Date: Sun, 27 May 2001 03:09:02 -0400
From: Sprout <sprout_0813@hotmail.com>
Subject: This-Gift-11

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU. HAPPY BIRTHDAY THIS
GIFT. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!! YUP, YUP. THAT'S RIGHT THIS GIFT IS NOW
OFFICIALLY ONE YEAR OLD! Who would've thought that I would have written
this for so long? I honestly didn't have a clue where I was headed with
this story when I had begun a year ago, and I can honestly tell you that I
*still* don't have a clue a year later. I just wanna take the time to thank
ALL my readers (even those who are closeted fans not nemusin' me and
all). Even though I write This Gift for myself, I can truly tell you all
the motivation I get from feedback does keep me going on the cloudy
days. Thanks guys! (and girls)

	This instalment isn't a long one, just a special celebration
chapter, so I hope y'all ain't disappointed. Besides, y'all should know how
hard it is to pull a chapter from me anyways.

	Rumour has it that Nick and Jessica broke up... hmmm, could he be
reading This Gift? Or am I just a psychic? Or better yet, maybe he knows
that now he's got a chance with the man Drew, himself. Either way, I still
believe it to be as I had mentioned before, a rumour. Should I be wrong,
I'll admit to it... but until I get word from either Nick or Jess
themselves, IT'S A RUMOUR. Speaking of Jessica, her knew album IRRESISTABLE
is due out in stores today. Go pick up a copy.

	I gotta say *THANK YOU* to MH, cause if it weren't for him, you
wouldn't be reading this story in a legible format. I owe him a lot,
and I can never express all my gratitude towards him. You're the
bestest! (And you know I mean it!)

	I want to say thank you to Ice A.K.A. Jordan, who's decided to
give me a little space on her site to host my story. It's such an
honour to have my work hosted on the same site as her stories. Can ya
tell I'm her #1 fan? So anyways sexy, thank you, for giving me the
space, and for putting up with that long-ass html coding that needs to
be done to each and every chapter. It means a lot. You can GIVE MY
SECTION A PEEP on her site at: http://www.envy.nu/coldasice/sprout.html
or CHECK OUT HER PAGE, you won't be disappointed:
http://www.envy.nu/coldasice/welcome.html    Thanks sis!

	Just wanted to say a HUGE thank you to two of my best friends in
the world. Yeah, the sickeningly sweet and incredibly amazing couple: DLS
and Matt.  You're both old biddies, but I wouldn't wanna have it any other
way. I love y'all.

	I gotta give mention to a story, Kevin & Justin, written by Pete.
I fell upon it by having the same editor (go figure), and can't get enough
of it. C'mon Boo, it's been *FOREVER*, when's the next chapter coming out?

	Another story I gotta give mention to is My Everything. Y'all
should know ANY story that has to do with 98 Degrees, usually gets seen by
my eyes. Slpwriter deserves props for all his hard word, and y'all should
check it out.

	So this is fake, I don't know the guys or their sexual
preferences. Any similarities are purely coincidental, and I'd love to hear
about them.

And once again HAPPY BIRTHDAY THIS GIFT!!!! <-- That's my baby!

Enjoy and write me: bigdaddycool_0813@hotmail.com

Drew

*********************THIS GIFT -- Last Time*****************************
	"Don't touch me. You fuckin' whore! Don't fuckin' touch me!" His
words stung me, creating a stabbing pain in my heart. He called me a
whore. Of all people, *he* called me a whore. That hurt.

	"Drew, just listen to me... it was an accident..."

	"Andrew, just don't talk to me right now. Alright... It's always
about you, isn't it? Just leave me alone and let me think things
through and maybe, if you're lucky enough, I'll take your sorry-ass
back." With that, he left. Just got up and walked out of the room, out
of the house to the shrine in the backyard.

	"Nick, we fucked up."

	"Yeah... we did."

*********************THIS GIFT -- Chapter 11****************************

	Silence as thick as molasses descended over the room. It was in
those minutes that I knew my life had done a complete 180 on me. With a
sigh I looked up at Nick's face, grimacing at what I saw.

	Drew had laid a beating on Nick; that was clearly evident with one
glance. "Wait here, I'm gonna go get some ice." I walked into the kitchen,
searching for a cloth to put ice in. After finally finding one and filling
it with ice, I made my way back to the living room, stopping first at the
sliding doors and looking into the backyard.

