"Steph where were you last night?" Howie wanted to know as soon as we woke up the next morning.
"Huh? Oh watching movies with the Hansons down the hall," I told him, yawning.
"Really? Did you have a good time?" he asked.
"Of course. Yesterday was a blast. Those guys are so much fun to hang out with. The girls too." He leaned over to give me a kiss.
"Happy Valentine's Day," Howie said, changing the subject. I kissed him back.
"Same to you. Too bad we can't do something to celebrate today, cuz you guys have the concert."
"I know. Dang it. Okay...well here's something I promise. We'll do something special, just to the two of us, after the concert. While everyone else is out partying, you can I can do something together," Howie decided. I smiled.
"It's a deal."
"Now I better get up because I have a long day ahead of me," he sighed, getting out of the bed. I watched him get up, then turned on the TV.
"Oh yeah, the Hansons are coming backstage with me today cuz the girls wanna meet you guys. Okay?" I brought up. I could sense Howie sighing in something between annoyance and jealousy.
"Yeah that's fine. Just make sure you get the passes so they are able to get back. Of course, I'm sure they know how that all goes," D answered. I smiled, then returned my attention to the television while Howie hopped in the shower. A commercial for the concert was on the news, as the newscaster talked about the sold out concert and how lines were already forming outside the venue. I wasn't shocked. Fans seemed to believe that, by getting there earlier, their chances of seeing the guys were greater. The boys usually snuck around the back, if there was a back to sneak behind. I wouldn't be there when everyone went, because I had planned another day of chillin out with the Hansons while the guys stayed at the venue for half the day, practicing and doing sound checks and costume checks and preparing themselves for the concert.
"You wanna go out to get some breakfast?" Howie asked as he walked out of the bathroom drying his hair with a towel. I stumbled out of the bed and told him to hold the thought as I got in the shower.
In the shower, I began to think. What in the world was I doing with my life? I had an awesome boyfriend, best friend, and job. And I was on the brink of throwing it away because of some rock star who happened to be my age? Oh dear. Sounded not so bad but, in reality, it was horrid! Probably the stupidest mistake I could ever think to make. I wanted to hit myself for it. The best thing to do was to tell Howie about what we did before the tabloids got the information to him already. I got out of the shower, threw on a robe and dried my bangs, then walked out of the bathroom. Howie was staring at the TV.
"Did you have a good time with the Hansons?" he wanted to know. My eyes grew wide.
"Huh?!" I cried. The news had said something while I was taking the shower!!
"Oh I remember you had told me that you were gunna be chillin out with them, so I was curious if you had a good time," D explained. I began to breathe easily.
"Oh we had a blast. Ran into AJ, Nick, Amy, Brian, and Amanda. Oh and that woman who owns that hat store in LA, Jordyn...Blake I think. It was a pleasant surprise. Afterwards, the movie was cool...I wasn't too excited about Star Wars but oh well. Tay gave me a new hat for my collection!" I told
D. He laughed.
"You and your hats..." he sighed. "Well go get dressed and we'll go out to eat okay hun?" I agreed, then went over to my duffle bag and began to dig through the clothes. After finding something I wanted to wear, I stole into the bathroom and got dressed then put my hair up in a ponytail. Right before we left, I grabbed the hat Taylor had given me, and stuck it on my head. D looked at it and smiled.
When we got down to the cafe, we were situated right next to my new friends. I looked around the booth and said hi to the Hansons.
"Hey boys! Happy V-Day!" I cried.
"Same to you, Steph," Taylor answered back. "Nice hat, by the way."
"Oh you like it? Got it from a friend," I joked. "Hey was this yours? I stuck it on and it felt worn."
"Yeah!" Avery blurted out. "But he can get another one, don't worry." I winked at her. Just then, I saw Brian and Amanda walk by, hand in hand. I said goodbye to the Hansons, then turned my attention to the newly engaged couple.
"Hey Brock!" I called. He and Amanda turned their heads toward our direction. They stopped in their tracks and smiled at us as they turned back around to make their way toward our table.
"Hey Steph, D, how's it goin?" Brian asked us.
