Who Wants Gum?
by Karen and LB
© 2002
Joey groans as he carries the large box into the room where the guys are all hanging out. They're taking a break from recording, relaxing and catching up on whatever had been neglected while they worked in the studio. "Johnny sent this over," Joey announces. "Some of the newer merchandise that's come out. He said it would be good for a laugh."
"Uh oh, why I am worried?" Chris asks.
"It can't be anything bad; we've all seen the list," Lance comments.
"You remember everything on the list?" There's a moment of silence, then Chris adds, "Oh yeah, I forget who I'm talking to."
Joey pulls out a package of CD shaped gum and marvels, "There's nothing we won't put our name on, is there?"
JC looks into the box. "Or our faces. Look." He pulls out several packages of photo-strip gum.
"Hey, this stuff will be worth something someday," Justin remarks reaching for a pack.
"Man, I hope not," Chris says, shaking his head. "Hey, how are you supposed to tell whose picture you got? I don't want to get stuck with Justin."
"You wish."
"Nah, Justin'll give them all to Britney so she can blow him," Joey teases.
"Hey look, " JC exclaims. "I got Lance." He turns to the younger man mischievously. "What would you like me to do to you, Lance?"
Lance laughs, shaking his head. "Blow me," he answers, trying to make a joke out of it.
JC stares at Lance, wondering if any part of him could be the least bit serious. He's had a crush on Lance for ages. He decides to answer as lightly as Lance had. "What, you're not even gonna buy me dinner first? You think I'm a cheap date?"
"Here, I'll give you a free CD," he says without looking up from the box and tosses JC one of the bubblegum CDs as he rummages through the rest of the contents.
"Ooh. Big spender. Remind me to give you one of these lovely banks to collect your pennies." JC fishes one out of the box. The other guys have gotten bored and drifted off to other things.
JC leans back in his chair and picks up the Lance-gum again. "Hmm," he muses, wetting his lips. He brings the gum to his mouth, taking in perhaps a half an inch of its length, teasing at it with his tongue and teeth. He flicks his eyes to Lance, then away.
Lance had taken a seat and was going through the inventory. When he looks up, he can't believe what he sees. Sure, JC's only kidding, right? But still, seeing him play with the gum like that. Lance shifts in the large armchair. "Stop that."
"Just doing what you asked. Or leading up to it. You don't like foreplay?" JC draws a little more of the gum into his mouth, closing his eyes and sucks on it.
Still thinking JC is teasing and not wanting to believe otherwise, Lance replies. "Yeah, I like foreplay. I like lots of foreplay. I like to draw it out, you know?" Lance keeps trying to make light of this; in truth, what JC is doing with the gum is starting to turn him on.
"Gum stretches. I could draw this out all day."
Lance crosses his legs, trying to concentrate on the papers in front of him. "I'd like to see that."
"Would you?" Holding Lance's eyes, JC flips the gum over so that when he flicks his tongue over it, he's licking Lance's image.
Lance's eyes widen; he's starting to think that JC is not just teasing. He tries his best to deny what he's feeling, but when he sees JC's tongue play over the image imprinted on the gum, Lance feels a twitching in his groin that can't be ignored. The temperature in the room feels like it's gone up ten degrees. "Bet you can't."
"Bet you're right, since we do have to get back into the studio, eventually." JC feeds a bit more of the gum into his mouth, running his tongue around it several times. "But I'll do what I can."
Sinking deeper into the chair, Lance almost drops the papers. "Um, where is everyone, anyway?"
"Why? You like to have an audience?"
"No! But--man, what's with the air conditioning. Didn't anyone turn it on?"
"It's on." JC considers, then pushes the entire strip of gum into his mouth.
The paper Lance had been clutching falls to the floor. He knows he should just get up and leave, walk it off, but he feels like he's welded to the chair. His eyes widen once again as his fingers grip the armrests.
JC lets his head fall back against the chair, eyes closed, as he begins to work the gum, rolling it around in his mouth. "Mmmm. So sweet. So delicious."
Lance starts to speak, but the words get stuck in his throat. When he can finally talk, his voice cracks. "Y-you like it?"
JC looks up, pinning Lance with his eyes again. "Very much. And I bet it will blow great, too. When it's ready."
"When will it be ready?"
"You tell me."
"Are you serious?"
"It's your gum."
"It's in your mouth."
"True." JC rolls the gum around in his mouth. "It's getting there. Pliant, but with just the right . . . stiffness."
Lance's heartbeat quickens. "Is that the way you like your . . . gum?"
"Yeah. Too soft and the bubble just . . . wilts."
"It doesn't feel very soft. I mean, look very soft."
"No, it feels just about perfect. Maybe I'll try blowing it now. A bubble, I mean."
