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Disclaimer: This story is fiction. It makes no claims to the true personality and sexuality of anyone involved. You already know if you shouldn't be reading this.

Note: This is the complete story with a few corrections. It only differs slightly from the numbered versions previously posted to Nifty.

------------------ HOME by JM

Part IV

I found the guys' itinerary in my email the next morning. Very hectic. Shows on Thursday, Friday and Saturday every week -- each in a different city. I looked for where they would be on Kevin's birthday. Helsinki en route to Copenhagen. That Friday they would be in Stockholm--the best place to join them. I decided right away that I'd make a surprise appearance for Kevin's birthday.

The record company called around noon. We haggled for a while before agreeing on the basics and sending everything off to the lawyers for contracts to be drawn up and more haggling.

I sat back and thought about the studio. I had no equipment there and would have to start from zero. I called Nick and told him what was up and that I needed the studio finished ASAP. He assured me it wouldn't be a problem and he'd have the plans and supplies there by tomorrow. I thanked him, hung up, and started my equipment list. About an hour later I had my list.

The kids would be home from school in an hour and I thought Billy would enjoy going to the pro-audio store with me, so I decided to wait. I taped a note to his door to come find me when he got home.

In the mean time I started working on my plans for Kevin's birthday. I called Howie to arrange things because I knew he could play it cool.

"Hello. Mr. Dorough's phone. May I help you?" Nick said.

Shit! I tried to disguise my voice. "Lemme talk ta Howie."

"May I ask who's calling?"

I couldn't think of anyone Howie knew that wasn't from Home. "Who are you? Why do you have Howie's phone?"

"I asked first..." Nick was having fun making this difficult.

I gave in and talked normally. "Listen, Nick. Keep your mouth shut and let me talk to Howie. I don't want Kevin to know I'm calling."

"Cheatin' on him with Howie? I don't blame you," Nick joked.

I sighed. "Just put him on."

"Why talk with Howie when you can talk with me?"

"Because you banter too much and can't keep your mouth shut."

"Fine. Be that way," Nick said like he was hurt.

"Gimme my phone," I heard Howie say in the background. A struggle for the phone started and about a minute later Howie got on.

"Sorry for that. Who is this?" Howie said.

"Howie, this is Josh."

"Hey Josh, how's..."

"Ssshhh! I don't want Kevin to know..."

"Okay. He not in here, though, so you don't have to shush me."

"Sorry. I want to surprise Kevin for his birthday."

"We'll be in Europe."

"I know. I'll meet you in Stockholm and join you for a few days."

"Cool. I think he'd like that," Howie said with a smile on his face.

"I hope so. How are you getting around Europe? The itinerary only has show dates and places."

"Good old tour bus. We're flying to Helsinki, though, because of the time."

"How are you getting back from Helsinki?"

"Probably fly. We don't have to be in Copenhagen until Wednesday night, so we can take our time. Why?"

"Let's take the boat back to Stockholm."

"We don't have a boat, Josh. We have a bus," Howie said dryly.

"Nick? Are you back on?"

"Fuck you," Howie laughed.

"Anyway, there are small cruise ships that go between Helsinki and Stockholm. It's a nice 14 hour ride overnight. I'd recommend Silja--they have newer ships."

"Been there before?"

"Yea. During a summer break Nick and I spent a month going around Europe."

"Well I've spent almost a year total over there and I don't know anything," Howie joked.

"A backpack and a EuroRail pass keeps you pretty in touch with things."

"I've always wanted to do that. Touring is in-and-out. We never see anything," Howie complained.

"Well, you will see me. Let me know if you convince everyone to take the boat. We can have his birthday party on it."

Howie's voice changed. "Yes. That'll be fine. Thanks for calling. Bye."

I knew Kevin had walked into the room.

There was a knock at the door.

"Come in!" I yelled.

Billy walked in. "You needed to see me?"

"Yea. Wanna go shopping?" I said.

"What for?" he asked.

"Recording equipment."

"Okay."

"Let's go, then."

On the way down we picked up two more kids who wanted to go. I pulled into the audio shop and went to find the sales guy I knew while the kids ooh'd and aah'd over the equipment around the show room.

I found Jim, the sales guy I'd worked with a lot, in the rental studio working on a mix down. I waved in the window. As soon as I caught his attention he waved for me to come in.

I stepped in and was deafened by the 'music.' He was mixing down some thrash metal band and doing it very loud. He always mixed too loud. He also compressed it too much, which made it seem even louder. I covered my ears and waited for him to finish.

"I see you still mix at 120dB," I said as he stopped the tape.

"What?" he said.

"Exactly."

"Hey man. Long time no see. What can I do you for?"

"I'm setting up my studio. Do you want to mix, or do you want a commission?" I joked.

"If you're buyin', then definitely the commission. What do you need?"

"I've got a list right here," I said and handed him the list. I could see him mentally calculating his commission. I got along with Jim alright, and he was a good sales rep, but I don't think he's a very good engineer, so I generally tried to not say much more than needed.

We took a few things Home with us, but most of it would have to be ordered. I would go to Europe for seven days in three weeks. I should be able to get most of the studio done in three weeks. I'd have about three weeks after that to finish and test -- plenty of time. I have to admit I was getting pretty excited. About the studio, that is. I fully admit to being a equipment junky -- at least when it comes to audio equipment and computers. This was Christmas. New toys to play with and more on the way. I once threw a bread machine from a third floor window to watch it smash on the concrete, but give me an old tube pre-amp that's half dead and I'll play with it for days to get it working perfectly. When we finally got back there was a pile of construction supplies already in the garage. Nick was good.

I joined the kids in the second family for dinner. Per usual, I ended up talking until they had to go to bed at ten. I hugged everyone good night and made my way upstairs. The phone was ringing as I walked in the door. I picked it up at the same time as the answering machine beeped. A loud squeal started between the phone and the answering machine. I pounded on it to get it to shut off and finally said, "Hello?"

"Hey, Josh. The feedback on the answering machine is really annoying," Kevin joked.

"Hey, Vin! I do that for the telemarketers. How are you?"

"Okay. Missing you. I'm sorry about not telling you about the Europe tour."

"I forgive you, already. Don't let it bother you, I'm not upset."

"Okay," Kevin said somewhat sadly.

"What's wrong, Vin?"

"I'm just not looking forward to being away from you for seven weeks."

"I hope not!" I joked.

Kevin laughed a little. "You could come with us..." Kevin hinted.

"I'd love to, Vin, but I can't. If you guys are going to record when you get back, then I have to set up the studio. It's not something anyone else can do. There's also the club that's just starting and the kids starting school. I can't leave anymore than you can stay," I said very convincingly.

"I know," Kevin sighed.

"Cheer up! Maybe you'll meet that French man who bathes when you play in Lyon," I joked.

Kevin chuckled to himself as he remembered my comments about that when we had just met and were talking on the roof. It was only a few months ago but it seemed like years, and yet like yesterday.

We talked about another half-hour and then said good night. As soon as I put down the phone it rang again.

"Hello?" I said.

"It's Howie. Everything's set. I got management to change the transport so we'll be on the boat. Silja, right?"

"Yea. The overnight boat, right?" I asked.

"Absolutely. What time does your flight get into Stockholm?"

"I haven't got the tickets yet, but there is a flight that arrives at 2pm."

"Perfect. You've got the address of the club. I'll notify security and have a pass waiting for you. We should be there around 4:30. Kevin will definitely be surprised."

"He'd better be, or I'm gonna kick Nick's butt," I joked.

"If there's anything left to kick after I'm done," Howie countered.

"Okay. I'll join you until you get to Copenhagen and fly back from there. Am I forgetting anything?"

"I don't think so. Just a sec. What!" I heard him yell at someone in the background. "Sorry. Brian wants to know if you can bring David with you."

"Tell Brian I'll have to ask him and Ryan & Tina."

"Gotcha."

"I'll let you know arrival details when I get the tickets."

"Okay. Later."

"Bye."

I hadn't even thought to bring David. They had just started their relationship a few days ago and now they would be parted for seven weeks. That's gotta be hard. I decided to pay for David's ticket if he wanted to go. It was midnight when I crawled into bed.

Six AM came too soon. I got dressed and made some coffee before going downstairs and making sure all the kids were up for school. I had my SuperSoaker filled with ice water. Anyone who wasn't already awake and out of bed got shot. It usually only took about a week of this before they learned to be up. I know it may sound kinda mean, but with 40 kids, you can't gently wake each one five times. Anyway, it worked. The second real day of school and I only had to use it once.

After the kids were off to school, I searched out David, Ryan & Tina. We went up to my apartment for some more coffee and to talk.

I told them about the guys recording their next album at Home, and the studio finally being built. Then I told them about me going to Europe for a week. I asked Ryan & Tina if they could handle everything by themselves. They said it wouldn't be a problem. David was squirming in his seat, waiting for me to ask him to go.

"Would you care to join me, David?" I asked.

"Love to," he said with a big smile.

"Good. Brian would kill me if you weren't there. Let keep it to ourselves, though. May as well surprise Brian too."

"I won't say a word."

"I'll order the tickets. What's on everyone's agenda today?"

"David and I are going to set up the kitchen at the club. Everything is supposed to be in at eleven," Ryan said.

"I'm going over applications for the club and setting up interviews," said Tina.

"Okay. I'll be working on the studio all day," I said.

We parted and got to work. I spent the rest of the morning hauling the building materials up the freight elevator and into the studio. I dropped the last box of acoustic tiles at noon. Nick walked in the door and threw a Subway sandwich at me.

"Figured you'd be in here," Nick said. "Here's the plans."

"Thanks for lunch."

We bantered back and forth a bit before he left to check over the club and then head back to his office.

I put Tom Waits' "Mule Variations" in the jam-box and cranked it as I worked on framing the floor of the control booth. I had it framed, padded, insulated and decked by four when Billy, Steve and Jeremy (all 4th family) joined me.

