[Karie]

I woke up and left Nick’s hotel room before he woke up. I left him a letter telling him that I enjoyed our day together and that I’m sorry the night ended on such a weird note but that I hoped he didn’t hate me for the things that I told him. Before I even walked into my apartment, he was calling my cell phone and reassured me that he didn’t hate me, but that he liked me.

I told him to go out and explore Nashville on his own terms that Sunday, that I needed to work on a project for work but that was a lie. I needed some ‘me’ time to figure out what was going on in my head, my brain, and most importantly, my heart. I stayed in my apartment all day with my cats since I had practically ignored them since meeting Nick except for when I fed them.

I just need some ‘me’ time.

Me? Who the hell was I anyway? Some fat girl who wrote news for a living and being somehow courted by an international pop star? That was a far cry from being who I used to be. My mother kept reminding me that I needed to go to the reunion when she called me last night to gossip about Nick.

“Take Nick with you!” she said to me, only to cause me to roll my eyes. Right, like Nick would ever go to my high school reunion with me.

The things I did in high school haunt me. Sometimes when I go to sleep at night, I think about those nights and days that I would skip class to head out behind the gym and do things with my boyfriend and his friends because I thought that was what I was supposed to do.

“All girlfriends do this stuff,” he would tell me. “You love me, right? Then show him what you do for me.”

I shutter thinking about those days. I don’t want to become like that again. I don’t want to become a slut, sleeping around and loosing track of my dreams and my future.

“Karie, you have a visitor,” I heard the secretary say over the speaker as I sat at work that Monday. I sighed, coming out of my thoughts and looked at my computer screen.

“Send them in,” I said, not even asking who it was. I opened up my e-mail, seeing if I had gotten any tips on anything happening that I needed to cover when I looked up to see Nick in the doorway. Great. This is just great.

“Hey,” he said, leaning against the door frame. “So I hunted down your office when you didn’t reply to my text message this morning.”

“Sorry,” I smiled. “I’ve just been out of it today.” I looked at my e-mail to see a few from Nick and one from my high school reunion committee. “God, can’t they leave me alone?”

“Me?” Nick asked, walking into my office and sitting down in the chair across from me.

“No,” I replied. “High school reunion crap. I just got a e-mail and my Mom is bugging me and then I haven’t stopped thinking of that crap I told you since Saturday night.” Nick nodded, looking down at his hands. “That’s why if I’m being all weird, it’s not you. It’s that.”

“When is this reunion?” Nick asked. I shook my head and he chuckled. “When?”

“This weekend,” I muttered.

“Where?”

“They’re holding it in Orlando at some big hotel, even though I went to high school near Gainesville.”

“E-mail them and tell them you’re coming,” he said as I glared at him. “You need to get over this stuff and I think by going there and showing them how far you’ve come will help you. You’ll show them that you’re better than them.”

I shook my head. “It’s this prom type thing they’re having,” I said.

“Plus, showing up with a celebrity will make all the other girls jealous,” he smiled. “Come on, I never went to high school or the prom or any of that crap. This will be fun for me and good for you.”

“Shouldn’t you be working or recording this weekend?” I asked as he shook his head.

“Weekend off,” he smiled. “Brian’s got some solo Christian shows up in Kentucky or something.”

I sighed and looked at the e-mail from the reunion committee. My mother had paid my fee without me knowing so I had RSVP’d. I just didn’t know if I could do it or not. Could I go back to see all of those people who I never really care to see again? Should I go there and show off the new me, with a Backstreet Boy of all people, on my arm?

“Come on Karie, you know deep down you want to,” Nick whispered, smiling at me. That smile. Those lips. How the hell could I say no to that?

“Fine,” I sighed. “Leave so I can go talk to my boss about taking Friday off and get some work done,” I said, standing up and walking around my desk. Nick stood up, grabbing my hand and pulling me towards him. “Nick!” I whispered, kicking my office door shut.

“We’re gonna have fun with this,” he whispered and I couldn’t help but smile. “We’re going to my area now. I know Orlando and Tampa like the back of my hand.”

“You forget I’m from Florida.”

“You forget that I’ve got you wrapped around my finger,” he whispered, causing me to laugh. “I need to get to the studio soon. I’ll see you later?”

“Maybe,” I said as he grinned, opening the door and walking out. I opened my office door back up and walked around my desk and sat down. I opened up the e-mail, hitting reply, and telling them that I would be there late Thursday night or Friday morning and that I would have a guest with me.

I couldn’t believe that I was doing this. Damn Nick for making me weak.

[/Karie]

[Nick]

“You’re going to Orlando with her?” Brian asked as he and I sat in the break room of the recording studio later that afternoon. “Vacation?”

