One Shot
“Move it, nerd.” “Why don’t you make me, whore?” I yelled back at Demi Lovato, the most popular girl in school. Everyone in the hallway that was within earshot of us gasped. Who did the nerdy kid think he was, calling out Miss Popularity. They all knew what I said was true though, they were just too scared to say it to her face themselves. Now it was Demi’s turn to come up with some rude remark that would hurt me and leave me in tears. “Last time I checked, it’s you who’s the whore. Seeing as you decided that while we were dating, it would be okay to sleep with my best friend, and then her best friend, and then her best friend, and then her best friend, and so on…” She trailed off. The crowd erupted into a bunch of “OHHH”s, at her clever snap back. I didn’t want to say anything else bad to her because, I didn’t want to hurt her... I had done that badly enough to her when I cheated on her while we were dating. So I figured it would be best to just nod my head and walk away, but that wasn’t possible. I guess word about our little “verbal argument” in the hallway had gotten out to the principal. Just as I was about to walk about, I saw the short, stocky, bald man, known as “Mr. Williams”, the school principal, standing there, gesturing for me and Demi to follow him.
We were escorted to the principal’s office by Mr. Williams, himself. “You.” He said, coldly, while pointing at me. “Yes, sir?” I asked, trying to stay calm. I found it almost impossible to do though, I hadn’t been called to the principal’s office since Demi and I stopped dating, two years ago. “Sit, here.” He commanded, while pointing at one of the two chairs in front of his desk. I nodded my head and did as I was told. Then he did almost the exact same thing to Demi, except he directed her towards the seat next to me. Once both of us had our spots, he went to his seat, behind his large, oak, desk, and went right into it. “What the hell was that out there, in the hallway?” He yelled. I noticed Demi looked scared and vulnerable, nothing like the usual “strong” image she sent across to everyone else. I was sure that it was partially because she knew if she got into any trouble, she could be kicked off the cheer squad in an instant. Cheerleading was her life, everyone, especially me, knew that. She wanted to be a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader when she grew up. I’m sure one little detention couldn’t hurt her but I didn’t want to risk the chance. I decided that maybe I should be the one to speak up. So I did. “Mr. Williams, sir, it wasn’t Demi’s fault, it was mine. I started yelling at her for no reason. She just yelled back to defend herself. But if it wasn’t for me saying anything in the first place, she wouldn’t need to defend herself. If anyone deserves to be punished it’s me, not her.” I noticed how shocked Demi looked that I came to her defense. It was understandable why she would be though, we hadn’t talked since we broke up after I cheated on her almost two years ago. Thinking back on it, I realize how dumb I was to let someone as amazing as her go. Mr. Williams snapped me out of my thoughts. “Alright, Nicholas. Since you were so honest with me, I’m going to give you a two hour detention after school today.” I nodded my head, showing that I understood my consequences. “Yes, sir.” “And Ms Lovato?” He questioned. She looked up and the scared look returned to her face. “Despite what Nicholas has said, I don’t think that’s the full story. So I’ve decided I will be giving you a two hour detention as well. You can both return to your class now.” He dismissed us and then began typing on his computer. Oh boy, two hours, after school, in detention, with my ex girlfriend… This would be great!
*After school, in the detention room*
I was the first one to arrive in the bland room, known as detention. It was obvious from the size and setup of the room that it would be a very small crowd in here, today… There was only two seats, and a desk. I took the seat closest to the window, figuring the view of the outside world would occupy me for the two hours I was forced to spend here. Five minutes later, Demi entered the room. She didn’t look like she wanted to be here at all… Who could blame her though? I didn’t either. She took the other seat next to me and just sat at her spot, texting. I didn’t want to be a cock block and tell her to put it away but, then again, I didn’t want her to get in even more trouble either. So I just kept my mouth shut.
