Tampa Gen, the tiny window on the phone projected, and he knew what that stood for.
Tampa General Hospital.
His heart leapt into his throat, while his stomach dropped like a rock in water. He immediately felt hot all over, but when he shakily pressed the talk button and put the phone to his ear, his hands were ice cold.
“He-hello?” he answered hoarsely, filled with a sensation of dread at the news that awaited him on the other end of the line. He knew it had to do with Claire, and he feared the worst. That something had happened, that she had gotten even worse.
That she was dead.
“Nick? It’s Carrie. I hope I didn’t wake you up,” came the voice of Claire’s mother.
“No... no, you didn’t,” lied Nick. “Uh... what’s up?”
“I just had to tell you the good news. Claire’s fever broke!”
It took a moment for him to comprehend. Claire’s fever broke... Claire’s fever broke! That meant she was getting better! He let out the breath he’d been holding in a whoosh of relief. “That’s... that’s great!” he exclaimed. “So she’s going to be okay?”
“Well, she’s not quite out of the woods yet... there’s still the potential of another infection or rejection... but things are looking better. Her bloodwork looks good; her white count is down, meaning the infection is going away.”
“Oh,” Nick said knowingly, pretending he knew exactly what a “white count” was. “Well, thank God.”
“I know,” sighed a frazzled-sounding Carrie. He could only imagine the amount of stress she’d been under these past two weeks. It was bad enough having to watch a friend go through what Claire had been through, but she’d had to deal with the threat of losing her only daughter.
“Thanks for letting me know,” Nick said gratefully, still overwhelmed with relief. “I’ll be up to the hospital later to see her, if that’s okay.”
“That’s fine,” replied Carrie, and she sounded like she was smiling. “Thank you for being there for her. I know how busy you must be; Claire said you were getting ready to go into the studio with your band. I really appreciate you taking the time to visit her like this. You mean the world to her, you know.”
Nick’s cheeks turned pink as he smiled sheepishly, pressing the phone tightly to his ear. “It’s nothing,” he said. “Claire means a lot to me too. I’ll always be there for her.”
But in just over a week, he’d be on his way to Los Angeles, California, leaving behind his nightmare world of cancer and all that went with it... including Claire.
***
With Claire steadily getting better, Nick felt perfectly comfortable going to LA to regroup with the Backstreet Boys and wrap up the album. He’d visited Claire every day since he’d returned home to Tampa, and since the early morning phone call from her mother, her condition had improved a little with each passing day. The infection was gone now, and all she had to do was gain back her strength and make sure that her body accepted Kyle’s bone marrow.
She expected to be in the hospital for another few weeks at least, and though he hated to leave her, she insisted that he go back to work and do the thing that made him happy – singing. She would have her family and other friends by her side, and so, after making sure that Carrie still had his cell number – “just in case” – he went ahead with the plans to get back into the studio.
The Boys would not be staying in a hotel this time around, but instead at AJ’s LA mansion, which had been occupied only by him ever since his ex-fiancée, Sarah, had moved out earlier that year. There was plenty of room for Nick, Brian, and Howie to stay. Kevin would not be sleeping there, since he had his own home in the area and wanted to at least spend his nights at home with Kristin, who AJ had kindly banned from coming over while they were working. Nick was relieved for AJ’s “no wives/girlfriends allowed” rule; he wanted it to be just the five of them. He had thought Brian would protest, wanting to bring Leighanne and Baylee out with him, but surprisingly he did not.
The album seemed to be top priority for all of them now, and they were excited to get it finished and put out. They were hoping for an early 2004 release, and even if they accomplished that, it would still be over three years since Black and Blue had come out. Way too long of a hiatus, in Nick’s opinion. Though he had enjoyed his time off (except for the last five months, of course) and had been thrilled with the opportunity to become involved in other projects and put out a solo album, Backstreet would always come first with him, and there was nothing quite like singing in the studio with the five men who had become his big brothers and best friends.
Nick, Brian, and Howie arrived in LA on early flights, and so luckily, they did not have to battle much of a crowd as they met up with AJ and Kevin and tracked down their luggage. AJ complained loudly about how early in the morning it was, but Nick, who was still thinking in Florida time, was fine by now – it was three hours later in Tampa.
“How about breakfast?” Kevin suggested as they rode home from the airport in AJ’s SUV.
“I dunno about y’all, but I’m not too hungry,” admitted Brian. “I ate on the plane – what about you two?” He looked from Howie to Nick.
“Yeah, they served us breakfast,” Howie nodded.
“Same here,” added Nick. “Maybe we could just stop and grab some munchies?”
“Sounds good to me,” said AJ and stopped at the next convenience store. Inside the store, they split up and set off in opposite directions, Nick and Brian immediately heading to the junk food aisles to stock up on chips, candy, and soda. They eyed the cases of beer, but decided against it, for they didn’t feel right drinking in front of AJ, and Nick wasn’t supposed to mix alcohol with his medications anyway.
They met up with the other three outside and got back into the car for the ride to AJ’s house.
“Damn it, Carter, you better not be getting fucking donut wax all over my seats,” AJ growled from the driver’s seat when Nick cracked open a box of Hostess chocolate donut gems in the backseat.
“Donut wax?” repeated Kevin, wrinkling his nose in disgust.
“Yeah, donut wax. Haven’t you had those things before? I don’t know what in God’s name they’re made of, but they sure as hell ain’t normal donuts. They’re all coated in this wax-like shit.”
“Waxy delicious!” Nick called from the back, licking his fingers.
“Mmm,” Brian chimed in heartily, biting into a ding-dong.
“Same with you, Brian! I swear to God, if I find a bunch of ding-dong goo and cream filling encrusted all over the upholstery tomorrow, I’m gonna-“
“Why don’t you shut up and watch the road, Bone, not us!” Brian shouted as AJ inadvertently coasted into the other lane.
“Fuck,” the younger man cursed under his breath as he swerved back into his own lane.
“And seriously, Bone, when did you get so anal and OCD? You sound like Kevin!” Nick called, and Brian laughed hysterically and slapped him a high five.
“As soon as I park this car, I’m gonna kick your ass, Carter!” threatened AJ, as Kevin suddenly comprehended Nick’s crack on him and issued an offended, “Hey!”
The teasing continued for the whole rest of the trip, and for the first time in months, Nick felt like things were totally back to normal. Okay, so Howie, Brian, and Kevin had all asked him how he’d been feeling before anything else at the airport... but other than that, his cancer had not been brought up, and no one seemed to be afraid to joke around in front of him anymore.
Thank God, Nick thought happily, stifling a giggle as he watched Brian deviously flick tiny dollops of ding-dong cream into a clueless Howie’s hair. Thank God.
***
