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Before: Interrupted


Ashley

My eyes blinked open at 6:48 according to the bedside clock. I stared at the red numbers glowing in the pitch black darkness, at the city lights outside the window, stretching away into what seemed like oblivion. Nick's arm was around my middle, his fingers tucked between my stomach and the mattress, his body pressed lengthwise against mine, his face buried in the crook of my neck. I could feel his breath as it came out of his nose in my hair, feel his chest rising and falling. They weren't the deep, rhythmic breaths of sleep, they were the short, quiet ones of someone laying still.

So I laid still, too, not wanting to break the spell we were under, not wanting the feeling I had of complete security to end. Nick's mouth moved against my neck, "I think we need to talk."

I swallowed. "Yeah," I answered.

Still, neither of us moved.

The clock blinked along, minute after minute, as we laid there in silence, neither of us moving other than the slight twitches that people make. Nick flexed his toes and I sniffled. But other than that, we didn't move.

Suddenly there was a loud bang as the door to the hotel room was opened and Nick's PR manager, Eddie, was shouting, "Nick! Dude, you're gonna be late for your own damn birthday party, where the hell are you buddy?"

"Fuck, my birthday." Nick sat up and rolled away.

I don't know if he felt it, the moment shatter, but I could all but see the fairy dust floating faintly down from the ceiling. I could all but hear the poof. I sat up, too, hugging blankets to cover my chest as Nick scrambled for his underwear, pulling them up only just in time for Eddie to push open the bedroom door, saying, "Nick, seriously, where in the hell are yo--ohh." He stopped mid-sentence, as the light came on overhead, his fingers paused on the switch, Nick clutching his suitpants in one hand and his other having just finished adjusting himself in his briefs. "Sorry," Eddie said, then he half-glanced my way, "Sorry," he muttered, then he realized it was me. "Ashley?" he gasped.

"Hey," I said from under the blankets I was pressing to my coller bone to cover up. My back was bare and I had a feeling he had a good enough view of the side of my torso to know I was naked.

"When did you get here?" he asked. I could tell this was extremely uncomfortable for him.

"A couple hours ago," I replied.

Eddie's eyes darted between me and Nick. "I'll - uh - wait out here." He backed out of the room, pulling the door closed behind him.

Nick quickly started dancing into his clothes, hopping while pulling up his pants, grabbing other articles off the floor. He was in the process of buttoning his shirt when he looked up, "There's a dress for you in the closet of your room."

I looked up at him.

"You know, for the party, because I knew you wouldn't bring one."

"How did you know my size?"

"Dogface," he said, "I know everything." He shrugged on the suit jacket. His hair stood up in patches, much messier than usual. It was just-fucked hair, something I'd seen on him many a time in the morning when we went to get coffee or as he stumbled out of a private VIP booth or a bathroom stall with a woman.

I stared up at him. "Not everything," I answered.

Nick slipped his hands in his suitcoat pocket and pulled out his wallet. He tossed a hundred dollar bill and a ticket on the bed, "The club is on the ticket. Just get a car to bring you over. Money if you need it before we hook up -- I mean, meet up -- at the club." His face reddened. "I'll see you there. We need to talk." He walked quickly out of the room and I sat there on the bed staring at the money and the ticket, a sinking, terrible feeling in the pit of my stomach.

I heard Nick and Eddie talking, though muffled outside of the room so I couldn't understand what they were saying, and a moment later, the hotel room door banged closed and I knew I was alone.

I rolled out of bed and grabbed my tee shirt and pulled it over my head. I picked up the ticket and the money and stared at the way the bill was creased and worn. It was an old bill, and the features of it looked narrow and ugly compared to the new bills. I walked stiffly through the penthouse, got my suitcase and dragged it behind me. My feet did not make a sound on plush carpet. I opened the second bedroom's door and found he'd had flowers put on the nightstand and when I opened the closet, sure enough, a garment bag hung inside. I unzipped it and found a black dress with lace detailing. I slid it off the hanger and carried it to the bathroom to get ready.

