July 25, 2000

Six months. It had been six months, two weeks, and three days since Leah had seen JC. Yep, she had been counting. Yes, it was pretty sad, but she couldn't help it. She counted each day since the two had seen each other. But at least she wasn't counting the hours. As pathetic as it was, when Leah and JC first went their separate ways in the summer of '94, and attempted to maintain a long distance relationship, she counted every hour that they were a part. The first two months, she couldn't keep him off her brain. She couldn't help it, she was love sick. Then finally, she got a hold of herself, and started to focus on the one thing she could control. Her music. It was the only thing that kept her mind off of JC, and what he was doing, or wondering how he was feeling. She put all of her feelings and emotions about JC into the songs she wrote. She spent day in and day out recording, and rehearsing, preparing for the moment that she would get picked up by a label.

While Leah was trying to get her mind off of JC in New York, JC was trying to do the same in Orlando. He along with his bandmates Justin, Chris, Joey, and Lance were constantly rehearsing dance routines, and recording songs trying to get recognized. This was good for JC, because anytime he wasn't busy he was constantly thinking about Leah, and whether or not she met any new guys in New York that could potentially take his place. The thought of Leah with another guy made JC sick to his stomach, and he got incredibly jealous. Which was so unlike him. This is crazy, JC would think to himself. I'm jealous over something that hasn't even happened!
While the two kept busy focusing on their careers, the letters they wrote to each other became few and far between, and the phone calls scarce. It was almost like they weren't even in a relationship anymore, and the agonzing that they were doing over each other wasn't healthy.

Then came that fateful phone call. Leah could remember it like it was just yesterday.

November, 1994
It was a Saturday, and Leah was just coming home from a studio session. As soon as she walked through the door she heard the phone in her bedroom ring. She walked down the hall and into her bedroom, she looked at the caller I.D. and saw JC's number. Her heart began to race and instantly picked it up.

"Josh!" Leah answered excitedly. The sound of her cheery voice instantly made JC's heart ache. He was contemplating whether or not he should do what he's been agonzing over all night.

"Hey Leah." JC replied solemnly. By the tone in his voice Leah could tell that something was wrong, and her heart plummeted to her feet.

"Hey, how's it going?" Leah asked, a bit suspicious.

"Nothing much, just same old, same old." JC answered back. 'C'mon man, don't drag this out', he silently told himself. 'You can do this, you have to do this.'

"Oh, well same here." Leah replied. Damn! Why was she at such a lost for words? She hadn't talked to her boyfriend in a whole week, and for those seven long days she's been planning on what she would say to him. But now, now it was different. She didn't know what to say to him, or what to do to break the iceberg that was increasingly growing between them.

"Hey, listen." JC spoke up.

"I'm listening, Josh."

"It's like this." JC continued.

"It's like what?" Leah asked, growing suspicious of where the conversation was heading, and not wanting to go in that direction.

"It's obvious that we've been growing apart, we don't get to see each other anymore, and we hardly even get to speak to each other, and when we do, we don't even know what to say."

"Josh." Was all that Leah could say, trying her best to steady her now shaky voice.

"You know that I love you, and I always will. But it's just not the right time for us." JC said, trying to convince himself that what he was doing was the right move. His head was telling him this was the logical solution, but his heart was feeling the complete opposite.

"Josh, what are you saying?" Leah asked, a tear falling from her eyes, and rolling down her cheek. But she knew exactly what he was saying. Like he said, it was obvious.
"I think we should take some time apart, you know to regroup, and figure out our lives separate from each other." JC explained.

"You mean break up." Leah stated. It was more of a statement, not a question.

"No. Not break up-"

"Josh, just say it!" Leah said, her voice rising. Now she was starting to get angry. In the back of her mind, she knew that the end for them was near, but she just didn't want to face it, and now that the time came, JC wanted to sugar coat things, just to spare her feelings. It was so typical for him to try to spare her feelings. Since they had first become friends on The Mickey Mouse Club, JC was always protecting other people from hurting her, and now he was the person who was hurting her. He was trying to let her down gently though, she realized. But at that point, she didn't care. JC was no longer her friend, he was her boyfriend who she had fallen madly in love with, and now he was breaking up with her, and she was emotional. And when you're emotional, almost nothing makes since anymore.

"Leah listen," JC sighed.

"No, if you really want to 'take time apart'", Leah said quoting him, "then just call it what it is, a break up." Leah reiterated.

JC took a long sigh, "Fine, it's a break up." JC surrendered. "But that doesn't mean we can't still be friends."

