Legal Stuff: I don't know NSYNC or any other celebrity mentioned. While real people are the basis of characters, they are characters here and do not represent the real lives, thoughts, or feelings of the real people. Again, these are characters based on them, not the real people themselves. If you are too young, or live in a location where it is illegal to read stories that include love between men, read no further! Like that would have ever stopped me...
A Phone Call Chapter 5 --
Thursday morning rolled around and I found myself at Christina's (as in Applegate, you know -- Kelly Bundy) condo for breakfast. James' didn't seem to have any food that was edible. After a pleasant morning where I got to finally meet her husband, I went back to James' and changed for my meeting. It was then that I noticed every single bit of the clothes he'd packed were new. Even the underwear and socks were new. If he really wanted me to wear bikini briefs, I would. That wasn't the problem. The problem was that he was changing my wardrobe without so much as asking first. Something I'd have to talk about. Just like I'd have to talk to him about the cell phone that just fell out of one of the pockets on the suitcase. It had a little card attached to it from James telling me he had seen it at the mall while shopping and realized I didn't have one. Great, not only was he dressing me, but he was tying me to a leash! Maybe we could have an argument about it then have make-up sex. Make-up sex is always great.
Okay, I go weeks without getting laid, then after one night with him I can't think about anything else. Yep, I was falling hard for him. I'll wear the clothes, use the cell phone, but the bills will be paid by me. Yep, that's what I insist. And no more buying clothes unless it's a birthday or a holiday.
The limo pulled up after I'd gotten dressed in a fancy pair of slacks and a nice button-down shirt. The silk bikini briefs were making me wish my little pop star was here, but that couldn't be helped. The limo ride was smooth, and just long enough to enjoy without being too long that I grew restless. I was so used to driving myself around that too much of this was going to make me edgy.
We were waived through the gate of the studio lot and headed to the admin building. An assistant (the one I'd spoken to on the phone) met me as the limo pulled up and led me inside. The receptionist gave me a visitor's badge before the assistant led me to an elevator. We chitchatted briefly and we were soon in the conference room. Luke was already there, and he got up to shake my hand. I recognized JMS immediately and shook his hand warmly. For some reason I was a whole lot less star struck meeting him in person, which he noticed immediately. There was also an attorney there from the studio and an executive.
While I was excited about the possibilities and dredged up the back story and characterizations of the major players, I found myself looking at all the ways the story could be improved, and got scared when JMS started suggesting the same things. When I took a leap and suggested a few before he did, he agreed immediately and took some notes. The discussion was turning a two-hour script into a mini-series followed up by mini-series. The studio was ready right then to ink a deal for the mini-series and 22 episodes with options on more. JMS started to insist, but was interrupted by the Studio Executive agreeing, that I'd be head scrip writer and would have veto power in conjunction with JMS over plots and story arcs. All this was happening so fast that my head was spinning when JMS asked me a question that brought an evil smile to my face.
"Dave, after the story has run its course in seven years, how do you see it ending?" JMS asked me earnestly.
"Two words for ya." I told him, letting my evil smile shine at him. "The End."
"Oh, man, don't tell me you were a B5 forum junkie." He almost whined.
"Yep. As you said, I'm the creator of this little story. I know what's going to happen and you'll just have to wait and find out."
That was when the studio executive and the lawyer started laughing. They seemed to like seeing JMS get some of his own attitude back in his face. If I'd only realized that at that point I'd sealed my own fate. The executive and lawyer conferred with each other in whispers for a moment as JMS continued to rant about ungrateful fans turning a geniuses own words against him. After a few minutes, the executive wrote something down on a slip of paper and passed it over to me. JMS immediately shut up and moved until he was sitting on the edge of his chair. Luke was trying to look over my shoulder as I opened it and read what it said:
Head Writer for Mini-Series and Series
Intellectual ownership & control of spin-off & merchandising
1% of net profit from original broadcast, $100,000 advance
.5% residuals for syndication rights
Movie, DVD/VHS, print, & other medium rights retained with first option by studio
$500,000 for script of original 6-hour television mini-series
$075, 000 for each script of regular season episodes, minimum of 8 to be written per season, additional scripts at the discretion of Head Writer & Producers
All advance payments retained in case of cancellation
I looked at the piece of paper and was swarmed by a mix of feelings. Luke managed to peek over my shoulder and let out a low whistle. I looked at him sharply and folded the paper. All four of them were looking at me, waiting for a response. The pressure was intense, but I needed to talk to someone and I realized that I really didn't trust anyone in the room enough for that. I did know who I could talk to, though.
