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» CHAPTER SEVEN «

Very reluctantly, Lauren got out of her bed and put on some clothes. She put her blond hair in a long curly ponytail. "Now- what do I want for breakfast?" she wondered aloud. She decided on eggs and toast. After she had eaten, she sat down on the couch next to the telephone. "Maybe Nick will call me soon," she hoped.

Lauren wished she had Nick’s telephone number so she wouldn’t be so impatient. She sighed and grabbed a pillow. "I wonder how Jessica’s night turned out. I’ll try her place." Picking up the telephone, she dialed her number. It rang and rang, and Jessica’s machine picked up.

"Hi, this is Jessica. I must be out partying, so please leave your name and number and I’ll call you back later. Ciao!" it said.

Lauren hung up before the beep. "She must be still at AJ’s. Guess they really did go all the way," she thought.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the phone ringing. Lauren hightailed it over to the telephone. "Hello?" she asked excitedly.

"Hey baby-I mean Lauren," she heard a familiar sexy voice say.

"Hey Nick! I was hoping you’d call," Lauren smiled.

"Yep, it’s our very own Da Frackster. So what’s happening?" Nick said.

"Well, since I just got up, not much. You?" she answered.

"Same here. So, uh, whatcha wanna do tonight? It’s anything you want," Nick charmed.

Lauren couldn’t believe how sweet he was. "Uh...how about we go bowling? Bet I can kick your butt," she replied in a teasing voice.

"Bowling sounds great. And we’ll just see who kicks whose butt. Should I invite the guys? Maybe Jessica can come," Nick suggested.

"Sounds cool! Well, I have to go, I have to run some errands. Say hi to Jessica if you see her, k?" Lauren said kind of reluctantly.

"O.K. Lauren. See you tonight! Be careful!" Nick smiled through the phone.

"I will, mom. Bye!" Lauren sighed.

"Bye." They hung up. Lauren smiled a 300-hundred watt grin. She’d never felt this free from care before. Nick was just a whole new start. And that’s the way she liked it.

Nick pressed the button on his cell phone to disconnect from the person he’d wanted to talk to most. He hated to let her go, but she had to. Talking to her again made him even more anxious. He couldn’t help it. He hadn’t felt this way about a girl since....Mandy. Nick winced just thinking about her. She had been so perfect for him, they’d been going out for such a long time. He had been sure she was the one...then poof. All his dreams disappeared when she’d walked out the door.

Suddenly all the painful memories came flooding back. Nick stared at the phone, suddenly wondering if he was really over Mandy. And if he should even be going out with Lauren tonight.

AJ woke up after quite a night with Jessica. He looked down at the gorgeous woman in his bed and smiled. He wanted to take her in his arms again, but knew he needed to take a shower. He slithered out of bed, and snuck into the bathroom. AJ let the warm water run down his body and he closed his eyes.

Suddenly he heard the shower curtain open and a sweet voice say, "When were you planning on asking me to join you?" He opened his eyes to see Jessica’s smiling face.

He leaned over and kissed her gently, gentle streams of water running down them both.

Jessica kissed AJ back, while her arms wrapped around his waist. She started kissing his neck, his chest, then his lips again. The closeness, the warm running water was so romantic she felt herself losing control to AJ.

AJ moved closer to her and she let him make love to her yet again. "The best part of waking up is AJ in your-" she didn’t get to finish her thought as she slowly slid down the shower wall.

Lauren tried to call Jessica again, but with no luck whatsoever. "I can’t believe it. It’s almost noon and she’s still with AJ. She better call soon or I’ll have a fit!" she murmured aloud.

Lauren sat down in her favorite chair with the book she started to read the night before. Before she got invited to the pool party. As her eyes scanned the words silently her mind still drifted. But not to Nick...to Devin. She thought about how she could be going out with him tonight. If he hadn’t broken her heart like glass into tiny shards.

"See," she thought to herself, "this is why you’re going out with Nick tonight. Devin wasn’t the one for you. And Nick can help take your mind off things. So you’re not making a mistake. It’s perfectly O.K." she told herself. "Tonight is supposed to happen."

