Date: Sun, 17 Jun 2001 02:10:00
From: Jeff Langdon <jeff_langdon@hotmail.com>
Subject: Westlife Romance - Chapter 50

Westlife Romance - Part 50

For a moment, Nicky could not think of anything to say.  He was still trying
to absorb Shane's revelation, wondering whether he heard right or not.

Shane looked at Nicky's reaction and he felt totally ashamed of himself.
"How could I have been so stupid?" he asked himself.

"How long did you know about it?" Nicky finally managed to ask.  He tried to
keep his rising anger in control.  He had to listen to Shane's side of the
story first before reacting, he kept telling himself.

"Kian promised me that he would stop after I confronted him..." Shane
answered without looking at Nicky.  He felt so terrible, feeling that he had
taken advantage of the trust that Nicky had placed in him.

Nicky watery eyes threatened to spill over, but he forced himself to remain
strong.  He had worked so hard to get back from the depths of despair and
self-pity, he couldn't let himself fall back again.  With that thought in
mind, Nicky looked at Shane before hugging him.

This reaction was one that Shane did not expect.  But when Nicky hugged him,
Shane could no longer keep his emotions in check.  He sobbed like a child,
trembling as he sobbed.  "I'm so sorry, Nicky.  I'm so sorry..." he kept
saying amidst his tears.

Nicky held Shane tight, reassuring the younger lad.  "It's okay, Shane.
It's all in the past already."

Despite Nicky's forgiving attitude, Shane was much harder on himself.  He
refused to let himself off so easily.  Guilt tormented him and its grip on
him was harder than ever.  "No, Nicky...I betrayed you...I betrayed you,
Nicky..."

Despite not saying it, Nicky was deeply hurt by Shane's actions.  He did in
fact feel betrayed.  But at the same time, he could understand why Shane did
what he did.  He looked at Shane in the eye and smiled.  "You were put in a
bad position, Shane.  You didn't really have much of a choice."

"I did, Nix...I just picked the wrong choice..."

"Kian is your best friend," Nicky reasoned.

"That doesn't excuse me from doing what I did..."

"No, it doesn't...but at least it explains why you did what you did," Nicky
continued.  "But like I said, it's all in the past...so please, don't let it
torment you like this anymore."

Shane again saw Nicky in a new light.  He had so much to learn from his
friend.  He still found it hard to believe how kind Nicky was being to him
despite all that he had done.  "Nicky...I'm so sorry for what I did..."

Nicky squeezed Shane's hand and smiled.  "Friends again?"

Shane couldn't help but smile even though tears still trickled down his
face.  "Friends always..."

The two lads hugged again, happy to have resolved their differences.  For
the next few minutes, they sat in comfortable silence, each contemplating
the events that have occurred.

"Nicky?" Shane finally asked.

"Yeah?"

"How do you do it?"

"Do what?"

"How could you be so forgiving?"

Nicky smiled at Shane.  "Seriously, I was really hurt when you told me.  But
then I asked myself what I would have done if I was in your position, and I
seriously could not say that I wouldn't have done what you did."

Shane smiled and admired his friend for his maturity and understanding.  It
was surely something that he had to learn.

"Shane, listen to me," Nicky continued.  "The bond that you and Kian have is
something very special.  Don't let this incident destroy that."

It was then that Shane realized he had never told Nicky about his true
feelings for Kian.  He decided that it was now or never.  "Nicky, there is
something else that I have to tell you..."

"What is it?" Nicky answered with a smile.  "It certainly can't be any worse
than what you told me earlier!!" he joked.

"Well...that depends on how you look at it," Shane said softly.

Nicky could sense that Shane was serious and quickly wiped that smile off of
his face.  "What is it, Shane?"

"Well...how should I say this..." Shane hesitated.  "What I want to say is
that what I feel for Kian is beyond friendship..."

"What exactly are you saying?"

"What I am saying is that I think I have feelings for Kian..."

Nicky stared at Shane.  "You WHAT???"

...to be continued....