Chapter 62

Joey waited for an answer. He didn't really get one. "You know who Ja--Lance, is right?" the stranger said.

"The one JC keeps talking about? No, I don't," he said, wondering how the stranger knew anything about a Lance.

"Um..." Joey shifted his weight and scratched his arm. He wasn't sure about what he should say. "Sort of," he finally said. It was true; he knew of a Lance, but he didn't know much about him.

"Well, I don't know him very well," Joey clarified. That was true too; he wasn't sure why he didn't want to lie to this man. "Why? Who are you?"

"You're smart," Nikolas said with a smile. "That's because I'm sort of...higher than he is. I've been there longer, I'm kind of like his boss. Besides, if it wasn't against the rules, he would've been able to talk to you too. But now, there's a problem."

"Exactly." Nikolas shuddered a little. "Do you have any idea what happened? I know he was there today; when Lou was there, that's why he came down here."

"But I wasn't involved," Joey said, slightly confused. "I mean, if..." "I know what you mean. However...James--"

"James is his real name. He goes by Lance...that's a loophole he found. He's not supposed to tell you his real name...so he told you his middle name. But that's what most call him anyway," Nikolas said, a small smile on his face. "Anyway, he has a fondness for all four of you, you and Jos...JC especially."

"That's not...really important right now," Nikolas said hesitantly, and Joey let it slide. Who was he to argue anyway? "But...I know he was there. But what I want to know is did he show himself in the mirror? At all? I know he's been visiting you like that every day, although he's not really supposed to...unless there's trouble, of course, in which case..."

"Then why does he?" Joey asked curiously. "I don't want him in trouble over me or anything, I mean..." he shifted his weight again.

"He likes you," Nikolas said with a smile. "And he's rebellious. More loopholes. Quite a character you've got."

Joey blinked. "Oh. But you wanted to know about the mirror?" Nikolas nodded. "Well...at the end, right before JC fainted, something hit my shoulder."

"I don't know...I thought maybe it could be his arm, or him throwing something at me, but anyway, then the started fighting against something...or someone? I think, I couldn't see anyone else. The he said 'Let go...' I didn't hear it, just saw him mouth it a couple times, then he said 'Tell them bout me if you want' or something."

"I don't know. Then he said 'Let go' again...then he kind of...went limp..." Joey's brow furrowed, reliving it. "And then he disappeared."

Joey frowned in concentration. "Uh uh," he said finally. "That's it. I'm sorry I wasn't very much help..."

"Oh no, no," Nikolas said quickly. "You're the only one that has any idea of what happened. And now I'm pretty sure I do."

The others watched as Joey walked back into the room, his statement distracted. "Hey, man, you all right?" Justin asked.

"Sort of," came the groan from the bed. "Thanks for my little 'conversation,' by the way. If I felt like getting up I'd kill you all. You took advantage of the fact that I talk in my sleep and that's just not cool." Joey looked at him oddly for a second before laughing. "Sure it is."

"Hmm? Oh...it was...well..." Joey shut his eyes. "Well...um...you know...how you all believe in guardian angels, right?" He received a nod from the other three. None of them bothered to mention the fact that Ken was still absent. None of them really cared, actually. "I sort of...well, met mine."

"I kinda...sorta...almost tried to kill myself..." Joey said, putting his hand on his head. He looked down, not wanting to see the looks on his friend's faces. "You remember Lydia?" he asked, directing his question at Chris and JC. They nodded. "It was right after she left me...I was devastated and..." he trailed off and shrugged. "I wasn't thinking clearly." He looked up, but focused on looking at the wall.

"Dude..." Chris started then shook his head and drew in a slightly shaky breath. His voice was full of surprise that the perpetually happy Joey would have actually wanted to kill himself. "I'm...glad you didn't...what happened?"

