Disclaimer: I do not know or own *N Sync. I don't know anything about their actual sexual preferences. If you are underage or you are uncomfortable reading about male/male relationships, please leave. This is a piece of fiction, i.e. it's not real.
Hey ya'll! I'm so sorry about this taking so long, but a few things have been getting in the way of my writing. But here's chapter five and hopefully you'll enjoy it. Email me and let me know what you think about it! nsajscgirl@yahoo.com It's also up on my website if you want all of the proper formatting and stuff. http://www.angelfire.com/boybands/nsajscgirl
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Prisoner of Love Chapter 5
The drive to Orlando was nerve-wracking for JC. He kept his speed at a steady seventy miles an hour. I-75 was fairly deserted considering it was only two in the afternoon. JC kept a wary eye on the look out for police cars although he hadn't heard anything about his escape on the radio. Throughout his drive, Lance's cold face was all he could think of. No matter how many times he rehearsed what he hoped to say to his former friend, it came out sounding too desperate or too shallow or too needy. He wanted nothing more than Lance to just smile at him and give him a hug when they would be reunited, but JC knew that wasn't a viable scenario. For some reason, he was willing to forgive Lance. He was willing to push aside the fact that his best friend hadn't believed in him enough to defend or comfort him. What JC wouldn't have given to see Lance's smiling face and bright eyes just once while he was in jail. One sight of Lance would have brightened his whole year, but Lance had refused to come, even distancing himself from the others as well.
Perhaps the reason JC felt so forgiving was that Lance made JC feel guilty about the entire ordeal, from Meredith's murder to his conviction. It was stupid, he knew, but he couldn't help but think that he'd hurt and betrayed Lance when his secret was exposed for all to see. However, he couldn't understand why Lance would desert him like that. All along it should've been JC's right to be pissed about Lance's betrayal. Lance was supposed to have been his best friend; best friends don't just believe whatever they hear about you. Lance should have come to him and asked him; JC should have been given the right to at least defend himself against Lance's accusations because it was obvious that Lance thought he'd murdered Meredith. JC got the feeling that Lance wouldn't want or need his forgiveness, though. Lance's betrayal went a lot deeper than JC understood, he believed that much. From all accounts and what Justin told him, Lance had become a cold and harsh person, so at odds with the warm, sweet Lance he knew. A part of JC was worried that he wouldn't know the Lance that he would meet today, that he would be forced to plead with a stranger, a shell of the friend he once knew. He pushed that scary thought aside and turned his attention back to the odometer, checking his speed. He tried not to think anymore of Lance as he drove; he wasn't getting anywhere worrying about their reunion.
JC hadn't been driving for thirty minutes before the first news bulletin about his escape hit the airwaves. His fingers tightened on the steering wheel as he listened to the DJ.
"This is a special news report from K105. Joshua Scott Chasez, former member of boy- band *N Sync, escaped jail earlier this morning. Chasez was serving a fifty-year sentence at Florida State Penitentiary after being found guilty of murdering his girlfriend and her unborn child. He was last seen earlier this morning at a local Starke, Florida gas station where he picked up a car that had been left there earlier in the week. A gas station attendant identified Chasez..."
JC groaned at that piece of information and tuned out the rest of the broadcast. The police were now fully aware of his escape. He looked around the freeway warily, half expecting a police car to be waiting for him. There were no police cars, but the closer JC got to Orlando, the heavier the traffic became. He cursed inwardly when he saw the sea of red taillights blinking at him when he hit I-4. His clock said that he had less than fifteen minutes to make it to Lance's workplace and he knew from the directions that he would be cutting it really close. If he missed Lance, he would have to try and follow him. JC refused to go to the cabin without at least speaking to Lance first. After all, Lance was part of the whole reason JC wanted...needed to escape. JC turned up the air conditioning when sweat started to form on his brow.
