Title: Blank

Author: Black_Wingedbird

Rating: PG

Author's Note: This is gonna be a serious story, so be forewarned!

"Damn rain," Chris mumbled, turning on the windshield wipers.

"I hate rain," Justin replied, looking out the window into the dark night.

Chris and Justin were on their way back the hotel from an evening of clubbing. It had been an alcohol-free night for both of them. Justin was too young to drink, and Chris made sure he stayed that way. Justin found it annoying, but he admired Chris for looking out for him.

It had started raining, making their midnight travel home even slower. Several times the '97 Honda Accord had skidded around corners, even with Chris in four wheel drive. 'This weather must be murder for the clunkers,' Chris thought. It had been the first rain in a long time, and it brought out the oil in the roads and made them slick.

The heater was starting to fog up the windows, and Chris wiped the windshield with his sleeve. They stopped at a red light and noticed just how hard the rain was pounding. Even with the wipers on as fast as they could go it was still difficult to see the road in front of them.

Making things worse, a familiar banging started, and the guys looked out to see hail pounding the road.

"Well this is perfect," Justin groaned, banging his head on the headrest.

Chris was so caught up in watching the hail sparkle as it fell through the headlight beams; he didn't even notice the light turn green.

"Chris, go," Justin said, pointing.

"Oh yeah," Chris said, coming out of his trance.

He slowly stepped on the gas so the tires wouldn't squeal when he noticed the headlights behind them coming up fast. Too fast.

The car behind them honked the horn in alert as its tires squealed, signaling that it couldn't stop. "Oh shit," Chris whispered, flooring it.

They were half way through the intersection and the tires spun uselessly on the slick, wet pavement. The other car tried to stop, locking it's wheels and skidding right into Chris and Justin's car while going sixty miles an hour.

Glass shattered and metal crunched as the other car plowed into Chris and Justin, pushing them through the intersection with tremendous force. The terrific jolt caused Chris to jerk the steering wheel to the left, running the car into the steel traffic light pole. The car became squished like an accordion in between the car behind them and the pole, and two things crossed Chris and Justin's shaken minds. The first was how they would sue the rental place for the non-working airbags, and the second was how could the rain was. Then everything grew black.

~o0O0o~

"So far we've had a record four inches of rain in one hour, mixing with pea-sized hail and making driving next to impossible…"

"You think Chris and Justin are okay?" Joey asked, looking out the cold hotel window. They were waiting for their friends to come home, even if it meant staying up all night. It was now 1:10 am, and there still was no sign of the two partiers.

J.C. changed the channel and replied, "They're fine. They probably just met some girl and-"

"Wait, back up," Lance interrupted, stopping J.C.'s channel surfing.

"What?" J.C. asked, going back a channel. There was a reporter under an umbrella, reporting in the light from a streetlight.

"…And behind me, paramedics are transporting the victims to Orlando South Hospital, where they will stabilize the men's condition…"

"Isn't that their car?" Lance asked, squinting to see the totaled car behind the reporter. It was now half the size of a normal car, and all the windows had been shattered.

"I can't tell," J.C. replied. "God I hope not. There's nothing left."

The three grew silent, and a strange, cold feeling crept through them. Their hearts grew heavy as the reporter moved aside, revealing a license plate that matched what Justin and Chris left in. Red and blue lights flashed, and the light bounced off the broken glass that covered the intersection.

The guys stopped listening as they realized how real the situation was. The news switched back to the reporters in the station, and with out a word J.C. searched the other local stations.

"…And Justin Timberlake of pop group Nsync have just been reported to be in critical condition after being in a serious accident half an hour ago…"

"Oh shit," Joey said breathlessly.

"What hospital was it?" J.C. asked frantically, jumping up.

"I don’t remember," Lance replied, following J.C.

"Get the phone book!" J.C. yelled, running out the door.

Lance grabbed the hotel copy from the bedside table as he and Joey followed J.C. down to the car. He called out the first hospital phone number he came to, and J.C. dialed it as he ran through the rain to the second rental car.

Lance could barely hear J.C. over the pounding rain, and they got in the car quickly.

"Yes you can give me that information, we're the other group members!" J.C. yelled into the phone as he started the car. "Well it doesn't matter now, because obviously you have them or you would have just told me no," J.C. said, snapping the phone shut angrily.

"They'll be okay," Joey said, trying to soothe J.C.

J.C. sighed, and it was the last form of communication until they reached the hospital.

~o0O0o~

"What do you mean you don't know? Two pop stars come here in critical condition and you don’t know where they are?"

J.C. continued his verbal assault on the nurse, unaware of the doctor coming up behind him.

"Are you gentlemen here for Mr. Timberlake and Mr. Kirkpatrick?"

"Yeah, do you know where they are?" J.C. asked, getting new hope.

"We have them in surgery," the doctor said. "And you are…?"

"We're the other members of the group," Lance spoke up. "And their best friends."

"Oh, well that explains a lot. Right this way please." The doctor led them through the halls and up a floor. He sat the worried men in the waiting room and explained, "My name is Dr. Adanac, and I will be in charge of your friends while they are here."

"How are they?" Joey asked.

"They're both in surgery to repair shattered bones now. They were both unconscious when they came in. Mr. Timberlake has a mild concussion, a broken collarbone, and a broken wrist from when he tried to brace himself. Mr. Kirkpatrick sustained a powerful blow to the head, presumably from the steering wheel-"

"Wait, what happened to the airbag?" Lance asked.

