Chapter 1: The Worst Kind of Prison

JC sat there with his back against the make shift wall, the sounds of war off in distance and a gun in his hands.  He closed his eyes for a minute, secretly wishing that this was all just a bad movie that he was acting in.  But a sudden jolt from another solider brought him back to reality.  He struggled to understand what the man wanted him to do.  It was clear that they were about to do something brave or stupid that he was likely going to regret.  The man pulled the pop star to his feet and began to pull him in the direction of the fighting; JC wasn’t so sure that he even wanted to be running toward the enemy at this point fleeing in the other direction seemed like a much better idea. 

A million things ran through his mind as they made their way closer to the gun fire and smoke.  They were facing a very unlikely enemy.  No one saw this coming certainly not JC.  There was a sudden burst of light and sound, and then everything became fuzzy.  He fell to a ground and struggled through the dust and smoke to find the man that he had originally been following, but he was nowhere to be found.  Finally he saw someone standing before him; she couldn’t have been more than 5 feet tall.  JC couldn’t make out her face because of the gas mask that she was wearing, but he could tell that it was a girl and that wasn’t a good sign.  He wanted to protest or try to explain but he began to cough and gag as the smoke around him got thicker.   Was this really happening, he was being taken down by an army of women? In his final moments before passing out he struggled to make sense of what was happening.  He wasn’t a warrior; they must be getting desperate to have sent him to the front lines.

Once the smoke cleared the young woman pulled her mask off and stood over the now sleeping man.   She smiled; right away she knew who he was.  She knelt down beside him and ran her hand through his hair before calling to another lady to assist her in loading him in to the back of a nearby truck.

The truck drove for awhile; JC was becoming aware of the gentle rocking as it moved down the road, it was heading to a building that was a safe distance from the war zone.  But he was still unable to move as his limbs refused to respond to his brains demands. 

There were only a few small groups of men that were still holding out.  This was a war spawned from love and a desire for a peaceful world.  It wove it’s self into the fabric of every society, every nation, and every religion.  It grew in secret places but mostly, it grew in the hearts of women.  The women were fighting a war as only a woman could, it was moving swiftly and had minimal casualties.  After all it was not their intention to kill the men, just to control them.

When the truck stopped JC felt some people pull him out of the truck bed and begin to drag him somewhere.  He struggled to open his eyes and though the haze he could just barely make out the buildings, but he could tell by the sound of their voices his captors were female.  He tried to speak but the words just came out as mumbles and groans.

The two women lifted him up on to a gurney and allowed the nurses to take him from there.  JC struggled to make out what they were saying, not that it made any sense to him at the moment.  The lights on the ceiling passed by quickly, telling him that they were heading some place in a hurry, probably do to his now increasing movement. 

They wheeled JC into a room where a female doctor and handful of nurses were waiting; the doctor looked him over.  “This one looks really familiar to me, do I know him?” She asked out loud.  “You think you know all of them, doctor.” One of the nurses joked.  JC suddenly felt cold as they began to undress him.  The dirt covered camouflage fabric was quickly ripped from his body.  He moaned in protest but was still not strong enough to successfully stop them.  JC fought one of them as they tried to place a mask over his face when she had enough she set the mask down and secured his hands to the bed.  She slipped the mask on with ease after that.  He struggled slightly against his restraints while the other nurse hooked him up to an IV.

He didn’t know what they were doing, but he was sure he wouldn’t like it and that it was going to mean trouble for him down the road.  JC looked around trying to take in as much as he could before they sedated him again. There was nothing special about the room that he was in; it was just an ordinary operating room.

The doctor calmly told him to count down from 100 as she flipped a switch on one of the machines.  JC panicked and increased his breathing which in hind sight probably wasn’t the best thing to do in this situation, as it allowed the drugs to seep into his system much faster.  Soon things started getting dark.  He tried to fight the drugs; he just wanted to know what they were doing to him.

When the JC finally woke up a great deal of time had passed.  He found himself in a padded cell with one wall that was clear and see though.  He laid there for a minute trying to remember what had happened.  His head was killing him; there were bandages on the back of his neck but he dare not disturb them as it was still tender. He felt kind of naked, wearing only a pair of white shorts.  There were so many fears running through his mind about what might have taken place in that room once he was out and his current lack of clothing around so many women.

A few people passed by the cell, none of which he recognized all of which were women.  JC sat there for awhile watching out the window, still cringing from time to time from the headache and pain that he was experiencing.  The events of the day flashed through his mind, as he tried to piece to all together.  His concerns for what they may have done to him began to build.

            There was a tap on the glass JC looked up and saw a woman with a clip board staring back at him.  The door slid open and she motioned for him to follow her.  JC refused and the woman just smiled almost as if she had expected him to disobey her command.  She pushed a few buttons on the hand held device and JC suddenly felt the most intense pain that he had ever experienced.  It seems to radiate from every part of his body.  He fell to the ground but tried to maintain eye contact with her.  Between groans he managed to ask her what the hell she was doing to him.

            “Welcome to the Supremacy System solider.” She said sweetly.  When the pain stopped he glared at her.  He started to say something to her but found himself unable to speak.  JC knew it was something that she was doing to him but he couldn’t explain it.  “Now follow me Mr. Chasez.” She asked, but the tone in her voice led him to believe that if he didn’t there would be more pain.  The unexplained control she had over him frightened him, but he couldn’t make himself obey.  JC shook his head and pressed himself against the wall as another wave of pain washed over him.

            She got close to him as he cringed and clung to the padded wall behind him.  “Don’t fight it, JC.  Make it easy on yourself and just be a good boy.” She whispered.  Her hand gently ran down the side of his face which was slightly covered in sweat.  The woman held up the controller and slowly one by one took away his senses, leaving him in a heap on the floor of his cell for what seemed like hours.  Unable to see, hear, speak or even move.

            His thoughts were racing, maybe that was the only thing that she couldn’t control.  Inside his mind he was cursing himself, if only he had surrendered.  They said that those who had surrendered were shown mercy by the new government, maybe they weren’t being held prisoner in their own bodies.  He had never felt so trapped and so alone.  A few tears escaped his eyes as his thoughts continued to race to the point where he was just pleading with himself to just stop thinking.

When the woman returned she gave him his hearing and his speech back.  “Are you ready to be a good boy now, JC?” She whispered in his ear.  JC jumped at the sudden sound; it was the first thing he had heard in over an hour.  His lips quivered slightly before he spoke.  “Yes, Miss.” He mumbled through clinched teeth.  The thought of living his life in darkness unable to move scared him.  He felt his limbs begin to respond to him again and his eye sight return.

He let her help him back on to his feet and he willingly followed her down the hall.  Inside his head he was trying to figure a way out, but he had never thought they would imprison him like this.  This wasn’t something they had covered in the army boot camp. She took him to a room with a few other women.  They stripped him and forced him into a cold shower where they scrubbed him down making his skin red from the harsh treatment.  But he found himself unable to complain.  He was a pop star, this shouldn’t be happening to him. 

He turned to the woman closest to him and he begged her with his eyes.  He let his face speak for him, letting his bottom lip quiver a little as if to drive his point home.  His eyes cut into her like knives and she turned suddenly to the other woman unable to take it.  She just smiled at him once again. 

“Save it sugar.  That stuff won’t work where you are going.” She said.  He swallowed hard and looked at her with concern.  “You are going to the reform camp.  They are going to make a whole new man out of you.” She answered as if she had read his mind.  JC felt a shiver run down his spine, imagines of from this planets war torn past flashed through his mind.  This didn’t sound good for him at all.

Chapter 2: The Perfect Man

            Chris sat there alone in the room, taping his fingers on the table nervously.  He wasn’t exactly sure where he was or what was taking so long.  But he knew why he was there, he questioned in his mind if he had made the right choices, though at times it didn’t really seem like he had.  The world was changing fast now and he was just trying to keep up.

            I single tear slipped out and ran down his cheek as he thought about the last few days.  Chris had just wanted to be a free man.  He had spent days locked in his basement with his friends, armed with whatever they could find.  It had all happened so fast, when the enemy came and stormed in taking them all down so quickly.  The sights and sounds were haunting Chris.  It had been a stupid plan and he was sorry that he had ever talked the others into it.  It was on a constant replay in his mind as he sat there waiting.  The minutes creped by, then finally a woman entered the room.  She flipped through some papers before tossing them on the table in front of him.  He sat there looking up at her, studying her, wondering what was next and still trying to figure out what had already happened.

            His head was killing him; he couldn’t be sure if it was from all the thinking or the strange new injury to the back of his neck.  He didn’t remember getting hurt in the fight, but it was possible.

            “Where are my friends?” Chris asked softly.  The woman leaned across the table and slapped him across the face as hard as she could.  He recovered from the sudden blow and stared at her confused, still rubbing his cheek.  He hadn’t expecting that.

“First of all, you don’t speak unless spoken to.” The woman rudely explained.  The shock read all over his face. 

“Please just tell me if they are okay?” He begged, bracing himself for another blow.  This time she silenced him by another means; now unable to speak he just sat there and sobbed lightly.  Chris tried to control his emotions after all he didn’t want to upset her further but the tears just rolled down his cheeks.  It was a cross between his fear for his friends and the new fear of wondering why he couldn’t speak any more.

            The woman carefully explained to him where he was and what to expect going forward making little mention of what had already happened, other than to let him know that she had some kind of control over him.  It wasn’t exactly what he had hoped to hear, the woman was brutally honest with him.  This new government was full of corruption just like the last; they hadn’t fixed anything in his eyes.     With women now in complete power, there had been hope for a bright future, but I guess that kind of depended on which side you were on.  Chris suddenly felt like he was on the losing side of things.  Men were the enemy now, but it wasn’t like he had done anything to anyone.  He had always been extra nice to his female fans.

            Options for guys were limited; He was property of the new government, to do with as they saw fit.  His future was now in their hands and that scared him, it was already clear that they didn’t care about him at all.  Of course he had shot at them, which clearly hadn’t gone over well.

            Where he sat now in the Florida state reform center, which specialized in teaching men to accept their new place within society, roughly translated it meant that they would hurt you until you did as you were told.  If you failed to conform you were taken away to work camps or stud farms.  They always had a use for you whether you were willing or not.

            Chris sat there with his hands folded neatly in front of him as the woman continued to yell at him and put him into his place.  He wasn’t sure if it was in his best interest to fight her or to just obey. 

            “Do you have any special skills, Mr. Kirkpatrick?” She asked. Chris thought for a minute he wanted to be sure to answer her correctly, he couldn’t take another round of the unexplained pain they were causing him.  There was no telling what they had done to him, now they could hurt him without even touching him and silence him with the push of a button.  He hardly felt human any more.

            “Yes, I am a singer.  I know a little bit about mixing music as well. Um… I had a clothing company once.  Is that what you mean?” He said softly.  The woman nodded, she already had a pretty good idea who he was and what he was capable of, but she wanted him to confirm it.

When she was done with her questions, two other women came in, and took him away.  He didn’t fight them as they led him down the hall.  They instructed him to remove everything; as property of the state he couldn’t keep any of it.  In the distance he could hear the sound of men calling out in pain.  I thought it might have been some of his friends, but he had never heard them make those sounds before so he couldn’t be sure.  After a cold shower he was examined by a doctor and then allowed to redress in the clothes that they provided.  It was unnerving and an embarrassing experience to say the least. 

He just wanted to go home, if his house was even still standing.  That’s when he thought of something that really upset him.  Where was his mother and why hadn’t she come to save him yet?  She wouldn’t let them treat her only son this way would she?  Was she okay?  He couldn’t take the pain of not knowing.

“Please can I see my Mama?” He burst out suddenly.  The woman just shook her head.

“You made your bed and now you have to sleep in it.  There is no leniency for prisoners of war.  If your mother finds you and can afford to buy you from the state, then you may be in luck.  But I wouldn’t count on it Rock Star.” She explained carefully.  Chris felt his heart sink.  What if he had turned himself in, then could he have seen his mother, could she have saved him?

Nothing was going to be the same as Chris started to take notice of the way the women were treating him, he was trying to keep his nose clean and steer clear of trouble but it was hard to do with the women in charge being so critical of him.  He was expected to be follow orders and not to ask questions.  Making mistakes, although human nature, was frowned upon.  It’s like they expected him to be the perfect man.  He wasn’t sure that he could be perfect and that scared him.

            Once Chris was moved over to the main building, he was assigned to kitchen duty, the work was hard and he thought it was an odd assignment considering his past career, but he guessed that there wasn’t much of a need for musicians in this place, though anything to lighten the mood around there would have been helpful.  He was washing dishes and looked up just in time to see Joey passing through the food line.  Joey looked confused and a little uneasy, Chris assumed that he had recently arrived and had yet to settle into the way things worked around here.  Chris was surprised to see him, Joey had been married and married men were considered property of their wives, He could only guess that Joey much like himself, he had chosen to fight.  The new government didn’t tolerate men misbehaving.  Maybe Kelly though she could get Joey back or maybe Kelly was on the women’s side.  He wasn’t sure if there were any women left in the world that could be trusted.

            Chris wanted to talk to his friend but conversations between men were forbidden here, if he was caught talking to Joey, they both would be punished and Chris found their punishments to be very cruel.  So the only thing he could do was let Joey see him, so that he would know that he wasn’t alone.  Chris hoped Joey would find some comfort in that.  Joey was about to leave the line. Chris made a special trip to drop off clean dishes to the service line, making it a point to walk past Joey’s line of sight.  Joey barely recognized his old friend.

            Joey looked up surprised to see him and opened his mouth as to say something but Chris just put his finger to his lips and motioned for Joey not to speak.  He didn’t want to see them hurt Joey.  Joey nodded and then left the line.  Once the line was gone the women in charge let Chris to get something to eat.  With his tray in hand he searched out Joey and quietly sat down across from him. The two of them didn’t say a word; the lunch room was eerily quiet.  Any noise would have been noticed.  Yet there was some comfort in having a friend.  Some one that knew exactly how you felt.

In the days that followed Chris and Joey would often be on Kitchen duty at the same time, but when Joey dropped a plate and broke it.  Chris felt his heart sink knowing full well what came next.  A woman rushed to Joey and began to yell at him then with a push of a button Joey fell to the ground in pain.  Chris closed his eyes tightly and gritted his teeth to avoid saying or doing anything to draw attention to himself, he knew if he said something or tried to stop them, they would hurt him too. Chris held tight to the counter, keeping himself in place and tried to hum and drowned out the sounds of Joey’s agony.  After she left Joey lay on the floor for  a minute trying to compose himself enough to get up, when he finally did pick himself up off the floor, he quickly got back to work but was moving a little slower.

“This isn’t right.” Joey sighed under his breath; it had been an honest mistake. 

“Don’t worry you get numb to it after awhile.” Chris whispered. 

“I don’t want to get numb to it.” Joey answered.  Chris could see it in his eyes, Joey wasn’t dumb enough to fight them on the outside but in the inside he had a battle raging. 

Chapter 3: For Sale

            The men were run through a tough one month retraining regimen, which was longer if you fought them.  They were taught that there were now just property and to do as their master told them.

JC rested his head against the bars, shielding his eyes from the flashing cameras. He didn’t like the thought of his fate being in the hands of someone else but he was somewhat lucky; He now had value do to his fame as a solo artist and as a member of ‘N Sync.  It wasn’t that they treated him better but they didn’t do anything to injure him psychically.  They wanted him to look prefect for the fans. 

The sale was long overdue, since JC had tried to hold out.  He wasn’t about to let them take his freedom and he was known to be stubborn like that.  Now he was on display in a show room for potential buyers to get a better look at.  He didn’t smile for them or try to put on a show; he wanted them to know that they were buying a very unhappy man. A lot of people showed up mostly just young fans trying to get a glimpse of their favorite singer.  From time to time they would be plucked him from the safety of his cage and make him perform for the crowd, anything to show that he was a good purchase.  JC had some fight in him, he wasn’t going to make it easy for them to sell him off, it wasn’t until he was in pain and broken that he did as he was told.

He was sure there was a better way to survive in this new world but he didn’t care.  He had never felt so low in his life.  This place made him feel like a piece of meat, he couldn’t see how it could get any worse.

When the showing was over they sealed the place up tight and gave the guys that had been on display some bread and soup to tide them over for the night.  This being the only thing that they had to eat all day, they all happily ate it even though it was nearly flavorless.  Once everyone was gone and dinner was over with JC threw head against the bars.  He shook them feverishly and cursed at the top of his lungs, which was something he had wanted to do all day.  The others just looked around to see if anyone was coming to discipline JC for the noise.  Some time passed and no one came, so they felt safe to talk. 

“You are so screwed.” Some guy finally said. 

“I am beyond screwed.” JC replied not looking at him, his eyes were fixed on the ground.  He couldn’t care to face the stronger; it wasn’t like he would ever see him again.  All of JC’s fame was about to bite him in the ass.  A lot of people would want him, for a lot of different reasons, none of which JC cared about any more.  He didn’t feel like singing if someone else was reaping all the benefits and it wasn’t love if someone forces you into it.

“I want to go home.  I want to sleep in my bed.  I want to do whatever the fuck I want to do and when I want to do it.” JC yelled, but he knew that those days were over, now everything he did would be because he was forced to.  All those years that he had put into his career, building it up, would now benefit someone else.

After a bad night’s sleep JC woke up to people setting the stage for the auction.  The guys were given a small snack to get them by as people started to file in for the auction, no fans this time only serious buyers.  JC waited quietly in his cage, trying not to make eye contact with anyone.  He wasn’t about to encourage them in any way.

The auctioneer came to the stage and read aloud some of his impressive accomplishments, then announced that they would begin shortly.  JC lower his head to pray and with a bang from the gavel the auction started.  Everything seemed to go so fast.  The bid was going up faster than the auctioneer could say it.  He never looked up to see who was biding.  JC saw no use in it; after all there was nothing he could do about it. So he kept his eyes shut and listened to the auctioneer rattle off the numbers.  The bidding took longer than even he thought it would.

The numbers slowed down and then stopped.  JC opened his eyes and looked at the auctioneer.  She thanked everyone for coming and called the winning bidder to the stage.  JC had no interest in who had won; he just wanted to get out of here, though he was sure that where ever he was going next probably wouldn’t be any better. 

It wasn’t long before a somewhat older woman approached the auctioneer.  She was dressed nice with her hair pulled back tightly, but she kind of scared JC.  She looked very professional which meant that this was a business transaction.  The officials took her money and then she turned to the JC.  She reached into the cage and grabbed JC’s chin and smiled for the first time. 

“You my friend are going to make me a lot of money, aren’t’ you?” She asked.  JC just glared back at her.  He wasn’t so sure that he wanted to work for her yet.  “I have heard all about you and your attitude mister.  But I think we are going to get along just fine, I can handle anything you can dish out my friend.” She said.  She ordered them to unlock the cage and had them bind JC tightly so they could take him out to the van that she had waiting.

JC was quickly loaded up and they started off for his new home.  He sat quietly in the back of the van, it wasn’t that he was afraid to talk; he just didn’t have anything to say at this point.  It wasn’t clear if this was going to be better or worse than the reform centers had been.  He mentally prepared for the worst but secretly hoped for the best.

            Once they arrived at their destination they took him in trough a back door where they were greeted by and rather somber looking young woman. 

“Alexandra, did you set everything up like I asked?” The woman asked the girl. 

“Yes, Miss Gaillard.  I set him up in Justin’s room and I got the music for his songs this morning.” Lexi answered.  JC perked up a little and the sound of that name, but could it be the same Justin that he had known?  If it was then this wasn’t going to be as easy.   It was one thing to be in pain yourself but it was harder to see your friends suffer.

“Great, now fetch the little heart throb and bring him to me.”  Miss Gaillard snapped.  The younger girl just nodded and then disappeared.  JC noticed that she had rolled her eyes at her boss’s snippy attitude.   Miss Gaillard turned to JC who was still trying to take it all in.  There was a very stern look on her face as she got close to him and wrapped her hand around his throat.  She squeezed just enough to cause him to struggle a little to breathe. 

“Listen up sugar.  You belong to me now and you will do as you are told or I will make your life a living hell.  I can hurt you in ways you can only imagine.” She explained carefully.  JC nodded in agreement to her, if nothing else just to get her off of him.  The woman untied JC; it wasn’t like there was any place for him to run now.

Lexi returned with a very cautious Justin Timberlake in tow.  He didn’t know why his master wanted to see him but it couldn’t be good, it never was.  She only called him when she wanted something or he was in trouble.  The look on Justin face when he saw JC said it all.  This wasn’t a place that JC wanted to be.  Justin heart sank when he realized his friend was there.  JC looked Justin over, he seemed a little leaner than JC remembered and he seemed to be very submissive.

“Justin, would you be a dear and show JC around?  Maybe help him get settled in?” Miss Gaillard asked, but Justin knew he didn’t have a choice.  “I need to talk to Alexandra for a minute.” She added.  Justin just nodded and waited for the two women to leave before taking JC by the arm.  He led him into what appeared to be a night club.

Jade Gaillard owned one of the largest Night clubs in L.A.  It was known for its entertainment and hospitality.  When everything changed Jade was right there changing with it.  She had a staff of attractive young men to work the floor and a few cocktail waitresses mixed in to help keep order.  All the women came here when they wanted to have a good time.

“So this is the stage, they will probably have you performing.” Justin said softly, looking at the stage and not JC.  It brought back memories of his own performances, he hadn’t been there too long, but long enough to know his place. 

“What happens if I don’t feel like performing?” JC asked.  There was no one else around them so he felt safe enough to ask his friend the tough questions.  He trusted Justin to tell him the truth.

“Trust me you want to perform.  On that stage you are safe, for the most part.  She won’t hurt you in front of the customers.  And if you aren’t performing then you have to be out here with the customers.  And they can get…a little rowdy.” Justin trained off as if the memory alone was too much for him; the touching, grabbing, and his inability to tell them no sent a shiver down his spine.  JC saw the expression on Justin’s face and it made his heart ache.

JC could still remember a time when Justin had just been a little kid trying to make a name for himself.  He was a born entertainer and had grown to be very successful.  But now he looked more like that scared little boy then that man he used to be.

“I think I get it.  So how long have you been here?” JC asked.  Justin thought for a minute the days and the weeks were starting to run together. 

“A month maybe.” Justin said making eye contact.  “I can show you where our beds are.” Justin offered.  JC just shook his head and grabbed Justin’s arm to stop him from running off.

“I don’t care about that stuff, I think I can figure all that out on my own.  Just tell the things that I really need to know.  The things that you wish someone had told you when you got here.” JC requested.  Justin took a deep breath before beginning.

“Lexi, the girl you met when you got here, she is your life line.  She’s the nicest one around here, if there is anything you need it’s best to just ask her.  Miss Gaillard won’t even consider your requests.  There’s a perimeter set around the building, if you try to escape it sets something off … and it hurts like hell.  You will probably be like me; we are performers, so we take the stage, several times a night. We also do parties and dates, which aren’t as much fun as they sound.  Those are brutal; let’s just say the girls like to get their money’s worth.  Anything goes accept sex of course.  Sex cost extra and as luck would have it for you and me, it’s pricey.  So it doesn’t come up often.  It hasn’t happened for me, yet.” Justin said, he had taken a seat on the stage and was looking at his feet the whole time he spoke.

“That sounds … great, so I really am screwed aren’t I?” JC asked.  He took a seat beside his friend.  Justin just shook his head, he wasn’t going to lie to JC, and this place wasn’t exactly what they were used to.

“Just do as you are told.  Life here sucks, but it’s even worse if you are on Jade’s bad side.  She really will make your life hell.” Justin explained, assuming that JC had gotten the same warning he had the day he arrived.  He could remember the first time he had told Jade Gaillard no.  She left him for 24 hours locked in a cell with no food or water.  He couldn’t see or hear.  It was so dark and cold; a shiver ran down his spine just at the thought of it.  He didn’t want to see that happen to JC.

They sat there is silence for awhile processing all the information they had just shared with each other.  They both looked up when they heard a woman clear her throat.  Lexi didn’t want to interrupt them, but her boss had sent her to check on the guys and make sure they weren’t getting into trouble.  She smiled sweetly and waved at JC.  After all she hadn’t really been introduced to him.

“JC, this is Lexi.” Justin offered, he gestured to her and returned her smile.  After all she was the only one that smiled at him anymore.  JC offered her his hand; he wasn’t sure what was appropriate in this kind of situation. 

“I hope Justin hasn’t been saying anything bad about me.” She joked.

“Only good things, I promise Miss.” JC said.  It sounded awkward rolling off his tongue but after what Justin had just told him he didn’t want to say the wrong thing.

“You can call me, Lexi.  There is no need to be so formal, I am not as important as it would seem.   It’s very nice to meet you.  I am sure Justin didn’t tell you but I used to be an ‘N Sync fan back in the day.  So Miss Gaillard wants me to spend a day or two with you to get you ready to perform.  Do you remember most of your songs?” Lexi asked, truth be told Jade treated just about everyone like dirt.  JC nodded; after all he should remember them.  He wrote most of them. 

Lexi showed JC to his new room, which he would share Justin.  It looked like what could have been a storage room once upon a time.  Inside there were two cots and a small bathroom.  JC looked around and was somewhat disappointed but didn’t let it show.  Lexi decided to leave the guys alone, she was sure they had some catching up to do and even though her boss wanted her to talk with JC right away about his upcoming performances, she thought she could put it off at least until tomorrow.  JC was in for a huge adjustment and she didn’t want to shove him into it too fast.

            JC watched the door close behind her as she left then fell onto one of the cots.  “This is just great.” He sighed.

            “Lexi did hang up some posters for us.” Justin commented.  JC looked over at the artwork on the walls, he appreciated the effort but it really didn’t make much of an improvement, if anything else it only made it look more pathetic. 

Chapter 4: Don’t Blink

            Lexi could see it in his eyes as the woman next to him pawed at him, his distain and his anger.  She prayed for him to have the strength not to do what she feared he was about it.  She rushed to his table, if nothing else to distract the woman, if only for a second.

            “Hello, can I get you guys something else to drink?” Lexi asked sweetly with the best fake smile that she could muster up.  The girls looked Lexi over and smirked as if they were better than her, just because they had money and were out having fun while she was working her butt off to serve them.  The girl closest to JC quickly placed her order, she also ordered for him. 

            His eyes thanked Lexi, for the distraction that allowed him to breathe without someone’s tongue down his throat or their hands on him.  It was his first night on the floor and only his 2nd night there.  Miss Gaillard hadn’t wasted any time throwing him to the wolves.  But that was how she worked, anything for a buck. 

JC wasn’t sure that he wanted the drink that his date had just ordered for him, he wanted to stay in control.  But he was under orders to drink anything that was bought for him, since it was also profitable for his new master. 

Lexi left to fetch the rowdy bunch their drinks.  As she passed by Justin’s table she paused to let him know that his next performance was coming up.  He nodded and knew she would be back when it was time for him to go.  As he turned back to his date, she immediately locked lips with him.  Forcing her tongue into places that that even he was impressed that she could reach.  Her hand grazed his crotch and she shot him a look that said it all.

            “I am sorry baby, but that costs extra.” He offered.  It was surprising even to him, how much control his master and her magic remote had over him.  She could render him completely useless or could force his body to respond in ways that he didn’t want it to.  But this was one time he was glad she had forced impotence on him.  This woman was rough and would tear him apart if she had the chance, but he was also dreading the day when someone came who could afford him.  He shook the thought from his head and took another long hard drink before his date resumed her torture. 

            They were doing shots and encouraging Justin to join in.  He was starting to hope that they would order food soon, since he hadn’t had much to eat that night, but they only ordered more shots and drinks in an attempt to loosen him up and get more out of him.

            He was somewhat relieved when Lexi came back to get him for his performance.  The girls clung to him and begged Lexi to let him stay, but Lexi insisted that he needed to come with her.  Justin latched on to her arm and took a sigh of relief.

            As she guided him away she noticed that he was a little wobbly.  “Are you okay?” She asked.   He said that he was fine, he knew it was a lie but after all it didn’t matter what he said he was going to have to perform either way.  He prayed that the room would stop spinning long enough for him to make it through his set. 

            He took the stage and began his number flawlessly.  JC hadn’t seen very many of Justin performances from before but he could see that Justin was struggling in some parts.  JC looked at his drink and then at Jade Gaillard who was standing off to the side watching as well.  He blamed her for what was about to happen.

The more Justin moved the worse he felt, he could see JC out of the corner of his eye and he had been trying so hard to be good, so that JC wouldn’t have to see what happens when you mess up.  As he was just about to finish the second song Justin fell to his knees and proceeded to get sick all over the stage.  Lexi dropped her tray of drinks and rushed to him, trying hard to pull him off the stage before he made everyone in the club ill.

JC felt bad for Justin; he understood what he was going through and was on the brink of getting sick himself and he wasn’t even the one that had been trying to sing and dance.  He closed his eye and resisted the urge to run and assist his friend.  JC knew if he left his table there would be hell to pay.

In the back room Justin was hunched over a trash can when Miss Gaillard walked in.  Perhaps his gag reflexes were something that she couldn’t shut off.  His angry master watched him and waited for him to finally stop.  His eyes were begging her for mercy as his body heaved forward repeatedly.  Justin’s body was already aching from its own form of punishment but there were no signs of mercy showing on his master’s face.  When his stomach was empty and the gagging stopped, he turned to her, sliding toward her on his knees and begging for her to spare him.  Justin tried to explain what had happened and that he wouldn’t make the same mistake again.

Lexi lingered nearby wanting to help him more; she had a wet rag in her hand but doubted that her boss would let her give it to the poor man, if nothing else to wipe the vomit from his mouth.  Miss Gaillard wanted to strike him, but knew that she couldn’t, his face was literally worth a million bucks.

“You are an idiot.  This is all your fault and don’t think you won’t pay for this.” Jade snapped.

“I am sorry; I didn’t know what to do.  I thought I could get through it.  Please, I didn’t mean to.” Justin begged, unable to hold back the tears.  Jade Gaillard wanted to inflict as much suffer upon him as she could, but this would also be a good opportunity to teach another stubborn man a lesson.

“Lexi, go get JC.” She ordered.  Lexi froze, she wasn’t sure she had heard her right.

“No, master, please don’t.  Just punish me.” Justin begged changing his mind since he knew the punishment was coming any way; he didn’t want JC to have to watch this.  But Jade motioned to Lexi to do as she had been told.  Lexi hesitated, she had a bad feeling about this but she couldn’t afford to lose this job so she left to fetch JC.

JC was shocked to see Lexi approach his table again, their drinks weren’t low and it wasn’t time for him to go yet.  It was the look on her face that said it all.  She told the ladies that JC would be back but she needed him for a minute.  The truth was she didn’t know if he would be back.  What was about to happen wasn’t going to end well for any one.

Lexi wasn’t sure what was going through JC’s mind, but she knew that the thoughts racing through her mind were about to make her sick.  The only thing she could do was turn to JC and mouth the words ‘I am so sorry’ before turning him over to Miss Gaillard.  Justin was still on the floor balling.  JC thought he would never live see the day that a woman would make Justin Timberlake cry. 

“What’s going on?” JC asked, his eye darting from Jade to Justin.  Lexi felt the knots in her stomach churning and darted from the room, before she could be made to do anything else for the horrible woman. 

Jade rolled her eyes as Lexi ran out and motioned for two of the other waitresses to help her instead.  They latched on to JC’s arms as JC felt his legs give out.  They pushed him down on his knees and held him in place forcing his gaze to Jade.

“I think it’s important for you to see exactly what the price of failure is around here.” Miss Gaillard warned.  There was fear in Justin’s eyes as the wicked woman toyed with his friend.  JC tried to break free but it was clear that she had done something to him, he felt weak and unable to fight them off.  “I told you I would break you down.” She added.

“This is sick, I didn’t do anything.” JC snapped.

“You haven’t done anything yet, but I can see it in your eyes.  You’re thinking about it.” She explained, not that she needed a reason.  She laughed and turned back to Justin.  His body tensed as if it could sense what was about to happen.  She held out her controller and looked at JC as she slowly turned the dial, gradually increasing Justin’s pain.  Justin fell to the floor and curled into a little ball but nothing helped.  He groaned and made sounds that JC had never heard anyone make before.

“Stop it!” JC yelled without even thinking.  It only encouraged her as she raised it a little more.  Justin groveled and begged her to stop.  JC tried to look away but they forced him to stare in that direction.  He closed his eyes just as a single tear escaped.  He didn’t want her to see him cry as he fought back the rest of the tears, in his mind he couldn’t let her win.

Justin was hurting in places that he didn’t even know he had, nothing he did eased the pain and he rolled around on the floor.  His eyes were clenched from the pain, but he was glad that he couldn’t see what she was doing to JC.  He wasn’t sure what was worse, what she was doing to him or the fact that she was using him against JC.  His upset stomach was now just a faded memory and the pain was sobering him up quickly.

Jade grabbed JC’s chin and force him to look at her.  He glared at her hatefully, the tears still welling up in his eyes.  “You fuck up, and I’ll make him watch.  We can do this until you two idiots get it right.” She snapped.  JC wanted to spit on her or tell her off, but he could see Justin still rolling on the floor in pain and he knew to do so would only prolong his friend’s suffering.  So he bit his tongue to stop himself from saying or doing anything stupid.  She stood there for a moment just to see if JC would cave, but when he didn’t she smiled.

“Now, watch your friend until I tell you to stop.  If you blink or turn away it will only make this last longer.” She said.  JC tried to do as she told him, he watch Justin lay there in agony but when he blinked Jade announced that the time would start over.  JC fought back his growing anger and the need to blink, he eyes were burning begging him to blink.  He held fast for what seemed like forever before Jade had them turn JC lose just as she released Justin from his crippling pain.

“Now, get back to your party JC.” She ordered.  JC closed his eyes and tried to compose himself before getting to his feet.  He wanted to check on Justin, but he didn’t want to do anything that might cause Justin further pain.  So he stormed out.  It wasn’t until he was halfway down the hall that he heard something that he didn’t expect.  The door to the employee bathroom was ajar and he could hear Lexi crying.  He wasn’t sure why but he pushed the door open to check on her. 

She wiped her cheeks and tried to play it off as if she hadn’t been crying.  She got up and ran over to him.  “Oh my god, are you okay?” She asked, taking the wet rag that she had and using it to wipe a little blood away from the corner of his mouth.  He must have actually bitten his tongue.  But he hadn’t felt it; he felt nothing at this point accept anger and contempt.  His focus had been elsewhere at the time.

“I am fine.” He said taking a hold of her wrist and pushing her away from him.  “I have to get back to work.” His voice sounded very cold and it sent shivers down her spine, but she didn’t try to stop him.  She didn’t want any more trouble for them tonight.  He disappeared into the crowd.  She knew he was headed back to the table, after what he had just been through he wouldn’t try anything stupid tonight.

Lexi leaned against the door frame and looked at the rag in her hands and the tiny blood stain.  She felt something burst inside of her but it wasn’t her stomach this time, this hurt so much more.

Chapter 5: Circus Monkey

            JC was lying there staring up at the cracks ceiling.  The uncomfortable cot creaked beneath him every time he moved, so he was trying to be still.  He wanted to just go to sleep but his mind wouldn’t shut off.  He felt a little guilty for the way he had treated Lexi after what had happened.  It hadn’t been her fault and she was just trying to help him.  He had been so blinded by his own rage.  She must think that he was a jerk.

            He rolled over and realized that Justin was still awake as well; they were staring right at each other now.  They laid there for awhile just looking at each other.  They couldn’t speak but their eyes said it all.  Justin finally mouthed the words ‘I am sorry’.  The shame of letting JC see him like that was unbearable, Justin had always been one to stand out and impress people.  Now he was just trying to go unnoticed if possible. 

JC didn’t respond.  He wasn’t sure what to say.  He was sorry too but neither of them had done anything wrong.  The accident on the stage earlier was Miss Gaillard’s fault not theirs.  Why should he feel sorry when he wasn’t the person making all the mistakes?

            Even from a business stand out this clearly was not working.  The guys couldn’t perform like this for every long.  The pressure and the lack of basic necessities would wreak havoc on them; eventually it would break them down.  No one could live like this for long and she can’t make any money off them when they are dead.

            Justin wanted to talk to this friend, if nothing else this experience could bring them closer together.  They could talk about everything and maybe it would make them feel better or at least less alone.  Justin’s eyes began to water, he was so lonely.  He thought having JC around might help but it doesn’t seem to be the case.  It was clear that she would only use their friendship against them.  A lot about what was happening was making Justin uneasy and afraid.  He just wanted everything back to the way it was before.

