Epilogue

The door swung open and Nicole called out, "Hello?" She dropped her black leather bag and purse on the floor next to the back room closet. "Hello?" She had just gotten home from another day at the talent agency she worked at before the tour and the Boys came along. She stopped at the table, reading a note from her mother, "Hi Nickie. Hope you enjoyed your day. Dad and I will be out for dinner tonight after we stop in and I'm sure you have plans. Here are your cards, Happy Valentine's Day! Love, Mom."

Picking up the cards and reading "Nickie" scribbled on them, she mumbled, "Oh dear," and sighed. She headed through the hallway and straight up her steps that led to her room, bypassing the front half of the house. Up the stairs she noticed blue lights; Christmas lights were hanging, thumbtacked to the blue-painted paneling of her wall. Slowly she walked through her room that was half the house long, formally being part of the attic. Sitting on her bed was a white bear holding a card. She sighed again, not believing in the love of Valentine's Day. Opening up the card, she read her brother's words explaining the lights and bear were from him to "spice up the room because I know you love blue." The walls were a pale blue. Dark enough for color but light enough to bring more light into the room with the fluorescent lights on. Pictures adorned the walls, her friends, family and the Boys. She smiled with the new blue decor, sitting down on the bed and felt a bit of love for Jason, despite their recent conflicts.

The phone rang loudly, bringing her out of her thoughts. She walked over and picked up the cordless sitting on top of her twenty inch TV. She spoke a hello and heard a friendly hello from her friend Angie. They spoke for a few minutes, which hadn't happened since the night before, and right at that moment Ang was on her break. Angie asked, "So, what are you doing for today?"

She knew Angie was insinuating the holiday that was Valentine's Day. "Well, today is just another Monday, so I had to go to work. And, Maggie has to work early tomorrow morning. So, I was gonna wait around for after you get off of work."

"Ah, I see. So, I guess your date will be done by 10pm eh?" Angie began to laugh into the phone.

"Ya know Ang," Nicole rested the phone onto her shoulder as she began to open up one of the cards her parents had left her. "Just because you work at a Hallmark, doesn't mean the rest of the world acknowledges this candy holiday." They both began to laugh when Angie stopped the conversation to return to work. "Just gimme a call tonight when you get home... Okay, have fun selling that mushy crap... Buhbye."

She hung up the phone and stared at the cards from her parents. "They won't mind, they left them for me to open them." Nicole was contemplating whether to open the cards with or without her parent’s presence.

Just as Nicole got a finger onto the card, barely pulling it out of the envelope, her mother called for her from the main floor of the house. "Nickie? Nickie?" Glancing at her clock, it was 5:30 in the evening, normal timing for her mother and thirty minutes more until her father's arrival.

She walked to the top of the stairs and yelled down, "I'm up here." Her mother made her way to the back of the house and to the bottom of the stairs as Nic walked down the stairs, meeting each other. "Hey Mom," she spoke, giving Anne a peck on the lips. "Did you see what Jason did?" She pulled her mom up the stairs, excitedly, by a hand to show off the new lights.

"Wow. This is real nice. Did you call him?"

"No, I just got in a few minutes ago and then Ang called."

"Make sure you call him to thank him. Did you get him anything?"

"A card I left for him this morning." Her mother frowned, "It's not like we were on good terms," Nicole seemed to be begging for understanding.

"Alright, well you still need to call him." Her mother then spoke frankly, "For someone who hates Valentine's Day, you seem be having a good one."

Nicole squinted with confusion, "Huh?"

"These lights, all the stuff in the front room, your present from me and Dad."

"I came in through the back door. And I haven't even opened the cards yet. I was waiting for you guys." She thought for a moment or two, "What's downstairs?" Her mother smirked and shrugged her shoulders. "Who's it from?"

The smirk remained as she responded, "Go find out for yourself." Nicole eyed her mother, trying to gage a response. Deciding to find out herself, she made her way down the stairs, down the hallway to the front of the house as she walked into the dining room that connected to the front room. She stopped quickly with her mom bumping into her, shocked by the items lying before her on the dining room table. Five bouquets of roses, a dozen white each--her favorite shade of flower--in each vase. They were lined up with their cards practically floating among the leaves and thorns on the stems. Sitting in the middle of the table was a brown cardboard box, approximately a foot long and wide, and six inches tall with an overnight delivery label.

She turned to her mother, who was all smiles, "When did this come?" Her mother shrugged her shoulders. "I hope this isn't all from the same person." Nicole then snickered, "But then again, I'd hate to think five different people are sending me crap today." They both laughed.

Anne nudged her daughter, "Are you gonna read the cards or just keep wondering who this is all from?"

"Alright, alright." She picked up the first card and read scribbles:

A slight smirk began to creep from the corner of her mouth as she picked up the next card and read.

