“This isn't right,” the director said after a few moments, looking at all the guys with their girls. He looked around at all the other extras and then spotted Rachel standing there with her phone. “You,” he motioned at Rachel and crooked his finger towards her to come to where he was. He frowned when he saw the hard card around her neck. “Damn, I thought you were an extra,” he muttered.
“Um...I can help out,” she gave a nervous smile to him and looked over to where Lance was.
Lance returned her look with a shrug. He had no idea what was going on. They had just started shooting a scene; he didn't know what could be the problem
“Okay, I need to see you with JC,” he told Rachel.
“Uhm, sure," Rachel shrugged and walked over to stand next to JC. She relaxed a little when he smiled at her. She looked back at the director who was looking at them and nodding.
"Yes, good," the director walked over to the couple where he told JC he wasn't satisfied with the woman who was chosen to play the role of his 'girlfriend'. "It's not looking right on the tape," he explained. "But you two... You two look great together."
"Wooo!" Chris yelled, laughing. "This is awesome!"
"You hear that Bass? Your girlfriend looks great with JC." Justin chuckled.
Lance rolled his eyes at the two band members. 'If they only knew,' he thought. His eyes met Rachel's and he smiled. "That's alright; she knows who she's sleeping with tonight."
Rachel's face was on fire when she covered it with both hands. She shook her head not believing what Lance had just said. She was aware of JC standing close behind her, so close she could feel the heat of his body.
"This gonna be a problem," the director looked back and forth between Lance and Rachel. He hoped it wouldn't be because he really liked how JC and Rachel came off together. He couldn't wait to see how it ended up on tape.
"No," Lance turned to the director. "We're good."
"Great," he smiled rubbing his hands together.
“Would you be my girlfriend? I'll treat you good,” JC whispered in Rachel's ear, giving her a smile as the play back started for the beginning of the song and the director yelling at them to look at one another like he was trying to get her.
“Come on JC; you have a beautiful girl in front of you. You want to make her yours. You know she's dating a jerk. You have to convey through your eyes and small touches that you want her."
"I'm dating a jerk," Rachel murmured softly so no one would hear her. "I'm not sure I should jump to your honor or Lance's."
JC chuckled; a sound Rachel felt all the way to her toes. She swallowed thickly as her eyes met JC's. "Act like you want me. That's not so hard right?"
"That's not the hard part," JC whispered, smiling as Rachel blushed at the sexual innuendo.
"Rachel," the director's voice broke their connection. "You need to be smiling at him. Not big, but something small that says 'I got a secret'. Be shy about it. Give him just enough that says you're interested."
"Are you interested?" JC whispered.
Rachel sent him a look that had the director ecstatic and shouting, telling everyone to get ready they were rolling again.
Everyone else around them melted away and it was just them and she wished they were alone as he mouthed the words, listening to the director to smile and pretend to be interested in JC. That wasn't hard at all since she wasn't pretending. The harder part was when he yelled cut and they had to act like they weren't involved when the truth was all she wanted was to pull Joshua Scott Chasez to her and kiss him as hard as she could. She gave him a small smile when she was told to go to wardrobe and make up so they could continue the video shoot.
“Work it, Weatherly,” Chris called out to her as she walked by, “you gonna be makin' some money girl..woo,” he was teasing and clutched his heart dramatically when she blew him a kiss. “Eat your heart out, Bass.”
“Remember that's my woman, JC! And Chris, quit making it seem like you're a playboy,” Lance told them, shaking his head when they both pretended not to hear him.
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Chris grinned when he spotted Melissa a little while later as she sat down on a picnic table watching them film. They were setting up the scene for Justin to race the muscle car. “Melly! My girl!” he yelled, running to her and pulling her up and engulfing her in a hug.
“Christopher...can't...breathe,” Melissa gasped, smiling at him letting her go and hugging him again. She smiled and looked at Holly. “Chris, this Holly Witten. Holly, this is Chris Kirkpatrick.”
