The concert went on as normal. Each guy did his solo that drove Breanna and Eve crazy. Those guys up on the stage who were singing their hearts out were not famous singers to them. They were their friends. It took Breanna and Eve a long time to accept what they were seeing on the stage. Kevin and Howie made a special effort to go down into the pit of the stage to sing to the fans, especially Breanna and Eve. When AJ danced provocatively the girls thought it to be hilarious.
"Why am I not surprised?" Breanna told Eve.
"Why didn't I notice him first?" Eve yelled to Breanna while AJ performed his infamous floor humping moves.
"EVE!" Breanna screamed. "Look at him! You can't tell me that he doesn't look like he'd be good in bed." Eve shouted back. Breanna only shook her head in disbelief while Howie watched her with a questioning face. Breanna pointed to AJ and Eve while imitating AJ's onstage antics. Howie was both turned on by Breanna's sexy attempt to copy AJ and laughing at the thought of clean-minded Eve showing any interest in AJ's sexual side.
"There is a woman in there afterall" He thought to himself as he tried his hardest to stay in sync with the rest of the guys.
After the show ended Q escorted the girls backstage. Brian was the first to come out to greet the few dozen fans who had passes. He signed autographs and took time for fan photo opts. He was clean shaven and freshly showered. "Hey girls!" Brian greeted.
"You're looking better." Breanna noticed. The girls standing in front of Brian shot Eve and Breanna a jealous glare.
"Now ladies, these are my very good friends Eve and Breanna. They don't belong to me anyway so don't worry." Brian said to the fans as he gave them hugs.
"So that's why those girls didn't like us." Eve noticed.
"Which girls?" Brian asked as he continued to sign autographs.
"When we arrived at the hotel yesterday some girls were outside waiting around. When they saw me and Bree they gave us awful looks." Eve explained to Brian.
"I think they were looking for you." She added.
"Yeah, probably." He said as he finished the last autograph before going back to the green room area.
"You coming?" He turned around asking Breanna and Eve.
"Um, sure." They said. The fans were still there waiting for the rest of the guys to come out. They gave Breanna and Eve a dirtier look as both girls followed Brian.
"They're jealous, that's all, but they've been good to us." Brian said trying to defend the fans' attitudes towards them.
"Hey!!! PARTY TIME!" Nick shouted to Breanna and Eve as he walked into the room.
"Huh? Oh right. I'm 21. I almost forgot." Breanna said to a very happy Nick.
"So, you're still gonna party with us?" Eve asked.
"Oh hell yeah! I wouldn't miss it. We have to celebrate, too. This was the end of our world tour for the next year at least." Nick said as he grabbed a comb out of his duffle bag. He had just gotten out of the shower.
"Hey Breanna, Howie's in that room." Nick said pointing to a door.
"Can I....?"
"Yeah, go ahead. I'm sure he'd really like to see you." Nick said as Brian tried not to crack up laughing.
"You two are up to something." Breanna commented as she walked towards the door.
Breanna opened the door and quietly slid in hoping to surprise Howie. Just then Howie came into the room wearing nothing but a towel around his waist. "Oh I'm sorry!" Breanna said to a very shocked Howie.
"NICK!!!!!!!!" Breanna screamed out. All she could hear were the giggles of a few people, most notably from Nick and Brian.
"It's okay, Breen. Don't forget you woke up in your pajamas. Someone had to dress you." Howie said as Breanna gave him the once over.
"Oh, sorry." Breanna said as she blushed. Howie thought it was cute that she was embarrassed. After making small talk for a few minutes he realized that he couldn't help himself anymore. He grabbed Breanna and gave her the most passionate kiss she had ever had. He started kissing her with more passion while caressing her lowerback as she fumbled around with his towel. He wasn't sure where this would lead them. He realized that they had known each other for less than two days and they were in the dressing room with everyone outside. All thoughts of doubt flashed through his mind as he felt his towel drop to the ground.
"We can't do this, not here." Howie mumbled as he tried to pull back.
"You're right. I have no idea what I was thinking. I guess I just got caught up in the moment." She said as she sat down in the nearest chair out of breath. Breanna took in the sight of his perfect body while he stood in front of her naked, lost in thought.
"Hun, I think you should cover up before I get caught up in the moment again." Breanna said slyly as he quickly bent down and grabbed the towel.
"Oh forget it!" He said impatiently as he let the towel fall again. He walked to the other side of the dressing room to grab his clothes. Breanna thought that it was funny how she could be in the same room with the most gorgeous man getting dressed in front of her and not feel uncomfortable.
Howie and Breanna made small talk about their plans for the night. They were both obviously dancing around the subject that was on both of their minds. "Where is it?" Howie said to himself as he looked around for his belt. It was on the ground next to Breanna. She picked it up as she walked towards him.
"Let me do this." She said as she slid the belt through his pants.
"We can talk about it later when we're both more comfortable" He said, obviously feeling the tension in the air.
"Okay, that's fine. I didn't really want to bring it up. I thought you were really uncomfortable all day. I guess this would have been your reason?" She asked lightly as she fastened his belt for him.
"Yeah, it was. We'll talk later. After everyone passes out again." He said with a laugh.
