Another story I thought I won't finish. But it pulled me back and here's another chapter, I decided to take it to a different place than the initial plan. I'm trying to keep them in character but write a completely different story, it's an AU after all.
To those of you wondering about Nick – don't worry, he has a baggage of his own (you'll find out in the following chapters).
Warning, I almost cried at the end of this chapter, a lot of drama (and there will be a lot of drama ahead so if you like that, stick around)
Nick got back into the car, his hands were on the wheel and he was thinking about the drive back to Atlanta. But he couldn't force himself to turn the engine on. He couldn't drive away, leave things like that. If he goes now, this is over. Whatever this is, whatever he's feeling, it's all gonna be thrown away.
He wasn't ready for that.
Nick finally started the car, but he did not drive to Atlanta, he drove away and asked a pedestrian for directions to the police station.
Once he parked the car Nick waited, he wasn't sure how long it would take for her to walk out of it, he doubted he missed her. She'd probably want to be there while her sister's being processed.
There was a growl in his stomach and he realized it's been a while since he last ate. Luckily there was a place nearby, somewhere he could go without losing eye contact. He had to wait for her. Since he had spent the night with her Nick knew she had no food as well, so he made sure to get something for her too.
He realized now why Amanda was in such a hurry to get to Loganville, there were still a lot of unanswered questions for him, but he could see the big picture. Amanda's younger sister was troubled, her mother was no help and Amanda had to take care of them.
Nick felt bad for her, he had a feeling she'd hate it if he ever said that to her, but he felt sorry she had to go through it. He was no stranger to complicated family matters. Maybe that's why he wanted to help her, because he knew how it felt to be in a similar situation. But that wasn't the reason he liked her.
The truth was, Nick wasn't exactly sure of his feelings. Did he like her? He liked, even loved women before. But he was always certain of those feelings. When he told his last girlfriend that he loved her, he really meant it. He knew he loved her.
But now he couldn't say. Now he was everything but certain.
Nick could almost see her in front of his eyes, the way she looked the first time he saw her. He was drawn to her for some reason. Even now, something was almost pulling him to her.
It's not like he couldn't find a date in New York, but ever since the night they spent together, it was like he didn't want to.
Nick kept his eyes on the front entrance of the station. He figured it's been about an hour and there was still no sign of her. Maybe she decided to stay there for the rest of the day? Maybe the officer, who seemed to know her, and she seemed to like him, was talking to her, keeping her company.
But the doors opened and Amanda emerged. She looked disturbed, didn't even try to hide it and Nick hurried to start the car and drive to her.
"Amanda" he called when he pulled over next to her. The sound of her name caused Amanda to flinch.
"What are you doing here?" she gave him an empty look.
"I…" what was a good answer? "I'll drive you home"
Amanda was hesitant, looked to the left and to the right, making Nick think she was going to decline and cross the street, get away.
But Amanda opened the car's door and sat down, putting the seatbelt on.
"What are you still doing here?" she asked again.
"I had to make sure you're…" Nick was unsure of the right word, how could she be alright, or ok?
"Well, I'm fine..." she didn't add anything and Nick drove off.
Nick didn't have a problem finding the right house and this time he parked right in front of it.
"I have something for you" he handed her the food he bought earlier "you haven't eaten yet"
Amanda looked at him, she wasn't smiling but Nick thought he saw a flicker of joy. Maybe it was just his wishful thinking, but it seemed like Amanda appreciated the gesture.
"I thought you could use a friend" he said.
"So you are my friend then?" her tone was flat and he wasn't sure if this was an insult, a joke or a genuine question.
"I'm not your enemy" he answered, this time she gave him a tiny smile, or something that resembled one.
"It was nice of you to buy me food, thanks" she looked inside the bag "I even like this"
"I wasn't sure" he smiled "it's not Chinese…"
This finally put a real smile on her face "there aren't too many good places for that here, so you made the right choice"
Nick hoped that she wasn't talking just about the food, he hoped the right choice was staying.
Amanda took the sandwich out of the bag and ate it in the car, Nick realized this was a sign he wasn't getting an invitation inside. He had to admit he was curious, wanted to know how it looked like. But at least she stayed with him.
Amanda finished eating pretty fast and held on the now empty bag "I'm gonna throw this later" she said and Nick shrugged, he didn't like clutter, but this wasn't bothering him.
"Want me to show you something?" she suddenly said and Nick nodded, trying to contain his excitement "then maybe you better start the car"
She gave him directions and soon they arrived to a construction site. There was nobody there but them and Nick asked himself if it was safe.