She stacked the next card on top of the previous two.

Nicole was seeing a trend and smiled at her mother as she grabbed the next one.

She laughed reading the Alex, thinking of all the times he calls her house and if has to leave a message he says Alex.

The final one made her heart beat as she anticipated Kevin's message. Pulling the card out of the envelope slower than the others.

A warm smile was present on her face and she closed her eyes thanking each of the guys silently for the pleasant surprises. As the phone rang, Anne walked over to answer, then looked at Nic. "Yeah, she's right here… Uh huh... Yeah, here she is."

She handed the phone over and as if it were fate, it was AJ. "Hey dear!"

"How are you doing today, babe?" he asked in the raspiest of voices.

"Well, it is after all another Monday, but these five guys I know, who I haven't seen in over a month, were so kind and sent me some beautiful roses." She pulled out a chair at the table and sat as her mother left the room.

"Ah, roses. I should have thought of that." They both laughed. "Did they get you anything else?" he asked, hinting.

"Oh, well I suppose this package here is from them?"

"Well, did you open it yet?"

"Nope." She began fiddling with the box.

"Then how do you know what it is?"

"Good call." She was about to ask her mom to get a pair of scissors, when Anne flashed a pair in front of Nic, "Thanks," and her mother went into her bedroom, closing the door. She opened up the box that was full of foam popcorn and a smaller package wrapped in bubble wrap. "Ooo, bubble wrap. My favorite."

"Smart ass, just open it." As she unraveled it, a videotape was found in the middle. She asked what was on it when he replied, "Just play it."

She walked over to the VCR atop the twenty-seven inch TV centered in the living room and popped the tape in. Then plopping down on the couch she asked, "How's Minn-a-sotah?" in a northern--Canadian style--accent. In the background she heard her father enter the back room calling out a hello with no answer

AJ spat "Damn cold."

Remote in hand, she turned on the TV and VCR, starting the tape. "In here!" she called to her dad. Then she replied to the phone, "I know you’re from land of sun. But up north some people wear jackets. And, it is February, what do you expect?"

Tony entered the room and called to his daughter, "Hey, who's on the phone?"

Nicole stared at the video, seeing the five men standing before her that was filmed with a stationary video camera. She did not answer her father or the phone conversation as she listened to the TV talk to her.

Her dad snickered, "Oh God. Who bought you a Backstreet video?" He watched the screen for a few moments, then began to walk away until her heard all five voices call out, "Hey Nicole!" He turned back around and stared at the screen to see the boys talking to his daughter from the television.

Anne came out of the bedroom to welcome her husband home but found both his and her daughter's attention to the screen. "What's this?" She watched, realizing the Boys had sent the video themselves, which they had recorded for Nicole herself.

Nicole still had the phone at her shoulder as the video showed the guys as they began to sing a Capella, "Just to be Close." Her heart began to melt and lips curved a smile listening to one of her favorites sung by the boys, especially for her. Once the song ended, AJ spoke for the group. "Hey Nickie. I know you don't like this day, but we love it. And, well, we love you. We miss you very much and hope you have a wonderful day. Be our valentines." Each of the guys gave a good bye then exited. Howie waved and winked at the camera; Brian and Nick each kissed the lens, this made Nic laugh. AJ kissed his open palm and blew her a kiss.

And Kevin, well he just smirked at the camera, the way she loved. He walked closer to the camera, then spoke, "We miss you. Take care of yourself. Bye bye." He curved his lips to a kiss for the air, lazily dragging his fingers across the lens as if he were trying to touch her, and reached beyond the camera, turning it off.

Nicole sighed deeply when the snow came on. The voice from the phone called for her. The was brought from her reverie, "Sorry J. That was the best! I have never had any present as meaningful as that." As she spoke to AJ, her parents remained in the room watching her speak. She became full of energy, more than in the past few weeks since she had been home. They both smiled, happy to see her full of life again. Nicole got off the phone and beamed as she talked to her mom and dad. "Did you guys see that? I can't believe that! Oh my God."

She leaned into the back of the couch and sighed. Her mother looked at Nic, "Go get your cards."

"Huh?"

"The cards from Dad and me. Go get them." Nicole thought for a moment, but jumped up and ran to her room, retrieving the envelopes, returning to the living room as soon as she could make it.

She began to rip open the pink envelope--the larger of the two cards-- when her mom placed a hand over hers. "Wait a minute. Calm down, calm down." Nicole looked up into Anne's eyes with a puppy dog look, pleading to continue. "Open the red one first."

Nicole smiled, then opened it, finding a silly card poking fun at children living at home past their welcome. "Ha ha. Funny guys," she said dryly.

