The legal stuff: This is a sexually explicit story (at times) involving homosexuality. By continuing to read, you affirm under penalties of perjury that you are not a minor or in the company of a minor and are entitled to have access to sexually explicit material. The content and opinions expressed in this story do not imply anything with regard to the sexual preference of any member of 98 Degrees or other celebrities named herein. This is a work of fiction entirely.
Dizzy
Andrew was walking down the sidewalk when he heard someone yelling his name. Turning around he saw Heather standing at the entrance of the hotel waving her arms and screaming his name. He sighed heavily, rolled his eyes, and reluctantly made his way back to the hotel. When he got to the door of the hotel, Heather's face was completely red, both from the cold and from yelling. Heather opened her mouth to say something but Andrew stopped her before she could even start.
"If you are about to say that I need to stay and work because some idiot doesn't plan on comin' in to work today when I need to go home and study, someone will be gettin' fired." He said angrily.
"I'm sorry but Alicia and Paul both called and said they can't get here cause of the snow and that means there will be only one waiter on duty tonight."
"Wait a minute. Why did I only schedule three people to work tonight?"
"Andrew, are you serious? It's December 23rd, two days before Christmas. Mostly everyone is on vacation."
"Can you call Abbey? I can't work. I have to go home and study for my exam."
"Uh Andrew, you've been out of school for two weeks now. You finished all your finals and you're on Christmas break. So don't even think that "I got exams to study for" is going to get you out of working."
Andrew looked at her confused for a moment. Then he remembered he didn't have classes until January 8th. He sighed once again.
"Fine but you call Alicia and Paul and you tell them they are fired. I'm tired of bein' dragged in every time someone decides they don't want to work." He was practically yelling at Heather. He stormed into the hotel and made his way to the restaurant. Heather looked worried. She had never seen him act like this before. She'd have to remember to make sure he was ok. She went back inside and went back to work.
Two hours later, approximately around 3:00, there was no one in the restaurant except Andrew, one chef, a bartender, and the other server who had come in to work today. Andrew was sitting at one of the tables, going over schedules for the next two weeks for his waiters and hosts. Jaime, the waitress that decided to come in today, sat down across from Andrew without saying a word. Andrew looked up annoyingly at Jaime.
"Can I help you with somethin'?"
"Well, we have a slight problem."
"What could it possibly be now?"
"Well Mr. Williams, it's almost time for me to go home. I get off at 4:00."
"Ok and this is a problem because?"
"Well, I was just checking to make sure that I was still going to be able to leave at 4:00."
"Jaime, is there a particular reason why you think you won't be goin' home at 4:00?"
"Well, it's just that with Alicia and Paul not coming in I wasn't sure if you were making me stay because when I leave you'll be by yourself for the rest of the night."
"Jaime, did I ask you stay late?"
"No."
"Did you volunteer to stay late?"
"No."
"Ok well then what gives you the idea that I'm making you stay late?"
"Well it's just that this last week or so you've fired four servers and today you fired Alicia and Paul for not coming in and I just didn't want to make you upset."
"Jaime, may I remind you that I am the co-manager of this restaurant and I have worked here on the floor waitin' on all twenty tables by myself with no complaints whatsoever. And may I also remind you that I can also run the bar while waitin' on all twenty tables by myself with no help. So if I did not ask you to stay and you do not want to stay then don't worry about pissin' me off or not. As long as you come in when you are supposed to and don't do anythin' to fuck up then you won't get fired unlike Alicia and Paul who can't come to work when there is only two inches of snow on the ground!" The bartender and the chef who overheard Andrew yelling at Jaime stopped what they were doing and came over to where he sat. Andrew stood up grabbed his papers and walked over to the bar to put them up. Andrew saw how all three of them were staring at him weirdly. Andrew took a deep breath and shook his head.
"Jaime, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you. I've just had a rough two weeks."
Jaime nodded and smiled and said her good bye as it was now 4:00 in the afternoon. As Jaime walked out, Heather walked in.
"Andrew, I've got great news. The owner just got off the phone with our VIPs said they absolutely loved you and Abbey today and told her that anytime they were in Boston they would definitely be staying with us as long as you and Abbey were here. They also would like to come down for dinner sometime after 5 if possible."
"Yeah that's great. Call upstairs and tell them that I'll have everythin' ready for them to come down by 5:30."
