Hello all... and welcome to another installment of "Common People"... you know, I figured that people would ask me where the damn title of the story came from, but no one has... oh well... I'm not really complaining, cause I'd probably get sick of explaining it. Anyway, I know that this chapter deviates from my two week rule, but I figured that no one would really mind if I submitted this thing a bit early. The real reason I am posting this so early is that... well... just go read the author's notes after the chapter to find out... now's not really the time or place. Anyway, as I'm typing this, it's WAY too late (or early, depending on your point of view) for me to be up, so I'm gonna stop yapping now.
Thank you to: Ok... I've decided. No more long lists for this author. If you've emailed me, know that I appreciate it intensely, and I love each and every one of you (awww...). I'm just gonna mention a few stories I think you should read (no particular order here, just typing them out as they come to me): "Twist of Fate" (ok, I know I said I wouldn't mention people, but Jeff's been an enormous help to me as both a proofer and a friend), "Blind Faith" (a BSB story, but still good), "Search and Rescue," "Intimate Stranger," "Brian & Me" (though I almost didn't include that one cause EVERYONE says to go read it), "The Project," "Some Kind of Bliss," and "Magic Can Be Real" (Loner, the author, helped me out with this chapter, as did my great friend, the other Jeff). Everyone else, THANK YOU.
Disclaimer time: If you're under 18, you probably shouldn't be reading this... go get a textbook or something.
This story does NOT mean to imply that anyone in NSYNC is gay... it is a work of FICTION... got it? I mean, if JC was really my lover, do ya think I'd spend all my time writing a story? Huh? Huh? Of course not! This story springs entirely from the demented little place I like to call... my mind.
One last thing: if you like, hate, or are entirely apathetic towards the story, email me about it at sethdropspants@hotmail.com. I have a new slogan: "Seth... he'll eventually email you back!" Whadda ya think? I dunno... it might not be as catchy as the last one... anyway, on with the story!
*** (Last time...)
We laid there in silence for a while, just enjoying each other's company. I tried to put the fact that he was leaving out of my mind, and just enjoy being with him NOW... but my mind doesn't really work like that "What are you thinking?"
"A lot of things, I suppose," I sighed. "But I'll be fine."
"You sure?" I nodded. "Good... so I'll see you tomorrow?"
I laughed. "Ummm... YEAH."
"Good night Toby," he laughed.
"Night Josh."
My alarm went off at 6:00 the next morning. I rolled over slowly and smashed the snooze button. I had forgotten how nice it was to have someone to snuggle up with, to have a warm body next to me while I slept. It was the first really good night's sleep I had gotten in weeks, and quite frankly, I didn't wanna drag my ass out of bed yet. Not that I ever did before noon, but still.
I heard a groan emanate from under the covers to my right. "C'mon Tobe... we have to get up."
"But I don't wanna..." I whined. Immature? Yes. But when I have to get up early, that's the way I am... always have, probably always will be... I think it mostly boils down to the fact that, early in the morning, I don't have all my mental capabilities on hand.
"Tough." Josh crawled out of bed and stumbled towards the door. "Besides... if you don't get movin', you don't get a kiss goodbye."
My stomach dropped a bit when he mentioned saying goodbye, but I didn't want to make him feel any worse, so I tried to ignore it. "It's gonna take a lot more than a kiss to get me out of bed at six in the fucking morning."
He laughed a little. "Is that an invitation?"
I grinned. "Possibly... what are you gonna do about it?"
He sighed. "Unfortunately, nothing right now... we have to get out of here soon. Can I get a rain check on that one?"
"Hmmm... let me think about... YEAH!"
"Well good," he laughed. "Now get up."
"I still don't wanna..."
"You know, you're not a lot of fun in the morning."
I laughed. "Damn right. My 'fun' side doesn't show up until at least 11:00."
He smiled. "I'll try to remember that. I'm gonna go and grab a shower before the other guys beat me to it... but when I get back, I expect you up and moving. We have to be out of here by 7:30."
"Yes, master."
"Good to know you're learning your place so quickly," he laughed, and was out the door.
