** Here's the next part of the story. I'll still be working on it ** so don't fret. I will introduce the final 4 characters into the ** story and I hope it will sound okay.
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Chapter 17: Comfort
Front row tickets to the guys' concert and they were about to wrap up the show. The stadium was packed to the brim and then some. It was almost impossible to hear the singing over the thousands of screaming teenagers around me. Actually, I was surrounded by teenagers trying to scale the barriers to get closer to the guys.
Soon enough, the last song faded and the stage lights dimmed. Justin thanked everyone who attended. They jogged off the stage and the house lights came on full force. My ears were still ringing from all the noise and people were filing out of place. I plopped back down to my seat and watched everyone cram their way through the multiple exits located all over the place.
About 10 minutes or so of resting, I stood up and headed towards the backstage area. I showed the guard my pass and he let me through. I walked through the maze of corridors until I reached the lounge area. I opened the door and saw the guys plopped on the couch. They were exhausted from the show they put on and I thought I heard Chris lightly snoring.
"Hey guys," I said as I walked in.
No one answered nor did they look up. I was a little worried about their condition.
"Well I see that you guys are pretty tired. I'll be on my way now," I started to turn around.
"Hey Mano," JC spoke up.
I stopped and turned towards him, "Yeah."
"Before you go, I'd like you to meet someone."
"Oh? Who?" I asked quizzically.
"Look behind you," he smiled.
I turned around and saw a tall, blonde hair woman wearing jeans. She looked like one of those models you see in a Levi's commercial or something. She smiled and walked right past me and straight to JC. She sat on his lap and lip-locked for about a couple of seconds. My eyes bulged out of their sockets. When I regained my senses I started to speak.
"Who's she?" I stuttered out.
"You don't know?" he sounded surprised, "She's my girlfriend."
"Y...you're girlfriend," echoing in disbelief.
He nodded, "I met her on the road and she's everything I've ever wanted."
Tears started to well up and I just blurted out, "What about me!"
"You? Oh so sorry about that," he kissed her again.
"What!?!?!" I got angrier.
"Yeah, well I guess I'm not into guys like I thought. I was just lonely I guess," he shrugged his shoulders, "Didn't mean to lead you on or anything. We could still be friends."
"But..." I stuttered.
"I'd love to chat, but I need to get back the hotel and get some rest," he smiled towards her and they both started to get up.
By now the tears were flowing from my eyes. I ran out of the room and through the dark corridors. I couldn't see where I was going, but it didn't matter. As long as I was away from JC, nothing mattered. I reached the bottom of the arena and headed straight to the nearest exit. I flung the doors opened and started running across the street. Half- way across I could hear a loud noise. I turned to look at where it was coming from, but the headlights blinded me.
I jumped awake from the nightmare I just experienced. I was cold and clammy. My clothes were drenched with sweat and my hands were shaking hard. I just couldn't believe that JC would be dating someone right after he confessed to me. Did I scare him off? Did I push him too hard? Those were the questions that echoed in my mind. I just didn't know what to do... I managed to slowly get up and walk to my room. I could see the wilted roses that appeared at the front door right after the accident. I never had the heart to throw them away because that was the first time someone gave me anything before. I slowly crawled onto the bed and tried my best to sleep....
"Okay you guys," a director spoke into the microphone, "That's it for now, but be back in two hours for the run down on the new video."
"Cool," Joey remarked as he put his headphones down.
"Finally we get to eat," Justin exaggerated.
"Yeah, I'm starving," Chris added, "I feel like going out to eat. How about you guys?"
"Count me in," Joey said.
"Me to," Justin replied.
"JC? Lance? How about you guys?" Chris turned to them.
"Sure...no problem," JC said.
Chris looked at Lance, "Huh...umm...I'll just eat here, I have some things to do."
"You sure?" JC questioned.
"Y..yeah. Don't worry," Lance said without making eye contact, "It's some boring stuff that the execs are throwing around."
"Need any help?" JC asked.
"N..No, no. It's not that bad," Lance spoke hurriedly, "Just come back in a couple of hours."
JC shrugged his shoulders, "OK...Let's go."
Lance was the first one out of the set as he quickly walked down the corridors. The feeling he had was very strong and he felt very uncomfortable around JC. Lance knew that he shouldn't, but it just felt awkward. He pushed open the double doors which lead to the cafeteria and grabbed a tray, plate, and some utensils. He piled on some fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and some vegetables. He also picked up a glass of orange juice and a cup of chocolate pudding for dessert. Once done, Lance scanned the room and found a table in the far corner, away from the entrance.
He quickly walked towards the table and sat down. Lance was hungry, but just stared at the food on his plate. He picked a drumstick, but didn't take a bite. All he did was to nibble a piece of it and put the food back down. It was probably the stress. Lance pushed the tray full of food away from him and pulled out his planner. Nothing on the planner made any sense. He was scared to see that he couldn't read his own writing. Little beads of sweat formed on his brow and he started to breath more quickly.
Lance closed his eyes, put his hands over his face, and tried to calm down. He wasn't about to lose it again like last time. He reached for the juice and slowly sipped a couple of times. The breathing went to normal and he started to feel a little better. Then, Joey entered the area and saw Lance sitting in the corner. Joey walked towards him and sat across from him. Joey inspected the tray.
"No appetite?" Joey asked.
Lance looked up at him, "No...guess I'm not that hungry."
"I can tell...You didn't even touch the mashed potatoes," Joey sounded concerned, "Do you want to talk?"
"I guess..." he shrugged his shoulders.
"That's good. You know how we hate to keep secrets from each other."
"Yeah I know."
"So what's up?"
Lance took a breath, "What would you do if you found out that your friend was..." he trailed off.
