Chapter Eleven

“Well.” Nick said as to himself as he sat there in the booth at Pizza Hut after the waitress came and took their orders. He sat there, holding his hands together, looking at Jamie who was standing with her back facing him, looking at the jukebox.

He sat there, holding his hands together, watching her, as she kept moving her hair and looking down at the CD’s, picking some songs. He looked down, trying to remember what he was going to say to her. He had planned the whole flight to Los Angeles and now he couldn’t remember a damn thing. He couldn’t remember anything or -

“Nick?” Jamie asked as she sat back down and Nick heard Mandy Moore’s “Cry” come over the speakers.

I’ll always remember

It was late afternoon

It lasted forever

And ended too soon

“Like this song?” Nick asked as Jamie took a sip of her Mountain Dew and nodded her head, “You seen A Walk To Remember?”

“I love that movie.” Jamie said as she started to laugh, “Not very often the lead girl’s name is Jamie in a big movie like that.”

“Yeah… Jamie and Carter. That was pretty whack.” Nick said laughing a little as he looked down, “First time I saw it, I got mad.”

“Why?”

“Reminded me of you.” Nick said as he looked down, “You always liked Mandy Moore.”

“I knew she was going to come a long way.” Jamie said, “You said she was a Britney rip off.”

“Yeah.” Nick said smiling a little as he looked up at her.

It was late in September

And I’d seen you before

You were always the cold one

But I was never that sure

“We met in September.” Jamie said as she laughed a little, looking up at him.

“We did, didn’t we?” Nick asked as he laughed and pressed his lips together, then took a deep breath, “Do you ever think about the old days?”

“Honestly?”

“Yeah.”

“I try not to.” Jamie said as she glanced out the window and back at Nick, “I try, but since I saw you in the airport -”

“You’ve been thinking non-stop.” Nick said, finishing her sentence.

“Yeah.” Jamie said, looking down.

“I have too.” Nick whispered, “Actually, it’s all I’ve thought about since the moment I walked out of your bedroom that day.”, as Jamie looked up at him, “I was never happy again. I haven’t been happy since.”

“Do you remember the date?” Jamie asked, looking in his eyes.

“March 19, 2000.” Nick said as Jamie looked down, “That’s the last time I saw you until the other day.”

“Wasn’t the last time I saw you.” Jamie said, looking up at him, “Each time you came around, for a show. I went.”

“You did?”

“Yeah. It was a way I could see you with my own eyes and you wouldn’t know.” Jamie whispered, still looking down when the waitress brought their pizza, and sat it on the table in front of them.

“I knew it.” Nick said as Jamie looked up at him, “I knew you were there.”

“I couldn’t help it.” Jamie said as she sighed, putting a piece of pizza on her plate, “Are you mad?”

“No.” Nick said, taking a bite of his pizza and smiled when “I Drive Myself Crazy” by ‘N Sync came on, “Fucking bastards.”

“Stop it.”

“I don’t listen to boy bands.” Nick said, making fun of what Jamie said the first time they met, “Don’t my ass.”

“I didn’t listen to Backstreet. I liked ‘N Sync.” Jamie said laughing a little.

“I won’t ever forget the first time you met Justin Timberlake.” Nick said laughing as Jamie started giggling, “Oh good god don’t fucking giggle.”

“Sorry.” Jamie said smiling as she looked around the restaurant, “So everything’s okay with the guys?”

“Yeah. I just thought this was the right time to do a solo album since everything happened with AJ last summer. He needed some time off the road.” Nick said looking up at her.

“He is okay now?”

“Yeah he’s great.”

“You took it hard didn’t you?”

“Yeah.” Nick said as he looked at her, eating her pizza with her fork and shook his head, “You still eat pizza with a fork.”

“I don’t want to get my hands all greasy.” Jamie said as she looked up at him and Nick shook his head at her laughing, “What?”

“Some things never change.” Nick said laughing as she looked at him, tilting her head a little. He sat there looking back at her, not saying anything until she started to laugh, “What?”

“They don’t.” Jamie said smiling when “I Drive Myself Crazy” went off and “On Bended Knee” came on. Nick started to smile a little and then looked away, and back down at his pizza, “I swear to god I hit the number for “Water Runs Dry.” I know I did.”

“Suuure.” Nick said laughing as Jamie closed her eyes and reached for another slice of pizza, “So, what do you do now like for a job?”

“You really wanna know?” Jamie said looking at him. Nick nodded his head and Jamie started to laugh, “Well. When I was a junior in college, I got a job at the National Enquirer.”

“No fucking shit.” Nick said as he busted out laughing.

“Yes.” Jamie said laughed as she licked her lips, smiling and looked around, “Then I got a job for writing screen plays for Disney and that’s what I do now.”

“Really?” Nick asked, “But you wrote that script about us in your spare time.”

