Things were going great with Nick. We were spending a lot of time together. No one really noticed because they were always going out. We hung out with Brian a lot of the times. Nick and I kept our kissing a secret when we were with everyone. I don’t think we knew what we were doing. This kissing stuff was new to us.

I walked out of the bathroom and saw Nick standing in the hallway.

“What are you doing out here?”

“I told the guys I had to pee. I just wanted to see you.” He smiled at me.

“You’re too sweet. How’s the song going?”

“It’s going okay.” He gave me a peck on the lips. I deepened the kiss. I couldn’t get enough of his lips on mine. Nick slowly backed me up against the wall. My hands were playing with his hair. He hands played with the bottom of my shirt.

“You better get back before the guys come looking for you.” I kissed his nose.

“Do I have to? I’d rather be with you.” He smirked at me. He kissed me again.

“We can’t get caught. You need to go.” I pushed him away.

He walked down the hall. I smiled as I watched him go. I was in my own little world and didn’t realize anyone was in the hall until Howie started talking to me.

“Is everything ok?”

“Hey, Howie. Everything is fine. Why?”

“You seem like you’re in a trance.”

“I’m fine. I was just daydreaming.” He gave me a look. He knew something was up. I looked down at the ground.

“Lunch is almost ready. We’ll talk later. You’re a little flushed, sweetie. Go splash some cold water on your face.” He smiled and walked into the restroom.

I was thankful Howie had caught us. Anyone else would have freaked out. I don’t think I could go on hiding whatever I had with Nick. What were we? Were we a couple? Were we just friends who kissed? I needed someone to talk to about it. Maybe I could talk to Howie about it. He seemed level headed and sweet. I don’t think he would tell Kevin.

----------------------------------------------------

Howie invited me to go to a cafe this evening. He wanted to talk to me. We sat at a table and made some small talk.

“What’s going on with you and Nicky?”

“I’m not really sure. We stopped fighting last week. Then we started kissing every time we we’re alone.”

“Do you like him?”

“Yes. I think he’s sweet and funny.”

“How does he feel about you?”

“I think he likes me. We don’t really talk about it. We spend most of our time making out.”

“Wow. I don’t want to sound like a party pooper, but I’m concerned. You are both young and you don’t want to rush into a physical relationship.” Howie meant well, but being the stubborn teenager I was; I didn’t want to hear it.

“We’re not going to have sex. We are just kissing. Nothing has happened. Nothing will happen. I promise.”

“Ashton, I’m going to be honest with you. Sometimes things happen when you don’t plan on it. I think you and Nick make a cute couple. I don’t want either of you to get hurt. Take time to get to know him. Relationships aren’t just about kissing and making out.”

I played with my spoon and thought about what Howie said. Maybe he was right. I needed to know more about Nick. We didn’t talk that much. What if he was stupid or shallow? I didn’t want to date a guy like that.

“I guess you’re right Howie. Even though I’ve known Nick for a while, I really don’t know him. Are you going to tell Kevin?”

“Your secret is safe with me.”

--------------------------------

When I got back to the hotel, I decided to see what the guys were up to. Nick and Brian were playing video games. Alex was listening to music.

“You want to play a game?”

“Sure. Which one?” Alex asked.

“It’s called questions. Each person will get five slips of paper. You write down one question on each slip. Then we put the questions in a basket and take turns answering them.”

“That sounds like fun.” Brian sat down next to me.

I handed out the paper and everyone started writing questions. I thought this was a good way to get to know Nick. He wouldn’t even realize I was trying to get information about him. We all threw are questions in the basket.

“Ladies before gentleman, I’ll go first.” I picked a slip of paper. “What is your favorite food? My favorite food is pizza.”

“What do you look for in the opposite sex? I look for beautiful eyes, long hair, great personality and sense of humor.” AJ rattled off his list.

“What is your biggest fear?” Brian thought for a moment. “Heights.”

It was Nick’s turn. I couldn’t wait to her what he was going to say.

“Describe your dream girl. Well, I like girls that are older than me. I like long dark hair, natural looking. I hate girls with a lot of makeup. She has to be honest, sweet, feisty, independent and a nice personality.”  He smiled at me. I could feel myself blushing.  I noticed Alex and Brian look at each other. I chose to ignore it.

We continued asking questions. I learned a lot about Nick. His middle name was Gene. He liked boating, fishing, playing basketball and video games. His best friend was Brian. Nick had one brother and three sisters.

“What is your dream date? I would love to have a picnic on the beach. It would be great to cuddle and watch the waves.” I answered.

“That’s so romantic.” Brian teased me. I threw a pillow at him.

“Who was the last person you kissed?” Nick didn’t know what to say. He didn’t want anyone to know about us. “This game is stupid. These questions are lame.”

Nick ran out of the room. We all sat there in silence. I wanted to follow him, but I knew I couldn’t. This situation sucked. At that point I didn’t want to hide it anymore. I wanted the world to know I liked Nick Carter. I was going to talk to him about it later. Growing up and falling in love wasn’t easy.