Chapter 29

Inner Reflection | home

Lance opened his mouth to say something, but then shut it and backed out of the room, his eyes on Joey's satisfied smirk the whole way. He went into his room.

"Lance, you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost!"

More like the other way around, Lance thought wryly. "Fine," he said distractedly. "Just...looking at Joey after he's just woken up. Enough to scar me for life," he said, managing a smile.

JC didn't look convinced. "Sure," he said.

"Yup." Lance went into the bathroom and JC frowned, still disbelieving. He sighed and walked back to his room to get dressed. Lance rested his head against the mirror. "What's happening to me?" he asked.

"Aw, is someone having their friend turning against them?"

"Benny. Haven't you been kicked out of heaven yet?" Lance turned around and saw that Benny's eyes were red. "My bad, you have. Damn, that sucks."

"Look at angel Lancey, cursing like a human. Who would've thought?"

"Lance? You okay in there?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." He turned and glared at Benny before leaving the bathroom.

"Talking to someone interesting?"

Lance looked up and flushed. "No."

"Who were you talking to?" JC asked curiously. He'd come back in.

"That's the first sign of going crazy," Chris said, coming into the room. "Where's the food?"

"Oh, shoot, sorry, I forgot to order it...hold on..." Chris and JC exchanged worried glances. Lance NEVER forgot to order breakfast. Lance quickly ordered food for everyone and hung up.

"You okay, Lance?" JC asked.

"I'm fine! What are you guys looking at me like that for?"

They quickly looked away. "Nothing."

Justin stumbled into the room then. "Right what?"

"Nothing, Justin," Lance sighed.

"Okay. Where's the food?"

"Lance forgot to order it, Bounce," JC said solemnly.

"Hello? I'm right here!" Lance exclaimed.

"He forgot to order it," Chris repeated.

Justin's eyes widened. "Lance?"

Lance jumped up. "Okay, that's enough," he started, oblivious to the fact that Joey was standing in the doorway. "So I forgot to order the stupid food. For the first time in like 3 years. Sue me. Gosh, you'd think I bombed the place or something!" He stormed out of the room, giving Joey a pain-filled glare as he left.

"Whoa, what was that look?"

"Nothing," Joey said airily, coming into the room.

"What happened between you and Lance?" JC asked suddenly.

Joey looked up in shock. "What?"

"Give me a break." Justin and Chris looked at JC in surprise. "Lance comes in here paler than anything, he starts talking to himself in the bathroom, forgets to order breakfast, then storms out, looking at you like he wants to cry. Then you come breezing into the room looking like the cat that ate the canary. What happened?" Realization dawned on Chris and Justin's faces. They hadn't picked up on that.

"I don't have any idea what you're talking about."

Lance kicked angrily at a rock.

"You know, you're not supposed to leave without security," Dre said.

"I don't care," he muttered. "I just want to be left alone."

"I can't let you do that. One fan sees you and you'll be torn apart, and then I'll get fired, and that would make my day just plain suck. Sorry."

"I'm sure you are," Lance replied, stopping so Dre could catch up.

"Course I am. I was planning on spending the day with your little white butt anyway, so why not start out early?"

"You weren't planning to, you were told to," Lance pointed out. "There's a difference."

"Details, details," Dre shrugged. "It's all the same to me."

"Right. Hey, is that Lou?"

Dre peered at the person getting out of their car in the hotel parking lot. "Looks like it."

"Wonder what he's doing here?" Lance mused.

"Looks like he's coming this way."

"Lou! What are you doing here?"

"What, I can't check up on my boys?" Lou asked, waiting for them to walk over to him.

"You didn't say you were coming, I was just wondering," Lance said.

"Scheduling stuff," Lou said simply.

"You didn't schedule anything for Christmas, did you?" Lance joked. "Because..." he trailed off as they got into the elevator.

"Joey, spill it!" Chris persisted. The food had since arrived and they were all eating it. "JC's right. Lance has never forgotten to order breakfast in all the time we've been doing this."

"It was BREAKFAST. It's NOT a big deal."

"Yeah, but the look he gave you was," Justin began, but he was cut off by yelling in the hallway.

"DAMMIT, LOU! The day AFTER? Give me a BREAK!"

"Do you find it necessary to argue with everything I say?"

"I DON'T argue with everything you say," Lance said, his voice rising. "But when you schedule flights a day after, and I don't know HOW the hell you managed that, by the way, and then a show two days after..."

"Do you want to lose fans? You need to keep yourselves in the spotlight."

"Bullshit, Lou." The guys exchanged glances as the voices got closer. "The fans won't mind if we don't give a show two freaking days after Christmas. This is just TOO much."

"Two days?" Justin mouthed to the other guys. He collapsed into a chair.

"Can't you just cancel the damn thing?"

"You'll have two weeks off before it."

"That doesn't make a difference, Lou! The holidays don't just STOP at Christmas. There's New Year's too."

