The T's World: June 2009

June 21 ? What day is it ? It is Kris Allen's birthday ! Enjoy his songs and interviews ,guys ! Kris Allen will turning 24 this year...Happy Birthday !

Here's a story about the Kradam ( Kris and Adam )....It's really good...It makes me laugh...I come across it when I surf the net for Bangunan Stadthuys information for the Sejarah folio...

THE FIRST NIGHT IN THE MANSION written by Mosaic

"Wow."

"I know, right? Wow!"

Surrounded by suitcases, Kris and Adam stood in the middle of their basement room, as different as two people could be. Adam was the tall, handsome, confident one, who looked like he was right where he needed to be and had everything figured out. Kris, on the other hand… Kris felt like he'd somehow found his way to Mars with no recollection of having gotten there and in need of some oxygen.

On his last phone call with Katy, Kris had called the last two days "a whirlwind," and there really was no other word for it. Two nights ago, Simon had shocked everyone by declaring Anoop the final member of this year's Top 13. After that, it was press circuits and photoshoots and interviews and meetings with stylists and song choices for "Michael Jackson Week" and sessions with Rickey and exploring the mansion for the cameras. But now that the camera crew had left for the night, and it was just thirteen teenagers and 20-somthings spending their first night in a giant house, things were starting to sink in. And Kris had no idea what he'd gotten himself into.

"We made it, man!" Adam exclaimed, clapping Kris on the shoulder. His eyes shone with excitement.

Still smiling, Kris rolled his eyes and shifted his weight to his other foot. "Yeah, like there was ever any doubt you'd be here. Just you wait, I'm going to be this season's Jason Castro – people'll only vote for me because I'm 'cute.'" He gestured the quotation marks around the word "cute," and Adam laughed.

"Maybe, but you and Jason can both sing and play guitar, so there's more to it than being cute." He paused and looked thoughtful for a second. "Actually, now that I think about it, you and Jason are pretty similar. But you'll go farther than Jason."

"What?" Kris cried. His cheeks reddened with embarrassment and he shoved his hands into his pockets, as he often did when he was uncomfortable. Adam was obviously the best singer in this house; Kris knew he wasn't even in his league. "Come on, no way I'm even cracking Top 8! Last Tuesday was the first time most people even saw me!"

"Yeah, but I've heard you off the Idol stage, and you're amazing. Trust me, you're better than Jason. You're Jason 2.0!"

Kris had to laugh at that, even though he knew Adam was just lying to make him feel better. While he didn't believe a word of it, though, it somehow did make him feel better, like he actually belonged here, among all these amazing singers. He felt tension he didn't even realize he was carrying slide off his shoulders. Adam glanced around the room, taking it all in, as he ran his fingers through his flat-ironed hair. It stood up at odd angles from where he'd rubbed it, and Kris couldn't help but chuckle.

"What?" Adam asked.

"Nothing," Kris replied, but his smile hadn't gone anywhere. "It's just that, uh, you mussed your hair and, well... I've never seen your hair not perfect before."

Glancing quickly at the mirror over Kris' shoulder, Adam grinned when he saw what he'd done to his hair. "Well get used to it, roomie, because it's a lot worse than this first thing in the morning."

Since Kris couldn't really think of anything to add, the two men stood in awkward silence for a moment. Though they had bonded over the recent press junket they'd gone through with Allison when they made the Top 12 – well, it was going to be twelve at the time – they still weren't completely comfortable around each other. Their mid-conversation silences tended to be awkward.

Adam, being Adam, suddenly smiled and announced that he was going to unpack some more and organize his clothes. Kris just nodded and meandered toward his bed. Flopping down and propping himself up on his elbow, he let his gaze roam around the room. Adam had started to organize his shirts by color, and for some reason, that made Kris smile. He couldn't even remember the last time he actually organized his closet or dresser. After watching Adam for a moment, his eyes began to wander again, unable to stay still. His gaze fell on his guitar case leaning against the wall.