"Excuse me, please." I told the men in the room. "I need to use the restroom."
"Of course" the executive smiled. I knew he knew that I knew he knew I was rocked by this offer and needed some space, but it really didn't matter. I hadn't shut the door on him yet.
I got up and left the room. Sure enough a restroom was right around the corner. It was one of those for handicapped that locked, so I locked it immediately, sat on the toilet and pulled out the cell phone James had given me. At that exact moment I forgave him for buying it without talking to me first, and I forgave him for the clothes too.
"Hello, stud." James' voice was all warm.. He must have programmed his phone to ID this number.
"Heya." I said back, my voice barely above a whisper.
"What's the matter, handsome?" he asked me immediately.
"Can you talk for a few minutes?" I asked him.
"Sure, just let me tell the rest of the people in the meeting to take a break."
"Wait, you're in a meeting?" I exclaimed.
"Yes, but my boyfriend needs me." He said simply. I was astounded, flabbergasted, all those big words that can be used to describe shock. I also felt very, very warm at that moment and I knew I had a silly ass grin on my face. He came back on the phone a moment later.
"So, what's up?" he asked me, his voice showing concern.
"I'm at the studio offices right now and just had my meeting with the exec and JMS."
"So, do they want to buy the television rights, what are they offering for it?" James asked me, his voice showing he thought it would be a good thing.
"Yeah, they offered $100,000 advance, 1% of original broadcast profits and .5% of syndicated residuals. But that's not all" I told him.
"They are offering more?" He asked me, his voice showing surprise.
"Yeah, they want me as head writer for the mini-series script and for the series." I started telling him. I went over all the details, and gave a brief rundown of what we'd discussed before that.
"So, why haven't you agreed yet?" James asked me after I was done.
"I'm scared." I told him. If I couldn't be honest with him now, when we had no baggage from a joint past, our relationship would be doomed.
"Why are you scared?" He asked me, his voice showing concern.
"Because this was my dream eight years ago, and it fell apart back then. Plus I'm in over my head. I've never written a script that actually got produced. Look at the caliber of people involved. It's JMS for God's sake! Is this money enough? Is it too much? Am I gonna get screwed with the contract I sign?" I vented most of the thoughts in one long outburst.
"Okay, let's take first things first." James said after I was done. "Freelance focuses on music, but there's no reason I can't expand a bit to include you. I'll have our main office in Orlando contact an attorney who specializes in representing writers. We should have one before close of business today. I'll act as your agent and have a contract drawn up for that. You do trust me enough for this, don't you?"
"Of course." I said immediately. Right now I couldn't think of anyone I trusted more, even if I'd only known him for a week. I'd given him the keys to my heart. Compared to that, this was nothing.
"Good, now as for your concerns about your abilities. Do you believe your story is good?"
"Yes, I worked on it for six years before I wrote that first script. I dropped it eight years ago but I haven't forgotten anything. Plus, JMS and I were bouncing off ideas right and left." I said, remembering that part of the meeting. Talking to James was definitely helping.
"Then what's holding you back?" James asked softly. "You have a chance to achieve a dream you've held for years. Not many people get this great of a chance. I'll be there for you, and with JMS on your side, it's not likely they will cancel it this time."
"You're right" I said, but couldn't help adding, "But, I still just don't know."
"What aren't you telling me, Dave?" James asked, his tone turning a little more firm. "What's really bugging you?"
