“Hi honey,” Howie said into his cell phone when he heard Christine answer.
“Hey baby,” Christine purred.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, concerned, hearing the sad tone in her voice.
Christine sighed. “I don’t think I can make it tomorrow, baby.”
“What? Why not?” Howie questioned, obviously upset by the news.
“I’m sorry,” she told him. “Daddy’s taken a turn for the worst. I don’t think he’s going to make it much longer. He’s becoming less and less responsive. I just don’t want to leave him or leave my mom with him. She needs me. Melissa had to go back to work today. I just don’t think my mother could handle it if neither one of us were here.” Howie sighed heavily. Christine had such a good heart. It was one of the things that he loved most about her. There was no way in hell he would be able to convince her to leave her dad’s side and he wasn’t about to try.
“I guess I understand,” he reluctantly told her. “I don’t like not being able to see you but I see why you need to be there. Spend time with your parents. They need you right now. I get to have you for the rest of my life”
“That you do, Mr. Dorough,” Christine pointed out. “I love you.”
“I love you too, soon-to-be Mrs. Dorough.” He said.
“I like the sound of that,” Christine replied softly. After a few more minutes of conversation, they both said goodbye and Howie hung up his phone, sighing heavily. He really missed Christine not being able to be on tour with him. She had handled publicity for Backstreet for a while now and had been able to tour with them for the past few tours. That was how the two of them met. Howie had gotten used to her always being with him.
“Yo Howie!” Brian called from across the hotel lobby, breaking Howie’s train of thought. “Come on! We’re leaving!” Howie stood up and followed Brian out to the buses. The tour was moving from Washington D.C. to New York. Christine was in Connecticut with her family and Howie had planned for she and her sister to come to the concert the next night since it was only a forty five minute trip into the city. He was sure he was going to go crazy now that he couldn’t see her. Or could he?
“AJ!” Krista called. “My bags please?” Katelin and Ang, who were both standing next to her, burst out laughing as AJ spun around and struggled to pick up Krista’s stuff while he balanced his own on his other arm.
“Boy, are you whipped,” Ang commented.
“Yeah Kris,” Katelin chimed in. “Got this one on a tight leash.”
“Now I can’t go lifting heavy luggage at five months pregnant, can I?” Krista questioned, biting back a smile. AJ glared at her as she marched past him and climbed the stairs of the Backstreet bus, leaving Ang and Kateiln laughing at him.
“Come on, Kate,” Brooke said, grabbing her arm. “Time to go back to our lonely, man-less bus.”
Katelin waved goodbye to everyone else and skipped to the dancer’s bus. “See you in NYC baby!” She bounded up the stairs after Brooke and stopped dead in her tracks at the scene in front of her. Nick and Becca, locked in a passionate embrace, limbs all wrapped around each other.
“Ahem!” Brooke cleared her throat and glared at the two of them. “Do you guys mind? There are other people on this bus besides you two.”
“Sorry Brooke,” Becca apologized, a sarcastic tone in her voice. She turned to smile smugly at Katelin but it faded as soon as she saw Nick looking apologetically at Katelin. He had such longing in his eyes, a look Becca had never seen cast in her direction. She felt what little hold she had on him quickly slipping away.
An elbow in the side from Brooke was all it took to break Katelin’s stare and she quickly took off towards the entertainment room. “And Nick Carter does it again,” She remarked sarcastically. “Do you enjoy seeing her heart shatter over and over again?”
Nick was about to answer but was cut off by Becca. “It’s not our fault she’s such a baby, Brooke. If she can’t handle seeing Nick with someone else, she shouldn't have come back on tour.” Becca stood up triumphantly and walked back towards the bunks. “You coming Nick?” Nick sighed and stood up to follow her.
“Nick,” Brooke said, grabbing his arm to stop him. “Do what your heart tells you to do. It’s the only way you’ll both be happy. Trust me.” Nick looked at her for a second, understanding sinking in. Nodding slightly, he turned around and followed Becca back to her bunk.
***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****
“Come on guys,” Ang whined. “We need to have a little fun on this bus. I’m bored. Got any alcohol on here?”
“Ang!” Krista cried. “It’s the middle of the day.”
“So?” Ang asked innocently. “It’s not like we have anything to do later. Let’s have some fun.”
“I’m up for it,” Brian agreed, shrugging. AJ, Krista, and Howie exchanged worried glances. Lately it seemed that all Brian and Ang did was get trashed together.
“I don’t know about this guys,” AJ said.
“Lighten up guys,” Kevin chimed in, surprising everyone. “They have a point. We need to have a little fun. Come on. Who’s up for it?”
“Well as much as I’d love to join you alcoholics,” Krista began, patting her stomach. “My baby and I will have to pass.” AJ opened his mouth to say something but she cut him off. “You too, McLean.”
“I’m in,” Howie said. “Got nothing better to do.”
“You all have serious problems,” Krista pointed out before disappearing to her bunk.
Four Hours Later:
“I’m home! I’m home! I’m home!” Katelin chanted, jumping up and down as the buses pulled up to the Marriot Hotel in Times Square.
“Calm down, Kate,” Brooke laughed. “You haven’t actually been gone that long.”
“I don’t care!” Katelin yelled, excited. “I miss this city. I miss my dad! I miss everything!”
“Settle down,” Nick laughed, placing a hand on her shoulder. She glanced at him, curiously, at his hand on her shoulder, and then back at him.
