Halloween 1999

Jessica's phone rang as she was coming in the door. She threw her costume on the couch and ran to answer it.

Jess - "Hello."

Summer - "Hey Jess. What took you so long?"

Jess - "I just got in the door. Where are you?"

Summer - "I'm still at home. My flight leaves in like two hours. When are you leaving?"

Jess - "About that time, you'll probably beat me there."

Summer - "Did you ever find a costume?"

Jess - "Yes it's hilarious. Brian's going to love it. What did you settle on?"

Summer - "I'm a mermaid and Nick's a pirate."

Jess rolls her eyes. "Oh god."

Summer - "Yeah I know but it was my mistake I let him pick it out. So what are you going to be?"

Jess - "Oh no I want to see the look on your face."

Summer - "Come on just a little hint."

Jess - "Nope. You'll tell Nick, cause you always do, and he'll tell Brian cause it's really funny."

Summer - "Fine. Well I'll let you go so you can pack and I'll see you tonight. Are you getting in time for the show?"

Jess - "I hope so. If not I'll just meet you guys at the club."

Summer - "Okay. See ya."

Jess - "Bye." They hang up and Jess opens the wig box and takes out the huge blonde wig. "He's going to love this."

Meanwhile in New Orleans...

Nick - "Willa, I mean it I gotta go." He gets off her bed while she's still clinging to him.

Willa - "Come on Nick you can stay a little while longer."

Nick - "No I can't." He shrugs her off and stands up. She pouts and sits up, pulling her shirt closed.

Willa - "What's wrong have to go get ready for Summer." He's sitting in a chair in her room putting on his shoes. "Aren't you going to answer me?"

Nick - "I don't know what I'm doing here."

Willa - "Oh I do." She approaches him and forces him to sit back in the chair as she straddles his lap. "You're here because you can do things with me that you can't do with your precious little Summer." She slips her hand down his chest to the waist of his pants. "Why are you still wasting your time with her when you can stay here with me?"

Nick - "Because I love her not you. This was the last time." He stands up knocking her to the floor.

Willa laughs. "Oh you've said that before. Trust me Nick when you're lying in bed next to her, unsatisfied, you will be wondering who's in my bed cause trust me, I don't plan on being alone just cause your girlfriend's here."

Nick - "I hope you do find some one else so you can leave me alone."

Willa - "Oh really. Who came to my room last night? You did. I'm not chasing you Nick."

He walks out of the room and to the elevators that will take him back up to his floor. When they open he sees Howie struggling with several bags.

Howie - "Hey Nick can you give me a hand?"

Nick - "Sure." He takes a couple bags from Howie.

Howie - "Hey what were you doing on seven?"

Nick - "Just got off on the wrong floor. What's all of this?"

Howie - "My costume for later."

Nick - "What are you going to be?" Nick looks in the bag and sees some leather breeches.

Howie - "An Indian. It was a last minute thing. The other one I was going for Brian took. Hey shouldn't Summer be getting in soon."

Nick - "Yeah I sent a car to pick her up so I'd have time to get ready." They get to their floor and step out.

Howie - "Well I would suggest a shower. Most girls don't like it when they show up and their man smells like another woman." He takes his bags back from Nick and walks towards his room.

Nick stands there in shock for a moment and then follows Howie.

Nick - "Hey! What are you talking about?"

Howie - "Come on Nick. I know you. You can't hide shit. You need to get what ever it is you've got for this crazy girl out of your system. Your lies are starting to get weak and sooner or later AJ is going to figure it out. Summer is an amazing girl, you don't deserve her but for some reason she loves you. You better start acting right." Howie shuts the door to his room on Nick.

Nick can't do anything but go back to his room and get ready for Summer to show up.


The concert is almost over. Summer glances nervously around the backstage area. Jess still hadn't shown up. She walks outside and looks around. No sign of the car Brian sent for Jess. The sound of explosions and screaming inside let her know that the concert was over. Sighing she walked back inside and towards the guys dressing room.

Summer - "Still no Jess." The guys were just coming off stage.

Nick - "She probably got stuck in traffic."

