Here On Earth: Chapter 10

"Christmas time is here, snow is everywhere…" The Charlie Brown Christmas carol rang through the grocery store where Nick was getting some food for the next few days.
"I wish it weren't here!" Nick muttered angrily as he pushed the grocery cart down the aisle, grabbing a box of frozen pizza and throwing it into the cart.
"Mommy, why isn't that man happy?" Nick heard a little boy ask, and saw him pointing in his direction.
"Don't point, Tommy, it's rude." His mother grabbed his hand and put it by his side, walking away quickly, obviously embarrassed.
"You forgot the Macaroni and Cheese." Brian's voice came from beside Nick's ear.
"You can't be here!" Nick whispered, trying hard not to move his lips. "Not in front of people! They'll think I'm weird, talking to myself."
Brian laughed. "That's my point!"
"B-Rok, you were always like that! Trying to embarrass me, get me into trouble!" Nick forgot to whisper and watched as two women walked past him, whispering. He shrugged.
"You have to go back and get the Mac and Cheese!" Brian protested.
"Why? It's not like you can eat." Nick remembered to whisper this time.
"Well, you never know- maybe I can eat it!"
"Fine, I'll get some Macaroni." Nick turned the cart around and went to get some Macaroni. "Better?" He asked Brian when he had put it in the cart.
"Much!" They walked towards the checkout line and waited, not saying anything. "Oooh!" Brian suddenly said. "They wrote about me! I feel so special! Pick it up, Nick! I wanna read!"
"You get it!"
"It'll look like the magazines floating, you get it!"
"Fine," Nick reached for the magazine, flipping through until he saw Brian's picture.
They both read silently for a minute.
"Listen to this!" Brian said, laughing. "'Littrell, who was adored by fans all over the globe, was suspected of cheating on his girlfriend with another Backstreet Boy Nick Carter's girlfriend, Eva Mitchell, who also died in the tragic accident. Many wonder why the two were together without either Carter or Littrell's girlfriend, Sarah Patrick.' Isn't that retarded?"
"They can't really think that! That's so stupid!" Nick glanced up when he heard giggling coming from behind him. He nodded at the middle-aged woman who stood behind him with her hand over her mouth, trying to suppress her giggles.
"It gets even better," Brian went on reading. "'Witnesses at the scene of the tragedy say that Carter refused to even look at his friend's body, going only to that of his girlfriend, repeating her name over and over. We have not yet contacted Carter for his opinion of his friend's actions with his deceased girlfriend.'" Brian shook his head. "That's a bunch of crap. Put it back." Nick stashed the magazine onto the rack, but picked up another with a headline that caught his attention.
"Fans around the globe mourn Backstreet Boy's death." He read aloud. He heard Tina's words echo in his head, "Think not only of how their lives have not only affected you, but have affected other people as well." Nick opened the magazine and he and Brian began to read the article.
"This is so depressing," Brian said, reading over the quotes from the fans, looking at the pictures of memorial services that were held by fans all over the world. "I never thought it would be like that." He read a quote from a fan aloud to Nick, "He always had this energy that was just gorgeous! Every time I saw him on TV or in concert, it made me happy just to see him having a good time. To hear that his beautiful spirit and soul is dead…it's unbearable." Brian stopped reading. "Put it back."
Nick put it back, again hearing Tina's words. "Think not only of how their lives have not only affected you, but have affected other people as well."
Nick shuddered, knowing that he couldn't screw up his decision.

Chapter 11
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