~*~

"Kevin, I love you."

"I love you too, Nick."

And so they kissed, underneath the stars, underneath the silver beam of the moon, on the white sand, beside the dark waves, beside a small fire, wrapped together in a thick blanket. They held onto each other for dear life, wanting nothing more than to express their feelings for each other, which they could finally do openly without the need to hide from anyone, or anything. Well, the press maybe, but it wasn't hard to lose them if they really needed to get away. And besides, it wasn't as though the press was hounding them, or even knew about their relationship.

None of them had gone forward, not even Kristin, who had threatened to do just that but immediately reconsidered, claiming it was just said in shock. And sure, it wasn't every day that her husband divorced her for another man. It was hard for her to deal with, but the good thing was that Kevin and Kristin had remained on amicable terms. Not entirely friendly, but they were at least able to talk to each other without erupting into a full-blown argument.

And so, Nick and Kevin had finally gotten the opportunity to give their relationship exactly what it needed. Full commitment from the both of them, without outside interference or wives or girlfriends. That had almost ruined them forever. Kevin being married. It pushed Nick to the point of suicide. But luckily, Brian had arrived at Nick's house in time, just as Nick was about to take a whole bottle of sleeping pills and demanded that Nick tell him everything, seeing him as distraught and hysterical as he was.

Nick had confessed everything amid sobbing and tears, telling him the whole story of him and Kevin. Brian was shocked and felt a little sick to his stomach. So then he decided to see if Nick was telling the truth. He dragged Nick over to Kevin's, where Kristin and Kevin just happened to be, and demanded that all be told. After hearing the whole story, Kristin had started crying, packed quickly, threw her ring at Kevin and stormed out of his life. Though he felt bad about it, Kevin felt just a little relieved.

Eventually the whole story had been told to A.J. and Howie, and Howie had confessed to Brian and A.J. that he already knew, and they were shell-shocked, wondering why Howie hadn't said anything. Kevin had taken complete blame for everything, claiming that it was his fault for Howie's secrecy, Nick's attempted suicide, and his failed marriage.

He'd taken full responsibility, and luckily for them both, A.J., Howie and Brian all tried to deal with this as calmly and as rationally as possible, but underneath everything, they all wondered if this was just a whim or a phase and they were still uncomfortable watching them together, though they hated to admit it. But they couldn't deny that Nick and Kevin were the happiest they had ever been.

Ever.

"Got to give you two credit," A.J. had said, shaking his head. "You really are happy. I'll admit it, I'm jealous."

Both Nick and Kevin had laughed.

And that was the truth. They were both really and truly happy. They were now living together, thinking of finding their own place, together, like they were married, which, symbolically they were from the ring that Kevin had given Nick when he had first moved in.

And life couldn't get much better. They were happy, together, and in love, and that was the best feeling in the world. But still, they hadn't, as yet, broken the news to their families, but eventually that would happen. The timing just had to be right, and they both wanted to give themselves a little more time to make their relationship work.

Nick sighed and leaned back into Kevin's embrace, watching in awe at the millions of twinkling little stars in the velvet black sky. "I love you, Kevin, and I'm so happy. I really am."

Kevin chuckled and nuzzled at Nick's neck, his skin smooth and soft against his lips, his arms wrapped tightly around Nick's waist, his hands rubbing Nick's abdomen softly. "I'm happy, too, Nicky," he murmured, licking over Nick's neck, smiling at the soft moans that left Nick's throat. "And I love you, you know that. I love you more than anything."

Nick linked his fingers with Kevin's, staring down happily at the ring on his finger, and the ring on Kevin's finger that he had given him soon after, and closed his eyes, revelling in the feeling of being safe and content in Kevin's loving but strong embrace. There was no other place he'd rather have been at this moment than where he was right then. In Kevin's arms, at his favourite place: the beach. He allowed Kevin's caress to relax him, to comfort him, and let out a happy sigh.

"Love you, Kevy," he murmured, using Kevin's pet name that he did when he felt especially close to him. "Love you so much."

"Hmmm," Kevin whispered, kissing down Nick's neck, whispering sweet words into Nick's ear while continuing to caress him softly. "I've got an idea, Nicky. Wanna hear it?"

Nick placed his head in the crook of Kevin's neck, a tiny shiver running through him from Kevin's warm breath tickling his neck. "Uh-huh."

"How about we..." Kevin lifted up Nick's shirt and gave the band of Nick's pants a tiny soft tug. "Right here, right now." His tongue flicked itself across Nick's neck, finishing it with a small kiss, and he smiled at the tortured moan that escaped Nick's lips. "I want to prove to you just how much I love you."

"God, Kevin," Nick gasped, his whole body beginning to tremble. He turned around and quickly pounced on Kevin, sending him sailing onto another blanket that was laying across the sand and placed himself on top of Kevin, restraining him with his legs. "So, you want to prove that to me, huh?"

Kevin reached up and ran his fingers through Nick's hair, the blonde tresses feeling like spun silk. "Yes, Nicky, nothing would make me happier."

