Date: Thu, 09 Oct 2003 12:39:42 -0500
From: music teacher <musicteacher2002@hotmail.com>
Subject: "This is the Night" chapter 20

Disclaimer:  I have an overactive imagination, the result of which is this
story.  I do not know Clay Aiken or any other celebrities mentioned in this
story, and I do not intend to imply anything about their true sexualities.
Simply file this in the "Wouldn't it be nice...?" portion of your mind.  Also,
if you are under legal age to be reading this sort of stuff (18 in most
areas), then leave now.  All the rest of you who ARE of age, please enjoy my
little mind trip away from the land of reality.

***

CHAPTER 20

***

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry...I didn't mean to...oh, shit..."

Clay and I looked up just in time to see his dressing room door close again.
  We scrambled off of the couch and immediately began to straighten our
clothes out.

"Oh shit!" I said.  "Who do you think that was?"

"I don't know," answered Clay.  "By the time I realized what was going on,
whoever it was had already run out."

"Yeah, we *were* kinda focused on other things..." I said, chuckling in spite
of myself.  "All I was able to tell was that it was a man."

"So what do we do now?" he said, his voice starting to rise in panic.  "I
mean, what if whoever it was ran to the press and is telling his story right
now?"  Clay began to pace back and forth.

"Clay," I said, walking up to him and putting my hands on his shoulders,
"Let's cross that bridge when we come to it.  OK?  In the meantime, all we
can do is go out there and *calmly* see if we can find whomever it was that
came in."

Clay exhaled loudly.  "And then?"

"And then, we go from there.  One step at a time, OK?"  I kissed him gently.
  "It will be fine, no matter what."

"OK, then," he said, gathering his courage.  "Let's do this."  He walked to
the door, but I stopped him.

"I love you," I said, looking directly into his eyes.  Clay smiled at me,
and returned the sentiment.  We opened the door and stepped out into the
hallway as calmly and normally as possible.

"Hey, you guys!" said a cheerful voice from behind us.  We turned around to
see Ryan standing there.

"Ryan!" we both said.

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

"Lee and I decided that you guys shouldn't be the only ones that get a
weekend in Atlantic City," Ryan explained.  "He's at the hotel checking in."

"Well, I'm glad you're here," said Clay.  "We've got big problems."

"What do you mean?" Ryan asked, concerned.

"Someone...uh...sort of...well...walked in on Clay and I...making out," I stammered
quietly.

"You mean just now?" Ryan asked, looking slightly bemused.

"Yeah...why are you laughing?" Clay asked.

"Did whomever it was say something to the effect of `Oh, my God, I'm so
sorry, shit,' and then run out?" he asked with a smile.

"I don't see why this is so...wait a second," I said, adding it all up in my
head.  "Was it you?"

"Maaaaaaybe..." Ryan said, laughing out loud.

"It WAS you!" Clay said.  "Oh thank GOD!"

"Busted," said Ryan.  "Though you two really should be more careful..."

"Yeah, we made a mistake, big time," I conceded.  "I'm just very glad it was
you."

"Me, too," said Clay.  "Unfortunately, I need to get going so I can get
ready.  Ryan, can you baby-sit this clown for me?"  Clay wrapped his arm
around my neck.

"Sure can," said Ryan.  We walked down the hallway.  "Let's go find Lee.
Maybe if you're lucky, it'll be YOUR turn for a free show!"

"Haha, too late," I said, laughing.  "Or have you forgotten the Labor Day
weekend incident?"

"Oh yeah," said Ryan sheepishly.  We walked to their hotel, which was right
next door to the hotel where Clay and I were staying, and found Lee waiting
in the lobby.

"There you are!" he said.  "I figured Ryan would be able to find you guys.
I just hope it wasn't too difficult to tear yourself away from Clay for a
while."

"Nope," said Ryan while trying to hold in laughter.  "It was actually easier
than you might think."  With that, both Ryan and I started laughing out
loud.

