Nick, Brian and Howie were taken aback when Sandra started blurting out sentences such as “Nick! You’ve got to do something!” and “Angela will go to jail!” Brian, who was preparing to bowl his turn, set the ball down and walked over. “Wait, wait, wait! Slow down there,” he said calmly. “What the heck are you talkin’ ‘bout, girl?”
Sandra took a deep breath and summed the situation up as best as she could. “Angela is hacking a website. If she hacks it, she’ll go to jail.”
Nick finished his drink and sat the glass down on the table beside him. He wiped his mouth sloppily on his sleeve, the beginning effects of alcohol starting to show, and interrupted the serious tone of the conversation. “Angela can HACK? That is SO COOL!”
Sandra’s eyes panned to him slowly, and she gave him a blank stare. “Yeah, it’s cool, if you look good in orange and you want free meals.”
“She’s not going to jail,” Nick snipped back at her, disbelieving.
Sandra bent down to stick her face in Nick’s. “Okay, okay, say she DOESN’T go to jail. She just gets disciplinary action – probably expelled – two months before graduation, and she achieves the status of being untrustworthy as she heads into the job market. For Angela, that’s probably WORSE than jail.”
“Well, what do you want US to do about it?” asked Nick, defensively. “YOU’RE her friends.”
Kim Ann scoffed at him. “Oh, and you’re not…”
Nick glared at her and growled. “You know what I mean.”
Sandra butted back in, trying to avoid a big flare-up between Nick and Kim Ann. “Nick, she won’t listen to us. She’s buzzed, she’s pissed, and she’s freaking out. She’ll listen to YOU,” she pleaded.
Nick didn’t like the responsibility of being Angela’s watchdog being shoved upon him. “No she won’t,” he argued. “I don’t know anything about it. Just turn the computer off or something.”
“That won’t solve the problem, Nick,” Sandra replied, obviously disappointed by his reluctance to help. “Can’t you just go in there and say something?”
Nick looked exasperated. He turned away from Sandra without answering and picked up his glass to take a drink, forgetting that it was empty. Desperate, he looked around for some kind of distraction, but found nothing. It was obvious to everyone that he had no intention of talking to Angela.
Brian glanced at the score card he was keeping for their game and said, “It looks like you’re up, Sandra.”
“What?” asked Sandra, confused.
“I’ll go talk to Angie,” he said reassuringly. “I don’t want her messing up her education over something stupid.” He purposely looked at Nick before heading to the office, and just as he’d hoped, Nick popped up out of his seat and followed close behind.
When they were far enough away so the others couldn’t hear, Nick said softly, “Don’t worry about it, Bri, I’ll go talk to her.” He was somewhat threatened that this would be Brian’s second time to comfort Angela in a time of need.
Brian studied Nick’s face momentarily, skeptical about letting him step in at this point. “Don’t worry about it Nick,” he said, fishing for a more genuine reaction from Nick. “Angie’s my friend. I don’t mind at all.”
The hurt expression on Nick’s face at Brian’s “friend” comment said it all. He looked at the floor, ashamed that he hadn’t agreed to console Angela in the first place. “It’s….” he started, pausing to contain the emotion in his voice, “It’s just HARD, Brian.”
“I know, buddy,” replied Brian, putting his arm on Nick’s shoulder to comfort him. He looked up into his eyes, the concern showing on his face. “But it’s time to let go of all that.” He knew that Nick was still hurting deeply over his breakup with his girlfriend, Mandy, and he knew that Nick would fully understand the meaning behind those words.
Nick nodded and kept his head down. “I know,” he said reluctantly. “It’s just hard.”
Everyone was watching them converse, so Brian said loudly, “Goodness, Nick, you don’t have to PROPOSE or anything!” He shot a goofy look over to Kim Ann, Sandra and Howie. “Just persuade her with that charm of yours.” He pulled away from Nick, smiling, and was relieved that Nick returned the smile. “Now, be a man!” he added shoving him towards the office door.