"Adam?"

"Huh."

"Do you mind if I play guitar for a little while?" Kris' cheeks flushed again, but Adam was too busy comparing the green shades of two shirts to notice.

"No, go ahead!"

"Are you sure?" Kris pressed. "I can go to the living room if you prefer it quiet."

"And risk you getting lost along the way?" Adam teased. Kris had gotten lost with a boom mic operator that afternoon when the crew filmed them moving into the mansion, and Adam had promised Kris that he would never, ever let him live it down. "No, stay here. I want to hear you play more anyway."

Kris didn't know what to say in response, so he just silently opened the case and lifted out his guitar. Seated on the bed, he started to play. His fingers moved nimbly along the strings, playing chromatic scales to warm up his hands. As he started to play chords, his eyes slipped closed. His senses heightened without his sight, and he wondered briefly if it always felt this good for Scott when he played. The familiar, comforting strings pressed into the calluses on his fingertips, the frets guiding his hand where to go. With nothing to distract him, Kris heard the music in his head more clearly and found unique chords that fit the melody he was playing. The pick he always kept in his pocket rested easily between his thumb and forefinger as it cascaded up and down the strings. Kris began to hum along, finding notes to sing buried in the chords he played.

He didn't know how long he'd been playing when he finally ended the song. As he reluctantly opened his eyes again, he saw Adam gazing in awe at him, a forgotten red shirt still clutched in his fist. Maybe the light was playing tricks on him, but Kris could have sworn that there were tears in Adam's eyes.

"Oh my God," Adam whispered, as if speaking too loudly would ruin everything. "Did you just make that up as you went?"

"Uh… yeah," Kris admitted.

"Oh my God," repeated Adam, shaking his head slightly. "Definitely better than Jason."

Kris rolled his eyes for the second time that night and laid his guitar lovingly back in its case.

"Hey, uh…" Kris began. "I've still got a lot of nervous energy right now."

"You wanna race through the halls?" Adam joked.

Kris raised his eyebrows mischievously.

"Dude, I was kidding," said Adam, but he couldn't keep the excited sparkle from brightening his eyes.

"I have an idea. It's kind of the first thing I thought of when I saw this place, actually," Kris said, his expression mirroring Adam's excitement. "We did it in my dorm building at UCA once when the power was out. We turn off all the lights, get a bunch of Nerf guns… and we wage war."

"War? Like, we team up and stalk each other and shoot each other with Nerf guns in the dark?" Adam asked.

"Yes, sir!"

"I love it! Let's get everyone in on it," Adam cried.

Kris' smile grew even wider, spurred on my Adam's enthusiasm. He jumped to his feet and moved to the door to find their fellow contestants. "Do you need to fix your hair first?" he teased.

It was Adam's turn to roll his eyes. "Oh, ha ha, very fun-" He took another glance in the mirror. "Actually, it could use a touch up." He reached for the suitcase labeled "Hair Care" in duct tape and Sharpie. "You round everyone up, and I'll meet you guys in the kitchen in five minutes."

"You trust me to find my way to everyone's rooms and then back to the kitchen?" joked Kris.

Adam paused. "Good point. Take your cell phone and call me if you get lost." He winked playfully at Kris.

"Ha ha," Kris deadpanned. But when Adam turned his back to go into the bathroom, Kris felt his pocket to make sure he had his phone.

~*~

"That's insane," Megan decried when she heard Kris' idea, but her bright smile betrayed her.

"Insane in a good way!" Allison offered. "I'm in!"

"Yes!" Adam pumped his fist in the air as Allison skipped over to him and launched herself into a hug.

"Yeah, me too," Scott piped up. "I can take you guys; I've already been feeling my way around this place, so the advantage is mine." Scott burst into his "evil laugh," which sent them into fits of laughter.

