Chapter 13

"Hey," Tara didn't look up from her computer when Nick walked into the room, she was watching the Backstreet Boys' chatroom intently.

"Hey, you missed one hell of a show," Nick boasted, sitting down on the couch and grinning at her. "I was totally on tonight, you should have seen me."

"Yeah, yeah," she laughed. "My loss." Tara had briefly spoken with Kevin about telling Andy, and while he'd promised to 'revisit the issue tomorrow,' for tonight, anyway, he'd decided she was best off keeping a low profile, especially since she'd been photographed already once with the guys.

"He in there?" Nick asked, pulling off his shoes and throwing them across the room.

"Not now," Tara shut down the computer, and closed it with a sigh. "He was earlier."

"What was he saying?"

She stood up and walked over to the couch, sitting down next to Nick with a shrug. "Nothing new."

"Like?"

"He was talking about you," Tara said softly, unable to look into Nick's eyes. "What he was going to do to you."

"You know, I got that rape is somehow involved, but you never really explained in detail what that game is about," Nick said, looking at her closely. "Will you tell me?"

"Do you really want to know?" She asked.

"Yes," Nick said firmly. "I need to know."

Tara took a deep breath and looked at him, her expression growing sad. "It's about this well, alien type thing. It kind of looks like a walking plant, with long tentacles and things. The way it attacks…."

"Tell me," Nick prompted, bending close to her. "Please?"

"It attacks from the inside out. So, well, I never got very far in the game, but, in the beginning, anyway? There's this girl, and it attacks her. It comes out of her mouth, and well," she sighed. "Between her legs, and it moves in and out…."

"It rapes her."

Tara nodded. "Rape. Or tentacle sex, if you're perverted like Andy."

Nick bit his lip and sat back on the couch, shaking his head slowly. "What kind of sick fuck sees that in a game, and thinks about recreating it?"

"What kind of sick fuck puts that in a game in the first place?" Tara asked softly.

"I'm sure someone likes it."

"I guess he did."

"Yeah," Nick said, frowning.

"Yeah," Tara repeated, not knowing what else to say. "So, um," she curled up on the couch and smiled at him, "you were on tonight?"

Nick grinned, "oh yeah, did you ever miss a show."

"Does that mean some nights you're off?" She asked teasingly.

Nick pursed his lips, and winkled his nose. "Well, no, I guess I'm always on in one way or another…."

Tara laughed lightly, "just more on some nights than others?"

"Exactly."

"Gotcha."

"So," Nick stretched out his legs, and smiled at her. "Still think I'm a pretty boy?"

Tara's face froze for a moment, before she looked away. "I haven't really thought about it all that much, Nick."

He took her hand and pulled her towards him, lowering his head to hers. "How about you think about it, then?" He asked her softly, looking into her eyes.

Tara stared back at him, her brown eyes wide. "Um, Nick, I," she stammered, feeling her heart pounding in her chest.

"No?" Nick asked coyly, bending down until the tip of his nose was pressing against hers. "Not a pretty boy?"

Tara unconsciously licked her lips, staring into his eyes. She could feel his breath on her face, and her eyes only grew wider when she saw him lick his lips too.

"No, huh," Nick smiled, raising a hand to cup the side of her face. "I told you I'd change your mind," he whispered, before leaning closer, completing the short distance separating his lips from hers.

The instant their lips touched, the phone rang, shocking Tara enough that she jumped away from Nick. "Phone," she said weakly, pressing a hand to her chest to still her wildly beating heart.

"Yeah, I hear," Nick grumbled, getting up and trudging over to the phone. "Whoever this is, your timing SUCKS," he told the caller as he picked up the phone. He listened for a moment before his face paled, and he dropped the phone, staring at Tara with his mouth hanging open. "That was, oh god," he scrambled to pick up the phone and put it back to his ear, "hello? Are you still there? Goddammit, talk to me!!"

"Nick?" Tara got up and went to him, taking the phone and listening. "Just a dial tone, Nicky," she said softly, putting the phone down.

