Autumn Leaves
Chapter 9
A scream awoke Tyler. He shot straight up. What the hell? He heard whimpering.
He looked to his left. He forgot Nicki was there. The noises were coming from her. She must have been having a nightmare.
“No! Please, no,” she yelled. Her words were broken up between sobs.
Tyler grabbed her shoulder to try to wake her up.
“Nicki, wake up. You’re having a nightmare. Nicki,” he said over and over as he shook her. She was deep into the dream.
She gasped. It was silent for a moment before she started wailing.
She repeated the word “no” again and again. Tyler didn’t know what to do. He pulled her towards him, cradling her on his lap. Her whole body trembled fiercely.
Freddy walked into the room, bewildered. He probably had no idea that Nicki was still there, never mind sleeping in his bed. Tyler shooed him out with his hand. He left.
“Shh, you’re fine. You were just dreaming.” He pulled her closer.
She continued to shake and bawl.
“I’m right here. You’re okay. You’re safe,” he said softly.
“Mark,” she groaned, “No…” A new wave of shakes shot through her.
Tyler leaned back and grabbed her face with both hands.
“It’s me. It’s Tyler. Nicki you were dreaming. It’s gonna be okay.”
He stared into her eyes until she knew what was going on, still holding her face.
“Tyler? I was dreaming…” She was still confused. “It felt so real.”
He let go of her. She moved away and pulled her knees up to her chest. Tears still streamed down her cheeks. Tyler watched her.
When she didn’t say anything he asked, “Do you want to talk about it? Sometimes that helps.”
“I haven’t had one like that in so long,” she said, burying her head between her knees.
Tyler moved closer to her and placed a reassuring hand on her back. She lifted her head and sniffled.
“The first few weeks after the accident, I had night terrors. They were so real, so detailed. I felt everything. I was starting to lose my mind. So my dad sent me to a psychiatrist and she told me that I had mild Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Some of the memories of that night were so painful that my brain locked them away. But my subconscious turns them into nightmares when I sleep. There’s no way to stop it.” She began to cry again.
Tyler rubbed her back. “Is it always the same dream?”
She nodded.
“Will it help if you tell me what it is? It might make it feel less real,” he offered.
“It is real. It’s an actual memory.” She closed her eyes. “We’re in the car. And I see the other car coming through the barriers, about to hit us. I scream for Mark to watch out, but it’s too late. The other car plows into us, and we go upside down. These are all things that I remember. When I’m awake, I don’t remember anything after that. But when I dream… I look over at him. And his head. His head is split right open. His blood is pouring down onto the ceiling. And I scream and scream and no one can hear me and no one can help. And when I wake up, that image of him is plastered in my brain. It never goes away. It’s real Tyler. I really saw that.”
Tyler felt a tear forming in the corner of his eye. His heart ached for her.
“Nicki, that’s terrible. I am so sorry.”
“I might as well get up now. There’s no way I’m going back to sleep,” she said as she sniffled again and wiped the tears off of her face.
Tyler checked his phone.
“It’s only two thirty. You should try to sleep.”
“Would you be able to sleep after that?”
He took a deep breath in, trying to clear his head.
“Will you let me try something?” he asked her.
“What?”
“Lie down on your side, the way you were before.”
He watched her as she turned over and rested her head on the pillow. Once she was settled, he moved towards her. He turned on his side and pressed his body against hers. He slipped his left arm under her pillow and draped his other arm around her stomach. Tyler even put his feet on top of hers. Finally, he lowered his head onto the pillow, near her neck. Nicki pushed closer to him and curled up underneath his arm.
“Just try to sleep,” he whispered, his lips a centimeter away from her ear.
** * * * * *
Nicki opened her eyes. The light streaming in through the window woke her up. She loved when the sun woke her up. That always meant it would be a good day. It took a moment for the memories of last night to come flooding back. That was when she became all too aware of the arm around her stomach and the warm, heavy breath on the back of her neck. She couldn’t believe that he had stayed like that the entire night.
And she couldn’t believe that she had that nightmare. Tyler didn’t even know that she had nightmares before last night. He probably thought she was a freak. Just in case he never wanted to see her again, she decided to stay in bed with him, memorizing the way his body felt against hers.
Somehow, she had managed to fall asleep after her episode. They used to keep her up for days at a time. She had an idea of why this time was different. The last time she had a nightmare she wasn’t in bed with Tyler. She thought back to the things he said to her when she first woke up. He had been so comforting. Twice now he had helped her like that. How would she ever make it up to him?
As much as she hated the thought of it, she had to get up. She had to pee. Nicki slipped out from underneath Tyler’s arm, trying her hardest not to wake him. He deserved to sleep in, at least until he had to get up for practice.
After using the bathroom, Nicki tiptoed out of the bedroom. Marshall greeted her. He must have been waiting outside of the door.
“Hi cutie pie,” she said quietly.
She walked into the kitchen. The least she could do was make some breakfast for the boys. She rummaged through their fridge and cabinets. Most of what she found would not make a good breakfast. But they had bread, eggs, and cinnamon. All she needed for French toast.
* * * * * * *
Freddy stretched as he opened his eyes. He looked out the window. It looked like it was going to be a beautiful day. And it was Saturday, his only real day off. He had a little bit of a hangover from the night before. The night before! When he walked into Tyler’s room… He wondered if Nicki was still there.
He threw on a pair of sweatpants and walked out of his room. Right away he saw Nicki in the kitchen, cooking something on the stove. She was wearing one of Tyler’s shirts, and nothing else. The plan must have worked better than he thought…
She turned to look at him. That seemed to be the moment when she realized that she wasn’t wearing pants. Freddy chose not to say anything.
“Good morning,” he said, “Looks like you two had a lot of fun last night.” He looked her up and down and raised his eyebrows.
“It’s not what you think. Well, it depends on what you think. Nothing happened.”
“Nothing happened? The only thing you’re wearing is Tyler’s shirt and I walk into his room this morning, and there you are, in bed together. The noises I heard made it pretty obvious what the two of you were doing…”
“Freddy, no!” She laughed. “You’re completely off. I had a really bad nightmare. He was trying to shake me out of it.”
“That still doesn’t explain why you’re wearing his shirt. And didn’t I see your bra on the floor in there?” There must be something more to this story. “And oh, I almost forgot. You slept over. In his bed!”
“Quiet down. I don’t want to wake him up. He was in a lot of pain last night and couldn’t drive me home. I didn’t know what shape you would be in when you got home, or when you would get home. So I stayed over,” she explained. She flipped over the French toast she was making. Freddy loved French toast.
“That’s all well and good. But I would have expected to find one of you on the couch. How did both of you end up in his bed?”
“He said he didn’t mind and he didn’t want me to have to sleep on the couch. Come on, Freddy. You honestly think I was going to pass that up?”
He laughed. “Fine, I’ll get his story later. Maybe it will be a little juicier.”
“Oh shut up Freddy,” said Nicki. She flicked a piece of eggshell at him.
** * * * * *
Tyler yawned as he felt around the bed. Something was missing. He began to recollect all of the things that had happened in the last twelve hours. Did all of that really happen? He yawned once more before getting up out of bed.
Wow, I feel great, he thought to himself. He moved his limbs around, trying to find a trace of the soreness that disabled him the night before. Everything felt brand new. He stepped out into the hallway. Something smelled delicious.
He spotted Marshall lying on his dog bed. When he reached the kitchen he saw Freddy sitting at the island drinking orange juice. Nicki was leaning over the stove. She was still in his shirt. He liked that she was wearing it. He hadn’t noticed until then that she wasn’t wearing any pants. She had killer legs.
