Part 20

By Pat

AJ was opening the door to his hotel room when he felt a tap on his shoulder and, to no surprise, saw his buddy Howie standing there with a huge smile on his face. “Man, Howie, dude, is there a day I can go someplace without you ever finding out about it?” he asked him as he opened the door.

“Nope, especially when you let Nick and his girl hear your plans. So who is she?” he asked with a sly smile on his face.

“I am not telling you because I know you won’t like it,” said AJ as he lit up a cigarette on the balcony of his hotel room.

“It was Eva, right? Look, I am sorry for the way I acted earlier about her; she actually seems nice, and I had no right to assume things right away. Okay, so come tell me, please!!” said Howie as he took the cigarette out of AJ’s grip and flung out into the air, letting it fall on the pavement.

Hey!! What was that for?” asked AJ as he took yet another cigarette and lit it again, only to again have it taken away by Howie, who did the same to it as he had done with the other one.

"You know I hate smoke, and it’s bad for you anyway," said Howie as he took the rest of the cigarette box from AJ’s hand and dumped it in the waste basket. AJ stopped trying and just sat on the couch in his room. He sighed and looked at his friend; he knew what he said was right, and Howie was his confidant.

“Yeah, she is incredible, man. I had the most normal day in, what, ten years? I mean, I guess the fact that she isn’t a fan helped. She was normal, you know; she didn’t look like she was starstruck. Howie, do you believe in love at first sight?” asked AJ, trying not to sound dumb. He didn’t want his friend to laugh at him, but he did expect it, especially from Howie, Mr. Ambitious, who never really attached to any girl for that reason – it wasn’t what he wanted right now at the peak of his career.

Howie tried hard not to laugh at his friend; he was doing a good job at it too, but he could see in AJ’s eyes that he was falling for this mysterious girl. “You know, AJ, as a matter of fact, I do. I think that you do fall in love at first sight once in your life, and that is when you find your soulmate, your other half, just by seeing inside that person’s eyes. They’re like windows to their soul that you connect with, and you instantly know you are meant to be. Now don’t tell me that is what’s happening with you, AJ - the girls’ man AJ!!” said Howie as he sat next to AJ.

“Well, sooner or later, you have to find the other half, right? I mean, ever since I laid eyes on her, D, I’ve had this warm feeling all over me, and I felt like JELLO when I heard her speak - all the stuff they show on those chick flicks, I felt. It was weird for me, but it’s like, I didn’t care as long as I got to see her. Before she called me to ask me to go out with her, I was planning on how to see her again; it’s like she read my mind,” said AJ.

“SO, how did it go with her anyways, AJ?” asked Howie.

“Well…”

"Hey guys, we are going out to the court yard for some basketball, want to come? That way we can be three to three, even though we shouldn't count Ann as a player; she can't play," said Brian as he twirled his basketball in his hands.

“At this time?” asked Howie.

"Yeah, are you crazy or what?" said AJ.

"Hey, and I so can play, Brian. Not like a pro, but I can, and you are so dead,” said Ann. She knew he was joking; she just continued with the flow.

"Now I have to come and witness this," said AJ, grabbing his sneakers. "Just let me change into the proper attire."

"Well, I guess I could too; give me five minutes to get ready," said Howie, running out the room.

***

Eva was again with Bri at the hospital. It had been a long day at work. She couldn't stop thinking about Leo; she needed him so much, and now he was gone.

She was waiting for her sister to come back from her dialysis when she saw on the TV something that caught her eye. She walked to her sister’s bed and put the volume up just in time to hear what was being said.

"As we all know, the Backstreet Boys are in town, and my, are they happy. We were able to catch two of the boys having a great time with their respective girls. On this clip, you see Nick Carter and his girl of one year on the beach having a great time, but the most shocking was AJ. He was seen in a Mexican restaurant with a young lady who seemed to enjoy the conversation with him very much. They did make lot of eye contact; apparently a first date. Now the question is, what happened to Traci, AJ? Well, we are glad they are enjoying being back after they cancelled the tour in Europe after the horrible incident in which they were kidnapped and taken in a hijacked plane with this man Roberto Acosta, who is now serving time in Australia, and then he will serve time in France for this unfortunate incident, in which Kevin was injured but is back from a fast recovery. ‘We will go back to Europe after the tour here in the US is done.  We just needed some time to relax again and not feel threatened,’ said Kevin to MTV news a couple of weeks ago while being interviewed. We’ll we wish them luck, and now onto other celebrity gossip. Robert de Ni-”

Eva lowered the volume of the TV and walked back to her chair, just in time to see the nurse bring Bri back to the room.

