Date: Sun, 12 Sep 1999 04:17:49 EDT
From: MATRIX3311@aol.com
Subject: crash with fame 8

Legal stuff: Don't read this if you are under age or if you are offended by
gay relationships/sex.  Also this story is not true meaning that I have no
idea of the true sexual preferences of the Backstreet Boys or anyone else
that may be mentioned in this story
	As always...any comments or suggestions or whatever can be sent to
matrix3311@aol.com or matrix3311@yahoo.com or ICQ at 33110864.

			     Crash with fame-8
				Written by
				    Neo

	I did not know what to do.  Howie's father was coming towards me
with his arms out in front of him.  I started to step back when his arms
wrapped around my body in a tight hug.  I breathed a sigh of relief and
gently hugged him back.  It was an awkward moment for some reason and I did
not know what to do.
	"It is about time you told us about Chris, we have known for a long
time now," Howie's mother said.  Howie's jaw dropped to his knees.
	"How did you know?" Howie asked her.
	"Alexander.  He has a rather big mouth," Howie's mom laughed.
Howie just rolled his eyes.  I walked over next to him and put my arm
around his waist.  He looked up at me and smiled.  This was the first time
that I noticed how much taller I was than Howie.  He put his arm around my
waist and led us to the couch.  We sat down and made small talk with his
parents.  Howie was just getting up to get some coffee for everyone when
the front gate buzzer buzzed.  Howie walked over to the door and looked out
the window.  He pressed the intercom button.
	"Hello?" he asked.
	"Yes, my name is Ryan Jenkins and I am with the Star," the voice on
the other end of the intercom said.
	"I'm sorry, but Mr. Dorough is not available for any interviews
right now," Howie said.
	"But..." the guy started as Howie turned off the intercom.  The guy
to notice of this and we could see him walking away from the living room
window.  Howie continued into the kitchen and after a couple of minutes
came out with four cups of coffee.  He passed them around and set the tray
down on the coffee table.  We continued our conversation about whatever
came up until we heard the front gate opening.  I looked out the window and
saw Nick's Durango pulling into the drive.  I looked back to Howie and his
parents as Nick, Brian, Kevin, and AJ were getting out of the car.  Howie
stood and walked to the door.  He opened it just as Kevin was putting his
key in the lock.
	"Hi," Kevin said trying to catch his balance.
	"Hi, what are you guys doing here?" Howie asked.
	"Well we wanted to take you and your parents out for dinner," Kevin
said to all of us.
	"Come on in," Howie said to them.  It did not matter because they
were already in anyway.  Everyone tried to find seats in the living room
but it did not work.  Howie and I were taking up the couch, Nick and Brian
took the love seat, and Howie's parents had the chairs so Kevin and AJ
ended up sitting on the floor.
	"So where do you guys want to go to eat?" Kevin asked everyone.
Howie and I called for Italian, Nick called for Chinese, and AJ called for
French.  Howie's parents did not say anything.
	"What do you want mom and dad?" Howie asked.
	"We really just want to stay in tonight..." they said.  Everyone
looked around at everyone else.  Something about Howie's parents tone was
weird.  Howie shrugged his shoulders.
	"Pizza," Nick suddenly yelled, startling everyone.  No one objected
so Nick ran to the phone.
	"Guess we are having pizza then," Kevin said.  Everyone eased up a
little bit.  I still did not know why there was so much tension in the
room.
	"Cheer up Alex," Howie's father said.  It was then that I noticed
that AJ was sitting off in the corner by himself.  He shrugged his
shoulders, stood up and calmly walked out of the room.  Howie's parents
looked around the room.  Everyone was looking at the ground.  Kevin stood
up and walked over to them.  He kneeled down in front of them and explained
to them.  I heard Howie's mom gasp.  Everyone was still looking at the
ground.  I decided to go check on AJ.  I headed out of the room and up the
stairs.  I didn't know where he was so I started to look in to each
bedroom.  I had just opened the door to the last bedroom when I heard
sounds from above me.  I quickly closed the door and opened the door that
led to the attic.  I groped around for a light switch and quickly found
one.  I slowly started up the steps.  It was eerie almost like a haunted
house.  I was half expecting the stairs to start creaking.  I soon came to
another doorway.  I slowly pushed open a door not knowing what to expect.
