Part 148
The show that night was nothing short of spectacular. The fans that had come to see Aaron got their money's worth, and the older fans that happened to be there with either their younger brothers and sisters or their children, were blown away when Nick made his first appearance.
There were groans of disappointment when it was announced that the opening act had cancelled, but once Sarah began to perform it was all good. She performed like a seasoned pro and all her hard work over the past few days paid off in a big way. Becca was watching from the front row, Billy by her side, and clapped and cheered just as loudly as the rest of the audience. The only glitch came midway through Sarah's set when it appeared the band had forgotten the order of songs on the play list. Sarah simply smiled and talked them through the intro to the next song, bantering playfully with the keyboard player.
Aaron played the crowd just as skillfully as his older brother, and when he first announced that he had a surprise guest, the excitement level in the room rose one hundred percent. Nick made his entrance and the crowd went wild. He and Aaron played around for a bit before launching into "Oh, Aaron!" and Becca laughed hysterically when Nick tried to rap on his part. She'd been teasing him about it for weeks, telling him he should stick to ballads and leave the rapping to Aaron. He caught sight of her laughing and made a point to call attention to her, exaggerating his movements and shaking his butt in time to the music.
The lights dimmed and took on a softer glow as Aaron left the stage for his first costume change, leaving Nick behind. Nick smiled, wiping the sweat from his face and unbuttoning his jacket, to the delight of the audience. Sitting on a stool that appeared down front and center, he tossed his jacket to Becca and winked. The music began and Becca caught her breath, pressing her fingers to her lips to keep from crying out.
"This song," Nick said, "is very special to me and to someone very close to me. Bec, this one's for you." Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he began to sing.
"Open up your heart to me, and say what's on your mind…"
The song held such a very special place in their hearts, and it had been a long time since Nick had sung it to Becca. As he sang, his eyes never left hers and as she watched him, she cradled his jacket to her breast.
During the last chorus he dropped to one knee and reached for Becca. Mesmerized, she stood and took his hand, holding it tight.
"All I know is baby … I really need you … tonight." Nick's voice was soft and you could have heard a pin drop as the final notes faded away. Bending even further, he kissed
Becca's hand and said quietly, "I love you, Bec."
The applause rocked the house, and before it could die down, Aaron and his dancers were back, pumping up the energy for the crowd and for the cameras. Nick sang with Aaron again, and the two horsed around some more before it was time for Nick to sing one more solo. He closed his set with "Heaven", waved to the crowd and disappeared backstage.
When all was said and done, the special was complete, even after re-taping two of the numbers and keeping the audience there for an extra hour. Becca was exhausted, but neither she nor the others in the arena minded one bit. It was such fun to watch the two together, and blessedly, no one was even aware of the drama that had taken place backstage as Sarah had completed her set and returned to her dressing room.