Chapter Sixteen

The days passed quickly for Megan. Too quickly. Soon it was the day before she was to leave with the Boys for their tour, and she still had so much to do. AJ and the others had been doing tv interviews all around Florida for the past few weeks, promoting themselves, as if they needed the publicity. She and Kevin had done excellent jobs of avoiding each other whenever possible, and when Dana got back from New York, she was thrilled to learn she would be joining them all on the road. She called Megan daily, asking her what to pack, what to leave behind...

Megan hadn’t even begun her packing yet. It was five pm and she was hastily going over her files, checking to make sure everything was in place, and leaving notes behind for her partners. Jess knocked on the door.

“Come in.”

“Meg?”

“Mmm hmm?”

Jess came inside and stopped at the desk. “What are you still doing here? Shouldn’t you be at home getting ready to leave?”

“I should be. But I have so much left to go over.”

“Things are gonna be fine here without you, everything’s been taken care of. Your job for the next two months is to enjoy yourself.” Jess sighed dreamily. “I wish I was in your place.”

Megan tossed her pen to the desk. “I wonder if this is such a good idea.”

“Are you crazy? Going out on the road with the Backstreet Boys is every girl’s dream come true!”

“That’s just it. I’m not a girl. I’m a full grown woman with a career. And I’m dating a guy six years younger than me. Is there something wrong with this picture?”

Jess sat down in one of the guest chairs. “You and I both know that you may be 28, but you act like you’re four. This is gonna be a blast for you. Have fun. And kiss Brian for me.”

Megan laughed and then noticed the wrapped package in Jess’ lap. “Is that for me?”

“A little going away present,” Jess said, handing it over.

“You didn’t have to.” She unwrapped the gift and smiled. Jess had bought her a diary with a picture of the Boys on it. “That is so cute!”

“This is one of the most amazing things that could happen to a person,” Jess explained. “You have to keep track of all that goes on, and what better way to do it than in your very own BSB diary?”

“Thanks so much, Jess. I promise to write in it everyday.”

“I know you will. Oh, but here, you gotta write with this.” She tossed a pen in Megan’s direction.

“A Millennium pen. How appropriate. The guys are gonna tease me about this, you know.”

“Just threaten to write really bad stuff about them then.”

Megan glanced at her clock. “I really need to pack, and close up my house.”

“Go, I’ll be sure to give all your notes to Curt and Ally. And have tons of fun!”

The two women hugged and then Megan headed for home, humming along with the radio. Her phone was ringing when she entered the house.

“Hello?”

“Megan! It’s me,” AJ said.

“You sound hyper, what’s up?”

“I’m always hyper before a tour. Are you packed yet?”

“Um, no.”

“What?! Meg, we leave at six am! Otherwise known as, the butt crack of dawn.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll be there. Where am I going again?”

AJ sighed, but he wasn’t really angry with her. He was too excited to be annoyed. “The back parking lot at Jive. The big one.”

“Got it. I”ll be there.”

“I suppose I should let you pack, huh?”

“Unless you’d like to do it mentally from your place.”

“Hmm, don’t think that would work too well. I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

“Bye bye.”

They hung up and Megan went upstairs to her bedroom where she started digging through her closet for some kind of suitcase or bag. Butterflies filled her stomach at the thought of being out on the road with them. What would the fans think of her? Would she get bored? Would she want to come home after two days?

What would happen between her and Kevin?

All those thoughts plagued her for the rest of the night and into the morning.

“Miss, we’re here,” the cab driver said, stopping the car. “Miss?” He turned around and saw Megan asleep on the backseat. “Miss?”

She jerked and sat up, blinking rapidly. “Who, what?”

The man pointed out the window. “Are you sure this is the place? It looks like a circus out there.”

Megan peered out the window into the early morning sun. A row of buses and semis filled the fenced in parking lot. People were all over the place, moving equipment and instruments and luggage. The driver was right, it did look like a circus.

“This is the place. Thanks for the ride.” She tossed a twenty in his direction and told him to keep the change.

“Need any help with your bag?”

