Nick pulled the hood of his jacket up and shoved his hands into his pockets, walking quicker through the night streets. He felt his phone vibrate and reached quickly into his back pocket and pulled it out, reading the message.
Where you at?
I’m on my way, running late. Give me 5 more minutes…
He shoved his phone back into the pocket and picked up his pace. He made his way to the bridge and was about to start down the hill to meet his dealer when a car raced by, a woman screaming for help. He watched in horror as the car stopped in the middle of the bridge and the woman was quickly drug out of the car and thrown head first over the railing. The woman's scream was blood-curdling, and it stopped only when he heard a splash of water. He didn’t wait around to see what happened next and decided his dealer could wait another day, he just didn’t want to be seen. He took off running, trying to stick to the shadows and not be seen. He dipped into an alley, hiding behind a dumpster as he heard a car slowly crawl past the alleyway, a light shining in it, looking for any sign of life.
What the fuck had he just witnessed?
Earlier that night…
Nick looked around at all his friends who had gathered to help celebrate his thirty-second birthday. Truth be told, he only recognized half of them, and honestly liked only about ten. His brother had been quick to remind him that he was Nick Carter, and intimate birthday gatherings would not look good for a pop star trying to rise again. Rather than fighting his brother, though, he simply told him to do whatever he wanted. Nick was just along for the ride.
Nick was all ready bored after only ten minutes. There was not enough alcohol in this room to give him the high he was really craving, but he had to stay clean. It had been a little over two years since his doctor told him to sober up or die, and at this exact moment, a bump sounded pretty damn good- no matter the consequences. He glanced down at his watch, trying to figure out how much longer he absolutely had to stay at his own party.
“You’re not bored all ready, are you, Nick?” Lacey asked.
He looked over at her and quickly shook his head no. “Far from bored,” he lied. He was wracking his brain, trying to figure out how the hell he knew the Party of Five star, when she interrupted his thoughts again.
“Well, if you need me to show you a good time, let me know,” she said, leaning closer to him, a knowing smile on her face.
“Yeah? What did you have in mind?” he asked, perking an eyebrow.
She reached for his hand, leading him away from the crowd. He laced their fingers together as he weaved behind her, hoping she had some blow or something.
Once the two were in the restroom, Lacey checked the stalls before locking the door, making sure they had a few minutes worth of privacy.
Nick leaned back against the counter and crossed his arms over his chest. “So, whatcha got?” he asked softly, thankful he no longer had to scream over the music.
Lacey reached into her bra, pulling out a condom as she stepped closer to him, a seductive smile pulling at the corners of her lips.
Well, it wasn’t what he had been hoping for, but he would never refuse…
Thirty minutes later, Nick stepped out of the bathroom, zipping up his pants as he silently made his way past the crowd that had built up around the door. After readjusting his shirt, he glanced at his watch, mildly surprised that his little excursion had taken up so much time. He glanced around and spotted Aaron. He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair as his brother frantically made his way over to him.
“Where ya been? Everyone’s wondering if you want to DJ tonight or not,” Aaron said when he finally caught up to his older brother.
“What? Oh, um… Yeah… Sure, that’s fine, I guess I can for a bit, if it’s okay with the DJ,” Nick responded. He started looking around, trying to find Lacey again in the crowd.
“Okay, I’ll come find you when it’s all set up,” Aaron said before disappearing back into the crowd.
Nick nodded and was about to head back to the bar for another drink when he felt someone’s hand in his pocket. He looked down and turned around to find out whose hand was in his pants, and found a smirking Lacey.
“Just something for you to remember me by,” she smiled, slowly pulling her hand away. Instead of leaving, though, she reached for his hand, writing her phone number on the palm of his hand. “Call me sometime…” She looked up at him before slowly stepping away.
Without thinking, he reached a hand out, pulling her back out to him. “Don’t go too far… I’m leaving as soon as I can,” he sighed and looked away. “Yeah, I’m leaving soon, and I don’t want to-“ he stopped, feeling like an idiot, not wanting to admit he didn’t want to be alone, and feeling like he was choking on his own breath.
She nodded, not making him finish what he was going to say, “Okay, I’ll be close.”