"Backstreet's really gonna record here?" Jeremy asked.

"That's the plan," I answered.

"That's so phat!" he exclaimed.

"It also doesn't leave this campus. Understood?" I warned.

They all nodded.

"So what do you need help with?" asked Steve.

"Framing. Let me make another cut list and we'll get started."

We had the inner control booth wall framed within an hour and started the outer wall.

"Why are we building this like this? We didn't use caulk and two walls anywhere else," Jeremy asked.

"To stop the sound," Billy answered.

The outer wall was finished by six. I thanked them for their help and sent them off to dinner.

I was too psyched to quit, but needed to get something to eat. I headed down the stairs only to meet Nick on his way up with a bag of Chinese carry-out.

"You weren't quitting for the night, were you?" he joked.

"Of course not."

"Good. Then you're still the Josh we all know and love," he laughed out.

"I'm glad it makes you so happy I'm so predictable."

We walked back upstairs and spread out the food.

"So are you here to help, or just to bring food and insult me?" I asked.

"All the above," he said with a smile before shoveling rice into his mouth.

After we finished eating we framed up the drum booth.

"I hope we're not killing the acoustics of the room too badly," I said as we finished and I looked at the two new objects in the room.

"Don't you trust me?" Nick asked.

"Of course, but you're practically tone deaf," I teased.

"It's all a matter of math and computer models," he boasted.

"Whatever. The ear is more important."

"You can't draw plans with your ear."

"And a computer can't appreciate music," I added.

We bantered back and forth a while before saying good night.

I went back to my apartment, took a shower, called Kevin, and went to bed.

Wednesday was Tina's turn to make sure everyone got to school, so I slept in until eight. After a shower and breakfast, I ordered the plane and boat tickets. Ryan and David were at Fermata and Tina was interviewing people in the office on the first floor. I headed over to continue working on the studio.

Today would be spent doing the mechanical and electrical rough ins. Slow and tedious with all the sound considerations, but not hard labor. Kinda Zen like. I realized I'd worked through lunch when Billy, Steve and Jeremy came through the door at four.

"Hey Dad. What's on the menu today?" Steve asked.

I'd done the drum booth first, so it was ready to go. I explained how to cover the walls and insulate it, and let them do it as I went back to wiring the control booth. They had it done by six when Pedro came to get them for dinner. I continued working.

Nick showed up with a pizza at seven. I practically inhaled half of it.

Nick laughed. "You didn't eat lunch, did you?"

"Nope," I said with a mouth full of pizza.

We got the inner control booth walls and ceiling insulated and faced before saying good night.

Thursday morning I got the rest of the control booth faced and insulated. The kids helped me set in the counter tops when they got Home. I couldn't work all night tonight. I joined David, Ryan & Tina for our dinner meeting in David's apartment after I cleaned up.

"Hey stranger," David said as he opened the door.

"Hey yourself. I'm starved."

David had made a big pot of vegetarian chili. We ate it as we talked over the applicants Tina felt were worthwhile.

"I think we should raise the age limit on the club to under 21 instead of under 18," Tina said.

"Why's that?" I asked.

"Because we're not serving alcohol and we need every chance we can get to make it a viable business. The 18 to 21 crowd can stay out later, and is more likely to go to a club during the week. We'd be able to pull in a lot of the college crowd," she explained.

"What about the age differences? Won't 20 year olds get annoyed with having 13 year olds running around?" I asked.

"Not if we plan the spaces correctly."

"Have you talked with the kids about it?"

"A few of the older ones. They all agreed."

"Well, I don't have a problem with it. Let's talk with everyone about it Saturday."

"Great. Now here's who I think we should hire for the lead cook. She just graduated from college and specialized in pastries."

"Can she make regular food, though? And food that will appeal to kids...and college students..."

"She says she can. She's the oldest of eight kids and always cooked for them."

"Anyone else qualified?"

"Not as lead cook. She's also vegetarian," Tina said with a smile.

"Okay. She gets my vote," I said.

We went through other positions and decided upon an initial staff. We should have done this before the opening, but the time wasn't there and the kitchen wasn't done. Until Fermata was completed, it would only be open on weekends.

"Any issues with the kids I don't know about?" I asked.

"A couple of the middle school kids have been talking about joining the drama club." David said.

"Really? What's the show?"

"'Henry V.'"

"In middle school?!"

"Yea," David smirked. "Ambitious director."

"Masochist is more likely," I joked. "Anything else?"

We covered who was in what sport, what subjects were going to be difficult, who had been arguing, etc.

After our dinner meeting I went to find the kids who were working on their audition for "Henry V." I found them in the 3rd family living room stumbling the lines between each other. Shane (2nd), Mark (3rd), Pedro, Davie (4th), and Wil (6th) were taking turns reading Harry's speech to the governor of Harfleur in III.iii. I'd worked with a pretty good Shakespearean theatre company in Chicago doing sound and lights. I'm not an expert by any means, but I knew my way around most of the bard. I sat down and listened to them for a few minutes.

"Do you know what he's talking about, Dad?" Davie asked me.

"Yea. No one else here knows?" I asked.

They all shook their heads.

"Have any of you read the whole play?"

"Most of it," Shane admitted. Everyone else agreed.

"What's the story about?" I asked everyone.

"King Henry invades France," Wil explained.

"And..." I prodded.

"That's all the further we got," Wil admitted.

"When are auditions?"

"All next week."

"So we have this weekend... As much as I hate to do it, we'll watch the movie so you understand the story and hear it done well. Tomorrow at nine in my apartment."

Everyone nodded.

"Okay. Are you all reading for Harry?"

They nodded.

"He's the lead and has the best part," Pedro said.

"I don't know... I think the Chorus is a pretty good part with lots of lines," I offered.

"But he's not the lead," Wil said.

"True, but he starts the story and ends the story."

"He also doesn't get to do sword fights," Davie said with a smile.

"So it's sword fights you really want to do?" I asked.

They all nodded.

"You know that sword fights aren't easy. It takes a lot of hard work to have a good looking sword fight on the stage and not get hurt."

"It's worth it," Shane said. "Sword fights are cool."

I couldn't argue with that logic. "Okay. Let's talk about this speech. What do you think it's about?"

"He's threatening the governor?" Pedro offered.

"Good. Why?"

"So he'll give up." Wil stated.

"Yes, but why doesn't he just order his army to destroy the town and not worry about this long speech just to ask the governor to give up?"

"'Cause it's Shakespeare," smirked Mark.

"It's more than that," I smirked back.

Blank stares.

"I'll read it to you. Listen to what he says and how he says it." I took Mark's copy and looked over it to refresh my memory before starting. "'How yet resolves the governor of the town? This is the latest parle we...'" I continued the speech. Hearing it seemed to help.

"He's threatening them by telling them all the horrible things he's gonna do if they don't surrender," Wil said proudly.

"Good. Now why does he say it?" I asked. "And don't say because it's Shakespeare," I quickly added with a look to Mark.

Blank stares.

"Because he's losing. He threatens them so viciously because he hopes it will scare them into surrendering, but he knows that he doesn't have the power to back up what he says. He's bluffing," I explained. I saw lights of understanding in each of their faces.

"Anyway, it's time for bed," I announced.

They thanked me for the help and, after a hug good night, I went back to my apartment and called Kevin. I got his voice mail. I left a message saying "I love you" and went to bed.

Friday morning, and I was on wake-up patrol again. I didn't get to use the SuperSoaker at all.

I wouldn't get to work on the studio at all this weekend. Tina had made phone calls last night and a few of the people could start right away. I called around to video stores to find a copy of Branaugh's production of "Henry V." After the third call, I found one and went out to get it.

I got back around noon and headed over to Fermata. Tina was already giving the orientation to the new employees. Amy, the new head cook, was thrilled with the new kitchen and I think she was hyperventilating a bit. This weekend would, most likely, be fairly slow: no live music. Tina told me that Billy was DJing.

When the supply trucks got there I helped unload and stock everything, and then just walked around. I thought about how to split up the spaces for multiple uses if we went with bringing in the 18-21 crowd. I scribbled some notes in my notebook.

"Hey DJ B!" I said as Billy walked in at four.

He smiled. "Hey Josh. Can I dig through your CDs?"

"Yeah, sure."

We walked back to Home and up to my apartment. Billy started looking through my CD collection while I checked my messages. There was a message from Kevin saying that rehearsals for the tour had him very busy and he'd try to call again at midnight. I sat down with Billy to answer questions he had about the different CDs.

"I've never even heard of most of these bands. What's this band like?" Billy asked holding up a They Might Be Giants CD.

"Put it in and listen," I smiled.

After two songs, the 13 year old put the CD in the 'keeper' pile and added the other TMBG CDs. He grabbed my Bongwater, "Power of Pussy", CD and held it up with a smile.

"I don't think that would be appropriate for the club," I said.

"Can I listen to it?" he asked.

"Maybe later."

He put it back and continued his search. He left for dinner at 5:45 with as many CDs as he could carry. I started dinner.

Strangely, Nick was on time and Susan was a half-hour late.

"Sorry guys. Work has been so busy," Susan apologized as she walked through the door looking a bit disheveled.

"No problem. Have a seat and relax," I said.

Susan grabbed a beer, flopped down in her seat, and drank about half the bottle. Nick and I just looked at her.

"Bad day?" Nick asked.

"Bad week. Politicians can all suck my left butt cheek!" Susan exclaimed.

We all laughed.

"Now that's not a very PR thing to say," I joked.

"I'm off the clock. I don't care."

We talked a bit more as we ate. After her fourth beer, Susan started to relax.

"We need to find you a man," Nick said jokingly to Susan.

"No time, and all the good ones are gay," Susan said.

"Hmm. I always thought it was the other way around," I joked.