Miss Gaillard didn’t usually take away their speech at night, but in light of what had happened maybe this was just the final round of punishment for them.  They couldn’t talk about it or come up with a plan to avoid it.  They just had to lay there in their sadness and deal with their own horrid thoughts on the matter.

            JC closed his eyes just to pretend that he was sleeping so that maybe Justin might go to sleep as well.  Tomorrow would be the first day for JC to perform on the stage.  He was suddenly more nervous about it than he had been before.  Before he didn’t care if he did well or not, he hadn’t planned to give it his all, just enough for his slacking to go unnoticed.  It wasn’t long before the pretending became reality and JC drifted off to sleep for real. 

            As luck would have it he didn’t have a party to deal with before he was to go on stage.  JC was sitting in the back room running over the song in his head and mentally preparing himself to go out there and just try not to mess up.  He doubted his boss knew any of his songs so it’s not like she would notice a little slip up like that tonight.

            JC let Lexi clean him up and get him ready to perform.  She was gentle with him and careful not to touch him inappropriately.  Lexi respected him too much to try to take advantage of him like some of the other waitresses did, she would see them grab his ass as he walked by some times then giggle when he got a little ticked off about it, after all no one said that he had to take that from the staff, just the paying customers. 

As she was buttoning up his shirt her eyes finally meet his.  He remembered how rude he had been to her the night before and he wanted to make up for it.  JC couldn’t explain it but he wasn’t okay with hurting Lexi’s feelings.

            “How are you doing?” JC asked sweetly.  Lexi laughed a little under her breath as she fastened the last button.  She brushed his shirt down, subconsciously taking in the firmness of his chest that lay just under the fabric. She may have respected him but that didn’t mean she didn’t find him very attractive.

            “Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”  She asked.  Lexi thought she saw JC smiled a little.  “Seriously though, I am worried about you and Justin.”

“I am a cross between a circus monkey and a male whore.  How do you think I am doing?” He asked.  He didn’t mean to be so blunt but he wasn’t about to lie to her or sugar coat it, after all she was seeing it all firsthand. His feelings were all that he had left in this world; everything else belonged to Jade for now.

“Well, I think you are way cuter than a monkey.” Lexi joked, but no one laughed.  “I am sorry.  I think you are doing great all things considered.  I really want to help you guys but there isn’t a lot that I can do and if I could I wouldn’t know where to start. I just can’t afford to lose this job, even if it doesn’t pay that much and the hours totally suck.” She added after an awkward pause.  JC sighed, he didn’t know why he was being an ass to her, and after all she wasn’t the problem.  She was the only one that was nice to them. 

“I am sorry; it’s not your fault.  It’s just I didn’t expect it to be like this.  I mean I expected it to be hard.  Those women out there are all the same, they buy me booze to loosen me up, they jam their tongues down my throat and they grope me, but they don’t care about me.  Miss Gaillard doesn’t care about us.  You’re the only one that does and I am sorry but it just doesn’t make any sense to me anymore.  It would be easier on you if you didn’t care about us either, so you shouldn’t care so much, you’re just going continue to get hurt.  I can’t stop what is happening.  I’ve never felt so powerless in my life and I have been through so crazy stuff before.” JC said not looking at her for most of his rant.  Lexi was quiet for a minute. 

“I know, I am a fan remember, I am sure you would take on all the law suits and bad media you’ve had in the past again, if it would erase the present.  Maybe if Miss Gaillard sold you guys, the next woman would be nicer to you.” She thought out loud. 

“I am sorry but based on what I have seen; there is no hope for us in this world.  Honestly, you are the first nice girl I have met since all hell broke loose.  The next owner could be just as bad if not worse.” JC said.  He headed for the stage and she watched him walk away from her.  He was still strong and in the best shape that Lexi would see him in for awhile.  She froze that moment in time; it was her favorite mental image of him.  That was how she wanted to remember him.  After that day everything started to go downhill for him.  Lexi had been there the day that Justin had arrived; he had already lost some weight and was starting to look fatigued.  JC’s fate would be the same and she knew it.

Lexi’s stood there and watched JC perform, it was something that she had always wanted to see but could rarely afford.  There was just one time that she had seen ‘N Sync live and it had been so long ago.  She giggle as she thought about her and her friend that night, all dressed up like ‘N Sync would actually be able to see them from their nose bleed seats.  They ditched School and drove for hours to make it to the venue in time.  God what she wouldn’t give to be young and dumb again.  When you biggest concern in life was chasing after boy bands and listening perky pop music at a high volume.  This life was just getting way to complicated.

The guys had really grown up since then though; Justin probably hadn’t even gone through puberty at the time.  She certainly had never thought that she would end up working with them, if that is what you want to call this.

Her heart was aching for them, Lexi didn’t want to admit it to anyone but she had fought in the war.  They had made it sound so good on paper, the whole fight for equality and putting an end to the violence once and for all.  While it was nice to be on the winning side, this wasn’t what she had thought she was fighting for.  This didn’t feel like an improvement all. 

“I wonder if we get an employee discount on their services.” Someone said with a laugh, clearly they had been watching Lexi stare at JC, and while it wasn’t like that al all she could understand how it may have appeared that way.  Lexi spun around to face her co-worker.  The thought of paying for sex or whatever she had been implying was kind of disgusting to Lexi.

“Personally, I miss the game of seduction and the endless displays of genuine affection that I used to get from guys.  This seems too easy; any idiot with a buck can bang a hottie.”  Lexi stated then walked off.

Chapter 6: New Addition

There was a familiar absence of her employer for a few days.  Lexi didn’t bring it up but the guys had noticed it as well.  None of them felt good about it.  It was their day off and the guys were trying to rest and take it easy, hanging out in their room while Lexi tried to tend to their needs.  Justin had a sore throat and JC was complaining about his back, which probably had a lot to do with the uncomfortable cot he was sleeping on combined with the dance moves he was being asked to perform on stage.  She had tried every home remedy and every over the counter treatment she could think of but they were both still not improving.

That was when the door flung open, amidst a swirl of dust a man was tossed down on the floor a few feet from Lexi.  Both guys jumped a little but Lexi remained somewhat unfazed.  After all she had been there long enough to expect anything.  Jade Gaillard stood in the doorway; Lexi couldn’t tell if she was happy or mad so she just waited for her to say something.  She was frozen in place.  Justin and JC hung their heads and waited as well.  It wasn’t until the man began to cough from the dust that they both recognized the sound of his voice.

Jade stepped toward them and snatched the man by his hair, pulling him up off the floor until he came to rest on his knees.  Chris placed his hands on top of hers trying to prevent the violent woman from ripping his hair out.  Tears were flowing freely down his cheeks; his eyes were so full of fear.  Lexi felt her heart break; this wasn’t like before when Jade had brought JC and Justin to her.  Chris was filthy and dressed in rags.  He was terrified and had dry blood on his face from an old head wound.  It wasn’t clear the cause of his injuries, had Jade Gaillard beat the carp out of him and if so, then why? 

“I have a new project for you today Lexi.” Jade stated.  She released Chris, but he remained where he believed she had wanted him, lowering his arms at glancing at her to see if she would hurt him again. “Make this thing look human again.” Miss Gaillard added roughly messing up Chris’s hair and then walked out without another word.

Lexi smiled and got down near Chris, trying as hard as she could to put him at ease.  She examined the cut on his head and gently ran her hand along his jaw line.  He just bit his lip and looked at her with uncertainty. 

“Hi, I am Lexi.  What’s your name?” She asked.  She knew who he was but she just wanted to hear him say it, to say anything really.  He softly told her his name, letting his eyes dart from her to the other guys and back again, and then he waited for further instructions.   “Okay Chris, let’s get you clean up.”  She turned to the other two, it wasn’t that she didn’t want to do it but Chris might be more comfortable with his friends.  “Would one of you mind helping Chris into the shower while I track down a bed for him?” Lexi asked.

JC was hesitant but finally got up.  He had never seen any guy in his bad of shape.  Justin waited; he knew that the bathroom was barely big enough for one let alone 2.  JC latched on to Chris biceps and pulled him to his feet.  They all notice that Chris cringe a little as he got up; there was no telling what injuries his clothing was hiding.    Lexi looked at JC as if to say ‘let me know what you find’.  JC nodded back to her and then guided Chris into the bathroom.

“I can help you set up the cot.” Justin offered, just wanting to feel useful.  He followed Lexi down the hall to where they stored stuff.  The two of them wrestled one of the cots out of the cluttered space; both of them trying to avoid the obvious questions that was on both of their minds.

“Do you think he is going to be okay?” Justin asked looking at her; there was so much care in his eyes.  He didn’t want to see his friend suffering. He hadn’t seen Chris in so long; he cursed himself for not spending more time with him before all of this had happened.

“I don’t know but we can all work together to get him back on his feet.” She said.  Lexi was sure she could tend to his physical wounds, but Justin would have to help heal any emotional ones that Chris might have. Lexi also knew that this place wasn’t ideal for healing, if anything being here might be worse for Chris.  But maybe it was not as bad as where he had come from.

Lexi shuttered a little, thinking back to what JC had told her about if Jade sold them.  Maybe JC had been right, maybe there were worse places to be than here.  It was pretty clear that Chris had found just a place. 

JC turned the shower on for Chris and then helped him pull his shirt over his head, revealing several large bruises across his ribs.  His friend wouldn’t even make eye contact with him; it was as if he was ashamed of his injuries and they way that he looked at that moment. 

“That looks like it hurt.” JC stated.  The silence was bothersome to JC.  Chris looked nervously at the door.  “It’s okay, we can talk.  Miss Gaillard is long gone and Lexi doesn’t care.” JC explained.  Plus he figured if Miss Gaillard didn’t want them to speak to one another she would have seen to it that they couldn’t like she had done in the past.

Chris placed his hand gently against his ribs and flinched at the pain.  He knew exactly how it had happened along with the other bumps and bruises that were spread across his body, but he didn’t want to tell JC, at least not yet any way.

“Yeah, you could say that.” Chris said then stripped the rest of the way and climbed into the shower.  JC turned his back to him and propped himself up against the wall, he didn’t want to go too far as Chris didn’t seem to sure on his feet.  The water wasn’t very warm but it felt good to Chris despite the stinging as it ran over his scraps. 

“There is soap and stuff in there on the floor.  Let me know if you need any help.” JC offered.    Chris looked down and snatched up the shampoo.  He worked hard to get the grease and dirt out of his hair, trying to use just enough soap to get clean but not be wasteful.  “So you really aren’t going to tell me what happened to you?” JC asked.  Chris shook his head, realizing after he did it that JC couldn’t see him anymore.

“It doesn’t matter.  I am here now.” Chris said.  His voice lacked emotion and that worried JC.  Chris had always been a passionate person, willing to share his hard ships with any one that would listen.    JC didn’t push it any further, maybe in time Chris would open up about it.  But there was one thing JC had to know.

“It wasn’t Miss Gaillard was it?” He asked softly.  He wouldn’t put it past her to hurt someone and Chris wasn’t known as the most attractive one in the group, so his appearance could have less value to her.

“No, she was rough but this much dirt and grime takes time.” Chris answered as he watched the steady stream of dirt go down the drain.  He wanted to put JC at ease but there wasn’t much he could offer him, other than to knowledge that his master hadn’t been the one to inflict such damage on him.

Justin reached in and handed JC a clean pair of underwear before rushing back to help Lexi make the bed they had just set up.  Lexi appreciated Justin’s willingness to aide her, but his mind had to be a flurry of questions and concern regarding the new addition. 

“Hey if you think you can handle this, I’ll go look for some more Band-Aids and stuff.”   Lexi asked, she had a feeling that she just wasn’t going to have enough and she wanted to pick Jade’s brain about what exactly she was thinking bring Chris in there like that, maybe even find out where Chris had come from.

JC kept his back turned as Chris stepped out of the shower, he was almost afraid to look at his point.  He handed Chris a towel and the clean underwear. 

“I can see if Justin can find a blanket, but Lexi is going to need to look you over and tend to your injuries before you get fully dressed.” JC explained.  He didn’t wait for a response before sticking his head out the door and asking Justin to hand him a blanket.  JC handed it to Chris and then stepped out, waiting just outside for Chris in case he needed a hand.

Chris put his hand on JC arm as he passed him but was able to make it to his bed without any help additional help.  He sat on the cot for a minute not saying anything just adjusting the blanket that was draped loosely around him.  Chris wanted to talk to them, after all he hadn’t talked them in so long, but he wasn’t sure what to say.  ‘Hi, how are you doing?’ just didn’t seem appropriate.  They sat in silence for what seemed like forever before Lexi came back.  She hadn’t found all the answered she had been looking for but she had gotten the stuff she thought that Chris might need.

“Do you want them to step out?” Lexi asked.  Chris shook his head no; he didn’t want to force his friends out.  But he was nervous about them seeing him like this, they must have picked up on it because they both sat down on one of the cots and faced away from Chris, trying hard to respect his privacy. 

Chris let the blanket fall onto the bed as he sat there shivering, waiting for Lexi to give him the next order.  Lexi couldn’t stifle the gasp that escaped her lips.  She ran her fingers along the bruises.  Chris flinched but didn’t say anything. 

“I am just checking for broken bones.” Lexi explained.  He nodded.  She hoped there wasn’t anything broken; Lexi wouldn’t know how to fix it if there was.  In reality she wasn’t even qualified to do the work that she was already doing.  “I think you are okay, does anything feel broken?” Lexi questioned.  Her eyes met with his for a minute.  He looked scared.

“No, it doesn’t feel broken.” Chris sighed.  Lexi smiled at him again, just to make him feel better; she didn’t want him to be afraid of her.  She sorted through her stuff and found a rag.  She dipped the rag into peroxide and it stung as she ran it over the wounds; some of them looked a little infected, when she was done with that she put some cream on the wounds that looked the worst and cover them as best she could. 

After she handed Chris his new clothes Lexi left the room, taking his old rags with her, they would need to be burned or something.  But she wanted to give the guys some time alone, to help Chris settle in.  Lexi felt ill when she thought about what Jade had done to JC when he arrived and hoped that the same wouldn’t happen to Chris.    The man was already broken; he knew his place better than most, to do so would just be cruel. 

Justin and JC exchanged glances while Chris got dressed.  They weren’t sure what to say or really what to do for him at this point.  “So do you want us to show you around or something?” Justin finally offered.

Chapter 7: Fear and Friendship

            Chris worked to balance the tray of drinks in his hand as he made his way through the crowd.  In her rush to start making money off the poor man Jade had insisted that Chris get to work right away, it was Lexi who has suggested he work as a waiter until his external injuries healed.  After all, the last thing Chris needed were women putting their hands all over him right now.

            It also gave Chris a chance to see what he would be dealing with down the road as he deliver drinks to JC and Justin’s tables, watching in horror  as the women took advantage of his friends.  It concerned JC that Chris always did as he was told, generally without hesitation.  In the days that had followed Chris’s arrival he had said little about where he had come from and what had happened. 

            “Do you think Chris is alright?” JC asked as Lexi put her final touches on his appearance before sending his out on stage.  She paused and looked at him, it seemed like an odd question to her.  In just the few short days that Chris had been there she had already seen a big improvement in his overall health, which probably wasn’t going to last. 

            “I have not had too many long conversations with him, but he seems okay, all things considered.” Lexi said, not really sure what JC was looking for.  His blue eyes were slightly dimmer now, but still incredibly sexy and currently not making contact with her.  “JC… what is going on in that head of yours?”

            “I am just worried; Chris is acting fine, maybe a little too fine.  Do you think there could be something wrong with him?  Like mentally or something?”  JC said shrugging his shoulders and gesturing in the direction of the tables Chris was tending to.  Lexi sighed sometimes dealing with these guys was like dealing with kids.  She grabbed him by his shirt and shook him a little.  He put his hands on top of hers and looked her in the eye.  They were so close now; it might have made them uncomfortable had they taken the time to think about it. 

            “JC, I say this with love and respect.  You got to go on stage in 5 minutes!  Now is not the time to be stressing about Chris.  I know that he is your friend.   I’ll keep an eye on him, you focus on this because if you don’t Chris is going to see firsthand what that evil woman can do and I don’t think that he is ready for that.” Lexi stated, letting go of him.  JC nodded, as usual Lexi was right.

            JC left her to go up on stage and Lexi turned her attention to Chris.  She watched him for a minute as he greeted a new table.  He was trying so hard to do everything right, the guy was clearly afraid to mess up which in this situation his perfectionism wasn’t really a bad thing.  But at this pace he was going to wear himself out.   Lexi knew what Jade would do to him if he screwed up, though it probably wouldn’t be as bad as what had already happened to him, it wouldn’t be enjoyable.

            Lexi tapped Chris as he rushed passed her.  “What did I do something wrong?” He asked his eyes large with fear.  “No, you didn’t do anything wrong, just slow down before you trip or something.  It’s going to be a long night.” She explained trying to make is sound more like a suggestion than an order.  Chris just nodded and slowly turned to head back to the bar.  He knew that she was right at the pace he was going he would wear himself out and create some unrealistic expectations for Jade.  No one could keep that pace up forever.

            At the end of the night Justin slipped into their room and fell onto his cot and was almost instantly asleep.  The young pop star was completely whipped.  JC stopped Chris as he was about to enter their room.

            “Are you okay?  I am really worried about you.” JC asked.  Chris stared at him for a minute a little puzzled by the question.  Chris felt that he was doing great since he got there.  His wounds were healing and he was almost ready to start performing. 

            “What are you talking about I am fine.” Chris asked.

            “Exactly, you being fine is what has me concerned.  I can’t believe you are okay with all of this.” JC said.  He motioned around him as if to drive his point home.  Chris glanced around, sure their surroundings weren’t impressive by any means and maybe it was Chris’s fault for not explaining sooner, this place was an upgrade for him.

            “You don’t understand, and I don’t expect you to because this is the only place that you have been besides the reform camp.  So of course you think this is bad.  But I can tell you that I have seen worse.” Chris explained then pushed past JC and into their room.  He sat on his bed and took his shoes off, he sighed before taking the time to remove Justin’s as well.  The man hadn’t even bothered to do so in his rush to fall asleep.

            Chris’s eyes were fixed on Justin but he knew JC had followed him in.  Justin didn’t even look like the same guy any more.  The pressure was taking a toll on the young man.  That did scare Chris a little, if Justin couldn’t handle it then what chance did an old man like him have.  But the only thing Chris could do was try.

            “So tell me what happened, help me understand why you think this place is so great.” JC begged.

            “I didn’t say that this place was great, I just said I had seen worse.  God knows this place is going to have some challenges.” Chris corrected.  JC groaned and kicked his shoes off, hoping that Chris could tell by his body langue that he needed to know more.  “I am not going to tell you what happened.  It’s not going to make you feel any better.”

            “You don’t know that?” JC stated.

            “Trust me I do.  I don’t even want you to feel sorry for me.  I am just glad it’s over.” Chris said.

            JC took a seat beside Chris on the bed, like a child waiting for someone to tell him a story.  It was clear that he wasn’t going to go away. “The first woman that bought me was… aggressive and demanding.  Something happened that was out of my control and in no way my fault.  She beat the crap out of me for something that I didn’t even do.  Then she threw me down a flight of stairs and called the cops to come get me.  The cops came and they beat the crap out of me some more because I was a guy so of course I was lying about the thing that I said I didn’t do.  So now I just want to do the right thing and stay out of trouble.  That is all you need to know.” Chris explained trying to control his anger. 

            Chris had been right, hearing this was not making JC feel better.  He was feeling guilty for even asking but it was helping him understand, Chris was not happy to be there with Jade, he was just happy that she wasn’t beating on him for no reason.

            “Please don’t ask me to tell you what happened to me in detail, I just can’t even think about it.  But After a few days the person that accused me finally admitted to making the whole thing up.  I was released from jail but the family didn’t want me back after what had happened.  So the corrections office put me up for sale.”  Chris sighed.

            “I am sorry, I shouldn’t have asked.” JC said.

            “No, it’s okay.  I can see how the way I have been acting would seem odd.  I should have told you at least that much sooner.  I want to be a free man just as much as the next guy but I also know what happens to guys that break the law or disobey orders.  I hate to tell you but this prison is a whole hell of a lot better than actual prison.”  Chris joked a little trying to lighten the mood, after all what was done was done, nothing was going to change what had happened to him.

            “Right, I supposed that Justin had the right idea though, because in this prison you are going to need all the sleep you can get.” JC pointed out, Justin was so far gone JC wondered if he had heard any of their conversation. 

            “I do have a concern though.” Chris sighed.

            “Yeah what would that be?” JC asked.

            “Jade has 3/5’s of N Sync how long do you think it will be before she finds the others?” Chris asked.  He knew that was the direction that Jade was going in, it only made sense.  The group made the guys was worth more, since they had proven success, and Jade Gaillard wanted money.  With the group back as a whole it would mean more singing and more dancing that ever before, as well anything else Jade could come up with.  “I know Joey is in the system.  I saw him at the reform camp in Orlando and I am sure Lance is too.”

            “Joey, are you sure?” JC asked, though it didn’t surprise him too much.  His faith in women lately was not as strong as it once had been anything could have happened between Joey and his wife.  “It’s… unfortunate, but I think you are right.  However there isn’t anything we can do to stop it.  We just have to stick together and look out for each other; this friendship is all we have left.”

            “What about Lexi isn’t she your friend?” Chris asked.  He had noticed the two of them talking a lot and spending a lot of time watching each other when they didn’t think anyone was looking.  JC stuttered a little and tried to think of a way to explain it.

            “I am not sure what Lexi is.  There is a honesty about her that I really do like, but I have a hard time trusting her completely.” JC explained. 

“Because she is a woman?” Chris asked.  JC just nodded, that had to be it.  Lexi hadn’t done anything to him accept to be overly nice to him.  He groaned and buried his face in his hands; he would have to talk to her tomorrow about it.  He felt like a jerk again.  “Relax JC; I am sure Lexi understands that you have trust issues.  She is seeing everything you are going through first hand.  But I think it’s in our best interest to bring Lexi into our inner circle.  We don’t have that many friends here, besides each other of course.  It might be helpful to have a friend that can actually help us, even if it is just a little bit.”

“Since when did you get so smart?” JC asked.  Chris just shrugged. 

A few days past and not much changed, but the guys were starting to put a plan in to action.  They needed a friend that could actually do something for them.  That friend being Lexi just made sense.

            “Hey, Lexi!” JC yelled, running a little to catch up with her.  He had been thinking a lot about what Chris has said. Maybe having Lexi on their side was a good idea.  He was trying to look past his trust issues and give her a chance.  Lexi smiled at him as he approached her, she carefully balanced the tray of dirty glasses that she was taking back to the bar to be washed.

            “So…” JC started to say but paused.  He scratched his head and tried to think of away to ask her, his question without coming across as using her.  “I couldn’t help but notice that Miss Gaillard hasn’t been around for a few days.  You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that would you?”

            “Why don’t you just ask what you really want to know?  You want to know if Jade is looking for Lance and Joey.” Lexi fired back, but kept her smile.  She knew the guys were afraid of her but wanted to trust her and be able to come to her for help.  JC just hung his head in shame.  “It’s alright I like that you are pretending to be my friend.  I wish my all friends looked half as good as you do.” Lexi teased.

            “I’m sorry.  I really do like you as a person.  It’s just that you have an informative purpose for me as well.  I have a need for information more so than friends right now, because if you haven’t noticed people around here tend to use my friends against me.  But when I do make a new friend I would hope I will be you.” JC rambled.

            “So, I am in the front running to be your new best friend?  I’ll take it.  But to answer your question, I noticed that she was missing as well.  Though people don’t tend to tell me anything around here, they also don’t seem to notice me.  I heard some of the other girls talking and it seems that Jade is in Orlando.  So it’s a good bet on which one she may be looking for.” Lexi explained.  The fan in her was excited to think about the group getting back together but the person standing there next to a thin and very tired JC Chasez was a little nervous.  The look on JC’s face let her know what he was nervous too so she hugged him.  At first he was tease but he slowly relaxed and lightly hugged her back.

            “What is this for?” He sighed taking in the warmth of her body so close to his.  There was something soothing about it.  She wasn’t hitting him or yelling at him, this was nice for a change. 

            “You just looked like someone that needed a hug.” Lexi said softly, before releasing him.

            “I need more than a hug, but thank you.  That helped.” JC said afraid to make eye contact with her.

            “I know you do, but I am limited on what I can do for you.  I will promise you this much, when I find out something so will you.  You can count on that just don’t forget that I am sometimes that last to know.” Lexi said, letting her smile fade a little at that last part.  However sad that sounded it was true.  She liked that JC was opening up to her.

            Jade was missing for a few more days which had to mean that something was defiantly going on.   This time around Lexi pushed harder to find out what was going on, so that she could have the honor of telling the guys beforehand.  When she finally over heard the news that she had been waiting for she took off running down the back hall, jumping over boxes and dodging people.

            By the time she got to their room she was out of breathe.  She took a seat one of the cots, barely taking the time to notice that a spring from the crummy bed was poking her in the butt.  The guys just stared at her not really sure why she was there.  JC leaned against the wall ran his hand through his wet hair, wondering how long it was going to take for her to realize that he was only wearing a towel.  The door to their room didn’t have a lock but it had been closed for a reason, they were all trying to get showered and ready to the busy night ahead.

            “I heard that Jade is coming back tomorrow and she isn’t coming back alone.  No one is sure yet who she is bringing but it’s defiantly a guy.  I am thinking if she was in Orlando then if could be Joey.” She said, still trying to catch her breath.  It was when she looked at JC for approval that she realized why he was smiling at her.  As embarrassed she was, it was also kind of a turn on and that sly smile of his was not helping.  “Oh my god, JC I am so sorry I should have knocked first, right?”

            “Its fine, you seemed excited about sharing your news with us.  It’s not a big deal.  I’m covered.” JC stated.  He held out his arms to show her more.  At this point he was just teasing her but it was rare that he had the upper hand any more.  After being violated on a nightly basis it seemed like only a matter of time before Jade turned the bar into a strip club, and he would be on display in all his glory.  JC shook the thought from his head and tried to focus on the problem at hand.

            “So you think Joey is coming tomorrow?” Chris asked, even he could see that the two of them were clearly distracted by each other.  Lexi shook her head and turned to him, trying to figure out what he had said.  Chris repeated it for her and smiled, it was clear that she was developing a thing for JC and JC might even have a thing for her.

            “Yes, Joey should be coming here tomorrow.  I can only hope there are no surprises like when Chris was brought in, no offense.” Lexi said, secretly hoping that Joey was at least unharmed.

            “None taken, I know I was a mess.” Chris said waving it off. 

            “Thank you Lexi for telling us.  It’s nice of you.” Justin offered.   He had been filled in on the plan to bring Lexi closer to them and use her more to their advantage.  After all it wasn’t hard to be nice to her when she was always nice back.  Lexi smiled and then left so they could get ready.  She paused outside of their room and leaned against the wall.  As nice as it was to see JC like that, it would have been a little better if he wasn’t starting to thin out now.  The man used to have amazing arms but now … they were just lacking something.

Chapter 8: I Need You

            Lexi looked down at her phone; she couldn’t believe that this was happening.  He boss had been texting her instructions all day, no one knew where she was or why she couldn’t just pick up the phone and call Lexi. 

            “You know your cell phone number was probably listed in your job application.” JC pointed out after the fifth or sixth time her phone had gone off since she arrived there.  Lexi had stopped and got all of them some fast food on her way in to work, sure it wasn’t the healthiest thing in the world to feed them but at least it was filling. 

            “Yeah, that is probably not the smartest thing that I have done.  This doesn’t make any sense; she wants Chris to perform tonight.  He is nowhere near ready for that yet.” Lexi snapped, she set her phone aside and worked on finishing her own dinner.

            “I can do it.” Chris sighed.  He didn’t want Jade to think that he was weak or incapable.  There were some doubts in the back of his mind but he just ignored them.  Lexi rolled her eyes, Chris would do anything you told him to without question, but this seemed a bit early to her.  Since there was no telling when Jade would be back Lexi felt obligated to do as she was told, but warned Chris to take it easy out there tonight, there was no need to try too hard.

            The night was just like any other night, it was Saturday so of course the place was packed and apparently Jade had promoted Chris’s performance because everyone was asking about it.   Lexi had a really bad feeling about this but as requested she got Chris up on stage and he did the best that he could but you could see that it was taking a toll on him.  When he got off the stage he was breathing heavy and covered in sweat.

            “This is stupid; I am canceling your second performance.” Lexi snapped.  He grabbed her arm to stop her from darting off.  Between breathes he was able to beg her not to.  Chris had seen Jade walk in while he had been on stage.  If Lexi canceled the performance Jade would get angry, most likely at him since there wasn’t anything that she could do to Lexi.

            “You were right; Miss Gaillard didn’t come back alone.” Chris stated and pointed Lexi toward the back wall where Jade was standing.  Joey had his arms folded across his broad chest, his eyes locked with Lance’s, as Jade stood between them.  It was clear that neither one of them wanted to be there.  “If I can’t get through this tonight, I am so screwed.” Chris added.

            It was official the group was back together.  Chris could only imagine that it would mean performing as both a group and as solo artists.  The dance moves that ‘N Sync had been famous for were going to come back to haunt them.  This night couldn’t get any worse.

            Lexi patted Chris on the back; she could see the worry on his face, even though his breathing was starting to return to normal.  “I guess you should get ready your date.  I’ll come get you when it’s time to take the stage again, in the mean time it looks like I have something else to take care of.” Lexi said and then headed for Jade.

            “Lexi, this is Joey and Lance.  I think you know what to do.” Jade stated shoving both guys toward her.  Lexi flashed them both a sympathetic look and then gently took them each by the hand.  “Oh and start working with them tomorrow, I want ‘N Sync to take the stage in one week.” Jade ordered as they started to walk off.

            Lexi paused in disbelief; she turned to her boss but couldn’t even form the words.  That was impossible.  Jade didn’t wait for her to say anything she just stormed off leaving Lexi there in a state of shock.  Lexi finally locked eyes with Lance; clearly he was thinking the same thing.  She forced a fake smiled and led them away.  There was no point trying to talk to them over the loud music.  Once in the back, safe in their room, she took the time to formally introduce herself. 

            “Was she serious?”  Joey asked softly.  He walked around the small room touching a few things but not really making eye contact with anyone.

            “I think so, I am sorry.” Lexi said, really what else could she say.  If Lexi didn’t help them get ready Jade would just make someone else do it.  Either way this was happening.  “I’ll go get some more beds out of the storage room, but you’ll have to set them up yourselves.  I have to help the others.  Please just make yourselves at home, as much as you can that is.”  Lexi left, she had a million things to do tonight and this wasn’t one she had counted on.

            As she was on her way back to the floor, she jumped a little when someone grabbed her arm and brought her to a sudden stop.  She put her hand on her chest and tried to calm herself, JC didn’t mean to scare her but she was walking so fast and she hadn’t heard him over the music.

            “Is it true?” JC asked.  Lexi just nodded and hung her head.  JC closed his eyes and let out a sigh, “This isn’t going to be good is it?”  Lexi shook her head.  There was no telling how much JC knew but there wasn’t anything she could say to make him feel better.  They were all screwed.

            “I would love to talk to you about it but I have to get back to work, maybe we can talk later?” Lexi asked.  JC just nodded and released her arm.  This wasn’t what he wanted to happen.  For the first time ever the last people JC wanted to be around were his friends.  But there wasn’t any time to dwell on that, he was due on stage in 10 minutes.  Lexi groaned loudly, knowing that no one would hear her over the music and then stormed off to find Chris.  He was going on after JC.

            This was the last performance of the night, Lexi watched as Chris struggled through it.  This wasn’t right, the guys were already falling apart there was no way they could keep this up.  Lexi had expressed her concerns to Jade before Chris took the stage but she may have well have been talking to the wall.  The show went on any way.

            In the middle of the last song Chris just collapsed on stage.  Lexi ran to him as quickly as she could.  She thought he had died.  Once she got to him she was relieved to see that he was still breathing.  Miss Gaillard joined her on stage; she reached down and smacked him, yelling at him to get up.  He whimpered but his body remained limp.  It was clear to Lexi that even if he had come to, he wouldn’t have been able to get up.

            Miss Gaillard ordered Lexi to take him to the back room and to get her as soon as he woke up.  Jade was furious and that didn’t bode well for Chris.  Lexi put one of his arms over her shoulder and drug him off stage where one of the other waitresses was there to help the rest of the way.   They set him on his cot and turned up the AC a little.  The other waitress left quickly, no one really wanted to be there when Jade got a hold of him, but Lexi stayed.

            “Is he okay?” Lance asked, he was more than a little concerned.  This was a really bad sign.  Lexi didn’t say anything at first.  Honestly she didn’t know if he was okay or not and if he was, he wouldn’t be when Jade got done with him.

            “Lance… Joey.  I am not going to lie to you guys.  Things will probably get pretty ugly in here after Chris comes too.  Jade isn’t happy and she may make you watch.  It wasn’t his fault.  Chris has been through a lot and it was just too much for him tonight.” Lexi explained.  She got up and got a cup of water, she had a pretty good feeling that Chris was just dehydrated.  “I hope you guys are prepared for the worst.” Lexi added as a tear rolled down her cheek.

            Both guys just looked at each other, not really sure how to respond to that.  They had kind of mentally prepared for the worst but this was so much harder than they thought it would be.  Seeing Chris like that didn’t give them a lot of hope.  The night was pretty much over so Lexi stayed there with Chris, about 10 minutes passed before his eyes slowly opened and he looked up at her.  Lexi ran her fingers though his dark hair and handed him the water, which he quickly drank.

            “I am in trouble, aren’t I?” Chris asked in a low tone.  Lexi just nodded to him and looked over her shoulder at the other two guys.  They were just watching them; after all there wasn’t much else for them to do. 

            Chris looked away and played with a stay string, then asked her if she was going to go get Miss Gaillard now.  Lexi said no, she wanted him to rest for a minute before she went to get her boss.   She wasn’t sure what Jade was going to do to him but it couldn’t be good.  Lexi waited as long as she felt that she could without being obvious and then left to find Jade.

            When Jade returned alone, Chris wasn’t surprised.  He didn’t blame Lexi for not wanting to be around for this part.  Miss Gaillard laid into him with a full on verbal assault before ordering him to stand up.  He did as he was told, he moved away from the beds because he knew what came next.  The last thing he needed was to get injured when he dropped to the ground in pain.

            Lexi was waiting in the hall, leaning up against the wall and trying not to think about what was going on.  She could faintly hear what was being said and in some cases screamed.  There was no way that this job was worth this.

            “It’s not your fault.  You know that right?” JC asked.  He had been watching her for awhile and he had seen what happened to Chris.  He knew enough to know what was going on.  But he didn’t like to see Lexi in so much pain, there wasn’t anything she could have done to stop it.  JC knew that Lexi was against Chris performing and that she had tried to talk Jade out of it, but Jade wouldn’t listen.  Lexi was almost as powerless as they were.

            “This isn’t what I signed on for.  This wasn’t in the job description.  I got roped into this because Jade had heard that I had been a fan and I knew most of the songs and dance routines.  This isn’t what I want to be doing with my life.” Lexi explained.  Her eyes fixed in the opposite direction of the man that she was talking to.

            “It’s not exactly what I want my life to be like either.” JC stated.  He got closer to her and forced her to look at him.  “This sucks, but we need you.  I need you.”  Without thinking about it he leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips.  It had just felt like the right thing to do at the time.  She stood there shocked and confused, letting the wall support her weight.  JC just smiled and walked off, back into the club to find Justin.  He would wait until Jade was done with Chris before heading into their room, so that he could avoid being drug into the middle of it.

            After a few minutes her boss emerged from the room.  She snapped at Lexi to get in there and get the new guys ready for bed.  It was annoying because they had names, none of which were that complicated or hard to remember.  Lexi gritted her teeth and stormed into the room, she didn’t want to say something that she might regret.  JC was right, this wasn’t a great jig but the guys did need her.  If nothing else this would get her mind off of what had just happened.

            Chris was laying on the floor sobbing; Lexi sat down beside him and tried to comfort him while the other two just looked on.  It broke her heart to see the tears in their eyes, on the brink of escaping.  She couldn’t make out what Chris was saying between sobs so she just sat there rubbing his back, trying to sooth him as best she could.  This couldn’t be easy for any of them.

            “I guess you need to drink more water or something so that this doesn’t happen again.” Lexi offered, though she wasn’t sure it would help, the problem was he was just exhausted. 

