Snow began to fall, huge flakes of it hitting the windshield and disappearing into the already snowy German countryside. JC put the windshield wipers on a low speed considering it was a light snow. He was driving them back to the hotel after a rare afternoon off where they'd gone into the next town to check out the mall the clerk at the hotel front desk had told them about. Now they were trying to get back for the Christmas party the entire crew was going to be having at the hotel.

"The snow's really pretty," Lance said, unknowingly echoing the same thoughts that were running through JC's head.

Chris snorted from the back seat. "You should be used to it by now. There's only been snow for the last week."

"Yeah, but this is different. It's Christmas snow, and there's just something about snow on Christmas," Lance said.

"You know what? You don't even get a say on this, Mississippi. If you lived in the north, you'd probably feel differently about snow," Chris replied.

"I agree with Lance," JC said.

Chris and Joey exchanged a glance over Justin's head since he was sitting in the middle of the backseat. "Whatever, JC. Your opinion doesn't count."

"Why not? We got snow in Maryland."

"Yeah, like once a month. None of you had to deal with it like me and Chris did," Joey said.

"It snowed back home a couple years ago," Justin spoke up. "The entire city pretty much shut down."

Chris nodded. "Exactly my point. Anything south of West Virginia, people freak when they get snow. And it's only like an inch. Up north you get a couple inches every day for like six months."

"You're exaggerating," Justin said.

"Maybe, but not by much." Chris looked at Joey. "Back me up here, Joey."

"He's right," Joey said. "New York got a couple of feet like three years ago. That's worthy of shutting down the city."

As they continued to bicker, the snow began to fall faster and faster, sticking to the wet road ahead of them. Just ten minutes later, the light snow had become practically a blizzard and the road was covered. The wipers were moving across the window rapidly, trying to clear JC's vision, and he now had both hands on the wheel as he leaned forward to try to peer through the snow at where he was going.

"Lance, can you take another look at the map?" JC asked. "I feel like we should've been there by now."

Lance grabbed the map he'd wedged between his seat and the center console. He unfolded it, the paper taking up much of the space on his side of the front seat. Reaching up he turned on the center light and looked down at the map, frowning as he tried to read it. It was next to impossible though considering it was in German and his knowledge of German words was limited at best.

"Are we lost?" Justin demanded from the backseat, leaning forward to poke his head between the two front seats.

JC barely glanced at him, afraid to take his eyes away from the worsening road. "Justin, sit back. Lance is looking into it, okay?"

"That means yes," Justin mumbled, but he did sit back.

After a minute, Lance admitted reluctantly, "I think we might have taken the wrong exit."

"I knew it!" Justin said.

Lance turned in his seat to glare at Justin. "If you thought you could do better, you should've sat up here and been navigator."

"I couldn't. That why I let you sit up there. I thought you'd be better at it."

"How? I know about as much German as you do."

"Because you're a nerd," Justin said.

"Justin," JC snapped, looking over his shoulder to give him a scolding look.

In that second JC took his eyes off the road, the car ran over a patch of ice and started to skid. Quickly, JC turned his focus back on the road and keeping the wheel straight as he rode it out. Finally, after a heart stopping moment, the tires gripped the freshly laid snow. There was practically a collective sigh of relief in the car.

"All right, that's enough from the peanut gallery," Chris said, pulling on the back of Justin's coat to make him sit back. "Lance, try to figure out how to get us back on the highway. JC, keep your eyes on the road. I can handle the twerp."

Justin tried to object to that insult, but Chris glared at him. "Don't even. You distracted JC and almost caused us to wreck."

Justin glared but said nothing, knowing that whatever he said would likely be ignored. There was a bit of tension in the car, and he didn't want to make it worse. Getting into a car accident wasn't the way he wanted to spend his Christmas Eve.

"Okay," Lance started a minute later, squinting at the map in the dim lighting. "I think we can get back on the highway without having to backtrack. We'll need to make a right in about two miles and then there should be an onramp for the highway."

JC didn't glance at Lance once, but he nodded to show that he'd been listening and understood the directions. Justin leaned forward slightly to look out the window, frowning when he saw for himself just how bad it was getting. There was a layer of snow on the roads that continued to thicken as they drove down the unfamiliar country roads, and the sun had already set making it that much harder to see.

