My Surprise Romance

Hi everyone!

Well, it's been awhile, and once again this chapter is quite long (just a warning for you!). It's taken me awhile to write this one basically because I've been a good old fashioned lazy bum, as well as hitting another fabulous case of writers block once more (gotta love writers block). Anyways, read through this lovely chapter and then please, please, please tell me what you think of it by sending me an e-mail at sweetheart_stories@hotmail.com. Please? And to all of those who did send me e-mail, thank you for taking the time out. And I've also been having problems with my account, so if you didn't receive a reply back from me, blame hotmail and not me.

Anyhoo, I do have a few people to thank here...and if I leave anyone out it's because my head is not all quite here and I'm sorry, well, here I go: Cele, Khiem, Clarke and John--my support and encouragement all wrapped up in one bundle. Words cannot express enough thanks for how great you've been and I feel so incredibly lucky to have gotten to know each of you. And of course, last but not least, Justin--you've gone above and beyond the call of reading these things over as well as well as helping me out when I need it** and all of the little extras you've done :) I can't say how grateful I am, so I'll say this: thank you , thank you, thank you...

DISCLAIMER: You know it people, this story is not meant to imply the sexuality of any member of N Sync, especially not Lance Bass or Justin Timberlake. You have to be 18/21 years old to read it and if you aren't I do not want to know. If you're not comfortable with sex or a relationship between two consenting adults of the same sex, then don't read it. And now on with the story!

My Surprise Romance

Chapter 28

When I woke up the next morning, I found that something was different. I had become accustomed to the feeling of Lance's arms wrapped around me, and his body pressed against mine. But when I woke up that morning, I noticed that I while the sheets were wrapped around my body like usual, I was alone in the king sized hotel bed with a very noticeable empty space next to me where Lance normally lay. Confused, I rolled myself over, thinking that maybe he had scooted over to his edge of the bed, but I was wrong. He wasn't there.

A sinking feeling began to slowly creep into my stomach, as my ears heard the sound of running water hitting the tiles in the bathroom. Lance was in the shower. And he hadn't bothered to wake me up like he normally did...

"But we kissed goodnight," I thought, my mind beginning to swirl into panic. "I thought everything was okay...he still can't be mad at me for lying to him...can he?" My mind was racing through all of these thoughts, when I heard the water come to a stop. Without thinking, I closed my eyes and pretended to be fast asleep. A few minutes later, I heard Lance's footsteps pad out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. The sound of his steps grew closer until they stopped in front of me.

"Stephen...Stephen?" I felt Lance's hand gently nudge my shoulder. I felt my body tense at the feeling of his touch as he continued to shake me. "Stephen...wake up." I silently counted to three before opening my eyelids slowly as I pretended to "wake" up. I yawned as convincingly as I could, before looking up at Lance. He was standing there in a pair of boxer shorts and a t-shirt, looking every bit as handsome as he usually did. Once thing was noticeably absent as I looked him over: the warm smile that he normally greeted me with every morning. That was replaced with nothing; his face was absolutely expressionless as he stared at me.

"Morning," he said shortly as he turned to the mirror, picked up a comb and began to drag it through his hair. I watched him do this and noticed that he avoided looking at me through the reflection in the mirror.

"How come you didn't wake me?" I finally asked him. The silence between us was unnerving to my ears. Lance looked up at me in the mirror's reflection and carelessly shrugged his broad shoulders.

"Well, you looked so peaceful sleeping there," he said softly. As he said this, I noticed that the old tenderness that he normally stared at me with had crept back into his eyes. His gaze locked with mine as he turned back around to face me. "I just couldn't wake you up. You had a rough night."

"Which part of last night are you talking about? Us or the commotion in the hallway?" I managed to banter, despite the nervous feeling in my stomach. At the mention of last night's events, I noticed that the soft look in his eyes disappeared. He pressed his lips together as if to hold back some sort of comment and turned back towards the mirror.

"Both," Lance answered, placing the comb firmly back down on the dresser with a click . I could tell that he took deep breath before turning back around towards me. Lance stared at me disbelievingly for a second, before reaching for his pants that were lying on the edge of the bed. He cleared his throat, as he slipped them on over his boxers. "Anyways, we're supposed to meet everybody down the hall, in the meeting room, at nine o' clock for breakfast, so..." Lance looked over at the alarm clock on my side of the bed. "You have exactly forty-five minutes to get ready." The words he had spoken sounded colder than ice and they pierced my heart like a knife. Since I felt I still had my pride left, I made a wayward attempt to brush off Lances's restrained behavior towards me. I wasn't going to let him know that I was bothered by it...I was stubborn, I'll admit it.

I managed to stifle the sigh that desperately wanted to escape my lips, as Lance turned back to the mirror to fasten his silver cross around his neck. His eyes never met mine again, as he continued to get himself ready for the day. The sinking feeling in my stomach grew even more prominent as I pulled myself out of bed and somehow made it into the shower.

He was still mad at me, I thought with disbelief as I turned on the shower and stepped under the hot running water. I couldn't believe it...Lance was still mad about me lying to him. Didn't he understand that I was only trying to help out Justin? It wasn't as though I had kept Justin's secret from him to be malicious or anything...

These thoughts kept running through my mind and once I finished washing up and shaving, I headed back out into the bedroom hoping that Lance and I could maybe talk. Only instead of seeing Lance, I found a note tacked up on the mirror with a piece of scotch tape. "S. I've gone ahead to meet the guys..I'll see you there. L." it read in his scribbly handwriting. Lance never went off to breakfast without me, I thought miserably as I unintentionally crumpled the note and threw it into the wastebasket next to the door. Now, not only did I feel like I was going to throw up, I also felt like I wanted to lie back down on the bed and die. But I didn't do either of those things, instead opting to quickly get dressed. Just as I was about to leave the room, the sight of the telephone sitting on the nightstand caught my eye.

"Natalie,' The thought of my sister suddenly struck my mind. I had somehow forgotten about my sister's new situation of living with my aunt and uncle in Wisconsin. I walked to the bed and sank back down on it. I picked up the phone and my fingers punched in the numbers of my Aunt and Uncle's residence. I listened to the ringing...one..two...three...

"Hello?" I asked, once I heard the phone pick up. "Aunt Florence, is that you?" For some bizarre reason, my mouth went dry as I began twisting the phone cord nervously between my fingers.

"Stephen?" My aunt asked. The element of surprise was clearly visible in her voice.

