Disclaimer ----------
The story contained in these pages is totally in the mind of its author. All rumor and innuendo aside, I do NOT have any idea of the true orientations of any members of the Backstreet Boys. Yes, children, all wishful thinking aside, they're probably as straight as we all HATE to think of them. So, this is my little reminder that this is what we like to call FICTION. Readers should realize that reality and fantasy are definitely (and unfortunately ;-) two different things.
Don't read this tawdry tale if you're too young. Don't read this tawdry tale if it's against the law. If it IS illegal where you live, you need to consider a relocation!!!
And now...'Forever'...
Chapter 87
"Dylan, what happened?" Brian asked from my side. It was the first time I realized he was there.
"I...we were attacked. We were walkin' on the beach and this group of guys showed up and started makin' cracks about not liking fairies and faggots and one thing led to another and I'm on the ground gettin' kicked and someone shot a gun and Kevin was bleeding and," I rambled on. Nick interrupted me, putting a finger to my lips.
"I was the one who fired the shot, Dylan," Tom's voice came from behind Nick. I glanced up at him.
"What? You? But Kev..." I trailed off.
"Kevin was stabbed, Dylan, not shot," Tom continued. "I was too far away when those guys got to you, so I fired the shot in the air, hopin' it'd scare `em off. Luckily, it did."
We fell silent, then. Brian was on my left, AJ on my right. Nick was on his knees in front of me, still holding my hands. I just stared at him, using him to anchor myself.
"What'm I gonna do if he dies, Nicky?" I whispered. Nick squeezed my hands.
"Dylan," he dropped my hands to cup my face, holding my eyes with his. "Kevin's gonna pull through. He's gonna be fine," he said, his voice firm and forceful. But his eyes gave away how worried he was.
I lost it, then. The tears came pouring out of my eyes. The sobs started wracking my body. I was shaking. I could feel my hands trembling in Nick's. I let out a low moan, letting out the agony that I was feeling.
Nick reached up and took me in his arms. The other guys just crowded down around us, wrapping their arms around us. We all sat there together, sharing our worry and grief.
"Are you the friends of the man who was stabbed tonight?" a voice interrupted us. I quickly looked up to see a man in surgical scrubs standing there.
"Kevin?" I spoke up. "You have news about Kevin?" We all stood, gathering around the doctor. I grabbed Nick's hand, holding on for dear life. "How is he?"
"I'm afraid I can't give you much information. They took him up to surgery about half an hour ago," the doctor said. "He suffered a blunt trauma to the head. Looks like someone took a club of some kind to him. The stab wounds are the worst, though."
"Whoever stabbed him didn't stop there. They slashed the knife through his stomach and intestines in several places. They'll be in surgery for a while trying to close up the wounds. And the possibility of infection is pretty high with intestinal wounds."
I couldn't breath. I couldn't think. My mind was racing, and it wasn't going anywhere. The stars were coming back into my eyes. I tried to grab hold of Nick, but I suddenly found I couldn't move my arms. And then everything went black.
"He's comin' around," Nick's voice came to me from some distant place. "Dylan," he said, sounding closer now. I opened my eyes to see him above me.
"Dylan, buddy, talk to me. You alright?" he asked me.
"Sure, Nick, I'll be fine," I said. Unfortunately, when I tried to sit up, I got dizzy again and immediately fell back, clutching my throbbing skull.
"I think we'd better get you checked over, young man," the doctor said. I just nodded. I grabbed Brian's arm, getting his attention.
"Go to him. Please," I whispered, pleading. Brian was Kev's family. I knew he should be up there with him. Brian just nodded, grabbing Howie by the arm. They both walked off quickly, stopping by the nurse's station for directions.
I spent the next half-hour being examined by the doctor. He checked out my ribs where I'd been kicked. He told me that I had just bruised them this time. No real damage was done to the bones.
