Nick lay on the couch, thinking about many things that'd happened in the past. Like the fact he had made friends with Alex first or when Alex had told him she had a crush on Paige.

Flashback

They had been on their shift at the movie theater.

"Nick, can I tell you something?" Alex asked. "A secret?" she added. Nick nodded. It seemed serious.

"Tell me anything." Nick said.

"I think I have a crush."

"OK. That's normal for people our age."

"On Paige."

"What!"

"On Paige. I think I have a crush on Paige."

"Well it'd be normal if it were on a guy. I can't believe it's on my best friend. My girl best friend."

"I don't know what to do. And for a second there I thought you were going to say ex-girlfriend."

"Well, for now you can't do anything about it because she's dating Mr. O. Maybe after the relationship's over we can figure out a way to hook you two up."

"You mean you're gonna help me?"

"Yeah, of course. You're my friend." Alex had a sudden urge rush over her, which caused her to squeal and hug Nick tightly.

"OK, OK. I get it. You're saying thank you." Nick breathed.

"I'm sorry." Alex said, getting back to work.

End of Flashback

Or what about when he first met Paige?

Flashback

It was the second week of kindergarten and Paige was already being picked on. Five year-old Nick had been watching from where he'd been sitting.

"Are you gonna cry?" one of the bullies asked. She was on the verge of tears.

"Hey, leave her alone." Nick said, walking up to Paige's side. He crossed his arms over his chest, showing he meant business.

"She with you?" the other bully asked.

"Yeah, dorkus. She's with me. But he's not." Nick said, pointing at another kid. "Go mess with him."

"OK. Sorry kid. We didn't know you knew Nick." The two ran off leaving the other two standing there. The other kids knew not to mess with Nick. His mom taught sixth grade, which meant he was tight with most of them. In fact, when it came time for lunch and recess the older kids would come and say hi. You didn't mess with Nick unless you wanted to get beat down by some older kids.

"Hi, I'm Nick. What's your name?"

"Paige." Paige said, quietly.

"It's nice to meet you. Wanna sit with me?" Paige nodded. She followed him to where he'd been sitting. "Hey Jimmy."

"Hey man. What's up?"

"Paige, this is Jimmy Brookes. Jimmy this is Paige…"

"Michalchuk." Paige finished.

"Hi Paige." Jimmy said, shaking her hand.

"Yo, where's Spinner?" Nick asked.

"Hey guys." said a boy who sat by Jimmy.

"Hey Spin!" Jimmy and Nick said.

"Paige Michalchuk this is Gavin 'Spinner' Mason. Spinner, this is Paige." Who knew the two would go out in high school? Then again, who knew Paige would go out with Nick for a few weeks? Let alone Alex.

"Hi." young Spinner said.

"Hi. Why do they call you Spinner?" There was a beep from Spinner's watch.

"Spinner, was that your watch I heard?" the teacher asked. Spinner nodded. He took a small container of pills out and a water bottle. The teacher opened the container and gave Spinner a pill. He put it in his mouth and took a sip of his water. The teacher got up and walked away.

"Because if he doesn't take his pills for ADD, his mind starts spinnin' out of control." Nick said.

"Hey boys!" called two five year-old, female voices.

"Hey Terri. Hey Ashley." Nick said Ashley's name shyly. It was a kindergarten crush that went on until they were in fourth grade. "Terri McGregor and Ashley Kerwin, this is Paige Michalchuk. Paige, this is Terri and Ashley."

"Wow, you know everyone, huh?" Paige asked.

"No, not really."

"What are you talking about? If you don't know everyone, everyone knows you." Ashley said.

"Well, you know how I do." Nick said, flirtatiously. For a five year-old, he acted like a high schooler.

End of Flashback

"Hey. Knock, knock. You in there?" Alex said, tapping Nick's forehead with her knuckles, bringing Nick out of his thoughts.

"Yeah, just walking down memory lane." Nick said.

"May we join you?" Paige asked.

"Nah, my stroll's done. Where's Michael?"

"Packing." Paige answered.

"Packing? He's leaving?" Alex said.

"Yeah. He has a huge assignment due when we get back to school. So, he's leaving tonight."

"Oh, well then we should do something fun." Nick said.

"Like go to the pool hall?" Alex asked with a mischievous grin.

"Like going to the pool hall." Alex gave Nick a high five. This made Paige and Marco give them strange looks.

"Hey guys." Michael had walked in.

"Hey." the others said. Michael sat in the armchair closest to the kitchen and sighed.

"So, you're leaving tonight?" Nick asked.

"Yeah." Michael asked. "Huge assignment that needs to get done."

"So we've heard." Alex said.

"When does your flight leave?" Nick said in a laugh.

"At eleven." Michael answered.

