A/N (added to the first page too)
I started this fic LITERALLY over 10yrs ago, and I've only recently started working on it again.

If you've read this fic previously, I have edited and re-written parts of basically every chapter - I was pretty young when I started this and I really didn't like some of what I'd written - I love these characters and I also want to be happy with what I put out into the world of Fanfiction, even for a small fandom like this. Richelle was written like a complete bimbo and Sunny was radiating some serious 'not like the other girls' energy so I've made a few changes. I've also outlined where I actually want to go with the story so maybe I'll actually finish it!

If you get a notification, click it, and actually want to still read this, just know that I appreciate you!

Ch. 20

~ Nick

So, hey, I knew that a random end of term party in Raven Hill probably wouldn't be the best night of my life. Sure, it felt good to be doing something other than work or homework for the first time in months, but on the whole my expectations were cautiously low. Did I want to have some drinks and unwind? Definitely. Did I want to meet a girl? Honestly, yeah, I wouldn't say no to that.

Spending my Friday night watching Richelle Brinkley heave over the Zimmers toilet bowl? Really not my idea of a good time.

She sat back against the tiled wall, sniffling as she wiped her mouth. She looked nothing like the girl I'd been mesmerised by a few hours earlier - her hair was messy, her makeup was smudged and her dress was spotted with vomit.

Oh, and to top it off, she was crying. Makes a guy wonder if he should have just gone to work after all.

"How embarrassing," she hiccupped, rubbing her hand over her eyes, streaking more mascara down her cheek

I said nothing - I had no idea what to say. I don't know why I even volunteered to follow her into the bathroom in the first place. I guess I felt kind of responsible after what had happened back at the party, but really this whole touchy-feely comforting thing was much more Liz's scene - or, literally anyone elses - than mine. Plus, judging by her reaction to seeing me at the party, I was pretty sure Richelle didn't want any kind of comforting from me.

"I'm so mad at you, Nick Kontellis," she sniffed, confirming my suspicions "oh my god I feel so sick but I'm so mad at you"

"Mad at me?" I gaped, "What the hell for? You'd be naked in James Keller's spare room right now if I hadn't come along!"

"Not for tonight," she flapped her hand dismissively, words still slurred, "for everything else"

"Everything else? We haven't talked in three years!"

"Exactly!" she frowned. At least being angry had stopped her crying.

"So what have you got to be mad at me about?"

"We had sex!" she hissed, "and then you just left school and you didn't even ask me out or anything! You ghosted me, Nick Kontellis!"

I thought back to that day, years earlier, the memory as grim and unpleasant in my mind as the reality had been.

~ Rewind

My mother had just put the last dish on the table and taken her seat when dad dropped the bomb.

"Nicholas, your mother and I have been talking," he started, glancing sideways at Ma, who was avoiding my eyes

My stomach flipped and I instantly tried to think of what I could have done. Could they have found out about what had happened with Richelle?

"You and your friends, you have run into many bad people over the years," he continued, "you have stopped lots of thieves and criminals"

I sat quietly, moving food around my plate, too nervous to take a bite.

"We are so proud of how much good you have done, Nicko," my mother added quickly, trying to seem reassuring with her uneasy smile

"You were lucky, very lucky Nicholas, that something bad did not happen to you last week," he continued, "this Wolf character was not just a thief, he was very dangerous"

I nodded, knowing better than to interrupt him before he made his point. I could handle a lecture about staying out of trouble - at least it had nothing to do with Richelle, and the condom I had snuck into the bin before they got home.

I was so busy feeling relieved that I wasn't prepared at all for what he said next.

"That is why we have decided, no more," his voice was level, but there was force behind his words - he meant business, "no more Teen Power, no more jobs"

"What?" one word was all I could come out with. I felt like I'd been slapped in the face.

No more Teen Power? He couldn't be serious.

Since everything had happened with the Wolf and the gang being kidnapped, my parents had been worried every time I left the house; dad tried to hide it, but my mother was beside herself. I knew they weren't happy, but I never expected this - the gang had been involved in all kinds of less than ideal situations in the past and they had always been ok with it once the dust had settled.

Not this time apparently.

"You are growing up, Nicholas, it is time to start working in the real world, preparing for the future," his eyes were serious, "so you will be spending time with me in the office every day after school, earning money while you learn"

My heart sank even further - he seemed to have it all planned out.

"I'll need to let the gang know," I spoke up, remembering back to the last time my father had made this same decision, mind already racing with ideas to buy more time, "I can't just leave without notice"

My father shook his head.