"Yeah, it's me...how are you?" My voice asked this question in a flat, uninterested monotone. I just couldn't feign happiness--there seemed to be so much going on that was messing with my mind--Natalie, Lance, Cynthia and Josh, Justin and Harris...God, I thought wearily, what next? Aunt Florence and I briefly caught up with each other, until I finally got down to the main reason that I had called her.

"Aunt Florence...Cynthia told me that Natalie is staying with you and Uncle George..why?" I questioned, licking my dry lips. I waited for her to answer, but only heard a long, anguishing pause. Come on,' I thought impatiently. Answer me.' As though she had read my mind, Aunt Florence finally gave me a response. And it wasn't one that was welcome to my ears.

"Stephen...your mom is having some...troubles right now..." she faltered. I could imagine her wringing her hands together, the way she always did when she was uncomfortable. "She felt it was best if ...if Natalie would stay with us...for the summer."

Troubles? Great. Even better, I thought as I ran a hand through my hair in distress. "What kind of troubles is she having?" I persistently asked, feeling tiny beads of sweat form on my forehead.

My aunt paused once more. It was an uncomfortable pause and not the type that you want to hear in a conversation like this. "Stephen, I'm not supposed to discuss that with you...your mother promised me not to explain it to you." My aunt's nervous words not only shocked me, but they disturbed me even more.

"Why not?" I became angry at the way the conversation was starting to turn. Why couldn't I know what was going on with my mother? I had a right to know, didn't I? I knew that I had something to do with this, so why couldn't I know what was going on. And then suddenly, I missed Lance...I wished that he was here next to me on the bed, listening and waiting...somehow, he had made me a stronger person and without him, I felt different. I felt like I had lost a part of myself.

"Because...Stephen, I would love to tell you, but I promised your mother I wouldn't. I promised" I closed my eyes. God, another promise. Promises were making everyone's life a living hell, I thought as I closed my eyes in disgust. But there was something even more important to me than my mother and her silly promises.

"Well, can I at least talk to Natalie?" I asked Aunt Florence. Another pause followed by a somewhat reluctant sigh. "Well...alright, I guess." I heard her place her hand over the telephone's mouthpiece to muffle the sound of her voice, but it didn't matter. I still heard her anyways.

"Natalie, honey!" She called out. "Phone for you! It's your brother!"

"Stephen!" I heard my sister's girlish squeal loud and clear, which was quickly followed by the frantic sound of her footsteps slapping against the hardwood floor. There was a slight rustling as the telephone was passed to my sister and then I heard, "Stephen? Is that you?" Natalie's giddy voice came through the receiver loud and clear. Hearing my sister's voice erased my gloomy demeanor as I couldn't help but smile. It had been so long since I had talked to Natalie. I had missed her terribly and my hands started to shake as I began to talk.

"Natalie! I miss you," I said, my throat catching as I spoke. I felt tears come to my eyes as I thought of my sister. "How are you? How was school? Do you like Wisconsin?" The words tumbled out faster than I expected, and I wiped the tears that began to fall from my eyes.

"I'm fine. School was boring.. Wisconsin's okay, but I miss Angela and Beth an awful lot. And I miss you," she said wistfully, before barraging on with another round of questions. "Stephen, can I ask you something? Mom told me that you and Cynthia went on tour with `N Sync...is that true?" I cringed at Natalie's inquisitive voice. I couldn't lie to her...I learned my lessons with lies, I thought sadly. I had lied to Lance and look at all the damage that slip up had done. I debated with myself for a few seconds.

"Yeah, I am Natalie," I finally admitted, bracing myself for a frantic shriek, an angry "Why didn't you tell me?!!?" Something...but the explosion that I was expecting never emerged an all that remained on the other line was a very impressed girl.

"Wow!" Natalie exclaimed, sounding awestruck. "That's so cool, Stephen! You mean you get to hang out with the guys all the time? Cynthia too?" The enthusiasm in her voice was catching and I let out a relieved laugh. My sister was just way too cute for words.

"Yes, even Cynthia. In fact...Cynthia is dating JC."

Natalie paused thoughtfully. "I thought that Cynthia was dating Lance.." she recalled and I could almost imagine her face twisted up into a look of confusion. "That's what the tabloids were saying. Angela and Beth thought that was so cool when they saw it because they remembered her! And they were like, oh my god, I can't believe your cousin is dating a member of N Sync! Why can't she be--'"

I let out a gentle laugh, as I thought of the one who was really dating Lance. If she only knew, I thought wistfully. That was one thing that would have to wait. I gently cut her off. "Honey, don't believe everything you read in the tabloids, okay? In fact if you want to know, Cynthia's dating JC, not Lance," I told her, before thinking, `Or at least she was last night.'

"Wow--JC! I can't believe that!!! Do you think you could get Joey to date me?" Natalie asked, sounding exactly like a child on Christmas morning. I let out another laugh, this one happier than the one before.

"I'll work on it," I smiled, and then as I thought of my sister there in Wisconsin, I felt my smile fade. I wanted to see her so badly, just to give her a hug and make sure everything was really alright. Obviously, judging by Natalie's reaction to me, my mother hadn't brainwashed her impressionable mind with her abominable opinions. Natalie sounded like my sister--and for a brief second, I wished I could return to the normality of my pre-'N Sync life. But as I sat in the hotel room, with half of my mind still on Lance and the problems that surrounded me, I knew that would be impossible. Anyways, wishes hardly come true, unless you do something about them.

"Hey, Stephen--I have to go now. Aunt Florence told me that she has to use the telephone," Natalie said reluctantly, shaking me out of my daydream fog. "But I'm so glad I got to talk to you." Her young voice paused and for a second, I thought she was going to say more, but she didn't.

"Same here, Nat," I said sadly. "I promise I'll call you again and when the tour is over, I promise you I'll head up to Wisconsin right away, okay Nat? I'll even see if we can get JC to visit when Cynthia comes back home."

"Okay, Stephen." She paused and I heard her voice waver for a second. "I miss you," she finally said. Her voice came out so simple, so innocent that I felt my eyes fill up with tears again. I blinked them back in a attempt to control my emotions. I didn't want my sister hearing me cry. If she did, there was a good chance she would worry about me. Natalie was just like that...

"I miss you too, Natalie," I managed to choke out. "I love you honey...be good."

"I will, Stephen. Bye."

"Bye, honey." Quickly, I placed the receiver back on the base of the phone and stared at it for a couple of seconds, before finally breaking down. There just seemed to be too much happening...my life felt as though as it were spinning out of control and I didn't have any say over it. I let myself wallow in my self-pity for a few more seconds before heading back into the bathroom and splashing my face with cold water. I didn't want it to be apparent to everyone that I had been crying, least of all Lance. With the way he was acting, I didn't want him to think that I had been crying over him like an overdependent loser.

