Disclaimers: Refer to Chapter 1 - Michelle.
~*~
The desert surrounded them, the wind blew, and they witnessed a whirlwind of sand in the distance. They had been in the car for a little over an hour now, and had just gotten back on the road after breakfast. Sara sat in the passenger seat with a magazine on her lap. Her attire was different from her look at work, today, she wore a light blue shirt, with worn out jeans. Her hair was down to her shoulders, all frizzy from the humidity.
Nick sat in the driver's seat and looked ahead, the weather seemed perfect for the rest of the way, and he looked over at Sara, who at this time flipping through a magazine. He was amused by her attire, 'she looks good' his mind observed. As he looked at Sara, from head to toe, he smiled when he noticed that Sara had taken off her sandals, sitting in her seat with bare feet. He was glad that Sara had agreed to go home with him; this of course wouldn't have been possible if it hadn't been for his mother's insistence. Plus, it also took Sara a day to find all the things she needed for the wedding, Catherine helped with that.
"Nick, it's really rude to stare," Sara interrupted. She never took her eyes of the page. Nick blushed; he didn't notice that Sara had in fact caught him staring.
"Can I help it if you look beautiful," he teased with a smile. She looked up; it was evident that she wasn't amused. In fact, Nick could almost see the anger brewing inside her.
"Keep that up and soon you're gonna be food for the coyotes," Sara threatened. Nick continued to smile.
"So tell me again why we're driving 22 hours instead of taking a 2 and a half hour flight?" Sara questioned, annoyed at Nick's cheery mood.
"Well, there was a mix up with the bookings, and the flight we were suppose to be on was overbooked…blah, blah, blah," Nick explained.
"Besides, a trip to Texas isn't a trip to Texas if you don't go on a road trip, " Nick glorified.
"Experience or not, it's still killing my hair," Sara retorted. She was finally bored with the magazine. Nick reached over to the car's front panel and turned the radio on. Out poured some country music, he laughed and stared straight ahead.
"Oh hell no," Sara protested.
"Bad hair, bad magazine, uncomfortable seat I can handle; not this."
"What? Sara, it's music." Nick griped.
"Says the man who couldn't book airline tickets," Sara retorted as she changed the station. The calming sounds of jazz fluttered through the air, Norah Jones. Sara closed her eyes, relaxing at the soothing sounds.
"And this is better?" Nick interrupted. Sara snapped her head away from relaxation. She looked at Nick, who looked very comical in some ways, his hair wasn't fixed this morning, and his whole attire was different. Instead of his usual dark shirt and dark pants, he wore a worn out Texas A&M t-shirt and some cargo pants
"Yes," Sara answered.
"No." Nick opposed.
"Sara, when we're in your car, I listen to whatever you want. When you're in my car, you listen to what I want," Nick concluded firmly.
"Says who?"
"Says me," he looked at the road ahead, then at her.
"Don't you dare change that station," he ordered. His eye twitched, eyeing Sara's hand reach for the tuner. Instead, she slumped in her chair, pouted, and said nothing. She stayed that way for several minutes. As Nick drove, content with his victory, he kept on looking at Sara, her face was priceless. She looked so darn cute when she pouted, or plainly when she looked angry.
'Damn it,' his mind thought. He then reached for the tuner, and changed it back to Norah Jones. Instead of being content, Sara reached over and changed the station.
"What the-" Nick protested. He looked at her face, and proceeded to change the station. She then changed it back.
"Sara. Stop," He asked angrily.
"You're driving me nuts," he answered. Sara stayed silent; she really didn't know what to say.
After a long and tiresome late lunch, Nick and Sara proceeded to drive further east, passing various towns and cities, but mainly the desert. The sun had just set, and both were still not talking. They hadn't spoken since the radio incident earlier. Instead, they drove in silence; nobody touched the dial for the remainder of the day. In fact, both of them actually enjoyed the quiet stillness of their surroundings, for Sara, it gave her time to think about the work she left at home, and for Nick, he dreaded seeing his family again. Knowing that a Stokes Family Reunion would definitely be a great event, his life would then become an open book, and no doubt a question period with his parents.
"Can you pass me that bottle of water," Nick asked politely. Finally breaking the vehicle's silence. Sara picked up the bottle of water that stood beside her foot, and handing harshly to him.
"Thank you," he looked pleasantly at Sara. She half smiled and leaned her head against the window.
"Look, Sara, I'm sorry for yelling at you," he apologized. She didn't say anything. He was disappointed that she didn't respond, aware that he was being unreasonable earlier.
