Disclaimer: I do not know `N Sync or their sexual preferences. This is a piece of fiction, which means that it is not real. The story contains homosexual content. If you are underage or this is illegal where you live, please leave.
Thanks!
Hey everyone! I know it's been a long time and I'm sorry about that. What can I say though? School's a bitch! Hope you like this next chapter of Now or Never and please, please let me know what you think! :) Email me at nsajscgirl@yahoo.com
Oh, and another huge thank you goes out to Cele, `cause she's awesome like that! :)
Previously on Now or Never...
As Lance reached around Chris to pull the door open, he came to a quick stop causing a domino effect. Justin bumped into Lance, causing the closest bodyguard to bump roughly into Justin.
"Lance! Wha...oh," Justin sputtered once he spotted the cause of Lance's immobility. He would have turned and ran the other way if he thought it would have done any good. Officers Bartlett and Henson stood in front of Chris and Lance, stern frowns covering their faces.
"Um, hello officers. How are you doing this afternoon?" Lance managed to spit out. There was a sick feeling growing in his stomach. The looks on their faces announced the fact that they weren't happy at the moment. "We were just about to leave for the day..." "I'm sorry, Mr. Bass. We have a few more questions for all of you concerning the case. If you could stay a few more minutes, it would be greatly appreciated," Officer Bartlett asked politely. Both he and his partner stepped into the room, forcing the exiting group to back up. Henson shut the door behind him and stood beside Bartlett. Lance shared a concerned glance with Johnny, unsure of what he should do. Johnny simply shook his head, indicating that Lance should go along with whatever the officers did. He was ready to holler for the closest lawyer if one of the officers did something he didn't like.
"Alright, Officer. I'm sure we can stay a little longer," Lance conceded, as though he actually had the choice. Bartlett nodded and crossed his arms. He stared at the group in front of him for a moment, allowing the silence to become unnerving.
"Well, let's start with the fact that you have been lying to us..."
------------ Now or Never Chapter 12
Lance drew in a deep breath and he quickly turned away from the officer's penetrating gaze. He knew this was going to happen. He knew that the doctor would share her findings with the police; he knew that they were screwed. Lance exchanged an angry glance with JC, the one who had given the doctor the conflicting information.
JC, in return, frowned at Lance and shrugged his shoulders carelessly. He wasn't the least bit remorseful about the fact that he had told the doctor the truth. He had been looking out for Joey and that was more important to him at the time than trying to keep Chris's ass out of trouble.
Johnny stepped forward quickly; he already didn't like where this was going.
"Wait a goddamn minute! You were warned about questioning the guys without their lawyers. Before this goes any further, I want Jive's lawyers here for this ambush!" Johnny demanded. Officer Bartlett nodded his concession and his partner sighed. Neither of them had expected to get through this without the "sharks" being present. Johnny flipped open his cell phone, quickly dialed a familiar number, and waited impatiently for someone to pick up.
JC decided that he would be more comfortable sitting down during the upcoming interrogation. He backed up quickly and plopped down in the first chair he came in contact with. He lowered his head to avoid making eye contact with his three band mates whose facial expressions ranged from anger to disbelief at the situation they found themselves in. The bodyguards took up various positions around the room, each keeping a wary eye on all of the occupants.
Chris picked the chair farthest from JC and lowered himself into it gently. He figured that space was a good thing between JC and himself. Chris rubbed his sweaty palms along the armrests of his chair just to give him the feeling that he was moving, that he was doing something. He had been pretty sure that he was going to piss himself the moment he saw the policemen in front of him earlier. He was glad that he managed to control the urge. What he couldn't control, though, was his heartbeat, which was currently racing at eighty miles an hour. All he could do was stare at the two imposing officers that blocked his only escape.
