Babysync- Part 1/4
	
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	Justin bounced the ball in his driveway lazily, looking up at the basket and taking a halfhearted shot. It hit the rim, rattling against the old metal, and then rolled away from its target. 
	He jogged to get the rebound before it could hit the hot, black pavement of his driveway again. With a sigh, the shot was repeated and made. It was too hot and his shirt stuck to him from the sweat of the game. Bored, he dribbled the ball through his legs a couple of times before shooting again. He caught the rebound tiredly.
	"Justin!"
	He looked up at the sound of his mother's voice, holding the ball with both his hands. She was standing at the end of the front path, the cordless phone in hand. "You have a call. I think he said Chris? I'm not sure, he said it so fast."
	Justin bounced the ball again as he walked forward to take the phone. He watched his mom go back inside as he put it to his ear.
	"Hello?"
	There was a pause. "Justin?"
	"Yeah."
	"Hey. Remember me? Chris Kirkpatrick?" 
	An image of a playful dark haired guy popped into Justin's mind as he smiled and replied, "Hey. Of course." He and Chris had met through a number of auditions in Orlando and had easily gotten along. Of course he remembered him. Although Justin was several years younger, they'd immediately become friends. Justin never felt that much younger than Chris anyway, since the man was a complete ham. He'd always had fun with him. 
	"What's up?" He was surprised to hear from Chris. They'd only spoken on and off for the past year after Justin had moved back from Orlando to Tennessee. 
	"How you been, Justin? We haven't talked in a bit."
	"I'm okay," Justin answered. He put the basketball on the ground and sat on it, resting his elbows on his knees. He squinted into the sun and felt a bead of sweat drip down his forehead. "How 'bout you?"
	"I'm good, real good…" Chris answered. "I was… I was actually calling to see if you were interested in starting something with me." So much for small talk, he figured. "I have a kind of business proposition for you. Are you in school or are you tied down to anything right now?"
	Justin perked up slightly, now curious. A business proposition? His boredom on a hot summer's day was beginning to diminish. "Starting what?"
	"A group. Like a real music group with contacts and places to go. I found this guy; he's got some experience, and anyway, he's interested in getting a group together. I called him, and it really sounds like an awesome opportunity… My friend Howie told me a bit about him too—He helped them out and things have been going well. So, I decided it's a real thing to do. Time to get off my ass, right? I'm convinced. It's a real chance to get started, Justin."
	Justin tried to follow Chris's rushed explanation, hearing the excitement in his voice and finding it somewhat contagious. "And you're calling me?" Justin smiled to himself, flattered that Chris had thought of him. 
	"Sure, Mickey boy. I've seen you, heard you, and I know how you handle auditions," Chris replied. "I know you can handle it. Don't you think I'd want you in my group?"
	Justin laughed. "This is just out of the blue—I mean, thanks."
	"And I was also hoping you could help me think of other people to join us. I have some friends around that I could ask and audition, but I'm not sure how many people actually have what it takes. Or are truly interested. Because I'm serious about this. Really serious."
	"A real group?"
	"Yeah, Justin. I know you'd do well with it because you had MMC as training. A lot of people say they're interested and then—"
	"JC," Justin said.
	"What?"
	"Can I call JC? He'd want to do it for sure. We were just talking about something like that a little while ago." 
	"Chasez? Definitely call him, kid. He'd be great, too. We'll try out as many as we can. Like I said, there's people that say they're interested, and they just back out. I need dedication."
	Chris sounded really convinced, and Justin felt a surge of excitement go through him as well. A group. A real group. The idea of doing concerts again, ones even better than the ones he'd thought were so cool on MMC… It was thrilling to him. This was what he dreamed about. He couldn't wait to call JC.
	"I'll call you back in a little bit then, okay?" Justin asked. "I've got your number and all. Same number, right?"
	"Yup. Same. Okay. Think about and then I'll talk to you. Talk to your parents and JC, and call me as soon as you can make up your mind."
	As soon as he was off with Chris, Justin immediately began to dial JC's number. He and JC had talked about this, and other dreams of music careers taking off. After the show ended, JC spent a little time in LA, before coming back a little dispirited and disheveled to take a break in Nashville. They'd gotten together several times since then, even working on routines and demos together. 
	JC was always spending his limited cash to get into studios, and Justin loved it. That was until Justin's mother thought that 'enough was enough', and told Justin to let JC do his own song writing and demos with his friends while Justin could spend a bit more time at home. Justin wished he was older so he could have more freedom like JC did. Even if his mom was really cool, he was still young. 
	It was still cool having JC near, although every once and a while JC went back to his parents' near DC. He also had a job that tied him down, and he'd been a lot busier recently.
	JC answered the phone on the third ring with a, "Yeah?" The sound of him softly hitting piano keys was audible over the line in the background. Typical.
	"It's me."
	"What's up, J?" JC's fingers played with a couple more keys. "How's home?"
	"Boring. As usual… But guess what? You'll never guess… I just got a call from Chris. You remember Chris?"
	"Chris…?" JC's voice trailed off.
	"Kirkpatrick?" Justin persisted. "I've told you about him. Really cool guy, C, come on."
	JC chuckled a little. "Okay… I'll pretend I remember. And what about him?"
	"Well, he just called to tell me about this group he wants to start. And he's really serious, JC. He says he called someone from the business, and that he's just got to get people together and—"
	"Someone from the business?" JC sounded skeptical.
	"We could go back to Orlando, JC…" Justin began. "This would be so awesome. A real group. You were just telling me how much you wanted that. Real actual studios and lights and cameras and stages again. Not just the shitty little demos that you send and never ever hear back about. This is fate that he'd call. Right after we talked about it."
	JC was amused by Justin's excited babbling, and it was good to hear him so keen on something, but he didn't allow himself to be fooled. "My demos aren't shitty…"
	"Anyway, JC. C'mon. What do you think?"
	"I don't know what I think. This guy's really serious about following this lead?"
	"Yeah." Justin gripped the phone and smiled at the pavement beneath him, rolling slightly back and forth on top of the ball. "He's really serious. He said you'd be great." He was trying to ignore the obvious hesitation he'd heard in his friend's tone.
	"Well, I have stuff that I'm working on here too though, Justin."
	"Like what?" Justin answered. "Can't it wait? This is a once in a—"
	"I have a job. And it's just as probable that these demos are gonna get me started as going to Orlando for this Chris guy's idea will."
	"But…" Justin paused. He couldn't believe it. Disappointment settled upon him heavily. JC wasn't the least bit excited. "Don't you want to do it together?"
	"Justin… I just want to do it."
	Justin was silent. He didn't want to take that to heart, because he understood. But at the same time, he felt the excitement from Chris's phone call draining out of him like a pierced balloon. JC was the savvy one, the music guru, the brains. Justin always learned from him, even just the way he talked, and he most importantly trusted him. Now he wasn't even the least bit excited.
	Justin forced himself to try to remain optimistic. "You'll always have your demos. But Chris is serious now and this might be our once in a lifetime chance, JC."
	"You know what though, J? I've heard the stories from 'someone from the business' before. You know how many times you get offered a deal that sounds perfect? Don't be fooled, kid."
	"JC, please," Justin persisted. 
	"It's like telemarketers. They always have deals."
	"Chris isn't a telemarketer."
	"I'm just saying… Things don't always pan out. You think LA was a piece of cake? You think I'd be where I am if someone 'from the business' told me the truth? Don't learn the hard way, Justin… Use your head…"
	Justin stayed quiet. He just sighed into the phone, hoping JC would pick up on his desperation.
	Finally JC let out a tired breath. "So you really want to go back to Orlando, huh?"
	"I need to. I need to," Justin insisted. "Come over and we can go. JC, I can't sit here all my life. Even a year has me half dead. I miss it. Doing something… And I have a really good feeling about this, JC. I could tell by Chris's voice." He pleaded earnestly, trying not to whine. "I trust him."
	"Chris, sure. But who's this contact he has?"
	"I don't know yet," Justin admitted.
	"It's a lot. A lot to process… Your mom said yes?" JC asked. "I don't imagine she's too hot for these once in a lifetime promises either."
	Justin bit his lip. He'd forgotten about that one small detail. Damn being so young. He hated that. JC was able to just pick up and go with his parents good graces. Justin felt like his mother was glued to him. Most of the time he liked it, until he knew he needed permission for something riskier than normal. 
	"I'm sure she'll be for it," he replied.
	"You so sure?"
	"Because you'll tell her you're going and she trusts you," Justin persisted. "I need to try it. I know nothing recently has worked so it must be our time. I hate school. I hate being here. I hate it. This is a big deal to me." He took a deep breath. "What's the harm in trying?"
	"Okay… Am I allowed to think about it at least?"
	Justin sighed. "Yeah. Can I tell Chris you're interested though?"
	"Talk to your mom first," JC answered. "I'm not gonna start making plans if she says no."
	Justin grudgingly agreed, his slightly back excitement but now mixed with anxiety. He ended the phone call, but not before making JC swear to call back within the hour even if it was just to say he was still thinking about it.
	Justin stood with the phone in one hand and grabbed his basketball with the other, starting inside. He found his mother in the kitchen, starting to put on dinner. He watched her for a moment, as he quickly mapped out his proposal. "I've got something to ask you, mama…"
	She turned and looked at him suspiciously for a minute before turning back to the salad she was making. She could nearly hear the churning ideas in his head and knew something was up. "What's that, honey?"
	"You have to keep an open mind about it, mom," he started. "Because it's really, really, really important."
	"Okay," she agreed reluctantly. "I'll keep an open mind. What is it?"
	"You remember Chris? He's called a bunch, but you met him at a few auditions and stuff. Kirkpatrick."
	She nodded. "I remember."
	"Well, he's going to start a group," he continued. "And he wants me to be in it. And JC too. I called JC and he's interested too… We could go back and really get something started. Chris has stuff lined up and everything. A real group. And we—"
	"Go back where, Justin?" Lynn asked with a slight frown. "These are big plans all of a sudden. All planned in ten minutes…"
	"Well, Orlando," he answered slowly. "We could be huge, mom."
	"Honey, you're just getting settled back into having a fairly normal schedule…" she started. "Don't you enjoy being able to play basketball when you want and have home cooked meals at the same time every night? You need something stable like that. At least for a little while."
	"No, I don't."
	"You do, honey. You just don't realize it. I know you've had a hard time adjusting back, Justin, but it'll just take a little more time… You were very lucky with the Club, and it did a lot for you, but now that it's over you need to—" 
	"Mom. I can't just ignore it. How did it do a lot for me if I can't take it any further? Chris really wants this and he's serious and so am I."
	"You will go further, Justin. After just a little break."
	"No. Mama, you don't get it."
	Lynn looked into her son's big eyes. Even with just minute details, she knew how important this was, especially if it was a true lead with connections. That would be wonderful, and a dream come true. The Club had been the best experience of Justin's life, and she knew it. She didn't regret the long hours or financial sacrifices or moves. As stressful as it had been for both of them, the hard work paid off. He was talented, and she would do anything to encourage it. 
	But the emotional aspect of it on a child, especially when the show couldn't continue, was another thing to consider. When things didn't work out, it was dramatic… Justin was persistent and driven. But he was still young. And disappointment was traumatic. 
	"You're fourteen, Justin," his mom persisted. "Don't you just want to settle for a little while?"
	"JC's gonna do it."
	"Well, if JC's parents are okay with that, then good for JC. I can't commit to that this second."
	"JC's parents let him do what he knows he can do," Justin returned, a little bitterly. "JC's able to work on his career and record and—"
	"JC's older than you, Justin."
	"Not much…" Justin sulked.
	"Justin, honey…  I have no doubt that you could help make this group and have it really become really huge, but I'm not sure that's what you need right now. The chances of this taking off…" She stiffened her voice slightly. She was excited for her son, seeing him so enthusiastic about something again. It made her anxious to find out more information, but she felt a deep hesitation in her gut as well. Big risk, big payoff, right? But there was also just that risk… 
	"I wanted you to be open-minded…" Justin complained. "You're not. I thought you were better than just an average mom who immediately says no."
	"Justin, please don't give me that." She frowned. "I've brought you to hundreds of auditions, and I've allowed you more freedom than most kids your age. You have a lot of trophies and medals and videos and memories thanks to that. But now it's time to have my son at home for at least a little while so he can have a partially normal childhood, and I can enjoy having a son."
	Justin crossed his arms across his chest. Fuck normal childhoods. He wasn't normal. "Aren't you at least going to think about it?"
	"Of course, honey. Of course I'll think about it," Lynn answered with a sigh, studying Justin's expression. "You should call your father, too. See what he has to say about it."
	"He'll say yes. Of course he'll say yes," Justin replied.
***********
	JC played with a song in his head, listening to the piano's notes critically. While he sang along, low and more thoughtful than conscientious, Justin's conversation lingered in his mind. He sang the verse and tried to think about it with harmony. With a group. On stage in front an audience. A big audience. Of thousands. With Justin taking one verse and him taking the other… 
	Justin had made it sound like it was really possible. Sometimes at Justin's age, anything you were eager about seemed possible. Promises seemed like they were set in stone. Especially Justin, who at a young age had already mastered the art of getting what he wanted. Justin made things possible.
	Maybe it really was. Maybe it was worth a shot. Because Justin was right that making up new demos would always be there for him. And if Chris was already looking into things, then it didn't leave him too much time to play around with the pros and cons. What was the harm in going back to Orlando? He'd find someone else if JC said no, and what if that group took off? JC would be so angry at the lost opportunity. 
	What could he lose? Money on the plane ticket, hotels… Dignity? Pride. Self respect as a musician. Hope. 
	He'd already lost so much hope.
	It meant so much to Justin. 
	He immediately tried to come up with pros. 
	This was a one time chance like anything else. Why pass it up? 
	He'd regret it if he didn't go for it. He knew that. He always toyed with 'what if' in his head. He was willing to take the risk. He'd been shut down before, why not once more?
	This could really be it.
	He called Justin back a little while later. He immediately fell victim to Justin's whines about having the 'least cool mother in the universe'. JC smirked because Justin's mom put up with more than most women he knew. And Justin knew it, too.
	After all the time JC had spent convincing himself to potentially go along with the plan, he felt a little disappointed when Justin made it sound like Lynn was against the idea. "She said no?" 
	"Are you coming over? Please?" 
	"Did she tell you no?" 
	"Not completely." Justin sighed. 
	"Justin."
	"She's thinking about it. JC, are you coming?"
	He sighed. 
	"Please," Justin begged. "I want to see you… I'm going insane, JC…" 
	JC sighed again. The art of Justin. "Okay. Yeah. I will." 
	"JC, you're the best! So you think it's a good idea? Don't you think it's a real big opportunity? I think this is it, it's going to be bigger than Disney, and we're going to be the most amazing—"
	"Justin."
	Justin paused. "What?"
	"I figure we'll see when we get there, huh?" JC replied. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves."
	"I'm just excited."
	"No kidding."
	"But you're coming. That's all that matters. I can't wait to see you."
	"Yeah, I figure I'm into spontaneity. Orlando's closer than LA anyway. Who knows? Something has to come of it. Maybe we'll at least make some contacts."
	"Exactly, JC."
	"Exactly…" JC murmured.
	"When are you coming?"
	"I don't know. I can leave in the morning, and—"
	"Come today. It's not a far drive, and—"
	"Justin…" JC objected. 
	"You could be here in no time. It's still early in the day."
	JC sighed. "I'll think about it." 
**********
	Dinner time was always a good chance for confrontation. 
	"I'm flying with JC to Orlando," Justin announced just before he took a huge bite of his cheeseburger. He chewed quickly and swallowed, waiting for a reaction. 
	Justin's mom took a sip of milk slowly, a frown on her face. She glanced across the dinner table at JC, who had arrived late that afternoon at their house with a grin on his face to Justin's delight. At the moment, JC gave no sign of wanting to be a part of the conversation, and Lynn looked back at her son.
	"Justin, we haven't fully discussed this yet, honey. And I have a lot of work to do coming up, you know that."
	"Notice I said, I'm flying. Not can I fly. Or we." Justin's voice was laced with insolence.
	"Justin," JC objected. "Come on, man."
	Lynn cleared her throat, unaffected. "I already told you, Justin. I'll think about it. Don't make me repeat myself."	
	"You can come when you get the chance," Justin answered, blasé about that particular fact. He didn't need his mom there, if that was the detail she was worried about. He doubted the other guys would have their moms there. "JC and I have to go soon though."
	"I can just come when I get the chance?" she echoed. 
	"Yeah." 
	"Justin, how is that supposed to make me feel?"
	Justin rolled his eyes toward JC. "Jayce, tell her… Come on, tell her how great it's going to be."
	JC, who only had just recently convinced himself of the possible greatness with such a trip, gave Justin a pathetic look before turning to the agitated woman. He wanted to trounce Justin himself for his approach to the argument; he could imagine how his mother felt. But Justin was stubborn and not letting up.
	JC started slowly, almost kicking himself for agreeing with Justin while he was being so belligerent.  "Lynn, he'll be fine if that's what you're worried about. I have to admit, I'm convinced that this is worth a shot. I don't think I could forgive myself if it took off, and I said no. I mean, it is your decision, but there's really no harm. It's an opportunity. He'll be out of trouble. He'll have me."	
	"He can't get into any more trouble there than he already does here," she answered sarcastically, shaking her head. "That's not what I'm worried about…"
	JC sent Justin a quizzical look, but Justin just rolled his eyes and started again to persist, "Mama, come on. JC's going to be with me. It'll be like the Club days again. Isn't that exciting?" 
	"JC, you don't think that's bad for him?" Lynn questioned. "All this already?"
	"Does JC look like my father, mom?" Justin interrupted. "Quit asking him like he is."
	"Justin," Lynn scolded. "You better watch your tone with me, young man. You can't expect me to make this decision like it's nothing." 
	Justin shut his mouth and pushed at his food sulkily.
	"It is a huge opportunity," JC repeated. He fidgeted with his utensils. "It's been over a year since we got off the show."
	"He's fourteen. Isn't that a bit young? Justin, you don't need to delve back into things so quickly. You just got over everything ending, and you think you want to jump into another emotional rollercoaster?" 
	"It's not quickly," Justin objected. He took another bite out of his burger. 
	"It is. I feel like we've barely been back in Tennessee. Barely been a family."
	Justin shrugged. "Well, Dad said yes. Dad said I could do whatever I wanted."
	"It's not your father's responsibility anyway." Lynn set her jaw.
	"Then why'd you tell me to call him and ask him?" Justin was incredulous.
	"Justin, I just have to think about it…" She sighed. "And you haven't even given me twenty-hours."
	"Fine, take your twenty-four hours." The whole thing made him mad. Justin was on the last bite of his burger and when he finished it a second later, he pushed his chair back from the table and grabbed his plate and glass irritably. JC and his mom were silent as he left the table. After putting both things in the sink, letting things clatter loudly, he disappeared.
	Lynn looked rueful. She glanced at the uncomfortable JC, who sat quietly as usual, and slowly spoke. "What do you honestly think, JC? I do trust your opinion. You know him even better than I do now."
	"Well… I think… You've got to at least let him try it…" JC said. "You know? We can always come back if things don't seem good. I don't think I'll do it if he doesn't anyway. And he won't do it without me."
	She nodded. "I knew since the day the show stopped that there would be something else that he would have to do afterwards… I always knew that. I wanted it for him too. I want him to be happy. It just seems a bit soon. And a bit risky. I guess I'm more hesitant letting him go alone at first… Because I really can't get off the time now to leave so soon, you know? And—"
	"Lynn, I promise you. He'll be fine."
	"He's young."
	JC nodded. "I know. But really, he's one of the most mature kids his age I know."
	She raised his eyebrow. "Did you just see the same boy stalk out of here? Or did I imagine that?" 
	JC smirked, shrugging. "Still."
	She nodded. There was a long pause between them and JC studied her patiently. After another moment she replied, "I'm going to regret this, I'm sure, but I guess… You can tell him I said yes."
	JC grinned. He excused himself from the table and left to find Justin in front of the TV down the hall, angrily flipping through channels with the remote control. When he reached him, JC slapped him across the back of the head, slightly hard, and sat down beside him. "You're a dick."
	Justin winced and gave him a glance. "What?"
	"What?" JC echoed. "You don't think that's how you get what you want, do you? Give your mother a break, Justin. You threw so much at her."
	"But I need to know soon. I want this, JC. And she can't just take forever to think about it."
	"I think we both know that you want it, Justin. It's a little more than obvious. If you had any other parents you'd get your ass beat so much more, do you know that?" JC shook his head. "My parents would kill me if I acted like you. Just give her a break and let her think."
	"I am letting her think…"
	"You are, sure… You know, sometimes she's gotta stop being your friend and actually be your mother." 
	Justin shrugged, continuing to flip through channels. He didn't care. He was irritated. He had goals and other people were standing in his way. He couldn’t think of anything more frustrating than that. 
	JC nudged him. "Is this the grief you give everyone while I'm gone?"
	"No."
	"No? Are you sure?"
	"This is just really important," Justin said quietly. "Extremely important. I don't want to just sit here. I can't. Why does there have to be a certain amount of time or quota that passes before I'm allowed to keep going? When something ends you have to find something else. School is always around but opportunities aren't."
	"Man, like I said, not all promises work out, so Lynn's just being the level-headed one, and you have to respect that. You know, I didn't agree with this right away either."
	"Yeah, but you were easier to convince."
	"Well, I'm not your mother."
	"Thank God."
	"It's a big deal, for all of us…" JC said slowly. "It might all just crash and burn."
	"I know," Justin admitted. 
	A moment of silence passed between them and Justin stopped flipping channels as he found MTV. JC took that moment to give up the information he'd been holding back. 
	"She said yes by the way."
	Justin sat up and turned sharply to look at him. "What?"
	"You heard me, dumbass." JC laughed. "Now go make your amends with your saint of a mother."
	Justin grinned. "She really said yes?"
	"Yes, Justin." 
	Justin jumped to his feet and ran down the hall. "Mom!" 
*******
	This would probably be one of the most memorable flights of their lives. It was the flight that marked the beginning of something new. Something that had the possibility of exploding into greatness. 
	Justin hadn't slept all night. And in effect, neither had JC, who had shared his room and was subjected to Justin talking all night about the kind of stuff they would do. While tiring, it was expected and it was fun. It got him more excited too, and a little less anxious. Even if Justin was being naïve, it was refreshing, and JC welcomed it again.
	"I'm window," Justin told JC as they walked into the plane past the flight attendants welcoming them and the other passengers. He walked in front of JC, but then looked back at him for confirmation. "Okay, JC?"
	"Yeah, I don't care," JC replied, patting Justin's backpack. There was no use arguing, and he really didn't care anyway. He dutifully took the aisle as they reached their seats and let Justin clamber into his spot by the window. 
	Justin pressed his nose against the window, staring out at the blue sky and the action of the people on the runway. His breath fogged up the glass. "Good bye, Tennessee…" he said. "Good riddance." 
	Watching him for a moment as he peered out the window eagerly, JC put his hand on his friend's back. "Justin…" he started. "Look, let's just prepare ourselves. Don't get too excited."
	"Why not?"
	"You know why." 
	"Not really. I think you oughtta be more optimistic." Justin wiped off the window and leaned back into his seat. JC's arm slipped to curve around his shoulders, and Justin almost wanted to push him off. His mother had given him enough of a 'reality check' that morning. He didn't need JC to do it too.
	"I just mean… That no matter what happens, we're going to make something of this trip."
	"We're going to be famous." Justin nodded, a smile on his face. "Famous, famous, famous."
	"And your mom," JC continued, ignoring Justin's excitement. "Call her when we land. She told me to remind you. Like ten times. Did you see how nervous she is about all of this? She wants to come too. But not all people can drop their crap to do it."
	Justin rolled his eyes. Of course he had noticed how nervous his mother was. That was why he was glad she was letting him go by himself. He felt more independent just being with JC. 
	His mother's good bye hug had lasted for an eternity, and he still wasn't sure he had all the lipstick off his cheek from her kisses. He really hoped he did, or that would be embarrassing. And knowing JC, he wouldn't tell him either. "It's not a big deal… I have you. I'm not alone. She needs to chill out." He rubbed at his cheek to be sure. 
	"See, but you can't tell her that." JC laughed. It was funny at the same time, because JC knew if more than a couple days passed, Justin was going to miss his mother as much as she missed him. No matter how much he wouldn't let on at first, he would eventually be miserable and homesick. "You can't tell any mother that."
	"Your mom is so much more easygoing," Justin sighed. "Your mom let you live in LA. And she's letting you stay in Nashville. She even—""
	"I'm not fourteen," JC answered softly. "There's a difference. And trust me, LA was no picnic." 
	"I'm not a baby," Justin objected. He narrowed his eyes. "I hate my age. It's just a number, you know."
	"I'm just calling it as it is," JC answered, moving his arm to tug at Justin's curls, realizing how much he'd missed his friend and his enthusiasm. Justin continued to frown and JC sighed, rubbing his hand over Justin's head comfortingly and wondering if they could ever reach what they had on the show again. When that felt like the world. He wanted something new to feel like it was his world... 
	"You know," he continued, "I really hope something comes of this. Since we have such high expectations now. Chris has made this sound like a dream opportunity, so I just hope…" He trailed off.  
	"Me too…" Justin reached forward and started to look through the few magazines in the pocket of the seat in front of him. He pulled out the emergency manual and looked at it skeptically for a moment. "Do you have gum?"
	"No, sorry.  Did you tell Chris our flight time?" JC asked. "He's picking us up?"
	Justin nodded as he briefly studied the diagram on how to put on an oxygen mask. He liked seeing how funny the people looked in the drawings. After a moment he folded the manual up and stuffed it back into the pocket. "Yeah, he'll be there to pick us up."
	"Okay." 
	"And I'll call Mom as soon as I get there." 
	JC smirked and folded his arms across his chest. "You're learning." 
*********
	JC found himself in a trance for most of the flight. He tried to imagine that this was an international flight, and that in seven hours or so they'd be in Europe, somewhere cool, performing to millions of fans. Performing songs that he'd written, that everyone understood, and loved, and felt. He started to think about if it did work out, the changes he'd have to make, and how exciting it would be.
	Don’t get ahead of yourself, Chasez…
	"JC?"
	JC sighed. The voice of reality.
	He turned his head to look at Justin, who was slouched low in his seat with the back reclined, seatbelt fastened loosely. He looked sleepy.
	"Go back to sleep," JC told him. 
	"I was just thinking about what you said… And what if this doesn't work?" Justin asked softly. "What if we get there, and Chris is like, nevermind?"
	"That's not going to happen."
	"What if tomorrow this Lou guy says nevermind?"
	JC looked at him, leaning his head against the seat. "Oh, Justy. Only one of us needs to be rational. You can go on being excited." 
	"Well, you keep saying, don't get your hopes up. And I do have my hopes up, and really high. But what if you're right, or my mom's right, and it's just a lie, or a con? And we're going to pour all this money and energy into something, something we can't afford at all, and we'll then just be totally fucked."
	JC rolled his eyes. "You're way too dramatic."
	"But it's true. Isn't that what you're scared of too?"
	"Yeah, I'll admit it… But sometimes you have to swallow the risk or nothing will happen at all. Why sit by? You convinced me and your mom, why are you—"
	"I just don't want to hear 'I told you so'."
	"From who?"
	"I don't know," Justin muttered. "You. Or mom. Or anyone."
	"You're not going to hear it from us." JC rolled his eyes. "Get real." 
	"I'm just saying."
	"It's my job to worry." JC began to wish he hadn't worried out loud. As much as it was easy to roll his eyes at Justin's naïve excitement and high hopes, it had been nicer than watching Justin grow prematurely disappointed. "You have nothing to worry about."
	"I see it in your eyes though. That's why you're not getting as excited as I am. Because you know better. It wouldn't be the first time I'm being stupid."
	"Justin," JC objected. He glanced down the aisle and saw the stewardesses just a few seats away with the beverage and snack cart. "Look, almost free drink time. I hope we get something to eat too. Even pretzels."
	"Fine, I won't talk about it." Justin sighed. "Go ahead and change the subject."
	"J…" JC turned back to him. "I want you to talk about it. But let's not go to extremes here. This is a huge opportunity, and I agree with you on that. I'm just nervous. I didn't mean to be pessimistic. I guess I just mean let's not get too excited or too nervous."
	"I am nervous though," Justin mumbled. 
	"Don’t be. Just go back to sleep and—"
	"I can't sleep."
	JC smirked. "Well, get your drink and talk to me then. But we're not talking about anything but success."
	"Okay." Justin smiled a little.
*******
	"Chris!"
	JC didn't even have to blink, never mind begin to wonder where Chris would be waiting. Justin spotted him immediately. They had just gotten their bags when Justin left JC's side, dropping his backpack and abandoning his suitcase, running to meet the man. JC just stood there for a moment, confused. He pulled Justin's bag closer to him. 
	He walked towards the two at a more reserved pace, smiling when he reached them and feeling a little bit anxious. Here was the beginning. He watched Justin greet Chris, a elfish looking man.
	"You definitely grew," Chris was saying. "I knew one day you'd make me feel short. It was only a matter of time. Everyone does."
	"JC, this is Chris." Justin tugged at JC's sleeve excitedly. "Chris, JC."
	"Hey," JC answered. "Nice to meet you."
	"I remember you," Chris replied with a genial smile as they shook hands. "Nice to actually meet you too. I'm sure we'll talk more later. I'm so glad that you two came down. I really want to get everything rolling, and like I told Justin, it's hard to find talent and commitment…" 
	Justin felt so happy. Chris was the same good-natured guy with the kind smile and playful demeanor that he remembered. The only change was he now had slightly longer hair. Not much had changed and Justin just knew that with him and JC, things could happen. This could go somewhere. His excitement started to return.
	"Oh, sorry. Thanks," Justin said to JC as he took his bag back from him. 
	"Where's your mom?" Chris asked as they started walking. "Thought she'd be here."
	"Can't come yet," Justin answered. "She'll be here at some point but work can't let her off yet. Short notice and all."
	"Does that mean we can have some fun tonight?" Chris smirked. 
	Justin nodded enthusiastically. "Unless JC's a prude. Sometimes he takes my mother's instructions a little too literally, right, JC?" 
	Chris laughed loudly, looking at JC in amusement. "Oh?"
	"Of course, make me the bad guy…" JC answered.
	"Oh, you know what I mean," Justin replied, giving JC a pacifying look. Lynn had basically made JC promise on all things holy that he would watch Justin like a hawk and keep him away from anything that she would disapprove of. Lucky for Justin, Lynn was a pretty liberal mom, but she by no means wanted her fourteen year old out partying all night. 
	"You're safe." JC rolled his eyes. 
	"Well we can go some place innocent. I know of a cool place," Chris continued. "And it won't corrupt Justin."
	"Thanks for the consideration," Justin replied sarcastically.  
	"You've probably been there already. Anyway, so we can have some fun and I'll explain what I know so far and what we need to do."
******
	Justin and JC were going to stay at Chris's for now, so they headed there from the airport. Justin looked out the window, excited to be back in Orlando. There wasn't much to see around the airport, but it was Orlando, and he was back. From the driver's seat, Chris turned down the radio and let them know what he had so far.
	"So. The man's name is Pearlman. I called him again, and he seems like an okay guy. He has a lot of contacts, and he's definitely worth a shot. His says that he's interested in helping a new group start. My friend Howie's already been working with him with his own group since a couple of years ago and he mentioned it to me too. They've been doing a lot since they signed up. I told Lou I was working on it, and I mentioned I had you two as maybes. I have another friend who I was planning with too that you'll have to meet, maybe tonight." 
	"Does he have the record company?" Justin asked from the passenger seat. "How do we get a record company?"
	Chris shook his head, keeping his eyes on the road as he drove. "No. He'd be more of a business manager. That's the first step. God. There's a hell of a lot of traffic today."
	"Manager? When do we make the music then?"
	"Justin, we've gotta have the group first," JC answered from the backseat, looking at the window appreciatively at sights he hadn't seen for a while. Palm trees. "Chris isn't the one with logistics, that would be Lou."
	"I've been thinking about it a long time," Chris continued. "I figure there's only so long that I can do my gig at Universal without killing myself, and nothing's going to happen unless I make some sparks, so I'm gonna try. I think this means a lot to all of us." 
	"Really though… What's the timeline like? When do you think we get to record?" Justin persisted. "I wanna see a real studio."
	"Well, you have to see my crummy place first, so just chill," Chris laughed. 
	"I am. I just want to know how long it's going to take."
	Chris gave him a look. "Well, Mr. Instant Gratification, it'll depend how hard we work, huh?" 
	"He's wired," JC explained. He leaned forward to poke Justin in the back of the head. "He hasn't slept for over a day."
	"And he won't tonight either," Chris answered. "Because we're going out. Time to reintroduce you to Orlando."
******
	Chris knew what happened at the club at Pleasure Island that night was a miracle. He knew it meant something, and he wasn't going to mess with fate. He'd merely intended to show JC and Justin a good time on their first night back in town and distract them all from their nervous anticipation until he could get them all more information. 
	But on top of that they completed the next step in their process. Of the several clubs at Downtown Disney, to choose this one...
	"Joe!" he exclaimed as he saw the man. They'd only arrived about fifteen minutes ago, but he had already lost sight of Justin and JC. He looked around for them briefly, anxious to introduce them. He assumed they were together; he already sensed that the two were close. They each hadn't left the other's side yet. 
	"Shit," Chris muttered as he looked at the crowds. Where did they go?
	"Hey, Chris, what's up?" Joey answered, parting from a girl he'd been talking to and walking over with a smile. Joey was a lanky, smiling Italian, and Chris knew he'd fit right into their group. He looked at his shaggy hair and noticed a ring in his eyebrow. 
	Joey shook Chris's hand casually and patted him on the arm. "Who you here with?"
	"Joey, I'm so glad I ran into you," Chris answered. "I've got some huge news, and I've been meaning to call."
	"Yeah? What's up? Good news, I hope."
	"Great news. You know that idea I had a few months ago, just messing around, about starting a group? And how I was telling you about Pearlman?"
	Joey nodded. "Yeah?"
	Chris briefly explained Pearlman's recent initiative and his own enlistment. "I've got two guys with me, and you were the next person I was going to call, man… What are the chances of just running into you now?"
	Joey rolled his eyes. "Yeah, well this place isn't too big."
	"But it means something, Joe. And I know you're interested. I've been dying to call you. You're still interested, right? Shit, man, I know you want to get out of Universal just as much as I do."
	"Of course I'd be interested." Joey smiled. "You're really serious about this, huh? So are the two of them here?"
	"Yeah. They just got out of my sight, but let me try to find them so I can introduce you, alright?"
	"I'll be around here. I'm just going to get another drink, alright?"
	Chris nodded and left to scan his eyes over the crowd. It didn't take long for him to find JC and Justin again, and they were together like he'd predicted. As soon as he was at their side again, he told them he had a friend he wanted them to meet. He explained that he was a great singer and could fit as a tenor or baritone.
	"This is the exact person I was going to have you guys meet," Chris persisted. "I just ran into him." 
	When he led them to Joey at the bar, he wasn't even able to open his mouth before JC exclaimed first, "Joey!"
	Joey turned and a grin lit up on his face. "JC? God, man, how are you doing? It's been forever!"
	Chris and Justin exchanged a confused look, Chris asking in surprise, "You guys know him already?" He was amazed at his recent luck. This all had to mean something. He felt more and more confident about his plan. Things like this never happened. Not to him, at least.
	Justin frowned a little, watching JC embrace the man. "I don't think I know him. I guess he does."  
	"Wow, it's been a really long time," JC persisted to Joey with a wide smile. "How have you been? It's a small world, huh?"
	"So I guess I can skip the awkward introductions, huh?" Chris smiled, immensely amused by the luck. "You two know each other already?"
	"Yeah." Joey nodded. "When I first moved here and started school, I did theatre and a lot of kids I knew were involved with MMC or similar… You know the kids at Dr. Phillips... I met him through Jennifer.  Remember, man? McGill?" He grinned. "Of course you do. So wow, JC's one of the guys you wanted me to meet, Chris? That's amazing. I can't believe that."
	"And this is Justin," JC started, pulling Justin over by the arm. Justin had been staring off at some people dancing. "J, I know I've told you about Joey. You might have met him."
	"Maybe, I'm not sure," Justin answered. 
	"What's up, man?" Joey answered, smiling at him. "Yeah, I think I've met you before. I remember. It was really brief. But nice to meet you again."
	"You too." Justin rubbed at his curly hair. "You a baritone?"
	"Yeah, and I work at Universal too," Joey explained. "Chris and I know each other from there." He shook his head in disbelief. "JC Chasez… God, I still can't believe it!"
	Chris grinned. He couldn't wait to hear the four of them together. He couldn't imagine another three that he would want with him. And best of all, they all seemed interested in taking this chance with him. He knew their voices individually, and just from that he knew the blend could be amazing. 
	Lou would not be disappointed.
******
	They all went back to Chris's that night, Joey included. They still stayed out for a while to unwind, but found themselves more excited to catch up with each other than the Orlando nightlife, so they headed back before it got too late. Joey and JC tried to share stories with each other and reminisce, trying to make up for lost time, as did Chris and Justin. 
	"I can't believe I know you, and you know him, and he knows Joey, and so do I," Chris said to Justin with a laugh as they walked into the apartment. Joey and JC came in laughing behind them. As confusing as his statement sounded, it made absolute sense, and it was perfect.
	"That is kinda funny," Justin admitted with a slight yawn. He felt overwhelmed. In a good way, of course, but his early excitement and the long day of airports and introductions were draining on the fourteen year old. 
	"It's perfect," Chris persisted.
	"Perfect?"
	"Can you think of a better group? Even just the history we have. Hey, we should sing something," Chris continued, flipping on a couple lights as he continued towards the kitchen. "Huh? Whattaya think?"
	"Tonight?" Joey asked. "It's like one o'clock in the morning, man!"
	"So?" Chris replied. "C'mon." 
	"So it's not like we'll sound great."
	"So we'll know the worst it could be," Chris laughed.
	Joey rolled his eyes. He gave JC a look like he thought Chris was absolutely crazy. But JC just shrugged and glanced around at the three of them.
	"Why not? What'll we sing?" JC replied. 
	After a few minutes of tossing around titles, they finally settled on a Boys II Men song that they all knew. They messed around with getting a four part harmony straight for a couple more minutes and then decided to give it a go.
	They only sang about one verse until Chris messed up a couple words and started laughing. "Sorry. I can never get those lyrics straight…"
	"That was pretty good," Joey said with a smile. "Not as bad as I thought it would be anyway. You guys sound good."
	"We sound good," Chris corrected. "Together."
	"Considering it is one AM," JC persisted, "wasn't as bad as I thought either."
	"True," Chris said with a smile. "Very true."
	Justin nodded. "I like that, but… But we kind of need a lower part, don't we? Joey did it kinda, but…" He looked at Joey and shrugged. "Sorry, I'm too tired to explain. I'm not saying you didn't do it right. It's just missing something else."
	"No, you're right. I'm not a bass, I know," Joey answered with a shrug. "We'll figure something out. Maybe we need another guy to round us off."
	"There was another guy from Universal I was thinking of calling," Chris started. "I know that he's been looking for another kind of break too. I don't know what he'd think about this kind of thing, but it's worth a shot. His name's Jason… You know him, Joe? Friend's with Nathan?"
	Joey frowned and seemed to consider it. "Jason…. I might. If I'm thinking of the same guy..."
	"He's a bass and all…" Chris persisted. "Decent bass. We don't need to worry about it now."
	"I can't believe we have four," JC said. "I mean, bass or no bass, we have four people that can sing."
	Chris nodded. "I'm actually getting my dream group. Who ever thought my dreams would amount for something?"
	"Only so long you can sing in a theme park, I guess," Joey answered sarcastically. "Something had to give."
	"So true." Chris rolled his eyes. 
	"When do you think we'd all get to meet this Lou character?" JC asked. "So far it all sounds too good, you know? I'm anxious to actually meet him."
	"We'll talk about that tomorrow too," Chris promised. "I think it's getting late."
	"Alright," JC agreed as he then looked at the youngest in the room. "Justin." The kid was leaning his weight against the kitchen counter, looking like he was about to slide down to the floor to sleep.
	Justin straightened at the sound of his name, resting his elbows back on the counter and yawning widely. "Yeah."
	JC smirked. "You tired? What happened to pulling two all-nighters in a row, huh?" 
	Justin scowled. "Yeah… Not doing it."
	"Okay, well, I'm exhausted too," Chris said. "Let's see… I have a pull-out couch and I also have a blow-up mattress somewhere in the closet," Chris started. "And I get my own bed, sorry, guys." 
	"Somewhere in the closet? With a hundred other pieces of shit?" Joey objected. "Man, I've seen your closet. It's a disaster."
	"Well, it's in there somewhere."
	"Want me to look?"
	"Go for it. Let me go get some blankets for you guys too."
	Joey and Chris left, leaving JC and Justin alone in the kitchen. Justin looked at JC sleepily, frowning at his friend's smile. He was too tired to try to analyze JC at this time of night. "What are you smiling at, JC?" 
	"I'm just getting a better feeling about all this," JC answered truthfully. "Like it's really going to work out. It might be because I'm about to pass out from being so tired, but it's starting to feel good."
	"Really?" JC being optimistic was really good to hear.
	"Yeah. I mean, you know I was skeptical when you told me, because the chances of things seemed kind of slim. Mostly because things aren't that easy… They're always too good to be true, and it seemed like empty promises. But having Joey as the fourth? Never expected that in a million years. Kid, that's fate."
	"Mm-hm." Justin nodded. He couldn't disagree. Meeting someone JC knew from before was really unlikely and had to mean something. "Yeah, that was random."
	"So it just feels good," JC continued. "I'm glad you convinced me, because it really feels like it’s the right people getting involved. It's all ending up like fate. I mean, you didn't have to call me, and he didn't have to—"
	"Wait, who else would I call?" Justin answered with a frown. 
	JC smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "Thanks, J."
	"We always said we'd do it together."
	JC nodded. It was true. But sometimes it was hard to keep those kinds of promises you made as a kid when the goal was so difficult. If it actually came true, it would be amazing, but it was so hard to know. He knew a lot of the early stages of his friendship with Justin from the MMC were Justin's desire to hang out with the older crowd and then simply latching onto him. He never could have predicted the extent of their bond.
	"Anyway," JC continued. "Wanna see if they need any help?" 
	"Yeah, I guess."
 	Inside, Joey had managed to find the blow-up mattress and was relieved to see it would self-inflate. He didn't think anyone would be in the mood to blow it up with their own lung power. He plugged it in and squinted to read the instructions on the side of the pump. It looked easy enough.
	Chris was pulling out the couch when Justin and JC came in. He hadn't pulled it out in a while and frowned at the wimpy looking mattress. It didn't look very comfortable, but at least it was something. Better than the floor. He shrugged and tossed several blankets and comforters down on it. Beggars can't be choosers.
	"I don't know what you need," he said. "It's not that cold. If you need anything else, just help yourself I guess. Make yourself at home." He looked up and saw Joey trying to inflate the mattress "Joey, are you taking that thing?" 
	"Yeah, that's fine. I'll figure it out. Unless I can cuddle up with you." Joey gave him a sarcastic look.
	"Yeah, in your dreams," Chris retorted. "JC, you both okay on this?" He indicated the couch. "It's a big couch. Justin, alright?"
	"Yeah, it's cool." JC nodded. "I've slept in worse."
	Chris sighed. "Good, then I'm going to get to bed, alright? I'm dead."
	They all said good night and Chris disappeared, leaving for his own room. 
	"This thing is pretty cool." Joey watched the mattress inflate with the humming motoro, a little awe in his eyes. "Very handy. Let's just hope I don't pop the damn thing. Knowing me as soon as I sit on it the thing will just explode…"
	"You want a few blankets?" JC offered, moving over to grab a couple. "Chris gave a lot." He dropped them over by Joey.
	"Thanks."
	Justin sat down on the pull-out and frowned at the squeak. He could feel the springs and shifted uncomfortably. As tired as he was, he could tell he wouldn't fall asleep right away on this thing… He looked at the bedding suspiciously. 
	"Hey. I want a pillow," he said, realizing the missing necessity. He pulled off his sneakers tiredly and began to really regret the lack of sleep from last night. He wondered if they had to get up for anything in the morning. He hoped not.
	After a moment, still no one had answered his pillow request. "JC..." he persisted.
	"What?" JC turned to look at him. He'd just pulled off the sweatshirt he'd had on, revealing a simple red t-shirt.
	"I need a pillow."
	"You want one. You don’t need one," JC clarified, having no idea if Chris even had extra pillows, and especially having no desire to go ask him up to find out. Justin had reclined backwards to lay flat on the bed, closing his eyes, and JC frowned at him. "First off, you gonna sleep in your clothes or what, Justin? Wake up for five seconds to change. Second, no way in hell you're sleeping across the whole bed like that."
	Justin opened his eyes and gave his friend a critical look. He mimicked his tone. "First off, I do need a pillow…" Justin muttered as he pushed himself up off the bed. He walked over and found his bag, bending down to dig out a t-shirt and his toothbrush. 
	"I have to go to work in the morning," Joey said as he made his fully inflated bed, comparing JC and Justin to an old married couple in his head and refraining from saying the comments that played in his head aloud. "So if you guys wanna come over to the park or whatever… Chris's got off so he'll get you in free."
	"Cool," Justin began. "We could do that. Where's the bathroom?"
	"Behind you, go to the left," Joey answered. 
	JC took off his own sneakers and yawned quietly, watching Justin leave the room. "We sounded good, Joe," he said slowly. "A little rough, but good, huh?"
	"Yeah," Joey answered, sitting down on the air mattress and pulling off his own sneakers. "Rough at this time of night is no surprise… So you never really told me before what you've been up to, JC… But obviously still singing."
	"I've been messing around with some demos. Trying, you know? And checking up on Justin so he doesn’t go crazy at home. I was in LA a little bit, but… But things weren't great—they really didn't work out... I guess I was just kind of waiting for an open door. And here it is. Hopefully." He fixed the blankets on the bed a bit and then sat down on the edge. "I was a little skeptical… I'll admit."
	"Yeah," Joey agreed. "I still am. But I hope it all works out. I can see it, though. I really can. And maybe it's because I fucking hate my job and want out so bad, but I have nothing to lose and I want to do this. "
	"Me too."
	"Seriously, it'll so great to get out of Universal. No more ridiculous costumes, no hierarchy and politics." He paused. "Hopefully."
	Justin came back from the bathroom a minute later in a t-shirt and his boxers. He threw his jeans and shirt next to his bag on the floor against the wall, dropping his toothbrush on top. "Hopefully what?"
	"No more costumes," Joey answered. 
	Justin gave him a skeptical look. "Right… Costumes." He was clueless about what the two had been discussing.
	"We were talking about us as a group," JC explained with a laugh at Justin's confused expression. 
	"Yeah." Justin nodded, crouching down to zipper his bag. He wanted to talk about that too, but the time of night was becoming more evident to him and he just couldn't. He felt brain dead. He yawned as he stood up before walking over towards the couch to collapse again. The couch creaked under his weight. "I’m tired."
	"No kidding," JC smirked as he tossed his shoes off to the corner. They landed with a thud. He was about to get into the uncomfortable looking pull-out bed when suddenly he saw Justin sit up sharply with a startled look on his face.
	"What's the matter?" JC asked, giving him a concerned look. 
	"I just remembered something." Justin bit his lip.
	"What?"
	Justin took a deep breath. "You're going to kill me."
	JC rolled his eyes. "Not if the suspense kills me first."
	"It's not a big deal… but I never called my mom," Justin admitted. He felt slightly guilty and wondered if she was worried. He made a face. "I just remembered, JC. Well I kind of remembered when we landed at the airport… but then I told myself I'd remember later." He frowned. "But I didn't. I seriously just did."
	JC sighed. He could imagine Lynn at this moment, probably in bed, but likely after she'd fumed about not getting a call like promised. And she hadn't had a number to call herself, so she'd likely gone through the stages of annoyance, anger, worry, and then rage. "Well, Justin… You can't call her now."
	"No shit, JC." Justin paused. "It's the middle of the night."
	"Not like you'd want to anyway. She's probably not too happy."
	"Probably not."
	"Oh, to be fourteen again…" Joey laughed, amused at the discussion about a phone call and the worried look on Justin's face. He shook his head, trying to remember the last time he got in trouble for not calling his parents.
	Justin glared at him, but it was wasted because Joey was too busy fixing up his bed to even notice. JC caught the look and patted Justin on the back. 
	"Just go to bed. It's too late to worry about it."
	"Thanks, Dad," Justin muttered crankily, yanking the covers up over himself. He laid back and turned onto his side. He was slightly troubled about what his mom would say in the morning and tried to think of excuses. It was a long-distance call. He could certainly use that as an excuse. Delayed flight? That could work also. It's not like she'd be very angry by tomorrow, but she'd certainly be annoyed. She'd claim she'd been worried sick all night…
	"Night, guys," JC said. "I'll turn off the light in a minute."
	"Good night," Joey answered.
	JC left to change and brush his teeth briefly. He stared at himself in the mirror for a couple minutes after setting down his toothbrush on the sink, asking his reflection if he was crazy to be back in Orlando. He felt tiredness settle over him and realized it was better not to worry, just think of it as fate. He left the bathroom and made his way back to the couch, turning off the lights as he went and putting the room into darkness. 
	He made his way to the couch in the dark and carefully slid beneath the covers. Cold feet touched his leg as Justin shifted slightly closer to him without a word. JC let him and sighed, closing his eyes. He soon fell asleep, dreamt about screaming fans and concerts and seeing his name on CDs that came from his own studio. 
******
	Being off the next day like Joey said, Chris offered to take the guys over to the park so they could get some lunch and also see Joey's act if they wanted, the Beetlejuice Graveyard Review. It was a hot, sunny day, and despite the humidity, they were anxious to get outside after waking up late.
	However, Justin called his mother first.
	"This might take a while," JC warned Chris, who already had his car keys in hand. 
	The older man smirked and sat down across from JC at the kitchen table. He dropped his keys on the surface with a clink. "Really?"
	"Yeah, she's probably—" JC cut himself off as they heard an aggravated and loud 'but, Mom!' from the other room. He laughed. "She's probably not ecstatic."
	"A little overprotective?"
	JC shrugged. "A little. More over involved, I guess you could say." He paused. "Very involved." 
	"That's alright. I remember meeting her a few times. She seemed like a big kid herself sometimes."
	"Sometimes."
	"Better than not involved at all." 
	"Yeah, I guess how high strung they get is better than nothing at all, huh?"
	Chris smirked. "Sounds like you get caught in the middle, huh?"
	"A little bit. Don't get me wrong, Lynn is one of the most wonderful woman in the world. But sometimes there's a line to be drawn between best friend and mother. And she thinks she's both." He indicated inside. "Today mother. Yesterday best friend. A little confusing."
	"And Justin?"
	JC laughed. "Difficult."
	"He'll manage."
	"If this works out, he'll manage great. If it doesn't, something better turn up. I'm not sure how long he can wait for his fame and fortune. He's a little bit of the instant gratification type, if you didn't know that already."
	"Good, that's the type of drive we need," Chris answered. "You need that for fame and fortune."
	"Sometimes. Hey…. Speaking of fortune…" JC began. "Are you sure you don't mind Justin using your phone? Long distance." 
	"Yeah, I considered that," Chris admitted. "Assuming he doesn't take too long, no big deal. My plan's not that bad."
	"Okay, well, give him another couple of minutes. That's a good excuse to get him off the phone."
	Chris nodded. "Yeah, it's fine. I can afford it." He smirked. "Hopefully."
	Chris and JC chatted for a couple of minutes, then decided to eat on the way to the park so that they wouldn't have to pay the ridiculous prices within Universal to eat crap for lunch. Chris started describe Joey's show and when he would be on break to hang out a little. Then after a few minutes of such small talk, JC pushed his chair back.
	"Alright. Time to go." 
	Chris nodded. "Good luck." 
	JC walked into the other room, and Justin immediately looked up at him from his slouched out seat on the couch. He gave him a pathetic look.
	"We need to go, man," JC told him.
	Justin nodded at him. "Mom, I—" He shut his mouth and leaned his head back, making a whining noise. He listened for a minute and then said, "I know, Mom, but… No, we're going to Univers—What?" He shook his head and gave JC a look, holding up a finger to indicate one minute.
	"Justin, we're leaving," JC said, rolling his eyes. "Tell her you have to go. And it's Chris's phone bill."
	"This is a really expensive phone call, mom," Justin said abruptly. "I'm using Chris's phone and he— … Yes, mom." 
	He listened for another moment, then looked up at JC for support, but realized his friend had gone back to the kitchen. "Mamma, I can't do this now. They're leaving without me."
	"Justin, I just want to make sure you're okay," Lynn said. "I was worried when you didn't call. I know everything's really busy, but it's important you just let me know where you are. Especially when I don't have a way to contact you."
	"You know where I am. I'm in Orlando."
	"Justin. This was a big deal for me. You have to be on the same page."
	"Okay, okay. I'm sorry. For the twentieth time. I'll try to call but it is long distance. But I'll try."
	"I know, honey. Okay, have a good time with the boys. I'll talk to you soon. Tonight?"
	"Maybe. Bye, Mom. I love you."
	"I love you too, Justin."
	Justin hung up the phone with a sigh and pushed himself up to rejoin the guys in the kitchen. "Okay I'm done with my hundred dollar phone call."
	"Better not be a hundred dollars, boy," Chris replied in surprise, shaking his head. "If it is I'm selling your ass for the cash to afford it."
	"How was she?" JC asked. 
	"Fine, I guess," Justin answered. "A little annoyed I didn't call yesterday."
	"Good thing she can't shake you through the phone."
	Justin laughed. "Whatever. She's over it."
	"Let's go then!" Chris prodded.
*******
	Just a few minutes into the ride to Universal, Chris's stomach growled. "You guys hungry?" he asked. "We can get drive-thru or something on the way over…" He took one hand off the wheel to scratch his head and sighed. "McDonald's or something. Wendy's, BK, uh… Taco Bell."
	"McDonald's," Justin said. His mind was not on food so it was a random choice. The first one Chris said. He didn't care where they went. His mind lingered on his mother and when she would come to Orlando. He wondered if his stepfather had anything to do with it… Then he thought of the group. He wanted to think about the group, and he tried to focus the subject of conversation on their plans. 
	"So," he persisted, bouncing a little in his seat. "What's our group's name gonna be?" Justin asked. 
	"McDonald's okay with you, JC?" Chris asked.
	"Yep," JC agreed. "I'm pretty hungry, so I could eat anywhere."
	"Are you ignoring me?" Justin asked.
	"No," JC answered. "It's just something we obviously don't have an answer to." 
	"Well, Mom and Dad asked what we'd be called, and I had to tell them I didn't know," Justin continued. He was sitting in the backseat of the car and leaned forward, wishing he was in the front. He hated being the third in the car. He felt they were up there and he was back here and... that just wasn't right. Why hadn't he called shotgun? "But we've got to call ourselves something. Every band's got a name."
	"It's been one day, Justin," JC replied. "We're not a band yet." 
	"JC, why are you sitting in the front?"
	JC turned his head to give him a look. "What?" he laughed. 
	"After we get our bass we can start thinking of a name," Chris replied. "Right now we're… Chris's Group." He shrugged.
	"That's a stupid name." Justin's face scrunched up in a grimace. "Not even a good joke name." 
	"Then think up something better then, Brillo head," Chris replied. "If you're so smart."
	"Brillo?" Justin echoed incredulously. He ignored the remark. "Fine, I will," he answered confidently. "We need something cool." 
	Chris rolled his eyes. "And you're certainly the one to think of that."
	"You called me for a reason."
	"Yeah, it was to sing, not talk. So you can stop any time now," Chris retorted.
	JC grinned. "Chris, I like you already."
	"Hey," Justin complained. "Don't forget who called you, JC."
	"Joey would have called me otherwise," JC answered, not at all believing that but thinking it was enough to dig into Justin. And he was right. 
	"No, maybe not," Justin sulked, obviously bothered by the response. "He barely remembered you."
	"Bullshit… You know that's not true."
	"Whatever."
	A few minutes after the short-lived 'group name' conversation, the three made a brief stop at McDonald's and had their fill of soda, burgers, and fries, before making their way over to the park. Then focusing on more current group issues, Chris started to talk a little about Jason, their potential bass.
	"I think he's on today, I'm not sure. He's a bass, that's all I know. He's an okay guy, but we'll see. He's heard my talk about a band, and he said he used to be in one in high school and was interested, but we'll see." 
	"He's a good bass?" JC asked.
	"Yeah, he is pretty good. I've only heard him a couple times, but it was good. I'm not sure of his harmonizing, but it's something we could always work on."
	"How old is he?" Justin asked. He took a sip of the soda he'd carried from McDonald's, realizing the cup was starting to feel a bit soft. And the soda was a little watered down from melting ice. He drank it anyway.
	Chris shrugged. "I don't know… Eighteen, nineteen, maybe?"
	"Oh." Justin's voice had a tinge of disappointment.
	Chris frowned. "Why? What's it matter?"
	Justin shrugged and said nothing.
	JC glanced back at Justin and read his expression right away, suddenly understanding exactly what was beneath Justin's question. He smirked. "I know why it matters. He doesn't want to be the youngest in the group," he teased. "Right, baby?"
	Justin glared at him. "Shut up, JC!" He tried to look mad, since it was so not true. He didn't care. Age was just a number, dammit. He said that all the time. But it did bother him. A lot. He hated his age being called out and JC knew it. 
	He gave JC a look to tell him to stop, but for whatever reason that effort seemed to only make JC's smirk bigger.
	Justin huffed. "Seriously. It's not funny or true."
	"I don't think there's much you can do about it either way…" Chris replied. "We're not getting anyone younger than you, that's for sure."
	"I’m not that young."
	Chris shook his head. "Well, whatever. You're my cutoff." 
	"Age is just a number."
	"Some numbers are just higher than others," JC said quietly. 
	Justin reached forward and punched JC in the shoulder. 
	"As long as you can sing, we love you no matter how young you are," Chris began. He paused. "Your voice isn't going to change, is it? Shit, I never considered that…"
	JC and Chris began to crack up. 
	"Do you shave yet?" Chris asked after he stopped laughing. "Like, if we all as a band decide to have beards, could you?"
	"No one wants a bearded band," Justin told him.
	"That would be awesome. A great band name too," JC said. "The Bearded Band."
	Chris chuckled.
	Justin grunted, shaking his head. There was nothing he could say. He could only hope that they'd drop it, but he knew it would always creep back up, especially if he showed it bothered him. And it was impossible not to since he wore his feelings on his sleeve…
	He thought instead about how his mom was going to come down, she said maybe at the end of the week already, to be with him. The thought of that made him feel even more irritated. He'd probably be the only one with his mother there. At least Paul was going to stay in Tennessee. Not that he didn't love Paul, but the man had to work, and at least he wouldn't have two parental figures on his back.
	Chris glanced at the clock as they came within a few minutes of the park. "Joey might be on break for lunch now. Maybe we can track him down." 
******
	Before they could find Joey, they found Jason. Chris introduced them and brought up their plans. Jason seemed friendly enough in the beginning but then kind of scoffed at the idea of the group when Chris mentioned it. He looked them over with a glint of amusement in his eyes. He listened to their words and then simply asked,
	"You were really serious about that?"
	And Chris nodded. He wasn't sure what Jason was getting at. "Of course, asshole." His words sounded playful, but deep down he was kind of insulted.
	Jason smiled and nodded. "Sure, then. I'll try it out, I guess. What's in it for us?"
	Justin studied the guy skeptically. He looked okay but seemed really sarcastic, and Justin didn't like that. Chris was sarcastic too, but not like this guy. Justin could deal with Chris's tone because he knew him, and he didn't do it all the time. Not only that, but Chris wasn't sarcastic about things that mattered. This guy seemed critical of the whole idea yet was going to just do it anyway, and that made Justin nervous. Why would he do it if he wasn't completely serious about it?
	Didn't he know how it important this was?
	Justin opened his mouth to say something and then shut it. He felt timid about saying something. This was a colleague of Chris's, and Justin didn't know the whole background. Maybe he was a really good bass. Maybe he was more serious than he came across. First impressions weren't always everything. This might just be his personality, and they had to be open to that.
	Inside, Justin sulked, thinking he better be a damn good bass. He took a step closer to JC, dying to ask his friend what he thought and this Jason guy, and tell him his own unsure intuition about him. Something didn't feel right. As his arm brushed into JC's, he realized now wasn't the time and decided not to say a thing. 
	Besides, JC hadn't said anything either, and JC was the one that always had the good feeling on things like this. He had the experience, and he should know, so Justin told himself to stay quiet. They would talk later anyway.
	"Well, I just figured you can rehearse for a bit with us when you get the chance," Chris continued. "You know, to see how we sound. We need to round off our sound, and I thought of you."
	Justin was relieved by that. At least they'd get to hear him in an audition of sorts before they actually told him he was in. At least, that was how it sounded. He hoped that was what Chris meant.
	"You are a bass, right?" JC asked. Jason hadn't really said anything about his range or experience.  As he waited for an answer, he gave Justin a little nudge. The kid was practically leaning his weight into him.
	"Yep, I am," Jason answered. "That the part you're missing? I'll try it out. Just call me later, alright, Chris? You off today?"
	"Yeah."
	"Lucky, man. Real lucky. I've got to get back on shift, so I'll talk to you, okay?"
	Chris nodded and said good-bye. He looked at JC and Justin. "So?"
	"I know ya'll will take this the wrong way, but I'm going to say it anyway…" Justin crossed his arms across his chest as Jason left. "I don't like him very much."
	"You don't like anybody," JC replied, eyeing his friend. "You don't like anyone but about five people. And sometimes I don't even think I'm in that five."
	"Whatever. But he didn't seem serious." Justin made a face. "I don't know. That's just my impression. He was like, Chris, are you serious?" he mimicked. 
	"He's serious when it comes to singing though," Chris assured. "I mean, he can sing. I'm not accepting him on the spot because we have to hear him out, but he's our bass for now at least."
	Justin didn't completely like that answer but it made sense. At least it was someone. "When are we gonna hear us then? Us like the five of us?"
	"Probably tomorrow," Chris answered. "I'm not sure how late he works. I'll call later. Wanna find Joey? He's gonna be around."
	"Are we going to talk to the Pearlman guy?" JC asked. "Let him know we're still interested? It's just…  I'd kind of like to know who we're dealing with, you know? Does he even know we have at least four who are interested?"
	"Definitely," Chris replied. "He knows. I've been keeping in touch with him, and he's on our side, so that's not a problem."
	"Does he have a specific number he wants?"
	"In the group? Not necessarily, no. It depends on sound, look… You know."
	"Yeah, understandable." JC furrowed his brow, thinking. He wasn't thrilled about pulling in someone like Jason either. He wasn't opposed to it, but it felt manufactured to take someone just because they were a bass. 
*****
	They found Joey on break backstage at the Graveyard Review, eating a box of fries soaked with ketchup. Justin laughed when he saw him because he was still in costume, and he looked pretty funny with his makeup and attire just sitting their casually eating like it was nothing. He was talking to a girl when they found him, but once he introduced them to her, she smiled and said she had to get back to work, leaving them alone.
	"What are you laughing at?" Joey asked Justin, eyeing his silly expression.
	"I've never seen something that looks like you eat fries," Justin answered. He reached for the box. "It's great because you look like a monster. Can I have some?"
	"Dude, that's my lunch," Joey complained as Justin's fingers dug into his fries, yet continued to hold them out anyway. He was never very good at saying no to people. "Did you eat?"
	"Yes," Justin replied as he stuffed a few fries in his mouth.
	"Justin," JC objected as Justin reached for more.
	"What? It's a huge box. And I'm growing," Justin replied as he licked ketchup off his fingers. 
	"Yeah, I'm growing too," Joey muttered. He ate a couple more fries himself. "So. This is me hating my life at work. How's it going for you guys?"
	"Hey," JC objected. "How can you hate your life when you get to be a… Um, a… A whatever you are… Every day for work!"
	"Yeah, exactly…" 
	"I introduced them to Jason," Chris began. "I just ran into him, and he said he was still interested."
	"If by interested you mean barely interested," Justin corrected.
	"You saw him for ten seconds," JC began. "Let's give him the benefit of the doubt."
	Justin didn't respond but maintained a doubtful expression. He just hoped they could keep their options open. 
	"It's temporary," Chris began. "He's our only bass right now, Justin. Unless you can think of another." 
	"Well, not off the top of my head..." Justin objected. 
	"It'll be fine," JC appeased. "We'll see how he sings. We'll hang out with him for more than five seconds. That'll make the difference."
	"Look, Jason's an okay guy," Joey told them with a shrug. "Like... I'm not best friends with him, but he's never been a complete dick to me or anything. I know he can come off as kinda nonchalant about things but that's just his attitude."
	"So he's in for now," Chris persisted. "The end."
	Justin sighed. "Yeah, I love how he's 'in' right now because he's a bass and because he's an okay guy whose never been a dick to Joey. Great criteria."
	"Justin, just chill," Chris replied, rolling his eyes. "We'll all get to know him better, let him audition, and then we'll definitely all be able to make a decision."
	"Here." Joey held the box of fries to Justin when he saw a disappointed look cross his face. Food was Joey's answer to most problems, so he wasn't surprised when Justin readily took more and stopped talking about his skepticism. 
	"Don't worry so much," JC told him. 
	Justin looked at JC in wonder. "Look who's talking."
	"They're gonna watch the show, Joe," Chris said. "If that's alright with you."
	"More than alright." Joey smiled. "But if you do, you guys have to cheer for me. Loudly."
******
	The next couple of days flew by them. Chris and Joey both had to work a lot of the time while meanwhile JC and Justin spent their time trying to catch up with some old friends and old sights. At night they'd all work on their voices together, figuring out each other's full ranges and where they would fit in terms of parts and background. Overall, it was good to be back in Orlando.
	Watching Chris and Joey go to work each day, JC started to wonder how long he could stay away from his job back home to do this. It was something he'd only slightly thought about. He'd put in for a couple weeks off, and intended to call in sick if he needed to, but after just a few days he found himself glancing at help wanted ads. 
	After all, things didn't happen overnight. It was starting to look like they'd be there for at least a little while. He would need more money soon, and there was no way he could call and ask his parents to pull weight for another huge risk-taking adventure of his. They'd helped him before, but was getting too old for that to fly. 
	Besides, it really felt good to look into a semblance of permanence in Orlando. He realized he missed it. 
	"You're going to work?" Justin asked in surprise when he finally noticed what section of the paper JC was looking at. It was disturbing enough JC was even reading the paper, never mind looked at jobs.
	"Yup." JC smiled when he answered and that was completely confusing to Justin, who continued to look at him with wide eyes. It certainly didn't fit his schema for how people normally felt about work. Who was happy to work? 
	"Why?" 
	"I need to," JC replied, amused at Justin's reaction.
	"But…" Justin persisted in a raised voice. His attention was completely gone from the TV show he'd been watching.  "We've only been here a few days and you're gonna work?"
	"Well..." Sensing with a little exasperation that this would actually have to be a conversation, at least to avoid an argument, JC got up from his chair and sat down next to Justin on the couch. He couldn't understand Justin's shock. It had been more than a few days, and it was looking like they might be here for longer. Did he not understand the need for work? He was only fourteen, but still. If anything, the prospect of permanence down here should have thrilled Justin. "Yeah, I'm going to look for something at least."
	"Why?"
	"Because I don't want to be a bum, J. It's like... If I can make some money while we're here trying to get these things going, instead of doing nothing, then—"
	"You're not a bum. And you don't do nothing. You hang out with me," Justin objected. He glanced blankly at the TV, not wanting to look at JC. He didn't know what to say. Did getting a job mean that would be JC's focus?  "You know, really soon we're going to have this group starting and that's going to be our lives." He was deciding whether or not to be mad. What did this mean? Was he supposed to get a job too? Did this mean they were staying? Would JC get his own place too? The staying part was good.
	"I can still hang out with you, loser..." JC assured, reaching over to squeeze Justin's knee. "Don't be silly. But we need the cash. If I get a job, my hours will be flexible, and I bet you'll barely notice I'm gone."
	"Gone," Justin echoed. "I don't understand. This was never part of the deal."
	"Deal? The deal was to come here. I'm here. We're waiting on Pearlman, we're waiting on Jason. Things take time. And time takes money."
	"I can't believe this." 
	JC laughed. "Can't believe what?"
	"This," Justin repeated, glaring at him.
	Smirking, JC raised his hand to push at Justin's lips, trying to curve his pout into a smile. When the smile looked like too much of a long shot, he hoped for anything but a pout. "Aw, J. C'mon. Why do you always have to be such a baby?"
	"You didn't tell me you were planning on working..." Justin started. "You never even told me you were looking."
	"I'm telling you now. I don't have to tell you my every waking thought, you know."
	"But something like that, you'd think that it would have come up or something."
	"Well, I can't live at Chris's like a mooch, you know? I have expenses back home, I don't know if I can go back to my old job, I don't know how long we're going to be here… I mean, ends have to meet somehow. I can't just mooch."
	"What about me?"
	"Well, you're always going to be a mooch," JC teased. "That's your charm."
	Justin missed the joke. "That's not—"
	"I know. I'm just teasing you, Jus..." JC sighed. "Look. It's not that big a deal. You can still go to the park and watch Joey and Chris if you want. And Chris can—"
	"You just said I'll barely know you're gone and now you're making plans for me while you're not here."
	"Don't make it difficult." 
	"I just don't want to sit here alone," Justin objected.
	"No, that's what I’m saying. There's plenty for you to—"
	"Can I work with you?" Justin frowned. "If money's an issue, then—"
	"No..." JC shook his head. "Money's not your issue. Not even for the fact that... Well, you're fourteen for one... They don't want to hire a—Well, you'd need working papers and all... It might even be sixteen, I have no idea… But you can't either way. And what do you want to work for, you big dope?"
	"What do you want to work for?" Justin replied. 
	"I just told you. So that I can feel like I'm doing something. So I can pay my bills. Unless you've got some cash lying around for us, Justin?"
	Justin was silent. He knew he shouldn't be surprised. JC always tried to be as busy as possible, doing as much as he could, sometimes just for the notion of being busy. Justin could understand in theory that sitting around waiting for this deal to be certain was probably making JC restless, and yeah bills were a convenient excuse, but he still couldn't accept it.
	He knew the fun recently was too good to last. He'd been enjoying having JC around, but everything was too good to last. He felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Why would JC get another job if he knew the group was going to work out? Was this a sign that he knew otherwise?
	"And what do I do during the day?" Justin asked softly. He didn't want to ask the real question he had, about the fear of the group not working out.
	"I told you. Basically you can do anything you want."
	Justin looked at him sadly. "But, JC, you're the only one I know..."
	"Chris'll take you to work with him and you can hang at the park," JC answered. "You can bug Joey on his breaks. You met some of his friends there; they liked you."
	"I didn't like them."
	"Yes, you did. You're just saying that now."
	"They're older than me."
	"What happened to age just being a number?"
	Justin scowled. "I can't believe you're dropping this on me."
	JC just studied him. "I'm not dropping anything on you."
	"I'm not happy with you, JC," Justin persisted.
	JC smiled. "Yeah? No kidding."
	"I'm not sure you're taking me seriously, but really, it's a big deal."
	"So get over it."
	Justin said nothing.
	"And you will," JC insisted. "You know it. And either way, I already decided. I'm set, J. People can't just have fun all the time. This isn't some big vacation, you know? It might seem like a big vacation but it's not."
	"I know it's not vacation."
	"Okay, then. You should understand that fun doesn't come free. And we don't know when things are going to take off…" JC tried to rationalize things, but told himself to give up, knowing Justin would eventually get over it without this added effort.  He reminded himself to make up his own mind. It was so easy to fall into Justin's traps and guilt trips, especially when you'd been away from it for a while. He let himself give in to be the nice guy more than once, even knowing it was Justin's smartness playing to get what he wanted, not necessarily his feelings. "You don't need to be with me all the time, Justin."
	Justin set his jaw. "You know, you act like I came here just to screw around, JC. Like you're the only one that wants to work. I want to work. I just want to work at the group. That's the difference."
	"I know."
	"So don't tell me I'm here for a vacation."
	"Listen, I didn't say that," JC sighed.
	Justin silently brooded.
	"Fine. Let's change the subject then." JC nudged him with his elbow, thinking sarcastically in his mind about how well that conversation had gone. He regretted looking at anything in the paper around his friend. "What are you watching?"
	"TV." 
	"Are you going to give me a hard time about all of this?"
	Justin ignored him. 
	"Justin."
	There was silence.
	JC shifted over, digging his fingers into Justin's side until he could see a hint of a smile. Justin was always ticklish and that was sometimes the easiest way to get him to surrender his sulking and give up an argument. At this point, it was all JC could think of to do.
	"Stop…" Justin squirmed away on the couch.
	"Listen…" JC poked him. "I'll be with you every day but for a few hours," he said. "I promise. What more do you want, right?"
	"I guess." Justin was smiling despite himself as he pushed JC's hands away from his sides. He leaned into the other side of the couch. "Dude, stop."
	"It's more than you were with me while you're at home."
	Justin didn't reply.
	"Right?" JC persisted.
	Justin relented and replied, "I guess. I just thought it was going to be like old times." 
	JC wanted old times too. But they wouldn't get that back. "Don't you want me to not go broke?" JC asked. "So I won't have to live on the street?"
	"We can stay with Chris." 
	JC rolled his eyes. "Yep. We'll grow old in his family room."
	"And when we sign the deal—"
	"I'd like to see that happen."
	"It will," Justin assured. "I know it. And Chris said so."
	"And Chris is the overseer of all."
	Justin didn't know if JC's sarcasm was to be funny or whether he was seriously that skeptical. He took it as just trying to be funny because that's what he wanted to think. JC dipped in and out of enthusiasm and skepticism. "He knows what he's doing."
	JC nodded. "I'm willing to stick it out and see what happens. That's why I'm working."
	"Well, you better stick it out. I think my Mom would make me go home if you did."
	JC laughed. "True.
*****
	Jason was unanimously 'okay' to all of them. He was a bass, and his voice fit with what they had, but deep down they knew, although without telling Jason just yet, that he wasn't working with their chemistry. Up until Jason, each of them had clicked. They'd had connections with each other and those connections meant something. Jason was obviously just thrown in out of convenience. That became more and more evident.
	The voices weren't the only things that made a group. There was a certain degree of unity that built from somewhere other than simple professionalism, and it was needed to make things work. It couldn't be forced. It wouldn't be easy, and because of that, to last, they needed each other.
	On top of the lack of connection, he was also unreliable. He couldn't come all the practices, even after they tried to work around schedules. So even with him they were still too often lacking. 
	Justin said as many things as he could to Jason to dissuade him from continuing to come back to their practices. He didn't want to be obvious, but he made himself annoy the guy a little each time he could. He knew someone his age could be extremely annoying, so he'd been told, and so he used all his powers to be so. He could be a typical fourteen year old. And his complaints to the guys weren't unheard either.
	"That's the third time he hasn't shown up," he reminded when they were eating pizza at Chris's and watching TV. He stuffed the crust of his pizza into his mouth. "Isn't anybody going to say anything?"
	"Give him a chance, kid," Joey said with a shrug, legs tucked under him as he sat on the couch. "No one's perfect. He's all we've got right now."
	That was everyone's response. Give him a chance. Justin was saying what they all were thinking, but they knew that there was no other choice but Jason for now. If Justin said what they already knew, the rest of them had to be the devil's advocate for practicality reasons.
	"Three times though!" Justin persisted with his mouth full. He was sitting on the floor and leaned back against the couch. "When we've only practiced how many times? That's crap."
	"I know," Chris answered. "He's not as earnest about it as I thought he'd be. I don't think he knows we're serious."
	"None of us have missed any," Justin persisted. 
	"That's because you're sleeping here," Joey told him. "And I practically am too."
	"It's a brothel," Chris said with a laugh.
	"It's bullshit," Justin replied. "Aren't you taking it seriously?"
	"Justin, eat…" JC replied, reaching down to pet Justin's curly head in an attempt to pacify him. "What are we supposed to do about it anyway? Right now there's not much but to put up with it."  
	Justin leaned his head back to look at him with annoyed eyes. "Yeah there is, we just need to fix it. Instead of just living with it." 
	"If you knew of another bass, or if anybody did, then we could fix it, Justin."
	"Well, it's not like we've him sworn in," Chris reminded. "I'm trying to think of anyone else I know that's a good bass. If you can think of anyone, feel free to suggest."
	"I'll call Mom," Justin replied. 
	"Your mother's a bass?" Joey asked with a smirk.
	Justin turned his head sharply with one of his 'and who do you think you are?' looks. How dare anybody insult his mother, even in jest. He opened his mouth to riposte but JC spoke before he could.
	"Shut up, Justin," he said. JC had a headache and he'd had enough of Justin's whining for the night. 	"Eat," he insisted.
	Justin stared grumpily at his pizza. "I didn't say anything."
	"No, sorry, Justin," Joey continued. "Can she help somehow?"
	"She can call my old vocal coach. Bob," Justin replied. "And see if he's got anyone. He knows a lot of people and a lot of voices, so he'd definitely be able to recommend somebody."
	"That'd be really cool," Joey answered politely, trying to make up for his unwelcomed joke. "You should call her."
	"I will," Justin answered. "She's the one that mentioned it. I called her yesterday and was telling her, and she said she could always call him. And she's… she's been trying to get a flight." 
	"Cool," Chris replied. "I’m definitely open for a new bass. Jason's voice is good, but—"
	"And we still need a name," Justin reminded.
	"Chris's Band."
	"No."
	"The Bearded Band."
	"NO."
	"Why not?"
	"It's stupid." 
	"Whose band is this anyway, huh?"
	"I'm not being in a band called that."
	"Well then you don't have to be in it. When your mom comes you can just fly back with her."
	"You need me in it."
	"Oh?"
	"Justin, he's just trying to get you riled up," Joey laughed. "And the funniest thing is that it's working."
	"Chris's Band," Chris repeated. "It really does have a ring to it, huh?"
	"Hm," Joey considered. "Not bad. Chris's Bearded Band."
	"I love it."
	Justin rolled his eyes. "Sure. That'll sell."
	"Just you wait," Chris told him. "It will. Now for real, can you grow a beard?"
	Justin stared at him. 
	"Is that a yes?"
******
	"Honey, I got a flight for tomorrow, early afternoon."
	"You did?" Justin asked, cradling the phone on his shoulder.
	"I'll get in at about one, is that alright? I'm going to rent a car. I made reservations at a hotel, but I wasn't sure how long to make it far. I can't wait, sweetheart. I've missed you."
	"Yeah." Justin remembered JC's words about how much this whole thing was affecting his mother and how she was doing him a favor letting him do this. He winced as he heard himself say, "I've missed you." No one his age said that. Even if he did miss her, it made him feel silly to say it. 
	"It's good to hear that, Justin," she answered with a tone that almost made him feel bad. "You know… Well, you're staying at Chris's, right?"
	"Yeah."
	"I was thinking, if you don't want to be so cramped, you can always stay at the hotel with me," she began. Then she added, "JC can also if you want him to."
	"Maybe," he replied. "It's been okay here though." 
	"Yeah, but if you feel like a real bed one night, just remember it's an option." She sighed happily. "I can't wait to hear you boys… I bet you sound great together. Will I get to hear you?"
	"That's what we're here for," he answered. "We just need a bass."
	"And I told you I left a message for Bob, right? So we'll see what he has to say."
	"Thanks, Mom. I really hate this guy we've got, so almost anybody would be better…" 
	"I’m sure he'll have someone… Okay, baby. I've got to finish packing so I'll call you tomorrow at Chris's when I get in, alright?"
	"Okay."
	"I love you."
	"Me too."
	"Bye."
	"Bye." 
*****
	Jason actually showed up for practice the next day. It was a Saturday and they were all at Chris's by noon. This 'practice' served for not too much more than planning. Chris had called Lou Pearlman the day before and had gotten a bit more information.
	They sat at the kitchen table.
	"He's asking about demos and whatnot," Chris said. "He knows that we really just got together, so that's not too much a problem. The good news is that he's willing to sponsor a lot of what we do. But I mean, we're not the only people calling him. So we can't just jerk off while other people are moving in." Justin laughed at his wording, and Chris just looked at him. 
	"What kind of demo is he looking for?" JC asked.
	"Well, we'll have to see what we can put together. This is going to be a busy week, that's all I can say."
	"Okay," JC agreed. "Is there a studio nearby?"
	"I'm not available Tuesday, Wednesday, or Friday," Jason spoke up. He was studying his nails. He looked up. "Just so you know. Especially Wednesday. I promised my girlfriend.This is a busy week for me, and it's hard to switch things around."
	"Just so you know," Justin mimicked under his breath.
	Jason heard the mumbling and looked at him. "What?"
	Justin gazed at him challengingly, enjoying the confrontation. He wondered what kind of guy Jason would be if he really pissed him off. He hadn't really been able to judge his personality yet, nor his patience. He wasn't too worried though, because he knew, or hoped, the other three would stand up for him. "Nothing."
	"We'll figure something out, don't worry," Joey assured Jason slowly. Discreetly, he exchanged a nervous look with Chris, who shrugged.
	The phone rang and Chris got up. "Yeah, we'll figure out something. Because we've all got to be there." He picked up the phone. "Hello?... Oh, hey… Yeah, he's right—Yeah. You want directions to the house? Okay, sure. Where are you right now?"
	Justin looked up at Chris inquisitively. "My Mom?" He took a long, deep breath. "It's probably her."
	"You look happy," Joey replied.
	Jason got up to get a drink.
	Justin shrugged and wrinkled his nose. "She came kind of quick. That's all."
	"Aw, were you enjoying your independence?" Joey asked. 
	Justin shrugged. He felt like Joey was making fun of him, but at the same time it was true. He loved his mother, she was like a best friend, but at the same time it was really cool to just be around these guys and feel older.
	Noticing his look, Joey added, "My mother wouldn't have let me come alone to something like this, forming a band in another state, when I was fifteen."
	"Fourteen…" Justin heaved a sad sigh.  
	"What? Oh." Joey smirked at him. "That's right. Fourteen."
	JC imitated Justin's sigh, resting his elbows on the table. "Oh, numbers… What's in a number? Inside Justin's thinks he's ages older. With the weight of the world on his shoulders." 
	"I do not," Justin objected with a sour tone.
	"You're an equal," Joey assured. "I wouldn't want to be fourteen either. You can't help the year you were born. But you look older."
	Justin grinned. "Really?"
	"Yeah." JC rolled his eyes. He eyed his baby-faced friend with skepticism. "He looks twenty-five."
	"Shut up, you goon," Justin snapped. 
	"Goon?"
	Jason rolled his eyes at them, moving to lean against the counter tiredly.
	Chris hung up the phone and walked back over to sit down. "Justin, Mommy will be here in about a half hour," he teased. 
	"I have to go in about fifteen minutes," Jason said. He held his glass of water. "I'm meeting someone for a late lunch. That alright with everyone? I can maybe come back later." 
	"She wants us to sing for her," Justin began.
	"Another time," Jason answered. "Do we need to talk about anything else, or can I go? I need to drop by my place." He glanced at his watch. "I'll be cutting it close."
	Chris stared at him for a moment. "No, we don't need you anymore, Jason. Go ahead."
	They watched Jason put his glass in the sink and walk out of the kitchen. They listened to hear the front door open and close.
	"Jesus Christ," Chris exclaimed. "If only he knew the real meaning of my words."
	"He's acting like this is just some after school activity that he can pick and chose when to come to," Joey said. "I think it's time we think about having a quartet even if we don't find another bass."
	"We'll find another bass," JC assured. 
	"I told you I didn't like him," Justin persisted. "He's a freak."
	"Chris, just don't call him again," Joey said. "You don't see him much at Universal, do you?"
	Chris shook his head. "Some." He smirked. "I bet he'll never ask about it if I don't though. I really don’t think he ever knew how serious we were about this."
	"Yeah, he certainly doesn't realize the time commitment," Joey agreed.
	"Well, when he's begging for our autographs in a year," Justin replied. "Then he'll be sorry." 
	JC grinned at Justin. The idea of anyone wanting their autographs seemed like a dream come true. But Justin said it so confidently, like there was no other way it could be, and JC nearly believed him.
******
	Justin's mother was ecstatic to see them, beaming as soon as she walked in the door. The first thing she did was hug and kiss her son, fawning over him while he stood there embarrassed. Then she gave JC a hug and then turned to the others.
	"I'm Joey." Sticking out his hand, Joey shook her hand with a smile. "It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Timberlake."
	"Mrs. Harless actually," she replied. "But Lynn is fine. Just call me Lynn. And, Chris, I remember you from a little while back." She shook his hand as well. "Nice to see you again."
	He nodded. "How was your flight?"
	"Oh, it was fine. No delays or anything. I was so anxious to be here." She grinned at Justin again. "So this is your group? I'm so excited."
	"Well, after we find a new bass," Justin reminded.
	"The other boy you told me about—What's his name—really isn't working out, huh?" Lynn frowned. "Justin, I brought Bob Westbrook's number so I could call again, alright? Paul told me he'd give me any messages at home, but it can't hurt to call again, right?"
	"Yeah, thanks, Mom," Justin answered.
	"But the four of you…" She smiled. "I can certainly see you boys on the cover of magazines. Just look at you!"
	JC grinned. It was nice seeing Lynn more enthusiastic about their pursuit, since she'd been so hesitant in the beginning. Understandably hesitant, but it was like her to be so supportive, as long as she laid down the reality check.
	"So you wanted to hear us?" he asked.
	Lynn grinned at him. "Yes. If it's okay with you guys. I don't know if you have anything to sing as a group yet or anything… And I know I just randomly showed up here."
	"We've been practicing one…" JC smiled at the other guys.
	Lynn listened as JC counted off softly and the boys began to sing. She could pick out Chris's higher harmonies and Joey's smooth tenor. She was well accustomed to hearing her son and JC's voices mixed together, but the sound of the other two's added vocals made her smile widely. 
	It just sounded right.
	She waited until they were done before clapping. "Guys! That's great! I didn't know what to expect and, well, wow… You're really in sync with each other, huh? Amazing, when you think of how you just pieced it together. All you need is a name, and I would buy your album."
	"Of course you'd buy it, Mom," Justin said. "You'd buy it if we sucked. That's what moms have to do." 
	"Honey, I mean it. You sound great."
	"And a name, we're still working on that," Justin replied. "Don't ask Chris."
	Chris laughed. "We'll think of something."
****** 
	A couple days had passed. Not much had changed in terms of their progress in becoming famous, but no one was discouraged yet. They knew it would take time. 
	JC watched Justin carefully, wanting to look away but drawn in by the haphazard way Justin was handling the video camera in his hands. "Justin… Don't break that thing or Joey will kill you."
	Justin gave JC a look, annoyed by the overbearing quality of his voice. "I know what I'm doing," he retorted. Joey had lent him his prized possession, his video camera. The man went through tapes constantly, recording random things, including all of his friends. He'd even recorded them singing so that they could watch it and critique themselves. Apparently a girl he knew really well had given it to him as a gift, and he hadn't put it down since.
	They were at Universal Studios, in the audience of the Graveyard Review, ready to watch Joey in action. Justin had started to get in the habit of coming by to watch Joey and Chris when he couldn't hang out with JC. He liked watching them and they liked having him there, both in a kid brother and comic relief kind of way. Plus since they could get him in free, it was something for him to do while they weren't practicing but were at work.
	Justin pressed the record button as he focused in on JC's face, grinning at him. "Say hi, JC..."
	JC looked at him. "Hi." 
	Justin turned the camera around to face himself. "Hi, Joey," he said into it. "I'm a really good cameraman." He stuck his tongue out at the camera. Then he turned it back to JC for a moment before moving to zoom in on the Graveyard stage. 
	"When are they gonna start?" Justin began. "I'm hungry."
	"Why are you taping now?" JC replied. "So Joey can watch it later and hear you whine and waste tape?"	
	"No, I'll tape him when he comes on." Justin pressed the record button again to stop it. "When's it starting?" He looked at his watch. "You know I could be in the show, I nearly have it memorized now."
	"Really..." 
	"I kinda like this one better than the Hi-tones," Justin persisted. "This one's more fun. I don't really like watching the other anymore. I get bored." 
	JC laughed at him. "You're not taping, are you?"
	"No." Justin rolled his eyes, putting the camera down in his lap. "I stopped it." 
	"Good, 'cause Chris would kick your ass."
	"I told him that already. I like his show. But there's only so long you can watch it... For instance, I like the costumes better in this one. Joey looks cool. Are we eating lunch after this? I'm hungry."
	"We could go eat lunch right now, if you want... You've seen the show eighty million times."
	"Well, I wanna see it eighty million and one," Justin replied, brow furrowing. "Besides, I told Joey we were coming today and he let me have the camera. Don't you like the costumes better in this one? He looks so funny in it."
	"You said he looked cool. But yeah, I like it. I like Chris's show too."
	"I didn't say I didn't," Justin persisted. "You're probably going to tell him I said I didn't."
	JC rolled his eyes. "No...  I won't." He paused. "You know Joey used to come in the studio audience for us, too?"
	"Yeah, he said that," Justin replied. "I kinda remember."
	"Well, I just think it's all neat how we all knew each other." 
	"Yeah, it is…" Justin stretched out in his seat, tilting his head back with a yawn. "I'm hungry," he said again.
	JC studied Justin, who looked restless. He knew Justin enjoyed coming to the park every day, but it was getting frustrating for him too. He liked watching performances, but at the same time, he was the performer and he wanted to be the one on stage. Watching someone else only engrained that desire in him more. But at least it was something to do, and it was outside which was good for him. "You got a lot of sun," JC told him.
	"Well, I've been walking around this place in the sun every day," Justin replied, scrunching up his nose as he rubbed his hands over his cheeks. 
	"You're tan."
	"You need a tan."
	JC shrugged.
	Silence passed between them for a moment, and Justin looked at his watch. He yawned and then kicked at a piece of paper he saw at the ground. "My Mom was going to call Bob again."
	"I thought she tried already."
	"No. Well, yes, she tried. He left a message yesterday. She has to try again. He'll have somebody, I know he will." 
	They heard the crowd around them quieting and the music starting. Justin 'oohed' and picked up the camera, getting ready to tape. JC just shook his head and had fun watching Justin's antics, knowing well that the act was somewhat because he was there, an avid audience of Justin's. Even though they were there to watch the stage, Justin was his own show, with his own commentary and act. JC watched, grinning at him and knowing Joey would get a kick out of the tape later.
	Then he thought about what they were doing again. They couldn't do this every single day. Every now and then JC started to get worried. A part-time job would only take him so far, and this was such a huge potential deal. 
	Lynn couldn't stay here in a hotel forever. She would be just as nervous. And it was a lot of money.
	But it had to be right. How they were all connected. It just was a sign.
	He sighed, trying to focus on the stage.
******
	Silent prayers were suddenly answered and the guys were soon able to completely forget about Jason. Despite the man's verbal agreement to be in the group, they were becoming increasingly aware of his lax dedication. Chris hadn't called him again since the last time he'd left practice early, and Jason hadn't called to inquire. 
	Finally it didn't matter. Bob pulled through and mentioned the name of a boy he thought would be perfect.
	"His name is James," Justin told them after he got the information from his mom. She had just called him from the hotel with exciting news. "James Bass. Or something. He's going to call him."
	"What is with the J's?" Chris began. "Jason, James, Justin, Joey, JC… And then me. Chris."
	Justin shrugged, giving Chris a smile. "I dunno…" 
	"All J's and then little old me… Anyway. He's a bass?" Chris asked.
	Justin nodded. "Yeah. He's from Mississippi and… She said he's been really active in singing and dancing. He done lots of shows and stuff."
	"And stuff," JC mimicked. "Oh, you've done stuff, how impressive."
	"Shut up, JC," Justin returned. "Like I memorized his facts. What do you think I am?"
	"Sounds good so far to me," Joey answered. "He going to come down?"
	"Well," Justin continued, "apparently they have to convince his family first, so my Mom's supposed to call his and then we'll work out when he's going to fly in. Hopefully soon. My mom can convince anybody to do anything."
	"I hope so," Chris replied. "If he's good, we could really use him…"
	"Apparently he's a really good bass, and Bob's really cool, so I'd believe him."
	"And… How old is he?" Chris asked.
	Justin set his jaw, giving him a look. He knew exactly why that question was raised. 
	"He better not be younger than you," Joey groaned. Then he looked at Justin quickly with an apologetic glint in his eye. "Not that I think you're young. I don't. At all. But if—" 
	"He's not younger," Justin replied edgily, interrupting before Joey could insult him any further. "He's two years older. So chill. Get over it." 
	"Justin's still the baby," JC sing-songed. Justin gave him the finger and JC laughed, shaking his head.
	"Shut. Up," Justin snapped with a serious tone. "He's only two years older." Deep down, Justin was grateful for someone at least nearer his age. He expected then that he wouldn't have the only prominent mother figure around. His mother sounded just as, if not more, overprotective.
	"Sixteen?" Joey asked.
	"That would be two years, dumbass," Justin retorted, a little edgily. "I'm glad you can count."
	"He'll be fun then, I guess," Joey replied. "Too bad he's not eighteen." 
	"What's that make me?" Justin answered. "I'm not fun?"
	"Oh, you're loads of fun," Joey replied slowly, giving him an appeasing look. "I just can't take you clubbing or drinking. You know, be a bad influence."
	"You can still take me," Justin objected. He would love to go out somewhere and party with Joey. 
	"No…" Joey chuckled. "Not really…" 
	Justin opened his mouth to reply but JC interjected.
	"Not like we'll have time for clubbing or drinking…"
	Joey smirked. "Right. Of course, man. There's never time for that. We're busy people now."
	Justin just sighed. He hated being fourteen. He couldn’t do anything.
	"Anyway," Chris persisted. "If his folks are in, I mean once they agree, when will he be here?"
	"Soon." Justin smiled.
******
	Convinced at the chance for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and by Lynn's knowing words of experience, James and his mother took a flight to Orlando a couple days later, apparently very enthusiastic about the opportunity. Justin knew his mother was very conniving and wondered just how she'd assured the other woman on the phone. It was pretty ironic to him that she would be convincing somebody else, as she had been so adamantly against it in the beginning herself.
	Summer was gone, and it was the very beginning of October when James came. 
	He looked meek when they first met him. He had a deep voice, incongruent to his boy next door appearance, and the first thing he did was tell them he wanted to be called Lance. He seemed a little awkward, but very grateful to them for letting him have a chance and admitted that he recognized JC and Justin because he had seen episodes of the Mickey Mouse Club. 
	"Who was better?" Justin asked when Lance mentioned this. "Be honest. Me or him, because a lot of people say—"
	JC slapped a hand over Justin's lips, pulling him against him with a smile. "Don't worry about it," he told a baffled looking Lance. "We all know it wasn't the mouse."
	Justin mumbled something through his hand about not being a mouse.	
	His mother looked very proper and also very concerned. She was discussing something with Lynn. Justin had been ecstatic when he saw her, because he could tell that Diane was ten million times more overbearing than Lynn. The two also seemed to be getting along very well, which was also a good sign. They could distract each other with their worries, instead of distracting their sons. 
	Justin knew he had to be on extra good terms with his mother. It wasn't that he usually gave her a hard time, but she was allowing him to sacrifice being on schedule with school and other things for this risky 'once in a lifetime opportunity'. It definitely helped a lot when she had another mother around to divulge worries with. 
	Formal introductions and some questioning about Lance's experience took place next. He talked fondly for a little bit about the 'Showstoppers', a group he'd been with that traveled around the state singing songs mostly by Mississippi artists. He explained the types of music they sang, how they'd done some choreography, and the places they'd gone. He wasn't sure what they wanted to hear or what they had already heard. He started to tell them how he wasn't a very good dancer, and then decided it was the bass part they'd been asking the most about so tried to focus on that. 
	"Should I sing or anything?" Lance asked, green eyes a little nervous. The four other boys were standing in front of him and he felt a little over-powered.
	Joey picked up on the nervousness in Lance's eyes and smoothly shifted to stand beside him. Joey knew people well, and he could read moods. This had to be intimidating, and the kid was actually being really confident under the circumstances. But there would be no more four versus one. "I think that's a good idea. But you don't have to sing alone, we'll do it together. The point is to sound like a group."
