Italic - inner monologue
bold - past
Chapter nine - Friends and Lovers
Two days later (December 13, 1998) - 9:00am
After the encounter with Matthew Knowles, Justin hadn't had the chance to spend time with Beyoncé alone. Matthew kept keeping an eye on her and following her practically everywhere.
Same my name, say my name
When no one is around you
Say baby I love you
If you ain't runnin' game
The four girls of Destiny's Child were in the studio recording a new track for their sophomore album that was due mid next year. Touring and working on a new album around the same time was keeping them busy and exhausted. But it was also keeping Beyoncé's mind off of Justin. Just for the time being.
"What is up with this. Tell the truth. Who you with?" Beyoncé song into the microphone in the sound box. "How would you like it if I came over with my clique." Rodney Jerkins who produced the track sat at the sound box bouncing his head to the music.
"Bee?" He stopped the music.
"Yes, sexy chocolate." She teased with a laugh.
"Ahaha. Cute. Very cute." She chuckled softly while winking at him. "I want you to go back to the beginning. Add a little more attitude. I wanna feel the anger..." She broke out laughing. "I wanna feel like I'm about to get my ass whooped from you. Although, I don't think that'll be such a bad thing." He joked. They all laughed at his comment. "Let's go back to the start."
"No problem, baby." The music began to play. Latoya, Latavia and Kelly were sitting on the sofa talking after recording the chorus. "What is up with this. Tell the truth, who you with? How would you like it if I came over with my clique? Don't try and change it now. See you've gotta bounce. When two seconds ago, said you just got in the house."
"Tell 'em." Rodney spoke, sitting back in his chair.
After the studio session, the four girls were back on the road. Their next destination was the stadium where the concert was being held.
Beyoncé headed down the hall wearing a pair of shades, skin tight shorts, a halter top and boots. Her hair was braided back in the front and hanging lose in the back.
She walked pass a room, hearing voices immediately.
Her curiosity got the best of her because now she was wondering who they belonged to.
She back tracked, peering inside the room to see three guys and one woman standing in the lounge. JC, Joey, Justin and Britney.
"That's not true. You know that." She noticed something. Justin and Britney were standing close in front of one another near the pool table laughing and talking. The way Britney smiled and the way her eyes burnt a hole into Justin like she was SO into their conversation.
Whatever he was saying must have been funny because she couldn't stop laughing.
She watched closely as he reached out, fiddling with strains of her hair. She blushed, holding her head down in a shy manner.
What the hell was that, Beyoncé thought. She knew they weren't a couple and that they were only friends with benefits but they weren't just like any ordinary friends with benefits. They actually cared about each other.
So why was he standing there flirting her?
Joey was the first person to notice her. "Bee?!" He shouted, gesturing her inside the room.
Justin quickly looked in her direction; the smile on his face growing even more. Her intentions weren't to interact with them. For one, she had no time. The concert was in an hour so she had to get ready. Two, she wasn't in the mood. Especially after seeing Justin getting friendly with his ex.
"I shouldn't. I have to be..." Joey rushed towards her.
"It's fine. I'll walk you." Justin didn't like this because he knew Joey was a big flirt. Always trying to hit on someone.
The two proceeded down the hall together. "So what's going on, Beyoncé?" He asked, sizing her up. "You look really...nice."
"Thank you."
"Where are you coming from?"
"From the studio. Working on another album." He flashed her an interesting look.
"Is that so? How's it going so far?" She shrugged her shoulders.
"It's going. We have to be back at the studio tomorrow morning before we leave for the next state. It's so exhausting. Touring and doing this but we have a deadline."
"Tell me about it. We're working on another album too. But I don't think it's due for another year or two. We're doing a little here and there."
"Cool."
An hour later (8:00pm)
Beyoncé, Latoya, Latavia and Kelly stood in a circle holding hands while saying a prayer. They always prayed right before going up on stage. "...and thank you for watching over us. Amen." Kelly ended.
