It was weird to have a few days off on tour, not so much for Mollie, who got the day off when there were travel days and the guys had to do promo, but for JC.  They had a few days off, including his birthday and the pair was flying from Texas, where they just finished a show, on a red eye to Maryland.  They would spend three days with JC’s family then head to the next tour stop to meet up with the guys for a birthday blowout.  Once they were safely up in the air, JC released his death grip on the armrest.  With as much flying as he did, one might think he would get used to the take offs and landings, but he never did.  Looking over at his better half, she was sound asleep.  He marveled at her ability to fall asleep in the strangest of places and smiled as he thought of her meeting his mom.  He talked to his mother frequently and Mollie had been a hot topic during their conversations lately.  He never actually brought a girl home before.  Yes, his family had met his previous girlfriends but usually when they came out to a concert or function.  He’d never actually brought a girl to his hometown for the specific purpose of meeting his family.

            It was going to be nice to go home and get some perspective.  Lately, as often happened in his life, things were on fast forward and he didn’t want to rush with Mollie.  He’d been having thoughts of forever but he needed this time to slow down.  He already knew his mother would love Mollie, that wasn’t his concern.  He just didn’t want to make any mistakes.  He had developed a crippling fear of losing Mollie and wanted an outsider’s opinion on the relationship.  He thought he would sleep on the plane; after all, they’d been going nonstop for quite some time now, but his racing thoughts kept him up.  By the time they touched down, he was wide awake and more than happy to get behind the wheel of the rental car.  Mollie struggled to keep her eyes open as they drove.  She wanted to be awake in case JC’s parents were there to greet them, but as he assured her, they would not.

“Babe, they might have woken up to welcome you home or to meet the strange girl they’ve never met but are allowing to stay in their house,” she rambled, her voice raspy with sleep.

“I spoke to my mom before we left.  She said they weren’t going to wait up for us because my dad has to go to work today.  She’d just see us whenever we woke up…and you’re not a strange girl.  You’re my girl, so they trust you’re not a psycho.” 

“They took your word for it?  Trusting people,” she replied, making him laugh.

            As they pulled up to the modest but beautiful house, Mollie was struck with an instant sense of home.  She wasn’t sure what time it was but the sky was lighter than it had been when they’d landed.  It probably wasn’t the best idea to be jetlagged and then hop on a plane and be jetlagged again a few days later but it was important to JC that Mollie meet his family.  She, of course, wanted to but was confused by his sudden sense of urgency.  They had sent the majority of their bags on with the bus caravan but had brought one suitcase that they shared.  When they got up to the door, they saw a note taped to it.

“Joshua and Mollie,” JC read aloud.  “Sorry we couldn’t stay up to welcome you home.  We can’t wait to see you but first, come in and get some sleep.  Joshua, you know where the key is.  Mollie, welcome home.  Love Mom and Dad.”

“Welcome home,” she repeated, touched by their generosity and thoughtfulness.

            JC bent down and lifted one of the rocks that lined the walkway.  Underneath was a silver key that he brushed off and used to allow them into the house.  Mollie took note of the family pictures lining the walls and smiled at the warmth that radiated through the house.  She followed him quietly up the stairs and over to a room in a corner of the house.  She knew instantly when he opened the door that it was his childhood bedroom.  She smiled at the thought and walked over to collapse on the full sized bed.  JC watched his girl as she took everything in and laughed as she collapsed on his bed.  Walking over to her, he could see her eyes were half-lidded already.  He grabbed her right foot and eased her brown leather boot off, dropping it to the floor.  He stripped her sock off and gently rubbed the ball of her foot.  She moaned at the release of tension and groaned when he stopped to repeat the action on her left foot.

“Don’t stop,” she whispered when he dropped her foot. 

“Baby, it’s time for sleep.  I promise you a foot rub tomorrow.  When we’re well rested.  Now come on, get undressed,” he said, as he stripped himself of his clothes, getting down to just his boxer briefs.

“Make me, I’m too tired.”

            He smiled at her laziness and reached for the button on her jeans.  He lifted her with one arm to tug the pants down her legs.  He pulled her tank shirt over her head, discarding it on the floor and opening the suitcase to retrieve one of his t-shirts.  When he turned back around, she had discarded her bra and was holding her hands above her head.  He pulled the shirt down over her head and bent down for a quick kiss on her lips.  Climbing in next to her, they snuggled under the covers.

“Welcome home baby,” she muttered, her face nestled in the crook of his neck. 

“Welcome home,” he mimicked.

