AN: And the slow story slowly progresses... LOL I enjoy writing complex characterizations. inspiredthoughts@hotmail.com ******* Too Close for Comfort: Chapter Five ******* Kevin wasn't sure what he had expected when Nick had airily informed him that Nicole Hernandez was coming for a visit. He hadn't expected to find her in Nick's bed the next morning though. "Shit!" Nick shot up in surprise, shaving cream in one hand, feather in another. Nicole, who was still in bed, grumbled and promptly pulled a pillow over her head, intent on ignoring the world. "Nickolas, what in the hell is going on in here?" Nick flushed guiltily, then glanced at the sleeping girl. "Shh Kev, you'll wake her up." He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms across his chest. "And what do you think you were going to do?" His young band mate shook his head in quiet exasperation and yanked him out of the room, loosing the feather and shaving cream conveniently on the way. Nick didn't talk until they were in the hallway, with the door, quietly, closed. "She's jetlagged. Nicky's never been out of the country before. Never been on a plane before either, now that I think of it." "She's never been on a... never mind. I don't care. I do care to know why she's in your bed. Nick, you know the rules still hold. No girlfriends, especially best friend girlfriends. If Lou finds out you two are..." Nick made a face of disgust. "Eww, Kevin, that's gross." A tentative smile played across the older man's lips. "You didn't think it was so gross when I caught you with that girl, Bianca was it, in the closet last week." Nick blushed beet red to his toes. "That was different," he mumbled. "Bianca was, well, Nicky and I are NOT like that. That's why it's gross." Kevin sighed. "Does Nicky have two heads?" Nick shook his one head in the negative. "Does she have bad breath?" Another no. "Missing fingers? No? Well then, you're going to be attracted to her. You're both horny teenagers Nick, its inevitable, and when it happens and you two get together, that's when she's going home. Understand me?" Nick shot him a glare of pure loathing. "I don't think you understand," he enunciated clearly, showing gumption Kevin hadn't thought he possessed. Nick was always easy to intimidate, and order around, especially compared to AJ. "Nicole Hernandez is my best friend, my sister. We are not, and never will be, romantically involved. When you understand that, we'll all get along a lot better." "You better watch your tone with me young man..." "No, you better watch yours." The two men whipped around as the hotel room opened to reveal a disheveled, pissed off Nicky. She yawned hugely, once, before continuing her sleep punctuated tirade. "Nick isn't your brother, cousin, or son, Kevin. I don't care how much older than him you are, he's a member of this group and your equal and will be treated as such. Now, do you understand me?" Kevin stared down at the slight girl before him. She was wearing a huge oversized t-shirt and plaid boxers that came down to her knees. He recognized both as Nick's. The thought irritated him more than it should. Her sable curls were pulled back in a loose ponytail and dark circles highlighted chocolate brown eyes. She looked a lot older, and in some ways younger, than fifteen. "You are a guest here Nicole. Its important for you to remember that." She snorted, not at all unnerved by the equally pissed off man looming in front of her. Not even bruises intimidated her much these days. "Correction Kevin, I'm Nick's guest. I'm also his best friend. If I get sent home for taking care of one of the most important people in my life, I'll be going home a happy girl. I know where my loyalties, and responsibilities, lie." And with that she turned around, slammed the hotel door, and stumbled back to bed. Kevin spluttered for a minute, then turned to a beaming Nick. He was smiling ruefully, though anger still heated his pale green eyes, when he remarked with deceptive softness, "You don't find friends like that every day." Nick merely nodded, subdued. "I know. That's why I give everything I have to make sure I'll always have her. She's as much a part of me as Aaron or music. I'll die without her." Kevin sighed and left them alone, for now. ************************************************* "I swear to god that if Nicole Hernandez visits us on tour again, I'm quitting." Brian merely sniffed and tried to ignore his glowering cousin, though a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. Kevin, who was draped moodily on a fold up chair backstage while they waited for sound check, glared sulkily. "Don't tell me they aren't driving YOU insane?!" Brian hid his smile behind a fake cough and shrugged as he leaned against a nearby wall. "They're kids Kev, let them have their fun for a bit. Nick