Minutes passed, and the silence was unbearable, Sara wanted to scream. She wasn't mad at Nick, knowing that she was partially at fault for his outburst, now she just felt horrible, having him apologize.
"So, tell me about your family," she asked silently. Nick froze, and looked up, 'oh thank God,' he sighed inside. He paused, just o gather his thoughts.
"Well, it's a long story, so you might want to narrow down the field a little," Nick answered, in a muted tone.
"Okay, give me some stats on your immediate family members," she smiled.
"Uh, I have 5 sisters," he smiled. He saw that Sara had turned her body to face him.
"And an older brother," he continued.
"Wow," she gasped.
"Ah, but I'm not done," he sighed. She was intrigued; her face was filed with amusement and surprise.
"There's more?"
"I have 5 nephews and 4 nieces - so far," he grinned. Sara was impressed,
"Wow," she gasped again.
"You're parents must be ecstatic."
"Definitely, they never miss a performance, a recital, or baseball game," he answered with pride.
"That's great; it's like that with my parents too. I guess it's something that goes with being a grandparent," Sara explained.
Nick was amazed, he realized that he didn't really know anything about Sara; he knew she had a brother, but nothing more.
"Yeah, each one of them are going through a phase right now, Katherine, my niece, well, she doesn't like being called Katherine or Kat, she prefers being called Kate," Nick noted.
"Should I be taking notes?" Sara laughed aloud.
Nick smiled, relieved that they had found a resolution to their argument.
"What else? Oh, and my sisters Angela and Carrie, better watch out, they tend to chat a lot more than my other sisters," Nick laughed.
"My niece Emily, oh she's adorable. She'd love you - she tends to gravitate towards people with brown hair," Nick remarked.
"Don't ask," he continued.
Sara sat in her seat amazed at the level of enthusiasm that Nick radiated when talking about his family. She never realized how little she knew about Nick, but it touched her that he would open up to her like this. The day's argument completely forgotten, she relaxed in his company, 'this trip isn't going to be too bad,' her mind reconsidered. At this point, she couldn't help but smile; she was amused by Nick's ranting.
"What?" Nick questioned, amused that his words were probably boring Sara.
"Nothing, tell me more," she urged. But Nick only smiled.
"Well, you're going to meet them soon, you'll have to find out," he paused.
"Ok, next question. And I promise not to tell Greg or Warrick," Sara assured.
"Are we going to be meeting any of your girlfriends?" Sara asked teasingly. Nick swallowed hard.
"Maybe, but even so, I have you there," he complimented.
"True," Sara blushed. 'Oh God, I hope he doesn't notice that I'm blushing.
Nick could sense the awkwardness of the situation, 'quit flirting with her, you still have a long way to go till Dallas,' his mind warned.
"So, how about you? Tell me about your family," he changed the subject. Sara's head turned, amused at his question, but again, it was only fair for her to answer.
"Well, I have a brother - singular. And I have a niece," Sara said proudly.
"Your parents?"
"Well, they still live in the small town that I grew up in; right by the San Francisco Bay," Sara explained. Nick nodded curious and surprised at the level of comfort that Sara was in; she was actually talking about her life.
"Anybody pining away for you in your hometown?" Nick asked. 'I can't believe you asked that,' his mind screamed, mentally slapping him in the head.
Sara let out a laugh, "No. Unlike you, I hardly dated in high school, or in university. I actually studied."
"Quit being such a stiff neck, you're telling me that in Boston, you didn't do anything wild or crazy," Nick wondered.
"Well, attending Harvard, being in Boston was totally different. I occasionally did some crazy things," she answered mischievously.
"Sara Sidle, you? Do something crazy? And walking around the quad with short shorts doesn't count as crazy," Nick answered.
"Uh uh," she laughed, as a flash back went through her head.
"Junior year. Me and a couple of friends decided to go out and try this new place. It was called rhythm painting, where you get a ton of paint, and you paint a canvas with your body, matching the rhythm of the music," she explained.
Nick raised and eyebrow, his mind shocked, but at the same time, somewhat visualizing Sara covered in paint. He half-grinned.
"Interesting," he mumbled.
"Oh, and I bet you have something better to share," Sara accused. She lightly slapped him on the arm.
"PG compared to my days in college," Nick smirked, rubbing the spot that Sara had previously hit.
"Well, me and my brothers, frat brothers, we wanted to play a prank on this sorority house down the street," Nick began.
"So, one night we snuck into their house, and placed crushed hard candy into the shower head. So when they took a shower, they get sticky, and when they go back to take another-" Nick's voice trailed off.