	Drew was sitting on the swing, rocking back and forth, tossing
pebbles into the pond. I could hear slight sobs through the open door and
my heart ached at the sound. I wanted nothing more than to be able to go
out there and comfort him, but I knew that wasn't what he wanted and most
likely would push him even further away.

	With another drawn-out sigh, I walked back into the living room
where Nick hadn't moved. I sat down on the coffee table in front of him,
waiting for him to look up at me again. He wouldn't, as if he was ashamed
of what he'd done. Sure, it was wrong, but *I* wasn't ashamed of it, and
neither should he be.

	Placing my index finger under his chin, I pushed up, lightly
raising his face to look at me. His eyes were bloodshot, tears streaming
down his cheeks. It was then that I realised that I too was crying. "Oh,
Nick." I moved my hand to gingerly caress his rapidly forming bruises.

	"How bad is it?" Oh my Nick, his voice was hoarse and completely
drained of all energy.

	"Management certainly won't like it," I said, "but it's nothing
that won't heal with time." I picked up the cloth and applied it to the
right side of his face while he leaned into the coolness. "What I'm worried
about though, is you. How are *you*?"

	He shrugged non-committally, "I'll be fine..."

He trailed off, and I knew what that meant; he was worried about what would
happen between the two of them. To be perfectly honest, so was I. What
concerned me the most was, would Drew be as forgiving as I'd hoped?

	I let out another sigh, switching the ice from the right side to
the left. I was seriously amazed at how Nick would just sit there and let
Drew hit him -- I respected him greatly for that. "What's management gonna
say?" I questioned.

	"What's there to say? They'll wanna know what happened. I'll just
say that Drew and I got into a fight. It's no lie... it's not like I
haven't done it to him before, or vice versa. It used to happen all the
time... before he met you." His voice lowered significantly while he
offered this new info.

'They used to beat on each other?' I asked myself. Deciding I was way too
curious to let this fall, I had to ask. "You used to beat each other?"

	"Yes, and no. I mean, it's not like we did it for kicks. Drew was
lonely a lot of the time, and I used to throw it in his face... I deserved
everything I got. And then he found you, and he wasn't lonely any
more. There was no need for him to beat on me when I threw it in his face,
cause he had the one he wanted. He had you. And now..."

	"Now you messed with that, too." I finished for him. Nick just
nodded. "Nick, you know, you can't blame this all on yourself. *I* was
hitting on you, *I* was flirting, and I certainly cannot be called innocent
when it comes to this kiss. I wanted it... probably as much as you did."

	"But I *shouldn't* have wanted it, D! That's the problem. I
shouldn't have wanted to kiss you, to touch you, to *be* with you. You are
*his*, not mine!"  Nick stood up and began to pace the room. "I love my
brother, with all my heart.  I've ruined it, everything. I've ruined my
bond with him, I've ruined the group, I've ruined all of our futures. And
for what, a lousy kiss?"

	"Nick, that kiss was far from lousy. I'm sorry you see it as such a
waste.  I'm sorry you don't find me worth it. And you know what, I'm sorry
I made the mistake in thinking that you would understand my position. I
love Drew -- that's no secret -- he's my everything, but things like this
come up. Accidents happen...  I'm only human. What more does he want from
me?"

	Again, silence befell the room as we looked at each other, our
breath racing. With a sigh, Nick turned from me, "Space. I need
space. Leave me alone."

	"If that's what you want," and with the nod of his head, I left the
room.  Where I was headed, I had no clue. I just needed to get out; spend
some time alone to reflect on the previous hour or so. Drew was in my
sanctuary, so I needed to find some place where I could just sit, relax and
hopefully find the right path to walk down.

	Opening the front door, I noticed Jeff and Justin coming down the
stairs.  "Sup D?" Justin asked as they reached the bottom.

	"Too much," I replied walking out the door with hopes of finding an
answer -- any answer -- to fix my life. I walked down the street in the
direction of the sun. The warm rays beating against my face reminded me of
the heat Nick radiated the night before. With a sigh, tears began to fall
one by one down my cheeks. I didn't bother to stop them; I just didn't care
to.

