Date: Fri, 13 Jun 2003 20:13:49 +0100 (BST)
From: "[iso-8859-1] goldenknight" <goldenknightuk@yahoo.co.uk>
Subject: Dreams of an Angel - 26 (gay/boybands)

Hi all!! Here's the next part of Dreams of an Angel. Hope you all enjoy it!
Any comments or suggestions, well, you know how to contact me. My Yahoo ID
is Goldenknightuk if you wish to send me an instant message. Sorry for any
bad grammars boys and girl. C'mon! Nobody's perfect!! :)

NOTE TO ALL READERS: In order to balance my study time and writings, I
decided to set a specific time for every update. For now on, I'll be
updating Dreams of an Angel every Friday evening (Well, Irish time. I dunno
about the time differences between my place and yours, guys and gals. You
have to figure that out yourself :P Trust me, I sucked in figuring it out
:)). But hey, if time permits me, I promise I'll update it at other times
:)

	Before the show, onwards to the boring part! Legal matters!
Hehehe. You can press 'fast-forward' now.

	Well, first of all, this story, as you will certainly find out
soon, is TOTALLY fictional. So! If any of you truly believe in it... dude,
I'm worried about you. Secondly! None of the guys in the Backstreet Boys
are gay! (No matter how hard I wished it :P). But nobody say we couldn't
dream it, heh heh. Thirdly, Warren Worthington is actually a character from
Marvel Comics, X-men known as Angel or recently Archangel. Okay fine, I
admit it. I'm bored and I am making a pathetic attempt to make life a lil'
bit interesting. Its not like I'm gonna publish it or something. What else
to talk about hmm? Oh, there may be some adult gay scenes in this
story. Unlike my brother, I don't mind writing naughty stuff ;) so! If
you're underage, naughty, naughty! I can only ask you to go away, but I
cannot do anything else to stop you from reading on anyway. Hell! I've been
sneaking into the internet to watch gay porns since I was 13! So, if your
parents or whoever responsible for you catch you, don't say I didn't warned
you. However, if you're homophobic... well maybe I can seduce you enough to
turn you around heh heh. I do so love a challenge ;)

	Anyway, enough talk. Any comments or boos or suggestion or
whatever, just sent it to the same address as in NNTs,
goldenknightuk@yahoo.co.uk . Yeah, we shared the same address. Don't
ask. Long story.

	Okay then! On to the show. Now, don't be shy now. If you got any
comments or suggestions, just drop me a note. You do the request, and I'll
do the show.

	Andy

*********************************

About half an hour later...

"Professor, what happened?"

Nick watched as Hank got out of the jet, carrying a very battered, bleeding
and unconscious Storm in his arm. Behind him, Professor Xavier wheeled
himself out. Scott and Jean rushes up towards him but he stopped them by
raising a hand.

"We have Sam, Kurt and Moira hurt and unconscious in there. Quick. Take
them to the medlab." Said Xavier.

"What happened at Muire Island?" asked Scott.

"We were attack by armed soldiers from 'The Right'. Sean, Logan, Peter and
the rest of the Generation X were still battling them when we left. They
need reinforcement. Scott, take the team and help them. Hank and I will
stay here to tend the wounded. Nick, you'll stay here too and help
Hank. The rest of you, go! Quickly."

"The Right? Well what do you know! It's been a while since we face those
bozos." Said Bobby.

"Oh my god! Sam! What happened to him?" Jubilee cried out as she enters the
hangar with Remy and Rogue.

"They struck the lab first. Sam, Ororo and Moira were caught unprepared in
the initial explosion. And Kurt got injured when he attempted to teleport
them out of there." Hank replied absently.

"Everyone, get on board now!" Said Scott as he rushed into the jet,
followed by Bobby and Jubilee. "Jean, Warren, Remy, Rogue, move!"

"Warren?" Nick called out softly, grabbing Warren's hand as the man rushed
by.

"It's okay, baby," Warren replied as he paused to give him a light kiss on
the lips. "Wait here with the professor and help Hank with the
wounded. I'll be back before you even know it."

