Nick laid in bed beside Lisa and watched her sleep. He ran his fingers through her hair and sighed, a part of him hated himself for what he had done. He didn't want to encourage her, or make her think that he was remembering things when he really wasn't, but the way she looked at him he couldn't help himself. He closed his eyes and tried to sleep.
Lisa woke up in the middle of the night and looked sleepily at Nick next to her. She smiled to herself and inched her body closer to his. Never in a million years did she expect him to be there, in fact she thought the whole night was a dream. Lis rested her head on his chest and listened to his heart beat till she drifted back off to sleep, the first night since the accident she hadn't cried herself there.
Brian set his book down. It was after three in the morning and he still hadn't heard Lis' door open and Nick leave. Silently he walked out of his room and down the hall to Lis' room. He didn't hear any noise so he peeked in and stood there startled for a minute, looking at the two people sound asleep in bed. 'What the heck happened?' he asked himself as he closed the door behind him and went back to his own room.
The sound of a door closing brought Nick out of his dreamless sleep. As his eyes focused he looked down at a sleeping Lisa who had her head rested on his chest. He sighed and closed his eyes, every thought in his mind told him he had taken advantage of her. There was only one thing to do, for himself and more for her, and that was to distance themselves from one another. "I'm sorry Lissy but this is best." he whispered into her hair as he kissed her forehead. Carefully he removed himself from under her and left the room, heading to his.
The next morning, Lisa woke up and rolled over in bed. She smelled the scent of Nick's cologne in the air and smiled. Slowly her eyes opened and instead of seeing a sleeping Nick she saw only the empty side of the bed. "Nick?" she called, sitting up. Her eyes searched the room but didn't see a sign of him. Maybe he's in the shower, she thought as she slid her robe on and walked into her own bathroom to see it empty. Quickly she got dressed and headed downstairs.
Brian set the plate of food down in front of Nick at the kitchen table.
"So what happened last night between you and Lisa?" Brian asked as he sat down with his toast and coffee.
"Nothing." Nick answered, not looking at his friend.
"You two must have been up late I didn't hear you go back to your room." Brian stated, watching his friend start to squirm in his chair.
"Look Bri, whatever happened between us is between us." Nick said, his voice starting to rise.
Lisa walked into the kitchen and looked over at Nick who didn't look up from his food. "Morning guys." she said quickly, grabbing a juice from the fridge.
"Morning Lis." Rok said with a smile.
"So what are you guys up to?" she asked, leaning against the counter. Her eyes were focused on Nick, waiting for him to give her a sign, something.....
"The beach...Bri's going to take me." Nick replied quickly, before Rok could say anything.
Lis and Bri both exchanged puzzled looks which gave Nick the opportunity to steal a glance at Lis then go back to his plate. "What are you doing?"
"Uh I was thinking I might drive up to Jacksonville for a few days. Get my convertible back and get away for a few days."
Nick looked up at her startled. "You're leaving?"
"Awfully sudden isn't it Lis?" Brian asked, turning to face her.
"I've been thinking about it for a few days, finals are over so there's no better time to go. Plus Han's away, it's just great timing all around." she stated, looking at Nick. His eyes met hers and he shook her head.
"Not really." he muttered, standing up. "Bri, I'm gonna change and we'll head to the beach?"
Brian nodded. "Yeah sure Frack." He waited till he heard Nick's footsteps disappear upstairs. "Ok now what's the real reason you're leaving?"
Lis sat down in Nick's chair. "Like I said Bri I want my car back, I've got a rental to drive up there and then I'll bring mine back. Just a few days tops. Han should be home near the end of the week."
Brian stared at her for a few minutes. "This has nothing to do with whatever went on with you and Nick last night?"
She shook her head. "Nothing." she said softly.
"I don't know Lissy, you two have been acting strange since then. I came down to Nick watching home movies and now you're going away."
"He was what?" she asked, her eyes on the stairs.
"Watching old videos of the tour. Soon as he saw me he turned them off and went silent."
Lis sighed and looked at the clock on the microwave, it was almost eleven. "I'm going to get going, I want to be on the road before noon. Just don't push him Rok, trust me it only makes things worse." she said getting to her feet.
Brian stood up. "You want a lift to the rental place?"
"No it's ok."
"Ok then." He walked over and gave her a big hug. "You be careful and call when you get there." he said seriously.
"Yes dad." Lis said lightheartedly.
Brian laughed. "Just do it ok?"
"I will." she kissed his cheek, neither of them noticing Nick standing in the doorway watching.
