“The kids will be here any minute.  Are we ready?” Mikayla asked, admittedly nervous.

“Why are you nervous, Kay?  We’ve had parties here before.”

“For grownups.  For just family.  This is the first one here, at the house, since Josh came back into our lives, with people besides family…”

“It’ll be fine. What are you worried about?” JC wondered.

“I guess one of us getting too comfortable, having a moment together in front of someone that shouldn’t see it.  I don’t want you to be away from me, but I worry about you getting too close that it stirs up rumors.”

“Someday, we’ll tell the world about this.  When we’re ready, when the world is ready.”

“The world will never be ready for this.  One woman, two men, and nothing about religion mixed as part of it.  I would have a target on my back for some in the fandom.  Most girls could only dream about my reality.  If they only knew…”

“Hey, I’m making up for it now,” JC replied.  

The buzzer went off for the gate.  “Who could that be?  The party doesn’t start for another half an hour,” Mikayla wondered.  “Did we give out our code?”

“To our guests? No.  I’m having security there and the parents have to show the invitation to get in.  So it’s someone we know, at least there’s that,” Justin answered.

Mikayla went to the front door, curious to see who it was.  Her eyes lit up as she saw two blondes and a light brunette approach the door.  “Erin!  Avery!  Harper!  Oh my goodness!  It’s been too long!”  Mikayla immediately hugged Erin, taking in how big Avery had gotten, practically a young woman.  Harper was a little younger than the twins, but it felt like she was a baby the last time they saw each other.  It had only been last year at her birthday party that they last saw each other.  She made a mental note to make that a more often occurrence. 

“Thought you might like to see a familiar face before we get inundated with other kids and their parents,” Justin smiled.  “Nice surprise?”

“Very nice, thank you,” Mikayla smiled in reply.  She hugged Justin. “Best husband ever.”

“I’ll enjoy that comment while I’m still the only one you have.”

She playfully slapped his arm, giving him a look as she walked with Erin and the girls further into the house.  

“When do we get to see the backyard, Daddy?” Barb asked excitedly.

“In a bit.  A few more people are coming before everyone else,” Justin answered.

“Justin…”

“It was either they come early or they come after everything starts.”

On cue, the gate buzzed again.  Then again.  The kids ran to the door to see who was coming.  

“It’s Uncle Chris and Uncle Joey!” Joshy shouted.  

“Briahna and Kloey are here too!” Barb squealed.

“Oh good, Avery will have some girls more around her age.  Briahna will still probably be the oldest.  I hope there’s stuff for her to do and not feel bored.  Justin, I know I shouldn’t be surprised, but thank you for this.”

“They’re my brothers.  I’m not sharing any of the rest of them with you though,” Justin joked.  

“Joey is not joining my reverse harem.  I may have looked it up, apparently it’s a whole romance novel trope,” Mikayla stated.

“Just don’t go reading it to get any ideas.”

“Honey, I could write my own based on the things we’ve lived through, especially the sex scenes…  You’re seriously too good to be human.”

“I assure you I am,” Justin laughed.  “JC on the other hand…”

“What did I do?”

“We’re not human cuz we’re apparently hot as fuck in the bedroom, a romance novel come to life,” Justin teased.

“I mean, you're not wrong,” Mikayla answered, her cheeks blushing a bit.

“You don’t blush when we do these things to you, but thinking back on them makes you blush?  Interesting,” JC noted.

“Easier to blush than get turned on right before a kids’ birthday party,” Mikayla said quietly.  “Wait, they really came just for this, before we leave on vacation?”

“We’re glad to be here, even if for a few hours,” Chris said, looking at Justin.  “Great to see you again, Mikayla.”  He hugged her tight, Mikayla reminding herself she wasn’t 16 anymore.  These men had been at their first wedding, part of her life for many years at this point.  Yet every time she saw them all together, she felt like she was a teenager again.

“Before the party starts and we have your attention, we just found out Karly is pregnant,” Chris beamed, holding his wife, his arm around her waist.  He kissed her sweetly on the cheek before moving so his hand wrapped to cradle her belly.

