Nothing Lasts Forever

Genevieve took a deep breath, exhaling slowly before she got out of the car. Adam handed her her crutches, and she slowly made her way inside. “I still don’t get why we’re back here,” Adam told her, as he opened the door for her. “I thought I told you I’d never let you come back to Gary again.”

“I know,” Genevieve told him. “But, Dr. Quentin says that he’s the best. And, if I want to skate ever again, I want to go to the best physical therapist. So, I’m back here,” she reminded him once again, already having told him the same thing multiple times before.

“Okay,” Adam sighed as she made her way to the front desk to check in.

Genevieve sat down next to him, looking over at him. “Thank you for coming with me,” she smiled, putting her hand on top of his. “I really appreciate it.”

“Well, I wasn’t going to let you come in here by yourself. Don’t you remember the first time we came here? He practically made you cry,” Adam reminded her.

“Yeah, and don’t you remember what happened afterwards? We went back to my place, and that’s when we had our first kiss,” Genevieve told him.

“How could I forget?” Adam asked. “My sister walked in on us,” he added with a laugh.

“Oh, yes, and then she walked out,” Genevieve said, laughing, as Gary came out to bring them to the back.

“Oh, if it isn’t the two lovebirds,” Gary said. “Come on back,” he told them. “So, Genevieve, I see you’ve come back to work on your leg. I hope you work a little bit harder on your leg than you did with your arm,” he said. “You’re luck I’m such a good physical therapist, or your wrist wouldn’t have healed like it did.”

Genevieve looked back to look at Adam, who was rolling his eyes at Gary. She gave him a smile as she sat down on the table, and he took her crutches.

“Okay, Adam, you know the deal. You need to go sit over there,” Gary ordered, pointing over to the chairs in the corner of the room. Adam squeezed Genevieve’s hand before taking his normal seat, preparing himself for the scene that was about to unfold.

Adam had to force himself not to stand up and deck Gary throughout the appointment. Every single time Genevieve tried to do an exercise, Gary would tell her she wasn’t doing it properly, and that if she continued that way, she’d never be able to skate again. But, Adam knew that if he did what he thought about doing to Gary, Genevieve would probably kill him. So, he just sat back, watching Genevieve’s reaction to Gary’s comments.

“That’s it for today,” Gary finally said, and Genevieve breathed out a sigh of relief. Gary turned around to look at Adam. “And, if you want your girlfriend to ever skate again, you might actually want to help her out and force her to do her exercises,” he told him, handing Genevieve’s chart to the secretary so she could set up another appointment.

“Asshole,” Adam muttered, and Genevieve hit him lightly on his chest, giving him a look that clearly said he needed to keep his mouth shut.

As they walked out of the building, Adam turned around to look at Genevieve. “Why did you hit me back there?” he whined.

“Couldn’t you wait until we’ve left the building before you insult the physical therapist?” she asked him, making her way to his car. She threw her crutches into the back seat before hopping into the passenger’s seat.

“What? He’s an asshole,” Adam said.

“Yes, and I agree with you, but you could have at least waited until we weren’t in the same room as him! If at the next appointment he works me harder and treats me worse, I am so blaming you,” Genevieve told him.

“Well, I’ll be there to kick his ass if he does treat you worse,” Adam said with a grin.

“Yeah, let’s keep the fighting on the ice, shall we?” Genevieve asked.

Genevieve walked into her apartment to see Nikki talking on the phone, looking extremely nervous. “No, Mom, really, you two don’t need to…” she began, but it appeared she was cut off. “Mom…” she tried again, only to stop immediately. Hanging up the phone, she let out a scream, looking up at Genevieve, who walked over and sat down across from her.

“Everything okay?” Genevieve asked.

“My mom doesn’t listen to anything I say,” Nikki sighed, looking down at her phone and beginning to text someone.

“I thought you and your parents are really close,” Genevieve commented.

“We are,” Nikki said with a nod. “It’s just, I wish my mom would listen when I tell her I don’t want her and my dad to come down to Chicago.”

“Your parents are coming?” Genevieve asked, excited to finally meet her parents. She knew that they were a tight knit family, and it would be great to see them all together.

“Yes,” Nikki sighed.

“And, yet, you don’t sound happy about it. How long has it been since you’ve seen them, anyways?” Genevieve asked her.

“A while,” Nikki admitted. “It’s just…” she trailed off.

“Nik, what?” Genevieve asked.

“I haven’t told them about Patrick,” Nikki answered, avoiding eye contact with Genevieve. She knew how Genevieve was going to react. She wouldn’t be happy. She wasn’t happy when she realized that she and Patrick had a secret relationship to begin with, and she knew Genevieve wouldn’t agree with her decision to not tell her parents, even after they had confessed to everyone that they were actually together.

“Nikki!” Genevieve exclaimed. “Why wouldn’t you tell your parents?” she questioned.

“You don’t know my mother,” Nikki began.

“No, I don’t. So, why don’t you explain this to me,” she told her. “I’m sorry,” she immediately apologized, realizing that she wasn’t being too supportive right now. “I’m not trying to be a bitch right now. I’m just trying to understand.”

“My mom gets a little crazy when either me or Adam are in a relationship. She thinks that we’re automatically going to marry the person. I’m not even kidding, Gen, she starts planning our weddings!” Nikki exclaimed.

Genevieve started laughing. “That’s ridiculous!” she cried.

“I know! And, I’m not even kidding. She’s already tried to plan three weddings for me. I mean, she gets the magazines, and then she’ll sit down with me and start asking me what colors I want or what dresses I like,” Nikki explained. “I love my mom, but she’s a little crazy when it comes to me and Adam and getting married. She always tells us that she wants grandchildren, so she figures if she plans the wedding for us, she’ll get grandchildren sooner. And, then you have my dad who will completely grill Patrick. I just, don’t want to have to deal with it all.”

“Nikki,” Genevieve said laughing. “I still think you should tell them about Patrick. Who knows? He could be the one that you marry.”

Nikki looked over at her with a smile on her face. “You know, Patrick’s the first boyfriend that I’ve actually thought about a future with. I really could see myself getting married to him,” she admitted.

“So, don’t you think it’d be a good idea to let your parents know you’re dating, then?” Genevieve asked logically.

“I still don’t know. But, I’ll think about it,” Nikki told her, and Genevieve simply rolled her eyes at her friend.