"Be careful." Nick whispered as he watched Warren rushed into the jet.






"So, did I miss anything while I was away?" Hank grinned at Nick when the
jet finally took off.

"Well, from the way he and Warren hugged and kissed, I say the inevitable
has finally happened." The professor remarked mildly behind them.

Nick blushed as he helped Hank with the wounded.

"You knew? Oh yeah. You're a telepath. What a surprise." Nick replied
sarcastically. He grunts when he lifted Sam and carry him to the
medlab. "Who is this guy, anyway? He's thin and cute but boy, he's heavy!"

"Nick, meet Samuel Guthrie. Sam, if you can hear me, this is Nick Carter."
Said Hank as he placed Ororo onto one of the bed in the medlab.

"Uuuuuuunnnhhhh..." The barely conscious blond Southerner in Nick's arm
only moaned softly. Nick laid him gently on the other bed while Hank rushes
back to the hangar to get Kurt and Moira.

Alone with the wounded, Nick looked at Sam worriedly. The guy is badly
scorched on his chest and left arm. The heat from the explosion must have
caught him from the front and he must have raised his left arm to shield
his face. Worst of all, the guy is in tremendous pain. Nick could feel the
pain and agony clawing against the empathic barrier that shields his own
mind. Surely he can use his empathy to take away the pain, using his own
mind as a buffer as he did with Warren last time. But then... could he
handle the pain himself? Well, there's only one way to find out.

Closing his eyes, he drew a deep breath as he gently lowers his shield and
reaches out empathically into the unconscious man's psyche.

"YYYEEEOOOOOOWWWWWW!!!!"

Obviously that was a bad mistake. As soon as he reaches out, his mind was
immediately assaulted by waves upon waves of pain and agony. Shrieking out
loud in agony, Nick collapsed to the floor, sobbing and cradling his head
desperately as he did.

'Shield, Nick. Throw up your shield!' Xavier's voice appeared inside his
head urgently.

Cursing himself again and again for being so stupid, he quickly threw up
the empathic shield.

"What in the world do you think you're doing??" Xavier scolded as he
wheeled himself into the room a few minutes later with Hank right behind
him, carrying Kurt and Moira.

"He's... he's in pain... I thought I could help..." Nick sobbed shakily.

"Well, obviously you didn't think far enough." Said Hank as he placed Kurt
and Moira gently on the other tables before helping Nick back to his
feet. "Relax, Nick. Take good deep breaths in and out. What you did was
commendable, even if it's a bit foolish. But try to restrain yourself from
doing it again... unless you have the professor here to guide you."

"It takes a great deal of willpower to withstand pain of this magnitude,
Nick." Said the professor as he telepathically eased the pain from
Sam. "Despite your vast empathic potential, you're still too inexperienced
to deal with this. You could have killed yourself if I hadn't
telepathically dampened the influx."

'Professor?' Jean's telepathic voice suddenly appeared in their mind.

"Jean?" Xavier replied.

'Is everything all right back there? Warren is agitated. He raves on and on
about Nick being in pain or something...' said Jean.

"Everything is under control, Jean. Tell Warren not too worry." Said
Xavier. "Nick attempted to absorb Samuel's pain and got overwhelmed in the
process. I've already taken care of it."

'I see. I'll let Warren knows about it.' Said Jean before vanishing from
their mind.

"Here, Nick. Let me guide you on how to do it properly." Said Xavier as he
gently took Nick's hands and placed it on Sam's temples. "Focus. Reach out
into Sam's psyche but do not lower your shield completely. Use it to
control the influx. And above all, remain calm at all time. You'll
experience his pain but as long as you control the influx properly, you
should be able to handle it. Gently now. Don't worry. I'll pull you out
should anything go wrong."

Moments pass by and Nick gritted his teeth as he strained against the
pain. By the time he got the whole thing under control, he was sweating
like there's no tomorrow.

"Oh my God, I did it..." He gasped out breathlessly. Sam is unconscious but
his face shows less agony than before.

