Twenty minutes to show time, JC thought as he walked out into the hallway where everyone was waiting for him to get the traditional game of hack going. The group formed a circle as JC produced the well worn and beaten hack. I hope she’s safe in the bus. He shook his head, trying to stomp down the wayward thought and keep his mind at the task at hand. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Mike step into the hallway and stand, leaning back against the wall with arms folded across her chest, with a look of barely subdued fear. JC glanced over at Chris and caught the older man’s eye, then nodded toward Mike. Chris turned and glanced at her and sighed heavily.

“I’ll be back guys.” he told them as he walked down the hall to meet up with her. Chris stopped in front of her with an inquiring look. “You okay?”

“Yeah. That bus just gets a little creepy without you guys to make it a place of fun filled sarcastic whit and all that jazz.” Mike shrugged, not daring to meet his eyes.

“Mike,” he started with a sigh. She looked up and gazed at him, lower lip trembling slightly. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing.” Mike shook her head in barely subdued exasperation. “Nothing at all is wrong. Honest Chris. Have I ever lied to you before?”

Chris’s shoulders slumped slightly as he gave her a look of reproach.

“Don’t answer that.” she sighed, reverting back into herself.

“You want me to ask Gus to hang around here with you?” Chris inquired suddenly. Gus was her favorite bodyguard of theirs and had been for years. He was someone she could trust though she didn’t want to take away from the safety of the group and it’s members.

“No, you guys need him more than I do. You have to worry about screaming, hysterical fans. I just have to worry about the shadows.” Mike waved a dismissive hand in the air with a shake of her head.

“That’s not the point, Mike.” Chris shook his head, yanking on the neon ninja suit he was wearing with an obvious look of embarrasses dismay.

“What happened to Chichi?” she raised an eyebrow, arms folding again protectively across her chest.

“I’m trying to talk you into feeling safe. I didn’t think using Chichi would help. Gus will stay with you, we’ll be fine. Okay?” Chris shrugged, peering down at her with a little more than a small worry.

“Fine. I’m not going to argue with you.” Mike gave him a hesitant smile. Chris reached out to hug her, but stopped short.

“I’ll talk to you later, Chichi. In the mean time, make yourself comfortable in the dressing room. Some reporters are around, but they should leave you alone if they know you’re a fan or something.” Chris stated as he turned back to walk over to the guys again.

“I’m sorry, Moo.” Mike sighed softly when he was out of earshot. She watched as Chris walked over to Gus, who stood guard near the entrance of the stage, and talked to him for a few moments. Chris gestured toward her and Gus nodded, glancing over at her. She forced a smile and waved to the huge, burly man. She glanced over at the dilapidated hack circle and noticed Lance and Joe talking among themselves while Justin paced up and down the hallway. JC, feeling someone’s gaze on him, looked over at her with a raised eyebrow. She shook her head as if to say nothing was wrong and turned her back on him. After a few minutes, Gus stood beside her with a small smile.

“So, I guess we’re in for the long haul tonight, eh Gus?” Mike stated conversationally. He nodded, arms folded across his massive chest.

“I hate talking to a brick wall, mind using your vocal chords for something useful by keeping me from panicking?” Mike raised an eyebrow as she eyed the hack circle about ten feet away from her.

“Alright Michaela, as long as I’m here, you have nothing to worry about. How’s that?” Gus grinned at her as he leaned back against the wall next to her.

“That was better. Say, you wouldn’t want to go find a place to grab some grub would you?” Mike raised a hopeful eyebrow. She had been craving Mexican all week and being that she was on tour with a group of men who were too popular for their own good, she hadn’t been able to get anything Mexican to satisfy her craving and make it dissipate.

“Um, sure. I don’t see why we can’t.” Gus shrugged uneasily.

