Chapter 13
It was early the next morning when Chris and Justin found themselves waking up to the extraordinary smell a wonderful breakfast cooking. Of course, both thought the other was the one doing the cooking. They soon realized differently when they collided while coming out of their respective bedrooms.
"Chris, what are you doing back here?" Justin asked, looking questioningly at his band and roommate.
"I was just about to ask you the same thing. Shouldn't you be up there watching what you're cooking?" Chris asked him, starting for the front of the apartment.
"Me? I'm not cooking. I thought you were, although I can't say I remember a single day when you actually cooked breakfast." Justin said, not moving from his spot. Chris stopped where he was and turned back towards his friend.
"Well, I'm not the one cooking. I thought you were. But if you aren't cooking, and I'm not cooking, who is?" Chris asked, before both broke into a run for the kitchen to find out who was in their apartment. Both came to a skidding stop when they saw Sheryl sitting on the sofa, and heard noises of humming and cooking coming from the kitchen.
"Morning you guys. I was beginning to wonder if I was going to have to come in there and get you myself. Breakfast is almost done." Sadie said, sticking her head out of the kitchen door when she heard their noisy entrance into the living room. "Oh," she started, sticking her head back out the door. "Nice clothes." She said with a laugh before returning to the stove in the kitchen.
Chris and Justin glanced at Sheryl who only shrugged and then at each other realizing that they hadn't dressed and were standing in their boxers. They then turned as red as a fresh strawberry and ran for their rooms to hurriedly dress before returning to their unannounced and unexpected guests.
"Ok," Chris started as he and Justin reentered the living room where Sheryl was still seated on the sofa, reading the morning paper. "How in the world did you guys get in here, and is that MY morning paper?"
"Well, this is your paper, and it wasn't my idea. I got woken up and hour and a half ago. Go talk to Sadie." Sheryl said, offering Chris the front page of the paper that she had finished reading.
"To answer you question Chris," Sadie said, coming from the kitchen with a tray laden with bacon, pancakes, syrup, orange juice, scrambled eggs, coffee, and butter. She sat it down on the coffee table before going back for the plates. When she returned she sat down and told everyone to dig in, which they did. "I have become quite good friends with your neighbor. Mrs. James is a wonderful lady, don't you think so, Sis?"
"Yes, she is, but would ya get to the part where you got into our apartment." Chris asked, glaring at the amused look on Justin's face.
"Ok, ok. Well, I went to her this morning and told her it was your birthday and that I had wanted to surprise you with breakfast since you guys are such good friends of mine, but that I had misplaced the key to your apartment. So she let Sheryl and I into her apartment and we just climbed over the rail onto you balcony and came in though the sliding door. You guys really should lock that at night." Sadie said, not even noticing the shocked expressions from the two men sitting across from her. Then they glanced at Sheryl.
"Don't look at me. Like I said, it wasn't my idea. And you wouldn't believe how she can whine. Besides, you should lock that door." Sheryl said, still not glancing up from her section of the paper.
"Ok, so why did you break into our apartment, and Justin would you wipe that cheesy grin off of your face. I don't mind that you did get in, if you're going to make us breakfast, but why?" Chris asked, laughing at Justin as he blushed and looked away from Sadie, who was also blushing.
"I wanted to say thank you, both of you. For everything you've done for us. I don't think we would have made it this far without you and the guys." Sadie said, choking up on her words. Justin was beside her in a flash to hug her.
"We wanted to help. You guys are like sisters to us now, and we couldn't stand to see you going through that alone. I'm just glad we could help." Chris said, also giving her and her sister a hug.
"Well, anyway," Sadie said, wiping her tears and smiling at the two men in front of her. "I called the other guys this morning. I think they have gotten a little too used to sleeping so late. I don't think they were happy about their wake up call. But they are all on their way over for breakfast. I left theirs in the oven to keep it warm. They should be here any minute. You need to hurry and eat. As soon as they finish, you guys have to go to the studio, remember? You have recording today. And, Justin, don't forget you have your appointment with Dr. Townsend today at four." Sadie said, standing and going back in the kitchen to wash the pots and pans she had used to make their breakfast with.
"This is how she used to be. I'm glad to see it. She actually slept all night, not one nightmare. She said she actually had dreams, but not bad ones. I couldn't be happier." Sheryl said, for the first time that morning, lying down her paper and looking at the guys.
"I'm glad. All that last night, it must have been what was causing it all huh? The worry and all." Justin said, looking back to the kitchen door, where sounds of running water and low humming were floating into the room.
"Get the dreamy look out of your eyes Romeo. She is getting better, but you know, it's still going to take a while for her to get back to being the person she was completely." Chris said, but his enthusiasm for her progress was evident.
