After avoiding Nick for the rest of the week, Cairo decided that she had had enough fun playing with him and sat in her bedroom, watching his backyard periodically while getting ready to go.

She had been debating all week on what to wear…It was just hanging out with some of his friends, what would be the big deal? But what should someone wear while meeting your neighbor (and close friend's) best friends? And would it make a difference to them? She shot down that last thought, Nick hated people who were superficial, he wouldn't be friends with them.

So she finally decided what she would have normally worn on a warm Saturday, her overalls and a tank top. She twisted her hair into two braids, threw on her fisherman's hat and waited, watching out the window for some type of movement (Nick hadn't mentioned what time it was starting). Finally, she saw him walk out to his backyard with someone, and guessing that it had began, she got up and went downstairs.

* * * *

"So Nick, haven't too much from ya lately," Howie said, after him, Brian and AJ were assembled in Nick's backyard with him.

"I guess I've been pretty busy lately. My new neighbor, she's pretty awesome," Nick said, looking away from their interested glances.

"Oh, awesome as in awesome or as is AWEsome?" AJ asked.

"Just, you know, awesome," Nick said, turning a bright shade of red.
"So when do we get to meet her?" Brian said.

"Well, if she comes today, then, yeah, today. But she never did answer me," Nick said, worriedly. He glanced over at Cairo's backdoor. He hadn't seen her at all since Monday.

"We'll just have to make as much noise as possible so that she'll get curious and head over here!" Howie suggested.

"No, she may kill me. You know how artist's get when you interrupt them. I may disappear and never be seen again," Nick sighed. Suddenly, a familiar voice called over the fence.

"Hey Carter! Are you ever going to answer your door or are you going to make me climb the fence?" Cairo said, after a few vain attempts at ringing the bell had failed.

"I'm going to make you climb the fence," he said defiantly, looking over at her, realizing that she was almost already over it.

"Never mind, I'm here," she said, and made her way over to the rest of them. "Hi, I'm Cairo."

"And this is Brian, Howie and AJ. Kevin should be here soon," Nick said.

"Oh! You're the, uh, Backstreet Boys. Wow, didn't know that I'd be meeting the rest of you," Cairo said, getting ready to throw a dagger at Nick.

"It's nice to meet you, Cairo," said Howie. She smiled at him, then grabbed Nick by the arm.

"Excuse me a minute, a word Mr. Carter!" she spat at him as she dragged him over to a corner.

"Ooh, she looks pissed," AJ said under his breath.

"Nick, why didn't you tell that they were going to be here? I just made an ass out of myself in front of the rest of the Backstreet Boys!" she whined.

"Well, Kay, in case you fail to remember, someone didn't feel it necessary to RSVP, so I didn't get a chance to tell her. Plus, what's the big deal? You make an ass out of yourself all the time in front of me!" Nick said.

"Yeah, but I know you!" she said.

"There is nothing different between me and them. They're just normal people, nothing special. By the way, I love your hat!" Nick said, hoping to win forgiveness by his heartfelt compliment. Cairo sighed and looked into his pleading eyes.

"Just give them a chance, they're cool. Just normal guys, honestly," Nick said. She sighed again and marched back over to the table.

Meanwhile, the others were watching the tete-a-tete with interest.

"Wonder what she's chewing him out for?" Brian said.

"Ah, it's Nick. He probably did something to piss her off," AJ said.

"I don't think he told her that we were going to be here," Howie said.

"Ah, that's probably it. She probably thought that 'his boys' were just some ordinary people," AJ resentful of the fact that they were constantly being treated differently.

Finally the two turned around and headed back to the group.

"So, Cairo, what do you do? For a living I mean?" Brian said. Cairo giggled at the distant memory of Nick (or should it be Neil) saying that same thing.

"I'm a writer," she said, and explained why she giggled at what Brian had said, after noticing his baffled expression.

