SOMETHING THERE IS ABOUT YOU

They made such a seamless transition from best friends to lovers Joey doesn't remember where the one ended and the other began. He can't pinpoint when they went from hugging too much and then kissing once a while and to having sex all the time and Lance says, "I love you," and Joey says it back. That simple. Joey thinks it's maybe a record.

Lance wants to tell the guys. He says it's important they know. Joey thinks the guys already know even if Joey and Lance were pretty discreet. But the guys can tell. Joey says, "I don't think we need to."

Lance says, "It matters to me." He doesn't smile. "I think it matters, that we say this is real."

Joey says, "It's real, it's real. It's great."

Lance clenches his jaw and Joey feels suddenly cold. Lance says, "I get that. But, I want you to say it's real. Because I think. I want you to say it's real to other people. I'd feel better about this if you said it and if you stopped fucking girls every other night."

Joey says, "Oh." The problem with the effortless, almost un-noticed change from best friends to lovers. Joey kept realizing over and over again he was in a relationship now.

It sounds stupid, even to Joey. He blames it on inertia, anyway. He'd been friends with Lance for so long and slept around and told Lance about it all the time. Things were settled like that. Then Lance became someone he was sleeping with without Joey noticing the force that had set everything in motion. He's stopped telling Lance, but he hasn't stopped fucking around.

He doesn't say that to Lance. He says, "I'm sorry."

Lance says, "Okay. I want, I want you to stop, okay? I think. I think we've been doing this long enough. I want you to stop. And I want to tell the guys. We're together."

They are. Joey believes that. Fuck inertia.

Lance invites the guys over to his place for dinner. Joey stands right next to Lance while they each cook parts of the meal. He puts his hand on Lance's waist and they kiss. Perfect. Lance is pretty much perfect. He's hot and funny and he can do anything.

Chris and JC arrive at the same time, and Justin arrives just a minute later. Lance has everyone sit down and he serves the salad and soup before he says anything. "So, I guess you're all wondering why I called you here." Lance snickers. "Okay, I had to say that. I just. I wanted you all to know that, uh, Joey and I are together."

JC smiles first and says, "Oh, that's so great. Good for you guys."

Justin smiles slowly and says, "Yeah, good for you."

Chris doesn't say anything at first. Lance sighs. Joey says, "Chris, you got something to say?"

Chris says, "Good for you, Joey. You snagged yourself a good one."

Joey says, "Couldn't you guys already tell?" He thinks it must be obvious, they're so happy. Joey is really happy.

JC keeps his smile in place but Joey knows him and he sees the effort. Justin sucks at lying and he suddenly becomes very interested in his food. Even though it's just salad and Justin doesn't like salads. Chris swallows and says, "I could tell you guys were fucking, yeah."

Lance stands up. "I'm gonna go get the next course. While I'm gone, y'all can say what you really feel to Joey. Then later, Joey will get the dessert and y'all can say what you really feel to me." He walks to the kitchen.

Chris says quietly, "I didn't quite notice you were with Lance when you were taking that girl home two weeks ago."

Justin rubs his eyes. "I just think, maybe."

Joey sighs. "Look, I get it. I'm changing my ways. I have changed. I'm with Lance, now, okay? Could you guys, like, pretend to be happy and then you'll see you don't have to. It won't be pretending."

JC nods and smiles. Chris looks away. Dinner is awkward and Joey feels like fucking fool. His fault. His motherfucking fault.

In bed, Lance says, "Look, I get it. You're gonna change, you already have. Give 'em time." Lance makes Joey feel stronger.

It's not hard. Joey has the greatest person ever waiting for him when he gets home. They're out together all the time anyway, and it's always fun. Joey makes Lance laugh and watching him grin makes Joey as happy as he was when Brianna was born.

So he's drunk, a little, and Lance is off having dinner with his mom when he takes the girl to the back room. She's hot. She's really hot and she keeps brushing up against him with her incredible rack. And he's halfway doing it, his fingers inside her when he thinks of Lance. But he's halfway, and he thinks okay, okay. He finishes.

He debates telling Lance. He thinks it's the thing to do, to be honest. He worries Lance will find out anyway, that someone saw him. He won't do it again. He tells Lance and Lance doesn't quite cry. He forgives Joey and Joey swears it will never happen again.

Chris and Justin come by the house to see Brianna. They laugh and Joey thinks everything is a-okay. Because it is and because he has Lance and Brianna.

