Date: Sat, 6 May 2000 15:20:02 -0700 (PDT)
From: Robin <nsajscgirl@yahoo.com>
Subject: Chapter 5, Now or Never, Boy-bands, Celebrity

Now or Never by Robin Smithson

Disclaimer: If you are underage, please go somewhere else.  If you are
committing any crimes by reading this piece of fiction, please go somewhere
else.  Like I just said, this is a piece of fiction.  I don't know `N Sync
or have any knowledge of their sexual preference.

Hey all!  After Monday I will not be able to put out chapters of Now or
Never on a regular basis.  Don't worry, they will still be posted, just not
every other couple of days.  Sorry about this, but there's nothing I can
do.

Thank you so much to all of you that have emailed me.  The emails make my
day, y'all have no idea!  Keep the comments and suggestions coming!
nsajscgirl@yahoo.com

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Previously on Now or Never:
	"What's going on?" Lance asked softy as he took in Chris's
tear-streaked face and JC's worried profile.  JC acknowledge Lance's
presence by turning slightly to his right and nodding.  Lance returned the
nod and continued to stare at Chris.  "What happened Chris?"  Lance asked,
taking a step toward his friend, ready to administer comfort if Chris
needed it.  Chris's next words stopped Lance in his tracks.
	"I...I think...I...I...k...killed Joe!"

And now Chapter 4 of Now or Never

	"Wh...what?!" JC shouted at Chris's tearful confession.  Lance
stood still in shock. `What did Chris just say?" Lance asked himself.
	"I...I think...I killed Joe! It...it started off as just a...a
joke, b...but it went too far and...and," Chris's rambling became
incoherent as he sank to the floor in a heap.  Both Lance and JC moved
simultaneously towards their sobbing friend.  JC's lanky limbs carried him
to Chris before Lance and he knelt beside the older man.  His laid his hand
on Chris's back to find Chris shaking like a leaf in the wind.
	"Chris, please calm down.  We can't help you or Joe if you don't
calm down," JC said softly as he rubbed his hand up and down Chris's back.
Lance looked on in concern, giving Chris his space.  JC's rhythmic
ministrations allowed Chris to gather himself enough to continue his
explanation.
	"We spent most of last night at a club.  Joe and I got pretty
plastered...and...we were just hanging out.  I was so drunk," Chris managed
to say fairly calmly.  JC nodded understandingly even though Chris was
still on his knees staring at the floor.  "I thought it would be funny to
slip Joey some roofies, just to see what he would do.  I...I had a whole
bottle of the stuff and when...when he went to the bathroom, I...I dumped
the whole thing into his drink sitting on the table.  It took a minute for
it to dissolve but it was gone by the time Joey got back.  We were both
totally wasted!  After about twenty minutes, he started acting really
funny.  I thought it was hysterical, but he...he passed out ten minutes
later and I...I couldn't wake...wake him up!  I didn't know what to do, so
I put him in the car.  It...it was just a j...joke!" Chris stuttered
hysterically.  JC stopped rubbing Chris's back and looked at him with
disbelief.
	"You did WHAT?" JC shouted, standing up quickly.  "Where is Joey
now?" he questioned.  When Chris didn't reply fast enough, JC bent down and
grabbed Chris's shirt, hauling him up.  "DAMMIT CHRIS!  WHERE IS JOEY
NOW?!"  Chris started sobbing once more and mumbled something too low for
JC to here.  "WHAT?!"
	"He's in the car," Chris said a moment later after being shaken by
JC.
	"Dammit Chris!  You should have taken him to the hospital!  You've
gone too damn far this time!  All your little pranks and shit!  God dammit
