Date: Sun, 12 Sep 1999 19:09:16 -0400 (EDT) From: bsbwriter@altavista.net Subject: Adam, Zach and BSB, parts 34-36 (gay/celebrity/boy bands) Legal Note: Please don't read this if you are under the age of 18 years or the particular age of permission where ever you live.The story below is in all parts fictional. All portayal of the Backstreet Boys and other persons mentioned is in no way based on fact. All other characters are completely fictional. All names, songs, events, and other liscensed material remains so. Thank you. Hey guys! This has been hard to do, but I finally finished it! Look for the next installment next weekend. I'll try to get it out on Saturday. Cuz I'll be busy on Sunday-it has something to with a concert, and five super-hot guys. But no more hints. ;) Thanks as always to my readers, especially Kevin P., griffin, sweet mystery guy T, matt, uberboy, andrew, denny, nice Mr. Motto, funny rich and nicky, the super-silly Yuli, and new found friend jeff. Also, thanks to DLS for being my informal editor. Check out his awesome story, Brian and Me. He makes the stuff you read better. As always, you can write to me with comments, suggestions, complaints, whining, ideas, threats (just kidding), etc, at bsbwriter@altavista.net take care and enjoy! EG part 34 We made our way down the long dark hallway to the main festivities location. As we walked closely together I thought I heard rustlings. I turned slightly, so as not to bother Kevin, but no one was there. I picked up the pace, and Kevin followed. Finally, we came to the pool deck, which was decorated in futuristic/traditional Asian ornaments (think: gold, red, chrome, blue, yellow, green). We approached the large round table that boys, plus Amanda, were sitting at, and sat down quietly. The waiter came to the table and I noticed it was the same guy from room service on Saturday. "Hey, buddy, I said." "Hi! Didn't I serve you yesterday?" I nodded. "Yeah. These are my friends, Kevin, Zach, Nick, Howie, AJ, Amanda and Brian. And that guy," I said, motioning to Howie, "is Howie, the birthday boy." "Pleasure to meet you all," he said, "I'm Guy." Everyone waved, and Guy took the drink orders. "So you work at both hotels?" I asked. "Well, this is just an event job, I got hired by the caterer-he's my uncle." "Oh-" I said, "Cool." "Have fun everybody, I'll be back in a little bit with the drinks." We nodded, and Howie began a thank you speech. I got distracted and watched Guy leave. I noticed something fun. He seemed to drop a small piece of paper on the floor behind Nick, then nodded at him. After Guy was gone, and everyone, or so he thought, was paying attention to Howie, Nick picked it up and put it in his pocket. I dismissed it, and turned my attention to Howie. Just as I did, Kevin squeezed my arm and pointed towards the hotel. I turned and saw Andrew Dolby, Sean's boss, coming towards us. Andrew was a balding, mild and average man of about forty. Kevin and I got up, and motioned for Nick and Zach to do the same. "You'll have to excuse us guys...but its show time," Kevin said nervously with a small, forced laugh. They nodded. and the four of us made our way to Andrew. I wondered why Sean hadn't come. Well, I couldn't blame him. He wouldn't exactly have gotten the star treatment. When we got to him, Kevin and Nick shook his hand and smiled small smiles. Zach and I both waved casually. "We need to talk," Kevin said seriously. "I know," Andrew said. "What?" "Let's go somewhere more private, okay?" "Okay," Kevin said. Andrew led back into the hotel into a small lounge. Everyone sat down, except for Kevin, who just paced. "Let me get this all out now, and then you can ask questions, okay?" Andrew protested, but Kevin pushed on. "Andrew, Nick and I have thought about Sean's proposal for a long, long time. And we decided its not right. We don't agree with his or the management's excuse for morals and we have decided to fight them. If you, or anyone else, arrests Adam or Zach for trespassing, or anything else, you can be certain there will be effects from this action." "Arrest?" Andrew said, but quieted after Kevin held up his hand to continue. "If you or any other member of the management arrest either of them, you will see two members of your top client proclaim their sexuality and I can promise, we will receive full media attention. This is not only our idea, but that of the other members. If you so much as lay a finger on Zach or Adam, you are facing the largest media circus in the history of pop music. Do we make ourselves clear?" Andrew looked uncomfortable, and then spoke, "I don't really know what you're talking about, Kevin. It was never our wish to shun, much less arrest Adam or Zach. All I wanted to know was if they had accepted the offer Sean told Adam about on Friday. I mean, the tour's starting soon. We need to know." "Offer?" I said. "Yes...I assume Sean told you." "No," I said, "Sean didn't." I was very confused. "Sean gave me the idea that you guys would arrest us if we didn't cut off all communication with the Backstreet Boys by tomorrow." "Oh my," Andrew said. "That was never our intention. I told Sean to set up a meeting with you to offer you jobs with the boys on tour-being personal assistants, you know, making sure there's water in the dressing rooms, that fans don't overrun the bus, things like that. And I was told, Adam," Andrew said addressing me, "that you had some experience in the arts and writing? I thought you could help us out with some publicity packages. I was also told that Zach was interested in public relations. I thought maybe you could help with scheduling interviews and such. They're not great jobs, but they're some thing right? We're not happy with some of the media attention you guys have gotten us, but we figure if we keep you close, we can keep you out of trouble. So, what do you think?" Kevin bellowed a huge laugh of relief. So did I. "I'll take it!" I said, getting up, first hugging Kevin, and then Andrew, who had a surprised look on his face. "What about you, Zach?" Andrew asked. I turned my attention to Zach, who looked happy, but not wholly content. "I'd like to, but can I talk it over with my parents first?" Andrew stopped smiling, "You are both legally adults, right?" "Yeah," Zach said, "I just need to see what they think about me deferring from college." "Ohh," Andrew said easing. Nick looked a little