Date: Sun, 20 Feb 2000 01:57:37 -0800 (PST)
From: Grant Colby <colby4347@yahoo.com>
Subject: MTV CrossRoads 2

 This is FICTION. It NEVER happened, at least not to
my knowledge.  This story is not intended to imply
anything about the sexuality of Carson Daly, James Van
Der Beek, or any member of N Sync.


     "Well I've just about had it with this shit! The
next time you line something like this up for me,
you'd better at least make sure that I'm the main
attraction! Do you know how bad it is for my image
right now to be overshadowed by a boy band, for God's
sake? A boy band! It undermines all the success I've
had with the show and with my movie career. Do we
understand each other?" James Van Der Beek barked at
his agent, who was far away in L.A., over the
telephone.

     "Good. Let's not have this conversation again,
then," James snapped and hung up the phone. He fell
backwards on the king size bed and groaned at the
incompetence of the people who were supposed to be
helping him to shape a long term career as an actor.

     Of course, his irritation didn't stem just from
having played second fiddle to N Sync that afternoon
on MTV's special Superbowl edition of TRL. He was also
deeply irritated at himself for having allowed the
guys of the band into his fantasies while he'd
relieved some of his frustrations after the taping of
the show.

     "I'm not gay," James said aloud. It was true, he
wasn't. He'd been having sex with girls ever since he
was fifteen, and he'd certainly never been with a guy.
So he wasn't a queer. He wasn't!

     But then why did he sometimes think of other guys
when he was beating off? Or even, sometimes, when he
was with a woman? The question nagged at the back of
James's mind, as it had for a long time.

     Rolling off the bed, James strode purposefully
across the room and took a script out of one of the
dresser drawers. He sat back down on the bed and began
to do one of the two things he always did to take his
mind off that question- concentrate on his work.

     The other thing, of course, was picking up women.
Later, James decided, he'd go down to the hotel bar or
maybe even out to a club in town and do just that.
                    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     There was total silence in the back of the
limousine, despite the fact that five young guys were
piled in together. The silence wasn't an uncomfortable
one, though. Rather it was the sort of silence that
can exist only between a group of people who are so
comfortable with each other that words just aren't
necessary all the time.

     Justin, sitting next to one of the tinted
windows, watched the slow moving traffic of
pre-superbowl Atlanta pass by while his thoughts moved
off in other directions.

     'I thought I saw James looking at me while we
were performing. Maybe he's into guys, too. He's got a
killer bod, that's for sure. I guess there's really
only one way to find out if he's interested...'

     JC, sitting across from Justin, was leaning
against the back of the seat with his eyes closed. His
own thoughts were running along the same track as his
band mate's, though he'd have been very surprised
indeed if he'd known it.

     'Should I call James? Or just find out where he's
staying and show up? What the hell would I say? I've
got to be careful, I can't be too obvious. I've gotta
play it cool.'

     Lance, seated next to JC, was staring at his own
hands, interlaced in his lap. His mind was replaying
the conversation that had occurred in the dressing
room earlier.

     "You were the one making eyes at Mr. Dawson's
Creek."  Justin had said that to JC, in a playful way.
Straight guys were always doing things like that,
Lance knew. They were constantly giving each other a
hard time about being homos or fags.

     Only, Lance really was one. He couldn't help it,
and God knew he'd tried. For years he'd denied it even
to himself. He'd finally stopped doing that, he'd at
last come to terms within himself.

     Now, though, he faced the problems of finding
someone else to be with, and Lance didn't think he'd
ever be able to.

     'I'm only attracted to guys who couldn't possibly
be gay. I mean, look at JC. He's just about everything
I could ever want in a guy. Gay guys aren't like him!
They're all flouncy. I could never be with a guy like
that,' Lance sighed quietly. He'd just have to accept
things as they were and face facts. He'd never have a
guy like JC.
                  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     "I'm having a tough time deciding. How would you
choose?" Carson asked into the receiver of the phone,
which he held balanced between his shoulder and his
chin, his hands busy running through his hair as he
stared at his reflection in the mirror.