	"What's something everybody knows?" Chris asked. It immediately reminded them of their first night together here, half asleep, when they attempted to work out their harmonies. That really hadn't been too long ago…
	After a couple titles were thrown out, they tried a couple mixes for a few minutes. Each was slightly surprised as the ease of it-- it was even more stunning than their first attempt had been that night. Now their sound was richer, more rounded, with Lance's low part topped off by Chris's high part, and the rich vocals in between. They weren't even singing an actual song yet, just chords to figure out melodies, and it was still great.
	"Wow," Lance's mother began as the two women stopped talking to listen. "They sound really good."
	"I know," Lynn replied with a proud smile. "They're going to be stars."
	Diane admired Lynn's confidence. Inside she feared she was making a huge mistake, but Lance had been so thrilled about this that her conscious told her she'd immensely regret it if she denied him this chance.
	Inside, the five grinned at each other. They knew they sounded good. 
	"So when do I know if I'm in or not?" Lance began hesitantly, assuming that had just been a step in the audition process.
	"I do believe you're in," JC replied with a smile. Then he glanced at the others. "Right, guys?"
	"He's ten times better than Jason," Joey continued. "That's for sure."
	Lance didn't know who Jason was, but he was excited nonetheless.
	Justin was nodding. "I say yes. Definitely yes."
	"It's unanimous. You're in," Chris said. "Welcome to the group."
	"They're just so in sync with each other, you know?" Lynn was saying to Diane on the side. "I mean, it's amazing. I'd heard JC and my son together before, and I knew they had something, but with the other three? It's really unique. It's about time the music scene had a group like this."
	Diane was nodding. "I know what you mean. There's definitely something there… And Lance looks so happy. I was really nervous… This is a big trip for him. But it just sounded so great, and I really trust Bob. This is what Lance wants, and I know I have to let him have it, you know? The whole business is about taking risks, and I have to come to terms with that."
	"Oh, trust me, I know." Lynn nodded. "Justin's so young, and I felt the same way. You feel nervous. But I felt better knowing JC was doing it. He wouldn't let anything happen. But you, letting him come to four guys you've never met." She smiled. "That must have been hard."
	"Well, I'm with him at least," Diane replied. "It was really tough, but I just had this feeling. Something told me not to let this go by. It seemed to be too much of an opportunity." 
	Lynn nodded and was about to reply, but she noticed her son approaching them. She met his eye. 
	"Mom, we're going to McDonald's," Justin announced as he reached them. "And Lance has to come too, Mrs. Bass, so we'll be back later." 
	"Justin, be polite," Lynn started. "You can ask her."
	"That's fine. He can," Diane assured with a smile. "And you can call me Diane."
	"I'm very polite," Justin told his mother. He looked at Lance's mother. "We won't be gone long or anything. And I am polite."
	Diane just laughed. "Sure, you are." 
	"See, Mom?" Justin smiled at Lynn teasingly before he glanced back at the others who were nearly out the door waiting for him. "OK, I gotta run. Bye."  
	Lynn rolled her eyes and watched her son and the other four boys get ready to go. "I'm sorry, Diane. Sometimes he's full of charm, and other times…"
	"He's a teenager?" Diane answered. 
	Lynn rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "Yeah, I guess." 
	"I think he's great, Lynn. I wish James had some of his confidence."
	"Confidence," Lynn echoed. "I can think of a few other words for it."
	"Well, whatever you call it, I think they all need it. Especially in this business. I mean, we've only been doing it with our son on a state performance level, and still…"
	"Oh, I know. It can be tough. They do need a backbone."
	Diane nodded. "I know." 
	"Something feels good here though." Lynn nodded. "Definitely." 
	Now there were five. She wondered where their next steps would take them.
******
	"We have our five," Chris said as he buckled his seatbelt, all of them squeezed into his car. "So this will be our celebration meal."
	"McDonald's?" Justin complained, squeezed between JC and Joey in the back seat. Against his protests, he had wound up between them. He couldn't blame them—squeezing the new guy between JC and Joe wouldn't be fair— but either way he made sure to press his bony knees into them just to prove his discomfort. "That's a celebration meal?" He leaned forward. 
	"Yes," Chris replied as he turned the key in the ignition. "It's the food of champions, right, Joey?" 
	"Uh-huh," Joey answered. "I love McDonald's. It's celebration on a budget. Unless you want to pay, Justin?"
	"No," Justin admitted bitterly.
	"Yeah, thought so, hotshot..." Joey frowned. "Chris. Hey, turn on the air conditioning, will you? It's like a million degrees. And, Justin," he hit his leg, "stop it. You have plenty of room and you know it. What's the matter with you tonight?"
	"You can open the window," Chris suggested. He put on the air conditioning and frowned. "It might take a while till you start feeling it." He started to back out of the driveway. "This car is a piece of shit, not going to lie."
	"Hey, as long as it runs, right?" JC answered.
	Chris chuckled. "Yeah. Hell, don't get me started on crap car stories. I could write a book about it."
	"Well, if the band doesn't work out, at least you have something to fall back on," JC retorted. "A book about crappy cars."
	"Right…" Chris smirked, shaking his head. He eyed JC in the rear view mirror. JC's nervousness crept up every now and then, mostly with a distant look or an awkward joke. Chris ignored it. He couldn't make a guarantee, but he felt pretty sure about things. And hell, he wasn't about to let these four guys down.
	"How do you feel about practicing?" Justin began. "Lance?"
	Lance sat a little stiffly in the passenger seat beside Chris. He was still concerned about what they thought of him and how things were going to work out. Such a quick acceptance had overjoyed him, but he knew not to be too overconfident. Things weren't that easy. And they all already knew each other. He'd always been slow at opening up. 
	He'd been quiet so far, trying to pick up on the dynamics of the group, trying to see where he would fit in. The four already seemed a group, and he was struggling to see where he would squeeze himself in. He felt pretty vulnerable and wondered how his mother was doing back at Justin's house. He wondered if he should have stayed with her.
	And now the questions started. He wasn't even sure how to answer to this one. How did he feel about practicing? What did it even mean?
	"Practice?" he echoed. What kind of question was that? "It's important?"
	"Like, do you come to 'em?" 
	Lance frowned. What was he trying to get at? "Why wouldn't I?"
	JC laughed. "Don't mind Justin, Lance. He's a dork, and he's full of stupid questions."
	Lance laughed. And then immediately hesitated. Was he supposed to laugh?
	Justin glared at JC. "Um, okay. It's not a stupid question."
	JC shook his head. "Well, it's a no-brainer point. So what are you trying to get out of asking him like that?"
	"Well, if you let me talk then I could get to my point."
	"I'm fine with a lot of practicing," Lance began. "If that's what you mean."
	"It's just, you know that Jason guy we mentioned?" Joey began. "The guy that we were trying out as a bass before we found you, well he didn't see the necessity for practice apparently. Or the fact that we were actually really serious about the group." 
	"Oh that's too bad…" Lance frowned.
	"Not really," Chris corrected. "Now we've got you. And your voice is much better than his."
	Lance felt himself blush. "Well, thanks…"
	"It's true, and you don't have to be modest." Chris glanced over his shoulder at Lance and smiled at how nervous he looked. This kid was real genuine, and it was refreshing. "Honestly, man, we're all pretty chill guys. You don't have to worry about us. We're a group now."
	A group, Lance repeated in his head. That sounded awesome.
	"Yeah, we're a group. And we're gonna kick ass," Justin said with a confident sigh. 
	Chris shook his head with a laugh, focusing on the road. As much as he gave him a hard time, he loved Justin's unwavering undoubting belief in the group. He hoped Lance wasn't too overwhelmed. They were a very Type A group. Lance on the other hand seemed a bit more laid back, and Chris hoped they wouldn't scare him away. They really hadn't had time to get to know each, so this clash of personalities could be unexpected.	"Chris!"
	Chris looked in the rear view mirror at Justin when he heard his name. "Yes, Justin?"
	"You didn't answer."
	"Answer what?"
	"Never mind," Justin replied, as though it wasn't worth his time to repeat it.
	"No, what?"
	"Nothing," Justin repeated.
	Chris just rolled his eyes and reached to turn on the radio. They hit a red light, and he stopped, a little shorter than the last time. "Jesus Christ. Am I not having the worst timing with lights?
	"No big deal," Joey replied. "I'm sure our reservation at McDonald's is still good." Then he poked Lance in the shoulder. "Hey, Lance. Don't be so quiet. We're harmless."
	"Oh, I know," Lance answered. "I'm just kind of tired."
	"Yeah, I bet," Joey answered. "You had a big trip. But seriously, don't be shy."
	"I'm not."
	"Yeah, I'm sure it's weird though. Meeting all of us. But don't take anything personally—we'll all get to know each other… And as you can see, we're fine with making fun of each other. Especially this one." He nudged Justin. "Do you know he's fourteen?"
	"Talk about a minor." JC shook his head, giving Justin a sad look. 
	Justin opened his mouth to object and then shut it again. It wasn't even worth it. He set his jaw, angry that they were making fun of him in front of the new kid, but knew it also wasn't worth getting upset over. Their responses were always harder to answer whenever he tried to make a clever remark in return.
	They only do it because it bothers you, he reminded himself. If you act like you don't give a shit, then they'll have to find something else to make fun of.
	"You know, I actually thought that I would be the youngest when I got here…" Lance answered. "And, yeah… Honestly, it is nice to know I'm not."
	"Thanks for the burden," Justin answered sarcastically. He felt a little spited, but not enough to blame the new guy. Joey was the one that brought up age. "Much appreciated."
	"Hey. It should be a privilege to have four big brothers," Chris objected.
	"No… Not really. Besides, I'll be fifteen soon."
	"Soon? Three months," JC scoffed. "And fifteen. Wow… Big boy."
	Justin just turned to glare at him. However, glaring at JC, no matter how threatening he thought he looked, never did a thing. So instead he stuck out his lower lip and objected, "That's not nice. I can't help how old I am." He wanted to tell JC to stop making fun of him, but again it wasn't worth it.
	"And we can't help the fact that we have to make fun of you for it," Joey answered.
	"Fine…. Well…. You'll all die first," Justin said.
	"That's great," Chris replied cynically. "I'll love thinking of that. Especially since I'm the oldest."  
	"No, I heard short people live longer," Justin replied. He was going to get in his jabs while he could. If they were going to play the age card, which he had no control over, then he would reach for anything he could. 
	"Good," was all Chris answered. "At least I'm not short where it matters."
	JC cracked up and looked at Justin to see whether or not he got it. It appeared like it just went over his head, which made JC laugh even harder.
	"What does age matter anyway?" Justin continued. "It's just a number."
	"Amen!" Chris agreed, but his tone was pure sarcasm. He laughed. "Oh, to be able to drink, and drive, and vote, and fuck without it being considered a crime for them."
	"Chris," Joey chuckled, objecting merely because he felt obligated.
	 "Sheesh," Justin answered. "Can't I get any respect?"
	"You can pay me for respect," Chris offered. "How's… a hundred a day? Oh that's right. You don't have a job."
	"At least I'm not stuck at a theme park."
	"What's that, Mr. I was a bitch to Mickey Mouse until my show was cancelled?"
	"Hey," JC objected. He was enjoying the Justin teasing, but now when it brought up his show.
	"We weren't just cancelled," Justin began. "We weren't at all. We were—"
	"And there's McDonald's," JC interrupted, not wishing to hear Justin's perspective of why the MMC was cancelled. Because they were simply cancelled, regardless of what ego conserving explanation Lynn or an agent had given him. And Justin knew that too but his self-esteem wouldn't allow it. The argument would go nowhere.
	A moment of silence passed as Chris pulled into the parking lot and found a space. Inside McDonald's, the conversation shifted to reality and they started to tell Lance a little more about Lou Pearlman. Appeased hunger improved moods, and they discussed a probable demo tape that they would make and joked about some other things they wanted, like what kind of video they could do and where, and how they would manage it with the help of Lynn and other resources.
	Despite all the talk, the true meaning of being a group had not yet settled on them. JC was excited, but he still had his doubts and his innate worry for exactly how they would go about it. He still felt like he had to be on guard and make sure that if the time came, he could take Justin and leave. Lance, on the other hand, had just been thrown into the mix and was still trying to gather up what was being thrown his way. Most of his thoughts now were on his acceptance. Chris felt the pride but also the pressure of it being in essence his group, and that as the oldest he'd have to put some joking aside and focus. The truth of the matter had not yet settled on Justin, who still didn't feel like they were a group yet without a name or deal. He was still more distracted by the excitement to really let the serious parts hit him. He was willing to let the others handle the serious parts. Joey thought about how they really had no songs to sing yet. 
	But these anxieties and excitements were put to rest for the time being as they focused on lunch. Or at least, they didn't talk about them.
	They also tried to get to know each other better. Squeezed into a booth, again stuck between Joey and JC, Justin did most of the talking, ignoring his ketchup covered fries and burger as he tried to dig into Lance. He was anxious to learn more about this blonde haired new kid who seemed awfully shy. He was intrigued. He tried from every angle. 
	"Mississippi, huh?" he'd say. "I've been to Mississippi."
	Lance would just nod, eating. He tried to answer before, and Justin would kind of just cut in again with another subject. He started to realize Justin was just a nervous talker, or afraid of silence. 
	"Tennessee's not too far from Mississippi. Not really…. Both those states have a lot of letters, don't they?" Justin asked. He paused. "But I think I'll say I'm from Florida, if anybody asks. And they will, definitely, so I'll say Florida. I like Florida. I've done more here than there, you know?"
	"Let's hope they don't ask," Chris replied. He sipped his soda. "You'll go on for a year about it, and we'll never get a break." 
	"JC, where will you say you're from?" Justin asked. "Florida?"
	"Who's going to ask?" JC replied.
	"You know. Interviews." 
	"Interviews?" JC scoffed. Then he realized Justin was serious and tried to get rid of his sarcastic tone. "Well, I'm not from Florida," he said. "Maryland."
	"Say Florida," Justin persisted. 
	"God, shut up about Florida," Chris muttered.
	"Maryland," JC repeated. He dipped a couple fries in ketchup and reached to catch Justin's chin, forcing the fries into his mouth. "Shut up, and eat, will you? No one cares where you say you're from."
	Justin frowned at him, pulling away and wiping ketchup off of his chin as he chewed the fries.  
	"What part of Maryland?" Lance asked.
	"Bowie," JC answered. "It's like a half hour from DC."
	Justin ate a couple of fries. "But you only lived in Maryland for—"
	"I grew up there."
	"Yeah, but recently."
	"None of us are from Florida," Chris replied. "We just live here."
	"Well, I'm going to say I'm from there," Justin answered, reaching for his soda and taking a sip. He smiled. "We're in Florida." 
	"How perceptive," Joey replied. "And with that drawl, I think they'll believe you too." He rolled his eyes.
	"I don't have a drawl…" Justin frowned. "Lance. Lance, you do. But you're from Mississippi." 
	Lance nodded. "I am. And yeah, I kind of have an accent, I guess. I've been told that before, but my whole family does."
	"When's your birthday?"
	"May."
	"Oh. Okay. So… For…" Justin counted on his fingers. "For four months… Yeah. Four months you'll only be a year difference."
	"What?" Lance frowned. Four months of what?
	"In age," Joey explained, hoping he could explain succinctly so that Justin didn't have to get into it. Justin was being undesirably wordy. "He means for four months you two will be number-wise just a year different."
	"Yeah," Justin agreed. "That's what I meant."
	"For someone who hates to be reminded of his age…" Chris remarked. "You certainly bring it up a lot…" 
	"I don't—" Justin started to object but broke off as JC tried to push another fry into his mouth. He pulled away, shoulder knocking into Joey, as he exclaimed, "JC!" he drew out his friend's name in complaint. "For Christ's sake."
	JC just rolled his eyes and reached for a napkin to wipe ketchup off his hands. "Just eat, then, J. We're all nearly done and you're eating like a damn bird." 
	"I am eating!"
	JC looked down at Justin's burger. He'd taken one bite. "Yeah. You're talking." 
	"Anyway," Justin answered. "I'm trying to get to know Lance. Lance and I have to get to know each other. Lance. Do you have any brothers or sisters?"
	"I have a sister."
	"You all have a sister," Justin replied. "I've got a brother. He's a baby though." 
	"He's from Tennessee," JC pointed out.
	"I know. So? I'm from Florida."
	JC just rolled his eyes. "Do you understand the word from?" 
	"Can I be from two places?"
	"Can I be from ten places?" Chris mimicked. "Where should I be from? Maybe I'll just make up some place really interesting and interesting things that I did there."
	"Get used to bickering," Joey said to Lance across the table. He raised his eyebrows. "They seem to have a knack for it. I've actually gotten used to it. You will too. They just go in circles."
	Lance smirked. "Yeah, so I see. It's fine, because honestly it reminds me a lot of my friends back home."
	"Is your sister older or younger than you, Lance?" 
	"Older," Lance answered. Here came the questions again.
	Justin took his burger and took a huge bite for JC's sake. "Mm…" he said with a mouthful to JC. "Foood."
	JC rolled his eyes and focused back on his own fries. Ignoring him was a better idea.
	"What a celebration meal." Chris grinned. "What a group, huh? Welcome aboard, Bass."
*******
	"Where are you going?" JC asked, watching Joey check himself out in the mirror, fixing his hair for the hundredth time.
	"A couple clubs. Wanna come?"
	JC almost automatically said no, out of habit, and then he thought about it. He always said no. He always planned to work on some songs, or just not going out late so they could practice the next day, and it was starting to wear on him a little bit. Deep down he did want to have fun.
	Joey realized his hesitation and smiled. "Come on. I'll even buy you a drink. You need to get out of this place. We're spending way too much time together working, and you know it."
	"Something tells me this is nothing compared to what it will be like though," JC began with a smirk.
	"Yeah, well, if we're lucky. But that's why we have to get out now while we can."
	"I don't know. When are you—"
	"You know you want to get out of here." The details didn't matter and they both knew it.
	"I'll have to change. And tell Just—"
	"Look, preppy, you're dressed fine," Joey laughed. "All you need are your shoes. And Justin can deal."
	"I think he was hanging with Lance inside, let me just tell him."
	"Don't let him talk you out of it," Joey insisted. "Don't you dare."
	JC got up and shook his head. "He won't."
	"Just don't."
	JC walked down the hall, with Joey not far behind him, to find Justin and Lance inside in front of the TV. Chris was already out, going to a movie with some friend or another, saying he'd be back in the morning sometime. He was smart. He knew to get his space. 
	Lance and Justin were playing video games, sprawled on the floor looking like two average kids on a lazy night. Empty soda cans and a bag of chips lay amongst video game cartridges and extra controllers. 
	"Hey, guys," JC began, leaning in the doorway.
	"Hey," Lance echoed. He looked tired.
	"Joe and I are going to go out for a little while. You all need anything before we go?"
	"Where?" Justin asked.
	"Out," Joey said. "Not sure exactly yet. We're leaving in a few."
	"I think we'll be fine," Lance answered. 
	"Let's order pizza," Justin said.
	"It's nine o'clock," Joey objected.
	"And I'm hungry. Your point? Lance, are you hungry?"
	Lance shrugged. "I could eat."
	Joey rolled his eyes. "Fine, then you guys get pizza. Whatever." 
	"How do you not know where you're going?" Justin eyed them suspiciously. 
	"I'm meeting some of my friends," Joey explained. "We're going where they're going." 
	"Well, where are you going first?"
	"What are you, my mother? What's it matter?" 
	Justin looked at JC but his friend just shook his head. 
	"What, you're not going to ask if you can come?" Joey bent down to pick up one of the video game boxes, looking at the back of it curiously. 
	"You'll just say no," Justin replied. 
	"Fine. Lance, you want to come?" Joey asked, amused when Lance looked up at him in surprise. 
	"What?" Lance asked.
	Justin scowled. "Why are you asking him to come?"
	"Neither of you can come," JC replied with a sigh. He knew Joey was just being Joey and looking for reactions, but he didn't feel like getting into any arguments before they left.  
	Joey dropped the video game box back on the floor. "Fourteen no. Sixteen maybe. That's all."  
	"Neither of us asked to go," Justin answered.
	"True."
	"And Lance would rather hang out with me, right, Lance?" Justin looked at his new friend and received a half-hearted shrug in response. "C'mon."
	"Lance, do you like clubbing?" JC asked.
	"I'm only sixteen," Lance replied hesitantly.
	"Have you ever even been to a club?" Joey asked.
	Lance shrugged in a way that obviously meant he hadn't. While he was nervous in his answer, afraid that they all thought he was lame, he was also thinking about how at sixteen, what club wouldn't laugh at him trying to get in?
	"Well, don't worry. We'll fix that one day," Joey replied. "Just not tonight."
	Lance wasn't worried. He didn’t feel like he would be the clubbing type anyway. 
	"Alright, we'll see you guys later," JC replied, walking over towards the couch where he spotted his sneakers. "Don't burn the house down or anything." He sat down to pull on the shoes. 
	Joey felt his pockets for his wallet and keys. 
	"Is Chris coming home?" Justin asked. 
	"No, he said tomorrow," Joey answered. "I don't know what he's up to."
	"I have a couple ideas," JC muttered.
	Joey smirked at him.
	"Can I sleep in his bed?" Justin asked.
	Joey gave him a skeptical look.
	"I'm tired of the pull-out…" 
	"What if I want his bed?"
	"I'll be home and you won't," Justin replied.
	"Okay, how about this? If you're still up when we get back, then it's mine. If you manage to go to bed before that, then I'll try to remember not to crush you when I collapse somewhere."
	"Well, what time are you getting back?"
	"I don't know."
	"It's fine, Justin," JC spoke up, finishing tying his sneaker. "Sleep in the bed, it's fine."
	"Who made you king of the castle, JC?" Joey replied.
	"I just know you're trying to push all his buttons for your own amusement, and it's not worth it. Do it tomorrow. But right now I want to just go out." He pushed himself up off the couch. "Let's go."
	"You're just glad not to share the pull-out with him, that's all." 
	"Do you want to go or not?"
	"I do." Joey felt his pocket for his wallet. "Alright, let's go." He watched Justin climb to his feet. "Where are you going?"
	"To order pizza…" Justin said with a frown at Joey's suspicious look. "Don’t worry, Joey. I'm not trying to come with you."
	Joey gave him a playful push. "Good." 
	"C'mon, Lance," Justin persisted. "Let's see if Chris has any money laying around."
	"Justin…" JC objected. 
	"What? How else are we going to get pizza?"
	"Just leave them," Joey persisted. "Let's go."
	JC shook his head but didn't argue. He followed Joey out the door. Lance watched them leave and then turned his eyes to Justin, who was opening up a drawer in the end table next to the couch.
	"Are you serious?" he asked.
	"Chris would buy me a pizza if he was here," Justin replied simply. "I think he keeps money in the kitchen." 
	"I’m going to call my Mom," Lance replied.
	Justin looked up at him to object and then just asked, "Well, what do you like on your pizza?"
	"Anything," Lance answered. "Actually, what time is it?"
	"Anything," Justin echoed. He shut the drawer and looked around for a clock. "Eleven." He spotted the clock on the VCR. 
	"Oh, never mind then. It's too late to call her."
	"Yeah," Justin agreed. "My Mom goes to bed early too. C'mon. Let's find some money and order the pizza."
	Lance followed him inside to the kitchen and warily watched Justin open up the counter drawers. He admired his nonchalance, knowing that he couldn't just go through somebody's drawers, even if that somebody was his friend. Just as he was thinking this, Justin said, "Check on top of his dresser inside. My Dad used to keep money there."
	"Justin," Lance objected, sitting down at the kitchen table.
	"What?" Justin met his eye and paused. "You think I shouldn't use his money?" He sighed. "Yeah, but JC and Joey didn't say anything. So it's okay." 
	Lance rolled his eyes.
	"I don't have any money," Justin admitted. "I'll do it and then you won't have to feel guilty." 
	"I don't feel guilty," Lance objected.
	"Sure…" Justin headed out of the kitchen towards Chris's bedroom. 
	Lance sat there in the kitchen and waited. He felt nervous and he wasn't sure why. He was comfortable with these guys, and glad that at least Justin was pretty close in age to him. His mother was supporting him, his whole family was, and yet he was still really nervous. He'd always played it safe, it was just something he was used to, and taking this huge leap on the recommendation of Bob was nerve-wracking. 
	"Success!" Justin's voice interrupted Lance's reverie and he looked up to see the curly haired teenager with several bills in his hand. 
	"Oh, good," Lance said unsurely.
	"Fifteen dollars. Plenty." He walked over to the phone and looked around for a phonebook. He spotted it and pulled it over on the counter, flipping it open to look at pizza places.
	"So is it hard having just your mother here?" Lance asked. "What about your Dad?"
	Justin shrugged. "It's not really hard. She's always one the one that's brought me to auditions and things like this…" He stopped flipping through the book as he found "Pizza" and scanned through the restaurant places. "My Dad—well, they're divorced. And her husband, Paul. I mean they'd come down but they're working so they'll see how it works out and all. And Dad's got a new baby too." He looked up. "How about you?"
	"My Dad's working too. And I have a sister," Lance replied. "I'm glad my Mom came. I didn't think she'd be into any of this."
	"Yeah, well luckily she was. The guy before you was a total dick. I hated him. I know the other guys did, even though they won't say it as truthfully as I will," Justin replied. "But I'm just truthful." He picked up the phone.
	Lance watched him dial, sighing. He wasn't even really that hungry. But he could always eat. Especially pizza.
	"Yeah, I want to order for delivery… Okay…" Justin waited and then said Chris's address. Lance realized he had no idea what the address was. And then as Justin read the phone number off the phone he realized he didn't know that either. "Cheese," Justin said. "Large cheese… Um, no that's it… How much? … Okay. How long?... Okay." He hung up the phone and smiled at Lance. "Twenty minutes."
	Lance nodded. "So… You guys all knew each other?"
	"More or less…" Justin walked over to the refrigerator and pulled it open. "You want some Coke?"
	"Uh, sure."
	Justin pulled out the bottle of Coke. "I mostly knew JC, obviously. But Chris and I knew each other from before. And JC and Joey knew each other pretty well too. It's a good group. The only one I hated is gone."
	Lance laughed.
	"No, seriously." Justin pulled a couple glasses down from the cabinet. "He was a complete dick. Total dick. It was miserable. And his voice wasn't that good either. If you come to the park with us, then I'll point him out to you if we see him."
	"The park?"
	"Oh, Universal," Justin replied, carefully pouring the soda as it fizzed up. "That's where Joey and Chris work."
	"Oh, okay."
	"The other guy was just someone Chris knew from there that he knew was a bass," Justin explained. "But I don't think he knew Chris was serious. He always had something else to do."
	"Well, I'm glad. That way I can do it," Lance answered. 
	"Exactly." 
	"You all seem nice too," Lance said, a little awkwardly. He wasn't sure exactly what to say to start a conversation with Justin, who seemed nice enough but also just different from anyone Lance had hung out with before.
	"Yeah, we're all nice," Justin agreed. "I guess it's weird we all know each other?"
	"Yeah," Lance admitted. "Kind of."
	"Well, hopefully you won't feel like that much longer…" Justin walked over with the two glasses of soda and put one down in front of Lance. "Here."
	"Thanks."
	"I don't know what else there is to tell you about us…" Justin said as he sat down. He thought. "Chris is the oldest. He's old. He's… twenty four, I guess? I think. But that's old."
	"You'd never know he was twenty four."
	"I know, right?" Justin laughed. "He's so much fun though. He's hilarious. Like everything is just so much funnier if Chris says it. And he never gets mad about anything. Like, Joey's funny, but sometimes I just feel like I'm annoying to him and other times I think he's just trying to annoy me."
	"And JC."
	"JC's like blood to me," Justin answered. "We've just known each other a long time." He opened his mouth as if to say more and then pause. He looked up as he heard someone at the front door. "You hear that?"
	Lance nodded, frowning. "Maybe Joey and JC came back."
	Justin looked unsure and slid back his chair, slowly standing up. He walked towards the kitchen doorway and looked through to see the front door. A moment later he sighed. "It's Chris."
	Lance frowned. "I thought he wasn't coming home."
	"Me neither." Justin stepped out of the kitchen and watched Chris come inside, turning his back to him as he closed the front door. Justin waited and then said, "Man, what are you doing here?"
	Chris turned around and looked at him quizzically. "It's so quiet. Where is everyone?"
	"It's just me and Lance."
	"Why?" 
	"Why are you home?"
	"I live here," Chris laughed at him as he walked towards him. "Is that a sufficient answer?" He studied Justin's face and then poked him as he got close enough. "What? You didn't want me to come back?"
	"Not really," Justin admitted.
	"Why?"  
	"Because I was supposed to get your bed…" Justin replied glumly, turning back to the kitchen and walking over to reclaim to his seat at the table. 
	"What? Why would you get my bed?" Chris asked. 
	"They said you weren't coming home tonight…"
	Chris sighed. "No, I told Joey if I was lucky I wouldn't be home tonight. But… Not so lucky." 
	"I wanted your bed though…" Justin sighed as he rested his elbows on the table.
	"Well, I'd rather be somewhere else too," Chris answered, walking over to sit with them. "So life's not fair."
	"What happened?" Lance asked.
	Chris shook his head. "I think it's too complicated for you guys," he said. "So I'll spare you."
	That made Justin interested. "How's it too complicated?"
	"Because it's about things you know nothing about."
	"How do you know?"	
	Chris eyed him. "Well, Justin, I'm just making an educated guess."
	"I know a lot of things," Justin persisted. "And so does Lance. You'd be surprised."
	Chris smirked. "Well, then maybe you guys can teach me a thing or two someday. But for now, I'm just going to keep my mouth shut." He glanced at his watch. "So where's Dumb and Dumber?"
	"JC and Joey went clubbing or something," Justin said.
	"Really? When?"
	"Just a little while ago…" Justin frowned as Chris got a thoughtful look on his face and then asked, "Are you going to ditch us for them too?"
	"No. I have no idea where they are." Chris reached over for Justin's glass of soda, taking a sip. "What are you guys up to?"
	"We ordered a pizza," Lance said. "It's on it's way."
	"Good, I'm hungry." Chris paused. "You guys need money or anything?" When neither of them answered, he looked up.  
	Lance laughed while Justin simply had a bashful look on his face.
	"What?" Chris asked with a frown.
	"I thought you'd be generous enough to offer," Justin said. "See, Lance?"
	Lance just made a face and shrugged. 
	"What? I don't get it…" Chris persisted.
	"I already borrowed some money from you," Justin explained.
	"Borrowed? What do you mean borrowed?"
	"Found."
	"Found where?"
	"You know. Around."
	"Around where?" When Justin shrugged, Chris persisted, "There's a difference between laying on the counter and you snooping around for cash."
	"It's on the counter now," Justin answered nonchalantly. Then he winced as Chris slapped him in the arm. He frowned at the sting of it and said, "What's the difference? You just offered money."
	"No, I asked if you had any money. Again, there's a difference. No snooping around, alright?"
	"Fine…" 
	"If you need something, ask for it."
	"You weren't here," Justin reminded.
	Chris shook his head. "Do you go through your Mom's stuff if you need something or just take money?"
	Justin shrugged. "Well, yeah…" 
	Chris sighed. He somehow wasn't surprised by the honesty in that answer. Of course Justin did. It reminded of Chris back in school when he'd put his feet up on somebody's desk and the teacher would scold him, asking whether he would put his feet up on his mother's couch at home. The teacher was never amused when he would shrug and honestly reply, yeah, why not?
	"Let's watch a movie or something," Lance suggested. 
	"I got a new game recently, for the Playstation," Chris replied. "You guys wanna try that?" 
	"Yeah," Justin agreed. 
	"Alright, cool." Chris pushed his chair back and got up, walking towards the fridge. "Hopefully the pizza comes soon, I'm starving."
	Justin got up from the table watched as Chris pulled a beer out of the refrigerator. He hesitated and then said in what he thought was a mature voice, "Can I have one?"
	Lance laughed at him and Justin shot him a look, as if to say, don't blow my chance.
	Chris cracked open the tab of his beer and gave Justin a frown as he kicked the fridge door shut with his foot. "Are you kidding? You're fourteen."
	"C'mon," Justin persisted. "Chris, don't be lame. I've drank before."
	"Yeah? When?" Chris persisted. 
	Justin felt stupid. He'd rarely had anything to drink before. He had been too young for most of the parties that took place back when he was on the MMC, and since then he'd had maybe a sip of wine a few times at dinner and one wedding when he simply asked his mother to let him 'taste' it.
	"I'm almost fifteen," Justin said, as if that made it any better.
	"Still six years from legal drinking."
	"Not in Europe."
	Chris laughed. When he started to walk away from the fridge, Justin knew his moment of opportunity was almost over and he persisted futilely. "What's the big deal?"
	Chris gave him a look and then said simply, "I'm afraid of your mothers, that's all." He studied Justin's expression and wondered how at all Justin felt that sulking would make him appear old enough to drink, but then kind of felt bad and realized he never wanted to be 'that guy' that refused things. He figured it was bad enough that these two weren't old enough to do anything fun.
	"Alright," Chris relented as a smile spread across Justin's face. "Here." He handed his beer to a thrilled Justin and went back to the fridge. "Lance, I assume you want one too?"
	Lance hesitated for a minute, about to say no. Always say no, his mother told him. Peer pressure is a terrible weight. And then he rolled his eyes at himself, and how juvenile it was. Besides, he was even older than Justin. "Yeah, sure."
	"Alright." Chris grabbed two more of the cold cans and handed one to Lance as the kid got up from the table. "And if you guys breathe a word of this to your mothers," he looked pointedly at Justin, "I'm going to kick your ass into tomorrow. Understand?" He watched Justin take a sip and the face he made. "Dude, you don't even like it."
	"I do," Justin insisted.
	Chris shook his head in exasperation. "Alright, c'mon. I want to try out this game." 
*********	
	There was a lot of talk during the next few days as they realized there was more than imaginable to go over, and even more than that to personally figure out. A lot of it had been fun so far, but now it was time to get even more serious and make sure they moved this thing along.
They signed some preliminary paperwork tying them to Pearlman, who'd agreed to finance a huge amount of their work. They discussed the components of the group, their goals, and began planning a video, one that they would send out for exposure and could possible make or break them. 
	There was an old warehouse nearby that they decided would be perfect to use as a practice location for their dancing and set. They needed space and they needed privacy. It would be perfect, and Lou said it wouldn't be a problem to set up using it. He reminded them several times how important this was. A video would concrete the fact that they were really serious and show off what they had.
	"It has to be really good," JC said as they finally talked about it without him. 
	"It's gotta be really, really good," Justin agreed. "Like choreographed with wardrobe and lights and everything." 
	"It's not going to be amazing…" Joey started. "Since it's us on a limited budget putting it together."
	"Pessimist," Chris answered teasingly. "And it's not just our budget, it's Pearlman's."
	"But they'll know that we did it ourselves though," Lance pointed out. "That itself should be impressive, right? I mean, obviously it's not going to look like something ready for MTV, but they know that."
	"True…" Joey admitted with a shrug. "It'll be the best we can make it anyway. And we have to think of the songs too. Which to do. That's the tough part." He frowned. "Actually the toughest part is choreography." 
	Justin poked at JC's shoulder. "We can do it, right, C?"
	JC made a face. "As long as you don't try to make it too crazy. We can find a choreographer too. Pearlman mentioned that."
	Lance made a face. He wondered if it was a good time to admit that he wasn't that great a dancer…
	Justin continued. "We can do it, at least to start out. I mean, I remember some stuff we've done before, and I'm sure you do too, and we'll put it all together. But first we need to know what songs."  
	"Start thinking," Joey began. 
	"We can use some original stuff too, right?" JC began. He shrugged. "Because I have some stuff we could use if we did that…"
	"Yeah," Justin agreed. He grinned at JC. "See, those demos you were working on will come in handy after all." 
	"Maybe," JC replied. "But we'll do covers too, of course." 
	"This'll be cool." This was what Justin had been waiting for. He was anxious for the planning to be over so that they could actually get into the singing and dancing stages. It was fun to think about everything, but after a while he just wanted to do it. 
	"I don't know about the original stuff," Chris said slowly, reluctantly saying it because he didn't want to see JC's expression at that news, but also knowing that it was the truth. "I mean, I can ask Lou again but I was getting the impression that at this point it would really be covers…"
	"Oh, really?" JC answered, a hint of disappointment in his voice.  
	"I'm not sure, but like I said, I'll ask him again." Chris paused. "It's more being risk-averse right now, you know?"
	"It makes sense." JC nodded, although behind the voice there was a hint of disappointment. 
	"One day though, definitely, man." Joey patted him on the shoulder.
	JC simply nodded again.
*******
	It didn't take Lance long to gather the personalities of his four new friends. Over the next week, he was able to watch everybody interact, in good moods and in bad. He felt like he was bonding with them as well, which was a relief; coming in when the four of them had already known each other was slightly awkward, but they'd been very welcoming to him and tried not to make him feel left out. He enjoyed watching the interactions between them too, because they obviously were quickly becoming closer. 
	So far, he liked Joey the best. Joey was just so laid-back and easy to talk to. He was willing to talk about anything at anytime.. He'd been places and knew things, and he was happy to tell you about them. He really loved people, especially girls, and when they went out, he was always quick to strike up a conversation with some stranger and have them laughing and enjoying his company. Lance wished he had the guts to do that. Joey easily became the middleman because he was so easy-going, and the other guys listened to him. He'd also gone the most out of the way to befriend Lance, who sincerely appreciated it. 
	Chris was funny. Lance thought he was a little scary at first, this older kind of abrupt guy. He could get a dark look sometimes and then suddenly come out with a sarcastic comment, leaving them all to wonder whether he was trying to be funny or whether he really meant it. But then he would smile and laugh and sometimes tackle Justin, and you would know he was just playing around. He could get pissed too, depending on what mood he was in, but he was the oldest and sometimes needed to be serious and remind them of that, as they all easily forget when he was joking around. But Lance liked him because he had a set picture in mind of where the group was going. They needed that. 
	As for JC and Justin, Lance found it hard to think about one without having to bring up the other. They seemed to be attached to each other, and Lance understood just vaguely their history. There was a bond that grew while they were on the show together, and Justin clung to JC like the older brother he never had while JC seemed to enjoy the hero-worship. They seemed to mentally finish each other's sentences; Justin would say one word, just JC's name even, and JC would give this answer that the others would be clueless about, yet it would obviously be the answer to whatever Justin had wanted to know. 
	JC himself was still a bit of a mystery to Lance. He had a very classic look, and could look so serious, like stone, but then with one word, or one poke, they would have him giggling like a clown. They would sometimes find him distracted or lost in his own deep thoughts, but all it took was a comment or Justin simply to start leaning on him, and he would snap out of it with a smile, and come back to their world. He was definitely a thinker—always concerned about the technicalities of what they did. Chris would know what he wanted and it would be JC that would rationalize what they needed to get there. He was a slight perfectionist, but it seemed like he was harder on himself than anyone else. 
	Justin was a mixture too. He was, yet wasn't, a typical teenager. At first Lance thought he was very different from himself, with his confidence and airs and the way he acted like the whole world was a state. He attributed that to Justin's background and to who he'd grown up around. But at the same time, they had a lot in common being the same age and that had given them a bond as well. Justin talked a lot, that was the first thing Lance noticed. At first it was kind of annoying, sometimes it still was, but at the same time, he was starting to count on it, and knew something was wrong if it was missing. Justin always needed to fill the silence, or to have some kind of reassurance. He couldn't sit alone very long. He always had to be sitting next to someone, leaning into them, knowing that they knew he was there. JC just said he was "high maintenance", and Lance figured that was probably the easiest way to describe it. 
	Lance could already tell Justin would have the attention in the group. He demanded it. And Lance resented the aggressive and demanding nature of Justin, but at the same time held in high regard. You kind of needed that attitude in the business.
	Lance smiled when he thought about the four. He felt at ease with them all. He definitely saw this happening. And this was the group he wanted to do it with. They all balanced each other out. 
*******
	Watching Justin, Joey swore that he'd never had that much energy when he was fourteen. Never like that. It was amusing how this kid became so energetic, but after a while it wasn't contagious enthusiasm anymore, it was just tiring. Justin hadn't even had that much sugar today. In fact, barely even lunch, as they all decided to practice early and grab real food later. Maybe he was reenergized from recently being forced to start going to bed at a more decent hour. 
	"Break," Chris said to Justin. "I think the definition, as far as I know, is to rest."
	"I am resting," Justin replied, although with being on his feet and moving around so much, Chris found it hard to believe.
	Practice was going well. Joey was exhausted though. It had been a while since he'd been so physically active, especially in a way where you really had to focus on how your body moved at every moment. Dancing was tough. The repetitive nature of it kind of made him nervous because he knew he needed to get it, yet he wasn't. This was more important than anything he'd done before.
	After watching the guys do nothing for a minute, Justin decided to go run outside quickly. It had been raining before when they first arrived, and he was anxious to see if it still was. He ran out of the warehouse, their designated dance studio, and right back to where the guys were within a couple minute minutes. 
	"You're making me tired," Joey told him.
	"What?" he asked, cheeks flushed. "Why?"
	"Just relax," JC told him. "Come on. Sit for a minute and drink some water."
	Justin walked over, reaching out his hand, and JC with a sigh handed him his own water bottle. Justin took a long drink. He wiped off his lips and took another drink before giving it back, saying, "I just thought we'd do it again."
	They were practicing their routine for the video, running through each of the songs, any necessary choreography, and being as critical as possible of each other. They had only been practicing for a week, but they were certainly coming together. Still, as good as they were getting, it definitely wasn't good enough. But they were all working hard nonetheless.
	Lance rubbed a hand over his hair with a yawn. His legs hurt, and he was kind of worried about how he was doing. He felt like he was the worst dancer, although he knew Joey was having a tough time keeping up as well, which made him feel a little better. But in the past few days, he felt Joey had gotten a lot better, while Lance still felt like he was struggling. He really was trying though, and worrying about messing up really made him mess up more.
	"Was it raining?" Joey asked. He meant it when he said watching Justin making him tired. Justin was dancing lightly on his feet, remaining in his spot, looking at them eagerly. He understand how excited Justin was about everything, and he was excited too, but for God's sake… 
	"Yeah, it was a bit," Justin answered, hoping that if he didn't sit down, they would all realize that it was time to keep practicing. Justin wanted to keep going. He was easily back in the mode of learning routines, and he had to get it perfect. He looked at JC because he knew JC always wanted it perfect. He learned that from him. "We're not doing it again?"
	"We will. Just chill out for a bit, Justin," JC told him gently, wiping a trail of sweat off his forehead. It was so humid. "You hungry?"
	Justin shrugged, saying, "A little, I guess." He paused. "I just thought…." He trailed off when JC shook his head at him, realizing that his message wasn't getting across. None of them seemed ready to get up again.
	JC gave him a pacifying look, but Justin had didn't seem to understand. JC wanted to tell him to sit down and chill the fuck out, but he wasn’t sure he could make it sound right. Justin's energy was excitement and nerves in addition to simply loving to dance, but it was a group effort, and there was no benefit to go nonstop.
	"I'm going to find something to eat. You wanna come?" JC asked him, pushing himself up onto his feet. "We've got some food. Snack type stuff. Want?"
	Justin ran a hand back through his curly hair, reluctant. He hadn't expected this to be a full fledged break.
	"Come on," JC insisted. "We have time."
	Justin looked at the others. Joey looked tired. Lance looked frustrated. They were sitting on the floor and Chris had just joined them, cradling a water bottle and not looking like he was ready to get up any time soon. They were all hot and sweaty. They'd been practicing for a few hours today, and hadn't taken much of a break. 
	In Justin's mindset it was crazy. They'd barely done anything. They'd only been at it for a couple hours and they had so much to do. This video had to be perfect. And they kept taking breaks. He'd had time to run outside and back and they still weren't ready to go? How were they ever going to finish? In his mind, his was the part that they had to work hardest at. Because if they didn't get past the video, then there was nothing.  
	"Did you see that University of Florida game?" Chris asked. "Joe?"
	"Dude. I watched it with you." Joey stretched his legs out in front of him, taking another sip of his gatorade.
	"I know. I was just thinking about it. In the last forty seconds, on the second down when number forty—"
	"Interception!" Joey exclaimed. "Jesus Christ, that was fucking amazing, man." 
	JC watched the way Justin stared at them and moved forward to tug on his arm. "Come on." 
	Justin frowned. "Can—"
	"Come on." JC smiled at him. 
	Justin continued to frown, pulling his arm away, but then he gave in, bending down to grab the water bottle JC left on the floor and walking to follow him. They started towards the back of the warehouse where there was a separate room where they kept all their stuff. 
	"JC," Justin began, as they were far enough away. He was getting a weird vibe. "Am I in trouble?"
	JC glanced at him over his shoulder. "Huh? For what?"
	"I don't know. You're giving me that feeling."
	"No, Justin." JC laughed. 
	"Because all I was saying is we need to practice more, you know. That's all, and it's true."
	"It's my job to say that," JC told him. "Not yours."
	Justin sighed, lifting up the water bottle to put his mouth around the cap. Then he pulled it away to ask, "Then why aren't you saying it?"
	"Justin, you’ve been doing it since you were a baby, okay? So just relax. It's all going to work out."
	"Doing what?"
	"These routines."
	"But—"
	"And that's my water, by the way." JC grabbed it back and rubbed the cap off on his shirt. "You can have your own." 
	"Don't we only have a couple weeks to get this done?"
	"Yes." When they reached the back room, JC went to find his backpack. He grabbed it off a table and sat down on the floor to unzip it. "I know."
	Justin walked over and sat down next to him reluctantly, stretching his legs out in front of him. He stared at his sneakers. They were so dirty. And kind of wet from going outside. He regretted the choice to check for rain. "But they're talking about a football game that—"
	"Here. You like these, right?" JC handed Justin a package of Oreos. "Chris only had crap in his kitchen, so this is the only kind of stuff  have." 
	Justin took the Oreos from him and started to open them. "They saw the game together. What is there to talk about? They talked about it the whole time it was on." 
	JC was silent, watching Justin open the wrapper. 
	Justin caught on to his silence and looked up, eyeing him suspiciously. "Do you not agree at all, or something? We just have a lot to get through." 
	"I know…" JC replied. He ran his finger across a crack in the concrete floor. "Justin, sometimes we just need to take a break. You'll be dying for breaks and won't get them, so take them while we can."
	"We can't, though," Justin pulled out one of the cookies, looking at it before he took a very tiny bite. "If we don't get this right, then it's worthless. And then what?" He shook his head. "I mean, look at Lance during the step when—"
	"Justin."
	"And Joey isn't moving the right way in the other one. His right foot is going first instead of his left and then in the part—"
	"Justin."
	Justin heard his tone and sighed, taking another bite of the cookie, silent.
	JC frowned. "It's not your place to judge people."
	"You all said we have to be critical."
	"It's not your place." JC had said they should all be critical. He regretted it now. They did need to critique each other, but when Justin did it, it came off in an impatient, obstinate way. Things came easily to Justin, the golden child, and as mature as he pretended to be, his teaching ability and patience just weren't quite there… 
	Justin's brow furrowed. "But we only have a couple weeks," he insisted softly.
	"It takes a certain kind of endurance to do all this, you know…" JC said. "And since you've always done it, you have it. But not everyone does. It has to be built up. With practice and not overworking yourself."
	"You overwork yourself."
	"No, I don't."
	Justin shrugged. "I think you do…" 
	"It's like…" JC reached over and brushed off some crumbs from Justin's leg that had fallen from his hands. "They've had a little bit of choreography practice. You've seen Chris and Joey's shows so you know what was there. And Lance had a little bit too, he said."
	"Actually, I'm starting to think he bluffed a little on the resume..." It was a joke, but Justin regretted it when JC punched him in the arm. 
	"Hey, shut up," JC objected. "Give him some slack. You had to train yourself too one day way back when. It's not easy. And if you're going to criticize, then I can point out some things in your work that are a little sloppy too."
	"Lance keeps watching Joey. Which is bad, because Joey isn't doing it exactly right either. He's doing better, but—"
	"Are you ignoring me?" JC persisted.
	"I'm not criticizing, I'm—"
	"Pointing out mistakes, imperfections— that's criticizing. So unless you want me to start with you and begin pointing out every hundredth of a second you're off, and yes you are off too, and every stupid comment you make, and—"
	"Okay, okay…" Justin rolled his eyes.
	"I'm not perfect either…" JC replied. "I'm just saying that… Man, you just have to be more patient." He shook his head. "You know?"
	"I'll try. Okay? But it's hard… I know you're thinking it too… The amount of time we have left…"  
	"Justin, come on…" 
	"Aren't you?" Justin insisted. "Don't be full of shit, JC. I need you to be honest"
	"I am honest," JC admitted. "But I don't have to bitch about it like you."
	"You always do though," Justin said. "You will eventually."
	"Fine, then don't be like me. I'll try to be better. And I want to practice and so do they. But we all have to build up to it. If you tire yourself out all at once, you have nothing left." 
	Justin nodded. "I know, JC. It's just we don't have that much time."
	"This isn't the Club," JC persisted. "These aren't people that have been—"
	"Okay, JC."
	"No, it's not. You've been saying okay, and then five seconds later you're complaining again about it."
	Justin pulled apart the top and bottom of the Oreo skillfully. "I didn't say anything to them…"
	"I know."
	"Would you rather I sit on the floor and talk about football?"
	"If you wanted to."
	"No. I wanna practice." Justin ate the half that had the cream on it first. "I hate sitting. I hate doing nothing."
	"For ten minutes you can do nothing…" JC replied. "Trust me."
	"I can but I hate it."
	"We're looking great though. Aren't we? This is something." 
	Justin nodded, eating the other half. He didn't think they looked that great. He thought that if he was a producer or a manager or whatever it was, that he would just throw out their tape. After a moment of silence between them, he told JC that.
	JC just shook his head and started to get up. "Fine, Justin. If that's how you're going to be."
	Alarmed, Justin grabbed his arm. "No, JC."
	"What, then?" JC pulled his arm away. 
	"I’m sorry," Justin said abruptly. "Is that what you want to hear?" 
	"I don't want to hear anything. I just want to be able to relax for ten minutes with everybody and remember that we have a couple weeks to perfect ourselves. And think of that as an opportunity, not a threat."
	JC watched Justin, wishing he could appease him more. He could see his frustration, but once everyone got into the scheme of their schedule, things would be different. They would never have a spare moment to rest and Justin would see the difference. For now, they were coming along.
	It was hard to give Justin a hard time about not being optimistic, because inside JC had all of the same thoughts. But he wasn't going to tell him that. He knew that would help nothing.
	"Jayce, will you play basketball with me tonight?" Justin asked, interrupting JC's train of thought.
	"Sure. Of course." JC nodded. 
	"I can do a fade away shot now. Well… Kind of," Justin admitted. "You'll see."
	"Cool. Show me later." 	
	Justin focused back on his Oreos. The anxiety in his stomach faded a little bit. Even though he knew it was raining outside, and they likely wouldn't play, he felt better anyway.
*******
	Inside, Lance stretched his aching, uncoordinated legs and listened to Joey and Chris talk about the game. He'd seen the game too, but was no where near as interested in it as these two, so had no idea how to adequately add to the conversation. So he listened, but after a few minutes, silence overcame the three again so Lance saw his opportunity to change the subject.
	"I really can't dance," he said.
	Chris laughed. "Kid, you're fine."
	"I can't dance either," Joey replied. "But we're learning."
	"You can though," Lance told him. "You're good. I really can't… I mean, I haven't danced like this before."
	"I know, that's why we're practicing," Joey persisted. "Seriously, you'll be fine. Our deadline isn't today. Practice is so we can learn."
	"The deadline's soon though. I know that. And it's… It's just not working." 
	"You're fine…" Joey persisted. "Man, you're making yourself nervous and that's what's gonna make you trip up. Right?"
	"Yeah," Lance admitted. It was completely true. But it was hard not to be nervous. "But Justin—"
	"Listen," Chris began, "Justin's just good. He knows it, we know it. But get over it. That brat will get over it too. We'll be fine, and we'll all have the routine down."
	"I don't want to drag anybody down," Lance persisted.
	"Dude." Chris shook his head. "You're not. Joey, tell him."
	Joey patted Lance's leg. "You're doing fine, Lance. It's tiring and we have to teach our bodies to move a certain way. But you're really doing fine."
	Lance nodded, not feeling completely comforted, but in reality he wasn't sure what he was looking for bringing it up. Of course they weren't going to say, Lance, you suck. Not Chris and Joey… He also wanted to ask how they thought the video would end up, but again he knew they were only going to answer him positively. 
	JC and Justin hadn't come back yet. Lance was a little jealous of their bond, but at the same time he was glad that JC had gotten Justin out of there. Lance was tired and Justin was perfecting the moves too quickly. He was getting sick of seeing him doing the steps perfectly and then watch the others, especially Lance, with a frustrated look.
	"Hey," Joey punched him lightly in the arm, noting his distracted expression. "Don't worry so much, tough guy. This is supposed to be fun."
	Lance smirked. "Time of my life."
	"You've got the vocals no problem though," Chris brought up. "Perfection."
	Lance laughed. "Well, I guess that's more important."
	"Hell yeah," Joey affirmed. 
*******
	It went by incredibly fast, two weeks of nonstop practicing and energy, and finally they were watching their 'final' cut of the video, squeezed into Chris's family room in front of the TV. The atmosphere had been so intense leading up to the video, squeezing in hours to learn and perfect everything possible, that it almost seemed so soon to be watching it already.
	They worked really hard, securing a gig from Lou at Downtown Disney's Pleasure Island on October 22nd as their actual demo with a live performance. It was their first real live performance of a group.
	As it started, Justin tried not to let out the laugh that built up inside of him. He bit his lip to keep it in, but that almost made it worse. He had all this built of anxiety about he performance, that he almost couldn't watch it without some kind of escape. It was something about the outfits and the typical moves but mostly just his own insecurity about it. So much had gone into this. 
	The performance had been nerve-wracking and a huge release as well. The anticipation of it had been building since day one, and by the time the actual performance arrived, they were all ready to burst. It turned out to be a lot of fun, and almost as much fun was a couple days earlier when they celebrated Chris's birthday on the 17th. Without much time to do anything big for his birthday, they'd thrown together a childish sort of celebration, but they had an amusing picture of themselves with crazy hats and noisemakers as a remembrance. While it was much, it was at least a worry free night for them before the true test of their dedication: the video.
	And Justin was laughing at them.  
	"Stop it," JC told him. Justin was sitting on the floor in front of the couch and he could see his shoulders shaking with laughter. "You're not supposed to laugh."
	"We look kinda stupid," Justin said, trying to stop.
	"No we don't," Chris answered, slapping Justin on the back of the head. "Don't say that."
	"Okay, okay…" Justin agreed, getting up to move onto the couch beside JC. "I'm just glad it's done." 
	"I like it," Lance replied. 
	"We sound pretty good too…" Joey complimented. He eyed the screen where they were doing a rendition of an old Beatle's song. "Not awful."
	"Guys…" JC was exasperated at the response. "You think Pearlman's going to sit watching it with these important execs and say we look stupid but sound not too awful…? Because… then what's the point?"
	"Oh, everyone's their own worst critic…" Chris soothed. "Don't take it seriously. I think it shows us off well."
	Justin just rolled his eyes, watching the image of them dancing on the screen. He laughed at little at one part, just in memory of doing a particular move, but then glanced beside him at JC and caught his eye. Suddenly JC's serious gaze made him feel guilty for laughing. He attempted to watch seriously as well. But as soon as his eyes flickered back to the television, he started to chuckle again.
	"Stop!" JC persisted. "You're being such a child. Are you gonna laugh every time we perform?" JC was kind of annoyed. They'd worked damn hard for this video, and Justin couldn't take it seriously. What if no one else took it seriously? What if this was the reaction? Just laughter because they were such posers? If they couldn't even see themselves as legit, how would anybody else?
	"If we look like that I will," Justin replied sarcastically. 
	"Justin, you helped make us look like that."
	"Oh, come on, JC, he doesn't mean it," Chris said. He continued to watch the video. He was impressed with how well-synchronized they stayed with the dancing. 
	"I know he doesn't mean it," JC muttered. "I know. It's not him I'm worried about..."
	"I think it's good," Lance persisted.
	"I do too," Justin replied. "I like it a lot actually. I only laugh because I like it. If I thought it was bad, I would say so." 
	"Is this the tape we wanna send?" Chris asked. "Anyone against it? Remember he saw the live performance too."
	"You mean whether to do it again?" Lance asked. "We can't do that, can we?"
	Chris shrugged. "Well, if it was really terrible, then—"
	"Oh, please," Joey interjected. "It is not terrible. It's fine. It's damn good actually."
	"We should ask Lynn and Diane what they think," JC replied. "They'll be our sounding board."
	"They're mothers," Justin said. "They're going to say they like it no matter what."
	"Well, it'll be good for our egos anyway," Chris laughed. "Plus they wanted to see the finished product anyway."
******
	"Wow!" Diane exclaimed. "I’m really impressed."
	"You did this all by yourselves?" Lynn asked. "I had no idea it would turn out like this, even when I saw it!" 
	"I think they like it," Justin stage whispered, rolling his eyes. He knew they'd react like this. It was a little exasperating to hear them be so supposedly shocked about it when the two of them had helped them create it and had been a big part of the process. It couldn't look much different on a TV screen than they'd expected.
	"Like it? I love it!" Lynn answered. "I can't believe it turned out so well. It's great. I can't imagine anyone not being impressed."
	"It really is," Diane persisted. "Lance, I'm so proud of you. Look, even with the dancing."
	Lance rolled his eyes, blushing. It was embarrassing that even his mother knew he was a terrible dance. 
	"All of you," she persisted. "What an accomplishment."
	"Mom, it's just a video…" Lance objected. "We don't have anything but a home made video…"
	"If those record producers doesn't love it, then there's something the matter with them," Lynn replied. "It's great. The choreography and everything. You're all so in synch with each other."
	"You keep saying that," Justin answered. "Every time we do something." 
	"Well, it's true…"
	"We should call ourselves that," JC replied, smirking a little.
	"That's stupid," Justin answered. "In synch?"
	"That's cute," Lynn started. 
	"It fits too," Diane said.
	"We don't want to be cute," Justin objected.
	"It's kind of catchy." Joey shrugged.
	"Joey." Justin gave him a look. 
	Joey grinned. "What? I kind of like it."
	Justin wrinkled his nose. "We can think of something better. Since when have we wanted to be cute and catchy?"
	"We want to form a popular band…" Chris began. "Wouldn't it be good to be exactly that, Justin?"
	Justin made a face. How could he argue with that?
	"Justin just doesn't like it because his mom thought of it," JC replied teasingly.
	"That's not true," Justin retorted. "I just think we could think of something else."
	"I thought you had been thinking. And you've come up with nothing." 
	"We came up with some stuff," Chris objected. 
	"Chris…" Justin shook his head. "Chris's Bearded Band isn't funny or clever. It's stupid."
	"Serious?" Lance looked at Chris skeptically and the man shrugged.
	"In Sync…" JC repeated. "I think it's cool. And it does fit. We can mess around with it."
	Chris took the video out of the VCR. "Well, one thing we know for sure. This tape is golden."
****** 
	Justin's mom did mess around with it, and she called them later that night from her hotel, exclaiming that she had very good news. Chris answered first, pausing the movie he was watching with JC and Justin to get up and grab the cordless phone. He walked back to the couch with it.
	"Curly, it's your mother." 
	Justin took the phone from Chris tired. "What, Mom?" Justin asked tiredly on into it.
	"Hi, honey… Diane and I still think that the name for the group is great, and we found another reason why." Her voice held enthusiasm that made Justin perk up a little bit.
	"What other reason?" 
	"Well, we looked at the letters. You know how sometimes there can be acronyms? Well we were trying to think up something like that and I think we have it."
	"With 'In Synch'?" Justin asked skeptically.
	"Are they talking about the name?" JC asked, getting up from the couch.
	"Sounds like it," Chris replied.
	"You want a drink? I'm going to grab a coke," JC said.
	"Yeah, get me one too." 
	"Justin?"
	Justin shook his head and watched JC walk out of the room as he listened to his mother explain her new idea. "If you take the last letters of your first names," she continued. "It spells it."
	Justin tried to think it out in his head quickly. "The I? And Lance…" he replied. "How's that fit?"
	Lynn laughed. You could tell she thought the idea was ingenious. "Well, first of all, you'd spell it n-s-y-n-c. And Diane suggested Lansten. It's kind of ironic how Jason's name actually fit with it. But Lansten works and I think that's such a sign, Justin."
	"Mom…" he answered slowly. "How long did you guys waste thinking this up?"
	"Justin, please. It's not a waste. Do you like it?"
"It's good, yeah." 
"Tell the other guys," she insisted. "I think it's great. N for you, honey. And C for JC. S for Chris-"
	"I get it, Ma." Justin rolled his eyes.
	"It's perfect. And it makes it more unique spelling 'in synch' differently. N-S-Y-N-C." She sighed contently. "It fits you boys so well, Justin. It describes your singing and dancing. And it's catchy. Chris is right, you do need a catchy name.
	"Yeah," he admitted. It was actually a good idea. He was surprised to admit it to himself. He liked that they could actually have a story behind it. 
	"Okay, I was just excited and had to call you," Lynn continued. 
	"No, I'm glad you did. Thanks, Mom."
	"Alright, well have a good night. Don't stay up to late, honey, okay? You need rest. It's been so busy recently." 
	"I won’t, mom. Love you."
	"Love you too. Tell the boys I said hello."
	Justin hung up the phone and yawned loudly. "My mom is crazy. Smart but crazy."
	"What'd she say?" Chris asked.
	JC walked in with a couple cans of Coke in hand. "Justin, you don't want anything?"
	"Nah," Justin answered. "I'm good."
	"What'd she say?" Chris persisted. "She still naming us?"
	Justin nodded. He started to explain the acronym perspective and tried to gauge their expressions. "I guess it's kind of clever."
	"It is," JC agreed. "I kind of like it."
	"I have to think about it," Justin said. "I like it a lot, but I'm not sure if it seems clichéd."
	"Who are you to know what's clichéd and not?" Chris laughed. "I like it. It is catchy. It's marketable. That's all we need." 
	"I'll sleep on it," Justin replied. 
	"Does it bother you Lynn came up with it?" JC asked.
	Justin shrugged. "Well, no… I guess. Let's finish the movie."
*******
	The demo video that they sent to Lou Pearlman had 'NSYNC' written on the label. After some deliberation, they finally had a name that they were all happy with it. After all, it did fit them, it made sense, and it was easy to explain. How could they ask for something more? 
	Or a better question, could any of them think of something they'd prefer?
	A huge amount had been accomplished in a short amount of time. Chris was thrilled with the progress, and so that night he bought a couple bottles of champagne and laughed at them mischievously. "Tonight," he told them simply, "we are going to celebrate." 
	Joey eyed the bottles with a frown. "That’s not enough for any celebration," he complained.
	"Sure it is," Chris answered, rolling his eyes. "Joey..." 
	Lance eyed the bottles cautiously, thinking about his mother, probably having dinner right about now with Justin's mom. He looked over at Justin, who was even younger than he was, but the boy had a huge grin on his face, eyes gleaming with an 'I get to drink too?' glint. Lance smiled to himself, telling himself he was stupid. What was he doing thinking of his mother? It's not like he hadn't had something to drink before. He had to get over these reservations. Let go a little, like Joey told him. 
	"I'm not sure it is," Joey was insisting. 
	"Sure, it's enough," Chris insisted. "Plus I've got a shitload of beer."
	"You mean a load of shitty beer," Joey mumbled.
	"So what exactly are we celebrating?" JC asked. He was sitting on the couch, controller in hand as he watched the end of a sitcom on TV. "That we can press record on a video camera? Or that we now have a name...?"
	"Both," Chris answered. He laughed but then saw JC's serious expression. "Oh, come on, don't be like that. We did it. We've made it pretty far."
	"We just gave in a tape…" JC said carefully. "We don't even know if he'll look at it."
	"Oh, he'll look at it," Chris insisted. "I've talked to him repeatedly about how interested we are. He's financing us. He'll watch it and know who to show it to."
	JC nodded, accepting that. "Still... Isn't it a little premature to celebrate?"  
	"Not at all. We're celebrating step one being completed. We just worked our asses off, you know?"
	"Yeah, I want to celebrate," Justin said, eyeing the champagne. 
	"See?" Chris wrapped his arm around Justin with a grin. "Someone wants to celebrate with me." He rubbed his hand over Justin's curly hair. "Somebody understands that our hard work has paid off."
	"Someone's glad he gets booze," Joey retorted. 
	"Same difference," Chris replied. "Justin, you wanna go get glasses from inside, buddy boy? Champagne glasses."
	Justin nodded and headed for the kitchen.	
	"You have champagne glasses?" Lance asked.
	"And better yet, Justin knows what they look like?" Joey laughed.
	JC still looked a little hesitant as he remained seated on the couch. He wasn't sure about all this excitement. He didn't feel like they'd accomplished too much. Now was a time to have fingers crossed and really pray that something took off. Not get overexcited. He hated to be the downer of the group, always serious when it came to stuff like this, but at the same time he'd been disappointed so many times before... He was just trying to be realistic. "What if we jinx ourselves?"
	"Bullshit," Chris answered. "Man, come on."
	"No, I know what JC's saying... " Joey admitted. "I'll have the champagne and beer, of course, but I don't want to be overly optimistic either," Joey agreed. "Just in case. I mean, now's the time to just hope we did all we could."
	"Well, you know, just saying that is being pessimistic," Chris replied with a small frown. He was surprised to be met with such objection. He really thought he'd be doing them a favor. All their hard work these past few weeks… Where was the harm in just a little bit of relaxation and celebration?
	"You never know…"
	Chris held the bottles tightly for a moment. "Guys, come on. We're not going to think that way. We sent in the tape. We have a name. We're proud of it. We have Lou. What else can we do?"
	"Just wait. Not tempt fate…" JC said.
	"I never took you as being superstitious." Chris shook his head. He sighed and looked towards the kitchen impatiently, even though it had only been a minute. "What's taking that boy so long? The glasses are not hard to find."
	"I'll help him," JC replied a little stiffly. He got up and walked towards the kitchen. 
	Chris watched him leave and then exchanged a frustrated look with Joey, who just shrugged and said, "Man... It's just the way he is, that's all... He knows that things sometimes aren't as good as they seem. He's not trying to bring you down or anything though."
	"He is though."
	"You know he's a worrier."
	"Yeah, but come on..." Chris sighed. "Well, I don't care. I for one am going to celebrate."
	JC walked into the kitchen and found Justin looking through one of Chris's cabinets, peering in to the mismatch of cups, mugs, and glasses.  He turned around when he heard the footsteps and gave JC a frown. "There's so many glasses…" he said. "Which does he want me to get again?"
	JC grunted and walked over. He looked in the cabinet that was open and scanned his eyes over the shelves. He really wondered if Chris even had champagne glasses. He didn't see him as the type of guy the frequently used different glasses. After all, he'd seen Chris drinking wine out of a coffee mug just about a week ago. He flipped open a couple other cabinet doors and looked in, seeing wine glasses. He perused a little behind them and felt the narrow stems of champagne glasses.
	Well, imagine that. He did. Chris was an eclectic one, after all.
	He put a couple out on the counter and then reached in for more. He put those down as well, clinking them gently against the countertop. He felt Justin's eyes on him as he moved, but said nothing.
	"What's the matter?" Justin finally asked. JC had that quiet look on his face. That look that meant… Well, Justin wasn't sure exactly what it meant. Just that there was something going on.
	"Nothing." JC shook his head. "What makes you ask that?" He pulled one last glass out carefully from the back. There. Five.
	"Why don't people use the fat glasses for champagne?"
	"Those are for wine," JC answered.
	"I know."
	"Then you answered your own question."
	"But those glasses don't hold much," Justin pointed out as he indicated the champagne glasses.
	"Well, that's just how they make them."
	"We should just drink from the bottle then." Justin paused and then lifted himself up to sit on the counter, feet dangling above the floor. He eyed his serious friend critically, slightly annoyed that JC was refusing to be happy about their first accomplishment, but also a little concerned. "What's the matter, JC? Seriously." 
	"Justin, it's nothing. Let's just go inside and ―"
	"No, come on, be honest..." Justin insisted, knowing for sure that if roles were reversed, JC wouldn't let him leave until they had some kind of heart to heart. He was going to attempt do the same. 
	"Well…" JC paused, running his hand over the countertop distractedly. He looked at the glasses that he'd just set out in a daze and blinked, finally concentrating on Justin's question. "Let's see. Honest. Well, I'm just hoping that, like Joe said, Chris isn't celebrating too early. And I know he thinks we're being pessimistic, but I mean, really, we only sent in a tape. And that's great and all…"
	"I thought it was a big deal we sent in a tape."
	"Justin, when you tried out for MMC, did you go out and celebrate the second after?"
	Justin shrugged. "Well, I was really happy."
	Of course he was. He probably had celebrated, and JC regretted his choice for comparison. At that age Justin had been even more easily excited then than his was now. "You know what I mean."
	"But this is different."
	"You can't... What's that expression... Don't count the eggs before they hatch."
	"But it is a big  deal, JC," Justin said. "Not just anybody can make a tape like that, and send it in, and know people are going to look at it."
	JC shrugged. He wasn't sure how they could be so confident that somebody would look at it, but he didn't say that. He let Justin continue.
	"And the celebrating..." Justin shrugged. "This is just how Chris is… Champagne never hurt nobody… I'm glad he's excited. I was glad to see him excited. He's been so wired lately, trying to get everything together." 
	JC sighed. How could he explain himself? After all, he wanted to explain how he felt, but at the same time the last thing he wanted to do was to alter Justin's mood. And he suddenly grew hestitant that he was. "So am I. I am excited. It's really nice… But I just don't want to get too optimistic. That's all I meant."
	Justin shrugged again, quieted. He was starting to get JC's message, and wasn't competely sure how to respond. Basically, the higher the excitement and expectation, the harder the fall. That was obvious though. And  while it worried him too, in fact worried him a lot, he was getting slightly annoyed at JC's inability to just relax and realize that they were doing all they could.
	JC leaned back against the counter and looked at Justin sideways. He hadn't said anything in return. This was what JC was afraid of. "Justin... What?"
	"What do you mean, what?"
	"Now you've got something on your mind," JC answered with a smirk. "Right?"
	"I'm just wondering what… I mean, just if you think it won't work, JC… why are you even bothering?"
	JC crossed his arms over his chest lazily. Great job, JC. Get the kid in a bad mood just because you can't deal with your own insecurities. Smart move. "That what won't work?"
	"The group."
	JC stood up straighter, turning to face Justin. "Come on… I never said that…" he began. "When'd I say that?"
	"Well, why else would you not want to celebrate? You think that if we get too excited now, it'll suck even more later when we find out that this Pearlman guy and whoever else doesn't actually give a shit about us."
	JC shook his head. "Obviously Pearlman's interested—He's wasted money if he isn't. It's not him I'm worried about."
	"You are pessimistic now. Why do you have to do that?" Justin sulked. "You can't say you're excited, because you're not. It's one or the other, JC. If you were excited, you wouldn't have responded to Chris like that. You know, I understand you don't like to get all your hopes up, JC. But can't you just pretend?" 
	"I'm bad at pretending. But I'm not pessimsitic, and I am excited. I think we've done a lot. I'm just nervous… And don't mind me then, Justin. Celebrate. Pretend we'll be famous tomorrow."
	"JC."
	"Go ahead, pretend."
	"JC, stop."
	"Oh, Justin." JC sighed, rolling his eyes. "Stop worrying so much about thinking what I think, and just feel whatever your gut feels."
	"Well, I really wish you'd cut it out." Justin glanced towards the kitchen door with a deep frown. "I wanted to celebrate and now it's.... Not the same." 
	"Oh, please. Just give me a break, kid, alright? I'm sorry if I can't feel as excited as Chris. Is that a crime?"
	"Because..." Justin persisted. He stared down now at his dirty sneakers, tapping the back of his heels into the counter base beneath him. "So you really think it might not work?"
	"Justin…" JC looked back at the champagne glasses for a moment before shaking his head. He moved forward and put his hands on Justin's knees and squeezed gently through his baggy jeans. "Listen. I never said that. All I said is that there's not too much to celebrate yet, that's all."
	"Won't there be?"
	"Well, let's celebrate then. I never said I was against it."
	"Can't we just celebrate having a name?"
	"Sure. Let's celebrate our name. What the hell."
	"Because whatever happens, happens. And it won't be so bad at the MMC because it can't hurt as much to lose something you never had."
	JC knew he was referring to the cancellation of their show and felt a pain deep in his gut. Like a pang of longing nostalgia that was just never going to be tangible again. He could never fully wrap himself around it. But he didn't want Justin to compare any of this to that. He didn't want Justin to feel any of his fears. He wished he hadn't opened up so much. 
	"You kill me," JC said. He reached up and dug his fingers into Justin's sides, tickling him. "Let's drop this. If you weren't worried too, you wouldn't get so moody about me analyzing things. So we can worry because it's natural, but we can still celebrate too. Either way don't let me change how you feel."
	Justin laughed reflexively under JC's fingers, squirming without much space to get away on the counter. JC was ending the conversation, and he wasn't sure if he was completely done but there was little choice. There was no point in arguing about it, and it was hard to change the way someone felt. "Stop." He pushed him away, moving to slide off the counter and away from his friend's hands. As attempted to escape to the ground to move away, the sound of glass shattering was hard to ignore.
	And then there were four champagne glasses sitting on the counter.
	"Shit…" Justin muttered, sitting there dumbly for a minute. "You did it, not me." He moved to slide down. 
	JC put a hand on Justin's belly and slowed him. "Hey wait... Watch out where the glass is." He moved his hand, and Justin pushed past him to get down. 
	"I can see where it is." Justin pushed him away and slid down, walking away from it. "You clean it up."
	"Don't even bother," came Chris's voice from the doorway. "I'll take care of it. And I'm blaming both of you." He sighed. "Oh my good china."
	Justin just looked at him. "Good china?"
	Chris rolled his eyes at them. "What do you know? Anyway. What's taking you two so long? Have your pow-wow out here with us."
	"Your cabinets aren't exactly organized, you know." Justin started walking back inside. "You have four. You'll find another."
	Chris watched the kid leave and then turned to view JC, who was leaning down to start picking up glass. 
	"So what deep conversation were you two having now?" Chris asked, frowning at the palm full of glass JC now had. "And leave it, you idiot.  I have a broom so don't use your hands."
	"No deep conversation," JC replied, getting up to throw out a couple large pieces of glass. "Just discussing the merit of celebration."
	"And?"
	"And just don't mind me." JC shook his head with a smile. "Apparently."
	"Uh-huh…" Chris replied. It was about the best answer he could hope for. "Well… You want champagne? Joey does and I bet I can get some down Lance's throat. Joey's a good influence on that southern boy." He smirked before giving JC a knowing look. "And we'll try not to be too superstitious." 
	JC gave a small grin and a nod of allowance. "I know, I know. Where's your broom?" 
	"I'll get it after. Can we have a party now? Just remind me not to come down barefoot in the morning," Chris said. "We'll clean that up later."
	"You sure?"
	"Yeah. What's a kitchen without broken glass all over...." Chris considered it for a minute, thinking that somebody was going to be stupid and end up with glass in their food, but decided to hope for the best. He wanted to just relax. "Let's go inside. And don't worry, JC, the real party will come soon enough."
	"Maybe," JC agreed.
	"Definitely."
******
	As hopeful as they were, they didn't expect any immediate results. However, it wasn't long until enough time passed without word to make the guys start to wonder whether they really had begun to celebrate a little too early. Despite this, they kept going. Their recording of the video at Pleasure Island had provoked them to continue performing locally, and Pearlman encouraged it, helping to set up different locations, including simple places like high schools. Their local shows had some nice responses, despite such small audiences, and it made them feel good to have a choreographed, complete show. They looked and sounded like a real group.
	"But it's not the same," Justin whispered as he thought about it, glancing over at JC beside him on the couch.
	JC looked at him briefly but then said nothing, turning back to the TV.
	"It's not the same," Justin repeated, as if JC hadn't heard him.
	JC had heard him. He just hadn't wanted to reply, but now he felt he couldn't just ignore him. When Justin repeated something, it meant he really wanted to talk about it. And when he really wanted something, the easiest thing to do was give it to him.  So he gave in and simply replied, "What would be different?"
	Justin knew what would be different. His parents wouldn't be talking to him about school and what his long term plans were. He wouldn't have to think about going back to Tennessee. He wouldn't have this terrible gut feeling all the time that things might not work out and he'd have to be a normal kid after all. But he didn't want to say all that. All of that just sounded stupid, like kids stuff. Especially to JC, whose parents seemed to let him do everything. 
	"I want us to be on the radio… I wanna have a CD… I want to play for a crowd that isn't in someone's gym or mall..." Justin sulked and stretched his legs out, toes inching forward to touch the coffee table. 
	"Well, we all do. Things just don't happen so easily," JC replied, taking a deep breath.  What else was he supposed to say?
	"Don't sigh like that," Justin objected. "When you do that it's like… Why do you do that?"
	"Don't whine like that, and I won't sigh like that," JC retorted.
	"Whine?" Justin echoed. "I don't whine."
	JC sighed again. 
	Justin grunted in frustration, reaching over to pinch JC's arm. "God, JC."
	"God, Justin. Hey. Ow." JC rubbed at his arm where Justin had pinched and gave him a look. "That hurts."
	Justin fidgeted in his seat. "JC, when am I going to be famous?"
	"You're already famous." JC didn't blame him for his restlessness. He was restless too. Every day it became more and more nerve-wracking, wondering if they would get any commitment from anybody about signing them.  But even harder, he was just tired yet unable to be truly pessimistic in front of Justin, who was obviously looking to him for optimism. And he couldn't just like.
	"How am I already famous?" Justin answered.
	"Your mom would love to have your autograph."
	"Not funny. I'm really serious." Justin paused, then tugged at JC's arm. "Tell me when… When we'll actually have a big deal…"
	JC patted Justin on the arm, not wanting to answer. He didn't want to tell him what he was thinking, about his doubts, about his natural pessimism. That hadn't worked out well before. There was only so much honesty he could share with a fourteen year old. He thought about his other ventures for fame, whether it be Orlando, or California, or Tennessee. 
	He didn't want to tell Justin that he'd even been thinking about how long he would really wait before deciding when to move back.  He wished Justin would stop asking him questions because he already had enough questions jumbled inside of his head. How long were they supposed to wait though? A week? A month? Two months? And what was really important here? Fame or happiness?
	"How long's it take them to decide?" Justin insisted, as though reading his mind.
	"I don't know…" JC answered. That was his consistent answer. He would expect Justin to get tired of it. Saying that he didn't know should have been pretty obvious, but Justin always came back with questions, as if he'd suddenly have the answers. JC figured it was because Chris had already lost patient with questions. He tried to think of an answer to help both of them. "Hey, remember those forms, on the show? When you tried out?"
	"Yeah."
	"I was just thinking." JC patted Justin's thigh. "Remember how they rated you on everything and gave you a score?" 
	"Yeah."
	"Well, they have to do that for the group. And it takes longer. Because more people are looking at it."
	"The same thing?" Justin looked skeptical.
	"Well, more or less…" JC replied. "Everyone has metrics like that to analyze. There's a lot to take into consideration, you know?" It was hard to convince Justin of that, who decided things on a whim, and really wanted instant gratification for his every move. He expression conveyed just that. Justin knew he should be famous and would be persistent until it happened.
	Justin shook his head. "It's not just that. Because we sounded good. We looked good. Sounded good is the key here."
	"A lot of people sound good. That's part of it." 
	Justin leaned into him. "Really good."
	"A lot—"
	"Okay, whatever." Justin rolled his eyes. "I get it." 
	"So we just have to wait."
	"I hate waiting," Justin muttered.
	"I had no idea," JC answered sarcastically. 
******	
	Justin tossed Lance the basketball with a frown. Normally he would be thrilled to play, but Lance was not very good at basketball. Justin tried to put up with it as he watched Lance take a shot with a grimace on his face. Joey had yelled at him when he complained about playing with Lance last time, told him to stop giving Lance a hard time, and even though Justin wasn't sure how pointing out the truth about somebody's limited skills was a hard time, he just wasn't in the mood to get yelled at again. 
	"I'm not very good," Lance said as the ball hit the rim. 
	No kidding, Justin wanted to say. Instead he said, "Hey, at least it hit the rim," before making a three pointer with the rebound.
	"Would you be on a team if you weren't doing this?" Lance asked. He thought Justin was pretty good at basketball. 
	Justin smiled. "Dude, if I wasn't going after this singing career…" He shot again and made a free throw. "I'd be trying for the NBA."
	"You'd have to be a little taller for that," Lance laughed. Justin was cocky. It did annoy him, but at the same time he admired it a little bit. Ignore him, Joey told him, but Lance kind of disagreed. Justin shined. Lance wanted to shine like that too.
	"I'll grow," Justin replied. "I’m just fourteen. I'm going to get taller."
	"So maybe you'll do the singing first and then the NBA," Lance said. He was kind of kidding, but he saw Justin's eager nod. He wanted to laugh at him, but decided to let Justin enjoy the dreams.
	"Wouldn't that be amazing?" Justin replied. "I would have, like, the greatest life ever."
	"That would be cool," Lance agreed. It really would be, he just didn't like so much how sure Justin was that he could achieve it.
	"What would you do?" Justin asked, passing him the ball. "Like in addition to or instead of what we're doing?"
	"Well, I'd like to have what we're doing go somewhere," Lance began.
	"Obviously." Justin rolled his eyes.
	"And then… I don't know. I guess I haven't thought too much ahead, you know? I like the theatre side too. Like acting."
	"Yeah, I like acting too," Justin agreed. 
	Of course you would, Lance thought. And you're probably really good at it too. Instead of asking, Lance just nodded and shot the ball again. It hit the backboard kind of hard but this time went in.
	"Banked it," Justin said. 
	Lance pretended that was praise despite the lack of enthusiasm in Justin's voice, and got his own rebound. "What if it doesn't work out? Will you go home?"
	Justin made a face. "I don't even want to think about that."
	"Yeah, me neither."
	"Like, going back to school? Not going to happen."
	"I know what you mean," Lance agreed.
	"This will work out. I really trust Chris," Justin began. "Don't you have a good feeling about it?"
	"I do," Lance admitted. "And I know it doesn't happen overnight. I just wish it did. When you watch somebody else's career, it always seems like overnight."
	"Yeah, I know." Justin had the ball now and just dribbled it between his legs. "JC gets so pessimistic sometimes. And what makes it worse is that I know I’m not even seeing all of it because he knows it bugs me and pretends not to be thinking it." He rolled his eyes. "He's so jaded."
	"Yeah, well I guess we need someone slightly pessimistic," Lance replied. "Someone to keep us realistic."
	"Oh, I'm realistic," Justin persisted. "We're going to be famous. And JC wants to think that too, he's just afraid to."
	"Yeah. Well..."
	"What do you think? Honestly?"
	Before Lance could reply, Joey's voice came from the edge of the yard. He was in the doorway, holding the door open. "Guys, we're gonna eat, come on in."
	"I bet you can't make this shot, Joey," Justin challenged, backing up from his position and squaring up to the basket before releasing and making a perfect shot.
	Lance just shook his head. Always the show off. But again, kind of amusing. Lance got the rebound.
	"Did I say I cared?" Joey began. "No, I think I just said I was hungry. Get your ass inside."
	Lance laughed. Joey was the most down to earth of all of them in his opinion. He loved the way he didn't put up with anybody's crap.
	Justin raised his eyebrows. "Can't do it? That's all you have to say, Joey."
	"What does whether I can or can't do it really change, Justin?" Joey persisted.
	Justin's brow furrowed. "It says whether you can or can't do it."
	"I'm hungry."
	"Then shoot it quick." 
	"Justin, if I come out there, there's more of a chance that I'll beat you with the ball than shoot it," Joey began. "You still want me to come over?"
	Justin frowned. "You're no fun, Joey."
	"You're just tons enough for both of us, Justin." Joey rolled his eyes. "Come eat. Lance, put the ball down."
	Lance tossed the ball up at the rim and made one last shot. He was glad it actually went in. That way, he got the last shot. 
	"Fine, food it is," Justin consented.
*****
	Finally the real party did come.
	The expression better late than never was more true than they imagined. In April, Lou Pearlman finally got back in touch with them. He and some others liked their demo and was interested in continuing to finance them. He would help with the expenses dealing with voice and dance instruction. He informed them that he was getting in touch with Johnny Wright, the manager behind groups like New Kids, Snap, Color Me Bad, and the Backstreet Boys. He'd also talk with RCA, a prospective record company that was the American counterpart of the German based BMG company.
	"What'd I tell you?" Chris shouted after he'd gotten off the phone. "Get ready to sign your names on the line, fellas, because our time has come!" He was bouncing in his steps.
	"That's what he said?" JC asked, watching Chris hug Joey. "It's still Lou though?"
	Justin felt like jumping up and down but contained himself. Although he'd been waiting for what seemed like forever, he still could barely believe it. He felt a surge of energy and excitement. "Really? We have a deal? Honest?"
	"Who's Johnny Wright?" was Lance's question. "We haven't heard him mentioned before."
	"He's in Germany right now, apparently," Chris explained. "But Lou's sending him the video tape, because he wants us on and Johnny can get us signed."
	"And then we can make CDs and tour, right?" Justin insisted. 
	"Right." Chris grinned. 	
	Justin nearly squealed in excitement.
	"So how is this different from what we heard before?" JC persisted. "People still need to see the tape?"
	"Did you get it in writing?" Joey asked.
	Chris looked at Joey and JC and wanted to slap them both, but as he got beyond their words, which were valid questions, he realized they were grinning as well. Everyone, for the first time in a while, was grinning. This was better than the cheap champagne. 
	"I’m going to be famous," Justin said excitedly, hugging Chris so hard he nearly knocked his breath away. 
	"That's the plan, Brillo," Chris retorted, rubbing Justin's hair fondly. "We are going to be amazing."
******
	Finally they met the talked about Johnny Wright, a kind black man with a smile that put them all at ease. He told them how he'd been out of the country on business, but Lou's phone call had convinced him to check out this new group in Orlando.
	"And here you are," he said. He was dressed casually, a baseball cap on his head, and offered an laid back attitude, but he obviously meant business and was anxious to see the guys for what they were. "You boys put that video together all by yourselves?"
	"Yes, we did," Chris replied proudly. "And hopefully it paid off."
	"Oh, I think it will," Johnny agreed. "It will… I've seen my fair share of groups in my day, and you five definitely caught my eye. You had the voices, and the look, but there's also a certain chemistry, you know? Not like we threw five guys in a room together. And the name. It..."
	"It fits," Chris said simply.
	"It does." Johnny smiled. "I really like it. Well, I've done my introductions. Why don't you guys do yours? Then if you guys don't mind, I'd like to hear you sing a bit, and I'll tell you about this record company called BMG."
******
	"God... There's going to be a lot to read," Chris said once back at his house with the guys. He was flipping through some preliminary paperwork that they had gotten and in front of him on the coffee table was another pile. There were so many things to sign without even being on any contract yet. He put his feet up on the coffee table, shoving some of the papers aside tiredly. "A lot."
	There was still a lot of excitement, but after a long and somewhat stressful day, paperwork and details currently curtailed the enthusiasm. They'd spent the last several hours being bombarded with information, including deals and options, sacrifices and promises. It was a lot to keep track of. And even though weeks were spent waiting for just this, it was overwhelming.
	"It all sounds good to me," Justin said, yawning. 
	"You haven't even looked at anything, Justin," Chris answered, eyeing the way Justin was slouched down on the couch, nearly across JC's lap. "How does it all sound good?"
	"What they said today," Justin mumbled. "It sounded good."
	Chris shook his head. Of course Justin was always adamantly vocal in everything, but as soon as it came down to complicated stuff or paperwork, he comfortably reverted back into a kid. Chris didn't blame him though, he was was too tired to read himself and just wanted to close his eyes like the fourteen year old and sleep off the excitement. And details. 
	"Well, we have to read it all first," Chris said. "You can't just sign your name."
	"Do we all have to read it?" Lance asked.
	"Yes," Chris replied. "What good are the two of you?"
	"It's just a lot..." Lance frowned at the papers. "Can we split it up?"
	"We should all understand it," Chris persisted. If there was one thing he was nervous about, it was of being taken advantage. Everyone always seemed well-intended, but it was important to remember that everyone also looked out for their own best interest. If they all read it, there was at least more of chance of them not missing anything.
	"I was telling my mom about it," Joey said. "And she said we ought to get a lawyer to help us out too."
	"As great as that would be, lawyers cost money," Chris replied. "So unless you've got a lawyer in your family, it might be tough to swing that."
	"Why are you acting so nervous about it? What's going to be in there?" Justin asked.
	"Anything," Chris replied.
	"Anything like what?" Justin answered. "But he just walked us through everything and beyond everything today." 
	Chris just shrugged and Justin turned his head to JC. "Like what?" 
	"You just never know for sure," JC said tiredly. "It could bind us to all kinds of stuff so we have to be careful. Like it could say, I hereby own Justin Timberlake and every dollar he makes, and you can't just sign it."
	"I'm not just gonna sign it…" Justin rolled his eyes. "I just figured ya'll would read it."
	"Right here," Joey said, pointing to a random spot on the page he was looking at, "says we owe our first born."
	"Well, too bad you're sterile," Justin replied.
	"Funny one." Joey glared. 
	"At least Lou and Johnny seem like good guys," Chris said. "I don't think we'll have to worry about anything, but we'll have to take some precautions anyway. I'm not going into any of this blind." 
	"It's always thinking you don't have to worry," Joey admitted. "But I agree. They seem trustworthy."
	"Well, one thing's for sure... They wouldn't go through the trouble of all this paperwork if they weren't really interested, right?" Lance asked.
	Joey nodded. "That's what I'd say."
****** 
	Paperwork was just the beginning. Things began to move much faster once names were placed on the dotted lines. It was like a whirlwind as they began to get more information on how to get their careers jumpstarted. 
	Justin was extremely excited about all the news until he relayed the most recent tentative plans to his mother and saw her expression change.
	"Germany?" Lynn gave her son a skeptical look. "Is that what they're saying now? Justin, honey, I don't know…"
	"What do you mean, you don't know?" Justin replied. "Of course you know. Yes. If that's what we need to do, then that's what we need to do. I'm not exactly asking permission here."
	"Don't get fresh, Justin. I know you want this but I still make the final decisions. Orlando is one thing, but Germany? That's a completely different story."
	Justin tried to remain patient. Negative answers always stirred up so much frustration inside of him. "Mom... I did not come to Orlando to do all of this hard work, wait this long, and then get the next step to have you say no. That's bullshit, mom."
	"You watch your mouth, Justin. You can't just spring this on me and expect—"
	"Expect what? Come on…" Justin gave his mother a sigh and waited. He knew it was a lot on the table. Time had flown by once again and different ideas had begun to be sent their way from Johnny, Lou, and BMG concerning their emergence as a group, including the prospective plans for them to become known. An overseas tour. Starting with some basic PR things in Germany.
	"Don't you dare tell me to 'come on'." Lynn gave him a stern look. "Justin, how can you possibly expect me to simply say yes to this? Without even consideration? We don't know anything about Germany."
	"You're saying no because you don't know about Germany? Well, then I'll get you a damn book on Germany, Mom."
	"You better watch your mouth, Justn." She shook her head. "Sassing me is not going to get you what you want."
	"Then give me a good reason why I can't."
	"I didn't say you definitely can't, Justin. I'm telling you I'm going to have to think about it." 
	"JC's doing it."
	Her face flashed with exasperation. "Justin, you know, you use his decisions as a support for every argument, and it's not going to work every time. JC's not mine― you are. And what his parents decide isn't necessarily what I decide. And I'd be shocked if his parents have already agreed."
	Justin shrugged. "His parents support him."
	She eyed him. "And I don't support you, Justin? I've been with you every second of this. Who brings you to every interview, every audition? I've stuck through the process, but this is big news to stomach. I'm sure his parents aren't thrilled about him going to Germany."
	Justin shrugged. 
	"Are they?" she persisted. "Do you even know?"
	"Well, he hasn't said anything yet."
	She grew exasperated. "Well, then? How are you blaming me already?"
	"They'll say yes, mom." Justin scowled. "And it's not fair. I’m the baby and I'm going to be the only one whose mom is going to say no. You're so unfair!"
	"I'm not sure Diane is too keen on this either," Lynn persisted. "Why couldn't you boys start in the US? That's what I don't understand."
	"Because the market's different here, it's like… I don't know. Johnny explained it to us." Justin rubbed a hand over his face. He was tired. "It's much better if we start over there first. A lot of groups do that." He started to explain to her, he started to repeat the same information that they'd gotten. The way things worked, their future...
	Soon she interrupted him.
	"Justin… I don't know if I buy that. I'm not sure I'm comfortable with this whole idea. You can't trust everybody. Have you signed everything?"
	Justin stared at her in disbelief. "Why'd you make up the name then, mom? The whole stupid name when you were never even going to let me do it anyway? Why'd you waste your time? Why are we even here?" 
	She just shook her head. She'd created this king of drama, and she was used to this kind of melodramatics. But she also had the patience. "Baby, listen, you're not understanding... Did you even hear what I said?"
	"No, I understand completely," he answered. "It's bullshit!"
	Lynn watched Justin storm out of her hotel room and leaned back in her chair, shutting her eyes. This was expected. She would think about it, of course. But how could she just give in? What if Justin's future wasn't meant to hold such a crazy plan? How could a child be expected to go live over in some distant country away from home and perform for people who didn't even speak his language?
	They hadn't even heard all the details yet.
	She knew she couldn't be the only mother unsure. 
******
	Chris had Nintendo. And a lot of games, too, which Justin decided was perfect for taking out anger. He sat on the floor in front of the TV and played the most violent game he could find.
	Justin wanted to play basketball and take out his aggression physically, but it was raining pretty heavily outside. That in itself almost made him feel like crying, and he felt like such a girl for being emotional, but he was so mad. There was this feeling in the pit of his stomach that it just wasn't going to work out, and that after all this crap, he was going to have to go back and go to real school and it would all be hell again.
	"I think you died a while ago."
	Justin looked behind him at where Joey was suddenly sitting on the couch with a beer in hand, frowning at him. He looked back at the TV where the game over screen was blinking at him, and then down at the controller in his hands. 
	"Maybe it would be more fun if you actually played," Joey persisted. "Like, you know, hit a couple buttons."
	"Don't you know when to leave somebody alone?" Justin answered irritably, voice hitching. He reached forward to push the button to reset the game. "God." The theme music of the game started again loudly.
	"Sorry, I mustn't have gotten the memo," Joey replied evenly. "You on the rag again?"
	Justin rolled his eyes. Joey was always making jokes. And people were always laughing. Well, he didn't feel like laughing, so Joey would have to deal with an unresponsive audience. 
	Joey always gave Justin a hard time, figuring he deserved it since most the time the kid walked around like everyone owed him something. But every now and then Justin seemed raw and insecure, and at that moment, Joey felt somewhat sympathetic. 
	"You wanna talk?" Joey offered gently.
	"Go away," Justin responded stiffly. He was staring at the game menu.
	"Since JC's on the phone and no one else is home, you can feel free to talk to me, you know. Socialize. Vent. If something's the matter."
	"Nothing's the matter." Justin answered, clicking the button for one player and shifting in his seat. Lance was out with his mother and Chris was at work. "What makes you think I want to tell you or JC anything?"
	"Well, you could if you wanted, that's all. If something was up."
	"Nothing is up."
	"Something down then?"
	Justin shrugged. Joey was a little swifter with that line then he'd expected him to be. He'd caught the insinuation.  
	He couldn't talk to Joey. He'd gotten friendlier with the man, more comfortable with him, but it was in a hanging out sort of way. A way that he liked to go to see him at work and have him to mess around with, but not to explain how he was feeling. He'd think he was so stupid. He knew Lance talked seriously with Joey, but every time Justin talked to him it was mostly retorts and punch lines. Justin thought of him as that bully older brother, one who just wasn't there for the sentimental or sensitive moments. They all knew Justin was sensitive, and it usually didn't get him many points. 
	"Come on, Justin. You can talk to me. I know I don't know you as well as JC, but shouldn’t that change if we're going to be living together in close quarters in some other country?" Joey had a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
	Justin set his jaw. That sentence hit a nerve. "You really think we're going to be doing that?"