"Why's that?" Lee asked suspiciously.  When we explained what had happened,
Lee laughed also.  "Sorry I missed the entertainment!" he said.

The three of us had a couple of hours to kill before the pageant (Ryan had
acquired two tickets for himself and Lee as well), so we hung out on the
boardwalk for a while.  We played all sorts of stupid carnival games and ate
lots of junk food.  We had so much fun that we almost lost track of time.
Before we knew it, it was time to get ready for the pageant.  We went back
to our respective hotels and met an hour later in front of the theater.

As it turned out, Ryan and Lee's seats were right behind mine.  We sat and
watched as all 51 participants were introduced, and the host, Tom Bergeron,
went through his lame opening monologue.  Then, after what seemed like
hours, Clay was introduced.  The cheers and screams were almost deafening as
he took the stage.  I couldn't help but notice how amazing Clay looked in
his tailored suit.  When he had finished singing, the cheers were even
louder.  I took advantage of the noise to lean back to Ryan and Lee.

"I have the sexiest boyfriend in the world," I said proudly.

"Yeah you do," said Lee, drooling.  Ryan looked at him with a shocked and
hurt expression.  "What?" asked Lee with mock innocence.

"Oh, nothing," said Ryan calmly.  "Hey, is this thing almost over?  I'm late
for my date with Brad Pitt..."

"You ass," Lee said, playfully elbowing Ryan in the ribs.

We continued watching the pageant, cheering loudly when Miss Florida was
crowned the winner.  Afterward, we slowly (VERY slowly) made our way
backstage to meet up with Clay.  We found him amongst a throng of reporters.

"Hey!" he called when he saw us.  "Come on over!"  We walked over and joined
him.  Of course, Clay and Ryan at the same event caused quite a commotion,
so photographers came over to us.  After endless photo opportunities (some
of which included Lee and I, much to our surprise), Ryan finally called a
halt to it.

"OK, guys, it's been great and all, but the focus of tonight isn't Clay or
myself.  It is the lovely ladies in the pageant.  You should be taking their
pictures."

"Yeah," Clay agreed.  "They're MUCH prettier than us."  Everybody laughed.

"Hey, speak for yourself," Ryan said, pretending to fix his hair.  This
caused more laughter from the reporters, who took the not-so-subtle hints
and left us alone.  The four of us made our exit from the theater.

"That was...interesting," Lee said.

"Yeah, who'd have thought they would want OUR pictures, too?" I said.

"It started to get out of hand after a while," said Lee.

"But you guys handled it beautifully," I told Ryan and Clay.

"Thanks," said Ryan.  "Unfortunately, we're getting good at handling hyper
reporters," he said, rolling his eyes.

"So," said Clay, obviously wanting to change the subject, "I don't know
about you guys, but I'm not all that tired.  Do you guys want to hang out
for a bit?"

Ryan and Lee quickly agreed, so they came up to our suite.  We ordered
"Finding Nemo" on the hotel movie service, and broke into the hotel minibar
for snacks.  After the movie, we all just hung out and talked until almost 3
AM.  We didn't even realize what time it was until Ryan yawned and looked at
his watch.

"Holy crap!" he said.  "I can't believe we've been talking this long!"

"Well, it's been a while since we've all hung out like this," I said.  "I'm
really glad you guys came to Atlantic City."

"Yeah, we missed you, too," said Lee.  "What time is your flight tomorrow?"

"Uh...in about 5 hours," said Clay.  "So we're kicking you out now.  Sorry!"

"Hey, no problem," said Ryan.  "We're pretty tired anyway.  Have a safe
flight back tomorrow!"

We said our goodnights, and Clay and I got ready for bed.  We had no choice
but to go to sleep right away.  When the alarm went off a few short hours
later, we groggily got out of bed, packed our stuff, and went to the
airport.  We were so tired, we didn't even have the energy to gawk around at
the plane we were flying in.  We sat down in our seats and immediately fell
asleep.  We woke up when we landed, somewhat refreshed.  After the short
trip to my place, we went inside.

