The Other Half
Title: The Other Half
Author: Kristen
Pairing: JC/Chris, Justin/Britney, Brit!JC/Justin and
JC!Brit/Chris and I'm dizzy now
Rating: R-ish, for adult language and sexual
situations ;-)
Disclaimer: It's all completely and totally a figment
of my imagination.
Summary: This is a response to the following challenge
- "JC/Chris JC/Justin... Or I dunno. Anyway,
basically, Justin's with Britney and JC and Chris are
together. JC and Britney are sitting around and
complaining about how the other has the easier life
and then overnight like switch bodies and decide not
to tell anyone cause like anyone would believe them."
Pretty Version: http://divahips.com/otherhalf.html
The Other Half
JC was sitting on the sofa, staring at the television,
slightly dazed from the memory of girls in bikinis
covering themselves in whipped cream. As the show
returned from its commercial break, the telephone
rang. He reached for it blindly, lifting it to his
face and murmuring a distracted, "'Lo?"
"Hey, JC! What're you up to?" The caller's voice was
bright and cheery and way too upbeat for - JC
consulted the clock on the VCR - 10 o'clock on a
Saturday morning.
"Hey Britney. I was just watching TV," JC said, eyes
widening in horror as he watched Ashley's "dream date"
turn into every boybander's worst nightmare. Thank god
we always did dream dates as a five-some, he thought.
Safety in numbers. He shuddered as the terrified
"groom" and his seriously psychotic "bride" entered
the Graceland Wedding Chapel.
Britney's suddenly shrill voice pierced through his
fog as she shrieked, "JC! Are you paying attention to
me?"
"Oh. Sorry, Brit. I was distracted for a minute
there."
"You're watching Making the Band again, aren't you?"
Britney accused.
Oops. Guilty as charged. JC flinched and switched off
the television. "I can't help it. It's like circus
freaks or something. You know it's impolite to stare
but you just can't believe..."
Britney cut him off before he could launch into the
excuse for his guilty pleasure that she had
practically memorized by now. "Yeah. Yeah. I know.
Jacob's a scary assed loon. Trevor's a sweetie,
though."
"Don't let J hear you say that. You know how he gets,"
JC chuckled, remembering how Justin had thrown his
beer bottle across the room after watching Trevor wax
hormonal about how "fine" his woman was.
"Justin's not home. Which you know. Which is why
you're able to watch Making the Band. Chris'd kill you
if he was there."
Britney had a point. Chris had mandated a ban on all
watching of, listening to and discussion involving
"that annoying, pre-fabricated publicity stunt of a
boyband" in his home. Conveniently overlooking the
fact that it was JC's name on the deed and not Chris'.
JC scratched his elbow, wondering again what Chris'
problem with them was. "I really don't understand his
issues. He, of all people, should be able to revel the
perverted thrill of watching."
She snorted and changed the subject. "Okay, believe it
or not, I didn't actually call you to discuss O-Town.
So Justin and Chris are busy doing their little male
bonding thing..."
"What is it this time? Are they beating the shit out
of each other on the basketball court again?" JC
wondered when MTV was going to re-air this episode. He
really wanted to find out what happened with Jacob and
his Mistress of Pain in the back of the tour bus.
"No, I think it was the bike thing this morning.
Beating the shit out of each other is scheduled for
this afternoon. At your house, if I'm not mistaken,"
Britney's voice was slightly reproachful. As if JC
should already know all this. Of course, Britney was a
firm believer in knowing where your man was
twenty-four/seven.
JC thought back. He'd been asleep when Chris slipped
out of bed early this morning, whispering something
vague in his ear, before hopping in the shower. It was
entirely possible that Chris had told him he was
bringing Justin back later. "Oh. Great. I need to buy
groceries then. You know how they get."
"Like two fucking pigs at the trough. I'll ask Felicia
to order some stuff and have it delivered. I have
other plans for us today."
"Plans? For us?" JC winced at her giddy tone.
"Yep!" She was positively bubbling over with
excitement. "Since the guys are out doing the macho
chest-thumping, I thought we could have a little girl
time."
JC sighed. "Brit, you do realize that I'm not actually
a girl, right? I mean, I have a dick and everything.
You can ask Chris. He's intimately acquainted with
it."
"Oh don't even try that bullshit with me, Chasez. You
know you want to come over here." She paused, for
dramatic effect, and then breathed, "I booked the
morning with Magda."
Fuck. That wasn't playing fair. "Magda," he whined.
Britney just said, "Yep. Magda. Pedicures!" JC knew
that she was smirking over there in triumph.
JC loved Magda. When she gave pedicures, she used that
special peppermint lotion that he loved and gave the
most amazing foot massages that never failed to make
JC limp and boneless from contentment. Plus, she was
an artist with hot wax and he could always count on
her to reshape his beloved chin stripe into a perfect
clean line.
He debated his choices. He could stay here, watch some
television, do some grocery shopping and wait for the
guys to get back. His pride firmly intact because he
hadn't allowed Britney to wrap him around her little
finger with promises of shiny lacquered toenails and
aromatherapy scalp massages. Or he could succumb and
spend the day being pampered. Maybe even get one of
Magda's patented fresh avocado facial scrubs. His skin
glowed for days after one of those.
"I'll be there in five minutes." Then he added,
"Bitch" and hung up the phone.
====================
It was late in the afternoon when JC and Britney
arrived back at his house. About a half an hour after
they arrived, they heard the familiar thunder of two
motorcycles winding their way up the drive. He and
Britney were curled up on the two sofas in the living
room, sipping frozen strawberry margaritas and sighing
with utter happiness. JC couldn't remember the last
time he felt so peaceful and relaxed. He was barely
able to shake off his languor enough to lift his head
from the cushion and smile up at a very bemused Chris.
"Hey baby. Did you and Brit have fun today," Chris
asked as he leaned over and pressed a kiss to JC's
forehead.
JC closed his eyes and breathed in the scent of sweat
and gasoline and Chris, murmuring, "Mmmhmm. Love
Magda. Want to marry Magda."
Chris glanced down at JC's hands and chuckled, "I see
you got your nails done."
JC held up both hands for inspection, showing off the
pale pink nail polish that held just the tiniest bit
of shimmer to them. "It's called 'Enchantment'."
