Date: Fri, 28 Jan 2000 21:04:48 PST From: Chris L Subject: Kevin and Chris 33-35 Kevin & Chris Part 10: Chapters 33-35 Legal Note: Don't read this if you're under 18 years of age or whatever age is legal in your area. The following story is FICTION and shouldn't be taken like it's real or anything. It's not real. I'm not saying the boys are gay or that they act the way I portray them. Anything that is licensed is so and I am not an affiliate of the places mentioned. Chapter 33 Kevin woke up early, it was Sunday, and he always went to go work out on Sunday mornings. He changed quickly and grabbed a few things to put into his workout bag. Throwing on an ash gray hooded sweatshirt, he opened the bedroom door a little. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Chris, still sleeping soundly on the bed. Kevin put his workout bag on the floor and walked back over to the bed. Leaning down, he gave Chris a quick kiss on the forehead. 'I love you,' He whispered. Kevin picked up Bailey, who was on the floor next to the bed, and grabbed his bag before walking out of the room. His mom was standing at the door. "Oh, 'morning mom." Kevin said, setting the dog down. Bailey ran quickly down the hallway. "Good morning Kevin." Ann said, leaning against the wall. "Where are you going?" "Gym. I'll be back before breakfast. Chris knows all about this, it's the same every week. You don't have to wake him up or anything mom." Kevin said, closing the door to his bedroom. "Okay, I'll see you later then." Ann said. She had seen everything through the half- open door, and she was amazed at the amount of love that Kevin showed for Chris. Kevin gave his mom a quick kiss on the cheek before heading out of the house. Ann opened the door a crack to check up on Chris, and he was still sleeping. She nearly tripped when the dog came running back into the bedroom and hopping onto the bed. She smiled as she watched it curl up into a little ball next to Chris on the bed. Ann went down into the kitchen, where she started the coffee. The situation was hard to take in. Her baby was growing up, not just for her to see, but in front of the entire world. Kevin had told her about Chris, and deep down inside, her heart sank. She wanted grandchildren. She still had two other sons, though, and they were both down the road to kids, Jerald was married, and Tim was in a steady relationship. Kevin was happy though, and with that thought, she started making breakfast. "Ann, do you need any help?" Holly asked as she came into the kitchen. "No dear, but thank you for asking." Ann smiled. It was nice to have another girl around the house. "Are you sure?" Holly coaxed. "Why not, make yourself useful and start making some biscuits." Ann said, handing her the recipe card. She gladly took it and started reading. "Everything you need is in that cabinet over there." Ann pointed to a corner. Holly smiled as she headed over to the cabinet. It had been a while since she had been in a kitchen. Linq groaned as she walked down the street, her heels were killing her ankles and it was too early to be up and about. Half of the town was asleep and the other was at church, nobody of sound mind would be awake. Linq made her way into a hardware store, she would be needing some things for the few days ahead. Kevin came back into the house, parking the new Navigator in the garage. He walked into the house, the smell of baking was everywhere. He walked past the kitchen, glancing in he saw his mother and Holly cooking up a storm, he couldn't wait for breakfast to begin. He walked upstairs and slowly opened the door to his bedroom. He dropped his gym bag in a corner and stepped over to Chris, he was still asleep, causing Kevin to smile. With all the rush of the holidays over, he wasn't surprised that Chris would be a little tired. Kev peeled off his sweaty tee-shirt and grabbed his towel, he'd get a quick shower in before waking up Chris for breakfast. His sore muscles needed the relief of a warm shower. Stepping out, Kevin glanced at himself in the mirror. It was time for another shave, his goatee was getting messy around the edges. He stepped back into the bedroom, and put on a clean white tee shirt. He walked over to the bed, where Chris was sleeping, curled up into a ball with the dog at the foot of the bed. Bailey had woken up when Kevin came in the first time, but refused to leave when Kevin shooed him out of the bedroom. Kevin lightly shook Chris' shoulder, trying to wake him up. Chris made a little groaning noise before pulling the sheets tighter around his body. Kevin pulled the sheets halfway down the bed and Chris' eyes flung open. He sat up, and was greeted by the wondrous sight of Kevin. "Did you go work out today?" Chris said softly, rubbing his eyes. "A little, you gotta get up, mom and Holly are downstairs fixing breakfast for everyone." Kevin said, ruffling Chris' already messy hair. Chris pulled Kevin towards him for a kiss, which Kevin gave whole heatedly. When Kevin began to withdraw, Chris pulled him back for more, and pulled him onto the bed. Kevin was brought into that world that he always felt when he was kissing Chris, the world where nothing existed but Chris and him, a world where nothing mattered but the two of them, and their love. Everything just faded away from Kevin's mind as he kissed Chris, it was such a simple act, but to the two of them, it meant so much more. Chris pulled away this time, and Kevin slowly came back into reality. "You need a shave, Kev." Chris whispered as he relaxed on the bed. "You need to get dressed." Kevin said, running his hand over Chris' exposed chest. Chris leaned closer to Kevin, resting his weight onto Kevin's body. "Can I wear your sweater?" Chris asked. "Do I ever say no?" Kevin smiled, pulling Chris into a hug. Chris turned his body so that he was facing Kevin, he could smell Kevin's cologne, the smell always comforted him, knowing that he was close to Kev, wrapped in his strong muscled arms. Chris inhaled deeply, allowing the scent to linger in his mind. Kevin pulled Chris away, "If we lay here all morning, we'll miss out on breakfast, and I