Justin looked around still trying to shake the grogginess from his head. He looked at Isabelle; her face was contorted in pain. Man, thought Justin, She must have more severe breaks then I thought.

He felt sorry for falling asleep on her but it seemed she was all right. Justin sighed, then got up. He opened the other door and told the guys that he was going to bed but to wake him up the moment they entered a city. Until then he was going to try and catch some shuteye. Justin closed the door and looked into the living room one last time. Justin sighed at her pretty face still in pain. He reached into his bunk grabbed a pillow and his sleeping bag and settled into the couch across from the one Isabelle slept on. He smiled. At least here he could watch her. Suddenly, Justin became aware of a new feeling within his body. It was the feeling of having another Gift. He lay there for almost an hour trying to figure out what it was. I wish J.C. could help me with this but I don't dare to wake him up. Then Justin heard it. Sounds, but not external sounds. These noises were coming from within his mind. He realized that it was the sound of J.C.'s dreams. I have telepathy. Justin thought amazed. He pulled away from J.C.'s mind and with that came blessed quiet. Suddenly he understood how to use it. It was if his Gift came with instructions. It was very limited he realized. All he could do was speak to others. But he could not speak with non-gifted. Inadvertently, he reached out trying to find other Gifted. He was surprised to feel the presence of Isabelle's mind. But with all the action that had occurred to him within the last day, all he could do was fall asleep. His last thought before slipping from being awake was, I have to find out if she can hear me. With that thought Justin closed his eyes and fell into a dreamless sleep.


When Isabelle finally awoke the first thing she realized was that she had one heck of a headache. If that wasn't bad enough she couldn't move her legs. Suddenly the events of the past day came to her in a flash of light and she was surprised to remember that Justin Timberlake of the *Nsync had rescued her. When she opened her eyes she realized that she was in a hospital. Frantic, she tried to yell but it only came out as small cry of terror. Where was Justin and why was she all alone? She tried to sit but the movement of her stomach muscles caused her so much pain that this time her cry of pain echoed throughout the small hospital room. She fell back onto the pillow in exhaustion and fear. Isabelle squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to block out the pain that was now radiating throughout her body. She heard movement above her and with reluctance she opened her eyes. Isabelle was greeted with Justin's concerned face.

"How are you doing?" he asked gently.

"Where� how did I get here?" she asked in a small whisper. It was so faint that Justin had to strain to here it. Justin smiled tenderly at Isabelle. He felt so sorry that she was in pain. He then remembered that there was a morphine pump attached to her and checked the readouts. It had stopped dripping the medication into her and that was why she felt pain.

"I'll tell you in a moment but let me get this morphine pump looked at. I think it has a problem."

"OK" she whispered, eyes closed with pain. Justin pressed the Call button on her bed and waited for a nurse to come. While they waited Justin told her that she had been asleep for almost 15 hours. They had driven to the nearest big city which had been quite a distance considering the remote location of the Grand Canyon.

"You're in Phoenix, Arizona. The hospital you are at is Phoenix General." She looked at Justin, he had shared this information quickly and looked like he wanted to say something else but was unable to do so while the nurse was still in the room. The nurse told them that now that she was awake she could be moved to a room in the normal part of the hospital. The reason she had not been in a normal room in the first place was because when they took a CAT scan of her there was unusual brain activity but since she was awake and normal she could be moved.

The nurse also said that the pump was malfunctioning and needed to be replaced. When she had left Justin turned to her. He got a strange look in his eyes and they seemed to change from their normal sea blue to almost black. Isabelle was frightened, she knew that look. It was the same way her eyes had gotten the first few times that she used her telepathy. Her eyes still turned that color when she was pushing her powers to their limit.

Then she heard Justin's voice in her mind: I know who you are, his voice said.

Isabelle drew back in fear. If his telepathy was anywhere near as advanced as hers was then he would know everything that had happened before the quake and why.

His voice continued: I know you are one of the Gifted, like me. I don't know if telepathy can work among more than 2 Gifted if only one of them has telepathy as limited as mine.

Isabelle relaxed Justin only had limited "vocal" telepathy. She formed a reply: I think they will work just fine between us and more. We have the same telepathic Gift. Only mine is far more advanced than yours is.

