Escape

I only have one thing to say before sending you into battle. 'At my signal, unleash hell.'

Disclaimer: touch not lest ye be touched

Chapter 44

"My name is Mrs. Phillips. I'd like to welcome all of you to the fourth grade."

Ben sat at his desk, trying not to make eye contact with any of the kids sitting around him. He kept his eyes on his hands folded on top of the desk.

He was scared and really just wanted to stay at home. Both Kevin and AJ had dropped him off this morning, watching him as he walked into the school for the first time. They knew he was scared, but they had told him that everything would be okay. Ben just had to trust them about it. And he did.

"I know that most of you already know each other from last year, but I am still going to ask each of you to tell the class your name and a little about yourself." Mrs. Phillips smiled at them, pointing to a girl in the front row to start.

Ben's heart pounded in his chest. He didn't want to have to talk in front of anyone. He waited nervously for his turn to come around. Mrs. Phillips pointed at him. Ben stood up shakily.

"I'm Ben Richardson. I moved to Orlando in June from Kentucky." He spoke softly with his lilting accent. The class giggled at the sound. He began to blush and started to sit.

"What do you like to do Ben? What are some of your hobbies?"

"I play soccer and I love to swim. I'm also a dancer."

"What type of dancing do you do Ben?" Mrs. Phillips seemed to enjoy this torture. At least it seemed that way to Ben.

"I do a little bit of everything. Mostly I do a lot of modern dance."

"Thank you Ben." Mrs. Phillips finally let him sit down. Ben folded his hands again. He looked around at his classmates nervously. A few of them were watching him closely. He could feel his cheeks turning red. Ben looked back down at his hands praying that the day was almost over.

"Hey new kid!" A voice called out to Ben as he sat by himself eating his lunch. Ben turned to look. A group of about 10 guys from his class were walking over to him.

"These seats taken?" One of the boys asked smugly as he sat down, motioning for the rest of the group to sit down too.

"No." Ben said softly, putting his sandwich down. He swallowed the bite he had and looked at them.

"Whatcha eating?"

"Um...turkey and cheese on wheat bread." Ben answered. The kid grabbed Ben's lunch bag and looked inside.

"He's got some good stuff. Who wants a cupcake?" He grabbed Ben's cupcake and tossed it to one of the other kids.

"What's this?" The kid pulled out a folded over piece of paper. Ben's heart raced. It was the note that Kevin had put in his lunch.

"Ben. Hope your first day of school is going great! We love you! Dad and Papa." The kid let the piece of paper fall to the table. Ben grabbed it and put it in his pocket.

"Dad and Papa? You have two fathers?"

Ben nodded. "So the two guys who dropped you off this morning are fags? Your parents are a couple of fags."

Ben didn't say anything. No one had ever said anything to him like that about Kevin and AJ.

"David leave him alone." A girl walked over to the table with her hands on her hips.

"This is none of your business Julia. Let us talk to the freak alone."

"David get the hell out of here or I'll tell Mom." Julia stared at her brother angrily.

"Whatever." David said, backing down. "Let's go guys."

Julia remained standing until they had all left. She sat down next to Ben, who still hadn't moved since David had called his parents a couple of fags.

"I'm Julia." She held her hand out to him. Ben turned to look at her. "Ben. My name is Ben."

"It's nice to meet you Ben. Sorry about my brother. He's a jerk."

Ben nodded. "It's okay. You can say he's a jerk." She said.

"He's a jerk." Ben whispered. "And he's in my class."

"I know. I'm in your class too. I sit about three rows behind you. I guess you didn't notice me."

"Sorry."

"It's okay. I'm not surprised you tuned everyone out. Sorry everyone laughed at your accent."

Ben shrugged. "It's okay. You don't need to apologize."

"I know I don't. I just hate to see people upset especially when my brother causes it." Julia smiled at him, trying to make him feel comfortable.

"It's okay."

Julia watched him for a moment. "So you have two dads?" Ben nodded.

"That's pretty neat. I've never known anyone who had two dad's. Do you have a mother too?"

"My mom died in July. That's why I moved here. To live with my father."

"Oh I'm so sorry Ben. That's terrible."

"She had cancer. I miss her a lot, but she was in a lot of pain."

"Sometimes it's better for the person to die." Julia said softly.

"I guess."

Ben looked at her again, smiling this time. She was pretty. Julia had short curly blond hair and blue eyes. Kind of reminded him a little of Justin.

"This is going to sound kind of silly, but you look like my friend Justin."

Julia raised her eyebrows. "Is that a compliment?"

"It's your hair. He has this mop of curly blond hair and really blue eyes like yours. His nickname is Curly actually."

"Oh like Justin Timberlake's nickname. He uses Curly too. Do you know who he is?"

Ben shifted uncomfortably. "Uh...he's in 'Nsync right?"

She nodded. "Yup. I just saw them in August actually. It was a really cool show. The Backstreet Boys performed with them. Chris left the band though. I was really bummed."

"Well, Chris wanted to spend more time with Kira and Haley." Ben said, picking up his sandwich and taking a bite.

"I didn't know that. I guess it's cool that he wants to be around his kids more."

"I was at the show too. I liked it a lot too."

"Wow. A guy who admits seeing 'Nsync. That's pretty rare. How come you went?"

"Um...well me and my friend Brielle from Kentucky went with my Grandmom. She had tickets."

"That's pretty cool."

Ben chewed his sandwich, looking at her again. "Did you know that the Backstreet Boys are performing with 'Nsync at the MTV awards too?"

Julia's eyes widened. "No. How do you know that?"

"Uh...they said it on MTV the other day." Ben hoped she would believe him.

"No they didn't. All they've said is that 'Nsync is performing. Backstreet isn't performing at all."

"Trust me. They are." Ben said softly.

"I guess we'll have to wait and see." Julia said.

"If you want, you can ask my father when he comes to pick me up this afternoon." Ben offered.

"Does your father work for the Backstreet Boys?"

Ben shook his head. "My father is a Backstreet Boy." Ben's voice was soft so no one else could hear him.

"No way. Which one?" Julia was curious now. She wanted to know.

"Kevin Richardson and AJ McLean are my parents."

Julia narrowed her eyes, looking at Ben closely. "Which one is your real father?"

"Kevin. He and my mom were together a long time ago."

"So how come we haven't heard that Kevin Richardson has a son?" Julia was trying to keep the doubt from her voice.

Ben shrugged. "He and Papa haven't wanted to say anything yet. I guess they want to keep me hidden."

"That sucks."

"Do you want to come over my house after school Julia?" Ben asked, wanting to get to know this pretty girl better.

"I can't today. My mom would flip if I didn't ask her first. Maybe tomorrow I can though."

"Great. You want to come and meet my parents when they pick me up today?"

"Sure. What girl would say no to meeting two of the Backstreet Boys?" She grinned at him. Ben felt his heart sink. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to announce who his parents were.

"Julia. Can you not tell anyone who my parents are? Please."

"No problem. I wouldn't tell your secrets."