want you to see more of Lexington. You know, get a sense for it." "Why is that?" Chris asked as he looked for his towel. "We might be here a lot." Kevin said, handing Chris his towel. Chris smiled, the thought of spending more time, and more Christmases, in Lexington just made him happy. He knew he had a commitment on his hands, and he didn't mind at all. "Okay, let me go take a shower, and I'll be right down." Chris said as he walked out across the hall to the bathroom. Kevin pulled Chris back for another kiss, their lips needing each other. Chris dropped his towel and tip-toed so that he and Kev could be at a more convenient level. Kev pulled Chris closer, his tongue slowly sliding into Chris' mouth. Here he was telling Chris to hurry up, and then he goes and makes him dawdle even more, it brought a small smile to Kevin's face. Kevin let Chris' tongue caress his one last time before pulling away. Chris looked up into Kevin's green-blue eyes, and the love that emanated from them, the love that was directed to him. Kevin lifted Chris' chin, looking back into Chris' light gray eyes. Kevin leaned in for another kiss, but Chris' hand bolted up to stop him. "You need to shave, Kev. You're tickling my chin." Chris laughed. He picked his towel back up and they headed into the bathroom together. Walking down into the kitchen, and Ann pointed to the dining room table, which was empty. Kevin and Chris grabbed the plates and silverware that were stacked next to the sink. Kevin led Chris into the dining room, and they both automatically started to set the table. It was something that Kevin did without being asked. The two of them walked back into the kitchen to see if Ann and Holly needed any help. "You're up early." Holly said sarcastically. She started to put the biscuits that she baked into a basket. "I'm on vacation, aren't I supposed to get up around noon?" Chris asked. Kev grabbed a biscuit from the basket and took a bite out of it. Chris took it from him and took a bite too. Holly gave them a dirty look, "That was polite. You two couldn't resist could you?" "We just like seeing you pissed off." Kevin laughed. "Chris, how is your stay going?" Ann asked over her shoulder. "It's great. I'm having a really good time." Chris said, taking another bite. Kevin grabbed what was left and popped it in his mouth, smiling at Chris. "How could I have a bad time with such nice people around?" He said, lightly elbowing Kevin in the ribs. "Well, I'm glad to hear it, what do you and Kevin plan on doing today?" Ann asked. "I don't know." Chris said, looking over at Kev, who was pouring juice into glasses for breakfast. "We're gonna go around, see the city, go to the river, walk the dog." Kevin said. Chris nodded, the plan sounded good. The doorbell rang, and Kevin went to go answer it, he came back with his older brothers, who waved a 'hi' to everyone in the room before heading into the dining room. Kevin and Chris grabbed the glasses of juice and headed to put them on the table. Ann and Holly came into the room with big platters of food and the biscuits that Holly had baked earlier. They set them on the table and Brian came running down the stairs with the dogs, Tyke and Bailey. He set Bailey down and he hopped into Chris' lap. "Sorry, had to take care of 'em before they had an accident in the house." Brian said, stifling a laugh. "Sorry I can't join y'all, I gotta get home. See you guys later, bye Holly." He said, and leaned down to kiss Holly on the cheek before leaving. Everyone was at the table, and Kevin grabbed the basket of biscuits, putting one on his and Chris' plates. He passed the basket down the table and everyone grabbed one. "I saw you two on TV last night." Ann said, grabbing a biscuit for herself. "Uh-oh, what did they say this time?" Chris asked. "Kevin save another plane passenger?" Kevin punched Chris playfully in the shoulder. "You saw the movie premier again?" Kevin asked. "Yes, that Melissa Rivers wouldn't shut up about those shoes of yours." Ann laughed. "I thought that it was kind of cute. Made you look individual alright." Breakfast went on, and everyone shared laughs and stories. Afterwards, Chris and Kev went to go take the dog out, and they decided to just take Bailey along with them today. Holly was going over Brian's mom's house along with Ann, Jerald, and Tim. "Are you sure that he should be doing that?" Kevin asked, motioning towards Bailey, whose head was sticking out of the car window. His ears blew back in the wind and his tongue flopped around as the wind hit his little head. "I don't know, he does it no matter what." Chris said, trying to pull the little dog back into the car, but it struggled to put its head outside again. Chris just let him, but he held onto Bailey's chubby body tightly. "You like it down here?" Kevin asked. "Well, it's not home. And I can't compare it to Orlando since we kinda stayed inside. But I mean, yeah, I love your mom, and your brothers are really nice, your cat doesn't like Bailey, though." Chris said, ending with a small laugh. "Nothing's perfect." Kevin shrugged. He parked the car and Chris grabbed the leash. Kevin got out of the car and stood a little ways from it. "You know, this is the greatest gift that I've ever gotten. Other than the whole fame thing." "Well, my mom kinda went over the top." Chris said, letting Bailey walk around the on the leash. Kevin locked the car and walked over to the two. He gave Chris a quick kiss after looking around. "I hate it when you have to do that." Chris sighed. "Me too. Come on, let's get going." Kevin sighed, walking down the path. Bailey ran out in front of the two as they walked along the park path. Linq walked quickly up the path towards the shiny new Navigator when she saw that Kevin and Chris were safely out of the distance. She grabbed her wallet and pulled out her credit card. Sliding her fingers along it, a small pointed metal object poked out of one side. She carefully stuck it inside the door lock and turned it. She smiled to herself as all the car locks popped up. She opened the driver's door and pulled a small lever to pop the hood of the car open. Linq walked over, and opening the hood, she pulled some things out of the bag she was carrying. Tying her dark brown hair back, she got to work, she'd have to get busy if she wanted to finish before Kevin and Chris got back from walking the dog. 