Chapter 12

The next few days felt like torture for Justin. He’d talk to Nicki on the phone after work, but he didn’t want to be over all the time. He knew it would be difficult to wait until their date to kiss her. I want our new first kiss to be meaningful. It might bring her memory back and have the whole day be perfect. I mean, kissing her now would be great, but to end that date with a kiss, wow, he thought. 

Wednesday night came, and Nicki invited him over, at Heather’s suggestion. Justin grabbed Chinese from the restaurant he went to earlier in the week, getting a larger variety of food. 

He knocked on the door, hands full of bags of food. “Nicki, did we order Chinese for 10?” Heather laughed. “Come on in, Justin.”

Heather grabbed plates and utensils and Justin put the containers on the coffee table. “Jesus, you weren’t kidding when you said food for 10,” Nicki said when she saw all the food on the table. 

“I figured you wouldn’t mind leftovers,” he shrugged. “What’re we watching?”

Nicki went over to their DVD collection. “50 First Dates?”

“Umm, I’m not so sure on that Nicki…” Justin said cautiously. 

“Why?”

“You don’t remember what the story’s about?”

“I know it’s one of my more recent favorites, just not sure why.”

“I mean, yeah, it’s funny. But the girl has short term memory loss. I don’t want it bringing up anything bad…” Justin continued, his face showing worry, his eyebrows furrowed. 

“I’m getting more of my memory back, and I’ve got two of my best friends here if anything comes up.”

“In a way, we’re kinda living this movie, Justin,” Heather said. Trying to help her live her life after a car accident. She just remembers stuff that happened after. Nicki, if you’re sure, we’ll watch it.”

“If I have a problem, we can turn it off,” Nicki said. 

Nicki sat between Justin and Heather on the couch. They got their plates full of food and started to eat as they watched the movie. 

Nicki flinched during the scene showing the accident, turning towards Justin, burying herself in his chest. He wrapped his arms around her. Heather paused the movie. “Want me to fast forward a bit?” Heather asked. Nicki nodded, her head still against Justin’s chest. 

“Let us know when you’re ready. I’ll hold you as long as you need,” Justin said, stroking her hair and rubbing her back. Nicki stayed like this for about 5 minutes, silent tears streaming down her face, wetting Justin’s shirt. She slowly sat up. 

“Sorry about your shirt,” she said. 

“It’ll dry,” he said softly. 

“I think I’m ready to continue.”

Heather skipped ahead a little bit. They continued to watch the movie, grabbing more food as they were hungry. 

They got to the scene where Drew Barrymore’s character ends things with Adam Sandler’s character, in the middle of a storm. Between the rain, and Henry losing the girl, Justin fought back tears. Nicki noticed the look on his face, and slowly took his hand. This is my biggest fear, losing Nicki somehow in all of this, he thought. Nicki took his arm and wrapped it around her shoulder, holding his hand, lacing her fingers with his, and leaned into his body, resting her head on his shoulder. Things feel right, like they’re going back to normal.

The movie finished, and Heather got up to put the Chinese food away. Nicki and Justin sat together on the couch even after the movie finished. Justin pressed his head against Nicki’s, enjoying the moment. 

Nicki looked at her phone and realized she had a voicemail. She stopped and listened to it, sitting up. “The tow yard needs me to get my stuff out of the car so insurance can finish the claim to total it.  I don’t know if I can handle that…” she sighed, her voice quivering. 

“I’ll do it,” Justin said. 

“I’ll see if JC can go with you. It might stir up some trauma for you to see it as much as it would Nicki,” Heather offered. 

“Thank you,” Nicki said. “I gotta get to bed, this has been fun but also a bit draining, and I volunteer again in the morning.”

Justin walked her to her bedroom door. “I’ll see you Sunday for our date?” he asked. 

“Definitely, but I’d like to see you before then. That’s 4 days away.”

“Whenever you want me to come over, let me know. I’m in a bit of downtime right now, staying around the area, so I am definitely around if you need me.”

“Thanks. Just don’t want you to be…”

“Sick of you?” he interjected. “Never.”  He lifted her chin up, and gently kissed her cheek. “Good night Nicki. We’ll talk soon.”

He walked back out towards the front door. “Looks like you two were getting cozy, like old times,” Heather smiled. 

“It’s definitely feeling that way. We’ll see after Sunday. I’m trying so hard to wait to kiss her til then, so everything is perfect.”

“I like seeing this more romantic side of you, Justin.”

“What do you mean? Nicki and I were so cute we made you sick…” Justin responded. 

“You guys were all over each other, it was like ‘her bedroom’s down the hall’.”

“Sorry if we made you feel uncomfortable,” Justin sighed. 

“Maybe you’ll be more mindful moving forward. Tonight was cute seeing you too together.”

“We’ll, I’m gonna go. See you around, I told Nicki to invite me over anytime she wants.”

“See ya. I’ll call JC in the morning about going to get her stuff with you.”

