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ship of dreams ch 4-7

Ch. 4 Amy, Jessie, and Matt walked through the gate and gasped at the size of the ship. "God, this is so much like Titanic!" Jessie gushed. All they could do was nod. Amy tore her eyes away from the size of the ship to look around for Nick. She scanned through the crowds and saw him with the other Backstreet Boys standing towards the front of the ship. She noticed that a small group had formed around them. Uh-oh, she thought, They've finally been recognized. She almost laughed to herself. She watched as they ran off while the ever growing crowd of teenage girls followed them. As they ran by, an idea formed in her head. "Hey, girls!" she blurted out. Most of them looked at her. She pointed in the opposite direction. "Look! 'N Sync!" The girls gasped and ran off in that direction, the others following. Amy, Jessie, and Matt laughed as the girls ran off after this blond Justin look-alike and his friends. The Boys walked over to them. Nick just stared at her quietly. "Thanks," Kevin said. Amy blushed slightly. "No problem," she replied quietly, smiling shyly at the guys. They walked off. Amy shook her head then looked at Jessie and Matt. "Let's go before those girls realize I've jipped them and come after me." Jessie and Matt just looked at her, then at each other. They picked up their bags and went on board. "That was too close," Brian breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank God your girl helped us out, Nicky." Nick was still thinking about the incident but snapped out of it long enough to shoot a sharp glare at Brian. "She ain't my girl," he protested. Brian grinned wickedly. "But you know you want her to." Nick smirked at her. Howie, Kevin, and A.J. were all slack-jawed. "That was HER?" A.J. asked in astonishment. Nick just looked away. "Yeah, it was her," Brian answered for his pal. Kevin let out a low whistle. "Forgive me for saying you had bad taste in women," he replied. The others nodded. "Uh-huh!" A.J. watched another girl walk by. "Damn! It's times like these when you wish you were single." Brian matched his expression as he watched another girl walk with the girl A.J. was staring at. "I know what you mean, bro. I know what you mean." They both knew with girlfriends at home, they didn't need to be messing around with no one. They sighed. "Oh, well.." They adjusted their bags on their shoulders and got aboard the ship. Amy, Matt, and Jessie walked over to the ship directory to look for their rooms. Jessie and Amy had decided to share a room and have Matt's room across from them. While Amy and Jessie were looking for their rooms, Matt was looking for some entertainment. "Whoa! Check this out!" They looked to see where he was pointing. "What is it?" Amy asked, "I don't see anything." "There's an all-night club right on our deck next to the pool," he explained. "Do ya'll wanna go do that?" Jessie and Amy looked at each other. Jessie nodded but Amy just shook her head. "C'mon, Aim! It'll do you some good to get out, meet new people, just have some fun! And if it does start to suck, we can always go swimming." "I don't know..." Amy was very reluctant to do this. She wasn't ready in her mind. "I'm not much of a dancer." Jessie gave her a look. "I'm not exactly Ginger Rogers myself. I just want to have fun and I know you will too. C'mon..We could just hang out." "We could do that in our room. I hear they have HBO." Jessie rolled her eyes. "That's boring, Amy. Please come with us.." Amy looked away and then back at Jessie and Matt were giving her a pitiful puppy dog look. Amy sighed and rolled her eyes, giving in. "Oh, fine..I'll go.." Jessie hugged her tightly. "Great!" she exclaimed. Amy squeezed out of her embrace and stepped back, looking slightly annoyed. "Let's not get all carried away here.." Matt looked at his watch. "Well, it's almost 5:30 and the club opens at 7, so we gotta hurry up." "Good grief, Matt," Amy declared, "The ship hasn't even left the dock yet and you're wanting to get ready to go out. Be patient. I ain't in no hurry to go; don't you be. At least watch the boat leave. We've got all night to go to the club." Matt sighed impatiently. "Fine," he huffed. They walked away from the map and over to the railing to wave goodbye to the people on the dock. Amy looked down at the water watching the waves ripple. She didn't want to go to the clubs. As she looked up from the water as the boat moved further from the shore, she had to blink twice cuz she could've sworn she had seen Lance standing on the dock. She shook her head and looked away. I can't keep doing this.., she thought as she backed away from the rail and walked off in her mood of somber off to her room. Nick and the guys walked over to the map to look for their room. A.J., like Matt, was looking for some quality time, good old fashioned fun. Being the wild one of the group, he felt it was his obligation to entertain the others, especially Nick who was just down in the dumps over losing Mandy. He scanned the deck that Amy, Jessie, and Matt were on and found the all-night club they had located. "Hey, guys.." They looked from the map to him. "What do you say we go to our rooms, get settled, get cleaned up, and hit the clubs?" Nick looked away, feeling that sick feeling creep up in his stomach. He knew they were gonna make him go and he knew he couldn't take it, not now. He wasn't ready. "Sounds cool," the others agreed. They all looked at Nick who just felt he was going to be sick. His face crumpled and he shook his head. "No way. I can't, guys. You don't understand.." "I understand that you need to stop moping around and go with us. Bro, like that Mya song, keep moving on," A.J. offered his advice. Nick rolled his eyes. A.J. wasn't too good at giving advice; it always came out so lame but in his own way he was right. Nick knew it too. He just couldn't admit it. "Naw..You know how I feel about clubs. I think I'll just stay in the room and play on my Playstation.." "No, you won't," Brian spoke up, "I'm sorry, Nick, but you are coming with us. I don't like them either but it's something to do and you definitely could use something to do. You need to get out from under that game system. It's not gonna heal your broken heart. A.J.'s right.." He looked over at A.J. who gave him a cocky grin, "Dumb comparison.." He saw A.J.'s grin fade and he laughed. "But the message was still there. You gotta move on Nick and being around other people, especially others girls is all you can do to speed up your recovery. Nick, staying holed up in your room is only gonna make you feel worse. You gotta get out..Experience life..Meet new girls..You gotta take your chances again and with that new girl, you might want to take a big chance.." Nick sulked and looked away, brows furrowed. His best friend wouldn't steer him wrong. He had to get out but his heart