“I didn’t do anything!” Joey rubbed the back of his head where Lance had just hit him.

Lance looked sharply at Joey who stuck his bottom lip out. “Joe, Anastasia is new to Free Lance.”

“Well, LAAAANCE! You sly dog! I’m impressed! Anastasia, I don’t know what you’re gonna do, but, you can do it for me ANYDAY!”

“JOSEPH ANTHONY!” Diane shot him an angry look.

“OH! Sorry Momma Bass, I forgot you were standing there.”

“I noticed. Now you stay here, so you can help carry these bags. I’m going to check us in. Stacy, Stasia, I’ll be right back and then we can get settled.” She walked up to the front desk and Lance walked over to help her.

“Anastasia, if you are going to be there, I may have to visit Lance in Mississippi more often.” Joey said, while raising his eyebrows up and down.

Stasia looked over at Stacy who rolled her eyes. She grinned at Stacy who gave her a quizzical look. “Please, call me Stasia and Joey, HONEY! I have got some GREAT news for you.” She slowly ran a finger around the neckband of Joey’s t-shirt.

“You do?”

“Yes I do.” Stacy, who was standing behind Joey at this point, was beat red and biting her bottom lip.

“What’s the good news?”

“I’m not going to be in Mississippi.” She licked her lips.

“You aren’t?” He grinned at her.

“No.” She flattened her palm against his chest and his grin grew into a smile. “I...am going to be...” she leaned in and whispered in his ear, “traveling with you.” Then she kissed his cheek, and as she walked away, she lightly raked her nails across his chest.

Joey was standing, exactly where she left him, with his eyes wide open, and his jaw hanging down. Stacy quickly walked over to Stasia, and the two of them started to giggle. “Stasia! I can’t believe you did that! That was classic! He was NOT expecting that at all!”

“He’s a flirt huh?”

“Joey, yes, you could say he’s a flirt...but that may be an understatement. Although, he is nowhere near as bad as the magazines make him out to be. Some of the articles make him sound almost criminal.”

Stasia looked back over at Joey, who was standing in the same place. She walked back over and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned and looked down at her. She smiled brightly and said, “Sorry about that, I tend to get a little out of control with my flirting, I didn’t mean to embarrass you. I just get excited when I think I’ve met another flirt.”

“Girl, you have met your match. I’m going to love having you around! Maybe we are twins separated at birth.”

“Unless you are 26, and born on December 24th too, I doubt it.”

“SHUT UP! 26? I figured you and Justin were gonna be the same age, he’s gonna be disappointed.”

“Hold on a second. Isn’t Justin the young one?”

“19, until the end of the month.”

“You thought I was 19?”

“If that.”

“Wow. 19. No...I’m gonna be the old lady around here, am I the oldest? Oh now there is a sad thought. I feel like I need a walker now. Sheesh!”

“No worries there. Chris is the oldest, older than you even!” He gave her an evil grin. “He is the oldest in years at least.”

“What the heck does that mean?”

“Oh, you’ll see, soon enough, you’ll see.” He slowly shook his head.

“Joey...” She started to say something, but was interrupted.

Lance walked over and handed Stasia a key. “You are between, my mom, and Chris...sorry about that, but I couldn’t let momma be right next to him.” He smiled at her, “I guess I’m already asking favors. Sorry about that.”

“It’s no favor. However I am slightly concerned about this Chris character. Is there anything I need to know ahead of time?”

Joey and Lance looked at one another and began laughing, Joey elbowed Lance in the ribs and they both made a pitiful attempt to stop laughing. “No, you have to meet him to understand.”

“Okay, I’ll take your word for it. Well, since I have a key now, I guess I should go get settled in.” She started to pick up her suitcases, and Joey swatted her hands.

“Momma Bass would KILL me. I’m already in trouble...I’ll carry those for you. Lance you get her other stuff, the bellboys have got your mom and Stacy’s stuff.” He picked up her two suitcases, and Lance reached for the bags she had on her shoulder. Stasia laughed at him.

