Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 12:05:29 -0800 (PST)
From: Firesong k'treva <firesong17@yahoo.com>
Subject: Taken for Granted

	Hi everyone! I'm going to try something new here. I've had this in
my head since a bit before Valentine's Day, so though I know it's a bit
late for the time frame in it, I hope you like it.
	Also, I would like some feedback on this story. Just a quick line
of "I like it" or "I hate it."  Hell you can put it in the subject line if
you want. I don't want to write a story if no one likes it. I'm not fishing
for compliments or for emails at all. Simply that I don't have a lot of
time anymore due to school, and if no one likes a story I don't see a
reason to write it. Am I right? Anyway, just a quick hello with yes or no,
any comments suggestions, are greatly appreciated. Oh wait...I guess you
need the email address don't you? It's firesong17@yahoo.com. If I get some
replies to this, which I really hope I do, than I'll make the time...I
don't have to really go to ALL of my classes do I?
	This story will contain scenes of homosexuality, sex, kissing,
holding hands, I love you, things like that, if you don't like it, don't
read it, also don't read it if you aren't allowed to under the laws of your
area. Ok?
	Ok, I had submitted this earlier, but like the dumb idiot that I am
I forgot a few important parts, such as that this story is totally out of
my own head, and does not in any way, shape, or form reflect reality,
either past, present or future. This has nothing whatsoever to do with the
actual sexual orientations of anyone mentioned here, and is not meant to
imply anything about them either. There I think that covers it.
	PLUG: Just a quick plug for my other story "Wishes of the Heart,"
and also for "Brian and Me," "The One," "Nsync Lance and Jc," and there are
others, but at the moment my head doesn't work, so read em!


Beware

	He had sat in the same spot all day. In the center of the mall
watching countless amounts of people walk in and out of stores, spending
more money that they had, on gifts they couldn't afford, for the people
that they loved.
	It was the week before Valentine's Day. A day that was supposed to
be about love seemed to be no less commercialized than Christmas, or
Halloween. The meaning behind the holidays was gone. All that remained was
to prove who could out decorate, out buy, and max out their credit cards
the fastest in the race to the 'prize.'
	The young man sighed as he watched yet another soul pull a "magic
plastic card" out of his wallet and purchase a necklace from the jewelry
store across from where he sat. A necklace that would take months, if not
longer for the young man to pay off. Yet was the purpose to show his
girlfriend that he loved her? Yes, but the gift was more of a "I love you
enough to spend the most on your gift," not simply an "I love you."
	He looked around the area and all he saw were people with confusion
written all over their faces as they tried to remember what they got the
year before, so they could out do it, and thus once again prove their
love. The young man sighed, as he saw not one person that wanted to give a
gift simply to give it. Most thought of it as a "what will I get back?"
sort of gift, or an obligatory gift because of the day.
	His head snapped up as he heard a young man say to another, "Stupid
Hallmark holiday. It's a patsy of the card, candy and jewelry companies so
that we can shell out more money."
	Those words cut him deeply. It was all about money. How much money
you spent, how much you were willing to spend, how much you had spent, and
how much you were going to spend in the future. The fools!
	This day was about love. The kind of love that is learned slowly
over a course of time, not present since birth. Those bonds that formed to
connect people on levels so much deeper than the best of friendships. Heart
to heart, and soul-to-soul, those bonds interlinked people on a level that
wasn't even understood by him. And these fools had the audacity to take a
day dedicated not to the love of a God, or the love of family and friends,
but to the loves of a lifetime. The loves that actually gave meaning to
life, and made it worth living!
	How DARE they!
	His eyes swept the mall complex again till he found the young men
that had been talking. He quickly strode over to them, and stopped right
behind them.
	"I hope Sheila appreciates this bracelet. I'm horny, and she hasn't
let me touch her for the past week. If this doesn't get me some, I'm going
to have to go out and find another that will."
	"I hear ya Mike. Lauren hasn't so much as touched me anywhere for
the past two weeks. If this outfit doesn't get me a role in the sack, I'm
going to role her right out of my life."
	They started cackling at each other's comments, which enraged the
young man that was behind them even farther. Unable to control his temper
any more he reached his hands out and stuck them right through the backs of
the still laughing young men.
	Time slowed and than halted giving the young man the time to do
what he wanted. He closed his hands around the hearts of the now frozen
young men, and squeezed.
	"Know this mortals! You have brought this upon yourself!"
	His eyes closed and than reopened a moment later, glowing a pale
pink. When he spoke, his voice took on a quality that seemed to echo with
the vastness of eternity.
	"These hearts are now molded to my will, the ability to be loved I
now kill! No matter how hard you try, no matter what you do, no one shall
ever fall in love with you. Upon you now I place my curse, at the end of
this rhyming verse. Family, friends shall thee keep, but the lack of love
shall make thee weep. Lives empty of love so fair, alone forever, so
beware!"
	Upon the last word of the verse he felt the hearts spasm in his
grasp as the power surged through them. He pulled his hands out of their
backs, and whispered in their ears before he allowed time to start, " Next
time you disparage a holiday, make sure that the one who the holiday is
about isn't within hearing distance!"
	He vanished in a flash of pink light, right as time picked up
again, and life went on.

