“Man, I can’t believe this is finally it… the big day.” Nick stated to no one in particular as he looked himself over in a large stand mirror. He turned around to face his best friend who was behind him, “How do I look?”

“Like how you did on the cruise.” Brian replied as he began to adjust his bowtie a bit. “A Backstreet Boy going to prom.”

“So then, where’s your prom dress my lovely date?” Nick joked, quickly dodging the hotel chair pillow Brian chucked in his direction.

“Prick.” Brian muttered just as their hotel door opened, revealing Howie and Kevin who walked into the room.

“Glad to see you’re dressed and ready.” Kevin remarked as he looked their youngest brother over, “I was afraid that I’d walk into this room, finding you to still be in your briefs or something.”

“First of all…” Nick started off matter-of-factly as he turned to face the eldest, “This is the year 2011 Kev… I’m a big boy now; I be rocking my Dora the Explorer Pull-Ups as we speak! Second of all, I find it highly disturbing that you were expecting to walk in and see me in my briefs.”

Kevin rolled his eyes and shook his head, “Bro, could you NOT be homo for like a few weeks? You can pull that shit with Brian and AJ, but not with me buddy.”

A knock on the door rendered them silent for a while, before Howie walked over to open the door, allowing a slightly frenzied looking Jenn into their room.

“Well, well shawty, don’t you look beautiful?” Nick cracked as he marveled Jenn’s appearance, to which her brown hair was scrunched to the side, lose curls falling past her shoulders, and wore a short, fitted blood red dress, which were complimented by her black heels and cluth and painfully red lips.

“Have any of you guys seen AJ?” was all that Jenn asked in reply, sounding a bit out of breath.

The four of glanced at each other, realizing for the first time that they were so wrapped up in getting ready that they hadn’t even seen their brother at all today. “To tell you the truth Jenn, we haven’t seen him at all today.” Brian answered, “Last we heard, Q had Mac run him home to get something.”

Jenn released an exasperated sigh as her brows furrowed in panic, “Shit you guys, Rochelle has been looking for him as well and none of us can find him! You don‘t… you don‘t think he‘s gotten cold feet, do you?”

Nick simply waltzed over towards Jenn and reached out to grab her by her shoulders, giving her a gentle, reassuring shake in attempts to calm her down a bit. “Relax Jennay… Rochelle ain’t supposed to see him anyway, it’s like bad luck or some shit like that. As for this whole cold feet nonsense… this is AJ we’re talking about!! He’s been waiting for this moment practically his whole life! If anything, Rochelle would be the one to get cold feet, not him!”

Jenn simply nodded, trying hard to digest and believe what Nick was telling her, “You’re right… he and Mac are probably just running a little late, maybe stuck in traffic or something? I should be on the phone with him right now, trying to figure out where in blazing hell they are!” as she pulled out her phone to make the call, her eyes widened upon seeing the time. “Oh god, it’s time!! You guys need to be out there already and we have a missing groom on our hands!!”

It was Kevin’s turn to try and calm the erratic younger woman down, “Just call AJ or Mac and see where they’re at. We’ll go out there and try to stall it. We won’t let Rochelle know yet that he isn’t here… I really don’t want to distraught the already stressed woman, so we’ll go from there, alright?”

Jenn could only nod as she punched in AJ’s number first, walking out of the hotel room to make the call. Kevin was the next to file out of the room, followed by the remaining three. They made their way down to the elegantly decorated area where the ceremony was to be held and positioned themselves up at the front of the altar.

“Man, I sure hate to be Mac right now…” Nick muttered to Brian, who could only simply agree, “I’m sure Jenn will have his head for screwing up, and Rochelle would probably want to mount it on her mantlepiece.”

Five minutes pased, and nothing. Ten minutes passed, still the same result. Fifteen minutes passed, and Rochelle wasn’t even standing at the end of the aisle. A full twenty minutes had passed after the initial start of the ceremony, and people began to glance around at each other, obviously growing restless and inquisitive of what exactly was going on… or lack thereof.

“I have an unsettling feeling about this you guys…” Howie said to no one in particular as they remained standing at the front of the altar. “This is very unlike AJ…”

Kevin reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone, prepared to call AJ’s cell phone. He was rendered motionless though as he caught sight of Q down at the end of the aisle, now making his way towards them. The look on his face was one that worried them all.

