By Zaen
JC takes a deep breath and carries a bottle of wine into
the bedroom. He pauses at the sight of
Britney and Justin sitting on the bed.
This is not exactly how he’d planned to spend the evening after his 37th
birthday.
“Shoot, I only brought two glasses,” JC mumbles
nervously. Before he can shrink back
downstairs Justin leaps off the bed and stops him.
“It’s all right,” Justin says as he pours a glass for
Britney. She takes it and re-crosses her
legs nervously. Justin pours another
glass, takes a sip, and hands it to JC.
“We’ll share…like we usually do.”
JC tries to smile. He and Justin
have been sharing glasses, cooties, and a house for almost 10 years now.
The tabloids are this close to
finding them out. Justin stopped caring
last year, when this whole thing started.
<<<<<>>>>>
Some of their friends were shocked,
but Justin’s mom said it was inevitable.
After all, she deserved grandchildren, and the fact that her only son
was secretly married to another man made no difference. So when Justin casually mentioned to his
mother that he and JC were kindasortamaybeperhaps
thinking about having kids,
Though their breakup in 2002 had
been nasty, Justin and Britney rebuilt their friendship over the years. JC always encouraged it, always pretended it
didn’t bother him, but Justin teased him reassuringly anyway. He especially liked to tease that he and
Britney would make great looking kids, like they’d planned in their late teens
when they were still dating…when he was still straight. It was a running joke, until Britney turned
28 and decided to have some eggs frozen.
When she turned 30 she spent hours crying to Justin on the phone about
how hard it was for a powerful, successful, rich, famous female superstar to
find a man. A year later she told Cosmo
that she didn’t care anymore that she didn’t have a husband; she just wanted to
have happy, healthy children, preferably with “a guy with good genes.” Justin had a nice laugh, took a long,
therapeutic swim, and then called JC at the studio.
JC listened without comment. Then he said yes, go ahead, call her,
Justin. Then he hanged up the phone, had
three cups of coffee, and recorded 5 songs in 8 hours. If he’d still been with Jive, he’d have been
rewarded for turning in an album early.
Now, long after Nsync ended amicably, JC recorded for his own label, NotChavez, and he
was planning on taking a full year to finish his sixth solo record. When Britney called him at the studio the
next day to say that she’d talked to Justin and was thrilled, JC gritted his
teeth, had a Jolt, and wrote 2 songs on the spot. Two days later, Britney had an appointment
with her gynecologist. JC finished
recording, producing, and mixing a double album in just under 6 weeks.
<<<<<>>>>>
They guzzle their glasses before saying a word. JC thinks briefly of suggesting that alcohol
might impair Justin’s performance, but he keeps that to himself and pours
another glass. It’s awkward, the most
awkward it’s ever been between the 3 of them, and that’s counting the day
Justin told Britney about him
and JC eight years ago. Britney clears her throat and idly plays with
a button on her blouse.
“You ok?” Justin asks, his eyes moving between both of
them.
“Yeah,” Britney sighs, “just, um, warm.” She arches her back, and JC finishes his
second glass of wine.
“I’ll put on some music,” JC grunts as he stumbles across
the room to the stereo. When he turns
around, Justin is rubbing Britney’s back.
JC swallows his pride, and thinks about the room that he and Justin
painted—blue with pink flowers—last week.
“Is there…I mean…is there anything I can do…Britney?”
“Yes. You can get
me some big fluffy pillows.” She smiles
politely. “Thank you, JC.”
JC welcomes the reprieve from the tension as he searches
the upstairs bedrooms for the fullest, fluffiest pillows. Then he realizes the best pillows are in the
bedroom he just left. He goes back to
find Justin and Britney whispering quietly.
“Um…I think we—I mean, you, I mean…um, these.” JC points to the pillows at the head of the
bed. Justin smiles shyly and lays two
pillows down next to Britney. She takes
a deep breath and slides one under her, propping her hips up off the bed. JC hums loudly in time to the music, even
though he doesn’t know the song.
“Ok,” Britney whispers.
She looks up at Justin with long, fluttering eyelashes. Justin stares at her for a long moment like
he’s searching for something in her eyes that he once knew long ago. When he finds it, he leans down and kisses
her chastely.
“Oh. Um.” JC knew this was
coming, but it doesn’t make watching it any easier. “Ok. I
think I’ll just, um, you know—”
“C’mere, baby,” Justin commands
with an outreached hand. JC obeys,
though hesitantly, and sits on the bed at Justin’s feet. Justin points to Britney’s
other side, kissing her cheeks and nose while he waits for JC to move there. “Are we…are we all sure about this? There’s no going back.”
“Yeah,” Britney sighs.
“Yeah.” Justin touches JC’s hand, and JC smiles
through clenched teeth. Justin leans
over Britney and kisses his lover’s mouth gently. “I love you, JC.”
“I love you, too.”
JC sighs and watches the love of his life make out with his childhood
sweetheart.
<<<<<>>>>>
Artificial insemination. Justin looked it up on the Internet. It would be fine, he convinced JC. Publicly Justin and Britney were single but
friendly. Whenever Britney dated and
dumped a new guy or Justin showed up on a red carpet with JC and 2 beards, the
tabloids made bets about how long Justin and Britney would take to finally get
back together. So no one would question
their decision to co-parent. Not that
they were planning on announcing it to the public, but they knew that
truths—most truths—have a way of getting out.
And there were benefits of Britney being the mother, Justin
insisted. With her busy schedule, they’d
have plenty of time alone with the baby.
Plus, she lived around the corner from the house JC still kept, though
he and Justin lived together across town.
Plus, the kid would have three doting parents instead of two. And more than six
grandparents. And it would be
gorgeous, a great dancer, and have a 50 % chance of being a great singer.
They talked about it for hours…and
days. JC was hesitantly optimistic from
the beginning, but he never said no.
Justin asked him at least a hundred times if he was absolutely positively
sure that he’d be ok with it. JC nodded
his head and finally screamed, “Yes! Yes!
Now call Britney before you drive me
crazy!” JC’s enthusiasm only waned when
he was shut out of a meeting with Justin’s lawyer, Britney’s lawyer, the
obstetrician, and all 3 of their publicists.
As a non-biological parent, it would be something he’d have to get used
to. Justin reassured everyone that JC
would be just as much a parent to this child as himself or Britney. JC nodded and watched the soon to be parents
drive away to draw up papers.
<<<<<>>>>>
It takes a while and the rest of the wine, but eventually
Justin and Britney are kissing with ease.
JC giggles at first, watching his lover kiss a woman whom he hasn’t
kissed in over 11 years.
Britney frowns when JC can’t stop laughing, but
Justin smiles.
“C’mon, dude!”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” JC whines as he catches his
breath.
“This is serious, man,” Justin says calmly. JC’s laughter stops immediately.
“I’m sorry, guys.
Maybe I shouldn’t—”
“Stay with me, C.”
Justin grabs JC’s hand desperately.
“Please.” JC nods and their
clutched hands fall…on Britney’s hip. Britney clears her throat. “OK.”