	My feet led me where I was going; my head not having a care or clue
where that where was. All I knew was I needed to get away. Eventually, I
came across a clearing, an open meadow where the houses seemed to taper off
and slowly being replaced by trees.

	Following a miniature pathway, I walked my way into the darkness of
the trees welcoming the coolness that the shade provided. The leaves
rustled above me when the breeze picked up, only to become silent once
again as the breeze died. Strolling further into the woods, I found a
little patch of grass that seemed like it'd be a comfortable spot to just
lay down and collect my thoughts.  Sitting down, I discovered I was
right. The grass beneath me was soft, and cushiony -- just the perfect
outdoor bed.

	I lay down onto my back looking up at the treetops, watching them
sway in the breeze. The rustling of the leaves became a lullaby, daring me
to fall asleep. I closed my eyes, breathing deeply as I thought back to
moments I had spent with Drew before.

	It wasn't long before I dozed off peacefully, nature winning over
my consciousness and lulling me to sleep.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

	I jumped awake as someone's hand clamped down on my shoulder. "What
the fuck?!" I exclaimed.

	"D, wake up man. It's me." Before my eyes had a chance to focus, I
could tell who it was: Jeff.

	"What're you doin' here?" Having just woken up, my mind wasn't
functioning at one hundred percent.

	"I could ask you the same thing. I came to get you... I was
worried." His voice was laced with genuine concern, and as my eyes began to
focus I could see the worry in his eyes.

	"Well, ya found me. You ain't gotta worry." I explained, bringing
my left hand up to cup his cheek. "How'd you find me anyways?" I was
suddenly curious.  *I* didn't even know where I was, how could he?

	"Some man walking his dog saw you when he walked by. When Nick
explained what you looked like, he was more than happy to tell him where
you were." Jeff mimicked my action, bringing his hand up to cup my
cheek. "Don't you ever run off again. You hear me? They're all worried and
out looking for you!"

	It wasn't until Jeff told me that everyone was looking for me that
I realised it was much later than I had thought. Glancing around I could
only see darkness and again I had to wonder how Jeff found me. I couldn't
see past his face, he had no light -- it would've been damn near impossible
to see me.

	"They're *all* looking for me?" I asked, hopeful.

	Jeff smiled, "Yeah, they're *all* looking for you."

	"Do I even deserve it?" I couldn't help but feel like scum. I had
broken Drew's trust, yet he was still out there looking for me somewhere. I
was one incredibly lucky guy.

	"D, regardless of what you've done, Drew still loves you. Never
doubt that."

	"But how could he?" My voice was barely a whisper.

	Just as Jeff was about to answer, the stillness of the forest
surrounding us was disturbed by the sound of Jeff's cell phone. Taking it
out of his pocket and pressing the 'talk' button, he began, "Hello? No,
I've found him... Don't worry.... I'm gonna bring him home now... Yeah,
we're on our way... See you there."

	He placed his phone back in his pocket and grabbed my hand to pull
me up, not letting go once I was on my own two feet. Instead, he began to
pull me back in the direction of their house. "C'mon, let's go home."

	'Home,' I thought. 'Am I even welcome here anymore? I mean Jeff and
Justin *have* know what had happened by now.'

	Jeff's squeeze on my hand tore me from my thoughts. "What's wrong?"
He was clearly concerned -- the lampposts cast just enough light for that
to be evident.

	"Home," I repeated, "I should go home." My voice freed the words
out faster than my brain could process them.

	Jeff looked at me, *really* looked at me. "You *are* home," he said
simply, yet sincerely.

	The tears that I had been struggling to hold, now fell. Jeff pulled
us to a stop, using the hand entwined with mine to pull me to face him. "Am
I?" my voice barely audible

	He brought his left hand to cup my right cheek, tenderly wiping
away my tears with his thumb. "D, you are home. You're welcome here, you're
loved here, and there's no other place we'd want you to be."

	"But Jeff... I've fucked it up!"

"No, you *and* Nick fucked it up. Not you, not him, but the *both* of you.
You never stopped, and neither did he. You both knew you shouldn't have
done it... but you did." He switched hands, placing his left in my right
and bringing his right to wipe away my remaining tears.

	"I think..." he continued, "No, I *know* you both wanted it. It
wouldn't have happened otherwise."

