Closed A Story Left Unfinished

[Nikko Blackwood]

Nikko felt strange about being back at school. He had left for the holiday miserable, but the time away had been good for him. He needed the space to remember that your girlfriend kissing another boy and ignoring you for months wasn't the end of the world, even if it feels that way for a while. Now being back, he wad trying to desperately to hold on to the feeling he had when he was home. It was his last year after all and he really didn't want to spend it walking on egg shells. Like today. He needed to get a camera from the Monthly room to take pictures of the club fair later in the week but the risk of running into Estella grew with every step, especially now that she was Editor. There was a part of him that was proud of her despite what she had done and it caused something sharp to twist in his gut. Nikko hovered outside the door and tried to remember what classes she was taking and if she was likely to be at one of them. He was fairly certain the coast was clear and he ducked inside and was relieved to find an empty room. This was ridiculous. He had a job he needed to do and he didn't want to be scared to do it. Nikko still tried to be quick as he headed straight to the cameras and started checking them over.

 

[Estella Fuentes]

Coming back to Hogwarts, Estella had a new responsibility and she really wanted to prove that she could handle it. On top of her prefect duties, now she had the Hogwarts Monthly to look after, which she was excited for but also nervous. Without Poppy there she wasn't sure how she was going to handle it all. The first meeting didn't go exactly how she expected, and she just wanted to prove to the rest of the staff that she was there for a reason.

With class having just ended, Estella was headed straight to the Monthly room so she could get a head start on her work. She wanted to have a look again at some old issues so she could have an idea how she was going to lay everything out. As Estella entered the room however, she stopped in her tracks as she noticed she was not alone. Any other person she wouldn't really care, but there was Nikko, in plain view, headed for the cameras. The Hufflepuff just cleared her throat a little awkwardly before making her way to the bookshelf where the old issues were, hoping Nikko would just leave so she didn't have to say anything to him.

 

[Nikko Blackwood]

Nikko hadn't heard anyone else enter the room, so when he heard someone clear their throat he turned to see who it was. Despite all his anxiety about running into Estella he hadn't expected it to actually be her. He almost lost his grip on the camera but thankfully he had the strap wrapped around his wrist to prevent it from going anywhere. For a moment he wasn't sure what to do and stood frozen as she moved past him to where the old issues were kept. Was she really not going to say anything? His sadness had completely left him but was replaced with annoyance. A million things came to mind but he kept them tucked away. He didn't want to give her the power to turn him bitter or mean. Nikko sighed. "Congrats on editor." he said simply as he looked down to his camera to make sure it had some film in it.

 

[Estella Fuentes]

Estella was a little shocked to hear any words coming from Nikko's mouth. She had been sure he would just awkwardly avoid talking to her too and had simply cleared her throat in hopes that would make Nikko want to leave. Instead however, he was talking to her, not in a bad way, and not as if he wanted to argue with her either. Estella stood there for a moment, unsure what to say or do. He was acting as if everything was fine. Had he forgiven her for what she had done? She knew for a fact that his friends hadn't. After all, Harper hadn't spoken to her the same since everything that had happened. Surely he was hurting inside.

"Thank you." she said, giving him a small smile as he congratulated her. "Congrats on getting captain of the Quidditch Team." She knew he liked the sport, and even though she hadn't really watched many games, Estella knew he would be a great leader.

The teen just kept flicking through the issues. She could hear Harper's voice in the back of her head telling her that she needed to bring up what happened. Her sister's voice was also there, telling her to be honest. Estella really didn't want to bring it up, she wanted to pretend it never happened, but she knew eventually she was going to have to face it whether it was right now or in a few month's time. Maybe facing it now would make getting her friends back a little easier.

"So, I know this isn't going to mean much, but I am truly sorry for... you know... what happened last semester." Estella looked down guiltily, unable to say the exact thing but knowing that Nikko definitely knew what she was talking about. "You're a really nice guy, truly, I just... can't tell you that I feel the same towards you anymore, like in a romantic way, because I don't." She sighed, glad that she was able to finally tell him.

 

[Nikko Blackwood]

Nikko felt himself involuntarily hold his breath as he waited for Estella to say something. He was supposed to be checking the camera and while it was definitely in his hands it could have turned to snakes without him noticing, he was so distracted. He dared to look up when she finally spoke. He smiled tightly when she thanked him and mentioned him getting captain. Nikko wanted to say something but the words felt stuck in his throat. But it didn't really matter because apparently Estella wasn't done.

He knew this was coming. It had to eventually. Although he had started to think that they would take their unfinished business to the grave. Nikko bristled as Estella started to apologize. He knew it was what he deserved but the fact that it had taken this long to get it, made him irritable. But she didn't stop there. He wanted to laugh as she said she didn't feel the same way about him. Had she really waited all this time to state the obvious? He wanted to laugh but instead made a slight choking sound he tried to cover with a cough. "Well that was pretty clear." he said dryly. The hurt he had done so much work to heal started to crack inside him and he was starting to regret coming here today. "At least you won't have to deal with me much longer." he said before quickly packing up the camera into a bag with all the things he would need to shoot the first school event. "We just need to get through this last year, right?"

 

[Estella Fuentes]

Estella was a little taken aback at Nikko's tone of voice. She definitely deserved it though, and it was then that she realised just how much she had hurt him. It made her stomach sink. The pain she had caused him was probably more than she could ever imagine. She just smiled a little awkwardly and nodded as he said they just had to get through the rest of the year. "Yeah, I guess so..." she replied, before turning back to the old issues in front of her. She knew she couldn't leave it at that however as Harper's words were still running through her mind. "I can't say I know exactly how you're feeling, but I know I really upset you." she said, desperately wanting to make things right. "And, again, I'm really sorry for that. Please, if we could just... try to put it behind us? We don't have to be friends if you don't want to be, but I just don't want things to be awkward anymore." Estella figured that the more honest she could be with him the better.

 

[Nikko Blackwood]

Nikko had never been very good with words. He struggled to express his feelings, the good and the bad. This time it was no exception. He felt so many things at once and he had no idea what to say. Not that any of it would make a difference now. Estella was apologizing and saying that she knew that she upset him but it hardly seemed to cover it. He knew it was what he was owed but it didn’t feel right and he wasn’t sure if there was anything she could do that would make it feel alright. But he let her finish and kept his mouth shut with his jaw clenching and unclenching over and over. Finally he looked at her directly, the first time since she arrived. She was still so pretty and it hurt to look at her. He knew these feelings would all pass, at least that was what his mom kept telling him over the break, but he didn’t think they would fade fast enough. “Yeah.” Nikko said finally, his voice still wary. His words weren’t eloquent but he hoped they would do the job. “We can put this behind us.” he started. “I don’t think things will ever not be awkward. But I am able to look past that if you are.”