"Well done. Maintain your connection and keep on absorbing it. You empathy
should be able to buffers it as long as you control the influx
properly. Given time, the whole thing will occurs subconsciously that you
will not feel the pain at all. Now let's try it again on Ororo, Kurt and
Moira." Said Xavier. "Unless you are too exhausted to do it again..."

"No!" Nick answered determinedly. "I can do this. I can help them. Just
give me a moment to get a breather. I need to concentrate in maintaining
the link..."

After an hour or so, Nick sagged against Xavier's supporting arms as he
finished with Kurt, his last patient.

"Hank! Help me." Said Xavier as he struggles to keep Nick from
falling. "Well done, Nick. You've mastered your ability well."

"Pain... so much pain... so much agony..." Nick mumbled faintly as Hank
half-carried, half-dragged him to a nearby bed.

"He's only exhausted." Said Xavier to Hank. "He'll be all right with
rest. Can you handle things alone, Hank? I need to contact Sean to
determine how things are progressing."

"Go ahead, professor. These poor souls are in good hand. I've stabilized
Sam, Storm and Kurt. Moira was never in any danger." Hank replied.

"Good. I'll be using Cerebro is you need me." Said Xavier as he wheeled
himself out of the room.






"Hank?" Nick mumbled where he lay about half an hour later.

"Just rest, Golden-boy." Hank grinned. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I've been taken apart and put back together with a lot of pieces
missing." Nick smiled tiredly.

"Well, let that be a lesson for you to always think carefully before
attempting something that foolish again. Now, how good are you in
medicine?"

"About as good as a drunken mule." Nick replied mildly as he sat up stiffly
to watch Hank hovering over Sam.

"Oho! A smart-ass. Excellent! You don't mind the sight of blood?" said Hank
as he began putting intravenous lines into Sam. Catching sight of Nick's
horrified eyes as he inserted the needles, he grinned. "Wonderful!! You've
just promoted yourself to be my assistant and nurse. Go wash you hands and
put on some scrubs as soon as you're ready."

"But...!" Nick began but Hank cut him off by waving a finger at him.

"Ah-ah-ah. Quickly now. We have some lives to save here."

'Hank, do you need any help down there?' Xavier's telepathic voice appeared
again.

"No, professor. Everything is under control. Even if I need any help, my
nearly-fainting assistant here should be more than sufficient." Hank
replied with a grin as he turned his attention to Ororo. "Nick, bring that
ECG monitor over here will you?"

"The *what?*" Nick said as he stares around the room dazedly.

"That machine over there on your left. Move along, now! Chop-chop!"

Tired or not, Nick eventually found himself stumbling towards the machine,
grumbling and cursing softly as he did.

*******************************************

Three days went by and still Warren and the rest of the X-men who went to
Muire Island hasn't returned. Things are quiet in the mansion now that most
of the X-men are gone. Hank's patients have by now recovered but only two
of them, Kurt and Sam, remained in the medlab for further observation.

Moira, who was the least injured, was up and about on the first day - nice
woman, friendly too, but her Scottish accent was so thick that it took Nick
several minutes to figure out what she was talking about, much to the her
amusement. She spent most of her time with Xavier in the communication
room, talking to Sean and monitoring the latest updates on events that
transpire over in Muire Island.

Storm on the other hand was supposed to stay in the medlab with the
others. She was seriously injured last time. But being strong-willed and
stubborn as she always was, she was up and about after the second day,
keeping herself in touch with the team most of the time. Had it not for
Xavier's intervention, she would have gone over to Muire Island by now to
join them.

Nick, however, tried to keep himself busy by practicing his empathic talent
with the Professor or by helping Hank out in the medlab - not that he has
any other choice for the latter. Hank seems to have taken some sort of a
personal amusement in seeing Nick blanches everytime he inserted needles
into his patients and draw blood samples. But at least this will keep him
busy plus it takes his mind off Warren for an hour or two.