“That’s great, congratulations!” Mikayla smiled, giving them hugs of excitement and love that their “family” was growing.  She hoped Lance and Michael would have similar news, she knew they’d been trying for a while.  They were all adults, married, starting families.  How had she been so lucky to be part of this?  This truly was more than she had ever imagined for herself, or more than she imagined it would be like.  

Dreaming in high school of being Mrs. Justin Timberlake had been very surface level.  She’d be close to the rest of the guys, even though they hadn’t married her best friends.  She never dreamed of just how close they would actually be; sharing in pregnancies, birthdays, anniversaries, really being the family that they had seemed to be.  They got together more than people realized, keeping things quiet so no rumors started up, but they were still as close as ever.  Mikayla wished people saw that more, the fandom at a standstill waiting for anything to happen.  Mostly blaming Justin for it by going solo in the first place, and distancing himself from the group musically and by not discussing it in interviews.

She saw the side of him that laughed with Chris and Joey, he and Lance had bonded a bit over trying to have a family, and there was the obvious closeness with JC.  It was more than she dreamed of, being at Chris’s wedding, being at Lance and Michael’s, the little things she hadn’t considered all those years ago.  Yet here she was, chatting with the guys she’d idolized for years.

“Trying not to fangirl?” Karly whispered.

Mikayla blinked.  “Yeah.  Sometimes I still can’t believe it.  It’s been 10 years since I entered this craziness and it still amazes me.  They’re closer than people realize, which is a blessing and a curse. I think if people knew how often they talked or saw each other, they’d be happy and yet sad that they aren’t getting back together to do anything.”

“I know there was a lot of buzz after the VMAs, Justin having them come on stage to perform.”

“He wanted it to be longer, but MTV told him to cut it short.  I’m so excited for you and Chris, he’s gonna be a great dad.”

“He’s so excited.  We both are.  I feel like that’s another thing kinda in the way of anything more between them, us having kids to consider before dealing with tours and stuff.  With Justin, it’s easier cuz it’s just him, and you guys, but trying to figure that out with all five of them?  That gets tricky.  The twins will be starting school soon, so you can’t just not have them start and take them on the road with you full time.  They need some stability and routine.  Life on tour is probably anything but that.”

“Yeah.  The twins were babies when he did his last tour, so it made it a bit easier, but also not.  There were times we didn’t go on certain parts with him, or I felt guilty leaving them with Jackie so Justin and I could go sightseeing or even go out to dinner.  It does mess with the whole flow of what you have at home.  It’s nice to break from that every now and then, but yeah, I worry how we’ll make it work for his next album.”

Thankfully the guys had moved on, Karly and Mikayla having a more private conversation as they looked on at their guys and the brotherhood that they were.

Chris peeked outside.  “Jesus, Justin, anything to self promote, huh?”

“Don’t ruin the surprise!” Justin replied, giving Chris a look.  “The twins wanted it, so I ran with it.  Yeah, maybe a little too far, but I think they’ll have fun.”  He looked at the twins.  “Your friends should be arriving any minute. I wanna do the big reveal with a lot of them here.  So we’ll have some music playing, some stuff to eat in here before we open the backyard up.”

There had been curtains put up so the view outside was blocked, Mikayla feeling it was going a bit overboard, but that was Justin.  All about making memories for the kids, with a bit of a dramatic flare.

The front gate was opening more frequently, voices coming up towards the front door.  Mikayla wondered how many parents would be staying, taking advantage of being invited into their home.  The kids had had playdates, but mostly at someone else’s house because they wanted to host a Timberlake.  She knew the kids were genuine friends, but the hearts of the parents were something else entirely.  It would be interesting knowing the children were friends, but the adults only interested in being around a celebrity

The twins were vibrating with excitement to see all their friends, not knowing what awaited them in the backyard.  Mikayla knew some of it, but Justin had been pretty quiet about the details as she had focused on things with work.  She felt guilty about that, to be sure, but she knew she’d be on vacation for the next week, including their actual birthday to be as a family.  

Mikayla knew some of the parents, feeling a little more comfortable as she talked with them instead of feeling like her life was on display at some zoo or museum.  Everyone was admittedly confused on why they were all inside the house, the room starting to fill, or at least feeling that way with kids running around.