"Don't worry" she could almost read his mind "there's no one here and I'm not going to climb anywhere"
Nick followed Amanda, she walked between the scaffolds and sat down on the sand, facing the site. Nick sat next to her and she smiled at him.
"Can I be honest?" she asked.
"Of course" he nodded.
"You're kinda weird" she looked serious and Nick was puzzled by this "you came all the way from New York to Atlanta so you could sleep with me and now you're in Loganville, I bet this was not your plan"
"You think I came here just so I could sleep with you?" he was being serious too.
"The women in New York must be terrible, or maybe you already slept with all of them" she shrugged and Nick had to laugh at that idea.
"I don't know who you think I am" he took a deep breath to relax "but that is not the case"
"Which one?" her tone was teasing and Nick liked that.
"I'm really not here because I wanted to sleep with you" he was serious again.
"Good, cause I'm not that good" she looked away, feeling a little embarrassed for saying that.
"You wouldn't do that? Fly to New York to sleep with me?" he decided to tease her back.
"What do you want me to say?"
Nick shook his head in response, he was just kidding.
"I'm here cause I like you" again, Nick wasn't sure like was the right word, but it would have to do right now.
"I used to play here when I was a kid" Amanda spoke after a few minutes of silence "a few months ago I drove by and saw all this" she looked around the site "felt kinda strange"
"I get that" he nodded "it's strange when things change"
She was looking straight ahead and Nick raised his hand and softly caressed her cheek, this felt right to him, he had no idea how to react, what to say.
Amanda didn't seem to be bothered by the touch, she didn't move, didn't flinch. But her eyes were still focused on some distant spot.
Nick moved his hand and she rested her head on his shoulder
"I think we should drive back soon, is that ok?" she asked quietly.
"Sure" he caressed her back "just say when"
"When" she whispered.
Amanda wanted to grab something from the house and Nick had no problem making a stop there.
"Amanda" he said before she left the car "mind if I use the bathroom?"
She chuckled and nodded "not gonna make your bladder suffer"
"Thanks" a part of him was afraid she'd say no and he was grateful she didn't.
Amanda let him in and he tried to act like he wasn't inspecting the room. She gestured at the bathroom and he walked over there. He noted the place was pretty clean, but there was a bizarre atmosphere, it didn't feel like a home.
"Let's go" she was waiting for him by the door, looking like she couldn't leave soon enough.
Nick decided not to ask anything about Amanda's sister. He wanted to know the whole story, but she clearly wasn't interested in talking about the subject.
"When do you have to go back to work?" she asked, they left Loganville and were on their way to Atlanta.
"My flight's tomorrow, at six pm" it felt so soon, too soon.
Amanda nodded and looked out of the window. She wasn't sure what to think or feel. A part of her wanted to hold on to him and not let go. She didn't like feeling this way, this need, she refused to even acknowledge that it was a need, she never needed anyone.
Nick was going to leave, they will have fun, she wasn't denying the fact she was attracted to him, he was handsome, he was nice, he was warm, he was caring ,he was…
It wasn't important, he was going to leave.
"Amanda?" his voice pulled her away from her thoughts and she turned to him.
"Yeah?"
"I asked if there was anything you'd like us to do in the city" he repeated the question.
"Not really" she shrugged "we could just continue what we started this morning"
Nick couldn't prevent his lips from curving into a smile and Amanda snickered.
"Let's pray no one's gonna interrupt us" he smiled.
"You know any prayers for that?" she gave him a questioning look.
"I doubt there are any" Nick chuckled again.
Her smile sent shivers through his entire body and Nick decided it would be best if he focused on the road. What he really wanted to do was pull over and then pull her into a mind blowing kiss, suck her tongue into his mouth, make her gasp, make her call his name. But the car wasn't the right place for that. He really hoped her roommate will stay away tonight.
Again, it felt like Amanda read his mind "Alice is sleeping over at Ben's tonight"
"Good to know" he tried not to sound too excited.
"Good indeed"
They decided to stop for dinner before going back to the dorms. The food Nick got for them in Loganville was good but it wasn't going to keep the hunger away for much longer.
"Mind if we skip the Chinese this time?" Amanda asked "I feel like Italian"
"No problem, I love Italian food"
"So you're not picky then?" she gave him another grin and Nick smiled too.