Chris watched JC through his reflection in the rearview mirror from his spot behind JC in the backseat, the small overhead light giving him just enough light to see. JC's forehead was creased and he was leaning so far forward, his chest was practically laying against the steering wheel. It made him wish he was driving because he had much more experience driving in snow than JC did, but he was afraid if they pulled over, it'd be hard to get moving again with the way the snow was coming down.

Just when they thought things couldn't get any worse, the car began to cough and sputter. JC's brow furrowed and he pushed the gas pedal down as far as he dared, desperately trying to keep them moving. But the car had other ideas. It continued to sputter before it eventually crawled to a stop, JC managing to get it off most of the road before it died completely.

Justin groaned from the backseat. "Tell me this isn't happening."

"Try to start it again," Joey told JC.

JC acquiesced, turning the key and mentally praying that it would start. The engine made an unpleasant sound, which made him cringe. He continued to try, but to no avail - the engine was unwilling to turnover.

"Well, this is just great," Justin said, his tone revealing how unhappy he was at this latest development. He met JC's eyes in the rearview mirror. "We never should've gone on this trip."

JC turned in his seat, looking at him with an incredulous expression. He couldn't believe Justin was trying to blame him for all this. "Why are you looking at me? This wasn't my idea. You were the one that wanted to get out of the hotel. You were the one that wanted to go to the mall."

"Yeah, but if we'd left when I wanted to, we'd probably be back at the hotel by now," Just said. "But no, you had to go into that weird store. Now we're lost in the middle of the freaking country with a car that won't start."

JC stared at him for a moment before he shook his head, getting out of the car and slamming the door behind him. Lance hesitated slightly unsure if he should go after him or not, but his concern for JC won out and he stepped out. Once the door shut again, Joey and Chris immediately rounded on Justin.

"Nice, Justin," Joey said, punching Justin on the shoulder.

"Ow," Justin complained, rubbing at the now throbbing area. "What the hell was that for?"

"You're such a brat," Joey said. "You shouldn't have gotten on JC's case like that. None of this is his fault."

Justin glared at Joey. "He promised me we'd be back for the party. Now we're probably going to miss it. All because he had to go into that last store and spend an hour in there."

"And you really think leaving an hour earlier would've stopped the car from dying?" Chris demanded.

Justin shrugged. "It wouldn't have been snowing as hard, so he wouldn't have had to drive as slow. We'd probably be back at the hotel by now."

Chris and Joey looked at each other. They all had grown close in such a short amount of time and they all could already say they felt a deep bond with the others. But at the same time, they weren't blind to each other's faults. One of which Justin was currently demonstrating.

"You need to cut him some slack," Chris said. "I know he does what he can to make this easier on you and keep you happy, but you take advantage of him."

"I do not!" Justin denied angrily.

Chris raised an eyebrow. "No? He was the one that pleaded with Lou and the bodyguards to let us go out alone for the afternoon. All because you wanted to get out of the hotel, and then you blame him for things out of his control instead of thanking him for giving you what you wanted."

"I want to be back at the hotel, partying with my mom and the crew," Justin mumbled, crossing his arms over his chest.

Joey glanced out his window and saw that JC and Lance were standing at the corner of the front bumper. JC's head was bowed slightly and Lance's hand rested on his back, no doubt trying to offer him some words of comfort.

"Chris is right," Joey said, looking back at Justin. "JC's taken on a lot of responsibility with all this, and you should appreciate that. He's doing the best he can. We all are."

Justin sighed then, nodding. "I know. This Christmas just isn't shaping up the way I thought it would, you know?"

They were supposed to have gone back to the States for Christmas and the New Year, but Lou had booked several appearances for them both before and after both holidays. So it made it nearly impossible for them to get home and obviously a lot of their families couldn't afford to fly all the way out to Germany. It was a strange holiday to say the least, but Chris at least was used to unconventional holiday celebrations.

"Well, the night's not over yet," Chris said, opening his door and getting out of the car. He paused briefly to pull the lever to pop the hood of the car. On the other side, Joey was getting out as well, leaving the door open for Justin who was scooting over on the bench seat to climb out of the car.

JC and Lance turned to greet them as the three of them crowded around the front of the car, JC studiously avoiding Justin's gaze. Chris found the lever under the hood and pressed it, lifting the heavy metal and propping it up.

