Nerves danced around in Rachel Bass's stomach. She wiped her palms on her denim shorts and blew out a breath hoping to settle herself. It didn't work.

‘Ring the doorbell.' Her mind told her firmly. She wished she was as confident as her conscious appeared to be. She wasn't confident at all. In actuality she was liable to puke all over the welcome mat. What a greeting that would be.

Taking another breath she blew it out again and with confidence she didn't feel, pressed the doorbell. The chime rang from within and her stomach rolled threatening to reintroduce the breakfast she had been able to eat that morning. Lunch was out of the question. No way would she have been able to choke anything down.

The longer the door stayed closed, the more nervous she became. She worried her bottom lip. He was home. That she was sure of. Least that's what her brother told her. Though it was possible he had been mistaken. Instead of going home after rehearsals JC could have stopped somewhere. Rachel wasn't sure she could ring the doorbell again. She could only muster up the confidence to press the button once.

Before she could turn away and walk back to her car, Rachel heard the lock turn in the door and the door swung open revealing the man she was after.

"Hey!" JC Chasez smiled seeing Lance's younger sister on his doorstep. Lance had mentioned she was visiting during rehearsals. He thought it was cute that she'd rather spend her spring break with her older brother than in Cancun or Panama like most her age. It had started a discussion amongst them especially Joey saying he wouldn't spend his spring break with family but on a beach somewhere with a lot of alcohol and twice as many girls. JC had rolled his eyes because of course Joey would. "Lance said you were in town."

"Yeah," Rachel tucked a strand of hair behind her ear in a nervous gesture. JC's hair was damp, curling on the collar of his t-shirt, indicating he had showered before she arrived. Lance had returned home worn out and beat. Not to mention a sweaty mess from rehearsals. She expected JC to be the same way so she'd given him time to shower. The next NSYNC tour started in a little over a month. From the way her brother talked, it was another grand scale event like No Strings Attached had been. She couldn't wait to see it and all of its ridiculousness. Lance had mentioned mechanical bulls. Someone should really be around to tell them no. "I hope you don't mind me stopping by... Lance said you'd be home. I hope I'm not interrupting?"

"No not at all," JC opened the door wider and stepped to the side allowing her to enter. "Just got out of the shower."

"I think Lance was gonna soak in Epsom salt. Wade must have killed you guys today." Rachel followed JC through his house and into the kitchen. Nerves still bounced around inside of her like they were balls in a pinball machine.

"No more than usual," JC chuckled lightly. His muscles were sore. Loose. Nothing he wasn't used to. The start of rehearsals were always rough. No matter how much any of them worked out during their downtime, rehearsing for tour always took a lot out of them. Rehearsals would ease up the closer it got to the start of the tour as they nailed down the routines and just concentrated on polishing.

"Lance thinks Wade is sadistic." Rachel accepted the bottle of water JC handed her. Out of politeness, she took a sip.

JC laughed. "Yeah." He twisted the cap off his bottle of water and took a drink. He had already killed three of them from the time rehearsals ended. "We've all taken great pleasures in coming up with ways to kill him."

"Poor Wade..."

"Yeah right," JC laughed again. "The last thing that man needs is pity. He takes pleasure in torturing us."

"Well you do get paid the big bucks." Rachel leaned on the island in the center of JC's kitchen. The kitchen was immaculate like it stepped from the pages of some design magazine. Lance's was the same way. It always blew her mind when she visited Lance seeing the decor and the cleanliness. For a 21 year old she imagine tacky photographs on the walls. Lots of take out containers. Pizza boxes. His house barely looked lived in. Though he spent more time on a tour bus than at his house in Orlando. JC as well. Easy to keep that magazine photograph ready house when you're rarely home.

"I can always buy new joints with the money right?" JC grinned.

Rachel stared at him for a moment before shaking her head and laughing slightly. "Oh! Joints as in knees. For a moment I thought you were talking joints as in marijuana."

JC laughed loudly. "Not hardly." He leaned on the opposite side of the island across from her, crossing his arms. "Though I bet you know exactly how to score some."

Rachel's eyes widened. "Are you crazy?"

JC laughed again and straightened. "Perfect little Rachel Bass would never."

Rachel bristled. She hated it when she was called perfect. From the very beginning that had been one of her monikers with the NSYNC members. She was Lance's perfect little sister. The girl who always did the right thing. Never told a lie. Straight As. "If you want me to score you some weed, I know exactly where to go. If you want something else - pills, I can get those too."

JC's eyes widened. "Whoa..." he held his hands up. "I don't need you to get me any of that shit. How do you even know?"