“Alright,” Justin called out, everyone quieting down. “Joshy, Barb, are you ready to see your birthday party?”  The twins shouted and bounced with excitement.  “Is everyone ready?”  The small crowd gathered voiced their excitement with shouts, cheers, and whistles.  He walked to the corner of the room, pulling a cord, the curtains pulling back to access the door outside, along with revealing the backyard.  The room gasped and the kids screamed with excitement.

There was color everywhere.  Streamers in every color hung across the backyard, almost creating a rainbow canopy.  There were cutouts of Trolls characters placed around, a long table under their BBQ area full of trays of kid friendly foods with colorful twists.  There were carnival style games, the pool had been covered over to give more space to move around and interact with the different stations.  There was a cotton candy station with multiple flavor choices, face painting, a balloon animal artist, anything bright and colorful.  There were signs leading further down the backyard to their tennis and basketball court, where there were two bounce houses, and bubble machines set up in the four corners, music playing all around.

They found it challenging to get the kids to come to the tables for presents, Justin promising a spectacle with their cake that got everyone excited.  The twins opened a couple presents from their parents, not wanting to waste more of the kids’ time.  Mikayla thanked the parents and children for coming, Justin eager to start the cake.

To everyone’s surprise, people dressed as Branch and Poppy came out of the house pushing a cart with their cake.  Each of them got a 2 layer cake, Joshy with Lego decorations made of candy or frosting, Barb with a cake with a rainbow of sprinkles covering the cake.  They bounced with excitement at seeing their cakes, the crowd singing to them with almost thunderous enthusiasm.  

“Thank you for coming, everyone.  We can’t believe they’re turning 5 in a few days.  You being here means the world to them, to us,” Justin announced.

JC felt out of place at that moment.  While he definitely didn't want people seeing his house, he felt like just another guest, not their dad that should have helped plan this party.  Justin had insisted on planning and hosting, making sure his vision was carried out perfectly.  He suddenly wondered if the wedding would be the same.  What was supposed to be a ceremony for himself and Mikayla was now a vow renewal for Mikayla and Justin as well, at least for the press.  Would any of his ideas be tossed aside for what Justin envisioned, even if JC was willing to foot the bill for them?  

Mikayla stood beside Justin, looking at JC, noting the look on his face. Something was wrong, and she was going to get to the bottom of it later.  She gave a final thank you before the party wrapped up, kids getting favor bags with Trolls themed items and brightly colored toys.  The twins thanked each friend for coming as they took a favor bag, it soon being back to her and the whole of *NSYNC and their families. 

They moved back into the house, sitting on the couches in the living room while the kids played upstairs. 

“Leftovers for dinner?” Chris teased. 

“I mean, I guess we could eat it on the plane,” Mikayla mused. 

“Plane? Tonight?” Justin asked. 

“I thought we were-“

“You really thought I’d have a huge birthday party for the twins and fly out right after?”

“You didn’t tell me-“

“You didn’t ask,” Justin cut her off. “You assumed that, I just never corrected you.”

Mikayla looked at JC.  “You told me-“

“Any way to surprise you,” he smiled widely. 

She rolled her eyes and began to pout. “I guess it’s just as well, I wasn’t fully packed yet.”

“YOU weren’t fully packed?!” Justin practically choked on his sip of soda. “You’ve been packing for the last WEEK!”

“I meant the kids, but still.  I need to do more laundry before they’re ready.”

Justin smiled at her at the mention of laundry, his pants feeling tighter all of a sudden. His eyes met hers and he knew she was suddenly thinking about their little moment earlier in the week after doing laundry. 

“Let me help you with the laundry,” Justin said. “I was actually thinking we do a movie night. I know we had one last night, but Trolls came out on DVD that the kids can watch while we watch something else. The twins will feel like it’s a sleepover, they don’t know about the trip.”

“I’ll put the laundry in now since the kids are playing so we can start the movies once it’s done and I finish packing their stuff,” Mikayla decided.

“Let me help you, just in case there’s a lot,” Justin replied with a smirk, walking with Mikayla down the hall.

“Why do I think this just got dirtier than the laundry they need to do?” Chris laughed.

