“Good show, people! Damn good show!” Justin crowed as they got on the bus. He was juiced up from the show, making noise as he went through the bus. He goosed Melissa's bunk, laughing when a scream came from it and a blonde girl came out, huffing at him.

“You're gonna get yours Timberflake,” she seethed, not hearing the others come in. “Don't make me go all kung fu on your ass.”

Justin grinned more, seeing JC approach Melissa. “Bring it on cup cake,” he taunted, putting up his fists. He watched her raise hers, getting ready to fight him when JC picked her up and tossed her over his shoulder.

Melissa screamed again, beating on JC with her fists. “Put me down! I've had a crappy night- I just want to be left alone by y'all!” she kept beating until she was plopped down on the back of the bus on the couch. She crossed her arms and glared at both guys. “You suck.”

“You missed the show,” JC said, sitting down next to her. “You gonna start skippin' out on us or what?”

“Like you care?” she retorted, still mad. “You've got thousands of girls and women that would absolutely do anything to be in my seat...”

“Oh shut up, woman,” Justin said, handing JC a Playstation controller. “You never miss. Did your period start or what? Get a zit or something?”

Melissa ground her teeth. Justin was a genuis on stage. And as a friend he was great, but he never pulled punches. And he had the mouth of a sailor, which didn't come out until the show was over. Her eyes went to him and back to JC. “How was the show?” she asked, playing off what Justin asked.

JC and Justin's eyes met, and JC shrugged. “Oh you know...it was alright. The same ol' same ol'. Glad Kristen was here to keep Joey on his game,” JC said, his eyes on the tv screen. “You suck ass Justin,” he said, going through NFL teams.

“Kiss my fuckin' ass, Chasez...” Justin cast a glance at the girl next to JC, grinning. “Yeah, that Kristen is something else...”

Melissa rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I get it. She's the best thing ever,” she said sarcastically, getting up. “I have better things to do than talk about Joey's girlfriend. If you two like her so much, you should hang out with her and her boobs falling out of her shirt.”

“Whose boobs are falling out of what shirt?” Chris asked, his eyes wide as he got to the back. “What did I miss?”

“Someone's missing their Joey time,” Justin sang the last words, laughing when he got the bird from Melissa. “I thought you'd never offer.”

“I'm not and I'll thank you to shut the hell up.” Melissa got up off the couch. “I've heard enough about Kristen and Joey! I'm going back to bed and the next person who bothers me is getting a kick in the nuts.” She stomped out of the back and back to her bunk, getting in it and breathing hard, letting tears fall. She'd never cry in front of them, the teasing making it seem like she didn't like Joey as much as she did. He wouldn't know, she wasn't about to ruin their friendship over feelings he might not have. Melissa loved how they were together, able to tell him anything.

The three guys looked at each other and Justin whistled. “She needs to get laid. Quick.”

“She has a boyfriend. I'm sure they've done the deed,” JC replied. “Or if not, it's not like we're keeping her from anything.”

“How long has Mel been mad now? Three days...and how long has Joey been MIA?” Chris chimed in.

“Three days,” the other two replied in unison.

“The next week is going to suck ass unless we get them together. They're like peanut butter and jelly...one without the other is just..wrong,” Chris retorted, flopping down in the spot Melissa had been sitting in.

“You should really go into philosophy, dawg. Billionaire type shit comes out of your mouth,” Justin said with a laugh.

“Shut up and play so I can play winner.” Chris got up and went to a cabinet, pulling out some chips. “Lance should be here in ten. Joey was after him in the shower.”

“There was an image I could've lived without,” JC muttered, sighing. They were all friends with Lance's sister, as well as Joey. They always knew the two of them had a bond, but another week of the silent treatment was going to drive them crazy being on the bus.

*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^

Joey sat on the couch in the back, not able to sleep. The bus was rolling towards Baltimore, their next stop from Chicago. He should be asleep, like the rest of the bus, but his mind wouldn't shut off. The tv replayed in an infomercial and Joey changed it, smiling when he caught “Blues Brothers” on. The smile was short lived however, when he thought back to the words his best friend had hurled at him. He'd never been talked to like that by Mel. He got up, wanting to talk, to resolve what was wrong before the next show. He wasn't going to tell her, but he needed her watching. He needed the goofy smiles and stupid faces she'd make to try and mess him up. He went to her bunk and pulled the curtain back, climbing in.

