Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2001 23:32:32 -0700 (PDT) From: slpwriter Subject: Nick Lachey: My Everything-25 First of all, let me just say that this is my first time writing any kind of fiction like this. DISCLAIMER: This is a work of total fiction and is not meant to imply anything about the sexualities of Nick and Drew Lachey or anyone else mentioned in this story. Yes it's true. Nick and Jessica are no longer together. I wish them both the best and I hope that they both find happiness again one day. Nick's brother, Drew, is married to Lea, his longtime highschool sweetheart. I wish them all the best in their marriage. If you are too young to read this, or if Homosexuality offends you, then please don't continue any further and leave. Other 98 Degrees stories I'd like to recommend are. "Give Me Just One Night" by Unanoche. "69 with Jeff Timmons" by Zachary Scott Pritt "Nick Lachey" by Ken. "98 Degrees Is Hot" by Gay Night "The Reunion" by RinSong. and finally: "This Gift" by Sprout. Now, I"ll let you get on with the story. Enjoy. previously on "My Everything"..... "Alright, Matt and I will take you back." Ben said, putting his arm around me. "Come on." We started walking towards the guys to say goodbye to them. When they saw me coming, Danny grabbed me into a hug. "Sean, buddy, I am so sorry that Nick treated you that way." "Don't worry about it, Danny, it's not your fault." I said. "Anyway, I just came over to say goodbye." "What?! Jeff gasped. But you just got here!" "Nick obviously doesn't want me here, so I'm not going to stay." I said to him. "Ben and Matt are gonna take me back to their place." "Fuck, Nick." I heard a female voice shout out. We all turned in amazement to see Kandi with an angry look on her face. "You're staying, Sean, so no ands, ifs, or buts about it, ok?" She said. "And when Nick comes down here, I'll kick his ass. Maybe when he gets one of these high heeled shoes up his ass, it'll knock some sense into him." "I like her already." I joked weakly, causing all of them to laugh a little. I gave Kandi a grateful smile. " Thanks, Kandi." I said, smiling at her. I then turned to the rest of the guys. But seriously, this is Nick's house and he can throw me out if he wants to." I said to them. "But I have no reason to stay, other than to make Nick uncomfortable, so I'm leaving. I've lost my appetite anyway." I turned and started walking out of the family room towards the front door. I could hear footsteps behind me and I turned to see Ben, Matt, Danny, Jeff, Justin, and Kandi, all following me. Just as I got to the door, I heard Nick's voice. "Sean, wait!" He called out. Chapter 25 I turned around to see Nick standing in the doorway, Drew right behind him. "You don't have to go." Nick said. I gazed sadly at Nick, tears still evident on my face. I still wasn't sure if I wanted to stay. Especially with the way Nick had treated me. "Why not?" I asked him, hurt evident on my face and in my voice. "You obviously are uncomfortable with me being here, so I'll save you the discomfort of having to see me and leave." "No, Sean, I want you to stay." Nick said, coming over to me, putting his hands on my shoulders. "And I'm sorry I treated you that way. I was such a jerk." "Yeah, you sure were, Nick." Kandi said, shooting Nick an angry glare. "And let me make something clear to you? If I ever see you treat him like that again, You're gonna have to have surgery to remove every single high-heeled shoe from your ass after I get done kicking it for you!" She said it with so much venom in her voice, that Nick cringed, and Danny, Drew, Justin, Kandi, Ben and Matt, all stared at her in surprise. Myself included. "I'd be careful, Nick." Justin said with a smirk. "By the looks of it, my girl will be out for blood if you ever hurt Sean again." "So will I." Danny said, giving Nick an angry glare. "You were way out of line that time, Nick." "We all will." Drew said. "So, Sean, are you going to stay now or what?" He asked me. I shrugged and then glanced at Nick, before answering Drew. "If Nick really meant what he said about wanting me to stay?" I said, more to Nick than to Drew. Nick looked at me and nodded. "Yes, Sean, I meant it." He replied. "I really want you to stay." I smiled at him then, happy that he decided to let me stay. "Then I would be happy to stay." "Good." Nick said. "So, am I forgiven?" I walked over to him and embraced him in a hug. He hugged me back. "Yes you are, buddy." I said to him. "Happy Birthday." "Thank you, Sean." Nick said, releasing me. "It means alot to me." I turned to see everyone staring at us both and smiling at us. "Well guys, Now that we have this situation settled, I think it's time for cake!" And to sing "Happy Birthday" to the birthday boy here." I said, patting Nick's shoulder. He seemed a little surprised by my show of affection, but he didn't object to it either. "That's a good idea." Jeff said, then turned to Danny and