Date: Thu, 24 Apr 2003 12:49:53 -0700
From: asumark2000@yahoo.com
Subject: Blind Date Chapter 20

Okay, I know I've been bad and haven't updated in a long, long time.  I've
been busy going through some career changes and dealing with some others
stuff that I just never got around to working on the new chapters.  But
thanks to a few die-hard fans that kept emailing and IM'ing me and asking
me not to stop that I have finally gotten my muse back and am back!!!

Now on with the story, but first the dull, boring legal stuff:

Disclaimer: This story is not true. Its Fake. Pure Fiction. This never ever
happened.  I don't know anyone in N'Sync nor do I know the sexuality of
Lance Bass or Joey Fatone or any of the NSYNC guys. What I do know is that
this story is mine.  Please do not steal it. Everything in the story is
Copyright 2003 Mark Quigley. You must be 18 or 21 depending on your local
laws to read this as this story does deal with male to male sex at times.

That being said please enjoy the story and remember-Don't forget to write
me and let me know what you think!  I love feedback; it's what drives me to
continue!  ASUMark2000@yahoo.com is my email address and if you want to IM
me on AIM/AOL, then my just email me and let me know and I'll give you my
screen name!

In order to accommodate all the people who are asking me, about when the
next chapter comes out, I've created a Yahoo Group (Oi, Yahoo is like the
Borg!): http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Mark_writings This is the page of the
group, If you would like to be notified when a new chapter gets posted
please go join my group. {smile} I'll try and make sure there's fun stuff
along with this.


Last time:

"Hey, what's wrong?"  Dale moved closer to Mark.

"I don't know.  We were just laying down and chatting and he got up and
locked himself in the bathroom."  Mark was trying not to cry, but his eyes
were starting to water.  Joey walked in past them and headed towards the
bathroom door.  Mark and Dale followed.

Knocking on the door, Joey spoke up.  "Lance, hey, its Joey.  Let me in."
There was a sound as Lance unlocked the door and Joey walked in and the
door closed behind him.  Mark sat down on the edge of the bed and Dale
stood next to him.  He knew this look, Mark was seriously worried; after a
minute or two, there muffled arguing coming from the bathroom.  They could
tell that Joey and Lance were in a heated exchange but they couldn't make
out what was being said.  Finally the door opened and Joey storms out with
Lance looking confused but determined.

"Come on Dale."  He shouted as he started to walk towards the front door.
Mark started to say something when Joey walked over to him.  Joey looked as
if he was going to say something when all of a sudden he lifted his arm and
punched Mark squarely on the face, knocking him over on the bed.

"What the fuck is your problem Joey!"  Lance shouted as he rushed next to
Mark.  Mark looked up at Joey who was just glaring at him.  Mark thought he
saw a tear slide down from Joey's eye, but Joey stormed out of the room
before he could take a second look.



And now on to Chapter 20!

Joey stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him so hard that it
just bounced back open.  Dale stood there, watching as Lance help Mark sit
back up. Trying to figure out what happened.  He started to move to help
Lance when Mark stopped him.

"Go, Joey will need you."  Mark stated as he sat up.  He could feel his eye
throb and pulse with pain.  "Shit, my eye fucking hurts."  He reached up to
his face and that's when he felt the blood trickling from his nose and
above his eye.  Mark looked over to see Lance just staring at him.  "Lance,
I need a towel."  Lance kept staring.  "Lance?"

"Wha?  Huh? Oh, Shit!  I'm sorry."  He got up and darted into the bathroom,
coming back with a damp towel.  Dale was still standing there in disbelief.
"He's right, Joey is going to need you Dale.  Go, find him and just listen,
let Joey vent and just ignore it, but be there for him when he's done.
Mark will be fine, I'll take care of him."  Lance reached the bed with the
damp towel, placing it on Mark's face, almost covering it up completely.
The towel began to soak up the blood like a sponge.

