Chapter 64:
The Show Must Go On
Kevin glanced nervously at AJ, hoping his
impulsive friend wouldn't do anything too crazy. The opening song had gone
smoothly enough, with no time for horseplay, mainly because it was a big
production number that would not allow for deviation. Unlike the next song.
Kevin felt a fine sheen of nervousness trickled down his back as he noticed out
of the corner of his eye the faces Nick and AJ were making to the crowd. Shit!
He grabbed a spare microphone and walked over to the two, the band playing soft
background music as they waited for his cue. Kevin had given them specific
instructions not to continue the next numbers until he gave the say so.
"Hey, all you Backstreet fans!"
yelled Kevin into the microphone. He not-so-innocently butted in between Nick
and AJ, wrapping his arm tightly around Nick to calm him down.
"Wassup?" he yelled and got a resounding rush of delighted screams.
Kevin took that split second to turn his back to the stage and frown
threateningly at Nick and AJ. "Stop it!" he mouthed, his eyes dark
with irritation. Unconcerned, Nick shrugged comically and AJ bounced away from
Kevin. Groaning inwardly, Kevin turned back to the stage, only to catch his
breath. Howie was leaning precariously close to the edge, waving and blowing
kisses to the front row. He had already unbuttoned his shirt. Trying to keep
from screaming, Kevin anxiously searched for Brian, catching his gaze with his
own and glared meaningfully at his cousin for help.
"Hi, ya'll! Told you we'd come back,
didn't we?" announced Brian to the audience. Once again the high-pitched
screams filled the arena.
Kevin thought furiously. "As you can
see," he drawled, waving his hand expansively in Nick, AJ, and Howie's
direction, "we're happy to be here. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to
see…" Kevin "oofed" as Nick jumped
joyfully onto his back and ruffled his hair. Kevin smiled weakly as the crowd
roared their delight. "Yes, um, well, as you can see Nick is in a playful
mood tonight." Realizing this was going nowhere and not trusting AJ and
Howie who were whispering something, Kevin quickly signaled for the band to
play.
Brian took over, the first stanza his. He
sang, his eyes not on the crowd, but on Nick who seemed to be staring intently
at his crotch. Oh God, moaned Brian as he hurriedly walked over,
slapping Nick on the back and holding up the microphone. Startled, Nick looked
up, but came on cue easily, singing with Brian, his mind concentrating now on
the song. AJ and Howie were over on the other side of the stage, arms wrapped
around each other, harmonizing. Brian turned his attention to Kevin, who had
protectively followed the two. As the song ended, the lights dimmed, but not
before Brian had a chance to see the look of sheer amusement plastered all over
Xavier's face.
* * * * *
All five Backstreet Boys rushed backstage,
hurriedly changing their costumes with practiced ease. They were three-quarters
of the way done and Kevin had started to relax a little, not hovering over them
to the point of suffocation, as he had done in the beginning.
Nick bumped into AJ accidentally while
trying to change into his other pants. "Will you quit staring at your
crotch?" said AJ, sorry he ever mentioned one of the more pleasant
"side-effects" of the drug.
Nick flushed, embarrassed. "I can't!
I'm scared something is going to happen!"
AJ grinned, shaking his head. "You
have thousands of girls out there lusting after you, E running through your
system, and you're telling me you're not hard yet? Damn!"
Nick swung his arm out half-heartedly in
AJ's direction. "And I suppose you are?"
AJ gave him a look of surprise. "How
could you not notice?" he bragged.
Nick glanced at AJ's crotch and shrugged.
"Probably because that's how big I am without a hard-on!" he
boasted, a smirk forming across his face.
AJ opened his mouth for a comeback but
found a water bottle shoved into his face. He turned to look at Brian, who had
been pushing water incessantly at them all night. "Take it," he said
quietly. "Otherwise you'll get really dehydrated."
"I know," he said grimly,
understanding the effect E had on raising your body temperature. Apparently so
did Brian. AJ smiled grimly. Without a doubt that knowledge confirmed Brian's
guilt. He sipped his water, eyeing Brian coldly, wondering why he ever thought
Xavier was the cause of all their problems. He heard the beginnings of the next
song start and he hurriedly put on his ear set. AJ took a long sip of the cold
water, swishing it around in his mouth before spitting it out, his aim directed
at Brian's feet. Brian jumped away and AJ nodded in satisfaction as he glared
at him, rushing onto the stage with the others.
He started the next song quickly, cutting
in on Brian's beginning part, not caring if the crowd noticed. As he began to
dance with the others AJ realized that he was starting to feel more normal,
which in his case, meant less cheerful. Good. The effect of the drug was
wearing off sooner than he thought, probably because he had chewed the Ecstasy
rather than swallowed it. He wondered how Howie and Nick were managing. He
danced past Brian, hearing Nick singing "Am I sexual?" Not tonight
Nicky, he smirked, reminding himself to tease Nick mercilessly about it
later. He crossed paths with Brian again, throwing a hostile look towards him,
but Brian refused to acknowledge it. The song ended to the deafening shrieks of
the crowd, and AJ saw Kevin nod in his direction, the relief on the dark-haired
singer's face evident. As nerve-wracking as the night had been, they had all
managed to come through without a major embarrassment. But lots of little
ones! Sighing, AJ began the next song. Just three more and they were
through, finished, done. The joy of going home, even if it was just for a week,
never seemed more appealing than it did at this moment. AJ waved at the
audience, pleased at the thought of no more concerts, no more problems, and
especially no more Brian.
***