"Ok great! Do me a favor and try not to overdo it tonight. I know you are working by yourself and it is a Saturday night. Do you want me to stay and help or I can even call Abbey to come in."
"No Heather, its ok. I promise I won't overdo it and don't worry I have everything under control. I mean how busy could it possibly be? It is a Saturday night and it's snowin' outside. I doubt I'll even get full once."
At 5:30, Andrew was ready to take back everything he said to Heather earlier. Of the twenty tables in the restaurant and the ten seats at the bar, seventeen tables were full, the bar was slammed, and there was a long wait list for a table. The other three tables had been curtained off for the boybands. Normally the restaurant closed at midnight on Fridays and Saturdays and eleven every other day. However, anytime there was a wait list, the restaurant was not allowed to close until everyone on the wait list was served. Looking at the list, Andrew knew he would be here at least until two in the morning just because it took an hour to clean after all the customers left. It was about twenty minutes till six and still no sign of the groups. Not that he cared if they were late; he still had seventeen other full tables to worry about. While Andrew was at the bar, picking up drinks that Steven, the bartender who volunteered to stay and help once it got busy, made for his tables, a bellhop came over to him.
"Mr. Williams? Mr. Lachey wanted me to find out if everything was ready for them to come down." The bellhop said tentatively not wanting to piss off Andrew.
"Yes it is. Tell them our restaurant is rather crowded tonight but they shouldn't be bothered by too many people comin' in. Also, tell them that their tables are the same as the ones they had for lunch and as soon as they arrive they can make their way back there." Andrew replied with a sigh.
The bellhop left the restaurant area while Andrew went back to work. He was running around from table to table, to the bar, and to the kitchen without stumbling or making a mistake on any order. He quickly lost track of time and completely forgot the bands were coming down until he heard some excited chatter. When the bands walked into the restaurant, several of the customers went to them asking for autographs. Andrew walked over to them as they finished giving out autographs.
"Guys, I am so sorry. I asked the bellhop to tell you we were crowded tonight."
The guys started laughing. Nick placed his arm on Andrew's shoulder. "Don't worry about it. It's ok. We don't mind signing a few autographs. But right now, we are hungry. We have a show in about two hours so we need to get some dinner in."
"Well, if you want to go sit down in your area, I'll be back there in a minute or two to get ya'lls drink orders."
Nick and the rest of the guys made their way back to the curtained area while Andrew made a quick trip around the restaurant making sure all the customers had what they needed before he went back to get started on the group. While he was running around the restaurant, Nick was getting antsy and wondering why Andrew hadn't come to get their drink order yet. Vanessa, who was talking to Drew, saw Nick looking around.
"What's wrong honey?" she said touching Nick's arm.
"Nothing, I was just wondering where Andrew is at. He said he would be back here in a minute. I'm hungry and we have a show in two hours."
"I'm sure he's got a good reason for not coming right away. Just give him another minute." Vanessa looked across the table to Drew and started talking to him again.
Nick stood up and opened the curtains to see if he could spot Andrew. Nick turned around and motioned for Justin to come stand next to him. "Hey Justin, come here."
Justin stood up and walked over to Nick. "What?"
Nick parted the curtains again and stuck his head out to look at the rest of the restaurant. "Look at this and tell me what you see."
Justin stuck his bleach blonde head out and joined Nick in looking around the restaurant. "Well I see a crowded restaurant without a single available table. Damn, check out that fine ass blonde over there by the door. She's got the biggest...ow!" Justin stopped talking when he felt someone slap him on his butt. He turned his head and saw Vanessa looking at him with a glare on her face. "Please don't even finish that sentence if you value your manhood."
Justin smirked and quickly turned his head back around to continue looking out the curtains. Drew and Jeff were sitting at the table laughing at Vanessa's threat to Justin when they heard Justin exclaim "Ah ha!"
"What?" Drew, Jeff, and Vanessa all said in unison.
"Now I see why it's taking him so long to get back here. It looks like he's the only waiter working."
Drew got up and went over to Justin and Nick. "No way, let me see."
They parted and allowed Drew to step in between them. He looked around and sure enough, the only waiter he saw working was Andrew. They saw him making his way back to them. "Shit! He's coming, let's sit down." Drew, Justin, and Nick rushed back to their seats. Just as they sat down, Andrew walked through the curtains and up to the table.