"Jeff..." I was silenced by Jeff's lips on mine, his tongue begging for
entrance. I don't know what it is about Jeff, but I gave in; I resigned to
the sensations he gave me. From his kiss there was no doubt in my mind: I
was, indeed, home.

	The kiss was ended and once again he pulled me in the direction of
their home -- our home -- with a smile plastered to his face.

	I never knew what to expect walking through the door. I thought for
sure I'd get the beats from Justin and cussed out by Drew. None of that
happened, cause the guys weren't home by the time we got there. I decided
that since I was out sleeping in the dirt, that I should take a shower,
change into my grubbies, grab something light to eat and go to bed. Even
though I had slept outside for hours, I was still exhausted, physically and
emotionally.

	"Jeff, I'm gonna grab a quick shower then maybe have something
quick and light to eat. I'm starved."

	"You want me to make you sumpin?" As he asked me that, I was
reminded of Nick's 'cooking' earlier and silently debated whether or not I
should agree.

	Looking at the pout on his face, I cursed myself for giving in to
the Timmons charm, "Yeah, sure. Just something light, though, cause I wanna
go to sleep soon too -- I'm beat."

	He simply nodded as I headed up the stairs to take my shower. The
warm water raining down on my tight muscles was heavenly -- I honestly
didn't believe it was possible to have such an orgasmic shower all by
myself. It was quite weird but just what I needed: some time to take my
mind off of the present situation. I certainly wasn't looking forward to
going downstairs if everyone was there.

	Towelling off and dressing up in my grubbies, I slowly made my way
downstairs. As I was about to enter the kitchen I heard the guys talking,
so I stepped around the corner to eavesdrop for a bit.

	"Drew, man I'm sorry." Nick's voice full of fear. It was the first
time that I had ever heard Nick show some kind of apprehension around Drew.

	"I know you are Nick. I just wish that it would've happened with
Jeff, or Justin. Not you, not my own bro." Drew was full of pain and it
broke my heart.

	"Hold up! I'm sorry that Nick kissed your man, but why you gonna
bring me into this? I'm a ladies man. I ain't got nothing against y'all who
prefer the...  'banana,' but don't be including me in your sick-ass
fantasies." Leave it to Justin to lighten the tension in the room, causing
everyone to laugh. I suppressed a slight chuckle myself.

	"Oh, you know you want me," Drew joked.

	"Sorry." Justin replied as I walked in. All eyes were on me, as if
I was a display in a museum. I loved being the centre of attention, but not
*this* kind of attention.

	"Um... hey." I offered, hoping someone would take the bait. No one
did. I thought for sure that Nick would at least talk to me, but I guess
the presence of his brother limited what he wanted to do, and what he
did. I sighed, "I'll just... um... grab a bite to eat, then hit the sack."

	I walked by the table and looked in the fridge. Not wanting to stay
in the tension-filled room for long, I grabbed an orange and bottle of
water.  "Goodnight," I said to no one in particular as I walked to the
living room.  Never in my life had I felt so alone. 'And I'm supposed to be
home? Fuck this shit, I'm goin' home tomorrow.'

	As I sat down on the couch, I picked up the phone book and started
leafing through the pages for the number for an airline -- any airline --
that would be able to get me home. Finding a number, I grabbed the cordless
off the coffee table and dialled the number.

	"Thank you for calling US Airlines, Sarah speaking, how may I help
you today?" Sarah seemed overly cheerful -- something I really could've
done without for the time being.

	"Hi, I'd like to reserve a ticket, one-way, to Ottawa, Ontario,
Canada." I replied getting to business as soon as possible."

	"Sure thing, and when you like to be leaving, sir?" I hated being
called sir. It always made me feel incredibly old.

	"Hopefully an early flight tomorrow morn..."

	"We won't be needed that ticket ma'am, thanks anyways." Drew had
cut me off, grabbing the phone from my hands. After he had hung up the
phone, he turned to me. "You're not running away from this." His voice was
cold and his eyes pierced my soul. I felt smaller than an ant under his
intimidating glare.

	Before I could even say a word, he had done a 180 and stalked out
of the room and up the stairs to his room. What was I to do? Apparently I
couldn't leave, and I wasn't going to sleep in my room cause I shared that
room with Drew. It'd be awfully awkward to share a bed and *not* touch each
other.