Joey sighed and closed his eyes. He told them all about how he'd been ready to do it when the guy had appeared behind him, but only in the mirror. Then he told them about how he'd been shaking his head, the hug..."When he hugged me...there was this...warmth...and I could see him in the mirror, ya know..." No one noticed JC's eyes widen at that. Was that...had that been his own angel? Or...

Joey continued. "He's been coming around a lot lately...I don't know why, but well...Nikolas said he was being rebellious..." Joey's eyes became unfocused and he started mumbling to himself.

They all wanted to know who Nikolas was, but held off on asking. "Joey?" Justin asked, trying to get him back on track. "What's his name? Do you know it?"

"Who, the angel?" Justin nodded. "Yeah," Joey said. "It's..." he looked straight at JC "He's been coming around more ever since you started having those dreams...his name..." he stopped and rubbed his eye. "His name is Lance."

"Yeah. He's Lance's...boss and he like...he came and...um." Joey stopped and decided to start again. "Lance was here. Today. When Lou was yelling, when Chris and Ken got into the fight. I saw him in the mirror...and right..." Joey looked back at JC. "Right before you screamed, he disappeared. No one knows where he went."

Lance looked up dumbly, feeling drained, and tried to get up before realizing he couldn't. His wrists were tied and he was tied to...something, and he couldn't move. He heard a snicker and his eyes widened. "We finally caught you," the other hissed. "Tell me, boy, why exactly you decided to keep going back to earth?" Lance remained silent, an icy glare directed towards the voice. He pulled against his bonds but it didn't do any good. "Don't even bother. It'll only drain you more. Because you DO feel drained, don't you, James?"

"Oh, didn't your precious Nikolas tell you? You're one of the innocent ones...one of those that only come around once every few hundred years. And the fact that you're one of the favorites up THERE only makes this little victory sweeter."

Joey started pacing anxiously. "I don't know. All I know is that my angel, Lance, has been showing up like, daily. From what I gathered, he also seems to think that Lou is...bad...or stealing our money or something..." he saw the confused looks on the other's faces and continued. "He thinks we should have JC's uncle look at our contracts, but anyway..."

"I know it does, but that's not the point! The point is he's GONE. Look. Right before JC screamed, he was fighting something. Then he disappears and you, JC, pass out. Doesn't that seem just a bit odd to you? Cause like..." he trailed off, wondering if he really should have told them. The Nikolas guy had said he could, right before he...vanished? So...

"I don't know," Joey sighed. "Just like, a hunch or something. Cause...that Nikolas guy said that even though he's MY guardian, he likes taking care of you three as well."

Joey smiled. "Apparently, Lance likes Ken about as much as we do right now." JC smiled and Chris snorted in laughter. Joey continued. "Then, he said that he pays more attention to me...for obvious reasons, but he also watches JC a lot too, and..."

JC pursed his lips in concentration and then nodded. "Yeah, I remember that. There was no bug there though," he said with a smile.

"No, there wasn't," Joey agreed. "He was sitting on top of the shower." There were a few raised eyebrows, but Joey kept going. "And he got really sad looking when he saw you..." He stopped again, and looked at JC. "And...he seemed REALLY interested in your necklace."


