There was a 15 minute intermission before the men were going to start, and all the boys went out into the foyer to go to the bathroom and find something to eat. Kelly sat at the table alone just looking at the beautiful decorations in the huge room. She still couldn’t believe that she was here to watch such a beautiful man, and technically he was her man. She’d only seen him a couple of times, but she felt that she was already a part of him and realized that she would miss him when he had to finish the tour. She didn’t want to think about that time yet, so she switched her mind to the fact that she was going to see Kevin in just a couple of minutes.
The rest of the guys sat back down at the table just as the lights dimmed to start the men’s part of the show. The MC came on the overhead and announced, “We here at Versace would like to thank you all for coming out tonight to see this show and we would like to especially thank or special guest who’s modeling tonight, Kevin Richardson of the Backstreet Boys.” Kelly and the guys cheered loudly as the rest of the audience clapped their hands in recognition. The lights went out and the spolight was turned on. The music started and out came the first couple of models. They were defientelly hot, Kelly thought, but then Kevin came out. She watched as he made his way down the runway. He was wearing a beautiful black suit and he was gorgoues. He stopped at the end of the runway and Kelly could tell that he was looking for them, but their table was set of from the side where it was darker, so she knew that he would never be able to find them. He turned and walked back behind the curtain. For the rest of the show Kevin came out repeatadlly in suave clothes. He was definitely the best male model and at the end of the show when all the models lined up, Donatella Versace took Kevin by the hand and walked with him down the runway for one last applause. Everyone clapped and cheered. It had been a great and successful show. All the models left the stage.
“Man, I got to piss,” AJ said. “You just went,” Howie said. “I know, but I drank all that dang soda out front.” He walked off to go to the bathroom. Nick left to go find the models, and Brian went off to find Madison, so it was just Howie and Kelly left at the table. Howie spoke up first, “You really look beautiful. You could have been up there.” Kelly smiled, “Thanks, but I’d rather stick to being a doctor. Strutting my stuff in front of hundreds of people is not my idea of fun, but Madison just has this natural talent and always pulls off wonderful shows.” Howie agreed, “She definitely does. I noticied that you were rather quiet when the men came up. Any reason?” he said jokingly. Kelly blushed, “Oh, I don’t know, maybe one reason. On a serious note, do think that I’m dumb for trying this with Kevin? I mean, I hardly know him. I just took care of him and things happened so fast or fate did, well, something did, and now look where I am. I very much like Kevin and I feel like he likes me, but…” Kelly stopped and turned away. Howie scooted his chair closer to her, “What? You, know. I’m a pretty good listener if you need to say anything.” Kelly turned, “Howie, this is the first time in a long time that I have ever let myself be so open with a man. I haven’t exactly had it easy, in fact it almost cost my life the last time, and I don’t want that again, ever. Kevin seems like a nice guy, I know he’s a nice guy, but where do we go from here? Y’all leave in 3 days, and then it’s over. Both of us are certainly too busy to have a long distance relationship.” Howie thought for a second, “Kel, fate has a way of working and you may not be ready for it, but it’s ready for you I think. It’s not something you can stop. Kevin hasn’t exactly had it easy himself either, maybe not to the extent that you have, but things are hard for him too, and he’s looking for something real. Not something to just play with. So when I tell you that you can give him your heart in trust, you can. And I know he will too. And don’t worry about the distance thing, fate always handles that!” Kelly turned back all the way around and gave Howie a big hug. She whispered in his ear, “Thank you so much. I think you are all my guardians angels.”
Just then Kelly felt big hands on her shoulders. “Hey now D. Don’t even think about stealing this gorgeous lady. She’s mine.” Kelly stood up and gave Kevin a hug. Kevin could tell she was nervous because she couldn’t look him in the eyes. She said quietly, “Nice show. You looked great. Like a natural.” He laughed and thanked her. Brian came up next holding hands with Madison. Kelly got a big smile on her and said, “Madi, you were wonderful. I got here just in time.” Madison was beaming. “Thanks so much for coming. It meant a lot.” Nick and AJ arrived back with the group and AJ spoke up, “All right gang. It’s 10:30 and I say that we go out and get some grub. I don’t care where, just some food. Cool?” Everyone agreed. Kelly thought for a second. “Madison cleaned up my apartment today and it’s beautiful. How about if everyone goes back to their places, changes out of their fancy stuff, clean up a bit, totally casually though, and then head back over to my place for some coffee and snacks?” Brian said, “Yeah, I’d like y’all to see all the hardwork that I also put in cleaning up your apartment, so I think it’s a great idea.” Everyone laughed, Brian wouldn’t let anything get by him. Kelly gave Brian a big hug. “I guess I owe you a thanks too then, huh?” Everyone got their jackets and headed out to the cars. Kevin and Kelly hung back a little. Kevin slipped his hand into hers. It was a perfect fit. She squeezed his hand in return and looked up at him. She was only a couple of inches shorter than he was. She took the initiative and gave him a kiss on the cheek. She blushed and got embarrassed. Kevin took her face in his hands and returned the favor with a slow kiss on the lips. “This is my thanks to you. You are an inspiration to me, and I hope that things only get better from here.” He took her hand again and the two walked out of the door in silent thought.