~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
Lucy gazed into the crystal ball, Ashley and George having no idea that she
was watching them. Lucy giggled in her own hyper way, then decided to leave
the two lovebirds alone. She switched to John, who was still in concert.
Then Paul, who was recording in the studio; no chance of getting in there.
He wasn't her responsibility, anyway. Ringo was asleep, so she watched him
for a few moments.
"He's so CUTE when he's asleep!" Lucy said to herself. She sighed, setting
the ball down on its stand next to the couch. She stretched out, her head on
one armrest with her feet hanging off the other end. Lucy snapped up her
portable CD player and her Magical Mystery Tour CD, relaxing as the first
"Roll up" chorused. Lying back with her hands knitted behind her head, Lucy
soon dozed off.
@@@@
Paul sang with gusto into the mike, smiling as Drew gave him the thumbs up
as they sang. The five of them were clustered around the mike, singing "Invisible Man." Paul found the multi-layered
harmonies and vocals most interesting, and, dare he say it, fun to sing, but
he still missed playing instruments while he sang. The Beatles always played
their own instruments. Nowadays, it seemed that all the music 98 Degrees was
singing to was created by a computer, which, though interesting, was not
quite the same. Paul returned his mind to their singing.
After a few hours, Paul's voice was giving out, and it seemed the others
were having problems keeping their harmonies together. Things quickly went
downhill from there, and the manager told them to call it a day. The five
tired men thanked him, leaving quickly to get as far away from him as
possible.
"How do you stand him?" Paul asked as they walked down the dark cool streets
of New York City.
Drew shrugged. "He can be a real sonuva bitch sometimes, but he's a good
manager." Paul nodded.
As the group got home, they realized there wasn't anything for dinner, so
they decided to head out to a Chinese restaurant. Paul, not being a big fan
of Chinese, opted to stay home and scrounge up his own dinner.
Sitting on the couch, eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and feeling
wide awake despite the fact it was about ten-thirty, Paul sat, waiting for
Ashley to drop in and ask how he was doing. To his mild surprise and
disappointment, she didn't appear.
"Ashley? Are you listening? Just wondering how everything is..."
"Everything's fine." Came a slightly familiar feminine voice; not Ashley,
though.
"Lucy?" Lucy waved one hand sleepily, yawning. "Sorry, did I wake you up?"
Lucy dismissed him with a wave of her slender hand. "Oh, it's all right. I
shouldn't be sleeping on the job, anyhow. What's up?" Lucy asked as she
plunked down on the floor in front of him, Indian-style.
"Nothing, it's just a bit lonely. How are Ringo and John and George?"
"Let's see; John's in a concert at the moment, Ringo's asleep in his room at
the apartment he lives in with his band, and George...George..." She
hesitated, a sly smile on her features.
"What?"
"Oh, uh...he's busy." Paul raised one eyebrow.
"Riiight. John's in a concert, you say? I'll see if it's on MTV..." Paul
flicked on the TV, flipping through the channels until he found MTV. Lucy
looked on in admiration.
"You've gotten the hang of modern technology well."
"Well, sort of. 500 channels is an awful lot..." Lucy nodded
sympathetically.
Paul watched for a moment, seeing a band on stage. "Is that them?"
But she was gone.
@@@@
John bowed again, smiling like a lunatic. It was such a rush to be on stage
again with so many screaming fans! He bowed for what seemed like the
fiftieth time, the curtain finally falling. As the curtain did, so did the
members of Metallica. James, Kirk, Lars, and even Jason collapsed on the
floor, panting and begging for mercy. John just stared at them.
"What's wrong?"
"I'm so tired!" James cried, pushing his guitar off his heaving chest.
"Are you kidding?? I'm higher than a kite! I could run around the
amphitheater fifty times!" John exclaimed, putting down his guitar and
hopping from foot to foot anxiously.
"You do that, champ." Lars responded, rolling over. Just then, the manager
came in.
