Copyright November 20-26, 2001 by Matthew Haldeman-Time
Pairings: JC/Justin, Brian/Nick/Drew, Nick/Jeff, Howie/Chris, Lance/AJ, AJ/Kevin
Rating: NC-17
Disclaimer: The young men who comprise 98 Degrees, the Backstreet Boys, and *NSYNC are their own people. The author has not met anyone here described, nor does the author mean to suggest that these people act this way in real life. This writing is a work of fiction. I make no money from this venture.
Dedication: This slashfic is for Ewan McGregor and the Savage Garden slashwriters.
Wherein Nick juggles, Howie spills water, and 98 Degrees needs a class in interior design.
Notice: At first, this story was going to take place at a formal dinner. "This I Promise You," party of fourteen. To get in, they had to say the password, which was "This I Promise You." (Can't let any old person off the street crash the party.) Kevin was trying to slip the password into his speech so he wouldn't be reciting song titles like an idiot. "I'm here for the private party. I promise you, I'm here for the private party..."
The same rules apply here
as in "Cobwebs." We're in the middle of "Together," in Orlando.
"Specially made, just-for-you, designer bandannas," Nick Carter Littrell Lachey said. "Only you. Comb your freaking hair, man!"
"They're a trademark," Justin said, giving his reflection another look in the mirror over the bathroom sink.
"They suck."
"You're jealous that they look better on me than on your boyfriend."
"Shut up," Nick said. "Brian always looks great."
"At least with me they're a fashion statement and not a cheap disguise to cover my three miles of forehead."
"Don't make me kick your ass," Nick said. "AJ has more fashion sense than you can hope to have. As long as we're talking about fashion sense, what's JC wearing today?"
"JC can wear rummage sale rejects and look insanely gorgeous," Justin said.
"Insane, yeah," Nick agreed. "So where is he, anyway? Out buying a turkey baster?"
Justin had to laugh at Nick's leer. "He'll be back in a minute. Can you get out of here?"
"Kevin kicked me out of the kitchen."
"Since when do you let Kevin tell you what to do?"
"Since he picked up that carving knife. No, AJ did something and now Kevin's pissed. I'm trying to stay out of his way."
Justin nodded. Whenever Kevin was tense, Nick was the first Backstreet Boy to pay for it. "What's up with AJ?"
Nick shrugged.
Justin checked his earrings, a casual gesture. If Nick didn't want to talk about it, out of Backstreet pride or whatever, Justin was cool. They weren't in a confessional or gossip center; they were friends.
"Nick!" AJ shouted from the kitchen.
"What?" Nick shouted back.
Kevin started to reprimand them for yelling across the apartment. Nick gave Justin a look and left for the kitchen. Justin went to the bedroom to call home.
The Backstreet Boys, *NSYNC, and 98 Degrees were having an intergroup pre-Thanksgiving dinner. JC and Justin were the official hosts, since it was in their apartment, but the Backstreet Boys were in charge of food. Most of the dinner was to be catered, from what Justin understood, but the Backstreet Boys were managing to create mess and drama in the kitchen anyway.
98 Degrees was in charge of decorations. They were to show up later. Justin didn't know what sorts of decorations to expect, but he wasn't looking for Martha Stewart.
When Justin finished calling home, he called Chris. He heard JC come home and talk to the Boys for a minute. Sitting on the bed, Justin gave a welcoming wave when JC walked into the room. He pulled his feet up onto the bed with him and scratched his ankle, laughing at Chris.
JC started to change clothes.
Justin started to lose the conversation's thread.
In the kitchen, Howie and Brian were trying to cut vegetables for a tossed salad. Kevin and AJ were arguing about how to heat some of the caterer's food in the oven. Nick was trying to juggle rolls. Kevin told Nick to stop juggling; no one was going to want to eat food after Nick's hands had been all over it. Nick said that Drew had no trouble enjoying Brian after he'd - - Brian stuffed a roll into Nick's mouth. Nick pelted Brian and Howie with the rolls he'd been juggling.
"Do you smell that?" AJ asked.
"Wasn't me," Nick said, ducking as Howie returned fire.
"Guys, stop it," AJ said, holding Brian's arm to keep him still. "Do you smell that?"
"Smell what?" Brian asked.
Kevin sniffed the air.
"Is that gas?" Howie asked.
"It wasn't me!" Nick repeated.
"Justin, baby." JC made a futile attempt to keep his clothes on his body. "Ju-" He was on his back on the bed now. He hated to deny Justin anything, especially sex, but there were people in the house. And not the guys, but Backstreet Boys. Oh, baby. JC's eyes closed as Justin's tongue found his nipple. Justin was hard against him, rubbing against him, wanting him... JC tried to keep his hands to himself, to preserve Justin's outfit, but he wanted to pull off that bandanna and-
"Hey, guys. Guys." Someone was knocking at the door.