"I'll try not to drink as much. I want to remember everything you say and do this time." She said as he hugged her.
"Do you think we're going too fast?" She asked as he grabbed her hand and his duffle back. Howie gave her an annoyed look.
"I know, I know! We'll talk about it later."
"Oh right! You only think you can drink me under the table. Frack, I saw you last night. You weren't lookin' good!" Brian quipped to an ammused Nick.
"Whatever, dude! You were the one prancing down the hall in woman's clothing!" Nick said as several crew members turned around to see what they were talking about.
"Hey guys! Let's talk about this at the hotel!" Breanna yelled out as she and Howie exited the dressing room. Applause all around.
"What's that for?" Howie asked as everyone looked on at them with smiles.
"Oh I don't know. Gettin' lucky?" Nick said trying to annoy his friend.
"WHAT?" Breanna asked.
"Let's examine the evidence," Brian said as he paced around the room pretending to be Shirlock Holmes.
"You go into the dressing room where Howie is dressed in nothing but a towel..." Brian said with a smirk
"Then you come out very happy, a little out of breath, and a dressed Howie." Nick finished.
"Oh GROW UP!" Kevin laughed.
"Not enough evidence to me, boys. There was a bathroom. He could have gotten dressed in there." Breanna said as Howie took her hand to leave.
"But did he???" Nick insisted.
"You ask him. Where's AJ?" Breanna asked as she, Eve, Kevin, Brian, Nick and Howie exited the green room.
"Signing autographs which is what we have to do." Howie said as he dropped Breanna's hand.
"I don't want them to know anything. If they do the press will never leave you alone, you'll be all over the internet, and some of the fans are a little possessive." Howie explained.
"They take us having girlfriends personally." Brian added.
"We'll be done in half an hour. You can wait or you can have Q take you back to the hotel." Kevin said.
"We can go back on our own. It's okay." Eve said.
"If you want. I just don't want you both getting attacked by fans at the hotel when they see a limo pulling up thinking it's us. Some of them get violent." Howie said. Breanna played with her backstage pass around her neck as she read the words "Backstreet Boys". A familiar phrase she had heard many times but never associated it with any one in particular. Now she had faces to go with the reputation.
"We'll see you in little bit." She said as she gave Howie a less passionate kiss compared to the one they shared in the dressing room. She never realized that there were a few fans who had witnessed them kissing. And now they had pictures to prove it.
As the limo pulled up in front of the hotel the girls noticed that there was a mob scene. Hundreds of girls tried to rush up to the limosine but Breanna and Eve quickly jumped out and closed the door behind them to show that there was no one else coming out. "You were at the concert and you got to go backstage?" One excited fan asked as she pointed to Breanna and Eve's backstage pass around their necks. Breanna was usually good at telling BS stories but she drew blank. Thank God for Eve's quick recovery.
"We're with the press. We were reviewing the concert." She blurted out as they pushed through the crowd of people trying to get into the hotel. The hotel security at the door recognized them and quickly came to their assistance.
"But you're the girl with the birthday!" Another fan shouted.
"Shit, the flowers!" Breanna thought as she dropped a blue rose on the ground. Breanna couldn't turn around to pick up the flower because thirty fans practically threw themselves on it.
"Poor rose never had a chance." Eve joked as they made their way into the lobby.
The hotel was practically empty when the two girls strolled across the lobby. "Who are they?" Breanna asked herself.
"If you look at your backstage pass you'll see that it says 'Backstreet Boy'" Eve joked.
"No, I know *that*. I just mean how famous are they? What are they? I want to know everything!" Breanna said as they got into the elevator.
"Well, we have about 30 minutes to do some research in you want." Eve told Breanna.
"We both brought our laptops. I'm sure there's information about them on the internet." Eve added.
"I hope there's enough information to answer at least some of my questions. I know Howie said that he would tell me everything later but I want to know now. I just want to know, well, I don't know what I really want to know." Breanna told Eve as they walked off the elevator.
"You don't really want to know too much about the Backstreet Boys. You want to know everything there is to know about Howie." Eve informed her friend.
"Yeah, I guess. You're taking this so well. How do you feel about the all of this?" Breanna asked Eve as Mark listened on.
"I don't know yet. It hasn't him me. My possible boyfriend may be famous. He may be rich. But all that doesn't really matter to me. It's all a bonus but I could live without it and I think I would prefer to live without it. At least if he wasn't rich or famous I would know that I actually liked him for *him*." Eve stated as they walked to their hotel room.
"But you already do, Eve." Breanna said.
"I know, I do. Well, let's not worry about it until we talk to them later."
"Well, Howie and I are going to talk about it later tonight when you all pass out." Breanna said laughing.
"So, Bree, what did happen in that dressing room?" Eve asked as they walked into their hotel room.
"Oh, nothing. He dropped the towel."
Eve and Breanna strolled into their room throwing everything onto the kitchen table. "Wanna a drink?" Eve asked as she walked over to the fridge.
"Just bottled water. If we're going to be drinking tonight we might as well be hydrated. I don't think I can handle another hangover like the one this morning." Breanna stated as she slowly made her way up the stairs to her room. Once she entered her room she was surprised to see vases of roses and other flowers everywhere. There were balloons all over the place and a little note attached to the biggest one that was drifting off into the hallway.
