Summary: 
The youngest member of the Backstreet Boys has a secret. Discover Nick Carter's Other Side.
Categories: Fanfiction > Backstreet Boys Characters: Group, Nick
Genres: Drama, Supernatural
Warnings: Death
Challenges:
Series: None
Chapters: 36 Completed: No
Word count: 43034 Read: 62952
Published: 09/02/11 Updated: 08/31/14
Story Notes:
HUGE THANK YOU to Lore (Purpura Lipstick) for helping me out, and to Steph (Carter-Orange) for the AMAZING banner.
1. Chapter 1 - Darkest Hour by Alexsgirl_ritz
2. Chapter 2 - Time to let go by Alexsgirl_ritz
3. Chapter 3 - Silver Anniversary by Alexsgirl_ritz
4. Chapter 4 - First Mission..... Part 1 by Alexsgirl_ritz
5. Chapter 5 - First Mission..... Part 2 by Alexsgirl_ritz
6. Chapter 6 - First Mission..... Part 3 by Alexsgirl_ritz
7. Chapter 7 - First Mission..... Part 4 by Alexsgirl_ritz
8. Chapter 8 - First Mission..... Part 5 by Alexsgirl_ritz
9. Chapter 9 - Mr. Big Ben.... Part 1 by Alexsgirl_ritz
10. Chapter 10 - Mr. Big Ben..... Part 2 by Alexsgirl_ritz
11. Chapter 11 - Brian's 30th... and Michael who? by Alexsgirl_ritz
12. Chapter 12 - Andrea by Alexsgirl_ritz
13. Chapter 13 - Mr. Carter, please help me..... by Alexsgirl_ritz
14. Chapter 14 - Princess Boo Boo by Alexsgirl_ritz
15. Chapter 15 - That was close! by Alexsgirl_ritz
16. Chapter 16 - Leo by Alexsgirl_ritz
17. Chapter 17 - Drugs and Sex by Alexsgirl_ritz
18. Chapter 18 - Craziness should stop! by Alexsgirl_ritz
19. Chapter 19 - Gary, Leo and the truth... by Alexsgirl_ritz
20. Chapter 20 - Earrings by Alexsgirl_ritz
21. Chapter 21 - Mrs. Debbie Jenkins by Alexsgirl_ritz
22. Chapter 22 - Kaitlyn Jade Harris by Alexsgirl_ritz
23. Chapter 23 - Max, Debbie and the Light by Alexsgirl_ritz
24. Chapter 24 - Mini Reunion by Alexsgirl_ritz
25. Chapter 26 - Valentine's Day by Alexsgirl_ritz
26. Chapter 25 - George by Alexsgirl_ritz
26. Chapter 25 - George by Alexsgirl_ritz
28. Chapter 27 - Valentine's Day part 2 by Alexsgirl_ritz
29. Chapter - Traffic Lights by Alexsgirl_ritz
30. Chapter 30 - A day after funeral by Alexsgirl_ritz
31. Chapter 31 - Henrietta by Alexsgirl_ritz
32. Chapter 32 - First Time by Alexsgirl_ritz
33. Chapter 33 - Morgue by Alexsgirl_ritz
34. Chapter 34 - Vincent by Alexsgirl_ritz
35. Chapter 35 - Daddy's Girl by Alexsgirl_ritz
36. Chapter 36 - One Lost Soul by Alexsgirl_ritz
Chapter 1 - Darkest Hour by Alexsgirl_ritz
“I’m sorry Sir, but she’s already dead.”
I grimaced when I heard one of the paramedics speak those words as I carefully hugged Kate’s body lying in the ground. She was hit by a speeding car while crossing the street to visit me at the recording studio.
I looked up and shot him a deadly stare; how could he be so calm and composed when he just dropped the news that shattered my whole world? How could he look at me and Kate with those emotionless eyes? The look on his face showed he wasn’t sorry at all, and I couldn’t understand why.
If he only knew how special Kate was, that she was beautiful inside and out, that she has the biggest heart in the entire world; maybe, just maybe he would feel terribly sorry for losing an angel here in earth.
I felt AJ and Brian’s hands on my shoulders, trying to pull me up from the ground. The paramedics lifted Kate’s lifeless body covered with blood and transferred it to a stretcher. They loaded her into the ambulance and one of the paramedics gave me a sympathetic look before closing the ambulance’s door. My body was shaking from trying to hold back the tears when the ambulance drove off.
“Nick, would you like us to follow Kate?” Brian asked in a low and unhappy tone.
I tilted my head to look at Brian; I was about to answer him when I saw a familiar face in the crowd. I had completely forgotten all about her; to think I was just talking to her this morning. She wasn’t the usual bubbly girl I have been dealing with for the last four days; pain and sadness were written all over her face. I suddenly remembered the warning she gave me before I left my house. I felt the anger rush through my body as I walked towards her.
“Did you know this was going to happen? Did you know my girlfriend was going to die?”
I felt AJ’s hands grab my arms and stopped me from walking. “Nick?”
“Let me go, J.” I warned him, trying to shake his hands off me. I ignored the confusion in his voice.
“Who are you talking to?” Brian asked, confused. He was also looking in the direction I was headed.
That was when I realized that they couldn’t see her; that I was the only one special enough to deal with these dead people. Leila, the current lost soul I was helping at the moment, was gone when I looked back at the spot where she was standing. I sighed heavily and decided to deal with her later.
I whirled around desperately looking for Kate. If I could see Leila and the other souls around me; I’d be able to see Kate, right? She had to be here somewhere. I checked the faces of everyone in the crowd individually, making sure that they were not Kate.
“Where is she? Why can’t I see her?” I cried in agony, as if my sight was taken away from me. “Why can’t I fucking see her?”
“Nick, the ambulance took her to the morgue. We can go there if you want.” Brian offered.
“You don’t understand Brian, she has to be here. I need to talk to her, maybe I could convince her to go back to her body.”
“But Nick---”
“Come on, AJ, she just died,” I winced when I realized what I just said “People stay where they died until they see the light that would take them to heaven. Kate should be here; she wouldn’t be able to figure out how to get out of here that fast.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” AJ shook my shoulders a bit “Dude, you’re scaring me.”
“Fuck,” I threw my hands in the air “Ok. I have been seeing ghosts, souls or earth bound spirits, whatever shit you want to call it for like five, or six years. I have been helping them fulfill their unfinished business here on earth that kept them from seeing the fucking light. If I could see these fucking ghosts,” I pointed to some of the souls around us though I was aware that AJ and Brian couldn’t see them “Why can’t I see Kate?”
There, I just told them my fucking secret, the ‘gift’ that I wasn’t so proud of; the ability I would have given up in a heartbeat. There was no day in my fucking life I didn’t wish for it to be gone. I worked hard for a long time to keep it from everyone else; I had been doing all my missions alone.
“Nick,” was all Brian could say before he pulled me into a warm hug.
“Kaitlyn,” I whispered her name under my breath before dropping to my knees, and burying my face in my hands.
My heart felt like it was going to explode any minute now. I let the tears flow freely from my eyes; I had no strength left to hold them back. I felt AJ and Brian sit on the ground beside me; they gave me an understanding look. Though it was evident on their faces that neither one of them believed what I said; at least I hoped they weren’t thinking that I was crazy or something.
“Nick,”
I wrapped my arms around me; the way Leila breathed my name into my ears sent goosebumps all over my body.
“I completely understand if you are mad at me, but you have to know we couldn’t do anything to prevent the accident from happening. I shouldn’t have told you those things this morning; I might be punished for doing so but I don’t care. I wanted you to be ready for this.”
I threw her an icy glare and hissed “Don’t you dare guilt trip me, Leila. Nothing could prepare me for this.”
“Look at how happy she is, Nick.”
Leila’s attention was focused behind me, and she was beaming. I slowly turned around to check what the hell she meant. I had to close my eyes for a second because the bright light blinded me. My heart seemed to stop beating for a while when I saw Kate at the center of the bright light. Her light was the brightest light I’ve ever seen.
She was so beautiful and she looked so peaceful. She was beaming with so much happiness, and I’d never seen her like this. She smiled the smile that made me fall crazy in love with her.
And I knew what the bright light meant; she had to go.
“Kate, please don’t go. I need you. I love you.” I begged her.
She smiled and slightly shook her head; she blew countless kisses to me and mouthed ‘I love you’. I was no lip reading expert, but she seemed to mouth ‘You’ll be fine and I’ll wait for you’.
With one more kiss she blew my way and another ‘I love you’; I watched her disappear into the bright light. I broke down and cried.
That was the only moment in my life that I didn’t regret what happened to me on the day after I celebrated my 25th birthday.
Chapter 2 - Time to let go by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Hope you would still love this one....
The number of people who came for Kate’s funeral was overwhelming. It proved how special Kate was, and she was loved by everyone. She touched so many lives in her own little ways in the short span of her life. On my right were Kate’s mother and her younger sister, behind them were relatives, friends, neighbours, and Kate’s co-workers. On my left was my Backstreet Family whose presence and support were more than enough for me. Apparently, my own family were too busy to pay their last respect to Kate. I was damn sure that they liked Kate, if not loved, at one point.
My father couldn’t get a flight here to Los Angeles and called me earlier to say he would be thinking of me. My mother didn’t even bother to tell me her reasons, if there was any. My sisters, except for Leslie, had prior commitments they couldn’t cancel. My little brother was too busy recording his new album that he couldn’t take even an hour break to be here. Leslie would have been here, her plane would have touched down last night, but I told her I’d be fine. She just gave birth to my beautiful niece Alyssa, and I didn’t want to put her in a stressful situation.
I looked at my Backstreet Family for support; I didn’t know giving my last words for Kate was this hard. Kevin and his wife Kristin flew from Kentucky to be here with me. Kevin didn’t have to say anything; he just looked me in the eye and pulled me into hug, and I know what he meant. Kristin, the older sister I’ve always wanted but never had, kissed me in the cheek and whispered how much she loved me and Kate.
Howie, who had been in the same situation when his sister and father died, offered comforting words to me and promised he would always be with me on this difficult time. Kate absolutely adored Leigh because of her strong and sweet personality, and I was grateful for her presence.
AJ never left my side since Kate’s accident, he hasn’t said anything but I could see in his eyes that he was hurting for me and he was saddened by Kate’s death. Rochelle came in a simple black dress, her hair nicely tied up and wearing no make-up. I loved her more for not sporting any crazy outfit and respecting Kate’s funeral. Her eyes were already swollen from crying, she just lost a great friend and one of her bridesmaid.
My best friend Brian was with me every step of the way. He became the strong wall that I could lean on anytime. I had never been this weak in my entire life. Leighanne was crying non-stop, too. Kate became one of her good friends. If there was anyone who bridged the gap between Leighanne and me, it was Kate.
Fans were also mourning for Kate; she was well loved by them. Kate was the first girlfriend of mine that every Backstreet Boys fans accepted wholeheartedly. No hate site was created for her, there was no name bashing in the internet; well, some might have called her names but with every one fan throwing a bad comment about her, thousand fans were ready to defend her.
I swallowed the big lump that begun to form in my throat.
“I had so many failed relationships before I met Kate, and I always thought I was in love. But I realized I was wrong when I finally met Kate. She showed me what true love means, she taught me how to love unconditionally, and she made me feel how to be truly loved. She was the love of my life, my one true love. She was the perfect fan and the grace of my life. She was my world and my everything. I love you, baby; Always have and always will. Please wait for me sweetheart, we’ll see each other soon.”
Mrs. Harris, Kate’s mother, walked up to me and hugged me tightly. We cried together as we watched Kate’s casket being lowered into the ground. I tossed a peach rose, Kate’s favorite flower, into the ground.
“I love you.” I’d never get tired of telling her that.
The ceremony was over and it was time for us to go, but the idea of leaving Kate was unbearable. I put on my sunglasses, slid my hands into my pocket, and wore a Do-not-disturb-me kind of look in my face. I wanted everyone to be gone before I go home. I didn’t feel like talking to anybody; I’ve had enough of the ‘I’m so sorry for your loss’ bullshit. No one would ever understand how I feel unless they had lost the person they loved the most.
“Nick,” Kate’s mom took a deep breath before she spoke again “I know people grieve differently , but if ever you need someone to talk to, you know where to find me. I will be strong for you, son.”
My heart seemed to burst with overwhelming emotions; that was a very sweet message. I looked at the woman who would have been my mother-in-law in two months time, and couldn’t help but wonder how the hell she cared for me more than my real mother. Wasn’t it my mother’s job to make sure I was doing ok?
“Thank you, Ana,” I sincerely answered “You know I’d do the same for you. I love you.”
She hugged me “I will always be a mother to you, Nickolas. I love you, too.”
She let go of me and joined Kyla, Kate’s younger sister, who gave me a sincere smile. She guided her mother into the car. With a heavy heart I gave one last look at Kate’s grave, whispered how much I loved her, and walked away with a promise that I’d be back soon.
I wasn’t surprised to see Leila sitting on the passenger seat of my car. She, together with other souls, attended Kate’s funeral. They kept their distance to me, though, and I appreciated it big time. I was relieved to know that no one would bother me until Leila’s case was finished. Not all the souls wanted my help; some of them wanted to stay here on earth forever and ran away from the light that would take them to heaven.
“Why can’t she stay here for a while like you? Why did she have to go so soon?”
“What are you talking about?”
“She could have stayed, Leila, and helped me move on. Just what Chelsey did, she didn’t go until she was sure her husband would be fine without her.” I was referring to one of the souls I helped.
“Do you hear yourself, Nick? You’d rather want her to be here so you could see her and talk to her than be happy in heaven?” There was a hint of anger and disappointment in Leila’s voice.
“She’d have a second chance with the light.” I sighed
Based on my experience, people who did not cross over the first time they saw the light would have a second chance. If they missed the two chances, they would most likely be earth bound spirits forever.
“When? Ten years or twenty years from now? You have no idea how much we are suffering here on earth. You really think we are enjoying our stay here, don’t you?”
“Isn’t that the reason why some of you chose to stay?” I answered nonchalantly
“Those people doesn’t even represent five percent of our population.” Leila studied me for a second, and continued talking when I didn’t respond “You are one selfish bastard! You should be happy that she saw the light the moment she died. She didn’t have to suffer like me.”
Leila disappeared the moment she was done talking. One thing I hate about these freaking ghosts, they had the ability to disappear just like that. They could decide whether they wanted you to see them or not. Leila could still be around here but I didn’t have a damn clue. I hit the steering wheel to release my frustration.
I almost jumped out of the car when I heard the loud knocks on the window. I saw Brian standing outside, and he motioned if he could get inside and talk to me. I nodded.
“What’s up, Nick? You look pretty frustrated.”
“A ghost just walked out on me.” I answered without thinking. Brian was horrified while he threw uneasy glances on the car’s door and to the spot where he stood outside. I smiled. “Not really walked out on me, she just disappeared. You’re safe, she didn’t walk through you.”
Brian let out a soft chuckle “Nick, I’d like to spend a couple of days on your house. Hope it’s ok.” Brian looked at me expectantly.
“What about Leighanne and Baylee? I’d be fine Brian, I am not suicidal.” That was meant to be a joke, but I could barely smile.
“They’ll be staying at the condo, we’d fly home next weekend. I just thought you might want someone to talk to, you know. And if it will make you any better we could talk about the ghosts stuff, about Leila, your very first mission and every mission after that.”
“Do you believe in me now?”
Brian took a deep breath and sighed heavily “I might once we’re done talking about it.”
I nodded, and weighed the advantages and disadvantages of telling Brian everything. But before
I could make any decision, my mind started to bring back all the memories. I could clearly see in my head where it all started, it was the 29th of January in 2005......................
End Notes:
Thank you for reading! :)
Chapter 3 - Silver Anniversary by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Please bear with me on this one. I know that this is not as good as the two previous chapter but I'll make it up on the next chap.... Nicky's first mission *wink*
January 27, 2005
Never Gone Tour
Lakeside Pavillion at Northerly Island
Chicago, IL
“Three hours?”
I looked at Jen, our tour manager, with disbelief. Who in earth could possibly enjoy a birthday celebration in just three freaking hours? The concert just ended, and I was planning to take the guys out to celebrate my 25th birthday.
“I’m actually being generous here, Carter.” She answered with a smirk.
“This is a major milestone in my life, Jen. I am going to celebrate my silver anniversary on Earth.”
Brian snickered behind me. I couldn’t understand why he thought the silver anniversary thing was funny. I considered myself genius for coming up with it. He was just jealous he didn’t think of it when he celebrated his 25th.
“Either take my offer or celebrate your silver anniversary on your hotel room. You have early radio interviews tomorrow, and you cannot show up there wasted.” Jen used her authoritative voice on me.
I rolled my eyes when I heard the word wasted. It wouldn’t be possible with a recovering alcoholic and a strict Christian around. Not to forget Kevin who would probably watch me like a hawk.
“Why don’t we just celebrate your birthday tomorrow, Nick? Tomorrow is your actual birthday, anyway.” Brian suggested
“You guys have free time in the afternoon after the interviews. We’ll leave for Minneapolis tomorrow night.” Jen added.
“And what kind of celebration can we do in the middle of the afternoon?” I raised my eyebrow, almost afraid to hear Brian’s answer.
“Well, you could treat us an expensive early dinner. There are lots of good restaurant here in Chicago.” Brian’s eyes lit up, he’d been wanting to check out Charlie Trotter’s, and he’d used my birthday as an excuse.
“Hell, No. I want to celebrate my birthday tonight at Excalibur Night club.” I bluntly rejected his idea, and looked at Jen. “Three hours it is.” I answered in a defeated tone.
“Awesome. Since you’re planning to leave at 11 pm, be sure to be in the hotel on or before 2 am. Clear?” The look on her face reminded me of the teacher I hated the most.
“Whatever.” I said and walked away. After a much needed shower, I'd be ready to go.
*~*~*~*~*~*
I stifled a yawn while looking at the guys who were laughing like there was no tomorrow. We have been around each other 24/7 for the past three weeks, but we still talk to each other like we haven’t seen each other in like ten years. I shook my head when I heard AJ threw a lame joke then Howie and Brian laughed out loud. Don’t get me wrong, I loved these guys to death but I was getting bored.
Briad had managed to reserve a small private room in Excalibur night club. He ordered sumptuous dinner and a couple bottle of beers; AJ had ice tea, which was good. We just spent the last hour talking about random things, work related stuff was not included.
I excused myself and went to the rest room. I felt my phone vibrated in my pocket when I was couple of steps away from the rest room. It only meant one thing; I was officially twenty-five years old. I smiled; setting my alarm clock at midnight was a good idea.
I suddenly felt dizzy, I had to stop walking and steady my balance. I leaned against the wall and pressed my hand in my forehead to keep the room from spinning. It felt funny when I started feeling hot all over my body, felt like I was running a high fever or something. I couldn’t hold it anymore, I took one last deep breath and then everything went dark.
“Good afternoon, party pooper.”
I quickly shut my eyes again when the brightness of the sun hurt my eyes.
“Close the damn curtains, J.” I complained
“The curtains are closed, dumbass. Open your eyes and see it for yourself.”
“Then turn off the fucking lights.” I shot back with my eyes still closed.
“The lights aren’t on either. It’s freaking two o’clock in the afternoon.” He answered, irritated.
I slowly opened my eyes and tried to adjust them with the brightness of the room. I saw AJ and Brian sitting on the edge of my bed. They looked different to me, though they still looked the same. Something was wrong in my damn eyes.
“What happened?” I demanded when I realized we were back in my hotel room.
“You passed out on us.” Brian answered with a concerned look on his face.
“Nick Carter couldn’t handle two bottles of beer now. That was news to us.” AJ teased “Happy Birthday by the way.”
“Today is your official silver anniversary on earth.” Brian grinned “Happy Birthday, Nicky.”
“I can’t remember anything.” I answered
“You were on your way to the rest room when you passed out. It was nothing serious so we didn’t bring you to the hospital. Interviews were cancelled, Jen advised to let you rest.” Brian explained
Then it hit me, I remembered the funny feeling before everything went dark. I was sure something has changed in my body; I just couldn’t pinpoint it. I was sleeping for fourteen freaking hours.
“We could still continue the celebration.” Howie was holding a chocolate cake when he entered the room with Kevin. The guys started to sing the birthday song in a horrible off key manner.
“Thank you, guys.”
I smiled; Screw the night out, celebrating my birthday with these guys whom I love so much was the best thing that could happen on my silver anniversary. I couldn’t be any happier.
End Notes:
Thanks for reading! :)
Chapter 4 - First Mission..... Part 1 by Alexsgirl_ritz
January 29, 2005
Target Center
Minneapolis, MN
“Belated Happy Birthday, Nick.”
Leighanne greeted me as she walked past me; we were on backstage waiting for the sound check party to start. Leave it to my best friend’s wife to fly back to the tour when the celebration was over. Not that I would have invited her to the night out because that was exclusive for my boys, but I did treat the whole Backstreet family to Charlie Trotter’s and she would have enjoyed that.
Contrary to rumors or what I called fans’ speculations, I never had even an ounce of hatred towards Leighanne. Fans could list down million reasons why I supposedly hated Leighanne, taking my best friend away from me had always been the top answer, but I honestly didn’t hate her. How can I hate her if she made my best friend one of the happiest men on earth? How can I hate her if she took very good care of Brian?
Though, I had to admit that sometimes it seemed like there was an invisible wall between us; the age difference might have been a big factor or maybe she just simply didn’t like me. She admitted in one of her interviews that she and AJ got along the best. The woman never even dared to answer any Nick related questions in twitter or in real life.
I gave her a sincere smile “Thanks, Leigh.”
Baylee handed me a small box covered with sparkling blue paper. “Happy Birthday, Uncle Nick.”
“Awwww. Thank you, Bay.” I tousled the little rugrat’s blonde hair and pinched his fluffy cheeks. I loved Brian’s mini version to bits. I considered him my first nephew.
“Ok, boys,” Jen clapped her hands with excitement “Time for soundcheck.”
“See you later, buddy.” I smiled as the little boy nodded. I followed Brian, AJ, Howie and Kevin into the stage.
I was in the mood to goof around, which was a very good thing because the girls would have a one hell of a sound check party. I grinned as I made my way into the stage. We were greeted with loud screams from the more or less thirty girls in the audience.
‘It’s gotta be you’ was the first request for the day. It was easy and one of the songs I’d always had fun performing.
Baby, it’s the way you make me, kinda get me go crazy, never wanna stop. It’s gotta be you…..
I noticed a dark-haired girl on the right side area of the stage. I wondered why she chose to sit on that side, she didn’t have a good view of us plus she was alone and like twelve feet away from the screaming girls in the front center of the stage. She was sprawled on the chair, her arms folded in her chest and watching us with boring eyes. She was wearing a white shirt with a printed picture of the Millenium album cover, her shiny dark brown hair which was a bit messy were pulled back. I chuckled inwardly when I thought she would have fit perfectly in the early 2000 era, and she reminded me of the girls who watched the Black and Blue tour.
I decided to make her day, she deserved some Carter charm. I winked at her, waved a little, and finished it off with a seductive smile. She quickly sat up straight when she saw I acknowledge her presence. She was obviously surprised by my action; her mouth was open when she looked behind her, probably to check if there was anyone else in that area. She looked at me, pointed to herself and mouthed ‘Me?’
I gave her the infamous lopsided grin of mine and nodded. She looked beautiful with all those cute reactions, and it takes a lot for a fan to get my full attention. Maybe the fact that I was not dating anyone at the moment made me more aware of my beautiful fans. I was thinking if I should go to the far right side of the stage to sing to her when I felt Brian tapped my shoulder.
“Your turn.” Brian whispered to me, he pointed to my microphone using his mouth.
I tried to remember what was the song we were singing but I lost it. The fans were staring at me like I had gone crazy. When I looked at the spot the pretty brunette occupied; I was pretty upset to find she was gone.
After we performed a few more requested song, answered the fans’ random question, and took pictures with the VIP holders, the sound check party was over. We had two hours to eat dinner, relax, and do whatever we wanted to do before the concert.
The concert was successful and amazing as usual; Minneapolis rocked it tonight. The ladies fell for the Carter’s charm over and over again. I was damn sure they preferred my smile over Howie’s wink. I was a little disappointed, though, that the pretty brunette was nowhere to be seen. I didn’t see her all throughout the concert; she seemed to just vanish after the sound check. I would have enjoyed blowing kisses her way.
I made my way to the backstage, grabbed my things from the dressing room and headed straight to the shower room. I was shocked to see Miss pretty brunette standing outside the shower room, her back leaning against the wall. We have the best and most amazing fans in the world, and some were crazy enough to find their way to the backstage and stalk us, just like Miss pretty brunette here. But for the record, I didn’t mind at all.