“Nope, thanks though.” She threw on a baseball cap and a pair of sunglasses and then got out of the car, pulling her single duffel bag with her. Then she turned to face the fence, looking for a way inside.

She didn’t see anyone she knew, so she kept walking the length of it, but she couldn’t find the entrance. Just as she was about to throw her bag over and climb after it, she heard AJ call her name.

“Hey!” she yelled, waving at him.

He ran towards her, grinning like a madman. “It’s day one of the tour!” he said excitedly. “Everyone’s so ready to go, you can just feel it in the air!”

Megan listened to him ramble, wondering if he realized there was a fence between them. When he finally stopped for breath, he just stared at her.

“What?” she demanded.

“You look beautiful,” he said softly.

“Oh Lord, you sound like a goon. And it’s six in the morning, I look like shit. Now how the hell do I get in there?”

“Oh. Yeah, come this way.” He let her inside then offered to take her duffel bag.

“Nah, it’s okay,” she told him.

“Is that all you’re bringing?”

“Yeah, I pack light.”

“Okay, follow me. There’s some people I want you to meet.”

He took her hand and lead her straight into the crowd. She spotted Brian and Nick dribbling a basketball, and Howie with a cell phone attached to his head. “Aren’t Dana and Kevin here?” she asked.

AJ snorted. “Kev’s constantly late. Give him another fifteen minutes.” They stopped at one of the buses where a bodyguard was loading luggage. “This is Marcus, he’s my bodyguard, and this is our bus.”

“Hello,” Marcus greeted her. “Is that your bag?”

“Yeah.”

He took it from her and prepared to toss it into the storage compartment. “Anything breakable in here?”

“Just my Tiffany lamp.”

Marcus chuckled and then pitched it inside. AJ steered her to the steps leading into the bus. “Welcome to our home on the road,” he said. “This is the living room/kitchen area, beware of the fridge. Stove, microwave, couch, table...” He took a step and kicked a bowl. “Tyk’s dish.”

Megan took in the nicely furnished bus with wide eyes. “How much did this thing cost you?”

“Too much. Come on, this way.”

He pulled her towards the back, through a narrow passageway. “This is the bathroom, no shower though. And these are the bunks. Mine’s the middle one to your right.”

“You sleep in those?” she asked, eyeing the tiny spaces. “And I’m supposed to share with you?”

“It’s rather cozy,” he said, slipping an arm around her waist.

“Uh huh. More like claustrophobic.”

“It’s not that bad, you’ll get used to it. And we’ll be in hotel rooms for a lot of the time too.”

“Mind if I take a peek?”

“Go ahead.”

She pulled back the curtain and looked inside. “AJ! It’s a mess in here!”

“What? That’s clean!”

Megan shook her head.

“Hop in, see how it feels. Oh, but make sure your feet face the front.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because if the bus has to make a sudden stop, you don’t want to go headfirst into that little wall.”

“Ouch. Found that out the hard way, did you?”

“Nope,” he said proudly. “But Nick did.”

“So that’s what happened to him...”

“Just get inside.”

She giggled and got into the bunk, being careful not to bump her head. “Oooh, a tv and a vcr. Cool beans.”

“Yo, Bone! You in here?” Brian called from the front of the bus. A tiny bark followed.

“Back here, Bri.”

Holding his precious dog in his arms, Brian poked his head into the hallway and grinned. “I see you’ve found the beds. Why am I not surprised AJ was so anxious to show you those?”

“Haha, very funny,” Megan said, getting out and petting Tyk. “Is Leighanne coming along?”

“She’ll be meeting us in Cleveland tomorrow. She’s not too fond of the bus.”

AJ took Megan’s hand and the three of them continued to the very back.

“This is the rec room,” he said. “That is Nick’s NIntendo, his Sega Dreamcast, and all his games. Touch them, and face the wrath of Kid Nicky.”

Megan snorted. “What’s he gonna do to me?”

“He’ll probably force you to play six million rounds of Mario Cart,” Brian said, rolling his eyes. “And he’ll win every one.”

“What if he loses?”