Happy Birthday, Breanna.
This is all I could do with short notice.
We'll do something to celebrate later when everything's over.
- Howie
He was obviously referring to the ending of the tour. Breanna felt so happy that she screamed aloud. "What? What is it?" Eve yelled as she ran up the stairs.
"Oh my God, Bree!" She yelled. "Oh Bree, you've done it again." Eve said as she ran back down the stairs to see who was at the door. It was Mark.
"Hey Mark. Don't worry! I think Howie surprised Breanna by filling her room with flowers and balloons." Eve commented as Mark came in to make sure everything was okay. Mark was a middle-aged man who had children the same age as Breanna and Eve. He felt a certain parental connection with both girls.
"Would it be alright if I saw them?" Mark asked with a gleeful smile.
"Sure! C'mon up stairs. I think Breanna is still in shock." Eve said as they both went up. Sure enough Breanna was still in shock, still in her doorway staring at her room.
"Wow! I was on break when all of this happened. I didn't see anyone bringing in the flowers or balloons." Mark stated.
"Breanna and I have had a very long day. First we think our guys are normal then we find out they're not. We come home to do a little internet research on them and we find Breanna's room ransacked with objects of endearment." Eve complained with a smile.
"He really does like her." Mark said with a smile. He started to remember the times when he was younger and he was courting his wife. He loved seeing love in the making but he had never seen it move that fast in all his life.
"So, how long have you known Howie?" Mark asked Breanna casually hoping to bring her out of shock.
"Um, I'm not sure. Two days I think." She said as Mark's chin dropped to the floor. He figured that they had been dating for a few weeks, two months at the tops. Thinking back he realized that he must have been wrong. The day before Howie was complaining that the girls didn't know what they did for a living and he was uncertain what their reaction would be once they found out. Hiding who they were for two days was a big accomplishment in Marks opinion. He had known the boys for 5 years. Every hotel they stayed at would be the same one that Mark worked for. He knew Howie was a slow mover when it came to the women but this was another side to him that he had never seen.
"Well, I just wanted to check on you ladies since the boys are at the arena." Mark said as he turned to walk down the stairs.
"Mark?" Eve asked.
"Yes?"
"How long have you known them?"
"I've known them for 5 years. I've seen them start out as nothing while staying at the Marriot all the way to where they are today. They haven't changed a bit. Kevin is still the same quiet gentleman that he's always been and Howie is still the same sweet, caring man. Brian is still the biggest gobber you're ever gonna meet, AJ is still the ladies man and very brutally honest with himself and everyone else, and Nick, well, I've seen him grow from a boy into the man he is today. He's still the same kid who's addicted to videogames and causing trouble. Beware of him! He'll hide a snake under your pillow if given half the chance." Mark said as he walked towards the door. "Ladies, these guys are wonderful and very down to earth, even with all the success they've had. You're both lucky to even be friends with them. Trust me, they were very worried about how you'd take the news. Howie and Kevin mostly but the rest were worried as well."
"Thanks Mark!" Eve said as she gave him a hug while Breanna looked down at them from upstairs with a rose in her hand that she grabbed off her dresser.
"Bye Mark! See you later." Breanna said as she turned to walk back into her room.
"So, let's fire up that laptop!" Eve shouted as she ran upstairs. Breanna pulled the laptop out and turned it on. It took a while to load but once it did Breanna and Eve quickly signed online. They went to the most popular search engine on the internet and typed in Backstreet Boys. "How many sites do you think we'll find?" Eve asked curiously as they stared at the screen.
"I don't know. Probably 20 if we're lucky. I know they're kinda famous but I can't believe they are as famous as everyone makes them out to be. I've heard their names mentioned here and there but I don't know a lot about them. That's never been our type of music." Breanna was rambling on.
"Oh shit!" Both girls screamed aloud. Instead of the 20 sites they were expecting they found 2000. Some of the sites were divided into each seperate member with Nick having most of them.
"Figures." Eve complained.
"He's the youngest, tallest, blondest." Breanna defended. Breanna didn't want to look at the Howie sites. She was afraid of what she might find. Instead Eve took control of the laptop and clicked on Howie's name. 15 sites came up. Breanna held her breath as Eve clicked on the one with the best description.
"I can't look!" Breanna said laughing as she covered her face with her hands.
"Oh wow! Um, I wonder what he looks like with the rest of his clothes off." Eve said jokingly. Breanna took her hands away from her face as her jaw dropped to the floor. It was a picture of Howie with his hair loose, in a pair of boxers standing with his feet in the water at a beach. He was staring out to sea.
"He looks better," was all Breanna could say as she stared at the picture.
"Ok, I don't want to know anymore. I want to find out who he is by being around him." She said.
"Ok, let's look for info on the guys. Like musical stats." Eve said.
"No, that wouldn't be fair!" Breanna said as she and Eve fought for control of the laptop. Breanna had every intention of seeing a Kevin site. Eve pushed Breanna off the bed while Breanna grabbed Eve's arm which pulled her down with Breanna. Both girls started wrestling on the floor.
