Chapter
2
Orlando, Florida
6:22 pm
AJ had arrived late last night at his condo, and only got a few hours sleep. He
couldn't even believe what he did last night. He just picked up and left
without telling anyone where he'd be. The condo, was only furnished with basic
essentials : a bed, non-perishable food, a few chairs here and there, and a
television set.
A television set. His only source to
the outside world. If he left his front door, surely SOMEONE would recognize
him, especially now that he was in Orlando. He had isolated himself in his own
house, doors locked tight, blinds shut, not even a window open.
At this time, AJ turned on the TV to keep him occupied. Glancing at his watch,
the boys must have just started their concert without him. He closed his eyes
for a brief second. Flipping through the channels, not looking for anything in
particular to watch, he stumbled upon the news. He cocked his head curiously
and listened intently at the woman on TV.
Reporter: "We're here live at the Virgin Record Music Store here in NYC
where the Backstreet Boys manager, Johnny Wright has just announced the sudden
disappearance of Backstreet member AJ McLean.
"The Boys are supposed perform live in just a few minutes, but the
announcement has obviously caused a crowd disturbance??"
She turned around and the camera zoomed in on Johnny leading Brain and the
others through millions of screaming, crying, and somewhat disappointed fans.
Johnny was pushing and shoving reporters and cameramen out of his way,
screaming "No comment." The bodyguards were doing their best to
hold the fans back.
Kevin, beside Johnny, was shoving cameras out of his face as well. He had a
solemn, angry expression on as he followed Johnny out to the tour bus.
AJ couldn't believe what he was seeing. His jaw hung open, awed at the
commotion that he caused. Tears were swelling up in his eyes again.
"Kevin, Kevin any comments?" A reporter asked, shoving a microphone
in his face.
"No, none!" Johnny shouted, shoving it away.
The cameraman was running to the crowd
now, by the way the angle was shifting. "As you can see, the manager
obviously has no comment at this time?."
AJ wasn't even listening to her. He scooted closer to the screen to get a
better look, and hicsed up the volume.
"Yeah, yeah I have a comment!" Kevin shouted. He grabbed the nearest
microphone he could find and attempted to be heard over fans screaming, "
I love you Train."
He hung his head slightly, glancing
down, then shot it up and said, " I'm quitting the group." Silence
followed. Brain seemed startled. Fans glared wide eyed, tears rolling down
their cheeks, fans from small.
"Kevin, no," Brian
protested.
"What the hell is wrong with you
guys? First AJ, now you??" Aaron shouted. "Fine! Go!"
"Kevin, you don't mean
that," Johnny stated calmly, attempting to convince Kevin he wasn't
serious. Without warning, Aaron shoved Kevin from behind, sending him hurling
into the arms of a reporter. "I don't need you," he growled.
Kevin, suddenly enraged, lunged at Aaron and decked him in the face. Aaron
stumbled backwards and fell. The crowd could no longer be contained, they
rushed forward, coming at Aaron's aid.
"Oh my! Ohmigosh! Can we get a close up? Backstreet Boy Kevin
Richardson has just attacked Aaron Carter.." AJ shut off the TV quickly.
His heart was thumping steadily against his chest as a cold sweat rolled off
his body. He arose, with anger, tears blurring his vision. Enraged, he threw
the remote at the TV screen, shattering the remote on impact. He dropped to his
knees, pulled his shirt over his head, and rocked himself back and fourth,
crying loudly.
Nothing made sense to him, this was
inhuman, this didn't make sense. AJ had had this sensation before, the
sensation he had when Aaron made him mad. He was going to have a nervous
breakdown again. Picking himself up, he staggered into the kitchen where he had
his medication laid out on the
counter.
He got halfway there, and fell to the
ground in an awkward position, sulking on the tile. His life was over, and so was
Kevin's.
***
"Kevin you can't be
serious..." Brian said, once inside the tour bus. They all jerked once,
Brian grabbing onto Howie for support as the bus took off from the scene.
"Get off me Brian, just get off
me," Kevin warned, sloppily tossing his belongings in a pile. "I
quit, I freggin' quit, I can't take this bullshit anymore. I can't take Aaron's bullshit," he
explained, pointing to Aaron lying on a couch, cradling his nose.
