The next morning when the alarm went off, Mollie groaned.  JC buried his face deeper into her neck, determined for an extra moment of sleep but alas the alarm just kept buzzing.  Mollie turned in his arms, placing sweet kisses along his jaw to wake him up.  He smiled and his stubble scratched her face.  A sense of calm was in the air and Mollie felt totally at ease despite being totally naked.  It was as if any remaining barriers between them had fallen.  They took their time getting ready, sharing a shower and throwing their clothes in a bag.  Cuddling on the couch while waiting for the bus, they stayed close.

“Back to the real world,” JC said, wishing they had more time to themselves.

“I don’t know how I’m going to dance tonight.  I’m sore,” Mollie said laughing. 

“I guess we have to practice some more, to get you in shape,” JC said, leaning in for a kiss.

“Practice does make perfect,” Mollie agreed, her lips brushing against his.  Before they could kiss, a loud horn honked outside.  “And the real world has arrived.”

            They headed out to the bus, which looked out of place in the apartment complex.  JC and Mollie held hands the whole walk to the bus and snuggled close when they grabbed some seats on the couch.  Justin gave them a strange look but went back to his conversation with Britney.  Later that day, Mollie was reluctant to part with JC when he needed to get dressed so with a long slow kiss, she headed in the direction of the makeup room and found Justin hanging out, talking to Jamie.

“You’ve managed to separate yourself from JC long enough to see us little people huh?” Justin asked. 

“Yes…”

“You two have been particularly clingy today.” 

“Have we?  I didn’t realize.”  Mollie was trying her hardest to deflect whatever suspicion Justin may have about her relationship.

“So where’d you two go last night?  I couldn’t help but notice you skipped out early.” 

“We were both pretty tired.  We headed back to his apartment to get as much sleep as we could.”

“Just sleep huh?”

            Mollie could tell Justin somehow knew what went down last night.  She excused herself, not wanting to have this conversation in front of Jamie, who was setting up her tools, and headed out into the hallway.

“Why you running away?” 

“Justin Randall Timberlake you should know better than to ask a lady about her private life in public,” Mollie said, pulling him into an empty room.  She plopped down on the floor of the room, over in the corner, thinking she’d have a few minutes to compose herself before getting to work.

“It’s not a big deal if you had sex with your boyfriend Molls, I was just teasing.” 

“It’s a big deal for me,” Mollie said.  “It was my first time.”

“Oh…”  Justin said, sitting down across from her.  “I’m sorry Molls, I didn’t mean to make fun.  I didn’t know…” 

“It’s fine.  I’m just a little sensitive about it right now.  It’s a whole new thing for me and I don’t feel comfortable enough with it to joke around,” Mollie informed him. 

“I’m sorry, I really didn’t know.  I should know better than to do that anyway.  My first time was discussed by tabloids around the world,” he replied, bluntly. 

“Well, let’s just keep this between you and me, eh?”

“You got it.  Just spare me details in the future.  You’re like my little sister, I’d rather not know the gory details of your life with JC.”

            Mollie shook her head at him and stood up.  She shoved his head as she walked past and out the door.  She could hear his laugh from the hallway and she continued down to the girls bathroom.  She checked under the stalls to make sure nobody was in there and hopped up onto the counter to call Johanna.

“Hey girl!  I was hoping you’d call, I miss you.  I have news!” Johanna sounded super excited when she answered. 

“Hey Jo…”

“What’s up?  Something’s different about you.  I hear it in your voice.” 

“How do you know these things?” Mollie asked, truly shocked at her friend’s uncanny ability to sense what was up.  “I kind of had a lot of stuff happen in the last few days and I wanted to talk to you about it.”

“Oh yeah, how was the party?” 

“It was great, the guys are so excited about the album finally being out.  JC and I left early actually…and we told each other we love each other.  Pause for reaction,” Mollie said, trying to make a joke.

“You did?  That’s a big step for you!  I’m proud of you.” 

“And then…we had sex…”  There was silence on the other end of the line.  “It was more than I imagined, Jo.  He was so perfect with me.  He was gentle and…I think I’m in deep with this one.”

“I’d definitely say you’re in deep if you decided to give up your V-card.  How are you today?  You feel good about everything?” 

