Back in Caitlyn's room, all seven bodies lay huddled near Caitlyn's bed, gossiping yet again. Laughter filled the room as they all spoke their hearts out. It was, after all, Christmas eve, a time for love and warmth.

"So what do you think?" Caitlyn said, excitedly.

"About what?" Chad teased.

Caitlyn looked annoyed. Katerina laughed at Caitlyn's reaction. "Geez, Caitlyn, don't let this idiot get to you." Then she quickly switched the subject back to Nick. "He's strange . . . but damn attractive! Too good to be real."

Michael smirked at the statement and said in a playful tone, "You think anyone with yellow hair is attractive!"

Elisa pouted. "It's blond hair with a soft golden hue, you dimwit!" Then she sighed. "And the calmest, coolest turquoise eyes I have ever seen."

All the guys stared in shock at Elisa's romantic and poetic description of Nick.

Andy was first to reply. "Wow, Elisa, I've never heard such dexterity and extensive usage of vocabulary from you!" he mocked. "Nick sounds like . . .. a Greek God!"

All four guys laughed at Andy's words. "Good one Andy!" Chad laughed. The girls glared at them with disdain.

Caitlyn, once again, spoke out. "Of course you guys are, well, male, so you couldn't possibly understand our feminine perspective." She rolled her eyes.

Rick smiled. "All right, all right. I have to agree with Caitlyn. Nick looks to be a handsome guy."

Chad looked in shock at his brother. "You are always on Caitlyn's side. What's up with that. Has she already got a leash on you?"

Caitlyn smiled satisfactorily. "Stop pestering Rick, just because he's right." All four guys rolled their eyes.

Rick continued. "Well, I admitted that he's cute, but you girls can't deny that he is one cold character. Have you girls paid attention to how he responded to our questions?"

"Yeah," Michael chimed in. "The way he said things, well, he sounded . . . " Michael wrinkled his forehead, searching for the perfect word. The others looked at him in anticipation.

"Like a human who has lived in the wild all his life and when faced with humans has a severe case of social phobia?" Andy blurted the rest with one breath. All the others laughed at his accurate depiction of Nick.

"Yeah!" Chad added. "I mean, it was as if he was conserving his words or something. I mean, we had to drill him for answers."

"It was fun, though," Rick smiled. "I like him!"

"Umm, Rick, is there something you want to tell us?" Andy laughed while all the others caught on to the implications of his statement.

Rick grimaced at Andy. "A man tries to be agreeable and gets misunderstood."

"I agree. He's not cold, just different," Caitlyn added, smiling contently.

Before long, their conversation drifted off. They didn't know why it took so long for Nick to talk to their father. What could the two possibly have talked about that they were so involved?

Nick slowly edged up the stairway, each step getting more labored and heavy. Finally he was at the top and began walking down the hallways to his room. His mind was clogged with doubts and unsettling feelings. He needed to sort them out, tonight, before dawn of the next day. He had to resolve the confusion if he were to get his job done.

The conversation with Daniel was still lingering on his mind, making it hard for him to think clearly. He felt so small in this house. The comfort was gone ever since he left his cubicle in the government.

As he neared his room, he noticed that Caitlyn's room was dark. They must have been tired and had already slept, he thought to himself. For some reason, he felt even more dejected. Great, now even the Brooks and Rochester children couldn't bear to look at his face. He turned to face his door and twisted the knob. As he entered, he felt the walls for the light switch.

As he heard the click, he started for his bed, but was shocked to see seven forms laying on the floor of his room on seven sleeping bags. Before he could say anything, Caitlyn screamed out in delight. "I hope you don't mind us inviting ourselves into your room! You do know that this is one of the bigger rooms in the house. We thought we'd all have a little slumber gathering in your room!"