	"What do you mean? If things work out, then, yeah. And I'll get to fuck hot foreign chicks." He grinned. "And you'll be a lot closer to legally drinking."
	Justin wondered if they would blame him too much when he wasn't able to go. In a way it was such a dreamlike idea, that he couldn't imagine himself going, but at the same time it just seemed natural and he wanted to go. But what if Lynn said no? She always said yes. But what if she was the one to say no this time? Besides, it might not just be him. It might be Lance too. Lance's more couldn't agree if Justin's mom didn't…
	What if none of it happened?
	What had all of this time been spent for?
	Joey cleared his throat. "You died again."
	Justin tossed the controller away and grunted, watching it hit the carpet with a thud. He stared ahead, back to Joey. "Fine, I died. Good."
	"What's the matter, Justin?" Joey persisted. "And Chris is pretty protective of his crap, so I wouldn't throw it like that if I were you. I stepped on his Gameboy once and he had a fit."
	"It's not like it's broken."
	Joey shrugged. "Just saying."
	"You really think we'll go to Germany?" Justin asked. "Why start there?" He couldn't believe he was asking the same question as his mother.
	Joey frowned. "Justin, we went over—"
	"Don't even answer." Justin shook his head. "I'm just…  No, it's not me."
	"A lot of groups start out like this."
	"I know," Justin answered. "I'm not the one to tell." 
	Joey frowned at the back of Justin's curly head. He didn't say anything for a moment, confused, and by that time Justin was getting up, flipping off the TV.
	"I'm pissed," was all Justin told him when he turned and faced him. "I'm real pissed."
	"I see that," Joey answered. He scrutinized the boy carefully.
	"I don't need to talk to you. Get that look off your face," Justin told him. "I just need air. But it's raining. Of course it's raining when I need air."
	Joey smirked a little bit. If anything, Justin did amuse him. "Chill, boy."
	Justin shook his head. He started walking towards Chris's room where JC had been on the phone and hopefully still was. Justin pushed open the half ajar door and saw his friend there, lying flat on his back on the bed with the phone to his ear and one arm cast across his eyes. If it wasn't for the phone, Justin would have guessed he was asleep.
	"I know…" JC was saying into the phone. "It is kind of weird…" He laughed. "Right? I mean, That's what I said… Uh-huh… Sure… Mm... Exactly"
	Justin walked across the room to the bed and flopped down beside his friend. JC arm lifted off his eyes to look at him with slight surprise on his face. "Jesus, you scared me," he whispered. Then he smirked and  his expression changed. "No, mom. Just Justin… Uh-huh… He is." He put a hand on Justin's head. "Uh-huh…. He's good… Justin, say hi to Mom." JC held the phone out.
	"Hi, Mom," Justin said into the phone.
	JC put the phone back to his ear. "See? Yep… You should see him. Gonna be such a popstar. Already got the attitude… I know… I will..." JC patted Justin's head. "She says you've always had the attitude," he teased with a laugh.
	"Yeah, yeah..." Justin objected good-naturedly. He closed his eyes and sighed, wishing he always got to sleep in Chris's bed. JC's conversation shifted back off of him and he sighed, moving to press his face against JC's arm. He wished he could find some kind of comfort in their future. "JC, what's she saying about Germany?" He said into his shirt.
	"Sh, J…" JC answered in a whisper. Then he said, "I don't know, mom. I don't know what they said…. What? …  Dad said that? Really?"
	"Is that what you're talking about?" Justin persisted. All he wanted to know was whether everyone else say yes or no? He nudged his arm with his chin, wishing he could get some kind of indication. 
	"I'm not surprised… Yeah…" JC's hand slipped gently over Justin's mouth. "I just wanted to let you know… Of course… Of course… Yeah, I know, Mom…. Yep…. No, it's raining here actually. It has been nice though and― What? …  Yes. I own an umbrella." JC sighed. "Yeah, I missed it too. Uh-huh… Okay."
	"The weather?" Justin asked incredulously through JC's fingers. He reached to pull the other's hand down. "Did you tell her about what Johnny said?" 
	"No, Mom, that's Justin again," JC said, putting his hand back over Justin's face. "He's trying to have a three-way conversation, I think… Yep… Talk it over with Dad, alright? … Yeah. Give Ty and Heather a kiss okay? Tell them I'll call later… Yep. Okay… Right… Love you too… I will… Bye."
	JC reached over and hung up the phone, lifting his hand from his friend's face. "What, Justin?" He settled back into the pillows and yawned.  "I hate when you do that."
	Justin studied the fabric of JC's blue shirt. "Do what?"
	"When you ignore the fact that I'm on the phone." 
	"I didn't. I said hi to your mom." 
	JC just shook his head, yawning again and closing his eyes. 
	Justin persisted. "What'd your mom say to everything Johnny said? Did you tell her what he said?"
	"That would be what we were talking about."
	"And what'd she say?"
	"That she and dad would still have to talk it over. They kinda wanna see the paperwork too. Just to make sure. You know? Actually Ty and Heather have a long weekend, this one coming up and I think and we might get together."
	"Mine said no."
	"Really?" JC's brow furrowed. He was a little surprised at Justin's firm statement. Just how he hadn't accepted his mother's initial disapproval of Orlando, he doubted he would accept her no on this without a fight. Especially since he must have just told her. "Justin, I don't think your mom's ever said no."
	"She was such a… Ugh…  I won't say it. But, all she said was stuff like… 'I'm not comfortable' and 'Diane's not comfortable'. Mississippi boy's mom's gonna convince my mom to say no."
	"Justin…" JC started. "Don't blame it on Lance. He has nothing to do with it."
	"I'm not blaming him. It's his mother. I don't think she lets him do anything. I mean, look at him."
	JC made a face. "You barely know her… And don't make Lance feel that way. He's trying to fit in as best as he can. It's hard to step into a group when everyone else has history together, and besides, he's young too. Don't judge him."
	"I'm not judging him. And he knows us now."
	"But you know… You've forgotten how that feels. Being new. We were a group of four before he came, so you got to meet Joey and I got to meet Chris."
	"Lance has been here for a while now." Justin shrugged. "Besides, Joey thinks I'm stupid."
	"I don't think so…" JC replied.
	"He does now."
	JC frowned. "Why? What'd you do?"
	"Nothing, really," Justin admitted. "I'm just so…" He grunted and kicked his foot at something invisible. "God. I'm so mad."
	"But why?" JC pet Justin's curly hair for a moment. "What's wrong?"
	"I don't know…" Justin answered irritably. "My mother." 
	"You just told her. Give her a chance to think." 
	"But… What if it doesn’t work out? After all this, they want us signed, and it's like, no, sorry, my mother won't let me…" He cursed under his breath. "I mean, what a waste. And I do not want stability or normalcy or whatever the hell she thinks I need and that this would wreck." Justin grunted. "I want this. And I'm not going to go back to a school and… I'm not." His voice shook. "I can't." 
	"Justin, for God's sake…" JC continued to pet his friend's curls comfortingly. "Please. We just got this news… Trust me, my mom's being the same way… And you can't expect someone in five minutes to agree. They've got to think about it."
	"Didn't sound like just thinking about it," Justin answered. "You were laughing. You said, 'I love you'. I said 'bullshit' and left… There's a difference."
	JC laughed, rolling his eyes. "Justin, you're something else, huh?" He sighed. "But it's going to work out…"
	"It'd better. Else you and me will start a band and I'll change my name and never give mom my number. JC, I'm fifteen now…" Justin frowned. It sounded weird to say that. He almost always forgot. He'd had a birthday pass while they'd been working so hard to get where they were. Between the local gigs and making their promo and working on choreography and singing and dancing, he wondered if they'd forgotten about it. He wasn't fourteen anymore. They'd celebrated very minimally for his birthday so maybe they'd forgotten he was fifteen now. He wasn't so young that it would be a problem. "I know, fifteen is nothing, whatever. But I'm just saying. I can make some of my own decisions at least."
	"I know. Just, she's not going to say no. She let you come down here. I don't think she's just going to decide to pack up and leave now. She just needs to read what we read and whatnot. There's still stuff she needs to sign."
	 Justin let out an exasperated breath. "I can sign her Goddamn name if that's the problem."
	"Justin…" JC rolled his eyes. "Just be patient."
	"I mean it. My father will sign. He still has a say in what I do. He'll let me. You should have heard her. And Paul will side with her. She's not sure… For God's sake. I mean, come on. When has she ever cared? Just nod and sign."
	"Coming from the Mama's boy."
	"I'm a Mama's boy when she's being a good mother. And right now she's not."
	"No?"
	"No."
 	JC just shook his head, slightly amused by Justin. He also felt bad for Lynn, knowing that his friend was a handful. "You should call her. If that's how you left it, she probably feels awful."
	"I feel awful. What about me?"
	JC pulled his hair. "You're obnoxious."
	Justin sighed and pressed his lips together. After a moment, he said. "I really want to do it. I want to go to Germany."
	"Me too," JC replied. 
	"Do some recording. Get on the road. It would be so cool…"
	"Yeah."
	"We're not even officially a group yet."
	"Sure we are."
	"Not until we decide all this," Justin pointed out.
	"No, come on. We're a group." 
	"Not officially."
	"We will be."
	Justin decided to believe him. JC usually knew what he was talking about so he would take him as a good source for now. 
	Joey poked his head into the room a few minutes later. "It stopped raining," he said. "In case anyone—" he looked at Justin pointedly, "—still needed air."
	"Very funny," Justin answered.
	"Let's go out and do something," Joey persisted. "I have to work tomorrow and I don't feel like just doing nothing today." 
	"Sounds like a good idea to me," JC agreed.
******* 
	After all the worrying, all the frustration, and several fights…
	It all worked out. 
	JC still remembered the big dinner that they'd had all together. They organized all their parents to be there, like a huge farewell party almost. Everyone was grinning with smiles that were half excitement and half nerves, because they'd all said yes and hell, they really were going for it. He'd hugged his mom and his dad tightly, excited and a little scared at the same time, thinking about what was coming up so quickly for them. 
	Johnny Wright had had no problem getting them hooked up with BMG in Germany. As their business manager Lou was also friendly with the label, and it all seemed too good to be true. All the pieces were coming together almost in the same perfect way that they'd found each other.
	When they'd found out they would be signed, Joey and Chris high fived each other and cussed out Universal, which made the other three laugh. 
	"You guys have no idea," Chris told them with a grin. 
	All their hard work and rehearsing, hoping for a label, hoping for a manager, was paying off. Months of praying and working and thinking that it would never happen were in the past.
	It hadn't come without a fight however. Little problems had arisen to stand in their way. For starters, the man in Germany who would sign them, Jan Boltz, initially tried to make several demands of them before they signed, including two things they definitely wouldn't agree with: Changing the name, and getting rid of Lance. 
	Their eyes had widened at both demands, but most drastically at the latter. How the man could even suggest that with a straight face horrified them, and they couldn't possibly think of that, after how hard they'd worked to get Lance. And as for the name, despite Boltz's insistence that it wouldn't do well in a German setting, they were set on it. Neither of those demands would be given into.
	For a while, those little details seemed to make their prospective future seem very shaky. But their voices were finally heard, and they compromised as much as they could while keeping Lance and their name. 
	And finally they had this dinner.
	He would never forget that dinner. It really was a farewell. To their parents, whom they wouldn't see for at least a little while according to Lou, who told them of how they'd be flying to Germany within a couple weeks to get started. Since Justin and Lance were so young, their mothers were making plans to fly out as well after they settled things at home to allow them to be away. Lynn was very dogged in that respect, politely informing them that 'it was me and my child, or neither'. Lou wasn't one to argue with the sharp tongued southern woman and with a smile told her that would be fine. 
	In general, this was good-bye to their old life, their old ways. And they were happy about it.
	 JC watched how each of their parents were. His parents were just like he'd expected. Watching the others gave him a glimpse into each of his friends. But his main focus was on his own parents, especially his mother, who began to get sentimental.
	"And remember when you first started Mickey Mouse?" she asked him. "It feels like yesterday… Getting up in front of all those people. I thought you'd faint."
	"Mom…"
	"You're so young and you're going to do so much, Josh… You've already done so much. And look at Justin… He was just a baby and now you guys are still together and you're going to be even bigger than a TV show." She grinned and tried to wipe her eyes inconspicuously.
	"I hope," JC assured his mother. "Come on, Mom." He chuckled. "Will you calm down?" 
	"Karen, you weren't going to do this," his father Roy reminded with a laugh. 
	She rolled her eyes and sniffled. "Please, Roy. He's going to another country and signing a record label… Honey, you've always wanted this. I'm so proud."
	Justin walked over then, a baby in his arms and a grin on his face. "Who's crying over here?" he asked accusingly.
	"Hi, sweetheart. I bet your mother's crying too," Karen answered with a laugh as she composed herself. "Look at how tall you're getting..." 
	"I know. I should play basketball professionally," Justin replied.
	"Not quite..." JC rolled his eyes.
	"I think your plates a little full for that," Karen answered. "Come here and give me a hug. Is this your brother Jonathan?" 
	Justin leaned forward into her embrace and let her kiss his cheek. "Yeah, this is Jonathan."
	"How precious... Justin, he's a doll..." Karen grinned, watching the baby drool. "He's getting big." 
	"Yep." Justin grinned proudly. He lifted up the child to kiss him. "Daddy decided to let you visit me, huh?" He kissed him again, pure bliss on his face. 
	"Oh, he's just precious." Karen smiled. "You like being the big brother?"
	"Sure I do."
	JC watched his friend with the baby, smiling at the look on Justin's face. Justin was completely enamored with the baby. "Let me see him." JC held his hands out. 
	"Okay. Just don't drop him," Justin answered.
	JC gave him a look. "Thanks. I had no idea."
	Justin smirked. "That's what Mom told me." He laughed and held the baby out to JC.
	"Let's only hope Jonathan doesn't turn out like Justy," JC replied as he carefully took the infant from Justin and held him against his chest. "Huh, Jonny? You don’t wanna be like this boy here, huh? No… No you don't." 
	"Of course he wants to be like me," Justin answered. "Didn't your mom just say he was precious? He's already taking after me." 
	Karen laughed. "You never change, Justin. Still that mouth."
	"And he never shuts it," JC added. The baby gurgled. "You agree, huh, pal?" JC nodded sympathetically. "Hey, Mom, you know everyone, right? Did you meet Diane?"
	Karen nodded. "Lynn introduced us. And Jim." Lance's father had flown in as well. All their parents had made sure to be there, for the big event. It kinda made his stomach twist in a bit of regret but happiness. It was such a big move.
	"Did you meet Chris's mom?" Justin asked. "She's so cool."
	"Just briefly," Karen admitted. "Justin, is your mom or Paul going to be with you?"
	"Not right away," he answered. "I guess I'm supposed to have a guardian 'cause I'm younger. If she can plan it right, she'll be there right away she said. She told them they have to fly her out."
	"I wonder how long you boys will be there. Mr. Pearlman wasn't too clear on that… I'd like to come visit too, Josh. You would like that, wouldn't you? Like when we used to travel?"
	"Sure." He nodded. 
	"I mean, I'm sure it's going to be hard on you boys to be out there like that."
	"Out there?" Justin echoed. "You make it sound like outer space."
	"Well, it's a foreign country…" Karen answered. "And, Josh, don't give me that look. I'm not having second thoughts. I'm sure I'm not the only mother worried."
	"You should see Lance's mom," Justin answered. "I wanted to offer her a sedative."
	"Justin," JC objected. "That's awful to say." 
	"I'm just kidding…"
	"She's just protective," Karen answered. "I don’t blame her at all. How old is Lance? Justin, he's about your age."
	"I'm younger," Justin acknowledged sourly. "Two years. But I bet I know more."
	"Justin doesn't like being the youngest," JC explained to his mom, balancing Jon on his hip as he felt heavier. "In case you didn't already pick that up." 
	"So I see," she replied. "You'll show 'em, right, Justin?"
	"I will," he answered. "Age is just a number. Hey, I want my brother back, JC." He held his hands out and JC let him take the baby. "Jonny likes me best, don't you?" He looked up and saw Randy coming over. "Here comes Daddy."
	"Are you taking good care of my son?" the man asked when he got close enough.
	"Sure am," Justin answered. "He says he likes me best though... Don't you, Jonny?" Justin held his baby brother up and grinned at him. "Tell Daddy I'm the best big brother ever." 
	"I'm sure you are, Justin," Randy smiled. 
	"He hasn't even cried at all since I've held him."
	"Well, that's a good sign." Randy laughed.
	"How are you doing, Randy?" Karen greeted.
	"Doing fine, Karen. How are you?" Randy replied. "Excited?"
	Karen nodded and smiled nervously. "Of course."
	"Why don't we get a drink, honey?" Roy suggested with a smirk. "So you can calm down a little bit? Today's been a big day."
	Randy bid them good-bye and then turned back to his son. "Justin, your mother and I were talking."
	Justin feigned awe. "For real?" He jostled Jon. "That's not nice. They finally talk and it's about me..." 
	"Justin…" he replied with a warning tone. "Don't be like that. Your mother and I talk all the time." 
	"I know, I know."
	"But this is important. We were talking about your schooling while you're going to be on the road… You know you're going to fall behind again and—"
	"And we have to discuss that tonight?"
	"Your mother pointed out Lance will be in the same position. And she mentioned to me what you were like when you went back to school last year…"
	"I repeat, we have to discuss that tonight?" Justin persisted. He jostled the baby again, making him laugh. At least the baby could laugh. Justin was shocked his father hadn't already known about his behavior when he'd returned to school. He was glad though. It made sense considering he  never had this conversation with his father before. 
	"Well, we have to discuss it soon then," he answered. "Before you go. It's important."
	"Okay." Justin shifted the baby in his arms.
	"Look at me, Justin," Randy persisted. "It's important."
	"Fine, fine…" Justin looked up, meeting his eye. "Okay, we'll talk soon. I know, okay?" 
	Randy nodded. "Lisa wants Jon back." 
	"Can't she let me hold him for more than like ten seconds?" Justin objected, but he handed the child to its father. "How long are you two staying?"
	"A few days," he answered. "I heard you guys were going to be headed to New York at the end of the week too."
	"Really?" Justin looked at JC. "Are we?"
	"Um, I don't know," JC started. He had stepped back a little when Justin and Randy started their talk, feeling slightly out of place with the personal talk despite how close he was to them. He now rejoined their conversation. "I guess we didn't get the memo." He smirked. Justin rolled his eyes—that was Joey's expression. "That'll be fun though."
	"I have the feeling you'll be doing a lot of traveling for a while…" Randy replied. 
*******
	This plane ride to New York from Florida felt longer to Joey that August than the same flight had ever felt before. He blamed it on his heightened anticipation. He considered that flight as the official lifting off the ground of the group, both figuratively and literally. He thought about it and then he told Lance that, who was sitting next to him, and Lance nodded in silent agreement.
	Lance hadn't said much. In fact, he hadn't done much more than stare at the seat in front of him.
	"You look nervous, kiddo," Joey noted.
	"I'm not nervous," Lance answered, his southern drawl more evident in his insistence. 
	Joey shrugged. "Well, lucky you then. I'm nervous."
	Lance paused for moment. "Well…" he began. "Maybe I am a little bit."
	Joey nodded. "Thought so."
	"I've never done something like this before…"
	"None of us have," Joey assured. "We're all nervous." He looked across the aisle where Chris, JC, and Justin were sitting. "See Chris?"
	Lance nodded. The man was playing a Gameboy, hunched over with his elbows resting on the tray. He looked deep in concentration.
	"He can't get past level two because he's so nervous," Joey answered. "If you watch him you can tell every time he messes up."
	Lance kept his eyes on Chris and saw him rest the game down and lean his head back for a moment, muttering something before he shifted in his seat and began the game again, a new determination in his shoulders. Joey was right.
	"Yeah," Lance agreed.
	"And JC?" Joey persisted. The man was slouched low in his chair, looking at a magazine. His brow was furrowed, lips pressed together, eyes locked on the print. "He's been reading the same page for the last forty minutes."
	"Really?" Lance asked.
	Joey nodded. "He hasn't turned a page since we got on the plane. I bet he can't even focus on one line. JC's always nervous."
	Lance shifted his eyes to Justin, sitting beside JC with his head rested on the window, eyes closed and probably sleeping. He had headphones crooked on his ears, half falling off, with a Discman clutched in his hands on his lap. "And Justin?" he asked.
	"Justin's nervous too," Joey answered. "But if JC doesn't show it, he won't either, so far as I can tell." He laughed. "And I don't think we're ever going to see those two like more than two feet apart."
	"How long have they known each other?"
	Joey made a thoughtful face. "God…" He tried to see. "It's been a few years now… Justin was… I don't know really. Eleven? Maybe twelve. And he's… Is he fifteen now? It seems longer than that…"
	Lance looked at Justin and JC and nodded in agreement. It seemed like they were glued together in a sphere that he would never be able to cross. A talented, focused sphere. He frowned. "How long have you known Chris?"
	"Chris? Oh, since like my second day at Universal… He's such a cut-up, man. He's awesome." 
	 Lance nodded solemnly.
	Joey glanced at him. "What?"
	"Nothing."
	Joey thought for a moment and then started gently, "I know how you must feel… I mean, you came all the way out to Florida and we all know each other already… But you'll get to know us all a lot more soon too. You've already gotten to know us over the past few months."
	Lance nodded, feeling a bunch of emotions welling up inside as he wondered over what kind of path this was. Whether it was the right thing to do. 
	"Don't be nervous," Joey persisted. "This'll be great."
	"I can't help it," Lance admitted. He really was nervous. He'd even thrown up that morning before they went to the airport.
	"It'll get better." Joey smiled at him and he felt a little more assured. 
	He kept his real concerns to himself. The fact that he still couldn't keep up with the dancing as well as JC or Justin. How his voice couldn't carry any solos like the others. How originally they'd been asked to do the group without him.
	Maybe it would get better. 
*******
	In New York, Johnny Wright met them at Kennedy airport. He had arranged the trip from talking to Lou and BMG and they would meet with some representatives from the record label RCA. It sounded counterintuitive when the man from the company began to tell them how things did not happen overnight and that they would have to be patient. To them, the fact that they were there and the fact that they were just off a plane from Florida, already having a meeting, seemed to contradict his words.
	They were told about the "power producers" Max Martin and Denniz Pop, their success with groups like Ace of Base and Robyn, and how they as writers could add so much to the production. They could record some of their stuff in Orlando, but they would also likely have the opportunity to do some recording overseas, particularly in Sweden. Initially the majority of what they would do would be overseas. This was where the market was already tapped. 
	After some more explanations about BMG and what they would be doing, words that flew by so quickly that they struggled to keep up, they were told that dinner would be on the house for them at a local restaurant. Then finally the meetings ended with a quick wish of luck an promises to talk to them soon.
	They were exhausted. Chris slept on the car ride to the restaurant and almost felt like skipping the free meal to simply go back to the hotel and sleep. But he convinced himself that it probably wouldn't look good to do that and tried to make himself look as awake as possible.
	"I need a shower," Joey said when they were all sitting at the restaurant. "Seriously. I sweat so much during those meetings. Nerves and whatever."
	"That's gross," Lance told him. 
	"Gross?" Joey echoed. "No it's not. Sweating is manly."
	"Sweating all day and not showering is gross."
	"Is that smell you?" Chris asked, leaning over jokingly to 'sniff' his friend. "I was worried maybe it was me."
	"I need stronger deodorant," Joey replied.
	Lance wrinkled his nose at them.
	"Eau de Joey," Chris laughed. 
	JC laughed at them and then looked at Justin for his expression, but Justin's eyes were focused on a wall on the other side of the restaurant, a blank look on his face, seeming to be in a world of his own. JC frowned at him. "Hey, Justin. You with us?" 
	Chris was sitting next to Justin and so he reached over to smack him on the back of the head. "Yo," he said. "Snap out of it. Wake up." 
	"I am awake," Justin answered, scowling for a moment as he gave Chris a glare. He rubbed the back of his head.
	"Are you tired?" JC asked. "You're out of it."
	"I'm thinking," Justin answered. "Of everything. I'm trying to remember what that guy said." 
	"I tried that too," Joey spoke up. "Couldn't." He laughed. "I'd be excited about one thing and he'd move on to the next so quickly I'd miss it. But I think we're all tired."
	"Yeah." Justin nodded, sitting back in his chair and looking around the restaurant.  
	"Well, eat at least, Jus," JC said gently, eyeing his friend's untouched food. "It's free."  
	Joey nodded. "Now that's a perk. I like this free stuff theme. I can live with free food." 
	"It's good too," Lance spoke up. 
	"I am eating," Justin answered with a yawn. "And yeah, it's good." 
	"Well, then eat more." JC took a sip of his soda, watching Justin carefully. He studied him a moment and watched him reach for a fork. Justin had been on all day, with his perfect smile and eagerness, and desire to talk to everybody. Now it seemed like he had no personality left. No expression.
	JC looked at the others. "So what are we doing tonight? Did Johnny say?" He paused. "Anyone know?"
	"We're going to the hotel," Lance spoke up. He got a concerned look on his face. "That's it, right? I didn't think there was anything." 
	"At least someone knows what's going on," JC answered with a grin. "I was just hoping there was nothing, but I never looked." 
	"Don't think so…"
	"Maybe we can find a movie theater or something. Something to relax."
	"That would be good, " Joey answered. "I mean, I know we're in New York and everything, but hell… It's been a long day."
	"It's been like ten days, crammed into one," Chris agreed.
	The rest of dinner was pretty fuzzy. They were a little disappointed that they couldn't enjoy it more being so tired. The term crammed crossed Chris's mind again once they reached their hotel.
	"One room?" he asked, trying to mask his surprise as Johnny handed him a key. He readjusted the backpack on his shoulder as he looked at the man. How were five guys supposed to share a room. 
	Johnny nodded, barely looking at him. "Hope you boys don't mind. It is a big room. Two beds, a pull-out. I'd get used to it― until we start really getting you guys jobs, that is. Well, I'll call you in the morning, okay?"
	"Fine," Chris agreed.
	"And be happy while you're still in American hotels," Johnny persisted. "I'll see you boys tomorrow."
	Chris wondered if that was meant to be a threat or a simple statement. He understood being cheap, he was the king of cheap, but he was still surprised that the five of them would be in one room.  
	The room was okay. Like Johnny had mentioned, there were two beds at least. One would have been pushing it, and a little insulting, Joey thought wryly as he put his bag down on the bed by the window. There was tiny TV on the single dresser in the room and a small bathroom with a flickering fluorescent light on the ceiling. 
	At least they weren't paying for it.
	"This is small," Justin said slowly. He sat down on the edge of the other bed, clutching his bag on his lap. Joey almost felt bad for the kid. He looked young and tired and a bit disappointed. No more excitement for the day. 
	It wasn't that small though. They'd be close, but not too uncomfortable. They were so tired as it was, that it really didn't matter. Besides, they'd all been crashing at Chris's now for a while and were getting used to being close to one another. 
	"I bet overseas is worse," Joey replied as he walked over to the window. He slid it open a little, noticing the bars on the outside. Cool air drifted in from the opening and he could hear a siren in the distance. It had rained a bit and the night was a little chilly. He shut it and turned back to the room again. "Besides, this is just to sleep. It's all we need."
	"How are we deciding sleeping arrangements?" JC asked. 
	 "Well, I get this bed…" Chris sat down by Joey. "And you guys can all get the other one. Get up, Joe." 
	"Um, no?" Justin replied with a frown. He hugged his bag. He didn't even care that responding to something that was obviously a joke was useless.
	"Um, no?" Chris mimicked. "I agree, Justin. I shouldn't be by the window, I might catch a draft. So I'll just—"
	"You're not sleeping with me," Justin said.
	"Why do you assume you have a bed?" Chris answered. "There's the pull-out."
	"I've been sleeping on your damn pull-out for way too long," Justin said, shaking his head. "Now that there's beds, I want a bed." 
	"We can't all get what we want."
	"I already sat here."
	"Big flipping deal."
	"I'll take the pull-out," JC spoke up, rolling his eyes. "Chris, you don't want a damn draft, join Justin. Just don't fight with each other all night."
	Chris walked over and tugged at the bag that Justin was still clutching. "When are you going to let this go? Gripping it for life?"
	Justin let him take it and watched him drop it on the floor. 
	"Were we actually going to the movies?" Joey asked. "I'm up for it. It's not that late. Might be good to get some air." 
	"Maybe there's something on the TV." Chris turned from Justin and walked over to flip on the television. He changed the channels for a minute to discover they only had seven channels. One was the hotel menu channel, and three others were news. "Hm. Maybe not." 
	"What's playing in the theatre?" JC asked. "I can't even remember the last time I went to the movies."
	"And we'd have to find a theater," Joey pointed out.
	"And it has to be under PG-13 because we have a little innocent child with us," Chris reminded. "You're twelve, right, Justin?" He grinned when he gained a reaction as Justin jumped up and grabbed him, pushing him down on the bed. Justin used all his weight to hold him down.
	"You're a big twelve year old, huh?" Chris said with a  laugh as he fought back. 
	JC watched them wrestling with a skeptical eye. "So are we going out?" He frowned as Chris struggled to get Justin's fingers off his collar. The bed creaked and groaned in objection and finally JC cleared his throat. "Justin, hey, what if you break the bed, and you've all got to be in one bed?" 
	"Then that'd suck," Justin answered in the midst of his struggle. After a couple seconds more of wrestling, he pushed Chris off the bed with one final exertion of force. Chris fell to the ground with a thud, and Justin sat triumphantly in the middle of the mattress grinning.
	"JC, I say, yes," Joey replied. "We're going out." He knew if they didn't, Chris and Justin would cause chaos.
******* 
	 It was cold. Justin put his hands in his pockets and wished that someone had told him to wear a jacket or a sweatshirt. Somebody always seemed to be telling him what to do, but not this time of course. The night air nipped at his ears and nose and felt chilly under the city lights. It seemed that the rain and strong winds from before had taken every degree of heat out of the August night air, turning the weather fall-like. 
	Joey had looked in the phone book and located a theater that was just a few blocks north of where they were. They all agreed that seeing a movie would be something to do to pass the time, not to mention calm them down, and thought no harm in going out. But Justin thought he might freeze to death on the walk over.
	JC was smart. JC was wearing a sweatshirt. JC was also a sucker, so he sidled up to him and put on his most pathetic face, whispering, "Can I have your sweatshirt? You're the best, you know."
	"No, you ass," JC answered, giving him a frown. He was determinedly unsympathetic and immune to Justin's pout. "You should've brought your own. Don't you ever think?"
	"You didn't tell me to wear one," Justin objected. "I'm c-c-cold…" He stuttered the 'c', hoping his faux shivering would get his point across.
	"You hate when I tell you what to do. Besides, we're almost there, J," JC assured. "I think."
	"You think? What if I catch pneumonia?" 
	"It's so not cold," Joey objected, overhearing the two. "It's August. You're such a southerner."
	That was easy for him to say, Justin thought, eyeing Joey's jacket. "You wanna gimme your jacket if it ain't so cold to you? August maybe, but it's a rainy night so it's still real cold."
	"No." Joey laughed at him. "No pity here." 
	Justin frowned. Lance had a sweatshirt on. Chris had neither a sweatshirt nor a jacket like Justin, but he didn't seem to mind the cold either way. He sent Justin a smirk instead of a commiserating look before he changed the subject and said,
	"I wonder if this is the last English movie we'll get to see."
	"What do you mean?" Lance asked.
	"I mean, we're going to a non-English speaking country," Chris replied. "I'd imagine all their stuff would be in their native language."
	Justin frowned. "How're we gonna understand it then?"
	JC elbowed him with a teasing grin. "We're not." 
	Justin gained a concerned look. Things couldn't really be that different... They couldn't possibly go there and understand nothing. Could they? "That's not true, is it?" 
	"Oh, give me a break," Joey began. "You're just thinking about that now? Germany speaks German. What'd you think?"
	"They have to speak some English," Justin answered. 
	"They have to?" Chris challenged. "Why?"
	"Because…" Justin acknowledged to himself that his assumption had been stupid. But now he was confused. And still cold, so he pressed into JC's arm as they walked. "How're we gonna live there?" 
	"BMG will speak English," Lance spoke up. "Or their representatives will. Or I think they would. Right? And some people will know English." 
	"I would think so, yeah." Joey nodded. He looked at Chris for any sort of confirmation and got a shrug. "I mean, they'd have to…" 
	"Yeah," JC agreed. "Justin, stop, kid…" He nudged off the boy, who was nearly hanging off his arm. "You're pushing me over." 
	Justin sighed and straightened. "I for one do not speak a single word of German."
	"You barely speak English."
	"JC!"
	JC made a face. "Did I say that?"
	Justin grunted.
	"I took some German in high school…" Chris offered. "Not that I remember any of it… I'll have to refresh my memory."
	"I took a little over a year of Latin…" Lance frowned.
	"Italian," Joey answered.
	"I took some French," JC said. 
	"I know Pig Latin," Justin spoke up. When they laughed at him he scowled. "What? And I know some Spanish… Not much though…" 
	"None of that's close to German," Chris said. 
	They were silent for a moment until Lance noticed the movie theater up ahead and their next dilemma was what to see.
******
	 "Ich bin…" Justin said carefully. "…nicht… deutsch."
	"Can you be quiet?" Chris asked. "It was fun at first, but a million phrases later, it's not amusing." 
	Justin shook his head. On the way home from the movies, he'd spotted a small bookstore that was open and had begged them to buy an English/German dictionary. He claimed it would come in handy, and they couldn't disagree, and so they were basically stuck going in. So now, sprawled out on his stomach in bed, he perused through the words, randomly attempting to speak and form sentences. He faced the TV however, so he could still half watch, and he spoke distractedly. But loud nonetheless.
	"Chris ist dumm." He moved his legs, his feet in between JC and Chris, who were sitting up at the head of the bed. His foot hit one of them but he didn't look to see if they cared.
	"I hope you didn't just say what I think you said." 
	"Ich spreche…. das Deutsch."
	"Can we watch TV without the German dubbing, please?" Joey asked from the other bed, controller in hand. He agreed with Chris. At first it was funny listening to Justin attempt to read German, but now it was tiring. And he wouldn't stop.
	"Ich bin…. Ärger…lich?"
	"I have no idea what the hell he just said…" Joy muttered.
	"Dumme Amerikaner."
	"Was that something American?" JC asked. He sat up further in bed and crawled forward to settle down besides Justin. "Nobody can understand you."
	"Just like we'll understand nobody," Justin answered. 
	"What did you say?"
	"Uh… I just said, I am not German. Chris is stupid. I speak German. Am I annoying. And dumb American."
	"See, I was right in saying American…" JC praised himself. "Maybe you should learn better stuff like… 'Where's a bathroom?' And 'I'm lost'." 
	"Why?" Justin replied. "I wouldn't be able to understand their answer. It's better to say I'm a stupid American."
	"Oh come on, don't learn that…" JC rolled his eyes. 
	"But it's true." Chris answered. "I think he should use that one." 
	Justin craned his neck to glare at him. "And what sub-level does that put you on?" He threw the small dictionary back and it hit Chris in the head.
	"Didn't you just get that?" Joey asked from the other bed. "And now you're throwing it around? Chris, don't give it back― maybe he'll shut up."
	"It was only five dollars," Justin objected. "There's too many words." 
	"Dictionaries usually have a lot of words, Justin." Chris glanced over a few pages of the book. "I'm sure they'll teach us something… When we get there, I mean." 
	"There's no curse words in there either… Maybe cussing is universal. Wait, aren't cuss words German?"
	JC rolled his eyes. "I'm not sure you're gonna wanna cuss at the first German you meet, Just…" He sat up and slid back to sit at the head of the bed. "Might not be smart."
	"They'll probably be the ones cussing at him," Chris replied. 
	"Give me my book back," was Justin's retort. He sat up and leaned back to take it roughly. "Thank you. Chris ist dumm."
	"Bet that's all you'll remember too, huh?" Chris answered. He shifted over as Justin moved to sit up at the head of the bed between the two and elbowed him. 
	Justin yawned. "Yeah. Probably." 
******
	Time flew by. 
	Suddenly the joking, anxious times were gone and they were actually somewhere. Five kids in an unfamiliar country far from home. They arrived in August when the weather was rounding down from mildness and slightly cooler weather was settling in. Not as many people as they would have liked spoke English, and even just arriving in the airport had been a little overwhelming. Then right away they were under the schedule and demands of these men whom they had never, save a few, even met. 
	It was non-stop from there, and not exactly what they expected. They were a little unsettled by these beginnings, each thinking to themselves that their vision of Germany and work had been a little brighter. But to each other, they were positive, talking about how this was the first of many steps, and how they were meeting so many people, and how things would pick up soon and get them famous.
	Lance missed his mother. He'd never been this far away from her before, and it hurt even more not to be able to talk about it. He supposed the could talk about it, but it seemed too infantile to bring up. The rest of them were just as far from their families, and he had to be professional. But bottling it up made it that much worse.
	Justin missed his mother too, but he tried to show it even less than Lance. When he was frustrated about it, he blamed it on something else. On it being cold, on the small, dirty hotel rooms, on the fact that he realized he knew very little about himself, life, or real work. He also didn't like the interviews they were doing, where the questions had to be translated into English so that they could try to tell this foreign place who they were and why they had come. Things felt forced.
	August was busy. On the fourth they signed the deal BMG. That had been amazing. Seeing their names in ink on the line was more than they ever expected. From that point on, every second seemed to be filled with something. They were incredibly busy. Some things were bigger than others. On the tenth they had gone to the Pop-Rocky Summer Festival. They sang two songs a capella and the reception was positive. Pop-Rocky was a popular magazine and so it was also a great outlet for them. It was four days after that they recorded "I Want You Back". It took three days, and they finally had their studio time. 
	'I Want You Back' was recorded in early October at ASPÖ and Cheiron Studios. These people that didn't speak their language seemed to like it too. They learned choreography and next began to perform in more little shows at small venues. So far, everyone smiled and clapped and then their song seemed universal too, not just in English. The kids here were somehow like them maybe.  
	Time went so fast. They did a recording of their first news segment for the teeny-show "Bravo TV". Back in September they saw magazines reporting about them for the first time, including a major report the 25th in Pop-Rocky about "I Want You Back". They'd done their first report for Popcorn, a TV station, as well as their first radio interview, in Berlin…
	So much to take in.
	November was when it really started to get cold. But they appeared in Chemnitz and Halle, places that they had never heard of. They were actually starting to see fans that cheered and enjoyed their shows. They even performed with DJ Bobo, who was really popular in Germany, making dance music and shows.
	Justin was thrilled, but also exhausted. There was so many thoughts floating in his mind. It seemed like they'd barely been together as a group, at least a real group, but the months had flown by. And here they were. As great as it was to be able to list all of these accomplishments so far, he wasn't sure that the cold and cramped spaces and strangeness and unfamiliarity were cancelled out by that good stuff. 
	Then his Mom finally came out, and he was happy about it, although he wouldn't tell anybody just how much better it made it. When Lance's mom arrived, Lance admitted he was relieved she was there and that made Justin feel more normal. 
	He thought back on their first night, how cold and somber it had been, and scary because already there was so much to do and demands from all these people they didn't know. That first night was really tough and lonely, and Justin cried in the dark, trying to be quiet so they wouldn't think he was more of a baby, but they'd all been sad then, and a little worried, so it was okay. He'd realized then that it was kind of nice to be in a small cramped room because it wouldn't look weird to the other guys that he wanted to sleep with them, and wanted to be close to somebody. They wouldn't have to know that he would've even if they didn't have to. He wanted to cling to them more than ever.  
	So it wasn't really what he'd thought it would be. He told Chris how he felt randomly and Chris had gotten mad at him and asked him if he'd really thought that they would be ultra-famous and rich and comfortable without having to work hard for it. But Justin knew he was only mad because he didn't like their current situation either. So he didn't take it personally.
	"But don't you think?" he asked.
	"What, that it sucks?"
	"Yeah."
	"Sure it sucks. But what did you expect? Took you these months to find that out?"
	"I don't know."
	"You're stupid." And that was the end of that. Justin didn't tell him again because he figured Chris knew, and he didn't want to sound like he was complaining about it. 
	Besides, he was too tired to argue or to analyze things. Earlier that day they finished recording "Here We Go", another song that would be their third single after "Tearin' Up My Heart". They had started on the fourth, and it hadn't finished until that day, the sixth. He was a bit drained and when Joey came into the hotel room and tried to make him get up off the couch to go outside, he was anything but willing.
	"What?" 
	"The snow," Joey persisted. "Lance and I were walking around, and we found this awesome hill." 
	"Hill?"
	"Are you listening at all? Sledding."
	Justin wanted to sink deeper into the couch cushions. "I'm tired. And you don't have a sled." 
	"So? We'll improvise," Joey answered, punching him gently in the arm. "Come on. I bet you've never even been really."
	"Doesn't sound like I will now either," Justin replied. "Without a sled." 
	"Please?"
	Joey looked excited and Justin felt bad for feeling so tired. "Where's Lance?"
	"Waiting outside for us." Joey took Justin's arm and pulled him up from the couch despite his reluctance.
	"So he gets to be alone?" Justin had been lectured several times over the past couple weeks about not going anywhere alone after disappearing at one of the venues. All he'd done was check out the stage equipment at a club, but apparently it convinced the rest of them that no one should go anywhere alone on a whim.
	"He's not alone..." Joey answered with a sigh.
	"Who's with him then?" 
	"We will be," Joey answered. "Besides, he's not like you. We won't find him a mile away."
	"I wasn't a mile away. I was under the stage."
	"Same difference." 
	"They had a really great system. That's all. And none of you were listening to me."
	"So are you coming, or not?" Joey replied in frustration as Justin sank back down into the couch. 
	Justin studied him for a moment, and then conceded, pushing himself up again. "Fine. Is it cold?"
	"Well, there's snow on the ground," Joey replied sarcastically. "You might want a sweatshirt or something. "Where's Chris?"
	"Bathroom." Justin glanced down at his t-shirt and shrugged. He looked over to the bed where JC was half asleep, half looking at a magazine. "JC, you coming?"
	"Of course he is," Joey answered for him. "JC, get off your ass."
	JC looked up, and looked just as reluctant as Justin, but was also drawn in by Joey's enthusiasm. "Yeah, I guess." 
	Justin found his coat, a big down one that his mom had bought him and was supposed to be warm but wasn't. He put that on  and watched JC look through a pile of clothes and pull out a sweatshirt. 
	When Chris emerged from the bathroom, he was told by Joey where they were going and asked the same question as Justin. 
	"Seriously, Joe, where's the sled?" Chris asked. "I'm not going if we're just going to throw ourselves down a snowy hill. I've got better things to do."
	"Chris, is that really coming out of you? The daredevil?" Joey teased. "Come on, man…"
	Chris made a face but he was pulling on a sweater. "We need to tell Lynn or Diane where we are? So they don't think we kidnapped their children?"
	Justin shook his head. "They went to eat somewhere." Diane and Lynn had kept up their friendship from their first meeting, which was good because they were sharing a room and sharing the uneasiness about the cheap, dingy hotel and the management that was promising great things for their boys. They were thankful for someone to relate to.
	They walked down the hall, locking the door behind them. The walls were paper thin. He could hear someone yelling in one of the rooms near theirs as they walked. A man. After he was done, a woman started yelling back. He couldn't understand them.
	It was windy outside. The sky was hazy and the ground was no longer a pretty white. It had actually only been a pretty white for the first five minutes of new snowfall. Then the city's dirt and grime had coated that purity a grayish brown and the streets were a muddy slush. 
	Lance was leaning against the building outside. His cheeks were rosy from the cold and that made Justin feel a little better. Lance always looked so pale and cold and worried. Joey had seemingly taken it upon himself to take Lance under his wing recently, and it seemed to be livening him up a little. His personality was certainly emerging more.  
	"Took you guys long enough," Lance told them, somewhat impatiently.
	"I know, sorry, man," Joey replied. "These guys are worse than a bunch of old ladies." 
	"It's cold," Justin said. 
	"See?" Joey rolled his eyes. "Shut up, Justin. What do expect?"
	"Nothing. I have a coat on," Justin retorted. 
	"We need to get you gloves," Joey said. "And a hat. Justin, tell your mom you need gloves."
	Justin shrugged. He had gloves. He'd lost one of them though, and it was pointless to wear one glove.
	"So where's the hill?" Chris asked. "This oh-so-great-hill?
	"Lance, lead the way," Joey answered. "You remember, kid?"
	"Yeah," Lance agreed, starting down the street to the right. "Down this way for a couple of blocks."
	"How far do you guys usually wander? You guys shouldn't go too far…" JC started gently, meaning Joey and Lance, who had gone a couple of times to explore and find things like coffee shops and places to shop.  
	"Why not?" Joey answered. "We're careful."
	"You could get in a bad neighborhood though…"
	"It's not that bad around here. Oh, yeah, we found a club too." 
	"A club?" 
	"Yeah." Joey grinned. "It looks like we'd be okay there too."
	"We didn't find it…" Lance began slyly. He gave Joey a look.
	"Who did then?" Chris asked. 
	"Joey met a girl," Lance laughed.
	"You…" Joey mock glared. "Can't take you anywhere."
	"She speak English?" Justin asked. 
	"Yeah," Joey answered. "Pretty good too. She's really nice. She heard us in the interview too which was so awesome. Almost felt famous." 
	"So you found us something decent to do tonight?" Chris asked hopefully. 
	"Yep," Joey answered proudly.
	"If ya'll go…" Justin started. "I can go too, right?" He knew that look on their faces. That look was when they were going to have fun, and usually a type of fun that they wouldn't let him experience. He asked hopefully, thinking that if he didn't make a big deal about it, maybe they would agree. 
	Joey shrugged. "I don't know what the ages are."
	"Probably not fifteen," JC answered.
	"JC," Justin retorted. "How do you know?"
	"You think your mother'd let us take you to some club? You and Lance can―"
	"Are you serious?" Justin replied. "You can't predict what my mother will say. Besides, why do we have to ask her?"
	"The point isn't that we don't want you to come," Chris said. "It's more, bringing you and then realizing no one's going to let you in."
	"Do they really check ID's?"
	"Don't know. But you not having one is a pretty good reason for you not to go." 
	"The hill's just up here…" Lance started, attempting to change the subject.
	Justin set his jaw silently. 
	"Alright, so with the sledding, I thought we could…" Joey began slowly, trying to explain his idea. He frowned, looking around as they continued on the sidewalk. "Give me one second." He ducked down an alley directly to his left and came back a couple seconds later with two metal garbage can tops. "Walk quickly."
	"God, Joey," Chris laughed.
	"What? Walk faster..." 
	Laughing, they took a turn to the left and there was a clearing. Further, there was the hill right behind the building. 
	"These should suffice as your sleds," Joey persisted, looking at the tops critically. 
	The snow crunched under their feet as they walked across it to the edge of the hill. It was a pretty good incline down for a few hundred yards. Joey dropped one of the tops down and sat in it with a smirk. 
	"Any takers?"
	Chris suddenly grinned and leaped forward to jump on Joey's back, pushing the both of them forward. The garbage can tops were stronger than they appeared  and actually decent substitutes for sleds. To the other's amusement, the two of them went sliding down the hill as though they were flying before landing in a heap at the bottom of the hill.
	"That looked pretty fun," Justin admitted.
	Chris and Joey slowly made their way back up the slippery hill a minute later, the top under Chris's arm. 
	"That was great!" Joey exclaimed as they reached the top. "Awesome."
	 They spent their next half hour playing in the snow. It was the first time in a while that they were distracted enough to not think about their schedules. 
*******
	Justin was painfully aware of his age that night as he watched the other guys dress to go out. He had asked a few times if he could go too, dropping hints here and there to attempt getting an invitation, but eventually the tone of the others' responses discouraged him from persisting. They wanted to go out and have fun without him tagging along. He understood that, as blunt and as insulting as it was. 
	"We have an interview tomorrow," Justin said from his relaxed position on the bed, trying to act like he didn't care where they were going. "Just make sure you guys remember that."
	Chris gave him a look, but Justin's eyes were focused on the TV. "Thanks, Mom."
	"Seriously," Justin answered. "Remember two weeks ago when Joey had to leave in the break to go throw up? So obvious. Not to mention how he just kind of moaned throughout the interview."
	Joey glared at him as he buttoned his shirt. "Whatever, Justin. None of that happened, and I wasn't even hung over, you know. It was the flu. A headache in the morning does not equate to a hangover."
	"But you went out the night before."
	"So?"
	"So there's a correlation."
	"I'm gonna hit you. See if you learn there's a correlation between that and being annoying." 
	"Why would you go out if you had the flu anyway?" Justin replied. Then he laughed and shielded himself as Joey came over and jokingly pretended to slug him, instead tousling his hair. "Violence isn't the answer," Justin said.
	"Shutting up is," Joey told him as he buttoned the last button on his shirt. 
	"What are you two kids gonna do while we're out getting plastered?" Chris asked, looking between Lance and Justin, each on their respective beds looking innocent enough. 
	Lance shrugged.
	"Just stay here, alright?" JC added. "Do whatever, but do it in the hotel."
	"Why?" Justin asked.
	"Because. It's late. No one needs you two out lost somewhere. So just stay here."
	"And if we don't?" 
	"Justin, c'mon." 
	"I'm tired," Lance spoke up. "There's nothing to do anyway, so I don't see myself moving very far from where I am right now."
	Justin glowered at him. What was wrong with him? "For God's sake, Lance." 
	"What?" Lance eyed him curiously. "Joe and I walked all over today. There's nothing to do now that would be worth wasting our time." 
	"You're so lame..." Justin muttered. "Everyone gets to do something but me." 
	"J, you're not going to be in a bad mood, are you?" JC frowned as he slid his belt through the loops of his jeans. He looked up at Justin. "Huh, man?"
	"No," Justin grumbled, sulking a bit. "I'm thrilled."
	"Watch TV," Chris suggested. "I know that it doesn't seem to exciting since we're ditching you guys, and I'm sorry we can't bring you two, but think about it as your chance to catch up on sleep."
	"Right. Sleep." Justin frowned at the small TV sitting on the old dresser in the room. He knew every channel was pretty fuzzy. He'd checked before. And there was no controller so they'd have to stand to change the channel manually. Not to mention that half the channels were dubbed over in German or just pure German. That whole prospect didn't sound very nice.
	"Guys, she said she'd be outside for us at eleven..." Joey was looking at his watch nervously. "We should probably get going." 
	"Yeah," Chris agreed. "Let's go." He eyed the two youngest and felt kind of bad for them, but they were young, and it wasn't worth compromising the other three's potential first night out in a while to placate boredom.  "You two be good." 
	Justin watched them leave without another word. Part of him wanted to object, ask again if he and Lance could come, but he felt stupid and knew that they wouldn't in a million years budge. And with Lance just sitting there not caring either way, it just wasn't worth it. 
	A few minutes passed before Justin got to his feet and walked over to the window to look outside. There were two metal bars across the cold window pane. "It looks like it's snowing again." He squinted, but it was hard to tell at this time of night with just the glare from the street lights.
	He turned around and viewed Lance. He was sitting on the other bed with a crossword book, diligently entertaining himself.
	"Doesn't it annoy you?" Justin asked suddenly. "At all? I can't help but just feel annoyed, even if I don't want to." 
	"Annoyed?" Lance looked up. "That it's snowing?"
	"No. That we're here. In this excuse for a hotel room. And they're going to a club."
	"Well, yeah, but we're too young to get into this place. Joey told me before that he'd have let us if he could. But the three of them can definitely get in so they might as well go."
	Justin grunted. "You really accept that as a reason?"
	"Well, it is the reason." Lance tapped his pencil against the page of his book. "Do you see another?"
	"It's probably just a test. You wanna go somewhere?"
	"A test? Yeah. Whatever... Besides, I told you. I'm tired." Lance's voice held exasperation.
	Justin walked over to sit on the edge of his bed. "Tired, huh? Come on, Lance...Lance… Why do you go by Lance? What's the matter with James?"
	Lance shrugged. "That's my father. James. Jim." He made a face. "James or Jim is too… I like Lance." 
	Justin nodded. "I've got my real dad's name as my middle name. Thank God it's not my first. Randall?" He smirked. "James isn't bad. So, wanna take a walk or something?"
	"Ask your mom to go. She's across the hall." Lance looked completely uninterested in Justin. He focused back on his book. 
	"Ask my mom?" Justin echoed. He grimaced. "You sure know how to have a good time, Lance…"
	"I told you, I'm tired." Lance shrugged his shoulders and started to put his attention back to filling in something in the book. He filled in number sixty across in careful writing. He partially wanted to go out too, because it would be a good time and cool to go somewhere, but it wasn't really worth being bothered by it. Besides, it was an opportunity to relax. And he was tired. It wasn't often that the room was this empty. It was kind of nice.
	Justin watched him and frowned. "I'm going to go out to see if it's snowing." He stood.
	Lance looked up and watched the other walk towards the door. "Seriously?" It sounded like a pretty boring idea in itself. 
	"I'm only gonna be a second. Let me in when I knock, huh?"
	Lance gave him a wary look and nodded. "Whatever." 
	Justin unlocked and opened the door, shutting it carefully behind him. He looked up at the lights of the hallway. One of them was flickering. Ignoring it, he started down the hall. It was a little eerie, in a strange place like this, alone…
	Someone's TV was really loud. He couldn't get over how thin the walls were.
	He only made it about ten steps when he saw JC walking towards him. That caught him completely off guard. How could they be back already? He frowned as JC frowned. Justin cursed to himself. Here it comes… He had all the luck in the world…
	He stopped walking. "Hi." He frowned at him. 
	"Where're you going, pal?" JC asked, face showing nothing. 
	"Where're you going?" Justin answered.
	"I forgot my wallet." JC reached him and tapped his arm. "Walk back with me." He tugged his wrist. 
	"Is it snowing?" 
	"Not really."
	"That's all I was checking."
	"You have a window."
	Justin hesitated; he was surprised JC hadn't outright scolded him for leaving the room. Maybe he'd expected it. Maybe that was the real reason why he'd come back. "Well it was hard to tell."
	"Just flurries," JC responded. "Joe and Chris are waiting in it so I have to hurry." He reached the door. "Lance in there?"
	Justin nodded and reached up to knock. A moment later Lance pulled open the door with a, "That was quick." He took in JC. "For both of you."
	"Wallet," JC explained, putting a hand on the small of Justin's back and pushing him in first before he followed. He walked over to the dresser and pulled open the first drawer with some force. It seemed frequently stuck. Inside he pushed around the clothes and random things to find the desired object. "Ah, there you are..."
	"It's weird when you talk to inanimate objects," Justin spoke up, standing at the window again. He gazed at the barely visible flurries. Lance had returned to the bed.
	"Don't wander," JC replied, stuffing his wallet into his back pocket. "Right? Justin?"
	Justin turned around, a smirk on his face.
	"Seriously," JC said, eyeing him. "Either of you. You don't know who's around. We're not in a great area."
	"JC, please." Justin rolled his eyes.
	"And at this time of night. Just hang out here." 
	"Uh-huh."
	"I know I can trust you." JC started for the door. "Justin."
	Justin watched his friend's back as he walked out. "Dumbass. Always has to make me feel guilty." 
	Lance filled in forty-two down.
	Justin sighed.. 
********
	"You find it?" Joey gave JC an exasperated look as the man joined them once again on the sidewalk outside the hotel. He shifted nervously.
	"Yeah, I got it."  
	"Joey's freaking that we're going to be late," Chris explained as JC nodded.
	"We won't be," he said. "I took two seconds." 
	"Better not be," Joey persisted as they finally started walking. "She was cute. I might have a chance." Then he paused. "I hope she's there... What if she's not there?"
	"Then no one night stand for you," Chris answered. "Boo hoo." 
	"Whatever, man." 
	"Well, we haven't been about in forever, so whether she's there or not, we'll have a good time," JC said. "Right?"
	"Right. Speaking of not getting out, what were Justin and Lance doing?" Joey asked. 
	JC rolled his eyes. "Lance looks like he's about to fall asleep. Justin's being Justin. I feel like he's going to go somewhere. He just better be smart enough to be back before we get back and think he's MIA." 
	"Where's he going to go?"
	"Hopefully no where." JC cast a look back towards their little hotel as they walked, leaving footprints in the already trampled and dirty snow. "I mean, there's no where to go. But I probably should've warned Lynn."
	"I think you worry more than she does," Joey answered with a laugh "You don't have to worry every time you leave him. Honestly, you're not his keeper."
	"We're all each other's keepers." JC gave him a  look.
	"Well, we all look out for each other, sure. But give him the benefit of the doubt."
	JC shrugged. "Well, I know him, and I know he gets restless, that's all. And I just feel bad that they can't come. Justin loves going out anywhere."
	"He's too young for clubbing. Besides, Lance'll keep him down, I bet," Joey said. "'Cause he didn't look like he was ready to go anywhere."
	"Yeah." JC shrugged. Justin usually preferred company. 
	"Lance is funny," Chris said. "I swear sometimes he looks like he's dying to say something, but he just keeps quiet. And other times, the wittiest remark will just come out of nowhere from him." 
	"He is quiet," JC agreed.
	"He's a smart kid," Joey said. "He's getting used to this. Not this really, but I think he's more comfortable with us at least. He's stopped looking so nervous. He's really not so quiet, you know… Once you get to know him." 
	"Maybe Justin's obnoxiousness will rub off on him," Chris said.
	"God," JC smirked. "No, please."
	"Actually, you'd be surprised. He can hold his own really well…" Joey replied. "It's a different setting, being over here, and I think it's made him close up a little bit. But if you try enough, he opens up." 
	"Well, he interviews well," JC said with a shrug. "And things will get better being on the road, or at least he'll get used to it." 
	"Get better?" Joey scoffed. "Yeah, I guess there's no where but up to go, right?"
	"Well, if we head down... Not sure I can tough it out much more."
	"It's not that bad," Chris objected. "We're just starting out." 
	"Well, it's just an adjustment," Joey persisted. "We all have to adjust, that's all." 	
	"Yeah, but things could be much worse. So we're a little tight for cash…" Chris shrugged. "I've been down that road. So our hotel is crap. We have a hotel. Johnny says this is how most groups start off. That it'll pay off."
	"I hope so." Joey grimaced. "I definitely don't want to hear all the 'I told you so's' that I'll get if we crash and burn."
	"We won't crash and burn" Chris rolled his eyes. "Like you said, we've barely started. I didn't expect an overnight success, and I doubt you guys did either. Right now I'm still thankful I got a band together. I never thought I'd find anyone, never mind four, so quickly."
	"If anything we can say we've seen some of Germany," Joey replied. 
	"Man, we've got a single over here," JC answered. "Good enough." 
	"Low expectations," Chris answer teasingly. "I like it, JC. I like it." 
********
	"I bet they're having fun." Justin bounced on the bed a little with restless energy, watching Lance focus on the crossword puzzle religiously. "Don’t you think? At a club? With lights and smoke and people and liquor?" 
	"Try the TV," Lance suggested. 
	Justin got up, just as he had a few minutes ago, and approached the old TV, frowning at the dial that you had to turn to change the channels.  "I just tried. I don't know how Joey did it before."
	"Turn the knob. Isn't there a clear channel?"
	"No." Justin shook his head. "Honestly, I just tried." 
	Lance frowned at the TV. "I don't know." 
	"Let's go for a walk."
	"I thought you said you wouldn't because JC made you feel guilty." Lance scrutinized him.
	"He did. But I'm kind of over it, and also I never told him I wouldn't go out." 
	Lance didn't reply. He watched Justin continue to play with the TV knobs and suddenly got a partially clear channel that had an American movie on with German subtitles. The sound was still English. "Look, we can understand this."
	Justin looked at the screen and frowned. "That movie sucked majorly. Without subtitles." 
	"At least we can understand it."
	Justin did not look impressed. He flopped back on the bed and sighed. For once he had the bed to himself and he didn't even care. He thought that was awful. What a waste. Why did he feel so restless? "Lance…" he complained.
	"There's no where to go, really," Lance replied. "There's nothing in the hotel. There's nothing open that we can go to around here... I mean, I don't know what you want to do."
	"I don't know either." Justin went back to sit on the be and just as he sat down, suddenly someone yelled from the room directly next door. He sat straight up and frowned as he heard the scream again. It was clearly a woman. "Hey, you hear that?"	
	Lance turned his head towards him and  paused.. "What?"
	"Someone just screamed. Listen." 
	They were both silent and they heard it again. A woman. Except she was moaning now and something banged against the wall. They then heard another grunt and then a sound like bedsprings starting to squeak.
	"Oh my God!" Justin exclaimed. He started to laugh. "I guess that's a good scream, and not a bad scream."
	Lance was wide-eyed. It suddenly dawned on him what was probably going on next door.  "Is that…"
	Justin rolled his eyes, smirking that that could be going on just next door. He started to wish Chris was there, because he knew that the man would definitely have something hilarious to say about it. He wasn't sure what to do about it; he only knew that he was kind of freaked out by it, so he stood up on his bed and banged on the wall.  "Don’t they know everyone can hear 'em?"
	"Don't bang." Lance looked nervous. "What if they hear you?"  
	"Them hear me?" Justin rolled his eyes. "Uh, that's kind of ironic. Besides, why not bang on the wall? You wanna listen to that?" Justin looked down at him.
	Lance turned bright red. "No. But what if they get pissed and come over and shoot us?"
	"Mad, shmad. Whatta they gonna do about it? Nothing. Definitely not shoot us." 
	"I'll put the TV louder." Lance slid out of bed and went to the TV as the woman started making other noises and a man's voice was heard. He put the volume on the TV way up.
	Justin dropped down to sit on the edge of the bed. "I'm so going out now. That's just sick."
	Lance agreed, and definitely didn't want to listen to it. But he wasn't so sure about Justin's idea either. "Justin, if we―"
	"Come on." Justin  got up and grabbed a sweatshirt, sliding it over his head. He grabbed another and tossed it at Lance. "Put it on."
	Lance caught it and hesitated. "You know―"
	"I'm not listening as a porno is created next door," Justin answered stiffly. "Turn off the TV and let's go."
	"Where are we gonna go?"
	"Does it matter? And you really think they'll care if we go out? We're protecting our innocence."
	"Yes, they'll care."
	"Ugh… And you care that they'll care?"
	"Yes," Lance admitted. 
	"Well, you shouldn't," Justin answered. "For one, they're not in control of what we do. And second, we have to be in one piece tomorrow because we have an interview in the morning." 
	Lance frowned, just holding the sweatshirt dumbly.
	"Put it on." Justin walked over and turned off the TV.
	"You could hang out in the other room, you know? You probably can't hear it from over there."
	"You can't hang out with a mother. That's, like, not possible."
	"Why not?" Lance liked talking to his mother. And he knew Justin was with his mother just as much.
	"Lance. Lighten up. Put on the sweatshirt and stop being a pain in the ass." Justin pulled his coat on over his sweatshirt. 
	Lance continued to frown as he slid the sweatshirt over his head and watched Justin go for the door. "Find a key," he suggested  with resignation. Justin was going with or without him, and he figured they might as well stick together. "Last thing we want to do is get locked out." 
	"Oh, yeah." Justin turned back and looked around. He knew there was a spare key somewhere. It took him a minute, but then he found it and slid it into his pocket. He looked at Lance and at his face. "What kinda expression is that? What's it matter if we go for a walk? Lance, you do crazy stuff with Joe all the time! What's a walk?"
	"Other than it's the middle of the night? In a foreign city we don't know? When we were asked not to? And it's just you and me?"
	"I don't see the problem."
	"Are you crazy?"
	"My Mom asked me that once too. Do you think I am?"
	"If you really think getting lost in some strange city while it's snowing and we're both underage is―" He trailed off as the woman next door screamed something that sounded like 'Oh God'.
	"And that?" Justin persisted. "How about the fact that we're underage with that?"
	Lance hesitated. True, he though. 
	Justin didn't wait for him to agree. He just walked out the door and started down the hall with a determined stride. Lance watched him from the doorway worriedly and then rationalized   again that he couldn't let Justin go by himself. That would be worse.
	He closed the door behind him and was by Justin's side a moment later.
	"Did you lock the door?" Justin asked. "Or did it lock?"
	"Yeah." Lance's voice was disappointed. Both because they were doing something he didn't want to do and also because it was obvious Justin could care less what he thought.
	"Nothing's gonna happen. Because we're not gonna really do anything. Just see where's open."
	"Yeah. Sounds like a great idea."
	Justin shot him a look at the sarcasm. "Hey. Just because the guys said we can't doesn't mean we can't. They can't tell us what to do, so don't worry about it."
	"It's just pointless. And it's cold out."
	"We've got rights. Why should we be under house arrest?"
	Lance frowned. Justin had such a sure voice but it still could not inspire any trust in the other. Lance tried to remind himself that this guy was two years younger. How was he so sure? How could he walk like he owned this place? At times Justin was so determined, but then if you looked at him in the right way, he would crack right in front of your eyes. If anyone else was around, he would have cracked.
	It was cold outside. And the streets looked different in the night. Justin started down to the left. Soft flakes of snow were floating down from the black sky. There were voices across the street from a group of people. Down near some of the open late cafes there were more voices and crowds. 
	Lance found the city menacing. He wasn't a city person by nature, and especially at night he just found it too big and too impersonal. It was cold and now darker than usual, although even during the day he still found the grimy streets and buildings dark. 
	"Don't get us lost," he pleaded as they turned down another street.
	"I'm not," Justin assured. "We're not gonna go far. You think I want to get in trouble? I just needed air."
	"We could have opened the window…"
	Justin laughed. "That's funny." He glanced at Lance. "I'm glad you're at least funny. I feel like we're going to be abandoned  together a lot." He frowned.
	Lance shrugged. 
	Justin kicked at a pile of snow. He reached into his back pocket and found  some money. At least he had something. "I want something to drink." 
	"Drink?"
	Justin smirked. "Not drink drink. Coffee, tea, hot chocolate or something warm." He laughed. "Booze isn't in my plan, don't worry."
	Lance smiled, thankful. At least Justin had some sense. "Well, I'm sure there's some place open that has that."
	Justin nodded. He wasn't even sure how much money he had, or what it would buy. He was still fuzzy on currency exchange. 
	After a moment of walking in silence, he attempted small talk. "I forgot― What part of Mississippi are you from?"  
	"Clinton?" Lance replied. "I don't know if you've heard of it." 
	"I think I've heard of that. I'm from Tennessee. I was born in Memphis." 
	Lance nodded. He had never been too great with small talk. Not only did he already know where Justin was from, but what was there to say to Justin? Who was two years younger but often tried to act like he was the older, just so sure about this? So sure about taking these dark streets in the middle of this dark country? So sure of wanting to prove himself in some way? Lance couldn't think of anything to say. 
	The street they were on now was very quiet. It was spooky.
	"I don't think I like Germany," Justin said. He said it softly as if any locals lurking in the alleys would overhear. He cast a look at Lance. "You know? Not yet anyway."
	Lance nodded. "It's different."
	"Do you like it?"
	Lance made a face. "No," he admitted. "I miss home."
	"Yeah... Me too… Sometimes I wonder," Justin said. "If it's… Well, Chris says it's worth it… I don't want them to think I don't like it. It's not that bad."
	"It's just…" Lance said. "It takes time to adjust. Traveling is different." 
	Justin nodded. "Johnny says this is how groups start off. That's why I'm not gonna worry about it…" He rubbed his nose. "It's cold though. And I just wish we stayed in nicer places."
	Lance nodded. "Yeah. I know. The hotels so far suck." 
	"Do you miss anybody?" Justin asked.
	"My sister. My Dad…" Lance shrugged. "Some of my friends…"
	"Yeah. Me too." 
	Justin was silent from questions for the next couple of minutes, and so Lance didn't speak either. Their sneakers crunched in the snow. It was still so dark, and Justin was starting to wonder if there would be any cafes open in this direction for his hot chocolate. He felt a little uneasy about the emptiness of this particular block and started to think he didn't even want hot chocolate anymore. Maybe he wanted to go back...
	He was about to say something to Lance about it when suddenly something grabbed his leg. Startled, he slipped in the snow and fell down onto his knees, catching the ice against his jeans with a gasp. When he blinked he found himself directly in front of a soot faced man crouching by the entrance of an alley. His eyes were beady and narrowed ,and dirty, stringy hair hung in his face. Before Justin could get to his feet, he reached up to grip his jacket, saying something gruff and demanding in German.
	"I don't speak German…" Justin started, getting over his initial fear which had frozen him. The wet snow seeped through his jeans to make his knees burn with coldness. When he started to get up, the man yanked him down again, repeating his words. Lance grabbed his arm.
	"Justin, come on," he pleaded. "Get up."
	Justin's wide eyes were locked on the man's. "I'm trying…" Justin tried to pull away. He pushed at the man but his grip was so tight. How could such a little dirty man be so strong? The man repeated his German, voice hoarse.  "He won't let go." 
	"Give him money or something," Lance insisted, taking grip of Justin's coat from the back. "Let's just get out of here." 
	Justin dumbly struggled to reach into his pockets, pulling out the bills he found before to buy a drink, breathing heavily as he held them in view of the grungy man holding him so tightly. 
	The man snatched the money with one hand and replied something, his voice as dark as the alley behind him. He looked at the money before his beady eyes returned to Justin. His other hand had remained latched to Justin but he now pushed him back with such force that kneeling, Justin skidded back, hands scratching against the ice and snow of the ground below him. 
	Justin watched as the man scuttled back into the alley and a moment later only eyes blinked back at him, the body hidden in the shadows. Justin remained sitting in the snow for a few seconds, still stunned until Lance grabbed his arm.
	"Justin, please, let's get out of here."
	Justin got to his feet shakily, feeling wet and cold and anxious. He didn't object to Lance's hand on his arm as they started down the street in the way they had come, their steps longer and faster than before.
	"What was that?" Lance said, voice low.
	Justin shook his head, unable to answer. His heart was still pounding and his hands burned. He looked down at his palms to see the wet and dirty skin, slightly raw from scraping across the ground. He looked back behind them to make sure no one was there.
	"Next time you say nothing's going to happen," Lance persisted, "remind me not to trust you."
	"Fuck off, Lance," Justin replied shakily.
	They walked quickly, silent for a minute. Then Lance glanced behind them, asking tentatively, "Do you know how to go?" as Justin quickly walked ahead.
	Justin looked at the tall, dark, gray buildings lining the street and nodded. "Yeah." He was cold, wet, and felt a lump in his throat. He hated Germany even more now. 
	He told Lance.
	Lance shrugged, although he looked shaken up as well. "There's homeless people in every city though, you know."
	"Well, none of them have done that to me before."
	"Maybe because someone was around to keep you from being stupid and walking down alleys." 
	Justin pushed him, and Lance stumbled a little on the sidewalk. "Shut up, Lance."
	"Sorry," Lance said, but without meaning it. "It's true. We shouldn't have even come out." 
	"Shut up," Justin repeated. He kept walking, wanting to get back inside the hotel as quickly as they possibly could. 
	"You can't even admit that?" Lance sighed. "I told you this was a bad idea."
	"No," Justin answered. He hated being told, especially in hindsight. "Whatever happens, happens. You can't control random events."
	"Uh huh. And that was random?"
	"Yes. And you can't tell anybody."
	"Why not?" 
	Justin glanced at him. He didn't have a great reason, but he wasn't sure why Lance would want to tell anybody either, except maybe to make fun of him. "Just don't tell anybody. We never left the hotel, alright?"
	Lance nodded with a shrug. "Are your hands okay?"
	Justin lifted his hand and saw a small smudge of blood on his palm where he'd scraped it across the ice. "Yeah, it's fine." 
*******
	JC, Joey, and Chris were content and sweaty when they left the club. Chris felt like he could still hear the bass from the club pounding in his head and he prayed that it wasn't the beginning of a headache. He was glad they left when they did, especially considering how hard it had been to convince Joey to leave.
	But despite his resistance to leave, Joey was all smiles on the way back.
	"Man," he sighed happily. 
	"Well, someone had fun," JC laughed. 
	"She was awesome," Joey persisted. "Isn't she? The whole night was awesome. God, I miss going out." 
	"Only one of her other friends spoke English," Chris answered. He had fun, but wasn't able to share the same excitement over the girls. "At one point, I almost wished I had Justin's stupid dictionary with me."
	"I know," JC agreed with a smirk. "I really felt like an idiot half the time." 
	"Oh, they spoke some English," Joey objected. "It wasn't that tough." 
	Chris shrugged. "I could still order at the bar. That's all that matters."
	"Good drinks," JC agreed with a nod. 
	"Yeah. Definitely."
	"That alone would make me go back."
	"It wasn't that bad, the place. Not as bad as I expected."
	"Why would it be bad?" Joey asked. 
	JC shrugged. "Well, we had nothing to base it off of. Just a random place that this girl told you about."
	"I'm so glad she was there," Joey sighed. 
	"I've never seen you dance so much, man," Chris said with a smirk.
	"That is the Italian Stallion at work, Chris," Joey replied. "You witnessed the master at work."
	"You must be tired," JC said with a laugh. "You know, with all that tonsil hockey and everything."
	"Tonsil hockey?" Chris raised his eyebrows and burst out laughing. "JC, who are you?"
	"She was a good kisser..." Joey mused.
	"You get her number?"
	"Yeah..." Joey pulled a napkin out of his pocket and eyed the number. "I really don't get these numbers over here though. It looks nothing like a phone number I've seen before..." He smirked. "At first I was like, wow, she is drunk. And then I realized, no, I am. And that is a German phone number."
	JC laughed. 
	"I hate when the walk home sobers you up," Joey said with a sigh, shivering in the night air. "I'd much rather just collapse in bed."
	"No kidding," Chris replied. "I was just thinking the exact same thing." 
	Finally they reached their hotel. It was quiet now, and they made their way through the musty smelling, dark lobby. No one was around, not even behind the check-in desk. They  reached their door and Chris fished for the key in his pocket. Meanwhile Joey glanced at his watch. "Two-forty," he said. "You think they're asleep?"
	JC shrugged. He was looking at the lights in the hallway and how they flickered. One was already out. "Maybe."
	"You think they're there?" Chris answered with a smirk. "That's the real question.
	"Oh, don't even kid about that," JC began. "I don't even know what we'd do."
	"That would suck," Joey replied.
	"I'd just tell their mothers," JC answered. "And go to bed." 
	"Except they wouldn't let you go to sleep until we found them."
	Chris found the key and unlocked the door, pushing it open. It was a relief to all when they walked in and saw the TV on loud, both teenagers lying in separate beds. No need for a search party, although both looked far from asleep.
	"Hello, boys," Joey greeted, walking in and tossing his jacket over a chair. 
	"Hey," Lance replied, stretching his arms over his head. "You're back ― How was it?"
	"Fun. How'd you guys do?" Chris asked. "Not too bored I hope." He glanced behind him to make sure JC was locking the door. 
	"We were fine," Justin said with a yawn. He exchanged a quick look at Lance before saying, "But yes, we were bored." He glanced over at Joey as the man headed into the small bathroom. "Is he drunk?"
	"No," Chris answered, knowing well that any buzz Joey had earlier was nearly gone now. 
	"Oh," Justin replied with some disappointment. "I like drunk Joey." 
	"What about regular old sober Joey?"
	Justin shrugged. "He's okay." 
	JC rolled his eyes at the comment before pulling off his coat and draping it over the same chair Joey had put his. "You two tired?" he asked. "I'm exhausted, and I can't believe it's almost three." He paused. "And my feet are wet… I hate that…"  He walked over and sat on the edge of his bed and started to pull his shoes off. "Why can't shoes be snow-proof?"
	"Some shoes are," Chris said. "You would know that if you weren't such a cheap bastard." 
	"Oh, really?" JC smirked. 
	"Really." 
	JC just shook his head. "Whatever." He glanced back at Justin, who was laying back on the bed with his head propped up by a pillow, and gave him a smirk as he kicked off his shoes. Justin looked rather serious. "And what's the matter with you, Curly Q?"
	Justin's eyes flickered from the TV to JC.  He looked at his friend suspiciously, feeling as usual that JC could read his mind. "What do you mean?"
	"You're quiet." JC pulled off his socks. "I just thought you'd be asking us what we did and what happened and stuff."
	"What'd you do, then?" Justin replied with a little exasperation. But JC was right; normally he would. So he decided to try and play along. 
	JC saw through the tone however and shrugged. "Fine, forget it. I just thought you'd be interested." He paused. "What'd you guys do anyway?" JC looked over at Lance on the other bed. "Just relax?"
	"Yeah," Lance said. He looked at the TV. "Not much else to do in this room." 
	"Well, relaxing's good."
	Justin nodded. 
	JC frowned sympathetically. "That boring, huh?" 
	Chris collapsed onto the couch with a sigh. "Well, I would try to make you feel better and say we had a shitty time too, but I would obviously be lying." 
	"Thanks," Lance said, rolling his eyes. 
	Joey came out of the bathroom then with crumpled clothes in his hand and a toothbrush hanging out of his mouth. "Whose clothes are these?" he asked. 
	"Oh, yeah― they're mine," Justin said.
	Joey pulled the toothbrush out of his mouth. "Do you have to leave them on the floor in the bathroom?" he asked, tossing them towards the bed. "It's not so hard to carry them the extra five feet." He began to brush his teeth again. 
	"Why not? You leave your clothes everywhere," Justin retorted as the clothes flopped on the bed by JC. 
	Joey shook his head, simply going back into the bathroom. 
	"Why'd you change?" JC asked as he noticed Justin had jeans on now and the clothes Joey tossed over included jeans. "You're weird." 
	"I dunno," Justin replied. He realized how stupid that sounded. 
	JC picked up the jeans and shirt and reached down to pick up his own socks from the floor. He got up to drop them by the rest of their clothes when he suddenly paused. "How come your clothes are so wet?" He felt the jeans and then looked at Justin skeptically.
	"I dunno," Justin answered again. "That's weird." 
	"Maybe they got wet being on the floor in the bathroom," Lance said, . 
	"Why, is there a flood in there?" JC responded critically. He saw Justin and Lance exchange a somewhat nervous look and began to get suspicious. They seemed reserved. Not excited that the guys were finally back. They hadn't asked for any details of the club, like they normally would. It was almost like they were trying to say nothing at all. He had his suspicions now that they were hiding something, and the fact that Justin hadn't risked looking at him yet solidified them.
	JC knew Justin couldn't lie to him. He had never been a good liar. Not when he was guilty, and especially not when he was being asked direct questions.
	"I don't understand how you have no idea why you changed into different clothes," JC dropped the clothes down and turned back to view Justin on the bed. "That's all." 
	Justin shrugged, pressing his lips together. He kept his eyes on the TV. "Not really a big deal." He turned to meet JC's eyes finally and blinked. "Why?"
	"Because I suddenly have this feeling…" JC answered. He sat back down on the bed and gave Justin a hard look. 
	Justin shrugged, blue eyes innocent. His eyes flickered over to the bathroom as Joey reemerged, wiping toothpaste foam off of his mouth. "What kind of feeling?"
	JC looked over at Lance. Lance was watching TV, but JC swore he too looked guilty though. 
	"I'm gonna change…" Chris started as he got up off the couch. "I want to go to bed. And JC getting suspicious about nothing is usually my cue to exit."
	"Suspicious about what?' Joey asked. "What'd the dimwits do?"
	The phone rang as Chris walked towards the bathroom. It was a low, tinny ring. Justin reached over, being the closest to where it sat on the little wooden table between the beds, and took the receiver carefully, sitting up. He was slightly relieved for the break from this conversation until he heard who it was. 
	"Hello?" He paused, listening. "Hey, Ma.... No… We were, what do you mean?…. Well, when did you― No.... Did you― No…. No. Why would I?…" He sighed, listening.  "Yeah. Tomorrow…. Yep.  You too..... I will.... 'Night." 
	JC watched Justin hang up the phone. "Why would you what?"
	"Huh?" Justin replied. 
	Joey sat down on the couch and stretched out his legs in front of him. "So what is this? What'd I miss?"
	Lance shrugged. "Nothing." 
	"Did you guys go anywhere?" JC asked. "Just curious." 
	"You think they went out? Where the hell would they go?" Joey started with a look at JC. Then he shrugged. "Well, good for them, JC."
	"Good for them?" JC started incredulously. 
	"Remember you said that if they did, they should be smart enough to be back before us and not tell us. So why are you bugging them? If they did leave, then they did both of those things, nobody was worried, end of story." 
	"Joey."
	Joey had his eyes on Lance with a smile. "Bass, where'd you guys go? Hm?"
	Lance glanced at him before looking back over at Justin. Checking. Justin shook his head at him, like 'don't you dare'. And Lance couldn't. After all, they had made a deal. 
	"It's me," Joey said, voice low. "I won't have a coronary like JC."
	"It's Justin," Lance persisted, keeping his voice down as well. He wanted to roll his eyes. Like their voices, talking from the couch to the bed, couldn't be heard. 
	"Aw, man. Come on." Joey gave him an insistent look.
	"Justin, tell me," JC persisted. "You guys left? And went where?"  
	Justin looked at him stubbornly. "Why? I didn't do anything wrong, JC."
	"What's it matter?" Joey asked, figuring Lance would tell him anyway, and not willing to watch JC try to figure it out. "Leave it be. Let's all just go to bed." 
	"Yeah, what's it matter?" Justin echoed.
	JC didn't look convinced, so Joey persisted, "Besides, they have rights. Fifth Amendment rights."
	"Yeah, fifth―" Justin cut himself off and turned to look at Joey. "What's the Fifth Amendment say?" 
	Joey just rolled his eyes. "You are such a dumbass."
	"So you're just not going to tell me," JC eyed Justin. "Fine. That's fine." 
	"Jaaayceee," Justin objected, drawing out his friend's name in an imploring tone. "What's it matter? Tell me that first." 
	"It's just such a simple question, that's all. I don't see why you can't answer." 
	"Only if you tell me what's it matter." Justin furrowed his brow in confusion. He wavered a little in the vivid memory of the events of the night. Events that he didn't plan on describing. He was mad at himself for leaving his clothes in there, and for Joey pointing it out, and for JC noticing that they were wet. Only JC would notice that.
	At the same time, he felt slightly vunerable, still scared at the memory of that man holding onto him in that alley, and he wanted to spill it to JC and get comfort. But JC didn't look comforting at all. 
	"What does it matter?" JC answered, repeating Justin's question in exasperation. "It matters because… You know…" he muttered. "Forget it. Joey's right. It doesn't matter." 
	"No," Justin persisted. "Why are you getting all weird about it?"
	"I'm not getting weird about it," JC insisted. "I just don't understand what you're hiding. It's just when you hide something, usually it means something happened." 
	"We didn't go far," Lance spoke up from the other bed slowly.
	"Well." JC looked over at him with a set jaw. "Thanks for some truth. There it is. That's all I was waiting for." 
	Justin shot Lance a fiery look, but Lance was staring at the TV. "So we just went for a walk," Justin said stiffly. 
	"Was that so hard to tell me?" JC asked him. "Don't look at him. At least he's honest. Was that so hard?"
	"It is when you get weird about it," Justin persisted. 
	"I'm not. Just bothered that you hide little, stupid things."
	"Only because I know what you'll say."
	"What? That you shouldn't have gone?" 
	Chris came out of the bathroom then. He took a look at JC's annoyed expression and Lance and Justin's guilty ones. Then he rolled his eyes at Joey. 
	"This still?" Chris asked as he walked over to the couch and collapsed next to Joey. 
	"I guess I'm the only one that cares," JC replied. He was annoyed, but tried not to show it. Despite the attempt, he knew his voice was laced with his feelings. 
	"I would've gone out too," Chris answered. "I mean, how the hell can you stay in this dump for more than a couple hours alone like that? I would've gone out."
	"Maybe being ten years older than them, I wouldn't have really cared if you went out," JC retorted. 
	"You wouldn't have cared about me?" Chris teased with fake surprise.
	"So. What's on TV? Any movies we can understand?" Joey asked, trying to change the subject.
	"I thought you wanted to go to bed," JC answered. 
	"I do. But I feel like you won't shut up."
	"I'll shut up." JC sat back in the bed, leaning against the headboard and crossing his arms over his chest. "This is me shutting up."
	"What are you annoyed about? JC, if they went out, they're back now," Chris said. "Can we drop it?"
	"What if they weren't back?" JC replied. 
	"It was a walk, JC," Justin retorted. "What the hell could happen on a walk? It's pointless for you to get lecture-y about this, because any of us can take a walk."
	"It's pointless when you ask somebody not to do something and they do it anyway. And won't even be truthful about it. You're probably the one that convinced Lance. Lance didn't want to go out, but you always have to be on and do something. Especially when someone tells you not to."
	"Is it bugging you that I don't think it's a big deal, or that we left the hotel?"
	"Both," JC admitted. His voice was stiff. "But fine. Let's drop it."
	"JC, you're always such an old man," Justin complained. "Why can't you just―"
	"Drop it," JC answered sourly. 
	A moment paused and then Lance spoke up again, feeling bad that JC was giving Justin a hard time. "You know, a big reason that we left was because the room next to us―" 
	"Lance, it doesn't matter," JC sighed 
	"Wait, it does. What were they doing?" Joey asked, interested.
	"Having an orgy," Lance explained. "A very loud and obvious orgy. And we couldn't listen to it."
	"Put the TV on," JC answered. 
	"It was too loud. Seriously. We tried."
	Chris started laughing. "That is so awesome. Maybe we can join that room, Joey."
	"It was gross," Lance answered. "But we weren't gone very long, because―" He cut himself off, glancing at Justin briefly. "Because there was nothing to do. But we at least missed the animal noises."
	"Animal noises?" Chris echoed. "We obviously missed out." 
	"Yeah, totally missed out," JC answered sarcastically. "I'm going to the bathroom." He got up and stalked away from the bed. The door to the tiny bathroom shut behind him hard and clicked locked. 
	Justin groaned and laid back flat on the bed, staring up at the peeling ceiling. He knew JC was still bothered by the whole thing. "Such an asshole." 
	The three on the other bed looked over at him quietly. Lance felt guilty because he was involved too and wasn't sure how to respond. JC seemed to be blaming Justin more than him and he felt bad on that part too. It wasn't really anger, but a grudge, which was just as bad. Chris knew JC and how he was just prone to excessive worry. But he also knew Justin and realized that nothing more could have been expected from him. Joey didn't know Justin too well but didn't see anything really the matter with what Lance and Justin had done. 
	"He's such a prude," Justin said. "He knew I'd go out.  I can't sit here for hours."  
	"Sorry," Lance said.
	Justin turned his head to look at him. "What the hell are you apologizing for?" 
	"Well… He's blaming you…"
	"He wouldn't even know if it wasn't for Joey caring where I put my God damn clothes," Justin responded.
	"Oh, sure," Joey answered. "My fault. You're a God damn slob, but it's my fault."
	"Of course he's going to blame me," Justin persisted. 
	"There's no blame," Chris replied. "Chill.... But where did you guys go?" 
	"Barely anywhere," Justin insisted. "We only went a couple blocks. It wasn't anything. A stupid walk to nowhere." 
	"Barely anything..." Lance started. "Yeah." 
	"Yeah." Justin cut him off simply as he sense Lance might continue."I know." He held his hands up in front of his face to look at the skin. The heels of both palms were raw. They still stung, but they looked better since he'd washed away all the dirt. His knees had been a little bumped too but they didn't hurt anymore.
	"Wait. What happened?" Chris persisted, feeling something between the exchange. "You guys are hiding something.... What is it?" 
	Lance looked at Justin, wanting to tell them but knowing he'd promised not to say anything. It kind of was a big deal. Or not a huge deal, but at least something bizarre enough to mention. 
	"That's a definite yes right there," Joey laughed. "You see that?"
	"What is it?" Chris asked again.
	"Nothing," Justin said. "Right, Lance?" He dropped his hands down to his sides. "Really nothing…"
	"So that means something, right? I wanna know," Joey replied. "Come on."
	"Can't be that bad," Chris smirked. "Spill." 
	"Just tell them," Lance persisted with a sigh. It wasn't worth it in his mind to try to keep a secret. The others wouldn't let up until they knew, and that would only unnecessarily build it up. 
	"Whose side are you on, Lance?" Justin retorted, rolling his eyes. In his own mind, he was thinking the same thing about how it would just be better to say what happened as though it was no big deal, and not turn it into something it wasn't. But he hadn't been expecting the fact they'd left the room to even come up so he wasn't ready to completely decide yet.
	"There are no sides," Chris said. "Come on, Justin. What happened? Tell us and we can all go to bed." 
	"Nothing, we just had a weird run-in with somebody," Justin said in a little bit of defeat. He wasn't going to fight about there being a secret all night. And maybe it would be better to get it out before JC came out of the bathroom. JC always took things way too seriously. 
	"Weird run-in with who?" Joey persisted, sliding out of bed to get up and turn off the TV.
	"A.. Uh..." Justin hesitated. 
	"He was attacked by a homeless man," Lance finished.
	Justin sat up and sent him a venomous look. Sure he was going to tell, but not so bluntly. "What?" He let out an exasperated breath. "What's your deal, Lance?"
	"You were what?" Chris frowned. He looked at Joey. "Is this something I can laugh at?"
	Joey looked confused. "Not yet." 
	Justin slid off the bed and walked over towards the window, silent. Chris asked again and Justin sighed, pressing his nose against the cold pane. "It was nothing." 
	"So wait, back up," Chris persisted. "Explain this to me. Attacked?"
	"Barely."
	"He took ten dollars from him," Lance continued. 
	"Seven," Justin corrected, turning around. "It's not that big a deal."
	"Okay, so you were mugged?" Joey began, remaining by the TV and eyeing Justin where he stood just a few feet away. "Does bad luck follow you? Then I can see why JC's so uptight about it." 
	"He has no right to be. He doesn't even know," Justin objected. He closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall. "JC always imagines things happening worse than they actually do. For God's sake, are you all satisfied? I just wanna go to sleep." 
	"Did he hurt you?" Joey persisted. "Come here." 
	"No." Justin opened his eyes again and looked at his hands once more. "I just…" He held out his hands. "I hurt my hands a little…"
	JC emerged from the bathroom then and Justin dropped his arms to his sides, pressing his lips together and giving JC a cautious look. He hoped they would all drop it. 
	"That's scary though," Chris said.
	Justin shot him a look. Was he trying to get JC involved again?
	"What's scary?" JC asked. 
	"That he was―" 
	"Nothing's scary," Justin started. He walked away from the window and stepped closer to his bed. "Nothing... I'm tired. Can we go to sleep now?" He was starting to wish he and Lance had been 'asleep' when the guys got home. 
	"You don't want to talk about it?" Chris asked. "Why?"
	"Because…"
	"What?" JC persisted. He sat down on his bed. "Something else to add to their night?" He glanced over.
	"Yeah to say the least," Chris replied. He smirked when he looked at Justin's face. "Justin… Come on... If you're fine at least laugh about it."
	"Laugh about it?" Justin echoed. He did not want to laugh about it, or be laughed at. He wanted to slug the look of Chris's face.
	"Besides, we can't all know and not tell JC," Joey added. 
	"What is it?" JC asked, frowning a little. 
	"I was attacked by a homeless man, okay?" Justin started, not caring anymore suddenly. "Okay? God… Fine, go ahead. 'I told you so, Justin'. Okay. Yell about what an idiot I am. How dangerous walks are. For God's sake. I'm sorry, alright? I'm sorry. You knew I was going to go out! Can you all just shut up about it?"
	"Attacked by a homeless man?" JC echoed.
	"I think that's what I would call it, yeah," Justin replied in irritation. "But I don't know German, okay? So God knows what it was. Seven dollars seemed to make him happier. I hate Germany."
	JC's eyes were wide at what had happened. "Justin…"
	"JC, quit it. I don't want to hear 'oh my god' and what could have happened. I really don’t care. I hate this place."
	"Are you hurt?"
	"No. And I don't care. Just stop." 
	"Well, you should care. What if―"
	"I hate what ifs!" Justin answered. "I hate it when you do that!"
	"But―"
	"Stop, JC..." Justin warned.
	"I'm not saying anything, except you need to be careful. You act like we're still in Orlando and you should realize―"
	"I don't want to realize. I'm not an idiot. I know where we are, and Lance and I just went for a walk. And I lost seven dollars. There's no crime in going for a walk and you treat me like there is! And it's always my fault." Justin was whining now, voice loud and objecting.
	"Fine."
	Justin glowered at him.
	"If he's fine, and we're all fine, and the big mystery that was no mystery is settled," Chris began, "then let's just go to bed." 
	Justin stared pointedly at JC. "Are you mad at me?"
	"Just go get ready for bed, Justin."
	"Are you?" 
	"No."
	Justin's scowl disappeared and he grunted. "Maybe if you brought us places then ―" 
	"Oh don't turn it into that," Joey said as he rolled his eyes. "Dude, get over it and get ready for bed." 
	Justin muttered something, annoyed, and grabbed sweats and a t-shirt before heading into the bathroom. 
	JC was silent for a minute and then looked at the others. "Attacked by a homeless man? Who― I mean.... How does that happen?"
	"It wasn't really attacked," Lance admitted. "He just kinda… grabbed him… We were walking by somewhere and didn't see him. It was scary though."
	"That's why you should've never been out…" JC murmured. "Did he hurt him?"
	"No," Lance replied.
	"And you?"
	"I wasn't ― Well, Justin was closer."
	"Oh." JC pulled back the blankets of his bed and started to slip beneath them. "He drives me insane, that kid…"
	"It's fine though."
	"Luckily."
	"You can give it a rest now," Joey said. "JC." He laughed. "Let's just try to get some sleep." 
	"I'm not trying to be crazy or anything..." JC answered. "But you don't understand. His mother blames me for everything that happens. And he'll probably tell her about this and the question will be where the hell was I." 
	"Whatever. He's his own person." 
	"Evidently." 
	"He's fine," Lance persisted.
	Justin returned a moment later and tossed his jeans and shirt onto the floor. They all motivated to get ready for sleep and within minutes the lights were out and the mood had settled. 
	"Night, guys," Joey said. They replied back the same.  
	Justin slid under the covers with a yawn and edged toward the middle of the mattress to find JC and warmth under the covers. He slipped an arm around JC's neck and pressed his face against his shoulder with a sigh. "I'm sorry," he whispered, closing his eyes. "Honest." 
	"Mm," JC answered, turning his head just slightly. "Whatever."
	"You mad?"
	"No, man..." JC replied softly. "Go to sleep."
	"Alright…"
	"Night." JC patted Justin's head before rolling onto his side away from him. 
******* 
	"See, you get to be in a club now."
	"Doesn't count." Justin shook his head. "It's really not even a club, Chris. What are you talking about?" They were performing at the Six-Days in Munich and while the venue certainly was a club-like setting, Justin was not going to let it count. Going out to get wasted at a club and dance was completely different than performing on a chinsy stage.
	Chris shrugged as if giving up his argument. The disappointed look on Justin's face just made him laugh. 
	"I think it counts," Joey spoke up. "I'm counting it, Justin. You've now filled your club quota for the month."
	"Club quota?" Justin echoed. "Ya'll never let me go anywhere. Club quota?"
	"Joey, can I come out next time?" Lance asked.
	"Of course," Joey replied, eyeing Justin's reaction and laughing as the kid scowled. 
	"It's kind of smoky back here," JC objected, frowning at the poorly lit dressing room they were in. He was oblivious to the rest of the conversation going on around him as he focused on his nervousness. "Isn't it?"
	"Smokier out there," Joey responded. "This isn't too bad."
	JC looked unconvinced but didn't say anything.
	This was a bit better than some of their other random gigs that Johnny had scheduled. A club here, a pub here, anything to get their name out. He told them that he would be hooking them up with another act soon. They could then travel as an opening act and really get exposure on tour at large arenas. But for now they were stuck in these clubs that seemed to have kids packed like sardines wall to wall.
	However, the kids here in Munich at least seemed to be there for them. They'd even seen a few with signs that had 'NSYNC' written on them. The day before, the first poster of them as a band appeared in Bravo, and so they were psyched. They realized that they actually had some fans. Somewhere out there were people that knew who they were. It was becoming slightly more obvious, as girls here and there recognized them. The newspaper that they had done their interview with two days earlier, after the night of Lance and Justin's little excursion, had been with BILD, one of the biggest German tabloids. That evening they'd performed at the TV-show, "Chart-Attack" (ZDF) and had been the only band to sing two songs. It was progress.
	It felt good. 