A few seconds later, I headed down the hallway to the breakfast room to find everyone there, including Britney and Harris, (who I should add, was practically in Justin's lap) except my cousin. A lively conversation was going on around the table as I surveyed the scene in front of me. There were two seats left and as my eyes shifted, I noticed that Lance was sitting between Justin and Chris. Although I felt like I had been electrocuted at this discovery, I plastered a fake smile on my face so that my inner feelings wouldn't be apparent. I hate wearing my heart on my sleeve. As I took a seat next to Josh, I noticed how cozy Justin and Harris looked. They were so happy, I thought pensively, as I watched Justin feed Harris a slice of French toast. It made me remember how Lance and I were last night, before any of the unpleasantness changed everything. I forced myself to think of something else, as Josh turned to me with a curious smile.

"Morning, Stephen," he greeted me as he handed me an empty plate. I could tell by the inquisitive look in his eyes that he was wondering why Lance and I weren't attached at the hip like usual. But he was polite enough not to bring that up, and instead asked me if I was willing to head out on a shopping trip with him that morning.

"Sure," I answered, sneaking a look at Lance out of the corner of my eye. The shocked expression on his face was what exactly what I had expected to see. He quickly looked back down at his food so that no one else would notice. He had nothing to worry about though, since everyone at that table was staring at me like I had stood up on the table and started singing showtunes. Chris dropped his fork. Joey's mouth dropped open while he was chewing, causing a piece of toast to fall out. Even Justin and Harris managed to pull their gazes away from each other to stare at me. Everyone knew that on the band's off days, Lance and I always hung around with each other, since the time we could spend together was usually sparse. I ignored everyone, turning my attention to grabbing some food, even though I wasn't very hungry. As I began to eat breakfast, I realized that I was looking forward to going out with Josh. Besides, I thought that maybe spending time with someone else might be a little therapeutic.

Slowly, everyone turned their attention away from me, as they went back to their previous conversations. Britney, who was sitting next to Josh on the right, leaned forward to look at me while giving me a mischievous smile. Her brown eyes met mine, then quickly shifted to Justin and Harris, who were our newest happy couple. They were now giggling over a private joke and stared at each other as though no one else existed. Britney looked at me again and this time rolled her eyes as if to say, "Oh please." Yet by the sparkle in her eyes, I knew that she was ecstatic by last night's turn of events and the obvious happiness of her best friend. I managed to make myself return her smile, despite feeling as though a hole had been knocked in my heart. What the hell was I doing, playing this game of hurting Lance? I was just hurting myself more, but, I reminded myself, he started it this morning...

As I was mentally beating myself up, I didn't notice as everyone's eyes shifted towards the door as Cynthia entered the room. Without looking at anyone, my cousin fell into the empty seat next to me, and managed to let out a mumbled, "Morning..is there any coffee?" Normally, Cynthia is a beautiful girl--if she was a bit taller, she could probably become a model. Not this morning though. This morning she looked as though she had played a part in one of the living dead movies--she looked horrible-- there were dark bags under her violet eyes and smeared lipstick over her cheek.

"Morning, Cynthia," I said in an overly bright voice, as I poured her a cup of coffee. "Had a rough night?" A smattering of quiet laughter met my comment, as Cynthia gave me a look.

"Drop dead, asshole," she sneered as she drank half of the hot coffee in one gulp. She kept her eyes focused on her coffee, as the lively conversation around the table came back to life. I attempted to eat for a few seconds, but the rattling in my stomach was so intense, I could barely lift the fork to my mouth. Instead, I quickly looked over to where Lance was sitting, only to notice that his eyes were glued to the half-empty plate in front of him, as he was lackadaisically pushing the remains of his food around. As I noticed this, Lance looked up and as his eyes were about to meet mine, I quickly put my head back down and went back to staring at my own half-empty plate of food.

This is ridiculous,' I thought, as I lifted another forkful of French toast to my mouth. How the hell could they eat this everyday?' I thought with disgust as I managed to swallow the breakfast food. I grabbed my glass of orange juice and drank the rest of it, remaining lost in my own thoughts. I was so out of it, I never noticed that everyone was getting up from the table with their own destinations in mind. I looked up to where Lance had been sitting, and saw that he was gone. I bit my lip so that I wouldn't yell out in frustration. The hurt that lay in my heart was still fresh as Josh stood up and looked down at me with a nervous smile on his face. He was desperately trying to avoid looking at my cousin, whose eyes were still focused on the now empty cup of coffee in front of her.

"Ready, Stephen?" Josh asked me while wiping his lips off with his cloth napkin. I nodded and got up from the table when I noticed Cynthia looking up at me. Her expression was a mixture of funny emotions--hurt and betrayal--like, `how could you go somewhere with the guy who screwed me over last night?' and I could understand it completely. I would feel the exact same way if Lance had done what Josh had done, and then it hit me: I was kind of like Josh in that I had hurt Lance by keeping that stupid secret from him. As I realized this I knew that I needed to talk to someone who was pretty much out of the the whole Justin/Harris/Lance loop and Josh was someone. As Josh and I left the room, I noticed that Cynthia was staring straight ahead, completely silent for once in her life.

A short while later, Josh and I wound up at a local strip mall--you know, one of those tacky little ones that are adorned with shifty-looking travel agencies, nail parlors filled with gossipy housewives and crappy little restaurants that no one in their right mind would set foot in. However Josh had brought me with in search of a jewelry store, one that one of the groups bodyguards had recommended.

"Josh, I'm not sure if I'm ready for such a big step," I said teasingly, as we pulled into a space. "I mean, I know were friends, but a ring is a big commitment."

Josh grinned upon hearing my joke. "Sorry, hon but you're not my type," he laughed as we got out of the rental car that the hotel had arranged for us. He quickly put on a baseball cap and a pair of amber tinted aviator style sunglasses and we began walking towards the row of stores.

"I used to work at a restaurant like this," Josh noted as we passed a suspicious looking diner. Even though the dark lenses of the sunglasses that hid his eyes from view, I could tell by the expression on his face that he had hated his previous work experience. He shook his head as if to clear himself of the memory, and then looked upwards at the overhead signs of the stores.

"Why are we going to a jewelry store? I think I have a right to know now," I asked him curiously, as Josh looked for the particular jewelry store he had in mind. He stopped dead in his tracks and turned to me with an embarrassed smile on his face.