Justin nodded as he walked out the door, putting on his jacket in the cool winter night air. Even for California, it was a little chilly. He got in his car and drove home. He could almost still feel Nicki’s body against his. Things felt good, as he drove with a smile and images of her in his head. 

…

The next morning, Justin woke up to a knock at the front door. Mostly asleep, he saw a text and missed call from JC. He hopped out of bed to answer the door. 

“Hey,” Justin yawned as he answered the door. 

“Glad to know you don’t sleep naked at home, but go get dressed, man,” JC said. 

“Gimme like 10 minutes to shower and dress, I’ll be right out.”  JC walked down the hall, looking at the different pictures and things on the walls. He smiled at a picture of the two of them with the rest of *NSYNC and Shaq. 

Those were the days, JC thought to himself. 

Justin came out in a graphic t-shirt, jeans, sneakers, and a baseball cap. “Let’s go. Can we grab coffee on the way?”

“It’s in the car. You didn’t answer my text or call on my way over, but grabbed something for you anyway.”

“Thanks man,” Justin said, closing and locking the front door behind them. “You driving?”

“Yessir, especially with what you’re gonna be looking at.  Hopefully no flashbacks, but understandable if you do.”

Justin got into JC’s car. “Just like the old days, it seemed you were always the one driving out of the five of us.”

“Well, Lance was barely old enough to drive, you couldn’t even have a permit, and no WAY did I trust Chris or Joey…”

“Ok, ok, yeah. I guess that makes sense.”

They talked a bit about the unofficial dates he and Nicki had had, how everything felt like it was leading in the right direction. Soon they got to the tow yard, lots of cars in various states of conditions. Some almost brand new, some almost unrecognizable as cars. 

Justin saw the back of her car from a distance, pointing towards it. “I think as long as I go from the passenger side, I’ll be ok.”

They slowly walked closer. Justin did his best to avert his eyes so he wasn’t even looking at the car as they approached. The passenger side door he’d used trying to get to her that night was still unlocked, so he didn’t need his key. He sank down to sit in her car. 

He opened the glove box, handing JC some CDs, her iPod and cord, lip gloss, and a pair of sunglasses. He checked the door for anything and found an umbrella. All that was left was the center console and the driver’s seat. He looked in the center console and found a book she had been reading, a pack of gum, and a small bottle of perfume. Angel, that was her favorite perfume. 

He slowly looked up, and saw Nicki’s side of the car. The door had been fully removed, the airbag cut out, everything crunched from impact. 

“No, no, no, no…” Justin said, as memories of that night came back. Seeing her car smashed in the rain, then trying to wake her up. Everything flooded back to him, he threw up in response of the overwhelming flood of emotions as he felt it all hit him. 

“Ok, you’re clearly done here…” JC said, pulling Justin out of the car. JC went in and did a quick check, holding his breath. He checked her visors and pulled out a picture. JC got out of the car, took a deep breath, and said, “you’re gonna want this.”  He handed the picture to Justin. 

“Heather took this picture at your party,” Justin smiled. “Like she knew we’d end up together.”

“She came to see ME, ended up leaving with YOU,” JC laughed. Justin gave him a look. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”  Justin nodded and they left. 

“I’ll hold on to these for our date, pull them out as she needs them,” Justin said. 

“You gonna see her before your date?” JC asked. 

“I’m trying to keep the ball in her court, I don’t wanna seem like I’m coming on too strong…”

“Man, you were with her for two YEARS before this. I’m sure it’s killing you not to see her…” JC replied. 

“It is, but we talk on the phone after she gets home, so it’s something.”

“She’s volunteering at the hospital, right?”

“Yeah. That way she’s familiar with patients, hoping things come back so she doesn’t have to do med school all over again. Not sure what the protocol is if you already have the degrees and something like this happens.”

“Parker isn’t still there, is he?” JC asked, tension in his voice and face. 

“YOU know about Parker?!”

“Heather went with Nicki to a party at the hospital one year. Let’s just say as the older brother, this guy better hope I never see him.”

“Woah. What happened?”

“I know Heather can hold her own, but she had a couple drinks and he got rather friendly. After Heather told him no, he kept pushing, then started asking about Nicki. Thank God you two were together already, but I think you were on tour or something that you couldn’t come. I mean, typical guy, but we know better now. When this stuff happens to your sister, it’s a bit of an ‘oh shit’ realization that changes you.”

“Fuck, he probably sees her every day. Damn it, now I wanna see her every day to stay in her head. But how do I do that without coming off as jealous? I mean, if the accident never happened it would be a non-issue, he’d stay away if he knows what’s good for him. But now that she thinks she’s single, she might just fall for him. FUCK!”

“Relax. Yes, it’s possible, but would she keep a date with you if she was interested in someone else?” JC asked. 

“I guess not, no.”  

“As long as she doesn’t cancel your date, you’re still in this.”  JC pulled up to Justin’s driveway. 

“Yeah. Thanks man.  Thanks for today, everything. Talk to you soon.”

“Just not before you talk to Nicki again…” JC answered as Justin got out of the car. 

He looked at his watch. 11:30. He had an idea, pulling out his phone. 

