The legal stuff: This is a sexually explicit story (at times) involving homosexuality. By continuing to read, you affirm under penalties of perjury that you are not a minor or in the company of a minor and are entitled to have access to sexually explicit material. The content and opinions expressed in this story do not imply anything with regard to the sexual preference of any member of 98 Degrees or other celebrities named herein. This is a work of fiction entirely.
Author Notes: Thank you for taking the time to read my story. Thank you HR for being such a great friend and thank you to my readers for your continued support and keeping me motivated to continue with this story.
Dizzy
By: A
June 2013
The guys of 98 Degrees were sitting around the house they shared in Los Angeles, California. Drew was sitting on the couch flipping through channels until Justin stopped him.
"Wait, leave it here." Justin said as the opening sequence to the popular FOX reality show So You Think You Can Dance started. "I love this show."
"You do?" Jeff asked.
"Yes, I watch it every summer." Justin exclaimed, as the guys looked at him funny. "What? I'm serious."
Drew dropped the remote and ate his pizza as the show started. "So, what exactly is this show?" he asked with a mouth full of pizza.
"It's like American Idol except with dancing instead of singing." Justin explained. "Some of the pro dancers from Dancing with the Stars were discovered through this show."
"Oh yeah, I think Lance mentioned something about this show before." Drew said remembering his best friend making him watch the show a few years ago.
"How is he doing by the way?" Nick asked.
"He's doing well. I'm supposed to meet him for lunch tomorrow." Drew replied before taking another bite of his pizza.
The group settled into watching Justin's favorite show. They were watching the two-hour live show that introduced the top twenty dancers chosen to compete for the public vote for the season. Justin explained to the guys that the dancers each had their own individual specialty and for the first episode, they danced a number in their own style. They sat and watched the tap dancer, the contemporary dancers, the jazz dancers, the ballet dancers, and the hip-hop dancers.
"Welcome back to So You Think You Can Dance. It's time to meet our final two dancers in this year's top 20." Drew heard on the television as he stood up to go get a drink from the kitchen.
"You guys need anything from the kitchen while I'm up?" Drew asked.
"No." Nick, Justin, and Jeff replied in unison.
Drew chuckled and went into the kitchen as a young red haired woman came on the screen and began talking about herself. Drew went into the fridge and got himself another bottle of beer. When he walked back into the living room, he looked at the television and immediately stopped in his tracks, dropping his unopened bottle of beer on the floor, shattering it.
"My name is Andrew Paul Williams, I'm 27 years old, and I am a ballroom dancer from North Carolina. 6 years ago, I was diagnosed with a brain tumor and underwent surgery to have it removed. I was in a coma for 8 months and when I awoke, I had no memory of my life. A friend suggested I start dancing after I went through rehab. When I was a teenager, I competed in national ballroom dance competitions and she thought that if I started dancing again it would trigger some memories for me. I still don't remember anything about my life before I woke up in the hospital but I have hope that one day I will eventually get my memories back."
Drew stood in shock as he stared at the familiar face on the television. All of his memories from six years ago came flooding back and he sat down on the couch in utter shock and continued to watch Andrew on the television.
"Dancing a ballroom medley routine choreographed by Louis Van Amstel, please welcome to the stage...Paris and Andrew!"
Drew was so engrossed in watching the television, he did not hear his cell phone ringing. It was not until Nick threw a pillow at Drew's head did he snap out of his reverie and answer his phone.
"Hello?" Drew said without looking to see who was calling since he did not want to take his eyes off the television.
"You will never guess what I am watching right now." Drew heard Lance's voice say on the phone. "You remember that dance show I like? So You Think You Can Dance? Well, it's on right now and guess who is a contestant in the top 20?"
"Andrew is." Drew replied. "We're watching it now."
"You guys are watching it now?" Lance asked. "Are you ok?"
"Yeah...I think I'm ok." Drew said quietly. "I'll call you later."
Drew hung up the phone before Lance could even say goodbye. At the end of Andrew's dance, Drew watched the judge's critique. He found himself smiling as the judge's praised Andrew's technique. After a few more minutes, the show was over and Drew started flipping through the channels trying to find something new to watch.
"Are you ok bro?" Nick asked Drew quietly.
"Yeah...why wouldn't I be?"