"Pretty good! We just thought we'd come down for a little Valentine's Day breakfast," Howie replied. "Would you like to join us?"
"Yeah we would love it," I spoke up. Brian and Amanda liked the idea, so I got up and moved over next to Howie so that Amanda and Brian could sit beside each other. "So how's the wedding plans coming along?"
"Slowly, but they're falling into place. Just wait till you see the outfits Brian's got picked out for the groomsmen. I still have yet to find dresses for the bridesmaids but....I will...after I finish the guest list!" Amanda told me.
"What's the limit going to be?" Howie wondered.
"Oh probably two hundred to five hundred people maybe," Brian said.
"Wow that's a lot. But it'll be fun," I decided.
"Well...who's ready to order? I'm starving!" Howie changed the subject. We flagged down a waitress, and took our orders. We talked a little bit, until we finally recieved our orders, which we proceeded to eat. When we finished eating, the men paid the bill, then we left. (Not before saying goodbye to the Hansons, of course.)
Once upstairs, the guys began to pack things up to be on their way. We weren't leaving the hotel tonight, but they needed to take a majority of their things down to the venue so that they could use them before the concert. They were scheduled to be out at the venue by noon, even though there was nothing they could really do there but chill out backstage while everyone else hustled around. I didn't want to go down there because I knew it would make me feel horrible, once again, so I decided to stay with the Hansons instead of going anywhere.
"Hey Steph! How's it goin?" Kevin asked as he walked past me in the hall. I was sitting against a wall, watching everyone running around, piling stuff up onto the rack/cart/dolly thingies.
"Pretty good! Happy Valentine's Day, Kev!" I hollered. He threw his stuff in a pile on the floor, then turned around and jogged back to me. His face seemed to be lit up with happiness.
"You'll never guess what Dani gave me for Valentine's Day!" he exclaimed.
"WHAT?!" I cried, smiling at him.
"A book of about 100 completed songs she's written over the years!" Kevin told me. I looked at his face closely and suddenly noticed the puffiness in them. He had been crying. Or, to put it lightly, tearing up.
"Oh you big teddy bear!" I giggled. "Kev that's so sweet. I dunno what I'm gunna give D. Probably some boxers with hearts all over them."
"Steph....when are we ever going to get you to be somewhat romantic?" he sighed.
"Probably never. I don't even think it's worth the try anymore," I teased him. "Now go and get ready Kev!" He laughed, gave me a hug, then got up and left. I put my headsets back on and began to rock out to my old Hanson live cd. Just then, Isaac walked by with a bucket of ice. "Ike! How much longer do I have to wait till I can buy your new album?"
"Um, I think we're setting a release date for springtime," he informed me, after stopping.
"Well I hope it comes soon, because I'm tired of listening to the old albums!" I joked around. Isaac smiled.
"Hey at least you're listening to them! That counts!" he cried.
"Oh so true. Can't wait till we can just chill, again!" I exclaimed. "But I'll let you go cuz I bet someone's in the room, waiting for the ice. Bye Ike!" Isaac said goodbye, then kept on his way toward the door. Just then, somebody kicked my thigh. I looked up and saw Nick. Amy was beside him.
"What are you doing down there?!" he asked, his voice reaching a unbelievable high.
"I'm resting," I told Nick, throwing in a little attitude.
"Woman! Get up!" Nick exclaimed.
"Man! No!" I shouted back. Amy laughed.
"Leave the girl alone, ya big loser!" she cried. I smiled at her.
"Don't make me kick you with my good leg!" I threatened. Nicky laughed hysterically.
"Yeah...sure!" he said. To show him up, I began thrashing my left leg around, trying to hit his shin. I nailed it. "OWWWWW!!" Nick wailed.
"Shows you!" I declared. Amy giggled, then said she was going to take Nick back to their room, and they left.
"HEY GIMP!" I heard a small voice holler at me. Theresa ran down the hall and sat down next to me without stopping. "Guess what?!"
"Hey Theresa! What?" I wanted to know.
"Me and Joe are getting married!" she told me excitedly.
"NO WAY!" I cried.
