It was now January 30th, and Lexi couldn’t believe that she finally finished packing for her trip to LA. She would be gone just about two weeks, so she had one very large bag and one that was just a little bit smaller. She was glad that she would be coming back in town on February 13th, because she was planning on spending Valentine’s Day with JC.
Richard rang her doorbell at 3 PM sharp so they could make their way to the airport for a 4:30, non-stop flight to Los Angeles. The driver got Lexi’s bags, and she locked up her condo for two weeks.
“Oh,” Lexi said as they were pulling out of her driveway, “Can we stop somewhere really fast? I need to pick up some sheet music so I can work on a song while we’re out of town.”
“Sure. Where is it?” Richard asked.
“Josh’s house. It’s just about down the street about a mile.”
“Josh? Who’s Josh?”
“Oh, I’m sorry. JC.”
Richard paused not really knowing what to say.
“No problem.”
“Great. Take a left up here and then take you’re second right. It’s the fourth house on the left,” Lexi told the driver.
They pulled up in front of JC’s house and Lexi hopped out of the car.
“I’ll only be a minute.”
“Ok, but hurry. We don’t want to miss our flight.”
Lexi smiled politely, but Richard’s tone of voice made her feel uneasy.
Lexi knocked on JC’s door. He opened it shortly after and went to kiss her, but she stopped him.
“Wait,” she said softly trying not to seem obvious. “Rich is probably watching us.”
JC and Lexi glanced towards the car parked in front of his house. They smiled and went inside.
“Now that the coast is clear…” JC said kissing Lexi.
“Haha…I wish I could stay longer, but I just stopped by to pick up the sheet music for our song.”
“Is that it?” JC asked as he walked towards the piano for the music.
“No…I also wanted to say goodbye and that I’ll miss you.”
JC grinned and pulled Lexi in for a hug.
“I’m going to miss you so much, Lexi. How am I going to go two weeks without seeing you?”
“We’ll get though it some how,” she said dramatically. “Just keep your mind focused on Valentine’s Day.”
“I’ll try…”
“I wish I could stay, but I’ve got a flight to catch.”
“Ok. Remember that I’m flying to New York tomorrow so the guys and I can announce our tour dates on the 1st on TRL. Then, we're making a video in New York City, so I should be home about February 12th.”
“That’s right! February 1st, the day that all teenage girls across America are waiting for.”
“Yep. You’ll watch us, right?”
“Of course I’ll watch you.” Lexi looked at her watch. “I’ve really gotta go. I’ll call your cell when I get in.”
“Ok, bye.”
They kissed one last time, and Lexi headed back for the car.
“Get what you needed?” Richard asked.
“Sure did.”
A minute later Lexi’s cell phone rang.
“Hello?”
“Hey,” said JC. “When I pull on my right ear that means I miss you, and I can’t wait to see you.”
“Ok,” Lexi laughed. “Bye.”
“Who was that?”
“Oh, umm…”
“Look, Lexi, I hate to get into your personal life, but…”
“But what, Richard?” Lexi said getting upset.
“As your friend, I think that whatever is going on between you and JC is great. But as your manager, I’ve got to say that I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“How do you even know that anything is going on?”
“Lex, when you went into his house you had lip gloss on…now you don’t.”
Lexi sighed and said, “So what if something is going on? Why is that such a bad thing?”
“Lexi and JC being together isn’t a bad thing. Lexi, that new singer, and JC, the brunette from *NSYNC, being a couple is the problem. Do you know what could happen if this gets out? Do you want to ruin your career before it even gets started?”
“Things like that shouldn’t affect my career, Richard.”
“It shouldn’t, but it will. I’m not telling you this to upset you. I’m telling you this because it’s a fact. You don’t want something like this being attached to your name so early. Everytime someone hears your song on the radio they’ll think, ‘Oh, that’s JC’s girlfriend.’ I don’t want that for you, Lexi.”
“So what do you want me to do? Break up with him until my single becomes successful and then I can be seen in public with him? Or maybe it would just be better if I totally ignored him until my album goes platinum, and then I can acknowledge his existence again!”
“I know that this is upsetting to hear, but I’m just telling you the truth. The teenage public has a tendency to hate anyone that is dating their beloved boyband members, and those girls are a large portion of what we hope to be your market.”
Lexi let out a deep breath and looked out the window at the passing sights.
“Just think about what I’ve said, Lexi. I’m not necessarily saying to break up with him, but you’ve got to be very careful. Remember that.”