The ride up the elevator seemed like it would go on forever. Gavin lived in a beach town, it didn't supply many towering buildings. He was pretty intrigued by how many floors the one building had. He watched as the numbers climbed, and carefully stole a glance towards Justin. The older male stood leaning against the wall of the elevator. His eyes were fixated on the numbers as well, and he lightly hummed the classic Stevie Wonder song Isn't She Lovely. Gavin hadn't realized he was staring until Justin made eye contact with him. "What? You don't like classics?"

The younger male shook his head no in disagreement. "No no I actually do. My mom used to play all those songs when I was younger. She is really into music too. She played actual records you know. She still does." Gavin smiled at the thought of his mother. He knew exactly where his musical roots came from. Justin remained quiet for a moment. His expression was unreadable to Gavin. He was becoming a bit uneasy now that Justin was the one staring at him.

"Your mom's into Stevie ?" Justi nquestioned, standing up right as the elevator chimed and the metal doors began to open. "My mom is very into Jazz and soul music. She used to be a background singer for a lot of artists." He shuffled quickly out of the elevator, keeping in time with Justin as they made their way down a wide hallway. "This is where you live? It's like a hotel." Justin fought the urge to roll his eyes again as he toyed with his keys. He felt something in the pit of his stomach as Gavin went on about his background singer mom. Licking his lips, he finally stopped in front of his door and easily unlocked it. Gavin made the motion to walk on in, but Justin quickly put his hand up and stopped him. "Whoa, not so fast. Don't touch anything ok? I mean you can sit on the couch and shit, but just try not to get grabby."

It was Gavin's turn to roll his eyes then push Justin's arm aside so he could enter the apartment. It was very open, and clean. The thing that surprised him the most though was that it seemed kind of small, even if it was well kept and modern, it just wasn't glamorous, or at all what he imagined Justin Timberlake to live in. "This is it?" He questioned out loud.

Justin tossed his keys on a side table and moved towards the kitchen. "Yep. All 1,300 square feet. At least its considered luxurious, and everything is new..." He pulled open the fridge and rummaged through it. "You want something to drink?" He called over his shoulder.

Gavin eyed the line of awards in wonderment. They sat on the mantel above the fire place, along with three platinum records on the wall. He was transfixed in that moment. The things he would give to be able to hang his own records on the wall like that.

"Gavin..."

Snapping out of it, he turned and faced Justin once more. "What? Oh whatever you got I'll take..."

Justin stared blankly into his fridge. It wasn't exactly 'teenager' proof. The only food that sat in his fridge was left over take out containers, beer, a bottle of vodka, and a bottle of pricey wine. Scratching the back of his head, he peered a bit more and smiled when he spotted the carton of orange juice hiding behind a few take out containers. "All I got for you is OJ." He shook it a few times before finally realizing that Gavin was oogling at his awards. "I earned every one of those you know." Justin didn't mean to sound bitter when he said that. He couldn't help that being defensive had become part of his nature. So many people ridiculed him over the years, that his natural response became rather unsettling.

Feeling a bit uneasy, Gavin shoved his hands deep into his jean pockets as he made his way towards the kitchen. He could tell that staring at something for longer than he should was frowned up. Moving his hand over the quartz counter top, he watched as Justin pulled out few glasses. They were shaped oddly, probably because they were wine and margarita glasses. "Don't you have regular glasses?" Gavin was really beginning to wonder who it was Reggie was trying to 'help' when it came to all this.

"Of course I do." Justin shot back, not 100% sure he actually did have regular cups or glasses. Letting out an irritated sigh, he then poured the orange juice into a wine glass and handed it over to Gavin. "Why do you want to be in this business Gavin?" Justin questioned. He kept his eyes on the younger male in front of him as he sipped on the OJ. Gavin was quiet for a long moment. It was a very good question. He wasn't sure he had a good answer for that. "Back at the club, the way the crowd got all excited, and cheered - it just did something to me. I felt it all through my body. Their energy." He stole a glance towards Justin, who surprisingly seemed to be hanging on to every word. Nodding some, he then pulled open his fridge and grabbed the bottle of vodka. Twisting the cap off, Justin was quick to pour it into a similar wine glass. Gavin watched as he went just above the half way mark and then added a splash of orange juice. "How can you drink that?" He asked, sounding a bit concerned. Shrugging some, Justin opted not to respond and instead took a very long drink. "So you are in the business for the crowd reaction." He stated.

Gavin shook his head no and let out a frustrated sigh before messing up his hair in frustration. "Its more than that. Come on Justin you know what it feels like. That feeling... it's everything." His tone was quiet, and he stole a glance towards the window. His eyes widened a bit as he got a clear view of the Staples Center. "That must look pretty amazing on game nights."

Justin peered down into his glass then polished off more than half of it in a matter of two swigs. He knew exactly what Gavin was talking about. He knew the feeling as it vibrated through his body, starting at his toes and all the way up to his ears and nose, making them itch from the vibration. He felt the bass from the speakers in his chest and sometimes he could still hear the white noise that rang loudly after every show. He knew it all too well.

