* ** *** ** * * ** *** ** * * ** *** ** * * ** *** ** *

He kicked his tires muttering fucking piece of shit while doing so. Everything was going smoothly, well as smoothly as things could go in this blizzard from hell, but nonetheless, everything was going smoothly. That is until his engine decided to go into hibernation on the empty highway. He took out his cell phone to try and call for help but he was met with beeps indicating that his signal had failed. Just what he needed. Pulling his beanie lower, adjusting his ear muffs, tying the strings of his hood, lowering his chin so that his muffler could cover his bottom half of his face he walked back to the divers side of the car and got in wondering what the hell he was going to do now. Peering out the window he noticed that the snow was getting thicker and more and more of it was falling making it impossible to see anything more than a few feet before him.

Hitting the steering wheel he sighed and sat back in his seat, his head titled back as he stared up at the ceiling of the car. A few minutes later a waft of cold air struck him. Picking his head up he looked out the window and noticed that the wind had picked up and was blowing in his direction causing for the snow to hit the windows of the car with 'thuds.' This can't be happening to me. This is a fucking nightmare! He quickly shook his head and reached for his cell phone again. This is why he didn't like living up north, the winters were really winters with snow, blizzards, and hail... oh my!

He took a deep breath and flipped his cell open and tried to dial 911 but the connection wouldn't go through and soon the blue lit screen went black. He stared at the phone in his hands in disbelief. Fucking great! He threw his cell phone in the back seat of his car and crossed his arms over his chest trying to figure out just what he was going to do now. Looking over at the dash board, at the temperature, he shuddered. Temperature outside was a freezing 15 degrees and inside was a not so warm 50 degrees... the numbers showed no signs of increasing.

Trying not to panic he figured the best thing to do was go to sleep. And that's what he did. He pushed his seat back and crossed his arms over his chest, took in a deep calming breath, and closed his eyes in hopes that he could sleep through the blizzard wake up to warmer temperatures and all this being one bizarre nightmare.

* ** *** ** * * ** *** ** * * ** *** ** * * ** *** ** *

"I'm sorry Brian," Nick sighed in to the phone. "But it's not my fault all the flights have been canceled and it sure as hell isn't my fault that New York decided to have a fucking blizzard in January!"

Brian sighed on the other end of the phone. "Don't yell at me," he said with a worn out voice. "And I know it's not your fault but... deng it Nick everyone's here for you and your not even here for you like you're supposed to be!"

Nick scrunched his face up in confusion before shaking his head. He felt a headache coming on and analyzing the words coming out of Brian's mouth wouldn't help ease the tension in his head any bit. "Look all the flights are grounded," he said. "There's no way in or out of the city by flight. I can rent a car-"

"NO," Brian said quickly. "I don't want you driving in the snow... in the dark... God only know what could happen if something goes wrong!"

"Yeah well, I can't exactly stay in the damn airport, Brian," Nick said a bit harshly as he lowered his hat and made his way with his luggage over to the car rental booth. "I don't know how long this storm is gonna last." He snuck a glance at the large terminal windows and saw nothing but snow pouring down. This is not how I wanted to spend my birthday.

"Then where are you going to go?" Brian questioned, worried. "And just how are you planning on getting there?"

"To a hotel," Nick simply stated. "And I'll drive or have them shuttle things take me over or something."

Brian knew there was no point in arguing with Nick especially from a different coastline. "Fine," he said. "Just don't get yourself lost or killed, okay? I want you to always keep your cell on and call me... okay?"

Nick groaned. "Brian, you do realize I'm going to be twenty-five years old tomorrow," he said. "And you're still treating me like I'm only 13 and don't know what I'm doing!"

"Sorry," Brian said in a soft voice. "I can't help it."

"You know expect it from Kevin and maybe Howie," Nick said. "But not you..." He trailed off as he reached the desk. "Look I gotta go and see just what hotel is available... I'll call you in a bit, bye." He hung up the phone before letting Brian say anything else.

