Chapter 31

Inner Reflection | home

"One, two, three, four," Lance counted as they all passed him into the conference room. "We're all here, Lou," he said. "And before we start talking about the tour...tell me this much...What's with Danielle Fishel?"

"Oh, that's your girlfriend," Lou said. "We must have forgotten to mention it."

Lance looked at him like he had three heads. "My girlfriend? That's not...logical, is it?"

"Well, some of the fans are getting curious as to why you haven't had a girlfriend."

"Well, there's a reason," JC pointed out.

"Well, we can't tell them THAT," Lou said, saying it as if it was the most logical thing in the world.

"But according to what SHE'S been saying to all the magazines, we've been dating for like, three months. You think you could've let me know a little sooner?"

"Sorry," Lou shrugged. "I guess is slipped my mind."

Lance's eyes widened. "But Joey doesn't have a girlfriend and you're not making one up for him," he complained.

"Joey doesn't count--"

"Because he's the flirt."

"Yeah, and I love how you make me look like I flirt with anything that breathes."

"But you do," Chris said.

"Not really," Joey said.

Lou ignored the banter between Joey and Chris. "Now, Lance, you'll have to go visit her once in a while, to make it look authentic..."

"You heard me. Now about the Spring Tour..."

JC looked at Lance, who had a pained expression on his face. He imagined he must look the same way, what with the way his heart had just dropped to the floor when he heard the words "That's your girlfriend." He sighed. It was ridiculous, really. He wasn't even the one with a fake relationship. But Topanga? He shuddered, not really seeing Topanga without Cory. He thought Danielle and Ben Savage should hook up, no one would really care, and they were together on that show anyway. Danielle seemed nice enough, of course, but she didn't look right for Lance...

JC shook himself out of his thoughts. Who did he think was right for Lance, then? he wondered. Yourself, he told himself, shocked at the sudden realization. Shaking himself out of his own little world, he paid attention to what Lou was saying. He was trying to ignore the tapping noise coming from...somewhere.

"So we'll start March 3rd..."

"Six weeks after the other one ends?" JC asked.

"Yeah." JC sighed. He finally realized what the noise was. He zeroed in on Chris, who was bouncing his leg and hitting a pencil against the table at the same time. The tapping noise started to drive him crazy.

"Who are the...who..." he started, still looking at Lou. He reached over and grabbed Chris' pencil. "Who are the opening acts?" he asked, snapping the pencil in half and dropping the two pieces on the floor.

"Right now, it's a little R&B group, Divine or someone, and we're not sure of the other," Lou said.

"You broke my pencil."

"Lou, your 3 o'clock is in conference room C," the secretary said.

"All right. If you gentleman will excuse me, I will see you soon."

"You broke my poor, defenseless pencil."

"Bye boys...oh, Lance, I need to talk to you quick."

Chris picked up his broken pencil and tried to fit the pieces back together. "You broke my pencil. What did we ever do to you?" he said. "You murderer!" he jabbed it towards JC, who just rolled his eyes and watched Lance leave the room.

"What'd you need, Lou?" they heard him ask before shutting the door. They could still see him through the glass, but they couldn't hear. "Is this about the whole Danielle thing? I really don't think it's fair of you to force me to lie to the fans," Lance said.

"Well, you're going to have to go along with it," Lou said, a smirk creeping onto his face.

Lance didn't like that smirk. He stepped backwards. "Wait, what do you mean?" he asked warily.

"Well, I've gotten it from a good source that says he knows something about you..." Lance's eyes widened. "Oh, I see it's true, he does. But he wouldn't tell me. However, if you oppose me on this, I will approach him and he will tell me."

"Wha...Wh...Who told you this?" Lance asked, glancing into the room, where three pairs of eyes were on him. Joey was looking at the wall. "It was Joey, wasn't it? Joey said that."