As JC placed the voice, he remembered the situation. Howie was trying to talk to them; the Backstreet Boys were in the apartment; they were hosting a Thanksgiving dinner and their bedroom door didn't lock.
Justin was kissing JC's naked shoulder and humping JC's thigh.
"Just a second," JC called to Howie, glad that his voice didn't betray him. "Justin, baby," he said more softly, trying to guide Justin's hands from himself. Justin was busy at the moment, however, and was disinclined to stop. "Justin." Justin's mouth was at his neck now, soft and wet, loving and hungry. JC heard Howie's voice again, but Justin wanted him, and-
"JC, get out here or I'm coming in." Nick's threat caught JC's attention. "JC! One, two-"
"Wait!" JC managed to untangle himself from Justin and leap from the bed. "Hold on," and he yanked on clothes.
"Get your ass out here before your medieval gas stove kills us," Nick said.
Shit. JC opened the bedroom door and ran past various Backstreet Boys to get to the kitchen.
While JC explained his temperamental appliances to Kevin, Brian let 98 Degrees into the apartment. 98 Degrees was dressed in layers of fall colors to complement the season. Jeff added the final decorating touch by hanging four pieces of construction paper to the wall. On each paper was a crudely drawn turkey, the kind shaped by tracing one's hand, with a kindergarten scrawl of each band member's name. Drew and Justin admired the pictures with pride.
The Backstreet Boys congregated in the kitchen. 98 Degrees settled in to watch a football game. JC greeted the rest of *NSYNC as they arrived.
Drew excused himself to visit the bathroom. As he pulled the door shut after himself, it was wrenched back open to admit Nick and Brian. Without a word to Drew, Brian locked the door and backed Nick against it, pulling Nick down for a kiss. Nick's hand was on Brian's ass, urging Brian up and closer.
Drew stared.
One greedy hand fisted in Nick's shirt while Brian fucked his tongue into Nick's mouth. Nick moaned and let Brian tug at his hair. Nick's hand on Brian's ass almost lifted Brian from the floor.
Drew really had to pee, but something more urgent was happening in his pants. Brian and Nick were absorbed in each other, shutting out all of their surroundings so that they might have been in their bedroom at home. He ached with wanting to join them. With one touch he would be lost with them, in their private world.
"Brian! Rok!" AJ called.
The change was instant. Nick adjusted Brian's clothes while Brian smoothed Nick's hair. In seconds, they were out the door.
Drew was alone in the bathroom. He felt like he'd just seen a piece of the life that Brian and Nick led when they weren't with him. He loved what he'd seen, and he wished that he'd seen more, and he was grateful to them for sharing it with him. And, god, he was hard...
After leaving the bathroom, Brian went with AJ to the kitchen. Nick dropped beside Jeff on the sofa. His skin shone; his eyes were bright. His thigh was pressed right alongside Jeff's, and Jeff could feel the warmth of him.
Jeff wanted to put his hand on Nick's knee, slide it up Nick's leg, inside Nick's thigh. Slow and intimate.
He turned to Nick. "Go to the kitchen."
Nick sighed and went. Apparently Jeff wasn't going to play with him today. He pouted in the kitchen until Brian made faces at him and he laughed.
The Backstreet Boys were setting out the food. Everyone was gathering around the table, deciding where to sit. Justin came out of his bedroom as Drew came out of the bathroom.
JC looked up.
Brian and Nick looked over; Nick Timmons-Lachey frowned a little, as though something teased his senses.
"These decorations suck," Chris said. Then he looked around and saw JC watching Justin, who was coming over to the table. He recognized that look. And the haunted look in Justin's eyes, now, that meant they were in for a special treat. This time, JC wasn't sparking Justin; Justin was sparking JC. Oh, boy. Thinking quickly, Chris decided that the best they could hope for was that no one would notice anything until JC and Justin had a chance to excuse themselves and sweat it out.
Nick, like Justin, wore his emotions on his face for the world to see. And AJ had seen that emotion before. Nick wanted to give someone a happy. AJ's first thought was Brian, but Brian had on his "innocent prey" expression. That must mean that they were ready to roll over and spread 'em for Drew. AJ didn't get to witness this one very often. In AJ's experience, when Brian was prey, Nick was the predator; and if Nick was sexually available, it was all and only for Brian. This could be interesting.
Joey was looking around the table, trying to figure out how to sit Lance nowhere near AJ, when he noticed the glaze in Justin's eyes. Shit. He caught Chris's eye; the two of them exchanged a look of understanding. They'd need to divert attention until JC and Justin could get it out of their systems.
Joey, Chris, and Lance got JC and Justin at opposite ends of the table, the foot and the head.
Kevin, Howie, and AJ put Nick at JC's right hand and Brian at Justin's.