He cannot help worrying about Warren. When he's not having lessons with the
professor or helping Hank out in the medlab, he always found himself
sitting alone by the window of his room, brooding, worrying and caressing
the white feather in his got from AJ. Hank and Xavier assured him time and
again that Warren will be all right. Rationally thinking, Warren should be
all right. The man has been taking care of himself in countless battles in
the past for years, for goodness sake. Why should anything bad happen to
him now?

The link between them remained open and Nick could feel Warren's mind as if
he is sitting beside him. Warren seems calm most of the time, though at
times Nick could sense wariness, anger, determination... shifting time and
again, depending on what he was going through at the time. But time and
again, Nick could sense the feeling of loneliness and longing in Warren's
mind, and at those times, he knew Warren was thinking of him and it was at
those time also when he reaches out towards Warren through the link they
shared, reassuring him empathically and pouring as much love and affection
he could muster. And Warren responded by reaching back out to him. Nick
promised Warren that he will never be alone... and so far, he has kept his
promise. Wherever they are, no matter how far apart they are; the link will
always keep them together.

Ever since Warren and the rest went off on their mission, Nick has always
kept his eyes and ears open for every scrap of news they received about
them. Three days has passed and the loneliness grew, especially when he
went to bed. Nick has never felt so empty in his life. He knew Warren must
have felt it through their link.

They talked to each other only once, very early in the morning, on the
second day, when Xavier telepathically woke him up from his sleep, telling
him that Warren wanted to speak with him. He actually bounced from his bed
and rushed to the communication room before Xavier could finish his
sentence.

It was not a long conversation, but seeing his face on the screen, his
smile, his flashing blue eyes... it was enough to banish the loneliness
away. Nick couldn't recall what they talked about. The only thing that
matters was that they talked and Warren was well. Love really does work in
a strange way. When was the last time he actually got hung up on another
person like this? Never.






Another day passes by and the loneliness grew back into his mind. Scott or
Jean or Sean contacted the mansion to report their progress, and Nick could
only take comfort from their report that everyone is doing well. At least
Jean, being very understanding as she always was, deliberately included
'Scott, Warren, and everyone else are doing well' in her report which is,
admittedly, *very* reassuring.






Another day passes by and Nick found himself growing quieter and
quieter. Latest report by Sean reveals that the X-men has taken the
Blackbird somewhere further up North where they suspected a small outpost
of 'The Right' responsible for the attack on Muire Island is located. The
news was not reassuring, but there's nothing he could do other than
continue on waiting... and worrying.

Those in the mansion with him right now understood what he is going
through, even Kurt, Sam and Moira whom he just became acquainted. Of
course, they are still getting over the shock about Warren hooking up with
a guy - who wouldn't? Everyone has already marked Warren as the well-known
straight playboy before meeting Nick - it actually became one of the few
given facts in their everyday life: Scott, leader; Hank, scientist; Bobby,
prankster; Warren, STRAIGHT.

Time passes on and Nick began spending more and more time in his room,
brooding quietly. Warren is calm through the link and Nick prefers not to
reach out to him, fearing that he would distract Warren from his
mission. God knows what he is doing right now. He could be fighting some
sort of evil mutant villain right now for all he knows. When you're
fighting, you need to concentrate and remain calm and in control at all
time. Reaching out to him would shatter the concentration and who knows
what would happen. He will never forgive himself if Warren got injured
because of him.

He contemplated in masking the link, but decided against it. The
loneliness... it's becoming overbearing. At night, he would lay in bed,
staring at the wall or ceiling, caressing the feather in silence as he
waited for the sleep that would never come. During meals, everything taste
like ashes. The link being opened and Warren's presence through it are the
only two things that prevented him from breaking down from the loneliness.

AJ and Lance did call him time and again to chat with him. Even Kevin
called him once. AJ told him that Brian is visiting his parents, so Nick
knew Brian will not be calling him anytime soon. Howie remains strangely
silent. Not even AJ knew where he is. Normally, Nick would be more than
glad to talk to them, but now, with his mind worrying about Warren, he
became more and more distracted. All he prefers to do is sitting by the
window of his room and stares at the sky, dreaming wishfully that his angel
would return.






