Time Warp: What the Future Holds (Nick)

[Kadence McAvoy]

Set Fall of 2007

New school year, new friends, new drama. It was almost two years now that Hayden had died. Two very long years that had been hell to go through thus far, but she was still pushing through. Doc Neville helped; he helped her to remember the good things about her brother, the way he had been before joining the military. He often made things bearable for a while even though she never wanted to admit to it. She didn't need anyone to help her because she was going to do it all on her own. People came and went, she just had to accept that harsh reality and she did. She couldn't keep dwelling on Hayden's death if she wanted to have some fun.

Kadence was sitting out at the football/soccer field, watching the boys practice while all of her friends hooted and hollered for them. A few of them mentioned how much they loved football pants because it made it easier for them to tell which guys had the nicest asses. That's really what they mostly seemed to talk about. That and which one they were hooking up with at the next party. She tended not to pick and choose seeing as how some of them had known her brother back when he went to Hammel and it just made things sort of awkward.

Allana sighed dramatically, "It's not even fair, you know? I mean for someone to be that damn attractive." Kadi's eyes followed hers along with the rest of her friends to the jersey numbered with a seven. Darwin was written along the back of it and she just rolled her eyes.

Nicholas Darwin was probably one of the most attractive guys she knew and he wouldn't disagree. He was funny and out-going, quite the charmer when it came to women. It was only natural seeing as how he and Hayden had known each other and actually gotten along fairly well. Kadence had talked to him on occasion, but tried not to be too obvious in the fact that she had a huge crush on him. Most of her friends made jabs at her about it, but she would just shrug it off indifferently.

Allana struck again, "Ow ow, lookin' good number seven. Work it, work it!" They all laughed and Kadence leaned back against the bleachers.

"There's one guy that will never get sick of having girls fall all over him," She said with a shake of her head and the other three girls nodded in agreement.

[Nicholas Darwin]

Yes, it was all true. Nicholas Scott Darwin was not only the star player, but he was their favorite star player. And he wasn't talking about just the ladies. It didn't help much that he was as cocky as he was handsome, or that his ego was pouring out of his ears. He lived on the soccer field. It was a wonder he didn't sleep there too seeing as much time he spent there with the guys on the team. He had a bright future ahead of him, they said. A future he had sit his mind to. Nothing was going to stop him reach his goal.

It was probably a good thing that they had audience while training, it made most of the guys go the extra mile just to impress the ladies. But Nick had all the time in the world to worry about girls later. Now he had his attention all set on the ball. That was all he cared about right now. Or so he thought.

"Ow ow, lookin' good number seven. Work it, work it!"

His head turned in the direction of the girl shouting. He shook his head and cracked a smile at them. He had seen most of them around before, but couldn't quite place their names. Except Kadence of course, but that was because he knew her brother, Hayden. She was a cutie that one, that much was for sure. She'd grow into quite the looker. ''Keep your panties on girls. Can't have any accidents happen, y'know.'', he called back and turned his attention back to the practice.

And once the team decided to take a break he jogged over followed by two of his teammates. ''Hey, Allana.'', one of them greeted and nodded towards the others, obviously completely oblivious to their names. The second just gave them a short wave and a nod. ''Ladies.'', Nick greeted with his usual charming smile. At least Nick had game. He knew and could charm anyone of these girls into bed. Or so he kept telling himself. Nick's eyes stopped at Kadence. ''How's my little princess doing?'', he said with a chuckle followed by a slick smile.

[Kadence McAvoy]

Kadence tried to ignore all of the girls gushing about the football players. Those boys didn't need any added attention, they already knew they could easily get a girl into bed with a little small talk and a smile. Most of her friends were pretty easy like that, and she had to admit she wasn't all that different. She slept around her fair share for only being sixteen and she drank, but it wasn't just because she wanted to feel like a part of the crowd, it turned out to be her coping mechanism. She wasn't exactly proud of it, but no one had to know her inner battles.

The coach called for a break and like a moth to flame, three boys, Nick included, strutted over. Allana, Bridge and Mere all started getting all flustered and fanned themselves, mentally preparing to woo these guys and stake their claims. Kadence just gave a little yawn and stood back to watch the ridiculousness of all her friends. They were rather obvious in their attempts to impress. From this distance even she could tell Allana was packing a little more padding than was really there. It was just sad.