hurt too bad; he couldn't take it anymore. Maybe Bri's right..God this is gonna be so hard but I gotta do it sometime. Why not now? He looked back at Brian who read his thoughts as if they were written out for him in a book he could see. "So you'll go?" Nick took a deep breath and let it out slowly, letting his shoulders fall and relax. "As much as I hate to..yeah, I'll go.." The others let out a whoop and patted his shoulder. "Let's go now cuz I'm ready to PARTY!" A.J. yelled out in excitement. The people surrounding them look startled. A.J. just gave them one of his goofy grins and they ran off to their rooms. About an hour later, Amy stepped out of the bathroom in her bathrobe. Jessie, sitting on her bed, reading a magazine, looked up at Amy in frustration. "Amy!" Amy just stood there, arms crossed. "I can't go, Jess. I feel so stupid getting all dressed up and going to some club. You and Matt will just have to go by yourselves." Jessie shook her head. "Uh-uh..hell no. You are going with us even if I have to drag you down to the club in your bathrobe." Amy gave her this not-if-I-can-help-it look. "You'll be dragging my dead body down there then cuz that's the only way you'd get me there." She leaned over in front of Jess. "Hear that, Jess? It'll be over my dead rotting corpse that I go to that club." Jess looked away, trying to think of some way to talk Amy into going. "Nick'll probably be there.." Amy shrugged her shoulders. "Am I supposed to care?" "He might dance with you though.." "Yeah right. Why he'd dance with my clumsy ass self is beyond me..I'm still not going.." "I'll give you a hundred dollars.." Amy still stood there, arms crossed, not budging at all. "Nothing but petty cash and isn't that called bribery?" "Why can't I have some dirt on you?" Amy gave her a small smile in one corner of her mouth. "Because I know how to keep my secrets exactly that. Plus who would you tell them to, Nick? Like he'd give a damn. Oh and that kinda thing is called blackmail.." Jessie threw her hands up. "Amy, why can't you go? Don't pull that 'I'm still getting over Lance' shit either. Do you really think Lance is at home wallowing in his remorse right now?" "No..He's probably off knocking some other cheerleader up.." Jessie sat there in shock. "Amy!" Amy just gave her this look. "Well, I bet he is. Poor, poor Therese, huh? She now knows what it's like to be on the other side..The side I was on..She deserve all the crap he does to her..." "You know he's not moping around throwing his little pity party like you." Amy's eyes flashed with anger. "HELLO!! He dumped me. Of course he's not feeling bad. Of course he feels no remorse. I'm left with all that. If that's what I get out of falling in love and giving away my heart, I don't want it.." Jessie sighed. "Amy, you should really move on. Get over him. He didn't love you. I know that hurts, but it's true. I'm getting really tired of your 'oh, woe is me'. I want my best friend back. The one who was always up for a little challenge, a little fun. What happened to her?" "She got the door slammed in her face, Jess. She got kicked in the snow. She.." "Enough with the analogies. You are going and that is final.." She got up and walked over to her closet, sifting through all of her dresses. She looked over at Amy and then back at the dresses. She pulled out a thin, short, spaghetti-strapped, close-fitting ocean blue dress. "Now, get your little pitiful ass in that bathroom and make yourself look good." Amy stared at the dress and back at Jessie. Jessie just pushed her into the bathroom. "I'm gonna get you for this, Jess!" Amy vowed. Jessie smiled. "Yeah, yeah..You can thank me later.." Amy stood in front of the mirror examining the dress. I can't believe I'm doing this, she thought. She watched how the dress almost shimmered in the light of the dimly lit bathroom. It took her back to the night of her Senior Prom... The couple waltzed into the room and all heads turned. Amy, in her long light blue full dress and Lance in a sharp, black tuxedo. She was at the happiest moment in her life. Lance took her hand, his green eyes sparkling in her beauty. He seemed so proud to be her boyfriend. She was damn proud to be his girl. They walked to the middle of the dance floor, okay the gymnasium, and their crowd of admirers followed, oohing and ahhing at their every move. "From This Moment On" was blaring from the speakers and Amy felt every word of it as Lance slipped his strong arms tightly around her waist, almost pulling her body to where all she could do was look him in the eye. She wrapped her arms around his slender neck, placing her head on his broad chest. She could hear his heart beating, feeling it pound, not knowing whose heart she felt more-hers or his. She gazed up into his sparkling green eyes as he whispered the words softly to her... "From this moment As long as I live I will love you I promise you this There is nothing I wouldn't give From this moment on.." Amy could feel her heart soar as she took every word he sang to heart. Their souls were connected. They were one. As the song ended, he leaned down and gently placed his lips on hers, giving her a kiss that she thought would last throughout eternity.." "Amy!!" Amy snapped out of it and wiped her tear-stained eyes. "Yeah?" her voice trembling as she tried to steady it. "Girl, get your butt out here! I want to see how you look!" Amy held up the dress, looking at it. "Umm..hold on..I haven't put it on yet!" "You've been in there for 20 minutes. It doesn't take that long to slip out of your bathrobe and slip into that dress! What are you doing?" Amy's heart ached so from her flashback but she couldn't say that. "I was...uh..uh.." "I don't care what you were doing! Just put the damn dress on!" Amy untied her bathrobe and let it fall to the floor in a puddle around her feet. She slipped on her thin panties, hoping they wouldn't show through her dress. She unzipped the bodice of the dress and held it up over her head, letting it slide down and hold to her body. Her curves matched the shape of the dress perfectly. She felt a boost of confidence and smiled at her reflection in the mirror. "Eat your heart out, Lance," she whispered. She couldn't get it zipped so she decided to let Jessie do that. She turned the water on in the faucet and wet her hands in the cool water. She splashed her face, rubbing her cheeks vigorously. She patted it dry and took a deep breath. She leaned over and opened the door, walking out backwards. "Zip me up, Jess.." Jessie walked up to her and pulled the zipper up her friend's dark toned middle back. She pulled Amy at the shoulder, rotating her around. "Let me see how it looks..Spin for Momma.." She laughed at herself. Amy turned around and looked down at the dress, smoothing it out anxiously. Jessie tilted her chin up. "Look up at me.." Amy looked up at her friend. Jessie stepped back and