Mistaken Dreams 9
Author: Angel
Email: NikkaWhat@Hotmail.com
Pairing: Lance & JC, and maybe others pretty soon :)
Disclaimer: Yes, absolutely, it's all true. The five of them, Britney too, are all sitting here on the bed in my room (there's nowhere else to sit). Britney and Justin are arguing about why she turned away when he tried to kiss her in one of their recent photo shoots, but they are keeping it quiet, making sure not to let Joey hear, he might get riled up. Finally, just to make him shut up, Britney reveals her main reason to Justin. In her own words: "Who knows where that mouth has been?!" And she casts a meaningful glance around the circle.
Message from the Author: Hihi, yeah, I know, it took too long, I'm sorry! But hey, remember when I said you all had to email me??!!?!! Well barely anyone did that!!!! Grr, Evil Children, :). Ok, I hope you all like it! Oh, by the way, when I told one of my friends about my recent crush she dared me to tell him how I felt. I, of course, said no (hello, he's probably straight!) so she settled for the second best, that I tell him here, and since he's not reading this, I agreed, so here goes: Britton, I think you're a super hottie, and have since we very first met a few months ago, and very interesting as well, you make me laugh all through 1st period! Ok, there, I did it. But don't get mad at me or jealous, Laurence, you know you're the only one I love. :) Ok, I hope you all like it!
**
Last time on Mistaken Dreams:
**
Chris slowly walked across the hall to what used to be his room, knocked softly on the door and waited. After a moment JC answered, a worried look on his face and a cautious body marring his tall figure.
"Chris-" He began softly, stepping out of the room into the hall, closing the door behind him.
Chris immediately tensed, the fear beginning to creep along his spine.
Chapter 9
Mistaken Dreams: Lance n' JC.....
"What is it? What's wrong?" Chris asked immediately, cutting JC off in mid sentence.
"Wrong? What are you talking about? Nothing's wrong, I just wanted to tell you to be quiet so that you don't wake Lance up." JC answered, giving Chris a baffled look.
"Oh..." Chris whispered softly, relived that he had been mistaken.
"Umm, are you feeling all right, Chris?" JC questioned, now a little concerned for his friend.
"What? Oh, yeah, I'm fine." The other man replied, recovering from his initial scare. "So...." Chris drew out the syllable and looked meaningfully at his friend. "How is Lance this fine morning?" He asked, a smirk on his lips.
JC saw the impish twinkle in Chris's eyes and immediately began to blush.
"He's...umm...he's fine," JC stuttered.
"Oh? Only fine? Not, y'know, superb, or fantastic or anything?" Chris teased, still smirking.
JC looked at the older brunette suspiciously, sure now that he knew.
"All right, Chris, obviously you know something, now what is it?" JC demanded, becoming cautious once again. After all, he didn't want anything to disturb Lance, especially today.
"Oh, it's not really what I know, so much as what I saw." Chris replied, but in a playful tone that immediately had the younger man letting down his guard. Half way, at least.
"And what, exactly, did you see?" He asked, sure that he already knew what it was, but not wanting to admit to anything just yet. This was Chris after all, he could just be jerking JC around to try and get a confession out of him.
However, this time Chris actually was telling the truth.
"Oh, nothing much...Just you and Lance playing a little tonsil hockey!" Chris shouted excitedly, no longer able to keep the information to himself.
"Jeez Chris keep your voice down, you want the whole hotel to know!?!?!" JC exclaimed, not shocked at all that Chris had seen them last night.
`Plus he's taking this REALLY well.' JC thought. `Maybe telling the guys won't be a very big deal after all.' Up to this point JC hadn't really been sure how they would react.
`I mean yeah, they were ok with me being gay and all but who knows how they would react to two of their band-mates being together?' JC's thoughts continued while he smiled to himself.
"Sorry, but I'm just so excited for you two!" Chris squealed, smiling, but lowering his voice at JC's request.
"You're excited for us?" JC asked, almost choking on his surprise. This was going better than he could ever have imagined.
