The rain had come down mercilessly for three days straight, all of Nicole's friends were out of town on vacation for Spring Break, and she was stuck at home, all alone. Her parents had left earlier that week to go on a business trip, and they were due home in four days. Her older brother, Matt, was supposed to be checking in on fifteen year-old Nicole every night, on his way to his apartment from work. So far, he had dropped by once, hurriedly trying to get away to go on a date.
Nicole was used to being left alone though, because both of her parents were lawyers, and her brother had moved out a year earlier to enter college. They lived in a quiet little section of Tulsa, Oklahoma, right outside the city limits. Nicole didn't mind being left alone most of the time, since there were always plenty of kids around in the neighborhood she lived in, but they were all either at the beach, or at the lake, or somewhere celebrating Spring Break with their families. Even Nicole's best friend, a boy named Taylor Hanson, who lived behind her, was off at the beach with his family. She didn't think that she had ever felt so alone in her life.
Then, like an answer to a wish, the telephone rang on Nicole's bedside table, causing her to jump. She quickly collected herself, expecting the caller to be one of her parents' clients.
"Hello, Bauer residence," she said politely.
"Did I ever tell you how cute you sound when you say that?" teased the voice on the other end, which just happened to belong to Taylor.
"Taylor! What's up?" she asked.
"Stomach flu," he said seriously. "Isaac, mom, and Jessie all came down with it at our cousin's house at the beach. We just got back. Are you still alone?"
"But of course," she said. "Tell everyone I hope they feel better. It's been so boring around here."
"Do you want some company," he asked, sending her heart soaring. She couldn't wait to talk to someone besides herself again, she thought jokingly.
"Sure," she said.
"Great," he replied. "Mom has ordered the rest of us to get out of the house while we can, so Zac will probably come with me. Is that okay? Dad took Avie and Mack to the toy store."
"Now how could I refuse to let Zac come over," she said, laughing.
"I missed you man!" Zac shrieked, almost knocking her to the ground as he hugged her. Taylor stepped through the doorway next, looking great as always. His long, blond hair was tied back, and he was wearing jeans and a tee that matched his blue eyes exactly. But Nicole didn't think of Taylor that way. They had grown up as friends, and that's as far as her feelings for him went.
Taylor and Nicole's friendship was very rare, because of their totally different personalities. While Taylor was tall and handsome, artistic, and sometimes shy, but an all-around nice guy, Nicole was an outgoing, athletic, sarcastic, basic teen-aged girl, with long brown hair streaked with blond, and deep brown eyes. She was a self-described "chatterbox", while Taylor thought of himself as "the shy one". But they managed to be on the exact same wavelength at all times, knowing exactly what the other was thinking and never arguing with each other, no matter how stubborn both of them were. If opposites attract, then these two were the perfect friends.
The three began to talk about their adventures during the past week, and before they knew it, Mrs. Hanson had called her sons to come home. Taylor and Nicole made plans to meet at the mall the next day, and said their goodbyes. But even after they left, Nicole had something stuck in her head for the rest of the day; she couldn't forget how happy she was to have Taylor back home, or surprisingly, how good he had looked in that blue tee-shirt.