"-Shower, it'd get worse," Sara finished the sentence. She laughed, 'that's pretty funny,' she said to herself.
"That's horrible," she lied, still laughing.
"I'm lucky that I didn't know you back in college," she taunted.
Both of them receded into laughter, plainly having a great time; both laughed as Nick continued to tell stories about that various frat parties and pranks he and his house had pulled. It was until several minutes later that both subsided into silence, calmness taking over their body, Nick couldn't help but ask another question. He looked over at Sara, who now watched the road ahead,
"So - was clothing optional?" He questioned, smiling. But soon, his facial expression changed, sensing that he had crossed the line.
Sara sat there, not responding. Silent. She stayed that way until they reached a hotel, she assumed that this was where they were going to spend the night. Nick pulled up to the front lobby and jumped out to get the keys. After several moments, Nick walked back to the Tahoe, and handed Sara the keys to her room. She still said nothing, and Nick looked worried. He helped her with her bag, and proceeded to her room first. It wasn't a dirty hotel off the street; in fact, it was modest, with a TV, a neat atmosphere and no funky smell. With that, Nick dropped Sara's bag and proceeded to his own, Sara lead him to the door while he stepped outside, and before he could leave, she smiled.
"It wouldn't be a crazy story if it only involved paint. Now would it," she finally revealed.
Nick was surprised at those words, he slowly turned, but before he could say a word, Sara had already closed the door. And so, he shook his head, a smile creeping into his face, 'that is in fact a crazy story,' he said to himself. He turned to the door and opened it with the key, he stepped in, and it was pretty much like Sara's room. After a long drive, he was itching to take a shower, and maybe later go out to eat. After taking out some necessities, he then walked towards the bathroom, stepping into the shower, water hitting every muscle in his body. Each drop of hot water warming his skin.
She too was eager to take a shower, several hours in a car was definitely not very good. She searched for hangers; she spotted the closet by the door. She opened it, only to find another door, 'adjoining rooms' she sighed, slamming the door closed. She then moved towards another door, and found a hanger, 'good, now I can take a shower,' she yawned.
'Oh that felt good,' his mind cried. Nick wrapped a towel tightly around his waist, it was 10:57 in the evening, and he was too tired - forget going out. Instead, he just changed into some shorts and hopped into bed. He was sure that the rest of the drive home would be interesting; he definitely needed to get some rest.
'I wonder if Nick's gone out to eat,' she wondered. She looked at the clock, 11:05, 'oh forget it, I'm tired,' she muttered. She hopped into bed, wearing a tank top and cotton pajamas. Her head hit the pillow, ready for some long sought after sleep; she closed her eyes and was halfway to dreamland
'THUD'
'What the hell was that?' she asked herself, opening her eyes.
'THUD' 'THUD'
"Oh for Pete's sake-" she screamed, knowing that the next room was probably the honeymoon suite. There was silence,
'THUD' 'THUD' 'THUD' "Oh, James," a woman's voice screamed.
'Damn,' her head pounded.
~*~ 2 1/2 hours later ~*~
Tired, her eyes partially red, she grabbed her pillow and made her way to the door that adjoined her room to Nick's room. She knocked on the door and waited shortly.
The light rapping on the door woke him up, it was 1:29 in the morning, he groaned as he got up from his bed. He stretched and finally fumbled to open the door.
"Sara, do you what time it is?" Nick questioned.
"1:30. I've been staring at the clock all night," she answered.
"Can I sleep with you?"
"Well now, Sara, I never knew," Nick answered.
"Not to burst your bubble Nick, but my neighbors are doing the horizontal mambo a little too loudly,"
"Alright, come in," Nick answered, feeling slightly hurt. But smiling at the same time.
"Thanks."
Nick closed the door and headed towards the left side of the bed, while Sara took residence on the other side.
"Goodnight Nick," she whispered.
"Goodnight Sara," he mumbled.
The night got colder, and both bodies occupied their respective halves of the bed, Nick held on to the sheet that covered half his body, while Sara seemed to have won most of the cover; but most of it tangled around her legs. Nick rotated and faced Sara's back, not detecting another body in bed with him. He reached for the other side of the bed, and wrapped his arms around the pillow in front of him. The pillow was soft to the touch, but structurally firm - he didn't know that it was Sara's body. His body felt warmth as he huddled closer, drawn by the heat. He was exhausted.