They all quickly agreed to join in. Only Danny seemed to hesitate. "Slight problem, guys," he called over the noise of fervent laughter and chattering. "Where are we going to get Nerf guns?"

"Oh, they're already on the way here. Should be here in about ten minutes," Adam replied nonchalantly. Everyone looked at him like he'd grown a second head, but he explained. "I've lived in LA for a long time, guys. I have connections."

"There's a 'connection' for getting thirteen Nerf guns at eleven o'clock on a Friday?" Alexis whispered to Megan. Megan just gave an elaborate shrug.

"Kris, are there rules?" Jorge called from his perch on the kitchen counter. "I've never played this game."

"Uh…" Kris stammered and turned to Adam for help. Why he looked to Adam, he didn't quite know; Adam didn't know this "game" any more than Jorge did. But something about Adam's reassuring gaze helped Kris find the right words. "Well, when I played last, we divided into teams and set some basic ground rules, like what areas were off limits. We didn't really keep score, but we could figure out a scoring system if you want."

"Nah, it's more fun to just goof off," Anoop answered. "We're already supposed to be competing against each other – let's just have fun."

"Good point," Michael chimed in. The girls all nodded in agreement.

"So what's off limits?" Matt asked, bouncing on the balls of his feet, anxious to get started.

After a brief discussion, they decided that they had to stay inside and that anything potentially dangerous, like the indoor pool room, would be off limits.

"And the girls' wing!" Jasmine insisted. "Me and Allison's moms are asleep."

Adam, who had slipped out while Lil was asking whether the slippery bowling lanes were considered "dangerous," suddenly entered the kitchen dramatically with a huge box in his arms.

"Ladies and gentlemen, your weapons!" he cried, dumping the box's contents onto the massive dining table. Everyone ran toward him and started digging through the pile for the coolest-looking Nerf guns. "We have 30 guns, so you can pick up to two, and there's a shi- there's a ton of extra ammo." Kris smiled to himself as he picked up a Nerf gun that looked a bit like a revolver. Adam swore like a sailor, but he always tried to keep his tongue in check around the younger and more conservative contestants. "So load your pockets with extra bullets unless you want to feel your way back here each time you need more."

Adam reached over Allison's shoulder to grab the biggest gun on the table, and then started loading his pockets with bullets.

"Hey, Adam?" Kris said meekly from behind him.

Adam turned and smiled at him. "Yeah?"

"Do you know which of these is better?" Kris held up two guns, and Adam immediately pointed to the one in his left hand.

"The Maverick, for sure," Adam said. "It's powerful and fast, and it's really easy to carry around." He lifted his own gun for comparison. "I like 'em big, but the Maverick packs a mean punch. That one," he pointed to the gun in Kris' right hand, "is the Recon. A little easier to reload, but not nearly as powerful, so you have to be a lot closer to the target." He again reached over Allison, who was stuffing her pockets, her waistband, and her bra with ammo, and grabbed another Maverick. He swapped it for the Recon in Kris' hand. "Two Mavericks are better than one," he declared.

"Thanks, man," Kris said, genuinely grateful. When they'd had this kind of fight at UCA in what seemed like another lifetime, he had ended up with a crappy Nerf knock-off that couldn't shoot straight or send a bullet more than two feet. There was no way he would let that happen again; he wasn't about to lose horribly (even though they weren't keeping score) at the game he'd suggested.

"By the way," Kris continued before Adam could walk away, "how you know so much about Nerf?"

"Connections, Kris," Adam replied with a wink. "Connections."

When they all had their weapons and Allison had given up trying to cram "just one more" bullet into her clothing, they drew numbers out of a hat to determine teams, evens on one team and odds on the other.

Kris drew number eight; Adam drew number eleven. Kris' heart sank when he saw that he and Adam were on opposite teams. He didn't like the idea of shooting at the person who was quickly becoming his best friend in the house. He was teamed up with Allison, Matt, Anoop, Megan, and Jorge. The other team – Adam, Michael, Jasmine, Danny, Lil, Alexis, and Scott – was already huddled up, discussing strategy.

