Sand At The Water's Edge
by northern

Thank you to Kim Gasper for beta.

The story is always the same. In the back of the bus, in hotel rooms with nothing to do, they make their own rules, until things that never would have occurred to them before seem utterly natural.

It starts with simple things. JC putting his head in someone's lap means he wants to be petted. It only feels strange the first time JC comes slithering over the couch and snakes his head under Justin's arm. It's actually nice, Justin thinks, when he gets used to it. It's nothing friends shouldn't be able to share.

JC is a sucker for having his head gently scratched. Justin loves it when he can make JC close his eyes in bliss and tip his head back to give him better access. It feels like he's been given something special. Of course, JC just as often puts his head in the other guys' laps, but it's still special. It makes him feel like they're all of them unique and close.

Which makes it easier for him to start snuggling up, too. The first time he feels a little silly crawling into Joey's lap and burying his face in his neck, but Joey doesn't seem fazed. There is only a small pause before there are strong arms holding him, and he settles in, breathing deeply and closing his eyes. Joey smells so good, and Justin feels completely safe. Almost falls asleep, in fact, and he makes a grumpy noise when Joey moves his arms before he realizes Joey probably has to go. He feels his bottom lip move into a pout as Joey gently pulls his face away, and Joey looks amused and smiles at him, using a finger to tuck his lip right back in again.

When Joey leaves, Justin is still sleepy and goes to snuggle with Lance in his bunk instead. Lance is asleep and only makes a curious "hmm" sound before he slings an arm around him and goes back to sleep, and Justin has someone else to breathe in. Lance smells just as good, but different.

Then after a show, Chris comes out of the shower rolling his shoulders uncomfortably. JC looks up, sees him and waves him over, and it's not long before Chris is lying face down on the thick carpet, JC straddling him and digging his thumbs into his muscles. Chris groans with pleasure as he tries to relax.

Justin comes over to sit by his head and watch JC work. The expression on JC's face is so intent, it's fascinating to watch. He frowns a little over a particularly stubborn knot in Chris's back. When it doesn't give, he asks Justin to make himself useful and bite Chris in the nape of his neck. "Not that hard, just firmly like. He'll relax more."

Justin glances at Chris, who is nodding with his eyes closed, and he does a mental shrug. He puts one hand in Chris's hair and one on his back and bends down and places his teeth around a vertebra in the back of Chris's neck. Chris tenses, and Justin wonders if this is a good idea, but then he tries biting down more firmly, and through the hand resting on Chris's back he can feel the tension draining right out of him as he exhales in a long hiss.

JC makes a pleased sound and resumes his kneading. "Keep doing that, J." Justin sucks a little on Chris's neck to keep from drooling on him, but Chris doesn't seem to mind.

When he snuggles with Chris later that evening, breathing him in, Chris shifts so his neck is closer to Justin's mouth. Justin nudges it with his lips and makes a questioning sound. Chris pushes back against him and Justin throws an arm and a leg over him and bites down. It's easy to get Chris to fall asleep like this. Justin thinks it's soothing, too.

Joey generally likes to be strong for his band mates - be the cheerful one. But once in a while when he's been dumped again he doesn't seem to have the energy for it. Justin sees him lying on the couch with an arm over his face and goes to get Chris. He thinks Chris might know what Joey needs.

He's right. Chris does. He pats Justin reassuringly on the shoulder and pulls him along to sit on the floor next to the couch.

Chris doesn't say anything. Just puts his hand on Joey's cheek and strokes a thumb gently over his lips. Joey doesn't remove the arm lying over his eyes, but he parts his lips a little and Justin sees a glint of slick tongue darting out to lick at Chris's finger.

Chris smiles, glances at Justin and holds out his hand. "Bandanna," he mouths, and Justin is puzzled, but takes off his bandanna and puts it in Chris's hand. He understands more when Chris puts the bandanna over Joey's eyes like a blindfold and guides him to his knees in front of the couch. Chris calmly unbuttons his jeans, which makes Justin a little embarrassed - not because he hasn't seen Chris naked before, but because he suspects what's coming next and feels that he should have known that Joey needed this sometimes.

Chris is half hard when he pulls down his boxers, and rapidly becoming harder as he rubs the head of his cock against Joey's mouth. Justin sees the way Joey opens his mouth, like a little hungry bird. Chris doesn't keep him waiting for long. He guides Joey's hands to his hips and lets about half of his cock disappear between Joey's lips.

Justin is intrigued by the redness and wetness of Joey's lips as they glide on Chris's cock. He watches some more before he puts a hand on Chris's shoulder, silently asking. Chris's eyes are dark with pleasure, but he smiles and gestures towards Justin's crotch. When Justin has pulled down his boxers, Chris pulls out of Joey's mouth and gestures with a "go ahead" sign toward the shining red mouth, open in want. Chris moves Joey's hands onto Justin's hips as they change places and Justin watches Joey lick his lips, entranced while he feels Joey identify him by running his hands over his hips and waist. He steps forward a little more and nudges his cock against Joey's lips. Joey moans, and his tongue comes out to lick all around Justin's cock before he strains his head forward and Justin pushes forward too and his cock slides into Joey's slick mouth. Joey sets up a steady rhythm of in and out, and Justin feels his eyes slide close. Chris puts his arms around him from behind and holds him. Justin closes his hands around Joey's wrists and holds on until he comes. Joey swallows and licks at him while Chris supports him from behind.

Justin can feel Chris's cock pushing insistently into his thigh and gathers himself enough to change places yet again with Chris. He returns Chris's favour and holds him while Joey continues sucking. He even bites down on the back of his neck to make him relax in his arms. Chris comes very soon after that.

Lance likes to be fucked. They all know this. He's always more relaxed when he's had someone in his room, and they can most often hear the sounds he makes through the thin walls. On the tour, he gets tense. There aren't many opportunities to pick up someone Lance is sure will fuck him in the right way.

Justin isn't sure when it starts. He only notices when Lance asks him. He's sure some of the others must have done it for him before, though. It's only natural that they share these things. So when Lance comes around, looking unhappy and tired, pressing against him, he runs a soothing hand over his back and pulls him to the bed. The relief on Lance's face is very clear when Justin undresses him and urges him to lie down.

Lance likes to lie on his front when he's fucked, knees pulled up under him. Justin knows this, just as he knows how to caress Lance's back with long strokes of his hand before he gets out the lube and continues the long stroking with his fingers and his cock. Lance sighs with pleasure and Justin takes care to keep his thrusts even and slow. He keeps one hand on Lance's hip and reaches around to hold Lance's cock with his other hand. No stroking there; just holding. Lance likes it this way. Slow strokes inside of him and an even pressure around his cock until he's coming with a low groan. Lance takes shuddering breaths through the aftershocks of his orgasm as Justin thrusts a few more times, trying not to snap his hips too hard. He lies boneless and relaxed while Justin pulls out and throws the condom away.

Sharing is good for you. So Justin's mother has always told him, and Justin will always be convinced that it's true.

They have their own rules and their own versions of boundaries and sharing makes them grow closer, makes the bond between them grow to something solid that will never be erased. Justin likes how it makes him feel safe. He's sure the others have their own ways of thinking. It's not something he asks about.