"No, Josh. That's exactly what that means. It's not like we can just be friends again. Not after all that we've been through together."

"Leah." JC's heart felt like it was literally being ripped open, he didn't know what to say. It's not like he was trying to hurt her. He would never do anything to intentionally hurt her. He loved her! But he knew, and she knew that they could not go on like this. It wasn't good for either of them.

"Do you honestly think it's that easy? To just go back to being friends as if nothing ever happened? That our feelings for each other are just going to disappear into thin air?

"Leah, I'm not trying to hurt you, okay?"

"You know what? Save it Josh!" And with that, Leah hung up her phone, and the line went dead. More hurt than ever, the tears were now rolling faster and faster down her face, and her heart felt like it was going to burst. Deep down, she knew. She knew that their relationship was deteriorating, but she didn't want to believe it. 'It's just a rough patch', she would tell herself. 'We'll get past this, just give it time.' But in the back of her mind she knew it was inevitable that they would split. JC was right, he ws completely right, but that doesn't mean it didn't hurt. Time just wasn't on their side, but she wanted so badly to defy everything that kept them apart, and at that point it was impossible. It just wasn't meant to be. And on that very day, her worst fear came true; That once they crossed the line from friends, to lovers, it would never be the same again. And it wasn't the same. That day, Leah had not only lost her boyfriend, but she had lost her bestfriend too. She felt like she was mourning the death of a friend.

Ring. Snapping back into reality, Leah reached across the bed to grab her phone. When she checked her caller I.D., she saw that it was Tyson, her boyfriend of the past six months. "Hello?" Leah answered

"Hey babe!" Tyson said into the phone.

"Hey Ty," Leah replied. For some reason, she was a bit put off by his phone call. She didn't know why, but she wasn't super excited to hear his voice.

"Is there something wrong?" Tyson asked, sensing the frustrated tone in her voice.

"No baby, not at all." Leah replied trying her best to sound as sweet as possible, she really didn't want to pick a fight with him. Not today of all days. Today she would have a good day. She would not let anything get in the way of her having a good time with her bestfriend.

"Well good! So, do you have anything planned for the day?" Tyson asked. Leah now became slightly irritated. More with herself, than with Tyson. Damn, she had forgotten to tell him about her day with JC!

"Um, well actually Tyson, JC's in town today, and I was thinking I would spend the day with him!" Leah explained.

"Wait. JC's in town? How long have you known?" Tyson asked, his skin growing a little hot.
Leah's palms began to sweat and she started to pace her bedroom floor. She contemplated whether or not she should tell him the truth. Wait. Why should she lie to him? And why was she starting to feel guilty all of sudden? It's not like she wasn't allowed to have friends of her own, she reasoned with herself. She was her own person, and Tyson was gonna have to learn that she was gonna do separate things sometimes. Taking a breath, she decided to tell him the truth.

"I've known since Sunday." Leah stated.

"I see." Tyson said, trying his best to keep his composure. He didn't want to blow up on his girlfriend just because she was seeing a friend. A guy friend.

"I'm really sorry Ty, but I haven't seen JC in months." Wait. Why did she feel the need to apologize. It's not like he asked her to clear her schedule for the day. And it was most definitely not like he owned her. After all, she was a grown woman, and she could do what she wanted, when she wanted. He was her boyfriend, true, but's it's not like they were married, and she didn't have to answer to him.

"That's okay baby, I understand. Go, have fun!" Tyson said, trying his best to come off as understanding, although he was kind of hurt.

"Really?" Leah asked, hoping he wouldn't get angry at her. Although, she was a bit annoyed now, she really did love him, and didn't want him angry at her over something so stupid.
"Yes really! I get it, although I was really hoping we could spend the whole week together, seeing as you start promotion for your new album next week, and I'll hardly ever get to see you." Tyson said, playing the guilt trip. "But, hey I mean what's one day right?"

"Actually, JC won't be leaving until Thursday." Leah said, barely above a whisper.
"Thursday?" Tyson asked in disbelief, his voice rising. "That's three whole days!"
"Yeah, I can count Tyson! Don't be so freaked out!" Leah replied, growing more and more annoyed with each passing second.

"Freaked out? Leah you're my girlfriend, and I love you. Don't you realize that starting next week you'll be traveling all around the world, and I'll just be stuck here? I just want to spend these last few moments with you, before you start promotion." Tyson said. Leah understood that it was hard on him for her to be away, it was hard on her too.
"Baby, I won't be gone for that long." Leah replied, trying to make her absence seem much less painful.