“You guys…” Q started off in a breathy tone.

Kevin immediately shout out for Q and urgently pulled him towards their group, huddling around him so they could hear what he had to say, “I really don’t like that look on your face Q…” Kevin pointed out in a whisper, his features becoming rigid, “What’s going on?”

“AJ’s missing.”

~*~*~*~

He arose to the sound of the classic Christmas song playing from a distant radio. He slowly rose his head from it’s lolled position, his neck protesting in pain as he broght movement to the stiffened muscles. Eyes fluttering, he was greeted by a familiar setting through his blurred vision. Wanting to rub his eyes from the disorientation, he tried to raise his hands but quickly found that it was bound together behind him. His eyes widened upon realizing that he was seated on a chair and his arms were wrenched behind him, metal handcuffs encircled his wrists.

“What the fuck?!” he cried out as he struggled on the chair, tugging hard against the cuffs and realizing that his feet were bound to the chair as well. “SOMEBODY HELP ME!!!” he shouted, hoping that someone, anyone would hear his plea.

“How in the fuck…” he voiced out to himself as he began to look him self over, trying to figure out how he landed here, bound to a chair. The last thing he remembered was being at the hotel, getting ready for his wedding. Sure enough, when he looked himself over, he stil found himself dressed in his tuxedo, the only difference was that his black overcoat remained unbuttoned and opened as his undone bowtie hung around his neck. For the life of him he couldn’t remember how he got here or who even brought him here…

As he continued to struggle, he failed to notice the sound of high heels, clacking painfully against the concrete flooring. “Welcome back Alex.”

AJ looked up at the stranger and gasped.

A crowded room, friends with tired eyes… I’m hiding from you and your soul of ice… my god I thought you were someone to rely on… Me? I guess I was a shoulder to cry on…

“Wha-what’s going on?! What are you doing?!?” AJ asked frantically, his voice seeming to crack with emotion.

“Haven’t you been told to never accept drinks from someone you don’t know?” the female stranger asked as she dragged a chair across the room. AJ winced upon hearing the wooden legs of the chair scrape painfully across the cement, until she situated the chair across from him and sat down. She simply smiled, pearly white teeth peering out from behind her crimson red painted lips.

A face on a lover with a fire in his heart, a man undercover but you’ve torn me apart… oooh-hooo, now I’ve found a real love, you’ll never fool me again…

“We spiked the drink that was sent to you… it was that easy.” she continued as she crossed one leg over the other.

AJ wracked his brain for the memory of it all. He remembered being separated from Rochelle, he was in one hotel room while she was in another, both getting ready. He had called his brothers to make sure they were getting ready themselves. He remembers hearing a knock on the door just as he finished tidying up himself, and had opened the door to be greeted by room service, which was presented by a male worker. It was a lone champagne flute with a written note from Rochelle that said, “Now I can rest my worries and always be sure, that I won’t be alone anymore… Now and forever, you will be my man. Love, your monkee.” They had spiked that drink.

“Remember what happened to you guys last Christmas?” she asked as she rose from the chair and began to walk circles around him, “The hostage situation up at the lodge? That was only the beginning sweetheart… this isn’t over, not by a longshot.” she shot her hand out, roughly grabbing him by his chin and forcing him to look at her; her nails dug painfully into the delicate flesh of his cheeks, “We’re here to finish it… and believe me, we will finish it.”

She bent down, her face hovering close to his, her red blood-red lips ghosting over his. As she tried to kiss him, he quickly turned his head, causing her lips to be placed on his cheek instead. She simply smiled as she straightened herself back up. “Well, it’s been fun, but I have a wedding to go to…” she said as she turned and began walking away, “I’ve got some very lovely people to see.”

AJ’s eyes widened as he struggled even more in attempts to get free. “Don’t you DARE FUCKING TOUCH THEM!!” he screamed as he continued to pull at his binds, but his threats fell on nothing but deaf ears as the radio seemed to drown out his voice.

Last Christmas I gave you my heart, but the very next day you gave it away… this year, to save me from tears, I’ll give it to someone special…