The room was pitch black.  I reached around for a light switch but was not
able to find one.
	"AJ," I called out.  There was no response.  I stood there
completely quiet.  I heard muffled sobs from one corner.  I stumbled
through the room haphazardly.  I stumbled a few times and tripped once.  It
was almost like I was falling over toys.  I kept going until I could make
out the form of something or someone crouched down in a corner.  I sank
down to my knees next to AJ.  "AJ?" I asked quietly.  He was still sobbing.
I put my arm around his shoulder and pulled him close to me.  He buried his
head in my chest and kept crying.
	"I miss him so much," he cried quietly.
	"I know, it has to hurt, but you have to move on," I said quietly.
He did not reply, instead he kept crying on my chest.  I started to slowly
stroke his back.  His tears were slowing and so was his breathing.  It was
not long before AJ was sound asleep on my lap.  I realized that he has been
tearing himself up over everything that has been going on.  I stood up and
picked AJ up off of the floor.  I was afraid of tripping on my way to the
door but made it only stumbling a few times.  I quickly went down the
stairs and had to let my eyes adjust from the dark attic to the bright
hallway.  I walked into the first bedroom and set AJ down on the bed.  He
was skinny but he was not light.  I took his shoes and shirt off of him.
He never seemed to notice.  It was almost like he was passed out.  I set
AJ's clothes by the door and was just turning around to head out when I saw
Howie right in front of me.
	"Shit, don't do that to me," I said getting my bearing.
	"Is he okay?" Howie asked me.
	"I think so, he was curled up in a ball up in the attic, he kept
crying but quickly fell asleep," I whispered to Howie.
	"Quickly?  You guys have been gone for nearly two-hours," Howie
said as we were walking out of the room.  Mom and dad have already gone to
bed, and the guys just left." Howie said to me as we got into the hallway.
	"Then let's go to bed too, I am beat," I said to him leading him to
our bedroom.  I went in as Howie set the alarm.  I quickly stripped down to
my boxers and got into bed.  Howie was right behind me.  He snuggled up
next to me and laid his head on my chest.  I sensed that there was
something wrong.  "Howie?" I asked.
	"Yeah, baby?" he asked me.
	"What's wrong, you seem tense, almost as if you are hiding
something," I said to him.  With that he let out a deep sigh and slid up on
the bed so that he was eye to eye with me.
	"Chris, next month, we start our tour of the states," Howie said
almost in a depressed tone.  I did not quite understand what he was getting
at.
	"Okay," I said.
	"Well, I am going to be gone for awhile and I don't think that
management is going to allow you to go along," Howie said kissing me gently
on the forehead.
	"Oh," I managed to get out.
	"And when I saw how AJ was reacting to not being able to be with
Jake anymore I was afraid of what it was going to do to us," he finished.
	"Howie, don't worry about it, everything is going to work out, as
long as we have each other we will be fine," I said wrapping myself in him.
He smiled as I planted a deep kiss on his lips.  We just laid there until
we both fell asleep.  I awoke early the next morning.  Howie's parents were
already awake and down in the dining room drinking a cup of coffee when I
got down there.
	"G'morning," Howie's dad said to me.
	"Oh, good morning," I said to them as I headed into the kitchen to
get a cup of coffee.
	"Howie still asleep?" his mother asked.
	"Yeah, he is," I said as I was pouring myself a cup of coffee.
	"Oh," Howie's father said.
	"Oh, by the way, Kevin is going to pick Howie up, and Nick and
Brian are going to come over to help me set up for his party tonight.  Do
you want to go with Kevin and Howie or stay here and help set up?" I asked
them.  They sat there deep in thought for a minute before they both said
that they were going to go with Kevin and Howie.  I sat down at the table
across from them and tried to strike up a conversation but every attempt
was shot down by quick one-word answers from either one of them.  For some
reason I got the feeling that they did not except me as much as they led
Howie to believe.  I finished my cup of coffee and went into the kitchen to
put the cup in the sink.  I did not want to go back out to the dining room
so I took the service stairs up.  I had just opened the door to the second
floor as I saw AJ come out of his room.  He quickly went into the bathroom
so I went back into Howie's and my bedroom.  I quietly shut the door and
walked over to the bed.  I got back in and started to kiss Howie on the
neck.  He tried to resist at first but soon realized what was happening.
His eyes opened and he looked straight at me.
