"L A B E L S"

Episode 110

~ Present Time ~

Scarlett bites the end of her pen in frustration as she sits at the desk in her bedroom. The sunlight was streaming in through the sheer curtains, illuminating the blank page she had been staring down at for the last half hour. Writing this letter to her father was a lot difficult than she had originally thought and with every thought that came across her mind, she quickly pushed it aside. She was seconds away from postponing this assignment one more week when she hears a soft knock on her opened bedroom door. She turns in her chair to find Nick standing at the door, a small apologetic expression across his face. "Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt."

She shakes her head and motions with her hand for him to come. "No, it's fine. You're just in time; I was seconds away from putting my fist through this table." She chuckles softly as he steps inside and sits down on the edge of the bed.

"I've been thinking about some things lately...since you've been going to therapy." His voice was meek and hesitant, he was so worried of saying something to upset her or disrupt the progress that had been made. Scarlett had only gone to a few sessions but Nick could already see a change. She was less tense and angry about things. He was hopeful and for the first time in years, he saw that same light deep in her eyes as well. "I think I'm going to stay at Joe's for a while."

Scarlett's eyes widen at the suggestion and her heart immediately sinks. "Nicholas, I'm trying. I'm really trying and I know I said a lot of things but I was just angry and resentful but things are getting better, I can feel it." She smiles despite the tears building in her eyes. The anger was fading away and now all she felt was sadness because she could see how much she had been hurting him.

Nick smiles at the change inside her and reaches forward, taking her hands in his. "I'm not doing this because I'm hurt or angry. I'm doing this because I want to give you all of the space and time you need to feel better. I will still be over here every day to see Audrey but I think some time apart will be good for the both of us." He smiles honestly while rubbing the back of her hand. She smiles reluctantly and nods.

"Okay, if that's what you think is best."

"I do." He responds with certainty in his voice despite the hesitation behind it.

~

Nick steps onto the construction site, the sound of dull dozers and hammering causing him to wish he had brought a pair of ear plugs. He notices Joe across the yard talking to a man holding a clipboard, they both had hard hats on but Joe's was a different color blue. Nick waves at him once he looks his way and Joe almost immediately makes his way over after quickly signing his signature on the piece of paper. "Hey, what are you doing here?" Joe questions as he comes closer before removing his hat. "Are Scarlett and Audrey okay?" He becomes instantly worried at the thought and Nick being here was a little unnerving, he couldn't remember Nick ever stopping by his place of work.

"No, everyone's fine." Nick quickly assures with a small smile. "Have you taken a lunch break, yet?"

Joe shakes his head and begins walking towards the exit gate with Nick. "No, why?"

"Well, are you hungry?"

"I could eat." Joe responds briefly and Nick nods. The two had become friends over the years but even with all of the people they both loved and their common friends, they still had never been very close and words were not easy to come by when it was just the two of them. They sat down at a local burger joint a couple blocks down the street as they both order a simple burger and large order of fries. Even just sitting down at a table to eat lunch, the two couldn't have looked more misplaced. Joe was blue collar and his old blue jeans had been worn and stained from manual labor while Nick held the status of white collar, taking after his father and becoming a fairly well-known business man. His button up shirt was dry cleaned and his bill fold resembled that of the upper middle class. "So, are you going to tell me what the reason for our surprise lunch date is or do I just assume you play for the other team now?"

Nick rolls his eyes at Joe's humor. "Don't go getting your hopes up, Adam."

He snickers before taking a sip of his Coca Cola and urging Nick to explain by the look in his eyes.

"I need to crash at your place for a couple of days." Nick admits bluntly, knowing there was no point in beating around the bush.

"Scarlett finally came to her senses and kicked you out."

"She's attending therapy sessions." The tone suddenly went from lighthearted to serious and both of the switches flipped inside them.

"Well, it's about time. I mean, you've all been pushing that for a while, right?"

Nick nods while playing mindlessly with the paper from his straw. "Yeah, it's a good thing but I just don't want to be the one to screw anything up. I think she needs space to deal with this on her own." He remains silent a moment before crinkling the paper up into a small ball and tossing it at Joe's forehead with a smirk. "So, you got room for me to crash for a few days or what?"

The paper bounces off his forehead and lands on the table. "Yeah, sure, dude. Just remember, no funny business."

Nick shakes his head with a chuckle about the same time the waitress comes by with their food. It wasn't an obvious friendship but it was the kind of mutual appreciate that didn't need words or labels. They knew they had each other's backs in the tough times and it wasn't because they called each other best friends and went to lunch every day; it was because they knew, even without labels, that they were friends when push came to shove.