My head was another story. The kick I'd taken had landed me with yet another concussion. The doc wanted to check me into the hospital for observation. I told him I'd be there anyway, but there was no reason to take a bed for me. I had no intentions of leaving the hospital until Kevin could come with me.
And then the waiting began. We found Brian and Howie upstairs in another waiting room. I was surprised to see Leighanne there, too. I hadn't even noticed her in the waiting room. No word had come out about Kevin. The only thing the nurse would tell any of us was that he was still in surgery and in critical condition.
Brian handled the phone calls to Kevin's family, and to the guys' management. They were going to send someone out to deal with the press since none of the guys would really be able to handle it. And Ann, Kevin's mom, was going to catch the earliest flight she could.
God and I had a long talk in the hospital chapel that night, probably longer than any talk we'd had in years. He and I hadn't been close for a while, especially when he took Gram from me the year before. I spent almost an hour that night, praying, begging him not to take Kevin from me like he took her. Brian sat with me, saying his own prayers, occasionally stroking a hand down my back.
AJ, Howie, and Nick all showed up at one point or another to offer up their own prayers. They didn't stay as long as Bri and I did, though. Brian never once left my side. I felt closer to him in those moments than I ever had before.
"Dylan, you need to get cleaned up," he said as we walked slowly back to the waiting room.
"Huh?" I asked, not clueing in to what he was saying. He reached out and took my hand, holding it up for me to look at. Kevin's blood was still on it.
I looked down, then, realizing for the first time that my clothes were stained with it, too. I'd been holding him pretty close on the beach after...after he'd been hurt, and his blood was all over me.
I stood there, in the middle of the hall, and just stared down at my shirt. Everything else around me faded out. There were only the stains...only the stains.
"Come on, Dylan," a gentle voice came to me. I looked up to see a nice looking man standing there. I felt like I should know him, but my mind had gone all foggy, and I couldn't think of his name. He had a very strong, square face, reddish-brown hair, and piercing blue eyes.
I just smiled stupidly at him. He smiled back a little. There was concern in his eyes as he took my hand and led me down the hall. I stumbled after him, as he obviously knew who I was, even if I couldn't seem to recognize him.
We came to a small room where several other nice looking men were sitting. There was also a pretty blond woman there. Something in the back of my mind told me I knew them, but I couldn't seem to remember anything. The nice man who'd brought me here pushed me into a seat in the corner, then started talking to the others.
"He's losing it, guys. He looked at me in the hall like he had no idea who I was."
"We should get him cleaned up," another one suggested. This was the one with long black hair. He seemed nice, too.
"Yeah," the first man said. "Would one of you mind going back to the hotel and getting him some clothes?"
"I can," the strange one spoke up, the one with all the drawings on his arms and jewelry in his ears.
"Thanks, AJ," the first man said. The strange one looked at me before turning back to the others.
"Take care of him. I'll be back in a little bit," he said, just before he and the big man in the suit left.
I faded then, drifting off someplace else. I could hear voices around me, but they were speaking some language I couldn't understand anymore. A woman came in later, dressed in some kind of suit. She talked to the nice man and the others. I couldn't understand her, either. I faded back out again.
"Dylan," someone was shaking me. I came back to the little room to see that the strange man had come back with the other man. The strange man had a bundle of clothes with him. I turned to look at the young blond man who was shaking me.
"Hello," I said, smiling at him. For some reason, this just seemed to upset him.
"Hi, Dylan," he said, then paused. "Listen, buddy," he spoke gently, "we need to get you cleaned up. Is that ok?"
I just nodded and followed him when he led me away. We went to a bathroom not far from the other room. He and the strange man ushered me in there.
The strange man took my shirt off, quickly bundling it up and tossing it behind me. I got the feeling that there was something on it he didn't want me to see. Then, the blond man took a wash cloth and got it wet and soapy and started to clean my face. I just stood there, staring at him as he worked. He was nice.
They took turns washing me. They cleaned my face and my neck and my arms and my hands. Then, the strange one helped me put on the clothes he'd brought. He was nice, talking softly to me. He said they were my friends, and that they'd take care of me.