"Boys, that was magnificent!" He turned to John. "John, they LOVE you! The
phones are ringing off the hook! The fans are screaming for an encore!
They're calling you the new John Lennon!" John resisted the temptation to
scream, "I *AM* JOHN LENNON, DAMNIT!!!"
The manager continued, not noticing the sudden cloud gracing John's sweating
face. "It's funny; half the phone calls we're getting are asking if there's
a Paul, George and Ringo out there that are just like you!"
"Funny you should ask that..." John said quietly, but the manager had
already moved on to shake the other member's limp hands.
@@@@
Lucy blinked back into heaven with a sigh. Everything seemed to be
progressing nicely, including Ashley's relationship. With a girlish giggle,
Lucy jumped onto the couch, grabbing the crystal ball. She found Ashley and
George just as she had left them. Then, Lucy thought of something a bit
worrisome.
"Hmm...I'll see what Ashley thinks..." With a little bit of effort, Lucy
managed to project a message into Ashley's head. Then she sat back, waiting
for her friend to return.
@@@@
Ashley smiled up at George, batting her eyelashes. George smiled. "You look
lovely."
Ashley giggled, giddy from the past developments. "Thank you." He leaned in
to kiss her again, and she didn't protest.
"Hey, Ashley, get your sorry angel butt back here!" Ashley made a little
noise of disappointment. Immediately, George backed off, looking stunned.
"What? Did I do something wrong?" He stammered, terrified.
Ashley laughed softly, burying her head in his shoulder. "No, Lucy's calling
me. I have to go."
George hugged her tight. "No, you don't..."
"Yes I do."
"No, you DON'T."
"Yes, I mmm!" George cut her off with a kiss. She reluctantly pulled away,
hugging him one last time. With a snap of her fingers, George was hugging
air. But, one last thought burned itself in his mind: "Yes, I DO!"
He laughed softly, then sat down to practice his Mary Had A Little Lamb.
@@@@
Ashley appeared, arms folded across her chest. "Hope you enjoyed that. I was
having fun." She pouted, but Lucy could see her smiling.
"Well, your little fun could land you in Hell if you don't watch it." THAT
caught Ashley's attention.
"What????" She cried, her smile disappearing. Lucy dismissed her with a wave
of her hand.
"Relax. You're not in trouble yet. It's not your fault 'cause every one of
those kisses George started. If you were to have kissed him first, you may
have landed you butt on the one-way train to eternal damnation."
"Oh." Ashley sat down, relieved. "That's easy enough. I just have to tell
George that if we're going to kiss, he needs to start it."
"Well, hopefully it's that simple. Pretty much, it has to be *his* wish,
versus yours, no matter how you see the situation." Lucy pointed out. Ashley
nodded. Then, realization dawned.
"Hey! You were watching us??" She cried. Lucy coughed suspiciously.
"Well, I...uh..."
"You WERE! You perverted little..." Ashley and Lucy both dissolved into
laughter as Ashley hurled a white feather pillow from where she sat on her
chair. But before the pillow could land, Lucy was gone.
@@@@
Ringo awoke to the distinct gut feeling that someone was watching him.
Without opening his eyes and pretending to be asleep, he slowly moved his
hands to curl them around his drumsticks which he had by his side. Suddenly,
with a loud yell, he jumped up, ready to attack.
Lucy practically fell off the bed laughing.
Ringo breathed a long sigh of relief. "I thought you were Candy."
When Lucy finally got a hold of herself, she wiped the tears from her eyes
and said, "Why, does she do that often?"
"No, just once, and that was more than I could take."
"Was that when she..."
"Yea." Ringo cut her off, sitting back down on his bed. He didn't want to
think about that. Lucy was lying on her own bed on the other side of the
room. It was an extra bed for guests, but no one occupied the room but Ringo
at the moment. She lay on her side, one arm propping her head up, the other
draped over her knee that jutted into the air. Ringo sat facing her,
cross-legged on his own bed.