"Oh. The gum. Yeah." Lance fidgets in the chair.
JC leans his head back again and opens his lips. His tongue works the gum into place, and he very slowly, very steadily begins to blow, creating a tiny bubble that grows and grows.
As the bubble increases in size, so does the sensation in Lance's groin. "Whoa. That's some bubble," he whispers.
Just as slowly, just as deliberately, JC pops the bubble with his tongue and sucks the gum back into his mouth. "Oh, I'm sorry, Lance, did you want some?"
"Yes." It comes out as a whisper, and Lance clears his throat. "Please."
"Then come and get it."
Lance starts. Did he just hear right? What if he does? What if he just walks right over there? What if he's wrong? What if this whole thing really IS a joke? But is it worth never knowing? Lance rises slowly, hoping his arousal isn't evident. He takes one tentative step forward, waiting for the inevitable laughter that's sure to come any minute. When it doesn't, he takes another step. Then another, his eyes shifting from the floor to JC and back again. Still no laughter. With one final step, he stands before JC.
JC holds out a package of gum to Lance.
Lance blinks at the offered gum, then accepts it. He turns it around in his hands, studying the box. Finally, he tears open the package and sifts through the two long, plastic-wrapped strips of gum. "Hmmm, Joey and . . . Justin. I don't want these."
"What do you want, Lance?"
"I want . . . yours?" As the words slip out, Lance wishes he could take them back.
"Then come and get it."
"It's . . . um . . . in your mouth."
JC hesitates. He knows he's just gonna want to disappear from the face of the earth if Lance says "gross" or something. But he's carried it this far, so . . . "Yeah?"
Lance shifts his weight and puts his hands on his hips. After a moment's hesitation, he asks, "How am I supposed to get it?"
"Use your imagination." Or your tongue.
He could stick his fingers in JC's mouth--that wet mouth. Oh, if JC would only work him the way he's working that gum. Wait, where did that come from? Sure, Lance has always been attracted to JC, but he never thought he'd act on it. And what if he's wrong about JC? What if this is all really just a game. So he crouches down before the chair and rests his head on the arm. "Give it to me."
"You can do better than that."
The feeling in his groin becomes more insistent. If Lance pulls away now he'll never know for sure. So he takes a leap of faith. He lifts his head and brings it within inches of JC's. "Give it to me," he says, keeping his voice low.
"You're gonna have to take it," JC whispers. Okay, this is it: moment of truth. Lance could get up and walk away and make a joke and they'll forget this ever happened. Or he can trust his instincts and go for it, and maybe, just maybe, his instincts will prove right. Just as JC opens his mouth to chew once again, Lance covers JC's mouth with his own.
JC has thought about this, hoped for it, but he never thought it would happen. He quickly works the gum into place, and when Lance's mouth opens against his, JC blows another bubble, into Lance's mouth. The sudden invasion of the sticky sweetness takes Lance by surprise. He takes the bubble in his mouth and pops it over JC's lips. They are now effectively stuck together.
JC smiles glue-i-ly against Lance's mouth and slips his tongue in where the bubble once was.
Lance doesn't know where the gum ends and JC's tongue begins. It's messy and sweet and delicious. And suddenly he pulls away, stretching the gum out and prying it off his lips with his fingers. "JC, what are we doing???"
"You have to ask? Didn't they teach you anything in Mississippi?"
"Not this."
"This . . . " JC leans forward to nibble away a bit of gum still stuck to Lance's lip, "...is called kissing."
"I know what it's called. Why are we doing it?"
"I don't know about you. I'm doing it because I've wanted to for, like, forever."
"Y-you have? With ME?"
"You see me making an idiot of myself with anyone else?"
Picking bits of gum off his lips, Lance can't believe this is happening. But JC's words are as real as the gum on his lips. "We just KISSED, JC. I just KISSED you. This is crazy!"
Stung by Lance's vehemence, JC withdraws a little. "If you say so, Lance."
"You don't think this is crazy?" There's a trace of hope in his voice.
JC looks up again, trying to read those unfathomable eyes. "Nope," he ventures, cautiously.
"You don't think it's at all weird that we're kissing? You and me? Bandmates? Guys?"
"Um, no? I've, um, been attracted to you, well, a long time. I was just scared to do anything about it."
"You have? You were? Why?"
"Maybe 'cause I didn't want to hear you tell me it's crazy."
Lance sinks back on his knees. This IS crazy, he tells himself. Yet, he likes it. He really likes it. "I, um, I'm attracted to you too, JC. I can't believe I'm actually saying this, but it's true."
JC smiles and breathes for the first time in what feels like days. "So, I didn't just make a complete idiot of myself?"
