"We do have a lot of catching up to do, but slow down!" He chuckled as she pulled away from him and smiled up at him.
"I swear you've grown!" He laughed more.
"Naw," he insisted looking around the room.
"Geeze, are you obsessed or what?"
She flashed a cheesy smiled and turned away, "kinda."
"Haha," he teased.
"I can't wait for the new album and the BK stuff," she said with joy.
"Oh dear," he rolled his eyes.
"Let's get you settled," Candice grabbed his bag and walked out the door.
"It's gonna be a long night," he mumbled following her.
"The green room!" Candice screamed running down the hall. Nick chuckled and walked behind her.

"Ok so for real, if when you first met me I weighed 200 pounds would you have ever talked to me?"
Nick searched her eyes and smiled. "Probably not, but I would have got to known you."
"I knew it! It's all bout the looks," she declared.
"Hey now, not really. I mean it's-it's," he got lost in his words and just flashed her the Carter smile.
"Nuh hu Carter! That smile don't do crap to me," she laughed pushing him playfully.
"Why not? Aren't you a fan," Nick teased pushing her back.
"Nope Howie's my fave now! Haha!"
"Hey what's wrong with me?"
"I know you," Candice laughed as Nick pushed her off the sofa.
"Dude you're gettin' fat," Nick teased poking her 4 month pregnant stomach.
"Yeah I know! Hopefully my kid won't be as big as you..EVER!"
"Haha," Nick took a bite of his subway. "Do you always eat like this?"
"Nick, I wanna see you not eat or eat like a freaking rabbit for 6, 7 or more years and not be starving for some fast food!"

"Well," Nick stole one of her fries. "I mean you have almost every fast food place layin' on your table," Nick laughed.
"I know, and you haven't touched any of it," Candice rolled her eyes. "Well, with you here I needed to get me some food too, not just for you!" She laughed grabbing his subway just as he was taking a bite.
"You little brat," he called running after her.
"Haha, big ole Nicky can't catch me," she called climbing up the stairs.
"Hey it's not my house, and plus you shouldn't be running," Nick called up the stairway.
"Yes, Mother you've right," Candice came walking down the stairs slowly with her hands behind her back.
"Now where's my food?"
"I gave it to Dakota," Candice burst into laughter and rolled on the floor, Nick just stuck his tongue out and walked away. "Oh Nick I'm sorry," Candice called walking after him. He stopped and turned around.
"You are so mean I never wanna talk to you again and I had a gift for you too," Nick grinned slightly.
"Oh you did," Candice smiled.

"Yeah," he walked up at stairs and grabbed it out of his bag.
"Nick," she started.
"I know, I shouldn't have, but I did." He smiled knowingly and handed her the CD.
"Ohmigod!" She cheered jumping up and down. "Are you for real?"
He smiled and put his arm around her shoulder. "I snagged one for ya. I know you're a big fan."
"Thanks so, so much," she whispered kissing his cheek.
"Anytime, plus I love watching how you react, it's hilarious! You're acting like a 10 year old!"
"Haha, you don't know how many girls would die to be me right now!" Nick's lips formed into a smirk as if to say 'the hell I don't'.

"Name one," Nick challenged.
"Courtney, one of my best friends. She would flip out and probably rape you!" Candice laughed at the thought of her best friend.
"Really now," Nick raised his eyebrows up and down.
"Yes, Nick she would! And I know she would kill me if she knew she missed this," Candice shut her mouth.
"Oh," Nick smiled. "Good friend?"
"Yup, she's like almost my exact same!! She always wins whenever we fight over you," Nick turned red.

"Why I talk to you, I'll never know," Nick teased.
"Cuz you're lookin' for a girl who's down to earth and likes you for the real you, blah blah! If I hear you say that one more time I'm gonna kill you!"
"Sorry geeze..I just think it's important," Nick began to mumble and then stopped and started to laugh, the thought of his best friend and her best friend fighting over him was amazing to him. "How old are you?"
"Twenty, almost twenty-one, why," Candice answered with a cheeky grin.
"Loser," Nick turned away from her and pretended to sulk. "Tomorrow we are SO hitting my pool, it's like 100 plus outside, I'm melting just lookin' out there!"
"It's dark," Nick pointed out.
"Naw shit sherlock," Candice mumbled giving him a hug.
"You're so mean to Nick," he whispered.
"Aww, I know!"
"See if I go swimming with you!"
"Like what else do you have to do, in Missouri?"
"Um," Nick flashed her the Carter smile again and both of them burst out laughing.

