Epilogue
Six Months Later
Kevin grinned as he strolled down the street, a
bouquet of roses in hand for his wonderful wife. No one approached him,
which was still strange to him after all this time, but he was slowly getting
used to it. After sitting down for hours with A.J, Howie, Brian, and Nick
to discuss their future, they had decided that Backstreet Boys was the
past. It was time to really move on and pursue other dreams. Both
he and Brian wanted a family. Howie wanted to be an actor and focus on
his relationship with Billie. A.J wanted to help troubled teens with the
problems that he had learned to deal with long ago...and Nick?
Nick wanted simply to marry his soulmate.
And yesterday afternoon...
He did.
It had been a simple, but romantic wedding at
Caroline's home where they'd first met. The old, but homey house would
now be their residence as well. It was strange to think of Nick living so
far away from
Because although Caroline's home had been the
place where he'd suffered...
it
was also the place where he'd found a mother figure...
And the love of his life.
"Excuse me sir, could you spare some
change?"
Kevin looked down at the woman kneeling before him who
had nothing but rags and dirt to cover her body. His eyes widened as the
familiar face stared back at him. "Rachel?!"
"Change sir? Can you spare me some
change?"
Doesn't she recognize me?
"I...don't have any..."
She smiled. "That's okay. My boyfriend's really famous so he'll give me some real soon!"
He looked at her warily. "Really?"
"Yup!
His name is Nick! Do you know Nick? They say he's alive...so I know
he'll come for me soon! Very soon!"
She sighed dreamily. "He loves me you know? He'll give me
whatever I want!"
"Uh..." Kevin didn't know how to
respond. But he knew without a doubt that Rachel had gone off the deep
end.
"Are you sure you don't have any change? I
want to look beautiful for Nick when he finds me," she held out her hands.
Still in shock, Kevin reached into his pockets and pulled
out a few quarters. He placed them in the palm of her hand and gave her a
sympathetic glance before turning away.
"Thank you sir!!" she called out as he
distanced himself from her.
She'd caused him so much pain and yet, he couldn't
help but feel sorry for Rachel. The change in her life had obviously been
a drastic one and that had transformed her.
At the same time he knew that she deserved every
horrible thing that came her way...just like Kris.
He shook his head. Kris had gotten his
punishment all right. When Nick had thrown him out the window, they'd all
thought that he would die...
But he didn't.
The bastard lived for a short while to the chagrin of
everyone who knew him. And then came the news
that he was a paraplegic...condemned to a chair for the rest of his life.
He shot himself not long after.
Yes, life deals you happiness and pitfalls, but it's how you choose to handle those stumbling blocks that
makes all the difference because what you do to others will surely come back to
you.
It was a lesson that Kevin and the fellas would never
ever forget.
***
Last Night
Katarina gave herself another critique before taking a deep breath. All
right. I think I'm ready. She smoothed the revealing white
satin gown and strategically placed her curled blond tresses in front to cover
herself. She was not used to wearing something this...risqué but it was
her wedding night.
And she wanted
to be beautiful for Nick.
She smiled and
felt her cheeks grow warm as she recalled Caroline's advice. "I
was once in your position Rina and I know how nervous
a bride can be before the marriage is consummated. Just remember, go
slowly darling. You have the whole night to tend to your heart's
desire..."
How
embarrassing!
But she loved
Caroline like a mother and knew she was only trying to ease her nerves.
And in a way, it did. She'd never laughed so much in her entire life.
"Rina! Do you want champagne?" Nick's voice
called out to her out of nowhere, startling her.
"Uh...no.
That's okay!" She took another deep breath and opened the
door. To her relief and dismay as odd as that seemed, Nick's back was to
her.
"Are you
sure you don't want any? It tastes pretty good."
"...I'm
sure."
He turned
around with a glass in hand. "All
"Are you
okay?" Katarina asked, unaware that it was she
who'd caused his sudden clumsiness.
"I'm more
than okay," he replied, his eyes never leaving hers, "God Rina...you look so beautiful."
She blushed
and lowered her gaze to the floor. "Thank you. I'm glad you
like the gown."