Another depressing day passes by. Kurt and Hank has been trying to cheer
him up. Kurt is admittedly a very strange looking mutant, and fun to be
around too, if Nick was in any mood for fun. His teleportation ability is
impressive, not to mention fascinating. Warren's wings and blue skin and
Hank's beast-like appearance and Remy's red-on-black eyes is appears
strange enough to cause him to gape like a fool, but Kurt appearance really
tied the whole thing into a knot. Nick doubt he'll be surprised by anything
else ever again.

Despite his appearance, Kurt's cheerful behavior definitely rivals that of
Bobby. His attempt to coax Nick out of his depression usually involves him
teleporting to the roof above Nick's bedroom window, hanging upside down by
his tail, poke Nick's head from above and grin at the resulting annoyed
glare. And ah yes! The lake incident. Nick will certainly never forget that
one time when Kurt actually decided to teleport him to the middle of the
lake and dumped him into it before teleporting himself away. Now, Bobby's
name is not the only one written in his revenge list. But still, it did
succeeded in drawing a smile and laughter out of him, even if it is for a
brief moment. The bags under his eyes as the result of his sleepless nights
and his loss of appetite are beginning to worry everyone. Even Sam, whose
polite Southern attitude reminds Nick of Brian and Lance, began making his
own genuine attempts to encourage him to eat more, despite his discomfort
on homosexuality. His heart was in the right place, despite his casual
threat that Nick could either eat his food before him or wear it... and
looking at the glint in his and Moira's eyes, they truly meant to carry out
that threat.







Another lonely day passes by, and still no news. Nick sat by his window,
trying to hold back his tears as he stares at the world outside. He has
just felt Warren reaching out reassuringly at him through their link. Nick
embraced the feelings of love and affection that came through the link with
all of his heart, reaching out in return to feel his lover's mind
longingly. How he desperately wished to be in Warren's arms once again. How
he wished to feel his lover's kiss once again.

"Come back." He whispered softly to the wind. "I miss you."






Later that evening, Nick looked up from writing a song (something he has
taken up to pass the time and alleviate his boredom) by his bedroom window,
startled, as someone knocked loudly on his door.

"Who is it?" He called out. "If you're looking for Kurt, no I haven't seen
him around today. But if you want me to kill him, find me a gun and I'll do
it for free."

"It's me, Hank. Can I come in?"

"It's not locked." Nick replied as he quickly rubbed his eyes and forced
himself to smile as the door opened and Hank strode in with Sam and Kurt
behind him. Oh great. Bring in the clowns. "What's going on, guys?"

"We decided to go out and hit the pub." Said Hank.

"Cool. You guys go ahead. I think I'll stay in for the night." Nick
replied.

"That's where you're wrong, my young friend." Said Hank as he opened the
wardrobe and went through Nick's clothes carefully. "You're our guest of
honor. What do you think of this one, Kurt?"

"Ja. It will go well with that pant over there." Kurt reply. "And it goes
well with his eyes too, don't you think so, mien freund?"

"Well, ah don't know. It looks too formal. We're plannin' to get pissed
remember? What about this one over here?" Sam smiled as he pulls out a
black sleeveless shirt from the pile.

"Guys, cut it out. I told you, I'm not going." Nick spoke in an annoyed
tone.

"Who said you have a choice?" said Hank as he pulled out a tight black
leather pant.

"Perfect!" Kurt said happily as he looked at the pant before teleporting
briefly to his room and returned with a nice-looking leather belt in his
hand. "And this will go well with it, nein? Oh, Nick does have a choice,
mien freund. He either come with us or go back to the middle of the lake."

"Warren called in a few minutes ago." Sam explained patiently and Nick
looked up in surprise. "He said you're feeling sad, lonely and depressed,
so he asked us to take yuh out for a good time."

"He did?" Nick asked wonderingly in a small voice.

"Yup. He also asked me to give you a kiss, but I haven't sunk that low just
yet." Hank grinned. "So, belly-up, my blood-loving friend. We're going to
Harry's and you're going to get mightily drunk. Doctor's order."