"Was what?" Joey leaned in closer.
"Was...was gay?"
Joey leaned back into the chair, "I would beat the crap out of him."
Lance was shocked, "Wha...what?"
Joey smiled, "Just kidding...Take it easy, you know me better than that," he tried to soothe Lance.
"Quit joking around," Lance said sternly, "What would you do?"
"Nothing," stating a matter of factly.
"Nothing?" Lance echoed.
"Yeah nothing. They are the same person before they told me they were gay, so why should I think different of them?"
Lance formed a small smile, "Okay..thanks for your answer."
"Hey no problem bud," Joey flashed a small smile at Lance, "Say Lance?"
"Yeah."
"Who is this friend you're referring to?"
Lance froze, "I...uhhh..."
"Yo Joey!" Chris yelled from across the room, "Let's go!"
"OK!" Joey yelled back, "Hey don't worry about it," he assured Lance, "If you can't say, I understand," Joey got up from the table and hurried towards Chris. They exited the cafeteria.
Lance breathed out hard, `That was close...But at least I know that Joey won't leave me,' he thought to himself.
Lance looked around and decided to walk a bit outside to get some fresh air. He left his food on the table and exited out the buildings. Lance walked outside and breathed in the clean crisp air as well as to soak in some sunlight. He passed by the fountain in front of the building and headed towards the sidewalk.
It was a slow deliberate walk down the path. There were things on his mind that didn't want to completely go away. He passed by the neighboring buildings and came across a small park which was near the studio. He looked around and decided to take a stroll through. Not many people were in the park. Just the occasional jogger, biker, or roller blader. He walked through the park until he reached a small pond surrounded by benches.
There were a few birds swimming on the pond and Lance decided to take a rest and admire the scenery. He looked out over the emerald waters and thought about everything. He thought about how I helped him through his ordeal and how he figured out about my secret as well.
"God how am I going to tell the rest of the guys," he spoke out loud, "Why can't I tell them?" He looked back at the water and depression filled his being. "My life is so fucked up..." a tear rolled down cheek, "I wish Mano was here," he whispered.
Lance put his hands over his face and softly cried, "Why does it have to happen to me?"
A passer-by noticed the young man's predicament and slowly approached him.
"Ummm...excuse me," he softly spoke, "Is something the matter?"
Lance heard the voice and quickly stopped crying. He did his best to remove the tears from his face.
"I'm fine, thanks," he tried to sound alright, but looked on the ground instead.
"Oh no," the guy persisted, "There's something very much wrong here and I don't like to see people in pain," he sounded concerned.
"Well actually..." Lance looked up, "It's rather a personal matter."
The guy was surprised at who he was talking with. "You're...you're Lance, right?"
Lance gave a small smile, "Yeah...that's me."
"I..I'm sorry to have bothered you," he sounded apologetic, "Maybe I should go."
"No, it's quite alright," Lance interrupted him, "You're right in the first place. Maybe I need someone to talk to..."
"Umm..okay, but only if you're sure," Lance nodded and he sat down next to him on the bench, "So...where do we start?"
"We could start with the basics," Lance replied, "You already know everything about me, how about a little about yourself."
"Oh..I'm so sorry about that. I'm Jay. I used to live in Chicago, but moved here in Orlando a few years back. My dad's an engineer so we travel a lot," Jay spoke quickly.
Lance chuckled a little, "You sound just like me,"
"Well...I guess," scratching his head, "As you probably can tell, I'm a big fan of you guys and I just bought you're European album."
"Oh God," Lance began laughing, "We look so goofy on the cover."
Jay laughed too, "No you don't. Actually all of you guys are really cute."
Lance stopped all of a sudden, "Huh?"
"Well, yeah," Jay blushed a little, "You guys look cute on that cover, but now you look even hotter."
"You're gay?" Lance asked quizzically.
"Umm, yeah. If it's a problem, then I'll leave," he looked at the ground.
Lance put his hand on Jay's shoulder, "No don't...It was just that I wasn't expecting it, that's all."
"So...you're cool with it," he ask hesitantly.
"Of course I am," Lance smiled, "You're a nice person, so why should be bothered by it?"
Jay smiled at him, "Thanks. You said that you had some personal problems. Do you want to talk about it?"
"Well..I don't know," replying hesitantly, "It's a little touchy."
"I understand. If you don't want to talk about it then, I'm okay with it."
Lance needed something to say, "Say, are you going to be around here later?"
"I suppose so, why?"
"I have to get back to work, and I was wondering if you can come back here in a couple of hours so we can talk."
Jay beamed a smile at Lance, "I would love to."
"Okay then. We'll meet here in two hours," Jay nodded his head, "I'll see you later."
Lance and Jay stood up at the same time. Without warning, Lance gave Jay a deep hug before running back to the studio. Jay stood there in awe.
"Lance just hugged me," he whispered softly, "That was so cool. But I wonder if he's..."
Lance jogged back to the studio rather quickly. He didn't want to be at the end of everyone's barking. He knew that they rest of the guys would never let him go for being late after he has barked at them for the same thing. During the trek back to the studio, he smiled the whole way.
Lance remembered Jay's features. A 5'10" guy with the most wicked smile he has seen. Jay had short hair and buzzed on the sides like Lance's, but didn't have the spikes. He also remembered the soft green eyes that Jay had...though it looked like he was wearing contacts.
He raced faster as the clock was ticking. Lance forcefully opened the doors and zigzagged through the winding hallways. He finally reached the sound studio where and noticed that everyone was waiting there for him. JC saw him enter and just stared at him.
"Where have you been?" JC asked sternly.
"Sorry about that," as he put on his headphones, "I forgot the time."
