Chapter Seventeen

Nick was dribbling the basketball around the buses when Kevin and Dana arrived.

“Sorry we’re late,” Kevin called out.

“Nothing new,” Nick said, running past. “Hey, guys, Kev and Dana are here!”

AJ, Brian and Megan emerged from the bus to see Kevin struggling to pull an enormous suitcase from the backseat of a cab. Dana saw Megan and waved.

“Are you ready for this?” she asked excitedly.

“Oh hell no.”

“What do you have in here?” Kevin hollered, finally pulling the suitcase free. “Gold?!”

“My makeup and accessories,” Dana answered simply.

“What?” AJ cried, helping Kevin load it into the bus. “Megs, did you bring makeup?”

“I don’t wear makeup.”

Nick, AJ, Brian and Kevin turned to stare at her.

“Quit looking at me!” she shouted.

“It’s true, guys. She’s beautiful all the time. Even wearing that,” Dana pointed out.

Megan looked down at her t-shirt and jeans. “I like to be comfortable.”

Howie and Denise came up behind them. “We’re all loaded up. Ready to hit the road?” she asked.

“Yeah!” the Boys cried.

“Mom, this is Megan,” AJ introduced proudly. “Megan, this is my mommy!”

Denise McLean rolled her eyes and then hugged Megan. “He’s such a baby sometimes. But I’m very pleased to see he’s found a beautiful and very smart woman who can put up with him.”

Megan returned the hug and smiled. “Actually, he’s the one putting up with me. I’m a bit of a handful at times.”

Denise laughed nodded. “A perfect match then. Well, let’s get this show on the road, shall we?”

Everyone began boarding their buses.

“Isn’t your mom riding with us?” Megan asked.

“Nah, she prefers the band bus. More mature, or something like that.”

After everyone was inside, the bus driver, Brad, closed the doors and shouted, “Let the fun begin!”

They started moving and Megan latched onto AJ’s arm.

“You’ll be fine,” he assured her. “It’s really not that bad.”

Nick and Brian headed straight for the back to play a game. Howie turned on his laptop to check his email. Kevin, Dana, AJ and Megan sat in the living room area and started to doze.

But Megan didn’t want to doze. She poked AJ in the ribs and whispered, “Now what?”

“We catch a nap.”

“But I wanna play.”

AJ looked at her and smiled. “We could go test my bunk out.”

“Otay!” She leapt from the couch and headed for the beds with AJ close behind.

Kevin and Dana were already asleep on the other couch. AJ pulled back the curtain to reveal his bed and Megan slid in and began to sing.

“If you lay down, lay down beside me...”

“You can get all inside me. I can get all inside you, too,” he continued, climbing into the bunk with her. Then he pulled the curtain closed.

Megan thought she heard snickering and tried to ignore it. When it continued, followed by a snort, she opened her eyes to see Nick and Brian’s faces peeking in at her and AJ. Brian yelped and pulled Nick away. Then Megan saw what they were laughing at - AJ’s hand covering her breast. She sat up too quickly, forgetting the low ceiling, and smashed her head.

“Son of a bitch!” she screamed, pushing AJ away from her. He toppled onto the floor with a startled cry. Megan jumped from the bunk, gripping her head and howling like a banshee.

Nick and Brian ran for the front of the bus, fearing for their lives now. Howie came back to see what was going on and found AJ on the floor.

“Did I come at a bad time?”

Megan flew into his arms crying, “Cut it off! Cut if off!”

“AJ, what the hell did you do?” Howie demanded, guiding her away.

Confused, AJ got up and followed. Megan collapsed on the couch opposite Kevin and Dana.

“What happened?” Dana asked.

“I bumped my head.”

Howie handed her an ice pack, which she accepted gratefully.

“How bad is it?” AJ asked, sitting down next to her and feeling for bumps. “Found one.”

“Owie!” she told him, swatting his hands away. Then she began to look for the two rats that she knew were around somewhere. She spotted them trying to hide under the table. “You are sooo dead. D-E-A-D!”

The two exchanged fearful glances and then Brian declared, “It was Nick’s idea!”

“You liar!”

The bus chose that moment to slow and then stop. “Lunchtime!” Brad yelled.

Brian and Nick bolted for the door.

“Mickey D’s, my haven,” AJ said, helping Megan up. “Can you walk?”

“Yeah, but go slow.”

Denise saw Megan leave the bus with the ice pack and hurried over. “What happened?”

“She bumped her head in my bunk,” AJ explained.

“In your bunk?”

“Yeah...er...um...”

“Do you need a doctor?” Denise asked.

“No, I’ll be okay. Nothing a bottle of Tylenol can’t cure.”

They walked towards the restaurant, surrounded by bodyguards. It was a huge crew of people, and Megan was awed to be in the middle of it. They ordered their food and then took it back to the bus, away from the curious stares of the employees.

“So this is life on the road?” Dana asked, picking at her burger. “Greasy food?”

“Yeah,” Nick said. “Ain’t it great?”

“Aww, Dana, it’s okay,” Megan tried to comfort her friend. “I’m sure you’ll only gain about...five or six pounds on this trip.”