	The cold nights and demanding schedule almost seemed worth it. Performing itself ws a rush, but to make it better, they usually got a good response too, which was rewarding. They weren't always the only act to go on in a night, but they knew that the cheers after they finished were specifically for them, and that those people would hopefully remember who they were.
	Justin looked at their corresponding outfits, nearly the same but in different colors, and scowled. They were always wearing these ridiculously coordinated outfits. It was a popular look for the bands in the magazines and on the posers, and they were of course following suit. Marketability was key.
	"We look stupid," he said. They all had on jeans. Chris and Lance had overalls. Each one had a different colored wind jacket on with a stripe down each arm. Lance and Justin had red, JC blue, Joey green, and Chris orange. It was so typical, every time.
	"We look fine," Lance said. He said it a little slowly, as if he was forcing it out. He wasn't a huge fan of their costumes either, but what could they do about it? Especially before a show. "You never wear on stage what you wear in real life anyway.." 
	"Yeah, I know, but it's getting stupid. And we look preppy."
	"So?" Chris replied. "What's wrong with that?" 
	Justin frowned. "Preppy bands…"
	"Boys II Men dressed preppy, Justin," JC started.
	"They weren't white and preppy."
	JC rolled his eyes.
	"We're white and preppy," Justin insisted. The others didn't seem to care, and he realized it was probably because there really was nothing they could do about it. "Hey... Can I have your blue jacket, JC?" He looked at JC's outfit with a frown. "I wanted the blue."
	"Should have told me that before we dressed," JC responded, making no indication that he would switch.
	"I wasn't paying attention. You should know that I like blue, not red."
	"Red is fine."
	Justin shook his head. "No, it's not."
	"Can you stop bitching about everything?" Chris complained. "Seriously. You worry about the most pathetic things."
	"No, I don't." 
	"Well, then shut up. You already got dressed. We already have this image. So just shut up." 
	Justin rolled his eyes. "I'm just making observations."
	"Yeah, annoying observations." 
	Justin realized he wasn't going to win, even something as seemingly easy as getting to wear blue, and so he gave up and sighed, looking around the room. He tried to change the subject. "JC, is it is kind of smoky."
	JC looked relieved that someone else agreed with him. "See? It is." 
	"It's kind of hot too," Justin added.
	"It's always hot when they cram all these people into this places," Chris replied, stifling a yawn. He shook his head at himself. How could he be tired as they were about to go perform? But he was. 
	"Everyone know the order?" Lance said. "Can we go over it?"
	JC nodded. "Yeah. And we still need to warm up."
	"We already warmed up," Chris reminded.
	"But it's smoky..." JC persisted. 
	Chris rolled his eyes. JC always feared any potential effect on their voices. 
	"You know the order," Joey told Lance at the same time. "Don't worry so much." 
	"Yeah," Lance agreed, sounding unsure.
	"Man, you do."
	Lance wasn't so confident. The night before, he was completely ready for a song and about to start before he realized he'd confused the order. No one noticed but them, but he still felt foolish. 
	"I need water," Justin started. "Do I have time? There was a water fountain right down the hall." 
	JC glanced at the clock on the wall. "If you go really quick."
	Justin darted out as Chris said, "Don't get mugged by a homeless guy."
	"So wrong..." Joey chuckled.
	"So funny," Chris corrected.
	"We only have about ten minutes." Lance was looking at his watch. "Roughly. We have to go on at nine they said, right?"
	Joey nodded. "Yep." 
	They were silent for a moment, the air laced with a nervousness that always filled them each time before they got on a stage or in front of anyone to sing. They had been happy with their few other performances, hoping the mark that they were making was a good one, and with each one they wanted to prove themselves a little more. Every show mattered a lot, and they wanted to have something to show, for themselves, their growing fans, and their critics. 
	Justin bounded back into the room a few seconds later, wiping his mouth off with his sleeve. "Forty seconds!" he exclaimed. "I timed myself. Quick?"
	"So proud," JC replied sarcastically. 
	"You waste so much energy..." Chris mused.
	After going over the order of their set, they spent the next few minutes softly warming up as they stood in a small circle to face each other. They took their respective part of the harmony and sang the beginning of their single. When they felt sure of it, they did the same with a few of the covers that they would do.
	"Ready?" Chris asked. "Everyone good?"
	They were ready. They had to be. 
*******
	That night and the next few nights of shows went well. And they got more news about their future, delivered by Chris, the messenger. 
	"We're going to have our own bus?" Justin exclaimed, bouncing on the bed. "No more crappy rooms? No more crappy vans!"
	"I said maybe," Chris said.
	"Maybe means yes."
	"In your world, I guess."
	Justin looked satisfied nonetheless. "No more crappy rooms..." He smiled.
	"Well if it works out, more like, no more crappy rooms for a couple of nights at a time maybe, when we don't have time to stay over," JC corrected, sitting at the head of the bed and wincing slightly as Justin continued to bounce at the foot of the bed. "Stop."
	Chris had just gotten off the phone with Johnny, who followed through with the idea of getting them to be an opening act with another group who was touring. As soon as Chris relayed the message to the other guys, they were all optimistic. Obviously their shows so far had been successful.
	However, the best news from the call was that they had a flight scheduled for the next day to go home for two days. Back to Orlando for two days. As in two days off. Chris was the most excited about that part of the phone call, even if the news was last minute. It was a 'maybe' for a long time that they would be able to briefly go back to the States, but but they'd been so busy it had slipped their minds. And maybe didn't always mean yes, despite Justin's convictions. Regardless, while everything always seemed so far away, time really flew by and here were some promises coming true.
	He was just about to comment on the days off when Justin enthusiastically began talking about the tour bus. He held off then for a couple of minutes, letting the kid be excited. 
	"A bus is bigger than a hotel room," Joey agreed, watching in amusement as Justin acted like a typical fifteen year old. "That's for sure.
	"What kind of bus are we talking about?" Lance frowned. He wasn't so sure a bus was bigger than a hotel room. Even if their hotel rooms had been quite small so far. 
	"A tour bus is what kind of bus," Justin retorted, continuing to bounce.  "Duh."
	"I know that, stupid. But even those come in different sizes."
	"Well, there's five of us," Justin persisted. "It can't be too tiny."
	"Justin, don't expect too much…" JC replied. He winced as the bed rocked beneath him from Justin's movement. "And can you please stop? You're making me seasick."
	"I'm not expecting too much, but I'm expecting something." Justin ignored the request and continued to bounce, filled with energy. 
	JC listened critically to the bed creaking but tried to ignore it. He felt like the whole room was falling apart and really didn't need any more encouragement, but he understood the excitement and figured if Justin had the energy, he might as well get it out. They had to get up early so going to bed early would be nice. 
	"The bus will be cool," Chris began, "But I'm even more excited we're going home tomorrow."
	"I can't wait," Lance agreed, letting out a pleased sigh. "That'll be so nice."
	"Seriously, even if it is just a few days. But when's this all going to start?" Joey said. "The touring thing, I mean?"
	"Johnny said pretty soon," Chris said. "But he said he'll let us know when he has more information. Right now it's still in the process of being confirmed, so I wouldn't get too excited yet. I think we're going to be moving into another hotel before we ever move onto our bus." He sent a look to Justin. "Well, we'll be moving home first." He smirked. "But then probably more hotels." 
	Justin shrugged. "That's okay. We're eventually gonna have our own bus, and everyone famous has a bus to travel in, and that's what matters."
	"Middle school athletes have a bus to travel too," Chris replied. "What's that say about us?"
	Justin shot him a look. "Whatever." He slid off the bed and walked over to the nightstand to grab the water bottle he'd left there. "Either way, all of this.... It's a pretty big deal." Returning to his seat, he collapsed back on the bed heavily, and suddenly that end of the bed that he had been bouncing on for the last several minutes seemed to give way. With a loud clunk, the mattress simply dropped down as something cracked beneath it, throwing the bed off at an incline and causing Justin to slip right off the edge to the floor.
	Justin landed on the floor with a thud and a grunt as water splashed onto his shirt from the water bottle. He groaned.
	"Oh wow." Joey rolled his eyes heavenward in exasperation. "There is a God."
	Lance shook his head. "Someone save me from this insanity."
	"Ugh..." Justin set down the water beside him and grunted. 
	"You okay, buddy?" JC leaned over the bed to peer at Justin. "Huh?" Justin's chin was down to his chest, and he couldn't see his expression, only that his shoulders were shaking. For a second he thought he was crying and suddenly worried that he was hurt, but then Justin's chuckle filled the room and he finally looked up, red-faced with laughter. JC then sighed in relief and annoyance and sat back against the headboard. "I told you to stop bouncing."
	Joey eyed the bed and the evident steep slant in it were Justin had been. "You broke the bed," he accused. "Slightly impressive. Unless we have to pay for it." 
	"They'll never notice," Chris said. "In this shithole, it's an improvement."
	Justin thought it was hilarious, turning his head to look behind him at his handiwork. It was pretty obvious. He ached from the fall, but found it extremely amusing. 
	"My butt hurts…" he complained, laugh fading. "Ow…" He got up stiffly and rubbed at his elbow. He crawled back up on the bed, moving towards the head of the bed which wasn't affected. 
	"I think God's sending you a message, Justin," Chris persisted. "He's saying you should shut up." 
	"I didn't even really say anything." Justin eyed his side of the bed skeptically. "That can't be comfortable to sleep on." He sat cross-legged, but the bed slowly slanted downwards towards the foot of his bed.
	"Well, you should've thought of that before breaking it," JC shrugged. "Don't look at me like that."
	Justin frowned. "Well, how could I think of it? That's never happened before."
	"Common sense."
	"Want to switch sides?"
	"No." JC laughed. "That's the dumbest question you've ever asked me." 
	Justin sighed.
	"You can sleep with your mother if you want."
	"No..." Justin complained. "That's not fair." 
	Joey laughed. "How exactly is that not fair? Your broke the damn thing."
	"I was just excited," Justin replied. "And didn't know that could happen. You don't think they'll really charge us for it, do you?" He looked at the rest of them for an answer, but they kind of just shrugged and didn't have a clear answer. He started to feel slightly guilty about it. They had really no money as it was. He wondered if it was expensive. 
	"He could sleep on the floor," Chris suggested. "Like a dog. He looks like a poodle anyway. Look at your hair."
	"What?" Justin demanded, refusing to let the comment bother him. He ran a hand through his hair protectively anyway, knowing that he did kind of need a haircut. "I'm not sleeping on the floor. It's dirty. How about the bathtub?" 
	"And that's not dirty?" JC asked.
	"Yeah. Imagine what people have done in there," Joey replied.
	Justin suddenly realized what Joey meant and made a horrified face. "Wait. Ew, that's really gross. Forget that idea. Now I don't even want to shower in there." 
	"Especially if the last people in this room were anything like those porn flick neighbors," Lance muttered. 
	Justin shrugged and just looked at the bed. He shifted a little bit and the bed creaked beneath him. "I think it's still okay to sleep on." He got up and then sat down again harder to test it. "Yeah, it's fine." 
	JC watched him with a frown. "If the whole bed collapses, so help me God…" he muttered. "I will kill you." 
	"Ya'll could just put the mattress on the floor," Lance said.
	JC made a face, considering the idea. "You know, that's not a bad idea. It's definitely an option."
	"It's fine," Justin said. "Let's just move on and forget about it. I was asking about the bus. Chris, did Johnny tell you anything about the bus?"
	"No more than I've already said," Chris said. "I mean, I don't think he ever imagined how excited you'd be about it."
	"I am."
	"I can see that, buddy."
	"Well, it's because I hate this hotel," Justin said. "In fact, I'm glad I broke the bed. Everywhere we've stayed has been crap, so I'll be happy when we're on the bus. Big or small."
	"Poor Justin," Joey began. "He thinks size doesn't matter." 
	"Not for a bus," Justin answered.
	"That's what she said."
	"What? What does that even mean?" 
	Joey just laughed. 
	"Well, then as soon as the tour starts you'll be happy," Chris persisted. "You'll get to spend most of the winter on a bus I think."
	Lance spoke up slowly. "Does that mean that we're going to spend Christmas on a bus?" 
	They were silent for a moment.
	"That kind of sounds like it," Joey said slowly. "I don't know. What's in December? Did we get any dates yet?"
	"I didn't even think about that," Chris said softly. "I wasn't thinking about the months or holidays we'd be on the tour for…"
	"We should try to get a schedule," JC said. "If we can."
	"That's the thing I'm trying to explain to you guys," Chris persisted. "It's still being set."
	"Do we get any say?"
	"JC... We're the opening act. If we're even that lucky." 
	"I wonder if my mom will stay," Justin said. "She might want to spend Christmas with her family."
	"No, Jus, I think she'd stay with you if you were here," JC objected.
	"I wonder if either Lynn or Diane realize," Joey mused. "But maybe we'll get to go home then too. We don't know for sure. At least we're going home tomorrow."
	"And my birthday!" Justin started, voice rising in indignation. "Ya'll think my birthday will be on a bus?"
	"When's your birthday again?" Chris asked.
	"End of January…" Justin pouted. "Don't you remember my birthday?"
	Joey looked at him and smirked. "Mine too remember…" 
	"I know. Not fair," Justin protested. He made a face. "Our birthdays are three days apart."
	"And since I like Joey better, I'm only getting him a gift," JC said. "I can't afford to get you both one. Especially after we get charged for your bed." 
	Justin rolled his eyes. "You're lying."
	JC shook his head. "Nope. Joey deserves the gift. He didn't break my bed."
	"What about Christmas?"
	"Get over it, Justin," JC replied. "I'm not going to get you anything then either, considering we don't have the time or money for that. Especially while we're in Germany." 
	"Really?"
	"What are you expecting? A birthday party? How am I going to find you something in Germany?"
	Justin stuck out his lower lip. "If you loved me you would." 
	"You are so annoying," Chris told him. "Coal, Justin. If anything, you will get coal." 
	"I've never gotten coal," Justin answered. "I've always gotten what I wanted." 
	"Shocking." Chris rolled his eyes, imagining Lynn always had gotten him what he wanted, considering the woman strove to be his best friend and was fairly accommodating. 
	"Well, Justin, what if this year Santa doesn't know you're in Germany?" JC started. 
	"Gee, Justin…" JC started slowly. "I hope Santa knows you're in Germany. What if he gets confused and can't deliver your presents?"
	"Oh, he'll know where I am," Justin responded simply. 
	Joey frowned and nudged Chris. "He doesn't really believe in Santa, does he?" he muttered.
	"No!" Justin answered, overhearing. "I'm not that stupid. I'm fifteen!"
	"Well, good…" Joey shrugged. "I was thinking maybe in Tennessee they don't tell the kids that Santa's a fraud."
	"I'm not a kid! I'm fifteen!" Justin repeated.
	"Santa's a fraud?" Lance asked, a look of disbelief on his face.
	They all stared at him.
	"Wait," Justin started. "You…"
	"Gotcha." Lance grinned. "What the heck do you think?"
	JC laughed. "That was good, Lance. Real good." 
	"I would so not be surprised if everyone in Mississippi believed in Santa," Joey began. "Who knows about those states sometimes."
	"Oh, right. Shut up," Lance answered. 
*******
	"JC…"
	The whisper seemed loud in his ear. It was dark and the air of the room was cool, but his body was warm beneath the blankets. He'd just almost fallen into the relaxation of sleep on the hard mattress when the voice urged him back to complete awareness. A warm breath tickled the skin of his neck. 
	JC sighed. Justin.
	There were a few options to pick from. One, he could roll over and ignore him. But then Justin would know he was ignoring him, and if he felt it was 'urgent' enough, JC would be poked and prodded until he paid attention. He could make no reply at all and pretend to be asleep, but again only in rare cases did Justin leave him alone. He usually poked in the same way to wake him up. And if he didn't, JC would feel guilty wondering if maybe it had been important. 
	He could also just answer and save the trouble and the bruises. Which he did.
	"Mm."
	Feeling welcomed by the response, Justin shifted closer next to him. JC felt his hand curl around a handful his shirt and pull. Justin had never understood the concept of personal space. He much preferred to let people know exactly where he was and what he was doing. And if someone was sleeping and he wasn't, then they had no right to be. "JC."
	"What." JC kept his voice as low as possible as not to wake the others in the room. He turned his head and saw the glint of Justin's eyes in the dark. 
	"I'm falling off the bed," Justin whispered.
	"Then fall off."
	"But it's dirty."
	"It is."
	"But―"
	"What am I supposed to do, pal?" JC yawned, trying to sound insistent but remain whispering. "You broke it." 
	Justin shifted closer. "Maybe you can fix it. I think it's getting worse."
	"Fix it right now?"
	Justin nodded. "It just tilts down. I think it's tilting more than before. I don't want to fall off in the middle of the night..." he worried.
	"It wouldn't be the worst thing in the world."
	Justin grunted. "Can I sleep with them?"
	"Are you serious? No. Justin, three people can't fit in that bed." He sighed as Justin's hand clasped his arm tighter. "Are you really falling off?"
	"My legs go down. I want to lay flat." Justin sighed. "You're acting like it's no big deal. Then will you switch with me?" 
	"No."
	"Hmph."
	"You're fine just like this. You've been fine for the last twenty minutes." JC shifted towards the edge of the bed on his side, generously freeing up another few inches between them, and then tugged at Justin's arm to have him fill in the gap. "C'mere. See? It's fine." 
	Justin moved closer. "It's not fine."
	"Shh… Go to sleep… We leave this place tomorrow." JC rolled onto his side, facing away from him.
	"It's not fine."
	"It's this or your mom's bed. Take your pick."
	"God...." Justin sounded frustrated.
	"God's not an option."
	"Psh…" Justin breathed in exasperation. "I can't go over there now."
	"Well, then I guess you're stuck with me, huh? Now, shush, kid, or it's the floor. You'll wake up the other guys."
	"The other guys aren't asleep," Chris said from the couch. "So shut the hell up."
	"See?" JC hissed.
	"I can't sleep," Justin announced loudly, sitting up. The whisper was gone, and his voice filled the once quiet room. He figured if they were all still up like Chris claimed, then it was no big deal. 
	Joey groaned and rolled over in the other bed. "Shut up."
	"My bed's broken."
	"No one cares." 
	"Justin, for real…" JC chided. "Just hush up and sleep. It's your own fault."
	"Can we put the mattress on the floor?" 
	"Now?"
	"You said it was an option before."
	"I will get up and pull the mattress off for you guys if it means you'll shut up," Joey started irritably. 
	"Okay," Justin agreed. "Let's let him do it, JC."
	JC groaned and closed his eyes tightly. "Justin, he's being facetious."
	"What's that mean?"
	"Means I'm about to come over and beat your scrawny little ass," Joey replied, "if you don't fall asleep now."
	"How can I control falling asleep?" Justin objected. "That's not very fair."
	JC abruptly sat up as well and glared at Justin in the dark. He debated pushing his friend right out of the bed, but then composed himself. Instead he put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing  hard. "Stop." 
	Justin shifted a little and felt JC's grasp tighten on him, gaining a grip on his shirt. He saw JC's eyes glaring at him in the near darkness and frowned. 
	"Shut up," JC said very softly, "and let us sleep, or go to the other room and sleep with Lynn. It's an easy decision." 
	"Okay, okay," Justin started apologetically. 
	"If you wanna sleep with me," JC said in a low murmur, "you gotta let me sleep. We all need sleep."
	"Okay," Justin insisted softly. He wanted JC to let go. 
	"Mm." JC grunted, letting go He moved away and slid back down in the bed, yawning so tiredly that his eyes watered. Beside him, Justin slowly buried himself under the blankets as well, now quieter. JC yawned again and reached over to pat Justin's stomach and say, "We'll fix it tomorrow, man."
	"Yeah," Justin agreed, fuzzily thinking that tomorrow they were leaving, and it wouldn't be worth it then. But he decided to shut up for now.
*******
	"You think we should leave it like that?" Justin frowned at the bed. The next morning they were up and packing, readying themselves to leave this hotel and head to the airport for their trip home. The airport was about forty minutes away and  van would be picking them up shortly. 
	"What're we supposed to do about it?" JC shrugged as he shoved his wrinkled clothing into his suitcase. "We can't fix it." He yawned and looked at the clock. It was only six-thirty. He was exhausted.
	Joey was leaning down to look at the bed's underside. "I think you broke the frame… It's like a box frame and it slipped out, but cracked like right over here. See?"
	Justin frowned and leaned down with Joey to see what he saw. He just knew it was broken. "Oh, yeah…" he said, pretending to know. "A box frame."
	Joey rolled his eyes and smirked. He tousled Justin's hair and left him inspecting the broken bed to go gather the rest of his stuff. "Leave it, Justin. You packed?"  
	"I think." Justin looked at his two bags that were crammed with all his belongings. A backpack and a small suitcase had become his life. He'd even brought a basketball although his Mom had told him not to. He insisted until she gave up, but she had been right, because he hadn't seen a court yet, and it was very difficult to keep squeezing it back in his bag. It barely fit and just getting a chance to dribble it now and then was barely worth it. Usually when he started to dribble, someone would yell at him to stop because it was loud. Walkman, check. He silently inventoried his stuff to make sure he had everything. 
	He'd better, anyway. There was no room for anything else. 
	But they were going home and it didn't even seem to matter. 
*******
	The van came fifteen minutes later than scheduled and had peeling blue paint. Chris thought he was cool because when the driver got out he asked if they were the 'Kirkpatrick party' before taking their bags and putting them in the back. He felt special for about ten minutes that his name had been used to locate the group. Then he realized it was still way too early and wasn't that big a deal.
	Lance and Joey climbed in first and sat in the middle seats. Chris, JC, and Justin climbed into the back. The driver got in up front and they were off, the radio playing the hum of news. 
	"How long a ride is this?" Justin asked, sticking his hand into a box of cereal that he had gotten while they were waiting for their ride.  He pushed the handful of cereal into his mouth, trying to crunch quietly. 
	"Nearly an hour, I think," Chris replied from beside him. He looked across Justin to JC on the other end of the seat, who had leaned his head against the fogged up window and looked back to sleep already.
	"An hour?" Justin asked, sounding disappointed. He elbowed JC, who then opened his eyes with a frown. "Want to play a game or something, JC?"
	JC shook his head. "No, man, I want to sleep." He slouched down further in his seat.
	"How about the quiet game," Joey suggested.
	"Or the 'who can fall asleep the fastest' game?" JC added. "I'm good at that."
	Chris eyed Justin's expression and then reached down to the backpack at his feet, unzipping it and pulling out a Gameboy. He handed it over. "Here, Justin."  
	Justin took it from him and looked at the game in it. "Tetris? Boring."
	"Try it. You might surprise yourself."
	"I doubt it." Justin made a face. "Have any other games?"
	"In my other bag." Chris shrugged. "Not this one." 
	"Okay, it's good. Thanks." 
	Chris nodded and leaned his head back as well, closing his eyes and feeling glad that the sound no longer worked on the Gameboy. While Justin might have been disappointed that it was an hour to the airport, Chris was relieved. It was an extra hour of sleep. 
********
	Later after a long, uneventful flight that made him feel restless and uneasy about their change in lifestyle again, Justin decided he didn't like being home very much. A few days of break had sounded nice, but that didn't mean rest to him. He began to realize that there was no point in coming back for such a short period of time. They had been so insanely busy, and now just dropped back, jetlagged, into their old life in Orlando. 
	He wasn't sure why it made him uneasy. He should have been glad they weren't running around like crazy. That their schedule was free. But he found it hard to rest. He was still thinking of the road. 
	Home also felt weird. He was now used to the five of them being crammed together all the time. Now 	Joey had gone to his own place to stay and Lance had gone with his mother, although both would be back later. JC and Justin were staying with Chris, who was battling fatigue and had gone out to visit friends. Also tired, JC had complained of no sleep on the flight, which was a lie as they all saw him throw back a glass of wine and pass out for the majority of the flight. But regardless he had disappeared to bed.
	So now Justin sat in the house, realizing that quiet and nothingness were bizarre. It was only two o'clock in the afternoon and although he was slightly tired himself, he wasn't sure how JC could go to bed, especially if they were here for such a limited time.
	He occupied himself by thinking for a little while. He plopped down in front of the TV, watching cartoons but not paying attention. It felt so weird just to sit there. To not have some place to be seemed ridiculous.
	He thought for a while of a recent conversation with his Mom, about how she wanted to  find a place to live in Orlando for them, and how convenient it would be. Lou offered to help her, and she decided rather quickly that she would do it on this trip. She said that Diane would fly back to Europe with the boys, but she was going to settle things in the States and talk to his step-dad and family if that was alright with him. Of course that was alright with him.
	It would be fun to have a permanent place in Orlando again, and he was happy with how fast things had moved for them. He thought about them on stage a little while after that, remembering some of the shows and the interviews and thinking about the magazine with their pictures in it. That was nice. It was all going really quickly.
	And then he thought about how he was back in Florida, which was not hardly as cold as Germany. Not at all. It was still warm in the winter here. That unsettled him. That it was so different. That this was temporary. He started to wish again that they were there for longer than just a few days. He wanted to go back to Tennessee too.
	The TV flashed images he hadn't seen in such a long time. Commercials he hadn't seen before. News stories that he had no idea about. 
	After a little while, he got up and wandered into Chris's bedroom where JC had taken the bed. He looked dead to the world, and Justin hesitated trying to talk to him, but again, they were only there for a few days. He sat on the edge of the bed very carefully and for a moment was silent. Then he spoke.
	"JC, wanna play basketball?"
	No reply.
	"I brought my basketball to Germany and everything and it fit in the bag but we never found a court. I could only practice dribbling…" He frowned. "Wanna shoot some with me? JC?"
	Maybe he really was dead. Or maybe he was pretending. Justin found it difficult to tell. But he really wanted someone else to talk to.
	"I don't like talking to myself, man…" Justin persisted. "Can't you just grunt or something? Are you really asleep? It's two o'clock. That's not healthy."
	JC's breathing was very even. His lips were parted and his eyes were closed, the sound of his inhaling and exhaling the only response to Justin's words.
	"I'm ultimately home alone." Justin sighed. "What good is being back if you're going to sleep the whole time? You can sleep anywhere, Jayce. You could have slept in Germany. Well, we were busy, but…" He took a deep breath and let out another sigh. "Chris is out with people. Joey and Lance are at his place…. I don't like this." He heard the whine in his voice, and couldn't help it. He suddenly felt extremely sad, and wasn't even sure why. 
	JC made movement then, turning his head a little. His eyes were still closed.
	"I don't feel good…" Justin said, moving to lay down beside his friend in the bed, sighing.
	Silence.
	"I mean, I feel okay," Justin continued. "But not great. You know? I'm not really sick, but I just feel weird. This whole being back thing I guess. It's only for a couple days, right?" He reached over and touched JC's arm, poking him. "Really, C, you could be a little more responsive."
	"Please, Justy…" JC finally murmured, eyes closing tighter. "Please. I'm just really tired." He rolled over away from him.
	"I'm tired of not doing anything. I'm glad you're alive though. You weren’t moving or anything. What am I supposed to do… I feel so weird…"
	"Mm…" JC grunted. "Play ball by yourself."
	"That's what I was doing when Chris called me, you know."
	"Mm…"
	"I was. The first time." Justin rubbed his hand over his face and then over his curls. "Doesn't that seem so long ago?"
	"Mm."
	Justin was frustrated. He just wanted a reaction. He didn't need a full conversation... Or maybe he did. But he at least needed some type of companionship. "Maybe I'll go for a drive. I mean, I know I’m not sixteen yet for a little while, but I could always start practicing now…"
	JC didn't answer. Justin would have been gleeful at that fact, silence being permission of sorts, if there was even a car in the driveway. But he knew there wasn't. And JC knew it just as well as he did. And he wasn't going to bother waking up for anything. 
	Justin figured he might as well let JC sleep, if he really was tired, because then at least later he might be up for something. 
	 "I'll go play ball by myself, I guess…" Justin told him. He thought he saw JC smile and frowned, knowing it was a 'thank God he's leaving me alone now' kind of smile. But he didn't react to it, he just left the room. 
*******
	Joey and Lance dropped by an hour later. Justin watched the car pull up. He was sitting at the top of the driveway on the ground, bouncing the ball in front of him methodically. He'd had enough of shooting hoops by himself, but was at least liking the sun. When he saw the car pull up, he didn't jump up, although he would have been thrilled an hour ago for company. Now he was just bored and out of his element, so he merely looked up sulkily when they parked and approached him.
	"Hey," Lance greeted as they walked up the driveway.
	"Hey," Justin echoed without much enthusiasm. He tossed the ball at them and it bounced haphazardly in their direction. 
	Joey leaned down to grab the ball, studying Justin's face. "What's the matter with you?" 
	"Nothing," Justin answered.
	"We've barely been in the States a day and you've got that face, what's with that?"
	Justin shrugged. He didn't feel like explaining the weirdness to them either. 
	Joey looked past him at the house. "You okay then? Where's JC?"
	"Dead."
	Joey smirked. "You kill him?" 
	"Yeah." Justin was expressionless.
	Nodding, Joey smirked. "He loves his sleep, huh, man? That guy can sleep for days, I swear. Like a rock."
	"Tell me about it…"
	Joey scrutinized him. "That why you're grouchy?" He offered his hand to help Justin up. "Here." 
	Justin swatted the hand away, happy where he was. "I'm not grouchy," he replied. He reached up for the ball under Joey's arm, and the man dropped it down to him. He started to bounce it. "Want to play?"
	"Let me say hello to JC first. Lance, you wanna play with him?"
	Lance shrugged. "I guess. He knows I'm not really good," he said, speaking for the first time.
	"Well, that's fine." Joey paused. "I'll be back in a sec." 
	"So where've you guys been?" Justin asked as Joey made his way towards the house. He squinted up at Lance in the sun.
	"I was with my mom. Then Joey's place. Then we visited his parents and dropped by his brother Steve's work." Lance smiled. "They're all nice." 
	Justin nodded. "I should've gone with ya'll." He got up to his feet stiffly, then began dribbling the ball. After a minute he dribbled through his legs back and forth, unconsciously showing off as he was prone by nature to do. Squaring up to the basket, he took a shot that would have been equivalent to a three if lines were drawn, and sank it.
	"Nothing but net," Lance congratulated.
	Justin gave a grin that seemed to say 'but of course', then darted to grab the rebound. Lance watched him with half interest. He started to wonder if Justin sulked while they were gone because he missed having an audience around. 
	He studied the palm trees in the driveway, something they all took for granted, and sighed. 
********
	Inside, Joey looked around and found JC in bed, looking identical to Joey what he had to Justin nearly an hour earlier. He hadn't moved but an inch if anything but stirred a bit when Joey entered and allowed light into the  room. 
	"Hey, JC, you up?" Joey asked, keeping his voice relatively low. 
	"Partially," JC admitted, lips pressed against the pillow, mumbling his words. He took a deep breath and then opened his eyes. "What's up?"
	"Hey, nothing. Just Lance and me came back here."
	"Oh... Okay." JC started to sit up a little bit, yawning widely. "Hey, you see Jus around or did he run away?"
	Joey smirked. "Nah, he's outside looking like his dog died."
	"Mm. He's bored because I wouldn't play with him." JC yawned again, shaking his head. "Still won't. I sleep."
	"Yeah. Good deal." Joey paused. "You guys eat lunch?"
	JC frowned and then thought about it. "Actually, no.... I don’t think so. I mean, I didn't. I don't know if Justin did...." 
	"JC, it's about three…" Joey rolled his eyes. "If you were me you would have died by now."
	"Whatever," JC closed his eyes momentarily. "I'm all fuzzy. When I wake up I'll eat."
	"Yeah, by then it'll be dinner. Lance and me ate at my parents a couple hours ago."
	"Hm. That was smart. You should ask Justin if he ate." 
	"I will. Where's Chris?"
	"Friend's."
	"Oh, okay." Joey watched JC yawn again, stretching out in the bed comfortably. He could take a hint and grinned. "Right, you sleep. I'm going to occupy Lance and Justin."
	"Mm."
	Joey left him there, shutting the door behind him. He went back outside and found Lance and Justin taking a few random shots and mulling around in the driveway. When Joey approached, Justin threw him the ball. Despite being a good pass, he wasn't expecting it and it hit him hard in the chest as he caught it.
	"Watch out...." He frowned at him before glancing up at the sky. Being able to just play outside like this was fantastic. "I suddenly really miss Florida."
	"Me too," Lance said. "I was thinking that when I looked at the palm trees."
	"Shoot it," Justin told Joey.
	Joey bounced the ball once. "Hey, Justin, did you eat?"
	Justin gave him a look. "Since when are you my father? Shoot the ball."
	"JC wants to know."
	"Oh, so the beast is awake?"
	Joey smirked. He took a few steps closer to the basket and took a shot. It bounced off the rim.
	Justin wrinkled his nose as he ran for the rebound. "Joey… You shoot like a girl."
	"I don't hit like a girl if you wanna make fun of me again," Joey answered. "Did you eat?"
	"No. JC didn't make lunch."
	"Are you an invalid?"
	Justin rolled his eyes. "No, but you do shoot like a girl."
	"Hey." 
	Justin ignored him and took another shot, easily making it once again. He retrieved the ball and started to dribble it again. "Is JC up or getting lunch?"
	"No. He's still sleeping."
	"Really? I'm hungry. Is there anything to eat?"
	"Well, did you look in the fridge?"
	That was an obvious question, and Justin didn't feel like admitting he hadn't. So instead he tossed Lance the ball in a bounce pass. "Lance, you shoot."
	Lance caught the ball and bounced a few times. Justin watched him and he didn't really feel like showing off his lack of athleticism so after a few bounces, he passed back to Justin. He didn't see anything wrong with the way Joey shot the ball, yet Justin criticized it anyway, so knowing there was a lot wrong with the way he shot, he decided not to. 
	"You ever look for food, Justin?" Joey asked again. "Or do you wait for someone to get it for you?"
	"Well, I figured JC was gonna be hungry sooner or later… It's not like he wouldn't wake up." 
	Joey rolled his eyes. "No wonder you two are so skinny. You wait for him, he forgets it's lunch and sleeps through the day…"
	"I’m not skinny." Justin scowled.
	"Right... Well, fatso, how about we find you something to eat?"
	Justin shrugged and said, "Okay," before taking another shot. This time it bounced off the rim and he glared at the hoop, like it was its fault. "Dammit. I suck."
	"Justin, that's the first one you've missed since I got here…" Lance mused.
	"Doesn't matter." Justin glared at the backboard. 
	"Man,"  Joey rolled his eyes. "Don't be a perfectionist about everything." 
	"I'm not," Justin answered. "I didn't say I never miss. I just  shouldn't. There's a difference.  You gotta at least work for perfection, you know?"
	"Yeah, bud, but  it's just a game. Let's go inside and find food?"
	Justin nodded and tossed the basketball onto the grass behind the basket. The three made their way inside towards the kitchen. They hadn't gone three steps into the house when Justin opened his mouth and yelled. 
	"JC!" he hollered. "We're eating if you're―" He was cut off as Joey came behind him and clamped his hand over his mouth.
	"Let him sleep. Don't you ever let him sleep?" Joey answered. 
	Justin shoved him away and walked towards the kitchen. "What if he's hungry? Besides, I've let him sleep a long time now. And he hasn't eaten either."
	"He said he'll eat later," Joey replied, following Justin. "Don't worry about it." 
	"I'm not," Justin answered. A moment later he was opening and pulling out things from Chris's cabinets. "Mac and cheese? Ooh, I love mac and cheese…" He looked at Joey. "JC really likes Mac 'n cheese, you know." 
	"Don't even think about it. Don't you understand he wants to sleep?" Joey sighed.
	Lance laughed as he sat down at the table. "He probably just wants someone else to make it."
	"I do," Justin admitted. "Maybe I should stick to something easy then…" He made a sad face. "Like peanut butter…" Justin sighed morosely. 
	"Whatever you eat, you're making yourself. And there's nothing wrong with peanut butter," Joey replied. "But how hard is boiling water?"
	"It's not supposed to be."
	"Then make it yourself."
	"I don't have the patience to watch water boil." 
	"You don't have to watch it." 
	"Yeah, but you know what I mean. Peanut butter you can just slap on the bread, and voila, done. This," Justin held up the box of Kraft, "takes longer." 
	"Not that much longer."
	Justin frowned at him. "Do you want to make it?" 
	Joey laughed. "No. I already ate." 
	"It's just a waste if I make it because it'll get messed up. Last time I didn't boil it long enough and it was just gross."
	"Well, this time you'll boil it longer."
	"Why are you deliberating so much over a simple food?" Lance asked, somewhat in exasperation.
	"Because that's just his nature," Joey answered. "He thinks if he mopes enough about it than I'll just give in and make it for him. Well, here's a shocker, Justin: I don't care enough." 
	"But you're Italian," Justin said. "You love to cook."
	"I do," Joey smirked. "But does it say on that box anywhere that it's Italian?"
	"It's a type of pasta," Justin insisted. 
	Lance slid his chair back and got to his feet. "Okay, well I'm going to watch some TV and do what I came back to the US to do: Nothing."
	"Me too," Joey agreed. He walked over to pat Justin on the back. "I have faith in you, man. You can do it." 
	Justin watched them leave glumly. Sure he could do it. He just didn't want to. But at least it was something to do. 
*******
	Eventually Justin joined Joey and Lance on the couch in front of the TV, proving that he'd managed to make the Macaroni and Cheese without any big problems. Joey was relieved to see it, because he couldn't help thinking that if the kid couldn't make that by himself, he really was a little out there. Regardless, he congratulated him on his accomplishment.
	"It's a lot." Justin had kept the food in the pot, simply returning the noodles to it once he drained them, adding the rest of the ingredients and grabbing a spoon. "Hopefully it's good. I'm just going to quickly see if JC wants any." 
	"Whatever," Joey answered, slouched down in the couch and feeling pretty tired himself. He didn't even bother telling Justin to just let JC sleep. It had been a long time since this whole doing nothing was possible. He had to say he enjoyed it. 
	Justin ventured to Chris's room, but found the door both closed and locked. He knocked gently, listening carefully, and heard nothing. He didn't know why it was locked. 
	"Joey," he demanded as he walked back to the other room. "You lock the door?"
	Joey shook his head. "No. JC probably did so we'd all finally leave him alone."
	"We did leave him alone. And he would not lock the door on me." Justin grunted. "I made him lunch." 
	"No, you didn't. And I'm pretty sure you're going to eat all of that yourself."
	"No, I'm not." 
	"You made it for yourself," Lance pointed out. 
	"Yeah." Justin just shook his head with resignation and walked over to sit on the couch as well. He dug the spoon into it. "I just think he should wake up soon."
	"Why are you eating it out of the pot you cooked it in?" Lance asked.
	"Conserving dishes."
	He laughed. "Right." 
	"It's easier." 
	They watched TV in silence for the next fifteen minutes, all feeling the same sense of bizarre relaxation. It wasn't fitting to the lifestyle they were now used to, but they accepted it anyway. Being able to zone out was a treat.
	Soon Chris returned from visiting his friends and collapsed into his armchair by the couch, eyeing the three with a yawn. He nodded at Justin's food. "What's that?" 
	"Food," Justin answered through a mouthful of macaroni.
	"Oh, of course." Chris rolled his eyes. "Mac and cheese I'm guessing? Considering that's about the extent of what's in my cabinets." 
	"Yup." 
	"Nice." Chris yawned, stretching his arms above his head. "So. The next time we'll be back in Florida is December 18. 
	"Really?" Joey asked. 
	"Yeah, I was just looking at the schedules Johnny gave us before we left." 
	"Hm, I've only looked at the rest of November." 
	"So then we're back here for Christmas?" Justin asked. 
	"I don't we're back for good then," Lance answered slowly. "I mean, I remember there being something between that and Christmas.
	"Really?" Justin brow furrowed. "How come? That's only a week before Christmas."
	"I know. I just remember we do something else first," Lance mused. "I don't remember what."
	"Record and do a couple rehearsals," Chris spoke up. "If I remember correctly."
	"That sucks." Justin frowned.
	"Well, we'd been wondering about a Christmas in Germany," Joey answered. "So it's better than that, huh?"
	Justin shrugged. "I guess." 
	"Where is that other guy?" Chris asked. "What's his face." 
	"JC?" Joey laughed out loud. "That guy," he echoed in amusement.
	Justin smirked. "That guy's a sleeping machine."
	"He's been sleeping this long?" Chris raised his eyebrows in surprise. "I felt like he's been asleep since yesterday."
	Justin shrugged. "Almost. He's very serious about his hobby, Chris."
	"That's not serious, kid, that's… That's to the extreme."
	"Well, it just has to even out. Like, say he goes to sleep usually at a certain time every night but then, when we were working so much, an hour was taken off every night. Well, probably more than that, but anyway…" Justin took another spoonful of food and paused between chewing. "He takes all the hours that he missed and when he gets a chance, like today, he gets it back."
	Chris shook his head, grinning. "You're so full of shit."
	"Am not. It's true. You can ask him."
	"He told you that?"
	Justin shrugged. 
	"Maybe he's coming down with something," Lance said. 
	"Jet lag," Joey answered.
	Chris just sighed. "That's just a hell of a lot of sleep. I'm kinda jealous."
	"He's in your bed," Justin said.
	"That's okay. As long as you're not. Then I'd have to send all the bedding to the cleaners to get all the fleas out."
	"I do not have fleas," Justin retorted.
	"Well, poodles do, and I figured since you looked like a poodle―" Chris broke off as he noticed Justin was about to fling a spoonful of cheesy macaroni at him. He shook his head. "You do that and so help me God… I will… You don't even want to know what I will do."
	Justin lowered the spoon  slightly. "Then take it back."
	"Why? It's just an observation. You do look like a poodle."
	"Just take it back."
	"No." 
	Justin raised the spoon and leaned forward to decrease the distance from the couch to Chris's chair. "One last chance."
	"Grow up." 
	Justin shrugged and then flung the spoonful towards him. A clump of the food landed on Chris's lap. "Troll." 
	"Oh, Justin, come on…" Chris complained. "Get me a napkin." He looked at the yellow cheese on his jeans and picked off the noodles with his fingers.
	Justin ate another spoonful with a shrug. "I warned you.
	"And I asked you not to." 
	"No. You said if I did it, so help you, you would something, and you never do anything. You never asked me not to."
	"I should do something just so you don't do it again," Chris responded as he got up. He watched Justin brace himself as he passed him on the couch and rolled his eyes. "I'm only getting a napkin, chill."
	"I know," Justin muttered. 
	Chris was just a few feet from the kitchen when he noticed JC emerging from the bedroom, looking well-rested despite tired eyes and hair that was flat on one side and sticking straight up on the other. It was a very JC look.
	"Hey," JC said groggily. "You're back."
	Chris nodded. "Me? Yeah, just a little while ago. We're all here now."
	JC nodded, stifling a small yawn. "How were your friends?"  He followed Chris into the kitchen and watched the man grab a couple sheets of paper towel off the roll on the counter. "What happened to you?"
	"Justin," Chris replied. "He thinks he's funny." He tossed the couple of noodles that he'd held in his hand into the garbage and then rubbed at his jeans with the paper towel. "And my friends were fine. One of them is getting married. How weird is that?"
	"Well..." JC shrugged. "You're at that age where people get married. It's not shocking."
	Chris laughed. "Right." He rolled his eyes. "Well, that's not happening anytime soon." 
	"No big deal." 
	Yeah." Chris blotted at the spot, and realized he didn't care really care too much. "So you feel well rested now?" He walked over to throw out the paper towel and then started back inside. "Come on." 
	"I feel more well-rested, I guess," JC answered, following. "I mean, I just feel exhausted."
	"We've kind of been non-stop, but now's the time to catch up on the sleep."
	"Yeah. Well, I think I did." JC laughed. "What time is it anyway?"
	"You don't want to know."
	"Hey, look who's up!" Joey exclaimed as the two entered the room. "How's it going Sleeping Beauty?"
	"Oh, it's gong..." JC smirked. 
	"Glad to see you've awoken from your coma," Justin replied. 
	"Yeah." JC rolled his eyes. He eyed the pot in Justin's lap. "You just eating now?"
	"Yeah, but I'm full," Justin answered. He lifted it up. "You want some?"
	"Um... Sure, yeah." JC walked forward and took it from him. "Scoot over."
	Justin complied, shifting Lance over closer to Joey in the process as JC squeezed down beside him. He took the spoon and moved it around the macaroni noodles. 
	"So how's everyone's day been?" JC asked. He took a spoonful in his mouth and chewed slowly. "Joe, you get to see your friends?"
	"Yesterday," Joey began.
	"Yesterday?" JC frowned. "But we―"
	"You slept for thirty-six hours."
	JC laughed. "Yeah, right, very funny. I wish actually. You have fun?"
	Joey nodded and smirked. "Yeah. They were good." 
	"I told my friend Marc that I was famous," Chris began, sitting back down in his armchair and rubbing distractedly at the spot on his jeans. "That I had fans. And he looked at me like I was nuts."
	"You are," Justin pointed out. "We're not famous."
	"We're not not famous," Chris replied.
	"Germany doesn't count."
	"Sure it does." 
	"Chris, stop rubbing your pants," Joey replied. "It looks weird."
	Chris looked up at him. "You look weird."
	"At least I'm not rubbing myself."
	Chris rolled his eyes. 
	"So what have you all been up to today while I was unconscious?" JC spoke as he swallowed a bite of macaroni and cheese. "Mm, this is good whoever made it."
	"I made it," Justin said. "What do you mean, whoever made it…? I can make things."
	JC laughed. "Sorry, I didn't know who made it," he answered. "It's good." He nodded at him. "Thank you for making it."
	"If you'd woken up when I'd knocked on the locked door," Justin began, "then it would have been hotter."
	"It's warm enough," JC replied. 
	"But you locked the door."
	"I did," JC agreed. "I have no doubt I did."
	"To keep me out?" 
	JC looked up and laughed at him. "Justin." 
	"What are we planning on doing tonight?" Lance asked. 
	"Nothing," JC said.
	"You've been doing nothing all day," Chris teased. 
	"I know. And it's been absolutely heavenly."
	"Don't you want to enjoy being back in an English speaking country?" 
	"Tomorrow I will," JC responded. He poked at the macaroni. "Today is a day of enjoying sleeping. In a nice bed. Without someone squirming all night next to me."
	"I do not," Justin objected. 
	"I'm just saying it was nice to have a bed to myself."
	"We'll have the tour bus soon," Lance said. "Don't those have individual places to sleep?"
	"They'd better," Chris said. 
	"Chris, you'll get your own bed tonight," Joey said. "That's  a plus." 
	"I know." Chris smiled smugly. 
	"And I'm going to go to my place. If any of you guys wanna come, feel free."
	"Maybe I'll go with my mom to her hotel," Lance said.
	"Hey, you know, my mom's going to buy a house here in Orlando," Justin spoke up. "She was talking to me about it."
	"That'll be cool," Chris said. "She know where yet?"
	"No, she's going to look. I think she was going to look these next couple of days." 
	"That'd be more convenient for you guys, that's for sure." 
	"Yeah," Justin agreed, once again thinking about how nice it would be to call Orlando home. Although it wouldn't be like they were there very often.
*******
	They decided to go to the mall. They could buy some warmer clothes, walk around, and remember the stores that were in America. It was also nice just to hear the accents, and just to relax. It had been a while since they were in a mall like the type they were used to in Orlando, and it was refreshing just to walk around and feel another part of home. 
	"Hey, J, c'mere a sec, will you…?" JC called his friend when they were in a department store walking around. 
	Justin was looking at sunglasses. He put on a pair of purple ones that covered most of his face before finding JC behind another section. "What?"
	JC studied him with the glasses. "Nice."
	"Thank you." 
	"Try these on too."
	Justin laughed as JC handed him gloves. So typical. "Okay, Mom."
	"Don’t." JC rolled his eyes. "I just happened to walk by gloves, and figured you're always cold. Joey's right when he says you need gloves."
	"I agree, Mom."
	"Stop it." JC shoved him playfully. "Stop giving me a hard time. God forbid I pay attention. Not like you take care of yourself."
	Justin grinned. "Thanks, Mom." He slid the heavy gloves on and looked at them. They were actually pretty cool. They made his hands hot though, being inside, and he slipped them back off. "Okay, they're fine."
	"They fit?"
	"Yep." Justin handed them back to him. Like gloves actually had a variety of sizes to choose from. "Let's get them." 
	"Good. So maybe you can complain less about something."
	"You gonna get some too? You don't have gloves." 
	"Sure."
	Justin looked around. "Let's get hats."
	"You wanna go all out with the winter gear, huh?"
	"How much money do we have, JC?" Justin took off his sunglasses for a moment and rubbed at his eyes. He knew that they got an allowance of sorts from the management but realized he didn't know what it was. He tended to zone out the money things, especially since his mother micromanaged his spending. "A lot?"
	"Not really," JC replied. "Not yet at least. I took out a lot from my savings before we left so that's mostly what I've been using."
	"Oh." He put the sunglasses back on.
	"One day we'll be super rich though and we won't even know what to do with all the money."
	"I'll buy cars."
	"You haven't even got a license," JC answered. 
	"I will. I will in a couple months."
	"How're you gonna get a license while in Germany, Justin? I don't think they even drive on the same side of the road as us in most European places."
	Justin scowled for a minute. "Well, then when am I going to learn to drive?"
	"I don't know. We have other things to worry about besides you driving. God help us all." 
	"But, JC, I'll be sixteen."
	"I know. Just pride yourself in knowing that you have the age capability to drive. Where'd the other guys go?"
	"I don't know." Justin was glum about the low prospects of getting a driver's license on time, but he started to think about the money they might one day have instead. "You know what else I would buy, JC?"
	JC had already started to walk away to try to find the others. "What, Justin? I'm still listening." 
	Justin followed JC out of that section of the story and continued. "I think shoes, JC. Lots of shoes. Like sneakers and stuff? Sneakers and cars would be so much fun."
	"Weren't they just like five feet away from us?"
	"I'm not sure. What would you buy, C?"
	"Um... A nice house," JC answered. "Pay for my brother and sister's college education. I don't know really, Justin. I don't have any of it yet so I haven't decided. I'd probably keep most of it in the bank."
	"Yeah…"
	JC sighed and looked at his friend, who was still wearing the sunglasses. "Are you looking for them?"
	"Yeah…" In actuality Justin was watching the tiles of the floor they walked on, trying not to step on the lines, which was proving to be a bit difficult. "Is tomorrow our last day in Florida?"
	"I don't know. I don't think so. I think Chris said ― Oh, wait, there's Joey. Talking to some girl. He's so typical. I'm sure Chris and Lance are near him."
	"What'd Chris say?"
	"Huh?" JC glanced at him. "Oh, about where we are? I think something about driving to Miami on Tuesday. Or Wednesay. Today's what…"
	"Sunday. The tenth." Justin made a face. "Miami for what?"
	"Recording."
	"Oh."
	JC's attention was off him now as he approached Chris, who they found looking at some clothes. Lance was visible a few aisles away. 
	"Buying anything?" JC asked.
	Chris looked up. "No. You?" He looked at Justin. "Please don't buy those God awful glasses."
	"He's getting gloves," JC replied.
	"Good idea."
	Justin wandered over to where Joey was talking with a blonde girl. As he approached, he realized the girl worked there― she had a rectangular name pin on her blouse with the department store name. He thought that was pretty lame, because it wasn't like Joey was the one catching her attention, or at least not likely. She had to be there. She was paid to be there. So he was going to leave them alone until Joey turned and saw him.
	"Justin, hey…" he gestured him over. "I was just telling this fine young woman here about our band…"
	"Our band?" Justin replied as he walked over. He saw the look in Joey's eye― the come on and help make me look good one― and the skeptical one in the girl's. He realized Joey was trying to use their overseas 'fame' as an addition to his flirting prowess. In a band. Justin smiled to himself, feeling the impish side of him slowly coming out. 
	"Take those things off..." Joey reached over to take the purple sunglasses off Justin's face. "They're awful." 
	"Hey..." Justin rubbed at the bridge of his nose. "Don't break them." He grabbed them back and gave Joey a look.
	"But I was just saying how we've been overseas, with our band," Joey insisted. He saw the glint in Justin's eye and suddenly felt as though he shouldn't have called him over. He watched Justin put the glasses back on and felt nervous. While sometimes charming, Justin could also be a huge pain in the ass. And it was looking like that was the impression he was going for.
	"Nice sunglasses," the girl spoke up, eyeing Justin with a look of insincerity. 
	"Thank you…" Justin looked at her nametag and read it aloud. "Pam."
	She glanced between him and Joey. "So you guys have a band?" 
	"A band?" Justin echoed. "I'm not in any band…" He turned to Joey and said, "Mike, are you?"
	"Mike?" the girl started. "You just said your name was Joey."
	"It is Joey," Joey said. He gave Justin an incredulous look. "Justin, what…"
	"Wow. This again? Mike, why do you always lie to people?" Justin continued. "Pam, he's a con when he's trying to pick up a girl. If I wasn't his friend…"
	"I didn't think there was a band…" Pam replied with an annoyed look. "All that Germany stuff? Yeah right. I've never heard of the band in… in sync? I listen to a lot of music, but that just sounds really lame."
	"Pam," Joey started. "I―"
	"Not interested," she smirked. "I have to get back to work. Sorry. Figures seeing you're hanging out with a twelve year old."
	"Twelve year old?" Justin echoed. "What? I'm not twelve. I'm fifteen." 
	"Whatever." The girl walked away. 
	As Joey cursed under his breath, and Justin decided that she wasn't worth it. Especially if she thought he looked that young. So he turned to his friend with a sigh, and said, "Hi, Joe." 
	"Hi?" Joey echoed. "That's it? Hi? You just―"
	"We were looking for you guys. I’m buying gloves."
	Joey became angry. "I don't care what you're buying. Do you know what you just did? You just―"
	"Joey, we're leaving in two days," Justin replied. "What's the big deal? How could you do anything with her anyway?"
	"You can do a lot in two days, Justin. You're such a child. That's the big deal. Get over yourself."
	Justin set his jaw. "Whatever. Asshole." He turned away and started back towards where JC, Lance, and Chris were talking. He kept his sunglasses on and took fast steps. As he approached, he picked up on their conversation about where to go for dinner. 	
	"Somewhere easy," Chris was sayin. "Food court okay?"
	"Whatever." Lance yawned. "I'm just hungry. I could eat anything."
	"Yeah, I'm flexible," JC answered.
	"I'm not hungry, so whatever you guys want," Justin said. A second later he felt hands gently fall on his shoulders and turned his head to see Joey now behind him. He squirmed away and moved behind Lance, ignoring the now apologetic look that Joey was giving him. Joey never held grudges long, but it was the whole idea of it all.
	"Wait, instead of just settling, why don't we get something we can't get good in Germany?" JC suggested. "Some food we haven't been able to find?"
	"Like what?" Lance asked.
	"Chinese," Joey suggested. "Bet it's Chinese you want."
	"Yeah, that sounds good," JC admitted. "Or good pizza or something like that."
	"We could order-in Chinese," Chris said. "Is that what you want?"
	"No, I want to eat out," Lance said.
	"Can I get these?" Justin pointed at his glasses.
	"Serious?" JC asked him.
	"You look stupid," Chris snatched them off his face and tossed them over in an earrings display. "Let's go. I'm hungry." 
	"Hey," Justin objected. He was going to go reach for them again but JC took his wrist.
	"Let's go find a cashier, Curly Q," he said. "You can get your gloves."
	"Okay," Justin agreed.
	After they bought the gloves and left the department store, it took them about a half hour to find a place to eat. Finally they found themselves at a Chinese food place, sitting at a table with JC asking for chopsticks and excitedly telling them how he hadn't had any good Chinese food in ages. It was obvious he was pleased to have gotten his suggestion accepted. JC never demanded anything, but he was always happy to get his way.
	"This is so good," he stressed through a mouthful of lo mein. "Mm. God."
	Lance laughed as the expression on JC's face.
	"Maybe we should order a few boxes full to ship to Germany with us," Chris mused.
	JC laughed. "Would you?" he joked. 
	Dinner was good.
*******
	 "JC?"
	"Yeah, Justin." JC's eyes were drifting closed. Watching TV entailed a lot more energy than he'd originally counted on. 
	"What time is it?"
	JC sighed and squinted at the clock. "11:30." He frowned thoughtfully. That sounded like a decent time to go to bed. 
	There was a moment's pause. "That means it's... 5:30 in the morning in Germany."
	JC looked over at Justin, who was sitting on the other end of the couch, legs curled beneath him with a giant atlas on his lap. "Really?"
	"I think. Maybe I counted wrong."
	"Well, that sounds about right…" JC replied. "That's pretty weird, isn't it?" 
	"Yeah… So I guess you've caught up on the… six hours of sleep you missed?" Justin looked up from the book and over at JC.
	"Yeah, I guess. Still pretty tired though." JC glanced at the TV for a second, feeling kind of bad that he'd slept through the majority of their break so far. There was a moment of silence between them before JC looked up at him again. He cleared his throat and beckoned, "Hey, c'mere, popstar." He patted the space next to him. "Show me where we are."
	Justin grinned and scrambled over with the invitation, easily curling up against JC's side. He was anxious to show him, and he pushed the book into JC's lap and pointed. "We were here. This is Germany. See? And we were at Chemnitz… And there…" He pointed a little north of that. "Halle. And… Munich."
	Munich was bigger on the map, in bolder letters, south of the other places Justin had pointed out. JC frowned at all the little names and dots on the colored map, wondering how Justin had stared at it so long without getting a headache. 
	"And we're going to Poland." Justin pointed out Poland, his finger pressing against the page.
	"How do you know all this?"
	"Chris showed me before."
	"How about Sweden. Where we recorded."
	Justin leaned over to look and flipped another page so that it wasn't zoomed in on Germany anymore. "It's near Norway," he said. He found it and his finger slapped the page. "There, between Finland and Norway."
	"Oh I see it." JC put a hand on his friend's back. "You're smarter than you look, you know that? These maps confuse me." 
	"I was trying to find the names of some of the other places, but I have having a hard time remembering more than the ones Chris showed me."
	"That's fine. You remember more than I did." 
	"Wanna see Florida?"
	JC laughed. "Sure. Where's Florida?"
	Justin flipped through more pages, moving out of the Europe section of the book and into the United States section. "We're a big place," he said.
	"Florida?"
	"No, the US."
	"Well, Florida, too. It's like the third or fourth biggest state. And bigger than some countries."  He watched Justin's serious expression as the boy's eyes scanned the pages, suddenly feeling a pang of sadness and not really knowing why. He reached to smooth out Justin's curls gently, running his fingers back through the soft locks. "You okay with all this?"
	 "With what?" Justin flipped another page. He smiled at the page. "Found it, there's Florida." 
	"With all this moving around…" JC replied, his hand still on Justin's head.
	"Yeah, it's fine." Justin's finger pointed out central Florida. "Orlando." He flipped another page to where there was a map of the entire United States. "JC, there's you. And… Lance… And here's… Is Chris Pennsylvania?"
	"Yeah. Joey's from New York." JC dropped his hand and pointed. "And you." He pointed to Tennessee. "Out by Lance. You country boys." 
	"We're really all over," Justin answered. "Kind of cool." He eyed the map for a moment. "So question... When we fly, what way do we go?"
	"What do you mean?"
	Justin flipped to a page that showed all the northern lands and seas. The US and North America was near the bottom of the page, while the Arctic Ocean and the North Pole were in the middle, and the European nations were at the top. "Do we fly straight up?"
	"It's not exactly up, Justin…" JC smirked. "You make it sound like we're going to space."
	"Well, this way." Justin ran his finger from Florida up to the North Pole and to Berlin. "That's going up. Or what if we go down and come out the top of the page?"
	"You're being way too literal. We're not flying along a piece of paper."
	"Well, which way do we go?"
	"Do I look like a pilot?" 
	"Maybe." Justin grinned at him with his character grin that made JC laugh. "You could be."
	"Justin."
	"I thought you could at least read minds."
	"Kid."
	"So you don't know?"
	"Sorry. I just know we go over the ocean. I can't say exactly where we go to get from point A to B." 
	"That's okay." Justin gave the map a wistful look. "Chris didn't know either." He glanced up and watched JC yawn. "You're not going to sleep all tomorrow too , are you?"
	"Depends how late we stay up."
	 "It's not late right now."
	"No, but, Justin, we're still half on German time. We flew in early. You haven't slept since yesterday and it's already as if you stayed up until, what time did you say it was in Germany?"
	"JC, I'm not―"
	JC smirked. "5:30? Isn't it? Well, then it's way past your bedtime, baby…" 
	Justin's expression darkened. "I'm not a baby. I can―" Justin's lips were covered by the other's hand and he pushed it away. "I can go without―" JC's hand covered his mouth again and Justin grew frustrated. He mumbled through the hand.
	Chris came in then with a yawn and sat down beside Justin. "What are you guys watching?"
	"Nothing, really." JC sighed.
	"It's getting kinda late, isn't it?"
	"It is late…" JC answered, his hand still pressed firmly over Justin's lips. "Very late." 
	Justin pushed against JC's hand and could not get him to stop, wanting to disagree and say that it wasn't late at all and that vacation wasn't just for sleeping. He couldn't pull the hand off so finally he just licked the hand, causing JC to immediately pull back with a grunt, but then to retaliate and pull Justin into a headlock and nearly into his lap. 
	"JC, stop it." Justin squirmed with an irritated look, straining against him. "I mean it."
	JC tightened the hold for a minute, pulling him hard against his chest as Justin tried to slouch down and slip away, causing the atlas to fall off his lap onto the floor. Then he let him go, releasing the hold. "Chris, I was shown the maps. That's quite a lot of places we've been."
	"Oh, yeah, we were looking at that before," Chris replied. He leaned down to pick up the fallen atlas. "Pretty interesting, huh?" 
	"Yeah." JC nodded. "You don’t realize where places are… Or you don't think about it. It's pretty cool to see where we've been." He studied Chris, who looked exhausted. "You going to bed soon?"
	"I think in a few minutes. I promised myself to remember that the point of these couple of days was to catch up on rest. And since my body's starting to realize we're in a different time zone…" 
	JC smirked and tilted his head to look at Justin, who didn't look pleased at the inevitable truth that his friends would be abandoning him to go to bed. "Yeah, I was just told, in fact, that it would be about 5:30 in the morning over there…"
	"God…" Chris said with a frown. "Are you kidding?" He pushed himself up and sighed. "Then I really should get to bed before I pass out. You two sleeping on this couch or the air mattress?"
	"One or the other," JC answered. 
	"Okay, well, as usual just help yourselves to whatever." 
	"Thanks. Night, man."
	When Chris had the room, Justin gave JC a look. "Are you going to bed too?"
	"I want to." JC watched his friend sigh at the response and just raised his eyebrow. "Aren't you tired, man?"
	"Kinda," Justin admitted.
	"Okay, well then let's just call it a night, alright?"
	"I just feel like we're not here very long..." Justin made a face.
	"I know," JC agreed. "That's true. But part of the reason we're here is to get rest too. Because you're not going to get to sleep like this once we're back on the road."
	"Yeah. I know." Justin took a deep breath and let it out with a sigh. "Okay, fine." He got up. "So get up so we can pull it out." 
	JC stood up. "And that means sleeping in. We're not waking up early tomorrow. If you get up, go back to sleep, or at least don't wake me up," JC began as he stood up. "Deal?"
	"Fine," Justin replied. "But you have to promise not to sleep into the afternoon either."
	"I'll try." JC started to take the cushions off the couch. "You know, we can have two beds. The blow up mattress is around somewhere still, if you want it."
	"I don't feel like blowing it up. I don't move around that much," Justin objected.
	"No…" JC admitted slowly. "I don't care either way. I'm just saying." He pulled the last cushion off, moving towards Justin so that together they could pull the bed up and out of the couch.
	"Besides," Justin insisted, "that's Joey's bed."
	"But he's not here right now. He's home."
	"Either way. I don't want to sleep on it."
	"Because he did?" JC frowned. "What's wrong with that?"
	"Nothing. There's nothing wrong with it. I'm mostly just lazy." Justin picked up one of the cushions from the floor and dropped it back on the bed. "Although Joey can be pretty stupid." 
	"Not only does that have nothing to do with sleeping on an air mattress," JC began with a smirk, but he's not stupid at all. Besides, he puts up with you, at least. Didn't he help you make lunch?"
	Justin stared at JC with slight displeasure. "JC, it was Macaroni and Cheese. I'm not an invalid." He wince as he realized he was actually making comment to the question Joey had asked him when he'd complained JC hadn't made him lunch. 'Are you an invalid?' "He didn't help."
	"Well… Still." JC rolled his eyes. He sat down on the mattress and began to untie his shoes. 
	"He's not completely stupid," Justin said finally, kicking off his own shoes. "Hey, so if you're awake tomorrow, you want to play some ball? Now that we've got a hoop here?"
	"Yeah, maybe," JC agreed. "Didn't you play today?"
	"Yeah but it's not the same without somebody else playing. Joey and Lance wouldn't really play."
	"Well, then tomorrow maybe." JC yawned. "Get ready for bed."
	Justin watched JC lay down in bed, yawning widely. He wanted to ask JC if he was going to change out of his jeans, but it looked like JC had already resigned himself to just sleeping. He walked over to turn off the TV, then noticing how quiet and sleepy the house seemed. He glanced back at the pull-out and it seemed like JC was already snoring a bit. 
	Justin stifled a yawn himself. With really nothing else to do, he decided not to lie to himself anymore about being exhausted.
********
	No one woke up until nearly noon the next morning. JC even woke up before Justin, and only because he heard the phone ringing. First, he felt himself in a fuzzy state, and then a moment later he realized where he was and heard the phone ringing aimlessly in the kitchen. At that point he decided to get up. 
	When he untangled himself from the bed and sleeping Justin's clinging arms, and made his way to the kitchen, to find Chris already off the phone. He greeted JC with a huge hug.
	JC returned the hug with a little surprise and a laugh. "Well, good morning to you too, man…" he chuckled. 
	Chris pulled away and grabbed him by the front of his shirt. "Guess what?" he exclaimed, eyes wide. 
	"What?" JC asked. "Keep your voice down or you're gonna wake up Justin."
	"Johnny just called… Man, we have got to celebrate!" Chris persisted. "Let him wake up. He should! Guess what?"
	"I can't guess. Tell me." JC rolled his eyes. Chris was absolutely glowing. "Did we get the week off or something?"
	"Better!"
	"What's better than that…? The month?"
	"No, you idiot!" Chris grinned. "Guess who just entered the German Top Ten?"
	A smile slowly spread over JC's lips, growing wider and wider. "You're not bullshitting me, are you?"
	"Man, no! It's far too early for that. I'm so for real I can't stand it!"
	"Wow. Oh wow. That's great." JC was ecstatic. The meaning of Chris's words suddenly hit him. "The top ten? They know who we are? They―"
	"Those fans were for real, man!"

	"Wow. Just wow. How did that even happen? I feel like we were barely there."
	"It flew, man. It flew. We need to celebrate." 
	JC hugged Chris again and then ran into the other room back to the bed, shaking Justin awake and nearly lifting him out of bed. "Justin!"
	"What? What?" Justin was awake quickly, eyes wide and concerned, fearing something like a fire or that they'd just discovered something awful he'd done and were going to kill him. He stood now in front of JC, anxious to get an explanation. "What?"
	"Guess what?" JC played the same game Chris just had. He could hear Chris in the kitchen calling Joey. He didn't wait for sleepy Justin to answer. "We are in the top ten!"
	"The what?" Justin was still half asleep and didn't get it. He dropped back down to sit on the edge of the bed and whined, "JC, what time is it…"
	JC grabbed him under the arms, tugging him up. "Get up! Didn't you hear me? Top ten, baby! As in, Germany likes us! As in top ten!"
	"Top ten?" It began to dawn on Justin just what JC was talking about. Suddenly he began to feel the excitement growing inside of him. "Really?" 
	Inside, they heard Chris yell, "Joey, guess what?" 
	It would be a good day.
*******
	 Next it was Miami. It was definitely warmer in south Florida, and the boys had images of at least some time at a beach after they endured the long drive down from Orlando through traffic a day later. But even if they didn't have time to go to the water, and even if they'd just endured a boring, humid ride down to Miami, nothing could spoil the excitement from learning they were in the top ten. 
	"So we're going to be here a while," Joey noted as they dropped their stuff into their room. He walked over to claim a bed. They were in another crappy motel, as usual, but at least now they were still in a familiar state where most of what they heard was English. 
	"Until the twenty-ninth," Lance said, quoting from the schedule.
	"What's then?" Justin asked. He sat on the edge of the other bed, dropping his bag at his feet. 
	"Flight."
	"To Germany?"
	"Warsaw."
	"Poland?"
	Lance nodded. "Yep." 
	"Do we get a bus then?" Justin persisted. 
	"I don’t know," Chris spoke up. "It looked like we'd be flying back and forth a lot of places then." 
	"Hm. I hope it's soon." 
	"I can't wait to record," JC said, dropping his suitcase in the corner. "You know?" He'd been thinking about how great they were going sound. Well-rested, excited about their hit single, and over all feeling really well. That would help their sound a lot. Good attitudes really could shine through. 
	"How many songs are we doing here?" Joey asked. 
	"A few." 
	"A few?" Justin echoed. "How many's a few?"
	"A few is… A few…" JC frowned. "Don't look at me. You guys know the same as what I know." 
	"Yeah, but you're supposed to remember it," Justin told him.
	"No, Lance is our schedule guru," JC objected.
	Lance just rolled his eyes. "Yeah. All that proves is that I can read." 
	Chris flopped down on the couch. "So." He sighed. "Do I have time for a nap?"
*******
	They recorded three songs over the next week and a half. A lot more time was spent in the studio than they expected, working hard to perfect their harmonies and the sound of the tracks. A lot less time was spent relaxing, which was hard after a couple days of doing really nothing. Finally they finished recording on the twenty-seventh, and spent the twenty-eighth on the beach for about an hour, where it was overcast and began to rain. Early the next day, before they knew it, they were back on a plane heading to Warsaw. 
	The flight was long. When they landed, Joey did not want to get out of his seat. He felt glued there. Stiff from the long, international flight, tired from the inconsistent sleep, and mentally drained from all the work they'd done since their 'break'. It was like they were making up for the few days of relaxation by overloading the next week.
	They got in from the airport late and dragged themselves through their hotel to check-in and find their room. Justin was strangely quiet. JC was grumbling about needing a bed. Chris was talking to nobody in particular about how they only had a day there and then they'd be off again. Lance and Joey walked in silence.
	They slept soundly but only to be met by an early wakeup call. With the time change, they arrived at the hotel incredibly late the night before, but neither the management, nor the show they were supposed to appear on seemed to consider that fact. 
	The Bravo-Supershow. It sounded nice. But even appearing on another show live and  reminding themselves of their top ten standing wasn't enough to cause any smiles that day. Particularly right before the show, when tensions were usually high. As they dressed, Joey pictured himself back on the plane, with the calming hum of the engine and the slight rest that was forced on them with travel. He ignored the issues like cramped seating, terrible food, and inadequate bathrooms. He wanted to escape there, to be unaccessible, but it wasn't possible.
	He snapped himself back to reality, back to their dressing room, and yawned. He looked at the others. They looked just as tired, particularly Justin, who he noticed had leaned back against the wall and had closed his eyes, shirt unbuttoned.
	Joey walked over and cuffed him in the head. "Hey. Wake up."
	Justin opened his eyes and frowned. "I can't…" He yawned widely and moved over to take a seat in a chair heavily. 
	"Well, if you can't wake up," Joey continued, "at least finish getting dressed. Button your shirt." 
	"I can't."
	JC cast him a look. "C'mon, Justin."
	"Get caffeine," Chris said. His eyes were dark and he was exhausted as well, appearance giving away what he tried to hide with a tough front. He pulled his shirt over his head and looked at Justin, who was closing his eyes again. "Justin. Come on, man." 
	Justin made a face. 
	"It's just an appearance, thank God," Joey began. "We don't have to sing." He rubbed his eyes, feeling heavy and sloppy despite being freshly dressed. "We'll look like shit, but at least we don't have to sound like shit."
	"We really don't have to look like shit either. This is important, guys," JC persisted as he leaned down in front of Justin, tapping his chin up gently. "Come on, Jup. We need to do this and at least try to look happy about it, alright?"
	"I'm just tired, C…" Justin frowned at him, and then swatted his hand away as his friend reached to button his shirt for him. "Geez... I can do it."
	"Fine, then do it," JC answered. 
	"We're all so tired," Lance said, running a hand through his hair. "This is bad scheduling. I mean getting off a plane, and being booked the rest of the day. That's bad." 
	"Everything's bad scheduling," Justin said as JC moved away from him. He stretched his legs out and yawned again. But then he sighed and buttoned the rest of his his shirt before someone else could complain to him. 
	Chris frowned as he saw JC stifle a yawn as well. He wondered if JC's insistence was genuine or anger at himself for being so tired too. He said, "Think top ten, guys. Joey's right― This is just a short appearance, like Joe said― We're going to be on there for what, fifteen minutes? Let's just go to hair and make-up, let them do their thing, smile and answer their questions, and then we can sleep." 
	"We fly again tomorrow," Lance noted. "Back to Munich."
	"Bad scheduling," Justin said again with a hint of agitation.
	"We got like two hours of sleep last night," Joey agreed.
	"We're fine," JC insisted. "We can get through fifteen minutes." 
	Bullshit, Chris wanted to reply. We're moody and tired and not even your perseverance is waking us up. He could tell JC was about to get in his controlling mood. JC always had to have it all perfect, it all had to work out. He wouldn't admit he was tired when tiredness wasn't supposed to be happening. Instead he would try to get things moving, even throughout his own stifled yawns.
	Chris didn't want to stifle anything. He didn't want to pretend he wasn't tired. He just wanted to go back to bed.
	"Justin, for God's sake," JC continued. "Can't you just get up?"
	"We don't go on yet," Justin replied irritably, slouched in the chair with his eyes once again closed. "Let me rest for five seconds." 
	"You know, our schedule is only going to get more and more crowded, especially if we want to keep moving up in the world, so we need to get used to this. You know, it's not a good sign if we can't handle this… A fifteen minute spot. And at least we got any sleep at all." JC shook his head and sighed. "I'm gonna go see when we're on and get a drink."
	They watched him leave the dressing room with a communal sigh.
	"He's just as tired," Chris said. "In fact, he'll probably fall asleep the quickest after we're out of here."
	"He's a God damn perfectionist," Justin replied, sitting up a bit and trying not to scowl. He forced himself to stand and jumped up and down once. "Wake up, Justin," he said to himself. "Wake up."
	"No yawning on the show," Joey said. "Let's make a pact right now."
	Lance laughed. 
	"Serious," Joey insisted. "Get all your yawns out now."
*******
	The show went fine. They put on forced smiles before JC returned to the dressing room and when he did, Joey bullied him playfully to get his nerves back to before. Joey had a way with people and soon JC was laughing and they silently agreed it would be fine. They would just get this over with and sleep aftewards. And then they went on fifteen minutes later, answering questions with a believable happiness and responding nearly perfect with how they had been told to act.
	When they got back into the van, Chris's prediction was correct. JC's head tipped to the side to lean against the window and after a moment, his even breathing gave away that he was asleep. He awoke only to Lance tapping his shoulder when they got to the hotel, and remained awake only long enough to drag himself quietly to their room and collapse on the bed. 
	"Guess that's you guys' bed," Joey said wryly, nodding his head towards where JC was sprawled.
	"He's such a dufus," Justin complained as he walked over to crawl onto the bed, peering into JC's face. "Narcoleptic."
	"Big words," JC murmured back at him. 
	Justin mimicked him as he moved to untie JC's shoes and pull them off. "Big words," he echoed with a high voice. He continued to imitate him. "I can't wait ten minutes to fall asleep after I yell at everyone else for wanting to sleep."
	"Bed," JC grumbled. "There's a difference."
	"Mm," Justin answered skeptically, tossing JC's shoe across the room. It hit Chris, who cursed and was able to duck from the next shoe, giving Justin a grin. 
	"We did good," Joey said, on his way to the bathroom. "Real good, guys."
	"Not half-assed at all," Chris agreed.
	Few other words were spoken before they had all settled and were asleep.
********
	Then they were back on a plane. It was the first day of December. At the end of the month it would be Christmas, though there seemed to be a million things to do before they got there. That seemed light years away. 
	JC had intended to sleep on the plane, but forgot that of course Justin would sit next to him and of course Justin would need to have something to do to pass the time of the flight if sleep wasn't in his cards at that time. That didn't stop him from trying to close his eyes though. Chris was sitting on his other side and Lance and Joey were across the aisle in the next two seats. So JC was stuck between Chris and JC. He felt trapped. 
	"You ever practice your name?" Justin was asking, leaning into him in a way that JC knew should be annoying. He was trying to sleep for God's sake. But Justin didn't mean it. 	He just wished it Chris was sitting in the middle instead of him. Chris had more energy. He was always playing with Justin. 
	"Huh?" He raised his eyebrows and glanced at Justin.
	He had the tray down in front of him, a piece of paper and a pen there. JC wondered where he'd gotten that from, although he knew Justin had nearly everything in his backpack from a Walkman to snacks to gum to Chris's Gameboy and beyond. His mom always seemed to make sure he was a walking convenience store.
	Justin was scribbling on the paper. "Like an autograph."
	"Mm. We did them at the MMC signings, pal, remember?"
	"Uh-uhn. You have to do it different now. See?" Justin shoved the paper at him.
	JC looked and nodded at what to him were all squiggly lines. "Nice."
	"Can you read it?"
	"Justin Timberlake?"
	Justin grunted and took the paper back. "You're not supposed to be able to read it."
	"I didn't. Wild guess."
	"Oh."
	Chris reached across him then, "Let me see." He pulled down his tray and leaned over, scrawling something himself. "There."
	Justin leaned across JC's lap, looking at it critically. The 'C' and the 'K' of his name were intelligible and the rest were loops and lines like Justin's had been. "I like that. JC, you do it." He leaned back and pulled down JC's tray, pushing the paper onto it.
	JC took the pen with a frown and did a big 'J' and then scrawled the rest, making the 'C' a little obvious as well as the 'z'. Then after a moment's pause, he put "JC" under it in quotes.
	"You're not supposed to do that," Justin objected.
	"Do what?"
	"Define it."
	"Who says, Justin?" JC retorted. "Did you create the art of autographing?"
	"As a matter of fact, I did," Justin replied. He yawned and pushed the paper back at Chris. "Make Joey and Lance do it. I wanna see theirs. We've gotta practice."
	"For what?" Chris asked. He took the paper.
	"For being famous!" Justin answered. "Come on."
	Chris rolled his eyes and leaned into the aisle, telling Joey what to do and giving him the paper.  Joey seemed to roll his eyes but took the paper anyway. 
	JC pushed his tray back up. "I'm going to try to rest, alright?" He only got to close his eyes for a moment before he was spoken to again.
	"JC, you know what I just remembered?" Justin asked.
	"What?"
	"That Munich was where we were right before we flew to Orlando." 
	JC didn't see the point. "Yeah."
	"And we're flying there now," Justin persisted.
	"I believe so, yeah."
	Justin eyes were wide. "JC, that's where we broke the bed." He said it as if it were a mortal sin that no one should hear them talk about.
	"You. You broke it. There was no we."
	"What if they remember that?"
	"Justin, I really doubt we're staying at the same hotel," Chris replied. "You know?" 
	"What if we are?"
	"Then I really don't think they'll care or remember us either way. Honestly?"
	"Okay."
	"So trivial." Chris shook his head.
	"I'm going to try to rest now, alright?" JC repeated again. He tried to recline his seat a little bit. It was seemingly broken. "Hm."
	"Want to play that game?" Justin asked. "Where I say―"
	"No," Chris interrupted skeptically. "None of your games are ever any fun."
	"No, where I say something, then you say the first thing that pops into your head, then me, etcetera."
	"See? Not fun."  
	"How about who can be quietest longest?" JC suggested.
	"Stupid," Justin complained. "You and the game are."
	JC turned his head to meet his eyes with Justin's sternly. "Tired. Try tired." He heard the whine in his tone and didn't care. "Justin, just… You wanna sit next to Chris?"
	"We can get you a Coke."
	"A Coke." Where had that come from? "Why would I want Coke, J?"
	"Caffeine," Justin replied. "You know?"
	"I think I'm beyond that helping. And no offense, but you're beyond annoying." He saw Justin's expression fall and cursed himself silently. Justin would exchange retorts happily until it was convenient for him to be upset by it. "Not beyond, but just-Justin, I'm just tired and you're not. Or you are, but you don't sleep and I want to. And… And I just want to not be tired when we get to Munich, you know?"
	"I'll try to stop annoying everyone." Justin's voice was a bit stiff.
	"I didn't…" JC broke off. "I'm just going to be quiet now. I'll play the game alone. If you do want to switch seats with me and talk to Chris, let me know."
	"It's hard not to be annoying when that's just my nature."
	"It's not, I just…" JC closed his eyes tightly. "Forget I opened my mouth. You know I didn't mean it that way." 
	Justin shrugged and kicked the chair in front of him. "Yeah. Sure."
	Chris rolled his eyes and looked over when he heard Joey calling his name. He was handed the paper back, and Chris took it. "Justin, wanna see?"
	"Nope," Justin replied. He looked out the window at the clouds and kicked the chair in front of him once more. "Momet's over." 
	"You can't guilt me," JC said, shifting uncomfortably.
	Justin pushed his tray up hard and locked it into place. Sulking, he kicked the chair again.
	"Justin, fuck," Chris hissed. "You're going to make whoever's in front of you mad. And quit with the pity act. That is is annoying and you know it. Let JC sleep if he wants."
	"It doesn't matter what I do, I'll be annoying anyway," Justin replied. "In fact, the mere sound of my voice―"
	"Jesus Christ…"
	"See?" Justin put his hand against the pane of the glass. It was cold. Then he reached up and turned the little air vent knobs to on, directing the influx of air to hit JC.
	JC's eyes opened at the cold air and he reached up instinctively to turn them off. He looked at Justin. "I'm annoying too. We're all annoying. What's it matter?"
	"Am I the annoyingest?"
	"How can you be when that's not even a word?"
	"Look." Chris handed the paper to Justin. "Joey drew the Superman symbol by his name."
	"Joey can kiss my ass," Justin replied. "I really don't care." He pushed the paper away.
	"Justin…" JC sent him a look. "Get over it." 
	"What? Can't I be annoying? Aren't I supposed to be? Isn't that the way I am?" 
	JC sighed. 
	"I can be more annoying I bet," Chris replied challengingly. 
	"Let's not try it on a plane," JC replied. "Try it sometime when I'm not around." 
	"Who says we have to try?" Justin retorted. "It is part of our nature. It comes naturally." 
	JC decided simply not to give Justin room to retort. He was tired. He leaned forward and reached down to where Justin's backpack was, pulling it up into his lap. As he started to unzip it, Justin reached for it.
	"JC, that's mine. What do you need?"
	"I know it's yours." JC pushed his hand away and reached through it. He pulled out Justin's Walkman and looked at him. "Now, should I zone you out? Or do you want to listen while I sleep?"
	"Mine," Justin persisted, taking it away from him.
	"Listen to it," JC answered. He glanced over to where Chris had pulled out a magazine and yawned.
	"Fine…" Justin said, slouching down in his seat. "Fine." 
	JC closed his eyes at once with silence. "We all need to sleep..." he murmured. "For about a year." 
*******
	  Their biggest surprise came when they landed in Munich and got off the plane. After they left the gate, they actually had several girls approach them, grinning and asking "*NSYNC?". 
	"Wow," Lance said softly. 
	Joey gave him a nod and a grin.
	The girls were very nice, speaking very little English, but the gratitude they felt when the guys signed their magazines and papers and took a picture with each of them was universal. 
	"Fans," JC said in awe as they left the airport. 
	"How'd they know where we were?" Justin asked. He frowned as they walked out of the building into the cold December air outside. He rubbed his hands together and felt a chill go down his spine. 
	"I guess they heard we were coming back today," Chris said. 
	"Pretty cool," Lance said.
	"Aren't we glad Justin made us practice our autographs?" Chris smirked.
	"True." Justin laughed. "Where's the van? It's cold." 
	"They knew our names," Joey said. "Did you notice that? The one girl was like, Chris, here. And Lance, here. That's kind of cool."
	"Fans," JC said again. "How cool." 
*********
	Their new hotel looked a little nicer than the other one from the outside, but they soon found out that looks could be deceiving. The five boys were groggy when the bus finally stopped and they were told that they were there. They were fortunate enough to have napped for most of the ride there, but JC still yawned as they took their bags out of the back of the van. 
	"It does look like they've gotten a bit more snow," Joey noted as he put his bag over his shoulder. 
	"Looks like it might start soon again." Chris squinted up at the white, powdery looking sky. 
	Johnny Wright met them in the dingy hotel lobby. He was sitting in one of the ratty chairs, a heavy coat on and a baseball cap on his head, reading a paper. He smiled as he saw the guys come in and got up to meet them.
	"Hey, guys, how are you doing?"
	"Great," Chris replied. "We're great."
	"Good, good… A little cold, huh?" Johnny laughed. "Sorry about the hotels and stuff, guys. You know how it is. But you're going to have that opening gig soon, I promise. The few shows that you've had already have shown me that you're ready for that. I'm setting it up. I know the response has seemed small so far with the places you've done a performance, but it's all been positive and that's what matters." 
	The guys nodded in almost reflex agreement.
	"And you five look great. You look like a group." Johnny approved with a nod and a smile. "You feeling good about it? It's a humble start, but I'm feeling this is going to go places, fellas. Lou and I have been talking and he's doing as much as he can too. A European tour would be nice, huh? With a single that's already starting to hit the charts?"
	Justin smiled. He was thinking about when they'd first recorded. At those Stockholm studios of Denniz Pop and Max Martin. Now a tour like Chris had mentioned. This was getting better and better. A bus and a tour. 
	Johnny let them go then, telling them they had the day off but an early rise the next day. He told them he was staying at another hotel and gave them their key for their room before leaving.
	"Of course he's staying at another hotel," was Joey's comment with a wry smile.
	"You noticed that too?" JC mused. He took a look around the lobby and noticed a few transient looking people hanging around that were eyeing them. He cleared his throat and started to walk, saying, "Why don't we get to our room…?" 
*********
	The room wasn't a very big improvement from the last room that had, either in Miami or the last time they were in Munich. The only thing that they could notice was that the bed wasn't broken, and JC jokingly made Justin swear that he wouldn't jump on either bed as soon as they got in there. There was also a beat-up couch facing the TV and nothing more than average. 
	"Damn, it's cold in here too." Justin frowned.
	"You always think it's cold," Joey answered.
	"It is cold in here," Chris said. "It's like the same as outside." 
	Joey shrugged. Since they all still had on their coats and layers and he'd been dragging a suitcase it was hard to tell. "Let's turn up the heat then." 
	Lance was already trying to do that as Joey spoke, frowning at the furnace type heater that was in the corner of the room. "This seems to say that it's already turned up all the way…"
	"Are you working it right?" JC asked, dropping his bag on his bed. He walked over. "It could be different than the other one."
	"Well, I don't know German," Lance admitted. "But I know red means hot and blue means cold and it's turned all the way to the red and it's on." He flipped a knob. "Whichever way I put it, no air or heat or anything comes out."
	"Maybe it's broken," Justin said. "Maybe we need another room." He sat down on the edge of the bed. "Like a suite."
	"A suite?" Joey laughed out loud. 
	"It must be broken…" JC answered, frowning at the heater with Lance. "Maybe we should run down and check. Like ask the front desk." 
	"Is there a front desk?" Chris asked. He skeptically thought of the little check-in where they had gotten the key for the room and itinerary that Johnny had reserved. "I mean there's a desk but this isn't the Four Seasons." 
	"I don't know… There has to be a maintenance guy… Or something, right?"
	Joey spoke up, "Just kick it a few times."
	"Joe, come on." JC rolled his eyes.
	"Go look for a maintenance guy then." Joey dropped down onto the couch. It sank in a bit with his weight and he smirked. "Well, this couch is definitely well-used." He looked for a controller for the TV and then grunted, realizing that like the last hotel, this crappy TV probably didn't have a controller either.
	"It's still cold," Justin persisted. 
	"I'm trying, Curly boy, chill," JC replied, turning the knob again. "It's just not working." 
	"I'll go try to find someone to fix it," Chris said. "Anyone want to come?"
	Lance shrugged. "Sure, I will."
	"Anyone else want to come? Justin?"
	"No." Justin shook his head. It wasn't a good enough reason to get out of the room in his opinion..
	"I wonder what time your mom will get here, Lance," JC said. Diane was flying in within the next couple of days to Poland to rejoin them. Justin's mother had stuck with her decision to look for a house in Florida and would see them again when they got home for Christmas, assured that Diane would be there while she finished the necessary details at home with her husband. "I wonder if her room will have heat."
	"She's coming tomorrow, so I don’t know," Lance mused. "We'll be back." He left the room with Chris, shutting the door firmly behind them.
	"I'm hungry," Joey replied. "Speaking of food."
	"No one was speaking of food," Justin replied with a frown.
	"My bad."
	"When they come back maybe can go find something." JC sat down next to Joey on the couch. The cushions sank deeper. "As beat-up as this is, it kind of makes it more comfortable…" 
	"I know," Joey agreed. "It's really not bad. Although it'll probably kill my back after not long." 
	"Bed comfortable, Just?" JC turned his head to look at Justin.
	Justin shrugged. He was still sitting just at the edge of the bed. It was hard to judge if something was comfortable when he was wearing multiple layers of an undershirt, sweater, sweatshirt, scarf, and coat and could barely move his arms. But he wasn't about to take off the coat. His cold hands were an indication to what the room felt like.
	"See, you need gloves," Joey spoke up.
	"I got him gloves," JC said.
	"I packed them." Justin set his jaw. "I obviously didn't need them in Miami."
	"Chris was smart enough to keep his in his coat."
	"Well, then fine, Chris is smarter," Justin answered.
	"I already knew that."
	Justin ignored him. In a compromise with himself, Justin unraveled his scarf from his neck and put it beside him. He really hoped they would be able to fix the heat. He didn't know why he always felt so cold, just that it wasn't something he could help. 
	"You know, I was thinking… Christmas isn't that far away…" Joey realized slowly. "Just about a month, huh?"
	"Yeah, and it's weird… we've been together a while now…" JC said. "It does seem like we've known each other forever, as five… But time's been flying… I didn't know it would feel so quick when we finally started getting somewhere."
	"I know…" Joey brooded. "I don't even know where the summer went."
	"And my birthday's coming up," Justin said.
	"This again," JC mused.
	"It's important. Isn't sixteen supposed to be important?"
	"Depends. Besides, mine comes before yours," Joey reminded.
	Justin shrugged. "Mine's more important."
	"I'm going to be twenty. That's special." 
	"JC's already twenty and there's nothing special about it."
	"Hey," JC objected. He turned his head to send Justin a look. "Stop pouting. Come sit with us."
	"No."
	"The couch is comfortable though, and you look too cold over there. Come over here."
	"No. You're just mad I said twenty wasn't special."
	"I don't care," JC said, rolling his eyes. "I don't think it's that great either." 
	"It is too special," Joey said.
	"No, it's not," Justin insistently. 
	"You'll think it is when you turn it. You said fifteen was special."
	Justin frowned. "I don't like being fifteen. I never said it was special."
	"I think you did." JC smirked. "Either way, Christmas becomes before either of your birthdays anyway, and so I'll think about that."
	"Yeah," Joey said. "It's really close. And New Years. I wonder what New Years is like here."
	"It's barely even December…" Justin frowned.
	"Oh, so that's so far away, but your birthday's, like, tomorrow?" Joey asked.
	"Birthdays take a lot of planning," Justin answered. 
	"You really want something big?"
	Justin shrugged. "It's okay. I'm kidding." 
	"You know what else is coming up, then…" JC persisted. "The Superbowl. God, Justin, you've really got us thinking ahead now. Think of all the planning we need to do." 
	"And then there's President's Day," Joey added. "Can't forget that."
	"Forget I said anything," Justin replied irritably. "JC, you're the one that brought up Christmas anyway, not me."
	"I did?" JC frowned.
	"Yeah― No, Joey did. It's Joey that brought it up."
	He shrugged.
	Justin shook his head and rubbed his hands together. He was tempted to look through his bag for his packed away gloves, but he was so bundled up that it would take a lot effort. "I'm cold. If the heat was working, I'd be warm," Justin replied. "Forget about gloves and Christmas and my birthday. Whatever." 
	JC gave Joey a look, rolling his eyes as he said to Justin, "Okay, so you don't want any gifts anymore?"
	"I don't care," Justin replied. "We're poor."
	JC sighed. "Whatever, Justin. Let's not think about things that are a couple months away. How about what we'll get for dinner. You hungry, Jus?"
	"Not really yet." 
	"I'm hungry," Joey said.
	"You're hungry," JC repeated. "Justin's cold. And I'm hoping Chris and Lance come back with news that it'll be fixed. Then he can be warm, we can get food, and everyone will be happy." 
	"You think they'll fix it? You can't really expect that," Justin responded. "Here?"
	"Let's be optimistic."
	"No. You always say to be realistic."
	JC couldn't argue with that. 
	Joey got up and played with the TV for a few minutes, going through the other channels. They were silent. About five minutes later there was a knock on the door. Being up, Joey was the one that walked over to get it, leaving the TV on a fuzzy channel as he did. Lance and Chris were let in.
	"God," Chris said as they walked in. "Talk about misunderstandings."
	"What happened?" JC frowned.
	"Nothing, really. Just wishing I'd paid a little more attention to that German I learned way back when…"
	Justin crawled back onto the bed and lay back to stretch out. "Ya'll could've borrowed my handy dandy dictionary."
	"Handy dandy my ass," Chris shot back. "It's only English to German. Doesn't help you translate what they're saying."
	"Luckily the guy spoke some English," Lance said.
	"Well, what'd you find out about the heat?" JC asked.
	"That it's broken," Chris said irritably. "That's why there's so many vacancies. Guess our people never bothered asking about anything like that." He rolled his eyes, showing a flash of vexation. "Apparently there were really low temperatures several nights ago and their pipes froze and burst… At least that's what I understood from the half English reply. So the heat's gone for now. God, I have a head ache just from that conversation."
	"Well, now what? It's still cold," Justin said with a frown, staring up at the ceiling.
	"Well, fuck, infant, what do you want me to do about it?" Chris said somewhat harshly. "I tried. Got yelled at in German. I can't fix pipes. What the hell do you want me to do?"
	"Chris, there's no need to yell at him," JC started.
	"I'm not yelling. I'm just sick of his complaining. I can't fix it, okay? What am I?" Chris shook his head. "I'm not yelling. He's cold. Well, Jesus fucking Christ. We're all cold." 
	"We should just go get something to eat," Joey replied slowly. "Get out of here for a while."
	"I'm hungry too," Lance said.
	"Let's do something quick," Chris answered. "As cold as it is, I do just want to relax and take a nap." 
	"I bet there's a McDonald's around," JC answered. "I think I saw one within walking distance when we were driving in."
	Joey rolled his eyes. "How would you know? You were half asleep."
	JC smirked. "I saw the yellow arches."
	"At least something's universal."
*********
	It took them longer than they wanted to find the McDonald's. After JC had mentioned the name of the fast-food restaurant, each of them envisioned French fries and burgers and Cokes. Immediately they were fixated on what would be their meal. But they had to find it first and that proved to be a bit more difficult than expected.
	Walking without a clear destination in wet snow and ice was not fun. Fortunately, the snow on the sidewalks was packed down, but the weather was still cold and tiny flakes were beginning to fall from the sky. 
	Justin would swear he was the coldest, but he refused to say so now, just stuffing his hands into his pockets and keeping his teeth clenched to keep from chattering. He was mad at himself for not bothering to find his gloves before they left. He felt himself shivering involuntarily with the biting air and temperatures. It almost hurt to breathe in the cold air. But he didn't say it. They knew he was cold without him having to say so, and after Chris's snapping at him, he didn't feel like talking anyway. Instead he thought about his new gloves, sitting at the bottom of his bag and how maybe he should've taken the effort to find them.
	When they finally found the McDonald's, there was a communal sigh of relief and mutual exhaustion. They'd been walking endlessly for what seemed such a futile goal. Fast food.
	"I'm starving now," Joey insisted as they walked inside to the heated McDonald's. The heat felt good. "I was hungry before. Now starving."
	"I hope we can order in English…" JC brooded.
	"We'll get a table," Chris said. 
	"I'll help you order," Lance told JC.