Johnny barked a few orders into his phone and angrily slapped it shut. He took a quick look around the room and noted with interest that while JC and Chris sat on opposite sides of the room, Lance and Justin had taken two seats next to each other. They seemed impossibly close, their sides pressed together tightly. Johnny watched the pair for a moment before he saw Justin move his hand to Lance's thigh. He wouldn't have given the simple touch a second thought if he hadn't seen Lance's reaction. Johnny would have simply assumed that Justin was trying to comfort his older friend. However, Lance's response told of an altogether different story. The young blonde blushed slightly and tilted his head towards Justin, a loving smile playing at the corners of his mouth. Justin mouthed something to Lance, causing the older man's blush to deepen. Lance moved his hand down to cover Justin's and he gave it a quick squeeze.
Johnny was more than a little shocked at the sweet exchange. He realized that neither of them had any idea that they were being watched and he could feel the headache that he had woken up with magnify ten times. This was the last thing he wanted to deal with. As their manager, he would be forced to tell them to hide whatever they were feeling or doing from the public. They had to make the little girls happy and they couldn't do that if they were screwing each other. Johnny honestly didn't care that they were gay, just that they were going to make his job a living hell.
He turned his attention from Lance and Justin in time to see Bartlett staring at the couple. Johnny cleared his throat, catching Bartlett's attention. He arched an eyebrow and glared at the officer, getting a vague shrug in return.
Johnny's throat clearing also got Justin's attention and once the young man realized what was going on, he pulled away from Lance and stood up quickly. Justin moved across the room and took a seat directly facing Lance. If he couldn't be beside Lance, at least he could look at him directly. He didn't want to sit there, but he didn't want to draw anymore unwanted attention to Lance and himself. Justin met Lance's confused gaze and gave him a reassuring smile, which seemed to satisfy Lance. Justin vowed to himself that he would do something special for Lance that night to make up for the slight he had just given his lover.
Justin's attention was drawn away from Lance when Mr. MacKenzie burst into the room, putting the bodyguards on alert. With a simple wave of his hand, Johnny put the guards at ease and he moved forward to meet Jive's lawyer. They talked quietly in terse whispers for a moment before separating and facing the rest of the room's occupants.
"Officer Bartlett, you were warned about..." MacKenzie started only to be interrupted by the exasperated officer.
"Mr. MacKenzie, we didn't ask your boys' anything and we did wait for you to arrive before we questioned the group any further. Can we please stop wasting time and get on with the questioning?" Bartlett asked sweetly, obviously trying to piss the lawyer off. MacKenzie swallowed his anger and nodded sharply. "Thank you. Like I said before, why don't we start with the fact that you've lied to us," Bartlett said. "During our previous questioning we asked you if Mr. Fatone had a record of drug use and I believe Mr. Kirkpatrick replied with an emphatic No'. However, when we talked with his doctor, she informed us that Mr. Chasez told her that Mr. Fatone did in fact use drugs at parties. He also told her that there were a few parties a week which would constitute drug abuse in my book, gentlemen."
The room fell silent as Bartlett and Henson took a moment to survey the group in front of them. Eyes shuffled around the room, trying to avoid the officers' gazes. Chris found the floor pattern to be amazingly interesting while JC picked at an imaginary piece of lint on his dark blue T-shirt. Since Lance and Justin sat across from one another, their gazes focused on other. As worried sea-green eyes met equally worried sky-blue eyes, they found comfort in the fact that they weren't in this situation alone. A cleared throat caught everyone's attention and Lance was more than a little surprised to find that it was Chris.
"Officers, I didn't know that Joey used drugs," Chris stated. He felt a sharp knot of fear in his stomach as he waited for the police officers to respond. He had quickly decided that the only way to keep himself and the group, but especially himself, out of trouble would be to lie his ass off. He just hoped that the police bought it. "I thought I was telling you the truth when I said Joey never used drugs and that was simply because I didn't know any better. It came as a huge shock to me that Joey would take drugs." As he finished, he glanced at his band mates to see what their reactions to his explanation would be.