"I'd have to quit my job." I said softly, telling him the biggest thing holding me back.
"Quit a job paying you $40,000 a year for one that can reach over a million?"
"It'd take me over two years at my current job to even reach what I'm being advanced." I admitted.
"Then what's the problem?" He persisted.
"My job right now, I know it will be there next year. I know it will be there ten years from now, or twenty. I can't know that about the entertainment industry. It's so...insecure."
"I think that's your biggest problem, Dave." James told me bluntly, and he was absolutely right. "You've chained yourself to your security blanket and won't take chances anymore."
"I'm scared to" I told him. I was crying now. "Last time I did that, I fell flat on my face. If my mom hadn't let me move back in with her, I'd have been on the street. She's dead, James and so is my dad. If I fuck up now I'll probably end up on the streets and I don't want that."
"That will never happen, Dave." James told me calmly. His voice was so soft that I felt like curling up and going to sleep just listening to him. "Why did your mother let you move back in?"
"Because she loved me." I answered.
"Dave, I love you." James said softly, and my heart flip-flopped at how he said it, so full of feelings. "We've only known each other a week, but I know I love you like I've never loved anyone before. If this deal breaks apart, I'll be here for you, I promise."
"Why?" I asked him, almost unbelieving at his words.
"Remember what you told me last Saturday? You helped me out big time, and you said that's what friends do. You are my friend, and the man I love. Whatever I can do to help you out, I will because I know you will be there for me the same way."
"I love you." I breathed into the phone heavily.
"I love you too." The words were like butter melting on bread for me. "Now, are you going to do this? Are you going to take a chance and live your dream?"
"Yes." I said. One word, but it was spoken with all my heart, all my soul. "Thank you James, you've made this possible."
"But you'll be the one who achieves it." James said, knowing exactly what to say. When he began speaking again, his voice was different and I knew this was my new manager, Lance speaking. "Now that you've decided, I want you to rinse your face off. They don't need to see you've been crying. Once you're cleaned up, go back in there and tell them you will seriously consider their offer. Have them fax a contract over to my L.A. office and I'll have the attorney look at it when we find one. Tell them we'll be looking it over and set up a meeting for tomorrow or Monday. After that, get your ass home and get ready for a night on the town. We're going to celebrate."
"Yes, boss." I told Lance, chuckling a little. "Can I have my boyfriend back for a second? I want to tell him I love him, but I'm not telling my manager that."
"You make me sound like I have multiple personalities!" James was back now and laughing.
"You do." I laughed back. "But it's a good thing. I'd much rather have passionate James in my ass than businessman Lance."
"Ewww, that's gross." James commented. "I love you, babe, but we both have work to do."
"Okay, love ya and see you in a few hours." I told him and hung up. I washed my face at the sink and made my way back into the conference room. To my surprise, all four of them were still there and looked at me anxiously.
"I would be a fool to flat out turn this offer down." I informed them. "But, I'd be lying if I said this is what I expected. I was thinking y'all were going to offer me money for the television rights and that was it. If I accept this, I'll be changing my entire life around. I need to think about that, plus I'd like to see what kind of contracts you're proposing. Do you think you can have some drawn up and sent over to Freelance for me?"
"Freelance?" The exec asked. "Aren't they music oriented?"
"I'm friends with Lance Bass." I told him honestly. "He's agreed to branch out and act as my manager for this case. He'll have an attorney look over the contracts for me."
"We need a decision fairly quickly." The attorney pressed.
"You'll have one either tomorrow or Monday." I told him.
"You mean that?" The exec asked. "We'll be judging you by how you stick with that statement."
"When Dave Young says he will do something, he does it." Luke spoke up from where he sat. "I've known him a long time and there's only time he broke his word, and that was because he was wrong to have given it in that situation and realized that."
"Okay, we'll have the contracts we've drawn up faxed over." The exec said, standing up and reaching out to shake my hand. "Friday or Monday, by the end of business."
"Agreed." I said as I shook his hand. Together, the exec and attorney left, leaving me alone with JMS and Luke.
