Everything I Own

"Everything I Own"

By Christopher christopher_bass@yahoo.com

DISCLAIMER: Same as usual. If you don't know the drill by now, you haven't read any of my past chapters.

Before I get into my story, I wanted to thank all of the wonderful people whom e-mailed me when I had my hard drive problems. As you can tell, everything is OK now. I especially want to thank Tonny, who has been just about the biggest supporter of his fellow authors there is. Go read his story! Other stories I really love the most are "Lance & JC", "Kevin & Justin", "Studio In The Country", "JC & Jas" (I SO totally loved it when Lance and Justin got together in that one!), "Lance In Shining Armor", "Xtreme N Sync", and the "Twist of Fate" trilogy. After you read my story, go read theirs.

Go vote, vote, and vote for 'N Sync on TRL! It's a great video!

Speaking of voting, please vote in this year's boy band story awards. I actually have one nomination, which was a surprise. It's for Best Use of Diane Bass. It's a huge honor. Please vote for all of the categories and get everyone you know to do it also. The address of the awards page is http://209.222.79.223/boybandawards.

Lance, if you are reading this, please e-mail me! If you are one of the other wonderful guys from 'N Sync, please e-mail me! Even if you aren't one of the guys, please e-mail me and let me know what you think of my story. It really keeps me going. My e-mail address is above.

The sex is coming VERY soon. I know I keep promising that, but it will be in the next chapter. I'm still a little scared to write it.

When last we visited "Everything I Own":

When Mark thought about what Diane did to Lance and himself, his hurting turned to sheer anger. "James had an affair with Josh a couple of years ago, but it ended because Josh couldn't sneak around anymore. He was out to his family, but James wasn't. James still feels bad about that and didn't want us to break up for the same reason. He decided to come out to his mother."

Joel didn't like where this conversation was heading and felt he knew what happened next. "Did she not accept it?"

"Actually, she did take it well. She had a feeling that he was gay years ago. She was just waiting for him to tell her. She even thought he and Josh were still dating."

"So, she wants him to be with JC and not with you?" Joel asked.

"That's right." Mark said and got even angrier. "The fucking bitch made him make a choice. It was either his family or I. If he were to date me, then he was no longer her son."

Joel started to get really angry also. "WHAT? Why is she so against his being with you? Doesn't she want him to be happy?"

"It's his money. She thinks I am using him for his money and fame and then I would dump him."

"God! You would never do that!"

"The rest of the guys entered the room just as she was saying that. They really stuck up for me. But she wouldn't listen. She kicked him out of the family and he ran out. Before I left, I gave her a piece of my mind and told her that I would never let her see him again."

Mark explained how he left the hotel and saw Lance walking around outside then how Lance just walked into the street all of a sudden. He cried and shook as he detailed the accidents and how Diane forbid him to see Lance ever again or she would get him arrested.

"You are going to fight it, aren't you?" Joel asked.

Mark replied, "Yes. Tomorrow when I get into work, I will give two weeks notice and I will fly back to Los Angeles and will join JC, Joey, Chris, and Justin in the fight to clear my name. I just don't know if I have the fight in me."

Joel hugged Mark and comforted him as Mark thought about what he was about to face in the coming weeks.

And now, the next chapter:

CHAPTER NINE

The next day after Mark returned home, he returned to work. His mind and heart were not into work, however. He was constantly thinking of Lance and the rest of the people of 'N Sync.

Although he was receiving hourly updates on Lance's condition from one of his friends through e-mail and he had spoken to them twice on the telephone, he still was miserable and very worried about Lance.

Because he wasn't used to having to use crutches, he got to work a few minutes late. As he was trying to get to his cubicle, he almost literally ran into Diana, one of the few people at work that he could call a friend. Luckily, she saw him coming and was able to move away.

Diana didn't really notice Mark's injuries at first. She definitely was not the brightest crayon in the box but it was also very early in the morning, so she was even less alert than usual. She was very happy to see Mark, however. "Mark! You're back early! How was..." She finally saw that Mark had been hurt. "Oh my God! What happened you?" she asked.

Mark told her he would tell her later. He couldn't deal with telling another person his story. He also had to figure out what he could say because he couldn't say he was in love with Lance or that the rest of the group was either gay or bi.

He went to his cubicle and sat down. His mind had constantly been on Lance and he wanted to think of something else, anything else, but that was not at all possible. At his cubicle, there was a 'N Sync calendar for the following year, he was using a picture of Lance from the "God Must Have Spent A Little More Time On You" video as his work computer's wallpaper, and he had many more pictures on the computer's hard drive.

He thought for a long time whether he should get rid of all of those pictures. He then remembered how many more pictures, text files, and web site links that he had on his computer at home. Would he have to delete all of those also? His favorite web site was the Nifty Archives, especially the section that had stories on 'N Sync, Backstreet Boys, and 98 Degrees. He even had it as his browser's home page. Every night, he waited to go to bed until he read new chapters of his favorite stories, even if that meant only a few hours of sleep.

After a couple of hours of trying to work, Mark decided that he couldn't wait two weeks to quit and return to Lance, so he would try to give only a few days notice.

By that time, it was time for him to take a break, so he went to the break room to sleep a little bit. Because he couldn't get his mind off everything that had happened the last few days, he barely slept.

When he got to the break room, he saw Diana reading a book. She saw Mark as he sat down. "Are you going to tell me now how you hurt your leg?"

Mark thought for a minute, then started to cry again. Diana felt bad and thought she made him cry. "God! I am so sorry, Mark!"

Mark eventually stopped crying and laughed that Diana felt so guilty. "It's not you. A lot has happened to me the last few days." He saw the local TV listings on a chair, and looked at them. "Oh my God!" He said sadly.

Diana was concerned for her friend. "What's wrong?" she asked.

Before he could tell her anything, he made her promise that she wouldn't tell a word to anyone. She agreed. "It's not that I don't trust you, but if this got out, it would ruin the careers of five people I care about very deeply." Diana understood.

"Here's the condensed version of what happened." Mark told Diana everything that happened, from being on Rosie's show to falling in love with Lance. Diana was very shocked and couldn't believe one word of what Mark was saying. He asked her if she believed in love at first sight. She didn't and believed that it took a long time to truly fall in love. That was when Mark told her that he was in love with Lance.

Diana started to crack up laughing. Mark asked her what was so funny. "Even if one of them was gay, why would he fall in love with you? Those guys have their choice of lovers and they pick you?"

