[[ Friends Forever ]]

During the next hour, I began to get butterflies in my stomach again. The show would start in about four hours. A lot depended on the audience's reaction that night. I prayed that they'd like us. Our first single, titled ' It's All Good, ' was doing exceptionally well on the charts, so I guessed we were well received. But I still worried and wondered if they'd like us.

Meanwhile, AJ was having the same problem. She came up to me in the dressing room a little while later. " Nikki? I'm getting really nervous, " she said. I laughed. " Me, too. But it'll be fun, " I said, swallowing nervously. " I know it'll be fun... but what if one of us messes up? All the Backstreet Boys will be watching! We have to be absolutely perfect! What if something gets messed up? " she asked, sounding a bit panicked.

I laughed. " Nothing will go wrong! If it does, oh, well! Nobody's perfect! " I exclaimed. AJ smiled meekly. " I know... but I don't want them to think we're idiots! " she said. " They won't! If they do, oh, well. That's their problem. We know we're not, " I pointed out. With that, I went back to looking at several outfits my wardrobe manager had picked out.

By the time we'd picked out our outfits and made sure they looked okay together, there were only two hours until the show. I quickly got dressed and went to find the makeup person. She was just finishing up on Harmony's makeup. " My turn! " I said, plopping down in the chair. The woman got out another case of makeup and went to work on my face.

Within about fifteen minutes, she'd finished and AJ was waiting beside my chair for her turn. Charisma was still getting dressed. I got up and stood around talking to Harmony while we waited for AJ's makeup to get done and for Charisma to arrive.

Charisma didn't make it to makeup until about twenty minutes before showtime. " Hurry up! " I exclaimed as she sat down in the chair. The woman got to work quickly and finished her makeup within ten minutes. " Okay... ten minutes till showtime! " I said nervously, looking at my partners in crime. We all grinned despite the butterflies in all of our stomachs.

When it was showtime, I didn't think I'd ever been more nervous in my life. We've got to do a good job out here! I thought, saying a quick prayer. An announcer went out onstage and started blabbering about something going on locally. Get on with it! I thought. Then he announced our names and I ran out onstage behind Harmony.

When we'd finished up our six songs, I followed Charisma backstage and blinked. My eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness, and I could now see everything around me. Okay, good, I thought. The Backstreet Boys were standing nearby talking. Nick looked up and grinned. " Hey, you guys! You were great! " he said.

" Really? " I asked, suddenly overcome with shyness.

Nick nodded. " Yeah! " he said. I smiled, then turned away. I doubted he could tell I was blushing, because of the darkness, but I didn't want to take any chances. A few minutes later, the guys were called onstage. I stepped up to sidestage to watch them. Nick glanced back as he was heading out, and when he saw me, he winked. Huh? I thought.

After the guys' encore performance, they came backstage and Nick immediately came up to me.

" Hey, Nikki, " he said, grinning at me. I smiled. " Hey, Nick! You guys were the great ones tonight! Wow! " I exclaimed. " Thanks, " he said, turning to look at the rest of the guys. They were all talking to Harmony about something.

" When you went out there earlier, how did you feel? Nervous? " Nick asked me. I snapped back to reality. " What? Oh, yeah, of course! Don't we all? " I asked. He laughed. " Well... yeah. I mean, I guess so. I do every night, " he said. " Really? " I asked. He nodded. " In all honesty, I felt like I was going to faint, I was so nervous. That would have been terribly embarrassing if I had passed out... oh, man! I don't even want to think about that! " I exclaimed. Nick laughed.

Nick and I walked back to the buses together, talking about the show that night. " I had a blast... I can't wait for tomorrow's show! " I exclaimed. Nick grinned. " It'll be better! " he said. I giggled. " Cool! " I said. We stood outside the Strike 4 bus for a few minutes longer, not saying anything. Then I broke the silence. " Well, I'm really tired. I need to go to bed, " I said. " Me, too, " Nick said. " Okay. I'll see you tomorrow, " I said. He nodded. " Okay. 'Night, " he said. " 'Night. "

I layed in bed that night thinking about what all had happened that night. The show had been a lot of fun, and a lot easier than I'd expected. Once we were onstage, all my fears washed away and I got into the performance. The others seemed to have done the same. And judging from the response from the audience, they were enjoying themselves, too. I was really glad they liked the show.

