“Come on Darcie!” Joey whined, “You’ve moped around the house for three days!”

“Hey, it wasn’t three!” Darcie snapped, “It was two, I went and moped around the mall yesterday.”

Joey rolled his eyes, “Come on, it’s tradition. We always go out for one last bar night before we go on tour.”

“Is JC going to be there?”

Joey winced, “It could be a possibility, but he’s going out with Lance tonight since Justin and Chris are still pissed at him.”

Darcie sighed and sat back in the plush leather couch. “I came over to watch movies with you Joe; does it look like I’m club ready?”

“I’ll take you shopping.” Joey offered.

“Joey I don’t need clothes.” Darcie sighed.

“Well how about I take you over to Susan’s and get you an update on your hair.” Joey said, “I know that you’ve been looking for a new style. How about a new color, maybe some extensions to spice up the length.”

Darcie laughed, “Okay, okay, I’ll go with you to Susan’s.”

“And then we’ll go shopping?”

Darcie rolled her eyes, “If I didn’t know any better I’d say that you were doing this so that you could make me look hott for JC.”

Joey scoffed and pulled her to her feet, “I’m making you hott for me.”

“Yeah, you’re funny.” Darcie muttered.

~ * ~

Darcie stared at her nails as Joey went to collect Chris from his house. She could hear the two of them arguing and looked up as they drew closer. Joey had parked away from the light so that Chris wouldn’t see Darcie’s hair until he opened the car door.

Chris wasn’t paying attention to the fact that Darcie was sitting in the back seat so he flung the door open to the back instead of the empty front passenger seat. Chris turned to climb in and screamed as he spotted Darcie’s new hair color.

“Well hello.” Darcie said, smirking at him.

Chris spun and glared at Joey, “What did you do?”

“I did nothing.” Joey sighed, “Susan technically did it.”

Chris looked at Darcie as she climbed out of the car. “Well at least you didn’t take her to get something pierced.”

“I tried, but he wouldn’t let me.” Darcie pouted as she climbed back into the front passenger seat, “Come on, Ami and Justin will be waiting and apparently Trace is coming along and I can’t wait to see the short shit again.

 ~ * ~  

Trace stared at Justin in amazement, "You're telling me that both Wade and JC pissed the incredible duo off and lived to tell the tale?"
 
"I knew there was a reason I tolerated you Trace." Darcie teased from Chris's lap.
 
"Tolerated me?" Trace scoffed playfully, "You know you want this."
 
Darcie took a sip of her beer and rolled her eyes, "Oh yeah Trace, you're such a sexy bitch."
 
"I can take you to places you've never been."

"Universal?"
 
"You've never been to Universal?" Chris asked in surprise.
 
"Not here." Darcie told him, "I prefer Disneyworld."
 
"Asshole alert." Ami said suddenly, diverting everyone’s attention to the entrance of the VIP room.
 
Darcie followed her eyes and saw JC climbing the stairs with Lance, "There's nothing I can do about it, these are his friends too."
 
"There's plenty you can do about it." Ami said, "Kicking him in the balls seems like a good place to start."

"Retract the claws Ami, you promised you'd behave." Justin said.

"That was before I knew that asshole was going to show up." Ami snapped, "Yes JC, I am referring to you!"
 
JC shot Ami a glare and then glanced at Darcie who was perched on Chris's lap, staring back at him. "Thanks so much Lance." He muttered.
 
"I honestly didn't know they'd be here or I wouldn't have suggested it." Lance said. "Look on the bright side; she hasn't rushed over to kick your ass yet."
 
"Darcie hasn't, but Ami looks about ready to come claw my eyes out."
 
Lance rolled his eyes and led JC over to the table, "Evenin', lovely scowl you have on today Aims."
 
"Don't be cute Lance." Ami practically growled.
 
Joey looked back and forth between JC and Darcie, "Come on Lil' Miss, come dance with me."
 
Darcie smiled at Joey gratefully, "You haven't called me that in a long time."
 
She allowed Joey to pull her from Chris's lap and move towards the dance floor. JC sighed and slid into the booth finding himself trapped between Lance and Ami. He scowled and crossed his arms over his chest as everyone looked at him.
 
"Oh believe me, the feeling is more than mutual." Ami snapped.
 
"Ami, enough." Justin told her, putting a hand on her leg.
 
"Oh no, I don't think he's heard nearly enough." Ami said.
 
"Ami please, I came here so that I wouldn't have to think about it alright?" JC sighed.
 
"Really, well maybe you should take a good look out on the dance floor." Ami snapped, "See that lovely fake smile on her face?"
 
"She's laughing."
 
"Of course she's laughing, she's with Joey, Joey can always make her laugh, just like Chris can always make her smile, Justin can always make her flirt, Lance can always make her feel gorgeous, and just how you used to always make her feel loved." Ami snapped, "Way to fuck it up moron."