“If you really want to you can, but how about you take the briefcase, and I’ll hang on to the purse.” Lance looked at the two bags in his hand and blushed and handed the purse back to her.

“Sorry about that.”

“No big deal, I was just teasing you.”

Joey grinned, “You do that a lot don’t you?”

She looked at him innocently, batted her eyelashes, and said, “Do what?”

“You are gonna be a handful aren’t you?” He slid an arm around her shoulders and started toward the elevators. “Oh yeah. I’m gonna like having you around. I’m gonna like it a lot.”

As they entered the elevator, Lonnie, Dre and another huge man stepped in with them, she hadn’t even noticed them standing by, waiting in the lobby. Diane and Stacy were already in another elevator with the bellboys. As they left the main floor, Stasia leaned to Joey and whispered, “I’ve met Lonnie and Dre. Who’s the third guy?”

“Oh. That’s Jay. Sorry, should have introduced you.” Joey smacked Jay on the chest and said, “Hey Jay, I want to introduce you to Stasia. She works for us now.”

“WRONG! She works for Free Lance now...not you Joe, she is NOT going to do your laundry for you...don’t even go there.” Lance said sharply.

Jay laughed and said, “OK! Got it...Stasia, you work for FREE LANCE...nice to meet you.”

Stasia looked over at Lance, who had a really strange look on his face, and quickly turned back to Jay, “It’s really nice to meet you too.”

The elevator doors opened, and they were met with another security guard. “There are a lot of security people around here aren’t there?” She leaned to Joey again.

“Oh yeah. The fans are a little over active today, our entire security team is working right now, normally they work in shifts, but today they are all out and about. We usually go everywhere in a group, so it’s easier for them. Here, we're all spread out, so they all need to be around.”

“That makes perfect sense. I’ve never had to think about it before.”

“You will get used to them being around after a while, everyone on security tries to stay out of the way. We each have one guy who is assigned to each of us individually, and then there are other people, who help us when we have other people around. We added security when a fan followed Chris’s little sister to school, that’s when security got tighter around our families.”

“Followed his little sister? That is so...so invasive.”

“Oh, we all have stories to tell...If you are going to be around...you will hear them all. I think this is your room isn’t it?”

She looked down at the key card in her hand, “Yes this looks like it!” She slid the card into the slot on the door, and pushed the door open, she held it for Joey. He stepped in, set down her bags and smiled at her. She took her briefcase from Lance, who was still quiet. And said, “Thanks Lance.”

“It’s no problem. I’m going to go check on my mom.” He turned, walked next door and knocked.

“I’m going to go see who else is around, it’s pretty quiet up here, so it would be a good time to meet a few people, without being overwhelmed.”

“Thanks, that would be really nice. I may have to ask everyone to wear name tags.”

He laughed, “I’m not worried about you at all...you are going to fit in just fine. I’ll be back with, well, I’m not sure who I’ll have with me. Good luck getting settled.”

He left and pulled the door closed behind him. Stasia laughed, she was going to get along with Joey. He was very sweet. All the press she had read about him on the disk Stacy had given her, made Joey sound like an airheaded woman chaser. That was nowhere near the guy she just met.

Stasia wanted to pull anything that could wrinkle out of her suitcase but the room was still dark, so she found a light switch and flipped it. Her breath caught in her throat. This room was amazing the drapes were closed, forming a powder blue, fabric wall across the far side of the room. The king size bed was covered in the same powder blue fabric. Stasia had been expecting the same old hotel room, two double beds, a dresser, a window looking out on a parking lot, with a noisy air conditioner under the window, that was not at all what she found.

There was a large, dark wood cabinet across from the bed, she pulled the double doors open to reveal the TV. She threw her purse and briefcase down on the bed and walked further into the room to see that there was a cozy little sitting area set up in the corner. She sat down on the loveseat, looking at the pair of plush chairs directly in front of her. She noticed a door slightly ajar on the wall next to the cabinet, which she had neglected to close. She stood and walked into the room, flipped the light switch and could not believe the size of the bathroom she was standing in. The entire room was white, but it wasn’t clinical white, it was actually inviting, especially the enormous tub in the corner. There was a separate shower stall, and a very long, white counter. Stasia was pulled out of her amazed state when she heard a knock on her door. She jogged over to the door, pulled it open to see Joey’s grinning face. “Hi Joey.”