Nick stretched out his body on Kevin's, pressing himself down on Kevin, and smiled at the strangled moan that Kevin gave him in response, responding himself with a deep and lingering kiss. Kevin toyed with the strands of Nick's hair as their lips met in a sweet blending and their tongues danced a soulful groove with each other, the passion and intensity of the kiss surprising them both. Nick pulled away, gasping for breath, and sat on Kevin's hips.

"What about if I want to prove that to you?"

Kevin raised his eyebrows and ran his hand down Nick's chest, watching with a small smile as Nick's face contorted with pleasure, and continued to torture him by placing his hand on the place where Nick's torso and legs met.

"Then I won't stop you, Nicky," Kevin said, sitting up and wrapping his arms around Nick's waist. "Do you love me, Nickolas?" he whispered into Nick's ear, his tongue flicking itself over his earlobe.

Nick closed his eyes and tried to gain control over himself, knowing that it wouldn't take much before he lost control and wanted and needed to scream. He pushed Kevin back down onto his back, lifting up his shirt and began to remove Kevin's pants, kissing the exposed part of Kevin's abdomen. He looked up and saw Kevin's eyes closed, eagerly awaiting for Nick to love him.

"You're mine, Richardson," he whispered.

Kevin's eyes flew open and he smiled softly, happily. "Always, Nicky, always."

~**~

Nick and Kevin walked through the front door of Kevin's house, and Nick was still surprised at the rush of excitement that still ran through him every time he walked through the door, knowing that he was either with Kevin, or that Kevin was there, waiting for him. Kind of like coming home, just where his heart was. And it belonged to Kevin, utterly and fully.

His eyes trailed over Kevin, a tiny gleam beginning to sparkle in his eyes. He loved everything about Kevin. He loved Kevin's eyes. He loved Kevin's smile. He loved Kevin's body, but that went without saying. He loved Kevin's kisses. He loved Kevin's embrace, the warmth and solidity of them. But he especially loved Kevin because Kevin loved him back, ever since that day in the dressing room, though it had taken a while for Kevin to realise it and enact upon that realisation.

But now, Kevin was his.

Finally, to keep.

Kevin turned around and gave him a small smile, taking him in his arms. "I love you," he said softly, rubbing the small of Nick's back gently. "I love you so much."

Nick chuckled. "I don't think you've said that to me in the last three seconds," he said, reaching around and tickling the nape of Kevin's neck with his fingers, a sensation that he knew would run through Kevin and would love. "But, I love you, too. Very much."

Kevin felt shivers running through him from Nick's simple touch. He cursed Nick for knowing what that would do to him. "Hmm, that's good," he murmured, placing a tiny kiss on Nick's forehead.

Nick immediately took hold of Kevin's shoulders and pushed himself directly into Kevin's chest, hoping that he got the point he was trying to make. "Want to show me how much you love me?" he whispered.

Kevin chuckled and pushed Nick away with every amount of restraint he had in his body. "God, someone's frisky!" he exclaimed. "I swear, Nick, I love you, but you're going to kill me."

Nick rolled his eyes. "Sure, sure," he said. "You know, I haven't heard from Brian in a while. Wonder what he's doing."

Kevin shrugged, walking into the living room. "So call him, find out where he's been hiding and why he hasn't returned my calls."

"Mine, either," Nick mused, fighting against a suspicion that had been nagging at him for some time, and reached for the black cordless phone. "Okay, okay, I'll call him."

Kevin gave him a tiny wicked smile. "Meet me in the shower after you're done?"

"And he says I'm killing him," Nick said to himself, watching Kevin saunter up the stairs, his eyes lingering on Kevin's body with a small smile. He soon snapped out of it and dialled Brian's number, waiting for Brian to answer.

Finally, he did. "Hey, Brian!"

"Oh, hi Nick," Brian said, sounding a little uncomfortable. "How've you been?"

"Fine, fine," Nick said quickly. "Why haven't you called in ages? Kevin said you've been rejecting him too!" he added with a laugh.

"Oh," Brian said, sighing quietly. "I've just been, well, you know, busy."

"Right," Nick said, having a hard time believing him. "Want to get together soon?"

Brian paused for a moment, an awkward silence coming between them. "I don't know, I'll see."

Nick frowned, his heart feeling heavy. "Oh, okay."

"Look, I've got to go. I'll call you later maybe."

Nick stared at the black cordless phone in disbelief, wondering what he had said or done to make Brian sound so standoffish and aloof. From the sound of it, it seemed like Brian didn't really want to talk to him at all. Nick sighed unhappily and placed the phone back on its cradle before walking over to the stairs, ascending two steps at a time, quickly making his way down the hallway to the bedroom.

He found that Kevin had left a trail of clothing down the hallway to the door of their bedroom, and Nick chuckled. "He's says I'm messy," he said to himself, picking up Kevin's shirt and taking a few steps before picking up his jeans. When he did, a piece of folded-up paper floated to the floor.

Nick frowned and picked it up to read it. When he saw what was written, he gasped in horror.

Nick's heart began to pound and he felt a nightmare coming true.

~***~