"Amen." They all spoke in unison while opening their eyes.
"Let's go." Matthew led the girls down the hall towards the stage. Beyoncé could see Britney standing near the stage talking with JC this time. The two of them immediately noticed Destiny's Child approaching them.
"Hey." Britney greeted with a smile. "You guys are awesome. Love your music."
"Thank you." They thanked.
"She's so pretty. I love her boots." She could over hear Britney talking but she had no idea who she was referring to since all of them wore boots.
The group started off with their hit, No No No before going into their second release, With Me.
Do you ever wonder when he
Don't come home who he goes to see?
And why in the middle of the night
He leaves you alone, leaves you alone
"No no nooooo." Beyoncé ad libbed, holding a microphone to her lips.
Justin stood backstage chewing on gum with his hands in his pockets. Him and the guys were talking and just hanging out before their performance.
"Good night, guys." Britney waved on her way out of the room. "I'll call you." She spoke to Justin.
"Alright. Good night." He looked away, putting his gaze on the four women dancing onstage. Beyoncé. He hadn't spoken to her all day and was so eager to get her alone. But then he thought about Matthew.
His eyes wandered off, landing on the older guy who just entered the room. He wasn't in the mood to see him at all. He was the reason why he couldn't spend time with Beyoncé how he wanted to.
After Destiny's Child finished performing, Nsync got in their positions. The stage was dark; the fans were screaming and as soon as the lights and music came on, they went wild.
I want you back was the first song to perform.
"It's hard to say I'm sorry. It's hard to make the things I did undone." Beyoncé could hear them singing on her way down the hall towards the dressing rooms. "A lesson I've learned to well for sureeee."
Hours later (11:03pm)
The concert was over. Everyone was eager to get back to the hotel and rest. When they got to the hotel, they took the elevators to their floor. "See ya' tomorrow." They parted ways instantly.
As soon as Justin got to his hotel door, he could hear someone talking. He looked over his shoulder to see Matthew exiting Beyoncé's hotel. She stood in the door way talking with her father. "It's good. It's gonna be nice when it's done."
"I know. Remember to text the girls before you go to sleep."
"Okay. Night, daddy." She leaned in, kissing him on the cheek.
He turned, ambling down the hall. Justin quickly turned his back to him, that way he wouldn't see who he was as he entered the suite. He shut the door, quickly peering out of the peep hole.
He could see Matthew walking by, proceeding towards the elevators.
The elevator would make a ding noise the moment the doors slid open so he knew that he was getting on. And with his good hearing, he could hear the doors shut back.
This was his queue. So he was going to make his move.
He exited the hotel, rushing down the hall towards Beyoncé's suite.
Beyoncé stood in the kitchen, preparing herself some popcorn for the Christmas marathon that was on. She poured butter and salt over the popcorn, stirring it around with her hand in the big bowl. "Mmm mmm mmm." She moaned, stuffing some in her mouth.
The sound of a knock on the door got her attention. She quickly looked over at the front door in questioning. The first person she thought it would be was her father since he had just left.
Did he leave something? Did he forgot to tell her something?
She ambled towards the door, licking at her greasy fingers. Justin watched the door swing open. He automatically met eyes with the familiar girl. "Hey." He was the first to speak.
She seemed a bit nervous. The way she peered out into the hall, searching around only meant she was looking out for her father who just left. "He's gone. I saw him get on the elevator." She quickly met his gaze in questioning.
"Did he see you?" He shook his head no.
She stood aside, inviting him in. "You're still in your clothes." She noticed, watching him step inside the suite.
"I just got back. I was going to take a shower but then I thought about you and I...I thought I could stop by and see you." She shut the door, turning to face him. "We haven't spoken all day."
"That's what happens when you're busy celebrities. You hardly have time to talk to people you're not really affiliated with. Except for you." She walked pass him, entering the kitchen. "You seem to find the time to talk with people who aren't in your group."
