Date: Thu, 30 Jan 2003 20:01:08 -0800 (PST) From: Jason Calme Subject: Boy Bands: All the Ways I Love You - Chapter 16 All the Ways I Love You This story is about male/male relationships and contains graphic descriptions of sex. You should not read this story if it is in any way illegal due to your age or residence. This is a work of pure fiction. It mixes fictional characters and events with real people. However any real person mentioned in this work is purely an actor playing a part. This story in no way is meant to imply anything about the sexuality, personality, or behavior of the actual person. Copyright 2003 Jason Calme. This story is the sole property of its author and may not be copied in whole or in part or posted on any website without the permission of the author. Questions and commentary can be sent to "JasonCalme@yahoo.com" Chapter 16 Justin stood there for a second, totally shocked, and then he leaned forward and clutched his hands in front of himself and spun around as I dived in front of him. My Dad, not missing a beat, picked up the towel from the floor and handed it to me. "I'll let you give this to him," my Dad smiled. "And I think I'll go down stairs." "Yeah..." I said, while handing the towel back to Justin. "We'll be down in a few minutes." "Okay," said Dad, "see you in a minute Ethan," and he stepped towards the door, "Nice to...see you Justin," my Dad called, and I heard the smile in his voice. The door closed and I turned towards Justin. He was bright red, the towel clutched awkwardly to himself, and his eyes were wet. "Justin?" I said. He looked shocked and I put my arms around him and hugged him. He was breathing fast and I worried he might hyperventilate. I wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. I pulled back a little so I could look at him. "You okay?" "No," he said, wiping at his eyes. "Oh shit, I can't believe that happened." "Me neither," I agreed with him. He laughed a little. I think he wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry either. "It's okay," I assured him. "Come on, let's get dressed." We went back to the bedroom and pulled on our clothes. I could tell Justin was still very embarrassed about what had happened. I had decided that it was funny and just wanted to laugh, but Justin was too freaked. He laughed a little, but he was mostly quiet, and I even saw him shaking a bit. "Come on," I said, holding out my hand. "Let's go down and you can be properly introduced." Justin looked at me and shook his head. "You go," he said, "I've got to make some calls." I looked at him blankly. Calls? Yeah he made calls, but he hadn't talked about having to make any calls this afternoon. Usually, if there was something he had to do, he would let me know ahead of time. "Come on,'" I prompted. "It's okay." "No," Justin snapped, and I knew that tone. He was digging his heels in and wasn't going to be moved for a while. I stood there staring at him and he stared at me, a pleading look on his face, and I shrugged my shoulders. "Okay," I said, "is there something I can do?" "No," he said, shaking his head. "Well, come down when you're ready." He nodded sadly, and I stepped out of the room, pulling the door closed behind me. Downstairs I found Mom and Dad in the kitchen. When I walked in my Dad stood up and we hugged and he kissed me on the cheek. "Good to see you," Dad said. My father is a couple of inches over 6 foot, dark hair, glasses. His height makes him stand out in a crowd, but really, he's rather non-descript. I think the kids all get their looks from Mom. I'm not saying that Dad looks that bad...my Mom just looks a lot better! "Where's Justin?" Mom asked. "Oh he's...he's...he'll be down in a bit," I replied. "Is everything okay?" Mom asked. "Yeah...he'll be okay," I said. "He's not embarrassed about what happened is he?" my Dad asked. "What happened?" my Mom asked. I figured my Dad hadn't told her what had happened. It would be just like him to say that he'd 'seen us' and leave it at that. "Uh...yeah, he's very embarrassed," I said, pulling out a chair and sitting down. "What happened?" my Mother repeated. "Nothing dear," my Dad replied. "Do you think I should go up and talk to him?" he asked me. "I don't know...I think that might freak him out more." "Will someone please tell me what happened?" my Mom demanded. "We were coming out of the bathroom when we ran into Dad," I said. "Justin slipped and fell down. When Dad and I helped Justin up, he dropped his towel." There was a pause and it appeared my Mother didn't understand what I'd said. "So?" my Mom said brightly. "He was naked!" I said feeling as though I had to spell it out. "Oh!" and it looked as though she finally understood, but then she said "Is he...does he have an abnormality or something?" "No!" I said, shocked at what my Mother was thinking. "It's just pretty embarrassing being naked in front of the father of your boyfriend." "Of course, I'm sorry," my Mom said, thinking for a moment. "Paul, Ethan, I think you two should go up and drag him down. I'll pretend I don't know anything about it." "Uh...it's probably best to let him calm down," I said. "No dear, he's just going to stress about it more and more. Go up and get him now." I looked at my Dad and he shrugged at me and we set out to the guest bedroom. "Sorry about this Ethan," my Dad apologized as we went. "It's not your fault." "If it's any consolation, he's a good looking kid," my Dad said and he smiled at me broadly and slapped my shoulder. 