She felt the warmth around her body, Sara didn't care, she was cold, and at least now, she had a ring of warmth around her. As she felt the heat intensify, she didn't open her eyes, all she did was place her hand gently atop the warmth around her waist, - she didn't realize it was Nick's arm. She smiled, she was exhausted, and she slept.
Daybreak. Both Nick and Sara were still not stirring; they just lied in bed, not knowing what their bodies have transpired to do overnight.
As his eyes fluttered, struggling with the sun that broke through the window, he slowly moved his arm, but only to be halted by the hand that was on top of his. He opened his eyes wider and there was Sara, lying on her side in front of him. He smiled sleepily, she was gorgeous, with her hair draped over the pillow, her soft skin and calm breathing, - he was mesmerized. He was tempted to kiss the back of her neck, inching closer and closer to her,
'KNOCK''KNOCK' "Housekeeping, the woman called out,"
Both jumped out the bed, Sara unaware of their position earlier. Nick walked over to the door and opened it slightly; he asked the woman to return in several minutes, and she cooperated. He turned towards Sara; she was already beside him,
"I'll meet you outside in a minute," she said. He nodded, 'so close,' his mind screamed.
After both had finally jumped into the car, they sped down the highway, and stopped by a diner. Both were still tired from the other night, Sara more so than Nick. She downed 2 cups of coffee, while Nick savored a cup. It was early, and it was absolutely too early to utter any words, they both sat in the diner, eating their breakfast. The waitress was nice, she wore the standard uniform, and spoke with a thick southern accent; in fact, Nick had to explain to Sara some of the words and expressions that the woman had used. The diner was small, modest, much like the one the team always attended in Vegas. The long counter stretched from one end of the diner to the other, while tiny booths lined the other side of the shop. Sara and Nick sat comfortably in the first booth, really just lazy to scour for others. They sat in silence as they ate; Nick had his bacon and eggs while Sara picked through a small order of eggs and toast. Surely enough, after breakfast, both were in better spirits and finally assumed talking.
"So cowboy, where are we?" Sara questioned as she jumped into the jeep.
"We're just outside of Amarillo. You're in Texas country now, city girl," Nick grinned, his accent increasingly evident.
"And how far do we still have to go?" Sara whined.
"About 7 hours,"
"7 hours?" She questioned, looking up from the map.
"Where exactly are we going?" she questioned, 'it couldn't possibly take this long to drive over 2 states,' shed thought to herself.
"Since it was your first trip to the Texas, we're taking the scenic route," Nick assured.
"Scenic? Nick, I'm tired, my feet hurt and my hair's messed, screw scenic," Sara whined again.
"Yes, scenic. If you're tired - sleep, if your feet hurt - I'd be happy to give you a foot massage later, and your hair - your hair looks fine," Nick answered, he lied about the last part.
"Whatever, I'm taking a nap," she said casually. She placed the map back on the dashboard and grabbed Nick's jacket. She draped it over herself, 'oh, at least it smells good' her head praised.
"Baby," Nick mocked.
"You still owe me a foot massage," Sara jested.
~*~
Finally, after hours of driving, Nick had finally arrived; he was so close to home that the smell of the breeze took him back to his childhood. As he sped down the road, he heard sirens in the background, he quickly glanced at his speedometer, 'I'm barely over the limit' he said to himself.
"Nick, what's going on," Sara's voice questioned. She picked her head up and looked at the man who was approaching the vehicle. She fixed her hair and lowered the Nick's. She wondered what was going on,
"Were you speeding?" she asked frantically.
"No! I have no idea what's going on," Nick said desperately. He was actually nervous, trying to make a mental checklist of the possible things that he could have done, or if he had broken any laws.
The police officer continued to walk towards them. His uniform was pressed, his sunglasses covering his eyes, and his hat firmly plopped atop his head. He meant business.
Sara looked at Nick with stern eyes. Nick looked at Sara then at his rearview mirror, he swallowed hard.
'Welcome home,' he sighed.
TBC
~*~
A/N – Well, I've introduced you to part of the family; I think you should start taking notes – just kidding. Well, I don't know much about the family, so I just made up the names. Next, the shower + candy thing, I don't know if that really works, but a friend recommended it to me to do as a prank. Just a note about the route, it is a little long, only because they are driving via the Interstate routes. I don't really know how long it would take for a direct drive from Las Vegas to Dallas. Besides, it does give Nick and Sara more time together. OK, I know that this chapter was kinda long, but I'll try to keep the next chapters shorter. Anyway, after reading through the ranting of a crazy person, it's your turn to give me some feedback - if you'd like. "Love it, loathe it, review it," - oceanwave
~*~
The desert surrounded them, the wind blew, and they witnessed a whirlwind of sand in the distance. They had been in the car for a little over an hour now, and had just gotten back on the road after breakfast. Sara sat in the passenger seat with a magazine on her lap. Her attire was different from her look at work, today, she wore a light blue shirt, with worn out jeans. Her hair was down to her shoulders, all frizzy from the humidity.