"It malfunctioned. They hit the car itself. But the only other injury was two broken ribs, although the head injury has us worried. We'll have to wait until he wakes up to see how serious it is."

The guys sighed in unison, discouraged at the news. "Will they be okay?" Joey asked.

"Most likely, yes," Dr. Adanac replied, pushing up his glasses. He stood up and headed into another room. "I'll call you when you can see them," he said, then disappeared.

"Why did this happen to them?" J.C. asked, his heart breaking. "Chris did anything to protect us. He won't even drink around us just so Justin won’t. It just isn't fair."

"They're gonna be okay," Joey said. "You heard the doctor."

"Yeah, I heard him say they don't know how 'okay' Chris will be," J.C. said, his throat tightening.

"Don't give up already," Lance replied. "They need us to believe in them."

~o0O0o~

After the longest hour the three had ever endured, Dr. Adanac emerged from the other room. "We have your friends stabilized now, and all the bones are set. They are still sleeping, but you may see them now."

A small wave of dread went through them as they followed the doctor back to Chris and Justin's room. It smelled like anesthetic and cleaners, and the bright lights intensified the 'hospital feeling' even more.

They were shown to room 807, then Dr. Adanac left them. The guys went in, greeted by the sight of their two sleeping friends. Two heart monitors beeped as one, and two IV bags steadily dripped a clear liquid into the tubes leading into each young man's vein. Lance, Joey and J.C. each sat in chairs at the foot of the two beds, waiting for a sign of life.

"It's weird seeing these two so quiet," Joey half smiled.

Still asleep, Justin turned his head and moaned quietly. J.C. and Lance got up and stood beside Justin, and Joey followed behind. They watched as slowly, Justin opened his eyes.

His clear blue eyes looked around, confused. "It's okay," J.C. said. "You're in a hospital."

Justin looked at his friends, searching their faces for clues. "What happened?" he asked. "All I remember is we were in an intersection, and…" he trailed off, looking at the cast on his wrist and feeling the brace on his chest.

"You were hit. The ice and oil in the road made it slick, and the car behind you couldn't stop," Lance said, replaying the news in his mind.

"Am I okay?" Justin asked. His head and wrist ached, and he had no energy.

"You will be," J.C. smiled. "You're great compared to what the car looked like."

Justin suddenly remembered Chris, and looked around for his friend. He found Chris asleep to his left. There was a bandage on his friend's head, but nothing else Justin could see. "Is he okay?" he asked.

"We don't know yet. The doctors won't know until he wakes up." Joey said, sitting down at the foot of Chris's bed.

Justin didn't reply, but kept watching Chris. 'You better be okay,' he thought.

~o0O0o~

Chris felt a tremendous push from behind, then half a second later; they stopped dead, sandwiched in between a car and a pole. His head slammed down hard on the steering wheel, blurring his vision. He pulled hard against the seatbelt, and he felt his ribs crack as the seatbelt held him back. Justin's yell was cut short, and Chris became frantic, thinking Justin had died.

"Justin!" Chris yelled, waking up suddenly.

Instantly, J.C., Joey and Lance were beside him. "Chris, it's okay, you're in a hospital," Lance said, holding Chris down as the twenty-eight year-old struggled to get up.

"Where's Justin?" Chris asked, looking around. He finally saw the blonde teenager lying right beside him. "Justin? You're not dead?"

"No man, I'm alive," Justin smiled. "Are you dead?"

Chris thought for a moment. "No."

"We're glad you're okay. God, you had us scared for a minute," J.C. said.

Chris remained silent, and turned confused eyes to the other three. "Who are you?"

~o0O0o~

"What do you mean, who are you? It's J.C., Lance, and Joey," J.C. replied.

"Do I know you?" Chris asked.

"Okay, good trick," Joey smiled. "You can stop messing around now Chris."

"Chris?" he echoed, not familiar with the name. "That's me?"

"I'll go get the doctor," Lance said, leaving.

"You don't know who you are?" Joey asked.

"No," Chris replied softly. "I don’t know who you are either. What happened?"

"You were in a car accident," J.C. said, his eyes beginning to water.

"I remember that," Chris said, looking to Justin. "And I know Justin."

"We're your best friends," Joey said. "We're in a music group together."

"We sing?" Chris asked.

"I'll be back," J.C. whispered, then he went out into the hallway. He sat on a chair in the corner, out of the way. He knew Chris had amnesia, but every question he asked was painful. Tears filled J.C.'s eyes as he realized Chris was no longer Chris. The man in there had no family, no friends, no job, no memories, and no dog…J.C. could go on forever. At least Chris was alive, and he did have Justin, for whatever reason that may be. Maybe there was an angel looking out for him tonight. Then that angel must be Justin.

~o0O0o~

'Its like he's a blank person,' Joey thought. He watched as the doctors examined Chris by shining lights in his soft brown eyes and taking his strong, steady heart rate. "You check out fine physically," Dr. Adanac announced. "All except for the amnesia."

"How serious is it?" Lance asked.

"Well, it's uncertain. It could be just be caused by temporary pressure to the Hippocampus in the brain, in which case he should eventually regain his memory as the swelling goes down. Or, if the brain is damaged, he may never regain his long term memories."

"Isn't there anything we can do?" Lance asked.

"Talk to him. Something you may trigger a chain of memories. But I'm afraid only time will tell." Dr. Adanac smiled at Chris then left the guys alone.