Joey had his arm draped around another man’s shoulders. He turned his head and said, “See, I told you Momma Bass brought us a girl.” The other guy looked at Stasia and stuck his hand out.

“You must be the famous Stasia.”

She took his hand and nodded. “Please come in.” Stasia stepped aside, and the two men walked into the room.

Joey looked at the closed drapes and said, “Stasia, Honey, you are in Hawaii...how about letting some light in the joint.” He walked over to find the pull cord for the curtains.

“I assume I have a lovely view of the parking lot, I am in no hurry to see other people’s cars.”

“Sure...whatever.” Joey laughed, then pulled the curtains open. The entire wall was glass, a sliding door in the middle. And a view like none Stasia had seen before. She was overlooking not only the beautiful pool deck, but beyond that, she could see a white beach that stretched out to the most incredible sapphire blue water. “Nice parking lot, huh?” He elbowed her in the ribs.

“HOLY COW! Would you look at that!”

“I have.” He turned to the other guy who was grinning at Stasia’s reaction. “Are you going to tell the poor girl your name? Or do I have to do it for you?”

“Sorry about that! Anastasia, I’m JC.”

“Not a problem. Now you two have to come sit on my newly found balcony with me...or will the fans see you and freak out?”

JC smiled at her, “No we’re ok on this side of the hotel, which is why all of our rooms line this side of the hall, and all of our poor support people get a lovely view of...the parking lot.”

“Oh sure, make me feel bad for having this view. Now come on, I want to sit outside, and you two are coming with me.”

Joey pulled the door open and they all walked out onto the wide balcony. “Hey Stasia, I ran into Stacy and she wanted me to ask if you needed more ice for your face? What the heck is that all about?”

They sat down at the table off to one side of the space, both men letting Stasia sit facing the beach.

“Well first you have to tell me if my cheek is still all red, then I will tell you the whole story.” She turned so they could get a look at the side of her face. “Actually, it doesn’t really hurt much any more, I probably don’t need anymore ice.”

“Now that you mention it, you do have a pink spot, but nothing major. Now let’s hear this story.”

For what felt like the thousandth time in a few hours, Stasia told the story of her flight from Michigan to California. Again, she was met with wide eyes and open jaws. JC was the first to speak when she finished.

“You bit him?”

“Yep”

“That is the funniest thing I have heard all day.” He burst out laughing.

“That is my favorite part too!” Stasia joined in on the laughter. At that point, she realized that Joey was laughing so hard, he had fallen silent, tears were running down his cheeks and his body was shaking violently. Then suddenly, he gasped for air and his loud laughter filled the air around them.

JC ran a hand over his face, in an attempt to calm down. He cleared his throat and said, “Ok, Anastasia, tell us a little about yourself.”

“Sure, but first guys, please call me Stasia. Whenever someone calls me Anastasia, I feel like I’m going to be in trouble.” She smiled brightly. She started to tell them about growing up in Michigan, and her job, when they heard a door slam loudly, and laughing voices fill the air.

JC and Joey looked at one another and JC said, “Oh God, here we go.” At that precise moment, two people burst onto the balcony next to them. There was a beautiful blonde woman, and a good-looking guy who seemed to be chasing her. Joey held his finger to his lips.

Stasia raised her eyebrows in question.

Joey very slowly leaned over and whispered, “If we are very quiet, they might not notice us.” He then straightened in his seat. JC had his eyes closed, as if he thought if he could not see the couple, they could not see him. The whole scene struck her as very funny, and a giggle started to build in her chest. Her lip started to quiver, and she let out a little squeak. JC’s eyes flew open and Joey looked horrified. The man on the balcony beside them whipped his head around and froze, mid-step.

