"Nick, you know, I can go home if you want me to. You should really spend time with your friends," Annie said.
Nick cut the ignition and moved in his seat so he was looking at her. "Annie, I want to spend time with you. I've spent the last eight years with these guys. They won't miss me for a few more days."
Annie cracked a smile. "Alright Nick, you won. Now we better get inside so Brian won't think we're avoiding him." They got out of the car and Nick grabbed the bags, and they headed inside.
Brian was sitting on the couch watching a movie when the two entered. "There you guys are. I was wondering when you were gonna get home. I stayed around to help take care of the pugs while you were gone," Brian said.
"Oh, hey thanks man. I didn't even think about them. We were in such a hurry to get to Indiana," Nick explained.
"That's ok. How you doing Annie?" Brian asked.
"I'm ok. Things were kinda dramatic, but Nick and my aunt Carol helped me through it." Annie yawned. "Hey Nick, I think I'm gonna go take a hot bath and then go to bed. Is that ok?"
"Yeah, that's fine. Let me go show you to your room then you can get in the tub," Nick said, leading her out of the living room.
A few moments later, Nick reappeared in the living room and sat down on the couch with Brian. "Ok Nick, how is she really doing?" a concerned Brian asked.
"Oh man, it was unreal. The night we got there, we were all sitting at the dinner table, and Annie's cousin Alan said that I looked familiar. Then Alex said she went and snagged her a Backstreet Boy. Then she leaned closer to Cory and said let's just hope she can keep this one satisfied."
"Oh my God. That's terrible," Brian said, shocked.
"Yeah, then Alex said something like she was sorry things worked out this way, but someone wasn't doing their job. Annie got up from the table and went down to our room. She was pissed. I didn't want to get to close to her for fear she'd hit me or something like that."
"True, don't ever get in a woman's way when she's pissed," Brian joked.
"So I guess her aunt Carol talked to them later that night. She told them to get a hotel room, cause she didn't want them staying there and that Cory wasn't to go to the services. Well, Alex decided that if he wasn't gonna go then she wasn't gonna go, so they headed back to Boston that night," Nick finished.
"Wow. That's horrible. But I don't blame Carol for what she did. Sounds like Alex needs a good attitude adjustment," Brian said.
"Yeah, no kidding. But Annie's doing better than she was. She's just worried about finding a job and I sprung it on her that our tour starts in a few weeks," Nick said.
Brian noticed the change in his voice. "Man, you really care about her, don't you?" he asked.
"I'm falling in love with her Frick, and frankly, it's scaring the hell out of me. I think ahead to the tour, and for the first time, I'm dreading it, because she won't be there with me," Nick explained
"Well, how does she feel about you?" Brian asked.
"That's another thing. I got the impression from her aunt that she has feelings for me, but I don't know for certain. I don't wanna rush her into anything and ruin our friendship over it. I just don't know what to do. I promised her aunt that I would look after Annie, just to make sure she's doing ok after everything that's happened. How am I gonna do that when I'm on tour?"
"Bring her with you," Brian said simply.
"I wish it were that easy Rok. She's looking for a job. She can't just come out on tour with me. She's gotta pay for her bills and all that stuff for the house," Nick said frustrated.
Brian leaned back on the couch, obviously in deep thought. "Annie's a nurse, right?" Nick nodded, and Brian went back to thinking.
Nick looked at him. "Dude, what are you cookin up in that head of yours?"
Brian grinned widely. "You remember a few weeks ago when you went and did that recording stuff with Aaron?" Nick nodded. "Well, we had a meeting that day with management. With all the strained muscles and illnesses that we go through while on tour, they suggested that we might think about hiring a nurse to tour with us. Ya know, someone to take proper care of us when we sprain an ankle or something like that," Brian explained.
"Frick, that's perfect! Annie can get a job with us."
"You think she'd go for it Nick?" Brian asked apprehensively.
"Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt to ask. Why don't we get a hold of the rest of the guys, talk about it with them, and then ask her tomorrow."
"Well, sounds like a plan to me. It's getting late, so I guess I'm gonna go to bed. You should too, we've got alot of things to work out tomorrow," Brian said.
"Alrighty, night Frick," Nick said.
"Night Frack," Brian said, as they headed off to their bedrooms.
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