Melissa stretched out her left leg and looked at the walking boot that was on instead of the cast. It was heavy and obnoxious. The upside was that her armpits didn't hurt and she could get around easier. Although dancing was still out, she could do the arm movements as 'Bye Bye Bye' played on her stereo as she folded clothes that were on the couch. It had been a couple of weeks since her parents and grandparents had been to see her. She was never more relieved when they all left, her grandfather hugging her the longest and telling her that she'd have to learn to drive faster. Her new Mustang sat in her parking spot, still unmoved after her father had parked it a couple of weeks ago. Her walking cast got in the way of the pedals even though she used her right foot to drive.
Her computer was open on the table beside the couch and she looked at the Yahoo News that was scrolling over the screen. She caught the picture of Joey and sniffled. 'It's a boy for Joey Fatone and wife Kristen Devon-Fatone: Ultrasound results confirm...' the headline cut off so you would have to click to read the article. She'd read the article a few times, smiling stupidly at the grainy ultrasound picture. She had no doubt that Joey was over the moon at the prospect of having a son to carry on the Fatone name.
“I need a life,” she sighed to herself, folding some socks and tossing them in the laundry basket. Melissa picked up her phone when it buzzed, seeing a text from Justin, asking what she was doing.
'Same thing as always. Nothin.' She heard a knock on her door and got up, surprised at who was on the other side, opening it and gracefully falling into his arms. “Timberlake!” she said, tears coming to her eyes at the familiarity of Justin's cologne and embrace. “What are you doing here?” she asked as she invited him inside, looking for the other guys. She turned off the stereo so they could talk.
“Just visiting a few old friends,” Justin told her, looking around. “I came up early, but we're shooting the video for 'Girlfriend' in a couple days. You should come hang out.” Justin looked around the living room and smiled at all the pictures that were up. A lot of the group, some individual shots, more family photos and friends. “I've missed ya, Bass.”
“Sure you have, JT. You've been busy with all sorts of shit going on,” Melissa told him, tossing the rest of her laundry in the basket. She watched Justin flop down on the couch next to her and look her over. “I hate when you do that.”
“Do what?” Justin asked, raising an eyebrow at her.
“Read me like a book. Chris is right. You should have gotten a PhD in psychology or something. Forget this singing crap...” she smiled at him and listened to him chuckle. “How are the guys?” she asked, knowing how everyone was, except Joey. She quit asking about him and everyone quit volunteering information.
“Oh, everyone's just the same. Chris still acts like the biggest kid we have. Although JC's lightened up, he's still on our asses. Lance is Lance,” Justin shrugged, his voice trailing off. He looked at her carefully, trying to gauge if he wanted to talk about Joey. “Joey's doing alright, chica. Carrying around a sonogram picture and smiling like a damn fool...” Justin pursed his lips and let out a curse when Melissa wiped tears. “Goddamn it. I knew I shouldn't have come over.”
“No. Justin, please don't leave....” Melissa begged, wiping her tears and grabbing his hand before he could get up.
“Then tell me what good it's doing. You're still sitting there crying...It's been a month and a half, Mel,” Justin's voice got soft and he slid over, pulling her into him. “You've got to move on. Find something to do with your time...”
Melissa swallowed back tears and wanted to hate Justin. She wanted to hate what he said. Her Mom and grandmother had told her the same thing and she'd kicked around the idea in her head and promptly shoved it into the recesses of her mind, but when Justin said it, it was a slap in the face. “I thought you were my friend, Justin. And then you come see me and tell me that I need to find something to do.... I had something to do in Florida. I had a life and my family was there,” Melissa scooted away from him and pointed a finger at him. “I had a best friend and then a boyfriend who I was so in love with...we were going to get married,” a sob escaped her mouth and she covered it with her hand and tried not to choke on the sudden spit that had come with the onslaught of tears. “I hate you, Timberlake...”
“Find it here, Mel,” Justin pulled her face up and moved her hair out of her eyes. “Find a life here that you can love. You're in fucking Los Angeles... There's nothing you can't do, besides cook,” he said, chuckling when she flipped him off. “I'm not saying you won't miss Joey, that you can't miss him. Just don't let it take over. Go find out who Melissa Nicole Bass is without your brother. Without Joey Fatone...”