The boys greeted the girls, only really knowing Allana and her. She watched them interact, but then was called back to attention when Nick greeted her. She rolled her eyes at his nickname and gave him a pleasant smile, "Pfft? I dunno, how is it doing all sweaty and rubbing up against the inside of your pants?" She couldn't help herself, she had gotten a lot mouthier over the summer and in turn it caused her to have a more crude sense of humor.

The other girls all laughed and she smiled wider, folding her arms across her chest.

[Nicholas Darwin]

Nick's smile didn't falter and he chuckled. He appreciated a girl who could speak up for herself. ''You're your brother's sister all right.'', he said with a softer smile. Hayden's death had been hard on them all, but he couldn't even begin to understand how it felt for her. He didn't even know how he's react if he lost Nate. The other two guys turned their attention to the other three girls and started goofing of in some lame attempt to impress them. Nick just shook his head and sat down next to Kadi.

''So, how are you holding up anyways?'', he asked and looked forward. He felt bad for not being there for her through it all. He felt as if he owed Hayden that much after everything. But practice always seemed to get in the way, and she had others she could rely on, right? They hadn't really been that close to begin with. He took off his helmet and rested it in his hand. ''He was a really great guy, y'know. We all miss him.'', he continued and rubbed the back of his neck.

He turned his head to look at her and gave her a comforting smile. He reached his hand out and brushed away a strand of her blonde hair before placing it behind her ear. ''He'd be proud of you. Don't forget that.'' He let his hand drop to her shoulder and gave it a light rub before pulling back, and looking back at the field.

[Kadence McAvoy]

His comment caused her own smile to falter and she looked down. She knew he hadn't meant for it to strike a nerve, but anything that had to do with her brother scratched open the scab that was still forming over the wound she had taken when she heard of his death. How was someone supposed to deal with the loss of someone that literally gave them everything? He'd been her best friend, her mentor, her favorite person in the whole world. It was still next to impossible for her to even think of his death.

He sat down beside her and his question had her chewing on her lip. How had she been holding up? She'd been coping, but barely. She went out to have fun because it helped her forget about the pain. How was she supposed to answer him though? What did he expect her to say? "I've been okay, just trying to get over it still. It's still sort of fresh in my mind...it's coming up on the two year mark ya know?" She took a shaky breath and nodded at his next statement. She remembered after it happened how all of the boys came to her dorm room to see how she was doing. All of the ones that liked him at least.

He turned his head to face her and she looked up at him. She smiled as he brushed a strand of her hair away from her face, but it turned to a frown at his words. "What does he have to be proud about Nick? I'm not really doing anything that great with my life right now," She said quietly.

[Nicholas Darwin]

''Yeah.'', he replied with a nod. He didn't quite know what to tell her. 'Give it time, it's going to be all right?' He didn't know that, and he couldn't promise her something like that. For all he knew the pain would always be there and she'd never be able to recover. ''Honestly. I don't think you ever will. Get over it I mean. At one point... I think you just learn to live with the pain.'' Oh yeah, good going Nick. That'll cheer her right up!

He let out a chuckle and shook his head. ''You're sixteen. You have your entire life to figure out what you wanna do. He'd be proud because you're here. You're not sitting alone in your room. He'd be proud because you're an amazing person.'' He bumped her shoulder playfully. ''Besides, the guys can't stop talking about how beautiful you've grown.'' I was totally not the one starting that. Nope. He stood up and reached his hand out for her. ''Here, let me show you something.''

He lead her out on the field to all their training equipment. He pulled up one of her brother's old shirts and threw it at her. He placed all the other equipment she needed on the ground in front of her with a smile. ''Let's get some of that aggression out of your system.'' He nodded towards the equipment and chuckled. ''Chop, chop. We ain't got all day.''

[Kadence McAvoy]

Kadence didn’t expect him to take pity on her or even try to cheer her up. It wasn’t anything she could have helped, Hayden did what Hayden wanted to do. He was stubborn like that and it wouldn’t have matter how hard she tried talking him out of joining the military, he would have done it anyway. She knew that as well as anyone and when he chose to be honest with her, she really respected him for it. In turn she nodded, “I know, you’re right. It’s just hard now I guess since it feels like it just happened.” She could only hope that in ten years from now she could be over the initial pain of it all.