            “There wasn’t any water, just beer and booze.” Chris explained, after all he had looked for something, he knew that he was thirsty and had been in this business long enough to know that it was important to stay hydrated. 

            “Sorry, I’ll make sure there is something waiting for you next time.” Lexi said.  Chris just smiled at her; somehow he knew that she would look out for him.  She just couldn’t protect him.

Chapter 9: Wonderland

            The guys were hard at work trying to get ready to perform as a group.  Usually it would take months to prepare for a show like the one Jade was trying to put together, but they didn’t have months, just days.  When they weren’t working the club, they were working on their routines. 

            Lexi was trying to talk some sense into Jade but it was like they weren’t even speaking the same langue half of the time, Jade just had dollar signs in her eyes and couldn’t see past that.  The suborn business woman was missing the big picture; the guys were worthless if they were dead and no one would pay to see zombies perform.  When Lexi couldn’t get through to her, she lied to her instead.  She would tell her that the guys were working very hard and couldn’t be disturbed when in reality they were trying to sleep.

            Then there was the kiss.  It was in the back of her mind the whole time.  His soft lips pressed against hers, even for those few short moments, just the thought of it was enough to take her breath away all over again.  But just as quickly as it had happened; it seemed to have been forgotten.  JC was acting as if nothing was wrong, like nothing had happened.  It wasn’t like she expected him to ask her out on a date or something.  He could at least acknowledge that he did kiss her.

There was a feeling of loneliness that followed.  Lexi had left everything and everyone behind to move to California, she had wanted a change but it was times like this that she did miss her friends and family.  Now the one person here that she wanted to talk to, she couldn’t really.  It wasn’t like her and the guys were actually friends.  Even if they were what advice could they give her, they were basically slaves.  She didn’t expect them to understand what she was going through when they were going through something so much worse.  Why would they feel sorry for her?

“I know that I am new here but you sure look like you could use a friend.” Lance offered, as if he had read her mind.  She glanced over at him and smiled sweetly, it was after all a nice gesture.  “You know, you work almost as much as we do.  I get why we do it but what is your excuse?” He added.

“I wish I had one.  Truth is I just moved here after the war, I don’t know many people.  Plus I don’t get paid a lot per hour so I have to get as much over time as I can, so that I can pay my rent.”  As she spoke she looked at the floor, it was a sad existence.  You would think working with celebrities would be glamorous and pay better. “Shouldn’t you be resting?”

“I can’t sleep; this place kind of gives me the creeps, I can’t get comfortable.” Lance explained.

“It never will be comfortable but eventually exhaustion will set in and you won’t care how uncomfortable it is.”  Lexi explained.  She really wished that it wasn’t the truth but it was, so why sugar coat it.  “I had a friend once, a good friend but her and I live in completely different worlds now.” She added as she got down off the bar stool.  She was about to head out for the night, the guys needed to rest and there wasn’t much more they could do tonight.

“How is that possible?” Lance asked a little intrigued. 

“I live in the real world; she lives in wonderland, with big houses and fancy cars.”  Lexi explained.

“A fairy tale world would be really nice if you ask me.  If her world is so much better, then why are you here, instead of where ever she is?” Lance sighed.  Lexi groaned she wasn’t trying to be so depressing, but Lance seems interested in the story.  Through it wasn’t really a very good bedtime story she humored him.

“It really is a wonderful place, but she built it for herself, based on her needs and desires.  It made me realize that we were two completely different people.  I wanted to see what I was capable of creating on my own.  Clearly I should have stayed in wonderland with her, where putting a waterfall in your house made perfect sense.  Aside from getting to meet you guys; I haven’t really done a whole lot.  I’ll tell you about fairy tale land sometime; I am sure you have been there once upon a time.  You really need to try to get some sleep, who knows maybe you will dream of a better place.” Lexi said taking the man by the hand and leading him back to their room.  Lexi couldn’t tell if the guys were really asleep or just faking it as she tucked Lance into bed. 

“That feels like a lifetime ago, when I used to spend money foolishly and do whatever I wanted.  Your friend was she nice?” Lance asked letting out a little yawn.  Lexi just nodded, she had been a great friend.  “When what happened, why don’t you talk to her anymore?  It can’t be healthily for you to just hang out with a bunch of guys all the time.  Don’t you need some girl talk?”

“Well that is what I have you for now.” Lexi teased.

“Hey, I am gay not a girl.  It’s completely different.  Don’t get me wrong we can talk about hot guys and stuff but that is where I draw the line.”  Lance joked back.  The guys had talked and they had explained to him and Joey how important Lexi was to them.  Their plan to bring her close to them was a good one after all, but it was clear to Lance that there was more to this girl.

“Speaking of that, you know that Jade is going to make you do things that you may not be comfortable with.” Her tone was serious as she spoke.

“I know.   It’s not that I am okay with it but it wouldn’t be the first time that I have had to lie about my sexual preference.  But I do prefer guys.  No offense to you or anything.  You are very pretty, it’s just not who I am.” Lance explained, after all it had been explained to him in the reform camp, being bi-sexual was okay if his master allowed it but he couldn’t just be gay any more, as unfair as that sounded, he had to at least pretend to like both sexes if it pleased whoever bought him. 

“I am not offended, I completely understand, I prefer guys myself.” Lexi said with a smiled, after all she wanted to leave on a good note.  “All joking aside, if you need anything just let me know, I can’t promise much but I can promise that I will try.”  Lance just smiled and her and settled into his bed.  He had gathered as much from the others, but it was nice of her to confirm it. 

Tomorrow ‘N Sync would take the stage together for the first time in years, but instead of being happy about it like any fan would, Lexi was terrified.  If it went well it would mean that they would have to do it over and over again, if it went bad Jade would hurt them and then still make them do it again.  Their schedule was becoming impossible to keep up with.  It didn’t help that they were starting to catch colds, probably from making out with all those drunk women during the parties.  There had to be some serious health risks involved in what they were doing.

Lexi laid there in her recliner, which was as far as she had been able to make it after she got home.  Her thoughts were racing; none of it was really making sense.  That was when something caught her eye; it was an old photo sitting on her book shelf.  Lexi titled her head to the side and sighed.

“What would Isadora do?”  Lexi asked herself thinking back to the conversation she had with Lance.  Isadora had been fearless, even before she made her millions.  She had a knack for thinking out side of the box, which would be why she had made millions.  “I will tell you what you would have done; you would have kissed JC back instead of standing there like an idiot.”

Lexi had found her way to the book shelf and now had the picture in her hand.  It had been their High School graduation.  They were both smiling and having the time of their lives.  It was just before Isadora and told Lexi for the first time ever that she was scared, for the first time in their lives there were no rules to follow and no agenda for them.  What happened after that was simple.  Isadora went on to find that rules and other people’s agendas didn’t work for her, if anything they held her back.  Lexi was still working on that.  She still felt like she had to live up to someone else’s expectations, which at the moment that someone was Jade.

There were days that she would love it if she had it in her to tell Jade off and do her own thing.  She laughed when she thought about it; if she had the guys it would be different.  They would all be rich.  When you give everything away like Jade does, it loses value.  ‘N Sync should he playing at sold out arenas not a night club.  And they should be treated like gods, not salves.

“You know what; I think you may be on to something Isa.  It’s time to start thinking outside the box.  It’s time for my own agenda.” Lexi said with a grin and then head to bed.  Maybe she did need to start standing up for herself and speaking her mind.

Chapter 10: A Complicated Love

It was early and there was a ton of things to do before the club opened up, Justin was still really tired but was pretty sure that he wasn’t seeing things.  He watched for a minute just to make sure before he approached, after all JC had confronted Chris when he thought that something was wrong with the way Chris had been acting.

“What are you doing?” Justin asked.  JC turned to him suddenly and tried to pretend like he had been working the whole time and had no clue what he was talking about.  “I saw you staring at her ass.  Are you nuts?  I know we said that we needed her on our side but do you realize dangerous this little crush of yours is?  Nothing can happen between you two.  If Jade finds out either she will fire Lexi and we will have to start all over, or she will use your feelings for her against both of you.”  He forcefully explained.

“Calm down, no one saw me, but you apparently.  I am a guy is there really any harm in looking, aren’t we supposed to be pigs?” JC asked.  JC was trying to hide the fact that it might be more than just a little crush, he wasn’t sure about his feelings anymore and he knew the risks.  If he and Lexi did develop something it would never last, then one or both of them would get their hearts broken for sure. 

“What did you do?” Justin asked, as much as JC liked to think he had everyone fooled, his emotions were written all over his face.  JC ignored the question for a moment as he watched Lexi climb down the latter, her chest bouncing slightly in her tight black tank top.

“I kissed her.” JC stated without making eye contact with his friend.

“What?”  Justin groaned.  Out of all the years he had known JC and all the failed relationships JC had, this was by far the worst situation JC had been in.  “You have got to be kidding me, please tell me you were working on your technique or something.”

            “No but that is a good excuse, I may use that if Jade ever finds out.  It was a few nights ago, she was upset.  I thought that she was going to quit.  It just sort of happened.  It’s not like I haven’t kissed a hundred women this week alone.”  JC explained trying to blow it off.

“But this is different and you know it.  No one made you do it; you did it on your own.  You maybe even wanted to do it.  It’s Lexi; she can’t afford you or your favors.  You did it for free, and Jade hates to give away free stuff.” Justin said following JC’s gaze.  He would be lying if he said that Lexi wasn’t an attractive woman.  This was a different world now, attraction wasn’t important for a guy any more.  With the system in place it didn’t matter if a guy was attracted to a woman or not, with a push of a button she could do whatever she wanted.

It didn’t feel right to think of love that way, but it was their reality.  JC could get them all in so much trouble.  And what if the kiss changed Lexi?  She had access to the controls, if she were an evil person she could do something very bad or if she didn’t share his feeling she could get him in so much trouble.  Justin groaned and put his hand on his face.  There was no point in talking about it now, with so many people around.

“You can’t do that again and I hope that she understood when you talked about it.  But if you are going to stalk her be a little less obvious.” Justin said then started to walk off.

“Oh her and I haven’t talked about it since is happened.  I don’t know what to say to her.  It’s a little awkward.  I have been acting like it didn’t happen.” JC explained which brought Justin to a halt. 

“You are an idiot; you have to talk to her now otherwise she is going to think that it was a mistake.  You’re going to hurt her feelings then we are all screwed.  I can think of a million ways that this ends badly, most of which involve you not talking to her about it.  Girls read a lot into that you know, just ask Lance.  You talk to her tonight.  Let her know that it wasn’t a mistake but it can’t happen again.  I hope she will understand.”  Justin said then darted off before JC could say anything else, as much as Justin wanted to stay out of it, they were all in this together, whether they liked it or not.

JC cursed Justin in his head for being right, he did need to talk to Lexi about it.  He had already noticed that she seemed a little unsure around him and maybe even angry with him.  The truth was that kiss had been the best few second of his life since he had gotten there.  His world had stopped in that moment, and maybe it was Stockholm Syndrome talking, but he was falling in love with her a little every day.

            The challenge was going to be finding the right words to say to tell her how he feels without upsetting her or her thinking that they could ever have a real relationship.  JC left to track down Joey, the only man in the group to have a successful relationship.

After explaining to Joey what happened with Lexi and what Justin had said, the two of the sat alone in their room pretending that they were getting ready so that Jade and Lexi would both leave them alone so they could talk.  Joey started off by talking about his wife, whom he referred to as just that even though they hadn’t seen each other in months. 

“You barely know this girl, what makes her so special?” Joey asked, playing with the gold band that used to be his wedding ring. He had managed to hang on to it though he didn’t wear it any more for fear getting it taken away.  JC just shrugged, there was just something about her and he couldn’t put his finger on it. “I would just tell her that you really like her and though the kiss wasn’t a mistake you would like to slow down and get to know her better.  Lexi seems like a smart girl, she should be able to respect and understand that.”

“I guess I did come to the right guy.  If you don’t mind me asking though, what happened with Kelly?  Where is she?  And why aren’t you with her?” JC asked.  Joey’s eyes went to the ring in his hand.

“In times of war if you aren’t with the majority, then you’re against them.  Kelly tried to protect me and refused to do what they wanted her to do.  They punished her for it; she lost possession of me on a technicality.  Every society has some corruption and this system is flawed.” Joey explained.  He slipped the ring back into his hiding place and then started to get ready; after all they had to make it look like they were doing something in there besides just talking.  It was clear that Joey didn’t think much of the new government but there wasn’t much that they could do.

            “Thanks, for talking to me about this.  You are a good friend.” JC sighed. 

            “That is what friends are for; we don’t have too many people that we can trust any more.  Though I do like Lexi, I have my doubts about her.  It’s nothing personal; it’s just how things are now.  As much as I would like to see you happily married with kids of your own someday, I think those days are over.  Why would any woman marry a guy and give him rights when she can just own him?” Joey explained.

            “She would if she really loved him.”  JC responded as he nervously chewed on his finger nail, glancing at Joey with hopeful eyes.  He had to believe that there was still love in the world, if there wasn’t then what was the point?  “I’ll track Lexi down at the end of the night and talk to her, provided nothing goes horribly wrong tonight with the performance.” 

            As luck would have it the performance went well, it wasn’t the greatest ‘N Sync performance ever but it was okay, all things considered.  It was also wasn’t shocking that Jade announced her intention of having the show every weekend with the guys performing solo during the week. 

Lexi had caught JC starring at her a few times during the night so she wasn’t surprised when he followed her into the hall way as she was leaving.  She heard the door click as he closed it behind him.  He looked up to see her standing there with her arms folded across her chest, just waiting for him to explain why he was following her.  Yeah she was a little confused and upset with him right now.

“Can I talk to you for a second about what happened last weekend?” JC begged.  He glanced around nervously and leaned against the door for support.

“I guess so, but before you say anything, I just want to say that I get that you are scared and confused right now.  You’re in a really weird place.  I get it, I really do.  I don’t completely understand why you would think it was okay to just kiss me, but I am more hurt that you have been ignoring me the past you days.  I know we can’t date or anything but if we can’t be friends either then why am I still here?” Lexi quickly explained which completely threw off JC’s train of thought.  He closed his eyes and tried to quickly process what she had just said.

“I am confused but it doesn’t make it right.  I shouldn’t have kissed you like that and I most certainly shouldn’t have ignored you.  I kind of freaked myself out.  This is my fault.  I really do like you and I want to get to know you better, as a friend of course, I am just not in a position to give you any more than that.  Not that I don’t want more but we just can’t.” JC explained as he took her by the hand.  There was some pain in her eyes but she nodded any way.  She had expected him to say that, it didn’t however affect her hidden agenda.

“I understand JC, I really do.  I think you and I are going to be just fine.  It’s not that I wouldn’t be with you either, I just can’t afford you and this job… it sucks but it’s important for you guys that I keep it.  So I will.” Lexi said then kissed him on the forehead.  It was the best that she could do.  She had thought about it a lot and this was what was best for them both.  They couldn’t be together for now but they could be great friends.  Lexi was secretly hoping that this system wouldn’t last and JC would become a free man again, at that point he might give her a chance.  That was all that she wanted, just a chance.

She smiled at JC as he slipped back into his room.  It had after all been a long night and they all needed some rest so that they could do it all again tomorrow.  She changed her smile when his was out of sight; it was a sly hopeful grin.  Yes she had a plan.  It wasn’t a bad thing but she now knew that JC did have feelings for her, no man would have brought up his feelings if he didn’t care.  He could have just continued to ignore her but he didn’t.

With all of her thinking lately Lexi had decided that her former friend was doing better because she always had a plan, although sometimes they were stupid plans, but plans none the less.  Isadora wouldn’t have waited about for JC to make the first move; she would have put herself out there and made him notice her.  Lexi could be JC’s friend, his really cute and fun friend.  Some day he would come around.

Chapter 11: Fifteen Minutes in Hell

            Things were not getting any better for any one as the weeks moved on.  The schedule was rough and the guys were always sick, they seemed to be sharing everything with each other including cold germs.  As much as Lexi wanted JC to notice her, he didn’t even have time for that.  And it wasn’t personal she could see it in his eyes he cared about her.  But they all needed help.  It was getting harder to ignore that voice in the back of her mind, tell her what she should do.  Her plan wasn’t forgotten, there was just so much to do.

Lexi had decided to come in early and bring the guys a treat.  They had been working so hard and Jade never gave them anything as a reward for their suffering, but when she got there her mood suddenly dropped.  Pasted on the door was a poster for a brand new club promotion.  It read ’15 Minutes in Heaven’.  Lexi read the sign over a few times and rolled her eyes, it had to be one of the lamest promotions yet, and the guys were not going to like it one bit.  She went straight to Miss Gaillard to find out what it was all about since she was probably going to be the one that had to explain it to the guys.

             The promotion was simple and based on the old High School kissing game, by the same name.  Only instead of a teenage boy it was an N Sync guy and instead of a closet it was a cage, because let’s face it if you are making out with a hot guy these days you are going to want everyone to see.  They were going to raffle off tickets to see who got to make out with an N Sync guy for 15 heavenly minutes.  Lexi already hated the idea, she knew how bad the parties and dates were for the guys and these ticket were only a buck, so it was going to open it up to a whole new  batch of crazy fans.

            “I don’t think this is such a good idea.”  Lexi stated then paused to think about how to word her protest in a way the Jade would understand, she had to admit that she was getting better at it but ideas still got shot down from time to time.  “It’s the guys, they all have colds and you wouldn’t want to risks them getting your guests sick would you?  That could really cut down on repeat visits.”

            “Well can’t you make them better?” Jade snapped, as if Lexi hadn’t been trying to do that already.

            “I am trying but it’s hard with their schedule and all the drinking.  Maybe we should get them some vitamins or something?” Lexi asked, it didn’t hurt to throw that in there.  Would it cure them, probably not, but it sure the hell couldn’t hurt.  Maybe it would give them a little boost and since taking them to the doctor was out of the question it was her best option. 

            “I like it, go ahead and pick that stuff up. Save your receipts and I will reimburse you later.  But this promotion is happening tonight, if it doesn’t go well then we can rethink it later.  I need you to explain it to the guys for me.”  Jade said and then shooed Lexi out of her office.

            After getting the instructions from Jade, Lexi went to see the guys, though her present wasn’t going to be as uplifting once she gave them the bad news.  When she walked in no one looked at her or said anything.  Lexi forced a smile then announced that she had a surprise for them, but still no one moved.  It was kind of depressing; Lexi was trying to stay positive.

            She reached into her bag and pulled out 5 candy bars.  Joey looked at her in awe but tried to hide his excitement.  It had been months since he had candy or sweets.  He held out his hands and waited for her to place the chocolate in them.  By the time she got the rest handed out, Joey had his gone.  The others broke off pieces, in an attempt to savor it.  Accept JC, he just set it aside for later, he had been complaining to her that his stomach was bothering him lately so it didn’t surprise her that he didn’t eat it right away.

            “Thank you Lexi, you are a sweet heart.” JC said. 

“You’re welcome, I know you guys are tired and I wish I could do more for you.  Hell I am tired and I don’t do half as much as you guys do” Lexi said then took a seat next to Justin on his bed.  They didn’t mean to be ungrateful so they did thank her.  “I do however have bad news though, not sure if you noticed the posters yet, but you have a new promotion.” She added.

            “No, we have not left the room today.” Lance explained. They were just trying to get caught up on sleep. Amidst groans and sighs of contempt she was able to deliver them their instructions.  She tried to point out the positives, at least it was timed and there was just one crazy girl to deal with.  But nothing seemed to improve their demeanor.

As the night went on the raffle tickets were sold at an alarming rate and at 10 o’clock they had each guy draw a name from his bucket.  The lucky winners were quick to join them on stage.  The first pair climbed in and started the clock.  Lexi turned away she couldn’t even bare to watch.  The girls were forceful, trying to get the most out of their 15 minutes. 

Lance found it awkward and unpleasant, especially since he was gay.  He had no interest in the woman that was practically trying to climb up him, forcing him against the bars and groping him.  After what was the longest 15 minutes ever the bell finally rang and the women were forced off the stage, giving the guys a chance to catch their breath. 

            While the guys were performing their last number, Miss Gaillard approached Lexi to give her some more good news.  The new promotion had been such a success that they were going to do it every Friday and Saturday from now on.  Lexi hung her head; she wasn’t sure how she was going to tell the guys.  So when the night was over and they guys were settling in for some sleep she just blurted it out.

“But that woman tried to rape me tonight, I swear she did.” Lance whined.  The others just took a deep breath and got in bed.  That worried Lexi more than anything else, they weren’t even fighting it anymore, and they had given up.  They were ready to accept that this was how it was going to be from now on.

Lexi on the other hand was not okay with that way of thinking.  Things could be better but she needed a partner for her plan to work.  There was no more time to wait, Lexi stepped out and closed the door, and then she let herself start to cry as she headed home.  Now the voice in her head was screaming at her telling her what she needed to do.  She had a million things going through her mind and no one she trusted, so she did something that she hadn’t done in a long time, she got her phone out and dialed an old friend.  The voice of reason was about to get its way.

            There was a sleepy voice on the other end, but a friendly greeting was delivered through the tired haze.  It was reassuring to say the least.  Lexi hardly said hello before blurting out all of her problems pausing between to wipe her eyes and clear her now runny nose.  She told her about the guys and the club she was working at.  She told her everything and then waited for a reply.  The answer came in the form of a slow and calm voice, just the way she remembered it. 

“Okay, slow down and start over.” Her friend said.  Lexi took a deep breath and fell into her chair before starting over from the beginning, this time going slow and filling in the details as her friend listened intently on the other end, commenting from time to time to let her know that she was still there. 

“Isadora, I have a plan.” Lexi stated when she was finished.  Isadora issued a confused response; this had not been where she thought the conversation had been going.  “I want you to buy them.”

“That is not a plan, it’s a suggestion.” Isadora pointed out.

“Ok, then I also suggest you bring me onboard to work with them.  I have worked with them for months and seen Jade fail miserably.   I have a plan.  I can make you rich…er.  Plus I can give you the insider information that you need to make the sale successful.”  Lexi explained.

“Have you thought about what you are asking me to do?  You barely know me anymore and I thought you said that I spend money foolishly.” Isadora commented.

“You do, which is exactly why I can’t think of anyone else in the world that would want to buy a boy band.  And yes I have thought about this, I have better odds getting somewhere with you than I do with Jade.  Whether you choose to believe it or not but you are still the same person that you were in High School, you just don’t get in trouble now when you do crazy things.  I know you would take good care of them because they are more than just an investment, they could be your friends… maybe even more.  I assume you still have a thing for Chris Kirkpatrick.  He could fall in love with you just like you always dreamed of and yes, I could help make that happen for you as well.  But first you have to be his hero; you have to save him from the monster.  This fire breathing dragon, named Jade Gaillard.”  Lexi said carefully recalling details from conversations that they had so long ago, when they were just girls and still chasing after boys rather than imprisoning them.

“Okay you have my attention.” Isadora said.  She was more impressed that Lexi had gone from soft spoken and go with the flow to a forceful person with a plan.  “Why should I hire you though?  I could just do it myself.”

“When would you have time?  I can tell you for a fact that this eats up most of my day as it is.  I can be there every step of the way and the guys already trust me.  I know how they think and what will work on them.”  Lexi recalled the conversation she had with JC.  She knew they were scared to get a new owner, they wouldn’t know how to act especially when they find out about Lexi’s involvement but it was a chance that she was willing to take.  She hoped that they would eventually forgive her.  They might lash out again and fight back or they could just be too beat down, but If Lexi was there and she knew their new master, they might be okay.  Lexi would take proper care of them and Isadora could pay for everything; she was a fan just as much as Lexi was, maybe even more so.  Isadora wouldn’t hurt them. 

“I didn’t think they were for sale.” Isadora said interrupting Lexi’s thoughts. 

“They aren’t, but they are so sick.  I don’t think they can make it much longer, and if Jade can’t make money off of them, I think she’ll just get rid of them.  I would rather it be to you than some stranger.” Lexi said.  Isadora considered the offer, she wasn’t opposed to the challenge but she was also a business woman.  And Lexi some hoe knew that eventually Jade would cash in and pawn the guys off on someone else.

“This would be a huge investment and if they are as ill as you say they are it would take time before I would see a return.  Just to be real for a minute, can they be saved and can I get my money back?   If I don’t have any money then they don’t have money either.” Isadora asked.  She was always good at asking the tough questions. 

            Lexi wasn’t going to lie to her friend; she hoped that this was the truth. “They want to get better, and they want to live.  I mean they are doing everything they can just to survive.  If you give them a chance they will take it and they are so scared right now they would do anything to make you happy, you wouldn’t have to hurt them.  You could just say what you want and I am pretty sure they would do it.”

            “Lexi, you know me, I am not into hurting anyone.” Isadora said.  Lexi thought she wouldn’t but it was good to hear come from her, but she knew how tempting the Supremacy System was, that much power was going to a lot of people’s heads.  They both knew the risks involved, and Lexi was secretly concerned that what JC had said would be true and that Isadora would turn out to be just as bad as Miss Gaillard, but some risks were worth taking. Either way they were dead men walking.

            “I want it in writing just so you know.  It’s not that I don’t trust you but like you said I don’t know you very well.  If I help you get custody of them, I want in on it.  I want a real job with great benefits and a chance to make things better for the guys.  They don’t deserve this.” Lexi demanded.

            Isadora told her friend that she would look into it on her end and consider her offer, but that it was probably best not to let Miss Gaillard know that they were working together and she probably shouldn’t tell the guys, at least not right away.  They might have mixed emotions about it.  Isadora didn’t want to cause them any more stress or risks them exposing their little deal.  If Jade found out they were working together Lexi could lose her job and Isadora would never get owner ship of the band. 

Chapter 12: Plans and Promises

            The next day Isadora’s assistant walked into her boss’s home office to find it completely trashed.  There were pictures and articles spread out all over the place.  And then there was Isadora in the middle of it all, still in her PJ’s, sifting through the stuff on a fact finding mission.

            “It looks like a teeny bopper magazine threw up in here.  What is all this junk?” Kyliegh asked. 

            “It’s not junk.  It’s research.  Do you remember Alexandria Ackhart?” Isadora asked.  Kyliegh nodded and picked up one of the articles.  “Well she called me late last night with an interesting proposition.”

            “Business or personal?  I know you two used to be friends, right?”  Kyliegh questioned.

            “Kind of both.  And yes, though I still consider her my friend.  She just didn’t understand me at the time.” Isadora explained.

            “Now she does and you are going to do business with her?” Kyliegh asked.

            “No, I am pretty sure that she still thinks that I am insane but she may have found a use for my, unique way of thinking.   I am sure she has her own hidden agenda, but it could benefit me as well.  What do you think of this guy?” Isadora asked holding a picture of Chris out to her assistant.  Kyliegh took it and looked it over.

            “He is alright if you like short, dark and handsome.” Kyliegh teased.  “As usual I am not following you.  What does he have to do with Lexi?”  Isadora carefully explained what they had talked about the night before and how ‘N Sync and Lexi were connected.  “But you don’t know anything about the music industry and it doesn’t sound like Lexi does either.  So why are you really considering this?”

            “You are right we don’t know anything about making music, but the guys do.  They did it on their own before.  And it’s not about the money.  Haven’t you ever thought that there might be more to life than money?” Isadora asked.

            “That is something that people who actually have money say, while the rest of us don’t really know the answer because we are too busy worrying about getting money.  Isa, if you want a lover just get online and you can have a guy here tomorrow, probably even one that looks just like him.” Kyliegh stated holding up the picture that Isadora had given her.    Isadora got up and took the photo from her assistant before walking out.  She wasn’t getting it at all.  Sure she could get a guy that looked just like him, but it wouldn’t be him and he probably wouldn’t love her any more or less than the real Chris Kirkpatrick would, but at least she could have said that she tried to get the right guy to fall for her.

            Isadora knew that she had a different way of thinking but had the world really changed so much that her wanting a specific guy to be with her was crazy?  Were there women out there that were okay with owning someone and just having a bedroom buddy, not really caring who they were as long as they looked the part?  What happened to true love?

            Kyliegh may have been right about the money thing too.  People tend to settle for the lifestyle and things that they can afford, while dreaming about the things just out of reach.  But Isadora could afford Chris and his friends.  She could be his knight in shining armor but that didn’t mean he would reward her and even if he did would it be genuine?  Would she really care either way in the end?

            While there was some sense of urgency to save the guys, Isadora knew that it would take time and everything had to be done right, which she explained to Lexi when she called her back later that day.  Of course she was on board with the plan after all a chance at love, and maybe some more money, was better than having nothing at all, which at times is exactly how Isadora felt despite having everything.  Lexi had to agree with that logic as well, though neither girl was admitting to having any motive, other than money and saving lives.  But unlike Isadora, Lexi had nothing to lose and everything to gain.  Even if JC didn’t love her and she still could be with him, at least she would have a great new job with benefits and more money; she certainly couldn’t have any less money than she had now.

            The guys, even though they didn’t know it, also had nothing to lose.  Jade would either kill them or sell them.  If she sold them there was no tell what scrum Jade would sell them to or how they would be treated, Lexi was pretty sure that even though Isadora’s intentions were still somewhat unknown, the guys certainly wouldn’t be treated any worse by her and Lexi was planning to be there to help them out when she could just like she was doing now.

            The plan was simple; Lexi told Isadora everything that had happened that Isadora could use to win over Jade.  Isadora would pay the club a visit in the coming month.  She would play the part of the spoiled little rich girl that sees something that she wants and will stop at nothing to get it, while playing to Jade weakness to will offer to buy the guys.  By then the guys will be drained and on the brink of becoming useless to Jade Gaillard, which required little to no sabotage on Lexi’s part, nature would just run its course.  As much as Lexi didn’t want to see them like that, she couldn’t stop it any way, and for once it would benefit them in the end because the less Isadora had to spend to get them, they more she could spend on them once she had them.

            Their alliance would be kept secret for now; they couldn’t risk the guys’ reaction affecting the outcome.  Though they had all been actors at some point in their lives and could certainly act the part of the sick and surprised, there was no way of knowing if they would be on board with the plan.  None of them had faith in the system and though the girls didn’t either any more, they still had to work within it.  The government sees the guys as property and until the system crashes that is how the girls had to think of them as well but behind closed doors they could be treated like the people that they really were.  But to the outside world, and the guys for now, Isadora had to appear to be all business while Lexi had to remain the same.

            Lexi was having a hard time staying quiet and letting things go. By now she was calling Isadora daily to see when she was coming, but Isadora was working as fast as she could and Lexi didn’t blame her, she just wanted this part to be over.  All of the guys were exhausted and prone to little slip ups which Jade would punish them for.  It was a vicious cycle of abuse.  It was all taking a toll on Lexi and everyone saw it.

            “I think you should talk to Lexi.” Joey suggested after a bad night.  He has seen Lexi get in to it with a co-worker shortly after Jade punished Lance to tripping on stage.  Lexi couldn’t attack Jade or protect them so now she was taking it out on other people.

            “Why me?” JC sighed.  It wasn’t like he didn’t want to, there just wasn’t much left to say.  He didn’t keep secrets from the guys and they all knew how he really felt about Lexi, which was why they wanted him to talk to her, but there wasn’t much that he could tell her.  He couldn’t tell her that he was fine, because she could see that he wasn’t.  He couldn’t tell her that he loved her, because it would kill him if she didn’t love him back. 

“Trying to get through to Jade lately is like running into a brick wall, it just doesn’t budge, and when you do it often enough it really takes a toll on you.  That is what Lexi has been doing for us, maybe she should quit.”  JC thought out loud.  But this time no one responded or protested.  How much more could they really ask her to endure for them?

JC took a deep breath, before getting up.  That was all the conformation that he needed, now he just had to find Lexi.  Which didn’t take long he could hear her yelling from across the club, he found her in the back hallway beating the crap out of a box that she had stubbed her toe on.

“So now you have taken to attacking inanimate objects?” JC asked.  Lexi looked at him with a somewhat surprised look on her face, partially because she didn’t realize anyone was awake and also because she hadn’t really taken the time to look at him lately.  He wasn’t looking so good anymore; he wasn’t the same guy that he was when he arrived.

“It’s been a rough week.” Lexi sighed.  She took the time to take a seat on a crate that was back there and motioned for JC to join her.  They sat there for a minute in silence.  There was a time when the two of them would sit and talk for hours, but with their schedule and him being so run down; all of his free time was spent sleeping.  Lexi started to say something when JC interrupted.

“You should quit.” He stated.  His eyes were fixed on his shoes, it wasn’t that he wanted her to leave but she needed to.  Lexi paused; she would have liked to think that she had mentally prepared herself for this conversation and many others.

“I can’t quit.” Lexi responded.  JC started to protest, listing the many reasons why she should.  She just nodded and waited for him to stop for air, after all his heart was in the right place.   She needed to give him an answer that would put him at ease and she had promised never to lie to him, so what she said was the truth.  “I can’t quit, unless I find a new job.  My bills won’t pay for themselves.  I have been looking: I have a line on something but nothing has come through for me yet.  Do remember what you told me shortly after we met?  About it being easier if I didn’t care?  That’s not an emotion that you can turn off, you know?”

“I know, I just meant it would better for you if you could.  It doesn’t surprise me that you can’t, you’re a good person.  I just want you to be happy, we all do.” JC confessed.  She looked at him and smiled.  They locked eyes for a minute.

“I could never be happy knowing that you are here and what you are going through.  Even if I left tomorrow I would still worry about you and the others.  I can’t forget about you or pretend to not know what I know.”  Lexi explained.  She patted him on the knee.  It was nice to know that she cared but it was hard to see her like this.

“Swear to me that you are really looking for a new job and you’re not just telling me that so that I get off your case?”  JC begged.

“I swear to you that I am telling you the truth.  I told you that I wouldn’t lie to you guys.  You get enough of that from everyone else around here.  These things just take time.”  Lexi explained.  Her smile faded a little after she spoke and that worried JC.  She knew that JC could see how stressed that she was but it wasn’t just about Jade and work.  There was so much more to it and that too was taking time.  Lexi had to make sure that all this stress and hard work wasn’t for nothing.  Before JC could ask her what was wrong she leaned over and kissed him.

There was some hesitation on JC’s part as her hand found its way to the back of his head preventing him from pulling away from her, not that he wanted to.  But this wasn’t why he had sought her out; he was trying to get her to leave not give her a reason to stay.  Her lips were so welcoming it wasn’t long before he was kissing her back despite his brain telling him not to.

He opened his eyes to find that he was now face to face with Lexi as she straddled his lap, with no clue how she had gotten into that position without him realizing it sooner, he finally put his hands up in protest.  As she pulled away from him, she paused and took a deep breath.  This was the moment of truth.   She figured whatever emotion or expression was on his face when she looked at him, that was how he felt about her.

She was a little confused by what she saw.  His eyes were bright blue but watery as if he were about to cry.  His eye brows were positioned as if he was confused or conflicted.  He closed his eyes and wetted his lips almost like he wanted to kiss her again.  JC rested his hands gently on her thighs before hanging his head.

His emotions were running wild as the seconds felt like hours.  It was upsetting for him to think about.  If a woman that he had feelings for had kissed him like that a few years ago it would have made him as hard as a rock, but this time nothing physically happened, it couldn’t happen because of Jade.  They would never be able to share that kind of intimacy.  As much as he liked kissing her, he would always be left want more.

Lexi shifted and was about to get up when he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a hug, without warning he buried his face in her shoulder and started to cry.  She embraced him back and let his tears soak her hair and t-shirt while the sounds and sniffles and sighs filled her ears.  This wasn’t what she had expected.  But in all the time she had known him, she hadn’t really seen him cry, so maybe he was just long overdue.  Lexi let the warmth of her body comfort him.

“I don’t really want you to leave; I just want you to be happy.”  JC finally said pulling away from her enough to look her in the eyes.  His arms remained around her as if he thought it was the only way to keep her with him.  Lexi used her thumb to wipe away his tears causing him to rest his cheek against her palm.  He was saying everything that she needed him to say without actually saying some of it.  He had feelings for her that he himself couldn’t explain.  “The only thing I have to look forward to any more is seeing you.” JC added, letting a few more tears run down his cheek.

Lexi cringed on the inside, now he was just breaking her heart.  Isadora needed to work faster, Maybe she would if she knew how it felt to want something so bad.  In her head Lexi was begging for Chris’s future forgiveness for what she was going to have to do to speed her friend up.  JC started to say something again put Lexi quieted him by putting her finger to his lips.

