DISCLAIMER: I do not know any of these people, neither do I know their sexual orientations. This story is NOT REAL. If you're too young to be reading this, please go away. And, as I am a "chick", don't expect much sex. I've managed to get this far without any at all, but I do see some on the horizon, promise. Feedback is good (reader_colleen@hotmail.com). Thanks go out to Joey (love ya, girl!), Becca, Cele, Yuli, Gabriella, Jayne, Cor, and RED (I finally remembered to thank you!) and all the rest of the members of the *NSync slash e-group. You guys are the greatest!!
While I'm at it, let me say "GO READ THESE STORIES!!!": "I Need You Tonight", "Sucks To Be You", and "Starcrossed" by Joey, "Superman Can't Fly" by Dayse (YAY!), "Remembering Petticoat Lane" by Becca (that story made me cry! Keep up the great work!), "Playing For Keeps" by Kimmer, "Busta" by Yuli, "Not Meant to Be/Beyond What Is" by Kyle, "Dirty Little Secrets" by Myka, "Justin's Journal" by Jamie, "*NSync Lance & JC" by Kevin (Great story!), and all the stories by DivaKitT. Those are my current favorite stories, although there are too many wonderful stories to mention in a single disclaimer!
I have a webpage for this story now, as well as for my other stories (including a joint fan fiction written by myself and Joey)! It can be found at http://www10.ewebcity.com/colleensfic/index.html. Please check it out, as the chapters are posted a couple of days ahead of when I send them to David. Now, after all that babbling, onto the good stuf! Enjoy! grin
Chapter 12: The Coming Of The Sun
The hospital at 10 am the next morning looked like a zoo. The media had gotten wind of the fact that JC was in the hospital, so they were camped outside as the rest of *NSync went in to get JC out. Nick had come with the guys and stayed outside to fend off the media.
"Morning, JC," Chris said as he came in JC's room to find the other man sitting in bed, impatiently waiting.
"Hi, Chris! Get me out of here!"
"We have a slight media problem right now," Lance said, entering with Joey.
The two love birds were hand-in-hand, despite the public place. "We'll have to sneak out. At least your forms and stuff are filled out."
"I did that earlier this morning," JC informed him. "I was that bored. I just wanna get out of here!"
"JC!" Justin yelled as he bounced in the room and jumped on the bed. He grabbed JC in a tight hug, causing JC to choke.
"J, I need to breathe," JC wheezed. Justin laughed and released his friend, although he still kept his arms around JC. JC leaned back in Justin's arms with a small sigh.
"You ready, Josh?" Justin asked. JC glared at him.
"Justin, did you bleach your hair again?"
"No, why?"
"Cause you just had a blond moment! I've been ready since about 7 this morning! Get me out of here already! Please! Before I go crazy!"
"I think you're already there, Josh," Chris snickered. JC stuck his tongue out.
"Can we leave??????"
"Your wish is my command," Justin announced with an elaborate bow. A nurse had set a wheelchair beside the bed for it's present occupant, so Justin bodily picked JC up and deposited him in the chair. Lance and Joey went to scout ahead while Chris and Justin controlled the wheelchair. Nick came wandering down the hall, blinking slightly.
"What's up?" JC asked.
"Those camera flashes nearly blinded me!" Nick complained. The others laughed, knowing exactly what he was talking about.
"Hey, Josh?" Justin asked, taking full control of the chair.
"Yo?"
"How fast you think these things go?"
"Justin!" JC yelled as his friend started running down the hallway like a madman. If it hadn't been for the doctor appearing at the end of the hall, Justin would have crashed into the wall.
"Holdit! Mr. Timberlake, I suggest you calm down."
"Sorry," Justin said, blushing. "Hey, Lance!"
"Why'd you take off like that?" Joey complained as he caught up to Justin and JC. Lance wasn't too far behind him.
"I wanted to have fun. Where are we parked?"
"In a stall."
"Lance!"
"You asked!" Lance said, opening his eyes widely and attempting to look innocent. The trio with him laughed and waited for Nick and Chris to join them. Once they appeared, Joey pushed the elevator button.
"Hey!" JC whined. "I wanted to push the button!"
