Nicole

Chapter: 10

As they walked to the mall, Isabelle had a huge grin on her face which made Nicole smile as well. It struck her that her whole life, there wasn't a single girl for Isabelle, not even a mother. If Nicole made her feel so happy, she was glad.

"I have always wanted a sister," Isabelle said, grinning.

"I guess you always had one," Nicole said, making Isabelle smile wider. "How far is the mall?"

"Not that far," Isabelle said. Nicole almost couldn't keep up with the long strides she was taking even though she was an inch shorter than her.

"Isabelle, could you slow down?" She asked her. Isabelle turned to her with a look of realization and slowed her pace.

"Sorry," she muttered sheepishly. "And... my brothers all call me Izzy. So, I'd prefer if you'd call me that too."

Nicole furrowed her eyebrows, "Izzy, then."

Isabelle was right. The mall wasn't that far. They reached it in about five minutes. The moment they entered though, Isabelle took Nicole's wrist and pulled her towards one of the shops. Nicole followed silently, grinning and shaking her head.

They looked through the dresses that hung on either side of the shop. Nicole wasn't that interested and the only dress that caught Izzy's eye was a short-sleeved, blue dress. She bought it and with the bag in her hand, pulled Nicole into Gucci.

After they visited a few shops - H&M, Loius Vuitton, Addidas, and Hermès - they were finally looking through boots. Nicole had bought herself a jacket and a few other clothes - upon Isabelle's insistence - and now, she was checking out a pair of long boots.

"We should go to Apple," Izzy suggested. Nicole blinked at the idea.

"Do you have that much money?" She inquired.

Izzy thought for a moment before sighing, "No." Nicole shook her head and threw an arm around her shoulder.

"I like ice cream better than apples." Isabelle laughed as they walked to the ice cream station. They took two cones - vanilla for Nicole and strawberry for Isabelle - and walked out of the mall. The bags felt heavy in Nicole's arms but she didn't care. Neither did Izzy even though she was carrying a lot more bags than her.

On the way, they talked and laughed. Izzy kept telling her jokes about Axel that made Nicole laugh so hard she was surprised she didn't drop her ice cream.

"You do this a lot?" Nicole asked. "With your friends I mean?"

Izzy frowned, "I don't have friends."

Nicole furrowed her eyebrows. "I don't buy that for a second." Izzy chuckled.

"No, I really don't," she said. "I don't know why. I guess no one was welcoming. I mean I tried a few times but it didn't go so well. What about you?"

Nicole snorted, "People don't even know I exist." Izzy snickered.

"So, you're basically a shadow?" Nicole's eyes lit up at Izzy's precise choice of words.

"Exactly!"

Izzy shook her head, "I don't think that's possible when you get straight As."

"Your reputation builds up when people actually know you get straight As." Izzy laughed.

"You should take the test for your driver's license," Izzy said softly after a while. Nicole looked at her. "Dad could take you there."

Nicole sighed, "Maybe I should."

"Then you'll take me wherever I want because Axel is an asshole." Nicole snickered.

By the time they reached home, the sun was setting. Beautiful specks of orange and red spread through the sky, mixing together.

Nicole's heart felt lighter. Spending the whole day with Izzy made her feel so good that it felt like a dream. She couldn't stop smiling. The slight need for friends she had a few days ago had completely vanished. She had her siblings. These were her friends.

After Nicole put her clothes and boots in her closet, she went to her father's room. She hadn't been there before but there was only one room downstairs so she knew that was it.

She knocked at his door, waiting patiently for an answer. She could hear the wind blowing outside as darkness took over the sky.

Her father opened the door and seemed somewhat surprised to see Nicole.

"Uh... I wanted to talk to you. About my driver's license," Nicole said, biting her inner lip. Her father raised his eyebrows.

"Sure, come in," he said, making room for her. Nicole entered the room.

It was the master bedroom so it was bigger than the ones upstairs. The walls were white and the curtains were a cream color. The bed cover was also white. The dresser was as empty as it could be except for a hairbrush and perfume.

"You don't have your driver's license?" Her father asked and she shook her head.

"The day before Mom died," Nicole started, biting her lip. She didn't know why she kept touching on the topic of her mother when she knew it was sensitive for both of them. Her father tensed. "I asked her to take me for the test. She said she was busy and that lead to me asking about you again so the test was left in the middle. And then..." She trailed off, knowing her father would understand the rest.

"So, you never got to talk about it properly?" Her father asked and she nodded. "You went to the mall with Isabelle though?"

"We walked."

"Alright," Christopher said, smiling at her softly. "I'll take you for the test tomorrow."

Nicole beamed at him, "Thank you..." She stopped as she realized she didn't know what to call him. She hadn't called him Dad or Father. She realized she hadn't called him anything.

Christopher grinned, "I would prefer Dad." Nicole nodded slowly. "I don't know if you're comfortable enough to call me that yet but I want you to say it when you mean it. When I'm not just your biological father but someone you can look up to. When you know you can trust me and ask me for anything. When you feel that I'm not your father but your dad."

Nicole smiled sincerely at him, "Okay."