Without saying a word, Dale slowly walked out of the room, looking back at
Lance as he tended to Mark.

"Sweetie, hold this, I'll be right back."  Lance placed Mark's hand to hold
the towel in place as he got up and went to the phone.

A few minutes later there was a knock at the door and Lance went and opened
it.

"Mark?  This is Jason, he's our road physican.  He's gonna check you out."

Mark muttered something but it was muffled by the blood soaked towel.
Jason walked over and removed the towel exposing Mark's face.  Lance let
out a gasp.


Dale had walked out of the hallway and went back to Joey's room.  Not
finding him, Dale began to look for him through out the hotel.  The lobby,
the casino, the shops, the resturaunts - no luck.  Finally, Dale took a
chance and wandered out to the VIP pool.  This late at night there would be
no one there, or so Dale thought.  When he walked up to the gate he could
see a figure sitting at the other end of it.  Dale ran his room card
through the lock and quietly opened the gate.  As he got closer he could
see that it was Joey, sitting there.  The moonlight reflected off of his
face, you could see where the tears had been.  Dale walked up behind Joey
and just stood behind him when he reached him; not knowing what to say.

A few minutes passed by before Joey spoke.  "You hate me don't you?"

"Huh?  What?  No, I don't hate you, what would make you think that?"  Dale
asked as he sat on the edge of the pool next to Joey.

"Because I just hurt your best friend.  I lost my temper and decked him."

"Well I am somewhat at a loss about that, I mean what were you thinking?
Why?"

"He told."

"Told what?"

"Mark told Lance about us.  That's why when we got there Lance was in the
bathroom.  Lance was hurt that Mark was keeping our secret from him.  Then
when I told Lance that I asked Mark to keep it from him Lance got mad at me
- that's what all that shouting I'm sure you heard was about.  Then when I
say that Mark was about to open his mouth, I lost it.  I'm sorry I just
lost it and decked him.  Afterwards I saw the look on his face, Lance's and
worse still, on yours.  So I ran.  Didn't know where I was going, and I
just ended up here."

"Joey, I'm not mad at you, a little disappointed, but not mad.  I don't
know what you were thinking.  I don't have a problem with Lance knowing.
In fact I'm a little surprised it took this long for Mark to tell him."
Dale looked at Joey, who seemed to look a little confused.  "As long as
I've known Mark, when he's in love, and trust me, he can't hold a secret
from the one he loves, he's always been totally honest with the ones he
loves.  So I'm a little surprised that it took Lance this long to find out
from Mark."

Joey sighed, "I'm just not ready for any of the guys to know, hell, I don't
even know for sure myself.  I'm just so confused about everything.  And now
I'm sure Lance will be pissed at me, Mark is probably really pissed at me
and I can't even guess at how you feel about me."  Joey got up and walked a
few steps and just stood there.  "I'm so fucked."

Dale got up and joined Joey, wrapping his arms around him.  "Hey, I still
care about ya, true I'm a little thrown off, but I'll get over it.  As for
Mark, I'm sure he'll forgive you in time.  And Lance, if he cares as much
for you as you care for him, he'll understand and I don't think he'll let
the other guys know about you until you tell them."

"But how are they going to explain what happened to Mark?  I know I left a
mark at least, that's something they're not going to be able to hide."

"Well how about we just cross that bridge in the morning.  For now, lets
get some rest."  Dale started to drag Joey back towards the gate.

"Hey Dale," Dale turned to look, "Thanks."  Dale just smiled and nodded.



Mark woke up the next morning to find Lance holding him tightly in his
sleep and his head throbbing.  He ran his hand through his hair and when he
ran his hand over his face he felt the bandage over his right eye.  Mark
tried to get up, but Lance just held him tighter.  Everything that happened
last night came back to him.  Mark sighed as he found comfort in Lance's
arms.  After about an hour, Lance awoke to find Mark laying there awake.