“Nice to meet you,” Holly told him, shaking his hand.
“I guess you left your chef's jacket and garters at home?” he asked, making her blush. “At least Mel knew who to make friends with,” Chris leaned in and mock whispered. “She can't cook. Don't eat her food unless you want to be poisoned.”
“You jerk!” Melissa yelled at him and got up. “I'm going to say hi to JC and that guy also known as my brother. Don't believe a word Chris says,” she told Holly. She found Lance and poked him in the side, giving him a small smile when he hugged her. “Hi.”
Lance wrapped his arms around Melissa and smiled. “Hey...I'm sorry about Grandma. I had no idea she'd come here.”
“Next time you want to volunteer information about me, just don't,” she told him, seeing Joey watching her. Her eyes met his and she swallowed hard. He looked good and she was glad to see his goatee back and her heart ached Of course she also felt the pang of being ignored and she pulled away to look at Lance, feeling tears prick the corners of her eyes. “Your hair looks weird,” she pointed out, not messing with it since he had hair gel in it.
“I know,” Lance smiled. “You should see Rachel. She's in make up now...The director put her in the video to be JC's girlfriend.”
A big smile came to Melissa's face. “I bet they love that,” she said, waving to JC as he talked to some of the guys that were extras.
“It's interesting that's for sure,” Lance told her, giving her a smile and put his arms on her shoulders. “You okay?” he asked softly, seeing her look past him.
“Joey looks good,” was all she said, smiling at Lance and meeting his eyes once more. “And I lied to you about the job.” Melissa frowned at him and looked away. “I am going to look soon though and sign up for a few business classes I think. I just didn't want to come here...” her voice trailed off as she swallowed back a lump in her throat.
Lance nodded, knowing it wouldn't do any good to condone his sister for her slight little white lie. He might have done the same thing if he was her. “Well, it is good to see ya. And I see Chris has a new friend.”
Melissa looked over to see Chris and Holly talking and nodded. “I wasn't trying to set them up, but they have similar personalities. Holly acts a lot like Rachel, so I liked her. Speaking of,” Melissa cupped her hands and yelled in Rachel's general direction. “Hey sexy, how much you charging these overpriced choir boys to be in their video? Ow you look hot!” she catcalled and laughed when Rachel gave her a dirty look and flipped her off. “Baby, you just name the time and place.”
“Rachel's getting' more love than any of us, man. You must be puttin' Love Potion number 9 into drinks or something!” Justin yelled as Rachel just shrugged. “Don't worry, I'll figure out your secret.”
“Her secret is that she's hotter than you, Timberlake,” Joey yelled, his eyes studying his best friend. Well, former best friend, he guessed. How could you be best friends with someone you couldn't talk to? His eyes met hers again and he shot her a smile, watching Melissa wiggle her fingers at him before turning around to hug Rachel. That was as close as he was going to get. He pulled out a cigarette and lit it and Sasha gave him a smile. “What?” he asked her, inhaling the nicotine, glad for its calming effect.
“I'd give a hell of a lot for a guy to look at me the way you did her in that span of a few seconds.”
Joey blew out the smoke and smiled, shrugging. “You'll find someone that can't get enough of you,” his smile widened as he slipped an arm around her, “but for now you get to be my girlfriend.”
“What would your wife say?” Sasha inquired, getting an eyeroll from Joey.
“You don't want to know. It involves a lot of ugly words to the both of us,” he told her as they went to have their make up touched up. Joey cut his eyes to look at Melissa as he walked past her, close enough that their hands brushed but there was no motion on either of their parts, no acknowledgment that anything had happened. Other than the jolt that went through him, that familiar sensation he'd tried to not think about. He was glad that he had to think about something else, or Joey might have just turned around, his heart momentarily sputtering telling his brain to stop.
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
“Places everyone,” the director yelled and then playback started on the song. It looked like disorganized chaos, but everyone was in their places and the cameras were where they needed to be.