“It’s okay JC, I know how you feel.  I don’t want to leave you either but I am going to have to find a better way to release my frustrations before I do get fired.  I need something to look forward to as well.  Promise me that you’ll meet me here every night so that you can at least say good-bye to me.  I have missed you the last few days, I know you are tired but I only need a minute of your time.” Lexi begged.  He held her hand and smiled a rare genuine smile.

“Only if you promise not to leave before I can get back here”

Chapter 13: Seeds

            Miss. Gaillard came in to check on the guys, she was frequently stopping by now to see them, maybe checking to see if they were still alive.  She walked about the room and finally stopped at Justin at looked him over.  Lexi was there of course, watching curiously as her boss sized the guys up, all the while never stopping as she wrapped Lance’s ankle which he had twisted on stage the night before.

“Alexandria, you are a fan, how much do you think I could get out of the guys in stud fees?” Miss Gaillard asked.  Lexi sat there shocked, that wasn’t what she expected her to ask nor was it one of those conversations that she had practice in her head.  Justin’s eyes got big and he swallowed hard.  Jade grabbed him by the jaws and looked him over like she was inspecting her prize stallion. 

            “Stud fees?” Lexi questioned.  

“Yes, how much do you think women would pay me so that they could have ‘N Sync babies?  They do after all have really good genes.” She answered with a smile as she began to move around the room again.  Lexi was filled with rage, this was the stupidest attempt to get money from them that she had come up with to date.  But she took a deep breath and thought about Isadora, what would she say in this situation? 

            “It all depends on your marketing plan really.  I mean if you are just selling the… end product you could do alright, but you are going to have some people questioning the source.  I mean how are clients going to know that it’s really from them?  If you do the complete experience, sort of like direct deposit, you are going to get more but you are going to run into problems there too, like STDs and maybe some performance issues.” Lexi explained.

            “Performance issues?” Miss Gaillard questioned. 

“Yeah, I mean look at them.  They aren’t exactly in the best shape, fatigue being a big issue.”  She answered.  The guys looked at her shocked, this didn’t sound like the Lexi that they knew.  It scared them, was she turning on them too?  Lexi could see the gears turning in Miss. Gaillard’s head; she hoped it was enough to keep her thinking at least until Isadora got her chance to make her move, when she left the guys remained tense, now unsure of Lexi motives.

None of the guys liked it but there wasn’t much they could do.  JC knew that one thing was for sure, he would never willing give Jade his semen just so she could sell it.  She was going to have to force him to and that was something he would fight her until the bitter end on.  No one was going to have his kids without his consent.

“What did you guys expect me to say?   Jade only hears what she wants to anyway.  Maybe now she will think about it longer before she tries anything that stupid.” Lexi explained.  There was so much tension in the room now.  Of course she was the enemy just because she was female.  “It was the only thing that I could think of.  I promise that Jade won’t sell your baby batter.  If she forces you then I’ll come up with another plan, whatever it takes.”

If anything good would come out of it, Lexi now had something that she could take to Isadora to make her work faster.  If Isadora wanted Chris it was likely that she wouldn’t want to share him or his seeds with any other woman.  Not that the photo Lexi had secretly taken with her cell phone of Chris without a shirt on hadn’t helped a little, this was a little more serious.

They all took it bad but Justin took it the worst, he wasn’t sure he even wanted to have kids, let alone to have them with women that he didn’t know.  It’s not at all how he imagined it would be like to be a father and what if he had sons.  He didn’t want them to go through what he was going through; none of the guys wanted that.  Lexi hugged him and told him not to worry.  It was a stupid plan away.  But he also knew that there was nothing Lexi could do to stop Miss Gaillard from moving forward with her stupid plan.  It was times like that when Lexi wanted to tell the guys about her plan.  But by now they were losing faith in women in general there was no way they would trust her completely, she had to keep this secret.

            “Isadora we have a problem.” Lexi sighed into the phone.  A few days had passed and Lexi had heard something that day that didn’t sit well.  So she called Isadora as soon as she got home to see what she should do.  “Jade has arranged for a specialist to come tomorrow to get samples from the guys so that it can be tested and assigned a value.  They are going to freak out and there is nothing that I can do.”

            “That woman really is greedy, isn’t she?  I’ll be there next weekend, if we can start the sale process right away then I can place a hold on the selling of any ‘by products’ but you have to buy me some more time.”  Isadora explained.  Lexi questioned exactly how she should do that.  “I have a rather off the wall suggestion.”

            “Of course you do, and how would the brilliant Isadora Sebastian sabotage this endeavor?” Lexi asked.  She heard her friend giggle into the phone.

            “I would stop by the store on my way to work and buy spermacide.   Put it in the samples when no one is looking that way the tests won’t go well, even if they figure out what happened and retest it, that should buy you at least a week.” Isadora carefully explained.

            “That is … actually brilliant.  I would have to be sneaky and fast of course.  It might just work but the guys are still going to freak out and there is no way to tell if it worked until the tests come back.”  Lexi said.  Isadora told her that there was no way she could protect them from everything so she just needed to focus on what she could do.  She wasn’t super woman.

            The next day Lexi ran her errand and headed for work, she was just praying that this plan worked.  When it came to things like this Lexi had noticed that the dumber the plan seemed the more likely it was to work and this was a pretty stupid one.  She was in such a hurry to find the doctor and put things into place that she literally ran into JC in the hall.

            “Where are you going, you look like you have seen a ghost?” JC asked.  She spun around and smiled at him.  She had to look so guilty and she wanted to warn him but there just wasn’t time to do both right now.

            “I have something that I really need to take care of; I will come find you as soon as I am done.  I swear.” Lexi explained and then took off in a sprint down the hall toward Jade’s office.    As luck would have it the doctor was already there and talking with Jade just outside the back door while the two of them had a little smoke break.  Lexi slipped into the office.  The sample container’s were already sitting on the desk and were even conveniently labeled.  This was going better than Lexi had expected.

            Lexi used her finger to spread the gel on the inside of each one and even got the lid.  She hoped she had used enough to work without making to obvious that there was something in them.  The back door opened just as Lexi slipped the tube back into her pocket.  She raced to the door to greet them and act as if she was awaiting orders. Before Jade could give her demands, she noticed JC making his way back from the bar with a glass of water.

            “JC come here for a minute, Lexi you go get the other guys some lunch.  I need to see them too but one at time, I’ll call you when I want the next one.” Jade ordered and pushed past Lexi into her office.  As JC passed, he paused to look at her, she flashed him a look of guilt and concern but before she could issue her warning she was shoved out of the way.  Jade pulled JC into the room and shut the door in Lexi’s face. 

            JC looked at the door and stood there confused for a minute.  He glanced around the room and it didn’t take long for him to figure out what was going on.  The doctor was prepping her stuff and it didn’t seem likely that they just wanted to give him a psychical. 

            “Oh hell no!” JC stated and threw himself back against the door which was now locked of course.  His glass of water fell to the floor.  It wasn’t long before his legs felt week and were unable to support his body weight, giving way and sending him to the floor as well.  He tried to yell and at least warn the others but nothing came out this time. 

            “I am not even going to bother asking you to give me what I want, because it’s not like you would.” Jade explained.  The two women lift him up and placed him in a chair.  They tied his hands to it, they probably could have just sedated him but Jade thought it would be more fun to do it this way and then there wouldn’t be any surprises for them down the line.  “Relax, this actually won’t hurt a bit.”  Jade teased.  JC glared at her and struggled against his restraints.  This couldn’t be happening.

            When the doctor was ready Jade pulled down JC’s jeans just low enough to expose him.  She used her remote to gradually increase his state of arousal and then to cause him a rather pleasurable feeling, clearly intended to entice unwilling men into sex acts.  JC glared at her for awhile before closing his eyes so that he could focus on not doing what Jade was trying so hard to get him to do.  He tried to think about anything that would be a turn off.   If it was possible to reach a point of ecstasy without cuming JC had no clue how to do it.

            His eyes rolled back as the intense feeling washed over his body, over and over again.  At any other time and any other situation this would have been incredible and by far one of the greatest sexual experiences of his life but not today.

            After what seemed like forever JC was finally forced into a release, which would have felt amazing, but this time it just made him want to vomit.  When they were done, they cleaned him up; when they freed his hands he tried to swing at the doctor anything to get her to spill the contents of the container.  But Jade had one of the other waitresses shove him into the closet and shut the door.  After all it would be easier if the guys willing entered the room so she couldn’t risk JC warning the others.  But it also meant that JC would have to listen to Jade as she tortured all of the other guys.

            “This is bad.” Lexi sighed, “Justin, Jade wants to see you in her office.” Lexi said reading the text Jade had just sent her from her phone.  As he passed her she grabbed his arm.  “I am going to fix this I promise.”  Justin gave her a funny look and left to meet Jade, after all if he was late she would punish him.  Lexi couldn’t bring herself to warn the others either.  It wouldn’t make what was happening any easier. 

            After it was over Jade told Lexi where she had hidden the guys and Lexi helped them back to their room one by one, when she tried to restore their speech and strength but her remote just read ‘master lock on’.  She threw it across the room and screamed at it before falling to the floor in defeat.  She laid there staring up at the ceiling wondering how crazy she looked to the five guys that were watching her little melt down.  Her head snapped to the side when she felt a set of finger inter twine with hers.

            JC didn’t even try to say anything to her; he just lay on the floor with her and held her hand.  It had taken him awhile to get out of bed and inch his way to her.  The others could blame her for not warning them but she never had a chance to warn him.

             “I told you that I would try.  Let’s just hope it worked.” Lexi stated as she reached into her pocked and handed what was left of the tube of spermacide to JC, who looked it curiously.  Her eyes were fixed on the ceiling again.  JC handed it back to her; after all he didn’t want to get caught with it, when Jade goes on the warpath.  He crawled closer to her and kissed her sweetly on the lips, since he was clear that he wasn’t going to be able to make it to meet her at their spot.  He didn’t care that the others saw him this time, if they didn’t know that there was something going on by now then they weren’t very bright.

Chapter 14: Any Way Out

Justin seemed depressed for days after that, not that anyone blamed him.  Lexi had eventually explained to them what she had done but there were still no way to know if it worked.  If it did work then Jade would just do it all over again, if it didn’t then there was nothing to stop Jade from milking them and selling it to the highest bidder, which at this point it seemed inevitable.

It was times like these that Lexi wanted to tell them about her plan with Isadora but there never seemed like a good time and it was risky to talk about it.  If someone found out, it would ruin everything.  When this was over Lexi would introduce them to her long lost friend and hop that it gave them some peace of mind to know that she had Lexi’ endorsement.

  No one ever expected Justin to do what he eventually did.  He decided to take matter into his own hands.  Lexi was prepping stuff for the nights events when the alarm on the hand held device that Jade had given her to monitor the guys, went off which is something that had never happened before, it clearly indicated trouble.  She took off for the guys’ room. When she got there everything seemed fine.

“Where is Justin?” She asked after a quick head count.

“He is in the shower, why?” Joey asked.  Lexi just ignored his question and knocked loudly on the bathroom door.

“Justin?  Is everything alright in there?” Lexi asked, pressing her ear to the door to see if she could hear anything.

“He has been in there awhile.” JC said.

“How long is ‘awhile’?” Lexi asked.  JC just shrugged, he wasn’t like he had been timing him, but the whole room suddenly felt a little uneasy.  She could hear the shower running but no movement, which is when the alarm went off again.  She knocked on the door once more but there was still no response.  All eyes were on her, the walls weren’t that thick so it wasn’t like Justin couldn’t hear her.

She waited a few more seconds before she kicked the bathroom door as hard as she could.  The cheap wood cracked and fell off its hinges. She rushed in to check on him.  Justin was lying on the floor of the shower with the barely warm water running over him.  He was still in his boxers.  Lexi gasped at the sight of blood swirling down the drain.  She picked up the piece of broken glass and tossed it in the sink, out of his reach.  He had slit his wrists with it; this was defiantly Jade’s fault.  If she had just left him alone instead of freaking him out about becoming an unwilling father, he would have never even considered this.

Lexi thought quickly and got some towels to apply pressure to the wounds, which luckily weren’t that deep.  He whimpered when he realized what she was doing.  Lexi wasn’t going to let him do this, this wasn’t the answer.

“Let go.” Justin begged as he tried to pull his hands away from her. He squirmed and fought her, but she didn’t let go.  He thought that he was protecting his future children by insuring that he never had any, the only way he knew how to.  No one could stop Jade.

“Justin, I am not going to let you do this.” Lexi replied, releasing him for a minute.  She had told herself that she would never use it on them but Justin was stronger than she was, so she used the remote to weaken him but not completely paralyze him, though it would have been easier to just knock him out at this point, he had the right to know what was happening to him.  “Justin this isn’t the answer.”

The others were watching her; completely aware at this point of what was going on.  They didn’t think Justin would ever do something like this; this clearly wasn’t the same Justin Timberlake any more.  This was a sad desperate man just looking for a way out.  They understood his pain but death was not the answer, knowing Jade, she would find away to use his death as a way to make money.  They weren’t sure who to help so they just watched.

No one wanted Justin to die, but they respected his right to make that choice himself.  Lexi was still applying pressure when Miss Gaillard came in, wondering why the guys weren’t ready yet.  Justin became quiet, knowing that his pleas wouldn’t work on his angry master. If nothing else it would just make things worse.

 Jade unloaded on both of them.  Lexi remained calm for once, afraid to move again and allow Justin to lose more blood.  She told her boss that she could stop the bleeding; it would just take time for the blood to clot and suggested that he not leave this room tonight.

“It’s not exactly good publicity when your stars try to off themselves.” Lexi snapped.  After all she was sick of getting blamed for this stuff.  It wasn’t like she had given Justin the tools or the reason to kill himself.  Jade just groaned but eventually agreed and informed the customers that Justin would not be performing tonight because he was sick, which was a first.  Jade also issued Lexi a warning to never talk to her like that again.

As for Justin, his punishment this time was forcing him to live with that pain that he had caused himself.  She paralyzed him completely but did nothing to numb his pain, ensuring that he would heal but feel everything.

            “I know you don’t want to die, Justin.  So why did you do it?” Lexi asked, mostly to herself at this point.    He let a few tears slip out but said nothing, he couldn’t move but he refused to look at her or make eye contact.  “I get that you are scared, to be honest I am sacred too, but Jade hasn’t brought up the stud stuff again so maybe she has moved on, maybe something else has peaked her interest.”  Lexi added, knowing that Justin couldn’t answer her even if he wanted to. 

Isadora was coming this weekend, using her birthday party as a cover story but making it known that she was rich.  Maybe that was why Jade wasn’t doing anything with her stud plan any more, just maybe their plan was working.  Jade loves rich people, especially ones that are prone to buy stupid things.  Isadora may have made herself a target after all.  Lexi just had to keep all of them alive until then but Justin’s attempt to take his own life had Lexi wondering if she had lied to Isadora.  What, at that time may have been true, didn’t appear to be true anymore, maybe the guys didn’t want to be saved after all.  Truth be told they were still looking for a way out – any way out.  Escape attempt had been when they first arrived; they had each tried at least once to break out of this prison at some point, now they seemed to realize that it was nearly impossible and very painful.

            She was just about to leave for the night when she heard someone call to her from a distant and the sound of running in the hall way.  Her mind was so clouded and her thoughts defiantly somewhere else that the sudden noise made her jump.  She looked up to see JC sprinting toward her, in all the excitement Lexi had forgotten about their promise.

            “You came?  I thought with all that happened tonight you would be with Justin.” Lexi said turning to greet him.  It wasn’t that she didn’t want to see him, but she understood that his friend needed him. 

            “I made a promise.” He leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips.  “Besides there isn’t much that I can do for Justin right now.  I understand his pain but not his actions.”

            “Same here.  But you know that I am going to try to do everything in my power to see to it that Jade doesn’t get her hands on any more of your… ‘stuff’.” Lexi said.

            “I know you will and I know that there is only so much you can do for us.  We don’t blame you for what happens to us.  I also won’t give up without a fight either.” JC explained.  He hugged her and tried to comfort her, there was no point in beating herself up.  What happened to Justin wasn’t her fault, there was no way she could have predicted it.  Lexi hugged him back but felt a little guilty after all what was going to happen this weekend and probably in weeks to come would be her fault, completely her fault.

            The next day they made Justin wear thick bracelets on his wrists to hide his suicide attempt while he preformed.  Their bathroom door was replaced with a sheet and all sharp objects were to be kept away from them. 

Lexi was getting worried; she knew that Miss Gaillard was getting complaints and people asking for refunds when the guys just couldn’t function in parties or on the stage.  They weren’t even singing live anymore because what came out was less than appealing, the guys sounded like they had been swallowing sand paper.  And it wasn’t their fault, they just had nothing left and death wasn’t just knocking at the door any more, it was a welcomed visitor for some.

The stage had been set, and now it was out of Lexi’s hands.  It was Isadora’s turn to work her magic.  Lexi was asking herself if lying and just not telling someone something were the same thing.  She couldn’t tell Isadora about Justin’s suicide attempt, she needed Isadora to think that the guys were survivors.  In time Lexi was sure that Justin would regret it, and want to live.

Chapter 15: Date Night

            When Miss Gaillard stepped into the tiny room, all eyes were on her.  It worried them when she checked in on them; it was never a good sign.  She had always left it up to Lexi to get them ready. 

“Is there something wrong, Miss Gaillard?” Lexi questioned.  She was afraid of the answer.

            “I need to talk to Chris for a minute.”  Jade said motioning to the door.  Chris nervously glanced around the room and then headed into the hallway.  Before the door had even closed behind them, Chris turned to her. 

“Did I do something wrong?” He asked.  Jade pinned him between her and the wall, forcing him to look her in the eye.

            “You haven’t done anything wrong, yet.  I just wanted to let you know that you have a very important date tonight.” Jade explained.

            “M…me?  Why me, I am not the best at dates.” Chris stuttered.  Jade pulled away a little and slapped him across the face; she didn’t have time for his self doubt tonight.  She needed him bring his ‘A’ Game.

            “Well tonight, you are going to have to be the best damn boyfriend in the world.  This client is very important.  It’s her birthday and she called weeks ago to insure that you would be available to her for the entire night.  She flew all the way from New York to be with you, and you are going to give her whatever she wants.  This woman has more money than she has sense.  You need to make sure that she leaves here happy but a little poorer.” Jade explained. 

            Jade forcefully grabbed Chris’s crotch, causing him to yelp and gasp for air. “And I mean everything that she wants.” Jade repeated, applying a little more pressure.  Unable to speak Chris just nodded.  The fear of what she was asking him to do was building inside of him.  It was a lot of pressure.  “Give her a happy birthday.” Jade whispered.  She released him and then patted him on the cheek.  He flinched thinking that she was going to slap him again.  “And I brought you something to insure that everything goes well tonight.” Jade she pulled out a small bag with 5 tablets in it.

            Chris wanted to ask her what it was and protest but before he could she pushed him up against the wall again and jammed one of the tablets in his mouth.  With her hand over his mouth she held him in place until he swallowed it.  When it was over she just smiled at him and walked away, instructing him to give them to the others as well.

            When she was gone Chris threw his hands over his face and slid down the wall.  It had finally happened, the thing that Justin had been afraid of all along.  There was some one that could afford sexual favors from them and she was coming for Chris tonight.  That added with the fact that his master was now forcing him to takes drugs too, this night could get any worse.

            “Is everything alright?” Lexi asked snapping Chris away from his thoughts.  The concern must have been written all over his face.  It wasn’t that he hadn’t been with women in the past, but it had always been at his choosing, for all he knew this woman could be mean or not attractive to him.  Lexi had gone near the door, in an attempt to over hear what Jade had said to him and she had been able to hear most of it.

            It upset Lexi the way that Jade treated the guys, especially Chris.  Jade knew Chris was weaker than the others because of what he had already been through.  He was easier to push around but he was also the one that was most afraid of women and the political power that they had.  What had Jade been thinking treating him like that?

            “I am fine.” Chris sighed, trying to compose himself.    He lifted himself off the floor and headed back into their room to get ready for his date.  “I am just nervous.” He added as he passed Lexi.  She patted him on the back and followed him into the room.

            “It’s okay Chris, just be you.  You are an awesome guy and look at the positive side; it’s a birthday party so there might be cake.” Lexi beamed, flashing her best fake smile.  If there was one thing that she was sure of it was that all the guys were hungry so any chance for food was a good thing.  Chris grinned a little and nodded, his stomach rumbling a little as if it was in agreement with her as well.  Chris started to hand out the tablets Jade had given him but Lexi grabbed the bag from him.

            “Chris, where did you get these?” Lexi snapped.  Chris just softly responded.  After a quick count of the contents Lexi become concerned.  “Please tell me that you didn’t take one.”

            “She made me; I didn’t think that I had a choice.” Chris stuttered. 

            “Do you know what these are?” Lexi asked.  He just nodded, he was pretty sure that he knew what it was.  It was clear to Lexi that Chris didn’t want the drugs but he had been scared.  “Chris, I wouldn’t ask you to do this if it wasn’t important but I need you to go into that bathroom and make yourself throw up.  You can’t be on ecstasy tonight, not with this important party that you have.  Sadly I know what Jade was thinking, the high would get you through the night and you would do great.  It’s the crash that I am worried about.  These things are illegal for a reason.” Lexi snapped then shoved Chris toward the bathroom. 

            Lexi brushed her hair out of her face and groaned loudly this couldn’t be happening tonight.  JC could see that she was stressed and there was a part of him that wished she would give them the drugs, if nothing else to numb the pain.

            “You know that Jade will find out that we didn’t take them.  It’s not like we can fake being carefree and having all that energy.”  Justin said, though most of them were thinking.

            “It will be fine, I can take the blame.  I can’t keep pretending that I am okay with this.  If she tries to fire me I will just threaten to tell the police that she has illegal drugs.  Your’ not taking drugs and that is that.” Lexi snapped and then left the room, she wasn’t sure what she was going to do with the pills but she couldn’t leave them with the guys, it wasn’t that she didn’t trust them but they would do anything to keep Jade happy and keep her employed.  At least now if they got in trouble they could say that Lexi took them.

            The others were able to piece the conversation together and figure out what Jade had wanted with Chris.  They couldn’t be sure why Chris had been chosen and they didn’t know exactly what Chris had been asked to do, but this date was important to their master for some reason.

            They left Chris alone in the room while he waited for his date to show up.  The other guys all had early events to cover.  He sat on his cot chewing at his fingers; it had always been a nervous habit of his.  When he looked up and saw Jade in the door way, his breathing stopped, the fear he felt toward her retuned.  There was no telling what she would do to him.  Jade just motioned to him to follow her, his date was here.  He hoped that he didn’t smell like vomit and tried to prepare himself in case he hadn’t gotten all of the drugs out in time.

            The fact that Jade was taking him to the table herself didn’t sit well with Chris, she had never done that before.  It was always Lexi who escorted them to the places that they needed to be.  They were headed straight toward the VIP section, where else would a rich girl be?  As they stepped inside Chris remained behind his master as she made her own introductions to the group of girls.  Finally Chris felt her hand on his shoulder propelling him forward.  He stood there like a deer in headlights for a minute waiting for his date to identify herself.  If it hadn’t been for Jade, he might have never been able to pick her out of the crowd. 

            Chris smiled at her, trying to appear as calm as he could.  A few girls crawled out of the booth so that he could slide in next to the birthday girl.  He took a minute to look her over; she looked younger than he thought she would, perhaps an heiress of some sort.  Her bright blue eyes stood out well against her dark curls.

            He extended his hand to her.  Chris was never really sure how you were supposed to start these things off.  “Hi, I’m Chris Kirkpatrick.” He said, realizing that she had to already know that since she had requested him personally.  She just giggled and took his hand, shaking it firmly.

            “I am Isadora Sebastian.  It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.” She said, before turning back to Jade who hadn’t left yet. 

            “Chris will take good care of you tonight.  Anything you want just ask him and if there is anything else that I can do to make your evening here more enjoyable, just let me know.  There will be a girl by a few times to collect Chris for his performances but other than that he is all yours tonight.” Jade explained.  She shook Isadora’s hand and then left.  Chris cringed inward as Jade offered up his services so willingly. 

            After she left Chris turned back to his date and just smiled at her, not sure what else to do or say.  He watched as she brought a strawberry to her mouth and bit into it.  Chris wasn’t sure what interested him more, the way she was eating it or the fruit it’s self.  He propped his chin up with his hand and unknowingly licked his lips. 

            Isadora was watching him out of the corner of her eye, god he was sexy.  He seemed thinner than she remembered but not much else had changed about him.  He was still the same guy from the posters that had once adorned her walls.  She turned to him and held up another strawberry. 

“Do you want one?” She asked sweetly.

            Chris just nodded and opened his mouth, letting the girl feed him the fruit.  She watched in awe as his lips closed around it and he slowly bit down, allowing her to remove the top and toss it back down on her plate.  His eyes slid shut and he moaned softly as the sweet taste hit his tongue.  It had been so long since he had something besides club food or frozen dinners.  This was heavenly.  He hadn’t meant it to seem so seductive but right now he craved food more than he did sex, so of course he was in to it.

            When he opened his eyes several women, including Isadora where staring at him.  He just smiled and chewed the fruit a little more before swallowing it.  Isadora finally snapped out of the trace he had put her in and got an empty plate from the center of the table.  She held it out and motioned to her friend to fill it with more fruit from the platter on the table.  Once loaded up she set it down in front of Chris, it wasn’t that she didn’t want to feed the singer herself any more, but rather she couldn’t handle the suggestive nature of his actions.   She was trying to be a good girl tonight.

            “Hey, thanks.” Chris beamed.  He sorted through the various pieces of fruit, not that he was as picky as he used to be, but he was just trying to decide what to eat first.  Then he carefully brought each piece to his mouth and slowly ate them.  After all he wanted to savor each one.  He fought back the urge to devour the whole plate in seconds and appear to be the starving man that he actually was. 

            Had he not been so interested in the plate in front of him he might have actually realized that Lexi had come by to check on him.  Lexi glanced at Isadora for a moment; the two exchanged a friendly smile as Lexi explained the 15 minutes in heaven raffle.  Of course Isadora had been the one to rent Chris for the evening, what better way to fault her money and her desire for him.

Once Lexi was done with explaining the raffle, she took a few drink orders before it became Isadora’s turn to place her order.  Isadora asked her, which of the guys she liked the most, Lexi said that she liked all the guys, but JC was really sweet.  She knew how much JC hated the raffle and she knew that if one of them won hopefully Isadora would instruct them to be nice.  The girls bought their tickets as Lexi tried to play up Chris, anything to make him sound great since she still needed Isadora to want him beyond tonight.

Isadora smiled and looked Lexi over, scanning her for recognition; after all they hadn’t seen each other in awhile.  “So I heard that the ‘N Sync performances here were really something to see.” Isadora said to confirm to Lexi that she was ready to play her part into tonight little performance. 

“Absolutely.  So what do you want to drink” Lexi asked, trying to keep it professional.  Isadora just laughed and ordered a cocktail.  She was trying to recall why the two of them had stopped talking to each other, what had their last big fight been about?

            “And whatever he wants.” Isadora added pointing at Chris, who was still oblivious to both of them. 

“Chris what do you want?” Lexi repeated a little louder.  Chris looked up at her and stared at her blankly, wanting for her to give him some indication of what the question might have been.  Lexi just lifted the tray to signal him, they had gotten pretty good at this silent communication system of theirs. 

            “Oh, just my usual.” Chris answered, which for him meant a virgin screw driver.  He needed the vitamins from the orange juice but not the booze.  Lexi had started switching a lot of the guys’ drinks for virgin ones when no one was looking, it was better for them and it was a victimless crime.  Jade would get her money and the guys wouldn’t pass out or throw up. 

            “You got it sweetie, and see I told you there would be food.” Lexi teased.  As Lexi left Chris realized right away the angry glare of his master, even from a distance she looked scary.  He knew that he was neglecting his date in his quest for food.  He jammed another piece in his mouth before putting his arm along the back of the bench and sliding closer to his date, all the while keeping his eyes fixed on Jade.  He hoped her expression would soften when he was doing better.

            Isadora and some of the other girls were busy filling out their raffle tickets.   Chris was close enough now to noticed that Isadora was putting ‘Lexi Ackart’ on her tickets, and he was pretty sure that was Lexi’s last name.  He didn’t say anything but he knew there had to be a connection between the two of them.  Something was going on and Chris wasn’t sure if he liked it.  He fought back the panicky feeling that was bubbling up inside of him.  There just wasn’t time to worry about that when there was so much on the line; if he messed up tonight Jade would kill him.

            He turned to her and smiled again, still chewing his food but trying to be cute about it.  “So…” Chris started to say but then stopped to swallow his food. “Tell me about yourself?”  Isadora smiled, she knew that he really didn’t care to know about her but she humored him any way. 

            “Well my name is Isadora.  I am 26; I’ll be 27 in a few days.  I own my own company.  I have a restaurant chain and a clothing line.” She explained, giving him the basics on her fabulous life.  Chris was impressed for someone so young she seemed very well off. 

            “I had a clothing line once, it didn’t go so well.” Chris stated, slipping another piece into his mouth.  His eyes were fixed on her, trying to give her his full attention. 

            “Yeah, I know you did.  I actually liked your stuff.  Hey, I brought you something.  You don’t think your boss would mind if I gave you a present, do you?” Isadora asked.  Chris raised an eye brow at her; he certainly didn’t think of Jade as his boss, slave driver was more like it.

            “No are you kidding, Miss Gaillard loves free stuff.” Chris said, glancing around to see if Jade was nearby.  He watched Isadora fish something out of her massive purse.  She handed him a bag and turned to face him.  There was a twinkle in her eye as he started to open it.  He wasn’t sure the policy on getting gifts but he didn’t have the heart to tell her no.  And Jade did say to do whatever Isadora wanted him to do and right now she really wanted him to open this gift.

            Chris pulled the t-shirt out and held it up to get a better look at it.  It looked like something he would have picked out for himself and it appeared to be the right size for him.  She must have had a good eye to have gotten it all right.  He set it down in his lap and ran his hand over the soft fabric.  It was a nice shirt and he wondered if Jade would let him keep it.  He wouldn’t put it past her to take it away from him and replace it with something cheap.

            “This is great, I love it.  But it’s your birthday party and I didn’t get you anything.” Chris said folding the shirt up and placing it back into its bag. 

            “I am glad you like it, it’s part of our new men’s line that we are launching after the 1st of the year.  I am really excited about it.  Right now we just do women’s clothing.” She explained, though she was sure Chris didn’t care.  “And if you want do something great for me for my birthday, when the cake gets here, you can sing to me.”

            “I wouldn’t want your friends to feel left out.” Chris joked.

            “Please, have you heard them sing?  Trust me you would be doing us all a favor, if you just did a solo.” Isadora joked.  A few of the girls around the table laughed and agreed with her.  Out of all the things Chris thought he was going to have to do tonight singing scared him the least, singing was something he knew he was good at.  But Jade’s warning was still in the back of his mind, what if she wanted something else from him as well tonight? 

Chapter 16: Intentions

            Lexi reappeared with their drinks and let Chris know that ‘N Sync was going on in a few minutes.  He needed to go and get ready.  Chris excused himself from the table and headed back stage.  Somehow he knew that Jade would be there to check up on him.  Sure enough just as he cleared the floor and was out of the line of sight for the customers, she grabbed his arm and pulled him close to her.

            “How is everything going?” She asked. 

            “Good, I think she really likes me.” Chris explained debating on whether or not to tell her about the gift he had been given.

            “Perfect, now once you get back to that table, stop stuffing your face and start making me some money.” Jade snapped tightening her grip on his arm.  She gestured with her other hand, rubbing her figures together to drive her point home.  Chris nodded to her though he wasn’t sure what else he could do; it wasn’t like he could just bring something like that up without offending his date.  If she wanted it surely she would be the one to bring it up, not him.  After Jade left Chris spun around to the other guys, who had witnessed the whole little conversation, but said nothing. 

Chris instead held out a napkin which he had managed to fill with some fruit that he had swiped from the table when no one was looking.  He wanted to share his good fortune with the others.  The little victories were few and far between for them so it was nice to share when you could.   The guys didn’t question where the treat had come from, they just enjoyed the fruit.

“Are you really going to do it?” Lance asked.  Chris looked at him a minute confused.  “She wants you to sleep with her, right?” Lance questioned.  He had been able to gather that much about Chris’s special date.

“I don’t think there will be any sleeping, just sex.” JC stated coldly.  He knew that Chris couldn’t leave the building, whatever happened would just be a quickie, probably in a back room somewhere.

“I don’t think I have a choice.  I mean the girl hasn’t brought it up or anything, I think Miss Gaillard wants me to do it more than the girl does, for the money of course.” Chris explained.  Lexi spoke up and informed them that it was time to go on. 

“Jade wanted me to tell you that it is really important that you do well tonight.  But she didn’t say why.  So just go out there and do the very best that you can.” Lexi explained.  The guys just nodded, they wanted to know more but realized that Lexi probably didn’t even have all the answers to night.  Something odd was going on and it looked like it had something to do with Chris’s date for the evening.

Lexi had overheard most of the conversation and it was upsetting to her, more so on Jade’s side of things.  While the guys were on stage Lexi slipped away, back to the VIP area, maybe it was time she had a face to face conversation with her old friend. 

“Hey, can I talk to you for a second?” Lexi asked sticking her head into the VIP room.  Isadora smiled and followed her out; she wanted to get closer to the stage any way for the guys’ performance.  “I see that you are still a fan.” Lexi added as Isadora fixed her eyes in the direction of the stage.

“Yeah well some things never change.” She sighed.  “So how are you?  It’s been awhile.”

“I am good; we can catch up later.  Jade seems to be under the impression that you may want sex with Chris, is that true?” Lexi questioned.  She turned and looked Isadora in the eyes.  Just by looking at her you would never imagine her to be a Millionaire.  Her clothes were all from her clothing line, which was geared toward the average person. 

“I would be lying if I said that the thought hadn’t crossed my mind, but you know that is not why I am here.  We have a plan and I am sticking to it, but I did want to do something special for my birthday so I rented Chris.  This just seemed right, like something a spoiled little rich girl would do.  Jade needs to think that I am hooked.” Isa explained.  She watched as the boy band moved around the stage.  They were trying their best to be flawless but it wasn’t the most impressive ‘N Sync performance that Isadora had seen.

“I am concerned about your intentions toward Chris.” Lexi stated boldly.  Isadora turned to her again and Lexi braced herself for a verbal assault, she knew she had over stepped the professional boundaries.  When it came down to it Lexi was just a cocktail waitress, who was she to question some one of Isadora social standing. There was a giggle and then some silence. 

“My intentions?” Isadora questioned, raising a brow at her old friend.  “I intend to have a good time tonight and I am just enjoying his company.  I admit to being human however.  But I would never do anything to hurt him and you know that.  I am looking at the big picture here.”  There was certain professionalism to the way that she spoke; it had always been that way with her. 

“I am not going to lie to you; Jade Gaillard is after your money tonight and she isn’t afraid to force Chris to do whatever it takes to get it.  And if he seems a little… odd, it’s because Jade tried to give him drugs tonight.” Lexi explained.

“I always liked that about you, Lexi.  You tell it like it is.  But everyone is after my money and I know it.  I appreciate the info on Chris though; it’s nice to know that my date might be high.  He did seem a little conflicted and scared.” Isadora explained.  After all she genuinely liked Chris and didn’t want to hurt him.

“Conflicted and scared, that is 100% Chris.  It’s the energetic and fun side of him that is long gone, if you see that side tonight then it’s because he is on could 9.  That is not to say that he couldn’t be like that again, but he isn’t there now.  Well I should let you get back to your party.” Lexi sighed.  She felt a little better about Chris’s situation now.  But ultimately Isadora could do whatever she wanted tonight and Lexi couldn’t stop her, she could only hope that all that money hadn’t gone to her head and her friend would honor their contract.

“You know if you weren’t working tonight I would ask you to join us, but I supposed that would ruin the plan.” Isadora offered.  Lexi nodded but sadly she had to work, her rent was due.  “Relax Lexi, the plan hasn’t changed.  I am not like her.  I don’t double cross and I take care of those that take care of me.” Isadora added, glancing at Jade as she spoke.  The woman’s horrid reputation precedes her.

“Does it now?  Well there are those that still like her enough to do business with her.” Lexi stated, sounding a little annoyed by the thought of Jade having any friends. 

 “I have their best interest at heart, I promise.” Isadora said and then walked off, after all the show was over and she needed to get back to her party before too many people saw them talking. 

