Brian and Justin

Just Beginning (Chapter 36) Written by JM

With a dramtic beginning, the sound of a large orchestra filled the Metropolitan Opera House. The house lights fell and the only lights were that of the lights running across the stage. The sounds of an intense choir filled the backgrounds for the show. The introduction was deep and echoic by the announcer. As the names were read, the crowd cheered loudly. All of the celebrities waited patiently, watching everyone else as the choir filled the Opera House with the sounds of their voices. As the last name was read, the stage was set perfectly and the choir began to vocalize the words to Limp Bizkit's 'Nookie'. The powerful sounds made the crowd cheer along as they belted out the words.

"Ladies and gentlemen... please welcome your host for the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards... Janeane Garofalo!!!" the announcer said loudly and proudly. The large door that held as a curtain for the stage lifted and from under it walked Janeane Garofalo. Her hair was tighlty pinned up and she wore a diamond-studded tiara on top of her hair. She was dressed in a form-fitting dress that spread out at the hips to form a more ballroom like attire. The dress was powder blue with sequences running the chest area. Her face was fully drenched in make-up. She walked as if she was royalty with a microphone in her hand. She received a loud ovation from the 'fan pit' and the same from the other attendants of the Awards. She lifted her right arm slightly and waved like that of a Miss America.

Janeane lifted her microphone and tried not to smile at everyone. "Am I a little over dressed?!" was her first question. She got a loud laugh from everyone. "You know... I forgot this was MTV and not VH1. With VH1 if you wear anything from K-Mart and Target, you're not getting in. They check your tags at the door and everything. I guess that's why they asked me not to host any of their awards... because I can't even spell Versace or Armani but you know, what the hell? Who needs that when you can get K-Mart's shoes for two dollars?" Janeane opened with her jokes. Laughs were heard throughout the opera house.

"Well ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards. It's that whole nine-nine-ninety-nine thing tonight. They want me to make a big deal about it. I'm all for it, you know when the numbers line up and all, it makes you think... why the hell are we worried about Y2K? We should be worried more about folks like 98 Degrees and 'N Sync!" Janeane joked. The guys of 'N Sync laughed with her, not feeling any animosity. "Tonight's a big night, everyone who couldn't win or even get nominated at the Grammy's is here. And those who won at the Gramy's, they get to be here too just because if we don't nominate them we get bad feedback." Janeane gave everyone a puzzled face. You know.... I won't name names... Lauryn Hill..." Janeane said quickly and with heavy sarcasm. "But it's cool, I don't mind. I'm all for 'That Thing' you know? But if I'm telling you not to give up that thing it's because there are good people who will pay for it. Okay?" Janeane giggled. The audience fell in love with her subtle jokes. "But I love MTV now. They asked me to host the awards and I was like, 'Is Lauryn Hill performing?'. Because you know you HAVE to ask if Lauryn Hill's performing. If you don't you'll be screwed for life. Not Madonna... everyone's past the 'Ray of Light' stage, we want 'That Thing'. Oh yes, that's what it's all about. I felt like throwing on some rags and strapping on my Marley shirt and coming to the Awards just to cheer on Miss Lauryn Hill." Janeane got the crowd hyped for Lauryn. "But then I realized I don't have 'That Thing' anymore and that whole phsae was over." Janeane laughed with sarcasm. Chris found himself laughing hard with the crowd.

"Lauryn Hill's cool... she seems rather nice. But I really want to see the Backstreet Boys! Right ladies?!" Janeane cheered. The females in the audience cheered along with her. "There's nothing like the 'original boy band'. Forget New Kids On The Block, we've got to give props to the Backstreet Boys. They're the first boy band to actually admit they have girlfriends!" Janeane laughed. "And that's a big step in that world. Because if you admit you have a girlfriend, you are automatically saying, 'I'm not getting any from the teenyboppers in the crowd tonight'. I mean that's a big deal right there. Giving up a chance to sleep with all the little girls because you have a girlfriend? That's big!" Janeane cracked. The guys of the Backstreet Boys blushed towards the camera. "Uh huh. Oh they want it that way all right! They'll do it in the 'backstreets'. Okay? But they're all cute. Have you seen them? Well except the one with the tattoos... he's like the Kurt Cobain of the group. And the one with the blonde hair... well he's the Courtney Love." Janeane cracked. "But then you've got the two older looking guys... they've got GQ written all over them. They'll be on VH1 when this is all over." Janeane laughed. "And I'm really liking this country boy. Oh yeah, he's cute. He's the one that's in the news sometimes because everyone wants to know who he's dating. Like I care? He can date a cow if he wants... I heard his ex-girlfriend acts like one, so you know? Leave him alone! He's too damn cute to be bothered with that stuff. But if you ask me... he's not the one to take Britney Spears to the tour bus bathroom and get laid... he's waiting on 'The One'." Janeane smiled. Brian rolled his eyes with laughter. He gazed back to Justin who was smiling at him. "I hope that song wasn't about sex because then the Backstreet Boys would be just as bad off as Lauryn was... ya'll aren't virgins! Have you seen the way they've been looking at me all night?" Janeane tried to joke with them.

"I've heard the song. Hell, I've got the album. It's cute. It's like the My Little Pony version of Marilyn Manson. You've got songs like 'I Need You Tonight' which kind of reminds you of 'The Dope Show'. You know? Slap some make-up on, black leather and put some breasts on them boys and they'll be a hot little number." Janeane chimed. Leigh Ann gripped Brian's hand with a laugh. Brian gave her an odd look but brought his eyes back to the stage.

"I'll give the Backstreet Boys their props but I'll tell you another good boy band... them guys in 'N Sync." Janeane turned to the crowd, trying to hype them up. "I mean you've got one that'll actually admit to dating Britney Spears. And it's not the one everyone labels 'cute'. No, not the curly one... and ladies, he's a cutie. But it happens to be the one everyone labels a 'flirt'. Now you can tell me something... what does that say about the cute one? Huh? He could have a 'Teen Queen'. Instead rumors go around that he's 'good friends' with a Backstreet Boy? Uh huh, that just tells me he knows Britney's breast aren't real." Janeane informed the crowd, causing a small snicker. "I mean I don't believe rumors. I say more power to Britney. This girl is selling records like Debbie Gibson was. Ya'll remember her right? Yeah, she was cool... she's on VH1 now." Janeane raised her brow to the crowd, inciting a loud amount of laughter. "Yep... she's on VH1. I guess they didn't check her tag that read, 'Former Teen Queen... don't hire me'." Janeane joked. Britney wrinkled her brow at Janeane.

"But I think Britney can actually last. I mean come on! She went on tour with 'N Sync AND the Backstreet Boys. Okay? And she's got a boyfriend with bright ass red hair. Where can she go wrong? You've got ten potential chances to get pregnant, well actually six because some of their sexuality is still up for judgement according to the tabloids... but come on, she could have the Madonna status in no time! Right?" Janeane asked rhetorically. Justin giggled softly so that others would not notice. "But Britney has potential for that longevity crap... people talk about her breasts and she's fine with it. People talk about Christina Aguleria's breast too, well actually they asked has she seen Britney's doctor for the surgery yet." Janeane snickered. Joey couldn't help but laugh, knowing how Britney felt about Christina. "They say she's the next 'Pop Queen'. Oh yes... she has potential as soon as she gets out of that damn bottle. If she was a genie maybe she could have wished herself a body." Janeane questioned, causing another riot of laughter.

"We won't worry about it because I like 'N Sync. They did a video with Lil' Kim and Busta Rhymes." Janeane added. That brought about another cheer. "I mean if you are bold enough to do a video with Busta Rhymes... more power to you. Now if he bite you, you've got to pay for your own raibies shot." Janeane commented. Busta Rhymes smiled towards her while others laughed. "And oh we won't go to Lil' Kim. We won't even go there. I saw her in the lobby today and I said to myself, 'She didn't get that outfit from K-Mart'." Janeane laughed at her own joke. "I mean because if she did it wasn't off the clearance rack. That was in the pair of clothes that cost at least ten dollars." Janeane continued to joke. Lil' Kim looked around before laughing with the crowd. "And her breast was showing! Now if you are that bold, I have got to love you. Only because I know Joan Rivers will be talking about you more than me with her next dumb ass show." Janeane looked right at Kim with a smile.

