The party went as well as could be expected.
Nini's performance was spectacular (just as Ricky said it would be). He was still nervous to propose but he had the perfect idea on how to do it.
Currently, they were in his car driving home in a comfortable silence albeit with the music on the radio playing softly in the background.
"Hey Neens..." Ricky broke the silence.
"Hmm" she hummed, looking at him and grabbing his hand. He smiled and gave it a gentle squeeze.
"I was thinking that we should start a new tradition..." he started and she raised an eyebrow in curiosity.
"What? You mean ruining my cookies for the past two years isn't tradition?" She joked.
He rolled his eyes in response. "Well, we should add another tradition then..." he continued. She sighed and turned to him so she was facing him completely.
"Alright, Bowen... lay it on me. What is this new tradition you speak of?" She asked, curiously. They had just made it back to their apartment complex so he decided to park the car before answering her. "So, I was thinking... you know how when we met, you had no Christmas tree?"
She nodded.
"What if we go to that same park this year and got another poor excuse for a Christmas tree? It could be our thing, you know?" He smiled.
She laughed and nodded her head.
"I love that idea, but what about your actual Christmas tree that you put up?" He just shrugged his shoulders. "We can put both up. One in the living room and one in the bedroom or something." He suggested.
"Well Ricky Bowen, I think that is a wonderful new tradition." She whispered as she put her lips against his.
"You free tomorrow?" He smirked, pulling away. She pretended to think about it for a minute.
"I'll have to see if I can fit you into my schedule, but it shouldn't be a problem." She said as she pretended to look at her phone's calendar. "Oh, look at that. I'm free!" She exclaimed.
He smirked. "I'll pick you up at 6pm in our living room." He winked.
"I'll be there." She joked back.
*****
"Alright Nini, we just need a couple more takes from you, and then you're free to go home." Ryan Anderson, the man producing her new album, told her through the speaker.
She gave him a thumbs up through the large glass window in the studio and began another take of her new song. Nini wanted nothing more than to finish recording so she could get home and wait in the living room for her boyfriend to pick her up for their little "date."
Nini was in the process of driving home when she began counting her blessings.
If you would have told her last year that within a year, she would have the greatest boyfriend imaginable and become a recording artist, she genuinely would have laughed at you. She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't hear the large honking of car horns until it was too late.
"Holy-" she began and then she felt it. She felt the impact, she felt the car flip over, and she felt the airbag go off.
Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion as little memories of her friends and family flooded her mind. The thought of one last person flooded her mind as she descended into blackness.
******
Ricky Bowen was sat on the living room couch mindlessly strumming random melodies on his acoustic, waiting for his girlfriend to walk through the front door so they could go get their lousy Christmas tree.
As time seemed to pass, he grew more and more confused. It was 7 o'clock at night and Nini was supposed to be home an hour and a half ago. If she was late, she would call him. He had just decided to call the studio when his phone started ringing with an unknown number, and for some odd reason, that gave him an uneasy feeling.
"Hello?"
"Hi... is this Richard Bowen?" A female said on the other end.
"This is he. I'm sorry, who am I speaking with?"
"My name is Caroline. I'm calling from Salt Lake Memorial Hospital. Do you know a Nina Salazar-Roberts?" She questioned, and Ricky's heart stopped.
He couldn't move. No... god no. Not Nini.
"Y-yeah" he said shakily. "That's my girlfriend. What happened? Is she okay?" He asked, quickly.
It was silent for a moment on the other end and he checked to make sure the call wasn't disconnected when he heard her voice again.
"I'm so sorry, Mr. Bowen, but I think you need to get to the hospital." The lady said, abruptly hanging up.
*****
Ricky sped to the hospital as fast as he could, not even bothering to park. He ran to the front desk in the ER.
"My name is Richard Bowen" he said quickly. "My girlfriend Nina Salazar-Roberts came in. Where is she?! I need to see my girlfriend!" He panicked. "Let me check, hon. Give me one minute, please." The receptionist told him.
A fuse was lit in him.
"I don't have a god damn minute! Tell me where my girlfriend is!" He yelled. "Sir, I-" The receptionist, who's name is Gladys started but Ricky interrupted her yet again, causing a scene. "Don't 'sir' me! Type faster or open the doors and I'll find Nina myself!" He yelled.
"Nina? As in Nina Roberts?" He heard someone say.
He looked up and saw a middle aged nurse. "Are you Richard Bowen?" She asked. He nodded.
"I'm Caroline... follow me." She said, motioning for him to follow. He thought she was gonna take him to Nini's room, but she pulled him into some sort of doctors lounge. She shut the door and turned to him with a sad look on her face and what came out of her mouth next completely and utterly destroyed his world.
