My Everything

Hello to all of you!

I'm back with another chapter of "My Everything."

Thanks for all of your support! Without it, I don't think I could have written this story for this long.

Now on with the story.

First of all, let me just say that this is my first time writing any kind of fiction like this.

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of total fiction and is not meant to imply anything about the sexualities of Nick and Drew Lachey or anyone else mentioned in this story.

If you are too young to read this, or if Homosexuality offends you, then please don't continue any further and leave.

NEWSFLASH: To those of you who don't already know, Nick Lachey and Jessica Simpson, in real life, have reconciled and are now husband and wife. I wish them all the best with their marriage and hope they live a long and happy life together.

If you want details about their wedding, check out the 98 Degrees Official Website at www.98degrees.com.

Other 98 Degrees stories I'd like to recommend are.

"Give Me Just One Night" by Unanoche. "69 with Jeff Timmons" by Zachary Scott Pritt "Nick Lachey" by Ken. "98 Degrees Is Hot" by Gay Night "The Reunion" by RinSong. "Loving Nick Lachey" by Jordan "Playing Doctor with 98 Degrees" by Brian "This Gift" by Sprout

and finally: "What I feel for you" by Thack.

"What I feel for you." is an awesome story and Thack, himself deserves applause for all of his hard work on it.

Now, I"ll let you get on with the story.

Enjoy.

Previously on "My Everything".....

I went and found my favorite spot in the sand and sat down to watch the sunset, as I thought about the friends that I'd left behind in Los Angeles, without saying goodbye.

I sat there, the tears overwhelming me as the final rays of the sun finally disappeared from view in the distance.

"Goodbye, my friends." I whispered, before I broke down, crying.

I have no idea how long I had been sitting there, crying, until I felt a hand come down on my shoulder and gently squeeze it. I turned around and looked up, expecting to see Jake.

"Jake." I said, sternly. "I thought I told you that I......

My voice cut off as my eyes widened and my jaw dropped.

There, standing before me, dressed in a light blue jogsuit and looking so sexy, was Nick.

"Hi." He said, softly, a small smile on his face. "You look like you could use a friend right now."

I got up on my feet quickly and leapt at him, embracing him in my arms, hugging him tightly.

"I'm so glad you're here." I whispered.

*********** CHAPTER 62 ***********

Nick hugged me, tightly. It felt so good to be in his arms again at that moment. I didn't realize until I saw him, just how much I'd actually missed him.

"Nick, not that I'm complaining or anything, but what are you doing here in Orlando?" I asked him, as I pulled back from our embrace, and looked into his face. "I thought you'd have gone back home first thing. But instead you're here and not back home in Los Angeles with Jessica and Nicole. Why?"

"I am headed back home." Nick said, nodding. "But I had to see you one last time before I headed back."

I frowned, wondering what he meant by that. It sounded so....final.

"Nick? I don't understand." I said to him. "What do you mean you had to see me one last time? You make it sound so final."

Nick looked down and shifted his feet into the sand. It was obvious he wanted to tell me something.

"Well," he said, hesitantly. "You and I are not a couple anymore and we both have moved on with our lives. I'm with Jessica, and you're with Drew."

As soon as he mentioned Drew, I immediately felt the anger start to burn within me again. Just hearing Drew's name would set me off.

"Don't even say your brother's name around me right now." I said, bitterly. "If I never see him or talk to him again, it'll be too soon."

I saw Nick's forehead crinkle in confusion. Obviously since he'd been gone he had no idea that Drew and I were on bad terms right now.

"Why?" Nick asked. "What happened between you two?"

I couldn't look at him and turned away, looking out into the distance, as I watched the waves crashing onto the shore. I couldn't stop the tears that were falling from all the hurt and betrayal I was feeling now that I'd learned Drew's shocking secret.

"Did he do something to you?" I heard Nick ask from behind me.

I spun around and he saw the tears that were falling down my face even now. I could see the concern in his eyes.

All I could do was nod as I covered my face with my hands and sobbed into them.

I felt Nick's hands on my shoulders and I uncovered my face and allowed him to see the turmoil that I was in. He cupped my face in his hands, his thumbs stroking my cheeks.

"Tell me what he did." Nick said, as he continued to comfort me. I could see the pleading look in his eyes and I couldn't bear it.

"Nick, please." I said, sighing. "Not now. I don't want to go there just yet. It's only been a few hours since I found out. I just got back from Los Angeles about an hour ago."