Nick opened his mouth to reply but Drew got up and went upstairs to his room. Justin looked over at Nick. "Do you think we should go up and check on him?"
"No, he probably needs some alone time to sort out his feelings." Nick replied.
"What feelings?" Jeff asked harshly, causing Nick and Justin to glare at him. "Don't look at me like that. He made a decision six years ago. He chose his career and his privacy over Andrew when those rumors started circulating while we were in Boston. He got back with Lea and had two kids with her!"
"Calm down Jeff." Nick said to his best friend.
"No! It's his fault Emma broke up with me." Jeff said angrily."When she took Andrew off of life support, he was supposed to die and when he didn't, she had all this hope that he would wake up and be ok. She wanted us to stick around, to be there for him and for her. When the media put pressure on him to address the rumors, he caved and went back to Ohio and the rest of us had no reason to stay!"
"Are we seriously going to rehash this?" Justin asked rolling his eyes. "That was 6 years ago. Get over it!"
"No, I'm not going to get over it!" Jeff said to Justin before he stormed off and out of the house. Justin and Nick heard a car start and speed off. Nick sighed and grabbed his phone.
"Who are you calling?" Justin asked.
"We are going to need reinforcements so I'm calling Lance, Vanessa, and Lea." Nick replied as he dialed a number.
August 2013
Drew sat in front of the television with Lance, Vanessa, Justin, and Nick. Over the last few weeks, Drew's life had been an emotional roller coaster and the only thing he looked forward to was the Wednesday night airings of So You Think You Can Dance. Every week, Drew watched the show to see how Andrew was fairing in the competition and every week, Drew voted for Andrew as many times as he was allowed.
"I still cannot believe he made it into the top 6." Vanessa said as they watched the show.
"I can...he's an incredible dancer." Drew said and Vanessa saw a small smile form on his face.
"Where's Jeff and Lea?" Lance asked.
"Jeff will be here in a few minutes." Justin said. "He got stuck in traffic and Lea..."
"Lea's in Hawaii with her boyfriend." Drew finished for Justin.
"Wait...what?!" Lance exclaimed and Drew realized he forgot to fill Lance in on the events that had transpired within the last couple of weeks.
"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you." Drew said as he turned to Lance. "Lea and I are getting another divorce."
"What? Why?"
"Well, she's done a lot for me the last couple of years. She put her relationship on hold to help me through those rumors and she's ready to be loved by someone in a way that I can't love her." Drew said quietly.
"This doesn't have anything to do with Andrew does it?" Lance asked his best friend.
"No...I mean I know that's how it seems what with the timing of us seeing him on that show but no. Lea's boyfriend gave her an ultimatum. He's tired of the whole situation and she deserves my understanding." Drew explained.
"After all the money you have paid out, I still think he is an asshole for putting you and her in this situation." Nick stated with a hint of anger in his voice.
"It's ok...I've been selfish for far too long." Drew admitted. "I made a decision 6 years ago and was only thinking of myself. I didn't think of Lea, Jeff, or even Emma or Andrew."
"Well, what's done is done." Justin said quietly. "You can't change the past."
"I know...that's why I am going to give Lea what she wants and deserves." Drew said. "We are going to do a press release when she gets back in three days and then we will begin the separation process."
The mood amongst the group had turned sour as they continued to watch the television. Towards the end of the hour-long results show, it was announced that Andrew had been eliminated in sixth place.
"Aw no." Vanessa said sadly. "He was doing so great."
"He finished good considering ballroom dancers never fare well on this show." Lance said informatively. "The second season was won by a swing dancer but no one specializing in ballroom has ever made it past the top 6 other than my friend Lacey and she came in fourth."
"Well he did a great job. I wouldn't be surprised if he got an offer from Dancing with the Stars." Vanessa said. "Hell, I'd do the show if he was my professional partner."
Everyone laughed as the mood lightened. Drew could not help but wonder if he should reach out to Andrew, especially since he knew the show was filmed in Hollywood. Now that Andrew had been eliminated, Drew was sure Andrew would not stay in town for long.
Jeff arrived home sometime later and walked in the living room to see his friends chilling out and watching some random movie on the television. He threw his keys onto the coffee table and collapsed onto the couch.
