The hall was quiet and still as the guests lay in peaceful slumber, immersed in a world of dreams and illusion, securely covered in their warm hotel beds. The only sound heard in the dead of night was the almost inaudible sound of someone crying just beyond the balcony doors on the 15th floor – the Backstreet Boys’ floor. At least, that was the only sound Paige could hear as she carefully made her way down the darkened hall, each silent step taking her closer to the mystery sound and the owner of the heart-wrenching cries.

The sight she found upon reaching her destination couldn’t have been a more shocking scene, witnessed with her own eyes in the dead quiet of the late Seattle night. In a small, plastic chair, in the far right corner of the balcony, sat none other than Mr. Brian Littrell himself, lost in a world of misery and tears. Despite his previous actions from earlier that day, Paige couldn’t help but feel pity for the broken man in front of her, wanting nothing more than to reach out to him and comfort him the way she wished someone would comfort her.

“Brian?” she slowly questioned, letting him accommodate for her sudden appearance. “Brian, are you alright?” she asked, concerned by the man’s lack of control. “I mean, obviously you’re not alright, but is there something I can do? Can I help?”

“What are you doing here?” he hissed, clearly startled and humiliated by her presence. “Just leave me alone.”

“Brian, I didn’t mean to scare you, but I…” she started to respond, only to be cut off mid-sentence by his angry, harsh words.

“I SAID LEAVE ME ALONE!” he growled, his face turning red with his mounting rage, his eyes turning glassy as he continued to glare at the woman in front of him – the only person to see him cry since his divorce. “Is it too much to ask to get a little privacy around here? Does everyone always have to stick their noses into my business? Just go away.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean… I just wanted… I’ll just go,” she stumbled, flustered by his sudden outburst. “I’m really sorry,” she added, turning and running quickly in the direction of her room, shaken by the anger and ferocity she’d seen in his eyes.

“Paige? Paige, wait. What happened?” Serine questioned, chasing after her friend as she raced down the hallway in a desperate attempt to get away from her verbal attacker. “PAIGE!” she screamed, trying to catch up to the shivering, frightened woman who was currently fumbling with her hotel key, obviously in a hurry to get into the safe confines of her hotel room.

“I didn’t mean to… I just wanted to… I never meant to…I wanted…” she stuttered, still shaken by the harshness in Brian’s tone as he had yelled at her just moments before. “I didn’t mean to upset him.”

“Paige, look at me. Tell me what happened,” Serine calmly instructed, grasping onto Paige in an attempt to soothe her frayed nerves. “What did he say to you? What happened?” she pleaded, unable to believe that Brian could cause this kind of a reaction in her normally level-headed friend.

“He was so angry. I just wanted to help and he just started yelling!” Paige recalled, her eyes wide with fear. She was still shivering, but at least she was no longer hysterical.

“Oh, honey, I told you he’s not the same man he once was. You shouldn’t let him affect you like this. He’s not himself right now, and it’s better to just leave him alone at this point. He’s the only one who can help himself now. It’s better if you just ignore him like the rest of us do,” Serine advised, glancing cautiously down the hall for any signs of the topic at hand. “Leighanne did a real number on him. Don’t get me wrong, she’s the sweetest person you could ever meet, but he loved her so much that, now, he doesn’t know what to do without her. Don’t take it personal.”

“What did she do to him?” she wondered out loud, her mind wandering to thoughts of what could have possibly turned him from the Southern gentleman she had idolized to the cruel man he was today.

“I don’t know. No one does. He won’t talk to anyone. He pretends like nothing’s wrong in interviews and on TV, but as soon as the cameras are gone, he’s back to being Cranky-Pants-Littrell again. He spends his days sulking and his nights are spent locked away, alone, in his room,” Serine regretfully sighed, staring at Brian as he made his way back to his room, all signs of his tears gone, leaving his usual scowl in their wake.

“What about Baylee?” Paige asked, her eyes following Brian’s movements carefully, a look of pity crossing her face as she watched him look himself away – using his hotel door as a barrier between him and the rest of the world.

“Sometimes he spends his nights with Baylee – but most of the time he leaves Baylee with his nanny, Erica,” Serine explained, motioning to the room right next to Brian’s where Erica and Baylee were staying for the night.

“Poor kid,” Paige sighed, wondering what the ramifications of Brian’s actions would be regarding his son. “I hope this doesn’t change him. He’s too young to have such a burden to deal with. I just hope someone can break through to Brian soon before it starts affecting Baylee.”

“Me too,” Serine responded. “I just hope it’s not already too late.”

“God help him.”

“Whew! What a day! I’m exhausted,” Casey yawned, tired after spending all day sightseeing in Seattle with Paige before heading to the venue for the Boys’ show. “I don’t know how I’m going to stay awake during the concert,” she joked, knowing that as soon as the show began, she would be wide-awake.

“You have to admit, though, that you had fun sampling all those different types of coffee. Never in my life have I seen so many different coffee houses on one street,” Paige exclaimed, amazed that one city could have so many different brands of coffee.

“I did! But maybe I should have gotten regular instead of decaf. I think I’m in need of an energy boost. I’m gonna go get something to drink. Want anything?” she questioned, already headed off in search of a the coke machine.

“Naw. Unlike you, I had the regular coffee. I’ll be lucky if I can get to bed before 3 in the morning at this rate,” she kidded, laughing as Casey rolled her eyes and shook her head in disbelief.

“I’ll be right back,” she promised.

“Alright,” Paige agreed, smiling.

Still hyped up from the large amounts of caffeine flowing through her veins, Paige decided to explore the venue a little bit before Casey came back from her coke hunt, too anxious to just stand still.