My alarm clock went off at six the next morning. " Shut up, " I mumbled, reaching over and hitting it. The music blared louder. " Damn it! " I muttered, opening my eyes and looking at it. It continued to blast music out of the little speaker, even though I glared viciously at it. " Okay, okay. You win, " I said grumpily, getting up and shutting it off.

By the time I was up and dressed and had taken a shower, everyone else was already off the bus doing something. We had arrived at the venue for that night's concert around four in the morning. I got off the bus and wandered around, looking for familiar faces. Charisma was talking to Brian by the door. She said something, then waved and walked away. " Charisma! Wait up! " I called, running over to her.

" Hey, Nik. What's up? " she asked. " Nothing. Just looking for someone to hang out with, " I said.

We walked into the venue and music flooded my ears. The Backstreet Boys were doing a soundcheck. A familiar melody met my ears and I hummed along with it. Charisma and I walked around backstage for a while, then went into the dressing rooms to see what our wardrobe managers had picked for that night.

When Charisma and I left the dressing rooms, Nick wandered up behind me. " Hey, Nikki, " he said. I jumped, startled. " Oh! You scared me! " I exclaimed, laughing. Nick grinned. " Sorry about that, " he said. I smiled. " It's okay... what are you up to? " I asked. He shrugged. " Nothing, really. I was getting ready to go get something for lunch. Want to go with me? The rest of the guys are going to the bus to take naps, " he said. I grinned. " Sure! When? " I asked.

" In about fifteen minutes, " he replied. " Cool. Where to? " I asked. " Pizza sound good? " he asked. I nodded. " Definitely. I love pizza, " I said. Nick grinned. " Me, too. It's my favorite, " he said. We went our separate ways and I climbed on board the bus. Cool! Lunch with Nick! I thought excitedly. Wait... what do I wear?

The wardrobe manager found me a cute tank top and a pair of shorts to wear, and I quickly changed into them. I now had five minutes to get ready. Plenty of time, I thought, going into the bathroom and quickly brushing my hair. It fell loosely around my face and I set the brush down. I added a touch of lip gloss and then shut off the light and left the bathroom.

Nick and I left a couple minutes later and headed to a nearby pizza parlor. We ordered a cheese pizza and talked while we waited for it to arrive. When it got there, we ate quietly for a while. " So, are you having fun out on the road? " Nick asked, breaking the silence. I grinned. " You bet! It's great! " I exclaimed.

" We always have fun. I'll tell ya something, it's probably the best time we have, " he said. " Cool! I know I'm going to enjoy it, I love traveling, " I said.

When we'd finished eating, we paid the waiter and then left to head back to the venue. " Have you ever been to Disney World? " Nick asked, out of the blue. I looked up. " Yeah, a few times. Why? " I asked.

" Did you know we're going in three weeks? There's going to be two shows, and then we're taking a day to run around the park, " he said. " Really? " I asked. He nodded. " Cool! " I exclaimed.

A little while later, we had a rehearsal. Harmony, AJ [From now on, she'll be recognized as Amanda, because of AJ McLean's appearances in the story ], Charisma, and I were all onstage fooling around. I noticed Nick watching from sidestage. When he saw me looking at him, he grinned at me and shot me a thumbs up. I smiled and focused my attention back on the rehearsal. Charisma looked at me and laughed, shaking her head. I didn't understand why.

About ten minutes before the show, I realized I had forgotten to call my mom and remind her to send some papers I needed. They would have to be sent next day mail, and I needed them by the day after the next. Shoot! I thought, rushing to get my phone. I knew if I didn't call her now and remind her, I'd forget about it completely.

After reminding my mom to send the papers, I was halfway across the arena when I heard them announcing the band. " Damn it! Wait a minute! " I muttered, breaking into a run. I zipped past Nick, who was heading to the stage area, too. " Hi, Nick! Bye, Nick! " I said, looking at him and waving as I ran by.