Justin barely got out of the way as she shoved past him and out of the booth. "Gee Aims; tell me how you really fucking feel!"
 
The rest of the men groaned at JC's outburst and Ami spun on her heel. Justin shoved at Trace, whose legs were blocking him from getting out. "Move man, I know better then to try and stop her with that look."
 
"You want to know how I really feel JC." Ami asked her voice calm and even. "When I first met Darcie she hadn't known who you guys were yet. In fact, she was a Backstreet Boy fan. I was the one that saw you perform while I was in Germany, I was the one that introduced her to the music and even though I knew she liked a few songs I couldn't convert her. 
 
"It wasn't until Chris met her and basically converted her that she started liking you guys, and that was only because of Chris and his voice. Now just before the end of the year in grade ten she disappeared and went on tour with you guys because, well, her home life was shit. She stayed on tour until the end of it and then stayed in Orlando for another three weeks because Chris didn't want her to leave and deal with that shit. So I saw her at the beginning of the New Year in her Grade eleven year. I had missed her birthday and Christmas because of you five and I was bitter about it until I saw her."
 
"Aims, does this have a point?"
 
"Shove it Justin." Ami snapped. "You see when she got back she was glowing and I knew it wasn't just because of Chris. She started telling me stories, showed me the photo albums hell she took me home with her at lunch time so that I could see the dog that you insisted the five of you get for her. Every picture of you two I could see the mutual respect and adoration that you two shared, but of course you had opened your big fat mouth and ruined it.
 
"See back then you told her that you thought of her as only a little sister, which was bullshit to even me. You said it because you were scared. Now you don't have the balls to put in an effort to apologize to her and make her listen to you."
 
All five men were staring at her now and she shoved her hair out of her face and walked away, "Remind me to never piss her off." Trace muttered.

"She's still a pussy cat compared to Darcie." JC muttered.
 
"Yeah, I gotta admit that you two just don't make sense." Trace sighed.
 
"What do you mean?"
 
"Look at Darcie." Trace said, motioning to the dance floor, "Her hair, her clothes, her attitude, she's more of a spazz then you."

JC frowned, "What about her hair?" 
 
"You didn't notice that her and Joey shared a bottle of color?" Chris asked, "You can spot the kids head a mile away."

JC looked out onto the dance floor and studied Darcie as Joey spun her around. Her hair was definitely brighter red, matching the tips of Joey's head perfectly.  "How long did it take her to convince Susan to do it?" 
 
"Hardly any time at all." Chris told him, "And you'll notice it's a bit longer too thanks to the extensions that Susan put in." 
 
"Why did she do all that?" JC asked.
 
Chris shrugged, "It's what happens when she gets upset, she changes something about herself. Usually she gets a piercing or a tattoo or a new shirt. I happen to like her hair like that."

JC sighed and watched as Joey turned Darcie, pressing her back to his front, swaying them to the music. Darcie giggled over something he said in her ear and raised a hand up to push at his face. Joey spun Darcie around and dipped her over his arm.
 
"Damn, I never knew she was so bendy." Chris laughed.
 
"I gotta get out of here." JC said suddenly, pushing past Lance.
 
"Think it was the bendy comment?" Chris asked.
 
"I'd say it has more to do with the fact that Joey and Darcie look about ready to make out on the floor." Justin said, causing everyone to look out on the floor.
 
Sure enough Joey had his hand fisted in Darcie's hair, pulling her head back. Darcie's eyes were closed and she was gripping Joey's shirt and from where everyone was seated it looked like Joey was kissing her neck.

"They aren't doing anything." Ami said as she returned.
 
"How do you know that?" Justin demanded, "Look at them!"
 
"I can see perfectly well Fro-head." Ami said, "But if you would notice the chick that's circling them, eyeing Joey like a piece of meat you would know they are putting on a show. Because believe me, if Joey was doing anything to D's neck she's be all over him."
 
"So they're just pretending?" Trace asked.
 
"Haven't you ever had to save a friend from a handsy male?" Ami asked, "That's what Darcie is doing."
 
"Then why does she look like that?" Justin asked.
 
"Trust me if she was enjoying it, she wouldn't have just done that." She said as Darcie slammed her foot down on Joey's. "Now if you'll excuse me."
 
"Where are you going?" Justin asked, catching her by the belt.
 
"I'm going to go see to JC." Ami said.
 
"Play nice." Chris warned.
 
"I always play nice." Ami muttered.  

~ * ~

JC walked inside his house and went directly to the couch to lie down. Lance had convinced him that he needed to go out and get his mind off everything, and since Lance seemed to bed the only one not angry with him, he had agreed to go. When they climbed the stairs to the VIP and spotted their friends, he had been fine with the fact that Darcie was there.