"Sure, you say that now, but then you're album will probably go number one, then you'll be promoting the album with a year long tour. Then who knows what will happen to us?" Tyson asked, confessing his worst fear to his girlfriend.

"Really? You think my album will go number one?" Leah asked. She was joking of course, she wasn't that vain. She was just trying to lighten the mood. To be honest, her relationship with Tyson was new territory for her, and their love got so intense so fast. She hadn't fallen this deep since, since, well since JC, and she was still having trouble dealing with the "Needy Boyfriend" type. JC was never needy, so sometimes, she didn't quite know how to handle Tyson.

"Leah."

"Sorry, just trying to lighten the mood. Tyson, do you honestly think this long distance thing isn't going to kill me too? It totally will! But we'll just have to work on it babe. I love you, you know that. And don't worry about me leaving you behind. I won't forget about you. How could I forget about you? I love you!" Leah said, and to be honest she felt sorry for Tyson.

"You mean that?" Tyson asked, already knowing the answer.

"You know I do! Listen I have to go, but I'll call you as soon as I get back!" She promised.
Tyson let out a long breath. "I love you."

"I love you two, bye!" And with that the couple hung up. After she placed her cordless, back on it's hook, Leah sat on her bed, taking a moment to clear her head. If she wasn't mistaking, Tyson had almost sounded jealous. Which was strange, because although he could be needy sometimes, he was never really the jealous type, and it's not like she was gonna go there with JC all over again. It had been to hard to get back to being friends after their disastrous breakup. Well, he has no reason to be jealous, Leah reassured herself. Besides, it's not like that between JC and I anymore. 

Leah glanced at the digital clock on her nightstand, it was 9:30, and JC would be there in another hour to pick her up for breakfast. She got up and walked over to her walk-in closet and decided to try on one last outfit. She had already tried on six different outfits. She was so nervous about seeing him for the first time in six months, and she didn't know why but she felt the need to look perfect for him, which meant; she had to have on the right outfit, the right shade of lipgloss, her hair had to look perfect, and she had to smell heavenly! She couldn't figure out for the life of her why she felt the need to be perfect whenever she was around him, when she never felt like that aorund Tyson.

Finally, Leah settled on her new baby pink Tally Weijl babydoll dress, with a white chasmere cardigan, her black patent leather Kirna Zabete wooden wedge heels with nude satin lace up ribbons, and to top off the look, silver Tiffany bezet hoop earrings adorned her ears, and her silver Tiffany and Co. pendant heart necklace hung from her neck. She decided to wear her brunette naturally curly hair up in a ponytail. Deciding to keep her face natural the only make up she wore was concealer, and the "Internationalist" shade of M.A.C. Lipglass, the pink shade shimmering on her full lips. After she sprits some of her Victoria's Secret Love Spell body mist on her skin, and grabbed her black leather Chanel Portobllo Tote, she heard her doorbell ring. She took a deep breath, heading for the door. Before she opened it, she glanced at herself in the mirror giving herself a once-over. After confirming that not a hair was out of place, she stepped away from the mirror, and opened her apartment door.

When she saw JC standing there, her heart began to beat faster, and faster. She couldn't help it but she felt like her seventeen year old self all over again. Breathe, she told herself, just breathe, get it together girl! "Hi Josh!" Leah exclaimed, trying to steady her voice.
"Hi, Leah." JC replied, completely mesmerized, and butterflies in his stomach, like he was a damn teenager! How was it that she still managed to take his breath away? "Um, these are for you." JC handed Leah a bouquet of her favorite flowers, a dozen long stemmed red roses.
Leah was a taken aback. She hadn't expected roses, but she thought it was sweet, and she really appreciated them. "Wow! Thanks, Josh! These are beautiful! Come in. I'm gonna go set these in water, then I'll be ready to go!"
"Okay," JC replied, stepping into Leah's penthouse apartment, and sitting down on her sofa. When Leah disappeared into the kitchen, JC let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding in. She was beautiful, she looked like an angel. Now, he didn't know how he was going to make it through the day, without feeling like it was a date. Without feeling like they were together again. Dammit JC, pull it together man, you have a girlfriend! JC thought to himself. This was gonna be interesting!