"And OH MY GOD!!! It's the year of 'Latin Invasion'!" Janeane brooded. Loud claps were heard around the room. "You've got your actress turned singer... you've got your Muneudo singer turned singer... what's next? Your album won't sell jack unless you've got one Spanish song on there. Hell even Puff Daddy's trying to get in on it. Of course Puff Daddy tries to get in on anything that makes money. There's a lesson for you people out there... be like Puffy. If one person does it, everyone can right?" Janeane teased. "You've seen him dance!" Janeane emphasised. "But really... what's up with this 'Livin' La Vida Loca' crap?" Janeane asks. A loud cheer filled the opera house. "People please. You turn on MTV... Ricky Martin... you turn on VH1... Ricky Martin... you turn on the Spanish channel... Ricky Martin... hell if you turn on Telletubbies... Ricky Martin." Janeane acted aggraveted while cracking a joke. "Oh yes, he's the purple one with the purse talkin' about 'Upside, inside out... Tinky Winky's living La Vida Loca." Janeane grumbled. Ricky Martin gave a small laugh while the others laughed loudly. "But he HAS to be cool to record with Madonna. I know that's why I bought the album and then took it back to K-Mart." Janeane chimed.

"But wow, let's get on Jennier Lopez right? Everyone loves talking about her... or is it her ass? I can never tell which gets more press..." Janeane acted confused. "It's not that bad though... she's got her thing going for her. She had the number one single in America... uh huh, tell me her ass didn't get her that one. But it's HER ass, that's a hard thing to see now. People get surgery all the time. Ask Janet Jackson... she's a living role model like that Eminem kid. Guess what kids? Vanilla Ice is back!" Janeane went from one extreme to another. "Oh yeah, I can see it now. His next album will hopefully be bigger than Vanilla Ice's. Maybe he'll be the solo version of the Beastie Boys. Oh yes, white boys can rap... just don't ask us to dance." Janeane laughed. She received a loud laugher from the fan pit. "Ya'll have seen the Backstreet Boys videos!" Janeane warned them, getting another burst of laughter. "And don't ask Puff Daddy to dance either..." Janeane added, shaking her head.

"But I'm down with that Hip Hop thing. I'm down with Jay Z and Busta Rhymes and Snoop. Oh yeah, I'm straight out of NY... straight out of NY when this show is over." Janeane joked. "I mean I'm gone. But tell me Jay Z, I'm all for 'The Hard Knock Life'... but tell me how your life is so hard when you're driving a Lexus in the ghetto? Whats up with that? It's not that hard boy!" Janeane called out, searching the crowd for his face.

"But then we've got supposed rock stars rapping. Does that blow or what? Korn, Limp Bizkit, Kid Rock... the list goes on. How are ya'll going to be considered rap? You guys and Eminem need to start your own genre of music... call it, 'We don't know what the hell we're doing' music." Janeane suggested. She got a bright laughter from fans. "Yeah.. Kid Rock... he's kind of cool. I mean he needs to work out with the kids of 'N Sync because that pasty white boy look died out with Hasons career, okay?" Janeane commented. J.C. and Lance laughed hard at her last joke. "And whatever happened to Hanson?!" Janeane questioned loudly, getting a loud roar of screaming from the crowd. "Where did those kids go huh? I guess when they heard there was an opening in the Spice Girls they fought to death over who was getting in huh?" Janeane joked. Another burst of laughter hit the opera house.

"But that's enough from me. Tonight we have a great show... it's the last VMA of the century and I'm hosting. So can we have a better time than this?" Janeane pretended to sound disturbed. "Now I have GOT to get out of this ugly dress... I feel like Whoopi Goldberg except everyone's laughing at my jokes." Janeane joked again, receiving a loud laugh. "So while I change into something from K-Mart, she was known as 'Penny' on Good Times and now I like to call her 'Barbie' because she's had her body mloded that way... ladies and gentlemen please welcome the GREAT... Miss Janet..." Janeane announced.

The crowd went wild as Janet Jackson came walking out in a hunter green dress, gleaming as she always did. Janet made her way down the catwalk where the fans reached out to her and she snobbishly ignored them until she got to the podium. "Thank you very much. I am here to present the award for Best Dance Video. And the nominees are..." Janet spoke in her sweet and soft voice. Janet turned to face the large screen behind her to see the nominees of the award.

"And the nominees for Best Dance Video are... Jordan Knight for 'Give It To You'... Fatboy Slim for 'Praise You'... 'N Sync featuring Lil' Kim & Busta Rhymes for 'Just II/Saw It Coming'... Ricky Martin for 'Livin' La Vida Loca'... Britney Spears for '...Baby One More Time'..." the montage ended with loud clapping. Janet turned to face the crowd again and pealed open the black envelope with the winner's name inside. "And the winner is Britney Spears for '...Baby One More Time'." Janet announced softly.

Britney covered her mouth in shock. She felt overwhelmed with surprise while hearing the crowd clap for her. Her cousin shook her and encourage her to stand. Britney kept her mouth covered and stood. She was unsure how to present herself but she walked down the long aisle still shaking. She felt a hand tap her and she turned slightly to see Will Smith congratulating her. Her eyes began to mist with slight tears, still caught up in her shock was she approached the stairs that led to the podium.

Britney did her best to strut up the stairs wearing a pure, see-through top, trimmed with black feathers courtesy of designer Todd Oldham. She found herself becoming nervous lifting each heel to get up the steps. She stumbled over to Janet with a smile and a few tears gracing her cheek. Janet graciously gave her a hug and whispered a mild congrtulations. Britney turned to the audience with a shakey smile. "Okay... this is really rough for me because I really, really, REALLY wasn't expecting this award tonight. It's such an honor, thank you MTV. Uhm.. okay I have to thank God first because He has blessed me with a lot of things that keep me going day by day. I have to thank my mother and my father for being the best parents I need. I've got to thank Nigel Dick, the director... my choreographer Darren... my dancers! A big shout out to them." Britney was still caught up in the moment, seeing eyes of the people she admire stare at her. "Uh.. uh... wow, this is overwhelming... uhm, I want to thank Max Martin for writing and producing such a great song and thanks to my family for supporting me. Thanks to the fans for their support... uhm, oh and Joey. Love you. Thank you all... this means more to me than you know." Britney gabbed out. She grabbed her award and followed Janet and the escort to the backstage area.

"Wow, now that's something for you. The first award of the night going to Britney Spears. What can we say? It's MTV!!!" Janeane cheered, wearing a loose brown sweater and baggy black slacks. "And now here to show you what MTV is ALL about, let's give it up for Kid Rock!!!" Janeane announced loudly.

Justin sat uncomfortable in his seat as he looked down to Brian and Leigh Ann talking casually. "You're staring." Lance nudged him. Justin looked up with curiosity. "Sorry..." he whispered. "Don't be sorry... be happy. You're at the MTV Awards and Kid Rock is performing... show some life." Lance advised. Justin shook his head and looked down at his program, avoiding watching his husband and Leigh Ann talk.

A little more time passed as a few awards were handed out. Janeane stood to the right of the main stage holding her mic and waiting for the show to return from commercial. When they cued her, she put on a false smile and looked to the camera. "Our next presenters are a treat. Now one of our presenters says, 'She's A Bitch' and our other presenter is a former Backstreet Bitch... please welcome rapper Missy 'Misdemeanor' Elliott and actress Leigh Ann Wallace." Jeneane introduced them while cracking a laughing smile.

Missy Elliott and Leigh Ann came from the left of the stage bearing smiles. Missy wore a shiny, silver jumpsuit with bright blue lipstick while Leigh Ann wore a semi-red dress that fit to her small form. They walked to the podium and took their positions. "We are here to give out the award for 'Best Group Video'." Leigh Ann smiled, trying to forget what Janeane had said about her moments before. "Yeah yeah ya'll. This award is given to the best group that shows true qualities in a video..." Missy explained. "The videos nominated each have their own unique look and sound." Leigh Ann stated. "so let's peep the nominees ya'll..." Missy added, both of them turning to face the lrage screen.