	"Okay, what do you guys want?" JC asked. 
	After giving orders, Justin, Joey, and Chris went to the back of the restaurant to find seats. They found a clean booth and it was really refreshing that they could almost pretend they were in Orlando. The McDonald's appearance was nearly identical. 
	Joey slid in first and Justin took the opposite side. 
	"I'll get napkins and straws and stuff," Chris said as he turned away and walked towards the counter where the condiments were out.
	"You still cold?" Joey asked Justin gently after a moment of silence.
	Justin shook his head, lying. He was sitting on his cold hands to warm them up. He was almost afraid they would fall off.
	"It's warmer in here," Joey replied. 
	"Kinda." Justin nodded in agreement.
	Joey rested his chin in his hands. "Hungry?"
	Justin shrugged.
	"You sure are talkative." Joey frowned.
	Justin raised his eyebrows. "I answered."
	"Okay." Joey shrugged.
	"Well, after a fifty mile trek to find this stupid place, there isn't much to say, huh?" Justin replied. 
	"That was something to say. But yeah, like I said, I'm starving. I would have settled for any of the places we passed to find this."
	Justin sat back, slouching. 
	Chris returned then, sitting on Joey's side. He put down two little white cups of ketchup down and then napkins and straws. "What's up, guys?" He gave them a look.
	"I was just congratulating Justin on his knack for conversation," Joey started in a sarcastic tone. "It's quite impressive."
	Chris scrutinized Justin. "What's with you?"
	Justin gave him a look. So what if he didn't say much? Joey wasn't providing anything that warranted much of a response. "Nothing." 
	"I'm sorry I yelled at you before. I didn't mean it. Are you moody?"
	"What's to say Joey's not?" Justin answered back. "Why's it got to be me?"
	"Because you've got that look. But my next question was if it was Joey. Or which one of you was pissing off the other." 
	"Knack for conversation," Justin repeated cynically. "Thanks."
	"You know who I was thinking of calling tonight…" Joey began slowly, changing the subject. His attention was focused on Chris now.
	"Who?" Chris looked at him suspiciously.
	"Do you remember that girl…?"
	"Were we in Munich then?"
	Joey frowned. "God, I don't remember. But I thought so." 
	"You have her phone number?"
	Joey nodded. "Yeah. I was thinking that if the hotel's freezing, we might as well go out or… do something else―" his eyes twinkled, "―to warm up. You know?"
	Chris laughed. "Joe… So typical." 
	"So?" 
	"Then you should try and call her," Chris answered. "And if she's not in Munich, ask her if she's got any friends around…" 
	"I really think we were in Munich." Joey smiled. "Wasn't she great?"
	Chris just laughed. "Joey, you're stupid." 
	"Well..." Joey shrugged. "Stupid is fun." 
	Justin sat there and waited impatiently for JC and Lance to come back. Meanwhile he listened to Chris and Joey talk about that last club. It made him irritated because he wasn't involved. And if they went out again that night, he likely wouldn't be involved again. But finally the other two returned with two trays of food, sitting down. Lance sat next to Justin.
	Justin slid his hands out from under him; they were warmer now.  
	"We got lots of fries," JC said. 
	Finally time to eat. 
********
	"JC," Justin murmured when they were walking back towards the hotel after eating. It was nearly dark now, but they remembered their way. At least the way back to their hotel wouldn't be as convoluted and frustrating. 
	Justin had been thinking a lot, and now he needed clarification. He felt stupid, but he had to ask… And he didn't know who else he could ask. 
	"What?" JC asked.
	"If…" Justin began in a whisper, making sure the other three guys were talking about something else and couldn't hear before continuing. He stayed back behind them and JC did as well. "If Joey says… They might as well go out or do something else to warm up, and he says 'something else', like, in a different way, does he mean he wants to go fuck somebody? I was wondering because it really sounded like that. And if so, doesn't he have a girl back in Florida?" 
	A look of incredulity passed over JC's face, and he stuffed his hands into his coat pockets, smirking. He shook his head for a moment, not replying. "Oh, boy, I know he did not just ask me that…" he murmured. 
	Justin wasn't sure how to take that and paused. "Does it?"
	"Let's not just― So wait, where is this coming from?"
	"I told you. He said they might as well―"
	"Okay, okay." JC started to laugh. "No. Of course it doesn't mean that. Joey doesn't believe in premarital sex." JC had a look on his face, like he was trying to keep from laughing.
	"Don't make fun of me."
	"I'm not."
	"Well, that was a bullshit answer. And you're laughing right now. Just tell me if that's what he meant. You're the only one I can ask." 
	"Justin," JC began. "Well, first off, I don’t want to hear you calling it fucking, that's not very nice. It makes it sound so vulgar. Plus it sounds wrong for a fifteen year old to talk about people going out to fuck." 
	"Fuck, fuck, fuck." 
	JC rolled his eyes. "Okay. Now that we're past that." He simply trailed off, eyeing the guys up ahead of him and wishing Joey wasn't so colloquial in his conversations. 
	"So, that's what he meant, right?" Justin persisted. "I'm pretty sure I know what he meant. I just wanted to ask."
	"Justin―"
	"Don't act like I have no idea what people do. I had to hear the room next door having their orgy last time," Justin answered. "Even Lance heard it." 
	"And what's your point? The walls are thin?"
	"But I―"
	"Justin, I just don't think I should be the one to―"
	"The one to what? It's not like you're explaining it to me," Justin answered. "I don't need you to explain anything but what he meant. That we've been through, dude. I just wanna know if that's what you guys go out and do."
	"No," JC answered simply.
	"Have you ever hooked with someone when you go out?"
	"Justin..." JC rolled his eyes.
	"Have you?"
	"Have you ever seen us bring anyone back? No, right?"
	"Yeah, but sometimes you're all gone for a while. Or one of you comes back later. And then it just seemed like that's what he meant. He had that smile too."
	"Well…"
	"And Chris laughed and said he was typical." Justin frowned. "You don't have to tell me. But isn't it worse if I speculate?"
	"I wasn't there for the conversation, Justin. Why don't you ask Joey?"
	"I don't want to."
	"Chris?"
	"Chris is annoyed at me I think. I'm annoying, remember?"
	JC shook his head. "Stop saying that. I'm sorry I said that, even jokingly, because it's not even remotely true. I was just overtired."
	"So you lied."
	"Yes."
	"And you're lying now."
	"I―" JC broke off. "Let's not segregate ourselves." He walked faster and joined the other three. A moment later, Justin forced himself to catch up with a heavy sigh.
*******
	"We can't have them come, can we?" JC whispered. 
	"I don't know. I thought I'd ask you." Joey shrugged.
	"You called her?"
	Joey nodded. "She wants to."
	JC frowned. The two of them were sitting on one of the beds, discussing whether they'd go out that night, away from the freezing room. Chris, Lance, and Justin were watching something on TV. It was turned up, and Chris was ad-libbing in English over the captioning, making it a comedy for the other two. They were nearly hysterical.
	"It wouldn't be fair to leave them here tonight," JC said. "It's freezing." They all still had their heavy coats on sitting in the room. 
	"Lance's mom isn't even here yet," Joey said. "Until tomorrow."
	"I know."
	"I told this girl I was coming," Joey said slowly with a frown. "Sorry. But I really wanted to see her again. You can stay here too in this freezing room if you feel so bad for them. Not much we can do that they're so young." 
	JC nodded. "Yeah." He looked over at the couch skeptically where the other two were sitting, entertained by Chris, and frowned. "I don't know…" 
	"Want them to come?"
	JC looked skeptical.
	"Lance is almost eighteen anyway," Joey began. "And Justin looks older because he's tall, so maybe it wouldn't be that big a deal… They've gone out with us in the States."
	JC continued to frown as he thought about the last time they were at a cheap club in Germany. The smoke filled rooms, the stench of beer that floated in the air in the vibrations of the music, the hands that groped and pushed against them… Maybe it had just been that club. But did he really want to drag two minors in there? It was different than bringing them out to some commercial pop club in Orlando where they could predict exactly what the night would be like.
	"I don't know, Joey. You're saying yes, but you won't be the one baby-sitting either way." 
	Joey shrugged. "Well…" He looked over. "Chris is having a good time with them, so how about we go, and he can stay with them so they don’t feel left out?"
	JC looked a little hesitant.
	"Not a good plan?"
	"I don't know." JC sighed. "Besides, we can't decide for him whether he wants to go out. We have to ask him at least." He called, "Chris. Hey, come here for a second."
	The older man looked back at them and got up, leaving the TV on loud with Justin and Lance watching him walk behind to meet the others. He sat on the edge of the bed and smirked. "Yeah? What's with the secretive conversations over here?"
	"Okay, look…" Joey began. "I'm going out. I called the girl and she wants to go out again. Clubbing. And I thought you guys could come or whatever, but what do we do with Justin and Lance? Should they come?" 
	Justin, who had tilted his head towards their discussion to listen attentively out of curiosity, suddenly perked up. He'd been wondering what they were talking about. He turned around and leaned over the couch, looking at them hopefully.
	"Can I go?" he asked. "Please?" 
	The three older boys looked over him with uncertain expressions.
	"Eavesdropper," Joey accused.
	"I heard my name," Justin answered. "Can I go?"
	"Justin…" JC started slowly. "We don’t even know if we're all going."
	"I am, though," Joey said. "I am definitely going."
	"Joey, can I come with you?" Justin pleaded. "I'll be so good, I swear."
	Joey gave him a look. "Stop begging. We haven't decided yet, and your whining does not make me want you to come." 
	"But…" Justin objected.
	"I'm fine with going or not going," Chris said. "I can stay here and chill with them."
	"No!" Justin howled. "It's cold here! I want to go out!"
	"We could do something else," Chris suggested. He looked at JC. "I'd rather you go with Joey so at least everyone's with somebody, you know?"
	JC nodded. "True." He lowered his voice. "I just don't think they should go, you know…? I'm not saying never, I just mean tonight doesn't seem like the night to break them into the art of cheap German clubbing."
	"Art of cheap German clubbing," Chris laughed. "We don't have to go somewhere cheap."
	"Cheap and sketchy can be fun though," Joey chuckled.
	"So what are we doing?" Justin persisted.
	"How about you, Chris, and Lance will do something," JC replied. "And Joey and I are going to do something else."
	"What if I don't want to do anything with Chris and Lance?"
	"Then I'll kick your ass," Chris replied. "You're doing something with me tonight. And we're going to have more fun than them." 
	"Whatever." Justin turned and sank back down into the couch. "Assholes." He looked over at Lance, who was still watching the TV. "Why couldn't I be your age? Then I could be eighteen sooner and go. Because you don’t seem to care."
	Lance eyed him. "Well, we can't just switch ages."
	Justin grunted. "Why not?"
	"Because I'm cooler than you."
	"Screw you, Lance. You're so lame."
	"Bite me, Brillo Head."
	Justin rolled his eyes. He had no choice. Rather than be annoying, he didn't fight it and kept his mouth shut as they talked about it for a little while longer. When Joey and JC left, he stayed in and tried not to let them know how much it bothered him. 
	He wouldn't admit it, but the night was fine, and it passed quickly. They didn't do much, just went out to get a little food, then came back to squeeze on the couch and watch more TV. Chris bought some beers for all of them and they chilled out. Pretty uneventful, but not a bad night. The three were asleep before JC and Joey returned.
*******
	"Wanna hear something exciting?" 
	Justin looked over at JC with a sigh when he heard the question. They were at a photo-shoot that next day. Just like they would be the day after that. Then interviews following the days after that. 
	Justin observed him carefully. They had a ten minute break until they started up again and he was already tired of smiling. 
	"If it's about last night, no," Justin replied.
	JC didn't let that bother him. "No, it's not."
	"Okay. Then what?"
	"I heard Lance and his mom talk about it this morning," JC continued. He took a sip from the water bottle in his hand. "So Johnny and Lou are hiring tutors for you guys. It's about time too. You guys haven't had school-related anything consistent for a while."
	"Johnny and Lou are what?" Justin frowned. "Why do we need tutors?"
	"So you can actually finish school, duh."
	Justin's brow furrowed. "And this is exciting news to you…"
	JC shrugged. "I thought you'd be happy." Then he laughed. "Yeah, I know. I'm sorry. I'm not funny. But I thought you'd want to know anyway. Although I'm sure they'll tell you when it's all settled."
	"That sucks."
	"I bet you're behind." JC squirted him with some water. "Huh?"
	"I'm never behind." Justin moved out of the water's way. "Stop. We have to be in the shoot in like five minutes, and they'll be pissed if we're wet."
	"Mm." JC shrugged. "I bet you are though. You haven't been to real school in… how long? Don't count some of the makeup work." 
	"Are you making fun of me?" Justin's voice rose a little in irritation. "Because―"
	"Justin, no!" JC objected, shaking his head. "I'm just saying..."
	"Well, stop saying. Just shut up. Where'd you get the water?"
	"They have 'em over there." JC pointed. "I didn't know it bugged you that much."
	"Dude. It doesn't." Justin started walking towards where he now noticed the several water bottles set out. It did kind of bug him, but he didn't want to say that. He didn't really want to talk about it. But he was sometimes torn about not being in real school. Partially because he didn't know what he was missing, and partially because he sometimes felt dumb. 
	"Then why are you acting like that? I'm sorry, I wasn't making fun of you." 
	Justin twisted the top off his water bottle, bring it up to his mouth to take a long sip. He eyed JC carefully before he disconnected his mouth from the bottle for a second to say, "So?"
	"So, I'm sorry."
	"I went to real school for a little bit. Eighth grade," Justin replied slowly, looking at his feet. "For a little bit after the show was canceled. Then I kinda was… I had some trouble and then this all happened."
	"What kind of trouble?"
	"Nothing really. It jutswasn't the same. I couldn't be like that. And then I didn't wanna go anymore, and this came and it worked out. You know?" Justin looked back up at him. "So. More tutors." He shook his head. "School sucks." 
	"Come on. I wanna know what you did. Your mom didn't really tell me any of this." 
	"I killed somebody."
	"Crazy boy. You did not. Now tell me for real." 
	"JC, it was murder. But I put in the time and paid my debt to society and―"
	"Kid, why won't you tell me?"
	"Because it's just stupid stuff," Justin replied in exasperation. "Not even cool." 
	"I bet your Mom'd tell me."
	"If you're so interested, then ask her. C, what's the big deal?" 
	"I wonder what grade Lance is in," JC replied, changing the subject. "He'll probably finish before you."
	Justin grunted. "Look. Can we just shut up about school?" 
	"School is cool."
	"'Cause you're done with it."
	JC grinned. "Yup. And damn doesn't that feel good…"
	"I'll never graduate anyway. What's it matter? Why should they waste their time?"
	JC frowned. "Justin, why do you say that? I'll stop teasing. You know that's not true. You were always really smart. You did well with your classes during MMC."
	Justin shrugged. "I did okay."
	"You did really okay."
	"When are we going to have time for tutors?" Justin persisted, hearing himself whine. "I don't even have time for sleep, JC."
	"We'll hear about it when it comes up. I just thought I'd let you know." JC looked over and saw Chris beckoning them. "I think we're starting again. Break's up, come on." 
********
	"Actually, I think I only have a few courses left." Lance looked up to see Justin's disgusted look at his reply from across the table at the restaurant.
	"Really?" Justin asked slowly.
	"Yeah. I think. I'd have to check. But that's what my Mom thought."
	"Hm." 
	"How about you?"
	"Me? Oh, I don't know. I'll probably graduate when I'm thirty-five."
	Lance laughed.
	Justin gave him a serious look. "Why are you laughing? I’m not kidding."
	"Justin, I doubt it."
	"Oh, you'd be surprised."
	"Well, I think you're probably further than you think. It just always seems like there's more to do."
	"Hm."
	"Most of it I already did though. I was still in school up until when I left for Orlando. That's why parents almost said no."
	Justin nodded, remembering how his own dad had approached him during that farewell dinner to mention education. His Dad the musician reminding about it. Bullshit. It was an inevitable topic though, and he guessed it was coming now. He paused and remembered more of the farewell party, and when he'd been holding Jon. He frowned. He wondered how big Jon was now. 
	"You should have your Mom check," Lance persisted. "I'm sure she could find out."
	Justin made a face but agreed. 
********
	Johnny told them that their first tour as a headlining artist and opening act would be in March. That seemed far away to them, but he also told them that their popularity by then would be soaring. That they would really feel it then. 
	"You guys are already climbing to the top," he said. 
	That made them all happy and a little more permitting of their fixed and busy schedule. After their interviews and photo-shoots in Munich, they flew back to Stockholm to record "Tearing Up My Heart" at the Ceiron studios. However, they were needed the day after in Frankfurt to record an appearance for "Auf ein neues", a television show in Germany. 
	"I'm sure it's fine," Chris consoled JC in the van on the way to the studios. JC was chewing nervously at one of his nails, thinking critically as usual about everything they'd done.
	"We were tired," JC objected.
	"It didn't affect our voices― only our appearance."
	JC grunted.
	"JC, it's just one song," Justin spoke up.
	"Just one song?" JC echoed incredulously. "Of all people I think you'd know better than that, Justin."
	"What?"
	"One song. That's nearly ten percent of the album," JC persisted. "That's a future single. Do we really want something circulating that isn't our best job? Who wants to listen to a half-assed job? On our first album?"
	"JC…" Joey replied. "It wasn't a half-assed try. We sounded good. It's not like we only did it once. We perfected it."
	"I'm not sure…"
	"I'm sure we'll have a chance to go back," Lance answered. "I mean, if they think it's bad, then we re-do it."
	JC sighed. Studio time was expensive. "I just… I liked… Like when I was making my demos? Justy, you know. Like, it's your time in the studio. It's your song. It's your decisions. Now I feel like it's theirs. Their time, their studio, their song…" He frowned. "Their schedule."
	"Well, right now it is. But we're building ourselves up. Most people don't have too much control over their first album," Chris said. "You're just tired, JC."
	"I'm not having doubts," JC assured. "If that's what you're thinking. No, I'm just…"
	"Moody," Justin supplied under his breath.
	JC smirked at him. "Maybe."
	"Those are valid concerns though," Joey assured. "We're all concerned about that. But with the position we're in… We don't have much slack, you know, man? We're not really anybody yet. We have a voice but not the voice… It's still their call."
	JC nodded. "I know." He sighed. "I know it is." 
	"We have a day off in two days if it makes you feel any better," Lance attempted.
	"Just don't mention the three TV show appearances between today and tomorrow…" Chris said in a stage whisper. When JC gave him a look, he shrugged.
	"I know," JC answered. "I'm really not complaining. I never expected it to be easy."
********
	Justin squirmed as the stern looking woman peered at him critically, smoothing his hair and fixing his collar as he sat there trying his best to be still. She'd been fixing his hair for thirty minutes now, and he just wanted to run his own hands through it and get out all the crap she was putting in it. It was the same thing at nearly every appearance or photo shoot they had done so far, but he was feeling particularly restless with this lady. Her hair was tied back so tightly it looked like it was stretching her skin taunt. 
	"What's that for?" Justin asked as the woman began unmercifully smearing pancake foundation on his cheeks. He tilted his head away. They often did it, and he always asked as if he had no clue. 
	"You don't want to look like a ghost," she replied, her voice accented. At least she spoke English. She took his chin in her hand and held him in place. "You look paler on TV."
	"I guess." Justin glanced at the other chairs in the room to see that the other guys were getting the same treatment. 
	It was kind of weird when they were given all these nice clothes and sneakers and sometimes a watch or bracelet or chain to wear around their neck. And they wore it on the TV and looked happy and well-provided for and successful and pop. Then they had to give it all back.
	He looked over to where he heard Joey arguing with the stylist that was working on him.
	"I like it," he said. "Okay?"
	"No," the man was insistent. "Today, no." He apparently didn't speak too much English. 
	"It's not distracting," Joey continued. "It's luck. Lucky? You know?"
	Justin saw Joey's hand go to touch his necklace and resisted rolling his eyes. Superman. Joey always had something Superman on. This was a thin silver chain with a small emblem of the S hanging from it. The man didn't seem to like it. 
	"Joey, just take it off," Chris told him.
	"Why?" Joey answered. "It's… It's not that big a deal. It can be my trademark, you know? We should all have a trademark and―"
	"Not today." The man continued to shake his head. "Not on show."
	Joey shook his head.
	"It's not that big a deal if you take it off either," Chris answered.
	"It's lucky," Joey insisted.
	"C'mon... Enough," Justin said, looking at the woman who was still prodding at him. Pulling at his hair when it wouldn't cooperate with what way she wanted it to curl. "Stop. It's fine." 
	The woman gave him a firm look.
	Justin slid out of his chair and straightened out his shirt. He walked over to Chris, who was done and still trying to convince Joey.
	"What's my trademark?" Justin asked, interrupting whatever Chris was insisting.
	Joey studied Justin for a moment, thinking, and then said. "Your hair."
	"That sucks." Justin frowned.
	"What do you want your trademark to be?" Chris asked.
	"I don't know."
	"But this," Joey touched his necklace again and looked pointedly at the man several feet from him now, quiet, "is mine."
	"I don't want it to be my hair."
	Chris shrugged. "It kind of is. I'm sure that that's how people differentiate us. The Curly-haired one."
	Justin shook his head.
	Joey stuck a finger in Chris's chest. "See? Chris, if his curls are his trademark, he can't very well take that off, can he? So why should I―"
	"Joey." Chris rolled his eyes. "Whatever, man."
	"And it's lucky."
	Justin stared at the S. "Why's it have to be Superman?"
	"Because," Joey answered. "I am Superman."
	Chris shook his head. "Delusional."
	"Can you fly?" Justin asked sarcastically.
	"I've tried," Joey admitted.
	Justin gave him a skeptical look.
	"You can ask my Mom," Joey replied earnestly. "I have. I was an ER regular as a kid." He laughed.
	"Joey, that's nothing to be proud of," Chris replied. 
	He shrugged.
	"Feel my hair," Justin told Chris. "Feel all the crap she put in it."
	"I don't want to mess it up," Chris said tentatively.
	"You can't." 
	With a shrug, Chris reached up and softely patted Justin's hair. He immediately laughed. "It's like a rock." 
	"I know."
	Joey reached over and felt it as well. "God damn, man. A hurricane couldn't move that."
	"Seriously. It's going to be hell to wash it out later," Justin complained. 
	Ten minutes later they were in front of the cameras, trademarks and hairspray forgotten.
*******
	It was their day off in Munich. However, they did have one thing scheduled and that was a meeting with Johnny. He said he was going to take them to lunch. After they caught up on some sleep in the morning, Johnny had a limo pick them up, which they all agreed was better than the van that had been customarily picking them up.
	"Guys, today I'm going to talk to you about a few things…" Johnny began when they were at the restaurant and had just ordered drinks. "First of all, you five are doing incredibly well, and I want to thank you for your excellent response to the schedule and to the shows and interviews. I know it's been busy, but you all have been 100% with us. Neither Lou, BMG, nor I could ask for anything more. And "I Want You Back" is selling incredibly well as a single too."
	"Thank you," Chris responded. "I mean, it's been you guys too." 
	"Well, it's a team deal," Johnny agreed. "Now, I'm pretty sure you all now how important PR is in groups and success. Marketing is just an important aspect of your careers. None of you have done anything that I'm ridiculing, but now as your fan base is starting to grow and your popularity here in Germany is really getting higher, Lou and I thought it would be a good time to discuss it."
	The guys nodded, listening intently. Joey ripped off a piece of bread from the loaf in the basket at the middle of the table.
	"Okay. Well, as a band like you are, it's important that you each have your own individual role. Think of it almost as how you each contribute to the dynamic of the group. Justin, for example, is the baby of the group."
	Justin scoffed, "I am not―"
	JC kicked him hard under the table and he cut himself off. 
	Johnny continued, not noticing. "There's just a certain image that is important to present. You can take something from your personality or whatever, and we have to blow that up. We want the interviews to be like, the goofy one, the serious one... You know. They have to identify."
	"Goofy's Chris," JC said. "Definitely."
	"Then you're the serious," Chris returned. 
	"Things like that," Johnny agreed. "You have to talk about that in interviews. You have to start feeding things to the fans. They have to grow to know your personalities so that they'll emotionally attach themselves to you. Feel free to act a way that… Well, be hams, guys. You're doing well so far but we need to project the five of you more. You want to be real. You want to interact. Don't be afraid of that. I mean, polite like you've been fine, but you can step up the personalities." 
	Johnny paused and looked at each of them as he took a sip, as if thinking as he looked them over, remembering what he had planned to say. "Speaking of interaction." He gestured at JC and Justin. "You two. The fans have heard the MMC story. They know it by heart. They've heard the friendship thing between you two. It's… They love it. When they ask who your best friend is… Justin, if they ask you who your best friend is, what will you say?"
	Justin frowned. "What do you― You mean, should I change it?"
	"Who is it?"
	"Well, it's JC. And Trace but he―"
	"No. No Trace for now. Trace doesn't exist to the fans. Your life is the group. They want to hear that your best friend is in the group. But JC… Chris is the goofy one, right? And you’re the youngest, so that would make sense."
	"What do you mean?" Justin insisted. He was suddenly confused as to why they were deciding who his best friend should be. 
	"I'm just trying to exemplify the best projection of the group," Johnny explained. "In the long-run. You know?"
	"Not really," Justin admitted.
	"I'm not saying JC can't be your best friend. If he is, that's great. That's fine. I've noticed that. I'm just saying that… I know it's hard. But there's certain ways you have to act to be successful. You have to know how to answer certain questions. When to smile and change the subject. Chris, you're the oldest. But you don't appear to be. You and Justin being buddies― Justin..." Johnny tried look at him with an appeasing smile. "I don't understand the look on your face right now. You and Chris get along, right?"
	"Yeah," Justin replied. "I love Chris too. But… I just guess I don't understand―We're supposed to lie?" 
	"Indirectly," Johnny agreed. "Yes. Don't think of it as lying though. That's not a very good way to look at it. Lies come back to haunt you, so we're not doing that. We're... You and Chris are just an example. Do you understand?" He thought for a moment. "Nicknames too. Do you guys have nicknames for each other?"
	"Sure," JC said. 
	"Start getting those out. Basically, I'm just trying to explain that the press wants to see how you guys are connected. What's your central purpose? What's behind the music, you know? How is your friendship tied?" Johnny rubbed at his chin. "Sorry I'm throwing all of this on you. Lou and I were just discussing you guys recently. Every group does this. We've done most of the image, but we have to keep at it."
	Joey nodded like the others, wondering if every group really did do this. He'd been saying that about everything they had done. He had never heard of such schedules and tactics. Of manufacturing everything, down to friendships.
	"Do you guys have girlfriends?" Johnny asked. "Back home?" He saw a couple nods and a shrug and nodded. "Okay. No. I mean, yes, you may have them, but no, you don't, understand?"
	"Lie again," Chris spoke up with a smirk.
	"Like I said, the biggest marketing here is the emotional attachment," Johnny began. "We want good-looking, single, interesting guys, understand? So that a girl will think you're there for her. Because that's what they think. That's what sells. So basically everything is a no. Do you smoke? No. Do you drink? No. Girlfriend? No. But you love the fans. Always say that. You love the fans." 
	Johnny continued on for a few more minutes with the same type of talk, asking them if they understood. He did things like point out how Joey's eyebrow piercing, reminding him that he had to take that out for appearances. And for Chris to keep his hair neat. Then, taking another sip of his drink, he said, "I'll talk to you guys more about it as time goes on and as issues come up. It's very important. But I'm really proud of you guys as far as you right now. Things are really going to start to soar now."
	After a little bit of small talk unrelated to their marketing, he started to get up. "The limo will take you guys back to the hotel. And the check is covered so don't worry about that. I'll see you all soon."
	They gave their good-byes and he left. 
	There was a moment of silence.
	"Well, I'm not really surprised," Joey began a little dryly.
	"I don't get it," Justin began. "Why can't―  JC, why can't I be your best friend anymore?"
	"You are," JC soothed with a frown. "You're taking him too literally. Don't worry about it."
	"You don't want to be my best friend?" Chris began teasingly. "I'll treat you good. Well, not as good as JC because I don't have his patience, but―"
	"I don't want you," Justin retorted. "Why do… I don't understand why― What's the difference?"
	"It doesn't really matter," Lance said, kind of feeling bummed that he hadn't been much a part of the conversation. Sometimes he felt invisible. "You're naturally friends with who you're friends with. However they spin it doesn't affect that." 
	"But why spin it then?" Justin replied.
	JC studied the genuinely perplexed look on Justin's flushed face and frowned.
	"He was just giving us extreme examples," Joey began. "He doesn't really expect any of us to be friends with Chris."
	"Hey!" Chris objected. 
	Joey smirked.
	"I'm not really surprised either," Lance said with a slight frown as well. "I mean… Isn't that what they do in this business? You have to morph to fit in."
	"Justin, you mess around with Chris in interviews and stuff anyway," Joey began. "I think that's all he meant. He's not asking you to really change anything. He's asking you to keep up how you two are hams."
	Justin still looked disconcerted. "I guess." Suddenly lunch didn't taste as good as he thought it would.
******
	The day was pretty nasty. It was still very cold, and it had begun to sleet outside, the sky gray and air chilled. So they headed back to the hotel after lunch. After about a half hour, Lance and Joey decided to bundle up and brave the climate to walk a couple blocks and see what was around. Chris started reading a book for distraction, and Justin tried to find a TV show. He was watching it now, lying out on the couch. He was thinking about how it was just one of those gray, depressing days when JC walked over.
	"Hey."
	Justin didn’t move, and he stared at the TV as if his eyes were glued to it. "Hey." He felt too lazy to move.
	JC hit his leg softly. "Give me room."
	Justin grunted.
	"Come on."
	Justin lifted his legs up and as soon as JC sat, slid them back down onto his lap. His eyes remained on the screen.
	"What are we watching?" JC frowned. The actors were speaking German.
	"I don't know," Justin answered with a shrug. "It's on."
	"Oh. Can you understand it?"
	Justin grunted again. "No."
	"You okay?" JC frowned. "You seem down. Just bored?"
	"I guess." 
	"One of those days."
	"Yeah. Exactly."
	JC sighed and rubbed Justin's leg through his jeans. "Yeah. Lunch was good though, huh?"
	"Yeah."
	"Despite the conversation…" JC persisted with a wry smile. "That was a little out there, right? But I guess it's part of it all."
	"Yeah."
	"It's in German, Justin," JC said, in reference to the show Justin seemed so intent on watching. His eyes hadn't left the screen. "Why you so into it?"
	"You can watch their expressions. I think he cheated on her." He pointed at the TV. "See?"
	"Maybe." JC frowned. It was just in German to him. He could tell the two on the screen were angry but wouldn't have guessed the cheating part. Maybe if he'd been watching it longer it would make more sense.
	"I want my old TV." Justin rubbed his nose. 
	"Yeah, that'd be nice."
	Justin chewed on his lip, thinking. He thought of Lance and Joey and their walk and the one time when they came back and they all went sleigh riding. And then that night with he and Lance going out and that homeless guy. And how busy they'd progressively gotten since then. He tried to think of his bed at home and wondered if his Mom had picked out a house yet. He remembered her mentioning that Lou was going to help out in getting them one. Then he wondered if Paul was in Memphis or in Orlando with his mom. 
	"You're out there." JC patted his leg. "It's my one break where I'm not dead asleep, and this time you're out there." 
	"Well I'm tired now," Justin retorted. "Can't I be tired?"
	JC moved beneath his legs slightly. "Sure you can. Why don't you take a nap?"
	"No." Justin frowned and spoke sulkily. "This couch is crap. So's the bed."
	JC shrugged. Justin was still watching the TV show. "I know you can sleep anywhere, Justin." 
	Justin let out a deep sigh. 
	"Especially if you're tired."
	"I'm just tired. Not sleepy."
	"Okay." JC rolled his eyes. Justin's voice was dull. He was obviously a bit down about something, and JC wondered whether it was a good idea to push him. "You wanna do anything?"
	"I just want to lie here forever," Justin replied. "And wither away."
	"Nah… That doesn't sound fun. Want to play a game?"
	"Who can be quietest the longest?" Justin glanced over.
	"My line." JC grinned at him. "And no, not that one." He paused, studying his friend's solemn, contemplative look. "You know, maybe you should've gone with Joey and Lance, Justin. It's not good to just sit here like this."
	"Sure it's good. I'm just resting."
	"You have to smile then."
	Justin sighed. "JC, I'm tired, okay? I don't feel like talking." He rubbed his eyes with fisted hands. "Just stop. I leave you alone when you're tired."
	JC didn't completely agree but didn't mention it. Instead he picked up on his friend's uneasy tone and patted his leg again. "You okay?" 
	Justin nodded insistently, swallowing as he continued to stare at the TV. Then he shrugged. 	
	JC watched him, glancing at the TV just briefly. He wondered if it was Johnny's conversation that was bothering him or whether it was something more. Not sure whether to bring it up, he instead said, "We go home in about a week, how's that?"
	"We do?" Justin suddenly sniffled a little bit.
	"On the eighteenth." 
	"But Lance says we don't actually get to― We still work until Christmas Eve…" Justin abruptly wiped at his eyes.
	"We'll be home."
	Justin shrugged. 
	"It'll be Christmas," JC continued. "And then… Your birthday's in… just a little over a month from that. Let's see…" He tried to count it quickly in his head. "Thirty-seven days?"
	"I don’t know. It'll be here," Justin said bitterly. He sniffled again and pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes, telling himself to stop. He wiped away wetness hastily. "Just let me watch my show."
	"You can't understand it." JC looked and saw it was on commercials now anyway. He reached over to run his hand over Justin's curls. "Come on... What's the matter?"
	"Nothing," Justin sniffled. "I'm just tired." 
	"I can't help?"
	"No."
	"Okay." JC patted his leg again. "I want to go look outside, okay?" He started to push Justin's legs up so he could slide out.
	Justin looked up at him in alarm with shining eyes as he stood, and sat up himself, sliding his feet to the floor. "But―"
	"You want to come?" JC offered as he put his hand out to pull him up.  
	Justin nodded and wiped his eyes with one hand, taking JC's hand in his other and letting him pull him up. 
	"Let's see how cold it is out there," JC persisted. "Chris, want to come?"
	"No. But turn off the TV," Chris said from the bed, looking up from his book. "If you're stepping out. Because it's distracting." 
	Justin moved to flip it off. "I'm just tired," he explained as he pulled up his shirt to wipe the wetness from his face. 
	"I know," JC replied. "It catches up with you." He grabbed his coat and Justin did the same. They left the room and Chris and shut the door behind them. 
	As they walked down the hall, JC started talking again. "Just don't… Don't let it get you down okay? Please? I know it's kind of bad here now, and we're busy with everything all the time, and also… well… I'm still your best friend no matter what Johnny says. Right?" 
	"Yeah." Justin nodded. The hallway was musty and he crossed his arms over his chest. 
	"Okay. Good." He hooked his arm through Justin's with a laugh. "It's all such bullshit sometimes. But whatever." 
	Justin tried to smile. "Hey… I meant to ask you... Johnny asked about the girlfriends and you nodded. I didn't know if― Is it still Nikki?"
	"Nah…" JC made a face slightly and slipped his arm out from Justin's. "Well, we're still… It's very long distance obviously. We just haven't exactly cut it yet, you know? Kind of just let it fade. But I actually haven't spoken to her in a while." 
	"I didn't think so. You haven't mentioned her."
	JC shrugged. "I know. It's not serious. Never was. It's just… She's there, you know?" 
	Justin nodded, pressing his lips together. 
	JC smirked. "Peaches," he said sarcastically. "She's still a friend. But it nice to have someone there sometimes."
	"I've got nobody…" 
	"You got me. The guys too. Want me to get you a girlfriend? Nik's got some friends."
	Justin looked skeptical. "Nah… Not yet." 
	JC laughed. "Okay."
	"I don't want you hooking me up anyway." 
	JC smirked. Justin was smiling now so that's all he cared about. They were closer to the exit and when they got there, he pushed open the door, letting the freezing cold wind hit them. The breeze was gentle but frigid.
	"I can't believe Joey and Lance are walking around in this." He stepped outside, shivering as sleet came down. 
	"They'll probably get sick," Justin answered.
	"I hope not. Let's not stay out here, come on." He paused. "Unless you want to go somewhere."
	"Are you kidding?" Justin replied. "It's freezing."
	"Okay then. Back to the room it is."
	Justin nodded.
	They slowly walked back down the hall and JC watched his feet with a small yawn. "So is there something else, Justin? Or you're just getting tired?"
	"Tired," Justin said. "Just really tired."
	"Yeah." JC slung an arm around his shoulder. "It happens." 
*******
	Joey and Lance were so cold that they were laughing by the time they headed back to the hotel. The cold air and sleet made their skin hurt and it was tiring to push through the now sludge of snow and ice on the sidewalks. Their shoes and socks were soaked.
	"Shit, it's cold!" Joey exclaimed. "Thank God we're only a few minutes away or I might have to start crying."
	Lance grinned. "You sound like Justin."
	"I guarantee Justin has never been this cold. I am cold, man. Even beyond." Joey shook his head. "As in frostbite range."
	"Me too."
	"We better not get sick. JC and Chris will have my ass." Joey smirked. "Couldn't just sit in a hotel room though. Not on a day off. Gotta at least take a walk."
	Lance agreed.
	When they reached their room, they were overjoyed to be somewhere dry. It was just as comforting as they expected it to be, although the room itself was low on energy. They came in like a burst of cold wind, dripping wet. 
	"Hey," JC greeted, looking up at the sound of the shutting door. He was sitting on the couch with both Chris and Justin. Chris looked up from a magazine and waved them a hello. Justin on the other hand, was fast asleep, curled up as small as he could be between the other two in the middle on the couch's sinking cushions.
	"You guys have a good time out?" Chris asked. He raised an eyebrow. "You look freezing."
	"I think I'm going to take a hot shower," Joey began. "Lance, are you?"
	Lance nodded, "Probably."
	"You can go first if you want. I can wait." Joey started to take off his gloves and tossed them over onto the floor. He shivered. "It's pretty raw out there." 
	"That's why we stayed here," JC answered, watching Joey take off his coat as Lance disappeared into the bathroom. "You wanna sit?"
	Joey started to slide off his wet shoes. He glanced at the lack of room on the couch and shrugged. "Well... Yeah, but the couch seems full." 
	"We can make room, maybe," JC insisted with a laugh. "Chris, move over a little."
	Chris frowned. He was sitting nearly as close to the arm of the couch on his side as possible. He shifted over the one inch. 
	JC attempted to pull Justin closer to him, taking him under the arms from an awkward position. Justin just curled tighter into his sleeping ball and mumbled a half conscious objection. 
	"JC, he's going to wake up and kill you," Joey laughed. "He looks comfortable."
	"Whatever, four people can sit here if he just moves slightly."
	Joey looked skeptical as he walked over and gently tried to slide Justin over. He used to the same tactic as JC by taking him by under the arms. He half pushed him onto JC's lap with enough room for himself when Justin's eyes opened.
	"Assholes," he said irritably.
	"What?" Joey replied as he sat down, squeezing into the spot. He reached up to slide his hat off his head and throw it over by his gloves and coat, all of which were wet. 
	"I was sleeping," Justin muttered, propping himself up on an elbow.
	"You can still sleep." JC winced as Justin's elbow pushed into his thigh. 
	"I intend to." Justin began to move. He moved completely around and shifted his legs down across Joey and to Chris, stretching to take up the length of the couch as he lowered to lay back down with his head resting in JC's lap. He smiled up at him briefly before closing his eyes. "Okay. This is more comfortable."
	"My clothes are wet," Joey warned, frowning at the sprawled Justin. "Just so you know."
	Chris propped his magazine up using Justin's feet. "Mooch," he muttered. 
	"If I remember correctly," Justin began, crossing his arms across his chest and keeping his eyes closed. "It was me on the couch to begin with. Chris, you were all into your book. And it was just me. But then JC had to come and it was just us. And then after we looked outside Chris had to join us, so who's the moocher, man? And now Joey… So you're just all up in my space." 
	JC smoothed Justin's hair back and made a sad face. "We're so sorry…" 
	"Bullshit."
	"How was you guy's walk?" Chris asked Joey. "Anything interesting?"
	"Some shops were pretty interesting," Joey began. He started to laugh. "Man, there's a lot of porn shops around here."
	"Lance got to go into porn shops?" Justin exclaimed, opening his eyes.
	JC laughed out loud. "No. Why's that seem so wrong and not something Lance would want to do." He gave Joey a look. "Joey?"
	Joey looked at him. "Was I supposed to tell him to wait outside on the sidewalk in the freezing sleet?"
	"He wanted to?"
	"He didn't care. Who wouldn't be curious?" 
	"Not fair!" Justin muttered.
	"God damn," Chris laughed. "Joey, that kid's mother is with us. What if she does her 'Honey, what'd you do today?'"
	"I think he's smart enough to tell his mother something else." Joey rolled his eyes. "Trust me."
	"Why'd you have to look at porn shops?" JC frowned.
	Joey gave him a look. "I know you would've come in if you were there so shut up, loser. And besides, after passing a few, you know, it just seemed like something to do. You'd'a come in," Joey persisted with a grin. "It's not that big a deal. I just gave Lance a little of the education that Mississippi spared him, that's all."
	"So you've successfully corrupted him?" Chris laughed. "Is that what you're telling us?"
	Joey grinned and shrugged. "Not completely. We were just joking around and went in... There were just some things I thought he should know."
	"Joey, you're awful."
	"How come you didn't take me?" Justin asked.
	"Justin, I thought you knew everything already," Joey teased. "And besides, you weren't there." 
	"No," Justin answered sulkily. "I want to go next time." Sleeping was now the last thing on his mind. He looked at Joey earnestly, who suddenly seemed so suave and sophisticated. 
	"Curly." JC put a hand on Justin's forehead as if he was checking for a fever. "Really, what do you think?"
	"My Mom's all for education."
	"Not that type."
	"How do you know?"
	"Call it a wild guess." 
	"That's not fair…" Justin protested. "I can't go clubbing with ya'll. What can I do?"
	"I think you'll be allowed to go clubbing before you peruse the German porn shops, huh?" Chris answered with a smirk. "There's kind of an order of operations…"
	"Besides," Joey began. "Lance is nearly eighteen. You're fifteen. No offense. But that’s… You couldn't go in there. I don't think it's legal. At least, not in the US…"
	"I'm closer to being sixteen than he is eighteen." 
	"What interest do you have in that anyway, Justin?" JC frowned.
	"I just wanna see," Justin answered. "What kind of stuff do they have in there?"
	"Use your imagination," Chris replied. "And think kinky." He laughed. 
	"Some of it's not that bad," Joey answered.
	"Why are you defending a porn shop?" JC answered. "Emotional attachment?" 
	Joey laughed. "I'm just saying that it's not all dildos and leather." He shrugged. 
	"What's a dildo?" Justin questioned slowly. 
	JC covered his own face with his hands. "Joey― see? Why'd you even have to bring this up? God…" He laughed a little. 
	"See, I'm stupid!" Justin cried out. "It's not my fault I'm stupid! Stop laughing at me!"
	JC just shook his head. He didn't think Justin was stupid, but it was just always amazing to him how in some areas of life Justin was strangely an expert, and others extremely naïve. 
	"I'm not explaining it," Joey started.
	"Not me," Chris said. 
	JC was still shaking his head.
	"Ask your Mom," Joey replied. He cracked up. "Oh, man, wouldn't that be priceless? I wonder what your mom would say?"
	"She'd tell me," Justin retorted. "Unlike you freaks. My Mom's down to earth." 
	"Justin, there's just some stuff that's not necessary for you to know," JC answered. What that meant was that none of them wanted to explain it. "You're not going to die if you don't know."
	"But now everyone knows but me." Justin scowled. "I don't get to do anything."
	"Learning about kinky sex should not be at the top of your list of things to do anyway." 
	Chris laughed. "How did we get into this conversation anyway? Oh yes, thank you, Joe. It figures you would bring up the kinky stuff."
	Joey rolled his eyes. "We passed like fifteen of them. I had to go in at least one."
	"At least― How many did you guys go in?"
	Joey laughed. "No, no. Just one. I swear to God. And it's not that big a deal."
	"It is," Justin replied. "You didn't bring me. No one ever brings me. I don't even see the point." 
	"Well, how can we bring you out when you attract homeless people?" Chris teased.
	"That's not funny!" Justin snapped, starting to sit up. "That was scary, okay?"
	JC put on a hand on his chest and pushed him to lay down again. "Weren't you supposed to sleep now? Now you're talking about how unfair it is that you haven't seen inside a porn shop."
	Justin grunted. "My sleep was disturbed."
	"There's our bed."
	"I'm not tired anymore."
	"I have that effect on people," Joey joked.
	Justin sat up again, pulling his legs towards him and sliding off the laps of the three others. He stood and scrutinized them. "I can't believe I lost my couch." He pursed his lips. 
	"Yeah. That's not really fair," Chris agreed without a very sympathetic tone.
	"I'm going to shower in five minutes and you'll have your space back," Joey said. "As soon as Lance is out. I think I heard the water stop a few minutes ago."
	"That's okay." Justin started back towards the beds and flopped down on his and JC's when he reached it. "Nap time." 
	Chris eyed him sprawled out on the couch. "Sweet dildo dreams, Justin."
	Justin sighed. "How can I dream about dildos when I don't know what it is?"
	Joey started laughing. "This might be the funniest conversation ever."
	"Not for me..." 
********
	The next week and a half flew by with the guys working as hard as usual. They didn't have even one day of rest until the eighteenth when they flew back to Florida. Before doing that they had photo-sessions and interviews in Munich, Cologne, and Zurich, a trip to Hannover,  and the TV recordings for "Kinder Wetten-dass", "Menschen 96" and "Megaherz". There were moments of exhaustion and irritation, but when they were voted "Newcomer of the Year" by one magazine and found out that on the sixteenth, the 250,000th single of "I Want You Back" had been sold and it was now Gold, there were moments of pure pride and accomplishment that almost set the scale back to equilibrium.
	And now they were returning to Florida.
	"There are… What's twenty-five minus... I got it. Seven days. One week until Christmas." Justin smiled as they sat in the airport. 
	"I have a hell of a lot of shopping to do," Joey said with a frown. He reached over to the box of Applejacks in Justin's lap and stuffed his hand in, pulling out a handful of cereal to crunch on.
	"Me too," JC sighed.
	"Should we get each other stuff?" Chris asked slowly. "No offense guys, but I'm not really planning on it." 
	"You can get me something," Justin answered.
	"We can skip the gifts for each other," Joey said. "I mean we're recording tomorrow until Monday. And Tuesday's Christmas Eve…" 
	"But if you have time," Justin persisted, "you can get me―"
	"Brat," JC teased. 
	"Fine. Just get me a birthday present then."
	"And me," Joey said in a mimicking tone.
	Lance laughed at him.
	"I can't wait to see Florida again." Chris smirked. "Warmth. I don't even know how many flights we've taken since we've gotten together, but…"
	"A lot," Justin answered through a mouthful of cereal. "I get to see my house." Justin's Mom recently mentioned in one of her calls that she finally bought a house, and he was anxious to see it. "Ya'll can stay with me." 
	"Is it moved in yet?" Joey asked.
	"I think some. I don't know." 
	"Is it near me?" Chris asked. "I want to sell my crappy place. It's a hassle if I'm away for months at a time." He formed. "I was letting my friend stay there, but it's... It's still not worth it. I should just rent a smaller place."
	"I should probably find a place in Orlando too," JC mentioned.
	"No." Justin shook his head. "JC, you'll stay at my house."
	"Your house." JC grinned. "You haven't even seen it yet and you're given out invitations."
	"Don't you want to live with us?"
	"Let's not forget it's your mom's decision too, Just. We'll see."
	"And Chris can live there too while he's looking for another place," Justin continued. "Or don't look for another place. Chris, live with us."
	Chris laughed. "We'll see." 
	"You like a full house don't you?" Joey smirked.
	"You're not invited," Justin answered.
	"I didn't ask!" Joey laughed. "I have my own place, remember?"  
	Justin dug his hand back into the cereal box. "Well, that's fine." He looked up at Lance. "You too. You can stay."
	"I think we've had enough of each other," Chris laughed.
	Justin just shrugged. He couldn't help but think he was rather used to it.
*******
	When they got home, Justin's mom picked them up from the airport and brought them to the new house directly from there. When they got out of the car, Justin was already excited. He ran up the driveway.
	"There's a basketball hoop!" He grinned. 
	"I knew you'd like that," Lynn said as she opened the trunk of the car. "Honey, come here and get your bag. Then you can look. You've barely even said hello to me." 
	Justin returned and got his bags out of the trunk. "I said hello." 
	"I didn't get a kiss."
	Justin rolled his eyes and dutifully kissed his mother on the cheek. "Love you."
	As JC was pulling his bag out, he turned to Joey and Lance and said, "I'll drive you guys back to Joe's place if you want. Or Lance, wherever your mom will be. After you see the house."
	"We'll keep our bags in the car then," Joey said.
	JC nodded. "Yeah. I think Justin wants me to crash with him." 
	"I hope you don't mind that there's no beds just yet," Lynn began with a frown. "I have sleeping bags. There should be beds soon, but I've been staying at the hotel. It's been so busy, you know? And Paul's been working. We've been trying to arrange everything…"
	"That'll be cool," Justin answered. "I want to see my room. Give me a key."
	Lynn fished into her pocketbook and withdrew a key, handing it to him as he shifted his bag over his shoulder. "Now, it's barely furnished, Justin, just remember that. So if it doesn't look very homey. Not everything's been moved yet." 
	"I know, I know." Justin shrugged. He was already walking up the path to the door. 
	"And guys, I was thinking, right after Christmas, wouldn't it be nice to have a barbecue?" Lynn continued. "A kind of welcome back, congratulations thing for you boys? You guys and your parents."
	"Sounds good to me," Joey said. "I'll mention it to them today."
	"I'd love to have that here," Lynn said. "Kind of break in the house." 
	From the front door, Justin was impatient, "What's ya'll's problem, slowpokes?" he persisted. "I want to see the house!"
	"He can't do anything alone, can he?" Lance muttered.
	"No," Chris agreed. 
********
	"This is my room," Justin said ten minutes later. "This one." He walked in and dropped his bags inside on the floor. "And…" He walked back out and went to the room across the hall. "This is JC's room." 
	"My room?" JC raised an eyebrow. He gave Justin an exasperated look. "Listen..." 
	"JC, I meant to mention that to you," Lynn began as she walked through Justin's room to open the blinds. "You know you're always welcome to stay with us. There's no point in you buying or renting place if you're going to be on the road so much…"
	"Well, thanks…" JC smiled.
	"Besides, you know Justin wouldn't let you go somewhere else."
	"He could go somewhere else if I could live with him," Justin spoke up. "Man, that would be fun." He was back in his prospective room now, looking around. "Hey, my voice almost echoes in here. Cool."
	  "You'd rather get a place with him?"Lynn asked. "You don't want to live with me?"
	"Not really." Justin gave him an impish grin. "But I still love you, Mom." 
	Lynn frowned.
	"Sorry, Lynn," JC began. "I guess I'm more fun."
	"It's true." Justin walked back into the hall to lean against the wall.
	"It's a really nice house," Lance said.
	"Yeah, you were lucky to find it," Joey agreed. 
	"Justin, tell me you want to live with me," Lynn started. "That makes me feel awful."
	"Mama…" Justin rolled his eyes. "Hey." He smiled. "Did you know we went Gold? I don't remember if I told you."
	Lynn nodded. "You did." She smiled. "It's great though, isn't it?"
	"That means a hundred…" He looked over at JC with a frown and saw the man put up two fingers. "Two hundred fifty thousand."
	"That's great." Lynn smiled encouragingly. "I knew you guys would make it."
	"No, you didn't. You said I shouldn't do it."
	"Justin… Everyone had some doubts. You were fourteen and going to another country…" She shook her head. "So do you like the house, honey?"
	Justin nodded. "This is my room, right?" He pointed towards the one he'd claimed.
	"Yep. Whatever you want is yours."
	"Okay." He smiled at her. "I do, Mom. It's great. I like the house."
	Lynn smiled at him.
*********
	Justin's mom went back to her hotel about an hour after, leaving money and telling Justin to order himself a pizza and to call her if he or one of the guys needed anything. She had Diane pick her up so that she could leave her car with JC in case the guys needed to drop Joey or Lance off or needed to get something.
	"You guys are really going to sleep here?" Joey asked as he looked around. He was sitting up on the counter in the kitchen.
	Justin nodded, picking up the phone while balancing the Yellow Pages on his arm. "Yeah. Sleeping bags. It'll be cool." 
	"Yeah... Really cool," JC agreed with a hint of sarcasm.
	"At least the phone works," Lance mused.
	"You don't have to stay," Justin said, looking at JC briefly before finding the number for a Dominos and starting to dial it.
	"Yeah, I'll just leave you here alone," JC answered. "I'll leave you to sleep on the floor alone in a barely furnished new house. I don't think so, pal. Your mom would've taken you back to the hotel if that was the case."
	"You can stay at my place," Joey offered. 
	"We have too many places," Chris agreed. "It's such a waste with the amount of time we're here nowadays."
	"You can all stay here," Justin offered once again. 
	"We'll see," Chris said. 
	Justin's attention turned back to the phone as he finished dialing. "It's ringing. What do we want?"
	"Just get two large," JC said. "Anyone want anything other than cheese?"
	"Pepperoni," Joey suggested.
	"Everyone like that?"
	There were nods and JC continued, "One cheese, one pepperoni. And get a bottle of soda too, Just."
	"Check the fridge for ice," Justin said. Then he turned away from them as someone answered. "Hi, yeah, I wanna have a delivery… I… I don't know my phone number…" Justin stared at the phone a second and then looked up. "JC?"
	JC walked over and scrutinized the phone a second before pointing out the number was written right above the keypad. He rubbed Justin's curly head roughly in a teasing gesture and laughed. "It's right there, dumbass." 
	"Sorry, I just moved in," Justin said into the phone. He repeated the number off the phone. "Two large. One cheese. One pepperoni. And a bottle of Pepsi. Yeah. Where do I live?"
	Joey grabbed the piece of paper off the counter that had the address of the new house scrawled down on it and handed it over. Lynn was smart.
	Justin read the address off and cleared his throat as he waited for them to respond. "Okay. Thanks."
	He hung up the phone. "They said a half hour."
*******
	 The pizza came forty-five minutes later and they realized that they didn't even have paper plates to eat on nor glasses to pour the soda into. So they sat down on the floor in what would be the family room and Justin opened the boxes on the carpet. 
	"We don't need plates…" He started to pull a piece of cheese pizza out. 
	"Cups?" Lance asked. 
	"We can't just drink out of the bottle," JC agreed. "Too bad we didn't get a six pack instead of a bottle…"
	"Want me to run out and buy cups?" Joey offered. 
	"The pizza'll get cold," Lance objected.
	"Oh, there's a gas station just a few blocks down off the main road. It'll only take me five minutes. Okay?"
	"Be quick," Chris persisted. 
	"Justin, can I take your mom's car?" Joey asked. "You think she'd be okay with that?"
	Justin shrugged. "I guess. The keys are in the kitchen." 
	"As long as Justin doesn't drive it," JC laughed as Joey disappeared into the kitchen for a moment to grab the keys.
	"You're going to teach me to drive," Justin said. "Because I'll be sixteen in a month."
	"More than a month," JC replied. "And I am so not teaching you how to drive."
	"Why not? Who is then?"
	"I don't know."
	"You wanna come get the cups with me?" Joey offered as he returned from the kitchen, keys dangling from his hand. "I'll show you how to drive."
	"Joey, no," JC objected, as Justin immediately got to his feet, taking a huge bite out of his pizza slice to finish it and nodding, eagerly replying, "Yeah, Joey. Please." 
	"What?" Joey returned. "JC, the boy's got to learn how to drive. So he can chauffeur us around." 
	"Yeah," Justin agreed.
	"DD," Joey insisted.
	"What's DD?" Justin asked.
	"Designated driver," Chris replied. "How hilarious would that be." 	
	"He's gotta learn sometime," Joey said. "Do you remember when you were gonna turn sixteen and take the test?"
	"Yeah, but you teaching him?" JC persisted. 
	"You don't wanna teach me," Justin answered stiffly. "He does. We'll be back. Let's go, Joey, before the pizza gets cold." 
	Joey sent JC a grin and the two walked towards the door.
	JC sighed and frowned at Chris and Lance. "He's always gotta be the lenient one. He'll do anything. Watch as he let's Justin drive and they park in the grass or something…" 
	"I almost want to go so I can watch and just laugh hysterically at him," Chris replied. He took a big bite of his pizza and replied with a mouthful, "but I'm too hungry." 
	"I'm surprised someone isn't going with them," Lance replied slowly. "I mean, the two of them together? Justin driving?"
	JC shrugged. 
	"Does the term vehicular manslaughter mean anything to you?"
	Chris cracked up. "Lance... C'mon, man. Have some faith."
********
	"First put on your seatbelt," Joey said, sitting in the passenger seat. He held the keys in his hand still, watching as Justin carefully buckled himself into the driver's seat. "Now change the mirrors if you need to so that you can see out the rear-view mirror and everything."
	"What do you mean?" Justin murmured as he reached up and pushed at the mirror a little. "How do I know?"
	"It's easier to tell whether it's right when there's other cars on the road and you can see it better. Do you need to adjust the seat?"
	"I don't think so." 
	"You comfortable driving at night like this?"
	"I don't know. I've never done it."
	"Well the roads shouldn't be too busy. Here." Joey was handing Justin the keys just as he heard a knock on his window. He looked over to see JC peering in at him. He glanced at Justin and rolled his eyes. "Put the key in and turn the car on, kid." He glanced at JC and sighed. Justin was hesitating and so Joey leaned over and pushed the key in himself, turning it away from him until he heard the rumble of the engine. "Turn on the lights."
	"How?" Justin asked, looking at what seemed to be a large variety of knobs and levers he'd never noticed before.
	Joey sighed and rolled his window down. "Yes?" 
	JC leaned his arms down to rest on the window ledge. 
	"What do you want?" Joey began. "Don't trust me with the kid?"
	"I don’t think the two of you in the car are a good idea…" JC admitted. "What if he crashes his mom's car?"
	"Then she kills him, not us."
	"Or you kill yourselves."
	"JC, I'm doing it," Justin said insistently. "He said he'll, teach me and that's more than you've said."
	JC didn't really want the responsibility of teaching him to drive, but he didn't want to admit it either. "Justin, why start when it's dark out?"
	"It's easier to see headlights than cars in the daytime sometimes," Joey said.
	"Sometimes," JC echoed. "What happened to your quick trip to the gas station before the pizza got cold?"
	"You're slowing it down," Joey answered. "So either get in, or go away."
	JC studied them. Neither of them appeared to want to give up. He sighed and reached his hand in to press the door unlock button before opening the back door and climbing in, putting his seatbelt on.
	"All this to get cups?" JC objected. "Joey, seriously. He's never driven before."
	"I know," Joey said.
	"Can I go now?" Justin asked. "What do I do?"
	JC eyed him uncertainly. "You can barely do bumper cars, Justin. Or the race track at Magic Kingdom."
	"JC!" Justin said in exasperation.
	"Do you know how to back out of a driveway?" JC returned. 
	"It's not that hard."
	"Well, let's see. Put it in reverse," Joey said. 
	"Wait―" JC objected. "Justin. Before you do anything. You're forgetting two things."
	"What?" Justin turned in his seat, giving JC a sulky look that clearly said 'come on'.
	"I know lights are one, and I just told him that…" Joey began. He pointed to the left of the steering wheel. "Over there. This car doesn't have running lights so you've got to turn that to the right. And for this car…" He looked over, craning his neck. "If you want to put the high beams on, you see how you put the directional signal on?" 
	"I think…"
	Joey pointed to the smaller black lever to the left of the wheel. "You turn that left and right. To put high beams on pull it kinda towards you. That could turn on the wipers too if you're sloppy so be careful. And… Well, you don't need the high beams, you have to be careful with other drivers on the road." He turned to look at JC. "Good?"
	"You get all that, Curly?" JC asked. He hoped he didn't get it. He hoped he decided not to try driving tonight.
	"I think," Justin admitted. He carefully turned on the lights.
	JC rubbed at his jaw with a yawn. "Second thing. Use your right foot. See the pedals by your feet? Right is go. One on the left is stop. Remember that. Before you do anything, you should always have your foot on the break. Got it?"
	"Yeah."
	"Very important."
	"Break. Always be ready to break." 
	"Can he go now?" Joey asked. "The pizza's gonna get cold."
	"Joey," JC scolded. "If you're going to do this, you at least should do it right."
	"Well, okay then," Joey sighed. "What else? You told him everything, and his seatbelt's on..." 
	"Can I go?" Justin asked.
	"Yes. Forget him. Go ahead," Joey said. "Put the car in reverse and keep your foot on the break. You see how to..." He watched Justin's hand go for the correct lever and nodded. "Yeah, good." 
	Justin took the lever in his hand and pulled it towards him like he'd seen them all do, moving it until he saw the car was in reverse. "Okay."
	"Now you can take your foot on the break and press the gas very lightly. Keep your hands on the wheel… You might not back out completely straight depending on how your wheels are turning… You can look in the rear-view and also turn around to look. Just don't look at JC."
	Justin laughed as he slowly started the car backwards. It inched out of the driveway, heading just slightly left but he caught on and turned the wheel correctly to fix it.
	"Good, now you can turn your wheel to the right to back out towards your left into the street, very careful…" Joey persisted. "Careful… See if there's cars.... Good boy. Now put the car in drive."
	"This isn't very hard…" Justin said as he moved the lever out of reverse.
	"Just go slow, okay?" JC asked. "Promise me."
	"Jayce, you're going to make him nervous," Joey protested. "You're going to do fine, Justin. Just block him out. He's worse than your mother would be."
	"His mother would never let him do this," JC replied. "If she knew, she'd skin the three of us." 
	Justin slowly reached the end of the street after going about ten miles an hour. He put on his right directional without being told to turn towards the main street.
	"You can go faster," Joey said. "Ignore JC. Going slow is just as bad as going fast."
	"Going slow is never bad," JC returned. "Make sure you're comfortable, Justin."
	Justin was fine pulling out of the neighborhood and was surprisingly fairly comfortable with handling the car, with it being his first time. It was more JC and Joey arguing that bugged him. But once he reached the main road, and he had to wait to pull out with the light, and then was with all the other cars on the road with lights that looked like a million flashlights racing past him in the dark, his hands started to sweat a little bit.
	"Good, it's not that busy," Joey said.
	Justin was thinking, are you crazy? There were at least a million people out.
	When the right turning lane light was green, Justin turned onto the main road and started down the main road, keeping to the right like he thought he should.
	"Justin, you're a little on the line, pull a little to the right," Joey began. "You're good. Good. Okay, just keep going straight. Good."
	A little to the right? Justin did it, thinking he was already so far to the right. He just barely had an inkling of where he was on the road. It was hard to see the lines and the reflectors on the road didn't seem to help him much. And then there were suddenly cars around him and he looked in the rearview mirror and saw a big van behind him, seeming very close.
	"You okay?" JC asked.
	"Yeah…" The road turned a little to the left and Justin went with it, trying to follow the lines. 
	"You're going to be making a right coming up, Justin," Joey started. "You're already in the right lane, so that's good…" 
	"Where do I turn?" Justin asked.
	"Coming up. At the light coming up the next block." 
	Justin kept going up the road, feeling his hands tight on the wheel, until he reached the light, which was red. He braked, being right behind a red Corvette. Cars sped past on the road in front of them going down towards where Justin needed to turn. 
	Then the Corvette suddenly turned right, leaving Justin the first on the line in the right lane.
	"Pull up," Joey indicated. "To the line."
	Justin went up slowly.
	"You can turn on red," Joey said. "Okay? You just have to make sure there's no oncoming traffic. Like now there's traffic."
	Justin nodded, seeing about ten cars whiz by.
	Then there was a lapse and no one came but Justin wasn't sure. "Should I go?"
	"If you want. Put your blinker on."
	Justin put the directional on and the suddenly the car behind him was honking their horn.
	"He's just impatient. You can go," Joey began.
	"I don't…" Another three cars flew by and Justin hesitated. He let the car go up a little bit but then Joey went, "Wait!" loud and another bunch of cars went by as Justin braked again.
	"When do I go?" Justin asked. The car behind him honked again. 
	Then, the light turned green and the other cars had to stop, so there was no oncoming traffic now. Justin turned carefully onto the road without a problem. Immediately the other car that had been honking passed him, cutting him off. 
	"That's okay," Joey said. "Don’t let assholes bug you. You did good, pal." 
	Another car cut him off and he didn't understand. It was three-lane traffic and he wasn't going slow. It said forty and according to his speedometer he was going just that if not a few more. That was scary. Forty? Wasn't that a little fast? It didn't seem fast.
	"The gas station's up here on the left…"  Joey started. "You're going to have to move over to the left lane, Justin."
	Justin looked in his mirrors and there seemed so many cars. It was dark and there were a lot of lights. A car sped by on his left. Then another.
	"I… I can't…" Justin began.
	"The hardest is passing to your right," Joey said. "You have a huge blind spot. Left isn't bad, kid. Just look in the mirrors. I think after this white one goes by you can move over." 
	"I can't," Justin insisted, petrified. There were too many cars. What if he crashed? What would his mom say then? What would JC say? He'd probably never drive again. What if he ruined the car?
	"But―" Joey started.
	"I can't," Justin said again, feeling his confidence level drop. He was fine on the neighborhood street but this was completely different.
	"Joe, don't," JC began. "Justin, just keep going straight. You can turn the next right and that's another neighborhood and just stop in there."
	The next right. That was easy. That wasn't moving over lanes and cutting off cars. That was just making a right turn into a nice street with a big sign with the name of the development written on it. Justin liked that.
	"He could've made it," Joey was saying as Justin stopped the car. "You can't just scare him with you worrying, JC."
	"I'm not trying to scare him."
	"Well, you did." Joey leaned over to show Justin how to put the car into park. "Here... Back to where it was before." 
	Justin felt frozen. He sat there and swallowed, realizing that his whole dream of immediately getting his license was so far-fetched.
	"You can't make him cross three lanes of traffic when he's never even driven before. Not if he didn't want to," JC was saying.
	"Yeah, but it's all about confidence, JC. If he wants to do it, he can do it." 
	"I'll drive," JC answered, unbuckling his seatbelt and opening his door. He walked out and around to then open the driver's door. "Justin, come on." He eyed Justin's worried face. "Get out." He reached over and unbuckled his seatbelt. "You did fine, but let me drive."
	"Are you sure?"
	"Yes, you did fine." JC ushered him out.
	Justin wasn't so sure, especially judging by the irritated look on Joey's face. But he didn't say anything, just nodded and slid out of the driver's seat to the ground, feeling JC pat his back as he moved to the backseat. He felt stupid. 
	It was silent for a moment as JC put the car back into drive and easily did a broken U-turn to pull out of the development road and back onto the main road, making a left.
	"Did I do okay?" Justin asked softly.
	"You did awesome." Joey reached back to pat his knee, the irritated look most gone. "Seriously. JC's right, and it was a lot to do. I wouldn't have been able to do all that my first time ever driving. I started out just in a parking lot."
	"He should too," JC replied, making a right into the parking lot of the gas station. "It's hard with all this traffic. Orlando's a bitch with cars. It's hard enough for one of us at this time of night with traffic to pull across two lanes to turn left across another three. Huh?"
	"I know. That's what I just told him. He did good," Joey replied.
	"Of course he did good," JC answered. 
	"There were too many cars," Justin agreed. "I couldn't turn left. But driving straight was easy." 
	"Don't worry about it. It was fine," Joey sighed.
	JC said nothing as he pulled across the small parking lot and parked the car. "Joey, you want to just run in?"
	"Sure." Joey nodded. "Cups and plates." He took off his seatbelt, leaving the car and shutting the door behind him.
	JC turned in his seat, looking at Justin, who was slouched in his seat, chewing on a hangnail. "You did fine, alright?" he said again, gently. "Don't worry about it. That's just why people have to practice a lot before they get their license." 
	Justin's brow furrowed. "That was bad."
	"No... You did as well as any of us would've." JC reached back and pulled Justin's hand away from his mouth. "You don’t even have a permit." 
	Justin's hand went back to his mouth, continuing to chew at the nail. 
	"Did you like it?" JC asked. "Driving?"
	"Until there were all those cars," Justin answered. His brow furrowed, and he wanted to tell JC how disappointed his was with himself. And the stupid fear he'd felt, that had made him freeze, crept back up his spine as a reminder. 
	JC smirked. "Yeah… Other cars suck." He studied his friend's face. "You wanna sit up here?" He patted the passenger seat. "Joey can sit in the back. It's his turn."
	Justin agreed silently and lithely climbed over the seats into the passenger seat with a sigh. "It looks different when you're driving." He settled into the seat and frowned.
	"I know."
	"My hands got all sweaty."
	"Did I make you nervous?"
	"No..." Justin shook his head. "It was just... The two of you. And all the cars... I don't know." 
	"It's okay. It'll become a piece of cake."
	Justin nodded, and then slowly asked, "JC?"
	"What?" JC tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. He glanced outside to see into the store.
	"Can you teach me?" 
	JC pressed his lips together and then reached to turn on the radio. "Yeah..." he finally said. "Yeah, okay. When we have time. Just don't rush into it."
	"Yeah, okay. So next time we have time, maybe during Christmas?"
	"Maybe." JC frowned, not wanting to make any promises. He tried to guide the subject elsewhere. "And then when we're rich you can get all the nice cars like you want and drive them everywhere, right?"
	Justin smiled. "Yeah." 
	Joey came back then, carrying a small bag. He climbed into the back of the car with a frown when he noticed Justin in the passenger seat. "My seat was stolen."
	"You'll survive," Justin told him simply, reaching to change the station.
*******
	The pizza was still warm when the three returned. Chris and Lance had been nice and not eaten it all, although they were tempted. The soda was finally able to be opened, now that they had cups, and they ate in relative silence.
	"This house would be good to practice in now," Chris said.
	"It'd echo well," JC admitted.
	"It's late," Joey laughed, shaking his head. "I'm going to suck."
	"Chris is right though ― It'll echo really well. We've got to try it before you guys leave," JC said. "Unless you three wanna crash with me and Justin?"
	"Um, yeah.... No way. I want a bed," Joey said.
	"Ditto," Lance and Chris replied. 
	"Fine, fine... I don't blame you," JC laughed. 
	When they finished their pizza and most of the soda, they decided to try out the acoustics of the house. They picked a song ― one of their own for once ― and sang a capella, listening to the echo the unfurnished house produced. 
	"Very cool," Justin said when they were done. 
	Joey nodded and took another sip of his soda. Drinking something carbonated wasn't smart, but it wasn't like they were actually practicing. "It's cooler than when we sing in a bathroom." He laughed. They'd done that couple times, mostly as a joke but also because it really did have a great reverberation so that they could hear themselves. 
	Lance yawned. "Always working." 
	"I think we should get going," Joey said. "Before it gets late."
	"Yeah, we have to record tomorrow," Lance agreed. 
	"In Orlando at least, right?" Chris asked.
	"Yeah."
	"Dance rehearsals too," Joey said. "Not tomorrow though. I think the next day? We record every day though… I think?" He shook his head. "I can't keep any of it straight."
	"Nothing like working up until Christmas," JC replied sarcastically. "I'll drop ya'll off, okay? Justin, you coming too?" 
	"Yeah." Justin nodded. He didn't want to stay in the big empty house alone. It would be too quiet. He knew it was a rhetorical question anyway, more of 'you're coming' than actually asking him if he wanted to. He yawned. "Let's go."
********
 	JC's back hurt, but there was really no one to complain to. He hadn't slept in a sleeping bag on the ground for a long time and couldn't remember ever sleeping in a 90% unfurnished house. He tried to get comfortable, but it was hard. He wished he was in bed and wondered what had possessed him to agree to stay there.
	"It's tomorrow, now," Justin was saying. He hadn't shut up since they'd decided to 'sleep'. He didn't seem at all to mind the hard floor or sleeping bag. He was in his own little content world, talking. He was acting like they were camping out, or it was some kind of sleepover. "So that means Christmas is less than a week away. Six days, JC."
	JC grunted. He'd grunted an answer to nearly every comment in the past ten minutes, but Justin hadn't been able to get the hint that it was time to sleep and that he wasn't going to be getting a conversation out of JC. Everyone now and then he fell silent and JC grew hopeful, but soon he'd creep back into the silence with a new topic.
	"My mom says we're probably going to all have Christmas together, like a big family. 'Cause your folks will be here too, right?"
	JC grunted again and rolled onto his stomach with a little more effort than it would have taken in a bed, because of the closeness of the sleeping bag. He rested his head on his arms. Both of his parents, his brother, and his sister would be with him for Christmas. It still seemed so far away though…
	Justin continued, "Who's taller? Me or Tyler?"
	JC grunted.
	"Me or Tyler, JC?"
	"Dunno," JC mumbled. "Justin, what do we have to do tomorrow?" he started in a mumble. 
	"Sing." 
	"Mm… And what's important when you sing?"
	"Sounding good."
	"Justin." JC sighed and closed his eyes. "Fine, sounding good. Okay. And how do you sound good?"
	"You stay in key."
	It was like pulling teeth. JC gave up. "Sleep. Right? Sleep? Isn't that important? You said it's tomorrow now, so then isn't it way past our bedtime?"
	"You haven't got a bedtime, JC."
	"Do you want to sound groggy tomorrow?"
	Justin admitted he didn't, and then changed the subject. "Did you know that we're going to shoot another video next month?"  
	"Yes. Did you know I'm about to beat you up?"
	"No. I'm just trying to talk a little, JC."
	"Sh… Talk tomorrow."
	"But isn't this floor hard to sleep on?" Justin's sleeping bag rustled as he squirmed. "It's hard. I figured talk until we're tired. Then sleep."
	"I'm tired now. And tomorrow we're sleeping at Joey's."
	"What about Chris's?"
	"What about it? You wanna sleep there? You can sleep there."
	"I just thought it'd be cool to sleep here. I wanted to be the first one to sleep in my house," Justin started, sounding a little regretful and sad.
	"It is cool. But my back doesn't think so. Say good night to me and go to sleep." 
	"Good night…" 
	JC heard his tone and leaned up to look at Justin's face. It was dark but he could still see him in the pale light that came in from the window. "Hey."
	"Good night," Justin said again.
	"It's a cool house." JC settled back down comfortably. "Isn't it?"
	"I'm sorry I wanted to sleep here," Justin mumbled. 
	"I think it's cool. To be first. But to be first to sleep, you gotta actually sleep." JC closed his eyes.  
	"Okay."
	"But I do mean it. I'm glad we did. But let's sleep some."	
	"Okay."
	They remained quiet after that.
*******
	"Happy Thursday," Chris greeted as they met at the House of Hits for the recording that they were supposed to start that day. "Did everyone sleep well?" 
	"Nice to have a bed to myself again," Joey replied.
	"Definitely," Lance agreed.
	"And how was the floor?" Joey sent JC a teasing smile.
	JC rolled his eyes and slung an arm around Justin's neck, pulling him into his chest. "We're crashing at your place tonight, Joe."
	"Hey, it was fun," Justin objected.
	"For one night." JC let him go.
	"I wonder how long we'll be here today," Lance began.
	"Yeah, I wanna hang out a bit," Chris said. "Do a little shopping for Christmas, you know?" 
	 "For me?" Justin asked.
	"I already bought your coal," Chris replied. "On sale, no less."
	"Hmph."
	"That and a Barbie. Malibu."
	"Chris," Justin whined.
	"I thought we agreed we're not worrying about getting each other gifts?" Chris replied. "I've still got to get my mom and sisters stuff, dork. I can't be worrying about what toy you want."
	"I don't want toys… Well, not necessarily." 
	"I have so much shopping to do…" JC frowned. "I got them a couple things in Germany, but… God, the holidays creep up on you."
	"They can't expect much," Joey said. "Our schedules suck, we're broke as shit... I mean... My gift to my family might just be the fact that I'm here." 
	"Let's go shopping tonight," Justin said, smiling a bit. He loved to shop. 
	"If we go the rule is no shopping for yourself," JC answered. "Just getting holiday gifts out of the way." 
	Justin nodded. "I'll shop for my parents and my bro."
	"Anyone else wanna go? We can go after we finish up here, maybe?" 
	"Yeah," Lance agreed.
	Chris shrugged. "Let's see how we feel after a day in the studio." 
********
	"I can't wait until we're really rich and I can buy my family some really nice presents," Joey said later. "Like cars."
	"I want cars too," Justin said insistently. "That would be so cool." 
	"And you said sneakers," JC reminded.
	"Yeah. I love sneakers." 
	"I meant for other people," Joey said. "Not just for me."
	"I know," Justin insisted. "I wouldn't just do it for just me either."
	The guys had gone shopping at the Florida Mall as they planned after some long hours of perfecting harmonies and laying down tracks for their album. They'd decided to eat after that and wound up at the Orlando Ale House, which was just near the mall. 
	The discussion of money was hard. They liked dreaming that they would one day have some. Or a lot. But just as their growing fame had seemed unlikely, so did international success. It was just too hard to believe it could actually be a possibility. But it didn't stop them from discussing it. 
	"I have no idea what I'll do…" Chris began. "I mean, of course I'll spend it on my family― but the whole idea of actually having money to throw around is still foreign to me." Chris had not grown up with money, and the idea that through this group, through his hopeful dream, he could get rich… It was amazing. Not possible.
	"I know what you mean," JC agreed. 
	"It'll be nice." Joey took a big bite of a Zinger, mouth tingling at the spiciness. "Not worrying about bills and payments and all that shit."
	"Really nice," Chris agreed with a sigh. 
	Joey took a sip of water. "I have Steve looking after my place. He's good for something. But still." 
	"Mine is brand new," Justin bragged.
	"And not yours," Chris answered. "You don't pay for yours, infant. Mommy does." 
	"It's still mine."
	Chris rolled his eyes. "You know, you're going to be rich before you even realize what money is. Kinda sad."
	"I know what money is," Justin objected.
	"Yeah." Chris frowned. He loved Justin like nothing else, but he couldn't help but think, a little regretfully, that the kid was going to have it easy if they kept growing like they were. He was going to have everything he could want. He wouldn't have to work awful hours at a crap job at minimum wage to try to make it to college. He'd have it all. And he would never know otherwise.
	  "I do," Justin insisted. "And when we have lots I'm going to bring my mom to shop at the Saks in that mall we just went to." It was the most expensive store he could think of off the top of his head. 
	"That'd be nice," Joey said. 
	"You think we'll have lots of money?" Lance asked.
	"Of course," Justin answered, as if it was that easy. They had signed the contract, sure they'd be rich. As if by being back in Orlando, he'd suddenly forgotten the cheap motel rooms in Germany in which he shivered at night and regretted everything. That was out of his mind at the moment. "We're going to be so rich. Right?"
	"Sure," JC replied, laughing inwardly at his friend. Justin would act so confident and be the first to reply with an answer, but then he'd always add the "Right?" at the end, just to make sure. "So rich we won't know what to do with it." 
	"Million trillionaires," Justin said. 
	"You got it, baby."
	"Okay, but in the meantime let's think about paying for my five seventy-five cheeseburger," Chris said with a laugh. "Let's not get over our heads."
	"Who broke out the champagne when we sent off the tape?" JC smirked. "Mr. Optimistic."
	"And who broke my champagne glasses?"
	"Justin did. He's bad."
	"I remember that stupid tape!" Justin exclaimed. "I didn't break anything. But remember? Our stupid video?"
	"It wasn't supposed to be stupid." Lance grinned at the memory.
	"It was sad," Justin persisted. "They'll be showing that in the before they were stars, and I'll still be laughing."
	"It was damn good," Chris replied. "I'm proud of it. We did it all by ourselves, man. You can't put that down."
	"I'm not," Justin insisted. "But it's still funny."
	"Well, your 'funny' got us where we are now. It got us far."
	"I didn't say it didn't. I just said it was funny. I bet if ya'll watched it again, you'd think it's funny."
	"I'm going to watch it again, and I won't laugh."
	"I will," Joey said. "I don't know if I want to watch it again."
	"We're going to watch it," Chris said. "When'd we make that anyway?"
	"October," Lance said. "Last year."
	"You came in October too," JC began.
	"Yeah."
	"We did a lot in a really short amount of time…" 
*******
	"That is just sad!" Joey stared at the screen, almost embarrassed. Justin was already giggling, and Joey looked over at him and couldn't contain his own laughter. Justin's antics were hard not to laugh at. "I'm sorry, but Justin is right. This is just terrible. Look at that." 
	"It's not awful," JC objected, sitting on the floor beside Lance and Justin. "I mean, we did that all by ourselves, and it's choreographed, and planned out."
	"I still like it," Lance said. "Especially since it worked." 
	"Well, it did work," Joey agreed.
	Justin had craned his neck to see Chris on the couch beside Joey, and the man was smirking just slightly. He was the only one to not make a comment yet, and when he noticed the youngest's look, he immediately took on a serious expression. Justin couldn't stand it anymore and so he pounced up and tickled him. "You're laughing!"
	"I'm not." Chris pushed him away. "This is dead serious."
	"Dead funny!" Justin insisted, poking Chris in the ribs and sitting down next to him, pushing Joey over. He continued to poke him, wanting to see the man laugh. "Look at it. Look at us! Look what you're wearing." 
	Justin's grin was contagious because he did it so genuinely, and Chris couldn't help but smirk as he pushed at him again. "Justin, it's amusing, but that's not the point. Since it's not supposed to be funny."
	"Tell me you think it's funny." 
	"If someone falls down the stairs, people laugh. But is that supposed to be funny?"
	Joey laughed at Chris's choice of comparison. "Are you kidding, Chris?"
	Chris eyed the screen and then had to look away, because Justin was right, it was funny. 
	"You're laughing," Justin insisted, grinning at Chris as he poked him in the ribs. "Admit it."
	"I'm not! JC, control your boy!" Chris demanded, pushing Justin roughly.
	"He's not mine," JC answered. "You control him."
	"I can't…" Chris persisted as he pulled away from Justin's fingers, laughing involuntarily as he watched them on TV singing "We Can Work It Out" by the Beatles. "Dammit!" he laughed. "Justin!"
	"You're laughing!" Justin persisted. 
	"Somebody―" Chris nearly squeaked. "Help!"
	"Justin," JC laughed. "Don’t kill him. We need our Hi-Tones wonder…" He glanced up in time to see Chris fall off the couch and winced as Justin jumped on top of him. "Guys…" 
	"Our video's just that good," Joey mused, looking at the two. "They can't even make it through the whole thing without reverting to themselves." 
	"Justin, you're too big," Chris grunted under Justin's weight. 
	"Get up." JC reached over and smacked Justin's back. "You'll hurt him." 
	"No, I won't," Justin let out, grunting as Chris began retaliating. "He promised he wouldn't laugh and he is."
	"I wonder why," Lance replied.
	"Admit it's funny," Justin insisted.
	"It's not supposed to―" Chris began.
	"But it is!"
	Chris caught Justin's wrists and looked at his youthful grinning face. "You're funny in it, how about that? I think it's good. You have to admit it's good." 
	"You'll think it's embarrassing in a couple years…" Joey assured with a smirk. 
	"You already think that?"
	"Well, not completely…" 
	Chris shifted his weight as Justin turned his head to look at Joey, and was able to flip their positions, pinning Justin down with his own weight. "There," he said in breathlessness as Justin struggled beneath him to regain the upper hand. "Got you." 
	"Ow..." Justin complained, Chris's elbow in his gut. "Get up."
	Chris let him up slowly and turned back to watch the end of the song. "We can't be embarrassed by it yet. For now we have to be thankful it worked."
	Justin settled on the ground beside him and sighed. "Can we at least make fun of the dancing?" 
*********
	The next day, the majority of their time was spent with Robert Jaquez as they continued to practice their dance routines.
	Joey knew he wasn't the most coordinated guy in the world. He'd known that even before he'd gotten into the group, and despite being sometimes a bit klutzy at times, he was coming to terms with his limbs and how to move them. Where he couldn't do a move as agilely as he wanted, he covered it up with his suaveness. Now it was becoming more and more physically challenging. When JC and Justin had made up the choreography for their demo tape, he'd been reminded a little more that he wasn't really built for dancing. He would get there, but not as easily as Justin, who learned the moves like he made them up.
	The dancing for their small shows so far he had handled. None of it was very complicated. It had to be thrown together quickly but made them look good and gave them a good stage presence. Now things were starting to get a little more difficult. That particular day he just felt frustrated. 
	As they took a break, he grabbed his water bottle and took a long sip of the cold liquid, sighing at the slight relief it gave his tired body. He looked over to where JC and Justin were fooling around, still dancing. They were in front of the big mirrors, standing close and mimicking the dance that they had just been taught, but doing it about ten times faster, and laughing when they bumped into each other. 
	Joey frowned, thinking that those two were made for dancing. They both had the background and the litheness to do the moves, and the coordination and memory to do it exactly. Chris had been dancing well too, but Joey didn't feel so bad when he remembered Lance was also having a little bit of a hard time getting it all down. 
	He eyed JC and Justin again. It was evident the two of them would be pushed forward out of the five. He briefly thought about his old high school harmony group, The Big Guys, and remembered having the voice that carried out over the others, taking the main parts and solos and taking the lead in the National Anthem. He thought about Eric, Joel, and Fonzy and sighed. Things had changed.
	He'd known it from the time they'd started recording that he, Chris, and Lance would not have the same solo chances as Justin and JC. Chris, taking the high parts, and Lance, the low, that was understandable for the most part, but Joey felt a little pang, wondering why he couldn't do it. He'd done it on their demo…
	"JC!" Justin suddenly yelled, but he was grinning as they danced on combination again. He pushed the man, laughing. "That's not right! Why do you keep doing it like that?"
	"Because you hate it."
	"You're gonna mix yourself up." 
	"Why don't you two take a rest?" Chris suggested, sitting on the floor and leaning against the wall, looking tired and sweaty. "We still have to practice more, and you're gonna wear yourselves out." 
	"Joey, where's water?" Justin asked, catching the man taking a drink. "Can I have some water?"
	Joey shook his head and splashed some water out of the bottle at Justin when the boy approached. "Get your own."
	"Where?" Justin asked. "Hey." He rubbed at the wetness on his shirt. He hopped on his feet.
	Joey marveled at his energy and knew then that there was no way he could harbor any hard feelings against this kid, nor JC, for their roles. It wasn't their fault. It was becoming a natural transition. Justin's fifteen year old energy sometimes became a bit irritating after a while, but he was so endearing about it that none of them could ever really get angry. He grew on them. "Over there." He pointed to a cooler that had the water in it. 
	"My legs are killing me," Chris complained, stretching them out in front of him. "I think I'm too old for this…" 
	"You are old," Justin replied as he bent down and grabbed a water. "You're twenty-five."
	"I feel ancient." Chris sighed. 
	"You're not that old," JC assured with a laugh as he too walked over and grabbed a water. "Twenty-five isn't old."
	"Hmph," Chris grunted sarcastically. "By the time Baby is legal, I'll be in a wheelchair."
	"I'm not that young," Justin replied.
	"No, I'm just old. And my legs can't handle this kind of dancing."
	"But we have to make it faster," Justin started. "Don't we? It'd be cool to make it faster. It'd be more fun to see that on stage."
	"Let's stick with what Robert says to do," Joey spoke up. He wanted to say he was having a hard enough time with it as it was.
	"I'm having a hard enough time as it is," Lance spoke, saying it for him.
	Joey nodded. "Amen to that."
	Justin frowned. "Okay." 
	"Chris, in five years you're going to be thinking back that this was your prime…" JC teased.
	"JC, man… Just shut up," Chris replied. 
	"Nah, he'll just be more used to it all then," Justin said. 
	"Thirty. I'll be thirty. And you, how old will you be?"
	Justin grinned. "Two. Zero."
	"You won't even be able to fucking drink yet, and I'm going to be on my deathbed?"
	"Chris," JC objected. 
	"Are you saying my name like that because of my bitterness or because I'll be dying?"
	"Both."
	"Well…" Chris slumped his shoulders.
	"You're not old," Lance said. "Not at all."
	"No. Not old," Chris began sarcastically. "I can get senior discounts at Wendy's while Justin here can't drive, vote, drink, or even go to Pleasure Island with an adult chaperone."
	"Don't compare yourself to him," JC objected. 
	"You know, I wish I did get discounts at Wendy's." Chris sighed. "That would make me feel better."
	"I doubt it. Stop wallowing in self-pity," Joey replied. "I hate that."
	"How about you take off two years and give them to Justy?" JC suggested. "Then you'd both be happy."
	"I wish I could do that too," Chris replied sadly. "You'll all visit when I'm in a home, right?"
	Joey shook his head. "Not me."
	"Me neither," Justin said. "I'll hire someone to do that."	
	"Hire someone," JC scoffed. "You do have plans for your money, don't you?"
	"What money?" Chris began. "I'd like some money."
	"Exactly." 
	"Of course I have plans for it," Justin spoke up. 
	"What if we don't get it?" Chris asked. "What if I end up in a wheelchair before we get anywhere?"
	Justin frowned. "Well, then we'll just wheel you out in the middle of the stage and we'll dance around you. And then every now and then we'll spin you around or hook up cords to your wheelchair to fly you around the audience." He grinned, thinking he was clever.
	Chris didn't look impressed. "Thanks, kiddo." 
	"No problem, gramps."
********
	They were about a half hour away from being finished dancing for the day when Johnny showed up at the studio. He watched them for a few minutes from the doorway, smiling, before he called over to interrupt. Robert stopped the music and stepped away for the man to talk to the group.
	"Hey, Johnny!" Chris greeted, relieved to have a break. His heart thanked him for providing an excuse for them to stop.
	"What's up?" JC spoke.
	"Hey, guys," Johnny walked over. He had a handful of papers under his arm. "The dancing is looking great. You're going to have the best show around."
	"What's those for?" Justin pointed at the papers.
	"These… Remember that conversation I had with you guys about PR? About what good answers are to questions and how there's a particular way to do things?"
	"Yeah…" Joey answered slowly. 
	"Good, well…" Johnny handed the papers to JC, who was the closest to him. "These are forms. Not really forms. Kind of surveys. With questions that you're bound to be asked. Many of them you have already been asked by the magazines in Munich and Berlin."
	Justin took one packet from JC and looked at the first page. 
	"I want you to fill them out," Johnny explained. "With what you think your answer would be. Don't feel like they're tricks, but if the truth doesn't sound like you think it would go over well with a crowd, then simply put down something that would. Next time I see you guys… I think in a couple of days I'll catch up with you guys… I'll take them back from you, filled out, and management can review the answers."
	"To make sure they're okay?" Chris asked.
	Johnny nodded. "Right. You get the idea, right? And be consistent. Remember you're trying to get a distinct personality across. We're trying to market you the best way possible." 
	The five didn't say much until the man left. Then they exchanged looks. Chris laughed. 
	"You think he doesn't trust us?" Lance asked. "Or is it procedure?"
	"I'm guessing procedure…" JC answered as he took Justin's back from him. "Later, J, we have to finish up here now." 
	"It's stupid," Justin said after it was gone from his hands. "Like it's favorite color and stuff like that."
	"Easy enough. We'll do it later." 
*******
	"They're really going to look at all this crap?" Chris wondered aloud. They were sitting at Joey's kitchen table, each with one of the packets in front of them and a pen in hand.
	"Name," Lance said. "Easy enough." 
	"What's my name?" Justin asked. 
	"You're Josh," JC said.
	"I thought you were."
	"I'm Justin."
	"Guys, don't make this any longer than it has to be," Joey laughed. 
	"Where am I from?" Justin asked. 
	"Idaho," JC said. "Put down that." 
	"Okay." Justin went to the next question, after writing 'Tennessee'. "Can I say I'm sixteen? I’m sixteen in a month." 
	"Birthday is the next question," Chris said. "If you put fifteen, they'll see you're going to be sixteen. But this isn't for real anyway. Just examples of questions."
	 "So I can put anything?" Justin replied. 
	"They're going to look at it."
	"But they want us to lie?"
	"No…" Chris shook his head. "Only if you have to."
	Justin frowned and leaned his elbows on the table. "When do I have to?" 
	"Like, if it asks, do you do drugs? Or something like that. Joey would have to lie and say no."
	"I do not do drugs," Joey objected. He took a sit of the beer in front of him.
	"See?" Chris grinned at Justin. "Isn't he a great liar? But you can't put, like, you're twenty-one when you're fifteen. That's different."
	"No, it's not." Justin rested his chin on his hand. "A lie's a lie. But whatever."  
	"He shouldn't have anything he's got to lie about anyway," JC said slowly. "You know?"
	Chris shrugged. "I haven't read all the questions." 
	Justin flipped the page and skimmed down. "Musical influences. They've asked us that before."
	"Girlfriends," Joey spoke. "See, I think that's where we've got to lie…" 
	"Do you still have a girlfriend?" Justin asked.
	"Sort of…" Joey replied. 
	"Sort of? JC has a sort of, too." 
	"You do?" Chris looked at JC. "Who?"
	"I don't. It's just... Nikki…" JC admitted. "Just… it's on and off." 
	"She still singing and dancing?" Joey asked. 
	JC nodded. "She was excited when I told her about the group. That was a while ago. She wants a group too."
	"My mom always liked Nikki…" Justin frowned, thinking. "Joey, how can you have a sort of if you always― Like, the girl at the mall."
	"The one you scared away?" Joey replied. "And Kelly's just sort of my girl right now… So that gives us both room to… I don’t know, we're just looking now at what we are. And I'm so busy regardless."
	"So we put down 'no', anyway," Chris said. "So we'll be accessible for our fans." He rolled his eyes.
	"What do we put down for parents' names?" Justin started, looking at the line with a frown.
	"You put your parents' names, I'd imagine," Joey said with a smirk.
	"Which ones?" 
	"Uh… How many have you got?"
	"He has eighty-five moms and thirty-four dads," JC said, starting to laugh. 
	Justin hit him in the shoulder, scowling. "Not funny. Who do I put? It just says mother, space, father, space." 
	"Just put Lynn if you want." He looked over. "Or you could fit four names there, Just. Write tiny." 
	An exasperated breath left Justin's lips. 
	"Am I the only one with one mom and one dad?" Joey looked up skeptically. "Who are together?"
	"No," Lance said. "Me."
	"Me too," JC replied.
	"I guess Justin and I are the dysfunctional ones," Chris spoke up. "Well, Justin, we're the cool ones."
	Justin looked skeptical as he wrote his stepmother's name. He didn't think it was very cool.
	"How about this one," Chris continued. "Where did you grow up? I’m really going to sound dysfunctional now."
	"Why?" Lance asked.
	"Let's see…" Chris began sarcastically. "Pennsylvania. Ohio. California. Florida. Hm…" He laughed. "I guess I'm well-rounded."
	Joey shrugged. "Most of us have two then, if you're going to do it like that."
	"I've just got Mississippi." Lance smirked.
	"Well, you're the stable one of the group then, Lancie…" Chris grinned as he wrote the cities that he'd lived in down. "Huh? With your happily married parents and routine upbringing."
	"I guess." 
	"There's nothing wrong with that." 
	"I wish I only had two parents," Justin spoke up. He wrote the last name on the paper and looked at it. Too many names. 
	"No, you don't," JC replied with a frown at where the conversation was turning.
	"Lance is lucky," Justin persisted.
	"Justin, let's not get started on this…"
	"He is though." Justin ran his finger over the names. "I don’t like saying four."
	"You like your baby brother?"
	"Yeah..."
	"Then you like having your four parents. Because he wouldn't be here then."
	Justin shrugged. "That's different, JC… Maybe I would have had another then… I'm not saying I'd rather erase him but―  Never mind. You don't get it."
	"When'd they split?" Chris asked.
	"Like…" Justin frowned. "I don't know. Long time ago..." He shook his head, deciding not to get into the details. "I was like three or something."  
	"Double the gifts," Joey suggested.
	"No." Justin shook his head. "It doesn't work that way."
	"I like your four parents," JC replied with a shrug.
	"I'll trade you for Roy and Karen."
	"You and Ty would fight, Justin. And Heather would miss me."
	Justin paused for a moment, looking at the survey briefly. The next question was siblings. Then he asked, "Am I the only one who hasn't got a sister?"
	The others didn't reply.
	"Okay, you can have Heather," JC said. "I'll share her with you, okay?"
