| Chapter 31: Dr. Love’s On Duty The girls stood along the side, waiting for the guys to come on stage. Elizabeth had gotten in, but Lauralee was disappointed because the guys were running around, and she didn’t even know if Brian knew if Elizabeth was there. The lights dimmed as the fans cheered and they jumped out of the stage, fireworks blazing. The arena erupted like a volcano and you could barely hear them as they started to sing “That’s the Way I Like it.” Lauralee and the girls cheered along with the fans, getting ready their usual contest for each show: who could get the most reaction from their boyfriend on stage during their solos. Lauralee won last show, by wearing a very low cut shirt and almost made Alex forget the lyrics. Alex and Brian came to the side of the stage where Bianca, Lauralee, Elizabeth, Laura, and Veronica were. They were still on their first song, where she noticed Alex put his arm around Brian and point towards them. Brian motioned to them, giving Elizabeth a slight wave and a broad smile. Elizabeth smiled back and Lauralee looked at her. She hadn’t given that smile in a long time. The crowd slowed down with some ballads and then the solo from each one. Each guy came to the side of the stage, and the contest began. Bianca won, because when Nick came on stage, Bianca made an obscene gesture with her mouth, which made Nick wink and shake a finger at her. After Brian did his solo, Elizabeth talked in Lauralee’s ear. “He’s good.” “One of the best,” she leaned back towards her. ~*~ The girls went backstage to see the guys. “So, what did you think?” Laura asked Elizabeth. “They were excellent. Brian’s got a really nice voice.” “And that was, what, the 5th time you said this,” Lauralee walked along side her. “Shut up!” They turned to go to their door of their dressing room. Lauralee knocked on it. “Everybody decent?” “No, we’re in here screwing some broads. Don’t tell our girlfriends, they’ll kill us!” They heard Nick’s voice from behind the door. “There better not be or else they’ll be a quartet,” Bianca yelled through the door. Nick opened the door. “OK, OK, you got me.” He gave Bianca a kiss as the others made their way inside. Brian was sitting on the couch when the girls walked inside. The girls greeted their boyfriends as Elizabeth loomed in the background. “Great show guys, like always,” Lauralee walked to Elizabeth. “Thanks,” Brian was rubbing his hair with a towel. “Hey Elizabeth.” “Hey.” “So what’d you think of the show?” Brian offered Elizabeth a seat next to him on the couch. “Great. You have an amazing voice,” she took a seat next to him. Brian had a smile on the size of Texas. “Thanks.” “We’re all gonna get a soda,” Alex took Lauralee’s hand. “You wanna come?” “Uh, no. I’ll think I’ll stay here,” Brian turned to Elizabeth. “Would you like a tour of the place?” “I’d love one,” Elizabeth cracked that same smile. “OK,” Alex looked at the two of them. “We’ll be back.” The group left as Brian and Elizabeth were getting up. Alex closed the door behind him as the group exited the dressing room. “No thank yous please.” “Oh please!” Howie rolled his eyes. “What the hell we need to thank you for?” “Come on, you didn’t see that?” “See what?” Kevin asked. “Love man.” “Love! He just gave her a tour!” “Hey I know these things. I’m Dr. Love.” Kevin laughed. “AJ, you’ll never change.” Lauralee put her arm around his waist. “And I hope he never does.” ~*~ The girls walked Elizabeth back to her car. “I’m glad you liked the show tonight,” Laura smiled. “So am I.” “So did Brian give you a good tour?” “He’s a great tour guide. In fact,” Elizabeth got into her car. “He’s taking me out to lunch tomorrow.” “What?” Veronica’s mouth opened as Elizabeth closed the door and opened the window. “Hey wait a minute!” Laura leaned on the top of her car. “You can’t leave by just saying that!” “I gotta go guys. I’ll talk to you tomorrow!” Elizabeth waved from the car as she pulled away. “Damn, that girl’s got stamina!” Bianca crossed her arms. Lauralee cracked a smile. “You forget, there’s two people going to lunch tomorrow.” They all looked at each other then ran to the bus. “Brian!” Laura clambered into the bus and went into the back where he was playing Playstation. “Can’t you see I’m on Level 