Chapter 30

Chapter 30 Will The Real BSB Please Stand Up?
By Chelle and Tess

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~with the guys~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Wow, that last run through went really well. Great job guys” Davy pointed out to the guys . “I think this is a good breaking point. Now if we can just keep this vibe going. We’ll be ready to start recording soon”.

“Davy, that reminds me. We would like to have a word with you before we head back to the hotel” Kevin suggested.

“Sure, no problem. But let me make a quick phone call before it gets too late. I will be right back” Davy interrupted. Knowing what the topic was going to be, Davy found his quick exit. As Davy left the room, Andy entered, a note in hand. He glanced over his shoulder at Davy, then turned and handed the slip of paper to Kevin.

"What's this?" Kevin asked, opening it up.

"Mr. Roark called. Seems there are a lot of problems back at the hotel. I guess the cat is out of the bag, so to speak. Apparently the hotel has been besieged by crazed fans and reporters." Andy answered as he walked out of the room. Kevin quickly read the note and cursed loudly. The girls had been involved with some run ins with fans and reporters. They seemed to be all right, but Mr. Roark advised they take extra precautions when they returned to the hotel.”

“What does the note say, Kev?” Brian asked.

“Are the girls alright?” Nick asked concerned.

“Basically, it says what we all were afraid of hearing. The media and fans have found out that we are here. And somehow, they know about the girls. Shit. I hope they are ok” Kevin answered back.

“yeah me too” AJ chimed in.

“What are we gonna do? We can’t let the girls get mauled by the press” Howie said.

Before Kevin was able to make a suggestion, Andy reentered the room and said, “Hey, Davy wanted me to ask you guys to join him in the back room. Apparently, there’s a news bit about the events at the hotel”. The guys followed Andy to the room where Davy was. In the corner of the room the television sounded, ‘Coming up next, The Backstreet Boys have arrived in Hawaii, but did they arrive alone? ’ Before the station's breaks to a commercial, different pictures were shown of the girls being chased by screaming fans.

“Kev, what are we gonna do? That is a mess out there. We’ve got to do something to help out the girls. They are being hounded by the press," Howie said with concern.

While the guys were commenting to each other about what they saw on the television, Davy chimed in “Guys? I have already contacted security and they are on their way as we speak. But in the meantime, Mr. Roark is sending his crew to help get you back to the hotel without any more problems.” Davy then stood up from his chair and looked around the room shaking his head “This is why I thought it was a bad idea for you guys to come here without security. Due to your poor judgment, those girls have been put in a very awkward position. One that I am not sure we can help  with”.

As the words left Davy’s mouth, Nick jumped out of his chair and lunged for Davy. However, before Nick was able to reach him, Kevin jumped in the way and prevent Nick from punching Davy. “Nick, this is not going to solve anything.” Kevin warned.

“Man, he has no right to interfere in our lives like this. DAMMIT” Nick shouted and moved back to where he was sitting. He was angry at Davy for his comments towards Chelle.

Thankful that Kevin prevented Nick from hitting him, Davy quietly sighed in relief. He wasn’t too surprised that Nick was upset with him but after his phone conversation with Mr. James he was not in the mood for Nick’s temper. “Look Nick. You can get mad at me all you want but I didn’t create this problem. All I am trying to do is keep you guys from getting mobbed by those crazy fans.”

Kevin then interrupted Davy, “No Davy, you may not have created this mob, but I think you have fueled another fire. And I think now is the right time to have this conversation. I think you need to be reminded of what your role is around here. We can date whomever we want, and you have no right to interfere in our decisions. You had no right talking to Chelle the way you did. She is friends with Nick and you need to respect that. You may be a part of our management but you don’t have the right to interfere in our lives."

“Kev, the news is back on. Come watch.” Brian interrupted.