“Hey, Nick.” She softly said when I stopped in front of her.
“Hey,”
“Can you really see me?” She asked, her eyes full of doubt.
“I’m talking to you right now, aren’t I?” I chuckled; I was trying so hard to play it cool.
“Wow. This is amazing. I’ve been waiting for this moment to come for four years.”
“I can imagine.”
“I can’t believe you will be the first one to see me.” She answered in an excited tone.
“Do you prefer Howie over me?”
“I wouldn’t mind since I’m a Howie’s girl.” She answered with a playful smile.
“Ouch, girl!” I put my right hand on my left chest, just where my heart was and pretended to be hurt. Fine, I was hurt. Damn, I thought I was everyone’s favorite Backstreet boy.
“Hey, you know I love you.” She smiled “I don’t know how to tell you this but I really need your help.”
“Really?” No fan has ever asked me for help, unless helping them undress was counted.
“Please Nick, I need you to tell my mother I’m already dead.”
I started to laugh hysterically, the guys were so lame for getting back at me for my pranks. Seriously, was this all they could do? Tricked a fan into the backstage to tell me some crazy stuff, they should have known better that Nick Carter won’t fall for that shit.
“You know, you can tell AJ, Brian, Howie or hell, even Kevin that they should start thinking about other pranks. I won’t fall for this, this is so lame.” I laughed
again “Now, if you’ll excuse me--------“
“Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh”
I practically screamed like a girl when she blocked the shower room’s door with her zombie-ish face. I tripped over my damn foot and landed on my butt. I blinked so many times to make sure I wasn’t being fooled by my eyes. When I looked up she was still there, she looked so pale like there was no more blood circulating on her body. A big wound appeared on her left temple, and her left face was covered with blood. She was the scariest thing I’d ever seen, and she was wickedly grinning at me.
“Nick, what happened?” AJ appeared out of nowhere “Dude, speak up.”
I opened my mouth to answer but no matter how hard I tried, no voice came out. With shaky hand I pointed at her, with my left hand covering my eyes.
End Notes:
Hope you like it!
Chapter 5 - First Mission..... Part 2 by Alexsgirl_ritz
“Damn it, Carter. What the hell is happening to you?” There was a mixture of concern, fear and annoyance on AJ’s voice.
I took a deep breath, and with all the courage left in my body I looked up again. I was relieved to see that she was gone. I blinked twice and looked around just to make sure she was really gone.
“What?” AJ was losing his patience.
“A freaking spider crawled into my face.” I didn’t know why, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell AJ I had just seen a ghost.
AJ chuckled “Dude, when did you become Brian? I thought you saw a ghost or something.”
I shot him a dirty look, and for a second I was tempted to tell him the truth. But then again I realized that it could have been one of his pranks, the girl must have used a prosthetic mask or something. That was the only logical reason I could think of for AJ’s quick appearance to the scene. And I would never admit to his face that it scared the hell out of me, no, not in this lifetime.
“I’ll just be around in case there’ll be more spiders.” AJ teased me as he walked away.
I wonder how the hell that guy managed to change reactions so quickly. One minute he was overly concerned, then another minute he’d be teasing you like crazy.
I grabbed my things and went inside the shower room. Hopefully, one warm shower would make everything fine. My heart was still beating fast when I started to undress. I kept reassuring myself that what I saw wasn’t real. I wanted to believe that I’ve been tricked by my own eyes.
“Nick,”
“Holy shit!” I jumped when I heard that sweet voice, and saw the pretty brunette standing inside the shower room. My hands were quick to cover my exposed manhood. “What the fuck are you doing here?”
She looked normal now, without blood and everything. She looked at me with pleading eyes.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Yeah, that was kind of obvious.” I answered while reaching for my towel. I wrapped it around my waist as fast as I could.
“Please, I really need your help.”
“Look….” I realized I didn’t know what her name was yet. I looked at her hoping she would at least supply that information.
“Patricia. Patricia Jasperson. Patty will do.”
“Patty,” I slightly nodded “I really don’t know how I can help you. I don’t want to be rude but can you please get out of here?”
“I have been waiting for this day to come for four years. I have been waiting for someone to see me since February 17, 2001. Do you remember that date, Nick?”
“Should I?”
“No. I didn’t think you would remember, but your fans who came here to see you that day surely did. I’ll never forget that day.”
I had no idea what she was talking about; the date she mentioned didn’t ring a bell at all. Then I suddenly remembered that Black and Blue tour was around that time. Was she talking about that one?
“Yes, the black and blue tour.” She answered as if she just read my mind. “My mom didn’t know I came here to watch the concert. She probably thinks I just ran away with some guy. That’s why I really need your help.”
“Damn girl, you’re confusing me.” I complained. She was giving me a headache.
“I died in this arena, Nick. I slipped in the bathroom and my head slammed on the floor. My mom didn’t know I went to the concert.”
“I’m sorry. I just find it hard to believe that you’re already dead.” I smiled a bit.
“Want me to show you again what I looked like when I died?” She grinned
“No, no, no, no,” I shook my head and pointed at her “I guess you could stay that way. Normal.”
“Please, Nick.”
“Ok, for argument sake let’s say you really are dead, and I don’t need any more proof, ok?” I paused and waited for her to nod or say yes. I didn’t want her to change into being scary while I was explaining. “How am I supposed to tell your mother? I go to your house, ring the bell and when your Mom answers the door I’d be like ‘Hey Mrs. Jasperson, my name is Nick Carter and I am here to tell you that your daughter Patty died in the Target Center on February 17, 2001 at one of my concerts.’ Sounds good?” I folded my arms and waited for her to answer.
She looked down on her feet with sadness and disappointment written all over her face.
“Fine!” I threw my hands in the air “If it will make you feel better, I’ll think about it.”
I knew it was mean because I didn’t intend to keep my promise. I just wanted her out of the shower room so bad. Not that I didn’t believe her, though it was hard for me to accept that I did. Hell, I never saw a ghost in my entire life. And what she wanted for me to do was freaking hard.
I felt guilty though when her face lit up and she broke into a smile
“Thanks, Nick.”
I frowned when she didn’t move an inch.
“Patty, I said I’ll think about it.”
“I know. I’m waiting for your decision.”
“What?” I spoke louder than usual “You might want to wait outside.”
“Oh it’s ok, I’ll just wait here.” She leaned against the wall and made herself comfortable.
“If you don’t mind I’m trying to take a shower. If you don’t get out now I wouldn’t even consider helping you.”
“Nick, I really need your answer now. I wouldn’t be able to talk to you anymore once you get out of this arena.” She gave me an apologetic smile “I know this is really hard for you, and if only I have another choice I wouldn’t bother you.”
I stared at her for a moment. She was telling the truth, I could see it in her eyes that she was not comfortable bugging me.
“You mean you can’t follow me outside?”
“I am stuck in here for some reason. Whenever I try to get out of this place I felt like I am being electrocuted. I miss my mom and my baby sister so much, if only I could see them for one last time. But knowing that they could move on with their lives once they found out that I’m gone for good is enough for me. I trust you, Nick.” She gave me a warm smile and headed to the door. Her smile was enough to make me feel more guilty.
I finished my shower, got dressed and ran to AJ’s dressing room. I didn’t leave his side until we reached the hotel, and it gave poor Patty no chance to talk to me again. She stood in the backdoor with so much sadness in her eyes when we were about to leave Target Center. I whispered sorry when I walked past her. I knew I broke her heart, but there was nothing I could do to help her. I left Target Center with a heavy heart.
End Notes:
Thanks for reading! :)
Chapter 6 - First Mission..... Part 3 by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Thanks Lore! :)
Next morning I found myself standing in front of Target Center. I couldn’t believe that I got up at 6 am and snuck out of the hotel just to come back here. I looked down at my wrist and checked the time; the tour busses were off to Bonner Springs, Kansas in an hour. I slowly shook my head and walked towards the entrance of the center. I kept asking myself over and over again why I chose to come back and help a stranger, a ghost stranger for that matter.
The security guard from the entrance asked me what my business was inside the arena. I told him the answer that I rehearsed on the way here; that I lost something valuable last night and I just wanted to check if I left it in the dressing room. I must be pretty good in lying ‘cause he believed it.
I walked inside the arena and asked myself how I should look for Patty? Should I just walk around until I see her or should I call her name? I walked around the whole arena and checked every room but she was nowhere. I gave up and decided to go back to the hotel when I got tired from walking.
“I’m really sorry, Patty.” I whispered hoping she would hear me before I headed to the exit.
“I knew you’d come back.”
I slowly whirled around when I heard that familiar voice. Patty was smiling at me, she looked so happy.
“Guess what happened last night when you left,” She squealed like a high school girl who just been asked by his crush to the prom. “I met Michael!”
“Oh, now you have someone to help you with your problems.”
“Are you jealous?” She teased “Michael is a ghost like me, and he taught me how to get out of this place. Guess where I went to last night?”
“To your Mom’s house to find a way to tell her you’re already dead?” I raised my eyebrow and folded my arms.
“Nope,” She shook her head “To your hotel room, I spent the night there.”
“You what?” I tried to remember if I saw her last night, but I didn’t. I was sure she was not there.
“I was there watching you the whole time, and I actually felt guilty that you were not able to sleep. I saw you tossing and turning in your bed, and even heard you say ‘Damn you, Patty’ five times.” She giggled again like a teenager. “And I hope you don’t mind that I rode with you on the way here.”
“What? I didn’t see you in my hotel room last night, even in the taxi cab this morning.” I was surprised that I didn’t freak out knowing a ghost was in my room last night and shared a taxi with me this morning. I’m afraid I was becoming comfortable with this whole ghost thing.
“Another thing Michael taught me.” She smiled and disappeared. After a while she appeared in front of me again. “See, I’m good at it now.”
I smiled at her “That’s good, so you don’t need my help anymore?” I was relieved to know I didn’t have to tell her Mom the bad news.
“I still need your help, Nick,” She said in a low voice while her smile slowly faded “Michael told me that I can’t do that myself and I needed someone else’s help. “
I let out a deep sigh “I came here to get your Mother’s home address, but I am not promising you anything. I’ll try my best to relay the bad news but don’t count on it. I could be knocking at your Mom’s door and when she answers it I might chicken out, you know.” I sheepishly smiled.
“Don’t worry about it, but I hope you don’t mind me tagging along.” She looked at me expectantly
“I guess that would be fine, but don’t force me to do it if I tell you I can’t do it.”
“No problem.”
“And please, don’t talk to me when there are other people around us especially the guys.”
“They won’t hear me.” She reminded me
“I know but I could forget you are a ghost and answer back. It’s just a safety precaution, last thing I need is for the guys to think I’m crazy or explain everything to them.”
She raised her right hand and did the swearing thing. I hoped her fingers were not crossed behind her back.
“So, where do you live?”
“Longmont, Colorado.”
I stopped walking and looked at her “Colorado?”
“Yes.” She answered nodding “Don’t you think there would be a way for my Mom to know if I was living here in Minnesota?”
“We won’t be in Colorado until the 1st of February.” I informed her “We still have a concert in Kansas later tonight.”
“I don’t mind watching another Backstreet Boys concert.” She grinned “I enjoyed your new songs last night.”
“Just don’t talk to me when there are people around, ok?”
“I already promised that, didn’t I?”
I nodded and started walking towards the exit. I spent my last hour in Minnesota trying to get any evidence that would prove Patty died in 2001. I called up my publicist and asked her to research about the accident that happened in Target Center on the night of the Black and Blue concert. I was thankful that my publicist didn’t ask any questions, and just did what I told her. Forty five minutes later she e-mailed me the information I needed. The name and address of the hospital where Patty was brought after her body was discovered in the rest room. She said that the hospital still had the records of the unclaimed body. She also mentioned that the hospital had a picture of that unclaimed body, and they would only show it to people who would come there personally.
Patty and I went to the hospital to check if that was really her or not; the hospital could be referring to someone else’s body. I was thankful that the hospital staff did not recognize me nor asked me questions regarding my relationship with Patty. He just showed me the picture, and put the record back in the drawer after I confirmed to him that I knew her. He told me to contact Patty’s family and tell them to bring something to prove that they are related to Patty. He assured me that one of the doctors would to talk to Patty’s mom to explain what was the cause of death, and where the corpse was.
Patty was smiling from ear to ear when we left the hospital.
Chapter 7 - First Mission..... Part 4 by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Sorry for the long chapter and for my mistakes.
February 01, 2005
Budweiser Events Center
Loveland, Colorado
I watched Patty danced happily in the Budweiser Events Center’s parking lot. She was very excited when we left Kansas six hours ago. I smiled a bit when she stopped dancing and looked at me.
“It’s so good to be home, Nicky.” There was a mixture of excitement and sadness in her eyes.
I find it funny that I felt the same things. A part of me was excited and eager to get this over with, and yet a part of me was not ready to let go of Patty. It had been two wonderful days with this special girl, and me not touching my video games for more than 48 hours was enough proof that I enjoyed Patty’s company.
“Are you sure you don’t want to watch tonight’s show?” I asked after making sure no one was around “We could deal with your Mom tomorrow morning, we are set to leave Colorado in the afternoon.”
I was hoping she would at least consider my offer; I would love to see her in the audience tonight.
“That’s a very tempting offer, Mr. Carter, but I think I’d pass.” She waved her hand at me.
“Really? I thought our fans loves to see more than one show, I even heard some fans would drive six to eight hours just to see us.”
“And some fans would even make an impulsive decision to get into the plane, without telling any of her family and friends, to see you in another state just because she wouldn’t be able to see you perform on her own state. Sounds familiar?” She asked me with a smirk on her face.
“Yeah, yeah, I get it.”
“I’ve already seen your show twice, and you know how much I enjoyed the show last night.” She had a playful grin on her lips, and it made me laughed.
Patty was an amazing audience last night. She was having too much fun dancing, screaming and singing along to all our songs; even the new songs from the Never Gone album. And leave it to me to smile, wink and waved at my ghost audience; it was a good thing fans beside her thought I was doing it for them.
“Yo, AJ!” I called out when I saw him getting off his tour bus. Patty and I walked over to him.
“I hate it when you beat me to the venue.” He answered while putting on his sunglasses.
“Listen, man, I need a favour. I just have to do something important, do you think you can cover for me? I promise to be back before the sound check party.” I knew puppy dog’s eyes never worked for AJ but I had to try.
“Gotta go sightseeing with your invisible girlfriend?” He chuckled.
I smiled when I heard the joke Brian started. My best friend speculated that I was hiding a girlfriend in my tour bus because I spent every free time I get in the bus. Then my driver had to butt in and told the guys I was laughing and talking for six hours straight while we travel from Minnesota to Kansas. Patty was laughing so hard behind AJ.
“Whatever,” I replied still smiling “So, you think you can do it?”
“Does saying I don’t know when Kevin asks me sounds good to you?”
“Sounds fine.” I laughed softly “See you later, man.”
“Thanks, AJ. It’s nice meeting you.” Patty whispered to AJ’s ears. I stifled a laugh when AJ shivered, and had a ‘What the fuck?’ look on his face. I was pretty sure he felt Patty’s presence. I turned around and started walking towards the parking lot entrance.
“Too bad I won’t get to say goodbye to Howie.”
I was ready to reply with a smartass comment, but chose to gave her are-you-serious? Kind of look instead when I saw Dianne waiting for us in the parking entrance. Dianne was one of our make-up artist/stylist for the Never Gone tour and she lives in Colorado. I asked her if I could borrow her car for the day.
“Hey, Dianne.” I gave her a goofy grin
“Hey, Nick,” She replied casually and pointed at the red car behind her “This is my sister’s car so please take good care of it.” She handed me the key.
“Thanks, Dianne, you really are the best. And I will take very good care of this baby, don’t you worry.” I said while sliding my hand into the car’s hood.
She laughed “I am not worried at all, Nick, this one is cheap and you can easily replace this if something bad happens while it’s under your care.”
“Thanks again, Dianne.” I tapped her shoulder and made my way into the driver’s seat.
“Be back before sound check, Nick, and if ever you’d be caught tell Kevin I had nothing to do with your get away car.” She waved before walking back to her tour bus.
“What’s your address again?, and I need directions, baby.”
“Purdue Drive, Longmont, Colorado.” Patty simply replied while nodding her head, which I hope meant she’d help me with the directions.
“It’s not a long drive, is it?” I wasn’t in the mood to drive for more than an hour. My nervousness was killing me.
“It usually takes 45 minutes, but I can do it in 30.”
“If only you could drive, Woman, I’d gladly switch places with you.”
Patty was unusually quiet, and she’d only speak if she had to give out some directions. It made me concentrate on my driving more, but the silence was killing me. My heart was racing too fast that I bet no nurse would accurately count my pulse rate.
“That’s our house.”
Patty pointed to a white cottage bungalow house on our left. I pulled up on the side of the road. I stared at the house for a while before getting out of the car. It was small but a very beautiful house; I loved the landscaping on the garden and the adorable front porch. Something about the house screamed home, a feeling I never get in any of my houses.
“Are you ready?” Patty asked me with a concern look.
“I’ll never be ready for this.” I whispered back.
She nodded and sat on one of the wooden chairs in the porch “Take your time.”
I stood there for two minutes or so trying to find the courage to knock on the door. Patty was patiently waiting for me, but the eagerness to see her mother was written all over her face. I took a deep breath and knocked twice.
A woman in her late 40s opened the door. She had dark brown hair and brown eyes just like Patty. She gave me a surprised look.
“Oh it’s you.” She said as if she was expecting me
“You know me, Ma’am?” I asked nervously, hoping she had some psychic power and she already knew the reason why I was there.
“Of course,” She smiled warmly “Your pictures are all over my daughter’s room. You’re a member of that famous group, right?”
“Yes. I’m Nick Carter from the Backstreet Boys.” I held out my hand and she gladly accepted it.
“Barbara Jasperson. Oh yes, that’s you. If my daughter’s here, she’d freak out knowing you are in our house.” She was still smiling but I could clearly see the sadness in her eyes.
I threw a sideway glance at Patty, and she had the same facial expression.
“Forgive my manners, Nick, please come in.” Patty’s mom opened the door widely and motioned for me to come in.
“Howie’s girl, huh?” I whispered to Patty as we entered the house “I would love to see your room, girl.” Patty just rolled her eyes.
“What did you say?” Patty’s mom turned around and asked me
“Oh, nothing.” I quickly answered “No, actually I was asking about your daughter .” I added when I thought it was the best time to initiate the conversation about Patty.
“Patricia.” She said smiling and motioned for me to
sit down “Patty is a big fan of yours.”
“Where is she now?”
She hesitated for a moment, and I was glad she chose to open up “She went missing four years ago. She had an early shift in the diner she was working for, and her co-workers said she was in a hurry to go home when her shift ended. But she didn’t go home that day, and I never saw her ever since. Would you like something to drink, Nick?”
“I’m good, thanks.”
“Police did everything they could to find her, but for me their efforts wasn’t enough. Patty’s co-workers said that she might have run away with her boyfriend but I never believed them. I couldn’t believe them, Nick, because Patty is not that kind of girl. She didn’t even have a boyfriend that time.”
Patty’s mom took a deep breath, then let out a deep sigh “Do you know what kept me alive and sane for four years, Nick? “ She smiled a bit when I shook my head “I just think that Patty went to New York to pursue her dream of being a famous designer, and because of her pride she wouldn’t contact me until she becomes successful. I believe that one day she would call me or knock at our door and say hey, mom I made it.” She wiped her tears with the back of her hand.
I looked at Patty, she was so sad while staring and listening to her mom. She would have been crying if only she still had tears. She gave me a small smile and nodded; I took that as my cue to start talking.
“Mrs. Jasperson, did it ever cross your mind that Patty might be.....” I trailed off; I couldn’t bring myself to say the word.
“Dead?” I was shocked she said the word I couldn’t bring myself to say. “My mind tells me that everytime, but I am a mother and a mother’s heart never loses hopes. I just want to know what happened to her, Nick; I want to be out of this darkness.”
I took the piece of paper, where I wrote all the information I got in Minnesota, from my pocket. I handed it to Patty’s mom, she gave me a questioning look when she read the name of a hospital.
“I really don’t know how I am going to explain everything to you. This will sound really crazy, and I am not sure if you’re going to believe me. Patty went to Minnesota that day to see our concert. She was devastated that her boss didn’t allow her to take a day off to see our show here in Colorado. She made an impulsive decision of buying a concert ticket for the Minneapolis show and booking a flight to Minnesota. She met an accident in the Target Center. She was not identified because she didn’t have any identification card with her that time. I know this might sound crazy for you, and I am not forcing you to believe me, Ma’am.”
I took the two plane tickets to Minnesota from my pocket and gave them to her “But at least please verify all the information written there.”
Mrs. Jasperson stared at the piece of paper and plane tickets I gave her. I sat beside her and pulled her into a hug when she started to cry.
“How did you know?” She asked after crying for like thirty minutes “Why do I feel like my baby’s here?”
I wasn’t ready for those question.
End Notes:
Thanks for sticking with me and I promise one more chapter and we're done with Patty. :)
Chapter 8 - First Mission..... Part 5 by Alexsgirl_ritz
“I guess you can tell her, Nick.” Patty spoke after a couple of minutes, breaking the silence.
I wasn’t comfortable telling anyone about my secret, but I trust this girl. I cleared my throat, and tried to sound as calm as possible.
“She’s here, Mrs. Jasperson.” I waited for her to scream or freak out, but it didn’t happen. She just looked at me with questioning eyes. “I am not really sure if you’re gonna believe me, but I can see ghosts. I saw Patty in the Target Center four days ago and asked for my help.”
“Patty?” She asked while looking around “Sweetheart?”
“She’s right beside you.” I told her.
“Nick, please tell her I’m sorry I didn’t tell her about my plan to watch your show in Minneapolis, and that I love her very, very much.”
“I love you too, baby. I miss you so much.” Mrs. Jasperson replied after I told her Patty’s exact words.
“And please tell her I need to go now.” I shot Patty a questioning look, she told me last night that she’d stay here and will watch over her Mother and sister. “They don’t have to know I’ll be around, Nick. I don’t want them to always depend on my presence; I don’t know until when I could stay here on earth. Michael told me something about crossing over and the light that would bring me to heaven, paradise or afterlife world.”
I almost rolled my eyes when I heard that name. There’s something about this Michael that I didn’t like.
“Patty, I’ll always love you and we will see each other soon.” Mrs. Jasperson said when I told her it was time to say her goodbyes. “Will she be alright?”
“Yes.” I didn’t know where the confidence came from; it might be from Patty’s smile “She’ll be in a happy place.” I wasn’t too sure if there’s really a place like heaven, but I am confident that there was no suffering in the afterlife world wherever it was.
“Oh my God, Nick Carter!”
I froze when I heard my name while Patty smiled from ear to ear. I looked over my shoulder and saw a teenager who looked like Patty standing on the doorway.
“What the hell did you do to my mom?” She angrily asked when she saw her mom was crying
I panicked when I realized what could happen if Mrs. Jasperson would spill my secret to her daughter. The whole world might find out that I was a freak. I looked at Patty to ask for her help, but she was so calm. She was staring at her younger sister with disbelief.
“She’s grown so much.” Patty said dreamily “She’s not twelve anymore, Nick.”
“Ruth,” Mrs, Jasperson stood up as she wiped the tears from her eyes. I nervously waited for her answer “Nick didn’t do anything to me, he got lost and was asking for directions when I received a bad news. Actually, he’s sweet enough to comfort me.”
“Really? I’m sorry, Nick.” Ruth sweetly smiled at me “You guys have a show later, right?”
“Right. In Budweiser Events Center in Loveland.”
“Can I have a picture with you? I can’t wait to tell everyone Nick Carter was at my house.” She pulled her cellphone from her bag’s pocket.
“Sure.” I replied
“No, Ruth,” We both stopped when Mrs. Jasperson spoke “That was so rude of you to ask.”
“It’s just a picture, Mom, and I bet Mr. Carter here is so used to it.”
“It’s fine, Mrs. Jasperson.” I widely opened my arms and invited Ruth for a hug.
“I said no.” Mrs. Jasperson replied firmly “Go to your room now, Ruth, and pack for a two day stay in Minneapolis. We have to be in the airport in less than two hours.”
“Minneapolis?” Ruth asked confused
“I told you I received some news about your sister, please just pack your things.”
“Oh my God!” Ruth covered her mouth with her left hand, she might have realized something bad happened to her sister. She quickly picked up her bag and ran to her room.
“I just don’t want her to have evidence that you were on our house, Nick. She might ask questions once we’re on Minneapolis, and I might tell her about you without thinking.”
“Thank you.” I sincerely said.