Nick Timmons-Lachey sat across the table from Brian, at Justin's left hand. Jeff put Drew at the opposite end of the table, at JC's left hand. Howie sat beside Drew, to keep an eye on Nick without being too obvious about it. Chris was beside Brian, as close as he could get to Justin now. AJ sat beside Nick Timmons-Lachey to watch him and Brian, interested in the possibilities.
Justin sat beside AJ, across from Kevin, because he knew that it wouldn't be safe to let anyone from *NSYNC sit there.
Lance sat beside Justin Jeffre, one seat away from AJ. Joey sat across from Lance, beside Kevin, and decided to spill as much as possible. That left one seat empty for Jeff, right beside Nick Carter Littrell Lachey.
Justin, Brian, and Justin said grace.
As soon as the blessing ended, Justin and JC's eyes met down the length of the table.
Chris coughed. Joey started a conversation. Lance started to pass dishes.
Brian's own Nick and Lachey were far away, but there was a good two-in-one deal right across the table. Beneath Brian's lashes, desire lit in his eyes. Nick blinked. AJ handed Nick a bowl of mashed potatoes and asked Kevin a question.
Drew's world seemed to have narrowed to the person sitting across the table. Nick was interested only in Drew's lust. To divert attention, Howie tried to talk to Jeff, but didn't get much of a response. It was strange, how distracted Jeff seemed...
The people in the middle of the table held an animated conversation. The people on the fringes - - JC, Justin, Drew, Brian, Nick, Nick, and Jeff - - were oddly quiet. Joey and Kevin ended up talking for a while over a range of topics. When Drew gasped, Howie did everything but stand on his head to get attention. He didn't know why Drew was gasping, but he had a few guesses.
Nick knew why Drew was gasping. He was the gasp inducer. It was an old trick, but Drew was right across the table, and Nick had long legs. All he had to do was slip off one shoe and find Drew's crotch with his toes.
Drew almost choked on cranberry sauce.
Justin Jeffre hadn't seen Jeff this quiet in years. He hoped that Lance wasn't noticing.
Lance had no idea that Jeff wasn't the ideal dinner partner. He was too busy watching JC. The way the muscles in JC's jaw clenched as JC chewed. The way JC stared at Justin without interruption.
Justin wanted JC. Wanted to fuck JC. In their bed, on the table, it didn't matter. He wanted to screw his way into JC's body and make JC twist and beg; wanted to feel JC's nakedness against his skin, against his hands. He wanted to kiss JC too fast. He wanted to make JC come. He wanted to fuck JC. He wanted to make love to JC and come in JC and fuck JC's beautiful body and feel JC writhe beneath him, hear JC moan, watch JC arch in ecstasy. Watch JC being made love to. Watch JC anticipate and respond to his love.
Justin wanted to make love to him. JC felt it. Knew it. Down the length of the table, JC watched Justin's dark eyes. He saw the desire there. Justin wanted him. He wanted to let Justin have him. If Justin wanted him, Justin could take him. If they didn't make it to a bed, that didn't matter. Sometimes a bed wasn't available, wasn't close enough at hand, and they made love against the closest surface.
The fact that they had guests was mattering less and less. The fact that Justin wanted him was building, mounting... JC's desire fed on Justin's need.
JC was staring at Justin and breathing.
Justin broke out into a sweat.
Nick Carter Littrell Lachey licked his fingers. Sucked at the end of his thumb. Drew moaned. Jeff shifted in his chair.
Joey watched Lance swallow. Watched the motion of Lance's throat. Watched the slow rise and fall of Lance's voicebox. That was kind of sexy.
Chris stared. He'd never realized that Nick Timmons-Lachey's mouth did that. He adjusted his napkin in his lap.
Nick Timmons-Lachey and AJ watched Brian lick his fork. The tines glittered against his tongue.
Drew was hot. He was on. Nick hadn't realized that the spontaneous bathroom incident would make Drew horny. Not this horny. But Drew was staring at him, breathing hard, and giving off heat. Okay, maybe it wasn't helping that Nick's toes were prodding Drew's hard-on, but Drew had started it by giving off sex signals in the first place. Drew wanted to screw him. Screw him hot and hard. Nick's cock was swollen, and his heart was pounding, and his ass was begging him to go over there and sit on Drew's cock. Drew's big, fat cock, the one pulsing against the arch of his foot. Drew was going to crawl across the table and eat him alive. Any second now, Drew would be a dom in the zone. Nick wasn't toeing Drew's crotch to tease Drew, as much as to serve Drew's needs. Drew wanted sex. Nick was willing to give him plenty of it.
Peripherally, Nick was aware that, thanks to Drew, Brian was in heat, too. But Brian didn't have Drew to play with. So Brian was turning to Drew's brother. Nick turned his gaze from Drew's heated hazel gaze for one moment, to glance down the table at the other Nick.
