The Aftermath

“What the hell did you guys do?”

Joey diverted his gaze to the store across the street. “Hmm?”

Lance traced circles on the tablecloth with a shrug.

Chris watched birds fly over their table in mock interest.

”Guys!” Justin screeched, slamming his fist on the table. “My mom was pissed. She acted like she was okay with it, but she wasn’t…I could tell.” He stared hard at his friends, daring them to lie to him again. “You guys said you would take care of it, but from the looks of it, all you did was flip over the damn cushion. Please tell me you had a backup plan.”

“Joey did it,” Lance finally piped up.

“I did NOT!” Joey replied loudly as their pizza arrived. He looked meekly at his younger friend. “Okay man…I’ll tell you what happened.” He leaned forward on the table and stared into Justin’s eyes like it was some big secret. “First, you left the room…we all stood there and made some suggestions, but mine was the only one that would work.”

”And that was?” Justin prompted.

Joey smiled. “We flipped over the cushion.” He then reached for a slice of pizza and shoved half of it into his mouth.

“JOEY! I could have done THAT! My mom has to figure out how to clean that now.” Justin rolled his eyes. “Three stooges…right here. You guys are idiots.”

Joey smiled and smacked his lips. “We love you too, Curls.”

~*~

Abby sighed and made her way into the kitchen, reaching for a bowl. Ladling some hot soup into it, she placed the bowl on a tray and retrieved a spoon from the silverware drawer.

“Momma, who’s that for? I’m hungry,” Braeden said, skipping into the room with a smile on his face.

Abby knelt down and hugged her son, kissing his forehead. “This soup is for Daddy, sweetheart. I’ll come back down and make you something as soon as he gets it, okay?”

"Okie dokie,” the little boy replied, running out of the room.

She shook her head and reached for the tray and a paper towel before leaving the kitchen and making her way up the stairs. Kicking the door to their bedroom open with her foot, she stepped into the darkened room and sighed at the vision before her. “Here’s some soup. Maybe it’ll help a little bit.”

JC tried to push himself up in the bed, and sneezed violently halfway up. “Let’s hope,” he whispered in a hoarse voice after the sixth sneeze. He reached for the tray and balanced it on his legs, brushing his hand over hers as it passed between them. His eyes moved up her arm until he looked into her own with a small smile. “I haven’t kissed you in six days,” he whispered.

Abby smiled slightly and handed him the paper towel next. “Get better and you can kiss me all you want, okay?” She winced as he started to cough, groaning as he finished. “Are you okay?”

“My whole body hurts,” he replied, taking the spoon into his hand.

Abby perched herself on the edge of the bed and reached over to brush his hair out of his face. Placing the palm of her hand flat against his forehead, she looked at him sadly. “You’re burning up…still. Eat that and go back to sleep.” She stood up and grabbed the empty glasses from the bedside table, heading toward the door.

“Abby.”

She turned back around to look at her husband, leaning her hip against the doorframe. “Yeah?”

“Thanks, babe. Y’know, for taking care of me and all. I know I’ve been pretty unbearable this last week.”

Walking back over to him again, she put a knee on the bed and leaned over him to place a kiss to his forehead. “That’s my job. It’s what I’m here for. To take care of my family, and that includes you. Eat.”

JC watched with a smile as his wife left the room, then turned his attention to the hot soup on his lap.

~*~

The phone rang as Abby was placing the glasses in the dishwasher. Grabbing it from Braeden’s hand as he tried to answer it himself, she tsked her son and put the cordless to her ear. “Hello?”

“Legs?”

She giggled. “Hey, Wade. How’s things?” She grabbed the loaf of bread off the counter and pulled a slice out, tearing it in half. Reaching into the refrigerator, she grabbed the mayonnaise, lunchmeat and cheese, and set them on the counter.

She could almost hear his smile through the phone. “Awesome. Hey, I was just checkin’ in on Jace. Is he okay? What’s the prognosis?”

“Flu,” she replied. “I don’t know how he got it, but he’s got it. I’m trying to keep the boys away from him and not get it myself.” She began to spread mayonnaise on the pieces of bread as Braeden tugged on her shorts.

“Well, tell him not to worry about anything until he gets better. Rehearsals for the video are cancelled until further notice because I know he would die before letting us rehearse without him, and I don’t want him trying to dance if he’s in the condition you say.”

She smiled and arranged the turkey on the bread. “Thanks, Wade. I appreciate it. I don’t know how much longer he’ll be sick, but there’s no improvement as of yet.”

