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“Brian I need to do this please,” Nick pleaded with his friend in the car.
“I really don’t think it’s healthy for you though. You’ve spent so many years trying to get over her death Nick.”
“I won’t stay too long, I don’t think I’ll be able to anyway.” Brian pulled the car over into the grass and looked at Nick.
“Do you want me to come with you?”
“It’s okay I’ll be alright. I’ll just be ten minutes.” Nick got out of the car, glanced back at Brian and Brian nodded his head. Nick began to follow the grown over path that lead into the woods. He crossed an old wooden bridge and went down a small hill. It was as if he still did this every day, and his feet brought him closer to where him and Taya were supposed to meet up. His heart stopped when he saw a woman standing at the edge of the water.
“T-Taya?” he asked out loud. The woman was startled, turned around quickly and slipped on the grass. She cried out and Nick lunged to get her, grabbing her arm he managed to hold onto her before she slid down any further. “Hold on, I’ve got you!” The woman looked over shoulder to the raging water and Nick pulled her up. She fell on top of his chest, his arms wrapped around her waist.
They were both breathing hard and Nick looked into the emerald green eyes he had longed to see for the past seven years.
“Hi, Nick, she whispered.” Nick was speechless and he searched her face.
“You’re not Taya.”
“I saw you yesterday and assumed you’d be stopping here sometime today.”
“Brooke,” he whispered. Brooke was a year older than Taya, Nick’s age. Brooke pulled Nick in for a hug and he hesitated before hugging back.
“I thought you were her yesterday,” Nick pulled away and looked down at the water.
“I know Nick. But she’s gone,” her voice was soft. “It’s been a long time Nick.”
“Seven years.”
“I tried to keep in touch with you after you left ya know.”
“I know, I just couldn’t face you or your family. Your mother held so much against me.”
“It wasn’t your fault. She was probably dancing around and slipped.”
“But she was a great swimmer—” Nick’s voice trailed off.
“She hit her head when she fell Nick, she cracked her skull.”
“But how—”
“You didn’t know?”
“Know what?”
“They found her body a month after the service.” Nick felt to his stomach and he looked up to the sky.
“Was she in pain when she—”
“She had no idea they said. It was as though she went to sleep.” Nick fell to his knees, sucked in a deep breath and he wasn’t able to keep the tears in any longer. “I’m so sorry you didn’t know, I tried to get a hold of you. They said you would call back, you didn’t.” Brooke knelt next to him and put her arm around him.
“I just always had some bit of hope ya know? That she was alive and that I’d have my best friend back.”
“But you know now and she’s in a better place looking down on you. I guarantee you she’s with you every day Nick. She loved you so much. I swear you two were going to get married.”
“I loved her, I never got to say good-bye.”
“You don’t have to say good-bye though Nick. She’s with you, right here.” Brooke put a hand over Nick’s heart. “And I know she’s proud at you for the man you’ve become with your band and all.
“You know the band?”
“Nick you were like my brother too, of course I had to keep my eye on you, for Taya’s sake.” Nick smiled at her.
“What are you doing today?”
“Well, I have today off from the hospital. I was planning on just hanging out here all day until showed. Thankfully you came earlier than later.”
“Come back to the beach house, the guys and I are staying at. I want us to catch up and oh crap Brian is waiting for me. I told him I’d be back in ten, it’s been—”
“Twenty,” Brian’s voice broke Nick’s. “It’s alright, I came to check on you and saw you were with someone.”
“Bri, this is Brooke…Taya’s sister.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m sorry for your loss,” Brian shook her hand.
“Thank you.”
“This is the woman you saw yesterday Nick that you thought was her?” Nick nodded his head.
“We were only a year apart,” Brooke told Brian.
“So, what do you say come back to the beach house?” Nick asked.
“I’d love to.”
“Nick why don’t you ride with her and you two can meet me there. I’m going to make sure A.J. and Howie are awake and well dressed. See you soon,” Brian smiled.
“You ready?” Brooke asked.
“Just one minute,” Nick went over to a bush that had wild flowers on it. He picked a purple one, kissed it and put it into the water. “I miss you and I’ll see you again someday,” he whispered and the two went to Brooke’s car.

I've tried so hard to tell myself that you're gone
But though you're still with me
I've been alone all along –Evanescence, ‘My Immortal’
~*~*~*~
“And so my parents separated about a year after the accident. They just couldn’t stop fighting and blaming,” Brooke told Nick taking a sip of her tea. She watched as Nick put his face in his hands. “Nick you have to stop doing this to yourself. It was no one’s fault; it took me a while to see this because even I blamed myself for the longest time. She had asked me to come with her to say good-bye to you, but I was too busy. I don’t even remember what I was too busy for.”
“I want you to have something,” Nick stood up, went around the corner to his room and came back out. “Give me your hand,” he told Brooke and she held out her left hand. Nick put on Taya’s bracelet; it was a charm bracelet, one charm had a heart, one had a clover, one had a diver, one had the letters BFF.
“Nick I can’t take this,” she put her fingers up to her lips as she looked at the bracelet.
“I want you to; it will help give me some closure I think. But you’ve given me a lot of closure today, thank you.”
“She never took this off unless she was diving or in the pool. Want to know a secret? I was always jealous of your friendship with her.”
“Why’s that?” Nick asked. “You always had your little girlfriends.”
“Yeah but I don’t talk to any of those ‘friends’ now and I know if Taya were alive you two would still be just as close as you were then. You treated her well Nick, when she had a hard time at school you were always there for her.”