"I'm sorry if I made you guys mad," Chris said, shivering slightly.

"Why would you make us mad?" Joey asked. "We're glad you're alive."

"I made that other guy mad," Chris replied, looking at the door.

"Who, J.C.? He's not mad, he's just upset. We are really close, and it hurts him to see you like this. But we're gonna get you over this," Lance smiled.

"Yeah," Justin chimed in. "We're gonna have the old Chris back before you know it."

~o0O0o~

"You okay?" Lance asked, sitting beside J.C.

"I'm fine," J.C. sighed. "It's just got to be too much."

"It's okay," Lance said.

"He's gone," J.C. blurted out. "He'll never be the same."

"We don't know that yet," Lance replied. "The doctor said it could be temporary."

"But what about now?" J.C. said. "It's like someone opened him up, scraped out all his insides, closed him up, then gave him back. He doesn't even know who we are."

"Dr. Adanac said talking to him helps. We can't just turn our back on him," Lance argued. "The closer you get to him, the more it will help."

"Hey guys?" Joey interrupted. "The doctor said they can go in an hour."

"Already?" J.C. asked.

"It's only some broken bones, and they'll have to come back in a week," Joey said.

Lance watched J.C.'s emotions play across his face. Then J.C. smiled as he said, "Good."

~o0O0o~

"We live in a hotel?" Chris asked, looking up the tall building.

"We're on tour," Justin said as they got out of the car.

"So are we popular?" Chris asked.

"We have a whole team of body guards," Joey smiled.

They went in the hotel, where a few girls were waiting for them. The guys quickly signed their autographs, then headed up stairs before more girls could come.

It was now six at night and no one had eaten since last night. When they got to one of their three hotel rooms, Joey began ordering some dinner. Justin gently placed himself on the couch, being careful not to jostle his arm or collarbone.

Chris sat down too, his trip to the room setting his ribs on fire. "So tell me about myself," he said, pushing back on the couch to ease some pain.

"Where do we begin?" Joey smiled.

"Start with the most important stuff," Chris sighed, closing his eyes.

"Well, you are in the number one pop group with us, and we're called Nsync…"

"Nsync, for some reason that name makes me think of Justin," Chris said, not opening his eyes.

"Justin's mom came up with the name," Lance smiled.

"I think I remember that. Wasn't she messing with our names or something?" Chris asked.

"Yes she was," Justin beamed. It was working! "What else do you remember?"

"That's all. I don't even remember who you are, just that I'm close to you," Chris sighed.

"But we made progress," Justin smiled. "That's a start."

"Okay, keep it coming. What else do I need to know?" Chris asked, closing his eyes again.

"Um, you have three sisters, and they're all younger than you…" Joey started, waiting for a response.

"Not ringing a bell," Chris sighed. "How old am I?"

"Thirty four," Joey replied, keeping a straight face.

"Really? How old are all you?"

"Justin's fifteen, Joey's twenty, J.C.'s twenty-one, and I'm nineteen," Lance said.

J.C. didn't see the humor in their joke. "Guys, that's not funny. He doesn't know," J.C. said, looking at Chris. "You're twenty-eight, Justin's nineteen, Joey's twenty-three, and Lance and I are twenty-one."

Chris looked to the others with mixed emotions. "Do I really have three sisters?" he asked.

"Yeah, you do," Lance said, glaring at J.C. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize you wouldn't know it was-"

"It's okay," Chris interrupted. "So what about my mom and dad?"

The others looked at each other. "Your mom and sisters live in Florida, with your step-dad," Joey started.

"What about my real dad?" Chris asked.

"Um, well, he, uh, he died when you were younger," Lance replied.

Chris looked at Lance judgmentally. "He wasn't thirty-four, was he?"

A twinge of guilt went through Joey, Justin and Lance. "No, he wasn't," Joey said.

"Okay," Chris started. "No dad, lots of sisters. What else?"

A knock on the door interrupted them, and Joey went to get it. He came back with boxes of Taco Bell food, and the guys got up to eat. They gathered around the table, ready to dig in. Chris followed, feeling like a guest. He stuck close to Justin, and Justin realized how his friend felt by his detached look. The guys kept expecting Chris to light up at the sight of all the tacos, but no response ever came.

Chris felt the eyes on him and asked, "What?"

"Nothing, sorry," Lance said, looking away.

"Your favorite food was- is tacos," Joey replied. 'It still is,' he told himself. 'He's still alive, so his favorite food is still tacos.'

"Oh," Chris said, thinking quickly. "Well then, let me at them!"

~o0O0o~

"The Mickey Mouse Club, huh?" Chris asked.

"Yup," Justin smiled. "J.C. too."

"We worked at Disney too," Joey said. "That's how we met."

"I think I kind of remember," Chris started. "Do you have a picture?"

"Yeah, hold on," Joey said, getting up. He went to the door and opened it, seeing two young girls crouched outside. "Can I see that for a minute?" he asked, taking a Teen People magazine from one of their hands.

They nodded, and he smiled then went back inside. As he walked back over to Chris, he thumbed through the pages and found an old picture of the guys at Disney World. "Here," he said, showing the page to Chris.

"I remember that!" Chris smiled, taking the magazine. "I do! I remember being there with you guys, and lots of girls and photographers, and it was hot…but that's about it," he added quietly.