"I'm pretty easy when it comes to food. If you feel like…I don't know, I can't think of anything too exotic right now, but I'm fine with that too"
"The pizza will not be exotic" she apologized "but it's not bad"
"I don't think you can ruin a pizza"
"Trust me, there are a lot of ways to do that" it seemed like she had experience in the field of ruined pizzas and Nick decided to ask about it when they'd eat.
She told him where to drive to and he parked the car on a small street.
"It's not far" she said when they were out of the car and he walked next to her to the restaurant.
Nick expected it to be a small place, like a secret only locals knew about, so he was surprised when they walked into a big restaurant. He saw a lot of families there, they were having dinner and being pretty noisy. One kid was crying and his mother tried to calm him down. No one seemed to be bothered by it, or by the kids who were running around, laughing, shouting.
"The two of you?" A hostess greeted them with a big smile and Amanda nodded "come on" she lead them to a table and gave each of them a menu.
"You have any recommendations?" he looked at the items on it.
"Just the regular one" she shrugged "extra cheese, that's my order"
"So do you want me to order something else? We can share" he offered and Amanda smiled slightly.
"You should order whatever you want Nick"
He took another look at the menu and when the waitress came by he ordered the plain pizza with extra cheese.
The waitress came back a few minutes later with two glasses of water and let them know the food will be ready soon.
"So…" Nick was about to say when he felt someone staring at him, he turned to see a boy and a girl, looking maybe four years old, they were focused on him and Amanda.
"I want this" the little girl pointed on the vase that was on the table, there was a flower in it.
Nick exchanged a look with Amanda and took the flower, handing it to the girl.
"There you go" he said.
"Thank you" she giggled "it's mine" she said to the boy and he looked upset.
"I want it!" he shouted.
"I'm so sorry!" a woman, probably their mother, rushed to the kids and took the flower from the girl "sorry" she placed it on the table next to Nick and pulled her children away.
"This is for you" Nick gave Amanda the flower.
"A used flower" Amanda rolled her eyes "and one you stole from this place…not something I'd expect from a cop"
Amanda placed the flower back in the vase and when she let go of it Nick caught her hand in his.
It was a reflex, he wasn't thinking, wasn't planning ahead. The only word he could think of was magical. Because in the midst of the noise, of everyone walking and running around them, he felt like it was just the two of them in the room.
Amanda was staring at him, she had no idea how to react to the gesture. His touch felt so good, she could almost ask him to keep his hand on hers.
But the food came and he let her go so the waitress could put it down.
"Enjoy" she smiled and left them alone.
"I love how cheesy it is" she said with her mouth full.
"I can tell" Nick chuckled and smiled at her.
"Sometimes you just can't beat simplicity. You don't need anything but melted cheese" she took another bite.
"It is good" he agreed with her.
Amanda was done with her food first and Nick offered her his last slice, which she accepted because for some reason she was very hungry.
"I'm paying" she grabbed the check the moment it was placed on the table.
"I…" Nick wanted to protest but Amanda gave him a stern look and he decided not to argue. He could buy breakfast.
"Let's head back" Amanda stood up and it was another thing he had no plans to debate about.
They walked back to the car and before he had a chance to get in Amanda pushed him against it and pulled him down for a kiss.
Amanda could taste the cheese but she didn't care, she's been wanting to kiss him for a while. Wanted to feel his hands on her, wanted to touch him. Amanda wanted something else too, but she had no idea what it was, maybe she was just horny and once they sleep together this bizarre feeling will disappear.
Nick's hands were on the small of her back and even though she was wearing a shirt it felt like they were on her skin. She felt like he was somewhere deeper, as if it wasn't just a kiss.
But they were kissing, what else could it be?
Amanda pulled away, feeling excited and confused at the same time.
"Let's go" she smiled at him and sat down.
The only words exchanged during the drive to the dorms were her directions, turn here, turn there. Neither was sure what else to say, like that kiss took them to a different place.
Nick tried not to glance at her, he wasn't sure he'd stop himself if he looked at her, if she'd look at him.
He craved for her. There was no better way to describe it, he craved for her and had no idea why and it almost didn't matter.
Nick parked the car and they walked outside, the place seemed almost deserted. Nick didn't waste time and grabbed her hand, entwining his fingers with hers.
"Let's go to my room" Amanda looked into his eyes, her heart skipped a beat.
Nick was about to lean in and kiss those gorgeous lips of hers when someone called her name.
"Hey Amanda" they both turned to see Carl Patton walking towards them. He wasn't alone.