disappointed, and I couldn't blame him. Suddenly, Andrew turned serious. "I had something to say, though boys." I looked at him closely and say his eyes were red. "What?" Kevin asked. "Well, I found Sean in his office today-he was dead." Looks of shock passed over all of our faces. His voice turned gravely in sadness. "The police think it was probably suicide, gun in the mouth." "I'm sorry to hear that. We didn't always agree, but he was part of our management..." Kevin said, melancholy. "I appreciate the sentiment, and I agree, but I needed give you guys a head up." Andrew the businessman was back. "The press by the red carpet is going to ask questions. Kevin, I need you to confirm it was a suicide, that you give the group's condolences, and that you are all saddened by the turn of events." Kevin nodded and shook Andrew's hand, and we did the same. It was time to get back to the party. Guests should be arriving. As we entered the pool area, we saw they were. Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake were sitting on the edge of the pool. I was being introduced to them as well as Carson Daly and Jennifer Love Hewitt, Madonna with Lourdes and a male nanny in tow, and countless others. In no time, the deck was covered with movie stars, musicians and big industry types. Only one official photographer was permitted, with strict instructions in tact and civility. Later after reviewed, acceptable pictures would be distributed to some of the major media outlets. The combination of lights, music and people distracted me from thinking about any of what Andrew had said, but the ecstatic reaction lingered and gave me energy to mingle. Throughout the night, I spent time showing off my swimming skills and admiring Kevin's nicely cut abs. I also had a long conversation with Kurt Loder about the role of MTV in pop culture, and made small talk with Jennifer Lopez. Towards the end of the party, `N Sync, either drunk or just partied out, did a terrible karaoke rendition of I Want It That Way. It made everyone break up laughing. The rest of the night sailed by. As the last guests were leaving, Guy came up to us to wish Howie a happy birthday and to say good night. Nice guy, he is. I headed to the compound, where the thoughts of Andrew's offer finally hit. Tired as anything from the night of dancing, swimming and schmoozing, I crashed on Kevin's couch. Just as I was about to fall asleep, I felt a very soft kiss on my cheek that sailed me into sweet dreams. part 35 So there I was back again, laying on the couch on a Monday morning-half asleep. I felt the same lips from the nigh before brushing my bare shoulder. I turned to see Kevin. "Morning lover," I said sweetly. "Hey. I didn't get much of a chance to talk to you last night. Did you have fun?" "Yeah, watching you..." "Watching me? Why?" he asked faux innocently. "Well all I can say is that it had nothing whatsoever to you living up to that nickname..." "Mr. Body Beautiful?" Kevin asked, giggling. "I was going to say Pumpkin, but yeah, that works too," I laughed and kissed him on the nose. "So what's around to eat," I asked, answering my grumbling stomach. "Rice crispies..." Kev suggested straight-faced. "As tempting as that sounds...anything that doesn't talk back to you?" "We have some fruit, some Boring cereal, and the prerequisite coffee...that sound okay to you?" "I suppose...Lead me to the food." I smiled, and let Kev pull me upwards and across the living room into the kitchen. We had an uneventful breakfast, until Kevin passed a face down packet of papers across the table in my direction. I looked at him questioningly. "What's this?" "What else would it be? Your contract...I thought you might wanna read it over before we meet with Andrew." "Oh my gosh, my contract, as in....as in the job on the tour!" I opened my eyes as a quick flood of Andrew's speech last night came back to me. "Yeah! Don't tell me it hasn't been the only thing on your mind." "Well..." I said, mumbling. "Yeah, I know, celebrities, partying, pool-say no more.." "Gimme that packet! Where do I sign?" "Here," Kev said, handing me the packet. "You should probably read it over a couple of times before you commit to anything, just to be safe." I nodded as I took the packet. "Have you read it?" He shook his head. "I wanted you to read it first. You can just give me the synopsis." "Okay." Kevin got up and kissed me nicely on the jaw. "I promised I'd go work out with the boys at the gym, so I'll be back in a couple of hours. Will you be okay, here, alone?" "Yeah," I said, rubbing the small of his back. "But I'll probably call Zach to see if he wants to go through his contract and mine together." "Sounds good," he said, kissing the top of my head. "Bye sweetie!" Kevin grabbed his gym bag and left the house. For a moment, I sat paralyzed in my thoughts. It all came back to me: Andrew's offer-then, I felt a moment of cold. Why hadn't Sean given me the offer like he was supposed to? Why had he threatened me instead? And why had Andrew said "probably suicide?" Did the police think it was murder? Did Andrew think it was murder? And why had he seemed so emotionally detached to Sean's death? Did Andrew kill Sean? I stopped myself as a million of such troubling questions went through my head. Not being able to stand it, I got up and splashed water on my face from the kitchen tap. And then I did the only thing I could do-shut all the questions out. Besides, I was being silly...wasn't I? I had always had an overactive imagination. I remembered the time when I was eleven when I convinced myself and Zach that our mailman was a Russian spy. We monitored him for two weeks. Then, I suggested we hide on his mail truck so we could be there when he dropped off secret documents to his contact. Instead, when it got late, we both fell asleep under the mail bags and woke up hours later in the parked truck at the mail truck depot in Virginia. We had been locked in the parking lot, and had to climb the wire (and thankfully un-electrically-charged) fence. We had ran five blocks to a 7-Eleven to call our moms. We got in big trouble, of course, when we got home. We got grounded, and also had to have an "apologizing lunch" with our Mailman, as decreed by our mothers. Over sandwiches, he told us his name was Oskar, and that he was actually Polish, not Russian. I remembered the incident and used it to convince myself I was wrong