Chapter 39
Nick had just finished rehearsals for the day and Amanda had come over to the house to hang out for a while.
"So, Nick...the Grammy Awards are coming. Did you get an invite?" AJ asked as he came into the kitchen.
"Crap! I forgot all about that!" Nick exclaimed, slapping his forehead.
"You're in the music industry. How the hell do you forget the Grammy's?" Amanda laughed.
"I have been so busy dealing with...HER, that I forgot I was nominated for Record Of The Year." Nick said. AJ and Amanda stared at him in shock.
"Record Of The Year? That is a big
award!"
"I know that, Jay. I have to be there, but I need a date. Its gonna look bad if I show up alone." Nick told them as Joey walked into the room. They all looked at him in surprise. Joey hardly left his room because he worked strange hours and slept during the day.
"Hi, Joey." Amanda smiled.
"Hey." he said. Joey got a drink from the fridge and sat down at the table with them. Nick gave him a funny look but then continued.
"Amanda, would you mind coming to the Grammys with me? As friends?" Nick asked. Amanda felt a little disappointed by the just friends comment, but she had never been to an awards show, how could she pass that up?
"Sure! There is a problem...what the hell do I wear?" Amanda asked. She knew she didn't have anything exciting in her wardrobe for the awards show, and would be embarrassed to show up in something that came from Macy's or Walmart.
"I'm sure we can work something out." Nick replied.
"Nick, the Grammys are in two weeks!" Amanda snapped. Most celebrities had months to prepare for an awards show. Their dresses took a long time to prepare. It was then that Joey surprised everyone by speaking up.
"I could help with that." he said, and everyone turned to look at him.
"What do you mean, Joey?" Nick asked. Joey smiled and led Amanda down the stairs to his room in the basement. Nick followed out of curiosity and Aaron trailed behind him. They were all in awe at his room, it was filled with fabric and measuring tape, drawings of clothes...boxes of sequins and lace.
"Joey...what is all this?" Amanda asked with a stunned expression.
"I design clothes for a living. I could design your dress for the Grammys." Joey replied.
"Wow, this is amazing." Amanda said as she looked through his sketch pad. Joey seemed talented enough to pull it off.
"I had no idea you did any of this." Nick replied.
"Well, your brother is a big help...right Aaron?" Joey said, and Aaron nodded as he came into the room.
"He is?" Nick asked, raising an eyebrow. He was happy that his brother had found something he liked to do, but deep down he wished his brother wanted to pursue music. Nick decided he would be happy with no matter what Aaron wanted to do for a living. Two weeks later, the dress was finished, and Amanda came to the house to have it fitted. She stood in front of the mirror and checked it over carefully.
"What are you doing?" Nick asked, laughing.
"Making sure Aaron didn't mess with it like he did to Katie's dress." Amanda replied.
"He really likes you..I wouldn't worry about it." Nick told her. The awards show was in Los Angeles, so she and Nick flew there and stayed in a hotel together. Amanda was amazed at the treatment Nick received. It was really the first time she had ever seen him act like the celebrity he was. They rode in limos and flew first class, and the hotel room was enormous and extravagant. The whole time, Nick was still Nick....the one she grew up with. His demeanor never changed even though people treated him like a rockstar. Amanda got ready for the awards show in their hotel room and when she came out there was a man standing with Nick in the kitchen area. He was about Brian's height, a foot shorter than Nick. He looked very handsome in the suit he was wearing.
"You must be Amanda. Its a pleasure to meet you." the man replied with a smile.
"This is my new manager, Howie." Nick explained. Howie was one of AJ's friends and he introduced the two of them after Nick had fired his old manager. Nick was happy with Howie so far, he was a lot nicer than his old one.
"Nice to meet you." Amanda grinned. The three of them got into their limo and drove to the Staples Center.
"How you feeling?" Nick asked after a period of silence. Amanda looked beautiful that night, the dress Joey had made looked gorgeous and Nick couldn't stop staring at her.
"Nervous." she replied, playing with her strap on her handbag. Nick took her hand in his, and their heartbeats were in sync with one another.
"It will be fine...trust me." Nick said, looking into her eyes.
"So are the two of you dating?" Howie asked, noticing the chemistry they seemed to have.
"Oh, we are just friends." Nick said. Amanda felt like crying...she knew Nick loved her. They were both single now, and she had dumped Brian for him. Throughout the night he kept telling people they were just friends. Amanda did not say anything to him, but secretly wanted to slap him. She couldn't understand why he had not asked her out or at least told her his feelings for her. Nick won his award for Record Of The Year, he was so happy he kissed her. They finally got back to the hotel at 5 in the morning...Nick sleeping off the champagne he had been drinking. As she watched him sleep, Amanda hoped he was dreaming of her.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Sorry for the delay in updating! Enjoy!