"What did I miss?" Jeff asked the group.
"Andrew got eliminated in 6th place." Vanessa explained.
"That sucks." Jeff simply said before turning to Drew. "You going to go see him?"
Drew did not answer Jeff, his mind filled with too many thoughts and decisions he needed to figure out how to address.
February 2014
Andrew yawned as he stepped off the plane at LAX airport in Los Angeles after the eight-hour flight from his home in North Carolina. Andrew still could not believe how his life was going ever since his appearance on So You Think You Can Dance. He had participated in the four month tour across the country and was then offered many jobs teaching ballroom classes at various dance studios across the country but none of the offers seemed like the right choice for him so he turned them all down.
Andrew eventually settled into a small apartment in Winston-Salem, a city in North Carolina a few hours away from his hometown so he could lay low and decide what he wanted to do with his life now that he had appeared on reality television. Andrew decided to take a job working in retail just so he would have something to do, and to his surprise, many people actually knew who he was so his days were never boring when those customers came in to speak with him.
For the last several months, Andrew had been receiving calls from Lance Bass, inviting out to L.A. to co-host his radio show on SiriusXM called Dirty Pop. Andrew had a hard time believing the calls were real until Lance himself flew to see Andrew and take him out to lunch.
During that lunch, Lance made all the arrangements, the flight and the hotel stay, for Andrew to appear on the show with him for a full week with his last day being on Valentine's Day. Even as he got off the plane, Andrew still could not help but wonder why the Lance Bass wanted him to co-host his radio show. Andrew collected his baggage at the baggage claim and made his way to the exit of the airport where he a driver would be there waiting for him.
On the sidewalk, Andrew saw a young man dressed in a black suit and wearing sunglasses holding a sign that had his name written on it. As Andrew approached the man, the man smiled and took off his sunglasses. Andrew immediately recognized the man in the suit as Lance himself.
Lance quickly drew Andrew into a hug. "It's nice to see you. How was your flight?"
Andrew smiled as Lance released him. "It was ok...I really do hate flyin' though. I wasn't expectin' to see you here. Do you always pick up your guests from the airport?"
"Only the important ones." Lance replied as he led Andrew toward the parking lot.
Andrew followed Lance through the parking lot until they came to a shiny black SUV. Lance opened the back and helped Andrew load his luggage and then hopped in the driver seat as Andrew went over to the passenger side.
As Lance drove, he went over the plans for the week with Andrew. "So, you have the rest of today to relax and tonight, we are going to go out to dinner and I will get to introduce you to a couple of my closest friends. Tomorrow you are free until we go on the air so you just need to be at the studio by 2 so we can get everything set up before the show which begins at 3."
Andrew just sat in silence, taking in everything Lance was saying. "Are you ok?" Lance asked Andrew.
"Oh yeah, I...I just...it's a little overwhelming." Andrew said. "I...I've been a fan of yours for years. I listen to Dirty Pop like everyday and never in a million years would I have ever thought I'd get this kind of opportunity."
"Well, I am a huge fan of yours." Lance said. "I watched you compete every week and in my opinion, you should have won."
Andrew blushed. "Thanks Lance."
They drove in silence the rest of the way to Andrew's hotel. When they arrived, Andrew checked in and then proceeded upstairs to his room with Lance's assistance with his bags. Opening the door using his keycard, Andrew gasped as he the door opened and revealed his room.
The room was an elegant suite with a lounge, giant flat screen television and a full kitchen. Off of the living area, there was a huge bedroom with a giant king size bed. The bathroom was through the bedroom and it housed a large shower and a Jacuzzi tub that looked as if it was big enough for four people.
"Lance...this is too much." Andrew said as he looked of the window in the living area. There was a balcony and since the room was on the twentieth floor, the view of downtown Los Angeles was extravagant.
"Well of course it is." Lance said with a huge smile. "I remember you saying that you never got to experience L.A. since you spent all your time rehearsing for the show so I thought maybe you could consider this a vacation."
Andrew smiled and then yawned, the fact that his body was used to operating three hours ahead of L.A. time was beginning to catch up to him. Lance saw and smiled.
"Jet lag?" Lance asked as Andrew nodded sleepily. "Ok, well you go lay down and I will leave you alone so you can rest. I will see you later."
