In Another World

Chapter Four: How Well Nick Knows Lucy

Chapter Four... How Well Nick Knows Lucy

*Nick's POV- Back In Reality*

I arrived at school as normal once again. I had to wait for all my friends, because they usually all turned up late. I couldn't wait to see Lucy again. Today's the day... I'm gonna ask her out today... I thought. I had thought this every day for the last year or so, since I'd really gotten to know her. I loved her secretly, but ha!

She would never go for a guy like me.

She had beautiful dark brown curls that bounced bouyantly around as she moved. Her chocolate brown eyes made my heart melt, and when she cried from laughter, her smile made her glistening eyes look even more beautiful. Her pale white complexion made her look like a porcelain doll... so beautiful... so elegant...

The only thing I didn't like about Lucy was that her parents handed her everything on a silver platter. Anything she wanted, she got. And she was therefore not independent. If I were to date her, I could teach her to become independent... teach her to be less selfish.

I remember the day she told us all a story about her sixteenth birthday flight to Paris. Her parents let her go to Paris! With Amanda, her best friend! Amanda could barely remember the trip, because she was wasted the whole time, but Lucy had told us the whole story, and I could remember it perfectly.

Okay, I was a borderline stalker...

But I just wanted Lucy to notice me the way I noticed her. I loved her! She was amazing! I didn't care that she was rich and could get any guy she ever wanted. I didn't care that she wasn't a virgin. I didn't care that she smoked. I didn't care that she could swear unattractively at old people when they pulled out in front of her.

I didn't care about her flaws... we all have them.

I leant against the brick wall at the front of the school, pulling out a pack of cigarettes. I hadn't smoked one in over a week, but I'd let my thoughts trail and I needed one. As I put the cigarette in my mouth, a car I recognised as Lucy's mom's car pulled up. Lucy had used it a lot to come to school.

Amanda ran out of the car, tears rolling down her face.

"Mandi, what is it?" I asked as she ran to me.

"It's Lucy," Amanda sobbed. "Her mom lent me the car to come and get you and Sarah. She was in a crash on the way to my house. Her parents bought her a car for her birthday and she crashed into a tree trying to avoid hitting a car and she's in a coma and she's in surgery and her leg's broken and she's got internal bleeding and she might die!"

Amanda barely took a breath as she told me what had happened. Tears welled up in my eyes. No, NO! Not Lucy... No... Not her...

I wrapped my large arms around Amanda and held her tightly. She cried ever so hard.

"I saw her," Amanda sobbed. "With all the wires, and the tubes. And the bandage around her head. And... and I... I just didn't know what to do!"

"Shh, it's okay," I soothed. "She's strong. She'll pull through."

"You don't know that, Nick!" Amanda wailed. "What if she doesn't?"

"Then she'll never know how I feel," I whispered.

Amanda suddenly let me go. She looked at me funny, like she couldn't believe what I was saying. I hadn't meant to say it, but now the cat was out of the bag.

"You have feelings for her?" Amanda asked, sniffling.

"Yeah," I admitted.

"I never knew!" Amanda gasped. "Oh, if I had've known, I would have pushed Lucy to ask you out. But instead I just listened to her fears about asking you out."

"What?" I asked, surprised.

"She likes you, too!" Amanda explained. "Oh, my God! If she dies, then she's never gonna know how you feel."

"I wish I didn't tell you now," I said with a bit of a frown. "But I'm kind of glad at the same time! I hate keeping it to myself!"

Amanda thought for a moment.

"Look, this is hard on all of us," she said finally. "I just want to wake up from this nightmare and have Lucy laughing beside me like I'm used to. Not to have her clinging for life! It's not right... it's not fair!"

"Let's go then," I sighed. "We can sit at the hospital, and we can be there for her in the only way possible. Okay?"

"Okay," Amanda sobbed.

I took the car keys from Amanda's clenched fist and led her to the passenger's door. She slowly climbed in as I took the driver's side.

"Where will we find Sarah?" I asked.

"I rang her," Amanda said simply. "She's at her house. With Tyrone."

"Hmm, okay," I murmured before driving off towards Sarah's house.

Tyrone was bad news... not that any of that mattered at the moment. A friend of mine was hanging on for life, and I couldn't stand not being anywhere hear her.

 *Lucy's POV*

We arrived at my parent's house, and something felt odd. No, the place still looked the same... but something wasn't right. I realised that my father's car was missing, but if he was at work then that was usual. But something was up...

I followed Nick as we walked up to the front door. I felt a sense of impending doom as I took the five steps to the front porch one at a time. The wind whipped my dark curls gently, and I got a cold shiver. I could only wonder what was going on in my real life. I was in a coma most likely... And that scared me to my very core.

Nick held his hand up to the door...

Knock...

Knock...

Knock...

With each gentle pound of Nick's hand, my body got a violent shock. I felt uncomfortable, and I knew that something bad was about to happen. I heard someone turn the locks on the other side of the door, and the creaking of the door as at swang open.

My mom stood in the doorway. I had expected her to look at me and feint, but her eyes didn't even glance my way. Instead, she glared at Nick, pure hate radiating from her furious eyes. I had never seen my mom look like this before, and I was positively scared. Terrified.

I had expected a reaction, but nothing prepared me for the words that my mom was about to speak. I had never in my entire life heard her use words like these against another person.

My skin felt clammy as mom finally opened her mouth.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Mom spat. "What? Wasn't murdering our baby girl enough pain inflicted?! It's your fault she's dead. You killed her. YOU killed my little girl! MURDERER!"

My mouth fell open in shock, and I was unable to breathe.