Aaron sneered up at him. Howie hadn't
said a word, he was just in existence. He couldn't believe their complete
career and years and years of friendship and trust was being destroyed in a
matter of days. He sat next to Nick, who was just totally out of it. He hadn't
shaven in days, and stubble accumulated on his face, forming an uneven stubble
goatee. His appearance wasn't as breathtaking as before.
Johnny emerged from a different
compartment on the bus holding a rag filled with ice. Stumbling over to Aaron,
he handed him the rag.
"Kevin, calm down please, we need
you. Don't leave us too," Brain begged, folding his hands and waving them
at Kevin.
"Whatever Brian, and YOU,"
he said, turning to face Johnny, "give me my last paycheck so I can get
outta here."
Johnny narrowed his brows. "You want your paycheck?? You want it?
Here!" He reached into his suit pocket and pulled out his checkbook.
Scribbling on it quickly, he ripped it out and threw it at Kevin. It went a few
feet and fluttered to the bottom of the bus, Kevin not making an attempt to get
it.
Aaron removed the rag from his bleeding, red
nose and said, "You better get that check, Kevin, you'll be needing
it."
Kevin snatched it up from the floor and pocketed it. He thought nothing of
Aaron's statement, he had all the money he needed in the bank. Stuffing his
belongings in a gym bag, he slung it over his shoulder and
marched into another compartment to continue gather his things. Sadly, Brain
tossed his arms in the air in surrender and sat disappointed next to Howie and
Nick.
***
Orlando, Florida
10:40 pm
AJ, head spinning, just roused from his slumber. He pulled himself to a sitting
position on the tile, holding his head. He looked up at the counter he was
trying to get to earlier, so close, yet so far. He groaned, and
attempted to recollect what he was trying to do.
"Come on AJ, what happened? What
happened?" he asked himself. Then he had a quick cycle, the news, Kevin
punching Aaron, then he couldn't remember anymore in-between details. "Oh
yeah," he said, when was done commemorating.
"I, I gotta call the guys…"
he said, picking himself up. He ran into his room and rummaged through his
things for their tour date schedule. He found it, buried under some of his
shirts and 'accessories' he hadn't unpacked yet. Let's see now… after the
concert at the Virgin Record Store in NYC, they should be at the Holiday
Inn. Ah, he found it.
He knew if he called the hotel and
asked to be directed to the room, they would ask who was speaking. He couldn't
identify himself, so he called Howie's cellular instead. Hopefully he'd get
into contact with them.
***
Howie sat in a corner by himself on
the tour bus, trying hard to stifle the sounds coming from the bedroom
compartment. Kevin, Johnny, and Aaron were yelling and screaming at each other
at the very top of their lungs, some censored remarks, and sounds of things
being broken. He didn't know if they were fighting, arguing, or killing each
other, he was minding his business.
For the past hour, they had been
trapped inside the tour bus parked outside the Holiday Inn. Reporters and fans
were surrounding the bus, trying, waiting for at least one of them to come out.
Johnny refused to speak with the public, he was too busy arguing with Kevin.
Brian and Nick went out to see what they could do to help steady the fans. This
had caused a riot, police were trying to hold the fans back, some even getting
arrested.
It was even louder outside the
van than inside, of course, with sirens and cops on loudspeakers, and hundreds
of screaming fans, trying to get into the bus. So far, none had succeeded. He
pulled back the blinds behind him and peered out. He could see the hotel
entrance, but there was no way of getting to it. A camera flashed in his face,
causing him to blink, startled.
"It's Howie!" someone
screamed. He pulled the blinds back quickly, those reporters and everyone out
there was insane.
Clutched in Howie's hand, was a
picture of him and the guys, just the original five, in front of Cinderella's
Castle in Orlando. In the midst of them, was Johnny, grinning from ear to ear
with his arms draped around AJ and Nick. That was when he was considered a
'friend,' of the boys, before Aaron ever showed his face. Now Howie knew for
sure all Johnny ever cared about was the money he made off of them.
