Lynn comes outside to find out why Chris had yelled, quickly spotting Alex leaning on Howie's beater and my body pressed against his as we share our last few kisses. "Cassie, why don't you take…"
"Alex," he supplies.
"Inside for a few minutes while the boys and I talk?" Lynn suggests.
"C'mon, Alex," I say, pulling him along behind me and grinning like a fool. Once we cross the threshold to the living room, Britney sees my foolish grin and giggles. "I'm home, kids," I playfully say.
"You kissed! You went to his house! Ohmigosh!" Britney squeals, jumping up from her spot on the floor to point at us and bouncing on her heels. "You did! 'Drya!"
I giggle at her enthusiasm. "No, I did it all with Jordan Knight from NKOTB," I retort.
I tell her how little we had done, omitting the make out session and emphasizing the cuddle session on his mom's couch. "You're crazy, you know Justin's gonna tell JC every word you tell us now later on or tomorrow," Christina informs me, legs bent and leaning back on her hands.
I shrug. "Don't care, nothing bad went down, so it's whatever." I glance at Alex, sharing a short but sweet kiss with him. "Let him blab."
Sure enough after Josh had sat beside Justin on the other couch and Alex and I had begun walking to see what was taking Howie, Chris and Lynn so long outside, Justin had started to tell Josh every word I had spoken, most likely pouring out the fact that I had kissed my boyfriend on Lynn's couch and of course it was all in whispers. Lynn is finding out that Alex asked for permission to ask me out and to go steady with me, having to talked to not only Bev, but Chris and my mom. "So any problems Josh may have with AJ, they can be squashed instantly," Howie confirms.
"If he has a problem, he can take it up with me," Chris adds.
"Or me, one on one," Alex adds. "Maño a maño." They all look at him and he shrugs.
"Would you boys like to spend the night?" Lynn offers her couches and recliner to Chris, Howie and Alex.
Alex and I have never spent a night in such close quarters; same house, but not just a couple rooms away. "I think it's far too late for any of you to drive anywhere," she says, looking at the watch on her left wrist.
"Denise is expecting AJ and I back in 15 minutes," Howie says, checking his watch as well.
"I'll convince her otherwise, then," Lynn says in a matter of fact tone, leaving no room for them to argue.
"If you must insist, Mrs. Harless," Alex concludes. "Mom will understand."
"Aren't you supposed to keep an eye on Nick and Aaron?" I ask Alex and Howie.
"I'll go get them, I just need the address," Chris tells us.
"Doesn't Kevin have to come down this way?" Alex questions Howie.
"Yeah, he does! He leaves his house in ten minutes! He can grab them." Howie turns to Lynn. "May I use your phone?"
"Go right on ahead," she says, motioning to the door.
Howie goes in and speaks to Kevin on the phone, requesting the older male grab the two blondies from Alex's house and inform Denise that Alex and Howie will be 'spending the night at Kevin's house'. Okay, so it's a half lie, they'll be here at Lynn's overnight with me. "Thanks, man. Just drop off where we are," he says, Lynn pointing to the ground as he thanks Kevin. "We can discuss that tomorrow when we meet with Johnny and Lou. It's 'Drya's friend's house, the kid's mom insists we crash here. Uh, I'll discuss that with you when you arrive with those two. See you in awhile. Thanks again."
He hangs up and faces us as we come inside, Lynn having made her final decision about having them stay. Once Lynn makes up her mind, there's no changing it and Justin's the same way. "I want 'Drya to come with us tomorrow," Alex announces.
Chris gives him a crazy look, wondering if he's thinking straight. "Are you sure about that?" he asks slowly.
"She hasn't been a problem yet, she's actually helped us out by letting us know who missed a step or just being someone to confide in, someone talk to," Howie justifies. "She helps Nick focus as well, being the youngest and all and AJ does it all right the first time around, quick to get home or anywhere but the studio or rehearsals."
"She might help Brian feel a little more at ease when we all meet him in the morning and get going," Alex proposes.
Chris waits for Alex to be half asleep before pulling me into the backyard, nearing quarter past one in the morning, needing to talk with me. "I'll let you share the couch with him with a few conditions attached."
"Enlighten me," I calmly request, hands perched on hips as I hear the strings.
"No inappropriate sounds are to emanate from there, no spooning-he can't cuddle you from behind, and you need to both remain fully clothed. Am I clear?"
"Crystal." I walk back inside, Chris close behind, head for Alex and find Howie not in the house. "Donde esta Howie?"
"Maybe talking to Kevin," Alex replies, ready to give into sleep while refusing to lie down and Nick walks in with a sleeping Aaron, his head on Nick's shoulder.
"Where can I put him down?" an extremely exhausted Nick asks.
"On the bottom of the couch Alex is on, he and I are going to cuddle together on it tonight," I tell him, pointing at the far end of it. It's a long couch, Josh doesn't even take up the entire length and he's almost 6 feet tall.
"Thanks," he responds, putting his brother down and collapsing in the recliner, getting comfortable quickly before completely crashing.
Howie comes inside awhile later, I'm hardly awake then and hear Chris filling him in on the agreement and stipulations for the night in the hallway. "Chris, this is how they lay together every time they cuddle," he informs Chris, seeing my body squeezed between Alex and the back of the couch with my head on his bare chest, his arm wrapped around my body to hold me close.
"I said 'fully clothed'," Chris growls.
"AJ usually sleeps without a shirt, the only exceptions are complete exhaustion or he's so relaxed that he drifts off to sleep and neither of them happen very often."
"She usually stays fully clothed, though, right?"
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