Chapter 8 - "Denial-It's Not Just A River In Egypt"
(the next morning)
Chris shifted and finally awoke. After a moment of composing himself, he realized that he was in his bed at the townhouse alone. The other guys were still in Orlando and wouldn't be back until the next day. Slowly, the events of the day before filtered through his mind. He recalled his vulnerability.
He remembered falling to his knees in front of Annie. He had completely broken down and that was something he told himself he'd never do.
He never wanted to cause her to worry, make her upset in any way. Over their nearly twenty years of friendship, he had always taken the role of protector, helping her cry over her ex-boyfriends and pull herself together when she doubted her beauty or her talent.
Because she was so beautiful and so talented.
He did everything in his power to shield her from anything that could be potentially hurtful. It took a lot out of him, but seeing her cry or seeing that forlorn look shadow her features was always too much for him to take. He could still recall clearly the day he discovered he would do anything for her.
He was in fourth grade playing a game of touch football in physical education. Teddy Lumis had made a comment about that "quiet Annie girl" being ugly. That was the first time Chris was ever suspended from school.
His thoughts then turned to the tears that had danced their way down her cheeks before he brushed them away the night before. Her glistening eyes meeting his tortured ones. The look of complete admiration and trust she conveyed toward him in that one moment. The sudden uncontrollable urge to touch her.
He thought about the dance that they had shared. He had held on to her with such desperation and need that it shocked him to the core. He had never had to HOLD someone, feel the warmth and closeness that person provided, merely be in their PRESENCE, more than he did at the moment.
He was the one that needed protection and the only person who could have given it to him was Annie. It was almost ironic how the tables had so vastly turned.
That paragon…that contradiction…his protectiveness over her as well as his yearning to be protected BY her, saved by her, is what made him realize.
He craved her.
So much, in fact, that it made him sick. Under no circumstances did he ever expect or even want to feel that way. He had thought of her as a little sister for so long that in a demented and twisted way, it almost felt like incest.
Of course, he knew just the notion of that was ridiculous, but the dawning of understanding about his feelings had happened so suddenly and so unexpectedly that he didn't know what to make of any of it. Only that he cared for her far more deeply than he ever thought he did. He didn't know if it was love, but it most certainly wasn't friendship.
And she loved someone else.
He sat up in his bed when he finally remembered JC. His best friend and group member. The man who he himself, in his utter stupidity he then realized, helped Annie attract. His Annie. His MARY.
He had seen first hand the jittery, excited look she got on her face any time he was near. He listened to her go on and on about her two-year crush on him. Two years for God's sake. How could anything he had to offer possibly compete with two years worth of infatuation?
But she's staying with me for Christmas. She chose to come with me. That has to mean something, right?
The way she cradled him gently in her arms had to have meant something.
Chris decided he had to find out. He had to know where he stood and if Annie could ever reciprocate his strange, confusing, potentially friendship destroying feelings.
When his mind hit upon this, his stomach churned. He couldn't lose her as a best friend. He couldn't. He was going to see her later that day for lunch. He'd judge then what her feelings were. If it didn't seem like she felt the same things for him, well then he'd back off. If he couldn't have her the way he really wanted her, he most definitely wasn't going to ruin their friendship also.
He needed her far too much.
Annie slowly sipped her coffee, though she barely noticed the hot fluid coursing down her throat. She was too deep in thought.
The night before had been one of the most wonderfully confusing moments of her life. When Chris walked into her office, she nearly cried at just the sight of him. She was frozen in her chair from the utter shock of it.
But her mother was right, as usual. He did come to her when he needed help, and for that she was so thankful. She didn't know how much longer she could go on pretending she didn't realize anything was wrong with him.
The way he hoarsely whispered his feelings to her tore open her heart while also releasing every emotion she could imagine. She always had the ability to do that to her, but no time had it affected her so much as it did then. She couldn't even hold in the tears that brimmed and then spilled over her eyes.
She hadn't wanted him to leave her office that night, but of course she knew that was ridiculous. They'd simply held each other for the longest time until he finally broke the contact. He kissed her forehead and walked out of the room leaving Annie feeling cold and utterly alone.