The kissing resumes, but this time it’s Britney who starts giggling. “Britney!” Justin
laughs.
“Oh, c’mon. It’s funny.
Who’d have thought that…you know.” Britney blushes and then quickly checks her
watch. “Um, we better get to it,
Justin. It’s already been 2 hours.”
“Yeah.” JC wonders if Justin has to force himself to
get Britney out of her clothes, or if it’s like riding a bike. The wine finally starts to work its magic,
and JC finally feels relaxed enough to move.
He figures he can at least make himself useful by getting Justin undressed.
<<<<<>>>>>
Britney cleared her schedule for a
year, had one bedroom painted blue and another pink, and showed up unannounced
one day with a freezable container, a Playgirl,
and a turkey baster.
She waited out by the pool while Justin called JC, who was in
The next month Justin sent another
sample by personal courier—Lance—who looked green when he handed over the
padded envelope, but discussed baby names with Britney for two hours
anyway. Lance’s suggestion: James for a
boy, Jamie for a girl. When Britney
showed him the turkey baster, Lance flew out the
door.
After three months with no results,
Britney went on fertility drugs.
<<<<<>>>>>
Justin smiles as he unclasps
Britney’s bra. “Haven’t
seen the girls in a looooong time.”
“Oh.
Um.”
Britney seems suddenly very shy, and JC again feels like the most
tertiary of third wheels. His impulse is
to leave, but his jealousy gets the better of him when Justin laughingly shoves
his head into her cleavage. “Tickles,
Justin!”
“I know it.” Justin looks over his shoulder and frowns at
his boyfriend’s worried face. “Jace—”
“No, go on, Justin. We should—you
should get it on—I mean! Um. Get to it.”
“Don’t you go anywhere,” Justin
whispers before descending on Britney’s trembling lips. JC isn’t sure whom the comment was directed
at, but he promises himself to stay, no matter how hard it may be to watch. With the wine it’s not so bad, almost like it
was back at the turn of the century, when he often watched Justin and Britney
holding hands or smooching. Luckily
Justin always was squeamish about PDAs, so JC never
had to see too much deep tongue kissing—like now—or worse. Sometimes imagining what Justin did to her was worse, though.
“Mmm.” It’s
not Justin’s usual happy moan, more like his drunkhappyfullbelly
sigh. Still, JC has to close his eyes
and sit a little away. He nearly clamps
his hands over his ears when he hears the smack of their wet lips.
“Oh.
Can you—”
“Wait, Brit, I can’t reach…um. C?” JC
counts to three and opens his eyes. “Can
you, um, get the zipper on, um, her pants, man?” Justin asks sheepishly.
“Sure.” JC slides down the bed, under the covers,
with them. He can see it from his
vantage point behind her, but it still takes him a while to get it down, what
with the staring at his lover over the mound of Britney’s blonde hair. JC sighs and gets her unzipped. He waits a bit, but Justin seems to be too
busy getting her blouse off to worry about the bottoms. So JC takes another deep breath and gently
pushes down Britney’s pants.
“Thanks, baby.” Justin smiles at JC as he kisses Britney’s
shoulder. A large hand slides over her
bare hip and lands on JC’s lower back, pulling him closer, forcing JC to spoon
Britney.
“Justin, wait—”
“Jace, I
want you here. We want you here. Right?”
“Um.” Britney pulls away from Justin’s neck and
looks over her shoulder. “He—you, uh,
should make yourself more comfortable.”
She smiles shyly at JC and rubs her backside against JC’s front.
“Oh.” JC suddenly feels overdressed. “Ok.”
He looks at Justin’s hand on his leg as he slowly pulls off his shirt. He’s nervous and embarrassed and strangely
somewhat turned on, too. He has to turn
away a little to get his pants off, then he pauses to
consider the rest. Yesnomaybewhywhynot, and then the
briefs are gone. When JC turns back, his
bedmates are naked, blushing, and touching.
JC gasps before he can stop himself.
“JC.” Justin’s eyes are wide and blue and unsure,
making him look much younger than his 32 years.
“C, we can stop now if you want.”
“But—I mean, yeah,” Britney
sighs. She glances at JC briefly. “There’s always next year.”
“No.
Go on.” JC moves to Justin’s side
and starts kissing the back of his lover’s neck. “Go on,” he whispers. “You’re gonna make a baby,” JC says strongly,
determined to convince them as well as himself.
“Make us a baby, Justin.”
“All right,” Justin whispers.
<<<<<>>>>>
It had been nearly 6 months and Britney
started to get restless. Her career was
not going to wait any longer. She had
one last appointment with the fertility specialist before she had to leave town
to work on her next movie—for 4 months.
As it would be her last chance to get pregnant that year, Britney was
overly anxious. She showed up at Justin
and JC’s the Friday evening before her Monday morning appointment carrying a
thick book titled Assisted Reproductive Technologies and the Single,
Successful Woman. JC and Justin sat
on the couch and watched her pace back and forth. They let her talk. They let her babble. They let her wear a groove in their carpet. Then, just to illustrate yet again, Britney
took her temperature.
“Oh, shit.”
“What?” JC and Justin gasped in
unison.
“I think I’m ovulating. Right now.”
She’d been timing everything
perfectly for weeks. This was supposed
to happen in two days, not now, she explained as she tore through her
bag for the ovulation detection kit. Ten
minutes later it was confirmed, and all 3 sat in confused silence. As she’d only be fertile for the next 48
hours, her chances of conceiving Monday would be greatly reduced. JC tried to console her, tell her that there
was still a chance, but Britney was already resigned to disappointment. Justin suggested an emergency visit to the
clinic, but Britney reminded him that they were closed for the weekend, and her
doctor was out of town skiing with her girlfriend—Britney knew because she’d
already left several messages.
“Maybe we could use a different
doctor,” JC offered.
“All the paperwork is at the
clinic. Using anyone else would be too
great a security risk. And I’m leaving
Monday night.” Britney laid her hands on
her exposed, rippled abdomen. “I guess
this wasn’t going to happen. Not this year anyway.”
She looked up at Justin and shrugged miserably. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault, Brit,” Justin
sighed. He looked at JC. “You Ok, C?”
“Maybe you could—”
“No, it’s too late—”
“Maybe you could just get her
pregnant the old fashioned way,” JC said like he was thinking it and didn’t
mean to say it out loud. Britney
coughed. Justin did a double take. JC opened his mouth to retract it, but
somehow it came out as, “It’s not like you’ve never done it before.” JC’s eyes widened, but he couldn’t stop
himself. “I mean, you know, like, since
you’re here and already ovulating and um, you know…um. Yes.”
“Did he…I mean…do you know what
you’re suggesting?” Britney asked.
“I think so.”
“Are you high?” Justin whispered,
loudly.
“No.
Um.” JC
looked at Justin and then at Britney, and then at her flat stomach. He swallowed his reservations and remembered
the baby booties he’d been secretly knitting.
“You know what, I’m going to open a bottle of wine, and then we’ll talk
about this.”
