Part Three

    The next morning, Jennifer woke up to something tickling her nose. Every time she tried to brush it away, it would just come right back. When she finally realized that it could actually be something creepy with eight legs, she quickly jumped and opened her eyes. She shrieked and pulled the covers over her head when Justin was standing there with a grin on his face. “Justin! What are you doing!”
    He grinned as he put his fishing pole down. He had been standing there for five minutes tickling her with the fake plastic bait and had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. “Get up, were going fishing.”
    “Fishing?” she mumbled beneath the covers. “I’m not going fishing!”
    “Yeah you are,” he said. “So get up! I hired a tour guide to take us deep sea fishing.”
    She groaned as she flew the covers down. “I don’t want to go fishing I wanna stay in bed.” She was in a pissy mood, because Peter never called her last night. The phone that interrupted them last night was her mother instead. She didn’t tell her mom that Peter stood her up again either. She didn’t want her to worry and she didn’t want another “Peter is wrong for you,” speech.
    “Are you kiddin,” he said and then went to the window and pulled back the blinds. “It’s a beautiful day out.”
    Jen squinted at the bright sun. “All right, all right, just close the blinds!! I’ll go with you, just close them!”
    “Not a chance. You’ll just go back to bed. Now get your cute little butt out of bed and get ready. “I’ll be waiting outside.”
    Justin closed her bedroom door and just laughed when he heard her slam the bathroom door. He went outside and sat on the porch to wait for her. About thirty minutes later she stepped out. “All right, Captain Crusade, let’s get this over with.”
    He stood up and grinned. She looked adorable. She had her long brown hair in braids, with a Chicago Bears baseball cap on. She had on a pair of cut offs and a baby blue tank top. “You like baby blue, huh?”
    “Yeah, so,” she said as she folder her arms. “Got a problem with baby blue?”
    He chuckled. “Not at all.”
    She studied him as well. He had on a pair of khaki cut offs that stopped right above his knees. They looked as if they were cut off by a machete or something, she thought with a chuckle. He had on a thin cotton shirt and a orange bandanna, which covered his blonde curls, except for the curls that popped out in the back. “So you like bandanas, huh?”
    He copied her move. “Yeah, so? Got a problem with bandanas?”
    She laughed. “Not at all,” she said and then tugged him by his arm. “Let’s go get this over with.”

    “Jen, get over here,” Justin said as he fiddled with the fishhook.
    Jennifer shook her head. “Are you kidding? This boat rocks like a bat out of hell! I’m not moving from this seat.”
    He rolled his eyes. “I didn’t take you on this fishing trip so you could watch me the whole time.”
    “Well, you should of left me alone in bed.”
    “Okay, I don’t know why you’re in such a bad mood, but it better stop. Get your little patootie over here now.”
    She raised a brow. “Well, fine,” she said as she stood up. “Jeez, bossy, bossy.”
    When she finally got to him safely without falling, she clutched the rail. “All right, I’m ready. Tell me how to cast this thing.”
    He laughed. “Actually, were deep see fishing. You don’t cast.”
    “Oh,” she said. “What do you do then?”
    “Well, first you gotta put the bait on,” he said as he handed her a piece of squid.
    Her face scrunched up in disgust. “Get that thing away from me.”
    “Come on, be a man,” he grunted.
    “I’m not a man, thank you.”
    “It’s as dead as a doornail, it won’t hurt you,” he said as he shoved it in his face.
    “Justin, stop,” she laughed. “Dead or alive, it's still slimy.”
    “All right, fine,” he sighed “Baby.”
    It was a challenge, she could tell by the sound of his voice. And she never turned down a challenge. “All right, give me the disgusting thing.”
    He grinned as he held it to her. “There you go, m'lady.”
    “Eww,” she groaned as she picked it up. “How do I hook it?”
    “Just stick the hook in the little sucker, not hard.” She let out a high pitch shriek as she forced the hook inside him.
    She sighed and then smiled. “Hey, that wasn’t so bad. Now what?”
    “Here, just let’s stick it outside of the boat, and the flip that little gadget right there.”
    “This one?” He nodded and then she did and watched her bait plop in the water. “That’s it?
    “Yep, and once it stops that means it hit the bottom.”
    “Cool, it just stopped.”
    “Okay, then just reel it up a bit and then wait.”
    She giggled. “This kind of fun.”
    “There ya see?” he said as he gave her a nudge. “Aren’t you glad I didn’t leave you in bed?”
    She smiled. “Yeah, this is exactly what I needed.”
    “I told you,” he said as he dropped his line.
    “Yeah, this is…..woah!” she said all of the sudden when her pole jerked.
    “Cool, you got something.”
    “What do I do, what do I do?” she asked as she held on tight.
    “Well, reel it in silly.”
    “I’m trying,” she grunted. “Justin, whatever I got must be huge, I can barely hold on.”
    “Hang on,” he said as he quickly reeled his in. He dropped his pole on the ground and went behind her. He wrapped his arms around her and covered her hands with his. “I gotcha... dayum, girl! What did you get? A whale?”
    She laughed as she pulled on the pole. “I must of. Either that or Jaws.”
    “Did you get something?” the fishing guide asked.
    “Yeah, she sure did,” Justin grunted. “Come on girl, put some muscle into it.”
    She laughed as she kept reeling. “I thought we were going for red fish. I have a feeling this isn’t a red fish.”
    Whatever it was, it broke the line causing Justin and Jennifer to fall backwards. “Ow,” Justin laughed. “That hurt my bum.”
    Jennifer was too busy laughing to answer. “That was so cool!”
    He laughed. “Are you okay?”
    “Oh, yeah,” she laughed as she patted his knee. “You broke my fall.”
    “Glad I could help,” he said as rubbed his sour butt.
    “Here, let me help you up,” she laughed as she bent down to help him.
    “Thanks,” he said. “You know, I... ah, crap.”
    The boat all of the sudden rocked sending Jennifer backwards and Justin falling right behind her. Justin stumbled and collapsed on top of her. “You know,” he laughed. “I think were making a habit of this.”
    She laughed up at him. “Yeah, I think so. Are you this clumsy dancing on stage?”
    “Well no, considering the stage doesn’t move back and forth!”
    She giggled. “Uhh... hey Justin?”
    “Yeah?”
    “Not that I’m not enjoying this, but were you ever gonna get off of me?”
    He smiled as she repeated his words. “Yeah, sorry about that. Let’s try this one more time.”

