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In truth Nick doesn’t know why he keeps coming back. He’d been asked about once or twice by either a noisy intviewer looking for the hook of their clickbait headline or a well meaning employee wondering why he’d pop in at least once a year with or without a film crew. No matter who asked, no matter how delicately the question fell from their lips. Nick never could give a clear answer or any answer for that matter.
He still remembers when he found out it was closing, he’d never picked up the phone so fast, lucky he had a tv show at the time with a budget that would fund the trip. But a part of him knew it didn’t matter. Nothing could've stopped him from going one last time. Whatever tv show he was working on at the time wasn’t meaningful, none of them had been not since… Well he’d liked spending time with other people’s ghosts, not his own for a reason.So once again he finds himself in the basement of Bobby Mackey’s Music World portal to hell and all. Early in the day his team had come through and rigged the place with cameras leaving him with only wishes of good luck. Alongside the cameras and various pieces of ghost hunting gear. After the last of his crew and the building's employees left. Near the start of his night Nick felt that something was off, monologuing to the camera as he made his way down into the basement “I don’t know guys, I know it’s still early in the night but this time already feels different, maybe the spirits know some type of change is coming? And they're upset? If anyone here is upset about anything give me a sign” After a moment of silence Nick heard a loud creaking noise, not that it was that complying of evidence given how old the building was but it something. He’s sure they could make it seem more complying in post.Nick continued his monologue “If that was a ghost, you’ve got to try something harder than that to prove to me you're here.” Nick found himself moving into one of the side rooms of the basement partly because he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was watching him. Nick continued “Like always this place has such a strong energy but other than the normal Bobby Macky’s stuff the ghosts don’t seem more upset than usual anyway.”
He continued moving through the basement trying to get some kind of meaningful EMF readings in one of the numerous cold spots. When suddenly he heard above him near barely audible arguing, he couldn't make out what the voices were saying or even if they were male or female but there was no doubt their at least two voices coming from somewhere up stairs. Nick whispered to the camera “I have no clue if that was picked up but I think thats the sound of two voices fighting up stairs” Nick paused and hoped the camera would pick it up as the argument continued especially as the voices raised in volume. It became clear to Nick that the voices were clearly both male he still could quite make out what they were fighting about.
“This is crazy,” Nick stated to the camera “It's so clear, I’m slightly worried it may be an employee, who forgot something. So when in doubt let's check it out.” Nick made his way across the basement, the voices faded the closer he made it to the stairwell, Nick found himself worried that it really was two employees and not concrete proof of the paranormal. But when he was near the stairwell he heard the door at the top of the stairs slam shut, cleary creaking echoed as someone or something made their way down the stairs. Despite all his decades of doing this Nick could help but feel his stomach drop as the knowledge that he’d soon be faced with something became an inevitability. Nick didn’t know if he wanted a ghost or a crazy person. However he’s sure both would do well rates wise. Whatever it was moved quickly before Nick could even think of a game plan. Before he knew it he saw who that something was.
Without any warning nor build up Nick Groff was face to face, with the literal manifest of the ghost that had haunted both his career and his personal life, Zak Baggins. In a state of shock Nick placed his camera down on the dusty ground. After that, all he could say was a dumbfounded “You came back.” Zak awkwardly shifted his feet before simply stating
“Yeah, I think something kept trying to pull me back here and well you know how hard that… call is hard to ignore.” his voice trailed off near the end, leaving the pair in silence.In all his years Nick had thought about how this conversation would have played out. It varied, based on his mood or how much he’d had to drink that night or a bit of both. In the early years the Zak in his head never fought back, Nick was able to unload his rage, his hurt on him and he’d just take it. On particularly positive days he’d even get a “I’m sorry.” from Zak. On darker days the Zak in his head fought back spitting all of Nick’s insecurity back at him. Most days Nick didn’t know which one he wanted more. But in recent years he mellowed time works slowly but it seemed to heal most wounds. Because of this the encounters in Nick’s head grew more emotional, tears shed on both sides, alongside heartfelt apologies mixed in with “I love yous”But in that moment in the conversation he spent the past ten years day dreaming about all Nick could do was snort a small smirk spread across his face and the words “You watched my shows?” careless fell from his month before Nick could think it
through. Zak goes red all over while Nick smirk grows at that information. After a moment
Zak finally retorts “Yeah I- guess- I don’t know if you know but that guy might be the hotness ghost hunter in the game.” The room is silent for a moment before the pair break out into a fit of laughter. This was the Zak Nick loved.
The laughter faded and Nick responded “Well, I don’t know about that. The main dude from Ghost Adventures isn’t too hard on the eyes.” Zak smiled and Nick was keenly aware of the deeping crows feet around Zak’s eyes that weren’t there 10 years ago. There was another lul in conversion before “Look I know we-” “I shouldn’t have le-” They cut each other off. An uncomfortable silence once again takes over the room.
They sit in for moment before Nick moves ironically sitting on the well that several people cited as the true portal to hell “I’ve never be proud of how we- I left everything” Nick picks at one of his fingernails not wanting to see Zak’s expression in that moment “I always through about picking up the phone reaching out but I could never bring myself to do it.” Zak sighs sitting next to Nick. When they were younger they always joked that they would end up dragging each other to hell now they were literally finding themselves sitting on the edge of that possibility. “Phones work both ways. I shouldn’t have let you walk away. Not like that anyway.” Nick smiles, it's small yet meaningful “Why are you here Zak? You have been back si-” He cuts himself off but they both know that the sentence ends with an unspoken since I was in the crew .Zak took a pause before answering, to Nick it seemed like he almost sunken in on himself. In that moment Nick knows he’s one of the few people who see the Paranormal Princess like this, with all his doubt, fear and self-loathing on display they're a weird pride in Nick that even with how it ended Zak still feels safe showing Nick this side of him. “If I tell you that twitter really wanted one more episode here would you be willing to drop?” Nick gently shakes his head, talking around the truth is how they ended up here.