"I'm so sorry, Mr. Bowen. The surgeon did everything he could, but there were too many complications." She said, sadly and the only thing he could do was collapse.
******
Deafening silence was all Ricky heard when he received that news. The only thing he could do was collapse to the ground.
"T-tell me you're joking." He said in between his sobs.
She sighed and sat down beside him on the floor, placing a comforting hand on his knee. "I know this is hard to take in, but there was nothing they could do. She had internal bleeding, and they weren't able to stop it. From what I've been told, the accident was really bad." Caroline said, sympathetically.
Ricky shook his head in disbelief.
"We... we were gonna get married." He whispered, mostly to himself. "Well, I planned on asking her tonight. She was the one." He cried harder, and there was nothing Caroline could do except to try and give him some comfort. They were silent for a while as Ricky cried, but eventually Caroline had to get back to work. She stood up and started making her way towards the door when Ricky's voice stopped her in her tracks.
"W-what ha-happened?" He asked, looking up at her. "I really don't know much. If you want, I could call the officer in charge and have him meet you here. We tried contacting her parents as well, but it kept going to voicemail." Ricky only stared at the wall and nodded in response.
Sighing, Caroline left the room and Ricky sobbed harder.
Why? Why her? Why me?
He never understood how life could be going so great one minute, and then be completely destroyed the next. He also knew deep down that he would never be able to move on from this.
Nini is... or was the love of his life. How the hell was he supposed to go home and move on and be okay?!
Hours had passed and Ricky managed to pull himself together enough for him to call a cab to take him home.
******
As soon as he opened the door, a switch flipped inside of him and he was filled with rage.
He soon began destroying the apartment, and he didn't realize how much time had passed until he felt a pair of arms around him. He tried to resist but finally gave into his sobs and deflated into Kourtney's arms.
Kourtney held him and let him cry, although she was crying too. "Shhh, Ricky. I'm here... she wouldn't want you to destroy this place." Kourtney tried, but Ricky just saw red.
"How the hell am I gonna move on, Kourtney? She's gone! Just like that! BAM! Everything was great last night and this morning and then this happens?! How can something like this happen to someone as kind as she is?! Hmm?!" He screamed.
Kourtney sniffled. "I don't know, Ricky. Bad things happen to good people all the time, and she was my best friend. We all lost her, Ricky. I'm not saying we should move on right away, because let's be honest... we'll never move on, but you know she wouldn't want this." Kourt said, and Ricky sighed knowing she was right.
"Do you know what happened? I asked the nurse at the hospital, but she didn't know." Ricky said.
Kourtney nodded and sighed. "It was a drunk driver. Apparently she was going through a green light when the guy ran his red light. I was told that witnesses claimed they tried honking but she couldn't stop in time." She told him and he just stared into space.
"There's more..." she said after a minute. He nodded and gave the go ahead for her to continue. "The police said her car flipped and was in extremely bad condition." Ricky sniffled and stood up.
There was one more thought that plagued his mind.
"The driver. What happened to that son of a bitch?" Kourtney looked down, silent and that was the only answer he needed. "That drunk prick gets to survive but Nini has to die?!" Ricky fumed.
"I know, Ricky. I know." She stood up and looked around.
"Let's clean this place up, okay? For Nini." Kourtney said, looking around at various things Ricky flipped, threw, or broke.
"Hey Kourt..." Ricky started.
"Yeah?" She asked softly.
"I'm sorry for you, too. She might've been my girlfriend but you've known her for her entire life and I know you're going through it just as much as I am. We'll get through this together. We have to. For her." He said, looking down.
Kourt just gave him a sad smile and pulled him in for a hug, and right now, that would have to do.
******
Ricky woke up the next morning drenched in sweat.
He took a minute to compose himself before looking to his left. When he finally managed to look over, he let out a huge sigh of relief. Right there, sleeping peacefully next to him was none other than Nina Salazar-Roberts... and their lame, decorated little Christmas tree.
He won't lie... the world was cruel for giving him such a terrible nightmare. It had felt so real. He could've sworn that it was real. Regardless of that, though, he leant over and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear before getting up and quietly making his way into the ensuite bathroom. He cringed when he looked at himself in the bathroom mirror. Being covered in sweat with dried tears on his face was not the most attractive look.
He splashed some water on his face and sighed heavily, replaying that nightmare in his head.
It was only when he felt a pair of arms wrap around his waist and a kiss being pressed between his shoulder blades that he was pulled out of his thoughts about why the world had been unusually cruel to him on his favorite holiday.