"Thanks."

"Dad!" Ben shouted when he spotted Kevin waiting for him. Kevin was doing his best to blend in. He had on sunglasses and a baseball cap. At AJ's suggestion he hadn't shaved so he had stubble on his face.

Kevin's eyes lit up when he saw his son coming towards him.

"Hey Ben." Kevin ruffled his hair lovingly. "Dad I want you to meet someone." Ben turned and motioned for Julia to come over.

"Julia this is my Dad Kevin. Dad this is Julia. She's in my class."

"Pleasure to meet you Julia."

Julia's eyes were wide open, her mouth agape as she stared at Kevin.

"You weren't lying." She mumbled looking at Ben. Julia turned back to Kevin.

"It's an honor to meet you Mr. Richardson." Julia shook his hand, trying not to scream.

"Please call me Kevin. I hate it when I'm called Mr. Richardson."

"Okay." Julia let go of his hand.

"Ben I got a call from Fatima. She wants you and Uncle Brian at the studio tonight to work on your piece for the recital next month. Brian's going to pick you up at 5."

Ben groaned. "All right. I better get home and do my homework then."

He turned to look at Julia who was still staring. "I'll see you tomorrow Julia. You'll ask your mom if you can come over right?"

"Yup. I'll see you in class tomorrow Ben. I should probably go make sure David isn't beating anyone up anyway." She blushed. "Goodbye Kevin."

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow Julia." Kevin reached for Ben's hand and they walked back to the car.

"Where's Papa at?" Ben asked. "He had a doctor's appointment. He'll probably be home soon after us."

"For his knee?"

"Yeah. He's still trying to convince the doctor to let him dance next Thursday."

Kevin unlocked the car door and put Ben's backpack in the backseat. Ben buckled himself in.

"Dad?"

"Yeah Ben?"

"I don't like my school."

Kevin looked at him. Ben was staring out the car window. "Why not?"

"Everyone's teasing me. They laughed at my accent and they called...never mind." Ben decided not to hurt his father like that. He could deal with it himself.

"What did they say? You can tell me." Kevin squeezed Ben's hand reassuringly.

"They called you and Papa a couple of fags." Ben's voice was so quiet.

"Oh honey. I'm sorry you had to hear that." Kevin put the car in reverse and backed out of the spot. "Some people just don't understand that Papa and I are normal."

"From now on, can only one of you drop me off?" It hurt Ben to even ask that.

"Sure." Kevin said with false cheer. "Today's only your first day. I'm sure it'll get better."

Ben shrugged. "Julia seemed nice."

"She is but her brother isn't. He's the one who said that about you. Everyone else just kind of joined in afterwards."

"Well just be friends with Julia then." Kevin drove quickly as usual, weaving in and out of traffic.

"When are you guys leaving?" Ben looked out the window again.

"Sunday afternoon."

"Can I please come with you?"

"Ben you've got school all week. Besides it would be better for you if you don't go."

"Why?"

"I don't want everyone talking about you. I don't want people to treat you like an object."

"Are you ashamed of me?" Ben asked softly.

"No! Don't ever think that. I love you! Papa loves you. We love having you in our family."

"Then why won't you acknowledge that I'm your son in interviews and stuff?"

"We just want to protect you. You're only 10 Ben. You don't need to deal with fame right now."

"Dad please let me come with you on Thursday."

Kevin sighed heavily. "Let me talk to Papa about it. This is going to completely change your life if you do come with us."

"My life has already completely changed."

Kevin drove quietly thinking about what Ben had said. He didn't know what to do. Maybe it was the best thing for Ben if they didn't hide him anymore.

"The show starts at 8 on Thursday. I want to you to miss as little school as possible. I'll have Denise sign you out of school for half of Thursday and all of Friday. You can fly in Thursday afternoon to join us."

"Really?" Ben's voice was hopeful. "I still want to talk to Papa, but I think it's a good idea."

"Thank you Dad." Kevin squeezed Ben's shoulder. "Don't thank me yet. We still have to get this past Papa."

"You've got to be joking!" AJ shouted at Kevin. "We talked about this. We decided not to say anything."

"Would you just calm down Alex? Shouting at me isn't going to change my mind." He gestured for AJ to sit down.

"Ben asked me if we were ashamed of him." Kevin said calmly. AJ sat down heavily. "Does he think we are?"

"He wanted to know why we won't acknowledge that he is part of our family during interviews."

"Kevin." AJ's voice was sad. "Can we do this to him and still have a clean conscious?"

"Honey I don't think we have much of a choice."

"Of course we have a choice. We can choose not to say anything."

"And we can continue to hurt Ben."

"So what are we going to do?" AJ's voice was filled with despair.

"We're going to call Kurt Loder and explain the situation. Kurt will handle it well."

"He always does." AJ said sadly. Kevin stroked his face gently. AJ's eyes met Kevin's. "I love you." "I love you too." Kevin kissed him softly. "It'll be for the best."

AJ shifted in his seat. "Doesn't mean I think it's a good idea."

"What did the doctor say?" Kevin asked, changing the subject.

"He advises against performing on Thursday but ultimately the decision is mine to make."

"Do you want my opinion?"

"Not really because you're going to tell me not to do it."

"Yup." Kevin agreed.

"All that I'm worried about are the flips. I'm going to see if Joey will flip instead of me."

"Well you can call and ask him today. They aren't leaving until Friday."

"I'll talk to him on Sunday. Besides I have no idea if he's at his place or JC's. I hate calling around like an idiot."

"Sometimes you are such a kid."

"How does that make me a kid?" AJ asked him. "You get this little gleam in your eyes sometimes that reminds me of a kid in a candy store. For some reason you got it then."

"Is that a bad thing?"

"Of course not. That's one of the things I love most about you."

Kevin pulled AJ onto his lap, resting his head on AJ's chest. "I love you so much AJ. Thank you for sticking by me through all this."

"You say that like it's an amazing thing. I love you. I never even thought of doing anything but being with you." AJ said softly turning his head so his cheek was resting on Kevin's head.

"Whatever I did to deserve you I'll never know."

"You existed." AJ's voice was soft. The two of them sat in the kitchen for a few more minutes before AJ stood up and led Kevin out of the kitchen.

"Hand me that paintbrush please Nick." Allie asked from the ladder she was standing on.

Nick grabbed the paintbrush and handed it to her. They were almost finished getting the living room painted. All they had to do after this was the kitchen.

"Do you want me to do that? I'll switch and you can do the trim instead." Nick offered, worried about her being on the ladder.

"Nope. I suck at the trim. Remember what happened in Jeff's room?"

Nick nodded and sat back down on the plastic. Allie was really bad at doing the trim. She had gotten the blue paint all over the cream walls in Jeff's bedroom.

"Have you thought anymore about registering for classes Nick?" Allie asked as she painted the walls carefully. Classes were starting tomorrow.

Nick shrugged. "It would be tough. I'm going to be flying back and forth to Orlando all the time. I don't think I would be here enough to be in school."

