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Melissa looked down at the simple silver bracelet she clasped lightly in her fingers, her gaze tracing the curved letters that formed her name. Then she flipped it over and read the engraving on the back: Mel and Nick . . . best friends forever. Swallowing hard and fighting back the tears, she raised her gaze to the window and curled herself into a tighter ball in the chair she was in. Outside, a cold autumn rain pelted the ground and splattered onto the glass.
"Friends forever . . ." she whispered. "Can't you see I love you?" She placed the birthday present on the window sill and stood up, pulling the open front of her cardigan sweater closed and walked to the small kitchen of her apartment. She went through the cabinets and found only a box of Macaroni and Cheese, making a mental note to go shopping before she started to make the cheesy treat. All the while, her mind wandered from the food she was preparing to the man who considered her only his friend.
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"Hey there, Melly Belly full of jelly!" came the familiar voice, it's solid sound filling the room. As usual, Nick was full of energy as he bound into the room like a galloping horse, hooting and hollering as he grabbed Melissa around the waist and swung her around in a circle. "How's man's best friend?" "I'm not a dog, Nick," she replied as she returned to the work table he had pulled her away from. She picked up the shining silk, it's scarlet tone illuminated by the soft lighting as she began to stitch. "What's up, Mel? You don't seem yourself today . . . " "Who else would I be?" she asked cooly with a mere lift of her eyebrow before she walked across the room to a gathering of boxes.
She surveyed their contents before delving her hands inside of one, pushing bolts of fabric out of her way before she pulled one out that was covered with the same color silk she had been working with. After laying the fabric on her work table, she arranged the bodice of the gown she was sewing onto seamstress manequin, pinning the fastenings closed before she spread the silk out and began to arrange some paper pieces onto it. "Well, I was hoping you'd be the same girl who's m'buddy . . . I was wondering if you wanted to go to a b-ball game . . . whadda ya thank?" He flashed a grin and slid two tickets from his pocket. Instead of giggles or a smile as he expected, Melissa pushed past him and ran from the room as if he had just slapped her.
What the hell . . .? Nick thought before sprinting after her. The seamstry business she ran was located in an old warehouse that once had been divided into various stock rooms connected by dark hallways that twisted around in a maze that was hard to follow if you didn't know where you were going. Nick followed her down one hallway before she darted down another and turned a corner. "Mel! What did I do wrong?!" he shouted after her, still running in fear of losing her trail. "Just go away!" Her voice echoed around him as he continued the chase. Then a scream filled the air as the thud of her body hitting the floor reached Nick's ears.
He turned a bend and found her on the concrete floor, her left leg bent oddly from her fall as she struggled to stand. Nick knelt beside her, his hands moving to help her but she pushed them away. With tears streaming down her cheeks she growled, "I hate you, Nick." She turned her face so he couldn't see the pain and emotions creeping into her deep green eyes. She tried to ignore the warmth surrounding her as his arms closed around her shoulders. "Mel..." he whispered sadly, his breath hot against the sensitive skin of her neck and cheek. "I HATE YOU, DAMN IT!" she screamed, pushing at his chest. But his grip tightened, keeping her pressed against him. "I hate you!" "Why...?" "Because...because..." The sobs were overtaking her now.
"Because...no matter how hard I try...no matter how mad you make me...I-I can't stop loving you...but you...I'm...just your friend..." The words were broken by the heart wrenching sobs and weak from the tears streaming down her cheeks. Her breath was labored through her swollen throat and shaky as small hiccups broke into the choppy sentences. But they were the sweetest, most endearing words he had ever heard. He closed his eyes - afraid of crying himself - as he held her tighter. He presed a kiss to the side of her head, her auburn hair soft against his lips. "I love you too, Mel. . . I just never thought you felt the same . . . I thought you wanted a guy who could take care of you and be . . . sophisticated and stuff. I didn't think you'd want someone like me . . ." "Why not? You're caring . . . and sweet . . . and funny . . . and . . ." his fingers cut off the rest of her sentence before he slid one arm under her knees and braced her back with the other. As if she were a child's doll, he lifted her with ease and carried her back through the warehouse. "I want to get your leg checked . . . you might've hurt yourself when you fell . . ."
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Hopping along on her crutches, Melissa followed Nick down the sidewalk, the whole time asking, "What is this surprise?! Tell me, Nickers! Please?" "You'll see in a minute . . . are you sure you don't want me to carry you?" "I'm sure. I have a broken leg. . . I'm not dead. Why won't you tell me?!" They came to a corner and he stopped and turned to face her. "I want you to close your eyes . . ." he said as his hand came to her waist. She did and tilted her face up, expecting his lips to touch hers. Instead, he whispered into her ear, "Turn to the side . . ." He helped her to hop on one foot so that she was turned toward the street before he said, "Open 'em . . ." Creations of the Imagination read the large sign above the glass shop windows filled with gowns Melissa remember making. The corner shop was in the middle of the town, it's windows exposed to thousands of eyes. "Surprise . . ." he murmured into her ear as she looked in awe at the shop. "Thank you so much . . ." she whispered as she turned her face to look at him. "I love you . . ." "I love you too . . ." His mouth quickly descended to hers in a soft kiss before he helped her across the street to examine the shop.
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The End