"Uh huh!!! He proposed last night! As soon as the tour is over with, we're gunna get married!" the one known as Mouse told me. I gave her a hug.
"That's so awesome! I'm so happy for you girl!" I exclaimed.
"Well I gotta get goin. We're leavin in a few minutes and I don't have anything packed!" Theresa informed me. I told her I'd see her at the venue, then watched as she walked away.
"SIIIIIIIIIISSSSSSSSS!!!!!" Jammer yelled as she walked past Theresa.
"BLUUUUUUUUUUUEEEEE!!!" I called back. She cracked up. A while back, I had vowed to call her Blue because we had shared that corny song as our little song. Whenever we'd get together, we'd rock out to "Blue (Labadi Labada)."
"How's the knee, my dear Gimpy?" Yvianna wanted to know.
"It's hurtin, but oh well. I think I'll manage," I told my adopted little sister. "But you gotta go get ready so I won't hold you back. I'll see you tonight okay?"
"Okie dokie! Bye Gilli!"
"Hey Gilli!" Geez. Traffic was really getting heavy today. Lindsay, Shivani, Jacquie, and Renee walked by, duffle bags in hand as they made their way to the elevator.
"Hey guys! You leavin?" I asked.
"Yup, gotta get goin to set up and stuff," Jacquie, one of Courteney's back-up singers told me.
"Have fun! I'll see you all later!" I called as they walked back. The four turned their heads in my direction and waved at me, before disappearing around the corner to where the elevators were located. Courteney and Theresa were not far behind them. "You better hurry up! Your bus is about to leave without you!" I hollered as they jogged past me.
"I know I know!" Courteney yelled back.
"Are you tormenting everyone?" Zac asked, his head poking out of their room.
"But of course!" I answered. He immediately came out of the room and started to walk towards me.
"I wanna do it too," Zac told me.
"You're welcome to join me!" I said as he sat down beside me. Just then, Dani, Melanie, Niki, Kris, and Teresa walked by.
"Ohhhhhhhhhh look at the hotties! OWWWWW!" Zac howled, whistling afterwards. The dancers all gave him death glares. The two of us busted a gut. Following closely behind them were Reggie, Sleepy, Fly, Tone, and Richmond. "Yo homies! How's it goin, foo?" Zac asked, with a gangster-wanna-be tone of voice. They all gave him looks like he was insane.
"Zac, you are insane," I sighed.
"ME?!" he asked, shocked. "NEVER!!!" I hit him with my hat. Zac laughed, trying to shield himself from the hat as I kept bombarding him. Kevin, Brian and Amanda, AJ, Howie, and Emily all walked by, watching me brutally attack the youngest of Hanson. Howie stopped in his tracks and waited for me to stop hitting Zac before he attempted to say anything to me.
"I'm goin, babe," he said to me, squatting down in order to be level with me. We exchanged a kiss and I said goodbye.
"Oooooo she's dating a Backstreet Boy....wonder if Taylor knows..." Zac cooed.
"Shut up you big loser!" I cried.
************************************************
"Oh my gosh this place is so cool!" Avery exclaimed as we made our way through the stadium. It was but 45 minutes until showtime, so we had plenty of time to chill out. The stage was built, the sound was checked, the moves were rehearsed. Now, all they had to do was move the costumes to the space underneath the stage so they could all change easily. It was crowded, but convenient.
"Come on Ave! Let's go!" Taylor called back at his sister, who had stopped in her tracks. Jessica turned around and walked back to her sister, grabbed her arm, and began to pull her back toward our little group.
"Jess! I've been here before! I know where the backstage is located!" Avery cried.
"Oh just come on, please? Avie?" Isaac asked as nicely as he could. She sighed deeply and stopped struggling with her older sister. "Besides, you get to come back out here in a little bit okay?"
We got backstage and everyone was hustling about, getting ready for the meet-n-greet, which was about to take place.
"Wow there are like ten thousand more people back here than when you guys have concerts!" Jessica noted.
"That's what happens when you need a backup band, backup dancers, makeup and wardrobe people, and all that other stuff," Isaac explained. As Tom and Marc walked by, I looked over at the girls and reminded them to put on their backstage passes. They had been so wrapped up in everything else that they had forgotten to put them around their necks. I didn't have my Hanson hat on; had left it in the hotel room. Just then, AJ walked by and stuck a hat on my head.
