Justin woke up after a mostly sleepless night with JC wrapped around him like a kitten, snuggling. He smiled a little, yawned and kissed JC on the cheek. The movement made JC stir and when he turned around to face Justin, the younger man could feel his friend’s erection brush his thigh. JC coughed in an embarrassed way and practically ran to the bathroom. Joey woke with a humongous hangover, his head pounded and his mouth felt like something had crawled in there and died some time during the night. He turned around to face the person sleeping next to him and was hugely shocked to find that it was Chris. Then the events of the previous day came flooding back to him and it was as if a ton of bricks had just landed squarely on his chest. He sat with his mouth open looking at Chris. “Joey this isn’t the Twilight Zone, we didn’t sleep together” Joey closed his mouth and looked like he was about to cry. He got up and went to the bathroom and Chris sighed, ‘this is gonna be a long day’ Lance woke up alone. His neck was stiff, his shoulders ached and it felt like he had been crying for an eternity. He went to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. He mumbled to himself ‘Christ you look like shit’ He brushed his teeth and started trying to figure out how he was going to fix things with Joey. He knew it was not going to be easy, but was it even possible? The guys all met for breakfast as they normally did, but this time there was complete silence, not only silence but pin-drop silence and there was absolutely no eye contact. “We have to fix this” Chris was starting to get a little desperate as his visions of the band falling apart and everybody forgetting them haunted his dreams the previous night. He scratched his nose, a habit he had when he was nervous and slowly looked around the room. Joey he had already witnessed looked like hell. Lance looked worse if that were even possible, Justin and JC actually looked quite calm they were the only two of his friends who were looking at each other. He was sure he looked like crap after the sleepless night he’d spent with Joey. So speaking to Justin looked like his only option. “Jup how did you sleep?” “Pretty crap and Chris you know what happens when you call me Jup” Justin looked at Chris with a twinkle in his eye and Chris gave his best innocent look. “Oh I’m so sorry Juppy I won’t call you that again” Justin launched himself at Chris and gave him an atomic wedgie. Chris was nearly in tears from laughing and trying to fight Justin off but the others barely raised a smile. Justin whispered in his ear. “Nice try old man but I don’t think it’s going to be that easy” Justin took a look around the room and came up with a plan “Chris come here I wanna show you this wicked new game in my room” Chris got up and walked to the door just as Justin pulled him through and locked it. The other’s all looked at the door in horror. Justin shouted through the wood. “Right you guys are talking, dating or not we all have to be friends and seriously guys you have to sort this out.” The tension in the room was palpable nobody was willing to start but they all knew that something had to be done. JC looked out of the window and Lance looked at Joey who was looking anywhere but at him. “I love you Joey” Joey spun around to face Lance “Don’t you say those words again you don’t mean them and you don’t deserve to say them” “I mean them” “Well then you have a very different definition of love than I do because I would die to keep you from hurting and you couldn’t even keep your pants zipped. You had to cheat on me with him, that was so cheap Lance” A fat tear slid down JC’s cheek and he whispered “I’m not cheap” “And you…” Joey turned to face JC “You knew that I loved him more than life and you are supposed to be my friend, how could you?” “I’m sorry” “Sorry doesn’t help JC, you’re cheap and you’re dirty and right now I can’t stand the sight of either of you” JC curled into a small ball and started crying; Joey could hardly hear the words through the tears. “I loved him more than life too.” A stalemate was reached and everybody was silent. This went on for a good few minutes before Lance spoke again. “Joey, I loved JC before you. I loved him so much I thought my heart would break and I never thought that he could love me…” “Oh fucking great Lance I hope you two are very happy together” “No listen Joey. I’d given up on JC and then I fell in love with you, my beautiful, kind, loving Joey and you made me happier than I have ever been in my entire life. Then JC told me he loved me and all those years I so wanted him to say those words and I did something stupid it was a mistake and you have to believe me I’d do anything to make it up to you” “Don’t you get it Lance? That’s it; you cheated on me, smashed my heart up into little bits, and made me sleep in the same bed as Chris goddammit! Exactly how do you think you can make this up to me?” JC looked up and felt humiliated, Lance didn’t love him at all. It was just a flashback to a past that he could have had. He felt stupid and he felt used and he couldn’t stand it. “Joey I know you won’t forgive me but you must know what it’s like to be in love with Lance… I tried to fight it, I’ve loved him for years and it was tearing my heart out every time I saw you two together, I’m sorry I saw a glimmer of hope and it was so fast I just took that chance, please don’t hate me. You and Lance are good together, I know he doesn’t love me” And with that JC pressed his face to the glass and watched the world go by. Chris and Justin unlocked the door and walked into the room to find their friends silent. JC pressed up against the window, fresh tears running down his cheeks, Lance sat in a small ball and Joey glowering. Justin walked over to JC and took his hand. “Come on, lets go talk” Joey got up and stalked out of the room and Lance and Chris were left staring at each other knowing that nothing really had been resolved.