"You're going to do it, aren't you?" Luke was actually stating a fact more than asking a question.
"Yeah, Lance just isn't sure when he'll have an attorney for me or when they will be ready to meet with the studio."
"Whew" JMS said with a sigh of relief. "I want you to know, I think that this concept of yours has the potential to be bigger than B5 and to rival the big ST itself. It all depends on the writing and creative control. Between the three of us here right now, we have about 90% control over the series. Short of canceling it or reducing the number of episodes per season, the studio can't do much without our consent."
"That's good to know." I said, then looked him right in the eyes. "I will be honest and say I'm not 100% sure I can pull this off. I'm pretty sure I'm going to need to lean on you, both of you for help."
"Do you know how many people in this town have that kind of attitude?" JMS asked me with a big smile on his face.
"No."
"Not many" he told me. "And most of them have at least one Oscar, Emmy, or Golden Globe on their mantle at home and millions upon millions in the bank."
"Welcome to Hollywood, Davey" Luke said, patting me on the back.
"Thanks Luke, I owe you for this." I told him. It was he, after all, who had remembered my script and mentioned it to JMS.
"Believe me, by the time this is done, we'll all be owing each other for our success." JMS told me with another big smile.
"So, what you got planned for tonight?" Luke asked me.
"Lance and I are going to celebrate." I told him without thinking.
"Cool, celebrating your soon to be made deal is a good idea. Why don't we join you two?" Luke said excitedly.
"Um," I bit my lower lip. "We're actually looking at celebrating alone tonight since it's our annive...r..sa...ry." I stumbled over the last word realizing I'd only been with him a week and already screwed up.
"You and Lance Bass?" Luke said, a big smile spreading on his face. "That is so damn cool. Lucky you."
"How long have you two been together?" JMS asked at the same time. He was smiling too.
"Shit, I can't believe I said that." I snorted, angry at myself. "We're together for a week as of today and I already blow it for him."
"Please, Dave, I don't need the details." Luke said, a smile on his face. "A whole week, eh? You're getting better."
"Shut up, I went two years once already." I retorted, still angry at myself. JMS was watching us, smiling the entire time. Of course he was married and didn't worry about stuff like this.
"Wow, two years!" Luke was chuckling now. "Who would have thought it possible?"
"You done beating my ego in front of my idol?" I asked him. Okay, I was whining.
"Sorry, just razzing you a bit." Luke told me, clapping a hand on my shoulder. "How's the first week been with Lance so far?"
"Wonderful." I breathed out, my mood changing completely at the thought of my man. "He's the most wonderful man I've ever met."
"Oh, he's got it bad." JMS said with a chuckle.
"I don't ever remember him having this look on his face before." Luke was chuckling too. "He must be in love."
"You knew me for a whole six months, big guy." I reminded Luke.
"Yeah, and I lasted a whole what, day in the boyfriend category?" Luke said sarcastically. From the indrawn breath of the room's other occupant, it looked like it was turning into a coming out party.
"Jeez, Luke, I always knew you should have been a blond." I couldn't help but chuckle. Luke looked at me, then at JMS and shrugged.
"I'm bi." He told the older man.
"Okay, not that I really care." JMS responded. "I'll let you two old friends catch up then. Dave, call me if you need anything or if you have any questions. Until we get the papers signed I'll hold off on starting some work. But I'm going to go ahead and put some feelers out."
"Okay, I'll see you tomorrow or Monday" I told him, turning back to Luke.
"So, now it's no big deal and you just shrug off admitting to someone that you're bi?"
"Well, he doesn't really care about anyone's sex life and he knows how to keep his mouth shut." Luke responded glibly.
"Sure, sure." I teased him a bit, then continued more seriously. "I really need to keep my mouth shut."
"Don't worry too much about it." Luke told me. "People in the industry will know soon enough from the rumor mill. They usually keep their mouths shut since we're all in the same boat regarding the press. If people started dishing all the dirt on each other none of us would be able to work."
