Almost Everything (Nickayla Quinn Trilogy Book 2) Read online

  Skype is opened up and on the screen is Michie’s boyfriend, Hayden Jax, and his daughter Skylar. Their smiling faces look down on us, and I hold back my grin as Brody’s body tenses up.

  “HJ! Hello!” I exclaim. Over the summer I’d grown to like Hayden, not only as a friend, but as Michie’s boyfriend. “Hi, Skylar! How are you?”

  “I miss you, Auntie Nic!” the tiny blonde yells in return. “Hi, Michele!” She waves frantically at the screen and leaps into her father’s arms. “How many more sleeps until I see you?”

  I laugh. She knows that we’re graduating soon, and that Michie, Colin, and I are planning to go to college in Big Springs. We give her the date of our graduation—which Hayden has expressed that he plans on attending with his daughter in tow—and she’s been counting down the number of time she has to go to sleep before that day will come.

  Michie smiles, sitting down on the other side of Colin. “158 more sleeps, cutie,” she replies.

  The small, blonde girl smacks her open palm to her forehead. “That’s a lot of sleeps! I don’t want to wait that long!”

  Colin takes my hand, squeezing it tightly. “Well, in a few minutes, we get to find out if—after your 158 sleeps—we get to be closer to you for good.” He turns to face the other people at the table, a smile on his face. “You guys ready? The today is the first day of the rest of our lives after high school.”

  Two.

  I sit next to my boyfriend, six letters from colleges that I’ve applied to in my hands. Four of them are in North Carolina, and the other two are in California. The ones here have been my dream schools since I was little, mostly because I hadn’t really thought about moving out of state. However, when Colin took me to his hometown last summer, I couldn’t deny that the small town appealed to me and I could see myself living there with him for the rest of our lives.

  I applied to William Peace University, UNC-Chapel Hill, UNC-Raleigh, and NC State, as well as UC Riverside and Cal Poly Pomona. Colin applied to all the same colleges as me, but we both know no matter what, his future is with his grandfather’s company. Even so, that doesn’t stop him from wanting to pursue a college education.

  Everyone has come inside already, putting aside the fact that we have dinner to eat. My parents, Nathan, and Hanna are standing around, and Michele’s sisters, her father, and her stepmother Gemma are sitting on the couches just inside the living room so that they can hear what’s going on. Brody’s siblings, Cason and Dalis didn’t bother coming, because we all know that no matter what colleges he gets accepted to, he isn’t leaving Harlow until the both of them graduate high school.

  “Sarah, sweetie, why don’t you and Nikkolas go first?” Sarah’s mom pipes up from behind her, holding Emerson on her hip. “I just want to see you guys do this…when you got pregnant I never thought college was in your future.” Her eyes well up with tears and she wipes them seconds later. “Come on, darling. Open the letters.”

  My brother reaches for his daughter and when Mrs. Clay hands her over, he cradles her to his chest. He grabs a stack of letters from the center of the table, rummaging through them until he finds the ones labeled “Nikkolas Quinn” and “Sarah Clay”.

  I wait while they rip their letters open, and see the smiles on their faces as they read them. “Rejection from UCSB, UCSD, and Cal State Long Beach. Acceptance from UCR, Cal State Dominguez Hills, and UC Channel Islands for me, and UCR, Cal State Dominguez Hills, UC Channel Islands, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and Cal Poly Pomona for Sarah.” My brother beams with pride as he kisses his daughter and then proceeds to kis his girlfriend on the forehead.

  “Yes!” I exclaim, hugging my twin. “Congratulations, you guys!”

  There’s an eruption of applause and a mixture of laughter and more congratulations from around the entire house.

  Michele goes next, ripping her letters open with enthusiasm and waving them at Hayden. “William Peace and UNC-Raleigh!” She walks over to her dad, who she just fixed her relationship with last summer.

  He stands up and wraps her in a hug, kissing her on the forehead. I watch their embrace with a heavy heart, knowing this is exactly what my best friend has wanted ever since he left.

  “I’m proud of you, sweetheart,” Mr. Taggaro says, smiling down at his daughter. “Whatever you need, wherever you go, we’ll support you. Right, Gem?”