And why had she agreed to spend Christmas with him? It wasn't pity. She respected him FAR too much to ever pity him. He'd been through so much in his life and he'd never asked for her pity, nor did she ever offer it. She wasn't going to start then, just when he needed to know she understood how strong he was.
But if it wasn't pity, then what was it? When he'd asked her as they gripped each other tightly, it seemed like the only possible answer was yes. She didn't even consider turning him down. It had felt so natural and right.
Annie shook her head and laughed. Of course it felt natural. You've been best friends with him for years. Agreeing with him was always just part of the deal.
But she ignored the little voice in the back of her mind that was telling her that absolutely nothing she had ever experienced before in her life had felt more right than being protected in the warmth of Chris' arms, dancing by the illumination of the brilliant lights of the city.
The telephone ringing immediately broke her out of her reverie and she jumped up quickly to retrieve it. "Hello?"
"Hi honey," her mother's voice answered her.
"Hi Mom. How are you?" Annie asked with little conviction.
"I think I should be asking you the same thing. You don't sound so well. Are you alright?"
"You were right. About Chris, I mean. He came to me last night," she explained vaguely.
"Isn't he supposed to be in Florida now?"
"Yes."
"Sooo, he came half-way across the country to confide in you?" Her mother questioned.
"I guess. He wasn't exactly open with the details."
"Uh huh. Uh huh," Tina Benton commented, a little too knowingly for her daughter's liking.
"Mom, honestly, it's nine-thirty in the morning and I've had a rather trying last couple of days. I don't want to play guessing games with you right now. What was that supposed to mean?" Annie demanded rather defensively.
"Nothing honey. Don't worry about it. What happened between you two last night? When he showed up on your doorstep?"
"In my office actually…"
Tina sighed, "Why doesn't that surprise me?"
"You know me too well?" Annie suggested.
"What happened?"
"We danced," Annie said simply.
There was silence on the other end of the line while her mother took in this new information. Annie could tell by her loss for words that was probably the last thing she had expected her to say. Which was part of the reason she had said it in the first place.
"You…danced?" Her questioned.
"Yes Mother. You heard me right the first time."
"You helped him work through his emotional turmoil by waltzing around the desk and file cabinets in your office?"
Annie smirked lightly at the mental image that produced. "Not exactly."
"Annie, honestly, it's ten-thirty-five in the morning and I'm really not in the mood to play guessing games with you right now. What was that supposed to mean?" Tina asked, throwing her words back at her.
"Mom, I really don't want to get into this with you right now…" Annie whined.
"I don't care, I'm your mother, I have the right to know."
"I'm twenty-seven, you're lucky I still talk to you," she teased.
"Now what is THAT supposed to mean?"
"It was a joke, calm down."
"So what happened?" She asked again.
"MOM!"
"You're my daughter and Chris is like my son. I want to know that everything is alright," her mother reasoned.
"We…didn't WALTZ. It was more of a slow dance, I guess you would say."
"To what song?" Her mother prodded.
" 'Stand By Me' by Ben E. King," Anne answered.
"Ohh, I love that song! And how long after the song ended did you two back away from one another?"
Annie could feel her face to red at the obvious implications her answer was going to make. She could lie, but her no one close to her ever believed her lies for a minute. "About…uhhh…well I don't know exactly…" she stalled.
She could tell her mother's interest was piqued by that statement. "Well then approximate dear."
"Uhh...maybe about…ten or fifteen minutes," Annie spit the last words out quickly and waited for a response.
"So you danced to other songs then?"
"Ahem…no, no not really," Annie answered rather sheepishly.
"Not really?" Her mother repeated.
"He shut the radio off after 'Stand By Me' finished. Actually."
"So what you're saying is that you and Chris simply held each other in silence for ten or fifteen minutes after the song had ended?" Her mother summed up.
"Yeah, basically that's about it."
" Uh huh ."
"Mom! I knew you would make too big a deal out of it. He was having some troubles, I was helping him out."
"I didn't make a big deal. All I said was 'uh huh,'" her mother defended herself.
"No mom, you didn't say 'uh huh.' You said 'uh huh.' There's a difference," Annie responded.