Allie sighed. She had heard all these excuses before. And that's all they were, excuses. Nick was scared and they both knew it. He hadn't been in a 'real' school situation since he was in junior high. And he hadn't exactly had a normal school experience then being pulled out all the time for auditions.

"Why don't you just register for one this semester? Take an English course or something. Take an art class. You love drawing."

Nick pondered it for a moment. "Do you think I could still register this late?"

Allie's heart soared. He had never asked that before.

"Of course you can. You don't need housing. I'm sure they'll accept you." She climbed down from the ladder and put her paintbrush down.

Allie sat down next to her husband and wiped a stray hair from his face. "I love you Nicky." Nick smiled and leaned in, kissing her softly.

Nick put his paintbrush on the ground and pulled Allie closer to him, weaving his hands through her hair. She pulled back, breathing heavily.

Allie picked up the paintbrush next to Nick. Smiling at him, she used it to paint a strip of green on his nose. He grinned and picked up another small brush. Dipping it in the paint, he drew a green swirl on her cheek.

"Lay down." Allie pushed him backwards so he was laying on the ground. She straddled his body and began to write on his bare chest.

"Watcha' writing?" Nick asked as he tried to read it upside down.

"I love Allie." Allie said as she continued to run the paintbrush all over his chest.

"Feels like you're writing more then that." Nick said as he giggled. The bristles on the brush and the cool paint were tickling him.

"Well I am painting your nipples green and writing 'if you can read this you're going to get lucky' with an arrow pointing down." Allie grinned at him.

"Oh really. So can you read it?" He asked coyly.

"Mmhmm. It's really clear." Allie smiled at him. Nick could feel himself getting hard just looking at his wife. "So am I going to get lucky?" She asked.

"I think that can be arranged." Nick pulled her down on top of him, kissing her passionately. Allie stretched her small body out, letting herself rest on Nick's larger frame.

"Oh get a room you two." Jeff said from the doorway. He was carrying a pile of dirty rags and towels.

Allie didn't even respond. She just flipped him off and continued to kiss Nick.

"Hey Nick your wife just gave me the finger." Jeff whined. Nick flipped him off.

"Well if that's the way you two are going to be, I'll just go get Twiggy. You can answer to him instead." Jeff grinned at the two of them.

Twiggy walked by a moment later carrying a small rug. He was currently decorating the 'smoking room' he had set up in part of the attic.

"Hey get a room you two." He said as he stopped to look at them.

Allie sighed and lifted her head. She rested her elbows on Nick's chest and glared at them.

"I believe this counts as a room. And we own it. So we've got a room. And so do the two of you. So leave us alone."

"Meow. Someone's a naughty pussy today." Twiggy said with a grin. Jeff began to laugh at him. "Let's go Sparky. We can test out the smoking room for comfort while the two of them are busy."

Twiggy and Jeff left, letting Nick and Allie continue. "Mmmm. Much better." Nick said as he slipped his tongue into her mouth. He ran his hands down her body, feeling every curve under the T-shirt and boxers she wore.

"Hey Allie, where does this go?" Kate asked from the doorway. Allie groaned softly. She looked up and saw Kate holding a lamp.

"Kate just put it in the dining room for now." Allie said, annoyed at her.

"Okay, sorry." Kate walked away. Allie rested her head on Nick's chest.

"Can we go to the bedroom?" She asked him. Nick stroked her back. "Of course. Maybe if we shut the door they won't bother us."

"That's what I'm hoping." Allie climbed off of Nick. He started to get up, but she pushed him back down, holding a finger up.

With a quick movement, Allie pulled his cock out and took it in her mouth, bobbing up and down for a moment. Nick threw his head back, amazed that she had done that.

Allie pulled off his cock and grinned at him, pulling his pants back up.

"Come on let's go."

Brian lay stretched out, letting his body soak up the sun. He felt relaxed and content as he let the warmth of the sun lull him into sleep. Tyke barked softly, breaking the silence and tranquility of the moment. Brian opened one eye and looked at the small dog.

"Whatcha' barkin' at?" Brian asked him. Tyke just woofed softly again.

"He's probably barking at me." A soft voice said from behind Brian. He jumped in surprise. He turned to look at the woman who had spoken.

"Leighanne! What are you doing here?" Brian was surprised, but not really upset.

"I'm in town shooting a movie. I thought I would drop by and see how you were."

"It's great to see you. You look fantastic Leigh." She blushed briefly, looking away.

"You're looking pretty fantastic yourself Bri." Leighanne said taking in Brian's muscular, glistening body.

Their eyes locked momentarily. Leighanne looked away, suddenly self-conscious under Brian's familiar gaze.

"I knocked but no one answered. I was a little surprised my code still worked."

Brian nodded. "Never saw a reason to erase it. You're always welcome in my home."

Leighanne sat on the patio chair next to him. Tyke immediately leapt into her lap, licking her excitedly. She laughed at the dog's enthusiasm. Leighanne had been the one who had gotten Tyke for Brian. He had been a birthday present.

"Did you miss me Tyke old boy?" She asked, hugging him gently as he squirmed happily in her arms.

"Of course he missed you. We all missed you." Brian smiled at the pretty blond.

"I've been thinking a lot about you lately. Every few months you guys show up in the news and it's very rarely something good. How are you doing with everything?"

Leighanne asked settling back in the chair, Tyke calmly resting on her stomach.

"It's been a rough year. Everyone has managed to pull through though. Kevin and AJ took the most shit, but they're stronger for it. They're better then they have been in years."

Leighanne nodded. "That's good to know, but I wasn't asking about everyone else. I was asking how you are."

Brian looked at her wistfully, a sad smile playing across his tanned face. "You know I can't remember the last time someone asked me that."

"Does that bother you?"

"I'm just Brian. I'm just kind of here now. When I'm needed that's when everyone notices me again."

"I'm sorry Bri."

Brian shook his head. "Don't be. It's not your fault. It's not my fault either. This is just what happened. My best friend's have their own lives. Nick's married. Howie's married. Kev and AJ are practically married. That leaves me."

"What happened between you and Shelley?"

"I found out how it feels to date me." He said softly. "Shelley was always too busy with work to really be an active part of the relationship. We broke up the end of June."

"I'm sorry. That's not a fun lesson to have to learn." Leigh sat back up, putting Tyke on the ground. She was hesitant in her actions, wanting to give Brian a hug, but unsure if it was a good idea.

"I'm so sorry Leigh. I never realized it was that bad."

"That's ancient history Brian. I forgave you a long time ago for our relationship."

"I still feel bad. I took advantage of you so much then." Brian stood up. He reached out to Leighanne. She took his hand and he helped her up.

"Can I get you a drink?"

"I'd love some iced tea." Brian smiled, gazing into her soft blue eyes. He knew those eyes so well. Leighanne carefully controlled her breathing so Brian wouldn't know how much his very presence was effecting her.

"No problem."

