Justin had promised Reggie he'd be on his best behavior tonight. He swore to him up and down when they entered 3-Thirty-3 that he'd not cause trouble. He also swore that he'd only have a 'couple drinks' as well. That of course was a couple times a couple more.

Reggie had been Justin's manager since the beginning of his career, but over the course of the last few years he'd been neglecting him. Neglect was not something Justin took kindly to. He was desperate and knew his once faithful manager and friend was the only person on the Earth who could pull him out of the deep hole he'd dug for himself.

Justin was completely in the dark about Reggie's plan to get him back in the spotlight. He trusted the man wholeheartedly and let him take the wheel like he'd done for years. When Reggie drove them out of the heart of LA and into the somewhat small reserved beach town of Newport Beach. Justin could only assume that Reggie was trying to make him get back on the stage. He hated the idea of starting small again. He was no small stage performer. The very thought of being on stage sent waves of anxiety through his body. The more he thought about it, the more he asked the bartender at the bar to fill up his glass again. "Don't you think you've had enough?" The extremely muscular bartender questioned as he free poured the remainder of Jack Daniels into Justin's glass. "You finished off a good half of this bottle." He shook his head. Justin squinted at him, his fingers drummed on the wood of the bar top as he watched this above average looking guy, who more than likely spent all his free time at the gym, question him on how much booze he'd consumed. "I'm immune to it. Just open another bottle for me." Justin encouraged as he took the refilled glass.

The atmosphere of the place was loud and vibrant. Various men and women happily move about on the dance floor, the bar was filled to it's max capacity, and all around Justin people were hooking up and having a good time. Most of them around his age group. It made him feel old and abnormal. He'd played in clubs since he was 16. The idea of doing it now was far from interesting to him.

He watched with now glazed eyes as two girls approached the bar beside him. They were fit and beautiful, and a perfect example of 'California girls'. Katy Perry's song really painted the picture for everyone on that. Turning his attention back to his glass, Justin let out a small laugh of amusement. The fact that the drink in front of him gave him more satisfaction than either of the two girls could was a sad and pathetic realization.

"Put this down." Reggie encouraged as he cam up behind Justin. The middle aged man easily grabbed the glass from Justin's grip. "What are you doing man? I'm good, I've only had three." Justin held up his finger to emphasize his point. Looking into the glass, Reggie brought it up to his nose and quickly scrunched it up in disgust. "Jesus Justin, three glasses of pure liquor you mean. Hold it together for me for one night. I'm here for you. You want my help you have got to start meeting me half way." He set the glass back down. Justin quickly went back to cradling it again before Reggie could even remove his hand completely from it. "I'm not preforming tonight Reg. I don't know why you brought me to this cop out club aside from the fact that I'm going to end up intoxicated by the end of the night. Possibly sooner." He smiled while returning the glass to his lips. Reggie stared at him in bewilderment. " You're not preforming, especially not like this. I brought you here to see something you stubborn ass." He spun Justin's chair around, forcing him to now face the small stage a few feet away. He watched as the stage crew set up mics and a drum set. "I thought you said I wasn't performing!?" Justin argued while motioning to the set up going on right before his very eyes. "That's not for you. I need to go take care of something, stay here. Got it?" It was ridiculous to Reggie that Justin was 33 years old and he still had to babysit him,as well as treat him like an adolescent.

"Sure I'll be here." Justin responded; his tone was full of sarcasm. Reggie gave him a once over before moving through the crowd of people and towards the backstage area.

Justin was completely oblivious, and he hated that in every way. It made him paranoid and uneasy. The anxiety returned, but this time he reached into his jean pocket and expelled a prescription bottle. His fingers twisted the cap off, and he eagerly dispensed two Ativan into his mouth. Reaching for his glass, he more than happily washed them down with the remainder of alcohol in his glass. He waited for the buzz to set in, and was starting to relax a bit until an unfamiliar voice was suddenly addressing him. "Hey! I know you!" She insisted directly into his ear. He turned quickly to face the source of the voice. His vision blurred for just a moment as his eyes landed on one of the girls from earlier. "No you don't." Justin responded. It annoyed him when people claimed to know him, yet they'd never even spent 5 minutes with him.

"Yes I do. You're that singer that um stole music right?"

Justin felt himself physically tense at her description of him. The one thing people remembered him for was not his other countless achievements. It was simply the one and only mistake he'd made in his career.

His eyes met hers and he quickly downed the rest of his drink. Justin refused to sit there another minute and be ridiculed and reminded of the things he was trying to get away from. Whatever Reggie had planned was not worth the wait.

