Just one word from your mouth was all I needed to be certain
Once upon a time there was a boy and there was a girl
Hearts that intertwined, they lived in a different kind of world
Forbidden love
~Forbidden Love by Madonna
“So where are you from Leslie?” Leighanne asked, taking a bite of her salad. She looked at Leslie expectantly.
Nick sat with his arm draped over the back of Leslie’s chair, leaned forward, creating a comfortable nook for Leslie to lean into. Brian sat next to Leighanne, looking across the dim lit table at Leslie, noticing how comfortable she seemed to be so close to Nick, noticing how perfect they seemed to fit with one another. He felt the need to mimic Nick’s actions, as if to prove that he and Leigh were just as fit for one another, that they were just as comfortable. He felt ridiculous for thinking this, but failed at stopping these thoughts from clouding his brain all the same. Instead, he instinctively grabbed Leighanne’s hand and held it softly, intertwining his fingers with hers.
“Denver, originally,” Leslie responded.
Leighanne looked surprised, “Really?”
Leslie laughed lightly, “I don’t know what it is, but I get that reaction a lot. I actually moved out here after I graduated high school to pursue dancing.”
“That couldn’t have been an easy decision. What made you decide you wanted to dance for a living?” Leighanne asked.
Brian knew neither Leslie nor Nick could sense it, but he could hear the slight tinge of superiority in Leighanne's tone, as if dancing wasn’t up to par to her standards, which was completely unlike Leighanne, especially since she herself was a struggling actress.
Leslie shrugged, “There wasn’t one particular instant that caused the heavens to open up and shower realization down upon me or anything. I’ve just loved dancing since I was a little girl. My mom put me in dance classes when I was old enough to and it became sort of an addiction. I knew living in Colorado would hinder me from what I wanted to do, so I moved out here to LA. My family has always been very supportive of me and my dreams, which kind of made it easier along the way.”
“And dancing’s going well?” Leighanne asked.
Leslie nodded, smiling widely, “Very much so. I just got done doing Britney Spears’ tour this past Saturday.”
“No kidding, Britney Spears huh?” Leighanne asked, laughing lightly.
“I know right? She’s actually not that bad of a person, just a little loopy. And she doesn’t seem to have a real strong grasp on the concept of showing up on time.”
“I hear that,” Nick said. “The bitch kept me waiting for over an hour one time.”
Brian raised his eyebrow, “Kept you waiting for what?”
Leslie turned to Nick, just as intrigued, “Yeah, kept you waiting for what?”
Nick blushed slightly, “We went out on a date once.”
Leslie laughed, “No way!”
Brian suddenly remembered this occurrence and laughed, “I remember now. Back when we were all new to the industry right? You were really into her. Man, that’s really weird looking back on that.”
Nick nodded, fully agreeing, “It was stupid.”
Leslie elbowed Nick playfully in the stomach, smiling at him slyly, “I want to hear more. What happened?”
Nick looked over at Leslie, “What could have happened?”
“Come on, there has to be something juicy,” Leslie pushed.
Nick shook his head, “Nothing, I swear. Like I said, she kept me waiting for over an hour.”
“So?” Leighanne and Leslie asked simultaneously.
“So, Nick Carter waits for nobody,” Nick stated.
Everyone laughed and Leslie made a silent vomiting gesture, “Gross Nick, please don’t ever refer to yourself in the third person again. It’s unbecoming.”
Nick laughed, squeezing Leslie to him close. He kissed her lightly on the lips, “Whatever you say dear.”
Leslie stuck her tongue out at Nick and turned back to Leighanne, rolling her eyes at Nick’s antics, “Anyway, what was I saying? Oh yeah, so these two boys here were nice enough to give me my next job.”
Leighanne smiled over at Brian, as if he personally had some say in Leslie’s employment, “That’s great. I’m glad you’re doing well for yourself.”
“Thank you,” Leslie said.
Brian couldn’t help but speak up, “She’s amazing actually.”
Leighanne raised her eyebrow, “Oh?”
Brian nodded, “Really amazing. Nick invited me to come along the other day to see her in action. She definitely knows what she’s doing,” Brian said, looking over at Leslie. “To be honest, I thought Nick was exaggerating, but you’re definitely the real deal Leslie. You have a real talent and you’re passionate about it. It’s nice to see that nowadays, especially in the entertainment industry.”
Brian noticed Leslie’s eyes brighten up as he finished and he felt satisfaction settle within him. Leslie was flattered that Brian had thought that much of her, but Leighanne was actually a little put off by it. She normally wouldn’t have been, but over the course of the evening he had continually showered Leslie with compliments, from how nice she looked, to praising her love for certain movies and musical artists, and most of all, her love for basketball. Over the few years they had been together, Leighanne had never seen Brian take to someone new so quickly. He had always shown nothing but civility, kindness, and respect to new people, but he had never been this attentive, except when it was her.
But to top it all off, Brian hadn’t informed her he and Leslie had already met. He had only told her that Nick had a new girlfriend and that they were all going out to dinner. She didn’t know why this bothered her so much, but at that moment it seemed to be significant, especially since this was the first time in a long time that she had seen Brian so lively.
“Thank you Brian, I appreciate that,” Leslie said.
Leighanne looked at Leslie and then to Brian, who was smiling sincerely at Leslie. The waiter then interrupted the conversation to place their main entrees in front of them. Leighanne took this opportunity to lean in and whisper to Brian, “You didn’t tell me you had already met her.”
Brian looked over at her, immediately recognizing her tone. He took the linen napkin off the table and proceeded to put it in his lap. He whispered back to her, “I didn’t think it was a big deal.”
