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Author's Chapter Notes:
hey guys!

Sorry about lack of updates. I'm technically on a little hiatus right now due to medical reasons but I wanted to post this chapter. I was working on it before I had my emergency and just finished it. I thought today was a good day to post it with all the Kevin drama going on. I'm not sure when the next update will be. You'll have to be patient with me.

I'm okay though, so no worries, okie dokie?

34



The Meeting of the Guardians






I was just about to fall asleep when I heard the doorbell. I looked over at my sleeping child and lifted his head off of my lap and placed it on the lap of my sleeping wife. Thomas the Tank Engine had managed to put my entire family to sleep, not that this completely surprised me because it did not, but still…if we had watched a movie of my choosing I’m sure we’d all still be wide awake. I’m not stupid though, both Leighanne and I are well aware of who really runs our house.



I smiled at that thought as I opened the door to find AJ and Howie standing there.



“I hope we didn’t wake you…we saw your light on and thought we’d stop by.”



I opened the door and let them in, “No, not at all, I mean Bay and Leigh are sleeping but I’m awake.”



“See D, I told you. Now that he has a kid they go to bed at like 8 at night.”



“Shut up and come inside.” I shook my head at AJ as he walked in and I shut the door.



“So what were you guys doing? I didn’t know you were going to be on a date.”



“I wasn’t planning on it but I got a call from Kevin asking me to pick up Bean at the airport.”



I winced at the mention of Nick’s dumb friend. “Ugh, why you?”



“Paris broke up with Nicky tonight, officially.”



“Oh…” I had mixed feelings. Don’t get me wrong; those feelings didn’t concern me being the least bit upset about Paris. More so the fact that I wasn’t the first one to find out, he called Bean before me.



Back in the day, whenever Nick was upset about anything, I was the one he called on. He had told me that no one else could make him feel better. I was the only one that ever helped him get over things. Even though I often shrugged it off and sometimes would even roll my eyes when I saw him walking towards me with tears brimming in his, there was always that part of me that felt pride that he trusted me more than anyone else. I was his savior many more times than I’d care to admit. The fact that I was being replaced by Rob left me feeling sad and melancholy.



“I wish he had called me instead.”



“I do too Brian.” Howie added, sensing my petty pangs of jealousy.



“So I guess that means they’re out partying then?”



“Most likely” AJ answered as he sat down and put his elbows on my kitchen table.



“He should really not be going out and drinking. What he needs to do is sit and talk it all out. You know how Nick is.”



“Yup.” They both answered at the same time, sounding defeated in some way.



It really bothered me that we weren’t as close as we used to be, Nick and I. There are many things I don’t miss about those times, mostly just the way he used to constantly follow me around even when I needed my alone time. But then other times, like playing basketball til all hours of the night to see who would collapse from exhaustion first. Or making a bet to see who could stuff the most marshmallows in their mouth and recite the alphabet without chocking, when I think back to those times, I almost get misty eyed.



“I wish we hung out more.”



“He needs you.” Howie sounded very serious when he said that and just like way back at the hotel our first night back here, I knew he wanted to say more, but this time he refrained. Was it my fault that Nick and I had lost touch with each other? Maybe a little but I think it was both of us. Many times during the hiatus, I tried to reach out to him by leaving him a text message or voice mail. Just to let him know I was thinking about him but he never once replied.



I hate to say it, but I think it was his jealousy of my wife that did it. He was just so young in so many ways. Not even talking about his age, and that I blame on his parents.



He always said that we grew him up, made him into the man he is today. Why is that man so different when he is with Bean than when he is with one of us?



“He always gets himself into trouble with Bean.” I vocalized walking over the fridge.



“Yup.” They both once again answered. This time I laughed. We knew each other so well that we could really be one person. I’m sure that would make AJ happy because then he really would be married to my wife. Who walked out yawning just as I was thinking that.



“I didn’t even hear the doorbell.” She said holding Baylee in her arms as he snored lightly.



“Sorry, I hope we didn’t wake you.” AJ stood up and leaned over my son to give my wife a kiss on the cheek. He then followed that up with a kiss on the forehead to my son. He will make a fantastic father someday.



“You dozed off.” I said to my wife and I leaned in to give her a kiss of my own. Yes, mainly to make AJ jealous.



“I guess I’ve seen that show one too many times.”



“Haven’t we all?”



“Well, you boys have fun and don’t stay up too late.”



“You want me to put him to bed?”



“No that’s okay, entertain your friends. I’ll see you upstairs. Howie…AJ always a pleasure.”



“Same here.” Howie answered. I could tell he was having an internal struggle in his head as to whether he should get up and hug Leighanne or not, since she was carrying Baylee. I told you, I know these guys so well it almost scares me.



We all watched as my lovely wife turned and made her way out of the kitchen.