Chris cleared the stage after their last song and was on his way back to the VIP area when Jade stopped him again, she didn’t say anything this time she just slipped something into his back pocket and then smacked him on the butt, sending him on his way.  He didn’t even need to look at it to know what she had slipped him.  Chris paused when he passed Lexi; he had seen her talking to Isadora during the performance.

“Did I do something wrong?” Chris questioned.  Lexi laughed, that seemed to be a question that he asked a lot lately, but she didn’t blame him with everyone was so critical of him. 

“No, I just recognized that she was clearly a fan and didn’t want her to miss the show.  She seems nice and I think you are in good hands.” Lexi explained.  Chris nodded and thanked her before heading off back to his date.

Isadora smiled when he appeared back in their area.  “That was some fancy foot work.” She teased.  Chris blushed a little and hung his head, glancing at her in a way that made her heart flutter.  There was something to be said for being modest. 

“Would you like to dance with me?” He offered.  He realized that he had just gotten off the stage but the kind of dancing he had in mind for them would only require a fraction of the effort and get him back in good graces with his master.

“Are you sure you want to dance with me, I have no rhythm at all.” She explained. 

“Well, I am a good dancer, so together we can be pleasantly mediocre.” He said, offering her his hand.  Isadora thought about what Lexi had said, but there was nothing wrong with a little dancing, right?  She took his hand and he pulled her to her feet again.  She came to rest against him and she felt his hand slide down her back so that he could guide her to the dance floor.  He kept her close to him, allowing his hand to side all the way down to her ass for a minute.  It was his way of making her feel like she was special and appreciated. 

“Is it safe for you out here?” She asked as they took their place among the other people on the dance floor.  Chris looked around, a few of the girls had recognized him, but most of the regulars knew the club policy.  To ask Chris for anything would cost money and if he was already with someone they were supposed to leave him alone.

“I am safe as long as I am with you.”  He whispered as he pulled her closer to him and started to move with the music.  She had been right about one thing, she was a terrible dancer, he did his best to adjust her rhythm and put it in tune with his own.  Isadora was slowly getting the hang of it.  He spun her around and began to grind into her back side.  She was tiny and fit well against him.  He closed his eyes and let out a groan, for some reason this felt good to him.  It was like he was on auto pilot, but that may have been what was left of the ecstasy kicking in.

Isadora’s mind was racing, his hands were on her hips and he was moving her very seductively.  This part wasn’t planned and she had to admit she liked it even if he was only acting.  But it made her wonder how much he would change when he realized that she was going to buy him or at least try to.  “You must have gotten over your fear.” She breathed. 

“I wasn’t afraid.” Chris defended, “It’s just rare that my dates are as attractive and nice as you are.  It kind of threw me for a loop.”  If that wasn’t the truth, Chris tensed as the blood started to rush to a place that he wasn’t sure he wanted it to go yet.  He felt himself stiffen almost instantly inside his jeans.  He looked around, but Jade was nowhere in sight, that made him wonder it his current state had been naturally accruing or if it had been forced upon him.  He liked Isadora but he couldn’t be sure of anything anymore.

Chapter 17: Assumptions

Isadora saw the cake pass by on its way to the VIP area.  “Cake is here, you ready to sing to me nightingale?” She asked.  Chris made eye contact with her over her shoulder, was she serious?  She was really going to make him sing to her in this state of need.  He nodded to her though; she was after all the boss of him tonight.  She took him by the hand a led him back to her friends.  Chris stayed close to her to avoid other women becoming aware of his issue. 

He quickly slid into the booth and pulled her onto his lap, trying to make her more aware of his condition so that she might move this process along a little bit.  He lovingly kissed her on the shoulder as her friends prepared the cake.  Her eyes snapped shut; he was making it very hard for her to behave.  It wasn’t that he didn’t want it any more but he needed it.  He could see Jade watching him again, the smile on her face let him know that she somehow knew that he was ready to make his move.  If he left the table without her to take care of it, Jade would surely follow him.

The cake was place in front of them and the candles were lit, Isadora just looked at Chris, waiting for him to start.  But before he could Jade burst in with the other guys in tow.

“I saw the cake and thought you might like it if all the guys sang to you tonight.”  Jade offered.  The guys took their places around the table and put on their best smiles.  Chris looked at them with grateful eyes, with all of them singing Isadora wouldn’t notice if his voice was a little off. 

They sang beautifully but an avid fan would have realized that their voices sounded strained and a little tired. But she wasn’t complaining it was after all a wonderful gesture and it pleased her to see them all up close and personal.  When they were done she applauded them and then blew her candles out.

Isadora studied the guys as they each wished her a happy birthday and gave her hugs.  Even she had to admit that they were in pretty bad shape, Lexi hadn’t been lying about that.  But the concern didn’t show on her face and she was beaming with excitement over meeting the guys.  Mainly smiling at herself, she so could have been an actress.  Jade smiled as well before leaving with the others.  They didn’t want to leave Chris but they had to, they were worried about him.  Jade was putting a lot of pressure on him tonight.

“What did you wish for?” Chris asked letting his breath brush against her neck.  He was trying anything he could think of to get her to move this along a little faster. 

“If I tell you it won’t come true.” Isadora explained.  Maybe he could make it come true or so he hoped.   He was becoming uncomfortable as he shift underneath her.  He needed some relief soon.  He could almost see the dollar signs in Jades eyes when she was in there.  Chris looked at the watch that Miss Gaillard made him wear; there was only 45 minutes until his next performance.  There was no way that he could take the stage like this and he had no reason to hope that it might just go away on its own.

The fear hit him hard, he wasn’t sure that he could make it to the bathroom alone without Jade seeing him, surely she would hurt him if he even tried it, especially if she had caused it.  Isadora noticed Chris’s change in behavior as he shifted nervously under her.  She lifted his chin and looked him in the eyes.

“Is everything alright sweet heart?” She asked.  Chris thought for a minute, biting down slightly on his bottom lip.  He wasn’t sure how to tell her, so the truth seemed to be the most logical.  Surely she couldn’t get mad at him for getting turned on, seemingly, by her.  He pulled her closer to him so that no one would over hear and carefully explained what was wrong.  He just said that he was afraid to go by himself, but he didn’t tell her what he was really afraid of.  Isadora knew though, there was so much fear in his eyes as he pulled away from her.  He was begging her with those eyes of his not to say no, not to make him go alone.

Isadora cursed Lexi in her head, she had not told her this part and how hard it would be to say no to Chris.  For someone that didn’t want to do anything he was sure acting like he did.  She leaned in and kissed him gently on the lips, pulling away before he could deepen the kiss.  It was just her way of letting him know that she cared.  There was something different about her and Chris couldn’t put his finger on it.  She could do whatever she wanted to him and he couldn’t say no, but she wasn’t.  She was being nice to him.

She finally nodded and slid toward the end of the booth.  Chris stood up and took her by the hand, and she let him lead her away, shouting to the others that she would be right back.  After all they hadn’t eaten any cake yet.  Isadora had no clue where they were going or what she had gotten herself in to.  She still didn’t want to have sex with Chris under these conditions and was working on a backup plan of her own as they darted through the crowd. 

Chris stopped at the employee bathroom and glanced around before pulling her inside.  He locked the door while Isadora just looked around.  He pressed his hand against the door and lingered there for a minute, trying to compose himself.  He was nervous about what came next; he had seen many guys use this room before for this very reason but to be there myself was completely different.

He spun around careful not to make eye contact with her, before capturing her lips with his.  They were so soft to him with just a hint of cherry Chap Stick on them.  Chris slowly pushed her back until she bumped into the counter that was in there.  In a swift motion he lifted her up onto it.  God, he was a great kisser, Isadora’s head was spinning but she tried to remain objective. 

Chris reached into his back pocket and pulled out the condom that Jade had slipped him earlier in the night.  At least his master promoted safe sex.  He just held it out to Isadora as if it was her choice as to whether they continued or not.

Isadora just slipped her hand over his and shook her head no.  Chris was a little confused and it showed.  Was she turning him down or did she just not want to use the condom.  His breathing stopped for a minute as he thought back to what Lexi had said about the ‘Stud’ plan, was that what Isadora was really after, his baby?

“Are you okay?” Isadora asked.  Chris just nodded, telling her that he was.  “Are you sure?  You look like you are about to pass out or throw up.”

“I… I just need a minute.  I don’t really know what I am doing.  This has never happened to me before, not like this any way.” Chris explained.

“No one has turned you down for sex before?” Isadora questioned. 

“You’re turning me down?”  Chris asked. “Then why are you here?”

“Because it’s my birthday.” Isadora beamed, not really following the conversation.  In her defense it was a little distracting to be so close to someone so hot that also happens to have a hard on.

“No, why are you here.” Chris said pointing to the floor.  “Why did you come in here with me if we aren’t doing it?  I am going to get in so much trouble for this; I can’t lie to Jade, she can tell if I am lying on her little thingy.” Chris explained.  He put his hand on his forehead and closed his eyes.

“Of course you can.  If you tell her that we did it, she will be so happy she won’t even check to see if you are lying.” Isadora explained.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want him, just not like this.  Chris hung his head in shame, he hadn’t really wanted to do it either but he felt like he had failed at his job.  He thought about his options, he knew that he couldn’t force her to do anything that she didn’t want to.  If she cried rape it was back to prison and he just didn’t think he could go through that again.

She lifted his chin again and smiled at him.  “I do want you, you can’t even imagine how bad I want you, but this feels wrong.” She explained. 

“But it’s your birthday and I just want to make you happy.” Chris whined.  He wasn’t sure any more what she wanted from him; she was all over the place.  This was something that somebody probably should have warned him about.  Women were confusing creatures.

“Look at me, I am happy.” She beamed.  “I don’t want you to get into any trouble tonight on my behalf, which is why I came with you in here.  Now I know you have something that you need to take care of so I’ll just cover my eyes or something and you can do whatever you need to.” Isadora offered.  It was almost as if she had read his mind, his issue wasn’t just going to go away.  He was pretty sure that Jade wouldn’t allow that to happen.

“But Miss Gaillard will charge you for sex, and it’s expensive.  I am not really allowed to give discounts or anything.” Chris replied.  He hated the feeling he was having; Isadora was a nice girl and didn’t deserve to get ripped off. 

“That is fine; you are worth so much more to me.” She sighed, running her hand over his cheek.  He looked at her and smiled.  He kissed her hand and maintained eye contact with her. 

“Are you sure this is what you want?” He asked.  Isadora bit her lip and thought, she really wanted him more than he knew but it had to be right and this wasn’t it.  She nodded yes, that she was sure but took the condom out of his hand.  Chris just looked at her puzzled.

“Well, we have to make it look like we did something, Jade may not care but other people might question it.” She explained as she opened it.  Chris just nodded and watched her unroll it and set it down on the counter.  Then she playfully messed up his hair and pulled his t shirt off.  In reality that part wasn’t needed she just wanted to see him without his shirt on, if she was paying for this at least she should get a show.  She wadded it up and tossed it on the floor.

Her eyes scanned him and he waited to see if she was going to change her mind about the offer of sex.  He was in fairly good shape but you could kind of see his ribs.  He lacked some definition but that was probably from poor nutrition.  Mixed with his tattoos were a few odd scars but she didn’t ask him about it.  Without saying a word she playfully covered her eyes and giggled at him.

Chris shook his head, she was a trip.  He turned and walked across the tiny room keeping his back to her.  He glanced over his shoulder a few times before placing one hand on the wall and using the other to unzip his jeans.  He let out a low moan as he freed himself.  It had been so long since he had felt anything down there, and no he wasn’t counting the day Jade had them tested he had felt numb and sick threw that whole terrible ordeal.  The moans sent a shivers down Isadora’s spine.  It took every ounce of strength she had to remain where she was.

“Would it help if I made sexy noises too?” Isadora teased.  Chris just laughed and continued to pleasure himself.  He had forgotten how good it could feel even if it was his own hand doing all the work.  He let another moan escape his lips as his eyes slowly shut.  This time Isadora moaned too, she was convinced that he was trying to kill her.  Then she playfully moaned his name.  Chris knew that he wouldn’t last very long if she kept that up, his name sounded great the way it rolled off her tongue. 

“Do that again, Please.” Chris begged. 

“If it helps you can also picture me naked.” Isa added.  Chris blushed a little; he would have been lying if he told her that he hadn’t already done that, from what he could tell she had an incredible body.  Her personality from what he could tell so far was also pretty appealing.  He let his hand glide up and down a few more times, he wanted to last longer but at the same time there was a sense or urgency to wrap this up.  The girl in the room with him was making it hard to relax.  She smiled and moaned again, which sent Chris over the edge. 

“Oh god!” He grunted as he released into his palm.  He stood there for a minute to gather his thoughts before grabbing some tissue and cleaning himself up.

Isadora was still sitting on the counter, swinging her feet and looking at the floor, when Chris approached her, quickly washing his hand before stealing a kiss from her.  “Thank you.” He breathed softly.  The sincerity in his voice made her melt a little.

“You’re welcome, that wasn’t awkward at all.” She teased.  He laughed then lifted her up off the counter, placing her back onto her feet.  She tossed the condom into the trash can and picked up his shirt for him.  “It’s a shame though, you look better without it.” She joked as she handed it to him.  He blushed again.

“Are are in charge of me tonight, if you don’t want me to wear a shirt then I don’t have to.”  Chris stated.  He was pretty sure Jade would have let Isadora get away with anything. “Are you sure, this is what you wanted?” He added.   It wasn’t too late, he was sure he could get himself going again, she was after all pretty attractive.  Isadora gave him a quick peck on the cheek and nodded.  She was sure. 

“You deserve better than this.  You should be with someone that cares about you and will take proper care of you.” She explained.  Chris just nodded; he wasn’t sure how to respond to that.  It sounded good in theory but in reality it would probably never happen.

Chris slipped his shirt back on and then opened the door for her.  They had no more than cleared the door frame when they both looked eye with Lexi.  She looked a little shocked and concerned but you could tell that she was trying to hide it as best as she could.  Without a word she just hung her head and walked away.  Suddenly they all three felt bad, there was no way to tell Lexi the truth without someone else over hearing in the busy hall way.  So for now they just had to let it go and Lexi would have to assume the worse.

JC of course had to be the first person that Lexi came to.  Her eyes were a little watery.  JC could see Chris and Isadora heading back out toward the club and there was no other explanation for why Chris would have taken Isadora back there.  Once they were out of sight JC gently hugged Lexi and waited for her to pull away. 

“You do know that this is not your fault right?  You can’t protect us from everything.” He asked.

“I know, but I want to.” Lexi explained.  She wasn’t ready to admit that it actually was her fault; she had tossed Chris under the bus pretty much to save them all.  Some day she would come clean to them and she hoped that Chris would forgive her. 

“I’ll talk to Chris later, I am sure he will be fine.  He didn’t appear to be upset, at least not any more than normal.” JC offered and then went back to getting ready. 

Chris quickly ate his piece of cake; he wanted to get back to the stage before Lexi came to get him.  He didn’t want her to confront his date about what may or may not have happened in the bathroom.  Isadora had let Lexi assume the worst of her when in reality she hadn’t done anything wrong. 

            He was debating on whether or not to tell Lexi the truth, Isadora had asked him not to tell anyone, but Lexi wasn’t just any one.    He smiled at Isadora but on the inside he still felt guilty.  Chris glanced at his watch and then excused himself.  He would return one more time before their final performance of the night. 

            Chris had just cleared the floor when Lexi wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly.  “Are you okay?” Lexi asked. 

“I am fine.  It didn’t go exactly the way I had planned but at least Miss Gaillard will be happy.” Chris answered.

            “I didn’t think that she would do it.” Lexi explained. 

“No you were right about her, she is a nice person.  But put yourself in her shoes.  She had a chance to be with her dream guy, would you have been able to say no?  Can we talk about this later though?” Chris asked.  He felt bad for misleading her but it was a valid question.  There wasn’t really time to talk about it now and too many people around for him to tell her the truth so they had to leave it at that.

They both looked at JC as she thought, he hadn’t been her dream guy growing up the way Chris had been for Isadora, but now that she knew him, he was all that she could think about.  She thought about a few times when they had been making out in the hall.  She had wanted more but knew that JC couldn’t give her more.  But would she ever consider paying for it, even if she could afford it? 

“I suppose you are right.” She sighed.  Chris saw her looking at JC; it was no secret that Lexi had a thing for him.  It made Chris sad though because he knew JC had feelings for her as well but the two of them could never be together as a real couple.

Chapter 18: Friendly Gestures

            After the performance the guys lined up on stage and prepared for the 15 minutes of heaven raffle drawing.  They each took turns drawing a name from their bucket.  JC drew last and Lexi just looked at him confused when he read her name off, then she turned to the VIP area where Isadora was standing.  The smile that was on her face said it all; she had put Lexi’s name into the drawing.    At first Lexi wasn’t sure if she should do it, but it was her friend’s money and she had won fair and square so she climbed into the cage with JC as Miss Gaillard watched her somewhat displeased.

            The cage door slammed shut and JC looked at his feet.  He wasn’t sure what was going on and if Lexi had actually entered herself into the contest just to get to kiss him again.  This time they couldn’t get into trouble.  He felt her wrapped her arms around him and she pulled him close to her. 

“I just want you to hold me, please.” She whispered.  He embraced her and rested her head on his shoulder.  On lookers here disappointed with her actions, but it was her 15 minutes and she could spend it any way she wanted, and this was what she wanted.  So she ignored their calls for more.   Lexi couldn’t explain it but she felt safe in his arms.

JC pulled away just for a second so that he could kiss her.  He wanted to thank her for saving him from being molested by some other woman, but he had no way of knowing that it hadn’t been Lexi that entered the drawing herself.  Now Lexi was confused, what on earth was Isadora up to?  Had calling her been a mistake?

            They almost didn’t hear the bell ring, he released her and she quickly climbed out, being in the cage was kind of creepy to her.  Miss Gaillard grabbed her arm as she passed and spun her around.  The guys watched them intently but said nothing; it was the first time someone else was under Miss Gaillard’s wrath. 

“I hope you know that I am not paying you for the time you just wasted.”  Jade explained.  Lexi smiled and pulled her arm free. 

“I figured as much and it was so worth it.” She beamed looking at JC and then calmly walked off.  She was so over playing this stupid game with Jade.  She was really going to enjoy the day that she could finally tell Jade how she really felt about everything and put the horrible woman in her place.  This also however put up a red flag in Jade’s mind; perhaps Lexi was getting a little too close to the guys.

 “Hungry fella aren’t you?” Isadora observed, after Chris had returned to her table and woofed down another piece of cake.  Chris froze, he was sure that Jade wouldn’t want everyone to know the truth, he was starving.  So he swallowed hard to clear his mouth. 

“I work up an appetite when I perform and this is really good cake.” Chris lied.  It was good cake though, hell even if it wasn’t he would have still happily ate it.

Isadora leaned in and kissed him on the fore head, taking note of how warm he felt, but she didn’t say anything.  She knew that he would just lie about that as well.  The night was drawing to a close and she was going to be sad to see him leave. 

“I don’t suppose that you and the guys would be interested in the rest of that?” Isadora asked pointing to the fruit tray from earlier and the rest of the cake, there wasn’t a lot left but too much to just throw away.  It had been sitting out far while and couldn’t be very cold, but she didn’t think the guys would mind. 

“They would love it, but you’ll have to ask Miss Gaillard first.” Chris said.  Isadora nodded; she would have to settle her bill with the club owner any way, and she was sure the two of them would have plenty to talk about.  It was almost time for Chris to go for the last performance, but he didn’t want to leave her.  Isadora had been the best date he had since arriving at the club.  She was nice, polite and she even feed him.  No one else would ever compare to her, she had spoiled him.  Chris hugged her and thanked her before leaving with a heavy heart.  Jade stopped him again when he reached the staging area.  She was smiling so that must have meant she had seen them go into the bathroom.

“She gave me a gift.” Chris said softly, holding the bag from earlier out, Isadora had made sure that he took it with him this time.  Jade took the bag from him and peaked inside.  With a smile she handed it back to him. 

“Perfect, one less thing I have to buy for you.  Just try not to ruin this one.” Jade snapped. The guys where hard on clothes, things ripped and tore a lot on stage, but it wasn’t their fault.  Chris just hung his head and nodded. 

            “I am on my way to settle the bill with your date, I saw you two going into the bathroom but were you able to seal the deal?” Jade ruddily asked.  Chris just shook his head yes.  He felt bad but that is what Isadora had told him to do and Jade had instructed him to do whatever Isadora wanted.  “That’s my boy.” Jade teased patting him on the cheek and then headed off in the direction of the VIP area.  As she walked off Chris approached Lexi.

            “Would you hold this for me?” Chris asked handing Lexi the bag.

            “Sure, but what is it?” Lexi asked.

            “It’s a gift to me from my date.  Jade let me keep it and I don’t want to lose it.  If I set it down you know one of the other girls will take it.  It’s a really nice shirt.” Chris explained.  He didn’t have anything that was really his anymore, which only gave the shirt that much more value to him.  Lexi nodded, she understood that it was important to him.

            Once they were on stage Lexi watched Isadora and Jade as they talked outside the VIP room.  This was just a weird night and Lexi was ready to put it behind her.  She was pretty sure that this night had either been a horrible mistake or the best thing ever, which may have been why she had never tried to plan anything, it usually back fired on her.  And there was still some lingering guilt about Chris.

            Lexi reached into her pocket and pulled out a note the Isadora had slipped her toward the end of the night after all they couldn’t risk being seen together again, Chris already seemed to be on to them.  The paper just had the address and room number where Isadora was staying and said to stop by either after work or tomorrow afternoon so they could catch up.

The club had closed and Lexi was about to bolt out for the evening when she heard footsteps following her toward the door, but it wasn’t who she was expecting.  Chris just smiled at her as she stopped to greet him.  There was concern in the tone of his voice as he spoke to her but the words didn’t make any sense to Lexi.  She was tried, her mind was racing and it was getting late. 

“Is everything alright?” He repeated.  She wondered to herself what he was talking about and how to answer him.  He was giving her a chance to come clean about whatever was on her mind.

“Yeah everything is fine, why do you ask?” She replied. 

“No reason.” Chris said and the paused.  There was more that he wanted to ask her about the woman that was there tonight and Lexi’s possible connection to her.   But he was starting to wonder what side she was on, thing weren’t so clear any more.  “You just seemed pretty sad when you saw me come out of the bathroom, but I wanted to let you know that nothing happened.  My date, she was very nice and just went in there with me so that I would get into trouble.  Are you sure that everything it alright?” He repeated.

“I was just worried about you.  I can’t stand to see you guys get hurt.” Lexi explained, not wanting to tell him too much but it was clear that he was on to her.  It didn’t matter really there was nothing he could do to stop Lexi and Isadora’s plan and Lexi still believed that being with Isadora was in their best interest.

Chris just smiled and walked back toward their room, passing JC along the way.  He got what he wanted out of Lexi and it had nothing to do with what she said.  She was hiding something and it wasn’t sitting right with Chris, he needed to warn the others.

JC followed her toward the door like he usually did.  Lexi tried to run away from him she couldn’t standing lying to them specially JC.  But when she tried to open the back door and slip out he held it shut.  For some one as tiny as he was now, he sure was fast and strong.  It was clear that she was upset.  She tried to shove him out of the way but he refused to move.  When she looked up at him with tears in her eyes, he felt his heart break.  He wrapped his arms around her and just held her for a moment, shhh-ing her and telling her that it was okay.

“It’s not okay, JC.  I feel like this is all my fault.  I have no power and I can’t protect you guys anymore.” Lexi explained.  “That woman that came here tonight for Chris, I just have this feeling that we have not seen the last of her or at the very least people like her.  Jade has run you guys into the ground people are starting to complain and ask for their money back.  Something has to give JC.”

JC was a little thrown off by her confession but he didn’t let go of her, he just rubbed her back.  He couldn’t blame her for wanting to give up and he had seen the signs as well.  There wasn’t much more of this that they could take, they would end up in an early grave or sold off to the highest bidder.  Lexi was toying with the idea of truly confessing everything to him but she just couldn’t but there was no harm in warning him.  Even if Isadora failed her mission there would be someone else at some point that would succeed in buying the failing boy band.  It was clear to JC that she needed a friend, someone that she could trust.  As much as he wanted to be that person for her, there wasn’t much he could say or do for her. 

“It’s not your fault; you have done everything that you can to protect us and help us.  What happened to Chris tonight was not your fault and he seems to have had an ok time.  And I know what you are thinking but that woman didn’t rape him.  You probably are right there will be more of that to come, I guess you could say that we are losing value.”   JC explained. “And I take it that your job search is not going well?”

Oh if he only knew just how much of this really was her fault.  The closer they got to wrapping this up the better; the guys were at their ends.  The faith in her was already fading so it would take a lot for them to trust her again if this deal goes through.

“Everything it not as it would appear, or so it seems.  Apparently nothing happened between Chris and that woman tonight.  Or at least that is what he told me just now, I spouse me could be lying to me.  That doesn’t make me feel better because it doesn’t mean the next woman won’t.” Lexi paused as pulled away from him for a minute.  “I have a line on a job, a great job.  I am going to meet my potential employer tomorrow afternoon.  I will let you know how it goes.  I would be lying if I said I didn’t really want it.  It sounds so amazing; I think you would even like it.  But I don’t want to say too much about it, I tend to jinx myself.”

JC fought back some tears, it wasn’t that he wanted her to leave, he just needed to see her happy again.  It sounded great and he wanted it to work out for her, especially since it didn’t seem like he would be around long himself.  Lexi was right they were to the point where Jade would either sell them of kill them.

“So if Jade ordered you to have sex with a customer, you would do it?” Lexi asked.

“No, or at least I would put up one hell of a fight and yes that would be rape.  But I am not Chris.  He has been through a lot and he just doesn’t want any more trouble.  I’ll talk to him tomorrow to confirm his story, but either way it wasn’t rape.”  JC explained.

“You’re a good friend.  I wish I had a friend like you.” Lexi sighed. 

 “Go home Lexi, tomorrow is another day.” He said then kissed her like he always did.  “You deserve better than this.”

Chapter 19: Sold

            Isadora waited patiently for Jade to arrive.  Of course she was going to be late.  Isadora was so ready to get this over with; despite being a professional she really hated these long boring negotiations.  It was apparent last night that the guys needed to be away from the situation that they were in and that evil woman.  They would without a doubt be better off in her care.  Impressively enough there actually was something criminal about the way Jade treats them and yes Isadora had looked it up.  It was important that once she took ownership she made sure that no allegations could be brought up against her for what Jade had done.  She put on her best corporate smile as Jade finally approached her. 

“You’re late, I hate when people are late.” Isadora rudely stated as Jade joined her in the private booth.  She waited for Jade apologized and got right into why she had wanted to meet with her today.  She continued to play the part of the over eager young fan, to try to throw Jade off of what was really going on, she was being played.

“I want to buy ‘N Sync from you.” Isa stated.  She paused and took a sip of her soda before continuing.  “And I hate to tell you they aren’t worth much in their current condition but I am willing to over look some things.”  Jade smiled, she was glad to hear that they were on the same page in terms of what they wanted.

              “That is good to hear, I was afraid Chris might have run you off last night and completely ruin my chances to talk to you about my proposal.  I love the guys but they can be such screw ups.  But I have heard all about you, you run your business with an iron fist.  Those boys don’t stand a chance with you.” Jade stated, sipping on her wine.  Isadora just smiled, she did run her business very well but the guys were more than just business.  “I also understand your concerns; it’s not my fault you see, I just don’t have the staff and support that I am sure you would have.”

            Jade went on to explain that she understood that she had reached an end point with the guys, she wasn’t in a position to take them any further in their careers but Isadora would be a much better fit.  She listed ways that Isadora could profit off of them, things Isadora herself had already thought of but humored Jade.  And as for Chris, he was very thing Isadora had expected him to be the night before, not really the man she had thought he would be but times had changed.

“I am a little worried, he appeared a little thin.  Their health is a concern to me.” Isadora stated when Jade was finally done delivering her sales pitch.

“That is Lexi’s fault I told her to fix them, but that girl doesn’t listen.  But they just need a little TLC and then they will be back to dancing and sing their little hearts out in no time.” Jade explained, of course it was easy to blame Lexi when she wasn’t there to defend herself, but Isadora already knew the truth.  And what Jade couldn’t pin on Lexi she blamed on the guys’ themselves.

            “I was hoping that we could factor that into the price, like you said I could do so much with them but these health issues could put me back a little on my desired timeline.” Isadora lied.  Her timeline had always been flexible.  She continued to try to bring down Jade’s price, after all the less she spent to get them the more that would be left over to spend on them.  Isadora had one advantage on Jade, everyone knew her and if Isadora left the meeting unhappy everyone would know just how much the guys were really worth.  Jade would never be able to get more than that for them. 

            Isadora continued to chip away at her but tried to remain an objective business woman.  They finally were able to come to agreeable terms, it wasn’t completely ideal.  Jade would get one week severance, in which time she could do what she wanted with the guys, and basically beat them, further into the ground.  It was understood that Jade would need to make good on dates already booked and performances that were already scheduled.  But Isadora stipulated that there be no more sexual favors during that time and that everything taken from them would be handed over to Isadora.  As their owner she got everything that they had own prior to the war, their music, merchandise, and everything that came with.  It was as fair a request as she could make.  It would take a day or two for the paper work to be drawn up and finalized so there was always a chance either party could change their minds, not that Isadora was planning to.

            Jade wanted to make sure that didn’t happen.  It was clear she had run the guys into the ground and it was only a matter of time before one of them wasn’t able to continue or even died.  Then what would she do, and at this point it would cost more that she was willing to pay to get them back on their feet.

After the meeting was over Jade headed straight for the club, there was another matter that she needed to tend to.  When she got there Lexi was just about to leave.  It wasn’t her day to work but she liked to check in on the guys and make sure that someone remembered to feed them.  Jade motioned her into her office.  Lexi groaned but followed her any way.  This was not what she wanted to be doing on her day off.  She hated that woman.

“Is there something I can do for you, I know that I am not supposed to be here today but I didn’t clock any or anything.” Lexi explained.  Jade took two pictures out of her desk drawer and placed the on the desk in front of Lexi.  Lexi glanced at them but seemed to not be bothered by the photos of her and JC kissing in the back all the night before.

“After your little stunt last night I had one of the waitresses keep an eye on you two and this is what she saw.  So how long have you been stealing from me?” Jade snapped.

“Stealing?  It was one kiss.  It’s not like it has affected him or his performances.  If anything you owe me for making him a better kisser.” Lexi fired back.  She wanted to just walk out but it wasn’t the right time for that just yet.

“I thought maybe you were getting a little too attached to them but it seemed to be working in my favor.  Not that it matters, I sold them this morning, just waiting on the paper work.  But until then I will be watching you and you will not being having any more psychical contact with JC or any of the guys again.  Is that understood?” Jade asked.

Lexi got up and dug a $10 bill out of her pocket.  “Here this should more than cover the kiss I got from JC.  Sorry if I ripped you off.” She just reached the door when Jade spoke up again.

“Congrats on the job interview by the way.  I hope you get it that way I won’t have to fire you and pay you unemployment.”  Jade explained; slipping the money and the photos into her desk drawer after all she needed the photo for when she confronted JC about it.  Lexi just smiled and continued on her way. 

“Thanks, I hope I get it too.  I’ll stop and let JC know that you need to speak with him.” Lexi called to her boss from the hallway, at least that way she could warn him that he was about to have his ass handed to him over a kiss, which she had now paid for.  Jade just thanked her and got to work calling her lawyer.

After warning JC and sending him to meet his fate with Jade, Lexi headed right for Isadora’s hotel.  She was just hoping that Jade had not been smart enough meet with more than one person today, she wanted Isadora to be the one to get the guy not some stranger.  At least Isadora was someone that she knew and could trust for the most part.

Later in the day JC was stilling on his cot hold an ice pack to his temple, which had collided with a chair in Jade’s office during their little confrontation over him handing out freebies.  He had tried to defend the kiss, which was the only one that he was admitting too though there had been many others before it.  Jade wasn’t having it; it was almost as if she didn’t want to see him happy at all.

“Can we talk about Lexi?” Chris finally asked.  They knew what had happened to JC and why but that wasn’t what Chris wanted to talk about.  JC just motioned for him to continue.  He wasn’t in the mood to fight with any more people today but this had been coming for awhile.  “There is something off about her lately and I don’t think it has anything to do with whatever is going on between you two.”

“What do you mean?” JC asked, he had noticed some changes with her but wanted to see what Chris was thinking about before raising any more alarms.

“I saw my date, Isadora put Lexi’s name in the 15 minutes of heaven drawing last night.  I gave her a chance to come clean about it last night at the end of the night but she didn’t say anything.  I also saw the two of them talking briefly at one point during the night.  I feel like there is something that she is not telling us.” Chris explained.  It wasn’t that he didn’t trust her, he just didn’t trust women much and the evidence was not helping her case.

JC thought about it, there could have been any number of reasons as to why Lexi had been talking to the millionaire the night before.  She admitted to him that she was looking for a job, what better way to get a good one than networking with people of a much higher social class?   It didn’t explain why she put Lexi’s name into the drawing but it was something.

“Maybe there is something going on,  but we can’t afford to upset the one person that treats us half way decent by accusing her of something that we can’t even prove.   Not that it matters she told me that she has a job interview today.  I hope for her sake she gets it, anything would be better than having a front row seat to our untimely demise.” JC sighed.  He closed his eyes and hoped that they could leave it at that.

Lance recalled his conversation with Lexi awhile back about her rich friend and wondered if it could be the same woman but didn’t say anything.  JC was right there was nothing they could do with the information; they still needed Lexi even if they couldn’t trust her 100%.  Something was defiantly up but they didn’t have the strength left to stress about it.

“We just need to focus on ourselves right now.  We can’t control what happens to us so stressing about it isn’t going to help.  JC is right as well, even if we can’t trust Lexi she is all we have.  We have used her to our advantage more than once; it’s not fair how we treat her.” Lance explained trying to put it into perspective. 

Chapter 20: Joint Venture

            There was a knock on the door; Isadora got up to answer it.  She wasn’t surprised to see Lexi standing there since she had invited her over but her friend seemed a little stressed when she should be happy.

“Is everything okay?” Isadora said.

“Depends, you did buy ‘N Sync today right?” Lexi asked.  Isadora just nodded, though still unofficial as of that moment but the offer was on the table and they were just waiting on paper work. “Good, that is one less thing I have to worry about.”

            “You should join me for an early dinner; we can talk about what happened today and come up with a plan.” Isa explained.  “You seem stressed is everything okay?”

            “I will be better when this is over.  We can talk about it all at dinner, you ready to go now or are we waiting?” Lexi offered.  Isadora just smiled and grabbed her coat.  It was clear that Lexi needed a friend right now.  She was ready to accept that role.  They left the hotel and headed straight for one of Isadora’s chain restaurants.  After all why pay for food when you own a restaurant?  They were seated right away in a private booth of course.  The car ride had been mostly silent and that worried Isadora.  Two friends that had not seen each other in such a long time should have more to talk about.

            “I am so over this, please tell me that everything went fine today and this will all be over soon.  I mean you saw the guys last night they look awful.” Lexi said once that waiter left. 

            Isadora carefully explained the details of the sale; Lexi hated the idea of a severance but understood why they needed it.  It would take time to get things settled and the paperwork all in order.  She spared Lexi most of the boring details, just noting that she got the rights to all their music and stuff.   

            “Chris told me that nothing happened in the bathroom last night.” Lexi added once the conversation got a little stale.

“He must really trust you, I told him not to tell anyone.  ” Isadora explained.  She wasn’t mad that he told if nothing else it confirmed Lexi’s story about the guys trusting her and made herself look more appealing as an employee. 

“I think he was fishing for something.  He may have made a connection between the two of us.  I guess it doesn’t matter in the end surely they will see that I did it for the right reasons. ” Lexi said.  Isadora nodded, last night it was clear that the guys couldn’t possibly do any worse than Jade.

“I went in there with him because I needed Jade to think that something did happen and that I was as stupid as I am young.  I couldn’t tell you because I didn’t think I could without someone else over hearing.  And yes Chris did appear to be on to us.” Isadora explained.  “he was acting weird though, like he was terrified to go in the bathroom alone.  I didn’t know what to do, I just wanted to help him somehow.”

            “Chris was in the bathroom with you, apparently turned on, and you mean to tell me that you did nothing?” Lexi questioned.

            “Well yes and no.  I sat on the counter with my eyes closed while he took care of himself.  I may have helped out a little bit teasing him with sexy noises but I can’t be sure if that was actually helpful or not.” Isadora explained.  She was very honest about what had happened, after all it was kind of funny.

