AN: Sorry for the delay folks, everyone who has sent feedback, ya'll are adored. If you wish adoration, send me an email. I love em! inspiredthoughts@hotmail.com ************************* Blindsided: Chapter Five ************************ Laura watched with soft eyes as JC quickly hid the napkin he had furiously been scribbling on as she came back from the restroom. They were in “their” booth at the twenty four hour, run down diner which they frequented often in the early hours of the morning for coffee and stale donuts after late nights and longer days. The tour started for real, earnest, tomorrow. Laura was looking forward to it, if only because she’d be able to sleep some on the buses. She wasn’t looking forward to it because she was going to mish Josh, a lot. She knew they’d still be friends, still talk, but he’d have people around him twenty four seven, fans, publicity, friends, family, reporters. It’d be hard to make time for coffee every night. Laura slid into her side of the booth and smiled at him as he fiddled awkwardly with the pen in his long, fine boned fingers. She watched them for a moment before speaking, “Jayce, how much solo material do you have stashed away on napkins and tablecloths and post it notes?” He started and stared at her with wide, dark, unblinking eyes and she knew she’d surprised him. He answered though, despite his shock, voice low and quiet even across the table, “Enough for two or three albums…” he muttered. “How come you haven’t made two or three albums then Josh? You have the talent, the ability, a fan base, ambition. You love the studio more than anywhere else in the world. You aren’t alive unless you’re in there making music, creating, being. Its like JC Chasez isn’t whole until he has a pen in one hand and a microphone in another.” “Its complicated Laura,” he started in but she interrupted him. “Explain it to me. I want you to be happy and I know making albums would make you happy. Why aren’t you doing it?” He stared at her, anguished, as he wrung his hands, so earnest in his inner turmoil she ached for him, for her friend. “Because I’m not Justin.” “And I’m glad. I like you as Josh, as JC Chasez. Making you a Justin clone would be a terrible waste, a terrible, terrible waste. You’d look awful as a blonde!” JC guffawed, an honest sound she had come to know as her favorite Jayce laugh. He had so many but few were as genuine as his guffaw. “I love that you can make me laugh. Few people can.” She blushed to her tennis shoes but spoke again, ignoring the compliment and its implications as she earnestly continued. “JC, people love *NSYNC for all of you, not just Justin. I love him along with the rest of America but that doesn’t mean I want every living, breathing male to BE him. America has heard his voice, and it wants to hear yours. Sing your songs for us JC, share them with the world. You won’t regret it and it’d be a sadder place without your words. Whatever they are, they’re usually so very beautiful.” He smiled timidly and reached into his jacket, absently fingering the edge of his stashed napkin. “I’ll think about it,” he finally conceded. Laura nodded. “Good.” That was their last cup of coffee and conversation alone together before the tour begun. It wasn’t their last at all though. JC was nothing if not stubborn, even if Laura was too blind to see it. ************************************************************************************ The boys split themselves, friends, and significant others up on two tour buses. Their album was phenomenally successful but the music industry was struggling. Days of chartering private jets were regulated to the previous glory of New Kids on the Block. They switched around, all having lived together so long that they could tolerate each other for significant amounts of time without bloodshed. Laura, as their assistant, was the only permanent “guest” on the buses and she rode on the one with only two boys which usually meant she rode with JC and Justin or Chris. Chris she adored, JC even more so, and Justin she mothered so much she felt a very keen connection with Lynn Timberlake. All remains of her crush on the “Baby” disappeared by week two when he asked her to help him do his laundry and most of it had been his underwear. Whatever had been left of the mystique had quite promptly died. Chris laughed so hard she had thought he’d give himself a heart attack. Laura loved touring, despite herself. She was a home body, she loved going back to her apartment every night and craved quiet alone time. She got little of either but for some reason that didn’t matter. She was happy and having the time of her life, in typically quiet and somewhat demure Laura Danon fashion. Somewhat to her surprise as well, her and JC’s late night talks over coffee hardly ceased. If anything, they spent more time together. After a show, or before if they had free hours, he inevitably found her, in her room, eating dinner. It was if Jayce had a built in “Laura” sonar that let him find her whenever he wanted. She truly didn’t mind. She, as stated, adored C’s company. It just shocked her that he enjoyed her company as much as she did his. And not just because he was famous. He was just so damned likeable she could never quite figure out why he didn’t have hundreds of people loving him as a friend as well, and fully as JC deserved. He didn’t though. Josh had his family, the guys, a few old childhood friends, and her. Laura, as someone without many friends herself, understood what she meant to him. She just never stopped marveling about it. Even when she got used to changing into her pajamas and waiting for Jayce’s expected rap at her hotel room door, sometimes after two or three in the morning if he had to go out to a