'Damn dog looks like a sausage.' She thought to herself. She grabbed her pliers and got to work. -- "Thanks." Kevin said, grabbing the coffee from the girl at Starbucks. He threw the change he gave her into the little cup by the cash register before handing Chris his cup of hot chocolate. The two of them continued walking the dog. They had crossed the park and made a little pit stop at the coffee shop. Bailey began to fidget around, growing impatient. "Come on, let's get home." The threesome walked back across the park, only stopping to catch Bailey after he went chasing after a flock of pigeons being fed by an elderly couple. They walked back to the car and Kevin pressed the button on his key chain to unlock the doors. Chris gently put Bailey into the back seat, and got in himself. Kevin started up the engine, and a faint steady beeping could be heard. "Do you hear that, Chris?" Kevin asked, leaning into the dashboard. He glanced at it, and noticed that all the LCD panels had the same reading, a steady numeric countdown. It took a split second for his mind to register, and when it did, his eyes grew wide. "Get out!" Kev yelled. Chris gave him a questioning look, and Kevin screamed again, "Chris, get out of the car!" Chris grabbed the dog, which had hopped back into his lap, and ran from the car. Kevin followed and jumped on top of Chris, to shield him from any danger, just as the car let out a loud beep and exploded into a fiery ball. Small pieces of scrap flying out over the entire parking lot. Chris screamed. The events still hadn't sunk into his head, what he just saw couldn't have actually happened. He just saw his brand new silver Lincoln Navigator blow up. That was it, plain and simple. It just blew up. Linq smiled as she drove, she had heard an explosion, and she couldn't be happier. "It's so much easier to just do things yourself." She said to herself. "Kev, tell me that that didn't just happen." Chris said, his eyes wide, staring at the remnants of the incident. "Did our car just explode?" "I can't believe it." Kev whispered. "How the hell did that happen?" "Can we still get home, I'm not sure that I want to hang around after this." Chris said, looking around the park. Bailey huddled in fear as he curled up in Chris' arms. "Yeah, I know what you mean, let's get going." Kevin said, pulling Chris and himself up. They had to get home or maybe to the police. His mind was a complete blur as he still was trying to piece together the moments that had just occurred. -- "Thanks officer." Kevin said, hanging up the phone. He sighed as he sat back in the sofa. He had called as soon as they got home, ignoring everything else. "Kev, I found this." Chris said, showing Kevin the piece of paper that he found in the kitchen. Kevin took it from him, 'Kev and Chris- I'll be over at Jackie's, be back tomorrow morning. Love always, Ann.' Kevin let out another sigh, now he had nobody that could offer any kind of logical explanation, he and Chris were dumbfounded, and he was hoping that his mom could offer just a little bit of consolation. "I guess we have the house to ourselves tonight." Kevin said, "Well, except for the dog." A slight smile came to his face as Bailey hopped onto his lap, trying his best to lick Kevin's face. "I think that I'm gonna call my mom, she has a right to know that her gift exploded." Chris said, somewhat sarcastically. "Go ahead, I'm going to be upstairs." Kevin said, putting Bailey on the floor. Bailey excitedly ran about the house, anxious to explore more of his new surroundings. "I can't believe that you did that, Just." J.C. said, settling into his chair. "I can't either. It was like I wasn't controlling my own body. It just flowed out of me." Justin said, wearily resting his head in the palm of his right hand. "You have to stop now before you get any further into this." J.C. said. "I know I should, but my heart shoots out fireworks every time I see Kevin, J.C. I don't feel that way with anyone else. It's like he was meant for me." Justin sighed, rolling over onto his back to start at the ceiling. "You just sound like you're in some cheesy romance novel." J.C. chuckled. "Hanging around Britney too much." "Well Christina's not much better." Justin said. "She's just as bubbly and ditzy." "I think that she's a lot better. You can talk to her for more than five minutes." J.C. said. "Everyone gets along with her, except Nick, but nobody gets along with him. You know you owe Chris a lot. With his help, the whole N Sync image turned around. People that aren't teenagers listen to our music, Just. He's changed our image. You owe him some credit. Leave them alone, they deserve that much." "I don't care. We were doing fine without him. I'm going to get Kev and I swear nothing I mean nothing, not even Chris is going to stand against me." Justin said confidently. "Just, you're crazy. Your past romance now, I think you're getting closer to home wrecker." J.C. said. Justin's actions were against all of his beliefs. "Get it through your thick scull, Justin. If you want Kevin, stop playing all these damn games with him. If he feels the same as you, and I seriously don't think he does, he'll tell you. Don't kill something special because you want what they have. We all want what they have, Justin. They hear each other's names in the wind, they never have their minds on anything else but each other. Your jealousy is clouding your judgement, and I'm not going to stand by as you try to destroy something that we'd all be lucky to have." J.C. said angrily. He stormed out of the room, leaving Justin alone and thinking. Justin was on his own now, and as he said, nothing was going to stop him Chapter 34 "Well that's taken care of." Kev said, clumsily settling down into his chair. All the insurance, legal details, and family phone calls had been made. They were going to be getting a new Navigator