Nick slammed his fist down onto his alarm clock before stretching and rubbing his eyes sleepily. He yawned before grabbing the first shirt he could find and headed for the shower. The door was opened a little and assuming it was free he threw the door open and was greeted by Natalie's ear-piercing scream. She quickly bundled herself up in a towel, yelling and turning red with embarrassment at the same time.
"AHHHHHHHHH!" Natalie screeched just as Nick stood on the spot not knowing where to look or what he should do.
"Whoa...shit...sorry..sorry" Nick stammered, quickly averting his gaze elsewhere as his cheeks began to turn a bright pink.
"Oh my God Nick! Get out! Get out!" Natalie screamed, quickly slamming the door on Nick.
Nick stood at the door, completely frozen by shock. He made his way into his room, trying hard to bite back a guilty smile. A few minutes later Natalie stood at his door clothed completely from head to toe, with her arms crossed over her. Nick looked at her guiltily before concentrating on his bead cover pattern and trying with great difficulty not to run out of the house in embarrassment. Natalie made her way towards Nick's bed, where he was perched looking half-ashamed and half smirking.
"Uh Nick" she began hesitantly.
"Yeah" Nick mumbled in a barely audible breath. He was cowering away from Natalie's gaze, which was fixed firmly on him.
"Whatever just happened didn't happen, okay? I don't know what you look like naked, you have no idea what I look like and hopefully we can keep it that way. Deal?" Natalie stuck her hand out for Nick to shake.
Nick hesitantly shook her hand. "Deal. I am really sorry though."
"Then stop smiling" Natalie called over her shoulder as she left the room.
**************
"What are you smiling about?" AJ said as he sat down next to Nick and nudged him.
"Nothing" Nick quickly responded, trying to avoid AJ's inquiring gaze.
"Then why are you sitting there grinning like an idiot" AJ said, looking down on Nick from behind his goggles.
Nick fidgeted in his seat trying to avoid AJ's inquiring gaze. He tried to keep his focus on the back wall, as they both sat waiting for their interviewer to arrive. Kevin came in and took a seat next to Nick trying to figure out the expression Nick had on his face. He waved a hand in front of Nick's face.
"Why is your face like that?" Kevin inquired with a laugh.
"Why the sudden interest in my face" Nick exclaimed.
"Cause we've never seen it look so weird. Now spill it Nickolas" AJ responded in a demanding voice.
Nick sighed. "It's really embarrassing."
"We wouldn't expect anything less from you Nick" KEvin said with a laugh.
"Do you wanna hear this?" Nick snapped.
"Alright, alright" Kevin said, holding his hands up in surrender. "What happened?"
"Before I say this I don't want you to think I'm perverted and that I meant it or enjoyed it. And..."
"Whoa" AJ interrupted. "Perverted? Enjoyed it? You haven't been doing anything your mother's gonna have to bail you out of jail for have you?"
"Are you kidding?! My mother's on the other side of the country but I still apologise out loud for swearing. Can you imagine jail coming into that" Nick exclaimed, shaking his head furiously. "I'd be hauled to California faster than Howie can blink."
"So nothing illegal happened. What else would involve being a pervert?" AJ wondered out loud.
Nick and Kevin looked at AJ incredulously, wondering if he ever thought about anything above his bellybutton. Nick shook his head in bewilderment at AJ before talking. "Alright here it goes" Nick replied, starting to become embarrassed already. "I was really sleepy this morning, and I mean really sleepy. Like I could barely open my eyes and.."
"Is this of major importance to the story" AJ cut in impatiently.
"Yeah" Nick answered, looking annoyed. "Anyway the door to the bathroom was open a bit, so I thought nobody was in there. I mean if somebody was in there the door would be closed, right?"
"Can we get to the perverted part anytime soon" AJ remarked, looking eagerly at Nick.
"Uh yeah" Nick said, glancing at AJ uneasily. "So I opened the door and Nat was just out of the shower and..."
"You didn't" Kevin interrupted with a laugh. "Tell me you didn't."
"She had no clothes on and I walked in" Nick finished with a thoroughly ashamed look on his face. "I didn't mean to. I swear it was an accident."
"You actually saw Nat in her birthday suit?" AJ laughed with a look of awe on his face. "I knew she should've lived with me."
"I didn't mean it. It was an accident. But now I'm too embarrassed to even look at her and I'm dreading going home" Nick blurted out in a rush of words.
"Talk about getting to know a person" AJ said with a shake of his head. "Great welcoming committee Nicky, and it's only been what? A month?"
"It's not as if I did it on purpose. I mean the door was open" Nick protested.
"It's alright Nick" Kevin assured. "We'll give you the benefit of the doubt. But you gotta remember you're living with someone now and she's not a guy. So generally nakedness is not something you share."
"I know that..now. I don't think I'll be able to look at Nat in the same way again" Nick said, his head bowed down.
Suddenly the door burst open and in walked the reporter, with Howie and Brian tagging sheepishly behind her. They all spent a few minutes on small talk before the interview began.
"So Nick, what's been your most embarrassing experience?"
At that, Kevin and AJ burst into uncontrollable laughter while Nick sat, glaring at them both. Thinking of what he could've possibly done to deserve such a day. Howie and Brian looked at the other three, a little perplexed as to why they were laughing and why Nick was becoming redder by the minute.
**************
Natalie was talking animatedly on the phone, while sitting in her room, dressed in her pyjamas. She was half-listening to her friend on the other line and half waiting for Nick to come through the front door so she could pretend to be asleep. Despite what she'd said to him she was still really embarrassed about what happened. Being caught in the shower had inevitably happened when she'd been living at her parents' house, but Nick seeing her was a whole different story. Her cheeks were constantly turning red everytime she began to remember what had happened that morning.
Natalie heard a key turn in the lock and instantaneously felt her stomach tie itself in knots. She turned from the window ledge she was perched on and crawled into bed with the phone so Nick would think she was already sleeping. Quickly ending the conversation she clicked the phone off and began to bury herself deeper in her covers, just as she heard Nick coming down the hallway. He was humming an idiotic showtune to himself, causing Natalie to start giggling to herself and in turn ruining her sleeping facade. Nick knocked hesitantly at the door.
"Nat?"
"Yeah" she quickly said.
"I came to say I'm sorry and that I have something I wanna show you" he said from the doorway. "It was an accident honestly. I didn't plan it."
Natalie groaned to herself, unable to ignore Nick's apologetic voice. She sat up and gave Nick an accepting smile. "Don't worry about it. So what did you have to show me?"
"I bought us a new lock" Nick grinned laughingly as he held it up proudly for Natalie to see.
Chapter Six
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