“Ugh!” AJ lept up into the air and quickly spiked the volleyball back into the sand on the other court.
“YEEAHH!” he cried, running back to give high-fives to his teammates, Kevin and his fiancee Valerie, and PollyAnna, Howie’s sister. Then he high-tailed it over to his girlfriend Danielle and gave her a quick kiss before taunting Nick, Brian and his girlfriend Allison, BJ (Nick’s little sister) and Howie on their second loss of the evening. “We beat you guys AGAIN!” he teased. “Come on Nick, you’ve got the height, how come you couldn’t block that fabulous spike of mine?”
“Shut up AJ,” Nick mumbled, looking down into the sand.
“What’s wrong, Nicky?” BJ asked, with a concerned, almost motherly look on her face. “You aren’t still upset about Mandy, are you?”
“Yeah,” he replied softly. He looked up at her, and she could see the tears shining in his eyes. “I really loved her, BJ. Why did she have to cheat on me like that?”
“Her brains must have leaked out her head,” Allison joked. “I don’t understand her, Nick. But I wouldn’t worry about her anymore. If you spend too much time mourning her, you might miss the girl you’ve been waiting for.”
“She’s right Nick,” Howie added. “Besides, you aren’t the only single one in the group. You never know when or where that girl might show up. So, keep your eyes open and try to forget about Mandy.”
Brian put his hand on Nick’s shoulder. “You know, Nicky, Leigh Anne did the same kind of thing to me also. But look how much better off I am without her. If she was still around, I would have never met Allison.” He looked at Allison and smiled, then extended his hand to her and drew her close.
“Thanks guys, I’m trying to forget her, but it’s just so hard. Everything reminds me of her.” Nick managed a weak smile, “How about one more game?”
“Ok Nick, I think that’s a good idea. But try to play this time,” Kevin instructed. “All right everyone, I’ve got to be out of here in an hour, so let’s get in our places and get this game started!”
The players scrambled to their spots on both sides of the net, and Howie served the ball. Running quickly, PollyAnna saved it and bumped it back up into the air, giving AJ time to get under the ball and set it back over the net. It came straight toward BJ, and, not being very athletic but wanting to help the team, she smacked the ball with all of her might. Instead of sailing over the net, however, the ball went flying toward the side out of bounds line. Nick saw this and went speeding over in an effort to save the point his sister was about to give to the other team.
“Look out!!” BJ screamed in horror. “Nick, stop!! You’re going to run into her!!”
But it was too late. Nick tried to stop, but his built up momentum prevented him from hitting the girl. He smashed into her and they both fell to the ground. Nick picked himself up and looked dazedly down at the woman he had run into. She was still lying on the sand, sprawled out and she made no move to get up. Her wavy blonde locks covered her face and the sunglasses she had worn on her head were 3 feet away, almost buried in the sand. It was then that Nick noticed she wasn’t moving at all! Oh no, Nick thought, what have I done? He bent down and checked her pulse and breathing. She was still alive, but not responding. He shook her. Still no response. Nick reached underneath her and gently lifted her out of the sand. Her petite frame hung limply in his arms, and he observed how light she was. The others all ran over and were crowded around Nick.
“Oh no Nick,” PollyAnna cried. “Is she ok? The poor thing, she never even saw you coming!”
“I think we need to change Nick’s nickname to Train,” Kevin joked.
“Now is not the time for jokes Kev,” Nick scolded. “BJ, help me, get her sunglasses and take my keys. Go open the car door. We’ll lay her down in the back of my Prowler and take her to my house.”
“Ok bro, but she’s covered in sand. What about your upholstery?”
“That’s the last thing I’m worried about,” Nick cried. “We’ve got to help her. It’s my fault she’s unconscious, I hit her. I feel terrible. The car can always be cleaned later.”
“Shouldn’t you take her to a hospital Nick?” Brian asked. “I mean, she’s unconscious.”
“No,” Nick replied quickly. “I think she just got knocked out. It can’t be that serious, I mean she’s still breathing and everything. Besides, you know what happens when any of us try to go anywhere. It wouldn’t be good for me, but most importantly, it wouldn’t be good for her.”
“I’ll be over later to check on the two of you,” Bri said. “Don’t let her leave your house until you are absolutely positive she is fine. Keep her there at least until I get there. So I guess our dinner plans are off, huh everyone?”