“Alright, Freddy. All done. You can eat now,” she said as she brought over a heaping plate of French toast. A bowl of fresh fruit was already placed in the center of the island. She saw Tyler. “Morning Tyler. Hope you like French toast.”
“Love it,” he said as he sat down.
She leaned over him and served him a plate. He ran a hand through his hair and leaned back into the stool.
“So are you gonna hang here today?” Freddy asked Nicki.
“No, I have to go home. I think I have plans today anyways.”
“I can take you home before I go to practice,” Tyler offered.
“That’d be perfect. Thanks, Ty.”
Freddy looked confused. “You call him Ty now? When did that happen?”
Tyler felt his face heating up. For some reason, it felt special when she called him that.
“It’s your fault,” Nicki said, “you rubbed off on me.”
Tyler glanced at Freddy out of the corner of his eye. He didn’t want to hear what Freddy was going to say about it later.
“Hey, how are you feeling, anyway?” Nicki asked him. He didn’t want to bring up the massage in front of Freddy. He looked at her and nodded his head slightly towards Freddy. He hoped she’d take the hint.
“Better, thanks.”
“Good,” was all she said. Thank God.
** * * * *
Nicki picked up her clothes off of Tyler’s floor. She closed the bedroom door so that no one would walk in on her. Once she was dressed, she made his bed for him. She was overwhelmed by the idea that they had spent the night together. She wanted to know how he felt about it. That was one thing that she should probably never ask him about.
She walked out of the room towards Tyler, who was standing in front of the door.
“Ready to go?”
“Yeah. Bye, Freddy,” she called over her shoulder.
For most of the ride, neither of them knew what to say.
“So you really feel better?” Nicki asked, breaking the silence.
“I feel great. It’s like nothing ever happened. I can’t thank you enough.”
“No, I can’t thank you enough. Think of it as me repaying you for all that you’ve done for me.”
“That works fine for me,” he said. Now he had another reason to look forward to home games. And another reason to hate away games.
“Ty, about last night…” Nicki started.
“We don’t have to talk about it. Really.”
“You probably think I’m crazy,” she said, frowning.
“Why the hell would I think you’re crazy? I think you’re the sanest person I know. The strongest, too. I can tell you carry a lot on your shoulders. Sometimes you just need someone to lean on.”
“I’m so glad I met you,” she said.
He smiled. “Yeah, me too.”
He pulled up in front of her house. “Listen, there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you,” he said.
“Anything,” she responded.
“Over the next few weeks I have a bunch of long road trips, and Freddy has this thing for school. He’s gonna be gone for a month or so. Usually we send Marshall up to Brampton to stay with my family, but it’s a huge pain in the ass getting him back and forth. I know it’s a lot to ask, but do you think you could look after him? He adores you. I don’t trust anyone else with him.”
“Aw, I’d love to! Really, it would be my pleasure. But I don’t think my dad would be too happy about adding another dog to our house…” She said, disappointed.
“I figured as much. That’s why I thought maybe you could just stay with him at my place. I’ll leave you money for food and whatever else you need. You can take my room, or Freddy’s. Whatever you want. It would mean a lot,” he said.
“I’ll have to run it by my dad. If he’s fine with it then sign me up.”
“You’re really doing us a huge favor. Thank you.”
“Thank you,” she said.
“For what?”
“Everything,” she said as she kissed him on the cheek. “Have a good practice.”
** * * * * *
Tyler was late to practice. Again. He entered the locker room, preparing to be scolded. Most of the team was still in there.
Milan came up from behind him and gave him a little shove.
“Jesus man, where were you? You gotta stop showing up late.”
“I know, sorry. I just had to drop off Ni-.” As soon as the words were out of his mouth he regretted them.
Brad’s head shot up. “Oh. My. God. She spent the night?”
“Who spent the night where?” Dougie asked. He was always so curious about everything.
“Yeah, what the hell are we talking about?” said Adam.
Tyler ignored everybody besides Brad. “Yeah. What do you care?”
“Who’d you screw now Segs?” asked Milan.
“Did you two sleep together?” said Brad. Why was he so interested?
“No, we didn’t. We didn’t do anything,” Tyler responded.
“Who are we talking about?!” Tuuka roared.
“Nicki!” Brad and Tyler yelled at the same time.
“You slept with Nicki? The girl whose boyfriend died?” Chara asked.
“No! We are friends. That’s all. She slept over because I was too sore to drive her home and Freddy went out with you guys. I’m so tired of everyone asking me about it. Can we just drop this, please?”
Claude boomed into the locker room. “What the hell are you dumbasses fighting about now?”
“Nothing,” a few players muttered.
“Good. I’ll see you on the ice in five.” He left.
“Listen, Segs. I’m not trying to push your buttons or anything. I want the two of you to get together. I think it’s time for you to grow up a little. I think she’s good for you,” Brad said.
“Sorry but it’s not happening. I don’t need to grow up. I just don’t need to hand my balls over on a silver platter yet, that’s all.”
“That’s what you think it’s like to be in a relationship?” Milan asked.
“All you guys do is complain about your girlfriends and wives,” Tyler said, defending himself.
“Yeah, but that just comes with the territory. Believe me, I’d be lost without Brittany. It’s worth it man,” said Milan.
“It just isn’t what I want. So can you guys lay off?”
Nobody said anything back. It was time to practice.
** * * * * *
Brad skated to the bench to rest. He picked up a Gatorade bottle and poured it into his mouth. Practice was kicking his ass today. Out of the corner of his eye he saw someone sit down next to him.
“So how did you know what was going on with Segs and Nicki?” Milan asked.
“Freddy mentioned it to me after the game yesterday. He swears they’re just friends, but Nicki really likes him. She’s afraid she’ll ruin their friendship if she tells him. So Freddy is trying to make Segs realize that he likes her. Which he so obviously does. He’s so stubborn,” Brad said, frustrated with his friend.
“I think I have an idea,” said Milan. He lowered his voice to make sure no one else would hear. “Brittany and I will have you guys over for dinner, or a game night or something. Have a few of the guys bring their wives. We can get everyone in on it and show him the good parts of being in a relationship.”
Brad thought it over. “Eh, maybe. He might catch on to that.”
They sat in silence for another minute.
“No. I got it. You have a game night. We’ll get a bunch of booze. The last game we play will be truth or dare. Get them buzzed enough to agree to it and I think we can make this work.”
Milan nodded in agreement. “Friday night?”
“Friday night.”
** * * * * *
Nicki opened the door to the Olive Garden and searched for Lisa. She found her already sitting in a booth. She stood up when she spotted Nicki.
“Hey love!” She said, wrapping her up in a bear hug.
“Can’t breathe Lis!”
She pulled away and laughed.
“Can you believe it hasn’t even been a week since we saw each other? Feels like a lifetime,” Lisa said.
Nicki scooted into the booth.
“I know. God this has been the longest week.”
“Uh oh! What happened? I haven’t heard from you once, so I guess I figured you were doing okay.” She said, sounding guilty.
“No, this week has actually been pretty amazing. It’s just that so much has happened. I feel like my life has turned completely upside down. Or right side up...”
“Tyler?”
Lisa always knew what Nicki was thinking. She nodded. Nicki placed her elbows on the table and rested her chin in her hands.
“I don’t even know where to begin,” she said.
It took over an hour to tell Lisa everything that had happened. She didn’t spare a single detail. Except that she was falling hopelessly in love with him. They spent the rest of their time together talking about Lisa’s week; work, her creepy boss, crazy sex with Zach. Their usual topics of discussion.