Nick straightened his collar cockily and smoothed his clothes before flashing his best smile at Brian and the others. “I’m goin’ in!” he said and headed to the door.
Kim Ann yelled out, “Wait!” and headed to the bar to grab Angela’s requested Corona. “We can’t send you in there unarmed,” she quipped as she handed it to him.
Nick crinkled his nose at the Corona. “She wants a Corona?”
Kim Ann shrugged. “It’s a college thang. Personally I think it tastes like piss water, but that’s just me.”
Nick laughed and shook his head as he took the Corona from Kim Ann. He had absolutely no idea what he was going to say to Angela at this point, but he was now committed to stopping her. “Piece of cake,” he muttered under his breath to himself as he headed into the office.
Nick crept quietly into the office with the Corona held out in front of him as a potential peace offering. Angela glanced over at him, eyed the Corona, and turned back to the computer screen without a word. He could tell that she’d been crying and the seriousness of what the situation was to her dawned on him. Fumbling for words, he settled on the obvious. “Um, I brought you your beer, Angela.”
Without looking at him again, Angela replied softly, “I see that.”
Nick edged towards her, nervous but determined, and sat the beer beside her on the computer desk. “Are you busy?” he asked over-enthusiastically.
“Just checking e-mail,” she answered matter-of-factly.
Nick peered over her shoulder to ensure that she wasn’t misleading him and that she wasn’t hacking the website. When he saw that she was, indeed, checking her e-mail, he eased in beside her as unnoticed as he could and leaned against the computer desktop. He stayed there, watching quietly, waiting for some kind of acknowledgement from her, trying not to read her e-mails.
After a few minutes, Angela clicked back to her inbox and looked up at him. She’d suspected that Kim Ann and Sandra would send him in and she was grateful they had. “Don’t worry, Nick, I’m not hacking the site.”
Nick smiled guiltily, embarrassed that she was aware of his mission. “Damn!” he exclaimed, “I wanted to see how you do that!” Struggling for something else to say, he pointed to the screen. “You’ve got a lot of e-mails, there.”
Angela nodded. “They’re from MY fans,” she said sarcastically.
“YOUR fans?” Nick asked, laughing a little.
“Yeah,” Angela replied. “My classmates who think I got royally screwed, too.”
Nick was still clueless as to what exactly had prompted the whole ordeal with Angela’s school, and he wanted to know – especially since others were so upset about it, too. As casually and disarming as he could be, he asked softly, “What happened, Angela?”
As soon as the question hit Angela’s ears she was pulled back in time to when she was a little girl. She’d broken her arm at the roller rink. It was a bad break and had hurt like hell, but she didn’t cry a single tear as she waited at the hospital for her father. When he arrived and rushed to her side, he’d asked her the same thing, softly and precisely, “What happened, Angela?” She had collapsed into his arms and bawled like a baby, finally allowing herself to let go of the pain in his trusted arms. Now, it was a different place and a different time, but the same rush of emotion engulfed her again. Angela hid her face in her hands and sobbed uncontrollably.
Nick stood momentarily shocked at the sudden breakdown, but then instinctively, he crouched down to her and whispered, “Come here.” Angela poured into his arms and buried her face into his neck. She felt the same trust she’d felt long ago once again and she cried until it hurt. Feeling the intensity of her sorrow, Nick pulled her closer, still whispering softly to her. “It’s okay. Everything will be all right.” He didn’t know what else to say or do other than squeeze tightly and assure her things WOULD be okay.
As the minutes ticked away her sobs decreased until they turned into small, helpless whimpers of defeat. Nick continued to hold her until his legs felt so cramped from squatting he had to stand up. Rather than let her go, he moved around slowly and pulled her up with him, still holding her close. They stood there together in a hug for quite sometime and Nick occasionally kissed the side of her face to comfort her further. When he felt she’d calmed enough, he asked softly, “Can you talk now?”
Angela nodded into his neck, refusing to give up the closeness. “I’m sorry,” she said in a hoarse whisper.