"I'm a good one and I'm not gay," Nick protested.

"Yes, Nick, you are a good one. But dating you would be like dating my brother."

I just about spit my beer across the table laughing.

"I love you too, Sis," Nick shot back.

"How's your love life, Nick?" Susan teased.

"I've been named an honorary monk," Nick smirked back.

We chatted on about love lives and the lack there of until nine when the kids knocked on the door to watch "Henry V."

"Sorry guys. We gotta stop now. Shakespeare awaits," I said and went to let the kids in. They went to the living room and I rejoined Nick and Susan in the dining room.

"I'm just gonna go home," Susan said stumbling out of her chair. I looked at Nick.

"I think I'd better give you a ride home," Nick said.

"Okay," Susan said sleepily.

I hugged them both good night and they left. I joined the kids in the living room, put in the movie and sat back with them to watch it. I think they were disappointed at how few sword fights there were. We talked about it afterwards and they went to bed at midnight, just as Kevin called.

"Hey Vin!"

"I am so exhausted," Kevin sighed.

"Well, if I was there I'd give you a long massage."

"So how was your day?"

"Alright. A bit of running around. Dinner with Nick and Susan. Shakespeare with the kids. Missing you..."

"How is everybody?"

"Susan is overworked, lonely, and got drunk. Nick is...Nick. Auditions for "Henry V" are next week, so I'm trying to help the kids with that."

We talked for another half-half hour and then said good night.

The next two weeks went by incredibly quickly and dragged on incredibly slowly. I ran lines with the auditionees, worked on the studio, tried not to think about Kevin, went to two soccer games, worked on the revision of the club, tried not to think about Kevin...etc. I had the studio completed: paint, carpet, wired, everything but some final equipment set-up. All the kids got a part in the play, but none of them got Harry. Suddenly, but not suddenly enough, it was time to catch our plane to Stockholm.

I slept through most of the flight from Cincinnati to Brussels. It was David's first time in Europe, however, so he was desperately studying tour books of Scandinavia and a Swedish phrase book. I still remembered a bit of Swedish from the last time I was there, but brushed up on it with David on the short flight from Brussels to Stockholm. I wasn't very worried, though. Just about everyone spoke English. After the long flight, we were finally in Stockholm.

We exchanged some money and I headed for the shuttle to the trains. I had everything I needed packed into a backpack and was ready to take the train into town. David, however, had two large suitcases and wanted to take a taxi -- he'd even pay for it. I reminded him that we were 45 kilometers north of town. After recounting the cash he had with him, and seeing the rate of the taxis, he agreed to the train. I teased him for bringing so much stuff as I kept having to wait for him to haul around those suitcases.

We got to T-Centralen at a little past three. The club they were playing at was on Kungsgatan. We should have gotten off at the Hštorget stop, but I didn't know where on Kungsgatan it was and taxis would be easier to find at T-Centralen. It turned out that the club was about 3 blocks from the Hštorget stop.

It was still early and the club hadn't opened yet. We went around to the loading dock to try to get in. The crew was already there and almost done with load-in. Security was nowhere to be found. I asked a stage hand where the manager's office was and we were escorted through the club. The place was huge and multi-leveled. Easily holding a thousand or more people. After checking our identity, the manager gave us the security passes Howie had arranged and took us back to the dressing room. There was only one dressing room for the guys, but it was huge.

I realized that I never asked who they were touring with when the manager said, "Backstreet Boys are in this dressing room."

"Pardon me, but who else is playing with them?" I asked Per, the manager.

"The Cardigans," was his reply as he walked out the door.

"You ever heard of them?" David asked.

"Yeah. I have. Nick loves them. Their big hit was called 'Love Fool.' The lead singer is so cute she could almost make me straight," I joked.

"I doubt that," David smirked.

"Okay, but she is very cute. The guitarist isn't bad, either. At least from what I saw in the video."

We dropped our bags in the corner and each flopped down on a sofa.

"I think Brian's gonna kill me when he sees me," David joked.

"Why's that?"

"When we talked on the phone Wednesday, I couldn't think of a good lie and had to be evasive when I told him not to call me Thursday night. He seemed pretty hurt."

"I don't think being killed will be an issue, unless it's by being smothered in kisses," I joked.

"Just kisses..." David muttered.

"What's that?"

"Nothing."

"Okay. You have time for a half-hour nap. I know you've gotta be tired since you didn't sleep on the plane," I said.

No answer.

"David?"

He was sound asleep. I opted for a quick shower.

At about a quarter past four I woke David up, and then again at twenty after.

"David!" I said shaking him.

"What? I'm still tired..." he groaned.

"You've got ten minutes before they get here!"

"Shit!" David said as he rolled off the sofa and onto the floor in his attempt to get up.

I laughed and helped him up. "Go wash your face and brush your teeth. It'll wake you up," I ordered.

"Yes, Dad," David smirked.

"Don't even start that," I threw back.

David had just finished getting cleaned up when we heard the guy's voices in the hallway. We both looked around. Should we hid and pop out? Should we just sit and greet them casually when they walk in? I quickly pushed David into the shower stall, closed the curtain, and told him to wait until I got him. I sat down on the sofa and grabbed some Swedish magazine off the table. I turned it right side up just as the door was opening.

Kevin opened the door and when he saw me on the sofa he froze.

I looked up casually from the magazine, trying not to smile, and said, "Hej, Šlskare!"

Kevin ran and tackled me on the sofa while the rest of the guys laughed. I was being smothered with kisses and squeezed to death.

"When did you get here? How long are you staying? Why didn't you tell me?" Kevin rattled off after he pulled back.

"A few hours ago. Until Copenhagen. Because it was a surprise." I rattled back just as quickly.

"And a darn good one," Kevin smiled as he pulled me into another kiss.

The four guys behind us started clearing their throats. Kevin pulled off and turned around.

"What?" Kevin said.

"There'll be plenty of time for that later. We have a show to get ready for," Nick said in his mocking-Kevin voice.

"They're right," I said as I pushed Kevin off me and stood up to give the rest of the guys a hug.

"Hey Brian, David asked me to bring something for you," I said.

"What?" Brian asked cautiously.

"I put it in the shower stall so you wouldn't see it when you walked in. It was hell getting it through customs."

"What is it?"

"Just go look."

Brian stepped into the shower area and pulled back the curtain. David stood there with a huge smile on his face.

"You bastard!" Brian yelled as he pinned David to the back of the shower in a hug and many kisses.

"I think he likes it," I said.

The Stage Manager knocked on the door, poked his head in and announced sound check in 15 minutes.

The guys checked their wardrobe and we all headed out to the club. The Cardigans were already sitting around a table and got up as we approached them.

"Hey guys, I'd like you to meet some friends of ours, Josh and David. This is Magnus, Lars, Bengt, Nina and Peter." Kevin said.

We shook hands and joined them at the table.

David turned and whispered to me, "I take it back. She is cute enough to turn you straight."

"Told you," I whispered back.

"This is the 'Josh' you are always talking about, Kevin?" Nina asked with a sweet smile.

"The one and only," I said. "What does he say about me?"

"Only good things, though I'm somewhat disappointed. I expected you to have a halo or something," Nina joked and poked Kevin.

"I couldn't get it through customs," I joked back.

Everyone laughed. The Stage Manager called sound check and the BSB guys got to their places on stage. Nina and I flirted back and forth during the sound check. Nothing serious. Just flirting. The BSB guys rejoined us and The Cardigans went up on stage.

"You're not goin' straight, are you?" Nick asked me.

"Huh?"

"You were flirting pretty hard with Nina," he teased.

"It was just flirting," I stated.

"Besides," AJ said bitterly, "she is dating Peter."

"And you're dating me," Kevin said to me as he squeezed my hand.

"Relax guys. It was just flirting. How could I give this up for a woman?" I said as I grabbed Kevin's cheeks in a grandma pinch and kissed his puckered lips.

"Good answer," said Howie.

Brian and David were in their own little world. They were just holding hands and looking at each other.

"So what now?" I asked.

"We do warm-ups and get ready for the performance," Kevin said.

"I'm starving. I think David and I will go find some place to eat while you get ready."

"Good idea," said AJ. "You two are a bit distracting to some of us," he said pointing to David and Brian.

"David!" I said.

"Yea."

"You hungry?"

"Starved."

"Let's go eat while they get ready."

"Yea. Okay."

"There's a McDonalds two blocks down," Nick said.

"Thanks for the warning," I laughed as I pulled David out with me. We ate at a cafe on the corner. I got a dozen semla to go after our meal and we went back to the club.

I stopped by The Cardigans' room, gave them each a semla, and then joined the BSB guys in their room.

"We've got semla!" I said as we walked into the room.

"You can get a shot that'll clear that right up," said Nick as he was buttoning his shirt.

"Fine, smart ass. None for you," I said.

"Tell me what it is I'm not getting."

"Semla. Kinda like an anise flavored roll/doughnut/pastry. Can't get 'em in Cincy."

"Gimme, Gimme, Gimme" Nick begged.

"Didn't your mother teach you any manners? What's the magic word?" I teased.

"Pleeeeease."

"Here you go," I said and handed him his semla.

"Thanks." Nick looked at it. "How are you supposed to eat it?"

"Do you really want me to answer that," I smirked.

"Nevermind," Nick said and took a huge bit out of the side, leaving a powdered sugar and whipped cream mustache. Everyone started laughing.

I handed out the rest and they were quickly devoured. They finished getting ready and started their individual pre-show rituals. Nick still hadn't cleaned off his "mustache."

The Stage Manager called fifteen. I wanted to watch The Cardigans, so I asked the Stage Manager if there was anywhere for us to sit without being in the thick of it. He explained how to get to the private booth on the third level. Kevin, Howie and AJ came with me while Nick, Brian and David stayed in the dressing room.

