Date: Sat, 1 Jun 2002 23:18:33 EDT
From: THRAWN5678@aol.com
Subject: You'll Never Guess Who Ran Into Me Today- Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I don't know anybody from N Sync, though I'd sure like to,
and thus this story is fiction and is not intended to imply anything
about the true sexuality of the celebrities mentioned or any personal
knowledge about their private lives. This story should not be read by
anybody who is not legally allowed to read it.. So if you're underage,
leave right now!!

Author's Notes: Well, this chapter was supposed to come out within a
week or so of the last one. However, events have once again conspired
against me. Namely, a computer virus. After I got rid of the virus and
the files it had corrupted, my computer was missing a file that it
rather needed, so I had to use the recovery disk. So, needless to say,
I now hate my computer. But it will recover. I've also lost the last
five or six e-mails about the story. So I apologize to all those who I
didn't respond to. I've rearranged my schedule a bit, and I'll have
more time for writing, and for reading all the feedback you'll send me
(Nudge, nudge, wink, wink, say no more) I do enjoy talking and chatting
to people, so if you're bored and you want to chat, e-mail me and I'll
give ya all my messenger handles. E-mail me with feedback or your
burning desire to talk with the Great and Powerful Oz! Whoops, I meant
Squall Thrawn.. THRAWN5678@aol.com.

Trivia Corner: Also, I want to thank everybody who attempted to answer
the trivia questions. I had quite a few correct answers for the question
about Chris's secret. All those who answered received a yes or no
answer. However, I won't reveal that answer, since for those of you who
didn't guess, or hadn't figured it out, I don't want to reveal the
answer ahead of time. The winner of that one is Mark, who gave me the
correct response within an hour or two of the story being posted on
Nifty. The other question, was what was the other Monty Python
reference in the story, apart from the obvious one? That was that one
of the characters, Mike Palin, has the same name as one of the Pythons.
Michael Palin was part of Monty Python, as was John Cleese, Terry
Gilliam, Terry Jones, Eric Idle, and Graham Chapman. I received one
correct response to this one; unfortunately I lost the e-mail address
of the winner. So whoever got the answer right and e-mailed me, e-mail
me again and I'll give you your reward, just a tad later. And nobody
try anything funny, cause I do remember his name. But I'm not going to
reveal that, as some people would try to trick me by changing their
name on their account so that they can get the reward. There's no
trivia this time, but there will be next time.

Dedications: Thanks to Ryan my editor, Chris for reasons that he already
knows (and the inspiration for the character of the same name who we've
just met), Mark, JC, Jeremy, and all others who have helped me at one
time or another. Thanx to everybody who has sent feedback, I received
at least 20 e-mails this time, and i didn't even have to whine!!

The Squall Thrawn Book Club (much better than Oprah's)
Jamie's Romance (a great Justin story)
Millenium Love (a Brian Littrell story)
My Surprise Romance (a Lance story)
My New Life (a Lance story)
Lance in Shining Armour (umm, a Lance story?)
Lance's Story (a Lance/JC story and a spinoff of Jamie's Romance)
Twist of Fate (a Lance story)
Blind Date (a Lance story)
Nick and Ashley (a Nick Carter/Ashley from O-Town story by ND)
Music Shatters Ice (primarily a Lance story)
Encounter in the Sand (a Justin story, written by my good friend Jeremy)
and many more!! But I can't remember the names of them...I'll put them
down as I remember them...

*****************************************************************************

You'll Never Guess Who Ran Into Me Today
by Squall Thrawn

Previously on Never Guess...

"Thanks, Ryan, for the tickets and backstage pass," said Chris, standing up.
Ryan stood up as well. "You make sure to keep in touch. And if you need to
stay somewhere so that you can continue school, I'm sure my parents would be
glad to let you stay with them. They already know about me, and they're ok
with it."

