Hello!
It's time to post the first part in season 1 of Backstreets. But before I let you go ahead and read it, I'd like to say a few words.
First of all; Thank you to all you out there who has read Millennium and decided to visit the Backstreets website! I was so happy I could almost cry, I said almost - geez, when I saw that people had actually come visited it!
Also this time I'll nag you about visiting the Backstreets website. But this time for another reason. Because today, as you read this, the Backstreets website is open! Completely wide open, and you don't have to go through the intro anymore! So please, go check it out once more.
There you'll find, amongst other, preview of the coming part, story recommendations, introduction to the characters and this season! I've spent a lot of time working on this site so I'd really appreciate if you'd take time to visit it! The adress is, as always, http://www.geocities.com/writer_nike/
In fact, I think you should visit it before you read part 1. It'll might give you some insights!
We're getting closer now, almost finished. But what is the beginning for you, is the end for me. I began writing on Backstreets early November and I've now finished enough to feel ready to begin posting.
During this time, I've re-written the story several times and I've fucked up several times. I've also made a website to go with the story, I've written a story just to introduce this first season and the website. On a whim, I decided to do an intro, or a trailer, to promote this story and just a few days ago I finished off my Letter of Recognition. And now only one thing remains. To post the actual story.
And I can't help but wonder what you all will think about it. And to wonder if I've gotten peoples hopes up, wondering whether you'll find Revelations and Insights to be as you've expected? I've begged you on my knees to go check out the site and now I wonder; have I promised too much?
I'm sick to my stomach just thinking about it. So, if anyone needs me; I'll be in the bathroom. Take care, I hope you'll enjoy.
/Nike
Disclaimer: The following is entirely a work of fiction. All characters featured in this story are fictional and are not intended to resemble real persons, hence; it is not intended to imply anything about the true sexuality of any celebrity might mentioned. The views and opinions mentioned in the text may not represent those of the author. Certain facts stated in this story as true, may have been altered or added for entertainment purposes and may not be real.
Some elements included in this fiction may not be suitable for all people, if you're uncertain - please, do not continue.
Please turn to the author's Letter of Recognition for more info. Available at the 'Backstreets' website.
Website: http://www.geocities.com/writer_nike
Author's note:
I'd like to take this time to say 'thank you' to the coolest girl on Earth, for taking time to proof-read this entire series, Elly; wow, that was a long list you sent me! ;-). I'm destined to have missed out on some of the things, but that's life.
If you want to have an introduction to this part, visit the Backstreets website and click on current part. www.geocities.com/writer_nike/
I won't keep you any longer, you're free to continue on to the first part; 'I'm missing you'.
/Nike writer_nike@myplace.com
Backstreets - season 1: Revelations and Insights
Written by: Nike
"When my world grinds to a halt,
everything that is you, is what makes it move again." - Unknown
Part 1 - I'm missing you _________
The sleek black BMW 540 limousine sped through the city, swiftly making it's way through the night on route to the Hotel Sheraton in Munich. In the background, the tall office buildings in the city core glowed against the night sky. Behind the dark windows in the back of the limo sat a man, looking out, observing the city and the other travellers joining them on the autobahn, busy getting on with their lifes, as the stretch limo rushed past them. In the background, barely audible, the radio was playing a song by Foreigner;
"...I've travelled so far to change this lonely life. I wanna know
what love is, I want you to show me, I wanna feel what love is,
I know you can show me..."
If you looked closely in the dimly lit interior of the back, illuminated only by the lights from the passing city and cars, you could see a single tear slowly forming in the corner of his eye. It seemed as if those words could not have been anymore true to life than they were now.
After the worst tide of emotional distress had passed by, he managed to regain some of his posture and reached for the remote control, pressing the off-switch. Immediately the radio went silent and the video screen flickered and blanked out, making the coupe dark. He spent the remaining time of the ride in silence, deep in thought.
"Stupid Germans." Jim muttered to himself as the door slammed shut behind him. Jim Foley was a thirty-two year old African-American originating from Boston. He was a former military, who quit the service after the end of Operation Desert Storm.
