Chapter 5

~~~~ Samantha's POV ~~~~

I sat in between Anthony and Kuya Chris during dinner which we were having outside of the house. I didn't really have much of an appetite because I was too busy feeling bad, for some odd reason unbeknownst to even myself, for telling Nick off. Even though I knew that everything I said to him was true my conscience wouldn't stop bothering me about it. Everything that we said during our argument kept replaying in my mind like a broken record or something. I looked across the table where Nick sat and saw that, just like me, he didn't seem to have much of an appetite. This was not normal since Nick would usually be the first to finish his plate and would sometimes even go in for seconds.

‘I wonder what he's thinking about...' I found myself wondering.

I looked around me to everyone else to find them all quietly eating. Nobody really said anything except if they asked someone to pass them something from the table. I looked to my left side and found Anthony looking around too, confusion evident in his face.

"Mommy," he asked turning to Beatrice. "Why is everyone quiet?"

Bea looked down at him and then at me before replying to her son, "Everyone is just very hungry, sweetie."

"Nuh uh, Auntie Mantha and Uncle Nick aren't eating." Anthony replied shaking his head.

I couldn't hide the surprise in my eyes after hearing Anthony say that. I looked up at Nick only to find him looking at me as well. After about two seconds of eye contact we both looked away.

I saw Anthony pick up my fork and tapped me on my arm with his other hand.

"Eat Auntie Mantha." Anthony said putting the fork, which had a piece of steak on it, in front of my face.

I smiled at his cuteness and gave in. Those blue eyes were truly irresistible. ‘But not as irresistible as Nick's!' I found my mind saying. I chose to ignore it and took the fork from Anthony's small hand. After swallowing I smiled to Anthony and put the fork back down on my plate. He smiled back and then turned his attention to Nick.

"Uncle Nick! Why aren't you eating?" Anthony asked.

All the other four Backstreet Boys looked at Nick waiting for his response. He looked at Anthony and smiled at him then cut a piece of his steak and ate it. Anthony smiled victoriously for getting Nick and me to finally eat. He turned to his mom and tapped her lightly on her arm.

"Mommy, I did a good job, huh?" Anthony asked making everyone in the table laugh instantly lightening the mood.

"Yes you did baby." Bea replied putting an arm around her son.

I looked over at Nick and noticed that he started eating at a normal pace now. Earlier when he was just picking at his food I could tell by the dazed look in his eyes that he was in deep thought. I didn't know exactly what was on his mind but I knew for sure that it had to be something important because it seemed to be really bothering him.

'That's kind of how his face was when I first met him...' I thought to myself. I still remember that day so clearly...

*Flashback*

"Oh my god, I can't believe that in a few hours I'm actually going to meet the Backstreet Boys!" I said to my cousin Beatrice while I rummaged through my closet trying to find something nice to wear.

"I don't know why you're so excited. You've already met Brian so technically, you're just going to be meeting some of his friends." Beatrice replied as she sat on my bed with her arms crossed over her chest.

I turned to her with a sympathetic look on my face. "I know that he hurt you and I'm sorry. But I can't help but feel excited! You know how much I love their music."

"Oh, really... and here I thought that you were just excited because you're finally going to meet your favorite Backstreet Boy, Mr. Nick Carter." Beatrice replied with her eye brow raised and a smirk on her lips.

"Um, well... yeah, I'm pretty excited about that too." She didn't seem to be buying my 'calm-and-collected' act. "Pssh, oh who am I kidding. Have you seen him?! The guy's gorgeous with his long, sexy blonde hair, alluring blue eyes and especially his voice. His captivating voice that just makes me melt every time I hear him sing..." I rambled on in a daze.

"Uh, yeah, okay. I don't wanna be hearing about your fantasies with Nick so why don't we just figure out what you're going to wear, hmm? Kuya Chris is gonna be here in a few hours and you know how he hates waiting."

So, for the next couple hours before Chris arrived, Beatrice and I spent it trying to figure out what would be an appropriate outfit for my first day on the job. I didn't want to wear something that made me look too professional because that was totally not me. On the other hand, I didn't want to make it seem like I didn't care how I looked and just threw on the first thing I found in my closet. Being their new personal assistant and all, my appearance was important. It had to show that I was organized and professional but at the same time not too uptight. In the end, we decided on something casual but not too laid back.

I looked at myself in my full length mirror to make sure every thing was alright and in place. I wore dark blue jeans with a printed brown, black and beige top that had a low V-neckline with a white lace camisole underneath so that I would be showing too much skin. The sleeves where like bells because they got wider as it traveled down my arms and ended just in between my elbows and wrist. I wanted to keep it simple so I just used a few pins to tie some of my hair on the top of my head back. After doing my make-up, which was only foundation, shimmery cream colored eye shadow, mascara and clear lip gloss, I turned to Beatrice.

"So, what do you think?" I asked as I lifted both my arms up.

"Perfect."

Just at that moment, we heard Kuya Chris's car coming up the drive-way. I grabbed my brown boots that reached just above my ankles and had an inch and a half heels then said goodbye to Beatrice.

When Kuya Chris and I got to the arena where the boys were going to be performing later that night, I felt so anxious. I kept trying to take deep breaths to calm myself down but it didn't seem to help much. We went backstage where a lot of people were busily trying to set everything up and making sure everything was working properly. I followed Kuya Chris into one of the rooms where a lot of food was set up on a couple tables. There we found AJ and Howie putting some food on the paper plates they were holding. Kuya Chris greeted them then came over to me and put his arm around my shoulder to bring me forward.

"Guys, this is Samantha. Remember, my cousin that I was talking to you about? She's going to be your new personal assistant."

Howie was the first to reply. "Oh, hey. Nice to finally meet you. I'm Howie D." he stuck out his left hand to shake mine while the other held his plate of food. Howie was such a sweetie!

"Hey cutie, what's up? I'm AJ." he moved his sunglasses down a bit so that I could see his eyes and winked at me. AJ is such a flirt... but a hot one!

"Uh, hehe... hi." I said softly trying to conceal the blush that I knew was on my cheeks. I cleared my throat and spoke louder this time. "Nice to meet you guys too, but I already know all of your names." I said with a shy smile.

"Yeah," Chris continued. "She's a fan of your music. A big fan. You should see her room; her walls are filled with posters and pictures of you guys."

Ugh, why'd he have to tell them that?! Now, I'm officially embarrassed...

"Oh really?" Howie replied with a slight chuckle. "Well, that's cool. Thank you. I'm glad you enjoy our music."

I smiled and was about to reply when Kuya Chris spoke again. "You can say that again. She has all your CDs and DVDs."

"Okay!" I shrugged his arm off my shoulder. "That's enough embarrassing me for one day."

All three of them laughed.

After talking for a bit more, I asked Kuya Chris to show me around the place some more. While he was showing me the actual concert hall where the stage was being set up, I noticed a tall guy with dark hair playing basket ball with a shorter guy with a familiar head of dirty blonde hair. When they noticed us they stopped playing and walked over to greet us. I didn't really need to be introduced to Brian since I already knew who he was, obviously. I just smiled politely and waved at him when he came over with Kevin who said hi and gave me a hug.

‘Well, 4 down, one left to go.' I thought anxiously to myself as Kuya Chris continued explaining something to me while we sat eating lunch an hour after meeting all the guys. What he was telling me exactly, I didn't really know...

"Sam? Hello? Hey, snap out of it!" Kuya Chris snapped his fingers in my face breaking me from my trance like state.

"Huh? What? What happened?"

He sighed, "Nothing, forget it. I'll explain it to you later. What's got you so spaced out?"

"Oh, uh. Nothing, I'm probably just tired from all the excitement. It's not everyday that a girl gets to meet her favorite band in the whole world, much less have the chance to work with them." Well, it wasn't a complete lie. I was starting to feel tired after walking around and meeting the Backstreet Boys... er, well, all of them except the one I've been dying to meet.

"Oh and that reminds me, I never really got to thank you for giving me this job. So, thank you." I said sincerely this time and smiled up at my older cousin who I looked up to as the older brother that I never had.

"It's no problem. I had to do something to get your big, lazy butt off the sofa." He said teasingly. I smacked him.

"I am not lazy! And for your information, I had only been unemployed for 2 weeks before you gave me this job."

Kuya Chris rolled his eyes "Mhm, whatever you say, lazy butt!"

I rolled my eyes in response and chose not to retaliate this time because I really wanted to know something. "Well, we've met all of the guys... except Nick. Where is he anyway?" I asked changing the subject.

"I was wondering when that question was going to come out of your mouth..." He chuckled. "Well from what I've been told, he hasn't arrived yet. I think he's still at the hotel but he is on his way. He should be here pretty soon since the guys have to start sound check in a couple of hours."

"Oh, okay..." I nodded my head in response but the disappointment was evident in my voice. ‘It's cool; I can probably meet him before the show starts.'

Later that night, about an hour or so before the show, the guys were all preparing themselves while the opening act got the crowed warmed up. I had no clue who it was because they were probably new but from what I was told, her stage name was Mandah or something like that. I didn't really pay much attention to it because I still had Nick in the back of my mind.

Since it was my first day on the job I wanted to make a good impression so I was working my butt off and trying to keep up with all the chaos backstage. Every now and then I would look around me to check if Nick was around so I could finally introduce myself but he was no where to be found. Just when I'd given up hope of talking to him before he had to go on stage, as I was walking down the corridor intently reading this list I had in my hand, I suddenly bumped into somebody causing me to stumble backwards.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I wasn't-"

"Hey, watch where you're going!" I heard a familiar voice say.

When I looked up at whom it was my suspicions were correct. I had bumped into the same guy who I had been thinking about ever since I arrived; Nick Carter.

"Oh! Nick! Hi, I'm Samantha, your new personal assistant." I stuck my hand out for a friendly handshake but he didn't take it.

Clearing my throat and pushing a strand of hair behind my ear, I apologized for bumping into him again. "I'm so sorry; I wasn't really paying attention to where I was going."

"Well, that much was obvious." I heard him mutter to himself but I heard every word. "Look, I'm kind of in a hurry so I'll just see you around, Amanda."

He started to briskly walk pass me but before he got too far I said "It's Samantha!" with a slight hint of annoyance in my voice. How the hell is ‘Samantha' so difficult of a name to learn?!

He didn't even turn back.

I turned around and muttered to myself sarcastically "Well, that went well..."

That night my whole image of Nick changed. I had initially pictured him to be the sweetest out of all the guys but tonight be proved me wrong. For the rest of the night before and even after the show ended, I tried my best to keep out of Nick's way because he was obviously in a bad mood. I figured that if I gave him some space then he would eventually calm down and warm up to me. I hoped that he would be cause how in the world could I do my job properly if we couldn't even have a civilized conversation?

A couple days later in another show that they had to do, I was helping out in the wardrobe department a couple of hours before show time. *** I was giving the boys their wardrobe for the first song since the other people in the wardrobe department were busy finishing off other costumes. After leaving AJ's outfit with him, I had only one left to deliver. Unfortunately, it was Nick's.

‘So much for avoiding him.' I thought wryly. I trudged my way to their dressing area underneath the stage. I'm sure that he'll find it there. I really didn't feel like arguing with my favorite Backstreet Boy again.

Just as I turned the corner that led to the guys' dressing area, I stumbled upon a tall blonde guy leaning against the wall with a blonde girl trapped in between his arms. I didn't even have to get any closer to know that it was Nick. The sight just tore at my heart. I felt as if all the air in my lungs had escaped causing me to have trouble breathing. I couldn't do anything but stare at the sight in front of me with disbelief in my eyes. Since when did Nick get a girlfriend? Sure, I was a big fan but I didn't do much researching on their personal lives much less who they were dating because I thought that it was sort of ‘stalker-ish'.

Who that girl was, was beyond me. Unable to take the sight any longer I was about to leave to give them some privacy but after taking one step I realized that I still had a job to do. Clutching the hanger in my hand tighter, I gathered up the courage to approach the couple then started walking.

They were so caught up with each other that they didn't even notice when I walked over. Feeling extremely awkward, I coughed letting them know that I was there. They finally turned away from each other and saw me standing there holding an outfit on a hanger.

"Um, I brought your wardrobe for the first song." I said with my head low, unable to look at them directly in the eyes.

Just as Nick was about take it, Amanda grabbed it from my hands and started to examine it. ‘O...kay' Having completed my task, I turned to leave but before I could make it around the corner, I heard her speak.

"What is this suppose to be?" She asked. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, plastered a small smile on my face then turned around.

"Um, that's Nick's outfit for the first song they're going to be performing tonight."

"You can't be serious. It looks hideous! I can't believe you people, how can you expect my Nicky to wear this?"

I stared at her brazenness with disbelief. I didn't see anything wrong with the outfit.

Nick took the hanger from her and looked at it. "It isn't that bad babe," he said trying to reason with her.

"No, Nicky," Oh my God, she was relentless! "I bet Brian's or AJ's clothes look better than yours." Amanda replied taking the clothes back from Nick's hands. "The colors don't even match together or anything! I mean, how in the world does black and blue go together?"

Nick sighed. He knew that she wouldn't give in until she got her way and he really didn't want to get into another argument with her when they had just made up. "Uh, on second thought, you're right babe. Yeah, I don't really like it either."

Amanda smirked then turned to me again and rolled her eyes. "If you're supposed to be in the wardrobe department then why did you pick such an ugly outfit for my honey? Don't you have any sense of style?"

I couldn't believe she just said that! Just because I dressed more conservative than her didn't mean that I didn't have a sense of style. I wasn't even the one who chose that outfit! I could feel my blood starting to boil. I took a deep breath in an attempt to calm myself down, but it didn't help much.

"Okay, first of all, I'm their personal assistant." I said pointing a finger towards myself. "I don't work in the wardrobe department. The people there just asked me to give this to him so he wouldn't have to go all the way over there just to pick it up. Second of all, who asked for your opinion? Are you going to be the one wearing it?"

I saw her mouth open, ready to reply when I interrupted her before she could even get a syllable in. "No, you aren't. And lastly, you tell me that I don't have a sense of style?" I scoffed and continued "you wouldn't know what a sense of style was if it was in front of your face on a sign with neon lights and arrows around it." Letting that out felt good, especially when I saw the smirk on her face drop.

"Are you gonna let her talk to me like that, Nicky?!" she screeched.

Nick threw me a disapproving look and stood in between us two as he towered over me. He was, after all, a good six inches taller than me.

"Hey, you have no right to insult her like that. She was just saying what she thought of the outfit. No need for the insults."

I looked at him with annoyance evident on my face. "Oh, so you're saying that it's alright for her to insult me but I can't insult her in my defense?"

"I didn't say that, I meant-" before he could finish his sentence I interrupted him, unable to control my anger any longer. The hell with being civil!

"Look, Carter. Just because I'm your personal assistant doesn't mean that I'm going to let you or your little wannabe singer girlfriend over here take advantage and trample over me."

Before Nick could reply the door opened revealing my older cousin, Chris. He looked at the both of us and could feel the obvious tension in the room. Sighing then shaking his head, he spoke up.

"Nick, stop causing trouble and start getting ready. You still need to go to hair and make up. Amanda you need to get ready now because you're the opening act. Sam, come with me, I need you to help me with something" he said in an authoritative voice.

I shot Nick and Amanda look before walking out of the room with my cousin right behind me. It was my first day but I could already tell that the three of us, meaning Nick, Amanda and I, were not going to get along very well.

When I accepted this job I knew that it wasn't going to be easy but never did I think that it was going to be like this. That didn't matter though. Right at that moment, I made a vow to myself that that was the day I would end my obsession with Nick Carter. He may be hot. He may be a Backstreet Boy. But I had dignity and pride. I wouldn't allow him or Miss Barbie doll walk all over me.

*End Of Flashback*

Feeling someone poking me on the side of my stomach I was brought back from my reverie, flinching slightly because they found my ticklish spot. Turning to my right I saw Chris smirking at me.

"You need to stop day dreaming about boys and finish eating your food." He said pointing to my half finished plate. "It's getting cold." I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and just shook my head.

But before I could even put my spoon in my mouth, I felt someone's eyes on me. For some reason, I automatically turned to Nick and found that he was the perpetrator. I couldn't read his facial expression so I just shrugged it off and continued to eat. For some reason, I had a bad feeling in my stomach that after my heated argument with Nick earlier, things between us were just going to get worse.