     "I don't know, Carson! Only you could have a
dilemma like this!" an amused female voice came across
the line.

     "Yeah, I know. Oh, by the way! That hot intern I
was telling you about? Score," Carson laughed.

     "You're kidding?! How do you do that? You said he
was a hundred percent straight!"

     "Well, let's just say it turned out to be more
like ninety nine point nine percent straight!" Carson
smiled as he took the receiver back into his hand and
turned his head from side to side, wondering if he
should shave before he went out.

     "So, listen Love, I can't decide. Do I go for one
of the guys from N Sync, or do I go for Mr. Varsity
Blues? Help me here, will you?" Carson asked Jennifer
Love Hewitt, his best friend. As far as the public was
concerned, the two had dated for well over a year and
then Love had broken Carson's heart.

    The reality was that they'd never been more than
best friends, but Carson had happily played up the
relationship rumor to help reassure all of MTV's teen
fans that he was what they expected him to be. Love
had gone along with it, until she'd actually began to
date someone else and they'd had to stage a break up.

     "I don't know! I guess you should start with Van
der Beek. You're less likely to have another chance
like this with him than you are with N Sync. Didn't
you tell me they were doing that Snowed In thing with
you in a few weeks?" Love asked.

     "They are. Good point. It's just like having a
box of assorted chocolates in front of me, I want to
eat them all and I just can't decide which one I want
first," Carson laughed.

     "Well don't eat too much at once or you'll get a
stomach ache," Love replied, laughter in her voice.
"I've got to go, Car. Call me tomorrow with all the
steamy details, kay?"

    "Got it babe. Ciao," Carson said, hanging up the
phone. Taking a final glance in the mirror, Carson
Daly headed for the door of his hotel room. It was
time to get his latest conquest under way.
                  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     "Thank you so much. This is really going to be a
huge surprise for Jamie! I really appreciate it."

     "No problem, sir. And thank you for the autograph
for my daughter! She watches your show every single
day. She votes, too. This will be the highlight of her
life so far, having your autograph!" The hotel maid
gushed, smiling at Carson Daly as she unlocked the
door to James Van Der Beek's suite for him.

     "I'm so glad. And thank you again," Carson smiled
as he shut the door behind himself and looked around
James's empty suite. Being a celebrity certainly had
it's perks. Any other person asking to be let into
someone else's room while they were out would have
been laughed out of the building, but a recognizable
face could ask for just about anything and get it.

     It was actually perfect that James hadn't been
there when he'd knocked. It put the element of total
surprise on his side, which was always an advantage in
situations like this. All Carson had to do now was set
the scene and wait for James to walk right into the
trap.
                   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     "Any plans tonight?" JC asked casually as he
pulled a shirt over his head. Lance watched quietly
and with a small surge of disappointment as JC's well
defined chest disappeared from sight beneath the
fabric.

     "I'm just going to hang out here, maybe watch
some TV or do a little writing," Lance said.

     "Are you sure? Chris and Joey are hitting some of
the clubs. I'm sure they'd love to have you go along,"
JC said, glancing over at his friend, who was sitting
on the floor with his back against a sofa.

     "Nah. Clubs aren't my thing, you know that,"
Lance smiled. "What about you?"

     "Oh, I've got a few old friends here. Thought I'd
look them up," JC explained, feeling the twinge of
guilt he always felt when he was forced to lie to his
friends to cover up the truth.

     "Oh. Where's Justin, do you know?" Lance asked,
feeling very lonely. It was nothing new, of course.
Most of the time he felt lonely even when he was with
the other guys.

     "Not sure. Probably got a hot date or something.
You know Curly," JC grinned.

     "Yeah. Well, have a good time," Lance smiled at
JC as he made his way to the door of the suite.

     "Thanks. You, too. And hey, check with Chris and
Joey. See what clubs they're going to. That way if you
get bored later, you can still catch up with them," JC
advised.

     Lance promised he would and smiled as JC made his
exit. That was JC, so thoughtful and caring. He made
Lance feel so wonderful, just by being his friend.
Lance had long since accepted the fact that his
feelings for JC went far beyond friendship, of course,
but he knew there was no way they'd ever come to
anything.