Justin was in shock. She had telepathy and from what she was saying she could do more than just speak in her mind to him. He was about to ask more about her Gifts when the nurse came in. She was going to move Isabelle to her new room now.


Justin drag behind him the IV's attached to Isabelle's arm. He started to withdraw into himself. It was the protection that he had developed for himself over the years of touring. After Justin began to learn what the music business was like he knew that life would never give him a chance to be normal. He would never understand how it would feel to have his first kiss really mean something or how it would be like to hold a special girl close to him during the big homecoming dance. Instead he was thrown into a world of voice-over vocals, lip-syncing, and fakes only after the money that he made. Instead of having friends his age everyone was older for once he wasn't the big brother. Justin didn't like that either. The other guys teased and embarrassed him so much in the early days and still even to that day that he wasn't sure how else to react other than with anger or jokes of his own. Justin was the little guy, and he couldn't be made to look anything more than the pretty boy of the group. So even at the age he was Justin was still treated more often than not like a child. Justin wanted the chance to prove to the world that he wasn't just another pretty face with a voice but a human who had feelings and at heart was a sensitive guy. But the career he was in forced him to withdraw and feel nothing.

Justin's feelings of loneliness only increased after he discovered his Gift for healing others. Justin knew that there were many other Gifted out there but so far he had only come into contact with 5 or 6. Then the night they reached the city when he felt the presence of Isabelle's mind things he had long buried stirred inside of him. And then this morning when he finally was able to talk to someone else who seemed to understand even in the few short sentences they had spoken in each other's mind what he was trying to prevent from feeling had given him the most overwhelming sense of security. Here was someone, a woman, who seemed to know what he wanted and needed without even asking. Justin felt wishes and hopes and dreams he had never shared with anyone else start to give hope into him and his feelings that he tried to hide so long start to rise to the surface. He hadn't allowed himself to actually feel more than the adrenaline rush that was accompanied by performing in so long that Justin almost cried. Emotions finally could be told to someone else and maybe even understood. To Justin being understood was more precious than money, performing, the guys, singing, and even family. He was willing to give it all up for one person. This scared him because he barely even knew Isabelle and he already felt this tremendous connection to her. It pulled on him, his heart, and he wanted to feel more, he wanted to get out of the survival mode he lived in and actually LIVE!

Isabelle fought the urge to listen in on Justin's thoughts. It came as a surprise to her that Justin was Gifted. She knew that there were celebrities who were Gifted but she never expected Justin. She was happy about the fact that she could speak to him in her mind. It had been so long since she had known the comfort of another telepathy. Isabelle had once known another telepathy; he was the one who had taught her how to use her powers and unfortunately how to steal the powers of other Gifted. Right before he had died she had used her telepathy to take his powers. He had said, "Don't waste them but don't abuse them." Then Ian had died in her arms.

She looked over at Justin. He looked so sad and withdrawn. His eyes downcast, his handsome face creased by a frown.

Isabelle's heart went out to Justin. Strong sympathy and empathy invaded her heart, she longed to take his pain, share it and then throw it all away. But she knew that Justin wasn't ready for that sort of strong telepathic link, nor was Isabelle. The nurse set Isabelle up in her room then left her alone with the still sullen Justin. She couldn't resist anymore; all her pent up sympathy for just the look on his face broke free. She wrapped it into a blanket of friendship and sent it as a gift to the obviously hurting Justin Timberlake.

The sympathy slammed into Justin with all the force of a gentle breeze. It was a soothing wave washing over him, sympathy and friendship all wrapped in one all-encompassing phrase: I'm here for you. Justin felt her sympathy all the way down to his suddenly warm toes to the roots of his hair. He looked up at her, surprise and true happiness written across his now smiling features. He felt her mind relax as she realized that he hadn't rejected the feelings and words she had just given him.

Justin slowly walked up to her bed. Isabelle stared back up into his blue depths. He reached out and took her hand then gently sat down on the bed as to not disturb her legs. She saw his eyes expand outward as the pupils dilated then she heard his voice in her mind: Close your eyes. She looked at him curiously, unsure of what he was going to do. Isabelle was tempted to reach out into him and find out what but for some reason she wanted this mystery in her life. She did as she was told.