"You know stuff about cars?" Lance asked.

"A little," Chris admitted, staring down at the unfamiliar engine.

"You think you can fix it?" There was no denying the hope in Justin's voice as he moved closer.

Chris could feel four anxious gazes on him and it killed him to crush their hopes as he shook his head. "I know the basics, like how to change a flat or how to keep the radiator from blowing up. But even those things wouldn't help here; I know nothing about foreign cars."

"Great," Justin sighed. "Now what?"

"We're going to have to walk and see if we can find some help," JC said. "I think there's a town not too far ahead."

Justin opened his mouth to say that he'd go with him, but Chris beat him to it. It made him kind of angry because he was going to use it as an opportunity to apologize to JC, but obviously Chris didn't consider that. Or else he just thought it would be better to give JC some time. Regardless of the reason, Justin wasn't really happy about being left behind.

"Why can't we all go?" he asked.

"Someone needs to stay with the car," Chris said. "Besides, it'll take less time if there's only two of us walking."

Justin scowled a bit at the specificity of just how many people should go, keeping him from offering to go with JC and Chris while Joey and Lance waited with the car. He very reluctantly let it go and went to sit in the car with Joey and Lance to wait for Chris and JC's return. Hopefully it wouldn't be too long.

So JC and Chris set off, moving in the direction they'd been driving. The snow was still whirling around them, the bitter wind cutting through their thick winter coats and gloves. They had to make sure they stayed straight the entire way so they could find their way back to the car again, JC thought.

It was silent for several minutes, and it wasn't until they couldn't see the car behind them that Chris spoke. "So how far is this town?"

"A mile or two," JC said with a shrug.

Chris groaned, trying to pull the hood of his winter coat tighter so as to cut down on the amount of wind that hit him in the face. JC sniffed from the cold, tugging his own hood up and readjusting his scarf.

"You didn't have to come with me," he said.

Chris glanced at him sideways. "None of us were going to let you go by yourself. And certainly not with the kid either. You guys need a break from each other."

JC was going to object, but he quickly realized it was the truth. Things had been so crazy since they'd gotten to Germany and the last few days had been especially rough, all of them homesick and making it that much easier to snap at each other. What Justin had said in the car had been hurtful.

"I just wish he'd think before he speaks sometimes. I know a bit of fighting is unavoidable considering we practically live on top of each other, but he can push my buttons like no one else. He drives me up a wall and having Lynn here doesn't even help. I almost think it makes it worse because it puts me between them and I'm trying to keep the peace with them on top of everything else. It's just too much sometimes."

The words all came out in a rush and when JC was finished with his rant, he was pretty breathless. But Chris could tell the tension in his shoulders had eased a bit.

"Feel better?" he asked.

JC nodded, shoving his hands deep into his pockets and tucked his arms against his side to try to keep as much body heat from escaping as possible. "Sorry about that."

"Don't be. Sometimes I think you worry too much. I know things are crazy, but you have to just let go occasionally and just enjoy it."

"You're right," JC said. "I just...well, I get all in my head and I'm trying to make sure everything goes perfect - or at least as well as they should. And I guess sometimes I end up isolating myself so I can deal."

Chris bumped his shoulder into JC's. "That's what we're here for, man. This is why none of us trying to make it in this business alone - because the bullshit of it all will just kill all the love you have for it."

JC didn't say anything, but Chris could tell that he got it so he let the subject drop. They walked in silence for a couple minutes before it was broken by JC laughing lightly as he shook his head.

"What's so funny?" Chris asked.

JC turned to look at him, which was harder than it should have been because of the swirling white flakes around them. "How did we get on such a depressing subject? It's Christmas."

"I don't know, but I'll take it over some of the crazy shit that happened on Christmas in my family," Chris said. "It never really felt like Christmas until one of the little kids pitched a fit and said ‘I hate you' to someone."

JC laughed lightly, knowing exactly what Chris was talking about. There had been a couple of his own Christmases where some of his younger cousins had said the exact same thing after they'd been denied something or else were forced to share a new toy when they didn't want to.

"That's kind of messed up," JC said.

Chris just shrugged. "Drama is just as much a part of Christmas as the cheer. Things would be a little too perfect if there wasn't any drama - at least in my family."