	With a sigh, I shut the light out and lay down on the couch. There
was no way I was going to get a comfortable sleep tonight. I had dozed off
for what seemed like ten minutes before I was being shaken awake. "Here,"
Drew had come back down with a pillow and light blanket for me to use.

	"Thanks," What was I to say? I sure as hell didn't know. "I love
you," I whispered as he turned to walk away, unsure if he'd hear me.

	He stopped, standing there for a minute before he let out a
sigh. "I know.  I love you, too." He continued his way up the stairs as
tears began to fall from my eyes. He spoke to me, genuinely. My heart was
doing flips, my stomach full of butterflies. It felt like I was falling in
love all over again.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The smell of bacon and eggs filled my nostrils, rousing me from my
sleep.  I slept surprisingly well considering what was going on. I stumbled
my way into the kitchen to see who was already up; I already knew it wasn't
Nick -- there was no smoke to go with the delicious odours.

	As I sat down at the table, Jeff turned from the stove and smiled
at me.  "G'morning."

	"Good morning," I managed to mumble out, my voice still hoarse.

	Jeff kinda laughed while rummaging around in the fridge. Emerging
with a bottle of orange juice, he walked over to the cupboard, pulled out a
glass and poured the OJ. "You always this bitchy in the morning?" He joked.

	I grunted a reply, something similar to a no, as he sat down and
slid the juice across the table to me. I gestured a thank you, somehow, and
downed the drink in one sip. Orange juice is my coffee, my salvation.

	"Listen, I'm sorry 'bout last night, D. You know, how I didn't say
anything to you... I was angry with you for runnin' off stupidly. Who's
knows what could've happened to you. You don't know your way around here,
and I was so fuckin' worried." Jeff rarely swore, so when he did, I knew he
was upset and I felt like shit once again.

	"Jeff, don't be sorry. I was being stupid running off like that. I
just needed time to myself." I explained.

	Although he didn't say anything, there was some silent
communication going on between us; a mutual understanding. Jeff's intense
stare wasn't at all uncomfortable, but welcoming. His smile almost melted
my stress away completely and I knew with Jeff's support, I'd be able to
get through this.

	"Jeff... thanks..." I was at a loss of words.

	"For what?" he asked.

	"For everything. For being there for Drew, for being here for me...
basically just for being you." Ok, so I was getting a little emotional,
could you blame me?

	"Don't mention it."

	Justin chose that moment to pop his head in the door, "We civilised
in here?" He joked.

	"Nope. Jeff and I are getting it on, wanna join?" I supplied hoping
to keep the easy mood flowing.

	"Um... I think you've fooled around enough." Justin was monotonous,
not to mention dead serious. Jeff cringed slightly at the comment, all
smiles off his face, replaced by sympathetic eyes looking back at me.

	"Ok... I guess I deserve that." I muttered more to myself than the
others.  Jeff nudged my legs under the table, grabbing my attention. Just
one look at him told me not to think like that.

	"So, Jeff," Justin began, making it absolutely clear that I wasn't
welcome in the conversation, "what's on the agenda for today?"

	"Actually, J, I have plans with someone already. Sorry. Check with
Drew or Nick."

	Justin was obviously disappointed that Jeff's plans didn't involve
him, but wasn't going to dwell on it. "Alright then, I'll see you later."
Justin left, leaving just me and Jeff again, alone in silence once more. I
sighed, hurt by Justin's coldness and now facing the fact that not only had
I probably lost a boyfriend, but a friend as well.

	"Go get dressed, D. We're gonna chill today." Jeff went back to the
counter, filling out his plate for breakfast while I stood up with a smile.

	'I haven't lost Jeff,' was all I could think about, 'I still have
Jeff.' I left, headed from my room -- err, Drew's room -- to get dressed
for the day. As I neared the door to the room, awkwardness came over me. I
didn't want to intrude on Drew's personal space, but my clothes were in
that room and I had to get to them.

	Knocking quietly, I awaited a response. Not getting one, I slowly
and silently opened the door, entered the room and closed the door equally
as quiet.

	I walked over to the dresser Drew had shown me earlier where I
could borrow some clothes. Scanning the drawers, I picked out a red shirt
and some khaki chinos.

	Placing them on top of the dresser, I grabbed a towel that was left
out and ducked in to the shower. Seeing how I had already taken one the
night before, I just took a fairly quick rinse.

