Summary: 'She smiled in a big way, the way a girl like that smiles when the world is hers. And she held your eyes...' He went there looking for someone...what he found was something bound to change his life... NOFC
Timeline: Summer of 1989 from June to August.
Disclaimer: Yep, you guessed it, I still don't own CSI...well, actually, the CD is burned into my computer and I own a copy...but I don't own the band or CD... (that's the point I'm tryin to get across). The CD Dusk and Summer and all of the songs belong to Dashboard Confessionals. We are in no way shape or form (sadly) associated with them. Jerry Bruckheimer and Anthony Zuiker own Nick and all his family, though we just gave his siblings names...no need to sue.
Title: Dusk and Summer
By: Futuremisscsi60
A/N: Thanks for the reviews y'all, I'm really surprised that everyone was so open to such a different idea, especially considering my typical style for 'Nick' stories. Sorry for the semi-shortness of the chapter. I just thought where I left this was a good place to leave it.
Chapter 3: Don't Wait Part I
"The sky glows Don't wait, Don't wait
I see it shining when my eyes close
I hear your warnings but we both know
I'm gonna look at it again
The road is now a sudden sea
And suddenly, you're deep enough
To lay your armor down
To lay your armor down You get one look Don't wait, Don't wait Don't wait, Don't wait
To lay your armor down
I'll show you something that the knife took.
A bit to early for my own good
Now let's not speak of it again
The road is now a sudden sea
And suddenly, you're deep enough
To lay your armor down
To lay your armor down
To lay your armor down
The lights will flash and fade away
The days will pass you by
Don't wait
To lay your armor down
To lay your armor down
To lay your armor down
To lay your armor down
To lay your armor down"
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Houston, Texas
Governor George Pyxler's Mansion
Back Courtyard
June 26, 1989
10:34 a.m.
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Nick sat in his car on the Governor's dirt road behind the white wall, separating him from the rose garden and elegant courtyard while tapping the wheel, about as nervous as a whore in church. Somehow Joey had gotten a hold of his number, and she called earlier that morning, asking him to do her a favor. Liking the dangerous tone to her voice, Nick agreed before she had even told him the favor.
So here he was, semi-voluntarily roped into a daring scheme, sure to land them both in a pit of fire when their parents found out. He had received no trouble while sneaking out of George Pyxler's mansion...
But sneaking Joey out would be quite another thing.
He sighed and looked at his watch one last time before groaning and climbing out of the car. He could sneak just about anyone out of just about anywhere. But this plan had him worried. He scaled the wall and toppled over, landing in a batch of thorns and roses. He grimaced but pulled himself up and darted to hide behind a tree when he spotted a gardener and maid discussing something heatedly as they stormed the path, heading right for Nick.
He was about to run back to the wall when a chunkier maid with sunny blonde hair and rosy cheeks came out and broke up the argument, sending them both away. The woman sighed and shook her head while she had her hands on her hips, then she casually looked around, looking for anyone else out in the Courtyard.
When she saw it was clear she waved someone out of the house, and Nick furred his brows. Joey came sneaking out and darted to the path the maid and gardener had been walking along. She scanned the garden with her emerald eyes and smiled when she saw the disheveled bushes.
"Ugh, you rebellious teens...whatever happened to using the doorbell?" The maid grumbled at pounded towards the ruined roses. Nick quickly jumped to the next tree, to avoid being seen by the woman. A hand landed softly on his shoulder, and he yelped and jumped around.
He came face to face with Joey's amazing grin as she laughed at his jumpy nature. "Manly yelp, Stokes."
"I thought you said the yard would be empty." Nick whispered, gesturing with a nod of his head to the maid straightening the roses.
Joey looked back at the maid and smiled. "Lucy? Nah, she's cool...how do you think I get outta here all the time?"
Nick smirked. "You little Devil." He teased and looked up at the crackle of thunder. "We better get goin' if we're gonna beat the storm." He observed and Joey smirked.