everyone else who was in the room with us. "Danny, come with me to get the cake and the candles out of the car, and the rest of you go back in the family room and party for a bit while we get everything ready." "That sounds like a good idea to me." Justin said, wrapping his arm around Kandi's waist. "Come on, baby, let's dance." "I'm right behind you, sugar." Kandi said, following Justin into the family room. She groped his ass as he walked,causing him to jump and then start laughing. "Alright, Jeff, let's go and get everything ready." Danny said and walked outside to get the cake, Jeff right behind him. "Well, we're gonna go and dance too." Ben said, putting his arm around Matt, heading for the family room. "I'll come with you guys." Nick said, then turned to me. "I'll talk to you later, Sean." He said, winking at me. He then followed Matt and Ben into the room. I watched him go, glad that he wanted me to stay. "Sean, would you like to dance also?" Drew suddenly asked me, gazing at me through those mesmerizing hazel eyes of his. "Do you really think we should?" I asked him. "What will the guests say if they see us dancing together?" "They won't care." Drew said, with a shrug. "They all know about Nick and I. They won't tell anyone, so we'll be alright. So, how about it?" Drew looked into my eyes, waiting for my answer. I smiled at him. "Sure. I'd love to dance with you. Lead the way." I said, extending out my hand, motioning towards the family room. "Excellent." Drew said. "Let's do it." He put his arm around my waist and led me into the family room, where the party was still going. The song playing was a slow song, and I saw Matt and Ben dancing together. Justin and Kandi were right across from them, dancing also. Kandi had her head down on Justin's chest, and he had his hands around her waist, as they danced and swayed with the music. Drew and I found a spot near Justin and Kandi and Drew put his arms around my neck, as I put my hands around his waist, and we started to move back in forth, slow dancing. Drew looked up into my eyes as we danced. I looked right back into his and then I heard him start talking. "Sean, I hope you know that nothing's changed since you've been gone." He said. "I still love you very much." I nodded. "I know, Drew. I can see it in your eyes every time you look at me." I said to him, softly. "I was so lost without you these past four months." Drew said. "Especially after you called us and told us that you wouldn't be able to join us back on tour, because you were shooting the movie. How's that going by the way?" "Oh, it went great." I replied. "We worked hard and got done with it early. Now I can think about whether to join you guys back on tour or not." Drew brightened at that. "That would be great!" He said, as we continued to dance. "I'd love to have you back on tour with us." "Yeah I know. And so would Danny and the rest of the guys." I said I then wondered about how Nick would react to me joining them back on tour. I mean, wanting me to stay at the party, and re-joining them on tour were two very different things. "I'm not sure about Nick though." I said to Drew. "I don't know how he'd feel about me coming back on tour." "You just leave my brother to me." Drew said, with a smile. "I'll straighten him out just like I did upstairs earlier." Now, that had me curious. I had seen Drew follow Nick upstairs earlier and I wondered what Drew did or said to Nick to get him to change his mind and let me stay. "How did you do that, Drew?" I asked him. "How did you get Nick to change his mind about letting me stay?" Drew's face then took on a serious look, meaning that something was up. I started to get concerned. "Actually, Sean, Nick didn't really not want you here." Drew explained. "He was just upset because he was reminded all over again of how hurt he had been when you decided to leave and not work things out with us on the tour." He especially was angry with me since I was part of the reason why you were leaving." "Oh, Drew." I said, sympathetically, pulling him to me in a hug. "I hope you two aren't drifting apart. I'd die before I let anything ruin the close relationship the two of you have." "Don't worry, Sean." Drew said, smiling, as he released me. "Nick and I are doing fine. We're both just a little on edge, but that will change once you tell us which one of us has your heart and which one of us will just remain friends with you." After saying that, Drew's face turned serious again. I knew then what was coming. "So, Sean, tell me." He said. "Which one of us have you picked to be your boyfriend?" I just stood there, not sure what I was going to say to him, but I knew I had to say something. Before I could say anything, I was interrupted by the guests clapping and Drew and I both turned to see what they were clapping about. We saw Danny and Jeff come into the room. Danny was carrying all the presents that Nick had gotten and Jeff was carrying the cake, which had 28 candles on it and all of them were lit, their soft light, making Jeff's face glow. He looked almost like an angel at that moment. "Ok, Everyone, Let's sing "Happy Birthday" to the birthday boy!" Danny announced, as Nick walked over towards the table where Jeff set the cake. Everyone gathered in a circle around Nick and we all started to sing. "Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday, dear Nick, Happy Birthday to you!" "And may you have many more? may you have many more? May you have many more birthdays? Happy Birthday to you!" Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, May God bless you and keep you another year through!" "Make a wish, Nick." I said to him, as everyone finished singing. Nick glance at me and gave me one of his killer smiles, before standing up and closing his eyes for a few moments, making his wish. He opened them, took a deep breath, and blew out the candles. Every single one of them! Everyone cheered. "It looks like your wish will be granted, whatever it was." Jeff said, putting his arm around Nick. "I hope so." Nick said, glancing over at me as he did. Our eyes locked on each other, but only for a moment. Nick, realizing what he was doing, shook himself and then turned to start opening presents. Every present he opened he thanked the person who it was from for it, until he came to the last one: Mine. I saw him, look at me, unsmiling, and then started to open the card. He read what it said. "Nick." Nick started, reading aloud. "Happy Birthday, buddy, and I hope that you have many more birthdays that are as special as this one. Your Friend, Sean." After reading that, I saw Nick's expression turn to confusion at the end, but just as quickly as it came, he masked it over with a fake smile. "Thanks, Sean, that was really nice of you." Nick said to me. "Come here for a second?" He then asked. I walked over to him and he put his arms around me, hugging me. I hugged him back. "Thanks for the kind words." Nick said, smiling at me, and looking me right in my eyes. I noticed something about his eyes when I looked at them. I could see that the sparkle was back in his eyes, meaning for some reason or another, he was happy again. I saw that same sparkle in his eyes whenever we were together. It was so good to see and I was glad that he was happy again. But I did have to wonder how long it would last. "Anytime, Nick." I said. "Now why don't you open my present now? You're going to love what I got for you. At least I hope you do." Nick was then intruiged, so he picked up the present and then looked at me. "Well in that case, I can't wait to see what it is." Nick said. He then started tearing off the paper from around the box. After doing that, he lifted off the top of the box. He gasped when he saw the bright blue shirt I got him. "Sean, it beautiful!" Nick stammered. "I love it." "I thought that you would." I said, then pointed back to the box. "Keep looking. There's one more thing to go with the shirt in there." I said, urging him to look. "Alright." Nick said, with a chuckle and lifted the second piece of tissue paper from the next item of clothing, which was a pair of black leather jeans. "Wow." Nick said, picking them up and examining them better. "Leather jeans. Cool." "You like them?" I asked him, with a grin, then added. "When we were still together, I saw those leather jeans and that bright blue shirt in the store back home, so when I happened to see them at the store here in L.A., I knew I had to get them for you. I thought they'd look good on you." "Well, how about I run upstairs and try them on and then you can judge for yourself?" Nick suggested. At that, I grinned. "Not a bad idea." I said. "That way you can see if they fit you right. I think that they will. That shirt is going to be a little tight on you. The leather jeans should be just comfortable on you." "Well we'll find out won't we?" Nick said. "I'll be right back." I watched him leave the room to change. When he was gone, I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned to see Danny grinning at me. "What is that grin about?" I asked him, a little amused myself. "Can't I just be glad to see my best friend after four months? Now, give me a hug." He demanded, grabbing me into a bone-crushing hug. "I didn't get one when you came in." He added, as I hugged him back. "Well, you're getting one now aren't you?" I laughed. "And I'm not buying that you're just happy to see me. There's something more to that grin. What is it?" "Sometimes, you just know me too well, you know that?" Danny laughed. "Actually, I've got some good news of my own to share with you?" "Well don't keep me in suspense, buddy, what is it?" I asked him, anxiously. "Amber and I are back together." Danny blurted out. I was totally surprised. "You and Amber?" I asked in disbelief. "After the way she broke up with you? Are you telling me you've forgiven her?" "Yeah. I ran into her two months ago in Las