Justin lay there on the floor for a few moments, pressing his hand against his bleeding nose. When no one came down the hallway to help him, Justin picked himself up and went into the nearest men's room. He splashed his bloody face with cold water, and, when he was cleaned up, he walked right back out to his car.
So much for talking to Lance.
Justin drove right back to JC's house. He let himself in through the back door, and found JC asleep on the couch where he was watching "Hoosiers" again. Justin knelt in front of him and kissed him awake.
JC smiled lazily over at Justin. "How did it go, J?" Justin closed his eyes and didn't answer. He was waiting for the bruises to form where Lance had hit him. "Justin?" JC's blue eyes were clouded with concern.
"Not well," Justin whispered, "it didn't go well at all."
"J, baby, tell me what happened." JC sat up on the couch and Justin crawled into his arms.
Snuggling close to JC's chest, Justin told JC what happened. "He's jealous, Josh. Of me. Of what you and I have. And he hit me."
"He hit you?" JC asked, rage flashing in his blue eyes. Justin nodded. "Are you OK, baby?" Justin nodded again, and JC held Justin even more tightly as the anger boiled through his blood. His eyes turned an icy shade. "I'll kill him," he whispered. "If he even comes near you again, I'll kill him."
Justin sighed. "But Josh, you and I don't go to the same school."
"Don't remind me."
"But I'll have to deal with Lance. I see him everyday. We're fucking teammates."
"Aww, baby," JC whispered, pulling Justin down to lie on the couch with him and stroking Justin's soft curls. They were quiet for a few mintues, each lost in thought. Then, suddenly, JC gave Justin a tight squeeze and said, "Justin. You can transfer. Come to school with me. This basketball season is almost over, so you won't miss much if you can't play for us. Next year we can play together again. Like when we were kids. We'll be teammates again. We'll be together, Justin. And Lance won't be able to do anything about it, jealous or not. We'll be 'us' and we'll be away from him."
"That would be a dream come true, Josh, but how can I transfer in the middle of the school year? And what will my parents say?"
"We'll talk to your parents together, tell them about the fight you had with Lance, and they'll help you, I know they will. It helps that Jefferson is totally overcrowed with kids trying to get in, and Kennedy has lots of extra room. Come to school with me, Justin. I can keep an eye on you then."
Justin smiled and sighed, snuggling closer to JC. "I like having you on me," he mumbled, and JC laughed.
"That's not what I said, 'Lake."
"I still like it."
JC licked Justin's ear and replied, "I like it, too."
The boys fell asleep together on the couch and didn't wake up until the phone rang. JC answered it. "Hello?"
"Hi, Joshua? This is Justin's mom. Is he there with you?"
"Yes he is, let me get him for you." JC handed the phone to Justin. "It's your mom."
"Hi, Mom," Justin said, yawning. JC couldn't hear what Justin's mom had to say, he only heard half the conversation. "Fine ... He's fine ... Yeah, last night was ... it was good, yeah ... Dinner? Sure, I'm on my way. Hey, can JC come, too? Great. Thanks mom. See you soon. Yeah, bye." Justin hung up. "You're coming to dinner at my house," he told JC.
JC smiled and said, "Oh no! An invitation to dine w/ the family of Justin Timberlake! Whatever shall I wear?"
Justin giggled. "I'll help you get ready."
"Then in that case, I shall have to accept."
"Good." Justin grabbed JC's arm and dragged him
down the hall. "First, dirty boy, you need a shower."