"Oh, you're the one that Nicky was obsessed with reading while we were in Sweden. Man, you couldn't drag him away from your books. He must of read all of them!" Howie said, recalling the nights that Nick had gone without sleep, reading Cairo's books.

"You read all of my novels?" Cairo asked, completely touched. Nick turned away from her glance and turned beet red.

"Hey, I think Kevin's here," he said, dashing into the house, leaving Cairo outside, stranded with the present members of the Backstreet Boys.

"So you met Nick of a cruise, and yet you live next door?" Brian said, thoughtfully frowning.

"Yeah. Talk about the queen of all coincidences. I was in the midst of moving when I went away, and a few weeks later, I was bringing in some boxes, and there was Nick, offering to help me. I was completely shocked!" Cairo said.

"Wow. That's really weird," he said.

"Tell me about it. I dropped my boxes," she said, looking down, flushing slightly.

"So where are you from? You said you'd moved?" asked Howie.

"Oh, I'm from Ontario, Canada," was her proud response.

"Oh, I love Canada! But, wow, the fans are…well, loud!" Brian exclaimed.

"Believe me, it's the highest honor to have people scream hysterically at you. It's the only way they have to show you guys they love you, right?" Cairo explained.

"Oh yeah, we love it there. What made you decided to move from Canada all the way down here?" Howie asked.

"You're looking at it," she said, pointing to the ocean.

"You're an ocean lover? No wonder you and Nick get along. Have you gone scuba diving before?"

"No, but I snorkel!" she said. Just then Nick came out, with a tall guy with dark hair following behind him.

"Hey, old man!" AJ called to Kevin. Kevin returned the greeting and walked over to say hello to Cairo.

"Hey, I'm Kevin. And you are?" he asked.

"I'm Cairo, Nick's neighbor," she said, extending her hand. Nick was right; these guys seemed pretty damn normal.

* * * *

"You only say that because I can kill your jump shot," Cairo retorted, a few hours later. Her and Nick were having yet another friendly argument, full of competitiveness.

"I let you do that! It's the only way you're going to save yourself from being beaten to a bloody pulp!" Nick shot back, laughing at Cairo's expression of widen eyes and pursed lips-supposedly of anger.

"Yeah? And who was it, Carter, that needed me to STOP for him while were we on Key Lima? Who was it that needed help keeping up with everyone else?" she demanded.

"Don't know, I wasn't there, if you remember correctly," he said, looking away.

"Of course you were. Just because you were hiding behind that god awful hair and that horrendous name, doesn't mean you can deny all knowledge!" she yelled, standing up. Nick looked at her sideways, then grabbed a chocolate cupcake that was sitting on the table in front of him and smashed it into her face.

The rest of the guys who were watching this howled with laughter. Cairo glared at Nick's retreating form and then ran after him.

They ran all around his backyard until Cairo finally cornered him near the swimming pool.

"You are going to die for that!" she declared, and pushed him over. He swayed backwards, trying to regain his balanced but to no avail. He fell backwards into the pool, reaching out at the last second, pulling a surprised Cairo after him.

She landed on top of him, and after a few confused seconds trying to figure out what had happened to her, she found the surface before he did, and started to sputter.

"Oh dear," Howie said.

"I know," said Brian, catching on to what he was thinking. "Methinks that our baby brother had fallen for her. In more ways than one!"

"Really? You think he likes her?" asked Kevin, after noting the splashing fight that erupted between the two drowned rats. Cairo splashed Nick square in the face and then made a race for the ladder. Nick caught up to her, and she screamed as he grabbed her around the waist and fell backwards into the water again.

"Totally obvious," AJ agreed with Howie and Brian, as they watched the two heads emerge from the water, laughing and sputtering.

They climbed out of the pool dripping wet and laughing over the whole thing.

"Now, I think it's completely obvious who won that round," Nick said.

"Oh really? And who did?" Cairo asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Me, obviously. You gave up first!" he explained. She walked past him, then suddenly reached out her arm and pushed him back into the pool.