About a half hour later Nick had his luggage in the back seat of a silver Mercedes-Benz ML500. In the half hour time Nick had managed to buy a bunch of food and drinks and few warm clothes in the airport in case he might need them on the drive up to his cabin in Cooperstown. He didn't how he'd managed to get through the city streets and through the Holland Tunnel and then through the EZ pass without much difficulty but he had and about three hours later he found himself on the highway heading upstate. Reaching over into his carry on that he'd placed in the passenger seat he took out his CD case and carded through it before grabbing the new Led Zeppelin CD and inserted it in the MP3 player installed in the dash board. It wasn't until another hour later of really slow and careful driving that he spotted a big mass of snow off to the other side of the road. Frowning he looked in the rear view mirror to make sure no more cars were behind him and then looked in front of him to make sure no one was coming. Carefully he drove the car closer to the mass of snow and assessed the situation.

Taking in a deep breath he rolled down his window and shivered as the cold air traveled inside the warm car. Reaching his glove covered hand out he wiped the snow off of the window of the car so he could get a better look to see if anyone was inside. Since it was already dark outside and really dark inside Nick wasn't sure if anyone was in there. He then knocked on the glass window hoping if there was someone inside they could hear him and answer him.

* ** *** ** * * ** *** ** * * ** *** ** * * ** *** ** *

He was brought out of his slumber when he heard the 'thuds' getting louder. Blinking his eyes to try and adjust to the darkness of the car he looked around and saw that there was a clean patch of cleared of snow on his window. Confused he leaned over and peered through the whole and yelped when a hand came down and started knocking on it. Regaining his composure he placed his hand by the clear area to indicate that he was in there, happy that someone had found him and that he wasn't going to freeze to death... alone in a rental car on a highway and so close to his birthday.

Before he knew it there were two hands out on his window, swiping the snow off the car. Justin couldn't make out the face of the person since the other person was wearing a hat and had on a hooded coat as well as a scarf. But once all the snow was cleared off he rolled down his window and shivered at the gush of cold winter air that entered with big snow flakes.

"What happened?" The other man yelled out to him over the angry windy snow storm.

"The car broke down and my cell phone's dead," he yelled back. He watched as the other man disappeared in the car, the window roll up, and then watched the car move a little causing for the second door to be aligned slightly with his door. Fear that the other man was going to drive off and leave him there soon vanished as he smiled, figuring out what the other man was trying to do. Before long the door slid open to reveal the other man in the second row seat and reaching out to open his door.

Quickly he grabbed his small duffle bag and cell phone from the back seat and opened the drivers side door and leaped into the other man's car. "Thanks," he mumbled as he tried to clam his breathing.

"No problem," the other man said as he slid the door shut and sighed. "How long have you been stuck there?"

He shrugged. "For a few hours," he said. "I think." There was a curt nod before the man moved past him and got settled back in the driver's seat. He shivered. "Thank you, again."

The other man turned back and looked at him with a smile. "Don't mention it," he said. "You cold?"

He nodded his head as he wrapped his arms around himself and started rubbing them. "Yea, I am."

"I got the heater on," the other man said. "I think you should come up here and you'll get warmer faster."

He nodded his head and quickly made his way into the passenger seat and reached his hands out to let them hover over the heater, sighing contently. "Ah... heat..."

A few minutes later the other man spoke up. "I see you were heading in the other direction," he said. "I'm actually going in the opposite direction. Could I drop you off some place?"

He shook his head sadly. "Actually no," he said. "I was driving to the city to get to the airport for my flight. I was up here on business but the storm ruined everything."

"I know what you mean," the other man said and sighed. "Well, I'm going up to my cabin... and there are a few motels along the way that you could check into if you have feel uncomfortable staying with me." He started to remove his gloves and scarf because it was getting a little too hot in the car. He then shrugged out of his jacket and tossing everything in the back seat. He still had his hat on and a hoodie.

He thought about that for a minute as he watched the other man remove a few of his clothes. He finally got somewhat of a better look at the man's face and he frowned. His features looked familiar. Squinting his eyes he watched him a bit more and when the other man turned his blue eyes over to him he gasped as it finally hit him just who this person was. "Oh holy hell!" He exclaimed surprised and shocked that of all the people on this planet hell, even in New York, that would come and find him in a deserted highway in a snow storm... why did it have to be Nick? Carter? "Nick!?"