"I WANT TO SEE HIS SITE!" Breanna screamed as Eve tried to pin her.
"NO! We're not going to see one of his sites. I don't want to." Eve said back to Breanna as she rolled back on top of Breanna.
"You're afraid of what you might find. He's the same guy as he was yesterday!" Breanna shouted back. They were laughing uncontrollably.
"I'm gonna kick your ass!" Eve shouted as she tried to sound angry only to burst into giggles.
"We saw a Howie site. You made me look at it. I was afraid of what I might find. So, it's only fair you bitch!" Breanna screamed back as someone picked her up off the floor. It was Howie.
"We're back." He said not sure wheather or not he should smile. Breanna pushed her hair out of her face as Kevin picked Eve up off the floor. Nick, AJ, and Brian were in the doorway staring at the fallen laptop with their name listed on the search engine.
"I kinda had my money on Breanna." AJ said.
"Me too!" Brian said.
"Oh, I was rooting for Eve. Those quiet girls can sure make a lot of noise." Nick said nonchalantly. "Well, I mean...from what I've seen." Nick tried to cover his slip up.
"You mean from what you've *experienced*" AJ commented.
"You ok?" Howie asked.
"No, well, yeah, I guess. I still didn't find out any answers." Breanna said as she gave Eve the evil eye.
"I told you, we'll talk about it later." He said. Breanna took a deep breath.
"Just forget about it for now" She told herself. She looked around her room trying to think of what to say to Howie when she remembered the balloons and flowers. She turned around as Howie was about to say something and threw herself into his arms with a long kiss.
"Ah yeah! There's that tongue!" Nick said. Breanna flipped him off as everyone laughed. Howie picked her up while they were still kissing as Breanna wrapped her legs around his waist.
"Oh, I think we should go!" AJ and Brian said together. Kevin and Eve quickly got up and ran down the stairs hand-in-hand. Nick stood in the doorway laughing.
"You stud!" He shouted as Eve ran back upstairs to drag him down by his ear as she closed the door.
Breanna and Howie ended up on the bed kissing like mad. He was undoing the back of her dress as she pulled his shirt off over his head. After five minutes of passionate kissing and the stripping of their clothes Breanna pulled away.
"What are we doing?" she asked unsure. Howie laid there with Breanna on top of him barely dressed as he took a deep breath.
"I don't know." He lightly pushed her off of him and sat up. She felt like he was rejecting her but she didn't want to go any further with him. They barely knew each other. Now he's famous. He could have any woman in the world that he wanted. She was afraid that he had. She sat up with her back to him staring out the window. He turned and grabbed her. He pulled her onto his lap as they sat on the edge of the bed not talking for half an hour. "Ok, what do you want to know?" He finally asked her.
"Who you are. That's all I want to know. I don't want to know about the group because I already know the group. You sing. You dance. You're talented. You travel constantly. You have fans all over the world. You have thousands upon thousands of fan pages. You can have any woman in the world. Why me?" She finally said what she was dying to know without really realizing it.
"Is that what's been bothering you?" He asked.
"I guess. I've been wondering about that since yesterday. This whole-you-being-famous thing hasn't really bothered me. Or, at least it hasn't hit me yet. I just want to know who you are." She said.
"We're both barely dressed. You're the most vulnerable when you're naked. Might as well be honest now." She joked as he smiled and tightened his grip on her.
"I like you because you're you. You're not fake. And you liked me for me before you ever found out about all of this," He said as he waved his hand in the air indicating his life.
"That's all I can say. I'm not going to sit here and lie to you by saying that I've never been propositioned by beautiful women before, because I have, but I never took any of them up on their offer. I've been looking for someone real for a long time but I never thought I would find one especially here. Maybe that's why we're moving so fast. I can't believe you're real and I'm trying to be as close to you as possible. I'm afraid after we leave here I'll never see you again or once you realize how hectic my life is you'll never want to be apart of it."
"No, I wouldn't do that." She said as she played with the ring on her finger that Eve had given her.
"That doesn't look right." He said pointing to her ring.
"What's wrong with it?" She asked.
"Nothing. I mean you just have one ring. It doesn't look right. Your hand looks lonely." He said with a nervous laugh.
"What are you talking about, D?" She said laughing as she pushed him back onto the bed.
"No, wait. Hand me my pants." She grabbed them off the floor and handed them to Howie. He dug his hand into his pocket and pulled out a narrow box. "Here." He said handing it to her.
"What is this?" She said as she opened it. Inside the box was a silver bracelet that had aquamarine stones in the shape of hearts set a quarter of an inch apart. Breanna didn't know what to say.
"No, don't cry!" Howie said. She didn't realize that she had tears streaming down her cheeks. Howie took the bracelet out of it's box and handed it to her.
"Look at it closer." He said. She turned it around in her hand staring at the stones.
"Closer." He said. She held the bracelet in front of her eyes. After a few seconds she realized that it was engraved on the inside. She read "Angel, you take my breath away. May this never end. Love Howie." She read it over and over again, glancing up at Howie once in a while. It took a while before it hit her what he had just given her. She couldn't stop crying as Howie held her in his arms. She handed the bracelet back to him while she cried.