He was somewhat satisfied to see the astonished look on his friends' faces. `At least they aren't angry...yet,' Chris thought to himself as he returned his gaze to the officers. Bartlett frowned at Chris, but made no comment as he thought about Chris's explanation. He decided that for the moment he would turn his attention away from Chris.
"How did you know about Joey's drug use, Mr. Chasez?" Bartlett asked turning his interested gaze to the blue- eyed singer. JC swallowed uncomfortably as he thought of a suitable lie. Damn Chris for making me lie,' JC thought to himself. This is all Chris's fault.'
"I caught him one night at a party," JC answered as he shot Chris a glare.
"What was he doing?" JC stared at the officers in incomprehension. "I mean, what type of drug was he doing?" Bartlett clarified himself. JC racked his brain, trying to remember one of the drugs Chris had mentioned earlier.
"Um...um...uppers I think. I'm not sure," JC managed to spit out. Bartlett and Henson exchanged unreadable glances with each other.
"So you didn't feel the need to tell us this information when we were questioning you earlier?"
"Mr. Chasez, you don't have to answer that question," MacKenzie pointed out. JC stared at him for a moment before looking back at the officers and replying.
"You never asked me whether or not Joey used drugs. You just asked Chris," JC explained evasively. Bartlett frowned at JC and he had to lower his head to avoid the officer's gaze as he continued to lie. "I didn't really think it was that big a deal until the doctor said something about it possibly effecting Joey's health. I had only seen him do it a couple of times, really." Justin couldn't believe the words that had just come out of his best friend's mouth. He seemed to lie easily, but Justin could tell from his slumped shoulders and bowed head, he was struggling with the fact that he was forced to lie. When JC raised his head, his eyes met Chris's and the older man grimaced at the anger he saw smoldering in JC's azure eyes.
"Right..." Bartlett said slowly. He thought briefly about arresting JC for obstruction of justice, but he really didn't see the point. He was almost positive now that they were hiding something important, but he wouldn't press it...yet. Lance held his breath as he watched the policeman scan the room with an inscrutable expression. Bartlett exchanged glances with Henson once more before nodding at his partner. "I'm having a hard time believing you, Mr. Chasez, but I can't prove you wrong and it really doesn't matter how you knew. So...I'm going to take your word for right now. We still have to question Mr. Fatone. If anything comes up, we'll be in touch," Bartlett finished before turning abruptly and exiting the room with Henson following at his heels. Lance let go of his breath and slumped in his seat, happy that it was over for the time being. He heard echoing sighs of relief from the others sound throughout the room and, for the most part, the tension dissipated.
"Okay, guys. That was it for now, I guess. Chris, you can go home now," Johnny said dismissively before turning to Justin, then Lance. "Could I please speak to you two in private, please?" Chris looked at his friends curiously before bolting from the room. He didn't really care what Johnny wanted to talk to Lance and Justin about; he just wanted to get out of there. JC left the room wordlessly right behind Chris; he was going to try and find Joey's doctor. He had seen most of the exchange between Lance and Justin and he knew exactly what Johnny wanted to talk to them about. Johnny motioned for the two remaining bodyguards and Mr. MacKenzie to leave the room while he frowned at the two men sitting across from each other.
The minute Johnny had asked to speak to them privately, Justin knew what it was about and he also knew that he wasn't ready for it. His relationship with Lance was too new and too special to discuss with Johnny, especially when they hadn't even told their friends. Lance sighed, catching Justin's attention, and Justin offered his lover a small, reassuring smile.
"Johnny..." Justin started only to be interrupted by a wave of Johnny's hand.
