“Chris, Chris. Wake up. We’re here.” He said softly and touched her arm gently. She stirred a little but then fell back asleep. Nick stared at the peaceful creature that laid beside him. Strangely, he had a sudden urge to kiss her. He leaned over, paused, then continued to lean forward, and kissed her lightly on the cheek. Almost right at that moment, Christina woke up. Nick quickly leaned back in his seat. Embarrassed at what he had done, his cheeks turned to a dark shade of crimson.
“Huh? Are we there already?” Christina asked yawning with one eye open.
“Yeah, we are.” Nick said quickly realizing that Christina was completely oblivious to what he had done.
He and Christina stepped out of the green vehicle and were on the doorstep of the Carter Clan. Before they could even touch the doorbell, they heard a stampede of footsteps inside the mansion. The door burst open and revealed a sweaty Aaron, a shy Angel, and an embarrassed BJ.
“I feel so loved.” Nick commented.
“Actually,” Aaron began, “We all thought it was the pizza man! Nah, just kidding, we’re going out for dinner tonight.”
“So, this is Christina right?” BJ asked eyeing Christina curiously, “Oh, I remember now!” She cried out excitedly, “You were only three when I first and last saw you! Wow, you’re tall. Look at Aaron here, you guys are the same age and you’re already taller than him by… a lot!”
“Hey! No fair! No commenting on my height!” Aaron argued as they all went inside the huge mansion.
“Who’s here BJ?” A voice called down from above.
“It’s Nick and Chris!” BJ replied.
Loud footsteps could be heard from up above. All of a sudden, Mrs. Carter could be seen running down the stairs.
“Oh my! Christina, is it you?”
“Uh… yeah.” Christina replied unsure what to do. Mrs. Carter walked quickly towards her and hugged her.
“It’s so good to see you! I haven’t seen you for 9 years nearly! And now look at you.” She held her arms out in order to have a good look at her. “Oh my gosh! You’re taller than Aaron by so much!”
“Thanks for that compliment mom.” Aaron said sarcastically. He eyed Christina, “She’s not taller than me that much.” He crossed his arms and walked away.
“Don’t mind him,” Jane reassured Christina, “He’s always like that. Why don’t you, Leslie, BJ, and Angel just enjoy yourselves, and let the two brothers hang out? We’re not going to be leaving for dinner yet.”
“Okay mom, I’ll bring her upstairs. I think Leslie’s in her room.” BJ said. She grabbed Christina’s and Angel’s arm and ran up the carpeted spiral staircase.
* * *
Nick sat down on the golden sand and stared out at the beach. Strange about how he felt towards Christina, “I just think of her as a sister,” he told himself repeatedly, “How could I, Nick Carter, fall for a girl that’s barely a teenager? Nah, it’s just the hormones. Yeah, that’s it, just the hormones.” He whispered to himself in his mind and believed it for the time being.
Suddenly, someone behind him shouted out, “BOO!” And then there was a pair of hands messing around with his hair.
“Hey!” Nick turned around, half expecting Aaron to be there, instead, there stood Christina.
“Hello!” Christina said cheerfully as she sat down beside Nick. “What’s up? I thought your mom said that you were hanging out with Aaron.”
“I thought you were hanging out with BJ, Leslie, and Angel.”
“I asked you first!”
“Okay, okay. I was bored.”
“Why?” Christina asked with a frown on her face.
“I’m just really tired. What about you? Why are you here?”
“Uh…” Christina thought frantically for an excuse. She actually had came out on purpose. She had wanted to see Nick.
“Hey guys! We’re going out now!” BJ shouted just in time. Christina let out a sigh of relief. The truth was, she didn’t have an excuse to say why she went outside.
“Let’s go.” Christina stood up, dusted off her skirt, and offered her hand to Nick. He took it and she pulled him up.