Chad was the first to laugh at Nick's facial expression. "Now, now, Nick. Let's do away with the gaping mouth stuff. It does compromise your looks." He laughed harder when Nick shut his mouth. "Really, behind all the sex-crazed aggression on Katerina's, Elisa's and Caitlyn's face, there really is genuine concern for your well-being. But if anything does go wrong, us guys will protect you from their animal-like advances."

Michael, Rick and Andy bursted out laughing again, grabbing onto their stomachs uncontrollably. The girls only glared at them. Nick recovered quickly and closed the door behind him after taking a few more steps in the room.

"Don't listen to them!" Elisa directed at Nick. "They're haven't matured past the terrible two's!" With that, she ran towards Nick and grabbed his hand. Nick jerked back slightly, but Elisa didn't even notice. She pulled him harder and led him to his bed. Together, they carefully maneuvered so that they didn't step on anybody.

Katerina and Caitlyn ran to them to help. They pushed Nick onto a sleeping bag and smiled. "Now since you're a guy, you have to be gallant and sleep in the sleeping bag for tonight. As for us, we'll use the bed. Thank you!"

"You're welcome," Nick said quietly, looking at the girls, a slight smile forming on his lips. Everyone lit up at the sight of him smiling.

"Don't let them walk all over you, Nick," Michael warned. "And don't let their mild demeanor deceive you. You give them some leeway, and they'll manipulate you to their utmost advantage, feeding on your flesh and bones!"

Katerina was the first to refute. "As bad and truthful as that sounds, Nick, don't listen to it. The guys' perspective of this situation is kind of distorted. We girls are not as demented as they make us out to be!" Her voice was defiant and vibrant.

Nick smiled again, looking at the ground. The girls tried to add to Katerina's remark, but were breathless. He should smile more. It really made him look even more stunning than before.

"Oh yes they are!" Rick laughed, happy that everyone was getting along so well. "Demented and nerve-racking to be with, but sweet nevertheless." Rick looked at Nick happily. "You know, Nick, we hope you'll consider us as friends. We don't want you to feel left out. If you need someone to talk to, just let it out." Rick looked honestly at Nick.

Nick looked at Rick, touched by the offer. Before he could say anything, Chad cried out, "Oh yes, mighty father of all beings. That was too touching."

Nick smiled. Everybody waited for him to say something. To their dismay, he remained silent.

"Please Nick, let's not play that game we were playing at the dinner table!" Andy laughed, trying to shrug off the uncomfortable silence.

Nick looked flustered. "I'm just shy with words."

"We could fix that!" Michael laughed.

"So Nick, what's this girlfriend of yours like?" Chad suddenly changed the subject.

"Chad!" Katerina cried out. "We're trying to get Nick to talk, not frighten him away." Katerina deftly diverted the question from Nick.

"It's okay," Nick said. Everyone had their eyes glued to him, surprised by his response. Nick ignored their shocked expressions and continued. "She has blue eyes and brown hair, a gentle smile and an elegant form. She answers my thoughts before I voice them and makes me feel at ease. She loves the arts and the sciences. She's well-rounded, lovely, good-natured and even humorous."

Nick paused, staring at the walls, pretending to look enthralled.

"Wow!" Michael was the first to say something. "She sounds wonderful! Nick, you sound like a possessed man, you know that?"

Nick looked to Michael with a feigned expression of content. "Yes."

As they continued talking into the night, everyone realized that they should let Nick rest. As hard as he tried to pay attention to their conversation, they soon found that his eyelids drooped quite often. He had to lean into the wall to stay upright, some of them noticed. They had to smile. He was definitely improving, though.

"Good night, Nick," they all said softly as Nick crawled into his sleeping bag.

Nick soon fell asleep, as did the others. Not even Chad's loud snoring could disturb Nick's peaceful slumber. All eight teenagers slept as if they were drugged. Any doubts that Nick had about the case had been forgotten for the night. He laid on the sleeping bag, forgetting to change out of his clothes into something more comfortable. A smile remained on his face throughout the night.

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