"Ok, before we get into a fight, I wanted to ask you if you wanted to spend New Years' with me instead of Christmas this year."
"I'm sure that Chris wouldn't have a problem with that. I'll ask when I see him today."
"Oh, you're seeing him today?"
"MOM!"
"Sorry, sorry," she apologized.
"And yes, we're going to lunch. But anyway, how's Robert?" She asked, diverting the conversation from the topic of her and Chris.
Annie smiled when she heard her mother's dreamy sigh, that was all the answer she needed. "That explained it."
Tina Benton laughed lightly, "Yes, I suppose it did, didn't it?"
"I'm glad you're happy," Annie answered honestly.
"Oh, I am. I really am," her mother answered just as honestly.
After a short silence Tina said, "Alright Annie, I think that I'm going to go. I'll talk to you later. Keep me updated about New Years'."
"I will. Bye Mom."
"I love you honey. Good bye."
"I love you too," Annie said and hung up the phone. She rolled her eyes at her mother's ridiculous behavior. Apparently she was also jumping on the bandwagon of those who thought she and Chris should be together.
Annie could only shudder at the thought of her and SJ joining forces.
Annie walked into the restaurant and spotted Chris. Actually, the first person she spotted was Nate hovering over him. She made eye contact with Chris and he jumped out of his seat to greet her.
Oh God, she's gorgeous. Chris thought as she trekked slowly across the room to meet him. She was wearing a simple blue sweatshirt with a pair of old jeans. Her hair was sloppily thrown into ponytail holder and it swooshed gently against the back of her neck as she walked. Absolutely gorgeous.
When she reached him, he surprised her by grabbing her and pulling her tightly into a hug. She stood still a moment before timidly returning the gesture. He held her a little longer than necessary, and when he let go of her, he looked her in the eyes, trying to gauge her reaction.
What he saw in them was confusion mixed with a little amusement. He frowned slightly. She thinks I'm being funny.
They sat down and Chris looked over at Nate before the big man threw his hands in the air, "Consider me gone. I'll be over there." He pointed to a little table in the corner of the restaurant.
Chris fiddled with the baseball hat on his head a little after they'd sat down across from each other at the table. An uncomfortable silence followed and Annie wanted to scream to break the tension that had suddenly grown between her and her best friend.
"So how did you sleep?" Annie asked.
"Alright. Better than I have in a while," Chris answered before there was another silence. "How did you sleep?"
"Good! Good."
More awkward quiet ensued and finally, Annie couldn't take it anymore. She thought about the idiocy of the situation she was in. This was her best friend! A small smile formed on her face, which then stretched into a bigger smile, a giggle, and eventually a real laugh. Her whole body shook as she laughed uncontrollably and for almost no reason.
As Chris watched her, he couldn't help but laugh also, and soon the two of them were gasping for breath.
"Someone had to do that, I think," Chris managed after a few minutes.
"I think so too," Annie answered.
She immediately sobered at the completely serious look Chris was giving her. "What? What is it?"
"About yesterday…I'm, I'm so sorry that I just…barged into your office like that and…" Chris tried to apologize, but Annie quickly cut her off.
"Don't Chris. I'm glad what happened yesterday happened."
"You are?" he asked.
She smiled tenderly at him then and brought her hand up to touch his cheek. "Of course. I was so worried about you. You said you were ok with everything that was going on, but I could tell you weren't. You didn't have that same carefree smile, you barely joked anymore. I missed you."
Chris placed his own hand over Annie's and squeezed it gently before bringing it down to the table, still being held by his. When he saw her shocked expression, he quickly let her go. What he didn't realize was that she wasn't surprised by his actions, but by the jolt of electricity she felt when his warm, strong hand captured hers. It was confusing to say the least.
"I should be more like myself now that this whole thing is over with," Chris answered.
"That's good. It'll be nice to have my best friend back," Annie said. She furrowed her eyebrows at the face Chris said when she said that, "Did I say something wrong?"
He shook his head and smiled sadly, "No, nothing's wrong Mary. I just realized something important, that's all."