"If you don't want it I..." She put out her hand.
"Could you put it on for me please?" She said wiping her eyes.
After he put it on her wrist she looked around her room at the flowers and balloons and back down at the bracelet. "Doesn't seem like two days, does it?" She asked as he laughed.
"Not really." He said.
"Ok, now I need to talk to you." Breanna stated as she turned to face him. She grabbed his hands and pulled them to her lap as she stared at them. She didn't know what to say to him. "Where do we go from here?" She asked after a few minutes.
"I don't know. I've been thinking about it and I'm not sure. I guess we go our seperate ways until you move to Orlando. I mean, I'll call you all the time and fly you out whenever we both have time for a few days together." He said.
"Boy, you really planned this one out didn't you?" She asked him pointedly. He blushed and nodded his head.
"Hold that thought." He told her as his cellphone rang.
"Hello? Yeah. We have a press conferance tomorrow afternoon but you never told us where it would be. Ok, that's fine. Hey, I really gotta go. My girlfriend and I we're in the middle of something. Call Kevin. I don't think he's doing anything. Fine, later man." Howie hung up with their management firm and turned his phone off completely. Breanna looked shocked. "What!?" He asked.
"Did you hear what you just said?" She asked still in shock.
"Huh? What'd I say?" He was confused.
"On the phone?"
"What'd I say?" He still didn't understand until he played the conversation over in his head. "Girlfriend" came to his mind. "I know what you're talking about. Um..." He didn't know how to talk his way out of that one without being honest with her. "We are dating, aren't we?" He asked her matter-of-factly. She nodded her head.
"I suppose so."
"That would mean you are my girlfriend, right?" He asked her again. She nodded her head in response. He leaned over and kissed her softly.
"C'mon, let's go see what everyone's up to." Howie said as he grabbed her hand to walk towards the door.
"Well, I don't know about you but I'm not that much of an exhibitionist contrary to what AJ thinks." She told him laughing as she pointed to their lack of clothing. After they got dressed she thought about the last two days. She couldn't remember being happier but at the same time should couldn't remember being more confused. As they walked out of her room hand-in-hand everyone was in a conversation downstairs. Eve was sitting in Kevin's lap leaning back against his chest as he talked on his phone.
"Oh you talked to Howie? Yeah he was. Girlfriend?????? I'll have to talk to him about that later." Kevin said into the phone as AJ, Nick, and Brian looked up.
"Movin' fast, D!" AJ said as he saw them walking down the stairs.
"What are you two going to do when we all go back home?" Brian asked.
"We've already discussed it. Don't worry, it's all planned out." Howie said as Breanna and Eve exchanged glowing looks.
"Ok, press conferance downstairs tomorrow at 3pm. Until then we're free to do what we want. What are our plans?" Kevin asked as he got off the phone. Breanna was lost in her thoughts as she played around with her bracelet.
"B, what's that?" Eve asked curiously.
"Mine." Breanna answered with a smile while Howie put an arm around her shoulder bringing her in closer to him.
"D, are you spending money on the ladies again?" AJ asked with a smile.
"Maybe." Howie replied with a wink.
"Let me see it!!" Eve asked excitedly.
"Oh great D! Now I have to go max out the credit cards at Cartier's for Eve." Kevin joked.
"No man, just on their birthday." Howie advised his friend while both girls shot them an evil glare. Breanna took off her bracelet so Eve could get a better look at it. Breanna knew that Eve would want to check for engravements. When Eve read what Howie had engraved on it she screamed and hugged her best friend.
"Could someone please explain why women get so excited about jewelry?" AJ asked.
"I dunno man. They all want the expensive stuff but later they don't wear it cause they don't want to lose it. They're confusing!" a dissatisfied Nick said.
"You'll get used to them, Nick. They're not that bad. Well, not all of them." Howie said.
"You have to say that man. Breanna has you wrapped around her pretty little finger like Naomi has Nick whipped. Give Eve until the end of the week to have Kevin wrapped around her finger." AJ said.
"Too late!" Brian joked. He knew something the rest of the group didn't know. Kevin shot Brian a stern look. Brian only smiled back.
"Can we please discuss what we're doing tonight?" Kevin asked. He would have rather taken Eve out that night but he knew it was Breanna's birthday and Eve wouldn't leave her that night. Things looked a little too serious after two days between all of them. Something was bound to happen if they didn't slow down.
The week flew by for Breanna and Eve. After the final press conference things went back to normal, or normal for the BSB. AJ spent a great deal of time gambling, drinking, and hanging out with one particular woman. None of the guys seemed surprised about AJ's new interest. To Breanna and Eve, it seemed like that woman was once a previous interest as well. Nick decided to leave three days early because his girlfriend was upset that he wasn't already home. Brian went back as well to try and patch things up with his lady love. Howie and Breanna spent every waking moment together, even when they slept. By Monday the girls gave up their hotel room to stay with their respected boyfriends. In the end it helped both girls to save money.