Lance hugged Andrew as he yawned again. "Thank you for all this Lance." Andrew said. "It's like a dream come true."
"Oh don't thank me just yet..." Lance said suspiciously as he left the hotel room.
Andrew sighed happily as he stripped his clothes off and quickly fell asleep in the nice, comfortable bed.
A few hours later, Andrew awoke to an abrupt knock on his door. Jumping quickly out of bed, Andrew ran to the door and opened it to see Lance and a dark haired guy he had never seen before standing hand in hand.
"Did you just wake up?" Lance asked laughing as he and the stranger walked into the room.
Andrew nodded and blushed realizing that he was standing in only his blue plaid boxers as he shut the door. "Sorry." Andrew mumbled embarrassingly.
"You were right dear, he is cute." The dark haired stranger said to Lance with a laugh.
"Andrew, this is my fiance‚ Michael Turchin...Michael this is Andrew Williams." Lance said as Michael and Andrew shook hands.
"It's nice to meet you Andrew." Michael said as he released Andrew's hand.
"Likewise." Andrew said as he was pushed toward the bedroom by Lance.
"Go ahead and shower and get dressed." Lance said. "My friends will be arriving soon. We are going to stay here and eat at the hotel restaurant since I forgot about the three-hour time difference you were going to have to adjust to. Michael and I will play host so take all the time you need."
Andrew did not know what to say as Lance ushered him into the bathroom and quickly closed the door. As Lance made his way back into the living area of the hotel room, there was a soft knock at the door.
Lance opened the door and greeted his best friend, Drew and the rest of 98 Degrees as well as Nick's wife Vanessa.
"How are you?" Lance asked Drew as he shut the door when everyone was inside.
"I'm doing good." Drew said, more calmly than Lance was expecting.
"Don't let him lie to you, Lance." Nick said with a laugh. "He's been bouncing off the walls ever since he woke up this morning."
There was another knock at the door and Lance opened it to see another one of his best friends, Lacey Schwimmer, his dance partner from Dancing with the Stars. "Lacey!" Lance said with excitement.
"Hi Lance!" Lacey said happily as she and Lance hugged for a few moments before Lance quickly introduced her to the guys of 98 Degrees.
"I didn't realize there was going to be a whole group of us." Drew whispered to Lance.
"Well, I didn't want to overwhelm him with all the men." Lance whispered back. "You have to remember, he still doesn't know about you and we cannot make it obvious you are trying to go out with him."
"You're right." Drew said with a sigh.
"I know!" Lance said causing Drew to playfully punch him in the arm.
"Can I just say it is so great to meet all of you?" Lacey said to the guys. "I have been a huge fan of 98 Degrees forever."
While waiting for Andrew to finish getting ready, everyone made themselves comfortable and sat on the huge couch in front of the large television.
"Where is Andrew at Lance?" Lacey asked curiously as she was excited to meet a fellow dancer. Her brother had spoken highly of Andrew ever since he got to work with him on the show.
"He's supposed to be getting ready." Lance said as he made his way to Andrew's temporary bedroom.
As Lance reached the bedroom door, it opened and Andrew stepped into the living area of the room. Drew saw Andrew was dressed in a pair of black slacks and a deep purple v-neck tee that had a black dragon motif drawn down the right side of his ribcage. Drew could see that Andrew had changed over the years. His hair was a tad longer than he remembered it and was strictly solid black now and he had grown a thin beard along his jaw line.
"Nice glasses." Lance said to Andrew. "I thought you hated them."
"I do...but my eyes were hurtin' from the contacts." Andrew replied.
"Well I think they make you look nerdy." Lance said with a laugh. "And hot!"
Andrew blushed deeply and when he heard laughing from across the room, he became even more embarrassed when he saw the members of 98 Degrees sitting on the couch.
"Oh...my...god..." Andrew whispered to Lance. "When you said friends...I didn't realize you meant 98 Degrees and Lacey Schwimmer."
"Well...Lacey has been dying to meet you ever since you got to work with her brother Benji on the show." Lance said with an innocent smile.
"That still doesn't explain the guys." Andrew said.
"Well, I remember you said you liked their music so I thought I'd invite them over for you to meet." Lance said before dragging Andrew across the room. "So...go meet."