Annie was thoroughly confused by his strange behavior and was tempted to point out that he said he was going to be acting normal now. The waitress approached them before she could question his actions and they ordered their food.
They talked idly about the weather (still cold), the guys' flight (coming in the next day at midnight) and Annie's mom (STILL dating the Richard Gere look-alike) until they were halfway done with their meals. All of a sudden, Annie cell phone rang. Sighing, she fumbled around in her coat pockets for the offending object that was causing everyone to look at them.
"Hello?" She asked almost rudely.
"Annie?" Came the surprised caller.
Annie immediately felt herself relax and a lazy grin graced her face, "JC! Hi!"
Chris' hand tightened around his fork when heard her say JC's name.
"Hey Annie, how are you?" JC asked.
"I'm good, but more importantly, how are you? I heard you guys won yesterday?"
"Well, we're settling, but it was enough to wipe that confident smirk off of Lou's face. I'm so happy it's finally OVER!" he exclaimed, the last part said with the enthusiasm he obviously felt.
"Good! I'm so glad for you guys, you deserve to be with a label that respects you," Annie said honestly, she looked up at Chris to see if he heard her, but he seemed to be concentrating on his food.
"What are you doing?" He asked.
"Uhh…I'm eating lunch with Chris actually," Annie responded.
Chris grinned despite himself. See that JC? She's with me. Oh God, I'm talking to someone else in my head. What the hell is wrong with me?
"That's the real reason I called you," JC admitted.
"I figured as much," she told him.
"How is he?" He asked cautiously.
Annie stole another glance at Chris whose head was still down. He would be angry if he knew she was talking about him. "Better, better."
"Justin told me it got pretty bad yesterday. I've never even seen Chris cry before. We're all pretty worried about him back here."
Chris CRIED? "Uhh…not on this end."
"Wha…ohh, he's listening, isn't he?" JC asked, suddenly figuring out her hesitancy to talk.
"Something like that," Annie answered.
"Well on a scale of 1-10, one being perfectly fine and 10 being a complete mess, how bad was he yesterday?"
Annie thought for a minute, "8."
She heard him expel a breath over the line, "Oh man. And how is he now?"
She looked up at him and answered, "4.5."
"Well that's good, at least. I'll talk to you when I get tomorrow about that. You're coming to the airport for us, right?" He questioned.
"Yeah, I'll be there. See you tomorrow JC. Tell everyone I say hi," Annie said, about to hang up.
"Hold on Annie, Justin wants to talk to you." Annie heard the phone switch hands and a moment later, a smooth, yet slightly immature voice came over the line, "Annie?"
"You did me proud little one," Annie greeted him.
She could almost hear his grin over the line, "Yeah, I know. But that wasn't only about you. When I walked in the hotel room and saw him…curled on the floor crying…what you said wasn't even on my mind. I was just trying to help my best friend."
Curled on the floor crying? Annie hadn't known things were nearly that bad. Tears entered her eyes as she thought about her strong best friend so torn down and upset. It was almost unimaginable. "I know it wasn't Justin."
"I was scared for him Annie. That was the first time that has ever happened. The only thing I could think was that he needed you. I know that if I was under that kind of stress, I'd want to be with the one that I love."
She didn't realize what he was talking about for a minute, "Come on, he had all of you guys plus his whole family in Orlando."
Chris' head shot up when he realized she was talking about him and she mentally cursed herself.
Justin's voice came through the line again, clear and even, "That's not the kind of love I was talking about Annie."
Her cheeks burned when he said that and she looked up to see Chris looking at her with a mixture of curiosity and amusement at her embarrassed expression. "Yes, well, I have to go Justin. I'm eating lunch right now. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Aight girlie. Just think about what I said," Justin ordered.
"Uh huh, sure will," she said with a false brightness that told Justin she'd do no such thing. Before he could say anything else, however, she hung up.
When she put it back in her pocket, she looked up at Chris and smiled wryly, "Boys will be boys."
"More specifically, Justin will be Justin," Chris commented.
"Yeah, that too," Annie agreed with a laugh.
"What did fro-boy have to say?" Chris asked.
"Not too much. You know Justin, I was barely listening anyway," Annie said as her face grew an even deeper shade of crimson.