about all the murder plots that were coming alive ! in my head. So I called Zach, and asked him if he wanted go over the contracts together. He said yeah, but suggested we go out for coffee while we do it. I agreed, and we chose a Starbucks not too far from the compound. We would meet at ten, (it was nine then). I hung up and went to busy myself with getting ready rather than think anything about the fact that Sean was maybe murdered and nonetheless dead. I took a shower, lingering under the hot water and concentrating on the small collection of condensation drops falling from the ceiling and tracing their way down my face. I got out, dried myself off and got dressed in an inconspicuous blue t-shirt and khakis-decidedly less high-profile than my urban cowboy outfit of the night before. I rearranged my hair with the tiniest dollop of gel and studied the blonde streaks. I had very very short roots already and decided I would go to Spa Vida Aqua and see my cousin Alexa for a fix-up before I left for the tour. The tour. As in, the Backstreet Boys tour, I thought to myself, and got excited all over again-this time without the unpleasant thoughts. I locked up, grabbing the house key which was informally mine from the coffee table and my backpack. I walked the distance to the Starbucks-about five blocks-and entered, not seeing Zach yet. I ordered a latte and sat down in a very overstuffed chair next to a fake fireplace facing the corner. For a moment, I considered with a quiet giggle why they'd even bothered to put in a fake fireplace in a Floridian Starbucks, where they aren't really seasons. I sipped my coffee and thumbed through an abandoned yet current copy of Seventeen. I laughed a little too loudly when I saw a Backstreet Boys interview. They certainly were everywhere. I scanned through the fluff and "secret" details about their phobias of fans hiding out on the tour bus and Brian's Chihuahua, Little Tyke, who I had yet to meet. A very contented smile crept across my face when I read about their romantic statuses. After the words: "Are These Fishies Hooked?" It said, "Kevin says he's found that someone special alt! hough he won't give out any details. Who's the lucky lady, Mr. Body Beautiful?" I laughed harder I heard a "What's so funny?" from behind my chair. It wasn't Zach, but the voice was familiar, so I turned around quickly to see who it was. It was, imagine my surprise, Britney Spears. I guess I must have looked confused, because she said, "Weren't you at Howie's party last night?" "Oh..." I said, still in shock. Now, I must confess that...I do not like Britney Spears' music, or her persona. Still, remembering that lots of people, especially female singers, (think: Mariah Carrey) got screwed when it comes to the media and come off looking terrible even when they're not, I mustered a smile. "Yeah, I was. I'm Adam." "Hey Adam, I'm Britney." I must've had a "no-duh" look on my face. "Sorry. I know you probably knew who I am anyway, but people get this attitude when you assume they know who you are-I mean, most do know, but they momentarily forget that fact." Her response rubbed me the wrong way, but I dismissed it, recalling some of the introduction problems Kevin and the boys had had with being celebs. I smiled as I remembered my first covnersation with AJ, at the gas station next to Denny's. "So," she continued, "Can I sit down or are you just going to leave me standing here?" "Please, sit down," I said. Was it me, or was I getting picked up by this girl? "Now then," she said, getting herself comfortable in one of the two other chairs around the "fireplace." "So who do you work for?" "No one, actually, but I'm a friend of Backstreet." "Really?" she paused and I recognized a look of sudden familiarity on her face. "Wait a sec, you're the guy from the scandal! I mean no offense, but I didn't think you'd still be around after that!" I liked her even less by the second. "Well, there really wasn't any truth to the rumors, and we really are good friends, so I weathered the storm..." I said, lying easily. "Really? I always thought there was some truth to them. I mean, one out of the five have gotta be..." I interrupted her, ready to land a death roundhouse double kick. "Well what about the rumors about you and Justin Timberlake?" She avoided response by slurping her fruit drink. "And you know `N Sync...doesn't the same go for them-one of them has to be..." This time, Britney did the interrupting. "Anyway, enough of that, huh?" I nodded in triumphance. "Anyway, so where are you staying?" I told her the name of my hotel, leaving out the fact that up until a few days ago, I had been staying at the boys' compound. "What about you?" I asked. She gave me the name of her hotel, which was the one where we had had the party. "Tons of other people are staying there for a couple of days too. I'm actually having a party tonight in my suite. You're invited." she said, leaning her face close to mine and slipping out the pen in my t-shirt breast pocket. She scribbled on a napkin as a man in a dark suit approached. "I gotta go," Britney said, slipping the napkin into my hand, "but call me," she whispered in my ear. With that, she left. I sat paralyzed, for, like, the third time that morning. This time, my imagination hadn't been working over time. This time, my conjecture had been true-Britney Spears, teen pop sensation, wanted me. I started to laugh, when I heard a "What's so funny?" come from behind my chair. I slipped the napkin into my pocket and turned. I was relieved to see Zach, but I must have looked surprised. When he saw my face, he asked, "What's wrong?" I looked up and motioned for him to sit down. "Nothing-Britney Spears just tried to pick me up, though." "That is funny-are you sure?" "Pretty damn sure," I said, taking the wadded up napkin out of my pocket and handing it to Zach. He read it, and a smile crept up his face. "Did you read this?" he asked, smirking. "No," I said, "I didn't get a chance to." "You really should," Zach started to giggle. "Why-" I started to ask, but then Zach handed me back the napkin and I started to read. It read: `Adam-Call me, please!' She gave me the number of the hotel. `Ask for Miss Muffet, and they'll connect you!' I gagged. Even her alias was obnoxious. `You can take and dish it out! I like that in a man! Plus, you're a hottie!!!! I wanna know more about you. Come to the party