'Oh great!' I thought. This is not going to be forgotten any time soon. It's probably going to become a family story. I got to the door and we stood there and neither of us seemed sure what to do. I certainly didn't know what to say. What can you say at a time like this? How about; 'It's okay, my Dad didn't get a really good look at your dick?' Or maybe; 'My Dad thinks you've got a great body?' What to say? But my Dad knocked on the door anyway. "Justin," he said. There was some noise inside and my Dad repeated his name. Finally the door opened and Justin stood there looking panicked. His eyes were large and he looked at me and back at my Dad and back at me and didn't seem to know what to do. "Justin," my Dad said extending his hand, "we haven't been formerly introduced yet. I'm Paul Thompson, Ethan's Dad, and it's really a pleasure to meet you." Justin extended his hand nervously and Dad shook it and clapped Justin on the shoulder with his other hand. "Pleased to meet you sir," Justin said quietly. "I'm really sorry about what happened before," my Dad continued, not letting go of Justin. "I shouldn't have come in, but I was just so worried you'd hurt yourself. Heaven's knows we don't want another of Ethan's boyfriends to die under mysterious circumstances. The police are starting to get suspicious." My Dad smiled at Justin and Justin glanced at me and I just rolled my eyes. "So tell me Justin," my Dad said, gently pulling him out of the room and putting an arm around his shoulders, "Ethan's Mom tells me you're really into golf." "Yes...sir," Justin said quietly. "Really? Ethan's taste in friends just seems to keep improving. How long have you been playing?" And Dad dragged Justin down to the living room, asking him questions as they went. I followed quietly behind them and at first Justin kept glancing behind to make sure I was still there. Justin, hesitant at first, became more comfortable as they went, and by the time Dad asked him to sit down Justin was getting excited about the possibility of going golfing with Dad on Sunday. Dad sat in an armchair while Justin perched on the footstool, bouncing a little, a big smile on his face as he talked. This was an improvement I wondered? I went into the kitchen and Mom was sitting there. She looked up and I wiped my hand over my brow theatrically. "Phew!" I said. "Dodged another bullet." "Everything okay?" "Yeah, Dad was great." Mom smiled. "You underestimate your Father sometimes." I smiled. I guess I do. Dad and Justin chatted for a while and then I went out and joined them and we sat and talked some more until Mom said dinner was ready. Mom had set out candles and decorations, and really gone over the top for dinner and it made me feel good. My parents wanted to make a good impression with Justin. I guess I knew that they would. They'd always been nice to anyone I brought home, and yet somehow I always had this small fear that they wouldn't. It was completely irrational. But maybe, in a small way, I still felt that I was disappointing them because I was gay and it wasn't a girlfriend that I had brought home for them to meet. The food was great and we laughed and chatted over dinner like four adults. It was, in a way, an odd experience for me; it was like having dinner with my parents as people, not as my parents. Justin and Dad had become fast friends, talking basketball and golf, and I was wondering if I'd get to spend any time with my boyfriend over the weekend. I was starting to think my Dad liked Justin more than he did me! Justin was back to his normal bubbling and confident self. Maybe he was over-compensating for his nervousness, but at least he was comfortable enough not to slip into his shell. He seemed to have completely forgotten the earlier adventure, and as much as I wanted to say something, and maybe even Mom and Dad wanted to as well, none of us mentioned it. I knew that wouldn't last long. But he was a guest tonight, and he'd be treated like one. As my Mom went to get the dessert, I carried the plates into the kitchen, leaving Justin and my Dad talking basketball. "Your Dad likes him," Mom pointed out to me. "Yeah, phew," I said. "He's a nice boy," she went on. "He's 22," I protested. "I didn't mean it that way. I just meant he's nice. You know your Dad wants you to be happy. That's all we both want. Whoever you want to be with, as long as they're not abusing you, then we're happy for you. You shouldn't worry so much." "I'll try not to," I said. She nodded and picked up the dessert and went back out into the dining room. "Hey baby" I whispered to Justin as he climbed on top of me. He'd just turned out the bedroom light and climbed into bed, first being careful to make sure the door was locked. I think he was worried my Mother was suddenly going to burst in. "Hey," he