sized Amy up. She grinned at Amy. "You look absolutely stunning. Those guys won't be able to keep their shorts on..Nick will be all over you, girl." Amy smiled shyly. "I better go change then..wouldn't want that.." Jessie noted the hint of a joke in her friend's voice and laughed. "Let me go get ready and get Matt ready so we can go.." She went and took a shower, got dressed, and about that time, they heard a knock on the door. Jessie opened it. It was Matt, standing there absolutely stunned at the sight of his girlfriend and best friend dressed to the nines. He gave them a smug grin. "I really look like James Bond now with the too prettiest Bond girls ever," he gushed, referring to his idol. Amy chuckled. "Either that or a pimp.." Jessie cracked up. "Either way, neither one of us will be sleeping with you," she quipped. "Not yet.." Matt replied, eyeing Jessie. Jessie flashed him one of her grins. "Not ever.." Seeing his face fall, she added, "Well, maybe..if you're good.." Amy felt herself gagging. "Ok-ay.." She had to interrupt that train of thought. "That will be enough for today or ever for me. I have been dreading this long enough..Now, let's go. The sooner we can get there, the sooner it can suck and the sooner we can leave.." Jessie and Matt just smiled at each other. "Well, let's go then," Jessie replied. They walked out of the room and locked the door.

Ch. 5 "Nick!" Kevin yelled, banging on the bathroom door, "Some of us would like to take a hot shower too so get out NOW!" The door opened and out walked Nick, being followed by a cloud of steam. He looked at Kevin. "I'm out," he announced coolly. "And so is the hot water," Kevin retorted. They glared at each other. Nick shrugged. "Oh..well..This isn't even your bathroom anyways. Go find the one that is and use it.." "For your information, they are being used at this moment, smartass. Therefore, I cannot use them so Brian said I could use ya'lls." Nick looked at Brian and then back at Kevin. "Well, go use it. It's empty." Kevin started to say something else when Brian gave him this cool-it-Kev glance. He brushed by Nick, knocking Nick slightly off balance. "Hey, watch where you're going!" Kevin slammed the bathroom door. "Get out of my way!" Nick pulled the towel off his bare shoulders and started towel drying his short blond locks. He looked up at Brian from drying it. "You need to tell your cousin to take a chill pill." "You need to stop provoking him." Nick stopped and stood up straight. "I don't provoke him." Brian gave him a look. "What the hell do you think that just was?" "Defending myself." "All he was doing was telling you to get out. One of these times..." He noticed Nick wasn't paying attention to him. Nick slipped his baggy Tommy jeans on and buttoned them. He threw his white T-shirt on. About that time, they heard Kevin turn on the shower and start singing. Nick got a mischievous grin on his face. "If he wants hot water.." Nick started, his grin getting wider. Brian knew exactly what he was going to do. He had been Nick's best friend for 6 years; he knew how that boy's mind worked and exactly what he was going to do. "Nick, don't.." Nick ran out of the room into A.J.'s who was getting dressed. "Hey!" A.J. exclaimed. Brian came running in after him. Nick ran into the bathroom. "Man, if you had to go that bad..." Nick shook his head and waved for A.J. to be quiet. "Nick.." Brian started to warn him again. Kevin had had enough of his jokes and Brian was a little afraid of how Kevin would react. "Shh!!" Nick placed his ear against the shower wall, trying to find the perfect moment to get Kevin. Kevin was in the shower singing "No Diggity" by Blackstreet. Just as he was about at the end of the chorus, Nick leaned over and flushed the toilet. Brian cringed at the thought of what was about to happen. "3..2..1..now!" "No diggity, no Dou-OW-OW-OW!!! NICK!!!!!!" Nick walked back into A.J.'s room, laughing his ass off. "I've never heard the song sung that way.." Brian and A.J. knew he wouldn't be laughing long. Just then, Kevin came barrelling in, soap still in his hair, bathrobe against his soaked body. Nick's laugh died almost instantly as fear replaced it. He backed up until he bumped into Brian and he just kept moving back. "I warned ya, Nick but ya didn't listen.." a very squished Brian said, "Now, you're gonna get it." Nick tilted his face towards Brian's. "Thanks for helping me out," he sneered. "I warned you so because you about to get your ass beat, don't blame me." Nick turned his face back to see Kevin's right in front of him. "Tell me..why..give me one reason why I shouldn't whup your ass right now.." Nick gave a shaky laugh. "Cuz you love me?" he squeaked. "Now is NOT the time to be funny, Nick.." Brian hissed in his ear. Kevin pulled his fist back to hit Nick when A.J. started yelling. "Guys! Come here and check this out!" Kevin looked at A.J. and stepped back away from Nick. Nick opened his what had been tightly shut eyes and released the air from his lungs in one giant gasp of relief. "That was a little too close." "Okay, Nick. You can now get off of me. It's getting all dark and fuzzy in my left eye from lack of oxygen." "What?" "I'm suffocating, man! Move!" Nick stepped aside and Brian walked away from the wall. He walked over to the door just in time to see Amy and Jessie walk by. He turned around and looked at Nick. "Hey, Nick! Come here!" Nick walked over to the door and looked. "What?" Brian pointed. "It's your girl." Nick rolled his eyes. "Man, what did I tell you about.." He stopped in mid-sentence as he finally saw Amy walk by. It didn't even look like the same girl he had seen on the bus earlier. The blue dress hugged her body in all the right places. Brian and A.J. grinned at each other and pretended to cup Nick's chin to stop the drool. "That.." Nick finished after she walked around the corner. "Wonder if she's going to the club.." Brian asked. "Dressed like that..I hope so.." A.J. replied. He looked at Nick. "You gotta talk to her, man. You can't let a girl who looks like THAT slip out of your hands, bro, when that's where you got her at.." Nick looked away. "I can't...I don't know how to..It's been so long.." A.J. nodded as if he understood. "Nick, sit down. I'm about to teach you a lesson on finding someone new.." Nick looked at him like he was crazy. "Man, please.." A.J. glanced back at him and pointed to the chair next to his bed. "Boy, sit yo' ass down.." Nick mock saluted him and sat down in the chair. A.J. paced back and forth in front of Nick, trying to plan out what he was going to say. "Okay..." Nick watched him anxiously. A.J. stopped in his tracks. "I got it!" Nick looked at the guys and back at A.J. "Got what? Milk? What?" A.J. just gave him a smile. "I'm gonna teach you the 'A.J. technique'." Nick busted out laughing and A.J. received a few chuckles from the rest of the guys. "A.J. technique? Is