"Pop Life"

Chapter 72

I sit down on the couch on the Today Show set and look around at all the people milling about. 

"We'll do a quick interview first and then you'll do your performance," someone tells me. 

I nod.  "Sounds good." 

I still can't believe I had to get up at that ungodly hour to do a soundcheck for this show.  It's only one song and frankly, I don't care how it sounds right now and I'm singing to a track, not my band. 

I meet one of the hosts of the show, Amy, and she runs quickly through what she's going to ask me. 

"Is there anything there that you don't feel comfortable talking about?" she asks me. 

"No, those sound good to me." 

In a few minutes we're back on, live. 

"Please welcome our next guest, Ana.  Welcome to the show." "Thank you.  It's great to be here." 

"Even this early in the morning," Amy kids. 

"It is early," I agree. 

"What an amazing year you have had.  You've sold millions of albums and you just won three VMA's the other night.  What was that like?" 

"Well thank you.  It was an amazing night, actually.  I was very surprised when they called my name each time." 

"Is it one of those things where you were like, oh it's just great to be nominated?" 

"Well it was great to be nominated but deep down you really want to win at least one, you know?" I laugh.  "So that's what was really going through my mind.  What if I don't win one.  But in the end I still would have had a fun night." 

On the monitor behind me they are showing my performance from that night.   

"What about your performance?  People are comparing it's boldness to a performance your mother gave back in 2000.  Does that bother you to be compared to her?" 

"It never bothers me to be compared to my mom.  I take it as a compliment.  I just go out there and do my own thing though, you know?  I don't try to be like either of my parents but I was definitely influenced by them and their music, growing up so I'm sure it's similar." 

"I thought you did a great job, by the way," Amy smiles at me. 

"Thank you." 

She asks me a few more questions. 

"Okay, I have to ask the boyfriend question…" 

This wasn't in her list she went over with me before the show. 

"Umm, okay," I say. 

"You were on the Summer Jam tour…and there were lots of good looking guys around all the time…" 

I laugh.  "Well, that's true." 

"Kevin from KCB said he has a little crush on you, did you know that?" 

I feel my cheeks flushing.  "Wow.  No I didn't know that.  He's so sweet." 

"So are we making a little love match here?" 

I laugh again.  "No, I don't think so.  I think we're all too busy to try to have serious relationships right now.  This lifestyle is so hectic." 

"What's next for Ana?" 

"Well I'm going to go home for a few weeks and just chill.  Try to go back to school for a little bit and be a normal teenager again.  Then after that there's a few things in the works but they're not finalized so I can't say what they are yet." 

"That's great.  Do you think the kids back at school will treat you any differently now?"

 "I hope not.  I'm still the same person who left back in February, you know?  I hope they realize that." 

"Ana, thank you so much for stopping by so early.  Will you perform for us?" 

"Yes, of course." 

"Congratulations and good luck in the future." 

"Thank you." 

And we break for commercial. 

I shake Amy's hand and tell her thank you again and make my way over to their stage where a couple of my back-up dancers are.   

They actually let a few people in from off of the street to stand in front of the stage.  While they're doing the news, I sign a few autographs for the people in the crowd. 

"Is it true that you're dating Marcus Tyler?" one of the girls asks me. 

I have to refrain from rolling my eyes. 

"No, we're not dating." 

"What about that guy from your band?  He's cute…what's his name?" 

As I sign the autograph book for her I ask, "Brad?" 

"Yeah, Brad…I heard you're dating him." 

"You did?  Wow, I hadn't heard that one yet," I say handing her the book back. 

As I continue my way down the row of people I hear those two girls say to each other, "She didn't answer the Brad question, did she?"

"No, she didn't," the other one answered.

I can't let them get to me.  I'm going to lie if I have to but if I can avoid it by being evasive then that's what I'm going to do. 

Amy walks over to the stage. 

"You ready?" she asks me. 

I hand back a magazine I just signed and straighten up. 

"Yep." 

I perform Mind Games, since it's my latest single. 

After the Today Show we go across town where I do a photo shoot and an interview for Cosmo Girl. 