	Searching

	Across the city from the mall, in a hotel room, two young men sat
talking about love. However the love wasn't the "normal" view of love, nor
was it love between the two of them. It did however involve one of their
best friends, and the infatuation that one of them had on him.
	"Just, how do I tell him?"
	"Listen Scoop, if you love him that much, you have to just tell
him. Josh is a bright guy, but he's not very observant. You could make as
many subtle overtures as you want, but subtlety and Josh just don't work
very well together."
	"That isn't what I want to hear. I'd rather do this slowly than
walk up to him and say 'Jc I was wondering if you'd want to be my
boyfriend?' Somehow, that just doesn't seem like it would work."
	"No... it probably wouldn't. Than again...if you said 'Jc I want
you to fuck me right here right now', I'm sure he'd get the picture, and of
course...you'd get fucked."
	"Why you!"
	Justin ran away from Lance as fast as he could grinning the whole
time. He loved busting his band mate's infatuation with Jc. He always
blushed at any mention of Jc and him with sex. He looked back over his
shoulder and nodded to himself. Lance was grinning but his face was red as
could be.
	However once he turned his head to look at Lance he stopped paying
attention to where he was going, and promptly tripped over a suitcase he
hadn't yet put away.
	Luckily for him, the bed was on the other side. However, Lance
hadn't stopped either, and he landed right on top of Justin. Justin's face
was pushed farther down into the bed, as well as the rest of his body. He
could feel every inch of Lance on top of him, as well as a hard bulge
against his ass.
	"Lance, I love you to, but I'm sorry, you aren't going to be
fucking me tonight. I have to dance at the concert tomorrow and if that
thing is as big as it feels, I wouldn't be able to walk, let alone dance."
	Lance got up from Justin quickly, his face deep red. Justin loved
the affect that Lance's pale complexion and hair created when he blushed.
	"Now...Jc might like that up his..."
	"Justin don't you dare say it or I'll make sure you can't walk by
some other means!"
	Justin just started laughing at Lance's expression, and soon Lance
followed.  "Justin, can I ask you a question?"  "Sure Scoop. Ask away."
"You said 'you'd get fucked.' How do you know that Jc would want to have
sex with me? Or were you just screwing around?"
	"I was just playing Lance. In all honesty that's one thing about
Josh I don't know. We've never talked about it really. I can casually slip
it into a conversation if you want."  Lance looked at just with a single
eyebrow raised; something he had been practicing for months.  "Justin, your
idea of subtlety is waiting a bit before just asking the question. In
comparison to you, Joey's hair is 'subtle.'  "Hey! I'm not that bad!"
"Sure, sure Justin."  Justin just shook his head. He knew Lance was
right. When Justin wanted to be he could get information from the guys
without them even knowing he had gotten it, however that wasn't something
he was able to do very often, and he normally did just blurt things out.
	"Anyway 'big guy', why don't you send Jc flowers or something?"
	"You just said subtlety doesn't work."
	"So? Send him flowers for the next few days, with a note about a
secret admirer liking him. Than on Valentine's Day, have the note say
something like 'If you want to know, who likes you so, than I would think,
we should have a drink. Over candlelight, and wine, we can talk, and pass
the time, and if you like me, like I like you, than it will be awhile till
this night's through.'
	Lance stared at Justin in wonder before running over to his
omnipresent date book, pulling out his pen and started writing furiously.
	"How did you do that so fast?"
	"I don't know. Must be all the songs. I think they rewired my brain
or something."
	"Probably just wired it correctly, not rewired."
	"Shut up or I'm not going to help you with this. Who would have
ever thought I'd be helping one of my good friends to seduce my best
friend. This is sick on so many levels."
	"Why is it sick?"
	A quick look at Lance caused Justin to quickly gather his
wits. What he saw there made him realize how much his casual statement had
hurt his friend. He could see it in the way that Lance's eyes had closed up
tight. There was no internal sparkle like there normally was. They were
tight, and completely unreadable. Also Lance's voice was pleasant. Not
warm, not cold, simply pleasant. The group had learned those two signs
quickly, as Lance was often the most sensitive of them all.
	"Not sick that you love him, or that you want to seduce him or
anything like that. Just that I'm helping you to seduce him. I know Jc
almost better than he knows himself, and vice versa. It's almost like you
have the complete inside track to him through me. Like an unfair advantage
ya know?"
	Justin could see his words had the desired affect as Lance relaxed
his body, and his eyes sparkled again.
	"I know it's technically unfair, but I figure this way I won't make
any stupid mistakes like ordering food for the dinner that he hates. Things
like that."
	"I know Lance, I know. Now, less talk, more plan, you're going to
hafta call the florist and hope they have flowers, than you..."