As the week came close to an end Breanna and Eve decided to have a girls night out. They wanted to talk about the turn of events in that last week. Howie and Kevin had plans to go out gambling and take in a few shows. They wouldn't be back until 2am that Friday morning. When the girls entered the restaurant they passed the table where AJ and his date were sitting. Both girls stopped to say hi to AJ and introduce themselves to his date. Breanna and Eve were extremely impressed with her mannerism and the ways she complimented AJ. She was sweet, funny, and very much head over heels for him. "We better go to our table and leave you two alone." Eve said.
"Where the guys at?" AJ asked.
"Dunno. Out doing guy things." Breanna said. "Well, we'll see you later AJ and it was nice meeting you, Mya!" Breanna said as she leaned down to give the young woman a quick hug.
"I'm sure we'll be seeing a lot of each other soon." Mya said to Breanna as she returned the hug. As the girls walked away Mya commented to AJ that both girls were perfectly suited for Howie and Kevin.
"Breanna has Howie's sweet temperment and Eve has Kevin's seriousness."
"I know. I knew that from the moment I met them in their bath towels." AJ said laughing as Mya shot him a glare then a smile.
"Don't worry. I knew they both had eyes for Howie and Kevin. I only played Cupid." AJ said.
"Now the entire group is taken." Mya said with a smile as she took a sip of her champagne.
"She was really nice!" Eve said.
"I know! And she seemed a lot like him. Well, not a lot like him cause this is AJ we're talkin' about. There cannot be anyone else in the world like him, but I don't know. They just seemed perfect for each other." Breanna said as she looked over the menu. After both girls gave the waiter their orders they decided to discuss what their plans would be.
"What's up with you and Howie anyway?" Eve asked.
"Nothing. We talked yesterday about things. I guess we're going to slow down and see how things go once we get to Orlando. What's up with you and Kevin? You two have been *very* secretive about things. You both having sex already?" Breanna joked. Eve didn't say anything. She only took a sip of her water.
"Oh you *are* having sex with him!!!!!!!!!" Breanna shouted forgetting they were in a restaurant. She caught AJ's eye and he instantly lost it. Mya couldn't help but laugh with him as well. The entire restaurant now knew about Eve's sex life.
"No wonder he's been happy!" AJ shouted not giving a damn about what the other guests in the restaurant thought. It was Breanna's turn to laugh. Eve tried to look mad but she couldn't help it and started laughing, too.
"Yeah we are, but hush! Don't say anything. He'll get embarrassed. He has the reputation of being serious and mature to uphold. Once the guys find out we're having sex after being together for less than 4 days they'll tease him to no end!" Eve said laughing.
"Oh, well, the worst guy to tell just found out." Breanna said pointing to AJ. Breanna made eye contact with AJ while pointing to him. He excused himself from the table and walked over to the girls table and took a seat.
"What are you talking about?" he asked as he laughed.
"Oh, just that Kevin has a serious reputation to uphold and none of the guys should know that they're having sex after 4 day or you'll tease him." Breanna said laughing.
"Oh, I wouldn't tease him." AJ said to Eve.
"Thank you, AJ." Eve replied.
"No, I'd torture him." He stated as Breanna and Eve burst into giggles.
After dinner was over both girls went back to Breanna and Howie's hotel room. They watched a couple of movies while talking about the guys. "So, has he said it to you yet?" Breanna asked Eve while they laid on the bed flipping through commercials.
"Said what?" Eve asked as she grabbed the remote from Breanna to take control of the TV.
"You know what." Breanna said as she stared at the TV screen.
"No. He tried but he chickened out. Anyway, it's only been a week. I don't expect to hear the words 'I love you' anytime soon. I'm in no hurry to fall in love anyway." Eve stated.
"That's because you already are." Breanna said with a quick laugh.
"Maybe, maybe not. It's only been a week. I don't know. It hasn't even been a week! What are we talking about? Of course I don't expect him to say 'I love you'. I could never say it back to him if he did." Eve said as she thought about her situation with Kevin.
"But you do. Don't you?" Breanna asked.
"I told you. I really don't know. I think I do, but then I think to myself that I am stupid if I think I love him this soon. But then I think about living without him and I can't picture it. You know what I'm talking about?" Eve asked.
"Yeah, the difference is I know that I could live without Howie but I wouldn't want to try. I can't picture him not being around. But I totally understand what you're saying about being in love with them so soon. No one said you had to be *in love* with them to love them. I love you but it doesn't mean I'm in love with you. Do you understand?" Breanna asked a very confused Eve.
"Yeah, you're right but the trouble is, if I told him I loved him he would think two things. 1, he would think he was obligated to say it back even though he doesn't mean it and 2, he'd think that I was *in love* with him, even though I would only love him. Do I make sense?" Eve was very confused with her feelings for Kevin.
"Total sense, girl." Breanna said as she gave her friends hand a squeeze.
"Ok, so what about you?" Eve asked Breanna.
"I love him. There's nothing else I can say. I can't deny that I love him. I can only deny that I'm *in* love with him. When I think about living without him, it's hard but I know I can do it. I'll survive. The day I think that I won't be able to survive without him will be the day that I realize that I'm in love with him." Breanna said.
"You sound like you're not confused at all." Eve commented.
