"Maybe they went out to eat or something?" Lance suggested, sitting on the front steps.
"But their cars are still in the driveway." JC straightened his baseball cap and knocked firmly on the door again. No answer.
"Give it up, J." Justin said, sitting on the front lawn, picking at the grass.
JC checked his watch, "it's nearly eleven o'clock!" He exclaimed, "where can they be?" He asked worriedly.
"Relax, JC, they didn't even know we were coming. I told you we should have told them first," Lance pointed out. The distant rumble of a car's engine could be heard, and it came closer and closer.
"And that makes you larger than life!" Taylor sang in the back of Brian's BMW, making Mikayla and Brian both cringe and then start laughing. "Seriously, you guys looked like weird robots," She commented.
"That's what we were going for," Brian answered dryly. He drove the car down their street, pulling into their driveway. After the concert was over, Mikayla and Taylor had also gone backstage to hang out with the rest of the guys backstage.
"Hey, who's SUV is that?" Taylor asked, peering out the window at the black Infiniti SUV parked next to Mikayla's suburban.
"I don't know," Mikayla answered, confused as she got out of Brian's car.
"Mika!" Chris and Joey yelled happily, glad that they didn't have to wait outside any longer. Mikayla's eyes widened, and she was engulfed by them as they both gave her a hug at the same time.
"Justin?" Taylor asked, stepping out of the car. She had a surprised look on her face as she looked at him.
"That's me." He said jokingly. "where were you two?" He asked, "we were worried!"
"We went out, it's not like we stay cooped up in the house all day long when you're not here," Taylor said defensively. JC and Mikayla had not yet said a word to each other, and JC was thinking that this was definitely not the way he had envisioned their reunion.
"Well," Brian started, clearing his throat. "I'm going to go now, maybe you girls can come again? Nice seeing you guys again," He added, grinning at the members of N Sync.
"Bye Brian." Mikayla answered, giving him a hug. Taylor gave him a hug next.
"Tell Nick that I'll whoop his ass anytime on X-Men vs. Street Fighter," She said good-naturedly. Brian nodded, smiling, and got into his car and drove away. After he drove away, Taylor sighed, "let's go in?" She asked them, pulling her house key out of her pocket. Everyone except JC and Mikayla hurried to get their luggage and go inside.
JC couldn't meet Mikayla's eyes. How was he supposed to react when he saw her in the car with Littrell! And the way the two of them hugged, he couldn't suppress the feeling of jealousy that splurged into him. "Hey." He finally managed to say.
Mikayla was silent for a moment. He was here! She thought happily. "hi." She answered back, almost shyly. Then, impulsively, she threw her arms around him. "God, I've missed you so much," She said, feeling like she was going to cry.
JC wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly to him, "I know, Babe. I've missed you too." He said sincerely as the two of them kissed.
"Ahh," Justin said, sighing with content as he sat sprawled on the couch in the living room.
"Tired?" Taylor asked, amused. He'd had a hair cut before he'd left for San Jose, it was shorter and blonder than on yesterday's episode of TRL.
"You bet. C'mon on here," He growled playfully, pulling her onto the couch. Lance, Chris, and Joey had declared their exhaustion and went to bed as soon as they got inside to try and prevent jet lag. JC and Mikayla were still outside. "So, what's the deal with you two and Brian?" Justin asked.
"Why? Would it matter to you?" She asked, pulling away from him.
"It does." Justin answered softly, gently pulling her back to him. "Because I love you, Taylor."
JC watched Mikayla sleep peacefully, not being able to resist holding her in his arms as they slept in her bed. They house was silent, and he sighed with contentment at finally being somewhere peaceful. The sound must have woken Mikayla up, and she shifted to face him as she tightened her arms around his neck. He kissed her forehead gently, falling back to sleep with a smile on his face.
Lance didn't sleep as well as JC and Mikayla did, not feeling comfortable no matter how he twisted and turned on the bed. He sat up, rubbing his eyes, which felt hot and sore from the lack of sleep. He needed to talk to Elisa, but he didn't know if she'd be up yet. He lay back, folding his hands underneath his head as he stared at the ceiling. He didn't know what to do, Elisa wasn't like other girls. She's unique, he thought with a smile. She loved basketball, dancing, and was the only girl that Lance had ever met who's jokes were even cornier than Joey's and Chris'. The thought of her sparkling green eyes and that smile she had on all the time made him feel better and this time when he closed his eyes, he found it easier to go to sleep.
The ringing sound woke Taylor up with a start, and she groaned sleepily. Justin continued to sleep, snoring softly, lying stomach down on the bed. She scanned the room groggily, looking for the cause of the buzzing alarm. She realized the sound was coming from his jean pocket, and she sat up on the bed and reached out to get it.
"Hello?" She asked, yawning.
"Who's this?" A high-pitched female voice asked.
"Who's this?" Taylor asked, annoyed, "you're the one who called." She wondered who this girl was.
"Oh, yeah," The voice giggled, "This is Tracy. Is Justin there?"
"Hold on." She nudged Justin, who muttered something and shifted so his back was to her. "Justin," She murmured softly, "wake up."
"Huh- Taylor? What?" Justin asked, opening his eyes.
"Tracy's on your cell." She said, handing him the phone. Not wanting to be intruding on his call, she got up, stretched and left to go to downstairs to see if anyone else was up. To be honest, she didn't want to know who the girl was.