Melissa felt movement in her bunk and jerked awake. She almost panicked before she realized it was Joey, the scent of his soap reaching her nose. “You're in the wrong bunk,” she said quietly, pressing herself against the inside, but not able to get away from him. Her heart hammered in her chest when he didn't say anything, instead pulling her to him, resting his head on the top of hers. Her ear was pressed into the top of his chest, listening to the thump thump of his heartbeat.

“We need to talk, Melly,” Joey said softly, letting himself relax. Kristen was finally asleep in his bunk, after complaining that it was too small and cramped, but that she'd deal with it. Joey had just let her gripe, not wanting to inform her this is the way he lived for so many weeks out of the year. “Why have you been avoiding me?”

She forced her eyes open, trying not to fall back asleep, being warmer than she was with his body heat filling up the space. “Your girlfriend's here,” she replied, reaching up and around to grab Joeys hair, running her fingers through it. A small smile came to her face when she heard him groan in pleasure. “You're only here cause I play with your hair.”

Joey sighed and closed his eyes, moving to where she could reach his scalp. “You know you can still hang out with me, Mel. Whether Kristen's here or not...” his voice trailed off when her fingers started massaging at his temples. “God that feels good.”

“You're spoiled Fatone,” she replied, praying Kristen wouldn't wake up. As innocent as this all was, it still would look suspicious. Biting her lip, Melissa wondered if she should apologize now, or wait. A part of her, the mean part, wanted to keep taking out her feelings on Joey until Kristen was gone. However, that didn't seem right. “I'm sorry...about earlier.”

“The show sucked,” Joey told her, goosing her side. “Plain ol' sucked.”

“The whole show can't suck, Joseph,” Melissa told him with a small smile, reaching the front of his head and making his hair stick up in the front. “I mean, no one was mad that I know of getting back on the bus. And you can still sing right?”

Joey chuckled, nodding. “I haven't gotten laryngitis yet. The whole show sucked ass cause I was pissed at you. And you weren't there...”

From another bunk they heard Justin softly singing “and I will take you in my arms, and hold you right where you belong...”

“Til the day my life is through, this I promise you,” Melissa sang back, kicking her bunk, getting a knock from underneath her as she laughed. “He's a dork. You sing the next part,” she told Joey, having quit messing with his hair, her arms around him comfortably.

“It's JC's part,” Joey said quickly, not sure his heart and head wanted to be in that space right then, suddenly getting uncomfortable. “I better get outta here, ya know, in case Kristen wakes up.”

Melissa was glad he couldn't see her disappointment as she nodded, letting him go. “Yeah, maybe some other time. Hope you get some sleep, Fatoney.” She smiled at his harrumph at his nickname.

“Sleep well, Melly,” Joey said, untangling himself from her, and getting out of the bunk as fast as he could without it seeming awkward. He closed her curtain afterward, not sure what was wrong. In his mind, he was confused, a thought had come to him and left just as quickly. One he'd never had before. He'd wanted to kiss his best friend. That was wrong, wasn't it? He had a girlfriend and he didn't see Mel like that. Or so he thought. Then when she asked him to sing, the words hit him like a dash of cold water, making him panic.

“Dude, you okay?” Justin asked, looking confused at seeing Joey stand there, a dazed look on his face.

“Yeah...I'm good man. I'm gonna go crash out on the couch in the back,” Joey said, turning to leave.

“You know your hair looks like it got molested. You and Mel had hair sex, you whore,” the other man teased, laughing when Joey tried furiously to flatten it down some. “Just admit it, you have a hot girlfriend and a best friend and can't decide between the two of them.”

Joey stopped mid rub and raised an eyebrow at Justin. “You're delusional, go back to sleep. Besides, Mel has a boyfriend.”

“It's a cover up,” Justin told him, listening to the other man walk off. He laid in his bunk, listening to Melissa try and get comfortable again. He wasn't sure of either of their feelings, but he could see there was something there. He grabbed his headphones and put them on, smiling as music filled his ears, drifting off.

*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^

“Hurry up! Some of us don't take five hours to get ready,” Chris yelled, knocking on the bathroom door. It had only been fifteen minutes, but he needed to pee. The female voice that answered him told him a couple more minutes.