The others looked at each other as Chris looked through the magazine. He stopped when he came to a picture of them at the American Music Awards. "This is us too?" he asked, looking up.

"Yeah, we got to perform," J.C. said, remembering it clearly.

"Cool. We must be pretty good," Chris said, turning his attention back to the magazine.

"We are," Joey said quietly.

Lance turned on the TV and started channel surfing, keeping the volume low. They stopped on an episode of Animal-X, on Animal Planet. All except Chris became intrigued by the tale of the black dogs, and soon they lost track of their surroundings.

Chris became involved in the magazine, and studied it front to back. When he was done, he put it aside and glanced at the TV screen. A picture of a large Black Lab with graphically designed red eyes was plastered on the TV, and it jogged Chris's memory. "Hey!" he exclaimed. "I have a dog! It's small, right? What's the name, uh…"

"Busta," Joey said, smiling from Chris's enthusiasm.

"Yeah! That's it, Busta! It's a Pug, right?" Chris asked, now having all their attention.

"That's great," Lance said. "You remembered something else!"

"Where is he?" Chris asked.

"Oh my God!" Joey exclaimed, jumping up. "We left him at the groomers!"

"We gotta get him!" Lance exclaimed. "He's been there two days now!"

"How could we forget that?!" Joey yelled, grabbing some car keys and running to the door. He yanked the door open, nearly tripping over the two little girls. "Oh yeah, hold on a minute," Joey said, grabbing a pen from one girl. He went back in the room and grabbed the magazine, signing it quickly before handing it back. "There. Now move," he said, not meaning to be so rude.

They jumped out of the way, letting Joey run down the hall and down to the car.

The others watched him go, trying not to laugh. Chris was the only not laughing, and he suddenly felt like an outsider again. He pulled his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them, making himself as small as possible. He felt like his life had only started today, with little feelings of Déjà vu stuffed in the cracks. And it sucked.

~o0O0o~

"This is Busta?" Chris asked, letting the small dog lick his fingers.

"Yeah. Isn't he what you remembered?" Joey asked.

"No," Chris said quietly.

"Well, that's okay, at least you remembered him," Lance said.

"I guess," Chris sighed, smiling when Busta sat on his lap.

"It'll take time," Justin said, placing a hand on Chris's shoulder. "You got to get your whole memory back."

“Yeah. But for now I’m getting kinda tired. Where do I sleep?” Chris asked.

“You sleep in this room with Joey,” Justin said, smiling. “Sorry, but you’re gonna have to put up with his racket tonight.”

“For the last time, I do not snore!” Joey said, raising his voice.

“Okay, whatever, at least I don’t forget my best friend’s dog at the groomers!” Justin teased.

“That was an accident,” Joey said with a straight face. “Nothing happened to him anyway.”

Chris interrupted the bickering by getting up and going over to one of the beds. “Where are my clothes?” he asked.

“In the dresser, right side,” Joey replied, shooting Justin a look of annoyance.

Chris opened various drawers until he found a pair of boxers and wife-beater. Then he took the clothes in the bathroom and shut the door behind him.

“I wish I had the old Chris back,” Justin sighed, rubbing his throbbing wrist through the cast.

“We’ll get him sooner or later,” Lance said. “It might just be later.”

Chris looked at himself in the mirror. He hated not recognizing his own face, or disappointing the others by not acting the way he had a week ago. He was going on nothing, and it was hard for him trying to be someone that he no longer remembered.

“Chris, buddy, where are you?” he asked himself, trying to look beneath the skin to find the person he once was.

Only a blank, red-eyed stare responded, and Chris continued getting ready for bed.

The next morning, Chris was feeling a little better. The others greeted him cheerfully, secretly wanting to know if he remembered anything. But he hadn’t, at least not anything important.

They sat around a round table in the hotel lobby, occasionally going to the buffet for another plate. Between the five of them, they cleaned off 15 plates.

“So, are we on tour now?” Chris asked, pushing his eggs around on his plate absently.

“Yeah, we were, but we are kinda taking a little break until we see how you guys recover,” J.C. said, munching on some bacon.

“But what if I don’t remember?” Chris asked. “You guys have to go on with out me. I’m not going to ruin your careers.”

“We’re not going to kick you out,” Lance said. “You can just relearn the songs. You still have your voice.”

“But it would be too hard for you guys,” Chris argued.

“Chris,” Justin said firmly. “We’re not going to leave you.”

Chris sighed, realizing how strong of a bond they shared. These four were his true friends, and he longed to have his memories with them back. “Fine,” he said quietly. The waitress came and watched Chris from behind as he pushed the eggs around and around. “Are you done?” she asked finally.

Chris jumped, not realizing she had been there. Suddenly a flashback hit him, and he watched the scene in his mind. He was fairly young, maybe eleven or twelve, and he was cornered by three boys that were each twice his size. They looked ready to do some beating, and Chris was pressed up against the wall, caught in a spoiled getaway plan. He was nervously shaking, and began mumbling some jokes he had heard the night before on TV. No one was around to help him, and he was making a fool of himself in front of these boys. He assumed he was in school, but he couldn’t be sure as the nervous, scared little boy looked around for a way out.

The three bigger boys watched him babble with disgust, then asked, “Are you done?” Chris flinched, knowing he was about to get beat up.

Then he was back in his chair, hearing the others ask if he was okay. Chris turned white, his horror of the flashback catching up to him. “I’m okay,” he whispered, getting up on wobbly legs. “I’m just gonna go outside for a minute.”