Vegas. She was shopping for a friend of hers and I just happened to be there. I talked to her for a bit and that's when she told me that the guy she'd been seeing had turned out to be a total jerk and she broke up with him. Then she told me that she still loved me and asked for another chance. And now we're back together." "Are you sure this is what you want?" I asked him, concerned. "I just don't want to see you get hurt again. You scared the shit out of me, when you showed up at my doorstep, a total wreck that day." "I still loved Amber, despite our break-up." Danny said to me. "And she's the woman I will always want to be with, so you don't have to worry about me getting hurt again. I'm happier than I've ever been." "Well if you're happy, then I'm happy for you, buddy." I said, pulling him into another hug. "Where is Amber, by the way?" I asked, releasing him. "Oh, she couldn't make it to the party today, she had to work." Danny explained. "She told me to say hello to you the next time I saw you." "Wait a minute?!" I exclaimed. "You said you saw her two months ago? Why didn't you tell me over the phone? You talked to me almost every day, when you could." "This wasn't something I wanted you to hear over the phone." Danny said. "I wanted to tell you in person." "Well thanks. I'm glad you did." I said to him, patting his shoulder. "Me too." Danny said, then his eyes looked up, past me and I turned around to see what he was looking at. My jaw dropped when I saw him. Nick had on the bright blue shirt, which brought out his eyes, and was a little tight on him, showing the outlines of his pecs and his abs through the shirt. And the jeans were just the right size and fit him in all the right places. "Nick, you look great!" I stuttered. "Really? You like?" He asked, spinning to give me a full show. "Oh yes, definitely." I said, grinning. "What about you? Do you like them?" "Are you kidding?!" Nick asked. "I love them! The leather jeans feel so good on me and this shirt does too. You picked a good choice of clothes for me." "Yes, he certainly did." Danny added, elbowing me, as he said that. I elbowed him back, blushing. Danny just laughed. "Well I'm going to go and help Jeff serve the guests your cake." Danny said, then asked. "Do you two want some along with some ice cream?" "Sure, I'll come and get some first since I'm the birthday boy." Nick said. "You coming, Sean?" "Sure, lead the way." I said, following him and Danny to the table where Kandi was just starting to cut the cake and Jeff was getting paper plates in his hands to hand out to the guests after putting the cake slices on them. Nick got to her just as she put the first slice on a plate which Jeff then handed to Nick. "There you go, buddy." Jeff said. "Happy Birthday" "Thanks, Jeff." Nick said, patting his shoulder as he stepped aside, allowing Danny to get his next. "Jeff, do you want me to go and get the ice cream?" He asked. in response Jeff snapped his fingers. "I knew I forgot something!" He gasped. "It's in the freezer, in the kitchen." "I'll go and get it." I suggested. "Ok, thanks, Sean." Jeff said, giving me a sexy smile. "Hurry back." "I will." I said, and jogged into the kitchen to get the ice cream. I opened the refrigerator freezer and was stunned at all the different flavors of ice cream that was in there. "Geez, the guys really go all out for a party!" I said, sarcastically. "Oh! Cookie Dough Ice cream! My favorite!" I grabbed it, along with Neopolitan, and a few other flavors and headed back into the family room. I ran out and set them on the table with the cake. Kandi was still there, cutting cake slices and handing them out to Jeff. "So, are you enjoying yourself?" I asked her. Kandi nodded. "You bet I am." She said, with a smile. "I've never been to a party like this in forever. It was nice of Justin to bring me." "Yeah, Justin's a cool guy alright." I said to her. "He's been my rock through all the tough times in my life. He was always there for me whenever I needed him and his advice." "Yeah, Justin told me about you and Nick." Kandi suddenly said, causing me to becoming nervous. Kandi noticed this and quickly took action. "And just so you know, I'm cool with you being gay." Kandi said. "I have no problem with it." "That's good to know." I said in relief. "I don't have alot of friends who are ok with the idea, except for Danny. And now you." I added. "Yep, You've got a friend in me too, if you want one?" Kandi said, extending her arms out to me. "Thanks." I said, walking into her arms, where she gave me a hug and I hugged her back. "And of course, I'd be honored to be your friend too." Just as I released her, I saw Justin come up to us. "You're aren't trying to swipe my woman are you, Sean?" He asked, giving me a mock evil look. I just laughed at him. "Of course not, Justin." I said to him. "She's not my type anyway." Oh, thanks alot." Kandi scoffed, playfully swatting my arm. "No offense, honey, but I'm