“So you had a sexy boy band member jerking off a few feet from you and you just sat there?” Lexi questioned.  This conversation had just gotten very interesting.  Both women laughed a little.

Isadora admitted that she may have peaked just a little when curiosity got the best of her.  It was nice to know what Chris had to offer her in the future.  She swore that she didn’t touch him but the thought had crossed her mind more than once.  It didn’t bother Lexi that she may have peaked, if anything it made her feel a little better and least she got something for her money.

They talked about what to expect from Chris going forward, it was unclear how the singer would react to being bought by a woman that openly admitted to wanting him in more ways than one.  Isadora expected there to be complications and she was admitting to having plans for him, none that would be too unpleasant for him of course.

“Can I ask you a personal question?” Lexi finally asked.  Isa just nodded and waited for her to ask, though she hoped that Lexi knew that she could ask her anything.  “How much exactly did it cost you to have Chris for the evening, with no limitations?”

Isadora thought it was an odd question but she had nothing to hide. She fished the receipt out of her purse just as the waiter brought their main courses and set in on the table in front of Lexi.  She carefully looked it over and smiled.  It wasn’t as much as she thought it would be but the price may have recently come down when people started complained and demanded refunds.

“So this sale is pretty much a done deal right and you are going to hire me when it’s over?” Lexi asked with a smile.  Isadora could see the gears turning in her head.

“What are you thinking?” Isadora asked.

“Can I borrow some money?” Lexi wondered out loud.  Isa just shot her a confused look, it wasn’t what she had expected her friend to ask.  “I will pay you back I promise.  There is just something that happened today and I want to prove a point, mostly to myself.  I would need about that much money maybe just a little more.” She pointed to the receipt.  Lexi was still mad that Jade had made such a big deal about her ‘stealing’ from her.  Maybe with Isa’s help she could afford a little more time alone with JC.  Not that he would complain about it at all and it wasn’t like they didn’t have something to celebrate.  It looked like she had just landed that great new job. 

“Can I ask why you need the money?” Isadora asked after Lexi’s long pause.  Her friend debated on telling her why, but maybe she would be more likely to loan her money if she knew why.

“Because I think Jade lied to you and I can prove it.  I bet if I offer to pay for an evening of pleasurable company with JC, she will take my money and not tell you.”  Lexi explained.

“Oh I know she would.  That could make things interesting; it would be a clear violation of our agreement.  If she signs the paper work before you do that I could nail her for breach of contract.  But I have to ask why JC.  Is there something going on there that I should know about?” Isa asked.

She told herself that she wouldn’t admit to it, in fear that Isadora would use it against her.  But she was starting to trust her friend again and if she knew then maybe they could make another deal to insure that they could be together in some way, that is if JC still wanted her after this was over.  She would never force him to love her.

“I can’t explain it, it’s a weird situation.  I have feelings for him but I don’t know if he has any for me.  I mean he is basically a prisoner now and it could be nothing.  If I got him alone maybe I could figure out what it really is.  I guess he could be using me.” Lexi rambled on while her friend just smiled at her, she was over thinking this.  “I think I might be in love with him.”

This was starting to explain why she was so willing to tempt her with Chris and it also meant that she could not judge her for going after him after they got settled in.  But with her ‘owning’ JC, his love life and overall happiness was her concern.

“I guess we will have to see what happens.  I wouldn’t take it to heart if he is a little upset with you at first.  Maybe a date night is just what the two of you need, but I won’t be placing any bets on Jade sticking to our agreement.  I am not a fan of hers and I expect only the worst from her.” Isadora explained.  She quickly wrote Lexi a check and handed it to her as if it was nothing.  It wasn’t about the money after all; it was about reestablishing their friendship.  And Isa was hoping that she would not only see a return on the investment placed on the guys, but also some new music for her iPod.

            Isadora wasn’t that dumb, she wanted to restore them to what they once were.  A happy healthy ‘N Sync is much more profitable than that lip synching train wreck she saw last night.  And she knew what the guys could do on their own, which is what the fans liked before.  They shouldn’t be slaves they should be free to do what they want but their government wouldn’t allow them to be free, the freest as you can get as a man is to get married and that is only because they promised to Love, Honor and Obey their wife. They break that promise and they get divorced, then it’s back to being a slave.

            Isadora thought she could give them the ability to do what they want while still appearing to be in control to the rest of the world.  The Supremacy System had become corrupted and is being abused by women like Jade Gaillard. They would only use it for its original purpose.  It was a good idea in theory.  Men were the stronger sex but also the more violent one.  It was meant to protect women from that violence but it just made them a little power hungry.  She didn’t think you guys were dangerous but to be on the safe side it’s nice to have a backup plan.  They would only use it in an emergency.  As much as Lexi hated it, she couldn’t start a fight yet.  It’s just like everything else that has happened in the past, in time people will realize that it’s not right but they needed more people on their side before they could start another war.

“If you need training we can arrange that but I want you to be more of their personal assistant, as opposed to their baby sitter.  I have higher expectations for them, and you, but I have enough on my plate I can’t be there to boss them around all the time.” Isadora explained bring the conversation back to the issue at hand.  Isadora loved what she did for a living but it didn’t leave her much ‘free’ time.   “We have to work within the current system, I hope you understand that.  The government sees the guys as property but I would give the guys everything they need to do their own thing.   They have proven that they can be successful without female control.  I can give them the freedom they need to be great again.” Isadora promised.  She wasn’t going to say it but seeing a return on her investment would be nice.  “But I need you to help me.  The guys already trust you.  You can’t put a price on trust.”

She couldn’t explain it but Lexi believed Isadora.  The woman was brilliant that much was true; she had built an empire out of nothing but a bunch of great ideas.  The fact that Isadora was even telling her all of this said a lot. 

“I guess I need to spend the next few days packing up the stuff I want to take with me.  I can’t believe that we are moving in together.” Lexi beamed.  It only made sense that they moved into together since they would be spending most of their time together.  Isadora was already renovating her massive house to accommodate the 6 new boarders.  She wanted them to be comfortable.

“I hope you and the guys will like New York.  I thought about moving to Orlando but I just can’t afford to move and buy a boy band.” Isadora explained. 

Chapter 21: Monday Morning

Before the sun was even up Isadora was busy making phone calls and trying to set things up so that she could settle this deal with Jade and get back to New York in time to get all her other work done.  She called her lawyer to see if the sale agreement had been drawn up yet, so she could have them fax it to the night club.  The sooner Jade signature was next to hers the better. 

Jade greeted Isadora the minute she got out of her car, after leaving a bad impression the day before by showing up late, Jade was working overtime to insure a better impression.  

“I had the sale agreement faxed over to you this morning if you would like we can step into your office and go over it one more time.” Isadora explained. 

“Excellent, please allow me to show you the way.” Jade explained.  Isadora stopped to grab a rather large white box from the back seat of her rental car.  She had stopped on the way to pick up a wide selection of breakfast pastries for Jade and the guys.  After all she wanted them to be well feed and knew that Jade would not be taking very good care of them once she got her deposit check.

Jade smiled and lead her inside, stopping briefly to drop the guys off their breakfast.  They didn’t say anything to the guys, Jade just set the box on the table in their room and told them to eat up but Chris did catch a glimpse of Isadora.  Right away he knew that something was up.  There were a million reasons why Jade would be meeting with her none or which boded well for him. When they left Chris just buried his face in his hands, the scent of the fresh baked goods was tempting but his every muscle in his body just tensed up. 

Back down the hall, a very happy Jade returned to her office with her new friend in tow.  Isadora smiled at her got the papers off of the fax machine, it was going to take a while to go through them and this was where it got a little boring.  They tried to mix in a little small talk but they really didn’t have much in common.  

“I have to admit I wish I had your youth and carefree life style.  To have what you have and still be able to do what you do.  I know the ‘N Sync guys are handsome so you really can enjoy your new purchases.”Jade teased.  Isadora glanced over the papers in her hands with a raised eye brow.  This conversation had just gotten very interesting. 

“Excuse me?” Isadora questioned.

“Oh, I didn’t mean it like that.  I am not saying that you are promiscuous.  Hell if I was your age and had my own boy band I would defiantly try them all out.” Jade explained trying not to offend anyone.  Isadora didn’t want to seem clueless, so she smiled and acted as if she knew what the hell Jade was talking about. 

“You do know that Lance is gay, right?  I mean it’s not like I can change that.  So I guess 4 out of 5 are not bad.” Isadora joked.

“Well with a push of a button you would be surprised how responsive even Lance can be.” Jade replied.  Isadora just smiled even though she didn’t like the implications.  She had no intentions of forcing Lance or any of the guys into anything.

“Yes well that’s personal.   If you don’t mind I would like to get back to business.” Isadora said making a mental note that owning a boy band apparently made her a rather sleazy person.

After the papers were finally signed and a rather large deposit check we written.  Jade would get the rest of her money upon delivery.  Isadora wanted to get out of there.  It’s not that her time was being wasted there, but there was so much to do before Sunday.  She needed to get back to New York so that she could get stuff ready for the guys. But she wanted to be there when Jade told them the good news.

Lexi glanced at her phone just before walking in to work, there was a text message from Isadora saying that the sale was a done deal and they were just about to go in and tell the guys.

Jade still had the smell of wine on her breath from celebrating her deal with Isadora.  “I have good news, where the hell is the other one?” Jade snapped after a quick head count.  She could never remember the guys’ names and it drove them nuts, it’s not like their names were that hard.  JC only had two letters in his name.

            JC stepped out of the bathroom.  His insides were aching now but he knew if he didn’t come when called it would only make things worse.  So he stood in the doorway and waited for Jade to say something.  He got a little more nervous when he saw Isadora with her.  They all knew who she was from the birthday party and her being there only made what Chris said about Lexi sink in further.

Jade smiled when she saw him.  “I had a very important lunch meeting yesterday and it looks like you are going to be moving to a new home.” She grabbed Lance by the face.  Lance made a weird noise as she squeezed his cheeks and then just looked at her in fear.  “I just sold you boys to this young lady, Miss Isadora Sebastian.”

The guys just hung their heads, not sure how to take the news.   In some ways this could be a good thing but there was something scary about not knowing what was going to happen.  At least with Jade they knew what to expect.  Lexi had just gotten there and was standing in the hallway watching when Jade then turned to her, “I guess you will just have to go back to being just another cocktail waitress.” Jade said. 

“Actually this might be a good time to turn in my two weeks.  I hope that isn’t going to be a problem I just think it’s in my best interest to look for work elsewhere, with the guys gone so are my reasons to stay.” Lexi explained trying to be as nice about it as she could.  Miss Gaillard didn’t seem surprised and wished Lexi well in her new endeavor not that she really cared.  Lexi and Jade hadn’t been seeing eye to eye lately and it would save Jade the trouble of finding a reason to fire her later on down the road.

“Did we do something wrong?” Joey asked a little puzzled as to why Jade would want to get rid of them so suddenly. 

“No, Isadora is just better suited to get you guys a little further in your careers than I am.  She is young and ambitious.  I think she will be able to get more than her money’s worth out of you guys.” Jade stated, looking at Chris as she spoke. 

Chris lifted up from his bed and froze.  His breath caught in his throat.  Jade making this announcement made it real, Isadora had just purchased him, she had been so nice to him but maybe it had all been an act.  What did she really want with him and the others?  Chris turned pale and darted past JC and into the bathroom.  Jade just smiled, “Get ready for one hell of a final week boys.” She said.

“Jade if it is okay with you I would like to stay and talk with the guys’ one on one, so that I can head back to New York with a better understanding of what their needs are.” Isadora asked.  “And your handler as well.”  Jade just agreed and excused herself; she had a bottle of wine in her office that she needed to finish.  She trusted Lexi to keep an eye on the business woman, not that she really cared what Isadora did to them at this point.

Lexi entered the room and JC just stared at her, a little unsure of what to do now, he wanted to talk to Lexi but it didn’t appear that Isadora was leaving.  He wasn’t sure he could say anything in front of his soon to be master.  The truth was that he wasn’t ready to leave Lexi behind.  Lexi could tell that JC was nervous and a little afraid.  She walked over to him and quietly asked him what was wrong.  He just shook his head as if he didn’t want to walk about it. 

Isadora watched the pair closely with her arms neatly folded across her chest.  There was definitely something up with those two and Isadora kind of thought that they made a cute couple.  Based on what Jade and told her earlier about ‘enjoying’ her purchase, Isadora wasn’t stupid there was no way she could ever met the romantic needs of 5 men but they did deserve to be loved.  

“JC can I see you in the hallway.” Isadora asked.  The look on her face wasn’t one of anger.  She seemed cheerful.  He just hung his head and made his way to the door.  JC didn’t want to talk to her but he knew he had to, Jade wouldn’t like it if he messed this up for her.

“Can I get him something for his tummy first?” Lexi asked trying to stall a little, it was clear that there was something JC wanted to tell her.

“Sure, grab something and join us in the hall.” Isadora requested, after all she had a pretty good feeling about what the two of them were up to now.  There had been some doubts but judging by the way the two of them were acting there was defiantly more to the story.  They walked down the hall a little ways so that no one could hear what was about to be said and waited for Lexi.  JC looked at his feet and waited for her to ask him something.  Isadora waited for Lexi to get there hoping it would out the guys at ease to have someone they knew with them.

Isadora asked a couple of basic questions regarding JC’s health and things that would make him more comfortable in his new home.  She encouraged him to be honest with her and Lexi sure wasn’t holding back anything.  She told Isadora about his throwing up a lot lately and how fatigued all the guys were, even went as far as lifting up his shirt and showing her his ribs.  JC just stood there and watched Isadora make notes on her smart phone.

Isadora dismissed them and asked Lexi to bring one of the other guys out to see her.  JC paused as Lexi disappeared into the room.

“I know I am not in the position to barter but… Lexi is special to us and I would like to be able to keep in touch with her.  If you let me do that one thing, I won’t give you any trouble.  I’ll do whatever you ask.  But if you take her from me completely, I swear to god I will be the biggest pain in your ass.” JC offered.  Isadora was taken aback by the tone of his request.  But her smiled never faded. 

“I think we can work something out.” She replied.  He didn’t even smile as he walked off, which let Isadora know that he was dead serious. Not that it worried her, he didn’t know it yet but Lexi wasn’t going anywhere.  He would be able to talk to her as much as he wanted.

Lexi returned with each of the guys in turn.  They all seemed nervous but none more than Chris.  Both girls were trying to put themselves in his shoes; the man had to be terrified.  He had no reason to trust Isadora and every reason to fear her.  She thanked all the guys and then left.  She told Lexi to keep her updated on everything but she had to get back to New York and get stuff ready for their arrival. 

            After showing Isadora out Lexi headed for Jade’s office.  Her boss was most of the way through her bottle of wine, which would make asking her for this favor much easier.  Lexi waited for her to invite her in.  Jade mumble something and pointed to the chair across from her, telling her that this had better be good.

            “I have a business proposition for you.” Lexi started out with, Jade looked at her somewhat interested.  “I have been thinking about yesterday and I truly am sorry for taking advantage of your property like that.  Curiosity just got the best of me.”

            “I suppose that is understandable.  Was it worth it?” Jade questioned.  She would have been lying if she said the thought hadn’t crossed her mind a few times.  It wasn’t like the guy could turn her down.

            “Absolutely.  I know that you just sold the guys and I just couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t find out first had what else JC has to offer a woman.  I was hoping I could rent him for the evening tomorrow night.  He only performs once and has no parties scheduled, Tuesday’s are always slow.  And I could pay you… cash.  But I would want to be able to take him back to my place for the whole night.” Lexi explained.

            Jade seemed to instantly sober up and the mention of money.  She seemed to think it over for a minute.  She would have to check the facts but Tuesday’s were usually very slow and she didn’t think anyone would miss him for a half of a night.  Lexi also knew that Jade did some times rent guys out for event outside of the building.  She could track them on the System and if they strayed too far she would have the women arrested. 

            “I would defiantly need cash and some collateral to make sure you bring him back.”  Jade explained.  “Also this would be off the records.”  She took the time to write a number down on a piece of paper and slide it across the table toward her.  Lexi glanced at it and nodded.  That was about how much she had figured.

            “No restrictions?”  Lexi questioned.

            “No restrictions, I won’t even charge you for multiple… encounters.  You can pick him up after his performance, say around 8 p.m. and bring him back in time for work on Wednesday, say 3 p.m.” Jade explained.  “You will have to let me know if it was worth it.”

            “I am also going to need the night off Tuesday, unpaid of course.” Lexi added.  Surely the guys would be able to make it on night without her, they pretty much knew what they were doing any more and with the club not being as busy it wouldn’t be hard for them to figure stuff out on their own.  She got her check book out and wrote Jade a check, she handed it over to her with the title to her car.  It was the only thing she had that was of value.

            Jade took the items and smiled, but warned Lexi that no one could know about this, explaining very carefully what off the records meant.  If someone found out Jade would report JC as stolen.  Lexi agreed and said she would come up with something to explain JC’s absence.  With that she left her boss to her wine and money.

As luck would have it their schedule wouldn’t leave much time to dwell.  When Lexi returned to the guys’ room at the end of the night, Chris was already in bed but Lexi couldn’t help but notice that he was covered in a thin layer of sweat and he was burning up.  She walked over to him and placed her hand on his forehead, causing him to open his eyes.  He just laid there and let her do what she needed to.  He may not trust her any more but it was still nice to be taken care of.

“You don’t look like you feel so well?” Lexi asked.  He just shook his head no; it had just sort of hit him all of a sudden.  He felt so drained.  Lexi didn’t say anything she just went over to their medicine box and tried to find something to help Chris through the night.  She jumped when JC put his hand on her shoulder. 

“Is there anything that I can do to help?” He asked. 

“No, but how are you feeling?” Lexi asked. 

“I am better than others, please let me help you.” JC begged.  He ran his thumb across her lips, he wanted to kiss her but he couldn’t with some many people still in the hall way and Jade on a war path they needed to back off a little this week.  Lexi finally caved and handed him the meds for Chris before going to check on the others. 

            She made a mental note to call Isadora and tell her to take some vitamins or something if she had kissed Chris or even just being close to him, the poor guy was so sick now.  Lexi made her way over to Joey.  She had just set down next to him when JC suddenly turned white and took off for the bathroom.  Lexi quickly got up and rushed to the door, which JC tried to pull closed on her.  He didn’t want her to see him like that.  It was times like that when he wished that they still had a bathroom door.

            “I thought you said you were fine?” She questioned through the curtain, respecting his privacy. 

“I thought I was.  I must have had a little too much to drink tonight.  My insides are killing me.” JC groaned.  He had thought it was nothing but it suddenly turned on him.  Lexi sighed and went back to helping Joey.  It was going to be a long week.

Chapter 22: Fate

            Everyone seemed to notice when Lexi didn’t show up for work the next day.  As much as it concerned the guys they didn’t really have time to dwell on it.  It wasn’t until Jade called JC into her office that he became concerned.

“You are leaving the compound tonight after your performance for a special assignment.  If you run so help me god I will kill you.  If you tell anyone where you went or what happens there, I will kill you.  You have one job tonight, to make and keep your date happy; I don’t care what you have to do, just do it.  Have I made myself clear?” Jade explained in a stern voice.

            “Yes, Miss.” JC answered, his gaze fixed on the floor.  He didn’t like the way this was sounding but for now he would be agreeable.  His thoughts went back to what Lexi had said about things getting worse and Jade’s growing greed.  She wasn’t getting more lax about renting them out and treating them more like the other guys that she had in her possession.   JC had seen them forced into some pretty awful situations.

            “After your performance Lexi will meet you by the back door to take you where you need to go.  Just pretend to have a good time.” Jade explained.  It wasn’t that Jade cared if Lexi had to good time but she didn’t want her asking for her money back or anything.  She placed a couple of condoms on her desk and told JC to take them.  This time he looked at her, his face showing some concern.  After a long pause he signed heavily before taking them and slipping them into his back pocket.  Jade just smiled back at him.  In her mind Jade had won the battle with JC and broken him down.  Now he was completely compliant. 

            The truth was JC knew that after days of being sick to his stomach he wouldn’t be able to put up much of a fight if his date tonight tried to rape him at least this way he wouldn’t have to worry about getting her pregnant or catching some sort of STD if he failed to keep himself from being taken advantage of.  Jade finally dismissed him.

            As the guys got ready for work they all noted how JC was acting which made them wonder why Jade had called him into her office.  He knew that he apparently wasn’t supposed to tell anyone anything but it wasn’t like the guys wouldn’t notice when he disappeared and god only knew when this mystery person was bringing him back.

            “I am not supposed to talk about it.” JC finally said.  “Lexi was right the other night though; things are going to start getting harder.  I don’t know anything about that Isadora lady but Jade is going to get every penny that she can out of us the next few days.”

            JC finished tying his shoes and stood up realizing that all four guys were still staring at him.  They all knew that he was right and as the weekend approached it was only going to get worse.  Chris was even starting to think that he was going to be better off with Isadora, at least then he would only have one woman to worry about.  It wasn’t like she would share him with any one; she had the money and the smarts to keep him all to herself.  After all there were better ways to make a profit off of them.

            “I guess I am going somewhere later tonight, I can’t say where or why and I have no clue when I will be back.  This just sucks.” He groaned as he sat back down, vigorously rubbing his temples to try to remove the thoughts he was having from his head.

            “I am sorry buddy.  I am sure it will be okay.” Justin offered, it wasn’t that he believed it would all be okay even though he wanted to, but they had to keep positive.  Of course coming from a guy that just weeks ago tried to kill himself it didn’t mean much.    He glanced down at his wrists which were still scared from the suicide attempt, before putting on the bracelets that Jade now made him wear.  It had crossed him mind that his new master likely didn’t know that he was suicidal, which could lead to opportunities to try again but he wanted to give Isadora a chance.  If she would focus more on the music and less on selling their bodies he would consider living to be a better option. 

            As the night progressed JC did his best not to think about whatever was going on but when he stepped off the stage after his performance, he realized that it was time and now there was nothing else left to think about accept getting through this date.  It was refreshing to see the smile on Lexi’s face when he approached the back door.

            “Are you ready for this?” Lexi asked.

            “Not really, I am not even sure what’s going on.” JC admitted.  Lexi shook her head, of course Jade didn’t tell him the truth because he might have actually been excited about this if he knew the truth but she would rather see him stress out about it.  JC hesitated as he stepped out the door, he had tried it once before and instantly regretted it but this time nothing happened.  Lexi put her hand on his arm and guided him to her car.

            The car ride was a quiet one; neither one was really sure what to say.  This was still awkward for Lexi, as much as she wanted to be with JC and had thought about this for a long time, she still didn’t know how he felt about it. 

As for Jade’s threats about killing him if he ran off tonight, she was already killing him, all be it at a much slower pace.  They were still fighting because they wanted to live, accept Justin who was still trying to find away to kill himself.  But Lexi didn’t even think that he really wanted to die, he just wanted a way out of this miserable life that they were trapped in.

            “So, Jade really didn’t tell you where you were going?” Lexi asked out loud.

            “No, she made it sound like it was some sort of secret.” JC replied.  He eye were fixed out the side window, he hadn’t been outside of the club in months, not since he had arrived there.  It was a nice change of scenery.  He could think of a million places that Jade could have been sending him, the clear choice being to a hospital.  But the condoms that she gave him ruled that out.  

When he heard Lexi giggle he turned to her suddenly with a confused look on his face.  He certainly didn’t see the humor in this.  For the first time in a long time he noticed that she wasn’t stressed or concerned.  She was happy.  Of course she had thought about the four other guys left to deal with Jade tonight but for JC she was happy.  And soon the others wouldn’t have to worry about Jade either.  The confused look he was giving didn’t go unnoticed.

“JC, I am your date tonight.” Lexi explained.  “We are going back to my place for a relaxing evening at home.”  JC stuttered a few times and just looked straight ahead.

“Does Jade know?” He finally asked.  He knew it was a stupid question but Jade hated him and Lexi, he couldn’t understand why she would have agreed to this.

“Yes, she knows.  I told you she was getting greedy and desperate.  So I made her an offer and she agreed.  But you can’t tell anyone because she isn’t supposed to be doing this anymore it goes against her agreement with Isadora.  This is all under the table so to speak.” Lexi explained keeping her eyes on the road and glancing over at JC from time to time. 

JC took a sigh of relief but before he could ask any more questions they pulled into an apartment complex.  As he followed Lexi up the stairs to her apartment the thought of running had crossed his mind, but somehow he knew that Jade would find him and make his life eve more of a hell.  But with Lexi as his date tonight things were at least looking up for him for now.  Her apartment was small but it was more or less what he had expected, he didn’t think working for Jade really paid well. 

“Are you moving?” JC asked after noticing a few boxes on the floor in the living room that seemed to be full of some of her stuff.

“Yeah actually I am.” Lexi answered.  She wrestled with the cork on a bottle of wine while JC had a look around.  “I thought we could celebrate.  I got that job that I was telling you about.”  He turned to look at her just as the cork finally popped out.  Lexi knew that JC probably wouldn’t want anything to drink but she sure needed it tonight.  This wasn’t the kind of dating that she was used to and it had been awhile since she had even been on a date so yeah she was nervous. “You want some?”

“Maybe just a little.” JC replied putting him hand on his stomach.  He wasn’t sure that he could handle too much but he really could use something to settle his nerves.  For some reason being in her apartment alone with her was making him a little uneasy.  She smiled and poured a little into a glass for him. 

“I am going to make you some soup.” Lexi said. She knew that it was late but the guys were used to working odd hours and he needed something to eat. “Why don’t you go take a hot shower, while I get dinner ready?  I put a change of clothes on the bathroom counter for you.”  When Lexi turned her back to him, JC lifted up his shirt and sniffed it, he never realized it before but his clothes did smell a lot like a bar.  The delicate blend of sweat and booze was something he must have just gotten used to.  He thanked her and headed for the bathroom which was easy to find in the small apartment.

In the bathroom he didn’t even bother to lock the door, he had never had that option before so it just sort of slipped his mind.  He turned on the water and stripped down but before he got in he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror.  The mirrors at the club were small and dirty, but what he saw staring back at him in the crystal clear refection of the massive bathroom mirror scared him.   JC took a moment to examine himself closer before jumping into the shower.

He let the hot water run over his aching body, soothing him.  But his mind was racing now. He put his head against the cold tile and sobbed a little.  The pain that he felt daily and all the suffering was finally sinking in, he was wasting away.  Soon there would be nothing left of him.  After a few minutes he composed himself and finished his shower.  After all he didn’t want to ruin this night for Lexi; she deserved the best he had to offer.

When Lexi heard the bathroom door open she immediately got a bowl and filled it for him, motioning him over to the table.  She had to admit that he looked a little better already and the clothes that Isadora had given her looked great on him.  Once he was seated Lexi got herself something to eat and sat across from him.  They made small talk while JC sipped his wine and did his best to eat what he could.  After all he didn’t want to ruin their date by getting sick.

It wasn’t until Lexi got up and went over to the book shelf that JC’s thoughts began to shift again.  She was reaching for something on one of the top shelves when her shirt slid up revealing a small portion of her under wear to him.  The sudden shift of blood flow to his groin reminded JC of what Jade had said.  There were no restrictions tonight, so unlike the many nights of them making out in the back hall when JC had been left wanting more than his body would allow, this time it responded to those desires and thoughts that had plagued him for some time.

With her back still to him JC took the time to tug on the crotch of his new jeans and try to make himself more comfortable.  He remembered that the condoms were still in his other pants but that is when it hit him.  His thought earlier about there being nothing left of him came back, but what if he could leave something behind?  He looked around the apartment again and there weren’t a lot of signs that she had friends or family around and the wine bottle was nearly empty making it unlikely that she would turn him down if he laid on the charm or realize if they forgot something.

Lexi was the only woman in this world that he would trust to have his child.  He knew that regardless of its gender she would love it and treat it right.  It would also give her someone to love and take care of after he was gone.  Sure Isadora had said that she would let them stay in touch but that didn’t mean they would see each other.    He didn’t want Lexi to be alone any more.  Of course there was a chance that nothing would come of it but JC was willing to leave that up to fate.

He emptied his own wine glass and went over by her; he easily reached the items that she had been struggling to get and handed them to her.  Lexi was just trying to busy herself while he ate and packing up a few more items seemed like a good use of her time.  She wasn’t going to pressure him in fact she planned on letting his sleep in her bed while to took the sofa.  But when she felt his hand graze her butt as she turned to walk away she froze.  JC just smiled, all those years of seducing young fans were going to pay off after all, not that he thought it would take much since Lexi clearly already had some sort of feelings for him.

In a sift motion he pushed her up against the bookshelf and kissed her, pausing only briefly before deepening the kiss.  He braced himself with one arms while the other hand ran down the side of her body, taking in all of her curves.  She quickly dropped the books that he had handed her and instinctively wrapped her arms around him.

“JC, we don’t have to do this.” Lexi breathed when he finally stopped for air.  He smiled again his face still dangerously close to hers.  There was a sparkle in his eyes that Lexi hadn’t seen in a long time. 

“Haven’t you been thinking about this?” JC asked placing soft kisses down her neck.  “All those nights in the back hall making out, knowing that nothing could happen?”  He kissed his way back up and pressed himself closer to her, lifting one of her legs a wrapping it around his waist.  “This may be our only chance.”

“I just don’t want to take advantage of you.” Lexi explained.  She felt a little guilty about misleading him, but heaven forbid this deal with Isadora still fell through or that JC became angry with her after finding out about her deception.  JC just laughed, if anything he was the one taking advantage of her tonight.  But he was sure that she would forgive him.  Chris may not trust her any more but for some reason he still did.

He kissed her again and when she didn’t respond he figured it was safe to proceed.  JC put both hands on her ass and gently lifted her so he could carry her into the bed room.  They gently fell onto the bed as JC continued to kiss and paw at her.  He stood up and pulled his shirt over his head before quickly tossing it aside.

“Are you sure that you want to do this?” Lexi asked.  Maybe it was the wine starting to kick in a little but she didn’t want him to have any regrets.  Of course she had thought about this and yeah she wanted it.

“Oh yeah.” JC moaned as he worked to undo his jeans.  There was so much about this that just felt right to him.  For the first time in a long time he was in control and yeah he was just like any other guy, he really liked sex, but he also knew that it was better when it was with someone that you cared about. 

Lexi let her eyes scan him, if there was one thing she had learned from Isadora over the years it was that the people that take risks often see the biggest rewards.  This was a huge risk but yeah she was ready to accept the consequences.  JC stepped out of his pants and climbed back on the bed with her.  He helped her pull her shirt off and familiarized himself with the newly exposed skin.    He struggled with her bra for a minute before tossing it aside as well.

Every inch of his body wanted her, hell it needed her but he wanted to draw this out as long as he could, anything to make it worth her while.  He wouldn’t admit it but now he was nervous.  Those nights in the hall he had wanted to do more but couldn’t but now… Oh this was so going to happen.

“Okay, but only if you want to.  I would never force you to do anything that you didn’t want to.” Lexi babbled.  He smiled and cradled her face with his hands as he captured her lips with his.  If this was going to be wrong then tonight he didn’t want to be right.  He wasn’t sure what thrilled him more, that he was going to get to be with a woman again or that for the rest of the night he was going to be like a free man. 

He made a sexy growl before pinning her down between him and the bed.  He kissed her neck, taking in the warmth of her skin.  It was so intoxicating.  He pulled her pulled her jeans down and kicked them off the bed.  It was a pleasant reminder of how gentle and submissive a woman could be, given the right situation.

“Before we do this, I feel I should tell you that it’s been awhile so please forgive me if I am a little off my game.” JC begged, after all her body was so inviting to him in that moment, he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to last very long.  He was also waiting to see if she would protest.

“Same here.” Lexi moaned, using her feet to push his underwear down, exposing him to her. “Yeah, I don’t think we are going to have a problem.  Just go easy on me.”  Lexi added.  JC smiled and ran his hands down the sides of her sexy body as he crawled between her legs, slowly removing her underwear.  This was going to be incredible. 

Lexi moaned as he played with her a little.  He wanted to make sure that she was ready for him after all he didn’t want to hurt her.  She was trying to keep it down so the neighbors wouldn’t hear, but as he removed his fingers and rubbed his dick against her it was too much.

“Oh , JC.  Give it to me please.” She begged.  She needed him so bad right now.  As he pushed his way inside of her, it was almost too much.  JC groaned at the sudden tightness around his aching member then kissed her on the lips to keep her from calling out in ecstasy.  He let one of his hands slide under her butt for leverage and he gently thrust into her.

“Lexi, you feel so good.” JC grunted.  He was concerned about not lasting very long so he reached down and played with her a little, he wanted to get her there as well.  Then he stopped all movement and kissed her.  She whimpered when he pulled himself out. “Relax.” He moaned, left himself up and flipping her over.  He carefully pulled her up onto her hand and knees before guiding himself back into her.

He grabbed her hips and thrust forward a few times before forcing her to arch her back a little more.  He couldn’t explain it but he needed to make her come, after a few more thrust he reached around and player with her some more trying anything to get her there before his own fast approaching orgasm. 

“JC…harder.” Lexi moaned.  He hoped that meant she was close so he once again took hold of her hips and began to grind into her as hard as he could. Lexi was moving herself in tune with his thrust to get the most out of his actions.  Finally a wave after wave of pure ecstasy washed over her.  Her body instantly tightened and quivered under him.  JC shoved himself as far inside her as he could possibly go and released, letting his own orgasm wash over him.  His arms seemed to lock up but he tired to thrust a few more times for good measure.

JC collapsed on to the bed beside her landing face first into a pillow.  He was completely spent but the happiest that he had been in a long time.  He felt her run her hands through his hair while he rested his head on her pillow, listening to the sound of his own rapid heartbeat.

“Can we just stay like this forever?” JC asked, closing his eyes and breathing in the moment.  Lexi just shook her head.  As much as she wanted to keep him she knew that she it would never be like this again.  And as awesome as this night was, it wasn’t reality.  It was better to be with him in the minor role that she had in his life than to not be with him at all.  JC just sighed, reality really sucked.

It wasn’t long before his fatigue started to return, he was impressed that he had been able to do as much as he did, but now there was nothing left.  Lexi watched as his eye slowly closed and his breathing returned to normal.  Within seconds he was sound asleep.  She watched him for a minute, he looked so at peace.

“I love you.” She whispered before succumbing to the wine and sex induced slumber.

The next morning Lexi was sitting at her kitchen table watching JC though the open door to her bedroom as he slept.  She though back to the night before and smiled as she sipped her coffee.  The pop star was still lying sprawled out in her bed, the sheets twisted around his naked body.  The sight it’s self was like a work of art and Lexi was just trying to make a good mental picture.  It also gave her more reason to push Isadora into letting her have something more with him that just being there to keep his busy schedule. 

She cursed at the empty wine bottle on the counter for giving her this headache but truth be told it probably had more to do with her constant thinking lately.  She wanted to tell JC the truth so bad but maybe it would be a nice surprise for him.  Lexi glanced at the clock, wondering how long she should let him sleep before waking him up to return him to that hell whole.  It wasn’t that she wanted to take him back but if she didn’t Jade would report him as stole and tracking him down would be as easy as pushing a button.  She would end up in Jail and he would be on his way to New York without her.

“This is what you wanted Lexi, everything it going according to plan.” She told herself softly.  She busied herself packing again after all she only had a few days left to get it all together and meet up with the guys, not that she had a lot to move.

JC finally began to move about, putting his hand on his face to block some of the light that was coming in through the window; it wasn’t long before he realized the bed wasn’t as full as it was the night before.  He lifted himself up and looked around, taking a minute to remember where he was.  He smiled and let himself fall back onto the soft bed when he saw Lexi wrapping for items to place in a box.  The movement didn’t go unnoticed by her.

“Good afternoon sleepy head.” Lexi teased not taking her eyes off the item in her hand that she was struggling to wrap.  JC glanced at the clock on her night stand, it was just past noon.

“Why did you let me sleep so long?” He asked, spinning his legs around to the side of the bed.  He sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes, letting the sheets drape over him lap not really hiding much.  Which Lexi noticed but was trying not to stare at him, but it was gorgeous.  She imagined what he would have look like in his prime. 

She got up from the floor and offered to make him some lunch.  He humored her even though his inside weren’t too sure.  After slipping his underwear back on he took a seat at the table and watched her make them something to eat. 

“So you never did tell me about this new job of yours.  I guess we got side tracked last night.” JC laughed.