Nick took a long drink from his glass and saw Aaron walking towards him, signaling for him to follow. Nick nodded, making his way through the crowd after his brother, groaning when he saw his brother stand on the mock stage with a microphone. Of course there would be an introduction, why did he think there wouldn’t be? He put a big smile on his face and spoke to the DJ for a moment, not even paying attention to what Aaron was saying. He just simply let the music take over, playing a mix of songs from 1980, the year he was born. He tried to find only the most popular songs, like Whip It, and Call Me, dance songs that would keep the club moving.
After almost an hour, he finally gave the reins back to the DJ and made his way back to where he last saw Lacey. He barely heard all the girls congratulating him for his set and telling him how “totally awesome” he was. Thankfully, he didn’t have to deal with the platitudes for long before he heard her whisper, “Let’s get out of here.”
Nick nodded and texted Aaron Thanks for the party, see you later! The text was meant to keep him out of trouble of skipping out early on his own party and meant to serve as his goodbye. He silently reached for Lacey’s hand, leading her through the crowd and outside.
“Did you drive?” he heard Lacey ask.
Nick nodded and handed his keys over to the valet. “Yeah, did you?” he asked quietly, glancing back at her.
Lacey shook her head no, “I came with some friends. I all ready told them I was leaving,” she said, letting him know without saying it that no one would worry about her.
Nick nodded, not exactly sure what to say. He wrapped an arm around her, noticing her shiver in the cool night air. Thank God the car came a few seconds later, so he didn’t have to try and figure out something to talk about. He let her go and went to open her door for, helping her in before going to climb in on his side.
He began to drive away from the club, not entirely sire where he wanted to go. After a few minutes of silence, he heard something and realized Lacey had asked him a question.
“I’m sorry, what was that?” he asked, glancing at her before concentrating on the road again.
“I asked what you were thinking about,” she said with a gentle smile.
“Have you ever been lost in thought, but didn’t know what you were thinking about?” he asked softly. Out of the corner of his eye he saw her nod, which caused him to shrug. “I guess I’m just figuring out what to do, where to go tonight, not doing drugs,” he said weakly.
“Oh, right, sobriety,” she said. “It’s over rated, you know.”
“You sound like you’re giving me permission to bump tonight,” he said with a chuckle.
“I am,” she said honestly. “I just need to make a phone call and we can have some in just a few minutes.”
He didn’t give himself a chance to think about his answer, he simply reacted.
“Make the call.”
Nick was flipping through a magazine and listening to the news a few days later when a picture of a smiling brunette woman popped up on the screen. She looked familiar, so he set the magazine down and squinted, trying to get a better look at her.
“…Amilia Hutchins, the mayor’s daughter. She has been missing for three days now and authorities are asking that if you know anything, to please call…”
Shit! He cursed to himself. The mayor’s daughter was the girl he witnessed-
He stopped himself mid-thought and shook his head no. Now he knew he couldn’t get involved. If it was the mayor’s daughter who was thrown off the bridge, there had to be people behind it that he didn’t want to mess with…
The Day Before…
Nick was playing basketball with Brian and Baylee, though Nick wasn’t doing a very good job. Hell, even Baylee had more points than he did. He sighed and called for a time out, heading over to his bag and pulling out his water bottle, taking a few chugs, watching as Brian chased his son around the courts. When Nick came back over to play again, Brian looked up at him.
“So are you going to tell me, or do I have to guess?” his friend asked him.
Nick frowned slightly, “What are you even talking about?”
Brian chuckled, “We’ve been friends for nearly twenty years, man, you can’t tell me nothing’s bothering you. You have never played this bad, not even when you were coked up. So, again, are you going to tell me, or do I have to guess?”
Nick shrugged, “Just a lot on my mind.”
Brian nodded, “So guessing it is… Does it have anything to do with that girl you left with the other night?”
“What night?” he asked, playing dumb.
“The party? Someone said you left with Lacey from Mean Girls,” Brian said. “How do you even know her?”
“I didn’t- I don’t,” Nick said, shaking his head no. “It’s complicated,” he finished lamely.
“Ah, so it does have to with her?” Brian asked, trying to clarify.
Nick shrugged softly, “I mean, yeah, we left together, but I just ended up taking her home. Nothing really happened.” He felt bad for lying to his friend, but he couldn’t drag Brian into this. Hell, he wasn’t even sure if he could drag himself into it!
