The Final Installment

*Note: The role of Lacretia/Escaped Mental Patient will be played by Kelli aka Kelli P aka Dumb Ass.

When I return from the bathroom, Donnie is gone, but Danny is standing by all of the other members of the sound check audience taking pictures. I run up to Andrea and Alana and ask if they already got their picture with Danny and they nod yes. I'm frustrated by this for a couple of reasons: 1) I am of course worried that I will not get a chance for my own pic with Danny; 2) I REALLY wanted to see Alana with Danny as she is obsessed with him on the same level that I'm obsessed with Mr. Wahlberg and I'm sure watching her interact with him was quite amusing.

So as Danny finishes up taking pics with the kiddos I ask him, "Can I have a picture, too. I was in the bathroom." He says yes, walks over to me, and sweetly pulls me into him for the pic. Then I say, "I washed my hands and everything." Danny seemed to get a good chuckle out of that and because of this he is very smiley in his pic with me, which I adore.We say thanks to Danny and he leaves to go backstage to get ready for the meet and greet. We are sitting there just hanging out waiting to see what happens next. Although there were no New Kids around, you don't just get up and leave sound check. Plus, I was holding out hope that I would get more face time with Donnie. So, we strike up conversation with the moms and kids sitting next to us. One of the boys is named Cody. He is 9 and was dressed like Donnie in jeans, a Paul Pierce jersey, and a white Red Sox cap. He was even sporting a wallet chain like Donnie wears that he was quick to point out to me to prove that he was "just like Donnie". He is adorable! His mom told me about how they had met Donnie in the lobby of the hotel the night before. Cody performed the rap from "No More Games" for him, but in the middle of it, he had started crying because he was so emotional about meeting Donnie. His mom said that he must have tugged on Donnie's heartstrings because Donnie scooped him up in his arms and told him that he was his boy. Isn't that the most adorable story ever?

As fun as all of this is, I grow more and more concerned. Where is Donnie? Will he come back out to talk to us? Did I miss my chance during the whole Lacretia debacle? Suddenly I spot him on the side of the stage talking to some people. I'm not sure how I got so bold, but I grab Alana's arm and we walk over to where I can be in his line of vision. He looks my direction and out of nowhere, I feel my finger extending out as I make the "come here" motion. I then proceed to trace the circumference of my face with my finger and then point my finger to my wrist - the universal blockhead signal for "face time". God, I'm cheesy! Donnie walks over to us and I say hi and ask if I can get a picture with him. Now, at the time I didn't realize how annoying this probably was to him. First of all, he's trying to work. He doesn't come to my office or my dance class and expect me to drop everything while doing dorky hand gestures. (But I, of course, totally would drop everything! That goes without saying.) And this is the second time I've asked for a pic with him. I probably sounded like some kind of parrot who says the same thing over and over again. "Kelli want a picture. Squawk! Kelli want a picture." He touches my waist and says in a semi-annoyed tone (and who can blame him really?) "I will, but I need to go talk to them first" and gestures over to mini-Donnie and his family. What? You mean you want to talk to the people that you actually invited to sound check instead of the criminals who managed to sneak in? So I sit down, feeling dejected and thinking he will probably blow us off.

Imagine my surprise when he he looks over at me, smirks, and says, "Alright girl. Let's take this picture." Relieved and thankful, I stand up and say, "I'm sorry." He looks at me strangely and says, "Why are you apologizing? You don't have anything to be sorry for." Then, because I have apparently completely lost my damn mind I say, "I feel like you're annoyed with me." SERIOUSLY? What the hell am I doing? Why am I talking to Donnie Wahlberg as if we are in a relationship and are having a lover's quarrel? He sweetly says, "I'm not annoyed. I've just gotta go. We're running late." He pulls me in tight for our picture. He then takes pictures with Alana and Andrea, we tell him thank you and he leaves. I was on cloud 9, where I now take permanent residence.

The end.

So, as most of you know, we met Joey in Dallas in October. Now Alana and I have met our faves, Danny and Donnie. However, Andrea was bummed because her man Jordan walked right past us in sound check and didn't say a word. Besides our encounter with Jon on the turnpike, the Dark Knights have eluded us. Word of warning to the Knight brothers: This summer it's on. Get ready, because we're coming for you!

And to DonnieEffinWahlberg: You sir, are like a drug that I just can't get enough of. We WILL meet again. I promise to be much less obnoxious and will answer you no matter what name you decide to call me. Next time, I will also take the opportunity to tell you how much I adore and respect you and how much I love The Block. I know it was a labor of love and you should all be proud of your work. It inspires me in my own work and I choreograph to it and use it in my classes on a daily basis. And most of all, though I know you hear it all the time, I would like to tell you thank you for coming back into our lives and sharing yourselves with us all over again. We love all 5 of you!