“No, you all can go with out me. I’ll stay with her, I owe it to her. But I don’t want to ruin your guys’ evening. When you come over, Rok, pick up BJ and take her with you,” Nick said.
“Are you sure?” Bri asked apprehensively.
“I’m positive.” Nick looked down and the girl, marveling at her beauty. Who is this girl, where did she come from? He knew the only way his questions could be answered was by speaking with her. Please God, he begged silently, let her be ok. I’ve got to get to know her. She seems so wonderful.
“Come on Nick!” BJ called impatiently. “Let’s go!”
My eyes flew open. Where am I? How did I get here? The last thing I could remember was walking on the beach, and suddenly, I wake up here in this strange house. I slowly sat up and removed the cool wash cloth that had been placed on my forehead. I felt like I had just been run over by a train and drug behind it for seven miles. I had no idea what had happened to me or how I got to this place. Looking around, I tried to discern my location by the items in the house. Maybe, I thought, the things here will give me some kind of clue as to what happened, whose house I’m in, and how I got here. The walls of the room were decorated with framed gold and silver colored records and there was a rather large trophy case containing more awards than I had probably ever seen. My pounding headache prevented my from reading any of the words on them, but I figured that who ever’s house it was was some kind of recording star or producer, or the relative of one at least. A big screen TV was in the very front of the room, and it was surrounded by every type of game system you can imagine. The games and controllers were strewn about, and the coffee table was covered in a mound of magazines. A distinct neon glow was coming out from underneath one of the doors down a long hallway. Behind me, large sliding glass doors opened onto a balcony from which was a perfect view of a flawless sunset on the ocean. The house contained a “lived in” quality, I couldn’t quite call it messy. Suddenly, I heard barking and banging in the kitchen, and a door swung open to reveal the person who had brought me here.
He stopped half-way through the door when he saw that I was awake, and his jaw dropped open. The tall, well-built blonde in swim trunks almost dropped the glass of ice water he was carrying and his face turned a bright crimson color. He first thing I recognized about him was his eyes. There was something familiar about those eyes...something I had seen a million times before. But where? When he spoke, it hit me like a ton of bricks.
“Well, you finally decided to wake up,” he joked in a distinct combination of a New York and Southern accent. Oh my God. I can’t believe this is happening, I thought to myself. That can’t be who I think it is. It just can’t be. Things like this just don’t happen to people like me. I moved my feet and carefully pulled myself to a sitting position. The blonde strode over to the couch and sat down next to me.
“I supposed you want to know how you got here. But first,” he stuck out his hand, “My name is Nick Carter. But I guess you already knew that.” He must have seen the recognition in my eyes. I could tell he was trying to keep the disappointment in my knowing who he was out of his voice, but his efforts failed. I offered my hand to him, and instead of shaking it as I had expected, he gently lifted it and kissed it. It was the most gentlemanly thing I had ever seen and I melted like pure butter. “Here,” Nick explained, holding out the glass of water, “I got this for you. I figured you’d need it.”
“Thank you,” I replied softly, and as I took the glass, my hand began to shake slightly. I prayed he wouldn’t notice, but I had a feeling he would. “Will you please tell me what happened?” I asked him, looking into his eyes.
He looked at my trembling hand, and I could see the sadness in his eyes. “Please don’t be intimidated by me,” he begged. “I’m just a normal guy. I don’t want you to treat me any differently than you would anyone else. If I were you, I’d sue me for what I did to you.”
“What did you do?” I questioned. “It couldn’t have been that terrible.”
“It was terrible. You were unconscious for about three hours. Brian was just here and he told me that if you didn’t wake up in another hour, I should take you to the hospital. I’m so sorry! I was running to save a volleyball my sister hit and I didn’t see you and by the time I did it was too late. I’m so so sorry! Can you forgive me?”
“Of course,” I laughed, “I’m fine besides this headache. I wouldn’t sue you or anyone else. That’s not my personality.” I handed the empty glass to Nick. My hand was still shaking. He took the glass and reached for my hand, holding it tightly in his and looked into my eyes. I could tell he was genuinely worried about me, and I was deeply touched by his concern. “I’m all right, really,” I assured him.
“Hang on one sec,” he instructed, placing my hand hesitantly back on my lap, “I’ll be right back. I’m going to get you some more water and some aspirin to fix your headache. You can lie back if you want. But please don’t go anywhere. After they get back from dinner, the guys want to make sure you are ok. They don’t trust me.”