"Alright." Nick said, pulling me into a hug again. "Just know that I'm here for you and that I won't push you. Whatever it is can wait until you're ready to talk about it."

"Thanks, Nick." I said, holding onto him, enjoying this moment. After a few minutes, I pulled back from our hug.

"Anyway, enough about me." I said, ready to change the subject. "Let's talk about you. Where have you been all this time? Where did you go?"

Nick started walking past me and walked towards the water a bit. Then he looked down at the spot in the sand before him, and chose to sit down there. I went to join him.

"Different places." Nick said, as I sat beside him, in the sand. He was staring off into the distance as he spoke.

"I went to Hawaii where Jessica and I got married a month before Nicole was born, and spent some time there, doing some soul searching." Nick continued. "I even took time out to have a little fun as well while I was there."

"Then, I decided to go to New York for the next day, since that's where you and I first met. It seems like such a lifetime ago."

"Yeah." I said, thinking back to when we'd met each other. "We shared alot of wonderful memories in New York together, didn't we?"

Nick smiled, and turned to look at me.

"Yes, we did." He said, quietly. "Times, I will never forget as long as I live."

I nodded.

"You were my first real relationship and my first real true love." I said to him.

Then I sighed heavily, when I remembered something.

"I just wish it hadn't ended the way that it did with you all disowning me the way that you did." I said, sadly.

Nick's smile left his face at that moment. As I looked at him, I could tell that he felt really bad about it now. Perhaps even worse now then when he did when we came face to face for the first time since then.

"I wish it hadn't ended that way, either." He said. "But I didn't realize that until I saw you again after all those years."

I nodded, as I started playing in the sand with my hands.

"It still hurts, you know." I said, softly. "I still haven't totally gotten over it. But there's something that you need to know."

Nick was curious now. He knew he'd missed out on alot while he was gone. But what he didn't know was that he was about to get the surprise of his life.

"What's that?" He asked, looking into my eyes.

I looked right back and started to get lost in his eyes. They were so blue and so hypnotic. Yet, I couldn't let myself get caught up in them.

"The day you left, I got your letter and found out just how emotionally messed up you were and I realized that you needed my friendship more than ever."

"After read your letter, my buddy, Jake, came by later that morning and started asking me if I'd gotten some ass that night."

Nick's eyes widened when he heard that.

"You didn't tell him about us, did you?" He asked, looking panic-stricken.

Not that I blamed him. He didn't know Jake, so I could understand why he was worried, so I set about to ease his fears.

"No, Nick, I didn't tell him about you being my husband, or about sleeping with Drew." I reassured him. "But I told him that my ex's name was Nick, but I didn't tell him anything else about you or Drew, or the rest of the guys about how you disowned me. I didn't know him enough to trust him with specifics at that time, which was after he saved me from my suicide attempt."

"Then, what did you mean before?" Nick asked.

"Jake wanted to know if I'd spent the night with someone." I told him. "He already knew because he saw me walking funny when he came into my place and then he mentioned that he came over this morning to ask me to go swimming with him and Michelle, but he saw that my car was gone, so he knew I didn't come home that night."

"Oh." Nick said. "Did you tell him that it was Drew you slept with?" He asked.

"No." I said, then grinned. "But I made him guess who it was. I only gave him the hint that it was somebody famous and since Jake is straight, you'll never guess who was the first guy he named."

"Who?" Nick said, his grin matching mine, knowing that it was going to be funny.

"Brad Pitt." I said, before I started snickering.

"Are you serious?" Nick laughed. "Well, he's sure got great taste in guys for a straight guy."

I couldn't help it. I just erupted with laughter. Nick laughed a bit, but then started looking at me like I had gone nuts.

"What's so funny about that?" He asked, that sexy grin still on his face.

"I said the exact same words to Jake when he guessed Brad." I said, in between laughs. "Then, he guessed Matt Damon and that's when I realized that I hadn't contacted him or Ben to let them know what had happened to me, so I did that and called Ben and we got to talking. Then, I decided to go to Los Angeles for the weekend to see Ben, and on the way, I stopped over at your house."

"Jessica and I didn't get along at all." I said, reluctantly. "She started insulting me and blaming me for your leaving and then she said "Fuck you." to me. And I lost it and screamed back at her, "No thanks, and that I'd rather fuck her husband, meaning you."

Nick's jaw dropped, in shock when he heard that revelation.

