Seventeen
“JC…phone
for you.” Brian waved the phone in the air.
“I'm
busy here, Bri,” JC grunted, hefting a sculpture onto a pedestal.
“It's
some guy named Thacker?”
JC
almost dropped the sculpture. In the months since the episode with Lance, JC
had almost forgotten about the offer to buy his artwork. He had called Mr.
Thacker back the day after Lance had stormed out, leaving a message that said
he knew Mr. Thacker probably wouldn't want his work any longer, and thanking
him for his interest. “Uh, okay.” JC placed the sculpture at just the right
angle and went to take the phone. “JC Chasez.”
“Mr.
Chasez. It's William Thacker.”
“Yes,
sir.”
“I
was very sorry to get that message a few months ago. I meant to get back to
you, but things were hectic here. The hotel has changed hands, and major
renovations have been occurring.”
“Yes,
I saw that in the newspaper,” JC said in what he hoped was a casual tone.
“I'm
not quite sure I understand why you changed your mind.”
“Well,
Mr. Thacker…I'm sure you heard about what happened between me and Lance Bass,”
JC said. He smiled as he said it. It had been the talk of the town for almost
three weeks. Reporters watched the house AND the gallery night and day before
finally losing interest in him.
“I
did hear something about it, yes.”
“And
I figured that you wouldn't want to darken the reputation of your hotel by
using my work,” JC said finally.
“I
believe that would have been MY decision, Mr. Chasez, am I correct?”
“Well,
uh, yes.”
“But
I appreciate your thoughtfulness. At any rate, we are still interested in your
work, now more than ever, with our renovations. Would I be able to stop by your
gallery?”
“Of course!” JC almost gushed, clutching at
the phone cord in his excitement.
“It
was unreal!” JC said yet again. Justin smiled and deftly flipped the pie dough
into the pan. JC swung his legs as he sat on the kitchen counter. He reached
for another slice of apple and Justin slapped his hand away.
“Stop.
I need all of it.” Justin wanted to share his new life of sight with Joey and show
him that he still needed him, so he had started to learn how to bake. He was as
talented with desserts as Joey was with main courses, and they had started to
talk about opening their own small café.
“Where's
Joe, anyway?”
“Big
dinner downtown tonight. He had to work late,” Justin said. “And we got out
early today at the studio, so…I thought I'd surprise him.”
“Save
me a piece,” JC begged, and Justin laughed. He grew serious, and JC stared at
him. “What?”
“I
got something in the mail today.” Justin finished his pie, put it in the oven,
and washed his hands. “It's a nice spring evening. Let's sit on the steps.” He
grabbed something from the dining room table and they went out on the front
stoop.
“You're
okay, right? It's not from the doctor?” JC asked anxiously.
“Oh,
no, I'm fine,” Justin promised. He handed JC the envelope. JC didn't recognize
the return address or the handwriting. JC flipped open the flap and pulled out
tickets and a note. “They're for Lance's movie premiere,” Justin said before JC
could even look at them. “They're having a mini-premiere here in town. He sent
five tickets.”
“I'm
not going.” JC shoved the tickets back into the envelope and handed it to
Justin. “Ask someone else. Maybe one of Nick's actor friends wants to go.”
“JC…you
can't avoid him forever. It's just a movie.”
“I
don't care.” JC went into the apartment and Justin followed.
“Jayce,
the note includes you. It says he would be honored if all of us would go.”
“I'll
wait for the DVD,” JC said.
“Don't
be so stubborn. I thought you were over him,” Justin said.
“I
am. And I don't need to see him up on that giant screen…his eyes huge and
beautiful…I don't need to see the lips that I kissed and the skin that I
touched, okay?”
“I
don't think you're over him,” Justin said.
“Of course I'm not,” JC snapped. “Don't be
an idiot.”
JC
tried to put the premiere out of his mind, but it was almost impossible. Nick
was absolutely thrilled with the idea of attending a REAL movie premiere, and
he couldn't stop talking about it. JC finally ignored his four best friends,
doing his best to stay out of the apartment when Chris was in it. He buried
himself in his preparations to get his work to Mr. Thacker. The hotel manager
had loved everything JC had shown him, and he had purchased enough paintings to
decorate the ten largest rooms in the hotel.
The
little bell over the door tinkled merrily, and JC looked up from his ledger to
see a deliveryman walking into the gallery. “A delivery for JC…” The man
stumbled over his last name.
“It's
for me.” JC scribbled his name and took the heavy package. It was perfectly
rectangular in shape. He carefully tore the brown paper open and his heart
dropped as he saw the “JLB”- embossed notecard.
Josh…I
hope you don't mind that I sent you this. Remember the idea we had…about the
Pygmalion plot where the artist falls in love with his assistant after his work
of art leaves him? I talked it over with a good friend who is a scriptwriter,
and he loved it. Here's our rough draft. Tell me what you think. I think I
still need the tutoring of a real artist. What do you think? Lance.
JC
didn't know what to think. He realized that he had been holding his breath the
entire time he was reading the note. It almost sounded as if…Lance was trying
to get back together.