They led me back to the little room where the other nice men were waiting with the redheaded woman in the suit. The blond one walked me over to a little couch that was there. He sat at one end and had me lie down so my head rested on his leg. He stroked my hair and the back of my neck. Something about that gesture was familiar, soothing. That's the last thing I remember before I fell asleep.
Chapter 88
"KEVIN! NO!" the scream tore from my throat as I woke, sitting up on the couch. Everything came crashing back to me. The walk...the fight...the hospital...Kevin. A pair of arms surrounded me.
"Shhhhh, Dylan," the voice belonged to Nick. "Easy, man, it's ok. It's ok."
He pulled me into a tight hug. I turned into him, burying my face in his neck and clutching him to me. The tears were falling again. I heard footsteps before another hand touched my back.
"What happened?" It was AJ.
"Nothin', AJ. Dylan just had a bad dream is all," Nick told him, speaking softly.
"Is everything alright in here?" a strange female voice asked.
"Yeah," AJ answered. "Everything's fine."
"Ok," the woman said. "Guys, I'm gonna need you at the press conference in fifteen minutes. The people are gonna need to see you so we can head off any rumors that the rest of you were hurt, too."
"Fine. We'll be ready in a second," AJ said.
"Nick..." I started to whisper to him, then trailed off. He seemed to understand, anyway.
"Don't worry, Dylan, I'm not goin' anywhere," he whispered to me. He lifted his head to talk to the others.
"Megan, I'm gonna stay here with D," he said. I stiffened when he called me that. He quickly corrected himself. "With Dylan. I don't think it'd be good to leave him alone."
"I understand, Nick. I think we'll be alright as long as the others can make an appearance," the woman, apparently named Megan, replied.
The guys shuffled out of the room, then, following Megan to wherever this press conference was being held. Nick just continued to hold me, letting me take what time I needed to gather myself. I pulled away from him a while later.
"Thanks, Nick," I said as I turned to put my feet on the floor. "I needed that."
"It's not a problem, Dylan, you know that," he replied, the usual `goofy Nick' replaced by his more serious side.
"Is there any word on Kevin, yet?"
"Well, he got outta surgery about twenty minutes ago. He's in recovery now, and they're gonna move him to intensive care soon," Nick said.
"How is he?" I asked. Nick hesitated in replying. I turned to him, staring into those blue eyes of his.
"It's touch and go, Dylan. He lost a lot of blood, not to mention the damage done to his stomach and stuff. The doc says we just have to wait and see if he can pull himself through," he practically whispered the last part. I nodded.
I stood up, pacing the small waiting room. I took a look around, noticing the TV in the corner for the first time. I walked over and flipped it on, hoping against odds that they might actually have MTV. I knew the major networks probably wouldn't interrupt programming for this, but I thought MTV might.
Amazingly enough, the hospital got MTV. Maybe they got enough kids in here that they thought it was worth the cost. Whatever the reason, I adjusted the volume just as John Norris came on.
"We're interrupting our programming to bring you this late breaking news story. Kevin Richardson, one of the five members of the Backstreet Boys, was apparently attacked last night in Los Angeles. The Backstreet Boys are in LA doing some work in the studio for their next album due out this fall."
"The Boys are currently holding a press conference at Cedars- Sinai hospital, where Richardson is undergoing treatment for his injuries, and we take you there live with MTV's Brian McFayden."
The image on the screen flashed to a picture of a conference room of some sort. No one was at the front table, yet, but flashes were going off. Brian McFayden's voice came through the TV.
"Thanks, John. We've just arrived here at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, and we're waiting for a press briefing that's set to start in just moments. A representative of the Firm, Megan Caldwell, called the briefing to update the press on the events of last night and this morning. So far, details of the attack have been sketchy and." He cut off as the camera showed Megan walking into the room, followed by Brian, Howie, and AJ.
