Backstage Boys III
by Karen and LB
© 2002
It's the urgent need to pee that finally rouses Lance out of his deep slumber. At first, he has no idea where he is; then, he feels the warm body half-lying on top of him, and he smiles. He buries his face in JC's hair and takes a long, deep breath. Gosh, he smells great, Lance thinks. Even after sex. He giggles to himself at the thought. Sex. Sex with JC! He feels bad for having to move out from under the sleeping beauty on top of him, but Lance REALLY has to pee. JC stirs, but his eyes never open, so Lance places a soft kiss on his cheek and sprints to the bathroom. It's then that the phone rings.
JC tries to ignore the sound. Who would call at the ungodly hour of whatever it was anyway? He pulls a pillow over his head, and the phone continues to ring. He adds the covers and Lance's pillow and the phone continues to ring. He switches the pillows around so Lance's is against his face and he can smell him and the phone continues to ring. He finally snakes one hand out from the sheltering bedclothes and grabs the receiver. "Hello?" he mumbles, as he feels Lance sit on the side of the bed and begin to dig through the layers to find him.
Lance had pulled on his boxer briefs and headed back to the bed when he heard the phone ring. He knows it would wake JC and wants to give him a chance to sleep. He laughs when he sees the pile of pillows covering JC's tousled head, and the mess of blankets provides a challenge as Lance feels his way around for an arm or leg. The phone continues to ring, when he finally comes into contact with a firm thigh. He slides his hand upward until he feels the soft curls of hair, and when he hears JC's murmured "Hello" Lance gently takes the phone from his hand, the only thing visible from outside the pillows.
"Hello?" Lance asks. There's a pause.
"Lance? It's Chris. Time for that group meeting. Come to Justin's room. 211."
Lance sighs. "Okay. I'll . . . we'll be right there." He slides his hand out from under the covers, hangs up the phone, and touches JC's shoulder. At least he thinks it's his shoulder, under the tangle of sheets. Justin's room, he thinks. The room I was supposed to be in before all this happened. What are they all going to think?
JC pushes aside the pillows and blankets and looks up into Lance's worried face. "It's gonna be okay. They're our friends." Lance still looks doubtful, and JC takes his hands in his. "I love you, and I'll be right there with you. We can do this, together."
Lance pulls away, begins pacing, and runs a hand through his completely disheveled hair. "But what are we gonna tell them? They already know _something_. And I don't want this to change the group. I love those guys like they're my brothers. If they start to hate me because of this . . . " He starts to get dressed, angry, annoyed, frustrated. He really wants another shower--he almost laughs in spite of himself--but knows that will have to wait.
JC sighs. He doesn't want to get into another argument. He gets out of bed and pulls on some boxers. Then he walks up behind the fretful boy and puts his hands on his shoulders. When Lance starts, JC says "I know. We have to get ready. But we can take a few minutes." He feels a bit of the tension go out of Lance, and he meets his eyes in the mirror. "Lance, no one's gonna hate you. These are our friends, our family. We've always stuck together. Why should now be any different? As to what to tell them, well, I'm not going to pressure you, but I think we should tell them that this is serious, not just some little experiment or something." JC pauses and takes a deep breath. "I wish I could tell the world how I feel about you, but I can't. Can you blame me for wanting to at least tell our own little bit of the world?"
Lance is zipping up his pants and he pauses, absorbing JC's words. He's right. They've been through so much together, all of them. They've seen the worst sides of each other, had some vicious fights together, and always came out the best of friends in the end. But before, no one was sleeping together. No, that was wrong--no one was IN LOVE with another. Suddenly, he's terrified. He changed everything by dragging JC to the dressing room. None of this would be happening right now if he'd just kept his cool and answered the damn question. He remembers something Mr. Yerger said recently about forces acting and reacting and how everything has a cause and effect. But then again, none of this would be happening. He wouldn't be in a hotel room, alone with the man he loves, if he hadn't gotten JC alone yesterday. He falls back against his friend, feeling his sturdy, warm hands on his shoulders. "Josh, I was the outsider in this group. You all knew each other long before I came along. Who do you think they're going to blame if things start to fall apart?"
JC lets his hands slide down Lance's arms until he wraps them around the boy's waist and rests his chin on Lance's shoulder. "Baby, it's been a long time since anyone thought of you as the outsider. Give them a little credit. As for blaming you if this changes anything, all I can say is, it takes two. I mean," he smiles, a complex smile filled with the memories of the past 24 hours. "It's not like you forced me into anything. And being the elder, if anyone should have put the brakes on, it was me . . . "
"Josh, I'm old enough to know what I'm doing." He puts his arms on JC's and gives them a squeeze, then pulls away quickly, before the proximity to JC and his heat and scent and EVERYTHING about him cause Lance to want to forget this meeting and just push him back down on the bed. Already, he feels flushed and tries his best to shake it off. Better to use this energy to deal with the guys. For now. Later on . . . that's another story. Lance finishes dressing and heads for the door. He turns to face JC and holds out his hand.