“Yeah about that…” Lexi started.  JC held up his hand to stop her, he knew where she was going with it.  He had been the one that got them side tracked the night before not her, he wasn’t mad or blaming her for what happened.  Lexi just sighed and let him interrupt her.

“Last night was great just least it at that.  Maybe it will help elevate some of this sexual tension between us.  I want to hear about this new job and maybe where exactly you got the money to fund this little adventure.”  JC explained.  She thought quickly about how to answer him while she sat down to join him for lunch.  She watched as he played with the food on his plate, knowing that he probably wouldn’t eat much.

“The new job sounds great but only time will tell.  It clearly involves me moving but I don’t mind.  I will be making more so I can afford a nicer place any way.  As for the money I used to fund our little date last night, let’s just say I didn’t work all the over time for nothing the rest I took out a small loan for, which I will be able to pay back in no time.” She explained.

“Well thank you for doing this.  I know it shouldn’t be about having enough money to be with some one that you… care about” JC paused as he hesitated to use some other words.  “But I appreciate what you did and I honestly had a great time.” He responded honestly, smiling at her to reassure her.  There was still a twinkle in his eye as he talked about it and they made Lexi happy, knowing that he truly meant what he was saying. 

When her plate was clean she excused herself from the table, she needed to take a shower and get ready for work.  As the days passed she knew things would get harder and the guys would need her there to help them, so the vacation was over.  JC watched her walk away thinking back to the night before and the choices he had made.  With her new job it sounded more and more like she was the one that he needed to carry on his legacy.

He briefly thought about Lexi’s deal with Jade and if she would be charged more for an additional romantic encounter with him, but honestly at this point he didn’t care and neither did a certain part of his anatomy. 

It was apparent that Lexi wasn’t used to having someone else in the apartment with her as she didn’t bother to lock the bathroom door either allowing JC to easily slip in.  He was very excited about hooking up with Lexi one last time.  If he never saw her again at least these memories would get him through those cold lonely nights.  He carefully stripped and slipped into the steamy shower.

As soon as the cold burst and air hit her Lexi spun around only to be silenced by JC’s kiss.  He wrapped his arms around her as the warm water washed over them.  The sexy growl that he made sent shivers down her spine.  There was no way that he was faking, he was either really horny or really into her, but with as much of a fight as he had put up in the past to protect his body from being molested she had to believe that it was more than a meaningless hook-up. 

“JC what are you doing?” She breathed not wanting him to stop.  He held up two fingers to her and paused.

“You have 2 more hours left, I just want to get you your money’s worth.   But if you want me to stop I will.”  He explained watching her eyes slowly close; she was clearly thinking about it and torn between doing the right thing and giving into to her sexual desires.  Her hands made their way down his back, across his tight ass and finally to his rock hard cock.  She stroked it a few times smiling at the sound of his moans.

He let her play with it for a moment, waiting for her to open her eyes and tell him that it was okay to continue.  Her gentle touch was magic to him as he threw his head back and moaned again.  Lexi took that as a sign that he was ready, and now so was she.  She was ready to admit that she wanted him and it wasn’t just as a friend either.   She carefully shifted them so that her back was up against the shower all and then she hooked one of her legs around his waist pulling him closer to her.

JC opened his eyes and kissed her again pressing her hard against the cold tiles.  While using one hand to support his weight and the other to support her ass, he gradually entered her with the guidance of her hand.

“God JC, you’re so big… damn… that feel so good.” Lexi moaned letting her head rest on his shoulder and her hand cling to his bicep as he thrust into her.  He laughed a little under his breath as his breathing became labored it was hard to talk.  He imagined how awesome she would think he was if he actually had his strength back.  His legs were starting to burn from the awkward sexual position but he couldn’t bring himself to stop, it just felt too fucking good.  He needed this, he needed her.

“Cum for me baby.” He breathed.  She couldn’t speak as her he collided with her over and over again.  She dug her nails into the flesh of his arm, not really meaning to hurt him but she just couldn’t help herself as her body started to tremble.

“Oh god.  JC, Please don’t’ stop.” She begged. 

He grunted in response knowing that he couldn’t take much more.  His whole body tensed up as he climaxed but he somehow managed to give her a few more power but shaky thrust to get her over the edge as well.  He stood there leaning on her for support allowing both of her feet to slip back down to the tub below.  Their forehead pressed together, he just watched her and waited for his breathing to return to normal.

“I am sorry…I just don’t have the stamina anymore.” JC said between breaths.  He stumbled backwards trying to get the feeling back in his legs and examined the tiny nail marks on his arm.

“Sorry.” Lexi offered.  JC just smiled and shrugged, it was just something to remember her by, should they never meet like that again.  They helped each other wash up and get out of the shower.  Neither of them was looking forward to going back to the night club so JC helped Lexi pack and they waited as long as they could before returning. 

They also agreed that, while Jade would know more or less what happened, but they wouldn’t tell the others.  JC had told Lexi that Chris was starting to have doubts about her and she said that she understood why he might, so telling them that they hooked up might make them think that Lexi really was just like all the other women, even though they both knew, but weren’t saying, that it wasn’t like that.  They were in love.

Each day seemed to be worse than the last; Jade was working them harder and feeding them less.  It wasn’t like she cared what happened to them after this week, they were Isadora’s problem now.  The only thing Jade needed was for them to have a pulse when she shipped them off on Sunday, even if they were on life support.

The sounds of Chris retching behind him sent JC over the edge again and he snatched the small trash pale up and made for his bed.  Chris wasn’t sure why he had the sudden urge to throw up; maybe it was the massive amount of meds in his system or the fear he was battling with. Horrible images of becoming Isadora personal sex slave were flooding his mind.  Maybe that was why she hadn’t taken advantage of him that night; soon she could have him any time she wanted. Chris began openly crying, allowing himself to fall back against the bathroom wall. 

The sounds of his sobs were killing Lexi but she didn’t know what to do for him, nothing she could say would make him feel better.  They only had a few more days of this hell to endure but it was the unknown life that awaited that concerned Chris the most. 

Her calls to Isadora were getting longer and there was so much planning going on behind the scenes.  The move wasn’t going to be easy and readjusting to a more normal life was going to take time but most of all fixing all the physical damage that Jade had caused them could take months.

“Is this going to be okay?” Justin asked still rubbing the sleep from his eye after his rude awakening that morning.  Chris had awoken from a nightmare and made for the bathroom in such a rush that it had woken them all up.

“I think so; look at it this way, things couldn’t get much worse, right?” Lexi asked.  She motioned around herself, their room was a dump.  The only one that ever cleaned it was Lexi and it had been awhile since even she had time to.  Surely whatever Isadora would have for them would be better, probably emasculate in fact.  “This could totally be a good thing.” Lexi assured them.

“But what about Chris, is he going to be okay?” Lance asked. Lexi smiled and it seems to catch the guys off guard.

 “Isadora is a beautiful, successful and wealthy woman.  She has gone to great lengths to be with him.  He could certainly do worse. There are worse situations to be in I guess.  I think she will be good for you guys, she can make you great again.” Lexi explained.  There was a pause in the room as the guys weren’t sure how to take what she just said; they guessed that was one way to look at it. 

 “What if she really just wants Chris and the rest of us are just baggage?” Justin asked. 

“No way.  With as much money and power as she has if she just wanted Chris then that is what she would have gotten.  You’re a group and she bought into the whole package.  I think she still sees something in you guys and Chris was just the bonus.  She never does anything half assed and she put her all into every new endeavor she has.  Now there is nothing any of us can do about it so we just need to focus on getting through the rest of this week and then we can worry about next week when it gets here.” Lexi explained.

“So, Chris please don’t cry you are just going to give yourself a stuffy nose.” Lexi begged.  Her eyes remained fixed on the bathroom doorway waiting for him to emerge.    When he did his eye were red and just simply headed straight for his bed, falling on to it and burying his face in his pillow.  Chris was still trying to process his feelings but he mind was cloudy. 

Lexi pulled an envelope out of her bag and laughed a little.  She did have something for the guys that might make them feel better.  As part of the sale agreement Miss Gaillard had to hand over any and all files on the guys.  Jade had given Lexi the results of the semen testing to mail to Isadora and with Isadora’s consent of course, Lexi opened it. 

“I got the results from the tests.” Lexi teased.  They all looked at her concerned. “It said that all the tests were in conclusive due to an unknown contaminate in the samples, they recommended retesting but Isadora hasn’t gotten the results just yet.  I don’t think she will be interested in retesting you guys though, I think she wants to focus more on your music.”  Lexi offered the report to the guys but Justin was the only one that took them.  He read it over quickly but didn’t smile.

“How do we know that it was actually destroyed?” Justin questioned.

“I am sure Isadora’s high price lawyer personally saw to it, but it doesn’t sound like it really mattered, seems to me like the stuff must have been pretty useless after…” Lexi said. 

“After you tampered with it?” JC questioned.

“I plea the 5th.”  Lexi teased, though she wasn’t really hiding her feelings about the situation any more.  Her and Jade had already butted heads that day over some stupid thing that Jade had requested her to do.  Lexi could see them getting into it again before the week was out, she no intentions of coming into work next week.  If Jade didn’t fire her, then she would quit.  Chris finally perked up, he seemed a little unsure.  Lexi was sort of in the middle when it came to the two of them.  Sure she cared about Chris but she also cared about Isadora.  They would make a cute couple and produce some of the cutest little dark haired babies.  Not to mention that Isadora would practically give him the world. “You know Chris; I think that you have this all wrong.”

“What do you mean?” Chris questioned.

“Seems to me that all the power is about to be put in your hands.” Lexi stated.  She was watching Chris as he got ready; he wasn’t really listening to her. 

“How do you figure?” He finally asked.

“Isadora, she is totally in to you.  I am pretty sure she would do anything you asked her to do, within reason of course.” Lexi explained.  It may have seemed like she was ratting her friend out but in reality it could only work in her favor.  If she wanted Chris to fall for her, she might just be willing to give him whatever he wanted.

“What if I am not the man that she thinks I am?  It’s one thing to fall in love with a poster or an idea…” Chris trailed off at the end, not really sure how to explain it.  Lexi thought for a minute about that.  It wasn’t like Chris was even the same guy that he used to be back then any way.

“Would it really kill you to play along with whatever mental image she has of you?” Lexi pondered out loud.  It wasn’t fair for Chris to pretend to be something that he wasn’t but if he did it could totally benefit him. 

Later that night, Chris’s mind was racing as his 15 minutes in heaven winner pressed him up against the bars of the cage.  Her hands were all over him, but he was thankful that his body remained unresponsive.  But the situation was making him think back to his date with Isadora and what Lexi had asked him earlier.  That night he had been able to manipulate her slightly to his advantage.  She did go with him to the bathroom even though she didn’t want sex, the sex that she ended up playing for any way.  Chris could see Lance and Joey waiting off to the side for their time in the cage. 

Maybe Chris could sacrifice himself for his friends.  Isadora had a thing for Chris and at first that scared him, but now he was thinking maybe it could work in their favor.  He could use her attraction to him to get things for them and make life in this world a little better.  But the catch would be once she had him would he lose his power over her?  Chris wasn’t so sure about his skills as a lover any more, it had been so long and he had been famous.  For most women his fame was enough to turn them on, but now would he be able to please Isadora?  Or would she toss him aside once she had experienced his love?  Would she move on to the others?

Chris would have shaken the thoughts from his head, if he could have moved.  The woman in the cage with him forced his head still and she probed his mouth with her tongue.  This had to be the longest 15 minutes ever.  Chris felt his fear about the upcoming move returning.  He just needed someone to talk to about it.  Maybe he could get one of the guys alone later and see if his plan sounds just as crazy out loud as it did inside his head.

By the end of the night Lance’s ankle was painfully swollen.  Chris was running a fever and had so much cold medicine in his system; Lexi was starting to wonder if he even knew what was going on around him.  JC was still having trouble keeping stuff down.  He would eat and then try to keep it down long enough to get something out of it before running to the bathroom.  Things weren’t looking good for the guys, Lexi prayed for them to have the strength to make it just one more night.

Lance was sitting on his bed trying to massage his ankle and rewrap it for bed when Chris snuck in, the others were nowhere in sight, probably out helping to clean up.  He sat down on the bed facing Lance and waited for his friend to look at him. 

“Are you alright Chris, you seem distracted lately?” Lance asked.

“I am okay; I just really need to talk to someone.  Can I borrow your ear for a minute?” Chris begged.  Lance just nodded and waited for Chris to continue.  Chris carefully explained the revelation he had earlier and his fears about proceeding down that path.  “I don’t want to take advantage of her but that way we could all get what we want.  She could have me and we could have a better life.” Chris said, his bottom lip quivering slightly with fear and guilt.

“Chris, I am not going to tell you what to do, just that… you shouldn’t do anything for anyone else but yourself.  It’s not fair for you to sacrifice for all of us.  I know you mean well but you have to think about yourself first.  I can only hope that if we behave and do as we are told, Isadora will reward us for a job well done, unlike Miss Gaillard.” Lance explained.  There were risks involved with Chris’s plan to manipulate Isadora and Lance didn’t want to take reasonability if that plan back fired on him.  “You could end up being miserable and I know that I couldn’t live with myself seeing you suffer on my behalf.  Should you chose to go down that path make sure you set up something to keep yourself happy as well.”

Chris nodded and thanks Lance for hearing him out.  It ultimately was his choice as to what he did.  But if Isadora wanted him then she would have him one way or another, so he might as well try to benefit from it.  Love had a whole new meaning to him now than it used to, he was pretty sure that he could love Isadora if she let him be himself whereas before he had wanted so much more out of a relationship. 

When Saturday came around and the guys got to work for the last time at the club, Lexi was so stressed for them.  Miss Gaillard had them running all over the place.  On the plus side they were so focused on getting through the night that they didn’t seem to even care about what tomorrow would bring. 

Of course that wasn’t stopping Lexi from thinking about it.  She was sitting in the back hall taking a little break before things got really busy.  She didn’t even have to look up to know who it was when someone took a seat beside her.

“Do you think that I made a mistake?” She asked.

“Everyone makes mistakes, though I am not sure exactly what you are talking about.” JC responded.

“When I told Chris it wouldn’t kill him to pretend to be whatever Isadora wanted.” Lexi explained.  JC thought about it.

“I am afraid that I can’t answer that, no one can.  I can’t speak for Isadora but I know that Chris isn’t the same person that he was before the war, it seems like everyone and everything has changed.  The old Isadora fell in love with the old Chris, the fun carefree man that sang in a boy band.  Will the current Isadora like the new guy? Will Chris go back to the way that he was if Isadora grants us a little more freedom? Who really knows?” JC paused to let it sink in.  “I know you feel guilty and you may have started the fire, but it doesn’t mean that you can control the flame.”

“Is that the nice way of telling me that I am going to get burned?” Lexi teased.  JC did have a point after all.  Who is to say that Isadora is even the same person any more?  The war seemed to affect everyone in some way.  “Beauty and brains, you are a very dangerous man.”  JC just smiled and got up; he let his hand graze hers as he walked away.  He needed to get ready; it was going to be a long night.

As he moved out of sight he drew in a deep breath.  He wasn’t sure which was harder, the performance that he put on every night for the fans or the one that he put on for Lexi.  She couldn’t find out how sick he really was.  She was already beating herself up over things that she couldn’t control.  Lexi would only blame herself and it wasn’t her fault.  He knew that she was trying her hardest to take care of them, yet his body still continued ached and was weak from prolonged abuse.  What didn’t hurt seemed to be numb at this point.

JC had hope, if he could just get through tonight, then there was a chance Isadora would save him and since Lexi wasn’t going with, he would have time to heal without her guilt.  He was sure that no one would tell her how bad of shape he was in but if she did somehow find out at least at that point it wouldn’t matter because he would hopefully be getting help.  JC laughed a little, he never imagined that one day he would be praying for a stranger to save him.  He had to put his faith in Isadora; there was nothing left to believe in.

Jade was watching them closely looking for any reason to punish them as if she just had to get it out of her system since they were leaving.  There was no denying that the woman was cruel.  With nothing left to give of course the guys gave her reasons throughout the night, but it didn’t seem to faze them, they just wanted to get through this.  Her wicked ways were about to be a thing of the past.

Lexi huddled them up for their final performance, she prayed with them and told them to be as safe as they could, then sent them out onto the stage for the final time.  They only had three songs to perform, they weren’t perfect but Lexi thought they did great all things considered.  She knew that she wouldn’t have been able perform under these conditions.  They deserved a metal or something.

It had hit him in the middle of the last song, JC become weak but willed himself though it.  He was almost home free, if he screwed up now Jade would get one more chance to make him miserable.  As they were walking off the stage JC suddenly collapsed onto the floor, his body just couldn’t take any more.  He hadn’t wanted Lexi to see him like that but he had nothing left and could no longer hide it.

Lexi ran to him as Chris darted past her and to a nearby trash can where he proceeded to deject all the medication he had taken that night in addition to some drinks that had been forced down to please the paying customers, but they hadn’t mixed well at all.    

JC was unresponsive; His pulse was racing.  Lexi asked Joey and Justin for assistance with them, she couldn’t possibly help both of them.  This wasn’t how she wanted this to end tonight.

Justin went over to help Chris while Joey helped Lexi lift JC off the floor and carry him into the backroom.  They were followed closely by Lance, who fell onto his bed in unbearable pain from his ankle.  Lexi asked Joey to stay with them while she went back for Chris.

Chris was still hovering over the trash can while Justin just patted him on the back, not really sure what else to do for him at this point.  Lexi offered him something to sooth his tummy but Chris refused.  He begged her not to make him take it, he didn’t want any more drugs, in fact he just wanted purge himself completely.  Lexi withdrew her offer and respected his wishes.  She could see that the man was already suffering.

It wasn’t long before Lexi felt someone standing over her.  It was a feeling that she was used to but no longer tolerated.  Miss Gaillard started to yell at her, but Lexi wasn’t listening, she was so over this job.  This was bound to happen sooner or later, if Jade hadn’t seen it coming then she was a moron.  Justin could almost see the fire in Lexi’s eyes.

“Look, I wish there was something I could do for you but I have one that I can’t even wake up.” The words had no more than left her mouth when Chris’s eyes started to roll into the back of his head; luckily Justin was right there to catch him as he fell.  “Make that two, I am not a magician, you should have planned this better.” Lexi continued, no longer concerned about losing her job.  Lexi showed restrain, god knows there were a million curse words running throw her head, but there was still somewhat of a need to remain professional. 

“You know what Lexi, why don’t you just forget about that second week’s notice, tonight can be your last night.  Now just get these worthless things out of my sight, yourself included.” Miss Gaillard snapped the starred to storm off.  Justin looked up at Lexi, kind of hurt by what Miss Gaillard had just said.  He didn’t think that he was worthless though sometimes she made him feel like he was. 

“You’re the idiot that created this disaster.  I am just thankful that the guys are getting out of here.  Now they will see what it’s like to work for a real business woman, you’re a fucking idiot and a horrible human being.” Lexi fired back.  A few waitresses looked at her, but Jade never turned back around, which was probably a good thing otherwise this fight would have gotten a lot worse.  She stood there and waiting to see if Jade would come back, god knows there was so much more that could be said. 

“Can you help me lift him?” Lexi asked Justin after a few deep breaths.  She leaned down to help get Chris back up right.  They got into the back room and put Chris on his bed.  Justin went into the bathroom to get some water for them. 

“Lexi, I can’t get him to wake up.  Is he going to be okay?” Joey cried.  He really was worried about JC this time.  Lexi tried to comfort the big guy, but she was worried about JC too.  There was no point in everyone crying though, so she fought back the tears.

Justin returned with the water and they were able to get both Chris and JC to drink something, though JC still wasn’t very responsive.  He rolled his eyes a few times and tried to focus on something but kept slipping back into a state of unconsciousness.  Lexi put her had on his neck so that she could feel his pulse, it was slowly returning to normal. 

“JC honey can you hear me?  You got to hang in there just one more day.  It’s going to be better, I promise.” Lexi said as a tear rolled down her face.  This was bad.  She found herself praying to god to give him strength.  He had to get through this so that they could be together at Isadora’s place.  She sent Justin to get a bottle of vitamin water from her bag.  They split it between the 5 of them, they all needed more but it was the best that she could do.  The only plus side was that with JC passed out, he wasn’t likely to throw up the water that he so badly needed.

“I am starting to think that you guys don’t really need to worry about tomorrow; there is no way that it can get any worse.  Even if Isadora did turn out to be a slave driver at least she will do more to keep you alive.  This is just stupid.  Jade is a wanna be murder.” Lexi snapped.  She was looking at the floor as she spoke so it wasn’t like she was talking to any one particular. 

This place was bad for them and it was a good thing that they were leaving it behind, otherwise it might have killed them to stay even one more day.  Jade didn’t care about them at all.  Lexi stayed as long as she could, she had to know that JC was going to be okay, but Miss Gaillard finally had her escorted out of the building.  She told the guys that she would see them again soon, a comment that seemed to go unnoticed. 

The next day it seemed as though the dust had settled from the night before.  They all were rudely woken up and forced to get ready to leave without anything to eat or drink.  Jade had them chained up and tossed in a van to be taken to the airport.  There was nothing nice or kind about the treatment that they received.  But the guys were too drained to care.  Lexi had to be right; there was no way it could get worse.

No one would talk to them or tell them what was going on.  As they climbed out of the van a familiar figure came into focus, instantly bringing a smile to their faces.  It was Lexi.  She was dressed in business clothes and carrying a briefcase, a far cry from her club attire.  But her smile and presence were comforting to them.

“I thought I told you to get lost.” Jade snapped, clearly not happy to see her former employee.

“You did, but if you had waited 5 more minutes I would have quit.   No need to worry about unemployment though, I am here on official business.” Lexi pulled out a business card and handed it to her.  “Miss Sebastian, approached me after you sold them to her and hired me as her new personal assistant, I will be working with the guys mostly.  I am here to make sure everything goes smoothly and the ‘property’ isn’t damaged any further during this process.”  She explained then handed Jade another check from Isadora; it was the rest of her money.  “I can take it from here, so now you can get lost.  Your services are no long required not that you have been much help so far.”  Lexi pointed Jade toward the door.  It felt really good to Lexi to finally say that and be in a position of power over the tyrant. 

Jade looked at the check and quickly protested the amount.  Lexi smiled and carefully told her how horribly upset Isadora was to find out that she had broken their agreement by renting JC out without restrictions.  As per their signed agreement Jade was fined a considerable sum, which Isadora kindly just removed from her final payment.  If she would like to contest it, Lexi handed her the business card of Isadora’s lawyer.  Jade was pissed, the pair had totally played her so she just took off, there wasn’t much that she could do now, and the guys were no longer her concern. 

“Please remove the restraints; I doubt we will have any issues.” Lexi requested of the airport staff.   The guys rubbed their aching wrists and waited for her to say something else.  They really weren’t sure what was going on now.

“So this is your awesome new job?” JC finally asked.  He was leaning on Joey for support, still clearly recovering from the night before.  “It looks a lot like your old job.”  Lexi shook her head this was different.

“No, it’s way better.  More pay, more benefits and my new boss isn’t a complete bitch.  Shall we get on our way, it’s a long flight.” Lexi offered showing them the way to Isadora’s private plane.  It was small but more than big enough for them.

All the guys seemed drained, still recovering from the hellish night before and the many months of abuse.  They were all awake and moving, but it was slow going.  Lexi sat by JC on the plane and held his hand.  It was unclear if he was mad at her or not.  Truth be told he was too tired to fight with her.  He was just happy to see her but it also meant that she would be there to find out just how sick he really was.

“Miss Ackart?” The hostess asked.  Lexi nodded and she handed her an envelope. “Miss Sebastian told me to give this to you; she said to consider it a signing bonus.” 

Lexi carefully opened it as the guys watched.  Inside were a bunch of papers and photos along with a note that read.  “Inside you will find everything that you need to ruin Jade Gaillard.  Do with it what you will. Sincerely, Isadora.”  Isadora had secretly hired a private investigator to check into Lexi’s allegations, providing the proof that Isadora needed to black mail Jade if it had come to that, Isadora was ready to play dirty, sometimes you have to when dealing with people like Jade.  But why waste the money?  Lexi could take it to the police and they could deal with the horrid woman.  It was time Jade got what was coming to her.

She looked at the folder in her hand, hell yeah she was going to turn Jade in, it was something that she had planned to do all along this was just going to make nailing her that much easier.  Leave it to Isadora to have a solid backup plan.  Lexi could have turned her in before, but if Jade got busted the guys would have gone back into the System and Lexi would have lost them forever.  It was selfish but she wouldn’t give them up and risk them ending up with someone just as bad.

When Joey asked what it was, Lexi just smiled.  “It’s not important; I’ll deal with it later, you can count on that.  I am sure you boys have enough stress today, but I am telling you it’s going to be okay.  Right now let’s get you guys settled in.”  Lexi proceeded to get up fix them all a drink and a light snack.  Since no one else was going to ask Justin finally spoke up.

“Why did you lie to us? He asked.

“I didn’t lie; I just didn’t tell you the whole story.  I couldn’t…  We kind of played Jade and she couldn’t find out what was going on.  I knew you guys couldn’t lie to her so I just didn’t tell you everything.  I didn’t want you to get in trouble any more trouble then you were already.  But I swear to god that I have your best interest at heart.” Lexi explained.

“Isadora, she’s your friend.  The one you told me about while back, isn’t she?” Lance asked.  He was laid back in his seat trying to relax.  He didn’t appear mad at her, more concerned than anything.  Lexi just nodded.

“I knew it.  You two were working together from the very start.” Chris snapped.  He was out right pissed; she totally set him up and lied to him about it when he asked her.

After a series of deep breaths Lexi turned to face the guys, she had known this was coming and tried to prepare herself to address them.  “I called Isadora months ago, I was crying and upset after a really bad day at work.  I just needed a friend.  When I told her about you guys and what was going on she was sympathetic and caring.  I asked her to buy you guys and save you from certain death.  I didn’t know what else to do.”  Lexi carefully explained.  Chris just glared at her.

“I am sorry Chris.  I am sorry that I thought you guys would be better off with Isadora…with her mansion, medical staff and millions…with that damn pedestal that she has you on.” Lexi snapped back.  Chris just huffed and sank down into his seat.  There was no point in arguing with her, in some cases she was right but he was still mad.

Lexi passed out the drinks and then introduced them to the pilot and another woman that would be traveling with them.  As she went around she noticed that all the guys were a little tense, at times they even trembled with fear, and they were fighting their sleep, too worried about something happening.  Lexi realized that she was somewhat to blame for their lack of trust.

“Do you have anything in your bag of tricks to put the guys at ease?  Maybe a little something to help them relax a little?” Lexi asked looking at the other woman.  She looked through her bag and produced a bottle of something that should help.  Chris was the first one she came to so she just held one of the pills out to him and waited.

“I thought you didn’t like us taking drugs?” Chris snipped.  He kept his arms fold across his chest as he continued to glare at her.

“Just the illegal ones.  Rachel here is a M.D. But I am not going to force you to take it, I just thought you could use something a calm your nerves.” Lexi explained.  Isadora had hired Rachel to look after the guys for the next few days and get them back on their feet.  She would be there personal doctor for now.

Chris glanced at the woman then at the medication.  He had to admit that thought of getting some rest and maybe forgetting about the stress was appealing.  He finally took the tiny pill and tossed it in his mouth; he flashing a hateful look at Lexi as he took a drink of water.  At least Lexi now knew that Chris was very unhappy with her.  In turn each of the guys took the pills wondering how longer before they kicked in.  This was going to save them the stress of dwelling over everything the entire 4 hour flight.  Isadora had their best interest at heart, Lexi was sure of that now. 

“Chris, are you okay?” Justin finally asked after watching Chris chew on his fingernail for about 10 minutes.  Lexi and the doctor were toward the front of the plane having a conversation about something completely unrelated so he wasn’t too worried about them over hearing.

“I am fine, I am just nervous.  Plus I really don’t feel well.  What if Isadora finds out how bad of shape we are in and changes her mind?” Chris questioned, with a yawn.

“I am sure there was a lot of money involved, I don’t think she will back out just because you have a cold.  I get the feeling though that you are looking forward to this move now?” Justin asked.  He wasn’t hiding his feelings, he was scared and everyone knew it, but there was some truth to what Lexi had said.  Isadora’s crush on him could actually be a good thing.

“I think Lexi is right, this could be a good thing.  From what I saw Isadora is a very logical person and if we break a leg on stage, she’ll get it fixed instead of making us perform half-assed.” Chris explained, he was still mad at Lexi for lying but it didn’t mean that she wasn’t right.  Justin nodded; it had never made sense to him why Jade hadn’t treated them better and gotten the real medical attention when it was needed.  The quality of the performances had gone downhill quickly and people noticed.  “We probably should get some rest.”

Justin settled back into his seat and slowly drifted off to sleep, the drugs were kicking in now and he found himself completely relaxed. 

Of course there was more to the plan; Isadora liked to be at least 2 steps ahead, Rachel, got right to work after the plane leveled off making sure that they were all ok.   While the guys slept she made her rounds checking each one of them over, taking care of the immediate medical concerns first before moving on to the minor things.

There was some concern when she noticed the marks on Justin’s wrists; she had to ask Lexi about it.  Lexi explained honestly what happened but asked Rachel to let her tell Isadora.  It needed to be explained to her in a way that only Lexi could.  Lexi watched as Rachel made her rounds, not really knowing the woman very well she wanted to make sure that she remained professional.

“Exactly what did you give them?” Lexi finally asked her after noticing that the guys barely moved when she touched them.  From time to time their eyes fluttered open and rolled around in their heads. 

“Maybe it was a little on the strong side, but you have to admit they are relaxed.  I am guessing that it didn’t mix well with their already tired and worn out bodies.  They are fine though, just a little out of it.” Rachel explained.  It wasn’t like she had brought her a whole pharmacy with her, the options had been limited.  She was checking their vital signs from time to time just to make sure but everything seemed normal.  They were just exhausted.

A sudden jerk caused JC to finally open his eyes.  He felt like he had only been asleep for a few minutes but that jerk could only mean that they had landed.  By now it was dark outside and getting late. He watched as Rachel darted around getting things ready so they could disembark the plane.  The nice guy in him wanted to help her but his body refused to move.  Maybe it had been the stress and fear that had given him the strength to keep going, now that those were gone thanks to the medication, nothing seemed to want to work.

“It’s time to go, JC.” Lexi said taking his face in her hands and forcing him to look at her.  He placed his hand on top of hers; despite everything he still loved her.  He didn’t regret sleeping with her, if anything he longed to do it again.  JC nodded and let Lexi pull him up from his chair.  She escorted him to a waiting Van. The drugs had not warn off yet but it was easy enough to move them to the van by encouraging them and pointing the in the right direction.  They didn’t put up a fight at all, it was like they were sleep walking. 

Rachel had things pretty well under control, it would still take days for them to really start feeling better but they were at least on the right path.  There were a few things that raised some red flag and she would go over all of that with her employer when they got to the house. 

Isadora met them at the front door of what could only be described as a beautiful estate.  The massive house was nestled comfortably into the New York country side, far from the city lights.  She seemed happy to see the sleeping men and her dear friend.

“What exactly did you do to them?” Isadora asked after they arrived at her house only to find all 5 guys passed out again in the back of the van. 

“I am not entirely sure this is my fault, they were pretty exhausted.” Rachel responded.  They decided that they would each take a guy and guide them to their beds, then Rachel could start IV’s and stuff while Lexi and Isadora came back for the remaining two. 

When Isadora pulled Chris out of the van he looked at her with heavy eyes.  He was too tired to fight her and too drugged to be afraid of her so he let her pull him toward the house.  He stumbled but she was able to guide him inside.

Isadora watched as her dream guy carefully crawled up her staircase in an attempt to make it to his 2nd floor bedroom.  When he reached the top she helped pull him back on his feet.  She could hear Lexi laughing at her as she helped guide JC up the stairs, but at least he was up right. 

“Is he really safe with her?” JC whispered, watching Isadora wrestle with his incoherent friend. 

“He is safer with her than without her.” Lexi replied. Isadora pointed Lexi to JC and Justin’s room while sending Chris into his room, which he would share with Joey, unsupervised.  It wasn’t like there was anything that he could get in to.

She walked in to find him lying on his stomach trying to use the comforter to pull himself into the middle of the queen sized bed that was the furthest from the door.  She laughed at him before going over and carefully pulling his shoes off.  Then she rolled him over onto his back so that she could slip his pants off, assuming that he would be more comfortable sleeping in his underwear. 

“Hey now!” Chris whined as he felt her working the zipper on his pants.  He tried to sit up but fell back down on the bed.

“I am just going to put you in bed.” Isa explained not that he was putting up much of a fight, with a good strong tug the pants fell to the floor.  She then sat him up and pulled his shirt off tossing it aside as well, the nasty clothes that Jade and sent them in were worthless and would have to be burnt or something.

“I need to talk to you.” Chris mumbled.  He looked at her as she tried to stop him from falling over.  His tired eyes got serious for a moment.

“I am sure you do.” Isadora stated, knowing that singer was too far gone to really say anything worth taking to heart.

“No, I really do.” He defended.

“Tomorrow, we can talk tomorrow.  Right now it’s bed time.” Isadora explained pulling the covers down and basically shoving him over.  As soon as his head hit the pillow he nuzzled right into it and moaned, mumbling something about being pretty and love.  She tried to cover him up as best she could before heading back down to get Joey.  She paused at the door and watched as he slowly drifted to sleep, still mumbling to himself about something.  She was never one to show it but she was nervous too.

She met Lexi at the van, they both sighed as Justin and Joey lay curled up together in the back of the van.  They may have been a little cold or just looking for comfort.  Lexi reached in and pulled Justin out first, he eyes opened for a minute.

“There is something that I need to tell you about Justin.” Lexi said, wanting to get it out of the way before Rachel told her.  “I am sorry that I didn’t tell you this sooner but right after the whole stud testing incident he tried to kill himself.”  Isadora let go of Joey causing him to almost fall back into the van before she caught a hold of him again.  Justin could hear what was being said; he forced his eyes open again and instantly started to water up.

“Please don’t make me…” He fell toward his new master and wrapped his arms around her, hugging her.  “I’ll be good…promise.”  Lexi let him go wondering if her friend could support the weight of both men.  It was long before she took pity on her and grabbed a hold of Joey’s arm.

“Come on big guy, let’s get you in bed.” Lexi explained pulling him toward the house, leaving Isadora and Justin to work it out on their own.  Lexi knew there would be hell to pay later.  Isadora was mad for a minute; more so at Lexi for not telling her, but as Justin sobbed lightly in her ear she began to forgive her friend.  She hugged him back and comforted him.

“There… There… Sweat heart.  Everything is going to be okay.  We’ll get you some help and I promise we’re going to make music, not babies.” She explained taking the time to look him in the eyes, wondering if he would even remember this conversation.  Once he got himself calmed down Isadora helped him inside.

As she was getting him into his bed she watched as Rachel hooked JC up to an IV.  He barely moved as she stuck him.  That wasn’t a good sign for something that was supposedly afraid of needles.  Rachel hooked all the guys to IV and gave them a shot of antibiotics to help speed up the healing process.  Rachel would be staying in the guest room as well so that she could be on hand in case anything came up.  As they walked down the hall toward the main level, Isadora notice how quiet Rachel was and asked her if she was okay.

“I am fine, you know when we talked on the phone you had said it was bad.  I just didn’t think it would be this bad.  Medically speaking some of those men shouldn’t even be alive right now.” Rachel explained.

“I am not sure how to take that, I guess it is a testament to their will to live.  I know that the next few days will be hard but it’s going to be fine, you’ll see.” Isadora explained.

Chapter 27: Good Morning

Chris moved his legs around for awhile, enjoying the cool feeling of the sheets against his skin.  He pulled the covers up tight, snuggling into his pillow.  It took a minute for these actions to really register in his head.  What would have seemed normal to him a year ago now seemed horribly out of place.  His eyes shot open.   Chris thought back to the night before, everything was a little foggy.  Now he was in a strange bedroom hooked to an IV in nothing more than his underwear with his friend still passed out in the other bed.

He had a pretty good feeling where he was, but couldn’t recall all the details of how he had gotten there.  Chris felt a little uncomfortable but there was nothing he could do to change the situation.  He belonged to her now and she had all the real power, he could only pretend like he was in control.

There was a click as the bedroom door opened, He was fully expecting to see Isadora but it wasn’t her.  He recognized the woman from the plane, the doctor.  She motioned for Chris to be quiet, after all Joey needed his sleep as well. She took his temperature and checked him over. 