Mark was intensely enraged that she reacted that way. He looked around and saw that nobody else was in the room. "Look, you fucking bitch!" He yelled. "I am in love with Lance! He loves me, too! He even came out to his mother! She made him choose between her and me and he picked me!" He emphasized the word "me". "He ended up being so freaked out by his mom that he walked into the middle of traffic. I tried to stop him, but I was hit by a car myself." He cried very hard remembering that moment. "I couldn't help him! The man I am in love with is in the hospital right now and his mom forbid me to ever see him again or she would press charges against me. The rest of the guys know we love each other and will fight for us!"

Diana continued to laugh. "You really should be a writer! Maybe being an actor is your calling! You always wanted to be in the theater! Then again, maybe not. That was so unbelievable!"

At the top of his lungs, he yelled, "Fuck you!" He stormed out of the room to talk to Susan, his supervisor. Before he talked to her, he calmed himself down and tried to forget he was ever friends with someone like Diana. When he got over to Susan's office, he knocked on the door. "Yes?" Susan asked. Mark then opened the door and entered the room. Mark had just gone into his supervisor's office when he heard something on the radio.

"In other news, Lance Bass of the pop group 'N Sync is doing much better today, recovering from injuries sustained from an auto accident." Mark tried to control his emotions and not jump up and down. He was ecstatic that Lance was doing much better now.

The news announcer continued. "In an official statement to the press, band mate Joshua Chasez thanked the fans for their support, cards, flowers, and stuffed animals." JC also asked that fans send those cards, flowers, and stuffed animals to children's' hospitals in their area.

Mark then heard something that frightened him. The announcer continued again. "There was an unidentified person that ran into the street in order to help Lance, but was also hit by a car. Who is this person and what is his relationship with 'N Sync?" Mark turned pale and stopped breathing briefly. "When asked about this mysterious person, Mr. Chasez had no comment." Mark let out a huge breath of relief.

Susan was confused. "Mark, why do you care that this guy was doing better? Are you a fan of his group?"

Mark thought for a second, then realized that he had to tell Susan at least part of the truth. "I care because I am that mysterious man. It's what I need to talk to you about." Mark explained some of what had happened, leaving out the real relationship he had with Lance and other personal matters. "I wish I could give two weeks notice, but I need to get back to L.A. as soon as possible."

Susan was being very business like, and even a little bit cold, to Mark in her reply. "I'm sorry, Mark, but I need you to give two weeks. I need to get someone trained to take your place."

Mark tried not to cry, but was still very emotional. "You need that, but I have to be with my friend! It's my fault that he got hit by that car!" He ran out of the room, and on his way back to his desk, he almost ran over Travis. Travis was a co-worker of Mark's and someone that Mark had feelings for before he met Lance. "I'm sorry, Travis. I really need to watch where I am going."

Travis smiled warmly at Mark. Unknown to Mark, Travis also had a crush... on Mark. Ever since he started working at that job, he would steal glances at Mark when he wouldn't be caught. "It's OK, Mark." He saw that Mark was very upset and wanted to help. "Hey, what's wrong?" Mark didn't respond. "You might feel better if you talked about it." He said with compassion.

"I'm sorry, but I don't feel like talking about it. It's not going to make me feel better. I'm totally destroyed right now and there's nothing that I can do about it." He started to cry at that point.

Travis was scared for the man that he had such intense feelings for. "Now I am worried. Come on, we'll go into an empty office and talk. Let me be there for you." Travis dragged Mark into an empty room, sat him down, and locked the door. "Now, please talk to me. Please let me be your friend."

Mark was very surprised at the level of concern Travis was showing for him. "Why are you so concerned about me? We really don't know each other at all. I mean, I really do appreciate it and I'm glad we are finally talking, but..."

Travis blushed and replied that he wished he could, but couldn't.

"OK. I will tell you. First of all, you can't repeat anything of what I say to anyone. It could hurt five people I love." Travis agreed. Mark paused to gather his strength then began to talk.

"I was in L.A. because of a contest I won. A lot of things happened. Before I continue, I have to say that I'm gay. I really don't want to hear that you hate gays, so if you do, just leave."

Travis answered, "Mark, I'm gay, too."

Mark's eyes bugged out in surprise. He had a feeling Travis was gay, but still couldn't believe his gaydar was right yet again. "Anyway, down in L.A. I fell in love. He loves me, too." Travis' heart dropped when he heard that. "He came out to his mom and she kicked him out of the family. He was so freaked by this that he became so out of it and walked into the middle of a busy street. I ran after him, but we both were hit by cars. As you can see, I will be OK, but he was still not doing too good until this morning."

Travis tried not to show the shock that he was feeling. Part of Mark's story sounded familiar. He then realized that Mark was talking about Lance, who he was in love with. Travis had also been just listening to the same story about Lance that Mark and Susan just heard.

"You're in love with Lance Bass, aren't you?" Travis asked.

Mark was stunned that Travis figured it out, but still tried to make him believe it wasn't true. "What are you talking about? I'm not in love with Lance Bass! Yes, he's gorgeous and a great singer, but I've never met him." He was blushing deeply as he said that. He knew he was blushing and was mad at himself for that. He said to himself, "Fuck! Now he's gonna know that Lance and I are in love and will out him to the press!"

Travis also saw that Mark was blushing and knew that he was lying. When he confronted him, Mark broke down and cried. "You would think that my tear ducts would be all dried out by now with all the crying I have done the last few days!"

Travis felt guilty that he made Mark cry. "God, I am so sorry, Mark! I never realized you were hurting that badly!"

"It's not your fault. Like I said, a lot has happened to me." Mark went on to tell his story to yet another person. Even though he didn't know Travis that much, for some reason he felt he could trust him, unlike his ex-friend Diana. He quickly got his mind off of Diana.

Travis was stunned. "Wow! You certainly have been through a lot! What are you going to do now?"

Mark told Travis how he needed to leave as soon as possible, but Susan needed two weeks notice.

Travis was very irate hearing that. "What? She fucking wants you to wait two weeks for you to be with the man you love who just happens to be in the hospital?"

Mark tried to show Susan's view of things to Travis. That was just the kind of person he was, being hurt by someone, yet still seeing the other side. "In her defense, she isn't aware that James and I are in love. She has no idea of our true relationship."

That didn't calm Travis down at all. "Why aren't you more pissed at her? God, I would be telling her every bad word I know!"

Mark explained that he decided he was going to leave as soon as possible, no matter what anyone else said. At that point, his phone rang. "Excuse me." He answered his phone. "Hello?"

JC was on the other end of the phone. "Hey, Mark!"

Mark was ecstatic to hear from his friend. "Josh! I was just about to call you! Is he really doing better?"