smiled back at me, his face just inches above mine. He leaned down and we kissed, a long slow kiss. He pulled away and we stared into each other's eyes. "Everything okay?" I asked. "Yeah," he nodded, smiling. "Sorry about the..." and I trailed off, but he smiled and I knew he knew what I was talking about. "It's okay," he said. "Yeah?" I asked as I ran my hands up his back and felt him shiver. I was wondering whether we were going to do something tonight. Would we jerk each other off or would he slide around on top of me? Was there any chance of a little more than that? "Yeah, it wasn't as bad as I thought." "They love you," I said, trying to reassure him. "I meant flashing you're Dad." "Hey, I should have known you'd want to make a big impression!" I teased and he laughed along with me. We both lay there giggling. "So your Mom likes me?" he asked. I brought my hand up and ran it over his forehead, running it through the hair. "Of course she does! What's not to like?" I said and I hugged him close and he leaned down and we kissed. I could feel him growing between us, and I was starting to thicken too. "So, are you tired?" I asked. "Yeah," he said, kissing my cheek repeatedly. "Oh, that's too bad," I said, feeling him starting to slide and lightly hump against me. "Isn't it?" he whispered into my ear. Then he paused. "What about your folks?" "My folks? What? You want to invite them down to join us?" "No!" he laughed, "won't they hear us?" "We're at opposite ends of the house, on different floors. As long as you don't scream too loud they won't hear a thing." "You always make me scream," he whispered, starting to get back into the rubbing and touching. "Then I'll just have to do this!" I said, and I grabbed a pillow and put it into his face as he laughed. It was late when I woke up, Justin cuddled up close to me. I lay there and slowly rubbed my hand up and down his firm back, feeling his warmth. "Hey," he said softly. "Did I wake you?" I asked. "Sorry." "It's okay. What time is it anyway?" "Ah, almost 11." "Really? Wow!" and he laughed and I laughed with him. "You should get up sleepyhead," I said, poking him in the stomach. "No you should get up," and he poked me back and we started wrestling, and rolling around on the bed. I had Justin on his back, just about where I wanted him, when there was a sharp knock at the door. I froze, and in that moment of hesitation Justin heaved me off him and I fell off the bed, landing on the floor with a loud crash. "Boys?" came my Mothers voice, "what's going on in there?" "Nothing," I called back, half groaning, half laughing. Justin sat up on the bed with a huge grin on his face, but blushing profusely. I think he was worried my Mother was going to come in because he was hastily pulling the blankets over himself. "Alright, well if you want breakfast you better get up." "Yes Ma'am," Justin called. "Yes Mom." We pulled on some clothes and scampered down to the kitchen, looking a little guilty. My Mother was in the kitchen taking things out of shopping bags and putting them away. She looked up, "I've already been to the store and back and you've slept most of the morning away," she said, shaking her head, though I knew she was just teasing us. "Did you not get much sleep last night Justin?" she said, giving me a wicked smiled. Justin turned beet red, but she patted him on the back as he went past her to let him know she was just teasing him. "What would you like for breakfast?" she asked "I'll get us some cereal," I said. "Justin, can you get juice out of the fridge? I'll have whatever you have." "Okay," he nodded, and went to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of juice. He then looked about trying to guess where the glasses might be. My mother pointed to a cupboard and he smiled and nodded in thanks to her and went and grabbed the glasses. "Would you like some Mrs. Thompson?" he asked in a quiet, and I realized nervous, voice. He was still a little uncomfortable. "Well, thank you Justin, yes I would," she said. My mother hardly ever drank juice - usually just coffee - I half wondered if she'd accepted just to let him do something for her. I watched as he set out three glasses, filled each one carefully, and then handed one to her. She smiled and said "Thank you very much Justin." He smiled back, then went and put the juice away. I meanwhile had filled two bowls with cereal and set them out, handing Justin a spoon. He'd brought back the milk from the fridge and we sat down to eat at the kitchen counter. "Oh Ethan, would you mind putting on some music?" my Mother asked. "Just turn on the CD player, would you?" and she pointed to the little stereo on the counter behind me. I reached over and turned it on and hit play and sat back down to my cereal just as a very familiar sounding beat came out of the little stereo system. Then a voice said: "Ladies and gentleman it's a pleasure to introduce to you a friend of mine, and he goes by the name of...Justin" I looked over at Justin in surprise. Had he put his CD in the stereo? From the look on his face I guessed he was just as surprised. My mother was busily putting things away