"Sorry about that ya'll. I got a little sidetracked with another table. Has everyone decided on their drinks? And if you already know what you want to eat, I'll go on ahead and jot that down as well and get it started so you can get to your show on time."
He went around to each person, starting at the N*Sync end of the table. When he got down to the members of 98 Degrees and Vanessa, Nick stopped him.
"Are you the only waiter on duty tonight?"
Andrew looked at him and grinned. "It's nothin' I can't handle. Do you know what you want or do I need to come back?"
Nick nodded and told him his order, as did the rest of his group. When Andrew had all their orders, he left them and made his way back to the kitchen to get what they wanted. While waiting on their drinks, he cashed out three tables, bused them, and sat down the next three on the waiting list. Nick and Justin were watching him work from the curtained area.
"Wow, look at how fast he works. He definitely seems like he has everything under control. I guess that shouldn't be a surprise though. The owner said that he was the front of house manager. I can see why." Justin stated as Andrew was jotting down an order at a table. They watched as he walked up to the bar and got a rolling tray covered with drinks. They saw he was making his way back to them and they went back to their seats.
Suddenly, they heard several glasses breaking and several woman scream. They could hear excited chatter coming from the rest of the restaurant. The big group got up and all walked out of the curtain area to see what was going on. Vanessa gasped as they saw Andrew lying on the ground and the rolling drink tray overturned. Several people had circled him and they saw someone run out of the restaurant towards the front desk of the hotel.
Vanessa ran over to wear Andrew was lying, followed by Nick and Drew. As they kneeled over Andrew, he started to come to. His eyes opened slowly, looking into the worried faces of Vanessa and Drew. Nick was standing above them, keeping people from overcrowding them. Andrew tried to sit up but Drew held him down.
"Just lay here until the paramedics arrive just to make sure you don't have a concussion." Drew said.
Andrew sighed heavily and stopped fighting to sit up. Vanessa cradled his head in her lap as Andrew asked what happened.
Drew looked over Andrew, checking his pulse and his head to make sure he was ok. "I used to work as an EMT so I'm just going to check your pulse." He held up three fingers in front of Andrew's face. "How many fingers do you see?"
Andrew studied the three fingers carefully. "Umm, I see 5 fingers." Drew's eyes opened widely and Andrew started laughing. Drew laughed and knew that Andrew was ok. "So, not only you are a good singer and an awesome dancer, you're an EMT. Is there anythin' you haven't done?"
Drew laughed. "Well, I haven't taken a dive at work and knocked myself out yet but you seem to be pretty good at that."
"Ha ha." Andrew said sarcastically. "You know, I wouldn't figure you for being sarcastic. It's not attractive you know?" Andrew stopped talking as he said that.
"Oh my god I cannot believe I just said that out loud." Andrew thought to himself. "At least he didn't hear me. He is still workin' away. Thank god for small favors...although I would be more thankful if he would've kept me from ending up on the damn floor."
Drew may not have heard what Andrew said, but Vanessa did without Andrew realizing it. Minutes later, Heather and Abbey forced their way through the crowd. Recognizing who they were, Nick let them by and they kneeled by Andrew on the ground.
"Andrew, what the hell have you done to yourself now?" Heather asked worryingly.
"Andrew, I told you that one day you're drinking will catch up to you." Abbey said jokingly.
Hearing Abbey, Nick turned around and looked at Andrew suspiciously. Vanessa and Drew also looked at him with their mouths open. "You passed out at work because you were drinking?" Drew asked surprisingly. "That explains a lot."
Andrew looked at them and rolled his eyes angrily. "No! Abbey is just attemptin' to be funny. If anyone drinks while they are at work, it'd be Heather."
Heather looked shocked and was about to say something when the paramedics along with the owner arrived. Apparently, the employee on the desk tonight called more than just Heather and Abbey. As the paramedics began looking over Andrew, he could hear the owner trying to salvage what was left of the night. She was offering free meals to the customers still in the restaurant, had Abbey and Heather take over for the rest of the night, and talked with Nick to make sure that the hotel was still in good standing with the bands. Drew and Vanessa were still sitting with Andrew as the paramedics were asking him various questions for a routine check up. Drew was talking to them about what he checked out while waiting for them to arrive. The owner of the hotel and restaurant, Alexandra Darling, walked over to where Andrew was being examined.