this some kind of joke?" A.J. didn't think it was funny at all. He gave Nick a somber look. "Am I laughing?" When Nick saw that he wasn't, he got quiet. He sighed. "Okay. Tell me then all about this little technique of yours." A.J. sat down backwards in a chair across from him and all the others stood around him, listening in. "All righty..It's this: When you see the girl that interests you, take a deep breath, walk over to the person, and talk to her. Force every thought of the girl before out of your head. This is your chance to start over, this is your chance to clean your slate. If you feel you can't talk to her just yet, ask her to dance. That way you can become familiar with each other. Then if all you can do is ask her what her name is, do it. It'll open her up and hopefully start a conversation. If not, move on to another girl and start over. Sooner or later, you'll find the right one." Nick nodded, soaking in all the information. "And this works?" "You saw how I got over Marissa and got with Amanda, didn't you? Trust me, it works." "Okay then. Thanks, Bone. You actually gave some worthy advice for once." A.J. scowled at him. "I'll take that as a compliment. So you'll do it?" Nick glanced at the others. "I..guess so..Yeah, I'll do it." A.J. patted his shoulder. "Atta boy. That's what I want to hear. Need a tip? Try the girl that walked by first." Nick gave him one of his smiles that made him think everything would be okay. He'd gotten used to using it. "That's probably gonna be #1 in my trial and error process.." Brian touched his shoulder. "Nick, she'll be the only one. Watch and you'll see." "I hope so." "Now that that's all settled, I'd like to go," Brian said, slightly impatient. Kevin pointed to his dried shampoo flaked hair. "I hate to break it to you, but because of our little lovelorn prankster over there, I'm not ready." "Who said they wanted you to go?" Nick muttered. Brian elbowed him in the ribs. Kevin must have heard Nick because he was glaring at him. Brian knew he needed to break it up before anything happened again. "Kev, you go get ready and meet us there." Kevin took one last glare at Nick and turned to walk out. "All right." He walked out of the room. "Don't let the door hit you on the way out!" Nick called out. "Nick, shut up!" A.J., Brian, and now Howie all snapped at the same time. Nick and Brian walked back into their room as Kevin walked into the shower. Nick walked in front of the mirror, adjusting his hair again. Brian slipped on a button-down blue Nautica shirt and buttoned it over his white tank top, tucking it into his jeans. A.J. appeared in the doorway. Brian and Nick looked over at him. He was waving them out. "Let's go par-tay!" he urged them. Howie was with him. Brian walked out the door, thinking Nick was behind him. Nick lagged behind, looking in the mirror. Am I really ready for this? he wondered to himself, Guess there's only one way to find out. Single world, here I come. Don't be too harsh to me. He slid off the ring he still had from Mandy and put it in his drawer. Taking one last glance at his reflection, he walked out of the room. He joined the guys as they walked to the club. "Amy, if a guy comes up to you, talk to him, dance with him, whatever," Jessie instructed her friend. Amy just looked at her. She saw all the male heads turn and heard the whistles as she walked in the room. She glared at them. "That's not what I said, Amy." Amy looked at Jessie. "They're pigs, though. Can't I just beat them with my shoes now?" Jessie and Matt had to laugh. "No. Save that for when the clubs starts to really suck," Matt joked. Amy rolled her eyes and looked around. "Okay, that won't take too long." Jessie and Matt glanced at each other and back at Amy. "You never know.." they hinted. From across the room, she saw Nick come in the way she felt written all across her face. Amy fiddled with her ring that Lance had given her on her middle finger. It slipped off of her finger and rolled behind her. "Damn," she muttered. She turned around to get it and Jessie pulled her back. "No, Amy. Come on.." Amy pointed behind her. "But.." she stuttered. "No buts. C'mon." Amy looked back and sighed as Jessie pulled her across the room. They went and sat down at the bar and ordered Cokes. Nick looked round as A.J., Brian, Howie, and he entered the club. Let's see, he thought, Where do I start? He noticed all the girls looking at him and even found one or two of them very attractive but they just didn't interest him. He walked over to the bar and saw part of the blue dress he had seen on the girl that he'd run into wearing. He stuck his head out and looked. Nope, he thought when he saw this girl had blond hair, Not her. That girl probably won't come here. Where was she going? Why do I care? He took a sip of his Coke and turned around, leaning against the bar. He saw a blonde in a black slinky dress walk by and almost spit Coke all over himself because she was so identical to Mandy. God I have to stop this before I go crazy.. He finally saw the girl he'd been looking for, leaning against the bar across the room, looking as disinterested as he felt, sitting with her friends. He smiled. Brian caught him smiling. "What is that for?" Nick tore his eyes off of the girl and looked innocently at Brian. "What could you possibly be talking about?" Brian gave him a look. "That little light-up-my-face grin that was seconds ago plastered all of your face is what I'm talking about, my good friend." "That? Oh, that was nothing," Nick teased, playing it off. He looked away and back at Brian who was giving him that you-better-tell-me-what's-going-on look. "Spill it, Carter." Nick shook his head. "What you saw was just a figment of your overactive imagination, a hallucination even. What did I tell you about taking those drugs?" "Ha-ha, ha," Brian sneered, "I'm laughing so hard you can't even tell." Nick gave him a smirk. "And with that childish comment, your level of maturity dropped to that of a 6 year old," A.J. interjected. Brian stuck his tongue out at A.J. just to be silly. "Okay, now it's at an all time low of the age of 3. Keep it up, B-Rok.." Nick ignored them. He looked back over at the girl and noticed she had been deserted by her friends and looked totally lonely and bored. Suddenly he got a burst of confidence and thought he'd do something about it. He looked over at A.J. and Brian who were joking on each other and sat his glass down kind of loudly to get their attention. "Excuse me.." As Brian started to open his mouth, Nick stood up. "I have something to tend to." He smiled at Brian and walked off. A.J. looked at Brian. "Where's he going?" Brian shrugged his shoulders. "He wouldn't say, but something's going on." He saw the brunette at the other bar looking off in the distance as Nick quickly approached her. He pointed and smiled at A.J. "And I think I now know what it is.."

