Sam awoke the next morning disorientated and confused. After laying there a few minutes she remembered what all had taken place the night before.
"Oh man......god this is gonna be a long week," she mumbled to herself, sitting up.
Casually stretching, Sam glanced at her watch.....11:30am. Sam pushed back the covers and jumped out of the bed, walking over to the window and looking out at the surrounding woods. Slowly, Sam put away her clothes and got dressed. The longer this took, the longer it would be before she saw Nick. Finally Sam had nothing left to do. Slowly opening the door, she walked out into the main room and looked around. Nick wasn't there.
"Good....maybe he's still asleep....." she mumbled to herself.
Sam walked into the kitchen and tried to find something to eat. Eventually she settled on an apple. Taking a huge bit out of it, Sam opened the front door, stepped onto the front porch and screamed.
"Dammit Nick, you almost gave me a heart attack!"
"Sorry," Nick said before bursting out laughing, "I thought you were still sleeping."
"It's not funny!"
Nick just took one look at her and continued to laugh. Clenching her hands into fists, Sam turned, walked back inside and slammed the door. Nick immediately stopped laughing and just looked at the door.
"Not even 5 minutes......" he mumbled to himself.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Jordan woke up the next morning and looked around. She had spent the night at Brian's rather than have him drive her back to Sam's and then have to drive back himself. Both of them had been exhausted, so it seemed easier. Glancing at the clock on the VCR, Jordan saw that it was almost noon. Yawning, she sat up just as Brian walked down the stairs. He didn't even say hello, just continued walking into the kitchen. Jordan raised an eyebrow and got up to follow him.
"Not a morning person I take it," Jordan said as she entered the room.
All Brian did was grunt in reply.
"Well I hate to inform you of this......but it's afternoon Brian......"
Brian just looked at her for a sec before resuming to making a pot of coffee. Jordan just watched him as he measured the coffee and got the stuff brewing. Not long after, the sweet aroma of French vanilla was filling the kitchen. After is was finished brewing, Jordan poured her and Brian a cup and sat down at the counter.
"So.....are you always this quiet or is it just me?"
"I speak......just not til I've had my coffee......."
They continued to finish their coffee in silence. Once they were done, Brian took both their cups and rinsed them out.
"Okay, now we talk......I've got a question for ya."
"Okay, shoot," Jordan said.
"What do you think of AJ?"
"AJ? Why?"
"You answer my question and I'll answer yours."
"Oh..kay....um.....he seems nice enough. I don't know him......."
"Does he seem like your type?"
"Uh huh.....you answer my question first....why?"
"Well.....I think he may have a crush on you....."
"Really? Aww....that's cute!"
"Yea, yea, yea.....but does he have a shot?"
"Yea......I give everyone a chance.....I don't discriminate or anything Brian. I'll at least give someone a first date and see how things go."
"Cool...."
Before Brian could get another word out, the doorbell rang. Furrowing his brow, Brian went to answer the door and almost began laughing. There, standing on the stoop, was AJ. Inviting him in, Brian just shook his head.
"Hey Jordan!! Come on out here........there's someone who wants to see you....."
AJ gave Brian a death glare as Jordan came out of the kitchen. You could see she was trying not to laugh as well.
"Good afternoon AJ, what can I do for you?"
All eyes were on AJ as he stood there, not knowing what to say for the first time in his life.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Nick walked back into the cabin and found Sam sitting in the doorway of her room, reading a book.
"Um......Sam? Do you wanna go for a walk or something? There's a really pretty waterfall around here......." Nick asked shyly.
"Sure....just let me change real quick," Sam said standing up, stepping into her room and closing the door. The changed into shorts and some hiking shoes. The sun was out and even though they were at a high altitude, it was warm outside.
Tying her shoes, Sam headed back out to the entry room where Nick was waiting. He too had changed into shorts and hiking shoes. Glancing shyly at each other, Nick held the door open and followed Sam out the door.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"So, do you think they've killed each other yet?" Jordan asked plopping onto the couch next to Brian. All the guys were over at Brian's now, chillin.
"Don't know.....hard to tell. Either they're gonna get angry and explode at each other, or they're be so shy around each other they won't talk at all," AJ said in an exasperated tone.
"I know!! Did you see them when they left!! It was like they were going to their doom or something!"
At that everyone started laughing but Jordan.
"It's not funny guys!!! This is serious!! I mean....Sam's been miserable ever since I met her.....I don't know about Nick, but she really missed him.....she just didn't know how swallow her pride and admit she was wrong....something guys do all the time!!"
"Geez, a little over protective of Sam aren't you?" AJ questioned.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jordan answered hotly.
"It means that all this is Sam's fault!! If she hadn't just up and left, none of this would have happened. She made Nicky's life miserable!! She deserves to be miserable!"
"GUYS!! Stop it!! Geez, this is between Sam and Nick...........not us," Kevin interfered.
Jordan and AJ grumbled their apologies at each other.