Nick sat in the driver's seat and looked ahead, the weather seemed perfect for the rest of the way, and he looked over at Sara, who at this time flipping through a magazine. He was amused by her attire, 'she looks good' his mind observed. As he looked at Sara, from head to toe, he smiled when he noticed that Sara had taken off her sandals, sitting in her seat with bare feet. He was glad that Sara had agreed to go home with him; this of course wouldn't have been possible if it hadn't been for his mother's insistence. Plus, it also took Sara a day to find all the things she needed for the wedding, Catherine helped with that.
"Nick, it's really rude to stare," Sara interrupted. She never took her eyes of the page. Nick blushed; he didn't notice that Sara had in fact caught him staring.
"Can I help it if you look beautiful," he teased with a smile. She looked up; it was evident that she wasn't amused. In fact, Nick could almost see the anger brewing inside her.
"Keep that up and soon you're gonna be food for the coyotes," Sara threatened. Nick continued to smile.
"So tell me again why we're driving 22 hours instead of taking a 2 and a half hour flight?" Sara questioned, annoyed at Nick's cheery mood.
"Well, there was a mix up with the bookings, and the flight we were suppose to be on was overbooked…blah, blah, blah," Nick explained.
"Besides, a trip to Texas isn't a trip to Texas if you don't go on a road trip, " Nick glorified.
"Experience or not, it's still killing my hair," Sara retorted. She was finally bored with the magazine. Nick reached over to the car's front panel and turned the radio on. Out poured some country music, he laughed and stared straight ahead.
"Oh hell no," Sara protested.
"Bad hair, bad magazine, uncomfortable seat I can handle; not this."
"What? Sara, it's music." Nick griped.
"Says the man who couldn't book airline tickets," Sara retorted as she changed the station. The calming sounds of jazz fluttered through the air, Norah Jones. Sara closed her eyes, relaxing at the soothing sounds.
"And this is better?" Nick interrupted. Sara snapped her head away from relaxation. She looked at Nick, who looked very comical in some ways, his hair wasn't fixed this morning, and his whole attire was different. Instead of his usual dark shirt and dark pants, he wore a worn out Texas A&M t-shirt and some cargo pants
"Yes," Sara answered.
"No." Nick opposed.
"Sara, when we're in your car, I listen to whatever you want. When you're in my car, you listen to what I want," Nick concluded firmly.
"Says who?"
"Says me," he looked at the road ahead, then at her.
"Don't you dare change that station," he ordered. His eye twitched, eyeing Sara's hand reach for the tuner. Instead, she slumped in her chair, pouted, and said nothing. She stayed that way for several minutes. As Nick drove, content with his victory, he kept on looking at Sara, her face was priceless. She looked so darn cute when she pouted, or plainly when she looked angry.
'Damn it,' his mind thought. He then reached for the tuner, and changed it back to Norah Jones. Instead of being content, Sara reached over and changed the station.
"What the-" Nick protested. He looked at her face, and proceeded to change the station. She then changed it back.
"Sara. Stop," He asked angrily.
"You're driving me nuts," he answered. Sara stayed silent; she really didn't know what to say.
After a long and tiresome late lunch, Nick and Sara proceeded to drive further east, passing various towns and cities, but mainly the desert. The sun had just set, and both were still not talking. They hadn't spoken since the radio incident earlier. Instead, they drove in silence; nobody touched the dial for the remainder of the day. In fact, both of them actually enjoyed the quiet stillness of their surroundings, for Sara, it gave her time to think about the work she left at home, and for Nick, he dreaded seeing his family again. Knowing that a Stokes Family Reunion would definitely be a great event, his life would then become an open book, and no doubt a question period with his parents.
"Can you pass me that bottle of water," Nick asked politely. Finally breaking the vehicle's silence. Sara picked up the bottle of water that stood beside her foot, and handing harshly to him.
"Thank you," he looked pleasantly at Sara. She half smiled and leaned her head against the window.
"Look, Sara, I'm sorry for yelling at you," he apologized. She didn't say anything. He was disappointed that she didn't respond, aware that he was being unreasonable earlier.