“Yes.” Jamie said, “I’m working on the new Disney movie now.”

“That’s cool.” Nick said as he started to eat another slice of pizza, “So what about this dude you married?”

“His name was Sean and I met him at work, at the Enquirer -”

“Oh god.”

“He was a former Rodeo bull rider -”

“Oh damn.”

“And I don’t know. I just, well we ran off to Vegas and got married.” Jamie said, “My family was in shock.”

“Oh I bet your mom definitely was.”

“God yes.” Jamie said as she laughed “and then I realized I couldn’t stand him and I damn sure didn’t love him, so I got it annulled. We never slept together.”

“Seriously?”

“Nope. I don’t know what came over me.” Jamie said as she laughed, “Just one of those impulsive things of mine. I’ll never make that mistake again.”

“Yeah I bet.” Nick said as he shook his head laughing at her.

“You haven’t had another girlfriend?” Jamie asked as Nick looked at her, “I take that as a no?”

“The guys would set me up with girls. Mike tried a few times, but nope.” Nick said as he shook his head, “Never had another girlfriend.”

“Why not?”

“There was never another you.” Nick said as he glanced down and looked back up at her.

“Why not?” Jamie asked as Nick smiled at her and was about to say something when “What A Girl Wants” by Christina Aguilera came on and he cracked up laughing, “What?”

“This song.” Nick said laughing, “Every time I hear it, I think about when you were jumping up and down on the bed singing it and me and AJ walked in and you fell off the bed so fast, hiding because you were in your underwear.”

“Thanks for reminding me.” Jamie said laughing as Nick shook his head, “So why not?”

“Why there was never another you?” Nick asked as Jamie nodded her head yes, “Because - you’re one of a kind. There’s nobody else like you.”

“I am one of a kind.” Jamie said laughing a little, “So are you.”

“You forgot about Aaron.” Nick said as he started to growl a little and Jamie cracked up laughing.

“Oh how is he?” Jamie asked, “I miss him.”

“Yeah he misses you too. He informed me the other day that I was a stupid ass idiot for causing us to break up although he doesn’t know why we broke up in the first place.” Nick said, “He’s great. He’s about to release another CD I think. He’s on some tour. Mom and Angel are with him.”

“They never asked what happened?”

“Yeah.”

“What did you say?” Jamie asked as Nick looked up at her.

“I lied to my parents and told them I cheated on you and you found me.” Nick said as he looked back down, “I didn’t know what else to tell them. I couldn’t tell them that.”

“You’d never cheat on me.” Jamie said as Nick glanced back up at and looked back at the pizza, “I know that much.”

“Yeah.” Nick said, “You had might as well say that though because of what I did.”

“I still don’t understand it.”

“Me either.” Nick said, “It’s just me. I don’t know why I do anything.”

“You do.”

“I couldn’t have a baby then.”

“Oh you can now?” Jamie asked as Nick looked back up at her and took a deep breath, “That’s what I thought.”

“I have more umm freedom now then I did then. We were barely 20. You were just 19 at the time, about to turn 20. We couldn’t have a baby then.” Nick said looking at as she looked out the window at the cars passing by on the street beside them, “That doesn’t mean I didn’t want it.”

“You did?” Jamie asked, looking back at him.

“Yeah I did. But just, it wasn’t the right time.” Nick said as he leaned back in the booth, “I wanted everything. I just couldn’t have it all then.”

“And you can now?” Jamie asked as Nick smiled a little, nodding his head yes.

“Yeah, if I wanted it, I can have it.” Nick said, “That is if what I want, wants me.”

“What do you want?” Jamie asked as Nick was about to say something and the waitress walked up, refilling both of their Mountain Dews. They waited until she left and Jamie looked back at Nick.

“Can’t tell you yet.” Nick said smiling as Jamie smiled and took a sip of her Mountain Dew.

You know, everything that I’m afraid of

You do everything I wish I did

Everybody wants you

Everybody loves you

“Mandy Moore again?” Nick asked as Jamie smiled looking away as “Crush” played over the speakers.

“Yeah.” Jamie said laughing a little as she looked back at him and then down at the pizza. Then she looked back at Nick who hadn’t taken his eyes off of her.

“Come on, let’s go.” Nick said as Jamie looked outside, biting her bottom lip and looked back at Nick, “Come on.”

“Okay.” Jamie said as Nick got the bill and walked up to the cash register. Jamie walked over to the door, which was by the jukebox. She looked down to see the CD’s and saw what was coming on next. She wasn’t ready to leave yet. She smiled down at her reflection in the jukebox until Nick walked up, putting his arm around her waist.

“Come on.”

“No, stay here a second.” Jamie said as Nick looked at her when “Crush” went off and “Getting’ Jiggy With It” came on and they both started laughing hysterically and walked out of the door.