Chapter 21

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Nini
  I close the door with much more force than I intended, causing me to flinch from my own action. I don't necessarily know if it was good that Ricky stood up for us girls or not. He scared and put his hands on a kid in the process and it's just...weird to see him the way he was. I'm starting to think it's always weird when I see him in positions that I never could before. I lay down in a frustrated sigh before realizing I was still in jeans and an uncomfortable top. I force myself up before grabbing shorts and a t-shirt out of my closet and discreetly opening my door quietly to head to the bathroom down the hall. I get a small peek of Ricky, who was laying on the couch, watching TV alone. I immediately knew that it was the Simpsons, and I wanted to do nothing but go over there and watch with him, but that would just be out of both our comfort zones.
  I rush to the bathroom and close the door my more gently this time before I change and brush my teeth. Afterwards, I put my hair in a low bun and make my way back to my room with much silence. Well...silence that is..not very quiet. I'm a loud ass person, don't blame me.

Flashback
I pick up the phone call, but not before noticing that it was 4 in the morning.
"Hello?.." I say quietly, eyes still shut.
"Hey. I didn't expect you to pick up..wow." The guy says, making me question who it was since I didn't look at the caller ID.
  "Uhm..I'm-I'm sorry who is this?" I groan, flipping onto my side.
  "Oh. It's EJ."
  "Oh..I- alright. C-can I help you with something? It's pretty early.."
  "I'm sorry to bother you, I just.. I can't get you off my mind.."
  My eyes open slowly, but in shock.
  "What?" I question.
  "I know you and Ricky broke up like a month ago, and that we...I..didn't hang onto our relationship for very long. I've been quiet about it and I don't think I can hold it in much more." He responds. I hear shuffling in the background.
  "What? EJ...why are you calling me?"
  "I..miss you. I would've walked off of the stage when I saw you and Ricky if I could've. I get that it's probably not the best time right now and that the guys in your life are assholes but..bare with me when I say that I need you in my life, and more than just friends."
  I sit up in concern. It's 4 AM...I'm half awake and my ex..just told me that he wants me back.
  "EJ I-...that was...extremely straight forwards. Are you drinking? Are you at another party?" I already knew the answer. I just wanted clarification since I have seen him illegally drink before.
  "What?! No Nini. I'm not drunk. It's..weird hearing from me right now, I'm sure but, I feel this way and I couldn't wait till Monday to tell you. And this time, I'll do it right. I'll give you space, I-I'll stop snooping, I'll let you be who you are. I ca-"
  "EJ..It's way to early and I..I'm struggling to process the things your saying. And..I'm still recovering from hell I thought I had already faced with you. I can't lie though, I can't say that I haven't thought about you every now and then." It's true. I genuinely have. He managed to really change over the coarse of the play. "I probably don't even know half the things I'm saying but I think you came on...a little too strong."
  "Right..right. I'll just. I'll let you go back to sleep. I'm sorry.."
  "Wait no!" I say, making sure he doesn't hang up. I didn't even know that was in me. "I..probably can't even sleep anymore now that you called me.."
  "Which I'm sorry for.." he says.
   "So..if you want we can stay up and talk..." I finish, surprised from my words.
   "Really?"
   "Uh yeah. For sure." My voice changes quickly, as if I'm trying to impress him.
   "Cool. Sorry for waking you up..once again." He repeats.
   "It's..cool. Trust me."


***

  I wake up in a rather normal position, causing me to worry and shuffle my head around as if I was looking for any injuries. I sigh when I realized I was in no danger and immediately, I drop my head back down onto the pillow.

Ricky
  I've been awake since 4 and I've just been looking around the place. I wanted to go on a run but I then soon realized that I haven't been here for years and that I'd probably get lost in the first 5 minutes. So I've been up making breakfast. Pancakes, eggs, bacon and orange juice lay neatly on the table.
I don't know why I bother sometimes. It's fucking what? 7:18 in the morning. There's no way in actual hell that Nini could possibly be awake right now, making the breakfast cold.
I turn off the stove and wash my hands with mere regret. It was the fact that Nini thought that I was going to hit her that made me stay up. I get that I was..extremely frustrated and loud but I am no where near capable of laying a hand on someone so close to me, especially her. I regret telling her the story. She probably thinks I'm an abuser or some shit.
I dry my hands with a towel and throw the towel onto my shoulder before taking it off again to clean the counter. I don't get it. Not once have I see her become scared of anything, and I don't plan on being her first.
"Did I do something wrong?" I would ask her. "Do I scare you now?"
I don't know if I'm over reacting or if I'm just mentally unstable but it was that one moment that can make me over think things just like that.
I scrub the counter till I could see myself in it and place the towel once again onto my shoulder. I might as well eat now, I can save the food for her later.
I give a large sigh before making my way to the large, glass, dining room table where I had placed everything. It was weird. Seeing the evenly placed food items so far apart from each other. It just reminds me of Nini and I. How far, but close we are to each other. We would've been a toxic relationship if we stayed together. There are moments where it's heart breaking but necessary, and I am still in the phase of heart break.
I sit down and grab the fork that was placed on a napkin I laid out thinking was neat, and stab the scrambled egg before roughly shoving it into my mouth. I chew with much reluctance and thought. I stab another piece, but I wasn't fazed to put it in my mouth, so I instead, pick the food like an 8 year old who wouldn't eat their vegetables.
"Your just going to eat without me?.." I hear a voice say, causing me to look up with hope.
"I-I didn't know you were awake," I say, looking at the figure leaning against the wall.

Chapter 21. I hope you enjoyed!

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I can't wait for all 3 chapters to be released. I'm sorry I'm making you guys wait so long!

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Word count: 1308

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