Chris!" JC said furiously as he searched the living room for his shoes, not
bothering to comfort Chris anymore.
	Lance had already made his way outside to the fourth car parked in
the driveway.  Joey's slumped figure took up the passenger seat.  More
emotions than he had ever experienced at one time rushed through his mind.
Fear and worry were at the top of the list as he jerked open the door and
knelt there beside Joey's inert form.
	"Joe..." Lance said softly, an incredible amount of relief washing
over him as he noticed Joey's uneven breathing.  It was uneven, but at
least he was breathing.  Lance reached out to grab Joey's hand and was
alarmed at the clamminess of his pale skin.  JC had joined Lance beside the
car and watched worriedly as he friend checked Joey.
	"Should I call an ambulance, Lance?" JC asked, ready to sprint back
into the house if needed.
	"He really needs to get to the hospital.  It would be a lot faster
for one of us to drive him there, since he's in a car anyway," Lance
pointed out.  The rational, calm side of his personality quickly took
forefront as he kept the situation in check.  "You go back inside, wake up
Justin, and calm Chris down.  He won't be any good to us if he keeps
freaking out, okay?"  Lance requested of JC as he slammed the car door and
ran around to the driver's side.  "I'm taking him to Brent Memorial.  You
know how to get there right?"  At JC's mute nod, Lance pulled open the
driver's door and fell into the driver's seat.  The keys were still in the
ignition, in fact, Chris hadn't even bothered to turn the car off.  "I'll
see y'all there!" Lance said through the open window as he slammed the car
into reverse and stepped on the gas pedal.  He ripped out of the driveway,
narrowly avoiding his mailbox and coming to a bone-jarring halt only to
throw the car into drive and squeal out of the neighborhood.  Joey's limp
body was flopping around in the seat, his seatbelt the only thing
preventing him from flying through the windshield at Lance's erratic
driving.
	A drive that would have usually taken thirty minutes was cut down
to fifteen as Lance sped through the streets of Orlando.  It was nothing
short of a miracle that he wasn't pulled over, but he would later comment
that the Lord had been watching over them.  Tires screeched on pavement as
Lance came to a sliding halt in front of the local hospital's emergency
doors.  Lance quickly pulled himself out of the car and rushed to Joey's
side only to find a group of nurses and doctors already there.  They had
evidently witnessed his arrival.  It was then that the questions started,
"What happened?", "What's this young man's name?"  Lance answered most of
the questions with short, quick answers, only telling the doctors and
nurses what they needed to know.
	"His name is Joseph Fatone.  He's twenty-three years old.  I think
he took too much of some sort of drug.  Dammit, what was it Chris called
them?  I should have asked Chris what it was before I left!" Lance mumbled
this last statement to himself.  He simply didn't think about it at the
time, he was in too great a rush.  The doctors and nurses bustled around
him, pulling Joey out of the car and onto a gurney that had been wheeled
outside.  He followed the group without thinking and was pushed away by a
busy nurse just as Joey was wheeled through a set of swinging doors marked
"EMERGENCY, NO ADMITTANCE".  Lance's last view of Joey would stand out in
the young man's mind for the rest of his life.  Joey's face was deathly
pale, his goatee and dark hair standing out in sharp contrast.  Lance
shuddered as Joey was taken away from him and a sympathetic nurse led him
towards the waiting room.

