JC woke up before his alarm the next morning and rolled over.  He lay on his side for several moments watching Rachel as the early morning light stole through the blinds.  Her brow was furrowed and she looked as if she were in pain as she slept.  What is she dreaming about? He wondered.  Hesitantly he put his hand out and softly brushed her hair back.  Her facial expression softened somewhat as he then scooted closer to her under the covers and pressed his lips to her forehead.  Closing his eyes he lay--his nose barely touching hers--inhaling every breath she took.  He'd fallen asleep last night before being able to confront her about her bizarre behavior, not to mention the lie he'd caught her in, and he was upset that she hadn't woken him up when she'd finally come to bed but somehow, laying with her like this made what had happened the night before seem kind of trivial. 

This was what he loved about being with Rachel--the fact that he could just be with her.  He wanted to wake her up; to spend what little time he had before having to leave with her but he hated to wake her up.  When his cell phone went off on the table behind him he was a little worried at the fact that she didn't stir at all.  He turned over and silenced the alarm.  Rachel wasn't usually this hard of a sleeper but, figuring she'd obviously had a later night than he had, JC got up and went to take a shower.

Twenty minutes later as he exited the bathroom--showered, shaved and dressed--he looked over at Rachel, his brows furrowed.  She still hadn't woken up and he was starting to get concerned.  He walked over to the side of the bed and looked down at her.  He was about to wake her when his eye caught something foreign on the bedside table--a prescription bottle.  Curious he picked it up, reading the label.  Sleeping pills? He questioned, looking down at Rachel once more.  Since when does she take sleeping pills?  JC put the pill bottle back on the table and leaned over his sleeping girlfriend--one hand on either side of her on the mattress.  "Rachel?" He questioned softly, yet loud enough it would have normally woken her. 

No response. 