~~~~ End POV ~~~~

~~~~ Nick's POV ~~~~

After dinner, I sat outside on one of the chairs that were set up around the pool. The cool breeze, the soft sounds of the water and the quiet of the night just helped me relax and think. I had just finished talking to Amanda on the phone and she didn't seem quite too happy with the fact that we had to stay in the same house as our personal assistant. I couldn't really blame her though because it was understandable. Right from the moment Amanda met Samantha I could just feel the tension between those two. Why? I have no idea. At first, not to sound cocky or anything but, I thought it was because Samantha was jealous of Amanda since she was my girlfriend and a lot of girls tend to hate Amanda because of that. That theory was thrown out the window, however, when she started being all sassy with me. I don't know what it is about Samantha that just gets on my nerves. I guess it's her personality that just gets to me. When I see her talking to one of the other guys she's all friendly and nice to them, like they're more like friends rather than the people she's working as an assistant for. However, when it comes to me, if she's not acting all cold and uncaring towards me, she's feisty and seems to always have an attitude problem. What did I ever do to her... oh, right.

I knew I should've tried to keep away from people that night. The only reason why I was such a jerk to her when we first met was because I had just come back from talking on the phone with Amanda and we had gotten into an argument so I was pretty upset. It had been our first serious argument and I guess I just let it affect me way too seriously. I wasn't really thinking clearly that night and didn't realize the consequences of my actions until the next day. I regretted how I acted because all she did was introduce herself to me and I acted like a complete jerk. A couple days later, when I finally had the courage to apologize and after all the guys kept telling me that I should, I tried to make amends. Unfortunately, all she did was brush it off even though I was sincere. I'm guessing it was a little too late for apologies.

"You alright man?" I heard Brian ask, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why are you asking?"

"Well, I noticed during dinner you didn't eat as much as you usually do. You're not going on one of those diets are you, now? If you get any skinnier the tabloids are going to start rumors about you being anorexic." He joked.

I leaned back on the chair and chuckled, "Pssh, as if Brian. You know I love my food."

"So what's bothering you?"

I stayed silent for a few moments debating whether I should tell Brian what really was on my mind or keep it to myself. But before I could even open my mouth he asked, "is it about that argument you and Sam had earlier?"

"How'd...?"

"Lucky guess." He smirked. He walked over to the other chair beside me and sat down with his arms resting on his knees. "So...?"

I sighed and turned to face him. "Okay, well I'm sure you heard what we were arguing about earlier..."

"I'm pretty sure everyone heard it except Anthony and Beatrice's friend." Brian cut in with a short laugh.

I rolled my eyes. "Okay... well, it just started out as innocent teasing but then she had to take it too seriously and all. Whatever animosity she has towards me should just be directed at me, not Amanda. I mean, she didn't need to call her names and make up stuff like that."

Brian looked to the ground in thought. 'If only you knew how true her words really were...'

"Okay, well let me get this straight. You think that Sam made all that stuff up just to insult Amanda and that bothers you, right?" I nodded as I listened to him continue. "So, right now you can't stop thinking of what she said, right?"

I nodded again.

"Well, let me ask you this. Do you trust Amanda?"

What kind of a question was that? Of course I trusted her. She was my girlfriend after all.

"Yeah, of course I do."

"So, you doubt that she would ever do the things that Sam says she does behind your back, right?"

"Mhm..."

"But if you do trust her, why is it bothering you so much if you believe it isn't true?"

"Well, I..."

I fell silent. Why didn't I have an answer for that?

After a few moments of silence where nothing could be heard except the crickets and gentle lapping of the water in the pool, Brian's cell phone started ringing. Judging by the ring tone, I could instantly tell it was Leighanne calling.

"Oh, sorry, Nick. I gotta answer this." He stood up as he held his phone in his hand.

"Oh, no it's alright man."

"Think about what I said." And with that, he left me with my thoughts again. Not really sure if he helped me with my problem or not but he did make me think about things through more and in a new perspective.

Did I really trust Amanda? No, why am I thinking that. Of course I trust her. But then why am I questioning myself? It's probably just because of what Samantha said earlier. All she's doing is messing with my mind and it's really getting on my nerves. That brings to mind what Brian just told me...

If I really do believe that it's all a lie, then why is it affecting me so much? I do sometimes leave Amanda alone while she was on tour with us. Could she...? No! I shouldn't think of that. She wouldn't do that to me. What am I thinking?

...

But then again...argh! This is getting so frustrating and it's all because Miss "know-it-all" Samantha had to go and make things up. How can she get into my head so easily? Well one thing's for sure, now that we're all going to be living with Chris, Bea and Samantha for a while I'm getting the feeling that things between me and Samantha are just going to get worse if they aren't bad enough already.

Chapter 6

