Settling back in the car, Jon turned to Amanda, concern on his face.
“You okay, baby?” His voice was as soft as his smile.
“I’m fine. I knew there would be questions and I’ve learned that I only have to answer the ones I want.” She took his hand in hers. “You don’t have to worry about me, Jon. I need to get used to this, right?”
He looked at her, seeing her calm acceptance of the reporters, their questions, and the cameras. He realized she was changing from someone who had never been in the spotlight to someone who was getting more comfortable being in one. He thought back to Dorothea’s attitude toward the press as something of a necessary evil and one she was determined to avoid at all costs. He wanted Amanda to be with him as Dorothea had never been and he was glad to see her new confidence.
Patricia was sitting quietly, a little shocked from the overwhelming flashes of the cameras they had just passed through. Richie turned to her.
“How about you? You okay?” His voice was soft and a warm grin accompanied it.
Taking a deep breath, Patricia answered with her own soft grin.
“Yeah…but wow…you guys do that all the time?”
The three laughed then at her obvious amazement. Richie’s deep chuckle brought her eyes swinging to his face.
“Well, considering that Jon and Amanda just gave them something newsworthy, I’d say that was a little more than usual.” He turned to Jon.
“How long do you think, man?”
The women were confused by that cryptic statement and turned toward Jon.
He gave a rueful laugh, shaking his head.
“Probably not more than fifteen minutes. Somebody has already called someone and it’ll hit the internet.”
Richie nodded in agreement.
“Yep, probably be out there before we hit the chopper.”
They made small talk during the rest of the drive. Jon would not have been surprised to learn that he was off his estimate by more than ten minutes.
~~~
“Hey sis! Whatcha doin’?”
“Hey yourself! Just sitting at the computer. What’s up, Jack?”
“Oh, not a whole lot. Just out on an assignment.”
Distractedly, typing on a forum as she talked, Janey murmured, “Uhm hmm…”
Jack continued.
“Yeah, so I’m in Philly tonight, covering a Soul event, and …” He paused, waiting for his words to sink in.
“Uhm hmm…Philly…Soul…WAIT! You’re at a Philly Soul event? Jack! Was he there? Did you get pictures?” Janey grasped the phone more firmly, her attention now solely on her brother’s voice.
“Did I get pictures of whom?” Jack teased, knowing his sister’s obsession with all things Bon Jovi.
“Yeah, the whole team was there. Who’s picture do you want?”
“JACK!” Janey screamed into the phone. “You know who I’m asking about! Was he there?”
Chuckling now, Jack held the phone a bit away from his ear at his sister’s last scream.
“Oh yeah, Jon and Richie were both here…and yes, before you ask again, I got pictures.”
“You’re the best, Jack! I get copies of the ones the magazine doesn’t want, right?” Janey’s voice was eager in anticipation. Her brother had always provided her with pictures for her private collection.
“I got him coming in and going out, so there’ll be plenty for you…” Jack left his sentence hanging and again adjusted the phone, knowing his sister well.
“How did they look, Jack? Oh god, Jon’s SO gorgeous and Richie…hmmm…Richie…” Janey’s voice also trailed off as her thoughts wandered.
“Janey! I do not want to know what you think about Richie! I’m your brother, for god’s sake!” His voice rose as he was only partially teasing.
“Sorry, Jack. So, what was going on tonight?”
“It was a pre-season appreciation dinner for the contributors to the Soul and…” Jack continued, as Janey’s attention again wandered to the forum where she answered a personal message from one of her friends.
“…and, of course, his fiancée looked gorgeous. She has probably the most beautiful hair I’ve ever seen and Jon’s announcement of their engagement will be in all the papers tomorrow…”
“Uhm hmm…hair…engagement…” Janey was nodding her head distractedly as she listened and typed and it was only when she realized she had typed the word ‘engagement’, did her thoughts return fully to her brother.
“Engagement? Who’s engaged? What are you talking about, Jack?” She frowned into the phone as she realized she had not really been listening.
