~ Epilogue ~
October 1999, Lexington
"How's my favorite patient today?"
Kevin smiled at the young man, unable to resist his grin. "Getting better every day Nicky. What ya got there?" Nick was carrying a tray.
"Well," Nick said, looking like that cat that swallowed the canary, "I talked the kitchen into letting me make you lunch. I call it The Delish Nick Dish."
Kevin paled. "You...cooked?" Nick nodded and set the plate down in front of Kevin. Kevin removed the cover and burst out laughing. "Nick! This is an egg sandwich."
Nick pretended to be hurt. "Yea and what of it? Eggs are the only thing I can cook. Remember my Crabs incident? You know I've been banned from the Fish Market. Every time I went there, the crabs and lobsters would jump out of their tanks and slither off quickly to hide."
Kevin chuckled. "I see you got your sense of humor back."
"I have you back." Nick smiled warmly at his older brother.
Kevin's eyes misted over as he recalled the ordeal of the past three weeks. He had literally died in Nick's arms just as the paramedics were arriving. Brian performed CPR until the EMTs got there and shocked him. They managed to bring Kevin back and rushed him to the nearest hospital where he stayed for four days. His doctor was a kind, older man in his late 50's who reminded Kevin of his own father. He informed Kevin that what they pumped from his stomach was not Cocaine, but a poison-like substance, kind of like Arsenic, but that kills much slower. "In other words," the doctor told him, "your dealer sold you fake Cocaine. You should consider yourself lucky for if it had been real Cocaine, you would've been dead hours ago."
Kevin flinched at his words, but never thought he would be grateful that this dealer swindled him out of a lot of money.
After his hospital stay, he was transferred back to Ellingdale's where he had to stay for four weeks. He was there for two weeks before he was allowed visitors other than his relatives. That's when Loreto flew up to Kentucky with Shae-Lyn.
Loreto paused before going into his room. She was bustling with nervous energy. Would Kevin welcome her back with open arms? She took a deep breathe and pushed the door open. Kevin was reading and looked up. His expression changed when he saw who it was. "Hey," he said softly, trying not to smile too big.
"Hey back," she said. Then the emotions of the past month overtook her and she started crying. She ran to Kevin, who stood up, and threw herself into his arms. He held her tightly, crying softly into her hair. "Lolo...I'm so sorry," he said brokenly.
Loreto looked up at him. "No, I'm sorry. I should've seen the signs, I should've been more attentive, I should've told you that I was pregnant, I should've..." she was silenced as Kevin put a finger to her lips.
"Should've, could've, would've. We can say it all we want, but it won't change the results. I don't want to go into the millennium with regrets or guilt. It's a brand-new century and I want a brand-new beginning. I want us to start fresh, build a strong relationship based on trust, honesty, and mutual respect. Most of all, I want you to know that I love you and I plan on showing you every day for the rest of our lives. Everything happens for a reason. What happened to me was a message from God. I could've died, but God told me it wasn't my time yet. Our little baby never had a chance at life and here I was wanting to end mine. Our lives are a gift and we only have one so we need to live it to the fullest. I plan on doing just that and you'll never have any regrets or doubts about my love for you. That's my promise to you."
Loreto smiled through her tears and clasped his hands tightly in hers. "To new beginnings," she said. They shared a tender kiss, sealing their promise.
"Did Kevin enjoy his wonderful Egg sandwich a la Nick?" Shae asked as Nick walked back into the lounge where she was waiting for him. She could barely surpress a giggle.
Nick scoffed. "Go ahead and laugh Shae. You'll both regret it one day when I am cooking haute cuisine in Gay Paree and you're sitting in your tiny kitchen munching on soggy raisin bread."
Shae cracked up. "Yea blondie. Gay Paree? Please...don't make me pee my pants."
Nick couldn't resist her giggle. It was contagious. "Alright. Haha." He grinned boyishly.
"How's Kevin doing?" Shae asked.
"Pretty good actually. He told me that he just found out that our North American tour's been postponed until January 2000. Which is a good thing. I feel like the last few months have drained me of my energy. Shae, I have to tell you something."
Shae sat up straight. There was a new light in Nick's eyes. One she hadn't seen before. "Yes?" she asked, a bit too hopeful.
"I've decided to move in with my parents...in California." He saw the stunned look in Shae's eyes, but continued. "I asked them to look for a house a few weeks ago. They found one. I just need to go sign the papers and it's theirs."
"You bought your parents another house?" She must have said it sharper than she intended because Nick threw her an inquisitive glance.
"Yes, I did," he replied evenly. "The other one is too small for seven people."
Shae looked crestfallen. "That's nice. You've got a big heart, Carter."
"Hey," Nick pulled her face up to meet his eyes, "don't look so glum. There's a gatehouse."
Shae's raised her eyebrows. "What are you saying?"
"Come to California with me."
Shae perked up. "Really?" She couldn't control the grin that was quickly spreading across her face.
Nick grinned back. "Yes really! Do you think I would leave my best friend behind?"
Impulsively, she threw her arms around his neck. "I love you Carter!" she cried out without thinking.
Nick released her. "I...I love you, too," he stuttered, not looking at her. He stood up, pulling her with him. "Let's go tell Kev and Loreto."
He held her hand all the way to the room. Shae's body tingled with excitement. There was hope for her yet.
They spoke to Kevin and Loreto about their plans. Kevin was happy and told Nick to go. "I don't need you fawning over me anymore. You saved my life. That's enough for me. I can't wait to be back on my feet so we can get back on the road. Me and Nicky always have a great time onstage, don't we Nicky Boy?" He grinned at his little brother.
Nick nodded, smirking at him. "Backstreet's back, is that alright?"
"It's more than alright!" Kevin yelled. "Here we go into the millennium!"
Kevin put his hands out and Nick took them, but he was looking at Shae who wore a beautiful smile on her face. She looked like an angel at the moment. His angel.
The End.
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