Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 09:02:09 -0700 (PDT) From: JACK BROWN Subject: Brian and Jack /part 20 Well, it's good to be here again. I've been doing so many things and I have been actually very busy. My computer crashed last week and all the things that I had on it were lost. It was a shame that all my notes that I had for the story were also lost. This means, that Jack's life is going to be completely different from now on, since I'm going to continue from scratch... I was really bummed since I had already many ideas for the following chapters and I thought that they were really good. Let's just hope that I can remember some of them or try to have better ones...hehehehe. I'm not really into computers or anything like that, and that's why I didn't bother to backup my information. My brother likes to mess around and surf through the net. I am sure he was responsible for all of this, but he keeps on saying that he wasn't...I don't believe him at all! Anyway, this chapter is completely different of what I had in mind, but I still hope you like it. See you in the next... ********** After we came back from visiting Brian's parents, life pretty much went back to normal. I mean I would be working and he would be doing promotion for his album and things like that. We still hadn't moved in together. We wanted to have a brand new place since he didn't want us to live in his apartment. We were looking for a big apartment, but we still hadn't found the right one. We were looking for so many things that none of the apartments met our requirements. The price was not an issue, since we both had savings. Meanwhile, he was living in his apartment and I was living at home with my brothers. John was still going out with Jennie and I was very happy for them. Paul, on the other hand, still didn't have a girlfriend, but he didn't really mind. He would go out with his friends if he felt lonely. I really wanted to go holidays with Brian to the beach, but unfortunately he was very busy doing promotion for their greatest hits album, so he could not take a few days off at that moment, but we agreed that as soon as he could, we'd go on holidays... "Jack?" Daniel said snapping me back to reality "Yes?" "Are you ok?" "Yes I'm fine" I replied smiling. We were busy preparing the new outfits for the N*sync guys and I was having a hard time concentrating. Daniel was really helpful in everything I needed him to do, I was happy that he was part of my work team. We continued working until there was a knock on the door. We both raised our heads and noticed that it was Johnny (N*sync's manager). We greeted each other and then Daniel excused himself, so that Johnny and I could talk freely. "I've got some great news" Johnny said excited "What is it?" "Well, the guys are going to launch their new clothing line!" "Wow, that's great" I told him. "You still haven't heard the best part yet" Johnny sated "they want you to be the General Designer" "What!!" I exclaimed as I got up from my seat. "Isn't it great?" "Well, yes, but..." "No buts" Johnny interrupted me "you have to make a presentation for the board a week from today, so that they can see the quality of your work, since they are the ones who will decide if you get the job or not" "A presentation?" I asked intrigued "You know, to show them new designs for the clothing line" Johnny explained "How many would you want?" "Well, at least 100" Johnny said quietly "At least 100??!!" I was completely dumbfounded. I could not believe what he had told me, he wanted me to do 100 different designs for week from that day?! I wasn't sure if I would be able to finish them by that day, since I only had one week to do them all, on top of all the work that I had to do for both bands. "Think about it Jack" Johnny said as he got up from his seat and walked to the door "but it would be a real shame to miss this opportunity" He walked out of my office and I just sat there thinking what he had said. Only a few seconds later, Daniel rushed in. He had been hearing through the door and was actually so excited about the whole idea, since he knew that both of us would be working together on that project. "I'm not sure if I'm gonna do it" I said as I walked to the window and looked out. "Why not?" Daniel asked surprised "Because if I take this job" I said as I looked at him "I would have even less time to see Brian and I don't know how he'll take it" "Screw Brian!" Daniel said aloud and I was taken aback "this is you we're talking about, your career, your future. If Brian loves you, then he'll understand it perfectly" I turned around to look out the window. I mean, Daniel was right, this is my career we're talking about, not Brian's but mine. I could become the General Designer of their clothing line, and that way, many people would be able to wear my designs, apart from the guys from N*sync. I knew that Brian would not have any problem with it, since he always puts his career before anything, so I would be doing the same. I decided then, that I would do my best to get the job. I called Johnny and informed him my decision. He was obviously very happy and wished me luck. I wanted to tell somebody, so I called Brian, but his cell phone was not on and I wasn't sure where I could find him. Instead, I called