Nick snapped his head to the right surprised the other person recognized him. "Um," he said ready to deny the claims. "I don't know what..." he trailed off as he watched the other man lower his hood and then take the beanie off. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped. This is just fucking great! I can't believe of all the people to have their cars broken down in the fricking storm it had to be him. God, why are you punishing me? I mean, wasn't dating Paris enough of a punishment as it was? He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. "Please don't start shit with me, okay?"

"Me? Start shit with you?" He questioned with a snort. "I never start anything with you. You're the one with the jealousy problem!"

"I don't have a jealousy problem," Nick stated, getting annoyed. "Look, Timberlake, I don't want to start shit with you right now, okay? It's been a really fucking long day for me." He started up the engine and slowly started to drive. "There's a motel a few minutes away from here, I'm sure there's vacancies in there."

"Whatever the fuck man," Justin said crossing his arms over his chest and looking out the window. And like Nick had said, thirty minutes later, he pulled off the highway and drove to the front of Motel 6.

"Okay," Nick said. "This is your stop!"

Justin reached in the back seat and grabbed his bag before opening the door and stepping out of the car quickly running into the motel and heading over to the front desk.

Nick had remained there for a few moments just thinking about everything before shaking his head and softly pressing on the gas. He snuck a look inside the motel to see if Justin was alright and immediately put on the breaks when he saw the other man walking towards the doors and back to him. "What happened?" He questioned as Justin opened the door and got inside.

"They only accept cash," Justin muttered out in disbelief. "AND they don't have anymore rooms left."

Nick sighed as he drove off to the next motel he knew of which was supposed to be a twenty minute drive but because of all the snow and slick roads, it turned about to be a forty-five minute ride. "Do you um," he said once he stopped at the front of the motel. "Want me to wait to see its okay?"

Justin simply nodded his head and got out of the car and quickly ran in only to be told the same exact thing as the other motel had. He got back into the car and shook his head.

Nick sighed, again, and reached for his cell phone. The car he had rented had a GPS tracking system and a built-information data base. Browsing through the system he found the listings and phone numbers of the hotels they were close to. One by one he called them only to be told they were no rooms available. This is not happening. I can't believe that my good deed for the day involves Justin Timberlake. He looked over at the passenger seat as he set his cell phone on the dash board.

Justin groaned as he saw that look on Nick's face. "You've got to be kidding me," he mumbled out as he brought his hands up and rubbed it over his face.

A few seconds of silence and serious thinking on Nick's part, he sighed. "You're still welcomed to stay at my place," he said in a quiet voice, not believing for a second that those words were coming out from his mouth.

* ** *** ** * * ** *** ** * * ** *** ** * * ** *** ** *

"... and this is the cabin," Nick said as he opened the door and let Justin walk in ahead of him.

Justin looked around the spacious and comforting atmosphere of the cabin and nodded his head. "Nice place," he said and then turned around to look at Nick.

"Thanks," Nick replied and took his winter gear off and hung it on the hooks by the door. "Um, I kinda had this cabin built just for me so there's only one bed room, a bathroom, a kitchen/dining room/living room."

Justin nodded his head. "Okay," he said.

Nick sighed as he ran his hand through his hair. "I'm not all that tired so I can take the couch and you can have the bedroom," he said thinking about how many times Justin had been yawning and dozing off during their car ride up to the cabin.

Justin was a little hesitant and on guard by the way Nick was being so nice to him.

Seeing the uncertainty in Justin's eyes Nick took it upon himself to get the extra sheets and pillow out from the linen closet and began to set the couch. When that was done he went about getting the fire started in the fire place. He then looked over at Justin who was watching him with an unreadable expression on his face. "Would you like me to have the fire place lit in the bedroom?"

Justin nodded his head and picked his bag up before following Nick down the hall in to the room in the back. As he entered he had to admit to himself that Nick definitely chose a nice cabin or maybe that was Nick's feminine side that didn't the choosing, Justin snickered. Sitting on the bed he watched as Nick walked over to the fireplace across from the bed and began to get it lit up.