“At sixteen, Hayden was out there living his life, already set on what he wanted from it. I mean he had a plan already set in motion even for when he got out of the Marines. How am I supposed to believe that he’d be proud of his little sister when I’m going out partying every night and still have no clue what the hell I’m doing after I graduate?” It just didn’t really seem to make sense to her. Hayden wanted what was best and she knew this wasn’t anything close to what he expected from her. He nudged her shoulder and she smiled faintly. “Okay, now I know you’re full of it.” He offered his hand and she took it, no questions asked.

He led her onto the field and she followed with a confused expression on her face. They stopped at the training equipment and he tossed her brother’s twenty-three shirt at her. Kadi gripped it and held it close to her chest. She didn’t care if it was gross and sweaty or if someone bothered to wash it. It was Hayden. Her hand traveled up to his dog tags and she bit her lip. “You’re kidding me right? You really don’t want to start something you can’t finish. Don’t you know I learned from the best?” She smirked.

[Nicholas Darwin]

Nick shook his head and chuckled. ''At sixteen your brother was lying half-naked in the middle of my livingroom in a pool of his own puke.'' Maybe not the best image he could've given Hayden's baby sister, but hey, he was trying. ''Even if you do figure it out, life can always take you elsewhere. That's the whole point, you can't plan everything. And even when you do, life doesn't always agree with you.'' The only reason Nick had anything planned was because he had been lucky enough to have a power that automaticly gave him a step ahead of the rest when it came to sports. Without it, he'd be nothing.

He looked at her with a grin on his lips. ''I was counting on it.'' He pulled the sled over and nodded towards it. ''All right, beanstalk. Show me what you got.'' He took a step back and smiled at her with that annoyingly cocky smile of his. ''Unless you're too scared of course.'' Nick had found pushing and pulling on the sled was a great way to relieve stress and aggression. Maybe it could work for her too?

[Kadence McAvoy]

Oh yeah, Kadence knew about her brother's partying days. She had overheard her parents talking to him time and time again about how he needed to focus on things other than just parties. But even they knew that Hayden had his future lined up and ready. He had always been a planner and it always turned out to work for him. She shook her head, "I get that, Nick, but everyone at my age is at least planning on what they are going to do after they get out of here. I have no idea what path I'm supposed to be on." And she especially didn't know the path that she would soon go down and regret years later.

She looked up at him and back at the blocking sled with an arched eyebrow. Okay, she may have trained with Hayden, but it was not with this type of equipment. "You realize that this is going to look extremely odd seeing as how I'm barely even as tall as this thing and weight like a hundred pounds right? I mean, I'll do it better than any one of your pansy asses, but it'll look weird." She bit her lip and cracked her neck. Oh, but she had a better idea.

Seeing as how he was about the same height Hayden had been around the time he died, she knew exactly where to hit him. She squared her body off like she was going for the blocking sled, but when she went running, it was in his direction and she tackled his ass to the ground. Like Hayden always said, even the little guys can take down the big boys. It all depended on where ya hit 'em. She pinned Nick down and smirked, "Told you I was trained by the best."

[Nicholas Darwin]

He looked down at her with a smile. ''Well, maybe you just need a little longer to figure it out. Stop worrying so much about what your parents will think, and figure out about life in your own pace. Things like that shouldn't be rushed.'' He didn't doubt she'd end up being happy about her life, even if it'd take years and a heartbreak. She'd probably end up marrying someone really great too. He didn't doubt it for a second. (Cough, cough.)

He looked from the tiny girl to the sled and back again with a shrug. ''So what?'' He had seen smaller people do crazier things, just like the one he was about to see.

He didn't expected her to tackle him down, not that he minded or anything. He just laughed as she pinned him down. ''If you wanted to be on top this bad, all you could'a done was ask.'', he said with a grin. Well aware that all of his teammates and probably the girls were watching them. Nick wasn't really one of those guys who felt embarrassed by being beaten by a girl, whatever it was about. Especially not someone this cute.

[Kadence McAvoy]

She pursed her lips, “I dunno. I mean my parents are kinda pissed at me lately. They’re not a huge fan of all the piercings and drinking.” Or her friends. They had no problem with the popular bunch that Hayden had spent time around (even if they were just as bad), but the crowd Kadence was drifting into just didn’t seem like a good one to them. Least of all Llana and the other two that followed her around like puppies. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and frowned. The last thing she had wanted was to disappoint them, but that seemed like all she had been doing. Even if they didn’t always say it.

“So what? Oh fine,” She said with a huff. It was a good thing she was quick to think on her feet, otherwise he would have expected her to go and she’d still be thinking of a way to not go through with it.