"For the love of God!" JC shouted loudly in the car, despite the fact that no one could hear him, when he nearly slammed into the car in front of him. While he was busy finding holes in the traffic, edging in wherever he saw a spot so that he was making a little bit of progress, a patrol car slid up next to him without him seeing it. He frowned at the clock on the dashboard, watching it click down the minutes until Lance would leave the office. He looked up and to his left, freezing when he realized who his neighbor was. JC faced forward abruptly, his heart pounding in his chest and his hands growing slick on the steering wheel from sweat. The music dimmed in his ears and he watched the police car intently out of the corner of his eye. He breathed a huge sigh of relief when his exit approached and he left the busy freeway behind in a hurry.
**
Birds chirped happily and children shouted in a park across the street as Lance stepped out of the air-conditioned TEC building. He winced and raised a hand to rub at his forehead wearily. The headache he'd developed throughout the day pounded behind his eyes and he pulled out a pair of dark sunglasses to cover them from the blindingly bright sun. He adjusted his grip on the briefcase in his hand and stepped off the sidewalk, making a beeline for his car.
After lunch, Lance had returned to find Sally smiling at him smugly, her eyes alight with some small secret she felt that she could lord over him.
"Why are you smiling at me like that?" Lance asked as he glowered at her. Sally's grin only grew wider and she handed him a small slip of paper before turning on her heal and sauntering out of the room. Lance groaned as he read Sally's practiced handwriting.
'Mr. Townsend requests your presence in his office immediately. Christian Hartford is waiting with him.'
Lance slammed the note down on his desk and headed straight for George's office. He'd spent the next hour and a half trying to convince George that he knew what was in Hartford's best interests, while Hartford constantly sent arrogant smiles his way that went unnoticed by George. Evidently, the temperamental artist had gone crying to Daddy when things didn't seem to be going his way and it just made Lance despise him more. Lance had to hold himself back from smacking Christian in the back of his head when George finally ushered them out of his office, reassured that Lance knew what he was doing. The impromptu meeting with George had caused Lance to be late to all of his afternoon meetings, which didn't sit well with his other clients. All he wanted know was to drive home and soak in a bathtub full of sweet-smelling bubble bath and go to sleep.
He didn't think that the day could get any worse, but of course, he'd been proven wrong before.
**
The sunlight reflecting off the TEC corporate building nearly blinded JC as he pulled into the almost empty parking lot. He noted with relief that he was almost five minutes early and his eyes scanned the lot, searching for Lance's car. He grinned triumphantly when he saw the vehicle. He parked several spaces away from Lance's car so that he would have a clear view of the large double doors at the front of the building. JC turned off his car and rolled down the windows, allowing the hot Florida air to sweep through the car. He watched the doors intently, his mouth pursing into a frown the minute he saw Lance's familiar form step out of the building. Lance's appearance hadn't changed at all from what JC could see as he watched the younger man stride across the parking lot. His hair was still styled the same way it had been a year ago, but it was darker, most of the dyed tips having lost their blond color. The suit was different, too...the suit and the briefcase. In all the time JC had known Lance, he didn't think the younger man had ever worn an actual suit. Tuxes, yes. Business suits, no. JC also knew that Lance had always hated briefcases; he preferred keeping FreeLance papers in his well-worn book bag instead. He took his eyes off Lance long enough to look at the clock in his car. Five-thirty on the dot.
As Lance neared his parked car, he spared JC's car a disinterested glance and JC froze in his seat. At that moment, he wasn't sure if he could even get out of the car, much less confront Lance. His fingers tightened almost unbearably on the wheel and he pursed his full lips into a frown. Taking several deep breaths to calm himself, JC slowly removed one of his hands from the steering wheel and reached up to rub his chin, the rough hairs of his growing beard tickling his palm. Lance stood at his car's door, his back to JC, and searched his pants pockets methodically for his keys. JC watched as Lance's shoulders tensed and he threw his hands up in the air, showing his frustration.