"Hell yeah I am! Finally you guys got together, took you long enough!" Chris smiled at JC's obvious shock.
"Finally-long enough-what?!" JC managed to stutter out the words that were key to his question.
Chris gave him a look that would have wilted anyone.
"Duh," he said. "We'd all have to blind not to see that you two are obviously into each other, and for that matter have been for, like, ever." Chris finished with a raised eyebrow, as if challenging JC to say otherwise.
But JC merely sagged against the wall, shocked.
"So-so y-you ALL know?" JC questioned.
`God, I don't think I've stuttered this much in my whole freakin' life! Well, excepting yesterday, that is.' JC decided.
"Yeah! Well, maybe not all of us, I mean Lance definitely didn't know, although I suppose he probably does now." Chris gave JC a dirty little wink before continuing. "And Justin might not know either, just cus y'know, lets face it, they might be in every little teeny bopper's dream's at night, but they are both kind of blonde sometimes."
Even through his shock JC had to laugh, just because it was so very true. Meanwhile Chris went on.
"But I've known for...well forever. And even though we've never like REALLY discussed it I'm sure Joey knows too."
Gradually JC absorbed Chris words, becoming happier and happier as he did.
"So you're ok with it?" JC asked, just to be sure.
"Ok with it? JC I think it's great!" Chris exclaimed, surprised that JC would even be worried that he wouldn't take it well.
"Yeah?" JC asked, the crinkles forming around his eyes as he squinted at his friend.
"Yeah, definitely, and I'm sure the other guys will be happy for you too, after all, it's two of our best friends becoming even closer, how could that not make us happy?" Chris questioned, and JC could see and hear his sincerity. He moved to pull the shorter man into a bone-crushing hug.
"Chris, I love you man!" JC exclaimed, almost crying.
Chris laughed and let JC hold on to him tight.
"Seriously though," Chris said, stepping back a bit so he could look JC in the eye. "What DID you and Lance get up to last night?!"
JC looked at him for a moment, shocked once again, until Chris began to laugh.
"Just kidding man, I don't need the dirty details, just wanted to see if I could make you blush!"
"Well, I'd say you succeeded there!" JC laughed, feeling his cheeks, which were burning up with heat.
"Yeah, no kidding." Chris snickered.
"Well, not that it's any of your business anyway, but we didn't do anything last night." JC said. "Well, other than kiss a little." JC smiled at the memory.
"But you slept in the same bed, yes?" One of Chris's eyebrows went up.
"Well, yes." JC admitted.
"That's what I thought." Chris gave him a knowing look before turning to head back towards his room. "By the way, breakfast is in ten minutes." He said over his shoulder to JC, remembering the reason he had come here in the first place.
"Oh, umm, about breakfast-" JC was interrupted by Chris, who already knew what his friend was going to say and had been expecting it.
"How 'bout I let you know when it gets here and you can come get some and take it back to your room for Lance." Chris offered.
JC smiled.
"That would be great." He replied thankfully. Then: "Well, I better get back to Lance, wouldn't want him to wake up without me."
"Yeah," Chris said, reaching his door.
As if sensing that he was being talked about, the door JC was standing in front of opened just enough for a pale blonde head to poke out.
"Oh, there you are JC," Lance said, the relief in his voice obvious. "Why don't you come back to bed baby?" Then, as he opened the door a little more so that JC could slip back through Chris was revealed to his vision.
"Oh, Chris, I didn't know you were there!" Lance exclaimed, obviously more than a little flustered. But instead of replying Chris merely smiled at him, a twinkle in his eye, and said to JC:
"I'll call you when breakfast gets here." And then he stepped back into his room.
Lance looked at JC worriedly.
"You think he knows?" Lance questioned, frown lines creasing his perfect forehead.
`Man he is sexy! And he's all mine now too!' JC thought excitedly. He stepped forward and took the blonde by the waist, moving both of them back into the room.
"I don't think it's going to be a problem." He said, smiling, and leaning in for a kiss.
********
Meanwhile, in Joey's room:
Once Joey had sat down on the couch Justin began to try and discreetly scoot closer to him. He didn't know why he was doing it, he just wanted to.