  His wife nods, but she doesn’t speak. Michele and Gemma have a terrible relationship, one that I don’t think will ever be fixed.

  “Thanks, Dad,” Michele replies, wiping her eyes and walking back to the table, looking up at the laptop. “William Peace and UNC-Raleigh, hun. 158 more sleeps and I’ll be moving to Big Springs for good.”

  She reaches up and places her hand against the screen of the laptop, and Hayden does the same. “Congratulations, Michele. I love you.” He pauses, taking Skylar and standing up. “We have to go. It’s someone’s bedtime. Say goodnight, Sky.”

  “Goodnight, Skylar!” everyone announces from around the table, even Brody.

  She grins sleepily, waving her hands at the laptop screen. “Goodnight everybody!” Hayden starts to reach for the keyboard and turn off the Skype, but Skylar stops him. “Wait Daddy! Michele, when I wake up, how many more sleeps until I get to see you?”

  I laugh, completely struck by how adorable Hayden’s little girl is.

  “157 more sleeps, cutie,” Mich responds.

  She groans, burying her face into her dad’s shoulder. “I better go to bed now, because that’s still a lot of sleeps!”

  Just like that, they’re gone, and only Brody, Colin and I have to open our letters now.

  Michele closes Colin’s laptop and looks back at us, a smile on her face. Brody wordlessly shoves away from the table and storms outside, leaving us all stunned silent in his wake. I look over at Michie and she gives me an apologetic expression.

  “I’ll go take care of him,” Colin says.

  I shake my head and stand up, placing my hand on his shoulder and squeezing. “No, I’ll do it. I’ll be back soon.”

  I push away from the table and follow my closest and oldest friend out the door. He’s sitting on the rocks at the edge of the lake, his knees pulled up to his chest and his chin resting on his arms. He peers out at the water, his now-long hair almost reaching his eyes.

  I kick off my shoes and climb on the rocks, sitting down next to him and wrapping my arms around him. He doesn’t look at me, but I can see the edges of his mouth tug, and a smile forms on his face.

  “How’re you holding up, buddy?” I rest my chin on his shoulder and look over it at the rushing water.

  He shakes his head as though to shrug me off, but I pull away from him and take his chin between my fingers. I lift it, forcing him to look at me. “Nic, I can’t do this right now. Please.”

  I’m struck by the desperation in his voice, by the fact that he seems to be pleading with me. We’ve prided ourselves in always being able to talk to each other about anything, and even though I went back on those words after what’d happened with Kyle, we’re still closer than ever.

  I don’t want to feel like he’s pulling away from me, like I’m losing him even before we graduate. He’s like another one of my brothers, and I don’t want to lose this relationship with him.

  “Brody, talk to me. You’re my best friend. Whatever’s on your mind, you know you can tell me about it.”

  He nods, taking my hand and inhaling deeply. The gesture alone has me bracing myself for something heavy.

  Brody Durham is a man of few words. He only says the important things, and I learned his mannerisms within days of us becoming friends. When he stands tall and pushes his shoulders back, he’s ready for a fight. I’ve only seen that stance three times: when he kicked Joseph Abrams’ ass for pushing me off the swing set, when I emerged from the girls’ bathroom shaking with fear and crying my eyes out after an encounter with our ex-friend, Kyle York, and right after I told all my family and friends that Kyle had raped me. When he runs
his hands through his sandy brown hair, he’s frustrated and ready to punch something, and then he’ll commence mannerism number one. When he crosses his arms in front of his chest, I know it all too well—that’s his protective stance. When he does that, he’s protecting himself and anyone else around him from what he sees as a potential threat. And finally, when he inhales deeply, almost a sigh but not quite, he has a lot on his mind that he needs to let out, and God help the person who’s there to listen to him, because it’s almost always some heavy shit.