“But, baby—”
“Just…I’ll be right back.”
Half an hour, several glasses of
wine, and a lot of nervous arguing later, Britney seemed convinced, JC was
optimistic, and Justin was still shaking his head no.
“JC, you do know that you’re suggesting that I…uh…have sex with another person.”
“Yes,” JC sighed, for the
fifty-seventh time.
“Like, sex, baby. With my…in her—”
“Oh my god, don’t even say it,”
Britney groaned, and gulped the rest of her glass.
“I get that, yes.” JC looked out the window at his and Justin’s
pool. It’d look really nice with some
inflatable toys in it. “It’s not
cheating if I give you permission.”
“Wait a minute.” Justin pulled JC into the kitchen for
privacy. He rubbed his hands over his
face and sighed noisily. “Jace, look at me.”
He took his lovers face in his hands.
“Honey, I’ve never cheated on you, and you know I never will.”
“I know, baby.”
“I don’t want to cheat on you.”
“It’s not—I’m giving you
permission. Besides, it’s not like—I
mean—it’s for a reason, you know? It’s
for our baby, Justin.” Justin’s
concerned grimace fell a little. “I know
you…love me.”
“I love you more than anything, JC,”
Justin said loud enough for anyone in the house to hear. JC smiled proudly.
“Thanks.” They embraced. “I love you, sweetheart. That’s why I’m…doing this.”
“JC, we could always wait until
Britney comes back to town.”
“You want to wait another year?”
“It’s only 4 months. Five tops.”
“No, J. You’ve waited so long, and I know how much
you want a baby of your own.”
“I thought we
both—”
“I want this, too, Justin.” JC smiled as he let the certainty set
in. “I really want this.” JC smiled bashfully. “Plus, we’d better have this kid now, or else
I’ll be too old to pick it up in a few years.”
“Shut up.” Justin kissed his husband on the cheek. Then he took a step back, cocked his head and
searched his lover’s eyes. Finally he
nodded. “Ok, JC. I’ll have…sex,” Justin grunted with a squinched up nose, “with Britney.”
JC’s stomach flipped, but he smiled
and muttered a soft, “Ok.”
“Let’s go, then,” Justin snapped,
grabbing JC’s hand. “You’re going to
watch!”
“Ok—what??”
JC expected Britney to bolt once
Justin announced, “We only do this if JC is there, in the room with me, with
us, to watch. And supervise. I mean it, Brit. It’s not negotiable. JC is going to be a parent to this child, and
I want him there, or else I won’t—Brit?
Where are you—oh. Yeah, uh, that’s right, our bedroom is
upstairs, fourth door on the left.”
Justin looked at a very surprised JC.
“She took that well!”
“Uh-huh.”
“Well, I guess this is it.” Justin looked down at his crotch almost
apologetically.
“Man,” JC sighed proudly, “you’re
gonna be a great father.”
Justin smiled and reached out for
his lover’s hand. “So will you, JC.”
<<<<<>>>>>
JC doesn’t know what to do, where to lie, where to put
his hands. It’s been so long since he’s
been naked and in bed with anyone other than Justin, he feels insecure—for many
reasons. He’s at once a voyeur and a
participant, wiping Britney’s long hair out of her face when she sighs, or
stroking Justin’s cock with a firm hand when Justin asks for it. Watching Justin and Britney kiss is the
hardest thing, like it was around 1999, when Justin and Britney first started
dating and JC realized that he hated her for it.
When Justin asks Britney if “you want me to…you
know…before we…” JC wonders suddenly if Justin’s missed this—women—all these
years. Britney smiles and pushes
Justin’s head down her stomach. Then she
looks over at JC and turns blood red.
“Oh! You don’t
mind, do you, JC?” Britney squeaks, hips undulating.
“Um.” JC can’t tear his eyes away from Justin’s
closely shorn head between Britney’s legs.
“Not at all.”
JC tries to imagine that they’re two porn actors on his
TV screen, and hey, isn’t that guy hot, and doesn’t he have a great smile,
and her body’s as hard as a 19 year old pop princess, and look at her lips on
his—dammit!
Justin lets her blow him, just for a few seconds, and then he stops her
and pushes her on her back.
“It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?” Justin asks
coyly. Britney wipes her mouth
sheepishly. “Jace…honey?”
JC doesn’t need to be asked twice. He gladly slides down the bed to take
Justin’s penis into his mouth. The hiss
and arched back make him smile proudly.
He shows off a little, lets Britney watch him excel the way she never
could, because it takes having one to know one. Britney lays her head on Justin’s chest and
gently scratches her long nails through JC’s scalp as she watches. It feels oddly calming. JC sees her big eyes and suddenly feels
guilty for showboating. He kisses
Justin’s swollen cock, then both testicles, says a little prayer for the best
swimmer in bunch, and moves away to give Justin room to slide between Britney’s
legs.
“Ok?” Justin whispers down at Britney’s anxious face.
“Yes,” she answers, and Justin looks at JC next to him.
“Ok, baby?” JC
can’t speak, so he nods quickly. He
wasn’t expecting the swell in his chest when Justin slides easily inside
her. Nor was he expecting the long,
restless groan coming from both of them.
Britney hisses when Justin fills her completely. Justin strokes her cheek before kissing her
discomfort away. It’s hard for JC to
watch, but he can’t leave now. Not when
he might have Justin’s daughter or son in his arms this time next year.
“Oh! Oh…Just…God,” Britney sighs, squirming and graceless underneath
Justin, like she’s forgotten how to latch on to him after so many years. Embarrassment shows on her face—she looks
almost like she might cry. JC hesitates,
then moves next to her.
“It’s ok, Brit,” JC whispers into her hair. “Relax, hon.” Britney gives JC a withering look, but
it goes away quickly when he links his fingers through hers as they slide over
Justin’s back.
Justin goes slowly at first. It’s awkward for all of them, but pleasantly
nostalgic. Justin and Britney share a
sweet smile between gentle kisses. JC
looks away, but continues stroking Britney’s hair.
“Hi, there,” JC hears Justin whisper to Britney. She doesn’t answer. JC can hear the smack of their lips. “You ok?”
She squeaks and arches her back.
JC strokes her arm soothingly, anxious for something to do, but he still
won’t avert his eyes from her mass of hair.
“Like old times, huh?”
“Yeah.” Britney’s arm moves away from JC’s side, up
to clutch Justin’s neck.
“We’re gonna make a baby tonight, Britney.” Justin sounds so sincere, so happy, that JC
can’t hate him, won’t let his jealousy take over. He swallows his insecurities and sniffs
against Britney’s trembling shoulder. He
smiles bashfully and thinks, Yeah, Justin
inside me makes me tremble, too.
“Mmm. You like that?”
“Yeah,” Justin answers, his eyes closed in
concentration. When he looks down at
Britney he almost laughs. “Do you like
it?”
“Yeah.”
“Do you like
it?”
“What?” JC snaps
out of his haze to catch Justin leaning toward him. Justin catches his lips in a tender kiss
without missing a stroke.