About five years ago, after having gone through a variety of different jobs, which he didn't care too much for, a friend thought he'd be perfect as a bodyguard and had told him he knew some people who were looking for someone just like him and if he wanted, he could fix him up with them for a meeting. Jim who was thruthfully fed up with his job, agreed and did indeed get the job.
Those who hired him was quite pleased with him. The main reason at the time was mostly that he didn't have any experience, and therefore they didn't have to pay him much and he was sturdy enough to appear as if you didn't want to mess with him nor the person he was guarding. Over the years he had learned his new job and hadn't been replaced by someone else when the persons he protected got more and more famous.
He was now in Germany, standing on the bottom floor in one of the stair ways of the Hotel Sheraton in Munich. He had just been scouting the kitchen area and before that, checking out the underground parking facility. To his dismay, the undergound parking couldn't be used to bring in the subject, a term which referred to the person he was protecting, since there was a great risk that the fans couldn't be kept outside and it would quickly turn into catastrophy if they would get inside.
Now they must instead use the front entrance, meaning a lot of fans, which they'd have to clear a way through. He didn't like it at all. Jim had just discussed, or at least tried to discuss the matter with the hotel security, but there was the problem with the language barrier. The security officers of the hotel didn't speak more than a few words in English and Jim on the other hand didn't speak a word of German. After a few minutes, he had given up.
"OK, never mind. 'K?" and held up his hands and made a 'forget about it' gesture with his hands. "I'll take care of it." he continued. "Jesus Christ!" He complained to himself as he opened the door.
"Stupid Germans." was all he quietly spoke as the door slammed shut behind him, looking up the stair way. 'That's a long way up... A lot of steps.' he reflected. 'Well, no time better than the the present. I better get going if I'll make it in time.'.
When he walked up the stairs and briefly checked every floor on the way, he cursed the Germans incapability to comprehend simple English, 'I even spoke extra slowly!'.
At the fourth floor there was a small lounge where you'd get sodas, ice and some papers where available. The lounge area had a huge window where you could overlook the park in front of the hotel.
Jim's lips was starting to dry out and he was dying to get his hands on a Coke. Opening the door to the fourth floor, he spotted the glow from the red Coca-Cola vending machine standing in the lounge. 'Yes!' was all that came to his mind as he quickly headed for the machine. His joy was vivid, but unfortunately, not long lived. 'Fuck! German coins!'.
He was about to drive his head through the machine as he began scouring his pockets, in search of some German coins. And to top it all off, as if it wasn't hard enough finding them, he also had to figure out which ones to use, all while his cravings for a drink accelerated.
Eventually he did manage to scrape out enough and he got his long awaited coke. 'Ahh...' There was immense pleasure when the cool beverage chilled his body. He walked over to the huge panorama window while he drank and looked out. What he saw, shocked him and almost made him choke on the drink.
A huge area outside the Sheraton Hotel had been occupied by an seemingly endless number of people waiting to catch a glimpse of a superstar. Many of them had been standing there for several hours, but had not been discouraged by the long wait. On the contrary it seemed. The mood was all-time high and everyone was excited at what was about to happen.
Earlier the same day, there had been people gathering outside all of the more fashionable hotels in the city, but as time went the word spread that the star would be staying at the Sheraton, so more and more people decided to go there and at the time it began to darken, the space in front of the hotel was completely occupied. Most certainly there were also people who had decided to remain at another hotel, something they undoubtedly would regret in the morning.
The last time Jim had checked on the crowd outside it had been maybe a third of its present size. 'Holy shit, this ain't gonna be pretty.' He raised his com-radio.
"Tony, come in."
"Yeah?" a voice replied.
"We've gotta get more people outside, securing the entrance. Can you handle it?"
"Shouldn't be a problem."
"Good, Jim out."
Jim checked his watch, '8 PM, better get a move on it.' and throwed away the empty can.