"The nominees for 'Best Group Video' are... TLC for 'No Scrubs'... 'N Sync featuring Lil' Kim & Busta Rhymes for 'Just II/Saw It Coming'... Limp Bizkit for 'Nookie'... Backstreet Boys for 'The One'... LEN for 'Steal My Sunshine'..." once again the montage was over and the girls faced the crowd. "Yeah yeah yeah... let's see uhm who the winners are." Missy chimed, popping the gum she chewed in her mouth. Leigh Ann struggled with the envelope before pulling it open. "Oh! And the winner is the Backstreet Boys for 'The One!" Leigh Ann cheered. Missy clapped along, noticing Leigh Ann's obvious joy.

Each of the guys looked at each other with pure shock. Howie was the first to stand, followed by Nick and then Kevin and A.J. with Brian standing last. Nick reached past Howie to shake hands with Brian who in turn pulled him into a hug. Howie smiled happily and pulled Danay into a sweet embrace. Kevin quickly pcked Nikki on the cheek before following A.J. down the row towards the main aisle. Brian and Nick followed with Howie taking the end.

They made their way up the steps with everyone cheering for them. A.J. made it to the podium first and grasped the award. "Wow! Did we win this ya'll?! Is MTV giving us this?!" A.J. shouted into the microphone, losing his humbleness. "Wow, this is amazing. Okay first we have to thank God for giving us what we have today. Without Him I'm not sure where any of us would be right now." A.J. made a point to his speech, receiving a cheer from many of the attendees. "I have to give props to my family and to the guys here for helping with this too because I'd truly be lost without them." A.J. added, feeling Kevin place a hand on his shoulder. Leigh Ann had her arm tightly wrapped around Brian's waist with joy. Brian felt uneased with her but stood until it was his turn to talk. Kevin eased by A.J. to the podium. "We have to thank our record label, Jive. Our management, the Firm. All of the artist who were up for this award... we think all of your videos were great. Our families and friends." Kevin backed away to let Howie in. "Yes, our families for supporting us. The writers and producers on 'Millennium' also. Also Fatima Robinson and Nigel Dick for helping with this video. 'N Sync, Innosense... uh Aaron Carter... Britney Spears and everyone else who was in the video. And now one of the writers on the song... Brian.." Howie turned and looked at Brian. Brian lightly pushed Leigh Ann back to get to the podium. "Uhm, I wanna thank MTV for giving us this award. To all the fans who supported this song... this video also." Brian spoke out shyly. "Like Kev said, we thank our label. I want to thank my parents and brother for their strong support... and I want to thank my baby for always being there for me... especially with what we've been through. You're my heart baby, thank you. Thank you all." Brian added, pulling back and grabbing the heavy Moon Man. The guys followed with Nick remaining silent and a bit depressed.

The guys followed the escort backstage and towards the winner's green room. "You guys will be going back to your seats shortly and then from there you'll be going to the performance green room for your set." a producer announced while the escort grabbed their Moon Man. "We'll be getting an address from your management as to where to send the Moon Men." the producer informed them, walking out of the room.

"Aye are ya'll going to any of the after parties or whatever? Or can you give me a number where I can reach you next week? I really wanna work with ya'll... maybe on a remix to one of your joints... maybe one of mine or something. Ya know? I just want to work with ya'll because ya'll are hot!" Missy spoke to them in her mild yet fuzzy tone. "I'll be at an after party if you're going to the 'N Sync one?" Brian replied. "I might hit that one. But gimme ya'lls number and I'll hit you back." Missy requested, looking for a piece of paper to write on. She and A.J. quickly clicked and began talks about things while the others lounged shortly.

"You okay?" Howie whispered to Nick. Nick nodded, looking around the room. "Sure?" Howie asked. "I.. I guess I'm just thinking about Josh." Nick whispered a reply. "Why don't you talk to him?" Howie suggested. Nick shook his head. "Why?" Howie asked. "It's not the time right now I suppose." Nick sighed. Howie shrugged, giving up the attempt to help Nick.

"I'm just so happy for you!" Leigh Ann cheered, wrapping her arms around Brian's neck. Brian sighed and gave her a small hug back. "Thank you Leigh Ann." he added. "This is so great! You guys won." she continued to cheer, ending their hug. "Yes... and we have to get back to our seats soon." Kevin added, signing the list of people who entered the room. Brian nodded, backing away from Leigh Ann.

Justin tapped his foot and bounced his head to the opening for Lauryn Hill's performance. She began with singing the simple remake of 'Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You'. Justin enjoyed Lauryn Hill's spin on the song greatly, smiling as she performed. He looked away from the stage and to where his husband was seated with Leigh Ann and the guys. He spotted Brian as he stood with Howie and A.J. He looked at them curiously as they walked down their row and then down the main aisle towards the back of the Opera House. He shrugged when Brian walked by without ackowledging him and returned his eyes to the performance Lauryn Hill put on. Lauryn slipped into 'To Zion' to give her performance a more dramatic aspect.

"I've got to pee." Chris whispered, standing from his seat and moving down the aisle. J.C. joined him in standing, agreeing with Chris's notion. "Ya'll had better hurry back." Abby warned them. "You're going to miss the rest of Lauryn." Lance added. Chris pouted while J.C. shrugged and kept moving by. "They had better hurry back." Abby grumbled. Mandy shook her head at her and relaxed next to Joey.

The end of Lauryn Hill's performance marked the moment for the guys of the Backstreet Boys to make their way to the green room. Justin slumped in his seat and watched Janeane Goraflo grace the stage again. He tilted his head as if he was to fall asleep soon. Before he could become fully comfortable, Abby nudged him hard. "Stay awake." she advised. Justin grumbled and straightened up in his seat. He felt Chris whisk by him but saw no sign of J.C. "Where is Joshua Chasez?" Abby hissed towards Chris when he finally found his seat. Chris gave her an odd look and turned to Justin. "I found something in the bathroom for you." he whispered by handing Justin a folded piece of paper. "It had better not be a guy's phone number." Justin joked with Chris lowly. "Where is J.C.?" Abby repeated her question. "Yeah... where is Josh?" Lance asked. "He had some important business to attend to." Chris replied snobbishly. "Business? His business is in here." Abby pouted. Chris shook his head and gave his attention to the quiet Mandy and Joey.

Justin unfolded his paper and saw a familiar handwriting. 'I love you Justin... Love, your baby...' the paper read in Brian's handwriting. Justin smiled brightly and looked over at Chris who smiled back. Justin folded the paper back up and held it firmly. He wished he could run out to the green room and see Brian at that moment but withheld his ambition for another moment.

Nick and Kevin quickly found A.J., Brian and Howie and walked with them and their escort to the green room. "You guys can get changed and set in here. Your dancers and Band are already set up right behind the stage and will be waiting on you to arrive." the escort informed them before walking off. Kevin shrugged and pulled open the door to the green room and let the others step inside before closing the door.

They looked around and in a corner of the room sitting upon a couch sat J.C. Kevin and Howie's mouths fell open in shock. "Hey, you can not watch me change!" Brian joked with him. "Ooh, how did YOU get in here?" A.J. asked with intrigue. "I have my ways." J.C. replied softly. "And ways of getting out of here I hope. This isn't too safe." Kevin warned him, walking over to the wardrobe rack. "I'll be just fine." J.C. assured him. Howie looked and Nick and gave him a slight nudge to coax him to talk to J.C. Brian smiled at J.C. before walking over to the wardrobe rack and pulling down his clothes.

Nick shyly walked over to the couch and sat down next to J.C. J.C. lost his smile and stared at Nick. Nick looked down at the couch, avoiding J.C.'s vibrant blue eyes. "Shouldn't you be getting dressed for your performance?" J.C. questioned Nick lowly. "Yeah... I guess so." Nick sighed carelessly. He stayed in hi seat while the others began to get dressed. J.C. looked Nick up and down and saw a silver necklace hanging around his neck. He carefully reached out and grasped the chain loosely. Nick turned to him with surprise while J.C. pulled the chain from out of the sweater. At the end of the chain hung a sterling silver ring. J.C. gave the ring a second look and noticed it was the ring that J.C. had given Nick. "Where did you get this?" J.C. asked Nick. Nick gave a small smile and pulled the chain from J.C.'s fingres. "I got it before I left Brian and Justin's house." Nick replied, looking at the T.V. monitor. "You... you got it?" J.C. stuttered out. "I can't just leave a promise ring that means something to me." Nick shrugged. J.C. was in awe of Nick.

