Better Together

A Macy/Nick Story

By Brown Eyes Parker

Summery:

Nick and Macy break up because Macy wants to tell people about their relationship, and Nick doesn't want them to find out because he's afraid of what will happen. Of course, when two people are meant to be together, they will be together.

"If you're afraid, I don't think this will work out," Macy said. "I'm sorry Nick."

"Macy-" Nick started.

"No. . ." She shook her head. "You know, you're not who I thought you were."

"Oh, and who did you think I was?" Nick asked, ignoring the fact that his voice was going to crack. . . that he was about to cry.

"I don't know," Macy replied, fighting back tears of her own. "I'll see you around Nick."

"Macy, please don't go." But his plea had fallen on empty space.

"Something's bothering Nick," Stella told Kevin a few days later. "He hasn't gotten out of bed for days. I think it has something to do with Macy."

"What's wrong with Macy?" Joe asked, coming up to them, his script in hand.

"Nothing, except she hasn't been here in a few days, and Nick hasn't gotten out of bed since her last visit," Kevin answered, letting them know once again that he wasn't as stupid as he looked.

"You don't think that something was going on between them, do you?" Joe asked. "I mean, not between them. Macy's too Macy. . . and Nick's. . . too Nick."

"I don't know Joe, opposites do attract," Stella said. "And they're so opposite, they could work."

"They should work," Kevin said, throwing down the magazine he had been paging through. "Okay, here's what we're going to do. We're going to barge into Nick's room, drag him out of bed, throw him in the pool, and tell him to go talk to Macy. Then, we're going to get Webkins."

"Webkins. . . Kevin?" Joe asked, looking confused and annoyed.

"Yes, Webkins. To award us for getting Macy abd Nick back together."

"I think you mean reward," Stella corrected. "And who wants Webkins?"

"You're right, Silly Bandz are the in-thing right now."

Stella and Joe shook their heads in dismay, the both of them wondering why Kevin had tiny moments of brilliance and huge doses of stupidity.

"What's all the commotion about?" Nick asked, coming out of the bedroom in his pajamas and with a blanket wrapped around his shoulders.

"Nothing, execpt Kevin wants to buy Silly Bandz and Webkins out," Joe answered.

Stella hit him. "Stop it Joe! That's getting old and annoying." She turned to Nick. "The truth is, we know about you and Macy. We even know that you aren't together anymore."

"We were never really together, we just told each other that we liked each other."

"Same difference. Right Stella?" Joe said.

"Well, I think so. But then again, I haven't been much of an authority on love." She looked at him pointedly. Then she turned her attention back to Nick. "What happened Nick?"

"I don't know," Nick answered. "I thought that everything was going well. She did too. So, she wanted to tell you guys that we had feelings for each other. I didn't. . . I was afraid of what would happen. I was afraid of telling you guys, and you're saying that it was going too fast. I was afraid that it would ruin our relationship, mine and Macy's that is, because you would say it was going to fast. And then, there are the Fan girls."

"The Fan girls?" Stella repeated.

"Yeah, all of the girls who think that they own me. Macy would have gotten a bad reputation. Everybody would have hated her. The girls would have said Nick's mine, Nick's mine. And they would have called her bad names. . . and not just mean-spirited names. Bad names that onlu bad girls get called. And not Scarlett Woman, like Ron called Hermione in the Harry Potter books-"

"Calm down, you're not making any sense," Stella said. When he had taken a few deep breaths, and had sat down. She said, "What was your biggest concern? Us? Or the Fan girls?"

"Or are you just embarrassed by Macy?" Joe asked.

"Joe, not helping," Stella said.

Nick looked at Joe. "No, I'm not embarrassed by Macy. Even when Macy was the crazy Fan girl, I wasn't embarrassed by her. Unlike the rest of you."

"She doesn't think you're embarrassed about her. Does she?" Joe asked, almost anxiously.

"No," Nick answered before hesitating. "Well, I don't think so."

"I never thought you were embarrassed by me," Macy said softly.

Nick stood up. "Macy. . ."

"Joe, um, let's go take Kevin to buy his Webkins and Silly Bandz," Stella said.

"But Stell, this just got good. I was about to pop some popcorn."

"Come on," Stella said. "Silly Bandz are a hot ticket item, and we want to get them before today's shipment is gone."

"Silly Bandz are overrated," Joe replied, rolling his eyes.

"Then why do you wear twenty of them on each arm?"

Joe opened his mouth to answer, then he shrugged. "Touché."

Stella smiled at Nick and Macy. "We'll see you two later."

Nick sat back down and wrapped his blanket tightly around his shoulders. "Hey Mace."

"Hey," she replied softly.

"Do you want to sit down?"

"I've missed you," Macy answered. "And I don't care if we tell anybody. I understand why you want to keep it a secret."

"And I understand why you wanted to keep it a secret. . ." She paused. "I think. You really were trying to protect me, right? You were trying to protect us. . . right? You weren't embrassed by me?"

"I wasn't embarrassed by you when we were in New Jersey, and you were my - our - biggest fan. And I'm definetely not embarrassed by you now."

"Then, I understand." Macy smiled and sat the end of his chair. "But I don't care what other girls think. Let them call me whatever they want. I have you. . . don't I?"

"Yes," Nick answered. "And they're just jealous, because they don't have me. . . and they want to."

"Exactly."

"Oh, and my family and Stella knows. They didn't make a big deal out of it like I thought they would."

Macy smiled. "I'm glad."

"Macy, I'm sorry, please forgive me. I never should have been afraid of what people would say or do. . . even if they were for the right reasons."

"I forgive you Nick. And I'm sorry for not trying to understand your reasons for not wanting to tell anybody about us."

"You don't need to ask forgiveness. It's my fault really. I wasn't sensitive to your feelings. . . your laughing at me."

"No, it's not what you think," Macy said, sobering. "It's just. . . you're such a romantic, it isn't funny."

"In a way that is funny?" Nick asked.

"Yes."

Nick rolled his eyes. "Come on, let's go out somewhere. I want everybody to know that you're mine."

_The End_

Author's Note:
I hated the ending of this story. . . but this is the first story I've written in two months, so of course it's going to be weak. Oh, and this is my first Nick/Macy fan fiction. For me this pairing started out as a joke to annoy my sister. And now. . . I'm glad I was right, because they are SO cute together.

Love,

Holly