Breezeblocks - alt-J
Nicole decided to stay in Brighton for the week. She knew that Nathan needed her more than ever, and she knew how horrible the early stages of grieving were, so she took the week off work and stayed. Nathan was determined not to stay in a rut of sadness; he figured it was a rare occasion that both him and Nicole had time off work and were in his home town together, so he intended on making the most of that time.
Nicole had been to Brighton a couple times over the years for a few weekend escapes from the city. Nathan was sure that she had only seen the touristy bits; Brighton was full of hidden treasures that tourists walked straight past without realising. Nathan wanted to use the week to show Nicole the true gems of Brighton, and that's what they did. During the days the pair roamed the streets, in the evenings they dined at various restaurants, when night came about they hung out with the rest of the O'Connell family, and in the early morning Nicole held the boy tight in her arms.
Nicole had decided to help Nathan's mother with preparing Tuesday night's meal. Between chopping vegetables and frying chicken, Nathan's mother had started asking Nicole questions about herself, questions that to which, Nicole knew, the answers wouldn't paint her in a good light.
'¿Qué hacen tus padres?'
'Yo, er, yo no haga habla con ellos.'
'Oh, lo siento, niña! Eso es horrible, ¿cómo sobrevives sin una madre? No sería la mujer que soy hoy sin mi madre.'
Nicole stared down mindlessly at the food in the pan she was stirring. 'No lo sé.'
Nathan's mother watched her for a moment. She felt for her; she knew how lost young girls could be without guidance. 'Bueno, no te preocupes, soy prácticamente tu madre.'
It took Nicole a few moments to register what she had said. She turned her head to meet her gaze and smiled. 'Gracias.'
By Thursday night, the sun had hidden behind thick cloud and the temperature was falling, an early sign of autumn arriving. Despite the poor weather, the family had wrapped up and spent the last few hours of the day chilling on the beach. They had gathered around a makeshift fire that Leo had thrown together. Leo had been telling the story of Alfie's birth, but he couldn't make it through a sentence without breaking out into hearty laughter. Nicole was overtly exhausted from spending the day running around the town centre of Brighton with Nathan. As Nicole's body was incapable of defending her from nippy temperatures, she was wrapped up in a blanket and snuggled into Nathans side. The heat of the fire clashed with the cool breeze to send a shiver through her body. Nathan felt her move against him.
'You good, babe?' Nicole rested her hand on Nathan's chest as a response. Her eyelids rolled over, darkness filling the gaps. Nathan's head leaned onto hers, his hands drawing small circles in her back.
'You two are repulsive.' Luke joked, elbowing Hayley to get her attention. 'You know, you are the only couple I know who act like that after only one date.'
'Hey, don't bash them, it looked like a really good date,' Hayley spoke up, elbowing her brother back. 'and Luke, I'm pretty sure the most romantic thing you've done for a girl is tell her your second name.'
Nicole's phone abruptly began to ring, her harsh ringtone jolting her awake. She groaned, reaching for her cardigan pocket. She attempted to swipe to answer the phone call multiple times before it worked, placing the phone by her ear.
'Hel-hello?' Nathan watched as her face turned from drowsy to stern. 'Yeah, yeah,' She sat up straight and started to get up, her focus on the call. She raised a finger at Nathan, telling him she would be a minute, and he nodded. As she walked away, Nathan prodded the fire with a large stick, mindlessly listening to his parents laugh.
Nicole hadn't been anticipating the news from London at all. She had expected to have at least a couple more months of simply working at the studios, but she had been wrong. The call was from her group's shared tour manager, who had told her that they had received a compelling offer from an A list celebrity to join the UK branch of her worldwide tour. The group of back up dancers that had signed up for the whole tour couldn't gain visas to the UK, so the management were reaching out to other groups last minute. The other members of Nicole's group had agreed to go, so Nicole had also agreed. The biggest issue was that the opening date was mid September; they had just four weeks to prepare. Nicole had no choice but to return to London.
Nathan found her twenty minutes after she had set off, sat half a kilometre away from the house on the pebbled beach, knees tucked into her chest, staring out to sea. He simply took a place next to her crossed legged and waited for her to speak to him.
'Plans have changed,' she told him as she watched the tide inch closer toward them. 'That was my group tour manager. We're going on a national tour, starts fourteenth September, lasts until thirteenth October. We've got four weeks to get to grips with the choreography.'
'You're going back tonight.'
'Rehearsals start in the morning,' The only thing keeping the silence at bay was the sound of waves crashing at the shore. 'How long do you think you're gonna stay here for?'
'A couple more days, I'll probably be back by Sunday.' Nathan's voice was firm, but his mind was frazzled. He snaked his arm around Nicole's back, she leaned onto his shoulder out of habit. 'It's going to be fine. I'll catch the train up and see you as soon as I get back. As for the tour, we can handle it. You've done it a dozen times, I just need to learn.'
Nathan's reassuring promise was all that Nicole was thinking about on the drive back. He was right, she had toured more times than she could remember, but she had never had somebody waiting for her to come back home before.
Nathan lay awake restless that night, his chest caving in, nobody to soothe his apprehension.
~
Nicole had opened the front door just as the clock struck ten. Exhausted, she had stripped her feet of her shoes and headed to the kitchen for some water, swinging her car keys around her right index finger. The last thing Nicole had expected was to walk in on a man in just his boxers; she flinched when she first saw him. He was searching the fridge, his back to Nicole, oblivious to her presence until she had spoken up.
'Hi, sorry,' The man turned around casually at first, but he took a second take to scan Nicole. She furred her eyebrows as he bit his lip, a smirk teasing on his face. His hair was long, black and out of place, his face stubbly and bruised. Grime, weed and overpriced clothing was what came to mind when she looked at him. 'Who are you?'
'I could ask you the same thing, doll.' From his accent Nicole immediately figured he was a London native, and that was when her brain shifted into gear.
'Zack,' Nicole's tone turned sour. She didn't like the fact that Zack was in her house at all. She felt gross just being in his presence. Nicole was thankful she hadn't met him earlier.
'So Eva does talk about me,' He shut the fridge before approaching her. Nicole stood firmly in place, so the boy came very close to her, the stench of sweat forced into Nicole's nostrils. 'You're a pretty little thing, aren't you doll?'
'Get back to your girlfriend, Zackary.' Nicole almost snarled.
Zack smirked. 'Of course, doll.' His eyes trailed up and down her once again before he turned. 'Night night, Nikkie,' Nicole pulled a face of disgust after she watched him walk around the corner; she couldn't deal with people like Zack. She mentally made a note to talk to Eva about having him around the house.
Once she had finally regained her sanity, Nicole took a glass from the cupboard and turned the tap on. As it filled with water, Nicole examined the sunflowers Nathan had bought her; she hadn't a vase, so she had hurriedly popped them in a measuring jug and placed them besides the sink. Their first date felt like weeks ago, though in reality it had only been a few days previously. Already the flowers had begun to wilt, their heads drooped.
Nicole hoped Nathan would return soon.