"So what's up?" Lucy asked casually.
"Oh, nothing. Say, you want to head down to the studio or something where we
can talk?" Lucy nodded in agreement, standing up and stretching.
"I can try Angel-port again, and I hope it'll work; if not, I guess I'll
meet you outside!"
Ringo wrapped his arms around her, and she did the same for him. They both
thought of the studio, and with a shouted warning from Ringo, they
disappeared.
They reappeared in the studio.
"Yay! It worked again! I'm getting better all the time..." Lucy cried in
triumph. Ringo laughed softly. Once again, he wouldn't let her go. She
looked up into his eyes, feeling giddy.
"What?" She asked softly, joking.
"Well, y'know how I said I've always wanted to hug an angel?"
"Yea?" Lucy replied weakly, trying to stop her knees from giving out.
"Well, I've always wanted to kiss one, too." He leaned in a little closer.
"Is that so?" Lucy whispered. Ringo never responded, but Lucy sure got her
answer.
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
Paul sighed as he watched the television. It was John alright.
MTV was broadcasting live, and Paul could see John clearly.
He smiled to himself.
John sure did look like he was having a lot of fun. Paul sighed and hoped that he could do something like that soon with his band.
He wondered how the fans would respond to him, since his fan base would be obviously be drastically different from John's crowd.
"It is awesome, isn't it?" He heard a voice behind him, and Ashley was standing there.
"I am sorry I didn't come today. I got....tied up," she said, a smile playing deviously on her lips.
"Oh really? That's okay. I think that the manager thought that I was okay.
I hope he did, because I really enjoy doing this, and I can't wait to get out there and do what John is doing right now," he said.
Ashley smiled.
"You will, Paul. Don't worry about that.
I hear you are getting ready to start recording, right? That will be different, you know."
"I know it will be different. I'll tell you, though, I really miss playing me bass.
Or any guitar for that matter. I just sing all the time." Ashley nodded her head.
"I know I was kind of distant today, and that is my fault.
But I will always be watching and listening, so don't worry.
If I get tied up, Lucy is always here to back me up, so don't worry!" She smiled.
"Well, I'll be off since you are doing well!!! Enjoy your quality programming!!"
She smiled and winked, leaving Paul with a smile.
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
"IT'S BEEN A HARD DAYS NIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!
COME ON, JAMES, SING IT WITH ME!!!!!!!!!
Lucy in the skyyyyy with diamonds!!"
"John....PLEASE shut up!! Why are you suddenly on a Beatles kick?"
"Because...I like the Beatles!" John stated, sitting on a chair.
But, he knew he had better shut up because the others looked really beat.
He smiled to himself.
"Oh alright, I'll shut up. goodnight."
He fell onto the couch, and everyone turned the lights out.
"Lucy..." he thought quietly. "Lucy, I just wanted to talk to you...I know you can't come down and see me, but I thought that I would talk to you anyway....since you are like up there, and I am down here, and I really need a friend." He smiled. "It's nice to know that there is always someone up there watching me. I wonder if you are watching me right now. I wouldn't mind it. Just as long as...you know...you don't watch me in those intimate moments in the bathroom, 'cause you know, that's kinda like a private place. But I just wanted to thank you for being there for me, and you are the best damned angel I could've ever asked for." He smiled to himself. He could hear her voice in his head. He fell asleep thinking about Lucy and what a help she had been.
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
Lucy and Ringo stood in the studio in an embrace. He kissed her so softly, but it was so perfect. When they broke apart, Lucy smiled and giggled.
"Did you like that?" She asked. "Was it everything you expected?"
"Oh, sweet Lucy, it was more, so much MORE!" He said, kissing her again.
"Wonderful! You are the sweetest person!" She paused. "Oh!" She said giggling. "John is talking to me!" She said.
"John?" He asked with interest.
