Love Menagerie:

Chapter 24: Here and Now

Nick/Freddy/Brittany

Brittany looked at the door as the bell rang. There was no way that she was getting up to open the door for somebody that she really didn't even want around. If Freddy was going to be persistent about Nick staying with them, so be it. As they'd already established, it was Freddy's house. But still ... why?!?! she couldn't help but whine every time she thought about it. And now ... he was there ... her nemesis had arrived.

"I'm not getting that, Freddy," Brittany sighed, continuing to watch the movie playing on the television screen. "Can't pause PaperView."

Freddy rolled his eyes and stood from the couch. "Nice excuse," he grumbled, heading for the front door. "Don't be a bitch, Brittany. It's not becoming of you."

Brittany stuck her tongue out at him, ignoring the fact that he'd said his last sentence in Spanish, apparently not knowing how to word it in English. She didn't mind much ... it was sort of endearing when he did that ... even if it was a little difficult for her ear to switch languages quickly. She was relieved when she saw Freddy smile at her just as he neared the door. It almost sickened her how much she couldn't handle the thought of him being angry with her. Since when was she so dependent of another? She watched silently as Freddy opened the front door and Nick came into view.

So much for watching PaperView, she thought bitterly and turned the television off with the remote. She was far too distracted with thoughts of murder and revenge. Gosh, I'm pathetic.

"Hey, Brittany," Nick was suddenly standing in front of her, looking hesitant.

Yeah, you better look hesitant. I ain't fallin' for any of your Carter Charm. It's not gonna be that easy, Nickers.

Brittany stood and subconsciously ran her hands across her growing stomach. "Nick," she gave a curt nod and watched Nick squirm uncomfortably under her gaze.

"C'mmon, Nick," Freddy came into the room, giving Brittany a pointed look. "I'll show you to the room you'll be staying in."

Nick nodded and offered a small smile to Brittany as he left the room, trailing behind Freddy. Brittany sighed. Damn! Maybe that smile could do wonders.

Sarah/Brittany

Brittany glanced at the ringing telephone in annoyance. With a sigh, she tossed the book she was reading onto the table in front of her and stood from her chair, making her way to the phone hanging on the opposite wall.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Ritt ... it's Sarah."

"Oh, hey, girl." Brittany glanced quickly around the room, hoping Nick would stay wherever he was. She hadn't exactly known how to tell Sarah that Nick was staying with them ... so she simply hadn't. "What's up? How are you?"

"I'm okay. How are you?"

"Pretty okay, actually. Had a doctor's appointment the other day and that went well. What have you been up to?"

Sarah sighed into the phone, twirling the telephone chord around her finger and willing herself not to cry. Ever since she and Nick had broken up ... or taken a break ... or whatever it was ... she'd been so emotional and cried at the drop of a hat.

"Just going to school. I dunno. I feel like I'm in a dark hole."

Brittany closed her eyes. Apparently, this was all so much worse than she'd thought.

Sarah continued. "It's like, I lost Nick and I pretty much severed all strings with Casey. I just... I miss having someone to talk to. I miss you, Britt. I was wondering if I could maybe skip like a week or two of school and come see you and Freddy over there?"

Brittany's eyes widened. Uh, oh. She hadn't been expecting that one. What was she supposed to tell Sarah? No, because the guy who made you feel this desolate is here? No, I don't want to see you? No excuse she could possibly muster would go over well. She didn't get a chance to respond as Nick walked into the room, talking on his cell phone, like most people do ... loudly.

Sarah gasped. "Is that Nick??"

"What? Um... No?"

"Don't lie to me, Brittany," Sarah grated. "I know his voice. Is that Nick?!"

"Yes...?"

"Yes or no, dammit!"

Brittany sighed. She was screwed either way. May as well tell the truth. "Yes."

"I can't believe you're housing Nick! How could you house Nick?"

"No, Sarah... I am not housing Nick. Freddy is housing Nick. I'm just sitting here, being the pregnant little woman that everybody just enjoys pushing around. I'm not doing a d*mn thing."

Sarah sighed. "I can't believe this. You're my friends. Nick wouldn't even know you or Freddy if it weren't for me! What f*cking right does he think he has to go and stay there with you guys?!"

"I don't know, Sarah. You should be yelling at Freddy for this, not me-"

"I'm not yelling!"

"Yes," Brittany rolled her eyes, "you are."

"If you were really against all of this, you would have left."

"Oh my gosh, Sarah." Brittany groaned. "That is ridiculous. I'm pregnant! I'm not dealing with this. I'm sorry that Freddy has Nick staying here, okay? If you want to talk with me about this rationally, then call me back sometime later." With that, Brittany hung up. She sat silently at the counter, her eyes clouded with tears. A throat was cleared. She looked up. Oh boy ... she'd forgotten Nick was in the room.

Nick stared down at Brittany as tears slipped silently down her face. "I'm sorry, Brittany. I didn't realize that my coming here would result in all of this. I didn't mean to start a fight between you and Sarah."

Brittany looked up at him, and for reasons she didn't understand, believed him. He just looked so genuine. "I know, Nick."

