Just Another New Year’s Eve
By: Lara
“Yeah, I
understand. But Wendy…uh-huh…right.
Okay. Yeah, to you, too.” Lance
hung up the phone and sighed. Chris stopped
stirring the onion dip and stared at him.
“What’s up?”
“God, I wish these people weren’t coming over
tonight.” Lance dug through his refrigerator for the carrots and celery. He
found them, washed them, and began to cut.
“What’s wrong?”
Chris repeated. He was over early, to help Lance set up for his New
Year’s Eve party.
“FreeLance.
They want me to do another movie. Did they happen to miss how much the
other one SUCKED?” Lance growled at the carrots. “I suck, Chris. I can’t act, and I’m not gonna try it again. Not
until I have trained or something.” He
sighed. “And now I get to celebrate yet another year of making a fool of
myself. First Millionaire, now this.”
“Lance, it’s not so bad. It’s just another night, and when you wake up tomorrow, all you
have to do is remember to put a two at the end of the year instead of a one.
Otherwise it will be just the same.”
Chris put a hand on Lance’s shoulder. “And you didn’t make a fool of
yourself THAT bad. I mean, you did good.” A teasing glimmer entered his dark
eyes. “Tell me, Lance, how many carrots would be in a baker’s dozen?”
“Fuck you,” Lance said good-naturedly, throwing a
carrot at Chris.
It’s not the first…it’s
not the worst you know…we’ve come through all the rest…we’ll get through this…
“Hi, guys!” JC gave Lance a hug and beamed at
Chris. Chris sighed.
“Jesus, Jayce, please tell me you didn’t drive.”
“I didn’t. Joey did. We just had a little bit of
something…” JC’s glazed blue eyes wandered to the buffet. “FOOD.”
“You let him light up in the car?” Lance asked
Joey. Joey shook his head.
“No way. He did that at home. He was…I dunno…down,
or something.”
“Must be looking forward to this New Year as much
as I am,” Lance remarked to Chris.
Chris sighed.
“Lance, we’ve been through worse New Year’s Eves,”
Chris pointed out. Justin walked up in
time to hear Chris’ words.
“Yeah, remember, we were in like Germany or
something, and Joey and Chris and JC went out, and we were stuck in the hotel?”
Justin asked Lance, laughing. “We got some guy to buy us beer, and we thought
we were so cool…until we woke up puking the next morning.”
Lance had to grin.
“Yeah, that was a great New Year’s Eve, but a HORRIBLE New Year’s
Day. If my mother woulda been there…”
Lance’s words trailed off, and Chris looked at him carefully.
“Hey, Lance, we forgot to get something out.
C’mere.” Chris led Lance to the kitchen.
“What’d we forget?” Lance looked around the kitchen.
“What happened with your mom, Lance?” Chris asked
gently.
“Oh…I told her some things she didn’t want to
here…so I won’t be flying home for the week after all,” Lance said
lightly. “No sweat.”
“Man, I’m sorry.” Chris hugged Lance, inhaling his
cologne. “Whatever it was, I’m sure she’ll get over it.”
“I doubt it, but thanks, Chris.” Lance gently
shoved Chris away. “I gotta go watch my guests.”
We’ve made mistakes…but
we’ve made good friends too…remember all the nights we spent with them…and all
our plans, who says they can’t come true?
Tonight’s another chance to start again…
“C’mere, Justin.”
Chris grabbed Justin by the sleeve. “You too, JC.” JC, who was finally starting to awaken from his buzz, followed
Justin and Chris to Lance’s den. Lance
and Joey were already in there, sharing a bottle of wine. Chris got glasses from the liquor cabinet
and closed the door of the room.
“Um…is this a private party?” JC asked. Lance raised an eyebrow at Chris. Chris poured wine.
“Lance thinks next year will suck…so…I thought we
should spend the end of this year talking about…I dunno…good stuff.” Chris handed JC a glass of wine, then handed
one to Justin.
“I don’t like this shit.” Justin wrinkled his nose.
“God, you are a heathen,” JC snapped, swirling the
liquid in his glass.
“God…I never woulda thought that YOU would be the
artsy one,” Joey said, rolling his eyes. He looked at Lance. “You, yes.
Not him.”
“Thanks, I think?” Lance asked, laughing.
“I miss this,” Justin said suddenly. They looked at him. “We’re all here and
there…and I miss just having us time. I’m with Britney when I’m free, Lance has
his business, Chris does too…we’re just not as close as we used to be.”
“We’re always gonna be this close,” Joey declared.
“Even if this group dies out tomorrow, we will still be this close. I know it.”
“That’s worth something, isn’t it?” Chris whispered
to Lance, who sighed and nodded.
“What do you want from next year?” JC asked.
Everyone thought.
“I want my clothing line to go into more stores,”
Chris said. It wasn’t number one on his list, but it sounded good.
“I want to do another movie,” Joey said softly. “I
like acting.”
“You’re good at it, too,” Lance told him, and Joey
blushed.
“I wanna…I wanna write for more people. I’m not as
good as I could be, but I like it,” Justin offered.
