This is it for now. This has all been written over the course of a few months and now it will be "as it comes"... Hopefully there will be a couple of new chapters by the end of the week. I really hope that people are enjoying the story and are interested to see what happens next. I'm more into developing characters than in coming up with lots of cliff hangers and crazy plot twists (I'm not very good at writing action, in case you haven't noticed), and I hope that it's not incredibly boring. :-P Merry Xmas Or What-Have-You To All! -- May
Please don't read if you are offended by gay themes. The usual disclaimer applies.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
"Come in," A.J. chirped. He was a little surprised to see Nick walk into his hotel room. "Oh, hey. What's up?" "I know something you don't," Nick said, and he flung himself onto A.J.'s bed. "Okay, so spill." "Nah, I'm not gonna just tell you. Hey, you got anything to drink?" "Here, help yourself," A.J. said, handing Nick a bottle of Schnapps. "Ooh, yum," Nick said, unscrewing the top and taking a little gulp. "God damnit," A.J. said, staring at the pile of clothing he had just pulled out of his bags. "What are you looking for?" Nick asked in between gulps. "A certain pair of purple leather pants," A.J. sighed. "They were speaking to me earlier and saying, 'WEAR ME! WEAR ME!' But now I can't friggin' find the bastards." "Mmm," Nick said, "I think you would see them if they were here." "You would think that. But I've had stranger items of clothing sneak up on me before." "You should be gay, Bone." "I should? Hey, give me that, you're drinking all of it!" "Yeah, 'cos you like clothes so much." "I'll be an honorary gay man. How's that? ... Hand it over, Nick." "Just one more sip." "That is not a sip," A.J. laughed, grabbing the bottle out of Nick's hand. "You owe me one bottle of peppermint Schnapps." "Deal." "Now what is your big bad secret?" "Oh yeah... Somebody has a crush on you." "Who?" "That's part two of my secret. I'll tell you that part tomorrow." Nick hopped up out of bed and walked to the door. "Maybe I put them in a garment bag," A.J. said. "Bye Bone." "Bye Nicky."
Misha had to laugh at himself. Here he was worrying about what he was going to wear to go out to dinner with Kevin. Sure, it was Kevin Richardson, People magazine's sexiest rock star '99 or whatever, but it was Kevin Richardson, his coworker, the guy he saw every day, the guy he had been checking out since the first time he'd seen a Backstreet Boys video ... the guy who'd been such a dick to him. "I can't let myself forget that," Misha said to his reflection after shaving. "Can't get charmed by another one of these goddamned Backstreet Boys." But he still wound up wearing his nicest Armani suit. Misha met up with Kevin downstairs in the hotel and they slipped out to a quiet restaurant nearby, escorted by one of Kevin's bodyguards. The manager of the restaurant had been alerted and they were seated in a dark corner at the back. Misha was pleased that Kevin had dressed to the nines as well, neatly groomed and looking rather fetching in a soft, almost velvety dark jacket and a fashionable patterned shirt with some silver threading. Although he was only a couple of inches shorter than Kevin, Misha always felt that Kevin loomed above him, regal, imposing. Perhaps it was just those dramatic cheekbones at work.
"You don't suppose they have English language menus," Misha said with a little grin, staring at the unintelligible tableau before him. Kevin laughed. "Well... We could try to stick to things we've heard of before." "Like strudel." "Anything-wurst." "Beer. I think that one is universal." "I hope so." Eventually they managed to order what they thought they wanted. "I'm pretty much the only adventurous eater in this bunch," Kevin commented. "Howie will try different stuff to a degree. But the rest of them freak out if there isn't a McDonald's in the immediate vicinity." "That's kind of charming, though, in a way," Misha smiled. "Kids," Kevin laughed, "what are you gonna do." "Do you ever get sick of being the parental figure?" "Oh, god yes. It's not really true anymore. I think a few years back, I was in that role a lot, but now... I guess I still boss them around some, it's just that I want things to get done and the rest of them are a lot more ... casual..." Misha laughed. "Yeah well, we're talking international celebrities here." "True," Kevin grinned, "but as far as I'm concerned, they're my little brothers, and they need me kicking them in the butt." "Who do you knock heads with the most?" "Nick. Definitely Nick." "I can imagine," Misha said smoothly. "Brian and I were driving each other nuts on tour last summer," Kevin said, taking a drink of his wine. "He's ... well you know. He gets along best with Nick. What does that tell you?" "He just seems more mature than Nick," Misha said hopefully. "Eh," Kevin shrugged, "that's not saying a whole hell of a lot."
