Annoyed, Christine pulled her face away from Nick’s and sat up. “Yeah, I guess. We’re decent, if that’s what you’re asking!”
The door squeaked open and Brian and Katelyn stepped in. Brian laughed. “Do you realize that both of you have Chris’s pink, shimmery lipstick smeared all over your face?”
“It’s lip gloss, honey, not lipstick,” Katelyn corrected.
Nick blushed. “Gee, um, I can’t imagine how that got there,” he mumbled. He stood up and ran to the bathroom and brought a tissue for Christine.
“What have you two been up to?” Christine asked casually.
“Obviously not the same thing as you,” Brian teased. “We’ve just been talking.”
Nick and Christine both snorted. “You’re telling me that you’ve been talking for over an hour?” Christine said doubtfully.
“Of course! Some of us aren’t hormone-crazed teenagers,” Katelyn giggled.
“Hey, I’m older than you are, Kate!” Nick exclaimed. “The only hormone-crazed teenager here is my girlfriend.”
Everyone turned and looked at Christine, who smiled innocently. “Not me! I’m a little angel. Nick says so.”
Katelyn rolled her eyes. “Yeah, sure. What are we up to, now?”
“Why don’t we rent a movie for tonight and order a pizza?” Christine suggested after thinking for a moment.
“That sounds good. What kind of pizza do you girls like?” Brian asked.
Christine and Katelyn glanced at each other and smiled. “Extra cheese,” they said together.
“All right. You two go get a movie and Nick and I will call Pizza Hut,” Brian ordered.
“Wait, wait, wait. Brian, do you think it’s such a good idea to let the girls get a movie? They’ll pick out some chick flick,” Nick whined.
Batting her eyelashes flirtatiously, Christine stood up. “Nicky, do you think I’d do that to you?”
“Absolutely,” Nick replied, laughing.
“How about a romantic comedy?” Katelyn suggested.
“We rented two of those on Monday night,” Christine complained.
“Okay, how about an action movie?” Brian asked.
“Those are boring,” Katelyn replied.
“Wait, I got it! Let’s rent ‘Armageddon!’ It’s an action movie and a chick flick,” Christine exclaimed.
Everyone nodded and the girls left to get the movie, and when they returned, the pizza was waiting. They popped the movie in, and Christine snuggled up next to Nick on the floor. Brian and Katelyn curled up on the couch. Nick put his arm around his girlfriend and smiled. He was so lucky to have her. This thought echoed in his mind throughout the entire film, up to the point where both girls were bawling their eyes out.
Nick wiped a tear from Christine’s cheek. “Gosh, honey, it’s just a movie,” he whispered.
Christine rolled her eyes. “Yeah, but I’m a girl. I have to cry at stuff like this,” she said.
Brian groaned. “Girls cry at everything.”
“Hey! That’s not true!” Katelyn exclaimed, punching him playfully. She paused and laughed. “Oh, wait, we cry at happy stuff, sad stuff, and scary stuff. I guess we do cry at pretty much everything.”
It was now ten o’clock at night, and the Boys and Christine had rehearsal at eight the next morning. Brian stood up. “Well, we should probably call it a night. We all have to get up early in the morning. Do you two just want to crash here?”
“I will, if you don’t mind, Teeny,” Katelyn said, looking at her friend, then back up at Brian.
Christine raised her eyebrows. “Fatima won’t mind if I stay, will she?”
“We’ll just tell her you fell asleep during the movie and didn’t feel like going back to your room, and she won’t mind,” Nick said.
Christine shrugged. “Okay, then, I’ll crash here.”
“You want to sleep in this?” Nick asked, tossing her a pair of boxers and one of his tees.
“Sure, thanks, babe,” Christine replied. She stepped into the bathroom to change and laughed softly to herself. The bathroom certainly could use a woman’s touch. Hair products and toothpaste were squirted all over, and there were two used washcloths in the sink. Layers of clothing belonging to both Nick and Brian buried the tile. Shampoo was dumped on the floor. Goodness! She thought she was messy! As soon as she finished changing, she stepped out to interrupt a kiss between Brian and Katelyn.
“Oh, uh, hi, Chrissie!” Brian mumbled.
“Sorry, guys. Where’s Nick?” Christine inquired.
“He’s in his bedroom,” Katelyn answered. She shoved Christine toward the open door to Nick’s room.
“Gosh, someone is pushy today,” Christine teased. She snickered, knowing why Katelyn wanted to get rid of her so badly, stepped in, and closed the door.
Nick was standing by the door, wearing the same thing as she was, boxers and a tee. However, they actually fit him. He enveloped her in a hug. “Hi, angel.”
Christine buried her face in his shoulder and inhaled his sweet cologne. “Hi, Nicky.”
She felt him kiss the top of her head and looked up at him. Cautiously, he brushed a strand of hair out of her face and suddenly, unexpectedly pressed his lips to hers. He ran his fingers through her hair and finally pulled away, out of breath. “Sorry. You’re too beautiful.” Blushing, Christine looked away. “What is it, angel?”
“Nothing, it’s just that…no one has ever called me beautiful before,” she murmured sentimentally.
“I find that hard to believe,” Nick whispered. He picked her up and set her down on the bed, kissing her the whole time. As he reached down to take his shirt off, he heard a small cry, and looked up to see fear in his girlfriend’s eyes. “What’s wrong?”
“No, Nick, I don’t want to,” she said, a tear escaping her eye.
“Okay, fine,” Nick replied, kissing her on the cheek. When she continued to cry, he became more concerned. “We don’t have to do anything, babe.”
“Really? You’re not mad?” Christine sniffled.
Nick gasped, remembering what she’d been through with Jeff. “God, what has that bastard done to you?” he whispered. “No, of course I’m not mad.”
As her tears slowed down, he pulled her into his arms and turned off the light. Christine sighed happily. “I love you, Nick.”
“I love you, too, angel,” he murmured just before he fell asleep.