WildHearts13

Josh sat out on the front porch of his friend's house, his legs bent and
resting on the second step. He sighed, chewing on the end of the pen in his hand and trying to think of the perfect thing to say. He parted his lips, tapping the end of the pen on his tongue before bringing the tip of it to the paper lying beside him.

Dear Lance,

    I hope you understand why I had to leave. Please believe me when I say you had nothing to do with it. This is between me and Chris; it always has been. Ever since our parents died when we were kids (they got the fever) things just haven't been the same between us. We fought all the time, and when it would turn physical, Chris would use his heart condition to guilt me out of hitting him. Did you know about that? Yeah, he was born with some kind of irregular heartbeat and another disease that I can't even begin to pronounce *or* spell. That hasn't stopped him yet though. He's still a stubborn ass, but what can I do? He's still my brother.

    Since I left, I've been wandering around, seeing the sights and meeting a lot of new people. At the moment, I am staying at a friend's house, but I plan on packing up and leaving again tomorrow. Everyone I meet is new and exciting, but I always end up comparing them to you. Their hair isn't spiky enough, their hands aren't small enough, their skin isn't milky and smooth, and their eyes aren't that perfect shade of pale green.

    I miss you so much Lance. Please write me.

Sincerely Yours,
Josh

~*~
Chris whistled as he walked into the house, a handful of letters in his hand.

'Probably all bills,' he thought bitterly.

Sighing loudly, he leaned inside the doorway leading to the living room, shuffling through the mail. One letter caught his eye, and he stared at it with a blank expression. It was address to a Lance, written in familiar handwriting, and up in the top left hand corner of the envelope it said 'Josh Chasez.'

'Had to go and change your name back, didn't you Josh?' he thought to himself with a sigh.

Chris wasn't sure how long he stared at the letter, but the sound of the front door opening behind him caught his attention. He turned his head, watching Lance enter the house and shed his coat. Chris turned back around, slipping the letter into his breast coat pocket.

"Hey Chris," said Lance cheerfully. "What's up?"

Chris shrugged. "Eh, not much. We've got a show in two days, are you ready?"

Lance grinned. "I was born ready!" His eyes fell on the pile of mail in
Chris's hands, and he immediately started chewing on his bottom lip. "Is that the mail?"

Chris nodded silently.

"Anything for me?" asked Lance, the hope evident in his voice.

Chris looked down at his hands, pretending to flip through the mail.

"Nope," he said, watching as a fleeting look of disappointment appeared in Lance's eyes.

"Oh," he said, shuffling his feet. "He must be busy. Or not near a mailbox." He nodded slowly. "Yeah, uh, that must be it." He sighed and shrugged, standing up straight again. "I better go help Joey with the horses. Toby needs a good grooming anyhow."

Chris nodded, watching Lance leave the room. When he was gone, Chris retrieved the letter from his coat, twirling it around in his fingers for a minute before tossing it into the fire.

~*~
Things started falling into a nice routine after a while. Every couple of
days or so they had a show. Britney would perform her tricks, and then Lance would ride out and win the audience all over again. By the time Bobbie's leg started to heal, it had been two months since Josh had left. Since then, Lance hadn't received a single letter. What he wasn't aware of, was the fact that Chris had gotten them all. They were either burned, ripped in half and thrown away, or shoved into his coat pocket for safe keeping. He never read them, just kept *Lance* from reading them.

Chris was shaken out of his thoughts as the audience cheered loudly, and he watched Lance walk out and bow to the audience. It was the end of another show. He hopped down from the platform, meeting Lance and Joey off to the side.

"You did great kid!" said Chris with a grin. "Looks like we'll be making new show posters now!"

Lance beamed excitedly. "I'm going to be on a poster?" he asked in awe.

Chris chuckled. "Yep." He lifted his arms up into the air, swiping his right hand in front of him as if to show a large poster. "It'll say, 'Bobbie and Lance: Bronco Riders for Kirkpatrick's Riding Horse Show!'"