“I feel…this is going to sound strange but I feel like I’m just noticing everything today.  Like I feel like I’m just noticing the sky and smells and sounds…I’m just seeing my body as curvy and womanly…I sound dumb don’t I?”

“Nope,” Johanna said, quietly.  “You sound like you’ve just made a great decision with someone you really love….my girl is growing up.”

            The girls chatted some more and Mollie mentioned the upcoming charity weekend.  Johanna was excited for a chance to get out of New York.  They discussed the details of her arrival and Mollie mentioned the guys would be filming their new music video next month.  Johanna wanted to come if she could get the time off of work.  In the middle of all of that, Mollie would be spending time with Britney and Wade, teaching her the choreography they’d been working on for her music video.  It would be a jam packed few weeks but it would all be worth it. Just as she hung up the phone, the door burst open and JC walked in.

"I think you misread the sign, this is the ladies room," Mollie said, laughing. 

"Exactly why I figured I could find my lady here.  I had something to ask you."

"Okay..." 

"Mollie Greenspan, would you be my date for the VMA's?"

"For real?  Like sit next to each other and possibly have our picture taken?"  She was teasing him but she wanted to make sure he was considering all aspects of the idea before she replied. 

"Yup, for real.  We're cooking up something big for our performance and A- you might be in it if we are using dancers and B- I want the woman I love there for all of it."

"Oh and what woman is that?" Mollie smiled, wanting to hear him say it again. 

"You," he replied.  "I love you."

"I love you too.  Of course I'll go.  I may be pulling double duty though.  I was going to help Wade out with Britney's performance too and possibly dance in it.  I guess I'll be busier than you that night." 

"You're just so popular," JC said, rolling his eyes in mock disgust.  He opened the door to leave.  "I don't even think I'm cool enough for you anymore."  He walked out, leaving Mollie laughing hysterically.

She hopped off the bathroom counter, chasing him out of the room.  She bumped straight into his chest as he was only just outside the door.  They both laughed hysterically and headed towards the main part of the arena, where camera crews had set up for interviews. Mollie left JC to get started and found Wade off to one side of the room.  They found an empty room where they could play their music and got to work.  The song was amazing, Mollie thought it would definitely stand out on the radio and would get people talking about Britney and this new sound.  She’d been listening to it on and off all morning and had a few ideas already.  Wade had done a lot of the choreography already but was working tightening up anything he didn’t like.  A fast learner, it didn’t take long for Mollie to pick up his choreography.

“So what do you think?” he asked when they took a breather.  Mollie hesitated to answer and Wade could see that.  “Be honest.  I trust your opinion.”

“I love it.  I just think the one part needs something different.  I actually have a really crazy idea for it.” 

“What?”

“Well a few years ago, I was taking a class to just keep in shape when I was looking for a job and I thought I had signed up for hip hop but it turned out it was a belly dancing class.  I stayed because it sounded like fun but I feel like some of the things I learned there could be worked in with the more hip hop type moves to make something cool.” 

Mollie stopped rambling and looked up at him. Luckily he was smiling.  She tried a few things and once Wade got a feel for what she meant, they worked out a cool sequence that was a break from the up tempo dancing action they had going on for the rest of the song.  They were really excited about all of it and decided to find Britney and show her before they kept working on it.  When they wandered into the arena, they found that the press was almost gone.  The guys were finishing up an interview with a newspaper reporter and when the reporter had packed up and left, the duo sprung.  Britney was talking to Justin but they interrupted.

"Hey Brit, we just finished just about everything and we wanted to get your thoughts on it," Wade said. 

"Yeah, do it here, then we get more opinions," Britney suggested. 

    Wade set up their stereo and Mollie headed a few feet away from everyone.  She last minute decided to roll up her tank top so the belly dancing could really be noticed.  She didn't usually get nervous but performing for a small group of people she knew definitely turned the nerves up.  She was fine through the first section but when Wade stepped out for the belly dancing and all eyes were on her, she search for JC until they locked eyes.  She focused on him as she moved, and before she knew it Wade was back beside her finishing up the song.  When they finished there was a moment of silence and then everyone started cheering.

"Who knew little Mollie was a sexy belly dancer?" Joey joked from the bleachers.

"That's amazing!" Lance added.  "Way different than what everyone else is doing." 

"But what does the boss lady have to say?" Mollie asked, glancing nervously at Britney.