Their waitress came and placed the bill on the table. “Whenever you’re ready,” she said before walking away.
“I got this one,” said Lisa. “I feel awful that I didn’t remember on Wednesday…”
“Don’t worry about it. I almost forgot myself. I think I might finally be learning to deal with it.”
There was a pause in conversation while Lisa counted her money, making sure there was enough to leave a decent tip. She looked up at Nicki when she was done.
“You love him, don’t you?”
Nicki was confused. “Mark? Of course I loved him. You know that.”
“I meant Tyler.”
Nicki fiddled with her napkin. “I feel so guilty. I feel like I’m betraying Mark.” She felt her eyes start to water.
“That’s the last thing you’re doing. Nicki, he loved you so much. He would want you to be happy.”
“I know he would want me to be happy. But it’s only been three months. Isn’t that too soon?”
“Girl, love never comes at the right time. It always comes at the wrong time. You have to embrace it. You have to make it the right time. I don’t know Tyler that well, but from what you tell me, he’s pretty great. You have gone through way too much for someone our age. You deserve to get what you want.”
Lisa wrapped an arm around her shoulder.
“I have to get going, Zach and I are supposed to spend the weekend at his parent’s place. His sister is pregnant and they’re throwing this big party. Hang in there girly. Love ya!” She said as she walked over to her car.
“Thanks for lunch. Love you too,” Nicki responded.
Lisa was right. She wanted to be with Tyler so badly. Every bone in her body ached for it. She would make it happen. She just needed to wait for the right time…
Her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out, hoping to see Tyler’s name pop up. It was Freddy.
Freddy 15:34:08: milan is havin people ova fri. ty doesnt no ur comin. ill pick u up at 6
She texted back: K. What if he asks me if I’m going?
What the hell was he planning now? She unlocked her car and got in.
Freddy 15:35:42: tell him ur comin w. me. unless he asks u to go w. him. then go w. him
Nicki knew the coming week was going to drag.
** * * * * *
Sunday
“Mmm, smells great dad,” Nicki said as she walked into the kitchen.
Every Sunday her dad made something special for breakfast. This week was omelettes.
“Thanks sweetie,” he said, turning to give her a kiss on the cheek.
She took a seat at their table. Her beagle, Lucy, came waddling into the room.
“Hey Luce!” Nicki exclaimed as she picked up her little dog.
Nothing made her happier than animals. They were never grumpy, never mad, never bored. They always listened to what you had to say and cuddled with you when you needed it. There was only one person she knew that was like that…
“Hey dad, I wanna run something by you.”
“Shoot.”
“I was talking to Tyler and he has a bunch of road games coming up soon and his roommate is going away. Long story short, he wants me to look after his dog while he’s gone,” she said. She hoped to God he wouldn’t freak out.
“I don’t know Nicki. I think two pets are plenty for this house.”
“He said I could stay at his place. I really want to do it, dad. His dog is awesome.” What else could she say to make it sound better?
“If you want to, go ahead. I’ll miss you though.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously. You’re nineteen. You could be married with a kid right now. Or unmarried with a kid. Staying over your boyfriend’s house is the least I can let you do. You’ve never given me a reason not to trust you.”
“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She said as she hugged him. “But he’s not my boyfriend. We’re just friends.”
“Well that’s even better, then.”
** * * * * *
Friday 5:00 P.M.
Nicki wrapped her wet hair up in a towel. She had decided to go to the gym after class, and was now running out of time to get ready for Milan’s party. She had to dry her hair, get dressed, do her makeup, and find Twister in her basement. Each person going had been assigned a game to bring. Twister was one of Nicki’s favorite games, so it worked out for her. She already had it stashed away somewhere.
She checked her phone. She had one text from Freddy.
Freddy 16:51:04: wear the same thing as last week
I’m not wearing the same thing. I’ll wear the leather jacket. I was thinking of wearing a dress.
Freddy 17:02:59: even betta. he likes ur legs
How do you know that? Lol
Freddy 17:04:27: I cot him starin at em wen u didnt hav pants on
She laughed out loud at his last message. It sounded so bad. She pulled her bath robe around herself and approached her closet. She searched for her sapphire blue dress. It was hanging up all the way in the back. The color complemented her skin, hair, and eyes. And it was the tightest dress she had; it would show off all of her curves. She slipped on a thong so she wouldn’t get underwear lines and her most comfortable bra. No one would be seeing that tonight. She hoped.
Once dressed, she needed to pick a pair of shoes. It was cold out, so she wanted to wear boots. But if Tyler really liked her legs, heels were a better choice. She opted for the plain black pair that she wore last weekend. She did her makeup the same as last week as well.
Nicki opened the box where she kept Mark’s Pandora bracelet and secured it around her wrist. Lastly, she grabbed a necklace that fell just above the top of her dress. Maybe it would draw attention to her chest area. She was done being shy. She wanted him to want her. She found the matching earrings and put them in her ears.
By the time she had finished that much, she heard Freddy beep outside.
“Crap!” She yelled.
She would have to let her hair dry naturally. And she still had to find Twister. Luckily, it was in the first place she looked. Her heels banged loudly as she rushed up the stairs.
“Take it easy!” Her dad yelled from the living room.
“I’m leaving!”
Nicki took short, quick steps to Freddy’s car. The last thing she needed was to trip and hurt herself before she even got to the party. She opened the door and got in. He whistled at her.
“Man, he’s not gonna know what hit him,” he said.
“Hi Freddy,” said Nicki as she giggled. He was so nice to her.
“It’s gonna be a great night. You ready for it?”
“Yeah. I’m a little nervous. I haven’t spoken to Tyler in a few days,” she admitted.
“Don’t worry, you’ll be doing plenty of talking tonight.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“You’ll see.”
Milan only lived about twenty minutes away from Nicki. They reached his place in no time.
“Looks like we’re the first ones here,” Nicki said.
“Guess so. Would you mind helping me with the bags? I brought some stuff.”
“Of course!”
Nicki opened the back door of his car. The backseat was covered with brown paper bags.
“Is this all alcohol?” She asked.
“No, there’s some cookies in there too,” he responded, laughing.
They approached the front walk. Before they could ring the doorbell, Milan’s wife opened the door for them.
“Hey Brittany, good to see you,” Freddy said, giving her a kiss on the cheek.
“You too, Freddy.” She turned to Nicki. “Hi, I’m Brittany.”
Nicki balanced the bags in her arms and stuck out a hand. “It’s so nice to meet you. Thank you for having me over, I really appreciate it. I know I’m not a usual member of the gang.”
“It’s our pleasure, come in,” she said.
Brittany seemed really nice. It was hard to picture her with a big, scary man like Milan. Nicki imagined that he was a sweetheart underneath his tough exterior. Most men were. Brittany led them down a landing and into a huge, open space.
“Your house is gorgeous! Wow,” said Nicki, trying to take it all in.
It was by far the biggest house she had ever been in. Milan came in and kissed his wife on the lips. He looked at her and said, “I try to take good care of my girl.”
They kissed again and Brittany said, “You always do.”
Nicki wanted to look away to give them their privacy, but they were too sweet. She loved seeing people happy together. She had that once. And it was stolen from her.
To her surprise, Milan hugged Nicki.
“I’m glad you came. You look great. I know someone who won’t be able to keep his eyes off of you tonight,” he said, winking at Freddy.
“You told him too?” Did the entire team know?
