Isabel made it to the wedding rehearsal that was two days after she had gotten stuck in traffic. She was now at the dress fitting in one of the back rooms in the church with everyone else. Kristen smiled as Isabel made a face at the woman doing the fitting; her name was Lucia and had been pretty much insulting everybody that came in her path. Kristen had fat ankles, Amanda (AJ's girlfriend) wore too much make-up, and Isabel was too fat. Isabel about slapped Lucia senseless until Kristen grabbed her arm, "No Isabel."
"She just called me FAT!"
"I know..she said I had fat ankles."
"And I wear too much make-up..whatever..ugly old ninety year old unmarried witch..," Amanda said crossing her arms in front of her.
Isabel sighed, "Kristen, she's not being nice to any of us, especially you. Why can't we just go kill her off and be done with it? No one would know and best of all: NO ONE WOULD CARE!"
Kristen laughed, "Isabel!"
"I don't care..I hope she hears me so I can for real BEAT SOME ASS!"
Amanda clamped a hand over Isabel's mouth before she could go on. Lucia stuck her head in the room, "Was there something you needed?"
"Oh no Lucia..are you almost finished with Isabel's dress?"
"Yes..it'll only be another moment, I have to finish letting out the seam."
Isabel huffed, "I am not fat."
Kristen and Amanda looked at one another before laughing.
Isabel was finally on her way back to Kevin's after the rehearsal. Kristen was meeting Kevin for dinner and invited Isabel along but she had declined; she had the need for shopping and wanted to go right at that moment.
She had found the mall, no problem, and was now looking around trying to decide which store to go in first. "They're not going to come to you, you know.," A familar voice said from behind her.
"Nick! What are you doing here?"
He held up a bag from Foot Locker, "Needed some new shoes and this is the only mall that carried the shoes I needed. Plus, had to come for wedding rehearsal..again. What are you doing here?"
"I need to shop sooo bad..wanna come with?"
He nodded, "Sure."
"Okay..now..where's American Eagle?"
"I have no clue Isabel, it's not like I live in Orlando and go to the mall 24/7."
She grabbed his arm and began to lead the way, "Fine, then we'll just find it ourselves."
Once American Eagle was found, Isabel browsed through and then dragged Nick into the Gap. "That shirt's nice.," He said pointing to one folded on a table.
She nodded, "Yeah it is..but I don't want it.."
"I thought shopping meant you bought stuff."
She smiled, "It does..the weird thing is I have money but I don't know what to spend it on.."
"Umm..okay."
"Like you have to worry about living from paycheck to paycheck."
"I do...kinda."
She laughed, "Uh huh.."
"So where do you work at?"
"I interned at a publishing business last semester."
"Did you like it?"
She nodded as they made their way out of the Gap and towards the way they hadn't gone before. "Yeah..it was cool. Plus, I love writing so it was cool to see how they did their thing."
"Is that why you're studying english? To write?"
"Yeah.."
"What do you write?"
"Anything really..stories, poetry.."
"I never knew that.."
"When I was on tour with you all I never really wrote anything too deep. I wrote in my journal thing but I stopped that once I got into college.."
"I've always loved to draw..it's like an escape..I can express the true me through drawing..although some of them are pretty weird looking."
"But you also express the true you through music and singing, right?"
He nodded as they entered a jewelry store, "Yeah..definitely."
"Do you ever wish you had done something else? Like theatre or art or anything?"
Nick was silent for a moment as he looked at some watches in a case before he turned to look at her. "You know, I never really thought about it..now that I do, not really. I mean, of course, I'd give anything to of been able to finish high school in an actual building with other students and of played basketball and then maybe be in college playing basketball or something. But, I think if I wasn't where I am now, I'd feel a void in my life."
She nodded, "Good explanation.."
He creased his eyebrows in confusion, "I mean, do you get what I'm trying to get at?"
She nodded again, "Yeah..I think so at least."
"See anything you like?"
Isabel smiled, "I see some things I like.."
"Like what? Show me."
"Ummm..I dunno..that necklace is pretty..," She said pointing to a diamond solitare necklace hanging in the window by the door.
"That's pretty simple though...kinda like you."
"I'm simple??"
He laughed almost nervously, "Came out wrong..nevermind."
"No, what'd you mean?"
"Nothing okay, just drop it.," He said almost testily.
She stopped in the middle of the mall for a second as he stormed off, what had she done now???
"Nick....Nick! Nick do not make me scream your name any louder and use your full name cause we both know what'll happen!!"
He finally stopped, "Look..I'm going to go home now and back to my little life..ok?"
She crossed her arms in front of her, "No, it's not okay. What happened back there?? One second you're fine; laughing and joking like old times, the next you're a completely different..almost mean person."
His eyes were cold and he sneered, "Maybe that's who I really am Isabel..maybe I really am mean and deceitful."
"I know you're not Nick Carter..quit playing games with everyone's heads, it's getting old. You're going to destroy yourself sooner or later and lose everything!," She said before stalking off to her car.
Nick stared after her, not really sure where his anger had come from. He watched as she unlocked her car, slammed the door getting inside and peeled out of the parking lot. He swallowed the lump in his throat that had formed and forced himself into his car and forced himself to start it.
Tears stung Isabel's eyes as she swung the car out onto the main road. Geez, he could be so infuriating sometimes! One minute he was fine and a remenant of the Old Nick that everyone wanted to see back. The next he was some new, mean Nick who chewed out everyone, who bitched about everything. Because her mind was racing; she never saw the car coming straight for the driver's side of her car. All she heard was the sound of metal on metal and all she felt was a crushing weight on her chest and legs and everywhere else it seemed.