in a week or so, just in time to be back in Orlando. "Finally," Chris said, moving closer to Kevin. He lay his head onto Kevin's Chest, causing Kevin's strong arms to wrap around Chris' tired body. "Why would anyone do this to us, Kev?" He asked, a slight shiver ran down his body. "I don't know, but I told your mom that I wouldn't let anything happen to you, and I meant it." Kev said, holding Chris tighter. "You can't keep an eye on me all the time, Kev." Chris sighed. "Yes I can." Kevin said. "I promise." He said quietly before leaning down for a light kiss. Chris accepted gratefully, but wanting, needing more, he pulled Kevin closer. Kevin was startled at Chris' forwardness, but he didn't mind one bit. He shuffled a little, adjusting his body so that he was straddling Chris on all fours. He let his tongue venture into Chris' mouth, running along Chris' and exploring the nooks and crannies of Chris' mouth. Chris' hands ran through Kevin's hair, and down to his neck. Chris lightly massaged Kevin's tense shoulders and he felt Kevin's muscles relax under his hands. Kevin let a smile form on his face as Chris' hands traveled down his chest to the bottom of his sweatshirt. Chris pulled it off, the sight of Kevin's lean and toned chest greeting his light gray eyes. Chris marveled at the strong muscles, and his hands reached out to touch them. Kevin let out a his as Chris ran his hands over his chest, stopping to rub Kevin's newfound sensitive spot, his nipples. Chris loved how they became instantly hard with the smallest touch, the lightest kiss, or the softest lick. Kevin watched as Chris stared at his chest, feeling a little awkward at all the attention he was getting. Kevin brought a hand to Chris' chin and looked into his eyes. Chris' eyes met his own, and his hands froze as he leaned forward for a deeper kiss. Kevin let his body rest on top of Chris' as the kiss continued. Kevin let his hips push into Chris' he could feel Chris' hard member against his own, and he couldn't be more turned on. Kevin pulled Chris' shirt over his head, the sensation of skin against skin gave him new energy as he undid the button to Chris' pants. Chris kicked his pants off, and pulled his own boxers off, continuing the kiss. Kev brought his hand to Chris' hot cock. He jerked it, loving the soft groans that Chris let into the kiss. Chris let his hands return to Kevin's chest, the rock hard muscle was now slick with sweat. Kevin moved to sucking on Chris' neck, letting his lips and teeth lightly nip at the sensitive skin. Chris pulled Kevin's pants and boxers down in one motion, anxious to get his hands on Kevin's thick cock. His hands reached for his prize, but is stopped short, an unexpected wave of pleasure flowed through his body as Kevin inserted a finger into his ass. Chris groaned in pleasure at the new sensation, it was different from Kevin's cock, it was nimble as it explored Chris' insides, landing on it's target, eliciting loud moans of pleasure to escape. "Kev...oh my god...I'm so close..." Chris managed to whisper, his arms wrapped around Kevin's neck. The sensations of the double stimulation were too much for Chris' body as he released himself between his and Kevin's sweaty bodies. His body fell from its semi-sitting position as his arms gave way from Kevin's neck. Kevin reluctantly let his fingers slip from Chris' ass. Chris let his body relax, closing his eyes to concentrate on the feeling running through his body. Panting, he looked up at Kevin, his deep emerald green eyes looking into his own, his body in the same state as Chris, glistening with sweat, his chest panting. "You think that you're up to anything else today?" Kevin whispered, leaning down to lick the cum from Chris' chest. Chris moaned as Kevin gently licked and nipped at his nipples. "I'm ready for anything, Kev." Chris panted. Kevin smiled at his eagerness, and wrapped his arms around Chris' already tired body. Turning over, he let Chris have his turn at straddling his body. Chris leaned down for another kiss, and felt Kevin's cock poking at the opening to his ass. He let himself slide down Kevin's body, his cock entering his ass. Chris' body was flooded with a new energy as Kevin's cock slipped into him. He let it enter him, taking the pain that racked his body. It always hurt like all hell at the beginning. Kevin's thick cock throbbed inside his ass. Chris lay himself down on top of Kevin's squirming body, moans of pleasure filled the room as Chris rocked slowly up and down on Kevin's long dick, squeezing his ass the whole time. Kevin's hands came to Chris' hips, urging him to go faster. Chris' body collapsed onto Kevin's, their lips meeting once again. Kevin wrapped his arms around Chris, feeling his body tense as Kevin thrust in and out of his tight ass. He slowly rolled on top of Chris, his thrusts becoming more and more powerful. Chris let on of his hands rest on Kevin's strong legs, feeling the steely muscles tense and relax as each thrust entered him, waves of bittersweet pleasure and pain coursing through his body. "God Chris you are so tight..." Kevin whispered, as his thrusts became deeper and more powerful. Chris let a weak smile form on his face, knowing that he was bringing pleasure to Kev was enough to get him off. Chris' arms ran to Kevin's neck, and pulling him down for another deep kiss. Kevin darted his tongue in and out of Chris' mouth, letting his passions control his movements. Chris held tightly as Kevin thrust his long cock deeper and deeper into his ass. The pleasure swept over his body as he shot his load, his body tensing as Kevin held him tightly. Kevin continued to thrust as Chris' spasming asshole clutched his thick cock. He groaned as each squeeze of Chris' ass sent pleasure shooting up his spine. Chris shuddered as Kevin kept plowing his aching ass, and nipping at his sensitive neck. Kevin's thrusts lost their rhythm and Chris knew that he was close. Chris' arms held tight to Kevin's sweat slick body as he braced himself for Kevin's climax. Kevin came with a boom, letting a loud tell pierce the air. Chris felt the warm sensation in his ass as Kevin