Brian - "Don't worry. The driver knows what club were going to he probably just took her there."

Nick - "Well we're going to get cleaned up and then change into our costumes. You can use that room over there to put yours on."

Summer - "Okay." Summer grabbed her bag with her costume and went out the door.

Meanwhile Jess was in fact stuck in traffic. She glances at her watch and sighs. "Hey Roy why dont we just head to the club. They're going to be gone by the time we get to the arena."

Roy turns off the freeway and heads to the nightclub where the guys had planned a private Halloween party for the crew and band from the tour. When they pulled up, the door man let Jess in and sent her to a room where she could change into her costume, a saloon girl from those old cheesy westerns.

No one from the show had shown up yet. There were some friends of the guys and a few other people Jess didn't know wandering around, but the party wasn't really going to start until the guys and the rest of the crew got there.

Jess was sitting at the bar, adjusting her mask and trying not to spill anything on her fake boobs when other people started to arrive. She had decided to stay at the bar and wait to see if anyone recognized her. She knew in her outfit who would make it to her first and she was right. He was wearing a priest costume, she could help but think it had to be some form of blasphemy.

AJ - "Hey darling." Jess just smiled. She knew the moment she opened her mouth she'd be given away. "Can I get you something to drink?" She held up her glass. "Oh you've already got one. So what's your name, who you with so I can tell him you won't be going home with him." He put his arm on the bar and leaned in closer.

Jess - "Do these lines really work on other girls?"

AJ - "Usual. Wait, Jess is that you?" She pulls up her mask. "Oh my God. This is great, Brian's never going to recognize you."

Jess - "That's the plan."

AJ - "Did you know what his costume was?"

Jess - "No why what is he?"

AJ - "See for yourself he just walked in." Jess turns and sees Brian strut in wearing a cowboy outfit. She turns quickly back to AJ to hide the fit of giggles. "I know I told him that John Wayne was at least a foot taller then him but he wouldn't hear it."

Jess - "Okay get out of here if he sees you talking to me. He'll know right away its me."

AJ - "Okay, save me a dance." AJ leaves searching the room for single girls, or at least unmarried ones.

Jess takes a breath and then gets up to walk across the room. Her plan was to brush past Brian to get his attention and then see if he recognized her. As she past the first table she saw him walking right towards her.

Brian - "Hey baby." He kisses her cheek.

Jess - "You saw AJ talking to me."

Brian - "No, why?"

Jess - "Then how did you recognize me?"

Brian - "Come on Jess. I could find you anywhere. But if you have to know I recognized your walk. No one walks like you."

Jess - "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

Brian - "A good thing. You've got a sexy walk." He winks at her. "Like your costume."

Jess - "Thank you. Yours is cute, everyone's going to think we planned this."

Brian - "I know but hey what can we say. We think alike. Care to dance?"

Jess - "Sure." They move out to the dance floor that was starting to get a little crowded.

Nick groaned to himself as he left the bar. Willa had just shown up with three guys he had never seen before. She got herself a table close to the one he was sharing with Summer but not close enough to be obvious about it.

He handed Summer her drink without looking at her. Then he sat there in a daze for a couple minutes.

Summer - "Nick I'm talking to you!"

Nick - "What?" He looks at her. She has a very frustrated and hurt look on her face.

Summer - "I've been trying to get your attention for like five minutes and you've been somewhere else. What's going on?"

Nick - "Nothing. I'm sorry. Its just noisy in here."

Summer - "Well then I won't try talking to you anymore."

Nick - "Oh come on Sum, I'm sorry. Look I haven't seen you in so long lets not fight okay."

Summer - "Okay. But only because I'm leaving the day after tomorrow and I don't want to spend anytime fighting okay."

Nick - "Okay, so as soon as you get home call me and we'll have a fight. I'll write myself a note."

Summer shakes her head. "You're such a dork."

Nick - "Lets get out of here."

Summer - "But the party just started."

Nick - "I see these people everyday. I want to spend time with you and I can't really do that here."

Summer - "Okay."

Chapter Seventy-Five