Joey fed a dollar into the coffee machine, needing some caffeine to keep his eyes open. He was pissed, worse than even he could imagine. The paper cup shot out, filling with dark liquid when he spotted Justin out of the corner of his eye, pushing out of the stairwell, eyes red and bleary, muttering something lowly. "Justin!" he called out. He wasn't as angry with him for some reason, even though he should have known better, being privvy to the way JC treated Lance all the time.

Justin snapped his head up, and glared at Joey. The last thing he needed was a lecture, or having his face pummeled. Joey was easily stronger than him, a fact he'd learned while on tour, making fun of Joey's girlfriend. The bruises had taken weeks to heal. "What?" he yelled, not caring if it was the middle of the night. He felt like his body was tearing right down the middle, and if Joey did hit him, at least it would mask the other pain he was feeling.

Joey grabbed his coffee and walked over. "I gotta know why you did it." His brown eyes were soft, uncondeming, and Justin crumbled, not expecting compassion. "Justin, you have to tell me."

"I don't know what to say," he admitted, letting his eyes fill again. "Joey, I didn't want to hurt Lance. Christ, we're all supposed to be like blood, and this thing has gotten way out of hand..."

Joey's huge arms encircled Justin, taking him by surprise, letting the sob he'd been choking down escape, and he buried his head in Joey's shoulder, feeling more loved than he had in a long while. "Shh, it's okay," Joey whispered. "Just tell me everything."

Justin nodded, wordlessly. Joey was always there for them, and now he saw why Lance leaned on him so much. "I've ah, fuck, this is so hard." Justin didn't know how to tell him, where to begin. He wiped at his eyes and pulled back a little. "I guess you'd say I kind of love JC."

"What?" Joey gasped, totally unprepared for such a statement. There was no fucking way this was happening, no way. JC was playing with fire, and he was stunned. "How?"

"I don't know," Justin cried, digging his fists into his eyes because he didn't know. "Hell, I'm not even sure I'm exactly 'in love', I just spent so much time trying to be like him, and I have no fucking idea if that's love or what and I'm scared." He searched Joey's face for any signs of rage, or disgust, but there was none. There was just a friend nodding at him, understanding and trying to comprehend it all.

Joey digested the news, and he wanted to scream and yell and find JC, toss his ass over the roof, make it all better for all involved. He didn't know when JC had become this entity that thought nothing of screwing with emotions and feelings of sensitive souls. When Lance and JC had come to them and announced they were 'in love' and sleeping together, eveyone was in awe, not just because two of them were gay, or bi, or whatever the fuck they were, but because they loved each other, and took care of each other, and it was so fucking sweet. It was what they all longed for.

Then it went bad, with JC straying, and Lance spending nights alone, trying not to cry, throwing himself into any business venture he could find just so he wouldn't have to face the reality that JC's heart was changing. That's when Joey had slid into Lance's life more and more, taking it upon himself to care for him, and try to comfort him.

Joey sipped his coffee, not caring that it tasted like mud, or was hot enough to burn his mouth. He stared at the wrecked figure of Justin before him, so upset and heart broken, and Joey was sure Justin had never had sex before, was fucking positive, and that small detail enraged him beyond belief. "Justin, go on home and get some sleep okay?" He forced the rage back down for the moment, laying a gentle hand on his friend's shoulder. "Go home and I'll call you if anything changes okay?"

"Are you sure?" Justin asked, wanting so badly to curl up in his bed and sleep for a year. "What about the tour and the bus..."

"Chris and I will take care of it. You go and I'll call you first thing in the morning." He wanted Justin gone so he could deal with JC himself, because if they were thinking about continuing their obligations to the rest of this tour, JC would need to get his shit together, for them all.

When Justin was gone, he made his way back to Lance's room, glad to see Chris there, glad to see Lance still sleeping. Then he hurried up to the roof, prepared to do battle.

"Hey!" Joey yelled loudly, his voice echoing across the flat roof.

JC cringed when he heard the voice, turning around to face what was coming. He wanted to tell Joey to save his breath, that he would break it off with Lance, even though he truly did love him, he would do it. He wanted to beg everyone's forgiveness, and do whatever he had to so things could be okay. He would leave N Sync, if he thought it would help, he was that sorry.

Joey was over to him in three long strides. "You have some shit to explain to me," he said evenly, proud that he wasn't hitting the guy, pounding on his skinny body, dragging him around by his hair and making him cry.

"I know," he said. "I do love Lance, Joe. You gotta believe me. God, things were so good with us in the beginning." He thought about that. It was true, the moments they shared exploring one another, giggling and making love, so special to Lance because he'd never been with a man before, and he was so fucking romantic and lovable, and JC had gotten off on that. But soon, it was too constricting, and he pushed away. "I just couldn't deal, being with him all the time. That's why I was glad we weren't sharing the bus."

Joey pursed his lips, not all all happy with the lame ass excuse. "What about Justin? You like fucking with him? He loves you, JC, and you took his goddamn virginity, for what? So you could say you did? Are you that much of a monster?"

JC nodded, his tears drying. He was a monster, he did fuck with lives, not just Lance and Justin, but everyone around him. He was a master manipulaor, a game he'd played since childhood, carefully cultivated when N Sync rose to the top, and he was a monster. Why deny it anymore. Fuck Joey, he had no right. "We're through here," he said icily, striding past Joey. If he wanted Lance, and it suited him, then he would have him, until it suited him no longer. No reason to feel badly. Lance loved him, and that was good enough for him. Justin would need to adjust to that. He was sorry if indeed he did take his virginity, but he doubted that.

"Where you going?" Joey asked, having heard the change in JC's voice. It made him wary.

"None of your fucking business. You go deal with postponing the tour, I'll take care of Lance from now on." He slammed the door for good measure, inhaling deeply once he was inside the stairwell. He'd move Lance in with him while his house was repaired, and take care of him, without Joey's interference.

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