JC replied, "Yes! He's actually doing pretty well. He did have a concussion, some bruising and his wrist was broken, but that should heal within a couple of weeks."

Mark was thrilled that Lance was doing so much better. "I am so relieved! I just assumed his injuries would be a lot worse than that. Thank heavens he's going to be OK."

JC told Mark that Lance was a very strong man, both inside and out, thanks to him. JC knew that if Mark hadn't come into Lance's life, he would have given up fighting and might have died. When Mark asked him how Lance handled his leaving so abruptly, he sighed heavily then answered. "He knows you had to take care of things up there, but he misses you so much."

A tear fell down Mark's face. "I hope he doesn't think I am giving up. I will fight to the end for him. I would never abandon him." He was still scared that Lance would hate him.

JC knew what Mark was thinking. "He doesn't hate you, Mark. He loves you too much."

Mark was relieved that Lance still loved him, but was still worried about him. "Where are you right now?" JC replied that he was just outside Lance's room. "Can I talk to him please?"

JC went back into Lance's room. Lance asked him whom he was talking to. JC replied, "Why don't you find out for yourself, Scoop?" and handed his phone to Lance.

Lance took the phone. "Hello?"

"Scoopy!" Mark yelled into the phone.

"Mark? Is that you?" Lance said, very emotionally.

"Yes, baby! It's me! How are you!"

"I miss you so much, my love! I'm so sorry you got hurt because of my..." He paused, not wanting to mention his mother. He was having a very hard time dealing with all of the hell that she caused.

Mark felt Lance's pain. In contrast to Lance's depression and feelings of betrayal, every time he thought about the wrath of Diane Bass, which was almost constant, the angrier he got. During much of the first 30 years of his life, he was either angry, depressed, or a combination of both. As angry as he had gotten in the past, it was nothing compared to what he was feeling now.

"Please, James! You have nothing to be sorry for. I only have a broken arm, some bruises, and a hurt leg. I even went to the doctor today and he said that my leg would be fine in a week or so! It wasn't even broken in the first place like the doctor down there thought! Physically, I will be OK. Yes, she is trying to keep us apart, but I will be back as soon as I can and the guys and I will fight her with all that we have and we will win! I promise you that! What hurts me deeply and is fueling my fire to fight her is how she hurt you!"

"How did I know you would say that?" Lance replied with great love. "Yes, what she did is tearing me apart. But it also hurts me just as much what she did to you."

Mark sniffed a little bit. "OK, I will not cry again, no matter how much I want to. I hope you don't hate me for leaving like I did. I didn't want to leave the area I lived in all of my life and not say goodbye to some really good friends."

Lance replied, "I was hurt at first, but I understand. I just can't wait to see you again!"

"Neither can I. When I know when I will be getting in, I will let Josh know. I'm so sorry I hurt you. I will never do that again!" Mark said.

While listening to Mark talk with Lance, Travis grew sadder. He knew that he loved talking with Mark and getting to know him better. "Why did you make me like him, God? I really need to get out of here! I can't take this anymore!" He started to leave, but Mark held his hand up to stop him. It didn't work, because Travis ran out of the room.

"Oh, God!" Mark whispered. It was still loud enough for Lance to hear. When Lance asked what was wrong, Mark said that Travis ran out of the room for some reason. He said that Travis was someone at work that he was just getting to know. He seemed like a really nice person, but there was something strange about how Travis was acting around Mark. "I might have time to figure it out, though. My boss wants me to give two weeks notice."

Lance's heart broke because he thought that Mark wouldn't be coming back for two weeks. "Two weeks? But, I thought..."

"I really will be there as soon as I can. I don't want to leave here with no notice, but there is no way in hell I am staying two more weeks."

Lance paused for a minute, then his tone of voice changed drastically. "Mark, what about work? You say that you don't want to leave with no notice, but such short notice isn't very professional either." He was almost stuttering towards the end of that comment. He hoped that Mark didn't catch his slip up. He didn't want him to figure out that he had an idea to surprise him.

Unfortunately, Mark did notice the slip up and the change of Lance's tone of voice. However, he couldn't figure out what was going on. He asked Lance what he was talking about. Lance explained that he didn't want to burden him and that by the time he came back to LA, Lance would be out of the hospital. Fortunately for Lance, Mark believed him. They finished their conversation and hung up the phone reluctantly.

"Damn! Somehow his mom convinced him to dump me!" Mark said softly. "I might as well call the rest of the guys and tell them goodbye. It really was great meeting them. I just wish I could have had them in my life for a lot longer." He called Chris.

"Hello?" Chris said, answering his phone.

"Hi, Chris. It's Mark."

Chris was very happy to hear from Mark. "Mark! Isn't it great news about Scoop?"

Mark was confused and devastated. "Great news? His dumping me is great news?"

It was Chris' turn to be confused. "What are you talking about? Lance isn't dumping you. He would never give up on your relationship with him! He loves you very much! I only hope that Joe loves me like that some day."

Mark explained to Chris what Lance said when they just spoke. Chris couldn't fathom Lance saying what Mark said he did, so he promised Mark he would clear things up.

Chris hung up the phone and went over to Lance's room in a huff. He opened the door hard, which shocked both Lance and JC. "Lance, what in the hell are you doing? How can you hurt him like that?" Chris yelled.

Lance had a feeling Chris just spoke with Mark, but didn't know that Lance wanted to surprise him by going up to Portland. He told Chris that he would never give up on his love for Mark. "JC and I are going to surprise him at work tomorrow. He doesn't suspect a thing."

"He may not suspect that, but he does think you are dumping him."

"WHAT?" Lance replied. He realized that he had to talk to Mark again. "I'll call him back now! I feel so bad! I just wanted to surprise him! I didn't want to ever hurt him!" He got very sad.

JC left the room and made a couple of phone calls while Lance and Chris were talking. Chris tried to calm Lance down, but was not very successful. When JC came back into the room and asked Lance whether he knew for sure where Mark worked. Lance replied that when he came up with his idea, he made some phone calls and found out exactly where Mark worked, down to the floor. JC told Lance that he changed their flight plans and as soon as Lance could be released they would head to the airport and fly to Portland.

"JC, I know you're good, but not that good. How did you get a flight so fast and can guarantee we won't be late for the flight?" Lance asked, scared that his plan would fail miserably.

Chris asked JC whether he could go also. He knew that Justin and Joey would probably want to go, too. JC replied that that would not be a problem. Again, Lance asked how he knew that for sure.

JC replied, "Scoop, you just have to trust me!"