"You always knew how to lift my spirits." My voice was heavy with the sarcasm now.
"Chill," Luke emphasized his words carefully. "Talk to Lance, he knows how things work. So, tell me, you ready to be the hottest new writer on the block?"
"Me? The hottest new writer? Tell me another one."
"Trust me, once word of this leaks, and it will, people will be buzzing. Look, I'm supposed to be getting together with Jason and a few other people on Saturday. If you're still in town, let's all go out. Get Lance to go with us. It'll be fun."
"I'll ask him." I told Luke. It would be good to go out with him again. We always had a blast.
"Cool, your ride should be waiting out front. I've got to get going. Here's my number, give me a call tomorrow."
"Will do." I told him as he left. I stood there in the room, all my emotions running at full tilt. This was not what I'd been expecting and although I hadn't signed any paperwork, I had made a verbal commitment that was going to change my life in ways I couldn't imagine. All in all, a big day. I left the conference room, made my way to the elevators and out the building (Yes, I did drop the pass off at the receptionist's desk). Sure enough the limo was out front, waiting. I got in and the driver took off for home.
Along the way I thought about everything that had happened in the last week. I was feeling lost, like a piece of flotsam in the middle of a raging ocean. Everything in my life was changing way too fast. Then I remembered James. Just thinking about him made me feel warm, safe, and comfortable. I was surprised at how quickly he had become the most important person in my life, but he was now. The limo slowed and I realized we were now in a traffic jam. The driver called back on the intercom and told me there was a big accident ahead and he'd try to get off the freeway. I sighed and wondered what I could do to entertain myself. I opened the mini-bar, ignored the alcohol and took out a soda. As I was sipping it, I realized I'd never called Manuel back. Damn, he was my best friend and I totally fucking blew him off. I pulled my cell phone out and dialed his office number. It took three rings before he answered my call.
"Manuel, speak." Was his typical greeting. The guy was positively anti-social at times.
"Hey you bum. How's work treating you?" I asked him.
"Where the hell have you been? Do you know how worried I was? I even called your Grandmothers. Both of them!"
"Shit, I'll have to call them now, too." I said. "They won't be able to reach me unless I do call them."
"Why wouldn't they be able to reach you?" Manuel asked.
"Because I'm not in Phoenix right now." I answered calmly.
"YOU'RE NOT IN PHOENIX? WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU? WHAT'S WRONG?" Manuel was shouting. This was not good.
"Calm down, I'm fine." I told him.
"Have you been kidnapped?"
"Not really. I took the day off and flew to L.A."
"Sure, you just take a day off and fly to L.A."
"Well, I did have a meeting and my boyfriend was here anyway." I answered, smiling. I loved leading him on. He always took forever to get to the point when he had something to say, so this was my way of getting back at him.
"BOYFRIEND?" okay, he's shouting again. "Since when do you have a boyfriend?"
"Since last week." I then proceeded to tell him all about meeting James, leaving out his last name and his belonging to Manuel's favorite group. Finally, I decided to go for broke. "Why don't you fly out here for the weekend?"
"Fly out to L.A. at the last minute? Are you nuts? Do you know what that will cost? Where would I stay?"
"You'll stay with James and I. Don't worry; I got an increase in my credit limit. I'll buy the ticket for you. How about if the flight leaves after six p.m. tomorrow?"
"You're not going to take no for an answer are you?" he asked me.
"You are correct." I told him. I knew better than to say `no'. "I'll call you later with the flight details. See ya tomorrow night."
"Goodnight, Dave." He said before hanging up. That was when I realized I really should have asked James first. Crap. I made a quick call, got his voicemail this time though so he must have set the phone down somewhere. I left a quick message asking if he'd mind my best friend staying the weekend at his place and then hung up. I made about ten phone calls to different airlines (Yes, I used information to get most of the numbers). Found one with a decent fair, charged the ticket to my credit card and set it up for overnight delivery to Manuel's work. It was at this point that I looked out the window of the limousine and noticed that we were passing in front of a mall. I buzzed the driver and asked him to pull in.