"I wanted to buy Cynthia something," he said sheepishly, ducking his head. "I know I screwed up last night and I want to make it up to her..." His words trailed off as we stopped outside of a national name brand jewelers shop. "I'm not trying to buy her back or anything, but I screwed up bad," Josh added gravely as he opened the door up and we walked inside.

The place was rather nice looking, unlike the rest of the stores that we were in the company of. Soft classical music played in the background, while row after row of beautiful rings and bracelets winked at us from under the bright lights. Josh and I walked to a counter display full of silver necklaces and began to browse the selections in front of us.

"What exactly happened between you and Cynthia last night?" I asked Josh as we began to look for that perfect piece of jewelry that would win my bullheaded cousin over. "I kinda know what happened, but it's all a little hazy."

"Same here," Josh agreed as he continued to glance at the necklaces. "Well.. we went out to this club and I guess we all had a little too much to drink. Joey and I were kinda drunk, but Cynthia..." Josh shook his head at the memory. "Well, Cynthia was beyond drunk...but let's just say the girl can tolerate her alcohol."

"Oh I can imagine..." I laughed. "Go on."

"Well, we were all sitting in this booth and Joey, being the horndog he is most of the time, pulled Cynthia onto the dance floor and they got all freaky on the dance floor. I didn't like it one bit. I wound up sitting in the booth all by myself when this girl comes over. She told me what a big fan she was and somehow--" He scratched his head, obviously bewildered by the events of last night, "--we wound up making out in the booth. I didn't think it was a big deal, since Cynthia felt it was fit for her and Joey to make a spectacle of themselves. But when Cynthia saw, oh God...let's just say going to hell would have been a more pleasant experience." Josh let out a sarcastic laugh, as his eyes fell onto a silver necklace. A salesgirl walked over to us just then and gave us a polite smile.

"Good morning, gentlemen--" she began before peering at Josh with suspicious eyes. And then she realized who he was.

"Oh my God--you're JC from `N Sync!" she shrieked, nearly shattering my eardrums as she clutched her chest as though she was about to have a heart attack. "Oh my God, I can't believe you're here!!!! I mean...Oh my God!!!"

Josh stared at the girl for a few seconds, and then slowly removed his sunglasses. "Well, I don't need these anymore," he chuckled softly, as he tucked them in the pocket of his shirt. He smiled at the salesgirl who had turned an interesting shade of red, and then purple, as she continued to hyperventilate as she stared at JC. For all the salesgirl cared, I could have been holding a nuclear bomb or been stealing from the store. I didn't matter. I didn't exist.

"I was wondering if I could see this necklace?" Josh asked the salesgirl, pointing to a beautiful sterling silver choker with a heart pendant stringed on the delicate chain. Surrounding the edges of the heart were ten small diamonds, while one larger one sat in the middle. With trembling hands, the girl managed to open the case up and carefully handed the necklace to Josh. He examined in his hands for a few seconds, before looking up at me.

"Think she'll like it?" he asked hopefully. I smiled at Josh, managing to be both impressed and touched by what he was doing for Cynthia. He must really like her, I thought as I gave him a smile.

"I think she'll love it. Cynthia only wears silver and she likes hearts," I told him and Josh nodded at me.

"I noticed that...I just hope she'll talk to me," Josh sighed as gave the salesgirl a halfhearted smile. "I'll take it," he told her, laying it on the glass counter as he pulled his wallet out of his pocket. Still staring at the singer in shock, the girl managed to ring up the sale as Josh paid cash for it. Obviously, winning Cynthia's heart back meant an awful lot to him--the necklace set Josh back a little over four hundred dollars. But, I thought with a smile, he could definitely afford it. We were about to leave the store, but not until Josh gave the salesgirl an autograph and a quick peck on the cheek for her help.

"Thanks a lot--" Josh quickly checked out the girls nametag. "--Renee. You were a real help. Have a great day." Josh gave her a wave and we finally left the store. As I let the door close behind me, I noticed that the girl was standing there in complete shock, still glued to the same spot that we had left her in.

"You have quite an effect on the ladies," I teased Josh as we got back into car. Josh laughed at my remark but didn't say anything. He started up the car and pulled the transmission into drive.

"And you have quite an effect on Scoop," Josh finally remarked as nonchalantly as he could. I turned my head towards the window upon hearing this and stared at the buildings that were flying past my eyes. I had told myself that I didn't want to think about Lance during this trip and now Josh was dragging him back into my mind. Of course, I admitted to myself, there wasn't a time when I didn't think about Lance, but I didn't want to talk about him openly.

"I noticed this morning that something strange was going one between you two. Or," he said, with a slight laugh. "Not going on between you two. I didn't see any drool hanging from either of your mouths and both you and Lance were staring more passionately at your food than at each other. What gives?" Josh asked lightly as he made a right turn towards the hotel.

I sat there for a few seconds in silence, not sure if I wanted to tell Josh the details of my romantic problems. I wanted to talk to someone. My mind reeled back to when he and Cynthia were first having their troubles getting together. Josh had trusted to ask me for advice and maybe I could do the same.

"Well, now everybody knows about Justin...but Cynthia and I found out first," I began slowly. "We saw Justin and Harris making out in the parking lot of this one mall we were at. And then Justin came to me later that afternoon and made me promise not to tell anyone." I let out a long and miserable sigh. "That meant no one. Not even Lance." I paused. "I mean I wanted to tell him, but I just couldn't break a promise to Justin like that...I couldn't," I repeated, shaking my head as I finally turned my head and looked at Josh. He was staring back at me with a sympathetic gaze and nodded for me to continue.

"And then last night...well, thanks to Cynthia--everyone found out. And to be honest with you, I'm really glad that it happened. Justin needed to tell everyone--it was driving Britney and me and Cynthia crazy...but then when Lance found out that I was holding this back from him..." I trailed off, shaking my head at the memory.

"The shit hit the fan?" Josh offered helpfully. I laughed at his expressive metaphor.

"Exactly, my friend..He felt that we shouldn't have any kind of secrets between each other, and I can see his point. Up until Justin, I never kept anything back from him," I explained, staring at my hands. "Lance knows stuff about me that no one else knows."

"Maybe that's it," Josh commented. "You and Scoop seem pretty close...we've all noticed it, you know." I let out a groan as Josh grinned at me before continuing on. "So if you've been telling him all this personal stuff about yourself but you didn't tell him about Justin..."