"Whose Daddy's big girl?" Howie asked Luna. She laughed and waved her hands in the air. Ameena smiled at them from the desk. She had been asked to design a lighting scheme for Limp Bizkit. She had agreed on the condition that she didn't have to tour with them.

"I can't believe she's a year old already." Howie said to his wife. "I can't believe I missed so much of her first year. I honestly feel like she barely knows who I am Howie."

Howie looked up at his wife. Ameena had a sad look on her face as she watched Luna crawl around. It hadn't been an easy year for Ameena. First touring for five months with him. Then touring for two more with 'Nsync. She had really only been around for a little more then three months of Luna's first year. Her own daughter was a stranger to her.

Howie reached for Ameena, pulling her down the floor with him. He held her closely as their daughter played in front of them. In her first year, Luna had been raised by Ameena's brother Jared and by Kevin more then her parents.

"It won't ever be this way again. We'll be here for her and for the rest of our kids. I promise." Howie kissed her softly.

"She's daddy's girl anyway." Ameena said to him, a trace of bitterness in her voice.

"Yes but she's mommy's girl too."

Ameena shook her head. "She's much more affectionate towards you. She'll pull away from me when I try to lift her from the crib."

Howie had no idea that had been happening. No wonder Ameena was upset.

"Then we figure out a way for her to get closer to you."

"How do you plan on doing that?"

"Quit your job."

Ameena pulled away from him, looking at him in astonishment.

"Are you crazy?" Howie shook his head. "If you're home with her she'll get to know you better."

"I can't just quit my job. What would I do then?"

"Ameena you're good enough to do freelance lighting design work. You don't have to actually do the touring."

Ameena leaned back against him, mulling the idea over in her head. "I don't know Howie. I have to think about it."

"I understand." He kissed her softly. "Chris invited us over for dinner. Do you want to go?" Ameena nodded.

"Is Dani cooking?" Howie shook his head. "She still can't stomach the smell of food cooking. So we're getting a Chris Kirkpatrick special."

Ameena wrinkled her nose at the thought. "I remember the last time we ate Chris' cooking. I'm still not sure what it was."

Howie grinned. "He swore it was chicken and it tasted like chicken, but everything tastes like chicken so you never know."

Ameena laughed, turning to kiss her husband. "What do you say we take over the arroz con pollo my Mom made?"

Howie nodded. "I think that's a good idea. I'll call Chris and let him know we're supplying the main dish."

"I can grill up some plantains too if you want." Ameena knew the answer before Howie opened his mouth. His eyes lit up at the suggestion.

"Mmm. Like I'd ever say no to your grilled plantains."

"Hand me another slice of pepperoni and pineapple." Allie said pointing to the box next to Twiggy. He grabbed her a slice and passed it over to her.

"I will never understand how the two of you can eat that horrible combination." Nick said wrinkling his nose as he looked at his wife's pizza.

Twiggy shrugged. "Marilyn's been ordering it for years. You just kinda get used to it."

Kate, Jeff, Cody, Twiggy, Allie, and Nick were enjoying a fulfilling dinner of pizza and beer in the unfurnished family room.

"So tomorrow Allie and I will finish up the living room. Kate, you and Cody are going to strip the wallpaper in the kitchen. Twiggy and Jeff are going to pretend to be landscape artists and fix up the front and backyards."

Twiggy grimaced. "Why do we have to pretend? Can't you just hire a real landscape artist Nicky?" Nick shook his head. "It's more fun watching the two of you suffer."

"Gee thanks Nick." Jeff said glumly.

"So once we get this stuff done we can actually furnish this place right?" Kate said excitedly. Allie grinned. She was looking forward to that too. "Yup. I'm sick of sleeping on the floor too."

Nick sighed. "That Twiggy is why we aren't hiring a real landscape artist. Allie and Kate are going to send me to the poorhouse furnishing this place."

Allie laughed. "I'm not going to bankrupt you honey. I'll leave you enough to get you home again."

"Thanks babe. You're so thoughtful." Allie kissed him on the cheek. "That's why you love me."

"I don't love you. I worship you." Everyone laughed as Nick leaned over and kissed her feet. "Good answer honey. I like that one."

"I have to worship you. You give me sex. No one else will."

"Yeah right Nicky. We all know you can get whoever ya want whenever ya want. You're Nick Carter. Mentioning your name can get me pussy." Twiggy said jokingly.

Allie tossed her plate of the ground and walked out. "Thanks Twiggy." Nick said, following his wife out of the room.

"Are you sure you want to come with me?" Brian asked her.

"Brian, do you want me to come with you?" Leighanne asked. Brian waited a moment before answering.

"I want you to come with me. Will you come with me?" He asked, smiling at her warmly.

"Sure Brian. I'd love to see Kevin and AJ anyway. Are you sure they'll be okay with me coming over for dinner?"

"Of course. I have to pick Ben up from Fatima's anyway. I can't believe she actually let me out of rehearsal tonight."

Leighanne smiled. "I never remember Fatima being that nice in the past. Has she grown a heart or something?"

"Fatima always had a heart. She just likes to hide it." Brian took Leighanne's hand and helped her up.

"Did I tell you how beautiful you look tonight Leigh?" Brian said softly.

"No you haven't." Leighanne blushed deeply.

"You look so beautiful Leigh. I've missed having you around."

"Why Brian Thomas Littrell are you flirting with me?" She asked jokingly.

"Would it be so bad if I was?" He asked seriously.

Leighanne shook her head. "No. I would probably be pretty receptive if you were."

Brian leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips. Leighanne held back for a moment before returning the kiss.

"I hope that wasn't too forward of me. I've wanted to do that since you said hello." Brian's voice was husky as he talked to the woman he had once loved and planned to marry.

"I've been wanting to do that for two years. That's why I came over today." Leighanne said softly.

"Leigh, would you do me the honor of being my date next week for the MTV Video Music Awards?" Brian asked, holding her hand gently, staring into her deep blue eyes.

"Only if you will do me the honor of being part of my life again?"

Brian let go of her hand and walked away. "Before I say yes I need to tell you the truth about a few things. About why I broke up with you."

"I'm listening."

"Allie please stop." Nick called after her as she ran up the steps to their bedroom.

Sighing, he followed her up the steps as fast as he could. He made it to the door in time to have it slammed in his face.

"Allie don't listen to Twiggy. He's a blubbering idiot."

"But it's the truth Nick. You can have anyone you want. Why would you want me?"

Nick turned the knob and opened the door. Allie was sitting on the floor, clutching her stuffed dog tightly.

"Allie you're my wife. I love you more then life itself." He sat down next to her and gently petted the dog's head. "I could never imagine having anyone else but you."

"Why do you love me Nick? There's nothing special about me."

"Don't say that. You are the most caring, sweet, beautiful, sexy woman I have ever met. You have the power to make me fall in love with you every time you look at me."

Allie leaned up against her husband. Nick put his arm around her, holding her tightly.

"Why are you questioning this? Because of what Twiggy said?"