"Well, I pushed it," Joey shot back, laughing. JC stuck his tongue out at Joey, and then started laughing, too. They were still laughing as the men bundled JC into the car after returning the wheelchair, and managed to get him back to the hotel in one piece. Despite Lance's maniac driving, the ride was calm. They had no further fan encounters on the way, and for once, there were no fans outside. Nick and Chris took off somewhere almost as soon as they were back, leaving Joey, Lance and Justin to get JC upstairs.
"JC, you need to rest," Justin said once JC was safely in his bed at the hotel.
"Justin, I'm not a piece of glass!"
"JC, shut up. You are staying here for the rest of the day. Maybe later we'll go down to the restaurant or something, OK?"
"Whatever."
"JC, please. We're just worried."
"I know, Justin, but I'm tired of being cooped up!"
"Tomorrow, Josh. I promise. Now, I promised Wade I'd see him about some stuff, so I'll come by later, OK?"
"Bye, Justin!" JC called as Justin left the room. Once he was gone, JC turned to the remaining pair. "Get me out of here, please?" he begged. Joey and Lance exchanged looks.
"You sure you're up to it?"
"YES! Please, I am going to go crazy if I have to stay in bed one more minute!"
"What do you want to do?" Lance asked.
"Anything! I'm not fussy... just nothing too phsyical."
"Movie?" Joey suggested just as Lance said, "Picnic?"
"Picnic sounds cool," JC said.
"I'll order food," said Lance as he dialled his cell phone and left the room.
"We can go to a movie after lunch," JC offered. Joey smiled a little.
"It's up to you. It's just so nice to see you and Lance getting along again."
"It feels great, believe me! We still have a long way to go, but at least we've made a start."
"Josh, I'm still mad at you for what you did," Joey started, "but I understand why you did it. I promise I won't hold that against you, OK?"
"Thanks, Joe. That means a lot to me," JC said quietly. Lance came bouncing back in the room just then.
"Aren't you gonna get dressed, Josh?" he asked. JC looked down at himself.
"I am dressed."
"Get changed, and we'll leave," ordered Lance. JC saluted him sarcastically and booted Joey and Lance out. Once he was alone, JC smiled to himself.
"I feel so much better now," he whispered to himself. "Lance doesn't hate me... Joey's mad, but he doesn't hate me, either. I just wish we could have talked about all this earlier! It would have saved us all a lot of trouble." Going over to his closet, JC pulled out a random pair of pants and a shirt. He quickly glanced to make sure they matched before throwing them on, and running out of the hotel room, eager to get outside.
"OK, let's roll!" Joey cried as he saw JC. They moved out, sneaking away from the bodyguards and going down the stairs until they were at the floor below, where they took the elevator the rest of the way. Once they were outside, JC let out a yell.
"Freedom!" he yelled loudly. Joey clapped a hand over his mouth as Lance glanced around for any fans lurking. Once Lance gave an all-clear signal, Joey let go of JC.
"Josh, watch it! You want everyone to know we just made a jailbreak?" JC blushed slightly.
"You try being cooped up for as long as I was!" JC exclaimed. "But sorry. Where are we going, anyway?"
"It's a secret," Lance said in an evil voice. Joey and JC looked at him, both confused. Then they shrugged. Lance would share when he chose to. Laughing, the three of them piled into a waiting limo and they were off.
Nick and Chris were engaged in a game of basketball on a nearby court. Kevin had gently pushed last night, but Nick didn't seem to know anything. Chris decided he was going to try his luck. After a while, he glanced over at the much taller man.
"Nick?"
"Yeah?" Nick gasped, out of breath.
"What kind of person is Brian?"
"What do you mean?"
"Is he very religious?"
"Well, yeah. Does this have anything to do with the stuff Kevin asked me last night?"
"In a way. Kevin and I are trying to figure something out, that's all."
"Why don't you ask Brian yourself?"
"We kinda don't want him to know we're doing this." Nick gave Chris a strange look.
"Why not?"
"Nick, trust me. It's better that Brian doesn't know I'm asking questions about him, because if I'm wrong, he's going to kill me for even thinking this. OK, no Brian questions. What about Howie?"
"Howie? What do you think Howie did?"
"Nick!"
"Sorry. Howie's not really religious, but he does have strong views sometimes. Other than Kevin, he's the most stubborn person I know. He just hides it very well!"
"What's AJ like?"