"You? Forgetting the time," Joey gasped.
"Oh no! The world is gonna end!" Chris joked with him.
JC nudged Chris hard, "Are you feeling all right?" he whispered in Lance's ear, "You know that I'm worried about you."
Lance just looked down, "Yeah...I'm fine thanks," he whispered back, "Let's we get to work."
Justin observed this event in silence. He suspected that there was something between JC and Lance and it wasn't just friends. He let it go and resumed with the rehearsals with everyone else.
Everything went pretty well even with the lateness of Lance, everyone had a good time. JC put his hand on Lance's shoulder once in a while to know that he was there by his side. Lance felt at ease with JC there, but sooner or later, he would have to tell him. The two hours went by rather quickly and everyone was gathering their things to go back home and relax for the rest of the day.
"Hey Lance," JC said while he was gathering his things.
"What's up?"
"Just wondering if you were free later tonight."
"What's going on tonight?"
"Well, me and Jenny are going clubbing and I wanted you to come with us."
"Uhh...I've got some plans for tonight as well. Thanks for the offer," trying not to sound annoyed.
JC shrugged, "Oh okay...maybe next time then."
Lance let out a small sigh, "Yeah..next time."
JC smiled at him and left the building. Lance was there pondering about him and his "girlfriend." It was obvious to everyone that JC had no feelings for her, but was confused about the whole situation. No one brought it up because JC would give everyone the run-around. Lance snapped back to attention and quickly left the building.
It was nearly 7 o'clock and the sun had just set over the horizon creating a wonderful display of orange, red, and yellow streaks across the sky. Lance walked swiftly to the pond where he had met Jay. There was a renewed sense of hope and even more so the close he reached his destination.
When he reached the spot, he noticed Jay sitting on the same bench as before. Lance stopped and watched Jay throw a few bread crumbs into the water. He smiled at the sight of the ducks dipping their heads in the water trying to get the crumbs. He slowly approached the bench and cleared his throat.
Jay turned his head and smiled, "How did it go with the rest of the guys?"
Lance laughed, "Not to well I suppose. They're not going to forget about this one."
"Sorry for making you late," he pouted.
"Oh don't be," Lance put his hand on Jay's shoulder, "Well, you ready to go?"
Jay stood up, "Go where?"
"I dunno...how about some coffee?" he suggested.
"Sounds good to me."
"Good. My car's back at the studio so we'd better get a move on it."
"Sure thing," Jay complied and both of them headed back to the studio.
"What brings you around here?" Lance started some small talk.
"Well, I was just exploring around the place. I live pretty close and I had nothing to do."
"Huh? Any friends in the area?"
Jay shook his head, "Nope...never made any friends around here."
"I see."
"I suppose."
The rest of the way to the car was uneventful and quiet. Lance didn't want to start talking about himself to a total stranger and Jay was scared that he would sound stupid in front of him. They reached the studio and stepped into Lance's car.
"Any place in particular?" Lance asked as he started the engine.
"No...not really," Jay replied looking around.
"There's a Starbucks nearby, we can chill there."
Jay smiled, "Cool."
They chatted a bit on the way to the cafe. It was really just small talk and nothing in particular. Jay asked a lot of questions, but Lance didn't mind that much. It felt refreshing to hear it from a guy instead of a screaming teenager.
They reached the place and headed towards the back of the cafe. It was lit pretty well and only a few people were drinking coffee. Lance ordered a mocha coffee while Jay got a cafe latte. Both of them sat at one of the tables outside underneath a light. Moths were circling around the lamps and the sound of cars passing by filled the air.
"Can I ask you something?" Lance spoke sipping his drink.
"Sure, you can ask me anything you want."
"Okay...Does your parents know that you're gay?" Lance looked at him.
"Well...it's a long story," Jay his hands around the coffee cup.
"I have time, but if it's too personal, I understand," Lance softly said.
"No..it's not that...It sometimes creep people out."
"Okay...only if you're sure about it."
Jay nodded, "It all started when I was in Chicago. I surfed the net a lot and came across this one guy. He said that his name was Brandon and he was about my age at the time, 17."
"Sounds kinda dangerous..." Lance hesitantly said.
"When I look back at it, it was pretty stupid of me. But back then, I was really lonely and I couldn't tell anyone that I was gay. We chatted with each other for quite some time...like a couple of months or so."
"Wow...that's a long time."
Jay nodded his head, "Yeah...After chatting a while, I started to call him up. He lived near Chicago so it was okay to call him up. It had to be collect calls because I didn't want the number show up on our phone bills. I would call him late at night where everyone was sleeping or when no one was at home. I invited him many times to come see me play at our games, but every time he made an excuse about not being able to be there."
"Oh...he flaked out," taking a sip of mocha, "Weren't you suspicious."
"Well...no. You see I trusted him and I told him things which I would never had told anyone else."
"You trusted someone that much without even seeing who he is?"
"Yeah," Jay gave out a small laugh, "Guess it's in the blood. Time wore on and I called him less and less. The reason was that I was so busy with school, work, band and other things that I didn't have the time to call him up. Then one day he called me up under a different name. He didn't want my parents to know who was calling. He sounded pissed that I didn't call him much, but I explained everything to him."
"Hmmm...sounds pretty fishy to me, but I don't understand how this has to do with your parents."
"Well...He called me up one day at home and we started talking. I told him to meet me at work so we could talk or something. My dad was trying to connect to the internet, but couldn't. So he picked up the phone and listened to my conversation. After it was over all hell broke loose."
"Oh...I can only imagine," replying meekly.