Before any of the others could stop him, he was on his way to the front of the hotel.

~o0O0o~

Justin sighed as he got up from the table. "I'll talk to him," he mumbled. "Since I am the one he does remember."

"Good idea," J.C. replied, watching Chris go out onto the busy street. "He doesn't realize how popular he is, plus this Chris has never been in New York."

"I'm gone," Justin smiled, trying to lighten the situation. He went after Chris, going out into the warm sun and polluted air. He looked around for his friend, and didn't have to look far. Chris was leaning against the building, watching the cars with an imaginary shadow on his face. "Did you remember something?" Justin asked, leaning on the wall beside Chris.

"I think so," Chris said, not looking at Justin. "Did you know me when I was littler?"

"No, but Joey and J.C. did," Justin replied.

"Did I get beat up a lot?"

Justin smiled; not realizing how serious Chris was taking it. "Yeah," he laughed. "I heard you were pretty tiny back then." Chris looked at him with humor in his eyes. Then Justin added, "I guess you still are."

Chris smiled, feeling somewhat comfortable for the first time in days. "How did we meet?" he asked, his smile fading slightly.

"It started with you, actually," Justin started, recalling the right-place, right-time incident that had occurred years ago. "You and Joey worked at Disney World, where me and J.C. were in the Mickey Mouse Club. One night you and J.C. went to a club, met Joey, called me, then we got Lance as our bass. Been together ever since," he added, turning the colorful pages of his memory.

"Who's Britney?" Chris asked.

"Britney? Britney Spears?" Justin asked, then realized he wouldn't get an answer. "She was on the Mickey Mouse Club with us, then we each went our separate ways."

Chris nodded as if that made sense to him. "Wanna go back in now?" he asked, turning towards the doors.

"Sure. Let's go," Justin said, following his friend inside.

~o0O0o~

Chris swallowed an aspirin then sat on the window seat, leaning against the window to help support his aching ribs. He looked up at the clear blue sky, letting the sun warm his skin. The others were drawing on Justin's cast while the TV announced the local news. Busta jumped up on Chris's lap and curled up. He absently stroked the dog as he looked at the sky. "Hey guys?" he asked. "Is my favorite color blue?"

"That's my favorite color," Justin said, looking up from the caricatures of the guys he was attempting to tattoo on his cast. "Yours is silver."

"Oh," Chris said, looking at Busta. "I knew that."

He got no response except the droning of the TV. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Joey went to get it, hoping it wasn't a teenybopper.

He opened the door, then stood face to face with all five Backstreet Boys. "What do you want?" Joey asked, not opening the door any further.

"Who is it?" Justin asked.

"It's the Backhair Boys," Joey said sarcastically.

"Haha, very funny, Nsuck," Nick smirked, leaning against the doorway. "We actually didn't come to tell you how lame you are for copying our every move."

"Oh really?" Joey asked, rolling his eyes. "Then to what do we owe this pleasure?"

"We actually came to see Chris and Justin," Brian said, looking past Joey and seeing Chris sitting on the window seat, looking at them blankly.

"He doesn't need to have you guys scare them," Joey said, becoming overwhelmed by their cologne.

"Joey, let them in," J.C. said, sighing. 'This should be interesting,' he thought.

The Backstreet Boys filed into the hotel room; each of them dressed in dark colored clothes. A.J. was in mostly leather, while the others were dressed somewhat sensibly. They approached the confused Chris, who was protected by the alarmed Busta.

"We heard what happened," Kevin started, "and we just wanted to see how you were doing."

"I'm fine," Chris replied cautiously. "Who are you again?"

Kevin looked to the J.C., Lance and Justin, confused.

"He's got amnesia," J.C. said with out looking up.

"Oh," Kevin said, looking back to Chris. "I guess it's a good thing we did stop by then, right?" he asked, nudging Brian.

"Don't listen to them," Joey said, going over to Chris. "Whatever they say, they're lying."

"Now now," A.J. said, stepping up to Joey. "You don't even know what we were going to say. I think you might want to back down before you open your big mouth again."

"Shut up, Alex," Joey mocked. "You don't scare me."

"No?" A.J. asked. "You scare the shit out of me."

"Guys, knock it off," Kevin said, stepping in between them. "We're here to see that Chris and Justin are okay, not to pick fights."

"Why do you care?" Justin asked from his spot at the table.

"We're only human," Howie said, going over to join Justin, J.C. and Lance. "Besides," A.J. said. "We need someone to accuse of copying us."

"Oh, thanks," Lance said, rolling his eyes.

A.J. grinned, his eyes covered by dark sunglasses. "No problem."

"We're the Backstreet Boys," Kevin explained to Chris. "We're kinda like your arch enemies because people always compare us and say we're the same. All the teenage girls are either your fans or our fans, and they're constantly putting each other down." Chris studied the three guys that were in front of him, still not remembering them. "So we hate each other?" he asked.

"In a way, yeah, I guess," Brian said.

"But you wanted to come see us?"

"Yeah," Nick said, leaning on Brian's shoulder.

"We do still care about you guys," Kevin clarified. "We all came from the same place, and I guess a tiny part of us respects you guys."

"Well wasn't that sweet," Joey said, interrupting. "Wish I could say the same, goodbye!"

"Joey," Chris started. "They were being nice to us."

