"Oh c'mon Ni" EJ pleads. "Please it's just eight days and will cost you nothing" Of course, just eight days to her is far too much time away from the recording studio. "I really really like her"
"You really really like practically anyone, remember Brenda?" She deadpans, throwing peppermint into cups of steaming hot chocolate.
"Hey!" , she gives him a funny look, like she's about to burst out laughing. "Okay fine yes I've liked some questionable people whatever"
"Some?" She raises her eyebrows, handing him a mug. "THE POINT IS, SHES DIFFERENT"
Nini laughs shamelessly at him. "Don't be such a bitch, you've met her you like her"
"True, she's an angel, no idea what she sees in you though" He rolls his eyes, deciding to ignore her. "It'll be fun! At least then we don't have to keep pretending it's not boiling outside" he points to the cooler Nini has turned on blasting in their faces. "Literally Nini you've turned out apartment into fucking Antarctica I can't do this anymore."
"I have to write before work starts again, it's literally ten days before I'm back to eleven hours a day six days a week"
"You can take your stuff, plus Ash and Red are gonna come along, you love writing with her" He smiles nervously, hoping that will be enough. He can see her walls of stubbornness starting to falter, his smile turns sly and she immediately gets up, death staring him, trying to escape. "Please please please please please please please please please please please please" he speed walks behind her, chanting continuously. She starts to run and he follows, easily putting a hand on both her arms, lifting her up. "Please please please please please"
"IF I SAY YES WILL YOU SHUT UP? JESUS CHRIST YES EJ YES I WILL GO TO YOUR STUPID HOLIDAY HOUSE IN ASPEN, PUT ME DOWN BEFORE I PUNCH YOU"
"YES THANK YOU" he puts her down. "And socialize with my girlfriend and her friends?" She glares at him again. "You know Nina, you really need to get those anger issues in check."
Before she gets a chance to respond, there's a loud thumping noise coming from below their feet.
"Keep it down you idiots! I'm going to call the police!" A voice croaks, they burst out laughing.
"Oh yeah? call th-!" EJ slaps his hand against her mouth, both of them still laughing uncontrollably. "SORRY MRS CRAWLEY". he yells out, unclasping his hand. "You're fucking crazy" he whispers, walking away from her, smiling. She follows him to the kitchen, pulling out Christmas dinner left overs from last night from the fridge.
He gets the plates out as she carefully unwraps Carol's neatly placed cling wrap and foil under the container. He had spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at the Salazar-Roberts house as usual, just as he had every year since senior year, Ashlyn had joined them for dinner too, after spending the day with her parents.
"Nothing beats Malou's fusion Christmas dinner" he says, already sitting at the table. She joins him a minute later. "You came home late last night, I didn't even hear you" she brings up, in an attempt to nonchalantly bring up how he disappeared shortly after dinner last night.
He blushes, looking down at his plate. "We went to the beach, she made eggnog and gingerbread cookies, watched the sun come up" he mumbles out, trying to mush the details. "Look at you living your little hallmark movie"
"Oh shut up, also we leave tomorrow morning then? Yeah?"
"Yeah" she says, seeing how happy he is "I'm happy for you Eej, you deserve this" her expression is genuine, he smiles, taking pride in her saying that.
He calls Gina after lunch, so excited that he's practically bouncing off the walls.