"I appreciate it, Chris. I'll keep that in mind," said Ryan, as the two guys
cleaned up their table and headed towards their cars. "I haven't figured
anything out yet about that, but I may indeed end up staying with your
parents, if they'll let me. Thanks a lot, Chris, for everything." Ryan gave
Chris a quick hug, one of comradeship and brotherhood.

"Hey, that's what 'brothers' are for, Ryan," said Chris. He returned the hug.
"I'll see you later tonight."

"Alright, drive safely, Chris," said Ryan. The two boys got into their cars,
and drove away to their respective destinations, Chris heading off to take
care of errands, Ryan heading back to the Adam's Mark to meet the guys.

*****************************************************************************

Chapter 18

The phone rang in the hotel room of Chris Kirkpatrick. Ryan picked it up.

"Excuse me sir, is Mr. Holden there?" said the attendant from the parking
garage.

"That's me," answered Ryan, smiling at the 'sir'.

"Sir, your guest, Mr. Jordan has just arrived."

"Thank you. Please, send him up to the 17th floor. I'll meet him at the
elevator," said Ryan.

"Yes, sir." The attendant hung up the phone. Ryan smiled at all the
deferential treatment that being a friend of N Sync got him. 'I'd probably
go nuts after too much of this. But I'd endure all of it and more to be with
James.'

Ryan stood up and looked around the room. JC and Justin were both napping,
one on each of the couches. Chris and Joey were playing poker over at the
small table near the window. Lance was dealing with some paperwork for
FreeLance. Ryan had been helping Lance by sorting out some papers.

"Hey guys, my friend Chris just arrived in the parking garage. I'm gonna go
meet him at the elevator."

"Ok, Ryan," said Chris, looking up from the poker game. "I'll wake up Josh
and Curly."

"Thanks, Chris," said Ryan. "I'll try to keep him a bit calmed down, since
you guys deserve a bit relaxation before your concert. And he was a tad
excited about meeting you."

"Well, as long as he doesn't rip our clothes off, we'll be fine," joked Joey.

"Well, he did mention something about a big crush on James," said Ryan with
a big smile on his face.

"What did you tell him, Ry?" asked Lance, looking up from his papers.

"I just told him that you're in a relationship with somebody right now,"
said Ryan. "I wasn't going to tell him about us unless it's alright with
you."

"Well, if you think he won't spread the news to the tabloids, Ry, I don't
see any reason to keep it a secret. After all, you said you two were like
brothers."

"Thanks, James," said Ryan, smiling. "I'll be back in a minute." With that,
Ryan left the room, heading towards the elevators. Soon, he came back with
his friend Chris. Chris stood about a head taller than Ryan. He was about
Joey's build, not as slender as Ryan. His dark brown hair was spiky, somewhat
reminiscient of Ryan's hairstyle, but not as short. His light blue eyes
scanned the room, taking in all the occupants. His mouth dropped open.

"You.. You're really them!" Chris finally managed to get out.

"That's right, Chris," replied Ryan. "They really are the Backstreet Boys."
The five members of NSync started throwing pillows at Ryan. "Sorry!"
exclaimed Ryan. "I just couldn't help it."

"You'd think that you would've learned your lesson from yesterday," said
Chris Kirkpatrick.

"Fine, fine," said Ryan. "But let me introduce my friend here. This is Chris
Jordan."

"Pleased to meet you, Chris," said JC.

"Yeah, any friend of Ryan's is a friend of ours," said Joey.

"It's.. an honor to meet you guys," said Chris J..

Please, sit down," said JC. Chris sat in the empty chair. Joey passed him a
coke, which he accepted with a smile. He opened it and took a drink. "I
can't believe that Ryan actually met you five and that you accepted him for
who he was without really knowing him that well. I really appreciate you
guys helping him out."

"Well," said Ryan, "There is a bit more to it than that. Actually there's a
lot more to it."

"Just spit it out, Ryan. What did you not mention?"

"Alright," said Ryan, grinning. "Lance is my boyfriend."

Chris spat out the coke he was drinking. "What?!"

