I Always Be Here For You

IV

Nick's POV (The next morning)
As I was trying to sleep, I heard noises coming from the kitchen. "It's probably Liam," I thought but as I got up from the couch, I was face to face with Addison.
"Good morning" I greeted with a smile.
"Good morning to you too" she replied with a smile back.
"Nice shirt. Don't tell me that you stole it from my cousin"
"No. He let me borrow it. I needed a shirt"
I saw her eyes look down. She, like Liam, usually did that when she was feeling uncomfortable. So I tried to change the subject.
"So where's Liam?"
"He's still asleep. I was gonna make him breakfast"
"Look at you being a good girlfriend. How about I help you?"
"Really? What's the catch?"
"No catch. I just want to help"
"Okay"
Addison then turned around and walked back into the kitchen. I followed her.
"So what are you making?" I asked her.
"Pancakes, eggs, and bacon" she replied as she grabbed a bowl from the cabinet.
"I fry up the eggs and bacon then," I said with a smile on my face.
"Cool. Thank you for helping me"
"No problem. It's the least that I could do since Liam let me crash here last night"
"I don't want to sound rude but why did you crash here?"
"Umm... it's kind of a long story" I replied, not wanting to talk about it.
"Oh. I get it. You don't want to talk about it"
"Yeah. I just don't want to bore you sweetheart" I said with a smirk.
"Haha, very funny Nick. You can never bore me"
Liam is such a lucky guy. I don't know how he was able to get a girl like Addison. I mean don't get me wrong, Liam is an amazing person and all but he's not in the same league as Addison. He's not as hot as she is.
"Hello, earth to Nick," Addison said as she waved her hand in my face.
"What?"
"You blanked out on me Nicky"
"You know I hate that nickname," I said as I walked over to the fridge.
Addison has been calling me that nickname ever since we met.
Flashback
"Hey, Nick. I want you to meet my girlfriend Addison" Liam said with a huge smile on his face.
He had his arm around a girl's shoulders. She was a petite girl with short blonde hair. Her hair was all curled up. It was simple but beautiful. Her eyes were a beautiful hazel brown color.
"Nice to meet you, Addison," I said with a smile on my face.
"You too Nicky"
"Eww. I hate that nickname" I joked.
"Good to know," Addison said with a smirk.
"You are never going to forget about this, aren't you?"
"Never" she replied.
End of flashback
That was about 3 years ago. Addison has become like a sister to me. She was the whole reason that my cousin got better. She saved him and I will always be grateful to her for it.
"Morning you two" Liam said as he walked into the kitchen.
"Morning baby," Addison said as she gave him a quick peck on the cheek.
"Morning Liam. Thanks for letting me stay here last night" I said.
"No problem Nick. You were the only one in the family who supported me during my addiction. I'll do anything for you" Liam said sincerely.
I smiled. Liam and I have been through thick and thin. My parents got divorced when I was around 6 years old and the one friend I had that got me through those tough times was Liam. I had his back and he had mine.
When his parents kicked him out and disowned him, I was there to help him out. I gave him the money that I was saving up so that he could get an apartment. He's been working different part-time jobs to pay me back.
I know what you are thinking: "Why did his parents kick him out and disown him?"
Well, it was because he had a drinking problem. He got into the habit after one of his friends invited him to a party where, of course, they were giving out alcoholic drinks. My cousin's friend gave him a drink and from that point on, he became an alcoholic. No matter what we did, he always found a way to get more alcohol. He wasn't going to school anymore and he was getting into fights left and right.
That's when his parents had enough. They threw him out to the streets along with a suitcase filled with his clothes. He begged them to let him back inside but they didn't care anymore.
When he finally realized that they weren't gonna open the door for him, he called me. He asked me to let him borrow some money to get an apartment somewhere. I said sure and I even offered to drop him off at an apartment that was for rent. Everyone was against me helping Liam. They said that he was a loser and that he was gonna be a worthless nobody when he gets older. I didn't care though. I helped him.
"Thanks, Liam. That means a lot to me"
"So, are you gonna tell me what happened?"
"Umm...sure," I said nervously. "My mom was in her drunken fit again last night. She was crying about some bullshit involving my dad. I guess she found out about him getting remarried or whatever. This made her go ballistic though. She was yelling, throwing stuff, just basically acting like a child. I tried to calm her down but that just made her mad at me. She told me that it was my fault that my dad left and that she didn't even want me to be here anymore. So, I grabbed my backpack, filled it with some of my clothes, and left. Then, I drove over here and the rest you know"
They both stayed quiet.
"Are you guys okay?" I asked.
"Yeah. I'm just shocked, that's all" Liam said.
"I'm so sorry, Nick. Your mom shouldn't have said that to you" Addison said as she gave me a hug.
"Don't worry about it, Addison. I have been dealing with my mother's bullshit ever since I was little. I know how to deal with it"
I let Addison go as I turned toward Liam.
"Your mother came over before the fight started. She asked me how you were doing. She still worries about you"
Liam stayed silent.
"You don't have to talk to them right away but you should try to give them a call" I said.
"I can't, Nick. They abandoned me when I needed them the most. I can't forgive them"
"Nobody said anything about forgiving. I just said to try to reconcile your relationship with them"
"Nick's right. You need to talk to them again. Maybe we can invite them for dinner. That way I will be here with you if you need support" Addison chimed in.
"Fine. But if they start with their bullshit, they are out of here"
"Don't worry, Liam. I'm sure they won't bring up past stuff"
"Hopefully" Liam said with an eye roll.