tonight, at eight! You can bring the boys or not, I just want you! Luv, Britney." She had drawn little hearts next to her name. Even if she wasn't Britney Spears, I would've been sickened. "That's terrible." I said, smiling at Zach. "Yeah, pretty bad...So are you going?" he asked. "Do you think I'm psychotic? No, well...maybe. It might be fun. She did say that a lot of celebs are gonna be there. It might be interesting." "Don't tell me you're considering it." "Okay-I won't, but I am anyway." "Okay, maybe you are psychotic. But enough of this. Let's see those contracts." I took out the contracts and we spent the next two hours going over them both. Everything checked out. Management had drawn up a great contract. There was benefits, cash, access to events, all sorts of stuff. But the best part was that it was actually in our job description to be with the boys all the time. I think we could both deal with that. We wrapped up our little contract seminar and hailed a taxi back to the compound. I was surprised to see that it was the cabby that had taken me to the hotel on Friday-the Cuban American one who had said that I looked familiar. He greeted me with enthusiasm. "Hello! Didn't I take you somewhere last week?" I nodded. "Yes, you were the one who looked familiar. I couldn't place you-still can't. Now we're friends, right? I'm Rocky, by the way. And who are you?" "I'm Adam, and this is my friend Zach." I explained to Zach about the last time I had seen Rocky. Zach nodded and smiled. We rode to the compound, Rocky still trying to place my face, asking questions like, "have you ever been on TV?" and "where were you born?" I answered the questions politely and silently hoped it wasn't from the tabloids that I was familiar looking. He dropped us off at the gates of the compound, where we pushed the security code to gain access. I walked to Kevin's, while Zach walked over to surprise Nick. I unlocked the door and found Kevin sitting on the couch flipping around on the television. "Hey!" I said, and flipped over the side of the couch into his arms. "Hey yourself. Where you been?" "I ended up going for coffee with Zach to read the contracts." "Really? Where'd you go?" "To Starbucks..." "So what did you think of the contracts?" "Oh, they're fine, except...." "Except what?" Kevin said, looking worried. "Except it says that we have to hang out with these dorks..." "What dorks?" Kevin asked, still worried. "I dunno. Maybe you know the worst one...He's about 6'2" with green-blue eyes, dark brown hair, a real good kisser..." He laughed. "I dunno. He sounds like the perfect man to me..." "Yeah, I guess." I said, pausing. "That's what I think too," I leaned over and we kissed. It really was this wonderful kiss, full of love and passion and trust. I thought happily about our garunteed unlimited time together as soon as I signed that contract. part 36 A few hours later, it was time to meet with Andrew for the signing of the contracts. On the way out of the compound, we picked up Nick and Zach who were both ruffled, to say the least. When I asked them what they had been doing and I think Nick mumbled, "Recreational Activities." I smiled and was happy that their relationship was truly back on track. We all rode quietly to the office building as I readied myself to commit to both a job and a relationship with one signature. We parked and approached the entrance. The building was full of terrible pangs of loss and sadness and anger for me. I took a deep breath and walked in after Kevin. As we rode the elevator up towards Andrew's floor, (the top one), Kevin grasped my hand and stared at the light moving from one number to the next along the top of the elevator doors. I just shut my eyes tight and tried to forget the hurt of my last visit to the building. I felt like a victim returning to the crime scene for the first time. I only opened them when I felt the elevator stop and heard the doors opening. I followed slowly, concentrating on Kevin's shoes as we made our way to Andrew's office. When we got to Andrew's secretary's desk, a young blonde, she squealed. Kevin and Nick laughed, and she motioned for us to go in. We greeted Andrew, and I started to breathe easier. We were introduced to Mr. Twitchell and Ms. Wood, the company lawyers. "Okay, boys-I trust that you've read the contracts. I just need answers and signatures and we should be squared away, okay?" We both nodded and signed on our respective lines. Andrew smiled, and said, "Okay, we're going to need you guys officially for duty on September first." "Okay, but doesn't the tour start in mid-September?" Zach asked. "Yes it does-but we want to break you in at the MTV Video Music Awards. From the first to fifth, you'll be in training. The guys will be going up to New York on the fifth to start rehearsal. You'll travel with them on the plane. After the Awards, you'll fly back to Orlando for a couple of days-on the tenth. From the tenth to the thirteenth, you'll help the boys in rehearsal, and then you'll help them with the tour kick-off on the fourteenth in Ft. Lauderdale..." Andrew looked up and saw our round eyes, and paused. "Don't worry about remembering all these dates. We'll get you guys a schedule." "Okay, sounds good," Kevin said, standing. "So, you guys have fun, until then. And on more thing..." Andrew said. "Yeah?" I asked. "I know there is something going on behind my back-" he started Nick protested, "I don't-" Andrew interrupted him. "No, let me finish. I just don't want you to tell me anything about it, okay?" We nodded. "And just, use good judgment, common sense-be careful. There are photographers everywhere, okay?" "Okay. Thanks, Andrew," Kevin said, relieved and smiling. My smile matched his and Nick's and Zach's. We walked triumphantly out of the office. Eight days to be with the man I love, no strings attached. I whistled as we made our way back to the car. All of a sudden, a chill went down my spine. I looked towards the car to see a man breaking into it. Kevin saw him at the same time. "Hey!" he yelled. "Hey!" and ran the fifty feet to the car, as the man ran away. We all ran after Kevin, and I hoped to god that the car jacker didn't have a gun. When we caught up, Kevin had backed the man into a corner, under a small security light. When the figure looked up, I recognized the face. He slipped a hand into his pocket, obviously to get his gun. I pushed