A moment later she felt his lips brush hers in a light kiss. He pulled back immediately and Isabelle opened her eyes. Both of them turned red but didn't look away from the gaze of the other. What was that for? Her mind whispered to his.

It was for giving me the Gift I needed all along. She suddenly understood-all Justin had wanted in the years he had been famous was someone he could talk to, share his dreams with, and just be a real friend to him. Her innocent gesture of friendship and sympathy meant more to him than she had initially realized.


J.C. had one heck of a headache. He and the other guys were just finishing up a short press conference explaining why they were taking a little down time and apologizing for disappointing the fans. They were bummed he knew but they were all shaken from the earthquake and J.C. knew that Justin wouldn't be torn away from his newfound friend in Isabelle. When J.C. had woken up after they arrived in Phoenix he had found a huge bump on his head. He thought it was from bumping his head on a bunk but it didn't sound right. Oh well, I guess I can't help but be clumsy.

J.C. thought it was rather odd that they had become so close so fast. He knew, though, that traumatic experiences helped people bond but it just seemed so odd for Justin, the least trusting of them all to trust Isabelle. Especially after his experiences with his ex-girlfriend, Brittany Spears. Justin was the type of guy who when he trusted someone he really trusted them. So it was unusual for Justin to really trust someone so fast. Why Isabelle? Why now? Thought JC. He had sensed the first time they'd talked that she was special. She must be special for Justin to trust her. For some reason, though, that thought only worried him.

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What If Time Froze?
Chapter Four

Justin and Isabelle sat for an hour, hands joined, for an hour carrying on a rapid telepathic conversation. Suddenly, Isabelle let go and stretched. She spoke aloud, "I could really go for some fast food."

" You're my kinda girl but we need to wait for the other guys to get back. How about I see if you can go to the cafeteria in a wheelchair? That sound good?" Justin asked his blue eyes staring into her brown ones intently.

Isabelle stuttered for a moment under the intentness of the gaze then managed to stutter out, "Sure sounds great" in a hoarse whisper. He smiled then left. After he had departed for the nurses station she thought to herself, My kinda guy. Isabelle relaxed into the pillows and closed her eyes to rest her tired mind.

The two had been so wrapped up in their conversation that neither had noticed when someone had watched them. To someone looking quickly it would have appeared as a normal conversation but if one stopped for a moment they would've seen hand motions without words a conversation without sound.

Justin returned a few minutes later and smiled at her relaxed form. He cleared his throat and Isabelle's eyes popped open. "The nurse will be here to disconnect you from the IV's and then I'll take you down."

"Where's the wheelchair?"

"This is the cool part-they have chairs downstairs for people like you and all I hafta to is carry you." Before she could protest Justin held up a hand and said, "It's easier than hauling you down on this bed."

"Are you sure? These casts are heavy."

"Yep. I already carried you once and pulled you out of that hole, this should be no sweat."

She smiled warmly at Justin, "And I will be forever grateful." The nurse came in just then and she unhooked Isabelle from the machines. The nurse also informed them that Isabelle could be released in 2 days although she would need to be back for her cast removals and physical therapy.

Justin turned to her after the nurse left. "That's awesome." He leaned over her and picked her up. He was careful to support her legs where he thought her knees would be. Isabelle relaxed into his hold and wrapped her arms around his neck. She tilted her head so it could rest against his neck and shoulder, then sighed. The feel of her breath on his neck made Justin tremble unexpectedly. He covered it by adjusting her once more then headed towards the elevators. Once inside he said, "Ya know what I hate about elevators? How they always jerk you to a stop."

Isabelle, without moving her head from its place, said, "Wait." Then without any warning, Justin felt his body being lifted off the ground. He heard the elevator stop and his feet came to rest on the floor before the doors opened. She lifted her eyes to look into his. Justin looked at her, shocked.

"That was amazing."

"That", she said, "Was telekinesis at its best." Justin walked out of the elevator and down the hall to the cafeteria. He set her up in the special chair then walked away to get the food.