“And besides,” he called over his shoulder, “I don’t want you to leave. I want to get to know you. You, uh, umm, seem really sweet.” Nick had turned around quickly, but not before I caught a glimpse of the blush that had crept into his cheeks.
It seemed like we had been talking for hours when there was a loud knock on the door. Nick got up slowly, not wanting to allow his best friends to invade the quiet privacy we had shared for most of the night. Besides, he knew the teasing that was coming. They’d never let him live this one down. But, he thought to himself, I can’t let them see how much she means to me. Sarah is so easy to talk to, and so kind, and so caring, and so...beautiful. I think I’m falling in love with her, and I’ve only known her for a few hours. But I feel as if I have known her for a life time. The guys will think I’ve lost my mind. I think I have, but I’m so glad and so willing to lose it. I never felt this way about Mandy. Maybe I never really, truly loved her.
He walked to the door and flung it open. There stood the entire gang, including all the girls and BJ. Nick couldn’t wait for BJ to meet Sarah. His little sister’s approval was important to him, and he knew deep in his heart that she would love this girl.
“Is she awake?” Brian asked with eager concern, trying to peek around Nick. “I’d really hate for us to have to take her to the hospital. The poor thing!”
“Yeah, she is,” Nick replied quickly, then he turned to me. “I’ll be right back in. I’m just gonna shut the door and talk to these guys outside for a sec and then we’ll all come in and I’ll introduce everyone to you. Is that ok?”
“That’s fine,” I replied, shaking my head. “I’ll be waiting.”
“She has a very pretty voice,” Howie observed after Nick had shut the door softly. “I bet she can sing.”
“I don’t know yet,” Nick whispered. “Ok, guys, no mentioning Mandy, ok? I explained it a little bit already, but I’m done with her. I don’t want you to upset Sarah by talking about her. I can’t hide it, it shows too plainly. I like this girl, y’all. So don’t make me look like an idiot in front of her like you always do. Please?”
Brian saw the look in his best friend’s eyes and knew that Nick was speaking from the bottom of his heart. “Ok, Nick, we promise. Just don’t rush into anything. I can’t bear to see you get your heart broken again.” “Yeah, be careful Nick,” BJ echoed.
“I will you guys,” Nick cried indignantly, “I’m not a child anymore. And I know how I feel.”
“We’re just concerned for ya Nick,” AJ assured him, putting his hand on Nick’s shoulder. “Please don’t be angry. I think we’ve kept her waiting long enough. Let’s go inside and meet this mystery girl that was hit by the Kaos Bus.”
I was pulling the blanket Nick had placed around my bare shoulders tighter when the door opened and Nick and the entire group entered the room. There were several girls with them, two of whom I recognized from pictures as PollyAnna and BJ. The others, however, were a mystery to me. I assumed by the way the stood close to certain boys that they were the girlfriends. I hadn’t asked Nick if he had a girlfriend or not, but he had mentioned something to me about Mandy, his ex-girlfriend and how she had broken his heart. How recently this happened and whether or not he was seeing someone new remained unclear to me.
“Sarah.” The sound of Nick saying my name sounded so sweet, even sweeter than his singing voice. “You already know who the guys are and I’ll bet you recognize PollyAnna and my sister BJ, but this is Allison, Brian’s girlfriend.” He pointed to a frail looking blonde with dark eyes who had her hand intertwined with Brian’s. “This is Valerie, Kevin’s fiancee.” Nick gestured to a tall girl with piercing green eyes and long jet black hair whose waist was encircled by Kev’s arm. “And this is Danielle, AJ’s girlfriend, but I’m sure the way they are macking on each other didn’t give you some kind of clue!” Sure enough, I looked at a chair that was now occupied by AJ and Danielle, a well-built girl with shoulder length chestnut hair and gray colored eyes. Danielle was sitting on AJ’s lap, and they paused to look at Nick as he said their names and then turned to quickly say hello to me before returning to their kissing.
The others found seats and formed a sort of semi-circle around the couch I was sitting on. Nick back down next to me and put his arm protectively around my shoulders. An awkward silence followed, and I knew they were all dying to ask me a million questions. Finally, BJ became the only one brave enough to break the silence. “So where are you from, Sarah?,” she asked sweetly, “You don’t look like you’re from around here.”