Hey, you want me to come over to see you on your lunch? He texted to Nicki. 

A couple minutes later, she responded. Sure. I don’t really have a set schedule here, so I can take as much time as I want. I’d love to see you.

I’ll be there in a bit. Where should I meet you? Cafeteria or Nurse’s Station in your ward?

Nurse’s Station is fine, we can figure out food from there. 

See you soon Nicki. 

Justin felt excited, glad she wanted to see him. He got in his car and drove over. He’d met her at work before, so he knew just where to go and wait for her. She was standing by a door, looking into a patient room, when he got there. She was in a set of lilac scrubs, her hair pulled back. He smiled at the sight of her. She turned to leave, saw Justin’s smiling face, and smiled back. 

Justin had to keep smiling as he saw Parker walk out of the room she had been at. Of course he has her shadowing him, he thought, focusing hard to keep the smile on his face. Parker saw Justin, and his face tensed up, brows furrowed and his jaw clenched. 

Justin greeted her with a hug and kiss on the cheek, wrapped an arm around her as they walked towards the elevators. “Where to?” he asked. 

“I was thinking that little bakery you took me to on Monday. Try some more of their menu.”

“Let’s head over then.”  They got in Justin’s car and drove over to the bakery. They sat down at a table and looked over the menu. Nicki decided on a turkey and avocado sandwich, just got a ham and cheese sandwich and a delice au chocolat for dessert. 

“So what are they having you do?” Justin asked. 

“I follow a doctor around on rounds in the morning, then circulate to help the nurses with small tasks, I read to the kids, different things as needed.”

“Are you usually with Parker, or other doctors too?”

“Mostly Parker, but a few others based on who’s on that day and that shift.  Thank you for texting me, I was getting a little tired of cafeteria food, this will be a good break. Of course the company is nice, too.”

“Is this helping bring back memories as far as work? I know you’d been worried about that.”

“Kinda, yeah. They’re not having me help with too much right now but I’m seeing a lot so that’s helping. Just hope I can remember it all when I need to actually do it, ya know?”

“If it’s starting to come back, I’m sure you’ll get there eventually. Just gotta take things one day at a time.”

“Thank you,” Nicki said. 

“For what?” Justin asked. 

“Being so patient with me. I’m sure it hasn’t been easy dealing with me not remembering certain things. Waiting so long for our date…”

“Hey, I’M the one that wanted our date this weekend, I’d wait as long as I had to for a date with you. If you were in the hospital for 6 months, I’d wait that long for you, Nicki.”

Nicki smiled. “You really like me, don’t you?”

“You just now figured that out? Was I too subtle before?” Justin laughed. “What about you?”

“I like spending time with you. Last night was nice, being able to snuggle up to you, how you held me when I had that moment.”

“I’m here whenever you need me,” Justin said, looking into her eyes. “I’m just a call or text away.”

“I like talking to you after I get home, it helps me feel close even if I can’t see you.”

“I feel the same way.”

“What took me so long, before?”

“For what?”

“Going on a date with you…”

“It took less time than you think it did.”

“Well, I’m still looking forward to it on Sunday. I wish it was sooner, but I’m sure you have your reasons.”

“I do. It’ll all make sense by the end of the night.”

“Trying to sweep me off my feet?” she asked. 

“Isn’t that the general idea?” he laughed. 

They got their food, talking as they ate, doing more talking than eating.

“Is this why we’re friends, you’re so easy to talk to?” Nicki asked. 

“It’s definitely a perk, and how I know you so well,” he answered. 

“I’m getting to know you, too,” she smiled. “You know, again.”

“No memories of me yet?” he asked.

She shook her head.  “Just a sense of calm, feeling happy when I see you. Like, my entire mood changes when I look at you or even think about you.”

“That’s a step in the right direction,” he said. 

“You can’t tell me more than that?” she asked, giving her best puppy dog eyes. 

“No. This all has to happen organically, so I’m not forcing memories on you and you do things out of guilt.”

“I guess you’re right, but I feel like I need more to try and get my memories back.”

“Then wait until Sunday, that’s all I’m gonna say.”

Nicki looked at her watch. “We’ve been gone almost two hours!  I probably should get back. This is what I mean though, it’s so easy for two hours to go by and feel like ten minutes.”

“That’s a good thing, though, so I’m not gonna fight it.”

“I’m definitely not fighting it,” she smiled. 

They walked back to his car and drove back to the hospital. As they got closer, Justin asked, “am I just dropping you off or can I walk you in?”

“I’ll take as much time as I can, walk me in.”  Justin parked in a spot and walked Nicki up to her ward of the hospital. Parker was at the Nurse’s Station when they walked in. Now it was Parker’s turn to fake a smile as Nicki walked in beside Justin. Justin and Nicki hugged, holding the embrace long enough to make Parker uncomfortable. Nicki kissed him on the cheek, Justin kissed hers in return. 

“I’ll talk to you tonight,” Justin smiled. As Nicki walked away, he snarled at Parker. If anyone’s gonna win her over, it’s gonna be me. Oh fuck…