“Lead the way Iron Man.” Mike gestured ahead of her. The two left as unobtrusively as they came in. People barely took notice of their absence. They found a nice Mexican restaurant about seven miles from the venue and Mike sat down in a booth to get something to munch on, though she refused to eat until Gus joined her. With a reluctant smile, the bodyguard did so. After an hour of eating and intermittent talking with sporadic bursts, they headed back to the venue to await the group leaving the stage and the hundreds of adoring fans that had come out to see them. They hadn’t been in the dressing room for more than ten minutes when Steven, the tour manager, bustled into the dressing room and told everyone to get on the bus, ‘N Sync would be leaving the stage in ten minutes.

“Gus, I know this is where you come into play. I’ll be alright for ten minutes. I’ll see you on the bus.” Mike gave him a tentative smile as she headed for the side door that lead out into the alley where the tour bus was waiting. He nodded silently, taking his stance, as the young woman disappeared out into the alley.

Mike took out a pack of cigarettes and lit one. It was a nasty habit, one that she had quit years ago, but somehow it was the kind of stress reliever she needed. She took a drag and exhaled the smoke slowly as her eyes darted around to make sure there were no threats in the shadows that seemed to crawl all over the place. I used to be a night owl. God, look at what’s happened to me. You can’t even stand outside after the sun goes down without your imagination getting the best of you. Mike shook her head, taking another drag off the cigarette then decided she had had enough of the cancerous vice and stubbed it out. She took a step toward the bus but stopped short when she noticed something out of her peripheral vision. A familiar form, burly and lanky at the same time, with a crop of longish dark hair wearing a fraternity jacket with the Greek symbols in bright yellow/gold. Her heart leapt into her throat as she turned to see David standing at the end of the alley. He took a couple of steps toward her, hands stuffed into the pockets of his jacket.

“What are you doing here? How did you find me?” she demanded taking a step backwards from him.

“It wasn’t very hard. You made it no secret that you and Chris from this boy group were best friends. I knew you had to be with them because you had no place else to go. Especially after your parents disowned you because of me.” he told her with a smirk, taking another step closer.

“You have to leave me alone.” Mike stated firmly, taking another step back.

“Oh, believe me I will. I just wanted to say one thing before until we meet up again.” David shrugged taking another step forward.

“Yeah? What’s that?” Mike took another step backward. David’s hand snaked out and grabbed her arm in a vice like grip. She swallowed a cry of shock and pain as she gazed at him, pretending to be stronger than she actually was.

“Every time a man tries to touch you, you will remember me. You’re ruined for anyone else. Remember that.” David stated icily before he shoved her away from him and walked away from her. Her hand flew to her chest, trying to still her sporadically beating heart. Her face was pale, she could feel it, and she was shaking like a leaf. The side door opened and the group rushed out and climbed onto the bus. JC noticed her and stopped.

“Hey Mike, you okay?” he inquired as he stepped over to her.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Mike nodded a little too quickly, taking a step backward. JC stopped dead in his tracks, a foot in front of her.

“Um, okay. We gotta go. Come on.” JC nodded toward the bus. She nodded distractedly, hugging herself to keep from shaking, as she climbed into the bus. She walked to the back of the bus, where she could be alone, and flipped on the tv. Nothing was on, so she chose a movie to put in to keep her mind at bay.

“That was a good show. Hardly any mistakes.” Justin commented as he flopped down tiredly on one of the chairs near the kitchen/dinning area. A towel was draped along his shoulders to mop the sweat from his face and neck.

“Yeah, but we need to work on the whole ‘I Want You Back’ routine. We’re getting kind of sloppy out there.” JC shrugged, being the ever present perfectionist of the friends.

“I have to agree with JC on that one. We’re starting to forget some of the moves because we’re so used to them.” Chris nodded in agreement with a sigh. Everyone turned to give him a peculiar look as if to ask if he was feeling okay.

“What? I can’t be serious every once in a while?” Chris demanded as he climbed to his feet to walk to the bunk area.

“No, its just, you never take JC’s side if there’s any kind of work involved.” Justin stuttered with a shrug, unsure of what was going on with his friend. Chris gazed at the younger man for a moment before turning and leaving the room.