“Patty, don’t worry about Ruth, sweetheart. She’d be fine, I’ll take care of her. She misses you a lot too and you know she loves you very much.”
“She said she loves you both very much too and she’ll always watch over you.”
“Thank you so much for your help.” Mrs. Jasperson hugged me and planted a small kiss on my cheek.
“You’re welcome, Mrs. Jasperson. I am really sorry for your loss. Patricia is a very special girl, I wish I met her when she was still alive.”
“Goodbye, Nick. I’ll never forget you.” Mrs. Jasperson walked me to the door.
“Can I visit you next time me and the boys are in town?”
“You now have a family in Longmont, Colorado, Nick.” Mrs. Jasperson went back to the living room and handed me a piece of paper when she got back “Here’s our number, feel free to call me if you need anything.”
“Goodbye, Mrs. Jasperson.” I hugged her “I’ll call you in a few days.”
She nodded and smiled before she closed the door.
“Thank you so much, Nicky.” Patty spoke behind me “You pulled it off.”
“We’re lucky your Mom believed me right away.”
“She believes in supernatural stuff,” Patty laughed “So, this is goodbye then?”
“I fucking hate goodbyes,”
“Cheer up, who knows, I might show up in one of your shows,” She smiled at me “I got your tour schedule right in here.” She tapped her temple with her left index finger.
“Just always look normal, ok?” She nodded and laughed “No blood?”
“Promise. I wish I can hug you.”
“Me too.”
“Oh my God, what is that?” Patty said pointing to
something on their garden.
“Um, flowers?”
“No.” She shook her head and pointed at it again. “Can you see that white bright light? It’s so beautiful, Nick. It makes me feel so peaceful.”
“I don’t see anything, Patty.”
She stared at it with so much admiration, excitement and fascination on her face. She looked at me.
“Do you think that’s the light Michael was referring to?”
“I honestly don’t know, Patty.” I felt stupid for not being able to help out. How can I answer her if I can’t even see the light.
“Look, Daddy’s there and he’s calling me.” She sound like a seven year old girl.
I looked again at the spot where she said the light was, and saw a figure that looked like a man. It seemed like a shadow or something, but I was sure it was a man. He was motioning for Patty to come to him. He was smiling.
“I think it’s time for me to go, Nick.”
“How about your Mom and sister?” I really suck at letting go of people close to my heart.
“Dad said they’d be fine, and we can watch over them. I gotta go now before I lose my chance to cross over.” She took a step closer to me and hugged me.
My eyes widened when I felt the coldness of her body, and the warmth of her embrace. She was able to hug me.
“Dad said I could do it if I just concentrate hard.” She was grinning “I’m glad I got the chance to hug you, and for the record I am a Nick’s girl since 1997.”
“I’ll miss you.”
She smiled “I’ll miss you too, Nick, and we will see each other again but hopefully not so soon. How about in 50 years?” She giggled
“Sounds like a date to me.” I smiled
“I could never thank you enough, Nick. Michael was right you have a pure heart.”
Pure heart? Didn’t this girl know my life was a mess for the past years? Does cheating your girlfriend, drowning yourself in alcohol, snorting drugs and lying to almost everyone were the criteria of having a pure heart? Because if those were the criteria I sure as hell have a pure heart.
“I gotta go. I love you.”
She blew me a kiss before she ran towards the man waiting for her. They both disappeared after a few seconds. I took a deep breath and let out a heavy sigh, going back to the concert’s venue would be one hell of a long drive.
I couldn’t help but cry while driving back to the events center. I never experienced something that beautiful in my entire life. I never felt this good because I helped someone. It felt wonderful to be a good man.
Dianne told me the guys were being interviewed by some people from the local television network, when I gave her back the car’s key. I thanked her a hundred times before going to the dressing room where the interview was being held.
“Thank God you’re here, Carter.” AJ exaggeratedly said when I walked in to the room.
“Where have you been?” Kevin asked me in a calm voice but his eyes showed how pissed he was.
“I visited a friend I haven’t seen for a long time.” I casually replied, and took my seat on the couch besides Brian. I wasn’t scared of Kevin because this interview wasn’t planned, it was our free time. But if I forgot to attend an interview that was on our schedule, that’s a different story.
“I didn’t know you have friends here in Colorado.”
Howie butted in; I didn’t know if he was trying to cool things down or adding fuel to the fire.
“Nick has always a place to stay in every state.” AJ smirked when I caught his eyes.
“That’s enough, you guys, let’s continue this.” Brian said and motioned to the interviewer to go ahead. I patted my best friend’s back, my way of saying thank you.
“So, Nick, what is your message to all your fans?”
“Um,” I looked at the camera and smiled sweetly “To all the girls out there, please make sure your Mom always knows where you are going. Don’t even try to sneak out just to watch our show. We love to see you in our shows but your safety is our main concern. Thank you, and I love each and everyone of you.”
Kevin looked embarrassed by my answer, Howie frowned with his mouth open, Brian looked at me as if I lost my mind and AJ almost fell out his chair. The boys wouldn’t understand what I meant, but I just don’t want another Patty.
End Notes:
I'm gonna miss Patty. Thanks for reading. :)
Chapter 9 - Mr. Big Ben.... Part 1 by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
NC is off to his second mission
February 16, 2005
Comcast Center
Boston, MA
I stopped strumming my guitar and threw it in the couch behind me. I looked down at my wrist to check the time, it was still an hour and a half before sound check. I was really bored to death and didn’t know what else to do. It had been two weeks since Patty crossed over, but I still miss her.
This was definitely one of the those times I wish I still share the tour bus with the guys. I grabbed my phone from the table and thought of calling the guys, maybe they were in the mood to hang out with me. I thought who to call first; Leighanne was still on tour with us so Brian would definitely decline my offer. Same goes for Howie, his girlfriend Leigh joined the tour yesterday, they might be making up for the lost time. AJ might be flirting with our opening act, and since I believe she was so young for him, I don’t want to hang out with AJ when she’s around. I let out a deep sigh, threw my phone back to the table and decided to go inside the concert venue. Kevin might be there ironing out the small details before soundcheck.
Our tour busses were parked at the back of the concert venue, and since it was just a couple of meters away from the back door entrance of the arena; I didn’t feel the need of informing my bodyguard where I was going. I was slightly disappointed when I found out Kevin wasn’t on the stage, but smiled when I saw the drums were already set up. It had been months since the last time I played it.
“Strolling around without a bodyguard; when will you learn, Nick?”
I stopped walking when I heard that familiar voice. I looked behind me and found out it came from a man who was leaning against the wall while watching the roadies set up the stage. He was probably in his mid 40s, taller than me by around two inches, and have a muscular body I would love to have. A smile slowly formed in my lips when I remembered who it was.
“Hey there, Big Ben!”
Benjamin Jackson, or Big Ben as we fondly call him, was the head of our security group since 1998 until the Black and Blue days. I even wondered why we didn’t hire this guy when we started the Never Gone tour. You wouldn’t see him around us but he had the final say when it comes to security matters concerning us. It was his decision that Josh, Marcus, Q and the rest of our bodyguards would obey.
Instead of returning my smile, his head was creased in confusion. He held up his right hand to stop me from approaching him.
“You can see me?” He sounded so surprised that I wasn’t able to answer him right away.
“Nick!”
I was ready to answer ‘of course’ when I heard Josh called out my name, and saw him running towards me.
“It’s a good thing you’re here, Josh, or I would have received a long lecture from Big Ben.”
I smiled when I remembered that one incident from the Into the Millenium tour. We were in South America and I couldn’t remember exactly where. I wanted to go shopping but my designated bodyguard, Marcus, wouldn’t let me. I sneaked out and was found at one of the shopping centers after three hours. Poor Marcus had a very long lecture from Big Ben for hours, I was relieved the guy wasn’t suspended because of me. I wouldn’t forget what Big Ben told me.
“If you are expecting a lecture from me, you’d be disappointed. It is not my job to tell you not to sneak out, Nick. But it is my job to make sure you wouldn’t succeed to sneak out. A lot could happen in those three hours, and I would hate myself forever if something happened to you. You are old enough to know what is wrong and what is right, but still I will make sure this won’t happen again.”
“What did you say about Big Ben, Nick?” Josh asked and snapped me out of my thoughts.
I looked at Big Ben, he had his finger on his lips while shaking his head.
“Nothing,” I said; I think I was confused as Josh was.
“You remembered him too?” I nodded “Maybe because we miss him and this was his hometown. May his soul rest in peace.” Josh whispered the last part but it was loud enough to make my head spin.
“What did you say?”
“This was his hometown, so maybe we all think of him subconsciously.”
“No, the last thing you said. May his souls rest in peace? Was that what you said?”
“Yes. Don’t tell me you didn’t know?”
“Didn’t know what?” I looked at Big Ben again but he just shrugged his shoulder.
“He died two years ago, Nick. Heart attack.”
It felt like everything was spinning around. I had to step back and leaned against the wall, with both my hands in my head. The news about Big Ben’s death wasn’t easy to take and his presence in front of me made it all crazier.
“It’s ok, son.” Big Ben whispered to me
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I was actually surprised that you could see me.”
“We told your management, Nick. It was during the break of the band and you guys were doing your solo things, so we let your management relay the bad news to you. We thought you all knew.”
Big Ben and Josh answered the same time, I guess I didn’t make it clear to whom my question was directed to.
“I need to rest, and inform the group.”
I turned around and walked towards my tour bus. I texted Howie, Kevin, Brian and AJ to meet me at my tour bus, and I had an important news to tell them. Josh was the one who explained everything to them. We spent the next hour crying and talking about Big Ben, how he meant to us and how we loved and appreciated him. Big Ben was there listening to us, and he looked happy and overwhelmed upon hearing everything we said.
I smiled at him, and this time he returned it with a warm smile.
“Tell your bandmates I loved all of you as my own sons.”
“We know.” I mouthed at him and he nodded.
End Notes:
Thanks for reading!
Chapter 10 - Mr. Big Ben..... Part 2 by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
I promise some twist in the next chapter. :)
“I really don’t know how to ask you, Nick, but I need your help.” Big Ben said carefully.
We were back in my hotel room after the concert enjoying a few bottles of beer. Well, I was enjoying the beers while he sat across me staring at the bottles wishing he could still drink. I gave him a don’t-worry-about-it kind of look.
“What kind of help? Your wife knows you’re already dead, doesn’t she?” It was a dumb question but I just don’t want to go through that again. I wasn’t ready to break another woman’s heart; I don’t think I’d ever be ready again.
“What?” I was relieved when he seemed confused.
“I met a girl, a ghost who was already dead for four years, two weeks ago and she asked my help to tell her Mom that she’s already dead. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my whole life.” I drank the remaining beer on my bottle.
“Oh, Nick, that must really be so hard for you. How long have you been seeing ghosts?”
“Patty was the first one.”
“And I guess I’m the second?” I nodded while he smiled “My wife knows I’m dead, I had a heart attack in front of her.”
“You didn’t die in the Comcast Center?”
“No. I died in the hospital, thirty minutes after she brought me there. I just went to the Comcast Center when I heard from my daughter you guys are in town.”
“How did you learn how to go from one place to another? Patty was stuck in the Target Center where she died, and only figured out how to get out of there when someone taught her how.”
“It took me weeks before I could do that, it ain’t easy but I tried my best. There are so many lost souls in the hospital, some of them taught me how.”
I stared at him for a while, there were so many questions I wanted to ask but didn’t know how. I opened another bottle of beer instead, raised it high and motioned I was drinking it for him.
“You might be wondering why my family wasn’t there to watch you guys like they used to.”
“I figured your wife hated us when we didn’t go to your funeral.”
“You have grown to be such a smart man, Nick.” He smiled at me “You can’t blame Dina, she knew how much I loved you guys as my own sons.”
“What do you want me to do, Big Ben?” I looked at him with serious eyes.
“Dina fell in love with a house in Springfield when we attended a friend’s wedding. At that time the house wasn’t up for sale, and the owner told us he won’t be giving up the property anytime soon. Three years ago, the owner informed me that he was selling the house and he notified me first. I got the house, Nick, but I didn’t tell Dina right away. I kept it a secret because I wanted to give it to her as a gift for our 20th anniversary.” His eyes filled with so much sadness “But that didn’t happen, I died four days before our anniversary and I never got the chance to tell her about it. She might be wondering why I didn’t left her a big amount of money, and even my lawyer didn’t know about the house.”
I was speechless for a moment. Big Ben was indeed one of the sweetest men I knew.
“You want me to tell her about the house?”
“You don’t have to tell her you can see and talk to me, just tell her that the deed of sale and the title of the house are on the back of the frame hanging in our living room. It was the poem I wrote for her after our first son was born; she liked it so much that she had it framed and displayed it for everyone to see.” He was now half-smiling; the sparkle on his eyes told me that he liked what his wife did with the poem.
“That sounds simple. I’ll see what I can do.”
“I’ll let you sleep now, Nick. I’ll go back to my house and will see you there tomorrow morning.”
“See you tomorrow, Big Ben.”
I wanted to hug him or at least tap his shoulder but that wasn’t possible. He disappeared after a few seconds and I went to bed.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“One hour, Kevin, that’s all I’m asking.” I held my one finger up as I tried to convince Kevin.
“We have an interview in Ohio at 11 am; we cannot afford to be late.” Kevin gave me his let’s-be-professional-look.
I sometimes hate this man’s professionalism. I was just asking for an hour extension at Massachusetts, Big Ben was waiting for me. For all I know he could be here listening to our intense discussion.
“Brian?” I desperately asked for my best friend’s help. Based from experience I never win against Kevin.
“Dude, Kevin’s right we need to be in Ohio in three hours. We commit on that interview.” Howie butted in.
“Brian?” I knew it was rude to ignore Howie but I wasn’t thinking straight.
“Kevin, can’t we ask for a thirty-minute extension? I’m pretty sure if we drop by at Big Ben’s now, we can be in Ohio at 11:30.” Brian answered while checking his watch.
I smiled triumphantly while Kevin and Howie rolled their eyes. I would have snuck out earlier if only I had a car to use. I didn’t want to cause any problems and I hate making the fans wait, but this was important.
“I’m not really sure about that, Brian. What are we gonna tell them? We’re running on a Backstreet time again?” Kevin was surely pissed at the moment. If there was a thing he hated the most, it was the Backstreet time.
“Do they need all the Backstreet Boys at the same time?” AJ asked innocently.
“What do you mean?”
“Some of us can go ahead and meet the interviewers, and some of us can be a thirty minutes late.” AJ shrugged knowing his idea won’t be taken seriously.
“Fine. But I need one of you to come with us,” Kevin pointed at me, AJ and Brian “You are the most popular members of this group and they will definitely look for you.” Kevin turned around and walked away which meant it was the end of discussion.
“I’ll go.” Brian tapped my shoulder.
“Hey, don’t you want to give financial help to Big Ben’s family?”
Thirty minutes later, AJ was driving the rental car and I was sitting on the passenger seat with four checks on my hand; just four because AJ wanted to hand his check personally. The trip to Big Ben’s house was short, I saw him on the front porch as soon as AJ pulled over. He smiled at me.
AJ knock on the door twice and after a few seconds Dina opened the door. She glared at us for two seconds before slamming the door close.
“Dina, please open the door.” AJ said while knocking on the door.
“Go away,” I heard her answer.
“Dina, we just found out yesterday about Big Ben. We didn’t know about it, we need to talk.” I pleaded and hope it worked.
Dina slowly opened the door with tears on her eyes. AJ immediately pulled her into a hug. We quickly explained that the management didn’t inform us about Big Ben, and how sorry we were that we weren’t able to go to his funeral. She motioned for us to go inside and led the way to the living room. I saw Big Ben standing near the wall and pointing to one of the frames.
“What can I offer you, boys?”
I stood up and pretended to look over the picture frames on the table below the frame that Big Ben pointed.
“Look at your boy, he’s grown so much.” I said cheerfully while pointing to the picture of Big Ben’s eldest son.
“He’s 15 now,” Dina answered proudly “He looks like his father.”
I focused my eyes on the frame and started to read it. The musician in me knew it could be a great song.
“This is beautiful, Dina.” I pointed at it “Where did you get it?”
“Ben wrote it for me when Danny was born.”
I quickly took the frame off the wall before Dina could even protest. I secretly loosen the lock on the back, and handed it to AJ who was still sitting at the couch.
“Look, Jay, this could be a great song.” I literally stopped breathing for a second and waited for what will happen next.
AJ took the frame from my hands, and letting it go too quickly made the frame dropped to the floor.
“Shit,” AJ and I said at the same time, but he got a worried look on his fame while I was trying to hide my smile.
“It’s ok, boys.” Dina said while she picked the frame up. “Oh my God,” She covered her mouth with her hand when she realized what were the papers that she just picked up.
“Happy Anniversary, Baby.” Big Ben kneeled beside his wife and whispered those words in her ears.
“I can’t believe it.” Dina showed the deed of sale and title of the house to us.
“He loves you and the kids very, very much.” I told her
“I know,” She answered while she held the small note that said ‘Happy anniversary and I love you’ close to her heart.
We stayed for twenty minutes more before we said goodbye. Dina said she would visit the house on weekend with the kids, and they might move to their new house on April, which made Big Ben very happy. AJ and I handed her the checks but she didn’t accept them. I left AJ inside the house to convince Dina to accept them.
Big Ben walked me out of the house. “I can’t thank you enough, Nick.”
“That was nothing. If you want I can tell her I can see you and relay some messages you want to tell her.”
“There are no words left unsaid, Nick.”
“You’re lucky.”
“I’ve seen that before but ignored it because I was worried Dina won’t find out about the house.” Big Ben pointed at something where our car was parked.
“Our car?”
“No, that beautiful light,” He pointed at it again “I saw it when I died.”
“That must be the same light Patty saw. She said something about crossing over, and that light will take you to a happy place.”
“Really?”
“But she didn’t see it when she died; she only saw it after we tell her mother that she’s already dead.”
“It’s slowly fading, Nick.”
“You gotta go now, Big Ben. Your family will be ok, I’ll check on them once in a while.”
“Thank you, Nick. Be careful always.”
“You, too. If you see Patty please tell her I said Hi.”
Big Ben smiled at me and walked towards the light. He walked right through our car and disappeared.
End Notes:
Thanks for reading! :)
Chapter 11 - Brian's 30th... and Michael who? by Alexsgirl_ritz
February 20, 2005
Hershey, Pennsylvania
I smirked at my reflection on the bathroom mirror after I combed my hair for the nth time, and got out of the bathroom when I heard impatient knocks on my hotel room door. I knew right away that it was AJ behind it. He texted me forty five minutes earlier to inform me that Brian would take us out for lunch and be ready in thirty minutes. I quickly grabbed my phone, wallet and keycard from the bedside table.
“What’s taking you so long, man?” AJ looked at me from head to toe “This isn’t a date, dude!” He chuckled.
I chose to ignore AJ when I saw the birthday boy behind him “Hey, B, Happy Birthday!”
We did the special Frick and Frack handshake before squeezing him in a hug. I still couldn’t believe that Brian turned thirty today.
“Thanks, man, come on.” Brian smiled and nodded his head towards the elevators.
AJ and Brian together with their bodyguards led the way. I smiled at Marcus, my designated bodyguard for the day, and followed the fellas.
“Hey, Nick.”
I tilted my head to the side and saw a beautiful woman taking big steps to catch up with me. I’ve racked my brain if I knew her but she was not familiar to me at all. She had golden blonde hair, stunning light blue eyes, and lips that a man could kiss for hours. She looked so damn perfect except for her clothes that seemed to belong to 1980’s.
I smiled at her, she must be a member of Backstreet management, Marcus would have pushed her away if she was a random fan.
“Heeey,” I answered cheerfully, and was surprised when she laughed.
Brian and AJ looked over their shoulder and gave me a questioning look. I looked at the girl to let them know I was talking to the girl not them.
“What?” Brian stopped walking and waited for my answer.
I turned my attention back and glared to the girl when she snickered.
“What?” She said innocently with a heavenly voice “Ain’t my fault you can’t distinguish souls from humans.” She laughed again when I shot her a deadly stare.
“I just want to say I’m really sorry if I didn’t get you anything, Rok. We’re on tour and I had no time to look for a gift.” It was a really dumb thing to say but that’s all I could think of. I waited nervously for Brian’s answer while AJ was laughing hard.
“Seriously, Carter?” AJ asked in between his laughs
“Don’t worry about it, Nick, your friendship is the most amazing thing you could ever give to me.” Brian answered with a goofy grin on his face.
“Jeez, Brian, you talk Leighanne now.” I rolled my eyes.
“Hey!” Brian smacked my chest with his left hand and pretended he was offended.
“Nick, my name is Andrea Miller….”
I started to hum my favorite songs and pretended she didn’t exist. Well, if she was really a ghost then she didn’t really exist. It was a childish thing to do but I would have covered my ears if the guys weren’t with me.
“Daniel sent me to warn you about Micheal.” She spoke louder to make sure I’ll hear her. "He isn't happy about you helping two souls to cross over."
My eyes widened when I realized what she just said “What?!”
The guys stopped from riding the elevator and looked at me.
“….. time is the sound check?” I asked in a low voice hoping they would just let it go.
“Same as always,” Brian responded when we were all inside the elevator “Are you ok, Nick?”
“Yes. Um, can we talk about this later?” I tilted my head to the side where Andrea stood to let her know the message was for her.
“Sure,” AJ and Andrea answered at the same time.
Brian gave me worried look, and I gave him a playful smirk.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Brian opted for a not so expensive restaurant so he could treat the whole Backstreet family, management and the roadies. He rented the whole place for two hours to give us all the privacy we needed and wanted.
Leighanne, Baylee, Howie, Leigh, and Kevin were already on the restaurant when we arrived. Leighanne already ordered for everyone and the lunch was already set up on the table in the center. The roadies will not join us for another hour, so we could goof around and celebrate Brian’s birthday the Backstreet way.
I took my seat between Howie and AJ, and waited for my turn to get my food. I picked the fork up, and it sent a tickling sensation into my body. It felt like I had been forced to sleep in a moment and when I opened my eyes, the place looked different. The restaurant was instantly full of people and my Backstreet family was nowhere in sight.
I froze when I saw a man in a black leather jacket suddenly appeared in front of us, and was looking for a certain George Davis. I opened my mouth but no words came out; I was shaking with fear not just for myself but for my Backstreet family especially the kids. People started running towards the door, and I wanted to do the same but I felt like I was glued to the chair. I didn’t also like the idea of leaving my friends behind; I had to find them.
“Please, don’t hurt my family.” A man wearing blue long sleeves pleaded. He looked over his shoulder and gave a reassuring look to the people on the table behind him. There was a woman carrying a more or less ten months old baby, a boy which around eleven to twelve years old, and a girl that looked ten years old to me on that table.
The man with a gun didn’t answer and pointed the gun to the man, whom I could only assume as George. They were the only people left inside the restaurant. I saw the woman handed the baby to the boy and whispered something to him. The boy took the baby with care and slowly crawled in the floor. I took a deep breath when I realized they were trying to escape. The boy looked back and shot a worried look to the girl that was now on her mother’s lap. His mother just nodded and motioned for them to go before she hugged the girl tightly.
I didn’t know I held my breath until the boy and the baby reached the back door safely. While George and the man with a gun continued arguing, the woman and the girl started to crawl to the floor to follow the boy and the baby. They were halfway to the back door when I heard gun shots.
My Backstreet family appeared in front of me again and my eyes widened with fear.
“Everybody down!” I screamed before ducking down under the table.
End Notes:
Thanks for reading!
Chapter 12 - Andrea by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Back from vacation! This is a boring chapter before the mission, but I hope you will still like it. :)
“That wasn’t a good birthday prank, was it?” I asked in an unsure voice while throwing them uneasy glances like a child caught red handed stealing a cookie from the jar. I got back on my feet and sat uncomfortably on my chair.
Everyone started to smile except Brian; he got the worried look on his face again. I sometimes hate Brian’s ability to tell when I’m lying.
“You’re gonna be a great actor someday, Nicky.” Howie chuckled while getting back to his chair. He almost joined me under the table. “You got me.”
“You were not moving for like two minutes with fear written all over your face, and then suddenly you screamed and get under the table. That was brilliant, man.” AJ chimed in.
“Yes, that was brilliant; we almost had a heart attack, Nick. Thanks for being so considerate.” The sarcasm on Leighanne’s voice was very obvious. I couldn’t blame her because she feared for Baylee’s safety.
“I’m sorry.” I whispered under my breath while looking down on my plate. “That won’t happen again. I’m sorry for ruining your birthday, Rok.”
“You didn’t ruin anything, buddy. We’re just getting started.” Brian replied with a warm smile.
