“What are you packing?” JC asked. 

“Typical clothes. It’s like 80 degrees this week, then Saturday is supposed to be cold, go figure. I also hear San Francisco is freezing anyway, even in summer.  Packing my swimsuit just in case the water is warm in the pool.”

“You leave tomorrow, are you excited?”

“Yeah.  I just wish there was a VIP available for him. I wanna meet Chris…”

“You DO realize who I am, right?” JC chuckled. “I’ll see what I can do.”

“I’ll probably bump into him around the hotel.  Just checked in for my flight, 24 hours from now I’ll be bound for SFO.”

“Any plans for the rest of your trip?”

“Sightsee in the city, maybe go see where you filmed This I Promise You, actually PAY to go to Alcatraz, unlike Justin and Joey… I loved him telling that story.”

“I hope it’s a nice little break from everything.”

“I’ll also get to see some Instagram accounts I follow, meet people I’ve interacted with online within the fandom.”

“I’m glad you’re excited.  You’re gonna have so much fun.  Looks like you’ve got a ton of clothes packed, though. Can I see your outfits?”

“No, they’re all packed and ready. I’ll send cute pictures, though.  Maybe some dirty ones too, if you’re lucky,” she smirked. 

“Hopefully I’m very lucky, just the thought of you in that bikini…” he growled, his voice low. He kissed her lips, his tongue swiping past hers, stealing her breath away as he pulled her close.

“I’m gonna miss you,” she said once he pulled away.

“I’ll miss you too, but it’s only a couple days.  Absence makes the heart grow fonder, as they say.”

“I can’t believe that once I get back, I’ll have my surgery a few days later. Then this can all be behind us.  Hopefully my seizures can stay in check and everything will be back to normal.  Promise you won’t stop loving me when I’m suddenly much less high maintenance?”

“I couldn’t if I tried,” JC sighed happily. “This may have come out of nowhere, but I can’t imagine ever not loving you.”

“I’m sure you said that to Jen, too…”

“Hey,” he said, gently cupping her cheek.  “You can’t think that way.  Yes, that’s what I thought even a couple months ago, but once I met you, you opened up a whole other world to me.  I never saw myself getting married, having kids, but I want that now, with you.  So whatever I said with someone I used to be with doesn’t matter compared to how you make me feel now.”

“You’re right, I’m sorry.  I guess part of me still can’t believe this is real. Like I’m waiting to wake up and this all be a dream while in a coma.”

“I assure you, this is real.  I can prove it.”

“How’s that?  Are you going to pinch me?”

“Better.  I’m no expert, but I doubt people have vivid sex dreams while in a coma…”

“Mmmm, I believe you’re right…”

…

Jenna woke up the next morning bright eyed and bushy tailed, ready to begin her Friday.  She showered and dressed, thankful she could wear jeans and a nice shirt on Fridays.  She had an *NSYNC shirt in her work bag, ready to change her shirt before her flight.  She was going to miss JC, but he would be taking her to the airport and picking her up Sunday night.  

She had a quick breakfast of cereal while JC got up and dressed. She had butterflies in her stomach, her heart feeling like it was beating a mile a minute with nervous excitement.  She hated flying, but the thought that it would lead her to seeing Chris, meeting other fans, was exciting.

“Morning, beautiful,” JC smiled as he walked into the kitchen.  He kissed the top of her head before sitting down at the table.  “You excited, today’s the big day…”

“Not THE big day, but I’m definitely more excited for this than the surgery.”

“You’ll be fine for the surgery…”

“You realize they’ll have to shave at least SOME of my hair, right?”

“It’ll be a fashion statement.  I’ll take you to a stylist, figure something out.”

"Says the man who cuts his hair with a Flowbee…”

“That’s me.  You deserve this.”

“I’ll have to take time off work, we’ll see how quickly it grows back.  I’m looking at at least 6 weeks, maybe it’ll grow an inch or two at least.  Maybe longer if I use some supplements, I probably need them anyway, my nails are shit…”

“Hey,” he said softly, looking at her. “You are perfect the way you are.  If you’re not happy, we’ll figure something out, but I will love you no matter what your hair looks like.  You’ll have all your hair this weekend, so enjoy this weekend and don’t worry about the surgery until you get home.  Relax, have fun, be free for a couple more days.”

“You’re right.  It’s gonna be fun.  I might even gamble a little bit, the penny slots or whatever.  I’m glad I splurged, I bought the tickets and things when I had no money, no job.  Kelly refused to let me back out when money got tight, saying one day I’d need this trip.  Tonight I’ll land in San Francisco, take a cab up to the hotel, and go to bed knowing tomorrow I’ll get to see Chris in person, hopefully meet him.”

“Text me your room number and I’ll make that happen.”

“Joshua Scott, sending a married man to my hotel room?” she teased. 

“Not like that and you know it.  Maybe have lunch together before the show or something, or dinner after?  He’s excited to meet you, so it’ll definitely happen.”

“And now my excitement just went up even more.  I know I shouldn’t be surprised, given that it’s you, but still.  I’ll have had a full 5 for 5 by this weekend.”

“And not just as a fan, but as my girlfriend,” JC smiled. “This won’t be the last time you see them, so get used to it.”

“You guys are all as nice as I imagined you’d be, just like you were back in the day when you’d interact in interviews and stuff.  You guys really wear your hearts on your sleeves, so genuine and real.  I remember feeling intimidated at the idea of meeting any of you, but once it happened, it seemed so fluid, like I’d known you for years.”