Lance and the rest of the guys walked down the hall to Isabelle's new room. After arriving at the hospital and going into the wrong room they had finally found out that Isabelle had been moved. They pushed open the door quietly, in case she was sleeping, and a very empty room greeted them.

"Man! Where are they?" asked Lance frustrated.

"I don't know but maybe we should check the cafeteria? I bet that they were hungry." Joey said looking at his own stomach.

"Dude! You are always hungry! Stop thinking with your stomach, but it is a good idea." J.C. said.

They were about to head to the cafeteria when they saw Justin and Isabelle emerge from the elevator. All the guys were rather surprised to see Justin carrying Isabelle. His arms were around her body tightly and she was clinging to his neck contentedly while her head rested against his shoulder. It was altogether a rather shocking thing for the rest of the guys to witness. It was the familiarity of the pose that really took them for a spin. They looked so happy and innocent. Joey called out a greeting, "Hey guys! Where have you been? We've been traipsing around this hospital looking for you. We even were attacked by nurses who were twice our age!

Justin looked up at them, startled. "Hey�um�we just went to the cafeteria to get some food." Justin did his best to ignore the look that he was getting from J.C.. The knowing, subtle smile that screamed 'you've got a crush' and the hint of warning in his eyes.

"Well", said J.C. breaking the slightly tense silence, "We'll go get some food and then we'll be right up. It that ok for you two?" Isabelle picked up on the subtlety of the way J.C. said "two". It was definite, it was pointed�it was making Isabelle blush a little to know that J.C. was picking up on their closeness even if the other guys were oblivious to Justin and the way he was holding her tightly like she was a precious cargo.

And to Justin�she was exactly that.

The guys followed them back into the room and as they walked back towards the cafeteria Lance called back, "Justin, you can release your death grip on the girl now! She's not going anywhere." So much for them not picking up on closeness, thought Isabelle.

You noticed J.C.'s look too, huh? Isabelle jumped slightly at the voice in her mind�she didn't know that Justin had been listening. You could say that. Is he going to lecture you?

No. I think I can escape one for a while longer but after I tell him that you're going to be accompanying us for the rest of the tour I'll get one for sure.

Isabelle had already argued with Justin over that particular idea and all her arguments had been kindly and swiftly defused.She still looked at Justin disapprovingly. If I find my friends I'm going to go with them, though. You know that they are really all that I have.

Justin's eyes turned towards the floor as he sat down and he sighed heavily."But I want you to come with me." He spoke this aloud and the passion and feeling in the words made her breath catch in her throat.

She had to breathe deeply a few times before she could speak to him, aloud, herself. "Justin, I want to�stay but�they�are�my�family. I want to stay but you and I both know that it won't work between us. How would your fans feel? And what would I tell my friends? You know that day at the canyon? Well, Justin Timberlake of *Nsync saved me and we like each other and he has asked me to tour with him?" She took a deep breath and continued, "Is that what I would say to them? You know what they'd say? You're being stupid Isabelle! He's famous and you are only going to be his flavor of the month. What will you do when he gets tired of you and you can't find us?"

Justin looked at her with sadness and some anger in his eyes. "Don't you like me? Don't you want to stay with me?" She started to interrupt but Justin held up his hand. "I understand what you are saying but you know what it also sounds like to me? A bunch of excuses! It sounds like fear and�and�" his voice trailed off.

He was being selfish and he knew it but he was tired of catering to other people's whims, the fans, his media image, the guys, and the way his own family expected him to be. He really got nothing except for an hour and a half of freedom every concert and what he really wanted was someone to talk to and understand him. And in the very short time Justin had known Isabelle, she had done exactly that, been the one to listen, been the one to understand. He was already getting used to her presence and he wasn't sure what he would do if it were suddenly taken away. Justin looked up at Isabelle again and the look was full of pain. "I don't want to be alone again."

"Justin�I can't stay. You have no idea how badly I want to stay but I just�can't. My friends�"

"Stop with your friends already" Justin exclaimed. "They don't control you! You have your own mind and from what I've seen you are very intelligent but you act like your friends are your masters and I don't understand that. Why do you use them as your escape? Why use them as an excuse?