	Getting out of the shower, I towelled myself off while walking back
into the room. Figuring Drew was asleep, I wasn't worried about him getting
a free show.

	Standing in front of the dresser, I began to dress in Drew's
clothes, using his cologne and other toiletries as well.

	I took my sweet time getting dressed, enjoying the silence that
surrounded me. Truthfully, I was also enjoying the closeness to Drew
without having the tension that always seemed to follow lately. I finished
up with a sigh, and turned to exit the room.

	As I pivoted, my eyes locked on Drew's. He had been watching me the
entire time, enjoying it, so it seemed. At least the tent in the bed sheets
he was creating suggested it. "G'morning."

	'FUCK! He knows I can't resist that just-got-up voice. He *knows*
it!'  Drew's morning voice always turned me on, and this time you could
hear the lust.  "Good morning." And I walked out, closing the door rapidly
behind me and falling against it as it clicked shut. My heart was racing;
my breathing irregular. I seriously felt sick to my stomach. 'Is this what
it's gonna feel like every time I talk to him?' I asked myself.

	Regaining composure, I hurried down the stairs before Drew could
come out of his room. Rushing to the kitchen I found Jeff and quickly
pulled him to the door, grabbing both his and my shoes on the way so we
could put them on while we were on the stoop. With the door to the house
behind us closed tightly, I felt safe enough to stop so we could get our
shoes on before we went on our little excursion.

	Jeff was giving me odd looks, wondering why we had to rush out of
the house like that. I must admit that it wasn't really the most normal
thing to do so I should've been anticipating some confusion. I solved it
all with one word: "Drew."

Jeff nodded in understanding as he finished tying up his shoes and walked
slowly towards the car. "You coming or what?"

	Shaking myself from my reverie, I got up and helped myself to the
passenger seat. "So, where are we going?" Naturally, I was curious.

	"I dunno yet. Just thought you could get away from all of this." He
gestured towards the house while he started the ignition. "Besides, when
was the last time we had Drew-Jeff time?" He had a point, I couldn't
remember what had happened to us. I guess I was too involved in Drew to
really focus on anything else. I missed Jeff.

	"Jeff, thanks again.  You're always there to pick me up when I
fall. What would I do with out you?" I sighed.

	"Probably jack off in your room all day." He joked.

	I had to laugh at that. I probably wouldn't have done it all day,
but for sure three or four times. It surprised me how Jeff knew me so
well. And when had I told him that jacking off was a stress relief for me?

	"So, I figure let's go to the mall, shop away our blues and catch
up on old times. Whadda ya say?"

	"Sure thing, Jeff. I'm game." I wasn't about to disagree with him.
Besides, shopping in LA sounded like fun.

	We drove pretty much in silence for the first five minutes, until I
reached across and turned on the radio. Backstreet Boys started to blare
out of the speakers, which was all good and well for me, until I realised
that it wasn't the radio playing. I tossed Jeff a questioning look which he
laughed at.  "What? So I like their music... they're my friends, I'm
allowed. Shoot me."

	Now that was something I didn't know -- I had no clue, nor would I
have Guessed, that Jeff was friends with the B-boys. Quite shocking news if
you ask me. "It's all good Jeff, I like 'em too... but shhh, don't tell
Drew." He made a gesture that his lips were sealed -- I was safe there.

	We finally got to the mall, in good time Jeff told me. The only
problem now was finding a parking spot that was suitably close to the
mall. We circled around four times before Jeff was actually satisfied. It
was too bad he wasn't like Nick and parked as far away as possible, because
we probably could have already had half an hour of shopping done already.

	So with the car finally parked, we started towards the
entrance. Just as I had placed my hand on the door handle to open the door,
Jeff's cell rang. "Speak to me!" I heard Jeff say into the phone, and then
in a quieter tone, "Drew?  What's up? Yeah, he's with me. Where are you?"
That peaked my curiosity a bit.  "You're where?!" His voice rose a little
at that. "Drew, you better not be doing what I think you're trying to
do. It was an accident, things like this happen.  Get over it." Jeff was
starting to get frustrated, and even I wouldn't mess with a frustrated
Jeff. Drew was really pushing his luck.

	Jeff hung the phone up, turning it off in the process to avoid
further interruption. "Sorry bout that," he explained.

	"So... where is he?" I asked, not sure Jeff would tell me.