"Yeah well, he yelled at me that I could have been kidnapped or something and then told my mom. She broke down and started crying and I felt miserable. Now my parents know that I'm gay and I felt like shit. The next day the police were involved trying to find out who this guy was. As it turned out BJ wasn't 17 at all, but he was 40 year old man convicted of pedophile.."
Lance looked at him shock, "Oh my God."
"I was crushed to find out and the worst part was that I was being used all along...," Jay looked at the table.
Lance stood up and sat next to Jay.
"That's all in the past now...I can't do anything about it," he sighed.
Lance put his arm around Jay, "Don't worry about it...if you need someone to talk to..I'm here for you."
Jay looked up at him and smiled, "Thanks."
They both sat quietly taking a sip of their drinks. The night sky was sprinkled with silver glitter and not a cloud was in sight. The humming of cars past them by as the two chatted softly at the table.
Lance looked at his watch, "It's getting late, I should take you home."
Jay smiled, "Thanks, but you don't have to."
"Why not?" replying quizzically.
"My house is right around the corner."
"Really?"
"Yeah...I was exploring a bit and took a bus to the studio where you were working."
"I see, then I'll see you later."
"I hope so too."
Both of them looked at each other's eyes and were transfixed. Lance noticed the soft, greenish eyes which were lovingly staring into his own. He felt a sense of calmness as if all the worries of the world faded into the background. Jay slowly leaned towards Lance and planted a gentle kiss on his lips. The moment passed and both of them looked at each other. Lance smiled a little and got up. Jay got up as well and started walking towards his house. Lance stood motionless, looking at Jay. He looked over his shoulder and waved at Lance good-bye.
Lance slowly went back to reality as he walked towards his car. This was his first kiss and it felt wonderful, but he was scared at the same time. This new sensation was throwing him off balance and his feelings were all in a jumble. `I guess I just have to deal with it...' he thought as he drove home.
JC and Chris were sitting on the couch watching some TV. Justin was eating some leftovers in the dining room and observed the other guys. It was about 10 o'clock and the quiet of the night filtered through the house. Justin got up and walked towards the rest of the guys and sat down on the floor.
"How was the date?" Chris asked during a commercial.
"It was okay nothing special," JC replied.
"Whatcha do?"
"A movie and some dinner."
"Oh okay," Chris resumed watching TV.
"You guys noticed something during rehearsals," Justin spoke up.
"Like what?" Chris looked at him.
"Like Lance being a little bit jumpy lately."
"No," Chris thought for a minute, "Not really.
"Me either," JC spoke.
"Guess it was just my imagination," Justin shrugged.
The three watched some more TV when the phone rang. Justin got up and answered it.
"Hello?"
"Hi Justin, it's mom."
"Hi mom. What's going on?"
"Nothing much. Say, is the guest room clean?"
"Yes it is, why?"
"You'll see when I get home."
"Umm..okay. I'll see you in a little bit then."
"Okay. Take care," she hung up.
"What was that about?" JC said as Justin put down the receiver.
"I don't know, but she wanted the guest room to be clean though."
Chris perked up, "So someone's staying over."
"It looks that way," Justin shrugged, "I wonder who though."
About an hour passed and there was a knock at the door. Justin went over and opened the door. He saw who it was that was staying over and his jaw dropped to the ground.....
Chapter 18: Visitors
"Hey Just, what's up?" he said with a huge smile.
Justin stood there not moving a muscle. There was a tall boy with short light brown hair and blue eyes smiling widely at Justin.
"N..Nathan? Is that you?" replying dumbfounded.
"Long time no see," he beamed back a smile.
"You've grown," Justin noticing that Nathan was as tall as he was.
Nathan blushed a little, "Well I did grow some."
"Come here."
Justin pulled Nathan inside the house and gave him a deep hug. JC and Chris looked over where Justin was.
"Well look who dropped by," Chris sounded annoyed.
Nathan broke the embrace, "Ah shaddap."
JC laughed, "Still the same squirt,"
"I'm almost as tall as you are," Nathan retorted.
"But you're still a kid," JC laughed and Nathan rolled his head back.
"Justin!" Lynn yelled from the van, "Will you help me get Nathan's luggage?"
"Sure no problem," he replied and headed out the door with Nathan following him.
"It's been years since I last saw you," Justin said as they headed towards the trunk.
"Yeah..It's been way too long," exaggerating back, "Heard you guys have been busy."
"Aren't we always?" they both laughed as each of them picked up a suitcase.
"How long are you gonna stay?"
"I dunno," he shrugged, "My mom still has to negotiate some contracts and I could stay if she finishes early only if you don't mind."
Justin smiled, "Of course I don't mind. You know that you're always welcomed here."
"Not by the sound of the other guys," Nathan stated as they headed towards the house.
"Oh please, you know that they're just teasing."
"I know," he giggled, "Whatcha been up to lately?"
"Not much. Just the same old routine. How about you?"
"You know me. School, vocals, sleep...nothing really happens to me," he sighed.
"Don't worry," Justin tried to assure him, "You'll get your break soon."
"I hope so," he smiled at Justin.
They dragged the suitcases inside the house.
"Do I get the guest room?" Nathan asked.
"You get the garage," Chris joked.
"I love you too Chris," he faked a smile.
Chris threw a cushion at him, "That's how much I love you as well," everybody busted up laughing.
After catching his breath, "Yeah, you get the guest room," Justin replied to Nathan.
"Cool."
"What brings you here?" JC asked.
"Meetings, contracts and all that other stuff," he replied.
"Sounds fun."
"Yeah..real fun stuff. Mom goes off to meetings while I do nothing," he pouted.
"You can chill with us at the studio if you want," Justin suggested.
Nathan's eyes grew big, "Really? I can come with you guys?"
"As long as you don't bug us too much," Chris said.
"When did I ever bug you guys?" sounding defensive.