    “Thanks again, Justin,” she said as they walked up to her bungalow. “I had a blast.”
    “You’re quite the fisherman,” he said with a smile.
    “Well, I did catch more than you,” she teased.
    “Yeah, yeah,” he said. “Beginners luck.”
    “Luck, has nothing to do with it,” she said as they walked up the porch. “I’m...” The phone ringing interrupted her. “Oh, damn, come on in. Let me get that, it could be Peter.” Justin walked in as she picked up the phone. “Hello?” she said with a smile. Her smile faded. “Oh, hi Mom... uhhh...” She turned around to see Justin watching her closely as he sat on the couch. “Mom, this isn’t... no he’s not here... um he’s in the shower...yes, I’m having the best time... okay I love you too... bye.” She hung up the phone but didn’t turn around.
    “You didn’t tell your mom?” he asked.
    Her head dropped. “No, I didn’t.”
    “Why exactly?”
    She turned around. “Don’t worry about it. Look, I’m gonna go take a nap, I...”
    “Why do you stay with him?”
    She gave him a blank stare. “Excuse me?”
    He stood up slowly. “He doesn’t make you happy, Jen,”
    “Now, look,” she said forcefully. “I get this enough from my mother, I don’t need it from you.”
    “Shouldn’t that tell you something,” he said softly as he walked to her. “You’re mother sees it, I see it... why can’t you.”
    “Listen, I...”
    “Just tell me one good thing about him,” he said. “Just one thing, and I’ll leave you alone.”
    She gave him an icy stare. “I don’t have to prove anything to you, Justin. Stick to your dancing and singing and stay out of my personal life.”
    With that she moved passed him and stalked into her bedroom. She slammed the door as she felt the tears coming. “Don’t cry,” she told herself. “Don’t let him get to you like this.”
    But the tears were too strong for her to hold back. She let out a groan as she fell back on her bed. She stared up at the ceiling. “This is so ridiculous,” she told herself. “Why am I crying?” Even though she asked herself that, she already knew the answer. She was crying, because she was afraid that Justin was right.
    The phone rang again, interrupting her thoughts. She sat up and ran to the kitchen, thankful that Justin had left. “Hello?”
    “Jen, it’s me.”
    “Mary?” she said as she recognized her friend’s voice.
    “How did you get this number?”
    “You’re mom gave it to me. Girl, I think you better sit down. You’re not going to like this one bit.”

    Justin got up from the sand and brushed himself off. After Jennifer had blown up in his face, he came down to the surf. He had been sitting here for god knows how long, just staring out into the ocean. Her last words had stung him. He hoped that’s not all she thought of him. He hoped she didn’t think of him as just a entertainer.
    He knew she didn’t mean it, he thought as he made his way back to Jennifer’s. She was just frustrated and upset. But it still stung. He thought it was best to just let her chill for a bit, and he decided that this was enough. He had something to say about that asshole, and by god he was going to say it.
    “Jen?” he called out. “Look, I...” He stopped when he saw her sitting on the couch. She was staring off into space, she almost looked like she was in a trance. He quickly sat by her side. “Jen, what’s wrong?”
    The tears started to fill her arms. “It’s Peter.”
    He put his arm around her shoulder. “Talk to me.”
    “He... he’s cheating on me,” she said as she looked up at him.
    Justin closed his eyes and silently wished Peter to hell as he took her in his eyes. “Oh, Jen. I’m so sorry.”
    “With... with his secretary.” She let out a little laugh. “That’s so damn typical, isn’t it.” He didn’t say anything, because he knew she wasn’t finished. He just kept on holding her, rocking her. “My friend works in the same firm as him and she said she saw them kissing in the parking lot.”
    “Jen,” he said softly as he pulled back. He cupped her face and wiped her tears away with his thumbs. “You're one of the most generous, kind-hearted person I’ve met. And a guy like Peter does not deserve you.”
    She smiled. “Thank you, Justin,” she cried and then hugged him. “Thank you for everything. And I’m sorry for the comment I made, I didn’t mean it.”
    “I know,” he said as he rubbed her back with his hand.
    “I know you're more than just a pop star,” she said as she pulled back. “You’re also a great fisherman.”
    He let out a laugh and then cupped her face and planted his lips on her forehead. “Listen to me,” he said. “We still have a few days left, and were gonna have so much fun, that you’re gonna forget about that jerk.”
    She smiled. “Is that a promise?”
    He smiled softly and then brushed his lips with hers. “A promise sealed with a kiss.”
    She smiled. “Such a romantic,” she sighed.
    “I try,” he grinned. “All right, the fun begins. It’s almost dark, so be ready in an hour.”
    “Um, okay,” she said and watched him get up to leave. “How should I dress?”
    “Casual. Like what you wore today on the boat.”
    She laughed. “All right.”
    “One hour,” he said again. “You better be ready.” He then gave her a wink and trotted out the door.

Part Four