“Will you STOP typing for a few minutes?! I’m trying to tell you that Jon Bon Jovi is engaged! Sheesh, Janey, why did I even bother to call you!?” Jack shook his head on his end of the phone, getting annoyed now.
“Jon’s…engaged? Is that what you said? JACK! Did you SAY that?” Janey gripped the phone, not quite ready to believe she had heard what she thought.
“Yes, you ditz! Jon’s engaged to that woman Amanda Matthews. Didn’t I just say that?” He grinned as he could picture his sister’s response.
“Oh my god! No way! Jack, come on, you’re kidding me, right? Because I wasn’t paying attention? Okay, I’m listening, I promise, but please don’t tease me about that, alright?” Janey apologized, hoping her brother was teasing her.
She heard laughter through the phone as Jack heard her almost pleading with him.
“Okay, sis, but I’m not teasing. He’s engaged and it’ll be in the papers tomorrow. Debra was in the ladies’ room and overheard Amanda talking to another woman and she asked Jon when he left a few minutes ago. He confirmed it.”
“Oh…my…god…Jack! Oh my god! You’re sure? You’re not kidding?” Janey’s voice was a whisper as she realized what her brother was saying.
“Nope, not kidding. You’ll see tomorrow.” Jack now started laughing outright as his sister continued to sputter into the phone.
“Jack, I gotta go! Holy hell…I gotta go…I gotta…”
Jack interrupted.
“Yeah, yeah, I know, you’ve gotta go tell your ‘sistas’. Geez, Janey, how old are you anyway?” He teased, knowing his sister belonged to several Jovi forums online. Her spreading the news wouldn’t hurt and in fact would probably increase the number of papers bought tomorrow.
“Thanks, Jack, really…thanks! And I still want pictures!” Janey was so anxious to get off the phone and back online she didn’t hear her brother’s good-bye as she snapped her cell phone shut.
Turning back to her computer, Janey pulled up both her Yahoo and MSN accounts and started typing.
~~~
In North Carolina, alicefaye4jon was working on her latest Jon Bon Jovi fan fiction when a message popped up on her Yahoo account.
FUR Lover: Alice! Just got off the phone with my brother. JON’S ENGAGED!!!!!!!
Looking at her message, Alice shot back a reply.
alicefaye4jon: What are you talking about? Engaged to who? Come on, Janey! Stop kidding around!
Janey laughed. She and Alice teased back and forth a lot. She was a die-hard Richie girl and Alice was, well, for Jon.
FUR Lover: Sorry girlfriend! Jack says Jon is engaged. Said it’ll be in the papers tomorrow and that Jon confirmed it! Thought he was yours, honey? ROFL!
alicefaye4jon: OMG!!!!!!! NO WAY!!!! Janey! He’s engaged? To that Amanda?
Janey wasn’t surprised that Alice knew Amanda’s name. In the Bon Jovi online community news traveled faster than even the speed of sound. “Jovi-news” was always spread through the forums and pictures and tidbits of information were dissected over and over again until every nuance had been explored.
FUR Lover: Oh yeah, to Amanda. Dorothea got married last week, remember? So they probably waited. But, yeah, he’s engaged!
Alice sat there for a moment as she digested this news. Almost everyone in the Jovi society truly had the best wishes of the band uppermost in their minds. Sure, they talked…about Jon’s ass, Richie’s Stetson and his rumored ‘gift’, Dave’s curls, Tico’s arms, Hugh’s niceness, and they loved the music, but even more so, they genuinely loved the guys. Most of them, while envying Dorothea being with Jon forever, were saddened when they heard about the divorce.
So, Alice, while wishing she could have Jon – and here she laughed to herself – doesn’t everyone? – was glad for him.
alicefaye4jon: Janey, I can’t believe it, but I do! Gotta go, chick!
Janey, interrupted in her other conversations, responded after a minute.
FUR Lover: LOL! Yeah, me too! Talk later chica!
On her end, Alice got busy typing.
~~~
alicefaye4jon: Opester! Girl! Where are ya?
