Nikki Meets the Kendalls Part 3 by Purple Dragon Nicky's favourite place in the world was a small islet in the lake, where he could be the girl he really was without anyone around. until the Kendalls came.   As always, feedback is welcomed and encouraged.

She went towards the quay and started running, his anxiety as high as never before. She threw up. She couldn't think. She got the boat and started rowing towards the shore, away from the island."
 
 
Nikki Meets the Kendalls - Part 3
 
"You told her what??", exclaimed Beth when her mother was telling what has happened. "Are you stupid or something?".

"Don't talk to me like that, young lady. I'm your mother!".

Beth threw up her hands in indignation.

"I wasn't trying to be mean or to hurt him!", exclaimed her mother, "I was just trying to tell him that his parents would be okay with it, that they wouldn't throw him away or disown him or anything! That I understood how he felt! I like that kid, honest!"

"Her! Not him! And it seems that you don't have a clue about how she feels after all!"

She stared at the floor.

"I guess you're right, Beth. I'm so sorry, I really didn't want to hurt him... her"

Beth sighed. "I'll try to find her."

~o~

"Where's Nikki?", asked Alice to her sister, "Why did she go away like that?"

Nikki's escape had been watched by all of the Kendall kids, but it was so sudden that none of them could really understand what was happening until she was already gone.

"Did something happen between mom and her? What happened?". They had all seen Amy talking to her right before her face turned suddenly pale and she fled away. They knew that something had happened.

"She's not picking up her phone calls.", interrupted Tom. "Should we go after her?"

"She might need some space", added Beth. "I'm worried about her though. I wish I could talk to her."

"I want her to come back!", stated little Emily. "Can you tell her to come back, please?". She wasn't exactly sure of what was going on, but she could sense that something was wrong.

"We'll bring her back, kitten", said Beth, hugging her. "It will be okay, don't worry".

~o~

Beth phoned Nikki's brother, James, to tell him about what had happened. They were becoming quite good friends. They had talked a lot about Nikki's situation, how to help her open up about her feelings, and how they would support her no matter what. Beth had been absolutely right in her first impression about James: he was a caring brother that adored his two younger sisters.

"Keep an eye on her, please. You should have seen her face when she run away, she seemed so heartbroken. She deserves something better.How can my mom be so stupid?"

"I'll try to talk to her when she comes home. I hope so, at least. It's not easy to talk to her anymore, she is not easy to engage in a conversation. I loved to see her opening up so much to your siblings. I hope that what has happened hasn't ruined it."

As much as it hurt, James knew her sister well enough to know that she would avoid talking about whatever she felt to anyone in the family, and he feared that she would eventually extend that to the Kendalls too.

As expected, Nikki didn't go to the island the following days. He kept going out of his home every afternoon with her bike, as she always did, and got lost without giving any explanation about where she went and what she did. James knew that she wasn't hanging out with the Kendalls anymore, as Beth and him were keeping each other informed.

Samantha didn't know much about who she still considered her brother Nicky.

She was 14 going on 15, a year younger than Nicky, and though they had been really close when younger, they didn't even talk too much to each other nowadays. It had been nice that they were so close when little kids, and Sam missed him lots, but she also knew that things change between boys and girls when they become older, and she was a girl, and he was a boy.

She had managed to build an emotional wall between Nicky and him, and she worked hard to refuse having any interest in anything related to him. This wall was somehow cracking since they shared Alice Kendall as a common friend.

Alice asked lots of things about him, and about when they were younger, and she seemed to have a deep interest in him, but not as dating material. She knew for sure, she had already asked her explicitly. She was much younger than him, in any case, though.

Alice had told her that Nicky was not going to the island anymore,but didn't tell her why. She didn't even tell her that her brother was in fact her sister. It was so wierd that Sam or their parents hadn't ever noticed how girlish he was. There is probably no one more blind than those who don't want to see.

The funniest thing was that neither Samantha nor their parents had noticed anything unusual, and weren't even aware that something was going on. He was grumpy as always, he stuck to himself in his room all the time he was at home, he went alone with his bike every afternoon. Only James knew better.

~o~

The Kendalls didn't get to see Nicky again until Sunday, at Church. Nikki escaped again as soon as the ceremony finished, staying out of the way of the kids, teens and adults that were trying to socialize afterwards.

"I need some time with her, alone", asked Alice to Beth and James. "Please, can you make sure that no one comes to bother us?"

"We will. Go ahead, Alice."

Nikki was sitting on top of a stone, within some trees, and out of sight. She had some earphones on and was listening to music at a somehow high volume, while she was reading a book. She did that often, it helped her not to think about stuff.

"Hi, girlfriend", said Alice, pressing the button to stop the music.

Nikki removed her earphones and looked at her. She wanted to say some nasty things to throw her away. Didn't she know he was a freak? A pervert? Her own mother had told him so. Alice was a nice girl, she didn't deserve nasty, but she wanted everyone to leave her alone.

Alice hugged her suddenly. "I missed you, Nikki".

Nikki's facade suddenly fell, she hugged back her friend and started to cry.

End of Part 3