Date: Wed, 25 Jun 2003 06:07:46 +0000
From: N D <pytn18@hotmail.com>
Subject: nick and ashley/all i need is you 24

DISCLAIMER: O-town, Backstreet Boys and N'Sync are all bands that I don't
know. I am not implying anything here. This is strictly created in my
fantasies. I wish it was actually happening but I highly doubt it. I am in
no way affiliated with any of their records companies and anything to do
with these bands. If homosexual content is illegal for you to read or you
don't like it then please leave.

The only thing I have remotely in common with these guys is that Ashley
Parker Angel and I were born on the same exact day-August 1, 1981.

FIRST THINGS FIRST: Well, one more chapter before another wedding
chapter...pretty crazy that 24 chapters ago Dan and Devon got engaged the
night of Nick and Ashley's wedding, but the day has come to get them
hitched. They deserve it anyway I think.  They've always been one of my
favorite couples.

This chapter goes out to Reese5612, who has continually emailed me lately
and kept up with the story. I wanna thank him for the excellent
conversation and the endless support. This one is for him.

If anyone wants to talk I'm always in the Niftywriters chat room...usually
around nighttime...like 10pm. Stop in and see everyone!

WEBSITES THAT HOST MY STORIES http://jcv.5u.com/all/worldofslash/ (Jayson's
place) http://www.armands-place.d2gwebsite.com (Armand's place)

Pytn18@hotmail.com for suggestions and comments.

Check out my other stories: -Timmy's Love (High school directory) -Rival
Hearts (this directory) -Finding Support In Each Other (Young friends
directory)

Welcome back to the Nick and Ashley saga...

RIP JustinCase RIP

All I Need Is You-Chapter Twenty-Four


Erik turned around and started walking. He felt such a mixture of hate and
distress that he felt as if he was going to puke. He began to run. It was
as if he was running away from something. He barely knew this man, he had
actually only met him once but he felt connected to him somehow. He had to
do something about this. He ran so hard that his lungs began to hurt and he
had to stop. He doubled over in pain and then felt a drop on the back of
his head.

Then he felt another, and another. For the first time in a while it was
raining in Orlando. It felt cool and refreshing against Erik's shaved head.
He stood there on the street just letting the rain hit him. He was getting
soaking wet but he didn't care. It was almost pushing him to his
destination. His legs began to move again, one in front of the other. Erik
was pretty sure he had never felt this alive before and he loved it.

He continued to walk until he stood in front of a very large building,
where many decisions are made. The building read "City Hall." Erik pushed
his way through the large wooden doors and stepped inside. He took off his
wet jean jacket that he was wearing as he walked towards the counter and
threw it in a large blue bin. It was labeled "Salvation Army."

He made his way to the counter and was greeted by a woman smiling.

"Can I help you with something sir?" She asked

"How do I start a new foundation?" Erik asked with determined eyes. It was
as if he was on a mission.

"You can do that right here. It's a bit of a hassle and a lot of paperwork
just to warn you." She said.

"All good things are a hassle." Erik said

"Ok then, well fill out all of this paperwork and bring it back with the
1,000 dollar starting deposit and we can get everything started." She said
handing him all the paperwork.

Erik shook his head. He never realized how often in life money was used
until now.

"I'll get this back to you as quickly as I can." Erik said as he grabbed
the papers.

"I just need to mark down what this foundation is going to be about." She
said.

Erik paused and looked up with a small smile.

"Homelessness." He said.


The rain continued to fall throughout Florida. It was like it came out of
nowhere and wouldn't stop. It wouldn't even let up a little. It was just a
constant downpour that was never-ending. Through the rain, lights shone
through. A car pulled up to the O-town house, a Durango to be exact. Nick
got out of the driver's seat after shutting off the car and opened an
umbrella. He then walked around to the passenger side and opened the door
holding the umbrella over the door.

Ashley stepped down out of the car with little Randy in his hands all
bundled up in a blanket to avoid getting a cold in the rain at such a young
age. That was the last thing this young couple needed right now. They had
already been through enough in their early years. They were ready to just
relax and be good parents now.

Johnny reached his hands out from the back seat and Nick helped him down to
the ground. He pulled up his hood to go over his head and then grabbed his
dad's hand and walked with the rest of his family toward the door.

"I got it." Dan said as he heard the doorbell ring.