Isabel forced her eyes opened and tried to take a deep breath. 'Wrong move..hurts..,' She thought as she tried to move even an inch.
"Don't move.," A voice from her right right.
"What..what happened?"
"A car broadsided you..you're trapped inside...does anything hurt?"
Isabel swallowed hard and forced the tears that threatened to fall back, "Everything."
The voice, a woman, was soothing and gentle as she took Isabel's hand. "I'm going to stay right here until they get you out, ok? What's your name?"
"Isabel.."
"Isabel, my name is Jenny. How old are you?"
"20.."
"Such a great age...do you live here?"
Isabel closed her eyes tightly at the sound of something tearing metal apart. "No..I'm from Kentucky..I'm down here for my friend's wedding..guess I won't be there now, huh?"
"Now don't say that Isabel, you'll be there, don't you worry."
Her eyes opened and she tried not to burst out crying, "I just had a fight with one of my best friends because he's destroying his life and I'm so scared right now..."
Jenny sighed, "Everything will work out, you'll see Isabel."
"I..I..just want to wake up from this nightmare."
"You will.."
Isabel winced visibly as metal crushed into her once again. Jenny pulled her hand away from Isabel to yell something at the paramedics and firemen to stop cutting the car away.
Nick jammed his fist into the car seat even harder as he got stuck in traffic. "Damn tourists, learn how to drive!!!"
What he didn't know was that the car wreck had involved Isabel, of course he couldn't of known. He finally got past the wreck and like everyone else, was looking out the window. That was when he caught sight of the license plate. '03T-122...that's Kev's 4-Runner..but Isabel..was..driving..it..'
Nick parked somewhere he could and hopped out of the car and ran in what seemed like slow motion to the crash site. A police officer tried to hold him back but he brushed past. "ISABEL!"
Isabel opened her eyes at the sound of the voice, "Nick??"
"Who Isabel?," Jenny asked.
"Nick..that's Nick..."
"Hold on just a second Isabel..you hold on.."
"Ok.."
A second later, Nick appeared on her left. "Shit Isabel..what happened?"
"Shut up Nick.."
"Why isn't she out yet??"
Jenny motioned for him to approach her, "They've been trying but her car is so smashed in that everytime they cut, it hurts her."
"Is she okay?"
"We're not sure on what extent her injuries are right now.."
"But she'll be okay, right?"
"She's very alert right now..."
"But later?"
"Just, go to her..I'm going to find out what's going on."
He nodded and went back to the car. Isabel locked eyes with him, "They can't get me out can they?"
"Not yet, you have to make things so difficult, don't you?"
"Always. Nick..about earlier?"
"Don't worry about it.."
"But-"
He put a finger on her lips and smiled a little, "Don't worry about it Isabel. Let's just worry about getting you out of here and finding out what kind of damage you did to yourself..ok?"
"Ok.."
"What hurts?"
"Everything..my chest..my arms..I think my hair hurts.."
"Well what a tragedy...your hair is so pretty.."
"Funny.."
"Thought so...Isabel..I feel so responsible..if I hadn't blown up.."
"It's okay Nick..I think you're making up for it now."
"Yeah.."
"Just..don't leave..ok?"
"I won't.."
"Promise?"
He nodded and kissed her bruised fingers gently, "I promise Isabel."
She smiled, "Least I can feel my fingers.."
"Are you cold or anything?"
"No...I just want to go home.."
"I know you do.."
A tear slid down her face, "I want to go home and be in my own nice, warm bed and wake up from this! I want out!!"
"It's going to be okay Isabel...ok? Just try to stay calm..please.."
"Great..I'll just ruin another thing.."
"What?"
"Kevin and Kristen's wedding..it's the day after tomorrow..God..he's going to freak.."
"No he won't..he'll be worried but everything will be fine..you know how he worries.."
She tightened the grip on his hand as the firemen began to work on extracting her from the wreckage. He held her hand tightly as she began to cry; he was always a sucker for girls who cried. He fought not to cry himself.
Once they finally got her out of the car, the paramedics loaded her onto a stretcher and began to take her vitals and poke and prode at her. But Isabel still hadn't let go of Nick's hand. "We're going to take her in the ambulance Nick, you can come with us."
"Is she stable enough to be moved?"
Jenny nodded, "Yes, she's actually in alot better shape than we had anticipated.."
He nodded, "Okay..I'll come.."
Three hours later, Nick was still in the waiting room. He had called Kevin to let him know and him and Kristen were on their way. He sighed and looked towards the double doors that she had been taken through earlier. He hadn't heard any news...he wasn't family. He groaned and put his head in his hands; he hated to wait for anything. This was just awful. He felt his cell phone vibrate and flipped it on, "Hello?"
"Nicky baby, where are you? We were supposed to go out like two hours ago."
"Kelse..not now..ok? I'm not even in Tampa?"
"Where are you then?," She asked as if she was the most important thing in the world and everything else would have to wait.
"I'm at the hospital waiting to hear anything about Isabel; there was a big wreck and she was hurt.."
"Oh..well, when will you be home?"
Nick rubbed his face tiredly and suddenly felt like throwing the phone against the wall, "I don't know Kelsey..I'll be home when I find out she's going to be fine."
"But you promised we'd go out!"
"Oh don't whine Kelse, it's not attractive. And I promised Isabel I wouldn't leave her."
"What does she have that I don't Nicky??," She said pouting.
"Everything Kelsey.," He said before hanging up.
Nick expected her to call back; but she didn't. That somehow made him feel better.
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