The Experiment

by Karen and LB
© 2002

"We were just experimenting with what happens when friends kiss friends." --Rick Palmer, 7th Heaven

"Kiss her! Kiss her!"

The 7th Heaven clip again, but this is MTV, and Dave, who pretty much let them do what they wanted. And that took the form of screaming "kiss her" at the monitor. After all, Lance's ankle was sprained, so he couldn't chase them too fast.

So he sits and watches, embarrassed. Lance knew they were going to air the clip, but he purposely hadn't told the other guys when the episode aired, except for Justin, because he knew how much razzing he would get. And while the kissing scene was fun, he can't say that he was all that comfortable with it. After all, he had to kiss a girl.

It's middle school all over again, and JC knows it. But as he pulls himself up off the floor, he has a decidedly un-middle-school thought. Lance looks like a good kisser. He goes back to his seat, but for a few moments, can't even look at Lance as he rolls the thought around in his mind, looking at it from every angle.

Humiliation. That's the only word he can think of to describe this. Why is it that everyone made a big scene over his kissing scene but not Justin's? His ankle throbbing, his face burning, it's all Lance can do to keep smiling. Yes, keep smiling and it will all be over and they can move on to the next topic. And thankfully, they do, but not before JC manages to imitate the now notorious not-so-sneaky arm stretch. Of course, when JC does it, even though he's only joking, it's not so unpleasant.

They have fun with the rest of the show, especially the giant puppets, but the whole time JC is wondering how, exactly, one finds out if one's bandmate is as good a kisser as he looks.

After mingling with the audience and schmoozing with Dave and the rest of the MTV crew, the boys are finally sent on their way, to do more interviews and appearances to promote the album, and it's not until much later that they have some free time. Over a late dinner, Joey teases, "Lance and Beverly sittin' in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g . . . "

"Shut up," states Lance, eyeing the crowd and working on his french fries.

"You liked it, admit it."

"It was just acting."

"Acting my ass."

"So what was it like," JC asks, shocked to hear the words coming out of his mouth. "Um, kissing someone you didn't know."

Lance looks across the booth at JC, not sure if this is a joke or if he's serious. "It's, um, you know, it's okay. It's weird. But there were, like, 50 people standing around watching."

"Oh, yeah. That must have been . . . weird. Did you have to, like, do it a bunch of times?"

"Yeah, like over and over--close ups, far away shots. I thought it would be easy, but it was work!"

"Sure, tough job, Lance," grouses Joey.

"Cause you don't get to kiss enough girls, Joey," JC says with a smile. He turns back to Lance. "I know what it's like having to do a bunch of takes. Even if it's fun the first time, by the twelfth, you just wanna be out of there."

"It was just weird kissing someone in front of so many people. Especially someone who's just a friend."

JC sits back, at least partly satisfied with that answer. He still doesn't have the answer to his real question, about what kind of a kisser Lance is. But he likes the "just a friend" part. A lot.

Back at the hotel, Lance knew that his friends would question him about his work on 7th Heaven, considering he wouldn't let them see it when it aired, but he wondered why JC in particular was so curious.

JC was wondering the same thing. Why, exactly was he so interested in Lance's kissing technique? Why was he so relieved at Lance's description of Beverley as "just a friend"? He's known Lance for years now. Surely if he was going to have feelings for the younger man, he would have noticed them before now. But maybe that was the key. In recent months, he'd noticed, whether he'd admitted it to himself or not, that Lance was more man than boy. And that was very appealing to him.

*****

"I like this one," says Lance, pointing to a crisp Dolce & Gabanna suit.

JC looks up and nods in agreement. It's the suit he would have chosen for Lance himself. "Yeah, that will look, um, really good. You could do blue tips in your hair, too."

"I was thinking about doing that! How'd you know?"

"You've only been talking about it for a week," Chris chimes in.

JC shoots Chris a withering glance, then turns back to Lance. "I just thought it would look cool with, like, the color of the suit."

"Maybe. My parents won't be crazy about it, but it washes out."

"Eventually," Joey says as he passes by, his red hair even brighter under the overhead lights.

"Don't listen to him. It'll look hot. I mean, the girls will think it's hot."

"And then they'll want to marry me," Lance says, deadpan, then cracks up.

"They already do," Joey laughs, than adds, high pitched. "Lance, Lance KIIIIIIIIISSSSSSS me!"

JC blushes and turns away, examining the remaining suits with renewed interest.

JC's reaction puzzles Lance, and he files the image away for later probing. But it isn't until much later, after dinner and clubbing that he's able to ask. The boys make their way back to the hotel, and it's there that Lance is finally able to ask. "Hey, C, can I go over some stuff for the Oscars with you?" he asks in the hallway.

JC looks startled. "Um, now?"

Lance leans against the wall, arms folded. "Oh, um, I guess it could wait till tomorrow."

"That's not . . . I mean, I was just surprised. Sure."

"Why were you surprised?"

"You usually don't want to talk work and stuff like that after clubbing."

"Well, this isn't really about work."

JC fumbles with his key. "But you said . . . about the Oscars . . . "

"Yeah, I did. Um, okay, it's not about the Oscars at all."

JC finally gets the door open and steps back to admit Lance. "What, then?"

Lance circles the large room awkwardly, finally settling in a corner of the sofa. "It's about what we were talking about this afternoon."

"Our suits?"

His leg beginning to bounce, Lance smiles nervously and looks down, then back at JC. "No, um, when we . . . when you said that girls would dig my blue tips."