"Good. We'll head to the pool hall at eight."

"Cool. Michael? You up for a game of SSX?" Alex asked.

"You're on." Alex turned on the TV and turned on the Playstation 2. She gave Michael a controller and started the game. Marco and Paige sat on the floor next to Alex, watching. Nick then started another stroll down memory lane. Like when Alex first started working at the theater.

Flashback

Nick was working on shift with Jeff. The line was lightening up and Nick was happy about that. The movies would start soon and everyone would be inside the theater. Then he had about two hours to chill and then he'd be off shift.

"Nick!" called Meeri. He turned to her. "I need to see you in my office." What had he done this time? He followed her to her office and walked in to find Alex standing there. As usual, she was wearing a white wifebeater and khaki pants. "This is-"

"Alex." Nick continued Meeri's sentence.

"You know each other?"

"We go to school together." Alex said with no feeling.

"Oh, well Nick. I want you to teach her the ropes. Got it?"

"Yes ma'am." Nick said. He signaled Alex to follow him and surprisingly, she did.

"So basically we get paid to serve people, clean the nacho cheese dispenser, and anything else you do back here. At least if it's work related. Then we basically chill for two hours and we're off shift." Nick said, grabbing a bag of M&M's. "Candy?"

"Yeah. Skittles." Nick grabbed a bag and tossed it to her. "So, I've been meaning to ask you. What's a guy like you doing hanging out with a girl like Paige Michalchuk?"

"I've known her since kindergarten. She's really cool, once you get to know her."

"Yeah, I highly doubt that."

"Hey Nick!" Nick turned to see Hazel and Jimmy, Degrassi's newest couple.

"Hey guys. What can I get you?"

"Um, I'll take a large Coke, nachos, and sour worms." Jimmy said.

"I'll have a large lemonade." Hazel said.

"Alright. Hey Alex, can you grab the nachos?"

"No problem." Alex said. Nick and Alex served Hazel and Jimmy and Jimmy paid for their stuff.

"What are you doing here, Alex?" Hazel asked.

"I work here." Alex said.

"I didn't know they let people like you work here."

"People like me? And what type would that be?"

"Well, people who-"

"Hazel! Not today." Nick said. Everyone looked at Nick in surprise. Usually when around them, he was also mean to Alex.

"Later Nick." Jimmy said, dragging Hazel to the theater.

"What was that for?" Alex asked, after the couple were out of earshot.

"What?"

"You protecting me. You didn't have to do that."

"Well, you shouldn't have to deal with them ragging on you all the time." Alex smirked.

"Who knew you could be so cool?"

"I'll take that as a compliment." This was the start of a new friendship.

End of Flashback

Nick, Alex, Michael, Paige, and Marco walked up to the door of the pool hall.

"Whoa, you're too young kids. Come back in a few years." said a guy outside the front door.

"Dude, I'm an exception to the rules. I know the owner." Nick said.

"Yeah right, kid. Nice try."

"It's true. I can call him right now."

"Yeah? Go ahead." Nick pulled out his phone and dialed in a number.

"Hello? Yeah, hey Lawrence. Yeah, this is Nick. I'm outside. Yeah, some guy won't let me in. Alright, we'll wait." Nick hung up and waited.

"Was that the lovely Larry?" Alex asked.

"Yup. In about five… four… three… two… one… enter Lawrence."

"Hey Nick." said a man in a gray business suit.

"Lawrence. It's good to see you again."

"Same here. Come on in." Nick and the others followed Lawrence inside.

"Thank you, Larry." Alex said when they reached a vacant pool table.

"No problem, sweetheart." He walked away, leaving Alex and Nick to laugh.

"And he called you sweetheart-" Paige began.

"It's a game. He calls me sweetheart for reasons that are unknown and I call him lovely Larry, because he's gay." Alex said.

"I'm not gay. I'm straight. And you shouldn't be talking. You're the one who likes 'em with curves." Lawrence said, walking back over as Nick laughed.

"Alright, so I like girls and so do you. I call you lovely Larry because you act gay." Nick laughed even harder at Alex's comment.

"Hey!"

"OK. Forget the nicknames. Let's play pool." Nick said, as his laughter calmed down. He grabbed a pool stick and tossed one to Alex. He racked up the balls. "You break." Alex went to the end of the table and observed the balls. She set up for the shot and hit the cue ball.

"I'm stripes." she said as a striped ball went into the right corner pocket.

"Damn it. Guess I'm solids." Alex set up for her next shot.

"Twenty bucks says I make that ball go into the left middle pocket." Alex said, eying the 13 ball.

"You're on." Nick said.

"Hold on. I want in on this. Twenty on Alex." Lawrence said.

"Why?" Paige asked.