“JC…baby.” Justin
smiles bashfully. “How am I doin’, man?”
“You’re doin’ real good,” JC
whispers, then he looks down at Britney.
“Right?”
“Riiiigh…oh. Oh.”
Britney looks a little lost. Her
hands stop on Justin’s shoulders like they’re unsure where to go. “I’m sorry you have to…I mean…oh…I hope this
works. For us. All three of us.”
“Brit.” JC’s third wheel suddenly doesn’t seem so out
of place. He stretches out next to
Britney and kisses her cheek, then whispers, “Thank you, hon.”
Eventually the awkwardness and the giggles pass, and for
a moment it’s just pure out-and-out fucking.
JC tries to give Justin room to maneuver, but Justin calls his boyfriend
back to his side with pleading eyes and grunts of, “Kiss me, sweetness.” JC does, then moves
over to kiss Justin’s tired lower back.
He leaves a few kisses on Britney’s tattooed ankle, too.
“Oh…are you close, Brit?”
“No, but I guess—”
“No, I’ll wait for you.
It’s only fair,” Justin says with a charming grin. He leans down to kiss her breasts and to get
deeper inside her. JC is so proud.
When Justin finally comes, JC is so full of emotion that
he thinks he might cry. He can’t deny
that it’s beautiful to watch his lover shiver and groan as he plants his
seed. He’d cheered them on near the
end—now he feels like applauding at how gracefully their bodies come to rest
and then separate. Justin is still breathing
hard when he and JC prop Britney’s legs up so she can hold them to her
chest. Then Justin collapses on the
other side of the bed. Britney hugs her
legs as she nibbles her bottom lip.
“Are you…ok?”
“Yeah.” Britney catches her breath and finally looks
JC in the eye. “Yes. I’m ok.
Thanks, JC.” She wriggles around,
looking slightly unbalanced, so JC stretches out next to her and lays a strong
arm under her knees. She smiles at him
thankfully and rests her arms on her chest.
“Thanks.”
“How long do you have to stay, um, in this position?” JC
asks softly.
“I think maybe 20 minutes,” Britney whispers, then tries
to blow the hair out of her eyes. JC
curls around her and uses his free hand to wipe the loose strands from her
sweat-damp forehead. “Thank you,
JC. You’re being really sweet.”
“I’m a sweet guy,” JC jokes, but it warms his heart to
hear it nonetheless. Britney smiles at
him shyly.
“You really are.”
Justin is snoring a little, a sure sign that he’s only
temporarily exhausted, and will probably be ready for another session in about
half an hour, JC tells Britney.
“Yeah, I remember,” Britney whispers as she stretches her
neck. JC adjusts the pillow for her, and
Britney thanks him with a sweet smile.
“When you guys were touring, he’d be so tired that sometimes he’d fall
asleep before I even, um, finished.”
“I know, he told me,” JC giggles. Britney flushes briefly, but then she
giggles, too. She scoots closer to JC.
“I guess he never does that with you, huh?”
“Um, no.” JC supports Britney’s thighs as she stretches
out her legs over her body. Then he sits
in front of her to let her rest the backs of her legs against his chest. That’s when JC remembers that he’s naked,
too.
“JC.” Britney cocks her head and looks at JC from a
different angle. He blushes, a little
unnerved, a little intrigued. “JC. Did Justin tell
you everything that went on between
us?”
“Uh, I don’t know.”
Yes, he thinks, but decides to
keep that to himself.
“Did he tell you that…um.” Britney nibbles her lips, and covers her
breasts demurely like she’s just now remembering that JC is seeing her naked
for the first time. “Did Justin tell you
that I…that I was jealous of you?”
“You were?”
“Yeah. I guess I resented all of you a little
bit. But you
especially.”
“Oh.” JC smiles,
but not to gloat. He knows how she
feels. “Are you comfortable? Do you need another pillow?”
“JC…I just…I’m sorry if I was ever, um, mean. About anything. To you.” Britney
shrugs and lets her hands fall down to her sides. She shakes her boobs a little, eliciting a
giggle and a raised eyebrow from JC. “I
always envied how close you two were. I
wanted Justin all to myself back then.
Know what I mean?”
“I think I do.”
“Really?” Britney squeaks,
sounding almost 19 again.
“Yeah. And you weren’t mean or anything…to me. You were always very friendly to me, Britney.
“So were you.”
Justin snorts and rolls on his stomach.
His current and former lovers snicker and snuggle together under the
sheets. “God. He’s always the first person to complain
about someone else’s snoring—”
“And he refuses to admit that he does it, too!”
“Yeah!” Britney laughs
heartily. It makes JC smile at her. “What?”
“It’s just…we haven’t heard you laugh, like that, in a
long time.” Britney nods and lays her
head on JC’s chest. “You’ve been
stressed.”
“We all have.”
It’s quiet for a few seconds save the intermittent buzzing from the
other side of the bed. “JC?”
“Yeah?”
“Are we doing the right thing?” She looks up at JC with suddenly worried eyes. “I mean…what if I screw it up? What if I suck as a mom? I’ve already been married 3 times, and I’m
only 31 years old!”
“Sh, Brit. C’mon.
It’s gonna be great. You and
Justin—you’re gonna be great parents.”
“Yeah.” Britney smiles. Her fingertips make circles on JC’s
chest. “What about you? Did you ever want to have a kid? I mean, you know, of your own, like, biolloogically?” They both giggle, still a bit drunk.
“I dunno.” JC shrugs.
“This will be your child, too.”
“I know.”
“Really, JC.” Britney pulls JC forward, so they’re eye to
eye. “I mean it. I couldn’t ask for a better co-parent than
you.” JC gasps; it’s the nicest thing
she’s ever said to him.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” They share a smile. And then an embrace. And then a short kiss on the cheek. “I know we haven’t always been, um,
close. Not like me and Justin,
anyway.” JC nods his head as he plays
with Britney’s hair. “But if this
works…I mean. I hope we—you
and me—can. Um. Get along.
I mean, more than get—you know what I mean?”
Britney asks.
“I know what you mean.” JC smoothes Britney’s hair down to her neck. His fingers follow the curve up to her face,
where they trace her curled lips. “I’d
like that, Brit.”
“So would I.” It’s
a minute before JC realizes that they’re staring at each other. Britney ends it with a cleared throat. “So, do you want a boy or a girl?”
“I want a healthy baby,” JC says emphatically. “But if it’s a girl, I hope she looks just
like you.”
“Aw.” Britney
tilts her head just enough to give JC a quick smack on the lips. “You always know how to cheer me up.” JC ducks his head. “You’re a great guy.” She looks down at her long nails scratching
designs on JC’s stomach. “I feel bad
for…when I was younger…wishing that you weren’t…I mean…resenting your
relationship with Justin.”
“Brit, you don’t have to say—”
“I just want to clear the air, you know?
“Oh.”
“I used to be so jealous.
I wanted Justin to love me…the way he always loved you. It took me a while, but I know that you two
were meant for each other.” JC knows how
hard an admission this is for her. So he
tries it out himself.