"Oh, you're good. But unless you want to tell me now..." Lance glared at him. "Well, unless you want him to tell me, you're going to go along with me on this. Understood?"

Lance bit his lip and nodded. He looked into the room one last time, looking specifically at Joey. Inside, they all gasped at the look of sorrow and the mask of betrayal that Lance sent to Joey. JC jumped up when he saw Lance push past Lou and run down the hallway.

"Joey, you can't tell me that that wasn't NOTHING," he spat out, leaving the room and slamming the door behind him. "Lou, what did you say?"

"What are you talking about?" Lou asked.

"You know what I'm talking about. What the hell did you say to Lance to make him run down the hallway?"

"Oh, that," Lou said. "Oh, I merely told him that someone had told me that they had some information on him that no one else knew. And if he didn't go along with the Danielle issue, that person would told me what they knew. No biggie."

"You bastard! Who the hell is it?" JC thought for a second. "It's Joey, isn't it?"

"You boys ARE smart. My goodness."

"This is blackmail, Lou," JC said furiously.

"Don't say it like that, JC. It makes me sound so evil."

JC just took off after Lance. He found him at his car, fumbling with the keys. "Lance!" Lance looked up, but ignored JC and went back to his car. "Lance, wait..." He sprinted up and took the keys from Lance. "You don't look like you're in any condition to drive."

"Who are you to tell me when I can't drive," Lance mumbled halfheartedly, letting the keys go without a fight. He let JC push him into the passenger side of the car. "I can drive just fine," he muttered to himself. JC put the key in the ignition and drove to Lance's apartment in silence. He pulled up and followed Lance inside. "I don't need you following me," he said, stopping at the door.

"Why?" Lance asked, walking into the other room.

"Nothing," Lance said glumly.

"I don't believe you," JC persisted. "I know Lou's blackmailing you."

Lance looked at him in surprise. "Yeah, that's true."

JC didn't like the look in his eyes. It was a defeated look. "Because of Joey."

Lance's eyes widened in shock. "Wha...how did you...when...what?"

"Joey knows something about you, doesn't he?" JC asked. Lance wanted to lie, more than he ever had in his life. Or his afterlife. He wished he could. But he couldn't, not about this. He nodded miserably. "And he's going to tell Lou what it is if you don't go along with whatever he says." Lance nodded again. JC wanted to cry at the look in Lance's eyes now. Dead, almost. He was almost afraid to ask the next question. "What is it?"

Lance's eyes widened. "What is what?"

"What does Joey kn--" Lance cut him off, he couldn't let him ask or he'd have to tell.

"Please don't ask me that, JC," he said.

"I can't tell you...please, just don't ask me that."

"Please, I'm begging you, JC, don't ask me that. It's nothing bad, I'm not on drugs or anything like that, but please, don't...I can't tell you."

"Lance, what is it that you could tell Joey, but not m--"

"He found out," Lance said. "That's all I can say, really, please..."

"Please, Josh," he said, looking into JC's eyes. "Please don't make me answer that." He stared at JC. "Please," he whispered one more time.

JC looked back into Lance's eyes. He was entranced. It was almost like they were looking into his soul. "I don't..." he trailed off. "I won't ask," he finally sighed out.

Lance instantly stepped forward and hugged him. "Thank you so much," he said. "You'll find out eventually, probably, but I just...I can't. Do you believe me?"

"Yeah," JC said, looking at the floor.

Lance felt like crying. "I'm so sorry, JC...but..."

"That's okay, Lance. Some things just aren't meant to be shared." Lance bit his lip and nodded. "Look," JC said, looking up. "I'm gonna go back to Justin's...I am so mad at Joey right now," he muttered, turning away.

"Don't be mad at Joey, please? He's just...um..."

"What, Lance? He betrayed you, he and Lou are blackmailing you and you don't want me to be mad at him?"

"JC...just...don't hurt him, okay?"

JC managed a tiny smile. "Sure Scoop. I'll try."