“Don’t blame me. This one’s on Brad. I’m giving you fair warning, everyone who is coming tonight knows. Except Tyler.”
He and Milan shared a laugh. Before anyone could say anything else, the doorbell rang. Brittany went to answer it.
“Hi Tyler, come on in.”
“Thanks Britt.”
Nicki felt like her stomach was about to drop out. All of the sudden she felt self conscious. She pulled her jacket tighter. Tyler stepped down onto the landing. His eyes met hers. When he saw her, he literally stopped in his tracks. She noticed everyone in the room looking at each other.
“Hey, Ty,” was all she could think of to say.
“Hey.”
“Did you bring Apples to Apples Segs?” Milan asked.
“Of course I did.”
“I love Apples to Apples!” Nicki said.
“This is gonna be great,” said Freddy. “Everyone ready to start drinking?”
By seven, all of the guests had arrived. They began with Apples to Apples. Nathan won. Then came Scrabble, Pictionary, a game of charades, cards, and Trivial Pursuit. At last, it was time for Twister. Milan said that they should save it for the end, because the more drunk everyone was, the funnier it would be. No one argued.
The most they could fit was six people at a time. Nicki went up against Brad, Freddy, Nathan, Nathan’s wife, and of course, Tyler. The whole night the two of them ended up together. In every game.
It only took minutes for everyone to become intertwined. Nathan lost his balance and knocked over Brad. They stepped off the mat. “Screw you Horty!” A drunken Brad shouted, holding up his middle finger.
Eventually it came down to just Nicki and Tyler. She should have expected that to happen, the way this night was panning out. She ended up in a bridge position. Two years of gymnastics came in handy way more than she would’ve thought. Tyler had both hands and feet in one corner.
“Tyler, left hand green,” Milan said. He was spinning.
Tyler picked up his left hand and put it between his legs. He lost his balance and began to fall. But he wasn’t going down alone. He stuck out his right leg, trying to knock over Nicki. It worked, and she went tumbling down after him.
Everyone in the room burst into laughter, even Nicki. She stayed down on the mat, not trying to get up. Tyler stood over her and held his hand out, offering to help her up. She squinted her eyes at him.
“I’m sorry, but last time I checked friends don’t make other friends lose at Twister,” she said, pushing his hand away.
“Last time I checked that’s exactly what friends did.”
He squatted down and grabbed underneath her arms, lifting her up.
“So it’s a tie?” He asked Milan.
“You’re disqualified for unsportsmanlike conduct. Nicki wins by default,” he said, evoking more laughter.
“Ha!” Nicki said in his face. She usually wasn’t so energetic. The alcohol must be getting to her.
Brittany clapped her hands. “Alright, ladies and gents. It’s getting late. Ready for our last game of the night?”
Everyone cheered. It turned out to be a good night.
“What is it?” Nicki asked. She didn’t know of any other games they could play.
“Truth or dare,” Milan said.
“Dun dun dun,” chimed Freddy.
Everyone took a seat in Brittany and Milan’s oversized living room. There was plenty of space for everyone. Tyler sat directly across the room from Nicki.
“We’ll go clockwise around the circle. When it’s your turn, you can ask anyone. Just make sure that every time we go around, everyone gets a truth or dare,” Brittany said, explaining the rules.
Brad went first, daring Milan to do a three minute pole dance on one of the support beams in their living room. He managed to get himself upside down on it at one point, before crashing to the floor. A few truths later, it was Brittany’s turn.
“Nicki, truth or dare?”
“Truth.” Nicki always picked truth.
“How many guys have you been with?”
She didn’t like the way everyone was staring at her.
“Just the one. We got together when we were fifteen. So it’s not like I did much before that.”
Her answer was acceptable. Now it was Freddy’s turn. Nicki became nervous. She knew he was planning something. It hadn’t slipped by her that no one had picked Tyler yet. Tyler seemed to realize this too. He squirmed in his seat.
“Tyler.” Freddy said. “Truth or dare?”
“Dare.”
Some “oohs” arose from the group.
“I dare you to kiss Nicki.”
“What?” Nicki and Tyler said in unison.
“You heard me. You didn’t think I was going to let that go, did you?”
Nicki’s head started to spin. This was not happening. She wasn’t prepared for it at all. Tyler didn’t say anything.
“Let’s go kids. I’ll time you. At least a minute.”
Tyler didn’t protest. He stood up and walked slowly to where Nicki was sitting. She stood up to meet him. He looked into her eyes. He raised his right hand to brush a piece of hair out of her face, and tucked it behind her ear. He left his hand on her face and brought his head closer to hers. The room was completely silent.
Nicki closed her eyes as their lips finally met. They both lingered a moment. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he grabbed her waist, pulling her closer. He parted his lips and she slid hers between them. She kissed him back slowly, savoring every second. She felt his tongue brush softly against her lower lip. It sent a shudder through her body. Sensing her reaction, he did it again.
“I hate to break this up guys, but your minute’s up,” said Freddy.
Nicki forgot that there were other people in the room. She didn’t want to stop. She held on to the last kiss as long as she could. Tyler didn’t try to pull away. Instead, he tilted his head so that his forehead was against hers. When he did back up, he kept his hands on her lower back. Nicki thought he was going to kiss her again. She was wrong. He let his hands fall and backed up. He sat down without saying a word, never breaking his gaze at Nicki.
She felt eyes on her.
“Wow,” said Milan.
No one else spoke. Once it started getting awkward, Brad asked what everyone was eager to know.
“I have to ask. What was that like? I think I felt something.”
Both Nicki and Tyler were speechless; lost in their own world.
“Okay, we’ll do this the right way. Nicki, truth or dare?” said Nathan’s wife.
“You’re going out of order,” Nicki pointed out.
“No one cares,” said Freddy.
She sighed. “Truth.”
“On a scale of zero to ten, zero being the worst kiss you’ve ever had, ten being the best, how was that kiss?”
Nicki noticed everyone leaning in, interested in her answer.
She spoke softly and subconsciously reached up to touch her lips. “Ten…”
She looked at Tyler. He was staring back at her.
“It was the best you’ve ever had?” asked Brad.
She nodded her head, still in a little bit of shock. Suddenly she just wanted to be alone. Just her and her thoughts. Had he felt it too?
Tyler stood up. “I should get going. Thanks for everything guys. Talk to you later.”
He walked out of the room. Nicki heard the door open. Shortly after that his car started and he pulled away. She didn’t know what to think. Freddy came over and sat down next to her.
“He’ll be fine,” he said, putting a hand on her back. She slouched over and put her head in her hands.
“Don’t worry, Nicki, we’ll talk to him,” Milan said. “He might deny it, but there’s something between you guys. You didn’t get to see that kiss.”
Nicki laughed a little. “No, but I felt it.”
“What was it like? I want to be kissed like that,” Nathan’s wife said. “No offense, sweetie.”
“I don’t even know how to describe it. I wish that I could. His lips are so soft…” she said, recalling every detail. “There was just something about it. Something I felt. I don’t know if he felt it too.”
“If we felt it, I’m sure as hell that he did,” said Brittany. “Too bad you couldn’t see it too. It was somethin’, I’ll tell you that.”
“Actually, you can. I recorded it,” Brad said, chuckling.
Nicki and a few others gathered around his phone to watch. She had never watched herself kiss someone before. Actors in a movie couldn't have done it better. How did he know exactly what to do?
“You guys totally forgot where you were,” said Nathan.
She ran her fingers through her hair. She started to get choked up.
“What if this ruins our friendship?”