`It's not like it's a big deal or anything, right?' Justin thought to himself, and then silently reassured himself that it didn't mean anything.
Halfway to the spot where Joey was reclining comfortably on the other couch cushion Justin was caught by his piercing stare.
"Hi," Justin said nervously, looking down at the couch cushions.
"Hi, was there something I could help you with?" Joey asked, already knowing what Justin wanted, but deciding it was more fun to watch the cute boy squirm than to let him know that Joey knew what he wanted.
"Ummm, no, not really." Justin said, flashing Joey a small smile.
Joey grinned to himself and went back to watching the TV, waiting for Justin to start scooting again before he turned back around.
Justin waited for as long as he could, which turned out to be around half a minute, trying to distract himself by running his nails along the un-evenly patterned fabric of the couch. Finally he began to move again, slower this time, doing all he could to make it seem that he was concentrating hard on the TV.
When he was only inches away he dared to look up, slowly, taking his time, letting his eyes linger on Joey's hands, his arms, his chest, shoulders, and mouth, finally bringing himself to look up into Joey's eyes, which he found staring back into his own. Panicked, Justin looked down again quickly, and jerked himself away across the couch
Joey sighed, Justin was not making this any easier.
"Justin, wouldn't it be much easier for both of us if you just asked? I mean it's not like I'm gunna say no." Joey said, assuming that was all the younger boy needed.
"I-uhh-I don't know what you mean Joe." Justin said, hesitating and stumbling over some of his words.
Joey paused, suddenly unsure of himself.
`Could I have been wrong? Is what I think going on really happening?' But Joey caught the hesitation in Justin's words and knew he was right. `Fine, well maybe I just have to make it easier for him.' Joey decided, plotting.
Moments later he spoke up again:
"Justin, you, umm, look a little cold over there." He started, facing the other end of the couch, where Justin had moved himself. "Maybe you should come on over here, I mean I have a blanket on this side and all, and we really don't want you catching a chill or anything." He said, looking straight into Justin's eyes in an attempt to gauge the blonde's reaction.
"Well actually Joe I'm really not all that co-," Justin stopped in the middle of the word, realizing what Joey was doing. He smiled, thinking: `Maybe this could work out after all.' "Well, now that you mention it I am a little chilly." Justin said, scrambling over to be next to Joey even before the words had left his mouth.
Joey only smiled silently and picked up the blanket that he had dropped on the floor the night before, wrapping it around the two of them, dragging Justin's feet up onto the couch to bring the two of them even closer than they were.
They had only been in that position for a minute when Justin made a sudden movement, hopping himself up into Joey's lap.
"More blanket for each of us." Justin explained quickly and tried to look away. Joey raised an eye brow but remained silent. In truth Joey didn't mind, he knew this is what Justin had been trying to get to all along.
`Man, next time I hope he just asks, not like I'm gunna say no, he's too damn cute for that!' Joey surprised even himself with the last thought, but outwardly he only smiled and wrapped his arms around the younger boy, reassuring Justin that what he had done was quite alright.
For a few warm moments neither said anything, but both knew that it was about time to get up if they wanted to eat breakfast.
Justin had started playing with collar of Joey's shirt as soon as he had hopped into Joey's lap, but neither of them had really been aware of it until Justin turned to face the older singer.
"Do you, umm, really want to go to breakfast?" Justin asked. "Cus I'm pretty comfy right here." He said, smiling, but stilling his hand, instead letting it rest on Joey's chest as he moved his eyes from place to place, never looking directly at him, as if not sure he could.
Justin was so close that Joey could feel the warm breath caressing his skin when the younger boy talked, and he wanted to give in. But the thought of going with out breakfast already had his stomach twisting in knots.
"Well, actually, I'm really hungry, y'know?" Joey said gently, not wanting Justin to get the wrong idea about why he was saying no.
"Oh, yeah, ok." Justin, who had finally looked into Joey's eyes, glanced down and away when he realized the older boy's eyes were on him. But not before Joey saw the hurt he caused.