	"Morning," I said to him.
	"Morning," he said back to me kissing me deeply on the lips.
	"Come on, get up, Kevin is going to be here soon," I said pulling
the covers off of him.
	"What for this time?" Howie asked sleepily.
	"I don't know, something about finishing up what you guys started
last time." I said to him.  He let out a groan of disgust as he pulled
himself from the bed and headed into our bathroom.  I heard the shower
start so I headed back into the hallway.  I saw that I forgot to shut the
door to the service stairs so I headed over there.  I walked in and shut
the doors.  I was heading down the stairs when I realized I could hear
Howie's parents talking in the kitchen.
	"What Howard sees in him is unknown to me," Howie's mom said.
	"You would think that we raised our son better, but he goes out and
finds himself some gold digger, I mean the boy didn't have a job when he
met Howie." Howie's father added.  I was shocked by what I heard.  I knew
that I could not go down those stairs or they would think that I was
eavesdropping so I headed back up them.  I had just thrown the door open as
AJ walked out of his room.  I felt like shit, but I did not think it was
noticeable.
	"What is the matter with you?" AJ asked me.
	"Nothing," I said heading down the spiral staircase.  I made sure
to make a lot of noise going down.  I looked back at AJ once and saw that
he had a dumb look on his face.  I had to admit it had to look pretty weird
going up the stairs on one side of the house and then down again on the
other.  I walked into the dining room and saw Howie's parents sitting
there, they looked almost as if they had never moved from their positions.
I walked right past them and into the kitchen.  I grabbed my coffee mug out
of the sink and another one out of the cabinet for Howie.  I poured us each
a cup and put the cream and sugar in Howie's.  I was just coming out of the
kitchen as Howie was coming down the stairs.  I handed him his cup of
coffee and he gave me a kiss on the cheek.  I thought I heard a noise come
from Howie's parents but it could have been a chair squeaking.
	"Chris, what's wrong?" Howie asked me.
	"Nothing,," I said in a normal calm voice.
	"Oh, you seem like you are pissed," he said kissing me on the nose.
	"Aren't you in a loving mood this morning," I said to him.
	"Yeah, well I guess that this morning is different from all the
rest," he said with a grin.  I knew that he was hinting to his birthday but
I was not going to let him know that I knew about it.  I wanted him to be
totally surprised tonight.  He quickly drained his cup of coffee and walked
into the kitchen.  His mood was a little heavier but I knew that that would
not last long.  He was just coming out of the kitchen when I heard the
front gates open.
	"There's Kevin," I said to him hoping that it was Kevin and that
Nick and Brian were not early.  AJ was just coming down the stairs as Kevin
was opening the front door.
	"Hey AJ," Kevin said to him.
	"Hey, Kev," AJ said to him.  Kevin and AJ walked into the dining
room where everyone was.
	"Hey, Howie, we should get going," Kevin said to Howie glancing at
me.
	"Kevin, we sort of wanted to take Howie out today," his parents
said to Kevin.  Kevin did not know what to say so I shook my head every
time Kevin looked at me.  He finally caught on and told them okay.  He
walked over to them and told them something quietly.  I was not quite sure
what it was.
	"Then, I guess that we should get going," Howie's parents said
ushering him out the door.
	"Chris, aren't you coming?" Howie asked me.
	"No, I think that I am going..." I started but the door was shut in
my face.  Everyone just looked at me.  I shrugged my shoulders and started
to take everyone's coffee mugs and put them in the dishwasher.  I was just
coming out of the kitchen and about to sit down in the dining room when the
front door opened and Nick and Brian walked in, each carrying a box.  Brian
set his box down on the table and reached into his pocket.  He produced a
small ring box.  "Good, I was afraid that you forgot," I said to him.
	"No, if you put Nick in charge he would have forgotten," Brian said
elbowing Nick.
	"Um, sorry Brian, but am I not the one that had to remind you about
getting it?" Nick asked Brian.  Brian turned a light red before finally
admitting that Nick remembered and he forgot.
	"What did you get him?" AJ finally asked.
	"This," I said showing them the ring that was inside of the box.
It was a plain platinum ring that had small hieroglyphics carved into it.
	"What does it say?" Kevin asked looking closely at the ancient
writing.
	"Howie and Chris," I said simply showing them the translation on
the inside.
