Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 00:39:34 +0000
From: Angel1313@att.net
Subject: Devotion ch.38

Devotion
Chapter Thirty-Eight:
"Doubts and Decption"

disclaimer: Fiction.

notes: Wow, did *this* take a long time to write! I don't even know why,
really; I had all these ideas, but it just wasn't coming. Don't worry,
though. I think I know what direction the story is going to go in, and I
have some concrete ideas for the next couple of chapters. That said, I hope
you like this one! -Angel ^_^

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Chapter Thirty-Eight:
"Doubts and Deception"

	JC locked the bathroom door, and the lights flickered on. He wished
that they hadn't; he didn't want to see himself in the mirror. Turning
away, he leaned against one of the walls in the cramped room.
	Immediately, the tears came.
	After allowing himself a moment to cry, JC roughly wiped away the
tears. He didn't have time for crying. He didn't have a reason to cry.
	Sure, the person whom he thought was his soul mate had just told
him that he was no longer in his heart. But was that really something to
cry over? Had he ever *been* in Justin's heart?
	The notion was crazy and totally unfounded, but in his emotional
state, the idea didn't seem so farfetched to the twenty-four
year-old. After all, JC already had doubts and insecurities regarding
Justin - especially the younger man's sexuality.
	Justin wasn't gay; he'd said that much himself. But now he was also
saying that he was no longer in love with JC. At least, that's what JC took
the fact that he was out of Justin's heart to mean. What chance did they
have of reconciliation? JC had to get a grip on reality. He had to be
strong, and he had to be happy with the friendship Justin was offering. If
he was even offering that.
	Sighing, the twenty-four year-old pushed himself up from the
wall. Moving to the little sink opposite him, JC splashed some cold water
on his face. JC sighed and met his own eyes in the mirror. They were still
pretty red. Sighing again, JC began to clean himself up as best he could.
	When he was finally satisfied - or at least when he was sure that
he could do no better - JC opened the bathroom door. Taking a deep breath,
he headed back over to his seat - and to Justin.
	There he found the nineteen year-old with his head against the
window at an awkward angle, sleeping.
	Despite himself, JC smiled. /And I thought *I* could sleep in any
situation!/
	The thought only served to make JC feel sad again. Justin was
sleeping this off. It was that unimportant to the younger man.
	"Well, there's nothing I can do about it now, anyway," JC mumbled
to himself, buckling his seat belt. With that, he leaned back and tried get
some sleep himself. He succeeded, and the rest of the flight was passed in
silence between the two young men.

	"Please replace your tray table in the seat in front of you, and
please return your seat to an upright position. All electronic devices must
now be turned off. Flight attendants, please prepare for landing..."
	Justin opened his eyes. He hadn't really slept much; he had just
been too scared to face JC when the brunet returned from the bathroom. JC
had been gone for so long. Justin knew that he had really messed up - and
that it was going to take more then what he could do or say on the plane to
fix things.
	Beside the nineteen year-old, JC yawned, blinking his eyes to
adjust to the light. Unlike his companion, JC had actually drifted off
several times during the remainder of the flight.
	"What time is it?" the brunet asked the man sitting next to him
sleepily.
	Justin glanced at his watch. "12:16," he replied softly.
	"We're late," JC commented.
	Justin nodded mutely in agreement. A silence quickly fell between
the two.
	Perhaps to avoid Justin, JC closed his eyes again, and leaned back
in his seat as the plane slowly descended from the sky. Justin sighed
quietly and turned to watch from the window.
	When the plane touched ground and everyone was allowed to move
about the cabin to collect their things, the five members of *NSYNC and
their bodyguards were among the first to exit the plane.
	Outside in the waiting area, Lance gathered everyone together to
tell them the game plan.
	"Okay," the Mississippian began, addressing his bandmates. "We're a
little behind schedule, but at this rate, we shouldn't get to our hotel any
later then one. That still gives us plenty of time before we have to meet
with our Spanish coach."
	"And when will that be?" Chris asked.
	"Seven PM," Lance replied. "Until then, we can basically do
anything we want. But-" Lance added sternly, lifting a hand to stop the
comments that his excited bandmates had opened their mouths to make.  "I'm
going to set down this rule right now: no leaving the hotel without my
permission. Probably no leaving, period, but I don't want to say that until
I see our situation. Understood?"
	The other four members of *NSYNC nodded solemnly.
	"Now then," Lance said, brightening. "Let's get to the limo!"

