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| Subject: *Elicpse* Part Six....Poor Chris! | |
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Author: Kira |
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Date Posted: 16:19:52 06/04/02 Tue Chapter Five~ The Flower of Alexandria It was raining. Water that saturated the silver clouds brimmed over the jeweled lining, descending to earth. Splashing, dripping, pouring down from the sky adding another layer of quiet to the twilight. Alexandria paid the taxi driver and stepped out in the rain, smiling because she had forgotten her umbrella, but spent another sleepless night braiding and beading her long hair. She tugged her two large bags out of the trunk of the cab and began waddling down the large lot. The bags were cumbersome and awkward and Alexandria was not as strong as she used to be. She dropped them on the ground, dotted sporadically with puddles and rubbed her stomach as she felt a twinge a pain. Closing her eyes, she drew in a deep calming breath and grabbed the handles of one of the bags, hoisting it off the ground. With careful steps, she began walking towards the impressive row of twenty one busses that simply housed the traveling crew of the tour. The tractor- trailers had left two days ago to meet them in Jacksonville. “You okay?” Justin called, walking over with his umbrella. Alexandria lifted her head and nearly dropped her luggage. Justin was wearing his pajamas-long navy blue pants with peppered with stars and a yellow and a ratty Memphis sweatshirt. “You’re in your jammies, Justin.” “Yes, I am. Everyone is.” “I must have missed the memo.” “It’s 4 am…you’re probably the only one dressed,” Justin exclaimed, bending down, easily picking up Alexandria’s bags. “I can carry my own bag, Justin.” “Yes, you were doing a real bag up job.” Alexandria took Justin’s umbrella, holding it over herself as well as him. “You’re not supposed to be carrying heavy things anyway,” Justin responded as he led the way to their bus. Alexandria’s eyes narrowed and she gaped at him hotly. “Excuse me?!” she snarled. “My step-mom couldn’t carry anything heavier than like ten pounds for two months…ya know, after,” Justin whispered. “Which bag you want on the bus with you?” “The green one.” Justin loaded the other one into the luggage rack underneath the bus and Alexandria glared up at him. “Look, let’s get one thing straight, Justin. You knowing about this doesn’t change anything. It doesn’t change the fact that I am a member on this crew and I want to be treated like everyone else. I don’t want you throwing this up in my face. This is between you and me and no one else. You can’t keep doing this, okay?” Justin licked his lips. “I’m sorry. It’s just southern chivalry,” his lips parted in a motion filled with charm and Alexandria couldn’t help but swoon. Her cold, defensive shroud dissolved at the playful, charismatic gleam mirrored in blue depths. A truly feminine blush coupled with a sweet smile blessed her face and she sighed, frustrated that just a simple action could melt her well-established emotional buffer. “Stop it with the accent.” She fought not to giggle. Justin was about to continue the truly unique conversation, but his eyes lit up and he jerked away from the bus and placed his hands on Alexandria’s shoulders to steady her. “I’ll see you on the bus okay! Great!” he took off through the world drenched in rain. Alexandria whirled around to witness Justin sauntering up to his family and Britney, embracing them all. With a quick glance around the bus’s area, she saw that all the guys were standing in the middle of their families talking, laughing, hugging, kissing. With a forlorn whimper, she stepped onto the bus. ** Alexandria sat indian style on the small couch in the front of the bus. Her left hand clasped the fountain pen pensively as she gathered her thoughts. She opened her bound collection of thought to the green satin bookmark and uncapped the pen. Her usually long, beautiful script was a bit shaky from the constant motion of the bus. “I have no one to blame but myself. Today, at four am, in the twilight, everyone was hugging their loves ones. All of the guys were standing in huge clusters of their loved ones and I’m just standing there. Alone. No Mom, no twins, no one. I thought doing this, coming to California and applying for this job would help me- and it has in some ways, but in more ways it’s just making me realize what I’m missing. But still, the thought of going