*********




Brian makes such a great dad. I know I have said this many times before but whenever I see him with his son and his wife I always beam with pride. It also gives me hope knowing that at least if one of us can be normal, there’s hope for the rest of us. Not that I would call Brian normal at all but out of us all, he definitely has the most normal life. Lucky him…although I am saying that as he is dancing around with a pair of tongs for no reason whatsoever.



*sigh*



“Are you guys hungry or can I get you something to drink?”



“Uh oh, are you going to cook for us?” AJ gave me a worried look. The last time Brian cooked for us we were saved by Nick falling out the window, this time I don’t think we’d be that lucky.



“I’m not cooking for anyone Doofo, I mean would you like some chips and salsa?”



“Sounds good to me.”



“What about you Howard?”



“I’ll have some sweet tea if you have any.”



“Of course I have sweet tea Howie, I am from the south.”



“Of course…” I said winking at him.



“So, that’s some chips and salsa for Boner and one sweet tea for Sweet D.”



“How did I know that was coming?” I joked. Brian can be so predictable sometimes. Either that or I knew him better than I should, probably a little of both.



He handed out the glasses and filled the bowl of chips and placed them in the middle of the table. “So, what’s new with everyone? Not that I didn’t see you guys awhile ago or anything.”



“Actually, you didn’t see me…remember?”



“Oh right, so how did things go with the sis then?” Brian asked me as he double dipped his chip into the salsa…yuck!



“Everything went well I guess.”



“He had a fight with his sister.” AJ added like that pesky little brother who just loved to spill the beans….ugh Bean, I’m trying not to think about him.



“Oh.”



“It was no big deal; anyway…my hotel is set to open up on schedule.”



“That’s excellent Howie; you are turning out to be quite the Trump Jr.”



“I hate it when you call me that!”



Brian winked at me, “Yeah…I know.”



“So, you said that Kevin sent you out to get Bean, why is that? How come Nick just didn’t go get him?”



“Because Kevin gave Nick a sleeping pill.” AJ added once again.



“Oh nice…and now he is going to go out and drink while he has a sleeping pill in his system.”



Of course none of us thought about that. Leave it to the father of the group to think about the worst case scenario. Even Kevin didn’t think about that, man he must be losing his touch.



“It’s probably long worn off by now, or maybe he’ll be so tired he will pass out and never make it out to the clubs.”



“I hope you’re right AJ.” And I really did. I know I tried not to show it, but deep down inside I worried about Nicky. My brother tells me that I worry a little too much, but I can’t help it. Someone has to worry. Maybe if I felt like he worried about himself I wouldn’t have to feel the need to worry about him but the fact is, he’s reckless, especially when he’s down.



“I’m sure he’ll be okay tonight guys, no need to worry so much.” AJ said…sounding worried ironically enough.



Before either of us could answer, the doorbell rang yet again.





********




I hate living in a big house when my wife isn’t home. I argued when the time came to look for a place here in LA, that I wanted something very small and simple for all the nights that I’d be spending there alone. She took that as a diss to her ever busy schedule and we got into a petty fight about it.



Kris and I don’t fight very often. I’m pretty sure we got all the fighting out of our system very early on in our relationship. In fact, that was the first fight we had for at least six months. It didn’t even last very long and by the end of the night…well the make up sex made it all worthwhile. The downside to that argument though, was the fact that in the end we decided on getting a biggish house.



Our house is nothing special; in fact you would never guess that two famous people live in it. We’re right in the middle of suburbia and love it that way. Even still, it’s big enough to feel empty when she’s not around, like now.



So I decided to drive around for a bit after I left Nick’s place. I got some Sushi and then went for a drive. Sometimes that makes me calm enough to go home, watch television and then head to bed. Not tonight though, I guess we can thank Mr. Carter for that.



I ended up in Brian’s neighborhood. Now when you look at his house, you know someone famous lives there. It’s a gorgeous house and extremely big. At least he decided against those huge gates that most of his neighbors have. I have a thing against huge gates. I think they are so pretentious and I know my cousin is not like that at all.



Even though it was late, by Brian standards, I thought I’d try anyway and when I saw Howie’s car parked in the driveway I had to smile. “Seems like Brian’s place is the refuge tonight.”



“Hey Kevin!” He said as he let me into his home.



“Looks like you are having a party and I wasn’t invited.”



“I just think you all believe I am irresistible or something.”



“Or something…”



“Hey it’s Kevy!” AJ grabbed me into a hug. God I hate it when they call me Kevy, but I know if I verbalize it, they’ll do it even more.



“Why are you guys here?”



“Avoiding Bean…what about you?”



“I didn’t feel like going home to my empty house so I thought I’d go for a drive.”



“How many times did you pass my place Kevin?”



“Huh?” I could tell by the little smirk on AJ’s face that he knew exactly what he was talking about but I still played dumb. I hate being predictable.



“How many times did you check on Carter?”



“None.”



“Riiight, so you are saying you didn’t drive by there at all?”



“Yup, that’s what I’m saying. Why do you find that so hard to believe?”



