Disclaimers: This story is fiction and it is not intended to imply anything about the true sexuality of the celebrities mentioned or any personal knowledge about their private lives. If you are underage for your area, if it is illegal for you to view such material or if you are opposed to two men in a loving situation then this story is not for you either.
Note: I started this before recent events, I love Kevin and to me he is, was, and always will be a Backstreet Boy - this is fiction so he's still with the group :)
Part 2
It was almost a week since Kyle had come back into their lives, or at least since Brian had seen him. He had hoped that having the boy physically removed from a venue and having his name blacklisted at events would stop any further harassment. So far it seemed to be working.
AJ had not mentioned seeing Kyle to Brian or to Kevin and no one else had commented on his being at the signing. Brian began to hope that it was just a gutless attempt on Kyle's part to dredge up the past and rub salt into an already painful wound. It certainly wouldn't have done Kevin any good to see Kyle again.
Kevin was happy right now, he had someone in his life that loved him, that accepted him for who he was and wanted to be with him despite of the pain that their life could cause. The last thing that they needed was Kyle coming in and stirring up trouble for them.
They were still in Florida, the promotional tour was over now but there was more work to do. There was a tour to plan and other things to deal with. AJ was clean, Nick was sober and happy, Kevin was settled, Brian had Leighanne and Howie - well, that was anyone's guess, but he seemed happy too. The last thing that they needed was anything upsetting the apple cart now that it was finally settled.
Unfortunately no one had sent that particular memo to Kyle.
The call came in the middle of a session where they were arguing over themes for the tour. Kevin wanted a back to basics style, less effects, less flashy and more instruments, something that would show that they had grown up and moved on. On the other hand AJ and Howie were all for a more soulful based tour, bringing in their outside influences and adding a few extra touches to it. Nick just wanted fireworks, anything big and flashy was always good for him, his inner child loved to make it a spectacular show.
They weren't supposed to have their cell phones on but when Kevin's rang there was a silent hush.
"Sorry guys, I was expecting a call from management." He apologised, knowing that this would undermine his own authority in telling them off for forgetting for a while.
"Hello?" Kevin asked politely expecting it to be someone from Jive or the Firm.
"Mr. Kevin Richardson?" A voice asked solemnly.
"That's me." Kevin said, a puzzled look crossing his face as he did not recognise the voice. "Who am I speaking to?"
This got the attention of the others, they knew now that it wasn't someone that Kevin was expecting and they wondered if some fan had gotten his number from somewhere or something.
"My name is Anne Collins, I am a Nurse at Saint Christopher's hospital in Orlando." She said tenderly. "I hope you don't mind, I got your number from a friend of mine who works at your record company..."
"I'm sorry Ma'am but if you're looking for a donation or for us to make an appearance then you really should go through our management first." Kevin said.
They all did their bit for charity but they could not go to every function, the management tended to deal with what they would and would not do, although usually they would not do it only if it was insecure. Most of the time they would do it, especially for their own foundations.
"...It's not that." Anne told him. "We have a patient here who has you listed on his contacts for next of kin. I wouldn't have called only there was no one else listed."
"I don't have any kin in Orlando other than my Cousin and he's here at my side." Kevin said.
"What is it Kev?" Nick asked curiously. He was never one to wait for people to finish a conversation before butting in. Brian tried to shush Nick so that he could listen in again.
"He isn't listed as family as such, but you are the only contact that we have left for him." She said and her tone sounded sad. "His name is Kyle Maddox, and it says here that he's your stepson."
And as Kevin heard the words the bottom fell from his world. He had never expected to hear that name again.
Brian reached for the phone that hung limply in Kevin's hand. Whoever it was that was on the end of the phone had caused Kevin to pale significantly and Brian wanted to know what was wrong.
"Mr. Richardson?" Anne asked, the line had been silent for a long while and she wondered if he was still there.
"I'm his friend." Brian said. "What seems to be the problem?"
"Well, as I was just telling Mr. Richardson, we have a young man in this hospital who has him listed as a contact in case of emergencies. He was quite far down the list but Mr. Richardson was the only person that we can get in contact with." She explained to Brian. "We were wondering if Mr. Richardson could come in and speak to the doctors about the case since there are a few matters that need to be settled."
"What is the name of this boy?" Brian asked, not really thinking straight.
"His name is Kyle Maddox, he's nineteen years old, quite tall in stature..." She said, beginning to give a description to him. Brian seethed with anger. This was not how it was supposed to happen.
"I know who he is." Brian said curtly. "But I'm sorry, we can't help you with that matter."
Then he hung up.
"Who who is?" Nick asked.
"Kyle." Kevin said. It was more of a ghost Kevin than the real thing though, his mind was trapped in some far away place and his voice sounded hollow and empty. "Kyle came back."
"That was him?" Howie asked. "I'm surprised that he got through all of the security."
"It wasn't Kyle. That was the hospital. They say that Kyle is there." Ghost Kevin said. He was still white and still seemed to be far off.
No one spoke for a moment as they allowed the information to sink in, Brian was busy thinking of a way to get his cousin away from this while AJ was considering visiting all of the hospitals in the area until he found the boy. Yes, Kyle was part of the worst part of their lives but he didn't deserve whatever it was that had happened, and if he was getting them to call Kevin then it must be pretty desperate.
Suddenly Kevin broke the silence by jumping to his feet and heading out, the only goodbye he had was a brief moment before he left.
"I have to go to Kyle." Kevin said before heading out like a bat out of hell and leaving four confused Backstreet Boys in his wake.
None of them knew why Kyle would need Kevin or why Kevin would even care.
To be continued
Other boy-band stories at nifty:
Want - Ongoing Star Encounter - on hiatus Lost and Found - on hiatus Designs on You - complete Set Adrift - complete Poor Howing - short story Loving Bryan - Short Story