Johnny burst into the dressing room, pretty much scaring Christina, Britney, and Big Rob. "How dare you humiliate my client on national tv! He glared and pointed a stubby finger in her face.

Big Rob stood up and placed his hand on Johnny's chest. "I'm sorry, Johnny. But you need to leave us alone. Don't forget that you are co-managing her. She's also your client and you need to respect her. And I ask that you stop yelling before you cause a scene."

Johnny knew Big Rob was right. He calmed down. Britney sat on the couch with Christina on one side and Big Rob on the other. She felt this was her time to speak up. She wasn't a little girl anymore and she'd had enough.

"Johnny, can I say something?"

He looked at her and pressed his forefingers to his temples. "I'm listening,Britney."

"I really truly appreciate everyting you have done for me, but I think you are taking this too far. You can't control me and force me and Justin to go to these awards shows acting like we still love eachother. Don't you want me to be happy? The *NSYNC fans will be happy that we're not dating and they'll just eat it up knowing he's single. Well, there is Willa, "Britney cringed," but I'm sure they can hide it. J and I hid our relationship for more than a year........."

Johnny looked up at her. He thought it over in his head. She was right. He can't control her. Last time he controlled someone, they fired him. Those Backstreet Boys almost ruined his reputation. But Britney and *NSYNC, they've done so much for him.

"Oh, why the hell not. I'm sorry,Britney, for putting you through all this pain. We should schedule a press conference tomorrow morning to explain this situation. You atleast owe it to your fans" he replied in a caml voice.

"Really, Johnny? I don't have to hide Dan from anyone?" She had a huge smile on her face. Finally, they could go on real dates to the movies and eat in fancy places and go shopping during the daytime.

Almost as if on cue, Dan knocked on the door. "Hey, baby, I wanted to make sure you're alright." He spotted Johnny in the room and their eyes made contact.

"Dan, its okay. You and Brit are free. It was wrong of me to keep you away for so long. I'm sorry."

Dan's eyes gleamed and he had that signature Miller smile on his face. "Johnny, its all good. You did what you thought was best,thats all." They shook hands as a sign of some sort of closure.

Mike Cronin, O-town's manager, walked in. "Dan, we need you in dressing room 8. You're up in 15 minutes. Lets go."

Dan sighed. He really wanted to be with Britney at this time, but its show business. He walked over to her, kissed her on her forehead. Then he whsipered in her ear, "Baby, tonight we will celebrate." Britney smiled and from that moment on, he knew that everything was going to okay.

Back at the AMA's, Christina was introducing Mandy Moore. Britney had just been escorted to her seat, but when she arrived, she noticed that *NSYNC were gone. There were 5 empty seats and Ashley and Jacob's girlfriends, Shelli and Janie, were sitting a few seats apart. They looked up at Britney and waved her over. Janie stood up,"Sit next to me,honey. Their performance is up next." Britney nodded and sat down. She had never met the 2 girls,but they seemed to be really sweet. They were both probably around her age and possbily they would all be friends. Then she remembered what was about to happen and turned her attention to Mandy.

"I know a lot of girls are gonna be jealous, but I have something in common with this next group. We're both from the same city, Orlando,Florida.So,put your hands together, keep the screaming to a minimum, and please welcome, Best New Group nominees, OTOWN!"

The audience clapped and a single spotlight appeared on the stage. It shone on a black grand piano. Ashley was sitting on the piano bench and was tickling those ivory keys. He seemed to be concentrating, so he wouldn't mess up on live tv. A silhouette appeared from behind the piano, it was Dan. He looked so handsome. He began singing the opening notes to "All Or Nothing". "I know when he's been on your mind, that distant look is in your eyes....I know in time you'll realize, its over, over....its not the way I chose to live, but something somewhere's got to give, in sharing this relationship, gets older...older...."Erik-Michael appeared, joining Dan & Ashley onstage. One by one, each member came out to sing their part.

Britney felt her eyes well up and felt a single tear roll down her cheek. Dan was so emotional during his performance, she felt so proud of him. Janie looked over at Britney, and handed her a tissue. Janie smiled. "I understand. I bring a bunch with me all the time cuz when I see Jacob onstage, I just can't help it."

"Thanks Janie. Thats really sweet of you."

"Anything for a new friend."

They exchanged smiles and focused back their attention towards the stage. Britney was in awe over O-town's performance. When she thought about it, this was really the first time she was allowed to actually see them onstage. She cherished every moment and enjoyed the awestruck looks on the boys' faces. Afterall, this was their first major awards show appearance.

".......or nothing.....at...aaaallllllllll" Dan sang the ending melody, the lights dimmed, and the crowd cheered. Britney's applause was probably the loudest which caused her to get a few awkward glances her way. She laughed to herself and sat back and watched the rest of the show.