Chapter 15
He ran until his lungs filled with air. Each step he took was painful, yet each step made him closer to Riana. The streets were packed with club hoppers, making it hard for Nick to make out Riana. He caught a glimpse of a blonde head and his breath caught in his throat.
"Riana!" He called out. The head stopped and turned around, and the pain in her eyes made Nick want to turn away. She shook her head and turned around, continuing on her path towards the bus station.
"Riana!!" Nick called again. She didn't turn back this time, she walked faster as if she was trying to get away from him.
"Excuse me, scuze me, scuze me," Nick said, cutting people off in every direction. He caught up with her and grabbed both of her shoulders, turning her around so he could look at her.
"What are you doing?" She snapped. She tried to wiggle out of his grasp but found herself too weak.
"Don't leave, Riana. Please," he begged.
"Why do you even care? It doesn't matter to you," she said angrily.
"Yes, it does! Please, I....I want to tell you something."
"Tell me now, Nick. I'm all ears," she replied sarcastically.
"Not here. Somewhere where we can be alone. Come with me," Nick said, taking her suitcase from her hand and guiding them back towards the ship. He led them to a small, desolate beach with the only light a small streetlight that was tempted to blow out at any second.
"Make it fast. I have a bus to catch in about....a half hour," she said. She sat down and dug her toes into the sand.
"First off, I want to apologize. I know that I was being unfair to you, and I yelled at you because I was frustrated with myself," Nick began.
"Frustrated with yourself? Why?" Riana asked, her tone softening a bit.
Nick sighed, running a hand through his silky blonde hair. "I don't even know where to begin," He whispered.
"Then you don't have to tell me," Riana said, standing up.
"No! Sit down, I have to tell you. You have a right to know," Nick said. He took her hand and slowly brought her back down onto the soft sand.
"We had just made it big over in America and we were at some clubs in Orlando." Nick said. He sighed again. "Her name was Emily. I met her at one of the clubs and we hit it off perfectly. To make a long story short, we ended up dating for three years. I did everything for her, I took her on tour with me, gave her money, jewelry. You name it, I got it for her." Nick said with enthusiasm.
"What happened then? It seemed like you guys really loved each other!" Riana mentioned. She saw Nick cringe at the word.
"That's what I thought, too. She didn't love me. She used me for my money and fame. I found out the hard way, too. She just came over with this new guy and told me she was using me. I felt so useless, all I could do was stand there while they laughed at me."
"What a bitch!" Riana said, clasping a hand over her mouth. Nick laughed.
"You could say that again. That's why I kept pushing you away, Riana. I was so afraid that someone would hurt me again. The moment I saw you on the cover of that magazine, I knew that somehow I would meet you. And when I did, you were the only thing I thought about. You are the only person that could understand me. And it scared me." Nick said softly. He looked down at his hands and a small tear trickled from his eye.
"Nick, I had no idea. Why didn't you tell me?" Riana asked, giving him a hug. He pulled away from her embrace.
"I was afraid that you'd laugh at me!" Nick said, his face turning red.
"Laugh at you? I would never laugh at you!" Riana said.
"Can we start over?" Nick asked her. His blue eyes still shown clearly through the dim light.
"Of course! Omigod! You look like that teen heartthrob Nick Carter!" she squealed.
"Don't tell me your that beautiful model, Riana Walker!" he played along.
"Can I please have your autograph?" she begged.
"Sure! Here ya go," he said, scribbling his autograph onto an imaginary piece of paper.
"I have one question, Miss Walker," Nick said. He took her hand and pulled her up so they stood facing each other.
"Yes, Nick Carter?"
"Will you give me a second chance? Would you go out with me?" Nick asked. He held her hands in his. Riana looked at him for a second before smiling.
"Of course." Riana said. "And we'll take it slow, ok?" She told him. Nick wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her to him. She was close enough that he could smell the scent of her hair. Close enough to feel her breath on his cheek. He placed a hand on the back of her head and slowly brought her towards him. He kissed her sweetly before she slowly pulled back.
"Is this for real?" Riana asked.
"No more pushing away," Nick whispered before kissing her again. He rubbed his hands on her back as the kiss grew more passionate.
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Leah and AJ walked into Leah's room and shut the door quietly. It was early that morning, around 4:30. They tiptoed into Riana's room and saw that she wasnt there. And neither was her stuff.
"Hmmm...that's strange!" Leah remarked. She walked out into the kitchen with AJ close behind her. She found the note on the kitchen counter.
"What?!?" Leah screeched. He spit out his soda onto the floor when he heard her scream.
"What? You scared me half to death!" AJ said, with a hand over his heart.
"Riana left!" Leah screamed again and took off for Nick and Brian's room to see if they saw any trace of her.
"She did what??" AJ called as he scurried to catch up with her. He was out of breath when he finally reached her. Her response was a pound to Brian's door. A few minutes later, Brian came out in his boxers. He had a look on his face that said he was still sleeping.
"Why does everyone have to wake ME up if there is a problem...." Brian grumbled.
"Did she leave yet? Where is she?" Leah ranted as she walked into the room. AJ jumped onto the couch and turned on the TV.
"Nick went to stop her around....10:30," Brian said, rubbing his eyes and stifling a yawn.
"10:30! Brian, its a quarter to five! Riana probably killed Nick by now!" Leah raved.
"Don't worry!" Brian said. "Nick will make sure she comes back." Brian said before curling up on the big chair and falling asleep. AJ had fallen asleep on the couch and his glasses hung to his nose. She shook her head in despair.
"Good night," she said and kissed his cheek.
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Kevin, Howie, AJ, Leah and Brian all piled into a booth in the dining room. Their waiter came to take their orders, but Leah wasn't hungry. She was worried. Riana and Nick still hadn't returned. She ate her meal in silence but her ears perked up when she heard laughter coming from the hall. She looked up and saw Riana and Nick run inside. Riana was running full speed but Nick swiftly grabbed her by the waist and kissed her softly on the lips.
"Well, well, well," Leah said outloud. Everyone looked up at what she saw.
"It's about time!" Kevin said. The table laughed. Leah waved them over and they pulled up two seats.
"I think you found her, Frack," Brian joked as he swallowed some of his bacon. Nick smiled and put an arm around her shoulders, proudly. He was so happy today! Riana and Nick had spent the whole night talking down at the beach. They both agreed that they would take this relationship slow and not to get so hooked on each other because when the time would come to leave, they would both end up hurting. And that was the number one rule in their relationship. No hurting.
"I want to head down to the pool. Riana, wanna come with me?" Leah asked. Riana nodded.
"Let me go get my bathing suit," she said. She slid out of the booth but Nick pulled her back.
"Hurry, ok?" he asked. He wanted her to be by his side, and soon.
"Deal," Riana said, and gave him a long kiss on the lips. He watched her walk out of the room and a smile crept on his face. For once, he was happy.
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