"No way." He said, in disbelief. "Oh my god, I'm afraid to ask how she reacted to that."

"The way you might expect." I said to him, a smirk still on my face. "She lunged at me like a wild animal and Jeff had to grab her to keep her from tearing my face off and that's when she screamed at me to get out and stay out. And to stay away from her family, as well as her husband."

"Why did you say that?" Nick said, frowning in confusion. "Were you trying to deliberately provoke her?"

"No." I said, frowning. "I was real mad and it slipped out. You know how you can get mad and not think before you act. When that came out of my mouth, I was just as stunned as everyone else."

Nick nodded.

"Yeah, I know." He said. "I've been there, myself."

"Yeah." I said, continuing. "Anyway, back to what you needed to know. A few days ago, I decided that I'd like to try again at a friendship with everyone and said that If they could agree to let me forgive and forget in my own time and own way, then I didn't see any reason why we could all try again at being friends again. So, I welcomed Drew, and everyone back with open arms."

Nick's eyes widened in surprise. Then he leaned over and pulled me into a hug.

"That's so great!" He said, enthusiastically. "I'm so proud of you."

"Thank you." I said. "And just so you know, it's the same for you. If you can agree to let me forgive you on my terms, then you and I are friends again as well."

Nick just hugged me harder, letting me know that he'd agreed to my terms, without a second thought.

"I take it that's a yes, by the way you're hugging me?" I joked, laughing a bit.

"You bet." Nick said, as he released me.

I suddenly started to feel cold and I think Nick noticed.

"Are you cold?" he asked me. I nodded.

"A little, yeah." I said, rubbing my bare arms up and down to warm them.

Nick took off his jogsuit coat and wrapped it around my shoulders. It was a really nice gesture.

"Is that better?" he asked, quietly.

"Much." I answered, a smile on my face. "Thanks."

"Sure." Nick said, starting to get up. "Don't you think we should go in now?"

"Good idea." I said, getting up with him. "Would you like to come and meet Jake real quick?"

"Actually, no." Nick said. "Not tonight. I'm tired from all that jet lag. I just wanted to know if it'd be ok if I could crash here at your place tonight?"

"Sure." I said, smiling. "I could use the company."

"Alright, let's go in." Nick said, walking with me towards my house.

I pulled my keys from out of my pocket and unlocked the door. I opened it and led Nick in as I closed the door behind me.

I turned around to face Nick.

"If you'd like, you can use my shower to get cleaned up if you'd like." I offered. "And you can come to my room and grab some sweatpants to sleep in if you'd like."

"That's ok." Nick said. "I'm alright. Actually, I have my things in the rental car I rented."

"You rented a car?" I asked, in surprise. "Where's your car?"

"It's at the LAX airport in Los Angeles." Nick told me. "I decided to leave it there until I got back."

"Oh." I said, just as I glanced over at the phone. I then remembered that I needed to call Jake.

"Hey, Nick," I started saying. "Why don't you go and take your shower, while I call Jake to tell him that I'm not going to stay with him and Michelle for tonight after all."

"Sure." Nick said, turning to head towards the bathroom. But then, he turned back around. "Why were you going to stay with Jake tonight?"

"Because I didn't want to be alone." I told him. "After I learned what Drew did, I was an emotional basket case. I ended up doing something I never thought I was capable of."

"I'm afraid to ask what you did." Nick said, the worry clear in his voice. "Is it really that bad?"

"I'm afraid so." I told him. "I gave your brother's face quite a beating. He's got two swollen black and blue cheeks and a busted lip."

"You beat him up?!" Nick said, sounding angry. "Why would you do that? That is not like you at all, Sean. I've never known you to be violent."

"I know, Nick, I know." I said, agreeing with him. "But you'll understand once you find out what he did. Then you won't blame me for giving him a beating. I was devastated and I felt like Drew deserved what he got."

Nick was silent for a moment, not sure if he wanted to hear any more.

"Is my brother, ok?" He asked me, his voice sounding a little shaky.

"He'll be fine." I said, bitterly. "Not that I care anymore."

"Sean." Nick said, sympathetically. "That's a little harsh, don't you think?"

"No, I don't, Nick." I said. "What you brother did is unforgiveable."

"But, Sean, he's still my brother." Nick said. "If you and I are friends again, you know Drew is part of the package. I can get another friend, but I can't get another brother."

I sighed, knowing that Nick was right. I wanted to be friends with him again and that meant that I was going to have to find a way to be able to deal with Drew, without coming between him and his relationship with Nick.