     Still, their friendship was very special to
Lance. In fact, it was the most important thing to
him. He could lose everything else, and as long as he
still had JC as a friend, it wouldn't matter.

     Alone, Lance dug a tape out of the bottom of his
bag and slipped it into the VCR. He smiled to himself
as the familiar beginning to 'Beautiful Thing', his
favorite movie, appeared on the screen. Lance watched
it whenever he had a chance, which wasn't very often.
The story of the two British teen boys who fall in
love against all odds never failed to touch him.
                     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     Justin knocked lightly on the door and then stood
back, waiting for it to open. He ran a hand down his
baby blue t-shirt, smoothing out non-existent wrinkles
while he waited.

     The door remained firmly closed and Justin
sighed. James wasn't in, obviously. "I knew I shoulda
called first," he muttered out loud to himself.

     Turning to go, he caught sight of James coming
down the hall towards him, his head down as he stared
at something in his hands. Justin watched unobserved
as the actor moved closer to him.

     Looking up as he neared his door, James's pace
faltered as he saw his visitor. He felt a jolt of
excitement, which he quickly forced out of his system.

     "Can I help you with something?" James asked as
he reached his door and took out his key card.

     "Actually, I thought maybe you'd be interested in
going out, having some fun tonight. Atlanta's got some
phat clubs," Justin smiled, his easy charm and self
confidence spilling forth.

     "Uh, no. I don't think so. Thanks anyway,
though," James said dismissivley as he opened his door
and started inside.

    "Okay, thats cool, man. Hey, maybe there's
something on one of the movie channels or something,"
Justin suggested, following James inside.

     James stared at the boy band member with a
mixture of disbelief and surprise. Why was this guy so
anxious to hang out with him?

     "Actually, I already have some plans for this
evening. I've got a lady friend coming over in about
half an hour. So if you don't mind...." James
indicated the door through which Justin had just come.

     "Mind if I use your bathroom before I go, then? I
don't want to go back up to my room, and if I'm going
to hit some clubs, I'd better go before i leave,"
Justin smiled, trying not to show his disappointment.

     "Just hurry up," James snapped, feeling irritated
with himself and the way he was feeling in the
presence of this guy. He couldn't stop thinking of
what he'd imagined earlier in the day, while he'd been
beating off in his dressing room.

     Justin made his way back towards the suite's
bathroom, which was accessible only through the
bedroom. 'Prick,' he thought as he went. His first
impression had been right, after all. James Van Der
Beek was an asshole with a high opinion of himself.
Good looking or not, he wasn't worth wasting any more
time on.

     Justin stopped in shock as he opened the door to
James's bedroom and flicked the switch on the wall
next to it.  The light that flooded the room
illuminated Carson Daly, who was lying stark naked on
the bed, his cock at full mast and a smile on his
face.

     "What the-" Justin raised his voice, stunned.
Carson stared back, his smile fading into a look of
dismay.

     "Justin? What are you doing here?" Carson asked,
not bothering to cover himself up. Justin felt himself
staring at the toned, hairy body of the man before him
and felt a stirring in his pants.

     "I-" Justin wasn't able to finish the sentence
before James pushed past him into the room and froze
in shock at the sight that awaited him.

     "Who the hell let you in my room?" James demanded
when he finally regained his voice.

     "I think I'll be going now," Justin cut in before
Carson could answer. Without waiting for a response
from either of the other men he turned and left the
room in a hurry. The last thing he needed was for
Carson Daly to notice that he was turned on by him.
The guy flirted with him way too much as it was.

     Once the elevator doors closed and he began his
descent down to the lobby, Justin burst out laughing
as the hilarity of the scene he'd just witnessed hit
home. The funniest part was, he'd never be able to
tell any of the other guys about what he'd seen, even
though he was dying to!
                    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     "I asked who let you in here," James repeated.

     "That's not important, is it?" Carson asked,
running a hand down his own chest in a sensual manner.
James's eyes followed it's course, almost unwillingly.

