Around two that day, I was standing outside our new bookstore building waiting for Brian. I had my headphones on listening to the first US released Backstreet Boys album. I wasn't paying attention to anything or anyone around me. Brian walked up and tapped me on the shoulder. "Hi," he said.

"Hi." I slipped the headphones off my ears. "Sorry about leaving without saying goodbye, but I had to get to class."

"Thankfully, Kevin gave me your message before I called the police." I raised an eyebrow. "I'm kidding. So you're done with classes for the day?"

"Yeah, but I gotta work tonight at six."

"So you wanna go hang out?"

"We could. What do you wanna do?"

"Isn't this the campus bookstore?"

"Yeah. It's brand new. It was just opened in February."

"Let's go shopping." He held open the door to the building for me. We browsed for a while and about an hour later we were standing in line. He was buying a blue Chico State sweatshirt. We got to the cashier and she rang up the sweatshirt. "You're total comes to forty-nine, thirty-two," she said. Brian handed her his Visa card. "Could I see some ID please, Brian?" Brian willingly pulled out his driver's license. Smiled her thanks, rang up his card and set the receipt down in front of him to sign. He signed his name and she compared the signature to the one on the back of the card. She didn't even recognize him or his name. She handed him his card back, placed another receipt in the bag and said, "Thank you, Brian. Have a nice day."

"You too," he replied. We walked out of the building together. "Wow, I don't think I've had that happen in like three years," he commented.

"What?"

"Had someone ask for ID. I thought everyone knew who I was."

I smiled. "Well, I could probably name you all the BSB fans here at Chico State. We're a very small group. You could get away with walking around campus and no one would think twice about it. Now if you were to go across the street to the high school, you might have some problems."

Brian smiled at me. "Now where to?" he asked as we stepped out into the sunshine.

"I dunno." We walked over to the grassy area known as the Free Speech Area. I looked for a spot to sit down. As I lowered myself to the ground, I asked, "What happened last night, Brian?"

"You don't remember?" he said, sitting down beside me.

"No. But Kevin said I was being inconsiderate this morning. He also mentioned that something happened last night."

"You woke up screaming around two saying that someone was going to kill you."

"I don't remember that."

"It's okay. Is there anything in your past that could be related to what happened last night?"

"I don't know. Not that I remember."

"Okay. New subject."

"Okay."

"I wanna know about you."

"What about me?"

"Well, I'm sure you know all about me."

"Yeah."

"I don't know anything about you."

"Oh. Well, I was born April fifteenth, nineteen eighty. I was born two and half months premature. The doctors didn't think I would live, so I was baptized the day I was born. Everything seemed fine, except my heart hadn't completely formed. I had a hole in between the left and right side. The night before surgery, an angel came to my mother and told her that I was healed and that I would be okay. The next day, when the doctor came into prep me for surgery, he discovered that the hole was closed." I twirled a blade of grass around in my fingers.

"We have something in common."

"Yeah, I know. Our heart condition and that the Lord saved us."

"Yeah. I thank Him for each and every day."

I smiled at him. "Me too. My mom was told that she couldn't have kids, so I guess I'm a miracle baby." We talked a while longer about my family and what I wanted to do with my life. When the recorded bells in the bell tower said it was four, I said to Brian, "I know you like Boyz II Men and I've been meaning to replace a couple of their CDs. Wanna go to Tower Records and see what we can scrounge up?"

"Sure." We got up and I showed him around downtown Chico. I led him into Tower and I headed towards the Rock/Pop section. He headed into the R&B/Soul section. I was looking through the CDs and came across an imported Backstreet Boys CD. I walked over to Brian. "Hey, what's on the import?" I asked, holding up the CD.

"That's the album we released in Europe. I'd get it, if I were you. It's kinda hard to find."

"But twenty-seven dollars?"

"Wow! The Club is selling it for sixteen."

"I know."

"I'll send you a copy."

"Thanks. You know what I can't find?"

"What?"

"The video version of the song '

"You can't? Why didn't you tell me? I have a copy in my bag. It's yours, if you want it?"

"Wow, thanks."

"Now what Boyz II Men CDs are you looking for?"

"Well, I lost 'Cooleyhighharmony' and 'II'."

Brian held them up. "I'll get 'em for you."

"Oh you are so sweet." Brian blushed slightly at the comment. As Brian and I walked up to the cash register, someone said from behind us, "Hey Rebecca."

I turned towards the voice. "Hey Burke," I said. Burke was Brian's height, five-foot, seven had brown hair, brown eyes and a goatee. "Burke, this is Brian. Brian, Burke." They shook hands exchanging pleasantries.

"What are you doing here? Don't you have to work soon?" Burke asked me.

I glanced down at my pager. "Yeah, I do. Brian, I'd better get going."

"Let me pay for these and then I'll walk you to work, okay?"

"Sure. I'll be outside with Burke." Brian nodded and headed towards the cash register. Burke and I stepped outside the store.

"New man?" Burke asked me.

"No. He's just a friend."

"Uh huh."

"He is. Come with us to work and you can get to know him. You could swap religious ideas?"

"He's religious?"

"What? You think all my friends have no morals? Then where do you rate?"

"True."

"Come with us. Talk with him."

"Alright."

Just then, Brian stepped out of record store. "You ready?"

"Yeah. Burke's gonna come with us."

"Fine with me." We walked back to campus, heading to the administration building, which was beside the bell tower. There were several of my co-workers standing outside the handicapped entrance. The doors to the building were locked, so we always had to wait for a supervisor to arrive and unlock the doors. We stood outside and talked for a while until Geoff appeared on the other side of the glass doors. When Geoff opened the door, I said to him, "Hey Tall One."

"Yeah Short One?"

"Ya remember how on Saturday I was talking to that guy who claimed he was Brian of the Backstreet Boys?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, this is the guy I was talking to. Brian Littrell of the Backstreet Boys."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Littrell."

"No need to be formal. Just Brian."

"Ok, Brian. You really had her spooked on Saturday."

"I know. But I hope I proved it to her," he said, looking at me.

"Yeah, you sure did. You wanna meet me back here at nine?"

"Sure. I want my sweatshirt back at some point," Brian said as I was halfway in the door.

I poked my head out and told him, "That's when you'll get it back, at some point." I went into the building but before I turned the corner, I looked out the glass doors. Burke and Brian were talking. I don't know what about, but I only had to wait three hours to find out.


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