Joey grinned, nudging Lance playfully. "I like it!"

"Well, I hate it."

Chris turned around, watching as Bobbie limped over to him. Although she still had a cast on, the doctor said her leg was healing fast and should be all better within a week or two. She was wearing a very light, flowery sun dress, and a large hat that sat atop her brown hair, which was pulled back into a tight bun. Chris sighed and rubbed his face tiredly.

"Bobbie-"

"No!" she said firmly. "I *refuse* to share a poster or my job with a stable boy from Mississippi!"

Lance glared at her, as did Britney and Joey, but everyone was silent. Chris rolled his eyes, looking extremely annoyed.

"Bobbie, Lance is a bronco rider now," he explained. "Like it or not, he's a real rider."

"He is *not* the star of the show!" she said loudly, her southern accent sharp as a nail. "I am."

Chris sighed, not wanting to argue. "Fine, Bobbie, *you* are the star. But Lance is still a rider, like it or not."

Bobbie smiled, straightening out the wrinkles on her dress and clasping her hands in front of her.

"Well, since I'm the star of the show," she began, "I would like more money, and a bigger dressing room."

Chris's eyes widened in shock, his jaw falling open. "What the fuck Bobbie?" he asked loudly. "We're in a *depression* here, I can't just give you-"

"More money, my *own* dressing room, and a better poster," said Bobbie with a smirk, "or else I quit."

Chris closed his eyes, mentally counting to ten and rubbing his chest. He opened his eyes and shook his head. "I can't do that Bobbie."

Bobbie actually looked shocked that he had turned her down. "Well, then I quit," she said, turning around and walking off.

"Bobbie!" yelled Chris. "Come on, you can't do this to me! Not now!"

Joey watched the two of them walk off, before grinning and slapping Lance on the back.

"Looks like *you* are the star now, buddy!"

Lance smiled, nervousness and excitement both raging inside of him.

"Yeah," he grinned, "I guess I am."

~*~
As time went on though, the depression of the 1930s grew worse. Everyone was forced to cut back on things, including Chris and his riding show. They were now traveling around the country, charging less and less for tickets to their show. They were almost doing it for free, but Lance didn't care. This was his dream, and he was living it up. However, a lot of shows were being canceled, and without shows there was no money.

~*~
Josh adjusted his duffel bag over his shoulder as he walked down the street of some nameless city. As he was walking by an arena area, he stopped to look at the promotion wall. Hundreds of posters and stickers overlapped each other, the new ones pasted over the old. As he looked them over, his eyes caught sight of one in particular. It was mostly covered up, but Josh could see the face of the person on it. It was a portrait of a young man with spiky blonde hair, a crooked grin, and the most unusual green eyes. Even in a painting, Josh would know those eyes anywhere.

Josh dropped his duffel bag beside him, picking at the edges of the posters and pealing them off until he got to the one he saw. He smiled softly, running a hand over Lance's face as he posed next to Toby. Up top, it read, 'Kirkpatrick's Riding Horse Show' and beside Lance it had his name in big, bold letters. Josh grinned, but it soon turned into a frown as he saw the large 'CANCELED' sticker that had been pasted across the front.

Biting his lip in thought, Josh picked up his duffel bag and ran to the
nearest phone. Ringing the number of an old friend, he waited until he heard the voice on the other end.

"Hello?"

Josh grinned. "Hey Wade! It's me, Josh."

"Josh! Man, it's been a while since we talked! How have ya been?"

Josh shrugged, even though Wade couldn't see him. "Not bad," he said. "Hey Wade, you're still a scout for performers down in Orlando, right?"

Wade chuckled over the phone. "That's right," he said. "Orlando! Where all your dreams come true!"

Josh rolled his eyes. "You sound like a bad promo poster," he laughed. Looking at the poster of Lance, Josh smiled. "I think I have the perfect act for you."