July 26, 2000 (The day of the concert)
Georgia, Jovie, and Frank together with Mr. Oh headed to a nearby Italian restaurant near Madison Square Garden for an early dinner. That way, they don't have to return to the Hotel afterward, which will save them time.
"Tickets? Check. Lightsticks, check. Camera, check. VIP passes? Check!" Jovie muttered as she skimmed through their belongings to double-check that they were not forgetting something. "Most especially, these!" she announced giddily while holding the passes.
"Do you want me to come pick you up after the concert? I don't want you guys walking back to the hotel that late." Mr. Ong asked the three while cutting a piece of his medium rare steak with a steak knife.
Jovie looked at her brother Frank, signaling for him to speak. "There might be an after-party for the VIP pass holders, Dad. Will you still be awake at the wee hour? We might ring you up or we'll get a cab."
Mr. Ong looked at each of them. "Ring me up, if I don't answer, get a cab. Just don't walk," he instructed them after he swallowed a piece of steak he just put in his mouth.
Both girls headed to the loo after eating for a quick touch-up. "Are you ready to meet Randall?', Jovie catechized her as they both washed their hands. "What would you do if we're right?"
"Readier than ready." Georgia joked after spitting the mouthwash she held in her mouth. "I don't know, I haven't had a serious thought about that." she lied, knowing it took her hours last night to rationalize things.
She smeared a pink-colored lip gloss on her lips, patted her cheeks for some blush effect, and brushed her hair to one side of her face with her hands. There! That's enough, she thought as she admired herself in the mirror. She watched as Jovie did the same, only Jovie's hair was shorter than hers.
"He'll like you. Don't be nervous." Jovie said reassuringly as if reading her mind. Truly, her best friend knows her inside out, she knows when and how to comfort her troubled mind without Georgia uttering a word. "You're pretty, sweet and smart. Justin, Randall, or whoever he turns out to be, he must be a good, deserving guy for you first," she added and gave Georgia a slight smack on her butt, making them laugh.
She took another glance at herself in the mirror before heading out. Wearing a denim cropped jacket on top of a white fitting shirt, a denim tiered mini skirt, paired with her Dr. Marten's Pascal boots, she surely was a slay. Not average, yet not overly dressed.
"Enjoy the concert, kiddos", Mr. Ong each gave them a pat on their heads including Georgia, as if she was one of his own too as they stood outside Madison Square Garden after a couple of minutes walk from the restaurant, arriving three hours early before the start of the concert. A humongous crowd was already queued outside their designated entrance, each gate had long lines of people that kept on piling up each minute.
They strode towards the VIP entrance at 31st Street. Luckily for them, the VIP gate did not have much of a waiting line. As their line progressed close to the ticket scanning area, Georgia suddenly felt her body tensed up and she started to sweat a little. Don't be nervous. It would be best if you were exhilarated to be watching NSYNC from the front row later, the last thing you must be feeling right now is to be anxious about Randall. , she reminded herself as she studied her best friend Jovie, and her brother, Frank who were all smiles and seemed too delighted.
"Ants in your pants!" Frank yelled through the crowd which caused everyone to laugh.
"Enjoy" uttered Jovie as she looked at Georgia over her shoulders while they passed through the security check. After their tickets and VIP passes were scanned, they were also given a lanyard to which they could hook their passes to. A staff led them through the lobby towards the escalator leading to the Chase Lounge, where the VIP holders can spend time a few hours before the event.
They stood at the big double doors, mouths wide open with awe as they took in the incredible interiors of the lounge. Nestled at the center was a big bar that could seat a large number of people, positioned exquisitely with elegant lighting and surrounded by chairs and lounges. "Frank, do you have your Amex with you?" Jovie jested her brother, in response, Frank took out his card and waved it at his sister's face boastfully.
They were served complimentary foods such as Crispy Zucchini fritters, Parmesan Roasted Brocolli, and some chips, Frank even got himself a handful of those candies. While they were sipping their Strawberry soda, a waiter approached them and placed another three glasses of drinks. "Raspbubbly mocktail", he stated confidently and nodded his head.
Frank took out his card immediately, knowing that mocktails were not free. The waiter waved his hand, "It's all on the house, Mr. T--Randall took care of it", he stammered and started walking away after they thanked him.
"Any news from Randall? Where is he?" asked Jovie while searching the room with her eyes. Georgia just shrugged her shoulders at her best friend. She started calling his number but no answer.
"Maybe he's not coming," she said
"That's impossible. A guy wouldn't make so much of an effort and then back out after. He even sent out mocktails for us", her best friend disagreed, still scanning the room. "He's gotta be here here somewhere."