“It won’t, I promise,” Freddy assured her.
She wasn’t so sure.
He looked to his left. He forgot Nicki was there. The noises were coming from her. She must have been having a nightmare.
“No! Please, no,” she yelled. Her words were broken up between sobs.
Tyler grabbed her shoulder to try to wake her up.
“Nicki, wake up. You’re having a nightmare. Nicki,” he said over and over as he shook her. She was deep into the dream.
She gasped. It was silent for a moment before she started wailing.
She repeated the word “no” again and again. Tyler didn’t know what to do. He pulled her towards him, cradling her on his lap. Her whole body trembled fiercely.
Freddy walked into the room, bewildered. He probably had no idea that Nicki was still there, never mind sleeping in his bed. Tyler shooed him out with his hand. He left.
“Shh, you’re fine. You were just dreaming.” He pulled her closer.
She continued to shake and bawl.
“I’m right here. You’re okay. You’re safe,” he said softly.
“Mark,” she groaned, “No…” A new wave of shakes shot through her.
Tyler leaned back and grabbed her face with both hands.
“It’s me. It’s Tyler. Nicki you were dreaming. It’s gonna be okay.”
He stared into her eyes until she knew what was going on, still holding her face.
“Tyler? I was dreaming…” She was still confused. “It felt so real.”
He let go of her. She moved away and pulled her knees up to her chest. Tears still streamed down her cheeks. Tyler watched her.
When she didn’t say anything he asked, “Do you want to talk about it? Sometimes that helps.”
“I haven’t had one like that in so long,” she said, burying her head between her knees.
Tyler moved closer to her and placed a reassuring hand on her back. She lifted her head and sniffled.
“The first few weeks after the accident, I had night terrors. They were so real, so detailed. I felt everything. I was starting to lose my mind. So my dad sent me to a psychiatrist and she told me that I had mild Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Some of the memories of that night were so painful that my brain locked them away. But my subconscious turns them into nightmares when I sleep. There’s no way to stop it.” She began to cry again.
Tyler rubbed her back. “Is it always the same dream?”
She nodded.
“Will it help if you tell me what it is? It might make it feel less real,” he offered.
“It is real. It’s an actual memory.” She closed her eyes. “We’re in the car. And I see the other car coming through the barriers, about to hit us. I scream for Mark to watch out, but it’s too late. The other car plows into us, and we go upside down. These are all things that I remember. When I’m awake, I don’t remember anything after that. But when I dream… I look over at him. And his head. His head is split right open. His blood is pouring down onto the ceiling. And I scream and scream and no one can hear me and no one can help. And when I wake up, that image of him is plastered in my brain. It never goes away. It’s real Tyler. I really saw that.”
Tyler felt a tear forming in the corner of his eye. His heart ached for her.
“Nicki, that’s terrible. I am so sorry.”
“I might as well get up now. There’s no way I’m going back to sleep,” she said as she sniffled again and wiped the tears off of her face.
Tyler checked his phone.
“It’s only two thirty. You should try to sleep.”
“Would you be able to sleep after that?”
He took a deep breath in, trying to clear his head.
“Will you let me try something?” he asked her.
“What?”
“Lie down on your side, the way you were before.”
He watched her as she turned over and rested her head on the pillow. Once she was settled, he moved towards her. He turned on his side and pressed his body against hers. He slipped his left arm under her pillow and draped his other arm around her stomach. Tyler even put his feet on top of hers. Finally, he lowered his head onto the pillow, near her neck. Nicki pushed closer to him and curled up underneath his arm.
“Just try to sleep,” he whispered, his lips a centimeter away from her ear.
** * * * * *
Nicki opened her eyes. The light streaming in through the window woke her up. She loved when the sun woke her up. That always meant it would be a good day. It took a moment for the memories of last night to come flooding back. That was when she became all too aware of the arm around her stomach and the warm, heavy breath on the back of her neck. She couldn’t believe that he had stayed like that the entire night.
And she couldn’t believe that she had that nightmare. Tyler didn’t even know that she had nightmares before last night. He probably thought she was a freak. Just in case he never wanted to see her again, she decided to stay in bed with him, memorizing the way his body felt against hers.
Somehow, she had managed to fall asleep after her episode. They used to keep her up for days at a time. She had an idea of why this time was different. The last time she had a nightmare she wasn’t in bed with Tyler. She thought back to the things he said to her when she first woke up. He had been so comforting. Twice now he had helped her like that. How would she ever make it up to him?
As much as she hated the thought of it, she had to get up. She had to pee. Nicki slipped out from underneath Tyler’s arm, trying her hardest not to wake him. He deserved to sleep in, at least until he had to get up for practice.
After using the bathroom, Nicki tiptoed out of the bedroom. Marshall greeted her. He must have been waiting outside of the door.
“Hi cutie pie,” she said quietly.
She walked into the kitchen. The least she could do was make some breakfast for the boys. She rummaged through their fridge and cabinets. Most of what she found would not make a good breakfast. But they had bread, eggs, and cinnamon. All she needed for French toast.
* * * * * * *
Freddy stretched as he opened his eyes. He looked out the window. It looked like it was going to be a beautiful day. And it was Saturday, his only real day off. He had a little bit of a hangover from the night before. The night before! When he walked into Tyler’s room… He wondered if Nicki was still there.
He threw on a pair of sweatpants and walked out of his room. Right away he saw Nicki in the kitchen, cooking something on the stove. She was wearing one of Tyler’s shirts, and nothing else. The plan must have worked better than he thought…
She turned to look at him. That seemed to be the moment when she realized that she wasn’t wearing pants. Freddy chose not to say anything.
“Good morning,” he said, “Looks like you two had a lot of fun last night.” He looked her up and down and raised his eyebrows.
“It’s not what you think. Well, it depends on what you think. Nothing happened.”
“Nothing happened? The only thing you’re wearing is Tyler’s shirt and I walk into his room this morning, and there you are, in bed together. The noises I heard made it pretty obvious what the two of you were doing…”
“Freddy, no!” She laughed. “You’re completely off. I had a really bad nightmare. He was trying to shake me out of it.”
“That still doesn’t explain why you’re wearing his shirt. And didn’t I see your bra on the floor in there?” There must be something more to this story. “And oh, I almost forgot. You slept over. In his bed!”
“Quiet down. I don’t want to wake him up. He was in a lot of pain last night and couldn’t drive me home. I didn’t know what shape you would be in when you got home, or when you would get home. So I stayed over,” she explained. She flipped over the French toast she was making. Freddy loved French toast.
“That’s all well and good. But I would have expected to find one of you on the couch. How did both of you end up in his bed?”
“He said he didn’t mind and he didn’t want me to have to sleep on the couch. Come on, Freddy. You honestly think I was going to pass that up?”
He laughed. “Fine, I’ll get his story later. Maybe it will be a little juicier.”
“Oh shut up Freddy,” said Nicki. She flicked a piece of eggshell at him.
** * * * * *
Tyler yawned as he felt around the bed. Something was missing. He began to recollect all of the things that had happened in the last twelve hours. Did all of that really happen? He yawned once more before getting up out of bed.
Wow, I feel great, he thought to himself. He moved his limbs around, trying to find a trace of the soreness that disabled him the night before. Everything felt brand new. He stepped out into the hallway. Something smelled delicious.
He spotted Marshall lying on his dog bed. When he reached the kitchen he saw Freddy sitting at the island drinking orange juice. Nicki was leaning over the stove. She was still in his shirt. He liked that she was wearing it. He hadn’t noticed until then that she wasn’t wearing any pants. She had killer legs.
