“I saw them holding hands, she was standing there with my man. I heard them promise ‘till death do us part’ each word was a pain in my heart.

For them life has just begun, but mine is ending.” – All I Could Do Was Cry

JC felt his heart rate increase as he helped Justin down the hall. He didn’t have to do what Jessica asked. He could have easily had her leave, but he knew eventually the truth would surface.

He admired Justin’s profile for a moment as he made his way into the living room. JC lingered in the background and watched as Jessica got up from her seat on the couch.

“Hey.” Justin greeted, offering her a casual smile. She made her way over to him and looked him directly in the eyes. The way she was looking at him made Justin feel a bit uneasy. He was pretty sure he had never personally met her before, but she seemed to know him very well.

“Hi… you look a lot better.” She stated quietly.

Justin looked over his shoulder and was disappointed to not see JC in the room anymore. He could really use him for a bit of support at the moment. He thought it was rather unusual for JC to just leave him alone in the room with a stranger.

“Thanks. I…um do we know each other?” Justin asked with a bit of uncertainty. It was something about her that was piquing his interest, he just couldn’t process it at the moment.

“We do. We have for awhile.” She admitted quietly, feeling the awkwardness start to creep over them.

“Hey you’re having baby… do you know what it is yet?” He motioned towards her stomach and then watched as she suddenly began to cry. It wasn’t just your average cry, no it was the dreaded ugly cry.

“It’s a girl….” She chocked out through sobs, and covered her face with her hand. “I’m sorry. I thought I could do this. I just wanted to see you…” She wiped at her eyes.

“Me? What is it?” He asked, genuinely concerned as he moved closer to her.

“No I should go. I need to go.” She whispered, quickly moving away from him.

He watched as she grabbed her purse off the side table. “Hey wait…” He called out, causing her to stop in her tracks.

“What?” She asked in a small voice.

“I know you…its just not clear yet. Come back and see me soon?” He requested in a hopeful tone.

She let out a laugh of irony and shook her head. “No. You come to me when you’re ready. Just don’t take too much longer okay?” She nodded and then gave him one last look before walking out the front door.

Justin stood alone in the room for a moment. The sound of footsteps pulled him out of his thoughts and he looked over to see JC enter the room. “Why did you leave us alone like that?” Justin asked, feeling annoyed that JC hadn’t even stuck around to properly introduce them.

“Because you guys needed some privacy.” JC admitted in a quiet tone as he sat on the arm of the couch. “You really ordered me a new piano?”

“Yeah…what happened to the old one? The truth…come on I can take it.” Justin let out a long sigh.

“No you can’t.” JC laughed a bitter laugh. “Its gone. I don’t want a new one either.”

“JC come on. I’m fucking sick and tired of feeling like a nut job. What the fuck happened to us? Why are we like this now? How did I hurt you so badly that you don’t even make music anymore?” Justin frowned at the thought of JC not composing music on his piano ever.

“I don’t make music anymore because you fucking took it away from me. Everything I loved I gave to you and you didn’t even give any of it back.” He dug his fingers into the armrest on the sofa.

“How?” Justin was completely tired of this dance they were doing. “Tell me!” He demanded, causing JC to stand up from where he was sitting.

“No fuck you! If you want answers then make them come to you on your own. I’m sick and tired of walking on eggshells around you. I’m tired of pretending we are still in love. I just want to move on again. I want to be able to let you go but I can’t.” JC struggled to hold his ground. “I can’t because you won’t let me.”

Justin frowned a bit, feeling the blow of JC’s words. He didn’t want to love him anymore?

“JC…I love you. I know I do even if I can’t fucking remember the last few years this feeling I have for you hasn’t left.” Justin admitted quietly, his expression somber. He wasn’t trying to pick a fight, he was just trying to understand. He knew he was stressing JC out, but at the same time he wished JC would just tell him what the hell happened to their relationship.

“You love me? YOU love me?!” He raised his voice a bit, taking Justin off guard.

“Yeah, of course.” Justin confessed. To his surprise JC’s features relaxed and he released the fists he had built up at his sides. His body visibly became less tense and Justin was pleased to see that he might actually start to believe him.

“You are incapable of loving anyone but yourself. Its clear to me that I have always loved you more than you have me. You can’t stand being alone, and even though you might have some type of emotion for me it’s not love.” JC shook his head and picked up one of the couch pillows off the floor.