"Mrpgh, goo' mornin'" Lance mumbled as he removed the sleep from his eyes.
Once he realized he was awake he sat up quickly.  "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay. A little sore, but I'll live.  More importantly, how are you?"

"Me?  Why me?"

Mark sat up to look Lance eye to eye.  "Well, one of your best friends beat
up your boyfriend because your boyfriend gave up a secret that he was
keeping from you.  Of which, I'm sorry and I'll understand if you want me
to leave."

"Like hell you will leave!"  Lance grabbed a hold of Mark's arms.  "You're
not going anywhere."

"But aren't you mad?"  Mark was confused.  "I love you, Lance, but I
betrayed both your trust and the trust from Joey and probably Dale's."

"Well I'm mad, but I'm not mad at you, I'm mad at myself."  Lance could see
the look of further confusion in Mark's face.  "Joey asked you not to tell
me cause he's still confused about it himself, I know this now.  He put his
trust in you and I was mad at you for holding that trust and I was wrong.
I should have respected that trust and not acted like I did.  I should have
had more faith in you that there may be some things that you'll share with
the guys that I won't.  I promise that I'll try to be more understanding
and not blow off like I did."

"Thanks, but I think I need to make it clear to the guys that I will not
hold things from you.  I want to share my life with you, all of it and I
can't do that if I'm expected to keep secrets from you. The big question
will be what Joey says about this.  Remember?"  Mark tapped the top of the
bandage on his forehead.

"Shit, how are you feeling?  Here, let me take a look.  The doc said the
bleeding wouldn't continue but he put the bandage on to help protect the
stitches."  Lance reached up to remove the bandage.

"STITCHES???  Just how hard did he hit me?"  Mark got up and went to the
mirror over the dresser.  "Damn, three stitches?!?!  Well I guess I
deserved it."

"No you didn't."  Lance got out of the bed.  "Joey was wrong to hit you, no
matter what he feels his reasons were."

Just then the phone rang, Lance went to answer it.  A few minutes later he
came back.  "Um, that was Chris, he and Justin are down in the restaurant
waiting for the rest of us."

"Guess we should get ready and join them."

"But what do we tell them about those stitches?  I don't that Joey would
want us to tell them about him just yet.  Look how he reacted when I found
out."

"Well, we all got pretty drunk last night, I'm sure we can use that to help
explain some way I got hurt.  We'll just see how things go."  With that the
two started to get ready.

Lance was done first and was waiting for Mark in the living room when Mark
walked out.  Lance took one look at him and burst out laughing.  He was
wearing sunglasses and a ball cap pulled down in front.

"What's so funny?"

"What's with the outfit?" Lance gasped between laughs.

"What?  You guys go out like this all the time."

Lance got up and the two started heading down.  When they walked in they
found Justin and Chris the only ones in the VIP section.

As Mark sat down Chris started smirking.  "Nice hat there sport."

"Sure, laugh it up, you guys go out like this all the time."

"I sure hope we don't look that silly."  Chris was on the verge of a full
blown laugh.

"Ugh, fine."  Mark took the hat and glasses off.  "Are you happy?"

All of a sudden there was silence.  Mark could feel the stares of four eyes
focusing on the stitches above his eye.

Justin spoke up.  "Whoa dude, what happened?"

Just then Joey and Dale showed up.  "What happened where?"  Dale asked as
the two sat down.  When they looked up at Mark they both gasped.

"Well?  What happened?"  All eyes were on Mark, including three very
nervous pairs.

Mark looked around at the guys, finally ending up looking directly at Joey
when he answered.  "Actually it's pretty embarrassing, I was kinda tipsy
when we got back last night and I tripped and knocked my head on some
furniture."  Mark saw Joey let out a quiet sigh.

"So you're saying you got that from a fall?"  Justin asked.

"Yeap, pretty sad huh?'

"Uh huh."  Justin nodded but Mark could tell that he wasn't really buying
it.

