Disclaimer: I do not own anything that does not have my name written next to it in pretty pink pen. I only own my own fictional characters, this include my OFC Nicola Andrews and her family. I also do not own any of the songs used to write this story…except on CD.
Reviews etc. are always appreciated and adored.
Summary: "Do you remember that time I fell out your window and you came jumping out after me?" There was a twinge of humour to her husky voice and Leon smiled for her benefit. For three years he let himself believe that he would always save her from everything, until he was the reason she was in that ambulance, a broken back and their baby was gone.
Okay so I'm a horrible person- two whole days! I'm so sorry. I was going to upload like five chapter this morning for you all but I kinda went out clubbing last night and lets just say there was not a hope in hell of any writing occurring this morning. (I also will never drink Cosmopolitans again) I hope this one doesn't disappoint you guys and all reviews are welcome. Thank you to my all time favourite reviewers Ava, Mrz Letty Ortiz-Toretto, Love Ink and Gingermegs. Thanks so much guys and I'm sorry for the late updates!
And Ava thanks so much for making sure I was still alive! Okay posting right…now!
Playlist:
Bittersweet Symphony – The Verve
Like It's her birthday – Good Charlotte
February 2000 – We laugh until we think we'll die
The door of the storage container rolled up as the seven of them stood in front of it. The car was parked right at the front, a green canvas cover over the top of it. No-one moved, not sure who should move forward first. Letting go of Leons hand Nicola stepped forward and threw the cover off the car, it's midnight blue paint glinting in the newly lit shed.
"Whoah!" Jesse said as he circled the car, not daring to touch the shiny paint. None of them had really had anything to do with Doms fathers Charger so this was as close to anything like it any of them had ever been.
"It's beautiful." Vince stared at the blue car before glancing back at Nicola who didn't say a word as she stared at the old car. "What do you think?"
"Yeah, its nice." She muttered.
Knowing Nicola, Vince turned his attention back to the car. But that didn't stop Jesse.
"Why aren't you excited?" He stopped and stared at Nicola.
"I'm sorry I don't have the same car desire as you guys." She replied and turned away from the car. It hurt to look at it.
"Hey La!" Leon went after her and gently touched her arm to make her turn around to look at him. "What's wrong?"
"Just, just cover it up. I don't want it." She shook her head and grabbed his hand, putting the keys in it before walking away, leaving Leon standing there watching after her.
"What's with her?" Mia asked quietly as the others looked at the car.
"I don't know." Leon muttered as he watched her walk away, her yellow trainers slapping against the hot asphalt. When she disappeared out of sight he turned around to face the rest of the team who were looking at him expectantly. "Just cover it up." He said before going after Nicola.
When he got to the carpark she was nowhere to be found.
"Look Dawg, I don't know what to say. I can't find her anywhere?" Vinces voice echoed down the phone and Leon sighed.
"Yeah no worries man." Leon replied before flipping his phone shut and pushing through the doors at the garage. Nicola had been missing for three hours and Leon had no idea where she could be. They'd looked everywhere and now he was back at the garage, the first place he'd gone. Still no sign of her.
He pushed open the door that divided the garage and flicked on the lights in the dim room. The skyline sat in the middle of the room, it was perfect except for the lack of paint job. The door of the passenger side was open and he walked over to see Nicola sitting in the passenger seat, looking up at him when he approached her.
"Hey stranger." He said, chewing on his toothpick, as he sat down on the cold cement beside her.
"It's amazing Leon. This car." She pointed to the dash and Leon nodded. "Does it run?"
"Yeah…" But his attention wasn't on the car, it was on her face. Her fingers danced on her thigh as her foot tapped nervously on the floor of the car.
"What colour are you painting it?" She asked quietly, still not looking at him.
"Yellow." Leon replied quietly and she dropped her head down to look at her hands again. He saw a tear fall on her hands and he reached up to wipe her cheek. "What's going on Lala?" He asked.