As she rounded the corner for the hallway containing the dressing rooms, she heard the quiet sniffles that could only come from a crying child. The sight she found when she entered the hall was enough to make her heart break and tears well up in her eyes. Sitting outside one of the dressing rooms sat Baylee, tears streaming down his reddened cheeks while he sat there wiping his nose on his sleeve.

She cautiously approached him, not wanting to startle the boy, but wanting to comfort him somehow. “Hey. Do you mind if I sit with you?” she asked, smiling sweetly at the young kid as he looked up at his companion.

“You can sit if you want,” he mumbled, wiping his tears while she took her seat beside him. “Who are you? I don’t think I know you,” he asked, looking up at her with curiosity in his shining blue orbs.

“I’m Paige. I’m friends with Howie and Nick. You’re Baylee, right? Brian’s son?” she asked, giving him a quick nudge with her shoulder and a huge, mega-watt smile, showing him that she already knew who he was.

“Yeah…” he sighed, his eyes watering at the mention of his father.

“Do mind if I ask why you’re crying?” she gently probed, not wanting him to feel pressured, but wanting to help him nonetheless.

“My daddy yelled at me. He said I was talking too much and made his head hurt. I didn’t mean to make his head hurt. I just wanted to tell him about Sheattle,” he explained, his eyes wide with innocence.

“Your daddy’s just stressed. I’m sure he didn’t mean to yell at you. You can tell me about Seattle if you want to,” she offered, watching as the smile returned to Baylee’s face and the gleam returned to his eyes.

“Really?” he asked, his face glowing at the prospect of sharing his adventures with someone else.

“Really,” she confirmed, smiling at the young boy as he began recalling his day sightseeing around Seattle with Erica. He was so animated, using his whole body to tell his story about the boat ride and his trip to Starbucks.

“And then, on the boat, there were birds flying in the air. One of them landed on the roof, but then he got scared away by the horn. And the captain let me blow the horn and drive the boat. It was AWESOME!” he exclaimed, causing Paige to laugh her appreciation.

“Oh yeah?” she asked, letting him know she was still listening.

“Yeah! And then we got to feed the birds and we went to the coffee place and then we went to this big thing in the sky that goes up and down and we ate in the sky thingy. I forgot what it’s called, but it was so cool! Daddy would have been afraid. He doesn’t like heights,” Baylee added, referring to the Space Needle.

“He’s afraid of heights, huh?” she asked.

“Yeah. He doesn’t like heights. He gets scared when we go on the plane, but Uncle Kevin likes to fly the planes. He told me that he was going to teach me to fly planes someday. And then I can help daddy not be afraid of heights anymore,” Baylee gleefully added, showing obvious love for his father despite the day’s prior events. “Do you think daddy’s still mad at me?” he asked, his innocent question bringing tears to Paige’s eyes.

“No. I don’t think your daddy was ever mad at you, Bayles. I think he’s just upset. Your daddy loves you. Very much. And I don’t think he could stay mad for very long,” she soothed, trying to reassure the young boy about his father’s love – which had obviously been lacking over the last few months.

“I think he’s upset about Mommy,” Baylee admitted, looking down, a pout covering his previously cheerful face. “Mommy left us. She said she met another daddy. She told me that she would always love me, even if her and daddy weren’t together anymore. I think Daddy’s upset because mommy doesn’t love him anymore,” Baylee observed, proving to Paige just how intelligent and observant he really was.

“I think you’re right, Baylee. Now we just have to figure out how to make your daddy happy again,” she told him, conspiring with Baylee to try and find a way to bring back the old Brian. If anyone would know how to do it, Brian’s son would.

“Maybe we should buy him chocolate!” Baylee exclaimed, excitedly.

“Chocolate, huh? Your dad likes chocolate? Do you know his favorite kind?” she asked, a plan already forming in her mind.

“Milk Chocolate!” Baylee proudly exclaimed, a smile spreading across his face.

“Okay. Tomorrow, we’ll bring your daddy some chocolate, but we can’t tell anyone. It has to be a surprise,” Paige persuaded, smiling at the excitement in his eyes.

“Okay!” he yelled, wanting to make his daddy happy again.

“Baylee! My man, there you are. Your dad is freaking out. You better go find him, little dude, before he gets mad,” Nick announced, approaching quickly.

“Uh oh. I’m in trouble,” Baylee whispered to Paige, giggling at the look on Paige’s face. “Daddy’s mad.”

“You better go find him before he gets madder. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay, Bales?” Paige confirmed, smiling at the boy.

“Okay! Bye Paige! Bye Nick!”

“Bye kiddo!”  they responded in unison, laughing at themselves.

“So what were you talking to the Little Man about?” Nick questioned, smiling at the look of complete bliss on Paige’s face.

“Everything,” she laughed, remembering how Baylee kept changing the conversation every few seconds. He was so full of energy, and it reminded her of her own son when he was that age. “He’s a good kid,” she whispered, watching as he finally turned the corner into his father’s dressing room. “I just hope his father realizes what he has before it’s too late.”

“Me too. Baylee needs his father now more than ever, and Brian just keeps blowing him off. I don’t know how much more the kid can take. I just hope Brian gets his head outta his ass before it’s too late,” Nick announced, sighing in defeat.

“Don’t worry, Nicky. I’m working on it,” she stated, a sense of determination flooding her veins as she thought about Baylee and how upset he had been when she had first found him. “He’s not giving up on Baylee without a fight from me. That kid needs his father, and if it’s the last thing I do, he’ll get him.”