“Alright, Freddy. All done. You can eat now,” she said as she brought over a heaping plate of French toast. A bowl of fresh fruit was already placed in the center of the island. She saw Tyler. “Morning Tyler. Hope you like French toast.”
“Love it,” he said as he sat down.
She leaned over him and served him a plate. He ran a hand through his hair and leaned back into the stool.
“So are you gonna hang here today?” Freddy asked Nicki.
“No, I have to go home. I think I have plans today anyways.”
“I can take you home before I go to practice,” Tyler offered.
“That’d be perfect. Thanks, Ty.”
Freddy looked confused. “You call him Ty now? When did that happen?”
Tyler felt his face heating up. For some reason, it felt special when she called him that.
“It’s your fault,” Nicki said, “you rubbed off on me.”
Tyler glanced at Freddy out of the corner of his eye. He didn’t want to hear what Freddy was going to say about it later.
“Hey, how are you feeling, anyway?” Nicki asked him. He didn’t want to bring up the massage in front of Freddy. He looked at her and nodded his head slightly towards Freddy. He hoped she’d take the hint.
“Better, thanks.”
“Good,” was all she said. Thank God.
** * * * *
Nicki picked up her clothes off of Tyler’s floor. She closed the bedroom door so that no one would walk in on her. Once she was dressed, she made his bed for him. She was overwhelmed by the idea that they had spent the night together. She wanted to know how he felt about it. That was one thing that she should probably never ask him about.
She walked out of the room towards Tyler, who was standing in front of the door.
“Ready to go?”
“Yeah. Bye, Freddy,” she called over her shoulder.
For most of the ride, neither of them knew what to say.
“So you really feel better?” Nicki asked, breaking the silence.
“I feel great. It’s like nothing ever happened. I can’t thank you enough.”
“No, I can’t thank you enough. Think of it as me repaying you for all that you’ve done for me.”
“That works fine for me,” he said. Now he had another reason to look forward to home games. And another reason to hate away games.
“Ty, about last night…” Nicki started.
“We don’t have to talk about it. Really.”
“You probably think I’m crazy,” she said, frowning.
“Why the hell would I think you’re crazy? I think you’re the sanest person I know. The strongest, too. I can tell you carry a lot on your shoulders. Sometimes you just need someone to lean on.”
“I’m so glad I met you,” she said.
He smiled. “Yeah, me too.”
He pulled up in front of her house. “Listen, there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you,” he said.
“Anything,” she responded.
“Over the next few weeks I have a bunch of long road trips, and Freddy has this thing for school. He’s gonna be gone for a month or so. Usually we send Marshall up to Brampton to stay with my family, but it’s a huge pain in the ass getting him back and forth. I know it’s a lot to ask, but do you think you could look after him? He adores you. I don’t trust anyone else with him.”
“Aw, I’d love to! Really, it would be my pleasure. But I don’t think my dad would be too happy about adding another dog to our house…” She said, disappointed.
“I figured as much. That’s why I thought maybe you could just stay with him at my place. I’ll leave you money for food and whatever else you need. You can take my room, or Freddy’s. Whatever you want. It would mean a lot,” he said.
“I’ll have to run it by my dad. If he’s fine with it then sign me up.”
“You’re really doing us a huge favor. Thank you.”
“Thank you,” she said.
“For what?”
“Everything,” she said as she kissed him on the cheek. “Have a good practice.”
** * * * * *
Tyler was late to practice. Again. He entered the locker room, preparing to be scolded. Most of the team was still in there.
Milan came up from behind him and gave him a little shove.
“Jesus man, where were you? You gotta stop showing up late.”
“I know, sorry. I just had to drop off Ni-.” As soon as the words were out of his mouth he regretted them.
Brad’s head shot up. “Oh. My. God. She spent the night?”
“Who spent the night where?” Dougie asked. He was always so curious about everything.
“Yeah, what the hell are we talking about?” said Adam.
Tyler ignored everybody besides Brad. “Yeah. What do you care?”
“Who’d you screw now Segs?” asked Milan.
“Did you two sleep together?” said Brad. Why was he so interested?
“No, we didn’t. We didn’t do anything,” Tyler responded.
“Who are we talking about?!” Tuuka roared.
“Nicki!” Brad and Tyler yelled at the same time.
“You slept with Nicki? The girl whose boyfriend died?” Chara asked.
“No! We are friends. That’s all. She slept over because I was too sore to drive her home and Freddy went out with you guys. I’m so tired of everyone asking me about it. Can we just drop this, please?”
Claude boomed into the locker room. “What the hell are you dumbasses fighting about now?”
“Nothing,” a few players muttered.
“Good. I’ll see you on the ice in five.” He left.
“Listen, Segs. I’m not trying to push your buttons or anything. I want the two of you to get together. I think it’s time for you to grow up a little. I think she’s good for you,” Brad said.
“Sorry but it’s not happening. I don’t need to grow up. I just don’t need to hand my balls over on a silver platter yet, that’s all.”
“That’s what you think it’s like to be in a relationship?” Milan asked.
“All you guys do is complain about your girlfriends and wives,” Tyler said, defending himself.
“Yeah, but that just comes with the territory. Believe me, I’d be lost without Brittany. It’s worth it man,” said Milan.
“It just isn’t what I want. So can you guys lay off?”
Nobody said anything back. It was time to practice.
** * * * * *
Brad skated to the bench to rest. He picked up a Gatorade bottle and poured it into his mouth. Practice was kicking his ass today. Out of the corner of his eye he saw someone sit down next to him.
“So how did you know what was going on with Segs and Nicki?” Milan asked.
“Freddy mentioned it to me after the game yesterday. He swears they’re just friends, but Nicki really likes him. She’s afraid she’ll ruin their friendship if she tells him. So Freddy is trying to make Segs realize that he likes her. Which he so obviously does. He’s so stubborn,” Brad said, frustrated with his friend.
“I think I have an idea,” said Milan. He lowered his voice to make sure no one else would hear. “Brittany and I will have you guys over for dinner, or a game night or something. Have a few of the guys bring their wives. We can get everyone in on it and show him the good parts of being in a relationship.”
Brad thought it over. “Eh, maybe. He might catch on to that.”
They sat in silence for another minute.
“No. I got it. You have a game night. We’ll get a bunch of booze. The last game we play will be truth or dare. Get them buzzed enough to agree to it and I think we can make this work.”
Milan nodded in agreement. “Friday night?”
“Friday night.”
** * * * * *
Nicki opened the door to the Olive Garden and searched for Lisa. She found her already sitting in a booth. She stood up when she spotted Nicki.
“Hey love!” She said, wrapping her up in a bear hug.
“Can’t breathe Lis!”
She pulled away and laughed.
“Can you believe it hasn’t even been a week since we saw each other? Feels like a lifetime,” Lisa said.
Nicki scooted into the booth.
“I know. God this has been the longest week.”
“Uh oh! What happened? I haven’t heard from you once, so I guess I figured you were doing okay.” She said, sounding guilty.
“No, this week has actually been pretty amazing. It’s just that so much has happened. I feel like my life has turned completely upside down. Or right side up...”
“Tyler?”
Lisa always knew what Nicki was thinking. She nodded. Nicki placed her elbows on the table and rested her chin in her hands.
“I don’t even know where to begin,” she said.
It took over an hour to tell Lisa everything that had happened. She didn’t spare a single detail. Except that she was falling hopelessly in love with him. They spent the rest of their time together talking about Lisa’s week; work, her creepy boss, crazy sex with Zach. Their usual topics of discussion.