Minutes passed, and the silence was unbearable, Sara wanted to scream. She wasn't mad at Nick, knowing that she was partially at fault for his outburst, now she just felt horrible, having him apologize.
"So, tell me about your family," she asked silently. Nick froze, and looked up, 'oh thank God,' he sighed inside. He paused, just o gather his thoughts.
"Well, it's a long story, so you might want to narrow down the field a little," Nick answered, in a muted tone.
"Okay, give me some stats on your immediate family members," she smiled.
"Uh, I have 5 sisters," he smiled. He saw that Sara had turned her body to face him.
"And an older brother," he continued.
"Wow," she gasped.
"Ah, but I'm not done," he sighed. She was intrigued; her face was filed with amusement and surprise.
"There's more?"
"I have 5 nephews and 4 nieces - so far," he grinned. Sara was impressed,
"Wow," she gasped again.
"You're parents must be ecstatic."
"Definitely, they never miss a performance, a recital, or baseball game," he answered with pride.
"That's great; it's like that with my parents too. I guess it's something that goes with being a grandparent," Sara explained.
Nick was amazed, he realized that he didn't really know anything about Sara; he knew she had a brother, but nothing more.
"Yeah, each one of them are going through a phase right now, Katherine, my niece, well, she doesn't like being called Katherine or Kat, she prefers being called Kate," Nick noted.
"Should I be taking notes?" Sara laughed aloud.
Nick smiled, relieved that they had found a resolution to their argument.
"What else? Oh, and my sisters Angela and Carrie, better watch out, they tend to chat a lot more than my other sisters," Nick laughed.
"My niece Emily, oh she's adorable. She'd love you - she tends to gravitate towards people with brown hair," Nick remarked.
"Don't ask," he continued.
Sara sat in her seat amazed at the level of enthusiasm that Nick radiated when talking about his family. She never realized how little she knew about Nick, but it touched her that he would open up to her like this. The day's argument completely forgotten, she relaxed in his company, 'this trip isn't going to be too bad,' her mind reconsidered. At this point, she couldn't help but smile; she was amused by Nick's ranting.
"What?" Nick questioned, amused that his words were probably boring Sara.
"Nothing, tell me more," she urged. But Nick only smiled.
"Well, you're going to meet them soon, you'll have to find out," he paused.
"Ok, next question. And I promise not to tell Greg or Warrick," Sara assured.
"Are we going to be meeting any of your girlfriends?" Sara asked teasingly. Nick swallowed hard.
"Maybe, but even so, I have you there," he complimented.
"True," Sara blushed. 'Oh God, I hope he doesn't notice that I'm blushing.
Nick could sense the awkwardness of the situation, 'quit flirting with her, you still have a long way to go till Dallas,' his mind warned.
"So, how about you? Tell me about your family," he changed the subject. Sara's head turned, amused at his question, but again, it was only fair for her to answer.
"Well, I have a brother - singular. And I have a niece," Sara said proudly.
"Your parents?"
"Well, they still live in the small town that I grew up in; right by the San Francisco Bay," Sara explained. Nick nodded curious and surprised at the level of comfort that Sara was in; she was actually talking about her life.
"Anybody pining away for you in your hometown?" Nick asked. 'I can't believe you asked that,' his mind screamed, mentally slapping him in the head.
Sara let out a laugh, "No. Unlike you, I hardly dated in high school, or in university. I actually studied."
"Quit being such a stiff neck, you're telling me that in Boston, you didn't do anything wild or crazy," Nick wondered.
"Well, attending Harvard, being in Boston was totally different. I occasionally did some crazy things," she answered mischievously.
"Sara Sidle, you? Do something crazy? And walking around the quad with short shorts doesn't count as crazy," Nick answered.
"Uh uh," she laughed, as a flash back went through her head.
"Junior year. Me and a couple of friends decided to go out and try this new place. It was called rhythm painting, where you get a ton of paint, and you paint a canvas with your body, matching the rhythm of the music," she explained.
Nick raised and eyebrow, his mind shocked, but at the same time, somewhat visualizing Sara covered in paint. He half-grinned.
"Interesting," he mumbled.
"Oh, and I bet you have something better to share," Sara accused. She lightly slapped him on the arm.
"PG compared to my days in college," Nick smirked, rubbing the spot that Sara had previously hit.
"Well, me and my brothers, frat brothers, we wanted to play a prank on this sorority house down the street," Nick began.
"So, one night we snuck into their house, and placed crushed hard candy into the shower head. So when they took a shower, they get sticky, and when they go back to take another-" Nick's voice trailed off.