He opened his eyes and saw her petite figure standing behind him in the mirror, and he turned around. Before she could say anything, he grabbed her, dipped her and kissed her senseless.
Although nothing had technically happened to her, the nightmare felt real enough, and he wasn't gonna waste another minute of not being able to show her how much he loves her. After a couple of minutes, oxygen became necessary so he had no choice but to pull away.
"Well, good morning and Merry Christmas to you too, handsome." She told him, smiling. "What did I do to deserve that present?" She asked.
"I did that because I love you so much." He told her, sincerely.
She chuckled.
"I love you so much, too, and that was the perfect gift to wake up to." She told him as they made their way to the living room.
He sat down on the couch and pulled her down so she was sitting on top of him.
"Whoa!" She giggled as she stumbled onto his lap.
"What is with you this morning, Bowen? You're being extra cuddly and kissable." She questioned, raising her eyebrows.
He chuckled.
"Do I need a reason to shower my beautiful girlfriend with love and cuddles and kisses? Besides, it's Christmas, which means it's our anniversary!"
Nini turned herself around so she was straddling his lap. "Oh yeah! Merry Christmas and happy anniversary, my love." She said as she ran her fingers through his curls. He smiled brightly in response and kissed her again, never wanting to get enough of her.
"Merry Christmas and Happy anniversary to you, too. Can I tell you something?" He said and asked her and she nodded her head for him to continue.
He leaned in to her a little more so their lips were basically pressed against each other's. "You're the love of my life..." he whispered.
She smiled. "Yeah?"
He smiled and nodded against her forehead. "Yeah..." he whispered.
They spent the next couple of minutes giving each other soft kisses and whispering sweet nothings to each other before she eventually found the strength to pull away from him.
"Cookies, eggnog, and It's a Wonderful Life?" She asked as she made her way towards the kitchen.
"Definitely. As long as you throw some cuddles and kisses into that mix!" He said, smiling when he heard her contagious laugh.
He knew she was no doubt rolling her eyes at him and that thought made him love her even more.
His eyes were wandering around their apartment when they suddenly landed on his gym bag. He quickly (but silently) got up and made his way towards his bag, pulling out that tiny, velvet box. He planned on proposing later on at night when they exchanged their gifts after dinner, but he decided that ultimately... he didn't care what she got him because she is the perfect gift, and they say that there's no time like the present.
Ricky glanced back over his shoulder to make sure his girlfriend was still in the kitchen. Without another thought, he quickly stuffed the ring in the pocket of his sweats and walked to the kitchen, pulling his girlfriend dressed in a ridiculous penguin onesie out of it, out their apartment, and into the hallway.
He dragged her about halfway down the hallway, stopping under a specific fire sprinkler.
"Ricky, what the hell are you doing? Why are we in the middle of the freaking hallway?!" She questioned.
"We're standing under some mistletoe." He smiled and she furrowed her eyebrows, yet again confused by her boyfriend's antics.
"What are you talking about..." she began as she looked up, and he took this moment of distraction as an opportunity to kneel on one knee- "that's not..." she looked back down and threw her hands over her mouth in shock.
"Ricky..." she whispered as tears brimmed her eyes.
"One year ago, today I received the greatest gift of my entire life. What started out as me trying to help you with your groceries and you ignoring me, and then me weaseling my way into your life, to kissing you under this ridiculous mistletoe has been all I could've asked for in life. And while you are my greatest gift, there's just three more things that would make it the perfect gift... he said, elusively.
She chuckled and sniffled and smiled at the same time and raised an eyebrow waiting for him to continue.
He looked down for a second, willing his tears to stay back before looking at her again. "Waking up to you every morning for the rest of our life, being able to call you my wife, and starting a family with you would be my perfect gift. So, Nina Isobel Salazar-Roberts... will you please make my Christmas morning by giving me the perfect gift and marry me?" He asked.
She smiled brightly and nodded, enthusiastically.
"Yes!!! Yes in every language! Oui, sì, da, tak, YES!!!!!" She exclaimed, pulling him up and throwing herself into his arms. He laughed and smiled brightly, placing the elegant ring on her finger before kissing her senseless under their favorite version of mistletoe.
"I'll never be able to top that gift, asshole!" She smiled as she pulled away from the kiss to shove his shoulder lightly.
He laughed and rolled his eyes lightly. "You are the perfect gift." He said as he pulled her back in.
"You're my perfect gift, too."
_____________________________________
C'est fini!!
Next up- the epilogue. It's coming soon. STOP PRESSURING ME.