"Well, I have to work on lesson plans. Anything you have to do today?" I
asked Clay.

"Nope!  For once, I have a clear schedule!" he said happily.

"Well, then why don't you relax for a while, and I'll do my lesson plans,
and I will join you when I'm done?"

"Sounds great!" he said.  "Hurry!"

I got my lesson plans done in record time, and went back into the living
room, where I found Clay...asleep on the couch.  He was still sitting up,
though, so I flipped on the television, and sat next to him, wrapping my
arms around him.  Clay stirred, and then stretched drowsily.

"Mmm, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep," he told me.

"It's no problem...we're both tired," I said to him.

"So what do you want to do?" he asked me.

"I dunno...it's a beautiful day outside.  Do you want to go to the park?" I
suggested.

"That sounds like a great idea!" Clay said enthusiastically.  "I bet the
trees are beautiful this time of year."

While Clay got our jackets and checked his voicemail messages, I packed a
small picnic basket with a couple of sandwiches and water bottles.  When
Clay came back, we left my apartment and made the short drive to the park
near my complex.  Clay was right -- the trees were gorgeous.

"So did you have any messages?" I asked Clay as we meandered along the
trail.

"Actually, yeah, I had a few messages," he told me.  "One was from my mother
-- she says hi, by the way.  Another was from my manager."

"Oh?"

"Yeah!" said Clay excitedly.  "Apparently, Dave Matthews cancelled out on
his Tonight Show appearance this week, so Leno's people called my manager,
and guess who's going to appear instead?"

I pretended to think about it, and then said, "If it's not you, then this is
a REALLY crappy story."

"You goof," he told me, lightly pushing me to the side.  "Yes, it's me!"

"That's fantastic!" I said, genuinely excited for him.  "Which night's show
is it?"

"Friday.  Cedric the Entertainer is also on the show," said Clay.

"Oh, so I see they were going for similar guests," I kidded him.

"Haha, something like that!" said Clay, playing along.  We found a somewhat
secluded spot and decided to lay down our blanket.  "Anyway, my manager had
scheduled me for a couple of other publicity things that evening, since the
album is coming out soon.  So that means I'll have to be out of town that
night."

I sighed loudly in exaggeration.  "I *suppose* I'll have to survive without
you."

"Well, you could always take another Friday off school..." he said.

"Are you kidding me?!" I said, only half joking.  "I can't take ANOTHER
Friday off work!  There are already rumors going around that I'm quitting!"

"Seriously?" he asked me.  "Man, now I feel bad..."

"No, don't feel bad," I told him.  "There was no place I would have rather
been than with you."  I glanced around quickly, then just as quickly kissed
him on the lips.

We continued talking while we ate our sandwiches.  It was a good thing we
brought our jackets, because it was certainly chilly.  At one point during
the meal, I shivered.  Clay scooted over behind me and rubbed his hands up
and down my arms quickly, trying to warm me up.  Soon he slowed down, and I
relaxed back against his chest as we watched the sunset.  It was a nice
feeling, but we soon realized we couldn't be sitting like that in the open.
After all, the last thing we needed was a repeat of Atlantic City with
someone *other* than Ryan catching us.  We packed up our picnic and headed
back to the car.

When we got back to my apartment, we just kind of sat in my car for a while,
neither of us speaking.  We both knew that Clay needed to go home and take
care of things there, but we also both knew that this was going to be an
extremely busy week for him.  Chances were we wouldn't see each other again
until after Clay returned from Los Angeles.  We were likely facing an entire
week without seeing each other.

"I'll call you every day.  That's a promise," he told me, breaking the
silence.

"You better," I said to him, smiling, though my voice was starting to waver
just a bit.