"What happened Andrew?"
"I don't know. I was pushin' the drink tray back to where bands were seated, when I suddenly felt dizzy. I lost my balance, and fell. That's all I remember."
Ms. Darling nodded understandingly and looked at the paramedic who was examining Andrew.
"He seems to be doing ok, just a minor spell from overexerting himself. He didn't suffer any concussions so; he doesn't have to go to the hospital. Just try not to overdo it anymore." The paramedic said as he began packing up his stuff and was getting ready to leave.
Ms. Darling looked sternly over to Andrew. "You need to take a couple of days off. I've looked at your time card and this is the third Saturday this month that you were the only one working. Why is that?"
"Some of my servers don't feel like comin' in on weekends, so when they started missin' Saturdays I didn't have anyone else to work so I worked alone."
"And what about the servers that aren't showing up for work?"
"I told them not to come back. We've been advertisin' for new server positions but we haven't had any luck findin' people that don't miss shifts. My only option was to work alone."
"Well, it looks like you need to stop. It's not healthy. Abbey is going to get me a phone list of all the restaurant employees. I'm holding a meeting tomorrow and you are going to stay home and actually take a day off. Now, go home. Abbey and Heather are going to finish up for the night."
"Ms. Darling, I will but I want to make sure that the bands are taken care of. I promise I will only wait on them and then when they leave for their show, I'll go straight home. They at least deserve some special attention after this."
Ms. Darling smiled at Andrew and nodded. "You are one determined young man. Ok, you can work their tables but no one else's. They leave and you go straight home and get some rest. Have a good Christmas and I don't want to see you in here until Tuesday."
"Ms. Darling, I'm workin' on Monday."
"Not anymore you're not. I've asked Heather to take over."
"But Ms. Darling, she has her family to spend the day with. Abbey does too, that's why I always work. I don't fly home for Christmas, it's too much trouble. I'll take all day tomorrow off and I can work Monday. It's Christmas and I'll only be serving the guests that are stayin' in the hotel. I won't be busy."
"Alright, I'm not going to argue with you because I'm sure these guys are hungry and would like to eat before their concert. So get to work." Ms. Darling said as she left Andrew.
Vanessa and Drew stepped over. Standing behind them, were Nick, Justin, and Jeff and the members of N*Sync and their two guests. Vanessa put her hand on Andrew's shoulder. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm better and thank you for stayin' with me until the paramedics came. But now, I'm sure you guys are hungry and you only have about forty-five minutes until you need to leave. So, let's get you some food." Andrew said as he hopped up and made his way over to their tables. He quickly jotted down their orders and made his way to the kitchen.
The rest of the night went over smoothly. The bands left right on time and Andrew reluctantly decided to go home for the night. Leaving the restaurant, Andrew was walking down the sidewalk when he heard someone call his name. He looked across the street and saw Vanessa. She was standing outside of a car, presumably a rental. She ran across the street to Andrew.
"Hey what are you doing?" Vanessa asked trying to catch her breath.
"I'm goin' to go home and get some sleep I guess, since that's what I've been told I need."
"Well, Nick and I couldn't help but overhear that you have been working too much and your friend Abbey told us that she heard from the bartender that after we left for lunch, you were on the phone trying to get tickets to the show. I think you were quoted as saying, "you desperately need these tickets because your all time favorite band was playing and you had been working so much you forgot to buy tickets ahead of time."
"Yeah well I think I'll have to kill Abbey the next time I see her." Andrew said laughing.
"Well, Nick had the idea that you should come to the concert. You can chill backstage with me, Jessica, and Reichen. It'll be fun and it sounds like you deserve it."
"I...I don't know. I mean..."
"I said yes! So let's go." Vanessa grabbed Andrew's hand and dragged him to the car. She got in the driver's seat and he got in the passenger seat.
"It took you long enough Vanessa. We were debating on leaving you here." Said a voice from the backseat. Andrew looked in the back and saw Jessica and Reichen sitting in the backseat. They said hi and Vanessa tapped Andrew on the shoulder.
"Ok, so how do I get to your place from here?"
Andrew looked at Vanessa confusingly. "What?"
"Well, you want to get ready don't you but we have to hurry. The concert starts in like half an hour."
"Um...ok." Andrew said Vanessa started driving toward his apartment.