"Yeah...he must think I am upstairs. yeah, whatever you say to me, I can always hear it, no matter what I am doing. You can talk to me in the middle of the night and I will hear you! So, you're never alone...not that I would ever leave you alone."
"No?" Ringo asked playfully. "Not for a second?"
"Not even a second! You know that! I am with you always!"
"Always? Always always? And forever?" He asked, half serious.
"You know it... and I'll always be listening! so don't worry about it!" He smiled.
"You're an angel. An absolute angel! Oh, Lucy, you're Fabulous!!" She smiled.
"Flattery will get you nowhere, Richard," she said with a laugh.
"Ouch..pulling out my name, that was wrong, Lucy. You've asked for it now!" He lunged at her.
"Ah! No!" She said. She flew above Ringo.
"No fair! You can't do that! That's cheating!" He said.
"Hey, who said being an angel was such a bad thing?" She asked.
"Get down 'ere...or...or..I might spurt!" She smiled.
"You might spurt, eh? Oh all right, you win." She lowered herself to the ground. He tackled her.
"You know, I could get used to this!" He said quietly. His eyes burrowed into hers. Then he moved in for the attack...tickle attack that is.
"Nooooo!!! Stop!!! Bad!!! No!!!!" Lucy squirmed. Then she got another message in her head.
"Oooooooooh Lucy?? Won't you JOIN ME up HERE?!? NOW!!!!!" Ashley's voice said.
"Noooooo!!!!" Lucy sent back up, trying desperately to escape from Ringo.
"I THINK I'M GONNA BE SAD I THINK IT'S TODAY YEEEEEEEEEEH!!!!!!!"
"Oh Lord..." Lucy laughed. Ringo stopped.
"What?"
"Oh. Ashley wants me up there, but I don't want to leave!"
"Well don't!"
"But she is singing as loud as she can. And let's just say she isn't exactly Diana Ross." Ringo laughed.
"THE GIRL THAT'S DRIVING ME MAD IS GOING AWAY YEEEEEEH."
"Oh, make it stop!!" Lucy cried in horror.
"SHE'S GOT A TICKET TO RIDE, SHE'S GOT A TICKET TO RIDE, SHE'S GOT A TICKET TO RIDE, BUT SHE DON'T CARE!!!!"
"I think I ought to go before she kills me.....again!" Lucy said lightheartedly, something that Ringo picked up on.
"I'll see you later," she said, giving him a last kiss. Then she took off.
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
"LUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Ashley yelled when Lucy blinked in.
"What?" She asked, rather annoyed.
"First of all, that was for bringing me back from George! Second of all it's past curfew, and lastly, YOU JUST KISSED RINGO!!!!!!!!!!"
"Okay, first of all, that was so wrong, and who exactly is the pervert now, second of all, I signed out for past curfew, and third of all......oh shit!" She exclaimed.
"Oh no oh no oh no oh no oh no!!!!!!!!! I didn't!!!!! did I??" She asked.
"'fraid so, honey. You just BROKE A RULE!!!!!!! But it wasn't as bad as mine. That's hardly an offence if anything at all. Maybe a mini-offence. Two Mini-offences make a regular offence.....don't worry!!! Remember? I got a mini-offence in '69 when I tried some marijuana at Woodstock.....heh heh," Ashley said, remembering.
"Yeah, I told you NOT to..." Lucy said with a disapproving glance.
"I was already dead!! What was it going to do, give me lung cancer?" Ashley asked, rolling her eyes.
"Yeah, but you were JUST dead! That REALLY impressed the Superior Angels," Lucy said.
"Aw, sod off, It was too long ago."
"British slang?" Lucy asked, clearly amused.
"Get over yourself, Lucy!" Ashley exclaimed with a laugh. Anyway, I am going to sleep now. Good night." Ashley clapped her hands twice and the lights went out.
"OH NO you don't! I am not ready to go to bed!" Lucy clapped her hands twice and light flooded the room.