~~~~ Later That Same Night ~~~~

~~~~ Beatrice’s POV ~~~~

I carefully ascended the stairs with a sleeping Anthony’s arms around my neck as everyone else got ready for bed and a peaceful night’s rest. Nearing the top step I looked over to the left hallway where I saw AJ about to enter his room. He gave me a friendly but tired smile which I returned before closing the door behind him. AJ, Brian and Kevin’s guest rooms were on the left side of the second floor where Sam’s bedroom was located while my, Chris’s, Anthony’s bedrooms were on the right side of the hallway. As for Nick and Howie, their rooms were on the first floor. Nick because, well obviously he and my cousin didn’t want to be near each other more than necessary and Howie because he didn’t really mind which floor he slept on as long as it was peaceful and quiet.

Even if I was told last minute, it’s really great to have the guys here. I’ll even admit that it’s great to have Brian here because I really do want him and Anthony to get along and form a bond. I’m not heartless. I want them to get along like regular father and son. I want Anthony to grow up with a father even if he’s not here 24/7; even if he and I aren’t together anymore, at least we’re both here for our son. Almost like a family.

Balancing Anthony on one arm, I entered his dark room and searched for the light switch on the wall. After finally switching the lights on, I walked over to his bed and I gently put him down. Without opening his eyes he moved to lie on his left side and searched for his favorite doll. I left his side and walked over to the dresser to get his pajamas. I quickly walked back to his side and pulled him into a sitting position.

“Honey, c’mon you’ve gotta change into your PJs.” I knew he was really tired and wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep but I couldn’t let him sleep in those dirty clothes. When I finally managed to get his PJs on I gathered his dirty clothes in my arms and stood to leave the room when I heard a soft voice call to me.

“Mommy…?”

I turned and met Anthony’s beautiful blue eyes; the same blue eyes that made me fall for his father in the first place. He looked so much like him so there was no doubt that they were father and son. I smiled and walked back over and sat on the edge of his bed.

“Can’t go back to sleep baby?” I asked gently stroking his face.

He shook his head. “Can you sing a song to me, mommy?”

I smiled at his request and shook my head, “You know mommy can’t sing, baby.” He frowned at my response but I continued, “But I do know someone who can.”

I took my cell phone out of my pocket and dialed a familiar number. I smiled and stroked Anthony’s hair as I waited for him to pick up.

“Hey you,” a deep, male voice answered on the other line. “Do you know what time it is?” I looked over to the digital clock on Anthony’s dresser and noticed that it was almost midnight. He must have been already sleeping when I called him.

“Oh, I’m really sorry Jericho.” I replied apologetically. “It’s just… Anthony wanted someone to sing to him.”

He chuckled, “Well in that case it’s alright. What does he want to hear?”

“It’s Uncle Jericho.” Hearing that name Anthony instantly smiled and was now wide awake. “What do you want him to sing baby?” I put my cell phone on speaker and brought it closer to Anthony.

“Da song dat makes me sweepy!” Anthony replied with an excited smile.

“Which one is that?” Jericho asked.

I thought for a moment and remembered the song he sang to Anthony a couple weeks ago that helped him go to sleep. “Oh, I know. Is it… “This I Promise You”?”

Anthony tilted his head to the side cutely and shrugged, “I think so… I dunno da name mommy.”

Jericho and I both laughed. “Alright, “This I Promise You” will help you get to bed” he said before clearing his throat, preparing to sing. I just rolled my eyes at his lame joke.

I placed my phone on the dresser next to Anthony’s bed and began to tuck him in as Jericho sang his lullaby…

~~~~ End POV ~~~~


~~~~ Brian’s POV ~~~~

After an hour of explaining to Leighanne why I was staying at my ex-girlfriend’s house instead of a hotel, I felt physically and mentally drained. As expected, she couldn’t understand the situation and why I would rather stay here instead of a fancy hotel. Thankfully, by the end of the conversation I managed to appease her. I sighed and raked my hand through my hair as I tiredly climbed the stairs.

Now that was done with, what was bothering me now was the fact my son hated me. I didn’t want him to hate me. What father would? I looked at him and Bea’s friend during dinner and I couldn’t help but feel a tinge of jealousy with how close they seemed to be. Right from that moment, one thing’s for sure, I want to make up for lost time and be a part of my son’s life. To be the father he never had since the day he was born. But first thing’s first, I had to talk to Bea and have her help me get closer to Anthony. I just hope that she doesn’t hate me too because if I don’t get along with her then chances of my son warming up to me are slim to none.

As I reached the top I turned left to head to my room when I heard singing coming from Anthony’s room. I stopped and walked closer to the door that was left slightly ajar. It sounded like a male voice. It didn’t sound like any of the guys and I knew that they were as tired, if not more, as me so they should all be in bed by now. It couldn’t have been Chris either because he didn’t exactly have the best singing voice. I’m pretty sure Anthony, or anyone else for that matter, would end up sitting wide awake in bed instead of being lulled to sleep by his singing. No offense intended of course.

I peeked over the side of the doorframe saw Bea at Anthony’s bedside while he slowly drifted to sleep with a soft smile on his face. Listening to the voice more carefully, I had the feeling that I heard it somewhere before but I just couldn’t put my finger on it. Whoever this guy was, I’ll admit, he had a pretty good set of vocal cords. When he finished singing Anthony had completely fallen asleep. Bea stood and took her phone off speaker and began to walk over to the door. Quickly and quietly, I rushed over to my bedroom and shut the door before she found out that I had been eavesdropping. How many male friends has she introduced to our son? It seems as if Anthony has a close relationship to every guy Bea knows, all except for me; his biological father.

When I heard her walking down the stairs I relaxed against the door and let out the breath that I didn’t even know I was holding. I was determined to talk to her tonight. I want to be the one Anthony plays sports with. I want to be the one who sings him to sleep at night. I want to be there for him. I know I wasn’t here before but now I am and I want to do everything a father does with their son. Everyone makes mistakes and deserves a second chance, right?

It’s about time I got mine…