“Why you thinkin' bout him momma?” Josh said to Rachel, their noses touching, sharing breathing space. He gave her a smile running a hand over her cheek. What he wanted to do was kiss her, but it wasn't a part of the script. “He ain't even payin' attention,” he said, smiling as Rachel's fingers caressed his jawline.
“You are so freakin' hot, C” Rachel whispered, knowing the cameras weren't on them for a moment.
“You think so?” JC raised an eyebrow at her, giving a sheepish grin whispering back. “You look fine yourself. You should tell wardrobe you want to keep these clothes,” he told her, looking at her outfit. Rachel had on a red spaghetti strap tank top that showed a little of her stomach and a cropped tan jacket paired with some ripped jeans and some tan Adidas sneakers. Her hair had been straightened and her make up was a little more noticeable for the cameras. To him, there was no other girl that grabbed his attention. His hands flirted with the bare skin just above the waistband over her jeans when the director told them they were going to go through the first verse and chorus once more to make sure he got all the shots he liked.
“If I keep the clothes, you have to at least keep the hat. I love the hat,” Rachel replied, biting her lip when his hand went a little higher than what it probably should have under the back of her shirt. His fingers lazed over her spine and his warm palm ran up and down her flesh as her eyes met his, a small smile crossed her lips. JC was making the most of this opportunity like she was, her hands on him as well.
“Does he know how what you feel. Are you sure that it's real? Does he ease your mind, or does he break your stride. Did you know that love could be a shield...” JC's eyes met Rachel's and he was trying hard to keep it strictly professional. He'd seen that look on her face before when things would get hot and heavy between them, neither one of them wanting to stop. It was that look that always got him. “I want to kiss you,” she murmured, rewarded with a brush of JC's lips on hers for a split second. It wasn't the soul searing kiss she was yearning for, but it still made her lips tingle.
For a moment Rachel entertained the idea of dragging him off to a dark corner and letting him continue with what he'd been doing, but that was thwarted since the director yelled cut and started to give directions for the next setup.
Rachel finished off the bottled water she'd gotten and nodded, heading over to make up when she and Josh heard that they were next to dance. She shot a smile to JC who was doing the same thing. “This is the dancing scene right?”
“Yeah,” Josh couldn't nod or he'd end up with make up sponge in his eye. “You're gonna have to shake your groove thing with me.” The tone of his voice was even, but the hint of a smile traced his lips and he knew Rachel would catch the hint. He was glad the video was like it was, one where he could dance with Rachel provocatively and no one would say anything if his hand was somewhere lucidly on her body.
“You are gonna get us in trouble,” Rachel mouthed, smiling as she and JC took their places in the middle of the crowd to dance. She caught Lance's eye and gave him a smile, chuckling when he arched his eyebrow at her. She blew him a kiss, mouthing 'I love you' at him, grinning when he said it back. Playback started and then Rachel concentrated on JC. She raised her arms in the air and swiveled her hips at him, giving him a sly smile as JC grabbed her hands and pulled her to where her body was flush with his.
JC sang along with the play back, letting Rachel look him over. “Won't you be my girlfriend, I'll treat you good.” He gave her a slow smile as they kept dancing, going through the rest of the song. All of the other guys had done it that long, even if they were only going to use five seconds of it. When it was barked out to quit, he pulled Rachel to him and threw an arm around her as they walked back to where the guys were. “How'd we look?”
“You looked smokin', dude,” Justin told him, pausing from his phone. “If Rachel wasn't already Lance's ol' lady, I'd say you two hook up.”
“Old lady?” Rachel exclaimed, looking at Justin pretending to be hurt. She went to Lance and slipped her arm through his and looked at him. “Did you hear that?”
Lance nodded, giving a chuckle. “Justin, I think you should quit while you're ahead.”
“Just sayin' man...Weatherly and Chasez looked into it. I didn't know you could dance like that, chica,” Justin told Rachel, shoving his phone in his pocket.