“That’s fine. Hey look, I’ve got a date, so I better run. I just wanted to check up on our patient.”

Abby perked up at his words. “A date? Would it be with a member of the Chasez family, by any chance?” She broke a slice of cheese in half, handing one piece to her son and placing the other on the bread before closing the sandwich up.

Wade laughed to himself and held the phone between his head and his shoulder as he buttoned the sleeves of his long sleeved shirt. “It would, Legs.”

“You guys have really hit it off,” she commented, handing the plate to her son. She watched as he scampered out of the room with his sandwich and whistled until he came back. Tossing a pudding cup at him, she giggled quietly as he tried to catch it. She then put a spoon on the table for when he was ready to eat the pudding. “Are you going to be my brother-in-law-in-law any time soon?”

He laughed again. “Is there such a thing?” he asked, sliding his shoes onto his feet.

“What do you expect me to call it?” she asked, winking to her son as he came back for the spoon. “Are there wedding bells in the future for you and Heather?”

“Don’t jump ahead of me here, Momma. Me and Heather are just getting to know each other right now. I really like her. How’s Jace takin’ this whole thing?”

Abby smirked. “Oh, he doesn’t like it right now, but now he doesn’t like much of anything because pretty much everything either gives him a headache or makes him want to puke. But he’ll get over it, so don’t worry about it.”

Wade shrugged his jacket on and looked at his hair in the mirror. “Okay then…well, I gotta be going, so I’ll talk to you later. Keep us up to date on the baby’s condition.”

She smiled. “I will. Have a good time tonight, Wade, and tell Heather that I said hello.”

“Will do, Legs. I’ll chat with you later. Keep our guy healthy, okay?”

“I will. Bye.” She hung up the phone and turned to walk into the living room where Braeden was eating his lunch and watching television. She smiled as she watched him bounce along with the video being played on the Disney Channel and laughed to herself. “You’re a silly goose,” she said, walking around the back of the couch to the mantle where she was hanging stockings.

Christmas was right around the corner, and she had been hurrying to get the house decorated and presents bought in the two weeks she’d had since the honeymoon. She had been lucky to find the decorations JC kept in the attic, and had drug them down to start making the house look more festive. Braeden was thrilled to share in the preparations, having helped her shop for more decorations and giving his input on the perfect stocking for his new brother.

Arranging the green leaves on the mantle around the pictures of their family, she jumped as the front door flew open and a masculine voice rang through the foyer. Turning around with a string of lights in her hand, she grinned as she saw the tip of a tree peek around the corner. “Oooohhh, Miss Abbbbyyyy!”

She giggled and watched Braeden jump up and down at the sight of the tree entering their living room. Waving slightly through the branches, Justin grunted. “Joey, how about you actually lift your end of the tree instead of making me drag it by myself.”

Joey flipped a finger to his friend and blushed as he saw the look on Abby’s face since her son was in the room. “Uh, where you want it, Dear Abby?”

Abby shook her head and pointed to the corner. “Over there.” She grinned as they set the tree up and secured it so it wouldn’t fall over. “Thank you so much, you guys. It wouldn’t be Christmas without a tree and I couldn’t bear to buy an artificial one.”

Justin slipped his gloves off and grinned. “How is the old ball and chain anyway, Abs?”

She shrugged. “Pretty sick. He’s been sleeping pretty much around the clock.”

“So what’s new?” Joey asked, looking up from where he was kneeling in front of Braeden. She gave him another hard look and he pouted. “Dang, Abby…you’re not letting me get away with anything today.”

She shook her head and turned back to Justin. “I’ve been sleeping in Braeden’s room for the last week. And he hasn’t been near either of the boys for that long either which is especially hard on him. Braeden’s not liking it too much either, but I don’t want them to get sick.” She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “This is so frustrating right now.” She sat down on the couch beside Braeden and put her arm around him. “But we’re gonna make it, aren’t we baby?”

He nodded and looked up at Justin. “Justin, will you and Joey help us with the tree?” he asked, holding up the angel that would go on the top. “Mommy can’t hold me up high enough to put this on.”

Joey shook his head. “Sorry dude…I gotta get home and help get our own stuff up.”

Justin grabbed Braeden around the waist and swung him around. “I’ll help you guys out.”

Joey bade them all goodnight and made his way back to the front door.

"Joey!" Abby yelled into the foyer.

He turned at the door. "Yeah?"

She smiled. "Thanks a lot. I'll see you later."

He winked and left.