Paul and John and I informed them the good news. They were absolutely happy for me and John decided that we should go out to celebrate. I totally agreed and then hung up. I spent the rest of the day doing the new outfits fro the guys. While I worked, my mind began working on the new designs for the clothing line. I began thinking what I would present the following Monday for the board. I called Brian several times until I was able to talk to him. I told him about the job and everything and he seemed fine with it, he was very happy for me and he wanted me to get the job. I told him that I would be going out with my brothers that night and that I wanted him to come along. He said he would not be able to make it since he had to do an interview on a TV show "If I finish early I'll call you so that I can catch you at the club" "That would be great!" I told him "Well, then see you later babe" "See you darling" I said and then I hung up. I was a bit disappointed that he would not be able to make it to dinner but I was hoping that he could catch us at the club. Anyway, by the time I arrived home, my brothers were almost ready to go out. I, on the other hand, was not ready at all, since I wanted to change my clothes and things like that. It didn't take me that long to be ready; it must have been around 30 minutes or so. To cut a long story short, we went to have dinner at a very fancy restaurant and we actually had a great time. My brothers were so happy that I might get the job that they could not talk about anything else. "Let's make a toast" Paul said as he raised his wineglass. John and I raised them. "To Jack, so that he can get the job that he wants" Paul said smiling "to Jack!" "To jack!" john and I said and then we both drank our wine. We continued with our dinner and, as usual, John began telling jokes. I mean, the jokes he says are actually so funny that you can't stop laughing. I am really not good at telling jokes, I usually forget how they end or I tell them the wrong way round. I guess you need to know how to tell them, since they are supposed to be funny, but you can totally kill the fun if you don't tell them right. By the time we were leaving, my stomach hurt a lot from all the laughing. I told them about a new club in town that was actually pretty cool. Daniel had been there the week before and had told me that it was actually really great. We decided to go there to continue our celebration. My brothers wanted to celebrate that I might get the job, but it was also an excuse go out and have fun and I knew that, but I didn't mind at all. Well, we went to the club and it was completely packed. I mean, there was no way we could get in, cine there was a long queue waiting to get in. the club's name was `Beach', and no wonder why it was called that way. Outside, it had sand and palm trees, of course, they were plastic ones, but overall it looked great. We parked the car and then we got out. "Oh crap!" I said looking at all the people "I don't think we'll go in any time soon" Paul said "Don't worry" John said "I'll get us in" John then walked up to the guy at the entrance and then John said something to the guy. He was huge black man, I mean he was really tall and was all muscle. The man seemed to nod in negative responses but John kept on telling him something. The man then just looked over to where we were standing and smiled. John then waved us to come over, so we went there and the man let us in. I wasn't sure what John had told him, but I sure wanted to know. The entrance was from a high part so we could see clearly everything as we went inside. The place was completely awesome. It all looked like a big party at the beach. There were people dancing everywhere. Some women were topless and some guys were shirtless, since it was so hot inside. "So what did you tell him?" I asked John as we went down the stairs to the main floor of the club. "Who?" "The guy at the entrance" "Well, I told him that if he was gay, then he might be able to hit it with you, and if he wasn't, then after being with you then he'll change his mind" "What!" I exclaimed "I can't believe you said that" "Don't worry" John said calmly "nothing's going to happen" "If he takes your word" I told him seriously "then you'll be sorry" "Chill out man, nothing's gonna happen" John said "Ok guys, let's mingle" Paul said as we all went separate ways. When we went to a nightclub, my brothers loved mingling and each of them would be doing his own business, but after a while we all sat down at the same table. I already knew what they did...Paul would walk around for a while to see if he could find a nice girl to talk and dance with. John, on the other hand, looked for hot girls who only wanted to have sex and things like that. He is such a horny dog... Anyhow, I looked around and couldn't find any familiar faces. I decided to sit for a while, so I went over and sat down. The tables were on one side of the club where you could see everything that was happening on the dance floor. A few minutes later I noticed that John was dancing with a couple of hot chicks. He looked like he was having a blast. Paul came over to sit with me after a while. We stayed there having drinks until John came over and sat down. "Well, I had a great time with those chicks" he