Chapter 10

Nick was about halfway down the stairs when he heard the explosion.

Oh Shit.

It blew the door shut and Nick flew down the rest of he stairs. He could feel the heat from the blast penetrate the wood door, now enclosing him inside the basement. Suddenly he heard a whimper coming from the back corner and remembered why he was down there in the first place. Kaylee.

"KAYLEE!" He shouted. The lights were all off and it was pitch dark. He stretched his arms out searching for anything. The shaking had stopped a few seconds ago, but Nick was still unsteady on his feet. He stumbled over what felt like a barrel, probably of whisky. "Kaylee, where the hell are you?!"

"I'm over here!" he heard her sniffle from somewhere to the left. She reached out and grabbed his fingers. Nick grabbed her hand and pulled her up from where she had been crouching on the floor. Nick could barely make out her face in the darkness. It was tear stained and she was ghastly white. The poor girl was terrified.

Kaylee looked around the room. "What do we do?" She said in a terrified whisper.

Nick had let go over her hand and was once again reaching out into the darkness. "Theres a flashlight down here somewhere." He jumped as he heard a bang coming from somewhere overhead in the bar. They wouldn't last long in here, he thought. They needed to find a way out. Now.

"I don't want to die…." Nick heard Kaylee whisper, a sob stuck in her throat. He reached around and clutched her shoulders.

"We are NOT going to die in here. You hear me?! We're going to get out of this. We have to." Nick thoughts drifted to Jess. Yeah, he was definitely not dying now.

That was when he heard the roof of the basement splintering…

Nick bolted upright in bed knocking a slumbering Jess off his chest in the process. He was breathing heavy, a thin layer of sweat covering his body. He brought his hand up and rubbed his forehead.

"Nick?" Jess sat up next to him, noting how pale he looked. "Hey." She rubbing gentle circles on his back. "Are you alright?" She continued to rub as he lowered his hand from his face taking a shaking breath. Nick gave Jess a weak smile.

"I'm fine. Bad dream." Nick reached out and brushed Jess's mane of curls off her shoulder. She tilted her head and smiled at him, her fingers now walking up his back and into his hair.

"Bad dream, huh." She let the sheet that she had been clutching to her chest fall as she moved to straddle his waist. "Bet I know how to make it all better…" She gave him a chaste kiss as she dragged her hands through his hair. Nick clutched her waist, his fingers dancing on her hipbones.

"Mmm…" Nick sighed as Jess brought her lips back to his. He was insanely glad that she hadn't asked what the dream was about. He really didn't want to talk about it. In fact, he wanted to forget that that whole ordeal had ever happened.

"Uh huh." Jess's arms rested on his shoulders and she looked at him with darkened eyes. She raised her eyebrows at him and bit her lip seductively. Nick growled wrapping his arms around her waist and flipping the both of them so he was now lying on top of her. "Why Mr. Miller…."

"Jess?" Nick was breathing heavy, placing his hand on the side of her head and lifting her left leg to wrap it around his waist.

"Yeah?" Jess gasped, clutching his shoulders. Beads of sweat appearing on her forehead.

"Stop talking." Nick leaned down and kissed her.

Nick and Jess flopped on their backs, both gasping for breath. The looked over at each other and smiled. The smiles then turned into giggles and the two just laughed, both shifting to their sides and propping their head on their hands. Nick reached over and rubbed her arm.

"Wow." Jess breathed at him.

"Yeah." Nick said back grinning like a fool.

Jess plopped back down on Nick's plaid green pillow, rubbing the sweat off of her forehead. She wondered if would always be like this between the two of them. All fire and passion and mind blowing sex. She hoped so, although, she didn't know how much more pleasure her body could handle. He grin few broader at that thought.

Nick noticed the smile expand on her face. "What?" he asked drawing her body closer to his and wrapping an arm around her waist, hand still propping his head up.

Jess shook her head and looked up at him. "I was just wondering if it would always be like this" she pointed between the two of them "between us."

Nick leaned down trailing kisses from her shoulder to her neck and up to her cheek. He paused right before kissing her ruby lips. "God I hope so." He kissed her deeply eliciting a moan from Jess. He shifted so he was once again lying on top of her, tracing her arms, her hips… He tore his lips from hers and began kissing her chin, then her neck, then…

"Gah…" Jess sighed running her hands through his hair as he trailed lower. "Again?"

A growl was Nick's only response.

Nick collapsed on top of Jess. Both were breathing heavy. Jess ran her hand up and down his back, eyes closed. "Nick?" She whispered, opening her eyes and shifting them to the side of his head.

"Mmmph?" Nick grunted, head still buried in her neck.

"You squishing me." She grimaced. As much as she liked having the weight of one Nick Miller on top of her, his weight combined with sweat, the two were practically stuck together and it was slightly uncomfortable.

Nick lifted his head and kissed her on the nose. "Sorry." He grinned and rolled over on his back. A look of confusion suddenly came over his face as he looked up at the ceiling. "How did we end up at the bottom of the bed?"

Jess sat up and looked around. She grinned. "I have absolutely no idea."

The two burst into laughter, Nick sitting up with her, and wrapping one arm around her back. She smiled over at him and leaned in to kiss him on the cheek before getting up.

Nick reached out for her grasping her wrist. "Where are you going?" He asked pleadingly tightening his grip on her wrist.

She smiled down at him. "I have to use the bathroom." She bit her lip, "but I'm coming right back." Jess freed her wrist from his grasp and grabbed the nearest shirt she saw, which just happened to be the same flannel that she had worn after their first night together. Nick groaned as she threw it over herself covering all that delicious skin that he had just been thoroughly enjoying.