"When you called me up in the middle of a show," JC sounded upset.
"Okay, okay," putting his hands up, "I got the time mixed up...but you didn't have to cuss me out ya know."
JC rolled his eyes back, "You deserved every word I said."
"Enough already," Justin spoke up, "We should getting some sleep. We have a photo shoot tomorrow morning."
"Another one?" Chris complained, "That's like the fourth one in a row."
"Well the execs want to push the new single," JC replied.
"I guess," Chris shrugged his shoulders.
The four of them headed back to their respected rooms. They said good night to each other and closed the door behind them. Justin entered his room and walked towards the bed. He peeled off his clothes and was left with his boxers and tank-top. Justin was about to go to bed when he heard a faint knocking at his door.
"Come in," he spoke out.
The door opened and Nathan entered the room.
"Hey Nathan," Justin said, "What's up?"
"Nothing much," he replied coolly.
"Then why are you here?" looking puzzled.
Nathan leaped up at Justin and tackling him onto the bed. "That's why," he smiled down at Justin.
Justin smiled back, "Oh I see...you still haven't changed have you?"
"Nope, but I was hoping you might."
Justin ruffled Nathan's hair a little, "Nope can't say that I have."
Nathan frowned a little, "That's OK..."
"You still have that crush on me?"
"Well..." blushing a little, "A little bit."
Justin giggled, "Ever since you told me that you were gay and that you had a crush on me, you still wanted me to change...but you know I can't."
Nathan sighed and rested his head on Justin's chest, "I know...but I can't help it. I always had a good time with you when I was little...I dunno, I was hoping for something more."
"Oh don't worry about that," he stroked his hair, "You'll meet your man one of these days."
"I would be hoping that it would be you," smiling at Justin.
"Please...You're just 14. Even if I was, I don't think I would be dating someone your age."
"What's wrong with my age?" Nathan sat up and sounded defensive.
"You're too hyper for me," Justin laughed.
Nathan giggled too, "Guess you're right, but that won't stop me from trying."
"All right, all right," giving in, "You can try, but remember..."
"Not in public. Yeah, yeah I know the routine."
"It'll be kinda fun saying no to you."
Nathan smirked, "Well watch me make you say yes."
"That'll be the day."
"Okay, well good night Just."
"Good night to you Nate."
Nathan leaned over and gave Justin a quick kiss on his cheek and got off the bed. He headed towards the door and slowly exited out of the room. Justin lay on the bed thinking to himself. `That kid is crazy. He'll be hitting on me the whole time he's here. Though I do miss him. Haven't seen him in a while.' He turned off the lights in the room and drifted off to sleep.
Everyone slept peacefully for once. Not one of them had any troubles getting their much needed rest. The sun slowly peeked over the horizon and the morning sounds of summer stirred the air. The light from the sun filtered through the curtains and the room was filled with a soft yellow-orange hue. Lance slowly opened his eyes and groggily sat up on the bed.
He yawned a bit and stretched out his arms. It was only 6 in the morning, but he felt refreshed. Lance hopped out of the bed and rummaged through the dresser. He found a pair of grey slacks and a shirt to match. Once everything was set, he headed towards the bathroom for a quick shower. Everyone in the house were still sleeping and he quickly and quietly made his way to the bathroom.
A nice warm, refreshing shower relaxed him even more. Once done, he fixed his hair the best we he could and headed down to the kitchen. He made himself a quick bowl of cereal and finished it within two minutes. For some unknown reason he was hyper. Maybe because he experienced his first kiss from a guy. Or maybe he was falling in love..he didn't know.
Everyone in the house was still sleeping and Lance decided to go out and take in the morning air. He hopped into his car and drove off towards the studio. He just felt happy. The drive to the studio was a leisurely drive. There was no rush because it was still early and he had a few hours to kill. He passed by the cafe where he and Jay spent the evening and to his amazement, Jay was sitting at one of the tables reading a book and drinking something. Lance's heart beat faster and he quickly parked his car. He got off and walked towards Jay.
"May I join you?" Lance calmly asked.
Jay looked up and was a little surprised, "Of course you may," smiling back. "I didn't know that you're up this early," as he took his seat.
"I like summer mornings," Jay replied, "That's why I'm here."
"That's cool. Mornings around here are beautiful."
"I can tell. So what brings you around here this early?" taking a sip.
"Just driving around and killing some time," Lance replied, "What's that you're drinking?"
"Oh this? It's a mochachino."
"A mocha what?" "A mochachino," repeating himself, "It's half mocha and half cuppachino."
"I see...Sounds interesting."
"Want a taste?"
"Sure," Jay handed him the cup and Lance took a small sip of it, "It tastes pretty good, but it's a little bitter."
"I guess...Umm, about last night..." Jay slowly spoke.
"What about?"
"I'm sorry for being so forward and kissing you. I know that I shouldn't have, but I did anyway."
Lance smiled, "That's okay."
"Really?" looking stunned.
"Yeah...just make sure no one sees us. I'll be in some shit if anyone finds out."
Jay giggled, "I can imagine. Are you...."
Lance nodded his head.
"Okay..I was just wondering. I won't tell anyone, I promise," Jay replied sincere.
"Thanks...By the way...."
"Yeah."
"Who's your favorite in the group?"
Jay blushed a little, "Umm....I dunno.."
"Oh come on," Lance tried to urge him, "You've got to like one of us."
Jay blushed harder, "I really don't know. I told you that all of you guys look hot, but I'm not sure which one to go for."
Lance gave up, "I guess.."
Jay looked up at him and smiled.
Lance giggled a bit, "Say..do you want to meet with the rest of the guys?"
His face lit up, "You really mean it?"