     "Yes, it is. I don't really care what you do in
your bedroom, but I'm not gay! Now, get the hell out
of here before I call security!" James shouted.

     "Why? You know what's going to happen as soon as
I leave, don't you? You're just going to lay right
here in this bed and beat off like crazy, thinking of
me. Come on, James. Why do that alone when I'm here to
lend you a hand? Or a mouth. Or whatever else you'd
like," Carson grinned as his hand wrapped itself
around the base of his hard cock.

     James watched, unable to turn away, as Carson
began to stroke himself. "Get out," he said, but this
time his voice was weaker.

     "Come on, James. Aren't you even curious? Blow
jobs from another guy are the best, you know. Guys
know what it feels like, so they're better at it.
You've never had a blow job before if you haven't had
one from a guy," Carson tempted, running his tongue
across his lips.

     James glanced down at the front of his pants,
which were tented out. He looked back up at Carson's
body and felt a sudden urge to give in to what the
other man was suggesting. He wanted it so much....

     "NO!" James's voice regained it's force. He
wasn't gay! He wasn't. This was all too queer for him.
"Get the hell out of here, right now. If you don't,
I'm going to make sure that everyone in this hotel
knows that the host of TRL is a flaming homo. Do you
got that?"

     "Take it easy, man. All right, I'll go," Carson
said hastily as he climbed off the bed. He could tell
that he'd misjudged James's position and moved too
quickly. He swiftly gathered up his clothes and
started for the door.

     "Think about what happened here tonight, James.
Think about it long and hard, and then give me a
call," Carson said softly, his face serious. He knew
now just how to play the younger man.

     James refused to even look at him again and
Carson left the suite, pausing only to pull on his
underwear before doing so.

     He dressed quickly while waiting for the elevator
and replayed the events that had just occurred in his
mind. James would come around, but probably not for a
few months at the least. In the meantime, Justin
Timberlake certainly had gotten an eyeful. And
somehow, Carson didn't think it would take much of an
effort to land the N Sync hottie before the night was
over.
                     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     "Think about what happened here tonight, James.
Think about it long and hard, and then give me a
call." JC had stared in surprise at the scene before
him. He'd found James's door open and had been about
to call out for him when he'd heard those words.
Glancing inside, he'd seen the naked form of Carson
Daly and had quickly turned and walked down the hall,
turning the corner before he was noticed.

     "Carson and James," JC mumbled to himself. Ah,
well. If James was the type of guy who'd fall for
someone as sleezy and and as easy as Carson Daly, than
JC was better off. Still, it was disappointing. All
he'd been able to think about since they'd met that
day was James.

     Sighing, JC made his way to the service elevator
and took it back up to his floor. At least Lance would
be there to hang out with. JC liked hanging out with
Lance a lot, more so than with any of the other guys.
They had a good relationship.

     JC knocked briefly on the door of the suite and
walked in. Lance looked up in surprised and then
blushed a deep shade of red.

     "Hey! What happened to looking up your friends?"
Lance asked as he hastily stood up and reached for the
TV/VCR remote.

     "No, don't turn off your movie. It's okay. I'll
watch with you. It turns out my friends are gone for
the evening," JC said as he dropped down to the floor
and pulled Lance back down next to him in a friendly
fashion. "So, what are we watching?"

     Lance looked horror stricken and didn't seem to
be able to form any words. Surprised, JC glanced at
the screen but couldn't figure out what was wrong with
his friend. The movie seemed to be some sort of a
British film.

     "I......It's......um....." Lance spluttered and
then finally hit the Stop button. "It's nothing. Let's
watch something else, this would bore you."

     "Okay, if you're sure," JC agreed. "You pick,
though. I'll order some pop corn from room service and
we'll make a night of it."

     Lance nodded and removed his copy of Beautiful
Thing from the VCR. His feeling of horror lessened
somewhat. 'I've got to be more careful! If he'd walked
in during a different scene, he might have realized
that it's about gay guys!' Still, the danger was over
and an evening of just hanging out with JC was
suddenly before him. Nothing could be better than
that!


   ***TBC    Write colby4347@yahoo.com