"They're brain washing you," Joey argued. "They treat us like dirt because they know they'll never be number one on TRL as long as we have a video out."

"Only because all your fans are half your age with nothing better to do than get on the Internet and vote once for every state," A.J. shot back.

"And how would you know?" Joey asked.

A.J. faltered. "I guessed," he replied. "Let's get out of here," he said to the others.

"Nice talking to ya," Kevin said to Chris before A.J. dragged him away.

"You too," Chris smiled, watching the group leave.

Joey saw them out the door, and before he shut it he yelled down the hallway, "Yeah, you guys are sexual…HOMOsexual!"

He was answered by A.J. flipping him off as they got in the elevator.

~o0O0o~

"Assholes," J.C. muttered after Joey came in and shut the door.

"Can you believe them?" Joey asked, sitting on the couch. "Trying to brainwash Chris into liking them…"

"That's a new low," Lance agreed.

"They seemed nice," Chris spoke up.

"Just wait for when it comes time for the next award show," Justin said, now reading a magic eye book. "We get prank calls from 'anonymous' callers and dead animals in the mail."

"Seriously?" Chris asked.

"Not the dead animal part," J.C. laughed.

Then there was another knock on the door, and Joey cursed as he got up to open it. He yanked the door open and yelled, "What the hell do you want now?"

Only it wasn't five young men who were staring back, mouths open. It was three blonde-hair brothers.

"Maybe we should come back another time," Isaac said, starting to go.

Joey blushed, then turned back to the others. "False alarm, its only Hanson," he announced.

"Yeah, it's only us," Taylor said, smiling.

"Um, come in," Joey said, stepping away from the door.

The three blondes stepped inside, then were greeted by the other Nsyncers. "Hey guys, what's up? Sorry about Joey there, we just had a visit by the Backdoor boys."

"It's cool," Taylor replied. "We were just coming to see how you guys were. We heard about the accident and decided to fly out and see you."

"That was nice," J.C. said, looking at Chris. He looked about ready to fall asleep, but these kids did come all the way to New York to see them.

The teens looked in the direction J.C. was, and found Chris drifting off. "Is he okay?" Isaac asked as Zac sat beside Justin and stared at the hologram book too.

"Long day," Lance smiled.

J.C. managed half a smile too, then said, "He's got amnesia and can't remember anything but his name and the fact he's close to Justin."

"Wow," Taylor said softly. "Will he ever get his memory back?"

"The doctors didn't know. He is remembering parts of things the more we talk to him," J.C. replied.

"Do you want us to go?" Isaac asked.

"No, you came all the way to see us, you can stay. Who knows, maybe you'll help him," J.C. smiled.

Taylor looked at Justin and his younger brother and noticed the Nsync caricatures that were drawn on Justin's cast. "Those are good," he said, moving closer to Justin and studying the silly pictures.

"Thanks," Justin smiled. "I drew them."

"I like them a lot," Taylor repeated. "You could sell your cast when you get it off. Probably get a hundred easy."

Justin laughed. "I like this kid," he said to J.C.

~o0O0o~

Chris woke with a start, breathing hard. The light from the hotel room blinded him temporarily, and he blinked to get used to the harsh light. The others were looking at him with worry and they watched as he wiped a layer of sweat from his forehead. "Horses," he said, swallowing and coating his dry throat with saliva. "I'm not found of horses."

The others cracked up, remembering how they all rode horses for the shooting of their video, 'For the Girl Who has Everything.' Chris wasn't too found of the gentle creatures, and was happy just riding the stray dogs. Eventually he mounted a horse, but clung to it the whole time they ran down the beach, afraid he would fall and hurt himself.

"Yeah, you are kind of afraid of them," Lance laughed.

"You have a horse," Chris replied, focusing on Lance. "Tyler? Titan?"

"Toby," Lance said, still smiling.

"I didn't know you had a horse," Taylor said, re-announcing their presence.

Lance nodded as Chris asked, "Who are you kids?"

"We're Hanson," Taylor replied, a little annoyed at being referred to as a 'kid.' "We were big before you guys even showed you're faces in the states."

Chris looked to Justin a bit offended, but Justin just nodded. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know…"

"Hey, it's okay," Taylor smiled. "It happens quite often."

Chris looked at Joey, who was watching TV. For some reason, a though hit him. "Wait a minute, I thought I had long hair!"

Joey looked at him confused. "Why are you looking at me?" he asked.

"You did have long hair," Justin said. "It was in braids. But you got lice and had to cut it."

Zac started laughing, looking at how his brothers had also cut their hair.

"I did?" Chris asked, placing a hand on his head.

"No," Justin smiled. "You just wanted to take a break from the braids," he said.

"And the ladies love it," Joey said, raising his eyebrows.

"God," Chris sighed. "I'm never going to remember my life! This sucks! I keep getting things mixed up!"

"Hey, at least you're remembering," Zac said.

"And we're not helping you the way we should be," Justin said, handing his book to Zac.

"Don't blame yourself-" Chris started, but he was cut off by when the phone rang.

Justin grabbed it and answered, "Hello?"

"Hey, Justin? This is Catherine from make up."

"Oh, yeah. What's up?"

"Well, I got word from the boss that even with your and Chris's accident, you have to do a show tonight."

"What?! But- we can't! Chris would have to memorize all the songs in…" he squinted at the VCR. "Four hours!?"