JC looked at his watch and frowned.  He had to leave now if he was going to make his flight in time.  Standing he ripped a blank page from the back of the sketchbook Rachel kept on her nightstand and quickly scrawled out a note telling her goodbye.  Folding the piece of paper in half he propped it against the pill bottle then grabbed his bags and left.

~~~~~~

Rachel yawned and stretched as consciousness finally took hold of her Saturday morning.  "Mmmm..." She moaned as she lifted her arms above her head.  She'd slept hard and could tell by the amount of light in the room that it was late.  Wow, I haven't slept this long in a while.  She lay there for a moment until she gasped in surprise and sat up, her eyes turning to JC's side of the bed even though she knew what she'd find.  Sure enough, the bed was empty beside her--the sheets cold.  Rachel frowned as she swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood quickly.  "Jace?" She called out then reached for the nightstand as her knees buckled and she felt lightheaded.  "Woah." She exclaimed, sitting back on the bed and putting a hand to her head.  "Slow down, Rachel." She told herself.  "JC?" She called out again, lifting her head as her ears strained for what she knew she wasn't going to hear.  She stood again--slowly this time--and frowned, disappointment and hurt filling her.  Why didn't he say goodbye? She wondered.  Why would he just leave?  She looked down at the ground and noticed a folded piece of paper that must have fallen from the nightstand.  Reaching down Rachel picked it up, recognizing JC's familiar handwriting.

I'll call you when I land.

Rachel jumped as the house phone sitting on JC's nightstand rang.  Quickly scrambling over and across the bed she grabbed it and held it up to her ear. 

"Hello?" She asked.

"You're up." JC said as if surprised to hear her answer the phone.

"Why didn't you wake me up to say goodbye?" Rachel asked him, leaning back against the headboard.

"I tried." He told her.  "You were out cold.  That's why I called the house instead of your cell phone.  I wasn't sure you'd hear your phone vibrating."

"Oh." Rachel replied.  "Well, you obviously didn't try very hard to wake me up." She said, flipping her hair over her shoulder.  "Because I'm pretty sure--"

"How many sleeping pills did you take last night?" JC interrupted her.

"What?" Rachel asked confused.

"How many sleeping pills did you take?" He repeated.  "You were dead to the world.  I called your name and tried to cuddle with you this morning but I got nothing."

"I only took one." She told him.  "I couldn't sleep last night.  I came up to bed and you had passed out.  I tossed and turned--"

"Why didn't you wake me up when you came to bed last night?" JC asked interrupting her again.

"Like I said," Rachel explained patiently.  "You were passed out.  Besides, I knew you had an early flight this morning and I--"

"Yet you took a sleeping pill that rendered you unconscious to the point that I couldn't wake you up to even say goodbye this morning."

"I didn't want to wake you up last night." Rachel defended herself.  "You looked exhausted and I figured--"

"You figured you didn't want to talk to me.  And since when do you take prescription sleeping pills?"

"Would you stop interrupting me?!" She yelled at him in frustration. 

"As soon as you decide you're going to tell me the truth." JC shot back angrily.  Rachel was surprised at his response.

"Tell you the truth?" She asked incredulously.  "About what?"

"Everything." He snarled in response.

Rachel sat on the bed stunned into silence.  "JC, I don't..."

"Call me when you decide you're going to be honest and tell me what's going on." He said, and with that hung up on her.  Rachel lowered the phone and stared at it uncomprehendingly, her chest tight as she fought to breath.  He hung up on me. She thought.  He hung up on me.  After wallowing in self-pity for a few more minutes Rachel once more picked up the phone and after dialing the familiar number held the receiver to her ear.

"Hello?" Megan answered.

"He hung up on me." Rachel told her. 

"What?  Who?"

"Who do you think?" Rachel responded shortly.  "JC, duh."

"JC hung up on you?" Megan asked in disbelief.  "Maybe his cell phone got cut off." She offered.

"This isn't one of those times when I can give him the benefit of the doubt." Rachel grumbled.  "He hung up on me on purpose."

"What happened?" Megan asked.

"Do you have time to talk or are you busy?" Rachel inquired.

"I can talk, as long as you don't mind if I'm cleaning the house at the same time." Megan told her.

"I don't mind." Rachel said.

"So talk." Megan relied.

Rachel sighed.  "After I got off the phone with you last night I came back upstairs to talk to Jace about what happened."

"How did that go?" Megan asked.

"It didn't." Rachel replied.  "He was asleep by the time I got up here."

"Did you try to wake him up?" Megan asked.

"No." Rachel shook her head.  "I figured he was exhausted and I knew he needed to get up early this morning."

"That was your first mistake." Megan muttered under her breath.

"What?" Rachel asked.

"Nothing." Megan assured her.  "Continue please."

Rachel narrowed her eyes as she tried to figure out what Megan was grumbling about.  "Well, anyway, he was asleep so I just got into bed and tried to go to sleep as well."

"Tried?" Megan asked.

"It didn't go so well." Rachel replied glumly.

"Conscience bothering you?" Megan teased.

"No.  Maybe." Rachel shook her head, to get rid of the confusing thoughts filling her mind at the moment.  "I don't know.  Why would my conscience be bothering me?"

"You tell me." Megan said.

"Anyway," Rachel continued.  "I couldn't fall asleep so I took a sleeping pill."

"Rachel." Megan stated and Rachel could see her best friend putting her hands on her hips and shaking her head.

"Can you please not act like my mother right now?" Rachel plead.  "And just listen to me?"

"I'm sorry." Megan apologized.  "I can't help it.  I'm in ‘mommy mode' all the time now." Megan took an exaggerated breath.  "Okay.  Mom gone, best friend back."

"Thank you." Rachel said. 

"So you took a sleeping pill." Megan reminded her.  "Then what?"

"I woke up about an hour ago and he was gone."

Megan gasped.  "He didn't even say goodbye?"

"Nope." Rachel replied.

"He just left?" Megan asked incredulously.

"Yep." Rachel nodded, though Megan couldn't see her.

"Ooh," Megan growled.  "If Jackson ever did that to me I'd..."

"He left a note." Rachel supplied.

"What did it say?" Megan asked.

"That he'd call me when he landed." Rachel replied.

"Is that when he hung up on you?" Megan inquired.

"Yeah."

"So what happened?"

"I asked him why he didn't say goodbye.  He said he tried to but I didn't wake up.  Then he asked me how come I didn't wake him up when I came to bed last night--"

"I told you that was your first mistake." Megan interrupted her.

"Yes, thank you Madam Cleo." Rachel replied sarcastically.  "Where were your fortune telling powers last night when I needed them?"

Megan laughed.  "I told you to talk to him."

"He was asleep!" Rachel defended herself.  "JC is very grumpy when he doesn't get enough sleep, kind of like me.  I wasn't sure I wanted to deal with it last night."  Megan remained quiet on the other end of the line.  "Anyway," Rachel drawled.  "He asked me how many pills I'd taken and when I got the prescription.  I tried answering his questions but he kept cutting me off and it was making me mad.  Finally I yelled at him and told him to quit interrupting me.  To which he replied, ‘as soon as you decide you're going to tell me the truth.'"

Again Megan gasped.  "What did you say?" She asked.

"I was stunned.  I didn't know what to say then he said, ‘call me when you decide to be honest and tell me what's going on.' Then he hung up."  Rachel leaned back against the headboard and blinked back the tears she felt forming, but it was no good.  They began leaking through her lashes and she swiped at them angrily.  "What do I do?" She asked, her voice shaky.

"I don't know sweetie." Megan replied.  "This is kind of between you two.  I gave you my two cents yesterday.  You need to tell him what happened last night--what's been happening--and convince him you're telling the truth.  Which may be kind of difficult, I'm sorry to say."

"Why do you say that?" Rachel asked, confused.

"Because you've lied to him before." Megan reminded her.  "And he knows it."

"Damn it!" Rachel swore, hitting the pillow beside her before falling over and burying her face in the fabric.  "How do I get myself into these situations?" She mumbled.

"What?" Megan asked.  "I couldn't understand you."

"Sorry." Rachel said, turning her head to the side.  "I said how do I get myself into these situations?"  She closed her eyes and sighed.

"Do you really want me to answer that?" Megan inquired.

"No." Rachel replied.  "I know.  I just..."

"Where is he?" Megan asked.

"New York." Rachel answered dejectedly.

"How long is he gone for?"

"It all depends on how this weekend goes." Rachel replied.

"What is he doing there?" Megan asked.

"Helping to audition backup singers and dancers for the tour." Rachel sighed.

"Do you know where he's staying?"

"No, but I can call Sarah and find out.  Why?" Rachel asked.  Megan remained quiet.  "Why?" Rachel asked again.

"What are you doing this weekend?" Megan inquired.

"Nothing."

"I think you should go to New York." Megan told her.

"Go to New York?!" Rachel exclaimed sitting up. 

"Yeah." Megan replied.

"Do you know how expensive it is to buy a last minute plane ticket to New York?" Rachel inquired.

"Please." Megan snorted.  "Do you know who you're living with?  I'm sure you have access to one of his credit cards, right?  If not, I'll give you mine."

"You really think I should do this?" Rachel asked, a giddy nervousness filling her.

"I really do." Megan replied.

Rachel thought about it for a moment.  "Okay." She finally said scooting off the bed and standing.  "I gotta go.  I have to find a flight to New York." She told her best friend.

Megan chuckled.  "Atta girl.  Go find him."

"I will." Rachel replied confidently.

"Then call me when you get home."

"Alright." Rachel chuckled.

"Good luck." Megan offered.

"Thanks, Megs.  I'll call you later."  Rachel ended the call, took a deep breath then picked up her phone and scrolled through her address book.  Finding the number she was looking for she hit the call button and held her phone to her ear as she went into the closet in search of her duffle bag.  "Sarah?" She asked when JC's assistant answered.  "I need the name of the hotel where Jace is staying in New York..."