"I hear what you're saying, Nick." I said, as I reached for my cordless phone. "And I can't promise that I'll be able to be around Drew without being bitter, but I can promise you that I won't come between you two. I won't force you to choose between your brother and me. I know I would lose. The two of you share a bond that I will never really understand."

"You're right about that, Sean." Nick said. "Drew and I have a very strong bond. I love him alot."

As I sat there, Nick got silent for a moment. Then I heard him sigh.

"Well, I'm going to go and get in the shower now." He said. "Thanks again for letting me stay here tonight."

"No problem, buddy." I said, then turned around to face him. "The bathroom is the first door to the left when you go down the hallway."

"Ok." Nick said, turning to head that way. "We'll talk more when I get finished."

"Alright, Nick." I said, as he walked down the hallway to the bathroom. "See you later."

When Nick was gone, I picked up the cordless phone and dialed Jake's number. He picked up on the first ring.

"Hey, Jake, it's me." I said. "I just wanted to let you know that I changed my mind about staying with you two tonight."

"Oh." I heard him say. "Alright then. Have a good night's rest and call me tommorrow."

"Will do." I said. "Besides, I want you to meet a friend of mine, who's staying with me tonight."

"Someone is with you right now? Jake asked, curiously. "Who?"

"Sorry, buddy." I said, smiling. "You'll have to wait until tommorrow. we're both already exhausted from jet lag, so we're going to sleep in a while."

"Alright, but will you at least answer me one question?" Jake asked, quickly.

"What's that, bud?" I askead him.

"Is this "friend" of yours a guy or a girl?" He asked.

"A guy." I said. "You'll meet him tommorrow."

"I can't wait." Jake said. "I'll talk to you tommorrow. Goodbye.

"Bye, Jake." I said, as I hung up the phone.

I sat back onto the couch and lay back against it. I thought about how lucky I was to have Nick back in my life again, even if he was just my friend.

I got so lost in my thoughts, I didn't hear Nick come into the living room. At least until he came up behind me and tapped me on the shoulder. I jumped.

"Damn, Nick, you scared me." I said, as I turned around to look at him.

"Next time, let me......" I stopped short, unable to finish my sentence from what I saw before my own eyes.

Nick was standing in front of me, clad only in a towel. Water was trickling down his chest. As I gawked, I saw a drop of water trickle down between his pecs, down the center line of his abs, and down his treasure trail. The drop of water disappeared down further into his towel.

His body was so beautiful even now and I noticed that he had definitely been taking care of his body while he was gone. His abs looked even better than ever before.

"I didn't mean to startle you." Nick said, smiling at me, and how I was distracted by his buff body.

"Don't worry about it." I stammered, my voice a bit husky. "Next time, just give me some advanced warning."

"Sure." Nick said, then looked at his body, noticing that I was still checking him out.

"You like what you see?" He chuckled, slightly, enjoying the attention he was getting.

I snapped out of it and grinned.

"Sure." I said. "You never pass up a chance to get someone all hot and bothered when you look like that."

Nick laughed.

"Yeah, well I go by the motto: "If you've got it, flaunt it." you know what I mean?" He said, as he flexed his pecs and abs.

I walked up to him and got really close to him, my face just inches away from his.

"Well, let me tell you something, sexy boy." I whispered, seductively, as I gazed at his lips, then back up to his face. "I suggest you go into my room and get yourself dressed, before we get into trouble here."

Nick waggled his eyebrows.

"What if I want to get into trouble?" he flirted back.

"Don't push it." I said, with a grin. "Now go."

"Yes, sir!" Nick said, saluting me, like an army soldier. "Right away, sir!"

With that said, he started marching off to my room.

"You're crazy, you know that?!" I called out after him, grinning ear to ear. I heard him laugh as he disappeared into my room.

I decided to follow him, so I walked into my room, just in time to get a view of his fine, naked ass, as he removed the towel from his waist, his back to me. I could feel the all-too-familiar startings of a hard on in my jeans.

"Ok, Sean, I know you're watching me." Nick suddenly said. "I can feel your eyes on my ass."

He turned around, a smile on his face. He laughed when he saw the shocked look on my face.

"How did you know I was standing here?" I asked, as I stood there in shock.

"I heard you come down the hallway." he said, with one of his sexy ass grins on his face, showing off his beautiful teeth. His teeth were so perfect. His smile, to me, could just light up the whole room.