Ch. 6 "Hey, Jes--" Amy turned and noticed her friends were gone. She had been deserted. She finally spotted them on the dance floor, slow dancing so closely. I guess I'll go look for my ring now. She got up. And if they still don't see me, I'll just bust out of this place. She sat her glass down and went around the bar, not even noticing the advancing Nick. When she got to the corner, she kneeled down, blindly feeling around for her promise ring. Those heels were killing her and if she leaned over any further, everyone in the club could see all the way down to the color of her toenails. She felt something and grabbed for it. She jumped up quickly, slamming her head on the bar, dropping the item in her hand. "Ouch!!" she hissed, rubbing her head vigorously trying to ease the pain. She saw the ring fall down into the vent. "Ugh!" she screamed out in frustration. She stood up, turned around, and almost knocked into Nick for the 2nd time that day. Startled, she jumped and turned bright red. "I am so sorry," he apologized profusely, "I just noticed that you were having a little trouble over here and wondered if you could use some help." Amy stared up at his kind face. He was even more gorgeous in person that she could have ever imagined seeing him through a magazine or TV screen. "Not anymore," she snapped, still a little hot tempered from her bad experiences of the night. She saw his face fall. "Oh." Amy felt bad. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap. It's just that I've had a bad night..a bad week..let me put it this way..My life has pretty much sucked.." She blew a wisp of hair out of her face and noticed the funny, almost sorry he had asked look on his face. She laughed slightly. "You must think I'm crazy. See, I lost my ring. It fell off earlier when I was messing with it and fell down here somewhere. It was given to me by my boyfriend..ex-boyfriend and it kinda means a lot to me. Why I'm telling you all this, I don't know. You'll have to excuse my behavior." He gave her a small, almost understanding, smile. He did understand. More than she'd ever know. "My name is Nick." She looked a little caught off guard. "Huh? Oh..My name is Amy." He looked at the dance floor and back at her a little nervously. She straightened her dress and her hair while his back was turned. "Would you care to dance?" he invited. She gave a nervous laugh. "I'm not much of a dancer. You wouldn't want to dance with me." He held his hand out with a smile. "I did ask you, didn't I? That's gotta mean something. I'm not much of a dancer either but I'll show you what I know." She looked at his hand and then back into his leading eyes. "I don't know.." "Please..." She took his hand and returned his smile. "Well, okay. If you make me look like a fool, I'll kill you." They walked to the center of the dance floor and faced each other, releasing their hands. "Only you can make yourself look like a fool," he joked, taking her waist and pulling her to him. She gave him a grin as she wrapped her arms loosely around his neck. "And only you can teach me." He nodded, looking into her eyes. "Lesson number one..stay off of my toes.." She looked down to see her step on them and back up at him, blushing. "Sorry.." Jessie smiled at Matt as they danced, placing her head on his shoulder. "I am so glad you came on this cruise. I was so scared that you wouldn't." Matt placed his head on top of hers. "Why?" She lifted her head, forcing him to lift his. "Same reason that I was scared of coming." "Which was?" She looked away from him, feeling a little stupid for even feeling the way she had. She looked back up into his eyes. "I thought you wouldn't like me because of how I looked or something. I'm not exactly beauty pageant material." Matt smiled to himself and pulled her closer to him, gently placing his chin on top of her head. "That's what I love about you. Most of them are so fake. Your beauty is genuine, not some put on. I love you from the inside out. Your awesome personality is what lights you up. I love you, Jessie. Not your body, not what you can do for me..Just plain 'ole regular Jessie." He lifted his head and tilted her chin up, looking into her sparkling, tear-filled green eyes. "You know I wouldn't miss being with you for anything." She smiled up at him. "I love you so much." He pressed his lips gently against hers, sending fireworks off inside of her at the slightest brush of his lips against hers. They parted and Jessie placed her head against his broad chest, feeling his heart pounding against her own. So this is what love feels like, she thought to herself. And it was the greatest feeling she had ever known. Too bad Amy couldn't experience it with her. She opened her eyes and just then saw Nick and Amy walk out onto the dance floor hand in hand. She pulled her head up and pointed them out to Matt. "Looky there, Matt.." He turned his head in their direction to see them dancing to the Jordan Knight song, "Give It to You", that had just came on. "Well, what do ya know?" He watched Nick teach her a move and her go along with it, laughing at herself. "Ain't it cute?" He looked back at his girlfriend. "Yes it is. But not as cute as us." She smiled at him, stood on her tiptoes, and pressed her lips to his. "Hey, you're catching on pretty quick!" Nick commented. Amy laughed. This was the most fun he or she had had in such a long time. "Beginner's luck!" He laughed. "You're doing good though!" She blushed. "I still feel like an idiot though!" He shook his head. "Well, you look good doing it, at