Work Text:
Ellie's shift at the hospital ran late, and now she was trying to quietly unlock the door so she wouldn't wake her roommate. However, when she opened the door, she immediately leaned against it: the light in the living room still lit, and someone's muffled voices came to her ears. Muttering curses, flaring her nostrils in anger, she clutched her bag in her hands, intending to make her way to her bedroom unnoticed. Had he broken the rule and brought his girlfriend without telling her, she thought as sneaking down the hallway past the living room. Her curiosity overcame her and she peeked inside, opening the door slightly. Slapping herself on the forehead, she opened the door wider and found voices coming from the running TV, and Nick himself asleep on the couch, his face tucked into a pillow and one hand hanging off the floor.
She managed to pull the remote from his grasp and turn off the TV. He winced and turned around to her, rubbing his eyes, trying to figure out where he was.
"Hmm, why did you turn it off? I was actually watching..." he mumbled in a sleepy voice, yawning.
"Yeah...and what were you looking at with your eyes closed?" Ellie flopped down on the couch, throwing his feet to the floor, and leaned back on the cushions, relaxing after a long day at work.
"Never mind... Why are you still in your hospital uniform? How was your date?"
Ellie turned her head toward him and widened her eyes in horror, realizing that she'd forgotten all about her date. She opened her bag and shook the contents onto the floor, looking for her phone, intending to call her date.
"Discharged...damn...what am I going to do? Surely he must think I ditched him?" Finding a charger, she sat down on the floor near the outlet, waiting for her phone to come to life. The messages immediately started coming in one by one. Ellie whimpered while opening each one, and after reading the last one, she was ready to burst into tears.
"Hey... Is everything okay?" Nick moved a little closer to her and peered over her shoulder, but what he managed to read he didn't like, apparently neither did Ellie herself.
"Why does he think you and I are more than just roommates? What have you told him?"
Nick threw up his hands in surprise and shook his head, assuring her that he hadn't spoken to him at all.
"I don't even remember his name! And what makes you think it's my fault anyway?"
Ellie bit her lower lip as she reread the messages and, sighing, rested her forehead on the seat of the couch. Of course, he could decide that there was something between her and Nick besides friendship and a shared apartment, she wouldn't stop talking about him: Nick did this, Nick doesn't like that, and Nick joked like this.
"Geez...I'm a dumbass. I'm going to be forever alone... Time to buy cats, huh?"
Nick grunted and, not holding back, laughed out loud. Rubbing his watery eyes and not noticing even the hint of a smile on Ellie's face, he pulled her back onto the couch beside him.
"You were talking about me again, and telling my stupid joke?"
"Ha-ha, Nick. I'm sorry, I couldn't help it. That joke of yours is so ridiculous, but why do I keep laughing at it?"
"Huh, I don't know, baby... And forget about the cats...just call him and explain that you got held up at work...if he likes you, he'll understand, and if he doesn't, then he's the biggest jerk on the planet if he decided to reject you..." Nick put his arm around her shoulders and stroked her hand, making Ellie breathe out tiredly as she pressed herself against him.
"Mhm..." The silence in their apartment at this late hour, and the quiet breathing and warmth coming from Nick finally thawed her out, and she only closed her eyes for a second.
Waking up in her own bed in the morning was a huge surprise to her. The aroma of coffee in the kitchen beckoned, and after a quick visit to the shower, she strode into the kitchen, joining Nick at the table.
"Did you get enough sleep? How are you feeling?" Nick slid the coffee pot and her favorite cup with the crown painted on it to her - his gift from last year.
"Mm-hmm, better, I think," she replied, her voice still hoarse from sleep. As she sipped her coffee, she leaned her head against his shoulder, as was her usual habit, and stared at one spot, pondering her own thoughts.
Nick hummed and finished his coffee, continuing to wait patiently for Ellie to finish her ritual of, as he liked to joke, going to the astral. When she sighed softly, Nick pecked her on the temple and went to his room to get ready for work.
Of course, he was sorry that his friend missed the date, but he couldn't help thinking that he was actually more happy about that fact than upset. He didn't take his feelings for her seriously, thinking it was just because they lived together and even spent their free time together. They became quite close friends, and once she even sent him to the store, because she herself could barely get out of bed because of her cramps, to the very section that many men avoid like fire. That day he was ready to fall through the ground while standing at the cash register, and he was already determined that he would move to another apartment. However, when she hugged him and kissed him on the cheek as thanks, calling him her hero, he couldn't imagine living with anyone else. The urge to grumble immediately disappeared, and for the sake of her radiant happy face, he was ready for anything.