"Ready, guys? Lights out!" Kris called, flipping the closest switch. Everyone ran to various light switches, and the mansion was soon black.

Kris ran into the hall in mid-crouch. He could hear soft footsteps, but his eyes hadn't quite adjusted to the dark and he couldn't make out who was who. Scoring or no scoring, he wasn't going to shoot his own team members. He plastered himself against a wall and let others pass him, hoping to go unnoticed until he could get behind people and sneak up on them. When Kris stared to follow them, he heard a deep, heavily-accented British voice behind him. Right behind his ear, the voice said, "Watch your back, Allen."

Kris whipped around, shot the person at point blank in the stomach and retorted, "Watch your front, Lambert." He fled down the hall, ducking down a side corridor toward the basketball court (or was it toward the bowling alley?) and hoping Adam wouldn't follow. He had heard Adam's peals of laughter as he ran away, and it sounded like Adam wasn't pursuing him. Still, not wanting to take a chance, he ducked through a doorway and listened for footsteps. He didn't hear anything, and just as he was about to venture out again, there was a click behind him and a Nerf bullet hit the back of his shoulder.

"Hey!" he cried, and turned around shooting. Jasmine squealed and threw her arms up to defend herself, blindly trying to shoot at him. "Why didn't you shoot me when I first came in?" Kris asked her through a barrage of bullets and laughter.

"I couldn't tell who it was," Jasmine yelled, "then I realized that it was a guy and he was short, so I knew it had to be you or Jorge! I'm out, I'm out! Let me reload!"

Kris chuckled, stopped shooting, and took off back down the hall, moving quickly but stealthily toward the sound of voices. When he got closer, he could make out Allison's raspy whisper and Anoop's southern drawl.

"Don't-shoot-it's-Kris!" he whispered quickly and stepped into the room to talk with them. Together, the three of them devised a strategy to stick together and try to surround anyone they could find.

Click, click, click. Three bullets fired into the room but didn't hit anyone.

"You guys talk too loud," Scott laughed as he poked his head around the corner. Allison got him between the eyes, and Scott disappeared again.

"Okay, let's do this," Anoop whispered, and they took off in a row with Allison as their rear guard.

A little while later, Anoop spotted Adam crouched behind a fake plant, facing away from them. He signaled Kris to circle left and Allison to circle right. He crept up slowly behind Adam, but Adam must have heard him coming. Just as Anoop raised his gun to the back of Adam's head, Adam spun around on his toes and shot up at him, his huge gun firing off multiple bullets in a row.

"Now, now, now!" Anoop yelled as he tried to fire back, and Kris and Allison came out shooting from two directions. Kris held his two guns straight out in front of him, firing both at once and, quite frankly, feeling kind of like an action star. Adam turned back around and tried to get both Allison and Kris. But, as they had planned, they were standing too far apart for Adam to target them both, and he wasted most of his ammo trying to turn between one and the other while not letting up on the trigger.

"Okay, okay! Stop, stop!" Adam cried, gasping with laughter and throwing up his hands. "I surrender! I'm out of ammo! You got me!"

"NO MERCY!" Allison screamed and kept firing on Adam, who curled up on his side, laughing harder than Kris had ever seen anyone laugh. Soon, the four of them were collapsed on the floor together, surrounded by foam bullets, with tears of laughter steaming down their cheeks as they tried to regain their breath.

"We need to do this every Friday," Allison declared.

"Yeah, only next time I get to be on your team!" replied Adam. "Oooh, Kris! Can I defect to your team?"

"Never!" Kris proclaimed. "Krislandia takes no defectors!"

"Krislandia? No way, we're Anoopfoundland." Anoop argued.

"Allitopia?" Allison suggested.

"Lambertica!"

