VALERIE

Twenty Five

*3 days later*

Nicks light snoring rang in her ears. The unsettling guilt set into her heart and began to burn at her conscious.

As she slung one of her duffel bags across her shoulder she didn't even look back at Nick who was sound asleep nuzzled into some blankets.

Shutting the rooms door behind her she was outside. Valerie made her way down the stairs of the current hotel they were staying at, the humid air in Georgia didn't even make it feel like it was November.

Since the incident in Nebraska the duo traveled to Georgia the next day. They barely spoke to one another and Valerie was slowly losing her mind again.

Once she reached the bottom of the stairs she looked up, her mind crumbled but taking a deep sigh she continued walking towards her destination across the street.

Dressed in a blue sundress that cut off at her knees, she also wore her heart shaped sunglasses even thought it was 3 in the morning.

Confidently striding into the convenience store the man behind the counter looked up from his TV and offered her a smile, "Welcome."

"Mister?" Valerie approached the counter, pushing the sunglasses to the top of her head the man instantly marveled at the different color of her eyes.

"Do you happen to have a phone I could use?" She asked innocently, tapping her hands on the counter top.

Puzzled the man didn't take his eyes off of Valerie's.

He was astonished by the inviting set of different colored eyes.

"Mister?" Valerie repeated again, hoping he'd stop staring at her. She had half the mind to shut her eyelids while she remained in that store.

"Sorry, um, it's just your eyes are two very different colors, just wow."

Valerie gave him a courteous look.

"But we have payphones in the back, I can give you a quarter if you like." The man said taking a shiny quarter from the tip bowl he had beside the cash register.

"Thank you so much." Valerie replied walking towards the back of the convenience store where the 2 payphones stood still next to cheap gas station clothing.

Taking the black phone from the stand, she put it to her ear then inserted the quarter into the slot.

Valerie mumbled the number she knew by heart then as the line began to ring she leaned against the wall, waiting for an answer.

"Hello?" The tired and groggy voiced Grace answered. A wave of nostalgia crashed over Valerie in such a positive way.

"Grace." Valerie mumbled into the phone,

"Valerie? Dude is that you?"

"Yeah."

"Where the fuck are you? You said a week it's been longer."

Valerie giggled, "Yeah, I'm sort of far away."

"How far away?" Grace asked,

Valerie stayed silent thinking her response, "Georgia." She mumbled.

"Georgia?!" Grace shouted, "Why in the fucking hell are you in Georgia? You said you were in California not fucking halfway across the United States!"

"That's why I called." Valerie whispered nervously as she intertwined her fingers with the telephones cord.

"Called? Dad sent out a manhunt all over Seattle looking for you, mom is taking extra tennis lessons and Wesley is so fucking angry that you disappeared and me Valerie? I've been walking around with this never ending guilt because I know you're alright and I have to lie to our own father about not knowing where you are because YOU decided to runaway."

"I didn't runaway."

"Oh really then why did you go with that fuck up of a kid?"

Valerie didn't reply, she stayed silent absorbing what her sister had just said. Grace was supposed to be kind and understanding, her sister never judged anything or anyone and hearing her mention Nick in such a negative manner pissed her off.

"You need to come home right now, fuck that low life Nick, he isn't worth it. He's just going to get you into big problems."

"Grace, I actually called you to book me a flight back home." Valerie mentioned,

"Oh then I'll do that give me a sec." Grace said cheerfully on the other line.

Taking a deep breath Valerie let out a small noise of sarcasm, "But, you can shove that fucking flight up your ass you fake bitch." 

Hanging up before even allowing a rebuttal from Grace, Valerie once again readjusted the heavy duffle bag over her shoulder and proceeded to leave the gas station where the clerk behind the counter wished her a goodnight.

Striding back to the hotel where she climbed the stairs to go to her room she knocked on the door loudly and consistently. Considering the fact she didn't have a key made her embarrassed.

Momentarily Nick opened the door, his eyes heavy with sleep, his grey joggers hanging a little lower than average with his v-line going down his lower body leaving Valerie to blush.

"What? Why? Why um, why are you outside?" His groggy voice asked while he lightly gripped her forearm, yanking it away violently from his hold Valerie shoved past him quietly into the room.

"Um? What'd I do?" The genuinely  confused Nick said shutting the door behind him.

"Go back to sleep." She deadpanned tossing her duffel bag onto a upholstered chair in the corner of the room.

"Valerie? I'm sorry?"

"Shut up and go to sleep Nick, please."

Nick scratched the back of his head, his pants falling lower without him realizing it. Nothing was showing but it left nothing to Valerie's imagination.

"You're an idiot." She murmured tossing herself onto her bed, she reached over to the nightstand that was in between both hers and Nick's separate beds and shut it off.

"Hey Valerie?" Nick whispered strolling towards Valerie's bed. He took a seat at the edge and faced the wall.

Valerie sat up, she stared at his muscular and tattooed back.

"Thank you for staying." He said twisting his body to face her.

She scowled.

She didn't know how someone so rough and broken could also be so sweet and genuine.

"Nick, no one knows this side of you do they?"

A soft low chuckle emitted from his mouth, he slightly shook his head.

"No, so don't tell anyone or I'll kill you."

Playfully she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and swayed him around teasingly, "Pussy." She whispered then they both laughed slightly.

A comfortable silence over came both of them, as she rested her head on his bare shoulder while her arms were now wrapped around his chest.

While he sat with a smile spread across his face because Valerie was clung onto him, Nick felt an sharp pain in his chest.

He realized he had fallen for her.

And he also realized that this meant she'd leave him with a broken heart like everyone else has.

"Hey go get your rest so tomorrow we can drive to Florida and find your mom. Okay?" She said letting go.

She gave him a small peck on the cheek before plopping back down into her own bed and wrapping herself up in blankets.

Still sitting on the edge of her bed, Nick's nerves riled him up. Finally he'd see his mom after years. And yet there was still a war going on inside of him.

He needed to stop his never ending path of self destruction and he believed seeing his mother again was the only way.