinking about him, while staring into his eyes. Someone�s got the luuuvvv bug!� Katie shrugged. �Whatever. We�d better go now, before this place becomes a mob scene. It�s not a big deal if we miss Bye Bye Bye. I�m about sick of that song anyways.� Ali nodded. �Ok. You�d just better hope the other guys didn�t see you staring�� Katie opened her mouth in protest. �I wasn�t!� Ali shook her head. �I�m not arguing, when I�m right.� The two made their way backstage, looking around. �Where are we supposed to go now?� Ali shrugged. �Buses? Whoa!� She yelped as Justin snuck up behind her. He smiled. �What�d you guys think?� Katie shrugged. �It was alright, I guess.� He grinned. �So, we�re no Destiny�s Child.� Katie smiled. �No you�re certainly not not. But I guess almost as good.� Johnny walked up behind them. �C�mon Justin, meet n greet time. Ali, Katie, come help me?�
Ali nodded. �Sure.� Katie turned around to see Joey and Lance come running. �Yeah.� She turned around, running smack into JC. He steadied her. �Careful.�
�Sorry.� She walked around him, not making eye contact, to catch up with Ali and Johnny. �You guys get the fun job of checking passes.� Katie grimaced. �Oh, joy.� He smiled. �Thank you girls.� Katie sighed. �This should be fun.� She grabbed a stool and sat down to start checking the screaming girls passes. Justin hit JC. �Hey! Come back to earth now. We�ve got stuff to sign.� JC nodded blankly. �Right.�
�Besides, tonight, we�re goin� clubbin� and you�re coming with us to get your mind off stuff and people.� Justin said referring to Katie who was checking passes and talking to Ali. JC looked at him. �What are you talking about?�
�I�m talking about how she has a boyfriend and you�re outta luck.� JC gave him a confused look. Justin rolled his eyes. �C�mon, don�t play stupid. I know what�s goin� on here. I see the looks you give her and man, on stage tonight, it was like she was the only one in the whole arena!� JC shook his head. �Sorry, man, you�re wrong.� Justin raised his eyebrows. �Oh am I? Well, the other guys don�t think I am.� JC sighed. �Whatever.� He forced a smile at the next girl, and began signing photos.
Twelve