Getting The Truth

Three months earlier, in the city of Dartwin, outside a little dive bar named Ice Climber, Devin and his band White Glass had just finished their set, and the teenager so desperately needed to pull Nicole out the back for a minute. The soft glow of streetlights illuminated the quiet alley, casting long, stretching shadows on the cobblestone pavement. Nikki stood there, her heart pounding, uncertainty swirling within her. Devin's voice was steady, his eyes sincere as he looked at her, waiting for her response.

"You know, I do have some standards, Dev. I'm not an actual back alley whore, asshole." Nicole playfully told the teen, swaying back and forth, wondering what he had in mind for her this time,

"Nikki," he began, his tone gentle yet resolute, "I've been doing some thinking, and I want to try something different."

Nikki's gaze flickered, caught between the safety of familiar patterns and the allure of something more. She knew all too well the dance they had been in - the push and pull, the uncertainty that kept them at arm's length. "There isn't much we haven't done, Devin. But you know I'm game for anything," Nicole deflected with playful flirtations,

"You know that's not what I'm talking about." Nicole's smile started to recede slowly, "I was talking this over for so long with Winter and Daniel for a few weeks now, and I know it's the right call...finally..." Devin's hand reached out, fingers gently grazing hers. "I understand if you're scared," he said, his voice tender. "But I want you to know that I'm willing to take this step with you. To be there for you."

A surge of emotions coursed through Nikki. The weight of her own hesitations felt heavy, but she looked into Devin's eyes, seeing a sincerity that touched her. This wasn't anything natural for Nicole, and it certainly wasn't for Devin either. They didn't do this; they weren't "normal." They weren't a couple. They were friends, hook-up buddies, nothing more. But the more she looked into his eyes, the more Nicole could only feel this pull, this pushing reminder that Devin was it...he had to do this because he was who she was supposed to be with. It only made sense, even if her heart and entire body had slipped into a panic. Could she let herself trust this, let herself believe that maybe, just maybe, they could find something more?

Taking a deep breath, Nikki nodded slowly. "Okay," she whispered, her voice barely audible in the quiet night. "Let's give it a try." The acceptance came out on its own; Nicole nearly did a double take, half expecting to catch sight of another girl who had just said the words for her,

Devin's face lit up with a soft, genuine smile, and he gently pulled her into a warm embrace. At that moment, the alley seemed to shrink, enclosing them in a bubble of possibility and hope. "You're not going to regret this, Nikki, these last few years? It was building to this, I just...I'm sorry I made you wait so long, but I'm ready."

"Me...me too." Nicole lifted her arms, shutting her eyes as she pulled Devin in closer to her. As they stood there, wrapped in each other's arms, Nikki felt a flicker of something she hadn't allowed herself to feel in a long time - a glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe, this time could be different.

Kenny felt a blast of warm air instantly overcome him, which was a bit of a welcome relief from the cold air swirling around the rest of the lodge. Kenny nearly sputtered out words of disbelief as he pushed open the large wooden doors to his room. He stepped in and stopped inside, spinning around and doing nothing but marveling at the large, impressive room. The bed wasn't a king, instead only a queen as promised, but Kenny couldn't care less. Three large, well-made oak dressers dotted the walls, and a computer and desk set up in the corner. A small thirty-inch TV was mounted on the wall across from the bed with a couch and easy chair positioned around it, and Kenny noted the door leading to the attached bathroom as well. "Jesus...and this isn't even the best room?" Kenny said under his breath while moving inside, dropping his bag on the edge of the bed.

As Kenny unzipped his bag, he heard the sound of thumping coming from behind him. He turned back and, after a moment, saw Nicole carrying two large bags with a small one being held by her teeth and a thickly stuffed backpack, "Oh shit, Nikki, you need some help?"

"If you're offering," Nicole meekly replied, muffled from the bag being held by her teeth,

Kenny let out a soft chuckle and headed over, taking the bag from Nicole's mouth along with two others from her hands, "Don't, uh, really travel light, huh?" The teen lightly joked, though Nicole didn't reply, only silently following him with her head hanging down. Kenny cleared his throat and put down Nicole's bags, "Well, I figured I could take that small dresser over there, and you could take the two larger ones; I don't have nearly as much, so no worries there,"

The redhead tossed down her largest bags with an unceremonious thump, "Thanks, Kenny," Nicole mumbled as she plopped herself down on the bed,

Kenny awkwardly nodded back, unsure of what he should be doing in this scenario. He and Nicole were friends, sure, but he never found himself needing to have a serious heart-to-heart with her before. Not to mention that Nicole was always a fun-loving girl who was never put down; the fact that she was upset almost set Kenny on edge. Asking her about it could easily be pushing into territory he wasn't wanted, but acting as if nothing was wrong at all would be rude and cold; he was damned no matter what he did, and he didn't even know which one was the "right" choice. Without any real idea to follow here, Kenny merely began to unpack, quickly filling up his dresser with his clothes and small personal effects while Nicole continued to sulk on the bed behind him.