"Yes, I know, but we made up last night. I apologized to him and everything," I complained. I felt extremely frustrated and in fact, I don't think I've ever felt this helpless in my life. It's funny, how love can make you feel either ecstatic or miserable.

Josh took his eyes off the road as he looked at me. "But he's still hurt, Stephen. I've known Lance longer than you...I know him like a brother and he can be extremely serious sometimes. He's a fun guy, but he has this side to him..." Josh paused as his mind searched for the right words to use. "This side that takes trust very seriously...and I think you managed to hurt that," Josh said gently. "I don't know what else I can tell you besides to talk to him some more--I'm sure he'll listen."

"And what if he doesn't?"

"Oh, I'm sure he will...Lance loves you Stephen." Josh paused thoughtfully and then let out a soft chuckle. "It sounds a bit weird to say that out loud, but I know he does. And I also know that you feel the exact same way about him."

Upon hearing Josh's words, tears welled up in my eyes. There was something so honest about what he had just said and it took me a few seconds to compose myself, before I answered Josh. "Yeah, I do," I admitted. "And I think that's why it bothers me so much to see Lance act this way towards me. We're both acting like third graders...it's so stupid."

"Just talk to him, Stephen...once we get back to that hotel, I want you go right to your room and talk to him," Josh ordered me gently. "It can't hurt anything, right?"

I paused for a couple of seconds as I absorbed the situation that I was in. "Right," I finally agreed, giving Josh a nervous smile. "Hey, thanks," I said, patting him on his arm to let him know how grateful I was to him. "Sorry to dump my problems on you there."

"Hey, no problem, I don't mind it one bit. And, if anyone has problems around here, it's certainly not you," Josh rolled his eyes. "I've become the poster child for problem relationships," he cracked as he turned into the hotel parking lot and took the back road to the service entrance of the hotel.

"Hey, you decided to date her...it's your fault you didn't read her warning label," I joked, as he pulled up to the hotel's back entrance. Josh pulled to a stop and grinned at me.

"She's your cousin," Josh shot back and we laughed. "I'm gonna drop you off here--I want you to go talk to Lance...and I'm going to pick up some roses for Cynth," he added, his face softening at the thought of her.

"Someone's in love," I said in a singsong voice, as I got out of the car and slammed the door shut. I looked back at Josh who gave me a knowing smile.

"Yeah and I'm not the only one," he said, before pulling away. I stood there for a few seconds, thinking over his words before heading into the hotel and back up the elevator to Lance.

Once I made my way upstairs, I felt my heart begin to beat faster. I felt a bit silly at my nervousness--why was I feeling this way? It wasn't like I hadn't talked to Lance before, but this time it was different. I had never seen the look in Lance's eyes like I did last night or this morning. It certainly bothered me...what if Lance never trusted me again, or what if after this, things would never be the same? Maybe we would always be hindered by this one slip up...but don't all couples go through these hurdles, I asked myself as I placed my palm on the cool brass of the doorknob that allowed me to enter the hotel room that we shared. For all I knew, he wasn't even in there, maybe he had gone off with some of the other guys or something...

I turned the doorknob, opening the door to see Lance sitting on the edge of the bed, his ear attached to the telephone.

"Please don't tell anyone else, mom...I'm begging you...I want to tell dad and Stace and everyone else when I'm back home..." Lance looked back up at me, greeting me with a forced smile. "Yes..he's fine...I gotta go mom...I'll talk to you later...love you....bye." Lance hung up the phone and looked at me as I sat next to him.

"Hey," he said, a bit awkwardly, as he nervously ran a hand through his hair. "I was just gonna go and.."

"And what?" I asked, folding my arms over my chest. I watched Lance's face turn red as he began to stammer out an explanation.

"Um..I'm gonna go and....um," Lance mumbled under his breath, his face turning redder by the second. Despite his uncomfortable manner, I couldn't help but let out a chuckle.

"You're a rotten liar," I said, resting my chin in my hand so I could look at him. I wanted to reach over and take his hand in mine, lean over and place a kiss on his soft lips, yet I restrained myself, instead opting to stare into his pale green eyes. We didn't say anything, until Lance let out a breath.

"You're right," Lance finally admitted, with a short laugh. "I wasn't planning on going anywhere."

"So why did you tell me you were?"

Lance began fidgeting like a little boy who was about to be yelled at. He unconsciously fingered his silver cross and stared at the door for a couple of seconds. Finally, he spoke.

"Because I didn't want to be here with you--I just think we need some time apart."

"And I think we need to talk to each other," I said, feeling a bit taken aback by Lance's strong words. I felt my heart fall to my stomach as my mind began to panic. He didn't want to be here with me..I knew it, this was the end--and it was all my fault.

"About what, Stephen?" Lance asked, his voice turning somewhat bitter. "Didn't we talk last night?" He turned to look at me, his green eyes now hard with anger. I flinched at the way he was looking at me, the words that were about to leave my lips faltered under his gaze.

"That's exactly what we need to talk about..." I trailed off, not sure what I was going to say next. "I thought everything was okay before we went back to sleep."

"Well I lied last night," Lance spat out. "I lied okay? You know what, Stephen? I don't like being lied to and from the look on your face, I don't think you like to be lied to either."

"I don't," I admitted as Lance continued to stare at me. The feelings of uncomfortableness inside of me were growing every second. "So now were even?"

Lance shook his head at me. "You think it's that easy? Do you know how hurt I was when I found out about Justin? How can I trust you now, Stephen? What else have you been keeping from me?" His deep voice became intense with outrage, as he stood up and began to pace nervously around the room.

"I kept telling myself how great everything was between us, and then this happens. I just feel like I've been knifed in the back...it shouldn't matter so much," Lance said, his deep voice fading to a whisper. "But it does, because you're the one who did it to me. And I never thought that you would."

"Lance," I began, but he shook his head and sat down next to me.

"Maybe you think I'm being overdramatic, but Stephen you're the first person I've truly fallen in love with. " Lance hesitated for a second and I could tell he was toying with the idea of telling me what was on his mind. "Look," he said, taking my hand in his. "We started out pretty fast, me and you, and last night when I found out, I was thinking that maybe I didn't know you that well after all." He looked up at me and gave me a sad smile. "But then I kept thinking of all the problems and all of the good stuff that we've been through together...and I decided that I want to keep going through all that with you."

I stared at Lance, and found myself unable to speak. I had been rendered speechless by his beautiful words, and I was glad that I couldn't talk because he had even more to say.