"-Shower, it'd get worse," Sara finished the sentence. She laughed, 'that's pretty funny,' she said to herself.
"That's horrible," she lied, still laughing.
"I'm lucky that I didn't know you back in college," she taunted.
Both of them receded into laughter, plainly having a great time; both laughed as Nick continued to tell stories about that various frat parties and pranks he and his house had pulled. It was until several minutes later that both subsided into silence, calmness taking over their body, Nick couldn't help but ask another question. He looked over at Sara, who now watched the road ahead,
"So - was clothing optional?" He questioned, smiling. But soon, his facial expression changed, sensing that he had crossed the line.
Sara sat there, not responding. Silent. She stayed that way until they reached a hotel, she assumed that this was where they were going to spend the night. Nick pulled up to the front lobby and jumped out to get the keys. After several moments, Nick walked back to the Tahoe, and handed Sara the keys to her room. She still said nothing, and Nick looked worried. He helped her with her bag, and proceeded to her room first. It wasn't a dirty hotel off the street; in fact, it was modest, with a TV, a neat atmosphere and no funky smell. With that, Nick dropped Sara's bag and proceeded to his own, Sara lead him to the door while he stepped outside, and before he could leave, she smiled.
"It wouldn't be a crazy story if it only involved paint. Now would it," she finally revealed.
Nick was surprised at those words, he slowly turned, but before he could say a word, Sara had already closed the door. And so, he shook his head, a smile creeping into his face, 'that is in fact a crazy story,' he said to himself. He turned to the door and opened it with the key, he stepped in, and it was pretty much like Sara's room. After a long drive, he was itching to take a shower, and maybe later go out to eat. After taking out some necessities, he then walked towards the bathroom, stepping into the shower, water hitting every muscle in his body. Each drop of hot water warming his skin.
She too was eager to take a shower, several hours in a car was definitely not very good. She searched for hangers; she spotted the closet by the door. She opened it, only to find another door, 'adjoining rooms' she sighed, slamming the door closed. She then moved towards another door, and found a hanger, 'good, now I can take a shower,' she yawned.
'Oh that felt good,' his mind cried. Nick wrapped a towel tightly around his waist, it was 10:57 in the evening, and he was too tired - forget going out. Instead, he just changed into some shorts and hopped into bed. He was sure that the rest of the drive home would be interesting; he definitely needed to get some rest.
'I wonder if Nick's gone out to eat,' she wondered. She looked at the clock, 11:05, 'oh forget it, I'm tired,' she muttered. She hopped into bed, wearing a tank top and cotton pajamas. Her head hit the pillow, ready for some long sought after sleep; she closed her eyes and was halfway to dreamland
'THUD'
'What the hell was that?' she asked herself, opening her eyes.
'THUD' 'THUD'
"Oh for Pete's sake-" she screamed, knowing that the next room was probably the honeymoon suite. There was silence,
'THUD' 'THUD' 'THUD' "Oh, James," a woman's voice screamed.
'Damn,' her head pounded.
~*~ 2 1/2 hours later ~*~
Tired, her eyes partially red, she grabbed her pillow and made her way to the door that adjoined her room to Nick's room. She knocked on the door and waited shortly.
The light rapping on the door woke him up, it was 1:29 in the morning, he groaned as he got up from his bed. He stretched and finally fumbled to open the door.
"Sara, do you what time it is?" Nick questioned.
"1:30. I've been staring at the clock all night," she answered.
"Can I sleep with you?"
"Well now, Sara, I never knew," Nick answered.
"Not to burst your bubble Nick, but my neighbors are doing the horizontal mambo a little too loudly,"
"Alright, come in," Nick answered, feeling slightly hurt. But smiling at the same time.
"Thanks."
Nick closed the door and headed towards the left side of the bed, while Sara took residence on the other side.
"Goodnight Nick," she whispered.
"Goodnight Sara," he mumbled.
The night got colder, and both bodies occupied their respective halves of the bed, Nick held on to the sheet that covered half his body, while Sara seemed to have won most of the cover; but most of it tangled around her legs. Nick rotated and faced Sara's back, not detecting another body in bed with him. He reached for the other side of the bed, and wrapped his arms around the pillow in front of him. The pillow was soft to the touch, but structurally firm - he didn't know that it was Sara's body. His body felt warmth as he huddled closer, drawn by the heat. He was exhausted.