JC pulls his shirt over his head and walks over to take Lance's hand. Hand in hand, they walk through the doorway and down the corridor to knock at Justin's door. It opens quickly, and they walk in, under the scrutiny of six pairs of eyes. JC meets each gaze, relieved to see there curiosity and interest, but no hostility.
Lance enters the room like a trapped mouse, on the defensive, ready to run when he sees the cat's mouth open. He squeezes JC's hand once for reassurance, then releases it. He doesn't need to give the guys anything more to chide them about. "So," he says slowly, not wanting to meet their eyes. "What did you want to talk about."
Chris, Joey, and Justin all exchange a look of incredulity. It's Joey who speaks first.
"Lance, dude, unless this is a really great practical joke you're playing, I think you know why we called this meeting."
Lance's face gets hot and he knows he must be turning some amazing shades of red. He leans back against the wall and slides to the floor. He wraps his arms around his knees, blows out the breath he'd been holding, and prepares for battle.
JC watches, stunned, as Lance withdraws from him and sinks into the floor. He sits next to his lover, close but not touching, as if afraid that Lance will push him away. He looks up at the three faces, wondering what Lance sees there to make him so afraid. He waits for someone to speak. Finally Justin laughs. "Well, as far as I'm concerned, it's about time you two stopped mooning over each other and did something about it."
Lance's head snaps up, startled, as he tries to comprehend Justin's words. "Really, I was sick of rooming with you anyway," Joey snorts, pretending to inspect his fingernails. "Always leaving your sweaty socks all over the place."
"Hey, I do not--" Lance tries to protest, but Chris cuts in. "I thought I was gonna have to lock you two in a room to finally get you two together." Lance gapes from one face to the next. Beside him, he can hear JC laugh. Why does everyone find this so funny? He blushes even more. They KNEW? They knew he had a thing for JC? But if they knew, who else knew? Justin can see it in Lance's face and he pushes off the bed he's sitting on and sits on the floor opposite Lance. "Don't worry, dude, no one else knows. WE haven't even talked about it until now." He looks around at the others. "And as far as I'm concerned, it stays here."
JC just about loves Justin at this moment. He knew in his heart of hearts that this would be the guys' reaction, but it's still good to hear it voiced. He looks over at Lance and sees the incredulity in his face and touches his arm gently.
Lance is startled out of his disbelief by the sensation of JC's fingers on his arm. He turns his head and sees JC smiling at him, then he looks over at the guys. He forces a smile, but he's still not sure of what this all means. He feels a huge weight lift off his shoulders, but at the same time he knows this is just the beginning. Suddenly, he doesn't want to be in this room anymore; he wants only to be alone with JC. But they have a long day ahead of them-- a long night, for it's already late in the afternoon. So much is happening so quickly, Lance feels a dull throb at his temples. Finally, he speaks. "So . . . you guys are okay with this? It's not gonna weird you out or anything?"
Joey speaks up. "What didja think, we were gonna run screaming from the room or something? If you guys want to fool around, that's your business." He punches Lance lightly on the shoulder. "We're the same as always, buddy."
Lance rubs his shoulder where Joey hit him. He kicks his foot out lightly, making contact with Joey's shin. "So, it doesn't gross you out, the thought of JC and me kissing?" Joey had stumbled back when Lance kicked him, laughing.
"No," he says, taking another swipe at him, this time swatting his still- mussed hair.
Lance dodges Joey's hand and grabs his wrists. "And it won't gross you out if we share a room together?"
"Nah," Joey glances at JC. "You can have him, Lance. He snores."
JC takes a jab at Joey, too, and the three tussle for a few moments until Chris's voice cuts in. "Guys? We've got a little more to cover in this meeting." All eyes turn to Chris who says, "For the record, I don't care what you two do either." He looks very seriously at JC and Lance. "But guys, you have to be SO careful. We'll all get your backs. You KNOW that. But if anyone outside this room gets wind of this, we're all in trouble. The press will have a field day. And I don't even want to think about Lou. I just hope it's worth it."
Joey has Lance in a headlock, and JC is grabbing Joey's legs. They all stop and Lance looks point blank at JC. "It is for me."
JC stops what he's doing and gazes at Lance. They might as well be alone in the room for all he notices the others. "Me, too," he whispers.
"You guys are NOT gonna kiss, are you?" Joey squeals.
They turn as if choreographed and say, in unison "Shut up, Joey."