Chapter 87 - Here What I'm Saying?

 

Monica dealt with the news that she was going to have a boy in the best way that she could.  She knows that if she emerges herself into her work, time will fly by and in essence the pain will ease.  Boy is she wrong.

"Ok, I've had enough of feeling sorry for myself.  Get dressed, let's go."  She slaps Jon on the ass, as he laid with her - his back to her.  "We are getting out of here."

Jon rolls onto his back and asks, "What are we going to do?"

"I don't care, but I need to get out of her." she pushes the blankets off of them, "Let's go to my studio."

"And do what?"

"Oh, I don't know, let's edit a video."

"What one?" he asks, as he reaches over and grabs her.  He pulls her close enough to kiss her, "Good Morning."

She smiles, "Good morning."

He yawns and stretches.  While stretching he tries to say, "We should look at some of the live footage that was taken on the road."

"The feedback for Only Lonely was good, I think we need to do a video with live footage , that's a good idea.  Let's go look at it."

"Right now?" Jon balks, relaxed in bed and having little desire to get up.  "Can't we take a nap?"  he sits up and tackles her, taking her down and kissing her face.  "Can't we stay in bed all day?"  Monica responds to his kisses and reciprocates with her own intensity and her own passion.  She and Jon haven't been intimate since the accident and they missed each other.  It was obvious in the way that they fumbled with one another, but yet they were in perfect sync.  His kisses were better than a band aid and she missed the way that his kisses, his touch made her feel.  She tingled all over with even the slightest fingertip touch.  The warmth of his breath gives her chills.

They stay in bed for a couple more hours and pleasure one another until Monica has enough.  "Babe, let's go do something.  These walls are closing in on me." 

On his side, facing her and caressing her belly, with a smile on his face he tells her, "I love you."

She smiles back, "I love you too."

"Have you given any thought to a honeymoon?" 

"No not really, have you?" Monica asks him honestly.  "I haven't, but I should huh?"

He nods his head, "If we're going to do it before I have to go back on the road."

"Which is when?"

"Two weeks."

She lays there, staring up at the ceiling, starting to think out loud, "We could go somewhere warm and tropical - or we could go skiing.  What sounds good to you?" she turns her head to watch his expression, knowing that he loves to do both.

"I don't think you need to be skiing, not with that bare spot on your head still.  I bet the doctor would advise of that."

"He doesn't have to know."

"No, no skiing."  He leans over and kisses her belly and then lays on his back and stares at the same ceiling that she did.  "Let's just go to the Bahamas' or something all inclusive."

"We can discuss it, come on, let's take a shower and go to my studio."  she sits up and runs her hand down his chest, to his belly, down his treasure trail and lands on his satisfied penis.  She didn't linger there to long, she didn't want to start anything that they couldn't finish.

They shower and head to her studio in the city.  The studio that Jon found her when she realized that photography and film making was her passion.  The modeling didn't last long and he was happy about that.  So when he found a little studio near Little Italy, he rented it and surprised her with it for her birthday.  She loved it and together, in one weekend, they gave it a face lift and moved all of her equipment there.  It was a working studio and she loved that it was in the city.

She queued up some footage that they had filmed in Moscow.  Jon loves to watch himself on the big screen and it's obvious that the camera loves him.  As Monica watched it, she realized that there was minimal footage of the rest of the band in the Moscow tapes and she hoped that she could add them from other concerts that they recorded.  Five cameras and most of them were focused on Jon.  She needed to change that.  They were a band of brothers, with five members......

After several hours, she pulled together some great segments from In and Out of Love and cut them to fit.  When it was all ready to be viewed, she played it back for Jon and herself.  They watched it, and watched it again.  Her trained eye can see the flaws and knows that there is only one way to fix it.

"This sucks." she tells him.

He looks at her like she was talking in tongue's.  "What are you talking about?  I think it's fantastic."

"It's not good enough, to replace the one that's in rotation."

"It is too."

"Nope, we need to do it over."

"OVER?"

She nods her head and laughs, "We need to record this song and just this song for a video.  When is your next show?"

"I think next weekend?"

"Where?" she swivels in her chair and faces him, "Let's see if we can get you guys in somewhere to play, and I'll record it."

"You mean like a bar?"

"Yeah."

"Babe, we are bigger than a bar band now."

"I know, but I want the intimacy of a smaller venue.  I'll hang cameras from the ceiling on tracks and we'll make it a live video."

He's quiet for a minute and has an idea, "There's a stage on the boardwalk in Seaside Heights, let's see if we can do it there.  Right on the boardwalk, that would be so cool."