***

"Wow, AJ, I guess you do, but do you know for a fact she likes you that way?" asked Howie after AJ finished his story on the date with Eva.

“Uhm, no,” said AJ. “She constantly let me know I was going to be a great friend. She said ‘oh, you’re such a goofball, you’re not that bad after all, I guess we can have a great friendship,’” said AJ, mocking what Eva had told him. “I felt my heart sink when she said that," said AJ as he stood up and walked to the balcony.

They had talked about it last night but were interrupted by the other guys. They couldn't finish the conversation that night and postponed it for today, and sure enough, Howie found the time to bring it up again. He felt sad hearing his friend; it was apparent that AJ was not used to not having the girl he wanted, but if this was true love, he would have deal with it and try to win her heart.

"That's it!” said Howie. “You can win her heart, AJ. Use your charm. You know, start as friends and slowly win her heart. Look, if she gets to know you more and sees your romantic side, I am sure she will fall. Besides, you think she's your other half, right?"

“Yeah...” said AJ, looking at his friend with doubt.

"Well then, if she is, she WILL fall in love with you when she realizes you’re her other half,” said Howie, becoming silent once again. He couldn't believe he was actually agreeing with AJ. He didn't like Eva, that was for sure, but if his friend did, he had no choice but to ignore his real feelings.

"You know, I like it when you’re smart, Howie. I am going to do exactly that. Now, come, we have to go and meet with the rest of the guys for a quick rehearsal before we head out to the arena," said AJ, grabbing his wallet and phone from his night stand.

***

Eva put down the book she was reading to Bri and sighed as she saw her sleeping. She was loosing a lot of weight. She gently kissed her sister and headed out the door. It was barely 5:00pm; she could call AJ up and see if she could further in her plan to get to him. She left a message for Bri to let her know she would be back tomorrow.

Her cell phone started ringing, and in her caller ID appeared a picture of her and Leo kissing and a message saying, “Pick up; it's your love.” She hesitated to answer, but she had to hear his voice again; she needed to. "Hello?" said Eva, smiling, knowing he had called her.

"You could have told me you traded me for a Backstreet Boy, Eva. That way I wouldn't look like a fool begging you not to dump me.  I guess I was just your toy for entertainment only, and I was so blind, I couldn't see it. Uh, this so hard, but I called you to let you know that I am happy for you, and I can also play that game. I am so over you, Eva Acosta. I wish I would have never met you," was all she heard before a loud click. He had hung up on her after all the cruel words he said. He had the right to do that; she was the one who betrayed him.

Eva couldn't handle this anymore. She walked into her car and sped out to the streets of the town, not caring what she was doing.

"Will you slow down? You’re going to kill us both, you dumb ass!" said Robert, getting up from where he was hiding in Eva's car.

Eva was so surprised, she stepped on the brakes and came to an abrupt stop, making her airbags pop out. After five minutes, she finally got control. She turned to face her dad, who looked hideous. He had shaved his hair and was skinnier, and his beautiful apple green eyes now looked olive green. He looked tired, definitely not the father she knew he could be.

“What are you doing here? You almost made me have a heart attack, Dad!" said Eva, trying to unbuckle her seat belt.

“Let’s just say I have a key to your car. So tell me, how was your encounter with that low-life scum of a Backstreet Boy?” he asked as he made his hands into a fist.

“Well, I.... I got to go out with him, and I was going to be straight-forward and, you know, let him at, but then I decided to take the friend first route. You know, nice and slow so that...” She stopped talking as he signaled her to do so.

"So that it is more believable. I know. Great plan, sweetie; that way I can also have more time to plan this right," he said, smiling wickedly. "Like father, like daughter. I have to go." He opened the door and walked out, but before he could walk further, he heard her say something.

"Yo, Dad, for the record, I am not like you, and the reason I am doing this is Bri, and hell, if I will ever be like you, I wish they would grab you and put you in jail again.  I don't even know you anymore; I want my real father back!" She couldn't believe what she just had said, but the look on her dad’s told her she was going to regret it later.

He just laughed and walked away without another word.