They weren't really great friends. They hadn't gotten off on the right foot from the get-go. But, at the moment, they had one thing in common... Sarah was angry with them. With a sigh, Brittany stood and wrapped her arms around Nick's waist.

"I'm glad you're here, Nick."

"Thank you." Nick wrapped his arms around her shoulders and squeezed. "Everything will work out just fine."

Nick/Brittany

Nick drummed his fingers against the steering wheel as they drove. He hated driving in the rain and the dark, but there wasn't much that he could do about it. Not this time. Brittany had a craving and knew not to mess around when it came to those. Freddy was at a meeting until late that night; Brittany wanted chocolate ice cream and refused to wait until he returned. So what other choice did Nick have, but to drive in the rain and the dark? None. He was not about to take on a pregnant lady with a desperate need for chocolate.

It was cold. Terribly cold. Both inside and outside of the car. Nick reached out to turn the heat up and accidentally raised the volume of the radio. Okay, so his truck back home in Florida was a little different from Freddy's. Brittany smiled and turned the volume back down, just before raising the heat.

"Sorry," Nick grinned, sheepishly.

It had been three days since Brittany's argument with Sarah ... three days since Brittany and Nick had shared a bonding hug of sorts. And yet, even still, Nick felt odd and nervous in Brittany's presence. She was so intimidating sometimes.

"It's okay," Brittany shrugged. "As long as we get to the store in good enough condition to buy my ice cream, I don't really mind what happens on the way ... even you blowing my ear drums with loud rock music."

Nick laughed and shook his head in amazement. She was an odd one, that Brittany. They continued to drive, finally reaching a mini-mart.

"Y'know, for living in Seattle, Freddy sure is far from civilization."

Brittany laughed and got out of the truck. "I'll be back."

"What?" Nick took his keys from the ignition and grabbed his wallet from the center console. "If you think I'm letting you go into a mini-mart by yourself at night, then ... well ... think again."

Brittany laughed again, rolling her eyes. "Original."

And fifteen minutes later, they were back in the truck, Nick serenading her with his own obnoxious rendition of "On The Road Again."

Brittany groaned as they pulled into the driveway. "Nick."

"What?"

"Shut ... up, or sing a new song."

"Lady in re-ed!"

"Oh Lord, help us all now!!"

"Help me (help me!) figure out the difference between right and wrong, weak and strong, day and night..."

Hours later, they were sitting on the living room floor, still eating ice cream, in addition to popcorn and Ho-Ho's.

"So, tell me, Nick," Brittany put on an innocent smile, tossing a few popcorn kernels into her mouth.

Nick looked at her and rolled his eyes. He knew that look. It was the same look every other girl gets when they're about to meddle in somebody else's business. "What is it you want to know, dearie? What kind of underwear I wear? How old I was when I had my first wet dream?" He laughed at how uninterested she looked. He spoke more loudly, knowing exactly what she wanted to know, "What exactly happened with Sarah, by chance??"

Brittany glanced away, sheepishly. "Actually ... yes. I have some right to know why my friends split, don't I? Especially if I'm housing one for Lord knows how long."

"So we're friends now?"

"Yeah," Brittany drawled, a light blush creeping across her cheeks. "I think so. Look, Nick, I'm really sorry for how I've treated you since ... well, pretty much since the time I met you. I know I've had to apologize a couple of times now ... but I really am sorry."

"Well, in that case..." Nick sighed. "I don't exactly know what happened back there with Sarah. One minute, we're completely ecstatic about being with one another ... and the next, well, I'm keeping secrets from her and feeling guilty about it and not wanting to be around her because of it."

"What secrets?" Brittany asked, and to Nick's surprise, he found sympathy in her voice.

"Her friend, Casey, thinks her boyfriend is cheating on her and she's thinking about break up with him. For some reason, she didn't want me to tell Sarah. I'm not exactly sure why ... I guess she's afraid that if too many people know, J. R. will hear about it."

Brittany sat there silently, staring off into space. She suddenly turned to Nick and burst out laughing. "That's it?!"

"Yeah." Nick rolled his eyes. "It was all just blown way out of proportion. I never thought she'd make me leave because of it and now she won't even talk to me to let me tell her the stupid 'secret'."

"Wow. Well, I'm sure everything will be fixed, Nick. I can assure you of one thing ... I'm not gonna let it all end between you two with all of this up in the air like it is. It'll all work out for the best and I'll do anything that I can to make sure of that."

Nick smiled. "Thanks, Britt. So ... what's up with you and Freddy?"

Brittany groaned and leaned forward, banging her head lightly against the coffee table. "Oh, Lord only knows! My gosh, Nick, it's amazing how much the boy plays with my emotions. He gives me mixed signals like none other. I mean, it's not like he ever acts like he doesn't want me around; above all, we're friends, but it's like we're friends and he kisses me all the time ... usually just little kisses." Brittany sighed and looked down at her hands, willing herself not to cry. Stupid pregnancy hormones. "The kinds of kisses that couples who have been with one another for a while have ... the familiar kind. Gosh, I love him so much, Nick."