“Its been a long day for all of us. We’re just getting irritable.” JC stated, trying to explain away Chris’s absurd behavior. He sighed, resting his head back against the seat with his eyes closed, mind whirling like a tornado. Chris seems to becoming more and more tense, especially with all the problems that arose when Mike entered the picture again. Mike, his mind whispered, lingering briefly on her. I wonder what had her so spooked earlier tonight. He groaned silently to himself, trying to shake the overwhelming sensation of overprotective feelings he was experiencing toward the small slip of a girl. Remember what you’ve been telling the media over the past two years. Nothing has changed since then, he silently reminded himself as he tried to clamp down his runaway emotions. He admitted to himself after he had first met her that he was attracted to her, but his career had just been taking off and he hadn’t wanted to jeopardize that or start anything he wouldn’t be able to finish because of the managers and various media people didn’t like it. It had been over a year since he had been out with a woman who could intellectually stimulate him as well as make him forget who and what he was. He saw those many qualities in Mike. You said you didn’t have time for a relationship. That you wanted to put away your personal life and concentrate on your career. Remember that. You don’t want to eat your own words for breakfast, do you?

Mike sat on the couch, the television the only light in the room. Seeing David had scared her more than anything else in the world could have. He had come out of the shadows just like in her nightmares, though in her nightmares he threatened to kill her if she didn’t come back to him. In her nightmares he would threaten that if he couldn’t have her, no one else could. You’ve been watching the Lifetime channel way too much. What you need is a decent night’s sleep, then everything will calm down a little bit. The only reason why you’re freaking out like this is because you haven’t had any sleep in the past week. Take the medication Doctor Wilcox gave you and try to get some sleep. She sighed staring blankly at the screen in front of her. A movie, she didn’t know which one because she hadn’t looked at the title, was now showing a nice panoramic view of the ocean. I’d like to just walk into the ocean and never return to shore. She shook her head and sat for a moment before reaching for her book bag and taking out the sleeping pills she had been against taking in the very beginning. Her defenses were waning and she needed the sleep, so she gave in and swallowed one of the pills. One night of dreamless sleep is all I want. Just one.

She curled up on the couch and watched the movie, which turned out to be a slower one that the normal action movie the guys had an abundance of. After a while, her eyes started fluttering and soon she was asleep.

“Hey JC, we’re at the hotel, man.” Joe sighed, rubbing his face tiredly. JC opened his eyes and glanced down at his watch. They had been driving for nearly four hours, which made them all a bit cranky and feeling more than a bit grimy. The first thing he was going to do was take a hot shower and fall into the nearest bed. Joe and Lance grabbed their bags and fumbled their way to the front of the bus, stretching and grumbling along the way. Chris followed them moments later, rubbing his face with a free hand. Justin gave a loud groan as he climbed to his feet, grabbing his bag on the way up, and turned to JC.

“You might want to check if Mike’s awake.” he reminded his older friend before disappearing outside to walk into the hotel and check into his room. JC thought for a moment as he held his own duffle bag, then dropped it in an empty chair and made his way to the rear of the bus. The back lounge was quite, the only light coming from the television that had once played a movie was now covered with electric snow, which cast an eerie, flickering glow that washed over everything. Mike had fallen asleep curled up on the couch, looking much like a child. JC stopped in the doorway with a tender smile playing on his lips. Her hair, now mussed from the neat ponytail she always kept it in, had partially fallen across her face, shielding her eyes from his view. He propped a shoulder against the doorjamb and folded his arms across his chest as he watched her sleep. He wasn’t prone to doing such trivial things, but in this case he couldn’t help himself. She just looked too charming and endearing to wake her right away. He almost hated waking her at all from a much needed sleep. JC knew that her doctor had given her some sort of sleeping pill, so he knew it would be hard to rouse her.

“Mike.” he called out softly as he turned off the television and vcr. She didn’t stir from her slumber.

