Angel Carter greeted the people along her way as she walked towards her brother. She saw Nick talking animatedly to AJ and Kevin and then they are laughing. Everyone seems to be having fun at the post-tour party in LA. The Backstreet Boys just came two days ago from their last leg of the world tour in Australia. “Yes, I saw him!” she excitedly said.
“Maybe I can try it sometime. It sounds like it wasn’t bad at all,” AJ said when she got near.
“Hi, Nick.” Angel smiled to her brother’s friends.
“Excuse me, guys,” Nick went to his sister. “What’s up, Angel? You seemed excited.” He puts his arm on her shoulders. No matter how old Angel is now, she will always be his little sister. Why, he’s protective of her, considering how gorgeous she is now. That’s the main reason that he had her living in his house when she’s in LA for her gigs. Somehow, he wanted to keep up on what’s going around with his sister.
“I’m okay, Nick,” Angel giggled. “I just came from the studio and went straight here. It’s traffic out at the boulevard and when I got here, the guards have to ask for my ID. Good thing is, Kristin and Leighanne saw me outside. If not for them, I wouldn’t know what to do.”
“Glad you came,” Nick said and hugged her. “I miss you, sis. Any news about Leslie and Mike? I haven’t heard about them since their wedding in Vegas last July.”
“I’ve talked with her on the phone the other day. She’s fine. BJ’s cool, too. I went to the restaurant where she works and I spotted her being scolded by the manager. I don’t know what happened but hey, it’s BJ.” Angel rolled her eyes. “Aaron’s out somewhere. I tried to call him but his phone’s off.” She saw her brother nodded and gestured her towards the buffet table. “Good, I’m starved.”
“I’ve always thought that models starve themselves but not you,” Nick chuckled as he does the serving for his sister.
“That’s Paris for you, Nick. I don’t deprive myself from eating anything I want as long as I have the discipline. That’s the keyword there, Nick.” Angel smiled. “By the way, Julie says hi. Do you remember her? My friend who lives in Florida.”
“Yeah, I know her. I remember your friends somehow, no matter how many they are.”
“Good because I was wondering if you could ask her out, you know…” she continued. “She’s a nice woman plus she’s fun.”
“I can have the fun I want anytime,” Nick retorted.
She rolled her eyes. “Come on, Nick. It’s nice to have someone once in a while. You can forget about the past. She’s gone and we don’t know where. You should move on just as she probably is now.”
Nick faced his sister and gave the plate to her. He stared down to her. “You really don’t like her, do you?”
“I don’t know her.”
“There was never a chance then.”
“Yes, and because she never gave any,” Angel answered. “You were serious, why couldn’t she?” she rolled her eyes and then walked away. Nick watched her and then went on the opposite way.
~~~
Anna’s heart is beating fast when she reached the Rockefeller Center for the Today Show and saw that there are already lots of people crowding around. She quickly tied her long black hair and tipped her feet to somehow see what’s going on. She learned that the Backstreet Boys are going to be the guests on the morning show and they will be having a mini-concert outside. She wanted to take a glimpse of them, even from afar.
“Are they here already?” she asks a blonde woman who’s carrying a poster of the Boys.
“Not yet, I think. The guard said that they’ll be arriving in Brian’s car.”
Anna didn’t know how could the woman know that but at least, she got an info. She gathered her jacket close as she feels the cold weather again. She’s still learning to get used to it. Thanksgiving Day will be two days from now and her uncle invited her to fly to LA to join them. She immediately secured a plane ticket to LA and will be flying tomorrow. But right now, she will take a chance to see Nick and his group perform live. But mainly, she wanted to see Nick.
She was unintentionally pushed aside when there was sudden commotion. They must have arrived! She looked around and she caught sight of a big black SUV pulled in front of the building. There were men in suits that surround it and she recognized Marcus among them. They are here! She drew a deep breath as she tried to catch a sight of Nick. There were excited shrieks and calls coming from the fans that surround her. She was pushed back again and she sighed in resignation. She just saw the back of the five men dashing inside the building. They’re gone. The fans followed towards the stage area that was set up beside the building.
Anna is on the verge of crying because of frustration. She didn’t see Nick. She bit her lower lip as she wearily stood beside a light post.
“Anna?”
She turned around and saw Marcus. Her eyes widened. “Marcus…” she straightened her stand. “How is he?”
“He’s fine. Come inside with me. I know he’ll be glad to see you.”
“I’m afraid, Marcus.”
“Silly. Come with me, Anna.” She was about to reply when a group of fans approached Marcus and asked him about the Boys. She discreetly wiped her tears. One fan turned to her.
“Hey, aren’t you Anna Gomez? Nick’s ex?”
“Huh?” The attention was on her now. She looked in panic at Marcus.
“Why are you here?” one of the fans raised an eyebrow. “Do you still wish that once Nick will see you, he’ll get you back?”
“N-no. It’s not that. I just came to say hi,” Anna is not used to this kind of attention from people she doesn’t even know. She gasped when Marcus took her hand and quickly led her inside the building. The fans were left behind as they were barred by the security in the building’s lobby.
“There you are, Marcus! Do you think that the…” AJ suddenly came out from a conference room and his voice trailed off when he saw Anna. “Oh, my God.” He hugged her. “I’ll call Nick.”
Anna gripped his arm tightly. “AJ, will he be glad to see me? I mean, it’s a long time and I wanted to explain. Things happened that I wasn’t able to make contact to him or even to my family.”
“It’s alright. He’d be glad to see you.”
Anna hesitated to believe him. Nick might be mad at her. They turned when it was Nick who came out from the room. He stopped when he saw her. He’s about to speak when the floor director of the show called them from the inside. AJ excused himself and went in. Nick hesitated to move at first, still unable to speak. “Don’t leave,” he tells her. He nodded at Marcus and then went inside the room. Anna turned to Marcus.
“You have to come with me, sweetheart.”