“She treated me like no other.” For the next couple of minutes the two were quiet in their own thoughts of Taya. “So, you’re a nurse?”
“Yes, I was going to be a doctor but I couldn’t handle the hours in the e.r. and this way I can actually care for patients.”
“That’s great to hear and the fact you still live here is amazing.”
“I love it here, I wouldn’t go anywhere else.” She smiled brightly and Nick couldn’t help but smile back. Her smile was contagious.
“It’s time!” A.J. said entering the room with a towel around his head.
“It is time,” Howie followed behind with the towel around his neck.
“It’s TIIIimE!” Brian sang with the towel around his waist.
“Time for what?” Brooke laughed.
“Swimming.”
“Yes, but Nick you need to stay in the shallow end this time,” Howie warned him.
“You want to come? You can borrow some dry clothes after.” Nick asked.
“Um, I’ll come down to the beach, I love it but I won’t go swimming.”
“Ohh yes you will,” A.J. smirked rubbing his hands together.
“A.J. you’re such a prick,” Nick told him. “That’s fine, I’ll hang out with you. I’ll bring the Frisbee.” Nick went and got his suit on, picked up the Frisbee from the counter and headed down to the beach with a towel.
“So you’re not a ghost, that’s good to hear. We thought we were going to have to send Nicky here back to the shrink.”
“Howie do NOT call me Nicky,” Nick shot at him. Taya had been the only one who was allowed to call him that.
“Back to the shrink Nick?” Brooke asked taking her sandals off and walking down the beach.
“Yeah, I just had to see someone for a while. Management made me do it, I kept having nightmares, I stopped eating; I was in rough shape.” Brooke felt the urge to wrap her arms around Nick. She managed to cope through the years of her sister’s loss but Nick had to deal with it different than her. He was supposed to be there that night and with the little hope he had of her being alive must’ve eaten him up inside.
“Nick I really want us to stay in touch,” she told him pulling away.
“I’d like that,” he smiled. “Now go long,” he pushed her away a little to throw the Frisbee. The five of them played the game for a while and Howie and Brian played with their boogie boards in the water.
“Man it’s hot,” Nick said whipping his forehead.
“Yeah it is,” Brooke agreed rolling her tank top up, revealing her flat belly. Nick saw the fairy tattoo on her hip bone. His staring was broke when the Frisbee hit him in the head.
“Hey watch it! I got a concussion yesterday!” Nick yelled.
“So sorry, forgot the pop prince is delicate!” she laughed.
“Oh, you’re going to get it!” Nick yelled and ran towards her.
“Hey check that, A.J. pointed to Brian. “Is Nicky flirting or what?”
“Leave him alone, he’s had a lot to deal with today. He deserves to be happy,” Brian told him.
“I know. They seem to fit really well though,” A.J. said.
“NICK NOT THE WATER!” Brooke yelled. Nick threw her in the water but she held onto his neck.
“See that will teach you for picking on me,” he tried to remove her arms from his neck.
“Nick, I can’t swim,” she whispered to him. Nick looked at her funny and then put an arm around her waist and brought her into shore.
“Brooke, I’m really. I didn’t know, I assumed you could because of Taya.”
“Yeah, I’ve been afraid of the water and I couldn’t even be taught how to after the accident. The water kinda freaks me out.”
“Come on, let’s go over to the guys.” Nick took her hand and pulled her over.
“We’re thinking of going out to dinner and for drinks tonight,” Howie said. “Would you like to accompany us?” he asked Brooke.
“Hmm, well, I need a change of clothes now,” she looked down at her wet attire.
“Go home change, and we’ll pick you up at eight?” Nick looked at the guys.
“Yeah, our girls will be meeting us out too,” A.J. said packing up.
“Sounds like fun,” she smiled. “Oh wait my friend Reanne and I were supposed to do something.”
“Bring her along, A.J. doesn’t really have a girl anyway.” Nick laughed.
“I do too,” A.J. pouted.
“A.J. you cannot share my fiancé for the millionth time!” Howie yelled. Everyone laughed at A.J.’s ‘hurtness’ and went back to the beach house.
Brooke wrote down directions to her house and gave them to Nick. After Nick came back inside from walking her out to her car, Howie, A.J. and Brian were at the front door with their arms cross.
“What?!” Nick asked trying to walk pass them.
“Just wanted to see if you were alright,” Brian asked first, knowing that A.J. would be asking if they had kissed good-bye if he hadn’t.
“Yeah, I actually feel like a weight has been lifted off me.” He smiled.
“So she gave you some closure?” Howie asked his friend.
“She did and I’m glad she’s hanging out with us tonight,” Nick grinned bigger.
“She’s hot, mind if I ask her out?” A.J. asked.
“Bone!” Brian elbowed him.
“We can only be friends so do what you want,” Nick shrugged his shoulders and everyone was taken back in surprise.
“What? You don’t like her like that?”
“D, how can I? She’s my dead best friend’s sister. It’s just good to be able to catch up. Besides she looks too much like Taya,” Nick’s smile was gone and headed for the kitchen and pulled out a bottle of water.
“Nick, you wouldn’t know what she would look like now man.” Brian tried to reason with him. “You felt something with Brooke didn’t you?”
“I’m going to shower,” Nick ignored what Brian said and went into his bathroom to get ready.
“He’s got that feeling,” Howie said and the guys agreed and got ready.