"Well, I'll let that go for now, although I am curious as to what exactly he said that made your face resemble Joey's after dance rehearsals," Chris said, letting himself fall back into the back and forth banter their friendship was based on. He grinned when her eyes went wide and she ducked her head. He made a mental note to find out what Justin had said to her.
(the next day - Friday, December 17, 1999)
Annie checked her watch, it was almost eleven o'clock and Chris was going to be by any second to pick her up and go to the airport. They had tried to call SJ, but for whatever reason, she wasn't answering her phone. Annie's guess was that she most likely was at some club wasting time until she got to see Lance again.
Annie was standing outside of her apartment complex waiting impatiently for Chris' red sports car to drive up. She blew on her numb fingers and balled her hands into fists in another attempt to keep them warm. She saw Chris' car speed around the corner and walked down the rest of her stairs to meet him at the curb.
He pulled up and she quickly hopped in the car. "Hi Chris," she looked through the rear view mirror at the man in the backseat, "Hi Nate. How'd you get stuck in the back?"
"Your friend there kicked me out of the front," he answered sourly.
"Ahh well, better for me anyway," she responded with a smile and wink. She put her hands over the heating vent and sighed.
"Hands cold?" Chris asked.
"Well, you kept me waiting for like fifteen minutes," Annie said.
Chris lowered his eyelids and stuck out his bottom lip, "I'm sorry. I got held up. Ask Nate, I'm telling the truth, aren't I Nate?"
"Unfortunately, yes. The man left at the right time. There was a lot of construction or something started over on McKenzie, we had to take a detour."
"That's alright. I wasn't really mad anyway, but that doesn't make my hands any warmer."
Chris sighed, and not even thinking, took her hands in his own. He rubbed them up and down vigorously before leaning his head down and blowing on them. It wasn't until he heard her sharp intake of breath that he realized what he was doing. He dropped her hands, turned his head back toward the road, and started the car.
Annie too sat up and directed her attention out the front window. She was reeling from what had happened. She and Chris had always had a "touchy feely" relationship and it never bothered her before. But just then, when Chris had leaned in to warm her fingers, for some reason she couldn't even remember how to breathe. The focus in her entire body was the feeling of the gentle air Chris was blowing on her slightly red hands.
They drove to the airport in silence. When they arrived, their steps weren't at all forced like the last time, this time they strode quickly and confidently through the nearly deserted terminal.
The plane was landing just as the came to the right station. From through the windows, they could see Joey jumping up and down in excitement. When they walked in, all was normal. The guys looked more excited and alive than they had in a long time. Everything was as it should be. All except…
"Stephanie Jane! What are you doing getting off of that plane!" Annie exclaimed.
SJ simply smiled coyly and held onto Lance's hand. Annie turned to Chris who looked as shocked as she was, "She wasn't there when I left."
She turned back to SJ who shrugged her shoulders and still didn't respond. Before Annie could say anything else, she felt herself being lifted up in the air and looked down to see she was being swung around by an ecstatic Joey.
"You were right Annie," he proclaimed.
"I knew I would be. Now PUT ME DOWN!" She laughed as she was swung around once more and then dropped gently to her feet.
The next person she encountered was Justin who approached her wearing the largest and most genuine smile she had ever seen on him. If his fans could have seen him then, they would have known all their perseverance and loyalty to the group was worth every minute.
"Oh Annie! I'm so happy! It's all over! Everything is signed, we're going over to JIVE and we're NSYNC again. Gimme a hug. NOW!" He commanded jokingly and pulled her close to him, "He looks a lot better." He said the last part quietly into Annie's ear.
"Good," she whispered back.
He let her go and stepped back, the smile never leaving his face. A quick hug was given to her by Lance who looked like the brief time it took to be in contact with her was too long away from SJ.
JC then slowly made his way to her. His face showed a little smirk but his eyes were twinkling with such happiness and joy that Annie was reminded why she fell so hard for him so long ago. One look in his bright blue eyes showed his love for life and his passion for the world around him. Annie had fallen for that intensity and beauty the moment she saw it.