I rolled back over to try and grab some more sleep when the damn alarm clock went off again. Fucking snooze... I'm generally a heavy sleeper, so I keep the radio on my alarm at full volume. It scares the Hell out of me when I'm asleep, and it's even worse when I'm awake. I groaned, turned the alarm off, and slowly got out of bed. Since the chances of me actually getting into my bathroom to take a shower was practically nil, I decided to hold off on that until after I got back from the airport. So I just threw on some old clothes and headed downstairs. Not seeing anyone around, I decided to grab a smoke while I was waiting. I had just gotten outside and lit up when I heard the door open behind me. I turned around, half expecting to see Josh... but I was sorely disappointed. "Hey Lance."
"Hey Toby... what's up?"
"It's WAY to early for anything to be up."
He laughed. "Very true, very true. Ummm... I was just wondering if you had the CD's for us."
OH SHIT! I knew I forgot something. "Shit man... it completely slipped my mind."
He smiled at me. "Well, you WERE kinda distracted."
"Yeah yeah yeah," I laughed. "I'll go do them now... how many do you think you need?"
"Ummm... I guess around eight or so... one for each of us, and then a couple for Tom and the record company. Can you do that many?"
I glanced at my watch. "Yeah, I think so. Alrighty..." I took one last drag of my cigarette and flicked it into the bushes. "I'll be down in the studio in anyone needs me."
"Cool dude."
I headed inside and downstairs to the basement (where my studio was) and quickly began the burning process. I had a pretty sweet system that could burn entire CD's rather quickly, but I was now working on a deadline of sorts. I would have liked to have slept a bit while the CD's were copying, but I needed to stay awake to change the damn things every few minutes. I sighed and relaxed in a chair. My mind started to drift, and it ended up (big fucking surprise) at Josh. How was I gonna make this work? He was leaving, and I had NO idea when I would, or even could, see him again. Yeah, phone calls and emails were nice, but nothing replaced having him next to me, hugging him... kissing him. And what if he met someone else? What if he decided he couldn't do the long-distance thing? Hell, what if I met someone else? A long shot the way my luck had been running, sure... but still... it could happen.
What if I couldn't do a long- distance relationship? We have so many unknowns here... but I do know I care about him... I care about him a lot... but this was gonna be VERY hard. I needed to talk to him about this... I really did... I wouldn't be sane until I did... but now wasn't really the time. There was no use in getting him upset right before he had to leave.
"Toby?" I looked up from the spot on the wall I had been staring at to see Josh smiling at me from the doorway.
"Hey you."
"Hey yourself." He crossed the room and kissed me. God... I was gonna miss him so much.
"So what's up?"
He looked at his watch. "We have to get outta here if we're gonna catch our plane."
I smiled at him a little. "Well... what if I don't want you to catch your plane?"
He sat down on my lap and ran his fingers through my hair. "Look... I..." he sighed and took a breath. "Leaving is the very last thing I wanna do right now. You know that, right?" I nodded slightly, and he went on. "I'm... I'm very scared about what's gonna happen when I leave... I mean... you're so... incredible... what if you meet someone else who's here?" I laughed a little. "What's so funny?"
"It's nothing... I was just thinking the same thing about you. But I didn't wanna..." I drifted off, rather than finish.
"You didn't wanna say anything cause I was leaving?" I nodded again. "We're different in many ways Toby... but evidently not in our thought processes. I don't... I don't know what to tell you Tobe. Can I guarantee that I won't meet anyone else? No, I can't... but, by the same token, you can't guarantee that either."
"I know..."
"What I can guarantee you is that I care about you tremendously, possibly more than I've ever cared about anyone. I've known you for five weeks Toby... first as a friend, then as a best friend, then as someone I thought I could never be with... and... and finally as someone I COULD be with... I wanna... I wanna get to know you so much more... I wanna spend all my time with you. but."
I finished his thought. "It's not something you can do right now." He shook his head slowly. "And I know that Josh... it's just not gonna be an easy thing to do."