The times he had felt Nick was immature, uncaring, senseless, heartless, cruel and even jealous were washed away with a drench sponge. J.C. was looking at Nick in a slightly brighter light. He scooted towards Nick and wrapped his arms around Nick's waist. Nick turned his head to look at J.C. with surprise. J.C.'s head was pressed against Nick's shoulder, hugging him tightly. "I'm sorry Nick." he whispered, letting loose his guilt. "Don't be sorry." Nick requested, rubbing a hand over J.C.'s hair. J.C. nuzzled his head to Nick with that sense of love again. "You promised to love me right?" Nick asked softly. J.C. lifted his head and brought his face near Nick's. "Always." J.C. whispered. He took a finger and ran it over Nick's soft, red lips. He leaned forward and gently pressed his lips to Nick's. Nick didn't feel caught off guard by the kiss, he gladly welcomed it. He brought his tender touch to the kiss as it moved slowly, trying to rebuild a flame that had been blown out in the past days. J.C. brushed Nick's hair back during their intimate kiss.

"You know I don't want to interrupt you and all but if you don't get dressed... they'll start without us." A.J. whispered to the couple. Nick felt J.C.'s tongue begin to slither in his mouth and held up one finger to let A.J. know they wouldn't be long. A.J. backed off and returned to fixing his hair in the mirror. Nick sucked on J.C.'s tongue for seconds before pulling back from the short lived kiss. It was passionate enough for J.C. as he panted lowly afterwards. Nick smiled and began to wipe away the small trials of saliva from near J.C.'s mouth. "I love you Josh." he whispered. J.C. gave him a kind smile. "Me too." J.C. gave a soft answer. "But I've got to get dressed... so I'll look for you in the audience." Nick added, inching near J.C. again. J.C. put his hand on Nick's chest and stopped him. "Have fun." he replied, trying to prevent he and Nick from kissing again. Nick nodded and stood from the couch.

Janeane looked to the camera with a generous smile. "Now these next three presenters got their name from their city area code. That's funny, I got my name from my parents but hell we name our children whatever we want now a days! Please welcome R&B group 702..." Janeane casually introduced them.

Meelah, Misha and Irish came walking out wearing magenta halter tops, white slacks and pinkish cowboy hats. They each held a microphone and smiled brightly. "Where my girls at?!" Misha called out, getting a wide response. Irish giggled at her older sister while Meelah held up her mic. "MTV asked us to introduce this next performance because we just came off of tour with this group." Meelah said. "Yeah, they wanted us to come up with something original to start this performance off." Misha added. "But we couldn't find anything nice to say about these guys. No kidding. They're really a great bunch of guys." Irish giggled. "They've sold millions of albums world wide." Meelah stated. "So we decided to give them a little tribute in our own way. Ready girls?" Misha asked, looking to her group members. They nodded and each held up their mics.

Where my Boys at?

From the front to back

Well is MTV feelin' that?

Then put one hand up

Can you repeat that?

I said Backstreet's Back

And we need that

So just play the song...

When their singing was through they caught their breaths and smiled. "Ladies and gents, will you please give it up for our boys... the BACKTSREET BOYS!" Irish screamed out. They cleared the stage as the large door lifted once again.

The stage was drapped in black. Everything was silent except for the crowd surrounding the catwalk. A single spotlight clicked on and went to the very top of a long, column staircase. At the top of the stairs stood Brian Littrell. Brian was dressed in a white wife beater with baggy white pants on. He wore a white baseball hat backwards and a headset microphone. He stood perfectly still, outlooking the audience. Brian heard a soft melody begin to play and he smiled, reminiscing on his younger days. He began to walk down the long steps as he sang the beginning of a song.

Turn around

Look at what you see

In her face

The mirror of your dream

Make believe I'm everywhere

I'm hidden in the lines

And written on the pages

Is the answer to a neverending story...

When the music ended, the spotlight fell and silence hit the stage once more. "BACKSTREET BOYS... THE ONE... begin..." a computerized voice spoke out. With the end of the voice, the lights flashed all over the stage and there were dancers filling the stage, dancing to one unique tune. The stage was blazing white as the lights clicked on all over. On the column stairs sat all of the Backstreet Boys, bobbing their head to the melody. Howie sat in a open, white button down shirt with a white wifebeater underneath. He wore white cargo pants and smiled as he bobbed his head. Kevin sported a cut off white shirt with baggy white sweats and pure white Reebok's. Nick's hair was slicked back and he wore a white T-Shirt and white cargo pants. His necklace was visible on his well developed body. A.J. wore a white leather jacket with a see-through, ivory shirt underneath. He sported his purple-tinted frames and baggy, white sweats. Each wore a headset microphone.

A.J. was the first to stand and walk out towards the dancers. The female dancers admired him as he did so and he stood at the front of everyone. The female dancers began to circle him as he sang the first verse.

I guess you were lost when I met you

Still there were tears in your eyes

So out of trust and I knew

No more than mysteries and lies

Brian ran up to where they were and caused the female dancers to follow him to one side of the stage while A.J. backed up and began a simple dance with the male dancers. Brian eyed each dancer as he sang his verse.

There you were, wild and free

Reachin' out like you needed me

A helping hand to make it right

I am holding you all through the night

Brian walked away while the others joined him and A.J. on the mainstage. They began a unison dance with the male dancers while the female dancers playfully watched. The guys began the chorus loudly, getting the crowd to go crazy with them.

I'll be the one (I'll be the one)

Who will make all your sorrows undone

I'll be the light (I'll be the light)

When you feel like there's nowhere to run

I'll be the one...

The guys ran down the catwalk with the crowd reaching for them. They all stood at the front of the stage while the lady dancers strutted by them. Nick grabbed one's arm and smiled at her to sing to her. She stopped and the other dancers ran behind the Backstreet Boys.

To hold you

And make sure that you'll be alright

Cause my faith is gone

And I want to

Take you from darkness to light

A.J. and Brian walked over to Nick and shoved him out of the way to grasp the female dancer's attention as they sang the verse together and in harmony.

There you were, wild and free

Reachin' out like you needed me

A helping hand to make it right

I am holding you all through the night

The guy dancers took the stage with everyone and danced the the female dancers as the Backstreet Boys sang the chorus. After the second chorus was done, all of the dancers and the Backstreet Boys left the small front stage except for Brian. He stood alone. The lights dimmed and everyone stood in the background while a melodic guitar played for Brian's bridge.

You need me like I need you

We can share our dreams comin' true

I can show you what true love means

Just take my hand, baby please

Brian searched the audience and caught grasp of a pair of loving blue eyes. He smiled and pointed out to the crowd as he sang. He knew Justin's eyes were staring at him for a reason.

Brian ran back to the main stage and saw the others preparing for their breakdown. Just the melody played and everyone began to dance the same dance, mimicing the video's dance. They all worked up a serious sweatm covering the whole stage in their perfected dance moves. The crowd cheered and clapped along. The Boys were fully into the performance with the crowd cheering along.

Everyone froze on the stage and A.J. walked forward with a smile. The music had stopped completely and everyone cheered as A.J. stood on the catwalk. He took a deep breath and snapped his fingers. The music began again with a crackling acoustic guitar. A.J. began to bob to the music as his part began.

I'll be the one

I'll be the light

Where you can run

To make it alright

I'll be the one

I'll be the light

Where you can run

The chorus started once more, everyone dancing again. They all danced in harmony and on beat with the music, breaking another hard sweat. The song was coming to a conclusion and somehow the guys were ready for it. Nick and A.J. walked to the front while the others prepared to pose behind them.

I'll be the one

To hold you

And make sure that you'll be alright

I'll be the one...