	"That.  Is one nice ring," AJ said emphasizing the that. Everyone
agreed with him.
	"Thank you," I said semi-blushing.
	"So does that mean?" Kevin asked me.  I looked at the ground and
sort of blushed again.  I heard chuckles from all of the guys.
	"I think it does," AJ said.  I was glad that AJ was in a better
mood today.
	"It does," I said to them quietly.  Everyone congratulated me but I
swore them to secrecy because I was not going to ask Howie until later
tonight when we were alone.
	"Come on, they are going to be back by six and we still have a lot
of work to do," Kevin said trying to motivate everyone.  The thing of it is
everyone was already motivated so Kevin sort of got ignored.
	Brian and Nick went to work with the decorations and AJ started to
cook the food under strict guidelines that he was to make it so that anyone
could eat it.  I was still afraid of what might come out of that kitchen by
the end of the day considering he would not tell me what the menu was going
to be.
	"Well Kevin, you can go with me to the bakery to pick up his cake,"
I said to Kevin since he was not supposed to be there.
	"Good, I'll drive," he said as we headed for the door.
	"You were going to anyway, I don't know where anything is," I said
to him as we approached his car.  We got in and Kevin quickly pulled out of
the driveway.  We were halfway down the street before the gates even
started to close.  "Someone likes speed," I said to Kevin.  He just smiled
and stepped on the gas.  The way the Kevin drove caused us to get to the
bakery in no time flat.  I went in and asked for the cake.  They were just
finishing putting it in the box, so I paid and they soon handed me the
cake.  I walked out and got back into the car.  The ride back was the same
as the ride there.  Short and fast.  I carried the cake into the house and
put it on the table.
	"So, who'all is coming to this party tonight," Kevin asked in a
strong southern accent.
	"Well I did not know who to invite so it is just going to be us and
his parents," I said realizing how pitiful the guest list was.  Kevin did
not seem to notice or if he did he just did not care.  We spent a long time
getting everything finished and finally did so at six o'clock.  Howie and
his parent's should be home any time now.  We waited around in the living
room.  I kept watching the clock on the fireplace. Six thirty, six
forty-five, seven, seven thirty...  I was starting to get worried and I
knew everyone else was too.  The food AJ had cooked was cold on the table
and the drinks were starting to get warm.
	"I am going to go driving around to see if I can see his car
anywhere," Brian and Nick announced.
	"That is a good idea," Kevin said.  We were all sitting in the
living room and I, of course, feared the worst.  Nick and Brian left so
Kevin, AJ, and I were sitting in the living room.
	"Well, the food is cold, but everyone go ahead and eat," I said to
them.  I knew that they did not feel like eating because I did not.  I got
up and started to walk around the room.  I just could not sit down.  It was
nine thirty before I heard the gates opening.  I expected to see Nick's
Durango pulling in, but it was Howie's car.  I was relieved but mad knowing
that Howie's parents knew that I was throwing a party for him.  I soon saw
the front door opening and Howie's parents walk in.  They walked right past
me smiling and giggling as Howie walked in the room.  He had a very
noticeable stagger to his walk and I knew that he was drunk.  This pissed
me off.  I wanted to say something to his parents but I did not want to
upset Howie.
	"Hello Chris," Howie said walking towards me.
	"Hey baby," I said to him.
	"Don't baby me, how could you go off and forget my birthday like
you did?" he asked.  His whole being reeked of alcohol.
	"Howie, look..." I started.
	"I'm not going to look at nothing, you forget my birthday, you
spend the night with my best friend, you ignore my parents, you get pissed
at me..." he started.
	"Baby..." I tried again.
	"Shut-up, I'm not through yet, you move into my house, you scare
the shit out of me, you have your mother hit me.  You know what I say to
that?" he said to me.
	"Howie!" I yelled.
	"I say fuck you.  I don't need you.  My mom and dad made that clear
to me tonight.  I was right last time.  I don't need you so good bye." He
said as he headed into the living room.  I did not know what to say.  I
turned and walked up the stairs.  I nearly went into our bedroom but
decided against it and headed into the attic.  It was rather soothing being
in the dark.  I collapsed against the wall and sank to the floor.  I
reached into my pocket and pulled out the ring that I was going to give
Howie.  I took it out of its box and rolled it around in my fingers.  I
remember the store in the mall when we first met.  I remember how I felt
when I realized it was gone on the island.  I remember how eager I was when
Nick told me he saw the same store in the mall here.  I kept rolling it
around in my fingers.  Then I started to remember everything Howie said to
me last time.  I remembered what he said to me minutes ago.  I remembered
how he promised that he did not mean it.  I started to cry.  The ring
dropped from my fingers and rolled across the floor.  I kept crying until I
heard the door to the attic open.  I kept as quiet as I could, hoping that
I would never have to come out of my hiding place.  I saw a figure coming
right for me and watched it sit down right next to me.  I realized that it
was AJ.
