Joe stretches his arms over his head as he and Nick walk off the plane. "Wow, I'm tired."
Nick looks over at him and chuckles. "I am a little, too, but I'm more excited about seeing Demi than anything."
Joe nods. "I bet," he says. "I'll drop you off at the rehab center and then head to the hotel to check us in, okay? You can call me whenever you want me to come pick you up."
"Okay," Nick agrees. He looks over at Joe again. "What did you tell Mom about where we were going?"
Joe shrugs a little. "The Poconos," he answers. "I told her we just needed to get away for a while, to take your mind off of, well...everything. She agreed, since the Poconos are only about a half hour away from us."
"Are you sure she wouldn't have agreed to a month?" Nick asks after a minute.
Joe sighs softly. "I'm sure," he says. "I'm sorry, bro, but you're just going to have to deal with a week with your girlfriend for now."
Nick bites his lip slightly. "I don't think she's my girlfriend," he says finally.
"Yet," Joe adds with a wink.
Nick's still biting his bottom lip, in deep thought. "Do you think she's ready for a boyfriend? I mean, having a girlfriend means that eventually we'll have sex. I don't know if Demi will ever be ready for that."
"What are you going to do if she never is?"
Nick shrugs a little. "Be with her," he answers.
Joe raises an eyebrow. "Really? And never have sex? Ever?"
Nick shakes his head. "I love her. I fell in love with her because of her. If she's never ready to have sex...then we'll never have sex. I want to be with her, forever. No matter what."
"And you'll be okay with being a virgin...forever?"
Nick shrugs again. "Like I said. I want to be with her, forever. No matter what."
"Wow," Joe whistles. "When did my little brother become wiser than me?" He chuckles. "But seriously. That's awesome, Nick. That you'll still want to be with Demi even though it might not lead to sex. I know a lot of guys—a lot of guys—who would turn and run. But not you." He slings an arm around Nick's shoulder. "My little Nicholas is all grown up." He ruffles his hair.
Nick pushes Joe away but can't help but laugh. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Let's just go get our bags, okay? I got a girl to see."
Joe smiles at his brother as they hurry to the baggage claim. They grab their bags and they go out to the car that Joe rented, getting in. Joe drops Nick off at the rehab center about twenty minutes later.
"Remember," Joe says as Nick opens the door, "call me when you're ready for me to pick you up, okay?"
Nick nods. "Okay."
"Though I don't expect a call until tomorrow morning," he says with a wink as Nick rolls his eyes and gets out of the car.
He waves at Joe and then waits for Joe to drive away before turning and going into the building. He stops at the front desk to ask the woman there what room Demi is in, then he smiles and thanks her and takes off down the hall.
16, he thinks. Room 16. Where are you, room 16? Then he spots it and smiles. Demi, here I am!
He smiles again and then knocks on her door. Demi opens it and squeals in excitement when she sees who it is.
"Nick!" she cries, jumping into his arms and practically knocking him down to the ground.
"Whoa, Demi!" He laughs as he steadies them and then hugs her back just as tight. "I missed you, sweetie."
"I missed you too." Demi buries her face into Nick's neck and closes her eyes. Nick sets her down on the ground and she finally pulls back from him a few long minutes later. "What are you doing here? What about school? I'm so happy you're here! What are you doing here?" she asks again, all in one breath.
Nick laughs. "Okay, to answer your questions: I'm here because I missed you; screw school; I'm happy I'm here too; and...same answer as the first one." He chuckles and then nods to the door to her room. "Are you gonna invite me in or what?"
Demi giggles softly. "Sorry," she says, quickly opening the door so he can walk in, following him in and closing the door behind her. "You didn't mean it when you said 'screw school,' did you?"
Nick nods, turning to her. "Yeah, I did. You're more important that school–"
"That's not true," Demi protests, interrupting him.
"Yes, it is," Nick says. "School's no fun if you're not there too. And besides, I missed you so much that I wouldn't even be able to focus even if I had gone to school."
Demi nods. "That's true," she says, sitting down on the bed and looking up at him.
Nick smiles and walks over to her, sitting down close next to her. "How do you like it here?" he asks after a minute.
"I like it," Demi answers with a smile. "Everyone is no nice here and I've even made a few friends."
Nick smiles too. "That's great, Dem," he says. "And you look happier too."
"Of course I'm happier. You're here, silly."
Nick smiles again. "That's sweet, but it's not because I'm here. You do look happier, and you look healthier too."
Demi shrugs. "My dad's not here. The kids from school aren't here. No one can hurt me, or call me names, or anything like that. Yeah, I'm happier. And you're here, so that makes me extra happy." She giggles softly.
Nick smiles again as he lays down on the bed, pulling Demi down with him. She hesitates a moment before laying her head on his chest, closing her eyes.
"Hey," Nick says a little while later. Demi lifts her head up and looks at him. "Are we, um–?" He stops and bites his lip.
"Are we...?" Demi prompts.
"I've never asked this before," he says quietly. Then he looks at her again. "Are we...together?"
Demi tilts her head to the side, confused for a second, but then her eyes light up when she realizes what he's asking.
"You mean are we boyfriend and girlfriend," she says. "You want to know if we're dating."
Nick nods. "Yeah," he replies.
"I don't know," Demi starts, looking away from him.
"You love me, don't you?" Nick cuts her off.
Demi looks back at him. "Of course I love you," she tells him.
"Then what's the problem?"
"I don't know," Demi repeats after a few seconds.
"I love you, Demi. I will never hurt you—you know that, right?" Demi nods so Nick goes on. "We won't do anything you're not ready for, I promise. Come on, I know you want this. You want to be my girlfriend as much as I want to be your boyfriend, so just say yes."
Demi swallows a little and then looks at him before nodding slowly. "Yes," she says.
Nick's face lights up. "Yes?"
Demi nods and laughs as Nick gives her a kiss. "Yes, I'll be your girlfriend." She smiles as Nick kisses her again.