Nicole's dad died when she was eleven. Her parents also got divorced when she was in elementary school. Nicole had no idea what it was like to have a constant father figure. Her grandpa, arguably her favorite family member, died of a rare form of cancer when Nicole was six. She cannot even remember now anything about him or her dad. All of Nicole's life has been ruled by overpowered female figures who controlled her life and still do. She has her mother, who is not like a typical mother to her. She was never good at handling money, so when Nicole's dad died, her mother had no way to afford their small house (which was the best house Nicole ever lived in) and so Nicole and her widowed mother went to live with her grandmother and aunt as well as the aunt's son. The son, Darren was the closest Nicole ever came to a brother or a father. Darren was five years older than Nicole and all throughout her life, Darren also took care of her but recently they have been drifting apart. All of Nicole's potential father figures or lack thereof, are gone or have their own lives.
When Nicole moved in with her grandma, it was like a reign of terror had begun. She was demanding, controlling, and manipulative. Nicole never understood why her grandmother's demeanor had changed but as she got older, she realized it was because her grandfather, Mike, had always calmed her down. So, without him, she took authority over other people's lives and controlled what everyone ate, said, and wore.
Nicole's shyness stemmed from the fact that her grandmother controlled her life and why she often sought out other things to get her mind off of her home life. By the time she was in high school, Nicole had one friend. Sarah was a loud, overly egoistical girl who found a friend in a shy, soft-spoken girl. Opposites for sure, but they were the best of friends until they weren't.
During study hall, which they both shared together, Nicole and Sarah would often sneak out of the library and find hidden away places in the large high school. Their favorite spot was by the auditorium, in a little nook, by a door that led to a hallway inside the walls. They would sit there for the duration of study hall talking about boys, teachers liked, teachers they liked in a different way, and complain about the popular girls who rolled in money.
After school, they took the same bus, to the same stop, and only separated because their houses were around the block from each other. Every weekend, Nicole and Sarah hung out and walked to the small shopping area in town to get Starbucks. On the walk there and back, they would gossip and complain about everything. Nicole would have not gotten her first kiss if it wasn't for Sarah inviting her neighbor to get Starbucks with them one day and if Nicole did not choose 'dare' in the truth or dare game.
Sarah had many other friends besides Nicole but for a while, Sarah was her only friend. That was until a boy came along during their Sophomore year. Nicole lives inside her head most of the time. Ever since her first kiss with that neighbor, she has been daydreaming about being with him. Nicole did not care about any other guy but when she saw Jack, it was game over. The one and only time she looks up from her phone, she noticed the honey-brown eyes scanning the crowd of people for someone. For a brief moment, their eyes locked but then Jack looked past her, ignoring Nicole as everyone else had before.
Nicole was the type of girl to sit alone at lunches that she did not share with Sarah. She would nonchalantly move her stuff if someone sat next to her. Girl or boy, she wouldn't give them any attention. Nicole was the type of girl to have her nose in a book while everyone else went out partying. She was not oblivious to boys, however. Nicole often dreamed of having a big family with two dogs and three kids. She wanted her happily ever after. Nicole is often described as a hopeless romantic. She loves fast and hard. Seeing Jack, for a split second in the hallway, lit a flame under her. She wanted to get to know him, but she knew Jack had no idea she existed. That was until, one day, Nicole was at her locker and her phone slipped from her hands.