	Meanwhile, back at Lance's house
	JC stalked back towards the house and brushed past Chris who still
stood in the doorway.  His focus at that point was to wake Justin up and
get dressed.  He was too angry at that point to deal with Chris rationally.
JC marched into the guest bedroom to find it completely empty.  He shook
himself slightly as he remembered what he had discovered last night.
Justin was in Lance's room; they had slept in the same bed.  JC turned on
his heel and made his way to Lance's room.  He pushed open the door and
moved quickly to the bed.  Justin was still sound asleep.  `How in the
world?' JC asked himself as he leaned down to shake Justin's shoulder.  The
young man's response was to simply roll over, snuggling his face deeper
into the pillow.
	"Justin, Justin, wake up!" JC said loudly.  Justin moaned again and
mumbled Lance's name.  If JC hadn't been worried about Joey he would have
grinned, but as it was he shook Justin harder.  "JUSTIN!  WAKE UP!" he
shouted.  Justin popped straight up in bed, his face merely inches from
JC's.  His eyes widened as he stared into JC's eyes.  Confusion struck him
as he tore his glance from JC's to take in his surroundings.  `This is
Lance's room,' Justin thought before he remembered the events of last
night.  He gasped loudly realizing that JC shouldn't be there in Lance's
room.
	"Wh...how...I mean, um," Justin muttered as he tried to find the
right words to explain his presence in Lance's bed.
	"Justin, we've got to go.  Something happened to Joey.  I'll tell
you all about it later, but you've gotta get dressed, okay?" JC urged the
younger boy, not bothering to let him explain.
	"Wh...what do you mean?  What happened to Joey?" Justin asked in
confusion.
	"I said I'd tell you later, just get dressed," JC stated before
turning around and leaving the room.  Justin stared after him for a minute
before jumping out of the bed and running into the guestroom to grab the
clothes he had worn last night.  He found them where he had left them,
folded in a chair, and he dressed in no time flat.  He had sensed JC's
urgency although he didn't understand the reason behind it.  Justin raced
down the hallway to find JC pacing in the living room, completely dressed.
It took Justin a moment to recognize the slumped figure taking up a small
corner of the couch, but once he did, he immediately moved to Chris's side.
	"What's happened?" Justin asked almost frantically as Chris moved
to grab Justin in a hug.  Justin noted that Chris was shaking and his fear
started to grow.  It started off as a little knot in his stomach and
quickly grew into a large lump in his throat.
	"I'll explain on the way to the hospital," JC said sharply before
heading towards the door, not waiting for his friends to catch up.  Justin
sat for a moment in shock before letting go of Chris and jumping up to
follow JC.
	"What do you mean the hospital!?  What happened?" Justin shouted
after Josh before standing up and moving towards the door as well.
	"Why don't you ask Chris!" JC shouted back as he strode out the
front door towards his Jeep.  Justin didn't understand what was going on,
but he made a quick decision to bring Chris with him outside to JC's Jeep.
He walked back to the couch and leaned down to pull on Chris's arm.  Chris
was unresponsive and Justin had to pull with all of his strength to pull
his devastated friend to his feet.  Justin was becoming real scared, real
fast.  He pulled Chris along behind him, stopping for a moment to close the
front door before continuing to JC's ride.  The roar of the Jeep's engine
pushed Justin to move Chris along faster and he shoved the older boy into
the back of the vehicle just in time as JC reversed and exited the
driveway.  Josh had left the top down last night and the howl of the wind
prevented anymore conversation as JC sped towards the hospital.
	Justin recalled JC's cryptic words and a fresh surge of fear washed
over him.  `What the hell had happened to Joey?!'  He glanced at JC's
profile to find the older singer's face set in a stern mask.  It wasn't
until then that Justin remembered Lance.  His expression turned frantic as
he remembered his lover.
	"JOSH!!!!" Justin yelled above the howl of the wind.  JC was pulled
from his thoughts as Justin hollered his name.  He looked quizzically at
the younger boy.  "WHERE'S LANCE?!"  JC recognized Justin's concern and
sought to give him one small comfort.
	"HE TOOK JOE TO THE HOSPITAL!" he yelled back.  Justin nodded in
understand and sat back in the passenger seat willing himself to be
patient.  A few times he looked into the back of the Jeep to check on Chris
who was staring at the passing scenery, totally unaware of what was
happening around him.
	Just as Lance had earlier, JC broke several laws getting to the
hospital but his entrance wasn't nearly as extravagant.  He quickly pulled
into the visitor parking area and turned off the Jeep.  Without pausing for
his friends, he opened his door and jumped to the pavement.  He ran
straight to the emergency room doors and disappeared inside the hospital.
Justin had barely even managed to get his seatbelt off before JC vanished
beyond the emergency room doors.  He sighed quickly and pulled himself out
of the Jeep, only remembering Chris as he started to walk away.  He turned
to look back at the Jeep to find Chris sitting there staring off into
space.
	"Chris.CHRIS!" Justin shouted causing Chris to jump as he heard his
name being called.  Chris nodded to Justin and wearily pulled himself out
of the vehicle.  His knees gave out once his feet touched the pavement and
Justin moved quickly to catch his friend.  Justin groaned under the added
burden of his friend's weight and he half-carried, half-pulled Chris
towards the hospital doors.
	Once inside, the hustle and bustle of the emergency room was enough
to make Justin dizzy.  He searched with his eyes for Lance or JC in vain.