~~~~~~

"What do you think of this group?" Justin whispered.

"Huh?" JC looked over at him then stared blankly at the stage and the group of dancers currently auditioning.  "I dunno." He shrugged.

"Man, what's with you?" Justin asked, turning in his seat to look at JC.  "Are you even watching?" He gestured to the stage.

"Yeah," JC responded.  "Of course."

"Of course." Justin scoffed.  "Let me tell you something." He turned so he was once more facing the stage and leaned over towards JC.  "You see the blonde in the back row?"

JC looked at the girl.  "What about her?"

"She wants me." Justin sniffed and puffed out his chest.

JC laughed, shaking his head.  "You never stop, do you." He asked.  "How long has it been, huh?  Three months since you and Jessie broke up?"

"You didn't expect me to stay single forever did you?" Justin asked.

"Fifty bucks says you can't get her to go back to your hotel room with you." JC said.

"I'll take that bet." Justin said, reaching over and shaking JC's hand.  "Now," he said, slouching down in his seat.  "You gonna tell me what's going on?"

"What do you mean?" JC asked.

Justin just looked at him, one eyebrow raised.  "How long have we known each other, C?" He asked.

"Too long." JC muttered under his breath as he rolled his eyes.

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that." Justin said then continued.  "Point is, we've known each other a long time and I can tell something's not right.  Are you and Rachel having problems?"

"I don't want to talk about this." JC said, standing.

"What about the auditions?" Justin said pointing towards the stage. 

"I'm done for today."

JC made his way out of the auditorium that had been rented out for the weekend, pushing the door open and walking into the hallway.  He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and pressed the speed dial for Rachel.  Holding the phone to his ear he waited. 

