vv“Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god! Kristen come here!

“What?”

They were back home in California after spending a few days at Disney World and Universal Studios. They couldn’t go to Orlando and not see the places where *NSYNC honed their crafts (Disney for J.C. and Justin, Universal for Chris and Joey). This time they were hanging out at Kristen’s when Jake got the shock of his life.

“Look! Look! I –I J.C. emailed me back!”

“Yeah right,” she answered, rolling her eyes. “When did you email him?”

“Right before our trip. I emailed to show my support. I guess J.C. was the only one who saw it.”

Kristen was still skeptical.

She leaned over his shoulder and they read it together.

Dear Jake,

I read your email last week, but with everything going on, I’m just now getting back to responding. Sorry about that. I hope you understand.

It really brightened my spirits, which is why I came back and answered. You don’t know how much your support means to all of us. This is why we do what we do. This fight was for you.

JC

P.S. Don’t worry about your friends; they’ll come around. If not, just consider *NSYNC your honorary brothers.

“I hope this isn’t an imposter.”

“I knew you were going to say that.”

“I want to believe it’s him, but seeing how things went with you in Orlando. . . “

“What if it really is him? Should I write him back?”

“If you want. It couldn’t hurt.”

“What do I say?”

“I don’t know. Remember it’s a joint account so one of the other guys could read the next one. And it might take awhile to get another response, if you get one at all.

“Way to burst a guy’s bubble.”

“Sorry. I’m just trying to be realistic.”

Jake sighed. “I know.”

JC was sitting down with his parents, who had graciously brought him his adoption papers to look at. It was an open adoption, so he had his birth mother’s name, Kathleen Sawyer, but not his father’s.

There were also pictures. He could see some of his features in her. He also saw another baby in her arms in some of the pictures that looked identical to him.

“Mom, dad, do I have a twin?” If he did that would explain a lot.

“Yes, you do. Why?”

“He told them about his dream and how it had been bothering him.

“Do you know his name or where I could find him?”

“Unfortunately, no. She put him up for adoption first. She could only take care of one of you. We’d known her for awhile, so when it got too much for her to take care of you she asked us if we would adopt you.”

Why didn’t he remember any of this?

“If it was an open adoption why didn’t she ever come see me?”

“She did for awhile but when she saw how happy and well adjusted you were in your new surroundings she stopped because she didn’t want to confuse you. But the door has always been open for her.”

JC thought about that. What a selfless thing to do. Not only did she give up one child, but two, all so that they could have a better life. He wanted to meet her if for no other reason than to thank her.

After Kristen left, Jake went over to his bookshelf and took out his baby book. The front page read:

Jacob Scott Matthews

7 lbs 8 ounces 21 inches

Birthdate: August 8, 1976

Mother: Elizabeth Andrews

Father: Ronald Matthews

Methodist Memorial Hospital

Bowie, Maryland

After that, there were baby pictures with his parents and documentation of his first year: first bath, smile, tooth; the first time he crawled and walked, and, of course, his first birthday.

He thought there would be at least one picture of him with his birth mother, but there were none.  Was that because she hadn’t taken any with him or were his parents hiding them? Either scenario was too painful to think about.

The only reason they’d told him the first time was because he’d needed a bone marrow transplant four years ago after a relapse from his diagnosis of leukemia when he was ten and neither of them was a match.

Thankfully, Kristen was and donated some of hers. She truly was his lifesaver. He didn’t know what he’d do without her. Now he knew what he’d say to J.C. in his email.

Dear J.C.,

Of course I understand. Honestly, I wasn’t sure I’d hear from you at all. I was shocked when my best friend Kristen and I got back from Orlando and your email was waiting for me.  It brightened my day, too. (She would say differently, but whatever. I have dirt on her, too).

She’s a huge fan of yours (Justin’s my favorite, sorry). Do you mind emailing her? It would mean a lot to her and after all she’s done for me it’s the least I can do. (Long story). Here’s her email jscsgirl@aol.com Thanks. (She’s going to kill me when she finds out I gave this to you).

Jake