"I don't know. I just got this feeling."

"Alright, alright. Be quiet." Alex said. She aimed and then shot. And in it went.

"Damn." Nick said, paying Lawrence and Alex their money. Paige and Marco eyebrows went up in surprise.

"How'd you do that?" Marco asked.

"Simple geometry." Alex said, shooting another striped ball in. She moved around the table and shot another one. "Damn. Does that count?"

"No." Nick said.

"Oh, come on. It was in and then it freaked out."

"No. That doesn't count." Nick said, setting up for his first shot. He pushed the pool stick hard. So hard, when the cue ball hit the ball he was aiming for it made a loud sound. But the ball went in.

------------------------------

Michael, Marco, and Nick sat down while Paige and Alex played pool.

"So, how was your date last night?" Nick asked.

"It was great. Jenny seems like a really nice girl and me and Paige had fun." Michael said, as he watched the girls.

"So, we heard you also went to see a movie. Is that true?" Marco asked.

"Yeah. Some stupid horror movie."

"Oh, was it good?"

"I said the word stupid, didn't I?" Michael said, hiding his irritation. Nick and Marco could tell he was agitated, so they didn't say another word. Nick watched the girls again and then stood up and walked over to them.

"Don't make it. Miss it. Miss it. Miss it." Alex said.

"You can't throw me off. I'm in the zone." Paige said, hitting the cue ball. The three watched as it hit the eight ball and it went in.

"She beat you." Nick said in disbelief. "No way. She beat you. You're like one of the best players in this room." Alex looked at Paige.

"I know." Alex said.

"Well, Dylan's a good teacher. Any new takers?" Paige said.

"No, I want to take you." Alex said, racking up the balls. Paige and Nick quirked an eyebrow. Alex then realized what she said. "I mean I want a rematch."

"You're on." Nick decided to watch this game, but then ended up going back down memory lane.

Flashback

It was graduation day. One of the happiest and saddest days of his life. He was happy to be graduating. But sad to leave the school, surprisingly. He would miss his friends, especially Paige and Marco.

He hugged Alex tightly. She surprisingly hugged back. He was her first real friend at Degrassi.

"Alex?" Nick said, before she could walk away.

"What?" she asked.

"Move in with me." She laughed.

"What?"

"Move in with me. Come on it'll be fun."

"Me and you? You do know I'm a lesbian, right?"

"Come on, Alex. I'm serious. Move in with me. And besides, I'm not into you like that."

"You swing for the fence. I can't move in with you. What about my mom?" Nick knew Alex's home situation.

"Alex. You're eighteen. I know you're scared for your mom, but you can't let her hold you down. You have to go out on your own sometime."

"Sorry. I can't." Alex turned around, but Nick grabbed her wrist.

"If it's constellation, my new apartment is pretty close to your mom's. And it's near here and the University of Toronto. Come on, Alex. We could turn it into a bachelor- well, bachelor/ bachelorette pad. What do you think?" Nick said. Alex thought about this.

"What's it like?" she said after a few moments.

"Two bedroom, one bathroom, kitchen. The kitchen actually goes into the living room/den area. So what do you say?"

"I'm in." Alex said. She gave Nick a high five.

"Alright, I have a housemate."

"What about rent?"

"Two-fifty a month for each of us."

"I can handle that. I just need a job."

"Well, I've paid up four months worth, so you have three and a half months."

"Alright. I can get a job by then."

"Cool. I start moving in tomorrow. I'll show you the apartment then."

"Alright. I'll have some of my stuff packed up. But one ground rule for now."

"What's that?"

"You don't flirt with my girls, I don't flirt with yours."

"Deal." Nick said, shaking Alex's hand. "Although if you think about it. Your girls will be gay and won't find me attractive."

"Unless they're bi." Alex said. Nick laughed.

"True. So, are you going to Paige's graduation party?"

"I have to. I promised her weeks ago. Starts at five, right?"

"For you."

"What do you mean?"

"I promised I'd help set up and clean up. That was stupid."

"That really was."

"Alright. I'll see ya later."

"Wait!"

"What?"

"You still have to drive me home. I'm not wearing this to Paige's party."

"Oh, yeah. I'll call you when I'm leaving, so mingle for a bit." Alex chuckled and walked away.

"Nick!" Nick turned to see Paige and Marco. Paige ran up and gave him a huge hug.

"Ah man. I can't believe we graduated high school. We've been through everything together." They broke apart.

"Not everything."

"You're right. I wasn't here for middle school and most of high school. But I came back last year. And we still kept in touch those five years."

"Yeah, and when you were coming back you didn't tell me." Paige said, punching him in the shoulder.

"I'm sorry; I was busy grieving at the time. But we've been through a lot. I mean, I protected you from bullies and I was your first friend in kindergarten."