"I say, teach me that right now!"

     Mollie laughed, happy that Britney was happy.  She showed her the belly dancing part as the guys scattered to their various destinations.  Britney had to leave for an interview but she promised she'd work on the belly dancing until they had to learn the whole dance.  After she left, it was just Mollie and JC.  He sat back in his chair, his feet propped up on the chair in front of him.  He had a mischievous look on his face and she walked over, swinging a leg over his to sit on his lap, facing him.

"How did you come up with the whole belly dancing section?" he asked, running his tongue across his lower lip. 

"Let's just said I've had a recent spark of inspiration," she replied, raising her eyebrows.

"Mmm," JC groaned, leaning in for a long slow kiss.  "We have the rest of the night off.  Tomorrow the craziness begins, Johanna is here, the charity weekend kicks off.  What do you say we go back to the room and...get inspired?" 

"I thought you'd never ask," she purred in his ear.

JC stood, leaving Mollie to latch onto him for fear of falling.  He hooked his arms around her middle and carried her towards the back rooms, where they'd dropped her bag earlier.  Without dropping her, he snatched the handle of her duffle and slung it over his shoulder.  Mollie couldn't help but laugh as he walked, with a purpose towards the awaiting rental car.  She unhooked her legs from his waist as he deposited her beside the passenger door.  They headed back to the hotel, linking hands as they ducked through the crowd at the door into the lobby.  The elevator seemed to take forever to arrive and once it did, JC was relieved to find they were alone.  As soon as the doors shut, he backed his girl against the wall, kissing her neck.

“Baby, the doors could open any minute,” Mollie mumbled.

He silenced her with his lips.  Mollie was getting into it as they rose higher and higher and her hands roamed south. She caressed him over his pants and she got a muted grunt in response.  She smiled against his lips and opened her eyes for a moment as the elevator came to a stop.  She noticed they weren’t on their floor yet.

“Babe, other people,” she managed to spit out before the door opened. 

JC backed away but found himself in an awkward predicament.  He swiftly maneuvered Mollie in front of him, placing himself against the wall.  Mollie stifled a laugh as she felt his erection press into her back.  JC draped his arms around Mollie’s shoulders as an elderly couple stepped into the elevator with them.  The older woman smiled at them as she stood off to the side and the door slid closed.  They travelled another 4 floors in silence and managed to get out of at their floor without exposing the other couple to JC’s situation.  JC fumbled with the key as Mollie ran her hands up and down his chest and they finally tumbled through the door.

Mollie took some initiative, taking her leggings off and tossing them to one side as she kicked her sneakers off.  She went to walk towards the bed and JC grabbed her hand, twirling her around to him.  He had stripped his shirt off when she wasn’t looking and he had a carnal look in his eyes.  He picked her up, pinning her to the wall and Mollie wrapped her legs around him.  Her hands ran up his neck as he placed little kisses across her chest.  Mollie yanked as her hands threaded in his hair and JC picked his head up to meet her eyes.

“I’m ready, but go gentle on me…I’m still sore from last night,” she said, a smile dancing across her lips.

            That was all the signal he needed.  He ripped her panties, discarding them on the floor.  He eased himself into her, fighting his urges to accommodate her needs and she fit him like a glove.  Mollie gripped his muscular shoulders, trying to hold herself up.  She was so tight and he used all of his will to prolong the experience but as soon as he felt her walls tighten around him, he had to let go.  Sex with Mollie was unlike any he’d ever had.  No matter how many times they did it, he didn’t think he could ever get enough.  Exhausted, he carried her over to the bed, collapsing on top of her. 

They lay, catching their breath and coming down from the high.  JC rolled to his side so he was lying next to his love and she rolled on her stomach, turning her face towards him.  She leaned up, quickly discarding the tank shirt and sports bra they didn’t have time for earlier.  She felt so comfortable in his presence and was not self-conscious of her body.  He began to trace the outline of her spine and her eyes fluttered with sleep.

“I hope this feeling stays forever,” she mumbled, her eyelids growing heavy.

“What feeling?” 

“Love.  This high…the insatiability. I never want whatever bubble we’re in to pop.”

“I don’t think it will.  I’m in so deep…” 

“I love you…” she muttered as she drifted into sleep.

            JC admired her calm face for a few moments before succumbing to his own tiredness.