“Because it’s you.” I rolled my eyes at AJ. He was right, I actually even thought, in a moment of total insanity, to follow them when they left. Did you ever just get that feeling that something bad was going to happen?



“Nick is a grown boy…he can make his own choices.”



“Yeah but usually they are bad choices.” My cousin said as he handed me an iced tea.



“I wonder if he realizes how much of our free time we spend worrying about him?”



I shrugged at AJ, “I don’t think he realizes much of anything.”



It was true though, when I looked around the room, we really did worry about Nick a lot. I had that unsettling feeling for a second when it occurred to me how we used to do the same thing for AJ. The little meetings when all four of us would sit around and talk about AJ and wonder what he was up to and if he was alright.



Nick tended to zone out at those meetings but I knew it was mainly because he hated being so worried.



“We could always try to find him, say we decided to club hop as well.”



I looked over at Howie, “You think?”



“We could.”



“Howie just wants to go clubbing and is trying to justify how to dump my ass back home.”



“That’s not true, entirely.”



We all laughed, maybe clubbing with Howie would be a good idea. We haven’t done that in a long time and we could also use that as an excuse to check up on Nick.



“Let’s do it D.”



“Okay, I’ll leave my car here for you AJ, is that okay Kev?”



“Sure, I’ll drive.”



“You guys have a good time and if you find Nick, keep him out of trouble.” Brian said with his eyebrows raised.



“No worries.” I nodded as we left to go find Nick…I mean…go clubbing.





**********






“Hey Rok, were we just flat left by Howie D?”



“Flat left? What are we in first grade now?” He asked me amused.



“Well yeah, Kevin comes and gives him a better offer and off he goes.”



“Kevin wanted to go find Nick.”



“I know…but still.”



Brian laughed and spooned some salsa onto his chips, “Ah well…more for us I guess.”



“Did you guys do that for me too?” I’m not even sure where that question came from. But I knew the answer by watching Brian’s reaction to it.



“We used to worry about you.”



“I know…sorry.”



“There’s no need to apologize, those days are far behind us.”



Even though he was right, I still felt bad. I mean, I put these guys through so much and still they stuck right with me. I don’t worry about Nick as much as they all seem to, probably because I understand him the most. That is a very scary thing to admit, being able to penetrate the Carter brain is not something to be overly proud of, but in many ways we are very similar.



“So, you had guardian angel meetings for me too?”



“Guardian angel meetings?” He asked amused at my little nickname for our hangout session. Yes I did nickname everything.



“Yes, you know…when we all just ‘happen’ to get together after something bad happens.”



“Why are you calling it that?”



“Because there’s always one person noticeably absent when we all do this, have you noticed?”



He nodded at me, “Yeah, it seems like when we all get together he’s always off doing something else these days.”



I love how we did seem to all hang out together more and more and not because we were being forced to or paid to either, it’s because we just legitimately enjoyed each other’s company. That was a good feeling.



“Exactly…so these little ‘get togethers’ usually end up being about him and how we worry.”



“Guardian angel meetings?” He asked me once more.



“Yup.”



“Then yes, we did have several of those for you as well. Guardian angel meetings.”



I smiled at the thought, even though it’s embarrassing, it’s nice knowing that somewhere out there, there are people who care.



I hope Nick realizes that. When I asked that question earlier, the one whether or not he realized how much we worry, I truly do wonder. Sometimes I get fed up with Nickolas because I think a lot of the things he does he does for attention but most of the time, when I take a step back and really allow myself a closer look, I realize that he’s just lost.



I don’t think he knows how much we care or worry and I guess maybe that is one of the main differences between us. Even at the height of all my problems, I always knew that people cared.



When I look at Nick, I don’t see that same air of confidence. That’s what scares me, not the prospect of him doing drugs or becoming an alcoholic, but the idea that as he does it, he will be thinking that no one cares either way.



“AJ?”



I looked up from my thoughts, “Yeah?”



“Are you okay? I didn’t mean to make you upset.”



“Oh, you didn’t upset me.”



“Because you asked so I just thought enough time went by where…”



“Rok, relax man…you didn’t upset me.”



He seemed relieved, “Good.”



“Maybe the next time we have one of these meetings, we should make sure that Nick is in attendance.”



Brian sighed and said the thing that made the most sense ever, “AJ if Nick came to these meetings, there would be no reason to have them in the first place.” I nodded because there was just nothing more to add to that.



“I’m sorry he didn’t call you Rok.”



“Me too.”



“Maybe he will after Bean leaves.”



“I hope so.”



After a few minutes of silence I had a great idea, “How about playing some one on one?”



“What? You and basketball?”



“Oh shut up Rok, I’m not that bad.”



“AJ, Baylee can beat you.”



“You’re just chicken.”



He gave me a devilish smile as he put on a pair of sneakers, “Okay…let’s go.”



Oh Lord…what did I get myself into?