`Oh god, why didn't I just say alright? Freakin-A, now he thinks I don't want to stay here with him or some stupid shit like that.' Joey knew he had to fix it.
"Y'know, I changed my mind, I actually do want to stay here." Joey said, trying to make Justin feel better as well as thinking of a way he could last another few hours without eating.
"But, I thought you said you were hungry?" Justin questioned, daring to glance up at Joey only once before looking away again.
"Well, yeah, but it's ok, I don't mind staying here with you." Joey replied, realizing immediately that it had been the wrong thing to say.
`For god sakes Joey, can you never say the right thing!?!?!' He thought to himself, hoping that Justin would let it go, but already knowing he would object.
"Joey, if you're hungry just go eat." Justin admonished, but Joey could hear the catch in the blonde's voice and knew it wouldn't be as easy as all that.
"Tell you what Justin, how 'bout this: we go get some food, bring it back here, and settle right back down into this position and spend breakfast here, sound good?" Joey asked, hoping the compromise would work.
"Exactly like this?" He asked in a child's voice, as if expecting Joey to say no.
"Yeah, exactly like this Just." Joey replied, smiling at the young singer.
"K." Justin looked up smiling as well, and it was like the sun breaking through the clouds.
**********
Chris has just barely closed the door when there was another knock on it.
`Probably Joey,' Chris thought, hoping that Joey hadn't caught Lance and JC in a compromising position. But when he opened the door it was none other than the room service boy, come five minutes early.
"Your breakfast, sir." The boy stated, making a move to wheel the cart into the room but Chris was blocking the way.
"Oops, sorry." Chris said as he stepped back from the door. "That was quick." He stated, reaching for his wallet so that he could tip the young man.
The youth only smiled as he rolled the cart into the center of the room, quietly asking Chris if he would like the food dished out onto plates.
"Oh, no, that's quite alright, I bet we can handle it our ourselves." Chris replied and both laughed. "Here you go." He said, handing the polite young man a tip.
"Thank you, sir." As the bell hop stepped out the door Chris thought:
`Wow, I really hope HE didn't see Lance and JC in a compromising position.' `Sure puts the whole Joey seeing them thing in perspective huh?' After contemplating that for a few seconds Chris began to dish the food out onto the one empty serving platter that had come with the cart. After so long with them he pretty much knew what Lance and JC would each want. Chris finished up with his selections and went across the hall, knocking quietly on the door.
"Hi, breakfast already?" JC asked as he poked his head out the door. Chris could hear Lance in the back of the room ask who was at the door.
"Just breakfast." JC turned around to reply and then came back to face Chris again while Lance commented that the hadn't realized they had ordered anything.
"It came sooner than I thought, so I decided to just bring you some." Chris explained when he got JC's attention back, or half of it at least.
"Oh, thanks Chris, that was real nice of you," JC said, and then Chris saw him shiver with a delighted little shake and heard a whisper in the background.
"I think maybe I better go." Chris said hastily, realizing things were about to heat up.
"That's probably best," JC smiled. "Thanks for the breakfast. I'll see you later, k?"
"Ok," Chris agreed, as JC was slowly pulled backwards into the room. When he got back into his room he found Joey raiding the food cart.
`Now, how did he open his door and walk the 5 steps to my room quietly enough that I didn't hear him? He's always loud.' Chris wondered, but said instead:
"And what exactly do you think you're doing?"
"Ummm, getting breakfast." Joey answered, turning around to face Chris, but continuing to pile food onto two already heaping plates.
.
"This isn't take out y'know? Despite what everyone seems to think." Chris wasn't really irritated, he just couldn't pass up this chance to badger Joey.
"Oh, so JC and Lance aren't coming to breakfast either?" Joey asked, and Chris could see the conflicting emotion playing across his face and hear them in the younger man's voice. Happiness, for certain, but something else as well...wistfulness? Chris couldn't quite discern what it was but made a mental note to himself to investigate further later. It wasn't until then that Chris thought to wonder how Joey would even know.