“I, uh, I know what you, uh. I’ve been there, Brit.” Her hand stops moving on his stomach, but he
can still feel her breath on his chest.
“I used to be jealous of you.” JC
sighs and whispers into her hair, “Maybe sometimes I still am.” Britney sits up and looks pointedly at JC,
like she’s going to protest. Then she
cocks her head and seems to really think about what JC just said. She looks down at herself, her life-giving
breasts, and the flat plane of her stomach that she hopes will be swollen very
soon. Then she nods with realization.
“I understand, JC.”
She touches his face to make him look her in the eye. “I’ve never considered how hard this will be
for you, not being bound to this child by blood. But JC, Justin is bound to you. No matter what. That will never change.” She smiles, and for a second she reminds JC
of the 11 year old girl he met for the first time on a soundstage. “He loves you so much. I would never try to come between that. Never.”
“Thank you,” JC grunts around the lump in his throat, and
then he pulls Britney down into a tight, long-overdue hug. They giggle a little at the silliness of
their timing—they should have had this talk years ago.
“Are we ok now?” Britney asks cautiously.
JC musters his nerve and looks her in the eye. “Do you still love Justin?”
“Oh, JC.” She gives him a look that clearly says silly
boy. “I love him. I love him like this.” Britney kisses JC quick on the mouth, the way
she always kisses Justin hello/goodbye.
The way JC always hated that she thought she had the right to kiss
him. “I don’t love love him. Not
anymore. Not for years.” She touches his nose affectionately. “Ok?”
When JC nods appreciatively, she snickers, “Were you worried?”
“No! Well, I don’t
know. Not worried really. Just…insecure sometimes.”
“Don’t be, JC. You’re wonderful.” JC rolls his eyes. Then he looks at her and sees
authenticity. It looks good on her.
“You don’t have to say that,” JC whispers as heat creeps
up his face.
“It’s true, JC.
You’re a great person. It’s like, no wonder Justin loves you so much, you know?” JC kisses the corner of her mouth in
gratitude.
“Thanks for saying that, baby.”
“I have a confession,” Britney whispers sneakily. “Justin’s not the only one who had a little
crush on you back in the day.”
“Oh yeah?” JC is starting to like the validation.
“Yeah,” Britney squeaks as she pulls on one of JC’s
curls. “My first week on MMC, I
totally thought you were hot!”
“Oh my God!” JC giggles through
a pretty blush. “I don’t know what to
say!”
Britney watches JC with a smile on her face. When he calms down, she touches his cheek and
states, “Your eyes disappear when you smile.”
“Yeah, when I’m really happy.”
“You’re happy now?” she whispers.
“Mmm hmm.”
“I’m glad, JC.”
She kisses him softly. “I want
you to be happy, too.” JC, comfortable
and completely secure with Britney for the first time in years, sighs happily
and gathers her in his arms.
“You deserve to be happy, baby. One day you’ll meet the man of your dreams.”
“I doubt it.”
Britney sighs and rubs her nose against JC’s. He sighs back and kisses her cheek. “I’ve about given up on men. You and Justin got the last good ones.”
“Oh, hon, you’re too
sweet.” JC pulls her to him so they can
share a friendly kiss. “You’ll find him,
I know it. You’re ambitious and
confident and sweet and hot and gorgeous—”
“You think I’m gorgeous?” Britney peeps, and then
hiccups, still a bit tipsy.
“Of course. You’re…you know…beautiful, girl.”
“You’re beautiful, too.”
Britney nods, and then JC nods, and then they both smile. And then they kiss again. It’s playful and soft and just past
platonic. “You’re a really beautiful
guy.” Another kiss,
softer but longer than before. JC
is too happy with current developments and impending fatherhood to mind the
kissing. And it does feel nice. Britney has really soft lips. And really soft skin. And really soft fingers on
his face. And really soft, full
breasts that he accidentally touches, which makes her start.
“JC.”
“Sorry.”
“No, it’s. I just
need to.” She rolls on her back. “I just, um, it hasn’t been 20 minutes yet,
so.” She smiles shyly and wraps her arms
around JC’s neck. He scoops her legs up
to press them to her chest, but with her pulling him and him pushing her, he
ends up on top of her, between her legs.
And there’s something else she has that’s really, very, wonderfully
soft.
“Oh.” He looks
down at her, and she suddenly looks like someone else, someone he’d have slept
with back in his straight-um-well-bi-actually-maybe-not days. She runs her hands up and down his arms,
which are holding him up over her, just out of her reach. “Hi,” he whispers.
“Hi.” She pulls
him down on top of her. It’s been over a
decade since JC has felt a naked woman underneath him. It’s been almost a decade since he’s felt
anyone but Justin underneath him, male or female, naked or otherwise. They close their eyes and just press their
mouths together. JC wonders if this is
how Britney consummates all her new-old
purely platonic friendships. Maybe he’ll
call Christina Aguilera to find out.
“Maybe I shouldn’t—am I too heavy?”
“You’re fine, JC.”
Britney plays with his hair, smiling at the curls encircling her
fingers.
“You like curly hair,” JC says, not at all considering that this may remind her of Justin.
“I like your hair, JC.
I like all of you. I always did.”
“Oh.” JC’s eyes
widen, and Britney giggles a bit.
“Not like that,
JC. I’m through with falling in love
with gay men.” She looks a little sad,
and JC feels a little guilty. He was,
after all, the one and only man Justin ever loved. So he kisses her. And she kisses back. And wraps her legs around
him. And slides
her belly up against him. Then
she gasps.
“Mmmph…sorry!”
“No, it’s…mmmm. Wow, JC.”
Britney lies flat so she can look down between their bodies. “Nice,” she murmurs. JC doesn’t even blush. There’s no extra blood in his body to rush to
his face. “You’ve been ha…all this time,
haven’t you, sweetie?”
“Yeah,” JC hisses, because, girl or boy, skin on skin
feels real good.
“Did you like watching us?”
“I did.” They kiss
again. JC is confused, but he’s used to
the feeling, so he goes with it. Britney
squirms underneath him, and JC wonders momentarily if she’s trying to excite
him or get away from him. His question
is answered when he feels her soft hand between his legs.
“Is this ok?” Britney asks, and she manages to blush
through her lustful smile.
“Yes,” JC answers before he can think about it. They French kiss while JC tries to forget
that this is his lover’s ex and best girlfriend underneath him, licking his
open mouth, gently stroking his cock like it’s not the most unlikely thing in
the world.
“All this time,” she whispers as her hand slows down but
squeezes, “you were…mmm. Why didn’t you join in?”
“Um.” JC looks quickly out of the corner of his eye
to Justin’s dozing body. “I didn’t think
I…I mean…it wasn’t my place to—”
“Did you want to?”
“Well,” JC hisses when Britney’s hand slides up and
down. “I, uh…Brit, what are we doing?”
“I’m sorry—”
“No, I just didn’t want to—”
“I just…we…I really…I feel…wanted to share this. With you.” Britney blushes and removes her hand. JC suddenly realizes he doesn’t want her to.
