She had had a nightmare. In it, Brad had found her kissing Nick, and he had broken up with her, but Nick was married to Loryn, so she ended up alone. Careful not to wake Brad, she slipped out of bed and tiptoed out of the room. She needed a glass of milk. Maybe that would help her get back to sleep.
When she got downstairs, she heard someone rummaging around in the kitchen. It wasn’t a burglar because they were making no attempt to keep quiet, so she combed her hair with her fingers and wiped the sleep from her eyes to make herself look somewhat presentable before going in to see who it was.
Of all people, it had to be Nick. “Hey, what are you doing up?” he asked.
“I had a nightmare…”
“And you can never sleep after nightmares. I remember. I’ll get you a glass of milk,” he said. “What was it about?”
“I actually don’t remember…” she lied. He didn’t need to know she’d been dreaming about him.
There was an awkward silence as he got the milk from the refrigerator and she got a glass out of the cabinet. “Brad seems nice,” he said.
“Yeah, I like him. I hope things work out with him.” Several seconds went by as he poured the milk. She took a big gulp and hoisted herself onto the counter. There was something he wanted to say, but didn’t have the nerve. She could tell. “What?” she finally asked.
The words tumbled out of his mouth. “Do you ever think about me? Do you ever wonder what would have happened with us?”
She looked away as her eyes filled with tears. “Don’t start, Nick. I don’t need this right now. I’m happy with Brad, and I don’t wanna mess that up by doing something with you.”
He touched her cheek and turned her face towards him. “So you do still care.”
“Of course I do. You were my first for just about everything. My first real boyfriend, my first lover, my first heartbreak…”
“You know I would take everything with Loryn back if I could. I love you, Mattie.”
She tried to turn away, but couldn’t bring herself to do it. She was lost in his eyes again. Slowly, the distance between their faces reduced. Just before their lips met, they heard someone coming down the stairs. Snapped out of her trance, she pulled away as Brian stepped into the kitchen. She cringed as she saw the expression on his face. She was on the edge of the counter, as far off as she could be without falling, and Nick was standing right in front of her, his face still only inches from hers. It couldn’t look good.
“What’s going on down here? Did you have a nightmare, Mattie?”
“Yeah, I did. I don’t remember what it was, but I couldn’t sleep.”
“What are you doing up, Nick?”
“I couldn’t sleep, so I was going to make a sandwich, but then Mattie came down, and we started talking,” Nick answered. “Actually, I’m not hungry anymore. I think I’m just gonna go to sleep.” With that, he took off back to his room, leaving Madeleine to explain.
“What happened?” Brian asked.
“Nothing.”
“That’s bull, Mattie, and you know I know it. I don’t think I could have fit a piece of paper between your faces, you were so close,” he stated.
She took a deep breath. “We almost kissed. I don’t know what I was thinking. I’m such an idiot! I’m happy with Brad!”
“Mattie, I think you have to choose one or the other because if you don’t, you know all three of you are gonna get hurt. And if you’re happy with Brad, why would you even think about kissing Nick?”
“I don’t know! I was caught up in the moment. I’m tired. I’m not thinking. I just had a nightmare. I choose Brad. I’m happy with him.”
His expression softened. “Why don’t you go back to bed?”
“I think I will.”