"What do you mean?" He stood there with his hands in his pockets, never taking his gaze off her. She stood in front of the counter, picking popcorn and eating it.
"I saw you earlier talking with Britney. More like flirting."
"What?" He asked, watching her look in his direction. The both of them stood there gazing into one another's eyes in silence. He noticed how she hadn't cracked a smile since he showed up. Was she upset with him? "Bee..." He ambled towards her.
"Excuse me." She grabbed her bowl of popcorn and walked pass him, departing the kitchen. He froze, slowly looking away to see her heading towards the living room. She took a seat, eating more popcorn with her gaze on the flat screen.
He remained in the kitchen for a few minutes, gathering up his thoughts. He wasn't for sure if he should leave since she didn't seem happy to see him. Or if he should PUT her in a better mood which he never had a problem doing.
They hadn't spent alone time together for two days so he wasn't going to just walk out because he didn't know when was the next time they would get this opportunity.
She kept her gaze on the movie; her vision being temporarily blocked by Justin's body walking by her. He took a seat next to her on the sofa and sat back, kicking his feet up. She watched him place his shoes on top of the coffee table. His arm then stretched around her, laying comfortably on the edge of the sofa. "The night before Christmas. Hmm." He looked away, putting his full attention on her. She still hadn't said a word. She just sat there watching the old looking cartoon. And he knew she wasn't watching it. She was just ignoring him. Probably hoping he would leave on his own. But he wasn't going to give her that pleasure. "So..." He began; his eyes trailing up and down her figure. "You looked nice today. How do you do it? Dance in those heels like that. It just...it blows me away every time I see you move on stage like that." He added, glancing on and off at the flat screen. "It must be hard. You ever get nervous? Like maybe...wondering if you're gonna fall on your ass one day?" She rolled her eyes, keeping her gaze on the TV. "I fell and broke my thumb one time. The stage was wet. I didn't realize it was so I slipped. I fell back; tried to catch my fall. I'm sorry, break my fall by landing on my hands and it did the total opposite. I ended up bending my thumb too far back when I landed on my hand and it snapped. Literally. It was horrible. Probably THE worst pain I EVER experienced." She sat there, trying so hard not to laugh. But the way he told the story and how she tried playing out the scene was just funny for some apparent reason. "I couldn't masturbate for a whole month. Since I broke my right thumb and I'm a righty so..." She couldn't help it. She broke out laughing, spilling some of her popcorn on the floor.
He watched her fall to the floor along with the bowl of popcorn. She rolled over on her back, laughing hysterically. "Oh my god..." She held her stomach. Her eyes were filled with tears; her stomach was beginning to burn from laughing so hard. "Oh my god. I...ahahahahaaaaa." She rolled over on her stomach.
He sat there chuckling at her behavior.
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I just...ahahahaha. Oh my god. That was too funny." She sniffled, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Oh boy." She sighed heavily, once again bursting into laughter. "I can't..." She folded her legs up in the fetal position, holding her stomach that was hurting even more. "Justin, I...please make it stop. I can't stop laughing. Oh my god. Oh god. Ha-ha. Ahahaha."
"Here." He stood up, reaching out to grab her arms. "Get up."
"I can't. I..."
"Yes you can." She forcefully stood to her feet, grabbing a hold to him. She was too weak to stand from laughing so hard. "I'm glad to see that my misery makes you laugh. That was serious. You have no idea how bad that hurt. We had to cancel the concert for two days. And then whenever I saw some hot chick, it just made it worse. Can you imagine wanting to masturbate but can't because you're disabled? It's like having that itch on your back that you have a hard time reaching because your arm isn't long enough. It was just bad."
"Why is that the only thing that matters to you? If it was that important to get off, you could've used your other hand."
"It's not the same." She broke out laughing. "Really. It's not. One hand is stronger than the other. That turns out to be your writing hand. You do everything with that hand. I wouldn't have been able to get off and be satisfied with my left hand." She covered her mouth, laughing some more.
