nicky hemmick masterlist (fave moments/most heart wrenching for me bolded)

juliansalec:

• Nicholas Hemmick was the only one who looked genuinely happy to see Neil, and he stepped up to the curb at Neil’s approach.
  
• “If you take  German as your elective here, just let me know and  I’ll tutor you. I’m good with my tongue.”
  
• “That’s not okay.” Neil said, pointing at the door. “That’s nothing.” Nicky said. Neil caught his arm as Nicky passed and hauled him to a stop. “Don’t let him get away with things like that.” Nicky considered him for a moment, his smile fading into something small and tired. 
  
• He smiled when he saw Neil. “Hey stranger,”  Nicky said. “What did you think of Matt?” “He seems fine,” Neil said, not slowing on his way by. “He is fine,” Nicky called after him with a laugh. 
• “I’m not willing to give up on them yet. I want to fix this.”
  
• Surprisingly, it was Nicky who found the strength to cross the room toward her. He crouched in front of her, moving slow like he thought she’d run off if he startled her, and gazed up into her face. “Hey,” Nicky said, soft and nice like the two of them hadn’t spent all summer cutting each other down on the court. “Is there anything we can do?”
• Neil expected him to fall, but Nicky slung an arm around Andrew’s shoulders and yanked Andrew close to him. It let him take some of Andrew’s weight without it being too obvious what he was doing. Andrew looked ready to say something about the unasked-for help, but Nicky didn’t give him a chance to argue. He pumped his fist and whooped. “That was awesome! We are going to own this season!”
• “Kid, you’re killing me,” Nicky said. “Why do you always get that deer-in-headlights look when someone does something nice for you?”
  
• “I can’t.” It was too ragged and too honest, but Neil couldn’t help it. If he didn’t get rid of that phone he was going to be sick. “Nicky, I-” “Okay, okay,” Nicky said, taking Neil’s hand in both of his. “We’ll figure it out.”
  
• “You’re family, so i can tell you”
  
• “I thought I could show Aaron and Andrew how to be brothers again. And I’m not giving up.”
  
• “I thought God abandoned me; sometimes I thought I failed Him. Halfway through my junior year I started thinking about suicide.”
  
• “Erik Klose,” Nicky said, sounding it out like he was saying it for the first time. “He taught me to believe in myself. He showed me how to balance my faith and my sexuality, and he made me okay again. I know it sounds dramatic, but he saved my life.”
  
• It could have been the most awkward dinner in the world if not for Nicky. Nicky hated how isolated the twins were and was desperate to make friends with the rest of the team. It was as if he’d developed a sudden allergy to silence. Any time the conversation started to slow he threw out another topic to salvage it.
• Nicky cradled Andrew’s face in his hands. 
  
• Nicky trudged across the room and sank into one of the empty chairs. He dropped his phone on the table and buried his face in his hands. Abby slid into the seat beside him and wound an arm around his shoulders.  Nicky leaned against her but said nothing else. 
• Nicky caught hold of Matt’s wrist instead. “Thank you,” Nicky said, quiet but fervent. “I don’t know why you did it, but–thanks.”
• Nicky reached out and scrubbed a gloved hand through Neil’s hair. “You are going to be the absolute death of me,” Nicky said. “Yeah, kid. We’re friends. You’re stuck with us, like it or not.”
• “It’s not really about the food. It’s about family. Not necessarily the one we were born with, but the one we chose. This one,” Nicky emphasized, gesturing between them. “The people we trust to be part of our lives. The people we care about.”
  
• Nicky, on the other hand, looked absolutely crushed as he took in Neil’s wrecked appearance. He reached out as soon as Neil was close enough and wrapped his hand around the back of Neil’s head. Nicky was tense as stone but the long breath he let out was shaky. “Oh, Neil,” he said in a choked voice. 
• He could hear pain in his voice, thick enough to slur his words. Nicky looked stricken with guilt. “I can’t yet.” “I’m sorry,” Nicky said. “I didn’t–I wasn’t thinking. Here, here. Let me. I’ve got it.”
• Nicky was too afraid to go after Andrew, so he slowly dropped to his knees and slid a hand across the asphalt. He curled his fingers around Allison’s and gave her hand a tight squeeze. 
• Nicky blew them a kiss when he was handed his red card. 
• “We’re such hot shit sometimes!”
  
• Nicky was a disconsolate mess near the window
• “A dashboard lighter.” He winced at the awful sound Nicky made. 
  
• “You can’t have him,” Nicky said. “He belongs with us.”
  
• “Neil or Nathaniel or whoever,” Nicky said. “He’s ours, and we’re not letting him go. You want us to vote on it or something? Be you it’ll be unanimous.”
  
• “As a family.” Nicky attempted a smile. It was weak but it was encouraging.