"Found 'em the other day. Just what we always wanted," J told me as he showed me the purple hat he was holding. It was a baseball cap that said "Dopey" on it. I took my red baseball cap off and saw that it had the word/name "Happy" scrawled across it. "Look at the back. It has their faces right about the adjustable strap." I laughed when I checked out the different aspects of the hat.
"Thanks Bone! This is so tight!" I reached up and gave him a hug. "Hey. This is Avery and Jessica Hanson. They wanted to come chill out with you guys for a little bit before the show."
"Really? Come with me. I'll talk ya to the rest of the guys," Bone told them. The girls followed him as they all took off in the direction of the boys' dressing room.
"Well well well...it's just the four of us now..." Taylor brought up.
"Nah I'm gunna go find that arcade room!" Zac declared, leaving us. We watched as he disappeared down the hall in the opposite direction of his sisters.
"Oh well...guess it's just the three of us now..." Taylor stated. Isaac made a slight motion and Tay turned sharply toward him. "You're not leaving us are you?!" He seemed almost desperate in his tone.
"Well if you really want me to, I'll go find something to do..." Ike mumbled, looking at his brother strangely.
"Nah it's cool. Let's go...explore the place," Taylor suggested. I sighed as we made our way around the place, meeting people and talking to people. The guys even talked to some of the fans who had been around for the meet-n-greet with the BSB. When it came time for the girls to go watch the show, Ike, Tay, and Zac chose to stay backstage and keep me company, as none of us were too interested in watching the show. We took a small tour around the area just to waste time, took a few spins in the golf carts, played arcade games, even had drag races with the golf carts. Taylor and I won. But I vowed never to ride in a car with him driving. He nearly tipped our cart over!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"When are you guys leaving?" I wanted to know, as we sat on a few couches and chairs, drinking sodas and waters.
"Tomorrow afternoon. We're scheduled to get back in the studio for finishing touches of one of our last songs before we determine which will go on the album and which won't," Isaac explained to me.
"Really? I have had so much fun with you guys the past few days!" I told them, said that they would have to leave me the following day. "Lemme get you guys my cell number and addresses so that we can keep in touch. Hold on a sec. I'm gunna find something to write with." I got up and hobbled around the room, until I found a pad of paper and a pen. Kevin's pad. He had been writing lyrics onto it. I quickly folded the paper with the lyrics on it over without reading them, and began to write my information on the next fresh piece of paper for the guys. Then I handed them the pad and asked them to write their information down for me. Being in the music business, we all knew how to remain secretive by not giving anybody's email address out, knowing who to trust. We famous ones were almost like a cult. Taylor wrote down their information down on the paper, then handed it to me with a smile. I tore the paper off the pad, then put the pad and pen back where I had found them, knowing Kevin would go ballistic if they were out of place.
"I'm going to miss you guys so much. If we don't run into each other again...oh what would I do..." I joked.
"We'll keep in contact. Promise..." Taylor declared.
"Tight!" I exclaimed, just as everyone started rushing backstage. Zac walked back to us, surrounded by Courteney's dancers.
"Found myself a few lovely ladies..." he sighed.
"Oh you pimpdaddy you," I teased him. Zac threw his arms across the girls' shoulders and began to walk like a pimp would. "WAIT! Where's the camera?!" I suddenly remembered. Lindsay walked by and handed me the polaroid. I smiled and thanked her, then turned around to face the boys. "Picture time!"
"You want me to take them Steph?" Linds asked. I handed her the camera, then Taylor had me sit on his knee as the four of us too pictures. Before long, Avery and Jessica came walking back with Q. They joined us in the pictures. We took enough pictures for everyone, then the girls took some with the Boys. Finally, it was time to leave. I gave the Hansons all hugs, then watched as they turned and walked out the backstage door. My heart dropped a tiny bit as I watched my newfound friends leave. Just then, two muscular arms wrapped themselves around me. I recognized Howie's arms and began to laugh.