Opester: What’s up babe?
alicefaye4jon: Got news for you girlfriend! You sitting down?
Opester: LOL! Duh, I’m at the computer!
alicefaye4jon: ROFL! Yeah, okay, well, hang on to your keyboard!
Opester: WHAT!!??
alicefaye4jon: Ya know that certain fantasy guy of yours? The one you wanna get in a sauna?
Opester: Yeah? What about him?
alicefaye4jon: He’s…
Opester: ALICE! What?!?!?!
alicefaye4jon: E N G A G E D !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Opester: No way! WHAT??? Are you kidding?
alicefaye4jon: Nope! NOT kidding. FUR Lover just IM’d me! Her brother’s a photog, remember?
Opester: Holy shit! Gotta go!
alicefaye4jon: LOL! Yeah, me too! Cya babe!
~~~
FUR Lover: Bay! Wake up!
bayaderra: Hey! Whatcha doin’?
FUR Lover: Waking you up! Got news!
bayaderra: Yeah? And…?
FUR Lover: Jon’s engaged! He’s freaking ENGAGED!
bayaderra: SHIT!!! NO WAY!!!
FUR Lover: LMAO! Oh yeah! WAY!
~~~
And so it went…
From FUR Lover to justme7800, to rutpop, to norwichliz, to JonButtLover.
Alice was also busy, reaching Shelly, heatherbonjovi, sunstreaked, willowll, and SamanthaC.
SamanthaC, the Fiction Mistress, reached The Goddess Hathor. They immediately updated their blogs and the news then spread to other countries.
It had spread as far as Australia within the next five minutes.
The Jovi women were nothing if not efficient.
“You okay, baby?” His voice was as soft as his smile.
“I’m fine. I knew there would be questions and I’ve learned that I only have to answer the ones I want.” She took his hand in hers. “You don’t have to worry about me, Jon. I need to get used to this, right?”
He looked at her, seeing her calm acceptance of the reporters, their questions, and the cameras. He realized she was changing from someone who had never been in the spotlight to someone who was getting more comfortable being in one. He thought back to Dorothea’s attitude toward the press as something of a necessary evil and one she was determined to avoid at all costs. He wanted Amanda to be with him as Dorothea had never been and he was glad to see her new confidence.
Patricia was sitting quietly, a little shocked from the overwhelming flashes of the cameras they had just passed through. Richie turned to her.
“How about you? You okay?” His voice was soft and a warm grin accompanied it.
Taking a deep breath, Patricia answered with her own soft grin.
“Yeah…but wow…you guys do that all the time?”
The three laughed then at her obvious amazement. Richie’s deep chuckle brought her eyes swinging to his face.
“Well, considering that Jon and Amanda just gave them something newsworthy, I’d say that was a little more than usual.” He turned to Jon.
“How long do you think, man?”
The women were confused by that cryptic statement and turned toward Jon.
He gave a rueful laugh, shaking his head.
“Probably not more than fifteen minutes. Somebody has already called someone and it’ll hit the internet.”
Richie nodded in agreement.
“Yep, probably be out there before we hit the chopper.”
They made small talk during the rest of the drive. Jon would not have been surprised to learn that he was off his estimate by more than ten minutes.
~~~
“Hey sis! Whatcha doin’?”
“Hey yourself! Just sitting at the computer. What’s up, Jack?”
“Oh, not a whole lot. Just out on an assignment.”
Distractedly, typing on a forum as she talked, Janey murmured, “Uhm hmm…”
Jack continued.
“Yeah, so I’m in Philly tonight, covering a Soul event, and …” He paused, waiting for his words to sink in.
“Uhm hmm…Philly…Soul…WAIT! You’re at a Philly Soul event? Jack! Was he there? Did you get pictures?” Janey grasped the phone more firmly, her attention now solely on her brother’s voice.
“Did I get pictures of whom?” Jack teased, knowing his sister’s obsession with all things Bon Jovi.
“Yeah, the whole team was there. Who’s picture do you want?”