  “I don’t want to open my letters, Nic,” he admits. “Everyone’s making moves to better themselves. I look at Nikky and Sarah, and I’m happy that they were able to overcome a teen pregnancy and all that they’ve been through. Michele’s got an instant family waiting for her in Big Springs. I can understand why you’re leaving. After what Kyle did to you, I don’t think anyone can blame you for wanting to get as far away as possible as soon as possible. And Colin…I was there last summer. I watched him fall in love with you all over again while you fell in love with his hometown. There’s no doubt in my mind that all of you are going to move on and do great things with your lives. Mich’ll get married to Hayden and adopt Skylar. You’ll marry Colin and have some dark haired, fair skinned, green eyed babies. Nikky and Sarah will have the happy ever after they deserve.” He pauses, running his hands through his hair. “But happy ever after’s not in the cards for me, Nic. You know I can’t leave Harlow, not while my dick of a dad is still breathing and while my siblings are underage and still in his custody. Harlow is as good as it gets for me. You all will have the lives you want and eventually forget about me and I’ll be stuck here forever.”

  I’m not going to lie; I’m torn apart inside at his speech. Part of me wants to hug him even tighter, and the other part of me wants to slap the shit out of him. It isn’t like him to be so down in the dumps. He’s the strong one; he’s the positive one, no matter what life throws at him. It’s almost as if the trip to Big Springs changed him completely.

  “Brody, this doesn’t even sound like you. Why are you giving up? You used to have such huge dreams,” I say. “And just because we’re all moving away doesn’t mean you can’t too! Case and Dalis will be graduating soon, so you could always change your mind about moving by then.” I pause, squeezing his shoulder. “You know we all love you. No matter where we are, none of us could ever forget you, I promise. You’re gonna come visit every summer if you don’t move, and someday when I have kids, you’re going to be their godfather. You’re important, Brody. Don’t ever forget that okay? Now come on inside and celebrate with the rest of us.”

  He sighs again, and I know that his fears are even bigger than he’s letting on. He shakes his head and balls his hands into fists.

  “I feel like I don’t fit in with ‘the rest of you’. Before last summer, I knew exactly where my place was. As kids, it was me, you, Nikky, and Mich. We were inseparable, and because of that, we were unstoppable. Then as teens, it was you and Kyle, Nikky and Sarah, and me and Michie. Then, Kyle fucked up and you met Colin—thank God, because I never, ever thought Kyle was good enough for you—and then it was you and Colin, Nikky and Sarah, and me and Michie. That was always how it was supposed to be, but I fucked up. I fucked up and she let me go, and now I feel like you guys keep me around because you feel sorry for me.” He groans. “I don’t like change, Nic. You, Nikkolas, and Michele were my constants, and now I feel like my entire world has been turned upside down, and you all are figuring out your lives without me.”

  I shake my head, taking his hand.

  “That’s not true! Ever since your mom died, you knew where your place was. Your place was taking care of Cason and Dalis. The rest of us were the ones wandering around aimlessly, and finally we’re catching up to you. We’re not figuring out our lives without you, Brody. We’re finally having to grow up and now we can relate to you. And none of us are going to ever let you go or forget you.”

  Brody stares at me, his grey eyes regarding me with a mixture of awe and disbelief. He moves to the right, shoving me lightly with a smile on his face.

  Brody moves his arm and wraps it so that it’s around my shoulders. “I hate you sometimes, you know that? When did you become the one with the excellent pep talks?”

  I laugh as I stand up, then grab his hands and pull him so that he’s standing beside me. “When I decided that being a pessimist never got anyone anywhere. Now move your ass, Brody Durham!”

  I drag him off the rocks and back toward the house, where everyone else’s still waiting.

  No one has moved from where they were when we left. They’re all still chatting and waiting for us to return. Colin greets me cheerfully and pulls me into his lap, while Brody plops back down in his seat.

  Colin kisses me on the neck, smiling down at me. “You wanna go first, or should I?”

  I jut my chin forward, gesturing toward Brody. “He goes first.”

  I meet Brody’s gaze across the table and he winks at me, picking up his envelopes and sighing. He rips the first one open, raising his eyebrow as he reads the letter. He opens the second one, then smacks both pieces of paper on the table. He makes one of his hands into a fist and brings it up to his mouth, shoving away from the table again. He stands up and walks over to the window, bracing his hands on the windowsill and clenching it tightly, his knuckles turning white.

  He gazes up at the glass, and then lowers his head, breathing heavily.

  “Brody?” I ask, worry taking over my heart. “Brody, what do they say? What do the letters say?”

