"So have you guys banged yet?"

"Fee," River hissed into the phone, her eyes widening in shock. "Oh my God, you can't just ask people stuff like that," she told her younger sister, letting out a laugh of disbelief and looking around as she slipped into the gym, making sure no one could hear their conversation.

"Why not? So have you?"

"Phoenix, I swear to God-"

"C'mon, Riv," Phoenix tutted on the other end. "He's hot, you're hot – in a totally non-incestuous way, obviously. You get all sweaty together on stage – don't think I missed your little performance the other night. Chris and I threw a HBO party and everyone was glued to the screen whenever you came on!"

"Everyone?" River raised an eyebrow.

"…Okay, so maybe it was just Chris and I, but we thought you were amazing and obviously we know best. Bugsy was pretty interested in the TV when he saw you, though! I think he misses you," Phoenix told her, poking the sleeping dog with her toe. "He's passed out right now, or I'd let you say hi to him."

"…You really think I did okay?" River asked nervously, biting her bottom lip. She'd never admit it to her brother or sister, but she felt guilty for leaving them at home and running off on tour. She felt like she'd abandoned them.

"You did great, you put Justin Trousersnake to shame. Oh, hey! Ask if he can get me JC's autograph or something!"

"I am not asking him to get his former band mates autograph, Fee. I hardly know him and I don't even know if he still talks to JC. And please don't call him Justin Trousersnake," River cringed. "That conjures up all kinds of images that I really don't need. He's like my boss or whatever."

"You should hook up with him just to let me know whether or not those Trousersnake rumours are true…"

"Phoenix, I am not hooking up with anyone to satisfy your curiosity about idle celebrity gossip. Don't you have homework or something? I want to talk to Chris."

"River, I'm 19. I'm in college. You can't pester me about homework anymore. …I do have a painting I should be getting on with, though… Chris isn't even home right now, he's off harassing – whoops, sorry, dating some girl. I'll tell him to call you when she dumps his ass – oops, I mean, when he gets back from his date."

"You do that," River chuckled. "I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

"Don't even bother calling me back until you've done the dirty with Timberlake."

"Oh, okay, I'll never speak to you again, then," River rolled her eyes. "Later, Fee," she sighed as she hung up the phone and slipped it back into her bag. She quickly threw her hair up into a ponytail and dumped her bag on the floor next to the nearest treadmill.

"Was that your sister?"

"Jesus!" she shrieked when she heard the voice behind, whirling round only to come face to face with a very startled Justin Timberlake, his eyes wide and his hands held up in surrender. "You scared the shit out of me, didn't your mother ever tell you not to sneak up on people?!"

"Sorry," he grinned at her. "In my defence, I wasn't sneaking. I thought you saw me when you came in."

"Obviously not," River laughed weakly. "Sorry, I'm jumpy sometimes. I don't like surprises."

"I'll keep that in mind," Justin smiled at her, leaning against the treadmill and crossing his arms over his chest. "So, was that your sister you were talking to?"

"Uh, yeah," she laughed quietly, keeping her attention on the controls of the treadmill as she set the speed. "She can be, uh, a little forward sometimes."

"So, your sister's called Phoenix?" he asked, and River nodded. "…And, obviously you're called River."

"Yeah, I know, get it over with," River rolled her eyes. "People used to make fun of us all the time when we were in school, my mom was a huge River Phoenix fan, okay? I swear that's the only reason she married my dad." she tutted, and Justin looked at her in confusion. "For his last name, Chambers…? River's character in Stand By Me was called Chris Chambers…? That's why she called my brother Christopher."

"You have an, uhm, interesting mother," Justin stifled a laugh. "She wants JC's autograph, huh?"

"…Exactly how much of my conversation did you hear?" she asked curiously.

"Oh, not much," Justin shrugged his shoulders, turning round as the door opened and sending a small wave to Jenni as she walked in, watching him and River curiously. "But, uh…" Justin started, leaning closer to River until his mouth was right by her ear. "If you ever wanna clear up those rumours, just let me know." he told her. He moved back and bit his lip as River stared at him, her eyes wide in shock. Justin chuckled to himself, before shooting her a smirk as he walked towards the exit. "Think about it, Riv. I'll see you later!" he called over his shoulder as he walked out of the gym, leaving River to stare after him in confusion.

***

"Thank you guys, you've been amazing! Goodnight!"

River ran off stage, as Justin was still saying his goodbyes to the audience, and grabbed the nearest bottle of water, grinning when someone threw a towel at her.

"Thanks!" she called towards the guy - she thought his name was Tommy? She slung the towel around her neck and unscrewed the lid on the bottle of water, gulping it down and trying to get her breathing back to normal, freezing when she felt someone stood close behind her.

"You got some serious moves, babe..."

"Yeah, well, Marty showed me everything, so..." River shrugged her shoulders when Justin spoke. Refusing to turn around and face him, her eyes widened when she felt him wrap an arm around her waist, his hand resting on her toned stomach as he pulled her towards him, her back meeting his chest as he pressed himself against her.

"I mean serious moves, River. Can you feel what you do to me?" he asked in a whisper, causing her to gulp and quickly pull out of his grip.

"Look, I don't - I'm here to work, okay?" she mumbled, finally turning around but still avoiding his gaze and staring at the floor.

"Uh-huh..." he trailed off, looking her up and down biting down on his bottom lip. "Yeah, I get that. So am I."

"Uh... Hey, sorry, I gotta steal River for a second. Y'know, dancer stuff," Jenni interrupted, grabbing hold of River's hand and shrugging her shoulders and Justin, her apology not quite meeting her eyes. "C'mon, Riv," she tugged on her arm and pulled her away from Justin and towards a room she knew was empty, pushing her inside and closing the door behind them. "What the hell is going on with you two?!" she snapped.

"I- what? Nothing!" River shook her head quickly. "Nothing, Jen, I swear, he's just been.. I don't even know, he's acting weird, he said something to me this afternoon in the gym and then tonight he's fucking pressing against me?" she sighed in frustration, running a hand through her hair.

"...How much do you know about Christa, about why she left the tour?" Jenni asked curiously.

"Just what Marty told me - she twisted her knee pretty bad and couldn't finish the rest of the tour. Kinda sucks for her, after all those rehearsals she did she had to leave after two shows?"

"That's the official line..." Jenni sighed, and River looked at her in confusion. "The truth is... She and Justin, they kinda had a thing going. They were sleeping together and they got found out - he had a girlfriend at the time and Christa was engaged for God's sake. So, yeah. They got found out and shit happened, she was made to leave. I.... Justin, apparently he does this a lot, sets his sights on someone on the tour and starts something with them to keep himself entertained until he's back home. You're a good dancer, River. A really good dancer, this could open up all kinds of doors for you."

"Why are you telling me this?" River asked.

"Because," Jenni paused. "I've seen the way he's been looking at you. It seems he wants you to be Christa's replacement in more than just the dancing. Just... Be careful, okay?" Jenni smiled sympathetically before leaving the room, leaving River staring after her in shock.