The crowd screamed loudly for the performance the guys had put on. Each guy panted hard as sweat dripped from their bodies. The large door began to come down again while they took a breather.

"WOW! I mean I know I'm supposed to sit up here and bitch about this boy band but they actually did pretty good. I take it back... white people can dance, just not Puff Daddy." Janeane said, clapping for the Boys. "The Backstreet Boys... we're going to have to change their names. Something like the Sex Freak Men... because they were acting like men looking for a good time, right?" Janeane joked. She received a small amount of laughter.

Just Beginning (Chapter 37) Written by JM

Brian sat in his seat watching TLC perform 'No Scrubs'. He felt Leigh Ann leaning near him as she too watched. "You don't think Justin is mad about this do you?" she questioned lowly. Brian looked back and saw Justin chatting with J.C. "I hope not Leigh Ann. After this... I can't do this anymore. No more of any of this. I have to be with my husband." Brian whispered back. "Brian if you come out to the public about you and Justin's marriage, you'll ruin the other guys' careers. You have to think about Howie, A.J., Kev and Nick. It's not just you in the Backstreet Boys." Leigh Ann warned him. Brian shook his head and let out a desperate sigh. "What am I supposed to do then?" Brian questioned. "Live your life behind closed doors to spare yourself trouble." Leigh Ann advised with her own motives. Brian sulked in his seat and watched as Left Eye took the stage.

"Okay our next presenters is an interesting pairing. We have one girl who's fifteen and just released her single called 'Candy'. Britney, look out, they're coming younger by the day. And the other has been showing her 'candy' to the world since the age of seventeen, please welcome singer Mandy Moore and rapper Foxy Brown." Janeane said with little interest but yet a smile.

Mandy Moore came walking from the side wearing a red baby tee and black capri's. She sported red Nike's and her natural blonde hair pulled up in a ponytail. Foxy Brown strut across the stage wearing a Clavin Klein, navy blue tube-top and tight, white pants. Foxy stopped to slap hands with some of the fans in the pit before making her way to the podium. They reached the podium with tempting smiles. "What's up ya'll?! How ya'll doin'?" Foxy shouted out into the mic. Mandy laughed at Foxy's rugged nature. "Aight, we're here to give out the award for a new category to this awards, 'Best Pop Video'." Foxy stated with her smokey voice. She looked at Mandy with a simplistic look. "Now this is your first time to the awards, right Mandy?" Foxy questioned. Mandy shyly moved up to the mic. "Yes, it is and I'm having a lot of fun." Mandy answered. "Yeah, me too. But you know the competiton for this award features alot of newbee's too. You've got a Queen of Pop." Foxy chimed. "And a Latin star." Mandy added. "Don't forget my Boys which are a boy band." Foxy commented. "Well what about my guys which are a boy band?" Mandy giggled. "Plus we've got the Queen of VMA's." Foxy reminded her. "Well then let's get to the nominees, shall we?" Mandy suggested. Foxy nodded and they turned for the monitor.

"The nominees for 'Best Pop Video' are... Britney Spears for '...Baby One More Time'... Ricky Martin for 'Livin' La Vida Loca'... 'N Sync featuring Lil' Kim & Busta Rhymes for 'Just II/Saw It Coming'... Madonna for 'Beautiful Stranger'... Backstreet Boys for 'The One'..." the monitor read off. Foxy and Mandy turned around with smiles. "Aight, let's find out who's talking home this Moon Man." Foxy advised, watching Mandy slip open the envelope. Mandy looked at the winner and smiled while Foxy wrinkled her nose. "The winner is 'N Sync featuring Busta Rhymes and Lil' Kim with 'Saw It Coming'!" Mandy shouted out happily.

The surprise hit 'N Sync quickly. Lance leaped up from his seat with Joey and they were the first to embrace. Justin stood, still in shock while J.C. and Chris did the same. Chris pushed by everyone to run down the aisles. Lance and Joey followed while J.C. and Justin took their time to reach the steps. They receoved loudly clapping as J.C. and Justin walked, finding Lil' Kim and Busta Rhymes to join them.

Everyone took the stage and made nice with Foxy Brown and Mandy Moore. Lil' Kim avoided saying anything to Foxy Brown but giving her a simple hug. Justin managed to creep past the others to the front of the podium. "Okay... aight ya'll... first we want to thank our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ... because God knows... I mean God knows." Justin said, getting an applause from everyone. "We really didn't expect this or anything tonight... so this is truly a blessing for us. THANK YOU MTV! Next we want to thank the writers and producers for this song... that's Dallas Austin, J.C., Chris, Miss Kim Jones... uh, myself... and of course Busta Bust!" Justin stated everything out. J.C. slid by Justin to the mic. "We have to thank our loved ones, our families for their support of us. The love has been amazing. Thanks to Trans Con, RCA, Johnny Wright and the whole brigade." J.C. said. "We want to thank MTV for this award. Our families both home and extended. The director of this video, Tim Story. Fatima Robinson for her dancing skills... Busta Rhymes and Lil' Kim for appearing in the song. Also Britney Spears too. The Backstreet Boys and Innosense for being in the video... and ALL of our fans." Lance added. "I jsut want to thank Britney since she thanked me." Joey giggled into the mic. Chris pushed him lovingly out of the way. "I just want to thank my dog Busta and my girl Meelah. And my brothers right here in 'N Sync because we never thought it'd come this far. Thanks MTV!" Chris announced. Lil' Kim stepped up with a smile. "I think me and Busta just want to thank 'N Sync for giving us a chance to do this video and rap on this song." Kim spoke mildly with her petite voice. Everyone stepped away before Justin got to the mic again. "I love you baby." he said quickly before running off with the others.

Janeane was almost through with her nightly duties and she felt a sense of relief. She raised her microphone for her next announcement. "Now when they said they needed someone to do the introduction for this next performance, I was kind of skeptical about it. Then I thought it over and figured why not? These guys are one of the hot boy bands on the charts and a hot one among the laides. Hmmm, I wonder why right? It's because they don't do bad things like the Backstreet Boys." Janeane teased. "And they are occapanied by a girl that I LOVE because she told Joan Rivers where to go!" Janeane said proudly, getting a loud clap. "Plus a woman who calls herself the Queen Bitch and she needs to be called the Queen of No Clothes and a man that I wouldn't trust my pitbull around... ladies and genetlemen, please welcome 'N Sync and friends!" Janeane shouted, giving up an applaudable introduction.

A school bell rang when the large door lifted to show the stage. Two rows of desks were set up on either side of a small staircase. Behind the desks stood a row of lockers. People occupied the desks, pretending to put on a conversation with each other.

"Room 'N... where is your teacher?" a voice was heard over the loud speaker. Everyone looked up and ignored the speaker. "Room 'N... where is your teacher?" the speaker asked again. "I'm right here..." a woman's voice replied.

Everyone's attention swiftly went to the top of the small stairs where Lil' Kim stood. She wore a long blonde wing, that smoothed past her shoulders, a form fitting jumpsuit that was missing the stomach piece and part of the leg pieces with feather peices at the end of each arm. She had on a headset that allowed her to dance and rap at the same time. She came trooping down the stairs with three female dancers following her to the front of the main stage. They began to dance to a DJ scratched beat while she rapped.

Uh, 'N Sync, Lil' Kim

N, Justin get it flippin' again

S, gimme Chris and we've got the best

Y, you know Joey ain't gon' waste no time

N, I've got Lance waitin' in the back

C, JC show 'em what's it gon' be

Lil' Kim, got the royalty cause I'm the Queen Bee

So let's just slide out and blaze the song

I've got this feeling, I saw this hit coming

After Kim's part ended, her and her dancers turned to the students and froze. "We're out..." Kim's voice came over the speakers electronically before her and her dancers ran offstage. The students sat in awe.

The bell rang once more and everyone smiled. "'N Sync... now you may get down..." an electronic voice rang over the speakers. The guys of 'N Sync made themselves known by standing up on their desks. The awaited the next sound as their dancers too flooded out of their desks. "3... 4..." the electronic voice spoke out. The music began over the speakers and the guys began to dance carefully upon their desks. As it ended, they hopped off their desks, wearing urban wear from Old Navy.