The show started and The Cardigans played a pretty good set. After a little more than an hour, they were done. We headed back down to the dressing room. There was a half-hour between bands.

"Are you going to leave the 'mustache'?" I asked Nick as I saw it was still there. He just smiled a stupid grin.

Kevin walked over and grabbed a wash cloth.

"Hold him down, guys," Kevin said.

Howie and AJ each grabbed an arm and held Nick tight. Kevin walked right up to him and washed his face off. It was obvious they'd been through this before.

Brian explained it to David and me. "He's done the food mustache bit before every show on this tour. It was funny at first, but IT'S GETTING OLD," he said loud enough for everyone to hear.

"Don't worry. I'll find something else to annoy you with for the next tour," Nick said happily.

"We'll let you guys get ready," I said. David nodded and gave Brian a kiss before getting up. "Break a leg!" I gave Kevin a quick kiss and David and I went up to the booth.

The show was great, as usual, and after a half-hour of meet & greet, we were being ushered to the airport for the next show in Helsinki. Within the hour we were in a small commuter jet over the Baltic Sea. Two hours after that we were in Helsinki. A bus was waiting for us at the airport to take us and our luggage to the hotel. It was 4am when we crawled into bed and went right to sleep.

The wake-up call came at noon. The room was cold and I just wanted to snuggle with Kevin all day and not get up. We were on our way to do that until Howie started pounding on the door a half-hour later. We quickly showered, got dressed, and joined everyone in Howie's room. After a few notices by their road manager, we went down to the restaurant and joined The Cardigans for breakfast/lunch.

The show in Helsinki was at a stadium and included a couple Finnish bands. It also started early -- at 6pm. The stadium was just down the street, so we walked. Although it was early October, Helsinki was cold. Snow would be falling any day now. When we got there we saw a living example of chaos. Crews were setting up equipment. Managers were running around yelling in Swedish, English or Finnish. The Finnish bands were in different parts of the arena practicing with acoustic instruments. It was a mad house of activity and sound.

David and I took a seat as the guys were ushered away. We hardly saw them again. Before the house opened we were ushered into a VIP box at the top of the stadium. I was quite happy about that. Sound in a stadium sucked, no matter how good the sound system and engineers you had were. In the private box, we got the stage mix and could control the volume. Much better. The guys never joined us and the only other people in the room appeared to be the parents of the Finnish bands.

Although the show started at 6pm, it stretched until 2am because of the number of bands. The show was good, but way too long. We made full use of the food and bar in the VIP box. Everyone in there was more than a bit buzzed when the show finally ended.

We waited for the stadium to clear and found the guys around 3am. A bus took us back to the hotel so we wouldn't have to deal with any lingering fans. After a quick shower, we were in bed by 4am and sound asleep.

I woke up at a little past noon. My morning erection was trapped between Kevin's legs and he was still out cold. I started kissing the back of his neck and his shoulders. He soon woke and snuggled back further into me.

"Mornin', birthday boy," I whispered into his ear while I was kissing it.

He turned around. "Mornin'. Do I get my present now?" he asked with a grin and gave me a quick kiss.

"Pretty soon. Bathroom first," I said.

We got out of bed, did our business, brushed our teeth and climbed back into bed.

"Now?" Kevin said looking very hopeful.

"Yes. Here's one." I kissed him on the forehead. "Here's another." I kissed him on the nose. "And another." I kissed him on the lips. I continued this until I was at his feet. I moved back up and ground myself into him while we kissed.

"Thank you. I'm ready for my cake now," Kevin said between kisses.

I turned around and straddled him. My tongue licked its way down his belly, the back of his cock and to his balls. I licked, nibbled and sucked my way up and down his cock and balls. Kevin was giving little licks at my cock and balls that were hanging in his face. We rolled over on our sides and continued sucking each other. Kevin was closer than I thought. His cock expanded and I quickly pulled back to the head and sucked like a vacuum. His orgasm set me off and Kevin pulled me deep into his throat as I came too. After our orgasms, we continued sucking gently until we were both hard again.

Kevin pulled off and turned around. He pushed me onto my back, straddled me and rubbed his ass and balls over my cock as we kissed. He pulled off again, grabbed a condom and some lube, and prepared my cock. Soon enough, he impaled himself completely on my cock. He leaned over me and rocked back and forth, kissing where he could. This continued until I couldn't stand it any more. I tried to roll us over so I could fuck him hard and fast, but Kevin had other ideas and wouldn't roll over. Instead he pulled me up into our favorite position and slowly rubbed his cock across my belly. I knew he was close because his hole was clamping down hard. I had reached the point of no return. I pulled him as close to me as possible and held him tight as orgasm shook our bodies and his hot cum shot between us. We held that way until Nick started pounding on the door a few minutes later.

"What?!" Kevin and I yelled at the same time.

"Come on! It's two o'clock! We have to catch the boat by six and we still haven't seen anything!" Nick yelled through the door.

"We'll meet you in a half-hour!" Kevin yelled.

"One minute late and I'm bustin' in with the jaws-of-life!" Nick yelled back.

"Kids," I sighed jokingly. "What can ya do?"

We laughed and got in the shower. We were soon ready and opened the door to leave just as Nick was about to knock again.

"Good morning, Nicky," I said.

"What's up?" Nick said suspiciously.

"Nothing. Why?"

"Nevermind. Everyone's in Howie's room," Nick said.

We walked down to Howie's room and joined the rest of the guys.

"Good. Get your bags and let's go eat," AJ said as we walked in the door.

We left our bags for the shuttle service to the boat that the hotel offered and headed out to look for the restaurant the receptionist recommended. It was a smaller co-op type cafe that seemed to appeal to the university crowd because it served vegetarian dishes. We got our drinks from the drink bar and took our seats to wait for a waiter to take our food order.

"You've been here before, Josh. What should we see in the few hours we have left?" asked Howie.

I opened the mini tourist guide that I'd grabbed from the hotel and started flipping through it.

"Well... What can we do quickly...? There's the Sibelius Monument...and there's this pretty cool church that was blasted out of rock...here it is, Temppeliaukio Church. If we see those and walk back through the flea market, we should be right on time for the boat." An idea struck me. I took Kevin's cell phone and called the Silja ticket office. After being shuffled around a few times, I was able to make reservations for the sauna at 8pm.

"And after we get settled on the boat we can have a sauna," I said happily.

"Perfect," Kevin said with a smile.

Our food soon arrived. Despite Nick, Brian and AJ's complaining that McDonalds would have been a much better choice, the food was good. After lunch we took a taxi to the Sibelius Monument, and then walked to the Temp. Church. We didn't have time for the flea market and went straight to the Silja terminal. Our bags were waiting for us in our rooms.

"This is really nice," I said to Kevin as we walked into our room on the top floor.

"I thought you'd been on this boat before," Kevin questioned.

"Yeah, but not up here. Nick and I were down on the bottom in the quad-share poor man's cabins. Quite different from this."

"What shall we do until the sauna," Kevin hinted.

I ignored the hint and dragged him out of the room. "Come on. Let's go to the lounge on the top and watch as we pull out of dock. It's a great view."

We rounded up the rest of the guys and went up to the lounge. We sat down just as the boat started to move. After we were out of dock we got some drinks at the bar and sat down at a booth. A couple drinks and much conversation later, it was time to head for the sauna.

We went in, and after verifying my reservation, made our way to the lockers. Kevin and I started getting undressed. No one else was.

"Are you guys going in in your clothes?" I asked.

"We didn't bring any swim suits," Nick said.

"Good, 'cause they don't have a swimming pool," I smirked back.

"How are we supposed to go in the sauna?" asked Brian.

"Naked, of course," I said as I dropped my boxers and wrapped a towel around me.

"Uh...I don't know about this" Brian stuttered.

"Come on! Stop being such Americans," I laughed.

Kevin and I made our way over to the hot showers and cleaned off. The rest of the guys were slowly getting undressed and trying not to look at each other. I couldn't help but laugh at their modesty. We made our way into the sauna, spread out our towels, and sat down. I'm too much a wimp for the top bench and chose the middle. Kevin chose the top bench behind me, and then decided better and moved to the other side of the sauna so he wouldn't be looking down at my naked body and head near his crotch. A few minutes later we were joined by the rest of the guys. Their towels were tightly wrapped around them. Nick and AJ went to the top bench. Howie sat on the middle, and Brian and David sat on the lowest bench.

Once everyone was seated, I asked, "Is everyone ready?"

"Do it," Kevin said as he braced himself. I threw a couple large ladles full of water onto the rocks. A shock of heat and steam spread through the sauna.

"Fuck!" Nick said as he moved down a bench.

I lay back and enjoyed it. About ten minutes later, I had to get up and cool down. I left my towel on the bench and went out to the icy showers. Kevin was right behind me. We stood under the ice water showers until we could feel it, and then headed back. Nick and AJ were under other showers and Howie, Brian and David were heading out. Kevin and I sat down and I threw on some more water. I ventured up to the top bench for a minute, but had to move back down. When everyone was back I threw on more water. The thermometer said it was just over three-hundred degrees. The other guys were starting to relax and opened up their towels. I didn't check them out closely, but they all seemed to be about average in size. The trips between hot and cold got shorter and shorter until I decided I was done. I showered off in the cold shower and it still didn't seem very cold. As I finished, Kevin came out and said he was done, too. Not too long afterwards, the rest of the guys got out. I was dressed before everyone else and sat on the bench waiting for them to get dressed. I briefly considered making lewd comments about sizes and shapes to pass the time, but decided against it.

After everyone was ready we headed down to a restaurant and had dinner. Afterwards we retired to the top floor lounge. I talked to the bartender a few minutes and then joined everyone at a booth. Everyone was completely relaxed and the conversation was easy. About fifteen minutes later the piano player announced a special song and started a bizarre intro to 'Happy Birthday.' A waiter brought out a cake with one candle and we sang 'Happy Birthday' in our most obnoxious and out-of-tune voices. We finished off the cake, had a few more drinks, and then Kevin and I said good night for the evening. The rest of the guys were, at Howie's insistence, going to the disco.