Their waitress came and placed the bill on the table. “Whenever you’re ready,” she said before walking away.
“I got this one,” said Lisa. “I feel awful that I didn’t remember on Wednesday…”
“Don’t worry about it. I almost forgot myself. I think I might finally be learning to deal with it.”
There was a pause in conversation while Lisa counted her money, making sure there was enough to leave a decent tip. She looked up at Nicki when she was done.
“You love him, don’t you?”
Nicki was confused. “Mark? Of course I loved him. You know that.”
“I meant Tyler.”
Nicki fiddled with her napkin. “I feel so guilty. I feel like I’m betraying Mark.” She felt her eyes start to water.
“That’s the last thing you’re doing. Nicki, he loved you so much. He would want you to be happy.”
“I know he would want me to be happy. But it’s only been three months. Isn’t that too soon?”
“Girl, love never comes at the right time. It always comes at the wrong time. You have to embrace it. You have to make it the right time. I don’t know Tyler that well, but from what you tell me, he’s pretty great. You have gone through way too much for someone our age. You deserve to get what you want.”
Lisa wrapped an arm around her shoulder.
“I have to get going, Zach and I are supposed to spend the weekend at his parent’s place. His sister is pregnant and they’re throwing this big party. Hang in there girly. Love ya!” She said as she walked over to her car.
“Thanks for lunch. Love you too,” Nicki responded.
Lisa was right. She wanted to be with Tyler so badly. Every bone in her body ached for it. She would make it happen. She just needed to wait for the right time…
Her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out, hoping to see Tyler’s name pop up. It was Freddy.
Freddy 15:34:08: milan is havin people ova fri. ty doesnt no ur comin. ill pick u up at 6
She texted back: K. What if he asks me if I’m going?
What the hell was he planning now? She unlocked her car and got in.
Freddy 15:35:42: tell him ur comin w. me. unless he asks u to go w. him. then go w. him
Nicki knew the coming week was going to drag.
** * * * * *
Sunday
“Mmm, smells great dad,” Nicki said as she walked into the kitchen.
Every Sunday her dad made something special for breakfast. This week was omelettes.
“Thanks sweetie,” he said, turning to give her a kiss on the cheek.
She took a seat at their table. Her beagle, Lucy, came waddling into the room.
“Hey Luce!” Nicki exclaimed as she picked up her little dog.
Nothing made her happier than animals. They were never grumpy, never mad, never bored. They always listened to what you had to say and cuddled with you when you needed it. There was only one person she knew that was like that…
“Hey dad, I wanna run something by you.”
“Shoot.”
“I was talking to Tyler and he has a bunch of road games coming up soon and his roommate is going away. Long story short, he wants me to look after his dog while he’s gone,” she said. She hoped to God he wouldn’t freak out.
“I don’t know Nicki. I think two pets are plenty for this house.”
“He said I could stay at his place. I really want to do it, dad. His dog is awesome.” What else could she say to make it sound better?
“If you want to, go ahead. I’ll miss you though.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously. You’re nineteen. You could be married with a kid right now. Or unmarried with a kid. Staying over your boyfriend’s house is the least I can let you do. You’ve never given me a reason not to trust you.”
“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She said as she hugged him. “But he’s not my boyfriend. We’re just friends.”
“Well that’s even better, then.”
** * * * * *
Friday 5:00 P.M.
Nicki wrapped her wet hair up in a towel. She had decided to go to the gym after class, and was now running out of time to get ready for Milan’s party. She had to dry her hair, get dressed, do her makeup, and find Twister in her basement. Each person going had been assigned a game to bring. Twister was one of Nicki’s favorite games, so it worked out for her. She already had it stashed away somewhere.
She checked her phone. She had one text from Freddy.
Freddy 16:51:04: wear the same thing as last week
I’m not wearing the same thing. I’ll wear the leather jacket. I was thinking of wearing a dress.
Freddy 17:02:59: even betta. he likes ur legs
How do you know that? Lol
Freddy 17:04:27: I cot him starin at em wen u didnt hav pants on
She laughed out loud at his last message. It sounded so bad. She pulled her bath robe around herself and approached her closet. She searched for her sapphire blue dress. It was hanging up all the way in the back. The color complemented her skin, hair, and eyes. And it was the tightest dress she had; it would show off all of her curves. She slipped on a thong so she wouldn’t get underwear lines and her most comfortable bra. No one would be seeing that tonight. She hoped.
Once dressed, she needed to pick a pair of shoes. It was cold out, so she wanted to wear boots. But if Tyler really liked her legs, heels were a better choice. She opted for the plain black pair that she wore last weekend. She did her makeup the same as last week as well.
Nicki opened the box where she kept Mark’s Pandora bracelet and secured it around her wrist. Lastly, she grabbed a necklace that fell just above the top of her dress. Maybe it would draw attention to her chest area. She was done being shy. She wanted him to want her. She found the matching earrings and put them in her ears.
By the time she had finished that much, she heard Freddy beep outside.
“Crap!” She yelled.
She would have to let her hair dry naturally. And she still had to find Twister. Luckily, it was in the first place she looked. Her heels banged loudly as she rushed up the stairs.
“Take it easy!” Her dad yelled from the living room.
“I’m leaving!”
Nicki took short, quick steps to Freddy’s car. The last thing she needed was to trip and hurt herself before she even got to the party. She opened the door and got in. He whistled at her.
“Man, he’s not gonna know what hit him,” he said.
“Hi Freddy,” said Nicki as she giggled. He was so nice to her.
“It’s gonna be a great night. You ready for it?”
“Yeah. I’m a little nervous. I haven’t spoken to Tyler in a few days,” she admitted.
“Don’t worry, you’ll be doing plenty of talking tonight.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“You’ll see.”
Milan only lived about twenty minutes away from Nicki. They reached his place in no time.
“Looks like we’re the first ones here,” Nicki said.
“Guess so. Would you mind helping me with the bags? I brought some stuff.”
“Of course!”
Nicki opened the back door of his car. The backseat was covered with brown paper bags.
“Is this all alcohol?” She asked.
“No, there’s some cookies in there too,” he responded, laughing.
They approached the front walk. Before they could ring the doorbell, Milan’s wife opened the door for them.
“Hey Brittany, good to see you,” Freddy said, giving her a kiss on the cheek.
“You too, Freddy.” She turned to Nicki. “Hi, I’m Brittany.”
Nicki balanced the bags in her arms and stuck out a hand. “It’s so nice to meet you. Thank you for having me over, I really appreciate it. I know I’m not a usual member of the gang.”
“It’s our pleasure, come in,” she said.
Brittany seemed really nice. It was hard to picture her with a big, scary man like Milan. Nicki imagined that he was a sweetheart underneath his tough exterior. Most men were. Brittany led them down a landing and into a huge, open space.
“Your house is gorgeous! Wow,” said Nicki, trying to take it all in.
It was by far the biggest house she had ever been in. Milan came in and kissed his wife on the lips. He looked at her and said, “I try to take good care of my girl.”
They kissed again and Brittany said, “You always do.”
Nicki wanted to look away to give them their privacy, but they were too sweet. She loved seeing people happy together. She had that once. And it was stolen from her.
To her surprise, Milan hugged Nicki.
“I’m glad you came. You look great. I know someone who won’t be able to keep his eyes off of you tonight,” he said, winking at Freddy.
“You told him too?” Did the entire team know?
“Don’t blame me. This one’s on Brad. I’m giving you fair warning, everyone who is coming tonight knows. Except Tyler.”
