Chapter 6
The car ride was a bit too quiet. I noticed that Nick was trying to say something, but seemed too nervous. So, I broke the silence.
"Nick, I never really got to say thank you for what you did for me that day. I will never forget that you are my hero." I said knowing that it must have been the corniest thing I could have said to him.
Nick looked over at me and sighed, "That is what I wanted to talk to you about. I was wondering…that day at the hospital, you said that I saved you from…from, umm, well, I, ah…." he tried to say.
"Dying?" I asked.
"Umm, yes. But why in the world would have wanted to end your life?" he asked, hoping he hadn't upset me. "I mean, you are a beautiful, intelligent and caring person and I just don’t understand what you thought was so bad."
"Nick, I am not trying to sound rude or anything, but I just can't talk about that right now. I…I…" I started to cry. Out of embarrassment, I turned my head and stared out the passenger window the rest of the way to his house.
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Nick walked around to my side of the car to open the door for me. As he helped me out, he looked into my eyes, and said,
"Heather, I am truly sorry, please forgive me. I didn't mean to pry, it's just that that is all I have thought about. All I can think about is how much you must be hurting inside to make you feel the way you do." He then leaned in for a tender kiss. I felt his soft lips touch mine and his hands wrap around my waist. For what seemed like minutes, yet really only seconds, we held our embrace. He pulled back, hoping to see me smile.
I blushed even more as I realized he was staring at me. "Nick, I…I…"
"Hey you two! We have been waiting for you! Let's get inside…the burgers are almost ready!" exclaimed Howie, interrupting me in mid-sentence.
Howie grabbed me by the hand and led me into Nick's house. I looked up and was amazed. "Wow…" was all I could say as I gazed all around. The house was so big and was absolutely beautiful.
Nick properly introduced me to everyone. "AJ, Kevin, Brian, Howie, this is Heather. Remember her?"
"You look so much more beautiful without the clam cakes in your hair…not that I mean that you were ugly or anything…" AJ rambled on.
Howie and Kevin just smiled and gave me a hug. I thought I heard Brian say something to Nick…but I wasn't sure.
"You guys, I mean, I know that this is gonna sound dumb…but have you ever been told that you look like someone famous??" I said trying to sound dumb.
"Yeah, all the time…." said AJ, trying not to give away their little secret.
Brian spoke up, trying to keep that topic to a minimum, and told everyone that dinner was served. "There are tons of burgers in the kitchen, all the fixin's are there. Would you care for something to drink Heather?"
"Ummm, sure, what do you have?" hoping to hear my favorite drink.
"Well, we have Coke, tea, water, juice, milk…." he listed, watching for the wrinkle of my nose as I listened to the choices. "but, since you are our guest…Nick got this especially for you." he exclaimed as he passed me a bottle of Dr. Pepper, the kind in the old fashioned bottles.
"Dr. Pepper!!! That is my favorite! How did you know???" I asked surprised that they knew.
"Well, I remembered seeing you with one just before I ran you over, Heather." Nick said blushing.
I was very happy that he had taken such an interest in me. The thought that a guy would actually take the time to notice little things like that meant a lot to me. I knew in my heart that he was someone I loved very much, but was too afraid to tell.
We all sat around and ate, watched some tv, and then the guys excused themselves for the evening. "You two have a great night…and we will see you tomorrow Nick. Thanks for dinner." Brian said as he and the others walked out the door.
The two of us looked at each other for a moment and then laughed.
"Gee, what kind of plans did they have for us tonight? They left
quite early, don't you think Nick?" I asked him with a grin.
Nick was very embarrassed by this and jumped up. "Hey, you want
to walk along the beach for a bit? It is a beautiful night…we mustn't
let it go to waste!" He grabbed my hand and dragged me out the back
door of his house and down the stairs to the sand. We walked for
over an hour and just chatted. But, the tide started to come back
in, and I started to get nervous.
"Nick, I think we should start heading back, I mean, can't we go back to your house now?" I asked nervously.
"Sure, is everything okay, Heather? You seem a little upset. Are you okay, hon?" he questioned.
"Yeah, it's just that the water makes me a bit nervous now. It is bringing back memories of that day. I am sorry, please don't be mad at me. I just want to go back and relax…is that okay?"
"Sure, anything you want Heather…anything you want." he whispered.
We sat in his bench swing on the porch for hours. Finally, he leaned over and looked deep into my eyes. "I know that you are holding back something…you have pain inside that you can't express now, but, just know that I am here for you when you need to talk. Okay?"
"Okay, thank you." I just wanted for him to hold me and to let me feel secure in his arms. I wanted to feel his soft lips on mine once more…and to show him that I loved him with all my heart. I leaned over and whispered…"Nick, will you hold me? Just wrap your arms around me…and hold me all night. Please."
With a soft and passionate kiss, he wrapped his arms around me…and I fell asleep in his arms. But just before I completely dozed off…I thought I heard him say…"I love you."