least!" She popped him on the shoulder playfully. Both blushed though. The song went off and the tempo lowered considerably as Shania Twain's song "From This Moment On" came on. Her smile and excitement faded quickly. That was hers and Lance's song. That was his and Mandy's song. God, just when I get my mind off of 'em, the song remembers when, both of them were thinking. She was still trying to catch her breath. "I'm a little winded. I think I'll sit this one out." He nodded, also a little out of breath. "Me too. Its getting a little stuffy in here. Care for a walk?" Amy breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "You read my mind. I'd love to." They walked to the door. Just as they walked out the door, Nick saw something shiny sitting up by the door on the floor. He leaned over and picked it up, shuffling it around in his hand. It was a gold band with two hearts intertwined. It was Amy's ring. He slipped it in his pocket and walked out with her. Soon the lights came back on. A.J., Brian, and Howie looked around for Nick. At the same time, Matt and Jessie were looking for Amy. By this time, Kevin walked in and the guys walked over to him. "Have you seen Nick?" Brian questioned him. "As matter of fact, I just saw him walk out with that pretty brunette as I was walking in," Kevin replied. A.J. and Brian exchanged a high-five. "What did I tell you? What did I tell you?" Brian boasted. A.J. shrugged his shoulders, a look of admiration on his face. "That boy, I swear! I can't believe he hooked up with her!" Kevin shook his head. "Man, ya'll get girlfriends and...," he began. "Check it out, Kev!" Howie interrupted, pointing out some blond chick that was heading his way. He straightened his shirt collar and lowered his deep voice to sound more mature. "Excuse me fellas.." He walked over to the blond and followed her out on the dance floor. They watched for a second but soon their attention turned back to Nick. "I can't believe he actually went along with it! I have so much more respect for that boy now!" A.J. gushed. Howie, being a little slow, was confused. "Who? Kevin?" They gave him a scowl. "No! Nick!" "I know, man! See, I told him he should come. Was I right? Huh? Huh? I think so!" A.J. rolled his eyes. They finished their Cokes and walked out on the floor to dance.

Ch. 7 Nick looked over at Amy as the warm summer breeze tousled her hair. As she looked off at the water, the moon casts its reflection into her sparkling, but sad, blue eyes. She looked over at him. "What?" she asked. Nick looked away and back at her. "What? Did you say something?" he asked innocently. She popped him in the arm and scowled at him. "You were staring at me." "Don't you wish.." he teased. She rolled her eyes and gave him this look. "Oh, do I..You just don't know.." He nodded his head with a grin. "I know, I know," he joked, "You don't have to tell me." She scoffed and looked off in the distance, folding her arms across her chest, a little chilled. She walked a little slower. Nick stepped in front of her and she stopped, looking up at him. "Why did you stop? What are you doing?" He gave her devilish smile and fumbled around in his pocket, pulling out the ring. Her eyes widened. "Is this what you were looking for?" She gasped. "Nick, that's my ring! How did you get it? It..It doesn't matter. Thank you so much." He held it up and backed up. "Come and get it," he teased. "Nick, give it to me please," she pleaded, "Don't make me come after you." He started jogging, glancing back at her. "Why are you doing this? I can't run after you in these heels. Please just give it to me." He kept running. Amy furrowed her brows and started running after him. "Ooh, Nick..I'm gonna kill you.." Just as he glanced back, he saw her trip. He turned and caught her in a flying catch, dropping the ring. She looked up at him as he kinda held her. "You caught me, great. Now you can let me go." He stood up and helpd her up. She stood up and almost fell again. She grabbed his shoulder to regain her balance and pulled her leg back, slipping off her right shoe. "Crap," she muttered, "I paid $80 for these and the heels broke." She took off the shoe and chunked it in the water angrily as well as the other shoe. She looked back at Nick. "Nick, I'm not playing anymore. I want my ring back and I want it now. No more games." He groaned, realizing he dropped it when he caught her. "Oh, crap!" Amy threw her head back and looked back at him. "Nick! If you lost that ring, I am going to kick your ass so bad!" He got on his knees scrambling to find the ring. She leaned her head over the rail, staring down at the choppy waters coming off the ship below. "I can't believe you'd lose that ring when you knew how much it meant to me." She placed her head in her hands and started to cry slightly. He saw it glistening on the floor and grabbed it. "I found it!" She turned around and looked down at him. He slipped it on her finger and in the spur-of-the-moment, she hugged him as he stood up. Since he had been on his knees and he had put the ring on her finger that she had accepted, people around them started applauding. One man stopped by. They stood up next to each other. "Congratulations, but aren't you two a little young to be getting married?" Nick and Amy exchanged a weird glance, almost laughing out loud. They looked back at the man. "Sir, I believe you're mistaken," Amy corrected him politely. "He just handed me my ring." The man looked a little puzzled. "But you..and you.." He waved his hand at them and walked off. They looked at him