“It's hard. I miss you, and I miss the craziness of the tour. I even miss the stupid songs you and Chris make up late at night when you've drank too much. I miss Rachel...” Melissa's voice trailed off. “Will you do something for me?” she asked Justin, watching him nod. “Tell Joey I'm happy for him,” tears came again and she didn't bother to wipe them away. “Tell him that I smiled and told you that with any luck the kid will have his nose and eyes and break hearts.”
Justin nodded again, feeling his phone vibrate. He looked at caller ID and leaned in and kissed Melissa on the cheek. “I promise I'll tell him, chica. I love you. I gotta fuckin' go, these people are vultures,” he told her, pulling her up to hug her and let her walk him to the door. “Remember what I said,” he tweaked her nose gently. “Find yourself.” He gave her a little wave before getting in his rental car and driving towards downtown Los Angeles. For all his smart ass antics and superficial feelings on a lot of subjects, Justin felt like for the first time in his life, he had actually given someone advice that might be something worth some substance that wasn't going to be in a song.
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
“What do you mean you aren't coming to see me? You will come out to dinner right?” Lance asked his sister as he watched people mill around for the video shoot for their newest song that was coming out. “You found a job?” he asked, smacking Chris's hand when he reached for Lance's phone. “No..it's okay, Mel.” He hung up the phone and frowned, looking over at Chris, who looked hopeful. “She's not coming.”
“Not coming?” Chris's voice echoed and he threw up his hands. “First damn time we have a video shoot close and she doesn't come. Did you tell her we wanted to see her? That Kristen's in Pennsylvania?” he asked, watching Lance shrug.
“You know my sister. She's avoiding anything that looks like real life.”
“No,” Justin came up and stood beside the two of them. “I told her to get a life and not sit around mourning over what she couldn't have.” The three of them found Joey, watching him sit on top of a picnic table and smoke a cigarette. “She got pretty pissed off.”
“Well now she's avoiding the rest of us. Thanks a damn lot, Justin. She's our friend too. Not just yours or Joey's,” Chris huffed, shoving his hands in his pockets and walking off towards where Joey was. “I thought you were quitting,” he said, sitting down next to his friend, looking at Joey's shirt Rachel had gotten him. Joey rotated those out regularly so now they looked as worn as his others.
“It's either smoke or eat...And I hear less bitching about the smoking than shoving a doughnut in my face,” Joey told him, looking over at Chris. “What were you yellin' at Justin for?”
“Well, here we are in sunny California, thirty minutes from Thousand Oaks and guess who's not coming to see us? And guess who's fault that is?” Chris asked, sighing.
“Mel..and probably my fault,” Joey said, flicking ashes, surprised when Chris shook his head.
“The first part is right, the second part is Justin's. He told her to get a life that didn't involve being in mourning over you.” He watched Joey's face and saw it drop momentarily before he tried to put the mask on that he wore. “You're just as bad...”
“That's not open for discussion,” Joey growled, lighting another cigarette. “There's always going to be a hole in my heart that won't heal. You can't fix it with time or something else. Even if the rest of my life ends up being just fucking wonderful, I will still have that space that's not filled. So it doesn't damn well matter if I tell you anything or not. We have work to do,” Joey pushed himself up off the table and jumped down to the ground, shoving his hands in his pockets. He wasn't going to tell Chris he'd held out hope that she'd come. Not to see him, but to see Lance and Rachel. Hang out with Chris and Justin and JC. At least that way he could look at her, to see how she was doing, even if she avoided him. His fingers touched the ultrasound picture in his pocket and the corners of his mouth turned up. A son. He let that thought interfere with the other, causing him to breathe in deep and let it out slow. Joey was living for someone else now. That pushed him on, plastering a smile on his face as he made his way to wardrobe, not missing the smiles from the girls who were being picked for the video shoot. He winked at a couple of them. It wasn't the same, but he was still male and with Kristen on the other side of the country, Joey wasn't afraid of saying or doing the wrong thing with an innocent smile.
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
“Josh,” Rachel's lips found his once more as his hands slid up under her shirt. She let out of a small moan when his fingers ran over her bra and back down, his lips still on hers. “We're going to get caught,” she mumbled out the side of her mouth, listening to him sigh after he broke off the kiss. She couldn't count the number of make out sessions they'd had on the bus, in a hotel room when everyone else was busy or asleep. Getting braver, they'd meet up like this in a trailer that was marked for JC, clothes hanging in it for the video shoot or somewhere inconspicuous. They hadn't had sex yet, but there had been plenty of touching and kissing and sexual innuendos that led to things that were close enough to sex for now.