Allie shook her head. "I was reading an article earlier today about you guys. They speculated that you getting married may have hurt the group more then anything else that happened in the past year."

"Fuck them. I don't care what they said. I married the woman I loved and I never want you to second guess my love and devotion to you."

Allie was quiet, pressing her face into Nick's chest as he held her.

"You are the best thing that has ever happened to me Allison. You are more important then the money, the fame, even the guys. Without you in my life it wouldn't be complete."

"I love you Nick."

"I love you too." He held her tightly, wondering whether this crisis of faith would pass or if she would continue to doubt his love.

Leighanne sat down in stunned silence. "You loved her the whole time you professed your love to me?"

Brian nodded. "I did love you too. I just fell in love with her as well."

"And you knew about Kevin's son?"

"Yeah." Brian touched her shoulder gently. She reached up and covered his hand with her own.

"Thank you for being honest with me." She said softly. "Are you going to answer my question?"

"Do you still want me in your life after hearing that?"

"I never stopped loving you Brian. Just like you never stopped loving Beth. As long as you promise that you won't let a dead woman haunt our lives, I want you in my life."

Brian squeezed her hand. "Yes." He said softly.

"Thank God." Leighanne whispered.

Chapter 45

AJ paced around the bedroom nervously. He ran his hands through his bright red hair again. Kevin was sitting on the bed calmly reading a magazine.

"How can you be so calm?" AJ asked tapping his fingers against his thigh.

"Getting wound up isn't going to make it any easier." Kevin patted the bed next to him, putting the magazine down.

AJ sat down next to Kevin, resting his head against Kevin's shoulder.

"You look really handsome tonight Kev."

Kevin blushed slightly, looking down at the clothes he had picked out for tonight. He was wearing a pair of leather pants and a high-necked button down shirt that reached to his knees. The shirt was sleeveless and white.

"Well you look damn sexy yourself Alex." AJ was wearing white pants and a blue and green tie-dyed mesh tank top.

Ben had flown in this afternoon while the guys had been doing a final run-through with 'Nsync. Allie had gone to pick him up. The two of them went shopping so Ben could get something fun to wear. Neither Kevin nor AJ had been allowed to see what they had picked out. He was in Nick and Allie's room getting dressed and playing Nintendo.

Kevin had called up Kurt Loder the week before and talked the situation over with him. Kurt had flown to Florida over the weekend to talk to all three of them about what needed to be done. He also did some filming for the interview he wanted to do with them. It was going to be live, but he wanted to intersperse clips of Kevin and AJ with Ben to give the story a family feel to it.

Lance had gone missing on Friday. Justin had called Kevin basically in a panic, asking him to check and see if Lance was at home. None of the cars were there and no lights were on. So since then they had that to worry about as well. Thankfully Lance had shown up in New York yesterday like he had promised.

AJ and Joey had switched so that AJ wasn't doing the flips anymore. However his knee was always sore after they rehearsed. He still hadn't decided what he was going to do yet. They had choreographed another routine where AJ didn't dance at all, but they all wanted to do the one they had performed before.

Though Kevin wouldn't admit it to anyone besides AJ, he was scared to death of performing with Marilyn tonight. The costume that he was wearing hid every trace of who he was so the worry was really unfounded. However it was still there. He had rehearsed with the guys a few times but Kevin still felt unprepared. He had spent a couple hours yesterday practicing the piano part of the song.

Ben stuck his head in the bedroom. "Shut your eyes." He said with a grin. "Okay." Both Kevin and AJ shut their eyes. Ben came into the bedroom followed closely by Nick and Allie.

"Okay you can open them." Ben stood in front of them wearing the clothes he and Allie had picked out.

Kevin's jaw dropped when he looked at his son. AJ clapped his hand over his mouth so he didn't laugh. The outfit was great.

"Looking sharp Benjamin." AJ said, holding his arms out to him. Ben jumped up on the bed and gave AJ a hug.

"What do you think Dad?" Ben asked, still in AJ's arms.

"You look just like Papa." Ben was wearing red pants and a tuxedo T-shirt. He had on a pair of black sunglasses and a leopard print hat. His shoes were fake snakeskin.

"Allie you let him get that outfit?" Kevin asked jokingly, pulling his son off AJ so he could get a hug.

"We picked it out together." She said with a smile. "Most of it was Benji's choice though. I picked out the shoes."

"I beat Nick twice Dad." Ben said happily as he settled in between Kevin and AJ.

"Nice job. Did you make him cry?" AJ asked jokingly. "Yup. He cried like the little girl he is."

"Okay that's enough. I didn't cry." Nick said defending himself. "Well I didn't cry that much."

"That's a great shirt Kevin. Where did you pick it up?" Allie asked admiring the shirt.

"I picked it up in this little shop in Paris last year. Why?"

"It's something my dad would love. I'm looking for something to get him for his birthday."

"I'll see if I can find the name of the designer if you'd like."

"Thanks Kev!" She said happily.

"By the way that is another great outfit you're pulling off."

Allie's outfit this year was tamer then last year's. She was wearing a pair of black leather pants that clung to her body like a glove and a sequined halter top. Her hair was loose, trailing down her back in waves and she had glitter on her arms and stomach. Nick was wearing tan pants and a white T-shirt with a picture of a cat sleeping on it's back on it. Written on the back was 'Tom made this for me. I'm the lucky one. Everyone else got a corvette.'

"Nice shirt Nicky." AJ said, laughing when he finished reading the back. "I thought you would appreciate it. It was a wedding gift from Tom."

"I kind of guessed it was from Tom." Nick rolled his eyes at AJ's weak joke.

"So Brian and Leighanne are ready. They're down in Chris and Danielle's room." Nick said as he played with Allie's hair absent- mindedly.

"Are Howie and Ameena ready?" Nick nodded. "Joey and JC's room is where everyone else is."

"So are we all just car-pooling in one limo or are the 'Nsync kids taking their own?" Kevin asked, getting up from the bed and straightening his clothes.

"We are in our own. I doubt all of us could fit in one limo." Nick said.

"The three of us will meet you downstairs in five minutes okay." AJ said to Nick and Allie. "Get everyone else and we shall re-convene in the lobby."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Nick said. He and Allie left, leaving the three of them alone.

"Are you ready Ben?" AJ asked his son, trying not to show how worried he was. Kevin sat back down and put his arm around Ben.

Ben nodded. "Yeah. I know what to say and what not to say." They had gone over everything Kurt was planning to ask them over the weekend. Kevin and AJ wanted to make sure Ben wasn't put on the spot with anything.

"Whatever happens after tonight, remember that we love you with all our hearts. No matter what anyone says to you remember that." Kevin said kissing Ben softly.

"I know you do."

Nick looked around at all his friends in the limo. Kevin and AJ were quiet, holding hands tightly. The rest of the limo riders were much more relaxed, laughing and joking. Ben was showing Leighanne a card trick.

"We're here." The driver announced over the intercom. The limo fell silent as all eyes turned to Kevin, AJ, and Ben.