'N Sync and their dancers stood perfectly still on stage. The sounds of a tattering drum ran over the speakers. Each line of dancers and 'N Sync moved to the beat and then that of a dog gruffing. They made their way to the front with the beat before stopping again.

A sratching beat of the remixed version to 'Saw It Coming' came blaring over the speakers. The guys began slight movements with the scratching. Justin took the forefront when the remixed beat finally started to move at it's regular pace. Justin wore a green shirt under a hunter green vest and baggy cargo pants. He danced with the others as his verse came up.

I was in a daze from the first time

I heard you sing your song, you were mine

Lost in a world of desire and trust

But then you showed me the way to love

J.C. ran up wearing a cut off red shirt and extensively bagging jeans. He sported a temporary tattoo on his left shoulder and seemed to let his body move with the intense beat.

The way you made the room glow

I couldn't ignore you anymore

Even if the stars didn't shine at night

You seemed to move the sands of time, oh

The guys came up together and danced when the chorus finally hit. The hard hitting beat caused everyone to work extremely hard to hit each dance move and each note to perfection.

Can you say that you will be with me

Stop telling all your friends you don't love me

Cause I'm tired of playing games

I saw it coming that first day

I have a million questions for you

Tell me baby, say it's true

Is it my time to finally hold you

Oh baby, I wanna love you

The strong drum beat started again and everyone began to dance to that tune. Each member was in synch with the other as they came closer to the fan area while dancing. They all stopped after the last dog's growl and froze in place in front of the fans area..

"'N Sync... you are not done..." the computerized voie spoke up. Everyone fell to the floor with a loud bang. The sound of an Oriental beat mixed with a hard hitting bass filled the speakers and Busta Rhymes came running on stage with a Samauri outfit on. Chris stood from his position and ran over to Busta, dance-fighting as they began their rap together.

Aye see, when I saw you, I was 'N Sync

The way you made me bounce, my heart beat

You was alto, for my soprano

My X to my O, my Mighty in my Joe

You know me and these five cats, never look back

We might say 'I Want You Back', but never believe that

I see two honies, lookin' fly to me

Put your hands where my eyes can see

If you really wanna be with me

Busta's rap and high energy got the crowd moving. They clapped and cheered along while Chris prepared for his verse.

Well first chance, I'm gon' move to the next dance

If she wants a scrub, then I'm not the man

Now I'm 'N Sync cause of her loving

So what's up girl, I Saw It Coming, uh

Chris gave Busta one last false kick before Busta fell onto the floor of the stage like the others. "Class... where is Britney? Britney? Britney?" Kim's words were heard from off stage. "I'm right here!" Britney's voice chimed, causing another loud bang and Chris to fall to the floor.

Britney appeared in the area Lil' Kim had before. Her outfit was daring for her own taste, a tight, spangly black and silver midriff-baring shirt and pants that were barely hanging on to her hips, all made of black leather. With a few snaps of her fingres, her dancers appeared from each side of the stage and ran with her to the middle of the stage. She looked around before her music started for her part of the song, remixed as the others were. She wiped her long hair around and walked in front of her dancers as they began to dance.

Oh baby you know I love you

Oh baby you know that I want you

But you keep trippin' on me

I wanna stay 'N Sync, baby

Hit me... baby... one...

Stop...

The coppy remix hit hard with her dancers. She stood still for a minute and smiled. "Now I'd like to introduce you to some friends of mine..." she spoke out with a pout. Her music was soon switched to a fast-paced beat, giving it a Southern touch and everyone stood to dance. 'N Sync, Britney Spears and both of their dancers filled the stage with hot and quick movements that accompanied their remixed beat. The beat stopped again and Britney looked up. "Ladies and gentlemen... 'N Sync..." she smiled. They all posed after sound effects and a bell rang loudly. "School's out..." Justin announced, ending their hot and dance-filled performance. They received a loud praise from the audience, causing everyone to smile.

Another commercial break filled the slot needed before Janeane graced the stage again. "Our next presenters are a motley crew -- one is an actor that just finished playing a vicious party promoter that ends up murdering his friend. That's original." Janeane used her dry sense of humor. "Another is the frontman for a band that sounds like a pimp's name from Starsky & Hutch, and the other is the consummate angry bitch, man-hating woman of the nineties. Ladies and Gentlemen, Matt Thompson, Mark McGrath, and Alanis Morissette!" Janeane announced.

'So Pure' by Alanis Morissette started as Mark, Matt and Alanis came walking around from behind the barrier on the stage. The crowd immediately started cheering as the threesome came walking towards the podium and mic to present. Matt stopped as he saw the audience and stood in front of the "mosh pit", as Alanis and Mark continued walking towards the podium. As soon as Alanis and Mark had reached the podium, they looked back to see Matt running towards the "mosh pit" and leaping into the crowd. The audience started cheering as the people in the pit caught Matt and "body surfed" him back up to the stage. Alanis and Mark started laughing as Matt landed back on the stage and immediately turned around to give people in the pit high fives.

After a couple high-fives, Matt quickly ran down to the podium, and came to a stop at the podium between the two. Alanis and Mark laughed at Matt as he stood there, getting his suit back in order and straightened his tie like nothing had happened. "Sorry guys," Matt spoke into the mic as soon as his clothes were straight, "I'm just an actor. I never get to do that. You rockstars can understand." "You should have told me you were gonna do that, we could've body surfed together, man." Mark laughed at Matt. "Yeah, well, I wanted to be an individual I guess." Matt replied with a sigh. "Alright guys. Now everyone knows why I berate men in my songs." Alanis joked. "We can be pretty childish." Mark agreed. "Okay, you two. We gots an award to present here. Let's be serious." Matt acted serious. "Yeah right!" Alanis laughed. "Well, let's just do this then." Mark agreed with Matt. "Okay. Ladies and Gentlemen, we're here to present the MTV Viewer's Choice Award for 1999." Alanis intro-ed. "We have two boy bands, a pop singer, an R&B group that Matt loves, and two thrash/metal bands as nominees." Mark continued. "I love them all. And I wish they could all win." Matt teased. "I bet." Mark laughed. "Here are the nominees." Alanis spoke up.

"The nominees for 'Vewier's Choice' are... Backstreet Boys for 'The One'... TLC for 'No Scrubs'... Britney Spears for 'Sometimes'... Korn for 'Freak On A Leash'... Limp Bizkit for 'Nookie'... 'N Sync featuring Lil' Kim & Busta Rhymes 'Just II/Saw It Coming'..." "Okay Alanis, open that envelope." Matt leaned on the podium. "Alright guys." Alanis replied and opened the envelop as Matt and Mark looked over her shoulders. "The winner is..... Backstreet Boys, 'The One'!" Alanis announced.

With the name being read, each boy leaped up with enthusiasm and great gratitude. Howie latched onto Nick for a hug while Kevin gave Nikki a sweet and lasting hug, A.J. smiled brightly and Brian gave Leigh Ann a quick and shot hug. Leigh Ann tried to make the moment last but Brian boke away to join his counterparts on the way to the stage with Kevin and A.J. trailing behind.

The sounds of 'The One' filled the opera house as they walked up the steps towards the podium. Nick was the first to grab the Moon Man and hold it up for everyone to see, shaking hands breifly with the presenters. Howie followed, scooting past Nick to get a hug from Alanis and shake hands with Matt and Mark. Brian grabbed the Moon Man from Nick who invited him closer to the podium. Brian flashed Matt a smile and ackowledged Mark and Alanis. Matt managed to smile back and pat Brian on the back. Kevin made his way behind Brian while A.J. stood to the far right.