The silence was deafening, and as Kenny finished, shutting the top drawer, he let out a small sigh and turned back to Nicole, rubbing the back of his neck nervously, "Uh, Nikki...I know you and I aren't exactly close like this, but if you and Devin are -- well, if you two -- uh, if you need to talk about anything, I'm here, you know?" Kenny offered through long, unsure pauses,

Nicole looked up at Kenny with a furrowed brow, "What do you mean, we're close...and who the hell said anything happened anyway?"

Kenny gulped, almost immediately regretting opening his mouth, but he pushed on, "Well, you're sharing a room with me instead of him; obviously, something's not right," He quickly replied without thinking,

Nicole continued to glare back at Kenny, and the teen was nearly about to back away from the girl when he suddenly noticed her lower lip tremble. Nicole's eyes grew wet, and she quickly looked away from Kenny, roughly wiping her eyes with her palms, "This is so fucking dumb,"

Tears were something Kenny didn't even know Nicole could make; it was damn near unnatural for a girl like her, "What?" Kenny asked back in disbelief while quickly moving to Nicole's side, "Nikki, what's wrong? Talk to me, tell me what's happening?"

"Nothing!" Nicole barked back, causing Kenny to slightly flinch, never having heard Nicole yell before either, "Just forget it, you can go hang out with Avery and Mindy; I'm fine!"

Now, no matter what was going to happen to him for this, Kenny knew one thing in his gut: he couldn't just walk away. Not when his friend was like this. "Nicole, you're crying..." Kenny replied as he easily sat down next to the girl, "Let me try and help you, please?" The brown-haired teen urged as he gently placed a hand on the redhead's upper back, "You don't have to tell me anything, but -- I don't know, yell, cry, just sit with me in silence, whatever will help. I'm here; you know that I'm your friend. You can trust me."

Nicole's body tensed for a moment before Kenny heard a sudden mixture of sniffles and broken breaths, "So fucking easy for you to say that isn't it?" Kenny's brow slightly raised, "Fuck...god damn it, Ken...Devin, he -- That fuck cheated on me!" The girl finally **** herself to say before hanging her head low as her body continued to shiver,

"What? I -- Huh?" Kenny was dumbfounded; he wasn't close with Devin by any means, but he thought he knew him better than this. Cheating on Nicole a couple of months into their real relationship? "And you're one hundred percent on this?" He asked only for Nicole to yank out her phone, and with a few quick taps, she pulled up a video, hit play, and passed it over to the teen. In the video, a clearly drunk Devin was seen following a girl into a bedroom; without a doubt, it was Claire Thomas, one of the loosest girls in school who always loved a good time at a party. It only took a few seconds after that for Kenny to realize what he was seeing, and he shut the video off, "Oh Jesus Christ, Nikki..." Kenny sighed in disappointment,

"I remember that party; it was only a few weeks ago," Nicole spat out, "While I was outside talking and hanging out, he was hooking up with that fucking skank!"

"Who sent you this? Why did it take weeks for them to let you know?" Kenny frowned,

"Gwen," Nicole answered, "The video was being passed around, some big fucking joke for everyone else. She was afraid to show it to me, but she sent it today because she knew I was taking this trip with him and didn't want me "living a lie" whatever the fuck she means by that," Nicole explained, almost seething with anger, "I know she was really just feeling guilty because she was too chicken shit to tell me sooner,"

"Fuck...Nikki, god. This whole situation just dropped into your lap twenty minutes ago?" Nicole weakly nodded as a few sniffles started to return, "I'm sorry, Nicole, I don't even know what else to say,"

"Damn it!" Nicole suddenly wailed as she turned and slammed herself against his chest, wrapping her arms around him in a squeezing embrace. "K-Kenny..." Kenny's eyes drooped as he heard the girl fully give into her sadness and cry harder than he ever thought possible. It only took a few moments of this before Kenny moved his arms around Nicole's back and held her, letting his friend cry out everything she needed to.