For a slight instant, he smiled...then
suddenly he saw the picture begin to fade, starting with AJ. Then he saw Kevin
disappear, it was now him, Brian and Nick. Then suddenly, Nick faded away as
well.
He blinked when he realized he was picturing what was happening to the group;
they were fading away. He tossed the picture aside, not wanting to see who was
going to fade next. The phone rang.
"Oh crap, where'd I put it?"
he said, getting up to follow the ring. It rang a second time, calling out to
Howie. A thought came to him, it might be AJ. "Oh man!" he exclaimed,
tossing pillows and magazines out of his way in search of the phone. The entire
bus was in such a mess.
For the third time, he realized it was
coming from the compartment where Aaron and Johnny were yelling at Kevin.
"Come on AJ, don't hang up... I'm coming." He quickly ducked into the
room, paying them no mind and grabbed his phone off his bed.
"Hello??"
"Howie, hey, this is AJ."
"AJ?? Where are you man?"
Howie asked, blocking one ear with his free hand.
"I'm in Orlando?."
"Where?? Hold on I can't hear
you?."
Howie quickly made his way into the
compartment he was in before, shutting the door behind him. AJ now, was
perplexed. All he was hearing was yelling and all sorts of background noises
and distractions.
"AJ? AJ?? You there??" Howie
asked frantically, afraid he'd hung up.
"Yeah, what the hell is going on
over there, D.?"
Howie didn't bother to answer him.
"Where are you AJ? Are you ok?"
AJ answered in a disgruntled,
aggravated tone, "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine, I'm in OR-LAN-DO."
Howie sighed, relieved. "It's
crazy over here man. We can't get into the hotel, we can't even get outta the
bus?.and, and, Johnny and Aaron are over here on Kevin's case about-.."
Howie stopped himself short, thinking AJ didn't already know about Kevin
resigning.
"About Kevin quitting?.." AJ
finished.
"Yeah," Howie responded,
sadly.
"I know, I saw it on TV
yesterday. Where's everybody else?"
"Brain and Nick are outside
talking to some reporters, and I'm in here waiting for us to leave."
"Oh."
AJ was barely able to pay mind to
Howie. He was more concerned about the background noises, the screams, fans,
and especially Aaron and Johnny's loud, boisterous conversation with Kevin. AJ
shook his head in disbelief.
"Jeez, I friggin' hate Aaron. I
had another one last night D,... almost."
"Another one?! C'mon AJ, you
gotta take care of yourself man…"
Just then a loud noise came from the
compartment with Aaron. It sounded as if someone had charged at the door, but
it didn't give it. Howie raised his brows in surprise and concern.
"Hey, AJ what's the number where
you're at?"
Silence followed, AJ was looking for
the number. Where the hell was it? He picked up the base of the phone and
looked underneath. No, it wasn't there.
"Um..."
"C'mon AJ hurry up, if Johnny
catches me on the phone with you, I'm gonna be in trouble," Howie said,
urging him to hurry. "Ok, ok damn, what the hell is the number for this
house??" Howie frowned, a little concerned that AJ might have had a lapse
last night. How could he forget something that important?
"Howie, I forgot, I dunno... can
you star 69 me?" he asked, rummaging through the phone book in hopes
of finding the number.
Kevin came, raging into the compartment, swearing violently. "Fuck you,
and fuck you, especially you!" he hissed, gesturing toward Aaron.
"Yeah, yeah, ok AJ I gotta go, take care of yourself orright man?" he
said, in a hushed tone.
"Ok, D. Bye."
Quickly, Howie did the call return,
waiting for the stupid machine to hurry up. He wanted to get the number before
Kevin left.
"C'mon Kev?.you don't wanna end
up like that looser AJ, do you?" Johnny asked. Kevin turned around
abruptly, anger swelling up inside of him. He wanted to rip the crap out of
Johnny and Aaron.
"No! AJ left because of that SOB.
I don't want what happened to AJ to happen to me!" he yelled, grabbing up
his gym bag and excess crap. "I'm outta here! I'm gone, to hell with you!
Both of you!" Kevin yelled, heading for bus exit.