"I know... but... but I believe that if you care enough about a person, you can make it work..." he paused for a second, almost like he was afraid to say something. "Do you... do you care about me?"
"God Josh... YES! I don't think... I don't think I've EVER felt like this about ANYONE... not even... not even Shane." He smiled at me. "I care about you so much Josh... and I know that you care about me... and I think we should... Hell, I think I HAVE to give this a shot. Ok?"
He kissed me on the forehead. "Thank you Toby."
"For what? I'm just telling you how I feel."
"I know. But what you said means a lot to me... A LOT." He sighed and glanced at his watch. "God... I wanna stay here so badly... but I think it's getting to be about that time."
"Alright... we probably should go... but... ummm... you kinda have to get up first." He laughed and stood up. I got out of the chair, grabbed the finished CD's, and headed upstairs with Josh. The guys were waiting for us in the kitchen. When they saw us, they stood up, ready to leave.
"You guys all set?" asked Justin, somewhat hesitantly.
I nodded. "Yeah, I think so. You guys ready?"
Chris spoke up. "Yep... we put all our stuff in the van while you guys were downstairs, so we're ready to get outta here."
"Cool beans." We headed outside and piled in the van. I pulled out of the driveway and began the drive to the airport. I only live about 30-35 minutes from it, and we were a little early, so I kept the speed low. much to the relief of Justin and Lance. I could actually see the nervousness in their faces, and it reminded me of the first day I had met the guys... I went over the events of that day in my mind... the first meeting, the tour around campus, the movie, the conversation with Josh on the front porch... everything was so different then... God... how had my life changed so much in such a short period of time? Before I knew it, I was pulling up to the airport terminal. I sighed. "Well guys... I guess this is the end of the road."
Josh turned to me. "Are you... coming in with us?"
I shook my head. "I don't think I should. If I do, I'll start crying, and people will look at us all weird."
"Ok," he said softly.
"Ummm... I think we're gonna wait for you outside, alright Josh?" Justin asked. He nodded, and the guys piled out and began to grab their luggage from the back.
"I'll be right back, ok?" I asked Josh. He nodded again, and I climbed out of the car and walked over to the guys. "Hey... I don't know what to say to you guys."
Chris smiled. "You don't have to say anything Toby. It was our pleasure."
"Well... at the very least... thank you... I appreciate everything so much... more than I can even describe."
"No problem," Justin said, before pulling me into a hug. Chris and Joey soon followed his lead. "We'll see you soon. Stay in touch, ok?"
"Most definitely. Have a good trip." They waved at me, and headed to the baggage check. I climbed back into the car, where it looked like Josh was having a very hard time. I pulled him into a hug. "It's ok... it's ok," I whispered in his ear, over and over, until he calmed down a bit. "Are you gonna be alright?" He nodded, almost imperceptibly, but I think that's as good of a response as I was gonna get at the moment. Seeing him so upset just upset me even more (and I was already having a pretty tough time) but I tried my damnedest to be strong for him. "It'll be ok... I mean... we'll talk every day, right?" He nodded again. "And we'll see each other as soon as humanly possible, ok?"
"I know... I'm just... gonna miss you so much... I feel like... I feel like I just got you, and now I'm losing you."
"Hey... wait a minute... you're NOT losing me... I don't think you could if you tried... I'm gonna be in your life so much that you'll WANNA get rid of me."
He laughed a little. "Somehow I doubt that."
I smiled at him. "We'll see." I looked over his shoulder and saw the guys standing near the van, and I knew it was time for him to go. "I think this is it."
"I guess so," he said softly. He leaned over and kissed me. We remained like that for... I have no idea... time just stood still every time he kissed me. Finally, he pulled away and opened the door, and climbed out of the car. "I'll talk to you tonight?"
"Try and stop me."
He grinned at me. "Ok... I'll call you around 8:00?"
"Sounds excellent."
He sighed. "Bye Toby."
