Early the next morning, I awoke with a pounding headache. Rolling over, I unwrapped Justin's arms from around me and walked to my purse, pulling out a bottle of Advil. I downed a few, grimacing as a ray of sunlight hit my face. The phone rang from where it lay, on top of the bedside table. I quietly and quickly moved to pick it up, looking at Justin to see if his slumber had been disturbed. He was sleeping like a baby, his curls matted down, lumpy and a mess. I smiled at his child-like features.
"Hello?" I said into the phone, walking away from the bed, and moving towards the window to stop the blinding sunlight from filtering in.
"Hey sleepy head… And just where did YOU go to in such a hurry last night?" Brian's voice chimed loudly.
"Jesus, man… Can you talk any louder?" I held my head in pain.
"Oh yeah, I forgot how much you drank," Brian laughed.
"Ha Ha, not funny," I said. I heard talking in the background. "Who's there?" I asked sitting down on the edge of the bed.
"Huh? Oh, it's the TV… nobody's- OH MY GOD!" Brian blurted out.
"What happened?" I asked.
"Turn on MTV," he said. "NOW."
I reached for the remote and turned on the TV, flipping to MTV. I stopped abruptly when I saw a picture of Justin and I outside of the club, obviously taken the previous night. We were up against the limo, mid-kiss, and completely groping each other.
"Holy Sh…" I was interrupted by the voice of Kurt Loder, "Millions of teens around the world are in shock today, since this picture, and more, have surfaced from *N SYNC's after party last night. Justin Timberlake, the 22 year old heart throb of *N SYNC was spotted last night with 20 year old Shelly Baker, who some might know from *N SYNC's opening act, up-and-comer, Eric Grant, for whom she is a singer, dancer, and choreographer. The couple has reportedly been together since early January of this year. Their relationship was supposedly very innocent, and being kept a secret, however, sources say, that these pictures prove other wise."
"Justin! GET UP!" I yelled, hitting Justin's leg, not taking my eyes from the screen.
"Wha…" Justin grumbled, but sat up.
"The couple was leaving a North Carolina club at around 2:30 this morning," Kurt Loder continued. "When this picture was taken. The two then got into their limo, which reportedly did not move from the scene for 45 minutes."
"What the FUCK?!" Justin jumped out of bed.
"Apparently there are more pictures taken from inside the limo, by an unknown source, but these pictures have only been released to a few specific tabloids, all for large amounts of money."
"How the hell did they…" Justin's cell phone rang suddenly. Justin grabbed it from the bedside table. "What?!" Justin yelled, "I KNOW! We're fucking watching it right now! Johnny, who the hell took them?"
I walked into the bathroom to escape Justin's shouting. My head was spinning and I couldn't think. I put the phone, which I realized I was still holding, up to my ear.
"Brian?" I said.
"Yeah, hon," he said soothingly.
"I don't fucking believe this…" I said, tears forming in my eyes.
"Shelly, don't get upset… it's not as big of a deal as Justin and you think. When it came out about me and Leighanne, people eventually accepted it. Seriously, things will die down soon," Brian tried to comfort me.
"Did you even hear what he fucking said, Brian?! There's more pictures from INSIDE the limo! Do you fucking know what happened inside the limo?!" I yelled, sobbing. "I don't give a SHIT if people know about Justin and I… these pictures have nothing to do with out relationship! They could fucking ruin our careers!"
"Shelly! Calm down… it'll be ok," Brian said.
"FUCK!!!" I heard Justin scream, followed by the slamming of the phone.
"I gotta go, Brian." I let the phone slip from my fingers, and opened the bathroom door. I saw Justin's figure slouched against the wall. His shoulders shook, and I could hear him mumbling something. "Just?…" I said, making my way over to him.
"They're fucking everywhere…" Justin lifted his head, revealing his bloodshot eyes and tearstained cheeks. "Johnny told me… The internet… the newspapers… 5 major tabloids printed the pictures…" Justin broke down. He fell into my arms, obbing.
"I'm so sorry, baby," I whispered.
"No, I'm sorry," Justin began to get angry again, and pulled himself from my embrace. "I'm sorry that I thought I could have a serious relationship without it becoming another huge newspaper headline. I thought, for once, people would be able to see us for what we are… in love…" his voice trailed off.
"They will, Justin…" I said, trying to wrap my arms around him.
"No they won't, Shelly… It's too late. The world already has a opinion of, not only us together, but of who we are individually," Justin said, walking from the wall, and past me. "Whether we did something wrong or not, WE'RE the bad guys… Every mother in America thinks of me as an irresponsible pervert now…" Justin sank into the bed, covering his face with his hands. "Oh God… MY mother is gonna see those ictures…" Justin closed his eyes, and shook his head.
I sat down next to Justin and sighed. "What the hell are we gonna do?" I thought.