'He called...' Nick thought happily, finally realizing that the passion and
love he is feeling right now from Warren's mind lingers on in his own head
this time. It remained in his mind, burning brightly deep inside him,
warming up his very soul. 'He knows... He wants me to go out and have fun
and stop brooding...'

"Out. All of you." Nick smiles at last, thumb up, pointing to the
door. "Shoo! Give me half an hour to look pretty."

Sam and Hank rolled their eyes while Kurt laughed.

"Fifteen minutes, princess." Said Hank. "Then we just drag you out whether
you're wearing pants or not."

"Dress to kill, Nick." Said Sam as they moved out of the room. "It's Guys
Night Out."

"I always do." Nick replied as he picks up the black leather pant,
wondering momentarily as to when was the last time he actually wore this
thing.






Harry's Tavern is crowded tonight. Apparently there's some sort of show by
the local high school band tonight and by the time they reached the place,
it was pure luck that they actually managed to find a place to sit.

"Well, well, well, Nick. It seems that you have lots of admirers tonight."
Hank remarked mildly as he notices several admiring looks from the various
ladies all around the room. Small wonder. When Sam asked him to dress to
kill, Nick appears to take that suggestion seriously. Dark leather pants
and black sleeveless shirt covered by a dark leather jacket... it sure
brings out his fair features. And the gold medallion around his neck only
serves to enhance his image. "Kurt, Sam... if you are thinking of finding a
girl tonight, try hard."

"If we get mobbed tonight, Mr. Superstar, ah'm not gonna save yuh." Sam
spoke loud enough above the blaring music for Nick to hear.

"Hey, you were the one who suggested to dress to kill." Nick gave him one
if his most ravishing smile that seems to draw even more admiring looks
from the surrounding ladies, hell, even some guys! One middle-aged lady
even found herself adjusting her hair unconsciously before catching herself
when her husband glared at her.

Nick sat between Sam and Kurt, who apparently has an image-inducer of his
own to mask his true form. Hank made his way over from the bar carrying the
drinks, shouting greetings at some patrons around him who apparently knew
him well. His image-inducers made him took like some modest middle-aged
professor.

Sighing quietly, he leaned against his seat as he listened to the
music. Warren's emotions have shifted from love to calm to extreme
wariness. He must be in the middle of something dangerous. Silently, Nick
prayed that nothing bad would befall him.

"You're worryin' again."

Nick gave Sam a rueful smile as he turned to look at him. Kurt has
apparently decided to get into a debate about something with Hank while
eyeing appreciatively at the women around him at the same time.

"I am." Nick replied.

"Quit worrying, Nick. Warren is one of the veteran X-men. He has been
through worst stuff in the past and survived it all." Said Sam.

"I can't help it." Nick murmured back in frustration. "To be honest, this
is the first time I ever felt this worried about someone. I've had
relationships in the past, with girls of course. I had to leave them for
months when I went off on tour. I never felt this type
of... emptiness... when they are not around. But with Warren being
away... the feeling goes beyond emptiness... it's like I've lost a limb or
something... "

Sam merely looked at him in puzzlement. Nick smiled thinly. Amidst the
various emotions swirling around the tavern, clawing against his mental
shield, he could also feel the confusion in Sam's mind.

"You okay?" he asked Sam.

"Yeah, yeah, ah'm okay." Sam replied back hastily. "Ah'm
just... *sigh*... ah have to admit, ah find it hard to grasp the idea of
two guys being in love wit' each other. Not that ah 'ave problems with
it. Oh, no. Ah ain't havin' problem wit' it. Ah would if ah'm still living
back in my ol' hometown down south, but after seein' the world for some
years now, it tends to open yur eyes, y'see what ah'm sayin'?"

"Yeah. Hey, don't worry about it." Nick laughed. "You may outgrow the old
belief, but altering what you've been thought of when you were a
kid... it's easier said than done. Trust me, I'm still getting used to the
idea of being with Warren myself. Before this, I never thought of the idea
of hooking up with guys."