“Come on, guys, I’m starving.” Kevin finally spoke. One look at him and I knew he wasn’t happy about what I did, but he wouldn’t say anything for the sake of Brian’s celebration.
We quietly ate our lunch. I still couldn’t get the scene I just witnessed out of my head. I wondered what it was about, who were those people. I scanned the room for Andrea; she might help me understand things.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“I’ve been looking all over for you.”
Her tired and slightly annoyed voice made me wonder if she really did spent time looking for me.
She could have easily known where I was considering she was a ghost, right? Plus my tour bus isn’t hard to find. I tried to smile but didn’t succeed.
“Were you in the restaurant?” I asked her instead
“Yes.” She casually replied
“Did I just see the future? Will those people get hurt?”
“No, Nick.” She shook her head “You saw what happened to them; she showed you what happened that day.”
“She?” I asked with one eyebrow raised.
“Doesn’t matter for now,” She waved her hand dismissively “I am here to help you with other things.”
“Like what?”
“Teach you how to recognize a soul or spirit,
whatever you wanna call them, when you see one comes to mind.” She smirked
“Who are you?” I wondered why she had to help me with those kinds of stuff.
“My name is Andrea Miller. I was a ramp model, and on my way to stardom when my life was taken away. I died in 1987 when I was 23 years old in a car accident. Anything else you want to know?”
“Why are you here?”
“We have the same gift, Nick; the ability to see dead people. But unlike you, I grew up seeing them. My Mom would always tell me when I was younger that children below seven years old could see ghosts, but I kept seeing them even after my seventh birthday. I helped some of them to cross over and have peace. When I died I thought I was done helping them, but I became a guardian and here I am.”
I just stared at her trying to process what she told me. I still didn’t get the connection why she was here confusing the hell out of me.
“Daniel sent me to warn you about Michael, and he just assigned me to be your guardian ten minutes ago. So, I might hang out with you for a while if you don’t mind. You are lucky, I wish I had a guardian back then to help and guide me.”
“Who the hell is Michael and why do I keep hearing his name?”
“Michael is a broken soul who doesn’t want people crossing over and suffer here on Earth just like him. There are so many like him, and they are the very reason why guardians and people like you exist.”
“Guardians? People like me?” I asked pointing to myself; this was getting more and more confusing.
“People like you are the one who help lost souls with their unfinished business so they could cross over and find peace forever. And we, guardians, guide people like you. Guardians and people like you works hard together to be successful.” She answered while pointing at me, then to herself and bringing her left and right index finger together.
“Why me?”
“I am pretty sure Patty mentioned about you having pure heart? That’s true, Nick, that’s why you were chosen.”
“Wait. Wait. Wait.” I held up my hand to stop her from talking “What’s your definition of pure heart?”
“You are a very good person inside, Nick. You just feel lost at the moment, which is understandable since you are still young.”
“Says the 23 year old girl.” I almost rolled my eyes.
“I may look like 23, but I am like 41 years old now.” She laughed.
“Speaking of Patty, didn’t Michael help her?”
“He did. He thought he could persuade her to stay on Earth and join him. But that girl trusted and believed in you so much that you were going to help her, so she turned down Michael’s offer.”
I felt my chest tighten a bit when I remembered Patty and how she believed in me. I still miss her sometimes.
“But Michael wasn’t happy when you helped Ben crossed over, and you did it so easily. One of our undercovers confirmed Michael is planning something for you. I guess you are aware that ghost can hurt you, right?” Her eyes revealed that she was waiting for a positive answer, so I nodded though I had no idea. “I am here to help, and to convince you to continue doing what you are doing. It’s not like you have to find a ghost everyday and help them. Just try to do something for those asking for your help.”
Her face lit up when she gave me a sweet smile. I nodded though I still couldn’t understand everything she said.
“Time for your sound check; I’ll be around, Nick.” She said before she disappeared, then I heard knocks on my tour bus door.
End Notes:
Thanks for reading! :)
Chapter 13 - Mr. Carter, please help me..... by Alexsgirl_ritz
I didn’t realize that the sound check party was finished until the girls lined up for the souvenir photo. It was time to ready again my well practiced picture-perfect smile. I positioned myself behind the barricades, and sandwiched myself between AJ and Brian.
The fourth girl in line caught my attention, not because she was pretty but because of the little girl beside her. She was wearing a black Backstreet Boys shirt while the girl wore white dress. I wouldn’t be surprised if this was the Millenium tour because we actually had younger fans back then. The little girl looked familiar to me; I just couldn’t remember where I saw her.
“He needs to forgive himself.”
The little girl startled me when she appeared beside me and whispered those words to me. I did everything I could to stop myself from screaming. I wished the camera didn’t capture that moment or else the whole world would see how freaked out I was. I still managed to smile for the pictures even though the little girl’s presence beside me was making me uncomfortable.
“Mr. Carter, please help me.” The little girl begged; the woman she was with was next in line “My brother is waiting for her outside. Please help me tell my brother to stop blaming himself. I’m tired of being here.” She had the saddest eyes I’ve ever seen. Then I remembered about my vision earlier, she was the little girl who was trying to escape when I heard the gun shots.
She disappeared while the woman she was with approached us. I put my left arm around the woman’s shoulders and smiled. She smiled sweetly and thanked the five of us. I saw she approached Gayle, one of our production assistants, before she headed to the exit door.
Thirty five smiles later and we were finally done. We had almost two hours before the concert, and I decided to look for Gayle. I smiled when I found her in Brian’s dressing room.
“Hi, Gayle.” I flashed her the smile that made millions of girls crazy.
“I’m afraid to ask what you want, Nick.”
“I saw you were talking to one of the fans that went to the sound check party.”
“I didn’t sneak her in; she paid for her VIP package.”
“You know her?”
“She’s my niece, daughter of my husband’s cousin. Why?” She raised her eyebrow.
“I need a fan to interview me for the A Day with Nick Carter contest.”
“Really? Why am I not aware of that contest? Should I check with Jen?”
“Jen doesn’t know anything about it; it was a contest on the website being run by fans for fans.” I stammered and hoped she would just believe in me.
“She has a boyfriend, Nick.” She warned me.
“That’s actually much better. Look, Gayle, I’m not looking for someone to screw tonight. It’s just that I promised this website that I’d spent two hours with a fan to interview me; people are expecting that interview.”
“Why Melissa?” She asked; she wouldn’t make this easy for me.
“Do you really want me to pick a random crazy fan to interview me?”
My lips formed in a half smile when Gayle frowned and was obviously thinking about it. She had been one of our production assistants since the Millenium days, and she had witnessed what a crazy fan was capable of.
“Melissa, that was her name right?” Gayle nodded “She seemed like a nice girl and you know her; I’d be safe with her. She can bring her boyfriend during the interview if she wants.”
I silently wished that Melissa would actually do it. I needed to see and talk to her boyfriend; I’d do everything to help that poor little girl.
“Aren’t you supposed to pick a fan who joined that contest or something?”
I let out a deep sigh; I was slowly getting annoyed at her for giving me a hard time.
“There was no strict mechanics or something; I mean fans should just post a message on the site’s message board why I should pick them. That’s why I don’t really want to exert so much effort on this one. I don’t think I’m cheating because Melissa is a fan, and she would get to interview me for 2 hours. All the questions would come from her.”
“I’ll call her and let you know if she’s up for that interview.” Gayle nodded and practically shooed me away.
“Tell her to bring her boyfriend.”
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Melissa and her boyfriend were sitting comfortably on my dressing room’s couch when I entered the room. I was nervous as hell, and hope everything would turn out fine. The worst could happen today if Melissa and her boyfriend won’t believe me.
“Hey,” I tried to sound cheerfully, but slightly failed.
“Hi.” Melissa stood up and offered her hand to me “I’m Melissa Foster, and this is my boyfriend, James Davis.”
“Nick Carter.” I shook James’ hand after Melissa’s. “Please sit down.”
“Thank you for picking me.” Melissa said sweetly while gently squeezing her boyfriend’s hand. She was obviously nervous, but not as nervous as me. “Can we start?”
“Sure.” I saw the little girl standing on the doorway from the corner of my eyes.
Melissa asked twelve easy questions, and I’m thankful they weren’t very personal. Grace, the little girl with white dress, was patiently waiting for us to get finish. Her eyes lit up when Melissa said she was done asking questions. She looked at me with hopeful eyes.
I took a deep breath, and ready myself for rejection. “James?”
“Yes?” He looked up at me with a surprised look on his face. He had been quiet for the last thirty minutes or so.
“I need to talk to you about something, about your sister Grace.”
I knew right away that this won’t be easy when I saw his friendly facial expression turned into an angry one.
“This is really hard to believe but I can see ghosts. Grace wants you to stop blaming yourself because what happened wasn’t your fault.”
It might help being straightforward; based on James’ reaction he might walk out of this room any minute.
“Fuck off, Mr. Carter.” James angrily stood up and grabbed Melissa’s arm “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
“James, please listen to me for a second. Grace is here and wants to talk to you.”
I couldn’t stand the way James looked at me. I might question my own sanity in a few minutes.
“You’re just wasting your time because I wouldn’t believe any of the damn things you say.”
“Mr. Carter, please tell him that I’m thankful he still takes very good care of Princess Boo Boo.”
“She’s my favorite stuffed toy.” Grace added with a smile when I looked at her confused.
James froze in the doorway when I told him Grace’s message. Hopefully, he would turn around and listen to me or everything would be fucked up.
End Notes:
Thank you for reading!
Chapter 14 - Princess Boo Boo by Alexsgirl_ritz
“How the hell did you know about Princess Boo Boo?”
After what seemed like an eternity, James turned around and glared at me. His eyes were already red because of the anger consuming him, and for stopping the tears from falling. My heart broke for him and for Grace.
“Grace just told me; she said Princess Boo Boo was her favorite stuffed toy.” I stopped for a moment and listened to what Grace was saying “Princess Boo Boo is an ugly frog stuffed toy, but you taught her how special Princess Boo Boo can be. She’s glad you kept Princess Boo Boo and takes good care of her for 12 years.”
James opened his mouth to speak but no words came out. Melissa was rubbing his back and was trying to comfort him. What I said was probably too much for him to take.
“She asked me to tell you to stop blaming yourself because the accident was not your fault.”
“It was NO accident! A fucking crazy man took my family away from me!”
“I do understand that---“
“No! You don’t fucking understand a thing!” He cut me off and pointed his finger at me “Who the hell do you think you are, huh? You have no right to do this to me!” He grabbed my shoulder and pushed me hard to the couch.
I closed my eyes and wished for more patience; violence won’t help me solve this thing. I was more grateful now that Barbara believed me the moment I told her about Patty, and I didn’t have to tell Dina about seeing Big Ben. I took a deep breath and stood up.
“Yeah, you’re damn right! I don’t understand what you’re feeling because I didn’t lose my family in a tragic accident. I didn’t see them being killed by a psycho in front of me. I did not spend the last 12 years blaming myself and wishing I was able to save my little sister, so you’re fucking right I don’t understand!”
I waited for James to counter attack; I took one step closer when he didn’t “But you know what I do understand? Your little sister was so fucking hurt to watch you blame yourself and cry yourself to sleep almost every night. That her little body is tired of suffering here on Earth, but she can’t move on because she worries about her big brother too much. That I would do anything and everything I could to help this little girl, and to take the pain and sadness in her eyes; to help her cross over and find peace she truly deserves.”
James looked at me with uncertainty; I could see in his eyes that he was starting to believe me but he was holding back.
“I should have saved her,” James spoke after a minute of silence “I should have insisted for her to come with me and Sandra. I should have taken her from Mom.”
“But you and Sandra wouldn’t have survived,” Grace told her brother and then looked at me “You see, Nick, if we crawled together, the man would have noticed us and killed us.”
“That’s not true; we would have figured out a way.” James answered after I told him what Grace said.
“We had the perfect plan, James; You and Sandra first, then me and Mom. It was our time to go and that was not your fault. You have to forgive yourself, James, and let us rest.”
“You’re not mad at me, Gracie?” James muttered under his breath
“How could I? You are the best brother in the whole world, and I know you tried to save me and you love me very, very much. I have accepted my fate a long time ago; you should, too.”
“I love you, Gracie. Always have, always will.”
Grace’s face lit up and smiled for the first time. “I love you, James.”
Two loud knocks on the door interrupted the emotional moment going on. Dianne peeked through the door and gave me a hesitant smile.
“Time for the concert, Nick.”
“Ok.” I turned to James and Melissa when Diane was gone “See you again after the concert?”
Both of them nodded; I smiled and tapped James’ shoulders before heading out.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Two minutes!”
Gayle informed us how much time left before the show would start. We were already in the backstage waiting. Grace appeared in front of me; she still had the sweet smile on her face and she was glowing.
“Thank you for helping me, Mr. Carter.”
I pulled out my phone from my pocket and pretended I was talking to someone. AJ was giving me ‘What the fuck are you smiling for’ kind of look.
“You’re welcome. You look beautiful, Grace.” I answered in a low voice
“There it is again!” She sounded so excited
“You must be seeing the light.” I smiled
“It’s prettier now than when I saw it 12 years ago. Look, Mr. Carter, there’s my Mom! I’m glad she’s not mad at me.”
“Why would she be mad?”
“I tricked her 12 years ago; when we saw that light. I told her I was ready to cross over with her, but I didn’t. I stayed behind when she disappeared into the light. I can’t leave James knowing how heartbroken he was.”
“You should go now, Grace.”
“Please tell James to take care of Sandra; I wish I could stay around to watch her grow up. Sandra needs him very much.”
“I will.”
“And that I will always love him and Sandra; Mom and I will always watch over them.”
“I will.”
“Please tell them that Mom says she loves them both very much too, and wish she could have spend time with her baby girl.”
“I will.”
“And, Mr. Carter?”
“Hmmmm?”
“Please protect my father from Mr. Michael, and help him to cross over, too? Mom and I will wait for him in the paradise.”
“What do you mean?”
“Daddy stayed here on Earth for revenge. I haven’t seen him since the accident. I tried to find him but I couldn’t. My ghost friends won’t help me because they are afraid of Mr. Michael. Will you help me?”
I was stunned by her revelation. Was that Michael really that powerful?
“I’ll see what I can do, sweetheart. It’s time for you to go now.”
“Thank you very much again, Mr. Carter. I’ll see you again. Take care of yourself.”
I smiled and watched Grace walked towards the center of the stage. She disappeared in front of our screaming fans, and I knew she was gone for good.
“I’ll see you again, kiddo.”
Chapter 15 - That was close! by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Sorry for a short chapter. This is just an introduction of the next ghosts.
March 10, 2005
Dodge Theater
Phoenix, Arizona
“Never thought that I’d be left behind, that I was stro………….”
BAM!
I dropped my microphone and stared with wide eyes at the spotlight that crashed an inch away from where I was standing. I literally stopped breathing for a second or so, and slowly looked up at the ceiling where the spot light fallen from.
“Oh my God! Nick, are you ok?”
Brian was immediately on my side, so was AJ. I saw Howie ran towards the side of the stage and yelled something to Jen. Next thing I knew the guys were dragging me to the back stage, and I heard Jen apologized to the fans that sound check would be stopped for a while.
Brian guided me to one of the chairs in the backstage. I wasn’t sure if I was still in shock or something, but I swear I saw a man standing a couple of meters away from me with a smirk on his face. He disappeared after making sure I saw him. I didn’t get a good view of his face, though.
I closed my eyes and tried to shake off the bad energy the man left in the room. I could still feel the anger that radiated from his body.
“Nick, are you ok?”
“Yes. I just need a few minutes to process what just happened.”
“Take your time, buddy.” AJ nodded “We could postpone the sound check if you want.”
“No. The fans spent their hard earned money for this one; just give me five minutes more.”
“I think you’ll get more than five minutes; Howie and Kevin are on the roadies’ ass right now. Poor guys.” AJ chuckled while shaking his head.
“Nothing happened to me, they should just let it go.”
“Man, you know those two.” Brian answered with a smile
“Let me talk to them.”
I stood up and walked towards one of the dressing rooms where Kevin and Howie were grilling the roadies. I had to do something because I was damn sure the roadies were doing their jobs and it wasn’t their fault.
"Let it go, guys.” I had to speak louder so the people arguing on the room would hear me.
“You were almost hit by a spotlight due to the negligence of some people and now you’re telling us to let it go?” Kevin answered back as loud as my voice was.
“I wasn’t hurt.” I tried to reason.
“Yeah, for now.” Howie answered with a shrug.
“How sure are you that it was these people’s fault?” I pointed to the two roadies and Bobby, the roadie’s supervisor.
“Because it was their job to make sure this won’t happen.”
“Have you heard of the word accident? Seriously, guys, blaming people won’t get us anywhere. I’d rather be back there entertaining the fans.”
Kevin and Howie both looked at me with admiration on their eyes.
“Are you sure you’re ok, Nicky? Your head was not hit or something?” Howie asked me with a goofy grin on his face.
“Damn sure. Now, leave these people alone.” I gave Bobby and his crews an apologetic smile before heading out.
"Little Nicky is growing up." Howie laughed before leaving the room.
“Bobby, make sure this won’t happen again.” Kevin instructed the guys and followed me.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“You ok?” Andrea greeted me with a worried look on her face when I entered my tour bus after the show.
“Yeah. So, who was he?” I casually asked as I sat on the couch beside her.
“Who?”
“The guy who tried to hurt me, or was just threatening me.” I still feel lucky that the damn spotlight didn’t hit me.
“I wish I could explain it to you, but you need to figure it out yourself.” She gave me a sympathetic smile.
“So, Michael finally decided to pay me a visit, huh?” I tried to sound funny but looking at Andrea’s face; I knew I failed.
“You’re not yet cool enough for Michael to waste his time on you.” She rolled her eyes
“Then why are you babysitting me?”
“I am a guardian not a babysitter.”
“What’s the difference?”
“A lot!”
If Andrea was alive she would have whacked me on the head already. Teasing Andre became a favorite hobby of mine for the past two weeks that she had been teaching me how to recognize ghosts.
“So, it wasn’t Michael?” She shook her head “Then who is he?”
“What part of I am not allowed to tell you is hard to understand?”
I shrugged “You are my guardian, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
“You should be guiding me and teaching me stuffs, right?”
“I know, but this is different. This has nothing to do with Michael.”
A small smile formed on her lips and gave me an apologetic look before she disappeared.
End Notes:
I am not really comfortable of using BAM!, it should be a sound of breaking glasses, right? Any ideas? :)
Chapter 16 - Leo by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
another short chapter! :)
Meeting Nick Carter was one of the best things that happened to me. I will be forever grateful for the 2 hours Nick gave me for this interview as it turned my life around. I am a proud Nick Carter fan now more than ever. He is a very special man that helps people in his own special way. ~ Melissa Foster
That last paragraph brought a smile on my face as I remembered how Melissa told me James changed for the better. They were happier now and were planning to get married. I finally decided to give the interview to NCOnline.com, the best fansite for me, as I didn’t want Melissa’s good question go to waste.
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
I heard someone cried in pain after something crashed into the ground outside my tour bus. I looked from my window and saw one of the roadies with Bobby the other day slowly getting up from the ground. I ran outside when I saw someone familiar.
“Did you do that?” I was more of accusing him than asking him.
“Oh yeah. I tripped myself over so I could fall face down to the ground.” The roadie sarcastically replied while picking up his cellphone that was broken into pieces. He thought my question was directed at him; I couldn’t blame the guy, though.
“He killed me!” The man with the annoying smirk on his face replied after glaring at the roadie, and then he disappeared.
“Oh shit! I’m sorry, Mr. Carter, I didn’t mean to snap at you.” The roadie apologized when he looked up and saw he was talking to me.
“No worries, and please call me Nick. What happened?”
“I’m Leo.” He sighed “I don’t know. I think I tripped over on something invisible but then again maybe I’m just being clumsy you know.”
“Want me to bring you to Daphne?” I asked referring to the first aider of the Backstreet team.
“No. I’m fine. Thanks.”
“Does this always happen? Do you always experience unexplainable things?” I wanted to know first if he believes in the supernatural stuff. I couldn’t just tell him right away I could see ghosts and there was an angry one attached to him. That would just freak this guy out.
“I guess so, and the spotlight from the other day is one of them. Which reminds me I haven’t apologize to you yet.”
“You don’t have to. That was an accident.” I shook my head
“Well, I gotta be going now. I have to buy some stuff for Bobby before the show starts.”
I nodded “See you around.”
“Holy shit!” I screamed when I saw the ghost standing on my tour bus door when I turned around “You scared me!”
“Is that hard to do?”
“No.” I answered while trying to slow down my breathing “So, you’re not after me? Michael didn’t send you to scare me?”
“No.” He shook his head “Who the hell is Michael? I just thought you would fire that asshole after that accident.”
“Why would I do that when I know you were the one responsible?” I stepped in my tour bus again before someone could see me talking to myself.
“Should I repeat again that the man killed me?” He followed me inside of my tour bus
“Does that give you right to do those things?” I couldn’t explain it but I think Leo was innocent. After all this man, err, ghost almost killed me with a fucking spotlight.
“So you’re on his side?” He sounded angry
“Look, what’s your name again?”
“Why would I tell you?”
“Because if you will trust me, I can help you.”
“Really? I want that man to suffer forever for taking my life. Are you with me?” He had an evil grin on his face. He had so much anger that the bus started to shake, and my things were flying everywhere.
“Stop!”
Chapter 17 - Drugs and Sex by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Hello! first, I am sorry for lack of updates. I am experiencing a major issue of writer's block, and hopefully this short and irrelevant chapter would help me get back on track. Just wanted to get rid of the writer's block. :) Secondly, The Other Side of NC is nominated on Felix Awards under Fantasy/Supernatural genre, so, HUGE THANK YOU to whoever nominated me and to YOU who keep on reading.
“Nick,”
A small voice with a familiar southern twang called out before I felt two hands shaking my shoulders gently. There was a hint of concern on his voice which made me wonder what kind of trouble I was in this time. Did I miss a very important band meeting, or the sound check perhaps, to make Kevin send Brian to wake me up? Because my best friend stopped being my alarm clock the moment he said I do to Leighanne.
“Nick, come on get up, man.”
“Go away, Brian.” I mumbled as I curled up in a fetal position. I covered my face with my arm and decided to completely ignore Brian. All I wanted was a few more hours of sleep, I felt so tired and sore.
“Why are you sleeping on the floor?” He blurted out.
My eyes open instantly as if they had mind of their own, and saw the floor rag was half an inch away from my face. What the hell was I doing at the floor? Then it hit me, the angry ghost scared the hell out of me to the point that I passed out. My eyes widened when I realized how I was supposed to explain to Brian all the mess in my tour bus.
“Look, Brian,” I started while I slowly got up “I can explain-----” I was surprised to see that everything was in order, it looked like someone cleaned my tour bus.
“What? That you overslept? That’s what actually Kevin and Howie thought,” He offered a small smile “Sound check will be in an hour, you might want to grab something to eat before then.”
“What time is it?” Why did I feel like I was lying to my best friend?
“Almost 4 pm.”
“Thanks for waking me up, Bro.”
“No problem. AJ said you skipped lunch so I thought I’d check up on you.” He said while his head was motioning towards the door “See you in an hour, Nick.”
“Nick?” He turned around before he reached the door “I wanted to ask you something.”
“Sure.” I folded my arms and waited for his question, which by the looks of Brian’s face I think was a serious one.
“Kevin and Howie said I might be overreacting but I just wanted to hear it straight from you.”
“Come on, Brian, just ask.” I said impatiently.
“Are you using drugs again?”
“What?” I screamed with disbelief and looked at
Brian. “Seriously, Brian?”
“Nick, please calm down. I am just worried about you, man. Lately you were being sneaky, you sometimes skip lunch and dinner, and you don’t hang out with us anymore, you always lock yourself up on this stupid tour bus. What happened to Baylee-Uncle Nick time?”
I wanted to yell at Brian and ask how dare him accuse me of such things? He has no idea how hard it was for me to try to live a clean and healthy life. How hard it was for me to deal with all these ghosts without the help of drugs. I sometimes feels I was this close of losing my sanity.
“Nick? Look, I’m sorry I asked----”
“No.” I answered firmly.
“What?”
“No, Brian, I am not using drugs.”
“Ok. I am really sorry, Nick. I am just worried.” I just nodded and looked at him with bored eyes. “See you in an hour.”
I nodded again and watched him disappear to the door.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Dude, I finally convinced Kaci to ask one of her friends to join her on tour. You should totally check her out, blond hair, blue eyes, sexy----”
“And 18 years old? No thanks, man.”
AJ was obviously offended by my comment; his smile faded slowly and looked down on his feet.