“JACK!” Janey screamed into the phone. “You know who I’m asking about! Was he there?”
Chuckling now, Jack held the phone a bit away from his ear at his sister’s last scream.
“Oh yeah, Jon and Richie were both here…and yes, before you ask again, I got pictures.”
“You’re the best, Jack! I get copies of the ones the magazine doesn’t want, right?” Janey’s voice was eager in anticipation. Her brother had always provided her with pictures for her private collection.
“I got him coming in and going out, so there’ll be plenty for you…” Jack left his sentence hanging and again adjusted the phone, knowing his sister well.
“How did they look, Jack? Oh god, Jon’s SO gorgeous and Richie…hmmm…Richie…” Janey’s voice also trailed off as her thoughts wandered.
“Janey! I do not want to know what you think about Richie! I’m your brother, for god’s sake!” His voice rose as he was only partially teasing.
“Sorry, Jack. So, what was going on tonight?”
“It was a pre-season appreciation dinner for the contributors to the Soul and…” Jack continued, as Janey’s attention again wandered to the forum where she answered a personal message from one of her friends.
“…and, of course, his fiancée looked gorgeous. She has probably the most beautiful hair I’ve ever seen and Jon’s announcement of their engagement will be in all the papers tomorrow…”
“Uhm hmm…hair…engagement…” Janey was nodding her head distractedly as she listened and typed and it was only when she realized she had typed the word ‘engagement’, did her thoughts return fully to her brother.
“Engagement? Who’s engaged? What are you talking about, Jack?” She frowned into the phone as she realized she had not really been listening.
“Will you STOP typing for a few minutes?! I’m trying to tell you that Jon Bon Jovi is engaged! Sheesh, Janey, why did I even bother to call you!?” Jack shook his head on his end of the phone, getting annoyed now.
“Jon’s…engaged? Is that what you said? JACK! Did you SAY that?” Janey gripped the phone, not quite ready to believe she had heard what she thought.
“Yes, you ditz! Jon’s engaged to that woman Amanda Matthews. Didn’t I just say that?” He grinned as he could picture his sister’s response.
“Oh my god! No way! Jack, come on, you’re kidding me, right? Because I wasn’t paying attention? Okay, I’m listening, I promise, but please don’t tease me about that, alright?” Janey apologized, hoping her brother was teasing her.
She heard laughter through the phone as Jack heard her almost pleading with him.
“Okay, sis, but I’m not teasing. He’s engaged and it’ll be in the papers tomorrow. Debra was in the ladies’ room and overheard Amanda talking to another woman and she asked Jon when he left a few minutes ago. He confirmed it.”
“Oh…my…god…Jack! Oh my god! You’re sure? You’re not kidding?” Janey’s voice was a whisper as she realized what her brother was saying.
“Nope, not kidding. You’ll see tomorrow.” Jack now started laughing outright as his sister continued to sputter into the phone.
“Jack, I gotta go! Holy hell…I gotta go…I gotta…”
Jack interrupted.
“Yeah, yeah, I know, you’ve gotta go tell your ‘sistas’. Geez, Janey, how old are you anyway?” He teased, knowing his sister belonged to several Jovi forums online. Her spreading the news wouldn’t hurt and in fact would probably increase the number of papers bought tomorrow.
“Thanks, Jack, really…thanks! And I still want pictures!” Janey was so anxious to get off the phone and back online she didn’t hear her brother’s good-bye as she snapped her cell phone shut.
Turning back to her computer, Janey pulled up both her Yahoo and MSN accounts and started typing.
~~~
In North Carolina, alicefaye4jon was working on her latest Jon Bon Jovi fan fiction when a message popped up on her Yahoo account.
FUR Lover: Alice! Just got off the phone with my brother. JON’S ENGAGED!!!!!!!
Looking at her message, Alice shot back a reply.
alicefaye4jon: What are you talking about? Engaged to who? Come on, Janey! Stop kidding around!