doesn't get to cut loose nearly enough." Kevin's scowl grew. "They're not children Bri, you know that, and I swear..." His continuing tirade was effectively cut off by Nicole's screams. She pounded around a corner, limbs and curls flapping as she raced by, a gallon of vanilla ice cream tucked under one arm, a spoon in her free hand. She shot them both a wicked smile as Nick rounded the corner, his shouts of outrage mingling with her pealing laughter. "You get back here right this instant or so help me Nicky I'll turn you over my knee and..." He paused for breath and shot his band mates an equally wicked grin before tearing off after his quarry, bellowing all the while. Kevin growled. "I've had a headache for the last three days. I don't get any sleep. If its not them running up and down the hotel hallways, it's the video games, or the truly awful heavy metal music, or the porn. Do you know they watched PORN last night?!" His voice cracked with disbelief at the last and Brian finally lost his will by breaking out in laughter. "Oh geeze Train, listen to yourself. We used to do much worse when we were their age. Nicky told us all about their porn adventure this morning at breakfast. If you hadn't been brooding you might have heard. They decided it would be fun to watch porn just to see it. Of course, they only thing they could manage was some soft core German porn on their television. Apparently from what they managed to translate through groans, the basic plot was that the star was so fevered she had fits where she took her clothes off and umm... became involved with whoever was nearby. Nick said they laughed so hard they nearly peed their pants." "Thank you for that lovely mental image Rok." Brian rolled his eyes, finally annoyed, and threw his hands up in the air as he straightened and glared down at his cousin. "Lay off them all right Kev, just lay off them." And with that, he strode off. ************************************************* Kevin was still steaming as he stalked back to the dressing rooms after sound check. He knew he was being hard on them, harder than was fair, but life was hard. Life wasn't fair, and he didn't understand why everyone around him tried to treat Nick and Nicky like they were made out of glass. They didn't need, or deserve to be coddled. He certainly hadn't been when he was their age, and he had turned out fine. In his temper, Kevin flung open the door to the dressing rooms, and was greeted with a fat water balloon bursting on his face. "Yes!" Nicky shouted as she did a little dance around the room. "I got you Nick, I got..." She paled, then flushed, as she finally realized who exactly she had 'got'. Nicole wasn't one to be easily intimidated, but Kevin's face was livid. "I, I'm sorry..." she started tentatively. He was striding towards her before the words left her mouth and had backed her into a corner before she had quite realized what was going on. Kevin forgot himself in his anger and grabbed one wayward wrist as he tried to control himself. "I can't believe you... of all the childish, immature, purely destructive things to do. What is wrong with you two?" He shook her to enunciate his point before continuing, loudly, "Why can't you two just act like civilized adults some of the time, why do you always, always have to do things your way?!" Kevin shook her again, just because he could. He was breathing heavily as he paused, trying to rein in his temper. Frigid green eyes glanced down at her face finally, trying to see if his words had made any impact. Nicole's eyes were squeezed shut, tan face pale, lips compressed in a tight line of pain. Finally realizing their position, Kevin swore colorfully and released her wrist before backing off a bit to give her some space. He watched, uneasy, as she hissed softly and cradled her wrist to her chest gingerly. She took two shuddering breaths before attempting to open her eyes. When she managed, he met her gaze soberly and tried to ignore the guilt churning in his stomach. "What happened? Something tells me that was hurting before I manhandled you." "And that excuses your behavior?" Nicky snapped harshly, not at all cowed now. She had managed to keep her wrist and bruised sides from Nick for several days now. It infuriated her that Kevin Richardson had almost uncovered her secret. Kevin counted to ten silently. "Did something happen at home?" Panic and anger bloomed and were swiftly muted in her sable eyes. "Its nothing," she finally replied calmly. "I fell in gym class a few days before I came. Its still sore is all." "And you think I believe that?" "Frankly Kevin, I don't give a damn what you think." She left Germany seven days later without having said another word to him. Nick and the others sang her praises for weeks following as Kevin silently gritted his teeth.