“Mackenzie, I’m afraid that you are going to have to be put under observation if things don’t turn for the better really soon. You’re condition has gone downhill so fast that we don’t know where to turn next.”
“Are you sure this is the only way?” Mackenzie had asked, shuddering at the thought of spending the rest of her shortened life in a hospital bed with a key element of her happiness missing. Mackenzie felt as though Nick was never coming back and she would die without him. The thought made her want to cry until she had no more tears left.
“If this round of radiation doesn’t work…”
And so, Mackenzie sat in the darkness of Room 214 alone, shivering, and crying softly. Her family had been in to visit just that afternoon and for a while, that’s all that Mackenzie thought that she had needed, but she couldn’t push Nick out of the cycle for long. She wanted him there now more than ever. “God Carter…where are you?”
Nick was also having trouble sleeping that night although he wasn’t sure why. The group had finished their concert in Augusta, Georgia later than expected and had to haul their butts to the bus so that they could drive all night to make it to Orlando, Florida on time. Usually, Nick had no problem sleeping on buses but tonight all he could do was lie there and think of Mackenzie. “I wonder if she’s doing all right,” “I wonder if her treatments are working,” “How’s the family taking it?” “What about Mackenzie’s mom…she’s pregnant…how is she gonna handle this?” Thousands of questions entered Nick’s mind, each without answers. The only conclusion that he came up with was that he had to get to Mackenzie and he had to get to her soon.
At 8:00 the next morning, the bus finally pulled into a hotel parking lot. While most of the group was having no problem getting things together, Nick found himself stumbling around and fighting to stay awake even while walking. “Whoa, you look like a train wreck.” Becky, Mackenzie’s replacement dancer said bluntly. “What’s wrong?”
“Oh nothing,” Nick began. “I just made the biggest mistake of my life and sent my fiancee to die alone…no big.” The sarcasm stung with the reality that that’s basically what Nick had done.
“Sorry,” Becky squeaked as she grabbed her bag of the sidewalk and started for the hotel lobby, a little offended.
Nick wanted to reply with an, “it’s not you’re fault,” but he found it physically impossible. He walked passed Brian and Howie, who were in the middle of a debate as to who would have to carry Nick’s bag as he wasn’t about to. Nick grabbed a hotel key from the envelope for the group and made his way to his room ignoring the people who were calling his name. In no time flat, Nick was fast asleep and well on his way to missing sound check three hours later.
“Where the hell is he?!” Kevin yelled. “This is crap!”
“Calm down,” Howie said, more shocked than anything about Kevin’s burst of emotion. “You know Nick, he’s always late but he always comes through.”
“Howie…he missed sound check, he hasn’t been here for lunch, he wasn’t here for the meet and greet…basically he has 20 minutes to show up or else there will be no show.”
Meanwihle, Brian was knocking on all the doors assigned to the group of the hotel on the 15th floor to find Nick. He finally came to room 15R and knocked and was surprised when the door eased open. It was Nick’s room all right. That was obvious through the strewn sheets and half-eaten ice cream bar left to melt on the counter, but where was Nick? Brian shut the door so as not to be seen or heard and began calling Nick’s name. There was no answer. Just as he was about to give up, Brian noticed a piece of paper flapping in the breeze of the electric fan:
To Whomever Reads This-
I realize that this is by far the worst thing that I could do to all of you but there’s something I have to do. I have to get to Mackenzie before it’s too late. I got a phone call at 4:30 this afternoon saying that Mackenzie was in the hospital and fading in and out. I’ll never forgive myself if I loose her now. I realize that leaving a note was not the smartest thing to do but I had to go and if I had told everyone about it before hand, I wouldn’t have been able to. I’m so sorry but I know that you can do this show without me. Tell the fans that I’m so sorry but I had a family emergency that I absolutely had to attend to. Once again I’m so sorry and I will check in when I get to California.
-Nick
Brian wasn’t sure whether to be fuming that Nick had left or happy that Nick had finally seen what was most important. He settled on happy as he grabbed the note, headed back to the hotel lobby, and caught a cab to the arena.
“He’s gonna be busted when he gets back,” AJ said matter-of-factly. “But he finally saw it. I just hope that he’s not too late.”
“I just hope that we aren’t either.” Howie said. “We only have two more shows, tonight and tomorrow night. Has management already booked us a flight to California for tomorrow?”
“They’re working on it,” AJ sighed. “But who knows?”
Their conversation was interrupted with the stage call and the Backstreet Boys set out to perform minus one member and with worry in each of their hearts.
Chapter Nineteen
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