~~~~ End POV ~~~~

~~~~ A Hour Later ~~~~

Bea dried her hands on a towel as she put the last of the now clean dishes into the dishwasher. She got a cup and poured some coffee she just brewed into it and sat on the island counter as leaned her head on the cupboard. Today had really been a long day: the guys’ arrival but more specifically Brian coming back into her life. How long had it been since she saw him last? Sensing that she wasn’t alone anymore, Bea looked up and found Brian leaning on the kitchen doorframe arms crossed over his chest.

“Um…” suddenly feeling awkward, Bea tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. A nervous habit she developed over time. “Would you like some coffee?”

Brian gave a small smile and nodded. “Sure.”

Bea nodded and went to the cupboard to get another mug.

The next few moments were shared in an awkward silence. Unable to think of anything to say, the two just stood around the island table taking sips from their mugs until Brian cleared his throat.

“Um, so Bea,” he placed his mug down onto the table and looked at her. “How’ve you been?”

She did the same with her cup and gave a small smile. “I’m good. A little tired but that’s how it is when you’re raising a kid.”

Beatrice didn’t notice Brian flinch when she mentioned raising Anthony all by herself. Sensing the moment turning awkward again, Bea tried to keep the conversation going. “How are you?”

“Uh, I’m…” Brian hesitated. Should he go through with his plan? The opportunity was here; no better time than the present, as they always say. “Well, I’m alright. Could be better though.”

“Oh, why is that?” Bea questioned. “Um, if you don’t mind me asking.”

Brian took another sip of his now half empty cup of coffee as he chose his words carefully. Bea placed her empty mug into the sink before sitting in one of the island table’s chairs waiting for Brian’s response. After a few moments of silence, Brian finally spoke up.

“I heard about what happened at Anthony’s birthday last year.” Bea kept her gaze towards her clasped hands in her lap as Brian continued. “Does…does Anthony hate me?”

Bea’s eyes widened slightly as she contemplated the question he presented. “Well… I wouldn’t say ‘hate’ exactly. I admit that you’re not his favorite person at the moment but I’m positive that he doesn’t feel hatred towards you.” Bea replied, this time trying to decipher Brian’s reaction.

Brian looked down at his empty mug in an attempt to hide the hurt and disappointment in his eyes. “I see…” It was understandable. He couldn’t blame Anthony. But he could try to set things right. “Isn’t there anything you can do to change his mind? To change the way he feels about me? I mean, c’mon Beatrice there must be something you can do, something you can say to him?”

Bea frowned “And exactly what do you want me to tell him, Brian? ‘Anthony, stop hating your father who missed 4 years of your life or you’re grounded.’” Sarcasm probably wasn’t the best way to go but she couldn’t help but feel slightly irritated at his request. “C’mon Brian, you can’t tell a kid how to feel about somebody.”

Brian sighed, “I really don’t need your sarcasm right now, Bea. I’m trying here.”

“Trying?” Bea scoffed, feeling her anger slowly rise. “Really? Exactly how are you ‘trying’, huh Brian? You haven’t even spoken to your son ever since you arrived here, you call that ‘trying’?” Bea had a feeling that she was being a little too harsh on him but she couldn’t stop herself. All the anger she held back all these years ever since he left her and their baby was finally let loose and she couldn’t seem to stop it from flowing out.

“That’s the reason why I’m talking to you right now!” Brian was usually calm and collected but she was testing his patience. “I’m trying to set things right between the three of us and whether you believe it or not, I do care about my son.”

Bea chucked bitterly and shook her head. “You care about him? You care about your son?” She got up from the chair she was sitting in and stood in front of Brian as she pointed an index finger at his chest. “The same son you abandoned the moment you knew that he existed? The same son you put second to your career? The same son you-”

“Okay!” Brian interrupted so Bea could stop yelling and listen to what he had to say. “I know what I did was wrong, okay? I know what I did was selfish and inconsiderate of your feelings and Anthony’s.” Brian looked into her angry green eyes hoping that he was getting through to her. She had always been the stubborn one. Brian sighed and lowered his voice as Beatrice crossed her arms over her chest and purposely avoided his eyes. “I made a mistake and I’m sorry.”

“Let me ask you this, Brian.” She slightly raised her voice again but not up to the point of shouting. “Why did you have to leave? You could have stayed y’know. If not for me, then for Anthony. I’ve known you practically your whole life and never once did I imagine you to be the kind of person who would leave their pregnant girlfriend, who you claimed to love, to support a baby by herself.”

Brian scratched the back of his head and walked over to the island table where his half filled mug was. Another moment of silence passed with neither one saying anything. Brian looked up from the floor, “I… I was afraid. Okay?”

Bea shook her head and sat back down on the island chair.

Brian walked over to the chair next to Bea’s and sat down facing her while she kept her gaze straight ahead towards the sink. “I was young and naïve. I wasn’t ready to be a father and the thought of it at that time just scared the shit out of me.”

Turning to him she replied, “And you think I was ready?! Hell, Brian, I was just as scared as you were when I found out but unlike you, I didn’t abandon our son.”

Leaning his elbows on his knees and clasping his hands together, Brian lowered his gaze as guilt washed over him like a wave. Guilt trips always sucked.

Bea continued, “I carried our son for nine months with the support of my family and close friends, give birth to him with my brother at my side, then raised him the best I could as a single parent.”

“I know and I’m sorry. I can’t say it enough.” Brian replied tiredly. “But you knew the situation that I was in. I had a public image to protect, especially since we were just starting out.” Bea rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. “How would it have looked like if the media found out that I was a father at the age of 18?”

Beatrice felt her blood boil. ‘How could he say such a thing?!’ This didn’t sound like the Brian she grew up with. She clutched her arms tighter to her sides to prevent herself from slapping the man in front of her.

“So let me get this straight…” She took a deep breath in a feeble attempt to calm herself down. “What you’re saying is that your precious public image was more important to you than our son?” Brian was about to interject but she beat him to it. “God, if that’s true then I’m GLAD that you left us; I wouldn’t want my son to have a father like that.”

Brian sighed in frustration, “Argh, I never said that! Would you stop putting words in my mouth and listen to what I have to say?" Bea opened her mouth to tell him off but he spoke before she could, “Please, Bea. Just please listen.”

Letting out a frustrated sigh she gave in. She rolled her eyes and sat back into her chair as she listened to him.

Seeing that she finally gave in Brian relaxed a little. Just a little. Holding clasped hands to his forehead he began to speak. “I know that I’m probably the biggest jerk right now and I seem like the worst father in the world…”

“You can say that again.” Beatrice mumbled under her breath.

Choosing to ignore her snide remark Brian continued, “…The point is, I’ve realized what I’ve done and I want to set things right. I want to be the father that Anthony’s been missing for the past 5 years. If you let me.”

Beatrice kept her gaze on the floor as Brian’s words sank in. Did Brian really want to be a father to their son now? After all these years? Or did he have an ulterior motive? “That's not how you felt 5 years ago when you first left… what changed? Does it have something to do about your image in the media? Because if it does Brian, then I swear-”

“No!” How could she even think such a thing? Had her perception of him really changed that much that she would think he would even think of using his son for something like that? “I swear to you, I just want to be part of my son's life. I’m better than how I was before. I’ve grown and matured.”

“Matured?” she scoffed. “If you really did mature Brian, then why didn’t you try calling me? Tried to contact me and at least show that you had at least some concern for our son.”

“I was afraid… afraid of how you'd react.” He said it in such a remorseful tone that she was convinced this wasn’t a publicity stunt. “I wanted to so badly but I just couldn't bring myself to do it.”

She sat there staring into his sad blue eyes speechless. But her expression soon changed from surprised to understanding. “I understand…” Brian looked at her “But what changed? Why aren’t you afraid anymore?”

“Honestly, I’m not sure myself. It’s just that when I saw him earlier for the first time… something changed.” Brian fondly thought back to when he first saw his son running down the stairs. “I thought, ‘wow, that’s what I’ve been missing for the past 5 years? That’s my son?’” Smiling fondly at the memory, blue eyes met green. “I felt this need to be in his life. He’s grown so much and I wasn’t there to see it. I admit I’m afraid that he won’t accept me. I understand if he doesn’t accept me as his father right away but hopefully he will someday. But for right now I’m satisfied with just being his friend.”

Bea reached over and squeezed Brian’s hand with a warm smile. “I’m proud of you.”

Brian laughed lightly and looked at her, “So how about it? Give me a second chance?”

“A second chance with Anthony or me?” Beatrice joked lightly.

Brian chuckled softly and replied with a smile, “With Anthony, don’t worry.”

Right at that moment crying was heard coming from Anthony’s baby monitor that was standing on the island counter. It was then that Bea remembered that she forgot to turn his night light on. Cursing under her breath she looked at Brian before both ran up the stairs towards their son’s bedroom. Just before Brian could reach the top of the stairs Bea stopped in her tracks which caused Brian to stop as well.

“What are you stopping for?” Brian asked confused. They had to get to Anthony!

Beatrice turned to Brian with a smile and a face that read ‘I’ve got an idea’. “Why don’t you go in there by yourself?”

He looked at her quizzically and replied smartly, “Huh?”

“Well, you did say that you wanted to get closer to him right?” Brian nodded in response. “Why not start now?”

Finally getting the idea Brian smiled, “Thanks. Wish me luck.”

Bea stayed a few feet away from the door, far enough so Anthony couldn’t see her but close enough so she could hear everything, as Brian made his way to Anthony’s bedroom.

When he entered Anthony’s room all he could see was a small figure sitting up on the bed before he turned the light switch on. Expecting to see his mother coming in through the door, Anthony cried even harder when he saw that it wasn’t his mother but that man he didn’t know very well. Even though Anthony knew Brian was his father, he wasn’t comfortable with him yet.

“Hey, what’s wrong, buddy? Why are ya crying?” Brian asked him as he approached Anthony with a warm smile.

Anthony’s cries stopped for a moment as he looked at Brian with teary eyes but started up again moments later.

‘Okay, new strategy…’ Brian thought to himself as he looked around the room for something to help him out.

As his gazed passed by Anthony’s toy chest one particular item caught his attention. He walked over to it and picked up the doll which appeared to be Donald Duck; the same Donald Duck he had given Beatrice on one of their anniversaries. Smiling fondly at the memory, Brian was struck with an idea. He turned back to his crying son and kneeled down next to his bedside holding the doll up.

“Anthony” Brian called in his infamous Donald Duck voice. Recognizing the voice as one of his favorite cartoon characters, Anthony’s cries began to die down as he stared curiously at the doll. “What’s wrong buddy?”

Anthony remained silent, well except for an occasional sniffle or hiccup, as he looked back and forth from Brian and his Donald Duck doll that suddenly had the ability to speak.

Noticing that his plan was working Brian continued on with the Donald Duck voice. “Can my friend Brian and I sit here?” ‘Donald’ pointed at Anthony’s bed. Anthony nodded slowly as Brian smiled proudly at himself and sat next to Anthony with the doll still in his hands.

“Okay, now can you tell me what’s wrong? Why were you crying?” asked ‘Donald’.

Anthony frowned as he recalled the reason why he was crying in the first place and wiped his face with his pajama sleeves. “Bad dweam”

Brian looked sadly at the small child. He wanted to make his son feel better and just hug him and let him know that he was there and wouldn’t ever let anything happen to him. However, with the situation as it currently was, Brian knew that Anthony would probably feel uncomfortable; they had barely met after all.

“Wanna tell me about it?” Brian asked in his regular voice.

Anthony looked at him, unsure if he should tell Brian about his nightmare. He didn’t know him too well even though he was his dad. Plus, he still remembered how angry he was with him for being gone for so long. He shook his head and held onto his blanket tighter.

Brian sighed; he had a feeling that was what his answer was going to be. Looking at Donald he asked Anthony, “Do you wanna tell Donald about it instead?”

Anthony nodded his head.

“Wanna tell your ol’ pal Donald about it?” ‘Donald’ asked.

“It was dark and scawry and I couldn’t bweathe. So I cwied.”

Sympathetic blue eyes looked at the small child clinging to his blanket. That sudden urge to hug Anthony’s fears away came back full force but he held himself back. He didn’t want to scare Anthony away by his suddenness.

“Oh, I’m sorry Anthony.” Brian hesitantly placed a comforting hand on his son’s small left shoulder. “Don’t worry, it was just a nightmare. It’s over now. It can’t hurt you.”

“I want mommy…”

Brian sighed. Well, it was progress. He got up from the bed and walked over to the door knowing that Bea was standing outside. He handed her Donald but as she was about to pass him to enter Anthony’s room he stopped her. Bea looked at him with a questioning eyebrow.

“So when were you planning to tell me that he has asthma?” Brian asked.

Bea’s eyes widened in surprise. How did he find out? She didn’t say anything about Anthony’s asthma during their conversation in the kitchen. Seeing the look of surprise and confusion in her eyes, Brian clarified. “When I was looking around I saw an inhaler on his bedside table. It doesn’t take a genius to put two and two together.”

Before Bea could say anything in response she heard Anthony call her sounding like he was on the verge of tears again. Brian allowed her to pass but remained standing in the doorway.

“Baby, mommy’s here. What’s wrong?” Bea asked her son tenderly as she stroked his hair.

“I had a bad dweam mommy.” Anthony released his hold on his blanket to latch onto his mother’s neck as she held him in her lap. “I couldn’t bweathe and I was scawed!”

“Aww,” she tightened her hold on him hoping that it was enough to soothe him. “It’s okay now, baby. Mommy’s here.” She loosened the embrace only to look at him and wipe his remaining tears away. “Do you want me to stay here tonight?”

“Mhm,” Anthony nodded.

“Okay.” Bea handed him Donald as she helped him into his covers before joining him. It wasn’t long until Anthony fell asleep curled up against his mother’s side hugging hid doll and blanket to his chin. Bea smiled lovingly at him and kissed him on the forehead before carefully sliding out of the bed. Before leaving the room she made sure to turn on his nightlight this time then softly closed the door.

Just as she was about to head to her room she came face to face with Brian who slightly startled her. ‘He’s still here?’

“I thought you went to bed already.”

“In a minute, I just wanted to know something.”

She moved away from Anthony’s door in case he woke up due to their talking. She headed towards her bedroom with Brian in tow.

“I was going to tell you, okay?”

“When? When Anthony has an asthma attack?” They entered her bedroom.

Before they went all the way in she turned to face him hands on her waist. “No, of course not. I wouldn’t have waited that long to tell you.”

“Is he okay though? I mean, since he has asthma shouldn’t he not be sleeping alone? What if something happens and you don’t hear him?” Brian’s concerned eyes stared down at Bea as she sighed. It was nice that he was concerned but her energy was just drained. Now wasn’t the time for another heart to heart conversation.

“Brian, don’t worry so much you’ll get premature wrinkles.” Brian gave her a look that said now wasn’t the time for jokes. “Don’t worry so much, okay? I’ve got it under control. Why do you think I have numerous baby monitors around the house?”

Brian didn’t look very convinced but relented and dropped the issue. At least for now. “Trust me and seriously, don’t worry so much. Get some sleep. I know you’re tired from your flight and I’m hella tired from just about the whole day.”

Brian gave a small smile at the truth in her words. He was pretty tired. By the time he enters his room he might just postpone a shower ‘til morning and just drop on his bed. “Alright, goodnight.”

“Night.” She closed her bedroom door as Brian stepped out and headed towards his room.

Walking over to her large bed she let herself fall on it, legs hanging off the side.

‘What a long day.’

