Chapter 1

            A crisp, warm wind blew from the north as 18-year-old Vicky Nelson left the cool air of the apartment she shared with her best friend, Samantha Erickson, also 18, in Orlando , Florida . “Sam, get out here. It’s a wonderful day for a boat trip,” Vicky yelled as her blond streaked brown hair shimmered in the sunlight.

            Sam, on the other hand, was still upstairs packing for their one weeklong voyage to the Bahamas . Their destination was a little island far from society. A week of peace and quite. A week without school, and the worry of homework. Spring break had arrived, and they wanted to have some fun. Vicky was looking forward to some time off from her college medical classes.

            “I’m coming, Vicky. Give me a few minutes. I still have a few more things to pack,” Sam yelled back. She shoved a bunch of clothes into her backpack and ran out of the apartment. “I’m done, finally!”

            “Okay, let’s get going. I can’t wait to get out into the open ocean. It’s a beautiful day!” Vicky declared. Her slim body slipped into the driver’s seat of her new ’99 red Corvette. Sam stepped into the passenger’s seat, and they were off.

            “So, what are we gonna listen to?” Sam asked, taking Vicky’s c.d. wallet out of the glove compartment. She flipped through the pages looking for something, but all she could find was hard rock bands like Korn, Green Day, and the Offspring. “Damn, girl, you need to get some pop c.d.’s in here. How about ‘N Sync? They’re really good.”

            “How many times do I have to tell you, I hate bands like that. They all suck to me,” Vicky complained.

            “You didn’t seem to think so last year. You liked that song by the Backstreet Boys. You know, ‘Everybody.’ You thought that was a cool song,” Sam turned the tables.

            “Are you still gonna bug me about that? Just because I liked that one song didn’t mean that I liked the band,” Vicky protested.

            “But you gotta agree with me that Nick Carter is a hottie,” Sam added.

            Vicky thought for a second, then responded with, “Yeah, he’s kinda cute.”

            “Kinda cute? Vicky, your boyfriend looks exactly like him!”

            “Whatever, Sam. You can think that, but he does not.”

            “He does to! And I can prove it! He’s got the hair and the eyes.” It was true, Chad Peterson did look so much like Nick Carter, he could pass for a look alike. The fact that Vicky though he was cute wasn’t the real reason she was dating him. They had been best friends ever since the first grade. It was as if they were inseparable. When they started dating freshman year, they could easily be distinguished as the couple most likely to stay together.

            “What about your boyfriend?” Vicky asked Sam. “He looks like that one guy from ‘N Sync. JC, right?”

            “Yeah. Isn’t Rick just adorable?” Sam replied with a fake smile. She and Rick Anderson were unlike Vicky and Chad . Sam had moved to Orlando from Chicago , IL , her sophomore year of high school. She and Vicky had become instant friends. Through Chad , Sam was hooked up with Rick. She thought he was cute and sweet, but they really weren’t hitting it off.

            “You’re having problems, too, I see,” Vicky pointed out. It was easy to tell that Sam didn’t like Rick. “Well, you’re not alone. So am I. It seems as if there is nothing left between Chad and me. The passion that we had isn’t there anymore.”

            Sam’s blue eyes stared at her in disbelief. “Oh, my God. I didn’t know. I thought you two were having the best relationship in the world. I wouldn’t have guessed in a million years that you two would be having problems.”

            “Well, I guess our relationship wasn’t meant to me. I think the only reason why I decided to take this trip was to get away from Chad . I need some time to think of a way to break the news to him. I just don’t know what I’m gonna do,” Vicky explained. She stopped the car in front of the docks and got out. "We're here. Let's get our stuff out of the car and get sailing. Hold on, let me make a call first.”

            “Okay, I’ll put everything on the boat,” Sam answered. Her tall, lanky body eased its way out the passenger’s seat.

            Vicky took out her cell phone and punched in some numbers. She waited for someone to answer and said, “Hey, Chad , it’s me.”

            “Oh, hi baby. What’s going on?” he asked, his sweet voice coming over the phone clearly.

            “Oh, nothing. I’m leaving right now. I’ll call you when I get to the island,” she replied.

            “Hey, have you considered my proposal?” Chad questioned.

            “Look, I said give me some time. I’m only 18. I don’t wanna get married yet. Chad , you have to give me at least a few days, then I’ll decide. Actually, give me until I get back from my trip. I have to go now. I’ll talk to you later. Bye,” Vicky said as she hung up the phone. She didn’t want to discuss the fact that he asked her to marry him. Nobody knew about it, though. It was between them, and she promised herself not to tell Sam. She walked over to the boat and got on. It was finally off to a week of peace.

****

                "Justin Timberlake! Get your ass down here before we miss the boat!" Lance Bass yelled from the bottom floor of their apartment. He and the rest of the band, 'N Sync, were scheduled for a cruise to the Bahamas along with their manager. JC Chasez, Chris Kirkpatrick, and Joey Fatone were all waiting in the limo for Justin.

            "I'm coming!" Justin yelled as he ran down the stairs. From behind him came his two suitcases and a backpack.

            "What were you doing up there? Why did it take you so long to get down?" JC asked as Justin climbed into the limo.

            He took his time answering. "I was trying to get some stuff into my suitcase," he finally said.

            "Yeah right. You were on the phone with Brittany . Come on, we all know you're gonna miss her. Just give it up. You're gonna be on a boat for the next week, so have fun. There are gonna be girls all over. Forget Brittany . You have choices now," Chris added. He took out his cell phone and dialed someone's phone number.

            "Who are you calling?" Justin asked. There were some suspicions on his mind, but mostly the thought of talking to Brittany again.

            On their previous conversation, Brittany became so overprotective that she told him if he dared to look at another girl, she'd leave him. Justin, on the other hand, totally wasn't listening. He was willing to dump Brittany for someone a little more easy going and less protective. Someone with a good sense of humor and a great personality. Any girl was better than Brittany.

            "Nobody," Chris answered. He waited for a few more minutes before hanging up. "Well, I guess they left."

            "Who’s left?" Lance questioned, obviously not listening to their conversation.

            "Someone Chris was trying to call," Joey replied.

            "Oh," Lance said. He took out his Discman and began to play the Matchbox 20 c.d.

            "Who were you trying to call?" Justin asked again.

            "Some girls I know, Vicky and Sam. Vicky's parents were my neighbors, and Sam is her friend that moved out here from Chicago. Vicky said they were also going to the Bahamas this week. I wanted to know what island they were staying on just in case we ever wanted to hook up," Chris explained. He put away his cell phone as the car stopped in front if the large boat that would be taking them far away from the real world.

            Justin looked at it in awe. He couldn't wait to set sail. The open seas were one of his favorite places to spend a quite evening. JC, on the other hand, was beginning to feel a little strange about their voyage. Something was wrong, and he knew a big thing was going to happen soon.

            "Well, lets get on the big boat and have some fun!" Chris yelled as he ran up the dock and onto the plank that lead to the boat.

            The guys got on and their voyage to the Bahamas had begun.

Chapter 2

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