He slowly turned to face them completely, a purely evil grin on his face, “And what do we have here? JC and Joey hiding out with a beautiful girl. Babe, did you see this? Joey and JC seem to have kidnapped a young innocent.” The beautiful blonde smiled, held her hand to her mouth, to try to stifle her laugh, and nodded. Then, in one quick movement, he vaulted over the railing and onto Stasia’s balcony, landing right next to her. “HELLLLLLOOOOO there.”

Stasia was in complete shock, it was her turn to be wide eyed. This guy was nuts. He was leaning back against the railing, holding out his hand for the blonde to take. She rested her hip in the railing that divided the two balconies, and the man pulled her over, then set her down next to him, his arm rested around her waist. “Allow me to introduce myself, and my lovely companion. I am Christopher Kirkpatrick, and this vision, is Danielle.”

JC stood so Danielle could sit next to Stasia. As he was getting up he said, “Dani, Chris, this is Stasia. She is going to be working with Lance at Free Lance. Diane and Stacy hired her and brought her with them here to meet this mess we call family.”

Joey spoke up and said, “She was just starting to tell us about herself. I’ll bring you up to speed. She is from Michigan, she is twenty-six, she was working at a law firm, she is basically going to run Free Lance.”

“I wouldn’t go that far.” Stasia said with a smirk.

“You are modest. That, is where we left off isn’t it? Did I forget anything JC?”

“No, I think that is about all we've covered. I’m going to see if I can find Justin and Lance, they should be here to hear all of this.” JC started to walk away, and then said, “Don’t start again until I get back.”

Stasia was liking everyone. These were people she would have hung out with normally. Except for the fact that she didn’t normally hang out with a room full of famous people.

Dani leaned over and quietly said, “How are you holding up? You must have just arrived, and we're having a party in your room. I can clear them out of here if you’d like.”

“No, not at all. I’m happy to meet everyone, and I have been on so many planes today, that somehow I’m not tired. I can’t figure that one out, but I’m gonna keep going while I still can.”

“You will be out of commission tomorrow.”

“I assume you're right.”

“Tell you what...you, me and the pool have a date tomorrow. The guys have all sorts of pre-show junk to do, so most of the day will be quiet.”

“Sounds like a plan to me. I’ll have to see if Diane or Stacy have anything they need me to get started on, but if not...I’m right there with you.”

There was a knock on the door, and Joey jumped up to get it. “You stay put, I’ll see who it is.” He returned with JC, Stacy, and five new people. Joey quickly introduced the new people as Justin, Britney Spears, Danielle Fischel, her boyfriend Troy and Joey’s brother Steve. They ran out of chairs, so Chris pulled the chairs from his balcony over and they all started to settle in.

“I think Lance is in talking to Momma Bass, so he will just have to find out about you on his own.” JC grinned at her.

Stasia suddenly felt nine pairs of eye staring at her. “Well now I feel like I need to come up with an exciting story to tell!”

Joey said, “You have an exciting story to tell.”

“Yeah, tell them about your flight.” JC encouraged.

So, Stasia launched into telling the story, yet again. It was starting to get old to her, but it was interesting. She explained from the very beginning, telling them about the nice guy at the front desk to Peter giving her the odd look right after she met him. When she got to the point where he was holding her by the arms, she said, “So at this point I’m thinking, ‘I can’t hit him, he’s got my arms, I can’t kick him, there is a table in the way.’ So...”

“SHE BIT HIM!” Joey and JC said together.

Everyone turned to look at Joey and JC, and then turned back to Stasia, who blushed and nodded. The group erupted into loud laughter.

Stasia finished telling the story, when she told them about Peter throwing her on the couch and then hitting her they were all shocked. She ended with the police and the airport security arresting Peter. “That is my exciting story. The rest is boring.”

Britney spoke up first, “I would have died! I’ve never been attacked, I don’t know what I’d do. If that turns into a black eye in the morning, you come see me...BELIEVE me, I’ll have something to cover it.”