"Is this place you're hide out or some shit?" Justin questioned a few seconds later.

"Huh?" Nick said turning around in his crouched position and looking at Justin. His mind was on other things that he hadn't her just what Justin has said except knowing he said something.

Justin laughed. He's as dumb as ever! "I said," he said. "Why'd you get this place... tucked deep in the woods of upstate New York? You planning to hide away here or some shit?"

Nick looked at Justin for a long moment contemplating on whether he should be hospitable to Justin or not but he shook his head of all thought pertaining to throwing Justin out the window and into the snowy storm outside. "No," he simply said and went back to pushing the sticks to get the fire roaring.

* ** *** ** * * ** *** ** * * ** *** ** * * ** *** ** *

Nick sat with the blankets wrapped around him, nursing his cup of hot cocoa, deep in thought as he watched the fire flames dance and the wood crackle in the fire place. It had been about an hour or maybe a little more than that since he'd left Justin in the bedroom. He had no idea just what the other man was doing, if he was doing anything at all. What the hell did I ever do to him? Why the fuck is he so pissed at me? It's not like I'm a threat to his popularity. Hell, I'm not even in his league to even be considered as competition. He sighed as he drank the last bit of his cocoa and set the cup on the coffee table. There's only one thing that I could think of that would be the reason for him to hate me... and that's if he's homophobic or got anything against bi-sexuals. But the more Nick thought about the the more it didn't make sense. Justin had hated him since the moment they met each other, heck, Nick got the feeling that Justin had hated him even before that. So, it couldn't possibly be that he hated him because of his sexual preference.

The thing is, about a year and a half ago, Nick had gathered up even courage to tell the whole world, with the support and encouragement from his brothers, that he was bi-sexual. It had been a shock to the entire population and the second the words had left Nick's mouth he could have sworn that every body had died, it was so quiet and eerie that Nick thought if he were to drop a pin, even that wouldn't make a noise. The weeks following the confession and conference were chaotic for Nick. Every single person wanted to know just who he was seeing and who made him this way. There were also rather nasty hate mail and 'faggot' jokes and remarks thrown at his from every direction. But Nick had bared his dignity and shrugged it all off only to break down and cry when he was all along in his room. He wouldn't even let his brothers see him like that.

After a few months have passed the pandemonium of his coming out of the closet had died down and Nick was amazed to see that the demand and record sales of his CD, an attempt at a solo career, had sky rocketed. Later did he learn that people were picking apart the lyrics and tunes of the songs, trying to say that there were hidden messages about his sexuality in them. Nick had been so bewildered by the accusations that soon followed that he thought he was seriously going to get a hemorrhage one of these days. They had accused him of coming out of the closet just to boost up record sales, which Nick thought was the stupidest thing he'd ever hear but then when people started calling him retarded he figured maybe it was the smartest thing he'd ever heard.

Around the same time Nick was shocked to have seen and heard that JC of Nsync also confessing that he indeed was gay. And that just fueled the controversy about them lying to boost up record sales' issue further. He'd bumped into JC a few times at industry parties and events and pictures of them talking and hanging out had been the first page news on every single magazine, tabloid, newspaper, and news stations across the world. It soon then became a laughing matter with the late night talk shows as well as other comedy shows.

But with JC being gay and both he and Justin being best friends from the same group that crossed out the factor that Justin was homophobic. And that left Nick even more confused and lost as to why Justin hated him and felt it necessary to always mention it every time they bumped into each other. Nick was up to the point that he didn't even care anymore of why Justin hated him and he didn't even bother to try and find out. He was doing a good job of avoiding bumping into Justin until today. Stupid fucking snow storm! And thanks to you now I'm STUCK with Justin in MY cabin. A cabin that was purposely built in a secluded area in the woods for privacy... a place where I could go to get away from everything.