	Inner Reflection \| home back to Sent From Above Chapter 62 Joey waited for an answer. He didn't really get one. "You know who Ja--Lance, is right?" the stranger said. "The one JC keeps talking about? No, I don't," he said, wondering how the stranger knew anything about a Lance. "Yes you do. But that is not the question. The question is do you know someone by the name of Lance?" "Um..." Joey shifted his weight and scratched his arm. He wasn't sure about what he should say. "Sort of," he finally said. It was true; he knew of a Lance, but he didn't know much about him. "Sort of?" the stranger repeated. "Well, I don't know him very well," Joey clarified. That was true too; he wasn't sure why he didn't want to lie to this man. "Why? Who are you?" "A friend...he's an angel, is he not?" Joey was startled. "How did you...what...wait..." The other laughed. "He's your guardian angel. Blond hair, green eyes, rather odd sense of humor?" That was true. "Yeah...but...how did you..." "My name is Nikolas," the man sighed. "I'm another angel." "Why can I see and hear you then?" Joey asked suspiciously, eyes in a squint. "You're smart," Nikolas said with a smile. "That's because I'm sort of...higher than he is. I've been there longer, I'm kind of like his boss. Besides, if it wasn't against the rules, he would've been able to talk to you too. But now, there's a problem." "Something happened to him," Joey finished. "Exactly." Nikolas shuddered a little. "Do you have any idea what happened? I know he was there today; when Lou was there, that's why he came down here." "But I wasn't involved," Joey said, slightly confused. "I mean, if..." "I know what you mean. However...James--" "James?" Joey asked, confused. Weren't they talking about Lance? "James is his real name. He goes by Lance...that's a loophole he found. He's not supposed to tell you his real name...so he told you his middle name. But that's what most call him anyway," Nikolas said, a small smile on his face. "Anyway, he has a fondness for all four of you, you and Jos...JC especially." "Why?" "That's not...really important right now," Nikolas said hesitantly, and Joey let it slide. Who was he to argue anyway? "But...I know he was there. But what I want to know is did he show himself in the mirror? At all? I know he's been visiting you like that every day, although he's not really supposed to...unless there's trouble, of course, in which case..." "Then why does he?" Joey asked curiously. "I don't want him in trouble over me or anything, I mean..." he shifted his weight again. "He likes you," Nikolas said with a smile. "And he's rebellious. More loopholes. Quite a character you've got." Joey blinked. "Oh. But you wanted to know about the mirror?" Nikolas nodded. "Well...at the end, right before JC fainted, something hit my shoulder." "What was it?" "I don't know...I thought maybe it could be his arm, or him throwing something at me, but anyway, then the started fighting against something...or someone? I think, I couldn't see anyone else. The he said 'Let go...' I didn't hear it, just saw him mouth it a couple times, then he said 'Tell them bout me if you want' or something." "To you?" "I don't know. Then he said 'Let go' again...then he kind of...went limp..." Joey's brow furrowed, reliving it. "And then he disappeared." "There's nothing else?" Joey frowned in concentration. "Uh uh," he said finally. "That's it. I'm sorry I wasn't very much help..." "Oh no, no," Nikolas said quickly. "You're the only one that has any idea of what happened. And now I'm pretty sure I do." "Is it bad?" Nikolas looked at him. "Yes." * The others watched as Joey walked back into the room, his statement distracted. "Hey, man, you all right?" Justin asked. "Fine," Joey said. "JC up yet?" "Sort of," came the groan from the bed. "Thanks for my little 'conversation,' by the way. If I felt like getting up I'd kill you all. You took advantage of the fact that I talk in my sleep and that's just not cool." Joey looked at him oddly for a second before laughing. "Sure it is." "So what was that message?" "Hmm? Oh...it was...well..." Joey shut his eyes. "Well...um...you know...how you all believe in guardian angels, right?" He received a nod from the other three. None of them bothered to mention the fact that Ken was still absent. None of them really cared, actually. "I sort of...well, met mine." "You WHAT?" Justin asked incredulously. "What are you talking about? When?" "When?" Joey suddenly looked uncomfortable. He'd never told them this. "The first time? That was when...Itriedtokillmyself." "You WHAT?" Chris asked, eyes wide. "I kinda...sorta...almost tried to kill myself..." Joey said, putting his hand on his head. He looked down, not wanting to see the looks on his friend's faces. "You remember Lydia?" he asked, directing his question at Chris and JC. They nodded. "It