Chapter 5
"Uh hi Rachel, look I know I should have called first, but...." AJ looked at
Rachel but
quickly looked away when she looked right back at him. He was intrigued by her,
ever
since the "car incident." She was everything he looked for in a woman, and he
was
expecially taken in by her eyes. They were deep brown, almost black, and
something in
them was mysterious and sexy. She was slim and curvy with light brown hair, that
rested
on her shoulders leisurly. Her blond highlights shone as she ran her hands
through her
hair nervously. A.J had seen thousands of beautiful woman, but something about
Rachel
was different, and he was going to find out what that something was.
"No, no,
don't
worry about it, it's cool. I'm not busy." she said quickly, in case he was
having second
thoughts about coming over."What can I do for you?"
Before he could answer,
the
telephone rang. "Uhhh.." Rachel was debating whether or not to get it, when she
remembered Lauren, her sister, had said she was going to call that night.
"That's probably
my sister, here come in, the hall way is freezing and its making me cold."
She practically pulled him in before he could refuse her invitation into the
apartment.
"Ok" he said, a little surprised Rachel had asked him in.
She picked up the phone and was happy to hear her sister's voice on the other
end.
"Hey there Rach, what's up? How's Florida?"
"God knows I wanna talk
to
you Lauren, but I got someone over right now, who will probably never be in my
apartment again, and if I don't go talk to him soon he'll leave. I'll call you
back,ok?"
"Ohhh, I got ya. Yeah its cool, just call me back before 9
ok?"
" I will,
I promise"
Rachel hung up the phone, checked herself in the mirror and ran
back to
where she had left A.J standing. She was happy to see he had sat down on the
couch, his
back towards her, and was looking at some pictures that had been left on the
coffee
table.
"Who's this?" he asked without looking up.
Rachel walked over to
him and
leaned over his shoulder to see what he was talking about. Not only couldn't
she believe
how close she was too him, but also how she could smell his cologne; Joop for
Men, his
favorite.
"That's my dad and his girlfriend Cindy"
"Oh. It's hard having
parents
who are divorced isn't it?"
"My parents aren't divorced, my mom passed away
when I
was 10."
"Oh, I'm so sorry" he said with a distressed look on his face."I
didn't
know."
"Of course you didn't, don't worry about it," she said, giving him a
reassuring
smile.
"So what's the reason for this visit anyways?" Rachel asked, wanting
to stay
completely off the subject of her mother.
"Well I just wanted to say I'm
sorry for
everything today. I don't think I really apologized, and the damage to your car
was
completely my fault. I also wanted to tell you that whatever expense there is to
just have
the bill sent to me."
"Are you sure, I mean, no don't worry about it, it will
hardly cost
anything"
"No I insist. I won't take no for an answer"
"Well, if you
insist....by the
way, one more question"
"Shoot"
"How did you know I lived here, I'm not
listed
yet"
"Eh, you'd be surprised what information you can pry out of people when
your a
Backstreet Boy"
"Oh I see how it is. So why didn't you just apologize earlier
today at
Multimedia, instead of coming to my apartment?"
"I'm getting the
feeling....I'm not
wanted here" he said with a grin."Are you really that uncomfortable having me
here?" he
asked
" No no, I didn't mean it like that. But I have to admit that it feels
different
having a Backstreet Boy in my living room, apologizing for scratching my car."
Rachel
said laughing.
" Well I've got the perfect way to solve your little ailment.
But first
you have to come sit by me"
She hesitated a little, thinking he may have been
kidding, but proceeded to do as he said. As soon as she was in a comfortable
position he
proceeded talking.
"Ok, now next close your eyes"
Again Rachel hesitated,
but
closed them, partially out of curiosity. He then took one of her hands carefully
in his. He
felt her warm fingers curling slightly around his hand as he held them. Rachel
got
goosebumps all over her arm as his skin brushed against hers.
"Ok now, when
you
open your eyes I want you to imagine, that you and I have known eachother for
years.
That we've been friends our whole lives, but haven't seen eachother in a while,
and that is
the only reason for your apprehensions."
Rachel noticed his breathing sounded
closer
and the next moment she felt two warm lips press on her cheek. It sent shivers
up her
spine.
" The kiss on your cheek is a sign of affection and friendship,
letting you know
how close we are and how comfortable you can feel around me. I'm like any
ordinary guy
you've met except that we have a very strong friendship, unlike any others, also
letting
you know that you can tell me anything you wish, and it will be safe with me.
