She had tried to sleep, but her face felt all puffy and her pillow was too hot to be comfortable. She never liked being sent off to bed when people were visiting, she might miss something, and being sick made it that much worse. So she crept down the stairs in her pink fuzzy slippers, and sat quietly on the bottom step. The wall was cool against her cheek and the voices in the room just around the corner made her feel less alone.

"Anyone else want another beer?" She knew that voice, knew them all with her eyes shut after months and months of going to the studio after school. Doing her homework while they talked and sang and argued. Joe's voice was always a little too loud, except when he talked right to her and then it was all soft and kind, like he thought she was still a baby.

"What have we here?" Joe asked, in exactly the tone she hated. "You okay sweetie?"

She turned her face away, pressing her other cheek against the wall, and didn't answer. "Hey Daddy," Joe called out, loudly enough to make her flinch. "I think she needs you."

She wasn't sure whether she was grateful. Dad would help, he'd take care of her, but she was a big girl and she didn't want to need him. And he'd probably just tuck her back into bed with some more cold medicine and she'd never find out what they were talking about.

Dad's cool hand was on her forehead now, pulling her away from the wall, and she looked up at him with her best puppy eyes. "Don't want to sleep, I'm lonely."

"You haven't started coughing again, have you?" he asked, and she shook her head a little, regretting it when it felt like her brains were sloshing against the inside of her head.

"You want to sit with me?"

She nodded carefully and let him pick her up. "You're getting too big for this," he said like he always did, and one day it might be true. But now he was still her Daddy who could carry her forever and that's how it should be. Even though her feet were hanging down below his knees.

"J, I need that chair," he said and she watched as Justin stuck out his lower lip and got slowly out of Dad's favorite chair. If her throat wasn't so scratchy she would have giggled at the way he delayed, blocking Dad from the chair as long as he could. Then they were turning around to sit and she closed her eyes because it made her dizzy.

Soon they were arranged nicely, after Dad's usual jokes about how many elbows she had, and she snuggled into his side and lay her head on his shoulder. Normally she wouldn't want all his friends to see her being all babyish like this, but she was sick and that made it ok.

"I think we need to do some of our solo songs. How many Nsync fans are still out there, compared to people who know us separately?" Justin said, obviously continuing a conversation. So they were still arguing about what to sing on the tour.

"It hasn't been that long," Joe said. "But yeah, maybe we should put in a few, one each or something."

"But what about Lance?" Chris asked. "No solo album, no song?"

That would be bad. If she had to spend months and months living on a bus she at least wanted to hear her Dad singing every night, not just blending in with everyone. "I liked it when Dad sang Justin's song. Everybody was laughing, but I think he sang it better," she said.

They were all very quiet, and she opened her eyes to find them all staring at her. Maybe she shouldn't have said that; Justin didn't like when someone said he wasn't the best.

But then Joe was smiling, and she could feel the laughter shaking Dad's shoulder. "Out of the mouths of babes," his voice rumbled under her head, and she sat up a little more quickly than she should.

"I am not a baby," she said.

"Nah, mami, but you are a babe," JC said and then she did giggle in spite of the sore throat because he talked so funny all the time. "And a smart one, too. I like that, we can make that work."

"A medley of mixed up songs? Just chorus and verse and then we switch off?" Dad asked, and she relaxed against him.

Joe laughed out loud then. "That would be so cool. We get Chris to sing one of Justin's love songs and totally rock out with it. And JC can take one of Chris's really thrashing songs and make it all...JC-ish."

Then they were all talking at once, singing little bits and teasing each other. It was like a good day at the studio and she felt a little thrill at the thought that it was her idea that had them so excited.

Things died down a little after a while and she stretched, restless. Dad looked down at her.

"Sleepy, pumpkin?"

"No, I slept all day."

"You did at that. And missed dinner. Are you hungry?"

She nodded.

"Soup?"

"Chicken with stars?"

"Sure sweetie," he said, and pushed her aside so he could stand. "Anyone else want anything from the kitchen?"

While Dad was taking orders, she shifted around in the chair. It was way too big alone and her head kept flopping over. Probably because she hadn't eaten all day.

Chris noticed her, and came to sit in the chair. She pulled her knees aside so he could fit, and let her head drop onto his shoulder. Just like Dad, only different. Squashier or something.

"How you doing? I've missed you at the studio." She liked the way Chris talked to her, he always treated her like a grownup.

"I'm doing better. I'll probably go back to school on Monday, and that means I can go to the studio after school."

"Cool. I think next week will be our last week for singing. Then the rest of us get a little vacation while the wonder twins get everything all perfect."

"I like the production part," she said. "I like hearing all the stuff JC can do to make it sound different." She looked up to see JC winking at her, and then turned away, blushing. Someone so old shouldn't be so cute, right?

"Maybe your Dad will bring you in for some of it then. That will take a month or so before they have the album finished."

"Making promises for me again?" Dad asked, and there he stood with her mug of soup.

"Always," Chris said, and he held out his hand for the mug of soup.

"What, you get my chair and my kid, and now you want the soup too?"

"The kid comes with the chair, and the soup is for the kid."

"But you broke the rules. No claiming someone's seat when they are getting refreshments for everyone."

"You didn't get me anything." Chris said, and she could tell he was trying not to laugh.

"But I asked, and you didn't want anything. It still counts," Dad said.

They could go on like this all night, and she rolled her eyes as she climbed out of the chair. "Give me my soup," she said, and Dad did.

She set it on the little table, and pointed at Chris. "Now scrunch over and make room." After he moved all the way to one side of the big chair, she turned to Dad.

"Sit," she commanded. He raised one eyebrow at her, so she raised one back at him. He sat, pouting almost as much as Justin had earlier.

They barely fit on the chair, Chris and Dad, but they looked comfy sort of leaning together like that. So she climbed up onto Dad's lap, facing sideways with her legs over Chris, and found her favorite spot against Dad's shoulder.

"Now had me my soup," she said, and Chris made a silly face before he obeyed.

The other guys started laughing then, but she just sipped her soup and smiled. Chris was looking at her, and Dad was looking at Chris. Her headache was almost gone, and she knew that Chris would be there at breakfast next morning. Everything was great.