Odd enough for summer,a wintry gust of wind engulfed my thin cardigan as I hugged my mom goodbye. I guess because it was night and the temperature had dropped was the reason for this. Nonetheless,I found myself trembling slightly as the wind bit at my exposed cheeks and exposed body parts.
I pulled away from my mother and immediately regretted looking at her. Her eyes were filled with tears to the brim. "Lauren honey. I'm gonna really miss you. If anything goes wrong on tour I want you to call me. I'll always be here for you,okay?" she scrambled out hastily,once again pulling me into her embrace. I did feel a pinch at the back of my eyes and the now familiar feeling of tears threatening to escape.
I nodded in reply and smiled up at my mom looking up at her in the dim shadowy light that flooded the porch in a golden colour. "I'll be fine,I'll keep in touch."
As soon as the words had left my mouth however,the nearing headlights of Pattie's Toyota Camry neared the sidewalk.
Sure,I was tired as hell. Having to wake up four in the morning for a flight,is horrendous. So in my haste I hadn't bothered to wear any makeup;and we all know I could careless since I barely slave myself for makeup.
I had hastily grabbed a light blue loose top with a huge yellow smiley face etched into the fabric,along with a pair of black skinny jeans and my favorite pair of blue Vans. I had also hastily wrenched on my knitted blue cardigan. As for my hair,it was styled in a high ponytail so,that meant the part of my neck that was not covered by my cardigan was feeling cold. Again,strange since it was summer after all.
My mom pulled away from me and turned to the approaching vehicle and nodded curtly."They're here. C'mon. I'll help you with your luggage."
I nodded mutely and took hold of my triangular shaped messenger bag filled with my necessities. I adjusted the strap so it fit perfectly and strode slowly towards the now packed car.
The window rolled down to reveal Pattie. Since it was night,she had the light in the car on so I could visibly make her out. "You look tired honey. Don't worry you'll get to take a rest." she said throwing me a sympathetic look.
"Yeah,she barely slept." my mom replied for which Pattie knowingly nodded.
Seconds later,the trunk opened up and mom piled in my suitcases in. Once she had finished,I pulled her into another warm hug.
After I had extricated myself from her embrace,I hastily started wiping my cheeks getting rid of the tears that escaped. Bidding my mother one last good bye,I tugged onto the latch and hopped in.
----;
Elise,Pattie,Justin and I were all waiting patiently for the scheduled time to arrive,seating in the lobby seats bored out of our minds. I suppressed a yawn as I leant my head against Justin's shoulder.Our ride to the airport was quiet and uneventful seeing that we were all about ready to hop into bed at any minute.
Justin himself was however very quiet;albeit when he greeted me as I got into the car.He just pecked my cheek and took hold of my hand saying nothing more.To say the least,he looked tired.
His hair was tousled and for once wasn't portraying its usual glow and order.I guess he was a bit tired since he was pretty much at it for the past few days.He was most definitely any thing but energetic.
For the past few days,he attended promotional conferences for his tour,not to mention he practically lived and slept in his studio and somehow managed to possess enough energy to kill it in dance rehearsals.
If time hadn't caught up to him yet,I'd be forced to say he wasn't human. So,he was casually dressed in a baby blue sweater shirt with bold black letters sprawled across the fabric I had made out to be YMCMB.Along with that he wore black skinny jeans,black Nike sneakers and a NY cap to his head.
Elise was practically having an internal battle with herself as she struggled to keep her eyes open. As for Pattie,she seemed the most energetic.
I guess we needed an energetic person to get on our asses for being and feeling so lazy.
I was busy scrolling through my messages out of boredom when Pattie's cell rang. It took her a few moments for her to fish it out of her bag and when she did,she tapped one of the buttons and pressed it to her ear in alarm. No one expects a phone call in the wee hours of the morning.Unless you're the mother of a world phenomenon so I guess the call hadn't been such of a huge surprise.
"Oh hi Scott." she was saying. She leant back into her seat. "Yeah,we're waiting. We should be in London by nine o clock..."she nodded and seemed to realize that whoever she was talking to her couldn't physically see her,for she said,"Yes,of course.Our passports are already checked in......"
There was a pause and judging by her frown,I was guessing it was bad news."Oh, will she be alright? Is it that bad that she can't perform for the opening number on Friday?"
Justin seemed to listening to,for he turned slightly. Elise was asleep by now.