“I want to sell one of my paintings. Not to some random fan, but to someone who
is into art and digs my stuff,” JC said.
“Lance?” Joey asked.
“I just…I don’t want to be ashamed of myself at
this time next year the way I am now,” Lance said softly.
“To Lance kicking ass!” Joey shouted, raising his
glass.
“Here here!” Justin yelled, clinking his glass to
Joey’s.
It’s just another New
Year’s Eve, another night like all the rest, it’s just another New Year’s Eve,
let’s make it the best…it’s just another New Year’s Eve, it’s just another Auld
Lang Syne, but when we’re through, this New Year you’ll see will be just fine…
Chris stood with
Lance out on the balcony overlooking the pool.
“So…I bet there’s some girl out there, standing on a balcony with her
friend, wondering if life will ever get better. The girl for you, Lance,” Chris said lightly, sipping at his
beer. It was ten minutes to midnight.
“There is no girl for me, Chris,” Lance said with a
sigh. “I know that now.”
“But Lance, there’s someone…”
“Not a girl, Chris.” Lance turned and looked Chris
in the eye. “That’s what I told my
mother, Chris. I’m gay. And she couldn’t accept that.”
“Well…I’m sure she will,” Chris said quickly. “Especially if she wants to have any kind of
relationship with her son. When I told my mom I’d had some encounters with guys
and thought I might be bisexual, she said…”
“Wait.” Lance took a long gulp of his drink and
stared at Chris. “You’re bisexual?”
“Yeah. And she said…”
“And you told your mom?”
“Yeah. I
mean, it’s different with me, because she knows there’s STILL a possibility
she’ll get a grandchild out of me, but I think she knows that as long as I feel
something for men AND women, I would never get married. It wouldn’t be fair to
the woman. And I can always donate
sperm or something, or adopt.” Chris
finished his beer. “Want another drink?”
“Get me a beer like yours,” Lance said faintly,
turning back around and staring down at the pool.
And we’ll grow old…but
think how wise we’ll grow…there’s more you know…it’s only New Year’s Eve…
“I can’t believe
Justin will be twenty-one soon,” JC said to Lance, watching Justin dance with
Joey and Chris. “Damn. The baby.”
“I know. I can’t believe it either.” Lance watched Chris shake his butt and
sighed. “But then again, who can believe Chris is thirty?”
“I know.”
JC laughed. “I feel ancient
sometimes.”
“I know. I feel older then twenty-two plus,” Lance
said. “Must be our jobs.”
“Yeah,” JC agreed.
“Think about it. Most people your age are just getting out of college.”
“They’ve never had to travel from town to town so
quick they didn’t know where they were,” Lance continued for him. “They’ve
never known the feeling to have to run from hotel to car, or car to restaurant,
or restaurant to MTV, just because if they DIDN’T run, they would get killed.”
“Do you hate it that much, Lance?” JC asked. Lance
looked at him. The drugs had worn off,
and JC was sober and sincere.
“No. I hate being alone. Hate feeling less then what I should be,” Lance answered.
“Well, THAT was cryptic,” JC said with a grin. He threw an arm around Lance’s shoulders and
hugged him. “But we love you anyway.”
“Most of you.”
Lance looked back at their friends.
It’s just another New Year’s
Eve, another night like all the rest…it’s just another New Year’s Eve, let’s
make it the best…
“Three minutes
and counting!” Someone yelled. JC
smiled at Lance and grabbed one of the many bottles of champagne. Someone swiped it from JC, and he yelled in
protest.
“C’mere.”
Chris grabbed Lance with his free hand, dragging him down the hall to
the powder room.
“Chris, it’s almost time!” Lance told him, laughing.
“I know.”
Chris shoved him into the powder room, followed, and locked the door
behind him. He quickly popped the cork on the champagne, showering Lance with
liquid.
“Are you drunk?” Lance asked.
“Not drunk enough,” Chris told him, and took a huge
swallow from the bottle. He took a deep
breath.
“Thirty seconds!”
Someone yelled.
“What’s wrong, Chris?” Lance asked.
“Lance, I need to tell you something. This year is
NOT going to end without me being honest with you,” Chris told him, and Lance
was shocked by the earnestness in Chris’ dark eyes.
“Chris…”
“Ten…nine…eight…seven…”
“Aw, hell.” Chris put down the bottle, grabbed
Lance by the shoulders, and kissed him.
“Mmmph!”
Lance mumbled in surprised, not knowing what to do or say or think. Chris’ lips were warm and soft, and they
felt right against his mouth. All the
feelings that Lance had been fighting for months, all the confusion about what
he felt regarding Chris or even just men in general, it all clicked into place
during that kiss.
“Two…one…Happy New Year!” Someone screamed.
Lance didn’t care what time it was. He only cared
that Chris was kissing him. And he
kissed Chris back, long and sweet and tender.
“I…I am so sorry, Lance…I had to…” Chris began to babble.
“Shh…I want this year to start off right,” Lance
whispered, pulling Chris close for another kiss.
It’s just another New
Year’s Eve…it’s just another Auld Lang Syne…but when we’re through, this New
Year you’ll see will be just fine…
The End
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