"Kevin wait!" Howie called
after him, scribbling the last 4 digits of AJ's number down. Kevin turned
around, disturbed look on his face.
"What Howie?" he asked
rather sweetly, careful not to unleash his anger on Howie. Howie handed him the
paper with the number on it. Without looking at the paper, he shoved it in his
pocket and turned around again.
"I'll be seeing you D," he
said, waving him out quickly. He couldn't stand another minute in that bus with
Aaron and Johnny. Kevin didn't care if he had to face the fans or the press, he
had to leave quickly. He didn't want to leave the guys either, but he had no
choice. Too angry to cry, he marched out of the bus not giving Howie, Aaron or
Johnny a second glance.
***
Outside the bus now, Nick and Brian were trying to calm the fans. Doing
everything possible to please them, signing autographs and answering the press
at the same time. Brian took a pen out of a fan's eager, energetic hands and
did his signature. A reporter from behind him reached over a microphone over
and rammed it into his face. "Brian! Brian! How do you think Kevin
quitting the group will have effect on your publicity??"
Surprised by the question, he bit his
lower lip, thinking about it.
"Umm," he mumbled, giving
out more autographs. Behind him, Nick was being asked the same idiotic,
non-mandatory questions, while signing more autographs as well.
"I dunno?" he started, but
someone interrupted him, screaming, " I LOVE YOU BRAIN!!" "I
love you too?" he replied, confused about where the voice was coming from.
"Umm, about your question, I dunno if?"
The tour bus door swung open to reveal Kevin, bags packed, arms filled and
looking aggravated. More excitedly filled screams emerged from the fans.
Startled, Brian and Nick turned around to face Kevin.
"Kevin!" Brain said
startled, accidentally dropping the autograph book he was signing, while trying
to be heard over the commotion.
"STEP BACK!! IF YOU PASS THE
BODYGUARDS YOU WILL BE ARRESTED!" A police officer warned, firing two
shots in the air for attention. The entire scene was unbelievable. "Kevin!
Kevin, no! Don't leave!" Brian yelled, flagging him down, but everyone
else drowned his yells out. His voice couldn't compete with the thousands and
thousands of screaming girls.
Kevin now, hadn't even seen Brian. He
was pushing through the crowd, despite his clothes being ripped apart by fans.
Hands smacked him in the face, and he was being pulled in all different
directions, but he ignored it all. Glancing back over his shoulder, he saw
Nick, seeking refuge behind a bodyguard. He was frantically waving him down,
but he ignored him as well.
"Step back, please step back,
give him room everyone," an officer warned, pushing fans aside to make
room for Kevin. "Bring the cab around!" A bodyguard commanded, making
signals with one hand, holding back press with the other.
Kevin was walking with his head down,
so not to be blinded by the flash of cameras. He never once looked back.
***
Nick, had suddenly stopped signing
autographs, and begun his decent after Kevin. But he didn't have a bodyguard,
they were all occupied at the moment.
"Kevin! Wait Kevin! Don't
leave!" He pleaded, but a few fans had gotten hold of his shirt. "Let
go! Please, just let me go!" he yelled, pulling away from them.
But they didn't listen. The commotion
was so loud, he couldn't even hear his own voice. Thousands upon thousands of
fans were sucking him in. To his left, he was being pulled, to his right he was
being tugged. He couldn't fight back them all, his tugging and pleads were
ignored, as well as his reluctance.
He was swallowed up in the crowd,
screaming to be released, that an officer would hear him, but he fell backwards
into a thousand screaming hands, ripping him in twenty different directions.
"Kevin, no, don't go," he said pitifully, giving up hope, as he was
swarmed by fans.
But Kevin hadn't even noticed. He dodged hands and eventually made it through the
crowd. "Kevin, where are you going?? Are you seriously resigning from the
group?" reporters asked rapidly, hoping to get an answer before the got
into the cab. "Kevin, will leaving the group effect your sex life
any?" a reporter asked.
Awed at the stupidity of the question,
he gawked awkwardly at the reporter, shook his head, and ducked into the cab,
shutting the door behind him, repenting screams.
***
