Aaron Carter: Here’s How His Ex-Fiancée Nearly Saved His Life

On Saturday, Aaron Carter was found dead in the bathtub of his Lancaster, California home.

Carter’s cause of death has yet to be determined, but several signs indicate that the former child star suffered a fatal overdose.

Aaron often spoke openly about his struggles with substance abuse, and police found prescription pill bottles and cans of compressed air at the scene of his death.

Insiders say Aaron was in the habit of huffing keyboard duster and other household cleaners for the intense but very brief and dangerous high that these substances afford their users.

When a troubled soul like Aaron falls victim to their own self-destructive coping mechanisms, the grief of fans and loved ones is often tinged with anger and frustration.

Carter had talent and charisma to spare but efforts to help him curb his worst impulses were sadly unsuccessful.

And while the singer spent his final years burning bridges, several supporters remained loyal and worked tirelessly to guide Aaron toward a healthier lifestyle, including his on-again, off-again fiancée Melanie Martin.

Now, Martin has struggled with addiction and mental health issues of her own, some of which reportedly worsened in the weeks since she and Aaron lost custody of their infant son, Prince.

But in the days leading up to Carter’s death, Melanie reportedly dedicated herself to calling attention to the severity of Aaron’s issues in the hope that either police or pressure from his fans would convince him to seek help.

Just hours before Aaron’s death, cops arrived at his home to perform a welfare check that was reportedly ordered by Melanie.

Carter brusquely dismissed the officers around 2 am on Saturday morning and ordered the housekeeper who answered the door not to bother him again.

It was the last time he was seen alive.

Martin’s efforts to force Carter into treatment began well before that incident, and several of her attempts were documented during Aaron’s frequent livestreams.

In the last of these sessions, Carter informed his followers that Melanie had texted him, “You’re going to die.”

The full message was later revealed, and the context seems to indicate that Martin’s comments came from a place of concern, not cruelty.

“If it’s true what you’re doing, you’re not going to end up alive. You’re going to die,” she wrote.

“I love you, this is not safe. Please don’t do this to yourself.”

Obviously, Martin’s efforts to help Carter turn his life around were not successful, but changes in the singer’s behavior in his final weeks seems to indicate that she came awfully close to saving his life.

According to a new report from TMZ, Carter had checked into an out-patient treatment program in an effort to get sober and regain custody of his son.

Not only that, Aaron’s manager, Taylor Helgeson, tells TMZ that the singer was in the studio every day working with his team on Love 2 — a sequel to his most recent album, titled simply Love.

Helgeson says Carter had dedicated the album to his family, and his goal in completing the project was to repair his relationship with his estranged older brother, Nick.

Sadly, the album remains unfinished.

And it represents just one of the many ways in which Aaron’s promise and potential will remain forever unfulfilled.