A Lot Like Love

Nick walked into the diner-slash-arcade with Ashley and David. Not really his peace of pie but it would do for today. He scanned over the room with his eyes. They dialed in on a pair of lovely blue’s that he thought he would never want to see again. Macon Forrester’s eyes looked so sad, yet, so perfectly aggrieved at the familiar woman in front of her. Nick could practically hear Macon begging him to come rescue her. Even though his mind totally told him other wise, his legs began to walk over to her table.

Macon turned her gaze back to her father and his whore, or should she say, his fiancée. Katie had been ranting on about something for what seemed like forever now. Macon hadn’t been listening a single word of course, Macon just starred at the woman like she was trying to shoot lasers out of her pulps to melt her face.

“Hey there Macon.” Nick greeted, interrupting whatever Katie was raving about. Macon was totally surprised that Nick had even acknowledged her, more or less, come over and talk to her.

“Nick.” Macon beamed.

“Macon, thanks for introducing us.” Macon’s dad stated in confusion to who Nick was, and why he was talking to his very precious daughter.

“Daddy this is..” Macon was cut off my Nick grabbing her father’s hand and giving it a firm hand-shake.

“Hi Sir, I’m Nick Jonas. Macon’s, Uhmm.” Nick stopped to peek over at Macon through his hair, that had falling down in his face when he leaded down the shake her father’s hand. “Friend.”

“I’m her dad and this is her.” He stopped to awkwardly clear his throat. “This is Katie.”

“Nice to meet you.” Katie addressed Nick, shaking his hand as well and giving him a peculiar wink.

“I was hoping, sir, if you would let Macon come hang out with me? If it’s not to much trouble and if I’m not interrupting anything, that is.” Nick offered, smiling at Macon’s father. Macon’s dad opened his mouth to say something but Macon jumped in instead.

“Of course it’s okay. Right daddy?” Macon declared, standing up and linking arms with Nick. “Talk to you later then I guess?”

Before her dad had a chance to replied, Macon had already waved and walked off toward the entrance, dragging Nick off with her.

>>>>>>

“Thanks.” Macon grinned, walking slowly next Nick on the outside of the diner.

“Your welcome.” Nick responded, watching his feet. “I could tell you from your eyes that, that was the last place on earth where you wanted to be. So I figured I’d come and assist you.”

Macon pushed some hair be hide her ear that had falling in her face. “Good observation.”

“Yepp.” Nick trailed off, leaving an uncomfortable silence be hide. It must had been a good long minute of listening to their shoes hit the cement before Macon spoke up.

“I’m sorry.” She apologized bluntly. She didn’t have to explain what she was sorry about, Nick and her both knew she was apologizing for yesterday. Nick smirked before jumping in front of Macon, stopping her abruptly.

“So what was up back there? Why where you so frantic to get out of there that you asked me for help?” Nick asked, knowing he just put Macon between a rock and a hard place. ”You really know how to ruin a moment don’t ya, Nick? We were having a nice time before you go bring up the very thing I was trying to breakout of .” She thought, looking at Nick displeasingly.

“I think I’m just gonna head home.” Macon screeched uneasy. She stepped back, but Nick got right back in her face.

“Stop running away from me.” Nick stated, looking deep into her eyes, forcing her to turn away. She began to walk again, Nick fallowed closely beside.

“That was my dad and his new “ Macon paused to bite her lip, not knowing what to call Katie. Macon always just called Katie; she, her, or some degrading name like whore or slut. Never would Macon call Katie by her first name, it might mean Macon actually liked her. It gave her to much respect Macon didn’t think she deserved.

“Their getting married. She was the woman my dad left my mom for, and he’s marring her. How much crappier can it get? I thought him sleeping with her was bad enough, and I almost had a mental breakdown when I found out they were dating. And when my mom told me about the wedding plans, I did have a breakdown.” Macon laughed, even thought it wasn’t one bit funny to her.

“She destroyed our family, right from under our noses, right out of the blue. Things were going great before she came into the picture. I mean, yeah, my parents fought and stuff but doesn’t everybody? But the word divorce ever came up until she came along” Macon inhaled about to finnish. "It never came up until my dad picked her over us.”

"You know that nothings out-of-the-blue and I’m sure your dad didn’t choose her over your family.” Nick proclaimed. There was so much Nick had to learn about Macon. She probably knew a lot about him already and he knew a little more about Macon than she might had guessed, but there was an endless amount of information Nick wanted to learn before Macon could start to trust him.