"Just listen, okay? I'm just going to talk and I want you two to listen," Johnny announced as he started pacing back and forth across the room. "I don't know what is going on between the two of you and, to tell you the truth, I don't really want to know. I just want to ask that you keep it under wraps and away from the public eye. You can do whatever you want to in the privacy of your own houses, but whenever you are in public you absolutely must keep this a secret. If something about two of the hottest members of N Sync being gay got out, it would be a public relations nightmare. I'm telling you, as your manager, that it would be a living hell for everyone involved to try to cover your asses." Their manager emphasized his words by jabbing his fingers at them. Lance was shocked to find out that Johnny had seen them earlier, but he had kept his eyes on Justin throughout Johnny's speech and he didn't seemed surprised. At least that explains why Justin moved,' Lance mused. He thought about how easily they had been spotted and a sharp knot of fear twisted in his stomach. Lance knew that Johnny was right; that if it went public that he and Justin were gay and in love, the shit would hit the fan. There was no telling what the fan reaction would be to those facts. He had stayed silent for six years for that very reason, to protect the group. Now that Lance was involved with Justin, he felt an even higher sense of responsibility to keep their lives and relationship away from their fans' prying eyes.
"Do you both understand what I am saying?" Johnny questioned sharply.
"Yes," Lance answered softly. He watched Justin as he replied and it was obvious that Justin was having a hard time controlling his anger. Lance shook his head at Justin to prevent him from saying something stupid.
"Good. That's all I have to say on the subject and I hope that it was clear," Johnny said before turning on his heel and marching out of the room. The sound of the door slamming shut behind him echoed throughout the walls of the private waiting room.
"He's right. You know that, Justin." Justin swallowed hard and nodded his head as he felt the beginnings of tears burn at the back of his eyes. Lance quickly got out of his chair and walked to his lover. He didn't know how they were going to get through this, but he did know that he loved Justin with all of his heart. Hopefully, it would be enough to pull them through the rough times ahead.
Later that night...Lance Bass's residence
Lance was nervous. Throughout the drive home from the hospital, Justin had been silent. Lance had tried his hardest to get Justin to open up and talk to him. After their little conference with Johnny, he was feeling a little hopeless and unsure of what was to come and he knew that Justin must have been feeling the same things. Without a word, Justin had dropped Lance off at his house and sped away. Lance would have been really worried if Justin hadn't called ten minutes later, asking him to be dressed and ready to go at eight o'clock sharp.
Lance took another look at his wristwatch before sighing and picking at the hem of his suit jacket. It was seven fifty-five according to Lance watch, whereas the clock on his mantel said seven fifty-eight. Lance fervently hoped that the later was the one Justin was running by because he was dying with curiosity to know what this was all about. He slowly walked back to his bathroom and studied his appearance for what seemed the millionth time that night. His blonde-tipped spikes, frozen in their haphazard positions, complemented his pale skin and he thought to himself that he didn't look too bad. He looked down at his watch again, noting with interest that it was now seven fifty-eight. He slowly walked back towards the living room until he heard the doorbell ring, the pleasant sound echoing throughout the house.
Lance raced to the door, stopping just in time to keep from running into the wood. He smoothed down the front of his suit nervously and paused a minute. He laughed at himself silently for his nervousness. `This is Justin, you idiot!' he chided himself. He had never been this nervous about Justin coming to get him. But he knew the difference between then and now, this was his Justin. He grinned stupidly for a minute before the doorbell sounded once again and a loud knock followed the chiming.
Slowly, he opened the front door and he felt his heart melt all over again. In front of him stood Justin, hair perfectly placed, in a dark blue suit and tie. Once Justin caught sight of Lance, his full lips transformed into the gorgeous smile that he was known for and along with his smile, he offered up to Lance the single blood-red rose he held in his hand.
"Hey..." Justin drawled out as he stared at his lover.
"Hey..." Lance replied, a grin spreading across his face.
Welp, there it is. I hope everyone liked it and as you can see, we've swept the police aside and it's on to the more...interesting stuff. ;) I'm not making any promises, but I'm going to try and get the next chapter out as soon as possible. Please let me know what you thought about it, okay? I'm begging! :) nsajscgirl@yahoo.com