Chapter 9

(Nick's point-of-view)

Okay, when you've been in the cold all day and have a black eye that is swelling and has a pulse, a runny nose and sore stomach.....IT IS REALLY HARD TO RUN SIX STEPS FASTER THAN AN ELEVATOR! "Brian!" I gasped. "Maybe we should sneak in a bathroom and tell Kevin I felt sick!"

"Nick, we have a bathroom in our room!" Brian shouted jumping the stairs two at a time. There was no way he was getting me to do that! "Come on, Nick! Double up!"

"NO!" I screamed still panting.

He grabbed my shirt dragging me behind him. "Ow! Ow! Ow1" I whined hopping against the steep steps.

"FASTER!"

Sheesh....Would he lay off? I'm bigger and injured and that hot dog I ate was doing flip-flops in my stomach. "Brian...."

"Don't talk-RUN!"

Well, well, Brian, I guess you won't be giving any sermons since you're not willing to give yourself in! IF we did get caught I couldn't handle a lecture and sermon in one night.

"Brian, I just wanna' say-I love you, man."

He continued running. "Yeah, yeah, ditto."

So much for an emotional moment.

"Out this door!" Brian demanded.

"What? We still three floors to go!"

"We're going to get an elevator and try to cut them off!"

I ran through the door behind him. Aw, man a big group of people was waiting on the elevator as well!

Brian ran his fingers through his hair. "Oh, no! What do we do?"

For the first time I had an answer! "Don't worry just follow me and hold your stomach!"

"WHAT?!"

"Just do it!"

I ran frantically through the hall dragging Brian at my side. "Move it! Move it, people! We need that elevator! Lady with a baby!"

The crowd broke away giving us a path. I shoved Brian inside. "God bless you all and Amen!" There....that should've made Brian happy!

A huge man about Kevin's size glared at us. "Baby my ass!"

I stuttered slamming my fist against the button. "Uh...well...um." He began to reach inside to hold the door.

"Why you pervert!" Brian cried as if he were a Southern belle swinging his hips. "I declare you are a pig, sir!"

The man frowned. "Sorry, lady-mister...Whatever you are! I'm afraid to be in a closed space with you two anyway!"

I fell against the wall as the doors shut lifting us up.

Brian stared at me. "Lady with a baby?"

"Hey, it worked, didn't it?"

Brian jumped about. "Come on, come on go faster, you stupid machine!"

I frowned. "Brian, it's not nice to call the machine 'stupid'. You might hurt its feelings!"

"Nick, an elevator doesn't have feelings!"

"How do you know?"

He shook his head. "Did you hit your head against that door, too? Your head is more messed up than your eye!"

"Hey-" The doors opened dinging. Saved by the bell. Man, I remember that show! Zack played hookie once too! Maybe he should hook up with DJ Tanner? They could be 'The Full House That Was Saved By The Bell.'

I was distracted from my thoughts as Brian drug me along the hallway.

"YES!" he exclaimed pulling the hotel card out of his pocket. Kevin was nowhere in sight-we were home free!

"Uh...Brian, you just jinxed us-he's coming!"

"Oh, man!" Brian threw the door open literally tossing me inside the room.

I stood frozen. "Brian......"

"Keep the lights off!" he informed me throwing his hat into his corner. "Take off your hat!"

"Brian...."

"Get into bed!"

"Brian....."

"Chances are if he sees the lights out and us in bed he''ll just go about his business!"

"Brian......." Considering my stomach was showcasing a fireworks display inside and suddenly my nose was running...It would've been wise for him to listen.

"Nick!" he hissed lifting me up and dropping me on the mattress. Ooooooh....I wish he wouldn't have done that!

The door opened just as Brian and I slid the covers over our heads. I heard Kevin sigh and walk toward Brian's bed. YES! Go to Brian and skip me! In fact just get out and take my stomach torturing with you! Okay....so far so good. He didn't suspect. Just go away, Kevin...Just go away! Well, this was typical- he was coming over to my bed. It's not as if he grants my wishes anyway.

He lifted the blanket off of my face. Bringing his hand to my forehead....Okay, I realize that's sweet and all, but my eye is throbbing don't touch me! His hand was coming closer....Cough, Brian! Sneeze, anything! Save me!