and seemed oblivious to the shocked expressions on our faces. Maybe this was Simon's disc I reasoned. "You want me to put something else on Mom?" I asked. "Hmm? You don't like it?" "Oh no...I just thought maybe...is this one of Simon's CDs?" "No dear, I got it down at the music store this morning. It's by some young man named...what was the name again...Justin Timberlake," and she turned and crossed her arms, a devilish expression on her face. "Have either of you ever heard of him?" "Busted," I muttered under my breath to Justin. "How'd you find out?" I asked my Mom. "Do you know, if you type Justin Timberlake into the Internet search you get thousands of things back? It didn't take too much to figure out from that." "Oh..." I said. I looked at Justin. He had a huge smile on his face and was almost falling off his chair. "I know you Ethan, I knew something was up...and Justin looked sort of familiar." Justin blushed and went back to busily eating his cereal, trying to hide behind his spoon. "We were going to tell you..." I began. "I just wanted you to have a chance to get to know him without knowing about all of that." My mother looked at me. "That's okay. I thought as much. And your Dad and I really do like Justin." She reached over and patted Justin on the back and he gave her a huge grin. "And your secrets safe with me!" she said, "But you should tell your brother and sister before they arrive." "I was going to," I blurted out, looking at Justin for support, "we were going to tell you this morning anyway because we kind of figured that Simon would realize. I guess we have to tell Dad too." "I already told him," my Mom said. "You did?" "I thought you might want me to...and with him at work it would have been hard." "How'd he take it?" I asked a little nervously. "I don't think you have to worry there," she said, "he's just excited that he might finally have a son who like's sports." Justin looked up with a guilty smile on his face. "And you!" my Mother said turning to him and wrapping her arms around him and hugging him quickly. "You have to sign my copy of your album before you go." "Yes Ma'am," he nodded sheepishly. "And take a shower, the both of you! It's almost noon!" and my Mom disappeared into the house, leaving us to finish our breakfast. I looked at Justin and smiled a goofy smile at him, and he smiled back at me and we sat and ate in silence. Contented just to be sitting beside each other. "So you should tell your sister before she gets here" my Mom reminded me for the second time. "Yeah...I was going to," I said. "Oh, what about Simon?" "Well, maybe you could go pick him up at school and tell him on the way back?" "Okay," I said. This was no fun! I half wanted to see the surprise on their faces when they saw Justin. Okay, I could live without that, but how was I going to break the news to them? "Couldn't you do it?" I half whined to Mom. "No, you should do it." "But you told Dad," I protested. "That was different," my Mother replied, and left it at that. "Okay." I looked over at Justin and he was smirking at me. "So go call your sister," my Mother said, coming to stand behind Justin. She put her hands around him and he looked up in surprise. "And Justin here can help clean up the kitchen." "Me? But I thought I was a guest!" he said in a fakey, surprised kind of voice. He looked at me for support, but I just stuck my tongue out at him. "Last night you were a guest. Now you're just part of the family" my Mom said, patting his head affectionately. He looked at me with a big goofy grin on his face. I got up and left my mother and boyfriend cleaning up and chatting away. I decided to use the phone in the family room, as it would be more private than the kitchen phone. "Hello." "Hi Annie!" I said. "Ethan! Hi. I hear you're home." "Yeah, I'm here." "With new boyfriend in tow huh?" and she laughed. "Yeah, yeah." "He staying in your room?" she asked mischievously. "We shared the guestroom last night since Simon was out. But he's flying solo tonight." "Oh you poor thing!" she laughed. "It's enough to make me want to rent a room." "That's all you can think about huh?" "I can think about other things...but why bother?" I joked. "Well I don't want to hear about it," my sister huffed. She was currently between boyfriends so she was probably jealous. "Sure you do," I laughed "Ah...no. So what are you calling for?" "You in a hurry to get rid of me?" I asked. "Yes...well no. Well I'm going to see you tomorrow." "Look," I began nervously, "I just wanted to let you know something before you get here." "Let me know what?" "Well, it's about the boyfriend." "Uh huh...," she said. "What is it? He a transvestite?" "No! Very funny! It's nothing...really." "Okay, spit it out," she said. "Ahh...he's, well he's kind of famous." "Kind of famous?" she asked suspiciously. "Yeah." "So you're dating someone famous huh? How'd that happen?" "It's a long, long story," I said. "He an actor?" "Not really..." I hesitated. "Would I have seen him on TV?" "Probably..." "Am I going to have to guess?" "If you want to," I said grinning stupidly. This was kind of fun. "Okay...so I've maybe seen him on