They set to work stringing the white lights around the huge tree, all the while singing Christmas songs and sharing stories about the honeymoon. Abby turned her head as Braeden started flipping channels on the television and smirked to Justin. “I wish Joshua had never taught him how to work that thing. But at least he knows it’s more fun to actually watch the show than to flip the channels.” She reached out for the remote control and ruffled her son’s hair. Switching it to Extra, she placed the remote on top of the large television and urged Braeden to help with the tree.

“I hate these shows,” Justin commented, throwing some icicles up on the high branches of the tree. “I’m not sayin’ that the stuff they report isn’t true; I just think they dig into everyone’s personal lives a bit too much.”

Abby nodded. “I know what you mean. Remember that night when Braeden got so scared of the crowd and you and Josh had to calm him down?” Justin nodded. “Well, they plastered that all over one of these stupid shows. They were making all these assumptions about us and about Braeden…saying he was JC’s son and that he'd been hiding it all this time.” She shook her head. “It was just…scary…I guess, for me to realize that some people have so much access into his life...into our lives.”

Justin mumbled something under his breath so Braeden wouldn’t hear it. “They do tend to do that, Miss Abby. But seriously…you just gotta learn to either not watch them, or find a way to deal with it all.” He smiled to her slightly before taking more icicles and tossing them on the tree. “It’s part of C’s life, therefore, it’s gotta be part of yours and your kids’ too. It’s not fair, but that’s how this works.”

She shrugged. “I know.” They continued on with the tree, Justin lifting Braeden up to help hang the silver icicles, and the topic was forgotten…for a few minutes.

Both Abby’s and Justin’s heads spun around quickly when they heard upcoming topics on the show. “What the hell?” Justin mumbled as he grabbed Abby’s hand and pulled her down onto the couch beside him while Braeden continued to shower the tree in icicles. His hand instinctively tightened around hers as the story came on.

“Once again, news from the *N Sync camp has startled their fan base around the world and has made it’s way into our show. And once again, the news is about none other than JC Chasez. Reports are flying lately with rumors that the twenty-four year old singer has…tied the knot.”

Abby dropped her head to her hands and groaned. “OF COURSE they know! I’m still barely believing it myself, and Extra knows it already!”

Justin reached out and put his arm around her back, rubbing it gently. He stared at the screen as the host continued talking. “A few months ago, the singer was first seen with a young woman and a child, whom we later learned from JC to be his girlfriend Abby Garner and her son Braeden. A source close to the group told Extra recently that the couple has both gotten engaged and had a barely pre-Christmas wedding within the span of the last few months. Mr. and Mrs. Chasez have recently returned from their honeymoon in Aruba and are now residing in Orlando.”

“How are the fans taking this?” her co-host asked.

She turned to smile at him as a picture of JC and Abby came up on the screen. “Well Bob, that seems to be the problem. *N Sync fans the world over are in a state of shock. The news of the wedding came so suddenly, with no news of the engagement prior. But as usual, Extra is going to try to get in touch with the couple and see what they have to say. Fan sites and daily magazines are definitely showing that they aren’t in approval of this sudden marriage. However, we here at Extra wish the new couple the best of luck and our most heartfelt congratulations.”

Abby turned her head slowly and stared at Justin. “How? How do they keep doing this?”

He could see the tears filling her eyes and so he pulled her close into his arms. “I dunno, Abby. I really don’t. I tell you what, though…I’d really love to meet this ‘source close to the group,’ because with what they’ve put us through in our careers, I’m about ready to offer them a couple exclusives...first my left fist, then my right.” He pushed back and looked at her in concern. “I gotta get going. Are you gonna be okay?” he asked, pushing her hair out of her face.

She nodded and looked over at their nearly completed Christmas tree. “We’ll be fine. But you can’t leave until you help him get that angel up there.”

Justin laughed and stood up. “I nearly forgot.” He lifted Braeden up onto his shoulders and stood near the tree as the boy placed the large white angel on the top.

“YAAYYY!” Braeden yelled, clapping his little hands. “It’s pretty now, Mommy!” he yelled as Justin set him back on the ground. He scampered over to his mother and giggled as she lifted him up into her arms with a hug.

“It sure is, baby. I can’t wait for your daddy to see it.”

Justin waved and headed for the door. “Well, I’ll see you all later. Take care of my brother, okay?”

She smiled and followed him to the front door with Braeden still in her arms. “I’m trying. Bye, Just.”

He heard the worry in her voice and turned around to hug her one more time. “Hang in there…it’ll be okay. Jace knows how to handle this, so let him take care of it.” Kissing her cheek and then Braeden’s, Justin waved over his shoulder and made his way off the porch and down the walk to his car.

