It was a week after the hospital attack on Lance, and greatfully, nothing else had happened. The week had past quietly with Lance recovering and the others keeping a careful twenty-four hour watch on him, despite his protests. There were now bodyguards stationed outside of his door every minute of the day and at least two of his bandmates or other staff inside the room with him.
After two days of the constant watch, Lance found he could get time to himself, at the cost of his friends' nerves. This discovery was made about three days after the attack. He had only been awake for a small amount of time, a couple of hours the day before and a few hours that day. The constant company began to wear on his nerves and finally, after about two hours of the groups stories, arguments and jokes, Lance had snapped. After some yelling, cursing, a woken ward in the hospital and a couple of broken vases later, he had the room to himself. Only Justin had had the guts to reenter the room about an hour later. Things were back to the new norm the next day.
"I'm going to go crazy, Justin. I swear I am." Lance said with a sigh, looking at his new found love.
"You'll get over it." Justin shot back to him, never looking up from his magazine, by now used to Lance's new attitude.
"Is it my fault that I want some time to myself, outside of this horribly white and nauseating hospital room." Lance asked, exasperated at his situation.
"Yes, it is." Justin replied, still looking at his magazine.
"Justin." Lance whined, pounding a frustrated fist on the mattress.
"I'm sorry, Lance. I know you don't want to be here." Justin said, finally putting down his magazine and looking at his new boyfriend. "But there's nothing me, the guys, management or you can do about it. It's all up to the doctors and they say it's going to be a couple more days. So please stop biting peoples' heads off and try and be semi-agreeable." Justin pleaded. Lance's new attitude was not like him, although Justin could understand it. He wouldn't want to be here either if Lance weren't here.
"I know. I'm sorry I've been such a grouch. I'm just so sick of sitting here all the time. It's boring, the food sucks, there's nothing on the television, and I want to be back at home in my own bed." Lance said, then stopped when he realized what he'd said. Scrunching his nose up, Lance thought about that statement. "Ok, let me rephrase that. Maybe I don't want to be back in my own house right now, but a place where there's no beeping, decent food, and a bed that doesn't crinkle when I move would be nice." Lance said, moving his bed to prove his point about the crinkle of the plastic bed covering.
Justin saw Lance's expression when his house was mentioned. "You're still thinking about what happened at your house aren't you?" Justin asked already knowing the answer.
Lance sighed. "Yeah, I am. And I'm thinking about what happened at your house. And numerous hotel rooms across the nation. I still can't figure out why this is happening to me. What do they want?" Lance asked, knowing that no one could answer that question right now.
"I don't know Lance, but believe me I wish I did." Justin said, moving closer to Lance's bed and taking his hand.
"I know, Justin. I wish I did too. At least then I might be able to come up with someone responsible for it." Lance said, his worry over the subject clearly evident on his face. It was something he'd puzzled over a lot since the incident at his house. He had gone over everyone he knew, thought of every interaction he'd had with anyone recently, no matter how close they were to him or how guilty he felt about it, and still he'd come up with nothing.
"Hey, Lance?" Just6in's voice asked, breaking Lance from his thoughts.
"Yeah, Jus…" A pair of soft lips crushing against his own silenced Lance. At first he didn't respond out of pure shock. He quickly recovered and gave in to the kiss, savoring the feel of Justin's silk lips against his own.
Lance reveled in the feeling of Justin so close to him. Something he'd always wanted, and until recently, never thought he'd be able to have. Lance's free hand trailed it's way up to wind itself in the hair at the back of Justin's neck, his other hand still clasped with Justin's.
Justin's free hand rested itself on the side of Lance's face and Lance thought he would drown in the feeling of Justin's soft skin on his own. When Lance felt the moisture of Justin's tongue slip between his lips, he thought that surely he would die of the sensations running through his body, heart and mind, and welcomed all of it willingly. Groaning in pleasure at the intimacy of this private moment with his love, Lance deepened the kiss.