"Well, now that I'm here in the doorway, I might as well come in." I said, stepping into the room, as Nick opened up the drawer and looked for a pair of underwear. He found a pair of my boxer-briefs and started to put them on.

"No, Nick, not those." I said, quickly. Nick looked up at me and frowned in confusion.

"Why not?" He asked, stepping out of them and holding them back in his hand.

"You'll see." I said, as I walked over to the drawer and opened the bottom one and pulled out another package of underwear and handed them to him.

He accepted them and noticed that they were not the same as the ones he was about to put on. When he saw just what type of underwear they were, he started laughing in embarrassment as his face turned at least 5 different shades of red, which surprised.

"Sean, Sean, Sean." He giggled, as he opened the package and took out a pair of bikini underwear. There were 5 in all, in colors of Red, Blue, Gray, White and Black.

"So, does that mean you like them?" I asked, trying not to laugh at his red face.

"Well, I will let you know, as soon as I stop blushing." He laughed, as he twirled a pair of them on his finger.

"Oh, come on, Nicholas." I urged him. "We both know you're not that shy."

"Well, yeah, but these?" Nick said, holding up the bikini briefs he had taken out, which were blue.

I came over to him and put my hands on his chest and ran them up and down his perfectly tight pecs.

"How about you model it for me?" I asked him, seductively. "We both know you've got the body for it, stud."

Nick saw the look on my face. He knew that I was practically begging him to try some on. He caved.

"Alright, what the hell." He said. "Wait here, while I go into the bathroom and put them on. You stay here and keep your back to the door until I say you can turn around."

"Alright, fine." I said.

"Be right back." Nick said as he ran past me, out of my room, into the bathroom.

I waited and waited for what seemed like hours, but in reality, it had only been about a minute.

"Ok, you can turn around now." I heard him say from behind me.

I turned around and my breath caught in my throat. Nick was standing in the doorway, wearing the blue bikini briefs. He looked so hot! He was practically sizzling!

"Wow." I said, breathless. "Nick, you look so good in those bikini briefs.

Really?" Nick asked, spinning around to give me a full show. "You like?"

"Oh, yeah." I said, waggling my brows. "I like, alright. What do you think? Do you like them?"

"Yeah, I do." Nick said, admiring them. "They're not bad, actually. Not bad at all. I actually like how I look in these."

"And then some." I agreed. "Are you ready to turn in, yet?"

Actually, Yeah." Nick said, as he started yawning. "I'm beat. What about you?

I nodded, as I looked at him, sleepily.

"Yeah, me too." I said. I then looked at my king sized bed.

"Do you want to share my bed? I asked him. "There's plenty of room."

Nick thought it over for a moment, debating whether or not it was a good idea for him to be sharing a bed with his ex-husband.

I looked at Nick and I could see that he still seemed lost by the look in his eyes.

"Nick?" I asked him. He looked up at me.

"I think before you decide whether or not you should share the same bed with me, you should tell me this: "Have you made a decision where Jessica and I are concerned? You said you loved us both in the letter you sent me."

"Yes, I have." Nick said, and then looked at me, closely, as he prepared to give me his decision:

"I'm staying with Jessica." He said.

I was silent for a moment as I allowed myself to process this news. Nick had finally decided who he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, meaning that his confusion was over. He knew who he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. And it obviously wasn't me.

I turned away and looked out the window, which was open a crack, and listened to the sound of the water, crashing against the shore.

"This was why I had to see you before I went back home." I heard Nick say from behind me. I had to tell you in person before I left. I felt like I owed you that much."

I sighed, as I turned back to look at him.

"You don't owe me a thing, Nick." I said, softly, as I looked into his eyes. "I'm glad you finally know what you want so that you don't have to run anymore. Now, you can concentrate on working on your marriage with Jessica and taking care of that precious little angel of yours."

"Nicole." Nick said, nodding. "I miss my little girl so much. Jessica too."

"Then, it's settled." I said, patting his arm. "You need to get back to them as soon as possible. "When do you head back home?"

"Tommorrow morning." Nick said. "It gave me enough time to come and see you to tell you what my decision was."

"And I appreciate it, Nick." I said. "Just know that no matter what happens, that I will always care about you. Never forget how special you are, and always will be, to me."

Nick was starting to get choked up. I could see the tears that were ready to fall down his face. I pulled him into my arms, giving him a hug.