"Umm- How did you-" But Joey was already so close to the door that he didn't even bother to let Chris complete his question.
"Lucky guess." He said, flashing Chris a smile and making good on his get away.
_
***********
_
"Hey Baby." JC greeted Lance as he shut the door, and turned around to face the man whose hands were on his back.
"Baby?" Lance asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah, you don't like it?" JC felt a little disappointed.
"I do, I just always figured myself as more of a cutie than a baby." Lance smiled at JC as he said it and the brunette knew he was being teased.
"That was evil of you babe." He laughed, leaning down for a kiss, but the plates got in the way.
"Wanna eat?" JC asked, breaking away from the tender embrace.
"Yeah, but not food." Lance replied, leaning up for some more make-out action from his boy.
JC just laughed, giving Lance a quick peck on the lips before coming back up.
"C'mon, I know you need some food in that cute little tummy of yours." JC gave Lance a quick little poke, making him giggle.
"Yeah, but if we skip breakfast we can go back to bed!" Lance exclaimed, taking the plates away and setting them down on the dresser, grabbing JC's hand and pulling him towards the bed.
"Lance, what is going on here?" JC asked, still laughing, letting himself be pulled along.
Turning around, Lance took his boyfriend's hand and looked up into the deep blue eyes.
"Nothing's going on, I just want to spend some more time in bed with my new boyfriend." Lance said petulantly, sticking out his lower lip in a fair imitation of how Justin might look.
JC looked down at his boyfriend and almost believed him, but he'd known Lance too long to be fooled.
"Alright, Lance, what is it really?" He asked, sighing, not wanting to start a fight but knowing he had to get to the root of the problem.
"What? Nothing's wrong, Josh."
The way Lance said his name had JC about to melt, but something is the blonde's eyes betrayed him and JC knew what was going on.
He sighed, and sat down, pulling Lance along with him.
"Lance, I'm never gunna leave." He whispered, looking deep into his boyfriend's eyes.
"W-what???" Lance asked, but there was a tremor in his voice and JC could see that tears were forming in his eyes.
"I'm never, ever going to leave you, Lance, no matter what, I'll always be here." The tears started to flow from the blonde's eyes and JC drew him into a hug, resting on his baby's soft blonde hair, gently rubbing the other boy's back.
Finally, a slight whisper against his skin:
"You promise?"
"I promise, Lance." JC hugged him tighter, never wanting to let go.
After a while Lance lifted his head from JC's shoulder and looked straight into the deep blue eyes.
"C'mon, lets eat." He smiled a weak little smile, and received a wide one back.
"Yeah, lets get some food in that tummy!" Both boys laughed, and settled onto the bed as JC dished out the food, serving up some of each thing onto Lance's tray.
"That's kind of a whole lot of food, JC." Lance said as he noticed the proportions of each food the brunette was dishing out.
"Yup, I know, and you have to eat every single bite! I don't want you going and getting sick on me!" JC replied with such enthusiasm Lance had to smile.
"You do realize if I eat all that I actually will be sick, right?"
"Oh." JC murmured, giving an adorable little grimace.
`Apparently he hadn't thought of that.' Lance realized, smiling again.
"Ok, well eat some at least, you really don't eat enough you know!"
Lance laughed aloud.
"Yes, mom!" He said, now completely cheered up by how adorable JC was being.
As they ate JC quietly asked:
"So you don't want to know how I knew?"
"No," Lance replied. "I just figure it's your boyfriend intuition."
JC laughed.
"Aww, I love you Lance."
Lance looked shocked for a moment, and JC wondered if he had gone too far. Then:
"I love you too, Josh."
Ok, there it is! Not a cliffhanger, just a sweet little ending :) No flashback, I know, but there will be in the next one, and hopefully what the note says will get the heck in there! I must go to bed now! I hope you liked it!
-Angel
P.S. Thanks to `A fan from Europe' (the only name I ever got) for your emails, they're great! Oh, and I'm having some formatting issues with my computer, if there are any whizzes out there who want to help me out, it would be greatly appreciated!