"AJ is a wildman! You name it, he's done it at some point! I mean, I've seen him do things that no other human being can do!"
"Like?"
"Chris, you don't really want to hear the details of AJ's sex life. Trust me on this one!" Chris blushed.
"You've got me there. Do you think any of those three could hurt somebody?"
"Hurt somebody? What do you mean?"
"Could Brian like, rape anybody?"
"You think HE had something to do with what happened to Lance?" Nick screeched. Chris slapped him upside the head.
"Shush! Look, I know it seems weird right now, but I have good reason for thinking the way I do, OK? It was a question. I didn't accuse him." Nick calmed down slightly.
"No, Brian couldn't do that. It's not in his nature."
"That's pretty much what Kevin said," Chris sighed. "What about Howie or AJ?"
"Howie's usually pretty mild-tempered, but when he gets mad, watch out! And AJ... you never know with AJ. But I don't think he could do it, either."
"Which brings us back to square one. Damn!"
"I'm sorry I can't be of more help, Chris."
"Nick, you've been a big help. Really. I didn't really think it was Brian, but he wasn't ruled out either. So AJ and Howie are the ones to watch."
"AJ and I are going clubbing tomorrow night," Nick said, thinking. "I think Howie is planning on going out somewhere with Joey." Chris raised an eyebrow.
"Alone? Someone had better go with them, cause Joey is going to kill Howie if he gets any reason to think that Howie is the one who hurt Lance."
"Point taken. Why have I been 'ruled out', as you called it?"
"You were downstairs with us when Lance was raped. And Kevin was out with Kristin. The others can't be accounted for."
"I'll keep a close eye on AJ tomorrow," Nick promised.
"Thanks, Nicky." Nick grimace. "What?"
"Very, very few people can call me Nicky."
"Oh, sorry!"
"Don't worry about it. I'm not really fussy, it's just a thing I have."
"I guess it's the same way JC and I hate to be called by our full names."
"AJ, too," Nick laughed. Chris joined him.
"One more game?" Chris asked, picking up the ball from where they had dropped it.
"You're on, old man!" With that, they were off again.
"JC?" Justin called, entering JC's hotel room. "Josh?" Finding it empty, Justin let out a string of curses in English, French, and Italian. Being around JC and Joey taught him new languages, although the majority of their words and phrases seemed to be things his mother would freak out if she knew what he was saying. Justin angrily dialled Lance's cell.
"Hi, Justin!" Lance chirped as he disentangled Joey's lips from his neck and waving at JC to keep quiet.
"Lance, where's Josh?" Justin demanded. Lance laughed.
"I have no idea, Justin. I'm not his babysitter. Joey, get off!"
"Lancey-poo, are you busy?" Justin cooed.
"Kinda," Lance said, pushing Joey away again.
"Where could JC have gone?" Justin mused. "He's not strong enough to go out on his own!"
"Maybe he's with Kevin?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"They're too alike! They'd kill each other within five minutes."
"They are both kinda anal, aren't they?" That earned Lance a slap from JC.
Joey slapped JC back, leading to a minor war on the other side of the limo.
"Yeah. Maybe he's with Chris."
"Chris and Nick went somewhere, so I don't think he's with them."
"Well, he's NOT with the others, so where in the hell is he?"
"Justin, Josh will turn up eventually. Why don't you go call Britney or something?"
"Lance, you're disgusting!" Justin yelled. "You KNOW Britney and I are just friends!"
"Did I say you weren't? Justin, you read too much into things. Now go away!" With that, Lance hung up, giggling. Joey and JC looked up from their tussle to study him.
"I think your boyfriend's lost it, Joe," JC said. Joey nodded.
"He needs to be committed."
"We only need three signatures, I think."
"We've got two here, and we can convince Lonnie to be the third... hmmm... Hey, Lance, wanna go for a drive?"
"Nonononononononono!" Lance yelled back, still giggling. Joey got up and sat beside his boyfriend, pulling him close. JC discreetly turned his head away, still a little hurt over seeing Joey and Lance together.
"You know I love you, right?" Joey asked Lance. Lance settled back against Joey's shoulder and sighed happily.
"I love you, too, Joe-bear."
"Where'd you get that one from?"
"Britney!"
"Oh, Lance... you really need to get a life. You're starting to imitate a pop princess... there's no hope for you anymore."