home, back to all that is just…my hands turn cold just thinking about it. I can’t yet. Maybe I can visit. I know we’re going there on the tour…or nearby. I’m not quite sure…ugh, I hate to admit this, but I miss my mom…” Chris plopped down next to Alexandria, whimpering dismally, laying his head on her slender shoulders. Alexandria’s eyes quickly flicked to the side to see if Chris was at all interested in her words, but his eyes were closed serenely. Dark lashes brushing against alabaster cheeks. Capping her pen, her golden eyes remained trained on the older man. Her full lips curved upward as she noticed faint, throngs of freckles dotting his cheeks just below his eyes. Her hand swept upwards, plunging into his thick brown tufts and her fingers gently scratched the scalp that smelled of honey and vanilla. “You used my shampoo?” “Yeah,” he murmured sleepily. “Why?” Chris snuggled up to her shoulder, pressing his nose into the nape of her neck and sighed. “Smells good. Bought some.” Alexandria rested her head against his, feeling completely at ease with the closeness. Chris was soft and warm, plush against her right side. He seemed to know when she needed distance and solitude and when she yearned for a simple touch, a soothing caress. “You must be incapable of complete sentences before five am, huh?” she kidded quietly as she began writing again. “Nope. Eleven.” Alexandria and Chris sat in silence, swaying with the incessantly peaceful rocking of the bus. The freshly risen sun poured into the bus like the smell of baking bread spreading through a small home. The glittering light washed over the small table and brightly-colored carpets. Everyone on the bus was sleeping. Justin and Britney were curled up in the back lounge. Pillows and down blankets covered the floor and their playful giggles soon changed into quiet, rhythmic snores. JC was obviously asleep, one slack arm dangling out of the bunk. The curtain nearly stapled closed. Alexandria assumed Chris was sleeping as well and jumped slightly when he spoke. “You know what’s strange?” “No,” she felt compelled to whisper. “I’ve never seen you eat besides that one night in the hotel room.” Alexandria smiled involuntarily. “That’s because I store food in my cheeks like a squirrel.” “When the hour is godly, we’re stopping at Mickey D’s. What do you want?” “You mean you’re laying here thinking about my eating habits?” “No, I was thinking about food ‘cause I’m hungry and you’re my pillow. You do the math.” Alexandria sighed, setting her journal on the cushion next to her. “I don’t want anything.” “Cool, I’ll surprise you,” Chris grinned. ** Alexandria stepped out of the McDonald’s ladies room, shouldering her large bag before stepping to the counter. She stood on her tiptoes, searching for the jittery teenager that took her enormous orders and she signaled that their food was ready. Alexandria took the eight large bags, after collecting a hefty supply of condiments and staggered to the exit. After milling through several grease soaked bags, she found the several of her bags and handed the rest to Lonnie and Mike. Stepping onto her bus, she placed the food on the table and began searching through it. JC stumbled out of his bunk, rubbing his long waves, eyes squinting with sleep. “Why couldn’t we go to a dinner and get some steak and eggs, man?” he grumbled picking up his hotcakes from the counter. “Because this is better than that crap. You’ll never be able to spaz on stage if you eat that heavy shit,” Chris explained. Alexandria crumpled up the bags, throwing them in the trash, wiping the grease off her hands with a napkin. “Like this stuff is any lighter? It’s gross.” Chris sat on the couch with his two Egg McMuffins and shoved the rest of his salted hash brown in his mouth. “That’s why I got ordered you a yogurt thingie. With fruit and granola and a sausage and egg sandwich, it’s good!” Alexandria picked up her large container of yogurt and sat next to him. “You think I’m eat that?” “I know you’re eating it. Watch. I’ll put some jelly on it and squish it together like show and take a bite,” Chris handed her the sandwich and Alexandria eyed him disgustingly. “Come on. Martha Stewart will never have this on her show.” “Chris, I can’t.” She nearly laughed at the determination etched in his face as he peeled the paper away from the sandwich and held it at the sides. “Okay. Here’s the deal, Blossom, you take a bite and I’ll take a bite. Come on. Live a little.” Alexandria rolled her eyes and dropped