It’s three hours before her final preshow rehearsal and I have an hour before we head for her place, Aaron anxious to see me go. "Are you sure you really want to do this, baby?" he asks me, our eyes locking as our bodies sway and I notice the worried look on his visage.
"Yes, and I’ve already been promised you have full clearance to surprise us at all of her dates," I inform him, my heart dropping lower than my tone.
"Any you want to skip?"
He still hasn’t forgotten about the night he and Sam had played hero, saving me from stupidity. "Her dates in Massachusetts," I confirm, softly kissing my lips to his.
He pulls me closer by my belt loops, our bodies pressed so close together that people could swear we’re dry humping. "What about the rest?"
"I will be with her and you’re more than welcome to drop in, the only person you have to call first is Usher or JC. Kailey is another person to call."
"Kailey?" he asks, confusion etched into his features.
"Her assistant," I giggle.
"Oh! Her best friend, the newest one to date," he recalls after a minute.
"Yes, Kailey Michaelson. Kiasha’s baby sister."
We drove to the MTV MA location and scope it out with Sam, Josh and Kailey. Usher came here ahead of us by 15 minutes or something like that, making sure there weren’t any crazed fans around. She and Josh are performing Animal tonight for the first time, having rehearsed it for nearly 3 long months now. They’ve rehearsed it so much that she subconsciously goes through the routine when bored or anxious. Josh has put up with that for the past two weeks. I see her and smile, watching her rehearse on the stage she and Josh plan on tearing apart in about 5 hours. It’s now 4 in the afternoon and I’m getting hungry, Fatima glancing at me. I signal that I’m getting hungry and she turns back to them, Josh unrelenting in his desire to perfectionist mood. "JC, you two need to eat," she reminds him, Sam looking ready for a nap. "She looks ready for an extended break and a nap, too."
He stops, watching his fiancee and grabs her by the waist from behind. He says something in her ear, her head bobbing in agreement and they climb off the stage. He makes sure to help her descend from the stage to the floor below, stopping to kiss her and he holds her for a moment.
"Daddy, why are you and mommy doing this?" Zandrya asks, innocent curiosity getting the best of her. She’s three and looks like her mom at that age, her dad’s dark hair having taken over.
"Mommy said she was ready and suggested that I try to get a deal, proving to Usher that I deserve to be on the stage as well, baby," he smiles like the dad he’s always been meant to be.
"Why can’t we go, papa?" Chubbs questions, slowly stacking his nuggets in a pyramid and making his mashed potatoes into a volcano with the gravy being used as lava.
"I explained that you could go from the time you’re 13 because you can become quite uncooperative sometimes."
Nickoly grins and plays with his dinosaur nuggets, making me smirk. I lean over to my baby nephew, whispering in his ear. "Koly, are you supposed to be doing that with your nuggets?"
"They’re dinasars," he argues.
"Kol," Aaron chastises softly, not wanting to draw unnecessary attention to us in Destino.
Justin had added a kid-friendly menu a couple years back, mainly aimed at kids under 12 or people older who have inner kids just like her and Nick do. Koly quickly stops as Josh eyes him, a warning glare fired at him and Chubbs. Koly and Chubbs have been partners in crime since Koly could crawl, getting into all this trouble because of pranks, moving things and just destroying things or wreaking havoc in order to attempt to get Sam to climb the walls with insanity.
There’s a reason why she took so long to record a new album and hop onto that train again, the younger boys being the main explanation. I wonder more often than not how she’s able to handle all of this almost seamlessly, Josh slightly more bothered by what happens due to only being around for a few years while she has practically raised Mikal, Aaliyah and Demitryus on her own although her ex-douche bag was physically and monetarily. It’s the polar opposite when it came down to the emotional and mental ends of it, his heart ice cold and just so damn ignorant while she and the kids suffered. I’m so proud of her for finding Josh, his focus being her and the kids. He’s been behind the scenes since 08 I think and he has yet to even contemplate a single thing to complain about. "Ahem!" Josh clears his throat, claiming their middle son’s attention.
"Papa, I’m not planning anything. It’s not a time to do that, it’s the day of a performance and an award show. I know better than to pull that kinda thing before something as big as this to mom and you."