Wow. This was really happening. He was really leaving. I mean, I knew that it was happening, but it didn't really sink in until he said that. How was I gonna do this? God... be strong Tobe, be strong. "Goodbye Josh." He slowly shut the door and joined the rest of the guys. The last thing I saw as I pulled away was Justin putting his arm around Josh... and Josh looking back at my car with tears in his eyes. I managed to make it back to the highway before I had to pull over... and so I sat there... on the shoulder of a major interstate... crying.
The next two weeks were... were not fun. I had promised a local band, Sorry About Dresden, that I would help them out with their new CD. They were pretty good friends of mine, and a great emo band... but... but my heart wasn't in it, for obvious reasons. All I kept thinking was "Why am I doing this? Why am I not with Josh?" Part of me wanted to just apologize to the guys, and hop on a plane to Orlando and be with him... but I didn't. Why? I don't really know... I guess... I guess a part of me didn't think it was the right thing to do... I mean, I'm not gonna be able to be with him all the time... that just was not going to be possible with our work schedules. I had to get used to not having him around... and sooner was better than later, I do suppose.
This is not to say that I didn't wanna be with Josh... I thought about him pretty much every waking minute... for a few seconds I even entertained the notion of giving up producing altogether and taking a job with Tom... just so I could be closer to Josh. But I wouldn't have been happy then... and then I would have made Josh unhappy, and that was the last thing I wanted to do.
So on we went... we talked every night on the phone... and I mean talked. Each of our conversations lasted at least two hours... but they flew by like it was no time at all. We were running up some huge phone bills, but we were at least splitting the cost, which made it somewhat more doable. I was, truth be told, getting a little concerned about him. His record company (or his manager... I've never been too clear on who actually determines a band's schedule) had the guys running all over the place. First they were in Orlando doing publicity, then New York for MTV, then back to Orlando, then out to California... he always found time to talk to me (even if it was at weird times... we had quite a few conversations past three in the morning) but each time we talked, he sounded more tired and less the Josh that I was used to. I called Tom a few times, trying to get him to intervene and slow things down for them... but there wasn't a whole heck of a lot that he could do.
So this was our relationship for two weeks, and it was beginning to wear on me. I missed Josh so much... I tried to keep myself busy to get my mind off of him, but nothing worked. I finally told the Dresden guys that we were gonna have to stop working for a while... the music we were turning out was crap and I needed some time to figure out how to deal with not having Josh around. They understood, and we decided to break for a week or so... and that was where I found myself now. It was the first day of my "vacation" and I didn't know what to do with myself. I cleaned the house, pounded on a piano, hit the driving range, went shopping... and it was only 4:00 in the afternoon. I just... I just didn't know what to do with myself. I had just gotten back from the mall and collapsed on my bed when the phone rang. I glanced at the clock, but it was WAY too early for it to be Josh. I sighed and picked up the receiver. "Hello?"
"Hey Tobe! What's up?"
"Aaron... how ya doing?"
"Ahh... you remember who I am? I'm impressed."
Ok, that confused me. "Whadda ya mean?"
"Well, I've sent you like 8 emails in the past week or so, but no responses have found their way to my computer."
"Shit... I'm sorry dude... I haven't really been checking email lately. It's just..."
He interrupted me. "It's just that you miss him, right?"
"Yeah," I said quietly.
"Shit man... I wish there was something I could do to make you feel better."
"I know. Me too." I paused, then decided to change the subject. "So what's up with you?"
"Well, if you read my emails, you would know that I'm home."
"REALLY?!?" Finally some good news.
"Whoa," he laughed. "Calm down Tobe. Yeah, I'm home. I take it that you wanna get together?"
"That would be good. I need to..."
"You need someone to talk to," he finished for me. Damn... it really was scary how well he knew me. "I got it, I got it. You wanna grab dinner tonight?"
"That would be excellent. Wanna say Neo-China at 6:00?"
"That would work. Hey... do you mind if I bring Lori?"
"Ummm..." I paused to think about it. Lori was Aaron's wife (although they were both my age, they had been married for over two years now... no one thought they would make it last, but they were, without a doubt, the happiest couple I knew) and a good friend of mine... but I wasn't too anxious to share Josh's little "secret" with another person. Josh still didn't actually know that I'd told Aaron, but I think he figured as much.