A few minutes later, the detention monitor, don’t even bother asking me his name because I have no freaking idea what it is, entered the room. And the first thing he did was snap at Demi. “Ms Lovato, you’re in detention, not at the nail salon. Put the phone away for the next two hours or it will be mine.” He snapped. Demi did as she was told and chucked her phone in her bag. Normally, she would have talked back and told the teacher off, but not today. Instead, she sunk down in her chair and began playing with her nails. Mr. Whatever his name is cleared his throat, causing both myself and Demi to look up at him. “Now, in case you weren’t aware, this is detention. I know you don’t want to be here but how do you think I feel? I have other things to be doing. Since there’s only two of you today, I’m going to be leaving in about 5 minutes. That means I’m trusting you two alone for the remained hour and fifty-five minutes. Don’t kill each other or anyone else. If there’s a fire, go through the window and call 911. That’s pretty much it. Enjoy yourselves.” Once he finished speaking, Demi went back to picking at her cuticles and I continued staring at the window.
After whoever the hell that guy is left, I looked over at Demi. She looked so sad. I picked up my desk and shifted it towards her. The sudden movement must have caught her off guard but she played it off well. “How have you been, Demi?” I asked, in a gentle voice. “Alright. My mom finally beat the cancer. How about you, how have you been?” I smiled when she told me the news about her mom. That was a battle she was facing for years and Demi was always so worried the battle would eventually win. “That’s great, Dems! I always told you she would beat it.” Without realizing it, I had snuck my nickname for her into that last sentence. I hadn’t called her Dems in years. It felt great to be saying it again. “And, uh, I’ve been pretty good. My parents are so happy I’ve been focused on school lately. Dad wants me to follow in his footsteps and become a lawyer.” I said, a little disappointed. I loved my dad and as much as I wanted to make him happy, being a lawyer wasn’t my dream… It was his. I think Demi caught on to my disappointment. “Are you still writing songs?” She asked. I smiled and nodded my head. I couldn’t believe she remembered that. “Yeah, not as much as I used to though. I kind of have to hide it from my parents. They think music’s a waste of time and it won’t get me anywhere.” Demi reached her hand out and gently stroked my arm. “They don’t know what they’re talking about then. You’re an amazing singer and songwriter, Nick, you’re gonna go places. Trust me.” I looked up at her after she gave me her little words of encouragement. As I looked into her dark brown eyes, I saw the girl that I had been in love with for so many years. She wasn’t this bratty cheerleader who only cared about herself, she was the Demi Lovato I had come to know as my best friend, and a few years later, my girlfriend. I couldn’t help but smile at the beautiful woman in front of me.
We had about an hour left in detention. After we started talking, time just flew by. Demi had an idea for us to go in the music room so I could play her one of the most recent songs I’d written. On the walk there, I had to decide which one I wanted to play. It wasn’t a tough choice though, I knew what I wanted to play. I was going to play the song I wrote for her after we broke up and she went on vacation to California with her, at the time, boyfriend. Their relationship was short lived, nothing like ours, but that’s besides the point. I stepped aside and let Demi enter the room first, I followed close behind. I pulled up a chair for her as well as one for myself. While she got situated, I found what I was looking for, my favorite guitar that I kept at the school. It was a two year anniversary gift from Demi and I couldn’t leave something that special at home so I kept it in the band room. Demi’s face light up when I pulled out the guitar. I made my way over to the stool next to her and played around with the strings, making sure everything was in the perfect tone before I played my song for her. When I was sure everything was set, I began. “Hello, beautiful, how’s it going? I hear it’s wonderful, in California. I’ve been missing you, it’s true. But tonight, I’m gonna fly. Yeah, tonight, I’m gonna fly. Cause I could go across the world and see everything and never be satisfied, if I couldn’t see those eyes. Hello, beautiful, it’s been a long time, since my phone’s rung and you’ve been on that line. I’ve been missing you, it’s true. But tonight, I’m gonna fly. Yeah, tonight, I’m gonna fly. Cause I could go across the world and see everything and never be satisfied…” I paused for a moment, letting her take in my words. She was about to start clapping but I gently put her hand back on her lap, before finishing the last few words of the song. “if I couldn’t see those eyes.” I bowed my head and Demi went crazy. “Nicholas, that is the most beautiful song I’ve ever heard in my life!!” I was so happy she liked it. Now, I just had to figure out the hard part, how to tell her the song is about her….
