The One Night Stand

Fear

My heart was beating out of my chest as I stood in from the door that brought back my childhood in an instant. The only things that changed were the flowers in the garden. I knocked on the door and felt Nicole tense on my side. The door swung open and an older face of a women I used to know stood there.

"Oh, dear...." My mother groaned, she wrapped her arms around me and hugged me for the first time in year, so bluntly refusing seemed ridiculous.

I didn't even realize the whole time she was complimenting me. "You look so happy, your face is so beautiful, and my lord, you've lost a lot of weight since I've last seen you, oh and, Nicole!"

She hugged Nicole who was taken back, but still hugged her anyway. "Honey, you look so gorgeous."

She paused. "Oh? Where is your girlfriend?"

"Um, mom?" I looked at Nicole, who's face was burning red.

"OH MY GOSH, I CAN'T BELIVE THAT YOU TWO ARE DATING, MY GOLLY THAT IS JUST-"

"Mom, MOM. You're really loud right now, and can we go inside?"

She nodded as we walked inside. The moment I could smell my moms cooking, memories came flooding back to me. The cooking, the laughing, me and Nicole running around the house, being anything but, mature.

"Ashley, dear. You can go to your room. It hasn't changed." I looked at my mom and Nicole as I nodded.

I walked up the steps and followed the same route I took everyday for years. I held my hand up to knock, I realized and just opened the door.

I paused at the familiar scenery. I walked it and stared around my clean room, as I picked up small artifacts that reminded me of my childhood. I sat on my bed and Nicole sat next to me.

"Remember the time we-"

"Made out on my bed because it was a dare? Yeah, most definitely."

He both laughed as I felt her hand slide on my leg.

"Nicole, quit. Not here."

She froze. "Shit, sorry that's out of habit."

I pushed on side. "So, you accidentally tried to turn me on while sitting on my bed and bringing up something like this."

I leaned in and kissed her, nothing sexual. Just a kiss to break the tension. Well, until loud noise cut us off.

"ASHLEY? WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE, HON!"

I jumped up from my bed and turned to look at my step-dad that didn't age in his best ways.

"Uh, Frank, hi...I, um-"

"AND YOUR'E DATING HER? DAMN."

I heard my mom run upstairs, "Frank, dinner is ready." He walked away and my mom turned towards me. "He sometimes forgets about his hearing aid..." She turned and walked downstairs as I turned to Nicole and laughed.

_________________

Dinner was amazing. My mom made my favorite, a nice steak dinner with fried onions and potatoes. Going back to Mom's cooking was simply amazing, like a blast from the past. We talked about our lives over the last five years, explaining our ups and downs and our turning points. My step-dad explained his hearing loss, and Nicole talked about how she was advancing in college to become pursue Sports Medicine.

As we arrived to my house, I was bit annoyed to see the power went out. I flicked the light and sighed.

"What the fuck."

Nicole bumped into to me as I bumped into the boxes that say by the door, which I pushed down to the floor.

"Shit, sorry."

I grabbed the lighter from my pocket and used my phone as a flashlight until I found the candles and lit them, as I went through the house. I sat next to Nicole as she hung up the phone with the power company, explaining the outage.

"Accident down the street, hit a pole. We have till morning."

She stood up, and I laid down as if it was an order and she cuddled next to me. We stared face to face and she honestly just looked beautiful in the candle light.

"How was I lucky enough to fall in love with you?" I whispered.

She blushed. "Ask myself that everyday."

She smiled and so did I and, again we kissed. I went wrap an arm around her, but mistakenly, I pushed her off the couch.

I laughed and so did she. "Maybe it would be easier if-" She climbed on top of me and we continued kissing. Though I was on the bottom, I still made my way to her neck. She let out a slight moan that was interrupted by a loud crashing noise. Nicole jumped off of me and I stood up, immediately in protective pose in from of Nicole.
The door was open and a shaking, and slightly lit figure was in the door.

"Hey! Get the fuck out of my house!" I leaned over to Nicole and whispered, "Call the police, and find something to protect yourself."

She hesitated, but crept to the bedroom, to probably grab the baseball bat. At that moment I realized who was standing there.

"Monica?" I said into the darkness, as the figure moved forward to reveal her face. She had dark bags under her eyes like she hadn't slept in days. Her hands were shaking badly.

"Woah? Monica.?" I walked towards her, she reached into her back pocket and my heart jumped. She held in front of me a gun. A pistol, that was all I could tell.

"You know? I was enjoying high and I fucking realized. You were with this bitch while we were together. Don't you get I LOVE you?"

"Woah woah? I wasn't with Nicole. I don't even love her, I just slept with her!"

"You LIAR! Where's the whore now?" She pushed me aside to go to Nicole, I grabbed the gun and the familiar sound and smell of gunpowder sent a bullet inside of me.

I dropped to the ground and I heard a scream. Nicole appeared around the corner and kneeled next to my body, shaking. I looked over at Monica who shook horribly.

I couldn't hear Nicole saying I love you over the sound of a bullet going into the side of Monica's head.

And then blacked out.