The first week of February: winter break has come upon the boys. All of them stormed out of the school in glee. They all met in the parking lot but someone was missing: Tomi. "Hey Nick, where's Tomi?" asked Howie.
"I guess she's sick. I think it's the flu or something," replied Nick.
"Hows bout we go pay her a visit?" asked Brian.
"Let's get her some flowers or something," added AJ.
"Alright I'm up for that," said Nick, "I think that'll make her feel better. Cool, let's do it," said Nick. The four headed toward AJ and Brian's cars when they saw Kevin standing by them.
"Hey cuz, what are you doing here?" asked Brian.
"Yeah what are you doing here?" asked AJ, because Kevin is usually at work at this time.
"I got off of work a bit early. Hey what are you guys doing tomorrow night?" asked Kevin.
"...Nothin I can think of," said Nick.
"Same here," said Brian.
"Ditto," said AJ.
"I'm not doing anything either," replied Howie.
"Alright that's good. Cause you're all coming to my apartment tomorrow night," said Kevin, "And so is Tomi, speaking of which, where is she?"
"She's sick," replied Brian.
"Oh, well make sure she's there Nick," said Kevin.
"Alright," said Nick.
"And don't worry about rides, I'll be picking you all up," said Kevin, "But I gotta go for now so I'll talk to you later alright? Don't forget about tomorrow."
"Alright see ya Kev," said Nick. With that, Kevin drove off.
"Well, let's head for Tomi's house," said AJ. And that's exactly where they were in an hour.
All four boys showed up at the door and AJ rang the doorbell. Tomi's dad answered the door. "Hun, tell our daughter that her suitors have arrived."
"Whats up Dad?" asked AJ(of course he wasn't their real father but all of them were over so much that they were like his sons).
"Well let them in. It's not like Tomi can come down," said Tomi's mother.
"Hi Moms," said the boys in unison.
"Hi boys. She's upstairs," she said with a smile.
The four marched upstairs and knocked on Tomi's door. "Come in," said Tomi from inside.
"Whats up amiga?" asked Howie.
"Hey guys, what are you doing here?" asked Tomi, a bit surprised.
"Well we came to see what Moms was cooking for dinner... We came to see how you were, duh," said Brian.
"How are you feeling?" asked Nick.
Tomi sighed. "Well, I'm feeling better, somewhat."
"Well, hope this helps a little," said Nick, handing her a rose, followed by Brian, Howie and AJ.
"Thanks guys," she said, placing them into a vase next to her.
"You better get better by tomorrow. Kevin has something planned and you're coming, even if we have to carry you out," said Brian.
Tomi smiled, "I'll do my best to get better."
"Yeah you better or we're gonna have to do somethin about it," said AJ.
"And exactly what're you gonna do Dr. McLean?" asked Tomi.
"Well, they do say laughter is the best medicine," said AJ, tickling her side.
She jumped. "AJ!!" she shouted, "Get away from me!" She hated to be tickled. She looked around and all four guys had smirks on their faces. "O..oh no you don't...get away from me," she laughed, "Don't even...MOM!!" Before she could finish, she had four guys tickling her. She started to laugh hysterically.
Downstairs, Tomi's dad asked, "Hun, do you think we need to check upstairs?"
"When the laughing stops and it turns into screams, we'll check. And besides, she has someone to save her upstairs," replied Tomi's mom.
"Right..." said Tomi's dad.
Upstairs they finally quit tickling her and Brian said, "See? You're already better."
"Oh shut up, Brian," said Tomi, still laughing.
Then from in the hall, a toy dart hit Brian on the head. "Ow," he said as he turned around. It was Tomi's little brother Ryan.
"Hey pipsqueak, what's up?" said Brian.
"I'm not a pipsqueak, Beaver," said Ryan. All eyes went toward AJ.
"Well we know who you've been around Ryan," said Tomi.
"What did I do?" said AJ.
"Oh Ryan, who's that?" asked Tomi, pointing to Nick.
"Nickyboy," answered Ryan.
"And him?" asked Tomi, pointing to Howie.
"Chipmunk Boy," replied Ryan.
"Chipmunk?" asked Howie, eyeing AJ.
"And him?" asked Tomi, pointing to AJ.
"AJ," replied Ryan.
"AJ....we're going to have a little talk later on," said Brian, patting AJ on the shoulder, the pats getting harder and harder with each one.
"Um... ouch...okay," replied AJ.
"Anyways, get better soon sweetie," said Howie, giving her a hug.
"Thanks," said Tomi.
"If you need anything, call alright?" said Nick.
"Alright, thanks you guys," said Tomi.
The boys left and headed home. Nick and AJ basically lived in the same area as Tomi while Howie lived a little further away and Brian and Kevin lived a few miles away. AJ drove Nick home and Brian drove Howie home. On the drive over to Nick's house, AJ asked, "Hey Nick, do you have any plans for now?"
"For now? No," replied Nick.