He jumped off the couch and ran to the door. He opened it and looked at the
sight before him. Nick and Ashley standing close together, Randy bundled in
Ashley's arms with Johnny clinging tight to his father with his hooded
sweatshirt on.

'I can only wish that one day I look like this.' Dan thought to himself as
he invited the family in.

Dan had been thinking a lot lately. It was understandable of course seeing
as his wedding was tomorrow. He wasn't having cold feet at all. He knew he
loved Devon with every single part of his body and he was totally ready to
become one with someone he knew was his soulmate but he had been thinking a
lot. Nick and Ashley had gone through a lot to get this far. He was afraid
that he and Devon would also have to struggle. Then of course there was
always that thing about keeping your life in private.

He looked over to the other couch and saw Erik and Mandy. That was a couple
that wouldn't have to worry about any of this. They could run hand in hand
through the streets and people would praise them. It just wasn't fair. He
looked back to Nick and Ashley again, a pillar of strength. He remembered
that that was all that mattered, being there for each other. Everything
else would fall into place. It always had.

"You ok bud?" Ashley said as he put his hand on Dan's shoulder, breaking
him out of his trance.

"Huh? Oh yeah." Dan said

"You were daydreaming there for a second." Ashley said.

"Oh sorry. I guess I'm just thinking a lot about tomorrow." Dan said with a
sigh.

"That's why we're here remember?" Ashley said.

Instead of a rehearsal dinner Dan and Devon decided that they would just
make dinner for their closest friends and spend the night with them just
reminiscing about the good times. Besides, they were too nervous to do
anything else.

"I know, thanks a lot for coming Ash. You know I could have never done this
without you." Dan said.

"You deserve this Danny. More than anyone I know." Ashley said as he pulled
his friend into a hug.

It meant a lot to both of them and that's all it took to remind them of
their friendship.

"Alright you two before you make me cry let's go see if Devon needs any
help in the kitchen." Brian said as he grabbed both of them and dragged
them over.

Devon was in the kitchen with Angela Miller, Dan's mother, working on the
last finishing touches of the meals. They decided to do a buffet style
dinner and had some of it catered but cooked about half of it. Everything
smelled fantastic as Dan, Ashley and Brian walked into the kitchen.

"Well at least I'm marrying someone who can cook." Dan said as a joke.

"Well I tried to teach you but you were just so stubborn as a kid." Angela
said as she slapped Dan on the shoulder.

"Ouch. Sorry mom. So where did you learn all this babe?" Dan asked his
fiancée.

"On the road. Not all of us had a tv show following us around with 4 other
guys providing us food." Devon said with a smile.

"Yeah but even if I was by myself I would have just ordered in every
night."  Dan said.

"Yeah well I gotta keep up my girlish figure." Devon said as a joke.

"Oh I think we all saw enough of your girlish figure the other night."
Ashley said cracking up now.

"What was that?" Angela asked.

"Nothing mom." Dan said as he exited the kitchen quickly.

Devon just smiled and laughed under his breath, continuing to chop up some
carrots for the salad.

"Hey everyone." Trevor yelled out as he opened the door and then held it
open for his boyfriend.

Lance came in on crutches, his broken leg from the incident with the stairs
in a cast. He gave a small wave to everyone and then sat down and with
Trevor's help put his leg up on the other end of the couch to elevate it.

"How's that leg Lance?" Ashley asked.

"As far as I know it's still in there." Lance said

"Good to hear." Brian said as he came over and sat down.

"How was the movie?" Ashley asked them.

"It was great. We saw 2 Fast 2 Furious. It was so hot." Trevor said.

"It was just good to get out and spend some time together." Lance said.

Trevor looked over and smile at him. He leaned in and gave him a small kiss
to notice what he was saying.

It was quite a mix of people here tonight but they all meant something to
the engaged couple. After the previous tours and years in the business
everyone was still friends though. It didn't matter either way because this
wasn't about them and they knew it. This was about Dan and Devon.

Dan sat on one couch next to Ashley and Brian, while Trevor and Lance took
the loveseat. LeighAnn had gone into the kitchen to help Devon and Angela.
Nick came in with Cody and Johnny and rounded them both up on the floor to
play together and then sat down in between Ashley's legs on the floor with
his back to the couch. Erik was sitting on a chair, with Mandy on his lap,
exchanging glances, lovetaps and smiles. Finally, AJ and Jacob sat at the
table just holding hands and talking a bit, waiting for the meal to be
served.

