Chapter Fifteen

The jello was green. A little too green.

He sniffed it...glue?

Justin let out a disgusted groan, and placed his plate of gelatin ever so carefully in his bedpan, reminding himself not to use it until his nurse came to clean it out.

"You know...you could have just waited for somebody to throw it away for you."

He looked up, to see his best friend leaning against the doorframe. Trace was smiling, but he could tell that it was forced. "But Trace," Justin smiled. "I was saving it for you."

"Aww babe," Trace cooed, sarcastically. "You shouldn't have." He slowly walked into the room, pushing the door closed. He sucked in a breath, as he noticed the various tubes and wires running in and out of Justin's body. "You all right?"

Justin glanced around him. "By the looks of all these wires and junk, I think I'm at about a medium level of alrightness. It seems, the more wires they run into you, the more intense your disease is. So far my tally is up to six, but you never know what the coming hours will bring. Trace, I think you should start a tally...you know," he paused and winked, "just in case I lose count."

Trace forced a laugh, and pulled a chair over to Justin's bedside. "J...why didn't you tell me you were this sick?"

His smile faded. "I didn't know how to tell you."

"You told Dru." Trace nodded, rubbing his hands together.

He shook his head. "No, Dru found out on her own."

Trace was confused. "How?"

"She sorta...walked into it." Justin snickered. "I didn't want her to say anything so I gave her a hotel room. But she's really great Trace. Much different..."

"Justin!" Trace interrupted. "You paid her off!"

"Well I didn't really pay her off...I just gave her a place to stay." Justin provided. "There's a difference."

Trace was silent for a moment. "You could have died."

Justin smiled. "The Great Timberlake will never..."

"Justin," Trace cut him off. "The doctor told us that you almost died."

He swallowed, wincing as he did so. "Oh."

"I called your Mom." Trace nodded. "She nearly went into cardiac arrest."

"Trace!" Justin whined. "Why'd you call 'er? She's going to be a mess by the time she gets here."

"Why did I call her?" Trace pondered, stroking his chin. "That's a tough one." He rolled his eyes.

"What about Johnny? What about the charity? Do they know?"

"Johnny knows." He nodded. "And I'm sure he's contacted those board members by now."

"No." Justin muttered, trying to rip the tubes out of his arms. "No, no...."

"J," Trace said softly, gripping his friends arm before he could do any real damage.

"No. This can't be happening." Justin sobbed. After a moment, he looked his friend in the face again, with tearfilled eyes. "Trace...I'm not going to make it, am I?"

Trace sucked in a painful breath. "Don't you ever say that." He said harshly. "Ever."

Justin squeezed his eyes shut, hoping that when he opened them again he would be back in his hotel room, with Dru sleeping at his side....

His eyes snapped open...

Dru.

"Where is she?" He blurted out suddenly.

Trace was confused. "Who?"

"Dru."

Trace scowled. "In the hallway, probably trying to figure out a way to keep herself from getting tossed back into the street."

"I need to talk to her."

Trace let out an annoyed chuckle. "You don't need to talk to her."

"Dammit Trace!" Justin hollered. "You don't know what I need."

"Oh." He whispered, hurt. He sucked in a breath, trying to hide the pained expression that was trying to break out across his face.

Justin shook his head. "I didn't mean that."

"I'll go get her then." Trace whispered.

"I'm sorry Tray." Justin said softly.

He simply nodded, knowing that Justin really hadn't meant what he said. He swung open the door and stepped out of the room, not saying another word.
***************************
"He wants you..."

Thats what Trace had said. But she couldn't make herself go into his room. She had done the unforgivable. She had...revealed his secret. They had made a deal, and she had stabbed him in the back. Now, he wanted to see her...

Probably to tell her to get her stuff and get out.

Figuring it didn't make sense to prolong Justin's rage any longer, she pushed the door open and quietly slipped inside.

"Oooooooooooooooooooooooooo who lives in a pineapple under the sea..." The televison blared loudly.

"Spongebob Squarepants!" Justin chimed in, excitedly.

Dru couldn't help herself. She burst into a fit of hysterics.

The television's volume lowered considerably. "Hi."

Her laughter ceased. She stared at him. There were so many tubes... "Hi." She murmured.

He shifted over slightly and patted the empty spot beside him, motioning her to fill it. "Do you like Spongebob Squarepants?"

She slowly approached his bed, and sat down, being careful not to touch him in any way. "Who's that?" She questioned.

Justin chuckled, and pointed to the television. "That yellow cheese lookin' guy. Except he isn't cheese...he's a sponge."

Dru stared at the screen, and watched the "cheese lookin' guy" as he talked to a big fat pink guy. She didn't understand the concept of the show. "I guess...if you like it, I like it too." She replied.

"You've never seen it before have you." Justin said, knowingly.
Dru shook her head.

They sat together, and watched until a commercial interrupted their show.

"You know, I don't really think it's all that great after all." Justin confessed, flicking off the tv. "But my brothers are crazy about it, so when I'm home and they're around, that's all I can ever watch." He laughed.