“I’m from Arizona,” I replied, hoping that that sentence wouldn’t conjure pictures of tumble weeds, ghost towns, and cowboys. “I live in a small town, but I’m moving to Florida soon to attend college. I just graduated from high school a few weeks ago. Right now, though, I’m just a tourist in Florida with my best friend Rachel. She and I won a radio contest trip here, and we just arrived today.” As soon as I started talking about Rachel, it hit me that she had no idea where I was and she was probably worried to death because I had disappeared. I had been so wrapped up in Nick’s company that I had completely forgotten about her!
I turned to Nick. “Oh my God, Nick, she had no idea where I am! She probably has a huge search party out for me!”
“What’s the phone number for where you’re staying?” he asked me.
“I have no idea...All that information is in my purse and my purse is at the condo! I don’t remember the name of the condos, or where they are either! What am I going to do?”
“First, how are you feeling?” Brian asked, a concerned look on his face. “That’s the most important thing, We’ll figure the rest out as soon as I know you’re ok.”
“I’m a little sore, but my headache’s gone. I’m fine, really.”
“Well,” Nick said slowly, “I don’t want you to leave. Stay here tonight, please. Just in case something happens. I’ll call all of the condos by the beach we were at until I find the right one, and I’ll explain the whole thing to your friend so she doesn’t worry. How does that sound?”
“Really nice, actually,” I looked up and met his admiring gaze. I still couldn’t believe this was for real...Maybe I got hit harder than I thought. “But, ummm, what am I going to sleep in? All I have is my bathing suit.” I could feel my cheeks growing a little hot. I knew I was blushing.
“BJ and PollyAnna can run to the store and get you some things. You could go with them, but I’d rather you not, because you’re still too weak. Remember when you tried to get up? So, you can just tell them your size. As far as PJ’s go, you can sleep in one of my shirts if you want to.” Now it was Nick’s turn to blush. He gave my shoulders a little squeeze and then unclasped my hand from his and gently placed it back into my lap. Grabbing Howie and Brian to help, he gallantly ran off to find the phone book and the phone. Kevin stood up and yawned, helped Valarie up, and announced that they were going home to go to bed. He apologized to be for not being able to stay and talk. As soon as Kev said that he was leaving, AJ whispered into Danielle’s ear, and they decided to go home as well. The two couples came over and each person gave me a hug.
“Don’t let him spoil you too much,” AJ said to me quietly.
“I won’t,” I promised him, waving good-bye to the four as they walked to the door. Just then, a wave of dizziness hit me, and I began to sway. I guess it was noticeable, because Nick threw the phone at Howie and came running across the room. He steadied me and laid me carefully back against the pillows he had piled behind me. Throwing the keys to the Prowler and a credit card at PollyAnna, Nick ordered her to take BJ to the store and get me some under garments so he could put me in bed. PollyAnna stared at him in shock, not believing she was getting the “privilege” as Nick often put it, of driving the Prowler.
“BJ can sign for the credit card.” BJ nodded at her brother, and she and PollyAnna hurried out the door. Nick turned toward the kitchen where Brian, Allison, and Howie were sitting around the table, phone books open and spread out. “D, can you, Rok, and Allison handle the calling?” Howie, the phone already at his ear, shook his head and Brian looked up from one of the phone books, and reassured Nick that they had everything under control. “Ok, good. I want to sit here with Sarah. She still looks a little dizzy.”
Nick turned back to me, and sat down on floor near the end of the couch my head was on and faced me. He pushed the hair back from my face and tucked it back behind my ears, and re-applied the cool, damp washcloth to my forehead, and then pulled the fluffy, light green colored blanket up to my shoulders. “Are you still dizzy?” he asked softly.
“A little bit, but not too bad...Do you always worry this much?”
“Only about people I really care about.”
“Nick, you just met me. I could be a serial killer for all you know, or some lunatic fan. You don’t really know anything about me.”
“You’re wrong. There’s a lot I know about you, not only from what you’ve told me, but from how you do things. The way you dress, the way you speak, the way you look at me, the way to treat everyone. I know more about you than you think. I can tell you are a wonderful girl. You don’t need to tell me, you’ve shown me.” He took my hand again and softly kissed it. “But there’s also a lot that I don’t know. How long are you going to be here?”
“Three weeks,” I replied.
“Perfect. That’s plenty of time for us to get to know everything about one another. That is, if you want to,” he added sheepishly.
“I do want to. I have admired you for so long, Nick,” I sighed. “I can’t believe I’m here, with you, of all people. The person I’ve dreamed of. We have so much in common. I guess we can start discovering all of that later, it’s too much to get into tonight.”