"I'm sorry. I..." She started to laugh even harder. "Oh my god. I...what is wrong with me? Ahaha."
"Me being in pain makes you laugh. Something's wrong with you. You're just...you're unbelievable." She laughed faintly.
"I'm so sorry." She snickered, watching him move in closer.
"It's okay. You can make it up to me." She cleared her throat, trying so hard not to laugh again.
"Okay." He noticed how she couldn't stop smiling.
"You haven't gotten it out of your system yet, have you?" She broke out laughing.
"I...Jesus, I'm so cuckoo right now. My god." She sniffled, sighing heavily. "I think it's out of my system." She spoke, a grin forming across her lips. "I THINK..." She paused, biting her lip in thought. "Your hand is like new now." She added, reaching out to grab his right hand. "You can't even tell it snapped."
"Broke. You ever heard bones breaking? It's something you would never wanna hear. It's not a good sign at all. Not a good sound either."
"I can't imagine." He watched her hold his hand, intertwining her fingers with his. "You heal up so nicely." She added, looking up gaze into his eyes.
"I agree." She watched his face lean in closer. They slowly met lips, kissing soft and slow. Now this was what he'd been yearning for.
Three days later - August 18, 2014 (Gdansk, Poland)
"We're on the tenth floor. Room ten thirty-one." Justin spoke over the phone on his way down the hall.
"Justin, what are you doing?!" His bodyguard peered out of the hotel. "You can't be walking out here alone, man."
"Dude, chill out. My wife is on the elevator. I'm just meeting her..." He paused, giving him this ridiculous look. "Why am I even explaining to you? I'm a grown man. I can do whatever the hell I want." He spoke humorously.
"Okay. Don't come screaming and crying to me when some crazy bitch attacks you." He stuck his middle finger up at him. "Don't go crying to your momma either."
"Suck my big fat dick." He replied while grabbing his crotch.
He stood in front of the elevator, watching the numbers light up with each passing floor. It kept counting up until it stopped at the tenth floor.
"I'm standing right here." He spoke into the phone, watching the double doors slide open. Beyoncé stepped out with her luggage, immediately dropping them to the floor the second they saw each other. "Hey." She rushed towards him, quickly hopping up and wrapping both her arms and legs around him.
"Justin..."
"Ahaha." He laughed faintly.
"I missed you." He held her firmly; his lips grazing her neck. "It's been too long."
"I know. I'm sorry." He skimmed her back soothingly. She always got emotional when they reunited after being apart for weeks.
He hadn't moved. He just stood there holding her. And she still had her arms and legs around him like a big kid. "We should go inside before someone sees us." He suggested.
"Okay." He ambled down the hall, carrying her towards the suite.
"Dude, what the hell are you doing standing there? Grab the luggage."
"Yes, massa. I will grab your luggage." He entered the suite, proceeding further inside. Beyoncé still hadn't removed her arms and legs from around him and this believe it or not, but this was normal.
"You wouldn't believe what I did today?" He entered the kitchen, placing her on top of the counter.
"What?" Her grip loosed around him.
"I went to that place you took me to a few years ago. The candy place and I bought..." She released him, watching him grab a box from off the kitchen table. "...edible panties." Her eyes lit up instantly.
"Really?" She took the box from him. "I can't believe you..." He watched her open the box, pulling out a pair of red edible panties. "Wow. This looks delicious, doesn't it?" He chuckled softly.
"I can't wait to eat 'em off you. I've been thinking about it all week." He ambled towards the refrigerator. "So how was the flight?"
"Same ol crap." He retrieved two bottles of beer from the fridge, popping the caps off. She watched him prepare a glass of ice, pouring some in it.