Lance nodded and Jay placed a quick kiss on his cheek.
"Oh sorry," Jay backed away.
Lance smiled, "That's cool. There's no one around."
"So have you been in a relationship?"
A little bit shocked at the question, "No..Never been in one," sounding depressed.
"Oh...I'm sorry. I did know," replying apologetic.
"No it's okay...that's life I suppose," he sighed.
They chatted about things out of the blue. Jay talked more about his family, friends, his likes as well as dislikes. Lance also talked about his family as well as the other group members. Lance felt relaxed around Jay. It was like meeting me all over again. He didn't care, as long that he felt happy, he didn't mind much. They talked for quite a bit through the whole morning. The empty streets were beginning to slowly fill up with commuter cars. The sidewalks were slowly transformed from silent concrete blocks to one with the resonating sounds of people romping about.
It was almost 8:30 when Justin finally trudged out of the warm confines of his bed. He could hear the shuffle of feet through the door. Finding his robe, he threw it on and headed downstairs. Yawning a bit when he reached the top of the stairs, Justin slowly walked down. Once down the bottom, Nathan wrapped his arms around Justin's waist in plain sight of JC and Chris.
"Morning Sweetie," Nathan smiled.
Justin slowly turned his head towards the clinging Nathan and gave him the most expressionless death stare he could muster. Nathan, upon seeing Justin's face, quickly let go of his waist and shuffled towards the table.
"Aren't we a little grumpy this morning?" Nathan sarcastically said.
JC and Chris laughed, "Are you ever going to stop?" Chris asked.
"Not until he's mine," beaming a smile.
"Oh please," JC commented, "You know that Just will never go for you."
"How would you know?" Nathan defended himself.
"Calm down," JC soothed him, "It was just a comment."
"Better be," pouring some cereal in a bowl.
Justin finally sat down and poured himself some cereal and milk. Soon he was munching on Captain Crunch.
"He's never in a good mood during breakfast," Nathan said.
"Nope," Chris said crunching down on cereal, "Always been grumpy."
"Well..." JC added.
"Well, what?" Nathan cocked an eyebrow.
"He wasn't too grumpy when we were in San Francisco."
"Yeah that's right," it dawned on Chris, "He was decent for once."
Justin, being not oblivious to the conversation, spoke up, "Duh...I wanted Mano to give me a tour of the city before we left."
"Mano? Who's Mano?" eyeing Justin.
"He's a cool guy," Chris said, "Way fun to be with."
JC sighed softly and Justin quickly glanced at him, "Yeah...he's a good guy."
"Well, what did he do to you?" Nathan quickly returned to the subject.
"Nothing," Justin responded.
"That's it? Nothing?" replied in disbelief.
"Yeah. He gave me a tour of his school and then a quiet tour of the city."
Nathan smirked, "Guess I have to go meet this Mano guy."
Justin sighed, "Don't know if he's coming to Florida. He lives in SF."
"Oh I see," cracking a small smile, "Too bad..."
Just then, the phone rang.
"Me gots," Chris said and walked to the phone. After a few minutes of chattering, he hung up the phone.
"Who was that?" JC asked as Chris sat back down.
"That was Lance," Chris said resuming his breakfast, "He said that he'll meet us at the studio instead of dropping by and Joey is gonna do the same as well."
"Okay...no problem," JC responded.
"Whatcha guys gonna do?" Nathan asked.
"Same old stuff," Chris replied, "Nothing you'll be interested in."
"Try me?" eyeing Chris.
"We'll be doing an interview, photoshoots, going over video concepts and vocal practice," Justin quickly said.
"Sounds interesting," Nathan smiled, "Can I come?"
Chris and JC looked at each other looking for an answer, "Sure you can," Justin spoke up.
"Thanks," Nathan beamed a smile and gave Justin a deep hug.
"Okay, okay. Go get dressed, we'll be going soon."
Nathan gave Justin a quick peck on the cheek and dashed up to his room. JC and Chris stared at Justin dumbfounded.
"What?" Justin asked midway to eating another spoonful of cereal.
"How can you stand him?" Chris asked.
Justin shrugged his shoulders.
"Don't you feel weird when he does that?" JC spoke up.
"I'm used to it," Justin resumed eating, "He's been doing that since I was little."
"Jeez," Chris exaggerated, "That long? Doesn't he get it?"
"You should be nicer to him," Justin completely changed the subject.
"Huh?" JC answered being thrown off the subject.
"Well, you guys are being hard on him. Just make him feel welcomed just a little bit...okay?" asking softly.
"Okay...I will," JC replied apologetically.
"Sure, no sweat," Chris said.
"Thanks guys," Justin made a small smile, "Let's get ready or else, Lance is gonna bark at us."
JC laughed, "Or we get to bark at him...Whoever's later."
Everyone laughed at the comment and finished their breakfast. Once done, they raced up the stairs and disappeared into their rooms to get changed. After a few minutes, Justin was about to finish fixing his hair when someone knocked.
"Come in," he said still looking at the mirror.
The door opened and quickly closed. Justin turned his head to see who it was.
"Hey Nate," Justin said and turned his head back, "You ready?"
"Yeah," he responded softly, "Umm..Justin?"
"Yeah..."
"I...I'm a bother aren't I?" he meekly said.
Justin stopped fixing his hair and looked at Nathan puzzled, "What are you talking about?"
"The guys are nice and all, but they don't like me....and I can tell that you aren't thrilled about me either," looking down at the floor."
Justin sighed a little and put his arm around Nathan's shoulder. He led him to the bed where they sat at the edge.
"You're never a bother," Justin softly said looking into his eyes, "A little hyper, but never a bother."
"But..."