more into 98 Degrees men." "Well not my man, so hands off." Kandi half-joked with a grin. "Gladly." I joked. "I've got 3 other 98 Degree men to pursue. Plus I want my cake and ice cream now, anyway." With that, I grabbed a paper plate, with a piece of cake on it, and headed towards Drew, who was pouring red punch into a cup for himself, his back to me. "Hey, Drew." I greeted him. "Do you want some company?" I asked. Drew looked up at me and his face was streaked with tears. I immediately grew concerned. "Drew, what's wrong?" I asked him. "Not here." Drew said, wiping at his eyes. "Come with me, upstairs." With that, he turned and started walking towards the stairs. I followed him up to his room. As soon as we were inside, He shut the door and turned to face me, his eyes, still filled with tears. "So, I guess this means that I've lost you." Drew said, taking me by surprise. "What are you talking about, Drew?" I asked him. "I'm talking about Nick." Drew said, the bitterness obvious in his voice. "You've chosen him over me. It was obvious the way you were looking at him when he came downstairs wearing the clothes you got him. I could see it in your eyes." I lowered my eyes to the floor, guilt starting to sink in. That was all the answer Drew needed. "When were you going to tell me?" Drew asked me, more and more tears sliding down his cheeks. "After the party." I said. I didn't want to ruin it by telling you right away. But yes, Drew, you're right. I still love Nick. I always have." "Oh, so then why did you kiss me the day that you left then?" Drew asked me, a hint of anger in his voice. "When you did that, you gave me false hope that we would be together. How could I have been so stupid not to see it?" I felt like shit right at this moment. This was the price I had to pay for hurting a good man. And Drew was a good man. Now I had to deal with the fact that our friendship may never be the same again after this. "I did it because at that time I wanted to." I explained. "And I'm not going to apologize for it, and I certainly don't regret it. Because at that time, I wasn't sure which one of you I wanted more." The only thing I'm sorry about is that I may have lead you on." "Well you did." Drew said, his anger showing through now. "How could you do this to me, Sean?" "Drew, I will always care about you." I said to him, starting to tear up myself, hating that he was hurting and it was because of me that he was hurt. "You're a great guy, Drew." I continued. "And I thought long and hard about both you and Nick and I realized that it wasn't meant to be between you and me, and that I still was in love with Nick." "Well, I'm obviously not good enough for you!" Drew snarled. "Now, I have to deal with seeing you and Nick together everyday and kissing and God only knows what else. I can't handle that." "Drew, you knew something like this would happen." I said. "And before I left four months ago, you said that sometimes you can't protect the people you care about most from getting hurt. No matter how much you love them. Do you remember that?" "Yes, I do." Drew said. "But I didn't think I was gonna get dumped at the time. But I was wrong wasn't I?" I nodded. That's when Drew sank down onto the bed and started crying. I put a hand on his shoulder and he brushed it off. "Don't touch me, Sean!" Drew sobbed. "I hate you!" A pang of hurt came over me when he said he hated me and my tears started falling then. "Drew...." I started. "Don't say it." Drew yelled, looking up at me, the anger and hurt evident in his eyes. "Don't say it! Don't say that you never meant to hurt me, because you have! More than you can possibly know! Of all the people in the world, Sean, I thought you'd be the last person to betray me like this. Now please just get out of here and leave me alone." "Drew, please?" I tried again. "Get Out!" Drew screamed. I took in a deep sigh and walked to the door. Before exiting, I turned around and decided to say one more thing. "Drew, just let me say one more thing and then I'm out of here." I asked him. He wouldn't look at me, but nodded. "I just hope that after you've had some time to think and get over your pain, that you'll still be my friend. If you want to hit me or beat me up, I probably deserve it, but please don't stop being my friend. That'll hurt alot more." I said to him. He didn't answer to that, so I left his room behind me, shutting his door. As I rounded the corner, I heard him scream and then I heard something being thrown against the wall. Then I heard him sobbing. I closed my eyes, as another set of tears ran down my face. I wiped them away and headed downstairs to the family room. When I got to the room, I noticed Nick, Danny, and Jeff, standing around each other, chatting, and eating cake and ice cream. Ben and Matt were nowhere to be seen. I started walking over to Nick to tell him that He was the man for me, but then I stopped myself, getting an idea in my head of a better