Chapter 93

The rest of November and December passed quickly. Nick became busy with work once again, making several trips to meet the rest of the Backstreet Boys for photo shoots, interviews, and appearances leading up to the release of the first single from Phoenix, on December sixteenth. They made an appearance on TRL that day to premiere the music video, their first live MTV appearance since that horrible show almost seven months earlier, when the world had discovered that Nick Carter, the Backstreet Baby, had cancer.

But things were much happier this time around. Nick, glad to be back in good health and looking halfway normal again, eagerly hugged the screaming fans, signed autographs, and answered questions. Apparently, their video debuted at number one on the countdown the following day, but with Christmas only eight days away, none of the guys had time to track its progress.

Brian and Kevin had invited Nick to spend Christmas with their family in Kentucky. It was not the first time he’d been invited to spend a holiday with one of the guys in the last few years, and he knew it was because they felt sorry for him. Holidays at the Carter home just hadn’t been the same since the year he had decided to spend Christmas with Mandy instead of his family, and though a part of him wished he could go to his parents’ house in LA for a nice family Christmas, he knew he’d be much happier spending the holiday with the Littrell/Richardson clan instead.

He decided to bring Leah with him, since she didn’t have much of a family of her own, and since neither Brian, nor Kevin, had met her yet. He was a little nervous, hoping they’d like her. The guys hadn’t liked too many of his girlfriends in the past, and he didn’t have high hopes for Leah, considering they’d all heard about what she had done to him earlier that year. But he was hoping that actually meeting her would change their minds.

It was Brian who arrived to pick Nick and Leah up from the airport on Christmas Eve. “Hey, Frack!” he called loudly, grinning widely as he embraced Nick.

“Heya, Frick.” Nick hugged Brian back and then gave him a noogie, digging his fist into Brian’s head and ruffling his hair.

Brian laughed. “Hey, soon I’m gonna be able to do that to you again,” he said, standing on his tip-toes to pull off Nick’s hat and run a hand over the fine layer of dark blonde hair that covered his head.

Nick laughed, unable to hide his pleasure in the fact that his hair was finally growing back.

“So,” said Brian, suddenly looking past Nick. “You must be Leah.” He smiled politely, though Nick couldn’t help but notice that the smile didn’t quite reach his expressive blue eyes.

“Yes,” said Leah, smiling back and extending her hand. “And you’re Brian.”

“Sure am.”