said proudly "I could see that" I said and laughed "You guys wanna dance?" Paul asked "You mean the three of us?" John asked taken back "like together?" "Yeah, why not?" "Well, I don't know" John replied "Come on" Paul said getting up and grabbing both of us "we'll get some chicks in a while" We went to the dance floor and then we started dancing together. I wasn't shy at all; I started dancing normally as if I were dancing with any other guy. I thought that John was not going to be at ease, but then he just got into it and started dancing normally. Paul, as usual, couldn't dance very well, but he did what he could. We danced for a while and then some chicks came over and we started dancing with them. I was actually having a great time. I mean, she wasn't Brian, but she was fun. She probably thought that I was straight since she started rubbing herself against me. She completely squeezed her boobies against my chest and then, out of the blue, she grabbed my butt. I just kept on laughing since I was nervous. She thought that I liked it, so she kept her hand on my ass. The rest of the night went great. John managed to get lots of phone numbers and so did Paul. By the time we decided to go home, it was quite late, but the club was still completely packed. Paul drove us home since John and I were a bit drunk and we could not drive. By the time I got home I was really tired and the only thing I wanted to do was sleep. I went up to my room and I guessed my brothers went to theirs. As soon as my head hit the pillow I fell asleep... The following days were more or less the same. I would get up and head to my office. I was very busy trying to get all the designs ready for the presentation. Daniel was very helpful, since he was with me at all times and he did what I told him to. We worked from 7 am till 10 pm, since we had with our normal work apart from the designs of the clothing line. We knew we would have to work full time, even during the weekend. I was very tired since I could hardly have any time to rest. I had not seen Brian at all, due to all the work. He would call me from time to time, to check on me, but he usually called me at the most hectic moments, so I could hardly talk to him. By the time I got home, my brothers would tell me that Brian had called or I could hear the messages he left on my answering machine. I knew that things were not easy for us at the moment and I knew that they would not get easier at all. If I got the job then I would have a tremendous amount of work to do, which would leave me very little time to be with Brian, since he also had many activities during the day. By Saturday, Johnny came into my office and told me that some members of the board were going to go round my office that night to see how well I was doing and what kind of designs they could expect for the presentation. As soon as I heard him saying this I got really nervous. By that day I had about three quarters of the designs, so I knew that I was about to finish them. I was working on the remaining designs when my cell phone rang. "Hello?" I said as I flipped it open "Hello babe" Brian said from the other side of the line "Hey, what's up?" "Not much, hey the guys and I are going out tonight, wanna come?" he asked "I can't Bri, some people from the board are coming over to check on the designs" I explained "Well, don't worry maybe I'll catch you later" "Looks like a plan" I told him "Ok, then see you baby" Brian replied "good luck tonight" "Thanks" "Bye" he said before hanging up. I put my cell phone away and focused back on the designs. I was a bit sad that I would not be able to go out with Brian and the guys, but I was sure he understood that the job was very important to me. That night, Johnny appeared at my office door with a couple of guys. They didn't look that old, they were probably around 30 or 35. They were both dressed in expensive suits and they were carrying a briefcase. When I first saw them, they didn't look very friendly and I was a little bit nervous. Daniel was not there since he was not really needed. Both men sat down and then I carefully showed them my designs. For each design, I explained what materials I'd use and why I had chosen them. I gave them a brief explanation on the color scheme that I would be using. Since I had no idea what kind of clothing they wanted to launch, I prepared different types of clothes. Some of my designs were elegant suits and things like that, another part of the designs was filled with street wear and the remaining part was casual wear. As I showed them the designs, I looked carefully at their faces to see if they liked what they were seeing. I wasn't sure if they liked them or not, until they told me that they didn't need to see anything else. I thought that it was because the had not liked the designs, but to my surprise, it was because they liked them so much that they knew that the remaining designs were as good as the ones that I had shown them. They got up from their seat and walked to the door. Johnny followed them and I could see that they were talking lowly between them. Meanwhile, I put all the designs away and cleared up. "Grab your coat Jack, we're going out" Johnny said as he got closer "What do you mean out?" I asked "I've got to finish the rest of the