way to tell him. So I did just that. I walked over to a small stage that was there and I asked the DJ who Nick had hired to play some tunes, to set up a microphone for me. He did that and put in the song I was going to sing. Then I raised the microphone and spoke into it. "May I have everyone's attention, please?" I asked the audience. they all turned and looked at me, giving me their full attention. "I usually don't do this, but I'm going to sing a very special song for a very, very, special guy. "Happy Birthday, Nick." I said to him, then gave the DJ permission to start the music. Once it started, I began to sing. "The lonliness of nights so long." The search for strength to carry on." "My every hope had seemed to die." "My eyes had no more tears to cry." "Then, like the sun, shining up above." "You surrounded me with your endless love." "And all the things I couldn't see." "Are now so clear to me." Here I looked straight at Nick, who was looking at me, wide-eyed, as were Danny, Jeff, Justin, and Kandi, as I looked around and continued singing. Chorus "You are my everything." "Nothing your love won't bring." "My life is yours alone." "The only love I've ever known." "Your spirit pulls me through." "When nothing else will do." "Every night I pray on bended knee." "That you will always be." "My Everything." "Now all my hopes and all my dreams." "Are suddenly reality." "You opened up my hart to feel." "The kind of love that truly real." "A guiding Light that'll never fade." "There's nothing in life that I would ever trade." "For the love you give and won't let go." "I hope you always know." Chorus "You are my everything." "Nothing your love won't bring." "My life is yours alone." "The only love I've ever known." "Your spirit pulls me through." "When nothing else will do." "Everynight I pray on bended knee." "That you will always be." "My Everything." "Oh, You're the breath of life in me." "The only one that sets me free." "And you have made my soul complete." "For all time." "For all time." Chorus, Chorus. "Every night I pray down on bended knee." "That you will always be." "MY Everything." "Oh, My Everything." I finished, just as the crowd burst into applause, cheering and catcalling. I looked over at The guys, Danny, and Kandi, and saw all of them, were stunned beyond words. Especially, Nick, who had tears running down his face. "Well, everyone what did you think? Was I good or what?" I asked the audience. They all went wild, clapping, and screaming, telling me all I needed to know. "Thank you." I said to them. "I'll be right back up here in a few minutes. Til then, enjoy the next song and have fun!" With that, I put down the mike and walked over to Nick, Danny, Jeff, Justin, and Kandi, who were all huddled together in a group, waiting for me. When I got to them, Nick was the first to grab me into a bone-crushing hug. "Sean, that was so beautiful." Nick said. "I've been waiting to hear you say that you love me for a long time now." "I know, Nick." I said, hugging him back. "I always loved you. Even after you betrayed me." "Thank God." Nick said. "I almost had given up on being with you for good. "That's why I was so cold to you earlier and I'm so sorry for that." "Forget it." I said. "It's water under the bridge now." I said. Then Danny and Jeff came up to me and hugged me. "How come you never told us you could sing like that?" Jeff asked me in disbelief. "If we'd known that, we could have made a popstar out of you." "Yeah, I agree." Justin said. "You were great!" "I second that." Kandi said. The guys could have made you a star." "Aww, come on, I wasn't that good." I said. "Yes you were." I heard a familiar voice from behind me. I turned to see Drew, gazing at me, his eyes red from crying. Nick got concerned. "Drew, what's wrong?" Nick asked, worried. "You look like you've been crying." I have, Nick." Drew said, sadly. "Because I lost Sean to you." He then turned to me. "Sean, I'm sorry that I told you I hated you upstairs. I was just hurt and angry. If Nick makes you happy, then I'm happy for you." He said then hugged me. Then I heard him whisper in my ear. "You're a very hard guy to get over, Sean, but I'd rather have you as a friend, then not have you at all." Drew said. I hugged him harder. "You're one in a million, Drew." I said. "Never forget that." I released him and he was smiling now. "Don't worry I won't. He said, then turned to his brother. "Congratulations, Nick. You've got a great guy. Treat him right this time, or you'll answer to me." Drew warned Nick. "Don't worry, bro." Nick said, leaning in to hug Drew. "I won't hurt him ever again." They released each other and Drew then turned to Jeff. "Can I stay with you for the night, Jeff?" Drew asked. "It'll give Sean and Nick some time alone." "Sure, Drew." Jeff said. "Go get your things and we'll be on our way. Danny and I are getting ready to leave anyway." He said. "They're already packed." Drew said. I'll head out and