Kevin and I went back to our room and collapsed on the bed.

"So, did you have a nice birthday?" I asked with a kiss.

"You're gonna have a difficult time topping this one next year," he answered.

"Good. I love a challenge."

We made love again and fell asleep around 1am.

It would have been a nice peaceful night, but someone was pounding on our door and yelling our names. Kevin pushed me out of bed to see what was up. I pulled on a pair of pants and opened the door.

"We'd better be sinking!" I said as I pulled open the door.

Brian rushed right past me. "Kevin. Nick's in jail!"

"What?!" Kevin practically screamed.

"He was drinking a lot and got into a fight with some Finnish guy. They dragged him off to the brig," Brian explained.

I started laughing.

"What the hell are you laughing about?!" Brian and Kevin said at the same time and more than a bit annoyed I was laughing.

"I'm sorry. It's not really funny, but it is, kinda. The same thing happened to Nick when we were here. It must be some Finnish right of passage to pick a fight with an American named Nick and get him thrown in the brig for the rest of the trip." I started laughing again at the image.

"We've gotta get him out," said Kevin as he quickly got dressed.

I stopped laughing and realized they couldn't see the humor in it right now.

"They're not gonna let him out until after we dock in Stockholm," I said.

"They'll let him out," Kevin said very sure of himself.

"Then bring a lot of cash to bribe the guard, 'cause the law of the boat is that they won't let anyone out until they dock."

"I'll just explain who we are," Kevin said and walked out the door. Brian and I followed him.

Kevin was obviously in 'dad' mode. I put my hand on his shoulder as we got to the elevator. "If you do that, then it will make the papers. Right now he's just a violent drunk. They barely even keep a record of who they throw in. Let's just make sure he's okay and pick him up in the morning."

"I've gotta try," Kevin said determined, but slightly tempered by my information.

"I know. I just want you to know what you're up against."

We made our way down to the brig. The rule about violent drunks not getting out until the boat docked was written in several languages across the front of the counter. Kevin looked defeated.

"I'd like to see a friend of mine who was brought in," Kevin said to the guard.

"What was his name?" the guard asked looking at a plain note pad with names and cell numbers scribbled on it.

"Nick Carter," we all said.

"Okay. You know we cannot let him out until we dock, yes?" the guard stated more than asked.

Kevin sighed. "Yeah, we know."

The guard showed us into the cell block and pointed, "He's down at the end."

We walked to the last cell and saw Nick sitting on a bench with his head in his hands.

"You've done it this time, Nicky," Kevin said sternly.

Nick jumped up and ran to the bars. "Great! You guys are here! When can I get out?"

"When we dock," Kevin stated.

"What?! Just tell him who I am. Tell him you'll take me back to my room and lock me in," Nick pleaded.

Kevin signed. "Nicky, I'd get you out if I could, but I can't do anything. You're here 'till we dock."

Nick sank down on the floor, defeated.

"Look Nick," I said. "You've got less than seven hours left and a cell to yourself. It could be worse."

"Why'd they throw me in here and not the other guy. He started it," Nick complained.

"Are you Finnish?" I asked.

"No."

"That's why. That Finnish guy probably takes this cruise at least once a month and spends lots of money. You're just a tourist on your way through and probably won't ever be back," I said.

"We'll be back to get you as soon as we dock," Kevin said as he reached through the bars and squeezed Nick's shoulder.

"Yea. Thanks for trying. I'm sorry, Kevin," Nick said sadly.

"Just try to get some sleep," Kevin said and we left Nick sitting on the floor.

Brian left to go fill in the rest of the guys. Kevin and I went back to our room. He hardly said a word since we left the brig. He was obviously very upset about not being able to do anything. We crawled into bed and I held him close as we fell asleep.

The wake-up call came at 7am as the boat was making its way through the archipelago. We got up, showered--separately because of the tiny shower--and got dressed. We collected the rest of the guys. They all looked like hell from not enough sleep.

We went down to the main deck and had breakfast. Everyone was quiet and still half-asleep, but it was a nice breakfast and the view from the table was very nice as the sun was rising over the water and islands. We sat there drinking coffee until the boat pulled into dock.

I bought a couple rolls and an orange juice for Nick and we headed down to get him. We got there as he was walking out. To say he looked like shit would be an understatement. He had a swollen lip, dark bags under his eyes and was otherwise disheveled looking. None of the guys said anything.

"Here, Nick," I said and handed him the bag with the food.

He looked inside. "Thanks," he said as he pulled out a roll and started eating as we walked back to our rooms. Kevin went into Nick's room to make sure he got cleaned up and make sure he was alright. The rest of us gathered our luggage and then waited in Nick's room.

The coffee from breakfast was finally starting to take effect and the guys were a bit more awake and talking.

"What's the agenda for the next couple days?" I asked.

"We go to Copenhagen," Howie answered.

"I know, but we aren't just driving straight there, are we? You don't need to be there until Wednesday night."

"You have any better idea?" AJ asked.

"Other than museums in Stockholm? I don't know what there is to do here..." Then it hit me. "Wait! I've got a friend in Gšteborg. It's somewhat on the way. I'm sure Stefan will know how to show us a good time--if he doesn't kill me first for not telling him I'm in the country..." I borrowed Kevin's cell phone and dialed Stefan's number.

"Hej," he answered.

"Hej Stefan! It's Josh!"

"Hey man, how are you doing?"

"Great, actually. Guess what?"

"It's too early to guess."

"Okay. I'm in Stockholm."

"You arsle! Why didn't you tell me you were coming to Sweden?!"

"I do know what that means, you know," I joked.

"Good! So are you coming to Gšteborg?"

"Maybe. I've got a band with me. You up for a night of debauchery?"

"Always!"

"Great! We'll catch a train. You still living in the same apartment?"

"Ja. Plenty of room. You can all sleep here."

"Are you sure? There's seven of us..."

"Absolutely. I'll be home after 15. Do you think you can find it, or should I meet you at the station?"

"I may have to get drunk and stumble around to find it, but I'm pretty sure I remember how to get there."

"I'll see you later today."

"Hej dŒ."

"Bye."

"How do you know this guy?" asked AJ.

"We met on the 'net when we were in university. He traveled a bit with me and Nick when we were here and gave us a place to stay in Sweden. You guys will like him. Very friendly and loves to go clubbin'"

"Yes!" Howie said.

"Is he gay?" Nick asked as he walked out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist.

"No, Nick, he's not gay. You'll have to look elsewhere. What kinda question is that?" I said a bit annoyed.

"Does he know you're gay? And about you and Kevin?" Nick asked.

"Yes, he knows I'm gay. Yes, he knows I've been seeing someone named Kevin, No, he doesn't know it's this Kevin."

"How do you think he'll react when he sees us?"

"Well, first he'll probably flip out because he's a fan. But if you mean will you have to be on your best behavior and count your underwear, no. I've known Stefan for ten years and totally trust him."

"It's settled, then. Let's get out of here," AJ declared to stop the questioning.

We gathered our stuff and got off the boat. The tour bus was waiting in the parking lot. We got on and told the driver to take us to T-Centralen. Kevin made calls to let management know the change of plans.

"Why are we taking a train instead of the bus?" Nick asked as we walked into the station.

"Because if we take the X-2000, we'll be in Gšteborg before the bus is even out of Stockholm, almost."

We were fortunate and got our tickets for a train that was leaving in 10 minutes. We got to our big, plush seats in first class and relaxed. I got Kevin and I a cup of coffee. The other guys were out cold within a half-hour of leaving the station. In a little less than three hours, we were in Gšteborg.

Kevin and I woke the guys. We grabbed our bags and headed out to the station. I headed straight for the newsstand to get tram passes while everyone else just stood in the middle of the station looking lost. I returned and handed out the passes.

"What are these for?" Brian asked.

"The tram," I stated. "It's the only way I know how to get to Stefan's."

"Let's go, then," AJ said.

"We've got an hour before he gets home. Anyone hungry?" I asked.

"Food..." Nick said doing a Homer Simpson impersonation.

Everyone else agreed.

"Let's put our bags in a locker and find someplace close," I said looking around for the lockers.

We locked away our bags and headed out on our hunt for food. Unfortunately, Nick and Brian spotted a hamburger joint and dragged everyone in. Fortunately, they also had chicken sandwiches. Unfortunately, it was all a greasy mess. I only ate about half of my sandwich and a few fries. Nick, Brian and AJ were happy as they could be.

"Aren't you hungry, Josh?" AJ asked with a mouth full of greasy fries.

"I prefer food with my grease," I said with a fake smile.

"Whatever. Can I have your fries?" Nick asked.

"Help yourself." Nick grabbed the fries before Brian and AJ could and dumped them on his tray. They almost came out in a solid mass. I felt sick just looking at it. I didn't have to look at it long, however, as it was soon devoured. As we walked back to the station, I stopped at a bakery and got a loaf of good crusty bread and chewed on that as we continued.

We got our bags and walked over to the tram stop. I studied the map for a few minutes, trying to remember which tram. "Ah, here it is, Lšvskogsgatan." I looked up at the approaching tram. "And here's our tram."

We got on. I showed them how to punch their tickets, and we sat down. We had about a 15 minute tram ride. I watched everything carefully, trying to remember where I was at. The other guys just watched as the city rolled by.

"This is a nice little city," David said.

"Yea," I agreed. "Not too big, not too small."

We came up a hill and around a bend. I was pretty sure it was the next stop. I hit the stop request button and stood up.

"I think it's the next stop, guys."

Everyone stood up and grabbed their bags. The tram stopped and we got out. I looked around to get my bearings.

"Is this the right stop?" Kevin asked.