TV," my sister thought aloud, "but he's not an actor. So is he a writer? "No." "A musician?" "Ah...kind of." "So he's in music then?" "Yep." "In a band?" she asked. "Ah...yeah...partly." "Partly? Is he really well known?" she asked suspiciously. "Yes...I think so." "Is he that guy from Matchbox 20? Rob Thomas?" "No!" "Pity. He's cute. Is he African-American?" "No." "Eminem!" she said triumphantly. "Are you kidding?" I laughed, though I had to admit there was something cute about him. "Yeah, partly. Do people know he's gay?" "Eminem?" I asked. "No! The guy you're dating." "Oh. No." Then I added hastily, "And you can't tell anyone, okay?" "Okay." "Promise?" I asked. "Yes I promise," she said, sounding a little annoyed. "What instrument does he play?" "You can't ask that question. Yes and no questions only!" "This will take all day," she huffed. "Why don't you just tell me? I have no idea." "Okay, I'll give you a hint. He doesn't really play an instrument. He's a singer." "Doesn't play an instrument...singer...kind of in a band...oh my God!" she almost shrieked. "Yeah?" "It's not Nick Carter!" "No! It's not him," I said a little coldly. "Oh, well thank God! She said calming down. "How could I have faced my friends if my brother was dating Nick Carter? Can you think of anything worse?" "Ah...I guess not..." "God, the only thing worse would be if you were dating Justin Timberlake," and she laughed and I sat there kind of wondering how to break it to my sister that her worst nightmare had come true. "Um..." I began. "I give up, I'm never going to get it." "Yeah you are," I said, "you practically did." "I did? You mean he's in the Backstreet Boys?" "No he's..." "He's in NSYNC?" she interrupted. "Yes, he's..." "Oh my God...you're dating someone in NSYNC! Let me guess! It's Lance, right?" "No." "JC?" "No. I'll just tell you!" I interrupted. "No?" she said and she was quiet. "You don't mean you're dating..." and she trailed off. "Ah...yeah." "Shit! Oh my God!" she almost screamed into the phone. "Hey calm down," I said. "Oh God! Oh God!" she repeated, then she calmed down a bit, "Oh I can't believe it!" "I guessed that," I said. "Oh...oh...I'm sorry about what I said before. I was only kidding around. I'm sure he's a great guy and all." "Thanks," I said pretending to sound hurt. "Hey, I know you. You wouldn't date him if he wasn't good." "You think?" "Well you wouldn't bring him home, anyway." "Thanks!" I laughed. "So do Mom and Dad know who he is?" "Yeah. We didn't tell them at first, but Mom worked it out. I have to tell you and Simon. I'm telling him when I pick him up this afternoon." "That should be interesting," she laughed. I went back out to the kitchen and saw Justin and Mom standing together. He was all 'Yes Ma'am' and 'No Ma'am' and being his usual charming self. "Done it," I said. "Good," said Mom, "Now you can go pick up your brother. School will be out shortly." "Yes Mom!" I whined. "Oh, he's not expecting you, so he'll be surprised." "He doesn't know we were coming up?" I asked. "No, I didn't want him all excited and then be disappointed if you had to cancel." "Oh," I said. And it occurred to me I would have too, if Justin had changed his mind. God, what a prick of an older brother I was. "And one more thing," she said and she turned to face me, "and this goes for you too Justin," she added and he stopped and turned to face her. "I just want to remind you two that there's going to be a very impressionable, fourteen year old boy here shortly. That means I'm looking to you two to set good examples." "Yes Mom," I said trying not to sound annoyed. I felt like a teenager again, having my Mom tell me how to act. I looked at Justin, who was smirking at me. "And before you say anything Ethan, I'd be giving Annie and her boyfriend exactly the same advice," and she fixed me with a stare. "So kissing and hugging is okay, but there better not be any other slip-ups. Officially you're not sharing a bed. Right?" "At all?" "Here. What you do in the privacy of your own home I don't want to know!" and she smiled. I knew she wasn't getting at me because of my relationship with Justin, or because we were gay, she just didn't want Simon getting too many ideas. I nodded and Justin was smirking at me and just lapping it up. My Mom turned and saw him grinning and I saw her smile slightly to herself. "And that means no flashing too!" she added. The grin on Justin's face vanished and he turned bright red. "I...uh...I...uh...wasn't...I didn't mean too..." he stammered and I thought he was going to lose it. My Mom reached out and patted his arm. "I know that dear, I heard all about it. I just wanted you to know I was talking to you too. Don't think that southern charm of yours is going to get you out of anything." And she kissed him on the cheek. Then she turned back to me. "So go pick up your brother. He's usually waiting just past the bus stop. Shouldn't be able to miss him today. Blond hair and guitar case. Go." She shooed. Then she turned to Justin, "and when you've finished that Justin, I need some help with some new curtains if you wouldn't mind." "Yes Ma'am," he said. --- To be continued...