"Yeah. My momma'd freaked out if ah tell her it's okay fer two guys to be
together." Sam laughed along with Nick. "The place where ah came from is
still... ol' fashion, y'know. They 'ave problems with almost anything,
trust me. It's a small town, what can ah say? Once, when ah was a li'l kid,
there were these two guys who stopped by our town to fill out some gas for
their car. Someone saw them holding hands as they walked back to their car
and kissed when they were inside. Yer should have seen the uproar by
nightfall. Yuh'd have thought the whole world gonna end tomorrow."

"They all freaked out big time, huh?" Nick laughed.

Sam grinned

"You could say that. Ol' Reverent Kenley down at the church locked himself
inside his study and started preparing a special sermon fer the Sunday mass
that very night about the sin of sodomy and even worst, they added two
extra hours fer our Sunday school, which all kids, includin' me, were
forced to attend. No absentees allowed."

"Ouch, that sucks." Nick grinned.

"You bet it was. Ah missed mah favorite wrestling show on TV because of
that." Said Sam as he took another sip of the beer. "Yuh really love him,
don'tcha?"

Nick stared at the table before him for a long moment before answering.

"I don't just love him, Sam." He spoke at last, slowly as if speaking his
thoughts out aloud. "It... it goes beyond that... by now, at this stage. I
don't wanna see him hurt, I want him as close to me as I can possibly get
him... I want to hold him... and comfort him... and protect him... I want
to catch him when he falls... I want to wipe his tears away when he
cry... I want to be there for him when he comes home... I... I'm speaking
nonsense, am I?"

Sam only looks at him thoughtfully for a second or two before smiling.

"Nope." He answered laughingly. "As Hank prefers to say: On the contrary,
my young friend! You're in love. You're expected to speak nonsense."

They listened to the song in silence for several minutes. Hank came by with
another batch of drinks. Kurt is, by now, sitting at another table, between
two gorgeous women.

"About what you just said, Nick." Sam spoke suddenly. "Do you really mean
it?"

Nick nodded quietly as he fell into his own brooding once again. Once
again, the feeling of emptiness and loneliness grew in his mind... and he
found himself wishing silently again and again that Warren is here with him
right now to make him feel better. Sam looked at him quietly before patting
him on the shoulder.

"He'll be back soon, Nick. Cheer up." He said gently. "Wanna get pissed?"

Nick glanced at him slowly before smiling.

"Bring it on and keep it coming." Nick said at last as he picked up his
glass and began drinking his way to high heaven.







Later that night, a very drunken Nick lay sprawled on his face in his bed,
still dressed in his leather pants and black sleeveless T-shirt and leather
jacket, snoring away rhythmically. It took both Sam and Hank to drag him
out of the pub as he sang the worst distorted and mutated version of 'I
Want It That Way' at the top of his voice all the way to the car. And when
they arrived at the mansion, it took Kurt and his teleportation ability to
take him from the car directly to his bed.

Stirring himself slightly, he fell motionless again, dead to the world. He
never even twitches when the Blackbird landed. He never even stirs when the
door of his room opened a moment later and a winged-figure stepped in.

"Nick?" Warren called out softly as he stepped nearer to the bed. "Baby."

"Uuuuuunnnnhhhhh... Go 'way Brian." Nick moaned softly in his sleep. "Tell
Kev I'm sick."

In the dark, Warren smiled and gently proceeds to peel off that leather
jacket away from Nick. He paused a moment later when his name suddenly
appeared from Nick's lips.

"Warren... come back..." Nick mumbled softly in his sleep. "... miss
you..."

Looking at him lovingly for a moment or two, Warren slowly took off the
jacket and laid it on the table beside the bed. He looked at his sleeping
lover for a moment, stroking the cheek lovingly before lying down beside
him, kissing his hair as he pulled him close.

"I'm back, baby." Warren whispers softly into Nick's ears as he gently
caresses the medallion around Nick's neck. He spread his wings over Nick to
keep him warm and kissed his hair again. "I missed you too."

*************************

Continue next week on: Part 27...