"We got the works," Britney called out. "Manicure,
pedicure, facial, body scrub...you name it."
JC heard Justin bound into the living room, landing
somewhere on the opposite side of the room. Based on
the annoyed, "Timberlake, if you even think you're
coming near my freshly glowing skin with those grubby
hands of yours," warning, JC figured Justin had landed
in the vicinity of Britney. Or tried to, at least.
Justin whined, "But sweetie, my hands are all clean.
See? I stopped in the bathroom before I came in here."
JC and Chris exchanged a wry glance as Chris snapped
his wrist lightly and made a noise that sounded
suspiciously like the crack of a whip.
"Yo, I heard that, asshole," Justin indignantly
shouted. Then he said, more softly, "What's with your
nails? What is that? Blue?"
"Yes, it's blue," Britney huffed. "Xanadu. And don't
even start. I like the way it looks."
Justin backed away, muttering something about brazen
hussies, and grabbed Chris around the neck. "Ready to
get your ass pounded, old man?"
Instead of flinging back an equally harsh comment,
Chris pondered Justin's question, thoughtfully
stroking his goatee and said, "I dunno, J. You think
you're man enough to top me? I mean, my ass is still
pretty sore from last night and those hours on the
bike didn't really help."
Justin thrust himself away from Chris, yelping, "TMI.
TM-Fucking-I, Chris."
The other three burst into laughter at his typical
reaction. Justin flipped them off over his shoulder as
he headed out front to pull the basketball hoop into
the driveway.
====================
JC and Britney were sitting quietly on the deck,
looking down at the makeshift basketball court where
Justin and Chris seemed to be attempting to kill each
other. JC grabbed the pitcher and refilled their
glasses. He was beyond languid now, the buzz of
tequila pushing him well on his way to stupefied. JC's
tranquil state was shattered, however, by Britney's
words as she broke the pleasant silence. "I envy you
sometimes," she murmured softly.
JC shook his head, as if to clear it, because there
was no way he just heard what he thought he did.
"What?"
Britney smiled at him and repeated, "I envy you
sometimes. I mean, I love Justin and I know he loves
me. And yeah, we're happy together. I don't want to be
with anyone else. Can't imagine my life with anyone
else. But, every now and then, I look at you and
Chris..." She trailed off uncertainly, watching the
two figures below wrestling for the ball.
"And what?" JC prompted.
Britney sighed and turned back to face him. "You're
equals. Two adults on a level playing field having a
real relationship. With us...it's like we're playing
house, with these roles that we've been assigned." She
ran her fingers through her hair and then grimaced at
the long, electric blue nails. "It's like this. This
nail polish thing. Justin doesn't like it when I look
less than what his idea of girly should be. When we
get home tonight, I just know that he's going to bitch
about it until I take the goddamned polish off. But
Chris? He doesn't care that your fingers and toes have
shiny pink polish on them."
"Brit-" JC attempted to cut in but she kept rolling.
"Like if you turned to him and said, 'Chris, I really
want to wear a ballgown to the Grammys,' he'd be all
okay with that. Hell, he'd probably call someone up
from FuMan to design it for you. He's so accepting of
things as long as you're happy."
JC couldn't believe he was hearing this. Yes, O-Town
issues aside, Chris was pretty laid back when it came
to anything that JC liked. When he had walked out of
the bathroom one morning wearing Capri pants, Chris
simply ran his hand across the material and murmured,
"Nice fabric. What is that, a cotton blend?" But
Britney had absolutely nothing to complain about. She
and Justin had one of those storybook romances.
He tried to point that out to her, saying, "But you
guys are so great together. And Justin's all
thoughtful and romantic and shit. Like on your
birthday when he couldn't be there and sent you twenty
presents to open. And I'll bet every one was sweet and
perfect, right?"
"Yeah, he's really great with the big sappy gestures
but that's easy. What did Chris get you for your
birthday?"
"A new subwoofer for the stereo and a year's worth of
oil changes for my Jeep," JC replied flatly.
"Oh." Nonplussed, she fell silent for a moment before
saying, "I know what I have and I'm thankful for it.
But once in a while, I look at the two of you and
wonder how the other half lives, y'know? What'd it be
like to have someone who doesn't care what other
people think or have these expectations. To have
someone who was okay with whatever as long as it made
me happy."
JC sipped his drink, nodding. "Yeah but you're not the
only one who wonders. I know that I'm lucky and I've
got the best thing going. And I hate myself for it but
sometimes when I hear Justin leaving you those sweet
voicemail messages or the way he sends you flowers in
every city...I just wish for that. I wish that Chris
were the kind of guy prone to excessive displays of
his affection."
They let it go after that, lapsing into quiet
reflection. Each wishing for a moment, that they
really could see how the other half lived. If only to
know how it felt for a little while.
====================
JC woke suddenly just before dawn. He wasn't sure why
he was so completely awake this early in the morning.
The arm draped around his waist seemed heavier than
usual...and somewhat longer. JC turned under Chris'
arm and saw...Justin. He leaped out of bed, gasping.
Oh fuck, he thought. What the hell happened last
night? He'd had quite a bit to drink but he didn't
think he'd had that much to drink. He didn't know that
there was alcohol in the world to make him that drunk.
But wait. Chris was there last night. Chris was there
when JC had been drinking. Chris was there when JC had
crawled beneath the sheets, all pliant and
affectionate. And, yeah, Chris had definitely been
there when JC's body was bent in half, his knees
practically resting on his own shoulders as he
breathed out needy little whimpers. JC pressed a hand
over his pounding heart, trying to calm himself and
figure out what happened after that.
But wait again. What was that? JC ran a hand over his
chest and, yeah, that was new. That was different.
That felt a lot like...
Breasts?
JC made a mad dash into the bathroom, shutting the
door behind him and flipping on the light switch. He
almost screamed at his reflection.
Or rather at Britney's reflection.
Yep, that was Britney all right. Petite, toned, blonde
and definitely female, he thought as he stared at the
lush curves shadowed by a diaphanous silk nightgown.
This had to be a dream. A nightmare. A drug induced
hallucination. JC silently vowed to never ever ever
eat the worm again as long as he could close his eyes
and wake up in his own bed in his own body next to his
own Chris.
