Chapter
26
Nick woke up as someone gently shook him and told him that they had
arrived in Los Angeles. Nick slowly
opened his sleep filled baby blue eyes and seen a stewardess in front of
him. He smiled at her and quickly made
his way off of the plane. He had decided on the flight that he wanted to
surprise his family with his visit so he asked the cab driver to take him to
the closest rental car place.
When he got there, he finally found a dark green Camaro and he rented
it. After paying for it, he got in and started up the car and out of habit
automatically turned on the radio. He
was quietly singing along to Blink 182’s "Adam’s Song" as he drove
down the highway and when the song ended and the familiar harmony of "Show
Me The Meaning Of Being Lonely" came on the radio, Nick quickly reached
over and turned the radio off. It seemed
to him that everything was reminding him of the rest of the guys, especially of
Brian.
He slowed down as he came to the block that his family’s house was on
and slowly drove the car into his family’s driveway. He stopped the car in front of the family
garage and stepped out, taking in a deep breath as he breathed in the humid
California air. He then realized how
much he missed the little things in life he had always taken for granted.
He took in another deep breath
as he jogged up to the front door of his parents large home and knocked on the
door; because he had forgotten his key in his bags which the bodyguards took to
the hotel after Brian collapsed.
He listened for a few moments
and heard nothing at first then he heard the sound of two pairs of small feet
running to the door, he smiled knowing who was about to open the door.
The door opened and Nick’s two youngest siblings, Aaron and Angel
looked at the figure before them with happiness evident on their faces. Nick bent down and pulled them both in a
tight hug; he had missed them more than anyone could ever imagine. He let go of
the twins and made his way through the house, Aaron and Angel right on his
heels.
He turned the corner and found his parents sitting in the kitchen side
by side with their backs turned towards him. With a small grin on his face, he
turned towards the twins and put his index finger up to his lips, signaling for
them to be quiet. They nodded and
clasped both of their hands over their mouths, trying not to allow their built
up giggles to escape. Nick quietly came up behind his parents as he opened his
mouth and screamed, "HI MOM AND DAD!" and burst out laughing at their
reaction.
Both of his parents seemed to jump about 10 feet in the air from their
sudden scare. The twins ran up to Nick and wrapped their arms around his waist
as they laughed along with their oldest brother.
Jane and Bob quickly turned around and their faces lit up with their smiles.
They pulled their eldest son into a hug and his mother said, "What are you
doing home so early, Nickolas? Tour doesn’t end for another 3 months. Is
something wrong?" Her only response was Nick burying his head further into
his father’s shoulder as he let a loud sob. "Nick, honey tell me what is
wrong. I hate to see you like this. You know you can tell me anything."
said Jane as she smoothed down her son’s short blond hair.
Nick raised his head up and
looked at his mother as he pulled away from his father, "I’m sorry mom but
this time I can’t." said Nick as he grabbed his rental car keys off the
table and walked outside heading towards the dark green Camaro. After he
started the car up and backed it out of the driveway, Nick pushed the gas pedal
and drove quickly down the street; leaving his family to wonder what had
happened.