A month later, Britney was back to work. She was rehearsing for her European tour and again, O-town would be joining her. Afterall, they were becoming popular overseas, and this was a good excuse to have Dan come along.

"OK, Brit, lets do that again....from the top......" Wade was sitting in the 10th row of the Civic Center in Lakeland, FL. He was tour director, again and was making sure everything looked and sounded good.

Britney closed her eyes, heard the music, and began singing, "I used to think.....I had the answers to everything.....but now I know that......" A door slammed in the background and the music stopped. Britney seemed annoyed, knowing this was a closed rehearsal.

Of course, it would be Johnny Wright at the cause of the disturbance. His Cheshire grin and sloppy clothes could be seen from across the venue. He disgusted Britney. He had all this money and still acted like trash.

"Britney....this is urgent." Johnny yelled, doing a run-walk to the stage.

Wade rolled his eyes and Britney giggled. Wade hated him as much as she did.

"What is it, Johnny? This better be good! This is a closed rehearsal. Her tour starts in 2 weeks."

"Yadda yadda, Wade. This is good. *NSYNC has been invited to present at the American Music Awards. And you know what that means."

Britney frowned. This meant she had to make an appearance with her ex-boyfriend, Justin. But, the public still thought they were together. When was this going to end?

"When is it,Johnny?" Britney asked annoyed.

"Its Friday."

"WHAT?! That's in 2 days!"She exclaimed.

"Yes,it is. Your plane leaves tonight. You leave after rehearsal. We picked out the dress this time since you decided to wear that lacey-bikini dress to the MTV VMA's, we'll take care of the attire."

Britney laughed to herself. That black lace dress was her way at getting back at Justin for cheating on her. He thought of her as prude and naïve. She knew that Willa Ford would be on the red carpet doing interviews so she purposely wanted to show off some skin,too. The critics and male fans in the bleachers loved it.

"Yes Johnny. Whatever." She just couldn't wait to see that cheating scoundrel.

So, there she was, waiting in her hotel suite, all dressed up and alone. Dan was with the rest of O-town on another floor and they were to be performing "All Or Nothing" that night. There was a knock at her door, so she went to open the door.

There he was. His face showed the approval of her outfit. Little did she know that he had picked it out for her. If she found out, she'd throw a fit.

"Hello, Justin.Is it time?" She said with a huff.

"Yeah, the guys are waiting by the elevator." Justin's smile faded. He knew he screwed up by cheating on Britney. Sure, he was dating Willa now, but Britney was his first love. Ever since those silly MMC days, she was there for him. He knew she was dating Dan Miller and this annoyed him more than anything. Damn that Lou Pearlman!

Britney turned around to close her door and walked ahead of Justin towards the elevator. Big Rob was there, thank goodness. He would help her from losing her sanity that night. She couldn't wait for the night to be over and to be with Dan again. She smiled to herself.

"Well, don't you look beautiful, Miss Spears?" Lance remarked.

Britney might hate Justin's guts, but Lance was innocent in this situation.She was still friendly with the rest of *NSYN. They called her non-stop for a week after they saw the T R L clip 6 months ago. They gave Justin hell for what seemed like an eternity and they were finally letting up.

"Thank you,Lance. You look pretty spiffy yourself. " She gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Justin turned away, trying to hide the hurt in his eyes.

Luckily, the elevator door opened and off they went to the American Music Awards.

The limo ride was awkward. Britney was totally ignoring Justin and it seemed the other guys were,too. They couldn't help it. They hadn't seen Britney since the Billboard Awards and she dumped him, not them. He was hurt and he knew that if he thought about it any longer, he might even cry. He looked to his right and saw the Pavilion ahead.

The limo stopped and the doors opened. The crowd roared at the sight of *NSYNC. The acting was to begin at the moment. Justin was the last to get out. He faked a smile and stuck his hand out for Britney. She took it and stepped out. She looked ravishingly. Justin picked out a baby blue (but of course) tube top dress with sparkly studs on the bodice. She caught him looking at her.

"Gawd, don't look at me like that," she said while smiling for the cameras.

"You look beautiful, that's all." He said, also while smiling and waving to fans.

Britney rolled her eyes and caught herself. She had to act like they were two lovebirds who only had eyes for eac hother. She unwillingly grabbed his hand and flashed her pearly whites for the paparrazi.

They walked down the red carpet and only stopped to talk with MTV. This was Johnny's wonderful idea. By doing an interview with MTV, it showed that Justin and Britney forgave them for the clip of Justin & Willa and all was forgotten. Who else would play their videos and feed the fans' hunger? Justin was pleased that Carson was pissed, believing that he and Britney were still together. In reality, he really was with Willa.Justin would get his revenge on him one day.....soon.

"Hey there, John, how are ya?" Justin embraced MTV NEW'S reporter, John Norris.

"Good, Justin. And hello, Britney, don't you look lovely in that outift!"

"Thanks,John. I appreciate your honesty,"she replied in a sarcastic tone to piss Justin off.

They answered the same boring questions that MTV always asked: "Who are you here to see?" "What are you wearing?" "Do you have an acceptance speech prepared?" Once that was over, *NSYNC and Britney were escorted to the 2nd row, side by side of course. Mariah Carey was seated in front of them and Brit carried on a conversation with her until the show began. Anything to get her mind off of Justin and how much she missed Dan.

The first presenter was Christina Aguilera. Britney applauded when she made her appearance. The 2 gals really were friends in real life and supported each other to the fullest extent.

"Good evening, Los Angeles! I'm here to present the first award of the night, Female Artist of the Year in Pop/Rock.And the nominees are......" The lgihts dimmed and Britney's heart started beating. She was a nominee in this category, along with the likes of Madonna and Mariah Carey. She stared ahead, willing to accept a loss for the 2nd year in a row. She broke out of her concentration when someone grasped her hand to calm her nerves. Her head snapped to her right and it was Justin. He was used to this and didn't see the harm in it. Afterall, they were in public and still had to act like they were dating. Britney turned her head away from his face. She had a new boyfriend, someone who loved her and only her.

Christina re-appeared in front of the podium. "Well, this category is definitely filled with talented women. And lets see who the winner is...." She tore open the envelope with her delicate fingers. A huge smile appeared on her face. "Yea! Its Britney Spears!"

Britney was in shock. She won?! She stood up, as did Justin. That when it happened. He kissed her. It was a congratulatory-fake kiss, but it brought back a flood of emotions. 'What the hell, she thought. I've had enough of this acting. Tonight, the world will know who my real true love is.'

She realized that the tv cameras were on her, so she walked up to the stage and embraced Christina in a warm hug. She held the trophy in her hands and took a breathe. She smiled her signature pearly whites at the audience and began her acceptance speech.

"Thank you, thank you so much. I truly wasn't expecting this at all. First and foremost, I have to thank God for without him, nothing is possible. Next, my momma, daddy, sister, and brother. Aunt Sandra and Laura Lynn for being there for me. Jive Records, my manager Larry. Of course, I can't forget the fans! You guys are the reason why I'm here!" The crowd shrieked! And in the corner of her eye, she saw him. Dan was applauding her and he had the biggest smile on his face. "And there's someone else I want to thank. The love of my life, my baby. I love you,Dan! I love you forever,baby!"

A hush fell over the crowd. Dan? Everyone's collective thought was "Who's Dan? What happened to Justin?" Justin squirmed in his seat and hung his head down. Dan was also in shock. Britney risked her career at that moment, breaking her binding contract with Johnny, to declare her love for him.

Christina decided that the best thing to do was to usher her backstage and away from everyone's glare. She put an arm around her, and took her backstage and into a private room.