“I think it’s nice, still being that hot for each other after 5 years.  I mean, look at us, we’re having a baby,” Karly sighed.

“I highly recommend pregnant sex,” Chris laughed.

Everyone looked at JC when he smiled and laughed quietly.

“Holy shit,” Joey gasped.  “I mean, I guess we knew, but at the same time we didn’t…”

“They’re getting ‘married’, you think they haven’t had sex?” Lance quipped.  “That’s how this whole mess started.”

“Which mess?  Her having the twins, or the love triangle?” Joey asked.

“Well… both?” Michael snapped with a laugh.  

“Neither was a mess,” JC was quick to correct them.  “The first one, we were trying, so it's not like it just happened and I freaked out.  Ok yes, I fucked up after that, but the twins were very much wanted and what we were planning for.  The only reason it’s a mess now is because of all of that afterwards.  Was anyone really thinking that I could really move on, without us needing one last time to get things out of our system?”

“Didn’t she do that when you fucked in your office and then she walked off with your pants around your ankles?” Lance wondered.

“Gotta admit, we could feel the sexual tension between you guys building over the years.  Lance and Michael’s wedding was almost enough that I hoped you’d just go for it right on the dance floor and I could sit at the table and watch while I drank champagne and ate appetizers.”  Karly gave an elbow to his ribs. “What?  They wouldn’t have popcorn…”

“You eat popcorn while you watch porn?” Joey laughed.

“No,I’m too busy with my hand on my-”

“Do I wanna know?” Justin asked as he walked back into the room.

“No. Trust me, no,” JC replied, his hand over his face.

“Just talking about the sexual tension that had been building up between your wife and JC,” Joey added.

“Yeah, I’m aware,” Justin said dryly.

“Have we hit a sore spot?” Chris wondered.

“You’re really asking if I’m ok with my wife fucking another guy?”

“It’s more than that, and you know it,” Mikayla snapped as she walked into the room. “It’s been almost a year, and you’re still struggling with this?”

“I always will, Kay.  I know he loved you first, but I’m pretty sure I loved you best, taking on everything I did at the risk of losing everything career wise.”

“Ok, you wanna play this? You did this to be the better man, or like I‘m some charity case? I should be thankful for your generosity…”

“Mikayla, you know it’s not like that…”

“And my feelings for Josh are more than just sex.  Always have been, always will be.  Just like what we have together, right?”

“I love you, Kay, please don’t ever doubt that.”

“Pretty hard to believe when you say shit like that…”

“I don’t always know how to handle my jealousy.”

“You suck it up and just ignore it or deal with it.  Like I had to today,” JC sighed plainly.

“Excuse me?” Justin snapped.

“What do you mean?  Is this about the face I saw you make earlier when the kids were doing cake?” Mikayla wondered.

“Those are MY kids, Justin.  I had no say in any of this, and had to watch YOU play the savior and loving father figure.  Hosting the party, paying for everything, I should be lucky I was even invited.  I was so hurt that I wasn’t given an opportunity to be more than just a guest, as if I’m not responsible for half their DNA.”

“Josh, I’m so sorry,” Mikayla sighed, walking over to hug him.

“That’s it, go to him, like I knew you would,” Justin spat.

“Enough,” Jackie said from the edge of the room.  “There are kids playing upstairs, and your voices are starting to carry.  I’m sorry these two have sticks up their dicks right now, so either figure shit out or shut the fuck up before the kids hear you and this ruins their day.”

“Jackie, I've never heard you talk like that before,” Mikayla gasped.

“Cuz I’m with the kids.  Right now I’m focused on the two guys that are starting a pissing war over you.  I get it, and in some ways it’s actually kinda romantic to have two guys love you that much, be that passionate about you that they want you for themselves, but we know that’s not how this is going to work without one of them looking like an asshole.  Move the conversation to something else or risk one of the kids, it doesn't matter whose, coming in here and hearing you guys yell and hear things not meant for young ears.”

Jackie turned and walked back down the hall, leaving them to look at each other.

“Is that where this is coming from? Jealousy because you both love me so much?” Mikayla wondered.

“I think you know the answer to that,” JC replied.  “I know it’s hard for both of us to want this, but we're doing our best to make it work and keep you in our lives.”