"Randy?" he said.  "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," I told him.  "I'm just going to go crazy this week without
you."

"I'll be going crazy right along with you," he promised me.

"But you'll be busy with promotions and appearances and celebrity stuff," I
said, pouting just a bit.

"And the whole time, I'll be wishing I was with you," he told me, putting
his hand on my knee.

I smiled.  "OK, you better go before I kidnap you."  I leaned over and
wrapped my arms around him, burying my nose in his neck.  Clay leaned back
and turned my face to his, leaning in to kiss me.  Our lips met and moved
together, slowly at first, but the kiss gradually grew more passionate.  Our
tongues intertwined and danced a slow dance together in our mouths.  We
pulled apart just as gradually, and just stared into each other's eyes.  No
further words were needed. He kissed me once more quickly on the mouth, said
goodbye, and got out of my car.  I, too, got out of the car and went inside.

The week passed surprisingly quickly.  The kids at school had calmed down
somewhat, and they really seemed to enjoy the lessons I had planned for that
week.  It was one of those weeks that I needed every so often to remind me
of why I became a teacher.  Clay kept his promise and called every night,
and sometimes twice.  Sometimes he could only talk for a few minutes while
he was en route to another publicity event, but it was still good to hear
his voice.

That Friday, I had Scott and Paul over for dinner. We hadn't seen each other
in a while, so it was nice to catch up with them.  After dinner, we
continued our conversation in the living room.  All of a sudden, I looked at
the clock and saw that it was time for the Tonight Show.

"Why the sudden interest in Jay Leno?" asked Scott.

"Seriously," said Paul.  "Letterman's funnier.  Let's watch him."

"No!  We have to watch Leno!" I said...OK, "whined" would be more accurate.

"Jeez, calm down.  What, do you have a new celebrity crush or something?"
Paul said.  I knew then that they were teasing me.

"Oooooh, I'm sooooo telling Clay," said Scott.

"You guys are goons," I said, laughing.  We turned on the TV and watched.
The show was mildly amusing at best, but that's OK.  Because he was the
night's musical guest, Clay was last on the show.  He came out and sang his
song perfectly.  To my surprise, he did not sing "This is the Night," but
rather a different song.  It was another ballad, and the way that Clay
stared into the camera's lens, I swore he was singing directly to me.  Of
course, millions of teenage girls all thought the same thing, but with me,
it was actually probably true!  I couldn't help but feel smug as I thought
about that.

When Clay finished the song, the audience cheered very loudly, and Jay
motioned for Clay to come chat for a bit.

"Clay Aiken, ladies and gentlemen," Jay said.  "So, your album comes out
soon, doesn't it?"

"Yes, the 14th of October.  Mark your calendars!" said Clay.

"I'm sure all those lovely ladies in the audience will be first in line,"
said Jay, eliciting more screams from the audience.  "You seem to have quite
a fan base out there!"

"And I thank y'all from the bottom of my heart," he said, blowing a kiss to
the audience.  Cue more screaming.

"His accent comes out more when he's being humble," Scott observed.

"He's so cute," I said, grinning like a fool.  "Ssh, let's watch!"  We
turned our attention back to the show.

"You seem to have quite the effect on the ladies," Jay commented.

Clay blushed deeply and kind of hid his face.  "Lord knows why..."

"So I'll ask what I'm sure they all want to know..."

Uh oh, I thought.  Here it comes...

"Is there anyone special in your life?"

***

Uh oh! Another cliffhanger!  What do you think Clay is going to say?  You'll
have to wait to find out!  Unfortunately, this wait might also be a long
one.  I've been really wrapped up in my jobs here lately, so I haven't had a
lot of time to write.  However, I have some wonderful ideas in my head, some
of which were supplied by you, my readers, and I appreciate that a LOT!
Please keep the comments and suggestions coming:
musicteacher2002@hotmail.com  Stay tuned!!