Lacey jumped up before anyone else could and grabbed Andrew into a huge, shocking him as she gabbed away. "It is so great to meet you finally! Benji could not stop talking about you ever since he got to choreograph you. I watched you every week and you are one of the best ballroom dancers to have ever been on the show. You were totally robbed."
"No...there were a lot of talented dancers on my season." Andrew said humbly. "I've been a fan of yours ever since I saw you on Dancing with the Stars with Lance."
As Lacey and Andrew talked, Andrew found himself more at ease considering celebrities surrounded him. Andrew found it easy to discuss dance and his appearance on television.
"Lacey...can I see you in the kitchen for a moment?" Lance said as he tugged Lacey away with Michael quickly following the two.
Vanessa also excused herself to make a phone call, leaving Andrew alone with the guys of 98 Degrees.
"Wow...I...I can't believe I get to meet y'all." Andrew said as he sat down.
"Lance said you were a fan of ours." Nick said with a smile. "But we...we are fans of yours."
"Justin and Drew made us watch the show religiously every week." Jeff said. "You are a great dancer."
Andrew blushed at their compliments and locked eyes with Drew, who was staring at him intently, which caused Andrew to turn a deeper shade of crimson and look away quickly.
In the kitchen, Michael was busy making drinks for everyone while Lance gave Lacey a little bit of information on Andrew's past.
"What?!" Lacey shrieked in surprise as Lance finished telling her about him and the guys of 98 Degrees having met Andrew years earlier.
"Hush before they hear us." Lance said trying to calm Lacey down. "That's why I invited them over tonight. Drew never really got over Andrew and this was the only way they could really meet up again."
"So he's going to try and make Andrew fall back in love with him?" Lacey squealed excitedly. "That's so romantic!"
"Yes...yes...I know...it's kind of sickening." Lance said jokingly. "So Vanessa is on the phone with the restaurant downstairs right now, changing the reservation from 9 to 2. Michael is going to be unreasonably drunk, Vanessa and Nick are going to need to rush home to check on their son, Jeff is going to be feeling sick so Justin is going to have to drive him home and since you have a crush on Justin, you are going to want to go with him."
"But I don't have a crush..." Lacey started before realizing what Lance was getting at. "Oh, I get it...we are all basically going to leave Drew and Andrew alone to dinner."
"Exactly." Lance said. "And then we are all going to have dinner together tomorrow evening after Dirty Pop so that way it seems like we didn't plan this whole thing out."
"You are so slick Lance." Lacey said appreciatively. "I like it!"
Lance, Lacey, and Michael left the kitchen and rejoined the group in the living room, listening as Andrew bombarded the guys with questions about their music and their lives. Soon, Lance announced it was time for everyone to head downstairs for dinner. Lance ushered everyone out of the room and to the elevator.
Once they reached the restaurant, the group was greeted by a blond hostess with the name "Rachel" on her nametag.
"If you will give me one moment, Mr. Bass." She said before walking off, leaving the group standing in the lobby.
Andrew noticed a dozen people came up to the group for autographs from Nick, Jeff, Drew, and Lance. Lacey even had one or two people ask for his while Vanessa, Justin, and Michael stood off to the side. Andrew made his way over to the three and smiled.
"I guess this kind of thing happens all the time." Andrew said to no one in particular, although he could see the hurt on Justin's face. "Are you ok Justin?"
Justin, seeing Andrew staring at him, tried to play off the hurt with a fake smile. "Oh yeah...I'm used to it. They were always the popular ones."
Andrew put his arm around Justin's shoulders. "Well, the group wouldn't be the same with you."
The hostess soon returned with a concerned look on her face. Lance quickly walked over to her and Andrew could immediately tell something was wrong.
"Are you serious?" Lance said frustratingly. "The reservation is supposed to be for 9 people...not 2."
As Andrew listened to Lance go back and forth with the hostess over the problem with the reservation, Vanessa's phone began to ring. She excused herself after announcing it was the nanny calling. A groan beside him caused Andrew to look over to Michael, who was bent over and clutching his stomach.
"Michael...are you ok?" Andrew asked concerned for the man's well being.
"I...I think I drank too much." Michael said with another groan.
Lance then walked over and began to explain the problem to the group. "There seems to be a mix up with the reservations and it's going to be half an hour before they can seat us all. They had us down for only 2 people instead of 9."