"Hey Nick I'm gonna go lay down a bit," she excused herself, so unsure of her own trembling voice. She walked into the house and sighed. She glanced back at her friend who was in the pool playing with her dog. She smiled as she made her way up the stairs and to her room, she left the door open a little just in case someone decided to come up to her room. She didn't want to be caught. She walked into her newly redone bathroom and shut the door, unknown to her, it opened slightly behind her. She lifted up the toilet lid and kneeled down beside it, sticking two fingers down her throat. She could feel the tears well in her eyes. Normal, she thought as the chunks rose up in her throat, tears fell down her face as she threw up, now in her own world.

He followed her slowly, stopping to watch her not shut the bathroom door all the way, he laughed. He stayed outside her room until her heard a gag and a soft sob. He rushed to the bathroom, "what the hell are you doing?" He pushed the door all the way open as she pulled her head out of the toilet.
"Nick I can," he cut her off.
"Why the hell are you doing this Candice? Oh no wait you're fat! Last time I checked you were PREGNANT," Nick was screaming at the top of his lungs.
"You're NOT just hurting yourself anymore, you're hurting Bitsy!" He took of his shirt and sat down next to her and the toilet. She watched him is shock.
"What's so great about it," he screamed sticking his two fingers down his throat.
"Nick!" She pushed him away from the toilet.
"Oh what I can't throw up too! I ate the same fucking this you did!"
"No Nick," he cut her off again.

"People make fun of my weight EVERYDAY! Don't you think it hurts me! It hurts a lot actually! I wanna just change it, but I can't, this is what god gave me and I've learned to live with it." Nick had stopped screaming before he finished and was down to almost a whisper.
"Nick," tears filled her eyes. "You don't understand, sometimes I have to do this. It's like a drug! I can't help it." He wrapped his arms around her lightly and sighed. She pulled away from him and frowned. "Listen Nick Carter I would give a fuck less if you were the King of England! So don't think you understand!"
"I don't understand," Nick stood up and started away looking back at his friend. Hurt filled his whole body. "I don't fucking understand!"
"No, you don't!" Candice screamed. "You have no clue what it's like to be normal, well I guess you've never dealt with real people and I'll tell you right now that smile don't sell those REAL people!" Nick felt more hurt than anything, this was one of his best friends. He understand, she had a hard life, but it was getting better right?
"Nick, look I'm sorry aight? Just I dunno," she stood up and walked into her room and crawled under her covers. Nick frowned over at her. He had come to stay with her for two days, not only not telling anyone, but also risking his safety. All she did was turn her back on him, the hurt he felt in his heart was unlike anything he had ever felt before. Sure, the press criticized, but who cares? Sure the guys teased him, they are his brothers. No one had ever made him feel so bad, he just wanted to cry.

"I love you," he whispered walking out of her room with his head down. He heard her whimper as the door shut, but he couldn't turn back. She sat up in her bed as her eyes welled with tears, she fought them hard.
"Dumbass," she muttered. "Why do you do that, it's Nick, he's never done a thing to you!" He stood behind her door and listened to her talking, obviously to herself. He chuckled and opened her door. "I'm sorry," she smiled. "I never meant to hurt you Nickels, I love you too." Nick smiled, he knew her love for him was no more than friendship and he meant the exact same thing when he said he loved her.
"I'm sorry, too. I shouldn't have snooped in your business. I just care about you."
"Oh," Candice sighed sitting up in her bed. "Where's James?"
"He said he had some work thing up in New York, he should be back in a few days or so."
"Oh," Candice sniffed.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothin'," Candice mumbled crawling back under her covers.

Nick rolled his eyes and sat on the edge of her bed. "No, you can't lie to me, what's wrong? Do you want a song?"
"Naw, it's just James..he's been acting weird," Candice stopped, she didn't want to bug Nick with more of her problems.
"Weird how?"
"Nothin' Nick just..I'm gonna go to bed. G'night," Candice turned away from Nick.
"Fine," Nick stood up.
"He always held me at night," Candice muttered thinking Nick had left.
"Is that what this is about," Nick cocked an eyebrow as she turned around to face him again.
"Nick, I thought you were gone. You don't have to ..I was talking to myself really," Candice mumbled.
"You're right I don't have to, I probably shouldn't. Just cuz ya know." Nick shrugged his shoulders and crawled under her covers and started to giggle.