He heard the phone ring and raced back into the
bedroom to grab it before Justin woke up. It was 5 AM.
Only one person could possibly be calling right now.
He lifted the receiver to his ear as he slipped out
into the hallway.
"What the fuck," he heard his own voice on the other
end of the line. His
JC-as-a-guy-and-not-trapped-in-a-woman's-body voice.
So mass hallucination then.
"I don't know, Britney. I just woke up and-"
"Whoop, there it was," Britney finished for him.
"Yeah. Kinda. Or in my case, there they were," JC
responded, glancing down again at the perky breasts
barely concealed by pale fabric and embroidered
daisies and, wow, Britney had really pretty lingerie.
"We have to do something," she hissed.
"What? You have a plan? I'm still not sure how this
happened. I keep pinching myself...er...I mean,
yourself...and waiting to wake up," JC retorted.
"I have a dick, JC. A cock. And yeah, it seems to be a
real nice one, good size and all, but I've grown
pretty attached to being an innie, not an outie,
y'know," she growled at him and JC was impressed
because he hadn't realized he sounded like that when
he was pissed off. Then she said, "And stop pinching
me. Because when I get my body back, and it'd better
be soon, I don't want it covered in little purple
bruises."
"Get dressed. I'll pick you up at the bottom of the
driveway in five minutes," JC said and hung up the
phone.
====================
"What the fuck," Britney said for the twenty-seventh
time this morning. The two of them were sitting in the
car, parked in an empty lot, drinking coffee and
trying to wrap their minds around what was happening.
They hadn't had much luck so far.
"I keep thinking about the conversation we had last
night," JC said and, damnit, he had to pee again.
Third time this morning. How tiny was this girl's
bladder anyway?
Britney was staring in the mirror, still. She kept
watching her new reflection in the visor mirror. JC
wasn't sure if it was because she was just that
fascinated by being a guy or hoped that the next time
she looked up, she'd be back to normal.
She said in a small voice, "You think that we did this
to ourselves?"
JC ran his fingers through his hair. Her hair. Fuck,
his longer fingernails got tangled in the long fake
locks. He managed to extricate his hand and glared
down at it. It was a nice enough hand, on the small
side though, with long, manicured fingernails that
were currently scrubbed free of polish. He'd have
trouble playing piano with these hands. He stared at
those nails, remembering how pretty they'd looked all
shiny and blue, and said, "I can't think of anything
else. We were talking last night and I kind of...I
mean, sort of...yeah, I wished I could know what it
was like to be you. To be loved like that."
"Damnit! This sucks. So big deal, we made a stupid
wish. In my twenty years, I've wished for a lot of
shit. I don't remember a pony arriving on my doorstep
when I was six or Brad Pitt magically appearing to
take me out on a dream date when I was thirteen."
JC winced and rubbed his ears. "Ow. Okay, Brit? You're
going to need to take some lessons in being me. First
lesson: your voice has a lot more power now. So when
you yell, in an enclosed fucking car, you're going to
burst someone's eardrum."
Britney ducked her head, a small sheepish smile on her
face, and whispered, "Sorry."
JC stared at her for a minute. Did he really look like
that when he was embarrassed? No wonder the guys liked
to make fun of him so much. He shook off the idle
musings and turned back to the matter at hand, "Well,
it's probably temporary. Right? I mean, we didn't wish
to be the other person forever." He thought about that
for a minute before asking, "Did we?"
Britney shook her head. "No. I just wanted a peek. A
glimpse or something. Both of which imply temporary to
me."
Satisfied, JC relaxed. "Good. Then we can just tell
the guys what happened and hope we switch back soon."
Britney started to laugh. A full on, uncontrollable,
body-shaking laugh. JC glared at her wondering what
the hell was so funny and then gasped in horror.
That's what he looked like when he laughed? Why hadn't
anyone ever told him? He didn't laugh. He giggled.
Like a fucking twelve-year old girl.
Affronted, and more than a little scared, JC said, "I
fail to see the humor here." Of course, with the
softer voice and the lilting accent, it didn't come
out nearly as steely as it had sounded in his head.
But it was enough to curb Britney's giggling fit. She
sobered a bit, wiping the corners of her eyes and
said, "Cause they'd believe us. We'll just say, 'Hey
guys, last night JC and I swapped bodies. And no,
we're not kidding. And yeah, the two of you have
probably played at least a hundred practical jokes on
us but we swear this isn't payback.' Of course,
they'll be on board with that."
JC frowned. He hadn't thought of that. He'd assumed
that they would tell the guys and they'd believe them.
"Chris would believe me. He'd know..."
"Right," she said, dragging out the word and rolling
her eyes. "Chris will see your half a foot shorter
girl-body and your long blonde hair and believe you.
One look into your big brown eyes and he'll know that
it's really you. I love Justin. But I'm not deluding
myself into thinking he's going to be able to tell if
it's Britney or Memorex."
Maybe she did have a point. It wasn't the most
plausible story. They didn't have any way of proving
it. But there must be something. Something that only
JC would know and would never tell another living
person. He could take Chris aside and whisper it in
his ear and then Chris would know that it was JC.
Britney said quietly, "Plus how could we explain why
it happened? That we wished for this."
Oh god. JC hadn't thought of that. If they told the
guys the truth, they'd have to tell them about the
conversation. About wishing for something other than
what they had. Chris had had enough issues at the
beginning in their relationship. Not understanding why
someone like JC would want to be with someone like
him. If he told Chris the truth, he'd be confirming
all those early doubts and fears. He'd break Chris'
heart.
"Fuck," JC breathed. "We really can't tell them."
Britney shook her head. "No, we really can't. There's
no way they'd understand that we were just talking. It
didn't mean anything. I mean, it wasn't supposed to
mean anything. People think about that kind of stuff
all the time, right?"
She sounded so tiny, so young, so defeated. JC wasn't
sure his voice had ever sounded that lost. He reached
out and placed his tiny hand over her larger one and
said, "Everyone wonders, sweetie. Everyone looks at
their own life, from time to time, and compares it to
someone else's. It doesn't make either of us bad
people. It just makes us really unlucky that, this
time, someone upstairs decided to give us a taste of
what we were wondering about."