Joining A.J. in his room for dinner is no big deal, Dani told herself. I am not going to wear anything fancy. I'm just changing because I was looking exceptionally grungy today. I'm only putting on lipstick because it's dry here and my lips are getting chapped. I'm only fixing my hair because ... well, damnit, I want to look good. Dani went to his room and was a little disappointed that Howie was there too. Still, A.J. had some candles lit and was asking for music suggestions. "I miss Maria so much," Howie was generally complaining. Dani gave him an understanding nod. Why are you here, she was thinking, I want to be alone with A.J.! "It's tough," A.J. agreed, sitting cross-legged on the floor as he picked through a stack of CDs. "Just the companionship is nice, having somebody there... That's why Amanda would come with me so much." Dani bit her tongue and didn't ask who he was talking about. "It's also just, you know, it would be neat to travel together, to experience the different cultures and go sight-seeing..." "Eh," A.J. smiled, "it's really just the regular sex you're missing." Howie smirked. "So tasteful. A.J., there is a lady present." "There is?" Dani laughed. She picked up a throw pillow and looked under it. "Where?" "There is a chick present," A.J. corrected him. "Precisely," Dani smiled. Howie held his hands up and laughed. "Okay, you guys... whatever ...!"
Brian was a little hesitant going into the nightclub with Nick. He was apprehensive about crowd control, since they were going unescorted, and apprehensive about Nick's behaviour, since he was already a little drunk and in the kind of hyper mood which usually got him into trouble. But he dressed up, groomed himself immaculately, and accompanied his gorgeous boyfriend proudly, albeit discreetly. It was a mixed gay and straight club, which was after all the only kind they could go to. Not two minutes after they'd gone in, two women rushed up to them and began swooning. "You are Backstreet Boys?" one asked in a heavy accent. "Shh," Brian smiled, putting a finger to his lips. "Oh, why he's leaving?" The taller girl sighed miserably as Nick slipped away. "I have to go now," Brian said slowly, smiling at them politely. "Bye now." Please, leave us alone, he prayed. And don't tell any of your friends. Brian lost track of where Nick was. He got himself a drink and stood by one side of the dance floor. Unfortunately, he kept getting pestered by fans, and it was very difficult to keep an eye out for Nick. He was probably being mobbed too. We have to get out of here, Brian thought. "Sign, you will please?" a slightly intoxicated girl begged him, holding up a napkin. "Okay, just one more," Brian said, the fatigue in his voice beginning to show through. "Do you have a pen?" "No pen," the girl said. "You sign?" How do you expect me to sign it without a pen, Brian thought. Blood? Spit?
"Finally," A.J. mouthed as he shut the door behind Howie. Dani bent over laughing, covering her mouth for some semblance of respect. "Poor guy," she said at last. "Poor Howard," A.J. said with a big smile, sitting down beside Dani and pouring her another glass of wine. He was very close to her, so close that Dani could smell his cologne. "Danielle," A.J. said quietly, and she looked up to meet his gaze. Without his shades on, A.J. had soft, puppy dog eyes with sleepy long lashes. They gave him a sweet, happy look which didn't show through at all when he had the sunglasses on. "I'm sorry about the other night, after the show." "Oh... I'm surprised you even remember that." Dani gave him a big smile, a bit too big. "Sure I remember. I guess you probably think I'm a sleaze now." "No, of course not," Dani said. "I mean, you do your thing, whatever, I don't judge people for that. There's nothing wrong with it anyway." "With ..." "Casual sex," Dani said with a little smile. "Or partying in general. I mean, as long as you're not hurting anybody." A.J. nodded and pursed his lips. "Yeah, it's just... well, I don't want to give the wrong impression. I like just chilling sometimes and it's nice to ... you know..." Dani raised an eyebrow, having not a clue where he was going with this. "... the flattery of it is nice," A.J. admitted, "women who want to be with you, no questions asked." "Alex, it's really okay," Dani said. "Like I said, I am not a judgemental person at all." "Right, but I mean, there is more to me than that," A.J. said earnestly. "I know," Dani replied softly, and their eyes met again.
