Hi all!! Here's the next part of Dreams of an Angel. Hope you all enjoy it! Any comments or suggestions, well, you know how to contact me. My Yahoo ID is Goldenknightuk if you wish to send me an instant message. Sorry for any bad grammars boys and girl. C'mon! Nobody's perfect!! :)
NOTE TO ALL READERS: In order to balance my study time and writings, I decided to set a specific time for every update. For now on, I'll be updating Dreams of an Angel every Tuesday & Friday evening (Well, Irish time. I dunno about the time differences between my place and yours, guys and gals. You have to figure that out yourself :P Trust me, I sucked in figuring it out :)). But hey, if time permits me, I promise I'll update it at other times :)
Before the show, onwards to the boring part! Legal matters! Hehehe. You can press 'fast-forward' now.
Well, first of all, this story, as you will certainly find out soon, is TOTALLY fictional. So! If any of you truly believe in it... dude, I'm worried about you. Secondly! None of the guys in the Backstreet Boys are gay! (No matter how hard I wished it :P). But nobody say we couldn't dream it, heh heh. Thirdly, Warren Worthington is actually a character from Marvel Comics, X-men known as Angel or recently Archangel. Okay fine, I admit it. I'm bored and I am making a pathetic attempt to make life a lil' bit interesting. Its not like I'm gonna publish it or something. What else to talk about hmm? Oh, there may be some adult gay scenes in this story. Unlike my brother, I don't mind writing naughty stuff ;) so! If you're underage, naughty, naughty! I can only ask you to go away, but I cannot do anything else to stop you from reading on anyway. Hell! I've been sneaking into the internet to watch gay porns since I was 13! So, if your parents or whoever responsible for you catch you, don't say I didn't warned you. However, if you're homophobic... well maybe I can seduce you enough to turn you around heh heh. I do so love a challenge ;)
Anyway, enough talk. Any comments or boos or suggestion or whatever, just sent it to the same address as in NNTs, goldenknightuk@yahoo.co.uk . Yeah, we shared the same address. Don't ask. Long story.
Okay then! On to the show. Now, don't be shy now. If you got any comments or suggestions, just drop me a note. You do the request, and I'll do the show.
Andy
Part 42: 'Shining Like A Star'
Two hours passes by and the clock struck midnight. Nobody quite know how it happened, but somehow, by some cruel twist of fate, Warren found himself in one of the most serious predicament he ever had in his life...
"It's so soft!"
"And warm too, put your hand like this and feel it."
"How do you keep it shiny all the time?"
"Don't pull the feathers too hard, mom. You might pull it off."
"Ladies, ladies. Leave that poor man's wings alone." Robert chuckled softly at Warren's distressed face.
"It's alright, sir. I can handle it." Warren smiled wearily as he sips his coffee, his wings half-spread on each side and even now are being stroke, manipulated and pulled by the two women sitting beside him. "It's been a while since I groom it anyway."
"It's looks fragile and yet, it sure feels tough." Said Angel.
"It's very light too. It's hard to believe that something so light can carry you off just like that." Said Jane curiously.
"Well, I'm not as heavy as I look." Warren answered mildly. "Part of my physiology is that of a bird. Most of my bones are hollow enough to help lessening the burden."
The sound of someone entering the house through the front door drew everyone's attention away.
"Mom, dad, we're home!" Nick called cheerfully as he stomped in with Aaron behind him.
"I take it their little talk turn out to be successful." Jane smiled.
"Geez, Warren, looks like they've decided to mangle you and hang you out to dry after all." Nick laughed at Warren's miserable state.
"Hmm yeah... poor thing doesn't yet know what he's getting himself into by getting involve with a member of the Carter Clan." Aaron remarked behind him.
"Don't worry. He's learning it." Nick replied cheerfully. "He's learning it reeeeally slowly."
"You know, you could make yourself more useful around here by rescuing me instead of laughing and jeering at the side." Warren spoke just as cheerfully as he looks at Nick. His sky blue eyes clearly shouted 'Help me!'
"So you two patched things up already?" said Robert.
"Yeah. After all, who could stay mad at your friendly, one and only, ever favorite and ravishingly cute, blue eyed teenage heartthrob Nick Carter?" Nick smirked.
"Uh gawd, my dinner's coming up." Angel grimaced as her face turn green.
"Warren, dude, I'm sorry for... for what I said earlier." Said Aaron after a brief hesitating pause. "I... I didn't mean any of it. I was just... shocked and confused and I... (sigh)... I don't know why I said it..."
"It's okay, Aaron. I understand." Warren answered expressionlessly as the 'faraway' look in his eyes appears once again. "My dad reacted the same way too when these wings popped out from my back."
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. I hope it turn out okay." Said Jane.
"Oh yeah, it did. It took some time for him to get used to it, but it turns out alright in the end." Said Warren.
"So what did you two talked about out there?" asked Angel as she looks at Nick and Aaron.
"Guys stuff, brotherly stuff," Nick smirked.
"Stuff that's for us to know and for you to boo-hoo 'cause you'll never find out." Aaron sticks his tongue out to her.