"That Mustang, Le, it was the beginning to everything. My parents meeting, Doms Dad dying. You know he put that damn thing in storage for my mother? And then she left him for some vegan ballet dancer." She wiped at her cheek bashfully and looked up at him, sniffing. "If it wasn't for that stupid car none of it would have happened." Leon was silent. "I don't want to end up like her, I don't want to be anything like her."
"That's what this is about? You don't want to end up like your mother?" Leon questioned and she sniffed again, looking up at him through tearstained hazel eyes.
"You make it sound like I'm an idiot." She wiped at her nose and pushed the hair off her face.
"It's because you're being an idiot, Lala." Leon got up on his knees and shifted to he was eye level with her. "You're nothing like your mum. You've never been anything like her. And why should it even matter?"
"Because Leon, you want kids, and I don't want us to end up like them. And that car, it's just a constant reminder of what she did to us." Biting her lip, she turned her attention back to her hands in her lap.
"Are you saying this because you want to have kids or because you don't want the car?" Leon asked, stopping the insistent fidgeting by placing his hand in hers.
"A little bit of both." Nicola replied quietly. This made Leon chuckle quietly. "What? I'm telling you that car it's cursed. It and the Charger they're both cursed." She started to giggle slightly, not being able to help herself.
"It's just a car Lala." He stood up and kissed her forehead, "And you won't end up like your mum, because you so much as look at another guy and I will lock you in the basement." He pulled her up with him so she was standing facing him. "Now do you want to try again?"
When the door rolled up this time it was just Nicola and Dom. Leon had told her that if she believed the car was cursed the best person to face it with was Dom. And now she was thankful for his advice. Dom could understand her resentment towards the car better than anyone.
"You alright baby girl?" He asked and she nodded quickly, not allowing herself to think as she stepped forward and pulled the canvas off it. Looking back at Dom she nodded her head.
"Right, lets get this circus moving." She replied and caught the keys he threw to her easily and unlocked the doors to the midnight blue vintage car. When she was safely belted into the leather seats of the car she looked over at Doms large frame. "Guess it's now or never." She said and started the ignition, the old car not even missing a beat as it roared to life.
"Yeah, now or never." Dom replied as he held onto the door and Nicola pulled the car out into the main lot and out the gates. Once they were on the highway Dom glanced over at her starting to relax and smiled. "Come on girl, that all you got?"
Nicola shook her head before muttering something about men and their obsession with fast cars before shifting gears and pressing on the gas, making the car surge forward.
"Lala, wake up Baby." Nicola heard Leons voice and rolled over in his arms, smiling when he pulled her closer two weeks later.
"Hmm?" She mumbled as she snuggled into his bare chest and his hands ventured up the back of her tank top.
"Happy birthday." He whispered and she smiled into his chest.
"Thank you, baby." She replied and wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing a kiss to his chest. "Can we just stay here all day?" She muttered and felt Leon smile against her hair.
"I love you Lala." He replied and she groaned.
"I love you too, Leon. Can we just stay? Please. You and me all day?" His hand slipped out from under her shirt and smoothed over her hair, her head lolling back to look at him.
"It sounds great." He pressed his lips to hers and she kissed him back quickly before pulling away.
"But?" She whispered.
"We have four cars in the garage that are due out this afternoon and we've only just started." Leon said regrettably and Nicola sighed.
"Okay." She kissed his lips again and he deepened the kiss, rolling over on top of her and sliding his hands up her sides making her moan his name. He slipped her shirt off and peppered kisses all over her chest.
"Leon! We're going to be late. Come on!" Vince banged on the door and Leon ignored him as he kissed around Nicolas navel before coming up to meet her lips. "Come on Dawg, or I'm leaving without you."
"Okay. You need to go to work." Nicola pulled away and sat up, Leon sitting up with her.
"I'll make it up to you." He kissed her lips again and climbed off the bed, getting dressed quickly. "You're breakfast is waiting upstairs for you." He added before leaning over the bed and kissing her again. "Happy twenty-first baby. And remember we're going out for dinner tonight." Before running out of the room.