"Toby? You still there?"
"Yeah, sorry... just thinking."
"Let me guess... you don't know if you want another person knowing what's up?"
Jeez... did I mention how scary he was sometimes? Either he was psychic, or I was really easy to read... I had yet to figure out which. "Yeah, sorta..."
I heard him sigh. "Tobe, Lori wouldn't tell ANYONE. You know that."
"I know... alright... what the Hell... it'll make dinner conversation kinda interesting."
He laughed. "That it will, that it will."
"Actually, I'm kinda surprised that you haven't told her about it... you usually tell her everything."
"Well, I mean... I figured it wasn't something you wanted spread around, so I kept my mouth shut."
I sighed. It was things like that that made me remember how great of a friend Aaron really was, and how lucky I was to have him in my life. "Thanks a lot dude... so 6:00?"
"Sounds good... we'll be there. Bye Tobe."
"Bye Aaron." I hung up the phone and glanced at the clock. Seeing that I still had about an hour or so before I had to leave, I decided to take a quick shower, since I had neglected to do after I finally got out of bed. By the time that I got out of the shower (you know, I always try to take short showers, but it never works out that way... it just relaxes me too much, and I figured I could use some relaxing today), dried off, and got dressed again, it was about time to leave.
The drive to Neo-China took a while, mostly because it was rush hour and the traffic was absolutely horrible. I didn't mind it too much though... as long as I had a good CD going (and I did... The Juliana Theory's "Understand This Is a Dream"), traffic never bothered me. I pulled into the restaurant's parking lot a little before 6:00. Good... Aaron was always early for EVERYTHING, and he always made me feel bad when I showed up late... which happened on a fairly continuous basis. Sure enough, as I walked into the restaurant, I saw both Aaron and Lori sitting, waiting for me. "Hey guys," I said, trying to sound happy.
They both got up and pulled me into hugs. "Hey Tobe... you're actually early this time... are you feeling ok?" asked Aaron.
"Very funny dumbass." I turned to Lori. "How are you? I haven't seen you in forever."
She smiled and pulled me into another hug. "I know! Things have just been insane lately."
Lori was, I suppose, the typical medical student. In other words, always busy. I had nothing but respect for her though... I could never do it... I was much too lazy. "Sorry to hear that, but not completely a new thing, huh?"
She smiled. "You said it."
"But things are going well?"
"Well, as good as things can go, I guess."
I laughed. "Always the optimist, huh?"
"You know it."
While we had been chatting, I suppose Aaron had alerted the hostess to our presence, since she was standing beside us with menus in hand. We obediently ended our conversation and followed her to a table. Since we ate here on a fairly continuous basis, we were able to order right away. As soon as the waiter had finished, Aaron spoke up.
"So Tobe... spill it."
I sighed. "Well, I guess for your benefit," I said, looking at Lori, "I should start from the beginning."
"That would be nice," she laughed. "I'm actually pretty anxious to hear about this. Aaron told me a couple of weeks ago that something was up with you, but refused to tell me what."
"I hope you made him pay for that." I grinned.
"Most definitely," she said, an evil grin appearing on her face. Oh yes... they were definitely a fun couple.
"Well... where to start? Ummm... I've... I've met someone."
Her mouth dropped wide open, but I could tell she was excited. "That is... that is so great Tobe! I'm so happy for you!"
I smiled. "Thanks... that means a lot."
"So... what's his name? C'mon... I want details!"
"That's where... that's where it starts to get complicated."
"How so?"
"Ok, first... I know you wouldn't, but I need to say this: what I'm about to tell you does not leave this table, ok?" She nodded, a bit confused. "Alright... well... you know the group NSYNC?" She nodded again, slower this time. "Well, it's one of them."
"It's Lance, right? I always thought he was gay... he just looks it... that southern "gentleman" crap never fooled me one damn bit."
I laughed. "Whoa Sherlock... it's not Lance. He's straight."
"It's not? He is?" I nodded. "Well shit." I laughed again. Lori was truly a trip. "So who then?"