"What the fuck! It fucking figures!" JC heard Lance's growl through his open window and he watched in amusement as Lance turned on his heel and stalked back towards the large office building. JC couldn't stop the satisfied smile that formed on his lips. Lance was evidently having a bad day. As soon as the younger man reentered the building, JC took a deep breath and forced himself to step out of the car. He leaned back inside and pulled his duffel bag into the driver's seat. JC searched through it quickly, occasionally glancing over his shoulder at TEC's doors. His hand touched the cool metal of the gun hidden within the depths of the bag and he hesitated before pulling it out and stuffing it inside the waistband of his jeans, the handle sticking out noticeably. He reassured himself with the fact that it wasn't loaded as he backed out of the open door and straightened his lanky form. JC tugged his T-shirt out and situated it over the handle, obscuring it from view. He turned around just in time to see Lance leaving the building once again, keys dangling from his left hand. JC's heart pounded in his chest as he watched Lance.
Lance seemed oblivious to the attention he was getting as he strode back to his car. JC slammed his door shut loudly and Lance jumped at the sound, his eyes suddenly on JC. He sped up his pace as soon as he noticed that the stranger was watching him closely. JC tugged his baseball hat lower over his eyes, hoping that Lance wouldn't recognize him until it was too late, as he started towards the other man. Lance was practically speed walking by the time he reached his car and JC was there to meet him, his head bowed slightly so that Lance couldn't see any of his face. He stood slightly in front of the car door so that Lance couldn't get to it without going around him. Lance frowned, hoping that the stranger wouldn't ask him for money or donations or something to eat. He just wasn't in the mood.
"I don't have anything to give you, okay?" Lance said curtly as he stopped a few feet away from the man in the baseball cap. When the stranger didn't reply, Lance stared at him, wishing that he could see his face. There was something familiar about the body and the stance. "What do you want?" he snapped. He hoped that his voice sounded as cold he tried to make it because the situation was getting stranger by the minute and he didn't want to deal with it at all. When the stranger still didn't reply, Lance sighed. He opened his mouth to say something else, to blow this weird person off, but instead found himself speechless, staring into a pair of familiar, breathtaking eyes.
"Lance?" JC's first view of Lance's face was like drinking fresh water after a long drought. He took in Lance's smooth, pale face and wide, shocked eyes. For a spilt second he saw hurt and love and pure emotion flicker across those amazing eyes before they darkened and frosted over.
JC's voice was pleading and soft, just like in his dream. Anger and fear waged a battle within Lance, anger coming out on top for the time being. He purposefully hardened his heart, ignoring the small ache inside of his chest that wanted to throw himself into JC's arms.
"What the fuck are you doing here?!" Lance hissed his eyes locked on JC's.
"I had to...I had to see you...talk to you, Lance," JC stumbled over his words. He'd tried to prepare himself for Lance's anger and disbelief, but actually being faced with it...with Lance, all of his words tried to desert him. "Please, Lance..."
"No!" Lance almost shouted. He backed up a few steps when JC raised a hand, his large blue eyes begging...pleading. "No," he repeated, steeling his heart as anger stirred in his stomach. "No, you don't get to do this. You don't get to talk to me..."
"Lance, please, you don't understand. I didn't..."
"I don't want to fucking hear it!" Lance turned abruptly, trying to escape JC's presence. It was in that moment, when he was presented with Lance's back that anger matching Lance's surged through JC's veins.
"No..you don't get to do this, Lance. You don't get to walk away from me a second time!" JC growled, grabbing Lance's upper arm and spinning him back around. Lance's briefcase fell to the ground as Lance pushed away from JC.
