Angel Standing By
Chapter 18
The days seemed to be passing by so slowly for Claire. Nick had called his mother and asked that she meet up with them in Montreal. Once she had arrived, they dropped the bomb. To say she was upset would be an understatement, but she was also happy to know that her son wasn't going to walk away from his responsibility. Later she had pulled Claire aside and told her, "I can be a witch about this and possibly lose my son and grandchild, or I can welcome a new daughter into the family......I think the last one would be a lot easier for everyone to handle!" Claire was glad that Jane wasn't going to cause problems for them. Claire had decided to call her mother that same night. All her mother could do was sit in silence till she evetually hung up on her. It's not like she had expected anything different. Afterall, this meant that her modeling career would without a doubt be over for good. She and Nick were planning everything they could for the wedding. It was a little difficult since they were on the road, but they made the best of it. On this particular day, in New York now, Claire was sitting in the lobby of the hotel thumbing through a bridal magazine Jane and her had purchased earlier that day. The guys, Aaron, and his parents were out doing an interview. Claire had decided to stay behind.......in peace and quiet! As she gazed at the dresses on the pages, she peeked over the book and noticed two young girls staring at her. She faintly heard what they were saying.
"I'm almost positive that's her," said the one with dark hair. She looked no older than thirteen.
"Yea, but if that's her, then why would she be looking at that?!?!" the blonde was trying to be quiet, but her astonishment was getting the best of her.
"All I know is that HE would not marry HER! Anyway he's too young!" The girl with the dark hair was beginning to annoy Claire, but she took their convo in stride. No one was going to believe that Nick Carter was getting married......period. She noticed them walking towards her and quickly went back to the mag.
"Excuse me," said the blonde. Her voice was quiet and timmed.
"Yes?" Claire smiled.
"Umm, we were just curious to know....well, you look an awful lot like that girl that's always in those pictures with Nick Carter!" There was a twinkle in her eye as she said it. She seemed nice enough. Just as Claire was about to answer.....
"What she's trying to say is, are you Nick's girlfriend?" The brunette asked rudely.
Claire ignored her tone of voice and turned her attention to the one that deserved it.
"Yea, I'm the one that's with Nick!"
The blonde could barely control her excitement. "Ohmigosh! Someone that actually KNOWS Nick Carter! This is too awsome!!! Oh, you don't know how many times I've wished I was you!"
Claire couldn't help but giggle. 'Oh hon, you wouldn't be saying that if you knew what I have to go through,' she thought to herself.
"Oh please! Get ahold of yourself Casey!" The brunette obviously had a problem with Claire, but she wasn't about to let that spoil this girl's mood. This Casey was the exact type of BSB fan that Claire adored.....basically because these were the ones that didn't whip out their claws once they spotted her!
"Michelle, how can you not be excited? This is like, the next best thing to meeting BSB! This is the gal that gets to kiss the cutest one!!!"
It seemed as though the teens had forgotten about Claire's presence while getting caught up in their arguement.
"Yea, she's only using him for the fame and money! Haven't you seen how she looks all stuck up in those photos with him?"
"Hey!" Claire spoke up.
I'm sorry, please excuse Michelle," Casey lightly elbowed her in the ribs.
"Don't apologize to her! The truth hurts!"
Claire had no clue what this girl's problem was, but she wasn't about to let it ruin her day.
"Shut up Michelle!!!" Casey yelled. Both Claire and Michelle looked at her in shock. Claire couldn't help but see a blonde version of herself standing before her. She seemed like she had that spunk that Claire possessed.
Michelle rolled her eyes at both the girls and walked away. "When you finally hit reality again, come and join me at the cafe down the block," Michelle turned around and gave a wicked grin to Claire and then left.
"I'm so sorry! I've never been so embarrassed!"
"It's okay hon. I get it all the time. After a year of dealing with it, I'm use to it!"
"Wow! A whole year?!?! You are so lucky!"
Claire smiled sweetly at her. "How old are you?"
"I'm thirteen!" she exclaimed. Claire remembered what it was like at that age, looking up to almost any girl that possessed a boyfriend and a pair of breasts. It was an awkward age to be at, that was for sure. Then her mind began to drift......'thirteen, that's how old Nicky was when we first met,' a big smile spread across her face. She was quickly snapped out of her thoughts by Casey's voice. "I'm such a huge fan of the guys!"
"Tell me," Claire said while smiling slyly, "who's your favorite?"
Casey quickly looked away and blushed. "Well, Nick's my fave, but after him is Brian!"
"I see, you go for the two hams of the group!" Claire laughed.
"Are they really as funny as everyone says they are?"
"Child, you have no idea!!" Claire enjoyed talking to this girl. She was truly facinated by what she had to say. Claire quickly glanced at her watch and saw that it was about time for the gang to be getting back. When she looked up, she noticed Casey staring at the magazine.
"What's that for?" she asked the question, not with hate or jealousy, but with pure curiosity and a big grin.
"Well, I can't really say a lot." 'Good going, Claire! If that's not giving it away, I don't know what is!' she thought to herself. "Actually," she quickly spoke, "I was just bored and I knew the guys would be out, so I got this to read. I use to do a bit of modeling and was just wondering if I should get back into it......thinking maybe I should model bridal gowns." She was hoping that her lie sounded convincing.
"You use to model? Wow!"
Claire was amused by the girl's loving personality, but knew that the guys would be getting back soon, and as much as they loved their fans, they would be tired and not in the mood for a meet and greet........'Hey, that's it!' Claire thought. "Are you here for any reason in particular?"
"Actually, we're here for the concert tonight!!" Her face practically glowed as she said it.
"Tell you what, I just happen to have a backstage pass in my bag here." She saw Casey's face light up. "I'll give it to you on one condition."
"Anything! What? What is it?"
"Promise me that you won't bring your friend there. I'm not in the mood for a cat fight tonight!"
"Oh, Michelle! I don't think the guys would like her anyway!" Claire was happy, but a bit shocked by Casey's answer.
"Well, it sucks to be Michelle!" Claire gave her the pass and made her promise not to tell Michelle about it. Casey agreed and was about to leave when she turned to Claire and gave her a hug.
"You're really nice, Claire. I don't care what some people say or what's written about you. I know that you're a real sweetie!" and with that, Casey was out the front door of the hotel.
"So are you hon, so are you," Claire said softly.
Just then, she heard the tribe enter the lobby, laughing away. Nick looked straight ahead and grinned big as he opened his arms to embrace his girl. "How was your afternoon honey?"
She wrapped her arms around his neck and sighed. "Oh, it was a regular afternoon," she said with a sweet smile.