I wasn't sure if i felt like Cinderella with a ticket to the ball, or a hooker with a Benjamin.




Nick

"Since when are you and Ashley --?" Eddie asked in a hushed tone the moment I came out of the bedroom.

"Shh, for Christ's sake, Eddie," I snapped. We hadn't even left the hotel room yet, for all I knew she could hear us.

Eddie opened the hotel room door and we stepped into the entry way, onto the elevator, and rode it down. "Seriously, man, details," Eddie said.

I caught sight of myself in the mirrors that lined the ceiling of the elevator, and I ran my hand through my hair. "I don't really know yet," I said, "That was the first time." I shrugged.

"Is it serious?" Eddie asked. "Or just -- you know, one of those flings of yours?" I started to answer, but before I could, Eddie spat out, "I mean she's great you couldn't really ask for someone better to be serious with, you two are perfect, and I think we all sort of expected it to hpapen at some point... Just, you gotta be careful, so you don't ruin your friendship, you know, because girls...they're funny..."

"I don't know yet, Ed," I said, shaking my head.

"Well, were you serious?" he asked.

I wasn't sure how to answer. My pause was long enough that the elevator came to rest at the bottom of it's journey and the doors dinged open. The moment they parted, we were blasted with the screams of a lobby full of fans.

"Did I mention there was a few people waiting for you?" Eddie shouted over the din.

We struggled through the crowd out to the limosine in front of the building, and Eddie let the VIP girls climb in behind me. They fought briefly over the seats on my left and right, and soon they were all piled in, followed by a security guard, Eddie, and Chris, who high-fived me as he climbed in.

Chris.

At the site of him I felt something in my stomach twitch. Last time I'd seen him, he'd confessed that he loved Dogface and was worried that I'd used her for sex. He'd reprimanded me for not thinking more of her. He grinned at me from across the limo, his arm around the back of the seat, a pretty girl on either side of him.

The limo rolled through Vegas, the girls chattering loudly, music playing. I know I was talking and goofing off and flirting with the fans but for the life of me I can't tell you what I said or did. I just know I'd feel my mouth moving and they'd all laugh or a camera would flash from across the car. The girl on my left was brave enough to hold onto my arm and I let her, and the one on my right looked like she wanted to be that brave but didn't quite dare to, so I wrapped an arm over her shoulders and she started shaking like she couldn't believe she was there.

When we got to the club, searchlights were slicing the night in front of it. Music pounded from inside, lights flashed. There was a smattering of paparazzi outside, more interested in me now that Backstreet was about to make it's full fledged return for the twenty year anniversary. Eddie climbed out first, and ushered the girls out. The two on my sides very reluctantly gave up their positions so close to me and Chris and I were the last two out.

Chris nodded at my hair, "Have some fun already did'ja?" he asked, winking. "You dog." He climbed out first, then me.

Security flanked me up to the door, and the cameras flashed as I went by.

Inside, Eddie escorted me, Chris, and the VIP girls up some stairs to the side of the door and we emerged a moment later on a plush balcony that overlooked the dance floor. The VIP booth was sleek and stylish and had full bottles of liquor just waiting to be consumed. I looked over the rail at the girls below and they let out shrieks and pointed up at me, their hands jostling and waving. I waved back, and Eddie handed me a microphone as the music cut and a light trained itself on me. I held the microphone to my mouth, "Laaaadies," I called. They shrieked all the louder, "Who's ready to get this party started?" I asked. Squeals. "Okay, let's burn it up!" and the music burst forth again.

I turned back to the VIP booth as Chris was telling the girls all some story about me that had them laughing. Eddie took the microphone and turned it off. "I'm going to go downstairs to meet Ashley at the door," he said, "I'll send her up when she gets here."

I nodded. "Thanks."

Eddie hesitated. "Nick," he said, "Seriously, I hope you know what you're doing with her."

"I know," I replied.

He walked away, headed downstairs.

I really needed a drink.