Dru shrugged. "All right." This was it, he was going to throw her out...

"I want to thank you Dru."

Her eyes widened. "Huh?

Justin laughed. "What...did you think I was going to throw you out?"

She shook her head.

He narrowed his eyes at her. "Dru..."

"Yeah I did." She confessed. "And you should. I broke the deal, I told them...."

"Dru, please don't apologize." Justin told her. "What you did...it was the right thing to do."
She was shocked. "I-it was?"

"You practically saved my life." He nodded. "It's time that I got the help that I need. Even if that means I can't work for awhile. I tried being stubborn about all this...and that obviously didn't work."

Dru trembled. "Are you going to be alright?"

Justin shrugged. "Hell if I know." He forced a smile.

"Oh." She wiped a stray tear off of her cheek.

"And about what I said...that we shouldn't have...fooled around." Justin said slowly, caressing her cheek with his palm. "I take it back."

"You do?"

His lips brushed against hers. "I do." He smiled. "And...I want you to come home with me, while I rest."

Her eyes widened. "Come home with you? Where's that?"
His eyes gleamed with excitement. "California."

She didn't smile. Leave New York? The idea scared the hell out of her. "Oh Justin, I...I don't know."

His smile faded. "What'd ya mean you don't know?"

"I've been in New York for so long Justin...I just...going to another place would be like going to another planet...or something."

"You're coming with me." He scowled.

"You don't own me Justin." Dru pointed out. "If I don't want to go, I'm not going to go."

"But you have to." He whined. "You wouldn't even have to do anything...you would just have to be there, that's all...just so my Mother doesn't drive me absolutely crazy."

"Your Mother isn't going to want me around." Dru supplied. "Take Marissa with you. I'm sure she would love to go."

He shook his head. "I don't want Marissa." He whispered.

"You wanted her before."

"True." Justin nodded. "Until I saw you...really saw you...for the first time."

She was confused. "I don't get it."

He took one of her hands in his. "You're special, something has been telling me that from the first time I ever saw you." He nodded. "I don't know what it is...I only know that, when you're around I feel...different. I feel like I can be myself around you. I never act like myself, unless it's just me and Trace. I have to be Justin Timberlake around everybody else. With you I can just be J...you know?"

"I think I get it now." She nodded, amazed that her had the same feelings for he as she had for him.

"Say you'll come then." He pleaded. "I'll never leave you Dru. You'll never have to worry about anything ever again."

She was silent. If she gave into him, her entire life was going to change. She would be living an entirely new lifestyle. One with food, clothes...a roof over her head. Anybody would think she was crazy if she said no. Part of her wanted to jump into his arms and let him take her to that place...but the other part didn't want to trust him. The other part, the abused, molested, torn part of her soul was telling her not to trust him. Men will only hurt you... He will only hurt you...

She shook her head. "I'm sorry Justin," She whimpered. "I just can't." She tore away from him and ran from the room.

"Dru!"
****************************
The next day...

She had slept in the subway station...normal. She was cold again, but it was okay. Being cold was normal too. Gallivanting around with rich and famous celebrites wasn't. No, she didn't belong with Justin...and she never had. If she had simply been in the bathroom earlier than she had been that day, she never would have seen him...she wouldn't have gone to the hotel, and she wouldn't have wound up in the mess she was in now. Was it a mess though? She didn't know, because her entire life was a mess anyway. Maybe the Justin situation wasn't a mess, it was just another heartache to add to the pile. Yes, that's exactly what it was.

All she had to do now, was get her bag. She wanted to leave it behind, but at the same time knew that she couldn't. Every item that she had ever possessed was in that bag...she wasn't about to leave it behind. She nervously approached the hotel, praying that Justin had left already. She didn't want to have to deal with him, because she knew he was going to beg her to stay if she happened to bump into him. She figured that it had only been a day though, so, chances were he was still in the hospital anyway right?

Wrong.

She pushed through the hotel's revolving door into quiet pandemonium. A gaggle of teenage girls stood in a corner of the lobby, blocked in by a beefy security guard. They whimpered and clawed at each other, reminding Dru of mewing, frenzied kittens. It was kind of funny, ridiculous even but the cold, unblinking stare of the guard told her something serious was going on. The girls tear filled gazes were directed toward the young man seated on a cushy beige chair in the middle of the room. He was surrounded by three brawnier bodyguards and a confusion of other people Dru didn't recognize. Well, all except one young man who stood up slowly from a chair near the wall and glared at her. "About time you showed up, Dru." Trace crossed the room, pushed through the guards and placed one hand on Justin's shoulder. Justin turned toward Dru slowly and threw her a goofy grin. "He refused to leave without you."

Dru was speechless.

Justin rose from the chair, causing the three guards surrounding him to snap to full attention. "You left your bag." He said, his eyes full of laughter.

"I...I know that." Dru stuttered.

"Don't you want it?"

Dru nodded.

