Over the
next week, JC watched his two bandmates. Trying to see if he could catch all
the little signs he had missed in the past. The more he watched, the more he
realized how dense he had truly been. It was painfully clear that his two
youngest bandmates were in love. The little looks and smiles. The little
touches out of nowhere. Justin and Lance were happily together, and to the
unknowing eye, they were able to hide that fact from the rest of the world.
The more
he saw the signs, the more it bothered him. How could he have not seen it
before? How could he have not seen that his two best friends were not only gay
but gay and together? Maybe if he had acted on his feelings for Lance before he
had started seeing Justin, then maybe things would be different now. Maybe he
would be the one in the back lounge with Lance, and Justin would be the one
lying in his bunk listening in.
He
sighed getting out of his bunk. Another night spent on the road. The bus was
quiet, so he figured it would be okay to go to the lounge. He wouldn't be
walking into another compromising situation between his two bandmates. He
stopped in the doorway to the lounge letting his eyes adjust to the darkness.
When his eyes had gotten used to the lack of light, he eyes widened in shock as
he realized he wasn't alone. Someone sat on the couch.
He
walked towards it, and recognized Justin. He sat down, and looked over at his
friend. "What's up, J?"
"Nothing.
Just couldn't sleep," Justin said as he leaned back on the couch.
JC
leaned back as well with a sigh. "Me either. Been thinking about
stuff."
"Yeah.
What kind of stuff?"
JC
shrugged even though Justin couldn't see the movement in the darkness of the
lounge. "I found out something, and I've been thinking about it a lot
lately. Wondering why I hadn't been told something before? I had to find out
for myself." Justin remained silent, and JC stood up. He moved in front of
his friend and began to pace. "Justin, you know you could have told
me."
"Told
you what, Jayce?"
JC
stopped pacing looking at Justin with an incredulous look on his face.
"Oh, come on, Justin. Don't play dumb with me. Remember I've known you for
a long time. Longer than most people on the bus."
"I
know, Jayce, but I still don't know what you are talking about."
"Bull
shit," JC said as he started to pace again. "I know about you and
loverboy, Justin. You guys are sure fucking loud when you fuck." JC
stopped pacing and looked at Justin trying to gauge his reaction.
The
younger man looked up at him with a look of pure shock on his face. He opened
and closed his mouth a few times before he stood up. "Jesus, Jayce. What
the fuck is your problem?" He pushed passed the older man and started to
walk back to the bunk area. He stopped and turned his head, "We'll talk
about this later. When you can talk about without being crude."
JC
reached out, and grabbed Justin's arm. "Why didn't you tell me, Justin? Do
you think I would have cared? Do you think I would have felt different?"
Justin
shook his head. "We just didn't know how anyone would react. If we had
told you, then we would had to tell everyone else."
JC threw
his hands up in the air. "We all know anyway. Maybe you should have just
told us."
Justin
sighed. "Yeah, well. Maybe we should have, but can't go back now."
JC let
go of Justin's arm. "Yeah, I know. You are a lucky guy. You got
Lance." JC pushed passed his friend, and returned to his bunk before
Justin could respond. As he lay on his bunk, he closed his eyes whispering,
"Not for long though."