After Tyson, had hung up from talking to Leah, he let out along sigh, and threw the long stemmed red roses he had gotten her into the garbage. He had planned on showing up at her place, surprising her with her favorite flowers, taking her out to breakfast, and spoiling her all day. In fact he had planned on spoiling her all week, and showering her with lavish gifts. This was the last week they had together for a while, and he wanted it to be special. He wanted to remind her of why she fell for him in the first place. Then along came JC Chasez, international popstar, and a longtime "friend" of Leah's. He was trying his damndest to understand. But it was so hard. Especially when her bestfriend was not only a guy, but a guy from the hottest boyband in the world. He was the JC Chasez, and Tyson was just Tyson. Just a regular guy. Tyson laughed to himself, he had never considered himself as "just a regular guy", all his life he was the guy. He was always the most popular, guys looked up to him, and every girl wanted him in the sack, he came from a wealthy family, so money was no object for him. He stood around six feet tall, had jet black curly hair, hazel eyes, honey colored skin, and the perfect smile, no girl could ever resist him.

That was until he met Leah. She wasn't impressed by his money, or his model good looks, and his arrogance turned her off. Leah was different, she's in showbusiness and met guys like that all the time, so it took more than the material things to impress her. He was so intrigued by her the first time he saw her. She was at a C.D. signing in the mall. He'd never heard her music before, but he brought one of her C.D.'s anyway, just so he could meet her. When he got to the front of the line, he tried to spit game at her, knowing she wouldn't be able to resist. She looked at him, simply rolling her eyes at his cockiness, and asked his name, so she could sign her name on the C.D., and move on.

"Tyson Andrews." He said. He handed her the C.D. along with his phone number, and walked away.

Out of curiosity, Leah called Tyson later that night. "Look, I don't know who you are but, if you're some crazy ass stalker, then I can have you arrested!" She yelled into the phone, a little freaked out, because a fan had never given her their phone number before. A stuffed animal, or a letter sure, but never a phone number.

"Please, one night with me and you'll be the stalker." Tyson responded.

"Who are you?" Leah asked disgusted.

"Who are you?" He asked back.

"Um, my name is Leah James, I though you knew that, since you did buy my C.D." Tyson froze in his place. Leah James? The Leah James, as in the hottest popstar on the planet? He didn't actually take the time to look at the C.D. he picked up, he just figured she was some local artist, trying to make a name for herself. But then he realized that she was the Leah James. The one whose posters were all over his younger sister's bedroom wall, the one who was on the cover of Seventeen Magazine!

"Oh my gosh, I am such an ass!" Tyson blurted out after, he realized his mistake.

"Um yeah, you kinda are!" Leah exclaimed. "You're like really cocky, and don't be fooled but not every girl is into that!" Leah continued, sounding like any normal twenty-three year old woman, not an international celebrity.

"Will you go on a date with me?" Tyson asked.

"Um, excuse me?" Leah asked, completely put off, and shocked. This was the most bizzare thing that had ever happened to her.

"Yeah, did I stutter?" Tyson asked, he had a huge set of balls!

"No. I will not go on a date with you!" Leah answered

"Why not?" Tyson asked, now it was his turn to be shocked.

"Because, like you said, you are a huge gigantic ass!"

"You don't have to embellish."

"Well, until you show some manners, and treat a lady with respect, I have nothing to say to you." And with that, Leah hung up. Tyson stood there stunned. Partly because a girl had turned him down, and partly because he just had a private conversation with a celebrity, and partly because he got turned down by a celebrity. He quickly jotted down her number, that was left on his caller I.D. and decided that he would do whatever it took to win her over.

It wasn't easy, Tyson really had to change his attitude, he had to change himself as a person. Leah was the first and only he girl, he was sure of that could change him. He was completely intrigued by her, and not because she was famous, and not only because she looked liked a young Tyra Banks. But because she wasn't like every other girl who was impressed by him. She didn't need or want him And why should she? She was fucking Leah James! She could have any guy she wanted. And he wanted to be that guy, her guy! After doing tons of research on her, and reading a lot of her interviews, he found that she was a very loving, and compassionate person with a kind and giving soul. He soon realized that it would take a lot to win her over. Not money, or expensive jewlrey. But other things, like charm, and chivalry, and long walks on the beach, and all of that sentimental shit. She was looking for a deep connection with a guy, and Tyson wanted to make that connection.

So over the next three months, Tyson did everything he could to win her over. He sent cards, to her house everyday, each card telling a different reason of why she should give him a second chance. He would call her twice a day, just to ask how she was feeling. At first it was a bit weird for her, and he had to convince her that he wasn't a stalker, and promised that he wasn't out to kill her! So she started accepting him as a regular guy trying to win her affections, not as some crazy fan, because it was so obvious that he wasn't a fan of her music. Which was actually refreshing! After months of trying, he felt like he should just give up, that she would never be into him. So on his last attempt to win her over, he flew all the way to Paris on his private jet, to come to her show. When she saw him at her backstage meet-and-greet, she was completely shocked! Never had a man flown across the globe, just to try to win her over. Never in her life had she felt so special!

