Chapter Fourteen: Bye bye Lungs, Bye bye Happiness
Scene One: Kevin’s Room: 2:30 PM
“She hadn’t?”
“Brian...."
“NO! No way AJ! This is totally serious! We have NO idea where Nick is. Dear God, he could...he could be...”
“BRIAN! Calm down. I promise, well find him. OK? We’ll find him.”
“I think we should call the police.” AJ hadn’t grown a second head, but the three remaining Backstreet Boys certainly looked as if they saw one.
“You think...”
“Yea, we should. Howie, guys, he .... Brian’s right. I think Nick’s in real trouble, where ever he is. We need to do something and I ....”
Scene Two: Nick’s Room 2:55 PM
Man, they were being loud next door. Why couldn’t they just shut up, for God’s sake? Maybe they didn’t care that God might need a nap, much less me. Geez, what the hell are they yelling for now? Frankly, I couldn’t care less. I mean, here I’ve been out all night, and they haven’t even checked on me. You’d have though, if nothing else, that AJ would have checked in the virginity situation. And speaking of which...
I couldn’t tell them! No way! Then Kevin would know, then Kevin would purchase a handgun - which very well may be legal in this country - and then he would stalk me, which would just make me a nervous wreck and then I wouldn’t be able to perform and speaking of performing...
I wonder if I was ... um ... good. You know. Maybe adequate? Come on, I know I’m Nick, but I could at least have made adequate my first time! Maybe I was good the second. I think I was. I have the scars on my back as proof.
“You smum ov a itch!” I wonder what really is going on over there? Well, I’m not going to give in first. They don’t care what I’m doing, I don’t care what they’re doing. So there. “ um gona dill u.” WHAT? Sure sounds interesting. Not helping my headache, though. Speaking of which, it’s actually a bit worse. Maybe I need an aspirin, except I remember Kevin chewing out our manager for trying to give me an aspirin once when I had a headache (NOTE: I stole this from Cecilia. So sue me. )
BLAM! Now they were throwing each other into the walls. I wouldn’t care, but that’s the wall connected to my room! The one I’m sharing with, you guessed it, AJ. If he comes in drunk and tries to tear my arm off I’m gonna ... BLAM. That’s IT! I’ve HAD it.
Scene Three: Kevin’s Room. 3:09 PM.
“Stop it! Kevin, AJ! Stop it! This is not helping!”
“The HELL it isn’t! I feel better already!” Kevin swung again.
“Go to hell, you jerk!” AJ ducked.
“I mean it you son- of- a ...”
“SHUT UP!” Complete and total silence. Man, was I surprised. That had never happened before. I mean, not after I yelled at the guys to shut up. But then I figured they were just taking the time to make mental plans for my demise. I noticed that AJ has lots of dry cleaning this tour. I’d better throw out all the plastic covers. “Guys, I have a bad headache and you’re making enough noise to ...”
“NICK!” Screamed at full-volume by all four at once, this was quite impressive. And scary. Screw this, I’m outta here.
“Nick, Nick come back!” At least Brain sounded pleased to see me. That or he was trying to placate me while Kevin got into firing position.
“NICK. YOU SHIT!” AJ was not pleased. Damn. I guess Jennifer told him about the vomit.
“Bye.” I headed for my room at full speed, which was not enough to get out of AJ’s range. He managed to snag my tee and whirl me around, which is not a good thing on a bad headache. Neither was the fact that he slammed my face into the door
.“NICK! God, are you all right?” Something bad must be up. For one, all the guys were looking concerned, and that never happens when I’m hurt (They say it’s usually my fault, so I deserve it and that I’m just gonna get hurt again, so why waste all their support on one boo-boo?) and Brian was using God’s name in vane, or vain, or whatever it is. Anyway, Brian says it’s not nice.
“I think so.” Really. Well, except for the blood I just noticed, and if it’s from my nose AJ is so gonna hear about that April incident again. Let the punishment fit the crime.
“Your head! Man Nick, let me look at that.” Funny how I never in my life expected Kevin’s face to be this close to mine. Funny how that made me think of Cecila. Funny how that made me think of Kevin biting my tongue right out of my mouth. Funny thing, cannibals. “Thank goodness, it’s not too bad. I don’t think it will need stitches.” Funny thing him being some head wound expert. Funny me thinking this was funny.
“I’m gonna be sick.” They all looked surprised. Well, it was the very first time I gave them warning. So many cherries, so little time. I made a bee-line, and why is it a bee-line? I mean bees don’t fly in straight lines! Why isn’t it an ant line? They are fairly straight, unless something gets in their path. Or maybe a tangent line. That’s straight, right? So, I made a tangent line for my bathroom, all the while hoping and praying (YES, I do pray! Let’s see. Now I lay me down to sleep, not another sound I’ll peep, I won’t try to stay awake, or my life AJ will take.) that I was not about to repeat my performance in Jennifer’s bathroom.
“Here Nick, put this wet washcloth on your ....”
“MY WHAT?” Maybe I should have let Kevin finish.
“Neck, the back of your neck. It’ll help the nausea.” Good, sound advice he dispensed while managing to give Howie the “call the guys with the white jacket” look.
“Oh ... thanks.” Thank the powers that be, it wasn’t green. Neither was the one Brain used to wash my forehead. The cloth on my neck did help me feel better. The one on my face was removed and another inspection, this time from all four guys, and they wonder why people spread gay rumors about us, led to the decision that stitches were not needed as they could not see bone and the bleeding had stopped. Gross.
I would like to point out at this time that I did not vomit. I have no idea why this is significant, but I feel the need to mention it.Anyway, I was helped to bed, which was not necessary but I figured I should use the goodwill while I had it. After I was tucked in (Sometimes I worry about Howie.) the guys decided it was time to start the interrogation. Kevin even turned the lamp shade up so the light shown in my eyes.
“Kevin! I have a headache!” You’d think he notice that, what with me now having a wash rag (Also not green.) filled with ice on my head.
“Get that light out of his eyes, Kevin! This isn’t Dragnet!” You tell ‘em, Brian.
“Sorry. But look Nick, man, where the hell have you been?”
BEEN? Where have I been? Um ....
“Um ...”
Where have I been? Let’s see, let’s see ... in bed with Cecilia. Right. Like I’m gonna say that.
“I’ve ...”
I’ve what? Been composing poems for the Winter solstice? Not likely. Doing my homework? Nope, I have to make it believable.
“Well?”
“I’ve ...”
Dear God. If you will get me out of this I’ll .... I’ll ... I just like you a whole lot!
KNOCK. KNOCK. The door! Saved by the door!
“Someone’s at the door.” Without Howie we would be lost. “I’ll get it.”
“Nick? Hey,” Kevin sat next to me. On the bed. Within eyeball poking-out distance. “So? Where were you? We’ve been looking everywhere and ...”
“NICK!”
Cecilia! Thank God I didn’t shout this out loud. Couldn’t. My lungs had just collapsed.