The last section of the stairs, the next level would be the ninth floor where the subject would be staying. Jim was exhausted and tired after all the stairs, his work didn't require the same excellent shape as the requirements of, say, those of Secret Service, where they often had to run and move around a lot. He mainly scouted the places where his subject would be, ride along in a car or just moving along with the subject. If the subject would decided to go jogging or something, which he rarely did, then Jim would just order another bodyguard to take over.
"Hey Brian. How are you doing?" Howie asked when the Brian answered the phone.
"Howie! What's up?" Brian replied.
"Nuffin, I'm over at Kevin's. We'll be having a barbeque tonight. You and Leighanne wanna come?"
"Nah, I think we'll pass. She's a little pissed. Apparently she don't want me to go to Germany, it'll collide with some wedding she desperately wants me to go with her." Brian pouted.
"Life as a married man is straining on you already?" laughed Howie.
"Ha, ha, ha. I'm going to Germany." Brian stated. "Well, I gotta go and grab the bull by the horn again, see ya tomorrow Howie!"
"Yeah, bye." Howie put the phone back. "Brian won't be going to Germany." He said to Kevin and AJ.
"What! Why not?" asked Kevin.
"Leighanne. Something she wanted him to do. Brian still thinks he'll find a way out of it. I don't." Howie said plainly.
"Oh, well I guess the four of us could do it without any problems." said Kevin.
"Yeah, shouldn't be too much trouble." Howie looked at his watch "Listen, I gotta get going now guys. But I'll see ya tonight, 'K?"
Jim had finished his round and was now standing in the hotel lobby, waiting for the car to arrive. They should have been here now, but the driver had called ahead and informed them that they'd be a couple of minutes late.
He didn't envy the ones in his staff who stood in the middle of the crowd, desperately trying to control the situation. 'That's the advantage of being the one in charge.' he reflected, with a small grunt.
Suddenly, the noise from the crowd took on a different tone, more intense, and his radio buzzed to life.
"The limo's here!". The guard screamed in the radio.
"OK, form up. Let me know when you got it secured." Jim ordered.
After a few minutes, which seemed as an eternity, the voice returned.
"I dont' know how long we'll be able to hold it, we better hurry!" The panick in his voice was obvious.
"Go ahead, open the door."
The BMW limo pulled up next to the entrance of the Sheraton, the lights of the hotel and the city was reflected in the dark tinted windows of the limo, effectively stopping anyone from seeing anything inside.
When the black limo came to a complete stop, the screams escalated and the crowd began pressing harder to get closer, straining even more on the already strained security guards, who tried desperately to maintain a safe path into the hotel.
Eventually, a go-ahead was given and a bodyguard opened the door to the limo. The man inside it took a deep breath and stepped out. As he began getting out, the crowd got into hyper and the roar was deafening as he exited the vehicle. The space was lit up by the constant flashes of cameras and the roar of the crowd kept getting stronger.
It was the rush of a super star, it used to give him the trip of his life, you felt as the King of the world when the crowd would lift you up to heights you never thought possible, using just their screams and longing. But not any more, today he just let himself get ushered along, feeling more indignation than joy or excitement.
When he stood fully visible by the vehicle, the crowd began to push even more and the line was starting to buckle.
"Sir, we gotta get you outta here!" the bodyguard screamed, trying to be heard over the crowd. The guy just looked at him and as he finished speaking, he and another sturdy body guard grabbed a hold of him and started making their way slowly towards the entrance.
While the bodyguards struggled to get him to safety, he blocked out all the screams and pushes, blocked out all the voices screaming his name. In fact, it felt as if though he's not really here, but somewhere else, observing the chaos his person has created. To be frank, all he wanted was to get to his room, where he'd be alone.
It didn't take them long to reach the large doors towering at the entrance, and the guards burst through them with their protégé practically hanging between them, into the serenity of the lobby. As soon as they got inside, the guards let go of their grip and he stood with his eyes closed, taking a deep breath and then just remianed there in silence for a few moments, absorbing the peace.
The lobby walls kept most of the screams from the crowd on the outside to get in. To him it was as if he could hear a needle fall.