"Can I say something right quick guys?" a tall man dressed in a tux interrupted the flow the guys were enjoying. "Sure." Howie replied, giving him an odd look. The man made it to the podium to announce, "Wake up at three." He left with those words, leaving everyone puzzled. Brian took the podium and yelled, "Somebody get him out of here!" His joke was well loved by everyone. Howie laughed along with Brian. "Oh, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Uh, oh. Yeah I know... he was trying to be the sixth member I think. Uhm." Brian continued to joke, getting a small laugh from Matt. "Ladies and gentlemen.. uh... I have to thank, uh... I have to thank God, my Heavenly Father." Brian announced, soliticing claps from many. "Because uhm... we've had uh... we've had a lot of trials and tribulations in this past year and a half and I want to thank Him for uh the perseverance and the strength to go through so... this is to You God. Thank You very much, appreciate it." Brian stated. "Also I need to, I NEED to thank my family, both these guys and my family for being there for me personallyand with this group and my baby for dealing with a lot of things and standing by me. I know there's a lot of things I just can't do without you... so thank you for helping me be the man that I am." Brian added before walking away from the podium. He stood next to Matt with a smile and nudged him. "Along with God, I want to thank all of our family.. that's been there through all the trials and tribulations.. since the beginning, since day one. Since six years ago bakc since we got together as a group. Thank you. Thank you to all of our fans, here and worldwide. This is for you, thank you." Howie commented.

A.J. took the front with a small smile. "Thank you to uh MTV, to my Boys for helping make my dreams come true. Baby I love you, mom I love you. Thank you to all the people back home, we love you. Thank you to all of the other acts... you guys were tough competition and uh, it was a tough choice. So thank you. Thank you to all the people and we love you everyone." A.J. said with a low tone. "Thank you to MTV and to all of our fnas worldwide because you guys made this happen. Thank you." Kevin quickly said. "I never get to talk so I just wanna say 'Hi' to everyone back home." Nick complained with a smile. Kevin grabbed their award and they made their way back to the green room with smiles.

The Backstreet Boys pushed by press to get to the green room where friends were already beginning to locate. Brian peered past everyone and saw Justin awaiting him with a smile. Brian quickly rushed into the green room and grabbed Justin's hand. He saw the others just beginning to get in and took this took his advantage. He gave Justin a soft yet quick kiss on the lips. Justin felt the smoothness of the kiss before pulled back. "What was that for?" Justin questioned in surprise. "I'll tell you later." Brian whispered, seeing his friends invading the room. Brian became bold and took a light grasp of Justin's hand to show him some form of affection. Justin gladly took it and searched around the room for kind faces. Brian eyed Matt Thompson as he made his way into the room too. Justin caught what Brian was staring at a wrinkled his brow.

Matt walked into the room and immediately made his way over to Alanis, whom had taken up a corner with Mark. "Where's the mini-bar, folks?" Matt asked, quickly, faking exhaustion. "What do you need?" a man with a white tux jacket on, who was standing nearby asked as soon as the question was stated. "Huh?! Oh, rum and coke." Matt smiled, sort of surprised by the service. "You're lucky you weren't black-holed in the mosh pit and torn to bits by your fans." Alanis smiled at Matt as she sipped on her drink. "Oh well. I had to try it anyway. If Tim Robbins can do it, I can too, dadgummit." Matt laughed as the man returned and handed him his drink.

Brian and Justin stood there amidst they're friends, all making polite conversation about it being a good thing that "both of the two groups won". Justin was more content to remain silent and stare longingly as Brian chatted it up with everyone, humbly thanking everyone that congratulated him. After several minutes of just standing there, listening to the chatter, Brian and Justin dove off into their own little world, looking around the room, and giving little glances to each other. Justin smiled contentedly, finally finding an empty couch to sit down with Brian and escape the mindless banter of the passerby.

After sitting for awhile, Justin noticed that Brian was staring, more than randomly, over into the corner where Matt was standing. Justin was about to comment on it when Brian turned to him and spoke. "Come on, I want you to meet someone." Brian stood slowly, then waited on Justin to follow his lead. "Who?" Justin asked as he slowly stood to look at Brian. "Matt Thompson. I haven't gotten to talk to him all night." Brian smiled quickly and began to walk towards the corner containing Matt, Alanis, Mark and a few random people that had stopped as well. When Justin and Brian had come within ten feet of the group, Matt and Alanis quickly gave each other a kiss on the cheek, and Matt began to walk away towards the door. However, as soon as he saw Brian and Justin heading towards him, he turned and smiled, waiting for them to approach.

"Hey boy!" Matt laughed and reached out to grab Brian's hand as he approached. "I was pretty impressed on how well you body surf." Brian laughed as he shook Matt's hand. "Yeah, well you know, I practiced and got my moxy down before the start of the show." Matt faked egotism and turned up his nose as he shook Brian's hand, making Brian giggle. "Well, you learn quickly, then." Brian replied. "Congrats on winning. No one deserved it more." Matt smiled quickly. "Yeah right. I know you wanted TLC to win." Brian teased. "Yeah well, shhhhhhh." Matt laughed as he put his finger to his lips. Justin stood, watching the display of bullshitting, feeling completely left out. He eyed Brian, wanting to smack him upside the head for not introducing him. He couldn't stand the neglect any longer, and coughed, signaling his prescence. "Oh, Matt, this is Justin." Brian looked at Justin and blushed. "Ah, the guy I heard so much about at the premiere. Nice to meet you." Matt extended his hand to Justin and smiled. "All bad, I'm sure." Justin smiled convincingly and shook Matt's hand. "Brian? Talk bad about someone? Why would you think that?!?!" Matt exaggerated. "Hey now, don't fill his head with ideas." Brian teased, but was still blushing for forgetting Justin.

"Alright, alright. I'll be good if I must." Matt smiled. "You? Be good? Yeah right." Brian teased again. "I know, it's almost impossible." Matt sighed, then continued. "Your husband here told me a lot of nice things about you, Justin." Matt placed his hand on Brian's back as he said the last bit. "You don't have to cover for him." Justin joined in on the joke, but didn't like Matt touching Brian. "It's true, it's true." Matt laughed. "Nothing but good things. See, I told you." Brian backed up Matt with a laugh, placing his hand on Matt's back in return. "So, have you given anymore thought to that idea we had at the premiere, Bri?" Matt quickly changed the topic and looked at Brian. "I really haven't asked the guys, yet." Brian glanced nervously at Justin. "I'm sure they'd love it." Matt glanced from Brian to Justin. "What idea?" Justin asked quickly. "I suggested to Bri here that he should bring you and all the other guys to my condo I bought in Florida for a -- oh Jesus, what was that thing again?" Matt spoke. "Barbecue, boy." Brian laughed and slapped Matt playfully on the arm. "Oh yeah, a barbecue thing. Dead animals and the sort. Would you be interested?" Matt looked at Justin. "It sounds like fun." Justin agreed, but didn't really want to go -- especially with how touchy-feely Matt and Brian were with each other. "Great!" Matt smiled. "Well, I guess that makes it official." Brian laughed. "Yep, I'm finally going to get you into my house, B-Rok." Matt laughed, causing Brian to giggle. Justin laughed along, but didn't like the innuendo of the joke. "Well guys, I have to head out. I want to be the first into that after show party before it gets crowded. You have my number, Bri, give me a call." Matt quickly extended his hand to Justin, which was quickly accepted and shook. "Sho' 'nuff." Brian laughed. "Great seeing you again." Matt gave Brian a quick handshake and a hug. "Nice meeting you Justin." Matt added. "Same here, Matt." Justin smiled fakely as Matt started to walk away.

"Barbecue at Matt's, huh?" Justin quickly lost his smile as soon as Matt was out of the green room. "Yeah, it'll be fun." Brian replied, sheepishly. "Yeah, I guess so." Justin tried to get the thought of Matt being so friendly with Brian out of his mind. "Hey, there's TLC. Let's go say 'hi'." Brian suggested quickly and grabbed Justin's arm, dragging him along. Justin followed Brian, still wondering what Matt's intentions were exactly.

