A Trail to the Heart

Nick kept his promise, and took me on a trip across Europe. It was glorious, yes, but it was also eventful.

Joe and my friend Lauren tagged along, and did so because(which I didn’t find out until later on that there was an actual reason why they did, other than the fact that Joe claimed Nick’s parents didn’t want us to travel alone, for safety reasons, and well, other reasons you can probably guess) they were in charge of documenting our adventure. And it’s a good thing they did, one for memories from it, and two... well, because Nick and I ended up fighting toward the end of the trip.

Yes, as peachy as things were when they started off, they didn’t remain that way.

We went everywhere starting with Spain and ending in England, since Nick forwent to tell me that he was going to be in a few more Les Miserables shows after we were done traveling the majority of Europe. Once I found out, that’s kind of when the drama started. Because while Nick was acting on stage, that left Joe, Lauren, and I to travel without him.

And trust me, when you travel with those two alone, you quickly find out that you’re very much a third wheel, no matter how much they tell you you’re not.

Originally, our travels weren’t supposed to end in England, but they did because I didn’t want to go on without Nick with us. They also ended there, because once Nick finally found the time to spend time with us again, he wasn’t fully with us, and that’s when I first voiced the issue.

To sum it up, Nick and I ended up fighting, going as far as staying in two completely different hotels, with Joe and Lauren left to help us make amends.

And that’s where their documenting came in. Turns out, while they were also filming and photographing for memories, they were also doing so to show us what we had. Lauren ended up showing me all the footage she got on film, while Joe showed Nick all of the photos he caught on camera. They were of us: smiling, happy, and showing the reason why this trip was ever started in the first place.

“What’s this?” I had asked Lauren, when she handed me a disc. She shrugged.

“Put it in your laptop and find out.”

“Lauren, I’m really not interested at the moment. I mean, you saw all of what happened with Nick-”

“I know. But this will be worth it,” she promised. And so, I took her word for it, and watched the video. During it, Lauren also documented herself speaking into the camera, explaining that she figured something like this would happen, because no one has the perfect relationship. She also said that considering that, Nick and I should move on from this fight. We both got angry for two different reasons, but we should just apologize to each other for what we did to make things right again.

Meanwhile, while this was going down with Lauren and I, Joe was showing Nick the pictures he took and explained the same thing to him. Either he and Lauren thought the same, or they discussed this before they met with us without Nick or I finding out.

So, the next day, Nick and I made up. And, surprise, surprise, Joe and Lauren officially declared that they were dating. As if the third wheel thing didn’t give you the slightest clue about that.

After Nick and I made up, I thanked him for doing all that he has for me. Without him, I wouldn’t have been able to see all of the places that we traveled to, and that were on my special map at home to see at least once in my life. I owed him above and beyond, which is why I said what I said next.

“Nick,” I said, as I continued to be held in his arms, never wanting him to let me go, “you’ve done so much for me. And I don’t know how on earth I will ever pay you back for all of it. But I think it’s safe to say... you have my heart.”

“Really?” he asked, and I heard the smile in his voice. I nodded as I laid my head on his shoulder.

“Yes, you have my heart. And I’d do anything for you; there is no way I could thank you for all that you’ve done for me, so that’s the least I can do.”

“Anything?” I laughed, his tone sounding surprised when it shouldn’t have. I owed him for everything.

“Yes, anything.”

“Will you... will you marry me?”

I looked up at him then. His face showed complete seriousness, but I had to make sure he wasn’t joking.

“Are you serious?”

“Yeah,” he answered, now gazing into my eyes. I smiled. “Will you?”

It didn’t even take a moment’s hesitation. “Yes.”

“Yes?” he questioned.

“Yes, Nick, I will marry you,” I said, grinning like a fool. He copied my actions, and I giggled at the cute smile on his face. He then lifted me up.

“She said yes!” he exclaimed, being so unlike himself and surprising me. But hey, it was an exciting moment.

“You said yes?” Lauren questioned, turning from where her and Joe were talking a few feet away. I nodded.

Some people misjudged us, on the fact that they thought we were pretty naive for wanting to get married so soon and thinking we didn’t know half about what love actually was, but we didn’t care. Nick and I took our time with wedding plans, but ended up getting married a year later.

Now, we were currently moving in together. We were renting an apartment for now, but that would only be until we found a permanent house, and until we got more settled and comfortable with the fact that we were now married. I was currently busy unpacking a box in the kitchen, but that was until Nick came in and picked me up, taking me to our room and laying me on the bed. He then laid down next to me, before turning toward me.

“Well, what are you thinking of the beginning of your new life, Mrs. Jonas?” he said, smiling as he put an arm around me. I sighed as I breathed in his scent.

“I’m thinking... I’m enjoying it already,” I answered. “And to think, this all started with a little puppy love. No pun intended.”

“How can you say that and not realize the pun?” he asked, and I laughed, thinking about how I meant him, which was by walking his dog, Elvis.

“Speaking of that... where is Elvis?” I said, then whistling afterwards to grab his attention. Moments later, he joined us in the room and jumped up on the bed. “There he is!”

“But then in the end, it lead to true love,” Nick pointed out. “Once we took the trail to a heart. Or your heart, to be exact.”

“What are you talking about? It’s not the end,” I now pointed out. “But besides, you know you didn’t have to do that. You had my heart all along.”

“Maybe, but it proved to me that I did,” he said, smiling as he rolled onto his back. I curled into his side. “And you’re right. It’s not the end. It’s only the beginning.”