Kevin out of the line of fire. to be continued...you hate me, don't you? Legal Note: Please don't read this if you are under the age of 18 years or the particular age of permission where ever you live.The story below is in all parts fictional. All portayal of the Backstreet Boys and other persons mentioned is in no way based on fact. All other characters are completely fictional. All names, songs, events, and other liscensed material remains so. Thank you. Hey guys! This has been hard to do, but I finally finished it! Look for the next installment next weekend. I'll try to get it out on Saturday. Cuz I'll be busy on Sunday-it has something to with a concert, and five super-hot guys. But no more hints. ;) Thanks as always to my readers, especially Kevin P., griffin, sweet mystery guy T, matt, uberboy, andrew, denny, nice Mr. Motto, funny rich and nicky, the super-silly Yuli, and new found friend jeff. Also, thanks to DLS for being my informal editor. Check out his awesome story, Brian and Me. He makes the stuff you read better. As always, you can write to me with comments, suggestions, complaints, whining, ideas, threats (just kidding), etc, at bsbwriter@altavista.net take care and enjoy! EG part 34 We made our way down the long dark hallway to the main festivities location. As we walked closely together I thought I heard rustlings. I turned slightly, so as not to bother Kevin, but no one was there. I picked up the pace, and Kevin followed. Finally, we came to the pool deck, which was decorated in futuristic/traditional Asian ornaments (think: gold, red, chrome, blue, yellow, green). We approached the large round table that boys, plus Amanda, were sitting at, and sat down quietly. The waiter came to the table and I noticed it was the same guy from room service on Saturday. "Hey, buddy, I said." "Hi! Didn't I serve you yesterday?" I nodded. "Yeah. These are my friends, Kevin, Zach, Nick, Howie, AJ, Amanda and Brian. And that guy," I said, motioning to Howie, "is Howie, the birthday boy." "Pleasure to meet you all," he said, "I'm Guy." Everyone waved, and Guy took the drink orders. "So you work at both hotels?" I asked. "Well, this is just an event job, I got hired by the caterer-he's my uncle." "Oh-" I said, "Cool." "Have fun everybody, I'll be back in a little bit with the drinks." We nodded, and Howie began a thank you speech. I got distracted and watched Guy leave. I noticed something fun. He seemed to drop a small piece of paper on the floor behind Nick, then nodded at him. After Guy was gone, and everyone, or so he thought, was paying attention to Howie, Nick picked it up and put it in his pocket. I dismissed it, and turned my attention to Howie. Just as I did, Kevin squeezed my arm and pointed towards the hotel. I turned and saw Andrew Dolby, Sean's boss, coming towards us. Andrew was a balding, mild and average man of about forty. Kevin and I got up, and motioned for Nick and Zach to do the same. "You'll have to excuse us guys...but its show time," Kevin said nervously with a small, forced laugh. They nodded. and the four of us made our way to Andrew. I wondered why Sean hadn't come. Well, I couldn't blame him. He wouldn't exactly have gotten the star treatment. When we got to him, Kevin and Nick shook his hand and smiled small smiles. Zach and I both waved casually. "We need to talk," Kevin said seriously. "I know," Andrew said. "What?" "Let's go somewhere more private, okay?" "Okay," Kevin said. Andrew led back into the hotel into a small lounge. Everyone sat down, except for Kevin, who just paced. "Let me get this all out now, and then you can ask questions, okay?" Andrew protested, but Kevin pushed on. "Andrew, Nick and I have thought about Sean's proposal for a long, long time. And we decided its not right. We don't agree with his or the management's excuse for morals and we have decided to fight them. If you, or anyone else, arrests Adam or Zach for trespassing, or anything else, you can be certain there will be effects from this action." "Arrest?" Andrew said, but quieted after Kevin held up his hand to continue. "If you or any other member of the management arrest either of them, you will see two members of your top client proclaim their sexuality and I can promise, we will receive full media attention. This is not only our idea, but that of the other members. If you so much as lay a finger on Zach or Adam, you are facing the largest media circus in the history of pop music. Do we make ourselves clear?" Andrew looked uncomfortable, and then spoke, "I don't really know what you're talking about, Kevin. It was never our wish to shun, much less arrest Adam or Zach. All I wanted to know was if they had accepted the offer Sean told Adam about on Friday. I mean, the tour's starting soon. We need to know." "Offer?" I said. "Yes...I assume Sean told you." "No," I said, "Sean didn't." I was very confused. "Sean gave me the idea that you guys would arrest us if we didn't cut off all communication with the Backstreet Boys by tomorrow." "Oh my," Andrew said. "That was never our intention. I told Sean to set up a meeting with you to offer you jobs with the boys on tour-being personal assistants, you know, making sure there's water in the dressing rooms, that fans don't overrun the bus, things like that. And I was told, Adam," Andrew said addressing me, "that you had some experience in the arts and writing? I thought you could help us out with some publicity packages. I was also told that Zach was interested in public relations. I thought maybe you could help with scheduling interviews and such. They're not great jobs, but they're some thing right? We're not happy with some of the media attention you guys have gotten us, but we figure if we keep you close, we can keep you out of trouble. So, what do you think?" Kevin bellowed a huge laugh of relief. So did I. "I'll take it!" I said, getting up, first hugging Kevin, and then Andrew, who had a surprised look on his face. "What about you, Zach?" Andrew asked. I turned my attention to Zach, who looked happy, but not wholly content. "I'd like to, but can I talk it over with my parents first?" Andrew stopped smiling, "You are both legally adults, right?" "Yeah," Zach said, "I just need to see what they think about me deferring from college." "Ohh," Andrew said easing. Nick looked a little disappointed, and I couldn't blame him. Suddenly, Andrew turned serious. "I had something to say, though boys." I looked at him closely and say his eyes were red. "What?" Kevin asked. "Well, I found Sean in his office today-he was dead." Looks of shock passed over all of our faces. His voice turned gravely in sadness. "The police think it was probably suicide, gun in the mouth." "I'm sorry to hear that. We didn't always agree, but he was part of our management..." Kevin said, melancholy. "I appreciate the sentiment, and I agree, but I needed give you guys a head up." Andrew the businessman was back. "The press by the red carpet is going to ask questions. Kevin, I need you to confirm it was a suicide, that you give the group's condolences, and that you are all saddened by the turn of events." Kevin nodded and shook Andrew's hand, and we did the same. It was time to get back to the party. Guests should be arriving. As we entered the pool area, we saw they were. Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake were sitting on the edge of the pool. I was being introduced to them as well as Carson Daly and Jennifer Love Hewitt, Madonna with Lourdes and a male nanny in tow, and countless others. In no time, the deck was covered with movie stars, musicians and big industry types. Only one official photographer was permitted, with strict instructions in tact and civility. Later after reviewed, acceptable pictures would be distributed to some of the major media outlets. The combination of lights, music and people distracted me from thinking about any of what Andrew had said, but the ecstatic reaction lingered and gave me energy to mingle. Throughout the night, I spent time showing off my swimming skills and admiring Kevin's nicely cut abs. I also had a long conversation with Kurt Loder about the role of MTV in pop culture, and made small talk with Jennifer Lopez. Towards the end of the party, `N Sync, either drunk or just partied out, did a terrible karaoke rendition of I Want It That Way. It made everyone break up laughing. The rest of the night sailed by. As the last guests were leaving, Guy came up to us to wish Howie a happy birthday and to say good night. Nice guy, he is. I headed to the compound, where the thoughts of Andrew's offer finally hit. Tired as anything from the night of dancing, swimming and schmoozing, I crashed on Kevin's couch. Just as I was about to fall asleep, I felt a very soft kiss on my cheek that sailed me into sweet dreams. part 35 So there I was back again, laying on the couch on a Monday morning-half asleep. I felt the same lips from the nigh before brushing my bare shoulder. I turned to see Kevin. "Morning lover," I said sweetly. "Hey. I didn't get much of a chance to talk to you last night. Did you have fun?" "Yeah, watching you..." "Watching me? Why?" he asked faux innocently. "Well all I can say is that it had nothing whatsoever to you living up to that nickname..." "Mr. Body Beautiful?" Kevin asked, giggling. "I was going to say Pumpkin, but yeah, that works too," I laughed and kissed him on the nose. "So what's around to eat," I asked, answering my grumbling stomach. "Rice crispies..." Kev suggested straight-faced. "As tempting as that sounds...anything that doesn't talk back to you?" "We have some fruit, some Boring cereal, and the prerequisite coffee...that sound okay to you?" "I suppose...Lead me to the food." I smiled, and let Kev pull me upwards and across the living room into the kitchen. We had an uneventful breakfast, until Kevin passed a face down packet of papers across the table in my direction. I looked at him questioningly. "What's this?" "What else would it be? Your contract...I thought you might wanna read it over before we meet with Andrew." "Oh my gosh, my contract, as in....as in the job on the tour!" I opened my eyes as a quick flood of Andrew's speech last night came back to me. "Yeah! Don't tell me it hasn't been the only thing on your mind." "Well..." I said, mumbling. "Yeah, I know, celebrities, partying, pool-say no more.." "Gimme that packet! Where do I sign?" "Here," Kev said, handing me the packet. "You should probably read it over a couple of times before you commit to anything, just to be safe." I nodded as I took the packet. "Have you read it?" He shook his head. "I wanted you to read it first. You can just give me the synopsis." "Okay." Kevin got up and kissed me nicely on the jaw. "I promised I'd go work out with the boys at the gym, so I'll be back in a couple of hours. Will you be okay, here, alone?" "Yeah," I said, rubbing the small of his back. "But I'll probably call Zach to see if he wants to go through his contract and mine together." "Sounds good," he said, kissing the top of my head. "Bye sweetie!" Kevin grabbed his gym bag and left the house. For a moment, I sat paralyzed in my thoughts. It all came back to me: Andrew's offer-then, I felt a moment of cold. Why hadn't Sean given me the offer like he was supposed to? Why had he threatened me instead? And why had Andrew said "probably suicide?" Did the police think it was murder? Did Andrew think it was murder? And why had he seemed so emotionally detached to Sean's death? Did Andrew kill Sean? I stopped myself as a million of such troubling questions went through my head. Not being able to stand it, I got up and splashed water on my face from the kitchen tap. And then I did the only thing I could do-shut all the questions out. Besides, I was being silly...wasn't I? I had always had an overactive imagination. I remembered the time when I was eleven when I convinced myself and Zach that our mailman was a Russian spy. We monitored him for two weeks. Then, I suggested we hide on his mail truck so we could be there when he dropped off secret documents to his contact. Instead, when it got late, we both fell asleep under the mail bags and woke up hours later in the parked truck at the mail truck depot in Virginia. We had been locked in the parking lot, and had to climb the wire (and thankfully un-electrically-charged) fence. We had ran five blocks to a 7-Eleven to call our moms. We got in big trouble, of course, when we got home. We got grounded, and also had to have an "apologizing lunch" with our Mailman, as decreed by our mothers. Over sandwiches, he told us his name was Oskar, and that he was actually Polish, not Russian. I remembered the incident and used it to convince myself I was wrong about all the murder plots that were coming alive ! in my head. So I called