“Mike, we’re at the hotel.” JC tried again, but again received no movement from her. He smiled as he grabbed one of the blankets left on the floor near the couch, covered her with it then picked her up into his arms carefully. She barely stirred under his gentle administrations. He gazed down at her for a moment and felt a pang of regret that he wouldn’t get to do this on a regular basis. Her head rested softly on his shoulder and her breathing remained deep and steady. He cautiously walked for the front of the bus, careful not to jostle and disturb her. JC’s heart nearly stopped beating all together when her arms came loosely about his neck, her face pressed against his collarbone. He closed his eyes and took a deep, calming breath before continuing on his way. Chris was waiting patiently for the pair to disembark from the bus. He gave JC a startled look.

“Well, now there’s a surprise.” Chris commented. “How’d you manage that without getting socked in the mouth?”

“Drug induced sleep. I couldn’t wake her up. Can you grab my bag?” JC answered with a rueful grin. Chris nodded, disappearing into the bus only to return moments later with JC’s bag in tow. They silently walked into the hotel to check in. Through previous arrangements, Chris and JC had agreed to share a room with Mike having an adjoining room so they could keep an eye on her. Chris disappeared into the room allotted to them while JC opened up Mike’s room and walked inside. He gently deposited her on the only bed, then pulled the blanket around her shoulders. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, gazing down at her. Remember. No serious social life. Career first. Even with his mind’s constant reminder, he couldn’t help but lean over and brush a soft kiss against her forehead before leaving for his own room.

Chris was sitting on one of the beds, head resting in his hands when JC entered the room. He looked like death warmed over. But then, we all do. Its been a rough week. He walked over to the bed he assumed was his and dropped the bag onto it with a bounce.

“You okay, man?” JC inquired as he rummaged through his bag in search for a change of clothes, shampoo and soap so he could take that shower.

“Yeah, just worried.” Chris shrugged with a sigh.

“She’s here with us now. She’s safe.” JC gazed over at his older friend, somehow sensing the dilemma he was facing. Chris nodded silently then picked up the phone. JC shrugged with a sigh then headed for the bathroom to take a well deserved hot shower. Chris looked down at the number in his hand and debated with himself for a moment. Mike would kill me if she knew what I was about to do. But do I really have a choice? They deserve to know, even if they don’t love her. They’re her parents. Parents who disowned her because she fell in love with someone they disapproved of. Chris sighed with a shake of his head, unsure of what to do. He sat for a few minutes, then finally got up enough nerve to dial the number. Someone picked up the phone on the third ring.

“Hello?”

“Good evening, Mr. Costeo. This is Chris Kirkpatrick.”

“Yes?”

“I thought you might want to know about your daughter.”

“I...I don’t have a daughter.”

“She needs you, Mr. Costeo.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“David almost killed her. She needs you now more than ever.”

“Mr. Kirkpatrick, I have no daughter. I’m sorry. Goodbye.”

Chris slammed down the phone in frustration. He couldn’t believe Mike’s father couldn’t care about what was happening to his daughter. He couldn’t comprehend what would turn a whole family against one another. The bathroom door opened abruptly and JC stumbled into the room, rubbing his hair with a towel. Chris climbed to his feet in a rush and closed himself in the bathroom so he could wash away his anger with a hot shower.

The world was silent this early in the morning, which is why she treasured this time of day. The sun made it’s glorious appearance as clouds dotted the partly twilight atmosphere, muting the colors morning brought. When she had been with David, she would wake early so she could be alone and not have to worry about being hit or abused in any way. Also so she could watch the sun rise and the city with it. Mike stood at the window of her hotel room, watching the people down bellow her. She wondered how many of those people she saw rushing around were unhappy like her. She wondered which people were being abused and which people were the abuser. She wondered how many people were in the run like her. Hoe many people were stalked by the people who claimed to love them only to follow the sentence with a fist. She wondered if they were all scared or if they remained strong with their mask in place and their facade never drooping for a second. She shook her head to clear her thoughts as she walked to the bathroom to take her morning shower.