	Inner Reflection \| home back to Sent From Above Chapter 31 "One, two, three, four," Lance counted as they all passed him into the conference room. "We're all here, Lou," he said. "And before we start talking about the tour...tell me this much...What's with Danielle Fishel?" "Oh, that's your girlfriend," Lou said. "We must have forgotten to mention it." Lance looked at him like he had three heads. "My girlfriend? That's not...logical, is it?" "Well, some of the fans are getting curious as to why you haven't had a girlfriend." "Well, there's a reason," JC pointed out. "Well, we can't tell them THAT," Lou said, saying it as if it was the most logical thing in the world. "But according to what SHE'S been saying to all the magazines, we've been dating for like, three months. You think you could've let me know a little sooner?" "Sorry," Lou shrugged. "I guess is slipped my mind." Lance's eyes widened. "But Joey doesn't have a girlfriend and you're not making one up for him," he complained. "Joey doesn't count--" "HEY!" "Because he's the flirt." "Yeah, and I love how you make me look like I flirt with anything that breathes." "But you do," Chris said. "Not really," Joey said. Lou ignored the banter between Joey and Chris. "Now, Lance, you'll have to go visit her once in a while, to make it look authentic..." "WHAT?" "You heard me. Now about the Spring Tour..." JC looked at Lance, who had a pained expression on his face. He imagined he must look the same way, what with the way his heart had just dropped to the floor when he heard the words "That's your girlfriend." He sighed. It was ridiculous, really. He wasn't even the one with a fake relationship. But Topanga? He shuddered, not really seeing Topanga without Cory. He thought Danielle and Ben Savage should hook up, no one would really care, and they were together on that show anyway. Danielle seemed nice enough, of course, but she didn't look right for Lance... JC shook himself out of his thoughts. Who did he think was right for Lance, then? he wondered. Yourself, he told himself, shocked at the sudden realization. Shaking himself out of his own little world, he paid attention to what Lou was saying. He was trying to ignore the tapping noise coming from...somewhere. "So we'll start March 3rd..." "Six weeks after the other one ends?" JC asked. "Yeah." JC sighed. He finally realized what the noise was. He zeroed in on Chris, who was bouncing his leg and hitting a pencil against the table at the same time. The tapping noise started to drive him crazy. "Who are the...who..." he started, still looking at Lou. He reached over and grabbed Chris' pencil. "Who are the opening acts?" he asked, snapping the pencil in half and dropping the two pieces on the floor. "Right now, it's a little R&B group, Divine or someone, and we're not sure of the other," Lou said. "You broke my pencil." "Lou, your 3 o'clock is in conference room C," the secretary said. "All right. If you gentleman will excuse me, I will see you soon." "Bye Lou." "You broke my poor, defenseless pencil." "Bye boys...oh, Lance, I need to talk to you quick." Chris picked up his broken pencil and tried to fit the pieces back together. "You broke my pencil. What did we ever do to you?" he said. "You murderer!" he jabbed it towards JC, who just rolled his eyes and watched Lance leave the room. "What'd you need, Lou?" they heard him ask before shutting the door. They could still see him through the glass, but they couldn't hear. "Is this about the whole Danielle thing? I really don't think it's fair of you to force me to lie to the fans," Lance said. "Well, you're going to have to go along with it," Lou said, a smirk creeping onto his face. Lance didn't like that smirk. He stepped backwards. "Wait, what do you mean?" he asked warily. "Well, I've gotten it from a good source that says he knows something about you..." Lance's eyes widened. "Oh, I see it's true, he does. But he wouldn't tell me. However, if you oppose me on this, I will approach him and he will tell me." "Wha...Wh...Who told you this?" Lance asked, glancing into the room, where three pairs of eyes were on him. Joey was looking at the wall. "It was Joey, wasn't it? Joey said that." "Oh, you're