“I’m sorry.” I quickly apologized when I realized I shouldn’t have said that. AJ knew that I didn’t like his relationship with Kaci, but that didn’t give me any right to insult him. I guess I was still pissed at Brian and was taking it on AJ.
“No worries, man.” He looked me straight into the eye “I am just fucking worried about you. The tour is almost over, and I haven’t seen you bring a girl on your damn tour bus. That isn’t normal.”
“What? Let me get this straight, you are worried about me because I wasn’t screwing anyone for the last two months?” I winced after I said that, was it really that long?
“Yes.”
“You’re unbelievable.” I muttered under my breath and tried to walk past AJ.
“Nick, how many times did we actually check in in a hotel? I didn’t see you randomly picking a fan at the lobby and bringing her to your room, or I never saw you seduce a fan during sound checks so you could take her back to your tour bus. What happened to the horny Nickolas? What? Are you still banging your imaginary girlfriend?”
“So, you guys, are watching my sex life now? Do I have to report to you how many times I jack off in a day?”
I started walking away from AJ when he didn’t answer. I was really irritated, and getting into a fight with one of the guys was the last thing I wanted right now. Why can’t they just ask me what the fuck was wrong with me? Why do they have to speculate that I was into drugs or having problems with my sex life? I just couldn’t get it.
“You have to meet her tonight whether you like it or not, Nickolas Gene Carter.”
I rolled my eyes when I heard AJ used the Listen-to-me-because-I-am-older-than-you kind of tone. I waved my hand and continue walking, I’ll deal with AJ later.
End Notes:
Thank you for reading!
Chapter 18 - Craziness should stop! by Alexsgirl_ritz
March 20, 2005
Gwinnett Arena
Atlanta, Georgia
I was disappointed to see that the stage was not set up yet. I was looking forward to playing the drums to release all the stress and anger in my body. I was about to turn around and head back to my tour bus when I saw the annoying ghost who wouldn’t leave me and Leo alone. He gave me a watch-what-I-am-about-to-do-and-you-can’t-do-anything-about-it smile. If my stare could kill he would be double dead by now.
He took a step towards Leo who was with the other roadies and fixing something on the stage. He picked up one of the roadies cellphone slowly and carefully so no one would see the cellphone flying in the air.
“Stop!” I screamed when I saw he put the cellphone on Leo’s small bag that he was wearing around his waist.
All the roadies turned around and threw me a questioning look.
“Do you need anything, Mr. Carter?” Bobby came out of nowhere and approached me.
“Where the fuck is my phone? It was just here.”
I was about to answer Bobby when I heard the owner of the cellphone spoke up. I looked at the ghost and he gave me a triumphant smile.
“Can you call it?” The owner asked the guy beside him “It must be buried somewhere under all this mess.”
I literally froze while waiting for what would happen next. Leo was still calmly working on the edge of the stage.
“Hey, Babe.” I tilted my head to the right and saw Lisa as she wrapped her arms around my waist. “I’ve been looking for you.” She added in a flirty voice.
“You sneaky thief!”
When I turned my attention back at the stage, the owner of the cellphone was already hitting Leo in the face. The poor guy was trying his best to avoid the other guy’s punches. I quickly ran up to the stage and helped in breaking them apart.
“I’d bring Leo to Daphne.” I informed Bobby as I grabbed Leo by the arm and helped him walk to where Daphne was.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Nick, you need to tell what you know.” Kevin calmly said. He called for an emergency band meeting on my tour bus right before sound check. “It would speed up the investigation, we’re off to Cleveland tonight.”
“And I’ve already told you that I didn’t see anything.” I shot back hoping he would just drop the subject. I couldn’t tell them I saw the annoying ghost put it in Leo’s bag, could I?
“I thought you saw something ‘cause you were standing there and staring at them worriedly.” Lisa butted in without looking up from her laptop.
I glared at her but she didn’t seem to mind. Can someone please remind me how a one night stand turned out to be three straight days stay on my bus? Oh yes, because AJ decided that she should stay until we get back to New York, and apparently she couldn’t stay with AJ and Kaci’s bus. But I don’t think I would last four more days with her, she should be out of my bus tonight. She wasn’t a good fuck, anyway.
“Are you sure, Nick? Some of the roadies said you yelled stop, so they thought you saw that guy took the other guy’s phone.” Howie explained.
“I saw nothing. End of discussion. I want to take a nap before sound check, so if you don’t mind you can all go now.” I said in a dismissive tone.
Brian, Kevin, Howie and AJ all got up t the same time, and each of them said ‘Later’ and ‘See you’ simultaneously. I nodded and gave them an apologetic smile.
“You, too.” I pointed at Lisa when the guys were gone. “Go hang out with Kaci or something.”
“Seriously?” She asked in disbelief.
“Yes.”
“I might not come back, Nick, if you force me to go out of this bus.” She warned me but I really don’t care anymore.
I gave her a dismissive shrug “Lock the door on your way out.”
I went to my small room and saw Andrea sitting on the edge of the bed.
“Nice way to get rid of the girlfriend.” She teased.
I checked first if Lisa was already out of hearing range before I answered. “She’s not my girlfriend. Hell, she was supposed to be just a one night stand.”
“You seemed to enjoy the service she was providing you.”
“What?! Hey, please don’t tell me you were watching me.”
“Of course not. I was just kidding.”
“Are you sure?” The thought of the ghost watching me have sex with someone was scary.
She laughed softly “By the way, Daniel said you need to finish Gary’s case before it gets out of hand.”
“Gary? Case?”
“Oh, crap! You do not know his name yet, do you?”
“I really don’t know what you’re talking about.” I shook my head
“I wasn’t supposed to tell you his name, you should be learning that on your own. But, anyway he is the ghost attached to Leo. I saw what he had been doing to Leo for the past weeks, and honestly it should be stopped. But Daniel is more worried when someone confirmed that Michael sent someone to talk to Gary and convince him to be on their side.”
“Which means?”
“That you and Leo are in danger. I wish I could help you, Nick, but you need to do this on your own.” She looked at me with worried eyes.
“How could I help him when he is not even asking for my help? All he wants is revenge.”
“You need to change his mind about Leo. You need to prove to him that Leo is innocent.”
“Is he?” I asked again. I didn’t know what to believe at this point. I could see how Gary, if that was really his name, had been treating Leo, but how could I prove his innocence?
“That you have to find out. Good luck, Nick. I really hope you could wrap this up soon. I’d be around if you need me, I’ll be closely watching you to make sure Michael’s people won’t be able touch you.”
“Thank you, Andrea.”
“You are most welcome.”
Her genuine smile made me calm for a while.
End Notes:
Thank You for reading! Voting for Felix awards has started, please vote for this story if you think this is deserving! THANK YOU! :)
Chapter 19 - Gary, Leo and the truth... by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Hey there! It's been more than a month since the last update for this story and a lot of things happened. After spending the christmas season with the family, I flew here to Dubai to be with my husband. And for the last couple of days I got sick. I'm sorry that this is not a good chapter, since it has been so long I was at the point where I don't know how to end Leo and Gary's story. Hopefully, you'll love the next chapter where I will introduce Kate. Thanks for reading!
“I’m really sorry.” I said with hesitation while staring at my feet. I was helping Leo put his things on his car’s compartment.
“Drop it, Nick.” He answered without looking at me. He already told me yesterday to stop apologizing because it wasn’t my fault. But I felt guilty when Bobby, with Howie and Kevin’s approval, fired Leo yesterday.
“You don’t understand, I should have told them the truth.”
“The truth was they found Fred’s cellphone on my bag. End of story.” Leo closed the compartment and walked towards the driver’s seat. “Don’t worry about me.”
“But ---” I tried to stop him by blocking his way with my body.
I felt something funny when my left hand touched the hood of his car. I felt like someone grabbed me and I was being electrocuted. I had no choice but to close my eyes, and when I opened them I was sitting on the passenger seat of Leo’s car while he was driving.
“What happened? Where are we?” I asked while looking around. The place was not familiar to me at all.
“Hey!” Leo was ignoring me and he kept talking to someone on his cell phone, it was as if I didn’t exist.
Leo started stepping on the brake when we were about to approach an intersection and green stop light was blinking. Then I saw Gary, the annoying ghost, on the other side of the road waiting for the right time to cross the street. The next thing I knew Gary was hit by speeding car who beat the red light. The impact was so vigorous that Gary’s body crashed on Leo’s windshield.
“Nick? Nick?”
Leo snapped me back to reality by shaking my shoulders. He got a worried look on his eyes when I looked at him.
“Oh my God! You didn’t kill him.” I blurted out without thinking.
“What? Come on, Nick, I have no time for this.” He tried to remove my hand that was blocking his way from his car.
“Were you ever involved in a vehicular accident?” I was still trying my luck. Leo can’t leave until I resolve this matter; it was for his own good.
“Yes. Two years ago but it was not my fault.”
“I know. Leo, this might be hard to believe but there is a ghost attached to you. His name is Gary and he was the victim of that road accident. He believes that you were the one who killed him and was taking his revenge on you for the past two years.” I said as fast as I could, I didn’t give him a chance to cut me off.
“Are you kidding me?” Leo’s reaction was normal. Hell, I would freak out too if somebody told me those things.
“He made the spotlight fall so everyone would blame you, Gary put Fred’s cellphone on your bag, he made you tripped over invisible things, and God knows what else he did to you.” I took a deep breath and sighed heavily “It’s not easy to believe but I can see ghosts, and he has been following you for years now. He even warned me to stay away and not to interfere with his business.”
“I believe you,” Leo nodded “For the past two years, there are so many things happened to me that I can’t explain. This is a usual stuff, actually, colleague’s things that were being found on my bag or locker, and next thing I knew I had to find a job again.”
“I’m sorry.”
“So, what should we do now? Can this be stopped?”
“I will try. But for the meantime you have to stay until we can talk to him and clear things out.”
“But Bobby already fired me.”
“Stay until the concert is over.” I handed him one ticket for the concert tonight “See you later.”
“Thanks, Nick.”
I winked and gave him a small smile before I turned around.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Didn’t I tell you to mind your own business?”
I looked up from typing a SMS on my cellphone and saw the angry ghost standing in front of me.
“Hey, Gary! I’ve been looking for you.” I gave him a wide grin that would surely annoyed him.
“This is my final warning, Carter. If you won’t leave that guy alone, I have no choice but to agree on what Michael want me to do to you.” He even pointed his index finger at me.
“Leo didn’t kill you, Gary.”
“Don’t make me laugh, Kid.” He snorted
“I swear. I saw it.”
“How can you possibly see it? You were not there.”
“I have my ways.”
“Stop this nonsense, I just came here to warn you.”
“You are taking your revenge on the wrong person, and besides the culprit is already paying his crime on jail.” I showed him an article from a newspaper that I got on the internet, the story of how the driver that hit him surrendered was there.
“But I saw my body on his car, and from that time I didn’t let him out of my sight.”
I explained to him how he was crossing the street and was hit by a speeding car. If ghosts could still cry, I was pretty sure this one would be bawling like a kid right now.
“I didn’t know…. I’m sorry… Can you tell that guy how sorry I am?” Gary said after a few minutes of silence. He had a worried look on his face.
“Sure.”
“Do you think he can forgive me?”
“I think he already did, and that’s what you need to do as well. Forgive everyone who harmed you when you were still alive.”
“That’s not easy to do but I will try.” He paused as he looked over my shoulder, he was staring at something behind me. “They were right, it’s beautiful.”
“Are you seeing the light?” I turned around even though I knew I wouldn’t be able to see it.
“Yes, but I am not ready to go yet.”
“Are you going to take your revenge to the man on prison?”
“No. I think I’m done with it, it’s just that I am not yet ready to explore the afterlife world. Thank you for your help, Nick Carter. I assure you that I will not let Michael use me against you. I’m on your side.” Gary flashed a big smile before he disappeared.
I couldn’t wait to tell Leo the good news, but at the same time I was disappointed that Gary chose to ignore the light.
Chapter 20 - Earrings by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Here's another short chapter to introduce Nick's next mission....
February 5, 2007
West Covina, California
“Why don’t you just admit that we are lost?”
“Because we are not.”
“Why don’t you just call the real estate agent and ask for directions.”
“That is not necessary.”
“We have been driving for more than an hour and we are already late!”
“Rachel, I freaking got this, ok? Just shut the hell up.”
I smiled when I heard AJ finally yelled at his high-pitched girlfriend who wouldn’t stop talking. Though, I was not confident as well that AJ would really learn the directions just by staring at the map the real estate agent e-mailed to him. I shook my head a little, folded my arms and stared out of the window.
It had been a year since the Never Gone tour ended, and nothing much has changed except that I hated now to be alone. Being with friends all the time was my excuse so the ghosts wouldn’t bother me. That was exactly the reason why I thought it would be smarter to hang out with the couple who argues 24/7 than to be alone in my house.
“Nothing’s funny, Carter.” Rachel puckered her lips and rolled her eyes.
“J, I’ll just grab something to drink at the convenience store, want something?” I tapped AJ on his shoulder and waited for his answer.
“I’m good, man, thanks.” He answered without taking his eyes off the map.
“Rachel?”
“Orange juice.” She said without looking at me.
I got off the car and walked towards the convenience store. The old lady standing in front of the antique shop beside the convenience store caught my attention. She was staring blankly at the store with so much sadness and disappointment in her eyes. I wanted to ignore her, just like the other ghosts that were passing by, but I just couldn’t. There was something in her that made me want to help her.
“She had been like that for three years now.”
I looked behind me, and saw a middle aged man in a blue loose-fitting jumpsuit leaning against the wall. I gave him a small smile as if his presence was just normal. I guess it takes a lot now to startle me.
“You know her?” I asked him while putting my headset into my ear, another cover up so people won’t think I was talking to myself.
“No. She won’t talk to anybody,” He shrugged his shoulder “She’s there the moment the shop opens and will leave after they close.”
“How did you know she had been like that for 3 years now?”
“I died a couple of hours before her, and I was here when she took her last breath. The paramedics said it was heart attack.”
“She died here?”
“At the exact spot where she is standing,” We both looked at the old lady again “You are the only person who gave her a second look; everyone that was given an ability to see us ignores her. Son, I know this might be too much to ask, but do you think you can help her?”
I was speechless for a second. I have never encountered a selfless ghost yet, this was the first time someone asked my help for somebody else.
“I won’t promise you anything but I will try.”
“That’s fair enough. I’m Max by the way.”
“Nick Carter.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Nick.”
“Likewise. How about you, Max? Do you need any help?” I thought he deserve a reward or something.
“Nah, I’m good.” He smiled
“Have you seen the light?” I carefully asked him.
“Oh, so you know about the light? Who are you, Mr. Carter?” He laughed “Yes. I saw it a few hours after I died, but I ran away from it. I was scared because, you know, no one told me about it. I was running away from the light when I got here and saw her die.”
“Have you seen the light again after that?”
“I’ve been waiting for it.”
“Are you sure there is no unfinished business that might have kept the light from appearing?”
“None that I know of,” Then his lips slowly broke into a smile “Or maybe there is.” He said while looking at the old lady “You know, the light disappeared after I saw her die, and from that moment I felt like I was connected to her. I watch her watch the antique shop every day. Maybe it’s my mission to make sure that she’d get the help she needed.”
“Nick!” AJ waved at me “Let’s go, man.”
“Thanks for your time, Max. I’ll be back one of these days to help you.”
“Thank you, Nick. You have no idea how much you made me happy.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll see you around.” I waved my hand a little before walking towards AJ’s car.
“Where’s my orange juice?” Rachel demanded when I got back to the car.
“I’m sorry. My sister called and I forgot about the orange juice.”
“It’s ok, babe, we’ll be at your dream house in no time.” AJ reassured his girlfriend before she could start whining.
“Nick!” I looked out the window when I heard Max called me “She said Earrings.”
All I could do was nod.
End Notes:
Thank you for reading! :)
Chapter 21 - Mrs. Debbie Jenkins by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Here's a pic of the earrings :
I am not good at describing things so I think it might help if you can see what the earrings look like. :)
“Good Morning, Mr. Carter.” Max greeted me with a smile when I approached him.
“How is she?” I asked while looking at the old lady standing in front of the antique store.
“Nothing’s changed.” He answered with a shrug “But I got the information you need.”
I went here the other day, two days after I met Max and the old lady, to start helping them both. But the old lady ignored us all day, and didn’t answer any of our questions. She kept pointing to the store and whispering the word ‘earrings’. I asked Max if he could gather any information that would help us know what the problem of the old lady was.
“Her name is Debbie Jenkins, Sixty-three years old, and I think she is looking for the earrings that her grandmother passed on to her mother and then to her.”
I looked at him wondering how he got all those information, and he smiled.
“I followed her when she visited her daughter’s house last night, and I heard her talking to her daughter. She promised her that she would get the earrings back.” He explained proudly
“You think the antique store have those earrings?”
“There’s only one way to find out.” He grinned and started walking towards the antique store.
Max told the old lady we were coming in when we passed by, but there was no reaction from her.
“Shit,” I hissed when I bumped into the antique store’s door. I followed Max and forgot that I couldn’t go through walls. Damn.
“Good Morning. How may I help you?” The man behind the counter greeted cheerfully.
“Good Morning,” I smiled nervously while trying to think what to say next. I should have made a plan first before entering the store. “I… I… I’m looking for the earrings that used to belong to Debbie Jenkins. I believe it was sold here, probably three years ago, and I am here to buy it.”
“She’s a family friend.” I quickly added when the man looked at me as if I had two heads or something.
“These are all the earrings we have.” The man pointed to the earrings that were being displayed on one corner of the shop.
I nodded and pretended to look at them while waiting for Max to finish checking if Debbie’s earrings were one of them. After a couple of minutes, Max shook his head with disappointment.
“Are you sure?” I whispered in the softest way possible.
“Yes.” He answered with confidence.
“Did you find what you are looking for?” The man asked me when he got back from attending to one customer.
“I’m afraid not. Do you have any more inventories?”
He shook his head “Maybe it was already sold.”
“Um, Mister…..”
“Clark. My name is Ronald Clark.” He supplied the information with a small smile.
“Ronald,” I said while nodding and extended my right hand to him “I’m Nick Carter. Is there a way to know if the earrings were really sold here by any of Debbie’s relatives? Maybe I’m looking at the wrong antique store, you know.”
“Oh my God! Nick Carter?” A young woman, probably on her early twenties, came in from the back door of the store.
“You know him?” Ronald was a bit surprised
“Of course, Dad. He is Nick Carter of THE Backstreet Boys.” Then she turned to me “What are you doing here? How can I help you?”
I gave her one of my thousand watts smile while telling her what the problem was.
“Oh, we actually have pictures of everything that became part of our inventory. I call it ‘The Book’, I can help you look for the earrings there, and if we’re lucky the information about the buyer would be there.”
“Really? Thank you!” I gave her a seductive smile. Being a Backstreet Boy sure comes handy sometimes. I remember when Brian said that the most effective pick-up line was to tell the girl you are a Backstreet Boy, and now I believe him.
After almost two hours of scanning three record books, we found nothing. I was starting to lose hope while Max was outside trying to convince the old lady to speak up.
“What kind of earrings are you looking for again?” The girl, whose name was Carol, asked me after a minute of silence.
“Um,” I looked around and was relieved to see Max behind me “You’re asking what the earrings look like?” I had to make sure Max heard the question.
“Yes.”
“Well….”
“They are gold and have big blue-ish oval gem.” Max whispered to me as if Carol could hear him. “I saw Debbie wearing them on one of her pictures.”
I repeated what Max told me “I’m sorry. I’m not good at describing jewelry.” I added.
“Wait. Who sold the earrings to us again?” Her facial expression reminded me of those cartoon characters, where a light bulb suddenly flashed above their heads when they remembered something.
“The owner of the earrings is Debbie Jenkins, but I’m sure it was not her who sold the earrings.”
“Now I remember, you must be looking for the earrings with gorgeous aquamarine oval gem. It was sold here by an old man three years ago at a very low price because he said he needed the money to get his wife out of the hospital.”
“Then why are they not on our inventory list?” Ronald butted in when he heard what Carol said
“Well, Uncle Joseph was here and fell in love with the earrings right away. He said it was the perfect anniversary gift for Kate. He bought it with his own money.” Carol explained and then turned to me “I am not sure, though, if those were the one you are looking for.”
“The old man actually came back after two weeks, he wanted to buy those earrings back but Uncle Joseph was in Texas. I told him to come back after a week but he never did.” Carol added.
“Is it possible to talk to your Uncle Joseph? Maybe he still have those earrings.”
“Uncle Joseph moved to Texas when Kate broke up with him. I am not sure if Kate returned those earrings to him when they broke up. You can try asking Kate, she owns a bakeshop three blocks from here. If she tells you that she returned those to Uncle Joseph, then come back here and I’d help you call Uncle Joseph.”
“That’s great. You’ve been really helpful.” I kissed her cheeks and hugged her tight which made her blush.
“What’s the name of your Uncle’s ex-girlfriend again?”
“Kate. Kaitlyn Harris.”
End Notes:
Thank you for reading! :)
Chapter 22 - Kaitlyn Jade Harris by Alexsgirl_ritz
I leaned against my car with my arms folded in my chest while waiting for Max to come out of the house in front of me. I was about to go to the Bakeshop that Kaitlyn Harris owned to talk to her about the earrings, but Max had another plan. He wanted to check first if Kate still have the earrings on her possession, or if the earrings that was given to her by her ex-boyfriend was really Debbie’s earrings.
“Excuse me,”
A soft, sexy feminine voice snapped me out of my thoughts. I saw a beautiful dark-haired woman standing a few feet away from me. She looked a little nervous but her eyes were smiling. They were the most expressive eyes I’ve ever seen.
“Can I help you?” She asked “You’ve been looking at my house for more than five minutes now. Do you need something from me?”
“No. Um, yes. Sorry,” I smiled sheepishly “I am lost and trying to find my way back to Los Angeles. My GPS was broken, and I was actually thinking if I should knock on anyone’s door to ask for direction.” I stammered.
“I thought you were planning how to rob my house or something.” She smiled, and I felt like my heart skipped a thousand beats. “Going back to Los Angeles? Well, take a left turn five blocks from here then you’d be on the free way to LA.”
“Thank you. I’m sorry if I freaked you out.”
“No harm done.”
“I’m Nickolas Carter, by the way.” I offered my hand to her “But, please call me Nick.” I quickly added when I saw her frown a little. I didn’t even know why I said my full name.
“Kaitlyn Harris then,” She said while shaking my hand “But you can call me Kate.” I swear to God I saw her winked.
“Have a safe trip back to LA, Nickolas,” She waved her hand at me “I mean, Nick.” She laughed before she turned around and walked back towards her garage. She smiled at me again before riding her car. I watched her drove off.
I turned around when I heard someone cleared his throat, and I saw Max grinning at me. “What took you so long, man?” I asked
“I’ve been here for like five minutes already. You were too busy introducing yourself to a beautiful woman.” He teased, and unfortunately I blushed. “It’s positive, I saw Debbie’s earrings on her jewelry box.”
“Let’s go talk to her then,” I said then made my way into the driver’s seat. Max was sitting comfortably on the passenger seat in no time.
“Your smile makes you look stupid, Nick. Excited to see and talk to the girl again?” Max laughed “You remind me of my teenage years except that you’re on your late 20’s already.”
“Am I that obvious?” I asked “I really want to see her again.”
“Well, just try not to look and sound stupid later.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” I laughed
“Uh oh, trouble.” Max said but before I could react I heard someone tapped my car’s window.
“Are you ok, son?” The lady, who was probably in her fifties, asked when I rolled down the car’s window.
“I’ve been watching you from my house, and I got worried because you were talking to yourself.”
Max laughed out loud, and I stopped myself from rolling my eyes. I took a deep breath and smiled.
“Thanks for your concern, Ma’am. I am a singer and was just rehearsing one of my new songs. I couldn’t help but laugh when I realize how stupid the lyrics were.” I gave her my trademark smirk hoping the Carter charm has an effect on her.
“That’s good to know,” she said while nodding her head “Drive safely.” She waved her hand before crossing the street.
“Have a good day,” I shouted before starting the car. I shook my head, and glared at Max who couldn’t stop laughing.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Oh, Hello again, Nickolas,” Kate greeted me with a smile when I entered her bake shop “Let me guess, you need directions again?” She teased.
“No. I actually need a coffee and two of those colorful cupcakes.” I pointed to the cupcakes that were displayed on the glass cake refrigerator.
She folded her arms, and raised her left eyebrow
“What do you really want, Nick?”
“What?”
“You don’t look like the kind of person who enjoys colorful cupcakes. So, what do you really want from me?”
“Can we talk privately?” I asked in a low voice while
looking around. Kate had seven customers inside
her bakeshop.