"Then come over for a bit, let's shoot a little pool," said AJ.
"Sure," said Nick. AJ's favorite game next to basketball was billiards. Probably because he's never been beaten before. They drove over to AJ's house and went downstairs to the entertainment room. AJ racked up the balls and tossed Nick a pool stick.
"Gonna bet anythin' today?" asked AJ.
"Against you? My memory might be bad but I'm not that stupid," said Nick.
"Aw, you're no fun," said AJ.
"It's not fun losing money either," said Nick, "Come on, just a simple game of pool."
"Alright, alright. You break," said AJ. Nick did as he was told and got two solids in. "Not bad Nick, you're getting better." Nick took another shot and failed to get anymore in.
"Well, the game was fun..." said Nick, putting the pool stick up.
"The game's just begun," said AJ.
"Nah, it's ended, you've won...as usual," said Nick.
"You're no fun," said AJ, starting to hit the stripes in one after another, leaving only the eight ball. AJ saw what Nick meant. He sighed, "Tell ya what, let's head down to the arcade. The first game's on me."
Nick's face lit up, "Really?!"
"Yeah," answered AJ, "Come on." The two started to head out when Nick's pager went off. "Who is it?"
"It's Misty...can I use your phone?" asked Nick.
AJ sighed again, "Yeah, you know where it is." Nick quickly went to the phone and dialed Misty's number. AJ went back to the pool table and continued to shoot in the remaining balls. By the time he had shot all of them in, Nick was off the phone and they headed down to the mall. They went into the arcade and Nick picked the racing game, which cost a $1.00 a game. "You just had to pick the most expensive game didn't you Nick?" asked AJ.
"You said the first game was on you," said Nick.
"Yeah and a promise is a promise," said AJ. The two boys sat down in the chairs and started to play the racing game. Although AJ was a excellent driver, Nick beat him. Nick was a game fanatic.
"Woohoo!" said Nick to his victory.
"You were just lucky," said AJ.
"Do you want to try it again? The loser of the next race has to pay the next game," said Nick.
"Sure, but you're paying for this one," said AJ. They raced again and AJ lost.
"Woohoo!" yelled Nick in his victory again.
AJ sighed again but laughed a little this time, "Where to now Nick?"
"Exactly how long are you two going to hog that?" asked a voice behind them. They both turned around. It was Kevin.
"Hey Kev, what's up?" asked Nick.
"Nothin much. You didn't forget about tomorrow did you?" asked Kevin.
"No, we're all going. I promise," replied Nick.
"Alright. Say Nick, how bout I race you once?" asked Kevin.
Kevin and Nick frequently had little battles to see who was the video game king. "Doh," said AJ, realizing he was going to be out another dollar.
"Don't worry AJ, I'll pay for myself this time," said Nick. This time AJ let out a sigh of relief. AJ got out of the seat and let Kevin sit. Nick and Kevin raced. Once again, Nick won.
"Man, talk about a winning streak," said AJ.
"Nah, he was just lucky," said Kevin.
"You want to see if it's just luck Kevin?" asked Nick, with a sparkle in his eye.
"Kev...I'm warning you, don't man," warned AJ.
"Alright, come on let's go Nick," said Kevin. Kevin lost again.
"There's not beating him," said AJ.
"You want to make a bet?" asked Kevin.
"Yeah I'd bet you...if I had any money left," said AJ.
"Alright, how's bout a little Mortal Kombat 4 Nick?" asked Kevin.
"That's fine with me," said Nick.
"Well at least that game's 50cents," said AJ.
So they headed to MK4 and Kevin lost again. Before Kevin could challenge Nick again, someone yelled, "Hey Kevin!" All three turned around. It was Howie, who seemed to be surprised to see Nick and AJ. "Hey what's up guys?" asked Howie, trying to hide the fact that he was surprised.
"Yo D, what's in the bags?" asked AJ, pointing out the 2 big shopping bags that Howie was lugging around.
"Nothin, we were just doing a bit of shopping," said Kevin.
"We better get goin'," said Howie.
"Alright. See ya guys tomorrow night," said Kevin.
"Later guys," said Nick.
"See ya," said Howie.
"You want to stay here a bit longer?" asked AJ.
"It's up to you, you're driving," said Nick.
"If you want to it's cool with me," said AJ.
"Okay, but I'll only make it a few more games," said Nick. And as Nick said, after a few more games, AJ dropped Nick off at his house. Meanwhile, Kevin had gotten home with one of the bags that Howie was carrying. He set it down and went down to the kitchen.
"Brian! Brian, you home?" he called out. He then looked on the counter and found a note that read:
"Kev, I went down to the park to play some ball, be back soon. Luv, Bri"
Kevin, after reading this drove down to the park. He found his cousin laying on a bench with a basketball next to him. This sort of startled him for some reason and he quickly ran up to his cousin. "Brian!" he shouted.
Brian sat up, seeing Kevin, he said, "Hey Kev."