"I have already called Elizabeth's parents," he said, smiling wanly, "there are not any jobs booked right now, so there is nothing to worry about"

I felt my face flush. He'd thought of everything!

"What about school?" my voice came out louder than I meant it to, and I knew I sounded frantic "I won't be able to get any homework done if I have to catch the bus to your office every afternoon"

Dad looked uncomfortable for a moment.

"Nicholas, today your mother and I have lunch with John Barry," his words were slow and deliberate, "you have met him a few times at Stefanos and Anna's house, he is the headmaster at St Johns Grammar School in the city"

As much as I tried to stay cool, I was starting to panic. I had a feeling I knew what was coming.

"We talk to him about everything that has happened lately, and he think it is a good idea for you to do some work with me now, so you should go to school close to my office," dad explained, his expression stony, "Nicholas, when school return this Tuesday, you will not be going back to Raven Hill High"

I felt Ma's cool hand on my arm.

"It will be ok, Nicko," she soothed, her voice worried, "you will still see your friends on the weekends"

I stared at my plate, unable to speak, focusing hard on the mounds of rice and the shapes of the vegetables.

"We can talk about this more later," my father said quickly, "let us eat now"

"Yes," Ma echoed, her hand still on mine, "eat now Nicko"

I could tell they both felt uncomfortable making me upset.

Dad let me excuse myself after a few more uncomfortable, silent minutes and I walked up to my room. My computer screen was on, casting a soft glow across the darkening shadows, the sun just disappearing behind the houses outside my window.

Out of habit, I sat down at my desk and opened Facebook. I could see Richelle online and I knew I should send her a message - our goodbye had been so awkward and I didnt know how she felt about anything that had happened - but I suddenly felt overwhelmingly tired. I clicked the screen off and flopped down on my bed, noticing the faint scent of her perfume on my pillows as I drifted off.

~ Fast Forward

Richelle's words kept replaying in my head.

"You ghosted me, Nick Kontellis!"

Her expression when she said it had been so much sadder than I expected, it shook me. Sure, she was drunk and emotional, but this had all happened so long ago I always thought she would have moved past it.

"You didn't even message me, or ask me on a date or anything" she had kept going, her eyes daggers, "you totally used me!"

I had frozen, not sure how to begin explaining that she had it all wrong. I hadn't known how to tell her about leaving school and the gang - hell, I was still processing it myself when I walked into St Johns a few days later - so I'd gone quiet. I'd stayed quiet all weekend, burying myself in chores and computer games until finally, on Sunday night Richelle sent me a text. It was a polite message about Liz wanting to meet up the next day since it was our student free day before school went back. I could tell just from her words that she was pissed, and I knew her well enough to know why; she wouldn't have wanted to be the first one to make contact, but she couldn't tell Liz that, so texting me would have been the last thing she wanted to do. She would have been waiting for me to ask her out again and I hadn't.

I felt guilty, but with everything going on, it also felt too late. I sent back an equally polite reply saying thanks but that I couldn't make it and then tossed my phone angrily into my washing basket, suddenly furious, kicking myself for being such an idiot and ruining another good thing in my life.

And that had been it, the whole Nick and Richelle story. Liz had eventually told her what was going on - thanks to my fathers call - but I don't know if she was angry or upset. She just never spoke to me again - until tonight, that is.

Did I miss her? Of course. I missed all of them, even Moysten - not that I'd admit it - but of course I missed her more. I just didn't know how to explain any of what had happened to her now, years later, especially when she was still so drunk she wouldn't even remember in the morning.

It turns out I didn't have to.

Liz knocked softly on the door and cracked it open, looking at us with concern. How much had she heard?

"Richelle, are you ok?" she asked, "I just thought I'd come and check"

"No," Richelle sniffed, "I'm cold"

"Why don't you come with me and we'll have some water and go to bed," Liz soothed, stepping into the cramped bathroom and helping Richelle up.

She turned to me, "Elmo said we can all stay here, he's gonna sleep with you and Tom in the lounge room and me, Richelle and Sunny are taking his room"

I nodded, saying nothing, and she smiled briefly before walking back toward the kitchen, Richelle sniffling as she followed

I flushed the toilet, switched the light off and wandered slowly to where Tom and Elmo sat in front of the TV. The lights were off but the flickering screen illuminated Elmo dozing off on one couch and Tom shovelling biscuits into his mouth on the other, his eyes fixed on the music video playing. I sighed and threw myself down next to him, grabbing a biscuit. Moysten was usually the last person I'd want to be stuck with after the night I'd had, but as we sat in silence I was surprisingly grateful for his company.