"Listen sweetheart..." Justin slurred. "You got the wrong guy alright?" She gave him a confused look, but before she could question him anymore, he slipped out of his chair and began to walk away from the bar. It was then in that moment when his feet touched the ground that he realized he possibly had more drinks than he accounted himself for. Walking was a bit of struggle for Justin at the moment, and he knew that the warning on the bottle of Ativan that stated to not drink or operate heavy machinery was no fucking joke. His head spun a bit, and he lowered the ball cap over his eyes as he managed to squeeze his way through the over crowded dance floor. The exit was in plain view, and if he could reach it without another annoying encounter then it'd be the best accomplishment of the night. Justin didn't seem to have that kind of luck though. Before he could reach the double doors, Reggie grabbed him by the sleeve and pulled him into the backstage area.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Justin shouted towards him, but the older man wasn't looking at him or paying much attention for that matter. Reggie's gaze and focus was on the much younger man who had just taken the stage. He turned Justin's face to face the same scene he was transfixed on. Justin watched Reggie's expression and realized the look of fascination and admiration was the same look he once gave Justin. Unfortunately that look was now gone when it came to him.

"His name is Gavin. He's never done any sort of clubs just local garage band stuff. His family owns a boating rental company. See the kid has got the money but no experience,references, or guidance." Reggie explained as Gavin began to move into his first song. Justin gave Reggie a skeptical look. He was still very much intoxicated, but some of the words he was saying seemed to make a bit of sense. "What's your point?" Justin questioned. He didn't care about Reggie's desire and want for fresh meat. The only thing Justin wanted to do was go home and continue his drinking binge in the privacy of his bedroom.

"It has everything to do with you. I want you to be his mentor. You want back in the business you need this kid to carry you there." Reggie smiled from ear to ear as he fed Justin this information. Justin on the other hand was far from amused. "Are you serious? Reg, I am the last person anyone wants to be fucking mentored by. What do you want me to do for him?" Reggie gave Justin a disapproving glance as Gavin finished his first song. It was no surprise to him when the crowd responded positively towards it. Gavin was a genuine talent that much was obvious, but he was completely clueless about the business.

"Justin you want to un-tarnish your name and redeem yourself right? Teach this kid something good. If you fuck him up with girls and drugs you're basically fucking yourself all over again."
Reggie's words were far worse than any physical slap or punch. "Grow up." He added as the song finished once more and Gavin finally made his way over to them.

He'd played a few shows here and there but hadn't ever been noticed by a record producer type, or a celebrity for that matter. Gavin was a humble person, and though he lived in a conservative popular beach town, he rarely strayed too far from it. Seeing Justin Timberlake in person was an experience he'd never been over come with. As he drew closer to them though he didn't see much of an expression or impression in Justin's face. This discouraged Gavin for some reason, and he didn't really know why.

"Gavin!" Reggie called out before quickly embracing him as if they had been old friends. "Beautiful performance. Amazing even. Let me get you a drink. What will you have? Gin tonic? Bourbon? Whiskey? Tequila.. You name it."

"Oh just a beer is fine." Gavin answered.
"I'll have another Jack and Coke thanks." Justin chimed with a slight hint of a smile on his face. Reggie gave him a bit of a glare before shooting him down. "No. I'll be back, you two converse." He encouraged towards both of them.
"Jesus." Justin sighed as he ran a hand over the top of his head. His gaze landed on Gavin and he was nothing but amused by him. It was humorous how "untouched" he seemed.
Gavin shifted a bit and accidentally made eye contact with Justin. He was beginning to feel a bit uneasy because of the way he was looking at him. Biting his bottom lip a moment, he quickly opted to break the awkward tension by trying to at least talk to the other male. "I liked your album. The last one. Even after that whole controversy you went through I still thought it was pretty amazing." Gavin held an honest look on his face as he told Justin this. Justin didn't however respond in the way Gavin assumed he would.

"Are you fishing from an appreciative response from me? Listen, I don't know what Reggie wants me to do with you, or teach you, but I can tell you right now that ass kissing gets you no where but on your knees." He emphasized his point by shoving him in the center of the chest.

"Justin!"
Reggie caught Gavin as he fell into him from the force.
"Reggie it's cool, I'm good." Gavin insisted. He refused to be mortified or embarrassed. Managing a smile, Gavin simply kept his gaze on the other male who had unexpectedly shoved him.

The over dramatic look of concern on Reggie's face sickened Justin to the point where he physically
had to leave. "This was a waste of my damn time." He shot before making a quick exit out the side door.
Reggie shook his head in a disapproving way. "Don't talk about the past with Justin kid. I know he's acting like a dick but when he's sober he can really be useful." So far Gavin's first impression of Justin Timberlake was anything but useful to him.