Chapter 5- Promises
Jerry's House-
"What?" Jack asked Nikki.
"Please don't make me say it again," she cried.
She hugged him tightly and wiped her tears on his shirt. So many emotions ran through both of them. It was hard telling him this, but she needed someone she could trust. For the first time she saw Jack as more than a friend.
"Nicole, Jack, is everything ok in there?" Camille asked them on the other side of the bathroom door.
Nikki sniffed and blotted her face with a tissue. She then sat down on the edge of the bathtub. Jack opened the door for Camille.
"Nicole? What's wrong sweetheart?" Camille asked.
Nikki couldn't answer so Jack did, "We were laughing so hard about her slamming her hand in the fence that she started crying," Jack said giving a half hearted chuckle.
Nikki tried to laugh but ended up getting it caught in her throat on it.
"Well it's not that funny, but how does it look?" Camille asked.
Nikki showed her, her wrist and tucked it back into her sweater.
"Looks like its bruising. You should go put some ice on it." Camille said, and then she left.
Nikki started to cry again trying to take breaths in between sobs.
Jack didn't know what to do. He wanted to go downstairs and tell Bobby everything, but he knew he couldn't. He'd have to take care of this himself. He hugged her tightly as she sat in the bathtub hugging her knees.
"Everything's going to be fine. I promise you," Jack said as a tear fell from his eye.
Nikki lifted her head up from her knees and asked, "Will you take me to a doctor?"
"Sure, right now?" Jack asked.
She giggled and said, "No, how about tomorrow? I heard there's a clinic across town."
Mercer House-
Jack was nervous. He was so nervous he broke a string on his guitar trying to forget what had happened the day before. Yesterday Nikki had told him that she might be pregnant. He didn't know anything about the father, but he was pretty sure it was the guy who she was talking to after her party. Again he wanted to go tell Bobby everything but instead he had to ask to borrow his car. Last time it didn't work but this time he would try to stand his ground.
"Bobby, I need to borrow your car," Jack said seriously.
"Jacky what did I tell you last time?" Bobby said while playing hockey in the living room with Angel and Sophie.
"I really need to borrow the car," Jack said.
"Jack you're not taking my fucking car out for a joy ride, alright?" Bobby said while scoring a goal off of Angel and cheering.
Jack grabbed Bobby's cars keys off the kitchen table and headed out the front door.
"Where's he going?" Sophie asked while the guys were wrestling on the floor. Bobby looked up to see that his car keys were missing off the kitchen table.
"Jack, Jacky!" Bobby said throwing Angel off of him and running out the front door.
Jack started up the car and put the car in reverse.
"Jack!" Bobby said beating on the driver's side window.
Jack rolled down the window, "What the hell do you want, I need to go."
"Get out of the car Jacky!" Bobby yelled.
"No, I said I need the car Bobby. You never let me go anywhere or do anything. Just let me go!" Jack yelled.
Bobby stopped for a second to look at Jack, and then he opened the door and pulled Jack out.
"What the hell is your problem?" Jack asked while Bobby slammed him to the ground.
"Listen to me you little fucker. Look, look over their Jack! Do you remember what happened right there?" Bobby asked pointing to the curb in front of the house.
Angel and Sophie ran outside to see what was going on.
"What," Jack asked blankly.
Bobby chocked on his words for a second and looked at Angel. He began to say, "Right there is were you died two months ago. You died Jacky! For ten minutes you stopped breathing. And for ten minutes we lost our little brother."
Angel walked over to Bobby to make him let go of Jack, but Bobby held on tight to Jack's collar.
"Do you remember what I said Jack after ma died?" Bobby asked looking straight into Jack's eyes. "I said I promised ma that I would always protect my brothers."
Jack looked at the terror in Bobby's face. It looked exactly like the day he almost lost his life.
"What does this have to do with me going out? I'm just going out for two hours. Do you think I can't take care of myself? I'm a grown man and I can go anywhere I want Bobby," he said pushing Bobby off of him.
"He's just worried man. We all are," Angel said.
"You guys need to stop babying me. I'm not a little kid anymore," Jack said as he got back into the car.
Bobby got off the ground slowly and walked over to the car.
"At least tell me where you're going," Bobby asked Jack.
Jack didn't answer, he just started the car.
"Just tell him," Angel pleaded.
"Look Jacky, we lost ma, and we almost lost you. I don't want to have to relive that," Bobby said out of breath.
"I can't but I'll be back soon, I promise," Jack said as he pulled out of the driveway.
Jerry's house-
Jack was shaking when he knocked on his Jerry's door. He had to pick Nikki up to take her to the doctor. At first he didn't know which was more never wracking. It was either Nikki was pregnant or that she might be in some kind of trouble, but for now he just wanted to help.
"Hey little brother, come on in," Jerry said hugging Jack.
"Hey Jerry," Jack said nervously.
Nikki was upstairs applying layers and layers of make up because she didn't want anyone to recognize her even thought they were going across town. She had curled her long dark brown hair and pulled it back into a ponytail. She never wore her hair up like that but it made her look different and that's what she was going for. Her eyes were very distinctive and notciable, they were light brown but sometimes they looked gray which lit up her already light skin tone. She decided to wear her dark brown contacts. After ten minutes of applying make up and changing into her favorite grey sweater she thought she was ready to go downstairs.