“Her high school reunion,” I said, eating some chips. “She’s from the Gainesville area but they’re having it down in Orlando and she’s got a lot of issues from that time of her life that she needs to deal with so I think it’ll be good for her.”

“You’ve slept with her, haven’t you?” Brian asked as I laughed. “Nick, I swear.”

“She slept in my bed Saturday night but I slept on the sofa,” I smiled. “I haven’t slept with her yet. We’ve kissed, but that’s it. No make out sessions or anything like that, just a few kisses.”

“You mean you’ve known the girl for what, five days almost and you haven’t slept with her yet?” Brian asked, holding his hands together. “Thank you Jesus, Carter has learned to keep it in his pants.”

I rolled my eyes, filling my mouth with chips.

“You really like this girl, don’t you?” he asked as I nodded. “Can I ask why?”

“Why not?” I asked. “Because she’s different than the others I’ve dated? I think that’s a good thing.” Brian nodded. “Besides, she doesn’t seem to want anything from me. Hell, when we went out to eat at the Hard Rock on Saturday, she paid for both of us. Do you know when the last time a girl wanted to do that for me?”

“Never?”

“Exactly,” I said as AJ and Howie walked into the room. “Now don’t go tell them anything I told you.”

“Tell us what?” AJ asked.

“Nick’s got a girlfriend,” Brian laughed.

“Journalist chick?” Howie asked as I sighed. “She’s your girlfriend already?”

“No, not technically,” I said, getting annoyed with the way they were acting. “I really like her.”

“And he’s taking her to Orlando,” Brian said. “To her high school reunion down there.”

“Seriously, it’s not a big deal,” I said as they all began talking to one another. I rolled my eyes, walking out of the break room and back into the studio. I went into the recording booth and grabbed a guitar before sitting down on a stool, strumming it lightly.

I didn’t care if they were making fun of me, but I guess I did deep down. I like the girl and I know she’s different than most girls that I’ve dated, slept with, or hung out with. I just like hanging out with her and she seems to understand me.

Plus, she’s a damn good kisser.

I shook my head, looking down at the strings on the guitar and tried to get her out of my mind. I needed to work and unlike the other guys, I wanted to so I could leave for the day.

Leave and go hang out with her.

“It’s three a.m., I can’t sleep,” I sung, strumming the guitar. “It’s too late to call… this is not like me….”

I repeated myself again until my cell phone rung and I smiled. I had given Karie a Tim McGraw ringtone just so I would know that it was her when it rung.

“Hey,” I said, answering my cell phone. “You off work?”

“Just out running some errands,” she said, speaking low. “I have Thursday and Friday off. The reunion is on Saturday so I guess we come back Sunday. I’ll book the flights tonight –“

“Hey, don’t worry about that. I’ll get them. I have so many frequent flyer miles and what’s the hotel? I’ll get us a good room, a two bedroom suite if you want or at least two beds, you know,” I said, causing her to laugh.

“You sure?”

“Positive.”

“It’s the Ritz Carlton, at Grande Lakes,” she said as I began to giggle. “Are you giggling?”

“Yeah, I like that hotel,” I said.

“Well, you do that and I’m going to go to this shop on the way home because I’ve got to get some stupid ass ball gown and I’m fat, so that’s going to be interesting,” she said, causing me to sigh.

“You’re not fat. I have to get a suit or tux, don’t I?”

“Yeah.”

“I’ll just get one down there. It’ll be easier,” I said. “Listen, you want to do anything tonight?”

“You can come over if you want to,” she said. “I’m not really doing anything but I don’t know what time I’ll be home. When I leave this shop and then run by a label to get some information, I’ve got to go back to the office to write up some blurbs before we go to press.”

“Okay, just call me when you start home and I’ll hop over for a bit,” I said, before telling her goodbye. I sat my cell phone down on the stood beside me and strummed my guitar again.

“It’s three a.m., I can’t sleep,” I sung, strumming the guitar. “It’s too late to call… this is not like me….” I closed my eyes, playing a different chord. “But I’m still… lifted by the tattoo on the small of your back. The angle of your chin when you were looking back….”

“Nick…” I heard as I opened my eyes to see the guys in the studio. “What is that?”

“Uh,” I stuttered, finally shrugging my shoulders.

“She has a tattoo?” AJ asked as I nodded.

“A music note… on the small of her back. I saw it when she leaned over the other night,” I said as I looked at Brian who was smiling. “What are you smiling at?”

“Let’s work on this song,” Brian said as I sighed, walking into the studio with the guitar.

This is going to be the beginning of a great week.

[/Nick]