"And I want you to know that I forgive you for everything that happened all those years ago." I confessed to him.

Then, Nick broke down in my arms.

"Thanks, Sean." He sobbed. "You have no idea how much it means to me to hear you finally say those words. Especially after the way I treated you two years ago when I threw you out of my life. I don't think I will ever forgive myself for that."

"Shh, it's alright." I said, rubbing my hands up and down Nick's back as he continued to cry into my shoulder. "It's ancient history. We can start over again as friends and this time with a clean slate."

I lifted Nick's face from my shoulder, my hand under his chin, forcing him to look into my eyes.

"So, this is it, huh?" I asked him, as I wiped away his tears.

"Yes, it is." Nick sniffed. "I'm ready to move on with my life and rebuild my marriage to Jessica and take care of my beautiful daughter."

"I met you daughter earlier today." I said. "She is so adorable. She looks just like her mother, with a little bit of you in her. She has Jessica's blonde hair, and her father's blue eyes. I'd bet any money that she's going to be a real knockout when she grows up. Especially since she has two beautiful parents who created her."

"Thanks, Sean." Nick said, as I let go of him. "I'm glad you like my daughter."

"What's not to like?" I asked him. "You know I love kids. When we were still married, and you told me that Jessica was pregnant, a part of me was jealous back then, because Jessica was giving you something that I could give you: A child."

Nick frowned. "I never knew that." He said. "How come you didn't tell me?"

"There was no reason to." I said. "I'd already found out that you were already having a baby and I was happy for you."

I then looked at the clock and realized that it was getting late. It was already past midnight.

"Nick, it's getting late." I said to him. "You really should turn in since you have to be up early tommorrow."

"Yeah, you're right." He said, then hugged me again.

"Oh, and I decided that I'm going to sleep in your guest bedroom tonight, instead of sharing your bed." Nick told me. "But thanks for the offer, though. It was very generous of you."

As he started to head to bed, I grabbed his arm.

"Nick before you go," I said, as he faced me. "Will you do one last thing for me?"

He smiled. "Name it." He said.

I hesitated before asking him what I wanted. It was alot to ask of him, especially now.

"Will you kiss me one last time?" I asked him. "That way we can have closure?"

"Sure." Nick said, as he brought his hand behind my neck.

Slowly, he pulled me in and his lips met mine as we engaged into a passionate kiss. Our kiss got even more passionate, as our tongues starting wrestling with each other, savoring the flavor of our lips.

I was flooded with emotions as I kissed him. I felt joy. I felt sadness. Understanding. Appreciation. Even anger.

I felt all of this, as I kissed Nick and relived all the memories that I'd been through with him.

And within seconds, the need, the passion, the desire, was over.

Nick and I pulled back from each other and looked into each other's eyes, both of us understanding what we saw it each other's eyes:

The truth.

We had connected for the last time. It was over between us.

"Good-bye, Sean." Nick whispered. "And goodnight."

And with that, he left the room and headed into the guest bedroom, to get some sleep. He closed my door behind him.

I took off my clothes and turned off the light. I then crawled into bed and pulled the covers over me.

I realized at that moment, when Nick and I kissed, that my feelings for him had been re-awakened. I knew right then and there that I had never stopped loving him. But I had realized it a little too late and there was nothing I could do about it now.

The tears that I'd been holding back since Nick's decision had been made and announced, suddenly came in a flood.

"Good-bye, Nicholas." I whispered.

I silently ended up crying myself to sleep.

******************************************************* THE NEXT MORNING...............

I woke up to a beautiful sunrise, early Sunday morning. I remembered that this was the day I was originally supposed to have left Los Angeles, but with what had happened yesterday, I had come home earlier than expected.

I got out of bed and stumbled into the bathroom to urinate. After doing that and brushing my teeth, I decided to go to the kitchen to get a drink of water. I was really thirsty.

At that moment, I thought I smelled food cooking in the kitchen. I walked down the hallway and turned into the doorway of the kitchen.

Nick was in the kitchen, cooking breakfast. and he had the table set and two glasses of orange juice ready at the table.

"Well, look who's up." Nick greeted me, with his sexy smile. "Would you like some breakfast?"

I looked up at him in amazement.

"You made me breakfast?" I asked him. "Nick, you really shouldn't have."

"I wanted to." Nick said, as he grabbed two slices of toast from the toaster when the popped up. "It's my way of thanking you for letting me crash here last night."