shot his thick load, and he savored the feeling as Kevin rest his body on top of Chris'. The pleasant heavy of his body gave Chris a feeling of safety and comfort. Kev reached over for his boxers, wiping Chris and himself of cum and sweat. "Kevin, that was...so...oh god it was so good." Chris said, kissing Kevin again. He ran his fingers over Kevin's hair, pulling it back off of his forehead. Kevin pulled his lips from Chris', and looked into his eyes. "I think that we should get up, mom's gonna kill us about the couch." Kevin snickered. "Not that I didn't enjoy getting it all sweaty." "Yeah, you're right. I think that I'm going to catch a shower." Chris said, letting his hands roam down to Kevin's taut back muscles. "We can take care of the couch later." After the shower, which was anything but uneventful, Kevin and Chris sprayed the sofa with that stuff to get the sweat smell off of it. "When does the tour start up again, Kev?" Chris asked as they sat down on the newly refreshed couch. He let his body settle onto Kevin's, wrapping his arms around Kev's chest as they flipped through the TV channels. Kev lightly patted the dog with his feet as he ran the schedule through his head. "Two weeks." He sighed. "But we're back in Orlando next week for another recording session, so we're gonna head off in a few days." Chris sighed in contentment as Kev held him tighter, "Here we are on the news again." Kevin said, slightly nodding towards the TV. Chris turned his head a little and saw the young lady telling about the incident. "Lexington born superstar Kevin Richardson filed a claim that his new car 'exploded' in this parking lot earlier today, witnesses confirm the report, but none saw how it happened and most think that it was a mechanical error. Lincoln spokesmen decline questions and so do Kevin. Best wishes to him, back to the studio, this in Linh Moy reporting." The woman said before the weather report came up. Seeing the park just ran the memory over and over again in Chris' head. There was something about this that left him uneasy. "Kev, the lights in the living room just went out." Chris said, noticing the darkness down past the door of the family room. Kevin looked over, and saw the hallway lights blink off, and then the kitchen, and then finally the family room lost it's light and the TV shut off abruptly. Kevin grabbed the remote and tried to turn it back on, but it wouldn't work. "I think that power went out." Chris said, getting off of Kevin. "No, I don't think so. Stay here, I'm gonna get a flashlight." Kevin said, standing up. "I'm coming with you." Chris said, grabbing Kevin's arm. Kev let in without any arguments, and the two walked into the kitchen, there wasn't much except moonlight, but there was enough to see some things. Kevin reached for a cabinet and grabbed a big flashlight. He handed Chris a smaller one, but hey, light was light, right? "I think that we should check the fuse box or something." Kevin said. Chris nodded in agreement, nothing like this had happened in the recent past, and Kevin's guess was as good as his. Kevin grabbed Chris' hand and they walked out into the back yard. The cold air hit their bodies as they slowly walked over to the fuse box, handing Chris the larger flashlight, Kevin opened the box and Chris shined his light inside. Everything seemed fine, all the switches were in the 'on' position, and Kevin closed the box back up. Chris tripped over something, but Kevin caught him, the flashlight fell to the grass, and pointed its beam of light onto the wall of the house. As Kevin went to go pick it up, he noticed something. He looked more closely at the mass of tangled wires at the bottom of the box, they were cut through. "Kev, let's get back inside." Chris suggested, his body slightly shivering in the cold. "Wait a second, look at this." Kevin said, pointing to the bottom of the fuse box. Chris looked at the cut wires. "Why would that happen?" Chris asked. Kevin shrugged, "I don't know, but I think that we should get out of here. C'mon, we're going to Aunt Jackie's tonight." "Why don't you just connect the wires back together? Match the colors." Chris said, pointing at the wires. "We just need some wire caps." "Let's go to the garage." Kevin said, pulling Chris inside of the dark house. They walked carefully into the garage, and after rummaging through some things, they found a small box of yellow wire caps. Chris grabbed it and they walked back to the side of the house. "Wait a second. Kev, did you open that window?" Chris asked, pointing his flashing his light at the bay window in the living room. "I don't think so, but I might have." Kevin said, scratching his head. Chris shrugged the thought off and they began connecting the wires. A light came on through the window, and their spirits lifted. After about fifteen minutes, they got it done, but ran out of wire caps, and they still had one more connection. "We can't do anything about it. Let's go check the house." Kevin said, as the two stood up. A loud, high pitched bark could be heard inside the house, followed by a yell. They ran into the house, and into the living room in time to see someone dressed in black climb out of the window, and Bailey barking at the unwelcome intruder. "What the hell is going on?" Chris asked, pleading for an answer. "Are we just magnets for stupid juvi rejects?" He was frustrated with everything, the car accident, the car explosion, and now this. His perfect life with Kevin was what he wanted, and then all of a sudden this busload of petty and not so petty crap has to hit him head on. He looked over to Kev for an answer, and he couldn't offer one. "Kev, I don't know what's happening, but I sure as hell don't like it." "I know, Chris. I don't either. Let's get upstairs." Kevin said, softly pushing Chris forward. "Good job, big guy." Kevin said, picking up Bailey. The three walked upstairs, it was late, and Kevin needed to try to piece together the puzzle, there was something wrong. Lexington was a safe place, he needed answers, and he wasn't going to get them tonight. Chris lazily stirred his glass of orange juice with