She stared at me for a few seconds before she sighed “Follow me.”
I followed her outside of the bakery shop and into the park nearby. She sat on one of the benches, and she looked at me before pointing at the empty space beside her.
“This better be interesting, Nickolas.”
“I actually don’t know how to tell you, Kaitlyn, and I really hope you’ll believe me. A friend of mine was searching for her great grandmother’s earrings. She said it was an important family heirloom. It was passed on to her mother, but unfortunately her father sold it when her mother was hospitalized. I went to the antique shop last week where it was sold, but they told me it was bought by Joseph Clark three years ago.” I stopped to see her reaction when I mentioned her ex boyfriend’s name. Her eyes widened a little but other than that, she kept a straight face. “Someone told me Joseph gave them to you as an anniversary gift, and I was hoping I could buy it from you. Do you still have those gold earrings with big, oval aquamarine gems?”
“You’re not making this up, are you?”
“No. Kate, I really want to help my friend. Those earrings are very important to her, and I don’t want to disappoint her.”
She took her cellphone from her pocket and handed it to me “Save your number. I need time to think about this and I’ll let know you know.”
I typed my number, saved it under ‘Nickolas Carter’ name, and handed it back to her.
“I hope to hear from you soon, Kaitlyn.”
“Have a nice day, Nickolas.” She smiled, stood up and left me sitting there.
“Don’t worry about it, Nick. I’m sure she’d call you soon.” Max offered me an understanding smile. I nodded.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Two days later
Los Angeles, California
I was starting to enjoy my warm shower when I heard my phone ring. I would have ignored it and let my voice mail get the message if I wasn’t waiting for Kate’s call. I quickly grabbed the towel and wrapped it around my waist. The water was still dripping from my hair and body when I walked inside my room. I picked up my phone that was on the bed, and smiled when I saw ‘private number’ on the screen.
“Hello,”
I frowned when I heard strange static noises on the other side of the line. It was followed by a heavy breathing. It was starting to freak me out.
End Notes:
Thanks for reading! :)
Chapter 23 - Max, Debbie and the Light by Alexsgirl_ritz
“Good morning, Nickolas,” Kate greeted me cheerfully while motioning for me to sit on one of the tables available. She was still busy assisting one customer in the counter.
“Morning, Kaitlyn,” I teased back before I took a seat. Max sat beside me.
Kate finally called last night after three days of waiting. I have received the strange phone call four times before Kate finally called. I thought she was playing pranks on me, but she said it wasn’t her. And I believed her.
“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Kate smiled sweetly and sat on the chair across me “Are these what you wanted?” She opened the red velvet box she was holding and put it in the table.
I waited for Max’s confirmation before I answered “Yes.”
“Who was the owner of these again?” She asked
“Debbie Jenkins. But she died three years ago, so I will return these to her daughter, Elizabeth.”
“Ok.” She said nodding
“What do you mean Ok? Do you agree to sell these to me?” Max and I were smiling like crazy.
“No.”
“What?” The crazy smile slowly faded from our faces.
“These are definitely the most gorgeous earrings I have ever seen in my entire life. Not to mention the fact that a very special person gave them to me. But they don’t belong to me, so I’ll give them up to be where they truly belong. You can give them to Elizabeth.”
“Are you sure?” I couldn’t believe what I just heard. Didn’t she know how much these earrings worth?
“Yes,” She gave me a silly smile “I can’t remember how many times Jo asked me to wear those. But everytime I tried them on, there was this heavy feeling like I didn’t deserve to wear them. Weird, right?”
“Not really,” I answered with all honesty. This girl was really something.
“I just have one favor, Nickolas.” Her beautiful hazel eyes were looking straight at me.
“Anything, Kaitlyn.”
“I want to personally give them away, or at least I want to be there when you return them to Elizabeth.”
I hesitated for a moment. Every opportunity to be with Kate was welcome. But I was afraid she might found out that I wasn’t really friends with the Jenkins. Her eyes were silently begging me, and I didn’t have a heart to say no. After all, she was giving up something very precious to her.
“Of course. Can you take a break for like an hour or two? Elizabeth would leave for work in like three hours.” That information came from Max, and he was smiling broadly beside me.
“Sure. I’ll be ready in ten minutes.” Kate smiled before she left us.
I turned to Max “Go, get Mrs. Jenkins. Tell her we got the earrings. We’ll see you at Elizabeth’s house.”
“I get it. You want some private time with Miss Harris.”
“Go!”
Max laughed before leaving Kate’s bakeshop. I hoped he’d be able to convince Debbie to go with him.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
I was nervous as hell while waiting for the door to open. Kate was holding the earrings tightly as if she didn’t want to lose them. My heart broke for her, but I didn’t have a choice. I looked at Max and Debbie beside me, the possibility of helping two ghosts to cross over was more important for me.
“Yes?”
A woman in her early forties opened the door. Max said she was Elizabeth, and Debbie’s wide smile confirmed it.
“Hi. My name is Nick Carter, and this is my friend, Kate. We are here to return something that belongs to your family.” I nodded at Kate, and she took it as a cue to hand the earrings to Elizabeth.
Elizabeth opened the box, and her eyes widened. She was obviously shocked and surprised. Her free hand covered her mouth while tears fell from her eyes.
“Oh my God! Where did you get this?” Elizabeth asked
“It’s a long story, and it doesn’t matter now. What’s more important is you got those earrings back.” I hoped she would let it go, and won’t ask any questions.
“Right. For sure my mom is smiling to us now from above.” Her voice broke “What’s your name again?”
“Nick Carter.”
“You’re one of the Backstreet Boys?” It was more of a statement than a question.
“Proud to be one.” I answered
“Please come in, sorry to keep you guys standing here. I was overwhelmed when I saw these earrings.” She opened the door widely and motioned for us to come in. “I have been looking for this ever since my Mom died. I promised her that I’d get these back and pass them on to my daughter.”
“Actually, Kate Is the owner of those earrings when I found them.”
“Thank you, Kate. Um, how much should I pay you?” Elizabeth asked with an embarrassed smile. The moment must have been very awkward for the girls.
“You don’t have to pay me anything. Those earrings are yours. I just kept them safe for you for three years.” Kate answered sweetly.
“Thank you! Thank you! You are angel sent from up above.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Nick, how did you know these earrings belong to my family?” Elizabeth asked after minutes of silence.
“Um, my mom knew your mom from way back. She told me about the earrings, and asked me to help looking for them.” I stammered. I could feel the weight of Kate’s stare at me while explaining. I could see from the corner of my eyes that her face was creased in confusion.
“Oh,” was all Elizabeth said, and I was relieved by that. “Let me prepare some snacks for you, guys.”
“Let me help you,” Kate offered which Elizabeth politely accepted.
“Thank you, Mr. Carter.” I looked over my shoulder and saw Debbie watching Kate and Elizabeth prepare snacks in the kitchen. “Now, I can go peacefully.”
“Do you see the light, Debbie?”
“We can see it, Nick.” Max butted in. His eyes were full of admiration, he was staring at something.
“Any last words you want me to pass along to your family, Max?”
“I’ve told you there are no words left unsaid. I was watching my wife and son argue this morning, the heated argument lasted for more than five minutes. But it didn’t take them more than five minutes before they apologized to each other. They hugged, and told each other how much they loved each other. They even said they still miss me, and how everything would have been more perfect if I was still around. My family would be alright, Nick. I’d just wait for them on the other side. They already know how much I love them.”
“I promise to visit them soon, Max. And help in any way I can.”
“That’d be awesome, Nick. And if you don’t mind please take that tattooed band mate of yours with you. My daughter would love to meet him.” Max smirked at me.
I smiled “I will.”
“Are you ready, Debbie?” Max asked Debbie who was still looking at Elizabeth with so much love and affection in her eyes.
“I think I am,” Debbie answered, and then she smiled at me “Nick, a simple thank you is not enough to express my gratitude. I’d be looking out for you from above as well. You have no idea how much you made me happy.”
“You don’t have to do anything for me, Debbie. Just to see you going into the light and finding the peace you truly deserve are enough for me.” I was getting teary-eyed, the moment was so freaking beautiful.
“Nick, I had fun hanging out with you for almost two weeks. You are a good man, Nick, don’t forget that. I would have stayed here to protect you, but a certain Andrea told me it was her job and I should move on. Until we meet again, Nick.”
Max took Debbie’s hand, and they walked towards the front door. They both smiled at me before they disappeared. My smile faded slowly when I realized what Max just told me. Protect and Andrea were the words that made my head spin a little.
“Nick, who are you talking to?”
Kate was standing in front of me holding a plate of cookies. The expression on her face told me she wasn’t going to make this easy for me. I sighed in defeat.
End Notes:
Thank you for reading! :)
Chapter 24 - Mini Reunion by Alexsgirl_ritz
Elizabeth and Kate were trying to say goodbye to each other for the last five minutes. The two girls, despite the more or less 15 years age difference, really hit it off. I bet no one could guess that they just met two hours ago with the way they laugh or talk.
“You too, Nick.”
“What?” I asked dumbly when I heard my name. I stopped listening to their conversation moments ago.
“I said you are welcome here anytime.” Elizabeth answered with a wide smile. “Have a safe trip home and hope to see you soon.”
“Thank you.” I turned to Kate “Let’s go?” I was trying my best to avoid eye contact. I turned around and headed to the car even before she could answer.
“Visit me at the shop when you’re not busy,” Kate waved at her before following me in the car.
“Ready?” I asked Kate finished strapping her seatbelt. She nodded.
“Nick,” She said in a hesitant voice after minutes of silence “I am not going to force you to tell me what’s going on if you are not ready.”
I looked at her but she was looking out the car’s window. Kate didn’t push it any further when I told her earlier I was talking no one. But I saw in her eyes that she didn’t believe me.
“But I just want to ask one thing, if you don’t mind.”
“Sure, go ahead.”
“Does your mom really know Elizabeth’s mom?” Her voice was full of doubt which made it harder for me to lie.
“No,” It felt like something heavy was lifted off my shoulder. It always felt good when you tell the truth.
“Then how did you know about the earrings?” Her voice became interested.
I took a deep breath and sighed. “Let’s just say I was at the right place at the right time. I overheard people talking about Debbie who died three years ago. She had a heart attack in front of the antique shop. She was on her way to claim those earrings. My friend, Max, convinced me to help Debbie Jenkins whoever she was. So, we went inside the antique shop, and met Carol. She told us some information about the earrings which led me to you.”
Those weren’t lies, right? The only thing I kept from her was Max being a ghost.
“Remember when you saw me at your house? I was there to ask you about the earrings, but I couldn’t think of a nice way to do it.”
“Were you with your friend?”
“No, he had some other things to do that day.”
“Where he is now?”
“He’s gone. He went to a better place.” I smiled when I remembered Max.
“I’m sorry for asking you so many questions, Nickolas.”
“No worries, Kaitlyn.”
“I just hate lying to people, you know. So, I want to know the reason why I had to do it this time. Why we had to lie to Elizabeth. She’s a good woman.”
“I’m sorry,” That was all I could say. I wanted to tell Kate the whole truth, I knew she’d understand, but I wasn’t ready.
“Don’t be, it was for a good cause.” She smiled.
“Thanks. By the way, are you doing something tomorrow night?” I was hoping to lighten up the mood.
“Is that your way of asking girls for a date, Nickolas?” She teased.
“Maybe,” I smirked
“I’m sorry, but Valentine’s day and Christmas are the busiest time in the shop. But you are welcome to help me boxing cakes.” She offered.
“Sounds like a plan.” I said while pulling up on her bake shop’s parking lot “See you tomorrow?”
“Advance Happy Valentine’s Day, Nickolas,” She said before going out of the car “Just in case you won’t keep your promise and I don’t see you tomorrow.” She chuckled.
I left West Covina with a huge smile plastered on my face.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~~**~*~*~
“Andrea!”
I was surprised to see Andrea sitting comfortably on my living room couch with an impatient look on her face.
“I miss you,” I added with a silly smile on my face. I didn’t know how to welcome a ghost you hadn’t seen for almost a year. I would have hugged and kissed her, if she was alive. Andrea’s lips didn’t even twitch, it only meant one thing; I was in trouble.
“Joshua met a spirit that was looking for you,” Andrea started. She was referring to the eight year old boy that was assigned to her last year. Andrea was still my guardian but I told her to spend more time with Joshua. After all, that kid needed her more than I did.
“He asked Joshua to research how he can contact you.”
“I don’t know any Ghost in Georgia, Andrea.” I laughed at my own joke, but quickly stopped when Andrea remained serious.
“Nick,”
“Gary?” I looked over my shoulder and found him standing behind me “Are you the one looking for me?”
“Yes, I tried to call you but it seems you cannot hear me over the phone.”
“You were the one making the weird static sounds?”
“I was actually talking to you but it seems all you could hear were static noises.” He explained while throwing uneasy glances to Andrea, as if he was asking for help.
“He was trying to warn you,” Andrea added “Michael sent someone to stop you from helping Debbie and Max cross over.”
“But they crossed over already, nothing happened to me.” I tried to reason out, they might be worrying about me for nothing.
“Because I didn’t do my job,” A familiar man wearing blue long sleeves appeared from nowhere and butted in. I was sure that I saw him somewhere; I just can’t remember where and when. “I can’t bring myself to harm you, Nick.”
I closed my eyes and tried to remember where I saw him. I have helped so many ghosts for the last two years, and it was not easy to remember them all.
My eyes widened when I finally remembered the restaurant where I saw him arguing with a man.
“Oh my God! You’re Grace’s father?”
End Notes:
Thanks for reading! :)
Chapter 26 - Valentine's Day by Alexsgirl_ritz
“What are we doing here?” I asked Andrea in an unfriendly manner when the directions she gave me led us to a flower shop.
“What do you think?” She answered with a smile, obviously ignoring my attitude.
“I’m not going on a date, Andrea. I’m just going to visit a friend.”
“I know, but it’s valentine’s day. Your friend would surely appreciate it if you will bring her something. I’m really surprised you didn’t order flowers for your Mom and three sisters. Girls loves receiving flowers or chocolates during Valentine’s Day.” Andrea rolled her eyes.
“I don’t want her to think I’m rushing things. I just want to see where this friendship would lead us.”
“Nick, you’re not going to ask her for a date or something. Just bring something special for her today.”
“Any suggestions?” I asked in a defeat tone.
“Why don’t you buy her peach roses? Peach roses symbolizes sincerity, and it also represents gratitude and thankfulness. I’ve read somewhere that if you want to express a genuine gratitude without a tinge of love, then you must use peach roses.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, Sir.”
I was greeted by a woman in her late forties when I entered the flower shop. She had a very beautiful glow in her face. She said it excites her everytime a man enters the store because it means her flowers will make one woman happy. I ordered six pieces of peach roses because a dozen looked too much for me. I also bought four of the beautiful flower arrangements she had on display, and asked her to deliver it to my Mother and sister’s home. I gave her a large amount of tip which she politely declined. She said it was enough that I chose her flower shop to make five women happy today. When I heard what she said I immediately ordered for another piece of peach rose, then I went out of the store with a huge smile on my face.
“Those are so gorgeous, Nick.” Andrea gushed when I put the flowers in the backseat.
“Thank you. My Mom and my sisters would receive their flowers in less than three hours,” I said proudly with a smirk “And this one is for a very special ghost in my life. Thank you for always looking after me. Happy Valentine’s day.” I placed the peach rose on the dashboard in front of her.
“I don’t know what to say, you are so sweet.”
“Well, Thank you comes to mind.” I playfully winked at her.
“Thank you.” She said with a sweet smile.
“You’re welcome.”
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*
“Happy Valentine’s day.”
Kate’s expressive eyes widen when she saw me standing in front of the counter holding peach roses with a wicked grin on my face.
“You made it. Nickolas. I’m impressed.”
“Well,” I shrugged my shoulder “I always keep my promises.” I handed her the peach roses and a sweet smile slowly appear on her face.
“Aww, Nick, these are gorgeous. Thank you. How did you know peach roses are my favorite?”
“I didn’t,” I slightly shook my head and saw Andrea winked at me from the corner of my eyes “The lady from the flower shop suggested them, actually.”
“I see, they always suggest peach roses for friends.” She laughed softly “I’ll just put these in a vase. Take anything you want, Nickolas.” She pointed at the colorful cakes and cupcakes.
“Good morning, Sir.” I greeted the man who was staring at the cupcakes like he cannot decide which to choose. He just nodded slightly to acknowledge my greetings.
“Good morning, Sir. What can I get you?” Kate cheerfully entertained the man when she came back.
“I’d like to have those, and one piece of that chocolate cake, and a strawberry milkshake.” The man pointed at the blue cupcakes with colorful candies sprinkled on top of it, and the triple chocolate cake.
“That is one crazy stubborn man. He is a type 2 diabetic and his doctor advised him to minimize his sugar intake. But he’s going to celebrate Valentine’s day eating sweet stuffs.”A woman in her mid-forties who was standing behind the man said. She was actually talking to Andrea. “He is always like this ever since I died. He celebrates Valentine’s day by doing the things that are bad for him. I’m sure he is going to smoke a pack of cigarette today, too.”
“Sir,” I cleared my throat “You might want to try the grilled chicken sandwich with vegetable.” I showed the menu at him. It was a good thing Kate’s bakeshop offers healthy food.
“No, thank you. I’d stick to my orders.”
“But those are bad for your health.”
Kate gave me a weird look, the woman’s eyes widen in surprise, Andrea smiled, and the man frowned.
“How did you know?”
“Well, um, you have this guilty look on your face.” I said while doing a circular motion around my face “I used to have an alcoholic friend, and he used to have that same look everytime he buys an alcoholic drink. The I-know-this-is-bad-for-me kind of look. You don’t have the cheerful smile of the other customers.”
“This is my way of celebrating the Valentine’s day.” He argued
“But will your loved ones approve of it?”
“She left me seven years ago, she doesn’t care anymore.”
“You’re wrong, Sir. I am sure she is always around, watching over you, and very worried because you are not taking care of yourself the way she wanted you to.”
“Who are you?”
“Nick Carter,” I offered my hand to him and he accepted “Kate, two grilled chicken sandwich and fresh orange juice, please.” I winked at her and she smiled.
“Shall we?” I asked the old man while gesturing to the table near the window. The old man nodded and walked towards the table.
“Thank you.” The woman whispered in my ears “Happy Valentine’s day.”
End Notes:
Thank you for still reading! :)
Chapter 25 - George by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
It's been so long so Thank you for sticking around. Wrote this earlier in the office when I should have been working... lol
Hope you'll enjoy this one! :)
“Are you now ready to talk to him?”
I looked up and saw Andrea standing near the kitchen sink with a worried look on her face. I walked out on them more than thirty minutes ago and went here in the kitchen. As if I could really hide from three ghosts, right?
“Is that really necessary? I’m tired of hearing stuff about Michael. My life was Michael-free for almost a year now, and it couldn’t be better.”
“Swettie, trust me, I know what you’re feeling but this is for your own safety and the people in your life. Do this for the people you care about.”
Kate’s smiling face flashed before my eyes. If I wanted to pursue the beautiful friendship that we started, I had to make sure she will be safe everytime I’m around her. Then how could I forget little Grace? I promised her that I would keep his father safe from Michael. Now would be the best time to keep that promise.
“Why do you always know the right words to say? It’s scary sometimes.”
Andrea laughed “Come out when you’re ready, ok?”
I spent five more minutes in the kitchen before I decided to join them. They stopped talking to each other when they saw me.
“Thank you for giving me this chance to talk to you, Nick,” George started after I sat on the couch across him “I’ve been wanting to thank you for helping my little girl crossed over, and for helping James moved on.”
“If it wasn’t for my promise to Gracey that I would help you, I wouldn’t be here right now. She was very worried about you.”
“I know,” George nodded “But she was better off without me, she would be safe if we weren’t together. I don’t want her to suffer here with me, so I did everything I could so she would never find me.”
“You lost me there, buddy,” I answered sarcastically “Aren’t you working for Michael? Isn’t that your group’s mission? Convince people to stay on Earth and suffer.”
“Yes, you’re right. But that was not my intention for joining Michael’s army, I never wanted anyone to stay here on Earth and suffer. I wanted justice for my family, but I couldn’t bring myself to seek revenge. I met one of Michael’s people and he convinced me to join the group in exchange for the revenge that I wanted.” George looked away, guilt and regret were written all over his face “Michael never let me quit the group since then.”
“What happened to the guy?” Gary asked in an interested yet sympathetic tone
George shrugged his shoulders “I never had the courage to ask.”
“You’ve been on that group for more than a decade now. How am I supposed to believe you that you are really here to help me?” I challenged. He could be a spy after all.
“Actually, I was here because Michael gave me a mission. I was actually surprised that he gave me one because I am not an important member of the group. Usually, he would just ask me to get information but he never trusted a full mission to me.
He doubted my loyalty the day you helped my little princess crossed over, and this mission was his way to test me.”
“What’s your mission?”
“Stop Max and Debbie from crossing over at all cost.”
“Why didn’t you try to stop them?”
“I did,” George offered a half-smile “I talked to Max a couple of times, I even threatened him that I will hurt his family if he will cross over to the light. His response caught me off-guard, he said I didn’t have to threaten him because he would stay with his family if only he could. He also said he doesn’t belong here anymore so he had to go. He said he trust the kindness he could see in my eyes and he firmly believes that I wouldn’t hurt his family.”
George let out a deep sigh before he spoke again “Max made me realize what I really wanted, and what would make me happy. He made me realize that I belong with my family on the other side. We even visited James once, and I was convinced that James and his sister would be ok without me. He suggested something that I have never tried to do, and that is to forgive myself.”
“Then, why are you here? You already figured out what you wanted to do. The light will show up the moment you have learned to forgive yourself, and the people you hurt had forgiven you.”
“I am here to help you.”
“How?”
“We can talk about Michael, what he has been planning for you, so you can take precautions.”
“I’m just curious why me?”
“Because you are the biggest threat to him. Nick, you have helped more spirits than a hundred people who are like you combined. Most people who have a gift like yours ignores the spirits. For some people it would take years before they could finally convince their selves to help one. But you make it so easy, and it makes Michael very worried.”
“Why does he want the spirits to stay here on Earth, anyway? Does he get some super power for each spirit that he has convinced to stay?”
Leo, George and Andrea laughed out loud. I looked at them confused, did I say something wrong?
“No, Nick,” Andrea answered “He just wanted them to suffer like him.”
“If he is suffering here on Earth, why the hell would he still stay here?”
“Michael lived in 1950s, when he was forty-five he was diagnosed with Leukemia. His wife took care of him and never left his side. They promised each other that they would be together forever and they will not leave each other. When Michael died he chose to say even though he saw the light. He wanted to keep his promise to his wife, he decided to wait for her. His wife met a car accident fifteen years later and died on the spot. Unfortunately, Michael wasn’t with her that time. His wife crossed over immediately. Michael was furious and sad because of what happened. He waited fifteen years for nothing. I think up to now he still holds a grudge for his wife, he doesn’t want to see her anymore so he decided to stay here forever.” George explained.
“And he is convincing others to stay here and suffer with him?”
“Yes. He doesn’t want couples or family to see each other again on the other side. He doesn’t want other spirits to be happy.”
“I wonder why the other spirits are helping him.”
“They have their own stories, just like me, most of them are broken souls. Some have given up waiting for the light and wanted other spirits to suffer with them, too.”
“How can this be stopped?”
“This will be a long battle, Nick. If I were you I would just stick to helping spirits cross over. With every one spirit that they have convinced to stay, help two spirits to cross over.”
“Don’t worry, Nick, the guardians are doing everything we could to help you. Just continue helping those spirits with their unfinished business and we’ll do the rest.” Andrea assured me.
“It’s been a long day,” I yawned to let them know I was tired already “Thank you for your time, George. Will I still be seeing you tomorrow?”
“I’d stick around as long as you want me to. I can’t go back to Michael’s place anymore.”
“Gary?”
“I can hang out with George for a while, he has a lot of interesting stories to tell.” He answered with a playful smirk.
“Andrea?”
“I’d be here until I am sure you are safe with these guys.” She winked.
“Good night, y’all!”
Chapter 25 - George by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
It's been so long so Thank you for sticking around. Wrote this earlier in the office when I should have been working... lol
Hope you'll enjoy this one! :)
“Are you now ready to talk to him?”
I looked up and saw Andrea standing near the kitchen sink with a worried look on her face. I walked out on them more than thirty minutes ago and went here in the kitchen. As if I could really hide from three ghosts, right?
“Is that really necessary? I’m tired of hearing stuff about Michael. My life was Michael-free for almost a year now, and it couldn’t be better.”
“Swettie, trust me, I know what you’re feeling but this is for your own safety and the people in your life. Do this for the people you care about.”