Britney sniffed and said, "So we're not going to tell
them."
"No," JC agreed. "But uh...we're going to have to come
to some kind of agreement here...about
stuff..y'know...personal kind of stuff."
"You mean sex?"
"Yeah. Um, no. Not just sex. All of it. Kissing,
touching, intimacy and, yeah, sex."
Britney blushed a bit and confessed, "I've always been
curious. I mean, two guys? That's really hot."
It was JC's turn to blush now as he stammered, "Yeah.
Well. Hot. Uh huh. You have no idea."
"So Chris is good? Won't he wonder? If we agree that
sex is okay. I'm not exactly going to know what to
do."
JC smirked. "Don't worry about it. Chris likes it when
I get all shy and submissive. And yeah, Chris is going
to blow the top of your head off, little girl."
"We're going to do this? Really pretend to be each
other in every way?"
She sounded a little nervous now and JC couldn't
repress a grin. Okay, maybe he shouldn't have made the
comment about the top of her head but, hey, it was
true. Britney had no idea what she was in for.
"Yeah. I think we have to. I don't know what you and
Justin are like but I know Chris. I had a bad cold
right after the Atlantis concert and tried to stay
away from him for a few days so he wouldn't catch it.
He was absolutely convinced that I was tired of him
and was leaving him for Tim McGraw." JC remembered the
weeks after he was better and the massive amounts of
reassurances he'd had to give in the form of sweet
talking and blow jobs. "That's something I should warn
you about."
"What?"
JC took a deep breath. Then another. "Chris is kind of
fragile." Britney snorted and JC rushed to explain.
"I'm serious. He's all
macho-funny-nothing-gets-to-him-man on the outside.
But inside he worries a lot. About things that are
important to him being taken away. So you have to be
really careful with him. Tell him you love him, even
if he doesn't always say it back. Smile at him a lot.
Rub his back when you're watching TV together. Just
keep reminding him that I'm crazy about him, okay?"
Britney agreed, serious now, because she could tell
this was important to JC. "I can do that. I have one
of those at home. I probably don't have to tell you
anything about Justin, right? You already know he's a
needy bitch."
They shared a smile and JC said, "No, I think I've got
Justin down pretty well."
====================
JC sat in the bathroom, the door locked, dialing a
familiar number. He counted the rings.
One...two...three...Finally, he heard his own voice
say, "Hello?" "You motherfucking, sneaky, lying-assed
bitch," he spat out into the receiver.
"What? What happened?"
"You didn't need to tell me anything about Justin,
huh? How about the fact that neither of you are
virgins anymore? What about that little detail? Or
that apparently, you screw like bunnies three times a
day?"
Britney laughed, "You really thought we were still
virgins?"
JC was livid. "You told us that you were. And dumbass
that I am, I actually believed you. Fuck, Brit, you
could at least warn a guy. Y'know, before his best
friend jumps his ass in the middle of the kitchen."
"Oh yeah. I probably should've warned you about that.
Justin has this weird fixation with fucking on the
center island. I think the granite countertop turns
him on or something."
"Jesus," JC breathed.
Britney abruptly said, "Look was that all? Because we
were in the middle of watching a Flyers game. Plus I
think the big burly guys slamming into each other is
turning both of us on so I might be about to get some
action here."
"You're watching hockey? I never watch hockey," JC
whined.
"Yeah, I heard. He looked at me like I was insane when
I suggested it. But I made up some bullshit about
knowing how much he liked it and wanting to take more
of an interest in the stuff he loved and he went for
it. It was kinda cute actually." Her voice dropped to
a soft whisper as she continued, "His eyes got all
soft and he practically beamed at me. It was the
sweetest thing ever."
JC grinned. He knew that look. And yeah, Britney was
definitely getting lucky later. Then he frowned. It
hadn't ever occurred him to do that. To just suck it
up and watch hockey with Chris. He'd had no clue that
something that insignificant could make him so happy.
Maybe JC wasn't such a great boyfriend, after all.
Britney started to say goodbye and then, as almost an
afterthought, whispered, "Oh yeah, slap his ass. Not
hard. Just a little sting. Justin really likes that."
JC disconnected the call and buried his head in his
hands. This was going to be a long night.
====================
JC woke up the next morning, practically purring. He
was feeling pretty content with this vacation from his
body at the moment. He marveled again at how tiny he
was. His head was resting perfectly against Justin's
chest and his toes still only grazed the tops of
Justin's ankles. He turned in Justin arms and pressed
his ear to his chest, listening to the steady thump of
a heartbeat. It was kind of cool being a girl. His
skin was so soft and smooth. And, as he'd learned last
night, he had all these amazing nerve endings in new
places. And Justin, he thought, smiling as a large
hand slid to cup his ass possessively.
That was a surprise. It wasn't that he'd thought
Justin would be bad in bed. He'd watched him move for
enough years to know that he'd probably be pretty
good. But it hadn't prepared JC for the full on
Timberlake Lovemaking Experience. He hadn't really
expected Justin to be so...versatile.
The kitchen was all hot and demanding with growls and
grunts and mutters of "Fuck, yeah". And JC was well
equipped to deal with that. But the bedroom
was...different. It was whispered endearments and
long, deep, wet kisses and lingering tender caresses.
It was slow, achingly slow, and sweet and JC wasn't
sure that he was ever going to be able to look at
Justin the same way again.
It was kind of difficult to remember him as a pouting,
demanding brat after he'd licked every inch of your
body and made you come twice before he even entered
you.
JC heard the phone ring and turned over again,
reaching for the handset. Not surprisingly, it was
Britney.
"Morning after dishing of the dirt. I'll pick you up
in five minutes."
No way. He was utterly relaxed and sated right now and
it was going to take at least twenty minutes and a
shower before he could remember how to form sentences
again. Which he tried to tell Britney, "Not dressed.
Shower. And..."
"Fine," she sighed. "Half an hour. But you'd better be
ready."
JC murmured in agreement and hung up the phone,
slipping out of bed. He padded across the room on
shaky legs to the bathroom.