"I know, Chris. And what dreamy look?" Justin asked, bringing his attention back to his friend.
"Never mind, Justin. Never mind. I'm going to take a shower." Chris said getting up and heading into the back of the apartment to get ready for the day.
"I can't believe you guys are letting us tag along with you while you work. This is awesome." Sadie said, excitedly as she, her sister, and the five members of Nsync walked down the long hallway to the recording studio.
"Sade, you've been here before, and watched us work." Lance said, laughing at the excited girl beside him.
"I know that, Lanceten." Sadie said, drawing out the nickname as she glanced at him. "But at that time, I was in charge of five unruly children as fidgety as Chris on a bad. And those were good days." Sadie explained quietly, glancing through the window in one door to spy on a new artist she had never seen or heard before.
"Come on, Supa-spy, we need to get to work." JC said, taking Sadie's elbow to drag her a few more doors down where they entered the sound room. There she was able to actually study a soundboard and meet and talk with the sound engineer that would be working the board beside JC.
Her rapid fire questions to the engineer, Dave, was interrupted when the door to the sound room was opened, rather noisily by a tall black man, who, to Sadie looked rather familiar, and a shorter white man, also looking familiar. The two crashed into the room, laughing and pushing each other. Sadie looked around at the guys, to see if she could get some sort of clue as to who the new people were, and all she saw were dropped jaws and puzzled and bemused expressions.
"This is the kind of welcome we get from you guys after all the sweat blood and tears we have put into your success?" Asked the black man, glaring at the members of Nsync.
"What in the name of ALL that is Holy are the two of you doing here?!" Chris exclaimed, jumping on the shorter man's back.
"See, I knew they wouldn't have changed. This is the kind of welcome I expected when I came through that door.
"That doesn't explain what you guys are doing here." Lance said, shaking the first man's hand and pulling him into a small hug before moving to the second.
"We were on our way to another job, thought we would drop by and see Lou. He told us you were here and were about to record today. We couldn't pass up the chance to see you guys. Hey Jay, glad to see ya back man." The first man, Darren, said to Justin, hugging him in the manliest way possible.
"Well, I'm not back, not totally anyway, but working on it. It is awesome to see you guys! Wade, man, I haven't see you in ages." Justin said, moving to the second man, whom Sadie now recognized, and, after a quick glance to Sheryl, she knew her sister did to. The two men in the door way were none other than Nsync's main choreographers when they were touring.
"Oh, Wade, I think we may have interrupted something." Darren said, noticing for the first time, the two women standing to one side of the room watching the event before them.
"Oh man I feel like a goober. Sadie, Sheryl, come here." Lance said, motioning the sisters over to them. "Wade, Darren, this is Sheryl Evans, and her sister Sheena, but we call her Sadie. Guys this is�." Lance was interrupted as Sadie and Sheryl both stuck their hands out to shake with the new members of their little party.
"Darren and Wade, best choreographers in the biz. We know Lance. It's a real pleasure to meet you guys. Really it is." Sadie said, shaking first Darren's hand and then Wade's.
"Hey Juju, think you better watch out. Your girl might start wanderin." Joey joked with Justin, who blushed.
"I take it you are referring to me Mr. Fatone. And if that is the case, I am not wanderin anywhere." Sadie said, playfully punching Joey in the stomach and then walking over to stand beside Justin, who leaned down, smiled at her, and placed a quick and soft kiss on her lips.
"I see someone is still a killer with the ladies." Wade half whispered to Darren, who laughed.
"No, it's not like that. I am just stayin attached to one from now on." Justin said, squeezing Sadie, where she was leaned with her back against his chest and his arms around her.
"Ok who did what to you?" Darren asked, feigning shock.
"You guys know I haven't dated since we stopped touring. Sadie here was the first girl I have felt connected to in a long time. And I don't plan on dating anymore for a while. I think I have my hands full as it is." Justin said, receiving an elbow jab in his stomach for his comment
"Well, things have changed I see." Wade said, then leaned close to Sadie's ear and whispered to her. "If ya need help keeping him in line, send him our way. We know ways of torture any special ops force would be proud of."
"Ok enough of filling their heads with torture ideas. I know Sheryl likes da torture treatment, so why don't we get to work you guys." Lance said, laughing at Sheryl's glare.
"I only love to torture you, James." Sheryl said, using his real name.
"Ohhhhh�.who's is she. Can I have her?" Darren asked, slinging an arm over Sheryl's shoulder.
"Darren, no offense, but I don't think even you could handle me, and I KNOW none of them can." Sheryl said, removing herself from his arm, with a small laugh.
"Now I know I gotta have her." Darren laughed. Lance's glare went unnoticed to the rest of the room.