Her own smile grew as she waited for him to hug her. Instead, he walked up until he was right in front of her and produced something from behind his back.
"Mistletoe!" Annie laughed.
He leaned forward until his mouth was next to her ear, "I told you I'd come bearing mistletoe. Did you think I was joking?"
Next to her, Chris winced and backed away from Annie and JC. He turned his head so he wouldn't have to face them and when that wasn't enough, he squeezed his eyes tightly shut. It was too painful to see them interact and know that Annie had already made her choice between them. Not that he'd made her choose.
His acts of obvious derision were not lost on the people watching him. SJ raised a curious eyebrow. "My, my, my what happened between those two in the past two days? Particularly him?"
"I don't know," Lance said, "But I get a sneaking suspicion you intend to find out."
She kissed him on his cheek and he grinned when he noticed the determined glint in her eye. "You look so cute when you're about to butt into other people's business."
"Well I do try. Wait, butt in? I'm doing them a favor sweet thang. Get it right," SJ countered.
"Sure Steph. I know better than to argue with you, so I'm just going to be a supportive boyfriend about this until you push something too far."
"Me?" She asked innocently, widening her already dough eyes and pouting her lips until she looked almost like an adorable child, "I never push anything too far."
He smiled tenderly at her sweet expression and cupped her cheek. She turned her head to lean against his hand and sighed. "You're so beautiful."
He laughed lightly and bent his knees so that he was looking directly into her eyes, "Aren't I supposed to say that to you?"
"You can say it if you want to, but I mean it. You're gorgeous. How can any girl pick Justin over you?" She asked seriously.
"I think it's the pelvic thrusts. Gets them every time," Lance answered.
"But you have that smooth Barry White voice with the cutest little Southern accent, the most amazing green eyes, that sexy blonde spiky hair and…"
She was cut off by Lance's mouth descending on hers. The kiss was sweet and gentle and conveyed his feelings for her better than any words ever could. When they parted, her eyes were still closed and she sighed in satisfaction. When she allowed her lids to flutter open, she wore a dreamy expression of face. It was the look that could only be made by a woman perfectly in love. "And I haven't even begun on your lips…"
Brushing a stray braid away from her face and tucking it behind her ear, he grinned widely, "Why are you suddenly being so nice to me?"
She shrugged her shoulders, "Because I can. Because I adore you. Because I need you. Because you're the best thing that has ever happened to me."
"Thank you for coming," he said.
"I know when I'm needed," she answered.
"Steph?"
"Yeah?"
"You're the best thing that's ever happened to me too. You're the most important thing in my life," Lance said honestly before leaning down so his face was a breath away from hers, "And you're absolutely stunning."
Meanwhile, Justin frowned slightly at his friend's upset look before rubbing his hands together. "Well, Chris is obviously feeling something."
Joey nodded in agreement beside him and they both turned to Nate. "What'd ya find out buddy?"
"There's definitely some tension there, and that's all I'm going to say right now. Definitely some tension."
"Good man," Justin said and gave him a pat on the back.
"There should be an overtime plan for this kind of stuff," Nate grumbled before casting another look at the forlorn looking Chris and then the joking pair of Annie and JC.
The guys walked into their townhouse carrying all of their luggage as they trudged in to the house. After several minutes, they were all settled back into their rooms and they were all incredibly tired.
As Joey was heading to the room he was forced to share with Chris, there was a tap on his shoulder. He turned around to see Justin standing before him in a pair of gray sweatpants and white socks covering his feet.
"Talk to him Joe."
"I know, I will," Joey answered.
"We'll be waiting out here," Justin told him, then motioned to JC and Lance standing behind him, "We want to see what's going on."
"You can't wait until tomorrow?" Joey asked incredulously. He'd always been the most laid-back of all of them.
"SJ will have my head man," Lance said matter-of-factly.
"Alright, I'm going in. Give me some time, I have a feeling this won't be easy."
Joey took a deep breath and slowly made his way to his room, feeling the guys' eyes on him the whole time.
He cautiously turned the doorknob, as if he was worried about what was in the room. He saw Chris laying on his bed, completely clothed, his legs crossed at the ankles and his eyes closed.