Lance got more emotional again. "I'm sorry. I'll be OK. I just cannot believe I have to fight my own..." He stopped suddenly, unable to say the word "mother".

"I'm so sorry you have to go through this!"

Lance's doctor came in. JC, being the "daddy" of the group, took charge. He asked the doctor when Lance could be released. The doctor answered that was the reason he came in. He was holding Lance's release papers and had Lance sign them. Once signed, a nurse came in with a wheelchair. At first Lance complained about having to sit in the wheelchair, that he was able to walk out on his own, but when JC gave him a dirty look, he meekly sat down on the chair and Chris wheeled him outside. Once they were outside, Lance was worried yet again about them making their flight. "Will we really get there on time, Josh?"

A voice was heard saying, "That's not going to be a problem."

Lance, JC, and Chris turned around and saw Justin, Joey, AJ, Kevin, and Howie. Lance didn't know what was going on. JC told Lance that he called Kevin and asked if they could borrow their plane. Kevin then called their management to get approval to loan the plane out. He didn't like having to get management approval to loan out their plane, but for legal and safety purposes, it had to be done. Their management agreed and within the hour, the seven people were in flight, on their way to Portland.

In what seemed like forever to Lance and only a few minutes to everyone else, the plane was landing in Portland, where a car was waiting for them. On the way to Mark's job, Lance got out his cell phone and called Travis, the person he spoke with earlier to get his help in surprising Mark.

"Hello? This is Travis Lawrence. May I help you?"

"Hey, Travis! This is James. We have a change of plans. We're in Portland now and on our way to your employer. I have a bunch of our friends with us. I just need to make sure that he's still there."

"Yes, he's still here." Travis said, very sadly.

"Could you make sure he doesn't leave? We're pulling up to your building now." Lance said, getting more and more excited.

"Sure, Lance! I'll do anything for two people in love."

Lance was completely speechless. "You know who I really am?"

"Yes. He didn't have to tell me it was you that he loved, however. I had heard a story about you recovering from your injuries from that accident. He later told me that the man he loved had been in an accident and I put two and two together. You don't have to worry about my telling anyone. I want to be Mark's friend and I wouldn't hurt a friend."

Lance was appreciative of Travis' secrecy. The car pulled up to the building. "We're here now."

Travis told Lance which floor they were on. When they got to the right floor, Travis was there to make sure that Mark was still at his desk. He hid Lance behind the reception area desk and took everyone else to Mark.

When they got to Mark, he saw that he had his head in his hands. Travis told Mark that he had visitors.

Mark replied without emotion, "I really don't want to see anyone right now."

Travis hid JC, Joey, Chris, and Justin in the cubicle next to Mark. "Are you sure?"

"Please, Travis. You know what's going on with me. Please just leave me alone. I'm sorry if I sound rude, but I need to be alone."

Everyone was worried for Mark, but hoped seeing everyone would cheer him up. "I guess JC was wrong." AJ said. "You don't miss us. Kevin, let's go... Howie..."

Mark jerked his head up and turned around quickly and saw AJ, Kevin, and Howie with Travis. He was completely floored to see them. "Oh my God! What are you guys doing here?"

Travis went back to the reception area to talk to Lance.

Kevin replied, "JC told us about Lance's fight with his mom and we had to come here and be here for you." He pulled Mark out of his chair and hugged him tightly.

AJ added, "We were really worried about you." AJ also hugged Mark.

Howie introduced himself. "Hey, Mark. I'm Howie. I can see why the guys were so worried about you. What can we do for you?"

Mark replied, "It's an honor to meet you, Howie. I'm a huge fan of your guys' music." He held his hand out for Howie to shake. Howie shook his hand at first, then grabbed him for a warm hug. Feeling the hug made Mark break down and cry desperately.

JC came out of hiding then joked, "Howie, I see Mark's really glad to meet you!"

Mark's eyes bulged out in deep shock. "Josh? Josh!" Mark said through his tears. He saw Chris, Justin, and Joey also. "I am so glad to see you guys! I know it hasn't been that long, but I have missed you so much! But who is down there with James? I don't like the idea of him being there alone."

JC smiled and said. "Travis is with him right now."

"Really? That's great! I'm so glad that they are getting the chance to..." He finally realized what JC said. "WHAT?" He said, unable to believe what he was thinking.

AJ chuckled and said, "He's at the front desk."

Mark jumped out of his cubicle and hobbled over to the front desk as fast as he could where he saw Lance with Travis. "James?" He cried.

Lance joined Mark in crying. "I'm right here, baby!" He got out of the chair he was sitting in and went to where Mark was very quickly. They collided with such great force that if they weren't holding on to each other so tightly, both would have ended up on the floor. They hugged so tightly that Lance grimaced with pain. "God, I am so sorry, James!" Mark said, very concerned that he hurt his lover.

Lance replied with as much love as was possible, "I'm with you, Mark. I can take this pain. It's nothing compared with how happy I am. Hurt me, baby!" He blushed once he realized what he said.

Mark laughed hard. "Oh my God! My Scoopy has one mighty naughty streak! I love it! I cannot wait to explore that side of you, love!" He then remembered Diane's threats. "But what if Diane finds out?"

"I will handle her, Mark. The last couple of days, I have found out something about my mother and what he had been up to the last few years." Lance said with conviction. Mark knew that he was back in business mode.

Lance called Diane, who answered the phone. "Hello?"

"Diane, this is James."

Diane acted confused. "James? I don't know any James."

Lance was irritated. "Cut the shit, Diane! You know who I am! I am calling from Portland, Oregon, where Mark is. We are together and we will stay together."

"I gave you a chance to realize that he is only out to hurt you. I will call my lawyer and have him arrested for the attempted murder of you." Diane replied with venom in her voice.

Lance's irritation quickly grew to deep anger. "You do that and I will release to the police and press how you conspired with Lou to rip us off. We will sue you for everything you have and more. We sued him for $25 million. We will sue you for $100 million."

Diane was scared that Lance knew about what she had done with the group's ex-manager. She made a deal with Lance that she would not press charges against Mark and he wouldn't sue her.

"I will agree to that, but I wouldn't be surprised if Mark sued you for emotional damages and trying to ruin his reputation." Lance said. "It's nice doing business with you. It's just too bad that it will never happen again." Lance abruptly hung up the phone then cheered loudly.

Mark was baffled. "Honey, what just happened?"

Lance told Mark how when he was in the hospital he found out that ever since the group was in discussions with Lou about their contract, he was also in discussions with Diane about how they could steal from the group.

"What a fucking bitch!" Mark yelled.

Lance said, "Honey, just forget about her. She is not worth it."