And she knew it wasn’t. She felt stupid for even bringing it up, but she had never been one to bottle up her feelings. This time was certainly no different. She knew what she was thinking was irrational, but Brian, unknowingly, had made her feel insecure through his interactions with Leslie. She hadn’t felt like this since the beginning of their relationship when she was still unsure of his feelings for her, still unsure if he was in it for the long haul or if she was only a fling.
Brian saw how her demeanor turned a bit sullen and wondered why she had picked such an insignificant thing to gripe him about. He felt bad nonetheless and leaned in, kissing her on the cheek, “I’m sorry, if that’s any consolation.”
She shook her head, seeing the sincerity in his eyes, “No, you’re right Brian, it’s not a big deal. Forget I said anything.”
She lightly smiled at him to let him know that she was fine and she was dropping the conversation. Brian was content with this and turned to his food, thanking the waiter before he scampered off.
Leslie had noticed Brian and Leighanne’s whispers and saw the sudden tenseness in it. She didn’t know what had caused this, but she felt the need to alleviate it, “So Leighanne, how’s the wedding planning going?”
Leighanne perked up immediately, “Extremely well. I know we’re not getting married until next summer but I’m trying to get a jump start on everything before it really gets too hectic.”
“You mean it gets worse?” Brian joked.
Nick let out a loud laugh, which in turn made everyone else laugh, and made several heads turn at other tables. Leighanne looked over at Brian, smacking his arm lightly.
He laughed, putting his hands up in surrender, “I’m just kiddin’ sweetheart.”
“You better be,” she said, taking a bite of her filet mignon.
Brian raised her hand and kissed it lightly. Leslie couldn’t help but smile at the two sitting across from her. It was clear that the feelings they had for one another were genuine. It was in the way Brian gently touched her, in the way Leighanne looked at Brian, the way that even their words held an underlying love and affection to them. She envied them, but most of all, she envied Leighanne for the simple fact that it was Brian that was so madly in love with her. It was Brian that she got to go home to every night. It was Brian, period. This simple fact made Leslie incredibly angry with herself. It was this simple fact that would later keep her up that night.
“Babe, do you like it?” Nick snapped her out of her thoughts.
She tore her eyes away from the two and looked over at Nick, guilt once again tugging at her heart, “Hmm?”
He motioned towards her plate, “Do you like it?”
“Oh! It’s wonderful, thank you,” Leslie smiled.
He couldn’t help but smile back at her. He watched as she sipped her champagne and noticed how supple her lips looked in the dim dining room light. He noticed how her skin glowed in the candlelight and how her eyes seemed to sparkle every time she spoke. As a result, he noticed the strong feelings he had brewing inside of him. He had kept telling himself that these feelings couldn’t be progressing this far this quick, but the honest truth was that he had never felt so comfortable before with a woman in his life. He had only known her for a short time, but it had felt like years. She treated him like he needed to be treated; with affection, with respect, with a constant caring heart. He had watched Leighanne and Brian’s interactions and therefore watched Leslie’s reactions, noticing a subtle longing in her face. He thought that the longing she must be feeling was the type of loving relationship that was presented before her and he wanted more than anything to give her that same love. He wanted to make her happy.
“So how did you two meet?” Leighanne asked, addressing both Leslie and Nick.
Leslie looked over at Nick and smiled, “At tryouts for their upcoming tour.”
Nick nodded, “I saw her and couldn’t contain myself. Just one look at her and I was transfixed, and then she danced and I nearly melted in my chair.”
“Oh stop it Nicky,” Leslie said, blushing slightly.
Brian could only look at Leslie as Nick spoke, and he smiled to himself as he saw her blush. He couldn’t stop noticing just how beautiful she was. Whenever she smiled, whenever she laughed, whenever she looked at him, he felt his insides squirm. He, like Nick, felt like melting in his chair.
“I’m serious. I saw you and I wanted you, just for myself,” he said a bit softly.
Leslie looked at him with such affection in her eyes, reaching for his hand, squeezing it gently. Nick turned back to Leighanne, “So after the day was done, I pulled her off to the side, put on my Carter charm, and asked her to dinner. And that’s that.”
Leslie nodded triumphantly, “That is that. You snagged me. I have to say if wasn’t that hard though, you were looking mighty fine that day.”
“What about now?” Nick grinned, raising his eyebrow.
“You look even more gorgeous today love,” Leslie said.
Brian’s heart skipped a beat when she said the word ‘love’. The way she said it made him tinge with jealousy. It was ridiculous, but at that moment he wanted her to call him that. She was so nonchalant about it but yet so sincere and Brian longed for it. He didn’t think that even if Leighanne had called him ‘love’ that she could pull off what Leslie just did and it made him suddenly terribly sad.
“You two are adorable. I have to say I approve,” Leighanne said.
Nick grinned, “My life is complete. I finally have approval from Miss Leighanne Wallace. Glory hallelujah and praise be to Jesus!”
The table then laughed and proceeded to eat their dinners. Small talk commenced, laughter rang through the air, and good feelings spread through them all. They all enjoyed each other’s company, but where Nick and Leighanne only thought it would be a night of friendship, both Leslie and Brian were beginning to form stronger unexplained feelings for one another. Feelings unknown to all those around them. It was a night of growing friendships, but also a night of secret internal battles.
Nonetheless, the rest of the night went off without a hitch. Of course, the evening would have gone much differently if everyone had the capability of hearing everyone else’s thoughts. Thoughts of confusion, of insecurity, of longing, of love, of wanting, of lust, of guilt. They were mostly unwanted thoughts, sinful thoughts, and none of them could be controlled.