Nicola considered falling back into the bed but the thought of Leon getting up and cooking her breakfast tempted her out and she got dressed in a sundress before jogging up the stairs to the kitchen.
The whole house was quiet as she made her way into the kitchen and she beamed at the sight of the kitchen table covered in a table cloth, colourful flowers sitting in a vase in front of a large plate of fruit and another plate of pancakes and eggs and bacon.
"Ah, Palermo I love you." She said softly as her fingers ran over the small box that sat on the table in front of her chair. There was a small card on the top with her name on it and she opened the card to see Leons fine scrawl on the inside.
Happy twenty-first birthday to the love of my life. Love always Leon.
She rolled her eyes at his sappiness and put the card down before opening the lid on the navy blue box. Her heart swelled at the sight of the small plaited black bracelet with a gold clasp and a small gold heart hanging from it. For a mechanic the boy sure had good taste.
Nicola quickly put the bracelet on and looked down at it with pride before turning to the fantastic meal he'd prepared.
Halfway through her massive plate of food the phone began to ring and she picked the cordless phone up from the table beside her.
"Heya Birthday girl!" Stephs voice echoed down the line and Nicola laughed.
"Hey Steph. What's up?" She took a sip of coffee and placed the cup of coffee down as Steph spoke.
"Well I was just ringing to say Happy Birthday, but I thought you'd be busy with everyone else. You wanna go shopping?" Steph didn't take a breath and Nicola laughed.
"Yeah they're all at work. I would love to go shopping. Want to pick me up?" she asked.
"Be there in fifteen." Steph hung up quickly and Nicola finished off her pancakes, putting her dish in the sink just as Steph was walking through the door.
"Woah! Is this from the boyfriend?" Steph stared at the table and Nicola turned to face her, holding up her arm.
"This to." She pointed to the bracelet and Steph grabbed her arm.
"Can I trade you boyfriends?" she asked, looking up at Nicola with hopeful eyes.
"Ah, not likely. You know how long it took me to get this one?" Nicola laughed and cleaned the rest of the table up before heading out the door with Steph.
Twirling in front of the mirror in her room Nicola smiled at the blue dress, the silky fabric hugging her curves perfectly as she admired herself. She was pulling her hair into a high ponytail as the cordless phone rang.
"Hey baby. You ready for dinner?" Leons husky voice was down the line and Nicola looked at herself in the mirror.
"Sure am." She replied as she pulled on her black pumps and her black bomber jacket.
"Alright, I'll be there in five." The phone clicked and Nicola fixed up her makeup, tugging the hem of her short dress down and made her way up the stairs in search of her handbag.
True to his word, five minutes later there was a beep and Nicola walked towards the door, checking everything was in her handbag.
She stepped out onto the porch early to see Leon leaning against the side of the yellow Skyline. His arms were crossed over his chest as he smiled smugly at her his black button up shirt on over his faded jeans and as usual his toothpick hanging loosely in his lips.
"Oh my god! It's amazing!" She ran forward and looked down at the car.
"You like it?" He asked and Nicola nodded.
"It's so cool. Want to take me for a drive?" She asked cocking her head and he laughed.
"For my birthday girl anything!" he picked her up and spun her around. "Happy Birthday gorgeous!" She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him as he spun.
"Thank you so much!" She said, hugging him tight as he put her down. His eyes caught the black bracelet and he lifted her left hand to admire it on her wrist, the blue sapphire on her finger glinting in the light, catching his attention.
"You like it?" He asked and she nodded enthusiastically.
"It's the second best gift anyone has ever given me." She said, smirking as he rose an eyebrow.
"Second?" He asked and she nodded.
"You're still staring at the first." She laughed and he realised she was talking about the ring.
"Yeah well I have good taste, what can I say." This earned him a punch in the arm.
"All right Romeo, lets take this baby for a drive."
A/N: Just a chapter to keep you awesome people happy! So sorry for the lateness! =D