“It’s okay,” Nick assured her. “Sometimes things just happen.”
Angela sobbed slightly. “I know, but….”
Nick interrupted her. “Really, it’s okay. I understand.”
After Nick’s reassurances, Angela felt she could look at him. Hesitantly, she pulled away from him and looked into his eyes. He couldn’t believe how pitiful she looked with her red eyes and nose and found himself smiling at her. Angela looked away, embarrassed. “I look pretty bad, don’t I?” she asked, laughing forcefully.
“Uh, you look like someone who’s been cryin’ really hard,” Nick answered tactfully before prodding her again. “But I STILL don’t know what MADE you cry, Ange. What’s going on?”
Angela sighed as she prepared to tell the story. She didn’t want to cry again, so she said it as quickly and simply as she could. “My favorite professor at school promised me a computer and full credit for redesigning the Purdue website. He got the website and I got nothing.” She pulled away from Nick, sat at the computer, and clicked to the homepage of the site. She pointed the mouse arrow at the section entitled “Site Design” and read the words beneath it. “This site was designed and developed by Professor Hodgkin’s class under his instruction.” She stopped after she’d read that much. The rest of the disclaimer detailed Professor Hodgkin’s career and accomplishments and she couldn’t stomach reading those.
Nick licked his lips as he took in all the information she’d just told him. He didn’t quite grasp what was so terrible about it, except for the computer, so he blurted out, “I’ll buy you a computer, Ange.”
Angela looked at him oddly, her first inclination to yell at him for being so insensitive, but she realized by the bewildered look on his face that he was serious. For the first time, she realized how different their worlds were. “It’s not about the computer, Nick,” she said patiently. “I was going to use this on my resume.”
Nick smiled sheepishly, embarrassed that his offer was so far off base from what he should’ve said. “Well,” he countered, “Can’t you still use it on that?” He knew what a resume was, but not exactly. He’d never filled one out.
Angela sighed, frustrated by his comment, but not angry. “What would look better to you if you were going to hiring someone…that a professor designed and developed the site and the WHOLE class worked on it? Or that I designed and developed it MYSELF and did it MYSELF?” As much as she tried not to show it, the anger in her voice rang out loud and clear.
Realization swept across Nick’s face. “Oh,” he said slowly, for lack of better words. “So why didn’t you hack the site and fix it?”
“Cos I’m NOT a hack,” Angela retorted. “I want to be taken seriously in my field. This is my LIFE. This is what I DO.” Her voice broke a little, but she finished. “This is what I WANT to do.”
“Oh,” Nick replied again, wincing from the harshness of her words. An awkward silence followed. Nick could not think of one thing comforting to say to her because there was nothing to make the situation any better. Instead he waited for some signal that she was calm again.
Angela sighed and rested her head in her hands. That’s the signal, Nick thought, and he moved to her and touched her hair. “Hey,” he said with forced enthusiasm, “You wanna see MY site?” Angela looked up at him and he raised his eyebrows at her suggestively, still hoping to lure her off topic.
“YOU have a site,” she giggled, taking the bait.
Nick expressed mock dismay at her laugh. “Yes, I do,” he answered defensively. “Well,” he added, “sort of. It’s more of a family thing, but my stuff is on there, too.” He moved Angela out of the chair and sat down at the computer to type in the URL: Nick-Carter.com.
As the site loaded slowly, Angela took a drink from her Corona. Nick frowned at her slightly. “What?!?” she asked.
Nick smiled. “Don’t you think you should slow down, girl?”
“No,” Angela replied, taking another drink for spite.
Nick rolled his eyes at her and turned back to the computer. “I just don’t want you puking on me on the ride home.”
“Don’t you worry about ME, Nick,” said Angela, playfully rustling his hair. “I can handle my alcohol.” Nick ducked from her touch and smirked at her back, but decided not to press her further on the issue.
When the site was fully loaded, Angela noticed immediately a statement saying "Nick Carter: The Movies Only a Mother Could Show.” “What’s that?” she asked, pointing at it before he could click to his page.