“Well, what you call it? He divorced his wife of 23 years for a woman half is age? He abandon his ex-wife and ex-teenage daughters to fend for themselves. If that’s not him choosing her over us, I don’t know what is.” Macon explained, looking forward at the un-ending sidewalk, ahead.

“Does he pay child support? Come visit you and your sister? Try to get along with your mom for the better of his kids?” Nick inquired, Macon shrugged her shoulders.

“Child support, yes. Visiting, rarely. Getting along with my broken hearted, lonely, and depressed mother, I guess he tries his best. “ Macon answered honestly. ”But the money he sends us doesn’t make up for the loss of the father figure that I am now missing.” Macon thought.

“Then he didn’t abandon you.” Nick smiled condescending at her, walking ahead. Macon got a shocked expression on her pretty little face. ”Did he really just say that to me?” Macon questioned mentally. She ran back up along side him.

“Excuse me?”

“It seems to me, someone is being a little dramatic. So your parent’s got a divorce? Life's not fair, Macon. A lot of kids parent’s get divorced, and a lot of dads don’t even pay child support. I think you are pretty lucky that your dad even attempts to try to see you, which I don’t know why, you seem to just blow him off. Well, you seem to blow a lot of people off. But if he visits then he's trying, and if he's trying, then you should cut him some slack.” Nick rudely added, informatively.

“I cut him enough slack." Macon grumbled.

"You could have fooled me. You don't seem the cut anyone, any slack around here." Nick concluded, looking at Macon smugly.

"And how would you know?.” Macon folded her arms, huffing.

“Ohh, I know more than you think.” Nick mumbled just loud enough so Macon could make out his words.

“What that supposed to mean?” Macon wondered, getting sassy.

“Never mind.” Nick laughed, shaking his head, before muttering something under his breath that Macon could not here. ”What I wouldn’t give to read lips.” Macon wished.

"And for you information, he ditches me more than I ditch him. But I don’t blow people off, thank you very much, you were just annoying.” Macon punned, smiling at Nick slyly.

“Ohh, I’m sure. Me being super nice to you, bring you flowers and making great effort to try to get to know you, is me being annoying.” Nick mocked, pointing between himself and Macon. Macon had just about enough of Nick's bullying. He had no idea what she had gone through over her parent's and everything else that had fallen apart in her life.

"So Mr. High-In-Mighty, are you parent's divorced?" Macon asked, already anticipating his the answer.

"Well no.." Nick trailed off, looking down at his feet. Macon smiled evilly, she was about to put Nick back into his place.

"Right, so don't try to school me on divorces when I know for a fact that your life is filled with Cayola sky's. Your parent's are happy together, so you couldn't possibly know what I'm feeling or going through. It's easy for kids like you to say I'm being dramatic when your parent's will never even think about getting a divorce. Not that I except you to understand my life when I barely do, but the thing between my parents just caught me so off guard. I thought once you got married it was forever." Macon inhaled an intense amount of air, knowing that she was on a roll.

"But I'm sorry that I've been mean to you, Nick. I really am, but you got to know that me trusting guys is almost impossible after what I saw my dad put my mother through. And I know it's not fair that I take that out on you, but life's not fair" Macon implied, turning Nick's own words against him. Nick felt guilty about how he been acting. If he could, he would take it all back. He wanted her to understand that things aren’t just hard for her, but for her dad too; and that she should try to make it a little easier on him. But Nick knew he really had no right preaching to her when he knew nothing about what she was put through, or being put through.

Macon, with out Nick saying a word, changed her attitude. She sighed and changed her voice to a softer, slower tone. ”I don’t want to fight with you, Nick. I just want you to understand, please don’t hate me.” Macon thought before speaking.

"Never did I think my parent’s would ever stop loving one-another. Well actually, I didn’t think my dad would stop loving my mom. Does it mean that since he stopped loving her, he could stop loving me too?" Macon asked Nick, with deep eyes. Nick smiled at her sympathetically, knowing that Macon wasn’t mad at him any longer and that she had forgiven him for stepping out of bounds. Maybe after this conversation Nick could finally begin breaking down the walls Macon had built up.

“Macon, I can tell you right now.” Nick grinned ear-to-ear. “No one could ever stop loving someone like you.”