An unfamiliar feeling of jealousy suddenly awoke in him as she began to talk with this guy. She asked him what to wear to a date with this guy, showing him her dresses, as if she perceived him as her female friend. He couldn't sleep or eat all evening, waiting for her to return. To distract himself, he turned on her favorite movie, but, as usual, fell asleep in the middle, never being able to watch it even once to the end.
All week long, Ellie tried to talk to Sam, but he avoided her, dropped her calls, and didn't answer her messages. Almost every night, Nick comforted her, telling her that he'd come to his senses and crawl to her himself to apologize. She wanted to believe him, but was becoming more and more convinced that she didn't want him back. The man she wanted was always there for her. Maybe Sam noticed and understood it right away, unlike she did.
"... Nick... I think I have a date," she murmured one morning, smiling shyly.
"Wow...so Sam stopped acting like a little boy who didn't get a toy car after all?"
"Um, I don't know..."
"So, wait, wait...then with who? Although...no, you better not say. And try not to talk about me this time, okay?" Nick swallowed nervously, realizing that Ellie had recovered quickly from Sam and was already ready for a new relationship.
Ellie smiled a little wider and nodded her head in agreement with him. "Can you help with the dress?" she asked as he packed his bag for work.
"Um, put on that...um, burgundy one? And don't forget the matching lipstick, I think he'll like it..." Nick quickly put on his shoes and throwing his bag on his shoulder, ran to work. Ellie bit her lip, and giggled, as she looked him over.
Rubbing her palms together, she headed for the bedroom, humming his favorite song under her breath. "...Well, Torres...I hope you're right."
Nick returned later than usual, not wanting to see his friend going on another date, continuing to ask for advice on that. Dropping his bag at the front door, he hung up his jacket, and tossed his shoes into the closet. He walked to his room, rubbing the back of his head and decided not to turn on the light in the hallway leading to the bedrooms, which he soon regretted when he ran into the stepladder.
"...I told you to clean that shit up after changing the light bulb. Anyway, why did you climb up there all by yourself...?" He grumbled to nothing, but as he fumbled for a switch, he saw a piece of paper glued to the top step and didn't immediately figure out what it was about.
Nick. I don't know if I can tell you this in person, but I think I'm in love. You're my closest friend and you know I can't hide things from you. You're the first person I share everything that's going on with me. These feelings overwhelm me and I don't think I can find the right words to describe them, and one piece of paper is definitely not enough for that. Just know that I love YOU, Nick. I love you so much...
Ellie
P.S. Date on our balcony? Dress code, babe! ♥️
After rereading the lines several times, he wanted to run straight to their little balcony that connected their bedrooms, but he decided to do as she asked. Smoothing his hair, he examined himself in the mirror: far from perfect for a first date, but still better than just jeans and an old T-shirt.
Ellie stood on the balcony, lit by flickering candle lanterns, leaning her arms on the railing, looking out at the city at night. She put on that dress he'd been talking about and waited for him. Waiting, not even sure if he would come to her at all. His quiet footsteps echoed behind her, and she smiled, still afraid to turn to him.
"... Ellie," he whispered, and his voice was more nervous than ever.
"Nick...you came..." She turned to him, assessing his appearance: for the first time, he was wearing something other than his worn black jeans or medical uniform.
He smiled uncertainly at her, stepping closer. "How could I not come on a date with such a pretty girl... Ellie, you look beautiful..." he kissed her hand, which made her smile at him.
"... Thank you. You...too... - she answered uneasily as goosebumps ran down her body when she felt his hot breath on her hand.
Keeping her eyes on him, she moved closer to him and he put his arm around her waist, letting her snuggle into him and rest her head on his shoulder. He stroked her bare back, warming her with his warmth, swaying to the beat of the soft music.
"I...too...love you..."
Ellie lifted her head and smiled as she touched his lips with hers. He repeated the words she'd written in the note she'd longed to hear from him. If he only knew, how many times she had rewritten the words and almost changed her mind about her decision to confess to him, afraid of losing him forever if he didn't feel the same way.
His tender and long kiss washed away all her worries, and if she had to relive the day all over again, she would say yes without hesitation-it was worth it.