Unfortunately she had looked at him and he could see just how upset and hurt she was through her eyes, even if he pretended it wasn’t there. When Joey had taken her away to dance, JC had known Ami would be the one to start in on him. For the most part he accepted that he deserved what she said to him and it wasn’t until he spotted Joey and Darcie on the dance floor, their faces so close that at first he thought they were kissing, that he had to leave.

He knew that there was nothing between them, but his heart had felt like someone clutched it in a vice when he spotted them. He had gotten out of there as fast as he could, avoiding a woman at the entrance who asked him for his autograph and hopped into the first cab he saw.

The buzzer at the gate of his house rang through the empty house, interrupting his thoughts. At first he ignored it, thinking it was probably just some fans trying to find out if the house belonged to someone famous, but he finally got annoyed enough and pushed the button for the gate to open. At that point, he couldn’t bring himself to care who it was, and went back to his couch to lay down. Only when the door slammed open did he sit up.

“Well hello to you too ass.” Ami said, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Didn’t get enough of yelling at me back at the club?” JC asked, lying back down.

“Well yes, but then I remembered that I had something to show you since it became apparent after a few days that you weren’t going to be pulling your head out of your ass any time soon.” She said, pushing his feet off the couch so she could sit down.

“What are you talking about?” JC asked her, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“I thought you’d never ask, now pay attention I had to deal with Justin whining about his car before I left.” Ami said as she stood to slide a tape into his VCR.

JC groaned but complied, sitting up when she shot him a look. At first the screen was blurry before it focused in on someone’s running shoes.

“Are you sure it’s recording?” Joey asked.  

“Yes, the red light is on, therefore you must have pressed the red button.” Came a much younger sounding Justin which only started an argument between the two boys. “Darcie! Joey broke the camera!”  

“No he didn’t, he’s recording his shoes.” Came Darcie’s voice and the camera lifted for a close up of her face. She quickly ducked out of the way of the camera cursing. “Damn it Joey, you know I hate being on film.”  

The camera panned over to JC who is watching the scene in front of him rather intently. “Say hi to the folks at home Josh.” Joey called over. “JC!”  He called again when JC didn’t respond.  

“Huh? Oh, hey everyone at home.” JC said waving. “Darcie! Come here for a sec.”  

Darcie could be seen at the far edge of the screen, hiding from the camera. JC reached forward and pulled her, shrieking in front of the camera. Chris laughed and waved to the camera when it turned on him.  

Ami paused the tape. “Do you understand what I’m getting at? Or do you need to see more?” She asked him.

When JC gave no response she once again pressed play, allowing the tape to resume.

“For those just tuning in, it is 9:15 in the morning, and we are currently in Rome.” Joey’s voice was once again coming from behind the camera. “Here we see the monster that is Justin Timberlake first thing in the morning.” Justin gave Joey the finger before once again putting his head on Darcie’s shoulder.   

“Now what would your mother say about that?” Lance asked from the other side of Darcie.  

Darcie’s head was tilted and resting on Lance’s. “What am I, the Human pillow?”   

The camera cut for a brief moment and an immediate shot of the underside of Darcie’s face appeared on the screen.   

“Very funny Joey, is my nose clean? I’d hate for your families to be seeing me with a whole load of snot in my nose.”  

Joey laughed. “Hey, at least you’re letting me film you now!”  Darcie rolled her eyes and covered the lens with her hand.   

The screen went black before once again coming back into focus. This time they were all standing in a fountain posing for a picture that Lance’s mom was taking of them. Moments later the scene erupted into chaos as Darcie and Chris started throwing water at each other.  

Lance had managed to escape only to be knocked back in by Darcie who began to run around the fountain screaming as JC started to chase her, joined quickly by Lance and Joey. Whoever was holding the camera began to chuckle as JC tackled her into the water.   

JC moved to say something but Ami shushed him and pressed the fast forward button, reaching a shot of them leaving a radio interview. The girls and Joey’s brother Steve had joined them, and about a thousand fans had shown up to show their support.

 “Ami, Darcie what did you guys think of the interview?” Steve asked.  

“Awful.” Ami said.  

“Horrible. It made me want to throw up.” Darcie added with a grin. “Wait, are we talking about the interview or the actions of those who attend?”  

Ami rolled her eyes at her friend’s humor as the guys began to climb into the van that would bring them home. JC squeezed himself between the girls and grabbed Darcie so that she was resting against his side. His lips were pressed to her temple and Darcie’s hand was resting over his heart, the two of them wearing matching looks of content.  

Ami stopped the movie and turned back to JC. “Fight for her JC, don’t let her get away from you.”

“She wants nothing to do with me.”

“Right.” Ami muttered, rolling her eyes, “And the sky is purple. Do you want to be with her?”

“Of course I do!”

“Then you need to fight for her and tell her you love her.”