was right after she left me...I was devastated and..." he trailed off and shrugged. "I wasn't thinking clearly." He looked up, but focused on looking at the wall. "Dude..." Chris started then shook his head and drew in a slightly shaky breath. His voice was full of surprise that the perpetually happy Joey would have actually wanted to kill himself. "I'm...glad you didn't...what happened?" Joey sighed and closed his eyes. He told them all about how he'd been ready to do it when the guy had appeared behind him, but only in the mirror. Then he told them about how he'd been shaking his head, the hug..."When he hugged me...there was this...warmth...and I could see him in the mirror, ya know..." No one noticed JC's eyes widen at that. Was that...had that been his own angel? Or... Joey continued. "He's been coming around a lot lately...I don't know why, but well...Nikolas said he was being rebellious..." Joey's eyes became unfocused and he started mumbling to himself. They all wanted to know who Nikolas was, but held off on asking. "Joey?" Justin asked, trying to get him back on track. "What's his name? Do you know it?" "Who, the angel?" Justin nodded. "Yeah," Joey said. "It's..." he looked straight at JC "He's been coming around more ever since you started having those dreams...his name..." he stopped and rubbed his eye. "His name is Lance." JC gasped. "What...that could just be...how would I..." "I don't know. But Nikolas is..." "Nikolas? Is that the guy that was here?" Justin asked curiously. "Yeah. He's Lance's...boss and he like...he came and...um." Joey stopped and decided to start again. "Lance was here. Today. When Lou was yelling, when Chris and Ken got into the fight. I saw him in the mirror...and right..." Joey looked back at JC. "Right before you screamed, he disappeared. No one knows where he went." * Lance looked up dumbly, feeling drained, and tried to get up before realizing he couldn't. His wrists were tied and he was tied to...something, and he couldn't move. He heard a snicker and his eyes widened. "We finally caught you," the other hissed. "Tell me, boy, why exactly you decided to keep going back to earth?" Lance remained silent, an icy glare directed towards the voice. He pulled against his bonds but it didn't do any good. "Don't even bother. It'll only drain you more. Because you DO feel drained, don't you, James?" "What do you want?" Lance asked slowly. "Oh, didn't your precious Nikolas tell you? You're one of the innocent ones...one of those that only come around once every few hundred years. And the fact that you're one of the favorites up THERE only makes this little victory sweeter." ***** "What does this have to do with JC?" Justin asked. "I don't understand..." Joey started pacing anxiously. "I don't know. All I know is that my angel, Lance, has been showing up like, daily. From what I gathered, he also seems to think that Lou is...bad...or stealing our money or something..." he saw the confused looks on the other's faces and continued. "He thinks we should have JC's uncle look at our contracts, but anyway..." "An angel told you all this?" Chris asked a little skeptically. "It seems a little far-fetched," Justin pointed out. "I mean...an angel?" "I know it does, but that's not the point! The point is he's GONE. Look. Right before JC screamed, he was fighting something. Then he disappears and you, JC, pass out. Doesn't that seem just a bit odd to you? Cause like..." he trailed off, wondering if he really should have told them. The Nikolas guy had said he could, right before he...vanished? So... "But what does that have to do with me? I don't...I don't get it," JC said, speaking up again. "I don't know," Joey sighed. "Just like, a hunch or something. Cause...that Nikolas guy said that even though he's MY guardian, he likes taking care of you three as well." "Ken?" JC asked, raising an eyebrow. Joey smiled. "Apparently, Lance likes Ken about as much as we do right now." JC smiled and Chris snorted in laughter. Joey continued. "Then, he said that he pays more attention to me...for obvious reasons, but he also watches JC a lot too, and..." JC was silent, a frown of confusion creasing his brow. "And what?" Justin asked. "Well..." Joey stopped. "That one day, you came into the bathroom, JC? When I saw that um...bug..." JC pursed his lips in concentration and then nodded. "Yeah, I remember that. There was no bug there though," he said with a smile. "No, there wasn't," Joey agreed. "He was sitting on top of the shower." There were a few raised eyebrows, but Joey kept going. "And he got really sad looking when he saw you..." He stopped again, and looked at JC. "And...he seemed REALLY interested in your necklace." JC's hand flew to his neck. "You don't think..." he said, tilting his head. "I don't know," Joey said. "I'm just REALLY confused. And I'm scared...for him."