The guys gathered around the television set. “And in the entertainment news, the Backstreet Boys have arrived in Hawaii. After a brief announcement at a local radio station this afternoon, the hotel Paradise was overrun with zealous fans, all anxious to get a quick glimpse of the famous quintet. Standing by we have our very own Jeanine Robinson to give us the inside scoop of what is going on there. Jeanine, can you tell us what you see?" "Yes Kathy, right now I am near the lobby where there are fans everywhere. Now we have footage from earlier where there was a little commotion that went on in the lobby. According to the fans, the Backstreet Boys are not alone at the hotel. In this first clip you can see their girlfriends leaving one of the hotel’s restaurants."  The guys saw a clip of Shawn, Tanya, Carmen and Sherry trying to avoid a few fans and reporters. “They were first seen a few nights ago at a local nightclub singing with the Backstreet Boys. This second clip was from the front page of yesterday’s newspaper. The woman in the picture was identified by another fan as Chelle Wilson, Nick Carter’s new girlfriend. How these girls find out this information just amazes me. We also have another clip of Miss Wilson and another woman trying to avoid reporters." The guys watched as Chelle, her head down and another woman pushed through the crowd of reporters. Howie looked closely at the TV and heard Brian say 'Shit', as the words "No Comment" echoed throughout the room. "Was that who I think it was?" Howie asked. "Who? Who?" Nick asked, more concerned with Chelle than who she was with. “What the hell is she doing here? And with Chelle?” Brian screamed at the television. “Who? What are you talking about Bri?” Nick yelled. His head was beginning to spin. Nick couldn’t help but worry about all the nagging reporters attacking Chelle. His track record with former girlfriends battling the press or a jealous fan was not good. However, Chelle was different. Unlike his past girlfriends, she was strong minded and possessed the attitude that she could handle anything. Nick only prayed that she would be able to handle his lifestyle as well. “Tessa Dayne. She is the woman that is right next to Chelle.” Brian said then pointed again to the television screen as Chelle and Tess reappeared, “Right there. Look. That woman standing next to Chelle is Tessa. I know it.” The guys all looked at who Brian was pointing out.

 “Yeah, you’re right Brian. That is her. What is she doing here?” Howie questioned then turned back to Kevin to warn him about Tess, after all she was his former girlfriend but was silenced when he noticed Kevin on his cell phone. “Kev, who are you calling?”

Kevin looked back at Howie, “Shawn. I just want to be sure everything is ok.” He then turned his attention back to the phone, “Shawn, babe? Hey there? Are you all ok?” “As well as can be expected” Shawn replied. Kevin then asked for the other guys as they were all staring at him, “How are the other girls?”

“Well…. Um…. We’re alright….” Shawn answered with an uneasy voice. “Shawn, what’s wrong? I can tell something is up? Is everyone alright?” Kevin again asked. He automatically could tell that something was wrong. The second Kevin changed the pitch in his voice, the other guys caught on to his ___expression that something was the matter.

“Kev, what’s wrong? What’s happened?” Nick started questioning.

“Ssshhh, I can’t hear both of you man. Give me a sec to find out” Kevin whispered back to Nick then again asked, “Are you girls alright?”

“Well, four of us are ok, but Chelle we’re not too sure about.” Shawn admitted.

“What do you mean you don’t know about Chelle? What has happened to her?” Kevin said not realizing how loud his voice carried.

“WHAT? WHAT‘S WRONG WITH CHELLE?” Nick panicked.

“Nick, hang on a sec man… let me find out…and I will tell you”.

Shawn then continued, “Chelle got upset with us earlier and went off on her own. So we haven’t actually seen her since early this afternoon. Well, I kinda expected her to come back upstairs when the mob scene started up since we can’t exactly go anywhere. However, she’s still not back yet.”

Kevin then added in, “well, maybe she’s still somewhere cooling off”.

“That’s what we were thinking at first but then we got a call from a friend of hers named Tess. Tess said she was with Chelle earlier in the lobby but somehow they got separated through the crowds and we haven’t heard a word since.”

“SHIT!” Kevin blurted out then said “Shawn, we’re on our way back. I have my cell phone with me. If you guys hear from Chelle let us know. We’ll find her when we get back. I am sure she‘s blowing off steam with the press and all.”

“Alright, we’ll keep you posted and vice versa.” With that said, the call ended.

“Find her?!? What the hell Kev? Please? Tell me?” Nick pleaded.

“Nick, first of all don’t jump to conclusions just yet. Shawn said they had an argument earlier and Chelle left. That was before the hysteria started up. Now we all saw Chelle on the TV so we know she’s ok…but she still hasn’t returned to the room so Shawn is worried.”

“Yeah, well… that’s an understatement” AJ interrupted.

“Well, I am worried too. Afterall, she‘s with Tessa! And that is not a good combination” Brian added in.