	"With Lance." Apparently Jeff wasn't going to cover anything up for
Drew, and I had to thank him for that.

	"So he could hurt me like I hurt him?" I knew the answer
already. Sure, I did like the idea of Lance and Drew together, only under
different conditions: I wanted to be there... I wanted to play along, too.

	"Probably... Hey! Why don't you and I go and get a tattoo... that
usually always makes me feel better." His suggestion was completely out to
lunch.

	"Jeff, me and needles... we ain't exactly best friends. How bout I
get my tongue pierced instead?"

	He gave me this look that suggested I was crazy, which soon turned
into a grin. "I like it! Let's go!" With that he grabbed my hand and pulled
me through the crowds, rushing to get there before I changed my mind. We
came to a stop outside a store with all these designs on the walls, for
tattoos most likely. In a showcase there was all these different kinds of
earrings and piercings you could get, too.

	We walked up to the counter and within seconds a guy with rings in
every thinkable spot approached us. "So, what will it be today, Jeff?"

	"Well Mike, my friend here wants to get his tongue pierced. Think
ya can manage that?"

	Mike asked me to stick my tongue out, lifting it in all these
different positions to see if I could indeed get it done without hitting
any veins.  "Alright then buddy, just fill out this waiver and we'll get
right onto that."  He placed a waiver form in front of me which I quickly
filled out, before I lost my nerve. I couldn't believe I was going to go
through with this.

	After having filled out the form, Mike escorted Jeff and I to the
back into a room set for piercings. I sat on an operating-table-like thing
as Jeff stood behind me, grabbing my hand for moral support.

	"Now you have to stick your tongue out so I can dry it off, and
once I have dried it off, you can't stick it back in your mouth, ok?" Mike
began to instruct me. I did as he had asked, sticking my tongue out as he
dried it completely with paper towel. My tongue felt like sandpaper with no
moisture on it and I desperately wanted to pull it back in my mouth, but
Jeff was behind me and I couldn't let him down. Besides, I had always
wanted to mangle my body.

	With my tongue now dry, Mike took a marker, and drew a dot on the
top and bottom of my tongue, lined the clamp up, and with a count to three
pushed the needle through my tongue. After fastening both beads I was done,
and feeling weaker than I had ever felt in my life. "You ok, D?" Jeff asked
me.

	"Yeah, just feelin' a little woozy. That's all," I explained.

	"That's normal. It has to do with the sugar levels in your blood
and that, you'll be fine." Mike explained.

	With my tongue now pierced, Jeff and I walked out to continue our
shopping. Since the place was filling up, Jeff decided to get a tattoo
later -- sometime around closing. "How ya feeling?" He asked again.

	"I'm good, dus' a widdwe swowwen." I managed to get out.

	Jeff laughed, "Don't talk much, it'll heal faster."

	We did some shopping, Jeff doing most of the talking. I mumbled
every now and then, and surprisingly, Jeff understood everything I
mumbled. Lunchtime soon came, and I soon realised what a mistake piercing
my tongue was. I wasn't going to be able to eat *any*thing.

	I grabbed a seat at a table, and Jeff unloaded all his bags,
dropping his cell phone on the table. "I'm gonna go get something to
eat. You want anything?  Soup? Water?" He asked.

	"Wa..." I began.

	"Gotcha. I'll be back."

	With Jeff in line to get food, I had nothing to do but look around
at the people in the mall. Even that was only interesting for some time. I
picked up Jeff's phone and turned it on. It did some things, it beeped a
couple of times telling him that he had missed some calls, had some voice
messages, and some text messages. Knowing that you needed a password for
voice messages, I decided to glance at his text messages.

	I went to the inbox and scanned the messages noticing Nick had left
him one, Justin, Brian from the Backstreet Boys, and surprisingly
JC. Furrowing my brows, I selected JC's message and began to read it.

	"Jeff, Drew kissed Lance. You better come and get him NOW! Before I
do some damage. JC."

	JC's message was short and to the point. And I knew, despite my
anger towards Drew for kissing Lance to get back at me, we seriously needed
to go and get Drew. Jeff had just returned to the table as I began to
gather everything. "What's wrong D?"

