JC noticed that Laura seemed more comfortable now as the tour headed into its second month.  People really respected Laura for herself and not just as the headliners wife.  Laura filled in wherever necessary, never complaining about the jobs she was asked to do, helping in whatever way she could.  The staff on tour fell in love with Laura, especially the more they got to know her. 

She also still kept up with the fan mail and website, letting everyone know what was happening with the tour and posting great pictures.  The true fans expressed their happiness at the fact that JC was married.  They only wanted the best for him and thought Laura was it.  She tried to write as many fans back as she could, always posing as JC. 

She was also able to keep up with what was happening to the people on tour and their families.  She endeared herself even further to them and to JC by sending cards and flowers on special occasions.  A staff birthday did not go by without recognition from the Chasez’s.  Even though JC was always the one leading the singing, the entire staff knew who had made the effort to remember.  They became a family in those first months of touring. 

Being a family was even more important around the holidays.  Most people were unable to leave to head home for Thanksgiving, there was going to be a show Friday night so most were just planning to stay.  The tour would be wrapping up about two weeks after Thanksgiving, letting everyone go home for Christmas, so this prompted Laura into planning something special. 

JC was in a bad mood this afternoon, nothing had gone right during sound check, a woman had dumped her entire ice filled drink on him while taking a picture at the meet and greet, and he was tired and ready for a break.  He just wanted to lie down and rest for a while before the show started.  Thanksgiving was two days away and this was the last show before having two days off. 

He was stomping down the hall, when he heard his wife’s voice.  She was on her cell phone talking.

“No, Tony, we don’t need any help…  JC and I will handle everything. ..  Yeah, as long as he follows my instructions nothing will get burned…It’s no problem, I love to make Thanksgiving dinner.  I’ll make JC my willing slave…Yeah, I know but just tell people that –“  Her voice trailed off as she went into another room. 

Now his mood had gone from bad to worse.  There was no way he was helping fix Thanksgiving for whatever Laura had planned.  He was about to go find her and fight it out right then, when he got the call to come back to stage, something had happened to his microphone and they needed to check it again. 

After dealing with that, there was no time for a nap; he had to get his hair and makeup done before rushing into wardrobe.  Laura was busy with other duties that night and wasn’t backstage to help with his wardrobe changes either.  Which was probably a good thing considering JC’s mood. 

His performance was good, but not great that night and he knew it.  That just made him even madder and unfortunately, Laura was going to bear the brunt of his fury. 

Everyone was avoiding him after the show; no eye contact was made even as people scurried to fulfill his barked orders.  No one thought to warn Laura of his bad mood though. 

Stomping down the hall of the hotel, he waited as someone unlocked the door to the room he shared with his wife.  He slammed the door behind him as Laura looked up from her place on the bed, where she was surrounded by cookbooks.  She had been organizing her menu for Thanksgiving dinner. 

“What’s wrong?”  She asked noticing his tightly clenched jaw. 

“Why would you think something is wrong?”  He asked through gritted teeth.

“Look at you…how did the show go?”

“It went.”

“Did you have problems with fans?”

“No.”

“JC, I can’t help you unless you tell me what is wrong.”  She exclaimed in frustration.

“Well let’s see, a woman dumped a drink all over me during the meet and greet, someone screwed with my mike so I had to do sound check twice, oh and then I find out that my wife has told everyone that I’ll make Thanksgiving dinner for them on my only day off!  That’s what wrong with me.”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me; I’m the headliner for crying out loud, I don’t cook for the people around me.  That’s what they are paid to do.”

“Really and as ‘your wife’ what am I ‘paid to do’ exactly?”  She was now standing in front of him, eyes flashing. 

He simply glared at her as he undressed. 

“I see, well if the headliner had bothered to get the facts…  You know what…never mind… think what you will, but before you start taking it out on the people who help you look good up there every night, you might want to get a hold of yourself.  I didn’t marry a headliner, but here lately you have turned into such a diva.  I don’t know what your problem is but you’d better take a step back and take a good look at yourself before they leave you in the dust.”

“Whatever.”  He mumbled as he slammed the door to the bathroom behind him.

***

Laura grabbed a sweatshirt, some money, her laptop, and her room key before she left the room.  She was going to find a quiet corner and let JC calm down for a while.  She wasn’t sure if the pressures of the tour were getting to him or if he was worried about something he hadn’t yet shared with her, but she couldn’t take being the scapegoat any longer. 

She went down the hall and found an empty conference room that had comfortable chairs and Wi-Fi.  She made sure to close the door behind her so she could listen to some music.  At least if she wasn’t going to sleep tonight, she might as well get some work done and the grocery list for her meal shopping. 

If only the fans could have seen his little temper tantrum.