When the Sun Goes Down

Hey readers! Once again I\'m updating sooner with a shorter chapter, I\'m just so excited that there\'s people enjoying my writing. You have no idea how much every review means to me! Thanks again so much and I hope you enjoy this next chapter.







"So I hear you\'re playing ball at UNC next year, you excited?" Travis asked, glancing over at Cara who was in the passenger seat of his pickup truck. Nicole, who was Cara\'s ride home, had left school early and Travis was elected to pick her up from school since both of her parents were at work. She had just gotten in the car and they were pulling out of the school parking lot when he asked the question.



"Yeah kinda," she said with a shrug.



"Kinda? That\'s not the right attitude to have," he smiled. He didn\'t really know what to talk about with her, it was extremely awkward. It\'s funny how only a few years ago they had been able to talk for hours, and now it was like pulling teeth to figure out a good conversation.



"I don\'t know, I guess I\'m just sick of basketball. It\'s not fun like it used to be." she blurted out, a little surprised at how willing she was to share her personal feelings with him. She hadn\'t even told her family she was sick of basketball, and now she was venting to Travis Blanchard?



"I know whatcha mean, but once you\'re in season your love for the game comes back to you."



"Maybe for you, but I\'m only playing because my parents wouldn\'t be able to afford college if I wasn\'t getting a scholarship." She was once again surprised at how honest she was being with him. For the longest time, she\'d hated him, and now all of the sudden he wanted to talk to her and she opened up to the opportunity without hesitation. He was such a womanizer, he could get anything out of any girl.



"Naw, c\'mon. You love basketball, don\'t you? You used to love it more than me...you were better than me too." He said, stealing another glance in her direction.



"Yeah, I did let you win a lot of times because I knew if I won you\'d stomp off like a little girl and not talk to me for the rest of the day." She laughed.



"Hey, that is not true." He laughed back, was he flirting with Cara Haley?



"Sure Trav," the smiles left both of their faces when she said it. Trav. She hadn\'t called him Trav since they were kids. She regretted saying it, he would probably think she was accepting him back in her life by calling him it. Or was she overthinking things? She always overthought things. Maybe he didn\'t even notice the fact that they hadn\'t talked in years. Maybe he thought they were still friends in some weird way. Or maybe he just didn\'t care. She tried to shake herself of her thoughts.



"By the way, sorry about last night," the silence had become unbearable and Travis finally spoke.



"It\'s fine, just a little creepy," she smiled again.



Travis chuckled and changed the subject again. "So..did you hear about that d-bag Clark?"



"Yup, he always was such an asshole. Supposedly Heather isn\'t the first girl he\'s cheated on her with, I can\'t stand that sleezeball."



"He\'s lucky I don\'t go to school with you guys anymore or I\'d make his life hell," he tried to sound tough. The conversation ended at that and the two sat in silence again.



She was glad when they were pulling into her driveway a few seconds later, the ride could not get any weirder, "Thanks so much for the ride," she said quickly and jumped out of the car.



"Car," he called out, making her turn around and look into the open window, "how \'bout a game of one and one in say...ten minutes?"



"Big test tomorrow, gotta study. Can I get a rain check?" She lied and tried not to smile too big at his offer. She had already gotten into college, she didn\'t need to study anymore, but she thought that if she accepted his offer he would think she didn\'t care about how he ditched her a few years back.



"Sounds good." He put the truck in reverse and backed out of the driveway with a smile on his face. Was he flirting with her? He was like that with every girl, right? She was different though. Something about her had changed, she had matured in more ways than one and he liked it.



****



"My senior year is ruined! Prom is this Friday and there\'s no way I\'m going with him. This is so embarassing! How could he do this to me!? Especially with that slut, she\'s been with every guy in the school, I wouldn\'t be surprised if he has an STD now." Nicole continued to shout. She laid face down on her bed, Mrs. Blanchard sat at her side, rubbing her head.



"He\'s a jerk, Nicole, you deserve better and you don\'t need a date to prom." She said in a soothing voice.



"I\'m not going to prom," she groaned. Mrs. Blanchard didn\'t argue with her, it was not the right time to try to convince her to go to prom. "I just can\'t friggin believe it, I thought he was going to wait until I was ready."



"Then he wasn\'t the right guy, the right guy would have been willing to wait forever. You don\'t need a man, they only tie you down." She was saying everything that came to her mind, desperately trying to cheer her daughter up. "There\'s only three weeks of school left, as soon as it\'s over you can go to college and never see him again."



"But I\'ll see a lot of people from school, and they\'ll all know and it\'ll be so embarassing" she said through tears, "I knew I shouldn\'t have chosen UNC, everyone friggin goes there, it\'s like high school repeated."



"Nicole, how \'bout you try to fall asleep and relax for a little. You\'re being silly now, just try to get some rest and I\'ll make you some food."



"Not hungry," she said in a muffled, aggravated voice.



"Hey," a soft voice said in the doorway. Both turned to see Travis in the doorway with a sympathetic look on his face.



"Don\'t say anything Travis," Nicole yelled and turned her face back into her pillow.



"I\'m not, Nicole. I\'m just seeing if you want to go out on the boat with me and Jesse, maybe clear your mind for a little." He said in a sweet voice.



"No."



Mrs. Blanchard shrugged to Travis who took the hint and left the room.



"It\'s not even like I liked him that much," she began again, "I was gonna break up with him after school ended anyway."



"I know, I know," Mrs. Blanchard agreed, she didn\'t know whether or not she was telling the truth but she wasn\'t going to question her.



"Now I\'m gonna go to college a virgin, how embarassing!" She blurted out. She was a wreck, all of her worries were just pouring out.



"That\'s not important Nicole and you know it. No ones going to not be your friend because you\'ve never had sex before."



"Easy for you to say, mom. Can I just be left alone?"



Mrs. Blanchard sighed and pulled herself off the bed. She looked once more at her daughter before leaving the room and shutting the door silently behind her.



As soon as her mom left, Nicole picked up her phone. 8 missed calls and 7 new text messages. She scanned through them. 3 calls and 4 texts from Clark, and the rest from her friends wondering if she was okay.



COME ON NICOLE TALK TO ME

-Clark



I CAN EXPLAIN

-Clark



YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I LOVE YOU AND I\'D NEVER DO ANYTHING TO HURT YOU

-Clark



PLEASE CALL ME

-Clark



She exited out of her texts and dialed Clarks number, she wasn\'t going to let him think she was upset.



"Hello?" His voice came on the other line a little too excited.



"Hey Clark," she said in a monotone voice.



"Nicole, let me--" he began to say.



"Save it, Clark. I just wanted to let you know that you\'ll need to find another date to prom because I no longer want to go with you." She said matter-of-factly and then flipped her phone shut without waiting to hear his response.



Mrs. Blanchard stood on the other side of the door with her ear against it. She smiled to herself when she heard her daughter\'s conversation. She may have been high maintenance and ditzy, but damn that girl didn\'t take shit from anyone.