"Yea. Give me a minute to remember where we're headed." I recognized the small grocery that was just down the street from Stefan's place. "Got it!"

"How far do we have drag our bags?" Nick asked.

"A couple kilometers," I joked.

"You'd better be kidding," he shot back.

A short three blocks later we were standing in front of Stefan's apartment complex. I rang the buzzer and waited. A minute later a long haired Swede came bouncing down the stairs and opened the door.

"Josh!" Stefan said as he pulled me into a hug.

"Hej man," I said returning the hug. We parted. "Stefan, I'd like you to meet..." I started as he looked over the rest of the guys.

His eyes got huge. "Min gud..." he said softly.

I continued. "Kevin, AJ, Howie, Brian, Nick and David."

The guys reached out to shake his hand as I introduced them.

"Roligt att trŠffas," Stefan stuttered out as he shook their hands.

I started laughing. "Stefan!" I yelled.

He slowly turned to look at me. "Ja?"

"English?" I teased.

"Vad? Oh, sorry," he said very flustered.

Everyone laughed and Stefan looked a bit sheepish.

"Come on in," he said turning quickly and ushering us in.

Once we were in the lobby he ran up the stairs in front of us to open his apartment door. He directed the guys to the living room as he stood in the doorway. I was the last in. I pulled Stefan aside as he closed the door.

"It's good to see you, Stefan, but you've gotta relax," I joked.

"You do realize who they are, don't you?" he said.

I just gave him a stupid look.

He got the hint. "I guess you do. So is THAT the Kevin you've been talking about?"

"Ja," I said in a silly voice.

"I just can't believe that the Backstreet Boys are staying in my flat and you are dating one of them," Stefan said.

"Well believe it, and get over being star-struck."

"I will. It will just take a few minutes."

We sat down on the bench to take off our shoes. I realized that the guys had walked through the apartment with their shoes on.

"Hey guys! Get out here and take off your shoes!" I yelled.

"No, that's alright..." Stefan whispered to me.

I sighed and shook my head.

"Why take off our shoes," AJ asked.

"Swedish custom. Take your shoes off at the door," I said.

"I thought that was Japanese," Brian said.

"Swedish, too," said Stefan softly. Well, at least he talked.

We went in and sat down in the living room.

"You guys want anything to drink or eat?" Stefan offered.

Everyone said no. I explained that we had just eaten downtown. We started talking. After a while they were all starting to relax around each other. I moved over to sit beside Kevin and held his hand as we talked.

Stefan looked at us. "You make a cute couple."

"Thanks," Kevin and I said.

"I always figured the gay one would be Nick, though," he laughed.

"Hey!" Nick said as everyone laughed. "I'm the straight one!"

"Sure you are, Nicky," AJ joked.

"Why haven't we seen you at any of the straight guy meetings," Howie joined in the joking.

"Why have a meeting with you guys when I can be with my woman?" Nick said smugly.

Everyone laughed at this.

"Ah yes, Miss Palm and her five sisters," Stefan laughed out. Good, he was relaxing.

"Nick only knows two of the sisters," Howie added.

"Fuck you. Fuck you all," Nick said trying not to smile.

Around six we decided to go eat. I threatened bodily harm to anyone who even glanced at a hamburger joint. We found a good small restaurant and had dinner. It was eight by the time we headed back to Stefan's apartment.

"Everyone ready for a night of clubbin'?" Stefan asked and was answered with a resounding 'yes.'

"How about a sauna afterwards?" I asked.

"Good idea. I'll sign us up," Stefan said as he ran downstairs.

We got cleaned up, changed and headed out. A nice thing about clubbin' in Gšteborg is that you can walk just about everywhere, or take the tram. No need to worry about a car. We took the tram into town and met a few of Stefan's friends at a small club. They could care less that they were at a club with the Backstreet Boys. They had tickets for everyone to a "by invitation only" rave that was taking place in an old hotel. We got there just before ten.

For "by invitation only," the place was packed. The music was hard and fast. There was no normal light, except for the bar. Everything else was flashing and moving colored stage lights. I didn't see any open drug use, but the alcohol was flowing.

We got our drinks and found a table. I stayed at the table as everyone else went out on the dance floor. They would come back every so often for a breath and to finish their drink and get another. I sat there drinking and enjoying watching the scene around me. Conversation, other than a few screamed words, was impossible. After a few drinks, Kevin pulled me out to the dance floor. With the lighting the way it was, you could hardly recognize someone you knew, and they flashed all around. The guys went completely unnoticed. There was also a good mix of gay couples there. Kevin and I danced close, grinding into each other. No one was paying any attention to us. It felt good to be out in public like this.

By 1am we were all exhausted and drunk. We walked back to Stefan's apartment, which, mostly, took care of the drunk part. The air was cold and so were we by the time we got there.

Stefan stopped us as we got in the door.

"Wait here," he said as he got a bunch of beers and some towels. "Sauna time!" he declared as he lead the way downstairs to the sauna.

The sauna in Stefan's apartment complex was smaller than the one on the boat. There was only one shower (with hot and cold), and the sauna was about half the size, but still large enough for all of us without being uncomfortable. It was in an unheated room in the basement. Stefan turned on the heater as soon as we entered the dressing area and checked the sauna. It was still warm from someone else, so it wouldn't take too long to warm up. He opened the outside windows a few inches to make the outer room even colder. I put the beer in the bucket and filled it with cold water.

We slowly got undressed to give the sauna time to heat up, and talked and joked about the evening. Maybe it was being slightly drunk, but the modesty from the previous sauna was gone. Stefan, per usual, didn't have any modesty, and walked around with his towel over his shoulder. By the time everyone was undressed and showered off, the sauna was ready and we went in. We sat there for a few minutes before Stefan threw on some water and heat shock enveloped us. We talked a little, but mostly everyone was silently melting. The beer, which you had to keep in the water when you weren't drinking it so the metal of the can wouldn't burn your mouth, was soon gone. About 45 minutes later we were done. After showering and getting dressed, we were back in the apartment around three.

I called the queen size sofa-bed for me and Kevin as we walked in the door. The sofa cushions made another bed that Howie took. Brian and David took the remaining floor space. Stefan offered half his full size bed and AJ took that. Nick, with no other choice, joined me and Kevin on the sofa-bed. Of course he threatened, to everyone's amusement, that just because he was sleeping with us didn't mean he was sleeping with us. Kevin assured him that as long as he didn't get between us, he was fine. It didn't take long before we were all out cold.

I woke up around 11. Kevin was spooned around me and Nick was spooned around Kevin, with his arm around both of us. Were it not for my morning piss hard-on and Nick's hand on it as it stuck out the top of my boxers, I would have found it amusing. I tried to slide out of bed without waking them up, but Kevin wouldn't let go. Nick's hand squeezed a little as he pulled us closer. I ignored the possibility of waking them and got out of bed. Nick's arm closed around Kevin's chest. Neither of them woke. I stepped between the guys sleeping on the floor and made my way to the bathroom. After relieving myself, I pulled on a pair of pants and went into the kitchen. AJ was sitting at the table with a cup of tea and reading Rolling Stone. He looked up.

"Mornin', Josh."

"Mornin'. What time did you get up?" I asked.

"At nine when Stefan left. He said he had some classes and would be back by 14. He left you something on the counter."

On the counter was a small bag of coffee and a note that said, "You did not think I would forget, did you?" Stefan didn't drink coffee at home. I was quite happy that he remembered to get some for me. Of course that also meant that he didn't have a coffee pot. I had to make it in what I think is called the, "cowboy coffee" way -- dump the grounds in with the water, boil it, and let most of the settle before drinking. Since the first time, I'd learned to pour it through a paper towel before drinking it. Not the greatest, but better than drinking the grounds.

"How'd you sleep?" I asked as I was making my coffee.

"Like the dead. This is the quietest apartment building I've ever been in," AJ said.

"I think there's a bunch of old people that live here."

Just then Howie walked in with his video camera and a big smile on his face.

"Mornin' guys. You see Nick and Kevin?" he said with a grin.

"Yes," I said. "You might say I'm a bit more intimate with Nick's hand now," I joked. Howie and I laughed.

"What? Let me see," AJ said jumping up from the table and running into the living room.

He burst out laughing and then hushed himself. "Howie?" he whispered.

"Already got it," Howie whispered and patted his camera.

AJ's outburst had awoken David. He sat up to look around.

"What's so funny?" he asked.

We all put a finger to our lips to quiet him and pointed at Nick and Kevin. He looked at Kevin and could only see an arm around him. He put on his glasses and looked again, and then looked up at me, and then looked down again. A big smile crossed his face. He reached down and shook Brian. Brian groaned. David put his hand over Brian's mouth and bent down to whisper in his ear. We heard a muffled giggle and they both sat back up. Brian looked to Howie. Howie nodded and patted the camera again.

"Let them sleep," I whispered and ushered everyone back into the kitchen.

"Why don't we wake them? This'll be good to tease Nick with for a long time," Brian said.

"Because they're still tired," I said. "I also think that you'll get more use out of it if you just show Nick the tape the next time he gets cocky," I grinned.

I made David and Brian a cup of coffee while Howie had some tea. Around noon I went in to wake Kevin and Nick up. Brian had just gotten out of the shower, and David was talking with AJ and Howie.

I sat down on the side closest to Kevin and leaned down to give him a kiss on the forehead. Nick was still wrapped tightly around him. Kevin started to stir and ground himself back into Nick, probably thinking it was me. Nick responded by pulling Kevin closer. Kevin had his morning hard-on, and by the way he was pushing back, I'm sure Nick did too. I leaned down and kissed Kevin on the lips. He returned the kiss and opened his eyes. A look of confusion crossed his face as he looked at me in front of him, but felt 'me' behind him. He jumped up quickly, causing Nick to wake as well.