"Go away" Amanda said, letting go of Nick's hand.
"Why? You two want to be alone?" he tilted his head a bit, as if he didn't know the answer.
"You heard her" Nick took a step forward and turned to Amanda "let's go"
"You know buddy" Patton walked towards them and his two friends were right behind him, as if they were bodyguards "I don't know you, but I do know miss Amanda here" his smile made Nick sick "and I get it, I know that you want her"
"Let's go Amanda" Nick touched her shoulder, wanting them to walk upstairs and get away from that creep.
"I'm totally for this hook up" Carl kept on talking as they turned from him "why shouldn't you have a piece of that ass? Hell, you know you're not the only one, and the things I've heard…"
Nick tried not to say anything, he tried to act deaf. But this guy was saying things about Amanda and he couldn't ignore it anymore.
"You piece of shit" Nick turned to Patton and his friends rushed to his side.
"Whatever your name is" Patton remained completely calm "I just came here to wish you a good fuck, cause that's my Amanda, she has one hell of a pus…"
Every bit of control has left Nick's body and his fist met Patton's face. But the bodyguards were not gonna let that go on and one of them caught Nick while the other punched and kicked him in the gut.
The pain spread from his stomach to his entire body, and he felt light headed.
"Let him go" Amanda held something in her hand and hit the guy who kicked him.
"Fucking bitch" he touched the back of his head "I'm bleeding"
"You're gonna bleed from a lot of other places if you don't get the hell out of here" she warned and Nick could see it was some kind of a pipe.
"How romantic" Patton laughed "this just proves you're worth it baby. Have fun you two, and keep it tight for me" he blew her a kiss and walked away, followed by his friends.
Nick wanted to run after them, wanted to do something, to stop them. But he saw the look on Amanda's face and knew he couldn't leave her alone.
"Amanda" he walked over to her "you have to file a complaint, I'll go with you, this guy…" he shook his head.
"I can't Nick" she said quietly, dropping the pipe on the ground "I can't"
"What do you mean you can't? He's…" what was he supposed to say? This guy was telling her he'd have her, one way or another, if she wanted it or if she didn't.
"I can't file a complaint against him" Amanda looked away "if I do, I'm gonna be the one paying for it. I told you he has a relative at the APD, I will end up getting in trouble, they will find a way. You think it's the first time he's done something like this? I can't do that" she was getting teary eyed and seemed anxious.
"You can't be serious!" he raised his voice a little, feeling guilty for it and whispering his next words "he can't get away with it, no matter who he knows…it's wrong and you shouldn't pay for that"
"I can take care of myself" she said.
"Can you?" he looked at the direction the three men walked to "if they all…" he couldn't even finish the sentence, the thought was too painful.
"You should just go Nick" she gave him a stern look "this was a mistake, you coming here. You wanted to sleep with me too, no? You're flying back to New York tomorrow. And I'm gonna take the fact you did all of this just to fuck me as a compliment, but you really shouldn't have"
"That's not true" Nick was insulted, he almost didn't care she was hurt by what he said, that she was disrupted by what just happened. This wasn't about sex for him.
"Well, then you have a problem because there's nothing here, ok? You don't need this mess" she was referring to herself "you need to go back to New York. If you want a fuck, then…I'm not in the mood"
"Come on!" why was she ignoring everything? He wasn't thinking about a thing when he yelled his next words "What the hell is wrong with you?"
"Everything" she replied "I'll bring your bag down" she disappeared into the building, leaving Nick alone with his thoughts.
He tried to wrap his mind around what just happened. His abdomen still hurt, that guy's punch and kick were strong. But what Patton said, why was she reluctant to do anything? She told him he was untouchable, but no one is.
Maybe that's her problem? Maybe if she doesn't want his help then he shouldn't help her. If she still thinks he came here for sex maybe she doesn't care, maybe that's what she wanted, he thought she liked him – but he was apparently wrong.
She can have it her way.
Amanda was back a few minutes later, she didn't talk to him, just threw the bag on the ground and turned away.
Nick stayed planted for a moment, thinking she'd change her mind, say she was sorry. But he realized she wasn't going to do that so he grabbed the bag and stepped to the car, sitting in the driver's seat.
He could smell her inside, missed her presence. But Nick pushed the feeling away, Amanda didn't want help, she didn't want him. Maybe she was right, she was a mess and it was her job to clean it up.
He drove away, not looking back.
He was still feeling that ache from the kick, but now it was somehow in his heart.