"NO!!!!"
"YES!" They clapped so many times that sparks started shooting through out their house.
"LOOK WHAT YOU DID!!!!! You've blown one of the stars out!! You made a shooting star!! Good job," Ashley said.
"ME?! That shooting star was NOT my fault!!!" Lucy yelled back.
"Was SO!!!!"
"NOT!!!"
"SOOOO!"
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
"Hey, look! A shooting star!" George thought to himself. He made a wish on it.
"I wish Ashley would come back!!!" He said, and he hoped that it would happen. Suddenly Ashley appeared, in full angel costume, including the little devil horns.
"What the HELL?!" Ashley asked, looking around. George stood bewildered.
"George? Are you in trouble? What? What in the HELL just happened?" she asked.
"Uhm...I wished for you on a shooting star?" George said quietly. Ashley smiled.
"Well, that was sweet of you, but HOW did I get down here? I mean...one minute I was in a nasty fight with Lucy because I wanted the lights out.....and she wanted them on....and we accidentally created a shooting star from all the power we were using.....Oh, I KNOW!! You must've wished on our star!!! I think that there is this rule that if an angel creates a shooting star, accident or not, and a mortal calls for help, whether they specifically call for an angel or not, that angel is required to go....or something like that.....all I know is that I think you wished for me on my falling star....eek. That must mean that it was my fault and not Lucy's or else Lucy would be here."
"HAHAHAHAHA!!!! I TOLD YOU SO!!!!" Lucy's voice rang in her head.
"Shut yer damn mouth and use your stupid lighting now and see if I CARE!!!" Ashley yelled up to Lucy. She rolled her eyes.
"Lucy is SUCH a baby!" George laughed.
"I am glad I got to see you again."
"I don' t know how long I am going to be here, so you better have a damn good reason for calling me down here in the middle of the night," Ashley said, smiling. "I was starting to get sleepy."
"How come you don't have your horns when you come down to Earth?" George asked. "I find them quite sexy." Ashley laughed.
"Only YOU would find horns sexy, George. And I have to make them disappear because I don't know what people might think if they saw a person walking around with horns on their head."
"Yes, but you are an angel," George said.
"I'm aware of the fact." Ashley adjusted her halo. "This thing is so heavy!"
"How come yours is diamonds?"
"Because I wanted to be different. I have a gold one, but I don't like to wear that one 'cause it is kinda bent up, if you know what I mean." Ashley smiled. "I get into too much trouble."
"Can I see it?" George asked. Ashley sighed and pulled it up.
"Here....I love it...It's so....sparkly, which makes for great amusement, let me tell you!" He held it carefully in his hands. Then he placed it back on her head.
"I was lonely," he whispered, "so I called you." Ashley smiled.
"I can't be here much longer. The Superior angels are going to be livid." George kissed her softly and she closed her eyes.
"I have to go now....I'll come back tomorrow." He nodded. "And one more thing before I go." She flicked her finger. It sparked, and she smiled. Then she turned and said,"When I leave, I want you to pick up that saxophone and I want you to play Tequila. Don't ask, just DO it!!!" George raised an eyebrow. Ashley pointed at George, and sparks flew from her finger. She zapped him three times.
"Go.....play Tequila. I'll be listening." She disappeared, and George smiled to himself. Then he wondered why she just shocked him three times. So, he did as she asked and got up to play the sax.
"What is Tequila?" he asked himself, putting on his neck strap. Then, he wetted his lips and stuck the mouthpiece in his mouth. He blew a D. Then he blew a G. He noticed his clear tone quality. He felt as though he could play for hours. and then he played Tequila, and song that was interesting in itself. George knew it was Tequila because he had never heard anything so expert sounding come from that horn the whole time he had had it. He smiled to himself, once again thanking Ashley for being her.