“Oh sorry,” Nick said, sheepishly, quickly removing his arm.
“It’s cool,” she smiled at him before taking off down the stairs and into the warm autumn sunlight. Nick was taken aback. Was that a smile he had just witnessed from her? Cast in his direction?
“You shouldn’t let her play around with you like that,” Becca interrupted his thoughts. “One minute she’s nice to you. The next she’s a complete and total bitch.”
“Bec,” he began. For the past four hours he had to hear about why Katelin was no good for him and why Becca was.
“Just stating the facts babe,” she said, moving towards the stairs. “You coming or what?” Nick almost felt like saluting her or something, but he held back and quietly followed her, asking himself why he was with her instead of doing everything in his power to get Katelin back.
Brooke, Katelin, Becca, and Nick watched as Ang practically fell off of the Backstreet Bus with Brian, Kevin, Howie, and AJ stumbling behind her. Lastly, an extremely irritated-looking Krista emerged, stalking past the five of them over to Brooke, Katelin, Becca, and Nick.
“Whoa!” Becca exclaimed. “What’s with you? And what the hell is wrong with them?”
“They’re wasted!” Krista cried. “They’ve been drinking every since we left D.C.!”
“Are you kidding?” Katelin asked. “It’s like four in the afternoon.”
“I don’t know about you guys,” Krista began. “But do any of you feel that Ang is beginning to develop a little bit of a drinking problem?”
“A little?!” Brooke snorted. “That girl is always drunk. Every single time she drinks it’s until she can’t even walk. I mean, remember that time in Paris?”
“Yeah,” Katelin agreed.
“I thought for sure she’d be kicked off the tour,” Nick chimed in.
“Hey guys,” Brian slurred as he stumbled over towards them. He threw an arm around Katelin’s shoulder. “Wow, Katie. Lookin’ good today.”
“Okay, now we know Brian’s drunk,” Katelin giggled.
“Why’s that?” Brian asked, innocently.
“Because you never compliment me,” Katelin answered. “I thought you didn’t like me.”
“Oh,” he giggled. “Well, that hasn’t changed at all. You may be an extreme bitch but you’re a damn hot extreme bitch.”
Katelin angrily pushed himself off of her. “Get the fuck off me, asshole.”
He watched as she stomped into the hotel. “What Katelin? Did I hit a nerve? You deserve to see Becca and Nick all over each other. Especially after what you did to him.” He smiled proudly at the two of them, as Becca attempted to bite back a smile.
“Nice going slick,” Nick commented to Brian before taking off after Katelin, leaving Becca standing there with her hands on her hips, pissed as hell.
“Hi everyone!” Kevin called, making his way over towards them. “Hello Brooke.”
“Kevin,” she replied uncomfortably.
“Maybe…uh…we could get together later for dinner or something,” he suggested nervously.
“Why?” Brooke wondered. “To remind me what a slut I am?” The others watched confused as she strode back into the hotel. They all turned back to Kevin, silently asking why she acted like that towards him.
“I don’t know, guys,” he answered, pretending that he didn’t have a clue.
“Spill it, Kev,“ Brian commanded. “We wanna know why she said that and we wanna know now.”
“Well deal with it then,” Kevin snapped. “I have no idea.” Deep inside, he did know. He treated Brooke exactly the way she didn’t want or need to be treated and then pretended that he didn’t care about the way that he felt.
“Kate!” Nick called. “Kate wait up!”
Katelin spun around, angrily. “What Carter?”
Nick noticed the tears in her eyes as he approached her. “Brian didn’t mean what he said.”
“Oh really?” she snorted. “That’s pretty funny. Everyone knows how much he hates me.”
“He doesn’t hate you,” Nick pointed out softly. “He’s just sticking up for his friends.”
“Oh so you hate me,” she spat. She didn’t give him time to respond. “Don’t worry Nick. I know you do. Although I have no idea why. You were the one that hurt me.”
“Kate,” he groaned. “You know I didn’t…”
“Shut up, Nick,” she interrupted.
“I don’t hate you!” He cried, fighting back his own tears of frustration. Short of getting her back as his girlfriend, he at least wanted her back in his life as a friend.
“What do you want me to say, Nick?” Katelin exclaimed. “Do you want to hear me say that I still love you? Fine, Nick. I still love you. I never stopped. Is that what you want to hear? There, I said it.”
“Yeah, well he doesn’t need to hear it,” Becca interrupted, appearing at Nick’s side. “Don’t you think you’ve hurt him enough? I mean, how much do you actually think he can take? One minute you tell him you love him. The next you’ll be jumping down his throat for something that he can’t even control. Jesus, Kate. Just let him get on with his life.” Katelin turned back to Nick. “Is that the way you feel?” Nick stood in silence. Should he do what his head told him to do and stay with the safety of Becca? Someone who would do anything for him even though it didn’t make him happy? Or should he take Brooke’s advice and follow his heart? Tell Katelin how much he missed her and how much he loved her and jump back into a relationship that was never very simple but was always filled with unbridled passion and love.
Katelin took Nick’s silence as an indication that he was choosing Becca over her. She couldn’t blame him. She had put him through hell and back. Especially since she had re-joined the Millennium tour. Constantly making him feel guilty for what had happened in Europe. Quickly, she spun on her heel and ran outside of the hotel. Nick watched as she hailed a cab and climbed in, heading towards the one person who loved her more than anything no matter how she acted.