Justin spoke for the first time, “I think I’ll call you bruiser.” Everyone laughed.

Chris bounced up and down in his chair, until Dani put a hand on his arm, “Tell us more! Tell us more!”

“Well Chris, what would you like to know?”

JC, Joey and Justin all groaned. “You should not have gone there Stasia.” Justin said.

Chris began bouncing again. He clapped his hands together and said, “Let’s do this like one of those preference interviews they do with all of us. You know...we’ll ask you a quick question, or give you two options, and you answer as briefly as possible.”

“Ok, I’m game.”

Chris was about to bounce out of his chair. “I’ll start, then we’ll go around the group! Favorite song ever?”

“Oh God, that’s actually hard...can I have a four way tie?”

“Sure...I couldn’t name just one either.”

“Power Of Two...Indigo Girls, Prelude to a Kiss...Ella Fitzgerald, And So It Goes...Billy Joel, and The Dance...Garth Brooks.” She noticed JC and Justin give each other a funny look, but decided to ignore it.

“Wow, interesting choices. Ok, who’s next?” Chris pointed at Joey.

“Me?” Joey pointed to himself.

“Yeah, you go Joe.”

“Ok, favorite super hero?” Everyone groaned.

“Easy one...The Wonder Twins! ‘Wonder Twin powers activate! Form of ice cage! Form of elephant!” Again she was met with laughter.

Dani put her hand up.

“Go ahead Dani.” Chris said.

“Favorite designer.” Britney and Danielle both said that this was indeed a good question, all of the men rolled their eyes.

“Another easy one! Ralph Lauren.”

Justin looked her up and down, “That is not a big shock. I’m going next. Favorite Detroit artist, past and present.”

“Past, Stevie Wonder. Present, Kid Rock.”

JC decided to join in now, “Favorite subject in school.”

“Grade school, reading. Jr. High, Math. High School, English. College, Philosophy.”

Steve was next, “Favorite sport?”

“Toss up, either football or hockey.”

Justin asked, “What about basketball?”

“You already asked your question, but basketball is great too, just not in the top two. I love sports in general, with the noted exception of baseball, which bores me to death.”

Troy asked, “Favorite food and beverage? I got that right out of one of Danielle’s Q & A’s”

“Anything Mexican and Dr. Pepper.” Again, there was a look between JC and Justin.

Britney smiled and said, “Besides being attacked by freaks on airplanes, what is your biggest fear?”

Stasia laughed, and then after a second, “Ending up alone in life.”

Stacy tilted her head, “What is your Birthday?”

“December 24th.”

Chris looked around, and said “Danielle, you are the only one left.”

“Oh, I am? Ok. Favorite color?”

“Red.”

JC began laughing, Justin smacked his arm and gave him a look that told him to shut up. Stasia raised her eyebrows at them and Justin waved a hand. “Ignore him. He’s slap happy today.”

Suddenly, questions started flying at her left and right. She answered everything from her favorite day of the week, to what her major in college was. She glanced down at the beach and furrowed her brow. “Hey, it’s getting dark. What time is it anyway?”

“It’s 8:30.”

“Is anyone else starving? I haven’t eaten since Mississippi.”

The group started to agree, that most of them were hungry. JC suggested they all go down to the dining room that the hotel had sealed off for them. They all started to get up, a few people wanted to stop in their rooms, and they were going to try to find some others, apparently there were a ton of people staying here with NSYNC.

Justin and Britney waited for Stasia to wash her face. The three, along with two body guards got on the elevator and rode down to the lobby. They made their way to the private dining room where the group had grown. Justin introduced Stasia to his mother and stepfather, his father, stepmother and two little brothers, both of whom looked a lot like Justin. He introduced her to his best friend, a very pretty girl named Morgan.

Chris pulled her by the arm to meet his mother and sisters. His mother apologized for his behavior and said that when asked which of the guys is her son, she normally points to JC.