"No, shit, no!" Nick argued, grabbing the phone and pressing buttons wildly. "Come back, please," he pleaded, throwing it down angrily when he heard the same dial tone Tara had. "FUCK!"

"What?" Tara watched as Nick stormed around the room, kicking at the carpet in his frustration. "Nick, who was on the phone?"

Nick sat down on the couch and buried his head in his hands, shaking his head slowly. "No, god, no, he didn't, I can't think, he couldn't," he mumbled, clasping his hands on top of his head.

"What, Nicky, tell me?" Tara sat down next to him, rubbing his shoulder gently. "You're scaring me, Nick, say something…"

"That was…" Nick stopped talking for a moment and stared at the floor, breathing heavily. He ran a hand through his hair and looked at Tara. "That was a girl. Screaming my name, crying…she asked me to help her."

"Oh Nick," Tara breathed.

"She screamed, god, this awful scream…" Nick's eyes filled with tears, and he stared at Tara, his lower lip trembling. "And then nothing. The scream stopped. God, do you think he just killed her?"

"I don't know," Tara said softly.

"She was screaming for me," Nick whispered, his face crumpling. "She died because of me…"

"You don't know that, Nick…" Tara pulled Nick to her in a hug, holding him tight as he began to cry. "Nicky," she whispered, running a hand through his hair.

"It's my fault, she did it for me," Nick wrapped his arms around Tara's back, burying his face in her neck.

"It's not your fault," she argued, but he stopped her with a tight squeeze. "Nick.."

Nick pulled away and looked into her eyes, shaking his head slowly. "You didn't hear that, hear her…she screamed my name, Tara. God, until the day I die, I'm going to hear that," he bit his lip, and shuddered. "A dead girl screaming to me for help."

"I'm so sorry, Nicky," Tara said sadly, her own eyes filling with tears. "He did this, not you."

"Not to that girl, Tara. To her? This was all my fault," Nick said sadly. "She asked me for help, and I didn't save her."

"You didn't know…"

"Right," Nick stood up and sighed, wiping the tears off of his face. "I'm going to get ready for bed," he started walking towards his bedroom, before turning to look back at Tara. "Do you, well, would you mind, I mean…" He rolled his eyes at his own inability to speak, and smiled meekly. "I'm gonna have a hell of a time sleeping now, after that. Wanna have trouble falling asleep together?"

Tara stood up and smiled, "sure, Nick."

"You know I mean nothing by that, right?" Nick asked her, waving her into his bedroom. "I mean, after that, trust me…I'm so not thinking of anything else."

"Yeah, I know," Tara gave him another hug. "Honestly, I don't much feel like sleeping alone tonight either." She didn't exactly feel like sleeping at all, but…the expression on Nick's face….he clearly needed to curl up in bed and try to forget what he'd just heard.

"Good," Nick returned the hug, closing his eyes and enjoying the warmth of her body pressed up against his. "We'll keep each other from getting too freaked out tonight."

"Or try, at least," Tara corrected with a soft chuckle.

"Right. We'll try."

*****************************************************************

Tara watched the streets of LA fly by, feeling as if the cab ride home was taking forever. Finally, the car pulled into the driveway of her building, and she wasn't at all surprised when Andy ran out of his apartment to help her with her bag. "Hey!"

"Hey girl," he grabbed her in a tight hug, and smacked her back. "Have a good weekend? Miss me?"

"I had an interesting weekend," she said, pulling out her keys and opening the door to her apartment, waving him in. "Sit, let me catch my breath, then I'll tell you." Neither her or Nick had been able to sleep the night before, so they had spent it lying in bed, cuddling, and talking. By the time morning had come, she had managed to convince Nick that it was important that she be able to tell Andy about what was going on. Nick had helped her, in turn, convince Kevin.

"Ok," Andy plopped down on her couch, looking at her carefully. "Something wrong?"

Tara sat down next to him, her purse in her lap. "No, yeah, well, I don't know," she sighed. "I just have some stuff I need to tell you."

"I'm not going anywhere." Andy watched curiously as she dug through her purse. "What are you doing?"