"Oh, I am. I mean, we have to go back home in two days, no, in one day. It's now official Friday. I have to go home and deal with Christian's death, my family, explaining this situation to my mom, go back to school to finish out the sememster, pack up our things, and then head on out to Florida. At the same time I have to try and maintain a wonderful relationship with the greatest guy who happens to be very high-profile. We have to try and maintain a low-profile relationship. You bet your ass I'm confused...and scared." Breanna said as she looked at the clock again, missing Howie.
"Well, at least we're best friends, we'll be near each other, and we both are going to be going through the same thing. Well, not too much the Christian thing, but I'll be there for you. But the relationship part I can help support you with. I think I know what you're going through." Eve said with a laugh.
After an hour Breanna fell asleep. Eve quietly got up and went back to her room. When Breanna awoke, Howie was sitting on the edge of the bed staring at her with concern on his face. "What's wrong?" Breanna said as she sat up to touch his face. He grabbed her hand and held it in his.
"Nothing. I'm just thinking about how much I'm going to miss you when you leave." His eyes were glossy from drinking and dancing the night away with Kevin.
"We'll talk all the time. I'll fly out to see you on the weekends." She assured him.
"You're so calm about this." He commented with a smile.
"So are you." She replied.
"No, on the outside, yeah, I guess. But on the inside I think I am more confused." He stated.
"Want to know what Eve and I talked about tonight?" Breanna asked. Breanna was one of those types of people who would tell you anything if half asleep. She was brutally honest when she was tired. But, this time she was wide awake. She wanted to be honest with Howie before they went their seperate ways. He needed to know how she felt about him, or at least Breanna needed to lift the heavy weight off of her chest.
"I'm not sure. Girl talk can be pretty confusing." Howie said laughing. She frowned and looked down at their hands intertwined.
"I'm sorry. I do want to know what you two talked about. I'm just afraid of what I might hear, that's all." He said.
"What are you afraid you might hear? What would scare you away?" She asked desperately, her voice becoming more audible.
"Nothing would." He said reassuring her.
"Even if I told you I was pregnant?" She asked. All color drained from his face.
"Don't worry, I'm not. You do remember how a baby is made, don't you?" She teased him.
"Yeah, um, well...that scared me." He said.
"See? It scared you." She stated.
"Yeah, because we haven't done anything that would cause that situation." he informed her.
"I know. I just wanted to see your reaction." She said laughing.
"Ok, so that would scare me. I admit it. But nothing else would." He said as he dropped her hand and stood up. "C'mon. Let's go." He said as he pulled her out of bed.
"Where're we going?" she asked cautiously.
"I want to take a bath. Come with me." He said. They had never bathed together but Breanna thought it was a romantic gesture and figured it would be easier to tell him how she felt. The bathtub wasn't even a tub. It was a small spa with enough room for 3 people. There were 10 small votive candles in the bath closet which Breanna took out while Howie drew the water and put bubble bath in the tub. She placed all the candles around the tub and explained to Howie that the candle light would be more romantic and more gentle on his eyes considering he wasn't exactly sober. He laughed at her. She had gotten to know him so well in that week. They had so much fun going out to dinner, clubs, movies, gambling, and shows. A few times they went ice skating and for walks through the gardens of other hotels. Most of the time Howie was recognized by fans but most of them respected his privacy and never asked for an autograph. They would only smile at him as he acknowledged their presence with a wave and a smile back. And many times they smiled at Breanna as well. It was obvious to them that they were happily in love.
After a few minutes of remembering their past week, Howie brought Breanna back to the present by undressing her. She loved the feel of his hands on her body but he never tried anything. For Howie, he wanted to wait until she moved to Orlando before they made love. He wanted to make sure that their relationship could withstand the distance. He wanted to make sure that she trusted him enough when he wasn't around her. He wanted to make sure she was different than the others. He couldn't give her his heart. Not all of it. Not yet.
Breanna helped Howie undress as they lightly kissed each other before Howie got into the tub. "So, what did you two talk about?" Howie asked Breanna as she lit one candle before turning off the bathroom lights.
"You and Kevin." She said as she got into the tub with Howie and lit the rest of the candles. She snuggled down into his body while the warm water relaxed her muscles. "This should be a cold bath." She thought to herself. He was way too sexy at that very moment for her body to take. "Thank God for strong will power." She said aloud.
"What?" he asked laughing.
"I'm sorry. You're just too...hot!" She said looking up at him. He leaned his head down to lightly kiss her as his arms wrapped around her waist. He drew circles around her belly button with his wet fingers as she closed her eyes to enjoy the feeling. "We talked about you and Kevin. How we felt about the both of you and what we planned to do about it." She blurted out. He stopped playing with her belly button for a second to take in what she just said before drawing circles again.
"Explain." He said as he kissed the top of her head.
"I don't want to freak you out or make you run away but I can't deny how I feel. I can only keep it inside of me but I can't." She started explaining.
"what do you mean?" He coaxed.
"I'm not in love with you..." she started to tell him.
"Oh." He said quietly. She knew she had crushed him.
"...but I love you." She said to him. For that moment he had to use all the will power in his mind, body and soul to keep himself from taking her out of the tub, throwing her onto the bed, and making love to her all night. Instead he kissed her head and tightened his grip on her.
