Chapter 39
"Damn, where is the plane? It should have been here over an hour ago." Nick said to Brian as they waited at the gate. Finally, Brian gave up and went to the counter and inquired about the plane.
"Sir, it had to make an emergency stop in Atlanta. It is on the way now, it should arrive in about 20 minutes." the clerk told Brian.
"What was the emergency? Was someone sick? I hope that everyone is okay." he asked.
"Apparently there was a situation on the plane, they had to land to get police assistance. As far as I know, everything is okay, and there were no injuries, but I am not sure exactly what happened." she finished.
Brian was a bit nervous at the whole thing. He quickly went over to Nick and told him.
"My God, do you think Heather is okay? Maybe I should try Mike. He has the cell phone." Nick said, getting more panicky.
The cell phone rung and rung. Finally there was an answer.
"Hello?" Mike said.
"Mike, it's Nick. Is everything okay? Where's Heather??!" Nick questioned with fear.
"She is here, but Nick, stay calm, she is in a little bit of shock right now. Don't worry, she is okay, but be gentle, it has not been a very good flight." he said as he passed the phone to me.
"Hello?" I said, my voice still very shaky.
"Baby, are you okay honey? What happened??" Nick asked.
"I am okay. He was here. He was here." I responded, breaking into tears.
"Heather?? Heather? Who was there?" Nick yelled into the phone.
After a few brief moments, he heard Mike come back on the line.
"What the hell happened Mike? Who was there? What is she talking about???" Nick panicked.
"Nick, it was Scott. He was on the plane, and we didn't know until after it left from Orlando. We had a situation here. Heather is a bit shaken up by the whole thing, but she should be okay. The Atlanta PD took him into custody and were going to escort him back to Orlando to be placed into jail." Mike said, matter-of-factly.
Nick felt sick to his stomach. He couldn't believe the words he was hearing. He relayed the situation to Brian and then broke down into tears.
"My God Brian. He was there, he could have hurt her again, and I wasn't there to help her." Nick cried as he fell into a chair. "That is my fiancee and my unborn child on that plane, and I wasn't there to protect them."
"Nickolas, listen to me. It is NOT your fault. Just be grateful that they got him before he did something terrible. Heather is okay, she just is scared. You see, she has been frightened, but maybe she hasn't been able to talk to you about it. When she gets here, take her to the hotel and take the rest of the day off. I will tell the others what is going on. You just be with her and talk to her." he instructed Nick.
After about 15 minutes, the plane arrived at the gate. The flight attendants insisted the Mike take me off the plane first. As we walked up the arrival ramp, I could see Nick standing there waiting for me.
Mike escorted me to him and then stepped back as Nick wrapped his arms around me. I could see that Nick had been crying, and it made me feel worse.
"Heather, you are okay now. I am here. I will take you immediately to the hotel and we will stay in. You can rest, and I will stay at your side." Nick whispered into my ear.
Brian and Mike carried my stuff to the car as Nick walked with me. I was still shaking at the thought of what happened. Nick held me in his arms the entire way to the hotel and then took me to our room. Mike took his place in his room right next door.
Nick looked into my swollen eyes. I saw more tears stream down
his face. The emotions that we felt in that room were more
than words could describe. He was glad to see me, but on the other
hand, he felt bad for what I had to go through just to get there.
He was afraid at what I wanted to tell him. I was scared that
he wouldn't want me. I was afraid that he would think I
looked ugly. I was worried about superficial things and he was
worried about my emotions and my wellbeing. For several minutes,
we just stood in each others arms, not wanting to let go.
Finally, he let go and back up. I looked at him, nervously.
"Heather, you are looking more and more beautiful everyday." he said softly.
I just hung my head, disgusted at the scar on my face. He noticed my actions and lifted my chin. "How can you stand to look at me Nick?" I said, my voice filled with fear and disgust.
"What do you mean? You are beautiful, Heather." Nick was puzzled and concerned.
"How could you want to marry someone so ugly. Look at me! Look at this!" I yelled as I ran my hand over my scar. I then pulled off the sweater and started unbuttoning the dress I had on. I let it fall from my body, exposing my chest. "Look at that! It is disgusting!" I screamed as my hands moved over the grotesque scar that was left on my chest. I started to cry uncontrollably. I felt weak, and collapsed to the floor. Everything seemed to be getting to me and the room felt like it was spinning.
"Heather!!" Nick cried out as he tried to catch me. "Baby, it's okay. Ssshhh. It's okay." Then he picked me up and laid me down on the bed, pulling the sheets over my exposed body. I just cried and cried until I fell asleep.
Nick picked up the phone in the other room and called Brian.
"I don't know what to do Frick. She was hysterical. She finally cried herself to sleep. All she kept asking me was how I could love her. She is so concerned with how she looks…but I don't think that is it. There is something more, and I don't know what to do. God, it's scary how much I love her, I just wish she would open up to me. There is something more that she isn't telling me." Nick rambled.
"Dude, just go be with her. Get off the damn phone and go stay with her. Hold her in your arms, tell her you love you, be honest with her. She needs that Nick." Brian told him and then hung up the phone.