"It's college JC. Everyone knows where to get anything they could possibly need. Marijuana to loosen up? Pills to stay up all night studying? Underage and want alcohol? Some ecstasy? People assume just because you're quiet you can't hear."

JC wondered what else Rachel knew. What had been said around her while she hung out with them? She was quiet. Sometimes he forgot she was even in the room with them. He could only imagine what she was enlightened with when Chris and Joey got going. "You don't...do any of that do you?"

"What? No!" Rachel gasped offended. "Well I may have taken a hit or two off a joint before..." she shrugged.

"Not so perfect then," JC chuckled.

"I'm not perfect," Rachel sighed tearing at the label on the water bottle. "I really hate how you guys call me that."

"We're just teasing." The smile JC wore slowly faded when Rachel failed to meet his eyes. "I didn't know it bothered you. I'll tell the guys to knock it off. Is that why you came over? If it was causing such a problem, I'm sorry."

"No that's not why I came over." The ball of nerves came back with a flourish. The conversation had caused them to wane slightly but now they were back. Fluttering and tossing. The little water she drank threatened to make a reappearance. ‘Do not throw up, Bass.'

"What's up?" JC asked frowning as he stared at her. He could feel the nerves radiating from her. He wondered why she'd be nervous to talk to him. That had never been the case before. She got along good with all of them. Him a little more than the others. He just tossed that up to them both being on the quiet side. While he could bounce off the walls and be manic just as well as Chris, he was able to tone it down and revert into himself. Especially when he was in a songwriting mood.

"Sorry, I'm a little nervous." Rachel gave a tiny laugh and resisted the urge to wipe her hands on her shorts again. "I wanted to ask you something. Lance mentioned you and Bobbie broke up..."

"We did..." Bobbie was a writer for J-14, a magazine whose sole demographic was teenyboppers. They had dated for two years before their relationship had finally run its course last month. It had been nice dating someone in the business. Who understand the nature. Who understood his schedule. Their relationship started off hot and heavy. Then it petered into friendship. Before finally giving way to indifference. He didn't love her. He didn't hate her. He didn't feel anything for her anymore.

Why would Rachel be inquiring about his relationship? JC eyes widened. ‘No...' he thought. Staring at the girl in front of him he realized it was very well a yes. Bobbie had told him Lance's sister had a crush on him. He had brushed it off with an eye roll. She didn't. He didn't see it. She had called him an idiot. Affectionately. He told her it didn't matter because he didn't feel the same way. She was Lance's sister for crying out loud. And he was 100% taken with her.

Except now he wasn't. Now he was single. He had thought it was weird for Rachel to spend spring break in Orlando with Lance and not with friends in Panama. But now it made sense. She heard about his break up and now she was taking the chance and going to ask him out. His eyes closed and he bit back a curse. He didn't want to do this. He didn't want to watch her flounder through asking him out. He didn't want to hurt her by telling her no.

It was a no. JC wasn't interested in her. Sure she was pretty. But she was Lance's sister. A major no. She was also younger than him. Too young. He'd be 26 in a few months. She had just turned 20. Damnit. He didn't want to hurt her.

"Rachel..."

"JC..."

Rachel laughed softly as they both spoke at the same time.

"Listen," JC started. He needed to get this out. Maybe if he spoke first maybe he could soften the blow. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her. He didn't want to affect the friendship he had with her or the friendship he had with Lance. What happened here could definitely ruin them both.

"No," Rachel cut him off. She raised her head to look at him, making eye contact again. "I need to get this out first. Please?"

JC nodded. He forced himself to stand there. To let her speak. He knew in a few short minutes he was gonna break her heart. Maybe he gave himself too much credit. Break her heart? Over a crush? He might think he'd break her heart, but she'd be fine. She'd go back to college. When she saw him again, she wouldn't be phased. It was just a silly little crush.

"You guys all make fun of me," Rachel started. "Calling me perfect."

"Rachel," JC interrupted. He truly didn't know their teasing affected her this much.

"Please," Rachel held up her hand to stop his words. "I'm not. Perfect. I guess I come off that way. Maybe. Prissy. Hoity toity. Goody two shoes. Prudish. I've heard them all. The good ones. The not so nice ones."

JC opened his mouth to refute Rachel's words. A look from Rachel stopped him. He wondered if their teasing had caused an issue with her? If it bothered her more than she let on. There had never been a malicious intent on his part. Any of them. They teased her like they teased each other. Well a toned down version. Sometimes their teasing with each other got vulgar and crass.

"My college experience hasn't been exactly what I thought it would be. I thought it would be different. A little more freeing. Maybe it would have helped if I didn't pick a college in my backyard. Anyway," Rachel gave herself a little shake. She wasn't here to dive into the ins and out of her time at Mississippi State. "That's not what I wanted to talk about. Not really."