“You were too busy looking at all the women trying to shove their phone number down your pocket or cop a feel...I've danced like that at clubs,” Rachel pointed out, sticking her tongue out at him.
“Dude, I got no love,” Justin said, shaking his head as he looked at Lance and Rachel. They looked comfortable. Like a couple. He didn't miss the quick look between JC and Rachel however, a small smirk coming to his face. No one had to tell him anything, but he figured that whatever love triangle was going on, it was one that no one else realized was happening.
JC went to stand by Lance when Rachel excused herself. They watched as filming was done for the snippets, the other 'groups' in the video being shot doing their own thing. “How did it look?” JC asked quietly, not wanting to make it seem like they were having a secretive conversation of sorts. He didn't want anyone outside of the Bass siblings to know anything different than what was supposed to happen, which was Rachel and Lance. Even without Kristen here, it still worried him a little while they were all like this.
“Like Justin said, you two go together,” Lance replied as he looked over to where the rest of the guys were. Holly and Melissa had left a little while ago and he'd not missed his sister's long look at Joey while his back was turned. She'd hugged Rachel, the two of them giggling. As much as he might want to deny it, Rachel and JC looked like a couple. It made him smile that much more when Rachel came back and put her arms around both him and Josh. It made him feel like they could make this awkward love triangle work. “Melissa and her friend Holly wanted us to meet them later at a club.”
“Sounds like a plan. Depends on how late we get done here as to whether I go clubbing or to the hotel and to bed. We have to be here tomorrow to finish the day time shots.” Josh knew all of the guys knew that, but it was just a way of reminding them that there was work. Mostly his answer would depend on what Rachel was going to do. If he had to guess, Rachel would be going to meet her friend no matter what the hour was.
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
“It's the car shots!” Justin yelled, looking at the five classic cars parked next to each other. He was excited about this part of the shoot. He looked over at Chris and laughed. “You look like a corn cob is stuck up your ass, dawg. How you gonna dance like that?” he taunted Chris, doing a few of the moves on the roof of the car.
“Shut the hell up,” Chris said, doing the same moves and slipping on the edge of the car where the windshield met the roof. “Fuck!” he yelled when his ass slid down the windshield and he sat on the hood of the car. He didn't mind heights, but he wasn't comfortable dancing on top of a car. Of course Justin laughing made it worse as he laid there, the wind knocked out of him.
“You okay?” Joey asked, trying his best not to snicker when Justin almost fell off his own car laughing so hard.
“Seriously, Kirkpatrick...You alright?” JC asked, looking at the oldest member of their group. He watched Chris get up and flip Justin off, taking his place back on top of the car.
“Yeah, nothing a Tylenol or three won't fix,” Chris told him, tugging at his clothing to right it. Truth be told, his butt hurt as well as his back, but it would do no good to complain. He looked over at Lance and tried to have a good attitude about it all. “Mel would have laughed.”
“She'd have been rolling on the ground and then when she could breathe, she'd find out if you were okay,” Lance told him.
“Actually she would have laughed harder if it would have been me, but you were the one who tried to do the Cirq de Soleil on the car,” Joey told Chris.
“Yeah, I bet you'll be the next one to assplant, Fatone. Least you got enough padding on your ass it won't hurt...other than your brain,” Chris replied.
Joey just shook his head and did the same moves Chris just did but without falling. He shot the older man a smile and them they got ready for the scene, the crowd of people watching them dance.
JC looked at all of the extras and everyone else and found Rachel in the crowd and gave her a grin, then heard the music play back. They were getting tired the later it got. He could tell after the third or fourth time of the run through that his friends were dragging. It was all part of it, they'd lived on less sleep but that didn't mean any of them liked it. And they would have to get up tomorrow and do it again. He loved his job, but Josh knew his mind wasn't on his work near as much as it needed to be. Especially with a certain blonde standing there watching him.
Author's Chapter Notes:
The end of this chapter. Enjoy and leave feedback please. :)
Story Tags: joey