"That was very nice," Kevin said rather formally as he and Misha rode the elevator up to their floor. The Backstreet entourage had an entire floor of the small hotel for themselves, a little luxury which often meant that parties got a bit more out of control than usual. Misha smiled. Kevin had been very friendly, but so careful not to reveal anything about himself. He didn't have much problem discussing the other Backstreet Boys with Misha, but when it came to Kevin himself, not a whole lot came out. Misha had Kevin pictured as some kind of shelled sea creature, poking an eyeball out on a stalk and then darting back inside to hide from the cruel, cruel world. Somebody must have burned him pretty badly, Misha thought. "Maybe we should do something like this again," Kevin offered, standing at Misha's door, still regal, neat, ready for his close-up. "As long as you think I'm on your level," Misha said. He wasn't sure why he said it, since their night had been so civil, but Kevin's face fell. He exhaled and spoke even more slowly than usual, "Misha, I do feel really badly about all that." He looked up and into Misha's eyes. "My last relationship... let's just say that everything that could go wrong with that kind of scenario went wrong. I was pretty much being blackmailed." "I'm sorry," Misha said. "And I'm sorry for bringing that up. I really have gotten over it." "No," Kevin said, shaking his head, "that was really uncalled for from me. I wasn't raised to be like that." He looked up again. "I will make it up to you," Kevin said. "I promise."
Brian tried to make his way through the throng of dancers, but he felt like everywhere he went, somebody was jumping into his face and saying BACKSTREET BOYS! or I LOVE YOU! or YOU'RE BRIAN! He felt claustrophobic. Finally, he asked one of the girls, "have you seen Nick?" "Nick is here?" she gasped, and she grabbed one of her friends and passed on the news. Brian groaned. The club was not that large. If he just kept moving, he'd find Nick eventually. It wasn't until Brian thought of checking the bathroom that he located his boyfriend. "Hey Bri," Nick grinned. "It's insane out there," Brian said. "I thought you would have been torn apart by now." "Nah," Nick said, taking a swig from a bottle of alcohol. "I'm cool." "Smoke?" the young guy who was in the bathroom with Nick offered Brian a hit of his joint. "No, thanks," Brian said. "Come on, Nick, let's get out of here." "Why do you want to go?" Nick asked. He took a long drag off the joint and passed it back to random Euro dude. "Nick, it's a mad house out there, and I don't want to hang out in a bathroom all night either." "Well, let's take the party back to the hotel," Nick said. He slid off the sink and slapped his new little friend on the arm. "You want to come party with us tonight?" "Ja, that will be so cool." "Nick..." Brian groaned. Nick walked unsteadily over to Brian and slipped an arm around his waist. "Threesome," he whispered in Brian's ear. "Nick, no," Brian said. "Bad idea." Nick grinned. "C'mon Bri, it'll be awesome. What's your name?" he asked Euro boy loudly. "Hans." "What?" "Hans." "What?" "He said Hans, now come on Nick, let's get out of here," Brian said, grabbing Nick's hand. "Wait up," Nick said. Euro boy gave him the joint again. Brian stood with his arms folded waiting. He could just imagine the police coming in at this moment. Hans threw the wrapped end into a toilet and flushed. "We go now?" he asked. "Ja, ja," Nick laughed, and he clung to the guy as they walked out. As expected, Nick and Brian were immediately attacked as they emerged from the bathroom, but the three of them formed a sort of human shield and forced their way out of the club. They walked to the street car station and Hans flagged down a passing car to take them to their hotel.
