“How many?”
“Two, non-smoking please,” JC responded.
“Ok, one minute,” the woman said.
“Oh, do you think that perhaps we could have a table that’s a little secluded?” he added.
“No problem!” the woman said as she gave Lexi a pleasant glance. “Follow me.”
As the waitress took them to their table, they spotted a table of about five preteens and two parents. One of the adolescents were wearing an *NSYNC shirt. Almost as a force of habit, JC turned and lowered his head so he wouldn’t be facing the table. They reached their table, and as promised, it was in a back corner of the restaurant by a window. There was no way anyone could make out their faces back there because of the distance and the dim lighting.
Lexi and JC were eating their food, and were talking actively when they both felt that something wasn’t right.
“Do you ever feel like someone is watching you?” JC asked slowly.
“Yeah…I was just about to say the same thing.” Simultaneously, they looked over to the table that harbored the pre teenagers. Three of them were looking in their direction, and the minute Lexi and JC made eyes contact with them, they gasped and looked down at their plates.
“I think you’ve been spotted,” Lexi said quietly.
“Oh no…” JC said under his breath.
“What?”
“One of them is coming over. I really don’t like this kind of stuff to happen when I’m eating…”
“Follow my lead,” Lexi said with a smirk.
“Huh?”
“Just trust me.”
“Umm…hi!” the peppy but nervous girl said. “Umm, I’m reeeeally sorry to bother you, and I know that you’re probably not, but are you JC Chasez from *NSYNC?”
She had pronounced his last name incorrectly. He hated when that happened. JC was about to answer her, but Lexi cut him off.
“¿Qué dijo?” Lexi asked JC.
JC looked at Lexi in confusion for a second and then realized what she was doing. He told her that he had taken Spanish in high school, but he was by no means fluent. He thought for a moment, then responded slowly.
“Uhh…no sé….”
Lexi laughed. “Tú es muy cómico, Juan.” She turned to the girl and spoke in broken English. “I am very sorry, señorita, pero my husband and I do not speak the English muy bien.”
“Oh, so you’re not JC Chasez?”
“No soy.” JC turned to Lexi. “Uhh…¿tú quisiera frijoles?”
Lexi began to laugh and couldn’t stop. The girl felt embarrassed and walked away. Once she had sat back down at her table JC began to laugh as well.
“Good job, Lex. I would’ve never thought of that. Your husband?”
“Yeah well that was the first thing that came to my mind. Do you want any beans? That’s like remedial Spanish,” Lexi joked as she began to laugh again.
“Oh, well excuse me miss fluent. Maybe I can’t speak Spanish, but I can still pee standing up!”
“Well you’ve definitely got me there!”
By this time they were finsihed eating and the waitress brought them two fortune cookies.
“You open yours first,” said Lexi.
“All right,” JC responded while opening it. He read his fortune aloud. “When the New Year comes so will a new life. Be prepared for good things. Ok, mine sucked. Your turn.”
“Ok…” she opened hers and read aloud as well. “The stars are closer than you may think. Ok, mine sucked more than your did.”
“What? Hello, the stars? Stardom, Lexi. I think yours was the true one out of the two.”
“Yeah…ok.”
After Lexi paid the bill (JC insisted on paying the tip) they made their way out of the restaurant. They didn’t even realize that those girls were still there, and they were speaking and laughing loudly in perfect English. The girl that had approached them was suspicious, so once Lexi and JC reached the door she called out, “JC!” JC turned around in response to his name…he was caught.
“That is JC from *NSYNC!!!”
Lexi and JC looked at each other, and started running towards their car. The five girls were quick to follow. Luckily they were parked close, so they didn’t have that far to go. They were in the car before the girls could reach the door, and they were home free. As they looked back, they saw the girls screaming in the parking lot in the freezing cold.
“How often does that happen to you?” Lexi asked out of breath.”
“It depends where I am, but a lot.”
“It must get annoying.”
“It does, but it’s all worth it. They mean well.” Lexi nodded in agreement then JC added, “As I’ve said before, you’ll know what that’s like soon enough.”
Out of no where the radio turned on, and Shania Twain’s You’ve Got a Way was playing.
“Damn rental car,” JC said as he went to turn it off. Lexi took hold of his hand to prevent his from doing so.
“Leave it,” she said. “I like this song.”