Nick blushed a little and laughed. “Oh, nothing. My mom’s just selling these one video’s, that’s all.”
“Video’s of WHAT?” she asked, laughing.
“Um, from when I was little,” Nick answered, humiliated that she was laughing at him.
“You’re KIDDING me!” she gasped. “She’s selling video’s of you when you were LITTLE?”
Nick winced and shrugged as if it didn’t bother him, but he was getting angry. “Yeah, why?”
“I dunno,” Angela replied. “That just seems….bizarre. I’d KILL my mom if she did that to me!” As soon as the words left her mouth, Angela felt horrible about saying them, not only for Nick’s sake, but for her own. She would be delighted to have her mother sell a video of her, if it meant she were still alive. “I’m sorry, Nick,” she said softly. “I didn’t mean that.”
Nick shrugged again, feigning indifference to her words, but in actuality, they had only corroborated his own feelings about it. His mother had always been hell bent on selling him to the public, even though she’d been criticized by many for doing it. Of course it bothered him, but he’d never felt comfortable about addressing it, so instead, he ignored it.
Angela noticed by Nick’s silence and shrugs that she’d touched on a delicate subject with him. It was now HER turn to lure HIM off topic. “So what do your brothers and sisters look like?” she asked. Nick perked up immediately and clicked on his little brother Aaron’s site. “This is Aaron,” he said as the page loaded.
Angela smiled and said, “Awwwww, he’s CUTE,” when she saw Aaron’s picture. “He looks JUST like you, Nick.”
Nick beamed with pride and looked up at her. “You think? I think he looks like my dad more than me. He’s got brown eyes.”
“Well, I’ve never seen your dad, so I wouldn’t know,” Angela replied.
Nick continued clicking through the site, introducing Angela to all his family members – his mother, father, brother, sisters, grandparents, etc. She couldn’t believe how many of them were in show business, and she couldn’t believe they had so much information posted on the internet. She thought it was insane, but she wasn’t about to tell him that after the video incident.
Nick sat back and smiled at her, when he’d finished clicking through all the pages. “Well?” he asked.
“You skipped yours,” she pointed out.
“Oh, I guess that IS why we came to it in the first place,” he replied goofily and clicked onto his own page. They went through every section of it: Photos, fan mail, fan club, etc., but Nick shied away completely from the FAQ section.
“What’s that?” Angela pried.
“What?” asked Nick, a feeling of dread settling over him.
“That,” Angela repeated, pointing to it. “The FAQ section. What’s the FAQ on Nick Carter? Enquiring minds want to know,” she said playfully.
Nick squirmed noticeably in his chair and clicked back to the homepage. “It’s nothin’,” he replied, “Just a bunch of stupid stuff.”
“And did I miss the SMART section on this site?” Angela teased. “Come on, I wanna see it.”
“No,” Nick whined. “It’s just stupid stuff. You don’t need to see it.” He knew she wasn’t buying his excuses, but there was no way in hell he was letting her read the FAQ he’d had posted on his ex-girlfriend. For the first time since he’d posted it, he regretted ever having done it.
“Oh, come on!” Angela scoffed. She leaned over and grabbed the mouse from him to click back to his page.
“I said, NO!” Nick snapped at her, glaring. The smile left Angela’s face immediately and she backed away from him, hurt that he’d yelled at her. Nick desperately wanted to apologize, but it would mean round two of her wanting to see the FAQ, so he chose to ignore the right thing to do. Instead, he clicked “home” on the internet browser and stood up. “I don’t want to sit at the computer all night, Ange,” he said softly. “Let’s go back out.”
“Sure,” Angela snapped back at him and headed for the door without him.
Nick stood momentarily as the door closed behind her and muttered,
“You fucking asshole,” to himself. Why did he take Angela to the
site in the first place? “Dumbass,” he said out loud again as he
headed for the door. He hoped she wouldn’t be mad at him the rest of
the night, but he really wouldn’t blame her.
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