“Yeah, you need to rest.” Just then, the door opened and PollyAnna and BJ came creeping quietly in, holding several bags.
“Ok, Nick,” BJ called, seeing that I was awake, “We got Sarah some under stuff, like bras and panties, and an outfit for tomorrow.” She tossed the bags at Nick who had gotten up to help them, and came over to see how I was doing.
“I got you a cute little sundress,” BJ explained. “I figured you wouldn’t want to have to wear that bathing suit again tomorrow, although it is cute, by the way. It should fit, since we’re about the same size, and I got it in my size. I hope you like it...I think it will look really cute on you.”
“Thank you so much, BJ, and you too, PollyAnna.”
“We found her, Sarah,” Howie called to me as he and Brian and Allison returned to the living room. Coming from the hallway, Nick joined them. “I got an ear full of screaming, but we finally found her. I explained everything and told her that you are fine, and that Nick will take good care of you. I also told her that you and Nick will meet up with her tomorrow. She was so relieved to find out that you were ok. Nick, we circled the name of the condos in the phone book and left it open so you can find the place tomorrow.”
“Thank you so much Howie.” I replied softly, as my head began to throb slightly once again. “It was so nice to meet you. And you, Brian, and Allison too. You are all so wonderful. I’m looking forward to getting to know you better over the next couple of weeks.”
“You too, Sarah,” Allison said. “Get some rest. Hope you feel better in the morning. Bye Nick, bye BJ...come on, Babe,” she called to Brian.
He put his arm around her waist. “We’re gonna head home and catch some Z’s,” he laughed. “Take care, Sarah, see you later, girl. Nick, treat her right. See you two tomorrow.” He grinned at Allison and they hurried out the door.
“I have a feeling those two won’t be getting much sleep tonight,” Howie joked.
Nick groaned. “Thanks for that reminder Howie. You always have to say what everyone’s thinking, don’t you?”
“Yep,” Howie smiled. “Come on, sis, let’s get outta here. BJ, since you don’t have your car, want us to drop you off at your mom’s place? Hope you feel better, Sarah, we’ll see you tomorrow, I’m sure. I don’t think Nick’s going to let you out of his sight.” BJ grabbed her purse, gave Nick a quick kiss on the cheek and headed out the door with PollyAnna and Howie.
When the door had shut behind them, Nick looked at me and smiled. “Looks like it’s just you and me again.”
“Yeah,” I laughed. “Too bad I’m so tired and dizzy, or we could have some real fun.”
“That’s ok,” Nick reassured me. “Just looking at you is fun enough for me. Here, why don’t you get changed and I’ll get my bed all ready for you. I just have the one bed, so you can have it and I’ll sleep out here on the couch. All of the clothes are in the bathroom.”
I attempted to pick myself up off of the pillows, but I couldn’t manage it. Nick gently lifted me up and carried me to the bathroom. He made sure I’d be strong enough to stand and get dressed, and then he left and shut the door behind him. I changed as quickly as I could, and managed to make it to the door before another dizzy spell hit. Nick saw me in time and quickly came to my rescue. He picked me up and carried me into his bedroom, and laid me carefully on his bed, and tucked the sheets in around me.
“Thanks,” I whispered, and then cleared my throat. “Nice choice of decor you have here.” I waved my hand at the neon, bubbly palm tree in the corner and the neon lights surrounding the bed. “So this is why there’s a neon glow coming from the hallway.”
“Yeah, it’s cool, huh? I designed it myself.”
“I can tell,” I joked. “But seriously, it’s definitely unique. I like it.”
“Thanks,” he replied. “Ok, I’m gonna get outta here now so you can get some sleep. Just let my grab some blankets and things, and then I’ll turn off the lights for you.”
He pushed my hair back from my face again and awkwardly bent down close and kissed my forehead. I could tell he was afraid I would push him away or be angry. But, of course, I did and was neither of the two. “Thank you Nick, I mean it. You’ve been so kind. I don’t deserve all of this.”
“I owe it to you. After all, if I had been more careful, you’d still be able to walk right now without almost falling over.”
“That’s true, but you don’t have to go the lengths you have.”
“No, I don’t. But I want to.” Nick moved to the door. “See you in the morning.” He flipped the switch and the lights slowly died out. I could see him still standing in the doorway for about five minutes, then he turned, almost reluctantly, and shut the door quietly behind him.