  He shakes his head and grips the windowsill tighter. “Read them.”

  I get up and lean over the table, snatching his letters up and reading them.

  “’Mr. Durham: We are pleased to accept your application to the University of California at Riverside for the fall 2012-spring 2013 school year,’” I read aloud. I turn to face Colin, a wide grin spreading upon my face. “Oh, my God! He got in!” I leap out of Colin’s lap and race over to my best friend, who, in return, turns around and scoops me into his arms, spinning me in a circle. I wrap my arms around his neck and bury my face in his shoulder. “You got in! Oh my God! Congratulations!”

  He sets me down and I almost choke up at the look in his eyes. I stand on my tiptoes and give him a kiss on the cheek, leading him back toward the table. I watch, like a proud mama whose child has just gotten the honor roll, as Brody collapses into his chair and hunches forward, shoulders shaking. His head falls into his hands and I reach out, wrapping him in yet another hug.

  I beam up at Colin, whose expression matches all the emotions surging through me. Brody continues to rock with tremors beneath my hand, and I continue to comfort him as I watch him lose control for the first time in my life.

  Finally, the tremors subside, and Brody turns to meet my concerned gaze. He brings a fist up to his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose.

  “I'm good,” he says, shrugging three times in rapid succession. “I'm good.”

  I glance at him nervously for a moment, just making sure that he really is good. When he nods at me, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose yet again, I let my hand slip away from his back.

  I take my place on Colin’s lap, but not before snatching up our letters off the table. I hand them to him, giving him the honor of opening them and seeing what fate holds in store for us.

  I know no matter what’s inside these envelopes, all of us will be okay.

  “Rejection from UCR and UNC-Raleigh, and acceptance to UNC-Chapel Hill, William Peace, NC State, and Cal Poly Pomona,” Colin says, kissing me on the forehead. “We got into all three of the schools that we wanted to, pretty girl.”

  I turn around, planting a kiss on his lips, excited to share this moment with him. I snatch my letters from his hands and pull out my cell phone and turn on the front camera so that we can take a picture. I give my best smile when I snap the picture, and then I upload it to Instagram.

  @CDaniel12 and I wi
th our acceptance letters. #collegebound #seniors #babe #NC

  “Congrats Nic! Maybe we’ll be at William Peace or UNCCH together!” Mich exclaims, giving me a fist bump from across the table. “Congrats Westwick!”

  “Of course we’ll be at college together, Mich! I wouldn’t have it any other way,” I say.

  Three.

  “Nickayla,” Colin’s voice urges, nudging my shoulder. “Baby, wake up.”

  I groan, rolling over and burying my face in the pillow. He nudges me again, and I shake my head, trying to shove him off.

  “Baby, wake up.”

  I roll back over, forcing my eyes open one at a time. The sunlight bursts through the curtains and I squint to keep the light at bay. Colin’s sitting on the bed beside me, a hand on my knee and a tray of food in his lap.

  “Morning, sleeping beauty.” He grins, reaching over me and grabbing a mug of coffee from the bedside table. “Happy anniversary.”

  I take the coffee from him graciously, taking a sip and closing my eyes. “Thanks, babe. Happy anniversary.”

  Colin hands me the tray of food, then leans forward and kisses me on the forehead. My eyes roam over the tray, finding all of my favorite breakfast foods: two French toast, scrambled eggs, hash browns, sausage patties, and one large cinnamon roll. In the corner, a small glass vase adorns the tray with a single white calla lily. I pat the bed beside me, encouraging Colin to come sit beside me.

  I cut the French toast with my fork and dip it in some of the syrup, then lean forward, trying to feed it to him.

  “No, Nickayla, I can’t. This is for you.” He slowly pushes my hand away, but I shake my head.

  “I can’t eat all of this by myself. Either you help me eat it or more than half of it is gonna go to waste.” I bring the fork up to his mouth once again. “Here.”

  He takes the bite of food reluctantly, but he takes it nonetheless. He takes the fork from me and then proceeds to feed me a piece of the cinnamon roll. I moan, reveling in the taste of my favorite treat. I can tell that he didn’t make it himself—it’s clearly from Cinnabon—but it’s the thought that counts the most.