~~~~ The Next Day ~~~~

It was around noon time when the boys woke up. For the first time in a very long time they were allowed to sleep in without and disturbances; something they were all grateful for. By the time they made it down stairs they found a note saying that Bea had gone grocery shopping with Samantha and brought Anthony along. Chris had stayed behind because well, someone had to and he slept in just like the guys anyway.

After looking in the fridge and cupboards, Chris noticed that they were low on food; hence the reason why the girls went out grocery shopping. There were six of them right now and judging by how much food they needed to eat until they each got full, there was hardly enough for even half of them. Chris read the note his sister left behind again and noticed that it said they left about an hour ago, so they must be almost done; hopefully. He looked into the living room where AJ and Kevin were watching TV. Howie was still in his room while Brian was taking a shower in one of the upstairs bathrooms. As for Nick, he was outside sitting on a lawn chair talking on the phone.

“Hey, AJ” AJ looked over his shoulder from his position on the sofa.

“Yeah?”

“Can you call my sister for me? There isn’t enough food for all of us so they need to hurry home before I can start cooking.”

“Alright.” AJ got up and opened the sliding glass door that lead to the backyard. Shading his eyes from the sunlight, he made his way over to Nick.

“Hey Nick, I need to use my phone for a minute to call Beatrice. Are you done using it?” He held up the cell phone and handed it to AJ. “What happened? Did you kill my battery too?” AJ asked with a raised brow only half serious. Nick had asked AJ if he could borrow his phone to call Amanda because he forgot to charge his last night so his phone suddenly died in the middle of their conversation.

Nick resisted the urge to roll his eyes and just gave his band mate a cold, blank stare. “No” He got up and began to walk back inside the house with AJ in tow. “Dude, Nick. What’s wrong? I was just messing with you.”

Nick shook his head before plopping onto the sofa in the living room. “No, it’s cool man. I’m not mad ‘coz of that. Forget it.”

AJ could tell by the tone of Nick’s voice that something was bothering him and it had something to do with the conversation he just had with Amanda. Like that was a surprise. They’ve been having arguments constantly for over a year now that he was wondering why they were still together in the first place. They had arguments before but lately they’ve been increasing in severity, so much that their relationship could be described in four words: ‘on and off again.’ Hmm, reminded him of Nick’s relationship with Sam. Well, except for the going out ‘on and off again’ part. Nevertheless, AJ knew it was best if he just dropped the issue until Nick was ready to talk about it.

“Okay, then.” AJ walked into the kitchen and sat on one of the island counter chairs as he waited for Beatrice to answer her phone. After the third ring she finally picked up.

“AJ, it’s too early for a booty call.” She replied with a laugh earning a chuckle from the Backstreet Boy.

“Damn, really?” AJ joked. “Actually your brother asked me to call you. We’re out of food and we’re hungry.”

“Why don’t you guys just cook something?” She held her cell phone in between her chin and shoulder as she took her car keys out to unlock her car while Sam pushed Anthony in the shopping cart they had. She noticed Bea talking on the phone and quietly asked who it was. Bea mouthed ‘AJ’ and Sam nodded in understanding as she carried Anthony out of the cart and helped him into his car seat.

“We would but Chris said that there isn’t enough food for all of us.” He looked over at Chris who was still looking through their cupboards. “We’re all growing boys after all.”

Beatrice laughed as she rolled her eyes. “Mhm, sure. More like bottomless pits.”

After making sure that he was securely strapped in Sam began to help Bea put their groceries into the trunk of the car. When they put the last of them inside and closed the trunk, she asked if she could say something to AJ.

Bea nodded, “Hey AJ, someone wants to say something to you.” She handed her cell phone to her cousin as she opened her door on the driver’s side while Sam walked over to the passenger’s side.

“Hey buddy!” Sam said cheerfully earning a chuckle from AJ.

“Hey there, sexy.” AJ replied flirtatiously making Sam laugh.

“Whatcha doin’?” Sam buckled her seat belt as Bea began to back out of the parking space.

“Starving; waiting for you guys to come home with food.” AJ held his stomach. Just the thought of food made him hungry. When were they gonna get home?!

“Aw, you don’t have to lie. I know you just miss me.” AJ chuckled. He didn’t know why Nick didn’t like this girl she was just too much fun to talk with.

“Aw, you caught me.”

“Don’t worry, we’re almost home. We’ll probably be there in 10 minutes. Maybe less.” Sam replied, this time seriously.

“Heh, alright. See ya later then.”

“Mmkay, bye!” Sam hung up and handed Bea her phone back.

AJ shook his head and smiled as he put his phone inside his pocket. Noticing the cookie jar on the island counter he was sitting on, he jumped off and looked inside hoping for a sweet treat to calm his empty stomach. Unfortunately for him, it was empty. Frowning, AJ left the cookie jar to look for some other quick snack in the cupboards. However, just as he was about to look in one of them the doorbell rang. Expecting Chris to answer it he proceeded to search for food but after the third or fourth ring, still no one answered it, AJ decided to answer the door himself.

He left the kitchen to answer the door but Chris, where he came from who knows, suddenly rushed over to the door and beat him to it. At the door was a young man in his early to mid twenties. He had short black hair, tanned skin, and a lean build and stood at about the same height as Kevin.

“Hey man, what are you doing here?” Chris shook hands with him.

“I’m here to see Bea.” The guy replied.

“Oh, she’s not here right now. She’s out buying groceries.” Chris turned to see AJ standing at the doorway that connected the living room to the main entrance. “Oh, AJ what did my sister say?”

“Oh, they said they’re on their way home right now; might be here in 10 minutes or so.”

Chris turned back to the guy at the door, “Oh okay, well there ya go. You wanna wait here until they get home?”

“Sure, alright.”

Chris closed the door after letting the guy in. Both men walked into the living room where AJ, Howie and Kevin were currently. Brian was probably still upstairs and Nick probably went to sulk somewhere.

“Hey guys, this here is Jericho.” Chris said patting the guy, now identified as Jericho, on the shoulder.

“That’s AJ,” he motioned over to AJ; he probably gave up on his search for a snack, who was now sitting in the armchair.

He gave a small wave, “What’s up”

“That’s Howie,” Howie smiled and gave a short wave from his position on the left side of the sofa. “And this here is the big brother of the group, Kevin.” Chris patted Kevin on the shoulder since he was the closest out of the three, sitting on the right side of the sofa.

“Hey man,” Kevin shook Jericho’s hand.

“Hey, nice to meet you guys.” Jericho turned to Chris who stood next to him. “Are these the guys you’re managing?”

“Yeah, the Backstreet Boys…well, 3/5th of them anyway.”

“Oh really? Wow, my sister is gonna be so jealous.” Jericho laughed. “She loves you guys.”

The three laughed, “Really? That’s awesome.” Howie said with a smile.

“That’s great. I’m glad she enjoys our music.” Kevin replied with a smile.

“Are you related to Chris?” AJ asked, trying to keep the conversation going.

Jericho chuckled, “No, if I was I wouldn’t be able to date Bea.”

“You’re her boyfriend?” AJ asked surprised; Kevin and Howie, though remained silent, pretty much had the same expression on their faces.

Chapter 7

Brian glanced at the clock before putting on his white undershirt and saw that it was about 10:30AM. He raised a surprised brow.

‘Wow, usually by this time we’re at a radio promotion, on a plane or van off to a press conference, or backstage at a television show about to do a guest performance.’ Day-off days were rare occasions as of late but when they did come around it was bliss. It’s not that he hated always having something to do and somewhere to be but it was nice to have a day with nothing planned once in a while; especially with the 100 hour “Around the World” promotion just around the corner.

Just as he put on a white and blue shirt over his head, Brian heard a knock on his door.

“Come in!” He turned to see Nick come through the door. “Hey Nick, what’s up?”

Nick sighed loudly and plopped down on Brian’s still unmade bed looking tiredly at his best friend. “Amanda.”

“Ah, girlfriend problems again, I see…” Brian leaned on the wall arms crossed as he faced Nick. “What happened this time?”

“We got into this argument about me not spending enough time with her and how she feels neglected. She was expecting me to spend the day off with her because we’ll be leaving for Sweden on the 16th.” He rubbed his temples with his hands while resting his elbows on his bent knees. “Finding out that we’re staying here in LA with Chris’s family until we leave for Sweden made her upset even more so she started yelling and that just got me riled up so I started yelling back and it was just a big mess by the end.”

Brian nodded silently. “What happened after that?”

“The same thing that happens every time we get into a huge argument,” Nick grinned dryly. “She hung up on me.”

Brain came over and patted Nick on the shoulder as he gave him a sympathetic smile. “I’m sorry, man. But hey,” he took the chair that was in his room and sat on it backwards. “Don’t worry so much about it. You guys argued before and always made up afterwards. I’m sure she just needs time to cool off then you guys will be okay again.” That’s how it’s been for the last year and a half of the two years they were together anyway.

Nick looked to the ground in thought before replying, “You know what? No, not this time Bri.” Brian looked at him quizzically. “I’ve had enough. I’m sick and tried of this rollercoaster ride that we always go through. I don’t need this extra stress especially with a big promotional tour coming up.” Brian nodded in understanding, agreeing with him.

“Heh, you do have a point there.” Brian stood up and placed the chair he was sitting on back to where it was. “Well, if that’s what you think is best, then I support you all the way.” Brian replied with a reassuring smile. “I’m starving, let’s go downstairs and get something to eat.”