"You're right, James." He sighed heavily then added, "I cannot believe you are here! I thought you hated me!"

"I could never hate you, Mark! I love you so much. You know what I want to do right now?"

"No, but I know what I want to do. As Heart sang, 'All I wanna do is make love to you.'" He sang the last part.

Lance is shocked and speechless by Mark's confession. "I...uh..."

With determination in his voice, Mark tried to calm Lance down. "James, I do want to make love with you, but only when you are ready."

"When we're both totally healed from our injuries, I will be ready. I just wasn't prepared for you to say that." Lance replied. He was worried what Mark's reaction would be.

Mark knew Lance had nothing to worry about. He would wait as long as it would take for Lance to be ready to make love. "I do want to make love with you and to show you how much I love you. I want to show you how big passion can be and make you feel so good that you hope that you never forget it."

Lance's eyes were tearing, but he didn't cry. "I know how much you love me. I can feel it in my heart. I love you even more than that."

Mark and Lance spent the next several minutes debating who loved the other more.

"Geez, guys! You both love each other infinity! I don't know what's worse, that or you guys always making out!" Chris joked.

"Speaking of making out..." Mark started to say before he was cut off by Lance grabbing his face and passionately kissing him.

"God, what have I said?" Chris joked.

"I want to go out and celebrate!" Mark said energetically once his lips were separated from Lance's.

Lance asked what everyone wanted to do. Mark started to answer, but Lance interrupted him. "I know what you want to do, but I already told you I'm not ready yet!" Everyone laughed except for Mark, who was blushing a deep red.

Mark, Lance, and the rest of the guys decided to look for a hotel to rest the go out clubbing. It was a last minute decision for them to come up and see Mark early, so they weren't able to get hotel reservations. Luckily, Mark had a friend who worked for one of the best hotels in town. When he called his friend Spencer, he was able to get four rooms on a secured floor. Mark was very grateful for Spencer's help. Justin was going to share a room with Lance, but Lance wanted privacy with Mark, so Justin would share a room with JC. Mark noted JC smile very brightly upon hearing that. Chris and Joey would share another room, and Kevin, Howie, and AJ would share the last room. Mark wasn't aware that Kevin and AJ were a couple, so he didn't try to get a fifth room. Kevin made a mental note to try to get a separate room for Howie.

Everyone but Mark and Lance wanted to get some rest at the hotel, so they took the car and Lance and Mark would take a cab back.

They went walking around Portland with Mark showing Lance some of the local landmarks. Mark stopped all of a sudden and yelled, "Fuck!"

"Baby, I told you not yet!" Lance laughed. He saw that Mark wasn't laughing then added, "Sorry. What's wrong?"

Mark told Lance that he couldn't go out clubbing tonight because he was going to go to the opening performance of "Twelfth Night" that Joel was directing. It was very important for Mark that he go see that show. In the two and a half years since Joel got into town, Mark had seen every single production that Joel was involved with, most of the time seeing the show quite a few times. Often, Mark felt like he was obsessed with him, something that Joel had told him wasn't true, that he was a loyal friend.

Lance knew how important Joel was to Mark, though he still had some fears that Mark would realize that he loved Joel and not him. Lance asked Mark if he could come. Mark was thrilled that he wanted to go. Lance also said that maybe some of the other guys might want to go. Mark said that it was all right, knowing that Lance was going was great. Lance got out his cell phone and called Kevin.

"Hello?" Kevin said, answering the phone.

"Hey, Kev! It's Lance. Mark and I won't be able to go clubbing with y'all tonight. He had a reservation to see a play that a friend is directing."

"What's the play?" Kevin asked.

"Twelfth Night."

As Lance was talking with Kevin, Mark called the theater Joel's show was at. Joel answered the phone.

"Hey, Joel! It's Mark! How you doing?"

Joel noticed that Mark sounded a lot happier than he was at the airport. "Mark! You sound great! What's up?"

"I'm up! I'm happy again!"

"Lance is in town, isn't he?" Joel asked knowingly.

"Yep! I'm with him right now." Mark was glowing.

"Then why in the hell are you talking with me?" Joel joked.

"How many seats are available for tonight?"

"Let me check real quick." Joel looked at the reservations list. "It looks like we have about ten. Do you want one more for Lance?"

"Well, I will need..." Mark began to say, then looked at Lance who mouthed "eight". "I need eight more, not including me. I will pay for all nine when we get there."

"I can comp you for all of them. Why do you need eight more?"

"Lance isn't the only person who came up here. The rest of 'N Sync is up here and also Kevin, AJ, and Howie from Backstreet Boys. Please don't let anyone know that they are here. I don't want them to be mobbed."

"Of course. Those sure are some wonderful friends you have! To actually all come up for you..."

Mark held Lance's hand and squeezed it. "They sure are. James and Josh were going to come up tomorrow, but they were worried about me. Then Chris said he wanted to come and Josh got everyone else. It was a big shock to see them all. When James and I saw each other, it was incredible, just like some old movie. I didn't know love that deep was possible. We hugged so tightly that it accidentally hurt him. I felt bad, of course, but he said he could take it." He paused for a moment then told Joel that he really could pay for the tickets.

"Mark, I have heard you complain about how little you make at your job often. Anyway, what are friends and comps for?"

"Thanks, Joel. I really want to spend time with you alone and with James, before I go."

Joel didn't know that Mark was planning on moving out of town. It had just been decided while he and Lance were walking around town. He asked Mark when he was going to be told that. Mark said he was going to talk to him about everything after the show that night. Joel had reservations about Mark moving and voiced those reservations to Mark.

"I know you very well, Joel. I know you have problems with my leaving. Can we talk tonight?"

Joel agreed. They finished their conversation and each hung up their phone.

"It's all set. Joel is comping all nine tickets." Mark said.

"Cool! I can't wait!" Lance replied. "Does he have a problem with you going with me back home?"

"I think so. I think that the straight equivalent of what we are doing is a het couple getting married after knowing each other only a few days. He knows how emotional I am. He's just scared that I'm not using my head. It's actually pretty funny. AJ tells me to follow my heart and Joel says to follow my mind."

Mark saw Lance's uneasiness. "I'm following both, Scoopy. The two of us are the only people who know how strongly we connected right away. I admit I'm really scared. However, I know this is right. God is telling me that we are meant to be together and that I should go with you to Orlando. It's time for me to move on from this city. I love it here, but I've lived in this area my whole life." He started to cry tears of happiness. "I love you so much, James! I would follow you anywhere!"

Lance hugged Mark with tears in his eyes and said, "I love you, too, Mark!"