“You’d be surprised how often we get that, ‘you’re just as nice in person’.  Like, thanks, I try?” JC chuckled.  “We’ve always been us.  Sure we don’t have good days every day, but who does?”

“I dunno, you’ve had good days as long as I’ve known you.”

“Well, that’s because of you. Honestly, I hid things well when Jen had left but we weren’t together yet. I knew I had feelings for you, eventually, but I also knew you were nervous and thought I wasn’t interested.  I didn’t want to come on too strong.”

“Everything worked out though, and here we are.  Truth be told, you came on strong even when you were still with her, taking me to work, getting me that interview.  I’m so thankful you did, though.”

“You ready to go to work?”

“Let’s get this day started,” Jenna smiled. 

They got into JC’s Jeep and were shortly on their way. He gave her a quick peck on the lips, both of them wishing it could be longer.

“I’ll see you later,” Jenna smiled, leaving her suitcase in the Jeep. 

“See you later. Have a great day at work,” JC replied before she walked away. 

He drove off, making a call through his stereo.

“JC, to what do I owe the pleasure?” Kelly asked.

“Are you at home or at work?”

“Home, but I’ll be going to work in about an hour…”

“Can I come up for a minute? I just dropped Jenna off at work.”

“Sure, what’s going on?”

“I need you to help me with something…”

“You know the code to get in, I’ll see you soon.”

“See you soon.”

He drove to Kelly’s apartment, glad he wasn’t having to make the drive every day anymore to get and drop Jenna off at work and then take her home every day.  He had been glad for the extra time with her, but it was much more convenient to have her living with him and get extra time with her that way.

He parked and made his way inside, knocking on Kelly’s door.

“Should I be worried or excited?” Kelly asked as she opened the door.

He put jenna's suitcase just inside the door. “Excited, definitely.  I need you to do me a favor this afternoon after Jenna’s off work.  I need you to take her to the airport.  Tell her I’m working on a project and I can’t leave until a part is finished.  I’ll talk to her after she gets into San Francisco.”

“What will you be doing instead?  I know that’s not what you’re really doing…”

“That’s a secret.  I want you to be honest in telling her you don’t know anything.  Just know it’s a surprise for Jenna, and it’s good.  Very good.”

“Proposal good?” Kelly smiled.

“Goodbye, Kelly.”

“JC…”

“Goodbye, Kelly,” he repeated.

“JC, you can’t do this to me!”

“ Just get her to the airport, leave the rest to me.”

…

Jenna grabbed her school bag after she finished departure duty, heading towards the bathroom.

“Got a hot date?” Kim asked, noting Jenna was in a rush.

“Josh is picking me up any minute to take me to the airport.  I’m going up to San Francisco for the weekend to see Chris host a concert.  He says he can arrange so I get to meet Chris, being friends and all.  I’m so excited, Chris is the last guy from *NSYNC I have yet to meet, so by this weekend I’ll have met all 5 of them, dating one of them…”

“Is he going with you?”

“No, but I’m ok with that.  It’ll be my first flight by myself.  Give me a little me time before the surgery next week.  It was really sweet for the kids to make me cards.  I can’t believe they had me start my time off on Monday, but I understand.  I’m gonna go change my shirt so I’m ready to get on the plane and leave my school bag here.”

“I’ll take your bag, you grab your shirt and go change.  Have fun and I’ll call or text you, ok?  Best of luck on your surgery, too.”  Kim gave her a tight hug before taking the bag out of Jenna's hands.   

Jenna changed her shirt in the staff bathroom, walking out into the parking lot, nervous that she wasn’t seeing JC’s Jeep.  She was even more confused when Kelly pulled up.

“Why are you here? Did something happen to JC?” Jenna asked, beginning to panic.

“All I know is I’m taking you to the airport.  He had a meeting or something he couldn’t get out of.  Get in the car.”

Jenna got in, riding with Kelly to the airport.  Jenna pulled out her phone.

Is everything ok?  Kelly is taking me to the airport.

I asked her to, something came up that I couldn’t.  I’ll tell you later.  Have a good flight, let me know you landed ok.

I wish I could have seen you again, or kissed you longer this morning.

That makes two of us. Love you, have a safe flight.

Kelly pulled up to the curb at the airport, Jenna grabbing her suitcase from the back seat.  It was small enough it would be her carry on, going through the doors into the airport and heading towards security.  She waited in the line, getting through security with no issues.  She waited at her gate, thankful she had an earlier boarding group to get seated and settled in her seat.  She took a Dramamine and a couple Tylenol so they would kick in before the flight.

She bought a large bottle of water to drink on her flight.  It would only be about an hour, but she was still nervous.  She played games on her phone while she waited, chargers and cables in her purse she packed to have with her at her seat instead of in the carryon she’d store in the overhead bin.  

Her boarding group was called, Jenna getting settled onto the plane.  She got a window seat, just in case she was able to get a good view of San Francisco.  She turned her phone onto airplane mode, playing a playlist on her phone to help her relax, having problems with takeoff and the feeling of not being on the ground.

She closed her eyes, focusing on the music as they took off, smiling as the first song on her playlist was deliberately set to Here We Go.  She didn’t sleep during the flight, but focusing on the music made the time go by faster, and soon they were making their descent.  She was sad that her view wasn’t of San Francisco, but an area southeast of the city.

“Here goes nothing,” she said, determined to make the weekend be one to remember.