“Yeah, okay. Well, that depends if Bea and Sam are back from the grocery.” Nick replied walking towards the door behind Brian.

~~~~~Downstairs~~~~~

“You’re Bea’s boyfriend?” Howie asked.

“Yep” Jericho replied with a cheerful smile as he stuck his hands in his jean pockets.

“Yeah, she is really private when it comes to her love life.” Chris said with a chuckle. “You guys didn’t know until now, huh?”

Kevin shook his head. “Nah, we didn’t. She never said anything and whenever we visited no guy was ever around.”

AJ nodded in agreement. “Yeah, we – er, well I just assumed that since she had Anthony to take care of she wouldn’t have time for a relationship. Not after-”

Before AJ could finish his sentence Nick and Brain appeared behind Chris and Jericho. “Hey, where’ve you guys been?”

“Oh, nowhere. Just chillin’ upstairs. Why? What’s up?” Nick replied, finally noticing that there was a new face amongst them.

“Jericho, this is the rest of the guys, Nick and Brian.” Chris said motioning towards the two blondes. “Brian and Nick, this is Jericho; Bea’s boyfriend.”

“Must you always say that when you introduce me? Hey, nice to meet you guys.” Jericho shook their hands as he greeted them. Chris shrugged and chuckled.

“Well that is what you are.”

Before anymore questions could be asked the door bell rang. Chris excused himself and went to answer the door. He opened the door but stood in front of it leaning on the doorframe with a smirk on his face.

“Yes? Can I help you miss?”

Bea rolled her eyes and gave her brother a dry look. In both her arms were three brown bags full of groceries. She would have dropped the one in the middle because the only thing supporting it was the two other bags but thanks to her leg, she was able to prevent that from happening. For the moment anyway. “No, as you can see I’m having no problem at all carrying all the food I bought for all the bottomless pits you men call stomachs” was her sardonic reply before she shoved all the bags she was carrying into her older brother’s empty arms.

“Hey! That’s only because I have the appetite of an athlete!” Chris chuckled as he walked towards the kitchen.

Bea spotted two paparazzi in a van parked across the house as she walked back to the car where Sam was unloading more grocery bags from the trunk. Good thing she closed the front door after she gave her brother the bags she was holding. Looking to the left she spotted another one trying to hide in the bushes as they filmed. Being a model of course Bea was use to this but it was still annoying. “Do you need help?”

“Uh…nah, I’m fine. There’s only two more in here anyway.” Sam struggled to hold the two remaining bags in one of her arms while she used the free one to close the trunk of the car.

“Hey Beatrice! Samantha!” The girls turned to see two more paparazzi filming them as the others Bea had previously seen came out of their ‘hiding places’ and approached them as well.

“What’cha ladies buy from the grocery?” randomly asked one man. “Damn, that’s a lot of food! Are you throwing a party?” The man proceeded to film the two while three other paparazzi blinded them with the constant flash of their cameras.

Bea smiled as polite as she could as she tried to conceal her annoyance. “No, no, we’re not.” She opened the door to her car and proceeded to release Anthony from his car seat. He had fallen asleep the moment they began to drive back from the grocery store and was still fast asleep in the back. That, however, wouldn’t last long because of all the commotion the paparazzi were causing. Two more men stood behind Bea taking pictures of her while she carefully held Anthony on her right hip and swung her bag over her left shoulder.

“Beatrice! Is it true that you and your boyfriend Jericho are engaged?”

“Is that your engagement ring?”

“…huh?” Anthony rubbed his eyes and lifted his head up from his mother’s shoulder to see what all the commotion was about. As soon as he did, however, he was met with numerous blinding flashes and voices.

“Beatrice! Beatrice! Can we get a picture of you with your son?” asked another paparazzo with a large camera in his gloved hands.

Bea placed a protective hand on Anthony’s head as she shut the car door with her foot and followed her cousin to the door.

“Samantha! What do you think of ‘N Sync? Are you going to be working with them in the future?”

“Samantha! Is it true that the Backstreet Boys are in there right now?”

Sam’s eyes widened slightly. ‘Gosh, just one day and they already know about the guys?’ Sighing, she moved the other bag to her free arm to balance the weight she was carrying as she walked to the front door. ‘Should’ve expected that. Miraculously finding stuff out is part of their job.’

Grunting slightly, Sam reached for the doorknob but before she could reach it, the door was suddenly opened. Fortunately for the paparazzi, not too much for the current residents of the house, their question was answered because it was none other than Kevin Richardson of the Backstreet Boys who opened the door. At that point the number of camera flashes and the volume of the noise increased as the paparazzi frantically tried to take as many pictures as possible.

“Whoa!” Kevin shielded his eyes as he held the door open just wide enough so that the girls could get inside then quickly shut it. “Looks like you guys attracted quite a crowd.”

“Psh and you made it worse by getting the door.” Sam giggled. “One of them even asked me if it’s true that the Backstreet Boys are here just a moment before they saw you.” Kevin took one of the bags from her. Sam gave a grateful smile and said thanks.

“Yeah, then it started to get even crazier out there when they saw you.” Bea took the bag off her shoulder as she checked to see if Anthony was alright.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” He chuckled “well, I guess they would have found out sooner or later.” Sam nodded laughing as she followed Kevin into the living room as they made their way to the kitchen. “How’s my little nephew?”

“He’s fine,” Bea replied, softly stroking Anthony’s back. “He was asleep until I took him out of the car.” Kevin nodded as he and Sam made their way into the kitchen where most of the guys were.

“Why? What happened outside?” Brian asked brows furrowed in concern as he stood from his seat on the couch. He had heard the whole thing from the moment they entered the house.

Bea turned as Brian came around the couch and stood in front of her. “Oh, nothing, just paparazzi. They just woke him up from his nap. You know how it is.”

“Oh, okay. You sure he’s okay?”

“Yeah, see for yourself.” Bea turned so that Brian could see Anthony’s face that was resting on her shoulder. His eyes were open but you could tell that he just woke up a few minutes ago.

“Hey buddy.” He smiled as he touched Anthony’s arm with two fingers. “How’s it going? Are you feeling alright?” Anthony looked up at him with his innocent blue eyes and simply nodded. Before Brian could say another word he saw Jericho sneaking up behind Bea with a finger on his lips asking him not to tell her that he was there. Then he ducked behind the wall that connected the kitchen to the living room, occasionally taking a peek. Brian nodded as he turned back to Anthony.

“Hey Anthony, you wanna go play? C’mon, let’s go!”

Bea smiled at the idea, “Yeah, you wanna go play with Brian, baby?”

Anthony lifted his head up and looked at his mother and Brian, unsure if he should agree or not. He was, after all, energized by the nap he took on their way home. But then again he didn’t know Brian that well yet.

“We can go play with Donald Duck, if you want.” At the mention of Donald Duck, Anthony smiled remembering the previous night when his doll miraculously gained a voice! He looked at Brian and nodded eagerly. “Okay!” That was enough to convince him! He just had to find out if Donald would talk to him again but all he knew was that, other than himself, Brian was the only one who could talk to Donald too.

Bea smiled as she put Anthony down and let Brian lead him up the stairs to get Donald. She really hoped that this was the beginning of Anthony warming up to Brian.

Jericho peeked from his hiding place behind the wall and saw that Beatrice was alone. Finally deciding to make his move, he stealthily made it behind her and covered her eyes with his hands.

“Hey beautiful,” he whispered in her ear.

Immediately recognizing the voice Beatrice gasped and smiled as she turned around.

“Oh my – hi baby!” She wrapped her slender arms around his neck as he chuckled and hugged her back. “What a surprise! I didn’t know you were coming over today.” Bea said after releasing him from the hug but kept her arms on his shoulders while he kept his on her waist inside her denim jacket.

“That was the point. I wanted to surprise you.”

Bea smiled as a familiar warm feeling came over her. “Aw, that’s sweet.” She leaned in for a kiss but before their lips could make contact Chris showed up behind the couple.

“Hey Bea!” Chris called with half of his body in the kitchen and the other half in the living/dining room. The couple let out a disappointed sigh while Bea rolled her eyes at her brother’s bad timing. She looked over Jericho’s shoulder.

“What?” She said with slight annoyance in her voice.

“Are you gonna help prepare lunch or not?” He said it as more of a statement than a question. “I can’t do everything by myself you know.”

“Ugh, okay. I’m coming.” She left Jericho’s arms but held his hand as she went to the kitchen with him to help her brother and cousin out. He cooked most of last night’s dinner why couldn’t he fix up lunch? God, she just knew he did that on purpose.

~~~~~After Lunch~~~~~

A cold gust of wind blew causing Bea to shiver slightly despite her denim jacket. At this time of day, any normal person would be inside of their nice, warm home reading a book, watching TV, or even eating a snack but here she was standingoutside in the chilly January air watching over her son. What can you do except give in when your son wants to play soccer and you don’t want him kicking a ball around inside the house?

Anthony didn’t seem to mind the cold air much though. Hell, he didn’t seem to mind at all. All he was focused on was kicking the soccer ball around practicing just like how his Uncle Erick taught him how. When it came to play time, it didn’t matter if it was smoldering hot outside or freezing cold. All he cared about was playing and having fun.

“Be careful, Anthony!” Bea called as she followed just a few steps behind him. She didn’t want to be too far just in case he started having an asthma attack or if he accidentally fell and hurt himself.

“Look what I can do mommy!” Anthony said as he kept his eyes on the black and white ball, trying to do one of the tricks he saw Uncle Erick do. Now, all he had to do was get a running start…

“Hey,” said a male voice behind Beatrice. She turned around and was met with the kind blue eyes of Brian Littrell. “What are you guys doing out here? It’s freezing!” To emphasize his point, Brian rubbed his arms up and down.

“Anthony had the sudden urge to play soccer and since I don’t want him doing that in the house, I told him to go outside. Of course, that also meant I had to come along to watch him.”

Brian chuckled, “Heh, oh I see. Would you mind if I stayed to watch over him too?”

“No, I don’t mind.” Bea said with a small smile as she glanced at Brian who began to walk with her, then continued to watch Anthony again.

While they were outside in the cold, Samantha was inside the warmth of the heated house with the rest of the guys. Sighing, she wiped her forehead with a part of her arm that managed to remain dry. She may have been happy to be inside where it was nice and toasty; it was better than being outside in the cold freezing your butt off, of course. But being the one assigned to wash the dishes wasn’t so much fun; nope, not at all. Hearing someone approaching, Sam glanced behind her.

“Hey,” AJ smiled as he walked over holding an empty plate with a few crumbs stuck to it. “Would you mind if I add another dish to the pile?” He chuckled at her loud sigh.

“Yeah, no problem.” She took the plate and placed it into the side of the sink that was filled with slightly soapy water. “I’m doing the dishes anyway…”

“Here, le’ me help you out.” he offered as he began to roll his long sleeves up.

Samantha shook her head and smiled then proceeded to wash a cup, “Thanks but it’s alright. I’m fine, I can manage, AJ.”