The shower was just what he needed. He felt much more
alert and less dreamy as he styled his new, longer
hair and applied some light makeup. He stepped into
Britney's closet and looked around, wondering what to
wear. Wow, she had a lot of clothes. All kinds of
clothes. And, ooh, that was so cute, JC thought as he
pulled out a tiny, pink plaid, cotton dress. Why
didn't she ever wear stuff like this? JC spied a dark,
rose-colored cardigan folded on a shelf and grabbed
that too.
He got dressed quickly, finding an adorable pair of
sandals with a matching purse. He stepped back into
the bedroom, quietly creeping over to the bed and
smiled. Justin had wrapped himself around a pillow in
his absence. JC reached out and stroked the familiar
blond curls.
Justin stirred and reached for his hand, pulling it
down and kissing the inside of his wrist. "It's early.
What're you doing up?"
"Shopping trip," JC murmured. He wasn't sure where the
impulse came from but he found himself leaning over
the bed and pressing his lips against Justin's warm
forehead and whispered, "Go back to sleep."
Justin grunted in agreement and then burrowed further
under the covers. JC gave him one final glance before
skipping out of the room and down the stairs. He
checked his watch. Not too bad. Only twenty minutes
later than promised.
====================
Britney glared at him when he got in the car. He
started to apologize for being late when she asked,
"What the fuck are you wearing?"
JC smiled delightedly and preened. "Isn't it great? I
can't believe you had it all this time and I never saw
you wear it."
"You look like a goddamned Laura Ashley catalog," she
accused.
JC started to protest and then he got an eyeful of
what Britney was wearing. "I have a better question.
What the fuck are you wearing?"
Britney tossed her hair as she pulled out of the
driveway - the gesture wasn't nearly as effective now
that said hair was two feet shorter and curly - and
shrugged, "Your clothes."
JC narrowed his eyes. "Yes, I realize they're my
clothes. Unlike some people, I don't have a closet
large enough to house a small third-world country so I
actually know what my own clothes look like. But don't
you think it's a little early for leather?"
JC couldn't believe her outfit. It wasn't even noon
yet and there she was, sitting next to him, in the
tightest black leather pants that he owned with a
tiny, almost miniscule, FuMan t-shirt that Chris had
given him. It read, "Drama Queen" and Chris had given
it to him as a joke that JC really hadn't found funny.
"Well, I think I look good," she said, as she took his
precious Jeep around a curve a little too fast for
JC's liking. "You're a hot guy, JC. You should try
dressing a little more 'rawr' and a little less
'meow', y'know."
"No, I don't know," he said stiffly. "And, for the
record, I think I look pretty. What's the point of
being a girl if you can't wear pretty pink dresses?"
"Fine. Whatever. Thank god we don't have any public
appearances scheduled for a while. There's still
plenty of time for us to switch back before you appear
on TRL looking like Mandy Moore."
"There's nothing wrong with Mandy. She's a sweet girl
who actually dresses, and acts, her age," JC shot
back. "As opposed to some people who-"
"I swear, man. You finish that sentence and I'm
shaving your fucking head and covering your entire
body in tattoos and piercings," Britney vowed. JC fell
silent and Britney continued, in a lighter tone, "So
where to? I really don't want to hang around the
Washington Mutual parking lot again for three hours."
JC quietly said, "I told Justin I was going shopping."
"Oh, cool. You wanna hit the Beverly Center? There's
this great store where I bought Justin those lizard
pants that I got him for Christmas. I bet we could
find some kickass stuff for this body of yours. I
wonder how you'd look in motorcycle boots," she said.
"Sure. I think they have a Laura Ashley there. A
Banana Republic, too," he responded, defiantly.
Britney just toyed with a curl and murmured, "Pretty
hair. Such pretty pretty pretty hair."
JC slumped lower in his seat and kept his mouth shut.
====================
In the end, they had decided against the Beverly
Center. Partly because it was risky to be seen out in
public together too much. And partly because JC had
this aversion to paying retail. Instead, JC switched
seats with Britney, because there was no way in hell
he was letting her drive his car more than absolutely
necessary, and headed out towards Palm Springs. And
the outlet malls. When they got near Cabazon, he
pulled off the highway and into a Denny's parking lot.
After placing their order and having the very
important first cup of coffee, they got down to the
business at hand.
"Okay, you weren't kidding about the top of my head,"
Britney whispered conspiratorially, leaning across the
table. "I mean, is it still there? I don't think I've
regained complete feeling in my body yet."
JC snickered, "Yes, the top of your head is still
intact. And how long have you and Justin been going at
it? Because he's like...really...good."
Britney sighed in dreamy remembrance and said, "A
while now. But he was pretty damn good even when we
first started. And he just got better from there. I'd
hate him for being such a natural at everything if I
wasn't enjoying the benefits so much."
JC nodded, "Yeah. You don't have a helluva lot to
complain about in that department."
"Me? What about you? Chris...I mean, wow. He's got a
lot more stamina that I would've expected for someone
his age. And his hands. When he slid his finger inside
me and...whoa...we're talking sparks and fireworks and
yeah, woah. When we switch back, I'm totally going to
have to try that with Justin."
"You might want to trim your nails first," JC
suggested, shuddering.
Britney glanced down at the long talons on her former
hand and echoed his shudder. It hadn't occurred to her
before but ouch. "You have a point there."
JC was just about to ask Britney about that
thing...that Justin did...with his tongue...because
oh, she was one lucky girl...and it occurred to him.
"Does this seem kind of weird to you?"
"What's weird? You mean besides being trapped in the
very male body of someone I've known since I was
twelve and fucking his boyfriend on, what seems like
it's going to be, a regular basis?"
"Well, yeah. That's weird enough. It's a given that
all of this is pretty weird. But it's like...us. We're
okay with this? We're just sitting here over coffee
and waffles talking about having sex with each other's
boyfriends. That seems wrong. Not just a little wrong,
either. A whole lotta wrong," JC said, nervously
nibbling his thumbnail.
"Don't bite my nails," Britney sighed and swatted JC's
hand away from his mouth. "What else are we supposed
to do, JC? We didn't ask for this to happen. Not
really. And it's not like we can talk to anyone else
about it. We're trying to make the best of things and
not fuck anything up for when we switch back. If we
enjoy it a little, I don't see the bad."