Nick shook his head to try and get rid of all the thoughts and memories that had happened to him the last year and a half. Even now there were a few people that wouldn't let the issue drop but he was thankful to know that there were even more people out there that had finally gotten over the shock and are supporting him, either that or they are just indifferent and letting him live his own life. And every second of the day he couldn't help but love his fans even more for all their letters of support and gifts to get him to feel better. Taking a deep breath he lied back down on the couch and closed his eyes to try and get some sleep. Sure, it was only 10:30 but it had been a really long and busy day for him and he was drained and dead tired.

* ** *** ** * * ** *** ** * * ** *** ** * * ** *** ** *

As soon as Nick left Justin had toed his sneakers off and got himself comfortable on the bed. He brought his hands to the back of his head and stared up at the ceiling. He wasn't all that tired or sleepy anymore. No matter how hard he tried, no matter how much he talked to himself trying to convince himself that he wasn't thinking about the blonde man in the other room, it wasn't working. His mind kept wandering and as much as he tried to deny it, he was thankful that it was Nick that had found him.

Back in 1997 just when Nsync was getting started and were doing tours in Europe Justin had been excited to hear that the Backstreet Boys were there as well. And he had been even more thrilled when one day while they had been in Germany to find out that they were in the same hotel and would be playing a basket ball game against each other. Justin had known who Nick was through JC who had been there at the auditions when they both had tried out. He had gotten a fuzzy feeling in the pit of his stomach and he had no idea just what that was all about.

So on the day of the big game Justin had decided to go up and introduce himself to Nick in hopes that they could be friends 'cause he thought it would be nice to be friends with someone who was almost the same age as him and pretty much going through the same things as him. But when he walked to Nick's room, which was unlocked, and peeked inside he was shocked. Nick and some guy were in the middle of the room playing tonsil hockey and Justin had slammed the door and ran down the stairs in a hurry to get away from there. He didn't understand just why he had reacted like that and just why he felt his heart breaking at the sight of Nick with another man. But during the time before the game Justin had managed to calm his nerves down and force himself to forget about what he saw, though it was still in the back of his mind.

The first time he was introduced to Nick was at the beginning of the game, backstage by the locker rooms, and Justin had gotten that fuzzy feeling in the pit of his stomach again. And because he didn't understand just why it was happening he did the only thing he knew how to do. He got his defenses up and acted like a complete jerk. And every single time since then whenever he thought of Nick, or saw him or bumped into, that feeling would return and he started acting in defense. When he didn't understand something that's what he did. He acted on pure impulse.

The day Nick had come out to the world Justin had been thrilled and horrified when he realized that his heart and mind was revived with hope. He didn't understand what it was hoping for and that scared his more than anything. Justin wasn't the type to be scared of things like that. He wasn't used to it. He was the type of person who felt secure in everything he'd done or did but that wasn't the case whenever it came to Nick and Justin hated feeling like he had no control. And that feeling only happened when it came to Nick. So in his mind he hated Nick for making him feel that way. He hated Nick for giving him fuzzy feelings. He hated Nick for making him feel like he's got no control over his emotions and feelings. He hated Nick for occupying his every thought.

Tossing in bed he closed his eyes tight to get his mind to stop thinking about everything. He felt so alone right then something he didn't feel whenever he was around Nick. Taking a deep breath he got up and walked out of the bedroom and made his way over to the couch where he could see Nick sleeping, peacefully. He had no idea what possessed him but soon he found himself sitting on the coffee table and watching Nick sleep. All the while footages, articles, and pictures over almost the past two years of Nick ran through his mind. Taking a closer look he noticed the weary, tired lines that surrounded his eyes, the worry lines on his forehead, he noticed how at twenty-five Nick looked as though he had lived the life of a seventy year old man. I'm so sorry Nick. I really didn't mean to say all those things to you. I don't hate you, I never did. But you hurt me so much that day at the hotel and I don't know why... I don't know why it hurt seeing you with another guy. I don't why it hurt seeing you with those girls you dated. And I don't understand just why I get this fuzzy feeling and it scares the hell out of me.