"Sorry sweetie, that's what he said. I don't think it's fair either, but the show must go on. The tickets are for rain or shine, and he thinks it would only hurt you to skip it."

Justin grew red with anger. "I can't believe this! This is insane. Fine, tell him we'll work on it. But if we can't do it, it's not our problem. He made an impossible demand, even for us."

Catherine laughed lightly. "I have faith in you," she said. "I hope I'll see you later." With that, she hung up.

"What's up?" J.C. asked.

Justin looked at Chris and sighed. "We have four hours to cram all the songs into his head for our concert tonight."

~o0O0o~

Taylor finished off his fifth Dr. Pepper and lay on the table beside Zac's head. Zac had fallen asleep half an hour ago, extremely bored by hearing the same songs over and over. Isaac had practiced finding the figure in the Magic Eye book so well, he could actually find one, turn the page then see the next right away.

Taylor already knew most of Nsync's songs, as did all the brothers, but they didn't say anything to prevent Chris from becoming hopeless. Taylor was close to nodding off himself, but jerked his head up and opened his eyes.

"Okay, one more time, then we'll move on, okay?" J.C. asked, sighing. "Look guys, I'm sorry I can't learn this faster-" Chris started, sensing J.C.'s frustration.

"No, I'm not mad," J.C. said, looking Chris in the eyes. "I just think this is so stupid how we have to have a concert tonight. Now let's give this one more shot."

"It's tearin' up my heart when I'm with you, and when we are apart, I feel it too…"

The guys began Tearin' Up My heart accapella, then added the music from one of their CDs. After all the time they had spent, Chris had most of the songs down, which they attributed to his musical savant (extreme talent).

"Well, I think you guys are ready to go tonight," Isaac said after they had finished the nearly perfect song.

Chris sighed, giving a slight smile. "Yeah, we can do it," he said, placing a hand on Justin's shoulder.

"Okay then," Lance said, getting up. "Let's get ready."

~o0O0o~

Night had fallen, and anticipation grew for the day-late concert. Girls had packed themselves in the amphitheater, and the smell of perfume and sparkling of glitter flooded the senses. A local radio station had already arrived and was keeping the girls from screaming their longing for the boyband.

Backstage, nervousness was choking Chris. He took another aspirin in hopes of putting out the fire in his side. Justin's wrist was killing him, but his excitement acted as a natural painkiller. Chris tried to act cool around the others. Clearly they had no anxiety about the concert. And if they had such faith in him, maybe he could actually do it. Catherine was fixing his hair as he stared at himself growing white in the mirror. The others were getting into their costumes and saying whatever came to mind.

"Are you okay?" Catherine asked, looking at Chris in the mirror from her position behind him.

"I guess," he sighed, taking a deep, calming breath. "Just nervous I guess. This is my first time on stage, you know."

"Yeah, I guess it would be," Catherine smiled, charmed at his sweetness.

"You ready?" Joey asked, tossing the religious Hackey-sac at Chris.

Chris flinched and caught it, holding the bean-filled ball with bewilderment. "What's this for?" he asked, looking at the striped ball.

"It's a game we always play before a concert," Justin explained.

"You kick the ball to each other," Lance added.

"Oh, well that sounds easy enough," Chris smiled, getting up. He joined his friends, and handed the ball to Justin. "You go first," he said.

Justin took the ball, noticing Chris's uneasiness. Justin realized how important he was to Chris, being the only person Chris felt like he could trust. Chris looked at the others with the eyes of an outsider, and Justin knew how he must feel. The flame that had once burned greatly within Chris had been blown out, but a small flicker of light was glowing deep inside, growing bigger everyday.

Justin raised his foot to meet the ball, showing Chris how to kick it. Joey kicked it to Lance, who kicked it to J.C. Chris watched as the ball sailed to him, and he kicked it successfully, getting some confidence. He caught Justin's smile and returned it happily.

~o0O0o~

After a friendly game of Hackey sack, the guys returned to the matter at hand; the concert. In the last remaining minutes, they went through the beginnings of each of the songs rather quickly. "I guess this is it," Justin smiled, patting Chris on the back.

Chris sighed to calm his nerves. "Here goes nothing, right?" he asked, attempting humor.

"Just go with your instincts," J.C. said. "And don't look directly at the girls."

"Okay guys, you're on in a second," Catherine said, coming up behind them.

Just as she finished, the DJ announced them, giving them their cue. The guys ran onstage smiling brightly. They waved at the girls, who screamed deafly. The spotlights followed their movements across the stage and flashes went off all across the sea of girls. Posters were held high although their scream drowned out screams for the individual guys.

The guys turned their microphones and earpieces on and lined up along the stage. Thankfully Chris had remembered most of the dances, and quickly learned what he had forgot. Forgetting about J.C.'s advice, Chris looked out into the crowd and spotted the Hanson brothers. His eyes wandered among the girls and he could almost smell the estrogen that lingered around them. He wasn't as nervous as he thought he'd be, which surprised him.

The music had started, and he threw all his attention into remembering the words and dance moves at the same time. The dancing proved the hardest, trying to keep up with the others. Once or twice he missed a step, but if the others noticed, they didn't call him on it. By the end of 'I Want You Back,' he was out of breath and grateful to be able to lip sync it. Often time's people despised them for it, but they didn't realize it was physically impossible to sing and dance that hard for the whole concert. They tried to sing as much as they could, but no one can sing and dance that much with only a couple-second break in between each song. Sometimes they just pre-recorded parts of a song, giving them enough time to get a good breath. They never completely lip-synched a concert.