"Hey this is Rachel, leave me a message and I'll call you back."

"Damn it." He swore.  Ever since hanging up on her this morning he'd felt rotten.  After taking some time to cool down he'd called her back, both at the house and her cell phone, but she hadn't answered him all day.  The house phone just rang and rang and her cell phone immediately kicked over to voicemail indicating she'd turned her phone off.  JC put his head back and closed his eyes, sighing.  Once more he dialed her number and put the phone to his ear, immediately straightening when it began ringing.  His heart began pounding and his mouth went dry wondering what exactly he was going to say to her when she answered.

"Hey." She finally answered and JC breathed a sigh of relief at hearing her voice.

"Hi." He said.  They were both quiet for a moment until he finally broke down.  "I'm sorry." He apologized. 

"No, I'm sorry." She said.  "I should have woken you up last night.  I know we needed to talk but I...I'm sorry."

"It's okay." JC said.  "We can talk now."

"No." Rachel replied and for a second he was tempted to get angry again.

"What do you--"

"What I need to say I need to say face to face.  I can't do that over the phone."

"Rach--"

"We'll talk." She said.  "I promise.  When I can look you in the eyes...we'll talk.  When are you coming home?" She asked.

"I don't know." He replied.  "We've auditioned a couple different groups but no one's really standing out." He leaned back against the wall.

"Sounds like you're going to be having a fun weekend." She teased.

"Oh, yeah." He replied.  "It's going to be great."  Rachel chuckled and he smiled the sound working to assure him that things were on the mend between them. 

"How much longer are you auditioning today?" She asked. 

JC looked at his watch.  "About an hour." He said.

"Then what?" She inquired.

"Then I'm going to be spending a lonely night alone in my hotel room." He told her.

"No hot dancers catch your eye today?" She teased.

"Nah." He smiled.  "I've done the whole dancer thing before."

"Oh really?" She asked. 

"Yeah."

"You know, I've heard dancers are really...flexible." She replied.  "Is that true?"

"Like you wouldn't believe." He replied then chuckled.  "This one girl I dated who was a dancer and who I ended up taking to Paris this last Christmas is incredibly flexible."

Rachel laughed.  "I have to go." She said.

"What?" He asked.  "Why?  What do you have to do that's more important than talking to me?"

"Mmmm...wouldn't you like to know?" She replied secretively then let out a little giggle. 

"You are such a tease." He replied. 

"Guilty as charged." Rachel giggled again.

He sighed.  "I love you, Sass." He told her.

"And that makes me the luckiest girl in the world." She replied.  "I love you, too.  I'll talk to you later."

"Bye."

~~~~~

Rachel ended her call with JC as she stepped into the lobby of the hotel he was staying in.  "Can I help you?" The guy standing at the reception desk asked as she stepped up to the counter. 

"Yeah, I'm here with...Clarence Adams." Rachel said, struggling not to laugh at the name under which JC had checked in with this trip.  He was always using some ridiculous name to throw off the paparazzi and crazy stalkers, but choosing to check in as his character from Emerald Cove on the Mickey Mouse Club, was almost more than she could take.  When Sarah had told her what his alias was this weekend Rachel had laughed and she couldn't wait to tease him about it.  "Mr. Adams checked in earlier today and his assistant was supposed to call and make arrangements for me to pick up a key." She told the desk clerk.

"And your name?" He asked sounding extremely bored.

"Rachel." She told him.  "Rachel Kline."  She watched as he typed something into the computer. 

"Here you are, Ms. Kline." He said, handing her a key card.  "Mr. Adams is staying in room 720.  I hope you enjoy your stay with us."

I hope so, too.  She thought.  "Thank you." She said with a smile as she tapped the card on the counter then turned and headed towards the elevators.  She drummed her fingers against her thigh and pulled her bottom lip between her teeth as she rode up to the seventh floor.  Here goes nothing. She thought as the elevator doors opened and she prayed this would work.

~~~~~~

"I told you that you couldn't get that girl to leave with you." JC teased as he opened his hotel room door and he and Justin walked in.  "I hate to say it, but I think you're losing your charm, Timberlake.  It seems the time has come when people are sick of you."

"You wait." Justin responded pointing a finger at him.  "When everyone gets wind of what's about to go down with the group the girls will come." He grinned wickedly and JC rolled his eyes.

"You're not as young as you used to...be..."  Both of the men stopped as they walked further into the room and JC felt his jaw hit the ground.