When she was dressed and ready to go, she sat on the bed and turned on the television to watch part of the news. There was a whole lot going on in the world these days, with Kosovo and the Colorado high school shooting. She was amazed by all the violence there was in everyday life. You’d think that in a land that’s free, there wouldn’t be murders over petty things like the reasons people use for excuses. Blame it on the music, blame it on the movies and tv, blame it on everyone but themselves. Mike sighed and climbed to her feet to pace the room. She had never even liked the news, only watched it so she wouldn’t lose track of what was happening. I wonder why they don’t report the good things that go on. Like all the good Samaritans of the world who went around saving people’s lives. A knock at the door broke her train of thought, making her glance down at her watch. It was almost seven in the morning, way too early for anyone to be up at this hour. She unlocked the door and pulled it open, only to wish that she had played possum and not answered it at all.

“Leave, David.” she pleaded, trying to shut the door again. He shook his head, foot placed in front of the door so it wouldn’t budge.

“We have some things to talk about, Mike.” he told her, his voice deceptively soft.

“There’s nothing to talk about.” Mike shook her head, her heart thundering in her chest. Fear arose in her, something she had thought would never happen again was starting all over.

“Sure there’s things to talk about.” David laughed as he pushed the door open fully so he could walk inside the room and take a look around. Mike tried to keep as much distance as she could between the two of them, hoping with her entire entity that nothing would happen. David strolled casually over to the door that adjoined her room to Chris’s room and gave her a smile.

“I’m surprised the two of you aren’t sleeping together yet. After all, that’s why you left me, isn’t it?” he raised an eyebrow as he flipped the lock in place, bolting everyone out.

“I left you because I was tired of being your punching bag.” she countered softly, not daring to meet his eyes in fear that he would become angry.

“You and I both know that when I hit you, you deserved it. Jesus, Michaela, all I wanted was for you to be perfect. All I wanted was to have you waiting for me when I got home and have dinner on the table and a clean house. That’s not too much to ask for is it?” David shrugged nonchalantly as he turned toward her. Mike remained silent as she eyed him precariously.

“But no, you had to go and do everything wrong. Your friends became more important to you than me. You wouldn’t be home when I’d get there, dinner was constantly late and all you worried about was whether or not you were going to pass all your classes.” he shook his head, his eyes becoming blocks of ice.

“David, I had to worry about my classes. I couldn’t fail out of college. You took over my life and denounced me in front of all my friends so they would pity and hate me.” Mike sighed, a hand rubbing her forehead, silently reminding herself to remain calm. David walked over to her, his hands clenched into fists and she backed up as far as she could until she hit the wall.

“Are you sleeping with him?” he demanded softly, his breath warm on her cheek.

“Sleeping with who?” Mike inquired with a raised eyebrow, suddenly becoming brave.

“You know who. That best friend of yours.” David shot back, his voice rising slightly.

“And if I was?” she whispered, trying to look him in the eye. His hand came up and rested on her neck, thumb caressing her collarbone.

“If you are, I’d have to make it so no man would ever want you again. No man would ever want to touch you, and you would relish that because you wouldn’t want anyone to ever look at you again.” he told her with a small sadistic smile. Her breath caught in her throat momentarily when he applied pressure in the hand that rested on her neck.

“We’ve never even thought of sleeping together.” Mike managed to mumble through her instant fear. Her bravery was waning and she knew he could sense it.

“That’s good.” David nodded with a smirk.

“Mike?” a voice inquired knocking on the adjoining door. “Are you awake?”

“I’ll be watching, don’t ever forget that I’ll be watching.” David told her as he made his way to the door. When David left, she heaved a sigh of relief as she sat heavily on the floor. She leaned back against the wall and rested her head in her hands. Why is he doing this? What sort of sick and perverted game is he trying to play?

“Mike?” the knock came again. She climbed to her feet and walked over to the door, unlocked it then pulled it open a few inches so she could see whoever the voice belonged to. JC gave her a curious look.