Justin pulls him aside before he leaves. He says, "You know. I think. I think you can't maybe do this. With Lance, you know. Like, you guys are great friends. You work well that way. But, I think, maybe." Justin looks down.

Joey says, "You and Chris flip a coin to see who got to say that?"

Justin grins for a second and says, "Yeah." Then he stops smiling. "Chris was gonna say it forcefully. But. Look, seriously, we all heard about the girl, man. You're gonna hurt him. And that fucking sucks because we all like you and we like him."

Joey says, "I won't."

Justin says, "Dude, you already have. You, you're like that song. And this'll sound stupid, but okay. Just hear me out. It's, um, like this: ' I could say that I'd be faithful, I could say it in one sweet, easy breath but to you that would be cruelty and to me it surely would be death.' I don't think you'll die, or anything. But I do think. I think you fell into this and you're not committed or anything. Or, maybe, uh, you are and you just haven't really thought that out."

Joey can't think. He can't think about this. It feels like a death knell. But at the same time, how does Justin know anything? How does Justin have some amazing insight? Lance trusts him, that's what counts. Lance knows him best. Joey says, "What do you want me to do, Justin?"

"I think. Chris thinks you should break up with him. Just say you suck and stop before it gets really bad. I think, maybe, just instead, uh, pull back a little. Y'all moved pretty fast there."

"We didn't. We've been best friends for forever, Justin. Since we fucking met. This is just another step." Joey opens the door and waves at it.

Justin sighs. He walks out the door and then he stops. "You can have a lot of friends, Joey, you can only have one boyfriend. Okay?" Joey shuts the door. He knows that. He knows that shit.

He reconsiders that a week later, somewhere around the time he's kissing a pretty girl, a gorgeous girl in the VIP room. He looks up and sees JC staring at him. He pats the girl's hand and gets up. By the time he gets outside to his car, JC is leaning against the car door. JC says, "Joey."

Joey says, "I know. I'm gonna talk to him. I'm gonna. I'll tell him, don't worry."

JC sighs and says, "Joey. Maybe it was just a bad idea. Maybe you're just, you know, not ready."

Joey says, "Okay." He says it loudly and he grabs at the door. JC walks off and doesn't say anything else, not even good bye.

He finds Lance sitting in his living room. Lance looks at him and looks down. "What did you do?"

"I just kissed her." Joey sighs. "I'm sorry."

Lance covers his face. "I can't. I can't do this, Joey."

Joey sits down next to Lance, puts his hand on Lance's knee. "I think. You know, I think maybe I can't. It's not you, okay?"

Lance bats Joey's hand away. "Yeah? Fuck you." He stands up and goes upstairs. He comes back down ten minutes later with a bag, shirts spilling out of it. Lance says, "Don't call me for a few days, okay?"

Joey says, "Okay."

His house is empty and large. Kelly has Brianna, and she's seeing someone new. Joey fucked up, even after being warned, so none of the guys call the first two days. He walks around and thinks about what a fucking idiot he is. He thinks about Justin saying the two of them were better off as friends. He thinks about Lance, naked and smiling and the fierce way he kisses.

He calls Lance after two days. He says, "I'm sorry."

Lance says, "I'm sorry. I never should've kissed you. Or whatever I did. I mean, we shouldn't've even tried. I should have known better. I can't. If you just, if you give me a little more time, we'll be fine. I wasn't, uh. I don't think I believed it would last anyway. Par for the course." Lance sounds drunk.

Joey says, "I thought we would last. I wanted us, too." Joey bites his lip. He tastes blood. "I can give you space, I just. I'm sorry. I wasn't ready. I just wanted to make you happy."

"You shouldn't've said you could do this, then." Lance makes a noise. Joey licks his lip, bites again. Lance says, "Look, it's okay. Sorry. We'll be fine. We weren't even, for that long. It wasn't that important."

Joey says, "Okay," his tongue thick. He just wants Lance to be happy. "Okay, but. It mattered to me."

Lance says "I know" quietly. Lance says, "I'm gonna go now. I'll call the guys, you know? They know, but, um, I'll let them know we're okay."

Joey says "Okay," over and over again, even after he and Lance hang up. He's a shit and a baby. Brianna is smarter than he is.

Inertia, he thinks. He isn't even stronger than inertia.

THE END.

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