	"No." Justin sulked.
	"You don’t like Heather?"
	"It's not fair."
	"Oh, psh…" JC shook his head. "Well, you've got a baby brother and none of us do, so that's something." 
	"I've got a baby brother because my stepmom is odd."
	"Justin," Chris laughed. "Don't say that."
	"Fine. My dad is odd. Having more kids, like, over a decade after me."
	"Well, I'll take Jon and you can have Heather," JC persisted. "How about that?"
	"Jon thinks you're weird."
	"Heather thinks you're weird. I bet she wouldn't trade brothers anyway― Tyler's a lot cooler than you are anyway."
	Justin narrowed his eyes. "Just wait until he sees me again." 
	"Yeah," JC laughed. "It's been a while since you two saw each other." He paused. "And fought." 
	"Whatever." 
	"Can we get back to the survey?" Joey asked with an exasperated look.
	"It's stupid," Justin muttered again. 
	"Look, favorite sport. You like basketball."
	"Underwater basket weaving…" Chris said as he started to write.
	Justin smiled at him then and laughed. "Are you gonna put that?"
	"Maybe…" Chris answered.
	Justin smirked and looked back at the questions.
********
	The days swept by faster than they could have imagined. JC felt as though he blinked and their rehearsals and recordings were done for the week and suddenly it was Christmas and his family was together and smiling and happy. Lynn moved more things into the house and it really almost looked as if they had lived there a while. She invited the other families to spend Christmas with them, and JC and his family took them up on the offer. Lance and his mother actually flew back to Mississippi until late on the twenty-sixth, to be with their friends and family. Joey and Chris spent the holiday with their own respective parents and Chris finally decided to leave his place, so he was thinking about packing.
	So a lot had happened over the week. Although it would be almost another month until they returned to Germany, they knew that time would fly by again. Everything was flying by.
	JC watched Justin curl up on the other end of the couch and call Joey, Chris, and Lance on Christmas night and ask them how they were. He could tell Justin was getting used to having the other three around and felt the same way himself. After a few months of being cramped together, cold in Germany, having each other to talk to and rely on, there was no doubt that they would become closer, and they had. Justin almost always preferred for them all to be together.
	"What'd you get?" was the first thing Justin asked on the phone. Then he would laugh his usual laugh and say, "Hi, it's me. Yeah." Then he'd listen to them talk for a while, interrupting just occasionally to talk about something he'd done. 
	"Tell him about tomorrow," JC reminded during each call. Lynn was planning a barbecue for their families. He yawned and wondered if Lance would be back in time. Hopefully. JC couldn't think about it too much; he was so tired. He almost felt like going to bed. It had been a great day. He knew his parents and Justin's were downstairs talking still and wondered if he should join them. After all, he rarely saw his family now. 
	"I got some stuff," Justin said into the phone. "Yeah. Nothing from you though… Yeah, I know… but… if you're feeling nice and you come tomorrow― You're coming, right? You could at least come." 
	JC smiled. Justin had a particular way of manipulating people. And his talent seemed innate because JC could remember the same innocent demanding disposition in Justin from the time he'd met him as an auditioning eleven year old. It was just always there. It seemed a strong attribute though and hadn't hindered him in the slightest. If anything it helped him. 
	"I love you," Justin said into the phone. "I miss you…" He laughed, as whoever it was likely made a snide comment in return. "Yeah, but…. Do you miss me?... Be nice…. You're sure you're coming?"
	JC closed his eyes and yawned. He could fall asleep right here…
	He kind of did for a moment.
	"Isn't it weird?"
	It took JC a moment to realize that Justin was actually off the phone and talking to him. 
	"What's weird?" JC asked as Justin slide closer and pressed into his side.
	"That they're not here…" Justin rubbed at his jaw for a moment and then paused before pulling at his lower lip. "It's weird."
	"You miss them?"
	"I don't know. It just seems weird…"
	"Well, you're comfortable with what you're familiar with," JC replied. "I know what you're saying. It's almost… quiet. I mean, that's impossible with you around, but it's almost."
	"I'm quiet."
	"When you're sleeping."
	"It's, like, they can be as annoying as hell but… It's still weird without them." Justin looked thoughtful for a minute. "Weird."
	JC nodded, understanding completely. The both of them had been through a lot of transitions and people, that was common in such a business, and it was always an odd, sort of empty feeling when something was missing that they had been accustomed to having around. 
	Justin was thinking about it in the same way. He thought about how it was living with them, seeing them every day, and then he randomly began to think of when the Club had ended and all those people left. "I want them to come back."
	"They're coming tomorrow." JC yawned. "Right?"
	"I think." Justin thought for a moment. "Remember when we promised not to say good-bye? You and me?"	
	"What? For Christmas?" JC asked, confused.
	"No. At the end."
	It took JC a minute and then he realized what he was referring to. "Oh. You mean when the show ended?" JC frowned. "Yeah, I don't know what I was thinking hanging around with you either." 
	"It worked out really well."
	"Yeah, it did," JC agreed.
	"And you were a dork. A dorky spaz."
	"And you were just a buzzing gnat in everyone's way. You and Ryan. Got into everything."
	"No, we weren't."
	"You were." JC ran his hand over Justin's curls. 
	"Did I annoy you?"
	JC shook his head. "No. I would have told you if you did… You annoyed Tony a little bit." He laughed, remembering. "And sometimes Dale." JC wondered why they were thinking about this. Christmas did that to you, made you reminisce. 
	"I did not." Justin was aghast at the idea of himself being annoying. "And who cares what Tony thinks…?"
	"He's a cool guy, man…"
	"Whatever. Well, we were the ones who made our break."
	JC nodded and sighed. "We did. Hopefully it's good enough. We had good practice with all that though, huh, buddy?"
	Justin nodded silently. 
	"You think any of the others will make it? From the show? Not even saying we've made it, but…"
	"I don’t know," Justin replied slowly. "Maybe a couple. I… I wish I could have done it more… I was barely there…"
	"Let's not start thinking about this…" JC began, getting a homesick pang when he thought about the years he'd spent on the show. He remembered it ending and all of their surprise despite the fact they'd felt it coming. And singing the last good-byes… "We both got a great start from it." 
	He'd always wondered if they'd make it anywhere. Not just himself and Justin, but any of them in particular. He remembered telling Justin that at least he'd get a chance to be a normal kid afterwards, and winced at the thought. Justin couldn't be a normal kid even if he'd tried, and he had tried. Slightly at least. It just wasn't built for him. Or he wasn't built for it. He was built for something else. This. Whatever this would turn out to be. 
	"We don't have to talk about it…" Justin agreed with a melancholy tone to his voice. JC was right. They were in a new ball-game now and there was no need to reflect on the old runs anymore. Although he did sometimes miss it. "You know… I can't…"
	"Can't what?"
	"It's hard to remember before," Justin started. "You know? Like, before I came on the show. Before I met you. It feels like it's just always been."
	"Well, you were so little when you were on it, of course you don't remember before. I barely remember being that eleven." 
	"I was not that little," Justin objected. "I'm just saying it feels like that was everything." 
	"I know. And I wonder what I would have done without it though. How I could have possibly done without it."
	"I wouldn't have met you."
	"Well yeah. There's thousands of what-ifs with us."
	"I know."
	"The guys too. It's really amazing if you think about it…" JC mused. "Everything about it is such a chance. Just one word different, almost, and we might not even be sitting in this house…"
	"Mm…" Justin thought.
	JC noticed the contemplative look and felt that tug again. "So…" he started to change the subject. "You have a good Christmas, Jus?" 
	"I guess… I'm glad you were here. It would have been weird."
	"Not that weird. But I'm glad our families had it together. Our moms like to talk and all that."
	Justin nodded, tilting his head to the side just slightly, as if he was thinking of something, maybe something to say, but then decided against it and yawned.
	"Lance's flight going to come in on time tomorrow?" JC asked.
	Justin nodded again. "He said yeah." 
	"That'll be fun then. Huh?" 
	"Yeah."
	It was quiet and so after a moment JC yawned and replied, "I'm going to get ready for bed. You game for sleeping?"
	Justin smirked. "Game for sleeping? Never heard that one before. Didn't think it was something you could be game for."
	"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Shut up. I'm going to bed." 
*********
	The next day at the barbecue the guys really wanted nothing more than just to relax. They watched their parents mingle, talking to them for a while, and then went inside to lounge and talk about how their Christmases were while Joey's dad started the grill.
	They sat inside and listened to Lance talk about Mississippi for a while. It was hard not to notice the nostalgic look in his eye as he spoke about the friends that he'd caught up with that couldn't believe that they were getting famous in another country. And how he'd stopped by at his old high school and said hello to people there too. But overall, happiness overwhelmed nostalgia. 
	"We were hoping you would fly back in time," JC said. "Because it wouldn't be the same if we weren't all together, you know?" 
	Lance nodded. "It's not that long a flight from here to Mississippi anyway."
	"You know what we have to do today?" Chris began.
	"What?" Joey responded, raising an eyebrow. "Because frankly, I don't feel like doing much of anything…" 
	"Well, you know how in, like, two weeks, we're going to make the video for 'Tearing Up My Heart…" 
	"It's tearin'," Lance joked. "Not tearing." 
	"Whatever." Chris rolled his eyes.  
	"We'll be in Miami." Justin clapped his hands. He liked making videos. It was a really long day but the last one had turned out really well. It had been so cool to watch themselves in a real music video. 
	It was almost like Chris read  his mind.
	"So what about the video?" Joey asked. 
	"Right. Well I was thinking. So what better to prepare ourselves then to watch the other one?"
	"The other one?" JC asked.
	"The only other one we have, JC…" Chris looked at him with a grin. "What one do you think I'm talking about?"
	"I have the tape…" Justin pushed off the couch. "JC, find the controller."
	"That should be a feat…" JC replied, glancing around. "You just moved in and already I have to look for the controller."
	"It's probably in the cushion," Joey replied.
	It didn't take Justin long to find the tape. His mom had labeled it well and stuck it with the row of tapes on the shelf that had labels such as "Justin- Talent Show 1989" and "MMC- Season One". He frowned at those titles and took the one that said "IWYB video". His mom was getting good with acronyms.
	"Justin, your mom has too many tapes," Chris said, looking at the row that Justin stepped away from. "You're on all of those?"
	"Yeah…" 
	"You better watch it... Embarrassing home footage," Joey warned. "We could steal it."
	"As if you haven't taken enough yourself," JC responded. "Toting that stupid camera around?"
	"Yeah! I gotta get that out again," Joey began. He enjoyed being an annoying cinematographer, particularly in the mornings when Justin was cranky and hungry and Chris bitter and occasionally a little hung over. "I had some really classic crap on there." 
	Justin turned on the TV and was pushing the tape in when JC found the controller on the floor next to the couch. 
	"Before we start…" Chris watched Justin take his seat again and the TV stayed on news, JC's finger lingering over the 'play button'.
	"What?" Joey asked. "Gonna get sentimental or shit, Chris?"
	"Barely. I just wanted to make the brat promise not to laugh."
	"Why would I laugh?" Justin spoke up. 
	JC laughed. "Justin, it's funny how you respond to 'brat'. Like, there's no question that he means you…" 
	"Whatever." Justin was scowling. "And shut up, Chris. I'm not going to laugh." 
	"If you do, Joey and me will beat you up," Chris persisted, scratching his neck and giving Justin a look. "Just don't be like last time. I want to take us seriously."
	"This is different," Justin insisted. "The only one I think is that funny is our promo video."
	"Okay," Chris agreed without much confidence.
	"Okay, press play already," Lance began.
	They watched the video star, and despite Chris's warning to be serious, they all gained smirks on their faces. The smirks weren't mocking, however. They were proud of their work, but it was always fun to watch themselves. Their outfits were coordinated, like those they wore at photo-shoots. They all had on black pants. JC and Chris had black shirts, Justin blue, Joey white, and Lance yellow. Then their outfits changed and they all had jackets on.
	"Our shirts are so tight," Joey said with a laugh. He watched, the details of that day coming back. The video had a spacey type theme with a lot of dancing and walking across the screen. 
	"I forgot about the evaporating girls," Justin said as he watched the special effects that had been added after filming was complete.
	"Evaporating?" Joey asked.
	"Yeah. Like… There." Justin pointed as a girl appeared and then disappeared into what seemed to be fragments. 
	Joey laughed. "Stupid." 
	"The shots from the floor are stupid too," JC said. "Where they're filming up at us? You know?"
	"I thought that was kind of cool," Lance replied. "When someone steps across it looks cool."
	"That was such a fucking long day…" Chris began. "That's all I remember."
	"Fucking long day," Justin echoed.
	Joey turned his head and looked at Justin, frowning before looking at the TV again. He wasn't sure why the way Justin echoed Chris bothered him. Sometimes the fifteen year old seemed to lapse into a strangely adult, bitter understanding of the world. His actual age was denied to him at times. "Don't say fuck," he said.
	"Why?" Justin gave him a look, like he didn't want to be told what to do.
	"Because it doesn't sound right." 
	Justin simply shrugged.
	"We got there early," Chris persisted, recollecting. "Like nine, remember? But they didn't let us start actually shooting until, what, in the afternoon, like four or five? That was messed up. It mean it was a lot of fun, but that was an intense day. Especially since we shot through until the next day and had a goddamn photo-shoot to do after."
	"Bad scheduling," Lance said. "As usual."
	"And they wonder why we get exhausted," Chris agreed. "And now we'll go through it all again." 
	"Wait…" Justin frowned. "We don't have to do it like that this time too, right?"
	"God, I hope not. I might have to kill somebody then." Chris shook his head. 
	"One day we'll get our say," Justin answered. "Like, we'll say no and walk away and they'll be begging us to come back. At whatever time we want."
	"I wish," Joey laughed. "Nice thinking, kid." 
********
	"You'll be fine? What are you going to do?"
	Justin gave JC a hard look before turning his attention back to his magazine and putting his feet up on the coffee table in front of him. "What can I do? I'm underage. I can't drive. My mother went out with Paul…"
	JC eyed him skeptically. "That's why I'm asking if you'll be fine."
	Justin flipped the page of Sports Illustrated. "You're not going to change your plans, even if I say I won't be fine."
	"No," JC admitted. "Because I haven't seen these people in forever since we're so busy and tonight everyone's free."
	"Yeah, what a miracle.... Are you bringing anyone back?"
	"You don't want me to?"
	"No."
	"Then I won't. I don't know what we're doing exactly, but I'll probably be back after you go to bed though."
	"Well." Justin looked up through lashes briefly at JC. It was so easy to cause a guilt trip with the man. He sighed sadly and turned another page. A moment later he knew he had succeeded. Any of the others, Chris or Joey, would have already left. Not JC. JC was too accommodating. 
	"You want me to drop you off somewhere?" JC stepped over Justin's legs and sat down next to him. 
	"Where?"
	"I don't know."
	"How would I get back?"  	
	"I don't know. Okay, bad idea. Unless, somebody's house? You wanna meet up with anybody?"
	"Who?" Justin asked.
	"It's up to you."
	"I don't have friends."
	JC frowned. "Come on."
	"Not here. Not really. I don't know who I'd call. I haven't talked to anybody in a long time…" 
	JC sighed. "You regret it?" 
	"Regret what?"
	Shaking his head, JC replied, "Nothing. I… Forget it. Well, what do you want to do?" He felt that familiar pang, the one he felt when he thought about what life would be like without this quest that the five of them had started; what they would be doing if they didn't have practice and voice lessons and dance instruction 24/7.
	Justin saying he had no friends made him sad. The four others in the group had truthfully been forced onto him as best friends as he didn't get to see his friends at home very often with their schedule. JC wasn't sure how to respond. 
	He wasn't about to remind Justin in any way that he was missing out on four memorable years of high school. Who was to say that their quest wasn't more memorable? He was pretty sure that Justin was quite aware that he'd never get to try out for the basketball team or go to football games or have a locker or a date for Prom. But Justin was seeing the world and maybe this experience, although abnormal, was better for him. For all of them. Because they were different. 
	It was just when Justin moped like this and said how he had no friends his age and nothing normal to do that JC couldn't help but feel bad for him.
	"I don't know…" Justin dropped his magazine onto his lap in exasperation, his southern twang strong in his voice. It slid to the floor.
	"I guess you could come with me," JC offered. "They all think you're still an eleven year old twerp though."
	"I don't want to go with you."
	"Then quit complaining." JC reached down and picked up the magazine. "Where's Chris tonight?"
	"Out."
	"Joey?"
	"Out. Out, out, out. Even Lance is out since one of his cousins was in town, JC. Okay?" Justin grunted. "Not like I would want to do anything with them anyway." He crossed his arms over his chest. "I see them all day long." 
	"When's Mom and Dad getting back?"
	"No idea." He shrugged. "Just go, JC. I'm sorry I even said anything. I was just giving you a hard time." 
	"At least turn on a TV or the radio. It's too quiet for you." JC handed him the magazine back. "Order a pizza. Do something, alright? Relax. Aren't you tired after today?"
	"No."
	"You will be after this month is up. We're doing nearly all the recording for the album, you know."
	"I know. You can go. When do you have to meet them?"
	"Like a half hour. Hey, why don't you call Trace?"
	"Long distance."
	"You haven't talked to him in awhile. Just don't stay on too long. Tell him how famous we are."
	"Oh yeah. Real famous." 
	"Call Randy. You haven't talked to him in a long time. You can ask how the baby is."
	"You want me to spend the whole evening on the phone?"
	"I don't know, Justin." 
	"Maybe I'll just go to bed early."
	"Even better idea," JC responded. "You know? I would love to do the same. But it's getting late. I'm going to get going. I'll tell them you said hi."
	"Tell them I'm not eleven." Justin hit JC with the magazine as the other got up. "Or a twerp."
	"Will do." JC grinned. 
******
	JC's night was full of reminiscing. Seeing all his old friends brought back a lot of memories. It was kind of bittersweet. While he was excited to see them and happy to think back on what a great time they'd always had, he still got that feeling in his gut about the past. The same thoughts he'd had before when talking to Justin. He couldn't help it.
	He tried to fill them in on what he'd been doing. Explaining what he'd done since the last time he'd seen them. For some it was longer than others and he found himself explaining a lot. He described the guys and their job and Germany. In return he got stories of local jobs, funny college roommates, and Orlando while he'd been gone.
	Before long, they decided to get home. JC turned down an invitation to go to someone's place, and headed back to Justin's tiredly. He had a sense of satisfaction from the night, almost like a void he'd been feeling was temporarily filled. 
	Justin was still on the couch when he came through the door. The house was dark with only the TV was on, its glow flickering against the walls. It was late and JC frowned as he walked towards Justin because it didn't seem like Lynn and Paul were home yet, and they usually didn't stay out that long. However, Lynn had been so busy with Justin lately and Paul the same with his own work, that they were probably catching up just as much and enjoying just being out.
	"Hey..." JC leaned over the back of the couch and slung an arm around Justin in a playful headlock. "You're still up."
	Justin reached up and loosened JC's arm. "Mm."
	"Miss me?"
	"No one's been home..."
	JC nodded quietly and bent down to rest his chin on the top of his head. "I'm sorry..." he said softly. A moment later, Justin shifted, moving away from the contact. JC walked around the couch and sat beside him, yawning loudly. "What've you been up to?"
	"Two movies," Justin answered. "I called Trace. My dad wasn't home."
	"How's Trace?"
	"This is the second movie. The first one was 'White Men Can't Jump'. It was on USA. Woody Harrelson's so funny. I remember I saw it a long time ago."
	"Yeah, that was a good one."
	"Did you tell them I'm not eleven?" Justin turned his head to look at JC in the dark. "Anymore?"
	"Yep," JC answered. "I told them that you're so tall. And a million times cooler because you'd lost your twerpiness."
	"I was never a twerp. Was Tony there?"
	"Yep."
	"What'd he say?"
	"Not much. We were all just talking, catching up." JC shrugged. "They wanted to know what I'd been doing." 
	"Did you tell them?"
	JC smiled. "Of course. They're all jealous of our contract. But of course, they've never heard anything about us over here..." 	He paused. "You look exhausted." 
	Justin nodded and yawned, reaching up to tiredly rub at his eyes with his fists. "I was waiting up for you..." he admitted.
	JC felt bad and frowned. "Aw, why?" he asked. "Let's get ready for bed then, okay? Your parents are still out?"
	"Yeah." Justin nodded.
	"I'm sorry..." JC persisted. "You should sleep early when you can, Justin. We don't get those chances in Germany."
	"I know." 
	JC nodded. "So go to sleep." 
	"I want to watch the rest of this." Justin pointed to the TV.
	JC eyed the movie skeptically. He didn't recognize it. "Are you going to fall asleep on the couch?" 
	"Maybe," Justin said softly. "It's a pretty comfortable couch." He paused. "Tell me what your friends have been doing in the real world." 
	JC crossed his arms over his chest. "The real world..." he said thoughtfully. "Oh, I have one for you. Remember Ethan?" 
	"Yeah."
	"Well... Let me tell you about his roommate from hell..."
*********
	"How many songs are going to be on the album?" JC asked. They were eating a quick lunch at a nearby McDonald's since they'd gotten an hour 'lunch break' from the studios. 
	"They said it's usually between twelve and fifteen," Lance said. "I don't know. We've recorded a bunch."
	"And we're recording more. I wonder if we get to pick…" 
	"I bet I know which ones will be on it," Justin said.
	JC raised an eyebrow. "Oh, yeah?"
	"I do. 'I Want You Back' and 'Tear―"
	"Cheater," JC replied. "Of course the singles are going to be on there. I know that much."
	Justin shrugged and laughed. 
	"I wonder if we can… like… request a song," JC began thoughtfully.
	"How about one where I get a solo?" Joey suggested in a slight mutter. They looked at him in slight surprise and he looked up from his Big Mac to see their expressions. "What? Just a comment. Freedom of speech."
	"I just didn't know you felt that way," JC began earnestly. 
	"You've had a few solos," Justin began. "Like in―"
	"Justin, I know where I sing," Joey began. "Trust me."
	"Okay…" Justin poked at his fries and shut up.
	"Sorry. I'm not being bitter," Joey began. "I just… It was just a random comment." Joey thought about Eric, Joel, and Fonzy again and shrugged. He didn't know why he'd even said it out loud. What else did he think would happen when he joined a group with two ex-Mousketeers? What had he really expected? Who would sing and be the spotlighters? And he wasn't even mad about it. Not really. 
	"I don’t have a solo either," Lance said with a small smile. "If it makes you feel any better."
	Joey smiled a little. Hm, yeah, the bass of the group was sympathizing. Well. He didn't want to point out that that was a little different, so he replied, "Yeah, thanks, buddy," and took another bite of his Big Mac.
	"You can have some of my parts…" Justin began slowly.
	Joey looked up and forced out a laugh, meanwhile cursing himself for having brought the subject up. It was nothing but an awkwardness. "Forget it. I didn't say it to try to guilt trip you guys. It's not as though it was your decision."
	"If you really want," JC started, "we can talk to―"
	"JC, seriously." Joey shook his head, dragging a french fry through ketchup. "It was an offhanded comment. Forget it." 
*********
	Justin waited until the next day when he saw Johnny. He was going to call him but then thought it would be better to do it in person. In person was the best way to handle things, his mother had always told him. Additionally, he remembered that Johnny was planning on stopping by at their rehearsal. So he waited. He gathered up all his courage and waited. 
	They were taking a small break. Joey had gone to the bathroom, Chris and JC had gone down to the snack machine. Lance was somewhere. So Justin took his chance. 
	"Can I talk to you?"
	Johnny nodded and smiled at him. "Sure, Justin."
	"Alone?"
	Johnny nodded, still smiling, although a moment of question passed over his face. "Sure, Justin. That's fine. Give me a minute, okay?"
	Justin nodded and watched Johnny walk over to a couple of the technicians at the studio. He ran a hand through his curly hair slowly, thinking. Johnny seemed nice to him. It shouldn't be hard to give him an opinion.
	But maybe they weren't allowed opinions. Maybe that wasn't in the contract. Justin thought about that for a minute, remembering how Chris would roll his eyes sometimes and say jokingly that they'd signed their names in blood to the devil. That was usually when he was complaining about the schedule though. 
	Maybe he should have asked someone if it was a good idea. JC would have known where he was coming from. Maybe he felt a little guilty too and would have done it with him.
	Justin started to worry that he definitely should have run this by someone else first... But he was trying to be proactive, trying to be a better person. Less selfish. 
	"Yes, Justin?" 
	Johnny was there now in front of him, crossing his arms across his chest, but not really menacingly, just relaxed. 
	"What'd you want to talk about?" he persisted.
	"I just had a question…" Justin started slowly. 
	"Sure. What's the question?"
	Justin rubbed at his arm. This was his manager. This was their producer. What if he messed it up? What if he had the other guys asking him what the hell he'd been thinking before he'd ruined everything? But it was just an innocent question.
	"That type of question, huh?" Johnny asked, seeing his look and offering a sympathetic one in return. "Whatever, man. I mean, I'm about as level grounded as you can find in this business, so if you wanna ask something, I'm the one you ask." 
	"It was just about our songs."
	"The songs? Okay." Johnny nodded. "What about them? If it's technical then you might want to ask the studio itself but… You can try me."
	"What if I…" Justin started slowly. He shifted his weight and told himself to be firm. "What if I didn't want some of my solos?"
	Johnny raised his eyebrows, looking honestly surprised. He seemed to hesitate before answering, "Excuse me?"
	"What if I don't want some of my solos? I don't want to sing them."
	Johnny laughed a little. "Excuse me? As in you don't want to be in the group?"
	"No!" Justin shook his head. "No, not that. I want the group. I don't mean it like. I mean it like, what if I don't think I am the person that should sing some of my solos?"
	"You're not happy with them?"
	"Well…" Justin hesitated, looking reluctant. 
	Johnny gave him a look. "Justin, let me just say that you aren't really in a position to bargain with me about the group."
	Justin shook his head. "I'm not saying that, Johnny. I'm not trying to 'bargain'. I think I'm coming off wrong…" He frowned. "I'm just trying to….to say… I don't want to cause a problem, but I was just thinking… Like… Joey doesn't have any solos but like one line and his voice is real good and I thought…"
	Johnny shook his head. "He put you up to this?"
	Justin's eyes widened. "No! He doesn't even know that I― No, it's not him at all. Don't think that. I was just thinking we should all have―"
	"Justin, in this business, you don't think. You do. And you do what you're told. You have those solos for a reason, alright? Don't try to be a do-gooder or you'll never get anywhere, and you'll only hold you and your group back."
	"But―"
	"There are no buts. Trust me, there's a reason that you and JC are being pushed towards the front, son. It's been thought out. Not only was this settled when we first went through all your voices, but you remember the image talk we all had?"
	Justin really wanted Joey to have something, especially since the comments he made, even if he claimed they were random, really seemed to resonate in his tone. Justin had the urge to tell Johnny to fuck his image but he didn't think that would go over very well. Plus Johnny made him nervous sometimes, despite being so nice to them. So instead he swallowed his pride and nodded meekly.
	"This is all part of that image. Be happy of the solos you get. You deserve them. Maybe Joey deserves it too. I know he could sing it. We all do. But it doesn't fit the image. Understand?"
	"Okay."
	Johnny nodded slowly. "I know where you're coming from. You're a good kid. That took guts." He patted his shoulder. "It's nice you look out for your group like that, son." 
	"Okay."
	"We'll see what happens, okay? Just take what you're given."
	"Yeah."
	"And feel free to ask me stuff, Justin. That's what I’m here for, alright?"
	"Alright."
	"I have to talk to the studio manager for a little bit, but I'll be around a little more this afternoon. Why don't you find the rest of the guys and see when you're starting up again."
	"Okay." Justin swallowed as he watched the man walk away. 
********
	He had to say something. It kept going on in his mind and wouldn't leave him alone. It was badgering his conscience. So, Justin kept his voice a low whisper in the car later that day as he leaned closer to JC's ear. "I think I did something bad."
	"What'd you do?" JC whispered back. 
	"Maybe it's not bad. I just feel kinda…. Maybe I shouldn't have done it."
	"What?"  
	"I don't know."
	"Hm. It's hard to tell it's bad if you don’t know what you did."
	Justin frowned. "What if it was bad? What if it affects something?"
	"What do you mean? What'd you do?"
	"It was just a question. Questions can't hurt, right?"
	"I don't think so," JC replied slowly.
	"What are you two whispering about?" Joey asked. He was driving.
	"Nothing," Justin replied, a little too quickly. It gained a look of suspicion. He shut his mouth and refused to answer any more questions. "I want to play basketball," he said, changing the subject. "Do we have time?"
	JC looked at him, knowing that was purposefully a quick change of topic and remaining curious. He made a mental note to find out the true story later. 
**********
	"Joey, you're coming, right?" JC asked. "And Justin, you'll come."
	"I'll go." Joey nodded, biting into an apple.
	"Wait, where?" Justin asked, putting down the TV Guide in front of him on the kitchen table. He realized suddenly that he hadn't been listening to any conversation for the past twenty minutes or so. 
	"Haven't you been listening?" Chris asked. "JC's been talking about going to the beach after practice tomorrow."
	"The beach?"
	"I know it's a little cool out," JC began. "But the beach'll still be really nice. And I was talking with Nikki and Tony about doing it one day this week while we're still here and―"
	"Nikki and Tony?" Justin whined. 
	"Oh, he sounds excited," Lance joked. "Makes me really want to go if that's how much fun your friends are, JC."
	"They are fun. Come on, Justy…" JC gave him a pleading look. "You'll come. You have to. We're your chauffeurs, and that's where we're going."
	"Hey, I haven't decided yet either," Chris objected.
	"Bring your friends," JC persisted. "Come on. I have a few that want to go and I thought you should too."
	"I can bring a girl?" Joey asked.
	"Nikki's a girl," JC replied. "Bring whatever friends you want."
	"I'll go. Hm... Who should I bring?"
	"Didn't you say your girlfriend was Kelly?" Justin asked.
	"I said she was a sort of. I'll ask her, I don't know if she'll come."
	"Justin, you want me to have Nikki bring one of her girlfriends for you?" JC teased.
	"For what?" Justin retorted. 
	JC laughed. "For a girlfriend, silly."
	"I don't want any of her friends."
	"OK…"
	"I don't want a girlfriend."
	"Are girls yucky, Justin?" Chris asked. "Do they have cooties?"
	"No. I just don't want JC to hook me up through friends." 
	"Okay. Just making sure."
	"Chris, that's so seventh grade," Joey replied. 
	"Excuse me…" Chris rolled his eyes. 
	"Both of you shut up," Justin replied. "JC, what beach?"
	"I don't know yet," JC answered. "Wanna do… Daytona? Cocoa? I don't know. You gonna come, Jus? Please?"
	"I never said no."
	JC grinned. "Good." 
*******
	They all made it to the beach. It was sunny and perfect so JC was really happy, plus it had given them something to look forward too while they finished up that day in the studio. The water was still cold, so no one had gone in although promises had been made to try. 
	Lance and Justin eventually wound up sitting near each other by the water, a little apart from the rest of the group. They talked for a little while, about nothing in general, and then Lance noticed that Justin had had the same sullen look on his face since they arrived. He wasn't sure if he wasn't a fan of the beach, or the day, or something else.
	"You don't like them?" he asked his curly-haired friend.
	Justin shrugged and stretched his legs out, digging his toes into the sand as he squinted out to see the water. "They're okay. I like them fine."
	"You just sounded disappointed when you heard they were coming, that's all. And you haven't really looked all here today." 
	"Yeah, well, I'm just tired... And just when they're here they're in their own world, that's all. I didn't mean any of that as not liking them." 
	"I thought all you MMC people were like you and JC with each other."
	"What's that supposed to mean?"
	"I thought ya'll just got alone real well."
	Justin glanced at the blond next to him. "We do." 
	"Then how come I didn't see you saying much to them when we met up? You've barely even said anything to JC since we've been here." 
	"I don't know what to really say to them other than the hey, how's it going," Justin responded. "I don't know. What's with all the questions, Lance?"
	The other shrugged. "I just thought you might want to just talk." The wind picked up for a minute, blowing some sand and ruffling their hair. "Usually when you've got that look on your face, you want to talk, and we barely get to."
	"Unless they all go out somewhere and leave us behind stuck somewhere, yeah." Justin rolled his eyes. "I like them fine. JC just has more to talk about with them then me. I know they know stuff about JC I don't. They were in another group back then. I was in the younger group on MMC. JC had four years there. I… Who was with me… Ryan… Christina… Britney… I don’t know." Justin looked distracted. "I did a lot with the older group though." He smiled and looked at Lance proudly. "Like the skits and performances."
	"You were good."
	"Well, I don't know…" Justin shrugged. "I mean I know them, since JC used to let me do stuff with them since he's always been cool to me. Tony's an okay guy, but I feel like I annoy him, or at least I used to. He thinks he's too funny sometimes. And Nikki's okay but she and JC try to get all lovey sometimes but it's more like they think they have to for each other than anything else…"  
	Lance laughed. It appeared Justin had been paying a lot more attention to that crowd than he thought. "So are they dating, or what?"
	"Who knows...." Justin responded, rolling his eyes. "It's JC." Justin took a handful of sand and made a fist, turning it to watch the sand slip out slowly. "They're probably not. JC calls her 'Peaches'." He smirked. "JC's a dork. "
	"How come you think they're not really together?"
	"Because…" Justin pressed his lips together as the last sand slipped from his hand. "They're not. Besides, long distance doesn't work. Ever." 
	"How do you know?"
	Justin looked at him. "You have any evidence that it does?"
	"Well, no."
	"Most people's relationships or marriages in general never work out, never mind long distance ones," Justin persisted.
	"I don't know if I would say most," Lance objected. In his own perspective, it was very few of his friends' whose parents were separated. But he figured that if it were his own, like Justin's, than he might have a stronger opinion.
	Justin shrugged. "Besides. We're not supposed to have girlfriends. Right?"
	"Or we're not supposed to say we have girlfriends."
	"Same difference, right?"
	"Well...."
	"It is with long distance."
	Lance hesitated, wondering if he should bother telling Justin that he had a bit of a distorted view of things. But before he could reply, they heard footsteps crunching in the sand behind them and suddenly Joey crouched between the two of them. He extended a plate with hotdogs on it. "Food, kids."
	"Where'd you come from?" Justin muttered, taking a hotdog. 
	"Kel and Chris're getting sodas from the closest place on the boardwalk," Joey said. "We went to one of the vendors. There were burgers too but we've had McDonald's a bunch recently and I figured we could all use a healthy hotdog."
	"Healthy," Lance laughed. "Right..." 
	"Can Kelly and I eat with you two?" Joey asked. 
	"Sure," Lance agreed. 
	"Chris too then. God, I'm starving. I hope they come back soon." 
	"Yeah, I'm pretty hungry too." Lance squinted up at the sun. He started to worry about getting burned, even though he had put on sunscreen. That wouldn't go over well at photoshoots.
	"Joey?" Justin asked.
	"What?" Joey shifted to pull over a towel from where a pile of their stuff lay. He spread it out and tried to straighten while holding a few hotdogs. 
	Justin reached over to help him. "Does long distance with a person work?"
	"Thanks. Long distance what?"
	"Phone calls. What the hell do you think I'm talking about?" Justin retorted.
	Joey smirked as he sat on the corner of the towel and put the hotdogs down next to him. "I don't know."
	"Well?"
	"Do you mean Kelly and me? We're not officially going out. I mean, we did. A couple times we thought we shouldn't, but we still do. And we probably will again. But we're just friends now. You know?"
	"Are you friends with benefits?"
	"Justin…"
	"What?"
	Joey eyed him. "Watch it, that's all. I don't want to discuss my sex life with you."
	"Oh, so there's lots of sex?"
	Joey reached over and punched him in the shoulder. "What'd I just say?"
	Justin shrugged. "You said sex. I didn't bring it up."
	"Bastard." 
	Lance laughed at their exchange. Joey and Justin always managed to interact in an amusing way. He tried to explain, "We were just talking and he says long distance never works."
	"It doesn't," Justin persisted.
	"And how do you know?" Joey replied, eyeing him skeptically. "How many girls have you had, kid?"
	"I'm not a kid. And what if I was a Don Juan or Casanova? What do you know about me?"
	Joey grinned. "Oh, I am so sure. I've only been living with you. And I have not seen you get any ass. You don't even come out with us."
	Justin grunted. The question had not been answered. 
	Chris and Kelly were approaching. Kelly was a really nice girl, a little reserved with dark curly hair and a bright smile. She carried two sodas while Chris balanced three.
	"What about JC and all of them?" Justin asked. "Did they get anything?"
	"They said they weren't hungry," Joey replied. "That they'd eat in a few." He reached up to Kelly. "Baby, you need help with that? Here."
	"Thanks," Kelly replied, letting Joey take one of the sodas. "That's yours."
	"Here," Chris started, giving Lance and Justin each a soda. "What are you guys up to? Justin, you said you'd go in the water with me, remember?"
	"You guys will get pneumonia," Kelly objected.
	"It's easier to let them do what they want," Joey began. "Words won't stop them."
	"This is Florida, I remind you," Chris began. "Sure it gets 'cold', but the boy and I can surely handle a slight chill. I come to the beach, I go in the water. It's like living and breathing." 
	"I don't remember saying I'd go in…" Justin began slowly.
	"Sure you did."
	"Mm."
	"I think you did. In fact, I'm positive you did. You chickening out?"
	"No. I was just saying I didn't say―"  
	"Well, you did."
	"I believe you." Justin rolled his eyes.
	"You should eat first," Lance remarked with a smirk. "Maybe he'll forget about it." 
	"You going in?" Chris asked. "Huh, Mississippi?"
	"No." He shook his head. "No way."
	"It might not even be that cold. You're all just pussies." He looked at Kelly apologetically. "Except you, Kelly. Sorry."
	Kelly just rolled her eyes. 
	"I'll take my chances," Lance replied.
*********
	Justin regretted his promise to Chris soon after eating when the man forced both of them into the water. They were in barely a minute. 
	Now he was freezing. And that would last a lot longer than a minute.
	Chris seemed immune to it, just laughing and not showing any signs of feeling cold, calling Justin a baby and laughing at his goosebumps. 
	Justin tried to get sympathy out of JC but was getting none.
	JC approached the problem logically as usual. "Well, then why'd you go in?" 
	Justin looked at JC like he was crazy, glancing behind him to where Tony and Nikki were laughing with Dale, who had shown up about an hour after they had arrived. 
	"JC," he said. "It's like a goddamned MMC reunion. What the hell is that?" He shivered, pulling his towel tight over his shoulders. He was so glad that someone had thought to bring towels. "Do you know how weird that is?"
	JC shook his head, looking up to where Chris was pulling Joey by the arm into the water about twenty feet down shore of them. Joey looked like he was playing along, making Chris think he could actually drag him in, but Justin knew that there was no way in hell Joey was getting more than his feet wet. 
	"What do you mean?" JC said, turning back to Justin. "It's not weird at all. I'm glad we stayed friends."
	Justin's brow furrowed. "Yeah. It's just weird when different worlds connect."
	"That's true." JC eyed him. Justin was shivering pathetically. "And now you're going to catch pneumonia."
	"Chris said he's going to get everyone to go in. Once Joey goes in, they're going to get Lance. So watch out."
	"I'm not going in," JC replied, shaking his head. "You look like a drowned rat."
	Justin shook his wet curls in response. It was so cold. He hadn't even noticed there was a breeze today until now. His teeth were nearly chattering and the towel felt damp and cold, especially when the wind picked up a bit. "Joey will make you if Chris gets him in."
	"He will not."
	Justin just nodded with a knowing look. "We've got it planned."
	JC just grunted.
	"Did you eat yet? We had hotdogs."
	"Not yet."
	"Why don't ya'll eat? Have a big MMC feast?"
	JC gave him a look and laughed. "Justin, what is the matter with you? I'm glad I didn't tell Nikki to bring a friend for you. You would have tortured her."
	"Or had her help me torture you."
	"Even worse." 
	"Why don't ya'll eat?" Justin persisted. "Before Joey douses you?"
	"I'm not going in," JC persisted. "Get it through your head." 
	Justin smiled. "Suit yourself." He paused. "So what were you and Tony talking about?"
	"What do you mean?"
	"I mean, ya'll always look like you're having a huge conversation..." Justin replied. "Do I already know?"
	"Know what, Justin...?"
	"The stuff you tell him."
	JC gave him a look. "I don't know. Probably most of it."
	"You know, probably usually means yes," Justin started. "But in this case, I don't get that feeling at all. What were you talking about?'
	"I don't know. Random stuff. And why are you so interested? I talk to you all the time about everything."
	Justin shrugged. "Not about everything."
	"Like what? What haven't I told you?"
	Exasperated, Justin huffed. "I don't know ― How am I supposed to know if you haven't told me? Wait, I know, like when you came back from―"
	"Some things are your business, and some things aren't. Things come up in conversation as it makes sense."
	Justin just stared at him with his sullen expression.
	"Justin." JC shook his head. "I don't know what you're getting at, but whatever I've told you and whatever I've told him, how is that of any importance? What do you want to know?"
	Justin's brow furrowed. "I…" Justin saw JC's look and decided not to piss him off. "I don't know." He shrugged. "Fine. Just eat, JC, okay? And watch out for Joey."
*******
	It wasn't a very comfortable car ride home. Every single one of them was soaking wet and shivering. JC was annoyed. Justin had warned him but JC had assumed Joey knew how to take no for an answer. When he didn't and instead simply tossed JC over his shoulder like a rag doll, not letting him down until they were waist deep in the chilly Atlantic Ocean, JC couldn't help but be annoyed. Justin's shit-eating grin didn't help either.
	Lance sneezed when they got back to Justin's.
	Justin coughed and rubbed at his throat.
	JC turned on Joey. "You. If they get sick...." 
	Joey laughed out loud, giving JC an incredulous look. "You're so― What, JC? They're sick now?"
	"Maybe," JC retorted.
	"I'm not sick." Justin shook his head.
	"Me neither," Lance agreed.
	"See?" Joey affirmed.
	"I'm just cold." 
	Within an hour later, hot showers and dry clothes were the focus. Then they all collapsed on the couch. When Lance got up and grabbed a tissue to blow his nose, JC shook his head. 
	"Seriously," he said. "Nobody better be sick. We are in the middle of recording."
	"We all know," Justin said.
	"If anyone sounds hoarse on our first album…"
	"You'll kill me," Joey replied. "I know. No one's gonna get sick." He gave Lance and Justin, both on the couch, a hard look that seemed to dare them to even sniffle or he would kick their asses. The two exchanged a wary look. 
	"I swear, Joey," JC persisted. "It was sostupid."
	"No one will get sick. You can gladly kick my ass if anyone does, but no one will."
	"JC can't kick your ass," Justin objected.
	"Oh, I can't?" JC gave Justin a challenging look. 
	"No." Justin laughed, amused that JC would even think so.  "You couldn't when he picked you up and got you in the water." Justin grinned, giggling at the memory.
	"But I can kick yours."
	Justin looked smug, fidgeting a little in his seat. "Nah… I've gotten bigger."
	"Right," JC scoffed. 
	"I am. I'm going to be taller than ya'll," Justin persisted, jutting his chin out resolutely. "Just wait."
	"If you don't get sick―" JC shot a pointed look at Joey, "―then maybe you will be."
	"I'll never be tall," Chris said with a tone of sadness.
	"Ya midget," Justin laughed.
	"I'm not that short," Chris objected. "Don't think that I can't still take you, kid. I'm just a little regretful that I've passed my growth stage."
	"I'm going to be seven feet tall."
	"If you are I'm putting you in the circus and out of my group."
	"You'd disrupt our image," Lance said.
	"Image." Justin rolled his eyes. "Whatever. And if I'm seven feet I'm leaving ya'll for the NBA. I'll be with Michael Jordan and Penny Hardaway instead of this."
	"We'd sing the National Anthem for your games," Joey replied. 
	"Sounds like a plan." Justin grinned. "Wouldn't that be cool? I wanna play basketball…"
	"Right now?"
	"No. I don't feel good." Justin coughed theatrically. 
	JC gave him a look.
	Justin giggled. "I kid, I kid." 
	"Don't kid," Joey replied. "It's my ass on the line." 
*********
	"I don't know. I was just thinking it would be cool to cover one that everyone knows…" 
	Justin nodded and yawned. He kept his eyes closed, head rested on JC's shoulder as the man just talked. Justin made little answers to keep him talking, but he was honestly about to fall asleep. JC was in one of his explanatory modes, one of his musical modes, where he wanted to explain everything he wanted and dreampt of, and Justin tried to encourage it. He usually wanted to be part of this thought process. 
	"Like…?" he murmured tiredly. 
	JC paused."I don't know. I wanted to talk to― Who would I talk to about it? I could ask one of the writers. Veit or Max maybe? We could remix an old one…"
	"Mm."
	"You know which one I was thinking about… Which one would be just so cool…"
	"Mm."
	JC turned his head and looked down at Justin, a frown replacing the smile that had been on his face. Justin's cheek was pressed against his shoulder as he slumped down, eyes closed, breathing steady. He sighed. "You're not even listening, J..."
	"I am..." Justin yawned quietly. "Tired."
	"I just wanted to tell you something."
	"Mm-kay…" 
	"The guys just left like ten minutes ago. Can't you stay up just a few more minutes? It's only ten." 
	Justin couldn't even manage the sarcastic reply that he felt his brain formulate. The man who always wanted sleep trying to make him stay up. It was ironic. But Instead of saying that he shifted and stretched his body out to lay down, resting his head in JC's lap. "What song?"
	"Sailing."
	"Hm. Sing it to me."
	"You just want me to sing you to sleep." JC pushed at Justin's shoulders and slid out from under him. "And I'm not going to."
	Justin whimpered and sat up as JC stood. He rubbed his eyes and pouted. "Sing it."
	"No. You don't even know what song it is."
	"Sailing."
	JC worked his jaw. "I gave you that. Who's it by?"
	"Gonna be by us?" 
	"Nice try."
	Justin sighed tiredly and leaned down into the couch cushions again. "Sing it." 
	"Christopher Cross. You know him."
	"Personally?"
	"Justin…"
	"I know him," Justin agreed, yawning. The couch felt rough against his cheek. "I do. Sing it to me."
	"We should definitely do that song."
	Justin gave up on asking JC to sing it to him. He stretched his growing limbs out as far as he could on the couch. "We should definitely go to bed." 
	"Yeah," JC agreed. "I really want to do that though. I have to talk to somebody tomorrow."
	"Don't ask Johnny." Justin yawned again.
	"Why?" JC replied. "I'd ask one of the writers I think, anyway, but he's probably going to have to okay it."
	Justin shrugged and rolled from his side onto his back.
	"Why not ask him, Jus?" 
	"Because he… Well, that's probably fine."
	"You asked him something…" JC said knowingly. He grinned and moved to sit on Justin, right on his stomach to pin him there. "Oh, tell me."
	Justin kept his eyes closed tight and stuck his lower lip out further. "No."
	"He didn't… You didn't make a mess with him, did you?" JC asked. 
	"I can't breathe…"
	JC purposely bounced a little, gently. "You have to tell me now. Justy, what did you do?" 
	"Nothing." 
	JC frowned and tried to think. Then it hit him, trying to think about what it could be, and suddenly a hint from an earlier conversation hit him. Suddenly intrigued, he reached down to grab Justin's chin playfully. "Is this that bad thing you were talking about?"
	Justin opened his eyes and opened his mouth wide to yawn, nodding at the same time.
	"What'd you ask him?"
	Justin wanted to tell him. He just wasn't sure. "You can't say anything..."
	"Okay." JC patted his cheek. "Okay, fine. What is it?"
	Justin hesitated. "Well... It's about Joey."
	"What?" JC began. "What about Joey?" His eyes narrowed. "If this has anything to do with your not liking Joey… Man, you're going to get it from me…"
	"I don't not like Joey," Justin persisted. "He's okay."
	"Then what?"
	"I just asked if… You know how Joey was saying he hasn't got any solos?" Justin persisted. 
	JC nodded.
	"JC, can you get off?" Justin pushed at the other's waist. "It hurts."
	"Tell me," JC persisted as he acquiesced and stood. He nudged Justin over so he could sit down. "Is it bad?"
	"I didn't mean it to be," Justin replied earnestly as he began to sit up. "I just didn't know if… I don't know if we're allowed to ask questions or anything like that and I don't know if I asked right."
	"What exactly did you say?"
	"Just that… I didn't want all of what I sang, because that's not fair, and that Joey could sing it."
	JC looked at him in surprise. "You really said that?" 
	Justin shrugged. "Well, yeah… I felt bad…"
	"Justin…" JC reached over and rubbed Justin's curls fondly. "That's so sweet. I didn't think it would be anything like that. That's nice of you to do that. I didn't know you wanted to do that."
	"I thought… Well, it's not fair that he doesn't have any and we've got like all of them… And you can tell it bugs him. Besides, we're a group."
	JC smiled and nodded. "Yeah, Justin… Yeah. What'd Johnny say?"
	Justin shrugged again. "I don't know. He… I don't think he thought I was so nice for saying that. He said I had them for a reason and Joey didn't for a reason."
	"Well, you do deserve them," JC agreed. "Not that Joey doesn't― he does. But you, you fit it, Justin. Maybe Joey will get other solos." 
	"I like my solos," Justin replied. "But I just thought maybe Joey could have some of it if he really wanted it. But apparently no suggestions allowed."
	"No suggestions.... I wonder if I can suggest the song…" 
	"I bet you can. I don't think I said it right."
	"I'm sure you did good, man." JC patted his thigh. "That was good of you. Joey'd be happy if he knew."
	Justin shook his head. "Don't tell him, JC. It's not worth it."
	"I won't."
	"I'm kind of… I like my solos," Justin repeated. "So I'm kinda happy he said… Well, 'cause I made it sound like I'd give all my parts to Joey and…"
	"Yeah." JC nodded with a laugh. "Yeah, I know. It's okay. It was your intention that counts."
	Justin nodded and yawned.  "Can I allowed to go to bed now?"
	JC laughed. "Yes." 
	Justin smirked and slung an arm around JC's neck, pressing his nose against his cheek, a half hug of sorts. "Good night."
	"Night, poptart." 
********
	As Justin should have known, JC couldn't keep a secret. 
	"You know, Justin asked Johnny about you."
	Joey took a sip from his soda from the food court, keeping the straw in his mouth as he looked over at JC and gave him a skeptical look. "Huh?" He lowered the soda. "What the hell are you talking about?" 
	After practice, Joey and JC had headed to the mall while Lance and Justin had a meeting with Johnny and their mothers about how they were going to handle their tutoring once they got back on the road. Something about a system though the University of Nebraska. Neither enjoying the prospects of shopping or an educational meeting, Chris had gone home just to relax, and so JC and Joey decided to head to the mall themselves.
	JC paused and wondered if he shouldn't say anything. It couldn't do any harm really. Justin had asked him not to, but it really was sweet. Joey should know. "About your solo thing."
	"No shit." Joey's eyes widened in surprise. "What the hell did he say?"
	JC shrugged. "He wanted to give you some of his solos."
	Joey laughed. "Yeah, right."
	"I'm serious, man. He's a good kid, Joe."
	"He asked Johnny if he could give me his solos?" Joey echoed. "I'm guessing Johnny said no..."
	"I think we're supposed to keep things like they are."
	 Joey shrugged, a slight frown on his face. "Yeah. But… Did he really do that? That's one of the first selfless things I've ever seen him do."
	"I know, me too. I was like, Just, you don't even like the guy…"
	"Gee, thanks."
	"Nah, he's… He's picky."
	"Well, apparently I'm not all that bad if he wanted to stick up for me like that."
	JC smiled. "I guess. I'm not supposed to have told you or anything though, so… Justin just mentioned it to me last night through conversation. I was just as surprised as you are."
	Joey nodded, still in awe. "I'm impressed. Maybe I should get him a birthday present."
	"Dammit." JC paused walking for a moment. "I knew I had to go to shopping for something." 
	"JC, you don't actually have to get him something..." Joey looked at the frown on his friend's face. "He won't care."
	"No. It's a big deal to him. Sixteen's big." 
	"Well, what's he like?"
	"A bunch of stuff… I have to make it good because we'll be over there then and he won't like that. I wonder if his mom will be around?" JC wondered out loud. "And your birthday's three days before…"
	"Twenty." Joey smiled proudly.
	"You'll almost be able to legally do that drinking you do."
	"Hey, twenty-one is just a suggestion," Joey objected. "And in Germany I don't know whether it's that the lower drinking age, or if they just don't care."
	JC smirked and shrugged.
	"We should bring Justin out."
	"What?" JC asked. 
	"For his birthday. That'll be my gift. I'll take him clubbing. He's been dying. We barely let them go anywhere out with us."
	JC frowned. "Lance is nearly eighteen and he's barely even gone with us, man."
	Joey was set on his idea. "Oh, he'd love that, JC. He would love that. And that's my gift, I just bring him out and get him liquored up."
	"I know he would love it. I'm sure his mother would too. And Lance's mother." 
	"Their innocent virgin eyes."
	"Precisely Joey. It's bad enough you got them going when you took Lance to that porn shop."
	Joey grinned at the memory. "Oh, that was fun. Maybe I should take Justin―"
	"No. Do you know what his mother would do?"
	"Oh, come on."
	JC shook his head. "If she ever found out and it registered in her head what you did, you would never see the light of day again. Except she always blames me for everything." 
	Joey laughed. "Oh, I’m sure."
	"I'm seriously. She may seem like the do whatever you want type, but with Justin it's like… I swear, since the day I met her, and she knew I was buddies with him, it's like, 'promise me you'll watch him, JC. Promise me you'll take care of him'." He mimicked Lynn's voice with a sigh. "She'd glue herself to him if she could. It's that wanna-be-cool but overprotective kind of deal."
	"Oh, so you'd feel guilty now," Joey said in slight exasperation with a hint of teasing. "Why do you need to watch him? It's my gift."
	"I don't know, it's the way she is. Because he knows me. And he can be stupid. Like, I'm serious, he does such stupid stuff. I don't even think I know all of it. Because when I was in Nashville and after Justin's mom made him go live at home for a bit and he went to school?" JC laughed. "I know he was a trainwreck." 
	"Like what?" Joey made a face, smirking. "What could he do?"
	"I don't know. His mom just said he didn't adjust well." JC shrugged. "He adjusts when he wants to… How did we get on his subject?"
	"His birthday."
	"Ah." JC nodded. "Yeah." 
	"I’m trying to imagine him being a delinquent in school. I mean, what grade was he in?"
	JC shrugged. "Eighth? I don't remember."
	Joey laughed. 
	"Hey, eighth graders can be punks, man…" JC replied with a sarcastic grin. "I mean, I doubt he killed anyone, but Justin can be a major pain in the ass so I don't know."
	"You didn't ask him?"
	"If he wanted to tell me he would. If he doesn't think I should know, then whatever. I'll probably find out one day. When we get big and some sleazy reporter is trying to get info on us and they dig up that when he was thirteen he broke some window or something…"
	"Ooh…" Joey feigned horror. 
	"Oh, I know. Horrifying. No, I don't know what he did. Maybe nothing. I just know his mother wasn't very happy with him. But it was, like… After leaving the show… Hell, we don't even like to talk about it, Joe. I mean, we thought that was our life. That show was everything."
	Joey nodded. "Yeah, I remember."
	"You made a good audience member," JC teased. He sighed. "It was like, it lasted four years but it seemed like forever. Justin was just saying this recently. How that was just always there. Trying to think before that, it's like, how could that have never been there? And Justy only two years, but still. And when that's over. It's over."
	"Yeah…" 
	JC shook his head and forced a laugh. "I don't know what I was― Oh, yeah, just after,  if Justin was messed up a bit, I'm not surprised because so was everyone.  I went to LA a little after that. Big mistake." Something crossed JC's face, a different expression. "If I don't bother Justin about what he did during that time... It's because I don't tell him my side either. I don't want him to know that. We were all in moods then."
	"LA?"
	"Yeah..."
	Joey didn't want to press; he could tell by JC's expression that it hadn't gone well, so instead he said, "Well, good thing you didn't land anything there or we might have never hooked you for this deal," Joey replied gently.
	JC offered a smile. "Yeah… Thanks. Well, okay. Let's think of a birthday gift for Justin. Something good."
	"Are clothes boring?"
	"He's growing. I don't want to get him clothes. That's his parents' job." He gave Joey a quizzical look as he thought. "Unless it's like a cool hat or jersey or something." 
	"Don't expect me to think up something amazing," Joey responded. He took another sip of his soda. "I don't know what fifteen year olds like. I'm just the one that made him feel guilty enough to talk to Johnny. I know he likes to play basketball and video games."
	"Hm." 
	"You have a while anyway," Joey assured. "It's not like it's tomorrow."
********
 	"Took ya'll long enough."
	"We were at the mall." JC shrugged at Justin as he took a seat beside him on the couch. Justin's eyes didn't leave the TV, even as Joey took a seat on the arm of the couch and poked him. 
	"Where's Lance?"
	"He and his mom went somewhere. I forget what they said." Justin chewed on his lip. "She never leaves him, do you notice that?"
	"Do you want to know what I bought?" JC asked, elbowing him. He was anxious to have Justin beg to know what his birthday gift was.
	"Not really," Justin replied, a little dryly. 
	JC ignored his tone. "Your birthday's at the end of the month― maybe it's for you."
	Justin wasn't impressed. He knew this game and didn't want to play.  "But then you wouldn't tell me."
	"You want to know?" 
	"You didn't get anything."
	"Okay, fine, I didn't. You're tough to shop for, you know."
	Justin shrugged and gave him a knowing look. "I knew you had nothing. No bags."
	"Car has a trunk."
	"Wow, maybe you hid the bag of nothing," Justin responded. 
	Joey poked Justin's cheek with his index finger. "You're a moody little bastard today, huh?" 
	"No." Justin yawned, batting his hand away. "Just bored."  
	"How'd that meeting go?" JC asked.
	"Boring."
	"You going to finish school?"
	"I imagine that's the plan."
	"When?"
	"They said we'll probably start with tutors when we get back on the road. Since we've been off so long."
	"That's for sure. When was the last time you opened a book?" JC teased. "Do you even know how to read anymore?"
	Justin glanced over at him and narrowed his eyes. "Not funny."
	"Oh, come on. I'm sure it'll be kinda cool to be tutored like that. You'll get to see the stuff you're learning about overseas."
	"So? It's like I never even have time to sleep with the schedule we're on, and now they had to go add something to it. Can't you quit school at sixteen?"
	"Well, you're not sixteen."
	"I'll be soon."
	"Justin, school's important," Joey said. "You'll have time. We'll help you."
	"You?" JC looked at him skeptically, a smirk on his lips. "Can you read, Joey?"
	"I said 'we' as in a collective we," Joey said. "So what if I wasn't the honors student? I'm smart when it matters."
	"Did it matter in school?" Justin asked.
	"I did okay," Joey replied. "I just had my interests in other places, that's all. Which was more important 'cause it helped me meet you guys." 
	"See? Some things are more important," Justin agreed. 
	"Justin, I wouldn't worry about it," JC said. "I doubt that whatever you have to take will be as  hard and regimented as a real school would be."
	"Well, I wouldn't know, would I?" Justin replied back with a bit of an edge to his voice. "Thanks for putting down what I have to do. I realize it's the fucking GED and not the real thing already but there's not much I can do about it."
	"Hey." JC frowned. "Justin, I didn't mean it like that." He made a face. "That's not what I meant at all." 
	"Did you ever go to real school?" Joey asked, eyeing Justin's sulking face.
	"Yes," Justin answered.
	"But you were on that show when you were little and obviously you couldn't―"
	"I've been to real school." Justin sounded defensive.
	"Up to what? Fourth grade?" 
	Justin stared at the TV a moment. It was ironically some episode of a show for kids and it showed a bunch of teenagers standing in front of their lockers, talking about something. He frowned at it. "What's your point?"
	"What Justin did was better." JC scrubbed his fingers through Justin's curls. "Right, kiddo? We were cooler."
	"Yeah." Justin thought about how JC  knew what school was. He had been down those hallways and passed notes and gotten to do chorus and drama. Justin realized he'd really barely gotten the chance to sit in class and daydream. He had seemingly gotten what he wanted quickly, even if it seemed like a long time.
	Chris always teased him about how he never had to work hard. Chris had had to work hard his entire life. He said Justin was having it given to him. Justin always shot back that it had to do with talent, but Chris always had a better, snarky reply for that one too. 
	But brooding about it wouldn't change the fact. If they got famous it was well worth it.
	"Stop thinking." JC pulled Justin's hair. "Let's do something." 
	"If anything, Jus," Joey began sympathetically, "you're only missing out on those years that most kids find emotionally scarring and traumatizing." 
******
	They only had a few days left before shooting the video and so they were getting excited about it. They got a look at a brief outline of the video but other than that and the knowledge it would be taped it Miami, they did not know much. Leading up to it, they recorded in Orlando and had long practices for dance and singing. Although they weren't doing real shows, it was just as busy and tiring. They seemed to have a full schedule no matter what. 
	On that particular morning, Joey and Chris were in awful moods from being out late and JC had spent about an hour in the morning constantly telling them how stupid they were and that it was their own faults that their day would be hell. Then he'd gone out to visit with his parents who were in town, cursing himself and saying they looked like they'd been in a hurricane. 
	Justin looked at Joey curiously. The mean temper that he infrequently had was now evident in his scowl. He had dark circles under his eyes and seemed haggard, not in the mood for anything except sitting in front of the TV with a glass of water, intermittently asking Justin to get him more aspirin. Chris was now asleep in the other chair which was fine because he had been doing nothing other than scowling either.
	"Where did you and Chris go last night?" Justin asked, leaning up next to Joey.
	"Out." Joey's voice was gruff. He was slouched with hunched shoulders. His eyes were slits.
	"How come you're so pissed, was it bad?"
	"Don't talk so loud."
	"I'm not talking loud." Justin shifted beside him on the couch, drawing up his legs beneath him. 
	"Well, with the sledgehammer it feels like is drilling through my head― you sound loud. Shuddup."
	"What's the matter with Chris?"
	"Same."
	Justin nodded and was silent for a moment. He watched Joey's eyes nearly close before asking, "Why?" 
	"Why what?"
	"Why don't you feel good?"
	"Hm."
	"Joey?"
	"Shut up… Why didn't you go with JC?"
	"He wanted to be with his mom and dad."
	"Where's your mom and dad?"
	"Out."
	Joey closed his eyes tightly. "Wanna get me another aspirin?"
	"You had like eight. How many are you supposed to have?"
	"Twelve. Get me four more."
	"But―"
	"Justin…" Joey rubbed at his eyes. "God… I don't suppose… Well, fuck, I doubt you've ever had a hangover."
	"No."
	"Well, if you had one, you'd want me to be quiet too. Now get up and get me aspirin."
	"I don't want to get up again."
	"Lazy little ass." Joey turned his head and glared, reaching out to punch him in the arm hard. "Get it now. I mean it."
	Justin got up and went to get the aspirin bottle to give the whole thing for Joey. He knew he'd already probably had more than he should've, but he wasn't going to try to fight the man about it. That wasn't worth it.
	"How much did you drink?" Justin asked as he dropped the bottle in Joey's lap. "To get hungover?"
	"Too much." Joey took the bottle and moved it to sit beside his glass of water on the end table beside him. 
	"Would you let me drink if I went with you?"
	"Not this much."
	"Is that a yes?"
	"Sure, I guess. 
	Justin didn't want to say 'really?' or show his smile. He was worried Joey would focus and realize he was six years too young to drink. Right now Joey was thinking about maybe bringing him along.
	"I don't see why Lance or you shouldn't come…" he said. "But then again, you're talking to me and I want quiet..."
	Justin took the hint and went out to shoot hoops by himself.
	He had a free throw contest with himself.
	He had just gotten fifty-six baskets in a row when JC's car pulled up into the driveway.  
	"Fifty-six!" Justin exclaimed when JC got out of the car, keys jingling in his hand. 
	"Fifty-six what?" JC slipped his keys into his pocket and caught the ball that Justin tossed at him.
	"In a row."
	"Oh." JC smiled. "What's your record?"
	"Fifty-six."
	He laughed. "That's good, Just. How are stupid and stupider doing?"
	He shrugged. "I think Joey's going to OD on aspirin. He puked twice. Chris was sleeping."
	"They'll feel better later..." JC sighed and bounced the ball. "Mom says hi."
	"Hi back. Did you have a nice time?"
	"Yeah. You know, it won't be too long before we're back." JC dribbled a couple more times and then squared up to take a shot. It rolled off the rim and he watched Justin go after the rebound. "I mean back on the road. So I'm trying to see them a lot now."
	Justin nodded as he crouched to grab the ball. He stayed on his haunches and bounced it. "Johnny says we'll have a bus then."
	JC nodded, looking down at Justin. "I think, yeah."
	"Do you always get a hangover when you drink a lot?" Justin asked. 
	"Unless you're really lucky, yeah," JC replied. "So you just don't drink too much. See how moody it makes Joey?"
	"He said I was talking loud and I wasn't."
	"You didn't piss him off, did you?"
	"No." 
	"He has a headache. It's his own damn fault."
	"JC, he said I could go with him maybe." Justin traced his finger over the pavement. "Wouldn't that be cool?"
	"Maybe."
	"Is there a drinking age in Germany?"
	"Just because you're in a club doesn't mean you have to drink." 
	"It's just a question."
	"I don't know their drinking age." JC shook his head. "It might be sixteen. Get up. Let's go inside."
	"You have to talk real soft," Justin instructed as he stood up and approached JC. 
	"Like hell I do," JC mumbled as he grabbed Justin around the waist, tickling him playfully. "Let's be as loud as possible.
*******
	The day arrived for them to record the video in Miami. JC watched the preparations carefully and listened respectfully to the director and the technicians as they were told what to do. They practiced the choreography and ran through what was expected.
	A lot of the video was very relaxed. Part of it was a photo shoot they were simultaneously doing. They all wore white shirts and black pants. When they were fooling around during the shots and with the wardrobe, it was all caught on tape. When they got a pizza delivered for lunch, again the director caught them on film. He wanted to catch a lot of them 'naturally' he said. The next day they would do the choreography parts. They had four days to tape it.
	JC liked the guy's idea of it fairly well. He certainly hadn't wanted a strenuous concept and so it suited him fine. Lou, who had been in and out of contact recently, also showed up to supervise for a bit and seemed pleased with how it was going. The fact that they had been home recently added an obvious glow to the group. 
	So JC was mostly fine with the progress of everything, being his scrutinizing, perfecting self. That changed however, when it came time to shoot the part of Justin's solo.
	It was late in the afternoon then, and they'd gotten several breaks for water or food or the bathroom, and so everyone had been in a good mood and on schedule. But Justin had a look on his face now that JC easily read as being very anxious and distressed.
	The setting of his part was different from the other parts. He was sitting on the edge of a bed with about five different people surrounding him. One was doing makeup, another was talking to him animatedly. One just stood there observing but added comments intermittently. Another teased his hair, pulling at curls and flattening others. And a man had started to pull up his shirt.
	Justin was shaking his head, not saying anything, but keeping his hand gripped on the hem of his shirt, holding it down. The man who was trying to undress him looked irritated.
	Justin looked up as JC approached and his eyes looked relieved. "C," he spoke.
	The bed had a fan above it, which blew a gentle breeze through the warm air. The headboard was iron and seemed to have a cross in it. JC took a seat next to Justin on the white sheets, looking at the other people skeptically. 
	He couldn't sit very close because of them.
	"I don't want to take my shirt off," Justin said plainly. "I don't have to, right?"
	The woman standing closest to JC took a look at him skeptically. "We don't have enough room. Would you mind doing something else? He's got to be prepped. You all do your own individual parts later." 
	JC looked over at Justin. The man doing makeup was holding his chin, tilting his head up and putting on more foundation to make him look a lot tanner. Justin's eyes glanced over at JC and he moved his head. "JC, I just―"
	"Sh," said the make-up man directly, firmly taking Justin by the chin again and holding him still. "Let me finish." He looked at JC. "You're distracting him."
	JC frowned. "Justin, are you okay?"
	"Um, yeah." Justin nodded, irritating the man further. He took a step back and huffed. Justin scrunched up his face.
	"Honestly, you fidget more than anyone," the man scolded.
	JC looked up and noticed a girl several feet away, being prepared in a similar fashion. She was scantily dressed and had dark mascara and blood red lips. She glanced over at him without expression.
	"It's okay?" JC asked Justin.
	Justin made an uncertain face, but the people standing around him made him hesitate. "Um. Yeah. I guess." 
	"Seriously. If you would justs please step somewhere else?" the woman next to JC persisted, drawing his attention back.
	JC nodded briefly. "Um, sure." He reached to pinch Justin's side gently before he stood up. He told himself not to get in the way. "Justin, I'm around if you need me." 
	He walked away slowly, listening to Justin's small voice asking the strangers as he left. "What if I don't want to do that... that― with her?" he asked. And then, "Can I keep my shirt on?"
	Annoyed and not sure what to do, JC walked quickly and found the guys joking around, sitting on a bunch of folding chairs and drinking bottled water.
	He was quiet for a minute. He thought about Justin's face. His eyes. His small voice asking the innocent question. Would they listen to him if he didn't want to do something a certain way? They had to listen to him, right?" 
	JC suddenly felt extremely protective. This was the kid that had been following him since he was just a little boy. This was the person he was supposed to look out for. 
	"This is bullshit!" JC suddenly exclaimed. He didn't even want to sit down. Suddenly he was angry, clenching his fists.
	"Hey…" Chris's laugh faded away and he looked up at JC in surprise. "Man, what's up?"
	JC shook his head. "I don't know what to do― Look, Justin is over there and they're― Dammit, it's like he's a fucking doll or a prop without a choice. And there's a girl and a bed and I'm thinking…"
	"Ooh, he's going to get some action in the video, huh?" Joey began with a sly smile. "Lucky him. He is Casanova after all..." 
	"Fuck you, Joey," JC snapped, wanting to hit Joey. Wanting to hit anyone who was  responsible. "He's fifteen years old!"
	"Hey, hey… Chill…" Chris began. "Where's this coming from?"
	Lance was giving them cautious looks. He took a sip of his water, feeling like this was not a conversation he can step into.
	"How can I chill?" JC answered harshly. "Chris, if you just saw―  What can I… Is Lou still here? Is he around?"
	"Is it that big a deal?" Joey asked.
	JC nodded. "Yes. Yes it is. If you saw… If you just saw…" 
	Chris got up from his chair, a hard look on his face. "OK. Fine. Show me." He gave JC his water bottle.
	JC thankfully took a long sip of water as he led Chris back over to the set with the bed and the screaming of sex and Justin. Justin who was still sitting there, who now had just two people in front of him, still looked uncomfortable. One was pointing at the bed. Then the girl, who was standing just a couple feet away, looking bored and much, much older. And slutty.  
	Justin was trying to listen. The man was smiling at him, saying this was going to be the scene of virility. Justin didn't know what that meant. He was pointing at the girl. She looked pissed off, impatient. The girl that was supposed to be in the bed with him. This song wasn't about that was it? Was it? He tried to think of the lyrics, feeling frazzled, and swearing that in the song the girl was gone, and not in bed. And he had to take his shirt off. Did he really have to? None of the other guys had taken their shirts off.
	He looked up and Chris and JC were standing there. They looked mad. Justin looked away. Were they mad at him? This… Suddenly anxiety hit the pit of his stomach like lead. He felt ill. Didn't they know he didn't want this? Maybe they were mad about him getting all of this attention too. Or that he was going to be in this type of scene. 
	"See?" JC demanded of Chris.
	"What kind of scene is this going to be…?" Chris frowned. "It does look a little―"
	"Hello, boys."
	The two turned and suddenly Lou was standing there, looking as obese as ever and wearing a suspicious smile across his fat lips. 
	"Lou―" JC began.
	"They don't work well as a spectacle," Lou began. "And I'm certain Justin doesn't want your scrutinizing while he works his wonder."
	"But..." JC  hesitated. "Look, can we talk?"
	"Want to talk over here?" Lou gestured them aside. 
	"Lou, I think we should discuss…" JC began. He pointed at the scene as he walked with Chris and the man slowly, casting a look back at Justin. "This."
	"This?" Lou blinked back at Justin on the bed and smiled. Justin had his shirt off now, arms crossed over his bare, flat stomach. He was well toned, in great shape, especially for a fifteen year old, but he obviously didn't want anyone to know that, the way he crossed his arms. "This is going to be the best scene of the video, boys.  The one all the girls want to see." 
	Chris felt a tug in the pit of his stomach. He didn't like the way that their producer said that. JC was right.
	"It's like… That's pornographic," JC spat out. "How old is that girl?"
	"Perhaps a few years older than he is, but I don't think you're understanding," Lou continued calmly. "Despite what you say, I think you all see the obvious point here. Justin is… He encompasses a certain… symbol of the group. He is going to be the one that the fans lust for. And we need to project that. Maybe he's not learned in that role yet, but I can assure you―"
	"He's fifteen," Chris began, clearing his throat. "You do know he's fifteen, right?"
	"I know he's fifteen. He's starting this group at a perfect age to reach the fans," Lou answered. His eyes were still on Justin. "You want your popularity, don't you?" 
	JC shook his head. "Not if it means using―"
	"Using him?" Lou asked a little harshly. He turned back to them frowning. "Look. You boys are tools to your own success. That's it. I'm sure you know that by now. You don't have room for objection. Your conversation is not changing any of the plans we have for him. Certain things come if you want the package…" 
	JC wondered what would happen if he shoved Lou. Shoved him to hell. 
	He felt Chris's hand on his arm and he knew they had to back off.
	However wrong it was, they had to back off.
*******
	At the end of the day, they headed to their hotel. It was ten-thirty after a full day of recording the video, with the three following days allotted to doing the same. The hotel wasn't too bad looking, and they were all too tired to care where they slept. One room again, but they would share and sleep regardless. They were much used to that by now.
	"Air conditioning...." Lance sighed happily, walking over to it to turn the temperate cooler. "So good."
	"Turn it even lower..." Joey persisted as he flopped on the couch. "It's not our electric bill. Pump that thing up." 
	"Yeah," Chris agreed, tossing Joey the TV controller as he passed. "Time to relax." He walked over to the window to look out. 
	"Why do you have that look?" Justin asked tentatively, when he saw JC giving him a expression he couldn't decipher. He couldn't understand it, but he kept seeing it. And it bothered him because he still felt a bit funny from the shoot and had been hoping to get maybe just a smile to make him feel a little better. JC usually made him feel better, and Justin was yearning for that comfort, but couldn't find it.
	"What look?" JC was tired. He sat down on the bed, watching Joey take off his sneakers at the couch and toss them aside. 
	Justin frowned. "A look… That…"
	"I'm just a little disappointed, that's all."
	Justin paused, watching JC for a moment and tried to think. His stomach still felt twisted into knots from the day that had turned from fun he'd expected to just uneasiness. He felt that ill feeling again. He felt nauseous. He sat still on the edge of the other bed, across from JC. 
	"Is it because…" Justin's brow furrowed and suddenly it hit him. "Oh."
	"Because," JC echoed, a little stiffly. "You know what it's because."
	"I…" Justin's voice sounded broken. "But I didn't wanna do that scene... But they wouldn't let me… I didn't get a chance… I said… I told them I didn't want to do it, but that… that girl and… You wouldn't come over..."
	His voice grew louder. Chris looked up from the window at Justin and saw tears beginning to slip from his eyes as he rambled. Being just a couple feet from him that bed, he moved forward and jumped on it, grabbing Justin around the waist, tackling him down onto the bed and tickling his waist. It didn't have his desired effect though. Justin didn't squirm and laugh like he usually did, but just seemed to begin to cry harder. 
	Chris stopped, holding Justin's shoulders against the bed for a moment before backing off. "Don't cry… Jesus Christ." 
	Justin's eyes were closed tight and his lips were pressed together, but the tears escaped every couple seconds with struggled breaths, and his cheeks were wet with the new tears. He remained flat on his back.
	"What just happened?" Joey asked, pulling off a sock as he looked behind him at the couch briefly. He turned back to the TV, deciding it was nothing he could help with. 
	JC got up off his bed and walked towards the other one. "For God's sake." He leaned down over Justin and put a hand to his forehead. "Hey. It's got nothing to do with you. Honey, stop it…" JC frowned at him. "Listen. Stop it."  
	Justin brought his hands up to cover his face. He shook his head, shoulders shaking. He couldn't stop. All of the stress of the day suddenly flowed out. 
	"Justin," JC said, sitting down next to him. "Stop." He patted Justin's stomach gently. "Come on. Don't cry…" 
	"It's my bed," Chris said, looking at Justin skeptically. He didn't have much patience for crying. Or, rather, had very little knowledge of what to do to remedy it. His little sisters sometimes cried, and that he could deal with on a minimal level, but this kid was far more complicated.
	JC took Justin's arm and pulled him to sit up. "Justin, c'mon. Come here." 
	Justin wiped at his face, trying not to bawl, but he realized he really couldn't help it. The objections he'd swallowed all day and the thoughts that had built up like a dam in his brain were starting to spill. He got up as JC pulled him and let him lead him. He realized a minute later that they were in the small, dirty bathroom, and JC had pushed him in while shutting the door behind them. JC put down the seat on the toilet down and pointed. 
	"Sit," he said as he turned to the sink, running the water and grabbing a towel. "Calm down… Sh… Deep breaths..."
	Justin sat down. The seat was hard. He breathed shaky breaths and couldn't see because it was all blurry. Suddenly, JC was kneeling in front of him, wiping his cheeks with the cool towel, gently mopping up salty tears and taking some of the leftover make-up from the studio off. He murmured as he did so in a sing-song, humming voice, mostly consisting of a 'hush, come on...' pattern.
	"You're upset about the video," JC stated simply.
	Justin nodded, sniffling. "I don't like it," he hiccuped. 
	"It's not like it's your fault…" JC whispered. "And there's nothing the matter with it… It's just we weren't expecting that… And… And sometimes they have different plans for us…We've been finding that out. But one day... one day we'll tell them what we want, right?" JC smiled and pushed his shoulder gently. "We'll own 'em, right, baby?"
	Justin whimpered and reached to rub his eyes, nodding. "How come…" He sniffled again. "I didn't want to do it and it didn't matter." He rubbed his nose.
	"Remember how you asked about Joey and the parts… We don't have a choice right now… It's not fair. But we don't have a choice right now. So we just have to do it."
	JC's knees hurt kneeling on the cold tile, but he didn't move. And he didn't curse and yell like he wanted to about child pornography, and overweight, sleazy men, and forcing kids against their will and contracts and fucking the world. That wouldn't help Justin, not when he was this overtired and vulnerable. Instead he just wiped Justin's cheeks, and murmured sweet nothings until it seemed a minute or so later as though Justin had almost stopped whimpering.
	He stopped then and leaned his elbows onto Justin's knees very gently. "Okay?"
	"No," Justin said hoarsely.
	"I know… I know…"
	"I feel sick…"
	"It's okay." JC leaned over and reached for a dry towel. He then reached up and patted Justin's cheeks dry. He dropped both towels on the ground. "We'll see what happens tomorrow, okay, bud?"
	Justin shook his head. "I don't want to go back… It wasn't fun anymore."
	"That's not you. It was just… Justin, you did nothing wrong. Don't be upset. You're tired… Here… Come here." He lifted up slightly and wrapped his arms around Justin tightly. He felt Justin's arms go around his neck and curls against his neck. "Don't let them make you cry. Please…" JC persisted. "They're not worth your tears." 
	Justin sniffled loudly, a haggard breath.
	"It's different from Disney, hm…?" JC murmured, scoffing a little bit. "It's a lot different. We're not used to this, huh? Sh…" 
	Justin never wanted to move from this spot.
********
	The guys looked up when they heard the bathroom door open. They had remained mostly silent while the two had retreated, Chris talking just softly about going out to the movies for a late show. Maybe a midnight. Now they were silent. The TV added some distraction. 
	JC stepped out of the bathroom, pausing just slightly as he saw their eyes turn to him, and shutting the door behind him. It closed with a click.
	"Is he okay?" Lance asked.
	JC nodded. "Yeah. He's fine. He just… I guess it got to him."
	"Well, it got to you," Chris said. "And he saw that. So of course then it got to him. He was fine until you got in a mood."
	"It wasn't his part that got to me," JC objected. "Well, it was his part, not him. I mean…" Chris's voice had been sarcastic and it surprised him.
	"There's nothing we can do for now, so stop. It doesn't help that Lou was a bastard about it, but don't you get mad about it." 
	"How can I not get mad?"
	"Because!" Chris nearly exclaimed. Because JC didn't get it, and he felt it was so obvious. "Because it does that!" He pointed at the shut bathroom door. "If he sees you letting it get to you, it's going to get to him ten fold, JC. He always copies your mood." 
	"Look. We didn't get in this to be exploited."
	"Bullshit, JC. I know where you're coming from, and I agee, I don't want him doing that, but we all agreed when we started to do whatever it might be to get started. And we're getting there. And I'm sorry it entails stuff we didn't expect, but we knew to be prepared. I don't know what we expected. Of course they'd exploit him. Look at him. He's the prototype. I'm not saying I agree. I don't. But I'm not so surprised at what they're doing." 
	JC wasn't convinced. 
	"The photo shoots are the same," Joey spoke up. "I mean, for all of is. It's supposed to be 'sexy'. That's what's supposed to sell. That's what's pop."
	"JC," Chris said seriously. "I really doubted you'd be the one that didn't understand this."
	"So you don’t see anything wrong with it?" JC demanded. "Even the fact that he's crying over it?"
	"It could be worse," Chris persisted. "It could be much worse. And he should learn not to cry over stuff this trivial. Hiding in the bathroom like a child isn't fucking going to help."
	JC shook his head. "I'm the one that got him started."
	"Well, if you can get him started so easily with a mood, I wonder how he'll fare with more intense press?"
	"Chris." 
	"What, JC? I'm just thinking. And Lou is a bastard but he's right. We want to sell. We want to be on top. And sex sells, so they're trying to make him sexy, fifteen or not."
	"Chris."
	"What, I sound insensitive? I'm sorry. I've never been very in touch with that sensitive shit." Chris frowned. "You know I love the kid just as much as any of us, JC, but…"
	"But nothing. I'm not listening to you." JC continued to shake his head in disbelief. "Not right now."
	"Guys, don't argue about it…" Lance said gently.
	"Well, we have to discuss it and come to some common ground," Chris said. "Because this is obviously what it's going to be sometimes. I don't know what we expected. It wasn't going to purely be about music. JC, you have to see that."
	"I just don't see a child being projected on film that way as promoting us…" JC set his jaw.
	"He isn't a child," Chris answered. "He's fifteen. Not five." 
	"Were we going to go out or what?" Joey asked with a sigh.
	"Go out?" JC echoed. "Where could we possibly go now?"
	"A movie. Or something. Anything to keep you two from going insane with each other."
	"Because there's nothing we can do, right, Joey?" Chris insisted.
	"I'm not getting in the middle of this…" Joey raised his hands in mock surrender.
	Chris sighed and met JC with earnest eyes. "JC, man. I know you're protective of him. I understand. But it's not as pornographic as you make it seem. I agree if it goes any further then we'll have to speak up, but right now… We have to do what we have to do. I'm not sure how many waves we can make without consequences." 
	JC took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
	"He just… It's fine. And he can do it. I'm positive he can." Chris chewed on his lip for a moment, trying to gauge JC's expression. "JC, we can watch it. It's all of us. Not just him. Sure they're targeting him, but…"
	"I understand." JC saw the look in Chris's eyes, desperate to explain while not sounding like an ass. But JC did think he sounded like an ass. It was reminding him of LA. How he hated it there. How his crystalline image of the world had been shattered. And now that was happening to Justin. And they really were too far in to stop it.
	"What can you do?" Chris said softly. "Break the contract?"
	"I don't remember signing my name to 'yes I will be a sex symbol and promote underage exploited boys'," JC muttered. 
	"Well, technically you did."
	"I just don't like the idea of it." 
	"You think any us do?"
	"I don't see you condemning it, Chris."
	"Because I can't. What power do I have to condemn it? It's the same old story, JC. Look at what sells. It doesn't take much imagination."
	JC set his jaw and didn't say anything else. He could see it in Chris's eyes. Why argue now? It was only going to get worse. He wasn't going to argue that it could be different for them. It couldn't.
********
	They went to the movies. Chris wanted to go and the others realized that the man was about a step from breaking like JC had, but in a more furious manner. He was the one that was trying to explain why things were what they were, while at the same time being furious at the whole idea of it. But unlike JC, he didn't see a point in arguing it. He had spent his childhood with what was unfair and the apparent system and you really couldn't fight it. It seemed silly to him to risk everything they'd done because Justin was uncomfortable with laying in a bed with a girl on camera. 
	So the guys stepped carefully around the broken glass that had been created by the situation and let Chris's suggestion become a unanimous agreement. They'd coax Justin out of the bathroom and go to the movies. 
	They had just gotten their tickets and were heading for the right theater inside.
	"I'm going to run into the bathroom," Joey said. "Will someone buy me a drink?"
	"Justin and I will get drinks," Chris answered. "Then we'll meet you guys in the theater. Go save seats." Justin had been quiet since the fuss before and he wanted this chance to talk to him. 
	Chris glanced at Justin as they made their way towards the counter for refreshments. There were three people on the line. Chris wondered if he even had enough money for the drinks. He didn't have to get one. He dug into his pocket and pulled out his wallet, spotting a twenty and only a twenty. This pop life certainly hadn't made him very rich yet.
	Next to him, Justin shifted his weight from foot to foot, looking around. It was a chintzy place, nothing special. Chris looked at a couple of the signs for upcoming movies before the line moved up a little, wondering if they would get a chance to see any of them while abroad and on tour. He took another look at Justin.
	They'd ignored what had happened back at the hotel. They didn't wait for him to come out of the bathroom so that they could set all their eyes on him. That wouldn't have been smart. None of them wanted to reflect on it. They knew Justin. While the other guys had started down the hall, JC told Justin where they were going, and they quickly got ready and joined the other guys. Nothing had been said about the tears or what had happened.
	Now Chris took a good look. Justin looked tired, and he gave it away with a small yawn. His eyes were still a little red-rimmed from his scene before and skin a bit flushed. He hadn't really said much, but when he did his voice sounded a bit congested from his crying. Overall, he looked young and like he very much needed a nap.
	"You tired?" Chris asked.
	"What?" Justin turned his head towards him with a frown.
	"Tired?"
	"A little…"
	Chris nodded. "Me too… You fine? From before and all?"
	Justin's cheeks colored a little and he glanced at the floor for a second. "Yeah."
	"Yeah…" Chris repeated. He looked up at the neon lights in a sign above him. "Justin, you can't… You can't let something like that get you upset."
	"I'm not upset."
	"We all have to sacrifice… And… You can't let things get to you so easily. You have to be tough about it."
	Justin nodded, chewing on his lip.
	"Because… so you don't like what they made you do. Well, there might be other days like that and…" Chris rubbed at his jaw. "I don't know. None of us want to see you upset."
	"JC says―"
	"JC says," Chris echoed. "Justin. It's not up to what he says. You're really fucking lucky to have him, and he's good to you, but it's not up to him right now. It's up to Johnny. And Lou. And BMG. It's up to everyone in the whole world except for us."
	"I don't like that."
	"Well, what are you going to do? You want to quit? Me and Joey can go back to our shitty meager jobs. You can go to school. Lance can go to Mississippi. JC can go back to his demos and become a starving artist."
	"Starving artist?"
	Chris shrugged.
	"I didn't say I wanted to quit. I never said that. Aren't I allowed to let one thing bother me?"
	"Yes, things can bother you... But, Justin... You have to realize they want to put a certain spotlight on you...." 
	Justin pointed. The person in front of them was taking back their change and leaving. Chris stepped up to the counter and ordered. It was the last they spoke of it that night.
******
	The next morning, Justin sat in the chair at Warehouse 34 and stayed still while a man fixed his hair and makeup with a hurried air. He was trying to be good, less fidgety than the day before, thinking maybe if he cooperated more they would listen to him.
	"You stay up too late," the man scolded. "We have to cover those circles under your eyes."
	Justin didn't say anything. 
	"We need to get you dressed for your scene too. The scene they're redoing."
	Justin frowned just slightly. "What scene?"
	"I don't know. They'll tell you. I just fix you up, dearie."
	Justin found out about ten minutes later when an assistant director tugged at his arm and informed him they were re-shooting the scene from yesterday. The scene that had made him feel nauseous since then. He was horrified. They had to do it again? 
	"It just wasn't right," the man explained. "We watched the footage. Not right. We couldn't possibly get away with that."
	Justin admitted he didn't understand.
	"Well, for one, that girl is gone. We don't need her. Just you." 
	He got to wear a shirt too. Well, not an actual shirt, but an undershirt that let him feel a little less naked under the lights and in front of the camera. There was less pressure without that bitchy girl there. The warm air was still pushed around by the fan above him. Alone on the bed was a lot less awkward. He started to feel more confident. They gave him more direct than the day before on things to do.
	"That might be good," the man behind the camera said after about a half hour of filming. "Just hang around here until we finish playback and see if we need to redo anything again."
	Justin nodded and yawned, wondering where the other guys were. He got up and couldn't see any of them from there. He knew that they were filming their own little parts of the video. He felt a little better. This hadn't been as awful. It was still weird, but Chris's words, mingled with JC's, tugged at him and he tried not to let it bother him.
	"I think that's better."
	Justin turned at the voice of Lou, and noticed the man suddenly right next to him, smiling.
	Justin's comfort level immediately dropped further. He blamed Lou for yesterday. "Hey, Lou."
	"Not that yesterday wasn't great," Lou continued, hand dropping onto Justin's arm. Justin shivered, glancing down at the man's hand. It was more like a paw. It made his bare arm look even thinner. "It was great. You do great work, Justin."
	"Th-thanks… It wasn't bad," Justin answered. He took a step back away, turning as though he were looking for someone so that maybe Lou's attention would be diverted to something else. Something more important. Anything. "Do you know where the guys went?"
	"I'm not sure."
	Justin felt confused.
	"There's one thing though, that I need to tell you, to make you understand." Lou's hand then moved to his back. Low on his back where he'd only let the guys touch. Or not minded when they had because it was just a gesture that let him know they were there. Justin didn't want to know Lou was there. The hand felt heavy and he spoke again. "You're going to be famous, Justin. Do you know that? I can feel it. You'll be the center of this group."
	All Justin could feel was that hand. He turned and smiled at Lou, knowing that it wasn't the man's fault. He reminded himself that Lou wasn't trying to make him uncomfortable. Justin was just so stressed from what had happened yesterday that he was still a little anxious. Lou was just doing his job. He was the one getting them famous. 
	"I hope we are," Justin replied to Lou's statement. He wanted to move away. Lou was too close. And again, it wasn't the guy's fault, Justin reminded himself. It was just that he wasn't used to this world yet. Where everyone touched you and dressed you and told you what to do. He'd had enough of the touching and petting and prepping for now. 
	But he still wanted to get away. "I'm going to run to the bathroom."
	"Okay." Lou nodded. "I just wanted to let you know how impressed I am so far with you. I don't want you to be nervous about any of this, that's all. I know yesterday you didn't seem too comfortable. Hopefully today was better. Do you know where the bathroom is? I could show you."
	"I know where," Justin assured. 
	He rushed and found Joey and JC. He didn't say anything. He just needed to take a deep breath and relax with something he was familiar with. He moved close to them. Closer than even Lou had been, but that was the point. This was them.
	"We're going to jump off of things," Joey started to tell him. "It'll be really cool. Like do karate leaps off the landing and stuff. Lance dared me to do a back flip."
	Justin nodded and shifted closer, feeling JC's warmth radiating. He reached to hook two of his fingers through JC's belt loop. "Cool. When?"
	"I think today. Chris and I were joking around before over there, and the guy thought it would look cool as part of it," Joey answered. "How are you doing? You done?"
	"With my part? Yeah."
	JC noticed Justin's distracted tone. With that and the way he was leaning into him, he frowned. Justin didn't appear upset, but... "Is it okay?"
	"Yeah, they changed that part," Justin said. "They said they couldn't get away with it or something."
	JC's brow furrowed. "Oh, did they… Hm. Imagine that."
	"The girl is gone and stuff. It's better."
	"That's good then. You feel better?"
	"Yeah."  Justin scrutinized JC's look but couldn't really decipher it. All he knew was that he didn't look happy. He slipped his fingers out of JC's belt and said, "I got to wear a shirt too."
	"So did we," Joey said with a laugh. "Congrats."
******
	There was a game room at their hotel and a pool table so Joey suggested they play pool. There was a newspaper photographer there to ask them a few questions about the group and the video and he followed them and watched them play.
	He was gone in ten minutes. After he left, the guys attempted to explain the point of pool to Justin. He was the only one who had never played. He claimed he'd played, but they soon came to find out he'd always just hit all the balls and not known the point or the rules.
	"Wait. How come the white ball can't go in?" Justin asked.
	"Justin…" Joey looked at him. "Kid, you're stupid."
	"I've never played before."
	"It's all a matter of physics," Chris said.
	"Physics?" Joey echoed. "Chris, I didn't know you knew physics."
	"Why, sure."
	"Physics doesn't let the white ball go in?" Justin asked, leaning against the table with a frown on his face. He didn't understand how to play. He just knew to hit the white ball with the stick. He rested the stick across his shoulders, hands up to hold it steady as he watched JC take a shot. 
	"Stupid," Joey told him again. "Physics is what makes the ball go in or not go in."
	"So it doesn't let the white ball in."
	"No. You don't let the white ball get in." 
	"Why not?"
	"Because you don't. That's not the point of the game. You want to get the other balls in," Lance said. "But the ones, the way we're playing, are either striped or solid. See?"
	Lance was telling him. Lance knew how to play? "You know how to play?"
	"I played a few times." Lance shrugged.
	Justin scowled. Basketball. Now that was a sport. This was… "This is stupid."
	"You're just stupid," Joey answered. "This is a classic bar game."
	"I don't see anything classic about it. And I'm never in bars."
	"I'm glad you weren't asking these questions when that guy was here," Chris said. "That would have been embarrassing."
	"I just want to know why you can't hit the white ball in."
	"It's like in basketball…" he replied. "Like throwing the ball off the court. You don't do that on purpose. And… And that's it. You don't do it if you want to win."
	"But in basketball sometimes you let it go out of bounds so that you get possession."
	"There's no possession in pool, Justin."
	"It's not that hard," Joey persisted. 
	"I just think it's a stupid game, that's all," Justin replied. 
	"Well, if you'd let us teach you how to play and stop questioning every part of it, you'd probably like it." 
	"He likes games where you run around," JC said.
	"He likes video games," Chris countered. "And you move around more in pool than you do playing a video game." 
	"Hm, true."
	"I just don't think pool is very exciting," Justin said. 
	"It's relaxing," Joey answered. "It's not supposed to be exciting. It's fun, it's a little bit of chance, and it's just pool." "
	"We'll get him to like it," Chris said. "Just wait, Justin, you'll like it. You play a few times and you'll be hooked."
	"I don't think so." Justin chewed his lip and tapped at the ground with the long rod. He watched Joey's turn and how he got a few balls in. Several seconds later, bored, Justin held the rod up to JC's face. "En guard, fool."
	JC pushed it away. "Don't poke my eye out."
	Justin sighed. 
	"It's not that bad a game."
	"Want to fence instead, C?" Justin continued to hold up the cue. 
	"No. Let Chris teach you."
	"Chris is dumb."
	Chris smirked and whaled Justin across the back with his cue when he heard the comment. He laughed when Justin spun around, angry and red-faced. "That hurt!"
	"Aw…" Chris made a fake expression of sympathy. "I'm sorry. Was that you?" 
	"Ouch" Justin wrinkled his nose and reached up to rub at his back. "Asshole."
	"It's your turn."
	"I don't want to play." Justin frowned. His back stung now.
	"You have to learn how."
	"Why?"
	"So that there can be a game that we can all kick your ass at."
	Justin scowled. "No. I could beat you all if I wanted. I just don't want to. It's boring."
	"No, it's not. Here, just go. Take your cue. Hit the white ball. Try to get another ball in one of the holes."
	"It's called a what?" Justin stared at the rod in his one hand, still rubbing at his back with the other.
	"Cue, moron," Joey said. "Come on. Hit the ball."
	Justin pressed his lips together and stepped up, looking at the scattered round colored balls. He set himself up like they had shown him before and pushed the cue forward to hit the white ball. It went directly into one of the holes, past the other balls.