Their heads shot up as the garage entrance door opened. They sat silently and waited. Freddy came into the living room a moment later and stopped, seeing the two of them sitting still on the floor.

"H-Hey, Fred," Brittany smiled, trying to calm down. She felt flustered, having been spilling to Nick about her feelings for Freddy and he was suddenly there. She felt like a little kid, caught with his or her hand in the cookie jar, even if she knew that Freddy hadn't heard her confession. "How'd your, um, dinner meeting thingy go?"

"Good," Freddy drawled, suspiciously, looking back and forth at the two. For one, Brittany was acting far too weird and Nick was far too quiet. Second of all, Nick and Brittany were not on friendly enough terms to be sitting in the same room together, let alone by themselves. Okay, so he was jealous ... very jealous. So what?

"Well, I think I'll head for bed," Nick spoke uncomfortably and stood from the floor. There was just far too much tension in the room for his liking. "Night, guys."

"Night, Nick," Brittany smiled at him, encouragingly. "See you tomorrow."

Nick nodded and heard Freddy mumble a "goodnight" as he was making his way up to his room. My gosh! He hadn't been around Brittany and Freddy alone much before, but he could tell that the two of them could probably get in a few heavy-duty fights. He'd have to watch out for those ... duck under the punches thrown.

Nick laughed at the thought and crawled into bed with a new hope after hearing what Brittany had said that night. So he had some people in his camp ... willing to help him out. He could get Sarah back ... he just knew it.

Freddy/Brittany

"What was that all about?" Brittany sighed and stood from the floor, bending to pick fallen popcorn from off of the carpet.

Freddy walked over and began to help her by collecting pop cans and ice cream cartons, without much enthusiasm. "What was what about?"

"Hmmm. How you were treating Nick? The strange looks you were giving us? Pick one."

Freddy sighed. She was obviously mad at him. Well, so be it, because he was a little mad, himself. "You two sure are getting cozy, eh?" He grabbed a spoon from the coffee table and headed into the kitchen, his arms full. He began to put everything away slowly and Brittany came into the room a few minutes later.

"What was that about back there?" Brittany asked, sounding annoyed and awfully confused. Here he went with his mixed signals again.

"Exactly what I said, Brittany. I just don't understand you."

"And I don't understand you!" Brittany yelled, throwing a spoon into the sink and slamming an empty ice cream carton onto the counter, angrily. Suddenly it dawned on her. "Are you jealous??"

"No, I am not jealous!" Freddy lied, looking away. Her gaze was far too unnerving. "It's just I walk in and you two act like you've just spent hours making love on my living room floor!"

Brittany's eyes widened. She was utterly stunned. "Are you insane?! I wouldn't do anything with my best friend's boyfriend, Freddy! Gosh ... you're acting like a prick! Do you want to know why we were acting awkward? Do you really want to know??"

Freddy sighed. He hated when she was angry with him ... but yes, he wanted to know. "Yeah ... I do."

"Because I had just finished telling Nick how madly in love with you I am!"

Silence. Complete silence. Tears welled behind Brittany's eyes as she bit her lip and looked away. She lifted her gaze as she felt Freddy step closer to her. He tangled his fingers in her hair as their eyes met and a minute later his lips were moving against Brittany's in the most passionate kiss she'd ever experienced.

"Wh-What was that for?" Brittany stammered after they broke apart. "Why do you keep kissing me, if all we are is friends, Freddy?" It wasn't that she was purposefully being naive. With Freddy she never knew if the obvious was the truth.

Freddy sighed and looked away, his heart beating wildly against the confines of his chest. Finally, he looked back at her and their eyes met once again. "All night, while I was at this dumb dinner meeting, the only thing that I could think of was this beautiful woman, who's even more beautiful because she's carrying my child, who was sitting at home, waiting for me. I just couldn't get you out of my head, no matter how hard I tried. I couldn't concentrate on the meeting, whatsoever. So I'm wondering what's going on with me all the way home and then I realize something. All the times that I told myself that you were just my really good friend, I was ignoring the fact that I ... well, I like you ... love you."

"Are you serious?" Tears ran from Brittany's eyes as she placed her hands against his face, wanting nothing more than to melt into him right then and there and never part. "Do you really mean that, Freddy?"

"Yes, of course." Freddy chuckled as she broke down into tears and laughter, both at the same time. He held her up and placed kisses across her face. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Brittany laughed and wiped her tears away. "I'm perfect."

Freddy smiled and took her hand in his as they began to make their way from the kitchen and towards the staircase. "You wanna go out after the game Friday night?"

"Yeah, of course. But should we just leave Nick here alone?"

"Oh, I don't think we'll be leaving him alone. I think Sarah's about due for a visit. What do you think?"

Brittany grinned in response, just as they reached her bedroom door. "G'night, Freddy," she whispered with a shy smile. She felt like a schoolgirl with a crush ... which was ridiculous; she was already carrying the guy's baby.

Freddy placed a soft kiss on her forehead. "Goodnight, Brittany."

Brittany watched him walk silently to his room and smiled to herself as she closed her own bedroom door behind her.