"Stephen...we were supposed to meet, don't you think? I mean what are the odds that your sister would have won a contest? And that we would start talking to each other? And that I would find myself so attracted to you from the moment we started talking and then I found out that you liked me back?" He took a deep breath. "Things like that don't happen every day, Stephen.," Lance said gently, as his fingers slowly ran over my own slightly trembling fingers. "We have something good here and I just don't want to ruin it with stupid things like lying to each other...I guess that's why I was so ticked off this morning," he added with a grin. "I'm sorry for not waiting for you to go to breakfast."

"Eh, that's okay--at least we gave the rest of the guys something to talk about," I laughed casually, still staring at our intertwined hands. "But you know Lance...I've never opened myself up to another person before like I have with you...we understand each other and I don't want to lose that," I admitted as I lifted my eyes to meet his. They were sparking with happiness as I said this and I couldn't help but feel that a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders.

"We do compliment each other, don't we?" Lance happily asked me, as he leaned himself over and planted a soft kiss on my lips. I felt a thrill go straight through my body at the feel of his warm lips on mine. "You know how else we compliment each other?" he asked softly, as he ran a hand casually up and down my back.

"I think I know," I said dryly as Lance's touch against my body became a bit heavier with each brush up and down my back. His eyes grew lustfully mischievous as he scooted himself closer to me "What is it when we have these talks?" I asked him, as began to stroke my hair away from my my eyebrow. He placed another kiss on my forehead."Do they make you incredibly horny or something?"

"Possibly," Lance said before placing a kiss on my earlobe. "Or maybe it's because you look so cute right now."

"When I'm at my most vulnerable, you take advantage of me," I sighed as Lance's lips began trailing down my neck. He stopped as he reached my collarbone and looked up at me.

"What can I say? Vulnerable turns me on," Lance quipped as his kisses began to move lower. His fingers began to play with the hem of my shirt as they began working their way up my chest. I felt his fingertips brush over each of my nipples causing them to harden instantly, as my head rolled back and a groan escaped my lips. He looked at me and grinned, knowing full well the effect he was having on me. Lance then let his hand fall to my pants, slipping past the waist and down the front of my boxer shorts. They immediately came into contact with my penis and began to stroke up and down my shaft. He leaned over and kissed me once more, letting his lips linger against mine as my breathing grew heavier.

I gently pushed him away and he looked at me with a shocked expression, but I smiled to let him know I wasn't angry with him. "Sweetie," I laughed softly. "Go any further and it will be all over sooner than we want it to be." And with that, I rolled over on top of him, knocking him back against the bed. I pressed my groin to his, letting Lance know exactly what I felt at that moment. He responded to my action by running his fingers through my hair and pulling my head close to his, so that he could kiss me.

I pulled at his t-shirt frantically, longing to feel his warm skin against mine, until I finally yanked it over his head. I began to run my lips down his neck, letting my tongue briefly linger over his Adam's apple for a few seconds before I trailed down to his chest. I looked up at Lance while I did this and the enraptured, loving look he gave me was all I needed to see. My tongue instinctively began to circle lazily around one of his nipples, before I grazed my teeth over the erect bud. Lance let out a loud moan as I moved to the other one and repeated my actions, before I rose back up to his lips. I stared at Lance for a couple of seconds, letting my eyes take in the man who was underneath me and I suddenly became overwhelmed by the feelings of immense love and passion I felt for him. I had never felt anything like what I had felt before, and now that I finally had, I never wanted to lose what Lance and I had. It had become precious to me...more precious than anything else in the world.

Lance smiled at me as my mind zipped through these thoughts and he took my pause as an opportunity to roll me onto my back. Slowly his fingers began to unbutton my shirt and with every button he undid, his lips followed. Before I knew it, Lance had removed my shirt and threw it carelessly to the side. My pants and boxer shorts followed suit and my breathing became ragged as I felt Lance slowly take me into his mouth. His soft lips expertly moved up and down my engorged shaft as his fingers simultaneously began to stroke my inner thighs, causing my hips to thrust upwards involuntarily. My head rolled from side to side as Lance slowly licked the head, and then moved back downwards and then took my sac into his mouth. His hands reached up and began to move over my erect nipples, causing me to writhe in immense pleasure. I could barely control the loud moans that were uncontrollably leaving my lips. I felt myself building up as his mouth moved back onto my shaft and began working up and down it.

"God, Lance..." I moaned as he continued to take more and more of me into his mouth. He was amazing, everything he was doing to me was amazing and to be honest with you, I almost wished what I was going through would never end. My hands drifted downwards and I began running my fingers through his thick hair. He began to apply firmer pressure to my swollen member and then I felt my body contract. Lance noticed this and his mouth began to move frantically, as I became unable to control myself. A moan loud enough to shatter the windows escaped my lips as I came, emptying myself into Lance's mouth. I felt my body sink deeper into the bed with exhaustion as Lance moved upwards and placed his mouth to mine. He stared at me for a few minutes, with a tender smile on his lips as he stroked my slightly damp hair away from my forehead.

"You okay?" he whispered as he placed a kiss on my forehead. I managed to nod, before letting a flirtatious smile cross my lips.

"What about you?" I asked breathlessly, gently nudging my knee against the clearly visible erection that was showing through his pants. He closed his eyes at my touch and then opened them as he felt my fingers undoing the button of his jeans.

"A little impatient, aren't we?" Lance murmured against my ear as I slipped my hands into his boxer shorts and gently cupped his ass in my hands. I began kneading his warm flesh as Lance somehow wriggled out of his jeans, letting them land on the carpet with a light thud. I pulled my hands back up and worked my thumbs under the waistband of the boxers and pulled them off, releasing Lance from the cotton. He sat up, straddling my hips so that his erection brushed against my penis, which was slowly becoming aroused once more. His hands began to move my thighs apart as he positioned himself between them.

Lance gave me a lazy smile, as he began to work the precum that was covering the head of his penis against my hole. The feeling of it drove me insane with pleasure as Lance leaned over and our mouths met in a deep, passionate kiss. While his tongue explored my mouth, I felt his rigid member press against my hole and slowly enter me. He continued to kiss me in an attempt to distract me from the brief discomfort, that soon passed and was replaced by a feeling of unbelievable pleasure. His hands slowly moved down the outsides of my arms, and then as they rested at my wrists, Lance roughly grabbed both of them and pulled my hands over my head. His sudden movement both shocked and excited me since he had always treated me so fragiliy. I guess Lance noticed my surprised expression because he grinned at me as he lowered his body on top of mine, trapping my rehardening penis in between both of our sweat covered bodies. I wrapped my legs around Lance's as he began moving his lower half in and out of me, while still holding my hands over my head. His lips gently moved over my warm flesh as he steadily rocked in and out, rubbing his body against mine. His movements easily caused me to become aroused once more and I kissed him again, hoping that he would move faster and deeper. My kiss must have been clear because Lance's thrusts became more intense.