Neither one of them was present near the doorway to the emergency room.  A
sign reading, "Waiting room", caught his wandering eyes.  An arrow pointing
to the left was prominent under the words so Justin heaved Chris closer to
his body and followed the sign.  Justin entered the waiting room and
spotted Lance's blonde-tipped spikes before noticing anything else.  He
immediately dropped Chris in one of the available chairs and moved to
Lance's side.
	"Lance?" Justin asked as he gently touched the older boy's elbow to
indicate his presence.  Lance's dull green eyes lit up at the sound of
Justin's voice and gentle touch.  Without hesitation Lance turned to face
Justin and pulled him into a hug.  Lance settled his face in the crook of
Justin's shoulder just as he had dreamed about last night, but he had never
wanted it to happen under these circumstances.  Tears began to sting at the
back of his eyelids.  Justin exhaled loudly as he pulled Lance even closer.
He didn't know what was going on with Joey, but somehow all of his worries
disappeared the moment Lance's arms closed around his body.  JC cleared his
throat softly, hoping to gain his friends' attention.  Lance reluctantly
pulled himself from Justin's embrace.  He didn't want JC thinking that
something was going on between himself and Justin.  That was the last thing
the group needed to deal with at the moment.  The instant Lance's arms
released Justin the young singer remembered why they were there, although
he didn't understand why.
	"Okay, I think it's about time someone tells me what happened,"
Justin stated before lowering himself into one of the empty chairs that
lined the wall.  Lance swiftly glanced at JC, he had thought that JC was
going to tell Justin.  JC simply shook his head in a silent reply and Lance
sighed heavily.  He then looked at Chris, but it was obvious that he would
be now help.  The oldest member of the group sat in the chair Justin had
deposited him in, tears streaming silently down his face.  Lance moved to
take the seat next to Justin, he would be the one to take on on the
responsiblity of telling Justin.  He quickly filled Justin in, telling him
everything Chris had told him and JC earlier.  Several different emotions
flickered in Justin's blue eyes before settling on anger.  Justin whipped
his head around to look at the eldest member of `N Sync.
	"What the hell were you thinking?!" Justin nearly shouted.  He
stood up and placed himself directly in front of Chris.  Reaching down, he
grabbed Chris's chin, forcing him to look up at the furious young man.
Chris flinched as his eyes met Justin's.  There was so much anger there and
it was directed at him.
	"Ummm, excuse me," a small voice sounded from the doorway to the
waiting room.  Justin stiffened and immediately let go of Chris as he
looked down into the small face of a young child.  The little girl sat in
an electric wheel chair and she was swathed in blankets.  "Are...are you `N
Sync?" she asked timidly.  Justin suddenly became aware of how public this
small room was as he continued to stare at the young girl.  Lance was the
first person to reply and he answered the girl quickly.  "Yes, we are.  Do
you want an autograph?" Lance asked softly, getting up and walking towards
her.  Her eyes widened in awe as Lance approached and knelt beside her
wheel chair.  He knew that whatever they said and did in the room would
become public knowledge and he didn't want to push this young fan away.
His reaction was based on a calm logic that none of the other guy's
possessed at that moment.  He pulled a pen and a piece of paper out of his
pockets and quickly scribbled his name on a piece of paper before standing
up.  Without bothering to get the other guys' autographs, he asked her if
he could push her to her room and she quickly agreed.  It didn't matter to
her that she only got Lance's autograph, he was her favorite anyway.  After
settling her in her room, he returned to the waiting room only to find JC
and Justin talking with a young woman dressed in scrubs.
	"... not out of the clear.  I understand that you would rather keep
this matter quiet and I'm going to provide a private waiting room for your
group.  There is one problem, however.  The drug we found in Mr. Fatone's
system is illegal in the United States and I will be forced to report this
to the police.  I will make sure they understand that you don't want this
made public, but I'm afraid I still have to contact them."  She looked at
JC sternly and he nodded his understanding.  Lance started to speak to ask
her to repeat herself when he caught Justin's eye.  Justin shook his head,
indicating that Lance should remain quiet.  "Okay, then, if you gentlemen
will follow me, I'll show you to your waiting room," she said before
turning on her heel and walking out the door.  JC and Justin followed right
behind her leaving Lance and Chris in the room.  Lance looked at Chris and
sighed.  He was still out of it, staring off into space.  `Maybe once we're
in the waiting room we can get this whole thing cleared up,' Lance thought
to himself as he reached down and grabbed Chris's arm gently.  He escorted
Chris out of the room and caught up to his friends.  TBC?
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Alright, I don't know about this chapter.  Sometimes I felt like I was
rambling and sometimes I felt like I had no idea what I was typing.  Let me
know what y'all think about this chapter, even if it sucked, okay?  I had
to do a little research on the drug stuff.  The drug Chris used is called
rohypnol, better know as the "date rape drug."  Its symptoms seemed to fit
pretty closely to what Joey experienced and it is a common drug found in
Florida through illegal smuggling from Columbia.  Now the question is,
"What was Chris doing with it in the first place?"  Please everyone, write
me and let me know what you think!  nsajscgirl@yahoo.com Robin :)