“Britney.” She looks up at him with eyes that are both
sympathetic and shameless. “You’re
really sweet, you know that?” JC quickly
thinks years ahead, to the day that this child that the 3 of them are making
will be sat down and told “where babies come from”, and he can honestly say
that, yes, daughter-or-son, I was there,
too. So he smiles and kisses
her. He also puts her hand back where he
wants it.
“May I?” JC whispers, his hand in the center of her chest
itching to move to the side. She lets go
of his penis, but before JC can protest she lifts his hand and places it on her
ample breast.
“You’ve got nice hands, JC.” She smirks as he squeezes, very lightly.
“You’ve got a nice rack, baby!”
“Hey, don’t you objectify me!” Britney teases. She squeezes him between her strong thighs,
making him moan, and states, “This is the mother of your child you’re talking
to.” JC’s breath
catches in his throat. His child. It’s the
first time anyone’s said that—it’s always been “Justin’s and Britney’s” or
“Justin’s and his”, or just “Justin’s.”
He tries to convey his feeling of gratefulness, but all he can utter is,
“Oh.” She frees his hands to explore on
their own. JC is careful, still unsure
of why or what or how, but he knows it feels nice. He can’t stop giggling a little, because he’s
still tipsy, and because this is just so weird, and because Justin is right
there, and because, well, it’s Britney.
“That feels nice,” Britney coos as she arches her
back. JC stares at the flesh in his
hands, and wonders suddenly what it would taste like. He starts to ask permission, but he’s
encouraged enough by the way she’s rubbing herself against him. So he kisses her neck, and then her
collarbone, and then a birthmark in the center of her chest. He figures by now she’ll get the hint, and
punch him in the stomach if he’s overstepping by going for her—
“Mmph.” JC’s a little surprised at the force with
which Britney thrusts her left breast into his mouth. She sighs contentedly and falls flat on the
bed.
“Go on.”
“Mmmkay,” he mumbles, careful
not to bite the swollen nipple. A little
saliva, a little tongue, and Britney’s legs seem to wrap around his hips,
holding him tight with no promise of giving him back. He inhales deeply—there’s a faint trace of Justin’s
scent still on her skin. He licks his
lips and considers where he might find a stronger, more tangible part of his
lover on Britney’s body.
“Jaaaaccccceeeeyyy.” He looks up quickly to find her sucking on
her finger. For a second it’s a little disconcerting,
like he’s looking at some circa 1999 fake Internet picture where someone
superimposed her somewhat virginal 17 year old head on a pornstar’s
body. He’d watched Justin mock those
things for months before he found out Justin was seeing the real thing, for
real, not just for publicity. It took JC
months to admit to himself that it wasn’t welcome
news. “JC…that’s nice.” Her eyes are heavy, and her hips are strong
underneath him. She cradles his face
with one hand, and then moves her finger from her own mouth to his lips. He watches her eyes close as she lubricates
her right nipple, getting it nice and wet and hard for him before she pushes
his head down to capture it between his lips.
She moans long and deep as he suckles her. Then he stops abruptly. “What?”
“The…our baby will…you know,” JC whispers as he
reverently kisses her full breast. “It’s
amazing.” She breathes loudly as she
watches him, squirming uncomfortably until his proud papa moment passes and his
dry, protective kisses go back to being wet, noisy, and covetous.
“Oh. Ooohhhhh,” she hisses at the long, curling swipes of tongue
over her swollen nipples. JC mentally
high fives himself—he hasn’t lost his touch with the ladies. Not that he’ll ever need to use his hetero
skills, but it’s nice to know he can still turn on a woman. By the way Britney is panting and arching her
back and pushing his head down, JC figures he may have even improved with
age. He touches and kisses her arms, her
sides, her hips, and her belly, all the while drawn to the strong scent of
Britney and Justin’s union. He looks up,
just to make sure, but she’s already spreading her legs.
“You want me to?” JC asks politely.
“If…if you want.
Do you? Wanna?” Britney teases as
touches herself. “I want you to,” she
coos. JC kisses her inner thighs and
thinks about Justin. He replaces her
hand with his own and thinks about watching Justin do this earlier. He strokes and teases her vulva and remembers
the sight of Justin slipping inside.
He’s not jealous at all anymore.
He’s too turned on to be jealous, too curious about what the reigning
pop diva tastes like to resent the ghost of his lover
still on her, inside her. Gently he
kisses her between her legs.
“Mmm.”
Another, longer, wet kiss.
“Shit, JC.”
Tongue.
“Oh my Goooooooo—”
“What’s goin—oh my—has hell
frozen over?” JC shrinks back, but is
caught from retreat by Britney’s strong thighs getting him in a tight,
surprised stranglehold. They freeze, eyes wide and amused as Justin yawns and sits up in
the bed. Once his eyes adjust, a huge
smile spreads across his face. “Well,
well, well. When the cat’s away, huh?”
“J, baby, um, I can explain,” JC grunts, starting to turn
red from embarrassment and lack of oxygen.
“It just happened, you know?” Britney squeaks. JC nudges her, and she giggles as she relaxes
her legs.
“Britney and I were, um, talking, and we’ve really
bonded—”
“Well, we’ve come to an understanding—”
“We’re really getting along better—”
“Plus, he’s a really good kisser—”
“And we—I am?” JC glances at Britney, and then smiles
bashfully.
Justin smiles and crawls over to them. He kisses Britney briefly on the cheek, then
JC on the mouth before whispering, “I want to watch.”
“Seriously. Seriously?”
“Yeah,” Justin sighs into JC’s mouth. “Kiss her again.” Justin nudges Britney until she lies back
again. JC looks at him with disbelief,
but he lets Justin push him back down on the bed, too. “Go on, baby.”
JC is careful with her.
He holds her hips as still as he can as he kisses her inner thighs, her mons, her labia. He slips another pillow beneath her, ensuring
that she does not lose what Justin worked so hard to plant within her. JC smiles as she groans and
grabs his hair—it’s been a very long time since he’s tasted a woman, and he may
be a bit overzealous, but Justin is right there, kissing his back and
encouraging him. With his lover’s
breath and weight on his back and a woman’s musky sweetness on his lips, JC
thinks he might come by sheer force of will.
“Oh. JC…oh.”
“She likes you,” Justin growls as he watches JC’s tongue
slip into Britney’s body. “Not too deep
baby.”
“Ohhh…plleeeaaaasseee.”
“Does she taste good, C?” Justin murmurs breathily.
JC licks his lips and whispers, “She tastes…like you,
baby.” Justin grins. “You’re all over her.”
“Oohh. C’mon.”
Both men look down at Britney, her hips undulating anxiously. She slides a hand down between her legs,
gingerly appeasing the flesh that JC’s mouth has awakened. “You got me so hot,” she sighs. She tilts her hips as her fingers open her
engorged lips. “Ohh…Jaaaaacccccyy.”
Suddenly her hand is back on JC’s cock.
She strokes it as she writhes on the bed, her big eyes glued to
his. Yes, it’s been a very long time
since he’s wanted a woman.