The concert was almost over, and the last song caught Chris by surprise. It was slow, and he only faintly remembered it. He looked to Justin worriedly. Justin caught his frightened look and moved next to Chris as he clapped to the beat. J.C. had begun singing, and Chris still wasn't remembering it. 'Follow me,' Justin mouthed, nodding towards his hands as he clapped. Chris slowly started to clap, then got lost when the guys did some simple movements; pointing up, then down, then out to the audience.

Chris looked behind him and saw the large screen that was showing their music video. It was black and white, and looked to be about a mother and son. He looked to the others, who were watching him curiously as they kept singing. He grew red as he felt the thousands of eyes upon him. His heart rate quickened and his breathing shortened.

Suddenly he felt dizzy. He swayed slightly, his hand going out and reaching for anything. Justin was at his side, singing but keeping his attention on his friend. Most of the girls were too far away to realize anything was wrong, but the few in the front rows were well aware, including Hanson, who were disguised in hats and sunglasses. Chris stared blankly out into the crowd, watching the quick scenes that ran through his head. They were various things; the guys at Disney World, at home with his sisters and mother, singing in previous concerts, and just hanging out with the guys. He was lost in his own world, oblivious to everything else. The paramedics had gathered at the side of the stage, waiting for a cue from the others. Not wanting to upset everyone, the guys kept singing, hoping for Chris's 'spell' to get over with.

For a brief moment he came back to reality, as if coming up for a breath of air before more flashbacks flooded his mind. He swayed again, making the others consider stopping the concert. But they were almost done, and they just needed to finish the last song.

Chris's memory came rushing back, like a boomerang that had been thrown days ago and was slamming back into Chris's head, announcing it's late arrival. He came to again, feeling complete. He knew where he was, what he was doing, and more importantly, who he was. A big smile crossed his face and the others returned a relived smile. Justin gave Chris his space, and the oldest member stood his ground proudly. He jumped in for the last line of the song, complete with the motions.

The harmony was finally complete for the first time in the song.

"And God must have spent…a little more time…on you…"

Epilogue:

"So he's totally better?" Taylor asked over the phone.

"Yup, doc said so," Justin replied, squeezing the phone between his shoulder and ear as he studied his new Magic Eye Book.

"That's cool. I'm glad you guys are okay," Taylor said.

"Yeah," Justin said, seeing the pop-out bunny.

"Well, I'll let you go, we got a photo shoot in a few minutes."

"Okay," Justin said, turning the page. "Bye."

"Bye," Taylor replied, hanging up the phone.

Justin hung up the phone and turned his attention back to his book. Just then, Chris went skating by in his rollerblades and snatched the book from Justin's hands.

"Hey!" Justin yelled, jumping up.

"If you look at this long enough, you'll go cross eyed," Chris teased, skating around the couch that Joey was sitting on.

"I don't care! I'll start a new boyband trend, the cross eyed kid, now give it back!" Justin yelled, chasing Chris.

"Gotta catch me," Chris laughed.

"When I do, I'm gonna beat you with my thousand dollar cast!" Justin replied.

"You're really gonna sell that?" Joey asked, getting annoyed at the blurs that kept coming in between him and the TV.

"Hell yeah," Justin smiled, stopping to inspect it.

J.C. and Lance looked at each other and rolled their eyes. "Who would be stupid enough to buy you're used cast?" Lance asked.

"Lots of people," Justin replied, faking a hurt look.

They were interrupted by a knock on the door and Chris and Justin raced to get it. Chris tripped over Joey's suddenly outstretched leg, and he landed on the floor hearing Joey laugh.

He picked himself up and continued to the door, slapping Joey on the top of his head on the way. He stood behind Justin, who ripped the book out of his hands. Chris gave Justin a hurt look as the blonde heartthrob opened the door.

On the other side, wearing looks that announced their disgust for being there, were the Backstreet Boys. "It's us," Nick said, no looking at the Nsyncers.

"Uh, yeah, we can see that," Justin replied, leaning on the door. "What do you want?"

"We, uh, came to see how you were doing," Brian said, looking to his older cousin.

"You already did that once," Justin said flatly.

"Yeah, well, we are doing it again, and since it appears that you're okay, we'll be leaving," AJ said, turning. Kevin stopped him.

"You know, it would mean more if you guys came on your own free will," Chris said, spotting a reporter behind the Boys.

"We are!" Howie said, the first one to look at Chris and Justin.

"You have nothing to do with that?" Justin asked, pointing to the camera.

The Backstreet Boys looked behind them innocently. "I have never seen that person before in my life," Nick said.

"Look," Kevin said, looking at AJ accusingly. "We came to apologize for what we said before."

"Oh, how sweet," Justin mocked.

Kevin looked to Chris. "We were serious about what we said to you though."

Chris looked back at him and nodded. "Thanks."

Brian saw Joey glaring at them and said, "Well, we better get going, got stuff to do and all…"

"Fine, goodbye freaks," Justin teased.

"Back at ya LD," AJ shot back as they started down the hallway.

"Screw you," Justin replied, watching them go. Once they had disappeared in the elevator, he turned to Chris. "What does LD mean?"

"Learning disability," Chris laughed, grabbing Justin around the neck and wrestling him back into the room. They had become whole again, and intended to waste no moment together, because you never knew when it would be taken away from you.

End

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