AJ wagged an index finger at her teasingly, “Stop being stubborn, Sammy. I know you’re our PA and all but you don’t have to go this far! Here, move over” He replied slightly laughing. He held her waist from behind and moved her slightly to the left to make some room for himself then lightly bumped her with his hip.

“Hey!” She said with a laugh. Samantha then did the same to AJ but only caused him to take a step to the right. “I’ll do the dishes, okay? You just go relax or something.”

He gave her a look but she merely returned it with a cute smile. “You gotta relax too. 6 stops around the world in 100 hours is gonna be tough; not only for us but for you too.”

Samantha sighed and put a newly cleaned plate onto the dish rack to dry. Just as she was about to reply Chris walked into the kitchen carrying a plate and glass cup.

“Anthony finished his milk and cookies earlier but left his dishes on the floor.”

Sighing for about the tenth time that evening, she took the dishes from her cousin and tossed the remaining crumbs and milk into the sink before letting them sit in the soapy water. Turning back to AJ to reply to him, Sam said “As much as I would love to be relaxing right now, after waking up an hour early just to buy food for everyone, Kuya Chris assigned me to dish duty after everyone finished eating lunch.”

Chris looked at AJ then at Samantha and replied, “What? It was her turn; it’s always been her turn after my sister does them.” Then he left without another word. Sam gave AJ a ‘see I told you’ look before continuing to wash the dishes. The sooner she got to work the sooner she would be able to finish and relax.

AJ chuckled, “Aw, my poor lollipop.” He put his hands on her shoulders and began to softly massage them. “See, if you just said ‘yes’ when I said that we should go to Vegas and elope I coulda got ya outta here. You wouldn’t have to do dishes at my place.”

Sam couldn’t help but blush as she played along with him. She turned around, causing him to stop his massage, and raised a brow as she put her arms on her hips. “Mhm, but I’m sure that if I did say ‘yes’, you would have me do something other than dishes every night, wouldn’t you?” She replied, making the sexual innuendo perfectly clear.

AJ laughed and winked, “Ooh yeah, you know it, honey. It would be something way better than dishes too.” He said wagging his eye brows suggestively.

Samantha laughed and playfully slapped his arm. “AJ, calm down!”

~~~~~Outside~~~~~

Beatrice watched the scene in front of her with a fond smile on her face, momentarily forgetting about how cold it was. Anyone who didn’t know them would have looked at the scene and automatically assume that they were a happy little family: mother watching her son play with his father. But that wasn’t the case with Beatrice, Brian, and Anthony. The good thing was, though, that Anthony and Brian seemed to be getting along pretty well and Bea and Brian were at the very least, friends again.

“Wow,” Anthony stared in amazement. He thought that the only person who could do cool soccer tricks was his Uncle Erick but apparently Brian had some tricks up his sleeve too! In actuality, all Brian was doing was picking up the ball with his foot but to Anthony, since he never saw anyone besides his Uncle Erick do something like that before, it was enough to astound him. “Brian! Can you do the trick Uncle Erick is trying to teach me?”

“Uh…” Brian’s eyes widened slightly as he nervously looked over at Bea who watched on with an amused expression. He cleared his throat and picked up the ball with his hands. “What… uh, what trick would that be?”

Anthony raised his arms to receive the ball from Brian and raised it up above his head. “Uncle Erick can hit the ball with his head a lot of times!” To demonstrate, he threw the ball slightly up in the air then hit it with his head. He tried to continue and keep the ball in the air but the ball fell to the ground on his third attempt. “Uh, but it doesn’t fall.” Anthony explained as he picked the ball up again in his small hands.

“Sweetie,” Bea called over to Anthony from her spot on one of the decorative large flat rocks of their backyard. “Uncle Erick is different. Brian can’t do the tricks he does.”

Brian, seemingly insulted, gave Bea a look, “Excuse me, I can so! That didn’t look so hard.” Brian took the soccer ball from the child’s outstretched hands and positioned it above his head not unlike to how Anthony had it. Anthony watched in anticipation while Bea merely used her hands to support her as she leaned back with an amused expression on her face. Brian lightly threw the soccer ball into the air then hit it with his head and managed to keep it airborne with about seven hits before it fell to the floor.

“Eh, tada!” Brian said with a big smile on his face stretching his arms out. He looked towards Anthony and awaited his reaction.

Anthony slightly tilted his head to the side. “But Uncle Erick doesn’t drop it.” Brian’s smile slightly dropped at his response while Bea covered her mouth with her hand trying to conceal her smile and prevent her giggles from escaping. It brought a fond smile to her face as she remembered how Brian always loved to show off and mess around.

~~~~~Inside the House~~~~~

“Finally, I’m done.” Samantha wiped the sink dry with the paper towel she used to dry her hands before leaving the kitchen. Passing by Howie, who was using his laptop on the couch, she picked up a couple folders filled with papers Christian had asked her to sort out before turning a corner and entering the hallway. The hallway lead to several rooms: the game room, a large bathroom, and Nick and Howie’s guest rooms. She heard sounds of a game of billiards going on in the game room and figured that the rest of the guys were in there since Brian was still outside.

‘Ugh, this is one reason why I hate washing the dishes sometimes.’ Sam thought as she looked forlornly at her prune-like hands. She decided to go to the restroom for the bottle of lotion that was in there before starting on the papers. Just as she was passing by Nick’s room, she felt something hard and smooth underneath her foot that caused her to softly cry out before falling none to gracefully onto the carpeted floor. Wincing she massaged the sole of her foot as she looked around for the object that she had stepped on and found that it was one of Anthony’s action figures.

‘We really gotta start talking to Anthony about leaving his toys on the floor.’ Sam sighed as she put the toy in her pocket. Looking around her she finally noticed that the papers she had been holding were now spread around the floor. Whining pitifully she got on her hands and knees and began to gather them up into a pile.

“It’s over Amanda. I’m tired of this bullshit. If you can’t trust me then this relationship isn’t going to work out.” Nick paused as he listened to what she had to say before continuing. “I warned you right from the beginning how hard it was going to be. I warned you and you said you accepted it. You accepted me. You know how difficult my lifestyle is; how busy I can get!” Nick exclaimed into his cell phone as he stood from his bed.

“Oh, yeah? Well then smartass, tell me this. How does Brian have time for his girlfriend? Or Kevin who has a wife, huh? You’re all in the same situation but you’re telling me it’s difficult for you to make time for me? Bullshit, Nick, that’s bullshit! How is it different with them, huh?"

Nick growled under his breath. He should have known that breaking up with her wouldn’t be easy. “You wanna know the difference? The difference with them is that Leighanne and Kristin don’t bitch at Brian and Kevin like this! They don’t argue with them about the littlest thing! You’re constantly bitching at me about the littlest shit!” Nick replied angrily as he paced around the room.

“Oh so now I’m a bitch, huh? Well, can you really blame me? How am I supposed to trust you when I hardly ever see you anymore? You’re a flirt! I know you! For all I know, you could be cheating on me with a backup dancer, some slut you picked up at a party, or even that personal assistant of yours!” By this time both were breathing heavily and shouting into their cell phones like the person on the other line was deaf.

Nick paused for a moment, taking in what Amanda just said before replying in a lower voice. “So, it finally comes out. That’s what you think of me, huh?"

Trying to walk on your feet while bent over picking up papers wasn’t an easy position to keep your balance on. Samantha figured that out a little too late when she accidentally lost her balance causing her left shoulder to fall onto Nick’s guestroom door. Pushing herself up she smiled triumphantly at the pile of papers now piled neatly in her arms. Just as she was about to walk off towards the restroom she heard yelling coming from the door next to her. Letting curiosity get the best of her, she leaned closer to the door until her ear was mere centimeters away from it. What was going on?

Amanda was suddenly filled with anxiety and regret as she heard the tone of his voice. “No, no, I didn’t mean that. I didn’t mean that, baby. I-I was just upset."

"No, you’re lying… that’s how you really think of me, huh?"

"No! No, of course not, Nicky! I love you and I didn’t mean what I said. You know that right? You know that I didn’t mean it ‘coz you love me.” The next words he said to her hit her like a ton of bricks.

"I did love you, Mandy.” This isn’t how things were suppose to go! She wasn’t going to lose him. No she wouldn’t; she couldn’t! “I just fell out of love with you,” Nick continued before she could get a word in. “You aren’t the same person that I knew. You’re too controlling and you constantly fight with me over the littlest thing.”

Nick ran a hand through his hair as he sat down on the edge of his bed. “I tried so hard to work everything out between us Amanda, I really did.” He paused and sighed deeply “It’s just… I’m up to the point were I don’t know what to do anymore. I’m tired. I’m tired of always trying to work everything out just to keep you happy when I haven’t been happy for a long time now.”

“No, Nick, baby. Yo-you don’t mean that. We can work this out, I know we can!” Amanda pleaded as tears blurred her vision and her heart pounded. “I… I love you.” She sounded so pitiful and broken that he almost wanted to change his mind but knew that things would be better for both of them this way.

“No, we can’t” his voice held such decisiveness that she knew the inevitable was about to come. “We’ve been trying to work it out for six months now – I’ve been trying to work it out and save this relationship. But I’m at my limit and I don’t think this is gonna work anymore, no matter how hard we work at it.”

Amanda remained speechless. She didn’t know how to reply to that.

“I’m sorry Amanda, but it’s over.”

Nick hung up and leaned back onto the pillows. It was the first time he actually had the last word in before she hung up on him in a fit of rage. He didn’t really know what else to tell her. He didn’t like hearing her cry because of him; he didn’t like making any girl cry but it couldn’t be helped. Even though he didn’t love her anymore like he did at the start of their relationship he still cared for her. If they had continued their relationship it wouldn’t have been fair to both of them. She wanted a guy who would always be there for her no matter what and with the current circumstances and his lifestyle; he just wasn’t the one for her. What was the point in staying in a relationship where there was no happiness and trust? She might not have wanted to admit it but they both knew the end was near. It was difficult working to keep something that wasn’t making you happy anymore.

Nick’s thoughts were interrupted by a soft noise that came from the door and sounded as if someone was at there. Had someone been listening in? He got up to go and check.

Sam looked sympathetically at the door as if she could actually see Nick through it. She felt bad for him, she truly did. As much of an ass he was to her, she knew that it must have been tough for him and for Amanda too. But what Nick said was true. There was no point in staying in a relationship where there was only one person who was working to keep it together. It would be unfair to both of them.