"Well let's go then." Kevin said firmly. He squeezed AJ's hand, smiling confidently at him.

The driver opened the door for them. Brian and Leighanne climbed out first followed closely by Howie and Ameena.

Kevin got out of the limo, reaching his hand back in for Ben's. Ben took his father's hand gratefully.

Flashes went off. Screaming fans. Reporters shoving mics in their faces. Ben felt himself get pulled away from Kevin by the crush of the crowd. AJ quickly grabbed his other hand.

A circle formed around Ben. Kevin and AJ on each side of him. Nick and Allie behind him. Brian, Leighanne, Howie, and Ameena were in front of him.

They got halfway up the red carpet when they were spotted by one of the MTV guys. He grabbed Brian and pulled him aside.

"Kurt told me to bring you guys up as soon as you arrived."

Brian nodded and waved for everyone to follow them.

Kurt Loder looked down at the crowd with a sigh. He had been doing this for so long now. He was getting tired of it. Tonight he was waiting for the Backstreet Boys to get here. Looking at his watch, Kurt saw they were operating on 'Backstreet' time again. The guys had a real problem with being on time.

The door opened and Kurt turned to look. The guys had arrived. Kurt's eyes fell to the small boy who was the center of this interview.

"Guys. It's good to see all of you again." Kurt smiled warmly at them.

"So are you all ready Ben?" He asked, kneeling down next to the boy. "I'm ready Mr. Loder."

"What did I tell you last weekend? My name is Kurt." Ben blushed. "Okay."

Kurt stood up again looking at the small group of singers and loved ones in front of him.

"I have the tapes we made this weekend all ready. Does everyone want to be on camera?"

Ameena shook her head. "This is just going to be the guys and Ben. Leigh, Allie, and I will wait over here."

"Okay. Let's all take out seats then." He directed them to the chairs set up overlooking the crowd.

Ben climbed up and sat on Kevin's lap. Kurt watched as everyone else placed themselves. AJ stood behind Kevin and Ben, resting his hand on Kevin's shoulder. Nick was sitting on the ground in front of them. Brian was on Kevin's right and Howie was on his left.

Kurt looked at his cameraman who nodded at him. The tapes were cued up and he was ready. All he had to wait for was the cue from the cameraman to tell him that he was being put on the air.

"I'm a little scared now Dad." Ben whispered into Kevin's ear. "We can stop this now if you want."

"No." Ben said softly resting his head on Kevin's shoulder. Kevin tightened his arms around Ben's waist.

Nick looked up at Ben with a smile. "Trust me Ben, it'll all be okay. This is an easy interview compared to some that we do."

Brian kicked Nick softly. "Don't scare him dumbass."

Ben laughed at the two of them. Nick smiled inwardly. All he wanted was to have Ben laugh so that he would forget his nervousness.

"Okay guys. Get ready." Kurt said. The cameraman counted down for them, signaling that they were on.

"I'm Kurt Loder and I'd like to welcome you to a special interview with the Backstreet Boys."

The camera panned over to them, revealing Ben to the TV viewers.

"The five of you are nominated for a number of awards tonight, including album of the year for Escape. This is the third time you have been nominated for this particular award. You've been on a streak since Millennium came out."

"We are totally surprised to be nominated again. Honored definitely, but still surprised." Howie answered for them.

"There are so many great albums up for this award this year, it's just an honor to be in the company of the other artists nominated." Brian added in.

"This year the five of you are performing with 'Nsync doing a duet of their song 'The River.' Tell me a little about how this came about."

Nick reached for the microphone Howie was holding. "Well we've been friends with 'Nsync for some time now. We just grew closer during the last tour we were on. JC gave Kevin a call and asked if the five of us would join them onstage for their final concert of their solo tour this summer."

"So we got together, worked out a routine, and performed with them at their show in Orlando in August. It was so much fun that they asked us to do it again tonight. And we said yes." Brian said matter- of-factly.

"During the show in Orlando, you tore some ligaments in your left knee AJ. How are you doing since then?"

AJ took the microphone from Brian. "Actually I didn't hurt myself dancing. I hurt myself after the show because Nicky down there wanted to see if Kevin could hold both of us at the same time. I was on Kevin's back and he jumped into his arms. We all came crashing down and I landed badly on my knee, tearing my anterior cruicate ligament."

"Sorry AJ." Nick mumbled. He had apologized numerous times, but he still felt very, very guilty.

"I had surgery a week later to repair it. I'm not back at 100% yet, but I'm pretty close."

"Are you performing tonight?" Kurt asked.

"I'm planning on it. My dance partner for the evening is Joey and we kind of changed up our parts so he is doing some of the more strenuous parts of the routine."

"My next question is of a more personal nature. Kevin, you and AJ are getting married later this month. Some people are still skeptical that the two of you will actually make it to the alter. Do you have anything to say to those skeptics?"

Kevin smiled, taking the microphone from Nick. "Frankly those people don't have any idea what they are talking about. The wedding is on as planned and we haven't had any second thoughts since the day AJ proposed to me."

"Earlier this summer the two of you got an addition to your family in the form of your son Kevin. How has that affected your lives?"

Ben smiled at his father.

"As you mentioned, this young man sitting on my lap is our son Ben. He came to live with us in June."

"Having Ben around has made both of us grow up a lot more then we have had to over the years. We are blessed to have him in the family." AJ squeezed Ben's shoulder, smiling down at him.

"We're going to break to a clip from this past weekend when I visited the Richardson-McLean household." Kurt said, sending the viewing audience to a clip.

Kevin sighed heavily and looked down at his son. "You okay Ben?" Ben nodded, softly kicking Nick's shoulder.

"Hey quit it kiddo." Nick whined. Ben giggled. "Why? This is fun."

"Hmm...I don't know. Maybe 'cause you're kicking me!" Nick stood up and grabbed Ben off Kevin's lap. He flipped him upside down and held him there.

Ben laughed happily. "You gonna' stop?" Ben shook his head. "Okay you asked for it."

Nick pulled Ben up so he was facing the right way. Nick leaned over and flipped Ben over his back, letting him hang down by his arms. Ben was laughing really hard, trying not to fall.

Kevin and AJ just watched, knowing Nick was doing this on purpose so that Ben didn't have time to think about how nervous he was. Kevin used to do that to Nick when he was a kid during breaks in interviews.

"Okay guys we're coming back from the clip." Kurt said, bringing them all back to reality.

Kevin reached up and lifted Ben down, letting him get settled on his lap again. Nick sat down and tried to catch his breath.

"Welcome back. I'm still here with the Backstreet Boys. To let you all know, we just showed a clip of household activities including Ben."

"You mean the one where I'm doing the dishes with Papa and Dad is feeding the animals?" Ben asked Kurt, taking the microphone from Kevin.

"That's the one." Kurt smiled, glad that Ben was jumping into the interview and talking. He was going to have to thank Nick later. The look of sheer terror was gone from the boy's face.

"Ben, you used to live in Louisville with your mother before you moved in with your father. What was it like to make such a change in your life?"

