chapter sixteenNeither could explain what happened that night. Lauren had gone to bed, thoroughly confused and overwhelmed. The next morning, she went to work after a long, hot bath. When she arrived at her desk, she discovered a folded pieceof paper on her keyboard.
Lauren -
I came to catch you for lunch, but you weren't here.
If you get a break, call me at 746-2487.- Nick
Lauren smiled, refolded the note and booted up her computer. It was weird. After all that fighting and avoidance and now he wanted to do lunch? Lauren wouldn't have declined, though.
She yawned and took the stack of papers out of her inbox. There was another scrawled letter needed to be typed. Instead of that usual feeling of dread at the pit of her stomach, Lauren felt optimistic as she began to type.
Lauren's mom had a strange ritual she did every morning. She would think of all the things she would accomplish that day. she asked herself if she would have a good day or a bad one. Lauren always thought it was so stupid.
"I'm going to see Nick today," she said to herself.
Yes, today would be a good one.
--------------------- As their luck would have it, the Oceanside Carnival was back in town. After a short conversation on the phone, Nick promised to pick her up later that night and go there.
When Lauren got home, she was a bundle of nerves. She rummaged through her closet listlessly. Lauren finally brought out her favorite pair of overall jeans and her gray basketball tee and put them on. She put on her sneakers and made her way to the bathroom. Her hair was slowly falling back into their curls. She twisted back her hair casually, leaving the rest down. She took out her contacts and wore her glasses. Lauren finally put on a little make-up and sat down on the front steps of her house, waiting for Nick.
She smiled when he pulled up in her driveway. She got in the car and said, "Hey, man."
"You ready?" he asked.
"Hell yeah."
The Oceanside Carnival was not far from her house, since she lived so close to the beach. They bought two tickets from the grungy ticketbooth and entered the park.
This had to be Lauren's favorite place. The smell of sea salt and cotton candy made a weird yet inviting flashback of her visits from before. It was a familiar sight of kiddy rides and the beginnings of a blazoned sunset far behind them.
"So, where to first?" Nick asked.
"Game booths," Lauren replied. She took Nick's hand and led him over to the row of booths.
"Test your skills over here at the shooting gallery!" a cocky, seventeen-year-old attendant announced. "You there, Miss. Would you like to give it a go?"
Lauren looked at Nick and stepped up to the booth.
The attendant was a cute blonde with a killer grin. "Okay, here's the deal. Five bucks for eight shots. You knock down four cans, you win a prize."
"What if I get all eight?" she asked.
The teen raised and eyebrow and said, "I'd like to see you try it."
"If I get all eight, I get my five bucks back and the prize. Deal?"
Unable to decline to such an easy win, the attendant said, "Deal."
Lauren slapped a five dollar bill on the counter and asked Nick casually, "What prize should we get, Nicky?"
"The dog over there," Nick said.
Lauren followed his gaze and replied, "Good deal. We will have ourselves a dog."
Lauren picked up up the booth gun, aimed and knocked down the first three cans without breaking a sweat. She hit the next two and knocked dwon the last three down dramatically. The teen shook his head, muttering something. He handed Lauren the stuffed dog and her money. Lauren grinned, looped her arm with Nick's and left.
"That was pretty good. When'd you learn how to handle a rifle?" Nick asked.
"Just now," Lauren stated. She smiled and laughed.
"You were bluffing?" Nick said, astounded.
She shrugged. "A little bull shit can go a long way."
Nick laughed and slung his arm around her waist. He grinned and continued talking with her. He'd comment on a booth ever once and a while.
They roamed the park and laughed like long-lost friends. In a twisted way, they were. Lauren enjoyed hearing Nick's little jokes. She liked having his arms carelessly around her shoulders. Likewise, Nick adored hearing her laugh at his cheap jokes.
When the sun was halfway set and blazing red, Nick and Lauren made their way onto the beach, leaving the carnival behind. They walked along the shoreline, just chatting about their families, careers, whatever popped up. The two finally sat down on the sand and watched the sunset.
Lauren leaned her head against Nick's shoulder. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer.
"AJ probably is wondering where the hell I am at," Lauren claimed, "he probably left me twelve messages on my machine."
"That's AJ for you."
"Won't he be surprised when he finds out I hung out you?" She laughed. "He'll think I lost my mind or something."
"Why?"
"Because we're supposed to hate each other now. You know, cuz first there's us fighting, me moving out and not speaking to anyone for months. Next, I finally talk to people and finally we hate each other. It's the way it works for ex-couples."
"I never hated you, Lauren," Nick told her. "I might've been angry at you, but I'd never hate you."
"I hated you. I don't know why now," she mumbled.
"I do. I broke up with you and threw you out of my house. You had every right to hate me."
"God, what the hell did we even fight about in the first place?" she inquired.
"That I'm still hazy about."
"Whatever it was, is now the past, right?"
Nick looked down at her and smiled. "Right." He laid his head on the top of hers. He ran his fingers through her hair.
They watched the sun set until there was just enough to light their path back to the carnival. They made their way to the parking lot. A photographer stopped them, took their photos and handed them both one. Lauren gazed at hers on the drive back home.
Just like she had done the night before, Nick walked with Lauren to her front door.
"I had a great evening, Nick, really," Lauren said.
"I'm glad." He smiled a little and put his hands on her waist. He bent down, kissed her lips shortly. "Good night, Lauren."
"G'night," she replied softly as he left.
That was the second night she was left bemused. She fumbled for the doorknob and rather numbly, walked inside.
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chapter seventeen