"But she was the main dancer. . . That's horrible......."Another pause. "But. . . . . Where would we find a last minute dancer that will be willing to learn the dance moves in four days? The tour starts on Friday. . . "
There was a brief moment where I presumed this Scott guy was talking. Finally Pattie sighed. "Well,I hope that you guys would figure something out,I'd try to think of a plan too."
She nodded,a solemn look on her face. "Okay,well,thanks for informing me.Alright. Okay. See you."
When Pattie had ended her call,she turned to us,a regrettable expression on her face. "You know Auré right?"
Justin nodded,as I slowly readjusted myself so that I was leaning against my seat and no longer leaning on Justin for support.
"Yeah,she's one of my backup dancers." Justin replied sounding confused at his mother's question.
"Well,"Pattie eased herself back in her seat."She got," she paused,sounding sad. "herself in an accident. She fractured her left leg and the doctors say she won't be dancing material until about a month and half time."
"How did this happen anyway?" Justin enquired after a while sounding a bit more bewildered than before.
"Don't know. Scooter just said that his chances of getting a backup dancer for you on such short notice for rehearsals tomorrow would be a bit impossible."
Scooter was obviously Scott whom she was addressing earlier. Interesting nickname..
Justin sighed and raked his hand through his hair,obviously stressed. I gazed uneasily at him. It must be pretty hard to be told that the main dancer that was supposed to open up your tour with you on your performance to get the audience pumped was in no position to perform.
"Well,can't you guys like ask one of your backup dancers to do her part then?" I wondered aloud,casting a glance at Pattie.
In reply she shook her head. "On the dancing team we have no extras. Everyone on the team each has their specific purpose,Auré was the only one who knew her part. It's pretty complicated and intense since on stage,she would have had a one on one dance off with Justin." Pattie explained.
"Er,that sucks. Canceling the show is definitely not an option since many people already paid for tickets." I stated the obvious,I know.
"And I don't wanna let my fans down. They're so hyped.They even trended '#Believe Tour' on twitter,letting them down would suck." Justin muttered regrettably.
"Don't worry Justin,we'd find a way to fix this. Scooter is trying as hard as any manager can." Pattie said reassuringly.
Justin let out a long exhale before nodding and slinging his arm over the back of my seat."Yeah I know."
He sounded so doubtful as he said those words though.
A few moments ticked by where we were absorbed by this silence. Finally,Pattie stepped in and broke it voicing her thoughts. "Well,who do we know that has at least the stamina and the right agility to learn such dance moves in four days? Today's Monday after all,Scooter really has to work his butt off to find someone."
"Lauren used to dance."
I jumped about a feet into the air at the sound of the voice traveling across the space. We were the only ones in the airport to say the least besides staff and I had somehow told myself Elise was sleeping so when she spoke,I nearly acquired a heart attack.
Of course I just merely jumped with shock and not actually into the air,that was just an expression by the way. Then her words finally processed in my brain and my eyes widened. My gaze swung to hers where she was leaning against one of the arms of the chair,her phone inches away from her face.
"Me?" I echoed dumbly.
Pattie and Justin were all looking at me now.
"You used to dance right,Lauren?" Justin asked,his eyebrows knitting together as he no doubt remembered snippets of Elementary school and Middle School where I attended ballet classes.
"Yeah,but that was a long time ago." I pointed out.
Reasons why I'm not required material to perform on an international tour,especially Justin Bieber's.
Firstly,I did ballet back then. I rarely ventured to the other dancing styles. There was only one time I did a hip hop number and that had admittedly went well but I didn't really pay particular attention to that style.
Secondly,I had no experience in that kind of area. I never once performed in front of a crowd that was more than two hundred. If I were to perform with Justin,most likely the crowd would exceed twenty thousand. Do the math. That's a least nineteen thousand eight hundred more people.
Thirdly,how could I even possibly match up to all those amazing dancers Justin had? I was highly inexperienced.
"You're really good at dancing Lauren. You're so much better than people give you credit for." Elise stated,turning to look at me.
I shrunk under her gaze and slowly turned to look at Justin.
"What dancing experience do you have?" Pattie implored curiously.
"Mainly ballet but I may have done a few performances which were strictly hip hop,and contemporary in elementary school." I answered,nervously twiddling my fingers.
"Wow,so you wanna help us out with our sudden predicament?" Pattie asked,a grin smearing across her face.
I sighed and nodded slowly. "I guess...well,yeah.It would be a good experience." I paused to glance at Justin who was looking at me thoughtfully. "I mean,once I get over my stage fright I should be fine....."I cast a pointed look at Elise for bringing up the fact that I may had dabbled in Theatre Arts. Curse you best friends who reveal their friend's past!