When he opened his eyes again, he was greeted by the sight of the sturdy hotel manager as he approached him.
"Welcome back, Mr Carter!" The old man welcomed the blond in English thick of German accent. "I do hope you will enjoy your stay." As the manager continued his welcome speech, Nick felt himself spacing out and the voice of the German, speaking of how pleased they were to have him staying here again and such on, most of it real obvious ass kissing, was drifting away. Suddenly Nick noticed the manager had stopped talking and everyone was looking at him, waiting.
"Huh?" Nick didn't have a clue of what the manager had just said, or done for that matter.
The manager looked a bit puzzled, but repeated his question, "Is there something special we could do for you? Anything?"
'Oh', "Nah, thanks. I just want to get to my room." Nick responded. He longed for the privacy and comfort of the hotel room, he was sick and tired of keeping up this facade. 'I just want to lay down and disappear'.
"Well, of course." Nick instantly looked up at the manager, 'had he granted my wish?'. Then he understood and blushed. The manager was talking about his earlier request. "You will get the same room as you had during your last stay."
The manager gave Nick a huge grin and handed him the key card. Nick took the card and headed for the elevator. Others would take care of the rest.
Nick's bodyguard approached him as he was waiting for the elevator.
"Nick, your luggage's been brought to your room and the entire floor is empty. We have people patrolling the area, there shouldn't be any problems." The bodyguard spoke softly.
"Thanks Jim." Nick replied, "I'll see ya tomorrow, bro'." Nick said, giving him a tired smile. The elevator doors opened, allowing him to enter.
The elevator moved silently, only a humming noise made you aware it was moving at all. Nick leaned against the wall,
'God, this has been one fucked up day...'. He sighed heavily. '...I wonder how Brian's doin'? ...What time is it back home?'. A quick ping interrupted him, and the elevator doors parted.
Sitting beside the elevator entrances was yet another bodyguard. He had gotten up when the elevator arrived, to greet Nick. Obviously someone had phone ahead.
"Good evening, Mr Carter." he said. Nick just nodded at him, not knowing the name of the guard, and continued on through the hallway to his room.
He read the number on the door, '912... Yeah, this should be it' and inserted the key card into the reader, waiting for the light to change from red to green. The card was accepted and a loud 'click' was heard when the door unlocked.
Inside the room, Nick found himself facing the bed. It was a huge double bed covered with a dark blue sheet, inviting him to get in. He fell heavily on the bed.
Nick lied there on his back, staring up at the ceiling. Life truly sucked, he thought. 'And here I am, stuck in Germany. I didn't even want to go on this thing!' He continued lying still for a couple of minutes before he began moving slightly, stretching out in the vast space of the bed.
Nick was used to sleeping in double beds, but this time was different. He began to to feel exposed and alone when he lied there. He looked over to the spot next to him, where Brian ought to be sleeping. It was empty.
It felt as if the weight of the entire world had struck upon him, crushing him and denying him air to breathe. Seeing the empty spot next to him was a painful reminder of how starved of love and recognition his life felt.
It isn't as if he didn't get enough hugs or enough attention, he and Brian always hugged eachother. But it's hugs between friends, Nick wanted the kind of hugs were you never let go, he wanted to get lost in the arms of his love and pride, he wanted to show HIS affection. Nick wanted to tell Brian how much he loved him, tell him he'd bring down the moon and all the stars just to be close to him for the rest of his life, but most off all; he wanted to hear Brian saying the same.
The wind gently rocked the palm trees. It was a beatiful summer day in Florida. Most people in the quiet suburban neighborhoods of Orlando stayed in-doors, where they were sheltered from the heat by powerful air conditioning units which kept the inside climate at a comfortable level. The same applied in Ruskin. In the out-skirts of Ruskin laid one of the town's largest villas. It's inhabitants had recently left the air-conditioned building and now sat by the pool area.
"I've been thinking..." AJ began, "Do you think we should take Nick to a shrink?"
"What?" laughed Kevin, "Why should he see a shrink?" he said surprised.
"Well, you know how he tends to clam up at times... As if he's shutting the world out. It can't be good to keep so much things to himself?"