“Britney.”
“C’mon.”
“But.” JC looks at his lover. “J?”
“Yeah,” Justin sighs.
“Please do. If
it’s ok with you, Brit.”
“C’mon,” she sighs, pulling on him.
“I don’t think I—” JC is there,
on top of her, between her legs, grinding his unsatisfied erection against her
before he can finish his thought.
Britney is pretty strong. Her
legs clamp on him, and he’s caught between a rock and a very, very, soft, wet,
inviting place.
“We’re getting along so well,” Britney groans, and rubs
herself against JC’s eager body. “Justin…is
it alright?” Justin smiles and presses
JC’s body forward with a hand on his lower back. “It’s ok, JC.
Just do it. It won’t undo
anything, I promise. It’s just…for us.”
“Oh, Brit. Are you sure?” JC croaks, his hand ready to
guide his weeping flesh to hers like a reflex.
She nods emphatically and lifts her hips to meet him. “J…are you sure?”
“Baby…do it.” So JC does.
“Oh. OH!”
“Ssshhh, Brit,” Justin
coos. JC holds his breath as he slides
inside slowly, carefully, as he imagines pushing Justin’s swimmers forward
instead of displacing them. JC hisses at
the slickness, the warmth, the clinging that’s at once so new but also brings
back long-forgotten memories. JC pushes
forward, sliding his cock deeper into a woman whom he never in a million years
would have expected to be inside. He
can’t help smiling at the thrill of it.
He’s living out the dream of a billion men.
“You ok, Brit?” JC hisses. “Are you sure…this won’t…I mean…dislocate something?” JC giggles,
trying very hard to visualize his textbook diagrams of the internal female
reproductive system.
“Oh, that’s good,” Britney sighs as she arches, tilts, writhes, squirms, and then squeezes JC with
her vagina.
“Awww…fuck, yeah.”
“C’mon.
Faster.” Britney thrusts against
him and forces her tongue into JC’s mouth.
He’s just a bit startled, but he enjoys feeling wanted so much by
someone new. If a pseudo-friendly,
slightly competitive secondhand friendship of twenty years can be considered new.
“Damn. This is
so.”
“What?”
“Mmm,” JC hums as he kisses
her, partially because he’s so turned on, partially because he doesn’t want to
answer. This is weird, freaky,
unexpected, and surprisingly poignant.
Especially poignant is the look on Justin’s face. “Justin, baby, you
alright?”
“Yes,” Justin whispers.
He kisses his husband deeply, then pulls
away. His eyes are slightly wet. “JC…I love you.”
“I love you, honey.”
They both look down at Britney, who’s biting her lip like she’s trying
not to growl. “Thank you, Brit.”
“Aw, sweetie.” JC presses down on her, into her, fucking her
until she clamps down onto him tightly from arms to feet, with her mouth, her
fingers, her sex. “Aw, JC…make me…oh.” JC nods and slips his hand down between their
bodies without missing a beat. Justin
kneels next to them and watches happily as JC moistens his fingertips with her
wetness before gently pressing them to her throbbing clitoris.
“JC, you’re so beautiful,” Justin murmurs against his
lover’s neck. “I love watching you like
this.”
“Are you jealous?” JC whispers with a smile.
“Yes.”
“Good.”
“Hey! Remember
me?” Britney squeaks.
“Oh, yeah. I remember you,” JC groans into her mouth. “I haven’t forgotten you, baby.”
“Yeah?”
“Come with me?” JC asks/demands. Britney bites her lip and looks at Justin,
who lies down next to her and wraps a strong arm around them both. “Oh…Justin…I should—”
“Please,” Justin and Britney say together, pulling JC
into an awkward but sweet three-way kiss.
JC nods his head and lets go, lets go of all the jealously and the
insecurity and worry that he’s held onto over the years, lets it all go as he
lets himself go inside Britney, inside the future mother of Justin’s
child. He cries out Justin’s name as his
fingers stroke her into a body-shaking climax.
Justin answers him with soft kisses to JC’s face.
“Yes,” is all Britney can utter as she catches her
breath. Her eyes closed, her hips still
moving, she wraps shaking arms around JC’s neck. When he can look her in the eye, she
whispers, “Thank you, my friend.”
“Thank you, honey.
Thank you so much.” JC can’t
think of a way to convey how glad he is to be a part of his and Justin’s child,
so he doesn’t try. They kiss slowly for
a second, but Justin’s soft sniffle stops them.
“J?”
“I just…I don’t know.
I’m happy,” Justin whispers. He’s
not crying, but he’s that close.
Britney sighs loudly and wiggles a little underneath JC’s
weight. JC blushes as he moves to peel
away from her. “Sorry, I’m probably too
heavy—”
“Just a little,” Britney coos as she wipes the hair out
of JC’s eye.
“God, I’m sorry, I’ll just—”
“No. Don’t go
yet.” Britney wraps her legs around him,
pulling him so his lower body stays in contact with hers, so their bodies are
still connected, but with JC’s weight on his knees and hands. “Stay here with me. With us.”
“I’m, um,” JC mumbles, looking down at his softening
penis easing out of her body on its own.
Justin takes the initiative, propping the pillow underneath Britney’s
hips and carefully separating them with a gentle hand.
“There. Lay still,
Brit,” Justin murmurs as JC looks at him with a huge question in his eye. “JC. Is this ok?”
JC swallows, like that’s going to clear his ears.
“J…what…Brit?” JC looks from one to the other. “Really?”
“Why not?” Britney answers with
mock nonchalance. “Maybe your boys can
give Justin’s a run for their money, huh?”
“I don’t know what to say.” JC thinks he might really cry if he says
anything more, so he nods his head, and lays on Britney’s right side while
Justin takes the left. They cuddle up,
but JC utters a soft “thank you” before they all fall asleep.
In order to maximize opportunity, they decide to have sex
a few more times over the weekend. JC
says he’ll only watch, but he lets Britney have him one more time, with
Justin’s enthusiastic encouragement...and naked Justin rubbing up against his
ass the whole time.
By Sunday afternoon Britney says she feels like a
gangbanged porn star and has to stop. JC
and Justin take her home, put her to bed, and make themselves
useful around her house. They fix a
leaky faucet, take out the trash, and install childproof locks on all the
medicine cabinets. Just in case. Then they return to their home, take a hot
bath together, eat a steak, put on thick, sexless pajamas, and fall asleep with
nothing more than a chaste kiss.
Exhausted and sex-dizzy, Britney sleeps through her alarm
clock and only wakes up in time to throw on a tracksuit and head to the airport
with her entourage, her doctor’s appointment completely forgotten.
<<<<<>>>>>
<<<<<>>>>>
A Labor Day barbeque sounded like a good idea two weeks
ago, but now JC wishes that they’d just ordered out for pizza. Joey and Chris, who’d promised to be in
charge of the grill, are actually having too much fun chasing their combined 5
children around the pool to tend to the food.