designs" "listen Jack, these are important people and they are the ones who can give you the job" Johnny explained in a low voice so that the other guys could not listen "I don't think you'll want to refuse to go out with them, especially if them want to invite you a drink" I was silent for a second, but I knew that Johnny was right. Those guys were the ones who would give me a job, so I could not turn down their offer. It was then when I decided to go with them, so I grabbed my coat and we all left the office. I wasn't sure where they wanted to go, but we went to a bar that was not far from the office. They wanted to walk, so we all walked together. The bar was actually quite nice, even though it was very crowded. We ordered a few beers and then we had a long conversation. They told me about the expectations they had for the clothing line. They wanted to launch it first in the US, and if everything went fine, then they would launch it worldwide. I was pretty impressed with their plans for the future. I really wanted to be the General Designer of the clothing line, and I knew that if I worked hard, I would be able to achieve it. After a few beers they decided that it was time to leave and go to another bar. We walked out of the bar and then we started walking down the street to see what we could find. I stopped dead in my tracks at the corner of the street as I saw Brian and the guys walking towards us. "Oh my god!" he said as he stopped and saw me. Then he just walked past me "Hey Brian I tried to call you..." I said apologizing "Did you really?" he said as he turned around to face me "it's funny because I've had my cell with me at all times and I haven't received a call from you!" "I was working and this work thing came up" I tried to explain but it was actually very hard to do it, since there was nothing to say. "Since when does a bunch of jerks in suits getting drunk count as work?" he snapped "Hey listen" I said as I got closer to him "these are important people, they are the ones who might give me the job" "That's not an excuse" "You don't know how important it is that these men asked to go out with them" I told him hoping that he would. Unfortunately he didn't. "I don't even know who you are anymore Jack" he said "all you care about is your stupid job" "Hey, this job is important to me" I replied "I don't want to live of mac & cheese for the rest of my life and that's the way it's gonna be if I don't bust ass and play by their rules. Not everybody lives in Brianland" "And I'm the rich guy who doesn't get it?!" he said upset "That's not what I meant" "I think that's exactly what you meant" "Then I'm sorry, but things are not often as easy as you think they are" "Good night Jack" Brian said as he started to walk away from me. I was about to follow him when he stopped me "Don't follow me" he said raising his hand as he kept on walking. The guys then just followed him. They were all very taken aback from everything that happened. Johnny and the other men were looking at me shocked. I excused myself with them and then I decided to walk for a little while to clear my head. The men were very understanding and they continued clubbing with Johnny. I walked for a while and then I sat down on a bench. I raised my head looking at the sky. It was actually a clear night and I could see the stars perfectly. I began thinking about what had happened with Brian. I had never seen Brian so upset and I really thought that he was making a bigger deal out of it. I mean, so what if I didn't call him. I knew I should have done it, but I was not doing anything wrong. I don't think I have to tell him where I am at all times. He doesn't own me, he is just my boyfriend. Still, I felt bad for what I had done. I wanted to apologize to him but I knew I had to do it face to face. I couldn't do it over the phone since it was totally impersonal. I called him to see where he was but his phone was turned off. I decided then to call Kevin. He answered almost immediately and he told me that they were at Brian's place. I explained to him that I wanted to talk to Brian and that I would be right over. He told me that it wasn't such a good idea, given that Brian was still very upset with me and we'd probably fight even more. Kevin told me to go round Brian's place first thing in the morning and then maybe we'd be able to talk more calmly. I thought that it was probably for the best, so I told him that I would do what he had said and then I hung up. It was very late by then, so I just grabbed a cab and then told the driver to take me home. A few minutes later I arrived at my place, I paid the driver and then I went inside. My brothers were still up and watching TV. I was pretty tired and was not really in a mood to watch TV with them because of what had happened with Brian. I just wanted to rest, so I went to my room and just got ready for bed. I knew that the following day would be along one, since I'd have a long conversation with Brian about what had happened. Anyway, as soon as I closed my eyes, I fell asleep... ********** Well, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you have any comments or suggestions or anything, just drop a line to: jack_ga_2002@yahoo.com see you in the next chapter your friend Jack "enjoy life and always be yourself"