Jess looked over her shoulder and winked at him before exiting the room and making her way down the hall to the bathroom. Jess pushed open the door and made her way inside letting out a little squeak when she realized she wasn't alone. Cece stood there in a tiny robe, her hair in a disheveled mess around her shoulders.

"Jesus, Cece…" Jess clutched Nick's shirt tighter around her. "You scared me."

Cece made a face at her "Sorry babe."

"What are you…" Jess started but then stopped, raising her right hand in a gesture of surrender. "Never mind… I got it."

Cece grinned at Jess. "Schmidt called and well.."

Jess rolled her eyes at her. "Yeah, I figured." she said making her way to the stall, closing it behind her.

"Oh, please. Like you and Nick aren't going at it like rabbits in his room. You two aren't exactly quiet." Jess could hear the accusing tone in Cece's voice. She rolled her eyes as she finished and exited the stall heading for the sink to wash her hands.

"Jess… come on. Out with it!" Cece was sitting on the little bench underneath the towel rack. Jess washed her hands quickly and reached for a towel by Cece's head to dry them, leaning back into the wall.

"Well…" Cece encouraged. Jess just grinned at her. Cece got the gist.

"You two have been going at it for two months and it's still…"

"Oh yeah."

"Damn. Nick Miller… who knew?" Cece shook her head at her. "How is he doing after yesterday? Schmidt told me what happened at the bar."

"He seems fine. " Jess drew her eyebrows together. "Do you think I should talk to him about it?"

"Jess, the man could've died." Cece said as Jess looked at the floor. Jess didn't like to think about it. "Hey, I'm not saying this to upset you…"

"No I know." Jess started, a lump forming in her throat. "It's just… when I think of how close…" She stopped feeling tears in her eyes.

"Hey…" Cece got up and put her hand on her friends arm, "Nick is fine. He's alive, and he's with you. I just think you two need to talk about it. You know how Nick is with holding things in. It eats at him, and he still won't discuss it. Thats not healthy babe."

Jess nodded, twisting her mouth. "Yeah."

Cece gave her a weak smile. "I have to get back to Schmidt. He's getting whipped cream…"

Jess wrinkled her nose at Cece "I really didn't need to know that."

Cece winked and walked out of the bathroom. Jess looked at herself in the mirror. She brushed her teeth quickly and gave a quick fluff to her hair before walking back out of the bathroom and towards Nick's room. She opened the door slowly only to be yanked inside and be shoved back against it. In mere moments Nick was on her, hands everywhere, mouth on her neck.

"Nick… wait.." Jess gasped as Nick began unbuttoning the flannel she had on. He paused in his actions looking up at her eyes.

"What? Why?" He asked, his hand still clutching her shirt. He unbuttoned another button, moving on to the next. He smiled at her before kissing her again. She moaned underneath his lips as she felt his hands train inside the shirt circling her waist. Nick tore his mouth from hers and knelt in front of her…

"Oh, god." Jess moaned. "never mind, just don't stop doing… unnnngggghhh…"

That was when he heard the roof of the basement splintering.

Nick looked up, panicked. He could see boards beginning to snap. "Come on!" He grabbed Kaylee's hand and searched for the rails to the stairs.

"What? No way! We can't go up there!" Kaylee shrieked at him tugging him back into the middle of the room. Nick swiveled around and stared at her.

"It's the only way out. Either we go back and try and get out through the fire or…" He didn't want to think about or.

Kaylee's eyes widened "Or we die." She began to hyperventilate clutching Nick's hand tighter.

"Shit! Kaylee! You need to pull it together. We are going to get out of here, but I need your help, ok?" Nick gripped her hand peering into her eyes in the darkness. She nodded still breathing heavy. "I need to get that door open, alright? I need to see what we're dealing with. There are two exits. One is the entrance to the door, one is out the back that leads to the alley. It's through the office, ok?"

Kaylee nodded, tears filling her eyes as she tried to even out her breathing. Nick clutched her hand in his as he made his way through the darkness towards the stairs, climbing carefully. As they reached the top a board fell from the ceiling behind them. Kaylee jumped, pressing herself against Nick. He looked at her, she looked at him and both nodded.

Nick swung the door open.

Nick bolted up from the floor and scrambled to the wall, pressing his back against it. He was breathing heavy, sweat dripping from his brow. Jess shot up from where she had been laying on the floor and looked at him. He was pale again, breathing labored and this time he was shaking.

"Nick?" She reached for him, but he drew away from her.

"I'm fine." He said as he got up off the floor grabbing his shirt and looking around for boxers.

"Nick you are not fine. Talk to me." Jess pleaded grabbing his hand as he walked by her. Nick shrugged her off as he threw on a pair of sweatpants.

"I just need to get some air. Really, Jess. I'm good." He gave her a tiny smile as he reached for the door and padded out of the room.

Jess watched him leave. She wanted to follow him badly but decided against it. maybe all he needed was some space, and she would give him that. One thing was certain though.

Nick Miller was not "fine."

A/N

Ok so heres a couple things.

1. I can't believe some of you thought I would kill Nick! I love that man too much to kill him off. I would be an emotional wreck even attempting to write something like that.

2. I don't write smut. It's not that I disapprove, I'm just terrible at it. I never feel satisfied with what I write, so I do the buildup and then you guys can let your imagination take you wherever you want with that.

3. This is SO not the direction that I was going to take this story but, it popped in my head and I couldn't get rid of it, so there ya go.

And lastly, I'm going to try and update two more times in the upcoming week. I don't know if I'll actually get around to it, but the following week I'll be at the San Diego Comic Con (SDCC) so I won't be home to write anything.

HOPE YOU LIKED! PLEASE REVIEW!

-Casey