“I asked you to show me how much you loved me Justin and all you did was tear me down. You humiliated me, and then to top it off you kicked me at my lowest point just to make sure I paid for even thinking to ask you to express it.” JC sighed, and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I’m tired, and I’m done. We are nothing that’s what I learned from you. I learned that sometimes the person you would die for is actually the person who drives the knife through your heart.”

Justin felt the heaviness build up in his chest. For the first time in forever he actually felt as if he’d cry. He wasn’t a heartless person, he knew he’d made mistakes, but he was younger and never learned to appreciate the true value of what he really had.

He was rendered speechless by JC’s confrontation. There wasn’t a single word he could think to say to even defend himself. He watched as JC milled about his living room putting random things away that weren’t even out of place to begin with.

Then like a punch to the stomach it became clear. It was the simple motion of JC accidently hitting a few bad notes on the electric keyboard as he lifted it off the coffee table that triggered Justin’s memory.

----------------------------------FLASHBACK 3 YEARS AGO-------------------------------

“Do you have any solid proof that these are your compositions Mr. Chasez?” The honorable judge asked from behind his desk. The room was small and stuffy, it smelled like cigars and take out food. The blinds were shut which made it feel even more suffocating as they all stood there before him in his chambers.

“I…well I no but they’re mine you’re honor. I mixed the melodies and the music to each and every track.” JC felt his hands begin to shake with nervousness. He couldn’t even look over at Justin who standing to the far left of him, hiding behind his own lawyer like the coward he really was.

“Your honor, my client has proof and logs of studio time that are accountable for each and every composition. Mr. Chasez simply has no solid evidence that he contributed anything to these tracks.” Charles Mayweather, Justin’s long time lawyer held a smug look on his face.

“You can view the security cameras that prove Mr. Chasez was in and out of the studio often…” Ethan Vaughn, was no old friend of JC’s. He was simply the first and only lawyer JC could find on short notice.

“Security tapes don’t prove what he was working on in this studio, there are no camera’s inside the studios therefore the argument is invalid.” Charles challenged.

JC darted his eyes between the two of them and then dared steal a glance Justin’s way. He was drowning, and Justin was the one holding his head under the water. He watched as Justin flexed his right hand, making an obvious pained face as he adjusted the bandages that were wrapped around it. As much as JC stared and tried to plead with his eyes, Justin didn’t let his gaze shift.

“Mr. Chasez…” Judge Rodgers spoke up. “With lack of evidence or any copyright claims there is no reasonable way for me to grant you any ownership of these compositions. Mr. Timberlake has been awarded all rights and biding by copyright law ownership of these compositions. Case dismissed.”

JC let his face fall. He had lost. He had lost in the most embarrassing and cruel way imaginable, and then of course Justin offered a final blow. The sound of his voice was almost foreign to JC.

“One last thing your honor…” Justin nudged Charles, who then reached into his briefcase and extracted a packet. He presented it to the judge.

“My client would like to file this divorce claim as well…” He admitted quietly. “If Mr. Chasez would be so kind to sign, it can move along quickly.” Charles smiled.

-----------------------------END FLASHBACK-------------------------------------------

“I broke it.” Justin admitted quietly, causing JC to look up and over at him.

“Before the court hearing I broke the piano. I…I picked up a chair…because you served me with those papers for the songs.” He rubbed his forehead, and then glared over at JC.

“You broke more than my piano. All I wanted was you Justin. To make you happy, but my foolishness cost me my pride, my passion, my dignity, and my heart.” He threw down the electric keyboard, causing it to make a horrible sound. Justin watched as JC wasted no time stomping on it. The obvious hurt and anger built up over the years poured out.

“JC I’m sorry ok? Fuck you served me those papers how did you expect me to react?!”

JC stalked over to Justin, and shoved him with all that he had in him. He didn’t care if he lost his balance and fell back onto the lazy-boy chair. He picked up his crutch and tossed it to the side. “Sorry is an empty word. You never loved me, as far as I’m concerned you just used me and then when you were done with me and it wasn’t fun anymore you tossed me aside. You’re a coward and a liar. You were ashamed to love me…and when I threatened to drag you out into the light you broke me.” He knit his brows together and then backed away from him. “Go home to your pregnant wife…and your fake fucking fairytale.”

He turned on his heel and held himself together just long enough to get into his room. Once inside it he shut and locked the door then proceeded to let every piece of heartache poor out onto his bedroom floor. JC hadn’t cried in years, he’d masked his pain and went cold, but every cut and wound had been reopened and he hurt just as bad as that day he signed his name on those papers.