Nikki had been at Waterloo Road for more than four terms, now. She had endured her encounters with troublesome students, and also had lived through experiences with students she had never thought possible. Kacey Barry, for example. Kacey had thrived under Nikki's wing, and was now in America at a hot-shot training camp. It was moments like this Nikki lived for - all she wanted was to see her pupils thrive.
As soon as Nikki laid eyes on Vix, her life had changed. She wasn't sure how, or why, but at some point her universe had shifted and it was as if Vix had suddenly become the sun, and Nikki lived to revolve around her. Every waking minute was consumed by the redhead, and she was sure she could permanently feel her skin tingling from where Vix's lips had landed.
The resilience camp was where it had all changed. The pupils were left to their own guidance; well, their own guidance and a map and a compass. They were old enough to navigate back, Hector had argued, and Nikki had agreed. They were about to graduate sixth form with their A-Levels, moving on to University. They had to learn to stand on their own two feet. She hadn't gone with Hector under any agenda, just to set up the winners' tent and simply get dinner on the stove for when the kids found their way back to the camp.
Sausages were cooking in the pan when the first group, led by Dynasty Barry, returned with hollers and cheers. When everyone else had returned, it had transpired that Gabriella was missing. Hector had received a few missed calls throughout the day, but had brushed them off as nothing. And that was when Nikki's life got swept up in a whirlwind.
It was because she hadn't spent a lot of time with Vix, she told herself. Nikki was lonely, yes, that was it. That was the reason she had felt drawn to the first person who showed her any attention. Unfortunately, it wasn't Vix; it was Hector, and all too soon she found herself falling into Hector. Even when they were back in Greenock, Nikki repeated the mantra to herself. Vix was unavailable, and she was lonely. That was the excuse that helped to alleviate her guilty conscience.
Besides, Nikki had always identified herself as gay. Even when she had been married to Eve's father, she had secretly identified as gay. It was the done thing to marry your long-term partner, and she and Eve's father had been together for years. When she had discovered she was pregnant, there was nothing more to do than to carry on with the pregnancy.
And now? Now Nikki was sat alone in her flat, stewing over a glass of red wine and wondering how her life had become so fucked up. Vix wouldn't return any calls, and Hector wouldn't stop calling. She had even tried to get hold of Sue, but she wouldn't return any of her calls, either. Breathing in deeply, it felt as though the walls of her flat were caving in upon the brunette, and the tears wouldn't stop cascading down her cheeks like droplets of rain.
Inhaling deeply, she felt her chest constrict as she downed the remainder of her wine and picked up her phone. There were no missed calls, no unanswered texts, she was surrounded by the sound of her own conscience. Nikki knows she has fucked up, she knows it inherently, and there doesn't seem to be anything she can do about it.