They both waved back to him then turned back into the house to finish decorating their Christmas tree.

~*~

“Love you, Mommy,” Braeden whispered with sleepy eyes as Abby tucked him in to bed that night.

She smiled and kissed his forehead. “I love you too, baby. Now go to sleep.”

“Tell Daddy I love him,” he added as his eyes drooped shut.

Abby ran her hand over his hair and smoothed the blankets around him before standing up and making her way to the door. Looking at her son one more time, she flipped off the lights and disappeared into the hallway.

She then crossed over to the nursery where Chance had been sleeping for most of the day. She was afraid that he might have caught something from his father because the baby hadn’t been particularly cheerful for the last two days. Making sure the child was still sleeping and wasn’t running a fever, she tucked him in as well and left that room too.

She wasn’t quite tired yet, even after having let Braeden stay up until nine-thirty. Rubbing her forehead, she found her way to JC’s den and slid down into the chair in front of his laptop. Logging on to the Internet, she pulled up Google and typed into the search bar: ‘N Sync.’

Thousands of pages popped up on her screen and she wondered where to start. Bypassing the official *N Sync site, she scrolled down the screen and clicked on a random link. She scanned the front-page information and clicked further into the site. Her heart began to pound as she saw a link saying ‘JC GOT MARRIED!’ Clicking on it, she felt her breaths quicken and she prayed that what she found wouldn’t be bad.

“She’s after his money,” she read. “This Abby chick is using our beloved Josh for his money, his fame, and is forcing her children on him. This marriage is going to last about as long as a housefly’s lifespan. She doesn’t deserve him, and I don’t know what she’s done to blind him to her lies, but he’s going to figure out very soon that he’s too good for her. My advice to ‘Abby Chasez’: JC doesn’t love you. He’s going to come to his senses soon and figure that out. Stop using him for your own gain, you money-grubber. Just because you can’t seem to stop getting pregnant doesn’t mean you can throw your mistakes on him. LEAVE HIM ALONE! I hope you read this.”

She lifted a shaking hand to her mouth and clicked out of the site, moving on to the next one. Entering site after site, most of them contained some kind of reference to their sudden marriage. Most of them were negative. Pictures of them that she had never seen before filled pages complete with red X’s and hateful comments. One even had a graphic of her head having been blown off.

Tears had been streaming down her cheeks for a while now, and she suddenly felt the need to be with him. Logging off the Internet and closing the laptop, she turned off all the lights in the den and made her way through the house, checking the doors. Unplugging the Christmas tree, she flipped off the light in the living room before making her way up the stairs. Passing Braeden’s room, she hesitated before stepping past and entering she and JC’s room.

Standing for a moment beside the bed, she watched her husband sleep. Even though he was sick and pale, she still found him to be the most beautiful man she had ever seen. What they had was so real, and she couldn’t figure out how anyone could look at the two of them and think it was all a lie. Ignoring her better judgment, she pulled the blankets back and crawled into the bed beside him. Careful not to shake the bed too much, she slid her arm across his stomach and laid her head against his chest.

Abby sighed deeply as she felt his arm instinctively go around her shoulders, pulling her closer. She didn’t care that he was sick and that she probably would be now too; all that mattered was that she was there with him, in his arms…and they weren’t. He loved her, not them. They didn’t know that what they had was real…that they really were in love.

She couldn’t stop the tears that fell from her eyes the more she thought about the whole situation. Burying her face into his chest, she tried to muffle her cries, but forgot that his body was what was muffling them. His breathing quickened and his eyes opened as he realized that he wasn’t alone in the bed.

Moving his hand into her long hair, he tilted his head slightly to look down at her. “Abby? Baby, what are you doing in here? You’re going to get si-“

“I don’t care,” she cried. “I don’t care. I just want to be with you. I’m tired of not being in here. Get me sick for all I care, I just have to be in your arms.”

JC furrowed his brow in confusion and coughed before looking at her again. “What’s wrong? Something is bothering you and it’s not just that I am sick.” He moved his hands to her head and tilted it up until he could look into her watery eyes. “Talk to me, baby.”

Abby stared into his puffy, tired eyes and shook her head. “I love you, Joshua. You know that right? I love you so much.”

JC arched an eyebrow in concern. “Of course I know that. And you know I feel the same way, baby, but what’s-“

Her arms tightened around him and she burrowed her face into his t-shirt again. “I don’t want to talk about it right now…please. Just…just hold me…just love me.”

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