That night a limo was dispatched by Kevin to take everyone to a neighboring town to see Joel's show. Everyone but Mark wore disguises. They entered the theater and Mark saw a lot of local actors whom he had seen and loved in recent shows. The person he was happiest to see was Ally, who he had recently seen in productions of "Dracula" and a Noel Coward piece.

After everyone sat down, Mark excused himself and went over to Joel. "Hi, Joel!" Mark said. "I've been looking forward to this show for a really long time!"

Joel smiled broadly. "Boy, I was right! You really are a lot happier than when I last saw you! So... is he any good?"

Mark blushed deeply. "Joel!"

"Well, I had to ask! Your mood did change pretty fast."

"Even though I don't ask about your sex live with David, I will say that James and I have not taken our relationship to that step yet. We do love each other very much, but neither of us are ready yet, emotionally or physically. We both want to, but we'll see where we stand when we go to Orlando in a couple of weeks."

Joel was still against Mark moving across the country with someone he barely knew. Again he voiced his concerns to Mark.

"I appreciate your concern, Joel, but I know I love him. There's nothing left for me here."

"There's plenty left for you here. You have your job, your theater volunteering, and your friends."

"I hate my job and have wanted to leave for a long time. I do love volunteering but I had been wanting to cut down doing it drastically."

Joel was surprised that Mark was going to stop volunteering as much. "If you love it so much, then why cut down?"

Mark explained that a big reason he started volunteering in the first place was to make friends. "If anything, it has made me feel even more alone. Yes, I do get along good with some people in the box office and behind the scenes, but for the most part, the actors don't like me at all."

Joel looked at his watch and realized that he still had a lot of things to do before his show started. He excused himself and left to finish his work.

Joel's show was a huge success. There were only a couple of flubbed lines, but everything else ran smoothly. Mark knew that Joel would be busy, talking with his actors and with his other friends that came to see the show. Mark was going to briefly congratulate him, talk to a couple of the actors, then go back to Lance's hotel room where they would get caught up and do anything and everything else, except making love.

The first person he went over to was Carol. Carol was just 19 years old, but had been part of the theater for several years. Mark congratulated her on her wonderful performance. As they were talking, Lance snuck up behind Mark and scared him.

Hitting him on the back of his head, Mark said, "Gee, thanks for the heart attack, James!"

"Are you going to introduce me to your friend, Mark?" Carol asked.

Mark looked at Lance questioningly. Lance shook his head. "Carol, this is James. James, this is Carol, a very nice young woman and, as you could tell, a very talented actress."

"It's nice to meet you, Carol. Mark is right. You were awesome!" Lance stated.

"Thank you, James! It's nice to meet you, too. You know your voice is so familiar. Have I seen you before?"

Lance and Mark looked at each other again. Mark smiled then Lance took off his hat and glasses.

Carol realized whom she was talking with and screamed loudly. Both Mark and Lance blushed. "Keep it down, Carol!"

Joel walked over to them. "What's going on here?" He sees Lance. "Hey, Lance! How are you doing?"

Carol was stunned. "Hello? This is Lance Bass!"

Mark replied, "We know."

"Lance Bass from *N Sync!"

Joel replied, "Carol, we know who he is. We met him in California. In fact, Mark is really good friends with Lance and the rest of the guys in the band."

At that point, the rest of *N Sync and Backstreet Boys came over to see what the commotion was about.

JC joked, "Mark, did you frighten her?"

Mark replied, "That sure is funny, Josh!" He emphasized JC's name strongly and laughed.

Carol was puzzled. "Josh?"

JC groaned and took off his disguise. Before Carol could scream again, he put a hand over her mouth.

Chris said, "I think we all might as well take our disguises off." Chris, Joey, Justin, Kevin, AJ, and Howie took off their disguises.

"I cannot believe you are friends with these guys, Mark! You are so lucky!" Carol said.

Kevin told Carol, "Mark's a great guy. I know I speak for everyone when I say I am glad I met him. AJ, Howie and I haven't had the chance to spend a lot of time with him, but we want to."

Joey added, "Kev's right. He's been a great friend to us in such a short time."

Chris then said, "He's helped me through some trying times. I will always be grateful to him and owe him forever."

Lance meekly continued. "All of us love him very much and thank God for bringing him into our lives."

Mark's eyes started to tear up and he gave Lance a hug. "I love you guys, too." He was looking only deep into Lance's eyes at the time, marveling at how beautiful they were.

Joel asked Mark if they could speak in private. They went into an empty dressing room. Mark asked what they needed to talk about in private.

"I still don't get why you have to move all the way across the country with a man you don't even know." Joel said.

Mark was already sick of hearing Joel say those words. "I really am going to miss you, Joel, but I love him and I am moving to be with him."

"You're acting like this is goodbye." Joel said.

Mark thought about his past with Joel, how their relationship started off great, but deteriorated fast once Joel met Mark face to face. Mark knew Joel was lying out of his teeth when he said Mark was attractive.

Things were even good at first after they met. Mark knew that the downfall of their potential friendship was his fault. For years he had not friends. That was one of the reasons he was always in an angry or depressed mood.

Because he was so alone for years, he was very insecure that Joel really liked him. He made a great number of mistakes during the first several months. Their relationship never strengthened, which Mark felt was his fault.

"I don't want it to be goodbye, Joel." Mark said. "You know that I love you for all that you've done for me. On the flip side, you've made no attempt at all during the last two years to know anything about me. I know I've made a lot of mistakes myself. It just seems like all I am to you is a fan of your work. I wish it wasn't true, but it is."

Joel was annoyed and angry at Mark's admission. "Are you going to whine yet again about how I ignore you? Can't you get it through your thick skull that I'm busy?"

Their discussion was quickly escalating into their first fight. "I know how busy you are and I accept that! Don't you think I am busy too? I'm lucky if I have any free time! However, I do respond to my e-mail, especially when someone asks me a question! You never have! It took my asking what your birthday was several times until you told me and by that time, I had already found out what it was!"

"Have you ever thought I didn't tell you because you were being obsessive and whiny?" Joel yelled.

"I fucking knew you were lying! Have you ever told me the truth?"

"I am now!" Joel flared.

Mark was angrier and more hurt than he had ever been in his life. It had taken him a year and a half to believe Joel liked him as a friend. Now it turned out that Joel had been lying all along.

"I don't fucking care if I am a better and stronger person because of you! You still have no right to treat me like garbage! Fuck you! I'll be so glad to get you out of my life! Goodbye!"