Kate’s smiling face flashed before my eyes. If I wanted to pursue the beautiful friendship that we started, I had to make sure she will be safe everytime I’m around her. Then how could I forget little Grace? I promised her that I would keep his father safe from Michael. Now would be the best time to keep that promise.
“Why do you always know the right words to say? It’s scary sometimes.”
Andrea laughed “Come out when you’re ready, ok?”
I spent five more minutes in the kitchen before I decided to join them. They stopped talking to each other when they saw me.
“Thank you for giving me this chance to talk to you, Nick,” George started after I sat on the couch across him “I’ve been wanting to thank you for helping my little girl crossed over, and for helping James moved on.”
“If it wasn’t for my promise to Gracey that I would help you, I wouldn’t be here right now. She was very worried about you.”
“I know,” George nodded “But she was better off without me, she would be safe if we weren’t together. I don’t want her to suffer here with me, so I did everything I could so she would never find me.”
“You lost me there, buddy,” I answered sarcastically “Aren’t you working for Michael? Isn’t that your group’s mission? Convince people to stay on Earth and suffer.”
“Yes, you’re right. But that was not my intention for joining Michael’s army, I never wanted anyone to stay here on Earth and suffer. I wanted justice for my family, but I couldn’t bring myself to seek revenge. I met one of Michael’s people and he convinced me to join the group in exchange for the revenge that I wanted.” George looked away, guilt and regret were written all over his face “Michael never let me quit the group since then.”
“What happened to the guy?” Gary asked in an interested yet sympathetic tone
George shrugged his shoulders “I never had the courage to ask.”
“You’ve been on that group for more than a decade now. How am I supposed to believe you that you are really here to help me?” I challenged. He could be a spy after all.
“Actually, I was here because Michael gave me a mission. I was actually surprised that he gave me one because I am not an important member of the group. Usually, he would just ask me to get information but he never trusted a full mission to me.
He doubted my loyalty the day you helped my little princess crossed over, and this mission was his way to test me.”
“What’s your mission?”
“Stop Max and Debbie from crossing over at all cost.”
“Why didn’t you try to stop them?”
“I did,” George offered a half-smile “I talked to Max a couple of times, I even threatened him that I will hurt his family if he will cross over to the light. His response caught me off-guard, he said I didn’t have to threaten him because he would stay with his family if only he could. He also said he doesn’t belong here anymore so he had to go. He said he trust the kindness he could see in my eyes and he firmly believes that I wouldn’t hurt his family.”
George let out a deep sigh before he spoke again “Max made me realize what I really wanted, and what would make me happy. He made me realize that I belong with my family on the other side. We even visited James once, and I was convinced that James and his sister would be ok without me. He suggested something that I have never tried to do, and that is to forgive myself.”
“Then, why are you here? You already figured out what you wanted to do. The light will show up the moment you have learned to forgive yourself, and the people you hurt had forgiven you.”
“I am here to help you.”
“How?”
“We can talk about Michael, what he has been planning for you, so you can take precautions.”
“I’m just curious why me?”
“Because you are the biggest threat to him. Nick, you have helped more spirits than a hundred people who are like you combined. Most people who have a gift like yours ignores the spirits. For some people it would take years before they could finally convince their selves to help one. But you make it so easy, and it makes Michael very worried.”
“Why does he want the spirits to stay here on Earth, anyway? Does he get some super power for each spirit that he has convinced to stay?”
Leo, George and Andrea laughed out loud. I looked at them confused, did I say something wrong?
“No, Nick,” Andrea answered “He just wanted them to suffer like him.”
“If he is suffering here on Earth, why the hell would he still stay here?”
“Michael lived in 1950s, when he was forty-five he was diagnosed with Leukemia. His wife took care of him and never left his side. They promised each other that they would be together forever and they will not leave each other. When Michael died he chose to say even though he saw the light. He wanted to keep his promise to his wife, he decided to wait for her. His wife met a car accident fifteen years later and died on the spot. Unfortunately, Michael wasn’t with her that time. His wife crossed over immediately. Michael was furious and sad because of what happened. He waited fifteen years for nothing. I think up to now he still holds a grudge for his wife, he doesn’t want to see her anymore so he decided to stay here forever.” George explained.
“And he is convincing others to stay here and suffer with him?”
“Yes. He doesn’t want couples or family to see each other again on the other side. He doesn’t want other spirits to be happy.”
“I wonder why the other spirits are helping him.”
“They have their own stories, just like me, most of them are broken souls. Some have given up waiting for the light and wanted other spirits to suffer with them, too.”
“How can this be stopped?”
“This will be a long battle, Nick. If I were you I would just stick to helping spirits cross over. With every one spirit that they have convinced to stay, help two spirits to cross over.”
“Don’t worry, Nick, the guardians are doing everything we could to help you. Just continue helping those spirits with their unfinished business and we’ll do the rest.” Andrea assured me.
“It’s been a long day,” I yawned to let them know I was tired already “Thank you for your time, George. Will I still be seeing you tomorrow?”
“I’d stick around as long as you want me to. I can’t go back to Michael’s place anymore.”
“Gary?”
“I can hang out with George for a while, he has a lot of interesting stories to tell.” He answered with a playful smirk.
“Andrea?”
“I’d be here until I am sure you are safe with these guys.” She winked.
“Good night, y’all!”
Chapter 27 - Valentine's Day part 2 by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Finally, a new chapter! :)
“Do you sometimes feel her around you?” I asked the old man after Kate served our food. I was glad Kate gave us space and maintained her distance.
He looked at me for a while, took a bite from his sandwich and looked out of the window again. I waited patiently, this topic was never easy to talked about.
“Every day,” He finally said after letting out a deep sigh “My children sometimes think I’m going crazy. They said maybe I miss their Mom too much and I am just imagining things. But, I could really feel her presence. When I get home from work, I have this feeling like she would come out of the kitchen anytime holding a glass of fresh juice and would ask me how my day was. There are times that I actually waited for her to come out, then I’ll realize she was already gone. There are nights that I could really feel she’s with me, that if I look beside me I’d find her there. You think I’m going crazy?”
“No.”
“You just want to make me feel good.”
“I am a superstitious person. I believe in ghost and some supernatural stuff, so I don’t think you’re going crazy.”
“Ghost?” He asked half smiling.
“Yes. Do you believe in ghost, Sir?”
“Are you saying I am being haunted by my wife?” He chuckled.
“Maybe.” I shrugged “My cousin is into supernatural stuff and she tells me a lot about it. She said when people die they cross over to the other side, to heaven, paradise, the name of the place depends on what you believe in. But she also said some of them stay here on Earth because they have unfinished business. They would not be able to move on unless they are done with it.”
“You are confusing me.”
“There’s a chance your wife chose to stay here to be with you, to still have a chance to look after you.”
“Why can’t I see her?”
“But you can feel her, isn’t that enough?”
“So, you’re saying she’s here with me because she have unfinished business?”
I nodded.
“Why?”
“I don’t know, Sir. Maybe because you are not taking care of yourself like she wanted you to.” I looked at his wife and she was nodding at me.
“He doesn’t have to know you can see me. I have told him everything I wanted before I died, all I want right now is to make sure he will be ok without me.” She smiled.
“How can you tell?”
“You were ordering food that’s bad for you earlier.”
“This is my way of celebrating Valentine’s day.”
“And your wife wouldn’t approve of it, would she?”
“I’ve had enough of this talk.” He pushed his plate aside and stood up.
“If you smell your wife’s favorite perfume on your bedroom when you get home, it only means one thing; I am right about this and she wanted you to be ok before she can move on.”
He paused for a while, shook his head and continued heading to the door.
“I know that he believes you. Once I am sure he will be ok, I will cross over to the light. I promise. Thank you very much for your help.” His wife followed him after saying goodbye to Andrea.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“What?” I asked Andrea while waiting for the traffic light to turn green. She had been smiling like a fool since we left Kate’s bakeshop.
“Nothing,” She teased.
“You look like a teenager who had been asked for a date for the first time.”
“Look who’s talking.” She laughed “You scored ten thousand good points today, Carter. I bet Kate thinks you are one good man.”
“I am,” I laughed and turned to her “Right, Andrea?”
“Um, Nick,” She said slowly while her happy face turned into a serious one. She was staring at something over my shoulder.
I slowly turned around to check what was she looking at, and it was a mistake. My eyes widen in fear and I felt something shivered down my spine when I saw a girl pressing her face into my car’s window. She had a nasty cut in her forehead and blood was dripping all over. Her eyes and lips were swollen, too. She looked like she was punched in the face a couple of times. I was very shocked that I accidentally stepped on the gas pedal.
“Nick!!!!!”
It was Andrea’s frightened voice that snapped me back to reality. It gave me enough time to stepped on the brake before I hit the lamp post on the center island.
End Notes:
Thank you for reading!
Chapter - Traffic Lights by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Finally! after 4 months of being on a writing slump. :)
“Oh my God! I am so sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” The girl said while looking at the small distance between the lamp post and my car.
“Oh yeah, that was obvious. Sticking your bloody face on someone’s car window is just a normal thing.”
“Nick!” Andrea used the tone my Mom always uses when she wanted me to apologize to her guest.
“I’m sorry.” I said in a low voice and sighed.
“I just wanted to ask if you have seen my boyfriend. He was just standing next to me but after a couple of seconds he was gone.”
I looked at Andrea and tried to ask her through my facial expression if the girl knew she was already dead. Before Andrea could respond, the girl continued explaining.
“We met an accident on our way home from a friend’s party. A drunk driver was stupid enough to run a red light, the jerk survived but we did not. I was the one driving and I should have listened to my father. He always tells me that when the traffic light turns green I should count until three before I step on the gas pedal. He said it is a safety measure just in case someone will run a red light.”
“When did the accident happen?”
“Maybe a couple of hours ago.” She shrugged. There was uncertainty in her eyes.
“Have you seen the light?”
“What light?”
“What’s the date today?” I had a feeling she died a long time ago.
“January 18, 2005.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, it’s my friend’s 23rd birthday. I told you we just attended her party and we are on our way home. Why are you asking me these questions? You are starting to freak me out.”
“Today is Valentine’s day. February 14, 2007.” I tried to say it as calmly as possible.
“What? You gotta be kidding me. Are you from the future or something?” She forced a fake laugh but I could see the confusion in her eyes.
“Miss,”
“Vicky. Victoria Fitzgerald.”
“I’m Nick Carter.”
“Now I know why you looked so familiar, you are the tall blonde one from the Backstreet Boys.”
“Yep, that’s me.” I gave her my I’m-proud-to be-a-Backstreet-Boy-kind-of-smile.
“I didn’t expect a celebrity to be talking to a ghost.” She chuckled
“Ghosts are part of my daily life.”
“Can you help me look for Jake, Nick?”
“Of course, I will do whatever I can to help you find him. So, the accident happened two years ago.”
“Was it really that long? It really seems like it happened a couple of hours ago and Jake was just here beside me.”
I nodded. “If it is okay with you, please tell me what happened and give me information about Jake.”
“Jake and I attended Sarah’s birthday party. He had three bottles of beer, so I volunteered to drive. The accident happened right in this intersection, the drunk driver who hit us came from that direction.” She pointed the road on her left. “The impact was so strong that it made our car turn twice. My head hit the windshield and I died on the spot. Jake was still breathing then, I remember looking at him and praying that he would survive. It took around ten minutes before the paramedics came. It was too late, Jake was already standing beside me with a big smile on his face. We started walking away from the scene because we couldn’t look at our lifeless body covered with blood. We were just happy that we were together. Then, when I looked beside me Jake was gone. I tried looking for him but I couldn’t find him. By that time the ambulance drove off with our bodies, the police one by one left the scene, and before I knew it I was alone. I just want to know that Jake is safe wherever he is. I want to know why he left me. Is he already in heaven?”
“The light I was asking you earlier, you haven’t seen it?”
“I don’t know what you are talking about.”
“Vicky, when people die, there is a light that appears before them. It is like a guide for you, it will bring you to the place where you should be after your life here on Earth.”
“You mean heaven?”
“If that’s what you believe in, then, yes.”
“You think Jake already saw the light and went in without me?”
“I am not sure yet. But I will find out for you.”
“Thank you.” She seemed really hurt by the idea that her boyfriend left her all alone.
“Would you like to come with us? The investigation might take a while. Andrea will keep you company until we have answers.”
“I’d love to, but I can’t.”
“Why?”
“I’ve been trying to get out of this place to look for Jake, but no matter how I try, I couldn’t get past those traffic lights. It seems like I am confined in this place.”
“Do you feel electrocuted when you try to get past those traffic lights?”
“No,” She shook her head “But every time I reach those traffic lights, I’ll find myself on the same spot where I died. Then I will try again but it just keeps on repeating. Seems like I am not allowed to get 500 meters away from where I died.”
“I am sorry. I’ll do my best to help you find Jake.”
“I am really sorry, Nick. I didn’t mean to put you in trouble.” She said before she disappeared.
I looked over my shoulder and saw a police car approaching. I looked at my car and hoped there won’t be any problem.
End Notes:
thanks for reading!
Chapter 30 - A day after funeral by Alexsgirl_ritz
**** Present Time ****
I woke up with a terrible headache. It felt like I slept for more than ten hours and yet I was still sleep deprived. I rubbed the sleep off my eyes and reached beside me to give Kate a sweet morning kiss, but she was not there. If it wasn’t for the white long sleeve polo lying in my bed; I would have thought that Kate was just in the kitchen preparing our breakfast. But the clothes I wore in her funeral yesterday reminded me of everything: pain, anger, sadness. I shook my head and took a deep breath to refrain the tears from falling before getting out of bed.
“Hey, buddy, you’re just in time. Breakfast’s ready.” Brian cheerfully said when he noticed me staring at the food in the dining table.
“You don’t have to do this, Rok.”
“Do what? I prepared breakfast because I’m hungry. I am just being a good friend and sharing it with you.” As usual, Brian won’t admit he was looking after me.
I poured myself a cup of coffee and joined Brian in the table.
“So, he was alive?” Brian asked with so much curiosity in his eyes.
“What?”
“The boyfriend of the chick who died in the road accident. You suck in telling stories, you fell asleep before you could finish it.”
“Oh, you’re asking about Jake? Vicky’s boyfriend?”
“Yeah, I think that’s his name.” He nodded.
“Yes. The paramedics was able to revive him. He said while he and Vicky were walking away from their bodies, he felt a strong force pulling him away from Vicky, then everything went black. When he opened his eyes, he was at the hospital and apparently been there for three days already.”
“He missed Vicky’s funeral?”
“Sadly, yes. He stayed in the hospital for almost a month, not because of the injuries he got from the accident, but because of his mental health. He kept saying that he was already dead, that he saw his body covered with blood, that he was with Vicky. Fortunately, after three weeks, he was able to accept that he was alive and Vicky was not.”
“That sucks.”
“He attempted to commit suicide once because he wanted to be with Vicky so bad. He thought Vicky and him had a chance to be together in the afterlife, but he ruined it because he was saved. Because he was alive.”
“How did you tell him about Vicky?”
“All I had to say was I saw Vicky in the intersection, he believed me right away. I took him there, and Vicky was so happy to see him alive. I helped them say everything they wanted to tell each other. Vicky saw the light right after Jake told her how much he loved her. She hesitated to move on and wanted to wait for Jake, but Jake convinced her to go. And with a promise that she would wait for Jake on the other side, she went into the light.”
“Not really a happy ending, but glad to know they had a chance to say goodbye and moved on. Thanks to you.” Brian offered me a small smile. A smile that told me he doesn’t believe everything I say yet, but he’s getting there.
“I just couldn’t understand why Kate did not hesitate like Vicky. Why Kate never thought I need her here beside me. She knew I could still see her and talk to her if she decided to stay. She’s been helping me with my missions the moment she knew about my gift.”
“Nick, I wish I know the answer to your question. All I know is she loves you so much. I’m sure she have a good reason why she did that.” Brian stood up, tapped me in the shoulder, and brought his plate to the kitchen sink.
I went back to my room to sleep the loneliness away, the house felt so empty without Kate. I saw an old woman, probably in her sixties, sitting in my bed, the energy coming out from her was so strong. She was not an ordinary ghost. She was also sparkling, like she had million silver glitters all over her body.
“Hello, Nick.”
“I’m sorry, but I cannot help you now. I am not yet done with Leila’s case, it might take a while.”
“I know, and I’m not here to ask for your help.”
“Who are you?” She sounded like she knew me so well.
“My name is Henrietta, but the all the guardians call me Mama, they find it hard to say my name.” She smiled like a mother who's proud of her children.
“Guardians? You are a guardian?”
“Yes.” She seemed confused “Oh, wait, you haven’t seen Andrea in her guardian form?”
“If you mean sparkling like you, then, no. She always looked normal to me.”
“I should have asked her before going here.” She whispered to herself.
“What do you want, Henrietta?”
Her facial expression changed, a sweet smile formed in her lips. She looked at me as if I was an old friend she hadn’t seen in years. She was just staring at me for a minute or two.
“Henrietta?” I would have shook her shoulders had she been alive.
“Oh, I’m sorry, Nick,” She snapped out of her thoughts “It just that the way you said my name reminded me of someone special. You said my name the way he does.”
“Your husband?”
“Yes.” She sighed
“Where is he now?”
“Can we just not talk about him, please? I am here because of you. I am Andrea’s guardian, so in a way you are my responsibility, too.”
“Guardians have Guardian?”
“Yes. She is guiding and helping you with your gift; I am guiding and helping her guide you. She is really worried about you.”
“She should be, because when I’m done with Leila, I will stop helping spirits. I am done with this shit. After all I’ve done to help, you will return the favor by letting them take Kate away from me? Do you have any idea how fucking unfair is that?”
“Nick,”
“I thought you guys are helping me defeat Michael, but you did nothing to save Kate.”
“Nick, Michael has nothing to do with Kate’s death.”
“I don’t believe you. Leila warned me that morning that something bad would happen.”
“I don’t know what Leila was talking about, but Kate’s death is not something Michael can do.”
“We’re done talking, Henrietta. I don’t want to see you or any of your guardians ever again.”
“Michael might not caused Kate’s death, but he has been waiting for the moment that you will give up. I hope you’ll changed your mind, Nick. I am so sorry about what happened to Kate. You were lucky, Kate knew about your gift and believed you right away. I’ll be back, Nick, me and Andrea won’t give up on you.”
End Notes:
Thank you for still reading! :)
Chapter 31 - Henrietta by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
The Other Side of Nick Carter is nominated for the Best Story ended in 2012 category in BSB Fanfiction 2012 awards. I am also nominated as Best Author Fantasy/Supernatural in Felix awards. THANK YOU to whoever nominated me. This is greatly appreciated and means a lot to me. If you guys think that my story and I deserves to win, please vote for us.
Thank you to all the readers for your support, and for still reading this story.
“I know you’re here, Andrea. Your energy is too strong to ignore. Is it really hard to understand that I want to be alone? Can’t you at least give me a moment with her?” I nodded at Kate’s grave before looking around hoping to see Andrea.
“What are you doing here?” I squinted when Henrietta appeared in front of me. She looked normal this time, and despite the old age, she looked very beautiful.
“I’m sorry, Nick, but watching you 24/7 is really necessary at this time.”
“Bullshit. My life is no longer in danger, Henrietta. I’m pretty sure Michael already knows that I am not a threat to him anymore. I am safe now. I’m better off without you and the rest of your guardians.”
“It’s not that simple,”
“Just leave me alone.”
“I wish I could, but I have to do my job.”
“Where’s Andrea? She’s a better babysitter than you are.”
“She requested me to take over her duties for the meantime. She cares so much about you and Kate, so she decided to stay away for a while. Andrea never experienced losing a love one. She said she had no idea on what you are going through. She was afraid she might say the wrong words and hurt you even more.”
“And you do?”
“My husband died in 1947. We were both just 46 years old. I endured sixteen lonely years without him. We might not be feeling the same intensity of pain because my husband left me with two children. They gave me the strength to move on.”
She looked at Kate’s grave. “You are lucky she believed you. You had the support that people like us wanted. I knew I could see spirits since I was thirteen years old. I was planning to tell my husband about my gift on the night of our wedding, but I couldn’t bring myself to say it. My instinct says he wouldn’t believe me. A month before our first anniversary, we went to visit his grandmother’s sister. She could tell right away that like her, I could interact with the spirits. She warned me not to tell my husband or anyone from their family. She was labeled as a crazy woman by all her relatives when she told them. On our way home, I asked my husband about it. He admitted that he doesn’t believe in such things, and he really thinks his grandmother was crazy. Since then I never talked about spirits. I did all my missions alone, and I was very careful not to get caught.”
I threw her a sideway glance but didn’t say anything. She took that as a cue to continue.
“When my husband died, he was a lost soul. He wasn’t ready to die and leave his family yet. He ignored the light when it appeared for him. I wanted to help him but he didn’t know about my gift. Everytime he talks to me, he would start off with ‘I know you can’t hear me but’, so I had to pretend that I couldn’t hear him. Imagine the pain I feel, Nick, everytime he tells me that he would stay and wait for me. I am person who helps spirit cross over because they don’t belong here anymore, but I couldn’t do anything for my husband.”
“What happened to him? Did he cross over already?”
“Jasper, a kindhearted boy like you, was assigned to him. My guardian warned me not to interfere with my husband’s case. Yes, Nick, you don’t just randomly meet ghosts. The guardians are carefully planning everything. But, yes, you’ve helped a lot of ghosts not assigned to you because you ignore no one. You have a really big heart.” She smiled like a mother proud of her son.
“Jasper did everything he could, but my husband was a very stubborn man. I got to talk to him through Jasper, and he insisted that he would wait for me. Jasper gave up on him, and we couldn’t blame the boy. He was just Nineteen years old.”
“So, he’s still here?”
“I don’t know. I did what I thought was best for him. I pushed him away hoping he would just cross over. I hope you don’t mind, Nick, but I don’t want to elaborate what happened that night. I could always ask my fellow guardians if he already crossed over, after all it has been more or less fifty years, but I chose not to. In a few years time, I will be done with my guardian duties and will cross over to the other side. I just hope he would be there, still waiting for me.” She said dreamily.
“Nick, when the time is right you will cross over, and Kate would be there waiting for you. I know it’s hard to continue living your life now, but you have to be strong. I respect your decision if you want nothing to do with us anymore, but the guardians would still be around to protect you. We will be forever grateful for all the help you’ve extended to us.”
I slightly nodded and offered her a half smile. She disappeared but I could still feel her presence around me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Hey,”
“Hey, I didn’t know you are still here. I thought you left already.”
“Well, Baylee went to Kentucky for a two week vacation. My Mom organized a small concert for our church, and he wanted to participate.”
“That’s great.”
“Leighanne took this chance to meet up with her Wylee suppliers, so I thought to stay here for a couple more days. Hope that’s ok with you.”
“Sure, Brian. You can stay here for as long as you want.”
“Thank you.”
“No problem.”
“What are you doing?” He looked at the papers scattered in my desk.
“Writing a song,” I shrugged “This is the only way I know to release everything that’s in here.” I pointed at my left chest.
He nodded. “I haven’t seen you for two days, I hope you are not avoiding me.”
I shook my head. “I went to visit Kate and spent the whole day there.”
“I ordered pizza and picked up beers at the store. Want to join me?” I noticed that Brian instantly changes the subject to avoid anything that’s related to Kate.
“Sure.”
“I’ll be right back.”
“I was just wondering, Nick, did you ever speak to a ghost while you’re with me?” He started after finishing a slice of pizza.
“Of course. Remember when Baylee was hospitalized due to Kawasaki? That was the first time I stepped on a hospital after finding out about my gift. That was an experience I would never forget.”
Brian seemed interested in the story I was about to tell.
Chapter 32 - First Time by Alexsgirl_ritz
“Oh my God!”
I quickly turned around and covered my mouth to keep myself from vomiting. Now, I know why Andrea wished me luck when I told her I was going to a hospital to visit Baylee. There were so many ghosts roaming around, and most of them were sporting their look when they died. It looked like the hospital were invaded by zombies. There were too much blood, and my stomach could only take so much.
“Sir, are you okay?” A nurse approached me. She guided me back inside the hospital.
“Yes, I think so. I just need to know which room is assigned to my friend’s son. Baylee Littrell.” I closed my eyes for a moment knowing it would take her a minute or so to check Baylee’s room from their records.
“Room 305. Just go straight then left and you will see the elevator, right beside the pharmacy.”
“Thank you.” I was surprised she knew the information right away. Maybe everyone in the hospital already knows that Brian Littrell’s son was admitted here.
“You’re welcome.” Blood started coming out from her mouth as she smiled.