Christina stood in the lobby of the Metropolitan Opera House looking around while stating seductively. "Well isn't this a rememberance of the MMC days." she heard a voice speak up. "That's funny because we were friends then." Christina said chipperly, shifting around to see Britney looking at her. "Exactly, we 'were' friends." Britney sneered. "And then what? I made a number one album and you get pissy?" Christina asked snobbishly. "No... I'm dating a great guy and you go and try to steal him." Britney remarked. "I'm sorry but red's not my color and so I don't want Joey." Christina curled her lip with her reply. "Not Joey... Justin." Britney hissed. Christina smiled with the name and raised her brow. "Oh yeah... Justin Timberlake. He never wanted you Britney." Christina commented harshly. "And like you'd know? No guy wanted you and you were just jealous of me." Britney argued. "PLEASE! You just wish I was jealous of you're non-dancing ass." Christina laughed. "Oh really? Why did you lie to Justin then? Why'd you tell him I kissed Ryan?" Britney asked. "I did no such thing." Christina snapped. "Shall I go get Nikki? J.C.? Or even Ryan himself?" Britney barked. "Like this is something to stay mad about? You're not with Justin now... well at least that's what everyone says. You may be getting around." Christina knew how to dig at Britney. "I'm sorry... whore was written on your dressing room door." Britney snapped. Christina felt her rage towards Britney growing. Britney's rage was beyond her normal point.

"I have nothing to say about this Miss Spears. I'm the new thing while like with Justin, you're yesterday's news." Christina chimed. "Oh you are eh? So you think you're going to get Justin?" Britney crossed her arms with her question. "Baby I KNOW I'm going to get him." Christina pouted. "And how's that?" Britney questioned. "I can easily get him from his little girlfriend... just a snap of the fingers." Christina insisted. "HAH! It's too bad he doesn't have a girlfriend." Britney remarked. "Oh he's single?! All the better." Christina bubbled. "No... he's married." Britney replied, giving away a secret. "Married?! He's got a wife?!" Christina asked with total shock. Britney rolled her eyes and knew she was going to have to fess up to ruin Christina. "He has a husband... Brian Littrell." she snapped. Christina's mouth fell open. "And he's madly in love and doesn't want anything to do with cheap tramps like you. So uhm, why don't you make like a Geinie and get in your bottle bitch." Britney added with total control. Christina stood without ability to say anything. "Oh and... he never wanted you anyway." Britney whispered into Christin's ear before walking away with a vibrant smile.

Christina looked around the lobby to see if anyone had seen her and Britney's argument. She spotted Leigh Ann standing nearby with a smile. Christina quickly approached her with her angered expression. "You're the girl who's supposed to be dating Brian of Backstreet, right?" she questioned quickly. "That might be me... why?" Leigh Ann asked, crossing her arms. "I think me and you need to talk then. I figure with the two of us, Brian and Justin can't fight us off for long." Christina suggested to Leigh Ann. Leigh Ann gave Christina a quick look over. Leigh Ann began to laugh softly. "With that dress?! Bitch please!" Leigh Ann snickered at Christina. Christina became angered once again. "If I want Brian... I sure don't need a little slut's help. I can handle it on my own." Leigh Ann insisted. Christina balled her fists and looked at her rashly. "You can't get Justin away from Brian by yourself." Christina scowled. "I did it once and I can do it again." Leigh Ann assured her. "But I can help." Christina did her best to convince Leigh Ann. Leigh Ann looked at her once more before bursting into laughter again. "You couldn't even handle Britney..." Leigh Ann giggled.

While standing in their hostile ways, the two quickly felt something splash over their backsides, hitting their hair and dresses. They both turned around in utter shock and disgust as they were now wet with water. Misha and Irish laughed from either side of them, holding glasses in their hand. "I don't think you'll be getting anybody Miss Genie. Your best bet is to think of Justin as married... FOREVER." Misha said, walking towards Irish with a big smile. "And uh Leigh Ann, Britney was just a preview if you come between Brian and Justin again." Irish cheered, holding in her anger. Leigh Ann watched both of them walk back into the main area as she and Christina stood dripping with water. "I hate girls! I fucking swear every time I go somewhere my dress gets fucked up." Leigh Ann growled. Christina stood in shock still, knowing she had more enemies than she was prepared for.

TO BE CONTINUED...

--- Before the usualy end notes, I HAVE to thank my big bro, my Blue, the Queen Bitch. Thank you Leprechaun for contributing to this story! Leprechaun wrote all of the parts but one small paragraph that contained Matt Thompson. So anything that you see with Matt is courtsey of his creator, Leprechaun. He even threw in a little bit of Brian and Justin in there, how cute! :) Thank you Leprechaun! Now that's an inspiration for you. Okay I better stop now before he kicks my ass for "taking it over the top". ---

*** I hope no one's mad that I took long for this one. I worked REALLY hard all this week to finish it up and as you can see it's long. That's something you can't complain about because hey, some authors take a whole month to get parts out and it maybe only two chapters, so please be patient when I take about two weeks to write. I beat my deadline! :) Oh and let me use the oh too famous excuse on Nifty, "Sorry there wasn't much sex in here but there will be more later. I wanted people to get to know the charatcers first..." I LOVE that excuse. NOT! I didn't have the nerve to write too much sex ths time peeps. BIG THANK YOU to WhiteKnight for the info he gave me. I couldn't have written some parts without his exact information. He writes 'Justin's Dream', so check it out ya'll. Thanks to Rick for letting me do my little part in 'The One'. People, I only wrote about Brian and Justin's first time and it was great for me to do! I have an upcoming project in the works with the Vascardi's, that'll be fun to write about... well Brian and Justin! LOL. Plus I have a deal with them to write an actual album for thier series and it'll actually be a song by song deal for each set of their stories. That'll be cool. If you ever want me to write a song for your series, just ask. I can handle it. I'm working on a big project that'll either be done next month OR in November. I am STILL backed up on e-mail people please be patient. Those of you who like to write LONG letters, you have to really be patient because those take time for me to be able to sit down and respond to. I get quite a few of those and it's hard for me to answer right away. I hope you enjoy these parts and let me know... ***

** I am setting up a thing with my webmaster Netboy. It's a chance for author's that also have webpages to send the address of your page to Netboy and he'll put it up on the Links page on my page. So you can just e-mail him at: O1NetboyMM@aol.com ALSO he's working on a Review's page where he and two other people will review stories from the Boy Band section in Nifty and put them on my page. He needs two other people to work with on th reviews, so if you e-mail him at the above address, he can pick two people who are not biased and can review any story with fair reviewing, good or bad. Thanks. **

• SPECIAL NOTICE: The times and dates in this story are behind. I fixed it so it was actual to that of the MTV Awards. I do not have all the information about 'N Sync's supposed switch to Jive Records so any info I have given was created by me. The actual MTV VMA's was hosted by Chris Rock with many changes done by me. I did not appreciate some of the things Chris Rock said, yes he was funny at first but then they got tired and boring. So I chose a host that would make me laugh without putting down other races but their own. Also I did not like the way MTV picked certain people just because and not for the raw talent behind some videos. I won't name name's but that is why I changed things around in this story to fit a better VMA in my opinion. Thank you... *

DECEMBER: Walking into a Winter Wonderland...

• BRIAN: Does he love Justin as much as he says? Was there ever any feelings between he and Nick? Does he want a baby? Can he handle taking care of a child? Has he ever thought of cheating on Justin? Is his worst fear that he can not live without Justin? How does he handle Kevin? What is his true nature towards Leigh Ann? Is he capable of cheating on his husband?

• LANCE: Where does he go from here? Can he get back J.C.? Would he prefer have his first love, Nick back? Does he have animosity towards Brian and Justin? Can he take Bryce's virginity and not care? Can he find help in someone else to win the affection of someone? Is he meant to be alone forever? Will he stay with 'N Sync with no love?

• IRISH: Does she like Justin? Can she stop Leigh Ann? Can she find help in Britney to help keep Brian and Justin together? Is she ready for her friend to become involved with Chris Kirkpatrick? Does she trust Brian fully? Is her battle with Kevin or Lance over?

• NIKKI: What does she see in Kevin? Can she bring him back to a place of understanding? Is her love worth fighting for? Is she prepared for Amanda's pregnancy? What will she do if her group falls apart? Does she see hope in Brian and Justin's marriage or disaster in J.C. and Nick's love affair? Is she worried of pregnancy herself? Did she and Kevin share her virginity? Does she have feelings towards J.C. still? Does she want marriage or nothing? What will time do to her if she frets for everyone but herself?

It's getting cold outside...