Between Me & You - n.r.

Chapter 12

Hailee's POV

The last I heard, Nick was rushed into surgery to remove the bullet and repair the damage that it had done. The damage wasn't extensive and from what the doctors told me, it was fairly easy to fix.

I hadn't heard anything new in 3 days. 

Today, I was going back to school. News that Nick had been shot had spread quickly through the school and people were looking at me as if I would self destruct any moment. 

Nick and I weren't even together and it's not like he died. I was fine. Really fine. Just shaken.

Other than sympathetic looks and not-so-secret whispers behind my back, the day was pretty normal. 

I was grateful for something normal.

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That night, I was sitting in my room, doing homework when I heard something hit my window.

I didn't think much of it at first, but then it happened again. And then a third time.

Annoyed, I got up to see what was hitting my window. 

I don't know what I was expecting to see. A bird maybe, I don't know. But I saw Nick standing in my front yard with a first full of pebbles, throwing them at my window.

"Nick? What are you doing?", I asked as I opened the window.

"Come out here", he called.

"Are you crazy? Last time we were out at night, you were shot."

"Yeah, I remember. I was there."

"You're not funny."

"Yes I am. Come out here."

"Fine. Wait there."

I walked down the stairs and out my front door to meet him. The cold night air hit me harder than I expected and I shivered, pulling my sweater tighter around me. 

I sat down on the front steps and motioned for Nick to sit next to me.

"What are you really doing here?", I asked once he was seated beside me.

"I think we need to talk about it", he replied.

"Talk about what? The fact that you were shot? Or that you called me a mistake? Or that we haven't talked about anything for a really long time? Choose your pick."

"Actually, I wanted to talk about how you saved my life."

"What is there to say? You needed help and I helped you."

"It was amazing. You said you knew about medical stuff but I didn't think you were that serious about it."

"My dad is a surgeon, Nick. It's not a big deal.'

"Maybe not to you because you were practically raised in an operating room. But to me, it was amazing. And you saved my life. So what I want to say is thank you. And I'm sorry."

"What are you sorry for?"

He turned to look me in the eye and grabbed my hand that was laying on my lap. "I'm sorry for getting you into that situation."

"You didn't know it was going to happen", I said, trying to reassure him.

"I did though. He told me there would be consequences. I hadn't spoken to you because I wanted to make sure you didn't get in the middle of it. But you did anyway and I'm sorry."

"It turned out okay, didn't it?"

"Yeah. I guess it did."

We sat there on my front steps for a long time. 

"Can I ask you something?", I said after a while.

"Yeah, anything", Nick replied.

"I found your wallet on the sidewalk after the ambulance took you away-"

"Hailee stop, I know what you're going to say."

"You do?"

"Yeah. You found the picture. Right? You found your picture in my wallet. That's what you're asking about, isn't it?"

I nodded and avoided looking at Nick's face. It was an awkward question to ask in the first place, but the fact that he already knew...

"I cut that picture out of last year's yearbook the day that we talked for the first time."

"The day that you called me out in psychology class", I said, remembering.

"Yeah, that day. I don't know, I talked to you and I knew that I wanted to keep talking to you. I was taken by you and I used that picture as a reminder to make it through the day so I could talk to you the next day. You saved my life the other night, but you've been saving me everyday for a long time."

That's when I looked at Nick's face, only to see his own looking at me with serious admiration and affection.

He bent down and softly kissed my cheek.

"I better go", he whispered. 

I watched him stand up and walk away from me into the night that suddenly didn't seem so dark or dangerous. 

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That_Epiphany 

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