JC could hear the slight depressed tone to Chris's voice, and he took one of his hands out of his pockets to squeeze Chris's shoulder. They were all missing their families, hating that they couldn't be home to share the holiday season with them. Chris gave him a small smile, throwing his arm over JC's shoulders.

They walked like that for a minute, JC staring down at the snow at their feet that was continually getting deeper. He was fascinated with listening to the way it crunched, audible even above the howling of the bitter wind, that he didn't realize right away that Chris had stopped. It took Chris grabbing onto his wrist to get his attention to focus on what was in front of them and when they did, he couldn't believe his eyes.

On the other side of the road was a car slowly making its way through the snow - and headed right towards them.

Together, they flagged the car down and both of them sighed in relief when it rolled to a gentle stop. An older gentleman was driving and a woman who looked to be his wife was sitting in the passenger seat. The old man put his window down and leaned out slightly to speak to them.

"Sie brauchen hilfe?"

JC and Chris exchanged worried glances with each other. They'd only managed to pick up maybe a hundred words since they'd arrived and none of those were on the list. Chris looked back at the guy and tried to get through the language barrier, both of them knowing this was too good of an opportunity to let pass. These people could potentially help them now instead of them having to walk all the way to the next town in the middle of this blizzard.

"We," Chris started, gesturing with a hand to himself and JC, "no speak Deutsch."

The old man frowned. "Sie nicht Deutsch sprechen?"

Chris wasn't entirely sure what the man had said, but it sounded like he was trying to confirm they didn't speak German. "No," he agreed.

"Tell them our car broke down," JC said.

"Our car..." Chris mimed driving, trying to get through to them. The two occupants of the car stared blankly and Chris frantically tried to recall any German he'd learned. "Uh...der auto is uh...kaput."

Finally, there was a spark of recognition on the man's face and Chris was never more thankful. JC finally stepped in to help and together the two of them managed to get across to the Germans that their car had broken down in the direction they were headed. Once they managed to communicate that, the older couple gladly let them into their car and gave them a lift back to theirs.

From there, the old man looked at the car with a bit of frustration before gesturing for all of them to climb into his car. The older couple gave them a ride to their hotel - after nearly five minutes of trying to explain where they were through in some very broken German. But it was thanks to that friendly couple that they made it back to the hotel, only an hour late.

After being lectured for getting lost and being forced to agree to always having the bodyguards with them from now on, they were able to join the festivities. They happily immersed themselves in them, making the most of the holiday even though they couldn't be home to spend it with their families.

"It's a miracle you guys made it back safely," Lynn was saying as they chowed down on the typical Christmas dinner spread. "You could've gotten lost in the middle of nowhere and froze overnight."

"The real miracle was that JC didn't kill Justin," Joey said.

Justin glared. "I wasn't that bad. It was just a misunderstanding. Right, JC?"

JC looked over at Justin. He'd apologized as soon as they were back at the hotel, saying he hadn't meant any of the things he'd said. It'd just been a long week and he was tired. JC had forgiven him, knowing he was just as much to blame for their little fight as Justin because he was normally better at not rising to the bait.

"Right, Justin. Everything's fine now," he said, the last part more for Lynn and Lou's benefit than anyone else.

"Yeah now that we're not lost in the middle of the German countryside," Lance agreed. "Next time, someone else can be navigator. I don't want to go through that again."

They all shared a laugh, enjoying the company and the festive atmosphere. Decorations covered the small conference room they'd set aside for them to have the dinner in since the rooms were so tiny. But that was the part JC was looking forward to the most - squeezing into Lance and Joey's room to watch some Christmas movies together. They'd be in German, but they all knew most of them well enough that they'd be able to recite it word for word. And if not, they'd have just as much fun adlibbing.

"You know what the real miracle is?" JC didn't wait for an answer as he continued, "That we all found each other. We may not be home with our families, but we're not alone. And I can't think of a better group of people I'd rather be with."

Justin groaned and Chris threw a pillow at JC. "Leave it to JC to say something cheesy," Chris said. But he was secretly enjoying it too.

No, this Christmas hadn't turned out like that thought. In some ways, it'd turned out better. And each of them had a feeling that this was just the beginning.