his spoon as he watched Kevin. "I'm so confused." He sighed. "Tell me about it." Kevin said, putting his fork down. "I'm just as lost as you are." "We should tell your mom when she gets back." Chris said, finally drinking. "Yeah, but I don't know how she's gonna take it." "I don't know. Everything's just been so blurry lately. I can't make sense of anything." "Come on, I think that we should get some more caps for the box outside." Kevin said. Chris nodded, and headed upstairs to get his jacket. "Get mine too, could you?" Kevin yelled upstairs. Chris grabbed his jacked, and hearing Kevin, he began to look for Kev's. He fumbled around in the closet and found the jacket that he had gotten for Kevin when they went shopping together for the first time. He looked at it closer, and remembered all the times that Kevin had worn it. Chris smiled as the memories came back to him. Happy memories, not like things that had been happening lately. He snapped back into reality as Kevin stomped up the stairs. "Have trouble finding it?" Kevin asked, taking it from Chris. Chris shook his head. "Just kinda out of it today." "I know what you mean." Kevin said, giving Chris a quick kiss. "Let's go. I want to get back before mom comes home. Plus we gotta get packing." "It seems like we're packing every other day." Chris said, getting another quick kiss. "We are." Kevin chuckled. "Let's go." He pulled Chris downstairs and they went to the garage. "Oops." "What?" Chris asked. He looked around the garage and realized what Kevin meant. "Forgot about that, huh?" "Minor detail...I guess that we're not going to get the caps before mom gets home." Kevin shrugged. "I guess that we should get some pizza for lunch or something then." "When's your mom getting home again?" "Today. I don't know how much later, but the note said today." Kevin reassured Chris. "I'll go call the pizza place, and you go find out what part of the house has no power." "Yeah, get the easy job." Chris joked. He went upstairs to start looking, while Kev called for the pizza. After a few minutes, Chris came back downstairs, and he saw Kevin grabbing some sodas from the fridge. "So what room is it?" Kevin asked. "It's the guestroom next to your mom's." Chris said, and grabbed his 7-up from Kevin. Kevin nodded, and took a sip of his soda. "That's not that big of a deal." Kevin said. "Nobody's using that room." "The bathroom up there has no power either." Chris explained. "I think that's important. Why do you think someone came into the house last night?" "I don't know, they cut the wires and then came into the house, but they didn't take anything. We were out there for a while. I just don't get it." Kevin sighed, his head shook lightly, and he thumbed his eyebrow like he always did when he was nervous. It was a dead giveaway that something was going on. "We can't just leave your mom here and go back to O-town knowing what happened. What if they come back?" Chris said, moving a little closer to Kevin. "I don't know, the police said that they'd monitor the neighborhood when I called them this morning." Kevin said, finishing his soda. The doorbell rang, "I'll get the pizza." Chris said, walking out of the kitchen before Kevin had any time to say otherwise. Chris half-ran to the door, and unlocked it as Kevin slowly walked into the room to join him. "Hey there...remember me?" A woman said, a confused look came over Chris' face. The woman was holding the box of pizza that Kevin had ordered. She was vaguely familiar. Chris looked her over; black boots what went up to her knees, more specifically stiletto boots, khaki shorts, white tank top, longish brown hair, and sunglasses. It could have been anyone. She removed her glasses, and Chris still struggled to recognize who it was. The cold dark eyes stood out, and he knew them from somewhere. "Come on, it's only been what, a couple years?" The woman said. Everything about her was cold. Her voice, her looks, and the air around her seemed to be odd. "Linq?" Chris said softly. He was unsure, and didn't want to insult the girl. "I'm glad you remember, cuz." She said, emphasizing the fact that they were related. Kevin came up behind Chris and put his hand on Chris' shoulder. "Well, here's the pizza, I paid the guy, now can we have a little talk...alone?" She asked. "Sure..." Chris said, still uneasy at the sudden appearance of his cousin. Kevin grabbed the pizza. "I'll be in the kitchen. Yell if you need anything." Kevin whispered into Chris' ear. "Nice to meet you, Linq. Maybe we can all talk later." He said, flashing a smile. "I don't think so, I gotta be somewhere." Linq smiled back. Kevin shrugged, and walked into the house, leaving the door slightly ajar. "So, are you happy to see me?" "More like...never mind. Um...how...I mean why here?" Chris asked. "Oh, I thought you'd be just a little happy to see me." Linq said in mock sadness. "Yeah, of course I am." Chris said quickly, his words tripping over themselves. "It's just that...you know we haven't seen each other for about five...maybe six years? And now, you just all of a sudden show up, it's sort of hard to take in." "Sorry, I know I should have called, but like I said, I have places to go. I mean, this won't take very long, unless you make it that way." She said, Chris walked to the other side of the porch, leaning over the rails, and looking down at the ground. Ann had planted daisies, and their pure whiteness contrasted against the green of the grass and the deep brown of the dirt. "What do you mean 'make it that way?'" Chris asked, not turning around. There was a slight laugh in his voice. "Well, I guess you deserve an explanation. Remember back in LA when you almost got hit by a car?" She said. Chris' forehead wrinkled with confusion. Had he told her that? Had mom? "And the time your brand new car just happened to go poof, or more like boom? And then last night? Well, you're a hard one, Christopher Tyler Thompson, and I just wanted to say...that was all me." Chris' head whipped around in time to see Linq pull out her gun. His confused look instantly changed into one of fear. She held it up, pointing