"We're not beating it..." Nick furred his brows at her comment and she smiled and waved to Lucy. "Thank you Luc, I'll see you when I get back."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Go. Go be young. And don't forget to take-"
"I got it Luc! I already have a mother..." She grumbled and Lucy rolled her eyes and went back towards the house.
"So wait..." Nick began and Joey turned to face him. "What do you mean we're not goin' to beat the storm?"
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Houston, Texas
Magnolia Park
June 26, 1989
11:16 p.m.
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Nick winced and shuddered as more wet drops from the sky landed upon his head, shivering him to the bone. "Josephine Pyxler, you're gonna catch pneumonia. Now get back here." Nick demanded and she laughed and shook her head.
"You sound like my mother..."
No, I probably sound smarter than your mother...she thinks pneumonia is a popular band. "You're insane."
"Nope, insanity is a misconception of uniqueness."
"For you anyway..." Nick grumbled and leaned against a wooden pole of the jungle gym.
"It's like love. Love is not love; it is a misconception of passion and understanding, often driven by hormones and commitment." She replied and walked to the grassy plains surrounding the jungle gyms.
"That's a bit cynical for a Governor's Girl, don't you think?!" Nick called over the rain, and was pretty sure he heard her laugh.
"Love can be beautiful...but I think it's rare, a lot less common than most people like to think." She replied as she jumped up and caught the monkey bars between her fingers.
"How do you figure?" He questioned as she pulled her body up and caught the other end of the bars between her legs and hung like a sloth.
"Like I said, love is a common misconception. People think they have it, when its just raw attraction aka lust...I'm sure you know the feeling." She ribbed and Nick laughed and shook his head as she swung back up to grasp the bars, then hang right side up for a minute before dropping to the ground. "But I think there is love out there."
"So if love is a misconception, how can it be beautiful?"
She grinned. "Deliria is a wonderful thing...not being of sound mind with a full heart..."
"So you do believe in love?"
She walked over towards the center of the play ground, where there was no covering of trees or equipment. "I never said I didn't!" She shouted so he could hear her over the rain. He jogged to catch up with her and watched as she laid in the sand and stretched out. "Show me a girl with her feet planted firmly on the ground and I'll show you a girl who has problems getting dressed." She continued as the rain soaked her.
Nick quirked a brow, writing the remark off as rambling. "What are you doing?"
She smiled and closed her eyes. "Experiencing the rain from a different angle."
"What?"
"I've never laid down in the rain before...I don't think many have. Whenever it rains I'm standing...I wanted to know what its like to lay outside when it's raining." She opened her eyes boldly to look at him. "Lay with me."
"How about we lay in the car...where it's dry."
She snorted. "You mean where you can easily seduce me."
"We don't have to be in the car. I'm all for sex in the park..."
"No thank you."
"Ahh..." He groaned and sat down next to her. "I figured." He looked at her laying sprawled out next to him, the rain soaking her white shirt, showing off her bra and tiny mounds underneath it; he eased onto his back next to her. "So...do you do this often?"
"No." She answered simply.
He shifted uncomfortably in the sand, knowing he was wet with the rain and the sand would stick to his clothes. What was the point of this? "...Am I supposed to be experiencing some sort of revival from this?"
She sighed in exasperation. "No, but you'll experience Armageddon if you keep interrupting me."
He turned his head to look at her doubtfully. "From what? Spirits? Love? Life?"
"From the rain. From nature. From everything happening around me. Not everything has to be about spirit or soul or even love. It can be simply about the rain. You're making this more complicated than it has to be. Rain is simple. It's pure. God designed it that way. Not everything is begging to be analyzed."
"This coming from one of the most analytical girls I've ever met." She gave no response, and he sighed, feeling like he had struck a nerve. "Sorry."
"For what? If you're going to insult me then at least stick with it."
"I'm sorry."