"New Year's isn't as important as Christmas. I call the shots here, Lance. And I say you perform on the 27th. Would you like to oppose me on that some more?"

"You're so full of shit, you know that?"

"No seriously. Do you have like a heart of stone or something? Or are you really that dictatorial just for kicks? Damn."

"Well I'm glad you think so highly of me."

"Oh, yes, would you like me to salute? There you go, Heir Pearlman."

"Leave me the hell alone." Lance stormed into his room and slammed the door. "Oh, you guys are still here?"

"Lance, what were you and Lou talking about?"

"He just..." Lance was cut off by the phone in his room ringing. "What?" he asked, answering the phone. "What do you want?" He paused. "I can answer the phone however the hell I want to. Unless you want to control that, too, SIR," he said sarcastically. "No, I'm just not having a particularly good day. No, I don't want to share it with you. Was there a purpose to this call, or are you just trying to piss me off?" He sighed. "No, they all went to Siberia. Yeah. One way tickets...YES, they're here, Lou." His eyes widened. "What, now you want me to tell them? What the hell did you come here for then? Yeah. Course. Uh huh. Bye."

"What's going on with you today, Lance?" Justin asked quietly.

Lance looked up from the phone. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you don't order breakfast, you leave, we hear you come back and you're having a shouting match with Lou, and he calls and you two yell at each other some more."

"Nothing's going on with me," Lance said. "It's just that Lou added another show."

"You didn't hear?" Lance asked, looking incredulously at Joey. He walked into the bathroom, leaving the door open. "It's two days after Christmas. The 27th. And we have to be back at Orlando on the 26th." He open up a cabinet.

"You heard me arguing, didn't you? And of course I was the one to argue, so I'm the one that's going to get the next lecture."

Lance glared at Joey. "Yeah. It's time for the interview, let's go." He spiked his hair with gel before grabbing his jacket and waiting at the door.

"Aren't you going to eat anything?" JC asked.

"No." He held the door open for the other guys and followed behind Joey.

"What is WITH you today?"

Lance looked at Joey in disbelief. "You've got to be kidding me. You wanna know? Maybe it's because someone whom I THOUGHT was my best friend is holding my biggest secret over my head. But maybe that's just me."

"LANCE! JOEY! COME ON!"

Lance shut the door with a final glare at Joey. It was filled with sadness, and it had anger in it as well. "Being an angel doesn't mean I can't have a horrible day once in a while," he said, jogging to catch up with the others.