“I’m really glad you like it because there’s kinda something I want to tell you.” She tilted her head to the side a little. “What’s up?” I took her hands in mine and prepared to let it all out. “Demi, when we were together, I was the happiest I’d ever been in my entire life. You made me smile by doing the littlest things and that’s one of the many things I loved about you. I was an idiot to think that just because you wanted to wait to have sex meant I had the right to sleep around. And even when I was with them, I compared every single girl to you and not one of them could even match up to how amazing you are. That song I just played for you, it's about you. I wrote it when you were with Chris on vacation together. I know we’ve had our differences and find it hard to get along but I just want you to know this, not once have I ever stopped thinking about you. I never stopped caring about you. And, most importantly, I never stopped loving you.” When I had said all that was on my mind, I felt 100 pounds lighter. I had wanted to tell her that for so long. I let go of her hands and got up to return my guitar to it’s rightful spot. I turned around and saw Demi standing right there with that beautiful smile on her face. “I never stopped loving you either, Nick.”
I smiled at her response and felt myself leaning closer as Demi did the same. Our lips were just about to touch when we felt a shaking in the ground. Neither of us had any idea what was going on or what we were supposed to do. I flashed back to what we learned in 9th grade science about earthquakes. No, we couldn’t be going through an earthquake right now… It was just me and Demi in this school, no one else. What if we got stuck in here? Similar, or even worse, thoughts must have been running through Demi’s mind because I noticed she was panicking. I couldn’t risk the two of us getting trapped in the building, something had to be done. I picked Demi up, flung her over my shoulder, and ran out the building towards my car. It wasn’t one of the smartest ideas I ever had. If an earthquake ever occurred, you were supposed to get down and wait until it passed. But I wasn’t sure how long this would last and if we would get trapped there. When my silver Mustang was in sight, I picked up my speed. Then, I opened the back door and laid Demi down on the back seat and I got in next to her. We crouched down behind the drivers and passengers seats and waited.
30 minutes later, the shaking stopped and I assumed it was now safe to get up. Demi and I must have fallen asleep because I don’t remember sitting through the entire earthquake. I looked down and saw I was lying on top of Demi, with my arms wrapped around her to keep her safe. She had a big smile on her face. I loved seeing that smile. I leaned down and placed a soft kiss on the side of her head. It easily awakened her and when her eyes came open, she, once again, had that giant smile on her face. “Did you really mean what you said earlier?” I asked, very anxious to know. She looked up at me and nodded. “Every word, Nicholas.” We both looked into each other’s eyes and leaned in. When our lips touched, for the first time in two years, the fireworks went off, just like they used to.
Yes, our story is definitely different than most peoples. But we wouldn’t have it any other way. Sometimes all you need is a detention and a little state of emergency to realize who “the one” is.
We were escorted to the principal’s office by Mr. Williams, himself. “You.” He said, coldly, while pointing at me. “Yes, sir?” I asked, trying to stay calm. I found it almost impossible to do though, I hadn’t been called to the principal’s office since Demi and I stopped dating, two years ago. “Sit, here.” He commanded, while pointing at one of the two chairs in front of his desk. I nodded my head and did as I was told. Then he did almost the exact same thing to Demi, except he directed her towards the seat next to me. Once both of us had our spots, he went to his seat, behind his large, oak, desk, and went right into it. “What the hell was that out there, in the hallway?” He yelled. I noticed Demi looked scared and vulnerable, nothing like the usual “strong” image she sent across to everyone else. I was sure that it was partially because she knew if she got into any trouble, she could be kicked off the cheer squad in an instant. Cheerleading was her life, everyone, especially me, knew that. She wanted to be a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader when she grew up. I’m sure one little detention couldn’t hurt her but I didn’t want to risk the chance. I decided that maybe I should be the one to speak up. So I did. “Mr. Williams, sir, it wasn’t Demi’s fault, it was mine. I started yelling at her for no reason. She just yelled back to defend herself. But if it wasn’t for me saying anything in the first place, she wouldn’t need to defend herself. If anyone deserves to be punished it’s me, not her.” I noticed how shocked Demi looked that I came to her defense. It was understandable why she would be though, we hadn’t talked since we broke up after I cheated on her almost two years ago. Thinking back on it, I realize how dumb I was to let someone as amazing as her go. Mr. Williams snapped me out of my thoughts. “Alright, Nicholas. Since you were so honest with me, I’m going to give you a two hour detention after school today.” I nodded my head, showing that I understood my consequences. “Yes, sir.” “And Ms Lovato?” He questioned. She looked up and the scared look returned to her face. “Despite what Nicholas has said, I don’t think that’s the full story. So I’ve decided I will be giving you a two hour detention as well. You can both return to your class now.” He dismissed us and then began typing on his computer. Oh boy, two hours, after school, in detention, with my ex girlfriend… This would be great!