"They�aren't an excuse. I told you, they are my family. They are the ones who have kept me sane these last 5 years. They are the ones who included me and taught me how to use my Gifts. You would stay with your family too wouldn't you? The people who love you and care for you? You wouldn't give it up to be with someone you hardly knew."

Justin looked at her again and his eyes were shinning with a fire that she had never seen out of anyone. "If I was in your position I would give everything up. I WILL give it up because you make me feel things I never thought I'd ever be lucky enough TO feel. I get no satisfaction from this life anymore. I want to get away from it all." Justin paused and ran his hand through his hair. "I am in your position. These last few days have been some of the most interesting but at the same time the most fascinating because I have found someone who is like me. I found another Gifted." Justin paused again and his eyes burned into hers with a heat that Isabelle could feel throughout her body. "But if you don't want to be my friend, if you don't feel the way that I do then I'll walk out of this door and tell our people to find your friends. And I'll never intrude into your life again." With his speech finished Justin got up and with a light kiss on her hand walked out of the room and towards the lobby.

The other guys had just returned from the cafeteria when they saw Justin storm out of Isabelle's room with hurt and anger on his face. Lance cautiously called out a greeting,

"Hey Justin! What's up?" Justin turned towards Lance and the pain and vulnerability that was in Justin's eyes caused him to shrink back in alarm.

"I'm going to call our people and let them know that Isabelle wants to find her friends as fast as she can. The sooner�the better." Justin pushed past the guys and walked towards the elevator. When he turned around and looked at the rest of them he gave them a fake smile and the doors shut on that smile and the eyes�the eyes that didn't match it in any way.

Joey turned to J.C. and whistled. "That was some serious venom coming out of his voice. I don't know what's wrong but I don't want to find out."

"I think I know, man, and it's going to be rough when we get back on the road in a couple of days." J.C. sighed and said under his breath,

"I just hope I can help."

---

What If Time Froze?
Chapter Five

The next morning Justin woke up around 9:30. Rolling over onto his back he sighed. Thoughts of Isabelle and the last few days they had spent together ran through his mind. It didn't add up. First she was only slightly unwilling to go with him and then she was downright opposed to spending anytime with him. Why can't she go? What does she feel that is holding her up? Justin was confused as took a shower and while he was heading over to the hospital. He wasn't sure why he was going back after the blowout yesterday but for some reason he was compelled.

J.C. had talked to Isabelle until the wee hours of the morning. It had come as a shock to her and him when he walked in and her telepathy had picked up a Gifted mind. Once the two of them had gotten over their surprise they had talked on many subjects. However, when J.C. had brought up Justin, Isabelle closed up physically and mentally.

Her eyes had turned black and she sent J.C. a series of memories that explained to him why she was so reluctant to go. Isabelle had been close to one person in the last 5 years since her family had died. His name was Ian and he had been the one to explain to her and teach her about the Gifts she possessed. But he had died in a showdown with some Gifted who were not so friendly to anyone. Not to the Gifted and certainly not to the Normals. These Gifted wanted nothing to do with normal society and would randomly kill Normals who crossed their path just because they could. In that face off Ian had been overpowered by Darren, a powerful telepath whose powers at the time surpassed Ian and Isabelle's combined.

That reason alone, Justin having a telepathy, made it hard for Isabelle to want to be close to him. The fact that she would be away from her friends, of whom some were Normals, bothered her because after Ian's death they had protected her and nourished her and her powers back to full. They saved her and her sanity and if she left them, she felt like it was abandoning her family. J.C. had understood this and she had promised to try and explain this to Justin but wasn't sure how he would take it. J.C. was much more level headed than his younger friend but he also had a playful side that made Isabelle crave that sort of silliness among her own friends.

Isabelle's friends, while fun, were always a little uptight and she enjoyed this group. They could be silly, as she'd witnessed when she talked with JC. And they could be serious, as she'd seen when talking to Justin. The interviews she'd seen of him always portrayed Justin as the young prankster, who could onlybe serious when it was absolutely necessary. But the Justin she knew was much more serious and unusually quiet. It was a strange turn of events but not completely unexpected.

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