Then I stumbled and fell on my rear end. " Ow! Shit! " I mumbled, then looked around to make sure no one had seen me fall.

" Are you okay? " Someone had seen my graceful move. I turned and saw Nick hurrying toward me.

" Yeah, I'm fine. I have to get my butt over there! " I exclaimed. " Yeah, you do. Hurry up, " he said, reaching out a hand to help me up. " Thanks... see ya! " I said, pulling my shoes off and running down the hallway at mad pace.

By the time I made it onstage, Charisma, Harmony, and Amanda were all already out singing. I went out onstage as though nothing had happened. No one seemed to realize it wasn't part of the act. Halfway through the show, I had an urge to look back at the backstage area, and when I did, I saw Nick watching. He smiled at me, and I smiled back and went back to my performance.

I followed Amanda backstage after the set. " Good timing, Nikki, " Charisma said drily, coming up behind me. " Shut up. I had to call my mom, " I said. " Why? " she asked. " To remind her to send me the forms for the new record thing. They were sent to my mom instead of the record label, " I answered. " It could have waited until the end of the show, " she said. " I would have forgotten, " I protested. " No you wouldn't have, " she said. " Yes, I would have! " I retorted, shooting her a nasty look. She shook her head and walked away.

Amanda and I talked while we watching the Backstreet Boys perform, and I started talking about a new song we were working on. " I've got some ideas for it that are kicking around in my brain. I don't know, though. They might be too crazy. Or too stupid. Are you even listening to me? " I asked, waving my hand in her face. " Huh? " she asked, looking at me. " Were you listening? " I asked. She shook her head. " Sorry. I was watching AJ, " she said. I laughed. " You better not, Josh will get mad. "

Josh is Amanda's boyfriend. He lives back in Florida. When we'd gone on tour, it had been tough for her to leave, and I'd had the same problem with my current love. By now, we hardly spoke to each other. I was always too busy to talk to him, and he never bothered to call. I didn't even remember giving him the cell phone number. Some girlfriend you are, I scolded myself. Then I went to find the phone to call him.

" Jason? " I asked when someone answered the phone. " Yeah... Nikki? " he asked. " Yep! " I exclaimed. " Hey! I was hoping you'd call! I haven't been able to get ahold of you because I didn't have the cell phone number, " he said. I laughed. " I knew I forgot to give it to you, " I said. " So, how are things going on the road? Have you met any new interesting people? " he asked.

" It's going great. I met all the Backstreet Boys. They're really nice, " I said. " Cool. " There was a hint of suspicion in his voice. " Relax. We're all just friends, " I said. " Oh, okay. Well... I've got to talk to you about something, " he said, his voice getting lower. " What is it? " I asked. " It's hard to keep up a relationship like this... I think we should break up, " he said. " What? " I asked.

" It's not because I don't love you. I just think it'd be better, " he said. I started to cry. " Why? " I asked. " It's a lot easier. Nikki, face it. We're not couple material. We never talk to each other, and we see each other even less than that! " he said. I sniffed. " I guess you're right, " I said slowly. We talke d it over and decided to break up. When I hung up the phone, I started to sob.

Standing in the middle of a hallway crying your heart out is anything but quiet. Brian heard me, and came to see what was going on. " What's wrong, Nikki? " he asked. I just shook my head and sniffed. " Are you okay? " he asked. I shook my head. " No, " I managed to choke out. " What happened? " he asked.

" I just talked to my boyfriend... well, ex boyfriend now, " I said, sniffling. " Oh... I'm sorry, " Brian said, putting his arms around me and hugging me. Just then Nick walked up. " What's wrong with Nikki? " he asked.

Brian explained everything to Nick, who then hugged me tightly. " It's okay. It was probably the best thing to do, " he said quietly. My crying slowly subsided and I sniffed back the last tear. Nick and I talked about it for a while. " I can't believe it, " I murmured. Nick put his arm around my shoulder. " You'll be okay. I promise, " he said. I looked up at him and smiled faintly, then sighed. " I wish I could say the same thing, " I muttered.