Let's just say I've never pulled up to a mall in a limousine. All of a sudden I had an inkling of how James and the rest of his group must have felt at times as seemingly dozens of teenage girls appeared out of nowhere to watch me get out. I was very, very glad that I wasn't a star. Of course they knew better than to show up in a limousine at a mall. The driver was smirking at my expression of surprise. I told him to come back in thirty minutes and went inside. Exactly thirty minutes later, the limo pulled up and I hopped in. I'd succeeded in finding what I wanted. I'd also realized that between Manuel's flight and this gift, I was pretty damn close to my credit limit. I'd have to go careful until next payday.
It was worth it, though. Very much worth it. Shortly after, the driver was pulling up in front of Lance's condo. His vehicle wasn't in the driveway, which was good. I went in after telling the driver I wouldn't need him anymore and headed right for the shower. I was using the one in James' room, since that is where I'd slept last night. I decided to take a long hot shower and decompress a little. I guess I zoned out because I was surprised when I felt a hand on my back.
"Mind a little company?" James said after I jumped.
"Little?" I teased, smiling at the sight of him undressed. "I seem to remember you being more than `little' company."
"I was hoping you'd say something like that." His smile was big as he stepped up and wrapped his arms around me.
"Rough day?" I asked him as I moved so the hot water was running over both of us. My hands were running up and down his back, kneading the tense muscles there.
"Oh, that feels good." He murmured into my shoulder. He started making little nips with his teeth, bringing my dick to full excitement. He gave a little giggle as he felt it hitting his stomach, and his slid in between my legs, teasing my balls.
"You are so sexy." I breathed into his ear, continuing to massage his back. "So, what happened at work?"
"Oh, Tracy blew up again. Then we had some problems with one of the groups back East. I may have to go out there next week and I'm not happy about it. Justin called and wants me to come by one of his venues, oh and I have this pesky new client who has paperwork on the dining room table he needs to sign."
"Sounds like a full day." I told him. "Are you sure you have the time to take on a pesky client."
"So long as he makes me feel this good, he can get whatever he wants from me." James answered, sending shivers down my spine. My hands were going lower and lower until I was kneading his butt when the shower decided to run out of hot water. The shrieks from both of us would have woken the dead. Fortunately we were alone. We jumped out of the shower and ran into the bedroom. We collapsed, still wet, on the unmade bed, wrapped around each other and laughing like crazy. It wasn't long until our laughing turned to kissing. Unfortunately, James groaned and pulled back far too soon.
"We need to get ready for dinner. Plus I need you to look over those documents before we go" he told me, pulling himself up off the bed. I made a half-hearted grab for him, but he scampered out of my reach.
"But daddy," I whined as childishly as I could.
"No. Work, then dinner, then play." He said, giggling a little. I jumped off the bed, stood at attention and snapped a precise military salute.
"Aye, Aye SIR!" My joke was rewarded by him standing there, smiling, looking me up and down.
"It's nice to know that ALL of you can stand at attention." He laughed, looking at my dick which was still at full mast.
"What can I say, except I love my man." I told him, smiling lewdly.
"Stop it or we'll never go to dinner.' He was still laughing as he grabbed two towels from the bathroom, turned off the now cold shower and threw one of the towels at me.
"Get ready." He ordered, lowering his voice even more.
"You win, boss." I told him as I finished drying off. I went over to the closet where I'd put my clothes and started figuring out what I wanted to wear.
"Do you like your new clothes?" James asked me as he came over to find himself something to wear. I figured I might as well bring up something that had been bugging me.
"Yes, very much. They are very nice." I told him, trying to start this conversation out in a positive way. "Although I do feel a little uncomfortable with them."
"Why?" James asked me, his town worried. He'd stopped in the middle of taking down a shirt and was staring at me with a concerned look.
"Well, I feel like part of my control over my life is getting taken away. I also wonder if you think my regular wardrobe isn't good enough or something, and I feel a little guilty because I'm not buying stuff like that for you, even though I don't think you expect me too."
