[chapter nine]

Caitlin and JC walked down numerous hallways to get into the heart of the building. They passed hundreds of offices, studios, and plaques on the wall with gold records and pictures of Jive artists. JC kept up a constant stream of chatter, as though he were a tour guide. Finally, they neared one of the studios, and Caitlin could hear raucous laughter coming from inside. "Is this it?" She asked.

"Sounds like the gang is all here. Come on in." JC said, opening the door and ushering Caitlin inside.

Caitlin froze as she walked into the small room. Lance, Justin, Joey and Chris were flopped in various positions around the room, laughing and eating an enormous pizza that sat in the middle of the room. Seeing the four of them, in reality, was a bit of a shock. She had to remind herself that this wasn't a dream, and to act cool, NOT like a teenybopper.

JC put his hand lightly on Caitlin's back and steered her further into the room. He had seen her tense slightly when they walked in and knew she must be nervous. He vowed to make her feel welcome and like part of the gang. "Hey guys, I'd like you to meet Caitlin Peck."

Lance was the first to stand up, as the other three struggled to remove pizza sauce from their faces and look halfway presentable to the girl JC had been raving about for the past few days.

"Hi, I'm Lance. Nice to meet you." Lance's deep bass voice resonated in the small room. Caitlin shook his hand with a smile.

"Hi Lance, how do you do?" She replied, liking him immediately.

"Hi, I'm Joey." Caitlin smiled at the man who waved from the end of the couch.

"Hi Joey, nice to meet you."

Justin extended his hand and smiled. "Hi, I'm Justin--you know, the one with the looks and talent in the group." He said teasingly.

"And the ego to match I see." Caitlin retorted. "Nice to meet you Justin." She smiled. JC smiled as he stood behind her--he knew she would recover quickly from the initial shock of meeting the others, and her sarcastic retort to Justin proved him right.

"I'm Chris." Came a voice to Caitlin's right. "Pizza?" He asked, holding out a slice to her.

"Hi Chris, nice to meet you." Caitlin replied. "What kind is it?"

"Pepperoni."

"I'd love a slice. Thanks!" Caitlin replied, sitting down comfortably on the floor alongside the others.

JC smiled again and sat down behind Caitlin. He was close enough that he leaned his chin onto her shoulder, and he put a hand lightly on her back. "You ok?" He asked in a very low voice.

"Perfect." Caitlin replied, turning to look directly into his blue eyes. "Shouldn't you be working?" She teased.

"Never a break..." JC muttered. "After a slice of that pizza, I'll work. I promise."

"So Caitlin, tell us about yourself." Joey said with a flirty grin.

"Well, that's a bit open-ended. Can you narrow it a bit?" Caitlin asked. "I mean, I could give you my life story or just some highlights. It's up to you." She added with a grin.

"Tell us some interesting, unique stuff about you that JC doesn't know yet." Chris suggested.

"Ok, um. Let's see. I know how to drive a stick shift, I once went to a Barry Manilow concert, my legs are 44 inches from hip to toe, and I'm terrified of thunderstorms." Caitlin paused and looked at JC. "You didn't know any of that, right?" She asked.

"Nope." He replied. "But I do now." He said with a smile.

"How was that?" She asked the others.

"Perfect." Joey said with another flirty grin. "You know how to drive stick, huh?" He asked flirtatiously.

"I find that driving stick is the only way to go. The power of controlling the whole machine with just one little stick is a good concept to me. And I do it really well." Caitlin said with a straight face.

Joey looked at her, open mouthed. "Oh, I like you." He said with a genuine smile.

Caitlin grinned in response as she bit into her slice of pizza. For the next few minutes, she listened as the guys "talked shop" about latest lyrics, the scheduling decisions made in the last few days and a spirited discussion about Justin's latest lack of haircut.

"Dude, you look like a Brillo pad totally gone wrong." Chris said.

"I do NOT!" Justin defended himself with a pout. "What do you think Caitlin--is my hair too long?"

"Dangerous question. Do you want my honest answer, or the answer your ego is looking for?" Caitlin asked.

"Oh no." Justin said.

"I think it needs to be a bit shorter. If it's shorter, everyone's focal point can become that gorgeous face of yours, rather than the shrubbery that's on your head." Caitlin said evenly.

All the guys burst into laughter, including Justin. "Well, don't hold back or anything!" He said with a grin.

"It's the truth! The internet has spoken, and the big hair on you is OUT." Caitlin responded.

"You're an internet surfer?" Lance asked.

"I'm a librarian, which means I'm an internet surfer by trade. You need information, I'll find it for you." Caitlin said, not in vanity, but in truth.

"Do you ever look at our fan sites?" Lance asked.

"Of course. I was a fan even before I met JC. I will admit though...I've spent extra time surfing the net since I met him." Caitlin turned and smiled in JC's direction. He smiled back, pleased that she was thinking about him outside of the times she had seen him.