"Heck no. If you did, we both did. And remember, if anyone's an idiot it's me. I kissed you."
"After I practically begged you to."
"Why'd it take so long?"
"For me to beg or for you to kiss me?"
"Both, I guess."
"I already told you, I was scared of how you'd react. Scared that you wouldn't feel the same."
"Well, how do you feel? Really."
"Attracted. Interested."
"Like, interested curious?"
"Like interested in finding out if this could be more than just a crush."
"What if it is just a crush?"
"Then at least I'd know. We'd know."
"But how do we do this? We work together--what about everyone else?"
"I-I don't know. I never really thought that even this much would happen. I never allowed myself to think any further."
"But you thought about it? You thought about . . . you and me?"
"I... Yeah. I've thought about it."
"Like, how much?"
"A lot. How come I'm answering all the questions here?"
"Um, no, um . . . I-I . . . what do you want to know?"
"Well, whether I'm alone in this?"
"Um . . . n. . . . "
"Yeah?" Cautiously.
"No. You're not. Alone. I...feel the same. This is weird."
"Good weird or bad weird?"
"I don't know. Weird weird. Good, I guess."
JC lets out a breath that he hadn't realized he was holding. "Good."
Lance takes a step back still touching his lips. "So what do we do now?"
"I guess we have to figure that out."
After a pause, during which time Lance considers JC's words, he finally says, "That gum sure did taste good."
"Sure did."
"It was probably the best gum I ever had."
"Yeah, sweet and hot and adorable."
"The gum's adorable?"
"It's got your face on it."
"Actually, it's on YOUR face right now." Lance bends down to wipe some of the gum particles off JC's face, but his fingers stop moving, seemingly of their own accord, and just linger on JC's skin.
JC gazes up at Lance, his eyes very wide and very blue, completely caught by the younger man's beauty.
"Um, maybe we should . . . "
"Maybe we should what?"
Lance shrugs. There's a tangible, indefinable tension in the air. But his fingers still don't move from JC's face.
"Lance?"
Lance pulls his hand away. "Sorry."
"What for?"
"I shouldn't . . . I mean, I don't know what to do."
"Neither do I. But I know I liked what we did."
"You did? It wasn't too weird kissing a guy? Kissing me?"
"You really have to ask?"
"Yes, I do. Maybe this whole thing is a joke."
"This is no joke, Lance. You really think I'd do that to you?"
"I don't know. You know how we all get with practical jokes. This could be one of Chris's setups." Lance looks around the seemingly empty room.
JC feels his eyes fill up, but wills the tears back. "Lance, I took a huge risk here. If you think I could be joking about this, you don't know me at all." He turns away, staring at the wall.
Lance crouches down again, placing his hand on JC's shoulder. "I-I'm sorry, JC. This is kind of scary all of a sudden. I don't know what we're doing here."
"Neither do I Lance. I don't have all the answers. Heck, I don't have any of them. All I know is I'm feeling something I've never felt before."
"JC, I know the rumors that have been going around about me. That I'm gay. Well . . . it's true. I am gay. That's why I haven't dated anyone seriously. That's why me and Danielle didn't work out. But you--you're seeing Bobbie."
"Bobbie's . . . well . . . Bobbie's an old friend. So we do each other favors. She appears in public with me, and I make sure she meets people. Industry people."
"But you've kissed her."
"It wasn't as good as kissing you."
"Really? Are you sure? Because . . . I really liked kissing you. Really."
JC smiles wickedly. "Now that you ask, I'm not sure. I think the only thing to do here is to kiss you again. Just to be absolutely certain."
"Oh." Suddenly Lance is nervous. Before, kissing JC was more of a joke or a dare. Now, it's real. He stands still, torn between the sense that he should run from the room and the desire to climb into JC's lap.
JC sits up and reaches for Lance's hands. "Come here," he whispers, guiding Lance to the arm of his chair. He surrounds Lance's face with both hands, pulling him down to meet his lips. Lance holds onto the back of the chair, not just for balance but because the intensity of the kiss is enough to send him reeling.
After what feels like forever, JC break the kiss, but barely. His lips still close enough to brush against Lance's, he murmurs, "Better, much better."
"Yeah," Lance breathes, bringing his lips to JC's once again, this time sliding off the arm of the chair and half into the seat, closing his mouth over JC's again and again, until finally his tongue slips out and brushes against JC's teeth and then snakes all the way in.
It's at that exact moment that JC remembers that he's still got the gum in his mouth, and he feels laughter bubbling up inside, an incredible sensation when combined with all he's already feeling. Lance laughs too and pulls back, taking half the gum in his mouth.
"Double the pleasure, double the fun."
"I don't think this is what Wrigley's had in mind."