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
John woke up much earlier than the others, especially considering they were
so much more tired than he was. John whistled happily as he showered and
changed into a clean shirt. He gathered some random cash that was strewn
about the room, should he need it, then headed out into the cool morning for
a walk.
The city that never sleeps seemed to aptly named as people bustled around in
the early morning light. John pulled his coat a little closer as he wove in
and out of the crowd. He eventually came upon a newspaper stand, so he
bought a paper, sitting down on a nearby bench to read. On the front page
was a big picture of the Metallica concert, himself in the foreground,
headline reading "Metallica adopts John Lennon guitarist" He snickered
quietly, skimming the article. Not finding anything particularly
interesting, he flipped through the rest of the paper. He found an article
on a band called�98 Degrees?
"What a bizarre name..." John thought to
himself. He looked a the picture, doing a double-take. "Paul??"
"'Pop singers 98 Degrees record with new addition.' Hmm�" John read the
article, finding that Paul was now a member of a "boyband" and was recording
with them on a soon-to-be-released new album. John smiled to himself.
"That's Paul for ya; always the pretty boy." He turned to the entertainment
and clubs pages. The main article was advertising a concert by David
Sanborn, a jazz saxophonist. John scanned the clubs, and found an
interesting band called Sporadic. Perhaps more interesting was they were
billed "With Rich and his magical crystal guitar." John laughed out loud;
Ringo was clearly doing well. He was glad about that; he still felt a little
guilty about that incident when they first arrived. John stood up, heading
back to the hotel.
@@@@
Paul stood up, stretching his muscles. Nick and the others got home, but it
was awfully late and no one wanted to really do anything, so Paul headed out
to explore the city.
Paul hadn't gotten a full block before he heard footsteps behind him. He
whirled around, but there was no one there. Nervous, Paul started walking
quickly, trying to put some distance between him and this unseen person. He
could hear the footsteps quicken to match his pace. Paul started to run,
splashing through the puddles that still remained after the previous storm.
His heart was jumping out of his chest, and he kept looking over his
shoulder as he ran, the footsteps getting closer and closer. Suddenly, he
ran into someone, promptly yelling his head off in fright.
"Yikes! Keep it down, Paul! Boy, you singers have good lungs, let me tell
you�" Ashley laughed.
Paul leaned over, his hands on his knees. He gasped words between huffs.
"Don't�ever�do�that�again�" Ashley giggled.
"Sorry. You look so cute when you run." She said, shrugging. Paul glared up
at her,
but she was gone.
Paul sighed, continuing on in the dark streets.
@@@@
The next day for George was very exciting. He played Tequila over and over again in amazement. The quality of the song was wonderful.
George flopped on his bed, exhausted. You would be too if you had just done
fifty cartwheels-of-joy around the room.
"Ashley!" He gasped, his chest heaving. "You�are�the BEST!!!"
"I know." Ashley snapped in, hovering a few feet off the ground in a lotus
position. George noticed one new thing; she had kept her horns. He smiled to
himself.
"Kept the horns, eh?" He asked, raising one bushy eyebrow. Ashley unfolded
her long legs, gracefully alighting on the carpeted floor.
"Sure, why not?" As soon as her feet hit the floor, Ashley found that they
weren't on the floor anymore. George had picked her up, spinning her around
quickly until they were both dizzy. George put her down, hugging her tight.
"Ashley," He whispered softly into her ear. "You're incredible."
Ashley pulled away slightly so she could look into his eyes. "Oh? Really?
How incredible?"
"This incredible�" George kissed her softly, and Ashley could feel her knees
get weak. His kisses were so�so�indescribable, yet perfect in every way. For
Ashley, anyway.
They parted, and George hugged her tight again. Ashley lay her head on his
shoulder with a sigh. Suddenly, she pulled away.
"Hey, you have to get ready for your concert!" George pulled her back to
him.
"Aww, now?" He sighed into her hair and she shivered.
"Yes, now, c'mon!" George sighed again as Ashley disappeared. He could hear
her, "I'll be back in a minute to check on you."