her shoulders, relenting. “Okay.” She closed her eyes, leaning closer to the sandwich, where she could smell the spiced sausage and rich biscuit. Her teeth sank into it and she opened her eyes as Chris pulled away, licking the jelly off his lower lips. She chewed, cautiously tasting. Chris grinned and nodded knowingly. His mirthful brown eyes dancing as she eased back, taking the sandwich from her hands. “It’s good.” “Told you. Here, finish this,” he shoved the end of his second hash brown in her mouth. Alexandria giggled in shock, licking the salt and syrup off his finger. Chris arched an eyebrow, but said nothing, instead he tore off another piece and gently guided it to her mouth, slipping his finger past her berried lips. She snagged the fried potatoes with her teeth. She’d never tasted anything so delicious. ** Alexandria leaned back in her chair, crossing her legs as she shielded the sun from her eyes. The tour manager was talking to everyone about what precautions to protect themselves from the heat as well as how to work safely around the massive set construction. Alexandria was brimming with anxiety. The nerve-racking, fast-paced chaos of her profession began today. She was excited, eager to begin, yet frightened and praying she wouldn’t make a mistake. Of course she would be thrown into her first real job during the biggest tour of the summer. She rolled her eyes with a lilting ambition as the meeting ended. She stood up, brushing the grass off her blue jean skirt hurriedly began walking around the set construction. She put on her hard hat as she passed through the piles of metal stage supports, weaving through the clusters of workers and into the hallways of the back of the venue. Heading to the break room, she sat down at tiny desk and flipped through Chris’ date book and made sure that she was aware of all of his appointments and all the traveling arrangement had been made. After scheduling a several flights to New York and home as well as the transportation, she returned a call to Marla Samuels about a charity organization event. “Ms. Samuels? It’s Alexandria Kinsington calling on behalf of Chris Kirkpatrick. Good afternoon. I got your call about the event in Boston,” she exclaimed cheerfully. “Oh, hello! I didn’t think you’d return my call.” Alexandria sat back. “I talked to Chris about it and he wanted to find out more about the event before we’d see if it would fit in his schedule. We are in Boston at the end of May, but the schedule is pretty tight.” “I understand. It’s a charity event. You know ridiculously priced tables and food, but it’s to raise money for a local group home here in Boston. We’re trying to get some big celebrities there and we really, really need Chris. I have a feeling that if Chris’ name is on the roster, the others will soon follow.” “I understand. Um, can you fax me some information on the group home and I’ll look it over and call you tomorrow?” “Really? Yes, that would be great. Seriously. You don’t know what this means to me.” Alexandria smiled as she rattled off the fax numbers and hung up the phone. ** Joey picked over his plate of assorted meats and cheeses, wrinkling his nose distastefully. The older brunette eyed the food cart nearly twenty feet across the quiet room and his shoulders sank. Muttering a slew of profanity, he shoved a floppy piece of ham into his mouth. Throwing his head back on the couch pillows, he couldn’t help but close his eyes and let his mind, laced with constant pain, wondering back to that day. When he was overzealous and goofing around. When he wasn’t paying attention to the instructors. When he let his pride and his raw exhilaration overwhelm the past six years of training and experience. Now, he was moments away from the first concert of the biggest tour in history and he couldn’t savor the elated tingle of success and go about his normal pre-show ritual, instead he had to rest and pray that his threshold for pain had intensified since the last time he was seriously injured. He wiped the grease from the ham on his mesh shorts and tossed the plate on the small table in front of the couch. Slipping his headphones over his head, he did his best to relax. Through the haze of music, he watched Chris enter the room and grab a bottle of juice from the large cooler and a bag of pretzels. Alexandria entered the room and with a flick of his fingers, Joey turned off the music and listened to the conversation. “Hey, Chris. I got a call from a woman that works for a group home