“So wait, you left your own birthday party early, with a girl, and you just took her home?” Brian asked. He shook his head no, “I don’t believe it man. Again, we’ve been friends for almost 20 years; just like I know when something’s up, I can tell when you’re lying.”
Nick sighed and looked at his friend, “Fine, we left early to use, but I decided in the end using again wasn’t worth it, so I just took her home to get rid of the temptation. Are you happy now?”
Brian frowned softly, “You were going to use?”
“Yes, Brian. I was going to use. I was going to throw everything away for one more line. Did you know I didn’t want the damn party? All I wanted for my birthday was to go surf the waves at night, under the stars. But no, I’m fucking Nick Carter, and I’m not allowed to be by myself for my birthday, so forgive me if I wanted to escape,” he hissed at his friend. He sat down on the edge of the court and rubbed his eyes. He felt weak admitting that he had fully intended to use with Lacey, that even after 2 years the damn drugs still called his name.
He was surprised when he heard Brian sit next to him and slowly turned to look at his friend, “Nick, it’s hard to admit what you just did, but I’m proud of you. There’s a saying, ‘Once an addict, always an addict.’ No, it doesn’t mean that you’ll always use, it just simply means that the pull will always be there. It takes a strong man to admit he had a tough night, and I’m proud of you for that.” He drew a breath and looked at Nick before reaching up to ruffle his hair, “You’ve come a long way, kid, and I’m proud of you.”
Nick nodded softly, “There’s something else.” He drew a breath to ask his friend about the murder he witnessed but heard Baylee scream in pain. His head jerked up at the same time as Brian’s, though he was slower to stand than his friend. By the time he made his way over to the scene, Baylee’s tears had all ready subsided and Brian was kissing the kid’s knee.
“See? All better, Bud… Ready to play some more?” Brian asked as he stood up and helped Baylee dust off from the fall.
The little trooper nodded and wiped away the tears and looked up at Nick, “Uncle Nicky, can we play a game of HORSE?”
Nick nodded, “Yeah, of course.” He retrieved the ball and handed it back to Baylee, “You can go first.”
Nick was thankful for the reprieve and hoped he was off the hook from confessing to Brian anything else. He enjoyed playing with Baylee for about another hour before Brian stood up, “All right, I think it’s about lunch time, don’t you think, Bay?”
Baylee nodded and looked at Nick, “Where are we going, Birthday Boy?”
Nick laughed softly, “It’s no longer my birthday, so you can pick.” He gathered his things and followed Brian to his car while Baylee chattered on to no one in particular about where he wanted to go. He finally decided on White Castle, which was just about a mile away. Nick nodded, “Meet you there?” he asked, looking up at Brian.
“We can take one car, and I’ll swing back afterwards and drop you off,” Brian said, hitting the unlock button on his keychain.
Nick shrugged and climbed in to the car, buckling up and all so Baylee couldn’t fight his dad about seatbelts, even though he, himself, hated seatbelts. Supposedly not wearing a seatbelt was a sign of depression and a suicidal tendency, but he didn’t believe it. He just hated the feel of it on his shoulder, feeling like the damn strap was cutting into him.
Brian glanced over at Nick, “You said there was something else… What’s up?” he asked softly, figuring Baylee had all ready found his iPod and was listening to it too loud and couldn’t hear their conversation.
Nick should’ve known he couldn’t get off that easy. He drew a deep breath and stared out the window, “If you witness something bad, are you obligated to say something?”
“Depends on what you witness, exactly,” Brian said, glancing quickly at Nick before turning his focus back to the road. “What did you see? Is that what’s eating you?”
Nick glanced over his shoulder at Baylee, who sure enough was ignoring them and muttering the lyrics to a Hinder song. He relaxed again and shrugged. “Honestly, I’m not entirely sure what I saw. I mean, I’d had a few drinks, and who knows, maybe I was just imagining it just to have an excuse to drop Lacey off and not hang out with her,” he said, trying to justify it as his imagination.
Brian looked over at Nick, “Ok, you’re starting to ramble. You either really want to talk about this and get it off your chest, or you don’t want to talk about it with me. There are counselors who you can talk to, Nick, if this is that serious.”
Nick shrugged softly, “Maybe. Again, I’m not sure exactly what I saw. Maybe when I figure it out for sure, then I’ll let you know?”
He sighed again and climbed out of the car once Brian had pulled up to White Castle.