"Allenation!"

"Desai! Desai could totally be a country in the Middle East."

"Irahetaville!"

"Wasted away again in Irahetaville!" Adam sang at the top of his lungs, and the four dissolved into more laughter.

"So do you guys even care about this battle any more?" Allison asked, wiping tears from her eyes. "Because, uh... I sure do."

"Yes!" Adam cried and grabbed his gun. "The Lambertican army will not stand by after one of its own has been ambushed and attacked. This is war!"

Adam leapt gracefully to his feet and took off toward the stairs. Anoop, Allison, and Kris got to their feet as well, quickly collected the ammo around them, and followed Adam, even though he was probably already two floors up and three wings away.

~*~

Collapsed on their beds, Kris and Adam stared at the ceiling of their room. They had come back after the Nerf war, tired from all the running and laughing, and had gotten ready for bed. But adrenaline was still coursing through them, and sleep evaded them both. After trying to sleep for a while, they decided to give up, turn on the lights, and talk.

"You know that ambush thing we did to you?" Kris asked.

"Oh yeah."

"We got Gokey really good."

Adam laughed and said, "I know."

"Oh, did Allison tell you?"

"No, I saw it." Kris could hear the smile in Adam's voice.

"What?" Kris propped himself up on his elbows to look at his roommate, his expression one of amusement mingled with confusion.

Chuckling, Adam pulled himself up against his headboard and repeated himself. "I watched you guys ambush him. I mean, come on, you were in the middle of the living room and the moon was shining in through the windows. I don't know how Danny didn't see one of you coming."

"Yeah, I guess we weren't as sneaky with him," admitted Kris. "But how come you didn't try to help him or warn him?"

"Hell, I wanted to watch him get taken down a peg." Anger suddenly eclipsed Adam's joyful expression. "Actually, I tried to get on your team so I could get Danny myself. I was about to see if Allison would secretly swap numbers with me when you looked at my number and said, 'Aww, we're not on the same team.'"

"What? I'm confused," Kris said, trying to ignore the fact that his disappointment over not teaming up with Adam had been vocalized. He certainly didn't remember saying anything about it. "Danny can be a bit overbearing sometimes, but…"

"Overbearing? Danny's a fucking dick." Adam blurted out, and then quickly corrected himself. "Sorry, I mean he's a… a freaking jerk."

Kris gave Adam a lopsided grin. "I appreciate the effort, but I'm not going to wash your mouth out with soap for a few swear words. Why is he a jerk? What did he do?"

Averting his eyes from Kris, Adam didn't respond right away. Kris hurriedly said, "Sorry, I shouldn't've-"

"No, it's okay, Kris," Adam assured him. His livid gaze was still fixed on the carpet, as if he were trying to burn a hole in it just by looking at it. "I'm just trying to think how to phrase this, because it's not like he's really done anything to me, it's just this feeling I get around him. And maybe it's just me, maybe it's not him at all."

Kris knew from experience that when he couldn't think of the right thing to say, silence was usually better than saying the wrong thing. So he kept his mouth shut, sat up more fully in his bed, and let Adam collect his thoughts.

Finally, Adam tore his gaze away from the floor and looked into Kris' concerned eyes. "Danny and I are from completely different words, Kris. I mean, technically, so are you and I, but it's so much different being around you. From the day we met, you've been nothing but kind and friendly to me. The first time Danny saw me, he took one fucking look at me and literally turned his head to look away from me. Like he knew everything about me from one look and decided that I wasn't worth his time. I don't know if he's just a cocky bastard or if he assumes things about me from the way I dress and style myself and has this holier-than-thou thing going. But every time I'm in the same room with him, I just sense this… this…" Adam let out a frustrated sigh as he fought for the right word. "Hateful is too strong a word, but I can't think of a better one. I sense this hateful vibe from him, like he wants me to drop off the face of the earth. Not just be out of the competition, but disappear forever."