She had to admit though, this was definitely funnier. Kadi smirked down at him and leaned down to kiss his cheek, “That would make me out to be easy and you know I’m not.” She stood up and offered him her hand, noticing everyone watching them. Her eyes drifted towards where Allana, Bridge and Mere were and she could see them smirking and giggling, sending her a wink. Ha, they actually thought she had a sporting chance to end up with someone like him. That was kind of funny.

[Nicholas Darwin]

He didn't take her hand. Instead he jumped back up and grabbed her by the waist and hoisted her up over his shoulder. ''Didn't your mother ever teach you not to poke the beast?'' He walked over to her friends, still with the young girl on his shoulder. ''Training's over folks. Gotta teach the beanstalk how to live a little.'' He nodded towards the guys on his team and then towards Kadi's friends. ''Ladies.'' And then he walked out of the field and towards the school.

By the time they reached the courtyard he put her back down and grinned at her. ''Go get changed, I'm taking you to a real party, and not one of those pillow fighting ones you girls do.'' He ruffled her hair and put his arm around her shoulder. ''Meet you back here in fifteen? Unless you wanna join me in the shower.'', he teased. Of course he wouldn't lay a hand on his late friend's baby sister. Even if she was as cute as this one was. But he had to admit, trying to avoid the flirting was hard. Really hard. He let his arm drop from his shoulder and walked towards the entrance of the school. ''Don't miss me too much!''

[Kadence McAvoy]

Kadence squeaked as she was tossed over his shoulder and she just huffed. "Nick, put me down. Nick. C'mon. You had your fun, put me down. Nickkk," She eventually gave up on him and let him carry her around. He headed towards their friends and all of hers were laughing like crazy and gave her a little wave. She wanted to knock some sense into them. There was just no way it was even remotely possible that Nick would ever have a thing for her. They could get that thought right out of their minds.

From there he headed into the courtyard and set her down. She put her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes at him. She couldn't keep it up for long though. Kadence tried ignoring his arm around her shoulder and his close proximity. God, did he smell good though. "Okay, okay. I'll go get changed, but be warned, I've got a high alcohol tolerance so I could totally drink you under the table." Without even puking. That was one thing she had on Hayden. "And as tempting as that is, I'll just have to go to my own bathroom in my own shower and think about it instead." She turned to the dorm wing and cast a glance over her shoulder to smile at him as she went to her room.

It didn't take long for her to get all cute and public-ready. In fact, she was pleased with her appearance. With the right amount of lip gloss and a cute pair of skinnies, well she was set and ready to party. She headed out to the courtyard, still trying to keep the smile off of her face. He was one of Hayden's friends, there was just no way anything would happen between them.

[Nicholas Darwin]

He had to admit, the thought of kissing her had crossed his mind more than once. And it didn't take him long to take a shower and put on a white tank top and jeans. After making sure his hair and everything looked okay, he was well on his way back to the courtyard. Even if he couldn't get down on this one, didn't mean he couldn't find someone else. He greeted her as he arrived at their meeting place. He tried not to stare too much, but she was looking all sorts of pretty. He had to force himself to look somewhere else and the only way he could think of was down. ''You ready?'', he asked and kicked a rock.

The walk to the party location wasn't exactly long. It took them about five minutes of awkward silence to get there, even if those five minutes seemed like hours in Nick's head. Once inside he rubbed his neck. The party had obviously been going for quite some time, seeing as there were already half naked girls and boys alike strutting around. ''Sorry, kind of hard finding a PG13 party these days.'', he said with a chuckle and put his arm back around her shoulder. ''Here, let's get something to drink, yeah?''

[Kadence McAvoy]

Kadence nodded and followed him to wherever this party was being held. It was sort of interesting how Hammel could manage to have college-like parties at a time like this. The teachers were a bit more lenient she guessed and as long as no one did anything too stupid, well, it was all in good fun. She'd been to her fair share of parties that got broken up by a security guard on the night watch for the campus, she just hoped this one wouldn't be a bust because she needed something to take her mind off of him.

They entered the party room and she just rolled her eyes at his comment. This was nothing she hadn't seen before and it really didn't even begin to bother her. What distracted her from everything was his arm around her shoulder. It wasn't a problem or anything, she just couldn't focus on much else other than the fact that he was very much there. She nodded, "Yes please. I need as much as I can possess in a short amount of time." It was funny seeing as how she fit so well in the bar scene. What a fitting job that would be.