            They were asleep within minutes and when Mollie woke, she felt refreshed.  She tried to move but found herself trapped beneath JC, who had somehow interwoven their bodies in the night.  He clung to her and rather than wake him up, she lay quietly.  His face was so relaxed when he slept and she could tell he was sleeping better than he had in weeks.  She wove her fingers in his hair, rubbing circles on his scalp.  She was almost lulling herself back to sleep when she heard his stomach rumble.  She couldn’t help but giggle and when he reached his hands above his head to stretch his body out, she laughed harder as his stubble tickled her skin.

“Guess my stomach says it’s time to wake up,” he mumbled.  He rolled over to glance at the clock on the nightstand, which read 2:00.  “Time to face the world.”

They both got up, JC slipping on flannel pajama pants and Mollie sliding into a pair of gym shorts.  She laced her hand with his and followed him down the stairs.  She was met with the smell of bacon and coffee.  It was enough to make her own stomach growl like JC’s had.  They were both laughing as they entered the kitchen to find a middle aged woman with her back to them, spatula in hand.  She turned as they entered and her eyes lit up at the sight of JC.

“I can’t believe you’re actually home!  It’s been way too long,” she squealed as she squeezed him in a tight hug.

“Hey Mom,” he replied.  She released him and gave him a look over, declaring him too thin for her liking.  “Mom, this is Mollie, my girlfriend.”

Mollie nervously ran a hand through her hair, letting it fall to one side.

“I could tell that by looking at you, you’re just as pretty as he described,” she said, pulling Mollie into a hug.  Mollie was surprised by the sincerity in the hug and when she pulled away, was almost speechless. 

“It’s so nice to finally meet you Mrs. Chasez.  Thank you for welcoming me into your home.”

“Oh sweetie just call me Karen and you’re more than welcome here.  You two must be starving.  I was just whipping up some blueberry pancakes and bacon for you.” 

“You didn’t have to do that mom,” JC said, pouring two cups of coffee and sliding onto the bench seat at the kitchen table, next to Mollie.

“Yes I did, the two of you are skin and bones!  All of that tour food, has no real nutrition so you just work it off every night.  No, while you’re here, you’ll eat.”

            Karen told them about everything that had been going on since JC had been there last.  She piled their plates high with pancakes and bacon and Mollie hungrily dug in as she listened to her talk.  She loved how she always called JC Joshua and how she touched his arm when it was something she really thought he’d like. When her belly was stuffed, she got up, intending to put her plate in the sink but Karen quelled her efforts.  She urged her to sit and enjoy herself, mentioning that she may want to spend some time alone with her later today.  After their late breakfast, they went upstairs to get properly dressed and JC gave her a driving tour of his hometown.  He told stories along the way and she laughed at some of his crazy antics.  As they headed towards home, he turned serious.

“What’s up with you?  You’re quiet,” Mollie initiated.  “What’s on your mind?" 

“There’s something I should’ve mentioned to you…” he began.  “You might have noticed I don’t really look like the rest of my family... I never said anything because everyone who needs to know knows and it’s never really come up.  I’m adopted,” he rambled.  “So that’s why I don’t look like my family, because they’re technically not my family.”

“Of course they’re your family,” she said, brushing him off.  “Thank you for trusting me enough to tell me.  Believe me, it doesn’t matter what you’re family looks like as long as they love you.  Look at me, I’ve got nobody left.  So my family now is Johanna…and you,” she said, sparking a grin on his face, “and those four other goofballs and the girls and Wade and Britney…I’ve made myself a new family of friends who look nothing like me but love me…and that’s better than being alone.” 

“I don’t even know why I was worried.  You understand me better than anyone ever has,” he said, placing his free hand on her knee.

            They pulled up to his home, finding more cars than there were before.  When they walked in the house, the smell of something delicious cooking hit their noses and their mouths watered.  There were loud voices coming from the family room and the duo followed the sounds.

“There he is!” A blonde girl came bounding over to them and tossed herself in JC’s arms.  JC laughed at the impact and pulled her off her feet before setting her down and introducing her to Mollie.

“Heather, this is Mollie…Mollie, my sister Heather.” 

“It’s so great to meet you!  Josh never lets us meet his girlfriends…at least not willingly,” the girl said, pulling Mollie in for a hug.

“Heather, shall we not?” JC said, giving her a look. 

“Oh whatever, I’m just glad there’s another girl around,” she said.

“I have to say,” a male voice said from behind Heather, “you look much different with clothes on.” 

“God Tyler, have you no tact?” Heather groaned, returning to her place on the couch.