"Good." Justin said, stealing a quick glance at Trace. "It's on it's way to the airport now, with the rest of my luggage."

Her mouth gaped. He didn't...no...no he didn't.

"Fine, great...everythings dandy." Trace muttered. "Now can we please get the hell out of here before we miss this plane, or before those girls over there push Lonnie over...whichever happens first."

"I'm not going anywhere with you!" Dru hollered. "Just...leave me alone." She tried to leave, but someone grabbed her before she could get more than three steps away from the scene.

"Oh no." Trace said, pulling her back over to where Justin was. "I'm not waiting around for you again. I've got some what of a life too, even if my best friend doesn't think so."

"Trace," Justin spoke up. "I need twenty minutes."

He tightened his grasp on Dru, who was trying desperately to pull away from him. "No way."

"Trace...please." Justin said softly. "Just twenty minutes."

Trace let out a long, aggravated sigh. He reluctantly decided to give in, figuring arguing about the situation with Justin was only going to delay the both of them longer. "Fine." He muttered, "Twenty minutes, I'll be in the car." He handed Dru over to Justin, and walked away.

Dammit...they could have been on the plane an hour ago.

Why? Why did Justin always get his way?
**********************
"Open the damn door!"

"Dru. Dru, come on...would you stop it please? I had Lonnie lock the door all right, it's not gonna open." Justin was seated at the large conference table, his feet resting on the shiny wooden tabletop, his arms crossed. For the past ten minutes, Dru had been banging on the door, hollering for it to be opened, like some kind of caged animal. Justin knew this probably wasn't the best way to get Dru to talk to him, but he felt that he had no other choice. He needed her...yes...he had made that decision the moment she had walked away from him.

But did she need him?

He watched as she continued to bang on the door...this wasn't going as well as he had thought it would. He always tended to forget that she didn't fall for him like all the others.
Maybe...that's why she was so special.

"Justin!" Dru hollered. "Let me out of here...please!"

He got up from the chair, and slowly began to approach her. "Calm down," he whispered. When he was finally close enough, he reached out to touch her. She slunk away from him. "Oh, so I guess you're back to being afraid of me again." He muttered. "This is bullsh*t Dru. We're closer than this and you damn well know we are."

"I don't belong here. I don't belong with you." She sobbed. "I belong out there." Dru pointed to the window. "That's the world I know." She sunk down the the floor and wrapped her arms around her knees.

"Dru." He crouched down to her level. "You don't have to be in that world now or ever again. Don't you see? You deserve so much more. And I...I want to be the one to give it all to you D. All of it, every last detail of it." He nodded. "I...think I love you Dru."

Her eyes widened. "You don't know what you're saying." She whispered. "You can't love me."

He scoffed. "Why the hell not? Dammit D...you're the best thing I have going right now. You...you don't care that I have a million dollars, or that I dated Britney, or that I broke up with Britney...you don't care that Cry Me A River sounds like a f *ckin' breakup song. You just...see me Dru," He paused, and wiped the tears out of his eyes. "You're the only one that can see the real me."

She covered her ears with her hands. "Stop it Justin! Just stop it!"

He pulled her hands down. "Why are you afraid to love me Dru?"

She trembled. "You don't know me."

He gritted his teeth. "You won't let me know you."

"You don't want to know me." She shook her head vigorously. "If you knew me...what I've done...you wouldn't see me like you see me now."

He brought his face close to hers. "Nothing could ever make the vision I have of you change."

She sucked in a breath. "When I was twelve years old, I was a porn model," She stated, looking into his eyes, "And when I was thirteen I became a prositute. It was the only way I could pay for a bed and food. I didn't want to do it, but when you can't read or write there's not much else that a girl can do." She searched his eyes for a response. They bared a sad expression. "Now, do you see why I didn't want to tell you?"

"I don't feel any different toward you." Justin nodded. "It only makes me want to care for you more, to show you how to deal with all of it." He nodded. "Because I'm sure you've been trying to block all of that out."

Her eyes widened. She was shocked that he hadn't ran from the room. Maybe...he really did love her. No, it was too good to be true. Before she had a chance to respond, his lips brushed against hers. Her better judgement didn't want her to accept his kiss...but she couldn't resist. Never had she felt loved, or even wanted by a man before. She had just been a product...an animal...

Justin broke the kiss. "Please say you'll come home with me."

She was afraid to give into him, because she was afraid of the impact that a life changing experience like this would have on her. But if she let him leave without her, she didn't know what she was going to do. She had learned so much about life from him already...she didn't want to lose him now. "All right Justin." Dru nodded. "I'll do it."

He pulled her to her feet, and wrapped his arms around her. "Dru!" He exclaimed as he lifted her up and swung her around. "This so great!"

She smiled. She was happy, but at the same time she was filled with uncertainty.

California...living with Justin..."being" with Justin...starting a new life...

Was it the right thing to do?

Would she be able to make it in his world?

Would he end up hurting her in the end?

There was no time to ask questions...they had a flight to catch.