"It's kind of an annoyance when I am trying to entertain someone." He commented before moving over to the window and pulling the blinds. Turning his body he looked Gavin up and down. "You lack a lot of stamina. You need to work your stage more, not just stand in one spot the entire time. Do you know what I mean?" He raised his eyebrows before finally finishing off the last of vodka and orange juice. Setting the glass down with a 'clank' he quickly moved over to Gavin and stood directly in front of him. A bit taken back by Justin's sudden movements, the younger male instinctively took a step back. Justin widened his eyes in surprise and then let out a laugh. "What? Did you think I was going to shove you again?"

Eying Justin a moment, Gavin couldn't help the uneasy feeling he got from the other man. He didn't know Justin, and so far all he saw was that he was obviously some type of alcoholic. He wasn't even sure what they were going to be doing, even though Justin had suggested they'd be 'jamming' it was probably not the smartest thing to do. He was still very much under age, and his mothers voice was already nagging in his ear. He looked up at Justin and tried not to make a face as the smell of alcohol stayed potent on his breath, mixed with just a hint of the orange juice. Was it too late to bail? "I don't know? Were you?" He lowered his head a bit, waiting for Justin to shove him right out the door this time.

"Like I said kid, you lack stamina. When you're on stage you need to move your ass. You got it? You work one end to the other, you make eye contact, you make them believe you. Mean what you sing." He took a few steps back from Gavin and then clicked the stereo on. It took just a few moments before the room filled with the opening notes to The All American Rejects song Gives You Hell. Justin made a bit of a face, not expecting the song to come on. He blamed the brunette he had over the other night, shrugging he then decided to just work with it. "Do you know this song?" Gavin nodded slowly, and Justin took the opportunity to toss the remote at him. "Show me that you do."

Gavin stood like a deer in headlights as the song made it's way into the chorus. He knew it, he just wasn't sure what Justin wanted him to do. It was then that he realized that Justin had been right all along. He really was awkward. Licking his lips, he slowly started shuffling his feet and bobbing his head to the music. It was really a pathetic attempt, and he could feel his face getting hot with embarrassment.

Justin wasn't sure if what he was seeing was real life or not. The buzz he was getting off the alcohol could be screwing with his accuracy. Shaking his head some, he quickly grabbed the remote from Gavin's limp hand and had no problem getting in his face. It was an easy transition for him, and felt just like riding a bike. The chorus kicked in and he easily worked the small space he had between his coffee table and sofa.

There really was no time for Gavin to react. One minute he was dragging his way through an awkward situation, and the next Justin Timberlake was 'on' and giving him an actual 'show' in his living room. The realization of this was taking a moment to sink in. There was no doubt that Justin was a performer. He easily transfixed Gavin and owned the song, just like he had told him to do. He accentuated on all the right words, and the emotion was on every point. He might have just been in a 1,300 sq ft apartment, but it didn't matter, this man was a natural. It even embarrassed Gavin a bit that he had just given the worst attempt in his life. It was also in this moment that Gavin completely understood why Reggie had paired them off.

Justin swore he blacked out after he grabbed the remote from Gavin. Once the song ended he let the remote microphone drop from his fingers and blinked a few times only to see Gavin clapping with much enthusiasm. Looking around some, Justin quickly retreated into his kitchen in search of his bottle again. "Justin. That was fucking awesome. How did you do that spin thing on your heel? I want to be able to do that! All of that. I want to be great." He hurried after him and leaned on the island in the kitchen. His eyes were filled with so much excitement. Justin's on the other hand were wild and his hand shook a bit as he poured more vodka into his glass. Gavin frowned at this. "What's wrong? You fucking owned it! Ok you're right I'm awkward, but I want to work on that."

Drumming his fingers on the counter top, Justin was quiet as Gavin continued to ass kiss and swoon like some teenage fan girl. He took a lengthy drink and made a face as he forced himself to swallow the amount in his mouth. "I can't teach you that shit. You have to do it on your own." He coughed out. He didn't bother adding the orange juice this time. There really was no point. "No no Justin listen! I want to learn. I get it now."

Justin let out a loud laugh and shook his head. His eyes were glassy and he side smiled before pointing an accusing finger towards Gavin. "You... come with me." He refilled the glass once more then began to walk out of the kitchen, bumping into the fridge as he did so, he acted unphased and then moved down the short hallway.

Gavin hesitated in his motions to follow Justin. The older male was definitely drunk now. He wondered why the conversations concerning music seemed to bring out this side of him. Maybe that was why Reggie had told him not to bring up the past with Justin. It appeared to be some sort of 'trigger' for him. He bit his bottom lip, and hesitantly followed Justin down the hallway. He paused just at the entrance of his bedroom door. "What are we doing?" He questioned in a less than confident voice.

Justin moved about his room and quickly hurried over to his keyboard. He plugged it in with a bit of a struggle but still managed to get it functioning. He shoved the clothing off the bench and sat down in front of it. The feeling rushed through him like adrenaline, and his fingers found the keys. They moved over them with ease, and he closed his eyes allowing himself to play. He hadn't played in years. He didn't even think he still remembered how, but to his surprise, just like the stage presence some things just never left you completely. He stole a glance at Gavin and gave him a genuine smile. "Jamming. Remember?" He motioned for him to come further into his room. "Come on Gavin. Give it to me." He encouraged, and continued to play an uptempo song. Gavin returned the smile, and for the first time that night he felt completely relaxed and at ease.