~ Chapter 33 ~
Stockholm, Sweden
The next few weeks fly by in a haze and before everyone knew it, it was the final concert of the European tour. Kevin and Loreto spent every waking moment in bed together. She knew she was leading with her heart and not her head, but for now she didn't care. Kevin, on the other hand, had no idea what he was doing. The sex was good. Hell, it was great. But he wasn't being honest with Loreto. He was still doing drugs even though he'd kept it on the downlow and only used a bit of pot when he was around her. The thought that his mother wanted him home in Kentucky for a visit scared him. She would see the difference in him. She would know that something was wrong. His mother knew him better than anyone else. He didn't want to hurt her. That's why she couldn't know about this. How was he suppose to get through a week without his best-friend?
*During the concert in Stockholm, August 7th
Kevin ran back onstage after the short intermission. The other guys were still changing. The curtain was down so the audience couldn't see him. The band was strumming an instrumental. He bounced around the stage. He was full of relentless energy. A few snorts of the old stuff and he felt like a new man. He jumped onto the level next to Tommy and started singing and dancing along to what Tommy was playing. Tommy cocked an eyebrow. "You feelin' ok?" he asked. He noticed Kevin's mood had changed dramtically since the last song. He was just going through the motions earlier on. Now he seemed revived. A suspiciouis thought crossed Tommy's mind, but he quickly zapped it. Kevin wouldn't be doing anything like that.
"I'm GREAT!" Kevin shouted. "Why? Don't I look ok?"
Tommy nodded. "Yea...I was just wondering."
Kevin saw that security was picking out mothers and daughters for their next song, The Perfect Fan. His roving eye caught sight of a lovely woman coming onstage. She looked to be around his age with a daughter around 8. He strode over to her. "You two can sit by me," he said, grinning.
The other guys were coming back out. Security led a mother/daughter team to the remaining four. Kevin sat down in between them. "What's your name?" he asked the woman.
"Sue." She smiled. "This is my daughter Kimberly."
Kevin turned to the little girl. "Hi cutie."
She grinned at him, showing a missing tooth. "Where is he?"
The music started to play. Kevin had a hard time hearing her. "Who?"
"Nicky. I can't see him."
Kevin frowned. "I see. He's on the other side of the stage, sweetie." He turned to Sue. "I see she likes Nicky. Most kids do. I guess since he's just a kid himself he appeals to them." He laughed
A strange look crossed his face. Not sure whether or not he was joking, Sue let out a small chuckle. "I prefer Brian myself. But you're all equally gifted."
Kevin stared at her, saying nothing. A variety of expressions flitted across his face. Oblivious that it was his turn to sing, he got up and marched over to Brian. "Get over there!" he ordered his cousin.
Brian stood up slowly. "Kev, it's your turn to sing," he whispered.
The other guys had come around to see why Kevin wasn't singing. When Brian saw that Kevin wasn't going to do anything, he fell into Kevin's part.
Kevin sat down next to the team Brian was paired up with. Brian cast him a sidelong glance and went to sit with Sue and Kimberly. The song continued on. Kevin pretended to sing. He was feeling slightly frazzled. He didn't like Brian stealing his part in the song. As if the little bugger doesn't sing enough.
He ignored the two girls and put his head down. It was throbbing. The music seemed louder than usual. He lifted his head as the song came to an end. The glare of the spotlight hit him square in the eyes.
He shot up. Like a man in a trance, he made his way to the edge of the stage. The audience grew quiet wondering what was going on. "Hey guys!" Kevin said to the audience. "Do you think it's fair that Brian stole my part in the song?"
Not a sound could be heard. The band had stopped playing. Nick, Howie, and AJ looked at each other, their faces ashen while Brian made his way over to his cousin.
Kevin felt a hand on his shoulder. "Kev, what the hell are you doing?" Brian whispered angrily.
Kevin was about to retort when he heard Howie telling the audience this was just a little joke they were playing. He tore away from Brian and jumped off the stage. He ran over to where Loreto and Shaw were sitting in the front row. He stuck the mic in Loreto's face and said, "What honey? No reply? Why you so quiet?"
Loreto frowned. "Kevin, what're you doing?"
"Trying to find out if the audience really likes me." He rubbed his hand down Loreto's cheek. "You like me, baby, dontcha?"
Loreto tried to grab the mic from his hand. "Kevin, I don't think this is the time..."
Kevin pulled his hand away, his face on fire. "DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO! You were pretty happy screaming your lungs off while I was f**king you last night, weren't you? Now you can't even stand up for me?"
Shae gasped as Loreto's face crumpled. She stood up and ran for the backstage area. Shae gave Kevin a dirty look then followed her friend.
Kevin could see security making their way towards him. Howie jumped off the stage. "Kevin, let's go backstage. You need to lie down."
"F**k off D! I don't need anything from you! I'm talking to my Swedish friends here. You do understand me, don't you?" he yelled into the audience.
He walked farther down the front row. "How many of you are Nick fans?" he yelled out.
The audience came back alive and some screams rang out. Hands shot up around the arena. Kevin shook his head. "I'm disappointed in you guys."
Nick was standing next to Tommy. He froze when Kevin said his name.
"Nick's just an egotistical creep," Kevin said, laughing. "He lies and pretends. You guys don't know the real Nick Carter. He's such a..."
Not believing that Kevin could do this to him, Nick ran off backstage. Someone grabbed the mic from Kevin's hand. He turned to see his bodyguard Q standing there. "That's enough!" Q said.
Before Kevin could make a move, Q snatched him under his arm as if he were weightless and made his way backstage.
Kevin saw Nick out of the corner of his eye. He was running back onstage. He heard the hum of the band starting up again. And AJ's voice as he apologized to the audience. His head was pounding. He felt sick. He wanted to die.
Q dumped him hard onto a couch in his dressing room and left, slamming the door.
Kevin curled up and shut his eyes, trying to drown out the pain. The sound of the door opening made him look up.
The color drained from his face as he saw who was standing there.
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