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Chapter 17

By the time AJ came back from the promotional tour, he could tell a world of difference in
Lori. Not just mentally, but physically as well. She told him that she was using exercise as a
way to keep her mind off her bad luck. She also had been going to yoga and reading about
meditation. She seemed a lot happier which made AJ happy to have his girlfriend back.

During the next couple of months, AJ actually participated with Lori often in meditation. He
had to admit that it did help a lot with the stress, but he liked his method for stress relief,
that included the bedroom. Both methods did wonders for Lori and AJ.


Jenn was spending more and more time at her house alone. Her and Kevin had managed
to start bickering at each other over the littlest things over the two-month break before
Millennium was released. The constant arguing didn’t damper their sex life at all. Kevin
basically left the house after they had sex.

She was contemplating whether or not to even go to New York for the MTV special. But
she knew that Lori was going and she knew that she’d have fun up there with her. She
never saw Lori anymore, even though, technically, she still lived there. Lori came to the
house maybe once a week to recover from being over at AJ’s all week.

Here it was a couple of days before they were to go to New York to release Millennium, and
she was still undecided whether she wanted to go for sure. “Jenn?” Lori called coming
through the front door. “Where you at?”

“Kitchen!” Jenn had been drinking all day. A fifth of Jack Daniels sat in front of her and the
bottle was almost empty already.

“Hey Jenn. AJ was going to take me shopping for like the hundredth time this week and I
thought that… um.” Lori stopped her sentence when she saw Jenn at the kitchen counter.
“Is everything okay?”

“Baby! I think we should buy a new… dog…,” AJ said running up behind Lori. He stared at
Jenn and went over to her and sat down next to her. “What’s up Jenn? You aren’t looking
so good.”

“And you look better right now,” Jenn said glaring at him. “Now I see what Lori sees in you.
Sad I have to be drunk though.” She took another drink of liquor. “I really shouldn’t have
to hide my drinking.” AJ just looked at her and got out of his seat and walked out of the
room.

“Well, we’ll just leave you alone Jenn. It’s pretty obvious you want to be alone right now."
Lori turned around and ran after AJ. “Alex! Wait up!” Lori ran out of the house and caught
up with him at the car. “She didn’t mean that.”

“Yeah right, Lori.” His face had gone red, but Lori wasn’t quite sure if it was because he
was mad or embarrassed. “She wouldn’t have said it if she didn’t mean it.” He couldn’t
look at Lori. He was so embarrassed that she would see him tearing up a little.

“Alex, don’t be upset,” Lori said putting her arms around his waist. “Sweetheart, she’s
drunk and she obviously isn’t very agreeable when she gets like that. Don’t take it to
heart. I know that tomorrow she’ll apologize to you for the whole thing. Anyway, you’re not
here to impress anyone but me. I think you’re hot, so that’s all that matters.”

“You thought I was hot when I was thirteen,” AJ replied smiling down at her.

“I know. What the hell was wrong with me?” Lori laughed and gave him a kiss. “You are
the sexiest man I have ever been with.”

“Wait. I’m the only man you’ve ever been with,” AJ replied walking her to her side of the
car. He opened the door for her and she gave him a kiss.

“Put a sock in it McLean.”


“Damnit!” Nick muttered to himself. He was tired of feeling like a baby. Mandy always
wanted things her way. He had just gotten off of the phone with her for the fifth time in less
than three hours. She seemed to call him every thirty minutes to check up on him. Like
she didn’t trust him or something

He hated the way that she treated him at times, but he was determined to make it work. He
knew he screwed up with Lori and so he felt kind of pressured to make this relationship
work somehow. Mandy wasn’t helping at all. None of his friends liked her and she really
didn’t like them either. Lori absolutely despised her. And the feeling was mutual from
Mandy.

Jenn always kept her comments to herself, but Nick had heard through Lori that Jenn wasn’
t a Mandy fan either. Mandy somehow felt threatened by Lori and Jenn because they were
so close to the Backstreet Circle. Mandy thought that she should be the ring leader when
the girlfriends were concerned, but Lori had told her on numerous occasions that that
wasn’t going to happen ever and that she needed to learn a new role by keeping her mouth
shut whenever possible.