	"Dew." I explained, shoving the phone in his face. Jeff quickly
read the screen and began to gather the rest of our bags. We rushed to the
car, tossed our bags in the trunk and raced to JC's house. We both knew
about JC's jealous rages, and neither of us wanted Drew to become
victim. "What would make him do that?" I asked, forcing my tongue to
pronounce every word.

	"To hurt you. He probably never thought of JC." Which was true, he
never really thought anything out before he went through with it. That's
what Nick was for. He always approved or disapproved Drew's plans.

	Jeff took the expressway, weaving in and out of traffic, driving as
fast as he felt was safe. We made it to the Chasez household in record time
to find Lance on the stoop pounding on the door, begging for entrance. "JC!
LET ME IN!" He was screaming. "DON'T HURT HIM!" When he turned and saw me
and Jeff, he stopped the pounding, rushing up to me. "You gotta help
him... get him out of there D. The sooner the better." Lance was out of
breath, who knew how long he had been banging on that door.

	Seeing how I couldn't really talk, Jeff went up to the door. "JC!
IT'S ME, JEFF!" He screamed through the door. A loud bang sounded through
the door making me start to panic. "JC! C'MON! LEMME IN!" Jeff became
frightened by the slight scream of pain that followed that bang.

	Another bang was heard and I couldn't take anymore of this
shit. Walking to the side of the house, I picked up a rock and threw it
through a window.  The sound of the shattering glass was deafening.

	With the barrier between broken, I made my way through the house
until I came to the living room, completely destroyed. Drew was in a corner
and JC was continually laying punches on him. Just as JC was about to throw
another punch, I lunged at him knocking him off balance. "What the fuck?!"
He yelled.

	Taking all the concentration in the world, I managed to enunciate
perfectly, "Don't fucking lay a hand on him again!"

	Jeff and Lance had crawled through the window as I had minutes ago,
and were now in the living room as well, restraining JC. I made my way over
to Drew who was nothing short of a blood bath. It was as if he was barely
hanging on to life. "Drew?" I breathed.

	"I'm..." he coughed, "...sorry." He struggled to get the words out,
obviously in incredible pain.

	Jeff and Lance were calming JC down while I picked Drew up and took
him to the car. Placing him in the backseat, I buckled the belt around him
and headed back into the house finding them where I had left them -- in the
living room. "I'ww pay for da window," I said walking closer, "I'm sowwy
bout doing it, but I had no oda choice. And JC?" I asked, waiting for him
to look at me. He did, tears falling down his cheeks still flushed red with
anger.

	"Yeah?"

	"I'm sorry for knocking you down too... you would've done the same
for Lance. You know."

	He just nodded, knowing I spoke the truth. "I'm sorry too, D. For
hurting you by hurting him; I didn't know what else to do."

	I nodded, understanding him completely. We embraced quickly before
I announced we had to leave to get Drew cleaned up and make sure he was
alright.  Lance explained he would call in emergency service for the
window, and send the bill my way.

	Back in the car, we drove in silence. What was to be said? The ride
took forever, stretching on to what seemed like eternity. The entire way, I
was being eating at by my emotions. I loved Drew but was so incredibly
furious with him.  How could he do that? Revenge was sweet, but not if it's
gonna get the shit beat out of you.

	Finally back at the house, I pulled Drew out of the backseat and
headed for the bathroom. We passed Nick on the way upstairs. He gave us a
questioning look which I quickly shrugged off. He knew I'd explain later.

	In the bathroom, I stripped Drew of his blood-soaked clothes,
revealing his beaten body. He had several lacerations but nothing too
serious; nothing that wouldn't heal without stitches. His ribs appeared to
be bruised and his flinches when I went to touch them only proved my
hypothesis correct. I began to wipe the blood up with a warm cloth while
Drew stood there wobbling back and forth.

	"Drew, how could you be so stupid. You could've been killed... I
could've lost you!" I screamed somewhat silently at him.

	"I wanted to hurt you... like you hurt me." He whispered.

	"I think you've done more than that..." I trailed off.

	The rest of the cleaning was done in silence, nothing said between
the two of us. We were safe in our own thoughts and we both knew a decision
about something had to be made, and made soon.

	"Drew,"

	"Andrew," we both said in unison.

	"You go first," I suggested.

	He didn't argue. "Andrew, I love you, and I know you made a
mistake, but you still hurt me so much that words don't do justice. I
think...

TBC