"Okay....now that that's settled, what are we gonna do? We can't just sit here and contemplate what they're doing," Howie reasoned.
Everyone jumped in with different ideas on what they could do and after much arguing and compromising they decided to go to Busch Gardens for the day. Getting ready, everyone hopped into their respective vehicles and their caravan headed towards Tampa.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"WHAT?!!!" Sam hollered.
"I.......um.......think we're.......um......lost," Nick mumbled, looking at his shoes.
"How can we be lost?!! You said you knew where we were going!!"
"Well.....I thought I did......"
"Dammit Nick!! How the hell could you do this!!?"
"Shut up Sam!! I'm sorry okay!? I haven't been up here in over a year.....I guess I forgot which way the waterfall was.....so kill me!! I messed up!!"
Sam angrily crossed her arms over her chest and sat on the nearest tree log.
"Well now what?"
"We keep walking until we find our way back to the cabin."
"Are you insane?? We could end up more lost than we are now!"
"Well what do you suggest genius! Just sit here and rot?"
Sam just looked away angrily, trying not to cry. She didn't want Nick to see her cry right now. She wasn't angry as much as she was scared. The thought of being out in the woods, lost, terrified her.
"Come on Sam......we better start walking now or we'll really be screwed if it gets dark."
Getting up, Sam followed behind Nick, silently crying. It was about 20 minutes later when things went from bad to worse. It started as a light drizzle but soon enough, they were walking in a huge freezing downpour. Within minutes, they were drenched. All of their clothes were plastered to their bodies and their hair hung in their eyes. Sam continued to follow behind Nick, shivering with cold and fright. It was an hour later when Sam began tripping and falling with exhaustion.
"NICK!!" she hollered against the wind.
Turning around, Nick saw Sam kneeling in the mud, looking utterly exhausted. Rushing back, he helped her up, and with her leaning on him, they continued to search for the cabin in the downpour. The rain and wind battered against them relentlessly as they climbed uphill. After god knows how long, Sam fell to the ground, weeping.
"I can't walk no more Nick.....I can't feel my hands or my legs," she stammered.
"Yes you can Sam.....you've got no choice. If you stop, you'll just get colder and then......." Nick choked up, not being able to say anything further.
Dragging Sam to her feet, Nick literally began dragging her along side him. It was another hour before Nick stumbled across the clearing with the cabin. Letting go of Sam, Nick rushed towards the cabin. Once he reached the door, he looked back and saw Sam laying on the ground. Overjoyed at the thought of finding the cabin, he had forgotten that she was completely exhausted and numb. Rushing back to her side once more, Nick bent down and picked her up. Cradling her in his arms, he rushed back up to the cabin and inside, out of the rain.
"So cold...." Sam mumbled.
Nick laid her down on the floor and went to start a hot shower for her. Once he had the water running strong and warm, he went back into the living room and carefully picked Sam up. Carrying her into the bathroom, he propped her against the door and nervously began to strip her of her clothes. Trying not to look, he half pushed, half carried her into the shower, getting himself drenched again in the process. The warmth of the water slowly woke Sam up. Glancing up, she blushed bright red when she saw Nick.
"You gonna be okay?"
"Yea...." she mumbled, mortified.
"Okay.....I'm gonna go change. Just stay in here and warm up."
Before Sam could utter another word, Nick closed the curtain and left the bathroom. Sam stood under the hot water as tears of embarrassment coursed down her cheeks.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Nick walked into his room and stripped out of his wet clothes. Standing in the middle of his room, he toweled off and tossed on some dry boxers, shorts and a T-shirt. Nick didn't know what to think. In the past few hours, he had begun to realize that he wasn't angry at Sam anymore. He just wanted to move on....and have her back in his life. Pacing his room for a few minutes, Nick made up his mind and with grim determination, he entered the bathroom. Walking over to the shower, and opens the curtain. Staring intently into Sam's eyes, he reached in and turned the water off. Sam just stood there in shock as she watched Nick reach for a big, fluffy towel and hold it open. After a moments hesitation, Sam stepped out of the tub and into Nick's arms and the towel. After Nick had wrapped her in the towel, he picked her up and carried her into his room. Nick gently laid her down on his bed and walked away. Sam partially sat up, confused. A moment later, Nick returned with some wood and started a fire in the fireplace by the bed. Once the flame was going strong, Nick stood up, took his shirt off and turned to Sam. Walking over to the bed, Nick sat on the side, staring intently into Sam's eyes. Slowly leaning down, Nick kissed her passionately. After a few heated minutes, they broke apart and stared longingly into each others eyes. Seeing nothing but passion in her eyes, Nick began to kiss her again. This time his lips left hers and trailed down to her collar bone and then farther down to where the towel was tucked and held precariously by Sam's fingers. Nipping at the towel, he gently pulled it apart and stared down at her. Sam gasped but didn't try to stop him.
"God your beautiful," he breathed heavily.