That made sense. They were in this together. And
obviously the point of the whole thing was for them to
learn something. So maybe they should just sit back,
soak up the new knowledge and enjoy the ride. Which
brought him back to his earlier question.
"So that thing that Justin does with his tongue...did
you teach him that or what? Because I'm thinking that
maybe I shouldn't have turned him down all those years
ago in Germany when he was drunk and curious."
====================
JC woke up three days later and did his usual check.
Yep, two breasts, no dick, still Britney. He took a
shower and put on a cute outfit. He really didn't need
to get dressed up to hang around the house all day but
he wasn't sure how long he was going to be in this
body. And Britney had a lot of nice clothes. He headed
downstairs and heard Justin singing along with the
radio as he made breakfast. That was another surprise.
Apparently, Justin was big on the pampering of his
little woman. He made breakfast every morning and took
JC out to dinner every night. The only meal JC ever
had to worry about was lunch and it wasn't like he was
used to eating that much anyway so he never had to
cook.
It really was a lot like a vacation. A bizarre,
journey to a parallel dimension kind of vacation but a
vacation nonetheless.
JC headed towards the kitchen. The phone rang as he
passed it and he scooped it up and answered.
"Hey Brit. How are you," a familiar voice inquired.
JC blinked back tears and choked out, "Chris?"
"Yeah. It's me. Are you okay? You don't sound too
good," he said, his voice warm and concerned.
JC walked into the kitchen and thrust the phone into
Justin's hand, without a word, before turning and
running back upstairs. He crawled into bed and pressed
his face against the pillow, trying desperately not to
sob. He'd tried not to think about Chris too much the
past few days. Every time he did, he felt horribly
guilty and missed him terribly. It hurt so he pushed
the thoughts aside and refused to remember the way
Chris buttered his toast for him or how he liked to
sleep with his head pillowed on JC's stomach or the
soft words he'd always whisper against JC's temple
when they were alone together, curled up on the couch.
He wouldn't let himself focus on how silky Chris' hair
was between his fingers or the special smile he'd give
JC that lit his entire face up.
JC heard Justin come into the bedroom. He slid up
behind JC and wrapped his arms around him. "Hey, babe?
You okay? What's wrong?"
"I don't feel very well. I think I'm coming down with
something," JC whispered.
"Is that all? Cause you really freaked Chris out
there," he said, pressing tiny kisses across the back
JC's neck.
Chris isn't the only one freaked out, JC thought. But
he said, "Yeah. All of the sudden, I felt like I was
going to throw up." Which was true. He'd heard Chris
on the other end of the line and realized how much he
loved him and hated himself for everything that had
happened over the past week. He really did feel sick.
Justin forced him to turn over and he smoothed the
hair back from JC's face. "Okay. I'll just let you
rest then. Let me know if you need anything. I'm going
to call Chris back and explain. He was worried."
JC nodded and then closed his eyes, wishing harder
than he had ever wished for anything in his life. He
wanted to go home. All the breakfasts in bed and
dinners in four-star restaurants and pastel clothes
and mind-blowing sex on earth couldn't make up for
what he'd lost.
He missed Chris.
====================
The next week passed in a blur and still nothing
changed. JC was starting to get panicked. They'd been
fortunate in the timing because both Britney and NSYNC
were on a vacation. But pretty soon, Britney was going
to have to head into rehearsals for the summer leg of
her tour and the guys were going to start discussing a
new album. And JC was relatively sure they'd take
issue with "Britney" sitting in on all their meetings.
JC hadn't even seen Chris in two weeks. After the
incident with the phone, he didn't trust himself to be
in the same room with him. He'd probably jump on top
of him and start sobbing for Chris to take him home.
Which would pretty much fuck everything up in every
way possible.
He and Britney hung out a lot. They had no one else to
talk to plus they needed to keep each other up to date
on what was going on in their own lives for after the
eventual, and hopefully imminent, switcheroo back.
They spent so much time together that Justin had even
remarked upon it, "Not that I don't think it's cool
and all but...you guys are always off somewhere.
Should I be worried?"
JC rolled his eyes and kissed Justin because he was
pretty sure that's what Britney would do and said, "In
case you haven't noticed, JC is totally in love with
Chris. And kind of gay. I'm really not his type."
"Okay, you're right. But what do y'all talk about so
much?"
JC grimaced inwardly and gave what he knew would be
Britney's answer, "Girl stuff."
Justin laughed and squeezed JC's waist. "All right. Go
have fun with JC and get your nails done. Just make
sure you say nice things about me."
He kissed the tip of JC's nose and left to pick Chris
up. They were going jet-skiing or waterboarding or
something.
Britney showed up a few minutes after Justin left.
She'd become equally adept at ducking the painful
reminders of what she was missing and avoided Justin
at all costs.
"I can't take much more of this," she said wearily, as
she sank down onto the sofa next to JC.
"What happened?"
Britney waved her hand vaguely and said, "Oh it was
nothing really. Chris asked me this morning what I
wanted for breakfast. And I said something about
having a craving for strawberries and champagne."
"For breakfast," JC asked incredulously.
"Yes, for breakfast," she snapped. "Sometimes Justin
surprises me with strawberries and champagne. Of
course, I know now that Chris never does that for you
because he looked at me like I'd gone and lost my mind
and pointed out how champagne gives me a headache and
that I hate strawberries because the seeds always get
stuck in my teeth."
"Well they do," he replied, slightly peeved. "They get
trapped up near your gums and you have to like floss
for hours to get them out."
Which was why Chris never bought strawberry anything.
Even ice cream. Chris made sure when he went shopping
that he got the special raspberry sorbet that JC loved
because it just about tasted the same and didn't have
any seeds at all.
"Whatever, Captain Hygiene, the point I'm trying to
make is that it's getting worse. Every day it's harder
and harder to pretend that I'm you. I miss me. I miss
Justin. I miss the soft candlelight and long stemmed
roses and silly surprises he slips into my purse
before he leaves the house. I miss being with someone
who actually has a romantic bone in his body," she
sighed, leaning back against the cushion and closing
her eyes.
JC was indignant on Chris' behalf. "Hey, I realize
that he isn't Justin 'I'm a Walking Fucking Hallmark
Card' Timberlake but Chris can be damned romantic.