club or after party for publicity. What was more surprising was the lack of grief she received about their friendship. Joey, Lance, Justin and even Chris never said a word or cracked a joke. Johnny didn’t raise a brow at their continued friendship and the rest of the crew acted like it was the most natural thing in the world for JC Chasez to adopt *NSYNC’s newest assistant as his newest best friend. What Laura didn’t know was that JC had had words with Chris and Chris, in turn, had had words with the other guys who had, in turn, had words with the crew who had informed Johnny who had shrugged. Their manager hardly cared if JC and Laura were friends. Nothing more would happen. That was one of the reasons he felt safe hiring her. But Laura knew none of this. What Laura didn’t know, wouldn’t hurt her. ************************************************************************************ JC smiled tiredly as he knocked and Laura answered promptly. He was exhausted after waking up early to do a morning talk show, a quick impromptu photo shoot in the afternoon, and their concert that night. He knew Joey and Justin were going out clubbing, Chris was asleep resting his knees, and Lance was working on some business propositions. All he had looked forward since his alarm had rang at the god awful hour of four AM was his nightly coffee with Laura. Funny that the highlight of his days was so often at night. Of course, he got to see a side of Laura he knew few did. Laura Danon in pajamas was a sight to see. Her hair, the whole brunette mess, was always wet from the shower, and pinned up in a messy bun that smelled like peaches and apricots. She always wore soft things to bed, fuzzy pajama pants, fleece, old worn shirts, thick socks. He hated it because he always had to fight the temptation to pet her. Jayce wasn’t the greatest at self restraint. He was glad he was better than Chris though. Tonight her glasses were perched on the end of her nose, making him think she had been reading, maybe taking a nap, despite answering the door so quickly. “Can I come in?” he asked. Laura yawned and smiled. “Sorry bout that. Of course, come on in. You always ask like I’m going to say no…” JC entered, a coffee thermos filled with Starbucks in his hands, and watched as Laura collapsed on the bed with a sort of boneless grace that came with utter disregard for how she appeared to the world, to him, he wished he had her carelessness. He wished he didn’t care quite so much about what people thought of him. It was one of the things he admired most about her. One of the things that made her so beautiful in his eyes, one of the many anyway. He gingerly took a seat on the floor, his back resting against the edge of the bed as Laura leaned over and held out her empty usual coffee mug. It was a Backstreet Boy mug and he had one that matched it. JC had bought the matching mugs for them one of the first days of tour. He had seen them in a passing flea market on a busy street corner and had given in to temptation. Laura had loved them, and the gesture behind them, more than he had imagined in his wildest dreams, though she had covered Kevin’s face with a Dole banana sticker late one morning after caffeine had set in. JC filled her mug, and his up, and gave it back to her, careful not to rotate his shoulder too much. A fleeting grimace of pain flitted across his face though and Laura noticed instantly, as she usually did. “What’d you do to yourself C?” “Threw a stupid bear into the audience during the show and pulled a muscle in my back and shoulder. Its sore…” “Did you take something for it?” she asked with quiet concern as she sipped still hot coffee. “Eh, I will before bed. Everything that works well as a muscle relaxer makes me drowsy and I didn’t want to miss our nightly coffee.” “But Josh, you’re in pain. Coffee doesn’t mean that much to me. I’d much rather you feel better.” JC glanced over. Laura face, while lying on her stomach on the comforter, was even with his as he leaned against the bed. He smiled tenderly, forgetting himself for a moment. “And I’d rather be in pain than not be here with you. Coffee means that much to me.” Laura blushed so fiercely he was afraid she’d burst into flames. “I look forward to this all day.” “You do?” Laura’s voice, when she asked the question, was small, almost needy. It was the shyest he had heard her in weeks. “I do,” he answered firmly. “This is my relaxation, my time for being Joshua Chasez instead of *NSYNC’s JC. I love what I do Laura, you better than almost anyone knows that, but its nice to talk with someone besides the guys as Josh the Man.” There was a thick silence between them and JC feared he had said too much too soon. “Sit forward a bit.” He glanced back and saw Laura sitting up and scooting forward. “What are you doing?” “Hold my coffee…” “Laura?” he asked warily as he accepted her mug and leaned forward trustingly none the less. He stiffened when he felt warm hands on his shoulders. “Relax,” said the soft voice he knew so well in the cup of his ear, “I worked at a spa when I was a teenager. I think I still remember how to give a massage.” JC nearly forgot how to breathe. “You don’t have to…” he managed to drag out of himself as her nimble fingers kneaded and danced across the sharp angles of his broad back. The pressure was perfect, enough but not painful. He nearly moaned in pleasure. Laura laughed. “Just don’t tell the others. I’m not giving out five massages every day.” JC’s answering laugh was low and throaty. “How about just one?” “Better watch out Mr. Pop Star, or people are going to think you’re spoiled.” “Do you want me to take off my shirt?” Laura snorted primly. “Don’t push it.” He was grinning so widely he nearly split his face in two.