Somewhere I Belong: The Sequel to Accidentally In Love by Teri
Chapter 1: Tainted Love by Teri
Author's Notes:
Okay ladies Chapter One of the sequel. Hope you all enjoy and let me know what you think!! Anyways if you haven't read the prequel AIL I suggest you do so or you'll be totally lost lol.
Somewhere I Belong

Somewhere I Belong: The Sequel to Accidentally In Love

Chapter One: Tainted Love

Nick trudged into the hotel room, sufficiently miffed. He’d been near raging for days, mainly at himself for his own stupidity. He knew what she wanted, understood it, and was completely willing to give it to her, just at the time she told him he didn’t know how to react. Now it was his birthday, his 26th and here he was in Australia where they had been just a few weeks before so completely happy and tangled up in each other but now he’s alone.

He flopped down on the bed letting his legs hang off the side as he put his hands over his face wondering exactly how he’d gotten to where he was. It had already made the rounds on the message boards that he and Alyssa were ‘broken up’ despite his many attempts to claim that they’d just had a bad fight and were going to be okay. It could have been the fact that he wasn’t even sure that they would be okay that made the fans see through his own line of bull.

All of a sudden his sidekick began to ring, the ring tone he’d designated for Alyssa’s number. Surely she wouldn’t be calling him now would she? He picked up the phone answering it, “Hello?”

“Oh…ummm…hi…” Alyssa replied stammering she didn’t expect him to answer, she just wanted to leave him a voice mail.

His heart leapt up into his throat hearing her voice, “Alyssa…” He stated almost unsure if the phone call was real.

She sighed, “Yeah, that’d be me…” She paused taking a breath. “I was just….calling to umm….tell you happy birthday.”

He grinned, genuinely grinned for the first time in days. “Thank you…” He replied not really knowing what else to say.

“Did you get everything you wanted?” She asked without even really thinking, it was a question they always asked each other on their birthdays.

“No…”

Alyssa sighed, “What do you mean?” She asked knowing what he was going to say.

“I don’t have you, so no I didn’t have everything I want this year.” His voice sad, full of pain.

Alyssa bit her lip trying not to cry, “Nick, let’s not do this…I can’t deal with both of our emotions right now, I can barely handle my own.”

A tear slide down his cheek at her words, “So, umm how’s work?” He asked trying to change the subject despite the waver in his voice.

Alyssa sighed again and spoke softly, “Work’s good, been really busy with the students and such. And…ummm…I bought a condo.”

His heart sank a little lower, “You’re moving out of our house?”

“It was never ‘our’ house, it was yours, I was just there because I wanted to be with you. And that’s over now…”

He sighed, “Are we really going to do this?”

“Do what?” She asked.

“Let one stupid fight ruin the best thing that’s ever happened to either of us?” He asked fully aware of the leap of faith he was making.

“Nick, I…I love you, I want to be with you more than anything but I can’t follow you around forever. We both said things that hurt one another, and you can’t just take them back.”

“But I didn’t mean them, I was just talking out of shock and disappointment.”

“You did mean them or you wouldn’t have said them.”

“I love you Lissa.” He replied almost above a whisper.

Alyssa sighed, “I know and I love you too, very much so, and when you get back maybe we could try again but, I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?”

“Nick I think we need to be apart from each other just for a little while, I need to establish that I can take care of myself.”

“But I like taking care of you.”

Alyssa sighed, “I know you do and I love that you want to be the one to provide for me but if you really want us to work then I need to have a career. I need to feel like I make a contribution to the relationship besides just being a Backstreet Boy’s girlfriend. But anyways you must be exhausted from the show I’ll let you get some sleep.” She replied grinning a little into the phone.

“I love you.”

“I love you too, good night lover.” She said as she hung up the phone hoping that by re-opening the lines of communication that eventually it’d all work out.

He smiled as he set his phone down, she called him ‘lover’, that word alone gave him hope that everything would be ok.

The next afternoon…

AJ walked over sitting down and handed Nick a can of soda. “So how are you doing lately?”

Nick sighed, “I’m doing a little better, Ali called last night.”

All of the guys immediately looked up from whatever they were doing to look at him, a little shocked at his statement.

“What did she say?” Brian asked concerned, ever since Nick’s announcement that they’d broken up he’d been acutely aware, as well as the others had, of how miserable Nick was.