Then after that, I remember to call my mom and ask her about Brad. 

"Hello?" 

"Hey." 

"Hey sweetie.  You did a good job on the Today Show this morning," she says. 

"Thanks.  Did daddy mention to you that I wanted to have Brad over for dinner tonight?" 

"Yes he did…about fifteen minutes ago." 

"Okay.  I forgot to ask you last night.  What time do you think?" 

"Well it's up to your schedule." 

"Tony, when does it look like I'll be finished tonight?"  

Tony pulls out a sheet of paper.  "About six-thirty." 

"Okay…about six-thirty mama." 

"Have him come over around seven." 

"Okay.  I'll call him now.  Love you." 

"Love you too." 

I hang up and dial Brad's cell phone number but I get his voicemail. 

"Hey, it's me.  I think seven is a good time tonight."

 The limo stops and Tony, Andre and I get out and start walking into another building.

"So, if that's not good then leave me a message on my cell.  I'll probably have it turned off for awhile now.  I'll see you tonight," I say as we walk into the elevator.

I hang up the phone, sigh and lean against the wall as the doors close.

"Not much longer," Tony says.

I nod, with my eyes closed.

"What time do we have to leave tomorrow?" I ask.

"Mid-morning," he answers.

The photo shoot is a breeze.  I'm getting used to these things.  In between the sessions, I do an interview with People Magazine.  

"Rumor has it that you're going to record a song with your father...is that true?" the reporter asks me.

My eyes pop open.  "Really?  Umm, not that I know of," I chuckle.

"Awww, come on...by the time this comes out you will have already recorded it with him."

I lean forward.  "No, really.  I don't know of any plans."

I glance over at Tony...he shrugs.

"Where did you hear this from?" I ask her.

"I talked to a couple of industry people for your interview and it was hinted at."

"Well, for the record, I'd love to do a song with him but I don't know of one."

She nods.  "Fair enough.  If you did do one, would it be a ballad or a dance song?"

I scratch my head.  "I really haven't thought about it.  I mean my daddy has been working on some stuff for *Nsync, so he hasn't mentioned anything to me about doing a song together.  If I had a choice I'd like to do a dance song...I'm sure it would have a funky beat."

"Has your life changed since performing on the Video Music Awards the other night?"

I rub my cheek.  "It hasn't had time to change," I laugh.  "So far it's been the same.  I guess I'll see when I go home and try to be normal."

She writes a few things down and flips a page of her notebook.  "Do you feel like you missed out on anything growing up?"

"Missed out on anything?"

"I'm sure you always had bodyguards around and an entourage wherever your family went.  Did you feel like there was a lack of privacy?  Maybe with the media as well?"

I  start twisting a strand of hair around one of my fingers.  "It never bothered me having all of those people around.  I always thought they were supposed to be there...like they were family.  As for the media, I think my parents got to a comfortable place and tried to stay there.  I mean when I came out with my record this spring, no one caught on who I was.  So that tells you how much the media has left us alone in the last few years."

She nods as she jots down more notes.

"You're going home tomorrow?"

I smile and nod.  "Yes ma'am."

"Will you try to do the fun high school things like Homecoming and football games?"

"I'll try."

We finish doing the interview after stopping a couple more times so I can take more pictures.

"Tony...Marty said I can keep this outfit," I say twirling around.

He glances up from his scheduler.  "Nice."

I roll my eyes.  "You didn't even look."

"Okay, one more radio interview and then we're on our way."

I moan.

We make our way across town to the Z100 studios.  I check my voicemail and get nothing.

"That's strange," I say.

"What's that?" Tony asks.

"Brad hasn't checked back in with me yet about dinner.  I'll try to call him again."

I dial his number and get his voicemail again.

"Hey...it's me again.  I was just wondering why you haven't left me a message yet.  It's about five and we're on our way to Z100.  Leave me a message, okay?  Bye."

I hang up the phone and stare at it until Tony gets my attention.

"I'm sure he's busy doing something and just hasn't checked voicemail yet."

"Yeah, I guess," I shrug.