Vanessa came back to the group. "Nick that was the nanny, we have to get home. It seems our son isn't feeling well."
"I'm sorry guys." Nick said to the group apologetically as he took Vanessa's hand. "We better get going. We will have to do this another night."
Nick and Vanessa said their goodbyes to the group one at a time, saving Andrew for last. Nick shook his hand tightly and Vanessa gave him a quick hug.
"It was nice meeting you both." Andrew said to the couple.
Nick and Vanessa quickly departed and Lance went to go update the hostess, letting her know they would only need a table for seven. Michael seemed to be getting worse as the wait became longer. He suddenly felt sick and ran for the nearest bathroom, Lance quickly following him.
"Oh no." Andrew said quietly. "I hope he is ok."
"He just had too much to drink." Lacey said and then motioned over to where Jeff was sitting next to Drew. "I think Jeff might be in the same boat."
Lacey looked to Justin, who winked knowingly at her, causing her to giggle. Andrew saw Justin's wink as well and laughed with Lacey.
"It seems like someone has his eye on you." Andrew said teasingly to Lacey.
"Well...he is kind of cute...and I am kind of single..." Lacey said with a smile.
Andrew laughed with her, causing Drew to focus his attention on the pair. He stood up and walked over, taking a seat next to Andrew.
"What's so funny?" Drew asked Andrew curiously.
"Oh, I think Lacey and Justin might have the hots for each other." Andrew said with another laugh as he watched Justin strike up a conversation with Lacey, the two whispering amongst themselves.
"Well good for them." Drew said with a smile. "It's time Justin found himself a nice girl...now we just have to find someone for Jeff."
"Well, what about you Mr. Lachey?" Andrew asked. "I read about your divorce. It's been quite a bit; don't you wanna start dating again?"
"I've got my eye on someone now...as a matter of fact." Drew said. "It's in the early stages...but I'm sure things will work out."
"Well, that's nice." Andrew said.
Lance came over to the group, a sick looking Michael close behind him. "I'm sorry guys but Michael has had too much to drink and I need to get him home."
"I think I need to go as well." Jeff said. "I'm not feeling so hot myself."
Justin looked at Lacey and sighed. "I'll have to take him home. We rode together."
"Aw." Lacey moaned sadly.
"Well, I guess I'll head back upstairs." Andrew said to everyone.
"Like hell you will." Lance said quickly. "This is your first night in town, and it may not be going like I planned but that doesn't mean you shouldn't get to experience one of the best restaurants in Los Angeles."
"Well, everyone is leavin'...." Andrew said.
"Lacey, you still want dinner right?" Lance said to his best friend.
"Actually, I was gonna go with Justin." Lacey said sheepishly. "He's going to drop Jeff off and then the two of us were going to grab a bite."
"Uh huh..." Lance said slyly before turning to Drew and Andrew. "I guess that leaves just the two of you...which means you can go straight to dinner since they have a table for two already waiting."
Lance hugged Drew.
"You owe me..." Lance whispered causing Drew to look at him confusingly causing Lance to quietly chuckle. "I'll explain it all to you tomorrow."
Lance turned to Andrew and gave him a hug. "Sorry about tonight but I'll call you first thing in the morning."
Lance grabbed Michael's hand and left as Drew said goodbye to Justin and Jeff. Lacey came over and hugged Andrew.
"I hope you have fun tonight..." Lacey giggled as she hugged Andrew. "It was great meeting you and I'm going to get your number from Lance and we will make plans to hang out while you are still in town."
Lacey left with Jeff and Justin as the hostess came over and offered to take Andrew and Drew to their table. Andrew nervously ran a hand through his hair.
"If you're uncomfortable, we don't have to do this." Drew offered, hoping that Andrew would not back out.
"No, let's eat...as long as you don't mind hangin' out with a nobody." Andrew replied sheepishly.
Drew put his arm around Andrew and motioned for the hostess to lead them to their table. "You shouldn't say things like that about yourself. Just because you aren't famous doesn't mean you are a nobody."
Once they were seated, Andrew began looking over his menu as he realized just how hungry he actually was. Drew could not help but smile at the man across from him, the man who captured his heart all those years ago.