She grabbed the pink envelope and continued her ravage on the paper. The card was a sappy, "To Our Daughter..." card. She opened it to find a gift certificate to Best Buy for $200. Nicole knew right away what this meant. She had been saving money for a video camera, and recently told her dad she was but $200 away from a hefty down payment, but would have to wait another month so she could pay her bills. "Thank you so much!" She threw her arms around her dad first, then her mother. "This is great! I am going out tonight and buying this bad boy!" They all laughed.

Her mother spoke up, "Well, consider this a sort of 'Welcome Home' present." Her mother was referring to the matter of Nicole's return home, after losing her job. "We figured you could use some cheering up now."

Nicole smiled brightly, "Yes, all cheered up!"

"And now you can send your valentines a message of your own."

She hugged them again then ran out of the room and up to her room. That night she went over to Best Buy and bought the camera she had been eyeing in sales papers for the past two weeks. When she got it home, she pulled out one of the blank mini-tapes she bought and fired up the camera.

A week later, a knock came at a door. Nick was sitting in front of the TV playing Mortal Kombat versus Brian. They both looked at each other for someone to answer the door. Neither budged from their seat and the knocks came louder. "Fine! I'll get it!" Nick yelled as he pulled himself off the floor over to the door. Opening it up to a doorman, "Yeah?"

"A delivery came today a..." the man looked down at the paper in his hand, "Gene Carter?"

Nick was puzzled and looked at the package. He looked back into the room at Brian, "Hey, Rok. There's a package."

"Yeah, so take it."

"It's for Gene Carter?" Nick was concerned why someone would send a package to his name, well his middle name.

"Just take it, man."

"Fine, but you're opening it up."

"Whatever. Just get your butt back in here." Nick took the package back into the room, placing it on the bed, then looked up at Brian. "What? Get me something to open it up with."

Once Brian got the box open, he found foam peanuts and five bubble wrapped videotapes. Each tape's label read the guy's names. "Nick, you're an ass. This is the same package we sent Nic. She just sent us something back." He pushed at Nick's arm. "Go get the other guys, and bring in the VCR." Brian read a short letter from Nicole with instructions for each of the guys to play their own tape, but start with Brian's because she had a message for all of them.

Nick returned with the other guys and the VCR under his arm. They hooked it up to the TV, then pressed play on Brian's tape. The screen came up with Nicole sitting on her bed smiling. Her hair was grown out from the last time they saw her, almost two months now. It was curled and falling beyond her shoulders. She was wearing khaki pants and a pale blue cotton button up shirt with three quarter length sleeves, that nearly matched her blue walls, and white cotton shirt under.

"Hey fellas. Well, well, well. You all certainly know how to treat a girl. Thank you so much for the roses, they are beautiful. Or should I say were. They have died since, but have been kept after they dried up. And the tape didn't hurt either. I figured since I can't be there in person to thank you all, I'd do this. It's fairly close to the same thing."

Nicole continued talking to the guys about how she was doing with herself these days, working at the agency again and passing her writings along during many job interviews. They were just listening to her talk as if she were in the room. They all felt pings in their chests, missing her; wishing her presence with them. "Well, fellas. I'll let you go now. Let Brian enjoy the rest of this tape."

The guys left at Brian's request so he could finish the video. Once it was finished, he let each of the guys back into the room to watch their own video. She spoke to each guy letting them know how much they meant to her and what she would remember in each of them. Nicole told her own versions of stories that happened between the guys and herself. She laughed to herself as she talked. The only variations were in Kevin and AJ's tape as she talked, first to AJ about that night they stood in the rain and they shared a moment. "I've only been able to share two moments with any of you guys. And Alex, one was with you. When you looked into my eyes and told me I was truly losing a best friend, I felt a shiver. You really are my best friend, and I can't believe I didn't realize that until I had to leave you."

The second variation was to Kevin. She told him about the other moment that she felt, "When you looked into my eyes and told me they were green. Well, I just felt my heart stop. The way you looked at me, I knew at that moment you had feelings too and I was like a school girl in a crush."

Nicole was beaming with happiness. The cheer slightly disappeared with her next comment, "I heard about you and Kristin, and I'm happy for your engagement. Really, I am. I wish you happiness for the rest of your life because you deserve to live years of a warm and deep love. I hope you find an everlasting care for someone you can share yourself with. I will never forget you Kevin. And I wish you the best for the rest of your exciting and meaningful life."

He turned off the TV and stared into space; she seemed to be cutting off any ties with him, regardless of the phone calls they exchanged every week. He thought of how much Nicole cared for him and had just wished him the best in the life he was about to start without her involvement whatsoever. She was being mature about the situation. She was being thoughtful of him before her own feelings. Deep down he loved that girl, and this was exactly why.