*After school, in the detention room*
I was the first one to arrive in the bland room, known as detention. It was obvious from the size and setup of the room that it would be a very small crowd in here, today… There was only two seats, and a desk. I took the seat closest to the window, figuring the view of the outside world would occupy me for the two hours I was forced to spend here. Five minutes later, Demi entered the room. She didn’t look like she wanted to be here at all… Who could blame her though? I didn’t either. She took the other seat next to me and just sat at her spot, texting. I didn’t want to be a cock block and tell her to put it away but, then again, I didn’t want her to get in even more trouble either. So I just kept my mouth shut.
A few minutes later, the detention monitor, don’t even bother asking me his name because I have no freaking idea what it is, entered the room. And the first thing he did was snap at Demi. “Ms Lovato, you’re in detention, not at the nail salon. Put the phone away for the next two hours or it will be mine.” He snapped. Demi did as she was told and chucked her phone in her bag. Normally, she would have talked back and told the teacher off, but not today. Instead, she sunk down in her chair and began playing with her nails. Mr. Whatever his name is cleared his throat, causing both myself and Demi to look up at him. “Now, in case you weren’t aware, this is detention. I know you don’t want to be here but how do you think I feel? I have other things to be doing. Since there’s only two of you today, I’m going to be leaving in about 5 minutes. That means I’m trusting you two alone for the remained hour and fifty-five minutes. Don’t kill each other or anyone else. If there’s a fire, go through the window and call 911. That’s pretty much it. Enjoy yourselves.” Once he finished speaking, Demi went back to picking at her cuticles and I continued staring at the window.
After whoever the hell that guy is left, I looked over at Demi. She looked so sad. I picked up my desk and shifted it towards her. The sudden movement must have caught her off guard but she played it off well. “How have you been, Demi?” I asked, in a gentle voice. “Alright. My mom finally beat the cancer. How about you, how have you been?” I smiled when she told me the news about her mom. That was a battle she was facing for years and Demi was always so worried the battle would eventually win. “That’s great, Dems! I always told you she would beat it.” Without realizing it, I had snuck my nickname for her into that last sentence. I hadn’t called her Dems in years. It felt great to be saying it again. “And, uh, I’ve been pretty good. My parents are so happy I’ve been focused on school lately. Dad wants me to follow in his footsteps and become a lawyer.” I said, a little disappointed. I loved my dad and as much as I wanted to make him happy, being a lawyer wasn’t my dream… It was his. I think Demi caught on to my disappointment. “Are you still writing songs?” She asked. I smiled and nodded my head. I couldn’t believe she remembered that. “Yeah, not as much as I used to though. I kind of have to hide it from my parents. They think music’s a waste of time and it won’t get me anywhere.” Demi reached her hand out and gently stroked my arm. “They don’t know what they’re talking about then. You’re an amazing singer and songwriter, Nick, you’re gonna go places. Trust me.” I looked up at her after she gave me her little words of encouragement. As I looked into her dark brown eyes, I saw the girl that I had been in love with for so many years. She wasn’t this bratty cheerleader who only cared about herself, she was the Demi Lovato I had come to know as my best friend, and a few years later, my girlfriend. I couldn’t help but smile at the beautiful woman in front of me.