"Was there any to begin with?" JC interjected. Both men glared at him for a minute before breaking down in laughter. For the first time since the rape, JC and Lance were comfortable around each other. JC's heart brightened a little at the knowledge that maybe he and Lance could salvage their friendship with time, and a lot of patience. Lance turned to face the window as Joey attacked JC, drawing him back into the wrestling match from before. Joey and JC contined to squabble as Lance stared out the window, lost thoughts that JC couldn't read. The rest of the limo ride was silent, although as they got closer to wherever they were going, Lance seemed to perk up.
"A waterfall?" JC asked, seeing the place Lance had chosen for lunch. The three of them were setting up the food underneath a tree just beside the falls. There was a steep rock formation blocking full view, but the sound was there.
"I know how much you love waterfalls, and I heard about this one, so I thought we'd come here. No fans around."
"Lance, thank you," JC said.
"For what?"
"For being you... I thought you hated me. I still expect you to hate me, and yet you choose to come bring us here for our picnic simply because I like waterfalls!"
"Josh, it wasn't your fault. JoBeth helped me to see that when I saw her yesterday. Also, she wants to see you tomorrow afternoon, I think. And no argueing. Justin will have your hide if you don't go."
"Sure, pull out the heavy artillery early, why don't you?" JC laughed. Lance grinned back briefly, setting out the last food container before he turned to Joey.
"Joey, you OK?" he asked his boyfriend. Joey shook himself out of his reverie and smiled.
"I'm here. Just thinkin' about stuff."
"Don't think too hard. I don't want you to hurt yourself!"
"My Scoop is mouthy," Joey growled, advancing. Lance squealed like one of their fans and hid behind JC. JC laughed and shoved Lance towards Joey.
"Hell, no! You got yourself into this, Lansten." Joey grinned evilly and started tickling Lance, soon having the younger man rolling on the ground with hysterical laughter. Joey collapsed next to Lance, also breathless with laughter. After they had both calmed down, they realized JC was no longer with them.
"Josh?" Lance called, sitting up in a hurry. There was no response.
"JC!" Joey bellowed at the top of his lungs. Silence. Joey and Lance exchanged looks.
"I'm going to see if he's by the falls," Lance said.
"I'll check the limo," called Joey as he took off in the direction they had come from. Lance wandered towards the waterfall, praying that JC was there.
When he cleared the rocks blocking full view of the falls, he didn't immediately see JC. However, a slight movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention and Lance turned to see JC sitting on a rock at the water's edge, his feet dangling in as he stared into space. Sighing with relief, Lance headed down.
"Josh?" he called softly, alerting JC to his presence. JC didn't look up.
"Where's Joey?"
"He went to see if you were in the limo. Why'd you disappear like that?"
"Never mind. I'm kinda tired, can we go back to the hotel?"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes," JC said, getting up from his rock. He avoided Lance's concerned gaze as he passed the other man and preceeded him up the embankment. Once at the top, they both saw Joey running towards them.
"Josh! Where'd you find him?" Joey asked Lance.
"By the falls. JC's tired, so we're heading back, k?"
"Sure," Joey said, studying JC carefully. JC looked the other direction. Silently, the trio headed back to the limo, which then returned to the hotel, the lunch completely forgotten about and abandoned at the falls.
JC entered his room to find Justin waiting, and Justin was not happy.
"Where the hell were you?" Justin demanded. JC looked at him, his blue eyes slightly sad.
"I talked Joey and Lance into taking me out for a while. I was just so tired of being cooped up in bed that I needed to get out."
"Why do I get the feeling that's not the whole story?" Justin asked, his anger towards his friend forgotten.
"Justin, stop. Lance said something about JoBeth wanting to see me tomorrow?"
"Yeah, you have an appointment at noon."
"Why am I always the last to know?" JC said dryly. Justin smiled.
"I dunno. Get in bed, Josh. You need sleep."
"Will you stay?" JC's voice was so quiet Justin almost didn't hear him.
"Of course I will, Josh. I'll stay with you forever if you want me to." JC gave him a slightly strange look, but he got in bed and waited for Justin to join him. The two of them curled up- their arms around each other, JC's head on Justin's chest- and they both fell asleep with smiles on their faces.