Melissa was furiously trying to hurry, putting her contacts in and brushing her hair and teeth between putting on a shirt and pulling on her mesh shorts. The day was going to be spent on the bus and then in the hotel. She'd change before the show. Pulling the door open, she flattened herself against the wall as Chris pushed her out of the way and shut the door. “You could have said thank you!” she yelled.

“Thank you for getting the hell outta the bathroom!”

Melissa went and put her stuff up, squeezing into Lance's bunk. “Wakey wakey eggs and bakey,” she told her brother, grinning when he opened one and and groaned.

“Go. Away,” Lance mumbled, turning around to face the wall, jumping when his sister found his ticklish spot. “Damn it. Go bother someone else...”

“There's no one else to bother. Justin's a bi-atch to wake up. We're stopping for breakfast in a bit...Reggie said something about IHOP or Denny's.”

“Good for him,” Lance said, pulling his cover over his eyes, “now go away and let me sleep.”

Melissa laid there a few minutes, getting up after listening to her brother's breathing even back out. She went to the back where Chris was watching television, Joey still sleeping on the couch. “You feel better?” she asked him, grabbing a chair that was next to the couch, Chris having claimed the recliner.

“Yeah, after you took forever, I thought my bladder was going to burst,” he replied, nudging her playfully. “How long you staying on tour with us?”

Melissa shrugged. “At least a few more weeks. I wanted to go to NYC and then down the East Coast. I have to go back home and get registered for my college classes.”

“Lance said something about you majoring in Art,” Chris said, the two of them talking through whatever show was on. “You gonna take all the other classes too?”

“Yeah, I got all the info and my mom's gonna turn it in next week and get me enrolled. I am taking online ones for now for my English and Math and everything. I won't actually go to class for a couple semesters,” she explained to him, watching Joey frown in his sleep and then mumble, turning over.

“I love it when he talks in his sleep. He says some funny stuff,” Chris told her with a grin, getting up to go bother Joey. Or at least see if he would talk where they could understand it. “Joey...” he said softly.

“Take a message,” Joey mumbled into the couch cushion, letting out a snore, flopping over.

“Joey...wake up,” Melissa said, going over to sit by him on the couch, messing with his hair a little, surprised when he pulled her down by him.

“Not up yet, sleep....Hair sex..”

Melissa looked at Chris who had his hand clamped over his mouth, trying to breathe and not laugh at the same time. “What are you dreaming about Fatone?” she asked a little louder, watching Joey sleep, grumbling when she tried to get up.

“Nothin,” he said softly, pulling her closer his eyes still closed. “Chicken and waffles.”

*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*

Melissa stepped of the tour bus and stretched, glad to be out of something moving. The other buses had people exiting as well, and she made a b-line for the bus with the stage crew on it. Her smile that she had widened when she saw Travis step off, hugging him and giving him a quick kiss. He'd been with NSYNC for as long as she could remember, thinking he was handsome. Dark blonde hair and blue eyes, an accent since he was from Minnesota. “You sleep well?” she asked as she walked with him, her arm around his waist as he pulled her closer.

“Yeah, you?” he asked, smiling at her, then looking at Joey coming off the bus with his girlfriend. Travis James had never minded his girlfriends friendship with the rest of the guys in the group, having seen them all together for so long. He knew Melissa and Joey were close, but with Joey's attractive girlfriend and him having her, there wasn't an issue.

“It was alright. It was bus sleeping,” she told him, heading in the door with the others. With the number of people, they were just taking drink orders and making the breakfast bar available to make the line move faster in paying. Melissa grabbed her wallet and started to get money out.

“I got yours,” Travis said, handing over the money to the cashier before she could finish.

“Thanks. I could have paid...I try to tell you and Lance and Joey that, but you all go deaf,” Melissa told him as they grabbed plates and utensils. “Don't eat all the cantalope you bum,” she told Joey, bumping him a little as he stood at the part of the food bar that held the fruit.

“No one put your name on it, Bass. I could go buy this place and it would be mine.”

Melissa rolled her eyes at him, laughing, “Don't be a show off.” She watched where Travis was sitting and took the tongs from Joey that he had with his food. “Thanks, Fatoney.”