After meeting parents, and sibling and a lot of friends. Joey walked up and asked her to sit at his table. Stacy was already sitting there, as was Steve. She followed him over to the table and sat down. She looked around the room and asked Stacy, “Where is your brother? I’d like to talk to him.”

“He’s up talking to Momma. They were going to eat in her room. They just want to catch up a little bit.”

“I can understand that.”

A waiter walked over and handed her a menu.

“I honestly don’t see the problem here.” Diane was sitting on the couch in her room, across from her very frustrated son.

“Momma, you have not only hired someone to work for us, without telling me, but you hired a girl!”

“A highly qualified girl, possibly overly qualified.”

“I understand that, but do you understand the complications of having a girl travel with us?”

“Johnny and I talked about it. We don’t think there will be a problem. First of all, she is not going to be on YOUR bus. Secondly, face it darling, you need help staying up to date if you want this to work. Third, with Stasia handling the finances, Stacy, Bill and I can do more with the artists. You want to have a talent search? Are you going to organize it yourself? Stacy and I have our hands full in the office, and with Jack and Meredith. Lance, we only have two artists, and we are scrambling. What is going to happen when we start taking on more? If you want to do this, let’s do it right. The first step to doing this right, is to bring Stasia on board. Your Uncle Josh loves her, like his own child. She has had a very rough life, and we are able to give her a good opportunity for a fresh start. So Stacy and I hired a girl. So what? We hired the best person for the job. Take a look at her resume.” She tossed a file folder at him across the coffee table.

He opened the folder and read the information enclosed. There was a very impressive list of credentials and a letter that had been faxed to Diane by her Uncle Josh. The letter outlined the story of the eight people Stasia had to fire, and then the money she had sent to the eight people. She had a big heart, he’d give her that much. “She gave away her Christmas bonus, that was nice of her.”

“She doesn’t exactly need the money.”

“What the heck does that mean?”

“You will have to ask her about it, it is a very personal issue, and it is not my place to tell you about it.”

“I understand why you hired her, but why did you bring her here?”

“Why not? This is a very relaxed environment for her to meet everyone. Things are about to get crazy for you boys, and I wanted her to have a chance to get to know all of you BEFORE the insanity starts. She isn’t bothering anyone.” They both turned when they suddenly heard the sound of loud laughter from outside. Diane got up and walked to the sliding door to look for the source of the laughter. She smiled at the sight of Stasia sitting with all of the other guys, and some of their friends. “Come look at this Lance.”

Diane put her arm around her son, and hugged him to her side. “She seems to be fitting in just fine.” They both stepped back into the room and sat down again. “Lance, what else is bothering you? Why would having Stasia here be a problem for you?”

He said simply, “Because Danielle is here.”

“With her boyfriend, darling.”

“I know that.”

“Besides, it’s not as if I brought her to be WITH you. She is here to get comfortable with the group. She is going to be spending a lot of time with a lot of these people, I want her to be relaxed. Not to mention, I think she could use the break. Your Uncle Josh said she took having to fire those people very hard, and very personally.”

“You like her a lot don’t you?” He sighed.

“Yes I do. I liked her from the moment she walked in the conference room. She carries herself with confidence. She is exactly the type of person we want to be working with. She is going to be good for you, you are both very driven and it is a good match. You are going to get a lot done and you personally, will not have to worry about the company as much.”

“That's a good point. But Momma, it’s my company...OUR company, I want to be involved.” He sighed again and ran his hands through his hair.

“You will be, maybe even more so. The decisions Stacy and I would have been forced to make on our own will go through Stasia now, who will be with you, do you see what we were trying to do here? We were not trying to cut you out, we were trying to KEEP YOU IN.”

Lance smiled weakly, “I get it, I was just shocked. I was expecting you and Stacy, and suddenly I was faced with the girl who is going to be a major part of my life from the moment I met her. I just wasn’t prepared.”

“Everything happened so fast, I should have called to warn you, but I just didn’t have time. We had to get her from Mississippi, to Detroit, to California in one day. She has been in the air for a solid day.”

