NSync had just finished singing their last song, "Tearin' Up My Heart", and were taking their last bows. We were backstage watching; the concert was great. I was the only one who had never been to one of their concerts before, and I enjoyed every minute of it. The guys ran off stage and back to their dressing room. We were getting ready to leave when someone tapped Kit on her shoulder, it was Chris.
“Hey, you guys leaving already?”
“Yeah, we’ll be at the party, though.”
“Excellent, I’ll see ya there then.”
“Okay.”
Chris ran back into the dressing room and we all looked at Kit.
“What?”
“It looks like somebody has the hots for ya Kit!” Linz said.
“Yeah right, he was just being nice.”
We all gave her the same look as we turned to leave. As we walked to the car we heard someone yelling.
“Hey Jen, wait up!”
Jen turned around to see her good friend Kelly. “Kel, what’s up girl?”
“Sorry I didn’t get a chance to see you before the concert, I’ve been so busy.”
“That’s okay, are you going to the party?”
“You know it! I just have a few things to do here and then I’ll be on my way. Oh, this is my friend Ashley,” Kelly said pointing to the girl next to her. “And you guys met Becca already, right?”
“Yeah.”
Kelly, 22, was assistant costume director and had been on the road with the group for almost 2 years; Ashley, 23, was an assistant of Darren Henson who wanted to become a choreographer herself; and Becca, 21, was and intern working for Johnny Wright.
“Well, it was nice meeting you all. I’ll see ya later Jen.”
“Later.”
We all piled into Jen’s car and drove to the club where the party was being held. We arrived at the club to find the street full of people. It took us forever to find a parking space. We finally made it into the club and Kit and I hit the dance floor. Jen saw someone she knew and went over to talk to her. Heather and Linz went over to the bar. Kit and I had been dancing for about 30 minutes when Heather ran up to us.
“You guys they’re here!”
“Who’s here?” I asked.
She pointed towards the entrance and there was NSync making their way into the club. They all parted and went their separate ways. I saw JC and Chris making their way onto the dance floor; Joey was walking toward the bar; and Lance and Justin went to the back. We were so stunned when we saw Chris walking straight toward us. He grabbed Kit’s hand.
“So are you going to dance with me or do I have make a fool of myself without you?”
“Well, since you put it that way..."
Kit started to dance with Chris as Heather and I made our way off the floor. We walked over to the bar and noticed Linz talking with Joey. I walked over and interrupted.
“Hey Linz.”
“Hey, Joey this is my friend Kae.”
“Oh yeah, nice to see you again.”
“Same here. Linz have you seen Jen?”
“Nope, not since we got here.”
“Ok, I’ll see you later.”
She said okay and turned her attention back to Joey. I finally saw Jen standing against the wall talking to Kelly and Ashley. Heather and I walked over to say hi. We were all talking and laughing when JC came over and put his arms around Kelly and Ash.
“So what are you girls talking about?”
“Well, we could tell you but it might hurt your feelings,” Kelly joked.
“Oh, I see how it is.”
“JC you remember Jen, Heather and Kae, right?” Ash asked.
“Yeah, you guys were backstage.”
“Wow JC, you’re so quick,” Kelly grinned.
“You know what, I’ve had just about enough of you.”
He started to tickle Kelly relentlessly. The entire time I noticed Jen was staring at JC, studying his every feature. She had a look in her eyes that I had never seen before, even when she was with Mike. JC finally stopped and noticed Jen’s stare. She looked away quickly and he smiled.
“Can I buy you a drink?” he asked Jen.
“Um, sure I guess.”
“Hey what about us?” Ash and Kel yelled after them.
“Have you seen Becca?” Ash asked Kel.
“Yeah, she was playing pool with Justin and Lance last time I saw her.”
Ash and Kelly started to walk toward the back room when Kelly turned back to us.
“Hey, are you girls coming?”
I said sure and we started to follow them. The club was so crowded, it was a struggle getting around. On our way to the back this guy bumped into me. I was getting ready to go off on him when I saw that it was Justin. That same feeling once again went through my body.
“Oh, I see you found Justin,” Ash said, “Justin, is Becca still in the back?”
“Yeah, she’s killin’ Lance!”
They started to go and Heather turned to me.
“Yo Kae, you coming?”
I said yes but my feet wouldn’t budge.
“She’ll catch up with you guys, she’s dancin’ wit me.”
Heather gave me this “have fun” look and followed Kelly and Ash to the back.
“I hope you don’t mind me tearin’ you away from your girls.”
“As long as you don’t mind me gawking at you like some 12 year old teenybopper.”
He started laughing and grabbed my hand and led me onto the floor. Lauryn Hill’s ‘Doo Wop’ came on and we started dancing. I saw Kit and Chris still dancing and they both looked really happy. I got more into the music and began grinding into Justin. He put his hands on my hips as we moved in unison. We danced for another 45 minutes then he led me over to the bar. I looked over and saw JC and Jen talking and Joey and Linz had moved to a booth in the corner of the club. Justin and I sat down and I felt him looking at me.
“What?”
“Oh nothing, I was just thinking how great of a dancer you are.”
“Yeah, sorry, I kinda get carried away sometimes.”
“It’s okay. Not a lot of girls really let loose around me.”
His comment made me blush for some strange reason and I turned back to my coke.
“Why am I blushing, he’s just a guy,” I thought.
Meanwhile, in the pool room, Becca had defeated Lance and now Heather was beating him.
“I can’t believe it, I haven’t won one game all night!”
“Awww, poor baby,” Becca said grinning.
Heather nailed the 8 ball and Lance was beaten again.
“I don’t even play pool that often,” Heather said.
“Yeah, I’m sure.”
Becca heard her cell phone ring and answered it. After she hung up she turned to the others with disappointment on her face.
“That was Johnny, I have to go and help with some paperwork or something.”
“I suppose that means we’re leaving too since you’re our ride,” Ash said.
“I’m really sorry guys.”
“It’s okay Becca, I have some things to take care of anyway,” Kelly said.
They said good-bye to everyone and left. After they were gone, Lance walked over and put his hand on Heather's shoulder.
"So, are you going to give me a rematch and let me redeem myself?"
"Well, if you're looking for a beatin', you've come to the right place!"
Back in the main area of the club, it seemed like everyone was having a blast. I had become a lot more comfortable around Justin as we sat at the bar talking and cracking jokes. Linz walked up behind me and leaned over to tell me something.
"Tell the others I'm going out with Joey for awhile and don't wait up!" she whispered.
I smiled and told her that I wanted all the juicy details later on. I had a feeling that all of us would have a lot to talk about tomorrow.