Maybe your JC just isn't as inspiring as my JC is."
Britney laughed in derision and said, "Oh yeah. Chris'
idea of romance last night was, 'Hey babe. I went to
Whole Foods. Double coupon sale. Got the peanut butter
for free. I know how hot that gets you.' Real fucking
romantic."
"He got the peanut butter for free? Really," JC asked
in a tiny voice.
Britney laughed again but this time it was a real
laugh, full of amusement. "God, the two of you really
are made for each other. We have to switch back."
"Yeah, we do. I think...I think Justin is starting to
suspect something's wrong. He pulled out all the stops
last night," JC said, worrying his thumbnail between
his teeth.
She opened her eyes and swatted his hand away. "What
happened?"
JC sighed and blushed and then sighed again before
confessing softly, "He did up this big romantic
seduction scene. He like spelled our names out, I
mean...your names out, inside a heart. In rose
petals."
Britney smiled and shrugged. "He does stuff like that.
A lot."
"He what?" JC was practically shrieking. "That's
normal behavior? Jesus, I was torn between laughing
hysterically and bolting from the room to get a
restraining order."
"He was being romantic, asshole. I think it's sweet,"
she yelled, defensively.
"No, Brit. It's like...psychotic."
She leapt to her feet, eyes blazing. "That's it. I'm
going home. To the land of beer nuts and seduction
through coupon clipping."
She stormed out of the house and slammed the door
behind her. As JC heard the screech of tires pealing
out of the driveway, he prayed again for them to
switch back. And for his car to be in one piece when
they did.
====================
JC didn't really expect to hear from Britney for a few
days. And he wasn't too sad about it either. Just
because he and Chris weren't living out scenes from
some damned Harlequin romance novel didn't mean that
they weren't romantic in their own way. Their own
non-freaky-obsessive-wake-up-and-smell-the-stalker-way,
thank you very much. So he was surprised when she
called him, the next morning, sobbing.
"Brit? What happened? What's wrong? Oh god, did
something happen to Chris?" Please let him be okay.
Please let him be okay, JC thought frantically.
"Yes. I mean, no," she mumbled, still crying. "He's
fine. He went to some meeting with Dani. Can you come
over? I need you."
JC breathed a sigh of relief and said, "I'll be right
there."
JC raced over to his house and stopped for minute just
inside the doorway. It was the first time he'd been
here in two weeks. He hadn't realized how much he'd
missed it. The dogs waddled over to sniff at him
curiously and he reached down to scratch them behind
the ears. They wagged their tails and grunted happily.
Then he heard Britney call out from the living room,
"JC? I'm in here."
He headed into the living room and stopped short.
Britney was curled up in a ball, wadded up tissues
everywhere. Her eyes were puffy and red, her nose was
raw and running and she looked like hell. And JC made
a silent vow to never cry in front of another living
person again so long as he lived.
JC sat down on the sofa with her and hugged her. It
was a little awkward what with his short arms and her
wide shoulders but they managed.
"What happened? Did you and Chris have a fight or
something?" He really hoped they hadn't. JC hated
fighting with Chris period. Fighting with Chris
through a third party would be ten times as bad.
"No," she sniffled. "I wish it were that. This is so
much worse."
JC braced himself for whatever Britney was going to
say. "Just tell me. Please. You're kind of scaring the
shit out of me here."
She wiped her face with a tissue and began, "It was
this morning. Chris was getting ready for his meeting
and I was still in bed. Half-asleep. And just before
he left, he climbed back in behind me and started
talking."
"About what?"
"About us." She stopped and corrected herself. "I
mean, you. You and him. He started talking about how
much he loved you and how special you were and how you
made him so happy and he didn't want to imagine his
life without you. He just like laid his whole heart
out there on the line and you weren't there to hear
it. And it felt so wrong. I shouldn't have been the
one to hear that stuff. No one should have. You love
Chris. You love him so much and you've waited for a
long time to hear those words. But because of some
stupid wish and some seriously deranged higher power,
you didn't get to hear them."
JC shushed her and stroked her hair. "It's okay. Yeah,
I would've liked to have been there for that but it's
okay. Chris does that. All the time. You're just
coasting along and everything's normal and he turns
around and does something or says something that's so
sweet and heartfelt, it makes your insides turn to
mush."
She pulled back to look at JC. "You're not upset."
JC smiled sadly at her. "I'm a little upset. I kind of
treasure those moments, you know? They don't come
along every day so, when they do, I try to commit them
to memory so I can recall them when he does things
like picking up KFC on Valentine's Day."
Britney slid off the sofa and started scrabbling
through the mountain of discarded tissues and
unearthed a battered notebook. She handed it to JC.
He glanced down at the unfamiliar writing and asked,
"What's this?"
She smiled bashfully and said, "I wrote it down. The
second he left the room, I went to look for something
to write on. Fortunately, you keep that notebook in
your bedside table. I tried to write it down exactly
the way he said it. I might have gotten a few words
wrong here and there but..."
JC clutched the notebook tightly and blinked back
tears. "Thank you," he whispered. "That was so sweet
of you."
"Well, you would've done the same for me. I mean, if
Justin suddenly revealed that he thought I was the
most brilliant woman to walk the face of the earth,
I'm pretty sure you'd have told me," she said,
fiddling with the edge of her t-shirt.
JC set the notebook aside and sat down on the floor
next to her, taking her hand. "He does respect you,
you know?"
"You don't have to lie to make me feel better."
JC tugged on her hand and pulled her close. "No, I'm
serious. I mean, he asks me, or rather you, twenty
times a day what I think about things. And he really
considers the answers he's given. He wouldn't do that
if he didn't respect your opinion."
Britney looked down at him, warily, but with the
beginnings of hope glinting in her eyes. "But he does
that with everyone right? He practically conducts a
poll and then does whatever the hell he wants to."
JC shook his head firmly. "Before all this, I would've
said that there were exactly five people on this
planet that Justin actually listened to. Me and the
guys and his mother. That's it. Not Trace. Not his
dad. Not Johnny. But I was wrong. I know the
difference between Justin listening to what I'm saying
and Justin letting me talk. He listens to you,
Britney. Your opinion counts."
"I never realized...I thought..."
"You thought wrong. Maybe it's not the perfect
equality that you were hoping for but it's a start.