For some reason, Brian had ended up in the front seat of the car, which wasn't terribly convenient since he didn't speak German and had no idea how to get to the hotel. He glanced over his shoulder several times, not too pleased to see Nick and Hans kissing, with tongue. The driver didn't seem to care, and Brian prayed that he had no idea who the Backstreet Boys were. "Shit, there's a crowd in the lobby," Brian said after they were dropped off. "Can we go in back?" Nick asked. "We'll have to try." The three guys wandered around to the back of the hotel, but the place was too small to have an alternate entrance. Brian and Hans waited while Nick decided to throw up, and then they made their attempt to get to the elevators.
It didn't work, and they were immediately surrounded by a small crowd of fans. They rushed to the elevators and mostly ignored the fans who jostled to get close to them, shouting their names and sticking things at them to sign, taking flash photographs. They didn't seem to care that Nick was trashed and Brian looked like he wanted to rip their heads off. This might be their only chance to take their own picture of a real life Backstreet Boy. "Jesus, finally," Brian said once they were safe and sound in the hotel room. Nick stumbled over to the bed and laid down. Hans decided to accompany him and they began making out. Brian sat down in an armchair and just stared at them. "What the hell, Nick," Brian said softly, but out loud.
"Brian," Nick said, "come here..." Hans had unbuttoned Nick's shirt and was kissing his chest and stomach. Nick stroked Hans' blond hair and gave him a little push in a southern direction. Brian came and sat on the edge of the bed and shook his head at Nick. "Kiss me Brian," Nick said with a smile. "Please?" "Not while some other guy is sucking your dick," Brian said. "Ahhh," Nick sighed loudly as Hans took his penis into his mouth, "yes... Bri, come lie down with me..." He patted the bed on the other side of him, and finally Brian did so, kissing Nick on the neck and cheek. Nick was panting and letting out little moans, and Brian was getting turned on despite himself, watching his lover getting pleasured by somebody else, seeing Hans try to take all of Nick's big cock in his mouth, knowing how it felt, how it tasted. "Bri," Nick sighed, "fuck me, now..." "I don't want to with this guy here," Brian said, but he stroked Nick's chest and sidled up closer to him. "I want your dick," Nick moaned, rubbing his ass against Brian's crotch, feeling his lover's erection through his pants. "You'll get it baby," Brian said. "Ahh, Brian," Nick groaned, "I want to cum with you in me..." "I'm not sharing you." "Oh please, baby..." "No," Brian said, loving the feeling of Nick shifting his ass around against his crotch, rubbing against him and slamming his body back. Nick moaned louder and began to thrust hard into Hans' mouth as the German sucked him obediently. Nick was too drunk to get off, though, and Hans' jaw was getting tired waiting for the Backstreet Boy to cum, so he began to jack Nick off instead. The big blond moaned and squirmed, but after a few minutes this had not gotten them anywhere, and finally Brian grabbed Hans' wrist and told him to get the hell out of their hotel room.
Brian shut the door with a grin. His dick was aching by this time, and he stripped quickly and took Nick in his arms. "Fuck me hard," Nick said, licking Brian's face and biting his lower lip. "You know I will," Brian said, thrusting his tongue into Nick's mouth and then slamming his cock into Nick's ass, fucking him up against the wall like it was their last opportunity to have sex for the next decade. Brian yelled when he came, feeling spurt after spurt of his cum shoot into Nick's pleasingly tight ass, and then he clung to his lover, kissing him tenderly and smoothing Nick's sweaty hair back from his face. His worn-out partner kept his eyes shut, but smiled broadly as he said, "nice work Bri." "You liked that baby?" "Uh huh... you're so awesome." "Hmmm," Brian sighed contentedly as he fell asleep nestled on Nick's shoulder.