“Ty!  What’re you doing out here anyway?” JC asked. 

“It’s your birthday bro.  Par-tay!”

“Oh goodness, that was you wasn’t it?”  Mollie said, covering her face with her hand.  “Well, it’s nice to meet you properly.” 

“Joshua, don’t make the girl stand there all night, invite her in.”  JC’s dad was a slightly intimidating man appearance wise.  He looked very serious.  “Nice to meet you young lady,” he said, extending his right hand to her.  Mollie accepted the shake and smiled as JC gave his dad a quick hug.

“How’s everything Pop?  What have I missed?” JC said, taking a seat on the loveseat next to Mollie. 

“Well a lot happens when your son doesn’t come to visit for a year.  Maybe you should keep this young lady around if she gets you to visit home every now and then.”

            Everybody laughed and the family caught up on each other’s lives.  Heather was getting ready for her last year of college and in a serious relationship with a guy she knew from school.  She said they would meet him when they all went out for JC’s birthday.  Tyler was enjoying his summer off, annoying his father by not having a summer job.  They all laughed when he joked that he was going to ride JC’s coattails forever.  JC gave him a stern look and reminded him that he only let him come to the cool parties and events if he was keeping his grades in order and if he got a job.  Mollie loved seeing JC’s fatherly side come out.  You could tell he took his big brother role seriously.

            They all sat down to a nice dinner and the family played 20 questions with Mollie.  She felt like she was getting interrogated but it was nice to see that they all really cared about JC’s best interests. After dinner, the boys went to go talk about a new car Mr. Chasez was planning on buying, Heather excused herself to go back to her apartment and Karen invited Mollie to help her bake JC’s birthday cake.

“Josh tells me that you weren’t very taken with him at first?”

“Well…yes and no.  I was pretty taken with him until I found out he was in the group.  I had just gotten the job dancing for them and I didn’t want anyone to think I’d gotten it because of him.  It took me a while to realize that the people who matter know I got where I am because of my talent and not because of my boyfriend.  Josh didn’t like that.  He couldn’t see why I would shy away from a relationship if we both had feelings for each other.” 

“He’s a very emotional guy.  He bases things on what he feels, not what his head says.  I can see your point though.  When you work hard to achieve something, you don’t want anything to take away from it.”

“Yeah, but I knew that the other guys and the other dancers wouldn’t have to go on and live after this tour knowing they gave up a chance to have a wonderful relationship just so they could prove a point.  I would have had to do that and I just wasn’t willing to let a good thing go.” 

“I’ll be honest with you Mollie.  I was very nervous to meet you.  Joshua has never brought a girl home, so I knew that it meant something when he asked if he could bring you here,” Karen said, setting the timer after sliding the cake in the oven.  “My son has been through enough hurt in his life.  I don’t want to see him hurt again.  All I ask is that you not break his heart.”

“I don’t plan on it,” Mollie said, smiling at her.

            Tyler had excused himself a little while ago and JC sat with his dad in the garage, looking at a car magazine.  It was the opportunity he had been waiting for, a moment alone with his dad.

“Hey Pop, can I ask you something personal?” 

“Okay.”

“How did you know Mom was the one?” 

“There are some things you just know in your gut.  I just knew it in my gut one night.  I had taken her out to dinner and we were walking home and she just looked so pretty and something came over me and I just knew,” Roy said, softening.  “Why?”

“I just feel like I’ve known for a while that Mollie was the one.  I know it’s early and I know it’s probably crazy but I feel like she’s it for me…I almost bought a ring.”  Roy seemed surprised by this and leaned back in his chair.  “We were out doing an appearance and Justin wanted to stop and get his mom something for her birthday and I saw this ring and thought…that’s the ring I want to give to Mollie.” 

"Son, it's not crazy if you know it's right.  But if you know it's right there's no harm in waiting," Roy said, trying to prevent his son from rushing.  "If she's the one, she'll always be beside you.  Give it a little time.  You've been in la-la-land living the touring life.  You've been in a bubble, the two of you.  Take time and experience life when you have time off, or when she can't go with you everywhere you go.  It'll happen and you need to experience that as well.  There's no need to rush when you've got forever."

    JC smiled at the thought of forever.  He realized his dad was probably right; although it didn't stop him from wanting to propose right then and there.  It was getting late and his dad excused himself, leaving JC alone with his thoughts.  He pulled his digital camera from his pocket.  He'd been showing his mom some photos from the tour earlier and he and Mollie had used it on their tour this afternoon.  He set it on his dad's worktable, scooted back until he was in frame and began to speak.