There was a knock on the door, Diane got up to answer it. Stacy walked in and roughed up Lance’s hair. “Hey Momma, Lance, we are all going down to the dining room to eat, poor Stasia hasn’t eaten since this morning. Are you going to come down?”

Diane looked at Lance, who shook his head, “I think Lance and I are going to get some room service, and have a little quality time before your Daddy and Ford get here.”

Stacy shrugged her shoulders and said, “You guys missed it, we sat there and threw her all sorts of questions and she handled them like a pro. Lance, you should have her do your interviews, she didn’t miss a beat.” She turned and left for dinner.

When the door closed, Diane turned and said, “Are you sure you don’t want to go eat with the kids?”

“No, I want to have dinner with you. I just want to be here with you for a little while. We have very little time, just the two of us.”

“I’m not going to argue. I’ll eat with you any day!”

Diane threw the room service menu at Lance and said, “Let’s order, and then finish our little conversation.”

They placed their order, and she noticed Lance still looked, distant. “Darling, I can tell by looking at you, that you are still not completely at ease with this situation. What is nagging at you?”

“You like Anastasia a lot, Right?”

“Yes.”

“And Stacy seems to like her a lot.”

“I believe so.”

“Joey took to her right away. And it looks like everyone else likes her. They are all downstairs with her, eating dinner.”

“Honey, what are you getting at here?”

“I didn’t give her a chance. She was nice to me, but I am the only one who knows nothing about this girl. I feel bad, but I don’t know how much I WANT to get to know her?”

“Why is that?”

“I’m not really sure.”

“This has something to do with Danielle doesn’t it?”

“Why would you say that? Danielle and I haven’t been together for a long time. She has a boyfriend. Anastasia has nothing to do with Danielle and I.”

“Lance, I never asked the circumstances of your break up with Danielle. It is honestly none of my business, beyond the fact that you are my son, and I hate to see you hurt. I have, however, made two observations since you broke up. First, you seem to think that you have an inability to be in a relationship while you are in NSYNC. Second, you seem to be afraid to even meet girls, fans, possible friends, and now coworkers. You can’t run away from women until the day NSYNC is over, which may never happen.”

He looked at his mother, then down at his hands. “I don’t think I can be in a relationship while I’m in NSYNC because that is what she told me.”

“She was wrong.”

“I’m not sure about that, Momma. I guess that on some level, I not only believe it, but I am making it happen. You’re right, I do avoid women, it’s just easier. They feel things so deeply, guys are...more basic. I can just hang out, and not be expected to feel...anything.”

“I have bad news for you. You have always been a person who feels things very deeply, you can’t turn that off, and the longer you postpone dealing with your feelings, the worse it is going to be when you finally do. You can’t avoid Stasia, simply because she happens to be a woman. I truly think that if you gave her a chance, she would be a good person for you to test the female friendship waters with. She is a lot like you. I have a feeling you two have more in common than I have even noticed.”

“The female friendship waters? Momma, I can’t believe you said that! What do you think we have in common?”

“The things I have picked up on already? Let’s see...you are both very business oriented, you both are very organized, you are both very thoughtful.”

“How do you know she is thoughtful?”

“I didn’t mean thoughtful, as in gift giving, thank you card writing...I meant it as in, you both think before you speak...you are both thinkers.”

“Oh. Is that it?”

“Yes, for now, well all of that, and the eyes.”

“The eyes? Hers are gray...not green.”

“I meant that you both tell the complete truth with your eyes. You can always disguise your excitement, or pain, or happiness, or anger, or fear from your voice or your actions...but your eyes always tell the truth. Stasia’s eyes do exactly the same thing.” She had to smile at the fact that, while he claimed to have taken no interest in Stasia, he had indeed noticed her eye color. He had noticed more than that, she was sure of it, and beneath the surface, that might be what was really bothering him.

“My eyes tell the truth?”

“Yes”

“What are they telling you now?”

“You are tired, and confused, and you don’t know why.”

“I just told you all of that.”

“But the eyes told me first.”