He and Milan shared a laugh. Before anyone could say anything else, the doorbell rang. Brittany went to answer it.
“Hi Tyler, come on in.”
“Thanks Britt.”
Nicki felt like her stomach was about to drop out. All of the sudden she felt self conscious. She pulled her jacket tighter. Tyler stepped down onto the landing. His eyes met hers. When he saw her, he literally stopped in his tracks. She noticed everyone in the room looking at each other.
“Hey, Ty,” was all she could think of to say.
“Hey.”
“Did you bring Apples to Apples Segs?” Milan asked.
“Of course I did.”
“I love Apples to Apples!” Nicki said.
“This is gonna be great,” said Freddy. “Everyone ready to start drinking?”
By seven, all of the guests had arrived. They began with Apples to Apples. Nathan won. Then came Scrabble, Pictionary, a game of charades, cards, and Trivial Pursuit. At last, it was time for Twister. Milan said that they should save it for the end, because the more drunk everyone was, the funnier it would be. No one argued.
The most they could fit was six people at a time. Nicki went up against Brad, Freddy, Nathan, Nathan’s wife, and of course, Tyler. The whole night the two of them ended up together. In every game.
It only took minutes for everyone to become intertwined. Nathan lost his balance and knocked over Brad. They stepped off the mat. “Screw you Horty!” A drunken Brad shouted, holding up his middle finger.
Eventually it came down to just Nicki and Tyler. She should have expected that to happen, the way this night was panning out. She ended up in a bridge position. Two years of gymnastics came in handy way more than she would’ve thought. Tyler had both hands and feet in one corner.
“Tyler, left hand green,” Milan said. He was spinning.
Tyler picked up his left hand and put it between his legs. He lost his balance and began to fall. But he wasn’t going down alone. He stuck out his right leg, trying to knock over Nicki. It worked, and she went tumbling down after him.
Everyone in the room burst into laughter, even Nicki. She stayed down on the mat, not trying to get up. Tyler stood over her and held his hand out, offering to help her up. She squinted her eyes at him.
“I’m sorry, but last time I checked friends don’t make other friends lose at Twister,” she said, pushing his hand away.
“Last time I checked that’s exactly what friends did.”
He squatted down and grabbed underneath her arms, lifting her up.
“So it’s a tie?” He asked Milan.
“You’re disqualified for unsportsmanlike conduct. Nicki wins by default,” he said, evoking more laughter.
“Ha!” Nicki said in his face. She usually wasn’t so energetic. The alcohol must be getting to her.
Brittany clapped her hands. “Alright, ladies and gents. It’s getting late. Ready for our last game of the night?”
Everyone cheered. It turned out to be a good night.
“What is it?” Nicki asked. She didn’t know of any other games they could play.
“Truth or dare,” Milan said.
“Dun dun dun,” chimed Freddy.
Everyone took a seat in Brittany and Milan’s oversized living room. There was plenty of space for everyone. Tyler sat directly across the room from Nicki.
“We’ll go clockwise around the circle. When it’s your turn, you can ask anyone. Just make sure that every time we go around, everyone gets a truth or dare,” Brittany said, explaining the rules.
Brad went first, daring Milan to do a three minute pole dance on one of the support beams in their living room. He managed to get himself upside down on it at one point, before crashing to the floor. A few truths later, it was Brittany’s turn.
“Nicki, truth or dare?”
“Truth.” Nicki always picked truth.
“How many guys have you been with?”
She didn’t like the way everyone was staring at her.
“Just the one. We got together when we were fifteen. So it’s not like I did much before that.”
Her answer was acceptable. Now it was Freddy’s turn. Nicki became nervous. She knew he was planning something. It hadn’t slipped by her that no one had picked Tyler yet. Tyler seemed to realize this too. He squirmed in his seat.
“Tyler.” Freddy said. “Truth or dare?”
“Dare.”
Some “oohs” arose from the group.
“I dare you to kiss Nicki.”
“What?” Nicki and Tyler said in unison.
“You heard me. You didn’t think I was going to let that go, did you?”
Nicki’s head started to spin. This was not happening. She wasn’t prepared for it at all. Tyler didn’t say anything.
“Let’s go kids. I’ll time you. At least a minute.”
Tyler didn’t protest. He stood up and walked slowly to where Nicki was sitting. She stood up to meet him. He looked into her eyes. He raised his right hand to brush a piece of hair out of her face, and tucked it behind her ear. He left his hand on her face and brought his head closer to hers. The room was completely silent.
Nicki closed her eyes as their lips finally met. They both lingered a moment. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he grabbed her waist, pulling her closer. He parted his lips and she slid hers between them. She kissed him back slowly, savoring every second. She felt his tongue brush softly against her lower lip. It sent a shudder through her body. Sensing her reaction, he did it again.
“I hate to break this up guys, but your minute’s up,” said Freddy.
Nicki forgot that there were other people in the room. She didn’t want to stop. She held on to the last kiss as long as she could. Tyler didn’t try to pull away. Instead, he tilted his head so that his forehead was against hers. When he did back up, he kept his hands on her lower back. Nicki thought he was going to kiss her again. She was wrong. He let his hands fall and backed up. He sat down without saying a word, never breaking his gaze at Nicki.
She felt eyes on her.
“Wow,” said Milan.
No one else spoke. Once it started getting awkward, Brad asked what everyone was eager to know.
“I have to ask. What was that like? I think I felt something.”
Both Nicki and Tyler were speechless; lost in their own world.
“Okay, we’ll do this the right way. Nicki, truth or dare?” said Nathan’s wife.
“You’re going out of order,” Nicki pointed out.
“No one cares,” said Freddy.
She sighed. “Truth.”
“On a scale of zero to ten, zero being the worst kiss you’ve ever had, ten being the best, how was that kiss?”
Nicki noticed everyone leaning in, interested in her answer.
She spoke softly and subconsciously reached up to touch her lips. “Ten…”
She looked at Tyler. He was staring back at her.
“It was the best you’ve ever had?” asked Brad.
She nodded her head, still in a little bit of shock. Suddenly she just wanted to be alone. Just her and her thoughts. Had he felt it too?
Tyler stood up. “I should get going. Thanks for everything guys. Talk to you later.”
He walked out of the room. Nicki heard the door open. Shortly after that his car started and he pulled away. She didn’t know what to think. Freddy came over and sat down next to her.
“He’ll be fine,” he said, putting a hand on her back. She slouched over and put her head in her hands.
“Don’t worry, Nicki, we’ll talk to him,” Milan said. “He might deny it, but there’s something between you guys. You didn’t get to see that kiss.”
Nicki laughed a little. “No, but I felt it.”
“What was it like? I want to be kissed like that,” Nathan’s wife said. “No offense, sweetie.”
“I don’t even know how to describe it. I wish that I could. His lips are so soft…” she said, recalling every detail. “There was just something about it. Something I felt. I don’t know if he felt it too.”
“If we felt it, I’m sure as hell that he did,” said Brittany. “Too bad you couldn’t see it too. It was somethin’, I’ll tell you that.”
“Actually, you can. I recorded it,” Brad said, chuckling.
Nicki and a few others gathered around his phone to watch. She had never watched herself kiss someone before. Actors in a movie couldn't have done it better. How did he know exactly what to do?
“You guys totally forgot where you were,” said Nathan.
She ran her fingers through her hair. She started to get choked up.
“What if this ruins our friendship?”
“It won’t, I promise,” Freddy assured her.
She wasn’t so sure.
9/9/13