Justin put his finger on Nathan's lips, "Look, the guys don't know you like I do. To them, this looks all weird, but you've got to remember that they're not used to you yet."
Justin removed his finger, "I guess you're right...But it feels like I'm an outsider."
"Nathan," Justin pulled him into a hug, "As long as I'm around, I'll make sure that you don't ever feel that way," Justin placed a kiss on his forehead.
Nathan broke from the hug, "Thanks Just."
"Anytime," he smiled back, "I'll meet you downstairs after I finish, k?"
"Sure."
Nathan happily got off the bed and through the door. He zipped downstairs where he flicked on the TV waiting for the arrival of the other guys. Justin shook his head and smiled. He resumed the inspection of the blonde curly locks and when he was satisfied, he promptly joined the group waiting for him downstairs. Once assembled the party hopped into Justin's car and headed to the studio.
"That's pretty cool," Lance commented, "Never did that before."
"You think so?" Jay questioned, "Thought everybody tried that."
"Nope not me," Lance replied and looked at his watch, "Guess it's time for us to get moving."
Jay beamed a smile, "Ooo I'm so nervous."
Lance laughed, "Don't be."
"That's easy for you to say cause you know them. I've only read about them."
"What you don't believe me?" both of them stood up and headed for Lance's car, "It's not a big deal."
"If you say so. But if I look like a complete idiot, I'm gonna have your head."
"Don't worry, everything is gonna be fine," Lance gave a quick peck on the cheek.
Jay blushed and looked at him, "I thought you're supposed to be careful."
"Couldn't help it," Lance smiled.
They stepped into the vehicle and Lance pulled away from the parking lot.
"What are you guys gonna do today?" Jay asked looking out the window.
"The same old stuff...interviews, photoshoots, stuff like that."
"I see...you must be very fortunate."
"Career wise, yes I am. But personally..."
Jay quickly turned his head, "Oh..I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring it up."
"No..it's okay," forming a small smile, "Guess I just have to get used to it."
A small silence followed forth.
"So..have you been a relationship before?" Lance asked as he made a turn.
"Me? Never been in one," he sighed, "Guess you and I are in the same boat."
Lance smiled, "Guess so."
Within a few minutes of their departure, they reached the studio. They stepped out of the car and headed towards the entrance.
"You sure about this?" Jay asked nervously.
Lance put his hand on Jay's shoulders, "Don't be so nervous. Everything's gonna be fine," he whispered softly in his ear.
"I hope so," taking a deep breath.
They entered the ominous building and looked around the lobby. No one was there. Lance looked at his watch and they were a few minutes early. Since they were early, Lance decided to give Jay a tour of the place. He agreed and walked down the winding corridors. Once they disappeared into labyrinth, the rest of the guys showed up. All of them entered the lobby and looked around.
"Okay," JC started, "Where's Scoop?"
"Good point," Chris remarked, "This is not like him. One time was okay but this is twice."
"So should we wait or just go on without him?" JC suggested.
"Let's wait till Joey gets here," Justin replied, "Then we can go."
"Okay, so what's the plan?" Nathan spoke up.
Chris looked at him, "OUR plan is to talk to some PR people to see who's giving the interviews."
Justin gave Chris a disapproving look, "After the briefing, we'll have some free time to work on the new single as well as new songs."
"Then we get to grab some lunch and then the real fun begins," JC added.
"Sounds cool," Nathan said.
"I hope so," Justin replied.
Joey walks in the building, chipper as always, "Hi guys."
"Hey, glad you can make it," JC said.
"Sorry," scratching his head, "Nathan? Is that you?" he asked when he caught sight of him.
"Yuppers, it's me all right," Nathan smiled back.
Joey gave him a hug, "How're doing? You've grown a lot."
"I'm doing great. I'll be around for a few days," he added.
"That's cool. Say, is Lance around?" he turned to Justin.
"Nope. Haven't seen him yet," Justin replied.
"What's wrong with that guy?" Chris complained, "He tells us not to be late and guess what happens?"
"Yeah," JC agreed, "But it must be for a good reason."
As the guys talked about the lateness of Lance, Lance and Jay emerge from the twisting hallways and back into the lobby.
"Finally made it, huh?" Lance said.
The guys stopped their conversation, "Is that where you've been?"
Lance smiled, "Yup. I was giving my friend Jay a tour of the place?"
All of them looked at Jay for a few seconds. Jay was very uncomfortable and awkward, "Hi," was the only thing he could say.
"Hey, nice to meet you," Joey spoke up first, "Did you like the tour?"
"Yeah, it was great," Jay smiled.
"Glad you enjoyed yourself, but we've got to get moving."
"You're right," Justin agreed, "Let's go."
The group walked through the halls talking to each other. Jay and Joey hit it off the bat, while the rest of them were a little suspicious. Lance and Nathan caught up on the times and soon enough the conversations died down and they entered a large conference room.
The PR was looking through some papers when he saw the guys walk in, "Never fails to amaze me that you guys are late by exactly 10 minutes," he exaggerated.
"We would have been here sooner if Scoop wasn't wandering around making us wait," Chris complained.
"Me? I was on time," Lance defended, "You should blame it on Joey."
"Oh no," Joey started, "I told you I was gonna be late to begin with."
"Enough," JC calmly said, "We've wasted enough time let's get to work."
Everyone took to their seats as well as Jay and Nathan. The PR didn't mind at all that there were strangers in the room.
"First order of business," he spoke, "Are these concept drawings for the video?"
"Did you like them?" Lance eagerly said.
"As a matter a fact, I did."
"Cool," Justin said, "So we're gonna use some of the ideas right?"
"Yes. As soon as we get some input from the director, it'll be a go."
