by Fleurette B.
Disclaimers: This short piece was inspired by the ending of "Stranger
than
Fiction" where Natalie ignores her own feelings by telling Nick thta
it was
perfectly natural and one more step towards his becoming mortal that
he
should have fallen for Emily Weiss. Bear in mind that I'm a Nother,
a
Valentine and an IB. So if you're looking for a mushy N&N ending,
don't
look here. Oh, yeah! Nat doesn't belong to me. If she did, I'd have
treated her a *lot* better! {g}
Archiving Instructions: I grant my permission for this fic to be placed
at
www.fkfanfic.com along with the rest of my stuff. It will also be placed
at
the Nothers Fan Fiction Library and my own fanfic page in due time.
*************
As Natalie watched Nick walk away from her, a feeling of utter dispair
rose
in her chest. It tightened into a ball, growing larger and tighter
until
she wanted to scream. Only, she couldn't scream. Nick would hear her,
and
right now she didn't want to see him. She only wantd to be alone with
the
fact that she had done it again. She'd passed up yet another opportunity
to
tell him how she felt about him... how much she loved him.
Didn't he see it in her eyes? Couldn't he tell that she worshiped the
ground he walked on? And yet, every time Nick fell for a mortal woman,
it
was never her. Never! Not once. And every time it went wrong, she told
him the same thing... "It's okay, Nick. I understand. Whatever you
felt
for her was a perfectly normal, human reaction. You should go with
it, see
where it leads you." She'd say it with a small, sad smile that Nick
always
took to be sympathetic. That smile, however, was really self-pitying.
And yet, Nat thought, I do it every time... without fail. I let him
off the
hook. I *never* tell him that I love him. Never once have I told him
that
I want him to love *me* that way. No, I constantly play the concerned
friend and confident. The heck of it is, I'm not even sure he tells
me
everything anyway.
So... the question remains... Natalie, why do you do it? Why do you
constantly let yourself get pushed aside? Why can't you be the number
one
concern in his life, the way he is in yours?
My life? I *have* no life. Just work and Nick. Nick and work. C'est
tout, as the French would say. That's all she wrote. Is it any wonder
I
love Nick so much?
Nick... she thought with a deep, sorrowing sigh.
Then Nat's mind flashed back to the way Nick looked when he told her
he'd
taken Emily Weiss to his loft. He'd said it was for her own protection,
but
she knew now that he'd done it partially to have more time with her
for
himself. It made her angry all over again.
I should have listened to my horescope, she thought bitterly, recalling
that
morning's prediction with nearly vampiric accuracy. "Tell that special
someone about your true feelings, but be sure you make the right decision.
A new love could be just around the corner, if you're willing to look
for
it. Know when to say good-bye to the past."
But I love *Nick,* Nat thought sadly. Don't I? Sometimes I think I do,
but, girl, this is sure a strange way to let him him know.
The End
Fleurette