Mark stormed out of the room. When he got out, he started to cry and ran out of the theater. Lance and the rest of the guys were getting a tour of the theater from Carol, who was blatantly flirting with AJ. She didn't know that AJ and Kevin were lovers.

Lance didn't see Mark running out of the theater, but Devon, another actor in Joel's production, did see Mark. He excused himself and ran after him. He yelled at Mark to try to get him to stop, but was failing. He ran faster, finally catching up to Mark and stopped him.

"God, Mark! You definitely run fast! What happened in there with Joel?"

Still extremely angry and hurt, Mark shouted, "Joel is a fucking asshole! I can't believe I wasted two fucking years of my life because of him!"

Devon was stunned to no end that Joel could act so cold and asked him what he did to anger Joel so much.

"WHAT THE FUCK! Devon, I know you always hated me, but I never dreamt it was this much! How dare you think it was my fault!"

Lance had just left the theater to look for Mark when he heard Mark's last outburst. "Mark, what's wrong?"

"Hi, James. I just had a huge fight with Joel. I just found out that he had never liked me at all. I have no idea what happened."

Devon now felt guilty for yelling at Mark. "Mark, I am so sorry! Do you want me to talk to him for you?"

Mark told Devon that he didn't want him to try to fix things. He didn't feel it was worth the trouble. Devon grudgingly agreed, although he knew he would indeed talk to Joel.

"James, could you please tell the rest of the guys that I'm sorry, but I'm going to go home."

"OK." Lance replied. "Let me grab my stuff and we will go back to the hotel. You can call a cab while I get my things."

All Mark said in response was "No".

"Mark, I know you're hurting a lot. You've been a great friend to us all. Please let us be friends to you." Lance said with concern.

"James, I really need to be alone right now. Yes, losing a friend is always hard, but my finding out that Joel never liked me is devastating."

"I know, and that is why I will not let you be alone. Aren't we supposed to be..." Lance remembered that Devon was still with them and abruptly stopped.

Devon knew what Lance was trying to say. "Guys, I know."

Both Mark and Lance tried to act confused. "You know what? That he and I are friends? Why would I hide that?" Mark said.

Devon replied, "Mark, I know you don't really know me. However, you can trust me. I won't tell anyone that you and Lance are together."

Mark looked at Lance with his mouth wide open. Lance shrugged his shoulders then nodded, telling Mark it was all right to acknowledge what Devon said.

"Is it that obvious?" Mark asked.

"To me it was. I could tell that you loved each other very much." He paused briefly then continued. "I could see it when you were on Rosie O'Donnell's show."

Mark blushed. He then cursed yet again how easy it was for him to blush.

Devon saw Mark blushing. He told him that he sounded great both by himself and with the rest of *N Sync. Mark smiled when he heard that. He was still very nervous whenever he talked with someone who had heard him sing on national TV.

"You really were great, Mark. I never knew you had that much talent. I thought you were just a huge fan of the theater and Joel in particular." Devon said. Lance gave Devon a dirty look. Devon was confused at first, then realized what he said. "Oh God! I am so sorry, Mark! I didn't mean to mention his name."

Mark replied, "Thanks, Devon, but it's OK to mention him. Even if I wanted to, I will never be able to forget him. He was the most important part of my life, at least until I met James."

"Why do you call him James anyway?"

"Most people call him Lance and because my relationship with him is different that any one else's, I want to call him by his real first name. Lance is his middle name. As we get to know each other more, I might call him something else, maybe Lansten, or maybe even Poofu."

Lance groaned. "God, no! Please don't ever call me that! I really hate that name! The other guys tease me so much about it."

Devon tried not to laugh, but couldn't help laughing so hard that his eyes teared. "I'm sorry for laughing, Lance."

"No, you're not Devon." Lance snickered.

"No, I guess I'm not. How did they come up with that name anyway?"

Lance explained the background of the name. Both Mark and Devon promised that they wouldn't ever use that name. Lance was very grateful.

Devon smiled then said, "You know, I am really glad we had this chance to talk, Mark. I just with it had been under better circumstances."

"I know. I feel the same way. I really wish it had happened before, like maybe at those awards last summer. It's just my luck that it happens when it's about too late." Mark replied.

"It's never too late to make friends."

"But isn't it when one person is about to move all the way across the country?" He looked at Lance with pride. "In two weeks, or whenever the two of us are healed completely, I am moving to Orlando with Scoopy."

"Uh..." Devon started to say something, but was interrupted.

"Please don't say it. It's how my fight started with Joel."

Lance felt guilty. He felt he was to blame for Mark's fight with Joel. "Baby, I am so sorry! I feel so bad! It's all my fault!"

Mark knew why Lance felt bad and strongly denied it was his fault. "Baby, you did nothing wrong! It's not your fault. It's his fault! I was fooled for two years thinking he liked me."

"What did he say anyway?" Devon asked.

"Basically that I whined about everything and he was sick of my being obsessed with him."

"Why did he say that? Didn't you tell me you thought you did that, but he said you didn't?" Lance asked.

"He did say I was a loyal friend. What pisses me off the most was he made me think I was a friend, but I never was. I knew more about you, James, things you told me, in one day than I did about him in two years! I know I made my mistakes for quite some time, but he's to blame for a lot of them." He paused for a moment then told Lance and Devon every other insecurity he had. By the end, Lance was angry, but Devon was angrier.

"How dare he fuck you over like that? You're a great guy and he should've treated you with respect!"

Mark thanked Devon for his concern, but added that Joel was not worth getting upset over. All of a sudden, Mark smiled broadly. Both Lance and Devon looked at Mark like he was strange. Mark noticed the looks and said, "Yes, I loved him, but he isn't worth getting upset over. I am so happy that James loves me, that I have the rest of *N Sync and two of BSB as friends and I know Howie will be one too. I really hope we can be friends, Devon."

Devon replied, "I'd really like that."

Mark added, "We could always e-mail each other. I have a lot to be thankful for. I won't dwell on the negative, but remember the positive."

Lance told Mark that his attitude was wonderful and wished that more people could be like that. Mark admitted that while he had been mostly happy for the last couple of years, he still dwelled on the negative things in his life also. It was only when he first saw Lance that all of the pieces in his life came together.

"You always know the right things to say to me, Mark. Is it any wonder I love you?"

To that, Mark replied, "Baby, I'm amazed by you!" His expression changed to one of deep thought. Lance asked what he was thinking about. Mark responded, "I need your help in something. Does Josh know the song 'Amazed' by Lonestar?"

"Yes. It's a song he really loves."

"Cool! You, me, Josh, and the rest of the guys are going to go to a karaoke club and Josh and I are going to do that song."