"Josh... well, J.C."
"Oh, he's cute!"
"Tell me about it. But... anyway... to make a very long story short, we met about 7 weeks ago, hit it off, became great friends... and then... I started to fall for him. So... I decided to tell him, but before I could do that, he told me that he was falling for me."
She smiled. "That's so precious!"
We all paused as the waiter brought our food to the table. When he had left, Aaron, who had been very silent up to now, chose to get involved in the conversation. "Well yeah... but then Toby went and acted like a dumbass and didn't let himself get involved with Josh."
Lori looked like she was thinking for a minute. "Shane?"
I nodded. "Yeah... but then, with a little help from your incredibly talented husband, I realized how big of an ass I was being and fixed things."
"Go Toby!"
"The problem was that we finally acted on our feelings the night before he had to leave."
She winced. "Ouch."
"Tell me about it. So, about two weeks ago, he left... and that was the last time that I saw him."
"Do you talk to him a lot?"
"Yes. We've talked every day on the phone... but it's... it's just not the same..."
"And now you're all depressed and you don't know what to do, right?" I nodded. "And you've thought about hundreds of different options, including quitting producing and going to be with him right?"
That surprised me. "How'd you know that?"
She laughed. "Toby... what the Hell do you think I've been doing for the last two years or so? Aaron's on the road for a long time... and it gets very hard. I've been through it all."
Now why didn't I think of that? Lori would have been the perfect person to talk to all along... Aaron's gone with his band all the time... and they've made a long distance relationship work. "So how do you guys do it?"
Aaron spoke up first. "There's no great trick Tobe, no magic formula. I'm not gonna lie to you... it's hard. very hard. You just have to keep doing what you're doing now: phone calls, emails, the whole bit... is it the same as him being here with you? Of course not... but it's better than nothing."
"I know that... I just miss him so much."
"Well, of course you do... I can't tell you how much I miss Aaron when he first leaves," Lori said.
"And after he's been gone for a little while?"
She laughed. "Then I could care less!"
I smiled a bit. "I... I just don't know what to do. I've never felt like this about someone before... and now he's gone."
Aaron sighed. "He's not gone Toby. He's still with you... if not physically then definitely emotionally. If everything that you've said about him is true, it's obvious that he cares deeply about you."
"I know he does..."
Lori interrupted me. "You know Aaron... I think we're forgetting something here."
"What's that?"
"Well, Toby and J.C. just started their relationship. I mean, when you started leaving, we had already been going out for a while... and were sick enough of each other that time apart would do us good," she joked.
"Hmmm... I hadn't really thought about that."
I leaned back in my chair. "So what should I do?"
"Honestly?" Lori asked. I nodded. "I think you should take some time off and go be with him. Not for like a month or a year or anything, but a week or two wouldn't hurt anyone."
"Besides," added Aaron, "when was the last time you had a vacation?"
I laughed. "Well, I'm on one as we speak."
"All the better then... I'm gonna have to agree with Lori on this one. Go be with him."
They were right... as usual. Any excuse that I had come up with to not go be with him was just stupid... we were just starting out, and being separated wasn't a great situation. "Ok... I guess I will... if he wants me to."
Aaron smiled. "Somehow, I don't think that'll be a problem."
I blushed. "Maybe, maybe not." They both laughed at me, and I joined in after a few seconds. We stayed at the restaurant for a little longer, but honestly, I wasn't paying much attention... my mind was with Josh, and the fact that I might actually get to be with him again... and soon. They must have noticed that I was sort of out of it, because they finally shoved me out the door and into my car, with strict instructions to talk to Josh as soon as humanly possible. I waved goodbye to them and pulled out of the parking lot. The drive back to my house went by very quickly, but that was probably because I wasn't paying any attention to what I was doing. I glanced at my watch on my way inside. OH SHIT... it was almost 9:00... I had almost missed Josh's call. I darted inside to grab the phone and then went back outside for a smoke. Sure enough, the phone rang about a minute later. "Hello?"