“We have kids together, I’d still be in your life.”

“You know what he means.  I can’t imagine you not being my wife, and JC doesn’t just want to be an ex co parenting with you.  If he had moved on, then sure, that could work.  But he held onto his feelings for you the way that I did when you two were together.  Once you get under our skin, that’s it.  Neither of us can imagine not having what we have right now.  We’d rather deal with the jealousy and get to love you than know that we lost you and watch you be with someone else.”

“Then deal with it better, I guess.  This could have gotten more heated, to the point of you two yelling at each other, even physically fighting each other, and for what?  Oh god…”

‘What?” Karly asked.

“This tension is no different than the tension that was building between me and Josh, needing a release…”

“I’m not fucking JC, let’s make that clear now,” Justin stated plainly.

“I’m not touching this with a ten foot pole,” Chris said, raising his hands in innocence.  

“Someone’s getting fucked tonight, though,” Michael whispered to Lance, a smile on his face.

Mikayla looked at Michael, Michael’s eyes widening in realization that she’d heard him.  

“Maybe we should leave to let you guys… figure things out,” Lance suggested.

“No, we’ll deal with this later.  We should be celebrating the twins, their upcoming birthday,” Justin said.  “Maybe we all watch Trolls, or something else the kids wanna watch, together?”

“Kloey loves that movie, she was super happy with everything she did and saw today,” Joey said.  

“You did a great job, Justin,” JC sighed.  “I never could have done this.  Not even for my kids.”

“It’s not who you are, and that’s fine.  I’m sorry I didn't at least include you in any of the planning.”

JC knew now wasn’t the time to bring up his worries for the wedding, choosing to stay silent on the matter.  As long as he got to marry Mikayla in June, that was what mattered most.

“So are you guys staying?  I want you to stay if Mikayla is ok with it.”

“I’m fine with it.  But it’s ultimately up to them.  Can you two pause this until later?”

Lance gave Michael a look.  

“I can,” JC sighed.

“I can too.  I’m sorry it all came out like this,” Justin said, hanging his head.

“It’s good you’re letting it out, but next time maybe just with your wife.  We care about you, but don’t need to be quite so attached to this,” Karly said.

“Everyone agreed to stay, Mikayla getting the kids downstairs to the movie room.  The adults moved trays of food to the back of the movie room, that way anyone could just get up and grab what they wanted when they wanted it. 

Mikayla, Justin, and JC sat in the back row of the couches, the kids all sitting on the floor in front.  Mikayla sat between the two men, Silas on her lap.  Chris and Karly sat on one couch, Lance and Michael on another, Joey on a pile of pillows on the floor with the kids.

The movie started, the kids excited for it to start, Mikayla feeling an almost overwhelming sense of family present with her, despite her family leaving to make the drive home. It was over half an hour on a good day with no traffic, let alone let on a Saturday afternoon.  It didn't feel all that far, but she also felt like it was hours away the older she got.  Things were always so busy that they didn’t have a lot of time to go see her family, they always came to LA.

“You ok in there?” JC whispered in wonder.  “I can hear the wheels turning, almost smell the smoke.”

“I haven’t gone to see my family in a while, besides birthday parties,” Mikayla answered.

“We’ll set something up after we get back from Montana,” Justin decided.

They watched the movie, eating as they were hungry, nothing formal.  As the movie continued on, getting to the more serious parts, the twins moved up to sit with their parents, snuggling in before falling asleep.  They made a cozy little pile, Silas in Mikayla’s arms, Joshy with Justin and Barb with JC, all of them asleep by the end of the movie.  Kloey had fallen asleep on Joey, but Briahna helped Joey get her up and carry her out to the car.

“So much for them ‘working things out’ tonight.  Do we just leave them here?” Lance asked from the doorway.  “I mean, it is their house, so…”

“They’ll be fine.  My guess is this isn’t the first time, and it won’t be the last,” Karly smiled.

Michael turned off the projector for the movie, the soft lighting in the room still on.  They all quietly made their way out, putting the food away so there was less to deal with whenever they woke up.  It had been a long, busy, emotional day, and their rest was well deserved and perfectly full of love.