Leslie sat in a corner backstage at the Ice Palace arena in Tampa, FL as she heard the guys all saying their good-byes and thank-yous. She stood up as she saw them all run back there, covered in sweat. She looked up as Nick ran right past her. She put her head back down and walked back to her chair. A few minutes later she was told to move by a security guard, “But sir I’m…” She was cut off as the man took the chair and walked away. Leslie mumbled to herself , “ I’m just Nick’s girlfriend.” She took a deep sigh and went to find Nick. They had been dating for just a short time, but she had known Nick all her life.
The two of them grew up together back in Ruskin, FL. During the summer they would spend all day running in the fields, plaing by the creeks, and fishing by the lakes. They would go swimming and see who could hold their breath the longest under the water. They would then go to their tree…a large weeping willow. They would watch the sun set together. At night they would chase fire flies until they were exhausted. They would go to one of their houses and fall asleep together. They were perfect for each other, best friends. They had even made themselves blood brother and sister when they were 6 year sold.
One night, when they were both 11, Nick and Leslie took a picture of themselves and wrote a note. It stated that they were best friends and it would stay that way forever, no matter what. They buried everything in Nick’s back yard and there it stayed…until a few months ago that is.
There was a pool being built at the Carter’s old house back in Ruskin. The new owners had found the box w/ the letter and their daughter had recognized Nick. They made sure that the box had gotten back to Nick. When Nick got the things, he took out the picture and read the letter. He realized that he hadn’t seen Leslie since he was 13…since he had become famous. He found out where she was and called her up. The two met that weekend while Nick was at home on vacation. They spent the day together. The two went out for lunch. Of course Nick was recognized and spent a lot of time signing autographs and smiling for pictures. He loved the attention though. Nick was having a great time, but he noticed that Leslie hadn’t once smiled. She seemed distant. When sked her what was wrong…she told him, everything…..
“Nick when you left…I was heart broken. You were my best friend Nick. You were the boy next door…your were the one I counted on. I thought that we were gonna be together forever. You were the first person I thought of in the morning…and the last person I thought about at night. Well, all of that has changed…all except the thinking about you part. Nick…a day hasn’t gone by in these past seven years that I didn’t think about you. Sure I saw you on tv, but Nick it wasn’t the same. I couldn’t sleep for months. It was hard not having you there to curl up next to. Nick…did you know how much I cared about you? How much I….loved you.” Leslie began to cry. “Nick you just left…you didn’t say a word, and I knew that you had forgotten all about me. Sure you had thousand of girls screaming your name every night. You had millions of dollars and your face on every tv show and magazine in the world…but do you know what I had? I had a picture of you and I. That’s all Nick. I cried for days after you left. And the thing was…even when you were on breaks, and here…you never thought to even call me Nick. That’s what hurt most of all. And now, I get a call from you out of the blue. Well, I was happy…but then I started thinking. Why now? Why now Nick after seven years? So, I’m sorry if I’m not screaming your name right now or fainting because you’re talking to me. I know the real Nick Carter…and when he comes back home, tell him to give me a call.”