"You're the ONLY person I know who drinks their beer on the rocks. Crazy, isn't it?" He handed her the glass.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome." His bodyguard entered the suite, immediately noticing the two in the kitchen kissing. She remained on top of the counter with her legs attached to Justin's waist. "I don't know about you but I'm SO ready to take you in that room." He spoke in her ear.
She shut her eyes, moaning softly. The way his lips felt against her neck made her tingly all over. And it didn't help that she went without sex for weeks.
"I'm hungry." She moaned, gradually meeting lips with his.
"I can feed your appetite with this big dick." She chuckled softly.
"Justin..." She pulled back to peer in his eyes. "You always make everything so sexual. I'm really hungry. My stomach was growling on the plane." He pinned his hands against the counter, blocking her in. "After I eat, you can do whatever you want to me. Okay?" He held his head down, feeling a pair of lips graze his forehead. "I missed you so much."
"Yeah?" He lifted his head to meet her gaze. She sat there peering deeply into his eyes; a smirk forming upon her lips. "What do you want? I'll order room service." He reached in his pocket for his phone. "Shit. What am I doing?"
"Look at you. Can't even concentrate." He grabbed the hotel phone from off the receiver on the wall, dialing in an extension.
"You always distract me." He added, glancing at her smooth legs in the shorts she wore. "What do you want? Pasta...burgers..." He paused, hearing an associate on the other end. "Hey, I will like to place an order." Beyoncé hopped off the counter, approaching him. "What do you want?"
"I don't know. You don't have a menu around here?"
"Uhhh..." He quickly searched the kitchen. "You'll give me a second?" He spoke to the person on the other end. "Where's that damn menu?"
"Here it is." She found it sitting on the corner of the counter. "Ummm..." She scanned the list of options. "I'll take the crab salad with a uhhh a bottle of red wine. Oh and some chocolate cake." He repeated everything to the associate.
"Can you add water to that?" He leaned back against the counter with the phone glued to his ear. His eyes wandered off, landing on Beyoncé who was standing on her toes trying to grab something from the cabinet. The way her firm legs looked in the heels and shorts. And her ass---
His dick was growing by the seconds. The difference a few weeks can make. He was eying her as if she was a piece of meat. "Thank you." He ended the call, never taking his eyes off her. He just stood there watching her.
At the time, she was busy preparing herself a cup of coffee. "Want some? I'm craving caffeine." She still had her back to him as she filled the glass pitcher up, pouring water in the dispenser. "My sister is having this thing for Daniel in Orlando. He's so spoiled and so cute. Make me wanna have a baby." She chuckled, looking over her shoulder to stare at him.
His eyes quickly peeled off her ass to meet her gaze. "Yeah?" He had no idea what she said since he zoned out. The only thing he heard was Daniel's name. "How is he? He's getting big. I remember when she first had him."
"I know! It's crazy how time flies." He crossed his arms over his chest. "I was gonna probably go. I haven't seen him in a while." She scooped up some coffee, pouring it in the filter. "Mmm. This smells so good."
Justin looked over at the living room, searching for a sign of his bodyguard. "You should. It'll be good for you." He approached her, halting closely behind her. "Remember what we talked about." He wrapped his arms around her. "After tour."
"Mmm hmm." He kissed her cheek then her neck. "You sure you're ready? A baby is a big responsibility. It's not a joke."
"I know. You don't think we can do it?" She shrugged her shoulders.
"We're so busy with our careers now. That's the problem. I don't wanna be like those other celebs who hire nanny's and NEVER see their children." His hand roamed her stomach, slowly trailing up to her breasts. "Ha-ha. Justin..." He groped her breasts as he continued planting kisses on her neck and shoulder. "Stop that. God...you're such a dog."
"You like it." She could feel his penis grazing her ass. "Like that?" She shut her eyes, chuckling softly.
"After I eat. I told you."
"Yeah, yeah." He kissed her on the cheek before releasing her. "I'm gonna go lounge on the sofa. Come sit with me when you're done."
"Okay." He exited the kitchen, continuing towards the living room.