She laughed at his remark as more rain pelted her face, streaming down her cheeks and forehead before disappearing into her amber hairline. "Have you ever thought about a career in ballet?"
"Excuse me?" Nick raised his brows but kept his eyes closed, not liking the idea of the rain water entering his eyes.
"'Cause you walk on your toes enough, you'd make a perfect ballerina." She grinned and Nick turned to look at her, finally opening his eyes. The droplets had pooled in her dimples and at the corners of her mouth, before falling down her neck and pooling finally at her collar bone and dip of her throat. "Are you experiencing a revival?" She questioned and Nick brought his eyes to meet her closed ones. "While looking at me, that is."
He smirked. "Well-"
"Don't answer that." She replied, changing her mind. Nick went to quip with a sarcastic comment when he felt the wind pick up and the rain beat down harder.
"We should go to the car."
"We should." She agreed, but made no point in moving. He stared at her confused then shaded his eyes with his hands, trying vainly to put off the rain as he looked up at the sky. "Don't block it..." She commented beside him, still in her state of meditation. He looked at her closed lids, wondering how she knew what he was doing. "It's nature. You can't stop nature."
He contorted his handsome features. "We should really go, Joey. It's starting to storm."
She didn't answer as she straightened her pose in the sand. "Go if you'd like. I don't need you out here to watch me." Her voice held no impatience or exasperation...she sounded calm actually. Almost as if she was in a trance-like state.
It unnerved him.
"C'mon Joey. I'm not leaving you out here." She didn't move. "Don't put me in this position."
"What 'position'? What are you worried about? The rain?"
"There's a storm coming, Joey."
"I'll be fine."
"Joey..."
"If you worry so much then stay with me. If you're scared then go in the car. But you can't do both, and if you take too long you'll never beat the storm."
The statement struck him as something to be digested with deep thoughts. Like it was more profound than she had spoken it. As if there was a hidden meaning he was supposed to find. But her words echoed in his ear. "You're making this more complicated than it has to be. Rain is simple. It's pure. God designed it that way. Not everything is begging to be analyzed."
"Never be afraid to just lie in the rain." She whispered softly, and Nick was amazed at how he heard her. The wind had kinked considerably, carrying the sound of a whistle with it. The sand swirled around him, dancing and mixing with the air as the rain forced it back down to the ground. "You may not walk out of this untouched, but at least you can say you just laid in the rain."
More profound statements or just simplistic thoughts? Nick wondered.
He had his answer as he stretched down next to her, trying not to think about the rain and harsh weather bearing down on them both. But really, when you're lying in a sand pit in the middle of a thunderstorm, there wasn't much to think about. I wonder what she's thinking about...probably something amazingly poetic that would leave me confused to no end. Nick concluded and felt her smaller hand find his own. She gripped it tightly and squeezed it, causing him to turn his head to see her lying almost serenely with her eyes closed as the rain poured on them.
Nick closed his eyes and faced back towards the sky; deciding on letting his mind clear and the sky fall down on them both. The wind picked up as did the sand as the rain beat harder, but he could barely feel it. Something about lying next to her, gripping her hand as the rest of the world ran for cover from the storm, they didn't try to stop it.
They gave in and let Mother Nature take its course.
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After the storm had passed, Joey and Nick had laid in the sand for a few moments before she released his hand and Nick finally looked over at her. The realization of what could have happened to them hit Nick, and he began shaking. He trembled, but didn't let her see his weakness, though he suspected she knew. She walked back to the car and made sure no one was around and she pulled off her shirt, startling Nick slightly.
He watched as she slipped out of her skirt and pulled off her shoes as well, wearing nothing but her bra and underwear, she shook the sand and water off her clothes. She made sure there was no more sand on them and laid them out on Nick's backseat.
She looked up to see he was still looking at her in mild shock, and she smirked. "You're gonna catch pneumonia if you don't get out of those clothes." She scolded and Nick chuckled and shook his head.
"You're the most baffling woman I have ever met."