Zach, and asked him if he wanted go over the contracts together. He said yeah, but suggested we go out for coffee while we do it. I agreed, and we chose a Starbucks not too far from the compound. We would meet at ten, (it was nine then). I hung up and went to busy myself with getting ready rather than think anything about the fact that Sean was maybe murdered and nonetheless dead. I took a shower, lingering under the hot water and concentrating on the small collection of condensation drops falling from the ceiling and tracing their way down my face. I got out, dried myself off and got dressed in an inconspicuous blue t-shirt and khakis-decidedly less high-profile than my urban cowboy outfit of the night before. I rearranged my hair with the tiniest dollop of gel and studied the blonde streaks. I had very very short roots already and decided I would go to Spa Vida Aqua and see my cousin Alexa for a fix-up before I left for the tour. The tour. As in, the Backstreet Boys tour, I thought to myself, and got excited all over again-this time without the unpleasant thoughts. I locked up, grabbing the house key which was informally mine from the coffee table and my backpack. I walked the distance to the Starbucks-about five blocks-and entered, not seeing Zach yet. I ordered a latte and sat down in a very overstuffed chair next to a fake fireplace facing the corner. For a moment, I considered with a quiet giggle why they'd even bothered to put in a fake fireplace in a Floridian Starbucks, where they aren't really seasons. I sipped my coffee and thumbed through an abandoned yet current copy of Seventeen. I laughed a little too loudly when I saw a Backstreet Boys interview. They certainly were everywhere. I scanned through the fluff and "secret" details about their phobias of fans hiding out on the tour bus and Brian's Chihuahua, Little Tyke, who I had yet to meet. A very contented smile crept across my face when I read about their romantic statuses. After the words: "Are These Fishies Hooked?" It said, "Kevin says he's found that someone special alt! hough he won't give out any details. Who's the lucky lady, Mr. Body Beautiful?" I laughed harder I heard a "What's so funny?" from behind my chair. It wasn't Zach, but the voice was familiar, so I turned around quickly to see who it was. It was, imagine my surprise, Britney Spears. I guess I must have looked confused, because she said, "Weren't you at Howie's party last night?" "Oh..." I said, still in shock. Now, I must confess that...I do not like Britney Spears' music, or her persona. Still, remembering that lots of people, especially female singers, (think: Mariah Carrey) got screwed when it comes to the media and come off looking terrible even when they're not, I mustered a smile. "Yeah, I was. I'm Adam." "Hey Adam, I'm Britney." I must've had a "no-duh" look on my face. "Sorry. I know you probably knew who I am anyway, but people get this attitude when you assume they know who you are-I mean, most do know, but they momentarily forget that fact." Her response rubbed me the wrong way, but I dismissed it, recalling some of the introduction problems Kevin and the boys had had with being celebs. I smiled as I remembered my first covnersation with AJ, at the gas station next to Denny's. "So," she continued, "Can I sit down or are you just going to leave me standing here?" "Please, sit down," I said. Was it me, or was I getting picked up by this girl? "Now then," she said, getting herself comfortable in one of the two other chairs around the "fireplace." "So who do you work for?" "No one, actually, but I'm a friend of Backstreet." "Really?" she paused and I recognized a look of sudden familiarity on her face. "Wait a sec, you're the guy from the scandal! I mean no offense, but I didn't think you'd still be around after that!" I liked her even less by the second. "Well, there really wasn't any truth to the rumors, and we really are good friends, so I weathered the storm..." I said, lying easily. "Really? I always thought there was some truth to them. I mean, one out of the five have gotta be..." I interrupted her, ready to land a death roundhouse double kick. "Well what about the rumors about you and Justin Timberlake?" She avoided response by slurping her fruit drink. "And you know `N Sync...doesn't the same go for them-one of them has to be..." This time, Britney did the interrupting. "Anyway, enough of that, huh?" I nodded in triumphance. "Anyway, so where are you staying?" I told her the name of my hotel, leaving out the fact that up until a few days ago, I had been staying at the boys' compound. "What about you?" I asked. She gave me the name of her hotel, which was the one where we had had the party. "Tons of other people are staying there for a couple of days too. I'm actually having a party tonight in my suite. You're invited." she said, leaning her face close to mine and slipping out the pen in my t-shirt breast pocket. She scribbled on a napkin as a man in a dark suit approached. "I gotta go," Britney said, slipping the napkin into my hand, "but call me," she whispered in my ear. With that, she left. I sat paralyzed, for, like, the third time that morning. This time, my imagination hadn't been working over time. This time, my conjecture had been true-Britney Spears, teen pop sensation, wanted me. I started to laugh, when I heard a "What's so funny?" come from behind my chair. I slipped the napkin into my pocket and turned. I was relieved to see Zach, but I must have looked surprised. When he saw my face, he asked, "What's wrong?" I looked up and motioned for him to sit down. "Nothing-Britney Spears just tried to pick me up, though." "That is funny-are you sure?" "Pretty damn sure," I said, taking the wadded up napkin out of my pocket and handing it to Zach. He read it, and a smile crept up his face. "Did you read this?" he asked, smirking. "No," I said, "I didn't get a chance to." "You really should," Zach started to giggle. "Why-" I started to ask, but then Zach handed me back the napkin and I started to read. It read: `Adam-Call me, please!' She gave me the number of the hotel. `Ask for Miss Muffet, and they'll connect you!' I gagged. Even her alias was obnoxious. `You can take and dish it out! I like that in a man! Plus, you're a hottie!!!! I wanna know more about you. Come to the party tonight, at eight! You can bring the boys or not, I just want