"Wha..what's wrong?" Nick said confused.

"Noth..Nothing," Kevin stuttered and looked embarrassed. "It's time to get up."

I laughed. Kevin shot me a dirty look.

Kevin went to the bathroom. I grabbed our clothes and joined him for a shower.

"That was weird," Kevin stated.

"Not as weird as waking up with one hand on your chest and another on your cock," I joked.

"Oh yeah? How about your boyfriend kissing you while your straight friend is wrapped around you and pressing his hard cock against you?"

I laughed. "Okay, you got me there."

"Uhhg," Kevin said as he gave a dramatic shake of disgust. "Did anyone else see that?"

"Uh, everyone actually. Plus video tape," I said.

Kevin sighed. We took a quick shower and got dressed. Nick rushed in next.

We joined the rest of the guys in the kitchen. They started snickering when they saw Kevin.

Kevin gave them all a dirty look and said, "Fuck you."

Everyone laughed.

Brian helped me clean up the living room as the line for the shower formed. AJ and Howie kept snickering at Nick.

"What's so funny?" Nick asked, confused.

No one would tell him and just kept snickering. He was getting pissed off and Kevin was getting a bit annoyed.

Finally, Kevin said, "Just show him the damn tape so we can get this over with!"

"What tape?" Nick asked.

Howie cued up the tape and handed the camera to Nick. Nick hit play and looked at the little 2" screen on the camera for a few seconds.

"What? It's just Josh and Kevin sleeping?" Nick said, still confused.

Howie grabbed the camera and re-cued the tape. "Look closer," he ordered as he handed it back.

"Whatever. It's just..." Nick's words stopped as he looked closer and saw that the person wrapped around Kevin had blonde hair. Mine was brown. Then the camera went around to Kevin's side and zoomed in on Nick's arm around Kevin, and, finally, Nick's face. Nick practically dropped the camera and turned bright red. Everyone started laughing.

Nick turned to Kevin. "I...I'm sooo sorry... I didn't..." he stuttered out.

Kevin didn't want to press the issue and said, "Don't worry about it. We were asleep and nothing happened."

"You're hand had fun with Josh, though," AJ laughed. I blushed and Nick shot me a look of horror.

"I..." he stuttered and turned a deeper shade of red.

"It's already forgotten, but next time you sleep with AJ or Howie," I said smiling.

"No way!" they both said loudly.

"So you're the 'straight one,' huh? 'You big powder puff.'" Brian said as he saw his chance for revenge at Nick's statement when Brian came out.

"Fuck you all!" Nick said and stormed out of the room.

"That was mean," Kevin stated to chastise everyone.

I walked into the living room to find Nick on the sofa fuming.

"Nick?"

"What the fuck do you want?"

"We were just teasing you. No one thinks you're really gay, if that's what you're worried about."

"Could've fooled me. I may as well be gay since everyone thinks I am already. Even Stefan thought I would be the gay one," Nick said sarcastically.

"Are you gay, Nick?" I asked.

"No."

"Then don't pretend to be because 'everyone' thinks you are. You'll give us real gays a bad name," I joked.

I got a smile from him. "I will get you guys back, you know," Nick said with a grin.

"I'd be shocked if you didn't try."

The smile left his face. "I really am sorry about that. I was asleep and it was probably just more comfortable and..." he said seriously.

I raised my hand to interrupt him. "No harm done other than some embarrassment. Now just forget about it."

"I can't. Howie has it on tape," Nick joked.

"Hmm. You're probably gonna have to blow him to get that tape," I joked.

"Yech! You can blow him. I prefer blackmail," Nick said with an evil grin.

"But Howie is a 'black male.'" I joked.

"You're sick!"

"You said it. Not me."

We walked back into the kitchen throwing comments back and forth.

"I take it you've cooled down?" Kevin asked Nick.

"Oh yeah. Revenge will be mine, though," Nick said casually.

I made some more coffee and we sat around talking. Stefan got home a little after two.

"Hey guys," he said as he dropped his bag and started taking off his shoes.

"How was class?" I asked.

Stefan sighed. "Some people are too stupid to be allowed to breed," he joked.

Everyone laughed.

"That's not very professional for a teacher to say," AJ said.

"I'm a graduate student who teaches, not a teacher," answered Stefan.

"What class were you teaching?" Brian asked.

"HTML. So simple. If I have to answer one more stupid question today I am going to scream."

Nick saw his chance and started to speak. I quickly clamped my hand over his mouth to shut him up.

"Okay. How is everyone today? No hangovers?" Stefan asked walking into the kitchen.

Everyone shook their head or said no.

"Good. What would you like to do now, my guests?"

"Food would be good," Nick said. Everyone agreed.

"Oh, yes. I do not have much here. Let us go out."

Stefan changed from his 'teacher clothes' and we went out. We took the tram in to town and found a place to eat. We each had a semla for desert.

"Have you all had semla before?" Stefan asked.

"Yea. Josh got us some in Stockholm," David said.

"Soggy?" Stefan said to me.

"Nope. The good way," I answered.

Everyone looked confused. Stefan explained. "The first time Josh and Nick were here we had semla at my father's house in Stockholm. He served it the traditional way: in a bowl of hot milk. A soggy mess. Only old people eat it that way anymore."

After lunch we walked around Gšteborg and saw all the sights and did a little shopping. We had dinner and then went to a club for a few hours. We got home around midnight.

Kevin and I climbed into bed. I took the middle spot and spooned behind him. The other guys look at Nick to see what he was going to do. Since he was the center of attention, he started doing a strip-tease as the others cheered him on. Once down to his boxers, he pulled on a pair on sweat pants and hopped into the bed with me and Kevin, wrapped himself around us and pretended to hump me. I elbowed him in the hard in the ribs.

"Ow!" he said laughing.

"I don't care if you snuggle, Nick, just keep that thing to yourself," I said sleepily.

Nick rolled over and faced away from us. Everyone else went to bed. About a half-hour later I felt Nick snuggle back up to me and put his arm around us. I felt warm and comfortable sandwiched between these two and fell back asleep.

When I awoke the next morning it was still dark. I was lying on my back. Kevin's arm and leg were draped across me and his erection was pressed against my leg. Nick was snuggled against me on the other side with his arm across my belly, just above Kevin's leg. One of my arms was around Kevin, and the other was trapped between my side and Nick. My hand was pressed between my leg and his hard cock. It was actually strangely erotic to have both these men wrapped around me. Well, not strange with Kevin, but strange with Nick at the same time. Nick's arm squeezed a bit and he thrust his hips slightly.

I looked up at the clock at it was only 5am. I was still tired and wondered what woke me up. The apartment was silent. Everyone else was still asleep. I closed my eyes and tried to go back to sleep. Nick thrust his hips again and groaned a little. Suddenly a thought crossed my mind. 'Oh fuck. What if he's having a wet dream?' Nick thrust his hips again, and then again. I tried to pull my arm out and roll Nick over, but it had fallen asleep and I couldn't move it. I didn't want to yell and wake everyone up so they would tease Nick again, but I didn't want to have him cum all over me, either. He pushed into me harder.

"Nick!" I whispered loudly in his face. Nothing. I nudged his chin with my shoulder and whispered again, "Nick!"

"Arna, that feels so good," he mumbled out.

Yes, he was having a wet dream. I nudged again, harder. "Nick!"

His eyes flew open. He looked at me in horror, and then jumped out of the bed and ran to the bathroom. 'I hope he's not traumatized by this,' I thought. With him off my arm, the feeling was coming back and the tingling that that brought. The back of my hand was wet with Nick's cum that had soaked through his sweats. I carefully slid out from under Kevin, grabbed a clean pair of sweats from Nick's suitcase, and went to the bathroom.

I knocked softly on the door. "Nick."

No response.

I tried the door and it was unlocked. Nick was sitting on the floor in front of the tub with his knees pulled up and his arms around his legs.

"So you here to rub it in? Go ahead," Nick said softly.

"No. I'm actually here to wash it off," I said smiling as I held up my hand. Nick blushed and hid his face. I threw the clean pair of sweats at him. "Here. I think you need these."

"Thanks," he said softly, but didn't move.

I washed my hands and then sat down on the toilet beside him. He looked up at me.

"Please don't tell the guys," he pleaded.

"I have no intention of telling them."

He searched my face to see if I was telling the truth. Satisfied I was, he said, "Thanks," and looked back down.

"So how long have you had the hots for Arna," I asked.

He shot me a look of fear, then a small smile. "For a while, I guess."

"She is pretty cute," I admitted.

"Yeah, she is."

"But she's also dating Howie," I added.

"I know."

"So we just need to find you someone else," I said with a smile.

"I know, but it's hard to find a girl my age who isn't an obsessed fan," Nick sighed.

"Well, you can't have Arna, and you can't have my hand, so we'll just have to try harder," I teased.

"Fuck you," he grinned.

"No more of that," I tossed back.

He groaned. "So you're really not going to tell anyone about this..."

"Nope. They don't need to know you had a wet dream about Howie's girlfriend while sleeping with Kevin's boyfriend."

Nick blushed again.

"You know if you masturbate more, you are less likely to have a wet dream," I teased.

"Never enough time or privacy." He shivered...probably because of the wetness in his pants that was turning cold.

"You'd better get cleaned up and change, then come back to bed. It's too early to be up." I patted him on the shoulder and got up to go back to bed.

"Josh?" Nick said as I opened the door.

"Yeah," I turned around.

"Thanks."

I just smiled and went back to bed. I curled up behind Kevin and held him close. Nick emerged a few minutes later. He lay down and faced away from us. A minute later he sighed and rolled over and snuggled up behind me. I fell asleep soon after.

At nine o'clock, AJ walked through the living room banging two pots together and yelling for everyone to wake up while Stefan stood in the doorway and laughed. Everyone threw their pillows at him, and a shoe came from somewhere.