"Good idea.  Who would we talk to?"

Jon does a spin in his chair and says as he rounds, "Richie would know, we can ask him."

"Okay.  I think it's a great idea and if we can pull this off, we need to hurry.  I need to get it edited before you leave so we can release it upon you hitting the road again."

"Are you sure you want to redo a video for In and Out of Love?"

"Yep."

Monica gets up from her seat and says, "That will be fun, let's do it.  We can add shots of you guys on the beach - it will be cool."

She looks out the windows, down on the street and adds, "I think that we need 'fans' to be in it, if we can do it on the boardwalk, THAT would be cool."

"I don't think you realize what you're doing here." he tried to reel her in, slow her roll and make her focus.

"I know what I'm doing.  You and Richie thought that I would have an issue with Dorothea doing the Only Lonely video and I was quite the opposite.  THAT video climbed the charts, right along with She Don't Know Me, I know what I'm doing Jon."

"The fans on the boardwalk could be a safety concern, that's all I wanted to point out.  We have gained exposure and are on our way up - we will need added security."

"So then we'll add security, no biggie." Monica says, as a matter of fact.  "The live video is going to be awesome."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Richie called in some favors and they were able to play a small show in Seaside Heights on the boardwalk.  The town ran an ad in the small local paper that there would be a free concert and Jon's mom, the manager of his fan club, sent a note to all of the local fans - inviting them down to the free show.

The guys performed great and the fans played along just as good.  Monica added some acting scenes and even had Jon playing with a squirt gun, which she regretted because when he was off set and supposed to be resting, he was shooting her with the water gun as she tried to work. 

Each guy has a scene with a lovely lady, further showing how they were In and Out of Love.  The video was going to kick ass and she knows it.  She played back what she had to Jon and the guys in her trailer and with editing, they all could see that she made them another great video.

That's a rap.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Monica spent the next couple of days playing with the video and when she had it done, she sent it to the MTV studio in New York City and waited for a call.  It was later in the afternoon that the programming director called her and told her that they would put it into rotation at 10pm.  Monica was beyond geeked.  When she hung up with the programming director, she immediately called Jon.  "Hey babe, what are you doing?"

"Richie and I are sitting here finishing up some lyrics - what's up?"

"Well, I sent the video to MTV and they are playing it at 10:00, call  our friends and family and have them all over for a screening party.  I'll be home soon."

"You sent the video to MYV and didn't get an okay from me?  Monica, you know that I approve or disapprove before anything gets sent anywhere."

"Jesus, Jon.  The video is perfect and I know you'll love it."

"Monica, I give the okay."

She getting pissed and so is her, "Well, it at MTV and it's being aired tonight - not much I can do about it now.  I thought you trusted me."

"I totally trust you, it's just that you know how I like things done."

Between her teeth she says to him, "I would not have sent the video if there was any question, it turned out perfect.  If you want to fight about this after you see it, then game on.  My name is on the video as Director and I wouldn't let anything less than perfection have my name on it, Jon."

She hangs up the phone, feeling angered and hurt.  How could he not trust her judgment in regards to the video.  She selected pictures for magazines and press stuff, and that was okay.  What the hell was wrong with him?

In New Jersey, Jon throws his sharpie on the table and tells Richie what Monica just said.  Richie can only reply with what he thinks, "I think you were a little hard on her, man.  She's great at what she does and you have to trust that.  I do."

"But she knows how things are supposed to be handled."

"Jon, it's Monica!"  Richie reminds him, "The one person that has your career and your happiness in her heart.  She would never do anything to harm you or our band."

"That's not what I'm worried about.  I want all say so on what goes public and what doesn't, and she knows that.  It just pisses me off when she takes control."

Richie smiles, "That's my Monica!"

Jon does what Monica asked and invited family and the band over to watch the video, when it aired at 10:00pm.  By the time that Monica got home, everyone was there, except Alec.  Which was no surprise.

Drinks and snacks were had by all as they waited for 10 o'clock.  Tico says, "This I worse than waiting for the ball to drop on New Years Eve."

Monica chuckles, "This will be worth the wait."

And there it was, Mark Goodman on MTV telling the viewers, "This was just delivered today, by Bon Jovi's photographer.  From what I see on the outside of the reel, it's another video for In and Out of Love.  Our program director loved it so much, it went right into rotation.  With no further ado, here it is - Bon Jovi and In and Out of Love.

The video started, with everyone huddled around the TV in Monica's living room.  Monica's focus is on Jon's face and when she sees the smile - she knows that she did the right thing and he's okay with it.