"Oh, um, they will. They will."

"That's not what I was going to ask. You, um, you know, acted kind of, like, weird about it."

"I . . . I did? Weird how?"

"Like . . . you were embarrassed that girls would like my hair that way. And, um, when we were, um, talking about what I did on 7th Heaven."

Maybe it was the drinks he'd had at the clubs. Maybe he was just tried of pretending. Whatever the reason, JC simply blurts out, "I was curious," then covers his mouth as if he could catch the words back.

Lance sits up. "Curious about what? Acting?"

"Kissing," JC mumbles.

"You're curious about me kissing a girl? But you've kissed girls before."

"Curious about . . . you kissing."

"Like, did I really do it?"

"Are you really good at it?"

"Kissing?" Lance giggles, grabbing a pillow and hugging it nervously. "Um, I don't know."

"You, you looked like you were."

"You noticed?"

"Yeah," JC says, almost too softly to be heard. "I noticed. "

"Well, um, what did you think?"

"It . . . it made me wonder if you were as good a kisser as you looked like on screen."

"Why are you asking that?"

"Cause you asked me why I was acting weird. Cause it's what I want to know."

Lance clutches the pillow like it's a lifeline. "Well, there's really only one way to find out."

"That's true," JC says, moving closer. "Can I?"

Lance chews his lip for a minute, then turns his eyes up to JC. "Okay."

JC does the fake-stretch arm thing, sliding his arm around Lance's shoulder and grinning. But he turns completely serious as he leans in to press his slightly parted lips to Lance's.

Just like he kissed Beverley Mitchell in 7th Heaven, Lance's lips meet JC's, only it's completely different. A surge of excitement travels from his toes to his spiky hair as their lips touch and his mouth closes over JC's and his tongue teases JC's teeth.

JC's question is answered. Lance is every bit as good a kisser as he'd looked. Better. JC just wants to crawl into Lance's lap and stay for a very, very long time.

As he'd done in the TV show, Lance brings his hand to JC's face instinctively, caressing his cheek as his lips close over JC's mouth again and again.

JC moans into Lance's mouth, the sound high and needy, and it's the sound that reminds him that he's kissing his bandmate. And liking it. He pulls back, breathless and looks at Lance, wondering if he feels as confused and elated as JC does.

Lance takes his hand away, not as though he'd touched a hot stove, but slowly, returning it to his lap. "So . . . was that okay?"

"Okay? That was SO much better than okay."

"It was? I mean, it was. I mean, you're a really good kisser. That sounds so strange--telling you that."

JC looks down, blushing slightly. "I can't believe I asked you. I can't believe we did that. And I wanna do it again."

"Me too." Lance pauses. "Kissing Beverly was okay, but kissing you was, like . . . wow."

JC smiles, his joyous, eye-crinkling smile. And he does what they both want. He kisses Lance again.

This time Lance is less shy, less hesitant, now that he knows JC is as into this as he is. Kissing a guy isn't different from kissing a girl, he realizes. It's just so much better.

It feels so right, JC realizes. Comfortable and exciting at the same time. As JC's tongue touches Lance's, pushes past Lance's teeth into his warm, damp mouth, he moves closer still, wrapping both arms around his friend.

Lance stops thinking and lets instinct take over. He accepts JC's tongue willingly, meeting it with his own as he leans back against the sofa cushion.

They kiss for what feels like a really long time, and when they finally separate, they're both smiling. "You...you could give lessons," JC murmurs. "But I don't think I want you to."

Blushing, Lance touches JC's face. "Then how about I only practice with you?"

"You read my mind."

"That's one of my hidden talents."

"Got any more?"

"You'll have to kiss me some more to find out."

"I can do that." And JC does.

This time it's Lance who is the aggressor. He licks JC's lips and then slips his tongue inside, exploring JC's mouth slowly, leisurely, as though the only thing he has to do is kiss JC.

JC slides his hand up into Lance's soft, spiky hair, imagining it again with blue tips. He's not sure why that's so appealing, but it is. His hand drops again to Lance's cheek, and he cups Lance's face gently as they kiss and kiss.

JC's lips are so soft and delicious Lance could do this for hours. JC's touch is so caring that it makes the kisses even sweeter.

How could he have not known this? JC wonders. How could Lance have been in front of him every day for years and JC never noticed him?

Finally, Lance stops, pushing JC away gently. "We should probably stop."

"Do we have to?"

"I don't want to, but if we don't stop now we might, um, you know, not be able to."

"Oh." JC glances down and up again. "Okay, yeah. But can we do it again, like, another time?"

"Heck yeah. Anytime you want."

"Man, I'm glad I asked, even if it was a weird question. But I have another question."

"What's that?"

"Am I as good a kisser as you thought I'd be?"

Giggling, Lance replies, "Better. WAY better."

JC grins. "Good. I want to be the best kisser you ever kiss."

"So are you saying I should go out and kiss some other boys for comparison?"

"Nope. Definitely not."

"Then I guess you'll just have to kiss me a lot to keep me from kissing other guys."

"That sounds good. Really good. And I think I better kiss you once more, before I go. So you'll remember."

"It's your room."

"I knew that."

"So I guess I'll be leaving."

"Not before I kiss you."

"You're gonna hold me hostage?"

"I'm just gonna hold you." And JC slides his arms around Lance again, closing his eyes and finding Lance's lips with his own.

This kiss is more tender than the ones before, more meaningful. It's not just a game anymore. They started something, and the door is wide open to the possibilities.

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