"I like
the whole package."
Hearing how
close his voice sounded she lifted her head again and saw that he was right in
front of her. His eyes glimmered with such love that Katarina
couldn't help but smile. There was no trace of the surly man she'd met so
long ago. She cupped his face and ran her thumbs over the light bumps
that would forever scar his cheeks. To most people he would never be the
gorgeous Nick Carter that had millions of girls swooning...
But to her, he
was the most gorgeous man she'd ever known.
Inside and
out.
Nick smiled
and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to his tall
frame. "My angel," he whispered before lightly grazing her soft
lips, "my beautiful angel."
She trembled
with desire as his lips took hers fully, suddenly feeling the need to feel this
man entirely, in every possible way. "Nick..." she moaned when
his lips left hers and traveled to her neck. And then he lifted her into
his arms and carried her to their bed.
As he gently
set her down, Katarina felt her desire give way to
nervousness once again and she knew that Nick must've seen it in her eyes when
he settled in next to her because he took her hand. "We don't have
to do this now Rina...I know how hard it must be
after everything..."
She nodded.
"But I
want you to know that I'll never ever do anything to hurt you. I'll take
my time. I promise."
Her heart
melted at the sincerity in his eyes. She sighed happily and placed his
hand on her hip. He smiled and moved closer making Katarina
realize that his proximity didn't scare her one bit. She trusted Nick
with her heart, her soul...
And her body.
This time she
instigated the kiss, feeling much more sure of her actions...and of his love
for her. His lips were so tender as they connected over and over again
with hers and slowly his body moved closer and closer...until he was right
where he needed to be.
Where she
wanted him to be.
He drew back
again and locked her eyes with his. Such vibrant blue eyes he had.
So full of life...and intense adoration...
For her.
I love
you...
That's what they told her and she beamed.
I love you
too.
And with his
body, he showed her just how much.
***
Bliss.
This was bliss.
Nick held his
bride close to him, never wanting to be without her again. He'd been with
his share of girls before, but none of them...not Mandy, nor Rachel could ever
compare to the woman who'd changed his world and stolen his heart since the
moment she'd walked into his life. What they had shared went way beyond
making love. It was his soul connecting with hers in a way that was just
too incredible to explain. All he knew was that he'd found true love.
He'd found his
soul mate.
"Nick,"
she whispered suddenly.
"Hmm..."
"...I'm
so happy."
He smiled and
kissed her shoulder. "So am I."
She sighed and
lightly ran her fingers up and down his arm. "...Can you sing for me
Nicky?"
He raised an
eyebrow and stared into her warm eyes quizzically. "Sing?"
"Mmhmm..." she smiled lazily and closed her eyes.
Nick gazed at
her peaceful face for a moment trying to think of the words to
describe his emotions at this very moment...to describe just how much
he cherished her presence. He reached out and caressed her soft cheek
before he opened his mouth...
"Lying
beside you, here in the dark...
feeling your heart beat with mine.
Softly you whisper...
You're so sincere.
How could our love be so blind?
We sailed on together
and drifted apart...
And here you are by my side...
So
now I come to you with open arms
Nothing to hide...believe what I say.
So here I am with open arms
hoping you'll see what your love means to me
Open arms..."
Her breathing
was now a steady rhythm and Nick smiled. He could watch her sleep for the
rest of his life and never grow tired of it. It was so hard to believe
that he had once been stupid enough to let his anger push her away. But
that wouldn't happen again. He would never let anything or anyone push
her out of his life. He smoothed her silky hair back from her face and
continued singing softly to her as his eyes began to droop.
"Living
without you...living alone
This empty house seems so cold.
Wanting to hold you, wanting you near...
How much I wanted you home.
And now that you've come back,
turned night into day.
I need you to stay.
So
now I come to you with open arms
Nothing to hide...believe what I say.
So here I am with open arms
hoping you'll see what your love means to me
Open arms..."*
And on that
final note, he fell into a tranquil slumber, knowing that this was only the
beginning of the rest of his life.
The End
***
* "Open Arms," by Journey