Nick Timmons-Lachey was trying to keep it together. Trying to stay calm. Trying to eat, have a normal meal, get out of there alive. His chances of doing so diminished with each heartbeat. Brian's desire had him pinned. Each look from Brian's eyes stroked his sex. His balls were full. His pants were too tight. His nipples were hard. Something had turned Drew on, and the hotter Drew got, the hotter Drew's significant others got, and for some unfair reason, Brian was taking it out on him. And Brian was so pure and so beautiful and so fucking ready to jump him that he knew he was within inches of being Brian's personal Thanksgiving dinner.
Nick knew that he was married, that Brian was married, that he could not make love with Brian on the table in front of everyone. But he wanted to push plates out of the way, climb onto the table, and ravish Brian right then, right there. No preliminaries, no questions, no hesitation. Brian wanted him, and he would give most hearty thanks for one chance to satisfy Brian's every want.
Howie had just begun to notice how Jeff's sweater clung to his chest. Powerful shoulders. Serious pecs. Howie had never been with a man built like that. He wondered what it would be like...
Justin was ready to crawl across the table and take JC. Chris, Justin's closest handler, was missing it because Nick Timmons-Lachey was licking cranberry sauce from his full lower lip. Joey was busy watching Lance eat, and Lance was watching Howie's fingers twist long, dark hair. Howie had finished eating and was sitting back, fantasizing.
Justin Jeffre was beginning to realize that he had no chance of getting out alive. It hit home when he realized that Kevin, his last hope, was fascinated by AJ. He didn't dare glance to the side and see what AJ was doing.
Justin was staring at JC, mouth open, eyes dark.
JC had laid down his fork and was biting on the pad of his thumb, looking down the table without regard for his guests.
Justin raised his hand and pulled off his bandanna. He ran his fingers through his curls.
Pulled from his thoughts, Lance looked past Jeff and Nick to JC.
JC stood, pushing back his chair.
Oh god, JC was hard. Heat rushed Lance. JC said something, but no one paid attention to the words. He left the table, walking back towards the bedroom. Lance almost followed him, but Justin was quicker.
Joey coughed and stood, picking up his plate and reaching for a dish. "Guess we can clear the table." Justin Jeffre was up in a minute, helping. Kevin snapped to attention next. Lance wanted to help, but had a bit of a personal issue.
Kevin had the same personal issue, and AJ's eyes were all over it. AJ followed Kevin right into the kitchen, ignoring Joey and Justin, and posed against the sink.
Joey and Justin left. They stacked plates at the end of the table, silently agreeing not to return to the kitchen just then.
Justin Timberlake Chasez's moan was audible through the apartment.
Chris and Lance bustled around.
AJ groaned from the kitchen.
Howie started to gather glasses.
Drew gasped.
Justin Jeffre tried to start a conversation.
Justin moaned again, richer, longer.
AJ groaned again, louder, deeper.
Drew gasped.
Brian was lusting after Nick Timmons-Lachey so hard, Howie could almost hear it.
Justin was begging JC. Chris dropped a plate.
Kevin moaned. Howie spilled water.
Drew gasped. Justin clattered silverware.
In another second, Brian was going to be across the table and on Nick.
Justin suggested that they leave the mess and watch the game. The three remaining members of *NSYNC were quick to agree. Lance, Joey, and Chris went to turn on the TV and find the best channel. Justin pinched Jeff's ear to get his attention.
Jeff returned to the planet at the glimpse of pain. He realized what had happened, and what continued to happen. He kicked Nick Carter Littrell Lachey under the table, then Drew, and stood to get his husband's attention. "Nick. Nick." Nick and Brian were making love without touching. Mentioning the game wouldn't get Nick's attention; Jeff was going to have to pull out the big guns. So to speak.
Drew was no longer gasping, since he was rubbing his shin and glaring at Jeff, but Justin, Kevin, and AJ continued to make noise. Lance, Chris, and Joey were extra-engaged in watching TV, with Justin Jeffre's help. Jeff, ignoring the heavy breathing from the kitchen, walked over to Nick's side and leaned in to whisper in Nick's ear.
"Come with me."
Nick broke eye contact with Brian to look at Jeff. Jeff took a step back. There was sex in his eyes. When Nick noticed the bulge in Jeff's pants, Brian was a memory.
AJ howled as he came.
As he stopped glaring at Jeff, Drew met Brian's gaze. He forgot that Jeff had kicked him. He remembered only standing in the bathroom, watching Brian kiss Nick, Nick's hand on Brian's ass, Brian's sexual hunger...
The bathroom door locked behind Nick and Jeff.
Nick Carter Littell Lachey slipped under the table, crawling right for Drew.
Something solid hit the bathroom door with a thud.
Justin Timberlake Chasez screamed.
Howie's hand slid up Chris's
thigh.