AN: Hi all! This is my first Rookie Blue story and its actually super surprising that its about Nick and Gail because I honestly think I prefer her with Chris and I have like thousands of scribbles about Sam and Andy that have yet to develop into anything concrete. But I was struck with inspiration after seeing the spoilers for the next couple episodes and I wanted to write it all down! Let me know what you think! Maybe if this is well receive I'll work on some of my other musings! Thanks!
The first time he called her Princess had been when she refused to climb the old oak tree in his backyard.
She was seven, short and the teensiest bit afraid of hights.
He ended up with a mouthful of dirt and a black eye. She may have been short but he was a midget at nine.
The second time had been when she was complaining about a present her dad had got her for her eleventh birthday. She had asked for Tropical Barbie, her dad had given her a police action figure and a finger printing kit.
Nick had immediately been taken with it, finger printing his and her entire families at the weekly dinner party and when she refused to be included based on the principle of the matter and not wanting to get her hands dirty, he bestowed the nickname on her again.
And it stuck.
Princess.
Princess Peck.
Her mom thought it was endearing, her dad thought it was cute and her brother used it in a patronizing tone.
God she hated it.
And it was all stupid Nick Collins fault.
They were interesting friends; half the time inseparable, half the time fighting like cats and dogs.
Her mom had blamed it on hormones.
Gail blamed it on Nick being an arrogant ass.
In high school they found they're own niches. Nick excelled in athletics, grades and friends. Gail excelled in managing to alienate most people and becoming know as a kiss-ass.
But she was always Princess, hearing it yelled in the halls, he cheering her on at her short stint on the volley team and constantly yelled over the fence that separated their back yards.
The third time that she can remember the nickname coming out of his mouth was much different then the rest. Due too a certain abrasive attitude around the opposite sex Gail found herself without a prom date. Nick, being the gentleman he was, offered to take her.
True, her dress had not been the most stylish but she had felt pretty, and despite what she told her mother she was actually pretty excited for the dance.
The appreciative look coupled with a slightly breathless "Princess" from her prom date elicited a whole new reaction to the nickname.
One that she didn't hate.
To everyone else, when they started dating, no one was surprised.
Gail was.
Nick didn't seem to be and that pissed her off.
Remarks like, "knew you couldn't resist me, Princess" annoyed her to know end. Because it hinted at the idea of a bigger picture, something to due with fate, almost like they were inevitable. And one thing Gail loathed the most, besides the dreaded nickname, was not being in control of her own future.
But it made her think, had Nick, since God knows when, really thought they would end up together? The thought, and the fact that he seemed certain both scared and thrilled her.
When Nick calls her Princess, it hints at so much more than just a term of endearment. It speaks of everything they've been through together; good and bad, expectations and disappointments, love and hate. Sometimes a nickname means so much more when it comes from the right person.
Their families were close, and besides the fact that they were both young, pretty much kids still, marriage was brought up. The Peck and Collins clans finally united.
Both of them had grown up with expectations. Peckspectations in her case.
Gail would enter the academy, just like her mother, father and brother before her, ace it and eventually work her way up in the force to becoming a white-shirt.
Nick, would serve just like his father, uncle and two brothers before him in the Canadian military, at least for the required four years before becoming a copper himself.
Gail was comfortable with this destiny, this is what she knew, this is what had been drilled into her since birth. What made her slightly uneasy, is that Nick and the rest of their friends and family saw their relationship as just as inevitable.
And that hadn't been in the original plans.
Gail's always had trouble trusting; she's been around far too many ambitious people to see the best in anyone, everyone is out for themselves first and foremost. But there was a certain kind of innate trust that came from growing up with someone, and though she hates to say it (besides that whole Vegas incident) Nick is one of the few people she's ever really trusted.
There was something to be said about falling into a relationship with your sometimes best friend-sometimes nemesis. They knew you, what made you happy, what made you tick, and all your weird little quirks you usually hid at least until a couple months into a relationship. They knew it all, it was a bit overwhelming.
He knew that she slept with socks on (even in the summer), that she wasn't a good sharer, especially with food (or clothes, or a bed), she had bad taste in music (as much as she would deny it) and that nothing could simultaneously make her smile and piss her off like the nickname Princess.
Because all of it, the nickname, the friendship, the relationship was like that. Fond memories mixed with exasperating ones. Push and pull. Fast and hard.
And Chris, Chris is one the singularly best people Gale has ever met in her life. He's patient, kind and has this optimism that's enviable. Never would he purposely try to piss her off or annoy her. He dealt with her mood swings and inconsistencies with space and saint-like understanding.
Nick was the opposite. He was pushy, arrogant and enjoyed getting a rise out of her, often saying outlandish things just to see her reaction. He never tip-toed around her, preferring to argue with her rather than let her mood run its course. And he gets it, what it means to be a legacy, and she needs someone to understand.
Chris balanced her own iciness out with his warmth, Nick ignited it, thawing away at her shell.
There's something to be said about history though; regardless if it was a rough one. There was something about memories, and years of friendship and affectionate nicknames that couldn't be beat.
And when Princess slips out of his mouth in retaliation to her comment about his cheap sheets, well, it's never sounded so good.