4?” Brian was engrossed in the screen. Laura turned the game off. “Save it. We want details.” Brian turned to the 4 figures surrounding him and smiled. “I showed her around, I asked her to lunch at the hotel and she accepted.” “And that’s it?” Bianca looked at him. “A southern gentleman never reveals his romances.” “If you’re a southern gentleman, then I’m Scarlett O’Hara.” “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn,” his Kentucky accent severely pronounced. “Fine!” Laura, Veronica, and Bianca walked off. Lauralee stood in the background and put her hand on Brian’s shoulder. “Whatever happened, I’ll just say this: I told you so.” “Thanks Lau,” Brian smiled as he put his hand on top of hers. Lauralee winked as she left Brian to his game. ~*~ The girls waited in the hotel room, trying to watch television. Laura looked at the screen absently. “What time is it again?” “2pm,” Lauralee flipped the channel. “They must’ve been done by now!” Veronica stood up and looked out the window. “Look guys,” Lauralee got off of the bed. “We swore that we wouldn’t pry into their date. So, when either Brian or Liz get here, we won’t say anything. OK?” The girls nodded when there was a knock at the door. Bianca, Laura, and Veronica looked at each other and started for the door. Lauralee blocked them at the hall. “I’ll get it!” They all sat down and Lauralee answered the door to see Elizabeth standing there. “Hey guys!” “Hey,” Lauralee let her inside. “What’s up?” “Nothing much,” Elizabeth took a seat on the bed and put her bag down. Bianca started to open her mouth, but closed it and bit her lip. “So…” Elizabeth started. “I can’t take it anymore!” Laura screamed. “What the hell are you talking about?” Laura ignored the dirty look she was getting from Lauralee. “Spill!” “Spill what?” “Lunch silly,” Veronica’s eyes sparkled. “Oh,” Elizabeth got up and looked out the window. 4 pairs of eyes followed her every move. She turned around with a huge smile on her face. “It was wonderful!” she practically breathed the words. “Ooh, really?” Bianca leaned in towards her. “What part?” “The part before or after he kissed me!” The girls screamed as Elizabeth sat back down on the bed. “I don’t know what it is about him. He’s so… sweet. He was such a gentleman: holding out my chair, opening the door for me. I never had those things done for me before. And we couldn’t stop talking.” “What about?” Now Lauralee was getting into it. “Everything,” Elizabeth tilted her head to the side. “Movies, sports, comedians. How hectic life really is.” “I’m so happy for you!” Veronica gave Elizabeth a hug. “I’ll admit it, I was a little leery at first. I felt like teenager—no offense Bianca—when I walked into the hotel and he was standing there. But he made me feel so comfortable.” “Brian is that type of guy,” Lauralee took Elizabeth’s hand. “So, what now?” “Well,” Elizabeth leaned back into the bed. “He invited me to go on the tour for a week starting next Monday, if that’s OK.” “OK? OK!” Lauralee gave her a hug. “It’s wonderful!” Elizabeth got up. “I gotta get going.” She went to the door. “You guys heading out tonight?” Lauralee nodded. “About an hour and a half.” “Well, I guess I’ll see you in about a week then,” she gave the girls all a hug. “Later,” Laura smiled as Elizabeth closed the door behind her. “Oh my God, I can’t believe this,” Veronica shook her head. “I think this calls for a toast!” Bianca ran into the bathroom, got 4 glasses of water and passed them around. “To the new Backstreet girlfriend!” Laura said as she raised her glass. “The new Backstreet girlfriend!” They all repeated as they touched glasses and drank their water. “We’re now a five-some,” Veronica looked around. “Yeah, who knew?” Laura drank the rest of her water as the phone rang. Lauralee went to answer the phone. “Yeah?” “This is Dr. Love calling wondering if you are satisfied with the results.” Lauralee laughed. “Definitely!” “Brian left the room all smiles. Liz is coming out right?” “Next week. I guess she’ll fly out with Bianca.” “Brian is already making the arrangements in his room. So, I guess we’ll see ya on the bus then.” “Thanks Doctor.” “I do make house calls, you know.” “I’ll make an appointment for tonight. Bye.” “Bye.” Chapter 32 Contents Chapter 30 |