He reached out and gently moved the strands of hair that hung over Nick's face. He let his eyes trail over every feature on Nick's face. The strands of hair his hand was touching was as soft as silk and he licked his lips as he saw just how pink and plush Nick's lips were. He leaned down, slowly inching closer to Nick's face getting to urge to kiss his lips. He wasn't thinking as he let his eyes close and nearly closed the distance between his lips and Nick's lips.

"AHHH, WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?"

Justin's eyes flew open and he immediately jerked up and stood, trying to calm his pulse and racing heart trying to find the answer to Nick's question.

"What the fuck were you trying to do, Timberlake?" Nick questioned standing up as well and facing Justin with a glare. "What the hell is your problem anyways? Were you trying to kill me? What the fuck did I ever do to you to make you hate me so much? I fucking save you from freezing to death out there in your broken car and bring you to my cabin and what's the thanks I get... you fucking trying to kill me, you ASSHOLE!" Nick threw his hands up and stepped away from Justin, flushed, scared, and angry. He had been sleeping a dreamless sleep when he felt something moving on his face. The air around his had shifted and subconsciously he knew that he wasn't alone anymore. He's opened his eyes and had a near heart attack when he saw a face looming over him.

Justin didn't have an answer. He just stood there shocked and embarrassed. Shocked that Nick would think that he was going to kill him and embarrassed because of what he was about to do before Nick had woken up. Soon Nick was right in front of him, looking... glaring into his eyes.

"I don't know what I did to piss you off so much, Timberlake," Nick said through gritted teeth. "And I'm sick of apologizing for something that I have no clue about. I'm sick of being nice to you and I'm sick of trying to figure ou-"

Justin had had enough of watching Nick's red lips moving and angry words come out of it. He gulped before he grabbed Nick's face in his hands and pulled him close to finish what he had started. He kissed him. He kissed him hard. He kissed him like there was no tomorrow. He kissed him, he shoved his tongue into Nick's mouth, he sucked on Nick's tongue, he pushed him back down on the couch, he straddled his waist... all without breaking the kiss. Fuck being scared. Fuck having to always be in control. Fuck trying to understand and analyze his feelings. He was sick of it. He finally let go of everything and did what that fuzzy feeling in the pit of his stomach told him to do.

A few minutes later Justin pulled back resting his hands on Nick's chest, out of breath. He looked down in to Nick's shocked, wide-eyed, open-mouthed face. "I wasn't trying to kill you," he said still catching his breath. "I was trying to kiss you."

Nick's mind was a complete blank. He felt like the air had been sucked right out of him. He was taken off guard by Justin's behavior and by Justin's words. Not understanding this sudden change of attitude Nick got scared ad pushed Justin off of him and stood up in a panic. "And just why the fuck were you trying to kiss me? What the hell is going on!?" He started backing away from Justin.

Justin, surprised by Nick pushing him off of him, quickly stood up from where he had been on the floor and walked towards Nick. "Nick, please, I'm not going to hurt you," he said, hating the fear he saw on Nick's face. "I just wanted to kiss you because it was something I wanted to do for a long time!"

Nick shook his head and gasped as his back came in contact with the wall. He was now trapped between the wall and Justin. "Justin... I don't know what you're trying to pull here but it's not funny."

Justin placed his hands on either side of Nick, to keep him in place. Looking deep into Nick's eyes he said, "I'm not pulling anything Nick and I'm not trying to be funny." He leaned closer and let his lips barely brush against Nick's. "You remember that night in Germany? The night right before the game, before you and I first met... you were in your hotel room making out with some guy?"

It took a minute for Nick to remember before he was nodding his head. "How... how... did you... do you... know what?"

Justin stared right into Nick's eyes. "You left the door unlocked. I wanted to come and meet you hoping we could be friends but I saw that you had you mouth full... and I didn't realize it then but I got jealous. I slammed the door shut and ran away."

Nick gulped. "Th.. that was ... you?" He questioned. He had always wondered why the door had slammed especially when he knew he had closed it to begin with. He then wracked his brain trying to figure just who had walked in and witnessed that scene. But now he knew.