"I love you." He said to her quietly. They stayed in the bath for half an hour talking, and giggling about their week. "I want you to move in with me." He blurted out after a few minutes of silence.
"What!?" she asked.
"I mean if things work out after you move to Orlando." He tried to cover up his slip.
"I...I'm not sure...I mean, what if things don't work out for Kevin and Eve? If they don't, she'll be living alone. She can't afford it and I won't allow her to be alone." Breanna said confidently. He loved her stubborness and her loyalty and honesty. This was one relationship where he was willing to give his all.
"Ok, if things work out with them, and I swear they will, you don't know Kevin like I do, would you consider it?" he asked holding his breath.
"Yes." She said as she reached for a towel. "We're prunes!" she laughed.
"The waters cold, too." He said splashing her as she got out of the water.
"You'll pay for that!" She teased as she leaned down to kiss him. He grabbed her by the waist while she kissed him and pulled her back into the water. The bubbles were already gone. He kissed her as she leaned on her arms against his chest. His arms were tightly wrapped around her. After ten minutes of kissing she pushed her arms against his chest and looked into his eyes. With one hand she splashed water in his face and giggled. "C'mon. I'm tired and the sooner we go to bed the sooner we can get up and spend the entire day together." She said as he tried to clear the water out of his eyes. By that time there were only 5 candles still lit.
She walked back into their room and put on her flannel boxers and tank top and snuggled down into their bed. Howie walked into the room and noticed how happy she looked. She was asleep by that time and looked so peaceful.
It was already 3:30 AM and he wasn't tired yet. He was happy and had a grin on his face that went from ear to ear. He didn't want to wake her up by watching TV or reading so he left her a note on the nightstand that said he would be in the lobby somewhere and turned off her light. As he exited their room he saw AJ getting off the elevator. "What's up, dude? You look like you're on cloud nine." AJ said as Howie walked towards him.
"I should say the same thing about you, man!" Howie laughed to his friend.
"Yeah, yeah, she's back and I'm glad." He said smiling. AJ, the honest one of the group.
"So, where ya off to?" he asked Howie.
"I don't know. Breanna fell asleep and I don't want to wake her but I'm not tired yet." He said.
"Come to my room. Mya's asleep upstairs. We can have a drink." AJ offered.
"Sure." Howie accepted. They sat on the couch in AJ's room making small talk over a couple of beers. "So, why didn't you stay in your room? I don't think you could wake Breanna." AJ asked his friend.
"I didn't want to be in the same room as her. Everytime she's asleep and I'm not, I'll watch her. She usually wakes up." Howe explained laughing.
"You have it bad!" AJ teased Howie.
"Maybe. I love her." He said taking a drink of his beer.
"Does she know this?" AJ asked.
"Yeah, she told me first." Howie said smiling.
"Ah, so you're in love." He confirmed.
"No, not in love. Well, I don't know. She's not. That's the first thing she told me. 'I'm not in love with you but I love you.'" Howie quoted.
"That's the same thing as saying 'I don't know what the hell I feel for you'" AJ teased.
"No, I know what she means. It's only been a week, man!" Howie said in disbelief.
"Yeah, I know but there is such a thing as love at first sight." AJ said.
"I'm not sure if I believe in that. Maybe I should after this week. Breanna doesn't believe in it." Howie stated.
"Just because she doesn't believe in it means it's not possible?" AJ asked.
"I don't know."
"Man, you're way more confused than she is. She knows what she wants. She wants you, but she's not in love with you yet, or at least she says she's not. She could be saying it to convince herself." AJ explained.
"You're probably right. Anyway, what's up with you and Mya?" Howie asked.
"Nothing. We're back together and Breanna and Eve love her!" AJ said smiling.
"Oh, great! Another one to add to the 'girl talk'" Howie laughed.
"What?" AJ asked.
"You know? Girls get together and talk about us and come up with some weird shit!" He explained.
"Oh *that*! Yeah, I know. Eh, we're going to have to get used to it." AJ said as they clicked beers together.
"AJ?" Mya called out from upstairs. AJ rolled his eyes. "women." He stated. Howie laughed.
"Well, I'm going to go anyway. I should try to get some sleep. It's our last day tomorrow." Howie said to his friend.
"Yeah, well, see ya on the plane!" AJ told his friend as they hugged good-bye.
"Yeah, man. G'nite!" Howie said as he left AJ's room. As Howie walked back to his room he had thoughts floating through his head. Am I in love with her? He wasn't sure. "I love her. I love Breanna!" He said quietly to himself as he walked down the hallway. The hotel security heard him and only smiled. It was like a soap opera but only better. They had seen it unravel since day one.
"Invite us to the wedding." One of the security guards on duty joked to the other after Howie walked into his room.
"What?" The other security guard asked.
"You haven't been on duty on
this
floor. This is the love floor. Two girls came last week to celebrate
one of
their 21st birthdays. The Backstreet Boys have been staying on this
floor.
Well, the only single guys hooked up with both girls who didn't know
who the
hell they were and now they are all in love after a week. I can't wait
to
see how things work out next time they're here." Only time could tell
what
the future held for both couples.
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