Kevin, calm again said, "It's getting late. Let's get back home."
"Alright," said Brian, following Kevin. "Hey Kevin?" he asked.
"Yeah?" replied Kevin.
"Can we stop by the cemetery for a second?" asked Brian.
"Sure," said Kevin. As it was said earlier, Brian had lost his parents a while back and was living with Kevin, so they made frequent visits up to the cemetery. That night, Brian placed two roses on the graves. Kevin waited out in the car while Brian stood in front of the graves. After a few minutes, Brian walked up to the car and got in silently. "You alright?" asked Kevin.
Brian, still looking out the window, replied, "Yeah. Let's go."
Kevin hated seeing his cousin like this. He felt so helpless, and he never knew, when he'd see his cheerful, funny little cousin again....
Back at Nick's house, Mrs. Carter was on the phone. "Oh dear, well, I'm sure Nick could do it," she was saying.
"Do what?" asked Nick, who was coming down the stairs.
"Hold on just one second," said Nick's mom, setting the phone down for a second. "Nicky, Tomi's brother Ryan just fell down the stairs and they need to take him to the hospital. They were wondering if Tomi could come over here for you to watch her. Your father and I have to go out tonight for your sister's play," she asked.
"Sure..," said Nick, "Hey is Ryan okay?"
"They don't know yet. He's conscious though," replied Nick's mom, getting back on the phone with Tomi's mom, "Yes, bring Tomi over. Nick can watch her. Please call and let us know how Ryan is doing. Alright, bye."
A few minutes later, Tomi came over and Nick's parents left with his siblings, leaving Nick and Tomi alone. "Is the couch okay?" asked Tomi.
"Sure. You can sleep in my bed tonight if you want though. It's probably more comfortable than the couch," suggested Nick.
"No it's okay," said Tomi, sitting on the couch. Nick got some extra blankets out and put them over Tomi. "Thanks," said Tomi, adjusting the blankets. Nick sat at the other end of the couch.
"Exactly what happened to Ryan?" asked Nick.
"I don't know. All I heard was a big thumping sound outside my room. The next thing I knew, Ryan was down the stairs on the floor crying," explained Tomi.
"I wonder how he did that," said Nick.
"I don't know," said Tomi.
Nick looked away so he could turn on the tv. When he looked back at Tomi, something shocked him. She was crying. The last time he saw Tomi crying was back in kindergarten. Then Nick rethought for a moment, that time in kindergarten was him crying and not her. Nick had never seen Tomi cry. "Hey..Tomi, woah, what's wrong?" he asked. Her crying was making him really nervous.
"I'm sorry....I'm just so worried," said Tomi. At that moment she broke down completely, making Nick panic even more.
Nick then put his arm around Tomi. Tomi paused for a second. "It'll be okay. Ryan's gonna be fine," he said, trying his best to comfort her. She put her head against Nick's shoulder and continued to cry, just not as hard. Nick hugged her closer, making Tomi calmer. The two were silent for a few minutes. Tomi took her face off of Nick's shoulder and had her back against the couch, Nick's arm still around her shoulders. She set herself right next to Nick and rested her head on his shoulder. She didn't know why, but just being close to Nick calmed her so much. Nick just let Tomi stay there. In a few minutes, Tomi fell asleep. Nick just smiled and let her sleep against his shoulder while he watched tv. Three hours later, he was also asleep when his parents and siblings came home. Aaron rudely woke them up by jumping onto Nick's lap.
"What the?!" said Nick, startled.
"Ew~ you're touching a girl. You're gonna get cooties," said Aaron.
"Get off of me Aaron," said Nick, pushing his brother off of his lap.
"How are you feeling Tomi?" asked Nick's mom.
"Fine Mrs. Carter..thanks," said Tomi.
"Well that's good," said Nick's mom.
Tomi noticed that Nick still had his arm around her shoulders and so did Nick. He slowly took his arm away and Tomi moved a few inches away from him on the couch. "Oh that's right, we stopped by the hospital on the way home. Ryan's just fine, well if you don't count his broken arm. But he's fine," informed Nick's dad.
"Thanks for everything Mr. Carter," said Tomi.
"It's no problem. I guess your parents are still going to stay overnight at the hospital just in case so you're welcome to stay here for the night," said Mr. Carter.
"Thanks Mr. Carter," said Tomi.
"Come on, I'll take you up to my bed," said Nick, "I'll sleep on the couch tonight."
"Nick, it's okay. I'm fine on the couch," said Tomi.
"Don't make me carry you up to my room," said Nick, "Come on." Tomi stood up and Nick helped her up to his room. She laid down on his bed(which was actually made). "If you need anything, just tell me alright?" said Nick, heading toward the door.
"Nick," said Tomi.
"Yeah?" asked Nick, turning around.
"Thanks," said Tomi.
Nick smiled warmly, "Hey it's no problem. What are friends for? Good night." He clicked the lights off and closed the door.