I sat down at the table, as Nick scooped some eggs off of the skillet and set them on my plate for me. Then he filled his plate and went to butter the toast.

When he'd done that, he set some toast on my plate, as well and then sat down to eat at the table with me.

"No thanks needed, buddy. You know you're always welcome in my home." I said, as I took a bite of my eggs.

"Thanks." Nick said, as he took a sip of his orange juice. "I really appreciate it."

"So, when does your flight leave?" I asked, as I chewed my toast.

"In an hour." Nick said. "I've only got a few minutes to eat here and say goodbye and then I've got to head for the airport."

"Alright, then, let's finish up here." I said, quickly.

Breakfast was finished in total silence. I looked around at the dirty plates before us.

"Well, since you were so nice to make us breakfast, I will do the dishes." I said, getting up and taking our plates to the sink.

I put them in the sink and rinsed them off, so I could put them in the dishwasher later.

"If I didn't have to go, I'd do them for you." Nick said, obviously feeling guilty about it.

"Hey." I said, touching his shoulder. "Don't worry about it. You have nothing to feel guilty about. I'll take care of it."

"Thanks." Nick said, sadly. He walked into the living room. I followed him. He started getting this things together, which were on the floor, by the couch. That was odd. I didn't remember Nick, bringing his things in last night.

"Nick, what are all those bags doing there?" I asked him. "I didn't see them there last night."

"I couldn't sleep right away last night." Nick said. "So, I went out and brought all of my things in to get what I needed out of them.

"Oh." I said. "I must have been asleep, because I never heard you last night."

That's because I made sure not to wake you." Nick said, as he picked his things up and set them outside the door.

He turned around and looked at me again, then pulled me close and hugged me.

"Good-bye, buddy." He said. "I'm going to miss you."

"I'll miss you, too." I said, as I hugged him back. He had no idea just how much he would be missed. "Take care and have a safe flight home, ok?"

"I will." Nick said. He then leaned into me and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek. Then, he grabbed his things and walked outside to load them into his rental car.

I quickly took that moment to run to my room and put on a pair of sweatpants, before I bounded out the door and ran down through the sand, barefooted, to catch up with Nick.

I made it to his side, just as he finished loading his things into the back of the car. He shut the trunk and turned back to me.

"Did you forget something?" He asked me.

"Sort of." I told him. "I forgot to introduce you to Jake this morning.

Nick put a hand to his head when he realized that he'd forgotten about that.

"Damn, that's right." He said. "I'm so sorry, Sean. We'll have to do it another time."

"It's alright." I said. "We'll have another chance. But there's something I want to ask you before you go."

What's that?" Nick asked, his hair fluttering in the morning wind.

"Since Jake is a good friend of mine and I trust him with my life, I just wanted to know if it's ok if I told him about you. That you were once my husband and I can tell him about the rest of the guys and your wife. Is that ok with you?"

Nick thought it over for a moment. then, he finally nodded.

"If you trust him that much, then yes, you can tell him." He said, as he opened his car door and got in.

"Thanks." I said, appreciatively. "I'll see you soon."

"You bet." Nick said, as he started the engine. "Goodbye, Sean."

He then drove off. I waved to him as he did, until his car disappeared out of sight.

I turned around and walked back to the house. As I got to my door, I saw Michelle coming towards me.

"Who was that guy I saw you talking to earlier?" She asked me. "He was cute."

"That was my friend, Nick Lachey." I told her. Her eyes widened.

"I knew he looked familiar!" She gushed. "He with 98 Degrees!"

"Yep." I said, then wondered what she was doing here, this early in the morning.

"Aren't you supposed to be in class?" I asked her, wondering why she wasn't at the college.

"This is my free period." She explained. "I'm just home to grab some breakfast real quick before I go back."

"Where's Jake?" I asked her. "Is he still here?"

"No." She said. "He had class today. He said to tell you that he's sorry he wasn't able to meet your friend you were telling him about last night."

"Yeah." I said. "Nick was sorry too that he didn't get to meet Jake." And he gave me permission to tell you guys about him and the fact that I'm friends with him, and the rest of the guys of 98."

"Cool." Michelle said, then looked at her watch. "I've got to go. I'll see you later, Sean."

"Bye, Michelle." I said, as I watched her head into her's and Jake's apartment.

I then walked back into my house and set about getting everything cleaned up. But then, I remembered something else that needed to be done.

I grabbed the phone and dialed the number for Nick's house in L.A.