"Come on! We have a train to catch in an hour!" he yelled, laughing.

Grudgingly, we got up quickly, got cleaned up and dressed. Stefan had called us a taxi and it was waiting for us at 9:30. We thanked Stefan and said a quick good bye before running out.

Thankfully, I'd remembered to reserve our tickets when we got into town, because the train was packed. We had a poor breakfast from the food car and then made our way back to our seats. A couple hours later we were at Helsingborg and got on the ferry for the short ride across the channel, exchanging a little bit of money. Then it was back on the train and into Copenhagen.

We got into Central Station around 3:30. Security was waiting for us as we got off the train and the bus was outside. A huge crowd of people (mostly young girls) was also waiting. AJ was the first one out and I'm sure the shock wave from the screams broke glass somewhere. I braced myself and walked out in front of Kevin. Security pushed us a small path through the crowd and we made it to the bus with only a few torn shirts. Yes, even David and I had torn shirts. They didn't know who we were, but we were with the Backstreet Boys, and they wanted a piece of anything they could touch. We collapsed in the bus.

"I guess vacation is over," AJ sighed.

The guys looked at me and David, and laughed at our torn shirts and the look of shock on our faces.

"Welcome to our world," Howie said patting us on the back.

I grumbled and grabbed a new shirt.

"I wouldn't bother with that yet," Kevin said.

"Why?" I asked.

"We get to go through it again when we get to the hotel."

I groaned and sat down. Kevin put his arm around me, pulled me close, and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

It was a short ride to a fancy looking hotel. The crowd here was just as large, but the gauntlet we had to walk through was shorter. We waited for security to clear a path, and then made our way inside and up to our rooms. I dropped my bag and flopped down on the bed.

"Don't get comfortable," Kevin said.

"Why not?"

"We're not staying here."

"Oh."

"We have to go down and do some promo, then we head to the real hotel," Kevin explained.

We changed our shirts and went back downstairs. The guys sat at a table to sign autographs and talk with fans while David and I went to the cafe in the hotel.

We drank coffee and snacked on bread until security came to get us an hour-and-a-half later. Instead of going back to our rooms, they escorted us to the service entrance and into a waiting BMW with dark windows. The driver took us to the other side of town to the service entrance of another hotel. More security opened the door and escorted us up to the top floor. The guys were waiting for us.

"I feel so 'cloak and dagger,'" I said as we rejoined them.

"Yeah. Kinda fun, isn't it?" Nick said with a smile.

"In a demented way, a little," I conceded.

Their road manager, Mark, got off the elevator and walked up to us.

"I see you made it. How was your little vacation?" he asked.

The guys expressed that they enjoyed themselves and talked a little about the past few days.

"Good. Well, here's the schedule. The next two hours are yours. I'd suggest taking a shower because you all look like hell. You have a dinner at nine with some contest winners. Then you're back here. Tomorrow we'll have a car here to take you to the stadium at noon. You're there for the rest of the day and the show, then on the bus and off to Hamburg. Oh yeah, we'll have a car here to take Josh and David to the airport at seven. Any questions?"

"How many at the dinner tonight?" Kevin asked.

"Ten. Six girls. Four boys."

Mark looked around for any other questions. There were none. "Okay, I'll see you guys tomorrow."

He left as quickly as he arrived. We all went into our rooms. As soon as the door was closed and locked, Kevin pushed me down on the bed and jumped on top of me.

"We've got two hours," he said with a big smile.

"Then stop wasting time," I said and pulled him down into a kiss.

We made out for about ten minutes before Kevin pulled away.

"I want you to fuck me hard and fast," he whispered in my ear.

"How about I make love to you soft and slow?" I whispered back and licked his ear.

"We'd never be done on time," Kevin giggled.

"True."

"I want you to fuck me so hard I'll still be feeling it when you're gone."

I grinned. "Won't that make you dance funny?"

"Not as funny as you dance," he teased back.

"We'd better get started," I hinted.

Kevin got up quickly and practically ripped my pants off me, boxers and all. I pulled off my shirt and was going to undress Kevin, but he was already naked.

"Someone's horny," I teased.

"Someone's been with his man for two days without being able to touch him," he teased back.

Kevin got a condom and lube. I took them from him and pushed him against the wall in a police search position. I ran my hands over his body. He tried to pull his arms down, but I stopped and put them back up. I grabbed the lube and rubbed it into his hole as my other hand played with his nipples. When he was lubed up I put on the condom, lubed it and pressed my cock into the crack of Kevin's ass. I slid it teasingly around.

"You need some help finding the hole," Kevin smirked.

"I'm gettin' there. Just be patient."

I pressed against his tight hole. It slowly opened and let me in. I was soon all the way in. I wrapped my arms around Kevin's chest and pulled him back. I made short jabs as it felt like I could lift him with my cock. I kissed his neck as he ran his hands through my hair. I squeezed him tight and lifted him off the ground. This surprised him and my cock went as deep as possible into his ass. I put him back down.

"Fuck me!" he whispered loudly.

Okay, if he wanted it hard, I'd give it to him hard. I pulled out and pushed him back onto a table on his back. I put his legs over my shoulders, held his hands in mine, and fucked him hard. The table didn't seem like it was going to take much of this, so I pulled out and he got on this hands and knees on the floor. I entered him again fucked hard and fast. We were covered in sweat and breathing hard. His orgasm came and clamped down on my cock. I was close and kept going. As his finished, mine started. I slammed into him and wrapped myself around him.

After we calmed down, we separated and went to the bathroom. Kevin grabbed a towel to clean up the mess he'd left on the carpet while I got the water ready for our shower. We got in and he wrapped himself around me.

"Thanks. I needed that," he said with a kiss.

"Any time. I did too." I kissed him back. "I need something else, too," I said as I sank down to my knees and started sucking his cock. He was immediately hard again fucked my face like he hadn't just had sex. Kevin came after only a few minutes, and I continued to suck on his cock until he had to pull away.

I stood up and we kissed as I gave him back some of his cum. We parted and washed each other.

We were almost ready when AJ pounded on the door. I opened it.

"You guys ready?" he asked.

"Just have to put our shoes on. Come on in," I said and sat down on the bed to put on my shoes.

AJ walked in and stopped.

"Eewww! It smells like fucking in here," he laughed.

I blushed.

"I'm surprised your recognize the smell, hand boy," Kevin smirked.

"I'll wait in the hall," AJ said walking out.

We finished and joined the guys in the hall. Security escorted us back to the service entrance and we all squeezed into the same BMW with tinted windows. It took us back to the original hotel. Security escorted us up to our fake floor, and then down the regular elevator to the lobby. The crowd hadn't gotten any smaller, but barriers had been set up and there was more security. We made our way out to a huge limo. The limo took us to the radio station, where an even larger crowd was waiting.

We got inside and met the contest winners. They were all so excited that I was sure at least one of them would instantaneously combust. We all piled back into the limo and headed off to Hard Rock Cafe. I guess my hopes of a nice quiet dinner at Spiseloppen and then drinking Guinness all night at The Globe Pub, were foolish. The guys were all 'on' and talking with the contest winners. David and I mostly kept quiet and watched.

After taking the winners back to the radio station and the hotel switch, we were back in our hotel at 2am. We said our good byes to the guys and everyone went straight to their room.

Kevin and I brushed our teeth and got ready for bed. We lay down and I snuggled up behind him. He was already asleep. I held him tight, and fell asleep about a half-hour later.

The wake-up call came a 5:30am. I was not ready to get up.

"You're gonna miss your plane if you don't get up," Kevin said sleepily as he pushed me off the bed.

I slapped him on the butt and went in to take a shower. Kevin joined me a few minutes later.

"You're up!" I said with surprise.

"Of course. You didn't think I'd just sleep and ignore your leaving, did you?" he said with a kiss.

"With only three hours sleep, the though crossed my mind."

"I'll go back to bed after you leave."

We showered quickly, got dressed and joined Brian and David in their room. We got there just as room service was wheeling in breakfast. We were all still tired and conversation was mostly grunts. At a little before seven, security informed us that our ride was here. We hugged our tearful good byes and were off.

A small commuter plane took us to Brussels, and then an hour later, we were headed back to Cincinnati. We both slept for the first few hours of the flight. After I woke up I started reading a biography of Samuel Beckett. About an hour later, David woke up. The stewardess brought us some drinks and snacks.

"Can I ask you a personal question?" David asked me.

"I may not answer, but go ahead," I said.

"When did you and Kevin first have sex?"

"Why would you want to know that?"

"How long did you know each other?"

"It was kinda quick," I admitted. "Why?"

"It's just..." David stuttered. "Brian and I...haven't...yet."

"You haven't?!" I almost yelled.

"No," David said quietly. "I don't know what's wrong. He says he wants to, and acts like he wants to, but he always stops us just before."

"Does he give any reason?"

"He says he doesn't think it's the right time... He doesn't want anyone to hear... Any excuse to stop."

"So what have you been doing all this time when you two are alone?"

"Just holding hands and talking, or kissing. Damn, I mean, the first time I even saw him naked was in the sauna," David said almost in tears. "I really like him, Josh, but he won't make love to me and I can't get him to open up why." David broke down and cried.

I thought about it a few minutes. "He came out because of you, and he had a difficult time even doing that. Perhaps he's scared to take that final step," I offered.

"I know he is, but what can I do about it?" David said.

"I don't know. Maybe things will change when they're at Home to record."

"Maybe..."

"This could be a good thing," I said trying to lighten it up.

David looked at me like I was stupid. "How's that?"

"You wouldn't want to take him completely out of the closet and then leave him alone on tour for seven weeks, now, would you?"

David chuckled. "No, I guess not. I've had friends who went sex crazy after their first time."

"Now if you get him to open up and make love when they get back, you'll have at least a couple months where he'll be sex crazy with you!"

David smiled.