“Kristen's not here, so I'm not worried,” JC informed Rachel, bringing a hand up to caress her face. “I am more than ready to have you to myself out where everyone can see. Introduce you as my girlfriend...” his voice trailed off and he stood there, looking at her. “I love you Rachel. I know we're doing what we have to and I'll wait, but it doesn't mean we have to act like we're strangers.”
“I love you too, C,” Rachel ran a hand through his hair. She loved the dark curls that were there now that it was longer, playing with it as she pressed her forehead against his, her nose nuzzling his. They'd spent the hours they could talking. Texting when they weren't together if work happened to call Rachel away and talking into the late morning hours until JC could go to sleep. They'd gotten so close and yet they'd not even been out on a date yet. At least not a real one. Sitting in the back watching movies didn't count. “Look at it this way. It's a lot of fun sneaking around.”
JC nodded, pressing his lips to hers once more. “It is. It's like some naughty secret,” he smacked her bottom playfully when she walked away from him. “You better get out there and make sure no one is looking for us...or you...” he added, giving her a big smile.
“You better change into what they want, Chasez.”
“Geez, Weatherly..who do you think you are ordering me around?” JC laughed when she gave him a dirty look. “You're just standing there to see me take off my shirt.”
Rachel just shrugged. “Only if you do a little dance with it.”
JC pulled up the front of his shirt to show his stomach and thrusted his hips, humming 'It's Raining Men' and laughing at the blush that crept onto his girlfriend's face. Once he'd taken the shirt off, he threw it at her. “There.”
“Ewww...I don't want your smelly shirt,” Rachel dropped it and yelped when Josh lessened the space between them and growled in her ear. “Then tell me what you want, Rachel. I want some time with you alone...Real time. For a date and everything else that comes with being in a relationship.”
Rachel's eyes fluttered closed at JC's voice in her ear, leaning back on his body. “I want that too,” she whispered, feeling his lips press up against her temple. “Get ready before people start beating on the door,” she told him after a moment. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” JC told her, watching her leave. It wasn't that he was worried about Lance would think if they had sex on the bus, or even at a hotel, but it was the fact that JC didn't want that for Rachel. He wanted everything to be perfect. For them to be totally alone, without an alarm or worrying about who might find out or find them. He pulled on the clothes and went out, trying to put an expression on his face that would look neutral. His eyes found Rachel and he sent her a smile when she stuck her tongue out at him. It was always the best part, the flirting. And knowing later he could have her all to himself again.
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
“Cassandra, Evelyn, Monique and Jessica,” Joey said, moving on to the next group of girls. “Lindsey, Beth, Sasha and Lisa.. Tabitha...Dawn...Victoria, Jordan and Gina.”
“You sound like that guy that sings Mambo number Five,” one of them said, making Joey laugh. He'd always been good with names and this was no exception. “So which one of you lovely ladies is with me?” he asked, smiling at Sasha when she stepped out and he offered his hand.
“I was wondering what your tattoo was,” she asked him innocently, the other girls telling her to ask.
“It's just a word,” Joey told her, knowing it was covered up. “A friend's name.”
“Your ex,” Sasha pressed, frowning when Joey gave a curt nod. “She'd probably be jealous with all of us around and you flirting.”
“Nah. She wouldn't care. She was cool like that. Probably would be telling you all the stories I didn't want anyone to know.”
Sasha looked Joey up and down and nodded. “Congratulations, by the way...on finding out you're having a boy.”
“Thanks. I'm excited. My wife just hopes the heartburn stops. She's miserable,” Joey said, glad for the change of subject. “How did you know about it?” he watched Sasha blush.
“My sister's a huge fan. Justin's her favorite but you are her second favorite. We keep up with the website and MySpace...” she shrugged. “Hate all the gossip crap but we were so excited about you and Lance's sister and then...” her voice trailed off and she didn't meet Joey's eyes, changing the subject. “So we're trying to be supportive now.”
Joey gave her a smile and pulled her in for a hug. “I appreciate it. I really do.” He didn't feel like she was trying to get information from him or wanted anything. It made him feel better than he had in a while. “Now let's get ready for me to sing to you about being my girlfriend. Think you can handle that?” he asked, making a stupid face at her.
“You might wanna watch him. His face could stick like that and where would that leave you?” Lance told Sasha, making an ugly face at Joey as he walked by.