good. But unless you want to tell me now..." Lance glared at him. "Well, unless you want him to tell me, you're going to go along with me on this. Understood?" Lance bit his lip and nodded. He looked into the room one last time, looking specifically at Joey. Inside, they all gasped at the look of sorrow and the mask of betrayal that Lance sent to Joey. JC jumped up when he saw Lance push past Lou and run down the hallway. "Joey, you can't tell me that that wasn't NOTHING," he spat out, leaving the room and slamming the door behind him. "Lou, what did you say?" "What are you talking about?" Lou asked. "You know what I'm talking about. What the hell did you say to Lance to make him run down the hallway?" "Oh, that," Lou said. "Oh, I merely told him that someone had told me that they had some information on him that no one else knew. And if he didn't go along with the Danielle issue, that person would told me what they knew. No biggie." "You bastard! Who the hell is it?" JC thought for a second. "It's Joey, isn't it?" "You boys ARE smart. My goodness." "This is blackmail, Lou," JC said furiously. "Don't say it like that, JC. It makes me sound so evil." JC just took off after Lance. He found him at his car, fumbling with the keys. "Lance!" Lance looked up, but ignored JC and went back to his car. "Lance, wait..." He sprinted up and took the keys from Lance. "You don't look like you're in any condition to drive." "Who are you to tell me when I can't drive," Lance mumbled halfheartedly, letting the keys go without a fight. He let JC push him into the passenger side of the car. "I can drive just fine," he muttered to himself. JC put the key in the ignition and drove to Lance's apartment in silence. He pulled up and followed Lance inside. "I don't need you following me," he said, stopping at the door. "But I want to." "Why?" Lance asked, walking into the other room. "What happened?" "Nothing," Lance said glumly. "I don't believe you," JC persisted. "I know Lou's blackmailing you." Lance looked at him in surprise. "Yeah, that's true." JC didn't like the look in his eyes. It was a defeated look. "Because of Joey." Lance's eyes widened in shock. "Wha...how did you...when...what?" "Joey knows something about you, doesn't he?" JC asked. Lance wanted to lie, more than he ever had in his life. Or his afterlife. He wished he could. But he couldn't, not about this. He nodded miserably. "And he's going to tell Lou what it is if you don't go along with whatever he says." Lance nodded again. JC wanted to cry at the look in Lance's eyes now. Dead, almost. He was almost afraid to ask the next question. "What is it?" Lance's eyes widened. "What is what?" "What does Joey kn--" Lance cut him off, he couldn't let him ask or he'd have to tell. "Please don't ask me that, JC," he said. "Why not?" "I can't tell you...please, just don't ask me that." "But I wanna kn--" "Please, I'm begging you, JC, don't ask me that. It's nothing bad, I'm not on drugs or anything like that, but please, don't...I can't tell you." "Lance, what is it that you could tell Joey, but not m--" "He found out," Lance said. "That's all I can say, really, please..." "Lance..." "Please, Josh," he said, looking into JC's eyes. "Please don't make me answer that." He stared at JC. "Please," he whispered one more time. JC looked back into Lance's eyes. He was entranced. It was almost like they were looking into his soul. "I don't..." he trailed off. "I won't ask," he finally sighed out. Lance instantly stepped forward and hugged him. "Thank you so much," he said. "You'll find out eventually, probably, but I just...I can't. Do you believe me?" "Yeah," JC said, looking at the floor. Lance felt like crying. "I'm so sorry, JC...but..." "That's okay, Lance. Some things just aren't meant to be shared." Lance bit his lip and nodded. "Look," JC said, looking up. "I'm gonna go back to Justin's...I am so mad at Joey right now," he muttered, turning away. "Wait." JC stopped. "What?" "Don't be mad at Joey, please? He's just...um..." "What, Lance? He betrayed you, he and Lou are blackmailing you and you don't want me to be mad at him?" "JC...just...don't hurt him, okay?" JC managed a tiny smile. "Sure Scoop. I'll try."