"Ok, enough. Are you guys going to be around a while?" JC asked the two men as they made their way to the door.
"We'll be back out here to work with some artist or another of Lou's about sixish. Maybe we'll catch you then. Knowing you, JC, you'll still be working." Wade said, turning at the door.
"I don't think I will be, we're all planning on goin out to dinner about five this evening. Why don't you guys join us?" JC told them.
"Sure, we'll be there. Just call us up and tell us where." Darren said, following Wade out the door amidst a roomful of good byes and nice to meet you's.
"Ok, now we do have to get to work if we want to be done before Justin's appointment at four." JC said, herding the group into the recording booth.
Several hours later they had put the finishing touches on the two songs that they had been working on, Justin had left for his appointment with Dr. Townsend. The group of friends had started to the restaurant when he had called and told them to hold dinner. Darren and Wade hadn't been able to make it to dinner so Justin had told them he would be home soon and would bring dinner. That call had been two hours ago.
Now the group was seated in Chris and Justin's apartment, worried since Justin hadn't shown up or called. They were on the verge of calling hospitals when he came rushing in the door.
"Justin! My God, where have you been? We have been worried. What's wrong? What are you doing?" Chris asked, as Justin ran to his room and started throwing clothes around.
"It took longer than I thought. I'm sorry. I had something to do. Hurry guys, we're going to be late, and you know they don't like us being late." Justin shouted back to the group that was standing in the livingroom.
"Justin what are you talking about?" Lance asked, confused. "We don't have anywhere to be and who doesn't like us to be late, besides me?"
"We need to get to the studio. We have stuff to do. We got to get ready." Justin said, moving past Chris from his room to the kitchen.
"Justin would you stop for one minute and tell us what the hell you're talking about." Joey said, beyond confused by his best friend's words. Sadie and Sheryl sat confused and silent on the sofa where they had been talking to the rest of the group.
"What? I didn't tell you?" Justin asked, popping his head out of the kitchen door to look around the room at his friends.
"TELL US WHAT?" JC shouted, tired of stepping around the point.
"I can't believe I forgot. We have a concert in a month. We have to get ready." Justin said, going back to looking for bottles of water in the refrigerator.
"A concert? What?" Lance asked, sure that his friend had actually lost his mind.
"I think he's been hallucinating." Joey said under his breath.
Sadie got up from where she was seated on the couch and walked into the kitchen, dragging the protesting Justin back with her by a single curl. "Sit and tell us what in the name of GOD you are talking about." She instructed him in a voice that made him do nothing but comply immediately.
"Now TALK." Sheryl ordered him.
"Ok, look. I didn't want to tell you until I was sure. But we have a concert in a month at the arena here in Orlando. It's the last trial to see if I can do this again. Dr. Townsend said that if I can do that concert, that he will let me tour again. Lou has made the arrangements, or is making them now. That is what Dr. Townsend and I were talking about today. If I can pull this off, we're back on the road guys. We'll have our dreams back. But I guess I don't know if you guys want that same dream, do I?" Justin said, for the first time realizing that he should have consulted what they wanted before making this deal.
"What are you talking about? OF COURSE we want that. The only thing we have wanted more is for you to be able to follow your dreams, which meant getting better." Chris said, sitting down next to Justin.
"So are we going now?" Lance asked.
"We are supposed to meet Darren and Wade at the studio to work on choreography. We are who they are working with at six." Justin explained. Chris immediately got up and went to his room to retrieve his gym bag. When he returned, he stood in the middle of the room.
"Guys, do you realize we have a concert next month. A CONCERT!!!!!" Chris shouted at the top of his lungs. There were shouts of joy from everyone in the room.
"I can't believe you didn't tell us sooner." Joey shouted to Justin, piling on top of him on the couch and dragging him to the floor. For a few minutes there was a fierce wrestling match involving all five members of Nsync, until a sharp, high-pitched whistle stopped them all.
"You guys have a concert to prepare for. You better get your non-dancin, nappy headed butts to the studio." Sheryl told them all, standing with the door to the apartment open.
"Who you callin nappy headed?" Justin asked, immediately reaching a hand up to his curly head.
"Just go before I tell Wade to do that torture on you that he was talking about." Sadie told him, pushing him and Chris towards the door.
"I think at this point I wouldn't mind his torture. Would feel like old times." Justin said, then kissed her lightly and started to follow the others out the door.
"Hey, Justin." Sadie said calling him back.
"What baby?" Justin asked, coming back to stand in front of her.
Sadie wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him close to her. "I'm proud of you." She whispered in his ear.
Justin squeezed her tightly, a lump in his throat and his eyes stinging. "I'm proud of you too, baby."