“That’s another thing. Shawn said they got a call from Tess. Somehow Chelle and Tess were separated in the crowd.”

“Oh my god, something has happened. I just know it” Nick replied.

“Now let’s not think that way” Kevin consoled then looked at Nick, “We’ll find her. Don’t worry man. And I’ve been thinking once we find her, we’ll move into the girls rooms since no one knows where their room is. And with the security that will be here…we’ll have a better chance of taking care of them. Plus, this will give us more time with them” Nick tried to listen to what Kevin was saying but his own thoughts were taking over ‘oh my god, something has happened to her. I just know it. I knew I should’ve stayed behind. Damn. ’ When Kevin suggested that the guys move into the girls’ room, Davy immediately jumped out of his chair and was about to give his HELL NO speech but was stopped by none other than AJ. “Man, don’t even think about putting your two cents in.” Davy grunted in defeat.

 

~~~~~~~with Chelle~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chelle tried her best to keep up with Tess but it became useless as more and more fans swarmed around her. “Oh god, what do I do now. Think Chelle! “ Chelle moaned to herself then looked in front of her. She saw Mr. Roark at the other side of the room. ‘Ok, if I can get to that side of the room, surely he can help me.’

“Chelle, what is it like dating Nick Carter?” “do you think you can get me a picture taken with him?” Chelle kept hearing more and more questions screamed at her. Before she knew it, Mr. Roark was no longer in her view.

“Chelle come with me” A familiar voice screamed out. Before she could object, she was hauled over a shoulder and quickly escorted out of the lobby and into a private office. Within minutes the screams had disappeared.

“Jared! Do you think you could put me down!” Chelle shouted. Jared gently put Chelle down

“Hey, that’s no way to thank someone who just saved your hide. I mean look at you. You’re bleeding on the side of your arm there.” Chelle instantly looked at her arm and saw the scratches on it. Jared found a tissue and dabbed at Chelle’s arm. Glad that Jared was there to help her, Chelle sat on the corner of the desk and watched Jared clean her arm. Chelle then said, “Oh my god, I didn’t realize…”

“That you were in over your head back there? I am just glad that I was able to get us out of there. If you were there any longer, you could‘ve gotten really hurt” Jared interrupted. Chelle didn’t know what to say. Shocked that the one person who came to her rescue was the one person she despised more than anyone. “What’s this? No comments from Chelle. I think this is a first.” Jared said with a soft giggle.

 “Ha ha ha. Funny.” Chelle replied then said looking around the room, “Look Jared, thanks for helping me. Obviously that was out of control back there. Now exactly where are we?”

“we are in an office of some sort. I was in here earlier today using their fax machine so luckily I remembered this room.” Jared replied proudly.

“I guess some things haven’t changed about you. You can’t seem to leave the office behind huh?” Chelle said with a smile.

“Uh, don’t think you’re gonna convince me that you’re any better than I am especially when I saw Tess back there.” Jared said with a smirk “Let’s face it we are still the same. Both workaholics”

Reminded of their past, Chelle looked away “No, I don’t think we’re the same at all Jared.”

“Chelle?” Jared pleaded.

Chelle moved away from Jared’s touch and walked over to the window. “Chelle, can we please talk? We never had a chance to talk after last year and I think it would help us both if we did.”

Chelle thought to herself, ‘I just had to ask the stupid question… WHAT ELSE COULD GO WRONG TODAY… SHIT!’ She then turned back to Jared and replied, “Jared, please I don’t think there is anything else left to say.”

“No, you’re wrong. There’s plenty to talk about” Jared answered.

“Okay, let me rephrase my answer… I don’t want to talk about this anymore. We are not a couple anymore. You made your decision when you left me for Mary. And now you’re married, end of discussion”

“Chelle? Come on. We’re both adults here. I’ve been wanting to have this conversation with you for over a year but you kept avoiding me. Then, you ran back to California.”

Chelle felt her blood vessel almost pop as her blood pressure began to boil. “Ok, fine! You want to talk, LET’s TALK! First of all, Tanya’s husband died. That is why I am back in LA. Don’t you think for one second that you had anything to do with me going back to California. And as for me not wanting to talk to you… I think me walking in on you and Mary going at it in OUR HOME was all the explanation I needed.