“Just for that, I'm making you sing later today,” Joey told her, pretending to pout. “You better be ready. You never know when or where.”

People moved around them, josteling them and Melissa just smirked. “Bring it on, Joey.”

“Fine.”

Melissa left Joey where he was, making her way over to her boyfriend. She sat down and sighed. “Sometimes, I think he's got the brain of a ten year old.”

Travis raised an eyebrow at her, seeing Kristen look their way and frown. “What now?” he asked, having gotten used to the fact that his girlfriend was always in some sort of limbo with the other man, joking and kidding around was like breathing to them.

“A sing off. Again,” Melissa said, spearing the piece of fruit and eating it, grinning at Joey who just glared at her from where he was.

“What are you doing?” Kristen asked, watching Joey glare at the blonde over from them. She'd avoided Lance's sister as much as she could. She didn't dislike her, but there was still something that just didn't set right. She looked at her plate, figuring she wasn't going to eat a whole lot, then at Joey's. “Are you going to eat all that?” she asked him, her stomach doing flip flops.

“Yeah, I planned on it,” Joey said, unconcerned as he cut into a belgian waffle. He was hungry and didn't apologize for eating, burning off more calories than he consumed, thanks to singing and dancing every night, not to mention the practices, photo shoots and everything else.

“So I wanted to do some shopping today...” Kristen said, pressing up against Joey, wanting him to get a good view of her cleavage. “I'm sure there's a mall in Baltimore...” her voice trailed off and she let that sit with him.

“Malls are a bitch to be in,” Joey told her, stopping a minute to explain. “Security has to be tighter and then if fans find out you are there...” he shuddered a little bit. He loved the fans, didn't mind the autographs, but if he wanted to shop and do his own thing, he didn't want to be stuck IN somewhere. “Downtown has some cool shops,” he said by way of a counter offer. “And some good places to eat,” he added, looking hopeful.

“What time are you gonna be done today?” Melissa asked Travis, listening to other conversations around her, but focusing on him. “Maybe we can go eat before the show.”

“Should be around three. I'll call you if we get done earlier than that.”

Melissa nodded, getting up to get a small plate of fruit. Walking by Joey, she thwacked him on the back of the head, laughing when he growled.

Joey turned and looked at Mel, having been right in the middle of a conversation when he'd gotten thumped. “You know I hate that, Mel,” he snapped, his voice having an edge to it. “Play with my hair, drop ice down the back of my shirt, but don't fuckin' hit me on the back of the head.”

Melissa stopped, surprised at his attitude, holding her hands up in defense. “Sorry. Damn. What did she do? Ask to borrow your credit card?” she shot back, not noticing more people get quiet.

If the hit to the head didn't piss him off, the words that had been said the day before came back. Joey's eyes darkened and he got up, looking at Kristen. “I'll be back,” he said, grabbing Melissa's wrist, pulling her along. He ignored the snickers and whispers as they went out the door. He took a couple deep breaths as he walked towards the busses. “What. The fuck. Was that?” he bit off, turning to face her and let her go.

Frowning at him, she put her hands on her hips and glared. “I forgot. I'm sorry! And then you get pissy. We were fine twenty minutes ago. What the hell is your problem?” she exclaimed, gesturing to him.

“I suddenly remembered we didn't have our fight out. And you pissed me off so damn bad last night..I'm not an asshole, Mel. I'm a nice guy. And yet you get your panties in a wad when Kristen comes. Can't you two just get a long?” Joey didn't want them to be best friends, but he knew how women were. Men were almost as bad, but he wasn't going to admit that.

“Whatever.” Melissa sighed, shaking her head at him. “I hate it that I haven't seen you for three days and she'll be here until Friday. I have nothing to say to her. All she talks about is shopping and clothes.”

“You might take some tips from her.” Joey instantly regretted his words, seeing Melissa blink a few times. “Melly...” he started, taking a step toward her, “I'm sorry.” It was disheartening when she didn't turn around to look at him. The show tonight was going to be bad if she didn't show up and Joey knew he had to think fast if he wanted her there. “You can't stay mad at me,” he said, pulling her back to face him. “I need you in your seat tonight.”