	"Chris?" he said.
	"He promised me that he did not mean it," I cried.
	"Chris, he was drunk, Howie always gets like that when he gets
drunk," AJ said soothingly.
	"I loved him so much, I tried to make his birthday special, I was
going to propose to him," I continued.
	"Chris, calm down, don't think about it tonight, just calm down.
Let's go downstairs and get you to bed.  Howie is passed out on the couch.
Everyone is going to stay tonight and back you up tomorrow.  Howie's
parents are at fault here, not you or Howie.  I know them, they put him up
to this," AJ said pulling me to my feet.  I walked with AJ to the doorway
and headed down stairs.  AJ led me into Howie's and my bedroom.  He left
and I shut the door and locked it.  I got undressed for bed and climbed
under the covers.  I did not even think about Howie and soon fell asleep.
	I awoke to a gentle knocking on the door.  "Chris, it's me," Kevin
said from the other side of the door.  I got up and unlocked the door.  I
walked back to the bed and sat down on it.  Kevin followed suit.
	"Chris, you know Howie did not mean what he said last night," Kevin
said to me.
	"I am not too sure about that Kevin.  This is the second time in
less than a week that this has happened.  I don't think that he loves me
anymore," I said to him.
	"Chris, he does, his parents got him drunk and when Howie gets
drunk the slightest suggestion can put ideas in his head that he thinks are
true.  I heard his parents talking this morning and it is obvious that they
do not like you.  Howie is downstairs crying because he thinks that he has
lost you," Kevin said to me.
	"I don't think that he has lost me.  I think that he never had me.
I was there but he never really wanted me," I said to him.
	"Chris, I have known Howie for nearly seven years and in that time
I have seen him have every relationship possible.  He has never felt the
same way about the other people as he does with you.  I know for a fact
that Howie loves you.  I know that you are pissed right now and you have
every right to be, but I also know that Howie does love you and you need to
give him another chance.  Sit down and talk to him.  Work any problems that
you may have out.  I know that he loves you and I know that you love him,"
Kevin said.  No sooner did he finish talking then did he get up and leave
the room.  I sat back on the bed thinking about the situation when AJ came
into the room.
	"Chris?" he asked.
	"What?" I asked back.
	"Chris, Howie really wants to see you.  He is killing himself
because of what he said last night.  You have to understand that when he
gets drunk he becomes the biggest jack-ass in the world," AJ said.
	"I know, Kevin just said that to me, I was just going to go down
and talk to him," I said.
	"You, don't have to he is out in the hall," AJ said while walking
to the door.  He opened the door and walked out.  Howie came into the room
and sat down on the foot of the bed.
	"Chris," he said softly.
	"What?" I asked.  I looked at him and you could tell that he had
been crying.  His face was puffy and his eyes were red.
	"Chris, baby, I am so sorry, I know that I said this last time and
I meant it then too, but I thought that you had forgotten my birthday and
my parents were telling me all this shit about you and I got drunk..." he
started.  He started to cry before he could finish.
	"Howie, it's okay." I said to him.
	"No, it's not.  I know I royally fucked up this time.  I know that
I have lost you.  I don't blame you if you pack up and leave right now," he
said sobbing.
	"I couldn't do that," I said to him.
	"Why?" he asked his tears were slowing and he was becoming more
aware.
	"Because I could never leave the man that I love," I said to him.
He smiled broadly and continued to cry.  I hugged him tightly until his
tears stopped.  "Just do me one thing, baby," I said to him.
	"Anything," he said.
	"Stop the drinking," I said to him.
	"I already have.  When I was told what you were trying to do for me
last night and when I realized what an ass of myself I made I knew that I
had to," he said.  I gave him a deep kiss on the lips and all I got was the
stench and stale taste of liquor.
	"One more thing," I said to him.