Elise smiled innocently at me. "Oh come on. Stop acting like it's a bad thing."
"So is that a yes?" Pattie pressed,the slightest bit of hope lacing her voice.
I wasn't sure if I was thinking things through,I don't know why I said what I said. Maybe it had to do something with the way that Pattie was looking at me;all pleading and pitiful. Maybe it was the predicament they were in.
Or maybe it was because I missed dancing the tiniest bit and wanted to feel the rush I usually anticipated when I danced.
I don't know which,but however a smile formed on my lips as I complied.Nodding,I whispered, "Definitely."
____~~=~~____
Customs were a hassle. Just because I may have forgotten to take of my wrist watch and decided to step through the beepy thing(don't feel like giving the correct name for the machine)the officer threw a hissy fit when the alarm indicating there was some kind of metal detected on me went off. Don't even talk about the tile floors of the airport that were equivalent in coldness to the Arctic ocean.Seriously,standing on tiles that cold made my feet hurt.
Then,Elise got into an argument with the officer that was searching through her pockets for any weapons. She claimed that he was touching her inappropriately. Lord.
Anyway,moving on...
The airport was fairly filled with business people so there was no chance Justin could be identified since his hood was up and his shades were on as a disguise.
When we had finally gotten out of the hell-hole of an airport,I thanked the heavens. As soon as we stepped out of the airport,a limousine pulled up.
No surprise there....
An intimidating African American man stepped out from the rear of the limousine,opting to carry our luggages.
"Hey buddy." he said,him and Justin doing some sort of complicated looking handshake I would never ever pull off in my lifetime. He then moved on to Pattie. "How's it going Pat?"
Pattie waved him off,smiling politely hugging him.She looked so tiny compared to him. "I'm doing great,Kenny."
Then his gaze flitted to where Elise and I were standing. "Oh...hey."
Elise and I waved back meekly.
"Oh girls," Pattie addressed,turning to me and Elise. "This is Kenny,Justin's bodyguard.Kenny,this is Lauren and Elise;the girls I was telling you about." She turned to us once more and shrugged." Don't worry,underneath his tough appearance is a really fun loving guy."
I was never the type to judge so I just nodded and smiled. Soon enough we were off.
|:-:-:-:|
We pulled up alongside an exquisite all star hotel painted in a pale turquoise color adorned by colorful lights in the lawn. The entire ride there consisted of me staring out the window in awe. England was absolutely stunning.
Since Kenny insisted that he'd take care of all the luggage,we were left to go check in. Once we entered through the revolving glass doors,the aura of a crisp scent of air condition mixed in with spicy colognes and brewing coffee met my nose.Side note,Justin did not walk into the glass doors this time. He deserved an award.
All around there was movement. Mostly people that looked professional looking in elegant clothes as opposed to my simple casual wear. The sounds of people talking into their ear pieces,muffled laughter and the boisterous clatter of heels on the hardwood that made up the floor were all heard. In all it sounded like a swarm of bees buzzing.
Pattie made a total boss move and pushed her way through the crowd once she had told us to get in a corner and not draw attention to ourselves.
A few moments later,Pattie came striding back,a determined look on her face. "Okay,I finalized everything a few days back so they have all your IDs checked into the system already. Right now,all we have to do is wait for Kenny to-"
At that exact moment,the man himself appeared with a luggage cart that was somehow able to carry all our bags.And after much needed pardons and excuse me's as we managed to pull our way through the throng of people,we finally made it to the elevator.
Somehow-I don't know man,I'm such a goof-I couldn't help but realize that even as we pushed our way through the clutter of people,Justin held onto my hand.
Thanks to the five hour flight,Justin had gotten some rest with the rest of us so I wasn't the slightest bit exhausted anymore.
When we got into the tiny compact area known as the elevator,I pressed myself up against the wall and felt my stomach clench and drop when the elevator clambered up.Elise was next to Pattie yawning every five seconds. Well,who told her to play Mario all flight long in Justin's game room on his private jet?
"So,JB...Am I seeing things or are you and Lauren more than...y'know."Kenny voiced,a teasing smirk layering his voice.
Justin laughed from beside me."Wow,Kenny. You've got good vision."Justin joked. " 'Cause we happen to be dating."
He had to lean over me to speak to Kenny and with that,his hot minty breath brushed against my face.
"So happy for you guys." he laughed shooting me a grin for which I returned."I saw you both on that magazine and thought that those paps were messing around,obviously they had gotten it right."