Revenge

	In a land that was far away from where this started, a land that
was full of history, of magic and mythology; a land upon which the gods
often strode in human guise to test the mortals that were their
worshipers. It was a land that also had been touched by the hands of
artists beyond numbering as evident by the statues that abounded in the
forest. But also, by the glorious sunrise that appeared each morning, and
the sunset at night. It was truly a magical land; Greece, home of the
Olympian gods.
	However on this day, there was one that was not paying attention to
the world around him. Only to the comments that he had heard, and the
actions that he had taken earlier in the place that mortals call a mall
that was in the country that had been named the United States of
America. His anger was still great at the actions of not only the two boys,
but also the thoughts of those in the mall.
	He stood on the balcony of his home and stared unseeing at the
sunset that painted the land with shifting shadows, and made the ocean
appear to be molten gold. He rested his head on his hand unsure of what to
do. He stayed there like that till another presence appeared on the
balcony.
	"Hello mother. I was wondering how long it was going to be till you
showed up."
	He turned and faced his mother. He couldn't help but smile at her
flawless looks. Today she had long midnight black hair that reached down to
the middle of her back, with eyes as deep and sparkly as a sapphire. Her
face was adorned with prominent cheekbones, and a delicate nose, with
makeup that was light and subtle, barely discernable. In essence she was
perfect, as was only appropriate for Aphrodite, the Goddess of Beauty.
	"Cupid, it is your job to spread love, not remove the ability to be
loved from mortal hearts."
	"Mother, in one week it will be Valentine's Day. And not one mortal
that I have seen is interested in love alone. Interested in proving their
love through expensive gifts, or what they can get out of the gift. They
take it for granted that they can love. That love is there."
	"Cupid, they are mortal, and as mortals they have limitations. We
can see anything we want, and see multiple things at once and understand
them all. We can see around the world, across the sea, in a cave, all while
sitting in our homes, and not miss a thing. Mortal minds can concentrate at
most two, and occasionally three, things at a time, however the later is
quite rare. You must be understanding Cupid."
	Cupid turned away from his mother and strode back into his home,
passing a mirror on the way. As always he stopped and looked. There he saw
skin that was golden, with liquid sunlight as his hair in tight curls. His
eyes looked into the mirror and saw crystal blue orbs looking back at
him. He was still dressed in mortal fashion in a t - shirt and jeans.
	"Cupid, what you did today was wrong. You are the messenger of
love. Not the avenger. You spread love in all its forms, but you cannot
take away the ability to love!"
	Cupid turned to his mother and for the first time ever did not
listen to his mother.
	"Mother you are wrong. Mortals may be limited but that's not an
excuse. Love is under my control, and I will make sure it is not a gift
that is wasted any more!"

Surprises

	Jc entered his room, his eyes barely open from the sleep that was
holding them down. He closed his door, turned back into the room. On the
way to his bed he removed his clothes one by one till he was in nothing but
his boxers.
	As he went to crawl into the bed he noticed something on his
pillow. Nothing more than a dark shadow until he turned on the light. A
smile parted his face, as there on his pillow was a single red rose with a
note next to it. Intrigued he picked it up and read.

" Jc,
		I just thought that I would tell you that this single rose,
with its perfect petals, which are smooth as silk, that it is nothing when
compared to you. Your smile is the sun that allowed this rose to grow. Your
gentle spirit allowed it to flourish in any storm. And your eyes watched it
carefully when it became sick.
	Your Secret Admirer."

	Jc smiled in disbelief. Who on earth had left the rose? The note
was typed so he couldn't compare handwritings. Somehow he knew there were
clues within the note, but his mind was to tired to try to figure them out.
	He slid under the covers, and still holding the rose, smelled it
gently, and was promptly asleep, the fragrance of the rose filling his
senses, and sending him into a dream of flowers, and a shadowy lover that
answered his every desire.

	Ok, how was it? Please, just a quick email, like I said you can put
it in the subject line if you really want to, though I would rather actual
emails, but still, lol. Anyway I hope that you did like it and if you did
and you want to tell the address is still firesong17@yahoo.com. Just one or
two? Please? * looks at you with puppy dog eyes * thank you!

Jason