Nick's POV
Why was Nina not picking up. I've called her five times already. Let me check with Fabian.
Darn I don't have his number. I'll call Mara for it.
"Hello?" I heard a sexy sleepy voice through my phone. Get your head straight.
"Mara?"
"Nick?" She sounded surprised. I guess she didn't check the caller before picking up or she doesn't have my number.
"Can I get Fabian's number. I want to know if Nina's okay and she isn't answering her phone"
"That would be a waste of time"
"Why?"
"Fabian is no longer staying with Nina. They had...We all had a misunderstanding"
"So Fabian isn't with Nina?"
"No. He's here in the apartment"
Shit! Shit!
Nina was alone in her house and Fabian wasn't with her and Nina isn't picking up her phone. It was already 3:45
"Thanks Mara. See you at work"
I hung up and got dressed. I picked my car keys and ran out of my pent house into the elevator and pushed floor -1. The elevator opened to the car park. I got to my car and drove as fast as I could to Nina's house. Thank God I asked the workers to give me a spare key to her house.
I reached her house at exactly 5:00. Immediately I opened her door I heard her scream thank God her house is sound proof. I ran to her room and saw her screaming, crying and tossing still in the nightmare. Why the hell did it last this long?
"Nina" I yelled and pulled her out of it. She woke up screaming really loud and crying so hard. She pushed me away at first. "Nina. It's Nick."
She looked at me still crying and hugged me so tight I thought I was gonna stop breathing. She held on to me like she didn't wanna be pulled away from me by anyone. I held her and let her cry.
"I'm here. I'm here." As much as she tells our parents and I that she's fine, I hate the fact that she goes through this every night and now it seems worse, finding her thirty minutes longer than she normally is in The Unknown Eternity. She always snaps herself out of it at exactly 3:30 but why did tonight take longer?
Silence.
Her crying had turned to little sobs. I could feel her still shivering. From the temperature or from fear?
"Nina. Go back to sleep. I'll be right here when you wake up"
She shook her head "I can't...I'm too scared"
For the past twelve years she had The Unknown Eternity she never ever told me for once that she was scared. What was different.
"Nina do you wanna talk about it?"
Silence.
She let go of me and leaned on the headboard.
"Normally I wake up in the middle of nowhere that's very dark..." She told me about The Unknown Eternity which has her screaming in her sleep and when she's waking up.
"... but it didn't stop there tonight. I kept running and running and they caught up with me..." Why was tonight any different from other nights?
She cried as she told me about it. When she was done she looked at me
"I'm scared Nick"
I hugged her "Hey its okay. I'm here. I'm not leaving. Unless you want me to"
She shook her head "No. Don't go. Don't leave me alone"
We stayed that way for a while before I knew she was asleep in my arms. I laid her back on her bed. It was now 5:38. She must have been exhausted from the crying and screaming. I left her room and went to the parlour. This was gonna be a long night. I called my assistant and told her that I wouldn't be coming in for work in the morning and she should reschedule any appointment I have for another day. I didn't want to worry mum and dad, so I didn't bother calling them. I did some little work and research using Nina's laptop. I was about sleeping on the couch when I heard her scream.
Nina's POV
Nick came for me. He was the best friend in the whole wide world. I told him about The Unknown Eternity cause I couldn't keep it from him any longer. I wondered why tonight was different. I always snapped myself out of it when they were almost catching up with me. I don't know when it happened but I slept off somewhere between crying and telling Nick not to leave me.
Then I woke up, again in the middle of nowhere...No, don't touch me. Leave me alone. Let me go...Haaaaa!
Nick's POV
I ran up to her room as fast as I could. I opened her door and heard her mumbling.
"No, don't touch me. Leave me alone. Let me go" She tossed her head left to right. She began screaming. I shook her trying to snap her out of it. She woke up screaming again. She hugged me and cried.
What was going on today. Why was she having it twice and longer.
"It's gonna be alright. I promise."
Nina couldn't go back to sleep or rather didn't want to go back to sleep. I tried telling her it was just a one time thing and it won't happen again but she wouldn't listen. We stayed up and talked. It was now 8 something. I couldn't go back to sleep either.
"So I spoke to Mara this morning"
Silence.
"She told me you guys had a misunderstanding"
Nina's POV
Of course she did. Why would she ever tell the guy she loved that she had an argument with his sister. Does Nick even know that she's in love with him?
"More of an argument" I told him
"About what?" I knew he wasn't expecting me to say anything but I spoke
"Fabian was here on a duty and not because he cared"
I looked at him and saw his confusion. So I explained better.