"Stephen...I'm gonna come..." he warned in a husky whisper a few seconds later, allowing his lust-filled green eyes to meet mine. No sooner that he spoke those words, I felt his strong body suddenly tense as he released himself into me, and his face contorted in a mask of ecstasy. A groan of pleasure escaped his lips as this happened. A few seconds later, I came for the second time between our bodies. He collapsed on me, finally letting my wrists go as we both lay on the bed, our breathing heavy with what we had just experienced. A couple of seconds passed before Lance raised his head off my chest and gave me a warm, satisfied smile.

"You know, I don't mind having these talks with you if it always leads to this," Lance finally whispered, lifting a finger to trace the outline of my lips. His eyes searched my face as he did this, and when he finished, he leaned over and placed a soft kiss on my lips.

"Wanna have another one?" I asked, trying to hide the grin that was beginning to form on my lips. "Because I think talking is one of the most important parts of a relationship," I tried to say with as much conviction my voice could muster. Lance just rolled his eyes at me as we kissed once more. We were still groping at each other, when there was a knock on the door.

"Hey guys? It's Britney. Can I come in?" The female voice called out. Without any hesitation, Lance and I looked at each other in horror.

"NO!!" We screamed frantically in the direction of her voice. I sat up very suddenly, knocking Lance off to the side of the bed. Fishing for any piece of clothing on the floor beneath us, I began calling out delays to Britney, in hopes that she wouldn't know what we had been up to.

"Uh...one second, Britney!" I yelled, as I picked up Lance's t-shirt and threw it at him. "Just hold on...Lance is...uh," I threw his boxers at him and then his jeans. I searched my mind for a feasible excuse."He's on the phone with his mother...hold on!" I screamed as I began to dress in record time. In less than a minute, Lance and I were fully clothed. A bit flushed and rumpled, but still presentable. I flashed him a quick grin as I walked to the door and opened it. I found Britney standing there with her arms folded over her chest, an expectant look on her face.

"Is Lance off the phone?" she asked innocently, peering into the room. She saw Lance and gave him a wave, which he returned with an embarrassed grin on his face.

"Yeah, all done," he said a bit too quickly, while running his hands through his hair in a vain attempt to fix it into it's normal spiky style. "What's up Britney?"

"Oh, me and the guys were talking a few seconds ago and they sent me over to ask you guys two things," she said, leaning against the door. She flicked a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear as she gave us a sweet smile. "One, we're going out to lunch at some fancy restaurant and we were wondering if you wanted to come with us?"

I looked over at Lance, who nodded. "Sure," I said, turning back towards Britney, who's grin had now turned into a smirk. "What's else?" I asked, feeling a bit uncomfortable by the expression that was now gracing Britney's face. She managed to choke back a laugh as she spoke the next words with a completely straight face.

"Well, two--the rest of the guys said that if you two boys decide to ravish each other--keep it down, okay? Joey said hearing you two going at it almost killed his appetite." Britney paused and raised an eyebrow at us. "I said, `almost,'" she added, her giggles finally overcoming her serious demeanor. I felt my face turn bright red once the realization of her words hit me. I turned back to Lance, who had suddenly become very interested in his fingernails.

"Were we really that loud?" I asked Britney in disbelief. She let out another laugh and rolled her brown eyes in jest.

**"Stephen, I think the people on a passing jet could hear you," she laughed gently, noticing my growing discomfort. "Anyways," she said, neatly changing the subject. "We're gonna meet around two o clock down the hall, run out the back...well," Britney stopped, smiling. "You probably know the drill already. See you two then." Parting, she smiled and turned back down the hall, towards her room. I turned back around, shutting the door behind me and faced Lance. We stared at each other for what seemed like forever, not sure what to say, before Lance finally cracked a smile.

"Do you think those people on the jet knew that it was me and you?"

Since Lance and I weren't on shaky ground anymore (or at least I hoped we weren't), we met everyone at two o clock, like Britney had instructed. Chris, Joey, Justin, Harris and Britney were already there, and once they saw us, evil grins formed on all of their faces.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't our very own noise makers," Joey quipped once we joined them. "You two gonna be able to keep it down, or am I gonna have to get a hose?" Everyone laughed, expect for Lance who had turned bright red at his comment. He rewarded Joey's witty remark by popping him the finger, which caused everyone to laugh once more. Just then the service elevator reached our floor, the doors parted and everyone began cramming into the claustrophobic space. I looked around and suddenly realized that two people were missing: Josh and Cynthia. Lance must have noticed the same thing, because as the doors began to close, he called out, "Hey where's Cynthia? And Josh?"

"Josh said that he'd meet us at the restaurant," Chris spoke up from the back of the elevator. "And Cynthia said that she didn't want to go." Since I had been the last one in the elevator, I strained my neck to look at Chris and was surprised to see his eyes just as worried as mine. It was odd for my cousin to pass up any type of meal, even if she was mad at Josh. I silently cursed myself for not going and checking on her before we left.

The short ride down was more or less uneventful (how much can happen on an elevator ride), except for some playful jostling between Britney and Justin. Once the doors opened, our eyes were met with the bright sunlight of the outdoors and we made a quick beeline for the limo, whose door was open and waiting for us. Once we made it inside, the driver immediately took off down a side street to avoid the front of the hotel. I sank back in the limo's cushy padded seat and took in the people surrounding me. Chris was on a cell phone, and overhearing his conversation, I surmised he was on the phone with Josh, making sure he knew where the restaurant was. Joey was teasing Britney over the latest gossip about her supposed implants, which caused her to promptly smack him in his face. Justin and Harris looked quite the cozy pair, as they discussed something or other to themselves. And then there was Lance, who was sitting next to me, watching me watch everyone else.

"You okay?" he asked, taking my hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze. I looked at him and gave him a smile. The words that I felt would describe my euphoric state became stuck in my throat. Instead, I just nodded, letting Lance know that I indeed was okay. He smiled in return and held onto my hand for the remainder of the ride.