We had about an hour left in detention. After we started talking, time just flew by. Demi had an idea for us to go in the music room so I could play her one of the most recent songs I’d written. On the walk there, I had to decide which one I wanted to play. It wasn’t a tough choice though, I knew what I wanted to play. I was going to play the song I wrote for her after we broke up and she went on vacation to California with her, at the time, boyfriend. Their relationship was short lived, nothing like ours, but that’s besides the point. I stepped aside and let Demi enter the room first, I followed close behind. I pulled up a chair for her as well as one for myself. While she got situated, I found what I was looking for, my favorite guitar that I kept at the school. It was a two year anniversary gift from Demi and I couldn’t leave something that special at home so I kept it in the band room. Demi’s face light up when I pulled out the guitar. I made my way over to the stool next to her and played around with the strings, making sure everything was in the perfect tone before I played my song for her. When I was sure everything was set, I began. “Hello, beautiful, how’s it going? I hear it’s wonderful, in California. I’ve been missing you, it’s true. But tonight, I’m gonna fly. Yeah, tonight, I’m gonna fly. Cause I could go across the world and see everything and never be satisfied, if I couldn’t see those eyes. Hello, beautiful, it’s been a long time, since my phone’s rung and you’ve been on that line. I’ve been missing you, it’s true. But tonight, I’m gonna fly. Yeah, tonight, I’m gonna fly. Cause I could go across the world and see everything and never be satisfied…” I paused for a moment, letting her take in my words. She was about to start clapping but I gently put her hand back on her lap, before finishing the last few words of the song. “if I couldn’t see those eyes.” I bowed my head and Demi went crazy. “Nicholas, that is the most beautiful song I’ve ever heard in my life!!” I was so happy she liked it. Now, I just had to figure out the hard part, how to tell her the song is about her….
“I’m really glad you like it because there’s kinda something I want to tell you.” She tilted her head to the side a little. “What’s up?” I took her hands in mine and prepared to let it all out. “Demi, when we were together, I was the happiest I’d ever been in my entire life. You made me smile by doing the littlest things and that’s one of the many things I loved about you. I was an idiot to think that just because you wanted to wait to have sex meant I had the right to sleep around. And even when I was with them, I compared every single girl to you and not one of them could even match up to how amazing you are. That song I just played for you, it's about you. I wrote it when you were with Chris on vacation together. I know we’ve had our differences and find it hard to get along but I just want you to know this, not once have I ever stopped thinking about you. I never stopped caring about you. And, most importantly, I never stopped loving you.” When I had said all that was on my mind, I felt 100 pounds lighter. I had wanted to tell her that for so long. I let go of her hands and got up to return my guitar to it’s rightful spot. I turned around and saw Demi standing right there with that beautiful smile on her face. “I never stopped loving you either, Nick.”
I smiled at her response and felt myself leaning closer as Demi did the same. Our lips were just about to touch when we felt a shaking in the ground. Neither of us had any idea what was going on or what we were supposed to do. I flashed back to what we learned in 9th grade science about earthquakes. No, we couldn’t be going through an earthquake right now… It was just me and Demi in this school, no one else. What if we got stuck in here? Similar, or even worse, thoughts must have been running through Demi’s mind because I noticed she was panicking. I couldn’t risk the two of us getting trapped in the building, something had to be done. I picked Demi up, flung her over my shoulder, and ran out the building towards my car. It wasn’t one of the smartest ideas I ever had. If an earthquake ever occurred, you were supposed to get down and wait until it passed. But I wasn’t sure how long this would last and if we would get trapped there. When my silver Mustang was in sight, I picked up my speed. Then, I opened the back door and laid Demi down on the back seat and I got in next to her. We crouched down behind the drivers and passengers seats and waited.
30 minutes later, the shaking stopped and I assumed it was now safe to get up. Demi and I must have fallen asleep because I don’t remember sitting through the entire earthquake. I looked down and saw I was lying on top of Demi, with my arms wrapped around her to keep her safe. She had a big smile on her face. I loved seeing that smile. I leaned down and placed a soft kiss on the side of her head. It easily awakened her and when her eyes came open, she, once again, had that giant smile on her face. “Did you really mean what you said earlier?” I asked, very anxious to know. She looked up at me and nodded. “Every word, Nicholas.” We both looked into each other’s eyes and leaned in. When our lips touched, for the first time in two years, the fireworks went off, just like they used to.
Yes, our story is definitely different than most peoples. But we wouldn’t have it any other way. Sometimes all you need is a detention and a little state of emergency to realize who “the one” is.