And maybe you're kind of to blame for some of those
gender roles you've been feeling stifled by. The next
time Justin gives you shit about blue nail polish or
the length of your hemline or whatever, you might want
to think about telling him to mind his own damned
business," JC chided gently.
Britney seemed to consider that for a moment. Then she
narrowed her eyes. "What about you?"
"Oh believe me, that advice goes both ways," JC
declared. "If I ever get my body back, the first thing
I'm doing, after fucking Chris senseless and kissing
him for 72 hours straight, is to tell him how much
those little things mean to me. Maybe if he knows that
a 12-pack of PBR and a bucket of KFC doesn't exactly
equate to hearts and flowers for me, he'll toss a box
of chocolates and a sappy card in the package."
They both lapsed into silence then. Each wishing, more
than anything, that they could go back to their own
lives. They'd learned that the grass really wasn't
greener on the other side. It was just someone else's
lawn. And they both wanted their own lawn back.
Because they'd seen how the other half lived. And it
was a nice place to visit. But they didn't want to
live there.
====================
JC's eyes snapped open, just before dawn. He wondered
why he was awake and then started to hope... The
bedroom was achingly familiar. There was a welcome
weight around his middle. And...he slid his hand down
under the covers...Yes! Score! He was back to his old
self.
He reached out for the phone just as it started to
ring.
"We're back," Britney crowed joyfully.
JC was grinning so hard his cheeks hurt. "Finally."
"Okay, I'm going to wake Justin up now. I just wanted
to make sure everything was okay over there," she
said.
"Everything is more than okay. Everything is perfect.
I'll call you later in the week. We can all get
together for a barbecue or something," JC promised.
"Yeah. Next weekend. I have plans for the rest of this
week," Britney laughed.
"Hell yeah. I have plans, too. Involving a certain guy
and a bed and not moving very far from it for the next
five days. Bye, Brit," JC whispered as he hung up.
He just stayed still for a while, staring at Chris.
Two weeks seemed like forever. He hadn't seen him at
all and had only talked him that one time for about
thirty seconds. He stroked Chris' face and his hair
and even tugged on those stupid horns that he was
always trying to get Chris to cut off.
Chris stirred then, resting his chin on JC's stomach
and blinking up at him blearily. "Hey."
"Hey," JC softly echoed.
Chris glanced over at the alarm clock and visibly
blanched at the time. "How come you're awake so early?
Something wrong?"
JC ran a soothing hand up and down Chris' arm and
shook his head. "Nope. Everything's good. I just
couldn't sleep. I was getting a little lonely so I
thought I'd poke at you until you woke up."
Chris grinned at him and it made his heart beat
faster. JC had missed that smile so much. Chris slowly
slid his way up the bed until he was stretched out on
top of JC. Chris arched an eyebrow and said, "So
lonely you're willing to endure the unfortunate tang
of morning breath?"
JC pulled his face down until their lips were almost
touching, whispered, "Morning breath is the furthest
thing from my mind right now," and kissed him.
====================
Late that night, when they were twined around each
other watching a hockey game...or rather Chris was
watching. JC kept flinching and trying not to cover
his eyes whenever there was a particularly brutal
hit...Chris whispered against his skin, "I missed you.
I'm glad you're back." JC froze against him. How was
that possible? How the hell did he know? And why the
fuck was he sleeping with Britney if he'd known that
she wasn't really JC?
But before he could get out any of those questions,
Chris softly continued, "I don't know what was going
on in that head of yours or what you were trying to
work out but I'm real glad that you did. Because it
wasn't the same having you here yet not having you
completely here."
JC breathed a sigh of relief. Chris didn't know. Not
really. He only knew that JC was different and he'd
waited, letting it run its course. It was decidedly
un-Chris-like to be so patient and bespoke a level of
trust that JC hadn't even realized they'd achieved.
He pulled back a little and looked up at Chris. "Thank
you. For letting me figure some stuff out on my own. I
needed some time to work through it all."
Chris kissed him softly and murmured, "So we're good
now?"
"Better than good," JC replied against his lips.
"We're perfect."
They settled back to watch the game and then, a few
minutes later, JC ventured tentatively,
"Um...Chris...that stuff you said yesterday morning?"
Chris glanced down at him in surprise, "I thought you
were asleep. I didn't think you could hear me."
JC blushed and turned his eyes away in embarrassment.
"Um...yeah...I was sort of half-asleep. And I heard
it. And..." He took a breath and looked up at Chris
again. "It meant a lot. It's like, I know we're guys
and we're not supposed to be into that sappy stuff but
the things you said yesterday...they were beautiful.
And they were important for me to hear. I don't expect
you to toss rose petals on the bed...actually, I
really don't want you to toss rose petals on the bed.
Like ever. I mean that. But some small gesture, every
now and then, that you're not completely bored with
all this would be nice."
Chris considered JC gravely for a moment. Then he took
his face between his hands and echoed the words he'd
said, to Britney. "I love you. Sometimes I think I may
be the most fucked up guy on the face of the earth and
I don't have a clue what you're doing here with me.
But here you are. For some insane reason, this
beautiful, amazing man is here and loves me more than
I love myself. And I don't always know how to tell you
that. But you make my life so much better and I can't
imagine it without you."
JC blinked. Wow, that was even better than he'd
imagined when he was reading it on paper. Because no
amount of imagination could ever come close to the
look in Chris' eyes or the soft sound of his voice
just now.
JC wrapped his arms around Chris and nuzzled his neck.
"I love you, too. And I love us. And I refuse to
entertain the idea of a non-us life."
Chris laughed and moaned and then said, "What are you
doing?"
JC licked his lips and slid a hand under Chris' shirt
and then thrust against him ever so slightly. "That
was a pretty little speech you gave. I think you
deserve a reward."
"Okay, if sappy gestures get you like this, I'm gonna
start memorizing poetry and sending you flowers,"
Chris breathed.
JC traced a path up Chris' throat with his mouth and
nibbled his earlobe and thought, Yep. That's the plan.
After they'd tumbled beneath the covers and made love
into the wee hours of the morning, JC found himself
lying in bed with Chris, happy and content and at
peace.
And he wished for nothing.
The End
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