"Hey you." I smiled as soon as I heard his voice... I couldn't help it. Every time I talked to Josh, I just got this big shit-eating grin on my face.
"Hi."
"Ok, before we start talking, I need to apologize," he said quickly.
"For what?"
"I can... I can only talk for like ten minutes... Dave wants to meet with us." Dave was their manager. and if I ever met him, I'd have to punch him for working the guys so hard.
"It's ok cutie... can you talk later?"
He sighed. "Well, probably... but not until late again."
I cut him off. "Then forget it."
"What? Why?"
"Josh... you've been ridiculously busy... and staying up late to talk to me isn't gonna make you any less tired. We're talking now." I paused as I heard my call waiting beep. Whomever it was was just gonna have to wait. Josh was, by far, more important. "Anyway, we're talking now, and that should be able to last us until tomorrow."
"But I wanna..."
"No buts. I'm putting my foot down."
"Toby..."
"Nope, sorry. End of discussion. Now let's move on, cause I need to talk to you about something, and we don't have much time left."
"What? Is something wrong?" He sounded so concerned... it was so sweet.
I laughed a little. "No... nothing's wrong. Umm... what's your schedule like for the next two weeks?"
"Why?"
"Just tell me."
He paused before responding, and I heard some shuffling of papers through the receiver. "Umm... we're doing a couple of promotional concerts here in Orlando this week... and then... I dunno... either more promotion stuff or we have the week off. If we do, you know I'll get up there as fast as humanly possible. But why?"
"Well... it seems like I'm being forced to take a two week long vacation... and I can't think of anyone I'd rather spend it with... if you want me to come down there, that is."
"ARE YOU SERIOUS?" he shouted.
I chuckled. "Yeah... I am."
"That would be SO awesome!"
"Well... should I take that as a yes?"
"YES!!!!!!!"
I looked at my watch. "Well... I think you need to go... but how 'bout this? I'll call and make plane reservations first thing in the morning... and then I'll call you tomorrow and let you know my plans, ok?"
"Definitely!" I smiled at his enthusiasm. It was just another way that Josh showed me how much he really cared about me.
"When's good for you?"
"For you? Any time!" he laughed. "But... ummm... how about 1:00? We'll be at lunch then, and I'll just keep my cell phone on."
"Sounds excellent."
He sighed. "Well... I guess this is good-bye again, isn't it?"
"Yeah, I guess so... but just look at it this way: I'll be there with you in just a couple of days."
I heard him take a deep breath. "Wow... that's... wow. I don't know what to say."
"Then don't. I'll talk to you tomorrow. I'm thinking of you cutie."
He laughed a little. "I never STOP thinking about you... good night Toby."
"Night Josh." I pressed the off button on the phone and leaned back in the chair I was sitting in. God... in just a few days, I'd be with him again! I stared off into space for a while, just thinking of how lucky I was to have found Josh... and how lucky I was for him to care about me too. I eventually remembered that someone had called while I was talking to him, so I turned the phone back on and dialed up my voice mail. I punched in my password and, sure enough, found I had a new message. Message sent at blah blah blah.
"Toby, it's Tom... call me as soon as you get this message. We have a HUGE problem."
Ok. and that will end Chapter 7. So what did you think? Good? Bad? Ugly?
Whatever you thought, feel free to email me at: sethdropspants@hotmail.com... I'd type out the slogan again, but I'm too lazy... scroll up if you've forgotten it. Oh yeah... and the reason I'm posting this early is because I'm gonna be distracted around the time when I would normally post, and I probably won't have the opportunity to do it then. I don't know when the next chapter might be out... it could be the normal two weeks (or a little less)... or it could be a little longer. I'm thinking that I might take a short break from the story... nothing major, just for a little bit... I just don't wanna burn out from the story, and I can feel it starting to happen a bit... so I think that, for the next chapter at least, I'm gonna slow things down, and just write when and what I wanna write... I have no clue how long it'll take me... could be two weeks, could be four... I just don't know... but I promise that this is not the end (I have much more planned for the story) and that I'll try and be as speedy as possible... ok? So until next time, be good and don't let the man get you down!