Justin nodded his head. "And it hurt... it hurt that it wasn't me you were making out with," he said in a whisper slightly nuzzling his nose with Nick's. "I was so jealous and hurt and I didn't understand just why I was feeling that way about a person I'd never met... about a person who was a GUY and it scared the hell out of me. And I didn't like that feeling. So I started to say I hated you because you made me weak. You made me feel things that no woman had ever made me feel. I hated you because I knew I was in love with you before I had even met you."

Nick stood there speechless as he let everything Justin said sink in. "Wh...what?"

"I love you Nick," Justin whispered pressing his body against Nick and looking right into his eyes.

"Justin... " Nick said turning his head and placing his hands on Justin's waist to push him away. "You're delusional... I think the cold really got to you out there in the broken car you were in."

Justin felt his heart breaking all over again, like it did that night. It was then that it dawned on him that maybe Nick might not be interested in him. "I'm not... delusional," he said as he gulped the brick in his throat. "I... I love you..."

"You don't even know me, Justin," Nick said as he let go of Justin's waist and brought his hand up to run it through his hair. "How could you even say that when you spent the last eight years telling me how much you hated me?"

Justin looked down at the floor before bringing his gaze up to Nick's. "'Cause I was denying my feelings for you... a guy. I've never felt that way about anyone, Nick. Never. And I didn't know what it was all about until recently... until a few minutes ago."

Nick's face softened as he realized what Justin might be going through... realizing that he had feelings for a guy. From personal experience Nick knew that it was going to be a turning point in Justin's life, a major life changing decision. "I don't know what to say, Justin," he said with a sigh. "I'll help with whatever doubts and shit you got going on..."

Justin shook his head. "No doubts, Nick," he said. "I already know what I want." He took a step forward and cupped Nick's face in his hands and kissed him again. He smiled into the kiss when he felt Nick's hands on his waist, holding him in place. He pulled back a few seconds later. "I want you Nick," he breathed out, his eyes still closed as his forehead rested against Nick's.

Nick looked at Justin's closed eyes and parted lips. "Are you sure?" He questioned. "It's not just because we're stuck in my cabin in the middle of a snow storm in the woods, is it?"

Justin just shook his head.

"Do you know what you're doing Justin?" Nick questioned. "Is this just a one time thing or is this... a long term thing. I need to know now so I know just what to do..."

Justin pulled back and opened his eyes. "You're stuck with me Carter," he said. "And I'm sick of watching you with the wrong type of people who treat you like crap and use you when I know I could make you happy and give you so much more."

Nick raised his eyebrow, amused. "If I recall you were one of those people that treated me like crap."

Sadness and regret found it's way into Justin's eyes. "I know," he said sadly. "But I was referring to the people you dated. Nick, please give me another chance. Please forgive me."

"So does this mean I'm stuck with you forever?" Nick questioned pulling Justin close to him with a smile on his face.

Justin smirked. "Yup, you're stuck with me," he said and leaned up to kiss Nick again and smiled as Nick kissed him back. He pulled back and sighed as he realized he was starving. Looking at the time he saw that it was 11:59 PM. "I'm hungry," he said. "Got anything to eat in this place?"

Nick laughed as he nodded his head and escorted them in to the kitchen. "Yah, I do," he said as he opened the fridge and began pulling out a few cold cuts so he could make them a sandwich. He felt Justin step up behind him and wrap his arms around his waist before there was a soft kiss on his shoulder. "Hmmm?"

"Happy Birthday, Nicky," Justin said as the clock flashed 12:00 AM.

Nick turned around in Justin's arms and kicked the door of the fridge shut. Smirking he asked, "How long do you think this storm is gonna last?"

Justin shrugged. "I think a few days," he said. "I don't really know and don't really care."

Nick nodded his head and kissed Justin softly on the lips. "I hope it does for a while," he said. "We could have some fun on you're birthday, that way."

Justin's smile grew as he brought his hands up and hooked them around Nick's neck as Nick place his hands on Justin's waist. "Why can't we have fun on yours?"

"Oh, we will," Nick said as Justin hopped on the kitchen counter and wrapped his legs around Nick. He then leaned over and started them on another kiss. "We'll be stuck here for a while, anyways."

..::THE END::..