Janey laughed. She and Alice teased back and forth a lot. She was a die-hard Richie girl and Alice was, well, for Jon.
FUR Lover: Sorry girlfriend! Jack says Jon is engaged. Said it’ll be in the papers tomorrow and that Jon confirmed it! Thought he was yours, honey? ROFL!
alicefaye4jon: OMG!!!!!!! NO WAY!!!! Janey! He’s engaged? To that Amanda?
Janey wasn’t surprised that Alice knew Amanda’s name. In the Bon Jovi online community news traveled faster than even the speed of sound. “Jovi-news” was always spread through the forums and pictures and tidbits of information were dissected over and over again until every nuance had been explored.
FUR Lover: Oh yeah, to Amanda. Dorothea got married last week, remember? So they probably waited. But, yeah, he’s engaged!
Alice sat there for a moment as she digested this news. Almost everyone in the Jovi society truly had the best wishes of the band uppermost in their minds. Sure, they talked…about Jon’s ass, Richie’s Stetson and his rumored ‘gift’, Dave’s curls, Tico’s arms, Hugh’s niceness, and they loved the music, but even more so, they genuinely loved the guys. Most of them, while envying Dorothea being with Jon forever, were saddened when they heard about the divorce.
So, Alice, while wishing she could have Jon – and here she laughed to herself – doesn’t everyone? – was glad for him.
alicefaye4jon: Janey, I can’t believe it, but I do! Gotta go, chick!
Janey, interrupted in her other conversations, responded after a minute.
FUR Lover: LOL! Yeah, me too! Talk later chica!
On her end, Alice got busy typing.
~~~
alicefaye4jon: Opester! Girl! Where are ya?
Opester: What’s up babe?
alicefaye4jon: Got news for you girlfriend! You sitting down?
Opester: LOL! Duh, I’m at the computer!
alicefaye4jon: ROFL! Yeah, okay, well, hang on to your keyboard!
Opester: WHAT!!??
alicefaye4jon: Ya know that certain fantasy guy of yours? The one you wanna get in a sauna?
Opester: Yeah? What about him?
alicefaye4jon: He’s…
Opester: ALICE! What?!?!?!
alicefaye4jon: E N G A G E D !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Opester: No way! WHAT??? Are you kidding?
alicefaye4jon: Nope! NOT kidding. FUR Lover just IM’d me! Her brother’s a photog, remember?
Opester: Holy shit! Gotta go!
alicefaye4jon: LOL! Yeah, me too! Cya babe!
~~~
FUR Lover: Bay! Wake up!
bayaderra: Hey! Whatcha doin’?
FUR Lover: Waking you up! Got news!
bayaderra: Yeah? And…?
FUR Lover: Jon’s engaged! He’s freaking ENGAGED!
bayaderra: SHIT!!! NO WAY!!!
FUR Lover: LMAO! Oh yeah! WAY!
~~~
And so it went…
From FUR Lover to justme7800, to rutpop, to norwichliz, to JonButtLover.
Alice was also busy, reaching Shelly, heatherbonjovi, sunstreaked, willowll, and SamanthaC.
SamanthaC, the Fiction Mistress, reached The Goddess Hathor. They immediately updated their blogs and the news then spread to other countries.
It had spread as far as Australia within the next five minutes.
The Jovi women were nothing if not efficient.
bayaderra checking in....
Any more news?
ROFLMAO!
Thanks Sun!
Loved it!
Now, this is just childish. I'm done.
Okay=that had me laughing! I've been stressed at a bad workshop all day and this relieved the tension in one long giggle!!
Thanks, girl!
Linda
First off to Anonymous - C Ya dont let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya!!!!
This chapter was funny had me laughing but oh so true about jovi telephone game happens. Hey and thanks for including me, go a kick out of seeing my name. :)
Chris
rutpop
Efficient ... right, that's what we call it. Efficient. I likey!
Way to go, Sun! Thanks for including us! How true about the way the news spreads like wildfire! Love it when we all get our fifteen minutes, LOL!
That was way too much fun!!