Melissa looked at him then, listening to the traffic and noise around them, tears coming down. “Why? You just called me ugly and bitched me out in front of everyone. Why do you need me there? You have your beautiful girlfriend here with you..” her voice trailed off as she looked down.

Joey swallowed hard, pulling her face back up. “I could have everyone else I know and love there, but I need you there. I just do...” he faltered, kissing her coming back to the forefront of his mind. He squashed that thought once more. “I'm not sure what I'd do if you wore make up and heels and a dress. I mean, you always look good...” Joey mentally slapped himself again. “Just accept my apology before you decide to go on tour with the Backstreet Boys.”

Melissa's mouth twitched as she reached up to wipe her face with the back of her hand. “You make that a tempting offer. I guess I'll forgive you. I'm not gonna hit you in the back of the freakin' head again. I really did forget you hated that. And then you went all ass hat on me.” Melissa knew there was more to it than that but she wasn't about to tell Joey what she was thinking, which was something along the lines of sneaking back to the bus and making out. That wasn't going to happen, at least not between them and she wasn't about to think about Joey and Kristen making out.

“I know, I know,” Joey said, pulling her into a hug. “Let's go back and eat. I'm sure Justin will send someone out to see if we're fighting.”

“One of these days I'm going to tell him to mind his own business,” Melissa said, sniffling, using the hug as an excuse to soak up some of Joey's cologne.

Joey chuckled, standing there another minute. “We cool, Melly?” he gave her a grin, pulling at her ponytail.

“Copastetic, Fatoney. Next time you should throw your napkin down for a more dramatic effect.”

It went on in a joking manner back into Shoney's both of them going to sit down in their respective seats and continuing to eat as if nothing happened.

“What the heck was that?” JC whispered to Lance, watching his friend look at his sister.

“Some people fight because they hate each other. Others fight because that's all they can do.”

JC looked at Lance, confused. “Did that slap to the head hurt you too?”

“I give it til Christmas,” Justin chimed in on the other side of Lance. “Something will happen. Good. Bad. The end of the world...” he said, a sly smile coming to his face. Justin claimed to be the busy body of the group, knowing more than most. He'd not gotten the whole story yet, but he would.

“Do I even want to know?” Kristen asked harshly, folding her arms.

“It's over. Don't worry about it.”

Kristen's eyes went over to the other woman, watching her talk with Travis, gesturing towards them. “If you say so,” she told Joey with a sigh, putting on a smile and going on to talk about plans for the next town, glad when Joey suggested a nice date.

“We'll go out to dinner somewhere nice, go see a movie or something,” he said, reaching for her hand under the table, giving her a small smile. Joey reminded himself that Kristen was the woman he loved, that he wasn't going to sacrifice a relationship for something he had a fleeting thought about, best friend or not.

“So is that going to happen again?” Travis asked, looking at his girlfriend as she finished eating, having thought about going outside to see what they were fighting about.

“Nah. Just over stupid stuff,” Melissa explained, giving him a smile. People were getting up and going to the restrooms and looking around a bit before going to get back on the bus. She moved her plate to the end of the table and looked at Travis. He'd been a great boyfriend so far, enjoying her time with him and that they had some things in common. She'd known him a long time, and he'd not ever asked her to change who she was. “You ready to go?”

Travis nodded, getting up, leaving a tip. He pulled Melissa to him and kissed her soundly. He smiled when someone wolf whistled. “I just had to kiss that pretty face before I get to work in a little bit,” he told her, his arm around her as they left.

The smile on her face said it all, loving to be told that as Melissa walked out feeling wonderful. She missed Joey's momentary look of surprise as they passed the other couple, for once not worried about anyone else. “You just wanted to kiss me like that in public to see if you could do it again,” she countered, kissing him much like she did her in front of the busses.

“Get a room,” someone said, making them break apart and laugh.

“See you in a little while,” Travis told her, going to step on his bus. He'd not seen the look she was giving him before, but he was encouraged by it. He wanted as many brownie points as he could get, wanting the girl and everything else that came with it, some things that hadn't happened yet physically between them. “Maybe?” he asked, giving her a bigger grin and inuendo.

“You're a lot closer than you were before breakfast,” Melissa told him, stepping up to give him one more kiss. “See you in a little while.” She practically skipped back to the bus she'd been riding on, finding a seat to sit and watch television, lost in her own thoughts.