Chapter 11

He woke up the next morning, excited to see Nicki and get to take her home. He showered, put on a grey v neck t-shirt, jeans, and white sneakers. 

He called Heather. “Hey, hope I’m not bothering you getting ready for work,” he said. 

“Oh I start in a few hours, I just told Nicki that hoping she’d call you to take her home. Help you out a bit more.”

“Thanks. I need your help. She’ll need something to wear to come home, not sure she’ll want to come home in what she wore that night, if it’s even salvageable. Can you pick out an outfit for her and I’ll pick it up on my way to the hospital?”

“Sure. That’s great thinking, actually.”

“I’m just full of surprises for you lately, aren’t I?”

“Sorry about yesterday, I…”

“Don’t even worry about it. You’re doing SO much to help me with all of this. I saw her again last night, she said she wouldn’t be opposed to seeing me later this week, we should definitely do a movie night. I’ll bring food, it’ll be great.”

“I’ll start picking out cheesy rom coms to get her mind in the right headspace,” Heather replied. 

“Start with an outfit, then the movie choices,” Justin laughed. 

“I’ll have them ready by the time you get here.”

He drove over to Heather’s, getting a bag of clothes from her before getting back on his way. He then picked up a coffee for her on his way to the hospital. As he walked in the hospital, he noticed more staff hanging around the halls on his way to see Nicki. 

He went to knock on her door, but it was already open. Parker sat in a chair he’d pulled close to Nicki’s bed. He stood up when he saw Justin walk in. 

“I’ll see you around, I’m glad they’re letting you volunteer,” he said, glaring at Justin as he walked out. Justin wanted to glare back, but Nicki was within his line of sight. The hairs on the back of Justin’s head stood on end to compensate for his lack of facial response. 

His eyes brightened as he looked at Nicki. “Good morning,” he smiled. “I brought you some things.”  He gave her the coffee first, which she excitedly accepted, enjoying that first taste. 

“What’s in the bag?” she asked. 

“I swung by your place and had Heather get some clothes for you to come home in. Wasn’t sure if they had what you were wearing the night of the accident.”

“The bag with all my stuff is in the closet, I hadn’t even thought about it.”

She got out of bed, pulling out the bag. She saw clothes in the bag. “It’s in here. Should I look at it?”

“Up to you. I can describe the outfit if you’d rather…” he suggested. 

“Let’s do that,” she agreed. 

“It’s a red dress, the top part around the shoulders is sheer, the dress stops at your knees. You were wearing heels, and a black coat with a belt around the waist.”

“So it was a fancy date,” she said. 

“Yes, it was.  You looked amazing.”

“I’ll have Heather look at it when she gets home, I’m worried seeing it as is might traumatize me.”

“It might, for either of us,” Justin said. 

“Right. I forgot you were there, definitely best to have Heather look at it.”  She quickly put the bag back in the closet, took the bag from Justin, and went into the bathroom to change.

She came out, wearing a purple top, dark jeans, and black ankle boots. The top made the green in her eyes pop, Justin smiled as she came out. 

“What’s the smile for?” she asked. 

“You. You’re beautiful,” he sighed. 

She blushed. “Thank you.”

She sat on the bed, drinking her coffee, waiting for Dr. Hanover.

“What did Parker want?” Justin asked. 

“He was just saying hi before his shift. He’s been dropping in as his schedule allows.”

Great, Justin thought to himself. His jaw clenched thinking about it.

Dr. Hanover walked into the room. “Good morning, let’s get you out of here Nicole.”

“I’d like that,” she nodded. 

“I have your discharge paperwork, just need you to sign after we go over it. Just details what happened, the treatment and tests we ran. There’s nothing you need to do after leaving, just live life. Some things have come back, more should slowly return. Get help from your friends on your regular schedule. I know you’ll be volunteering during the week, which is great. Hopefully your friends will help you fill in your nights and weekends.”  He glanced at Justin during his last comment. Justin nodded at Dr. Hanover. 

“We’re already on it,” Justin interjected. 

“Great. Nicole, just sign here and we’ll process this. A nurse will come with a copy of your paperwork and they have to have you leave in a wheelchair. Hospital policy for almost all of our inpatient discharges. I hope to see you around, Nicole, maybe in the cafeteria. You’re welcome to say hi around here, some of the staff have gotten attached to you.  It’s been my pleasure to be your doctor; here’s hoping I can now just be a colleague.  Have a great day Nicole, Justin.”

He left the room, closing the door behind him, leaving Justin and Nicki alone. I wanna kiss her, but this is not the time or place, he thought. 

“You wanna grab some breakfast on the way home? Not sure if you’ve eaten yet…” Justin said nervously. 