George headed to the bathroom to take a shower, thoughts of Ashley filling
his mind.
@@@@
Lucy sat around in the room, mulling over her offence. Sure, it may be a
mini-offence or whatever, but not kissing Ringo�! That was going to be hard.
What if he never got up the nerve to kiss her again? What if the offence was
more than Ashley thought? What if she was going to Hell for one little
kiss?? As wonderful as it was kissing her Ringo, she wasn't sure it was
worth going to Hell! Lucy moaned in frustration, pacing the floor, trying to
think with all the thoughts of Ringo circling through her head.
At this point Ashley blinked in, a million-dollar smile gracing her face.
Lucy just scowled at her.
"Well, aren't we Miss Sunshine!" Ashley retorted happily, heading to the
fridge for a well-deserved Mt. Dew. Lucy just flopped onto the snow-white
couch with an exasperated sigh. Ashley took a swig of the nectar of the
gods, then looked at Lucy with concern.
"What's wrong, Luce? Is Ringo�"
"DON'T MENTION RINGO!!!"
"Oh, dear. What's happened?" Ashley flopped into the white beanbag opposite
the hysterical Lucy.
"I have an offence. An offence for kissing a mortal."
"Luce, it's only a mini-offence." Ashley pointed out. Lucy whirled on her
angrily.
"Are you so sure?? I could be on the one-way train to Hellsville for one
little kiss! Have you ANY idea how hard it's going to be for me to not kiss
Ringo?? It's like putting a Mt. Dew in front of you and saying, 'Don't drink
it, Ashley, it's no good for you.' The temptation's too great." Lucy fell to
the carpeted floor with a loud moan. "Oh, Ashley, what am I going to DO???"
"Well, I don't think he's going to be bashful and not kiss you; you'll just
have to follow his lead and hope he can read your mind."
"But�but�what if he gets all shy suddenly and�and�"
"Lucy, you're being silly. This is Ringo, here, love of your life....or eternal life anyway. Be
serious."
"But�but�"
"No but's. Now, I have to check on George, but I'll be back soon, ok? Just
think things over carefully; it's not as bad as you'd like to think." Ashley
waggled a finger in her direction, and was gone.
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
The atmosphere in the hotel was quite interesting when John arrived. Everyone was bustling around, packing things up.
"Get all your stuff, John," Lars was saying.
"But...but why?" John asked looking around. And then a thought hit him. He was with a progressive rock band now. Rock bands tour...and rock bands travel. "Oh shit," he said quietly to himself, scanning around the room once more.
"We're off to Pennsylvania now. We've got a show to do tomorrow night. Come on, now, we've got to get loaded into the bus."
"Bus?" John asked, still looking around the room.
"Yeah, smart ass, the bus,"Kirk said, stopping to glare at him. John sighed. He had forgotten all about touring, how stupid can a person possibly be?
"Oh, touring..."John remembered touring so well. It was like only yesterday they had been touring around the country for thousands of screaming adolescents. Then he remembered how bad it would be if he left New York. He'd be lost if he left New York, completely lost. Would Lucy still know where he was if he left? Would she still come to him? John excused himself.
"Hurry back, John, we've got stuff to do today," James said as John walked out the door. He walked into the lobby and sat down in a couch.
"Lucy, what am I going to do? I can't just leave New York, everything is here!" He said quietly.
"Well, John, this is something you have to decide on your own," Lucy suddenly appeared, making John jump.
"Lucy, Everyone is here...all of my friends that I can't leave. And you are here....what can I do?" Lucy chuckled.
"John, I am everywhere. Up there, I can see in china if I wanted to. I don't, usually, but I can. So if you were to go to China, I could still see you and know if you were doing alright. So don't worry about that aspect. However, you do need to worry about your band, the Beatles. Only you can decide this. Only you know what you really want to do." Lucy smiled one more time, and then left. John knew exactly what he had to do.
