A/N: Hey, guys! I know I've been away for way too long and the end of this story is way overdue. So I'll do my best to finish it as fast as possible. (I also know it needs a lot of editing, but that will come after.) Thanks for sticking around!
Here's a short recap on what happened so far:
Summer was just starting when Nikki met Jason - a total hottie with an ego with the size of an elephant and a black book almost as thick as the yellow pages. Even though she has a steady boyfriend - Brandon, she can't seem to be able to shake her attraction to Jason off. They bumped into each other here and there, where he practically drove her crazy. Soon enough, they ended up on vacation at the ocean together (with their friends Rob and Dan and their girlfriends Nadia and Sylvia), where they even had to share a room. Nikki tried to bury her attracton to Jason, fought against his attempts to break the wall she put between them but in the end she she could only fight for so long. She decided that the way to deal with the whole thing once and forever, was to get it out of her system by indulging into it. Luckily (or was it), so did Jason. So now, with only one evening away on vacation left, she has to do everything she can to get over it. However, a new problem arose in the meantime. There might be more to the physical attraction than she thought.
Hope you enjoy reading the rest!
Xo,
Summer
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'Last night, guys. I say we go somewhere fancy,' Rob suggested as we all gathered together at the reception desk. Lionel was there but it somehow didn't bother me anymore. I was never going to see him again after tonight, so. Besides, I got other things on my mind.
Dan was flipping through the pages of some magazine. When we got close enough, I realised it was one of those places-to-go-and-things-to-do catalogues.
'Shinbashi Shimizu?' he read out loud, trying on some accent that was unrecognizable.
'Sounds fancy enough,' I agreed.
We wrote the address down and took a couple cabs. The fancy place turned out to be a sushi restaurant at the edge of town, looking down at the ocean.
'Mademoiselle.' Jason pulled my chair as we walked in and the hostess led us to a free table in the middle of a spacious hall.
'You realise sushi comes from Japan and not France, right?' I teased as I settled on the chair. His cavalier gesture baffled me a little. I mean, come on, this was Jason! Not that I was complaining. Actually yes, I was. He had to quit being sweet! It was confusing and I didn't need more of that.
He sat beside me and leaned closer to my ear so I was the only one hearing his next words. 'With you, I'd rather practise my French.'
I struggled to keep my face straight. Now, that was better. That was exactly where I intended to keep Jason for the rest of our stay here. Yes, his sexual innuendos had been driving me crazy for the last couple of days but it was either them or the stupid butterflies. And right now, I hated butterflies.
'You know, it does sound a little rusty,' I encouraged the conversation.
He grinned. 'I guess I need more practice then.'
'Should we arrange a session for later?' I offered which caused the arch of his left eyebrow. No, Jason, I'm not bluffing. I saw his eyes grow with the realization that I was actually being serious.
'Bathroom. In five,' he muttered and I nodded.
'What are you two whispering about?' Dan threw in from across the table and we both looked up. While we had been engaging in our little foreplay of a conversation, the rest had settled in their seats.
'School.'
'Food.'
Jason and I spoke in unison and shared a look the second we realized our mistake.
'The food in the school cafeterias,' Jason hurried to glaze it over. 'Imagine if they served sushi!'
No one had the time to comment because the waiter appeared, in his way too formal uniform, and gave each of us a menu.
'Excuse me, where's the ladies room?' I asked as he handed me mine.
'Go left at the bar and you'll see it at the end of the hall,' the man instructed.
Perfect. No direct view from our table.
'Thank you. I'll be right back,' I announced to my friends as I pushed my chair back.
'Wait. I'll come with,' Sylvia chimed in and I stopped short. Damn. Why did we girls always have to go to the bathroom in pairs! I gave Jason an apologetic look and took off with Sylvia.
Since I didn't really need to use the toilet, I glued myself to the super-sized mirror above the sinks and started rummaging through my bag in search of some make-up. Sylvia didn't seem to have the need to go either. Hell, why did she come? She mirrored my actions and pulled her lip-gloss out of her purse.
Now, the next thing came as a total shock.
'You know, you and Jason look cute together,' she said casually as she unscrewed the pink cap of the tube in her hands.
What?
'We're not,' I shot back. Crap. That was too fast. Just breathe, Nikki. 'Together, I mean,' I added, aiming for nonchalant, and pulled out the first thing my fingers reached at the bottom of my bag. It was my mascara.
'I know you're not. I'm just saying.' She touched the brush to her lower lip and started spreading a layer of gloss on. I breathed in quietly, to regain myself from her unexpected comment and went on pretend-fixing my look, as if this unforeseen topic of our girl talk wasn't disconcerting at all. 'If you weren't with Brandon...,' Sylvia kept going, 'He's a very good looking guy. Quite the catch.'
Where was she going with that? Had she noticed anything? Why the sudden trip to Hypothetical Land? Anyhow, I had to hit reverse.
'Yeah, and he changes girls like underwear,' I reminded us both. I didn't need her to put even more ideas in my head. I mean, okay, he was super hot and okay, maybe even funny but his 'catch' characteristics ended there. Jason was no boyfriend material.
'Hm. True,' Sylvia agreed. 'Maybe he hasn't found the right one yet.'
Right! Those clichés were only true in the movies. 'Yeah, I don't think so. I can't imagine a world in which Jason Cool would stick to one girl.'
Not even me. Uh, why was I even thinking about it? Sylvia was messing with my head.
'I don't know. Maybe there's more to him than he lets people see.'
I couldn't help but ponder on that. I mean yeah, Jason was a total jerk almost all the time, but there were these glimpses of another side of him. Like when he stood up for me before our swimming lesson or when he didn't give me a hard time when I 'broke up' with him after our first night here and totally respected my decision. And all the other rules I'd set, no matter how ridiculous they may have seen to him. Or how he kept this thing that was going on between us a secret, even when his reputation was at stake. Maybe, Sylvia wasn't completely wrong. Maybe...
Stop it, Nicole! You don't really want to go there.
I shook my head mentally. 'Enough about Jason. You and Dan seem tight.'
Yep, a change of subject always did the trick. Her gaze turned dreamy. For a second there, I thought her pupils had shifted into heart-shapes.
'God, I'm so happy when he's around. I wish we could stay here longer.'
'Have you guys talked about fixing your living situation?' I inquired as I switched the mascara for my own gloss and took my turn to spread some on my lips. The more we talked about her and Dan, the less we talked about me and Jason.
Her features dropped a little. 'No. I don't want to be the one to say anything first. I don't want him to feel pressured into doing something he's not ready for.'
'Maybe he's thinking the same thing about you. Someone needs to make the first step, you know.' Boy, it was so easy to give other couples advice for their relationships. Why was it so confusing when it came to mine?
Sylvia took her time to consider my words. I recognized the hopeful boost in her voice when she responded, 'You're right. Maybe I'll say something.'
'That's the spirit,' I encouraged.
'Thanks, Nikki!'