directly at Chris, she continued, "I guess you know now that you were supposed to die the first time. When that didn't happen, I set up the explosion, and then you, being the stubborn bastard that you are, got away from me again. But this time, you're not getting away. There's no way out now Chris." Chris looked around, she was right. His breathing quickened, and the tears started to stream down his face. "One more thing...your dad...well, I guess you figured that out too." "Dad? Please...I'll give you anything. Just don't shoot. I don't want to die..." Chris said, his voice cracking. Chills ran up and down his body as he looked at his surprisingly calm cousin. "Sorry, what I want you can't give as long as you're alive." Linq said before pulling the trigger. Chris instinctively jumped over the rails, his body quivering in fear. The bullet didn't hit him, but he knew there were more coming. Linq cursed and began shooting again. Chris couldn't do anything, and he tried his best to duck behind the raised porch. Linq shook her head. She ran to the rail and saw Chris, just as she was about to shoot again, a hand grabbed her arm. She quickly turned her head around, Kevin had come out after hearing the gunshots. Rolling her eyes, Linq pushed Kevin back, and he fell to the floor of the porch. Surprised at her strength, Kevin quickly got up. Linq shot a few more rounds at the ground below the porch before turning to face Kevin. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" She asked him. "You don't have to get involved." Kevin just looked at her, surveying the situation in his head, he began running at her, the only thing in his mind was the fact that he had to help Chris. Before he even got to her, Linq kicked him back, and again, Kevin was on the floor. Linq reached for another magazine in her pocket. Before she could reload her gun, Kevin tackled her, forcing the gun out of her hands. "Damn it!" She screamed. She pushed Kevin off of her, and grabbed her gun. "You're gonna be sorry for ever meeting him." She said before jumping over the porch railing, Kevin heard Chris scream in pain, and he immediately ran to the railing. Linq pulled the trigger one last time before pointing the gun at Kevin. "Told you not to get involved." She said, shooting once at Kevin. He collapsed. The bullet hit him in the arm, and the blood began soaking into the white fabric of this shirt. He lifted his head in time to see Linq kick Chris a final time before running off into her car. Kevin forced himself to get up. Running over to the side of the porch, he looked down, Chris was lying on his stomach, his back had gashes from Linq's stilettos, the blood dripping from the now crimson daisies, along with the blood coming from Chris' side and legs. Kevin heard a car coming down the small street. He had to get help, but he couldn't leave Chris by himself. Kevin hopped over the railing, screaming for the car to stop, but no sound would come from his mouth. He fell to his knees next to Chris, leaning over to see if there was any sign that Chris would still be alive. "Kev...it hurts so much..." He heard Chris whisper...barely. Kevin grabbed Chris' hand, trying his best to comfort him. Surprisingly, the car stopped in front of the house, and Ann came running out of the car over to them, her face white with horror and panic. Kevin pulled Chris into his arms, and tried his best to keep Chris conscious. "Mom...call the ambulance, please." Kevin said, his voice barely audible. Ann was already dialing on her cell phone as Kevin asked her. Kevin heard his mom talking on the phone as he pulled his shirt off, pressing it to Chris' bleeding leg to stop the bleeding. "I love you...Kev...I love you..." Chris said, his voice trailing off. Kevin shook him, "No...Chris...no! Don't...please stay with me...you can't die..." The tears flowed from his eyes. Ann bent down to join her son and his dying lover. "Kevin, they're coming as fast as they can. They said to keep him warm. Come on Chris, hold on...you're too young." She said, her tears streaming from her face. The ambulance came rushing down the street, "Thank god we live close to the hospital." Ann whispered. Chapter 35 Kevin lay in his hospital bed; his arm wrapped in a bandage and his heart broken into pieces. He had failed. Chris was lying in the other wing of the hospital on a bed just like him, on the brink of death. The tears came up again in Kevin's eyes, how would he face Chris again? How could he face any of the guys or Chris' mother? He not only failed them, but he had failed Chris and himself. Nothing could undo the damage that had occurred. The doctor came into the room, and Kevin quickly composed himself. "Good afternoon Mr. Richardson." The doctor said. "I'll be happy to tell you that you can leave tomorrow. The bullet only grazed your arm, and we stitched it up. Your mother tells me that you'll probably be staying with us longer than necessary." "How is he?" Kevin whispered. "I'm sorry to say that he's not good. He's awake, though. Do you want to see him?" The doctor asked. Kevin's face lit up. 'Thank god.' He thought. "Come on, I'll take you to him." The doctor said, writing something on Kevin's charts. Kevin got up from his bed, he was still wearing his jeans, dirty from the scuffle at the house earlier. You mom left you some clothes over there. The doctor motioned to a chair. Kevin walked over and picked them up. "Thanks, doctor." Kevin said, stepping into the bathroom to change. Pulling the clean t-shirt on, he looked in the mirror, his eyes were swollen, and he looked pale. He splashed some water on his face and took his jeans off, slipping on some baggier ones; he pulled on the sweatshirt that was also in the bag. Running his hand through his hair, he stepped outside to the main room. "I'm ready." Kevin sighed. "Very good. I'm sure Chris is going to be very happy to see you." The doctor said. "He's been asking for you ever since he woke up." They walked down the twisting halls of the hospital. Kevin glanced inside the rooms, noticing the people, they looked scared, tired, or hurt. He prayed that Chris be all