"Hi, uh, Kevin, it's Laura again. Please, please call me back. I--I need to talk to you... thanks." Laura hung up the phone and looked down at the floor. She sighed and looked over to Misty and AJ.
AJ got up and walked over to the phone, putting his arm around Laura. "No answer?" Laura shook her head, wiping away a tear. "Laura," AJ said, walking with her to the couch, "I'm sure that he's not mad at you."
Laura choked back her tears. "And what about Nick? He hasn't talked to me either. No one will fucking talk to me!"
"Laura, calm down," Misty said, grabbing Laura's hand. Laura jerked her hand back and stood up, pacing.
"You want me to calm down?! First of all, I have no clue why Kevin, of all people, isn't returning my calls, and second, I can't understand why Nick would be mad at me. I mean, he was all about spending every waking moment with me when we first met, then it all stopped. I mean, I like him, but I like Kevin too. Kevin showed the interest, Nick didn't. So I went out with Kevin. If Nick's mad, then he better tell me how he feels so I know where we stand."
"Laura, we need to talk." Everyone turned to see Jenn in the doorway. "Now," she said timidly. Laura got up and followed her sister into the kitchen. Misty and AJ tiptoed quietly to listen at the doorway.
"What's up, Jenn, what's wrong?" Laura asked, concerned. She didn't expect to hear what she was going to.
"Laura, I have a feeling that I may be the reason Nick won't talk to you, or, more correctly, why he hadn't been talking to you much, even before the night at The Oasis."
"Why? Why do you think that, Jenn?" Laura couldn't understand where Jenn was coming from.
"Well..." Jenn hesitated, but went on. "Well, it's like this. When Nick was here a few weeks ago when you were sick, you fell asleep and he and I got to talking." Jenn's eyes met Laura's as she listened intently. "Anyway, he had told me that he wasn't sure what he felt for you, cuz he had just broken up with Mandy, and I just told him that maybe he needed to sort out his feelings before he sent you the wrong signals."
Laura was furious. "Jenn, did I ask you for your help? No! Why do you insist on butting in?!"
"I didn't butt in, I was just--"
"You didn't butt in, huh? May I remind you what happened with that guy that took me to the prom? I know you butted in then 'cuz you had a crush on him, but--" Laura paused, suddenly getting the picture. "Wait, is that why you're butting in? 'Cuz you've got a thing for Nick???"
Jenn looked at Laura in shock. "What?! Oh come on, Laura, don't be ridiculous. I just care about you, and I know how sometimes big stars just want one thing, get it, then move on to the next girl willing to give it. I just didn't want to see you get hurt. I wanted to make sure that you weren't just some rebound thing from his break-up with Mandy."
"Jenn, I'm a big girl, thank you, but I can take care of myself. Oh, and next time, keep your mouth SHUT!" Laura said, storming out of the kitchen past Misty and AJ, leaving. Jenn followed, and sighed.
"Well, now I did it, she's pissed, and I don't know what I can do anymore. And I can't say I blame her. If I were in her shoes, I'd be pissed at me too," Jenn said, following AJ and Misty to the living room. She sat down and cupped her head in her hands. "She's never going to forgive me, you know."
"She will," Misty assured her. "Just give her some time and space."
"I agree," AJ said, sitting between Misty and Jenn on the couch. He put his arms around both of them. "In the meantime, how about we get naked?"
Misty smacked AJ, and Jenn rolled her eyes. "Nice, Alex... real smooth," Misty said, hitting AJ again. "Is sex the only thing you ever think about?!" Jenn smiled as AJ kissed Misty on the cheek.
"I'm just trying to lighten the mood," AJ said, smiling. "It worked, didn't it?"
Jenn laughed. "Yeah, a little bit," she said, smiling.
"Good," AJ said, sitting back. "Then how 'bout we get naked now?" He smiled a devilish grin. Both Jenn and Misty looked at each other and started hitting AJ with the couch pillows.
"Laura, hi... welcome," Brian said, surprised to see her. Actually he wasn't, he was hoping she would stop by.
"Brian," Laura said, wrapping her arms around Brian. He hugged her back as she began to sob.
"Shhhh, it's OK... come out here, let's sit down. Talk to me," Brian said, leading her to his deck near the back of his house. "Now sit down and tell me what's up."
Laura sighed. "Where do I start..."
"Kevin," Nick said as Kevin opened his door.
"Nick, um, hey, I was just headin' over to Brian's place, so--"
"I don't think so, Kevin. Brian can wait. I believe we've got some things to sort out," Nick said, pushing his way past Kevin and entering his house.
"Well, don't just stand there, come on in," Kevin said, trying to lighten the mood. Nick was not amused.
"Don't start, Kevin. I want you to tell me why you've suddenly decided to move in on my girlfriend," Nick asked, clenching his fists.
"Nick, first of all, calm down. Second of all, since when is Laura your 'girlfriend?' As far as any of us could tell, you had lost interest in her. Hell, Laura probably thinks that too, or I don't think she would have even gone out with me. She could have said no, but she didn't."
"OK, fine, but you shouldn't have even asked her in the first place, you know how I feel about her." Nick sighed and sat down, rubbing the back of his neck tensely. "I just don't understand. I mean, you can have any girl... woman... you want, so why do you have to ask out the one I'm interested in? It seems like you were always getting in the way. My party the day I met her, when I went to check on her when she was sick..."
"Which reminds me, why did you stop seeing her after that? I mean, I don't understand. You couldn't see her enough before then all of a sudden, it stopped except for a phone call here and there. Why did you stop seeing her if you like her so much?"
"I guess I needed to sort out my feelings. I had a talk with Jenn that night and it got me thinking about some things. But I know what I want now, and I know that it's her. It's always been her." Nick leaned forward, cupping his head in his hands. "I'm just afraid that I've pushed her away..." He stood up and started to pace.
Kevin sighed. "Well, Nick, I'm not going to lie to you. I like Laura. I like her a lot. But my persuing her isn't worth jeopardizing our friendship. You're like my little brother, and I don't want to lose that. But since she's shown interest in both of us, we need to find out what Laura wants. I think Laura now needs to decide which one of us she wants to be with. No matter what, Nick, you're one of my best friends, and I love ya, bro." Kevin stood up and gave Nick a hug. "I'm sorry, dude. But now I think we both need to talk to Laura, and find out what's going on in her head. I'm gonna call Brian and let him know that I'll be over later, then we'll go over to Laura's place right away, get this done with." Nick nodded as Kevin walked into the other room to use the phone to call Brian.
Maybe he's right, Nick thought. It's gotta be up to Laura now. I wish it didn't have to be that way. I need to tell her how I feel about her. I-- Nick's thoughts were interrupted by Kevin coming back to the room. "So, we going to Laura's?"
"Nope... Brian's," Kevin said, grabbing his keys.
Nick got defensive once again. "But I thought you said--"
"I did say, Nick, but Brian told me that Laura was over there, so we're going there. Got a problem with that?" Kevin asked, opening the door. Nick shook his head and walked out. "I didn't think so," Kevin said, closing the door behind him.