So, Mandy and Lori were never in the same room together. Which made it very difficult for
Nick. Lori was his best friend, but Mandy couldn’t accept that at all. Lori says that its “too
fucking bad” that Mandy doesn’t accept the friendship. “Just remember, Nick. I had ya
first.” Lori had said to him on the phone one night. He had to admit that she was right. Nick
was on his way over to the mall where Lori and AJ were supposed to meet him. Mandy
wasn’t too happy about that, but Nick really didn’t care. So, therefore, she bitched at him
about it until Nick said that he had to go. He turned his radio up and tried to drown out his
anger.


“Come to New York, Sara.” Brian had been begging her all afternoon. “I’m sure school will
be here when you get back.”

“Alright funny boy,” Sara replied. “Finals are coming up right after we would be coming
back. I have to study for them. Sorry Baby. I wish I could come with you.”

“Fine. But I’m dragging you to something this summer.” He got up after her and they
gathered the remains of their picnic up and headed for the car. Brian had been really
happy with Sara. He’d only known her for four months but it seemed like forever for him.
She was just so down to earth and friendly.

Brian dropped Sara off and they made plans for the following day. Brian decided to call
Kevin and see how he was doing. His cousin seemed to be alone a lot lately. Kevin and
Jenn were having problems and they both seemed a little isolated from the rest of the
group.

“Hello?”

“What’s up cuz?” Brian asked.

“Nothing. Just sitting here at the house.” Kevin’s voice was so lifeless. Void of any
emotion.

“Have you talked to Jenn?”

“Yeah. Things are looking up,” he replied. “Jenn’s coming with us to New York and we’re
going to try to reconnect or something, hopefully.”

“Sounds like a plan then, bro. I just wanted to call and make sure everything was okay.”

“Yeah, things are better around here.” He was lying through his teeth and Brian knew it.

“Okay, well then I will talk to you later.” Brian hung up the phone and made his way home.


Kevin hung up the phone and looked through the magazine in front of him. He had so
much to do to get ready for New York, but he didn’t feel like doing any of it. He missed
Jenn and he was just way too stubborn to drop this whole cherade they were pulling. Jenn
was just as stubborn as he was, if not more.

Kevin couldn’t even remember what he and Jenn had been fighting about last time. But, he
did remember Lori getting on the phone and telling him a thing or two about how
relationships were supposed to work. He was starting to think that she was right about him
apologizing to Jenn and trying to work things out. He couldn’t believe that he was listening
to a nineteen year-old about how to work a serious relationship.

He grabbed his coat and walked out the door. He got in his car and headed towards Jenn’s
house to make up with her. He thought that it was the best thing to do. He hoped that she
would forgive him before it was too late for both of them.


“Oh my God.” Howie climbed into the car and pulled out of the driveway. He sped down
the highway as fast as his Corvette would safely take him. He grabbed his cell phone and
tried to call Nick again. He was actually able to get through this time.

“Hey! Nick! Tell them I’m on my way man. Yeah. I’ll be there in like ten minutes, okay?
Bye.” Howie snapped his phone shut and threw it in the passenger’s seat. He knew that he
was looking like hell. He was running so late that he barely had time to take a shower.

“I’m not ever staying out until four in the morning again,” he muttered to himself. He had
been going out a lot lately, mainly to clubs and bars just to get away. He had just started a
foundation to help Lupus patients in honor of his sister, Caroline, and that was taking a lot
out of him.

He knew that drinking and hanging out at clubs wasn’t the answer for stress relief, but it
helped him relax. Maybe he needed someone to hang out with him. His brother, Johnny,
was good at home, but BSB were going to go back on tour pretty soon and Johnny wouldn’t
be on tour with them. He figured that he would ask AJ to come with him if Lori wasn’t going
on tour with them this time.

Howie pulled into one of the back parking places at the mall and made his way to the
entrance that he was supposed to meet Nick, Lori, and AJ at.