in Boston and she really wants you to come to this charity ball that she’s planning. I really think you should go and make a donation for FuMan. Maybe you could donate some clothes to the kids,” Alexandria spoke excitedly as she pushed her beaded braids over her shoulder. “Oh, you called her back?” Alexandria nodded and she pulled out several pieces of paper that had been highlighted and notes were scrawled in the margins. She pushed Chris into the chair and set the paper in front of them, leaning over his shoulder. “A group home is politically correct for an orphanage. All the children there are between the ages of twelve and seventeen. They’ve been through some horrendous things Chris. From living in cars from being beaten with a shovel. All this woman is asking for is for you to make an appearance. But I think you can do better than that,” Alexandria stated blunted. Chris arched an eyebrow and pursed his lips curiously. “I called Dani and she checked and there’s a surplus from the winter line. You could donate that and for the boys you could get like some play stations or footballs or something…what do you think?” Chris gazed into Alexandria’s eyes and fought not to smile at the joy that was gleaming from the two hazel pools. He simply stared for a few sainted moments, just memorized the look of pure LIFE in her face. She was beautiful in a unique way- it was more apparent the more Chris knew her. Every time she revealed the tiniest piece of herself, she became more attractive, she blossomed before him and the mirth that she was displayed now, was just another pedal to the flower of Alexandria. “When is it?” Chris stammered, blinking. “This charity thing, when is it?” “Um, May 30th, in Boston, at the Urban Center. It starts at 9pm and goes to whenever…” Chris sighed and rifled through the pages, briefly glancing at all the notes written in the margins. His eyes then wafted to her and he saw her more elated than he ever had in the weeks since she joined the NSYNC front. “It fits into your schedule, if we rush just a tiny bit.” She added lamely. Chris grinned. “Set it up, sweetheart.” Alexandria dove in his arms, nearly sending both of them toppling to the floor. “Are you serious?” she giggled. Chris’ arms snaked around her waist and he whispered in her ear. “Of course, Blossom. I bet if you hit up JC and Justin, they’d come too. JC loves donating money…he hates being rich…” Chris chuckled against her cheek. Alexandria kissed Chris quickly on the lips. “Thank you!” she squealed before running from the room. Joey found himself laughing, his façade of ignorance broken as he watched Chris’s eyes follow the young woman out of the room. “What’s so funny, Gimp?” Chris snapped playfully. “You dig her,” Joey said, arching his neck to catch Chris’ reaction. The smile faded from his lips and he shook his head, popping a handful of pretzels in his mouth. “No, sir. I do not dig her. I don’t bury her either.” “Ugh, I hate it when you play your word games, Chris.” “I hate it when you talk like you were raised by wild bores, JOEY!” Chris mimicked. “Stop being so defensive. I’m merely stating the facts. You are smitten with the Alexandria-kitten. You like her, Chris. That isn’t a crime, it’s natural. She’s a hottie, man.” “I hate that word. I loathe it, seriously.” “What is with you? A second ago, you were blushing and smelling Dria’s hair and now you’re dissecting my vocabulary.” Chris ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. “She’s been the first since Dani, Joe…it’s a bit freaky.” Joey’s perturbed expression softened and he swung his injured leg off the pillow, shifted uncomfortably on the cushions. “I’m sure it is, but it’s natural. She’s a great person. A little mysterious at times, but she really is wonderful. What’s so wrong about that?” “I’m an old man, Joe. I’m going to be thirty and she’s what twenty-three?” Chris explained as she plopped down next to his younger friend. “I mean, it would make sense if she hooked up with JC or even Justin, but me? That’s not how it works. I’m just the old-foggie-clown of the group,” he resigned sadly, running his fingers over his lips. He swallowed in a haze of thoughtful sadness. “I’m not good enough for her…” [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ] |
| Subject | Author | Date |
| Re: *Elicpse* Part Six....Poor Chris! | Gina Z. | 18:21:47 06/04/02 Tue |
| Re: *Elicpse* Part Six....Poor Chris! | Kimmie | 00:21:45 06/11/02 Tue |
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