you! Luv, Britney." She had drawn little hearts next to her name. Even if she wasn't Britney Spears, I would've been sickened. "That's terrible." I said, smiling at Zach. "Yeah, pretty bad...So are you going?" he asked. "Do you think I'm psychotic? No, well...maybe. It might be fun. She did say that a lot of celebs are gonna be there. It might be interesting." "Don't tell me you're considering it." "Okay-I won't, but I am anyway." "Okay, maybe you are psychotic. But enough of this. Let's see those contracts." I took out the contracts and we spent the next two hours going over them both. Everything checked out. Management had drawn up a great contract. There was benefits, cash, access to events, all sorts of stuff. But the best part was that it was actually in our job description to be with the boys all the time. I think we could both deal with that. We wrapped up our little contract seminar and hailed a taxi back to the compound. I was surprised to see that it was the cabby that had taken me to the hotel on Friday-the Cuban American one who had said that I looked familiar. He greeted me with enthusiasm. "Hello! Didn't I take you somewhere last week?" I nodded. "Yes, you were the one who looked familiar. I couldn't place you-still can't. Now we're friends, right? I'm Rocky, by the way. And who are you?" "I'm Adam, and this is my friend Zach." I explained to Zach about the last time I had seen Rocky. Zach nodded and smiled. We rode to the compound, Rocky still trying to place my face, asking questions like, "have you ever been on TV?" and "where were you born?" I answered the questions politely and silently hoped it wasn't from the tabloids that I was familiar looking. He dropped us off at the gates of the compound, where we pushed the security code to gain access. I walked to Kevin's, while Zach walked over to surprise Nick. I unlocked the door and found Kevin sitting on the couch flipping around on the television. "Hey!" I said, and flipped over the side of the couch into his arms. "Hey yourself. Where you been?" "I ended up going for coffee with Zach to read the contracts." "Really? Where'd you go?" "To Starbucks..." "So what did you think of the contracts?" "Oh, they're fine, except...." "Except what?" Kevin said, looking worried. "Except it says that we have to hang out with these dorks..." "What dorks?" Kevin asked, still worried. "I dunno. Maybe you know the worst one...He's about 6'2" with green-blue eyes, dark brown hair, a real good kisser..." He laughed. "I dunno. He sounds like the perfect man to me..." "Yeah, I guess." I said, pausing. "That's what I think too," I leaned over and we kissed. It really was this wonderful kiss, full of love and passion and trust. I thought happily about our garunteed unlimited time together as soon as I signed that contract. part 36 A few hours later, it was time to meet with Andrew for the signing of the contracts. On the way out of the compound, we picked up Nick and Zach who were both ruffled, to say the least. When I asked them what they had been doing and I think Nick mumbled, "Recreational Activities." I smiled and was happy that their relationship was truly back on track. We all rode quietly to the office building as I readied myself to commit to both a job and a relationship with one signature. We parked and approached the entrance. The building was full of terrible pangs of loss and sadness and anger for me. I took a deep breath and walked in after Kevin. As we rode the elevator up towards Andrew's floor, (the top one), Kevin grasped my hand and stared at the light moving from one number to the next along the top of the elevator doors. I just shut my eyes tight and tried to forget the hurt of my last visit to the building. I felt like a victim returning to the crime scene for the first time. I only opened them when I felt the elevator stop and heard the doors opening. I followed slowly, concentrating on Kevin's shoes as we made our way to Andrew's office. When we got to Andrew's secretary's desk, a young blonde, she squealed. Kevin and Nick laughed, and she motioned for us to go in. We greeted Andrew, and I started to breathe easier. We were introduced to Mr. Twitchell and Ms. Wood, the company lawyers. "Okay, boys-I trust that you've read the contracts. I just need answers and signatures and we should be squared away, okay?" We both nodded and signed on our respective lines. Andrew smiled, and said, "Okay, we're going to need you guys officially for duty on September first." "Okay, but doesn't the tour start in mid-September?" Zach asked. "Yes it does-but we want to break you in at the MTV Video Music Awards. From the first to fifth, you'll be in training. The guys will be going up to New York on the fifth to start rehearsal. You'll travel with them on the plane. After the Awards, you'll fly back to Orlando for a couple of days-on the tenth. From the tenth to the thirteenth, you'll help the boys in rehearsal, and then you'll help them with the tour kick-off on the fourteenth in Ft. Lauderdale..." Andrew looked up and saw our round eyes, and paused. "Don't worry about remembering all these dates. We'll get you guys a schedule." "Okay, sounds good," Kevin said, standing. "So, you guys have fun, until then. And on more thing..." Andrew said. "Yeah?" I asked. "I know there is something going on behind my back-" he started Nick protested, "I don't-" Andrew interrupted him. "No, let me finish. I just don't want you to tell me anything about it, okay?" We nodded. "And just, use good judgment, common sense-be careful. There are photographers everywhere, okay?" "Okay. Thanks, Andrew," Kevin said, relieved and smiling. My smile matched his and Nick's and Zach's. We walked triumphantly out of the office. Eight days to be with the man I love, no strings attached. I whistled as we made our way back to the car. All of a sudden, a chill went down my spine. I looked towards the car to see a man breaking into it. Kevin saw him at the same time. "Hey!" he yelled. "Hey!" and ran the fifty feet to the car, as the man ran away. We all ran after Kevin, and I hoped to god that the car jacker didn't have a gun. When we caught up, Kevin had backed the man into a corner, under a small security light. When the figure looked up, I recognized the face. He slipped a hand into his pocket, obviously to get his gun. I pushed Kevin out of the line of fire. to be continued...you hate me, don't you?