"After I left the apartment, they came up with a plan for someone to come stay with me here, because they were sad that I was gonna be alone, without anyone being here to make me alright after I had The Unknown Eternity. A few days later, Fabian came over and told me he had a fight with Drew. I was shocked cause they were like brothers. So I let him stay here till he was ready to go back to the apartment. Then when I didn't have the nightmare that night and for the rest of the week because Fabian slept in the same bed with me, I wanted to tell them about it. I went to the apartment after school and found Fabian there. I was confused that he was there, then they told me about the plan they made. They said they knew I had a connection with Fabian than any other person in the apartment, so they had him lie that he had a fight with Drew so he could stay with me. He made me fall in love with him all over again because I thought he cared, but all along it was all a lie, and he never cared, he only pitied me cause he thought I was small, fragile and weak to handle it myself" I looked at him "Do you still think its a misunderstanding?"
He sighed.
"I'm really tired" I yawned
"You should go back to sleep" he said
I looked at him. I was scared just thinking about sleep.
"I'm fine"
"Okay" he got up "Do you want hot chocolate?" He got up
"Yes please"
"Okay" he went out of my room
Nick's POV
I saw the fear in her eyes when I told her to back to sleep. She looked really tired and her eyes were still red from all the crying. To make it plain and simple. She looked like a mess. A big giant mess. No kidding, but I'd never tell her that. She'd probably have my heart for breakfast.
"Do you want hot chocolate?" I got up
"Yes please" she said
"Okay"
I made two cups and took them to her room. I got to her room and found her sleeping.
Thank God.
I dropped the cups on the table and got a pen and a paper.
I didn't want to wake you up cause you were exhausted. Drink the chocolate. I won't be long.
-N.
I scribbled on the paper and put it under the cup to hold it.
I went downstairs, got my jacket. I got into my car and drove off to the apartment. From what Nina told me, it might seem stupid and cheesy but, I think the reason she's having longer nightmares is cause she had a fight with Fabian. I know how much Nina despises it when people pitied her. In school when she tried to make friends she'd tell them about her nightmares and they'd go. "That's so sad. How can you handle that all by yourself? You look so small.." and she'd go ballistic and walk out on them.
I got to the apartment and was about knocking when Mara opened the door about leaving. She looked at me and my world became perfect. Her emerald eyes just looked amazing with her raven hair. Ah, and those lips that I can't stop thinking about, that left a mark on me that night. I just want to taste them again. She was my definition of perfection.
She blinked twice trying to break the bond.
"Nick, what are you doing here?"
God! That sexy British accented voice.
"Hmm, I came to see you"
"Me?" She looked surprised
"Not you. I meant everyone" I quickly said
"Ohh" I saw hurt in her eyes before she looked away "Come in" she stepped aside for me to go in.
I stepped in and found all of them in the kitchen about to leave for work.
"Nick?" I heard Fabian say "Is Nina alright?"
I smiled. It was definitely a misunderstanding. He loved Nina. I could hear it in his voice and he cared too.
"That's why I'm here"
"What's wrong?" Drew asked
"I think we should better take this to the other room"
When they were all seated in the parlour.
"What happened to Nina?" Fabian asked
"She's having longer nightmares"
"Longer how?"
"I believe she's told you guys about it"
"Yea" they all said
"Well she told me this morning. She said it no longer ends when they catch up with her. She's having more"
"More what?" Amber asked
"She said they don't just catch up with her anymore. They grab her with their claws, they pull her back and drag her down. She said she tried getting away from them but they start tearing her apart and then she goes out, but she hears herself screaming really..."
Nina's POV
...and I hear myself screaming so loud but no one can hear me. I'm getting too tired to cry but the crying helps a lot with the pain inside. The pain theses things are inflicting on me is becoming unbearable. Its like having a surgery without anaesthetic. I just want to die.
Nick's POV
"...She can't snap herself out of it anymore. I got to her house at five and I heard her screaming. I had to snap her out of it before she realized it was The Unknown Eternity. She went back to sleep and I went downstairs to take care of somethings. I was about sleeping when I heard her scream again. It's worse than before. She didn't want to sleep again but she was really tired. She told me she wanted hot chocolate, so I prepared it and when I went to give her, she was asleep. So I drove here to tell you guys. She's pretty mad at you guys, especially you Fabian." I faced him "She thinks everything that happened between you two was just part of the plan."
His jaw clenched. He was hurt.
"I have to see her" he said
"I think you all do" I said
"Let's go" Drew said
"I thought you had an emergency?" Amber asked
"I'll call Derek to take my place. He owes me a favour. Right now we have to prove to Nina that we do care. We made a mistake of caring too much and got carried away by pity" Drew said
"I just hope she hears us to out" Patricia said
"She will" I said
"Lets go" Fabian said
Fabian's POV
Everyone got up and went out of the apartment. The three awesome girls and Drew followed Nick. Joy and the twins followed me.
We got to her house. We all got out of the car. Nick unlocked the door and opened it. Then we all heard her famous scream.