Then, we had contact....I couldn't help but ......"OOOOOW!"

Kevin pulled back. Staring at me as if I had a third head. "Nick, what is it?"

"Um....uh...."

He patted my shoulder. "I'll turn on the lights, I know you don't like the dark."

My fears and phobias be damned! "No, Kevin, don't..." Too late.

"WHAT THE HELL, NICK? BRIAN,GET UP!"

Can we say 'busted'?

Brian sat up slowly. "Problem, Kev?"

Kevin placed pressure against my eye. "What happened?!"

"Ow,stop!" I begged.

"I have to make sure it's not broken, Nicky! It looks awful!"

"Brian, already did!"

He pulled his hands away. "Oh, did he?" His green eyes became red. "I want to know what happened and I want to know right now!"

Brian cleared his throat. "Nick got really dizzy it the bathroom.....and fell."

Kevin crossed his arms. "Nice try....And I'd believe you if there weren't tattoos on your heads and you were dressed in pajamas."

Oops....

"Okay, I'll give you two one more chance before I completely lose my cool.....What happened today?"

I could see Brian's lips quivering...The fink was going to give in!

"I'm sorry, Kevin! But Nick was really having rough time with the schedule and he needed a break! And it's sad that he had to fake illness to get it! So, we disguised ourselves and went a carnival! We rode the rides and played games!"

Kevin raised his palm. "Hold up! You: Brian Littrell, rode the rides?"

No, Kevin, Brian McLittrell....Yes, Brian Littrell!

Brian continued. "How I got on the ride was a nauseating accident."

"Did you get sick?"

Did he get sick? What about me? I was the one with the living hot dog bouncing in my belly!

"No, Kev, I just got a bit queasy. Then, we watched a magic show."

Kevin brust into a laughing fit. "A magic show? You watched one of those cheesy things?"

Hey....it wasn't so cheesy with girls like that.

Brian rolled his eyes. "Yes. Then, Nick was still bored so we went to the zoo. That's where Nick got hurt."

"What did one of the elephants pick a fight?"

Kevin was enjoying this way too much! Maybe that meant he wouldn't bite our heads off and rip us new assholes...

"No, he fell into the door."

Now, Kevin was rolling. And all at my expense of course.

"Then, I needed to get Nicky something to eat."

Ugh.....Did he have to mention that?

"So, we looked at the goats later. And one of the fitzy ones decided to eat my jacket, so, Nick had to lear him away by feeding him some of the hotdog. Which caused the guard to gripe at him."

I smiled. "Brian, told him off!"

Kevin's nostrils flared. "WHAT? What if he had known who you were?"

"But he didn't..."

"Is there more to this story?"

"Yeah, after we got kicked out of the news we were lost."

"Lost?!"

"Yeah, so, we roamed around until Nick bumped into one of the magician's assistants. And her friend recongized us."

"WHAT?!"

"But that was a good thing! They helped us get home. So, we bought them dinner and gave them our jackets."

"Don't you two realize how cold it was?"

No, Kevin, we were living in a heat wave......

He lifted his brow-a miraculous feat. "l don't know what to say. I've never been more pissed at the two of you-but I've never found anything more humorous! Are you going to sell your adventure as a TV movie: 'Slip Through the Cracks with Frick and Frack?'"

Brian grinned. "Does that mean you aren't going to yell at us?"

"OF COURSE NOT!" He sat next to me bouncing the bed....Which I wish he wouldn't have. "Don't you realize you could've been hurt! You could get sick from the cold! And you lied. I expected better from you!"

His continued words were hazy. Suddenly, the room was spinning, my stomach turning flips, my nose running and the pulse was stronger behind my eye than in my heart. "Kevin," I coughed.

"What is the guard at the zoo had really been angry?!"

"Kevin......."

"Nick could've really been hurt!"

"KEVIN!" I clutched his wrist.

"What, Nick?"

"I....I...don't think.."

He pressed his palm to my forehead. "What's wrong?"

"I'm sick!"

"Sick?"

I tried to sit up but I was too weak I fell against Kevin my old hot dog making contact before I did. "AAAAGGGGGGHHH"!