Fury rose in Kris; he could hardly see straight. He knew that Danny, like himself, was a Christian. And he knew that Adam was most likely gay. At the very least he embraced a fluid idea of sexuality and gender. Kris hated when people, in the name of God, condemned and demeaned those they considered "sinners." Kris curled his hands into fists and fought the urge to run upstairs and rip Danny a new one.

"That's horrible," he muttered through clenched teeth.

Adam's eyes found the carpet again. Silence settled over them, and then Adam broke into nervous laughter and covered his face with his hand. "Sorry. I'm sorry. This was such a fun night, and I just ruined it."

The defeat in Adam's voice flooded Kris with compassion, drowning out his anger. He felt the sudden impulse to cross the room and embrace Adam.

"You didn't ruin it," Kris quickly assured him, but Adam didn't look up. "Come on, man, you didn't ruin it. Actually, I'm glad you were comfortable telling me that. I'm just so sorry that… I mean, not all of us… I don't…"

"I know," whispered Adam, and Kris believed him.

Once again, they fell silent, but unlike earlier in the night, it wasn't the awkward, think-of-a-new-topic-quickly-to-have-something-to-fill-it silence. It was the calm, comfortable silence of two friends who didn't need to fill every second together with noise.

"Thanks, Kris."

"For what?" They looked each other in the eye, each conveying deep compassion and affection that no words could portray.

"Well, for not being like Danny for one thing. But I needed to get that out," Adam breathed, looking at once grateful and relieved. "It was eating away at me to get so much negativity from someone I'm forced to live with and not being able to tell anybody."

"You can always talk to me," Kris shrugged. "I promise you I won't tell a soul. Not even Katy."

Adam broke into a warm smile. "That means a lot, Kris. Thanks," Adam said. Then Adam threw back his covers, crossed the room, and hugged Kris. Kris hugged him fiercely in return, wrapping his arms around Adam's shoulders and holding on tight. It was a little awkward, given that Kris was still sitting on his bed, but they made it work. Adam stood up slowly, pulling himself out of Kris' embrace.

"Kris, I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship," Adam said in an odd voice.

"Yikes, that's your Humphrey Bogart?" teased Kris. "Accents you can do. Impressions? Not so much."

Adam laughed and sat down on the edge of Kris' bed, the pain and anger from moments ago seemingly forgotten. "I didn't have time to get into character! By the way, I'm impressed that you could tell it was me behind you when I told you to watch your back."

"Huh? Oh, that! Thanks," Kris said. He wasn't sure what Adam found so impressive about it. Adam was the only one around who could do a British accent that convincing, unless Simon had somehow found his way into the mansion.

"But a Nerf bullet to the gut? Now that's cold, man," Adam continued, dramatically wrapping his arm around his stomach as if he'd been shot. "I declare a rematch."

Kris rolled his eyes and adopted his most sarcastic tone, "Yeah, sure. When you and I are the last two standing and we're alone in the mansion, we'll have a rematch."

Pointing his finger sharply at Kris, Adam declared, "You're on, buddy."

Kris chuckled and shook his head, but he knew that he and Adam would never have that rematch. He hated to think about it, but in his gut he knew he wouldn't be around that long.

"So, you about ready for bed now?" asked Adam, breaking Kris out of his reverie. "'Cause I'm starting to feel it."

He hadn't really thought about it, but now that Adam brought up sleep, Kris did feel the heavy effects of the physically and emotionally draining night he'd just had. "Yeah, definitely," agreed Kris. Since Adam was already up, he volunteered to get the lights, and then he returned to his own bed.

In the darkness, Kris settled down against his pillow, letting his eyes fall closed. The sheets on the bed across the room rustled softly as Adam tucked himself in and let out a deep, peaceful sigh. Kris grinned.

"Good night, Adam."

"Night, Kris." Adam's voice was already muffled by his pillow.