wait outside for you guys." He headed towards the stairs to get his luggage. Jeff and Danny said goodbye to us and went over to help him. "Well I better let everyone else know that the party is over." Nick said. He walked up to the mike and then spoke. "May I have your attention, Everyone?" He asked. Everyone stopped dancing and looked at him. "I want to thank you all for coming to my birthday party. It was one of the best birthdays I've ever had." Goodnight Everyone and drive safe." After that was done, Everyone started leaving. After about 20 minutes everyone was gone and only Justin, Kandi, Nick and Me. Jeff, Danny, and Drew, had left. "Well Sean, It was great meeting you." Kandi said,hugging me. "Take care of your man." She added, with a smile. "Oh, I will alright." I said, earning a cuff in the arm from her. "You have a sick, dirty, mind, do you know that? She laughed. "But that why you love me." I giggled. "No, that's why Nick loves you." Justin said, before hugging me. "Goodnight you two." And with that, they both headed to the door and left. Nick and I were alone in the house. Everyone was gone. I looked around at the family room. It was a mess. "Well I guess we should clean up." I said,starting to head towards the tables. Nick grabbed my arm. "It's nothing that can't wait until tommorrow." Nick said. Right now, I want to be alone with you." "Ok, why don't you go upstairs and I'll be in in a few minutes after I put the cake and ice cream in the refrigerator and freezer?" I suggested. "Alright, sexy." Nick said, grinning. "Don't be long." He headed upstairs. I walked to the table and grabbed all the ice cream and took it to the kitchen to put in the freezer. I ran back into the family room to put what was left of the cake in the refrigerator. Then I remembered something. My other gift for Nick. I grabbed it from my coat pocket and went to turn out all of the lights and lock all of the doors in the house. Then I headed upstairs to Nick's room. I saw him reading my card I hid under his sheets. He looked up as I entered and read what I had written on the card. Nick, Happy Birthday. And I will be there with you for many more of them for many more years to come. You are my Everything. I love you. Now and Forever." Love, Sean Nick finished and looked up at me, tears in his eyes. "I've missed you so much, Sean. My life was never the same without you." He said. "And I've missed you too, Nick." I said, then handed him my gift. "Here, open this. I wanted to give you this in private also." Nick took it and opened it, revealing a small velvet box. He opened it and gasped. Inside was a silver and gold, wedding band, just like the one he'd gotten for me months ago when he proposed to me. He gasped when he saw it. "This is the same one I still have." Nick said. "Why did you get me one like the one I got you?" "Why else?" I asked him, then added. "So we have identical wedding bands for when you and I get married. That is if you still want to get married?" Nick jumped up and pulled me into a hug. "Of course I do, baby. You're everything to me. And Now I can finally do this right." He said. He then reached into his dresser drawer and pulled out a velvet box and opened it in front of me, while getting down on one knee. "Will you marry me, Sean Perry?" He asked, looking up at me, the love evident in his eyes. He was ready for this. And so was I. "Yes, Nick." I said kneeling down and hugging him. "I would be thrilled to marry you." Nick then squeezed me harder, almost choking me. Then I heard him ask me something that we hadn't done for a long time. "Make love to me, Sean." Nick said. "I want you inside of me this time." I pulled back and looked Nick in the eyes. I could see desire and passion in his eyes. He wanted this. And so did I. "Yes, Nick. I'd be honored. It's been so long." I said. And with that, I leaned in and kissed him. I felt like I was kissing him for the first time, all over again. That kiss turned more passionate until Nick lifted me off the floor and set me down on the bed. He set his ring and mine, which were in different colored boxes, his blue, and my black, on the dresser beside the bed. He then proceeded to take off his clothes. He stripped to his boxers, showing off that awesome, muscular body that I'd grown to love so much. Then he got into bed with me and started kissing me again. "I love you, Nicholas Lachey." I whispered, breaking the kiss. "And I want to show you how much." "I love you too, Sean." Nick said. "More than you'll ever know. Make love to me." He said and I rolled him over so he was on the bottom and made sure that his first time, being a bottom was one that he wouldn't soon forget. We made love all night that night, and fell asleep in each other arms. Well that's all for this installment. "Will Nick and Sean get married without a hitch? Or will Drew stop them? Or maybe Nick's and Drew's parents? Stay tuned. What happens next? Oh, if you only knew! slpwriter