Candice rolled over and let out an exhausted sigh. "Listen Nick if you want to sleep in MY bed, I have rules! One: No tossing and turning, Two: No smelling bad, and Three: No giggling!" Nick burst out laughing. "What is wrong with you!?"
"I dunno," Nick laughed. "I guess I've never been in a bed with a pregnant women before. It's weird I guess," Nick grinned.
"You're the weird one," Candice hit him with her pillow and turned back to face the wall and not him.
"Now Sleep!"
"Nick no tired," Nick teased.
"Dude, I'll hit you so hard," Candice warned.

"It's true, I mean it, from the bottom of my heart, yeah it's true. Without you I would fall apart." Candice opened her eyes and glanced at the clock next to her bed. Midnight, she smiled rolling over. He was sitting up in bed with a notepad on his knees.
"Sorry," he whispered smiling down at her.
"Naw, it's ok. I need to learn the lyrics to that song anyway," she chuckled.
"Yeah me, too," Nick laughed.
"Why are you awake anyway?"
"Couldn't sleep, when I can't sleep I write or sing." Nick sighed placing the notepad on the night stand next to his side of the bed.
"You must not be able to sleep at all," Candice laughed yawning.
"Yeah I've got a lot on my mind," Nick said simply.
"Like what?"
"Nothin' I want to bother you with," Nick patted her head.

"You bother me?" Candice asked in mock tone. "You can tell me."
"You're right I can, but this is something I need to figure out myself. I'll tell you sometime anyway."
"Fine," Candice crossed her arms over her chest and pretended to pout.
"Brat," Nick hit her arm lightly.
"It's fine really, I'm just playin'," Candice closed her eyes. "Nick will you still sing a song for me," she asked with a yawn.
"Yeah," Nick kissed her forehead.
"How about It's True," Candice mumbled half asleep.
"Aight," Nick sighed.

He walked out of the kitchen licking the syrup off of his lips when he heard yelling coming from the foyer. He slowly made his way as the yelling became more clear.
"What the hell James?" She screamed.
"I never thought, I mean," he stammered.
"Fuck yeah! You don't see me sleepin' with every guy within a twenty mile radius!"
"I know," James looked down and then back up with pouty lips.
"James just leave, I don't want to see your face anymore!" Candice screamed. "You obviously don't see me as anything more then a cheap fuck! Get out!" She spun around and to her surprise was face to face with Nick. "Holy," she screeched.
"Sorry," Nick whimpered turning around and walking away quickly.

"Oh yeah!" James screamed. "If it isn't Mr. 'I can fuck any girl even if she has a boyfriend and a baby'!" Nick turned around, anger filled his whole body. James was OK at first but the minute he got to know him, he turned into a real jackass. Nick wanted to beat the life out of that guy, but stopped dead in his tracks, fists still up in the air he scream, "punkass just leave!"
"You know what fat ass, this is basically my house so you get the hell out!" James screamed stepping up to Nick, who towered over his 5'10" frame. Nick pulled his arm back and punched James square in the face. He fell to the ground, blood poured out of his mouth and nose, "prick."
"Get out!" Candice screamed pushing them both out her door.
"I-I," Nick stammered. Candice shut the door in their face's and ran up to her room.
"Good thing for her, YOU are leaving tonight," James sneered.
"Good thing for YOU she's leaving with me!" James's jaw dropped. Nick didn't know why he had said that, it just slipped out. James stumped off holding his face in his hands. Nick opened her door, luckily for him, she hadn't locked it. He walked into her house and heard soft cries from the kitchen.
"Candi?"
"Nick, why'd you do that?"
"I dunno. I was so pissed, he's been an ass to me ever since day one." Candice looked at him with a questioned look, Nick went on. "He was all I wouldn't be doing this, but Candice deserves better than what she got, better than you."
"I'm sorry," she hugged him lightly.
"I'm fine, he didn't hurt me. He did make me think though."
"I can't believe he said that, he's been acting like a jerk for the past two weeks, until he did the whole Backstreet room and you thing."

"I seem to revolve 'round your problems," Nick chuckled.
"No, you just get me through them," Candice smiled.
"Hey, do you want to move down to Florida with me? You can live with me til you find a place." Nick smiled down at her with hopeful eyes. Candice smiled back at him weakly. Should I move back to FL? Should I try this again? Could I even try this again? The phone ringing interrupted her thoughts. She picked up the phone and before she could say hello a familiar voice came on. "Go to your front door." She looked at Nick curiously and hung up the phone. She pulled Nick to the door and opened it slowly. The sight before her made her gasp for air.

"Ms. Thompson, will you make me so happy as to marry me?" James stood in her yard with two dozen roses and a small black box. Candice rubbed her head. She began to feel dizzy, all she wanted to do was to lie down. Nick barely caught her as she fainted, falling into his arms.