"OK, let the party…begin…uh…I just did not need to see this." Chris said after bursting into the hospital room. Chris, JC, and Joey stood in the doorway of the room, only mildly stunned, having known about the relationship, but not having see it until now. Despite the loud entrance, the three were still unnoticed by their blond headed friends.
"Damn, don't they need to breath or something?" JC asked, glancing down at his watch, as if timing the pair. The three stood in the doorway a little longer, waiting on the two to notice them.
Finally, when it looked as if they weren't going to be seen, Joey cleared his throat loudly, causing Justin and Lance to jump apart. The too quick movement caused Lance to wince and hiss in pain slightly. "You alright, Lance?" Joey asked quickly.
"Yeah." Lance breathed, his breathing heavy from the kiss and pain combined.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you but it didn't look like either of you were going to voluntarily come up for air any time soon." Joey joked.
"Sorry." Justin said, blushing.
"Don't be. There's nothing to be sorry about." JC said moving farther into the room and sitting in an empty chair by the window. "We just came by to see if you guys needed anything."
"Oh, I need something." Lance exclaimed.
"What?"
"I need out of here!" he said with mock enthusiasm.
"Anything but that." Sorry." Chris said, sitting beside him on the bed, careful not to jar his wounded side.
"Then what the hell good are you guys?" Lance asked rolling his eyes. Lance flopped back against his pillows, ignoring the groans coming from his bandmates.
"Anyway," Justin said, rolling his own eyes at Lance, "what's up for today?"
"Same old, same old. We have nothing to do so we figured we'd come hang out with Lance." Joey said grinning when Lance whined and buried his head under his pillow. "Has anyone noticed he acts more like a three year old everyday?"
"Well, if I'm such a joy to be around, why do you guys still come here? I'm fine. I'm still kicking, and plan to be for a long time yet, so you can all safely go home. Well, except for you. You have to stay with me." Lance said, laughing as he pulled Justin closer to the side of his bed.
"Like you could get rid of me now." Justin replied, kissing Lance quickly on the lips.
"You know,' Chris spoke up from Lance's other side, "As strange as you guys being together is, it's really cute. I'm really happy for you guys."
"Thanks Chris. That really means a lot to me." Lance said, breaking away from Justin to smile at Chris.
"Anytime man." Chris said, ruffling his hair.
"Hey, Justin. Me and the guys finished moving what we would need into the new apartment. So, everything is set when Lance gets out of here. There's room for all three of us there." JC said, addressing the couple. Since Justin's house was destroyed in the shooting, and Lance's was still uncomfortable to him, JC, Justin, and Lance were forced to find some place else to stay.
"Wait, three of us?" Lance questioned, unaware of the plans that had been made.
"Yeah, you, me and JC. We're all going to stay in the new apartment until my house is fixed." Justin answered, running his fingers through Lance's hair.
"I don't know if that's such a good idea." Lance said skeptically.
"Lance, don't worry. Everything is going to be just fine." Justin assured him, kissing him gently on his head. "Trust me."
"Ok." Lance said groggily, falling asleep curled into his lover.
~*~
The water in the glass on the side of the desk sloshed over the side as a beefy hand slammed down on the desk. The dark mahogany wood shook with the force of the strike, and the two men standing next to the doorway flinched. On the television was a news update:
"Lance Bass of Nsync is reported to be recovering well of a gunshot wound he received last week during a shooting at Justin Timberlake and JC Chasez's home. Lance has recently fallen victim to a number of assaults. First, an attack at his home, in which the assailent was killed, only the day before the shooting at the Timberlake and Chasez's home. Following his admittance into the hospital, two men, yet unidentified attacked Bass in his hospital room Both men remain at large. Anyone with any information about these attacks are encouraged to call the local police department."
The television was quickly turned off. "We're going to lay low for a while. Wait until this dies down out of the media. He's going to be guarded well, and the chances of getting to him right now are slim. I want him to suffer. I want his friends to suffer. But mostly, I want Lance Bass dead!" the man shouted, banging his fist down, once again on the desk, knocking over framed photographs.