Survive You

Chapter 21.

All too soon the song ended, and Jenny was introducing them to the crowd. Beth turned to look at her daughter. Nathalie was slack jawed, but applauding. That was good right?
The girls all took a bow and Beth walked back to her table. She was about to sit down when she heard Jenny call her over the mic. "Mouse, Mouse, come on and sit with your New Kid. You were Jordan's dancer, right? Come and take a seat. I've some questions for you ladies." Beth turned, horrified to see the rest of the Blockade girls sat on the bar stools the guys had previously occupied, and the guys stood behind them. Jordan stood behind his now empty bar stool, looking at her hopefully.
Knowing that not going over would stir up more questions Beth grabbed her beer and headed to the waiting barstool, mouthing the word "tequila," to Lucy as she passed.

As Beth sat down, Jordan put his hand on her shoulder, and she froze. She could do this. It had been twenty some years for Christsake, she was totally over Jordan, honest. She sighed inwardly, she couldn't even convince herself right now never mind others. She took a calming breath, forcing her body to relax.

When Lucy approached with the tequila she shot a scathing look at Jordan over her sisters head before returning to her seat. Beth knocked the drink back, chasing it with a swig of beer. She could hear Jenny asking questions but had resolved to speak as little as possible. Jenny seemed to realise this quickly and began directing more of her questions directly at Beth, rather than leave them open to anyone.

Damn she was good.

Several minutes had passed when Jenny said "During that routine, when you got to the 'we met a lot of people' line Mouse and Nix each pulled a crazy people face as you did the 'and girls' line. Did you meet many crazy fans back in the day?"
It was Maria who answered this one saying "we can all go a bit crazy when we're in our teens, which most New Kids fans were then, but it was cool, and it was fun, even though some fans could be more..." She paused searching for the right word before finishing "exuberant in their adoration."
Nikki snorted, "like those girls in that mall in Houston."

Beth groaned inwardly. She remembered that incident, it had been during the No More Games part of the Tour. They'd had to hide out in the malls security office until Biscuit and Robbo had come to get them.

Jenny, on hearing Nikki's comment asked for more details about it. Nikki was all too keen to relay the story about how, while eating in the food court a fan at a nearby table had recognised them. She had approached and started chatting about the New Kids, asking questions, most of which the Blockade girls politely declined to answer.

Soon one fan became twenty. A voice in the crowd had asked Beth how she kept up with Jordan's dancing and Beth had explained how he had been the one to teach her to dance back in Boston, so she was used to it. The questioner had stated that they looked so sexy dancing together, when another harsher voice in the crowd shouted "I'll bet it's because she's fucking him."

The Blockade girls had been momentarily stunned into silence, the denial that rose on their lips drowned out by another shout from the same voice of "see, I told you, they're not even denying it." Knocked from her initial shock Beth started to deny the girls accusation but it was too late. The friendly, curious girls of a few minutes ago were replaced by jealous, hormone fuelled fans.
Beth and her friends had grabbed their bags and had left the food court but the fan pack followed them, catcalling and shouting out offensive names like slut and whore. As they passed through the mall the crowds catcalls drew the attention of other shoppers, including more fans. The pack behind them still shouting obscenities and calling out that "the bitch in the red shirt is fucking Jordan Knight" only serving to draw more fans to their group until it seemed that they were being followed by half the mall.

Fortunately a sharp eyed security guard watching the CCTV had spotted the incident, and Beth and the Blockade girls soon found themselves being whisked away to safety to await rescue. They had never ventured to the mall unescorted or undisguised again.