The later years
The name of that little naïve 15 year old was Nicole Morgan. After the split with Damien wick, the 19 yr old she fell in love with, and she began to get over her initial response to their brake up by slipping into a dark, deep depression, her life began to go on, though without him it may be.
She was pulled into state so very bad, that she didn’t eat or sleep anymore. A slice of toast a day if she was hungry, one hour of only once interrupted sleep if she was tired. She spent her days staring, with a blank expression, out of her window, longing to be in his arms.
She stared to date again, usually boys a little closer to her own age after that though. She never fell in love again, she came pretty close and got pretty serious with one lad, but when push came to shove, she could never allow herself to fully get over Damien and she could never allow her feelings to ever get that deep, or involved again, just so she wouldn’t have to dream of having to let go again and have to go though all of what she did, mind you at least it wouldn’t have been at quite such a young age as before.
Damian was just as bad. He never felt the way he did about Nicole with any other woman. He had constant one night stands; he would go though and use people like they were recyclables. Now that he had lost his one true love, people had lost their meaning. Companionship was dead to him, in all forms. It wasn’t until about a year later when someone he’d known for a while had suffered a trauma. His friend’s fiancé died. Watching his grieving companion fall apart was a torment to him. Seeing his friend worsen each and everyday. Eventually he plunged into an even deeper depression than to what Damien had, himself, faced. After seeing his mate in this state, Damien realised he had to go back to the world, and once again get a firm grip on reality.
Nicole lived life like everyone her age, after, of course, the initial shock at the loss of the best relationship she was to know. She finished up at school. She went on to college. She moved to America. She went on to university their. She went on, grew up and got over it. Nicole, shortly after moving, got a job in a hotel as a part time maid. She kept it up all through university for extra money, to pay for her student’s life, she kept it up afterwards, moving onto full time first obviously, as a way to maintain a pay check, for life in general. It was just for now she tried to convince herself, just until she got her dream job, or at least until something better came along. That was about 8 years ago. And she’s still working at the same hotel.
Damien, on the other hand, didn’t follow suit like a brainless, mindless sheep and not attempt to try and make something of his life. Once he snapped out of his anti-social bubble, he realised that if he was ever going to get anywhere he needed to focus and work hard to become someone. He used his degrees in TV journalism and media studies, to work his way into a profession where he would be known as scum, as a snake and as a famous reporter. He didn’t mind so much, he got paid very well, and was constantly in the spotlight, but what bothered him was that even though he had accomplished so much and had the life so many coveted, envied even, he still felt that there was something missing, like a hole in his heart. It was a few months before he realized exactly what was missing, what it was he sub-consciously craved and spent sleepless nights thinking of.
Chapter 1
Oh great! The early signs of rain are starting to show and its only morning, thought Nicole. As if everything else so far lately wasn’t bad enough. At the beginning of the week she was fired because of ‘improper conduct in the work place’. Some guy was pissing her off, so she swore at him, punched him -which evidentially had broken his nose - and gave him the finger as she told him to, ‘have a nice day’. Fired on the spot, apparently you don’t act like that in the plaza hotel. Well maybe if the same guy came in everyday for 6 months and tried it on with them, even being forceful with them when they yet again refused, then maybe it would be acceptable.
On Wednesday, she got dumped by some jerk who thinks that a working relationship consists of him forgetting everything, making no effort beyond their third date and treating her like a live-in maid. ‘I can’t do this anymore’ is the censored and polite version of that conversation.
Rain meant that it would be busy and crowded everywhere today. Nicole had many things to do today, and even less time to do it in. oh joy! She thought, isn’t life just peachy?
As she started to walk towards the subway, thinking of the wonders she calls the current state of her life, she didn’t have time to look out for the man walking the oncoming way. He hardly had time to notice either; he was too preoccupied with his phone, when your work life was revolved around making deadlines and headlines, you had to make a few compromises. Being permanently attached to his phone just happened to be one of them.
Nicole and the stranger both looked up, and as they did they made eye contact, and in that moment, they both knew they were meant to be. Yeah right! I wish, she thought. Like life is that perfect. He simply looked up with a plain expression on his face, gave her an apologetic look, made his slight excuses and kept walking.
He looked about 5’9, quite toned, even through his suit. He looked really hansom, familiar even. Best of all, he seemed like a genuine person, after that smile she knew he meant his apology sincerely. But then again, that’s probably because that little naïve 15 year old, grew up to become, a, bigger than she used to be but still quite little, naïve 23 year old. And sadly she’s not much wiser from the former.
Damian picked up the New York Times, turned it over, and read today’s headline. Another celebrity, another story and another delicious scoop of gossip he’d spoon fed to his readers. He had gotten up late this morning; he ended working late into the night putting on the ‘finishing touches’ to an article that he’ll no doubt change about five times before he’s happy with. It meant he was late for a meeting this morning and had to rush about. He hurriedly made a few necessary calls and practically ran to the office; he ended up bumping into some poor civilian.
Well not just some civilian, some woman. Actually it was some amazingly beautiful, sweet, kind and sincere woman. And yes he knew all this from a glance, an apology and a feeling of familiarity. He’d been thinking of her all morning, and he couldn’t help it, her face just kept popping up everywhere, and it was only quarter past twelve. He knew he ought to forget all about her, he knew that he would probably never see her again, and even if he did what could he do? If by some miracle she wasn’t already taken, and chances of that are slim, he thought, what would he do? Just walk up to her and say, ‘hey do you remember me? We bumped into each other and I haven’t stopped thinking about you since, want to go out sometime?’ I doubt it, he thought to himself.