Their wives and Lance’s boyfriend are upstairs in the theatre, catching
up and screening an advance copy of Justin’s soon-to-be-released movie. Between handling his business by cell phone
and tending bar, Lance is unable—unwilling, really—to help with the food. So JC is left to manage the grill by himself,
as Justin is too busy playing “host” to do anything else.
“J, can you bring me another platter for the turkey hot
dogs?” yells JC, tongs in both hands, eyes full of smoke. “Justin?
Justin!”
“Be right there, C.”
Justin fills a sippycup with heavily diluted
apple juice and hands it to Chris’s 3 year old daughter. “There you go, baby girl.” He kisses the child’s rosy cheek and
smilingly watches her toddle away to her father before returning to his cell
phone conversation. “As I was saying, I
already told my agent that I’m planning to take a lot of time off next year.”
“Justin, I could really use some help here!” JC
screeches.
“I’ll promote this film, of course. But I just want 2014 for myself. And my family.”
“Ow! I just burned myself!”
“Whatever happens,” Justin muses, “I’m gonna be a
homebody next year.”
“Justin! If you don’t get your little butt over here right now!” JC immediately regrets his outburst when all
the children in the backyard squeal and their parents frown at him. “Uncle JC’s sorry, kids,” he mumbles when
Justin heaves himself from his chair, clicks off his phone and rushes to his
side.
“Temper, temper!” Justin laughs
and squeezes JC around the middle.
“I’m sorry, but you’re not helping me, and I only have 2
hands, and I’m afraid the medium-well burgers are well done, and the kielbasa
burned my finger, and…and…ugh!”
“Calm down, sweetheart,” Justin giggles. “I’ll help you right—oh! There’s the phone. I’ll get it!”
JC watches Justin run into the house, and then he squeezes his eyes shut
and counts to twenty.
At twelve Joey takes over at the grill, so JC heads
inside to get more utensils. On his way
to the kitchen he catches sight of Justin in the den. He’s unsettlingly still, with his back to JC,
the phone dangling from the crook of his neck.
JC stops cold.
“J?” Justin turns
around suddenly. His eyes are red. “Oh my God, what is it?”
“C’mere,
honey.” JC rushes to his husband,
even though it feels like he’s walking through mud. “JC…it’s Britney.”
“What?” JC whispers, his heart pounding. “What happened to her?”
“We happened to her.” Justin drops the phone and embraces JC with
shaking arms. He waits for JC’s equally
anxious clinch before whispering, “She’s pregnant, baby.”
“Oh…Jus…oh.” JC’s throat tightens and his eyes start to
fill. He can’t help himself. “Congratulations, daddy,” he whispers before
giving his husband a soft kiss.
“You, too. Daddy.”
<<<<<>>>>>
<<<<<>>>>>
Fifteen months later…
The house is abnormally quiet save the gentle suckling
sounds of the baby in Justin’s arms—a boy with dark blue eyes and a few light
brown spirals on his head. Justin has
yet to master the correct way to hold a bottle, if the baby’s excessive gas and
spit up on Justin’s shirt are any indication.
Despite Justin’s lack of technique, the boy feeds like a trooper, like
he’s racing to finish his bottle. His competition,
a baby girl with a smattering of chocolate hair, looks up at JC with her
silvery blue eyes as she works on her own bottle. She takes a bit longer to feed, but she’s
much less messy than her fraternal twin brother. JC’s gaze travels from the baby girl to her
brother and back again. He’s still
amazed at how much two 6 month old babies can eat. There’s a week’s worth of expressed breast
milk in the freezer. Britney assured
them it would last while she sweated and herbal-detoxed
off the last 5 pounds of her pregnancy weight at an exclusive spa in
That kind of devotion, JC knows, is what is going to make
these babies flourish, what will strengthen them, what will overcome any
confusion that having 1 mother and 2 different fathers might bring. And what will certainly spoil these two babies
rotten.
“She looks like you,” JC murmurs as he tickles the little
girl’s plump cheeks.
“Baby, you know that’s impossible,” Justin laughs as he
rocks his son in the rocking chair that Britney’s new boyfriend made with his
own hands.
“She does, man.
She’s got your cocky smirk.”
“Don’t say cock in front of my daughter! She’s a lady!” At Justin’s outburst the boy in his arms
starts to cry. “Oh, don’t cry, baby! Daddy’s sorry!”
“Here, let’s switch.
You know he’ll only stop crying for me.”
Justin rolls his eyes and gently hands his son over to JC and then takes
his daughter. JC sits back on the couch
and coos for his son, and soon the boy quiets down and continues feeding. “That’s my boy.”
“He loves his daddy,” Justin says proudly.
“Yeah, he really does.”
JC kisses his son’s forehead, and Justin does the same to his daughter,
who yawns and smiles. “Man, are you sure
the doctors know what’s what? I’m
telling you, this girl has my personality.
She can’t help being the center of attention, unlike some people
we know!”
“Oh, please, you’re so droll,” JC says with a laugh. “But I know what you mean. Our son here really enjoys having his diaper
changed to retro acid house music, and Miss Thing over there seems to like
nothing but Snoop Dog nursery rhymes! I
don’t get it at all!”
“Don’t listen to him, baby girl,” Justin coos to his
daughter. “You’re mine, no matter whose
DNA you have.”
“That’s right,” JC whispers as he kisses the boy’s tiny
hands. “I love both my babies.” He looks down into his son’s dark blue
eyes. “Now, while we’re on the subject:
can you spell D-N-A?”
“Josh, stop it!”
“Quick! Go put in
the Infant Hooked on Phonics DVD!”
“You’re incorrigible!”
“Oh! SAT word!” JC picks the baby up and looks at him at eye
level. “Sound it out, son, sound it
out…”
“Your father is going to drive us all insane,” Justin
says to his daughter. She smiles up at
him with shimmering silver eyes and pats his face with her tiny hand. “Wow.
Look at this family of mine. I
never knew I could love anything this much.
Jace?”
“—I want you both conjugating verbs before
kindergarten. Yes, baby?”
“You think Britney wants some more kids?”
“Oh, baby.”
“I think I’m gonna want at least 2 more.”
“Maybe we should ask Britney about it when these two are
a little older,” JC giggles.
“Yeah, maybe we should.” Justin holds his daughter close and nuzzles
her hair. It’s identical to JC’s in
color and texture, but the scent of peach baby shampoo and the basketball bib
she wears are all Justin. He looks over
at JC kissing their son’s tiny feet, which are sure to grow enormously in about
15 years. The little boy blows bubbles
as JC coos corny little alternative family-friendly nursery rhymes to him. Then JC looks up at his husband with the
sweetest, most sincere smile that Justin has ever seen. Justin bites his lip and murmurs, “Or…we
could adopt.” JC’s eyes disappear into
silvery-blue pools, but he doesn’t answer.
He simply sniffs, nods his head and hugs his baby son to him before
wiping his eye. Justin does the same
with his daughter. “Yeah, that’d be just
fine.”
Copyright ©
October 11, 2004 by KTA
Started: August 17, 2003
Finished: October 11, 2004