Then the elevator's doors bounded open to reveal a long arching tiled hallway. Kenny moved first and pushed forward his cart ahead of us.
I also realized that there was absolutely no one in the hallway....
Pattie seemed to catch on to my bewildered face for she came to my aid. "We had to have this entire area blocked off for us alone. Also,Scooter and I made a deal with the staff here."
Elise raised an eyebrow. "And what deal might that be?"
Pattie smirked. "All five of us are under fake names. The only person that knows who we really are is the manager of this hotel."
Elise laughed. "So what's my fake name?"
Pattie ran her hand through her brown curls. "Alison Carter. Lauren,you're Jordan Marks,Justin you're Lance Aspens," she paused turning to her son.
I nearly doubled over in fits at Justin's fake name.No ring to it. At all.
Justin groaned from beside me,and I giggled. "I'm Patricia Hayward and Kenny is...Kent Stylinson."
Wow,major first-name change for Kenny. Note the sarcasm.
By the time I snapped back into reality,I realized we were all positioned in front of a stark white door with fancy glass designs engraved in the wood.
Pattie fumbled in her pocket for the keys she had no doubt gotten from the receptionist and gingerly,she shoved the tiny sterling silver metal thingy into the thin spacing.
The door reeled open to reveal pitch blackness.Then Kenny stepped up a few and searched for the light having the room flood in an overcasting warmth of yellow.
I stepped in after Justin and silently,appraised the area. What we entered looked like the living room filled with china plates,dressing tables,frames with nature based pictures-you name it. The wall was a light beige color and the furniture looked like fine leather,so soft and plush and perfect looking you might opt to avoid sitting on it.
I ambled over to it and plopped down nonetheless. I watched in silence as Pattie walked around the room,her blackberry pressed against her ear probably confirming to Scooter that we were all settled in. When her phone call had ended she didn't waste any time.
"Kenny will go to Subway and pick up dinner for us all." she announced plopping down on a leather couch similar to mine a few meters away.
After we gave our orders,and Kenny had left I let out a long exhale of relief. Searching through my pocket for my phone,I fished out the encased device and slowly skimmed through my contacts. When I saw 'Karol' -being the only name in the 'K' section-I immediately phoned her.
Several rings strained out dully through my ears until a rustling sound ensued followed by a groggy 'Hello?'.
"Hey mom-"
"Lauren!! Oh my gosh! Where are you now? Are you calling because you're locked up in some security room because you were falsely accused for trafficking prohibited substances?"
Okay,I was definitely not expecting that response from her on the other end.Furrowing my brows in bewilderment,I stretched my feet further on the scarlet rug
frowning deeply at my pair of worn out Vans. "I'm fine mom." I stifled a giggle. I was mostly confused as to how that could possibly be my mom's first guess when I called her. A normal mother would ask her daughter if she got her luggage from the airport but no,my mom had to be extra unpredictable.
"Oh thank God. Where are you now? How's the England weather?" she pleaded from the other end.
I slowly started poking at my jeans,in my own little world. "We're at the hotel.Wasn't really observing the weather,more taken away by the country's beauty." I laughed and her light laugh was heard from the other end.
"Oh so,how's everyone?"
"They're all fine." I clarified.
Somehow,I had managed to tune back into my mother's never-ending sentences and sighed when she called for my name from the other end thinking I had gone mute."I'm so happy you're gonna be dancing backup with Justin. When Pattie told me I was so happy for you and also proud...You know what I mean?....Lauren,you there?"
"I'm still here mom." I laughed,crossing my feet just as Kenny appeared with our food.
Kindly telling my mom had to go,I eased myself out of my chair and made my way to the fancy kitchen. I plopped down on one of the stools next to Justin and smiled appreciatively at him as he handed me a nugget.Pattie pushed my meal to me and soon we all fell into this silence.
"So,you guys better go get some rest. Big day tomorrow for all of you guys."Pattie had said once we were all done.
My heart skipped a beat when I once again remembered I had to go to dance rehearsals. Who would have thought those words would come from me?
Justin looked at me a smile of encouragement blooming on his face. "Don't worry Lauren. You'd do great."
I merely smiled back. I hoped so too.
___________________________________________
Thanks so much for reading guys! I know this chapter was a tad (if not) entirely boring but I can't push in action in whey chapter now can I? I got some wicked ideas so stick by to find out!
--Want You Back by Cher Lloyd ft. Astro-- I know this song ha nothing to do with this chapter but what the hey,who said it has to?