strangely and turned around. "Let's go THAT way." Nick nodded with a laugh. They walked off in the opposite direction. Amy stared down at her ring as they walked quietly. Nick decided to say something to break the awkward silence. "So..umm..why does that ring mean so much to you?" She looked up a little surprised by the question and back down at the ring. "It's a gift from my ex-boyfriend, a promise ring.." She paused and gave a shaky chuckle. "I know you're thinking, what promise?" He shook his head. "Actually, no. Keep going.." She took a deep breath to control her voice, her feelings. "He was my sorta, okay he was my first boyfriend and first love. On our first year anniversary, he gave me this ring. He said it was his promise to love me forever.." She stopped as a huge lump formed in her throat. He knew where this was going because he had been down this road before. He could feel her heart breaking again as she recalled her memories, or maybe it was his, he didn't know. They stopped walking and leaned on the rail. Amy stared out at the water as her tears made her vision blurry. Nick looked over at her as a tear slipped down her cheek. "Well, a few months later, I had heard about this cheerleader that was in love with him. Her name was Therese. I didn't really think anything of it at the time. Then, what I thought were rumors started floating around about how he was cheating on me with this girl. I never did believe it. I was so damn naive. I never thought he could or would ever cheat on me. He had promised me, swore to me in that ring that he'd love me forever, that he'd always be faithful to me..." She stopped to wipe her face and could feel Nick's hand on her shoulder. His own eyes were watering. "Just a few days ago, right before I came on this trip, I got the call that confirmed it all. That boy was cheating on me and had been in the last 6 months or so, since the rumors had begun, of our relationship. Worst of all, he'd gotten her pregnant." He gasped. Her back shook as the tears flowed freely. He placed his arm around her shoulder and she cried into his chest. "Some damn promise, huh?" she sobbed. He shook his head. "Man..Amy, if he did all this to you, why do you want to keep the ring?" She looked up at him with her tear filled eyes. "Nick, you don't understand. Even though he did all this to me, I loved him. I never stopped loving him. I kept my promise to him." "Oh, I understand. A lot more than you know. I know exactly how you feel.." She looked up at him, her eyes flashing with anger. "Oh, you do, do you? Nick, the worst thing that's probably ever happened to you is that you got turned down by a girl for a date because she wasn't old enough to date. How can you say you know how I feel? You could never know how I feel." He let go of her and looked at her. "You think you're the only one that could ever get cheated on? That you're the only one that could ever get hurt. If that's what you think, you need to wake up and realize it's not all about you! Amy, I have been through what you've been through countless times with the same girl! I mean, at least you were strong enough to cut him loose and get on with your life! The girl I got hurt by wound up doing it at least 5 or 6 more times after the first time! Think your heart's broken? You don't even know what it feels like!" Amy stood there speechless. She looked away, the anger burning inside of her. She looked down at her ring. It was almost worthless to her now. She slid it off, shaking it around in her hand. Nick felt bad for yelling at her. "Amy, I'm sorry..." She looked up at him, a determined look on her face. "No. I'm sorry. You were right. I need to move on." She looked at the ring one last time, examining the hearts that were intertwined with their names embroidered on it. "So long, Lance, and all your so-called promises.." she said bitterly. She pulled her arm back and threw the ring out in the water. Nick watched as it hit the waves, sinking slightly. He looked over at Amy, who felt a wave of accomplishment come over her, and he could tell it. He touched her shoulder and gave her a smile. "I'm proud of you." She looked out at the water as a guilty feeling washed over her. She put on a smile for Nick and leaned off of the rail. "I'm a little tired. Care to walk me to my room?" she invited him. He smiled at her. "Sure." They walked over to her room. Amy unlocked the door and stepped in, turning on the light. She turned back to Nick. "Thanks for listening to me and letting me cry on your shoulder. I needed it. You're a great friend." He gave her slight nod. "No problem." He was a little surprised when she hugged him but wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer. She feels so good to hold, he thought, And smells good too. He inhaled the scent of her skin and shampoo. The hug ended too soon. She stepped back, kissing his cheek gently. He smiled at her. "Good night," she said, "I'll see you tomorrow, I guess." "If you want to." Was his reply. She nodded. "I'd like that." He grinned at her again. "See you tomorrow then. Good night." She gave him one of her sweet smiles and closed the door, locking it. He stepped back, smiling to himself, touching his cheek. As he walked down the deck to his room, his smile disappeared. He walked into his dark room. Amy smiled to herself but it quickly faded as she looked at her ring finger on her left hand. There the ring was. She knew she should have thrown it off but she couldn't get the nerve to. No matter what he had ever done to her, she still loved him.