She smirked. "You need to get out more." She ribbed and climbed into the passenger seat of the car.
Nick stripped out of his clothes and sprawled them out like she had, allowing them to dry. He climbed into the front seat in nothing but his boxers and she laughed. Nick blushed and started the car. "Where to?"
She thought about it and smirked. "I could really go for some ice cream."
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Houston, Texas
Dizzy's Ice-Cream Parlor
June 26, 1989
1:18 p.m.
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Luckily, their clothes had dried by the time they got into town, and they redressed and went to Nick's favorite ice cream parlor. Nick held her hand as he led her towards a booth in the back, and slid in next to her. Nick picked up the menu and began to scan through the options of cones and ice cream flavors and Joey surveyed the ice-cream shop.
"Hey, what do you want?" Nick asked and she quickly scanned the menu.
"Small chocolate ice cream cone." She replied and Nick smiled.
"How original."
She smirked and quirked a brow. "Should I have picked something else...?"
Nick shrugged. "No. I just figured you would."
"Why?"
"Because you always end up surprising me."
"Well, you expected me to pick something outlandish. I picked something ordinary; therefore, I did surprise you." Nick thought about it and smiled and shook his head. "Now go get me my ordinary ice cream cone, Mr. Stokes." She teased and he chuckled and saluted her.
Nick ambled up to the counter and flashed a grin at the girl about his age standing behind the counter, with too heavy blue eye make-up and a 'don't-mess-with-me' attitude. "What can I getcha?" She drawled and popped her gum. Nick placed his order and she gave a fake smile. "We'll get right on it."
Nick nodded and sighed as he waited for the ice cream when a strong hand landed on his shoulder. He yelped and turned around to see Mike, Eric, Ray, Kyle, and Cody laughing at his surprise. "Geez Nick, pick a girlier reaction please!" Mike replied and Nick forced a smile as he calmed his heart rate.
"Hey guys...what're you doin' here?" He drawled and Mike shrugged.
"Killin' people." He joked and Nick smirked, realizing he'd asked a dumb question. "Whadaya think, Nick?" They all shared a laugh at his expense while Nick ventured a look at Joey, watching the people walk along the street as she waited patiently for his return. "So what's up? I haven't seen you around in a while."
"Uh...I've been grounded. My parents caught me sneakin' into my room the mornin' after the party."
Mike grinned. "You were out all night huh?" He looked back to the rest of their friends.
"Who were you with, man?" Cody asked and Nick shifted.
"Uh...no one."
"No one?" Kyle questioned.
"I just drove around." Nick lied and Mike laughed and shook his head.
"Dude, you kill me, 'drivin' around all night' yeah right. Who were you with?"
"Don't worry about it."
Mike sighed and rolled his eyes. "Fine, if you're gonna deprive me of my rights as your best friend, then fine." Mike joked.
"I thought I was your best friend, Nick?" Ray called and Nick rolled his eyes.
"You are man, just relax. Looks, guys, it's been great but-"
"Orders up!" The dissatisfied employee screeched and Nick smiled, glad for the diversion and gestured to the ice creams.
"I gotta go..."
I took a while, but Nick finally snuck away from the group of boys and made his way back to Joey. She smiled when she saw him and gladly accepted the ice cream. "Friends of yours?" She questioned, and Nick gave her a confused look. She nodded towards Mike and his friends.
Nick looked over guiltily and rubbed the back of his neck before sliding into the booth next to her. "Uh...yeah."
She looked over to see them making fools of themselves as they harassed a few of the patrons and toyed immaturely with the utensils and ice cream. Nick suddenly felt very ashamed to be in contact with these degenerate buffoons.
Hey, wait a minute, that's my friends I'm talking about...
Joey smirked in obvious amusement at their 'Jackass Generation' performance. She shook her head and sighed. "Many a person has held close, throughout their entire lives, two friends that always remained strange to one another, because one of them attracted by virtue of similarity, the other by difference...Emil Ludwig."