He sighed, “She called to wish me a happy birthday. We talked, she bought a condo and is moving her stuff out of the house.” He stated as he watched their expressions go from hopeful to sad.

“So no hope there?” Howie asked sincerely hoping for his own friend’s sanity that this whole mess would clear up.

“I don’t know right now. She said she loves me and wants to be with me, but that she needs to be sure that she can support herself and make a contribution to our relationship instead just being a trophy girlfriend.” Nick explained.

Kevin’s expression softened, “Kristin and I were like that for a while. She was desperately trying to prove that she could take care of herself and I just wanted to take care of her. But we got through it.”

“How?” Nick asked figuring he should do the same.

“I gave her freedom to take care of herself and what she needed to do. It paid off obviously, we got married after that and couldn’t have been happier since.”

“I hope that works for us.”

“Give it time.”

Meanwhile…

“Alyssa I’m so glad you came out tonight.” Kellie announced as she handed Alyssa a drink from behind the bar.

Alyssa gave her a weak smile, “Yeah I figured that hanging out at an LA hotspot while my best friend works the bar would be such a great time.” She retorted sarcastically.

Kellie rolled her eyes at her, “Well I’ll be here if you need me.” She replied before turning back to the drunken masses.

Alyssa stared at her drink, a cosmopolitan. Most people call it a girlie drink because of it’s pink color, however it’s one of the strongest cocktails around. Alyssa took a sip loving the burn of alcohol down her throat.

In the middle of her haze she heard, “Is this seat taken?”

She looked to her right side and blinked a couple of times at the man standing before her, tall, dark brown hair, model like looks. Absolutely breathtakingly hot. “Umm no it’s not.” She replied stammering.

The man grinned at her and sat down ordering a vodka martini, dry, with two olives.

“That’s quite a drink you ordered.” Alyssa stated not even realizing she was speaking out loud.

The man smiled wider at her, “Well it’s a complicated night, I’m celebrating and also nursing a recent breakup.”

“What are you celebrating?” Alyssa asked she couldn’t believe how easily she talked to him.

He sighed, “The critics are raving about my first starring role.”

Alyssa’s eyebrows raised, “You’re an actor I take it then.”

He nodded, “Yeah, I am.”

“What’s your name?” She asked.

He looked at her a moment and then stuck out his hand, “Brandon Routh and you are?”

Alyssa smiled shaking his hand, “Alyssa Monroe. So that’s Routh like south right?”

He grinned, “Yeah, of the Norwalk, Iowa Rouths.”

“You were saying that you’re nursing a breakup what happened?”

“My girlfriend Courtney and I had a fight and broke up, we’ll probably be okay, we’ve had that happen before.”

Alyssa nodded, “I can totally sympathize.”

“Do you have a boyfriend?” He asked his eyes sparkling in the low light of the club.

“Yes….no….I don’t know.” Alyssa said her brow furrowing in frustration.

“You seem confused about that.” He joked.

Alyssa sighed, “My boyfriend Nick and I had a really stupid fight not too long ago, and we broke up kind of like you and your girl, Courtney. And he’s away on business right now and I just miss him you know?”

Brandon nodded in agreement, “Understandable, I bet he’s on his business trip kicking himself for losing such a great girl.”

Alyssa blushed at the obvious flirtation. Just then Kellie appeared having watched them not liking the casual flirting between them. “Hey girlie I’m off now let’s go.” She announced pulling on Alyssa’s arm.

Alyssa turned to Brandon for a second grinning at him, “It was nice to meet you Brandon.”

“You too, can I call you sometime we can trade dating horror stories?” Brandon offered taking out his cell phone handing it to her.

Alyssa took programming in her phone number and handed it back to him before she was whisked away out of the club by Kellie.

Once outside Kellie stopped, “What the hell are you doing?”

Alyssa shot her a look, “What do you mean?”

Kellie opened her car door as they both got inside the car, “Hello, you gave your phone number to a complete stranger. A guy no less!”

Alyssa rolled her eyes, “So what he was nice and he has a girlfriend. I can’t talk to another guy now?”

Kellie sighed, “But what about Nick?”

Alyssa looked out the window and stayed silent for the rest of the drive.



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