"You guys can be such jerks, you know." Angel answered.
"So is everyone's at peace with everything now?" said Robert.
"Well, I should so say." Angel shrugged. "Though what BJ and Les will think about it... that's another matter."
"They will okay with it. I'm sure of it." Jane smiled as she looks at Nick and Warren. "Just make sure you two keep your promises. Or there'll be hell to pay."
"My bro is a mutant. Isn't this cool or what!" Angel said happily. "This calls for a celebration."
"And a multi-billionaire as my brother-in-law. I still say it'll take me some time to get used to it... longer with all those blue skin and wings... even longer with the gay stuff... but I'll get there..." Aaron smile began to change into an evil grin. "But give me a Ferrari, a Porsche and a nice mansion somewhere and we can consider every single unpleasantness that happened between the two of us tonight settled forever."
"Aaron, how could you!" Angel interrupted angrily before adding softly, "You forgot to include a yacht for me."
"Hush, you two. Shame on you." Said Jane before smiling while murmuring, "Good call on the yacht."
She laughed when Robert frowned at her.
"Who do y'all really see standing here? Warren or Santa?" He murmured in disbelief before turning at Warren who is by now staring at them all wide-eye. "It's your funeral, Warren. Welcome into the family. You take care of my son and I won't skin you alive."
"I never said being with me is gonna be easy." Nick snickered beside Warren.
"I suddenly have this uneasy feeling that I'm going to die young." Warren murmured to himself thoughtfully.
"Anyway, my oh-so-loving family, its past midnight, so we better be heading home." Said Nick.
"Why, Nicky, the night is still young. What the hurr... mmmphHH!!!" Angel's snickering voice was quickly muffled when Jane quickly placed her hand over her mouth. Around the room, Nick and Warren blushed heavily while Robert's face turned sickly green.
"We all want to sleep peacefully tonight without nightmares, dear." Jane stares at Nick and Warren with a sickly smile on her face. "Especially you father."
Aaron's face is red from holding back his laughter.
"There's something seriously wrong with this family." Robert murmured wearily.
Nick merely laughed as he took Warren's hand and pulled him to the door, snatching up his jacket as he did... and Warren gladly followed, the expression on his face probably matches the expression he had when he was captured by Apocalypse years ago. He smiled a while later though as they rushed out of the front door and head towards their car. Nick's mind is now calm and filled with contentment, joy and... and a sense of... 'belonging'... the same feeling he felt when Nick shared his feelings of his family with him weeks before at the mansion... the same feeling of having a loving family who accepted and love him unconditionally... the same feeling of having a loving family whom one could fall back to... a feeling that Warren had yearned to have all these time after being alone for so long since his parents died...
Saying goodbye can be an unpleasant experience. Strange that your mind can flip-flop again and again every time you have to leave your love ones - one part of your mind desperately wanted to stay on for a while, while the other keep on saying 'leave, leave, leave!'
Warren was already sitting in the driving seat, adjusting himself here and there to accommodate his wings properly so that it wouldn't be too uncomfortable. He finally switches on his image-inducers to hide his real features and started the car while Nick hugged everyone else happily one by one, promising to come by and visit again soon after being personally threatened by his mom and dad of serious woes and dire consequences that shall befall him should he fail to comply. It sounds sooo morbid that one look at their face is enough to tell Warren that not even all the X-men combined could protect Nick from their wrath should that come to past.
Fifteen minutes later, they are driving steadily along the freeway in silence, both finally enjoying the sense of peace and freedom that finally dominate their minds. Somewhere along the way, Warren smiled when Nick leans against him sleepily. His lips twitches slightly into a small smile time and again and his mind is filled with nothing but calmness and contentment. Wrapping one of his arms around Nick, he pulled Nick closer against him.
"You have a family now, Warren." Nick murmured half-asleep before settling down and closing his eyes. "You're not alone anymore."
"I told you, you're going to shine tonight, love." Warren whispered softly as a single tear leaks out and rolled down his cheek. He kissed Nick lightly on the hair as Nick breathed away peacefully. A new step was taken and it feels like another wall between them was thrown down and they are closer to each other than ever before. "You did more than shine. You became a glittering star."
Next morning...
JC looks wonderingly at the mangled garage door as he stood in front of AJ's house.
'What the hell happened here?' He asked himself as he walks slowly towards the broken front door.
"AJ?" He called as he peers into the house. "Are you in?"
Feeling a little worried, he steps into the house in silence. The front door appears to have been broken into... and so is the side door. What happened here?
"Excuse me, sir. Can I help you?"
JC jumped in surprise at the voice behind him. Spinning around in panic, his eyes fell on the man garbed in a police uniform standing behind him.
"Geez, who the hell are you?" JC frowned. "And what the hell happened here? Where's AJ?"
"Sorry to startled you. My name's officer O'Hara and I've been assigned to investigate the attack that occurs here several days ago." Said the police. "I was upstairs when I heard a voice down here, which I presumed is you."
"Attack?" A chill crept into JC's mind as he remembers AJ's strange phone-call. "What attack? What happened to AJ?"