	Inner Reflection \| home back to Sent From Above Chapter 29 Lance opened his mouth to say something, but then shut it and backed out of the room, his eyes on Joey's satisfied smirk the whole way. He went into his room. "Lance, you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost!" More like the other way around, Lance thought wryly. "Fine," he said distractedly. "Just...looking at Joey after he's just woken up. Enough to scar me for life," he said, managing a smile. JC didn't look convinced. "Sure," he said. "Yup." Lance went into the bathroom and JC frowned, still disbelieving. He sighed and walked back to his room to get dressed. Lance rested his head against the mirror. "What's happening to me?" he asked. "Aw, is someone having their friend turning against them?" "Benny. Haven't you been kicked out of heaven yet?" Lance turned around and saw that Benny's eyes were red. "My bad, you have. Damn, that sucks." "Look at angel Lancey, cursing like a human. Who would've thought?" "Lance? You okay in there?" "Yeah, I'm fine." He turned and glared at Benny before leaving the bathroom. "Talking to someone interesting?" Lance looked up and flushed. "No." "Who were you talking to?" JC asked curiously. He'd come back in. "Myself." "That's the first sign of going crazy," Chris said, coming into the room. "Where's the food?" "Oh, shoot, sorry, I forgot to order it...hold on..." Chris and JC exchanged worried glances. Lance NEVER forgot to order breakfast. Lance quickly ordered food for everyone and hung up. "You okay, Lance?" JC asked. "I'm fine! What are you guys looking at me like that for?" They quickly looked away. "Nothing." "Right." Justin stumbled into the room then. "Right what?" "Nothing, Justin," Lance sighed. "Okay. Where's the food?" "Lance forgot to order it, Bounce," JC said solemnly. "He what?" "Hello? I'm right here!" Lance exclaimed. "He forgot to order it," Chris repeated. Justin's eyes widened. "Lance?" Lance jumped up. "Okay, that's enough," he started, oblivious to the fact that Joey was standing in the doorway. "So I forgot to order the stupid food. For the first time in like 3 years. Sue me. Gosh, you'd think I bombed the place or something!" He stormed out of the room, giving Joey a pain-filled glare as he left. "Whoa, what was that look?" "Nothing," Joey said airily, coming into the room. "What happened between you and Lance?" JC asked suddenly. Joey looked up in shock. "What?" "Give me a break." Justin and Chris looked at JC in surprise. "Lance comes in here paler than anything, he starts talking to himself in the bathroom, forgets to order breakfast, then storms out, looking at you like he wants to cry. Then you come breezing into the room looking like the cat that ate the canary. What happened?" Realization dawned on Chris and Justin's faces. They hadn't picked up on that. "I don't have any idea what you're talking about." "Don't lie, Joey." Lance kicked angrily at a rock. "You know, you're not supposed to leave without security," Dre said. "I don't care," he muttered. "I just want to be left alone." "I can't let you do that. One fan sees you and you'll be torn apart, and then I'll get fired, and that would make my day just plain suck. Sorry." "I'm sure you are," Lance replied, stopping so Dre could catch up. "Course I am. I was planning on spending the day with your little white butt anyway, so why not start out early?" "You weren't planning to, you were told to," Lance pointed out. "There's a difference." "Details, details," Dre shrugged. "It's all the same to me." "Right. Hey, is that Lou?" Dre peered at the person getting out of their car in the hotel parking lot. "Looks like it." "Wonder what he's doing here?" Lance mused. "Looks like he's coming this way." "Lou! What are you doing here?" "What, I can't check up on my boys?" Lou asked, waiting for them to walk over to him. "You didn't say you were coming, I was just wondering," Lance said. "Scheduling stuff," Lou said simply. "You didn't schedule anything for Christmas, did you?" Lance joked. "Because..." he trailed off as they got into the elevator. "Well, no, but..." "Joey, spill it!" Chris persisted. The food had since arrived and they were all eating it. "JC's right. Lance has never forgotten to order breakfast in all the time we've been doing this." "It was BREAKFAST. It's NOT a big deal." "Yeah, but the look he gave you was," Justin began, but he was cut off by yelling in the hallway. "DAMMIT, LOU! The day AFTER? Give me a BREAK!" "Do you find it necessary to argue with everything I say?" "I DON'T argue with everything you say," Lance said, his voice rising. "But when you schedule flights a day after, and I don't know HOW the hell you managed that, by the way, and then a show two days after..." "Do you want to lose fans? You need to keep yourselves in the spotlight." "Bullshit, Lou." The guys exchanged glances as the voices got closer. "The fans won't mind if we don't give a show two freaking days after Christmas. This is just TOO much." "Two days?" Justin mouthed to the other guys. He collapsed into a chair. "Too much of what?" "Can't you just cancel the damn thing?" "You'll have two weeks off before it." "That doesn't make a difference, Lou! The holidays don't just STOP at Christmas. There's New Year's too." "New Year's isn't as important as Christmas. I call the shots here, Lance. And I say you perform on the 27th. Would you like to oppose me on that some more?" "You're so full of shit, you know that?" "Thank you." "No seriously. Do you have like a heart of stone or something? Or are you really that dictatorial just for kicks? Damn." "Well I'm glad you think so highly of me." "Oh, yes, would you like me to salute? There you go, Heir Pearlman." "You little..." "Leave me the hell alone." Lance stormed into his room and slammed the door. "Oh, you guys are still here?" "Lance, what were you and Lou talking about?" "He just..." Lance was cut off by the phone in his room ringing. "What?" he asked, answering the phone. "What do you want?" He paused. "I can answer the phone however the hell I want to. Unless you want to control that, too, SIR," he said sarcastically. "No, I'm just not having a particularly good day. No, I don't want to share it with you. Was there a purpose to this call, or are you just trying to piss me off?" He sighed. "No, they all went to Siberia. Yeah. One way tickets...YES, they're here, Lou." His eyes widened. "What, now you want me to tell them? What the hell did you come here for then? Yeah. Course. Uh huh. Bye." "What's going on with you today, Lance?" Justin asked quietly. Lance looked up from the phone. "What do you mean?" "Well, you don't order breakfast, you leave, we hear you come back and you're having a shouting match with Lou, and he calls and you two yell at each other some more." "Nothing's going on with me," Lance said. "It's just that Lou added another show." "And?" "You didn't hear?" Lance asked, looking incredulously at Joey. He walked into the bathroom, leaving the door open. "It's two days after Christmas. The 27th. And we have to be back at Orlando on the 26th." He open up a cabinet. "We HAVE to do it?" "You heard me arguing, didn't you? And of course I was the one to argue, so I'm the one that's going to get the next lecture." "That sucks." Lance glared at Joey. "Yeah. It's time for the interview, let's go." He spiked his hair with gel before grabbing his jacket and waiting at the door. "Aren't you going to eat anything?" JC asked. "No." He held the door open for the other guys and followed behind Joey. "What is WITH you today?" Lance looked at Joey in disbelief. "You've got to be kidding me. You wanna know? Maybe it's because someone whom I THOUGHT was my best friend is holding my biggest secret over my head. But maybe that's just me." "LANCE! JOEY! COME ON!" Lance shut the door with a final glare at Joey. It was filled with sadness, and it had anger in it as well. "Being an angel doesn't mean I can't have a horrible day once in a while," he said, jogging to catch up with the others.