Nick finally managed to put some clothes on, and put a fisherman’s hat over his unruly blond hair. "Brian- are we going anywhere today?" he asked his fellow roommate and best friend.

"Yeah Nick...we’ve got an interview with some pre-teen magazine remember?" Brian reminded.

"Oh yeah..." Nick rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Why Nick? Had plans?" Brian teased.

"Only for tonight," Nick grinned.

Brian shot him a goofy smile. "Whoo- you go Nick-ay. Going for a touchdown, our very own Nicky Carter. Go Nick-ay, it’s your birthday, gonna get some, from a lady...." he joked.

Nick blushed a lovely shade of red. "Ha ha Brian. FYI, I will not be getting ‘some’ tonight. It’s just a date."

"So why are you turning the most lovely shade of pink? Let me guess.... it’s with...LAUREN," Brian guessed.

"I’m not pink...." Nick protested, "But you’re right about the Lauren part. She’s amazing and I can’t wait."

Brian raised an eyebrow at him. "You’re pink. But way to go."

Nick wanted to punch his goofy bud, but instead just glanced at the mirror one more time. "Do I look good, or do I look good?" he jokingly asked Brian.

"I’ll take secret option #3- no comment," Brian struggled to keep from laughing.

Nick shot him his drop-dead look. "You’re going to make me mad Frick, and you don’t want that now do ya?" Nick commented, only half teasing.

"Yeah, you’re right. Wouldn’t want you to uh- beat me at Nintendo or anything. Let’s get outta here."

Jessica applied some clear mascara, looking in the hotel mirror. AJ’s handsome reflection popped up in the mirror also as he came up from behind her and wrapped his arms around her.

"AJ-" Jessica murmured, "Haven’t you had enough of me this morning?" she teased with a sweet grin. After all, there was the pool, the bed, the surprise shower visit....

AJ answered her question with the song from her fave Gap commercial, ‘I just can’t get enough.’ She smiled. He sang it better than them.

AJ sang to Jessica while she applied her unnecessary make-up. He watched her smile to herself. He loved knowing that he made her happy. "I’d go anywhere or do anything for her," he thought. "And one day I’ll prove it."

His thoughts were interrupted by Jessica talking. "So, do you have anything to do today?" she asked.

AJ immediately replied no, then realized he did have Backstreet Boy plans. "Yeah, we’ve got a interview with that teenybopper magazine...I can’t remember which one," he said.

He saw Jessica’s face fall, who was obviously hoping they could spend the day together. "I’m sorry baby. I can’t help it. I’d ask you to come along with me, but I don’t want any press about you. It could hurt you," AJ murmured, kissing her neck again.

Jessica nodded her head. "I understand. But-what exactly are we? A fling, a date-?"

AJ smiled at her. "That’s something I wanted to talk to you about. I want you to be my girlfriend. An AJ -n- Jessica kind of thing. Please baby?"

Jessica smiled back. "You know it honey." They kissed, then Jessica glanced at her watch. "Gosh, it’s past noon! What time do you have that interview?"

"2:00. I’m supposed to meet the guys at McDonald’s around 1:30," AJ replied calmly.

"Well, Lauren must be worried about me. I should call her or something," Jessica said.

"I’ll take you home baby. Or to Lauren’s house. Whichever one," AJ offered.

"Thank you AJ. I’ll give you directions to my house because that’s where my car’s at," Jessica said graciously.

"Just happy to help," AJ murmured, and they set off.

Lauren, being a very swift reader, finished her book in not much time. Getting up to put it in a mini-bookshelf, she heard a car horn honking, driving past her house. By the time she looked out the window, the car had just gone past. It wasn’t a car she had seen before. "Wonder who that was," she murmured, but didn’t think much of it.

Five minutes later, a car pulled up in her driveway. Lauren saw it was Jessica and ran out to see her.

"Hey!" Jessica said.

"Hi!" Lauren greeted.

"Me and AJ just drove by honking. He had to go. So what’s up?" Jessica gushed.

"So, that’s who that was," Lauren thought silently giggling. "What’s up with me? How about what’s up with you? What did you and AJ do?" Lauren questioned teasingly.

Jessica blushed. "How about we go inside, my dear friend."

¤ Chapter 8 ¤
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