The restaurant that we had reservations at was one of those really fancy places and for a second, I panicked. My state of attire was less than elegant, but as I looked around at everyone else, I realized that I fit in fine. No one else was dressed up--except for Harris, I should mention, who was decked out in a black designer leather jacket, red tank top and white silk trousers. Thanks to him, he made the rest of us look like slobs. As I noted Harris attire to myself, I did see Justin looking up at his boyfriend with adoration in his eyes. That simple look made me smile in earnest--I was truly glad that Justin could finally be himself, with out any worries or fears hindering his happiness.

When we walked into the restaurant, the first person we saw was Josh, who was sitting alone at the massive table. He had been staring off into space, only to be brought back to life when he saw all of us approaching. He plastered a fake smile on his handsome face and stood up to greet us.

"Hey everyone," Josh said, his eyes searching our group, only to look disappointed when he noticed that my cousin wasn't there. He fell back into his chair and Lance and I looked at each other, a bit alarmed by Josh's mopey behavior. Everyone else exchanged warning glances with each other, but opted to not say anything. Instead, we all took seats around the table and picked up our menus, searching for something to eat.

"I'm starving," Joey announced with elicited a chorus of laughter around the table. He looked at us with a frown on his face. "Well, I am!! I haven't eaten since breakfast!"

"Aww, poor baby's gonna starve," Chris and Britney ribbed him in unison, causing another round of laughter as Joey just gave us all loathsome looks.

"Very funny...jokes at the expense of me. And I thought we were like brothers!" Joey exclaimed in mock disappointment as he went back to his menu.

Everyone else did the same, and as I read through the restaurants' extensive menu, I noticed Josh continuously looking up towards the door. My heart went out to him...obviously he was hoping that Cynthia would make her usual late grand entrance. I let out a sigh, causing Lance to look at me in worry.

"Everything alright?" he asked, trying to keep the worry out of his voice, as he peered at me with concern over the menu.

"Fine..." I trailed off, nodding my head discreetly towards Josh. Lance followed my gaze and then looked back at me.

"Cynthia?" he mouthed and I nodded. How one girl could cause so much trouble without even being there, I thought, shaking my head. I knew I would have to tell Lance about Josh's and my trip to the strip mall that morning, but that would come later as the waiter came to our table and took our orders. Everyone ordered their meals, and while we waited for our food to come, Justin suddenly nudged my foot with his. I looked at him in surprise.

"What?" I asked quietly, so not to be noticed by the rest of the guys, who were involved in a game of `let's-make-Britney-laugh-and-shoot-water-through-her-nose'.

"Stephen," Justin began nervously. "Harris and I want to go out on a date tonight." I stared at Justin for a few seconds, not understanding why he had just told me this.

"Yeah..." I finally answered, trailing off in hopes that Justin would finish the sentence for me.

"And we want you and Lance to go along with us," Justin said, looking at me hopefully. I felt my eyebrows frown downwards as I looked at the handsome lead singer strangely. I didn't exactly understand his reasoning.

"How come?" I looked over at Harris who was joining the rest of the guys in teasing Britney. He had fit in with the rest of the guys rather well, and I was happy to see that. "I mean, don't you and Harris want to be alone?"

Justin's face twisted into frustration. "Yeah, we do...but Stephen--we're in Los Angeles...I mean, how does it look if two guys are out together, going out to dinner..alone?" He shrugged helplessly. "At least if you and Lance are with us, then it looks like we're a group of guys just on the town, right?"

I thought about his comment for a second. I could definitely see what he was getting at, but Lance and I had gone out by ourselves before and no one cared. Still, I knew that Justin was new at this whole thing with Harris, especially now that they were out in the open. And judging by the look on his face, Justin was more than nervous--he looked almost petrified. I smiled at him and turned to Lance.

"Hey you," I said, tapping him on the shoulder. Lance turned his attention away from the commotion that was surrounding Britney, as she frantically mopped up the water that had just shot from her nose. He gave me a grin and gently poked me in my thigh.

"What do youwant?" he asked in mock frustration. I just rolled my eyes at him, and was rewarded with one of Lance's goofy, yet lovable grins.

"How do you feel about going out tonight--" Lance's face immediately lit up at the idea, and I held my hand up before he could say anything more. "With Justin and Harris."

"Justin and Harris?" he repeated. The exuberant look was now replaced with one of skepticism. "Why with them?"

"Because," I began, trying not to sigh. "Justin and Harris don't want to be seen alone together..they think it's way too obvious that they're a couple. At least with us there, it'll look more like a group of guys just hanging out, I guess," I said, uncertainly peppering my voice. Lance thought this plan over for a few seconds, before nodding in approval.

"Yeah, I guess that's okay...I mean, I get to be with you, don't I?" Lance asked me, with a happy smile on his lips. I nodded, and desperately fought with the urge to lean over and kiss him right there in the restaurant. Instead, I abruptly turned back to Justin, and nodded.

"Sure, tonight sounds good," I told Justin as he gave me a relieved look.

"Thanks Stephen. Once we get back, I'll let you know where we're gonna go, okay?" he asked while giving me a relieved grin. Immediately, he turned to Harris and quietly relayed the news to him, so that no one else would hear. Obviously, they had been planning this date for ages because they both looked besides themselves at the idea of finally going out on a date. I grinned, remembering how happy I had been when Lance and I went out.

"Looks like the kids are in love," Lance murmured in a low voice next to my ear, as his green eyes observed Justin and Harris. "How cute."

"Yeah, but I don't think they're the only ones around here," I said, giving Lance a smile as the waiter returned to our table with our meals in tow. Lance nodded as the waiter set his lunch in front of him, and I was about to say something back, when I suddenly caught sight of Josh. He was practically slumped over in his seat, looking as though he had lost his best friend. My heart went out for him, and there was nothing more I wanted to do then to help him. As my eyes moved over the rest of the table, my thoughts of Josh and Cynthia were replaced as my gaze fell on Justin and Harris. I watched them whisper between each other for a few seconds, before turning my attention back to the person sitting next to me. I stared at Lance for a few seconds, thinking how much I loved him. He looked up at me, and as though he could read my mind, Lance quickly mouthed the words, `I love you' at me. I was a bit caught off guard when he did this, but a grin lit up my face as I mouthed the words back at Lance, before digging into my meal. As I ate, I noticed a content feeling filling up my heart and I knew that everything was going to be alright....

** This brilliant quote was not my idea--it was in fact made up by Justin and I believe credit is due here because it is such a great one-liner--hey, I can't be witty all the time :) Thanks, honey.

Well, that's it for awhile...new part should be out in a week. Remember, feedback, comments (good or bad) can be mailed to sweetheart_stories@hotmail.com! Thanks for reading...until next time, take care. Love, Gabriella.