"Yeah, Chris," said Lance. "Ryan and I are currently dating. Ryan did tell
you that I was in a relationship."

"Isn't this a bit quick?" asked Chris. "I mean, you did just meet each other.
Didn't you?"

"We're taking it slow, Chris," said Ryan. "But I can feel a certain something
between me and James. This feels right."

"If you say so, Ryan," said Chris J. "Well, if you two get married, and since
Ryan's practically my brother, I'd be the brother-in-law of an NSync member.
Wow!"

"Haha," said Justin, speaking for the first time. He looked thoughtful. "So,
I have a question, Chris."

"What is it?" asked Chris K. and Chris J. Everybody burst out laughing.

"We need to do something about that, for starters," said Justin. "We need to
give you some sort of nickname."

"Well, at college, they had these First-year class blocks, so that there
would be familiar faces in multiple classes. There was another Chris in
there, so they decided to name me Matt."

"Why Matt?" asked JC.

"It's a great name. President Nixon had a hedgehog named Matt," said Chris
with a straight face.

The five members of NSync looked at each other in confusion as Ryan burst
out laughing, but then Justin started laughing with Ryan.

"I don't get it," said JC, confused.

"Is it one of those Monty Python things?" asked Joey suspiciously.

"Yeah," said Ryan. "It's pretty hilarious."

"Seriously, though, Matthew is my middle name. I've gotten used to being
called Matt," he said.

"Fine, then, we'll call you that," said Joey. "But we need to get going to
the concert. We've got you some great seats. Right up front!!"

"Great!" yelled Matt, doing a little happy dance.

"Whoa there, Matt!" said Chris, smiling. "Save a little energy for the
concert!!"

"I can't wait!!" yelled Matt.

"Sorry, guys," said Ryan with a grin. "He isn't usually like this, but he's
a bit wound up."

"That's alright," said JC, smiling as well. "Well, let's head on over!!"

-----

"These seats are unbelievable!" yelled Matt over the crowd.

"I know!!" shouted Ryan back. "Even had we gotten tickets the normal way,
we've have been way up there!!"

"Which makes it so much sweeter!! Remind me to thank your boyfriend!!"

They had already seen the opening acts. It was finally time for their
favorite band to make their appearance. Just then, the lights dimmed a bit.

"It's starting!!" yelled Chris.

-----

As far as concerts go, this one went off without a hitch. There were no
major flubs and screwups, maybe the usual few that are almost inevitable.
Ryan and Chris, along with several thousand fans, watched as NSync did what
they did best: Performing. The singing and dancing all wrapped up into one
package and tied together with that energy that only NSync could create.
However, one person was not interested in the performance onstage. He was
sitting in the second level seating, with a sideview of the stage. His
binocular-aided scrutiny lay not on the boyband performing, but a certain
fan in the front row. The target of such scrutiny was completely unaware of
this mysterious person who had eaten lunch in the same McDonalds as he had
that morning, who had watched him from a mezzanine seat in Busch Stadium,
and who was now watching him at the NSync concert. His employer had informed
him of his likely attendance at this concert, and had cautioned him to only
observe. The man snorted. As if he needed the warning. He was a professional,
and only amateurs allowed themselves to be spotted by their prey. After all
these years, his target was still no more aware of his presence than when he
had first begun. Soon, the first phase of the operation would be completed,
and the second phase would begin. He could hardly wait.

-----

"So, what did you think of the concert, Matt?" asked Joey. The concert had
ended, and Ryan and Matt had joined the five members of NSync backstage.

"It was great!!" yelled Matt. "Was it everything you thought it would be,
Ryan?"

"Oh yeah," said Ryan, grinning. "However, I didn't originally plan to devote
my whole attention of one particular member, and I certainly didn't expect
said member to wink at me."

"Haha," said Lance. "Well, I felt that was fairly safe. I don't think Johnny
would allow me to blow you a kiss, or ask you to come up onstage."

"You're sure right about that," said JC, laughing. "I could just imagine his
expression if you did that."