"Is this about money?" he asked worriedly.
"No. I'm not dating you for your money, and I think we both know that. I also realize I don't have to match you penny for penny on gifts, so that's not it either. It's just an irrational feeling when it comes to the money thing. I'm so use to having to do everything for myself, it just feels weird having someone buy me things."
"Good, we've never really talked about it before, but I'm glad you're not going to freak out about the differences in income. Besides, before too long you might be surpassing me."
"True." I admitted, giggling a little. I figured out what I was going to wear and started getting dressed. I noticed James sighing as I pulled up a pair of red bikini briefs he'd bought me.
"I've bought all these clothes for a couple of reasons." James said, and I swear there was some drool on his chin. "One, I knew you'd look damn sexy in those bikini briefs, and I was right. Two, this damn city is all about image. If you had a more glamorous image, you'd fit in better and I wanted you to make a good impression while you're here. I also didn't want you to feel too out of place because the people around you were all in expensive clothes."
"I was hoping it was something like that." I said as I pulled on another fancy pair of slacks. "And I want to say thank you for the clothes, the flowers, and turning my life upside down. I can't remember when I've ever been happier than I am right now."
"You're welcome." James said, coming over to me. He had his shirt on, but his pants were still in his hands as he drew me into a hug with a gentle, loving kiss. "I've been so happy, too. Let's finish getting dressed. We have reservations in an hour and half and I want to go over the paperwork with you."
"You win, love, you win." I told him, getting my shirt on. We both finished dressing, and grooming. A little later, we were at the dining room table and Lance the businessman was making a visit.
"This is our standard artist's contract with some minor modifications since you are a writer, not a performer. Freelance will handle your accounting stuff for you unless you choose to hire your own accountant. We'll also cover business related legal expenses as part of your contract. We get 10% of your salary for all contracts signed through FreeLance. Now, we've added some special clauses that allow you to sign contracts without FreeLance so long as you do not use FreeLance services in relation to that work. There is also a clause that allows you to cancel your contract with Freelance at any time, for any reason without penalty. Freelance will still get the 10% of those contracts which were signed under Freelance, but anything after that is yours free and clear."
"I've got a couple of questions." I told him at that point.
"First, isn't 10% kind of low?" I asked him.
"Normally it's higher, but you're my boyfriend. I'm not going to gouge you for my own profit. This amount should cover all the expenses, with a little bit left over."
"I don't know..."
"Would you charge me the full amount if our roles were reversed?" he asked me.
"No." I admitted. "I'd just cover expenses."
"So your problem is..."
"Totally irrational." I agreed. "Now, for the other thing. These exit clauses, they seem a little one-sided."
"I did that in case...in case things don't work out and you want to leave me in the future." He told me, looking down at the table.
"Thank you, James." I whispered in his ear, lifting his chin with a finger.
"You don't mind me thinking about what might happen if..."
"James, I pray that day never comes." I told him, my voice firm. "But we're both adults and know that it could happen. I can't describe how good it makes me feel that you care enough for me that if we do break up you care enough to limit how trapped I might feel because of this business relationship between us."
"Let's just say I have some idea of how it feels to be in that situation." He told me, tears welling in his eyes.
"Want to talk about it? I assume it was a past relationship." I asked in a soft voice.
"It was my first, and most recent relationship. We broke up a while ago and it wasn't pretty." He admitted. "I'll tell you more later since you'll probably meet him some day."
"No problem then, is it time for us to leave?" I asked him.
"As soon as you sign." He said, pushing a pen my way and smiling. I signed all the different pages he pointed out, and initialed about a dozen more place. As soon as I was done, he put them in a briefcase and pulled me to my feet. A few minutes later, we were out the door and on the way to the restaurant.
On the way to the restaurant, I filled him in on the details of what happened after we'd talked on the phone. He laughed when I admitted my slip-up with Luke and JMS regarding our relationship. He said that more than likely, they would have found out soon anyway. Then he asked me about when Manuel was going to be arriving.