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
Paul sat down on a bench in the middle of Central park.
He loved recording and he loved singing with 98 Degrees. There was still somewhat of a hole where his other bandmates used to be, but that was slowly going away.
Paul knew that they were doing well on their own. Well, he at least knew John was doing well. He hoped that Ringo and George were doing well.
New York City was so brightly lit that it was nearly impossible to see the stars. Oh the stars, the one thing that enchanted him more than anything else.
He laid down on the park bench and stared at the stars, or what he could see of them. Even in the city light, some of them shined prominently through the glow. He sighed.
He wanted to know the meaning behind all this. He thought that it was cruel of God to send him in time with all of this technology and all these new people, and then send him back to the '60's when half of this didn't exist and most of these people weren't born.
He was starting to doubt where he belonged, and he didn't know if he ever wanted to go back to the '60's again. He liked it better in the year 2000, and when his time for 2000 would come, he would be to old to appreciate it!!
Or, that's what Paul figured anyway.
"Where do I belong? Not here...do I belong anywhere?" Paul asked himself the same rhetorical question he had been asking himself his whole life. "Where do I belong?"
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
"Rich, come on, let's go over it one more time!" Clint yelled from behind his drums. Ringo sighed. They had been playing the same song over and over so many times that Ringo was about to smash his beautiful crystal guitar and give up.
"Clint, can we please take a break? The gig is coming up soon, and we have all the songs down! Can we please stop practicing for five minutes?" Candy asked with an exasperated sigh.
"Fine, let's take five!" Ringo sighed. His gig was tonight, and he was starting to doubt himself and all his talents. His talents that, when you came right down to it, didn't exist. I mean, sure, he could play the drums and write songs, but this wasn't him. He was living a lie, and as far as he could tell, he didn't like the lie he was living. He felt like giving up and telling everyone the truth, but he knew he had to stick to what they believed for this concert. Because after this concert, Ringo was going to let it all go. He knew that he couldn't do it anymore; it was eating away at his conscience. And as much as he hated to admit it, Candy wasn't going to let up until she learned the truth. So, after the gig, what would happen to the band Sporadic? Only time would tell.
"Rich! This show is in 3 hours! We gotta be at the club in an hour and a half to set up....how are you doing?" Clint asked, sitting down next to Ringo.
"Oh, I am doing fine."
"Yeah, Ringo is doing great. Come on, RINGO, why don't you have another GO at the drums, eh, RINGO?? You looked like you played them really good, RINGO. Why don't you sing us a SONG, RINGO? COME ON, YOU REMEMBER THE HARMONIES TO SHE LOVES YOU, RIGHT?!" Ringo looked up at Candy and glared at her.
"I didn't sing harmonies in She Loves You, and if you were a Beatle fan at all, you'd know that," Ringo said. "Haven't you ever watched a video of the Beatles? I sat in the background and drummed. Paul, George, and John had the vocals. I was the drummer. Haven't you ever seen the videos? Well you SHOULD!!!!! YOU SHOULD!!!! 'CAUSE IF YOU WANT TO STRUT YOUR WHORISH ASS AROUND HERE AND ACCUSE ME OF BEING RINGO STARR, YOU'D BETTER GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT, UNDERSTOOD?! So what if I AM Ringo Starr? What would it matter to you? As soon as I get this thing over with, I am leaving, you understand me? You pull shit like that and I will be gone faster than you can say I Want To Hold Your GOD DAMNED HAND!!!!!!!!!!" Ringo yelled at Candy. She stepped back, shocked. He got up and ran out of the practice studio, seething with anger.
~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~
"Oh Lord..." Lucy thought as she watched Ringo run out of the studio. "What is he going to do?" She watched him run down the sidewalk, bumping into people, but not caring. He was running from something, and only God knew what it was. But Lucy had a pretty good idea. She blinked out of the room in fear of what might happen if Ringo continued on like that.