“How are you feeling today, Mr. Kirkpatrick?” She asked softly.  He lay back as she listened to his heart and felt for his pulse. Her touch was gentle and very professional.  It was almost comforting to know that she was there to help him instead of hurt him. 

“I feel much better, thank you.” Chris responded.  “Can you tell me where I am?” The room was very nice, but basic, and the queen sized bed felt massive as he lay sprawled out in the middle of it, sinking into the plushy pillow top.  He was pretty sure that he could have laid there all day.  

“You are in Miss Sebastian’s home, your second floor bedroom to be exact.” She answered.  He tensed up when she accidently put her hand on his leg a little too close to his crotch for his comfort.  It had been an honest mistake on her part; most guys probably wouldn’t have been bothered by it.  “I am so sorry, I didn’t mean too.”

“It’s okay… I am just a little jumpy.  Do you… need to check that?” Chris questioned.  It wouldn’t have surprised him if the answer had been yes.  Since Isadora was interested in him, she might be curious about his sexual health.

“No sir not today, maybe we will do a full physical some other time.  Right now I just want to cover the more pressing issues.” Rachael explained.  She carefully pulled the IV needle out of his arm and placed a Band-Aid over the tiny wound.  He just laid there not really sure what to say or do now.  The nurse just smiled, Isadora had warned her that the guys might be a little unsure.  “Miss Sebastian told me to tell you to take it easy today.  If you’re hungry I think she is in the dining room having breakfast with Lance and Lexi.” She explained. 

Chris glanced down at his bare chest; it made him a little nervous to think that someone had undressed him, from what he could remember it had been Isadora and it seemed as though nothing had happened.  He tried to recall if the two of them had talked at all, but he had been so out of it.

It was like the nurse had read his mind; she reached over to the dresser and snatched some clothes from it, and set them in his lap.  She just smiled at him again and excused herself.  Chris looked the clothes over; it wasn’t anything fancy, just a plain t-shirt and some comfortable pants.  He had to admit that he was feeling better but he was starving.  He put on the clothes and slipped out without waking Joey.  He set out to find his new owner and something to eat.

The house was nice; it was massive just like Lexi had said it would be.  Someone could easily get lost in it.  There was some logic to the lay out and Chris was able to find the stairs, he could only assume that the kitchen was on the first floor.

He had to follow the sound of her voice to locate the dining room.  Isadora and Lexi were chatting over cereal, seemingly having a good time, while Lance just sat there enjoying the food and listening to their conversation.   Lance had witnessed the two friend’s rather heated debate over Justin and what should be done about his attempt to take his own life.  He had done the best to stay out of it but it was interesting to see that side of his new owner.  Despite her anger she was very logical and objective on the matter.  It had been agreed that she would get him help and Lexi was warned about keeping secrets from her.  Everything that Lexi had said about Isadora seemed to be true, Lance had even passed the rather large waterfall that filled the space between the staircases in her entry way.

Chris was still a little nervous around her, now that he was hers and there was no one to stop her from taking advantage of him, even Lexi wasn’t exactly trust worthy.  Isadora wasn’t insensitive to it either; she remained seated as he stood in the door way, as if he awaited orders.  Today would be awkward as the guys settled in but the plan was to take it easy and give them time to adjust.

Isadora gave herself a minute to look him over, he avoided eye contact with her at all costs, maybe she should have kept her crush on him a secret, but it was likely he would have found out from Lexi any way.  He already seemed a little healthier to her, he was standing taller and the color had returned to his lips.  He was far from perfection but at least getting closer to it.

“Good morning Chris, how are you feeling?” She asked.  She smiled but kept her distance, there was no need to rush things.  She would let him come to her.

“I am good, thank you.” He answered.  Isadora just continued to smile and offered him something to eat, listing a couple of options.  When he placed his order she left to get it while he slipped into a chair beside Lance.  Lexi said nothing.  She wasn’t sure just how mad he was with her.

“She seems really nice.” Lance commented, but that could have been the pain meds talking or simply his own gratitude toward the woman that was tending to his needs, his sore ankle was now tightly wrapped and he had been given crutches to use.  The nurse wanted him to stay off of it for a few days, if not weeks, while it healed itself.  But Rachel had given him something to take for the pain in the mean time.  Chris just nodded.  Isadora came back and put the bowl down in front of him. 

She lingered near him for a moment just to take in his presence.  It was so hard to be good.  And it wasn’t that she really wanted to be bad, but there was a 16 year old girl inside her head that just wanted to scream and latch on to him, never letting go.  The thought alone made her smile again.  This was going to be challenging to say the least.

“I have some work to do so I’ll be in my home office.  The doctor, Lexi and Kyliegh, my other assistant, will all be around as well if you guys need anything.” Isadora explained, she pointed in the direction that she was headed.  “Feel free to look around; the only rooms off limits are my home office and my bedroom, but if you need me just knock.  Otherwise make yourselves at home.”

“Okay, thank you.” Lance said.  She hadn’t even taken more than one step when her handheld device went off.  She looked at it a groaned.

“Seems we have an issue with JC.” Isadora stated.

“I am no it.” Lexi stated and ran past her friend and up the stairs.   Isadora knew that she had told Lexi that she wouldn’t use the system but today it was going to come in handy.  It would tell her when and if the guys were in any distress, Rachel was also in the System and she could check on them without bothering them.

When she reached the top of the stairs Lexi could hear JC gagging and coughing all the way down the hall, clearly his stomach wasn’t feeling better yet.  Rachel was already there as well, holding a bucket for him while he dry heaved.

“It doesn’t sound like there is anything left in there to come out, so what is the problem then?” Lexi asked.  JC gagged a few more times and just made eye contact with her.  “Can’t you give him something?”

“Let me see what I have, can you hold this for him, just in case he does find something in there to throw up?” Rachel asked.  Lexi traded places with Rachel and lightly rubbed JC’s back.  “I can change the empty IV bag and inject this; it should stop him from throwing up.”

Lexi just watched.  As much as she wanted to be there for him, she couldn’t get in the way of the people that were trying to help him.  Rachel was way more qualified to make him well again than she was.

Lexi knew that JC had a fear of needles but this was unavoidable so he resisted the urge to rip the IV out and run away.  He didn’t watch as Rachel replaced the bag and injected the drugs into the line, he refused to even look at the arm it was all attached to.

“I can hold it.” JC offered, finally able to speak but still not sure that he was over it.  “This is not how I wanted to start things off.”

“It’s not your fault.  We fully expected it, why do you think I put a bucket in your room?” Lexi explained, she let JC have the bucket but she stayed near him.  He didn’t understand what the problem was any more, truth be told it was most likely from drinking a lot on an empty stomach, it was something that was just going to take time to heal.  “I think it goes without saying that you are going to be on a clear liquid only diet today, after today we will ease you back into a regular well balanced diet.”

JC just nodded, he really didn’t feel like eating anything at the moment.  He took the time to glance around the room at his new surroundings; it seemed that this was going to be home for the unforeseeable future.  It was defiantly an improvement.

Justin was awake now as well, after all the commotion, he was just laying in his bed watching the others.  He sort of recalled what Isadora had said to him the night before but was still unsure.  He promised himself that he would give Isadora a chance before doing anything stupid. 

“Where are the others?” JC asked. 

 “They are around.” Lexi answered.

JC lie back against his pillow and let his eyes close.  “If it is okay with you, I’ll just stay here for awhile.”  He could only assume that the others were fine, Justin didn’t seem to be in any trouble.

“I figured as much, there is no hurry.  You can do what you want today.  Isadora really don’t have any plans for you guys this week at all, besides working on getting you healthy again that is.  Rachel will be around, if you need her just yell for her.” Lexi explained.

“I’ll unhook your IV whenever you are ready to get up and move around.” Rachel explained.  She went over and started to undo Justin’s, since his bag was already empty.  It would give him the freedom to move around.

“So tell me, how bad am I really?” JC asked.  He turned away as she removed the needle from Justin’s arm.  Lexi was still by his side brushing a stray hair away from his face, not really caring that there were two other people in the room.

“I am sorry to tell you but you are going to live.”Rachel teased.  She laughed and he did too a little, which was nice.  “Your resolve is impressive though.  I had my doubt about you on the plane; I think you are in the clear now.”

            When Rachael was done she excused herself from the room while Justin got dressed.  It didn’t seem to faze him to dress in front of Lexi; he had done it so many times before.  She couldn’t bring herself to leave JC just yet.  She had been so worried about him.

            “Are you mad at me?” She asked.  JC shook his head no.  It wasn’t like he hadn’t been keeping secrets from her as well and so far this seemed to be working out for them. 

            “Does Isadora know about us?” JC asked, since it was unclear just how close the two friends really were.  Suddenly Justin felt uncomfortable, he motioned to the door and Lexi provided him with instructions on how to get to the dining room. 

            “She knows something is up.  I think she wants to talk to you about it when you are feeling better.  She wants your take on the situation.  Your happiness is important to her.” Lexi explained.  It made her nervous to think about it.  What if he didn’t want her, what if he wanted to be left alone?  The concern must have shown.

            “Relax Lexi.  I’ll talk to her.  It’s going to be just fine, isn’t that what you have been saying all week?” He teased.   She kissed him gently before excusing herself; she wanted to go make sure that Justin found something to eat, that was after all her job.

Chapter 28: Husbandry

Chris found himself sitting alone on the back step, looking out across the massive yard, letting the sun warm him as he sipped a glass of water.    After all those months locked in a night club it felt great to be outside for a change but he dare not go too far from the house just yet.  There didn’t appear to be a fence or barrier to keep the guys in but that didn’t mean that Isadora hadn’t set ground wires to keep them from running off.  He was still having a hard time believing that he could trust Isadora.

It wasn’t long before he felt someone standing behind him, watching him.  He glanced over his shoulder to see Joey leaning up against the door frame leading into the sun room.  Neither of them said anything for awhile but there was something about Joey’s facial expression that told Chris that Joey had been looking for him and had something on his mind. Joey glanced around to make sure that they were alone before speaking.

“Lance told me about what you asked him the other night.” Joey stated, taking s seat beside Chris on the step.  It wasn’t surprising; the guys didn’t keep secrets from each other, especially now.

“I figured he would, do all the guys know?” Chris asked.  Joey just nodded.  “And they sent you out here to talk me out of it?”

“Not exactly.” Joey said taking in a deep breath.  “No one sent me but I realize that you are the kind of person that will say or do anything without thinking about the consequences.  I just want to make sure that you think about this before you act on it.  And to give you a little insider information…”  Chris raised an eye brow at Joey, this wasn’t what he expected.  “If you are going to do this, you have to do it right.  You have to lay out to Isadora everything that you want, no matter how minor it seems, and always ask for more so it leaves room for negotiations.  You also have to let her know exactly what she can expect in return.”

“Wow you have put a lot of thought into this.” Chris stated.

“Yes, we have put a lot of thought into this.  But you have to hear me out on this next part; this is where the insider info comes in to play.  You need to get Isadora to sign a marriage contract.  Now I have seen the new marriage contract … it’s not completely ideal.  That is how I ended up in the System.  Kelly and I refused to sign it; we wanted to stick to our original wedding vows and beliefs.  It basically gives you all the freedom that your new wife allows you to have, but it doesn’t change anything you still belong to her but society will recognize you as a person again.  She can still divorce you at any time, for any reason and no real reason for you to ever want to divorce her.  The only thing that changes is the System gets put into what they call Spouse mode, allowing you to go where you want and pretty much do what you want, your wife can tell you ‘no’ but can’t force you to do anything.  Surprisingly enough spousal abuse still exists so as her husband she can’t treat you like crap anymore.”

“I think I get it, basically you are free to do what you want as long as it’s okay with your better half.  So why do I need her to sign one if it doesn’t change much?” Chris asked.

“The only advantage to the contract is you can do what you want without question from other women or interference from the System, but heaven forbid you upset your wife in the process.  Also as her legal spouse you take control of some of her assets and ownership of half of everything she owns.” Joey added.

“So I get to be a real person again, access to her money and part ownership of you guys.” Chris said letting the idea sink in.  He put his head on his knee and didn’t make eye contact with his friend.  If the marriage contract gave him all that it could only mean that getting her to sign it would be challenging. 

“As her husband you can make choices for her and spend her money as long as she doesn’t get mad and divorce you.  It goes back to your list of demands.  Isadora seems like the kind of woman that sticks to her word.  It’s like a pre-nuptial agreement.” Joey explained.

“I get what is does for me but what about her? Why would she want to sign it?” Chris questioned out loud. 

“Having a husband now is like owning a Ferrari, it’s a status thing.  Not everyone can afford to have one, let alone find a guy good enough to trust with that kind of power.  Of course it comes with some tax breaks and whatever else you offer her in exchange.  She isn’t stupid; she will know why you want this and it’s likely she will be okay with it if you give her what she wants.”  Joey explained.

“Me.” Chris sighed.  The thought didn’t make him cringe as much as it might have a few days ago.  It wasn’t like she wanted to kill him, she wanted to love him and have him love her back or at the very least pretend to.  Certainly there would be sex and maybe kids, an idea that never really appealed to Chris but he wasn’t completely against it.  In this case it had its perks.

Chris thought about it, it made sense but it was still risky.  Once again all the real power would still be in Isadora’s hands.  But Isadora already has a massive company to run, surely she wouldn’t have time to deal with running their careers, but he could.  As her husband he could take full-control of the group and the guys there in, it was mutually beneficial to everyone involved.  Isadora would get money and Chris as her loving husband, and the guys would have someone in control that they could trust and turn to for help.

It was apparent that the guys were kind of thinking that same thing or they would have simply told Chris not to do it, and he probably would have listened to them.  But they weren’t saying no, they were telling him to be careful and do it right.

“I am guessing that you wish you had signed the contract with Kelly?” Chris asked. 

“Yup, if I had known then what I know now I would have signed it in a heartbeat.  But I never imagined this would last this long or be this hard.” Joey explained.

“I do have one concern left.” Chris said looking at Joey this time.  Joey was watching him with a hopeful look in his eyes.  It was apparent that at least Joey wanted this, if done correctly of course.  “If I do this, if I ask Isadora to marry me, shouldn’t I at least be sure that I can love her?   What if I am a horrible husband?”

“The fact that you even asked that tells me that your heart is in the right place.  You are concerned for her feelings just like a good husband should.  I saw you that night with Isadora at the club.  Your concern for her happiness may have been based a little on your fear of Jade but it was there none the less.  You wanted her to have a great birthday and you took care of her.  But that is really a question for yourself; do you think you can love her?” Joey asked back.

The thought had crossed his mind in the past, Isadora was beautiful, smart and successful; pretty much everything that a guy would want in a wife.  She more or less worshiped him.  She has been nothing but nice to him and the guys since day one.  Joey was also right about his feeling for her at the club; it wasn’t all faked or based on fear.  She made it easy to care for her.

“I guess I just need to spend a little time with her to see how I feel about her and to come up with my list of demands.” Chris said mostly directed at himself.  “I don’t suppose there is anything that you would like?”

“I want to see my wife and kids.” Joey simply stated as if that was all he wanted.  “I know that I might not be able to be with them like I was before but I need to see them from time to time.”  He got up and started back into the house but paused at the door again.  “One more piece of advice though…”

“Yeah?” Chris questioned.

“I wouldn’t spend too much time in the sun Casper, unless you think red is Isadora favorite color.” Joey teased.  Chris looked down at his arms to find that they were already a little flushed from the sun, maybe it was time for him to move into the sun room.  All the time spent indoors had made him pale and it would take time to readjust. 

“Solid advice, Joe.”  Chris joked following his friend inside, at least in the sun room he would enjoy the thought of being out side.  Joey put his hand on his stomach and thought out loud about what might be for lunch.  He was still getting over not eating enough, though Isadora was feeding them well he still felt like he couldn’t get enough to eat.  He left Chris in search of food but he had given plenty to think about.

It wasn’t long before Chris heard voices again as Lance and Justin approached the sun room.  They must have had the same idea; it was time to enjoy the outdoors.  Justin took a seat by Chris on the love seat while Lance crash landed into the chair.  He wasn’t graceful on while on crutches.

“Did Joey find you?” Lance asked. 

“Yeah I don’t suppose you two have anything to add to my list of pre-nuptial requirements?” Chris questioned.  Both men paused to think about it for a minute, they all more of less wanted the same things.

“I understand that Isadora has invested a lot in us, and that we at least owe her that much in return, but there has to be a better way to re-pay our debt than with sexual favors and baby making.  I would like those things taken off the table.” Justin requested.  “My body, my choice and all that.” 

Chris nodded in agreement.  There was also some truth to his logic about them needing to pay Isadora back and earn their keep.  They couldn’t expect Isadora to pay for everything and they just sat around doing nothing.  As much as she liked having them around that could get expensive.  He turned to Lance, who had his eyes fixed on the glass doors.  Isadora herself was fast approaching.  The three of them greeted her with smiles and she smiled back.

“I have a little project for you guys today.” She explained while handing out paper, pens and catalogs.  “I need to get you guys some more clothes so go through these catalogs and pick a few things out, just write the numbers and sizes down.  I’ll get them sent over.  Maybe once you are all feeling better we can go on a shopping spree.”

“Is this your clothing line?” Lance asked flipping through the pages.  Isadora smiled and nodded, it was clear that she was very proud of it.  “Stuff looks amazing.”

“Kiss ass.” Justin groaned jokingly. 

“Everyone loves a kiss ass.” Isa teased

“Can I keep theses when we are done?” Chris asked holding up the pen and paper.

“Of course.  Is there anything else you need?” She asked.  She wanted them to feel like they could ask her for anything.  It did seem like an odd request but she didn’t let that show.  “Has anyone seen Joey?”

“Try the kitchen, you may want to pad lock the refrigerator.” Chris teased.  It was nice to see her smile and joke with them, something the Jade never did.

Chapter 29: Communications Problems

            JC and Lexi were in his room talking and working on Isadora shopping assignment when Chris walked in.  He had talked to all of the other guys and got their input on his plan, the only one left to talk to about it was JC.  But Chris wasn’t going to do that in front of Lexi.  JC may still trust her but he didn’t and he didn’t want her to tell Isadora what he was up to until he had everything in order.  As luck would have it that is when they heard what sounded like a car door slam.

            “I wonder who that could be?” Lexi asked.

            “That is probably Isadora; she disappeared after she handed out the catalogs and stuff.  No one seemed to know where she went.” Chris explained.  That may have seemed odd to the guys but Lexi knew that it was completely normal and would probably happen more than they think.  It went without saying that Isadora had her own way of thinking, which often left others wondering.  But her absence had given Chris time to track down each of the guys and ask them about what they wanted without worrying if she would walk in on the conversation. 

            Lexi excused herself and left the room.  She thought she should go see if Isadora needed any help with whatever she was up to.  It was after all now her job to do so now and as fun as it was hanging out with JC, she did have other things to do today.  Chris waited for her to disappear before going in and taking a seat beside JC’s bed.  He took the time to ask JC how he was feeling before getting into the details of his plan and trying to figure out what JC wanted from the deal.

            When Lexi reached the stairs she found Isadora standing in the entry way struggling with some large bags.  She just smiled and motioned for Lexi to follow her into the dining room, where she put the bags on the table and began to pull the stuff out.

            “I thought you had work to do today?” Lexi asked looking over the contents of the bags.

            “I did but after spending about an hour trying to track down your friends, I realized that we needed a better way of communicating.  Since I told you that I wouldn’t use the system I needed another plan, plus the system really is only a one way form of communication.” Isadora quickly explained, as she opened one of the boxes and pulled out a brand new iPhone. 

            “So you got them all phones?” Lexi asked but the answer was apparent. “Wait a minute why are there 6 phones?”

            “I got you one too.  That old piece of junk you have isn’t going to cut it in the corporate world sweet heart.  You need something a little more up to date and I added you to my plan so you have international calling and unlimited everything.  So you have no reason not to answer when I call or text you.” Isadora explained handing her the box with her name on it.  The people at the phone store had been very helpful in labeling them all so she wouldn’t get confused.

             They got each phone out and entered in the phone numbers for Isadora, Lexi, Rachel and the other guys.  They were sure there would be more that the guys would need but they would get them in there later.  When it came time to hand them out Lexi told Isa that she knew where JC and Chris were but that it had appeared as though Chris was up to something.  Isadora didn’t seem concerned about it and headed up the stairs to deliver the phones to them any way.  Lexi made a point to say something in the hall to warn the guys that they were approaching.  Despite what Chris may have thought about her she was still on his side and she didn’t think that he was up to no good.

            When they walked in both guys were just sitting there smiling trying not to appear guilty.  They both picked up their clothing request and handed them to Isadora, assuming that is what she wanted.  She quickly scanned them before folding them and putting them in her back pocket.

            “Thanks, I got you guys something.” She said handing them both a box and a gift card.  They both looked at them curiously.  “I need a way to keep in touch with you.  It’s a big house and I can’t seem to keep track of you guys.”

            “Okay but what is the gift card for?” Chris asked.

            “What is the point in having an iPhone if you can’t put crap on it?  You know Apps, games and music.  Whatever you want.” Isa explained.  She added that she had set up the Wi-Fi and put a few numbers in there for them.

            “Thanks, this is really nice of you.  But you didn’t have to.” JC said. 

            “You said you wanted to keep in touch with Lexi, now you can call her whenever.” Isadora teased.  “It’s no big deal it actually makes things easier for me.  I don’t suppose you have seen your friends recently?”  Chris knew he probably was the last one to see them and most likely knew where they were plus taking her to them would give him some time to talk to her.  If he was going to do this then he had better get to know his future wife. 

            “I think I know where they are, I can take you to them.” He offered as he got out of his chair.  He made sure to take his new phone with him.  They were about to walk out when Isadora paused.

            “Lexi will you be joining us for dinner?” She asked looking back at her friend who was standing in the middle of the room.  JC looked at her a little puzzled; he had just assumed that Lexi would be living with them in the house.

            “Yeah sure, what are you having?” Lexi asked.

            “I haven’t decided what I am making yet, but don’t worry it will be good.” Isadora stated.

            “Wait a minute, you actually cook?” Lexi wondered, for some reason that seemed odd to her.  She had imagined that the millionaire had her own private chef or something.  And as for her living situation Lexi was staying in Isadora’s guest house until she found a place of her own.  She was grateful to Isadora for everything that he had done, but she really needed to stand on her own two feet.

            “Yes, I cook.  I am actually pretty good at it though cooking for this many people should be interesting.  It may be something simple tonight.” Isadora reasoned.   With that she followed Chris into the hallway so the he could take her to the others.  “Last night you said you wanted to talk to me, was that for real or just the drugs talking?” She asked once they were a little ways down the hall.

            He chuckled a little under his breath.  “I didn’t say anything stupid, did I?” He asked.

            “No, you were just mumbling, mostly to yourself I think.” She recalled.

            “I do need to talk to you.  I figure after all that you have done for me; I at least owe you a second date.  Maybe you could set something up and we could talk over dinner?” He asked sounding a little hopeful.  She smiled despite trying not to.

            “You don’t owe me anything.” She explained, but he gave her a look to let her know that he wasn’t buying it.  They owed her way more than even she was admitting to.  “Fine, but you set it up this time.  I am free Friday night and that should give you enough time to make some arrangements.  Hopefully you are feeling better by then.  If you need help ask Lexi, that is after all what she is there for.” Isadora explained.  There was some excitement in her voice. 

            Chris just nodded in agreement and guided her into the living room where two out of the 3 where trying to find something to watch on TV, while Lance sat slumped over the sofa arm sound asleep.  Isadora motioned for them not to wake him.  They turned in their shopping list as well and agreed to give Lance his phone when he woke up.  Joey and Justin thanked her and started to play with the new gadgets right away.  After all most of the TV channels were geared for women so finding something to watch had been a challenge. 

            Isadora just smiled then started for the kitchen, by now the day was almost over and it was time to start dinner.  The guys would probably eat and then head to bed.  Isadora was even thinking of doing the same, but she also hadn’t gotten much work done today.

            “Do you need a hand?” Chris asked, after all he was still trying to figure the woman out.  Now he had 4 days to either man up or chicken out.  Isadora just shrugged, she was more than capable on her own but if he wanted to follow her around like a lost puppy who was she to stop him.

            After talking to JC about whatever was going on with Chris and explaining her living situation to him.  She thought it best to track down her friend again.  JC hadn’t told her exactly what was going on, mainly because he was in on it as well.  Just that it had something to do with what she had said about being nice to Isadora and more or less letting her have what she wants.  It was not like Chris was hurting anyone, JC told her that it was best to just let it run its course and not get involved. 

            She found Isadora busy stirring a large pot on the stove, while Chris was standing at the counter copping vegetables for a salad.  They had made the most of small talk, covering a wide verity of topics while he watched her dance around the kitchen.  Now they were at a loss for words.  She was clearly a very gifted person with many talents.  It was also clear that she was trying extra hard not to make Chris uncomfortable.  A few times they had bummed into each other while preparing dinner, each time she seemed to dart away from him, which was ironic since he was trying so hard to get close to her.

            “What the hell is that smell?” Lexi asked not sure she even wanted to know.  Isadora just laughed, it was their dinner.  The concoction boiling in the pot in front of her did have an aroma all its own but it was actually very good once you tried it.  She motioned her friend over to her and gave her a sample before getting the seal of approval.  “How about that, you can cook.” She joked and then took a seat at the bar.

            “So what were you two talking about?” Lexi questioned, spinning in her seat a little.  She was trying to get the two of the talking again.  After all she wanted things to work out between them.

            “Nothing.” Chris sighed; maybe having someone else in the room would be a good thing to get the topic a little more interesting.  “I can only assume that you have told her everything about me, but you didn’t tell me anything about her.  I feel that I am at a disadvantage here.”

            “I just told her who you were and that you were living in hell.  Was I wrong?” Lexi explained.

            “No you were not wrong.  And you were right about us being better off here.  That doesn’t mean that I forgive you for lying to me when I asked you that night if you knew her.” Chris snapped.  He was still annoyed by her little lie but he also wanted to see Isadora’s reaction to him being a little aggressive.  If they were going to spend the rest of their lives together it was a side of him that she would have to get used to. 

            “Fair enough, will I at least be able to earn your trust back?” Lexi wondered.  He just shrugged; he wasn’t sure about that yet.  Isadora did her best to stay out of it but she did wonder if Chris realized that he was going to need Lexi if he really wanted to plan a date night for them.  It wasn’t like he could call and make a reservation; no place would take him seriously.  But she would let the two of them sort it out.  Once dinner was ready she sent them both to set the table.

Chapter 30: The Talk

            The next day was just as nice, no one was waken up in the morning by the sounds of any one being sick and the smell of breakfast filled the whole house with its inviting aroma.  As they sat at the table eating breakfast everyone seemed in high spirits.  Even JC was there doing his best to sip on the glass of juice in front of him, as much as he wanted to partake in the meal, Rachel had cautioned him about trying solid foods before he was ready.

            It wasn’t until Isadora excused herself from the table to get some work done that they realized that they weren’t all on vacation any more.  Some of them actually had to work.  She paused between JC and Justin, putting her hands on their shoulders, an action that still made them a little tease even though she didn’t mean any harm.

            “Sometime after lunch I need you two to meet with me individually for a few minutes.  Just come and knock on my office door when you’re ready, any time after noon.” Isadora requested and both men just nodded in agreement.  JC was pretty sure his meeting had something to do with what Lexi had said about Isadora wanting to talk to him about whatever was going on between them, but he wasn’t sure why she needed to talk to Justin.  It looked as though today he was going to have to face the music.  He still wasn’t sure what he was going to tell her.

            The guys lingered around the dining room table for awhile, not really sure what they were supposed to do today.  Other than the 2 meetings Isadora hadn’t really give them any other directions.  It was clear they just needed to relax but they weren’t used to the extended time off.  They had nothing that they wanted to do, no hobbies to fall back on at the moment.  They were all a little burnt out on music and knew that a time would come when they would have to return to it so it was best not to force it right now. 

            It wasn’t long before Lexi got out some papers and began working on some things right there at the table.  It was her job to keep an eye on the guys so it wasn’t like she could retreat to the guest house to work and she wanted to get a jump start on some things for Isadora.  They had big plans for the guys once they were feeling better and that is what Lexi was starting to put together.

            One by one the guys slipped away leaving just Chris and Lexi at the table.  He had waited everyone to leave for a reason, once it was clear that they weren’t returning Chris got up and slipped into the chair beside Lexi.

            “Can I help you?” Lexi asked, not taking her eyes off her work.

            “I am trying to plan a date with Isadora for Friday and I need your help.” Chris stated, taking a minute to look over the paperwork in front of her.

            “I suppose I could help you, that is if you are ready to forgive me.” Lexi teased.  Chris shook his head; she wasn’t going to get off that easy.  He was still mad at her but needed her help, he didn’t know enough about Isadora to plan a good date for them and he had already tried to call a few places but they refused to talk to him without his master’s permission.  Most of them were shocked that he had even been allowed to use the phone.

            “If you don’t help me I will tell Isadora that you aren’t doing your job.  I tell her that her new assistant failed to assist me.  Now who do you think she is going to side with, that man of her dreams or the friend that has already bailed on her once?” Chris asked.  Lexi took a deep breath and groaned, damn it he was right.

            “I am sorry about that, what was I thinking, of course I would be glad to help you.  What exactly is it that you need Mr. Kirkpatrick?” Lexi asked a little sarcastically.  He smiled at her as she turned to face him.  She put her pen down and put her knees up against the table to give him her full attention.  Chris carefully explained to her about the date and his issues with calling places.  He also admitted to not knowing Isadora well enough to know what she likes.  “Well, she hates Mexican food but she was telling me about this one Mexican place that has this salad that is to die for.  She said that she hasn’t been there in awhile, it’s a little more on the side of casual dining, if that is what you were going for.”

            “That sounds good, what else to people do on dates besides eat?” He asked.  Lexi laughed, she probably hadn’t been on a real date since he had.  Things were different now so it was hard to tell what people did when they dated, truth be told many people probably didn’t date.

            “I guess there is the usual stuff… movies, plays, visiting attractions, bowling.  I supposed night clubs are out of the question?  What kind of budget did she give you?”  Lexi wondered.

            “She didn’t say.  I would guess keep it on the affordable side.  And yes I have had enough dancing and drinking to last me a lifetime.”  Chris explained, realizing that what Isadora could afford was just about anything, but he didn’t want to burn through anymore of her money that he needed to.  The evening was supposed to be about getting to know her and maybe propositioning her.  Lexi offered to call the restaurant and set up the reservation and print him out a list of movies that were playing.

            “I didn’t bail on her by the way.” Lexi added as she jotted down a few notes. 

            “You had a difference of opinions and then ran away to L.A.  Sounds like you bailed to me.” Chris explained recalling what Lance has told him about the conversation he had with Lexi a while back.  Of course Chris has inquired about it after Lexi admitted to knowing Isadora.

            “Isadora and I were in different places.  I needed to get away from her and be on my own. She wanted to take care of me.  She wants to take care of everyone.  Even now she doesn’t understand my need for my own place and as grateful as I am for this job, I want to prove to her that I can do this without her babying me.  I guess I need to put aside whatever personal issues you and I are having and do my job.  Through planning your love life was not in the job description.” Lexi carefully explained, all the while avoiding eye contact with him.

            Perhaps Chris had gone a little too far with his black mailing but he needed her to work for him and yeah he was still bitter with her.  Before he could say anything Lexi apologized about the rant.  It wasn’t any of his business what had actually happened between them and he need not concern himself with it.  He got up and was about to leave when he stopped.

            “You know there is nothing wrong with letting someone help you as long as you don’t come to depend on them permanently.  I think in the back of your mind you are starting to believe that too.  I have every reason to believe that you planned this whole thing from the start.  You’re using your friend weather you want to admit it or not.  Just keep in mind that you aren’t the only one with a plan.  You stay out of my way and I will stay out of yours.”  With that Chris walked off.  It wasn’t like Lexi could rat him out and if she didn’t know something was up by now then she was dumber than he thought.

            Some time passed and Lexi made sure to do what Chris had asked her to do, what he had said was weighing on her mind.  Sure she was using Isadora but it was working on in her friend’s favor as well. Yes Chris was planning something but JC had given her reason to believe that it was a good plan that wouldn’t hurt her friend, she trusted JC.  She was looking down at the sandwich that she had made Isadora for lunch but the young entrepreneur had not come out of her office to retrieve it.  Lexi was debating on taking it to her when JC walked into the kitchen.  The concern must have shown.  He asked her right away if she was okay.

            “You would tell me if Chris was up to no good, right?” She asked looking up at him. 

            “Of course I would, why do you ask?” JC wondered.  Lexi told him about the conversation she had with Chris earlier and what he had accused her of, she didn’t try to deny that there was some truth to it.  But she added his admission to having a plan of his own.  “Don’t take it personal but Chris doesn’t trust you, he just wants some assurance that things are going to play out in his favor.” 

            When he asked about the sandwich on the counter Lexi told him that it was for Isadora.  He looked at the clock and offered to take it to her, after all it was nearly one now and he was supposed to meet with her some time after noon.  It was time to fess up to whatever was going on.  Lexi wished him luck and sent him on his way. She knew what it was about and maybe getting it out of the way would let her know if her plan had been a failure.  Chris didn’t know it but her plan was pretty much played out, she had gotten the guys away from Jade and landed her dream job.  Now she just planned to ride it out.  Getting to be with JC on a more personal level was just a bonus.

            He knocked on the door and waited for Isadora to invite him in.  As he walked in Isadora seemed a little caught off guard, it was clear that she had lost track of time.  She quickly checked the clock on her computer.

            “You missed lunch so Lexi made you a sandwich.  Is now I good time to meet with you or should I come back?” JC questioned handing her the plate.  She quickly moved some papers to make room on her desk.

            “No you can stay, I can multi-task.  That is if you don’t mind watching me stuff my face.” Isa explained.  Her relaxed attitude somehow put him at ease.  JC took a seat in one of the chair that were facing her massive desk and waited for her to start the conversation.  Isadora took a big bite but made sure to clear her mouth before speaking.  “I wanted to get your take on what is going on between you and Lexi?”

            “Why, what did she say about us?” He asked.  Isadora just laughed a little a shook her head.  It was clear that JC was a little nervous to be having his conversation with her.

            “I am sorry sweet heart that is not how this works.  I already got her take on the situation now I need yours.  After you tell me, then I will let you know if you two are on the same page.”  Isadora explained.  JC just hung his head for a minute, while he thought about what to say.  He had already expressed a desire to stay in touch with Lexi.  Isadora had to have known about their date, maybe not the details, but she had charged Jade for breaking the contract.

            “I don’t think I can describe it.  She is very special to me.  I love spending time with her but I didn’t have much free time before we moved here.  We had a very nice date night which I am sure you heard about.” JC rambled on.

            Isadora smiled; sometimes it was what people didn’t say that said the most.  She ate while JC continued to ramble on about what they had been through together.  Isa was waiting for him to get to the point he was trying to make.  It wasn’t until after a long pause that he sighed heavily and admitted that he might be in love with her.

            “Are your feelings for Lexi going to in any way affect you ability to work with her professionally?” Isa asked, seemingly unphased by his admission.  It was clear that if they perused their romance there would be times when they didn’t see eye you eye.  She didn’t want any of their personal lives spilling over into the work place and creating problems.

            “They haven’t yet.” He answered.  “So am I in trouble or are we on the same page?”  It seemed as though neither of them were ready to admit to more than the other but it was clear that there was something going on and that it was in Isadora’s best interest to support it for now otherwise they would just continues to sneak around behind her back. 

            “You’re not in trouble, yet.  I just hope you two know what you are getting yourselves in to.” She watched as JC smiled. 

            “So we can explore a romantic relationship?” JC questioned, not that they hadn’t already.

            “Yes, but I don’t want it to affect your work and I don’t want to end up in the middle of it, you’re both adults.  It’s up to you guys to work it out or end it.”  Isadora reached into her desk draw and pulled out a box of condoms that she placed on her desk and slid toward him.  He picked it up and looked at it.

            “What are these for?” He asked with a raised eye brow.  She was in no way endorsing it but if they were going to have a little fun it was best to be on the safe side. 

            “Just in case, I guess.  She is my friend though; I would keep that in mind.  The guest house is still technically my property so if you wanted to visit her...”  Isadora wasn’t going to come right out and say it.  “Any way let me know if something changes, provided that change in some way affects me, otherwise I don’t want to know.”

            JC thanked her and got up to leave, he wanted to tell Lexi the good news.  On his way out Isadora asked him to find Justin for her and send him in with a soda. After all she needed something to wash the sandwich down with.