right. They arrived, and Kevin saw his mother waiting outside the door. "Thank god you're okay." Ann said, pulling Kevin into a hug. "He's waiting for you." "Mom, I'm not sure that I want to go see him right now." Kevin whispered. "I'm...scared." "Come on, you have to. He needs you Kevin." She soothed. Kevin released his mom, and taking a deep breath, he prepared himself for what was ahead. The doctor opened the door, and Kevin looked at Chris. The tears resurfaced as Kevin looked at Chris lying on the hospital bed. Kevin slowly walked to the side of the bed and noticed that Chris was sleeping again. "Is he okay?" Kevin whispered. The doctor looked up from the clipboard, "We removed three bullets from his right leg, and two from his left. We stitched up the gashes on his back, those should heal pretty quick." "So everything's going to be okay, right? Nothing that you couldn't fix?" Kevin asked, still not taking his eyes off of Chris, there was something missing, and Kevin realized that this was the first time he'd seen Chris sleep without his Mickey. "How'd you get him to sleep?" "We heavily sedated him." The doctor said. "I'm sorry to tell you that everything isn't going to be okay." Kevin's heart skipped a beat, and he felt a hand on his shoulder. His mother was there when he turned around. Her hand held his as they prepared for what the doctor was going to say. "I'm sorry to tell you that Chris isn't going to be able to walk. We've arranged for..." "He can't walk?" Kevin interrupted, whipping his head to look over Chris' body. "For how long? You don't mean forever. You can't mean that." "I'm sorry. We don't know if he'll ever be able to walk again, but with some physical therapy, he might regain the use of his legs." The doctor said quietly. Ann felt her son's hand grip hers tightly, and she almost see his heart breaking. Kevin's tears came out more rapidly. "He's not going to be able to swim again, or walk his dog. God...I'm so sorry Chris." Kevin said quietly. "If you have any more questions, call the nurse, I have to finish my rounds. It was nice meeting you, Ann. Kevin, please be back in your room later. Better yet, I'll get a cot in here or something." The doctor said, he shook their hands and left. "It's not your fault, Kevin." Ann said lowly. "I know what you're thinking, don't blame yourself." "Mom, it is my fault. I was supposed to take care of him, supposed to protect him, and I didn't. Look what happened. He's lying in the hospital, and he's not going to be able to walk...ever." Kevin said, he wiped the tears off his face with the cuffs of his sweatshirt. He walked closer to the bed, and kicked something on the floor. Looking down, he noticed that Chris' Mickey Mouse was under the bed. Picking it up, he looked at it, it's faded smile looked up at him, just like Chris' smile. The tears came out with more force as Kevin held the tattered toy to his chest. Ann wiped her tears away. She never would have thought that this would happen. They looked so happy together, and she'd never seen Kevin like this before. His father's death had affected him also, but it was so different, the two occurrences couldn't be compared. Kevin heard a groan from the bed, and blinked the tears away to see Chris' face, his head turned to look at Kevin, his eyes squinting to see more clearly. "Kev..." He said faintly. Kevin immediately put Mickey in Chris' arms and he held him tightly. "God it hurts Kev..." Chris groaned. "Let me get a doctor." Ann said, heading outside. "No, it's ok, Ann." Chris said, giving her a weak smile. "Well, I'll just tell them that you woke up." Ann said, stepping outside. "Kev, am I going to be ok?" Chris groaned. Kevin kneeled down next to the bed. He handed Chris his Mickey, which he gladly took. Chris sighed contently as he held Mickey, and he relaxed a little. "You're going to be okay, baby." Kevin said softly. "The doctor says that you'll be okay, but it's not going to be easy." "What do you mean?" Chris asked, lying back in the bed. He pulled Kevin up, and he sat on the bed. "Do you feel okay?" Kevin said, running his hand over Chris' thigh. "I feel achy." Chris said, wincing slightly. "And I feel tired." "Can you move?" Kevin asked. "It hurts to much to move." Chris sighed, trying his best to pull the sheets up. "You won't be able to. For a while at least." Kevin said lowly. "Huh?" Chris said, trying to sit up. He let out a small hiss as pain shot through his body. "I can't...Kev? What's wrong?" A panicked look came over Chris' face. "I'm sorry Chris. I'm so sorry." Kevin said, pulling Chris into his arms. "Please forgive me..." "Kev, tell me what's happening. I'm confused." Chris said, resting his head on Kevin's shoulder. "Something happened. You can't walk...or move your legs." Kevin explained softly. Slowly rocking Chris back and forth. Kevin felt his shoulder getting damp, and he held Chris tighter. "I'm so sorry." "So what's going to happen?" Chris asked. "We're still going to Orlando. But you'll be in the hospital there for a few days, then I'll stay with you until you...until you are back to your old self." Kevin said as he patted Chris' back lightly. "I love you Kevin." Chris whispered. "God Chris I'm so sorry." Kevin said, the tears reemerging. "Kev, it's not your fault." Chris said. "I just want to know what we're going to do about her." Kevin tensed, "If I ever see Linq again, I swear she won't have another chance to do this to you...or anyone else." To Be Continued. ***Authors Note: This took a while, I know, and I apologize. School is a pain, and along with other crap, I haven't been writing. Lack of response is a factor too (hint, hint) Email piscesh2007@hotmail.com. I didn't realize that not wring back to people who write to me would cause the stopping of mail. I'm sorry! It's just that no one really emailed me back when I mailed them. (yeah I'm bitter) I'll try to get the next one out quicker, and maybe there will be a little more drama as if there wasn't enough action in this one. So Chris didn't die, and Kevin's totally blaming himself. See how they work it out in the next installment. 'Till next time, CL