“Are you okay?” he inquired. “I heard some noises in here, it almost sounded like you weren’t alone.”

“I’m fine, Josh.” Mike nodded, trying to hide the fact that she was shaking like the proverbial leaf.

“You sure? You’re awful pale.” JC pressed.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” she nodded, forcing a smile.

“May I come in, then?” he gave her a smile and though she was still terrified, she pulled the door open fully to let him in.

“A few of us are going down to the restaurant for breakfast if you’d like to join us.” JC commented idly.

“Um, I’m not really hungry. But thanks for asking.” Mike wrung her hands together as she nervously perched on the edge of the bed.

“Hey, you sure you’re okay?” he turned to face her, gazing at her intently.

“Yeah, I’m just spooked is all.” she nodded with a shaky laugh.

“Spooked? About what?” he raised an eyebrow as he leaned back against the table near the window.

“Its not important. Just the same old ghosts.” she shrugged her shoulders, busying herself with picking lint balls off the comforter she sat on.

“Mike, you didn’t start acting this jumping until last night. What happened? Maybe I can help.” JC pleaded softly, kneeling in front of her. She flinched at the sudden closeness of him and closed her eyes.

“No one can help me.” Mike shook her head.

“What does that mean?” he questioned, reaching out for her hand. She shook her head at him, climbing to her feet, putting the distance she needed between them. “Tell me what’s going on, Mike. This is driving you crazy.”

“David’s here.” she finally whispered.

“Come again.” JC demanded, slightly shocked with the admission she had made.

“David’s here.” She stated again, this time with a little more volume in her voice as she turned to face her friend. “He was just here. You scared him off when you knocked on the door. He was around last night, too. Before you guys came out of the venue. He appeared out of the shadows like in my nightmares. For a few minutes, I actually thought it was a nightmare.”

“Jesus. Why didn’t you tell someone last night?” he questioned softly.

“He told me that if he couldn’t have me, no one else could. Said that he was going to ruin me for every other man out there. Little does he know he already has.” Mike tossed a hand into the air.

“Mike, come here.” JC motioned for her to walk closer to him. She gazed at him with baleful eyes, her head shaking slightly. “I know this is going to sound like a bad rendition of Titanic but, do you trust me?”

“Yeah.” Mike whispered with a nod.

“Then come here.”

Mike took a deep breath and took a slow step forward, closing the distance she had craved moments earlier. Then another step. This must be his new twelve-step program. Why is it so hard for me to be so close to someone I know wouldn’t hurt me? Six more steps and she was standing in front of him. “Okay, now what?”

JC remained silent for a moment, debating on what he was going to say. “You’re not ruined for anyone. Men still find you attractive. Because of this guy, you’ve lost all self-confidence in yourself. You’ve lost your self worth and respect. Those things will return in time, but don’t believe those words that come from him. They’re not true.”

“They’re not? Then why am I terrified just being this close to you? Why am I terrified of everything? Why do I jump at shadows?” Mike demanded with frustration.

“Because of what you’ve lived through. I’m going to do something for you. Something that will help you get all those things back.” JC stated suddenly.

“Yeah? And how are you going to do that?” Mike inquired, looking highly skeptical.

“I’m going to teach you how to fight.” he gave her a small smile.

“You’re what?” she did a double take and JC nearly laughed.

“I’m going to teach you how to defend yourself.” he repeated.

“I....alright.” Mike assented with a nod.

“Good. I think this hotel has a gym somewhere. I’ll go check it out. In the meantime, you get changed into something you can move around in. I’ll be back in a few minutes.” JC smiled as he headed for the door. Mike nodded silently, almost helplessly. She rummaged through her suitcase and found a pair of old sweatpants and a tank top to change into. Ten minutes later, JC and Mike were wandering down the halls, both wearing sweats and tank tops, looking for the phantom gym that was located on the third floor somewhere.

“In my opinion, this gym doesn’t exist.” Mike grumbled, folding her arms across her chest.