"Mr. Bass? Mr. Bass, is everything okay?" JC's attention was pulled away from Lance when a TEC security guard stepped out of the building. The large guard lumbered towards the struggling young men and JC reacted before thinking. Lance's eyes widened in horror as JC's hand reached beneath his shirt and closed around the handle of the gun, pulling it free of his waistband. He grabbed the back of Lance's neck and pulled him close. He quickly turned Lance around so that both of them were facing the guard, the gun suddenly at Lance's temple. The security guard stopped dead in his tracks, his face and stance uncertain. JC couldn't see Lance, but he heard and felt the sob that escaped the younger man's body. The guard's worried eyes watched their every moment, his hands in the air. He walked steadily towards them as JC backed away, pulling Lance with him. He noticed that the guard wasn't wearing a gun and he almost sighed in relief.
"This wasn't how it was supposed to go, Lance," JC gritted in the younger man's ear as he neared his car. "I just wanted to talk to you...to explain...to prove...God, Lance!" The situation was quickly getting out of hand and he realized quickly that he couldn't just leave Lance this way. He couldn't just leave Lance in the parking lot with this view of him, holding a gun to his head. He knew without a doubt that Lance would never believe his innocence if this was the last image he was left with. With his eyes completely focused on the guard JC made it to the car, his back bumping against the hot metal. He slowly unwrapped his arm from Lance's neck with a terse order not to move. Lance stayed silent, but obeyed. JC watched the guard warily, pressing the gun tighter against Lance's temple when the large man inched forward.
"Please, don't make this harder than it's got to be, okay?" the guard asked soothingly, constantly inching forward.
"No!" JC shouted as his hand fumbled around behind his back, searching for the door handle by touch. "Stop right there...I just want to get out of here, okay? Don't try to stop me and we'll be just fine." The guard stopped immediately when he saw Lance flinch away from the metal pressed against his head.
"Okay, okay...everything's cool, man. Ya' see? Everything's cool," the guard replied evenly, his hands still in the air. JC snorted and almost grinned at the guy.
"Whatever." He managed to grasp the door handle and pull it open, pulling Lance with him as he edged around the open door. "Get in the car, Lance," he said, pushing on the younger man's shoulders gently. Lance balked immediately, trying to move away from JC. "Don't," JC growled and he pushed Lance down into the car roughly. The gun wavered slightly, but Lance found it pointed right at him as he was pushed into the car. JC managed to keep one eye on Lance and the other on the useless guard as he motioned Lance further into the car. He slid in, almost sitting on top of Lance in his haste. "Move over," he demanded tersely, jerking the gun at Lance.
Lance obeyed quickly, fear running through his body. He watched JC openly as the older man slammed the car door behind him and hurriedly turned the car on. Lance glanced quickly at his door, gauging his options of escape before glancing back at JC. The gun sat in JC's lap, forgotten about for the moment as JC put the car in gear and hit the gas. The car jumped backwards as the pedal hit the floor and Lance threw his hands forward, catching himself on the dashboard before he slammed into the front windshield. He saw the guard hurrying back into the building and he silently cursed George for not equipping the guard with guns, much less a simple radio. Lance reached for his door handle, adrenaline pulsing through his veins, but he stopped abruptly, the gun inches from his nose.
"Don't even think about it," JC warned as he squealed out of the parking lot, narrowly missing an oncoming car as he entered the street. Lance hastily grabbed for his seatbelt; his breath caught in his throat as he was thrown around the passenger seat.
"Slow the fuck down!" Lance shouted at JC as the car barely stayed on the road, rounding a corner as fast as possible. JC spared him a glance and eased up on the gas at the terrified look on Lance's face. It was on the tip of his tongue to apologize, but he quickly squashed the urge. Instead, he faced forward, intent on finding the freeway and getting out of Orlando as fast as possible.
**
That's it. JC just royally screwed up, huh? Will he be able to prove his innocence to Lance after kidnapping him? Will he even be able to escape Orlando with his life intact? When will the slash start? All good questions and all will be answered in time. :) Hopefully the next chapter will be out soon...hopefully! :) Robin nsajscgirl@yahoo.com