Flinching from Chelle screaming at him, Jared interrupted, “Ok, how about you listen to me for just a second! I wasn’t insinuating anything about you going back to California. I just meant that you were not around to talk to. And for the one hundreth time, I am sorry. I was a jerk. If I could take back what happened I would but unfortunately I can’t. I was stupid.” He then looked at Chelle in the eye, “till the day I die, I will regret making the biggest mistake of my life. But, again… I can’t take it back. Instead I moved on and made a life with Mary. I don’t want to rub that in your face or anything but I only wish you could get past this hate for me. After all, we do have a history together.”

Chelle once again turned around to face the window and took a deep breath. Jared was right about one thing. They needed to clear the air between them. They did have a past with each other and they still worked for the same firm… so it was likely that they would run into each other again. She then thought to herself, “why can’t I let go of my anger for him. It’s not like I am still in love with him. I’ve been over that for a while now.’ She then said, “Jared, yes we do have a history together. I guess that is why it was so hard to talk to you. I would love to establish the friendship we use to have but what you did hurt me deeply. It’s gonna take time.”

“I know it’s gonna take time for you to trust me again. Please just tell me that you won’t hate me forever. I miss our friendship.” Jared said with a soft voice as he walked up behind Chelle.

“I will try, but I won’t make any promises.” Chelle answered in almost a whisper as she continued staring out the window.

“Ok I will deal with that answer.” Jared replied.

“speaking of the Mrs. Where did you leave Mary at?” Chelle asked. Each time Chelle ran into the couple she noticed Mary was very attached to Jared’s hip.

“She is upstairs in our room. I was headed back upstairs when I saw you in the middle of all the chaos out there” Jared said pointing to the door of the office “what is going on with you and that guy, Nick Carter?”

“Jared, I don’t think that my relationship with Nick is any of your business.” Chelle barked back.

“Well, I am gonna take that reply as a yes…you are involved with Nick Carter.” Jared placed his hands on Chelle’s shoulders and said with a concerned voice. Chelle wasn’t sure how to react to Jared’s touch. It had been a long time since they really had talked. Deep down she knew she was not ready to talk but she felt herself powerless to move away from Jared’s touch. “Just promise me that you’ll be careful.”

“Promise You?” Chelle answered back. She couldn’t believe Jared was giving her advice in the romance department, “You know I think I have wised up a great deal when it comes to men…Thanks to you. But I am not worried. Nick is a great guy…..and very considerate of my feelings. Perhaps you should take some advice from him”.

Jared then removed his hands from Chelle as he heard Chelle’s response, “Well again, be careful. I don’t think you realize what you are up against dating a celebrity. With him comes a big package deal. Ya know, the media and all those crazed fans. Before you know it, you’re picture will be all over the tabloids. That alone can put a strain in a relationship… I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”

Chelle couldn‘t believe what she was hearing. “you know I am having a hard time hearing you say ‘you’re afraid of me getting hurt’ obviously you weren’t that afraid of hurting me last year” Chelle snapped. She knew people would question her motives with Nick; however, the last person she was ready to accept criticism from was Jared.

“Chelle, I am not trying to stir another argument with you but think of something would you? Where was your prince charming when you really needed him today. That’s something you’re gonna have to accept darling. He is not always going to be around to help you. And you’re forgetting one big thing regardless of our past.. I know you… the real you” Jared explained as he placed his hand on the side of Chelle’s face and leaned against her “you’re not the kind of girl to sit back and hide from people. Are you really ready for a relationship that will be so publicized?”

Realizing that Jared had read her thoughts exactly, Chelle moved away from Jared and ran towards the front door. “you know, thanks to you… I really just don’t know what the hell I am ready for. All I wanted was to find someone who will love me.” Unaware that she had tears falling from her eyes Chelle continued “You were that person for the longest time… but I was wrong. Now I’ve met Nick. I feel things with him I never thought I could. So, if I have to deal with a public life with him to be happy than so be it… I will do what I have to…”

“Chelle, I am sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I just want you to know I am still here for you as a friend.”

“I have friends Jared. Being around you is very confusing. I don’t want to hate you but I guess it will take me a lot longer than I realized to get past that hurt. Good luck to you and Mary. And thank you again for your help.” With that, Chelle was out the door and away from Jared. As she walked further and further from the door, she felt more sure of where her life was headed.