She stopped eyeing the room when she realized, she had no idea about what he looked like. There were several guys at the lounge their age, some were even older than them, the problem was she didn't have a clue which one of them was Randall. Just when she started feeling dismayed, her phone rang.
"Hey, please tell me you're enjoying the lounge.", said Randall in a sweet voice as soon as she answered.
"Hi! Of course, but where are you? Thought you are already here 'cause we were given mocktails, the waiter said it's from you." Georgia said, trying to keep her voice calm but it didn't escape Randall's ears.
"Don't be mad at me, please."
Georgia closed her eyes, fighting herself not to quickly give in to Randall's suit. "I'm not mad, just a little disappointed."
"I'll see you after, we're just kinda all over the place here at the moment. A crew will accompany you back later at the lounge after the concert." Randall said in a hurry. Then, a group of girls shrieking was heard over the entire lounge, claiming they saw Justin at the door leading to the lounge's kitchen area. "I have to go, Georgie. I'll see you guys later." Randall spoke in a fleet and dropped the call without even letting Georgia speak.
The concert kicked off with the guys singing "No Strings Attached" with strings hooked to their arms and then flying up the stage. Looking at their outfits, dressed in white polos, pants with patches, and vests, Georgia was reminded of one of the outfits Randall sent to her. Why did he have those same outfits? Georgia mused.
The band's energetic performances of their hit songs I Want You Back, Tearin' Up My Heart and It's Gonna Be Me fueled the audience's excitement. The melodic tunes of God Must Have Spent A Little More Time On You and I Drive Myself Crazy brought a sense of tranquility, their enchanting five-part harmony filled the air especially JC's melody, which mesmerized the whole arena. Girls were screaming at the top of their lungs but, Georgia kept on wondering why Justin kept on looking her way while singing the latter.
Am I imagining things? she thought. Is he looking at me? Or maybe just my direction, she deliberated. The perks of being placed at the front row seats, you get to be delusional, she mocked herself and smirked. She could feel her cheeks reddened even on the dim lights.
When Justin started beatboxing, the crowd went even wilder. Then, the frenetic beatboxing and drums subsided as the group disappeared from the curtains. They reappeared individually and a couch was placed at the upper center of the stage. "How is it in New York?" Justin started to hype up the crowd to cheer and he succeeded. It was followed by them expressing their gratitude to everyone for coming to their tour and having their single, It's Gonna Be Me on the number 1 spot.
"... now, uh, we wanna sing a song for you guys but, uh, this is not just any song," Justin stated while gesturing his hands. ".. this song is very special to all five of us because it's the first song that we ever sang together."
They started singing the acapella of I Thought She Knew with their soothing raw vocals.
"She was my once-in-a-lifetime
Happy ending come true
Oh I guess I should have told her
I thought she knew"
By the start of the second stanza, the guys started to disperse and went to the crowd to grab some ladies from the audience. To Georgia's surprise, Justin walked to her and asked the security to get her from the VIP fence. Jovie nudged her and looked shocked as well as her brother. "GO!" she delightedly screamed at Georgia.
Georgia was speechless, at first, she couldn't grasp what was happening at that sweet moment. She felt her hands getting cold but was comforted by Justin's warm hands as he led her up the stage, holding her. She was seated beside Justin on the couch, JC on her other side. Oh, my God! I am being sandwiched by two hottest guys in the boyband industry! She screamed inside, enthralled and adrenaline high up.
"I thought she knew My world revolved around her
My love light burned for her alone" Justin, still holding her hand, stared at her with his incredible blue eyes while singing the lines. His tye-dye polo matches his eyes perfectly, and even the baby blue bandana over his head to tame his curls complements his eyes and his looks. Georgia's heart raced again and now she could really tell her face was obviously flushed.
I should have known
She was my once-in-a-lifetime happy ending come true
Whoa I guess I should have told her
But I thought she knew"------- I Thought She Knew by NSYNC.
As the song ended, the guys started to bring them back to their seats, asking the security to assist the ladies. Justin, on the other hand, chose to walk Georgia down the stage. He leaned into Georgia's ears and whispered, making sure the microphone wouldn't catch his words "Thank you, Georgia. I'll see you later, okay?" his eyes sparkled when he mentioned her name.
To Georgia's astonishment with the revelation, and enamored by the way he breathed on her ears, she almost lost her balance, good thing Justin was still close and was able to grab both her arms. "Got You!" Justin said.
She gave him a questioning look, eyebrows furrowed and mouth slightly open, unable to utter a single word. Justin somehow understood her non-verbatim confusion, he nodded and mouthed. "Georgia, it's me, Randall."