	"Ugh!" Justin exclaimed. He threw the cue and it clattered onto the floor. "Fuck physics!"
	"Justin, it's not ours," JC said. "Pick it up."
	"No!" Justin walked over and kicked the cue. "It's cursed! It's cursed, I tell you!" 
	"He's a sore loser," Lance muttered.
	"No kidding," Chris answered. "Justin, pick it up or I'll hit you again." 
	Justin grabbed the cue up from the ground angrily and walked over to drop it onto the pool table, causing all the balls to scatter and in effect ruining the game.
	"Come on," Joey said in exasperation. 
	"Why'd you do that?" Chris replied.
	"Because. Can't we do something else?"
	"We want to do this…" Joey replied, picking up Justin's cue and frowning. "Lance, can you set it up again?"
	Justin groaned. "You're gonna start over?"
	"Yes." Joey tossed Justin's cue at him. Justin caught it and glared. 
	"Can I go back to the room and watch TV?" he asked.
	"No," Chris said. "Your punishment for being bitchy is to watch us finish a game."
	Justin scowled. "JC, can I go back?"
	JC shrugged. "I'm not getting in the middle of this." 
	Justin looked in horror at the remade triangle of balls and grunted. He was fairly used to getting what he wanted. He wasn't too sure right now though, especially since JC didn't seem to be helping. And he hadn't realized that they'd want to play after he ruined the one game. He hadn't even considered that it would make the game longer.
	"Come on," JC said. "Let Chris teach you to play."
	Justin gave him a look. "But…"
	"Be nice…" 
	Justin glanced at Chris. "He doesn't want to teach me now."
	"I will if you quit asking stupid questions like why you can't hit the white ball in. And you have to play a whole game," Chris said.
	Justin sighed. "Fine."
	It was torture.
******
	"What day is it?" 
	Joey stared up at the blackness of the room while replying, "Monday. Almost Tuesday," to Justin's question.
	"No, day."
	"He means date," Chris muttered from the couch. 
	"January 13th," Lance replied in his deep voice.
	"What time is it?" 
	Grunting, Joey reached over to turn the clock on the bedside table towards him. "Three fifteen. I guess it is Tuesday."
	"I guess it's the fourteenth then," Lance corrected.
	Justin was silent for a moment. "Seventeen days until my birthday."
	"Good for you," Chris said roughly.
	"Go to bed now," JC said almost inaudibly from beside Justin, mouth pressed against his pillow.
	"When do we go back away?" Justin persisted, reaching over to pat JC's arm in a 'go ahead and sleep yourself' gesture. 
	"The twenty-fourth," Lance replied. "Ten days."
	"Oh." Justin paused. "Joey, your birthday is on the twenty-eighth."
	"I'm quite aware, but thank you for reminding me," Joey replied. 
	"Two weeks from today."
	"Yep."
	"Where will we be?"
	JC reached an arm over and grabbed Justin around the waist, sliding him towards him on the bed and pulling the covers over Justin tightly. 
	"What?" Justin murmured 
	"Sh."
	"We have some show the day after we get back," Lance said. "I don't remember what it is. It's not exactly when we get back, that's all I know, which is good at least."
	Joey laughed. "Lance's always got the scoop."
	"You memorize our schedule or something?" Chris asked.
	Lance shrugged, keeping his eyes closed. "I just look at it once, that's all. You all never look at it." 
	"That's why we've got you..." Joey murmured. 
	"Where will we be on my birthday?" Justin asked. 
	"Justin," JC persisted with an exasperated tone. He pinched him under the blankets. "Shuttup." 
	"I don't know," Lance answered tiredly.
	"How about my birthday?" Joey mimicked Justin. "Where will we be, Lance?"
	"I'm going to take a wild guess and say in a cramped, dirty motel," Chris said. "How about we get some sleep? How's that for a fine proposition? We do have more recording to do tomorrow."
********
	In the beginning, the concept of making videos seemed like a lot of fun. Justin originally thought of the days on the MMC, making skits and music videos, and even just when he used to mess around with JC and friends in front of the camera. That was always fun and it always had a result that made him smile.
	But now that it was part of their career, and being in the group was a job instead of a hobby, Justin definitely saw the difference. He realized when people came over to him and poked and prodded him to fix his outfit or to redo his make-up or hair that it wasn't a game. Most of them didn't smile. And those that did sometimes made him uncomfortable. It wasn't just for fun like it used to be. It was something planned and directed to an extent he hadn't been aware of. He always remembered it being fun, not like work.
	Now it all just felt like work. Non-stop work. He'd rather be on stage than do this type of stuff. 
	He felt tired, and he felt used. When a man came over and made him change his shirt to another colored one for the third time, he felt like crying because he just wanted to go back to the hotel and sleep. It had been three hours without a break and he just wanted to do anything else, even just sit. But if he cried then they would have to fix his make-up and that meant them touching and scrutinizing him more. Plus Chris had told him, back at the movie theater, that he couldn't cry. It was a weakness if he did. And he never cried, but recently things made him just want to have a release.
	Well maybe he had a weakness then. But he wanted to dress himself without help and he wanted to stand like he wanted and to frown when he felt like frowning. And for three hours he hadn't been able to.
	He yawned quickly, feeling his eyes tear up as he did so. He blinked and everything cleared. The director was talking. Justin didn't know what he was saying, he was talking so fast, and he'd already missed the beginning.
	He looked down. His shoelace was untied. Was he allowed to fix it? Maybe it was supposed to be untied. 
	He knelt down, because they were paused for some reason or another, the camera man wasn't even looking towards the set, and tied his shoelace. As he finished making the loop, he glanced up and noticed Lou Pearlman standing about fifty feet away watching him.
	Justin got up and brushed off his pants, looking elsewhere. Lou was creepy in a way he couldn't quite describe. And didn't want to because he knew that the man was very important to them. But the way he seemed to lurk was disconcerting. He stood half in the shadows and half not, as if he wanted to be known that he was there, or that there wasn't enough shadow to cover all of him.
	He was really fat. That was the only thing Justin was sure about. Other than that, he wasn't sure what to think. In fact, he didn't believe that he was supposed to think anything about him at all… Lou was just kind of a fixture. A necessity.
	But he did think. He thought that he wanted to talk to JC or Chris, but he wasn't sure what he wanted to tell him. Maybe that he just needed him there. He wanted to call his mom and ask her what she had been doing, why she wasn't with him while he was so close to home. But he knew she was busy with the new house and with Paul and planning things for him too. He thought about Germany and how they had to go back there soon and remembered how cold it was. But now they had fans there too. People that he had signed autographs for. 
	"Justin."
	Justin focused. "Oh, hi, Lance."
	"We, uh… You looked a little dazed so I thought… Well, we have a break. Ten minutes."
	Ten minutes. Ten minutes. Justin thought about what he could do in ten minutes. "Okay."
	"I'm going to go get a drink. Want to come?"
	Justin thought Lance was a little weird. He was a cool kid, just a little different than anyone Justin had known. He was really smart it seemed, and he could be kind of funny when he wanted to, but he could also just listen. He watched them all when they spoke and added in comments when he felt like it. And he almost never complained. He was really close to his mom too. They seemed a lot alike in some ways. But in other ways, Lance seemed just so composed. 
	Something tugged at his arm. "Chris and I are getting air," said JC. "Come with."
	Justin allowed himself to be guided and took the water bottle that was handed to him. JC's hand fell to the small of his back and Justin suddenly froze for a moment, remembering Lou's hand, and he turned around, trying to spot the man, to see where he was.
	"Hey, what're you looking for?" JC asked, frowning at Justin and looking over towards where his gaze was but couldn't see anything that had suddenly caught Justin's attention. 
	"Nothing," Justin replied. "Where's Chris?"
	"He went out already," JC said, giving him a funny look. "Drink some water, Justin.  You alright?"
	Justin nodded and unscrewed the cap to the bottle. "I was just getting tired."
	"Me too."
	"My legs hurt."
	"It's been a long morning. No one said shooting videos was easy. Fun can be hard work too." 
	They went out the doors and down a hallway, then out another set of doors. Soon they were finally outside, taking a deep breath of the warm Miami air. Chris was sitting on the curb of the sidewalk and Justin walked over and dropped down beside him. It was then he realized just how really tired his legs had been. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He felt JC sit down beside him. 
	He couldn't think of anything to say. His mind was too tired and heavy with random thoughts to speak.
	JC looked at Justin's closed eyes. "We should have gone to bed earlier last night."
	"Well, someone couldn't shut up," Chris replied. "As usual." 
	Justin didn't answer. He had nothing to say now. But going to bed early sounded nice. In fact, he could go to sleep right then. He wondered if he'd feel the same way later. Somehow whenever it actually came time to sleep, there seemed to be better options. 
	It was quiet among them for a minute. Then JC suddenly started, "Hey, guess what?" with a hint of excitement.
	"What?" Chris asked.
	"I talked to Johnny before again about doing a cover, you know? And he said that was a good idea and that we definitely could. And that Sailing's a good choice too. They just have to get the rights for it and we can do it. And I want to think of another one too."
	"That will be cool…"
	"I was hoping we could at least choose one song to cover," JC persisted. He frowned. "Like, I'd still love to use some of my demos. And to write more. I want to start writing again. I wish we could use our own stuff or have a choice."
	"We've helped with a couple, and you had some input in the studio." 
	"It's not the same."
	Chris shrugged. "Not much we can do."
	"About anything," JC replied. Chris seemed resolute on that fact recently. He didn't know if it was Chris playing the devil's advocate or simply giving up. He sighed. "How much time have we got? Curly, don’t fall asleep, we're going to have to go in soon."
	Justin forced himself to keep his eyes open and listened politely to JC describe the parts of Sailing. JC was so excited about getting any input on a song, and he had to respect that. 
*****
	They got an interview with MTV. It was really short and really didn't say much about them, just asked how this band from Orlando was doing overseas and when they were going to try the American spotlight. Joey grinned while looked at the mics that said MTV on them. This was close to something big back home.
	It was a flash of potential.
	A flash of maybe be recognized in their own home. But then it was gone. 
	"It's weird that no one knows who we are here," Chris said as they ate lunch. "I mean, over in Germany we do so much and we do shows and we've been asked to sign autographs. And here…"
	"NSYNC who?" Joey said.
	"Exactly."
	"Johnny says we've gotten really big over there," JC said. "Like, we'll notice it even more when we go back. He says the single has just blown up over there and there's been a lot of promotion."
	"Awesome," Justin smiled. "I want people to recognize us everywhere we go. And I can't wait to do shows again." 
	"Yeah," JC agreed. "I can't wait to do shows again. We've been doing so much recording recently. Once the album comes out, that's when things will get big." 
	Lance smiled. "I never thought it would come this far."
	"Sure you did," Joey answered.
	"No. I mean, I didn't know, but… I still don't know. But I feel like this is all working out really well."
	"Of course it is," Chris replied. "It's my plan. My group. Why shouldn't it work out really well?"
	"Your group?" Justin scoffed.
	"It's certainly not yours. Don't you forget that originally the name of the group was 'Chris's Group'."
	Justin grunted, shaking his head. 
	"Ours," Joey reasoned. 
	"Lou's," Lance said. "Johnny's."
	Justin grimaced. "That's so true." 
	"No, it's ours if not mine," Chris objected. "They're necessities. But it's us."
	"The tools," Justin said.
	"Hey, don't say that." JC shook his head. "That's not true." 
	"It's kind of true," Lance laughed. 
	"Hey, don't..." JC persisted. 
	Justin shrugged. He wished it was just them and they didn't have a management. Lance and Chris could manage the group. They were the ones that were into the business. And Joey could keep them active and JC would take care of them and make sure of the music, and Justin… What would he do? He would help somehow…
	"They're our tools," Chris was saying. "We're using their resources for our benefits."
	"I don't see it like that," Justin said. "Lou doesn't say it like that."
	"Lou?" JC replied. "What'd Lou say?"
	Justin shrugged and pressed his lips together. What had he said? Justin had been too busy trying to avoid him.
	"When did he talk to you?" JC persisted.
	"I don't know. I just remember him saying something related to this," Justin lied. Because they need Lou. Chris and Lance were into the business aspect but they too were too new to keep track. They didn't know everything they needed. 
	JC was remembering his own conversation with Lou, when he and Chris had confronted the man, and felt himself become irritated at the idea of it. They were tools. But Justin and Lance didn't have to know that. They should think it was the other way around. They all should if they could. 
	"Well, there wouldn't be a group without the five of us," Joey replied. "Whether they know it or not, they need us."
	"It's a contract," Chris laughed. "We couldn't just do our own thing now if we wanted."
	"It's working out well, so whatever," Lance replied. "It wasn't long ago we didn't have anything or any management so...."
	"It could be much worse," Joey agreed. 
******           
	"My Dad thinks he's going to visit."
	"What?" JC, lounged on the couch, laying across it on his back with his feet up. He looked over at the approaching Justin. He had on headphones and hadn't Justin's words, but now he pulled them off.  
	"I just said my Dad's thinking of coming down," Justin said. "And Lisa."
	"What about the baby?"
	"They'd better bring him." Justin moved to sit on the arm of the couch by JC's feet. 
	They were back in Orlando. The shooting of the video wrapped up fairly easily and then they all saw a close to final cut. They'd enjoyed laughing at the little natural bits that were thrown in of themselves fooling around, and the rest looked really well produced. It was an improvement from their last video. It all went over well, smoothing out after that first day, and so feeling some accomplishment they headed back to the studios in Orlando.
	"When'd they decide this?" JC asked.
	"Well, he said he figures before I go away again I might as well see him, and I haven't got time to go up to see him. So he says he could take a few vacation days and come to sunny Florida."
	"Very cool. Are you excited?"
	"Yeah, but we're barely gonna be able to see each other… I mean... Chris was talking about the schedule before and..." Justin wrinkled his nose.  
	"When's he coming?" 
	"Has to be this week because we'll be gone on the twenty-third."
	"Twenty-fourth," JC corrected.
	"Really?" Justin replied. "Dammit, I told him the twenty-third."
	"Close enough."
	"He said he could probably get a good last minute flight deal. I don't know." Justin shrugged. "He said he wanted to see everybody. And Mom too." 
	JC smiled. "Maybe you'll get a birthday present."
	"I doubt it." Justin made a face. "I wanted him to bring Trace but he says he can't. Trace's got school. I figure he could take off but I guess it's not that easy to miss days." 
	"You talk to Trace recently?" 
	"Just on his birthday in November and a few times after that." Justin laughed, thinking about the last conversation he had with his friend. "So get this. He wants to be a designer."
	JC raised his eyebrows. "What kind of designer?"
	Justin shrugged. "Clothes? I think?" He pushed himself further back on the arm of the chair to lean back, straddling it. "Yeah. I told him he was weird."
	"That's not weird if he likes it. You're doing what you like," JC pointed out.
	"He doesn't know what he likes. He thinks he'll like it."
	"He doing well in school?" JC asked.
	"I dunno. He's jealous of me and my school." Justin smiled. 
	"Mm… Or lack of." JC laughed. "I bet. Not for very long, slacker…"
	"I'm not a slacker. He's doing good."
	"What grade's he in?"
	"Uh..." Justin seemed to mentally calculate. "Tenth, I think?"
	"Should you be in tenth too then?"
	"JC, are you making fun of me…?" Justin scowled.
	"No, I'm not." JC lifted his foot to poke Justin in the leg with his sneaker. "I'm wondering what grade you're in. You're fifteen. I was trying to remember what grade I was in at that age."
	"I'm sixteen."
	"Not yet, man. Tenth grade, then?"
	"I guess. Hey, Trace says the basketball team really sucks this year," Justin said with a frown. "I mean, really sucks. That makes me mad. I could be on it." 
	"Yeah." JC wanted to ask Justin how he felt when Trace told him all about school and whatnot, but he didn't press. He thought about Lance. "Hey, Lance would be a senior, huh?"
	Justin nodded. "I think so. He hasn't got really any credits left. Well, compared to me at least. Like he can graduate soon once we start tutoring. His mom says he's already been working towards it."
	"He's a smart kid…" JC mused. He looked up at Justin. "You too, Curly Q. Once you concentrate."
	"I don't have time to concentrate."
	"This time we're talking right now, this could've been study time."
	"Yeah," Justin scoffed. "Right."
	"I'm for real. Plane rides, bus rides. I mean, you have to make time." JC shifted and toyed with his headphones absentmindedly. 
	"But then I won't have time for anything else."
	"Sure you will. You just won't be able to waste as much time."
	"I don't feel like I've got time to waste." 
	"Right now. Instead of us talking, this would be a time where you could get work done." 
	Justin turned and sat facing JC, his feet stretching out to reach JC's knees. "Does that mean I can't ever talk to you again?"
	"It just might."
	JC had a straight face and Justin scowled, kicking him. "Well, fine then," he said "If that's how you feel." 
	"Oh…" JC mustered a mock-sad face. "Justy…"
	"Whatever." Justin pointed at the headphones and gave a questioning look. "What's that?" 
	"I was going through some of my old cassette tapes. Like, mixes I'd made over the past couple years. To look for songs to cover."
	Justin nodded. "Find any other ones?"
	"A couple possibilities." 
	"Will they let you pick whatever you want?" Justin asked.
	"Not necessarily. They liked Sailing. So I thought I'd try my luck and see if I could pick another winner. Man, you gotta listen to Sailing. It's different knowing we're going to do it.  That's the exciting thing, making songs new. Chris Cross's version is, like, classic, but we can do so much with it. Especially with Chris's voice." 
	"What about me?"
	"Of course you. There will be you. But I'm just saying Chris because his voice is just like... you know. It'll be dynamic. It'll fit it so well. And you know Veit? Remember him from the studio?"
	Justin nodded.
	"I was talking to him about. He'll let me help him arrange it. Because I know our voices. He'll produce it."
	Justin smiled a little at the tone of JC's voice. "You get all excited."
	"Of course I do. It is exciting. Don't you think it's exciting?" 
	Justin nodded. "Yeah. I want to help."
	"Okay."
	A woman's voice came from the doorway, scolding, "Justin Randall, don't sit on the arm of my chair. You'll break it." 
	Justin turned his head to look back. "Mama, how could I possibly break it?"
	"Easily. Get down."
	JC drew his legs up, staying on his back. Justin slid down into the empty space, pulling his knees up to his chest with an exasperated sigh. "I wouldn't break it."
	"I'm going to the store," Lynn said. "You need anything, honey?"
	"Food. I'm a growing boy," Justin answered. "I have to get taller."
	Lynn rolled her eyes. "Anything in particular?"
	Justin shrugged and looked at JC who shrugged back. "No," Justin replied. "Ice cream, maybe. Where else are you going?" He glanced back at his mother.
	"I don't know. Probably just Publix. Your father might call, but you can go out if you want ― he'll leave a message. Where are the other boys?"
	"Chris went out," JC said. "I'm not sure where Lance and Joe are." He ran a hand through his hair. "We'll see."
	"Okay. Justin, you be good. JC, make sure he's good. I shouldn't be too long."
	Justin watched his mother leave. When the front door of the house shut, he slid back up onto the arm of the chair.
	"You know she's gonna forget her keys or something," JC began with a laugh, "and come back and see you, and then you'll get it for sure."
	Justin smirked. "Be good, Justin," he mimicked. "JC, make sure he's good." He rolled his eyes. "What are you supposed to do?"
	"Be a good influence."
	"Bullshit." 
	"What, I'm not a good influence?"
	"No."
	JC frowned. Then suddenly, he asked. "What about a Richard Marx song?"
	"For?"
	"A cover," JC replied as though he was going to add 'duh' to the end of it, like they had been on that topic the entire conversation. 
	"You always want to sing Richard Marx."
	"How about it?"
	"I don't know…" Justin frowned. "Which one?"
	"It's just an idea. I don't know." 
	"I think there are better ones that fit us than that. Or more fun ones. But maybe...Are you writing down your ideas?" Justin asked. "You'll forget them all." 
	JC pursed his lips together. "Good idea… I told you that you were smart…" He smiled. "Wanna make a list with me?"
	"Sure."
******
	When Joey showed up, they had eighteen songs on their list. Justin got up from the couch to run over and open the door for Joey when the doorbell rang, before darting back inside without much of a greeting. Joey followed him into the other room and watched Justin jump back into his space on the couch, tackling JC as he did so. A pad of paper fell on the ground.
	"What's going on, dorks?" Joey asked.
	Justin leaned down to reclaim the paper, stretching awkwardly for the pad that was just out of reach. JC pushed him off the couch as he was off balance, giving Joey the opportunity to slip in and take Justin's seat as the boy stumbled to the carpet.
	"We're making a list," Justin said as he got up from the floor. He tried to push Joey and JC's knees apart. "Let me in."
	"List for what?" Joey asked. 
	"Of songs," Justin explained. He pushed at his knee. "That we can cover. Since JC got Sailing in, we want to think of another one."
	"Let's do a Beatle's song," Joey answered, moving over a little and let Justin squeeze between them. "Or Temptations. Something like that."
	"We've written a few of theirs in already," JC assured. He took the pad from Justin's hands. "Here, you can look it over. Add or change any or whatever."
	Joey nodded and skimmed the titles. "So we're definitely doing Sailing?"
	"Unless one of you guys really hates it," JC replied slowly. "They said yes." 
	"But if you hate it, don't say it," Justin said. "JC wants to do it." 
	Joey laughed. "Don't worry, I don't hate it. I like that song."
	"I'm perfectly open to suggestions," JC objected. "Other than a few of the songs someone suggested."
	"What'd he suggest?" Joey asked.
	"Just a few that we could never do."
	"But, JC," Justin protested. "If you just listen―"
	"I have listened," JC said stiffly. "They'd have to edit out half the song. They'd never say yes."
	Justin scowled. "Whatever. It had a good beat." 
	"Oh, hey," Joey began. "I had a question for you guys."
	"What?" JC asked. 
	"About when we go back. What day is it? The twenty-fourth? I think it's a Friday, but I don't remember exactly offhand. Would guys mind if Steve came along?"
	"Steve?" Justin echoed. "He wants to come?"
	"Yes. Just to annoy you, he said," Joey answered. 
	"One Fatone is enough, don't you think?" Justin tilted his head over to look at him. Joey caught Justin's impish grin and reached to ruffle his curls. 
	"Funny. Very funny." 
	"That would be fun," JC said. "Ty wanted to come. He has school now but sometime I think he will. If Justin promises to be good."
	"I am so nice to him." Justin smiled.
	"Except when you two play ball."
	"That was like once."
	"But that was a big once," JC reminded.
	Justin shook his head. "You're totally making this up."
	"Uh-huh." 
	"I can still kick his ass," Justin persisted. "I'm older than him."
	"But how many months?"
	"Regardless. I'm older."
	"Anyway," Joey interrupted with a laugh. "So you guys are fine with Steve? He shouldn't be too annoying. And Justin, he's older than me and can kick your ass so..."
	"Can he kick yours?"
	"Not anymore." Joey laughed. 
	"That'll be fun," Justin admitted, "having another person we know around."
	"And," Joey persisted, "we can make him do stuff for us." 
	"Nice," JC said with a smile. "Like get us food when we're tired." 
	Joey nodded, laughing. "Exactly."
******
	"I can't believe we're seeing this movie." Chris shook his head. "This is awful."
	"Why do we always go to the movies?" Joey asked. "Let's go to a bar." 
	"Lance and Justin can't get into a bar at this time of night," JC said. "And we're too tired to do anything else."
	"We could rent something else instead of seeing this crap," Chris persisted. He gazed at the line in front of them. About six people. They still had time to decide.
	"Hey, you know what comes out next month?" Justin began. "Star Wars!" 
	Chris nodded. "That's right. You weren't born when it first came out, were you?"
	Justin shrugged. "When did it come out?" 
	"Wasn't it in '77?" JC replied. "I think it's being re-released for the twentieth anniversary?"
	"So the answer is no..." Chris laughed, looking at Justin. "You weren't." 
	Justin set his jaw and looked at Chris. "I've seen it on video. Not like you were old enough to remember it when you saw it in theatres."
	"I was plenty old enough," Chris returned. He though about it. "In fact, you weren't even born yet when the second one came out either."
	"So?" 
	"Lance was born then," Chris persisted.
	"What's your point?" Justin answered.
	"Not like I was old enough to remember it," Lance spoke up with a laugh.
	"So I wasn't born when anything important happened," Justin continued. "Big deal. Blame my mom. She was the one that had me."
	"Really?" Chris asked. "Imagine that. Your mother gave birth to you. You know, I've been wondering where you came from."
	"Chris, stop it," JC said, shaking his head and rolling his eyes. Chris often forgot that Justin had been an only child. He didn't always have the ability to put up with the ongoing teasing like the others could, although he was getting better and more used to what came with having four big brothers. 
	Chris changed the subject. "So we're really seeing 101 Dalmatians?"
	"Yeah." JC looked up at the advertisement for the movie. "No nightmares. No scary stuff. No gore. Just good old rated G fun."
	"It's bullshit," Joey replied. He suddenly thought about the gas station that was next door. "Hey, Chris." 
	"There's no such thing as good old rated G fun," Chris answered. He looked at Joey. "What?"
	The two of them stepped to the side to talk. 
	"There's really nothing else playing," Justin said, looking at the sign with a sigh. 
	"You're just saying that because you like the little cartoonized dogs," Lance answered. "You already said that." 
	"It's a good movie," Joey said as he stepped back from Chris, who was now walking away. "We'll rent a dirty movie after. Who's buying the tickets? I'm not going up to the line to ask for five movie tickets for the 101 fucking Dalmatians."
	"Where did Chris go?" Justin frowned, watching Chris walk out the doors. 
	Joey smiled. "To buy us some forties."
	"You're kidding." JC started to laugh. "That seems.... so wrong. It's a kid's movie."
	"What's a forty?" Lance asked slowly as the line move up a little.
	"A really big beer," Justin said, pleased he actually knew something. "Is he getting us all one?"
	"Yes," Joey said.
	Justin grinned. "Cool."
	"We are going to look so sketchy," JC said, continuing to chuckle. "Wow." 
******
	The next day, they were doing an Orlando-based photo shoot for a magazine. During the afternoon, they did a series of group shots with varying poses and outfits. As time went on, they each became increasingly comfortable with being in front of a camera for long periods of times with different poses. In the beginning there were worries like whether smiles looked fake or where they were wanted to stand and such, but it was becoming more natural now.
	"Lou's here," Chris mentioned as he, Lance, and Justin waited, sitting on a couch, until they were summoned for their individual shots.
	"He's been around a bit more lately, huh?" Lance noted. "We saw Johnny more initially. Well, we saw Lou before Johnny, but…" 
	"Yeah, I know," Chris agreed. 
	"Maybe because we're doing more here. Lou seems more of the Orlando focused guy."
	"That's true." 
	Chris glanced at Justin, who was bent over a book of jumbo crosswords that someone had given him, balancing it on his lap while chewing on the end of a pencil. He looked stiff. "What do you think, Justin? He likes us more because we're getting popular?" 
	Justin looked up, still chewing on the pencil. He shrugged. "I dunno... He's fat."
	Lance laughed at the random, blatant truth. "Yeah, he's a pretty big guy. That's for sure." 
	"Yeah..." Justin looked over in Lou's direction. "He's just... There's something weird about him."
	"What's so weird about him?" Lance answered.
	"I dunno." 
	Chris noticed something in Justin's eyes as the kid looked back down at the book. "Hey," he said. "Look at me a second."
	"What?" Justin looked up obediently, lowering the pencil. 
	"You tell me," Chris answered. "What's the matter?"
	"Nothing."
	"Nothing. Okay. You sure?"
	Justin nodded and scribbled on the corner of the book. 
	"You sure?" Chris persisted.
	"Yeah, it's nothing," Justin replied. He looked quickly at the crossword. "What's a five letter word for… instigate?" 
	"Instigate?" 
	"Um.... Start," Lance said.
	"Ooh, it fits." Justin carefully wrote the letters. "Thank you."
	Chris gave Justin a hard look that was lost  because Justin had already buried himself back in the book. He shrugged it off and looked up as Joey was approaching.
	"Hey, good looking," Chris said, wriggling his eyebrows.
	Joey laughed. "Asshole."
	Justin looked up. "JC still there?"
	Joey nodded with a smirk as he sat down. "Yeah. And there's this lady there that asks you all these questions for the article when you're done. I don't know who's next." 
	"I thought tomorrow was the interview," Lance said. He shrugged. "Guess both. What kind of questions?"
	"The typical stuff. And Lou's here too," Joey said. "Or at least, I saw him about ten minutes ago." 
	"Yeah, we saw him," Chris replied. 
	"He lurks kind of, huh?" Joey answered.
	"I guess he just likes to be the overseer and drop by," Chris replied. "I don't know. Johnny's a bit more communicative with us. Lou's just kind of around." 
	"I don't like it," Justin said, almost under his breath.
	"What?" Joey said.
	Justin looked up at them looking at him and flushed a little, cheeks pink. "I just don't really like how he comes around," he said softly, as though Lou was behind the corner listening.
	"Well, I think it's good to know he's there," Chris said. "Like he hasn't given up on us if he's around making sure things are getting done."
	"I still don't like it…" Justin persisted. He returned to his book. 
	"It is a little disconcerting…" Lance began. "Like how he comes by but doesn't say anything. Or says something after he's been here for a while." 
	"He can't think he's invisible," Joey began. "I mean, look at him." He laughed. 
	Justin looked up and opened his mouth as if to say something, but then promptly shut it and looked down again.
	"What, Justin?" Chris asked. "He say something?"
	"N-no," Justin responded.
	"Then what were you going to say?"
	"Nothing."
	"Nothing?"
	"I was just going to say yeah."
	"Then why didn't you just say it?" Chris replied. 
	Justin shook his head and chewed on the pencil again. "I don't know. It was repetitive. What's a…  four letter word for 'therefore'?"
	Silence.
	"Ergo," Lance said after a moment's pause.
	"You're really good at these," Justin said, looking up at Lance with some awe.
	A woman appeared a second later with a clipboard. "Justin?" she asked. "We need you now."
	Justin got up and put his book down on his chair, keeping the pencil in the page to hold the spot. He left with the woman.
	Chris reached over and took the crossword book up. "Think he'd mind if I helped him out?" 
	Joey rolled his eyes. "Go for it."
	"Hey, JC," Lance greeted suddenly as he noticed JC just a few feet away. He grinned at them, and asked,
	"Was Just the next victim?"
	"Yep," Lance affirmed.
	"Then only you two left?" He indicated Chris and Lance. "Because I'm getting hungry." 
	"Speaking of Justin…" Chris asked. "He okay today?"
	JC frowned. "I think so, yeah… Why?"
	"He was just acting a little funny." He opened the book to the page Justin had been on. "I don't know."
	"What's 'funny'?" JC asked, eyeing Chris. 
	"I don't know. Like he means to say something and doesn't. Like… I don't know," Chris replied. "Right?" He looked at Lance.
	"A little," Lance agreed. He shrugged. "I didn't think it was that weird."
	"It was," Chris said, "only because normally you can't get him to shut up." 
	"What was there to say, really?" Joey replied. "We were talking about Lou. Not much to really explain there." 
	"Still..." Chris said. "He wanted to say something." 
	"Where are we going for lunch after this?" Joey asked. "I'm hungry too."
	"Wanna go to the Ale House again?" Chris suggested. "I could go for some wings."
	"Sounds good to me."
	Down the hall, Justin was yawning. They said it wouldn't take long to finish up, so Justin was pleased by that news. He quickly changed into the shirt that they told him to, also content that these people weren't as touchy as others had been, trying to fix something on him every chance. 
	He wondered at the fact that Lou was here. Again. He'd seen a lot of him lately. And Chris was really right. It was good he was involved. They would wonder where he was if he wasn't acting as the overseer. So Justin couldn't understand why the thought of the man watching them made him so nervous. It was a good watching and as their producer he was supposed to watch them. 
	"Smile."
	Justin smiled for the camera with a grin he knew was kind of crooked but that was okay. They told him to move his head a little bit and then another man got up and fixed a light. He kept smiling while they did that. His forehead itched but he stayed still. The sooner this was done the better.
	"Serious now."
	Justin dropped the smile and tried to look a good serious. That wasn't hard considering his anxious thoughts. 
	He moved into a couple more poses. Sitting. Standing. Smiling. Frowning. Then they said he was done.
	He was just about walked ten feet away from the set when he felt that hand on the small of his back.
	He felt a shiver of dread run down his spine before he glanced and noticed it was JC. He relaxed.
	"Hey," JC greeted.
	Justin sighed. "Hey."
	"You all done?"
	"Yeah." 
	"That lady talk to you?" 
	"No."
	"Hm… I don't know where she is. Maybe she left. We do the article tomorrow anyway…" He shrugged and hooked his fingers into his jeans pocket. "Guess you lucked out."
	"I guess." 
	"So." JC bumped him gently with his elbow. "We're thinking of going to the Ale House. Are you hungry?"
	"Thirsty."
	"Will that place do?"
	Justin nodded. 
	"Okay…" JC looked at him briefly. "You have to change or is that your clothes?"
	"Change." 
	"Alright, let's go." 
	Justin nodded again and started walking back to the other room with him.
	"So Chris said you seemed like something was the matter," JC explained. "I figured I'd ask."
	"No... He got my book?"
	"I think so," JC agreed. "It's over where you were before at least. Joe and Lance are there. I think they may have called Chris."
	"Why'd he say that?"
	"Hm?"
	"That something's the matter?"
	JC pressed his lips together. "I don't know. Maybe you were just a little quiet or something, hm?"
	"I'm not allowed to be quiet?"
	"He's not allowed to worry about you?"
	"No, he's not," Justin answered affirmatively. "Not like that."
	"And why not?" JC replied. "So there's nothing the matter. Wouldn't have been nice if there was and he noticed?"
	"It wouldn't be nice if something was the matter," Justin objected.
	"No," JC agreed. "But it would be nice he paid attention and knew and could ask about it."
	Justin shrugged. "You didn't notice."
	"Is there something to notice?" 
	Justin chewed on his lip and shook his head. "No."
	"It's okay, you know. We all have something on our minds."
	"What's your something?" Justin asked.
	"I don't know… When I'll get a chance to hang with Heather or Tyler. When we're leaving again. What to get you for your birthday… How many days?" 
	"I don’t know," Justin replied. "I forgot."
	"You stopped counting?" JC frowned. 
	Justin shrugged. "A few weeks."
	"It'll come quick." JC looked up as they reached where Lance and Joey were sitting. They joined them and Justin grabbed his book back from where it sat on Chris's empty seat.
	He opened it to the page he was on. "Chris finished it…" He frowned.
	"He got carried away," Joey said.
	"He did it messy." Justin scowled.
	"There's a thousand other puzzles in there," JC pointed out.
	"No. Now there's only ninety-nine." 
	"Well, suck it up," JC laughed at Justin's disappointed face. 
	"I just think he should have asked."
	"He did," Lance said. "He asked us if we thought you'd mind." He glanced at Joey and shrugged.
	"And we said no," Joey replied. 
	"Then it's you guys' fault," Justin replied.
	"I'm hungry…" Joey complained. "Lance, you best be quick when they call you in there. My ribs and burgers are paused for you."
	"Fries..." JC said. "I could really go for some cheese fries."
*******
	Eventually the photoshoot finished up. The left happily and headed out to get some food. They collapsed into a booth at the Ale House and looked around at the people celebrating happy hour.
	"You know..." Lance looked around. "Right now is the highlight of a lot of these people's days." 
	"Right now isn't the highlight of your day?" Joey responded.
	"Well.... It is..." Lance admitted. "But that's just today. I don't have to go back to any boring nine to five desk job tomorrow."
	"That's true." 
	Taking a long swallow of his beer, Chris looked at the other guys sitting at the booth with him. "And to think, we'll soon be tasting German beer again, experiencing the German bar scene."
	"Some of us," Justin replied.
	Chris shrugged. "Some is better than none."
	"And German women," Joey said jokingly. 
	"And feeling the cold again," JC added. "Don't forget that part." 
	"And crummy hotel rooms," Justin spoke up. "The crummiest."
	"Well, you don't have to make 'em crummier by, like, breaking the bed," Joey reminded. 
	"Once," Justin objected. "By accident, once."
	"Maybe since we're bigger," Lance began, "as we apparently are from all they've been telling us, we'll get bigger hotel rooms."
	"I doubt it," Chris laughed. "Or at least, I wouldn't get my hopes up… I talked to Johnny once and it was more along the line of 'do you want to be able to afford studio time, or each have your own room'." 
	"Studio time," JC said with a sigh. "It's aways so expensive." 
	"Everything's so expensive," Lance replied as he looked at the menu. "It's depressing."
	"Well, some beer, some wings, some fried food..." Joey answered. "That'll make things less depressing." 
	"Food is always your answer," Justin said, shaking his head.
	"Well, yeah..." Joey shrugged. "Whatever the problem is, you really don't need to be hungry too." 
	"I like your outlook on life," Chris said with a smirk. 
******
	When the day came for them to return to Germany, Lance was nervous. It almost was like he was used to living in the States again, and being so far away from home with a distant memory. It was amazing to him how easily he slipped into these different schedules. He was a lot more adept at adjusting than he would have thought. At the same time, he was nervous. Excited, but nervous. He was not looking forward to being on an airplane for several hours. But he hoped this time would still be fun. Joey's brother was coming, and that would be something new. 
	Justin's stomach was churning. He wasn't sure whether it was because he didn't want to go back or the idea of the long flight or something else. He wasn't sure what his feelings were on going back. He thought he would feel more excited than this. He really wanted to be back on stage, especially if the rumors were true and they were more popular. So then why did he feel this odd about it? 
	Sitting across from him in the airport, Lance looked a little morose. He had headphones on. His mother wasn't flying with them this time because she had some other commitment. Justin wasn't sure what that particular commitment was, only that Lance didn't look very happy about it. He looked pale too. Justin wondered if Lance felt a little sick about this whole thing too. At least it wasn't just him.
	JC and Joey had cards and were were playing Rummy next to him. They had turned in their seats to face each other and kept one seat between them to place the cards on. Justin watched their exchange for a few minutes. They laughed every now, talking about something else, but tried to keep it a serious game. It was their way of trying to waste as much time as possible. Johnny's transportation for them to the airport had gotten them there pretty early and so after they checked in, tey still had quite a bit of time.
	"Where's Chris?" Justin asked. He didn't see him anywhere.
	No one said anything. Joey was right next to him, but he was turned towards the cards and JC.
	Justin still felt very anxious. He wondered why. Did he want to go back? He couldn't tell. Whether they were here or there they were working just as much. He was almost just on edge for being still so long in the airport, being bored. He didn't like this silence. He wanted attention. He got up and moved to crouch in front of the seat that had the cards on it. JC was to his right and Joey his left. He moved his hand to touch a card.
	"Justin, don't," JC started in a warning tone, reaching to touch the top of Justin's head gently. 
	"I'm not gonna mess it up," Justin replied. "I'm fixing it. It's crooked."
	"Okay."
	Justin straightened the card. "Will someone just tell me. Where's Chris?"
	"I think he went to the bathroom," Joey answered. "Or to get something to eat? He just left like ten minutes ago. Steve went with him."
	"How come he didn't ask me if I wanted to go?"
	"He asked if anyone wanted to go, dumbass. You were in your own world, I guess."
	"I would've gone." Justin felt a pang of regret. He could have been somewhere else, walking around, and maybe stopping the anxious churning in his gut. He pushed at another card. "Could I catch up or did they go far?"
	"We're not sure where he went," JC objected. He picked up a card from the pile and tapped Justin's hand away. "You might get lost."
	"I know my way around the airport."
	"But you don't know where he is."
	"That's why I would go find him…" Justin answered with a tired sigh. He looked over at Lance again. His eyes were closed. "Lance is sad."
	"He's tired," JC said. "You are too." He reached to pat his curls again and that made Justin feel a little more anxious. Like he wanted to stay home maybe. He wasn't sure. Suddenly he felt uneasy. But he didn't like when JC's hand went back to the cards.
	Justin rocked on his haunches for a minute and watched Joey's turn at the game. Then he asked, "Where's my book?" 
	"Which book?" JC asked.
	Justin didn't think he had too many books, and so he frowned at JC, wondering what other books he could be thinking about. "That stupid crosswords book," he said slowly, thinking about where it was. Last time he saw it was… Well he knew he'd taken it from the photo shoot. 
	"Where'd you leave it last?" JC asked. He didn't sound concerned. He didn't even look up.
	"You had it," Justin said sulkily. He didn't know whether he had or not, but if JC thought he might have, then he'd be more inclined to help him think about where it was so that it wouldn't be his fault.
	"Is it in your backpack?" Joey asked, reaching over two seats to grab Justin's carry-on backpack. He reached for the zipper, and Justin quickly took it away from him.
	"Just- Watch it," JC began as Justin's elbow hit the cards and they shifted. A few slid off the seat.
	Justin lowered down on the ground to sit with the backpack in his lap. First he picked up the two cards and put them back where he thought they were supposed to go. Then he unzipped his bag, wondering if it could be in there. He opened it. There were a couple magazines in there. Headphones. Gum. Some CDs. A bag of pretzels. Chris's gameboy. "I don't see it…"
	"I didn't have it," JC said as he fixed the cards on the seat. 
	"I did..." Justin blinked and tilted his head to look under the seat. He saw the another card and picked it up. "You think I left it?" he asked sadly.
	"I don't know…" JC replied. "You don't need it now anyway."
	"Yeah, but it was just something to do…" Justin sighed and looked up at Lance, who had slouched down a bit. Maybe he was even asleep. Justin wondered if he should sleep too. He could usually sleep almost everywhere. He sighed pitifully.
	"What's the matter?" JC asked. He glanced at Justin before looking back at Joey and gesturing to the cards. "You wanna bother?"
	Joey shook his head. "Nah. It's okay. I'm getting bored too." 
	Justin watched JC pull the cards into one pile and started, "Sorry, did I ruin it?"
	"No, we just don't want to play anymore," Joey answered. "There's only so much of that I can play."
	"Oh." Justin zippered his bag and then unzipped it again. "JC…"
	"I didn't have your book last, Justin," JC replied. "And you saying I did is not going to make me look for it."
	Justin frowned. JC knew his mind games too well. "But then where is it?"
	"Did you pack it?"
	Justin parted his lips as if to speak but paused in thinking. "I don't remember."
	"Is it at your house?"
	"I don't know. What if it is?"
	"Then say goodbye to it, Justin, because I don't know when we'll be back." JC sat back in his chair, straightening now that the game was over. The cards lay in one stack on the seat between him and Joey. 
	"Yeah, but…" Justin held his bag to his chest. "Maybe you packed it?"
	"I didn't. I promise I didn't. I didn't touch any of your stuff."
	"Maybe Chris?"
	JC shook his head. "Justin, if you didn't pack it, no one packed it for you. But it's just a book. You don't need it."
	Justin ran his hands through his hair, almost looking distressed. "But I'm bored..." 
	"So just sit and relax," Joey replied. 
	Justin shook his head and pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes hard. "I can't. We've been here an hour now..." 
	JC sighed and slouched down in his seat. "Well, I don't know what to tell you." He gazed at Justin for a minute and then sat up and leaned forward to reach for Justin's bag. He pulled it into his lap. "What else have you got?" He pulled out the Gameboy. "How 'bout this?"
	"Batteries…" Justin said, looking up at him.
	"Why are you bringing it with you if it hasn't got batteries?"
	"It's Chris'."
	"Fine. Music?" JC held up a Discman.
	"Ooh, gum," Joey began, peering in and reaching for the gum. He took a piece and began to unwrap it.
	"Hey," Justin protested, voice rising. 
	"You want some?" Joey held another stick of gum out.
	"It's mine."
	"So you want some?"
	"It's mine." 
	"And it's in my mouth. You really want it back?"
	"Alright." JC took the pack of gum out of Joey's hand and dropped it back in the bag. JC took out the bag of pretzels. "Hungry?" 
	Justin brightened. "Hey, let's go check out the food here. Are you hungry at all? We can go for food?"
	"So no pretzels?"
	"Those are for the actual plane ride. But we can go check out what's around here. Walk around a little. Want to?" Justin looked at Joey, expecting a yes because Joey was always into doing something involving food. But he got an unenthusiastic response. 
	"If you two wanna go," Joey suggested, "I'll stay with Lance." 
	JC sighed, thinking about it. He was comfortable in his chair. His legs were tired. They had a good view to outside of any planes that were taking off from that area. And now two gates down from them a plane had landed and passengers were getting out; it must have been a 747 or something because it seemed like hundreds were coming out and walking down towards the other terminal.
	It would be so busy.
	But Justin looked so miserable like he couldn't sit anymore. And he was on the ground at their feet for God's sake. He looked like he would cry if one more thing happened like Joey taking a piece of gum or Chris leaving without him or finding out he'd forgotten a crossword book. 
	"You really wanna go?" JC asked.
	"You don't have to." Justin frowned. 
	"You want to?"
	"…Yeah." 
	JC sighed and stood up, depositing the backpack behind him on his seat. "OK. Let's try not to get lost. I've got like five bucks, and you've got I bet nothing, so I'm not sure how the whole actually getting food part will pan out." 
	Justin was on his feet quickly. "Okay."
	JC gave Joey a small wave, and Joey rolled his eyes. Justin and JC started to walk down away from their gate and the seating area. There were still so many people coming from that over gate that had just arrived. They tried to maneuver around them and walk closely together so they wouldn't get separated. JC glanced at Justin beside him. "You nervous about the trip?"
	"Not really."
	"Not at all?"
	"No." Justin looked at the crowd; he tugged at JC's sleeve and in a theatrical voice said, "Now, you stick with me, JC, you hear?"
	JC smirked. "Definitely." 
	"Don't want you to get lost."
	"God forbid."
	"It'd be a waste to miss the flight looking for you."
	"I know. Truly a waste."
	God, was all JC could think as he looked around, there were suddenly a lot of people. In a rush too. Babies in strollers. Grandparents in wheelchairs. Businessmen in suits with bags. Families. Stewardesses. They were all walking past them and towards them and around them and beside them...
	"You always see a lot of interesting people at an airport," JC said slowly. 
	Justin nodded, glancing around. "Yeah, that's true." 
	They walked until they reached one of the gift shop/magazine stores. 
	"You want to stop here?" JC asked. He really didn't want to make it to the actual food court, which was bound to be a distaster. 
	"Food," Justin replied.
	"They have some stuff in there."
	"I want real food."
	"But, Justy, I've got five dollars, I told you…" 
	"We can split something at McDonald's… They have a McDonald's in the main part… Maybe Chris and Steve are there…" Justin insisted. "Want to get chicken nuggets?"
	JC sighed. "Whatever."
	"Or a chicken sandwich? I want chicken." Justin pulled at his arm. 
	"I really don't care, man."
	"Chicken nuggets are easier to split between us." 
	JC nodded in agreement and rubbed his hands together, hating people all of a sudden as a large family nearly blocked the entire lane of traffic. "Keep your eyes out for Chris and Steve."
	"Okay." Justin was more looking for how to get to that McDonald's he remembered seeing. It wasn't too far from here he knew… But he couldn't see through all these people. He looked at JC. "It's not that I'm nervous or anything, I don't think, it's just my stomach feels funny."
	"What do you mean, funny?" JC replied cautiously. "If you throw up I'm kicking your ass."
	"Not throw up funny… Just funny."
	"Just now?"
	"No… Since… It has…"
	"So you are nervous. I knew it." 
	"I'm not," Justin said. "Not about flying. Or… Well, I'm not sure. What if I am?"
	"Flying? Hey, you fly all the time…"
	"Not fly," Justin answered. "Just going in general."
	"Well, that's fine… I'm nervous too," JC responded. "We're big over there. And we're gonna have a lot of crap to do too. But it's an exciting slash nervous slash tired sort of feeling. We all have it."  
	"Will Lou and Johnny be there?"
	"They usually are…" JC looked around. "That the McDonald's down there?… And don't be worried. Look how far we've come. We can't stop now."
	"I don’t want to stop. I didn't say that. I just said I felt funny. And yes, that's McDonald's. Are you stupid? Yellow arches, hello…"
	JC rolled his eyes.
********
	Lance suddenly noticed that it was just him and Joey and slid off his headphones. Joey was just sitting across from him looking around at people, and Lance felt confused. It seemed like he just closed his eyes for a second, and now he started to wonder what exactly had gone on while he was zoned out. His mind had been so focused on other things that he didn't know exactly what had gone on around him. All the nervousness surrounding the trip back to Germany and how they would be received. He thought about his mom too. Maybe he should call her… He wouldn't see her for a while. How much did it cost to call from Germany?
	"Where'd people go?" Lance asked.
	Joey looked at him. "Huh? People?" He laughed. "The other guys?"
	"Yeah."
	"The Disney boys went for food. Justin couldn't sit still. And, uh, Steve and Chris left a little while before them. I'm not sure where." Joey glanced at his watch and shrugged. He wasn't worried about them getting back. They had plenty of time.
	"Oh."
	"You want to go anywhere?"
	"Nah."
	"Good. I was wondering who else would watch the bags." Joey smirked and gestured at the various carry-ons that the guys had left on seats and on the floor in their trusted watch. "Since they obviously expect us to do that."
	Lance nodded. "We should pilfer though their stuff." 
	Joey looked at Lance carefully. "You're nervous too, huh?" 
	"Me?" Lance started to object but then realized it was Joey. Who would see right through him anyway. "Yeah."
	"It'll be different without Diane, huh?"
	"A little bit."
	Joey frowned. "Yeah… I miss my mom too. Steve's coming so that'll be somewhat nice. Even though he's an asshole sometimes."
	"I thought you were the asshole."
	Joey grinned. "Nope. Definitely Steve…" 
	"Hey, where'd you get the gum?"
	"Gum? Oh." Joey reached over and took Justin's bag, unzipping it and reaching in to find the pack. "You want a piece?"
	"Sure."
*******
	Justin was in charge of filling up their sodas and so he left JC on the line to wait for the actual food. He pressed the button for ice. It didn't work. So he went a couple feet over to the next one. It rumbled and then let out ice. He filled each cup a bit and then went to the Coke and filled the cups to the top. 
	He was just looking for the plastic lids when he heard his name called.
	He turned looked around through the people and saw Steve and Chris sitting about ten feet away at a small table. He smiled. 
	Glancing over at JC once more, he quickly found two lids, popped them on, and made his way over to Chris and Steve.
	"Hey, buddy," Steve greeted. "Pull up a chair."
	Justin put down the two sodas carefully and dragged two chairs over from an empty table. "We didn't know where you two were…" 
	"I asked if you wanted to come," Chris answered. "I asked you if you were hungry, but you weren't paying attention."
	"You didn't talk loud enough." Justin glanced back at the counter. "I'm always hungry. Let me go help JC. I'll be right back."
	JC was just picking up the tray from the counter and turning around when Justin got to his side and he was addressed with a, "Guess what, JC?" 
	"What, Justin?" JC responded with mock excitement. "Where do you wanna sit?"
	"With Chris and Steve, come on."
	"Is that the answer to your guess what?" JC followed Justin over and they joined the older two. "Hey, guys." He sat. 
	"Hey," Steve replied before putting fries in his mouth. 
	"I forgot straws," Justin answered. "I'll get them."
	"Napkins too," JC added as the boy stepped away. He reached for his own french fries with a sigh. "We figured you guys were here."
	"You two got hungry?" Chris asked.
	"Justin was getting fidgety. We needed to do something." 
	"Ah." 
	"And my brother didn't want food?" Steve replied. "Amazing."
	"I know, I was shocked too. He preferred laziness." JC grinned. Steve was a lot like his brother and got along with them well. He toted a camera a lot, as Joey often did as well, and a lot of times they had fun being hams for them. Steve brought out a lot of good characteristics in Joey when they interacted too.
	Justin returned and dropped several napkins and two straws down. "Alright. Let's eat. I'm hungry."
	"That's all you two got?" Chris frowned at two boxers of chicken nuggets. "And you're hungry?"
	"We only had five bucks," JC answered. "Besides, we ate lunch not long before we came to the airport remember."
	"Five bucks doesn't go far," Steve said as he took a bite of his burger.
	"Nope," Justin said, opening one of the boxes. "JC's cheap."
	"I'm not cheap," JC laughed. "It's all I had in my wallet." 
	"Bullshit," Chris said teasingly. "JC, you just doesn't want to get him real food." 
	With a look, JC replied, "Want to look in my pockets, smartass?"
	"I would love to," Chris said with a wink. "Are you inviting me to cop a feel, hot stuff?"
	"I'd say that was an invitation," Steve laughed.
	"You think you're funny, huh?" JC shook his head and reached for a chicken nugget. "Justin, I bet you didn't have any more money than I did. So shut up. Here, I got honey-mustard and ketchup. I didn't know what you felt like."
	"Ketchup," Justin replied, reaching for a packet and opening it. "Mm…"
	"It's going to be cold when we get off the plane…" Chris began, watching Justin let a glob of ketchup out into the box. "I'm not ready for cold. I like my Floridian January just fine. You get used to it, you know?"
	"My birthday's in a week," Justin said as he pushed a piece of chicken into the ketchup.
	"We know," Chris said. "Every time someone mentions God damn January you bring it up."
	"Joe's is… soon," Steve said. "God, when is his? The twenty…"
	"Twenty-eighth," Justin answered. "You don't know? And you're his brother…"
	"Psh. You've seen more of him this year than me, squirt. Besides, I knew it was coming up. I just suck at dates." 
	"How old's he gonna be?" Justin challenged.
	"Twenty. I knew that one. Nice try. And how old'll you be?"
	"Ten," Justin answered.
	Steve laughed. "Ah, I was close. I would've guessed eleven."
	Justin shrugged and licked ketchup off his fingers.
	"Seriously, how old?" Steve asked a moment later when he still hadn't gotten a real answer.
	Justin held up both hands. There was ketchup smeared on his left hand. "Ten, asshole. I just got you." 
	"Cute. JC,  Chris, how old is he?"
	"Ten sounds about right," Chris muttered.
	JC took a sip of his soda. "He'll be sixteen. He's fifteen now." 
	"Fifteen and three hundred and fifty-eight days," Justin answered with a grin. "Ya'll are just jealous."
	"Oh, yes," Chris replied. "What I wouldn't give to be unable to drive… drink… vote… be alone… Oh, the good old days. Yes, I am understandably dying from my jealousy of your youthful glory." 
	Justin glared at Chris as the man took another bite of his burger. "Yeah, it's so cool to be old. You'll die first."
	"Justin," JC objected, rolling his eyes. "That's awful."
	"It's true, you know," Chris said with a fake sigh. "We've been through this. But, then, Justin, won't you be the only one left in the end, bored and mourning over us?"
	"You too," JC chided. "Chris, stop it. Don't be morbid."
	"I won't mourn over you," Justin said. "I won't even come to your funeral."
	"You'll regret saying that," Chris answered. 
	JC sighed. "You better pray you both live a long time."
	"Ooh…" Steve began. "Guys, I'd stop. He's getting pissed. JC, you sound like my mother." 
	JC shrugged and with a frown ate another chicken nugget. "I hate when they do that. You guys did that once before. I just hate talking about when people are going to die." 
	"French fry?" Steve offered, holding out his box.
	JC rolled his eyes and took another chicken nugget. "No thanks. Justin, you better eat these now or I'm going to eat all of them. They're pretty damn good." 
	Justin grudgingly took up a piece of chicken. "Five minutes ago you didn't even want to get off your ass to come over here."
	JC shrugged. "Well, they're good."
*******
	"The flight attendant's kind of cute, isn't she?" 
	Justin looked at Joey skeptically. "Her only purpose is hand us peanuts, Joey."
	Chris suddenly turned around in his seat and looked at them. "What did you just say?"
	Justin frowned. "That her only purpose is to give us peanuts… Well, and soda."
	"Oh."
	"What'd you think I said?"
	Chris smirked. "I thought you said to do something to something other than peanuts."
	Joey started laughing. "Penis?"
	"Yeah," Chris admitted as he laughed. "I heard penis and hand."
	"And that immediately caught your attention."
	"Of course." 
	"I didn't say that," Justin replied. "I said peanuts."
	"Well, she can do anything she wants to my peanuts," Joey replied with a grin.
	Chris smirked. "Peanuts."
	Joey grinned. "That is so funny… Chris, you perve… This kid probably has no idea what you're talking about."
	"Sure, he does. He's got one, he should know what you do with it." 
	Lance shook his head, catching the end of the conversation and rolling his eyes. "Oh God… You guys..."
	"Hey." JC looked over from his seat across the aisle. He looked at them pointedly. "Stop corrupting them."
	"Oh, no fun, JC," Joey answered. "Besides, it's not corruption if they already know it. He was born with one, you think I'm telling him anything new?"  
	"Whatever."
	"There will be no talks of penises," Chris said, wagging his finger at Justin. "You hear me? No more penis or peanut talk."
	An elderly woman turned her head to look at them. Chris boldly stared her down. She turned back around.
	"That's right," Chris said soft enough for only them to hear. "You mind your own business."
	"Chris…" Justin pleaded, but he laughed. "That was terrible." 
	"What? She hasn't got one so she can't join our conversation."
	"Because you're not having that conversation," JC persisted, embarrassed. He looked around to see if anyone else was listening to their conversation. He didn't like when people went out of their way to have an uncomfortable conversation so loudly. 
	"All I said was that the stewardess is hot," Joey answered with a smirk. "Suddenly then Justin's talking about penises."
	"Peanuts!" Justin objected. "All I said was that she gives peanuts."
	"Joey, Chris," Steve said from beside JC tiredly. "Get your mind out of the gutter. There's a kid sitting in the row in front of you. And, Justin, ignore them."
	"That's hard," Justin answered dryly.
	"The stewardess is kinda hot," Chris agreed. "She hasn't smiled yet though. Maybe you should ask her for some peanuts, Joe."
	Joe and Chris cracked up laughing. Justin sat there and sighed, trying to be serious and wondering what he'd inadvertently started. But then he looked at them and started laughing too. JC shook his head and closed his eyes.
	"You guys are so stupid."
	"When are we taking off?" Lance asked. 
	"Getting off?" Joey asked. 
	"Soon, I think," Chris answered, laughing. 
	"Seriously though," Lance said. "What time are we supposed to leave?"
	"Soon," Steve replied. "Everyone's on the plane so they're probably just doing final checks." 
*******
	When they finally got to the airport in Germany, they were all stiff, tired, and welcomed by the unfamiliar language that had surrounded them not too long ago. People walked quickly past them saying things they did not understand with a mood entirely different from that of Florida. They were back into the adjustment phase again. 
	When they got all their baggage at last, which took a long time since one of JC's bags seemed to be misplaced until they found it on another baggage carousel, Joey suggested that they get warmer clothes out of their bags before they left the airport.
	"I need a sweatshirt or something," he said. 
	"Good idea," JC said. 
	"Yeah... My bag's disorganized…" Justin objected. 
	"Well, let's sit over here," Steve said, gesturing to a few empty chairs. "Let's not freeze to death."
	Justin took one of the four seats Steve had pointed at, dragging his bag in front of him. It was heavy, and fully packed to the point where he'd barely been able to zipper it. He remembered sitting on it to close it, and didn't feel like dong that again. He didn't want to open it and go through it... That would take energy. He started to wish he was more organized.
	Sitting next to him, JC already had a coat out. He'd obviously been smart and had packed the important stuff on top. Or just lucky.
	"Isn't someone going to be here to pick us up?" Chris asked. "If I remember right?"
	"Are we going to get a bus soon?" Joey asked. "Aren't we supposed to?"
	"I think so," Lance said. "I really want a bus. I'd rather drive than fly places."
	"Well we couldn't drive from Florida."
	"Obviously." 
	"A bus would be awesome," Justin spoke up as he reached down and unzipped his bag with a sigh. It was really packed tightly.
	"Here." JC tossed him gloves from his own bag. "And here." A scarf. "Come on, Justin."
	"Where's my coat?" Justin replied, digging out a few t-shirts.
	"Maybe it's with your book." JC peered into Justin's bag as well. Justin dug through a moment before pulling out the coat, sliding it from beneath other clothes. He noticed a sweatshirt and pulled it out as well. 
	"Layers..." Justin said, pulling the sweatshirt on over his head.
	"I hope the hotel has heat…" Joey sighed. 
	"That was just a weird time," Chris said. "Let's get going. I've had enough of airports and airplanes.
*******
	Justin had forgotten how depressing Germany was for him. It was worse in the beginning, but even now it was a little tough to get situated again and be in such a different time zone and not hear any English. Especially when they were thrown right into things again without so much as a chance to relax. By the afternoon on their first day back, they had small nap out of the way in their too small room, and two hours later an an interview was completed with a local magazine. They were back now in their 'cozy' room.  The paint was peeling off the walls and the couch was ratty and they couldn't help but wonder, weren't they famous now? They had a lot of fans to sign autographs for so far that day and so why were they staying here?
	JC was asleep beside him on the bed, snoring softly. JC never had a problem sleeping. Usually Justin didn't either, especially with the recent exhausting schedule, but this time his mind was too cluttered. Joey was resting on the other bed and looked like he was about to fall asleep any moment. Chris, Lance, and Steve were squeezed onto the couch watching TV.
	Why this place? Justin kept criticizing things mentally in his head, like the curving cracks he just noticed in the ceiling, and soon couldn't keep his thoughts to himself. "Does that big brown spot on the ceiling mean that water's gonna come gushing through any minute?" he asked. 
	No one answered. 
	A minute later he said, "Why does the heater sound like there's an animal trapped in it?"
	Again, no answer. 
	Next it was, "It looks like someone bled all over the carpet. You think somebody was murdered in here?"
	They ignored everything he said.
	"Quit complaining," Chris eventually sighed when he asked for like the third time why they couldn't stay somewhere nicer. "Prima donna."
	"Shut up," Justin answered. "You can just agree this place is crappy. It's not like this is the Ritz." 
	"You complain about everything. It's cold. You're hungry. You're tired. The room's too small. You lost your goddamn book. What do you want us to do about it?"
	"Sympathize," Justin answered. "That's all." 
	"Okay, fine. I'm sympathizing. Now shut the fuck up." 
	Justin paused. "Do you know where that book is?" he asked. 
	"Lance has one almost like it," Joey said tiredly from the other bed. "Don't you still, Lance?"
	"The crosswords?" Lance asked. "Yeah. Kind of. It's not all crosswords though. It's got all sorts of puzzles and stuff."
	"Oh, okay…" Justin sighed and slid down on the bed, laying flat on his back. He turned his head to study JC's face, who was laying on his side facing him, asleep. "I bet it's at home… I should stop looking for it."
	"Why don't you fly back and get it?" Steve suggested. "If it's that important." 
	"Good idea. Will you step in for me on stage?" 
	"Sure, pal."
	"Cool." Justin frowned and reached to touch the tip of JC's nose. The man didn't move. "I think you could do it too, Steve."
	"Thanks, man," Steve answered. "I don't look too much like you though."
	"They won't notice." Justin reached down and fingered JC's Leo's necklace that he was so familiar with. He rubbed his finger over the symbol, pulling slightly. He was so bored.
	JC shifted. 
	"Oh, I think they'd notice," Chris said with a laugh. 
	"And Steve can't dance," Joey said from the bed tiredly. "At all. Unless maybe he's loaded." 
	"I can dance, you moron," Steve answered. "Maybe not with your ridiculous synchronization, but… I have rhythym."
	"No, you really don't."
	Justin touched the Leo's necklace again and the man's eyes opened slowly.
	"What do you want?" JC murmured, pushing Justin's hand away and rolling onto his back. "I'm tired." He closed his eyes again. 
	"My legs are tired but I'm not tired," Justin replied. "Not really." 
	"Let your legs sleep then."
	Justin smirked. "Yeah."
	"They can't sleep with you talking."
	"Uh-huh." 
	"I’m serious." JC yawned. He started to get up and pull back the blankets on the bed. "Let me nap."
	"You'll mess up the bed."
	"Mm. Yeah. I hope." 
	"Justin, come watch TV," Chris called him. "Come here. Let JC rest so he doesn’t get moody."
	"Moody," JC agreed. "Let me rest." He pushed Justin, hand on his hip. "Go on."
	Justin frowned and slid off the bed acquiescently. When he glanced at JC, the man had already rolled over to take up more room with a sigh.
	"Hey," Steve began as Justin walked over to the couch. "I don't want to sleep either. Why don't we just go somewhere, get out of here?"
	"Go where?" Justin asked. There was no room. Lance, Chris, and Steve took it all up. He sat on the arm of the couch by Chris.
	"Well, anywhere." Steve shrugged. "I don't know. But it'll get us out of the hotel room at least. Let JC and my little brother sleep."  
	Justin laughed. "Joey's not little…"
	Steve smirked. "Not size-wise, no. So who wants to go?"
	"I do," Chris said.
	"Lance, you coming?" Justin asked.
	Lance nodded. "Yeah, why not? I'd love to get out of here." 
*******
	The walk was uneventful for a while. They had no real direction and no interest in going anywhere in particular. They bought some coffee after about fifteen minutes of aimless walking, both because it was cold and something to do, and then Justin eyed a bookstore.
	"Let's go in there."
	"Why?" Lance asked.
	"Maybe they have more crossword books."
	"What's your obsession?" Chris rolled his eyes.
	"Crosswords are fun," Steve objected. "It's like an addiction."
	The bookstore was very dusty and old and it didn't even look like they would have any book written after 1800, never mind crosswords. Justin didn't mind too much because he didn't need the book really; it was again just something to do to waste some time. 
	The man at the register of the store looked just about as old as the books. He eyed the four guys wearily, watching them for a moment before going back to cleaning his glasses. 
	Justin followed behind Chris, who began looking through a bunch of titles on a shelf in front of him. He picked one up and turn it around to read the back. 
	"You can't read it." Justin rubbed at his neck. He'd worn a scarf again and it was warm in here. The scarf was itchy. 
	"Says who?" Chris answered.
	"You don't know enough German."
	"You can help me with that little translating book you bought way back then. Unless you lost that too."
	"No, that I have… But it's useless. I can't understand what anybody says to look it up." 
	Chris put the book back. 
	Lance came over to them, holding out a folded up map. "Let's buy a map," he said. "So we know where we are. It's a big one. It's got a bunch of places."
	"Good idea," Chris answered. "You got any money?" He dug into his pockets. "Justin, you want anything?"
	"Books? No." Justin shook his head. 
	Chris gave Lance a few bills. "See if that's enough." He watched Lance go and glanced at Justin. "You think he misses Diane too bad? He's a little quiet this time. Not a smartass like usual."
	Justin frowned. "Lance is always quiet."
	Chris smirked. "He's really not so quiet. You just have to pay attention."
	Justin shrugged. 
	"We can't all bounce everywhere like you." Chris looked around. "Where's Steve looking?" 
	Justin shrugged. "Probably porn."
	"I wish there was porn in here." Chris looked around and located Steve an aisle away. He gestured him over. "Let's get this map and go." 
******
	They had a TV appearance the next day in Oberhausen for "The Dome". They had to get up early to get over to the studio by a van. The extra rest achieved by JC and Joey the day before became envied by the other yawning members of the group.
	Steve was tired, but he had the camcorder out, filming the other guys as they made their way through the studios to the place they'd been directed.
	"Why the hell do you have to be an asshole, Steve?" Chris asked, shoving the camera out of his face for the fifth time. "At this hour of the day?"
	"Because we need some good 'before they were stars' footage," Joey's brother answered with a grin. He turned the camera towards a serious faced JC. 
	"Bullshit," Chris muttered.
	JC noticed the camera on him and frowned, rolling his eyes. "No, not me. Get Justin, he's the ham."
	Steve turned the camera towards Justin, who looked at him sulkily. "Justin, be the ham," Steve encouraged.
	Justin shook his head. "No…" he whined.
	Steve put the camera down. "Well, you guys have to be on TV very soon… Are you going to wake up for that?"
	"I think we'll wake up when they start poking us and pulling our hair and clothes," Lance replied. "And then we have no choice." 
	Steve laughed. "I hope so. Because right now none of you are making good footage."
	"Then turn off the camera," Joey told his brother.
	"You guys are lame. Stars have to be 'on' all the time, you know."
	"Well, maybe when people start to treat us like stars, we'll act like stars," Chris replied.
*******
	Justin closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, he stared at the wall as the strange looking guy with the long nose who had just finished getting Joey ready for the show did the same for him. There were so many things it seemed he had to do before he was slightly satisfied. Straighten his shirt. No, here, take that off and put this one on. It's tighter. Yes. And now those pants have to go. Try on these. 
	That hand slipped a little low.
	That was definitely a grope.
	That was not the first grope either. 
	He'd let the first couple pass. Sometimes people's hands brushed places they weren't supposed to. Sometimes it seemed like a genuine mistake. He tried to understand that. It happened. But this guy was seeming to do it purposefully.
	Justin wondered what would happen if he threw a fit and freaked out at the guy. Just right then and there, yelled at him to stop being such a pervert. Because this guy was definitely bothering him. And he'd only been standing here about five minutes. He considered it. He had thrown semi-fits times before with sometimes favorable responses from those around him. Never in a very public place though. Not in a studio or anything. Only with the guys. Chris or Joey would threaten him to shut the fuck up depending on their mood, JC would give him a, What now? exasperated look and Lance would look at him like he was a complete nut. 
	What would happen now?
	He was just so sick of this.
	"Do these fit you alright?" the man asked. His hand slid beneath the waistband of Justin's pants suddenly. "Are they too―"
	"Stop," Justin said loudly.
	"Big?"
	Justin tried pushing himself away and shook his head, disgusted. The man's hand grasped his waistband. "They're fine."
	"Hey, honey, let me do my job, alright?" The man gave him a bit of a smile. He winked. "Besides, you don't mind, do you?" The hand slipped down again. "A pretty boy like you in a band like this… I'm sure you―"
	Justin snapped. There was only so much violation of personal space he could take. He pushed the guys hand away and kicked the man hard in the shin before bursting away and out the door of the make-up room. Why him? Why always him? Did this happen to the other guys too, but they were just supposed to all ignore it? This came with the territory? He did not like it.
	There was costume and make-up for the MMC too but never so… intrusive. As an eleven year old he'd been able to dress himself well enough with what he was supposed to wear and then the big thing was the hair and makeup. So why at fifteen did they have to grab everything? He understood fixing the hair, whatever, but this was getting too much. He'd been warned when he was a kid too, warned about particular people that you could run across in the industry, but it had never been too much of an issue for him. He'd always had someone with him. Now… 
	He had to do something. He couldn't stand it.
	The halls. He didn't recognize them but he kept going anyway. Made a turn there. Heard someone call his name.
	They had no right. Lou, looking at him like that all the time. Johnny explaining how he didn't have the right to speak up. But speak up about what? At least Johnny didn't look at him like that. But he he did look at him like money. To Lou he was an object and to Johnny money. To this make-up artist he was an object. Something to be groped. 
	He'd dealt with the little touches so far. He'd let everyone touch him since the time they'd started this group. They could fix his cursed curly hair or smooth his shirt or even straighten his pants. They could hold and pat and tell him nice things, but they couldn't grab and say that. He wouldn't let them grab. He'd draw the line there. There were standards that he didn't want broken. He understand these people were out there, but not for him. No. No way. 
	"Justin!" 
	He stopped walking. He turned around. Why was it Chris that had to follow him? Chris to tell him he was being ridiculous, and they had to put up with this. Chris would tell him he was being a baby and that it was all harmless and that you just run into people like that sometimes. 
	No. Not today.
	Chris approached him and Justin decided he didn't have the patience for the 'deal with it' speech today. Chris didn't understand. They weren't groping Chris. When the man got within a foot, Justin turned and started walking again.
	"Don't turn your back on me." Chris grabbed his shoulder. 
	Grabbed.
	Justin turned and pushed Chris hard. "Stop it!" he replied. "Just stop fucking touching me." 
	Chris grabbed his wrist before he could take off again, an angry look in his eyes. His grip was tight and it forced Justin to stand there. "No. What's the deal? Chill out, okay? We have a show to do in fifteen fucking minutes. Where are you going?"
	Justin pulled his wrist away and shook his head. "No where." 
	"What's the matter?"
	"Nothing," Justin said stiffly.
	"Nothing, huh? Then where are you going?"
	"I need air." 
	"Come on, Justin. I heard the make-up guy cursing about you and saw you storm off. What's up?" 
	Justin was going to open his mouth to talk but he realized if he let any sound come out of his mouth it was going to be his blubbering because he didn't know how to explain himself in any other way or without involving emotion. He couldn't help it and it was welling up inside him. He wanted someone that would understand. Not Chris who would tell him to stop. JC would help. Maybe Joey would help. He suddenly wanted to go back to Tennessee with JC. 
	Chris had that angry and confused look still. "You cool?" he asked when Justin didn't say anything. "I mean, fuck, you can't just storm out like that. What do you take us for? They could drop us like that. We're getting big but we're not Michael Jackson here. We miss this show because you leave and we're late, then there's big consequences."
	Justin stared at him with glossy eyes.
	"You understand me?" Chris persisted. "If you're not going to explain to me, that's fine. Come on. Let's go back. I don't have time for this. Grow up, okay? We'll all tired."
	Justin stared. There it was.
	"Alright, let's go." Chris tugged at his arm and started back. Justin waited for a moment and then followed. 
	He didn't see that man there when they went back. He thanked God for that because he wasn't sure what either of them would do. He did not want to go near him again. 
	He nearly held his breath until they went on the show. Then he let that fly by, forcing himself to interact as usual, answer the questions, and not concentrate on anything else until they were out of there and in the van, ready to go to lunch. 
	JC slid in back next to Justin, leaning towards him to whisper as he said, "Chris says you're being weird." 
	Justin put on his seatbelt, thinking, wasn't that nice of Chris to say something like that? When he didn't even know what the hell had happened? He felt like crying again. Why was everything that he thought to be a big deal seem so immature in other people's perspectives? 
	"I didn't think you were weird today," JC persisted. He shifted back to give Justin more room and put on his own seatbelt, shrugging. "Just thought you'd like to contend."
	"D-did he say why?" Justin asked a second later. Chris was sitting in the seat in front of him, but they were speaking low enough he couldn't hear. Justin stared at the back of his head.
	"He may have."
	Justin knew this was JC's attempt at a deceptive mind game, and he didn't fall for it. JC didn't get it either. How could he? He didn't know. He turned towards the window again and shrugged. "Well, I'm fine." 
	"You lying?"
	"No."
	"Not telling me something's the same as lying."
	Justin didn't answer.
	JC frowned. 
	Finally Justin looked at him and said, "It's nothing. I just got a little annoyed at something before, and it was a misunderstanding. That's all."
	"Alright." 
	"And that's all it was." Justin turned to look out the window again.
*****
	They watched a movie that night when they finally got back to the hotel. In it, Justin watched and sympathized with the leading woman when the antagonist slid his hand up her thigh, between her legs, without her consent.
	She couldn't do anything about it either. 
	He couldn't recall the name of the movie. He wouldn't have known it anyway, really, considering it was in German. Joey and Chris added the dialogue to it, having fun playing parts and doing voices to make it funny.
	While he normally would find their antics hilarious, simply because he did typically find the older guys to be so clever with improv, this time Justin didn't think it was funny. He just watched the screen and imagined the lady felt the same as he did. 
	When the lights turned off and somebody said goodnight, Justin curled onto his side, feeling his back pressed against JC, and shut his eyes tight. He felt that man's hand from before and the countless other hands before it. Although this one had gone the furthest, reaching to touch him there, he remembered them all. 
	Finally falling asleep, Justin was subjected to his own imagination's continuation of the movie from before. In a scene where the woman had been wandering alone down the street with the man pursuing her silently, it was now Justin walking, and that man following him, angry on account of everything. Because Justin had decided to tell somebody and the repercussions had cost the man his job. And *NSYNC was going to be dragged down with it, because of reputation in the industry. Because Justin couldn't handle it. Because they were supposed to keep quiet, let everyone do their jobs, and he hadn't let it.
	The man was following him. A turn down an alley produced a dark, dead end, damp with the disgusting humid air that couldn't be the cold Germany that they were in. 
	He was pressed against the wall.
	He awoke with a start and didn't know what time it was or what had happened other than that his dream felt so real. So, so real. Someone violating him. He was even sure what would happen past that because he'd never been told or had seen anything like it. It was all new. All scary. All he knew was that it was wrong. 
	JC breathed softly next to him. In the bed just several feet away, Joey snored quietly and Lance were silent. Steve and Chris on the pullout from the couch were as well.
	He needed sleep. If he didn't get sleep, he would look tired tomorrow. They had another show to do and if he looked tired then the make-up people would have to spend more time with him trying to get him to look lively and then the others would be finished and he would be left alone with them… He told himself to stop generalizing makeup people based on the one guy. 
	Justin slid out of the bed. He walked into the bathroom and felt the cold floor beneath his feet. He turned on the light as he shut the door, and looked up at the buzzing bulb. It was so dusty. So cold.
	He was shaking and he didn't know why. And he didn't have to go to the bathroom and so he stared dumbly at the toilet for a moment, wondering why he had decided to come in here.
	He left the bathroom.
	His nerves were shaky. He stood there for a minute in the dark, watching the others sleeping, listening to all the breathing, and just feeling a little bit trapped. Too close to everyone. This room was way too small for all of these people. He was sick of budgets. 
	Maybe he'd go for a walk. Just a little walk. Get his nerves back and go to bed so that he could sleep. Else he was going to throw up. He had that feeling in his gut.
	His hand was on the knob, and he had just turned it and pulled the door open, letting some light drift in from the hall, when the voice hit him,
	"Where are you going?" came a whisper, harsh against the silence.
	Justin turned, seeing nothing in the dark. He knew it was JC's voice, and he felt guilt in the pit of his stomach. It was JC's tired voice because he'd been woken up because Justin as walking around at…
	His eyes found the clock.
	Four thirty.
	Shit. 
	"No where," he whispered automatically.
	"Shut the door," JC answered quietly. "Lock it and go to bed."
	Justin kept it open. "I need to walk," he said softly. He didn't want to wake the others too.
	"Well, you can walk around the room. No way you're going out, crazy," JC replied, sitting up a bit to look at him in the darkness. He yawned, rubbing at his eyes. "You okay?"
	"Thinking." 
	"What are you thinking?"
	"I'm thinking I need to take a walk."	
	"At this hour?"
	"Want to come?"
	"No. Shut the door." JC yawned again, exhausted. "Weren't you asleep?"
	"Did I wake you up?"
	"I just heard someone walking around. Justin. I told you twice already. Shut the door." 
	"I was trying to be quiet."
	"Shut the door," JC persisted. "If I have to shut it, I'm not going to be happy. You don't want me to get up."
	"You're already not happy." Justin shut the door and locked it behind him. He felt his hands shaking. 
	"Go back to sleep." 
	"I can't sleep…" Justin objected, still whispering. "I tried. I just need to take a walk, JC. A short one."
	"Take a walk over here." 
	"But…"
	"It's a short walk. Just like you said you needed." JC patted the bed. "It's four-thirty." 
	"I know." Justin walked over towards the window, passing by the foot of both beds. He pressed his face against the cold window pane. 
	"What's bugging you?"
	Justin shook his head and turned around. "You're going to wake the guys."
	"Then it's your fault for not coming over to me."
	Justin sighed. 
	"I'll sing you to sleep if you come here," JC beckoned. 
	"No. I'm not a kid, JC." 
	"Then what?"
	"Nothing." Justin swallowed. He couldn't go anywhere. He couldn't do anything. He had absolutely no control anymore. "JC…" Justin began. "I just…"
	"What?"
	Justin pushed it back down his throat. "Nothing."
	"Whatever it is has been bothering you since we did the show today, so come on. Why can't you tell me?"
	"JC, there's nothing," Justin answered, hearing the whimper in his voice and immediately growing frustrated. He couldn't.
	JC heard his tone too and grew more insistent. "Hey... What's the matter?"
	Justin shook his head.
	"Did something happen?" JC persisted. "Today?"
	Justin shook his head again. "N-no. I just need to take a walk. It gets too small in here…"
	"It doesn't help if you won't tell anybody…" JC answered. "What happened today? It's what Chris― When he said you were acting weird? Why were you acting weird?"
	"Because…" Justin persisted shakily.
	"Somebody?"
	"Yes."
	"Joey?"
	"No." Justin shook his head. "No."
	"Steve?"
	"No."
	"Chris?"
	"No." Justin felt frustrated.
	"Lance?"
	"No."
	"Me?"
	"No…" 
	"Who then, Justin? Do I know him?"
	"No." Justin shook his head. "No. Jay…cee. It's nothing."
	"If it's nothing, J, then you should be able to tell somebody easy and get over it," JC answered. 
	"I can't," Justin said with a shaky breath. There voices were still whispers, but louder and he grew concerned they would wake the others up. "I have to just… I'll forget it eventually." Maybe.
	"Forget what? Tell me and we can forget together." 
	Justin shook his head.
	JC pushed the blankets off of himself with a sigh and started to slide out of the bed. He watched Justin turn back to the window and lean into the sill. 
	"Now you're not happy," Justin said, pressing his nose against the window. "You're mad."
	"I'm fine," JC answered. "If we go for your stupid walk will you talk?"
	"Yes." Justin still faced the window.
	"Well, then come on." JC looked for his sneakers. His body still felt tired. He slid on the shoes. "You coming still or am I up for nothing?"
	Justin pushed away from the window and looked for his own shoes. He would have gone just with his socks the first time, but it was a better idea to have sneakers. He didn't bother tying them.
	"Just down the hall…" JC persisted. He yawned. "Okay?"
	"Okay." Justin started for the door. "But you're going to be tired tomorrow…"
	JC opened the door and let Justin out before he shut it behind him, making sure it was unlocked. "I will be anyway whether I have this fifteen minutes of sleep or not. And you can't just walk around by yourself, Justin, please don't do that."
	Justin looked down the long hall, dimly lit with muddy colored walls. "I would have been fine just down the hall."
	"You can't leave without telling anybody. I'd be just as mad at, like, Joey if he did it. Or Chris. Or Lance. Because we can't just disappear on each other. Especially at four AM."
	Justin shrugged. As they walked by some doors they could hear the TV on or voices or a baby crying or sometimes nothing.  Nothing made sense, being that it was four-thirty.
	"Tell me who did it so I can beat them up," JC said after a moment of walking.
	"Did what?"
	"You can tell me that too."
	"See, that's the thing… You can't do anything about it…" Justin said. "We're not supposed to do anything about anything."
	"What?" JC frowned. "Justin, what are you talking about?"
	"How we're supposed to… Because we're not big yet and anybody can do anything and… I don't know, but if we say anything, it wouldn't be worth it since it can affect us as a group." 
	"Who?"
	"Anybody."
	"Justin, I'm not getting you."
	Justin sighed. "Like… If somebody did something. And you didn't like it, but if you said something, then they could end your career."
	"What? That's a pretty big assumption right there."
	"That's why… Take our schedule. We don't like our schedule, but we're not big enough, but you told me one day we will be. So I'll wait until one day we're big."
	"Something tells me this is a little different than a schedule…" JC continued slowly. They were at the end of the hall. "You can tell me…" JC reminded.
	Justin thought about it. "Maybe you already know what it is…"
	"I don't think I do."
	"Maybe they do it to you too, and I shouldn't make a big deal about it."
	JC paused. "I'm thinking you should tell me." 
	They hadn't walked far but already Justin was kind of unnerved by the hallway, and how late it was, and how they were just alone there. He suddenly realized JC was right about going out in the hotel alone. He heard someone talking down at the other end of the hall, hidden around a corner, and was suddenly glad JC had woken up. "Can we go back?"
	"Yeah," JC agreed, relieved that he didn't have to be the one to ask. They turned around. "But let's finish this conversation. Explain." 
	"I'm trying to... I mean, maybe it's… It's just something that happens, and I'm apparently the only one that's making a big deal about it."
	"I don't think so. Even if you are, that's okay. I just want to know what it is. I make big deals about stuff too."
	"Like what?" 
	"Like sleep." JC studied the carpet as they walked back. He wanted to get back to the room where he was more comfortable. He wanted Justin back in bed. He had this fear that someone weird was going to come down the hall. He was also a little nervous about what Justin was going to tell him. 
	"That's different."
	JC tried to think of another example, but couldn't. He shrugged. "Of course it's different," JC continued slowly. "That's me. Tell me yours. What is it?"
	"It's just something that's been bugging me."
	"Okay. What's been bugging you?"
	"Just how…" Somehow they were back at their door already. Justin looked at JC. 
	"Go in. We'll just talk real soft," JC said. "Just how what?"
	Justin turned the knob slowly and pushed the door open. He went inside. "Just how everyone's always touching everyone… I don't like people touching me."
	"What do you mean?" JC watched Justin go sit down on the bed as he shut the door behind them with a click. The rest of the guys were still sleeping quietly. He was amazed they hadn't woken them up yet. The heater was kind of loud, rumbling now, and he was glad to hear some other noise in the room other than their whispers.
	"You know. Touching." Justin sat on the edge of the bed.
	JC turned the lock in the door. "Touching you?"
	"Yeah."
	JC paused and looked at Justin sitting there, his hands clasped in his lap, staring at his feet. Then he reached down and slipped off his sneakers. JC did the same standing there, tossing them aside. "Tell me what you mean exactly."
	"I mean what I said. That I wish they didn't have to touch all the time."
	"Who touches you?"
	"All the people… Or a lot of them." 
	"Justin, I don't understand. Touch you like what? Like I touch you?" JC started to walk over. 
	"Yes. No. Like. More.... And I don't know them. Like the guy today. And he touched me there. You know." Justin rolled his eyes, suddenly feeling embarrassed about the whole conversation. He felt like such a little kid. "There. And he was like, I bet you don't mind. 'Cause you're in this band and all and… I had to get out of there. Chris got mad because I left. But…"
	JC stared at Justin. Just stared. 
	"I didn't tell Chris…" Justin continued softly, glancing over at the other bed. "I didn't. I couldn't. But… Yeah, anyway. I wish they didn't have to do that."
	JC stared.
	At the silence, Justin continued. "It's like they can't leave anything be… They always… No matter what. And, like, the makeup and the clothes and stuff, that's okay, but… But then that's it. That should be it." 
	JC stared at Justin. His best friend. Fifteen. He tried to see what they must see. The smile. He still had a cute little kid kind of look to him, but he was tall with blue eyes and curly hair and as he was growing he was starting more to attract more attention. He was always getting stronger. He was the one the pictures centered on. Sometimes he had to blink to realize Justin wasn't twelve anymore. That he was actually just about as strong and big as all of them now. With hands that were a little too big for him still. Still skinny and young and a boy with a baby face but…
	How could anyone see anything there that they would want to…
	He couldn't even imagine it.
	He remembered the video set. The photo shoots. How they set them up to exude sex. And there were people out there, not just fans, who just saw that… Who expected that…
	"JC?" 
	JC snapped back to look at Justin, sitting there on the bed looking guiltily up at him with wide eyes. JC didn't understand it. Of course Justin didn't understand it.
	"Who today?" JC demanded, approaching him. 
	"I don't know."
	"Justin," JC said, just a step from him. "Tell me."
	"But..." Justin's expression broke, and he suddenly looked distraught. "I told you… What are you going to do about it?" 
	"Justin, I want to know who," JC persisted. "This isn't just something that bothers you. This is something serious."
	"It's not serious."
	"Justin. Do you even understand what you just said to me? It is." 
	"Sh…" Justin pleaded. He glanced at the other bed worriedly. "JC, be quiet, or you'll wake them up." 
	"How could you not tell me? Not tell Chris when he saw you leave?" JC shook his head. "You just didn't tell anybody who did that?"
	"Because I knew you'd act like this! JC, I shouldn't have told you." Justin frowned. "It' stupid. I'm sorry I even said anything. We can't do anything about it and--" 
	JC leaned down and grabbed Justin's chin, forcing him to look at him. "No. You should always say something. Don't you get it? They can hurt you." He held his jaw hard. "Don't you understand that? You don't know the half of it, do you?" 
	A rustle came from the other bed. "Shut the fuck up," Joey growled. "What's the matter with you two?" 
	"JC," Justin implored in a whisper. "Drop it..." 
	"No," JC answered, eyes narrowed. He let go of Justin's jaw, let his hands fall to his sides in exasperation. "You don't understand anything."
	"So?" Justin looked like he might get upset now. "It's like a bother, it's not like anything that we can do anything about or― "
	"Shut up…" came from the other bed.
	JC stood up straighter. "Joey, shut the fuck up and go to sleep then."
	Justin grabbed JC's shirt, tugging insistently. "Okay, okay…" he said. "Please. We'll talk about it tomorrow." 
	Joey sat up now. "What are you two doing up anyway? Look at them time."
	JC took a deep breath. "I should have known this would… Of course something like this would have to happen. Look at you."
	"What?" Justin answered. "What do you mean?" He suddenly was disappointed with himself for even mentioning any of it. Now it was late, and JC was going to be stuck on it. What JC needed was to go back to bed, and Justin had picked the complete wrong time to bring up something like this. 
	Joey frowned. It was hard to tell with lack of lighting and bleary eyes what they were up to. But he picked up on a different vibe in the room. "Is something wrong?" 
	Justin shook his head  and sniffed, warning himself to have a backbone. "JC, it's not a big deal, and I should have mentioned it tomorrow. Not in the middle of the night. So stop… Please…" 
	JC turned to him again. "I just don't understand how you could just… How is it just something that bothers you? You're equating it with something like not liking the schedule. This is not just like that, Justin. Don't equate it to that."
	"It does bother me…" Justin said, pressing the heel of his hands to his eyes. He was tired. He felt himself water up again like a damn girl, and tried to calm himself down. Why would he pick four AM to discuss this? With the one person that always overreacted? 
	"See? Then it's more…" 
	"No. It's just… Just something that happened," Justin took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. Don't cry about it, he warned himself. Don't be a big baby. This is what Chris told you about. Grow some balls, Justin. 
	"And… What if more happened?"
	"Like what?" 
	JC stared at him. It was so dark but it was hard to miss the tears shining in Justin's eyes. Like what? How could he tell him like what? Didn't he know? He couldn't be that stupid. How could he explain that, or say use your imagination, that's what they could want? 
	"JC, what's going on?" Joey asked in exasperation. "Can you guys finish this tomorrow? Look at the time." 
	"No. We're talking about assholes," JC said snappily. "Assholes that are stepping over the line that Justin's got to put up with. Which he decided not to fucking tell me about."
	"Well, just tell me what happened," Joey persisted.
	"Drop it," Justin answered, feeling himself the emotion rise. He didn't want to talk about it with Joey too. "Forget it."
	JC moved and sat down on the bed, but Justin immediately slid off on the other side to leave, saying, "Forget it. Both of you, forget it." 
	"Joey," JC began but Joey had already leaned forward from his perch on the edge of the other bed and grabbed Justin's arm. He held him still.
	"Chill, Justin," Joey told him. "What's up?"
	"Stop… Nothing," Justin answered, pulling away.
	"C'mon, for real. What?" Joey asked.
	Justin pulled back from him. "Nothing is going on," he said firmly. "Nothing."  
	Joey let go of his arm gently and Justin immediately walked to the other side of the room. 
	"Justin, it's okay, alright?" JC began, studying his friend. Justin just stood there, a mix of frustration, anger, and sadness. JC sat on the edge of their bed helplessly. It was so late at night. "I'm sorry. Okay…? We'll take care of it another time. You want me to stop, I'll stop… You're right, i's too late for this."
	Justin lifted his shirt to hastily wipe his eyes and face and felt the cool air by the window on this bare stomach. "I knew you'd do this," he accused, voice broken by his attempt to block tears. "I can't talk to you about anything." 
	"I can't help it," JC sighed. "But fine, then, I agree, let's not talk about it now. Come on."
	"Whatever it is, let's just go to bed," Joey said. "And worry in the morning." 
	Justin sniffed.
	"Come on," JC persisted gently.
	Justin took a deep breath, finally moving away from the window and walking towards JC slowly, feeling glad it was so late. He wanted to stop talking about it. He just wanted to sleep and to forget he'd mentioned it. But first he wanted at least some semblance of comfort, so he approached his friend tentatively, and then was glad when it somehow turned into a hug.	
	JC just sat there and wrapped his arms around his friend's waist tightly. "Alright. We'll take care of it. Okay?" 
	Justin stood there and let JC squeeze him, feeling slightly better as he swallowed back the lump in his throat and leaned into him. He for a moment felt better, believing his friend. "Okay." 
	"Good." JC patted his back. "Joey and me'll take care of it, right, Joey?." 
	"Joey doesn't know what you're talking about…" Joey said softly.
	JC sighed. "I know. Let's just go to bed for now."
	"Will you guys be quiet..." came Steve's complaint, a half-asleep mumble. 
	Justin climbed back into bed and took a deep breath, resigning himself to not worrying about things anymore that night. The beds creaked as Joey and JC returned to bed as well, and then the room feel silent. 
******
	Trying to keep it nonchalant and quiet, JC mentioned it to Chris in the morning when Justin was in the shower and Joey had left to get coffee. They were driving to Cologne that day and he knew he wouldn't be able to discuss it on the trip. 
	When he finished, Chris looked at him with wide eyes. "Shit."
	JC set his jaw.
	"I wish he'd have told me. Dude, I had no idea…" Chris frowned.
	"So there's his acting weird."
	"God…"
	"Maybe you shouldn't just to conclusions so readily…"
	"I didn't jump to any conclusions," Chris objected. "I didn't know. I just thought he was being a kid about something."  
	"Seems like jumping to a  conclusion to me."
	Chris sighed. "I guess so. Jesus Christ. Well, I'm sorry I took it the wrong way then. But he shoulda said something, man."
	"I should have watched. I mean, after what they've been presenting him as you'd think we would have realized…"
	Chris nodded. "There's some sick people."
	"Just keep your eyes open. With Lance too."
	Chris frowned deeply. "That's... sick, man... We shouldn't have to worry about that."
	"Yeah, well, what can I say... You're the one that keeps talking about how messed up this business is sometimes and how we just have to roll with it."
	Shrugging, Chris agreed. "Yeah, I know.  It's just different... Close to home, you know?"
	JC nodded. "Tell me about it." 
******
	"Joey." Justin grinned.
	"Yes, deary?" Joey answered as he took a bite out of an apple. They were in the midst of packing up and he was relieved to be done, sitting on the couch with his feet up in front of him taking a break. Chris had gone down with JC to see if the bus was there yet, and Joey felt like Lance and Justin's supervisor, simply sitting there as the two of them finished up gathering their stuff. 
	"Your birthday is in two days."
	"And yours in five." 
	"Let's tell them we want a party…" Justin persisted.
	"A party… Hm, you know what?" Joey gestured him closer and smiled as Justin walked over. "I heard something."
	"What?" Justin leaned down towards him, looking interested.
	"I heard there might inadvertently be a party on your birthday… Well, the thirtieth…" 
	Justin frowned. "Inadvertently?"
	Joey nodded and took another bite out of his apple. "Yeah," he crunched. "Like, I think there's something... Lance, hey, kid, you remember Johnny mentioning a party in a couple days?"
	Lance looked up from zippering his bag, a little flushed from the effort it took to close the beyond full suitcase. "A party? You mean for the record? I think RCA, BMG, whatever, was throwing us a Gold party."
	"Gold?" Justin asked.
	"For 'I Want You Back'."
	"Ah."
	"So pretend it's your birthday party," Joey replied. "Okay?"
	"Yeah." A party was a party. "Where will we be?"
	"Germany."
	"No shit, Sherlock."
	"Keep digging, Watson."
	"Hey."
	"Hey," Joey laughed. He shook his head. "Anyway, there's your party. Lance, did Steve go with JC and Chris? I swear that brother's good for nothing." 
	"I have no idea where he is..." Lance paused. "Is he still in the bathroom?"
	"No..." Joey sighed. "He's useless." 
	"A gold party," Justin persisted. "Pretty cool." 
******
	They made good time to Cologne  by bus. It wasn't the bus they  imagined. It was another 'not theirs' bus and kind of cramped. Their real bus, they believed, which would be when they went on tour, would be much more spacious and accomodating. 
	JC conveniently called a group meeting as soon as Justin and Lance weren't able to attend. The two of them were scheduled with their tutor while he, Chris, and Joey went to a local café and sat at a corner table. They ordered coffee without too much difficulty: the waitress spoke English and also recognized them, which was flattering.  
	"What's this about?" Chris wanted to know, after their coffee was served.