“I only had a muffin this morning, in case you asked. If you didn’t, I was going to.”

“Alright then. I know just the place,” Justin said. 

They waited for the wheelchair to come, Justin wheeling her down to the main entrance. He grabbed his car and drove up to help her get in. The bag with her clothes went into the trunk. He turned onto Wilshire Blvd, driving until he pulled into a parking lot in front of a little cafe, Amandine Patisserie and Cafe. 

They sat down at a table, looking over the menu. “Have I been here before?” Nicki asked. 

“You? Yes?  Me? No. You’ve brought pastries from here for me, but I’ve never been here.”

“Well, there goes having you order for me then.  If we like it, I guess we’ll just have to come back and try more of the menu…” Nicki said. 

“I guess so…” Justin smiled. 

Nicki ordered the Lorraine omelette and a chocolate croissant, Justin got the breakfast combo with a berry danish. 

“So, tell me more about growing up in Tennessee, I feel like there was more to say last night. What did you do for fun?”

“Played a lot of basketball, I got into golf a bit, but mostly basketball. Video games too, but not as much as sports, really get my energy out.”

“What got you to move to Orlando?”

“ I auditioned for a TV show. While we were there, my mom saw this other opportunity and I auditioned for that and got in. If I made it on the first audition for the TV show, I wouldn’t have even known about the other opportunity. I wouldn’t have met JC, my group of friends, any of this. My life would be completely different, and I am thankful it worked out the way it did.”

They spent more time talking about his younger days. Justin was used to being interviewed that he was able to be very calculated in what he said, not wanting to blow his cover. He knew at some point she’d find out, and she hoped it wouldn’t change what she thought about him. That she could see the man he was without the fame and hectic schedule. 

“I think if we stay here much longer they’ll charge us rent,” Justin laughed. “Mind if I take you home?”

“Only if you come in and stay a while,” she said. 

He nodded with a smile. “I think I can do that.”

They walked to his car, he opened her door for her, and headed to take Nicki home. Justin continued talking about his childhood, trying to sound as normal as possible. 

He parked in front of her place, letting her use her key to open the door. She stopped to look at all the pictures on the walls in their living room, then the hallway. Justin tucked her bag in Heather’s room for her to look at later. 

Nicki stood in front of her bedroom door, staring at it. Justin put a hand on her shoulder. “You ready?” he asked. 

“I have to at some point…” she sighed. She took a deep breath, swallowed hard, and turned the knob slowly. The door inched open, before finally opening all the way. 

“I don’t know why I am scared of my own room, it’s not like this is where the accident was…” she said. 

“No, but certain things might make memories come back that maybe you aren’t ready for.”

“I guess. The walls seem so empty. Not what I thought it would look like.”

Justin swallowed hard. Do I tell her the truth? He asked himself. 

He didn’t need the answer because she walked back down the hall before sitting on the couch. Justin followed behind at a distance. She smiled at him, patting the seat next to her. “You going to sit?”  He smiled and crossed the room to join her on the couch. 

“What now?” he asked. She turned her petite frame to face him. 

“Is it bad I want to just look into your eyes a while?” she replied. 

“That sounds nice,” Justin answered back. He turned to face her, their eyes locking. He felt a sense of calm wash over him. I could lose myself in her eyes, he thought. 

Why does this feel so familiar? Nicki wondered. Is there more to Justin and me? She slowly moved her hand towards his, lacing her fingers between his. 

Damn it, just kiss her, Justin! he thought. No, unless she kisses you first, save that for the end of your date.  His eyes stayed locked on hers, using his peripheral vision to look at her lips. Those beautiful lips, so soft, warm, inviting. I miss kissing her, but it’s too soon. 

“Thinking about something?” she asked. 

“Just you,” he answered honestly. 

She hummed slowly in response. She brought herself closer to him, she closed her eyes, moving slowly closer. 

Justin’s phone rang. For the love of God!  It was Johnny, he had to take the call. “Sorry, gotta take this,” he shrugged sheepishly in apology. 

Nicki sat as Justin walked down the hall talking on the phone. She got up and walked over to what she guessed was hers and Heather’s DVD collection. She looked through the titles, trying to remember which ones were her favorites compared to Heather. 

Justin walked back out into the living room. “That was my manager, he needs me at his office for a meeting. I’m sorry, Nicki.”

“It’s fine. I’ll see you soon?” she asked hopefully. 

“Definitely,” he replied. 

He hugged her, holding her close. It felt so good to hold her like that again. She looked up at him, and he tilted his face down to her. Nicki got on her tiptoes. “Until then,” she said, and kissed his cheek. 

He left feeling wonderful, yet sad that their moment had been cut short. I’ll see her soon, and I can call or text her. Sunday needs to hurry up and get here.