Continuing the path he was on earlier, Nick began sucking at her nipples and drawing circles around them with his tongue. Moving downward, Nick left a trail of kisses down her stomach, which clenched in surprise with each one. Before Nick could go any farther, Sam grabbed his head with her hands and brought him back up to her face. After a moment of looking into his eyes, Sam began to kiss him with more passion than he thought she possessed. Slowly, tentatively, Sam began to inch her fingers into the waistband of his shorts. Without breaking the kiss, Nick quickly removed his shorts and gently spread her legs. With his fingers, Nick gently probed her womanly wetness and watched her face as Sam gasped with pleasure. Finding a slow rhythm, Nick continued to kiss and suck on her neck. Just when Sam was about to climax, Nick removed his fingers and moved down to replace them with his tongue.
Unable to bear it any longer, Sam reached down and gently touched his face, causing him to look up.
As they stare at each other, Sam murmured, "Now Nicky....."
Nodding, Nick quickly shed his boxers and positioned himself atop of her, being careful to keep his weight on his arms and gently entered her. Noticing her look of discomfort, Nick fully entered her and then kept himself still, to give Sam's body a chance to get used to this new experience. Finally, just when he thought he could bear it no longer, Nick noticed Sam's smile. Starting of with a slow, gently motion, Nick watched Sam's face and listened as her moans of pleasure became louder. Staring down at her the only thought going through his mind was of how beautiful she was. As he increased his tempo, she kept pace with him. Noticing how close she was to a climax, Nick intently watched her face as she came.
As Sam was coming down off of her climax, she opened her eyes and looked right into Nick's eyes. A moment later, she watched as Nick clenched his eyes shut, a bit off a groan as he experienced his own climax. Gently laying on top of Sam, Nick rested his head in between her neck and shoulder.
Tears of joy coursed down Sam's cheeks as she took a deep breath, "I'm so sorry for...."
Nick lifted his head and looked directly into her eyes, "Shhhh.....don't.....not right now. We've got all week to work this out.......lets not ruin the moment. I've missed you......"
"I missed you too......"
Nick leaned down and gave Sam the sweetest kiss of her life. When they broke apart, each was truly smiling for the first time in ages. Repositioning themselves, Nick and Sam fell asleep to the dying embers of the fire. Sighing contentedly, each fell asleep with the other on their mind.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Brian and Jordan were laying in the darkness of Brian's living room, talking. Brian had offered to let her stay with him while Sam was gone so she wouldn't be alone and bored. Jordan felt as if she had known him all her life for some reason. He was just really easy to talk to.
"So tell me about what Sam was like for those 4 years? I don't know her anymore," Brian asked kind of sadly.
"Well......she was always depressed and always upset. She never went out unless I physically dragged her. She never dated. She never even looked at another guy. She tried to put up a front about it and I never pushed her on it cuz I didn't want to upset her anymore. Since coming home she's actually become somewhat normal...... Okay, you're turn....what was Nick like?"
"Well.....for a while he was hopeful, angry, then depressed. Then he went into that self-destructive mode. He started dating anything in a skirt it seemed. For a while he turned to alcohol. It was like he was just trying to suppress it all and block it out. We tried to help as much as we could, but he didn't want to listen to us. That's probably why so many of us have this anger towards Sam......we had to watch Nick hit rock bottom before he'd listen and then we had to help him climb out of it all....."
They laid there in silence for a few minutes.
"Okay, enough talk of Sam and Nick, tell me about yourself Brian."
"What would you like to know?"
"Everything, tell me your life story."
"Okay....not all that interesting though. Lets see I was born in Lexington Kentucky. Had a loving, supportive family. Did the normal stuff growing up. Got involved with choir and drama. Right after I graduated high school Kevin and I decided to move to Florida for the hell of it. We moved over the summer and got the first jobs we could find. Then we just started hitting local auditions. That's how I met Nick....we were both at the same audition and hit it off. Then I managed to get a few small gigs and was able to move out into my own apartment. Lets see.....then me and Nick went to an audition together, saw Kev there. That turned out to be the audition that changed our lives. Us three, along with AJ and Howie were picked to start a vocal group and the rest is history so to speak. What about you?"
"Oh man, mine sounds so lame!! I was born and semi-raised in Maryland. My dad got transferred to Florida. We came here, I did the typical high school thing.....then went to college, got my edjumacation and here I am."
"That's the Cliff Notes version isn't it?" Brian asked laughing, "What's your degree in?"
"Drama. I want to teach it. I've got a few interns lined up after the summer. I hope to be able to direct short plays or videos in a few years."
"Really? Cool," Brian responded tiredly.
"So, how do you think they're doing?" Jordan asked concerned.
"Relax Jordan......they're fine. I've just got this hunch that everything is gonna be okay. They'll work this out."
"I'm just worried....."
"I know.....but relax!! They'll be okay....they need to do this!"
Jordan sighed, knowing Brian was right. A few minutes later, she noticed that Brian's breathing was deep and regular.
"Figures......guys!! They can fall asleep no matter what!"
Laughing, Jordan laid back on the couch and soon fell asleep herself.