Kevin sat silent for a few moments and then spoke, "Have you watched Operah again, AJ?"
"Yeah..." "But I really think it seems as a good idea. They talked about those stuff yesterday. You know, a lot of people who act as Nick does, turns out to be criminals and stuff. You know, murdering and robbing people."
"Are you kidding me?" Kevin couldn't believe what he was hearing. AJ could be so easily influenced some times, Kevin thought. He sighed deeply, luckily AJ forgot about those stuff as easily as he learned them. Kevin looked at AJ disapprovingly.
"I'm just saying..." AJ shrugged it off. "I could be wrong though...?" Kevin's eyes said more than a thousand words, so AJ surrendered. "Fine, no shrink."
"Good. If you're so worried about him why don't you just talk to him?" Kevin questioned.
"Oh, yeah, that's real easy. He won't talk when he's like that, and when he's in a good mood, well, then he don't wanna talk about it either!" AJ complained.
"Don't think about it then. Nick's a grown-up. He can take care of himself." Kevin slipped into the pool from the floating recliner he had been lying on. "Or at least one could except him to take care of himself." Kevin muttered.
Nick flipped channels on the TV, trying to find something to watch. Unfortunately for him, the hotel only featured one English speaking channel, CNN. Which left him having to choose between American speaking news or German techno on both MTV and VIVA, of which he wasn't very fond on either choices. Suddenly, something on the night drawer caught his attention.
On top of the night drawer standing next to him by the bed was a phone, Nick debated wether to call Brian or not. He checked his watch, and after some quick mental arithmatic Nick was fairly certain it was still late afternoon in the US. It was time to make the call, he wanted to make the call. He needed to make the call.
He quickly dialed the number, he'd never forget that number - ever, and waited as the call was being directed.
"Hello?" a voice answered.
It felt as if a weight had been lifted off his chest when Nick heard the voice belonging to Brian.
"Yo, Brian! It's Nick." His voice was cracking up ever so slightly when he spoke. "What's happenin'?"
"Nick!" The happiness in Brian's voice made butterflies flying around in his stomach. "Nuffin' much, just chillin' ya know." Brian responded, "Man, about time you called dude, I wondered what you've been up to?" he replied with a laughter lingering in his voice.
"Don't get me started, I've had a couple of really crappy days here! I didn't think I'd make it into the hotel today, the fans was really on huntin' mode today!" Nick joked, encouraged by Brian's cheerful mood. After a few seconds pause he continued, now with more sincerity to his voice.
"I've been really missin' you."
"I know Frack, I've been missing you too, but I'll see ya tomorrow!".
Just the thought of being back together with Brian again made Nick's heart hit an extra beat.
"Listen, I gotta go, but I'll see ya tomorrow, 'K?" Brian continued with a hint of stress to his voice.
"'K. Take care."
"You too, bro'. By the way, Leighanne says hi too." And with that the line went dead. The same, it felt to Nick, happened with his heart.
How a friendly intended phrase could cause so much pain and anguish.
When Nick had collected his thoughts for a while, he got up and headed for the bathroom.
He looked at himself in the bathroom mirror, running his fingers through his hair as he went through the phone call all over again and again.
'You can do this Nick. It's just until tomorrow, then it'll all be better.' He splashed his face with cold water, gently rubbing it in with the palms of his hands and then slowly removing them, revealing his face to the mirror. Nick looked into the mirror, 'It'll all be better tomorrow.'
To be continued _
The lyrics featured above is from the song "I Want to Know What Love Is" by Foreigner and is available on several of their albums published by Atlantic.
How do you feel about this story? Let me know; your views and opinions are important!
Yes; that's correct. GIVE ME MAIL. Please. If you want to know why I want you to mail, go to the 'Backstreets' website and click on Author's note.
Have you been to the the 'Backstreets' website? Previews of future chapters, character infos, story recommendations and more available. It's just waiting there for you. Go get it!! _______________________________________________________________________________
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Website: www.geocities.com/writer_nike/