The other four members of NSync burst out laughing as well, as did Ryan, for
he had seen how Johnny was, and how he would react to any revelation of
Ryan's and Lance's relationship.

The seven men continued their conversation, as they rode back over to the
Adam's Mark. They headed back up to Chris's room, getting better acquainted
with each other. Eventually, Matt stood up. "Well, guys, I need to get going
if I'm to get home at a decent hour. Ryan, it was great to see you again. We
need to stay in touch. Guys, it was a pleasure meeting you. Thanks for
letting me see your concert."

JC, Joey, Chris, and Lance all said goodbye to him. Ryan came up and gave
him a hug. "Thanks again, man."

"No problem, Ryan. That's what big brothers are for," said Matt.

"I'll show you back down," said Ryan.

"That's ok, Ryan," said Justin. "I'll show him down. I need to ask him
something anyway. I need to find out how to pull the ultimate practical joke
on you, and Matt here knows you very well."

"Haha," said Matt. "Count me in on that one!" With that, he and Justin left
the room.

"Your friend there is a great guy," said Joey. "He's the sort of friend that
everybody needs to have. He always has your best interests in mind. Most
people think of themselves, first."

"Yeah, he's a great friend," said Ryan. "If you guys don't mind, I'm going
to turn in for the night. This day's been a tad busy."

"I'll come with you, Ryan," said Lance. "I'm rather tired, too."

"Surprise, surprise," mumbled Chris.

-----

"So, you're Ryan's oldest friend, right?" asked Justin as he headed down the
hallway towards the elevator with Matt.

"Well, he met Greg a little while before we started hanging out," replied
Matt, stopping at the elevator door and pushing the down button. "Though I
don't see how you could consider the bastard a friend anymore."

"Yeah," said Justin. "Greg is definitely an asshole." The elevator doors
open, and the two went in. Justin hit the button for the garage. The
elevator started descending. "Tell me, Matt, would you do anything if it was
in the best interests of Ryan?"

"Of course, Justin," said Matt. "He's practically my brother. Since he's
smaller than me, I've always acted as sort of his big brother, trying to
protect him."

"Well, what if I was to tell you..." Justin continued to tell Matt his
thoughts on a certain manner. The two stepped out of the elevator when the
doors open, Matt still engrossed on Justin's words. "..so, what do you
think?" finished Justin.

"Well, a lot of that's just opinion," said Matt. "However, should those
prove to be true... then yes. But don't go about trying to turn things so
that it appears to be true."

"I won't have to," said Justin with certainty. "This is going to happen
whether I do anything or not. The only difference is the outcome. That, you
can help me with."

"Deal." The two shook hands, clenching the bargain.

"Have a safe drive, Matt," said Justin, as Matt got into his car. He pulled
out of the garage. Justin walked back to the elevator. As he did, he allowed
a small smile to form on his face. His plan had begun.

-----

Meanwhile, Ryan and Lance were getting ready for bed. Ryan had already
changed out of the clothes he had worn to the concert, and had put on a
fresh t-shirt and boxers, using the bathroom to change.

"I need to talk to you, Ry," said Lance, suddenly.

"What about, Jaim?"

"About what's going to happen tomorrow when we leave for the next venue,"
said Lance.

"I see," said Ryan, trying to remain strong.

"I've tried a few things, but I'm afraid I have some bad news about it."
Lance shook his head.

"Well, what's the bad news?"

"You're going to have to..."

*****************************************************************************

This chapter is more of a transition chapter. Soon the second part of the
story will begin, and will bring with it a change to the plotline. Thanks
again to all those who sent e-mails. I've tabulated all the votes. There
were around 30 total sent in. I responded to many of them, but as I said
before, I lost a few of them, so I didn't respond to those. Feel free to
give your opinion on the mysterious man. I know that may seem odd, and some
of you may not like it, but trust me, it'll all come together in the end..

Squall Thrawn
THRAWN5678@aol.com