I do the radio interview which actually ended up being fun because they played silly games with me and the listeners.  As Tony and I walk out of the studio back to the limo, my cell phone rings.

"Finally," I say and then look down at the caller ID.  "Hello?"

"Oh, I got you," mama says.

"Yeah, I just left.  Brad hasn't called there has he?"

"No...should he have?"

"I don't know.  I was hoping he'd call my cell but he hasn't yet."

"Oh, what does that mean?"

"I'm not sure."

"Well, we have enough food to feed an army.  Invite Tony and Andre to stay too."

"Okay."

"Honey, he'll be there.  He knows this is your last night..."

"Yeah, I know."

"I'll see you soon.  Love you."

"Love you too," I say before we hang up.  "Mama invited you guys to dinner tonight," I mumble to Tony and Andre.

"No thank you ma'am, I have plans already," Andre says.

"I'll take her up on it," Tony smiles.  His stomach was growling.

We arrive at the apartment.  

Ashleigh runs up and gives me a hug.

"Whoa, what is that for?" I ask.

"You were so good on that show this morning that mama told me to give you a hug."

I laugh.  "Well thank you.  It's just what I needed."

She smiles at me.

"And I thought you handled the questions beautifully," daddy says as he walks over.  He leans down and kisses my cheek.

"Daddy...the lady that interviewed me for People said she heard we're doing a song together."

"Really?" he asks, scratching his chin.

"That would be fun," I say as I walk past him and walk down the hall to my room.

"Oh, did Brad call?" I yell back down the hallway.

"No," daddy yells back.

I shut the door to my room and sit on my bed.  I can literally feel my shoulders slump.  As I throw myself back on the bed, I wonder if I should call him again.

"No...if he really wanted to see you, he would check his voicemail," I say to myself.

I throw my hand over my face.

The doorbell rings.  I groan as I move my hand away from my face.  As I slowly sit up I glance at the clock.  What?  Seven?  I lean over and rub my eyes.

In a couple of minutes there's a knock on my door.

"Adriana?  Brad's here," mama says on the other side of the door.

"I'll be out in a second," I say in a gravelly voice.

I run to the bathroom and splash some water on my face.  I look down.  I still have that outfit I wore at the photo shoot.  Oh well.

"Hey," I say as I join everyone in the family room.

"You okay?" mama asks me as I walk by her.

I smile and nod.  "Yeah, I dozed off...didn't mean to.  So, you did get my message?" I say to Brad as I stand next to him.

He reaches down and pulls me into a hug.  "Yeah, sorry...I couldn't check my voicemail until later and by then I had just enough time to get over here."

"That's okay."

Mama stands up and heads to the kitchen.

"Cody will you help me?" she asks.

"Why me?" he pouts.

"Because, you toss a mean salad," she kids.

After dinner, we sit around the dining room table sharing stories about being on the road.

"Do you remember when the bus broke down?  Adriana and I stayed on JC's bus and you had to stay with Lance, I think," mama says, looking at daddy.

"Yeah, it was Lance's," he agrees.

"Why did you have to stay on different buses?" Ashleigh asks.

"There weren't enough bunks on the other ones.  I think we had to do that for two nights."

"And those were probably the longest traveling nights too.  We didn't have any hotel stops."

We all laugh.

"Well, I'm going to go back to my hotel.  You guys have a safe flight tomorrow," Tony says standing up.

Me, Brad, mama and daddy stand up too.

I walk around the table and give him a hug.  "When will I see you again?"

I think I'm actually going to miss him.

"I'll check in with you frequently, don't worry," he kids.  "But I'll probably be swinging by Orlando in a few weeks.  Stay out of trouble," he says tapping my nose.

He shakes Brad's hand.  "Good luck man...I mean it.  You've got a lot of talent."

"Thanks," Brad says, nodding his head as he shakes Tony's hand.

Suddenly I feel a lump in my throat.  The first of the goodbyes.

Daddy walks Tony to the door and the rest of us help clear the table and then pile back into the family room.  I sit next to Brad on the couch.  He wraps an arm around me and I snuggle closer to him.