"Two days ago, the lady from across the street called the police reporting strange men in dark suit breaking into Mr. McLean's house." Said the officer. "Then, she saw Mr. McLean himself breaking through the garage door in his car as he sped away from the house. Those men streamed out and followed him immediately."
"Oh my God..." said JC. Two days ago... about the same time AJ made that phone-call. "Where's AJ now?"
"We don't know. We found his car in a ditch beside the freeway outside the city, empty. We've been searching for him ever since." The officer replied. "Are you a friend of his?"
"Yeah!" said JC. "I came by to pick up some things I left here weeks ago as I promised... but I never expected..."
"What things?"
"My guitar and some clothes." JC replied absently as his mind struggle to remember the phone-call. "I left it in the guest room during my stay here some times ago. I told him I'd come over to pick it up somewhere around this week."
"Do you have any clue as to what happened?"
JC frowned nervously.
"No... I'm sorry I don't..." He answered slowly. "AJ never has any enemy in his life... but..."
"Yes?" said the officer as he wrote something down his notebook.
"Well, he called me two evenings ago and I could have sworn he was... scared." Said JC.
The officer looks up at him sharply.
"Two evenings ago?" said the officer. "And can you tell me what you two talked about?"
JC looks at him nervously as his mind struggles to decide whether or not it's right to break his promise and tell the officer the whole thing. AJ truly sounded panic... and the right thing to do is to tell the police everything but... somehow... his... instinct tells him it's unwise to do so...
"He said he's going somewhere this week and... he wouldn't be here if I decided to come over to pick up my things. So I have to use the spare keys he gave me to get inside." JC replied.
"And you said he sounded scared?"
"Yes... more like... scared and rushed." JC answered, studying at the officer carefully for the first time as he slowly made up his mind. For some unknown reason, there's something about this officer that makes him feel... uneasy. He's not an expert in the police force... but this guy doesn't have the... 'feeling'... of a police officer... Maybe it's the way he stand, maybe it's his slightly rumpled uniform, maybe it's the way he wears his cap... maybe it's the stubble of beard on his jaw... shouldn't every police officers take their dress code and appearance seriously? "He hung up as soon as I said okay. Officer... what's going on? Do you have any clue as to what's going on?"
"As I said, we're looking into it." Said the officer coolly. "Are you sure he didn't say anything else?"
"No. I'm sure of it. Geez, I hope he's okay." JC lied.
"Do you think he called any of his other friends that day?"
"I don't know. I didn't contact any of the others from his band for quite some time now... except Brian. He's inviting everyone at his party next weekend. Other than that, the only people I kept in touch with are my own bandmates and I doubt AJ called them recently. I can ask around if you want." Said JC. Suddenly he felt uncomfortable being under the officer's scrutinizing gaze.
"It's okay. We'll pay them a visit later." Said the officer.
"Do you have any other question?" said JC as he did his best to be helpful to prevent the officer from getting suspicious.
The officer smiled and shook his head.
"No, that would be all. Just write your name here, your address and contact number and that will be all for now." He said mildly.
"Umm..." JC spoke hesitantly after he wrote down the details. "If you've finished with the investigation... do you think I can pick up my stuff? I can come back later if you want."
"We've already searches the house and had the photograph of the scene taken. I don't think there'll be any problem." The officer shrugged.
"Thanks." Said JC as he walks to the guestroom and picks up several of his clothes from the closet and his guitar. Glancing briefly, he notices the outline of the envelope within it.
'God, AJ, what the hell have you got me into?' He thought fearfully as he could feel the scrutinizing stare from the office behind him.
"Got everything?" The officer smiled as he watched the stuff carefully and dismissing it all silently.
"Yeah." JC smiled back.
"Nice guitar."
"Thanks. It was a present from my dad." Said JC. "Listen, if you need anymore help from me, gimme a ring okay? I hope you find AJ quickly. It'll be a big news if the media found out he's been kidnapped."
"We'll do our best, sir." Said the officer. "So far, we've managed to keep the media at bay."
"Thanks. Good luck." Said JC as he walks out of the house and on to his car.
The officer leans against the doorframe in silence as he watched JC pull off and drove away. He turns and walks back where he came from and steps into the office where another man stood by the desk and the body of the real but unconscious Officer O'Hara lay on the floor.
"Anything?" the man by the desk asked.
"Naah. He was just a friend who came by to pick up some stuff he left here several weeks ago - some clothes and a guitar. I've checked it all, nothing there. AJ did called him the day when your team attacked the house but only to tell him that he'll be going somewhere and he has to use the spare key to let himself in to pick up his stuff. He didn't know anything. He was bewildered himself as to what happened."
The man by the desk stopped rummaging through the papers and looks up quietly.
"Why go through all the trouble of call him just to say that when it's quite clear that he knew what's coming after him?" He murmured thoughtfully. "Have that guy watched at all times, just to be safe. Monitor his phone conversation and report to me if you find out anything."
"As you wish." asked the officer again. "Where's AJ now by the way?"
"On the way to the facility."
Next Friday, Part 43: 'To Live Again'