Think of
me no longer as a celebrity, but rather as a person, because that is what I am,
and that is
all I am." He said all this in very soft tones, almost whispers, sending Rachel
into a sort
of sleepy state. Not so much a hypnotic sleepy, but a calm, peaceful sleepy.The
room was
silent for what seemed like forever. The squeeze of her hand, let her know she
could
open her eyes, which she did slowly but surely.When they were completely open
Rachel
noticed he was smiling at her.
"So do you feel like you can talk to me now,
without
getting all uncomfortable?"
"Actually I do. I don't know what you did, but I
feel alot
more relaxed now."
"Good good."
"Do you do that for all the girls?" Rachel
asked inquisitively, but partially kidding.
"Nah, just the ones that I think
are worth
my time," he said smoothly.
They ended up talking for hours that night. Not
about
anything, particularly, mostly about what Rachel should expect to be doing on
the tour,
and the amount of work she'd have to be dealing with. It was funny though.
Throughout
the whole conversation, Rachel really didn't feel like she had to be different
around A.J,
like she had been before. She still had a thing for him of course, but she
didn't let it show
so much. He seemed so much more calm and collected, compared to when she'd seen
him in concert and on t.v. Maybe it was because he was in a living room filled
with
moving boxes and was sitting next to his groups makeup specialist.
"So you
never
said how old you are Rachel"
"Well I'm 21 in two days," she said
proudly.
"Well
look who's all grown up! Have you had your first taste of vodka yet....or are
you the good
girl type who waits until she is officially the legal age?
"What do you think
A.J?"
"Ehhh, you look like the bad type. Let me guess, you got trashed with
friends
the night before you flew in?"
"Wow your good" she said giggling.
"Well, I
kinda
did the same thing back in January, not that it was my first time with a drink,
but hey,
having a hangover from your 21st on the day of a press conference is not the
best
idea."
They laughed a while longer, mainly about some of the crazy things the
guys
had done while guzzling down beers.
"Yeah, I remember this one time Nick shit
in a
sock and put it in one of the drums before a concert as a joke, I can't
remember if he was
drunk or not. Probably"
"Hmmmm, isn't Nick only 19?"
" Yeah well we know
it
isn't the most brotherly thing to do, but Nick kinda got his initial
"Adolescence" taken
away from him, when he joined the group. So we all knew that if he would have
been in
high school, he'd probably be drinking anyways. But don't get me wrong here, we
give
him a limit. And he never comes to bars with us or anything, so nothing to worry
about."
Rachel looked up at the clock, and noticed it was 1 in the
morning.
"Umm A.J, I think its time for you to go."
" Oh come on. You're
not
mad about Nick are you?."
"No no, I get what you mean about Nick" she said
laughing at how he was such a constant worrier. "It's just that it's 1 in the
morning, and
you probably wanna get some sleep"
"Wow, I didn't realize the time. But I'm
glad we
talked. I hope it will make the first few weeks of the tour a little easier on
you."
"Oh
definitely, you helped me get over the initial shock"
"I'm glad." he said
smiling
warmly.She walked him to the door and handed him his coat.
"Well I'll see
you
tomorrow night for that interview on Dave Letterman ok?"
"I can't
wait"
"Aww
you miss me already how sweet.."
"I meant to be at Dave Letterman silly,"
Rachel
said cleverly, not letting him win.He made puppy dog eyes, and pretended to
pout, but
turned it into a grin seconds later.
"Bye Rachel" he said, as he moved down
and
kissed her cheek like he had on the couch. He looked into her eyes trying to see
what she
was thinking, but blinked and turned to go out the door, feeling suddenly self-
conscience.
"Bye" he said glancing back and grinning, and then shut the door
behind
him.
5 mins later Rachel was about to dial her sister's number, knowing full
well
she'd be asleep but didn't care since she needed to talk to someone.
"Should
I just
take it that me and him are friends now, and that is all? But what about that
kiss at the
door, what did that mean?
She couldn't figure these questions out on her own
and
knew Lauren would know exactly what to do. She picked up the phone and had her
finger
on the 1 button, when the doorbell nearly made her drop the phone.
"Who the
hell
could that be at this time of night?" She put the phone back on its cradle and
walked to
the door. Rachel opened it cautiously and saw A.J with his hands in his pockets
and a
frustrated look on his face.
"My car won't start" he said sheepishly.
Chapter 6
INDEX