After she had finished signing autographs, and taking pictures with her fans, she walked over to Tyson and said, "Well I guess I don't have a choice now, huh?" And the rest was history! Over the next six months they had grown closer than ever! Leah had slowly began to open her heart back up again after her breakup with JC, and Tyson was no longer just "The Cocky Rich Boy", he had truly changed, and Leah was the girl that changed him! He was now sensitive, caring, and down to earth.

Not to mention insecure, Leah was the only girl to ever make him feel insecure. He felt like he could lose her at any moment. Especially now more than ever, now that JC was back in the picture. He knew that they used to have a relationship, and that bothered him more than anything. He tried not to be insecure, needy, and jealous. He really did try. He didn't want to be that guy. But he couldn't help it, he knew that Leah and JC had a very special friendhip, and to be completely honest it made him sick to his stomach. Deep down inside, very deep down, he knew that Leah still had feelings for JC, but he just couldn't accept it, he wouldn't, and he wasn't ready to let her go. For the first time in his life, Tyson wasn't "Tyson Andrews, Ladies Man", he was just "Tyson, Regular Old Guy."

JC took Leah to a nice cafe in downtown Manhattan, where they ate outside. "So, what's going on with you?" Leah asked, wanting to catch up with him.

"Well, the album is number one again." JC said, keep the conversation light.

"Yeah, I think I'm personally responsible for that!"

"What?" JC asked, lauging.

"When you guys' album dropped, I bought like seven of them!" Leah exclaimed

"Wait, seriously?" JC asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, and then about a week ago, I bought three more!" Leah admitted, now embarrassed.

"Like for real?" JC smiled.

"Oh my gosh, I can't believe that I'm actually telling you this right now! But I couldn't resist, the critics are praising you guys! It's like Beatlemania, and I'm such a huge fan!" Leah confessed.

"Well, I don't know about that, but I'm flattered!" JC lauged. He couldn't believe that she had bought ten of their albums, but it was something that was so typical of her. She had her own quirks, that's what he loved about her, she was different. And he didn't know if Bobbie would've done that for him, he didn't even know if Bobbie had bought No Strings Attached at all! Her unwavering support and loyalty to him touched his heart, not just any girl would do that, especially not someone who had the status that Leah had. "So what did you do with all of those C.D.'s anyway?" JC asked curious.

"Well, I kept two of them, and the other eight I gave to a children's charity. What twelve year old girl wouldn't want an Nsync C.D.?" Leah replied.
"Wow!" Was all JC said in response. Leah had such a kind heart, she was always thinking of the less fortunate.

"By the way, the music sounds amazing! I'm so proud of you guys!"

"Thanks, Leah. That really means a lot! Okay, so enough about me, let's talk about you!"

"Josh," Leah sighed.

"No really, you haven't done too bad for yourself either, two consecutive number one albums! That's crazy!"

"Can you believe it's been six years since we were just kids in Orlando? It feels like just yesterday that we were taping episodes of The Mickey Mouse Club!" Leah said, changing the subject, she always got uncomfotable when people complimented her.

"Can you ever just take a compliment?" JC asked. He was amazed at how humble Leah was, after all of the success she had. Grounded people were hard to come buy in the entertainment industry. He looked across the table at Leah, and it was still the same girl that he met back in Orlando nine years ago, before any of the craziness between them started to happen.

"Thank you Josh." Leah smiled.

"And no, actually I can't believe it, it does feel like just yesterday!"

"So much has happened since then..." Leah trailed off, not wanting to take the conversation into uncomfortable territory. She didn't want this to feel awkward for them.

"Yeah, a lot has happened." JC agreed. Being in a relationship, breaking up. JC wanted to add. For some reason, he wished they could talked about it, but it was like some forbidden part of their lives, that neither seemed to talk about. Almost like how in the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, where a part of history was vanished forever, and no one ever spoke of it again. Like it never happened. But in a way, JC understood. They loved each other very deeply, no one really understood how much they loved each other, and their relationship was so deep, yet so fragile, and it hurt when they broke up. So in order to maintain their friendship, it was best they not talk about their relationship.