"Okay Ash, time for bed...we have to get going early tomorrow," daddy says as he walks back in the room.

"Okay," she says hopping back up and walking over to me.  

She leans in and gives me a kiss on the cheek.  Then she walks over to Brad.

"I won't see you for awhile mommy says."

He shakes his head and puts his hands on her waist.

"No, probably not.  I won't be in Orlando."

"Well, I can't wait to see you again," she says, throwing her arms around his waist.

He kisses the top of her head.

"I'll be counting the days," he winks at her.

She giggles and then says good night to mama and Cody.  She walks over to daddy and takes his hand as they walk down the hallway.

"I'm going to go play video games before I go to bed," he says, looking at mama.

"Okay, but don't stay up too late."

"I won't," he says bending down to give her a kiss.

He walks over to us and sticks out his hand.

"Good luck, Brad."

Brad smiles and shakes his hand.  "Thanks man.  You too...on your plays at school."

Cody nods and smiles.  "Yeah, thanks.  Good night," he says to me.

"Good night."

Daddy walks back into the room as Cody leaves.

After chatting another half hour or so, mama stands up and yawns.

"I can't keep my eyes open and I don't want you to think it's the company," she laughs, looking at Brad.

Brad stands up and smoothes his pants out.

"Don't let me keep you," he smiles at her.

She walks over to him and pulls him in a hug.  "Good luck and take care."  She looks him in the eye when she pulls back.  "Don't be a stranger.  You're welcome to stay with us if you need a weekend getaway to Orlando, you hear?"

He smiles and nods.  "Thank you.  I'll probably take you up on that."

She kisses me and walks past daddy.

"I'll be in in a minute," he tells her.  "Brad...you're going to do well.  I can feel it."

"Thank you sir."

They shake hands and then daddy pulls him into a hug.

"Thanks for treating my daughter well too."

He blushes.  "That was the easy part."

"Good luck and I hope to see you around."

"Thank you.  I'm sure you will."

Daddy leans over and kisses my cheek.

"Don't stay up too long."

"I know, I won't."

When he leaves I look over at Brad, who's staring at his hands.  We sit back down and snuggle again...not saying anything.

"I have to get going," he says softly, after more time passes.

"Okay."

I'm fighting hard to bite back the tears.

We both stand up and he takes my hands.  "I see your chin trembling....don't cry.  We promised each other no tears."

I blink and then take one of my hands and fan my face.  "That's easier said than done.  Let's not say good bye.  Because I'll see you soon."

He nods.  "Yes, you will.  The first time I have two days off in a row I'll come to Orlando, okay?"

I nod as I bite my lower lip.

He lifts my chin up and gently kisses my lips.  We let our lips linger a little longer.

"Have fun in school and with your friends," he whispers.

I nod.  "You have fun writing and playing with the new group.  They're going to love you."

"I hope so."  He chuckles.  "Hey, if we don't get along I'll be in Orlando sooner than we thought."

"Don't say that.  You're going to amaze them."

"We'll see," he shrugs.

I reach up and hug him again.  "I'm going to miss you soooo much."

"I'll miss you too."

"Brad..."  I pull back a little, but with my arms still linked around his neck.  "I know I'm young but..."

He puts his finger against my lips.  "You don't have to say anything.  I care a lot about you..."

"I care about you too.  A lot."

He leans down and kisses me again.  Before the kiss gets carried away, he pulls back.

"If I don't go now, I'll never leave."

We start walking to the door, hand in hand.

I open the door and he stands in the doorway.

"I'll see you later then."

He smiles.  "Yeah, I'll see you later.  Have fun, okay?"

I nod.  "I will.  Have a safe trip."

He starts to walk away, our hands holding on to each other's until we can't reach anymore.  "You too."

He waves and then walks away, toward the elevator.

I shut the door and lean back against it...and cry.  Slowly I slide down to sit on the floor.  Mama finds me sitting there after a few minutes.

"Oh baby," she says.

She sits down on the floor next to me and gathers me in her arms, whispering comforting words.

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