She felt the warmth around her body, Sara didn't care, she was cold, and at least now, she had a ring of warmth around her. As she felt the heat intensify, she didn't open her eyes, all she did was place her hand gently atop the warmth around her waist, - she didn't realize it was Nick's arm. She smiled, she was exhausted, and she slept.
Daybreak. Both Nick and Sara were still not stirring; they just lied in bed, not knowing what their bodies have transpired to do overnight.
As his eyes fluttered, struggling with the sun that broke through the window, he slowly moved his arm, but only to be halted by the hand that was on top of his. He opened his eyes wider and there was Sara, lying on her side in front of him. He smiled sleepily, she was gorgeous, with her hair draped over the pillow, her soft skin and calm breathing, - he was mesmerized. He was tempted to kiss the back of her neck, inching closer and closer to her,
'KNOCK''KNOCK' "Housekeeping, the woman called out,"
Both jumped out the bed, Sara unaware of their position earlier. Nick walked over to the door and opened it slightly; he asked the woman to return in several minutes, and she cooperated. He turned towards Sara; she was already beside him,
"I'll meet you outside in a minute," she said. He nodded, 'so close,' his mind screamed.
After both had finally jumped into the car, they sped down the highway, and stopped by a diner. Both were still tired from the other night, Sara more so than Nick. She downed 2 cups of coffee, while Nick savored a cup. It was early, and it was absolutely too early to utter any words, they both sat in the diner, eating their breakfast. The waitress was nice, she wore the standard uniform, and spoke with a thick southern accent; in fact, Nick had to explain to Sara some of the words and expressions that the woman had used. The diner was small, modest, much like the one the team always attended in Vegas. The long counter stretched from one end of the diner to the other, while tiny booths lined the other side of the shop. Sara and Nick sat comfortably in the first booth, really just lazy to scour for others. They sat in silence as they ate; Nick had his bacon and eggs while Sara picked through a small order of eggs and toast. Surely enough, after breakfast, both were in better spirits and finally assumed talking.
"So cowboy, where are we?" Sara questioned as she jumped into the jeep.
"We're just outside of Amarillo. You're in Texas country now, city girl," Nick grinned, his accent increasingly evident.
"And how far do we still have to go?" Sara whined.
"About 7 hours,"
"7 hours?" She questioned, looking up from the map.
"Where exactly are we going?" she questioned, 'it couldn't possibly take this long to drive over 2 states,' shed thought to herself.
"Since it was your first trip to the Texas, we're taking the scenic route," Nick assured.
"Scenic? Nick, I'm tired, my feet hurt and my hair's messed, screw scenic," Sara whined again.
"Yes, scenic. If you're tired - sleep, if your feet hurt - I'd be happy to give you a foot massage later, and your hair - your hair looks fine," Nick answered, he lied about the last part.
"Whatever, I'm taking a nap," she said casually. She placed the map back on the dashboard and grabbed Nick's jacket. She draped it over herself, 'oh, at least it smells good' her head praised.
"Baby," Nick mocked.
"You still owe me a foot massage," Sara jested.
~*~
Finally, after hours of driving, Nick had finally arrived; he was so close to home that the smell of the breeze took him back to his childhood. As he sped down the road, he heard sirens in the background, he quickly glanced at his speedometer, 'I'm barely over the limit' he said to himself.
"Nick, what's going on," Sara's voice questioned. She picked her head up and looked at the man who was approaching the vehicle. She fixed her hair and lowered the Nick's. She wondered what was going on,
"Were you speeding?" she asked frantically.
"No! I have no idea what's going on," Nick said desperately. He was actually nervous, trying to make a mental checklist of the possible things that he could have done, or if he had broken any laws.
The police officer continued to walk towards them. His uniform was pressed, his sunglasses covering his eyes, and his hat firmly plopped atop his head. He meant business.
Sara looked at Nick with stern eyes. Nick looked at Sara then at his rearview mirror, he swallowed hard.
'Welcome home,' he sighed.
TBC
~*~
A/N – Well, I've introduced you to part of the family; I think you should start taking notes – just kidding. Well, I don't know much about the family, so I just made up the names. Next, the shower + candy thing, I don't know if that really works, but a friend recommended it to me to do as a prank. Just a note about the route, it is a little long, only because they are driving via the Interstate routes. I don't really know how long it would take for a direct drive from Las Vegas to Dallas. Besides, it does give Nick and Sara more time together. OK, I know that this chapter was kinda long, but I'll try to keep the next chapters shorter. Anyway, after reading through the ranting of a crazy person, it's your turn to give me some feedback - if you'd like. "Love it, loathe it, review it," - oceanwave