Ch. 7 Nick looked over at Amy as the warm summer breeze tousled her hair. As she looked off at the water, the moon casts its reflection into her sparkling, but sad, blue eyes. She looked over at him. "What?" she asked. Nick looked away and back at her. "What? Did you say something?" he asked innocently. She popped him in the arm and scowled at him. "You were staring at me." "Don't you wish.." he teased. She rolled her eyes and gave him this look. "Oh, do I..You just don't know.." He nodded his head with a grin. "I know, I know," he joked, "You don't have to tell me." She scoffed and looked off in the distance, folding her arms across her chest, a little chilled. She walked a little slower. Nick stepped in front of her and she stopped, looking up at him. "Why did you stop? What are you doing?" He gave her devilish smile and fumbled around in his pocket, pulling out the ring. Her eyes widened. "Is this what you were looking for?" She gasped. "Nick, that's my ring! How did you get it? It..It doesn't matter. Thank you so much." He held it up and backed up. "Come and get it," he teased. "Nick, give it to me please," she pleaded, "Don't make me come after you." He started jogging, glancing back at her. "Why are you doing this? I can't run after you in these heels. Please just give it to me." He kept running. Amy furrowed her brows and started running after him. "Ooh, Nick..I'm gonna kill you.." Just as he glanced back, he saw her trip. He turned and caught her in a flying catch, dropping the ring. She looked up at him as he kinda held her. "You caught me, great. Now you can let me go." He stood up and helpd her up. She stood up and almost fell again. She grabbed his shoulder to regain her balance and pulled her leg back, slipping off her right shoe. "Crap," she muttered, "I paid $80 for these and the heels broke." She took off the shoe and chunked it in the water angrily as well as the other shoe. She looked back at Nick. "Nick, I'm not playing anymore. I want my ring back and I want it now. No more games." He groaned, realizing he dropped it when he caught her. "Oh, crap!" Amy threw her head back and looked back at him. "Nick! If you lost that ring, I am going to kick your ass so bad!" He got on his knees scrambling to find the ring. She leaned her head over the rail, staring down at the choppy waters coming off the ship below. "I can't believe you'd lose that ring when you knew how much it meant to me." She placed her head in her hands and started to cry slightly. He saw it glistening on the floor and grabbed it. "I found it!" She turned around and looked down at him. He slipped it on her finger and in the spur-of-the-moment, she hugged him as he stood up. Since he had been on his knees and he had put the ring on her finger that she had accepted, people around them started applauding. One man stopped by. They stood up next to each other. "Congratulations, but aren't you two a little young to be getting married?" Nick and Amy exchanged a weird glance, almost laughing out loud. They looked back at the man. "Sir, I believe you're mistaken," Amy corrected him politely. "He just handed me my ring." The man looked a little puzzled. "But you..and you.." He waved his hand at them and walked off. They looked at him strangely and turned around. "Let's go THAT way." Nick nodded with a laugh. They walked off in the opposite direction. Amy stared down at her ring as they walked quietly. Nick decided to say something to break the awkward silence. "So..umm..why does that ring mean so much to you?" She looked up a little surprised by the question and back down at the ring. "It's a gift from my ex-boyfriend, a promise ring.." She paused and gave a shaky chuckle. "I know you're thinking, what promise?" He shook his head. "Actually, no. Keep going.." She took a deep breath to control her voice, her feelings. "He was my sorta, okay he was my first boyfriend and first love. On our first year anniversary, he gave me this ring. He said it was his promise to love me forever.." She stopped as a huge lump formed in her throat. He knew where this was going because he had been down this road before. He could feel her heart breaking again as she recalled her memories, or maybe it was his, he didn't know. They stopped walking and leaned on the rail. Amy stared out at the water as her tears made her vision blurry. Nick looked over at her as a tear slipped down her cheek. "Well, a few months later, I had heard about this cheerleader that was in love with him. Her name was Therese. I didn't really think anything of it at the time. Then, what I thought were rumors started floating around about how he was cheating on me with this girl. I never did believe it. I was so damn naive. I never thought he could or would ever cheat on me. He had promised me, swore to me in that ring that he'd love me forever, that he'd always be faithful to me..." She stopped to wipe her face and could feel Nick's hand on her shoulder. His own eyes were watering. "Just a few days ago, right before I came on this trip, I got the call that confirmed it all. That boy was cheating on me and had been in the last 6 months or so, since the rumors had begun, of our relationship. Worst of all, he'd gotten her pregnant." He gasped. Her back shook as the tears flowed freely. He placed his arm around her shoulder and she cried into his chest. "Some damn promise, huh?" she sobbed. He shook his head. "Man..Amy, if he did all this to you, why do you want to keep the ring?" She looked up at him with her tear filled eyes. "Nick, you don't understand. Even though he did all this to me, I loved him. I never stopped loving him. I kept my promise to him." "Oh, I understand. A lot more than you know. I know exactly how you feel.." She looked up at him, her eyes flashing with anger. "Oh, you do, do you? Nick, the worst thing that's probably ever happened to you is that you got turned down by a girl for a date because she wasn't old enough to date. How can you say you know how I feel? You could never know how I feel." He let go of her and looked at her. "You think you're the only one that could ever get cheated on? That you're the only one that could ever get hurt. If that's what you think, you need to wake up and realize it's not all about you! Amy, I have been through what you've been through countless times with the same girl! I mean, at least you were strong enough to cut him loose and get on with your life! The girl I got hurt by wound up doing it at least 5 or 6 more times after the first time! Think your heart's broken? You don't even know what it feels like!" Amy stood there speechless. She looked away, the anger burning inside of her. She looked down at her ring. It was almost worthless to her now. She slid it off, shaking it around in her hand. Nick felt bad for yelling at her. "Amy, I'm sorry..." She looked up at him, a determined look on her face. "No. I'm sorry. You were right. I need to move on." She looked at the ring one last time, examining the hearts that were intertwined with their names embroidered on it. "So long, Lance, and all your so-called promises.." she said bitterly. She pulled her arm back and threw the ring out in the water. Nick watched as it hit the waves, sinking slightly. He looked over at Amy, who felt a wave of accomplishment come over her, and he could tell it. He touched her shoulder and gave her a smile. "I'm proud of you." She looked out at the water as a guilty feeling washed over her. She put on a smile for Nick and leaned off of the rail. "I'm a little tired. Care to walk me to my room?" she invited him. He smiled at her. "Sure." They walked over to her room. Amy unlocked the door and stepped in, turning on the light. She turned back to Nick. "Thanks for listening to me and letting me cry on your shoulder. I needed it. You're a great friend." He gave her slight nod. "No problem." He was a little surprised when she hugged him but wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer. She feels so good to hold, he thought, And smells good too. He inhaled the scent of her skin and shampoo. The hug ended too soon. She stepped back, kissing his cheek gently. He smiled at her. "Good night," she said, "I'll see you tomorrow, I guess." "If you want to." Was his reply. She nodded. "I'd like that." He grinned at her again. "See you tomorrow then. Good night." She gave him one of her sweet smiles and closed the door, locking it. He stepped back, smiling to himself, touching his cheek. As he walked down the deck to his room, his smile disappeared. He walked into his dark room. Amy smiled to herself but it quickly faded as she looked at her ring finger on her left hand. There the ring was. She knew she should have thrown it off but she couldn't get the nerve to. No matter what he had ever done to her, she still loved him.