Breakfast soon arrived and the guys ate and chatted about their plans for
the day.  They had the day off with their last Las Vegas concert being
tomorrow.  Halfway through Chris asked about what Mark would do once he got
back to Phoenix.

"Well, I'll look for a new job of course, in the meantime I'll just pour
some of my extra free time into my volunteer job. And of course try to
figure out a way to spend some time with my man."  Mark nudged Lance with
his shoulder.

"What sort of volunteer work do you do?"  Chris asked in between mouthfuls
of bacon.

"It's with the Tempe Police Department.  I'm a Motorist Services
Volunteer."

"So you're a cop?" Justin looked up.

"Well I don't carry a gun and I'm not a sworn officer if that's what you
mean.  But I do have a uniform with the police patches and I drive a police
truck.  I help those that lock their keys in their cars, need a jump start
or help changing a tire and also help out at accident scenes controlling
traffic and assisting the real officers whenever they need me, but
basically I just drive around town and respond when needed."

"And you drive a police car?"  Justin asked.

"It's a 3/4 ton pickup truck, but it has all the markings, lights and
sirens, yes.  I even have to wear a bullet-proof vest."

Lance's eyes perked up and looked at Mark.  "You wear what?"  Mark could
see a look of concern in Lance's face.

"Relax, it's only because of what happened on 9-11 and because from a
distance you can't tell that I'm just a volunteer and not a real cop.  I
have some photos of me in my uniform and in front of my truck on my website
if you wanna see them."  Mark leaned over to give Lance a peck on the
check.  "It's really safe, the officers bend over backwards to make sure
that we're not put into any unsafe situations and we go through a lot of
training before we're allowed out on the streets.  All in all, I enjoy it
cause it allows me to help other people that need it and it helps the city
use police manpower more effectively."

"Hmm, well if you say it's safe."  Lance went back to his French toast.

"Well if you're concerned about it, I'll arrange for you to ride along with
me sometime so you can see for yourself.  Most nights I just drive around
the city.  Hell on a regular night I can drive about 120 miles in one
shift.  And keep in mind this is a city that is only 40 square miles in
size."

Chris reached for some more eggs.  "Sounds like it can be very rewarding."

"Yea, it is.  Especially when I come across someone from out of state that
needed help and didn't know that we exist.  They give you such a look of
thanks when you help them that it makes it all worthwhile."

Lance looked at Mark and started beaming.  "That's my boyfriend.  Always
giving!"

The rest of the guys started to snicker.

Breakfast went on as the guys had a couple more helpings, with Lance
seeming to be eating the most.  Once everyone had their fill, everyone
started to make their way to the elevators.  Two arrived at the same time,
Mark and Lance got into one and were then followed by Joey.  The looks on
the three faces must have been caught be everyone else as they went into
the other elevator.

The doors closed and after a few seconds of silence Joey spoke up.

"Umm, Mark, I um, well, how come you didn't tell the guys that I hit you?"

The silence lasted a minute before Mark spoke softly.

"Because had I it would led to even more questions.  I promised you that I
wouldn't tell the guys what I saw and I will keep my word.  Lance knows
because we don't keep any secrets, we discussed this and both agreed that
we have to be open and honest with each other in order to make this work.
I'm sorry that I didn't think to tell you that Lance would probably find
out when you asked me not to tell anyone and I'm sorry that you felt the
need to knock my lights out.  But most of alle" The elevator doors
opened and Mark and Lance started to walk out when Mark stopped at the
doors and turned around and faced Joey.  "Most of all, I'm sorry that you
put Lance in a position where he had to be torn between the love he has for
his boyfriend and the love he has for his best friend Joey."  With that
Mark stepped back to let the elevator doors close leaving Joey alone.


Well I hope the wait was worth it!  I promise I won't make you wait for the
next chapter as long - in fact I'm already working on it!  Thanks to those
that kept emailing me asking when the new update was going to be.  And a
special thanks to Chris and you know why.