"My Mom had cancer. She had been in remission for a long time when it came back last fall. I didn't know it then, but she began to try and find Kevin. She finally got in touch with him in June. We moved in with them a few weeks later. Mom was dying at that point. She died in July."

Ben paused to keep himself from crying. Kevin took the microphone from him.

"Ben's mother was my ex-fianc‚e from years ago. She didn't want to hurt either of us by forcing me to enter into a marriage that I wasn't comfortable in and she didn't want to hurt Ben by bringing an absentee father into his life. When she approached me about taking Ben after she died, I jumped at the chance."

"He was quite convincing. In the span of an hour, I learned who Kevin's fianc‚e had been, learned that he had a son, and learned that his son was coming to live with us very soon." AJ said, leaning in to the microphone.

Ben took the microphone again. "It wasn't easy to learn to live with my father. I actually had a much easier time learning to relate to AJ. It took me and Dad a little longer to learn to relate to each other. I also had a hard time learning to deal with the fact my parents were celebrities. My best friend couldn't call the house. Every time Dad or Papa answered she got so nervous that she hung up."

"What made the three of you decide to tell the world about this?" Kurt asked, making his presence known again.

"It was a little rushed actually. AJ and I wanted to keep Ben out of the spotlight as long as possible." Kevin paused. AJ jumped in.

"At Ben's request we decided to tell the world and just go with the flow. We're hoping this will make things a little easier on him now when he tries to explain his family situation."

"Well I'm very glad that all of you joined us tonight for this interview. I'm going to say good-bye to the six of you now and go to our final clip of Ben."

"Thank you for having us Kurt." Kevin said thanking him for everyone there.

Kurt set his microphone down and stretched his arms. "Nice job guys. Thanks for giving this one to me."

Kevin shook his hand. "You've always been good to us Kurt. AJ and I couldn't think of anyone else to give this exclusive to."

"Good luck Kevin. You guys are going to need it." Kurt said, dropping his voice so only Kevin could hear him.

"I know." Kevin paused. "You're going to be there on the 22nd right?"

"I wouldn't miss the nuptials for the world. I get to bring a cameraman right?" Kurt asked jokingly.

"Nah. You'll just have to settle for the video or pictures we release ourselves."

"I guess I can live with that." Kurt shook Kevin's hand again and waved to the others. He headed out of the room, leaving the guys to get ready to head back downstairs.

AJ watched as Justin walked over to the bar, ignoring everyone in his path. Justin grabbed another glass of champagne, gulping it down. He reached for another when AJ decided to stop him.

"Careful there Justin. You don't want to get drunk before the show." AJ said with a smile on his face.

"Thanks AJ, but I think getting drunk right now would be a very good thing."

AJ put his arm around Justin's shoulder and pulled him away from the bar.

"I know we aren't really close, but you need someone to talk to. Let's go walk outside for a few minutes."

Justin just nodded mutely. He let AJ lead him outside.

"So what happened Justin? You look like someone just walked on your grave."

Justin put his arms around his shoulders, shivering slightly in his sleeveless top. AJ rubbed his back while Justin looked around at the crowd of people they were walking through.

"This has been a really strange week AJ." Justin said, pausing to look around for a place to sit. Seeing an open bench, he gestured for AJ to follow him.

"I don't know how I suddenly took Lance's place, but it's happened."

"Why are you taking Lance's place? What happened?"

"I know that you know he disappeared this past week, only coming back yesterday." AJ nodded. "Well I played Lance to his Justin. I took care of things for him, hid stuff from the guys, and just checked up on him constantly. I was so scared AJ."

"But he's back. Everything is fine now right?"

Justin shook his head, trying to fight back tears. AJ grabbed his arm and began to laugh. Justin looked at him like he was insane. "Smile." AJ said through his teeth.

Justin immediately broke into a huge smile and laughed at AJ's non-existent joke. He knew how to perform.

"Let's go inside. There's gotta' be a bathroom around here somewhere." AJ suggested. Justin nodded and they headed back inside.

Daniel appeared from no where. "Can we talk Justin?"

"Not right now." Justin hissed at him, pulling AJ through the crowd.

"What was that about? I thought you and Daniel were friends." AJ asked, confused.

"We were until he informed me that he's dating Britney of all people." Justin pushed open the bathroom door. AJ followed him inside.

It was far from empty, but luckily there were no cameras or reporters in here. AJ waved to Eddie Vedder, who nodded slightly as he walked out.

"What's the big deal if Daniel dates Britney or not?"

"He can't date Britney. He just can't."

AJ sighed. He hopped up on the sink carefully, trying not to put too much weight on his healing knee.

"Justin she's not yours to control. Britney as we all very well know, has a mind of her own. She can date whoever she wants to date. The same goes for Daniel."

"It's just not right for one of my best friends to date my former fianc‚e."

"Why not?" AJ asked, swinging his legs.

Justin didn't know how to answer him. "It's just not right AJ."

"Do you want Britney back?"

"No."

"Then why does it matter to you that she and Daniel date? You seem like you're very happy with Sarah." AJ waved to Trent Reznor as he walked into the bathroom. Trent waved back and stepped over to the urinal.

"I am really happy with Sarah. She's incredibly great. I don't want Britney back."

"Isn't jealously a bitch Justin?"

"Whose jealous?" Trent asked as he stepped over to the sink to wash his hands.

"Justin's ex-girlfriend and one of his best friends have started dating. He's a little upset about it."

Trent nodded. "Oh that sucks." He hopped up on the sink next to AJ. "Can I tell you a story Justin?"

AJ watched as Justin's face filled with confusion. It wasn't everyday that Trent Reznor wanted to talk to him. Actually as AJ thought about it, the only time Justin had met him was at Nick and Allie's wedding.

"Go ahead Trent. AJ's trying his best. You might as well try too." Justin said glumly.

"After Kevin and Marilyn broke up, I tried everything I could to get him to notice me as more then his friend. It never worked. I followed him around like a lost puppy dog through all of his relationships until he met Mikel. I knew he was in love with Mikel almost before he did. And I hated Mikel for it."

The bathroom door opened and Trent stopped. Someone that none of them recognized walked in, took one look at the strange assembly before him and walked back out.

"So to continue, I hated him for taking Marilyn's heart. So I tried to break them up more then once. I was so jealous of their happiness that I wanted to see both of them hurt."

Justin wrinkled his brow. "You guys are all friends though. What happened?"

"I was informed by Marilyn that if I still wanted to count him as a friend I better get my act together and quit fucking with him. He told me I had no say in his life and I had to stop acting like I did."

"You should realize that before Britney and Daniel have to tell you that Justin." AJ said softly. He had heard this story before. One night, Marilyn and Kevin had gone out alone. Mikel was in Texas at his sister's. AJ and Trent had gotten drunk and spilled their guts to each other.

Justin nodded. "It hurts though." He said softly.

"It will hurt." Trent said. "You just have to get past the hurt to save the friendships."