"So Erik, what's this new foundation I hear you're starting?" Nick asked.

"Just a small something I wanted to start to aid in the fight against
homelessness." Erik said.

"That's a pretty noble thing to do. Is that a passion of yours?" Nick asked

"It is now." He said with a smile

"Tell me if you need any help. I know a few people in the charity business.
I could give you a few contacts to get it off the ground." Nick said.

"That'd be great. We'll talk afterward." Erik said.

"Sounds good." Nick said.

Dan looked around at his friends. This was his life. Usually, Dan was the
one that was helping everyone with their problems. He looked at Erik, who
had looked to him advice most recently on this new homelessness kick he'd
been in but also when he first started with Mandy. He saw Jacob, who had
found a rock of support in AJ but had needed a simple hug from him from
time to time to show that he's still a part of this group and an important
part for that matter.

He saw Trevor who had always wondered where he stood in this world and came
to Dan to ask him if being with Lance at first was a good idea. In fact, he
wondered if being homosexual was a good idea. Dan remembered helping him
through this tough time and then also through the hard situation with his
amnesia.

Then he saw Ashley. Truly, his best friend in life. He watched Nick put his
new baby son Randy in Ashley's arms and hold him while he slept. It was so
beautiful. It wasn't always this easy for them though. Flashes of memories
went through Dan's head as he saw his friend.

<Flashback>

"Knock, Knock." Dan said while opening the door slightly to see if it was
cool to come in.

"Come on in Dan. It's cool." Ashley answers his unspoken question. Dan was
dressed solely in red boxers and a black tank top obviously ready for bed.

"How are you doin' buddy?" Dan asks

"I've definitely been better." Ashley responds. "Ya know I wonder sometimes
whether it's worth putting myself through this all the time. I mean, my
parents don't even support me. My dad turns off the TV if he sees me. It's
tough to continue doing something when you have no support from your
family."

Dan came over and sat on the bed. "Ash, you know you got 4 brothers right
here for you."

"Thanks Dan. I really appreciate it." Ashley says as a genuine smile came
to his face.

<Flashback end>

All that seemed so long ago. Another memory came into his head of when Dan
first met Devon in the gym and then later that night went out to dinner
with him and all of his friends. He was so excited after Devon kissed him
and went downstairs and found Ashley there waiting for him, waiting to
share in his excitement.

Then there was the time Ashley told him that he cheated on Nick, before any
of this stuff with Randy happened. Ashley had betrayed Nick's trust with
Matt and looked to Dan for help. Dan watched in his memory as he saw Ashley
standing out over the cliff contemplating life or death. He spoke to his
friend that night and fetched Nick for help. It was scary but a turning
point in his life and their relationship.

Dan saw all of this when he looked at his friend's blue eyes and he knew
that Ashley saw the same in him. Yes, this was Dan's life but for once it
was going to be different. This time the focus was on him. He wasn't sure
that he liked that. He liked helping other people and supporting them, but
as he looked around the room he saw people in support of him. They were in
a way returning the favor and sharing the good times together.

It wasn't cold feet that Dan was feeling, just a bit of nostalgia. He
watched as Devon walked in the room and announced that dinner was ready and
served. This time tomorrow that man was going to be his husband. It brought
a smile to Dan's face that he couldn't remove. He was going to start a new
part of his life and everyone was there to share it with him.

"Hey space cadet, everything alright?" Ashley asked breaking Dan out of his
trance.

Dan looked up at his friend and best man.

"Yeah Ash, everything is awesome." Dan said as he got up and headed to the
dinner table.


The rain continued to pour throughout Orlando. It was heavier than it had
been in a long time. It felt like a sheet of water hitting you. It didn't
matter to a certain figure though. He had his hood pulled up over his head
as he leaned against a tree. The rain covered him but he didn't care. His
life had taken a drastic turn for the worse lately and nothing seemed to
matter.

Josh Turner, O-town choreographer and ex-boyfriend of JC Chasez, stood
outside the Nsync recording studio just staring at the building. He watched
as they filed into the building, the last one Lance in crutched. They were
about to try and make another push for an album that would put them at the
top again. Josh saw other plans for the pop group, though.

"I'm sorry for what I'm about to do JC." Josh said.

TO BE CONTINUED...

<<<<Sorry this chapter took so long to get out. My life has been very busy
lately. Pytn18@hotmail.com for comments and suggestions. Email is always
welcome. >>>>

---ND---