Devon started to feel like the third wheel, so he told Mark and Lance that he would leave them alone. He shook Lance's and Mark's hands and left.

After Devon left, Lance asked Mark why he was so set on singing that song with JC.

"Josh has to admit to himself and the rest of us that he is in love with Justin." Mark calmly replied.

Lance laughed hard. "JC loves J? Mark, I love you, but you're crazy."

"I'm crazy? You'll think I've really lost it when I say that Justin loves Josh, too."

"Justin is dating Britney Spears. Yes, he is attracted to guys, but he hasn't been in a relationship with one as long as I have known him."

"James, I have two words for you... Danielle Fishel."

"Baby, just because Danielle was my beard doesn't mean that Britney is his for our fans."

"Who besides Josh has Justin known the longest? Britney, of course. I think they are close friends and he asked her to pose as his girlfriend while in public. He has to appear het to the fans. I was right about Chris and Joey and I am right about this."

"Mark, I will help you, but I still say you are wrong."

Mark replied, "I am good in seeing things like this. If I can get Josh to sing that song with me, I know it will show that they really do love each other."

"What if you're wrong or if Justin doesn't feel the same way about Josh?"

"I won't tell anyone else about my suspicions. That way, neither of them gets hurt in case and it just looks like I wanted to sing with Josh. However, what if they really do love each other, but won't say a word because they both are scared that the other doesn't feel the same?"

"You have a point, Mark. I just don't want either of them to get hurt."

"Neither do I."

Lance and Mark went back inside the theater. Lance asked everyone if they wanted to go to a club and was given a dirty look as if to say, "Do you actually have to ask?" Everyone laughed hard.

"Mark has this idea of going to a karaoke bar, unless anyone has any problems going to one."

Nobody had any reservations about going there, so Mark found a place to go. Once there, everyone ordered their drinks. Being underage, both Lance and Justin had to order something non-alcoholic, despite their pleading for something harder. This was one time their celebrity wouldn't help them. Mark also ordered something non-alcoholic because of his being an alcoholic.

They sat down with their drinks and thought about what songs to sing.

"Josh, I heard you like the song 'Amazed' by Lonestar." Mark said to JC.

JC's eyes lit up. "Yes! That's the perfect song to do! Will you do it with me, Mark?"

Mark cocked an eyebrow to Lance then said, "I would love to sing with you! I love that song, too. It's the best song to sing to someone you are deeply in love with."

JC stuttered and lost his breath temporarily and even started to sweat when he heard what Mark said. "Then again, maybe we could do another song." JC begged.

Mark winked at Lance. "No, Josh. I really love that song. Please?"

JC sighed heavily then agreed to do the song. He said to himself, "God, I hope I don't stare at Justin when I'm doing that song! Why did I even suggest doing it? I can't let Justin know I love him! It would ruin our friendship!"

JC and Mark went up onstage. Mark went to the announcer and told him what song he and JC were doing. After being announced, they sing "Amazed".

Mark sang the first verse:

Every time our eyes meet This feeling inside me Is almost more than I can take Baby when you touch me I can feel how much you love me And It just blows me away

I've never been this close to anyone or anything I can hear your thoughts I can see your dreams

JC joined Mark in the chorus:

I don't know how you do what you do I'm so in love with you It just keeps getting better I want to spend the rest of my life With you by my side Forever and ever Every little thing that you do Baby, I'm amazed by you

JC sang the second verse. As he sang his verse, he was staring at Justin, despite his hoping that he wouldn't. "I don't know how much longer I can hide what I feel for J. But I can't tell him either! What if he doesn't feel the same way about me?" he thought as he sang:

The smell of your skin The taste of your kiss The way you whisper in the dark Your hair all around me Baby you surround me You touch every place in my heart

Oh, it feels like the first time, every time I want to spend the whole night in your eyes

Mark joined JC in the repeating the chorus:

I don't know how you do what you do I'm so in love with you It just keeps getting better I want to spend the rest of my life With you by my side Forever and ever Every little thing that you do Baby, I'm amazed by you

Both Mark and JC repeated the chorus one more time after an instrumental solo. JC was getting more and more emotional as they were singing. In fact, he was barely able to finish the song. When they were done, the audience applauded loudly, the biggest coming from Joey, Chris, Lance, Kevin, AJ, and Howie. Justin, however, was mesmerized by JC's voice. He was also fighting his feelings for JC.

JC didn't hear the massive applause and ran off stage and outside.

When Mark got back to their table, he saw JC running away. "Fuck!" he whispered. Louder, he said, "I'm sorry, guys. I think I need to apologize to Josh."

Lance disagreed. "Yes, Mark. I think you need to. It's obvious that you were wrong."

Justin, Joey, and Chris didn't know what was going on. "What's wrong with JC?" Justin asked.

"Justin, how do you feel about Josh?" Mark asked.

"He's my brother. I love him very much."

"It is just a brotherly love?"

Justin had kept secret his feelings for JC secret for the same reason JC kept his feelings secret. Both people were scared. They didn't want their friendship to suffer with the other person if the feelings weren't returned.

Because Justin wasn't ready to admit his feelings to anyone, he tried to maneuver his way around answering. When that didn't work, he resorted to lying. "We are friends, nothing more."

"See, you fucking idiot? Your stupid thought destroyed Josh! How could you?" Lance yelled at Mark.

"But..." Mark replied, shocked to hear Lance talk like he was.

"Did you actually think of the consequences? Or are you just a fucking idiot? You have ruined him! Get out of my fucking sight!" Lance yelled even louder.

"Look how you are treating me! Is that any better, you albino freak? Fuck you!" Mark yelled back. "I'm gonna go talk to Josh and give us a chance to cool down." He ran off to find JC.

"Can I buy a vowel please, Pat?" Chris said, trying in his usual way to bring humor into a dark moment.

"Mark was stupid enough to think to sing that song with JC hoping he would realize he loved Justin and Justin would realize he loved JC." Lance explained.

"He thought JC and Curly loved each other? How stupid!" Joey said.

"Well, apparently, he is half right. We all can tell that Josh loves J." Chris said.

Justin started to cry hard. "Scoopy, you made a huge mistake! You shouldn't have yelled at him like that!"

"Why?" Lance yelled.

"Because he is completely right. I am in love with Josh."

TO BE CONTINUED

Thanks again for waiting all this time for this new part. I have been working on the story so hard that I needed a break. I think I am finally ready for writing my first sex scene. Unless I chicken out, it will come next chapter. Please e-mail me with comments and suggestions to christopher_bass@yahoo.com