Nick Carter waited anxiously in the back of the limo next to his younger brother Aaron. He glanced over at the 23-year-old every now and again, sitting there beside him, legs bouncing nervously, sweat beads forming on his forehead. He could almost feel the tension radiating from the young man's body as they pulled up alongside the convention center, the huge UNOS banner hanging from the side announcing the big event;

"Friends and Family Gala: We Proudly Welcome our Donor and Recipient Families".

It was still hard to believe everything Aaron had been through. To look at him at that moment one would never have guessed he'd had a liver transplant three years before. He looked healthy, happy... he looked really good. His skin no longer held the yellowish tint they'd all grown used to in the months surrounding his transplant. He no longer had to worry about every small illness. Long term rejection would always be a concern, but things were certainly looking promising.

"You excited about this?" Nick asked reaching out a reassuring hand and placing it gently on Aaron's knee.

Aaron nodded. Nick didn't really need to ask the question to begin with. Aaron had talked about his 'donor' for the past three years, only refering to her as that because he didn't know her name. For three long years he'd wondered who the 19-year-old girl who saved his life had been. He'd wondered what her name was, what she looked like, what types of things she'd liked... he'd wondered how she died. It had taken him a long, long time to come to terms with the reality that he was walking around with the liver of another human being in his body. At first he'd been terribly troubled by it, even though the doctors had assured him the feelings were completely normal, it didn't make him feel better. He'd finally agreed to therapy to help him cope with the 'normal' feelings and that had helped him out immensely.

The first year of recovery had been the longest. Aaron spent more time in the doctor's office that year than he'd spent in one his entire life. He'd ended up with infections two separate times and had to be hospitalized for both infections and for one illness. He spent a total of 10 weeks in the hospital, including the 4 weeks during his transplant. He never complained though. He took it all with a grain of salt. He would go to his doctor's visits and return home sore and tired but willing to hang out with his siblings. He would spend weeks at a time in the hospital with infections or illnesses and return home the same Aaron he'd always been... ready and willing to challenge Nick to a playstation marathon.

He'd spent 6 months total living with Nick after his transplant. Though he'd never openly admit it Nick knew Aaron had enjoyed the company and Nick had enjoyed it too. The two of them had spent the spring and summer boating and fishing, laying out on the beach and playing video games together. Nick had enjoyed the time away from touring and recording and had welcomed the excuse to stay at home and just enjoy a family life.

He stared across towards his three best friends sitting on the opposite side of the seat facing him and smiled. Aj, Brian and Howie had been incredibly supportive through the entire journey. They'd easily agreed to take time off so that Nick could take care of Aaron. They'd visited often and had come up with many great activities for Aaron when he couldn't get out of the house and do anything... and they had even offered to come this day, on their day off, and perform with Nick in honor of Aaron and all of the other donors and recipients.

Brian leaned silently over and placed a hand on Aaron's still bouncing knee. He stopped bouncing it momentarily and brought his eyes up to meet the older man's.

"You alright dude?" Brian asked as he patted him on the back.

"Just nervous," Aaron responded hesitantly, "I never thought this day would actually come."

"Understandable," Brian replied.

And he hadn't. He hadn't thought the day would come. He'd never thought he would get to find out who really saved his life. He'd never thought he'd make it this far.

What would he say when he finally met her family?

How do you ever thank someone for a gift so great?