Joey closed the door behind him and stepped in. He watched Chris a moment before asking, "Are you going to get changed?"
Chris opened his eyes but didn't bother to look at Joey; instead he kept his eyes trained on the ceiling. "Oh yeah." Joey expected him to get up, but he simply kicked his shoes off. "I'm ready."
Oh boy. "Uhhh, are you alright, Chris? You seem kinda of…out of it."
"I'm fine. Just thinking," he answered.
"What about?"
"Look, Joe, I know you're trying to help, but we're not going to have any kind of bonding, Full House moment. So drop it. Let's just get to sleep," Chris snapped.
"Right," Joey agreed, then changed tactics, "So JC and Annie seemed pretty close today in the airport."
He saw the pained look that ran across Chris' face before he closed his eyes again. Joey felt bad for bringing up topics that Chris was obviously uncomfortable talking about. Chris opened his eyes and again focused on the light fixture above him.
"I'm tired Joe. Turn out the light so we can get some sleep."
Joey sighed and decided to just go in for the kill, "What's going on with you and Annie?"
"Nothing, we're just friends." His answer was so automatic that it sounded mechanical and fake to Joey.
"I'm going to sleep, whether you turn out the lights or not," Chris announced and rolled over to cover himself with the blankets.
"I'm going to go to the bathroom," Joey said upon realizing that Chris wasn't going to tell him anything more. He clicked off the light switch and heard Chris sigh before he walked out the door.
When the other guys saw, they stood up. "What happened?" Justin asked immediately, "I thought you needed time?"
"Time wasn't going to help. Besides, I heard everything I need to know."
"And…" Lance prodded.
"And he's pretty upset about Annie and JC's little display in the airport."
All three guys turned to look at JC who, in turn, glanced down at the ground.
"Yeah man, what was that?" Justin demanded.
JC looked up into the confused faces of his friends. "Nothing! I just…" his hands, which were gesturing wildly dropped to his sides, "…couldn't help it."
"I don't understand C, you agreed with us that they were right for each other. What the hell happened since then?" Lance asked.
"I…don't know. I'm sorry," he said as he fell onto the couch and put his head in his hands, "I'm really sorry this has messed things up."
Joey walked over to where JC sat and patted his shoulder, "It's cool. You can't help it."
"I wish I could."
"What did he say about him and Annie?" Justin asked, changing the subject.
"Jack. He mechanically answered that they were friends."
The others shook their heads. "Denial-It's not just a river in Egypt," Justin commented.
When three pairs of eyes turned to look at him, "What? My mom used to say that all the time."
"Yeah, whatever. All I know is SJ is NOT going to be pleased," Lance said while shaking his head.
"And you gots to please your woman," Justin teased.
"Damn straight," Lance answered. Joey jokingly made the sound of a whip next to him and everyone dissolved into laughter.
"Hey," Lance said, "What would you guys do if you had a woman like SJ to call whenever you needed her?"
There was silence and Lance grinned, "That's what I thought. Now I'm going to bed. See you all tomorrow."
It was around one-thirty the next afternoon when JC's cell phone rang. "Hello?"
"JC? This is Annie."
JC's face immediately brightened, "Hi Annie. What's up?"
"Umm, the thing is, I really appreciate it, but I have to cancel our Christmas plans."
For some reason, JC felt like he was being sucker punched. "Oh really? Why?" He asked, trying to keep his voice neutral.
"Chris asked me, and I don't know, it just seemed right to go with him for some reason," Annie tried to explain.
She's meant to be with him. He knew that was the truth, but he also knew that he couldn't let his feelings fester. If he didn't really explore what he felt, see what was there, he knew he'd always regret it. He couldn't pretend she didn't affect him for the rest of his life.
Suddenly, Justin's ridiculous words came back to him. Denial-It's not just a river in Egypt. He had to see, even if it was just one more time.
"It's fine. I understand, sometimes that stuff happens. Instead of doing that, why don't you come out to dinner with me tomorrow?" He asked.
"Tomorrow?" She repeated.
"Yeah, do you have plans?"
"No, tomorrow's good," she answered.
He smiled. Tomorrow he'd see once and for all what was going on between them.