	"What?" he asked.
	"Go take a shower," I yelled at him, "You smell like a dirty bar,"
	"Oh, I see how you are, you got to have clean men," he laughed.
	"Yes I do," I said pushing him off of the bed.  He went into the
bathroom and closed the door.  I heard the shower start to run and waited a
few minutes.  I slowly opened the bathroom door and crept in.  I removed my
boxer-briefs and slowly pulled back the shower curtain.  Howie's face was
under water as I got in.  His back was to me so I walked up behind him and
put my arms around his waist.  He jumped and hit his head on the
showerhead.  He spun around and stared me right in the throat.  I leaned
down and kissed him deeply on the lips.  I pushed his lips apart with my
tongue and was quickly met by his.  Our tongues explored each other's
mouths as out hands explored each other's bodies.  Howie grabbed the
shampoo from the shelf and squirted some in my hair.  It felt great to feel
his fingers roaming around in my hair.  I grabbed a bar of soap and fell to
my knees.  I started at his feet and soaped up both of his legs.  I got to
his dick witch was hard and placed a small, soft kiss on the tip of it then
proceeded to soap it up.  I continued up his firm stomach and chest and
turned him around.  He stole one quick kiss from me.  I soaped up his back
and ass making sure to "accidentally" run a finger over his hole which
caused him to shudder.  Once he was soaped up he took the bar of soap from
me.  I grabbed the shampoo off of the shelf and squirted some in his hair,
as he had done to me.  He stayed on his feet and quickly soaped up my back
and chest at the same time.  He then dropped to his knees and started on my
feet.  I kept working the shampoo down the length of his hair as he came up
to my crotch.  I too was hard from the eroticism of the shower.  He wrapped
his hands around me and started to soap up my ass as he played with the
head of my cock with his tongue.  He had just finished with my ass when he
suddenly took the entire length of my cock in his mouth.  I let out a moan
of sheer pleasure.
	"Uhhhh.... Howie...that feels great," I said as Howie sucked my
dick.  I fell against the shower wall at an angle.  My shoulders and head
were the only thing supporting me.  Howie's hands went back to my ass and
slowly started to massage my ass cheeks.  I was in pure ecstasy and was
trying to hold out as long as I could when suddenly Howie shoved his finger
in my asshole.  I let out a loud moan as my hips bucked forward shoving my
dick down Howie's throat.  I heard him cough but he still did not miss a
beat.  He started to finger-fuck my ass and sick on my dick to the same
rhythm.  This sent me over the edge and I shot load after load of cum into
Howie's mouth.  He took it all in and swallowed most of it.  He then came
up to my lips and kissed me passionately sharing my cum with me.  Our
tongues fought over the last remaining drops.  He rinsed the soap off of
ourselves when I realized that Howie still had an erection.  I had just
dropped to my knees when there was a banging on the bathroom door.  Howie
reluctantly shut off the water and got out of the shower.  He handed me a
towel and wrapped one around his waist.  I did the same while Howie opened
the door.
	"Chris, Howie, you have to come downstairs right now," Kevin urged.
	"What is it?" Howie asked.
	"You have to see what your mom and dad bought at the gas station,"
Kevin said shutting the door.  Howie and I looked at each other.  We
quickly dried off and threw on the first clothes we grabbed.  I took a
quick look at Howie and he did not look too bad.  We rushed to find Kevin,
AJ, Nick, and Brian all pouring over something in the middle of the coffee
table.  Howie and I got to them and they separated so that we could see
what they were looking at.  It was the STAR magazine and the headline made
Howie go white.  'Backstreet Boys mystery live-in guest'.  Kevin quickly
turned to the article.  It was short but to the point.  It basically
accused Howie of having a live-in boyfriend although they never used those
exact words.  It went on about a mystery man being seen entering and
exiting the premises on a regular basis.  It also said that 'upon repeated
requests for an interview Mr. Dorough declined'.  I could tell that Howie
was having a hard time accepting this.  He sat down on the couch next to
AJ.  I sat down next to him and put my arm around him.  He was very tense
and I knew that he was not taking it well at all.  I pulled him closer to
me and laid his head on my shoulder.
	"Well son, I don't know what to say except that it was your own
fau...choice," Howie's father said.  I saw Howie's face tense up and his
eyes went red.


TO BE CONTINUED...