The Journey

Chapter 8

Elisha

I woke up the next morning to sunlight shining directly onto my face. Stretching, I felt something brush my hand and I looked down to find Nick still sleeping on the floor beside me. I took this opportunity to study his handsome face in detail. His lashes really were so long, fanned against his cheek. His nose was slightly tipped up on the end, giving it a slightly upturned look, and his jaw was well-chiseled and strong, his lips small and nicely formed. All in all, he had a rugged face, very far from the geeky person he used to be before. I wondered if he was using contacts in his eyes or if he had laser eye surgery over the years.

Sighing, I stood up and saw that he had been holding my hand while we slept. My cheeks burned with the realization that I slept soundly knowing he was there with me, and again my heart was filled with warmth the same way it did when he sacrificed to sleep beside me there in the living room.

I tiptoed out of the room and went into Newton's bedroom to get ready for the day. Taking out my clothes from my bag, I walked inside the bathroom and locked the door. A shower sounded heavenly at the moment.

While I showered, I couldn't help but think about the events that happened yesterday. So many things had occurred that I didn't know what to think anymore. All I knew for sure was that Nick was starting to really grow on me and I was in serious danger of losing my heart once more to another McAllister. Who would have thought that he was so sweet, so kind, and so gentle. All those years of being in love with Newton blinded me to his brother. I was so consumed by our relationship that I never took the time to know Nick. And now that I finally had the chance to see him, it was as if my heart felt that it was home, that it was meant to feel all these feelings again with him.

But he had a girlfriend, my mind screamed rationally. Of course. I could never let him know how I felt. Besides, this was probably only just a rebound thing. I had to keep reminding myself of that.

Exiting the shower, I dried myself off using Newton's towel. It still brought a pang of nostalgia to me, but at least it wasn't as painful as last night. Putting on my underwear, I realized I'd left my bra in my bag. I went outside into the bedroom to retrieve it. I picked it up from the bed and turned to go back into the bathroom, only to come face-to-face with Nick, his mouth open as he stared at my bare breasts.

My hands quickly shot up to hide my chest, "what are you doing!?"

He snapped his head away from me so fast I thought he'd have whiplash, his face turning beet-red, "I-I-I came to get some clothes from Newt's closet and-and I didn't see much, I swear. I mean, I saw them but I didn't ... Shit. I'm sorry!"

I ran into the bathroom and shut the door, then leaned against it, my heart beating triple time. That was so embarrassing! Glancing at the mirror, I looked at my red face, then my eyes went down to my breasts. They weren't that big. I was always so conscious about them because I sometimes noticed Newton glancing at girls with boobs bigger than mine. But they'd never bothered me before...not like now. Did Nick think they were too small too?

Shaking my head at my wayward thoughts, I immediately got dressed in a bright yellow sleeveless shirt and jeans. Peeking out of the bathroom door, I saw that I was alone in the room. I put on my socks and sneakers, zipped up my bag, and carried it out with me into the living room.

Nick was in the kitchen, wearing one of Newton's shirts and jeans. I blushed furiously and cleared my throat, "good morning."

He turned to me and also blushed. Averting his gaze, he motioned to the frying pan he was holding, "good morning. Breakfast in five minutes. Hope you like eggs and bacon. There's coffee in the pot, freshly brewed."

"Sounds delicious," I commented, grabbing two mugs from the cabinets and pouring coffee into them. He wouldn't look at me at all. It was sort of funny and cute. I set the table for two and waited while he dished out the eggs and bacon. We ate in silence until I cleared my throat again, "so what's first on our agenda today?"

He seemed relieved to be talking about neutral topics, "first we visit his cabin, then if there's nothing there, we'll go straight to the Yacht Club and check out if he's in his boat."

I nodded, "okay. I'll wash the dishes while you go get dressed."

That made him turn bright red again. It was interesting teasing him this way. Before I could do anything else to embarrass us, he jumped up and left the kitchen, mumbling about a shower. Chuckling to myself, I stood up and did the dishes, thinking about him. For all his newfound confidence, the mere sight of boobs, and not so spectacular boobs at that, had quite an impact on his equilibrium. Boys were so predictable.

Drying my hands, I put everything back where they should be and went into the living room to wait for Nick. Again, my gaze wandered to the missing pictures. When did Newton get the time to remove every single one? Right after he came home drunk? And where were the pictures now?

Plopping down on the couch, I took out my cellphone and called Marcie.

"Hey," she greeted.

"Hey, Mars. How are things?"

She sighed, "still the same. No improvement. Where are you now?"

"Still in New York but I'll be going to the outskirts of town in awhile. Call me if anything happens, okay?"

"Will do. Be careful there."

Wish I could warn my heart about that. "Thanks. You too." Nick came into the living room, hair still wet, wearing a navy blue shirt and faded jeans and running shoes. He looked simply guy-next-door. My heart was exercising a lot just by the sight of him.

"Ready to go?" Nick asked, flipping his hair back as he jiggled Newton's car keys.

Resisting the urge to run my hand through his hair, I managed to nod. We walked out of Newton's apartment and locked it behind us. He grabbed the straps of my bag and our fingers touched, sending sizzling tingles up my arm. Hoisting my bag up on one shoulder, he reached out and took my hand in his warm grasp, surprising me with his move. But I didn't remove my hand from his. Why question a good thing, right? I knew I was already way in over my head but I was a glutton for punishment. I decided to milk this for all it was worth. It would all be over when we find Newton anyway, so I might as well make the best of it.

We took the elevator to the basement garage. I snuck a peek at his profile while we were going down. He was grinning, surprisingly. "Why don't you take a picture, Winters? It would last longer," he drawled jokingly.

I burst out laughing. Out of all the things I expected to hear from Nicholas McAllister, that was the most ridiculous. "Arrogant, much?" I teased.

He chuckled and shrugged modestly, "hey, if you've got it..."

"Oh, my gosh! Who are you and what have you done to my friend Nick?" I laughed, enjoying his playful side.

His eyes twinkled mischievously, "truthfully, I'm an alien who kidnapped Nick and dissected his brain to figure out what makes you humans tick, and now I have come to kidnap you and dissect your brains too!"

I shoved him away, "you're insane! Where do you come up with these ideas? You're so lame!"

He dropped my bag and grabbed my wrists in both his hands. I winced as his fingers dug into the bruises he'd made yesterday. He quickly let go, surprised at my reaction, "what's wrong?"

I tried to hide the bruises, but he had already grasped my hand and saw the dark purple marks.
He let out a strangled gasp, "did I do this?"

"N-no," I lied, but he saw through it.

His face was anguished, "I'm so sorry, Eli. I never meant to hurt you."

"No big deal, it will be gone tomorrow," I said lightly.

He shook his head, "I'm sorry. It will never happen again."

"Hey," I reached out to hold his face steady as I met his eyes. "Listen to me. I'm okay. It's nothing. I'm fine."

Nick gazed down at me, his eyes still tortured. Suddenly, his gaze dropped down to my lips, and I felt the hairs at the back of my neck rise at the shift in his mood. Without a word, his lips came crashing down onto mine.