"I got you something," she finally located what she was looking for, and held it in her palm. "Now, promise not to scream when I give you this."

Andy laughed, and shrugged. "Sure, Tar, I won't scream."

"Ok." Tara handed Andy the same condom he had given her when she had left for her trip Friday night.

Andy's brow furrowed, and he stared at the condom in his hand in confusion. "You didn't get lucky, I gather, but I don't get why I would want this…"

"Look closely at it, Andy," Tara told him, laughing when he peered at the condom. "Something's written on it."

Andy's eyes widened, as he struggled to make out the words written on the wrapper. "To Andy, love," he gasped, and nearly dropped the condom, staring at Tara in amazement. "Holy shit, Tara, does that, this, oh my god…"

"Read it," she encouraged, grinning at his reaction.

"Love AJ McLean!" Andy screamed and threw his arms around Tara, hugging her tight. "How the fuck did you get AJ to sign a condom for me? Oh my god, Tara, you are a goddess, this is, oh wow," he sat back, staring at the condom in his hand. "AJ touched this? Oh god. I have to put it down, I can't ruin it," he delicately placed the condom on the table, before turning to Tara. "Hon, you smell like that fancy cologne again."

Tara nodded, "yes, I bet I do."

"That AJ I'm smelling?" Andy barely was able to squeak out the question, staring at Tara in amazement. "You, and my Bone, oh lordy, Tara, how the fuck, what was AJ doing at your friend Sarah's house??"

Tara started laughing, and shook her head, "Andy, I wasn't at my friend Sarah's house."

"You lied to me," Andy accused, his eyes narrowing slightly. "I love the condom and all, but you lied to me…"

"I know, I know, I had to, I'll explain everything," Tara said quickly.

"So is that AJ smell? God, he smells good," Andy grinned.

"No," Tara said hesitantly, looking at Andy with a wry smile. "That's Nick smell."

Andy gasped, and covered his mouth with his hand. "Nick Carter smell?"

Tara nodded slowly, "yes, Nick Carter smell."

"And that sweatsuit you were swimming in last weekend that also smelled like this?"

"Nick's sweats."

Andy's eyes practically burst out of his head as he smacked Tara's shoulder. "Holy jesus fucking christ! I can't believe my very own best friend is sleeping with Nick Carter and she's not even telling me!! How, what, oh my god!"

"I'm not sleeping with Nick," Tara said, rolling her eyes. "Well, sleeping, yes, but only in the literal sense of the word…"

"Whatever, you smell like him, babe, come here," Andy dragged Tara closer to him on the couch and sniffed her, giggling when she smacked him away. "I can't believe I'm smelling Nick Carter on you."

Tara blushed, "god, you say it like that, it sounds so…."

"Erotic?" Andy offered with a grin. "You smell like Nicky."

Tara laughed, "erotic wasn't exactly the word I was going to use."

"I think it is erotic." Andy picked the condom up off the table, and began to examine it again. "So, Tar, are you going to tell me what the hell you're doing getting AJ to sign condoms, and wearing Nick's clothes, or am I just going to have to die wondering? Because, you know, I think I should be hurt that you lied to me about where you went this weekend, and about last weekend…"

"I had to, Kevin didn't want me to…"

"KEVIN?" Andy screamed, jumping up and pacing across the living room. "Ok, just give me a moment to get used to this here, I really think I'm going to pass out or something. So you slept with Nick, AJ signed a condom, you're talking to Kevin, what else, Tara?"

Tara sighed heavily, "Andy, calm down, and I'll explain."

"I can't calm down, you're talking about the Backstreet Boys like, like, you're friends with them or something!" Andy told her, his face growing red. When she didn't reply, his mouth dropped open, "holy shit, Tara?"

"I guess I am friends with them," she said, forcing a weak smile onto her face.

Andy fell to the floor, and just stared at her, stunned. "My best friend. Is friends. With the Backstreet Boys," he said in disbelief.

"Sort of, well, yeah."

"Care to explain?"

Tara chuckled, "that's what I've been trying to do, Andy…"

"Then shut up, woman, and tell me!"

So she told him.

***

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