Disclaimer: I do not own JONAS or Mary Poppins.
A/N: So faerietaleredux jokingly suggested I write a Joe/Macy to round out my Macy romances, and at first I had no ideas. But then today I got caught in a torrential downpour in New York City and as I sat freezing and soaking wet in a restaurant, this came to me. It is weird, and they aren't really in character. Hopefully you'll forgive me for that. If you would like to read a fabulously in-character Macy, try Elephant by JD Phoenix. For a much better Mary Poppins JONAS try Misadventures in Babysitting by faerietaleredux.
Dedication: To faerietaleredux, who wrote me a lovely Mary Poppins JONAS because we both saw it on Broadway. Here is one in return. Sort of.
Joe had no idea how he had ended up sitting in the dark next to Macy Misa listening to some women sing about a spoon full of sugar. This was so not what he had in mind for his afternoon off when Stella asked if she could bring her friend along on JONAS' promotional trip to New York City.
What he had wanted to do was go clothes shopping with Stella. Or by himself if it came to that. But Macy had always wanted to see a Broadway show, and according to his mom there was no way that the girl could see her first musical alone. His mother had made some speech about 'sharing the magic' that he hadn't paid any attention to because it obviously wasn't going to impact him.
Boy was he wrong.
"Poor Nick", the one who would have normally been the biggest pushover, had a head cold and had to rest for their interview later that night. And Kevin had promised to take Frankie to the Natural History Museum to see the dinosaurs, which just left Joe and Stella. He had thought it was obvious which of them should go; the girl wasn't his best friend after all, but Stella had played the 'work' card. Apparently when she went shopping it was research, but when he went shopping it was leisure. And in the Lucas household, worked trumped play.
So Joe had been forced to trade sunglasses and skinny jeans for flying nannies and tap dancing chimney sweeps. He was hoping that Macy hadn't heard him gasp when Bert started walking up the side of the stage because he really didn't want anyone to know that he was actually enjoying himself. The staging was pretty cool, and the singers were really good. But he had put up such a fuss about going that he couldn't tell that to anyone in his family without being teased anytime anyone used an umbrella for the next decade.
After Macy had had her typical fan girl fit over going to the theater with a 'member of JONAS', Joe had made her promise that they could leave during the final number to reduce the risk of him being recognized. As the two snuck into the empty lobby, Macy smiled at him, eyes glowing with excitement. "Thank you so much for going with me Joe! It was amazing."
Faced with her overwhelming enthusiasm, Joe couldn't help but give her a small smile in return. "You're welcome. I'm glad you liked it."
"Do you think it would be okay if I bought a CD before we left? Do I have enough time?"
Glancing down at his watch, he nodded. "Sure. Just hurry."
Macy scurried over to the concession stand as Joe drifted towards the front door, anxious to leave. Glancing outside he swore, "Damn!"
When he and Macy had entered the theater, the sun had been shinning overhead, but sometime in the past two hours, clouds had gathered and the skies had opened. It wasn't just raining – it was pouring. Reaching into his back pocket, he pulled out his cell phone and began to search for the number he wanted.
"What are you doing?" Macy asked, clutching a plastic bag to her chest.
"Calling for a car."
"Why? The hotel is only a few blocks away."
Joe looked at her like she was crazy. "It's pouring!"
"Oh, I'm sorry Princess. I didn't know you melted," Macy teased. "It's just a little water, Joe. It won't hurt anything."
"Yes it will. These shoes are Italian leather. Plus, do you know how long it took to get my hair to look like this?"
Macy giggled, "Forty-seven minutes."
"You counted?" he asked incredulously.
She nodded, "For my JONAS fansite."
"Macy, you had better be kidding."
"Why?" She asked innocently. "I think that your fans would find that fascinating."
He never did find out if she was joking or not because all of a sudden, they heard the sound of clapping from the other side of the wooden doors. Macy smiled at Joe, "I think we'd better make a run for it. The car will never get here in time to protect you from the fans inside."
Joe grimaced, realizing she was right. He stood frozen, wondering which was the lesser of two evils – being mobbed or being soaked. And then Macy was taking his hand and pulling him out the front door.
"Come on, Joe. It'll be fun."
And it was. She pulled him along, giggling and splashing in the puddles as they went. They raced from awning to awning, their hair plastered to their heads and their clothes dripping. They would stop under each cover for a moment before tearing down the sidewalk towards the next shelter. Joe had never seen it rain so hard before, and there was something exhilarating about running past all the people huddled in doorways trying vainly to stay dry.
They finally reached their hotel, soaking wet and breathless from laughter, heading immediately into an empty elevator. Joe leaned against the wall and looked at Macy. Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes were shinning, and her wet clothes were clinging to her in a way that made him feel warm despite his cold, clammy jeans.
"Thank you again for today. I know you didn't really want to go."
Joe considered playing it cool, but something about their recent jaunt in the rain made that seem dishonest. "I actually had a really good time."
"Really?"
He nodded.
"Don't worry I won't tell anyone," she replied with a blush before looking down at the floor.
Joe noticed that she refused to look at him for the rest of the elevator ride, which confused him. Even when they got off on their floor, she kept her eyes firmly on the ground. He finally put a hand on her arm to stop her and asked, "Hey, Mace, is something wrong?"
"No," she squeaked unconvincingly.
"Seriously, why won't you look at me?"
He could see her flush a dark crimson. "I'm so not answering that," she mumbled.
"Why? Honestly, I thought we were having a good time. What happened?"
She finally looked up at him and took a deep breath, "I'm trying not to have a full-blown fan girl moment here, Joe. Just let me go to my room so I can freak out in private."
"Huh?"
In frustration she finally blurted, "Look at you! I'm standing in a hotel hallway with a soaking wet Joe Lucas."
He glanced down and noticed she wasn't the only one in skin tight, wet clothes. Smirking, he leaned forward and asked, "Do you like what you see?"
Macy gulped at his nearness. He wasn't sure exactly what he was doing, but there was something electric about the entire situation. Even a few hours ago, he would have scoffed at the idea of ever being attracted to the wacky, bumbling girl, but right now, he really wanted to kiss her. They locked eyes and he began to lean forward.
And at that moment, Stella threw open a nearby door. "I thought I heard you two. How was the play?"
Joe groaned at his friend's timing. Even though she probably just saved him from making a huge mistake, he really wished she could have waited a few more seconds. Straightening up, he said, "It was great, Stell." To Macy he added, "Thanks again for a fun afternoon."
He hesitated a moment before leaning in and kissing her on the cheek, causing the poor girl to crumple into a heap on the floor. He briefly wondered what would have happened if he had really kissed her – would she have fainted then too or kissed back, caught up in the moment.
Sighing exasperatedly, Stella asked, "Did you really have to do that, Joe?"
Bending down to pick Macy up off the ground, he grinned over at his friend, "Actually, yes. I really did."