Megan immediately stepped up to the podium that was at one end of the table where the rest of the guys sat down. She opened up a sheet of paper before addressing the crowd.
"Ladies and gentlemen, if I could have your attention, please," she said, holding up her hands until the room quieted. "I have a brief statement, then we will take a few questions. I hope you will understand that this will be short. The guys," she indicated Brian and the others, "would like to get back upstairs as soon as possible."
"At approximately 2:30am local time last night, Kevin Richardson and his fiance, Dylan Weston, were attacked while walking on a beach not far from LA. At this time, we don't know anything about the assailants beyond the fact that there were a number of them, and that at least one was armed with a knife."
"During the course of the attack, Mr. Richardson was stabbed repeatedly in the abdomen, resulting in severe injuries to his stomach and other internal organs. He is currently listed in extremely critical condition, having just now been brought out of surgery."
"Mr. Weston sustained injuries in the attack, as well, and is currently resting upstairs. While his injuries were severe, none is considered to be life threatening." She paused. "We will now open up the floor for questions." She pointed to a woman near the front of the room.
"Do police have any motive or leads in the attack?"
"No," Megan answered. "At this time, there is no known motive in the attack. And leads have been nonexistent. Neither Mr. Richardson nor Mr. Weston have been in a condition to speak with police yet."
I couldn't believe she said that. There sure as hell was a motive, and it was hate. Plain and simple. I was tempted to walk down there and straighten that out, but I knew now wasn't the time.
"What is Kevin's prognosis?" Brian McFayden was asking Megan.
"I wish I could say it's good, but right now, it's considered questionable. The wounds were severe, and the risk of infection is high in this type of case." I saw Brian stand then, taking the microphone from the table to speak.
"We would like to ask our fans, and everyone watching this whether they are fans or not, to say a prayer for my cousin. We're going to need all of your support to bring him through this. Now, the other guys and I are going to return upstairs to check on his condition. Thank you all for coming." Brian, Howie, and AJ all turned and left the room. Megan addressed another question.
"Where is Nick Carter?"
"Mr. Carter is here in the hospital. He remained upstairs with Mr. Weston to keep an eye on Mr. Richardson's condition." I noticed how formal she was being with all of our names. She seemed very professional.
She answered a few more questions before wrapping things up. At the end, she told everyone that she would release regular statements every hour to keep them apprised of any changes.
I shut the TV off, then. I'd seen what I wanted to see. More than I wanted to see, actually. I sighed, dropping back onto the couch next to Nick.
"You ok, Dylan?" he asked.
"Not really, Nick," I spoke softly. "I'm not sure I'll ever be alright again."
To be continued... ------------------
Hi, all. Sorry for the delay (again ;-) I keep saying I won't take as long to post the next piece, then something else comes up. Oh well, at least this time, the something that came up was worth it.
He's gorgeous, with blond hair and the deepest, most beautiful eyes you've ever seen. He's slept with me the last few nights, and always gives me kisses before bedtime. And, before you get too excited for ole DJ, I'll mention that he also has four legs, a tail, and puppy breath.
That's right, folks. DJ bought himself a dog. Purebred Golden Retriever, and he's beautiful. His name is Cherokee. And, he's needed a lot of my attention the last few days and nights, so that's why I didn't post before tonight. Is that better than the standard 'school/work/life got in the way'?
Anyway, I hope everyone's still enjoying the story. I got a very small number of responses after the last posting. Is this becoming boring for y'all now that I've announced it's ending? I can wrap it up early if it's not really exciting anyone anymore.
Oh, and speaking of the ending, the ending chapter got pushed out a little. I'm currently writing Chapter 117. I THINK it'll all come to a stop in 120, but ya never can tell when I'll get a wild hair to write more. Now that Kevin's moved to L.A., maybe I wont find much inspiration in O-town...
I've rambled enough. Gotta go before Cherokee wakes up and needs a potty break. Yes, I did use the word "potty". No need to get all excited about it ;-)
L8r!!