No one else said anything for a moment. "Besides, didn't I see you with a beautiful young woman on your arm earlier?" Trent asked.

"Yeah." Justin blushed deeply. "Her name is Sarah." Trent began to laugh.

"Sorry Justin. I don't know you very well, but you've got it bad in my opinion." Trent said, looking at AJ for confirmation. AJ nodded. "So go with that instead Justin. You're happy. Let them be happy too."

"Thanks Trent." Justin said softly. "No problem man. I gotta' jet. My date is probably looking all over for me. She gets antsy like that when she's done coke."

Trent hopped off the counter and left the bathroom, leaving Justin and AJ alone.

"That was the last thing I expected tonight." Justin said smiling at AJ.

"It's been a strange evening in general and the show hasn't even begun. I'm almost afraid to see what happens during the show."

"How did the interview go earlier?" Justin asked, putting his arm around AJ.

AJ shrugged. "I really wish Ben hadn't come with us tonight. I didn't want to draw attention to him."

"I guess the question was brought up then."

AJ nodded. "The world knows that he is our son. Kurt handled it well though."

Justin nodded. "Kurt's good. He will treat sensitive subjects very delicately."

AJ shrugged again. "I guess. That just made things more tense. Kevin is scared to death that someone will realize that he's the mysterious piano player during Marilyn's performance tonight."

"So what? People know that you guys are friends. Hell you guys holed out in his house during your coming out scandal."

"I know that. And part of Kevin knows that. He's just scared to death that people are going to find out that they were together at some point. It'll raise a lot of questions about drug use and stuff like that which Kev doesn't want to deal with."

Justin sighed and reached for AJ's hand. "Come on. We should get back. Both our problems will be okay after tonight. So let's go smile like we give a damn."

AJ slid off the counter and they left the bathroom. Right before they left, Justin stopped.

"I gotta' pee." He grinned at AJ who laughed at him. "See you back out in the lion's den Curly."

"Okay."

"Hey Kev?" AJ said in the dark. "What sweetie?" Kevin answered sleepily. The numbers on the clock shown brightly. 4:30am.

"We did it."

Kevin rolled over and rested on his hands, looking down at AJ. "Yeah we did."

AJ looked at Ben who was sleeping soundly in the bed next to them.

"Did we do the right thing?" AJ watched the child breath in the moonlight.

"Yeah I think we did. I think we did."

"Good." AJ pulled Kevin down so he was resting on AJ's chest. He held him tightly.

"Goodnight my love."

"Goodnight Alex."

Chapter 46

"This place is beautiful guys." Howie said softly as he stared at the church in front of him.

Kevin put his arms around AJ, holding him close. "It's so secluded too."

Two more days and counting. Today was the first of two rehearsals for the wedding. Gathered outside was a huge amount of people.

Ben was running around with Brielle, Tommy and Leslie, playing tag with them. Morpheus was chasing after them happily. AJ kept one eye on them as he talked to the priest who was going to perform the ceremony.

AJ's mom and step dad were talking to Ann and Jackie. AJ's grandparents were standing with them.

Jerald, Harold Sr. and Harold Jr. were talking about sports. Justin, Brian, and Joey were talking with them. An argument was going to start soon. Joey was always very adamant that any New York team was better then any other team on the planet. The other five hated all New York teams.

Lance, Jean-Michel, May, and Julia were playing with the younger kids. Justine and Madeline were talking to Chris and JC. Sarah, Danielle, Ameena, Allie, and Leighanne were chatting with Marilyn and Mikel.

Howie and Tim stood with Kevin and AJ as they talked with the priest.

"Tell me again who is in the wedding party and which people are just extras or singers?" The priest asked, looking around at all the people there.

"Well Howie is my best man." AJ said gesturing to him. "The people who are standing with me are Nick, Justine, Madeline, Dan, and my Mom."

"Tim is my best man. Jerald, Brian, Harold, Harold Sr. and my Mom are standing with me."

"Tommy is the ring bearer. Leslie, Kira, and Haley are the flower girls. Ben is walking me and Kevin down the aisle. Marilyn, Mikel, and Jean-Michel are the ushers. 'Nsync is the entertainment. Everyone else is family members or girlfriends." AJ finished.

"All right. Let's get this show on the road then." The priest said, looking at the strange group assembled outside his church.

Three hours later the rehearsal was over and everyone had gone their separate ways until dinnertime.

AJ and Kevin had offered to watch the kids as they went swimming. Ben, Tommy, Brielle, and Leslie had become virtually inseparable even though Tommy and Leslie were younger then Ben and Brielle.

Most people had decided to catch naps or go exploring in town. Vermont was absolutely gorgeous this time of year. AJ had overheard Marilyn planning a hike with Nick, Jerald, Harold, Leighanne, and JC. They had left about 20 minutes ago, promising to be back in plenty of time for dinner.

AJ closed his eyes, letting himself drift off. Kevin was reading a book and soaking up some of the late afternoon sun. It wasn't very hot, but it was warm enough for them to be in the water at least for a little bit.

"AJ?" Kevin asked tentatively. "Yeah Kev?" AJ asked opening one eye to look at him.

"You wanna' elope?" Kevin asked only half-joking.

"And spoil everyone's fun? Sure." AJ grinned back. "It's going to cost a hell of a lot to get plane tickets to Vegas for everyone though. You know they won't let us elope without everyone."

"That's true. We might as well go through with it here then."

"Works for me." AJ grinned, looking down at the kids in the water.

"It's getting a little colder." Kevin said. "We should get them out."

AJ nodded. "You want kids or Morpheus?" Kevin thought it over. "I'll take Morpheus today. You always get stuck with him."

"Okay."

They got up and walked to the edge of the pool.

"Okay everyone out!" Kevin shouted, signing at the same time for Tommy.

Groans were heard all around as the kids got out of the water. AJ called them over and began to hand out towels. They dried themselves as AJ went down the line drying hair.

"Alexander?"

AJ froze in place the towel over Brielle's head. Brielle pushed it off her face. Kevin turned around slowly vaguely recognizing the voice. Morpheus woofed softly.

The kids turned and looked at the man who was speaking. He was about 45 and had dark brown hair. He was thin, wearing a pair of navy blue pants and a white button-down shirt. He had on a blue and gray tie. The man stood nervously under the gaze of everyone but the person he had spoken too.

AJ turned slowly, praying that it wasn't the person it sounded like. His heart sank when the man came into view.

"Dad?"

Well this is the part of the story where I apologize for being so slow. And this is where I make excuses for being so slow. I can't seem to write this story anymore. I'll be honest with you about that. If there was any doubt in my mind that these stories were going to end, it's gone now. I still love the guys I created, but I need to let them go on with their lives now.

So the next chapter is the wedding and that means Escape is over. Choices will be over soon too. I'll miss you guys, but like promised before. I'll be back. Take that anyway you wish.

Please email me! I want to hear from my readers. I got almost no responses from my last posting of Choices. Was it that bad??? Please talk to me!!! I beg of you!!!