Part 443
Seattle City limits…Sarah stared out the window as the conversation rattled on. Her mind wasn’t in the bus or on the conversation. It was at the venue, on stage, in front of thousands of girls….ALL ‘Nsync fans. Images of being ‘booed’ off the stage and having rotten vegetables thrown at her flashed through her mind. Why had Howie and Kevin agreed she’d do this?
The death grip Sarah had on his hand was actually beginning to hurt and Howie knew that if he didn’t do something to calm her down, it would be worse than Baton Rouge. She’d already thrown up several times since they left Portland. Before he could say anything, Sarah was getting up to go throw up again.
Oblivious to the conversation, Sarah rushed to the back of the bus where she slammed the bathroom door. Everyone heard the distinct sounds of her getting sick seconds later.
"Howie, are you sure she’s going to be okay? This is like the fourth time she’s thrown up," asked Alison more than just a little concerned.
"As soon as she gets on stage, she’ll be fine," sighed Howie. "It’s just getting her there."
"Is this what she was like in Baton Rouge?" asked AJ remembering her phone call to him.
"Unfortunately, yes…as far as getting sick. Guys, I’m really worried about her."
"No need for her to be nervous," said Nick. "She’s gonna be awesome and the crowd is gonna love her."
"Maybe you could tell her that, Nick," suggested Howie as he got up to go check on Sarah. "I’m gonna go check on her and see if I can get her to calm down. At least this time she’s not screaming at me or jealous."
As Howie disappeared into the back, Lynne asked, "Why’s Howie so worried? What happened in Baton Rouge?"
"You mean besides the fight they had because she was jealous?" smirked Kevin.
"What do you mean because she was jealous?" asked Becca.
"You two never discussed it?" asked Kevin.
"Obviously NOT," said Becca.
"She can tell you. I REFUSE to get in the middle of you two."
"What happened in Baton Rouge that has Howie so worried?" asked Sonja repeating Lynne’s question.
"Sarah opened for Aaron’s pay-per-view special," explained Becca. "Afterwards, she had a really bad round of morning sickness and ended up in the emergency room dehydrated."
Lynne shook her head, "I still can’t believe they fight or have ever had problems."
Everyone laughed as Becca said, "They really don’t fight. Sarah screams and Howie just listens. Once she’s dumped on him, he calmly tells her how it’s going to be."
Joining Sarah, Howie got a cool, damp cloth and held it to her forehead as she continued to get sick. Waiting patiently, he rubbed her back as he held her forehead and said a silent prayer that nothing bad would happen to her. This whole pregnancy had been one thing after another and he wasn’t sure she was going to make it to February.
Feeling like she couldn’t throw up any more, Sarah leaned back into Howie’s arms. She was weak and wanted nothing more than to curl up in the security of his embrace and sleep.
"Done?" asked Howie, the concern evident in his voice.
Sarah nodded as she nestled closer to him. A sob escaped that caused her body to shudder.
Howie caressed her cheek. "Shh, you’re okay, ‘Angel’. I’m right here."
"I don’t wanna do this, Howie," she sobbed.
"Hey, what’s all this? You love to perform."
"I can’t do this. I can’t open for them."
Realizing this was going to take more than just a few words of encouragement, Howie said, "Let’s go to the bed where I can hold you better."
Helping her up, Howie led Sarah to their bed where they got comfortable. Sarah rested her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. Lovingly, he stroked her hair as he held her giving her time to calm down.
After several minutes, Howie spoke gently and reassuringly. "Angel, you’re going to be fine. You’re extremely talented and when you get out on that stage, you’re gonna show them ALL just how good my ‘Angel’ is."
"But this is an ‘Nsync crowd, Howie. They aren’t gonna want to hear me."
"Why not? They do the same type music we do and your music is the same too. Do you think they aren’t gonna like you just because you’re my wife?"
Sarah nodded her head and wiped her tears.
Howie laughed softly. "You’ve said it a hundred times, what difference does it make that you’re a Backstreet wife? What DOES matter is that you’re good!"
"What if they don’t like me?" whimpered Sarah.
"What’s not to like? You’re talented, you’re beautiful, you’re DAMN sex." Howie put his hand under her chin and lifted her face to look him in the eye. "Sarah, I told you earlier that I have faith in you. We all do…Nick, Kevin, AJ, Brian, Becca, ME. I wouldn’t have pushed you so hard if I didn’t think you’d be a hit."
Doubtfully, Sarah said, "You really mean it?"
"From the bottom of my heart." Feeling the bus stopping, Howie leaned in closer, his lips touching hers. As his fingers slid into her hair, his tongue slipped between her lips to tease her. She met him timidly and they played a game of tongue tag. Pulling away, their foreheads touching, Howie whispered, "Where’s my confident wife who was telling me earlier that I had to get rid of my corvette?"
Sarah groaned. "Aliens have kidnapped her. ‘D’, can’t you do the duet with me at the beginning?"
"No, ‘Angel’, I can’t. This is YOUR chance to push your CD and YOUR chance to shine."
Tears welled up in her eyes and as she spoke, her voice broke, "But it’s like my signature…’Sweet D’ introducing his ‘Angel’. Please, Howie!"
Howie hated it when she did this. He had NO defense against her tears and begging. Be strong. Don’t give in, he told himself but the words spilled out, "I’ll tell Kevin. What do you want to do?"
Beaming, Sarah wiped her tears and said, "Why don’t we do Shaggy’s ‘Love Me Love Me’?"
"That’s gonna be me doing most of the singing."
"So?" grinned Sarah impishly. She knew what it did to him when they did that song because of the way they danced together.
Howie laughed, "You’re just being mean. You KNOW what happens when we do that song and then you’re gonna expect me to sit through your set!"
"I promise to make it up to you," purred Sarah as she ran her fingers through his hair. Just to give him a little preview of what was to come if he did this with her, she grasped his earlobe between her teeth nibbling playfully. At the same time, she slipped her hand into his shirt playing with his nipples until they were hard.
Howie shuddered at her touch and felt his immediate reaction. This was going to be a long night but well worth the wait. Taking her hands, he said, "Save it for later, ‘Angel’. We need to get inside so we can do sound checks. How do you feel?"
"Nauseous."
"On the way out, grab a bottle of water, please. You’ve been throwing up quite a bit today and I don’t want you getting dehydrated."
"Yes dear," said Sarah sarcastically.
Howie laughed, "You’re gonna be the death of me."
"But what a way to go," cracked Nick from the door.
Neither one of them had heard Nick open the door and looked up.
"You’re lucky we weren’t doing anything," laughed Sarah seeing Nick’s smirk. "Howie’s sworn to kill you the next time you interrupt us. I can hear the news on MTV now…"Murder in Backstreet Camp"…Nick Carter killed after interrupting fellow bandmate Howie Dorough and wife in the middle of sex."
"Nah, Howie loves me," cracked Nick.
"Don’t push your luck, Nicky," shot Howie with a smile. "What do you want?"
"Came to get the Diva! Kevin’s head is spinning because she’s not inside doing her sound check yet."
"We just GOT here," said Sarah before what Nick had said registered. Then, she grabbed a pillow and slung it at Nick. "I’ll give you Diva… GHETTO BOOTY BUTT."
Nick ducked the pillow. "Missed me!" he taunted as he shook his butt at her. "You’d better shake your assets and get in there before ‘Mr. Large and In Charge’ comes storming out here."
"We’re coming," laughed Howie.
Giving Sarah one last kiss, he helped her up. Holding hands, they headed inside where the others were waiting.