Nick looked over at his friends acting moronic. "Well in my case I have a bunch of friends...and their all pretty special..."
"Special Ed." She joked and Nick stuck his tongue out and threw his spoon at her. She didn't even flinch, merely laughed and winked. "No, I'm sure they are very charming people..." A squeal from across the parlor drew their attention and they turned to see Cody getting a root beer float thrown in his face by an outraged and extremely offended feminist. "...In their own special way."
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Galveston, Texas
Galveston Beach
June 26, 1989
4:08 p.m.
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"How long have you been friends with them...?"
"Who?" Nick asked, turning his head slightly, but never looking away from the sky.
"The kids from the diner." Joey elaborated. "How well do you know them?"
"Why?" Nick asked defensively and she smirked and chuckled.
"Calm down, Nick. No need to get protective. I was merely tryin' to make conversation."
Nick sighed, a little miffed that her simple question had made him uncomfortable. "Since middle school...I've known Eric longer though...but I've known Ray the longest. Since about first grade."
"Wow...pretty long term for a bunch of players." She quipped and Nick winced, that had struck a nerve.
"Friends are serious."
"I know."
"We just know how to have fun." Nick said, once again getting defensive, but this time with reason.
"It sure as Hell looked like it..." She replied somewhat caustically.
"Well what about you? I've seen you in the papers with your friends."
"You don't see me in the papers." She replied, making him stop for a second. For a Governor's daughter she did know how to keep out of the tabloids, unlike her sister of course.
"You cause a riot with your friends." Nick continued, ignoring the statement.
"I don't have friends."
Nick looked over at her fully and rolled onto his side to prop himself up on one arm. "What about all those people I see you with in the papers...all the two times you were splattered on the cover." Nick added and she smiled bitterly.
"Those were moochers...'Replacables' that used me because they thought I could get them the VIP treatment."
"...I'm sorry."
"Eh, its only fair..." He quirked his brow, urging a further explanation. "I used them to get out of the house they call a prison."
Nick smirked. "Your father runs a tight ship. The white house is easier to get into than your house."
She sighed. "He keeps it sealed tight so he doesn't have to run up every few days to make sure I'm in my room...it's too much of a bother." Nick was silent, unsure of how to respond. "It's cool though, makes it a lot easier to break outta there when he's not checkin' on me every hour..."
They laid in compatible silence, both lost in their own thoughts as they watched the surf crash on the shore and the sun shine brightly above them. Nick laid back down and stared up at him, making her quirk a brow.
"You'll go blind if you look into the light."
"I find it refreshing."
"Ah, yes, retina damage...so refreshing."
"You're dreadfully acerbic for a Governor's Girl."
"Be careful not to choke on those big words." She quipped and Nick gasped and clutched his chest as she laughed.
"Ouch! Ow! Oh my! Goodness, I'm mortally wounded from that one!" He exclaimed and she laughed and rolled onto her stomach.
"Tough it out, Ranger. If you're gonna run with me then you're gonna have to get a helluva lot thicker skinned than you are." She leaned on her elbows and looked him dead in the eye. "Tell me a secret."
"Why?"
"Because, I'm going to mock you for it and you're going to sit there and take it like a man."
"Another movie quote?" Nick questioned and she shook her head.
"Nah, that was all me." She shook her hair out of her face. "So c'mon, give me a secret."
"No." She sighed and looked at him sternly, knowing he'd cave eventually. He groaned and rolled his eyes. "Fine, um...okay, ya know those blue circle things they have in public restrooms that make them smell fresher?" Nick asked and she nodded. Nick blushed and looked away. "Well...when I was about four...I decided they looked good...so..."
It took her a minute, but she finally put two and two together and got four. She gasped and a look of horror came across her face. "You didn't!"
He grimaced and nodded. "I did..."
"You ate it!"
"I ate it." He admitted while blushing ten shades of red. She fell over laughing, gripping her stomach and swatting at tears. "I never told anyone that..."