"Yeah. You introduced me to Jimmy, Spinner, Ashley, and Terri."

"Yeah and lucky for me- well, unlucky for them- I didn't have to go through your snobby, spoiled brat stage in middle school."

"Hey!" Paige said, hitting him again. Nick was right, though. She'd grown up a lot these past six years.

"And we even dated for a little bit."

"Yup. From best friends to dating to best friends again."

"And I wouldn't have it any other way." Paige hugged him again.

"So, you ready for Banting?" Marco asked.

"Actually. I've decided to go to the University of Toronto to major in music."

"You mean you're not coming with us?" Paige asked with disappointment in her voice.

"Yeah. But you guys will do fine. Trust me. You two are over-achievers."

"Promise you'll come visit?"

"Only if you two do."

"Deal."

"Deal."

"Deal." Marco said. "So how long are you going to have to live with your mom and dad? Or did you get a dorm?"

"Actually, I got an apartment. So, when you guys come to visit, you'll have a place to crash."

"Sweet. You'll be living by yourself."

"No, actually-"

"OK. Forget other people; I'm talking to you guys." Alex had just walked up.

"Cool. Nick was just about to tell us about his apartment." Marco said.

"Oh, yeah. It's gonna be awesome. Right, Nick?"

"You know about it?" Paige asked.

"Yeah. I just agreed to move in with him."

"You're Nick's roommate?"

"I prefer to think of it as housemates, considering we're not sharing a room." Nick said.

"So, when do we get to see this apartment of yours?" Marco asked.

"Please, I don't even get to see it until tomorrow." Alex said. Nick and Paige stepped away as Marco and Alex talked.

"Alex is moving in with you!" Paige asked.

"Well, yeah. Paige, you were right. She doesn't need to stay where she is. Especially since she's being abused like that. It's not safe. Your Kingston idea was a great idea. But I think maybe moving that far away was too big of a step for Alex. She wouldn't even move in with me until I told her the apartment was near her mom's. Come on. Don't be angry over this."

"Well, you did the right thing. This'll be good for Alex."

"Thank you." Nick kissed her on the forehead. "Now all we have to do is convince her to go to college." Paige chuckled.

"Paige! Come on. We need to get ready for your party."

"Coming mom!" Paige turned back to Nick. "You, change your clothes and be at my house at a maximum a half hour."

"Alright. Alright. I guess I better take Alex home now then." Nick said.

"Wait, she said she was going to my party."

"She is. She wants to change first."

"Paige!" called Paige's mother again.

"Coming! See you in a half an hour or less. Come on, Marco." Paige said.

"Alex, we better get going." Nick said.

"Alright." Alex said. Who knew that he, Alex, Marco, and Hazel would end up spending the night at Paige's?

End of Flashback

"It was nice meeting you, Michael." Nick said, shaking Michael's hand.

"Likewise. See ya, Alex." Michael said.

"Later." Alex replied.

"See ya at school, Marco." Marco nodded. Michael gave Paige a hug then grabbed his bags and went into the airport. The others looked at Paige suspiciously.

"OK. I guess I'm the only one who has the balls to say this. Then again, I'm basically the only one with balls." Marco punched him. "Paige, why- why didn't he kiss you?"

"Oh, um, it didn't work out." Paige said.

"Oh, sorry to hear that." Nick said, looking at Alex when he said hear. Marco, too, was looking at her.

"It's alright. We're still friends." There was silence. "Well, come on. Nick has a huge contest tomorrow." They all got into Alex's truck and drove back to the apartment.

------------------------------

"Hey, Paige. Before we go, can I talk to you?" Alex said. They were going to the Battle of the Bands contest that Nick's band, Ocean's Eyes, was entered in.

"Um, sure, hun." Paige said.

"OK. We'll be waiting in the car." Nick said. He picked up his guitar and he and Marco ran down to the parking garage. Nick opened the door and quickly got in. He hooked up an earphone to his radio and pressed record on his eight track (he had gotten it installed). Marco sat in the backseat listening with Nick to Alex and Paige's conversation. Before they had left, Nick had put a molar mic under his keyboard. He and Marco suspected that tonight was the night.

They heard Alex take a deep breath.

"So what's up?" Paige asked.

"OK. What I'm about to say isn't easy for me. Paige, I- I-"

"Oh, come on. Say it." Nick said to the radio.

"Alex, come on. Just spit it out." Paige said.

"Paige, I- Oh this is so stupid." Alex said.

"What is it?"

"Well, last night I actually planned out how I was gonna say this and now I'm trying to say it and I can't even do it. I can't even think coherently. NO. I can. It's just when I'm around you that I can't."

"What? I don't-"

"Paige, I love you!"