"Hello?" I heard someone answer. Cool! It was Danny!

"Danny, it's me, Sean." I said to him.

"Sean!" He exclaimed. "I heard about what Drew did. Hell, we all did and we're so worried about you. Where are you?"

"I'm back home here, in Orlando." I told him. "How's Drew doing, Danny? I hope you guys didn't hurt him anymore than I did. He's already sorry enough for it."

"No, we didn't beat on him or anything, Sean." Danny said, the anger evident in his voice. "But we all did yell at him quite a bit."

"Speaking of Drew, is he there?" I asked Danny. "I need to speak to him."

"Yeah, he's right here." Danny said. "I'll put him on."

"Danny, wait!" I said, wanting to catch him before he passed the phone to Drew. Luckily I did.

"What, Sean?" He asked.

"Is Everybody there in the room, besides Drew?" I asked him.

"Yeah." He said then asked, sounding confused. "Why?"

"Put me on speaker phone, please." I asked him, then said. "I'll explain everything then."

"Alright." Danny said. There was a slight pause and a click as he set the phone down on the hook.

"Sean, are you there?" He asked me. "You're on speaker phone now."

"Thanks, buddy." I said. "Drew, are you there?"

"Yes, I'm here." He said. He sounded weird. "What do you want?"

"Well, I take it that everyone knows now about what you did, correct?" I asked him.

"Yeah." he said, bitterly. "So?"

"So, here's the point I'm trying to make here, starting with some news I have for all of you." I said. "It's about Nick."

I heard gasps in the background and everyone asking questions all at once, until Drew told them all to pipe down.

"Have you heard from him?" Drew asked me.

"Yes, Drew, I have." I said. "And that's what I need to talk about with all of you."

"Where is he, Sean?" I heard Jesssica's voice ask. "Do you know where he is?"

"Yes, Jessica." I said to her. "He showed up, unexpectedly here in Orlando at my place yesterday evening when I got back home. He stayed the night."

"Well, is he there, now?" Jessica asked. "Can I talk to him, please?"

"You can't, Jessica." I told her. "He's not here anymore."

"Do you know where he went, Sean?" I heard Jeff's voice ask me.

"He's on his way home." I told everyone. "He left for the airport a few minutes ago. He should be home by late afternoon, your time."

I could hear sighs of relief and 'yes's' going around as everyone processed this wonderful news. Nick was coming home!

"Sean, thank you so much for calling us." Jessica said. "I'm sorry I misjudged you."

That admission, was a shock to say the least, coming from her. But I accepted it, anyway.

"Don't worry about it." I said to her. "Apology accepted. Anyway, back to you, Drew, and what you did."

"What about it?" He asked, his voice monotone.

"As furious as I am with you right now, I don't want to see you and Nick at odds over this." I told him. "I've decided that I will save your sorry ass ONE last time."

"What are you talking about, Sean?" I heard Justin ask.

"Yeah, I'm wondering the same thing." Kandi added.

"Nick doesn't know about what happened." I told everyone. "I didn't tell him anything and neither will you guys. But he does know that you did something to me, Drew, but doesn't know what. All I told him is that what you did do caused me to beat you up and needless to say, he wasn't happy about it."

"Are you serious?" Drew asked, stunned at this revelation. "He actually defended me?!"

"Yes he did, Drew." I told him. He loves you. It's evident that he missed you alot while he was gone. And if he finds out about what you did, your relationship with him will be changed forever, and I don't want that. No matter how angry I am with you, I don't feel like you deserve to lose your brother. I know how much you love him, Drew. Or so I thought."

"I do, Sean." Drew said. "Never forget that. But what am I going to tell him? Nick knows me too well. He'll know when I'm lying."

"Well, you'll have to think of something." I told him. "Because if you want your relationship with Nick to survive, he can never know that it was you who broke us up."

I then got more specific, knowing now that it was out in the open, there was nothing to hide anymore.

"Nick can never know that you're the one who made sure that our marriage was never legal. He can never know that you paid off that minister to deceive us. If he ever finds out, your relationship with him will be destroyed forever."

To Be Continued........?

Well, that's all for this one, folks!

"Now that Nick and Sean have officially closed the door on their relationship, will Sean ever come clean to Nick about Drew?"

"How will everyone react when Nick finally comes home? Will there be a happy family re-union? Or will all hell break loose?

"What happens next? Oh, if you only knew!"

Stay tuned.

slpwriter@yahoo.com