Chapter Text
Nicole smiled as she closed the lid on her laptop, and leaned into the comfort of her own sofa.
She had moved to Purgatory when she was a little girl, and she hadn't left since. Even when Waverly left to study Ancient History in New York, she still stayed in the same place that she had fallen in love with when she was seven years old. There wasn't anything great about the small town, and it certainly wasn't anything special compared to other places. Nicole could only think of one reason as to why she fell in love with the place, and that was the bubbly brunette who welcomed Nicole and her family with a plate full of cookies. She had never had a best friend before, but Waverly quickly took that spot in her life.
She hadn't seen Waverly in the entire time that she had been away at college, almost four whole years. The thought of the plane ticket going to New York City that she had just bought made her feel sick to her stomach, but also filled her with excitement. She couldn't wait to see the look of surprise on Waverly's face when she saw Nicole in time for Waverly's graduation.
When Waverly had left, and Nicole's parents had moved back to San Diego, Nicole had moved in with Gus and Shorty. She couldn't find any reason to leave and hoped that Waverly would eventually move back after she had graduated. The couple had raised Waverly after Wynonna left, and they considered Nicole to be one of the family. She couldn't have been more grateful to them for letting her stay with them until she could find an apartment of her own, and even after she had moved out, she still saw them every Sunday when they all had a meal together and watched movies. They were the second family that she never knew she always wanted, and it was all thanks to Waverly. Everything good in her life was thanks to Waverly.
Nicole picked up her phone that was lying face-down next to her and loaded up Shorty's number.
"Hi Nicole, how are you dear?" He answered the phone, sounding happy to speak to the woman.
"I'm good, thanks Shorty. So, you'll never guess what I just did."
"Booked tickets to go to New York?"
Nicole opened her mouth, ready to tell the man what she had done before she realised that he had already guessed. "Are you in my apartment?" She laughed, looking behind her.
"Look, Nicky, everyone in this town knows that you have been waiting to go and see Waverly since she moved over there. I'm surprised you didn't chase after her and confess your undying love for her days after she left. I'm not surprised you're going to see her." Shorty explained, having known about her feelings for Waverly before she even knew herself.
"I'm not-"
"Yes, I know, you're not in love with her. I've heard it all before. When have you booked these tickets for anyway? I know Gus has been trying to hide the letters from me, but Wynonna has been sending them and told her that they were staying together. From what I can tell, Wynonna and Waverly moved in together about two years ago." Shorty said, thinking back to when he first found the letters that Gus was hiding behind the clock in the living room.
Nicole furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. If Waverly had moved back in with Wynonna, then why wouldn't she have told her? Over the past four years, the girls had managed to stay in contact with each other, even if they hadn't managed to see each other, they still texted and FaceTimed each other almost every day. She didn't know why Waverly wouldn't tell her, but she would find out in two weeks time, when her plane ticket was booked for. "Shorty, is there any chance you know an address for the letters that Gus has been getting?"
"Ugh, let me see." There was background noise on the phone and she heard the rustling of paper and the envelopes on the other end. "Yeah, I'll email it to you later. Have you told her that you're coming yet?"
"Not yet, I think I'm gonna keep it as a surprise. She always loved surprises." Nicole said smiling, thinking back to the time that Nicole surprised her on her birthday by taking her rollerskating just outside of the town. Waverly had been watching movies during one of their weekends together and had somehow managed to convince Nicole that rollerskating would be amazing, even if Nicole had no sense of balance. The week after, on the day of her 15th birthday, the two of them drove an hour out of town, and the look on Waverly's face had made it all worth it for Nicole.
"Nicky..." Shorty let out a sigh. "Look, I know she used to love surprises, and you always found the best ones, but things aren't going to be the same as they were all that time ago. I just want you to know that. Four years changes a person, and Waverly has definitely changed."
"I don't understand," Nicole frowned. "Did something happen to her?"
"That's for her to know, and for you to find out. I'm just trying to warn you, maybe she would like to know before you go and see her. But that's your choice, if you really want to surprise her, I won't tell her."
"Okay, thanks Shorty. I'm going to go, email me that address? Love you."
"Love you too, Nicky. See you Sunday!"
Nicole smiled to herself and ended the phone call. She didn't understand what Shorty meant that Waverly had changed. From what she had seen, Waverly was still the same girl that she had always known. The same girl that had been her first friend, the same girl that had invited her to dinner when she realised that Nicole's parents were arguing, the same girl that she used to cuddle up with on the sofa and watch movies with. If something had changed, why wouldn't Waverly tell her? And most importantly, why did Waverly not tell her that she had moved back in with Wynonna?
The three girls used to be the best of friends when Nicole first moved to Purgatory, and they used to do everything together. That was until Wynonna started hanging around with the wrong people. When she turned seventeen, she started dating Doc Holliday. Nicole had told her exactly what she thought of their relationship, and in return, got hit around the face. They hadn't spoken since then. That would probably explain why Waverly hadn't told her about them moving back in together.
Before Nicole could think about it, she was loading up Waverly's number onto her phone, clicking on the FaceTime icon. She smiled at the small picture of her and Waverly together. It was taken when Nicole had surprised her by taking her rollerskating for her birthday. Weeks before, Waverly wouldn't stop talking about how fun it would be if both of them could go, seeming to forget how clumsy Nicole was. So, on Waverly's birthday, Nicole drove them out of town and took them both rollerskating. Even if Nicole managed to fracture her wrist, Waverly enjoyed it and that's what mattered to Nicole.
"Nicole! Hi, how are you? I missed you!" Waverly said, her smile beaming from the screen in front of Nicole.
"I missed you too, Waves! How's college going, are you feeling better now after that flu that you had?" Nicole asked her, glad to see her face in what had felt like a very long time, but in reality was only a couple of days.
"Uh, yeah it's cool. Lots of work and stuff, nothing new. The flu has completely worn off and I'm back at work again, thank God. How's Gus and Shorty doing? I wish I could see you guys soon." Waverly said, quickly skipping past the topic of school. Nicole tried to think back, but she had never really heard of Waverly having any friends at the College. She knew that she had a boyfriend her second year in, Champ Hardy, but they ended after a few months and hadn't heard of anyone else. Sometimes she worried about Waverly being all by herself, but seeing her smiling face on her screen always made her feel better.
"They're good. You know, they would really love to see you. Every Sunday that I see them they talk about you." Nicole told Waverly. Ever since she left, they always told Nicole stories about Waverly and her childhood, and they loved to tell her stories about times before she had even moved.
"Waverly! Winter wants you!" Nicole heard a voice shout in the background of the call, before she saw Wynonna come into sight. "Oh, shit. Hey, Nicole." She said with an awkward smile and a wave.
"Wynonna. Are you two staying together?" Nicole asked, even though she already learned the answer from Shorty. "Wait, who's Winter?"
"Um, yeah we've been staying together for a while now. Nicky, I have to go. I'll talk to you soon okay? Love you!" Waverly said, before quickly ending the call.
Nicole leaned back into her sofa once again, and let out a sigh.
It was all coming together for Nicole. Shorty telling her not to surprise Waverly, her not telling her about moving back in with Wynonna, Waverly ending the call so quickly, whoever the hell Winter was. Waverly had a secret. And Nicole was going to find out what it was.