She made a face and shook her head. "Oh my Goodness...I can't believe I kissed you!" She gasped and grimaced, making him blush more.
"Shut up Governor's Brat." Nick shoved her lightly though she was already falling over.
Suddenly she stopped laughing and looked out at the ocean. She stared at it as if she was in a trance, causing Nick to look at her in confusion. She turned her head slightly to look in his direction, but not at him. "I wanna go swimming." She informed him and Nick quirked a brow.
"Do you always get what you want?"
"Generally." She replied and stood up before brushing the sand off her clothes. She walked out towards the water, not asking Nick to come with her. She stood at the edge and let it brush up against her feet. The sand sunk between her toes and made home under her toenails, but she didn't seem to care. The waves crashed back up to the shore, covering her feet and ankles with cool water, sea weed, and sand.
Suddenly something picked her up from behind, and she gasped and let out a squeal as she felt herself being hoisted backwards and arched over a strong shoulder. "What the Hell?!" She screamed and saw the upside down view of the beach, noticing that Nick was no longer on the blanket. "Nick! Put me down!" She demanded.
He laughed. "You don't always get what you want..."
"Generally I do! I believe this falls under that category!"
"Exactly, you said you wanted to go swimming. Well, my Dear, you've been standin' there for close to ten minutes so I figured you'd need some help..." Nick drawled and began walking towards the water, already having kicked off his shoes.
"Nick this is a really uncomfortable position!"
He flipped her over gently so that she was on her stomach, but still bent over his shoulder. She groaned. "Better?"
"No this is not better! Put me down!"
"Okay." Nick agreed and let her fall over his shoulder once they were out far enough in the water. He heard her shriek and splash in the water, and laughed as he turned to walk away. Suddenly he was yanked backwards, flailing and yelling in shock as Joey's triumphant laugh sounded through the air.
He came back up spurting salt water out his mouth and panting for air. he brushed the seaweed off his face, then growled playfully and dunked Joey back under the water. When she sank into the water underneath him, she yanked him down as well, both of them laughing as they kicked their way back to the top.
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After nearly an hour of playing in the water, Nick and Joey collapsed on the sheet separating them from the sand. They waited as the sun still hovered above them, both of them relaxing underneath the sun's rays as they air dried. Their chests heaved up and down heavily as if they'd run a marathon. His eyes were squeezed tightly shut, blocking the sun and sweat from entering his eyes, while hers stood boldly open. Emerald pools glistening as tried to catch her breath.
"Tell me...a...secret."
She was silent for a long while, presumably catching her breath before she sighed softly. "The very word 'secrecy' is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths, and to secret proceedings."
"Mr. Donne?"
"John Fitzgerald Kennedy."
"Ah..." Nick replied and turned to her slowly. "That still doesn't give me a secret."
She smirked. "I had a purpose...you needed to build character."
"I have a purpose. I wanna laugh at you."
She smirked. "Gimme a better reason or a better secret, and we'll talk about it." She replied and stood up and walked to his car. "C'mon. I wanna go home."
"No. You're spoiled." Nick accused and she turned around to face him. "...Alright, so maybe you're not spoiled...but you've got me wrapped around your finger and I don't know why."
She looked at him sweetly, a hint of a smile gracing her face, as she cocked her head to the side. "And that vexes you."
"Yes."
Nick watched as she grinned and slowly walked towards him, her shoes swinging slackly in her hands as she did so. She plopped on the ground next to him, merely inches from his face as she sized him up slowly. Nick watched her with growing fascination and a sly smile spread over the sweet grin. She inched closer until her lips were millimeters from his own.
In that moment the smile faded from her naturally elegant features, replaced by a somber look. "You broke the rules." She whispered softly, her words floating over his lips, taking the place of the kiss he never received.
A/N: So there you go, a new chapter...I guess I kind of got it up a few hours later than normal...my bad! Leave a review anyway.
-Futuremisscsi60