“Aaaahhhh…… Get the fuck away from me!” I screamed and started to run away. I stopped running when I reached a dead end. I was facing a door that only hospital staff could open.
“Sir, are you okay?” I heard someone asked, and when I turned around, I saw another woman wearing a nurse uniform.
“No, no, stay away from me, please…” I held up my hand to make her stop from walking towards me.
“Sir, Sir, are you okay?” She took a step closer and put the back of her hand on my forehead.
“No!” I tried to take her hand off me, but I stopped when I realized she was able to touch me. “You’re alive?”
“You look so pale, Sir. Would you like me to take you to the emergency room?” I was relieved she ignored my dumb question.
“No, thanks, I’m good. Please, just help me find the room where Baylee Littrell is admitted.”
“Sure. Why don’t you sit over there and wait for me. I’ll just go to the nearest nurse station to check.” She pointed at a waiting area, couple of meters away from us.
I kept my head down and refrain from looking around. Most of the ghosts were ignoring me, but there were some staring at me. They probably couldn’t decide if they would approach me or not. And, I hope they would stay that way until the nurse came back.
“Why do you keep ignoring me? Answer my questions, damn it! I am starting to lose my patience here, Mister, and I’m sure you wouldn’t like to see me pissed!”
I heard an angry man yelling. I got curious and I couldn’t help but check. He was following a man in white uniform and waving his hand in front of him furiously. He suddenly stopped following the man when he walked past me. He took big steps backwards until he was in front of me.
“You can see me?” It was more of a statement than a question.
I pretended that I was checking my nails and completely ignored him.
“Come on, Man, I know you can see me.”
“Baylee’s room is 412. I already informed Mr. Littrell that Baylee has a visitor.” The nurse came back and informed me.
“Thank you.”
I started walking towards the elevator and the angry ghost followed me.
“I need your help.”
“Please, just let me visit my friend’s son first. I’ll deal with you later.”
“But, this is really important. I need to talk to that nurse. I need to know the answer to my questions but he’s not responding.”
I took a deep breath and sighed. There was no easy way to tell someone that they’re already dead.
“I’m sorry, Man. That nurse couldn’t see or hear you because you’re already dead.”
“I know. My body is in the morgue at the basement. I am not sure, but probably for five days already. I saw that nurse and his colleague change shifts five times since my body was brought here.”
“Then, what do you want?”
“I just want to know why no one claimed my body yet. I wanna know why I am stuck here. Can you please ask them for me?”
“Ok. What is your name?”
He stared at me as if I just asked him an algebra question. Then, he closed his eyes for a moment, obviously trying to remember something. Confusion and fear were evident on his face when he opened his eyes.
“I don’t know.”
End Notes:
Thank you for still reading! :)
Chapter 33 - Morgue by Alexsgirl_ritz
Author's Notes:
Finally, I was able to finish another chapter. Hope you'll still like it. :)
“Remind me again why I agreed to go to the morgue at two o’clock in the morning.” I asked myself dumbly while looking at the sign that points at the direction where the morgue was.
“Because the attendant on duty is a girl, and I think you’re a natural ladies’ man.” The ghost, whom I started to call Johnny, answered with a mischievous smile.
“Oh, yeah, right.” I replied sarcastically.
I took a deep breath, let out a sigh, and walked towards the morgue. I pushed the door of the morgue and winced when a funny smell and cold wind greeted me. The woman in the reception looked at me like I was a ghost or something. For a second, I thought she could see Johnny.
“Nick Carter?” She asked while rubbing her eyes. She maybe couldn’t believe that I would be in a place like this, well, so did I.
“Yes, that would be me.” I answered cheerfully, so she wouldn’t suspect a thing. Plus I really need to get her trust, otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to get all the information I need.
“What are you doing here?”
“Um, well, I was visiting Baylee, you know, Brian Littrell’s son?”
“Yeah, I heard he was admitted here yesterday. I was actually hoping to see Brian later.”
“Well, the Littrells are asleep, and I’m bored, so I decided to explore the hospital.”
“And you wanted to explore this place?” She got out of the reception area and stood beside me.
“You wouldn’t mind showing me around, would you?” I gave her a seductive smile.
“Well, if you’re really up for it. Follow me.” She answered in a flirty voice while almost brushing her breasts in my arms.
I swallowed hard. The girl thought I was looking for a sexual adventure in a morgue. The girl is pretty and her boobs are big, but I would never have sex on a morgue.
I heard Johnny chuckled. “If you decide to go for it, just tell me, and I will be waiting outside.”
“Do you want my help or not?”
He laughed and followed the girl inside. I was actually scared to follow them. I admit, I am scared of the dead bodies inside, but the thought of a beautiful naked girl waiting for me scared me more. I have been faithful to Kate for the past years, and I want it to remain that way. Then I realized what would happen, and the thought of having sex with a girl beside a corpse made me want to throw up.
I was relieved to find out she still have her clothes on when I entered the room.
“Do you want to see dead bodies or just a mini tour of the morgue?”
“It’s up to you.”
She bit her lower lip and smiled at me. I thought she was going to take off her blouse next, but instead she walked towards a steel hospital bed.
“This is where we do the preparation before putting the body in the refrigerator.” She pointed at the refrigerator at the corner that looks like a huge steel cabinet for me.
“I’m on the top row, second to the left.” Johnny informed me.
The girl froze for five seconds then looked around her. She sighed a relief when her eyes met mine.
“Are you ok?”
She nodded. “We only have two bodies, Mr. Hallman is here,” She tapped the middle row of the freezer. “He’s 89 years old and died last night. Heart attack.”
An old man sitting at the steel hospital bed waved at me. I assumed he was Mr. Hallman. He looked happy and peaceful. I smiled at him, I could feel that the light will soon appear to guide him.
“Mr. Monroe is on the top row,”
“Mr. Monroe?” I repeated the name and looked at Johnny to see his reaction. He shook his head.
“Actually, we don’t know his real name. We called him Mr. Monroe because he was hit by a car in Monroe Street. There were no identification cards or anything that could identify him. Internal bleeding is the cause of death, he hits his head pretty hard and it caused brain damage. He has been here for quite a few days now, maybe six or seven days. We are just waiting for police’s instruction as to when we can dispose his body.”
“He can’t stay here until someone claims him?”
“As per the hospital’s policy, no. But if the police thinks they still need the body for the investigation, they can arrange his transfer to a funeral parlor with cold storage facility.”
“Why do you think his family hasn’t claimed him yet?”
“I don’t know,” She shrugged “In my opinion, maybe he’s from another state. All of the police precincts in Georgia were informed about this unclaimed body, so if his family filed for a missing person case, they can be notified immediately. The accident and the unclaimed body reports were all over the news for three days straight: radio, t.v. and newspaper, so it’s impossible that his family wouldn’t know about this if they are in Georgia.”
“Did the police coordinated with the neighboring state?”
“I think so,”
“I don’t remember any of these, Nick. A car accident? I can’t even remember if I’m from Georgia or not.”
“Was he conscious when he was brought here?”
“You seem so interested with Mr. Monroe.”
“Well, there’s nothing to ask about Mr. Hallman.”
“I don’t know,” She gave in after a couple of seconds. “But I have a friend, she’s an emergency room nurse, and if I’m not mistaken, she was working the day Mr. Monroe was brought here. I could ask her for you.”
“I’d appreciate that.”
“In one condition,”
“And that would be?”
“A picture with Brian Littrell.”
“That’s hard considering the situation right now, but I’ll see what I can do.”
“Fair enough.”
“OK, I guess I should be going. Thank you for the mini tour.”
“I’m Jessica, by the way.”
“Oh, shoot, I didn’t even ask for your name. Thank you, Jessica.”
“You’re welcome, Nick.”
“Bye. I’ll see you tonight.” I walked towards the door.
“Nick,”
“Yes?” I turned around and saw her smiling.
“You are such a good man. I wish that someday I can conquer my fear and be like you. I wish I’ll have the courage to help others. You can count on me while working on Mr. Monroe’s case.”
“You can see them?”
She shook her head, “But I can hear them. I’ll see you tonight, and hopefully we’ll have answers.”
She closed the room and went back to the reception area.
End Notes:
Thank you for reading!
Chapter 34 - Vincent by Alexsgirl_ritz
“Thank you very much, Nick.” Jessica was giggling like a teenager while staring at her camera. Brian agreed to have a photo with her an hour ago.
“You’re lucky Baylee will be discharged tomorrow, so the Littrells are in a good mood. Got any news for us?”
“Well, my friend said he was already unconscious when he reached the hospital, but according to the paramedic’s report, he was still conscious when they responded to the scene.”
“And?”
“He kept on asking questions like what happened and where was he. He complained about the terrible pain on his head, like it was going to explode anytime. He couldn’t answer any of the paramedic’s basic questions like what was his name, what was he doing in the Monroe street. He seemed very lost and disoriented. The last word he said was Lizzy. He called out that name twice before he became unconscious.”
I looked at Johnny when he didn’t react after a few seconds. He was looking out the window and seemed pre-occupied.
“At first, the paramedic thought he might have an amnesia due to the head injury, but because he remembered someone named Lizzy, they ruled out amnesia. They said maybe he just experienced temporary shock due to the accident.”
“I can see her face in my mind, but I can’t remember who she is. She has a shoulder length blonde hair, sparkling blue eyes and a captivating smile. I feel like I know her all my life.”
“Johnny, try to remember who she is.”
“I’m trying… but my head hurts!”
“It’s okay, buddy. Have a rest for now, and try again later.”
“They can still feel pain?” Jessica whispered as if Johnny won’t hear her.
“Yes. They’re still very much like us, they can feel all kinds of emotions.”
“Jessica, you’re still here?” The man on white uniform that Johnny was following when I first saw him approached our table.
“Hey, Ryan. What’s up? Lunch break already?” She asked while looking at the tray full of food that the guy was holding.
Ryan looked at me like I was an alien from the outer space.
“You looked familiar.”
“This is Nick Carter, a friend of mine. He was visiting a friend’s son, so we decided to catch up. Nick, this is Ryan, he works morning shift at the morgue.”
“Hi, Ryan.” I offered my hand and he gladly accepted.
“I didn’t know you are friends with a celebrity, Jessica.” He patted Jessica’s shoulder then he turned to me. “Your band is my wife’s favorite. She’s crazy about that winking Latino.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. He said it like he was very disgusted with Howie. “I’ll let Howie know.”
“Oh by the way, Jessica, I have good news. I think Mr. Monroe would be picked up by his relatives this afternoon or tomorrow morning.”
I saw Johnny’s eyes widened. He looked excited and yet scared.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, the police was here two hours ago and asked me to start working on the release paper. They have already contacted Mrs. Elizabeth Scott, his wife, and she confirmed that she will be here as soon as she gets a plane ticket.” Ryan placed his tray on our table and sat on the vacant chair beside Jessica.
“Plane ticket?”
“Yes. Mr. Monroe, I mean, Mr. Vincent Scott is from Los Angeles.”
“How did you find out?”
“The police arrested a thief this morning, and Mr. Scott’s wallet is one of the things they recovered from his backpack. The thief took Mr. Scott’s wallet before the accident.” Ryan started eating his lunch, oblivious on how important the things he just said.
“Thanks, Ryan.”
“I wrote everything on the report book, just in case we won’t have time for proper endorsement later.”
“Ok, thank you. Shall we go, Nick?”
“Okay. Nice to meet you, Ryan.”
“Can I have picture with you, please? I think my wife will freak out later.” He grinned.
Jessica took a picture of us and I wrote a small note for his wife on a tissue paper. I promised his wife that I will send her Howie’s autograph through Jessica.
~~~~~~
“Are you okay?”
Johnny hasn’t said a word since we met Ryan in the cafeteria ten hours ago. He just stared at the walls as his facial expression changed. He looked sad, happy, scared, worried, and excited.
“Something doesn’t feel right. I feel like Lizzy is mad at me for something terrible that I did. My heart is breaking just thinking of Lizzy, I think I hurt her.”
“All those questions will be answered soon. Don’t worry too much, buddy.”
“Coffee, Nick?” Jessica handed me a cup of coffee from the hospital’s cafeteria. I’ve decided to stay with Johnny just in case his wife will arrive tonight.
“Thanks, Jess.”
“Does Brian know you’re still here?”
“In the hospital, no. In Atlanta, yes. My flight back to LA is tomorrow afternoon.”
“Okay. I called up a friend from the nurse station of pediatric section, and she said the Littrells are asleep.”
Jessica and I chatted the night away while the anxious Johnny kept pacing in the room. One hour before Jessica’s shift ends, a gray haired woman approached the desk.
“Hello. I’m Mrs. Scott and I’m here to pick up Vince’s body.” Her eyes were swollen from hours of crying.
“You’re Mrs. Elizabeth Scott?” Jessica asked to confirm. She looked way older to be Vincent’s wife.
“No, Amy Scott.”
“Mom?” Johnny went outside the reception when he heard someone came. He has spent the last two hours beside his body.
“I’m his mother.”
“You remember her?” I quickly ran to Johnny’s side and asked in a low voice.
“Yes. She’s my mother, but where is Lizzy?”
“Mrs. Scott, I hope you don’t mind me asking but where is his wife? According to the police she’s the one who will pick him up.”
“She changed her mind. They separated almost four months ago, and my son has filed for divorce. Since then they haven’t talked to each other, and Lizzy doesn’t want to see him. Am I allowed to pick up my son or you need Lizzy?”
“Of course, Ma’am. Please have a seat and I’ll start processing the papers.”
“Can I see him?”
“Mr. Carter, please accompany Mrs. Scott inside. Ma’am, I’m giving you just five minutes and then you have to come back here and wait for us to process the papers.”
I was surprised when Jessica told me to accompany Mrs. Scott inside, but when she winked at me, I knew she was giving me, Vincent and his mother a chance to talk. I nodded.
End Notes:
Thank you for still reading! :)
Chapter 35 - Daddy's Girl by Alexsgirl_ritz
“I must have been one hell good of a son.” Vince whispered as he stared at his crying mother giving his lifeless body small kisses on the face.
“Do you remember her? How did you know she was your mother?”
He shook his head “I still don’t remember her, but my heart somehow knew her.”
“Do you want me to talk to her? I can tell her whatever you want to say.”
“No. Let her grieve for a moment. No parent should ever experience the death of their child. I can’t imagine losing my little girl.”
We both froze for a moment, and then looked at each other. He looked confused, surprised and hurt.
“I have a daughter.” He whispered. “I have a daughter. Oh, God!” Vince shook his head and ran away from the morgue.
“What happened?” Jessica asked me when I approached her desk.
“Vince has a daughter. He just remembered it now, and I know how much it hurt him knowing he left a little girl behind. Let’s give him the time and space he needs.”
“What about his mother?”
“He told me to give her time to grieve. They are both heartbroken, and I want to give them time.”
She nodded. I felt my phone vibrated in my pocket. There was a message from Brian.
“Oh, shit.”
“Why?”
“Brian wanted to drive me to the airport. He would be in my hotel room in like 2 hours. I have a very big favor, Jess. Please do everything you can to know Vince’s address in LA or where the funeral might be held. In case Vince come back here, please tell him to fly with his mother and his body, and I will meet him in LA.” I took the pen and a hospital flyer about some medical procedure, and wrote my mobile number. “Call me for any updates.”
“You’re giving me your personal mobile number?”
“Why not? We’re friends and I trust you.” I winked at her before tapping her shoulder. “Take care. I’ll see you again.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“You should have flown with your body and your mother.” I hissed while scratching my ears. Vince wouldn’t stop talking, and all I wanted was to nap. He was sitting on the aisle floor of the plane, and wickedly grinning every time the flight attendants walked all over him.
“And watch my Mother cry her eyes out? I can’t stand looking at her, Nick. It makes me feel guilty of leaving them so soon. If only I could remember why I stupidly crossed that street.”
“I’m really sorry, Vince.”
“Don’t be. Everything happens for a reason, maybe my family is better off without me. Enough of this drama, if you want to sleep, go ahead. I’ll just hang out with the beautiful flight attendants at the back. Can’t wait to hear the newest gossip in town.” He tried to giggle like a girl but failed. I smiled and nod at him.
The flight went smoothly as expected. Jessica texted Vince’s address a while ago. She said no plans were made yet for the funeral. Vince’s mother was still coordinating with some airlines for the transport of Vince’s body.
“Guess who had a mind blowing sex with a colleague’s boyfriend?”
“I don’t want to know.”
He laughed and tried to wrap his arms wound my shoulder. “You should have listened to these girls and you will be amazed on the things they talk about.”
“Ready to face your family?”
“Now?” His facial expression changed and showed uncertainty. “Don’t you want to go home and rest, or change clothes, or something?”
“Well, I am a bit tired but I thought you want to do it right away. Okay, we’ll go tomorrow.”
“On a second thought, I wanna see my daughter.” His eyes lit up and smiled.
“To your house, then.” I smiled at him.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Good luck to us, Nick.” Vince said nervously after I knocked at the door twice.
“Yes?” A blonde woman in her 30s opened the door. Judging by the way Vince looked at her, I assume she was his wife.
“Hi, my name is Nick Carter. I am a friend of Vince. I heard what happened to him. I am very sorry for your loss.” I tried to offer my hand for a handshake but she just stared at it.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t know you.” She slowly shook her head, and took one step backwards.
“I just met him a year ago, and we haven’t been introduced to each other personally but I heard good things about you.”
“I’m sorry, Mister, you got the wrong address. Vince and I have been separated for a year now, you might have confused me with his new partner. You should give your condolences to her.”
The woman was about to close the door when she saw her daughter approaching them. “Violet, go back to the kitchen and finish your food, please.”
The red-haired girl who was about three or four years old continued to walk towards me. Her lips slowly broke into a big smile while her eyes were full of excitement. She looked like she just acknowledged someone’s presence.
“Daddy!!!!!!”
End Notes:
Thank you for still reading!
Chapter 36 - One Lost Soul by Alexsgirl_ritz
"Violet, he's not your Daddy." Lizzy sighed before she turned to me. "I'm sorry, he hasn't been around for so long our daughter might have forgotten what he looked like, and assume he was you."
"Of course, Mommy, that's Mr. Nick." The little girl pointed her index finger at me. "He's Daddy's friend. Daddy is behind him, can't you see him, Mom?"
"How did you know his name?" Lizzy's forehead was creased with confusion
"Daddy told me." Violet replied proudly
"Stop this non-sense, Violet. Go back inside and finish your food." Lizzy spoke a little louder but I could feel she was not mad, she was worried about Violet.
"After I finish my food, can Daddy and I play in my room? I missed him, Mom."
"I said--"
"Mrs. Scott, we really need to talk. Please let Violet go to her room for a while." She hesitated for a moment but finally nodded to Violet, and opened the door a bit wider so I could come in. She probably sensed the seriousness and urgency in my voice. "Thank you."
Vince motioned to me that he will just be upstairs in case I need him. He was too happy and excited to care about what I would tell his wife.
"What's going on?"
"Mrs. Scott, I won't beat around the bush, and get direct to the point. I can see spirits or ghosts, and that's why I'm here. Your husband asked me to help him finished whatever that needs to be done. Vince suffered temporary memory loss before he died, so he cannot remember everything."
"What the hell are you talking about? And if whatever you're saying is true, what does he want from me? Oh yeah, maybe he forgot about his new partner and thought we're still together. Is that it?"
I didn't know what to say because she was probably right.
"Your name was the last thing he said. He called you twice before he lost consciousness, and he died on the way to the hospital."
"You're just making that up."
"You can double check with the hospital. I'm pretty sure that was part of the paramedics' report."
We both looked up when we heard Violet's loud giggles.
"She could see him." I confirmed what she was thinking.
She took a deep breath and sighed when she heard someone knocking at the door.
"What's with the unwelcome visitors today? Call his mom, I know nothing about the funeral plans."
"I know. I just want to say I'm sorry." A brunette woman probably the same age as Lizzy was standing at the door, gripping her bag tight. She looked like she would pass out any minute.
"For taking my husband away and breaking our little family apart?"
"Yes, and for being partly responsible to his death."
"What do you mean?"
"Can I come in?"
"Okay." Lizzy stepped aside and motioned for the woman to get inside. "This is Nick, Vince's friend. Nick, this is Lara, Vince's girlfriend." I saw the pain in Lizzy's eyes when she mentioned the word girlfriend. Lara just nodded her head and gave me a small smile. She followed Lizzy in the living room and sat in the sofa.
"Elizabeth, you probably might not be able to forgive me, but I should try. Vince wanted to go back to you 3 months ago. Remember when you and Violet bumped into him in New York when you were visiting your parents? It was not accidental, he planned it. He was following you and Violet, he didn't want it to be just a one phone call asking if you and him could get back together. He wanted to court you again and prove he is worthy of one more chance."
"But, he loves you."
"No. I don't think so. When Vince got promoted as Senior Sales Manager, he became so overwhelmed of all the women in top management position. He became obsessed with the thought that a woman can have a successful career even if she's married. Most of our bosses are married women with children and he thought they can balance work and life."
"That's why he kept on insisting for me to work again. But, Violet is so young, I just can't leave her in day care all day."
"And, he didn't understand that. Then, we became closer due to working long hours and staying late in the office. Next thing we know we wanted to live together. He was happy that we get to go to work every morning together, that we talk about work over lunch, coffee or dinner. But everything changed after a couple of months, he grew tired of eating chinese take away for dinner, of taking our laundry to a laundry shop, of hiring people to clean our house, etc. He wanted me to do all the things that you do for him. But, I couldn't find time. I am always exhausted by the end of the day due to work. He missed you. He missed the way you take care of him. So, he tried to break up with me, but my pride get in the way. I told him I will tell our superiors about our relationship if he leave me. Most of our colleagues knew about us, but the higher management didn't. He could lose his job if they find out that we have a relationship while he is still married to you."
Lara wiped her tears, she was trying hard to be strong.
"Vince can't afford to lose his job, he said what's the use of going back to you and Violet if he cannot provide you the things you need and want. I took a leave and went to Atlanta without informing Vince, but he was able to follow me there. He wanted us to talk, he wanted to convince me to let him go."
"You are the reason why he was in Atlanta?"
"Yes, and the reason why he was in Monroe Street. He was crossing the street into my house." She finally broke down. "I wasn't home when that happened, but I saw it in the evening news. I didn't know what to do, I wanted to come forward and provide his identification but I was so scared. You see, I am also married. Vince knew about this. My husband is a marine deployed in Middle East. My family and his family are in Atlanta, and I didn't want them to find out about my affair with Vince. I am so selfish and I am really sorry."
"You're right, Lara. I will not be able to forgive you. Not in this lifetime. I'll appreciate it if you can please leave my house now!"
Lara didn't say a word. She stood up and quietly walked towards the door. Lizzy ran to the bathroom and slammed the door. I did not follow her as I knew she needed to be alone.
"I remember everything now." I looked up and saw Vince at the stairs, smiling.
"That's good. You heard everything Lara said?"
"Yes. I was such a fool, wasn't I? I left Lizzy for someone like Lara."
"No judgment here, man."
"Do you think Lizzy will be okay?"
"In time, yes. Violet will give her all the strength she needs to move on. And now that she knows the truth, I think she can forgive you. I can see that she still loves you."
"Hmmm, that's nice to know." Vince grinned wickedly. His facial expression somehow changed.
"Do you see the light now, Vince? Or do you still need me to help you talk to your wife?"
"Do you mean that shiny bright light at the kitchen door?" He pointed at it and smiled "It's really beautiful, Nick."
"It's time for you to go, man. I promise, I'll check on Lizzy and Violet sometimes."
"Okay." Vince turned around and started climbing the stairs.
"Where are you going?"
"To my daughter's room. I told her I just needed to go to the bathroom and will be back in five minutes. I don't want to keep her waiting."
"But, Vince you need to cross over. You don't belong here anymore."
"Nick, this is right where I belong. My wife and daughter needs me, and I can't just leave them again." He was suddenly behind me and whispering into my ears. I could feel the hatred radiating from him. "Have you been to the other side, Nick? Have you seen what it looks like there? Can you guarantee me that I would be happy there?"
I wanted to say yes, and promised him good things so he would cross over. But, I know nothing about the other side.
"Someone visited me a while ago while you were busy listening to my life story. He told me I can stay here and take care of my daughter like how I am supposed to do if that stupid driver didn't claim my life. And, that's what I will do, Nick, and you can't do anything about it. Thanks for your help, anyway."
I didn't know what else to say. I wanted to fight for Vince, but the energy coming from Violet's room was too much for me to handle.
"And one more thing, I don't understand why you are convincing the dead people to cross over when you don't even know what's waiting for them there. Have you even consider that they are suffering there and it's all because of you?" He laughed and disappeared.
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