A/N:
Well, I just had breakfast and now I'm posting Chapter 8.
Now that I think about it, I guess this story kind of has two climaxes... and, one of them is coming up. I'm going to be evil and not elaborate, though.
The A/N at the beginning of Chapter 7 was really long, so I'll keep this one short.
Happy Reading!
Chapter 8
Will
So, Nick likes men. That was definitely a shocker. But, that makes me feel better since I know that I definitely like Nick. I have thought about it over the past few days, and it was confirmed. Every single time that I look at Nick, my heart flutters. Every single time I make eye contact with Nick, I feel that zap of electricity pass between us. Whenever Nick's in the same room as me, I know it. He's never surprised me... ever.
Well, except for the thing about him liking men. I wonder if he likes someone here at Kensingburg? I wonder if he likes someone on the hockey team? I wonder if he likes me?
Right now, he's picking up a phone call from my mom for me. "Hello?". He listens for a moment and then continues, "Yeah, I'm Will's roommate. My name is Nick. Nick Thompson.". He pauses again. "Yes, Will is here. He's just packing for his trip.". He listens and then smiles, "Yes, I know about his trip down to see you and his dad. We're... close.". At that, he looks at me and smiles wider.
I smile back at him and then walk over. I take my phone from him and talk to my mom, "Hey, Mom. How's it going?".
I can hear the smile in her voice, "Hi, Will. I'm good. How are you doing? Your roommate sounds nice.".
"Nick?", I say, making eye contact with him. Yep, that now-familiar zap of electricity again. "He is pretty amazing.".
I see Nick's cheeks redden and he mouths, "What are you doing?".
I shake my head and listen to what my mother is saying, "Hey, you should invite Nick over to our house. Does he have any plans for this weekend?".
My eyes widen and I nearly gasp. "What? Mom, Nick is probably busy!". Nick's face now has a look of confusion on it. I turn away from him and continue speaking, "I'm not sure if he has plans, but-".
But, I'm interrupted by Mom, "Then ask him and see. Call me later when you have an answer for me, okay? I'll set an extra place for dinner and set up the guest room for him. Bye, Will!".
I sigh as Mom hangs up on me. Then, I turn to Nick, who's even more confused than before and say, "How do you feel about visiting my mom, Dad, and sister?".
His confusion disappears and a smirk takes over his face, "Your mom wants... no, your mom is forcing you to bring me to visit your family?".
My jaw drops open, "How did you know?".
"Well, you said earlier on the phone that I'm probably busy. Then, you said that you didn't specifically know that I was busy. And, now, you asked me if I wanted to visit your family. I put all the clues together.", Nick then has a smile on his face -- the kind you get when you're walking down memory lane. "My mom used to be the exact same way whenever I made new friends.".
I furrow my eyebrows, catching something he said. "Wait. 'Used to'?".
He gives me a small, sad smile, "Yeah... my parents both passed away in a car accident five years ago. Me and Eddie were fourteen. From then on, we lived with our aunt and uncle... my dad's older sister and brother-in-law. They also have a daughter, Tessa, who was twenty when the accident happened. She was in university at the time. After the accident, me, Eddie, and Tessa became really close. She's almost like an older sister to me and Eddie now.".
Losing one parent is hard. Losing both? Even harder. Losing both at the same time? I don't know what I'd do without my mom and dad. I don't know what Jane, my sister, would do without Mom or Dad.
"I'm so sorry, Nick.", I swallow hard. "I didn't mean to...". I trail off, not knowing how to finish.
Nick wipes at his eyes, "It's okay. You didn't know.".
I can see big, fat tears coming out of Nick's eyes. This is the second time I've made him cry. The first time was when he was ignoring me and I questioned him, making him snap. Now, this is the second time. I don't like making Nick cry, but that seems to be what I'm good at.
I walk closer to him and wrap my arms around his body. Instantly, Nick's arms start pushing against my chest, trying to push me away, but I'm too strong for him. And, I'm not going anywhere. My arms wrap around him tighter as he begins to cry freely now. He clutches the back of my hoodie, bringing me closer to him. Subconsciously, I kiss the side of his head, but I don't think Nick notices it.
A few minutes later, I feel Nick go still against my body and I release him a little from my tight grip. But, Nick pulls me closer and I am more than happy to hold him in my arms. I'll hold him for as long as he needs... even forever.
"Th-thank you.", Nick says in a stuttery and raspy voice.
"You're welcome.", I reply, smiling.
He lets go of me and I let go of him. His eyes are red, but he's smiling.
"So, where did you get the courage to do that?", he asks me.
"The courage to do what?", I ask back.
He is wiping his face with his sleeves. He's going to have to change his hoodie later. Heck, I'm also going to have to change my own hoodie before I leave. Speaking of leaving...
"So... you didn't answer my question from earlier.", I smirk.
"You're avoiding my question, but I'll let it go.", he smirks back at me. Good, he has that confidence he has around me back. "What question?".
I clutch at my heart, pretending to be hurt. "Aaah, Nicky boy, you wound me! You forgot my question?".
His eyes narrow at the nickname I gave him. "First off, 'Nicky boy'? Are you copying me? Second, seriously, what question are you talking about?".
He has an annoyed expression on his face, but I can tell that he finds it cute by the look in his eyes.
"First off, yes, 'Nicky boy'. You call me 'Willy boy' and I haven't said anything about it, so you can't say anything either. Second, you didn't tell me yet if you want to go with me to my parents' place.", I respond.
