"Five minutes guys," the sound crew advised, causing Tim to come out of his thoughts of everything that happened the past few days. He was having serious doubts if he could carry through everything that Chance had asked him. He wanted to help in anyway possible but to be solely responsible for someone else, he just didn't know if he could do it, again.

"Hey, you ok" Austin asked as he noticed Tim seemed preoccupied. "Yeah, why" he replied.

"Because you have adjusted your mic about a thousand times in the past five minutes. Something bothering you?"  

"Naw, I'm good, " Tim answered as he walked towards the door.

Austin knew something wasn't right and decided not to press him on it. He knew that everything going on with Chance the past few days had him, had all of them, more concerned than ever. Hopefully they could get him into the doctor when they get to North Carolina next week.

Chance walked out on stage with the other guys, despite the pain in his head he was determined not to let them or the fans down.  He appreciated how they had gone out of their way to rearrange the set and choreography to accommodate him. 'Lord, don't let me forget anything or screw up' he thought to himself as the lights on the stage came on and the crowd cheered.

Tim kept a close on eye Chance, something was different about him. He was relaxed, enjoying the performance like he used to. 'It's as if a weight has been lifted' Tim thought as he watched him interact with the audience. He knew then he had to follow through with everything that Chance had asked of him.

****

Back at the bus the guys were hanging out in the lounge having a few drinks. "Great show tonight guys" Chance told them as he opened a bottle of water.

"How you feeling" Rob asked noticing he had his medication in his hand as well.

"Actually a bit better tonight. I mean not totally pain free, but it's been a good night" he answered before popping the pills in his mouth "I'm going to head to my bunk though to wind down and hopefully get some decent sleep" he told them as he slipped the pill bottle in his pocket.

"Decent sleep on a tour bus, good luck with that "Austin chuckled as he plopped down next to Tim and popped open a beer. Rob, Nate and Adam laughed a bit and nodded at his comment. Tim sat silently with his head back against the couch, his eyes closed while the guys carried on for about an hour or so before each headed to their bunks, except for Austin.

"Tim" he whispered " you asleep?"

"How could anyone sleep with the racket you guys were making" he grunted in response.

"Ok, what's up with you. You've been 'out of it' all night. You're never this quiet and you didn't have one drink" Austin replied.

Tim pinched the bridge of his nose as he sat up then leaned forward " just, have a lot on my mind".

"I figured that, anything you want to share" Austin asked as he finished off his beer.

Tim wanted to but didn't feel right in telling anyone what Chance had asked of him, feeling if anyone should tell them it should be him. "I'm good kid, get some sleep" he told him as he stood and headed to the bathroom. 

Tim stood in front of the mirror, looking into his own eyes in the reflection. "Damn it, it's your turn to 'Man Up'. You can handle this, you've dealt with it before. This time is different" he told himself. He took out his contacts, grabbed his glasses and headed to his bunk but not before stopping in front of Chances' to be sure he was alright. He peeked in to see he was sound asleep with a book he'd been reading still open on his chest. Tim closed the book and placed it on the nearby shelf. Chance stirred a bit, repositioning himself without waking up. Tim slowly backed away. "Is he asleep, Timmy" Austin whispered. "Yeah" he answered as he crawled into his own bunk. "Good, he needs to rest" Austin replied. "We all do" said Tim.