JC sighed a little and Justin gave a large smile.
"Okay," he resumed, "Next up, there will be some time for the single as well as new material for the next album."
"Already?" Chris questioned.
"Yes...It's always a good idea to jot things down before you're really pressed."
"I understand," Lance said, "How much time do we have to write stuff?"
"About 2 hours. Then you go to lunch and then the photoshoot with interview."
"At least we'll have full stomachs when we do the photoshoot," Joey added.
"Yeah, I remember you were growling last time," Chris laughed.
"You heard?" Joey looked wide-eyed while Chris smiled.
"That's the agenda for the day," he abruptly spoke out, "Remember not to be late for the photoshoot or interview. I'll have your heads."
"Okay...got it," Lance jotted down the itinerary, "We'd best be moving."
Once concluded, everyone filed out of the room and headed towards the music rooms. Nathan, Chris and Justin went into the larger set. Joey and Jay in another and finally Lance and JC in the final one. JC sat down on the piano and began to tap the keys.
Lance sat next to him on the piano and played a short melody as well. They hummed a couple of bars, but not really making any progress. Lance felt warm sitting next to JC. `Should I?' he thought, but never managed to do so. Both of them sang, joked played the piano and just plain had fun. The hours went by quickly, too quickly. Guess this was now or never.
"JC, can I tell you something?" as Lance tapped a few more keys.
"Sure, you know that I'll be with you no matter what."
"Well, ummm," fumbling for the words.
"Well, what?" asking sarcastically.
"You see, ummm..."
"Come on, spit it out," growing impatient.
"JC...I..." as Lance began.
"Lunch time!" Chris burst into the room, followed by Justin and Nathan.
Lance and JC turned to the guys. `There goes the mood...'
"Lunch all ready?" JC said, "Good cause I'm starving."
"Yeah, me too," Lance softly sighed.
"What was it you were gonna tell me?" JC turned back to Lance.
"Nevermind...tell you later," Lance stood up.
"Got any work done," Nathan smirked.
"As a matter a fact," JC stood up, "We did."
"JC and I got some good melodies and chords while playing around," Lance also stood up.
"You mean goofing off," Nathan smirked.
Justin gave him a little nudge, "So where to we eat?"
"Let's try that new Mexican place down the street," JC suggested.
Lance nodded, "Okay, let's get Joey and Jay."
It's been three weeks since I last saw and spoke with JC and a week after the phone call. I've been distracted all morning at work and everybody just seems to piss me off. It was a lull period between the movies and no customers were in the lobby. I trudged upstairs and into the office. There were reports that needed to be looked at and I picked them up and started to work on it.
"Hey Mano," Jerry asked as he walked into the room.
I looked up, "What's up?"
He closed the door, "Is there something bothering you?"
"What makes you say that?"
"Well.." he nervously said, "You've been acting out of it lately."
"Yeah I know," I sighed, "I've been an ass to everybody, huh? I'm sorry about that."
"No don't be. Everyone's worried and getting a little suspicious."
"Suspicious? About what?" I looked at him quizzically.
"Umm..you see..." he stuttered out, "There's a few rumors that you might have gotten into a fight with your girlfriend or something..."
I looked at him blankly for a second. Then a hysterical laughter burst out.
"Wha...what?" looking around confused.
Once I tapered off my laughter I started to speak, "Me? In a relationship?"
"Well..yeah."
"Good rumor though, but seriously, I've had a lot of things on my mind lately and I just need time to sort things out."
"Okay, just know that if need someone to talk to, everybody's here for you," giving me a small smile.
"Thanks Jerry. I appreciate it. Boy I'm so tired," I stretched out a little.
"Not enough sleep?" he walked over to the computer.
"Not lately," I went into the closet to get my backpack out, "I didn't even get a chance to look through the mail this afternoon. I stuffed it in when I left the house."
"You're getting sloppy..." he warned me.
"Ah shaddap," I defended.
"You got bills, bills, bills."
I was sifting through the letters, "Let's see...PG&E, PacBell, you won a million dollars..." then I stopped shuffling the envelopes and looked at a hand written address.
Jerry stopped typing and looked at me, "What's up?"
"I don't know," I slowly said. I put back the other letters in my backpack.
"Who's that from?"
"Lance?"
"Huh? You mean Lance from N Sync?" he walked towards me.
"Looks like it."
"Well...Aren't you going to open it?" sounding impatient.
"Hold your horses," I flipped it over and opened the seal.
Hey Mano,
This letter is probably a shock to you, huh? I haven't
talked to you in a while and I miss our little "conversations"
about everything. I'm real sorry that I wasn't able to get a tour
of the city from you, but I whenever I get a chance to be in SF
again, I'll give you a holler. You're probably wondering why I
sent you a letter instead of just calling you, but the funny thing
is, is that I don't have your number. I don't think you have our
numbers either. Guess I have to make it a point to ask you in
person and jot it down before I forget again.
If your shocked by now, that's what I was expecting. I gave
the sketches to our manager and he loved it. It also went through
the director and producer without any hitches. I'm not gonna say
for which song because you're gonna see for yourself. The up and
ups want more input from you and of course you'll be credited for
it. But I think you'll decline, I know you well enough to know
that.
Here's the lowdown. You WILL be here by Saturday and you
will be staying at my house for 10 days or so. Don't say you
can't stay at my house cause everything's set. I'm waiting for
you to get here..as well as the other guys. Enclosed are plane
tickets so DON'T LOSE THEM. Once you arrive, I'll be waiting to
take you to my house. Hope to see you soon.
Love,
Lance
"Well? What does it say?" Jerry spoke louder.
"It looks like I'm gonna go on my vacation now," I slowly turned to look at Jerry's surprised face....