"Excuse me." Both JC and Leah, broke their instense gaze, and looked up to see a girl around thirteen or fourteen years old at their table. She had pig tails and freckles. She wore a white Britney Spears T-shirt, black capri pants, and purple flip flops, with a Lisa Frank notebook and pen in hand.

"Are you JC Chasez and Leah James?" The girl asked, a little nervous.

"Yes," JC and Leah said in unison.

"Do you think I could get your autographs?" She asked with a hopeful look on her face.

"Of course honey!" JC answered for the both of them, giving her a smile. Leah smiled too, and a wide smile spread across the girl's face. She handed JC the notebook, and ink pen. "What's your name?" JC asked.

"Cara!" She replied shyly. JC signed his name, then passed the pen and notebook to Leah for her to sign. "I can't believe this, my favorite singer, and my favorite member of *Nsync! Both of my favorite celebrities all in one place. This is like the best day ever!" Cara shrieked.

"Awww, that's so sweet! Thanks so much!" Leah replied, flattered. Cara was so cute, she reminded her of one of her cousins!

"Wait, so are you guys like a couple?!" Cara asked excitedly. JC and Leah shared awkward glances at each other, waiting for the other to answer the question. A cute moment, soon turned into a very awkward one for the both of them. Wait. Why was this awkward for them? They both knew the answer, of course they weren't a couple. But to be honest, they both wanted the answer to be something different. This was crazy!

"No, we're not a couple." Leah finally answered. Of course they weren't a couple, but it kind of stung JC to hear those words aloud. Damn, suddenly JC didn't like this girl anymore.

"Oh. My bad, it's just that you took look like you sorta belong together! Well, thanks anyway!" Cara said, walking away, leaving the two alone in an awkward silence.

"Isn't it weird?" Leah asked, breaking the ice.

"What?" JC asked, anticipating where this was heading.

"The word celebrity." Leah replied.

"Oh." JC sighed, partly relieved, partly disappointed.

"You know, when people say the word 'celebrity' I think like Michael Jackson, or Mariah Carey, or somebody, but most definitely not me!"

"Oh, I know right! It's so weird! Especially when someone wants my autograph!"

"Remember signing your first autograph?! You signed your second grade picture for me!" Leah said.

"Yeah, and you told me that my autograph would be worth a lot someday." JC smiled remembering the day clearly. It was a rainy Saturday in his basement.

Leah sat on the carpeted basement floor looking through one of his families photo albums.

"Oh, how cute!" Leah gushed, pulling out a photo of JC in the second grade. JC rolled his eyes.

"Ha ha, very funny!" JC replied.

"No really, it's cute Josh! Can I have it?" Leah asked.

"Really? You want it? Why?" Josh asked.

"So someday, I can say that I knew JC Chasez way back when!"

"Really?"

"Yeah! Here, sign it!" Leah said, sliding the photo and a pen to JC, who was sitting on the couch.

"Sign it?" JC asked confused.

"Yeah, you know, your first autograph. It's gonna be worth a lot someday, and I wanna be the one with the very first autograph from 'The JC Chasez'" Leah said smiling.

"And I was right!" Leah replied, snapping JC back into reality.

"Huh?" JC asked.

"I was right! I bet if I were to put that picture up on eBay right now, it would sell for millions!"

"You still have that picture?" JC asked amazed.

"Of course I still have that picture, and trust me I wouldn't sell it! It's not just an autograph Josh, it's an important part of my life." Leah answered honestly.
Her support truly touched him. It's nice to know that after all they've been through, they could still be there for each other. They were an integral part of each other's lives. That's the way it was, and the way it would always be.

"Wow, Leah, that really means a lot." JC replied, Leah smiled. Her radiant smile warmed his heart. Suddenly, Leah's phone alerted her that she had a text message.
"Sorry." Leah excused, retrieving her phone from her purse. It was Tyson. As, she read the message on her phone her face lit up.
Leah,
Sorry for my jealous behavior, it's just that I love you so much. Can I make it up to you sometime tonight?
-Tyson

"Sorry, it's Tyson." Leah apologized.

"Tyson?" JC asked. Damn, that's right. She hadn't told Tyson about JC, and she hadn't told JC about Tyson either.

"Um, yeah. My boyfriend." Leah replied, almost nervous about JC's reaction. Why did she feel like she was cheating on him?

"Your boyfriend?" JC repeated the word.

"Yeah, Tyson is my boyfriend." As she said the word boyfriend, JC felt as though she had stabbed him in the heart. It's not like they were a couple, but still. To know that there was a man in her life bothered him. A lot.

"Oh." Was all that JC could say.