	Lance shoved at Joey playfully. "You *didn't*!"
	Joey smiled and nodded proudly. "I did."
	The Mississippian, sitting next to him, laughed. "Yeah right,
Joe. I mean, *seriously*. You? Asking a girl to get her hands off you?"
	"I *did,*" Joey insisted, laughing, too. "I think she was trying to
find my wallet."
	"Ah," Lance replied. "That explains everything."
	"Hey, a man's got to protect his investments," Joey explained.
	Chris laughed. "Whatever, Joe. It's not like you even *have* any
money."
	"Yeah, that's why I'm counting on Poo-fu here to help me through
old age," Joey joked.
	"Oh, no," Lance said shaking his head at the older man. "I am *not*
going to be your nurse when you get old and feeble like Chris."
	Joey laughed, but Chris huffed and turned his head away
melodramatically.
	"Aw, don't pull a JC on us," Joey teased the twenty-eight year-old.
	Chris turned back to Joey and smiled. Lance watched JC
nervously. For his part, the twenty-four year-old did nothing. Actually, he
had done nothing the entire time they had been in the limo. He and Justin
had both, remained silent the entire time, sitting at opposite ends of the
vehicle from each other.
	Breathing a little sigh of relief, Lance decided to take advantage
of the moment. "Guys, I'd like to make a little announcement," he said,
getting his bandmates' attention.
	"You're really a woman, aren't you?" Chris guessed.
	Lance glared at him. "Actually, it's about hotel rooms."
	Justin perked up. He opened his mouth to say something, but Chris
spoke first. "So, do we all get our own rooms this time?" the eldest member
of *NSYNC asked.
	Lance looked away. "Not exactly," he replied cryptically.
	"Okay, what'd you do?" Chris asked the younger man, folding his
arms across his chest.
	"Well, I couldn't get a room for *everyone.* Two people have to
share," the Mississippian explained.
	"That's not so bad," Joey said, looking thoughtful.
	"So, who's sharing?" Justin asked, speaking up for the first time.
	Lance looked at the blonde apologetically. "Well, I thought that
you and JC could, because you always do." When Justin remained silent,
Lance added, "I'm sorry, I just assumed-"
	"It's okay," Justin replied, pasting a smile onto his face. "It'll
be fine."
	"Curly, if it's really gonna be a problem, Scoop and I will be more
then happy to share," Joey offered.
	"Look, I called the hotel earlier, and by the time we get there, we
may actually have a room for everyone. I can't guarantee that the new room
would be on the same floor as the rest of them, but it's a start," Lance
added.
	"Justin and I are friends; if we have to room together, that's
fine," JC assured his bandmates, speaking up for the fist time. However, it
didn't reassure Justin very much - the blonde caught the line "if we *have*
to."
	Lance nodded. "Good."
	Just then, the limo pulled up to the hotel they were staying
in. The five members of *NSYNC quickly hopped out of the car and scurried
into the hotel, avoiding the press and fans as best they could.
	"Okay," Lance said, once the group was safely inside the
lobby. "I'm going to go check us in." Joey followed quickly. Chris, not
wanting to be left with JC and Justin - who seemed to be fighting again -
scurried after Joey. That left JC and Justin alone.
	Justin looked at his companion. He found him looking around the
spacious lobby absently. Justin sighed. Looked like they still weren't
going to talk. It was probably better that way; Justin had been planning on
waiting until they got to their room, anyway.
	Lance, Joey, and Chris returned. Lance, as usual, was the one with
the keys. "Good news," the Mississippian announced. "They had an
opening. We got five rooms. However, as I had guessed, it's on a different
floor."
	Justin felt his heart break as JC perked up. "Great," the
twenty-four year old said. "But who's gonna room on the different floor?"
	"Well," Lance began, looking at each of his bandmates in turn. "I'd
do it, but let's all be honest here. I'm the only reason we *ever* get
where we're supposed to be on time, so I should be where the majority of
the group is. The rest of you don't have a reason not to take it."
	"I'd do it," Joey offered. "It'll give me some extra time to
sleep!" "I wouldn't mind, either," Chris put in.
	"I could probably use some time to myself," JC added. "So I
wouldn't mind taking it at all."
	"I want to be on the same floor as J - as the rest of you," Justin
said quietly.
	Everyone turned to him, except Lance, who had caught the blonde's
slip. He turned his eyes to JC and watched as the brunet's face softened as
he looked at Justin.
	"Actually, I think that I'd like to be on the same floor as you and
Justin," JC announced, smiling when the nineteen-year old looked up and met
his eyes. Justin returned the older man's smile.
	"But you know, Chris, you had the single last time. I think it's
about time you socialize with the rest of us," Joey joked.
	Chris sighed dramatically. "Well, then I *guess* I'll room on the
same floor as the rest of you. Joey, you can have the separate one."
	"Score!" the New Yorker exclaimed, doing a little victory dance.
	Lance buried his head in his hands. "Joey, *please.* *Not* in the
lobby!"
	With all of them laughing, the five men who made up *NSYNC headed
over to the elevators, chatting excitedly about what they were going to do
for the next six hours.

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Afterword: Well? What did you think? I know that after all that fuss, not
all that much happened, but they've got six hours to kill, so the next
couple installments should be better, ne? Oh, and feel free to write me and
tell me what you think! I'd love to hear from you! -Angel ^_^