Jack was in the living room waiting. It was an awkward silence between him and Jerry. Camille and the girls had gone ice skating and Jerry was home because he was waiting on a business call.
"So you're going to teach Nicole how to play the guitar huh?" Jerry asked Jack.
"What? Oh, yea the guitar," Jack mumbled not sure what Jerry was talking about.
"Still making a lot of racket on that thing?" Jerry asked.
"Yup," Jack answered hoping Nikki would hurry up.
Nikki had told her Uncle Jerry that Jack invited her over to learn how to play the guitar as a birthday present. She was still upstairs not sure if she was ready to go. Five more minutes later pasted and she figured that if she stayed up there any longer her uncle might think that Jack and she had a date or something.
"Hey Jack. I'm ready for my lesson," Nikki said tying her scarf around her neck.
She sounded so confident, almost like nothing was wrong. Jack admired her, the way she carried herself was one of his favorite qualities in her. She looked a little bit different he thought. She stilled glowed, the way she walked and talked. To him, she was the quintessence of beauty.
"Hey Nikki ready," Jack asked trying to sound as confident as her.
Nikki hugged and kissed Jerry before heading for the car. Jack hugged him too and when Nikki was outside Jerry pulled him in and said, "Take care of her."
Jack and Nikki sat in the car in silence. It was a forty five minute drive to the next town's clinic. Jack didn't know what to say to her so he just kept his eyes on the road. Nikki didn't want to make him anymore uncomfortable than he already was, so she decided to talk about his music.
"Have you worked on anymore songs lately?" Nikki asked him.
"No, not really," he answered still concentrating on the road.
"Oh, well maybe you could really teach me how to play," Nikki said now sounding like she lost all of confidence.
"Sure," jack replied.
He couldn't stop thinking of what Bobby had said to him. Jack knew Bobby thought he couldn't handle himself. He was in the hospital a long time and this gave him plenty of time to think. After he was allowed to go home he decided that from now on he would be his own person and take responsibility for himself. He looked over at Nikki. Since they stopped talking she fooled around with her cell phone. Opening and closing it, she began to feel nervous.
"We should be there in five minutes or so," Jack said turning off the parkway.
Nikki didn't answer instead she turned her head toward the window. When they arrived Jack got out of the car and opened her door. At first she wouldn't get out but he reassured her that everything was going to be ok. They walked into the quiet building and a woman handed Jack a chart to fill out. He sat down and stared to fill out the information he knew about her. It dark in there, definitely not somewhere you want to go for this kind of thing. Nikki looked around at the other expecting mothers. None of them were with men, mostly children or friends.
"Nikki, I don't know most of this stuff," Jack said turning to the door where he left her.
She wasn't there. He decided to ask someone just incase she went into the bathroom.
"Excuse me miss," Jack asked one woman who was reading a "Parents" magazine. "Have you seen the young girl I came in here with?"
"Yes, she left about a minute ago," the lady said.
"Thanks," Jack said as he ran out of the clinic.
"Nikki," Jack called watching her sit on the truck of the car.
"I can't do this," Nikki told him.
"Nikki, I think you should go back inside," Jack said to her helping her off the car.
"No, I don't want to go in there again. We should go," Nikki said waiting for him to open the car door.
"Nikki, you really should get checked out. I'll be there, I promise," Jack said as he wiped a snowflake off her cheek.
"It's starting to snow. We should drive back now," she said.
"If that's what you want, we'll go," he said.
Jack opened the door and pulled out of the parking lot.
Twenty minutes later he decided to ask her something.
"There's a convenient store ten minutes from here. Do you want to pick up one of those home test kits?" Jack asked.
Nikki thought about it for a while. She was about to tell him no, but before she knew it he had already parked in a spot in front of the store.
"No I can't," Nikki yelled.
Jack was becoming impatient quickly. He didn't know how to help her if she kept backing down.
"I'll go get it," he said sighing.
"You don't get it do you?" Nikki yelled at him.
"Then tell me what's wrong!" Jack said not meaning to scream at her.
She sank back in her seat, "If my boyfriend finds out he'll kill me."
"No he won't, he'll understand," Jack said reassuringly.
She let out a nervously giggle, "Do you not understand what I just said? Yesterday after my party, that was one of his friends. He bruised my wrist for not going to one of their parties. If my boyfriend finds out I'm having a baby he'll dump me and have someone kill me."
Jack became very uncomfortable. Now he had no idea what he should do.
"We'll we won't know if you are if you don't take the test," Jack said finally.
"Fine, I'll go too, but can you buy it? I have the money," she said handing him ten dollars.
They walked into the convenient store two minutes' apart and parted ways. Jack went to look for the kit and Nikki pretended to look through magazines.
"Will this be all?" an older gentleman asked Jack.
"No, I'll have a pack of Camels too," Jack added.
"I'm going to need to see some I.D," the older man said.
"Of course," Jack said showing him his I.D.
Jack walked out of the store and then Nikki followed him a minute later. Once in the car he threw the receipt out of the window.
A girl who was taking out the trash picked up the receipt and grinned as they drove away.
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