"Maybe you can help me sometime. I got a laptop, but I'm new to the net. Think you can help me learn to search and surf and all that stuff?" Lance asked.

"You bet!" Caitlin said enthusiastically.

Minutes later, the pizza was decimated and the group was slowly losing energy. It was obvious that all the guys were tired and ready to head home, Caitlin included. She'd worked all day, and was not used to hanging out so late into the evening. JC sensed her exhaustion and decided to call it a night.

"You ready to go?" He asked quietly in her ear.

"Ready when you are." Caitlin said.

"Guys, we're going to hit it. Everybody have a way home?" JC asked.

"Yes, Dad." Came the chorus from the other four.

Caitlin turned to JC and grinned. "Boy, they have you pegged." She said.

JC merely shook his head in answer as he gathered his keys and wallet. "It was nice meeting all of you. Really." Caitlin said genuinely. "Even you, Justin." She smiled and gave him a wink.

"Hey! What are you doing tomorrow night?" Joey asked eagerly.

"Uh...nothing?" Caitlin responded.

"We should all go dancing! We were talking about going just before you came in. We should all goit would be fun! I bet you can shake your thang." Joey said with a leer.

"You can't even imagine." Caitlin teased back. "JC?"

"Sounds like a plan to me. You interested?" He asked.

"Sounds great! I'll dust off my dancin' shoes!" Caitlin said enthusiastically.

"Cool...we'll see you tomorrow night!" Joey said.

JC and Caitlin made their goodbyes and walked out to the lot where JC's car was parked. Along the way, Lonnie had fallen in step behind them and he now climbed into the van to follow them to Caitlin's house.

Caitlin and JC made quiet conversation on the way back to the house. Pulling into the driveway, JC noted that the house was dark. "No roommates tonight?" He asked.

"I think they're all on duty tonight." She responded. "No biggie. I'm here by myself a lot, since they all work such weird hours."

JC nodded and hopped out of the car to walk Caitlin to the door. He glanced around and noticed that Lonnie had parked several houses away to give them some privacy. Falling in step next to Caitlin, he lightly took her hand as he walked her up to the front door.

"I had a great time tonight, JC. Thank you." Caitlin said softly.

"Me too. I'm looking forward to tomorrow nightI haven't been dancing in a while, and I'm looking forward to seeing all your groovy moves." He said with a smile.

Caitlin laughed. "Don't get your hopes up, you may be disappointed!" She said.

"I don't think that's possible." JC answered.

"Are you flirting with me, Mr. Chasez?" Caitlin asked teasingly.

"Trying to, anyway." JC responded. "How am I doing so far?"

"A little rusty, but ok." Caitlin said with a smile.

JC stepped forward until he and Caitlin were almost nose-to-nose. He leaned down and lightly pressed his lips to hers. He felt her initially stiffen, and then relax. He put one hand on her waist, and the other on her back, and then drew her closer. He increased the pressure of his lips on hers, and gave a silent prayer of thanks when she responded by putting her arms on his shoulders. Their kiss deepened, and a few seconds later he pulled back so he could look in her eyes.

"How about now?" He asked.

"I'd say your improving all the time." Caitlin said a bit shakily. She cleared her throat slightly and stepped back from JC. "So, um. Dancing, tomorrow?"

"I'll pick you up about 9:30?" JC asked.

Caitlin nodded her assent. "I'll see you then." She fumbled in her pockets and extracted her keys. After unlocking the door and turning on the hall light, she turned back to face JC, who had a gentle smile on his face.

"Do I make you nervous?" JC asked seriously.

Caitlin sighed. She had so many thoughts flooding her brain right now, she couldn't think straight. "A little." Caitlin said.

"Don't be nervous. I'm just a guy, and you're just a girl. And we're going to go dancing tomorrow night, and have a fabulous time." JC tilted her chin up so he could look directly into her eyes. "I promise."

Caitlin squared her shoulders and stood up straighter. "I know." She paused. "In fact, I'm going to knock your socks off tomorrow night, Mr. Chasez." She said with a wink and a smile.

"Now, that's more like it!" JC responded with a smile. Leaning down, he kissed Caitlin softly on the lips. "See you tomorrow night."

"Ok." Caitlin said with a smile. After watching JC walk down to his car, she stepped into the house and shut the front door behind her. She walked through the house, flipping on lights, kicking off her shoes and turning the stereo on. Meanwhile, a thousand thoughts were swirling through her mind

"What the hell was that? How am I going to knock his socks off? Why do I want to? I'm really starting to like this guy. Am I really ready for this though? What a kiss...talk about making the knees weak! He's cute. And I met the other members of *Nsync! Interesting evening indeed..."

Caitlin was too keyed up to go to bed right away, so she changed into some comfortable pajamas, made a cup of tea and settled down on the couch to read a book for a while. Within a few minutes, the tea was forgotten on the coffee table, the book was splayed in the floor, and Caitlin was fast asleep on the couch.

chapter ten