JC wanted to talk about it. He found himself wanting to know was going on at Mississippi State. "What do you want to talk about?" He watched her take a breath and blow it out. He wasn't sure how he could help her.

"A few names stick with you. A reputation... earned or perceived... I tried to fix one... I just made it worse." Rachel could see JC was confused. It was her fault. No matter how many times she practiced what she wanted to say in her head on the plane ride to Florida it still wasn't coming out correctly.

"Rachel..." JC pushed himself off the counter where he had been leaning and took a step until he was back at the island counter where she still leaned. "What do you need?"

"I need you to teach me how to have sex."

*~*

Surely JC must have misunderstood. No way did Rachel ask him what he thought she did. He gave his head a little shake. "What?"

"I want you to teach me how to have sex."

Nope. He heard correctly. He floundered for a moment. His mouth opening and shutting as he tried think of something to say. What could he say? In this line of work, he thought he was passed the days of being shocked by questions. Apparently he was wrong. He could still be shocked.

"What...why..." JC still couldn't form a sentence. He rubbed a hand over his face. "Rachel..."

"It's a simple question, JC. Yes or no." It took everything Rachel had to keep looking at him. She felt the heat on her face as she blushed.

"No," JC's laugh was forced. He shook his head. "It's not a simple question."

"Either you'll help or you won't." The sick feeling was back. The nerves were working overtime. Her question was out there. The reason she was at JC's house. It was up to him now. What would he say? Would he do it?

"You make this sound so easy... it's not."

"JC..."

"Why?"

The question brought Rachel up short. "Why what?"

"Why do you need someone to teach you to...have sex?" JC felt his face heat. He had to drop his gaze. Staring at Rachel he could see the 14 year old girl he'd met for the first time in Orlando. Quiet. Shy. Polite. His eyes widened and he looked at her again. "Are you... have you..." he couldn't even get the word out. God he wished she had just asked him out. That conversation would have been 100 times less awkward than this one.

"I'm not a virgin JC." Rachel blushed again. She wasn't a virgin no. Corey Jacobs had taken that when she was 16. That wasn't their only time over the course of their relationship. Then there had been Jesse Morgan her senior year. That's when the comments had started. Thanks to Lance her popularity had spiked. Otherwise she would have never been on Jesse's radar. Then last month it had been Eric Jackson. Who drove her to come up with the plan. It was either this or transfer to another school where no one knew her.

JC wasn't sure if the information made her question better or worse. He prayed for his phone to ring with an important meeting or appearance. Something that his presence was required at immediately. He'd even go back for more rehearsals. He'd take Wade calling and informing he was changing the whole routine. Anything but have a conversation about sex with Lance's little sister.

"Why do you need someone to teach you?"

"Because apparently I suck and everyone knows." Rachel sighed. The label was completely peeled off the water bottle. Now she started peeling it in to tiny little strips. "And I don't mean suck in a good way.... I'll spare you the rumors and the nicknames."

JC frowned. Rumors in school were vicious. He assumed it stopped after high school. Kids were adults now. College opened them up to a brand new world with more freedom. Giving them the ability to leave the cliqueiness of high school behind. The immaturity. Guess he was wrong. Not that he'd know. Not about college anyway. Barely about high school since he was on The Mickey Mouse Club at the time.

"I tried to fix it on my own. It didn't work." ‘Just made it worse.' Rachel thought as she remembered hearing the laughter from beyond the bathroom stall. "I just want you to teach me... show me what I'm apparently doing wrong."

JC shook his head. "I can't..." there was absolutely no way he could teach Rachel, Lance's little sister, how to have sex. No way. He watched as her shoulders slumped in defeat. Her head bowed. He felt a stirring he quickly squashed. He would have helped her with anything. Anything. But not this.

Disappointment set in. Her insides were having a hell of a time. Disappointment bugs. Embarrassment bugs. Nervous bugs.

"Rachel I..."

Rachel held up her hand silencing his words. She forced a smile on her lips and looked at him. "Don't. I don't want to hear an apology or God forbid the reasons why. We'll just stick with no and I'll leave you be."

JC followed her to the front door. Everything screamed at him to stay behind in the kitchen. To let her show herself out. She reached the door first and opened it. He grabbed the door over her head and held it open.

"I'll see you later." Rachel was able to meet his eyes briefly. "Bye."

"Rachel..." Her name died on his lips as she quickly went down the steps outside his front door and down the sidewalk to his driveway. He sighed and shut the door. He did the right thing.