His annoyed expression is instantly gone at my words and is replaced with a worried and nervous one. "Are you sure? What if they-".
"I'm going to stop you right there, Nick.", I cut him off. "My mom and dad will like you. Jane will like you, too.".
"Wait... who's Jane?", Nick asks.
"Oh, Jane is my sister. She's fourteen and in grade nine.", I smile. "You'll be fine, Nicky boy.".
Nick tries to fight a smile, but he can't. A bright smile overtakes his face. "Okay, it's seriously hard to take you seriously when you call me that. And, it's hard to say no.".
I get a huge smile on my face from excitement, "So, you're coming?".
Nick nods, chuckling, "Yeah, I'm coming.".
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A few hours later, I'm driving into Hill Valley. Nick is in the passenger seat beside me, looking more nervous than I've ever seen him before.
"What's on your mind?", I ask him.
He gives me a glare, "You wouldn't be nervous if you were in my position? I've known you for, like, two weeks. And now, suddenly, I'm meeting your parents.".
I smile and grab his left hand which is in his lap with my right hand. I place our hands in the middle of our two seats. My hand is larger than his, but his small hand brings lots of warmth to me. Of course, I surprise Nick, but surprisingly, he surprises me because he doesn't pull away. My smile gets wider.
"What are you doing?", Nick asks.
"Holding your hand. Is that a problem?", I reply.
"Why are you holding my hand?", Nick is holding back a smile.
"Because I want to.", I respond, keeping my eyes on the road. Then, in a whisper, "And, I always get what I want.".
With both of us smiling wide, I pull up into my parents' driveway. I look over at Nick and see that he's nervous again. I let go of his hand to take off my seat and then proceed to unbuckle his. He turns to face me and begins to say something, but I'm faster than him. I take his face in my hands and lean in.
With my heart racing, I place a soft kiss on his forehead. I see Nick's eyes flutter closed and mine do too, when my lips make contact with his forehead.
Leaning back a little, leaving a smidgen of space, I speak, "I know you're worried, but you will be fine. They will like you for sure... just like I do.".
I'm not entirely sure what overtook me when I said that last part. Maybe, for once, I'm listening to my heart rather than my head. I don't care about the consequences now. I pull back, but Nick's arms wrap around me, pulling me closer. I instantly and on instinct wrap my arms around him. This is the second time that I'm hugging him today.
"You like me?", Nick asks in a low tone.
"Yes. Yes, I like you, Nick.", I reply, nodding my head the best I can when we're hugging.
"I like you, too, Willy boy.", Nick says.
He has just made me the happiest I've been since I was named the captain of the junior men's hockey team this year. Don't get me wrong, being captain has nothing on this. This is way better.
Nick continues talking, "But, Will... you don't know me. You don't know who I really am. I'm afraid that I'm going to hurt you sooner or later. Probably sooner rather than later. So, I can't be with you.".
My smile drops and my arms go stiff around his body. "Nick... what is it? What are you talking about?".
I feel Nick shake his head, "I can't tell you. I know that my secret will come out to everyone anyway. I'll probably end up telling you before that happens on my own. But, I can't right now. I'm so sorry, Will.".
He pushes against my body, and I let go of him. A droplet of water lands on my arm, and I realize that it's not actually water. It's a tear. Nick has his head bent down a little, but I can tell that he's crying. Come on, this is the third time! Then, I feel something wet on my face. I'm crying, too, this time.
Nick looks up and sees that I'm crying. He reaches up and wipes under my eyes with his hands.
"Please don't cry, Will.", he soothes. "If and when I tell you my secret, you still want to be with me, I'll gladly be with you.".
"What is your secret? What's keeping you from being with me?", I ask.
"I can't tell you, Willy boy.", Nick smiles a little. "We're at your parents house and your mom is standing on the porch.".
My eyes widen and I look out the windshield to see that my mom is, in fact, standing on the front porch of our house. I wipe the rest of my tears away and Nick does the same. Then, looking at the mirrors and making sure we both look presentable, we walk out of my car. I don't know how long she's been standing there, but I really hope my mom doesn't realize what just happened.
End of Chapter 8
Umm... that just happened. *Author hides behind her computer*
I have no words except... "It's been eight chapters.".
And, there are 28 in total. Either you look at the math and say, "It's too soon!", or you say, "Finally!". It's up to you, dear reader.
Sooo... Will knows now that "Nick" has a secret. We, as the audience, know the secret, but he doesn't.
This story is separated into three parts. Mainly because, when I was sending the chapters to my friend, the Google Doc got too long and I couldn't email it as a PDF file (I refused to share it with her at the time because then she could see everything I write before the chapter officially is over.)
So, I decided to make another Google Doc. Part one is Chapters 1 to 10. Part two is Chapters 11 to 20. Part three is Chapters 21 to 28. Unfortunately, there's no epilogue to this story, but I'm working on something else based on Will and Laura's story.
On another note, I will say that Will's family is amazing. I love his mom, dad, and sister. I have a younger brother myself, so I get the relationship between Will and Jane.
I know that the fact that Nick is visiting Will's parents is a bit unorthodox, considering the fact that they are only roommates and friends right now. I will not tell you why this trip exists, but you will find out later, dear reader.
And, Will, you are not only good at making "Nick" cry. You have lots of other good qualities, too! (Wish I could tell him that.)
Thanks for reading!
~Pink Elephant
P.S.: What happened to me wanting to keep this A/N short?
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10/07/2021 (DD/MM/YYYY)
As always, the date is the day I published this chapter on.