“Sure it does.” JC laughed as he peered through another doorway.

“If it does, why haven’t we found it yet? We’ve only been looking for the past five minutes.” Mike tossed a hand into the air with frustration.

“Are you giving me lip?” JC turned to her with a broad smile.

“Um..who me?” she became nervous all over again, though she could explain why.

“Hey, I was only teasing you.” he stated softly, leaning back against the wall.

“I’ve forgotten what its like to be teased.” she mumbled with a shake of her head, gazing down the hallway. JC sighed silently as he started peering through doors again. After five more minutes of searching, they finally found the gym and took a look around. There were the typical gym apparatuses: a stair master, a treadmill, various weights and a punching bag. For the next two hours JC taught Mike various defense techniques that he had learned from karate. She got the hang of some of the moves right away, others were harder. The one thing she still had a problem with was throwing a punch.

“You’re closing your fist wrong. If you punch someone with your fingers closed around your thumbs, it’s going to break.” JC warned her with a shake of his head. They were both sweaty and hot, not to mention getting just a tad irritable. JC sighed shaking his head as he watched Mike make a fist again.

”I don’t care anymore!” Mike exclaimed in frustration, throwing her arms out into the air. Unfortunately, she misjudged the distance that was between JC and herself, and wound up punching him in the eye, her fist still curled in the incorrect way. Caught off guard and unprepared, JC toppled over onto the mats holding a hand over his throbbing eye. Mike’s face became ashen, her mouth hanging slightly open.

“God, you have a hell of a right hook.” JC groaned as he sat up, blinking rapidly because his eye was tearing up.

“I’m sorry.” Mike sighed, backing away from him.

“No, its okay. We both weren’t expecting something like that to happen. Besides, it was an accident.” JC reassured as he climbed to his feet. Mike just looked at him with unsure eyes, ready to bolt at the first sign of trouble “I can just see the tabloids now. ‘N Sync Gets Into Bar Room Brawl With Backstreet Boys, witness claims JC Chasez started the whole thing.”

Mike bit onto her knuckle to keep from giggling at the face he made as he walked over to the mirror to see what kind of damage had been done to his face. His cheek bone was tinted a bright red color and was already starting to swell. The makeup crew is going to absolutely love me, he thought with a snort before turning back to Mike who was quietly giggling as she draped her towel along her shoulders.

“Alright, I think that’s enough for lesson one. Lesson two will be taught by Chris. Let’s get out of here.” JC grinned at her. “I have to go put some ice on this before it starts to bruise up.”

“Speaking of Chris,” Mike started as they walked down the hall to the elevators. “Don’t tell him that David’s here or else there really will be an ‘N Sync Headline. Only this time it’ll say ‘N Sync’s Kirkpatrick Sentenced to Ten Years.”

“Alright.” JC nodded reluctantly.

“Thanks.” Mike smiled before she disappeared into her room, closing the door softly behind her. JC stood out in the hallway, motionless for a moment before walking inside his own room to drop face down onto the bed. His tired body relaxed, his eye throbbing slightly in time with his heart beat.

“JC, you awake, man?” Chris inquired as he sauntered into the room, Gus not far behind. JC blinked, glancing down at his watch. He had fallen asleep and had remained asleep for nearly two and a half hours.

“Yeah, I’m awake.” he nodded, rubbing his face with his hands.

“Nice shinner. What’d you do to get it?” Chris smirked as he pulled off his bandana.

“What? Oh, I was teaching Mike some self defense techniques. She threw a punch when I was expecting it.” JC pondered distractedly as he looked at his reflection in the mirror. A blue-purple bruise was making itself known high up on his cheek bone. “Gus, I need to talk to you.”

Gus nodded in assent, arms folded across his chest as Chris closed himself in the bathroom.

“David’s been coming around here. Will you do me a favor and keep an eye on Mike when she's not with us? I wouldn't ask, but..." JC sighed, rubbing the back of his neck with a hand.

"You got it boss." Gus nodded.

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