Chris enters his Orlando home after a long business trip and settles down on his favorite couch. He is so glad to be back home: a home that he shares with the most important person in his life. An instant smile appears on his face as he thinks of him.

He first met the kid, because that's what he was, when he was only twelve. One of his many acquaintances, a guy named Howie, had just joined an up and coming vocal group. He happened to run into Howie one day and couldn't help but notice the beautiful blond boy beside him. Small talk and pleasantries were shared and Chris learned more about Nick. He may have only been twelve but Chris saw the potential man behind the child. Even though confusion and guilt set in his mind over this attraction, it did not stop Chris from becoming the number one fan of Howie's new band: the Backstreet Boys. He enjoyed seeing Nick up onstage and sometimes kicked himself for not going to the auditions when he heard about the group.

There were several reasons for starting his own group. Regardless of what Kevin still thinks, it was never about providing competition for the Backstreet Boys. Chris started the group to make a better life for himself and his family. It was also a way to get closer to Nick.

While The Backstreet Boys and NSYNC were starting out, they were sent overseas. Consequently Chris and Nick ran into each other quite a few times but were never still long enough to really talk, until they met in Germany for a charity basketball game. Although five years had passed, Nick was seventeen by this time, Chris was still head over heels in love and fortunately, Nick had a soft spot for him. He remembered that Chris used to treat him as an equal instead of a little kid. Chris had always had that quality to him. It was the reason why Chris and Justin got along so well.

Chris and Nick hooked up at the infamous Germany game with a little help from their friends. Howie was very observant; he saw that Chris was attracted to Nick from day one but he wasn^? sure if it was real. He soon realized that Chris was serious about Nick. Howie arranged for some quality alone time for them away from fellow band members. It didn't go as smoothly as one could hope for. Stuttered phrases and shy looks and smiles marked the beginning of a relationship that is still going strong. Sure it's hard since they are apart more than they are together but they each find ways to deal with it.

For Chris it helps to have his bandmates around even to this day. He sometimes wonders if the guys are in the group because of their likeness to Nick; either by a physical resemblance or quirky personality traits.

Justin and Chris were best friends from day one. Justin and Nick were both young boys with bright blonde hair and pretty blue eyes who were also seasoned performers despite their young age. Chris enjoyed being close to Justin, though he sometimes questioned if their closeness was due to this resemblance.

In the early days of Germany when they were getting started, Lance was the new kid. Chris hated to see anyone left out so he would do anything to make him feel included. It wasn't that difficult to do though since Lance reminded him of Nick as well. While Justin was a kid with muscle definition even at the tender age of fourteen Lance was simply skinny and underdeveloped. Lance's overall look reminded him of Nick and caused him to flirt shamelessly with Lance. It was also a way to make him feel included. Sometimes though, the flirting went overboard and he lost himself in the illusion of it being Nick, not Lance, with him.

Joey had always been Chris' good friend even through Universal. But in the early days their friendship was a lot more platonic than what it turned into. As Nick matured he was no longer a skinny little kid, he grew taller and got a little fuller. Unlike JC, who is a walking stick and Justin who is hard and buff, Nick became stout and strong like Joey. It was this transformation that got Chris seeking Joey out more and getting closer to him.

JC had always been an enigma to him. When Nick started preparing his solo album Chris gained a whole new insight into JC. The need to create music made Nick transform into someone that reminded him of JC. He would hold long conversations with Nick about songwriting and inspiration in order to understand JC better. After all of this time JC finally reminded Chris of Nick. The drive for creation was the unique factor that finally completed the circle. Chris could now relate to each of his five brothers via Nick. Sitting around listening to JC create became Chris's favorite activity; whenever he isn't with Nick which is a lot of the time, unfortunately, he is with JC.

"Wow that is the longest I have ever seen you still," Nick said. He had arrived home a half hour or so ago yet refused to bother Chris. It was a rare treat to see Chris still and Nick used the opportunity to simply admire him. "What were you thinking about, huh?"

"Hey baby, when did you get home?" asked Chris.

"About a half hour or so. I was simply enjoying the view and didn't want to bother you," said Nick as he made his way to Chris and sat down on his lap straddling him. "So are you going to tell me what you were thinking about?"

"I was just thinking about how much I love you," Chris said, grinning as he kissed Nick.