“Her eyes are like that?”

“Oh yes. It was one of the first things I noticed. It was also the thing that made me positive I was doing the right thing hiring her. Every question we asked her, no matter how invasive, or ultimately painful for her to discuss, she answered them honestly, always with a smile on her face. But, there were a few questions she answered with deep pain in her eyes. I respect her honesty and her willingness to be up front.”

“What could you have asked that caused her pain? It was a job interview. There should have been nothing painful involved.”

“You are going to have to find all of that out on your own, and I believe she will be just as honest with you, when you are ready to hear everything.”

“Momma, you are being cryptic, and I don’t have the energy to drag it out of you right now.”

His timing was perfect, because just as he put an end to the conversation, there was a knock on the door. Their dinner had arrived. They ate, and talked about the concert the guys would be performing for New Years.

Diane knew she had given her son a lot to think about, but it was time he started facing his feelings. Lance had been focusing solely on work, and his life...the life outside of NSYNC, was starting to demand some of his attention. Soon, he would not be able to put it off any longer.

Dani walked up to Stasia where she was sitting with Stacy and JC. Stasia had been the center of attention all evening. She talked with everyone, she played with Chris’s little sister. She had talked at great length with each of the guys. She had taken the time to sit with Johnny Wright for over an hour, and when Johnny got up to leave, he gave Stasia a very warm hug. Dani was totally impressed with Stasia’s ability to fit into this group. NSYNC and their families were a very tight knit group, they were also very cautious of outsiders, but Stasia had been so open and honest with everyone, that she was already fitting in well.

“Hey Stasia?”

“Hi Dani! What can I do for you?”

“I was wondering if I could talk to you outside for a second?”

Stasia looked up at her curiously, cocked an eyebrow and said, “Sure.” She got up and excused herself from the conversation with Stacy and JC.

The two girls made their way out of the dining room, which had quickly become the social gathering spot for the evening. As the rest of the group arrived back at the hotel from either sight seeing, or shopping, or checking on the status of the venue for the performance, they had all wandered into the dining room. Each newcomer was introduced to Stasia, and she made a point of talking to each one of them. They walked out one of the doors leading to the pool area. It was very quiet outside, and the air had gotten cooler.

Stasia looked at Dani and said, “What’s up Dani?”

Dani smiled at her and said, “Nothing, I just thought you might need a break. It’s a quarter to twelve, and you have been going non stop, I thought you could use a little quiet for a second.”

Stasia looked at her watch, “According to my watch...it’s 6:00 am...that is...um...Detroit time...I think.”

Dani laughed, “You’ve been up at least twenty-four hours haven’t you?”

“Something like that...honestly, I’m not sure anymore. What time is it here?”

“11:48.” She watched Stasia reset her watch to the local time. “Did you get a chance to ask Stacy if you can hang out with me tomorrow?”

“As a matter of fact, I did. You’ve got a date! I am really looking forward to just hanging out by the pool.”

“It looks like it will just be the two of us. A big group is going on some tour of an active volcano...did you want to do that instead? Or some shopping...or something else?”

“An active volcano...um, I think I’ll pass. No, I liked your original idea, laying by the pool sounds like a perfect plan. But I need you to do me a favor.”

“Name it.”

“Please don’t let me sleep too late, if I’m not out and about by 9:30, please wake me up, otherwise, I’m going to be dead to the world all day.”

“No problem, you want to get breakfast at 9:30 then?”

“Yes! And Dani, thanks.”

“For what?”

“Helping me feel welcome.”

“You ARE welcome. I didn’t do anything.”

“Yes you did, you’ve been great, and I really do appreciate it.”

“Well, it was no big deal, I was the new guy around this group once, I know what it’s like. How are you feeling about the group, you’ve had a chance to talk to everyone now, right?”

“Everyone except Lance.”

“Well he’s the easiest. Lance is a sweetie. You’ll get along really well.”

“I hope you’re right...He is the only person I really HAVE to get along with.”

“Oh, you will. Don’t worry.”