Never Go Out of Style [#wattys2015]

Chapter 6 || Night changes

Noras's POV

Nick asked me out on a date and I immediately said yes. When I arrived home, I told my parents about my date and they were way too happy. My brother and my sister made fun of me but they were supportive. I asked my sister Anna to help me get ready for the date and she happily obliged.

"So who's the boy?" She asked.

"Nick Marshall." I replied nonchalantly.

She just nodded. To be honest, I wasn't ready to date but I was bullied so bad in my previous school that we had to move and I promised my parents I would do anything to fit in. Nick has been a great friend and this date is my opportunity to live a normal life and leave my terrifying past behind.

Of course I wasn't ready to date. I would much rather stay in my room and study than go out with a boy I barely know. His intellectual, though, interests me which is why I said yes in the first place.

"You look so pretty!" Anna said with a smile.

My hair was in a casual ponytail. I was wearing a cream lace dress just above the knee and almost no makeup. I actually liked my natural look.

I heard my doorbell ring and my brother immediately opened the door. I saw Nick walk in and he looked amazing. I smiled before noticing how foolish I probably looked and made my way towards Nick and he said I looked nice.

"You better be nice to my sister!" My brother said with a slight smirk. Nick was the first boy to ever meet my family.

"I will." Nick looked scared.

"Have fun, sweetie." My mother said.

"But not too much fun." My father added.

"Your family seems nice." Nick said smiling.

"They are." I smiled at him.

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We arrived at a cute little bistro and were greeted by a woman. Nick said he had a reservation and the woman showed us our table. The moon looked pretty and I could see the city lights.

"This an adorable restaurant." I said.

"I come here a lot with my family." He paused. "And Scarlett and Kaylee." He scratched the back of his head.

"What is your relationship with Scarlett?" I asked nonchalantly.

He looked at me stunned. "There's none." He replied.

"But you want to."

"We should order." He said.

We were silent for a while. He ordered chicken parmesan and I ordered pasta. The silence was really uncomfortable and I felt like I should apologize.

"I'm sorry for intruding." I blurted out.

He smiled. "It's okay. I just... didn't expect you to ask that. I'm here with you, not Scarlett and I really like you." He touched my hand and I pulled it right away.

We were once again in silence but Nick decided to break it by making some Physics jokes.

"A neutron walked into a bar and asked 'How much for a drink?' The bartender replied 'For you, no charge.'" He laughed and I had to laugh as well. Only people who don't get Physics don't understand the jokes.

"I know a good one." I smiled. "How many theoretical physicists specializing in general relativity does it take to change a light bulb?" Nick smiled and I knew he knew the answer. "Two. One to hold the bulb and one to rotate the universe." We both laughed and in that moment I really noticed Nick.

The boy I was on a date with was funny, incredibly intelligent, kind and cute. I was using him to make myself forget about my terrible high school experience, when probably we shared more than just Chemistry class.

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After we left the restaurant, I stopped to notice the moon.

"Did you know that the moon is drifting away from the Earth?" Nick asked.

"Really?" I looked at him.

"The Moon is moving approximately 3.8 cm away from our planet every year. It is estimated that it will continue to do so for around 50 billion years. By the time that happens, the Moon will be taking around 47 days to orbit the Earth instead of the current 27.3 days." He smiled and held my hand.

"Fascinating..." I kept looking at the moon and the stars when I noticed his hand on mine.

"Nora... I had fun tonight and that rarely happens." I looked at him. "What I mean is... I was wondering if you want to go on a second date?" He paused. "You don't have to give me an answer right now."

I kept staring at him with a blank expression on my face.

"Nora!" He called.

"Yeah?" I said.

"Do you want to go out with me again?"

"Sorry Nick, but I don't think it's a good idea." I answered him.

He looked down. "You didn't enjoy yourself."

"I did." I paused. "This is too much pressure." I said while running away from Nick.

I liked Nick but I didn't want to have a boyfriend. Junior year is very important and I want to make sure I get into MIT. Boyfriends can wait, but school is my life. On the other hand, I would never meet a boy as sweet and smart as Nick. I had a massive headache!