Act 3 , Scene I

"Hey, I'm back!" Chris entered the room where the Backstreet Boys were rehearsing, and sat next to AJ, who was writing something that looked like a song.

"Hey, K!" AJ looked at him, and smiled. Brian barely waved to him, engrossed in an improvised Pingpong game with Nick, using a paper ball as ball and their hands as the rackets. Kevin was on the other side of the room, talking to Kristen on his cell phone, but nodded in Chris' direction to acknowledge his presence.

"How's the boyfriend?" AJ asked, and suddenly the whole room fell silent, as they all paid attention to Chris's answer.

"Joey's fine, Bone." Chris answered, blushing a little. "He told me to thank you for your homewarming gift."

"The best for my friend's friends, Chris." AJ joked, returning to his song. He knew that Chris was still nervous over his newfound relationship to Joey Fatone, from *N Sync, but also knew that with a little support, Chris would see that it was worth the try.
Sure, neither Kevin, Brian or Nick were too happy when they found out, but for Chris, they were willing to give the *Nsyncer a chance.

        And after all that had happened before Chris and Joey
got together, AJ knew the two deserved a chance. So he put the pen at one side, and walked towards his smaller friend. "C'mon, Chris, lighten up. Why don't you call him?"

"Right now? I just left him a couple of hours and…" Chris blushed, darting looks towards the others.

        AJ was going to answer, when Nick beat him up to it,
surprising everyone. "Why not? Brian calls Liheganne every 5 seconds, and at least you and Joey are fun!"

        Chris blinked at this, notice that everyone was smiling,
even Kevin who was still talking to Kristen, and his face brightened up. He made a big production out of pulling his cell out and dialed Joey's number by memory.

        Life was going good.

* * *

"I had that dream again, AJ." Chris mumbled, sitting next to the bed where his best friend in the whole world lay, the only sign that he was still alive being the steady beep of the machine hooked up to him. "Joey and I were together, you were awake… Everything was perfect…"

        It had been two weeks since AJ had been interned in the hospital, the two most tortuous weeks in Chris' life. Justin had been trailed and found guilty, shocking the whole world by becoming the first boyband member to end up in jail while still in said boyband. He was judged by attack, not murder, because AJ was still breathing.

        But not really alive.

        And even when with Justin in jail, *N Sync might have been able to keep on, it was now impossible because Joey was missing.

        No one had seen or heard of Joey in four weeks.

        Not ever since the kiss.

        A kiss that Chris had replayed in his mind over and over. First in shock, wondering why they had kissed. Why Joey had kissed him, why he had answered in kind. Why he had kissed Joey, why Joey had answered.

        He didn't remembered who started the kiss.

        And after the shock wore off, and he had to deal with the fact that his best friend was in a coma and might never awake, a new emotion came to play.

        Longing.

        He missed Joey, and he missed the feelings that the kiss had brought to surface.

        Because, as unlikely as it might sound to anyone who knew Chris, Chris had fallen in love with Joey.

        And Chris knew very well that it was an impossible love.

* * *

        Joey ran.

        It was no longer the playful hide and seek through the forest that invaded his dreams for months. Now it was a frantic chase. He was running away from the almond eyed stranger who ruled that dream forest. He was running as if the devil himself was giving chase.

        Which, in a way, was true.

        The forest was no longer welcoming him, and attacked
him, trying to stop his wild escape. But that didn't stop Joey.

        No.

        He knew he couldn't let himself be caught.

        He had to find the way to escape.

        So he ran.

* * *

"Joey? You ok, man?" Steve was standing next to him when Joey awoke, drenched in sweat. His brother had arrived at his secret hideout, a small one bedroom apartment not far from their parent's house, just a couple of days after Joey.

        He hadn't say anyone that he knew where Joey was, even when everyone was looking for him. Steve did the shopping, the cooking, the checking the news.

        Joey rarely left the room, and when he did, it was only for a few seconds.

"I had that nightmare again." Joey answered, sullenly. "It's…"

"The forest one?" Steve shook his head. "That's three weeks in a row you've been having that dream, bro. Maybe you need help."

"How are the guys?" Joey changed the subject. He really didn't want to talk with his little brother about his dreams. Not when the memory of the brown eyes was so clear in his mind eye.

"Worried." Steve answered, truthfully. "Even Justin is worried about you, and he has much more things to worry about."

"When's he coming out?"

"A year." There was a uncomfortable silence in which Joey could hear the unspoken words. 'If AJ wakes up.'.

        Finally, Steve spoke up again. "You've got to talk to them, Joey. Explain why…"

"I will, in time." Joey said, and turned on the bed, his back to his brother. He didn't want to think. He didn't want to dream.

        But he did.

* * *

        In any other instance, AJ would have just looked at how Nick and Justin rearranged each other's faces.

        But since Kevin, Brian, JC and Howie were into the struggle as well, and he had a very good reason as to why not want the two groups animosity grow past an unbeatable point, he had walked forward, trying to calm the others.

"Guys! Guys! There's no reason to fight!" He started "We were just here because our managers…"

        He didn't got time to finish the sentence. Justin pushed him away as Nick almost landed a good punch on his ribs, and AJ stumbled back, falling down, right into a corner of the plant pots…

        (The heavy, concrete plant pot with a pointed end…)

        …but Lance caught him on time.

"What are you saying?" The blonde Nsyncer asked, frowning. "Jive sent you here?"

"Yeah. And I'm willing to bet they didn't let us come down until they were sure you were here too." AJ weakly smiled. It was weird talking to an *N Syncer. But if he had talked to Joey, he could talk to Lance. All for Chris' sake.

* * *

        Lance sat in the chair next to AJ's bed, wondering if AJ was dreaming, if AJ could hear him.

        Wondering what was he doing there.

        It had took a lot of convincing, a lot of promises, and a lot of concessions to get him to the Backstreet Boy's hospital room. As an *N Syncer and friend of Justin, he was on Security's black list.

        Which was the reason why there was a cop sitting across the room, watching Lance as if Lance was a cold blooded murderer.

        Lance had replayed the fight in his mind a thousand times. Nick punched Justin, Justin moved back and punched / pushed AJ. AJ had fallen down, lost his equilibrium and hit the hard edge of a concrete plant pot with his head.

        Lance could have reached him in time, that, Lance knew. But he hadn't. Because he hadn't thought of the consequences.

        But that was not what was eating Lance.

        What was eating Lance was that AJ hadn't really joined the fight. He was saying something.

        We were just here because our managers…

"What did you tried to tell us, AJ?" Lance mused out loud. "What?"