Zak sallows looking down at the floor, carefully he says “We were on location when they announced they were knocking down the building, and Aaron, you know Aaron” Yeah Nick knew him, once a lifetime ago. Zak continued finally looking at Nick “He keep going on and on about how this really was a true end of era, like for the whole shoot and in the car after we wrapped he keep going on about it and I- I snapped asked him why he was so fucking obsessed with some old building and he got quiet really fucking quiet and then muttered something about how it was a symbol of us of this of everything we built, as the three of us… and he was surprised I wasn’t more beat up about it… and then we spent the the rest of the ride in silence.”
His voice cracked at the end he then paused for a second and then in no louder than a whisper he said “But I do care, I did, I cared so much please you got to believe me Nick, please.” Nick moves closer; they knock knees at silent acknowledgement that yes Nick believed him. Zak eyes were welling up as he continued “This is going to sound dumb but I’d get these dreams from time to time about us ending up back in here together, sometimes Billy, Jay and Aarron are there too like it was some network mandate halloween crossover making us actually fight it out though sometimes, we’d talk it out.” Zak trailed off once again looking at his feet.Nick felt a chill up his spine, he knew that wasn’t from a ghost. Carefully almost as if he was trying not to spook a small animal Nick said “What about the other times?” Zak looks at him replying with a soft “Huh?” Nick looks him dead in the eyes and says “The other times you have that dream what happens?” Zak looked to Nick moving ever so closers to him, there legs now fully touching “It’s like this quiet, just the two off us, at the start it always felt like a memory like the fight and fallout didn't happen, like it was a moment we’d have to cut out of the show,” Nick’s feels his eyes almost unwilling start to tear up as Zak continues “You’d look at me like I was still your world, and I’d look at you like you were the sun and everything in my life was brighter because you were in it and I knew everything was gonna be okay” “Was it?” Nick once again spoke without thinking, Zak nodded his head “Yeah I think so, I never knew though. I’d go to lean in,” Slowly Zak leaned in. When Zak spoke next Nick could feel his breath hot on his mouth “Then you lean in” Zak paused for effect ever the showman he continued “And then without fail I’d wake up.”Both their eyes were watering as their faces were barely inches apart and for what felt like the hundredth time that night Nick acted without thinking. His hands found their way to Zak’s neck using them to brace himself as he gently leaned in just a touch further, kissing Zak on the lips. For a split second Zak froze unmoving, and for that split second Nick feared he lost a second chance at the best thing in his life. But then Zak kissed back. The kiss was slow at first both were exploring each other again like relearning how to ride a bike but slowly they found their rhythm again, together, whatever metaphor that could’ve been used didn’t matter, what mattered is they both felt 10 years younger like the time without the other hadn’t passed.Once they had to pull back for air both were bright red with big dumb smiles across their faces. They took a beat then Nick spoke “So not a dream this time?” Zak laughed, Nick never knew how much he could miss a sound. “Yeah, not a dream thank god.” They sit together and for the first time in years the silence is comfortable. Nick rests his head on Zak’s shoulder, the angels are a bit odd and his neck will hate him come tomorrow but in that moment Nick can’t bring himself to care. At the moment he just wants to listen to Zak’s breathing and smell his cologne. He needed proof that this was real, and not just another specter of his imagination.Zak was the first one to break the silence, clearing his throat. “So full disclosure, I may have told Aaron about this plan, ya know to stop myself from pussying out at the last minute and he insisted he come along too, ya know to stop me from pussying out and he won't say but he is sentimental as fuck and he may have been waiting up stairs this whole time.” Nick chuckled, hiding his face in the crook Zak’s neck,
Zak continued “So, what do you say Groff, wanna do another lockdown, just the three of us or two I’m sure we can find a room to lock Aaron in and make-out like the good old days.” Nick doesn’t answer, rather he grabs Zak’s hand pulling them both up, pulling Zak into a quick kiss. They both pull away after a moment. “Come on Bagans, let’s not keep him waiting any longer.”They walk up stairs hand in hand, arm in arm. When they made it up to the stairs they were greeted by Aaron dutifully studying some of the photos on the wall no doubt in a bid to pretend like he wasn’t trying to listen in on the downstairs conversion. He turned wolf whistling when he saw the pair holding hands, both with matching big dumb smiles on their face, hair slightly askew. Aaron smiled at them before pulling them both into a bear hug “Welcome back Groff. Miss ya you idiot.” Nick replied “You too Goodwin, you too.” The trio pulled apart. Aaron moved to grab a camera off the table and was the first to say “So you boys ready to get this show on the road?” Nick nodded, standing next to Zak as he spoke “Hell yeah.”
Zak launched into the intro, and for the first time in a decade it felt genuine after all these years they were finally back to documenting their Ghost Adventures. Of course Nick knew deep down it wasn’t going to be that essay to fix. After all, once this night was done they both had to email their respective networks explaining nicely in no uncertain terms that Nick was back on Ghost Adventures Crew and that his first episode back could be the final trip to Bobby Mackey’s and this time nothing would stop them.
But beyond that there were still hard conversations to be had. This wasn’t a Hugh Grant movie; two kisses wouldn’t fix their several decades of shared baggage but it was a start, it counted for something. Nick felt like he could finally breathe again for the first time in a decade.But all and all it felt unbelievable. He's sure some smartass on the internet will claim that this story was made up by a crackpot PR team when they inevitably tell the story of how this unlikely reunion came to be. But then again what was the official unofficial motto from their youth?
Neither of them believed it could happen until they came face to face with the possibility of a future together.