"His flight lands at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow." I told him. "Thanks to the time difference he won't be getting in too late."
"Think he'll want to do something?"
"Probably once he sees you." I laughed a little in anticipation of Manuel's reaction to meeting Lance Bass.
"You didn't tell him..?"
"Who you were? Nope. I want to surprise him." I told James. "I owe him for the last practical joke he played on me."
"You are a bad, bad, man." He told me as we turned into the parking lot of a real nice restaurant. He parked, but did not immediately get out.
"I was wondering..." he began slowly.
"Go ahead and ask." I told him.
"Justin has a show in San Diego on Saturday and wants me to go down there. He was also interested in coming up here tomorrow after he does some stuff at the venue. He'll be up here around 8:00 p.m. Do you think Manuel would mind?"
"Having his second favorite NSYNC member around? Hell no. In fact I have an idea." I explained my idea and he readily agreed.
"Would you be willing to go with me to the concert on Saturday? Since Manuel's here he can go too."
"He would be so jazzed by that." I assured James and he laughed. "Good, then our weekend's planned."
"Crap, Luke wanted me to go out with him and Jason on Saturday. I'll just call him tomorrow. We can go out some other time."
"Are you sure?" James asked.
"Hmm, let's see. Go party with two people I haven't seen in eight years and who I always seem to get into trouble with, or spend time with my best friend, the man I love, and his friend? I think I'll take you."
"Thanks." He said simply, smiling as he opened his door. "Let's eat, I'm hungry."
We went into the restaurant and got a nice, fairly secluded table. At least it was away from the windows. I noticed quite a few recognizable celebrities who all nodded at James as we walked by. Fortunately, I didn't know any of them personally. Dinner was very, very nice and we chatted about what we could do tomorrow night with our guests, about Saturday, and then he told me he had found an attorney for me who would be meeting us at his office tomorrow morning. We finished dinner and were sipping our after dessert coffee when he changed the topic again.
"You realize it's been a week now." He told me, smiling gently.
"The best damn week of my life so far." I told him honestly.
"So far?" he asked me.
"I'm hoping there are going to be even better weeks with you in my life."
"Ah, how...sappy." He teased me, smiling.
"What can I say, I'm a writer and a romantic." I uttered, shrugging my shoulders.
"Well, I know many people don't think a week is a long time..." he began, but I interrupted him.
"When it comes to OUR relationship, I don't care what other people think. What's important is what you think and what I think." I told him firmly. His eyes started to mist over and he reached into his back pocket. But he didn't pull out a handkerchief. Instead he pulled out a long, thin box. I smiled as he handed it to me, and I pulled a similar looking box out of my pocket. As we passed them to each other wordlessly, I noticed they were even from the same jewelry store.
I couldn't believe the similarities here. We hadn't really discussed this as a one-week anniversary dinner, but we both treated it the same way. I opened the box just as he did and started to chuckle. I noticed him chuckling too. What were the odds we would both get the same ankle bracelet from the same store to give to each other at the same time?
"Now I know how much you're willing to spend on me." I teased him.
"I can't believe we were thinking the same thing." He said. "I chose it because it's a gift you can wear all the time and not worry about awkward questions."
"Same reason I picked it." I told him. We then exchanged thank you comments and immediately bent over to put the ankle bracelets on. I'm sure it looked weird, but I really didn't care. The waiter came by with the check shortly later and I purposely let James grab it. I didn't even want to know what this dinner cost since the menu didn't even have prices!
We left the restaurant and got back in the rental SUV. We sat there for a moment until James finally spoke up.
"What do you want to do now?" he asked me quietly.
"Home, James." I told him firmly.
"You don't want to go out, go to a club?"
"There's only one thing I want to do now." I told him. "And unless you want to make love in public, home is where we need to go."
"I like the sound of that. It beats anything I can think of." He told me with a big grin. He started the vehicle and we headed home. I realized at that point that from now on, home is wherever James was.
To be continued...