	"You know what it's about," JC replied. "Joey, I don't think you know. You were too tired to know what was going on."
	"What is it?" Joey asked. He paused. "Does this have to do with when you and Justin woke me up at four o'clock in the morning to yell at each other?"
	"We were not yelling," JC responded. 
	"It was kind of..."
	"No it wasn't..." 
	"What'd he do?"
	"Nothing. It wasn't him."
	"Then what is it?" Joey persisted. "And why can't Justin or Lance be here?" 
	JC looked at him for a moment. "Because it concerns them, especially. I mean, it concerns all of us, but them, being the youngest, the most."
	"If it concerns them..." Joey persisted, "then why aren't they here?"
	JC tried to make thigs seem like they made sense He tried to explain what had happened, and tried to keep it as close as he could to what Justin had said. He watched Joey's expression darken and realized that he wasn't the only one that felt overprotective.
	"Jesus Christ," Joey said in a tone of disgust that neither Chris nor JC had heard from him before. "That's…. Digusting." 
	"Yeah," JC replied in agreement, a little angrily. 
	"Then I'm not at all surprised you woke me up…"
	"Yeah." 
	Joey shook his head, brow furrowed. He clenched his fists. "I'm going back to that set, and I'm going to find that guy."
	"You know what bothers me even more…" JC started. "The fact that Justin didn’t want to say anything. He was just saying he'd been having something going on that bothered him. As if he thought he was just supposed to deal with it. That's what makes me mad."
	"He'd better tell me everything," Joey answered shortly. "He's going to make me a list."
	Chris shook his head. "That's probably my fault… I've been giving him such shit lately about not letting stuff bother you and what comes with the business. Just because... He gets so sensitive about it all sometimes."
	"Molestation does not come with the business," JC retorted.
	"Well, it does." Chris looked at him with sad brown eyes. "I mean it's not a necessity. And it's not right. But it's there. You admitted that to me yourself." 
	JC didn't look pleased. He hadn't to admit there was risk of any of that, as obvious as it was.
	Chris continued. "We're sex and money to them. So of course there's going to be people that want to try to take advantage of that…"
	Joey sighed. "You can't trust anybody." 
	JC let out a breath. "I don't want anything to happen… I mean.... This kind of stuff can ruin you. I knew that we'd see the shitty side of things, but it's like… If this is going to make Justin afraid to have someone touch him, then…"
	"He understands," Chris said.
	"No. He's never liked outside people. And this is just going to cement that more in his brain that―"
	"JC." Chris shook his head. 
	"Chris," JC persisted in exasperated. "Stop telling him to grow up. He's fifteen, okay? How much is he supposed to grow up?"
	"He's already older than fifteen," Chris retorted. "He got older as soon as he signed the contract. I'm not saying I want him to be as prudish as you, or as bitter as me, but just to take things into stride. Not this crap into stride of course, but it's like―"
	"As prudish as me?"
	"Jesus… You know what I mean. I'm just trying to lighten you up. I called myself bitter."
	"I'm not lightening up when it's about perverts and ―" 
	"There are sickos, JC, what do you want me to tell you?"
	"Some things are more important than this, Chris," JC persisted. "I'm sorry, but Justin is far more important to me than this group. And if he's going to―"
	"Guys," Joey interrupted. "Calm down…"
	"I can't," JC objected. "Look, I've seen what can happen and that is not happening to him. He's too young to have to deal with that." 
	"I'm not saying that," Chris began seriously. "JC, I swear. If anyone of us gets hurt, then we're pulling out, I agree. I'm not that cutthroat either. All I'm saying is that there's certain sacrifices that―"
	"Oh, so Justin has to sacrifice his dignity and let men grope him when he's just a baby so that they can get off on it?"
	"No. I'm not talking about that."
	"Isn't that the subject at hand, Chris?" JC demanded. 
	"First of all, he's not a baby, JC," Chris continued. "He's not your little Mickey Mouse buddy anymore, okay? He's got to get past that. It's a different game. And we know that already and we should not be surprised. We're all disgusted by this, I know, and I'm just as pissed as you are―"
	"I don't think you are!"
	"Will you let me finish? I am. What do you want me to do? Scream? Cause a scene? Go beat up whoever Justin names?" 
	JC glowered. "Just don't tell me to take it in stride."
	"I'm not. I understand, JC, trust me. I'm not blind and I'm not stupid. This is a lesson that we have to be careful. We were lucky that nothing else happened beyond that."
	JC felt sick. He rested his elbows on the table. "God. Please. Don't even…" 
	"We just have to be more careful now."
	"And Lance?" Joey asked slowly in a gentle voice. "Has he said anything?"
	"No," JC replied. "Not to me at least. I think he would tell you rather than me if he told anybody. Maybe he'd tell Justin, I don't know. But I don't think he's had any problems."
	Joey nodded.
	"Although I wouldn't be surprised," JC persisted. "The two of them I'm worried about now…" 
	"We can't let it consume us though," Chris said slowly.
	"I know."
	"We just have to be more aware. Realize what can happen. But Justin and Lance are big boys too. They both know how to say no, and to back away, and we have to realize that too." 
	Joey shook his head. "I'll tell you right now that if I ever see one of these people touch either one of them… I'll castrate them."
*******
	Justin didn't mind the tutoring too much. Chuck was nice. He had patience too, and Justin actually respected him for that. Because he knew that he wasn't very easy to put up with, especially when he was stuck sitting in a chair with a five second attention span and knew there were other things he could be doing. Lance got antsy too but for the most part he was diligent and did what was expected of him, remaining on task as long as needed. Justin couldn't sit in one place for more than a few minutes. He couldn't help wondering what the other guys were doing without him.
	School itself wasn't too awful. He found a lot of the stuff interesting and he wasn't too bad at it either if he concentrated enough. What bothered him was that Lance was this close to being finished with everything, which would be just about on time with when he would have graduated had he stayed in school. Justin didn't see himself anywhere near graduating. He was younger and he had far more prerequisites to complete.
	"Justin."
	Justin looked over at Chuck, chewing on his lip. "What?"
	"You haven't written anything for ten minutes."
	"Oh."
	"You okay?"
	Justin dropped his book on the hotel carpet and dramatically sighed. "I'm done."
	"You barely started."
	"Done for today."
	Chuck looked at him for a minute and said nothing. He went back to talking to Lance about how to do a certain quadratic equation.
	Justin stared at his book on the ground for a moment before leaning down to pick it up. He opened it to the right page again. "Chuck."
	"I'm busy with something, man," he replied.
	Justin swallowed and looked at the book again. He knew Chuck was just being hard on him on purpose. In a, don't think you can get my attention now when you won't give me yours when I ask, sort of deal. He didn't mean it. He just really didn't put up with shit. He wouldn't hold it against him though.
	A minute or two later, Chuck turned back to him and met his eye.
	"Thought you were done for today."
	"I don't know." Justin made a face.
	"Well?"
	"When is Lance going to graduate?" 
	Lance looked up at Justin's question and frowned, twirling his pencil in his hand. 
	Chuck shrugged. "As soon as he finishes up the requirements and test, Justin."
	"And me?" Justin persisted.
	"Same goes for you. As soon as you finish up―"
	"Yeah." Justin frowned. 
	"Well, when do you expect to graduate, now?"
	Justin shook his head. "Ten years from now."
	"It won't take that long," Chuck assured. 
	"I just don't have much time." Justin flipped a few pages in the book. "I really don't."
	"You have time right now. You also waste a lot of time." 
	"It's relaxation time," Justin persisted. "It's all been taken away…"
	"If you focus, it goes by more quickly," Chuck assured. "You should try it once. Just for a change."
	"I try to focus…" Justin frowned. "I've been trying to focus today." 
	"You don't."
	"I do."
	"You focus enough to learn all those dance steps. That's far more complicated than most of what you're learning from books."
	Justin sighed. "Then why have I got to graduate?"
	"It's your choice. But it would be a smart one. You don't want to be inferior to the rest of the guys, do you?" 
	"Justin, you can graduate," Lance said, looking up again. "Don't talk like that."
	"I just don't think I'm going to have time…" Justin answered. "To do all this. I'm already so far behind."
	"It's not like you to quit," Lance said. "Don't quit."
	"I'm just saying…" Justin wouldn't quit. Not only did he hate to quit things but no one would let him if he tried. His mother would have a fit. JC would yell at him. Chris would call him a moron. And Joey would say that if even he had done it, why couldn't Justin? It wasn't worth all that. But it was a valid speculation to him regardless. "We're busy. You know?"
	Chuck nodded. "I know, Justin. But you can do it. Just try, okay? You're smart."
	"How much time left?"
	Chuck frowned. Justin was referring to how much longer he would be there. He glanced at his watch. "Ten minutes."
	Justin scrutinized him. "How much are you getting paid for this?"
	Chuck gave him a look.
	"You should get a million dollars."
	"Why thank you." 
	Justin was about to look at the book again with slight more deference when the door to the hotel room started to open. Justin jumped up and dropped the book again as soon as he saw who it was. "Friends!" he exclaimed, running forward to greet them at the door.
	Joey was the first one through the door and he rolled his eyes at Justin's enthusiasm, patting him on the head. Joey glanced into the room over at where Lance and Chuck sat. Giving a smile to Lance first, he frowned at Chuck and asked, "He not done?" while indicating Justin.
	Chuck shrugged. "He's done if he wants to be done." 
	"See? I'm done," Justin said to JC, who had just asked him the same thing. 
	JC gave him a skeptical look. "Okay…" 
	Chuck left a few minutes later, telling them that he'd see them tomorrow. When he left the room, Chris walked over and picked up the textbook from the floor. He put it aside before sitting down, not bothering to take off his coat. "You guys bored or what?"
	"Yes," Justin answered. "Where were ya'll?"
	"Around." 
	"What's around mean?"
	"It means around."
	"That could mean anything." 
	Chris shrugged and gave him an impish grin. "Then use your imagination." 
	"We just went for coffee," JC said.
	"Coffee," Justin echoed.
	"Yeah. Just to talk."
	"What'd you talk about?"
	"You," JC answered. 
	Joey watched JC say it and frowned, but then realized his reversal. Justin immediately thought JC was teasing and grinned, moving to another topic. JC was smart. He knew Justin well. 
	"How were you guys?" JC asked. He looked at Justin, then at Lance. "Lance, I know you did what you were supposed to, but how was Justin?"
	Lance looked up and smirked.
	Justin flopped down on the bed with a playful look in his eye. "Oh, Lancie…" he said teasingly. "Don't lie…"
	"Whatever," Lance laughed. "I wasn't paying attention to him."
	"Probably because you were doing what you were supposed to…" JC answered. "Unlike someone."
	"How can you just make assumptions like that?" Justin objected. "You can't just jump to that conclusion."
	JC shrugged as he unzipped the front of his coat. "I don't know, Justin. Call it an instinct."
	Justin frowned. "I find it highly insulting."
	"Do you disagree with my instinct…?"
	"We can't all have a perfect attention span," Justin answered defensively. "I did everything I was supposed to do. For a while…"
	JC took off his coat and tossed it over onto Justin, who grimaced, complaining, "It's wet!"
	"Well, duh. Snow," JC replied. "Justin, what if I told you I made a rule and all my friends have to be high school graduates?"
	"I'd miss you," Justin answered. He pushed the coat aside. "Not to mention you're jumping to conclusions. And that it's not like I could graduate tomorrow even if I read everything I could."
	"I know…" JC replied. 
	"If I could do it," Joey said. "You can do it. Trust me." 
	"Yeah, you don't want to be a moron," Chris added.
	Justin sighed. All his speculative responses from them were coming true. That was annoying. And he hadn't even been the one to say he was unsure about the whole graduating thing. It was like they had read his mind.
	Lance closed his books. "Anyway…"
	Joey laughed. "See, he's smart. He wants to change the subject…"  
	"You know, not everyone who hasn't graduated from high school is a moron," Justin began a little defensively. "I'm sure there are a lot of smart people that couldn't pay for it."
	"Public high school," Chris said.
	"Or had to stop to take care of their family. Or their careers. Like my career," Justin persisted. "And you know I never said I wasn't going to do it. Ya'll are saying that. But there's people."
	"Justin? You're not one of those people," JC said. "Trust me."
	"I never said I wasn't going to do it."
	"Okay."
	"My father would kill me." Justin rolled his eyes. "My only complaint is that we're so busy."
	"We'll all busy," Joey said.
	"But Lance and I are busier."
	"I did high school while we did MMC," JC said. "I was busy."
	"I did classes then too," Justin said.
	"You have to top everybody, don't you?" Chris answered. "Or at least tie, huh?"
	"Well it's true." 
	Chris rolled his eyes. "Whatever. You can manage it." 
******
 	They had interviews two days in a row in Cologne. The only two days that they were there. They had been there before and so they recognized a lot of things, which made it kind of nice and not as foreign as before. After they finished up late on the twenty-seventh, they were back on the bus on their way northeast to Hamburg, closer to Denmark. They had miles of country roads to travel.
	Their next obligations were a TV show and interviews to do the next day, and so the guys  secretly decided that that night on the bus would be the night to throw Joey his mini-birthday party. Somehow without his knowledge they had managed to buy the necessary things like balloons and streamers with spare cash. It was a little corny, and a little stupid, but it was at least something anyway, and even the smallest things were appreciated. 
	It was Justin's job to distract Joey while the others set up. So he spent ten minutes pleading with a tired Joey to play a board game with him, while Joey cursed and told him to go to bed, that it was really late and he was tired. He almost thought he would have to succumb to fake tears to get the man's full attention and successfully distract him from the others, but finally Joey grudgingly gave in to play the game before that was necessary. 
	The only board game they had was Life, which Chris for some reason had brought with him. It took forever to set up, and Justin stretched it out even longer than usual as they settled in the back of the bus on the floor, putting the different pieces into the wrong slots.
	"I think you're too tired to play this," Joey told him as he fixed a building for the fourth time, slipping it into the right one. "What color do you want to be?"
	"Red," Justin replied. 
	They were only able to roll twice each when Chris suddenly came in. "Joey, we need you," he said.
	Joey looked up, dice in hand, and frowned. "What? Curly and I―"
	"It's okay," Justin assured with a secretive grin.
	Joey looked at him with confusion all over his face.
	When Joey got up and followed them to the front of the bus to see the work they had done in putting up decorations, his expression was priceless. His eyes widened and his mouth split into a grin. "Guys!"
	Justin grinned. He was amazed they were able to blow up balloons so quickly. It still looked really cheap but the effort was there. 
	Joey hugged each of them tightly, saying things about how he couldn't believe that they had remembered and that it really wasn't necessary. 
	Then Chris produced a couple bottles of wine and some beer, and Joey cheered. 
******
	There was long cushioned couch on the bus and JC had collapsed onto it after they fully celebrated Joey's birthday as much as they could and it was into the early hours of the morning. Joey and Chris had drunk themselves into oblivion and were now blissfully asleep, snoring. Lance drank enough to put himself to sleep as well, though not to the extent of the other two, but after telling a series of jokes that he normally wouldn't, he was now out like a light. Steve had passed out on the floor, his face pressed against the Life boardgame.
	JC's eyes were closing when Justin came to sit beside him, pulling a large blanket with him and draping it over the two of them.
	"Hey, pal…" JC greeted with a yawn. He didn't object when Justin lifted his arm to slide under and nestle into him. He reached over with his other arm to pat Justin's thigh. "Tired?"
	"Yeah…" Justin agreed. "You?"
	"Yes. Joey had fun though."
	Justin nodded. "I like beer." 
	JC laughed at him. "Yeah?" He rolled his eyes. "That's news. Not long ago you said it was gross." 
	"Yeah, well..."
	"Acquired taste."
	"Yeah."
	"So Joey's the big two-oh." JC sighed. "He's got me tied now." 
	Justin paused. He looked over at the sleeping Joey and Chris. Joey's mouth was hanging open, head tilted back. The bus rumbled as it traveled the bumpy road. "Is my birthday gonna be like this?"
	JC shifted. "Well… We'll do something for you like this if you want. You know we have that party the day before."
	"Yeah."
	"So that's a party…" JC replied.
	"That's what Joey said."
	JC nodded. "And we can do something at midnight if you want." JC patted Justin's thigh again. "Whatever you want, we'll do." 
	"That's not necessarily true…"
	"Well, I'm predicting you'll be reasonable and take into consideration where we are..." JC smirked. 
	Justin nodded and pulled the blanket up higher over them. 
	JC sighed. "Justin, please just try not to be disappointed."
	"About my birthday?" Justin asked with surprise. "I'm not stupid. I know it's not going to be anything big. I wasn't expecting it to be."
	"It'll still be your day… And we've always tried to do something… It just won't be like last year. Because we'll be working, okay?"
	"I know." They hadn't done much last year either, honestly. But he didn't say it.
	"I know you know. Or you think you know. But you're not… I know you're not looking for the attention, but either way if any attention is on us at the party, it's going to be on the group, okay?" JC frowned. He knew Justin would be looking for the attention. He always was.
	"I know," Justin said. "It's fine."
	"I worked on my sixteenth birthday too."
	"It's fine, JC. You're the one making the big deal."
	"Okay, I'm sorry…" JC yawned again.  
	"I think it's cool that there'll be a party though," Justin said. "But honestly, if we were home and I was gonna have a party or do something, it'd be you guys I'd invite anyway." He slouched lower, enjoying the comfort of body warmth and curling his hand on his side. "You know?"
	"Yeah." JC frowned. He still wished Justin had more friends his age. Not that he thought of him as younger, but he was, and sometimes he wondered if Justin would turn out differently with this lifestyle in the end. 
	As Justin leaned harder into him, he felt a sense of comfort. He liked that Justin still relied on him and looked to him for contact. It was nice to be needed by somebody. It was nice to feel you knew somebody. Especially when you were so far away from home.
	"How come sixteen is supposed to be special?" Justin asked.
	"Hm?" JC asked. "Mm, I don't know. They just call it sweet sixteen. Maybe because you can drive."
	"I think eighteen's cooler. Lance'll be eighteen won't he?"
	"In May, yeah," JC affirmed. 
	"Or twenty-one. You'll be twenty-one in August. That'll be cool. Sixteen's not that big a deal." 
	JC nodded and moved the arm around Justin to pet him on his curly head. "Honestly, Justin… You'll always say it's going to be special… But you never really feel any different. Age is just a number. You can tell Chris that thirty will be special. He'll feel the same. In August, being twenty-one isn't going to be any different than being twenty."
	"Legally drinking?"
	JC shrugged and played with the end of the curls at Justin's neck. "Is that really important?"
	"Eighteen you can vote. Isn't that important?" 
	JC smirked. "Yeah. I guess." 
	"And you can go clubbing… No one's brought me to a club."
	"We bring you," JC objected. "Don't say that."
	"Not a real club. And I haven't been to a real German club, that's for sure."
	"We haven't in a while either." JC sighed. "It's been so busy."
	"Funny since the first time we met was at that club." 
	"I guess that wasn't a real club either, huh?"
	"Not really. And I was fourteen then. When we met up there." Justin frowned. 
	"Yeah…" JC smirked. He thought about it. "Hey, get me my wallet." He nudged Justin a little bit. "It's in my bag over there…"
	Justin got up and went over to grab JC's wallet from his backpack. He brought it over and reclaimed his spot on the couch, curling into JC's side again. JC took the wallet and opened it. He had his license, cash, and some credit cards among other things. He also had pictures in the plastic slip in. Of his family. Some friends. 
	He took out a folded picture. "We took this pretty early on." He pulled the blanket up over Justin again before he handed him the picture.
	Justin looked at the picture of the five of them together, standing in front of the couch at where Justin recognized was Chris's old place. They really did look younger.
	"You got taller…" JC noted, taking the photo back and holding it in front of both of them. "A bit, right?"
	"Yeah…" Justin agreed. "Look at Joey. He was a little skinnier then."
	"Lance looks different," JC replied with a small laugh. "He looks so meek there… He was so new to us then…"
	"We don't look too different."
	"I guess," JC answered, He folded the picture again and slipped it back into his wallet. As he was closing it, Justin snatched it. 
	"Let me see."
	JC let him have it, watching him carefully. "Why are you always fascinated with wallets? Mine hasn't changed… I promise…" He watched Justin take out his license and scrutinize it as he had done many times before. It was a stupid mug shot looking picture like most people's looked. 
	"Your address is different now," Justin pointed out.
	"Yeah…" JC shrugged.
	"Ain't you required to change it?"
	"I don't know. I'm too lazy."
	Justin put the license back in and then drew out several old movie tickets. Many of which they as a group had seen together. The past couple years had encompassed most of their lives as a group. He put those back too, then started to count the money.
	"Justin, stop…" JC rolled his eyes. "I'm poor. Don't bother." He took the wallet back and placed it beside him. He yawned again. "Tomorrow's Joe's actual birthday. Don't forget to say happy birthday in the morning."
	"It's already morning."
	"True…" JC admitted. 
*******
	Joey had a bad headache in the morning but instead of scowling, he laughed at himself in memory of the night before. When he finally got up from the floor, he found himself a bottle of water and popped a couple aspirin. He sighed, thinking about the effort the guys had made to make him have a real birthday. It felt good. 
	They had interviews and a TV show that day. Bravo TV or something like that. He was in a good mood for it too. It was his birthday. He was twenty years old. He was doing what he loved. He had four awesome friends. He didn't even care that his head was pounding.
	There was barely a morning as they were rushed to the TV station. For once it didn't bother him. He was convinced it was going to be a good day, especially as the aspirin kicked in.
	As they got hair and make-up fixed for the TV show, he didn't surprise himself when his eyes flickered to Justin. And he also wasn't surprised when he glanced at JC to find that his eyes were locked on his boy as well. 
	A woman was doing his hair. She looked very friendly and Justin, who had been rather tense that morning, actually laughed really loudly a few times, watching her talk. Joey felt better. He was still angry about what had happened before and what he knew would certainly happen again, multiple times. However, he was pleased that it didn't seem like they would have to worry about it that day at least. 
	The man doing his hair spritzed some hair spray and seemed satisfied after just a couple minutes. That was fine with Joey. His hand moved to finger his small superman emblem on the chain around his neck, remembering the couple of appearances that had wanted him to take it off and dress according to their plans to the exact detail.
	He still thought that was kind of funny. Sometimes they had to stand up. Sure, they weren't in the position to make any demands of anybody, and they didn't try to, but some things were just so trivial. There were so many parts of the business he hadn't thought about before joining the group. Hair and style and other details. And then other things that were entirely unnecessary, such as the case with Justin. Their baby. Whom no one would ever touch again if it was up to him. 
	Chris's face was half hidden by a baseball cap he was wearing and was apparently going to wear onto the show. He was looking at his watch. The man who had done Joey's hair was now working on Lance, styling his hair, fixing each strand in a particular fashion.  
	JC had gotten up now, approaching Joey with a swagger to his walk. "Howdy, pah-tner," he said.
	"Where's that coming from?" Joey asked with a smirk. JC could be quirky. That's what made him likable. 
	JC shrugged. "I reckon I don't know." He kept the western demeanor. Then he laughed. "Actually, they for some reason have a big picture of John Wayne over there." He pointed over in the corner.
	"Keep it up. You'll confuse the Germans," Joey said in a low voice so that he wouldn't insult anybody.
	JC grinned. "God forbid." 
	"Yeah." 
	"Sometimes I'm so tempted… Like to tell Justin to use every slang term he knows in an interview… Just to spew out lines from that damn rap he likes. Have them try to translate that."
	"It would probably translate so poorly that it'd be in the papers we're crazy." 
	"Not to mention, I think that's straying from the whole PR thing we've been continually lectured about…" JC said with mock seriousness. "And we do not want to do that." 
	"Hey…" Joey looked over at Justin again. "We doing anything special for his birthday…?" 
	JC frowned. "I'd like to. I don't think we can. I think we should just focus on him at the party the day before…"
	"Yeah…"
	"I already told him it wasn't going to be anything really. But he… I don't know. He needs the attention." JC smirked. "We all know that. So we'll just try."
	"I'd been thinking of the clubbing thing. Because I thought he'd love that. But since… Well, we're a little bigger now and it might be hard. We're so busy."
	"After what's happened…" JC began slowly with a deeply furrowed brow. "Bringing him to a place where you know it's free roam for groping and grinding… He… He doesn't need that."
	"It's different. It's a club. It's not... You know."
	"It's not though. He gets weird about the lack of personal space." 
	"He understands it. It's just scary. But you're right." Joey nodded. 
	"I was going to find him one of those God damn puzzle books," JC started with a laugh. "That he made such a big deal about leaving. And he did it just to make a big deal of something, if you ask me. But it's hard to find one of those around here, in English too." 
	"True."
	"I just know he's going to be disappointed… He knows he's missing out. Like, sometimes I get mad at Trace because Trace… He's not rubbing it in, but Justin's hearing about basketball and baseball and dances and classes…"
	"Well, then Justin can answer about all the stuff he's doing," Joey answered. "Didn't he say Trace had never even been out of the country? Lance was telling me that too. Because this would be his senior year, you know? And that's big. So when he talks to his old friends is the same thing. And, man, that boy misses his mother. Luckily we're so busy he doesn't have time to reflect."
	"Yeah, in a way I think they enjoy it. The freedom."
	"Understandably."
	"Lynn and Diane should be coming back soon, right?"
	"I don't know. I really haven't paid attention. I barely know our own schedule…" Joey shrugged. "They're supposed to. I dunno."
	JC nodded. "Me neither." 
********
	Justin liked when they ate at McDonald's. Even though he wasn't the biggest fan of fast food, it was almost a piece of home. He tried to pretend that he was in Orlando and that the 'We love to make you smile' sign was in English. The colors and the floor and things seemed the same and the yellow arch was just familiar. 
	"So we shoot the rest of that show tomorrow?" Chris asked. "That's bullshit, why don't we do it all in one day?"
	"They do it in segments," JC replied. "I don't know. We have some interviews in the morning before that too." JC smiled. "It went well though, huh?"
	"Yeah, they were pretty funny." Lance nodded. "And then we go to Munich." 
	"Where's that from here?" 
	"South," Justin said with a mouthful of fries. "South, south, south."
	"We looked before," Chris said when Joey looked impressed. "On a map. We look where we go." 
	"By Austria and Switzerland," Justin said proudly as he dragged another two french fries through a trail of bright ketchup.
	"See, I help him get smart." Chris smirked.
	"That's impressive," Joey noted. "I have no clue where we are." He laughed. "And I really should know…"
	JC shrugged. "I just know right now we're in Hamburg." 
	"North on the map," Justin said.
	JC grinned at him. "You can show me later." 
	Joey took a bite out of his burger and swallowed before saying, "Well, I've had a really good birthday. It was a good day. A good show. Nice people. They spoke English."
	"The most important thing," Chris smirked.
	"Speaking of birthday's," Justin began. "Ya'll know mine is just around the corner… I hope your presents for me are well thought out and appropriate."
	"Well, listen to the brat!" Chris exclaimed with a laugh, watching Justin dump out the rest of the fries onto a napkin. 
	"Well? What am I getting?" Justin persisted.
	"A birthday spanking," JC answered, laughing at Justin's haughty tone. "That's it."
	Justin rolled his eyes at him, eating a few more fries. "I know I'm at least getting to pretend a party is mine." 
	"We're not skipping tradition," JC teased. "You get a trip to Munich, too."
	"How convenient." 
	Joey ripped open a packet of ketchup and squeezed it out. "I got a trip to Hamburg."
	"There's still two days," Justin persisted. "To purchase the gift that will last a lifetime."
	"Justin." JC rolled his eyes. 
	"Or money," Justin persisted. 'The gift that keeps on giving."
	Joey laughed. "You're crazy, man..." 
	Justin laughed. "I know. So.. Do you think it'll be a big party?"
	"Johnny said like two hundred people," Lance said. 
	"That's the biggest birthday party I've ever had," Justin said. "Is there liquor?"
	"Probably, but don't drink like Joey did last night," Chris answered. "Or me." He laughed.
	"I'm going to get wasted..." Justin answere.d 
	"I'm sure that'll impress everyone that's there," JC replied. 
	"Who cares," Joey replied. "Let the boy party. I'll show him a good time."
	JC looked at him skeptically. "And will we ever see you two again afterwards?"
	Joey laughed. "You give me no credit, Chasez."
	JC shrugged. "You give me no choice, Fatone." 
	Justin made his ketchup blob look bigger by smushing his fries into it again and smearing it around. "It should be fun."
******
	On the actual day, which he'd been anticipating for a while, Justin went into the party a little pessimistically. He was tired. They'd been busy for the past few days and had traveled a lot. He needed sleep, a lot more than JC even, who pretended he would die without it, because Justin on the other hand really was supposed to get at least eight hours at his age and he rarely if ever did.
	So he was tired and that made him a little moody because the trip to Munich had been very long. And he couldn't believe that his birthday was really there the next day, to be celebrated at midnight. It didn't feel like much, and he didn't even have any family with him. Not like he really cared too much about getting a cake or having his mom gush over his being a year older or getting presents… but it was the whole theory of it.
	Joey had seemed so happy with their surprise on the bus. Justin frowned at the thought of that. It was better than nothing he supposed. But then again, maybe nothing at all would make him not think about it.
	So he was a little down about things. But he tried not to show it because he knew JC had just talked to him about it like the other day. How he shouldn't be disappointed. And JC always got that sad look on his face which made Justin even more morose. And he knew it was stupid to be disappointed about something that was so juvenile. 
	But he couldn't help getting a little bit whiney on the way to the party. They had dressed so nicely while he felt like he should be able to wear his old t-shirt and ripped jeans and watch TV. Suddenly it didn't feel very good anymore to be going to this party. The party that he was supposed to pretend was his. He wanted to do nothing. He knew the party wasn't his. So he wished suddenly that he could swap this with partying on the bus with just the guys.
	And he had the right to complain too. Even Lance had been grouchy lately and Justin even caught him nearly upset a couple times about being homesick. Justin knew he missed his mother, but she'd be coming back on the road soon. Lance had the tendency to get run down easily. Joey was always telling him to rest and take it easy. And Chris got moody and so did everyone else, so Justin flet he had the right just like any of them.
	He tried to be happy on the ride over from the hotel. He had put a fake smile on his face because he really didn't know why he wasn't happy anyway. His birthday would start at midnight, after all, and he'd be sixteen and that was really cool. But he felt like crying anyway. The limo felt extremely lonely. Sometimes forcing smiles made you feel happy, but it wasn't working this time and he started to give up. 
	"I feel kind of sick," he whimpered halfway there in the limo. He'd said it earlier when they got to the hotel too. They'd only been at the hotel for a half hour to change before they had to go. It was kind of nice to have a limo to pick them up. Because it was their party. Designated his by the guys.
	He'd watched Joey and Chris sing along to the radio that was tuned to an American eighties station for about ten minutes. He'd watched JC learn how to work the windows. He'd watched Lance start to talk about what he heard was going to be at the party. 
	Then he told them he felt sick again.
	"You do not," Chris replied.
	"I do."
	"You nervous or something?" JC asked.
	"What's he got to be nervous about?" Chris answered. "We don't do anything there do we? Just grin and say thank you to everybody."
	"It's your party," Joey said.
	Like hell it is, Justin wanted to say. It isn't really. But he said nothing.
	"There's going to be two hundred people there," Lance said. "And food."
	"Food," Joey said with a grin. "Now that's something to be excited about." 
	"I want to go back to the hotel," Justin protested. 
	"Justin, don't." JC shook his head. 
	Don't what? Justin wanted to ask. He just wanted to relax. He was tired. He wasn't going to get anything for his birthday and he didn't care, but couldn't he get like an hour more sleep or something? Like right now?
	"We're all tired," Chris said. "But this is for us for once. You know? That's different, kid. You'll have fun."
	"I thought it was going to be your birthday party, remember?" Joey persisted.
	"I don't want a birthday party anymore…" Justin said with a broken tone. "I wanna go to sleep."
	"We'll get you a soda or caffeine or something when we get there," JC promised. "And you'll feel better. And tie your shoe."
	Justin looked down at his shoes. The left one was untied. He leaned down to tie it slowly, thinking wasn't that a sign in itself? An untied lace had to mean something. "What if I throw up?"
	"You're so not going to throw up," Chris answered. "And if you do you'll just embarrass yourself."
	Justin didn't think that was very nice. 
	"You're probably just nervous," JC said again. 
	"Do we at least stay around here for awhile?" Justin asked. "Munich?"
	"I think so, yes…"
	Lance shook his head. "Only tomorrow. We have a flight back to Hamburg then the next day. I just checked before we left."
	Justin felt his eyes blur. "Why….?" he asked, stretching out the word. He didn't understand. "We just…" It had taken so long to get here. Why would they leave right away?
	"But I thought we were recording here," JC objected. "Right? Like on the fourth or fifth? Don't we?"
	"We'll come back then, I guess," Lance answered with a shrug. "All I know we have a flight in two days."
	"Why can't we do it while we're here?" Justin wanted to know. "I don’t want to fly." He whimpered again. He wanted to go back to the hotel. "I want to sleep..."
	"Justin, please, stop," JC asked. He was starting to get that sad look. 
	"Want to know something cool though…?" Chris started, leaning forward in his seat. "Huh, Justin?"
	"What," Justin answered dryly. He didn't expect it would be very cool.
	"Johnny said we're getting big enough here. That we can stop doing shows for other people and our little stuff. We can start our own tour soon."
	Justin nodded. He had heard this. That wasn't cool since he knew already. Johnny had recently told all of them that. Didn't Chris know that?
	JC reached down into his pocket and pulled out a pack of gum. "You want gum?" He pulled out a stick of gum and took off the wrapper, handing it to Justin. "Here."
	"Can I have a piece?" Joey asked.
	JC rolled his eyes at him but tossed him the pack nonetheless. 
	Justin chewed the gum thoughtfully. He watched Chris, Lance, and Joey each take a piece of gum.
	The pack was tossed back to JC without any left.
	Justin started to say something, pointing at it, but JC pushed his hand down and said, "I don't want any, don't worry."
	He still didn't think that was very nice of them. "Assholes."
	Joey saw him looking at them and looked confused. "Us?" 
	Justin didn't answer.
	Chris blew a bubble with his gum and it snapped loudly. "It's just gum." 
	"I didn't know there wasn't enough," Lance said slowly. He hadn't taken it out of the wrapper yet. He offered it to JC.
	JC laughed and shook his head. "Seriously. I don't want any." 
	"You sure?"
	"Yeah, kid, positive." 
	It was just gum. Justin told himself it was just a party. Just his birthday. Just his sophomore year at high school. Just a good night of sleep.
	Justin tried from that point on in the limo to brighten up a little bit. He thought about them having their own tour and that was pretty cool. They'd had a lot of fans around lately and had signed a lot of autographs. It was kind of like when he or one of the guys from the Club would go to the mall after rehearsal and get stopped by some girls asking if they were from the show. It was nice. A little scary sometimes, but it wasn't that big yet that they were horrified to go anywhere.
	He was in a slightly better mood when they reached the party and none of the guys had said anything more to him so he was neutral. 
	The party itself didn't feel anything like a birthday party when he arrived so even their attempt to push that onto him felt false. It was nice, and a big room with a lot of people and music, but it was more like an adult thing than something to do with a sixteen year old.
	Over the course of the night there was music, congratulations, awarding of plaques, applause, pictures, and drinks. Justin didn't think it was too bad after all and the other guys looked really happy as well. It was for them. That did actually feel really good. Even if the whole night was a blur of meeting people and flashes of pictures. 
	Chris grabbed his arm a few hours into it. Justin had been accosted by a girl who spoke broken English and was a little weird and so he was kind of glad that he'd gotten an excuse to get away without being rude. It wasn't really an excuse, but being dragged away from someone was better than walking away yourself, he supposed.
	"What, Chris?" Justin demanded. It was crowded and Chris was pulling him through crowds, maneuvering him through with a tight hand on his arm. 
	Chris didn't answer, and he was really confused. He bumped into people unintentionally as Chris yanked him towards a door and he tried to apologize but by then he was about ten feet away.
	"Chris, you're…" Justin tried but Chris wasn't listening to him anyway. 
	He led him down a hallway that was really empty. There were pictures on the walls of people and Justin tried to look at them but he nearly tripped trying to keep up with Chris at the same time.  
	Chris led him into a different room then and Justin found all the guys there. They were grinning. Justin was really confused.
	He was about to ask what was going on but then they started to sing Happy Birthday. He blushed and grinned back at them. "My birthday's tomorrow," he said as they finished. 
	"It's midnight," Lance replied. He indicated his watch.
	There was a little table on wheels behind Joey and he rolled it forward. There was a cake and a bottle of champagne with five glasses.
	"There's only four candles on the cake," Joey began slowly as he pushed it towards Justin. "But that doesn't mean anything except we couldn't find anymore. Just like we couldn't find matches to light it. So you have to pretend there are more than four, and they're lit, and you blew them all out, alright?"
	"Wow," Justin replied. "Thanks, guys." 
	"See, of course we'd do something, man." Chris patted him on the back. "Happy birthday, kid." 
	"Is this okay…? Aren't we supposed to be out there…?" Justin asked slowly. He looked at the cake appreciatively. It was a real cake.
	"Johnny knows," JC said as he slipped an arm around Justin's waist and hugged him tightly against him. "He helped us get the cake. We have time. Happy birthday, J."
	Justin grinned. This was kind of cool. It was all secretive. There was a party going on. And he had gotten a cake. Joey hadn't gotten that. Joey's had been on a bus. With beer. Not champagne. Not that he should even compare, he knew, but this was definitely cooler. 
	"I'll pour drinks," Chris began. 
	Joey had a big knife, and he handed it to Justin carefully. "You wanna cut it?"
	"He's got to," Chris answered as attempted to open the champagne. 
	"Cut good!" Lance said as Justin moved forward to the cake and lifted the knife.
	"I'll try," Justin answered with a smirk. He looked at the cake. It had white icing and it said something on it. Alles Gute zum Geburtstag. "What's it say?"
	"Happy birthday in German…" JC answered. "We think. It's supposed to at least. Wait and let me take the candles out before you cut."
	Suddenly Steve walked in from the doorway and frowned at them. "Oh, you so did not sing Happy Birthday without me."
	"We did." 
	"For fuck's sake, guys."
	"I didn't even know you were coming," Chris replied, looking up. He'd finally popped the cork out of the champagne without too much of it spilling over and was pouring the third glass.
	"Yeah, well, I took a little nap and then took a cab over here. Luckily they let me in." He grabbed. "You know I wanted to come. I was just tired. I don't know how you guys had time to get ready."
	"You made good time," Joey answered.
	"Happy birthday, buddy." Steve waved at Justin. "I have a camera. You guys want pictures?"
	Justin shook his head but JC said, "One with the cake."
	"JC, you're like mom," Justin complained.
	"She'll want to see."
	"At least not like my mom who takes twenty pictures of the cake without anyone else in it," Lance answered. "All crooked ones that no one will look at again."
	"That's like my mom," Joey laughed. 
	Justin held the knife in the picture and they all pressed closely, trying not to blink as they smiled and the flash went off.
	"And make sure I get one of you guys with the awards you got too," Steve persisted. "Joseph, your mother wants pictures of what you're doing over here, and I intend to give them to her."
	"Well, Steven, it's not like you don't have enough video footage of it," Joey answered as he patted Justin's shoulder and walked to be in front of the cake. 
	"Already, so let's do this. How can I cut?" Justin asked.
	Chris handed Lance and Joey a glass of champagne. Then JC. "Steve, we've got five glasses."
	Steve rolled his eyes. "That's fine. They're serving enough out there."
	"How can I cut?" Justin insisted.
	JC took a sip from his glass. "However you want," he said. "Just give the Fatones a lot. So they'll shut up."
	Joey grinned. "JC, how did you know food would do that?" He peered over as Justin started to push the knife in. "Kid, give me a big one at least. Steve is just a mooch."
	"Pardon?" Steve objected sarcastically. 
	Justin cut straight down the middle first. Then cut out one carving out a pretty big piece. "We don't got plates," he started slowly.
	"I knew we forgot something," Chris said in disappointment.
	"Hands are fine," Joey said. "Is that one mine?"
	Justin shrugged. "Okay."
	He got them each a piece and then cut himself one. Chris gave him his glass of champagne. It was kind of messy without plates but they managed to keep it fairly tidy until Chris began to fool around. 
	"Hey, Justin."
	Justin turned around to Chris and was greeted by cake being crushed into his face. Chris smeared it across his cheeks and nose.
	"So not funny…" Justin began as he immediately took what he had left of his own and tried to crush it into Chris. But Chris moved too quickly and Justin just crushed it more in his own hand. 
	Joey laughed at Justin's icing covered face but then Justin turned to him and glared. He took a step towards him and Joey shook his head. "Justin, you do and that's it. No more nice guy. I swear I don't care if it's your―" 
	Justin pressed his hand swiftly into Joey's face but at the same time Chris had crushed the rest of his cake into Justin's curly hair. Cursing, Justin stopped and turned back to Chris, enraged. Joey slapped him upside head and he spun and glared at him too.
	But Chris got JC next and that made Justin laugh because JC just stood there with champagne in one hand and cake in the other, looking powerless. 
	"Can I just say one thing?" Lance began slowly. "We still have to go out there after this and maybe being covered with cake won't look too―"
	Chris shut him up by getting him too. 
	Justin got himself a new piece of cake quickly and started after Chris. Chris ran out the door, and he immediately followed and sped after him. When he got close enough he managed to grab him to slow him down. Then he jumped onto Chris's back and brought him down to the floor. 
	Justin was just about to try to get Chris to roll over when he heard laughing several feet away in front of them.
	He looked up and saw the one and only Lou Pearlman standing there with a jolly look on his fat face. "Hey, boys."
	"Get up, fucker," Chris hissed as he reached around to pinch Justin's thigh. 
	Justin scrambled off of Chris and stayed down crouched on the floor as Chris started to sit up.
	"I was just looking for you guys," Lou continued. "Justin, I wanted to wish you a happy birthday. But it looks like you're having a good time."
	"Yeah…" Justin answered, reaching out to take a grip of Chris's shirt and inadvertently crushing the rest of the cake in his hand into it.  
	"We were just about to head back to the party in a few minutes," Chris said as he stood.
	"I need to find a bathroom," Justin said as he started to get up too. 
	"I'll show you where it is," Lou offered. "It's―"
	"No. JC needs it too," Justin objected. "We'll find it."  
	"Okay. It's down the hall."
	Justin nodded quickly and tugged at Chris. "Right, Chris?"
	Chris looked at him. "Yeah… Lou, we'll see you out there in a few alright?"
	Lou nodded. "Good, because we've been missing your faces out there. I'll see you guys then. Happy birthday, Justin. Sixteen, right?"
	"Yes," Justin acknowledged.
	Lou smiled. "Sweet sixteen. Clean up, alright?"
	Chris and Justin watched him leave. When he was far enough away Chris started to turn and walk. He noticed Justin's hand when the kid let go and he looked down at his shirt where cake was smeared. 
	"Justin, God."
	"What?" Justin exclaimed. "Not like it's not all over me."
	"Your face," Chris answered, reaching up to rub at Justin's cheek hard. "That comes off easy, no?"
	"Whatever." 
	"And it's also just like you too to jump me when Lou's coming to see us. You have the wrost timing."
	Justin didn't say anything to that. He was just glad Lou had gone away. Chris could be pissed all he wanted. He'd forget about it in two seconds anyway. 
	"C'mon, jerk." Chris took his arm. "We really do need to clean this mess up." 
******
	They tried to clean up in the bathroom ten minutes later.
	Justin hopped up on the long sink counter and swung his legs as he rubbed a wet paper towel over his face. "Let's stay here."
	"In the bathroom?" Joey asked as he looked in the mirror at his cake covered face and scowled. He ran the water. "That's exactly what I'd love to do."
	"I agree. There is something about that linoleum that makes me want to live here…" Chris answered sarcastically.
	"Live here forever," Lance agreed. "Make a family."
	"With the linoleum," Chris persisted. "I want to have sex with the linoleum."
	"Because nothing else will have sex with you."
	"Lance!" Chris replied with a grin. "Joey's rubbing off on you."
	Lance smirked.
	Justin yawned and shrugged. He looked at the greenish linoleum and frowned.
	"You know, Justin," JC said. "You get to sleep late for your birthday."
	"I do?" Justin rubbed at his face with the towel.
	JC nodded. He handed him a dry paper towel to dry off. "I'm pretty sure we don't have anything start until about one or two…" 
	"Really?"
	"Why would I lie?"
	Justin smiled. "Cool…" 
	JC didn't want to mention that they were going to get home so late that sleeping in wouldn't matter much anyway depending on how much longer this party ran. But at least they didn't have anything immediately after.
	"Don't forget your hair," he said instead. "Chris got you good." 
	Justin grunted, reaching up to feel his hair. It was all sticky.
	"We do that gold thing tomorrow," Chris spoke up.
	"Gold thing?" Justin echoed.
	Chris just laughed. "Were you there when we were talking about that? Maybe not. You'll see..." 
********
	The limo ride back from the party was a relief. They all had a good rest of the party it seemed. They spread out from each other after cleaning up the cake and champagne and returned to the main crowd. Then they stayed until things started to clear, because after all it was their party. Johnny and Lou were there and congratulated them numerous times. They as a group thanked them for their support. And then they were back in the limo going back to the hotel. 
	Justin was the first one into the limo and started to lie down as soon as he got in a seat until Joey poked him hard and said, "More than just you coming in," and he had to sit up. Grudgingly, he moved in further so that the rest of them could get in.
	JC moved in to the back of the limo and sat as close to the edge of the seat as he watched Justin stretch out again, yawning loudly. Chris sat down beside him but let him put his feet in his lap and so Justin was soon content enough to close his eyes again. He didn't open them again until they got to the hotel and Chris pushed his legs to the ground and he had to wake up.
	The group tiredly found their way back to their room and barely had energy to pull off their shoes and socks before collapsing into bed. The most tiring part had been standing the entire night. 
	Justin managed a "Thank you, guys," groggily as he tiredly unbuttoned his pants and pulled off his shirt and crawled under the covers with just boxers on to join JC, who hadn't even bothered to get undressed.
	The others chorused a few 'happy birthdays'.
	"You take your shoes off at least?" Justin asked JC.
	"Yes," JC muttered.
	"Just making sure," Justin answered as he curled up and closed his eyes. He yawned and fell to sleep for the first time as a sixteen year old. 
******* 
	 Sleeping late was sublime. Justin had nearly forgotten how great it was. When Joey got up a few hours after they had gotten back to make a run to the bathroom, he passed Justin and pinched his arm. Justin heard him wish him happy birthday, and squinted at the clock. He didn't remember being in bed this late in a long time. 
	He loved it when he was in that state where he was slightly awake enough to enjoy the warmth of being under the blankets and just the absolute comfort of being there while also knowing it could last a bit longer. It was awful when you felt that nice comfort and someone was then shaking you or slapping you and telling you that you were going to make them late if you didn't hurry your ass up. 
	He liked thinking about how Chris was relaxed in the other bed and not trying to keep up his animated, lively self while balancing all the stress he was feeling about the group and what they had signed and were expected to do. And the frown was away from Lance's face and he was able to dream about being at home with his parents and his sister and think about how his mom was coming to visit again really soon. And Joey, even if he was up right now, would be silent and stress free when he returned to bed, not trying to make everyone happy.
	These beds weren't as small as some of the ones that they had been stuck with. The room didn't smell and it wasn't very cold and the furniture and light fixtures seemed intact. Justin wondered if maybe they were moving up in the world. Or maybe this was all just dumb luck and the next hotel that they'd be stuck in-where? Back in Hamburg or something-would be just as bad as any other.
	He thought about his birthday and how nice it had been that the guys had gotten him a cake and sang and didn't treat him too weird about it. And when Chris got goofy that was pretty funny too. Well, until they found themselves out in the hall on the floor looking up at that Lou Pearlman. Justin felt he could have done without that… 
	But otherwise he thought he felt kind of happy about it.
*****
	Bliss couldn't last forever, however, and Justin found that extended comfort ending still too soon. Lights were going on and he heard Joey grumbling and cursing a blue streak but at least he was up. Justin didn't know if he could even do that. He squeezed his eyes even tighter closed to block out the light someone had turned on. 
	Someone turned on the TV. Guttural German flooded his hearing. Damn that was loud.
	He rolled over on his stomach in an attempt to go back to sleep with a pillow over his head, but then JC was on him, kneading a hard hand into his back and saying, "Get up, birthday boy," in a deep morning voice.
	"For once the sun is up when we're leaving the hotel room," he heard Chris say. "I'm taking the shower first."
	"Chris's got shower, after he's done I'm up," Justin mumbled incoherently into his pillow. 
	Joey leaped onto the bed and tickled Justin teasingly. "Somebody's sixteen," he said with a laugh as Justin tried to pull away, groaning tiredly in objection. But JC was a barrier to sliding off the other side, and Joey continued to tickle him unmercifully.
	Joey grinned as Justin was stuck to his torture and he kept at it until the boy was nearly squealing, almost in tears from laughing so hard. 
	"There you go," Joey said as he stopped and slid off the bed with a grin, watching Justin gasp breathlessly. "He's awake."
	JC smirked at the panting Justin draped across the bed of tangled blankets. "Are you sure? I think you may have killed him."
	"Impossible."
 	JC reached over and poked Justin in the ribs. Justin whined in response. "He's got life in him yet," JC remarked. "You get enough sleep, buddy boy?"
	"Barely," Justin answered. He started to sit up. 
	JC looked at his flushed cheeks and breathlessness and laughed. "Barely? You got eight hours."
	"I need ten. I'm a growing boy." 
	"I'm afraid you won't get ten hours of consecutive sleep for a while, man…" JC rolled his eyes, lying back down with his hands clasped behind his head. "Although I admit that'd be nice." 
	"I’m going to be stunted."
	"You're already tall enough never to be stunted," Joey answered, sitting down on the other bed again. Lance was opening the window blinds.
	"But think of how much taller I could've been." 
	"Not much." Joey shrugged. "You're too skinny to get any taller anyway."
	"Not really," Justin answered defensively. He looked at JC. "Am I skinny?"
	JC shook his head. "Well, you're not fat." 
	Joey rolled his eyes. "Your opinion is coming from Mr. Skinny Number Two."
	"JC's not skinny either."
	"Justin was skinnier as a little kid," JC answered. "He'll fill out."
	"Uh-huh," Joey replied. "Fine. I don't want to start a discussion on weight. It's obviously two against one." 
	"Hey-Where'd your brother go?" Justin asked. He hadn't seen Steve anywhere.
	"I think he said something about getting coffee." Joey shrugged. He sighed. "I wish Chris would hurry up in the shower, man…"
	"He, just got in there," JC answered, still comfortable on the bed.
	"And besides," Justin added, "I'm next."
	Joey frowned. "Like hell you are. I call it."
	"I just called it…" Justin protested.
	"Do you see me caring?" Joey answered, watching Justin in anticipation as he began to pout. Justin was so predictable. That's what made him fun to play with. His face said everything. Joey waited for JC to try to defend the kid and that came in just a second. 
	"Joey, it's his birthday…" JC started with a sigh, giving Justin an appeasing look. The injured look stayed on Justin's face regardless. 
	Joey didn't look moved. He shook his head, giving JC an incredulous look. "So?" he persisted. "JC, he takes like an hour."
	"Do not…" Justin whined. 
	"I was up first." Joey gave Justin a hard look.
	Justin gave him a pathetic face in response. "It's my birthday," he said sadly in a little kid voice. 
	"My birthday was three days ago. I didn't get shower privileges on my birthday."
	"You didn't ask..."  
	"Fine. Then I'm asking and taking my privileges now." 
	"You didn't ask first…"
	"By the time you two are done, Chris, Lance, and I will be done and ready to go," JC warned. 
	"But, JC," Justin persisted in exasperation. He stretched out his legs with a 'hmph'. "I did ask first… I just want to shower…"
	"And can you imagine…" Joey began. "Can you stretch your imagination enough to realize that maybe I want to shower too? Before the end of the century?"
	"He doesn't take that long," Lance said.
	Joey turned. "Whose side are you on?" he said. He gave Lance a smirk. "Traitor." 
	"I don't take that long," Justin agreed. "I'll be really quick." 
	"No," Joey said.
	"Joey, don't be a bully," JC said. 
	The water that had been running in the bathroom suddenly stopped and both Joey and Justin jumped and ran to the closed door. They reached it at the same time and pushed each other a bit. But then Joey grabbed Justin by his waist and lifted him to throw over his shoulder. He walked over and dumped him back on the bed. 
	"Ha," he said haughtily. "I'm bigger." 
	Justin laid on the bed angrily for a moment but then slid off slowly, watching Joey stand guard by the door. He stood and waited. 
	"Just give up, Justy. Joey's got you," JC with a laughing tone. "And Joey, Chris's got to change. He brought clothes in there. He's going to be a few minutes."
	"I'll wait," Joey assured, eyeing Justin critically. "Stop sulking, Justin. You're such a baby."  
	Justin said nothing. 
	Chris emerged a second later and stopped in the doorway when he saw Joey standing right there. He laughed and pushed some wet bangs away from his forehead. "Yes?"
	Justin took the pause and rushed forward, sliding behind Chris and into the bathroom.
	Joey pushed Chris out of the way but the door had already clicked shut. He rattled the doorknob but it was locked. "Justin!" he yelled, hitting the door. "Fuck you!"
	Chris still had an amused look on his face as he walked past Joey and shook his head. "Okay…" 
	"Just wait till you get out of there!" Joey persisted, forehead against the door. "You're going to get it!" 
	JC exchanged a look with Lance, who laughed.
	"Wow, Joe..." Lance smirked. "It's just a shower."
	"It's important to me. I feel gross." Joey shook his head and turned to JC, crossing his arms over his chest and setting his jaw. "You know, I was going to let him," he said. "But he just… Ugh. I would have let him anyway, but that pisses me off. I'd just been teasing."  
	"He'll take a short one now," JC replied. "So you don't get mad." 
	Joey huffed. "I'm already mad." 
	"I call third," Lance said suddenly. 
	Joey shot him a look. "Don't make me come over there, Bass." 
******
	Justin took a short shower and came out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel grinning, wet ringlets curling around his face. He gave Joey a playful smile as Joey walked past him and gave him a gentle shove. 
	"No more hot water," he said.
	"Bullshit, funny boy," Joey answered as he disappeared behind the door. 
	Justin pulled his towel tighter and sighed. 
	"He was going to let you anyway," JC said. 
	"I don't care," Justin answered airily as he walked over to his bag, still dripping wet, and crouched down on his haunches. "It's only a shower."
	"Uh-huh. But you just had to go before him anyway."
	"Can I wear jeans? Is there a dresscode today?" 
	JC yawned and shrugged. "Jeans, sure. I don't see why not. They'll give you stuff to wear for the shoot no matter what you wear usually."
	"Hopefully not ugly stuff," Chris answered, changing channels on the TV, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Or matching. I'm really getting sick of the matching. It's so fucking corny."
	"No, remember," JC began. "We're going to do that gold thing?"
	"Gold thing..." Lance said.
	"You don't remember?" JC smirked. "We're being painted gold, literally, for having gone gold."
	"No way," Justin answered. "For real?"
	JC nodded.
	"Well, that should be interesting, right?" Chris asked. "That's a pretty cool idea..." 
	"Hey, Justin," Lance started. "Are you going to call your mom?"
	"What for?" Justin asked.
	"Well, it's your birthday," Lance replied slowly.
	"Yeah. Mine." Justin smiled. "Not hers."
	"Call." JC rolled his eyes. "She did endure labor for you to be here."
	Justin rolled his eyes. "I don't want to think about that."
	"She did. She'll appreciate a call. Mother's do. She doesn't have the number here."
	"She's a different mother. And labor? Whatever. I popped out singing. No prob, Bob."
	"So you say. If she heard you say that, I bet she'd disagree."
	"Your singing does sound an awful lot like wailing sometimes," Chris quipped. "So really he could have popped out doing that so-called singing…" 
	Justin glared. "Excuse you. I never have wailed."
	"Oh please."
	"Justin, just call her, alright?" JC asked. "Lance is right. She's your mother. I'm sure she'll want to wish you a happy birthday." He didn't mention that he knew that Justin would not be able to get in touch with her if he tried to call...
	"She would call if she―"
	"I just said she doesn't have the number to this hotel, kid."
	"Oh yeah. Okay… But isn't it really early or late there? We're about six hours ahead of Orlando's time here… She's sleeping, JC." 
	JC nodded in acknowledgment and yawned again. "Okay. Later then."
	"Chris, take back what you said," Justin said. "Did you mean that?"
	"Mean what?" Chris asked.
	"The wailing thing…"
	"Well… Have you listened to yourself?"
	Justin took a moment but then shot back, "At least I don't sound like I live on a helium canister." 
	Sarcastically, Chris replied, "Good one, loser," and rolled his eyes. "You just wish you had this range."
	"So I could double as Alvin from the chipmunks?" Justin answered. "No thank you. I could live without."
	"The chipmunks don't need any wailing singers."
	Justin stopped and shook his head. "Chris..."
	Chris smiled, wondering how far he could push him. Justin wasn't even dressed yet, just holding what he wanted to wear with the towel around his waist. Maybe it was too early for a feud. "Get dressed," he said.
	"Tell me I'm not." 
	"Well… If my lying skills were halfway believable, I honestly would, Jup."
	"You couldn't honestly do it," Lance pointed out. "If you were lying."
	"Good point…" Chris mused. "So, then, Justin, I really can't tell you that."
	Justin looked on the edge of furious. "JC."
	"Don't bring me in," JC answered, closing his eyes. "You always bring me in. Defend yourself." 
	"Get dressed," Chris said again. "There's a law to how long you can stay naked and I think you're going to get prosecuted in about two seconds. Means you get beat up." 
	"I'm not naked," Justin answered.
	"Yeah, well you're close enough and since we have to go out soon maybe you should fix that." 
	"No."
	"Why, because I told you? Someone else tell him to get dressed," Chris said. "He's just dripping all over the carpet." 
	"Lance, you want to shower next?" JC asked.
	"If you don't mind," Lance answered.
	"Nope. Go ahead." 
	The door to the room opened and Steve came in balancing a styrofoam cup holder that had six white cups and a big paper bag.
	"Wow. Someone was productive," JC said with a smile. He sat up in bed. "Food?" 
	"Donuts," Steve answered. "And three coffees, three hot chocolates, because I didn't remember who'd want what. Figured half and half was a good pick. How we doing?"
	"Lance and I are the only sane ones this morning," JC answered. "Well, you can be sane too."
	"Why?" Steve walked over to a little table at the other side of the room and looked relieved to put down his load. He looked at Chris and Justin. "What's up with you two?"
	Justin shook his head and watched JC get up and go over to the food. He asked which ones were coffees and took one of those. Justin chewed on his lip and decided to try to get dressed. Holding his towel up he skillfully pulled on a pair of boxers beneath and then pulled up the towel to rub over his wet hair, making the curls stick out a bit. Then he rolled the towel and walked close enough to whap Chris in the head. 
	Chris caught the towel the second time it was coming at him and pulled it out of Justin's hands. "Stop it. Get dressed, alright?" 
	"Take it back."
	"No. Get over it." 
	"Take it back." Justin reached for the towel and Chris let him take it again. "Did you mean it?"
	"What do you think?" Chris asked, eyeing the TV. He changed the channel. "Don't you hit me again." 
	"Justin, you want coffee or hot chocolate?" JC asked. 
	Justin looked over at him and nodded. "Yes." He sat down next to Chris on the bed. "I didn't mean the helium thing either, Chris."
	"Justin," Chris laughed. "I don't care." 
	"It wasn't a yes or no," JC said with a frown. 
	"I care though," Justin replied. "There are some things you can joke about, but not when it's something that we do for a living." 
	"Whatever. Stop being dramatic. I'm not taking it back. How can you take back a joke?"
	Justin opened his mouth to reply, but didn't get the chance.
	"Justin," JC persisted.
	"What?" Justin looked at him. He laid back on the bed. "What?"
	"Come over here," JC persisted.  "Forget it." 
	Justin sat up and slid off the bed, walking towards JC, Steve, and Lance, dragging his towel with him. "Are they good donuts?" He peered into the bag.
	"They might be a little different," Steve replied. "The place was small, but I think they're good. They have mostly the same kinds. What do you like?"
	"How come they're in a bag and not a box?"
	"I don't know." 
	Justin tossed his towel over onto a bed and then reached for a chocolate covered donut. The icing was a little smeared and he said, "It wouldn't be so messy if it was in a box." 
	"Well, it's in a bag," Steve answered with a roll of his eyes. 
	"I just think it makes more sense to put it in a box."
	"It does." 
	Joey came out of the bathroom dressed with steam coming out behind him from the foggy room. "I'm out. Who's next? Oh, Steve, did you bring food? I knew you were good for something…"
	"Coffee or chocolate?" JC asked. 
	"How many?"
	"Three of each. Well two of each. Curly and I already picked."
	Joey looked at Steve. "You care? How about you, Lance? Chris, did you pick?"
	"I'll take either," Lance said.
	"Same," Chris said. 
	"I'll take a coffee then," Steve said, taking his own white cup. 
	"Me too," Joey replied. 
	"Caffeine…" Justin said.
	"Hey, chocolate's got caffeine too," Steve answered.
	"Oh. Well, not as much," Justin persisted. 
	"Sugar," Joey countered. 
	"Love sugar." Justin took another bite of the donut.
*******
	 At the first interview of the day, like some others they'd done, they were required to have meet with the journalist separately and have individual sessions to answer questions. In such cases, they usually asked them to describe each other and asked more personal questions. 
	When it was Justin's turn and the four others sat together, JC mentioned that night. "We all going out tonight?"	
	"Just us you mean? Isn't it Justin's birthday?" Joey began. "He'd be pissed."
	Chris laughed. "Joey, you forgot?"
	"Forgot what?"
	"Justin's mom's flying in," JC said. "Remember? She decided she'd come back on road with us on his birthday? Nice little surprise for him?
	"I forgot too," Lance started. "With all the talk of him calling her this morning I totally forgot."
	JC laughed. "I thought you were actually just being really smooth. I was kind of impressed, like wow, good job, Lance. He'll never suspect."
	"Nope," Lance rolled his eyes. "Completely blanked."
	"Fooled me. Well today's the day," JC answered. "Aren't your mom and dad coming soon too?"
	"Not for another week."
	"My dad wants to come over," Joey said. "I don't know if he'll wait until we're on our tour though." He laughed and continued. "Once Steve tells him about our schedule he'll probably change his mind." 
	JC smirked. "I wouldn't blame him."
	"So we're going to go out?" Chris asked. 
	JC nodded. "I think his mom wanted to take him out to a nice dinner or something. He'll probably want to come with us and go clubbing instead." 
	Joey rolled his eyes. "I wouldn't be too surprised."
	"I'm not sure what time…" JC began. "I think we should get him back to the hotel after this… What time's the gold photo-shoot? Are we going back to the hotel?"
	"I think we could," Chris answered. "Or should."
	"She's getting a cab to the hotel. She knows the number but doesn't have a key so we'll have to be there so―" 
	Justin came back then and they shut their mouths. He was smiling as he approached them, a sign that he'd done well or had a good time with the interview, and he had a bag in hand.
	"What's that?" JC asked as Justin approached. It was a big gift type of bag.
	"Present," Justin said. "Lance, they want you next. They gave me a present."
	Lance left and Justin plopped down between JC and Joey. "Look…" He held the bag in his lap. He loved gifts.
	"What'd you get a present for?" Joey asked. "I didn't get a present."
	"My birthday."
	"Do they not remember mine was three days ago?"
	"Mine's today."
	"So you've told us countless times…" Joey grinned. "What'd you get, pal?"
	"Don't know…" Justin reached in to the bag and looked in. "Didn't look yet… I see…"
	"A card," JC said, reaching in to grab an envelope.
	"You can open it," Justin answered. He was reaching around for the more interesting stuff. There was a lot candy and some books in English and some German key chains. A German version of a couple CDs from artists he'd been quoted liking. Lots of good stuff to him.
	The card said happy birthday in German and had a German message printed inside. But the writing was in English and addressed to Justin, wishing him a good day and a sweet sixteen and giving their gratitude for the group having come. Good luck with all they did and the upcoming tour, etc. It was signed from the people at the local radio station and the magazine they were with.
	"That's really nice," JC said. "Wanna read it?"
	Justin was focused on unwrapping a chocolate. "Not now."
	Joey took the card from JC's hands and looked at it. "That's really nice. Did you thank them?"
	"Yes, I did," Justin replied. "In German too. They're really nice. They barely had accents either. And I filled out something and it was all in English." 
	"They were nice," Chris said. "When I was in there. They really were down to earth."
	"I can't believe they got you so much stuff…" Chris said, peering into the bag. "That's really cool of them to even know it's your birthday."
	"They said I shouldn't have to work on my birthday," Justin continued. "And it's true. I totally agree." 
	"Today's Friday. You'd be in school if you weren't working," JC responded. "And I know you like working better. Either way you'd have to be somewhere."
	"I'd take off from school on my birthday," Justin said with a sigh as he chewed on chocolate. "And go somewhere."
	"Where?"
	"I don't know. Somewhere cool."
	"Would I be invited?"
	"If you wanted to be. I wouldn't have many other people to invite other than you."
	"What about me?" Joey asked. 
	"I wouldn't know you if I wasn't working," Justin answered. 
	"JC?"
	"I'd know him 'cause I'd still have done Mickey Mouse. Just not after I'm saying."
	"Ah. So no me?"
	"Well, JC'd know you. Maybe he'd invite you. I wouldn't know you good enough to invite…" Justin persisted. "And I didn't know all of JC's old people friends."
	"Old people," JC echoed with a smirk. "I'm so sure. You just ran away whenever Tony and I were talking to people outside the show. Too exclusive." 
	"Because," Justin answered. "Duh. You did not want Ryan or me there. You always said."
	"No, I just said you two couldn't be stupid if you were going to come."
	"That meant go away."
	"I never said go away," JC said. 
	"Tony did."
	"Well, that's Tony, Justin." JC rolled his eyes. "Not me. You could have come with me those times if you wanted. It was cool once you just came and didn't make a deal out of it."
	"I didn't. Ryan and I just thought- And then that time when Dale and Tony thought that we were―"
	"Okay, enough with all the Mickey Mouse trivial times bullshit," Chris interrupted. "Every time you guys talk about it I swear that it becomes more of a soap opera."
	"Anyway," Justin said as he reached into the bag again.
	"You're going to get sick if you eat all of that," JC objected. 
	"Let me have some," Joey said. 
	"No." Justin shook his head and put the bag on the floor by his feet. "It's mine. That's valuable loot and none of you can have any. Especially Joey. He takes people's gum."
	"I do not―"
	"The last piece no less." 
	"Sure… Man, your memory... You fixate on stuff, don't you?" 
	Justin shrugged and started tapping his foot in unrest, almost to the match of Chris who was always moving his legs and feet in fidgeting. "Where are we going after this?"
	"Hotel," JC answered. "Just for a little bit."
	"Don't we have… Other stuff? That gold thing?"
	"Yeah. But we have some time to rest in between."
	"Oh. Okay, cool.""
********
	There was only one person that they were expecting when they went back to the hotel room. So when they were in the midst of watching a movie on TV, an American movie that just had German subtitles and not dubbed language, sprawled in various places in the room, the knock had to be that one person. 
	"Hey, Justin, can you get that?" JC asked from beside Justin on the couch. 
	Justin was slouched down in the chair sleepily, head resting against the armrest. He looked about to doze off and was really kind of interested in the movie. "But I'm resting," he said, eyes not leaving the screen.
	"Can you just get the door?" Joey asked politely. There was another knock. "Please?"
	Justin frowned and tried to listen to the TV. This was important dialogue he was missing. Vital to the plot. "Sh… Can't one of―"
	"If you don't, Justin, I'll shave your head in your sleep," Chris warned. "And I'll burn your baseball and basketball cards. Draw on your Janet and Tyra posters. I'll―"
	"What's the deal?" Justin answered, sitting up. "Why can't―"
	"Get the door," Lance said. "God." 
	"You're all so lazy," Justin huffed and JC pushed him up and then gave him a slap and he had to go. He was walking to the door mumbling curses about lazy, ungrateful friends and confusing movie plots when he looked through the peephole.
	He frowned. That couldn't be…
	He opened the door. "Mom?"
	"Happy birthday, honey!" she said, wearing a big coat. "Are you surprised to see me?"
	Justin's jaw dropped slightly and he looked back inside to see if any of the guys were looking. They were watching the TV. He turned back to Lynn. "How did…"
	"You knew I was coming back on the road," Lynn began. "You didn't know when, so I decided to make it your birthday. Isn't that a good surprise, sweetheart? Are you glad to see me?"
	"I…" Justin hesitated, still in shock. "Um, yeah." He reached forward and quickly hugged his mother. She hugged him back tightly and kissed his cheek. "Oh, my little baby is sixteen…" she said with a sigh. 
	"Yeah," he said with a slight blush. "I, um… You wanna come in? Wow. I was not expecting this. Did you… Do you have your own room?"
	She nodded. "Yep. Just down the hall a couple doors. Isn't this great? It's mild today, isn't it? I thought it would be a little colder. How are you, honey?" She walked in and shut the door behind herself. "Hey, guys," she called over.
	"Hey, Lynn," they replied in chorus.
	"Oh, you all look so good…" She smiled. "Justin, I missed you. We all miss you. You know what your grandmother did? She baked your favorite… I have it with me in a tupperware still completely fresh." 
	"For real?" Justin smiled. "Which? Apple?"
	"Apple crisp," Lynn affirmed. "She knew you'd like that. And your father says hello. And your brother and his mother. Paul is with me. He's just putting our bags in the room."
	"I didn't know you were coming…"
	"You think I'd miss your birthday? Your sixteenth birthday? Of course not, baby. Not if I could help it."
	"You have to fly again tomorrow, you know," Justin persisted. "We're flying tomorrow."
	"I know." Lynn nodded and smiled. "I'm all set, Justin. We planned it all really well."
	"Did…" Justin turned to the guys. "Ya'll knew? Did you know she was coming?"
	They looked up from the movie. A couple shrugs and one 'yeah' and he frowned. "You didn't tell me."
	"I wanted it to be a surprise," Lynn answered. "Isn't it a great surprise?"
	Justin nodded. "It is."
	"What's your guys' schedule?" she continued. "Do you have to leave soon?"
	"About twenty minutes," Chris answered.
	"Okay." She nodded. "Honey." She took Justin's arm. "Come and say hello to Paul. Give him a big hug. He's missed you too. Then you'll be ready to go with the guys. What have you done so far today?"
	The guys watched Lynn lead Justin back out of the room.
	"He's surprised," Lance said with a laugh.
	"Hell yeah," JC answered.
******
	Justin was slightly annoyed an hour later in the van to their "gold" event. "Why didn't ya'll tell me?" he demanded in a loud, angrily inquiring voice. "Huh?" He reached over and punched JC hard in the arm. "Huh?"
	"Because it was a surprise," JC answered, rubbing his arm and then hitting Justin back. 
	"I don't like surprises!" Justin yelled.
	Chris saw the driver look at them in the rear view mirror and frowned. "Justin, calm down. It's your mother. I'd say that's a pretty cool surprise on your birthday."
	"I should have known," Justin answered, trying to keep his voice on a lower level. "I should have known. I just want to be told this kind of thing!"
	"I had forgotten until today," Lance admitted.
	"Yeah," Joey said. "I think it's a cool surprise gift. I'd love if my parents did that."
	"Your parents would tell you," Justin snapped back. "They wouldn't just pop up. And my mom says we're going to dinner. Is that we as in we or what we is it?"
	"You and her and Paul," Chris said. "She wants to take you out."
	"Without you guys?"
	"Yeah. To a nice restaurant."
	"How the hell does she know where to go in fucking nowheresville Germany?" Justin demanded. "She doesn't know restaurants here."
	"Justin," JC said. 
	"No," Justin answered him sharply. "I don't think it's right. I don't think it's right that you all knew, and you've probably known for days, and you didn't say anything to me. And you..." He turned to Lance. "You telling me to call her this morning. All part of your plan, huh?"
	Lance gave him an earnest look. "No, not really, I ―" 
	"Whatever," Justin replied. He was flushed in anger. "You have no right."
	"Why does it upset you?" Chris asked.
	Justin took a deep breath. "Because," he insisted. "Because you were all in control of it. And I had no idea. I should know. I should know when my own family is going to visit." 
	"Your mom wanted to surprise you, Justin," Joey replied. "It was her idea. We might have known about it, but it was her plan, as a birthday surprise."
	"Justin, the only thing you're doing is making yourself upset," JC answered. "Just chill, and be glad she's here. You just said the other day that you wished she was here." 
	"No! I have a right to be upset. You can't just drop this into the schedule. And what about you guys? Where are you all while I'm at the dinner?" Justin asked.
	Joey reached over and patted his shoulder. "Dude, come on. This isn't supposed to make you mad. It was supposed to be a good surprise."
	"I don't like surprises."
	"Well, then blame your mother."
	"You guys knew." 
	"Justin..." Lance rolled his eyes. "If you think about it, it's pretty stupid for you to be mad at us about all of this. We didn't do anything."
	"Exactly."
	"Aren't you glad she's here? I'd be glad if my mother was here." 
	Justin looked at his eyes for a moment as if to persist but then wavered and felt a rush of defeat go down his spine and looked away out the window. His said in a low voice, "But… I just wanted to go with ya'll. I'm glad mom's here but how come I couldn't know? I wanted to be with ya'll today."
	JC shook his head. "Well, later maybe. But you're going to go to dinner with your parents, and we're doing something else."
	"Why don't I ever have fucking control of anything?" he asked.
	"Justin, it'll be nice," Joey said. "If it's just because we didn't tell you about it… It's because it was a cool surprise."
	"Surprises are never cool," Justin said. He unexpectedly felt a few tears coming and hasitly wiped at his eyes with his sleeve before anyone could notice. He wasn't sure why he was so upset either. But the surprise really threw him off guard. And it was emotional to have his family dropped back in his lap. "The unexpected is always bad. It's like death and… and like separation… and…"
	"Justin, having dinner with your parents on your birthday as a surprise is barely like death," Chris answered. "You'll get a better dinner out of it than any of us… Some surprises are good."
	Justin looked at JC but JC wasn't looking at him. He was waiting for JC to tell him something in pacification but the man had said nothing. He knew what his argument, or lack there of, sounded like and how ridiculous it all was, but it was the whole idea of it that was getting him mad. They were going to do something else that night and it was his birthday, and suddenly the whole day of nothing special had turned into a day of his mom trying to make it special. Without the guys. He had enough going on as it was that he didn't need more unexpected things, good or bad, thrown into the mix.
	And now the guys were annoyed with the way he was taking it. That was all inadvertently the fault of this stupid surprise too. And they were supposed to be painted gold or whatever that meant and so things were going to get really messed up.
	"I'll go to the dinner for you and pretend to be you," Joey offered. Chris and Lance laughed. "Honest," Joey persisted. "Your mom will never even realize. I could use a good meal out." 
	"She'd never realize," Lance agreed with a smirk.
	"I'd go too," Chris was saying. "It'll be better than whatever the rest of us will eat tonight."
	"Why don’t you both go?" Lance suggested. "Lynn will never know."
	"No, she won't. Will you go, Lance?" 
	"Nah, I want to go clubbing."
	"Okay," Chris said. "Then Joey and I will pose as Justin." 
	"Whatever," Justin sighed. "You know, all I'm saying is that I wish I'd known."
	"Well, you know now," Lance said.
	"While you're clubbing. All of you. Without me," Justin answered. JC reached over with a smile and pinched his nose so when he spoke, it was nasally. "It's really quite unfair."
	"What if we think it's unfair you're eating out without us?" Joey answered. "Ever consider that?"
	"Nope. And I'm not about to."
	"Is it finally settled?" Chris asked in slight exasperation. "Our plans are okay?"
	"Yeah," Justin acknowledged. "Whatever."  
******
	"What was the big deal?" Joey asked a little later, watching Justin pose for his individual shots at the shoot. He wore clothes that had been given to him and a smile that had appeared out of no where. The first part of the shoot was regular and then they were going to be turned into gold. 
	JC mused, "I don't know."
	"You do." 
	"He'd just rather be with us," JC answered with a shrug as he watched Justin as well. He was up next and wondered how long it would be. "Not that he doesn't want to go out with her, but he'd rather stay with us."
	"Why?"
	"Because he's used to us."
	"Oh."
	"He's with us twenty-four seven," JC continued. "He doesn't want to change that."
	"I guess."
	"We're stable to him."
	Joey frowned. "Okay…"
	JC paused. "Well, it's just my theory on it… Because he's always been like this."
	"Been like what exactly?"
	JC searched for the right word. "Clingy."
	"To you."
	"Well, maybe me more because of what we've been through. But to you guys too. It's not that he doesn't want to go with his mom for dinner. It's the idea that we won't be there and that we kept it from him. See, I wouldn't let him do that to me. He'd tell me. So it's a trust thing."
	"I think it's a cool surprise."
	JC nodded. "It is. But… Yeah. It's the concept of it that's throwing him. It's something random, you know? And that's scary, I guess. He's always gotten like that when you try to change something up." 
	"We're still going out, right?" Joey asked.
	"Of course." JC grinned. "I feel like it. And Lance does too."
	"Good. I need to get my drink on tonight."  
*******
	Justin cheered up during the rest of the photo shoot. He felt a little bitter about it in the beginning, and then he just felt really stupid about how he'd acted during the ride over. 
	Regardless of how he'd acted, the guys were still being really nice to him, and the shoot wasn't half bad either. Especially when they started to do the gold part. It was really funny to be painted gold; their skin, their face, their outfits. They painted them with regular gold paint as well as spray paint. 
	They could do what they wanted in a way too with the paint. Justin thought Joey's was the coolest because Joey had the Superman symbol on the front of his shirt, but with a J instead of an S. And then on the back, he'd had them do the Tasmanian Devil. Justin's mood improved during the shooting of it, having fun watching Chris mess around, especially with Lance. He did things like write 'Kick Me' in gold on Lance's back while Lance thought he was getting something similar to Joey's. They fooled around posing and using the different props around the studio. Joey had his camera and they were hams for him too.
	It took forever to wash off the paint, but it was fun anyway, and Justin's mood improved dramatically. He hoped the guys mutually forgot about how he'd acted before. Justin was used to that. He knew he had his dramatic moments, and the guys were pretty forgiving about it. He really couldn't help it; he had his reasons.
	So Justin looked like he was over it when they were getting ready to go that night. They'd gone through the rest of the photo-shoot and cleaned up, and then had done an online chat as a promotion with one of the local radio stations, where Joey made them laugh for a while as he complained of his computer illiteracy. Then one more print interview before having headed back to the hotel.
	Justin watched TV and the guys getting ready to go interchangeably. He was going to leave with his mom in about a half hour. 
	"Eat good for me," Joey said to him. "Eat a lot."
	"Drink good for me," Justin answered.
	"Hey," Joey objected.
	"Hey," Justin echoed.
	"You gonna change, Justin?" JC asked as he buttoned his shirt down the front. "Something nice?"
	Justin pressed his pursed lips together. "Mayyy-be." 
	"Maybe. Well, aren't you leaving soon?"
	"Mayyy-be."  
	"So maybe you should find something nice to wear for your mom and Paul. So you guys won't be late," Chris said. 
	Justin smiled to himself and gazed at the TV screen at the American sitcom that was on. "I will. When are you guys coming home?"
	"Late," Lance answered. 
	"How late's late?"
	"Late," Chris affirmed. "How are we supposed to know?"
	"Hey, why don't you sleep in mom's room?" JC suggested. "Then you get your own bed, and no one will wake anybody up." 
	Justin liked the idea of going to bed only halfway. "But can you come get me when you're home? I want to sleep with you guys."
	"Not if you're asleep, I won't," JC said. "You don't want to wake up. That's the point."
	"If I'm not asleep, can you?"
	"How will I know?"
	"I don't know."
	"Don't worry about it," Joey replied. "Just go to bed."
	The phone rang then and Justin leaned over on the bed to grab it. "Hello?" he answered it. "Hey, Mom… Yeah…. I'm ready…. Yep, I changed…. When…  Fifteen. Okay." He hung up. "Fifteen minutes." He slid off the bed. "I have to change." 
	Lance laughed at him.
******
	Justin was having a good night. His mom wasn't as pressuring as she sometimes could be with questions, concerns, and demands and they fell into a pretty good conversation with Paul about what was going on in Germany and back home. He forced himself not to think too much of the guys, but every now and then he couldn't help it. He asked how Tennessee was. And Florida. And the US.
	The food was good too. His mom had somehow picked a really nice restaurant that at the same time wasn't too extravagant to make him uncomfortable. Plus the waiters spoke English and the menu was understandable. There were other American tourists around also, which made him feel at home. 
	Paul started to ask him about school and tutoring. Justin told him he was doing really well and then Paul asked about the GED. Justin told him what he knew and about the University of Nebraska but was pretty sure Paul already knew all that already so didn't go into detail. It was just to make conversation he could tell.
	The best was when the waiters sang happy birthday. The dessert was good.
	After dinner they went shopping at a few places. Justin was always in a good mood after that. 
	So his birthday had been pretty cool and he and his parents were in good moods when they returned to the hotel a few hours later. His mother told him to come back to their room and he agreed but not before checking his own room first and making sure the guys weren't back. 
	They weren't so he grabbed some stuff from the room. Chris's gameboy which had new batteries, a Walkman, a sweatshirt, t-shirt, and sweats ― half of which he knew weren't his ―  and some of the candy from the bag that the interview earlier that day had gained him. 
	He really wanted to be up when they came in. He wanted to know what they'd done and he wanted to tell them that he had had fun at dinner and mom and Paul had been really nice. He wanted to tell them that they had been right and let them do that I-told-you-so thing so that they could forgive him ffor him making a big deal before. It would make up for it.
	Plus he wanted to hear happy birthday one last time from them. 
	His parents were watching TV when he came back to the room with his stuff. He had a key to both rooms. He dropped his stuff on the bed they'd told him to take. He hadn't told them he wanted to sleep in the other room.
	"Mama, I'm going to shower," he said.
	"Okay," she answered. She leaned over and said something to Paul, indicating the TV. 
	Justin looked at them for a moment before picking up the shirt and sweats he'd taken and going into the bathroom.
	He took a really long hot shower, thinking about the guys clubbing. He'd had fun at dinner, but he would have liked to have gone with them too. He liked clubbing and he hadn't really been in Germany yet. The only clubs he'd really been to were those in Orlando like at Pleasure Island and he really didn't feel like that was something to brag about. He liked the loud music and everyone all close together dancing. Any clubs in Germany he'd been to had really been primarily to perform and even when they hung out a little after, it wasn't the same.
	When he stepped out of the shower the floor was all wet and that was kind of puzzling so he put a towel down on the ground and it soaked some of it up. Maybe the tub leaked. He dressed slowly and then dried his hair. 
	Lynn and Paul were still watching the movie. Lynn looked almost asleep. 
	Justin picked up the phone and dialed his room. No one answered. It was only eleven thirty. 
	"You going to try to get some rest, son?" Paul asked.
	"Soon. Not yet," Justin replied. He remembered that they had to go to the airport tomorrow. He could sleep during most of that if he got to bed late that night.
	He spent the next couple hours doing the same thing. He watched a little of the TV that Paul was watching. He played and won the game that was in Chris's gameboy. He ate six pieces of candy and felt a little guilty. Lynn and Paul fell asleep in the meantime, the TV still on.  He was sure they were pretty jeg-lagged.
	Justin blamed his lack of tiredness from all the caffeine in the soda he'd had at dinner. And he was anxious to see the guys. 
	It was after three AM when Justin made yet another phone call and a tired voice said "hello". Justin hung up the phone and rushed to grab his stuff from the bed. He turned off the TV and left that room, running down the hall barefoot to the other room.
	The key in the door, he pushed the door closed behind him. Joey was just a few feet away and Chris was sitting down on the couch, flipping on the TV.
	"Hey, buddy…" Joey greeted as Justin approached him. "I can't believe you're still up."
	"When'd you get back?" Justin asked.
	"About ten minutes ago." 
	Justin dropped his stuff on the bed. "I kept calling to check." 
	"So you were the hang-up call," Chris replied. He yawned. "I'm going to shower quick. When I can get up." He didn't move. "Unless I fall asleep here." 
	"Hey, that's my shirt," Joey said, poking Justin in the belly. "How come you're not in bed anyway?"
	"Because I was just watching TV, wondering when you'd get back." Justin hopped over to the couch to plop down next to Chris in front of the TV. "Where's JC? And Lance? And Steve?" 
	"They didn't feel like coming back yet," Joey answered nonchalantly, standing beside the couch and watching the TV screen. "I think they each met somebody or a group of somebodies they were hanging out with. I was about a drink away from knowing I'd regret it in the morning so Chris and I decided to come home."
	"What?" Justin asked. "How come?"
	"How come what?" Joey moved towards them and sat on the arm of the couch. He rested his hand on Justin's head. "What'd you do tonight?"
	"How come they didn't come back?"
	"Justin, he just said," Chris said with a yawn. "They met some other people." 
	"Okay," Justin said slowly. "It's almost four and we have a flight to catch."
	"Our flight is at ten. They'll be back." Joey pushed him a little. "Move over."
	Justin shifted over closer to Chris to let Joey slide down into the cushion beside him. "They just randomly met people?"
	"Yeah, who knows." Joey patted Justin's thigh. "Let it be, man. How was your night?"
	"It was fine." He shrugged. "I guess I just don't understand who they met that they would stay out with. On my birthday." 
	"Justin, your birthday was four hours ago. It's February now," Chris answered. "Besides, if they're having fun, why rush back? We celebrated your birthday. Why not let them go out?"
	"Because I couldn't even go out, that's why."
	"You went out to dinner. They can't revolve their plans about you." 
	"I don't mean it like that. I mean that it would have been a bit nicer if―"
	"You didn't tell us how your night was yet," Joey interrupted. "You have a good time?"
	"It was really good up until five minutes ago," Justin answered.
	"Why, because they're not here?" Joey shrugged. "Don't be silly. We're here." 
	"But JC and Lance aren't."
	"So I guess Joey and me aren't important," Chris mused. He flipped a few stations on the TV. He was a little too tired for games and for appeasing Justin, who always had some warped image of how they were being unfair to him. "That's nice."
	"You smell like chocolate," Joey said to Justin. "You have anymore?"  
	Justin took a deep breath. "Yes."
	"Can I have some please?"
	"Joey, it's four o'clock in the morning," Chris objected. "Don’t eat that crap now." 
	Joey sighed. "Whatever..." 
	Justin thought about how just ten minutes ago he was so excited to be running back to tell the guys about the night and ask how theirs had been and now that was all gone. Joey and Chris were fine, they'd keep him company, but it wasn't the same. And so he told them this bluntly. 
	"Sure it's not the same. Now there's three of us and not five. But we're just gonna sleep so it's not that big a deal," Chris answered. He was a little frustrated. He didn't understand why it would bother Justin so much. His emotions could be a like roller coaster. A roller coaster in the dark too, because they couldn’t even predict when the drops and twists would be. His birthday had turned into fuel for a lot of unreasonable drama.
	"I don't want to sleep alone… That's why I came back…" Justin answered in frustration. 
	"Justin, we're flying tomorrow," Chris said. "Regardless of who's here, we just need sleep."
	"I know." Justin yawned thinking about it. "We can sleep during the day…" Justin persisted. "Do you think they're going to be really late or we could stay up?"
	Chris could easily tell by Justin's eyes and face that he was tired. He knew people, he had siblings, and he could tell. Justin was accustomed to being stubborn. So he rolled his eyes. "And you think you'll make it? What if they don’t come back for a few hours?"
	"I doubt it'll be a few hours," Justin persisted. "I'm not tired at all."
	"You're exhausted. I can tell looking at you. And if you're not, I am. Joey is. That's why we came back."
	"Yeah..." Justin paused. "You know... Everyone should always tell everyone where they're going."
	"He told us." Chris shrugged. "And we told you. So indirectly, Justin, he told you. It's not like he and Lance ran away from us and we lost them and just came back and we have no clue." 
	Justin blinked and considered that. 
	"How was dinner?" Joey persisted. "What'd you have?"
	"Chicken." Justin's voice was flat. "Chicken and some kind of rice thing." 
	Joey looked at him skeptically. "Was it good?"
	"Yeah. I liked the place." 
	"Did they sing happy birthday?"
	"Yeah."
	Joey frowned. Even though he was getting answers, Justin wasn't very enthusiastic in his response. He reached to rub a hand over Justin's curly hair. "Justin, you were all uppity when you first came in. Just because they're not here isn't any reason to not have a good night." 
	"How was the club?" Justin asked.
	"It was fun," Chris said. "Pretty packed though. And hot." 
	"Good music," Joey added.
	"Did they play us?" Justin asked.
	"No. I don't think so..."
	"I didn't hear it," Chris agreed. 
	Justin chewed on his thumbnail, thinking. He got up then and walked over to the window. He leaned to rest his elbows on the windowsill. "Did they say how long they'd be probably?"  
	"I don't know." Joey watched him. "You're not serious about if we could wait up, are you?"
	"I don't know…" Justin shook his head and pressed his nose against the cold window pane. "I guess not." He turned and looked at the couch where they were sitting. They both looked older and exasperated with him. They hadn't given him his last happy birthday either. He kind of wanted to go to bed.  
	"Oh, hey, you know what was cool, Justin?" Chris began. "There were fans at the club. Some of them were even a little crazy when they first saw us. I still think that's the coolest thing. They're recognizing us a lot more now." 
	"That was fun," Joey agreed. "The one girl. The red head?"
	"Oh, yeah." Chris cracked up laughing. "That was classic. They asked where you were too, Jus."
	That didn't make Justin feel any better. That just made him feel more left out. It emphasized the fact that they all had done something without him. Something he couldn't even do really if he wanted to. Well, maybe he could. Maybe they'd let him in. 
	"Justin," Chris said.
	"Hm." Justin snapped from his reverie and looked at him.
	"Snap out of it, okay? They'll be back, and they'll be the stupid ones because we'll be more well-rested." He saw the look forming in Justin's eye and shook his head. "C'mon, man. Don't be a girl and make drama out of this." 
	That hit Justin a little hard and he narrowed his eyes. A girl? "I'm not making drama. I was just surprised they didn't come back with you, is all." 
	"We don't always have to be five."
	"That's not what this is about." 
	"Sure it is," Chris answered as he put down the controller and looked up at Justin. "It definitely is." 
	"No."
	"It is."
	"No. I just don't think it's fair they went out. I wanted to go out." 
	"You never think anything's fair. You're sixteen and I don't feel like hearing your woes of life. I'm twenty-six and it's all bullshit to me. Everything you say. Oh, your friend is out clubbing late without you. What a tough break." 
	"Chris," Joey warned in a low voice, nudging Chris. "Leave him alone."
	"I'm tired," Chris answered. "Whatever. But he complains about everything."
	"No, I don't," Justin objected.
	"Yes, you do. Aren't you complaining right now that Lance and JC aren't here?"
	Justin hesitated. He looked at Chris, but the man was just look at the TV, not really caring. "No."
	Chris just laughed. "Okay." 
	"Fine. I don't care," Justin said, getting up from the couch. "I'm glad you guys had fun." He walked towards the door and left the room, slamming the door behind him.
	"He's going to Lynn's room, don't bother," Chris said as Joey started to get up. He rubbed his eyes. "Sorry."
	"You're wrong."
	Chris shrugged and slouched down into the couch. "Am I?"
	"You don't have to dig into him like that."
	"Oh, c'mon. I didn't really say anything."
	"Still, you're wrong."
	Chris shrugged.
	"Not completely wrong, but you forget stuff like what he's giving up to be what you're making fun of. And how he's being brought up." 
	"I'm not making fun. And that's all relative, Joey." 
	"Like I said, I'm not getting into it. And you shouldn't at four o'clock in the morning either."  
******
	Justin felt bad when he heard his mother's voice say his name. It was dark in the room but he had just fumbled with the key and when he finally got in, the door rattled behind him. 
	"Justin?"
	"Yes," he managed.
	"Why aren't you in bed, honey?" came her drowsy voice. "Were you outside?"
	"I hate them," Justin answered. "I'm sleeping here."
	"Hate who?" He heard the bed rustle as she shifted. Paul murmured something to her. 
	"All of them."
	"The guys? And I thought you were sleeping here, honey."
	"The guys? Of course, 'the guys'.Who else do I know?" Justin shot back. "Huh, mother? I do only have four friends, you realize. And they're not even my friends right now!"
	"That is not true," she objected tiredly. "You have plenty of friends, honey…" 
	"Glad you think so."
	"What did the boys do, Justin?"
	"It's four o'clock in the morning, Mom," Justin answered hotly. "Go to bed. I just want to…" he wasn't sure. 
	"They're home now?"
	"Two."
	"Hm?"
	"Joey and Chris came back."
	"Mm…" she started. "They didn't have a good time and left early?"
	"I don't know," Justin answered. "All I know is that―"
	"Why don't you get some sleep, Justin?" Paul interrupted, sitting up in bed and blinking in the dark. "Four isn't the time of morning for this." 
	"Dad―"
	"Yeah, you have a flight in the morning…" Lynn added. "Really, you can all talk about it in the morning…"
	"It is morning," Justin mumbled. 
	"Justin," Paul started. "Why don't you get some sleep?" 
	"Look―"
	"I'm not asking you, Justin. I'm telling you. It's four o'clock in the morning. Lynn, turn off the light." 
	Justin was silent. He sat there for a minute with different feelings churning around in his stomach. He wanted to yell at Paul and tell him he had no right either. That no one had the right to do any of this to him. It was still his birthday and everyone seemed taking advantages…
	He said nothing. It was dark now that Lynn had turned the light back off. There was a few seconds of rustling blankets and then it was quiet again. 
******
	Joey and Chris were still talking when Lance, Steve, and JC got back. It was after five. The three didn't look terribly tired when they walked in.
	"Hey," Joey greeted. "Have fun, boys?"
	"Ya'll are still up?" Lance asked in amazement. "I would have bet money on you being dead."
	"Me too," JC admitted.
	"I have got to shower," Steve said. 
	"Speaking of dead," Chris began, eyeing the two as Steve disappeared into the bathroom. "Yeah."
	"Yeah?" Lance raised an eyebrow and walked around the couch to sit on the other end. 
	"You two." 
	"Why?" JC leaned against the arm of the couch. 
	"And you, Chris," Joey said. "You just didn't shut up."
	"So you've already told me. A million times since it happened," Chris replied rolling his eyes. 
	"Why are we dead?" Lance persisted.
	Joey reached over to pat JC's leg. "Ask your dear curly headed friend…"
	"What?" JC answered incredulously. "We weren't even home."
	"Exactly…"
	"What?"
	"Like I said. Ask him."
	"And what…" JC shook his head. "Okay…"
	"You didn't come home with us," Chris persisted. "That is apparently a high crime, JC. Don’t you know we're all supposed to stick together?" His voice contained a tone of sarcasm. 
	JC frowned. "Alright. I'm not getting it. But I'm guessing he wasn't asleep when you guys came home?"
	"We thought he was. In his mom's room. But then he called over and came running when he found we picked up."  
	"Where is he now?" JC asked.
	Chris shrugged. "He left."
	"Went back to Lynn's," Joey said.
	"Did you check?" JC asked.
	"Check?"
	"What if he didn’t go back there?"
	"I'm sure he did. I doubt he's wandering the streets of Munich if that's your concern. He's probably in bed now." 
	"So he was mad?" Lance asked. "Why? Because he wasn't with us?"
	"Yeah. And, like, because we weren't all together… Were you two with that girl?"
	"Yeah. Hanna. And her cousin Dave. And another one of their friends." Lance frowned. 
	"Why was he mad?" JC asked.
	"Probably because it was four o'clock in the morning," Chris answered. "And he's a child. And he was overtired and then I pushed his buttons."
	"How'd you push his buttons?" JC said with a bit of an edge. "And why?"
	"It's nothing." Chris shook his head. "We're all tired." 
	JC was silent for a moment. As were the others. He rubbed his hands together and then looked at him. "You think I should go get him?"
	"Let him sleep. He's a time bomb when he's awake."
	"Yeah, but it might mean something to him if I go get him when I'm back. I think he wanted that…" JC reasoned. "Right?"
	"He's been back and decided to sleep in there."
	"Let's forget about it," Joey answered. He yawned. "We should get to bed."
*******