Realizing that it suddenly grew quiet Sam decided it was time to go. If Nick found out that she had eavesdropped on his conversation with Amanda she was sure they would get into another confrontation, and that was something she wasn’t up to at the very moment. Standing up from her crouching position, Sam headed towards the bathroom once again. She would have made it with no trouble at all if she had been quieter or if she hadn’t stayed to listen for so long. But, unfortunately for her, that’s not what she did. The moment she took a step away from Nick’s door it suddenly swung open revealing a set of blue eyes that stared down into her brown ones. Caught off guard, Sam stepped back two steps and stumbled with her words before saying the only thing she could think of saying at the moment.

“Uh… I-I’m sorry about Amanda…” She had said it so softly that she wondered if Nick had heard her.

She looked down feeling guilty as she was unable to hold Nick’s hard, piercing gaze. “Nosy much?” She heard him say to her in a cold voice.

She flinched and replied guiltily, “Um… I’m sorry, I was just passing by and-”

“Psh, ‘just passing by’ my ass.” Nick rolled his eyes. “I bet you wanted to listen in on my conversation.”

Pushing down her rising feelings of anger and annoyance, Sam finally had the courage to look at him straight in the eyes.

“It was an accident; I didn’t plan on listening in on your conversation. I said I was sorry, okay?”

“Yeah, whatever” he replied in the same mocking manner that was really getting on her nerves. Here she was trying her best to keep her temper down in order to be nice to him and here he was still being an ass to her. What an ass!

“Look, if you don’t believe me then fine, whatever. Sorry for trying to be nice to you, I’ll make a note not to do it in the future.” Deciding to abandon her trip to the restroom, Sam turned on her heels and began to walk away but was unable to before Nick replied.

“Nice? You call eavesdropping on my personal calls ‘being nice’? Psh, I wonder what you call being mean then.”

Sam, unable to turn down the challenge in his voice, turned back around and faced him. “You know what, what is you’re problem, huh? Here I am trying to be sympathetic and nice to you but all you’re doing is still being your hella-annoying, jerk-ish self.” If she was a cartoon character she was sure that by this point steam would be coming out of her ears. Sam held the folders in one arm as she placed her other on her hip. “Oh, how could I forget? This is how you are; you’re head is always too far up your ass to even hear anything I say.”

Nick grew livid, if he wasn’t already by this point, and his eyes turned into slits. “You know what my problem is? I’ll tell you what. I thought that I just got rid of all my problems but no, how could I forget? One half of my problems came from my, now ex-girlfriend, but the other half is still here – you!” He slightly nudged her shoulder with his index finger to emphasize his point. “You know why? Because you and Amanda are just the same; both of you are bitches! Bitches that always bitch at me for the littlest thing and are always fu-”

Nick would have finished his sentence if Sam hasn’t just slapped him across the face. The sound echoed throughout the hallway. It suddenly turned silent where nothing was heard except their slightly ragged breathing; the silence so thick that it was almost tangible. AJ and Kevin quickly opened the door to the game room and found Sam glaring up at Nick odiously while he slowly turned his head back to her direction, a similar expression on his face.

“Don’t you ever, ever compare me to your slut of a girlfriend, Carter.” If looks could kill, many Backstreet Boys (especially Nick Carter fans) would’ve been devastated after this. Both Sam and Nick stood almost perfectly still, exchanging death glares, trying to keep their bottled up frustrations and anger inside before it did anymore damage than it had already done.

AJ and Kevin stood there quietly just observing, both prepared to act as referees if need be. But they knew that Nick would never actually hit Sam, even if he was seething with contempt at the moment. Both felt the need to say something, anything to help the situation but the tension in the air was stifling and made them feel uneasy. Howie, who was watching the scene from the middle of the hallway a few feet away from them, felt the same as the other two; they all had the urge to help Sam and Nick get along but didn’t really knew what to say without setting one of them off. Or maybe this was just a bad time for making peace. It was best if they had time to cool off before they tried anything.

Finally ending the tense staring contest, Sam turned away from Nick and stormed off towards the living room. Just as she passed by Howie he quietly asked her, “Are you alright?” Not wanting to let her anger out on Howie since he didn’t even do anything, she kept her gaze straight ahead and merely nodded. She then proceeded to climb the stairs presumably to her bedroom.

Keeping his gazed locked at the spot where Sam had been a few moments ago, Nick took a few deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself down. When he looked up he found the gazes of his three band mates directly at him and without a word he left, heading towards the kitchen and presumably outside in the backyard to cool off as well

The three remaining Backstreet Boys gave one another concerned glances before sighing and returning to their previous activities.

~~~~~Later That Evening~~~~~

“Well…”

“C’mon Bea. I wasn’t that bad, was I?” Brian asked as he wiped his shoes on the floor mat before entering the house. Bea followed after Anthony and did the same before removing her shoes and leaving them at the side of the sliding glass doors.

“Well, do you want me to be honest?” Brian nodded in affirmation. “Alright then. You were… okay. You were alright.”

“I was okay? That’s it?! Aww, c’mon.” Brian looked at her incredulously. “I’m no soccer star but I think I was pretty good.”

“Well, compared to Erick…” Bea started as she helped Anthony remove his jacket but never completed her sentence before Brian’s exclamation of protest.

“Hey! You can’t compare me with him it’s not fair!” She shook her head and laughed quietly. Yup, same ol’ Brian; his antics always could make her laugh.

Bea and Brian followed Anthony to the living room where he plopped onto the loveseat and began to curl up and get comfy. Howie smiled and chuckled from his position on the sofa. Bea sat on the footrest next to Anthony and rubbed his back, his eyes began to slowly drift closed. “Anthony, sweetie, don’t fall asleep yet. C’mon baby, I’ll help you to your bed upstairs so you can take your nap there.” Anthony yawned again and shook his head.

“I’m okay, mommy. I’m not sleepy yet.”

“Yes, you are. It’s almost four o’ clock and that’s your usual nap time.”

To prove that he wasn’t the least bit sleepy yet, Anthony sat up and shook his head. “No, I don’t wanna go to sleep yet. I’m not sleepy, mommy.”

Bea gave him a skeptical look before turning to Brian and Howie. “I better change his clothes before he falls asleep here on the couch.” She picked Anthony up and was about to head towards the stairway before Brian stopped her.

“I can do it, Bea. Here, give ‘im to me.”

“Are you sure? You’ve never done this before.” Brian resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

“I know but I’ve taken care of little kids before. Don’t worry; I know what I’m doing.” He carefully took Anthony from his mother’s arms and held him close to his body. Anthony, who was already half asleep from exhaustion, shifted in Brian’s arms and rested his head against the crook of his neck before sighing and drifting further to sleep. Brian smiled softly and climbed up the stairs cradling his son in his arms.

Bea sighed and decided to rest her legs from all the standing, walking, and running she just did outside. “Hey Howie, what’s up?” she asked after plopping down next to him on the sofa. Howie stopped typing on his laptop and sighed before answering her.

“Oh, nothing much,” he said in a slightly exhausted tone. “Just another major argument between Nick and Sam.”

Bea raised a brow and giggled, “Another one? And here I thought by this time they would decide to stop speaking to each other to avoid another argument.”

“C’mon. We’re talking about Samantha dela Cruz and Nick Carter here.” Howie raised a brow to emphasize his point. “They’ve had so many arguments in the past where we all thought that they would stop speaking to each other or that Sam would quit but she hasn’t (not that I want her to, just to let you know). Somehow, they always seem to find some reason to get at each other’s throats again.”

“Hmm, yeah, that’s true.” Bea nodded as a thought came to her. “What I don’t understand is how can they argue so much when they’re pretty much employer and employee.” She paused but before Howie could reply she answered her own question. “Oh! But then again, technically my brother was the one who hired her so she’s technically working for him. She just happens to be helping you guys as your personal assistant.”

Howie nodded “Mhm, pretty much.”

There was a moment of silence with the two just sitting there thinking when Bea broke it with another question. “How bad was the argument this time?”

Howie shut down his laptop and placed it on the center table to give Bea his full attention. “Really bad. It might even be the worse they’ve had so far.”

Bea raised a brow in mild surprise. “Really? Why do you say that?” She folded her legs to the side and let her left arm support her weight.

“Sam slapped Nick. Hard.” Howie slightly flinched at the memory of it. The sound just reverberated throughout the hallway into the living room, and probably the rest of the house, that he jumped up from the couch and practically ran to the source of it.

Bea looked skeptically at Howie. “Ha-ha, that’s a good one D. The girl won’t even let me kill a spider when I see one in the house. I highly doubt that she would actually have the guts to slap someone.”

“Well, either you don’t know your cousin very well or she’s changed because she did slap him.”

“Wow… that’s new. He must have really pushed her this time then. What did he do?”

“Um, well I didn’t hear the whole argument but by the time I got there I heard Sam say something about not to compare her to Amanda.”

“Ooh, yeah. Nick deserved it then.” Bea said plainly which made Howie chuckle at the directness in her voice.

After his chuckles died down and another moment of silence passed, Howie sighed. “I know it’s probably not likely to happen, but I’m hoping, hoping, that they don’t act like that during the entire 100 hour trip.” He slouched further into the couch just imagining those two having a shouting contest inside the enclosed space of the plane while the rest of them tried to get some rest before the next stop. Now, that didn’t seem very appealing.

Beatrice laughed at the painful expression on Howie’s face then nodded in agreement. “Yeah, I understand, buddy. If only we could force those two to get along somehow before you guys leave tomorrow night.”

Howie laughed halfheartedly, “Yeah, if only that were possible…”

The two remained silent, lost in their own thoughts, as they thought of possible ways to get Nick and Sam to stop arguing with each other. It seemed like an impossible task to accomplish when it came to those two because they probably could keep arguing for hours. But everyone had their limits and people got tired, right? So maybe, one possibility could be wearing both of them out until they had no choice but to get along? But on the other hand, what consequences could that plan lead to? Both of them might end up being worse off than they originally were.

Suddenly, Bea gasped as her eyes grew wide with excitement. “I have an idea!”

“No, I’m not going to kill Nick, Bea.” Howie said lightheartedly with a playful roll of his eyes. Bea lightly slapped his arm.

“I wasn’t going to say that, you dork, but that probably would make things a whole lot easier for both sides.” She laughed and repositioned herself on the sofa so that she was facing Howie, legs tucked underneath her. Howie left one leg hanging over the edge of the sofa while the other rested on top of it in an angle.

“Okay, okay. What’s your plan?”

Beatrice smirked mischievously as she lowered her voice as a precaution in case Sam or Nick happened to pass by or be in earshot.

“Okay, well…”