"GROSS!" Kevin shouted standing up quickly running into the bathroom. "NICK, YOU LITTLE SHIT!"

Shit? Correction: I vomited. Between everything that happened that day- I just couldn't take anymore! My stomach was churning, my eye was throbbing, I was freezing and I had a runny nose. I just-cried.

"WAH!" I wailed holding my stomach in pain. I couldn't help all I wanted was one free day and a bad British hot dog and cold air had ruined it!

Brian lifted me out of my bed onto his changing my soiled shirt. "Shhhh....Nicky. It'll be okay. It's out now and your tummy will feel better."

His words didn't help I continued to sob. "I'm c-cold."

"I know-do you think you'll be sick again?"

"No. I'm just cold and I don't feel good!"

"Just lay down. I'll clean up your bed, okay?"

My shoulders shook with each sob. "Okay."

Kevin returned in only a pair of jeans. Well, at least I had only creamed his shirt. He pressed a cool rag to my brow ignoring the whimpering that I released due to my eye.

"Just calm down. It'll all okay."

"But...I p-puked on you and I lied and...."

"I know that, Nick, just stop crying or you'll get sick again!" He gently rubbed my bare back. "My God your freezing!"

"It was cold out," I whispered.

"I know, kiddo." Kiddo? Maybe this was a good sign he wasn't going to kill me. He sat with me while Brian took away the dirtied laudry. Luckily, I had left the bed untouched only the blankets ruined. He stood reaching into my bag pulling out a black sweatshirt. "Here, get into this and slip off your jeans."

I attempted his request but found my hands shaking too badly to remove my clothing.

Kevin lifted my icy arms through the sleeves. "You always end up getting into trouble, don't you?"

I sneezed as I tossed my jeans to the floor remaining in my boxers. "Yeah, kinda' like DJ Tanner."

He pushed the opening over my neck. "Who?"

"Um....nevermind."

He patted the bed. "Lie back."

"I don't want to." As if you get what you want with Kevin. You either do it his way the first time or he makes you the second.

Kevin rested his hands against my shoulders forcing me back against the bed-told 'ya he always gets his way. "Try to get some sleep."

"I'm not sleepy."

He nodded. "Very well. Considering you deserve to be sick after what you did!"

"But-Brian did too!"

"Yes, but he was smart enough not to get a hotdog in Britain."

Was it really necessary for him say that? As if I didn't know!

"Now, try to sleep."

"I don't wanna'."

"In that case-I'll stay up and chew the two of you out all night!"

I gulped. "Goodnight, Kevin."

****************************************

I awoke to see AJ standing over me and a piece of steak lying over my injured eye. "What do you want?"

"Well, good morning to you, too."

I moaned. "What time is it? And why is there dead cow on my face?"

"Seven o'clock and because Kevin told me to."

"Where is everyone?"

"Downstairs getting breakfast."

"Then, why aren't you?"

He smirked. "I wanna' hear about your little adventure. Say, are you still sick?"

I sneezed. "Yes, AJ."

"Oh, sorry, bro. This won't make you feel any better, but Kevin doesn't pity you anymore. He's planning the lecture of the century for you guys. And I think Howie helped Brian write a sermon."

"Why? Brian was in on it."

AJ shrugged. "He said it was a way of confession. So, tell me about yesterday."

"Well, we faked sick, caught a bus and-"

"No, no, no! Just cut straight to the assistants! Brian mentioned them this morning! A brunette and a redhead! Apparently, you claimed the redhead."

I shrugged. "I didn't claim her-I just thought she was pretty as Brian did the brunette."

He nodded. "The one with a great set of legs?"

"Yep."

"And the redhead was-"

"Stacked," I added. "But they were the sweetest girls."

He licked his lips. "I bet."

"Lay off you pervert."

He crossed his arms. "So, was it worth it?"

"Worth it?"

"Yeah, skipping yesterday. You got lost, hurt, sick and now you're going to get preached at by two country boys that can talk for hours."

I remembered the fun I had had with Brian, the hours of life that I wasn't a Backstreet Boy, Ariel's kindness, puking on Kevin.....And the urge I had to do it all over again.

"Ooooh, yeah, it was worth it."

THE END