“I'll whip your ass, man,” Joey taunted Lance, laughing when some of the other extras gathered around them.
Lance and Joey faced off with each other, pretending to fight. They heard cheers from the others and then the director yelling at them to get to make up, laughing when Lance accidentally swung and caught Joey in the jaw and he put Lance in a full Nelson.
“I think that's the first time I've laughed that hard in a long time,” Joey told Lance, throwing an arm around him in a manly hug when they were done goofing off.
“It was good to see you like that,” Lance told him, still smiling. He just prayed that it would stay that way for his friend as they got ready for the shoot. “My hair looks insane,” he told Rachel who had joined him, watching the make up artist apply foundation to even out his skin.
“You keep having to dye it and it looks odd,” Rachel told him, watching him nod. “I'm amazed at how fast Joey's goatee grew back.”
“He said it was black magic,” Chris said from the chair next to where Lance was, garnering laughs from everyone around him.
“Next I'll use my voodoo powers to get us another counter tenor,” Joey said as he wiggled his fingers at him, smirking when Chris just shook his head. It was nice to be with his friends and have fun, concentrating on the task at hand.
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
Why are you cleaning? You cleaned yesterday,” Holly remarked when she came in, setting down a bag of food. “I brought dinner.”
“You act like I'm some sort of invalid,” Melissa said to her new friend, shaking her head as she walked slowly with the dust mop. “Fine. Let's go out tonight...My treat.”
“I thought you said your brother was in town shooting a video?” Holly asked. She and Melissa had become fast friends, able to talk about anything. She still hadn't heard the whole story on what all was going on, but waiting until she could until she made judgment of her friend's mood. “You aren't going to go see him?”
Melissa grabbed a couple plates and shook her head. “He's in the penalty box. Our grandma came and made my life twenty times harder than it was already...” she sighed. “Even worse is when one of the most famous pop stars in the world comes to your house and tells you that you need a life. And to quit mourning over someone else. I don't mourn, I pout. There's a difference.”
“And who would this pop star be?” Holly asked, taking the food out of the containers and then sitting down after putting a serving spoon into the food. She'd had leftovers from an order and didn't relish the thought of eating alone so she brought it over.
“Justin freakin' Randall Timberlake. Asshole extraordinaire.”
“There are millions of girls who would love for him to tell them to get a life,” Holly smiled when Melissa glared. “Just sayin...”
“Shut up,” Melissa retorted, sighing. “We'll run by and see them and drag Rachel with us.” She sent off a text to Rachel asking if she wanted to go clubbing. They ate, talking about different clubs before deciding to go to one out in west Hollywood. “Pick me up in an hour. I have to go make myself presentable. And thanks for the food by the way..” she told Holly after they cleaned up, sticking the leftovers in her fridge.
'Of course I wanna go. Pick me up. Come see Chris, he's pouting like a baby.'
Melissa smiled, sitting on her bed. 'He always does that. Tell Lance I'm coming to kick his ass.' She tossed her phone on her bed and went to her closet and sighed. It wasn't that she didn't want to go out, it just required effort. Once wouldn't kill her, she decided, grabbing a shirt that she'd wear in Florida, pairing it with some loose pants that went over her walking cast. Her mind wandered as she did her make up and she snapped a picture, sending it to Rachel. 'I feel like I should run and hide..'
'You look great. Smile.'
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
Rachel slipped her phone in her pocket and sighed. Melissa didn't say it, but Rachel was sure she was scared. She went and bumped Joey's shoulder as he talked to the girl he was paired up with. She accepted his hug and leaned on him. “Now I know why all the girls love you, Joe.”
“Because I'm just so damn irresistible,” Joey said, giving Rachel a smile. “You know who would love this hat?” he said, watching her nod.
"Oh yeah Fatone," Rachel chuckled hugging him again. "Why, I'm having a hard time holding back right now. Just don't know if I can control myself."
“I know; I know," Joey grinned his arm sliding around Rachel's waist. His smile faltered when he thought about the fun times he, Melissa and Rachel had, teasing each other. Sometimes when they got going, he found it better to sit back and watch. It was a riot.
Joey excused himself from them, going to grab a smoke. He eyed the cars they were supposed to dance on and wondered who was going to fall on their ass first. If he put money on it, it would be him or Chris.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Okay I am loving the reviews from you readers. It makes me want to keep going and writing faster to get you to the next part of the story. Thank you so much for loving this story! You all rock!
Story Tags: joey
