"Nini-panini-lamborghini-zucchini-queenie-bikini!!!!" Nini was suddenly attacked by a scrawny red head at the JFK airport.
"It's good to see you too, Red." Nini said laughing and hugging her best friend. In the distance, she could see Ricky and Ashlyn walking at a normal pace and taking their time, unlike Red.
"I'm so glad to see you, Neens." Red said panting. "I'm so nervous, I'm gonna die."
Nini smiled and touched his arm comfortingly. "You're gonna be alright, Red. But I'm afraid we don't have time for a pep talk right now, because our significant others are quickly catching up with us."
"Hi Ash! I missed you so much." Nini hugged Ashlyn tightly. "You look amazing by the way."
"Thank you! I was born this way." Ashlyn flipped her hair jokingly. "And thank you for waiting for us Big Red... "
Ashlyn rolled her eyes and Red laughed nervously, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. Nini sensed that Red was about to pee his pants, so she linked her arm with Ashlyn's pulling her to walk away from Red. However, she barely took one step when she heard Ricky clear his throat extremely loudly. She decided to tease him and kept walking. Obviously, he had to be a child and kept coughing all the way to the taxi stand.
"Oh for goodness sake. Can I help you Mr. Bowen?" Nini turned around and rolled her eyes playfully as they waited for their cab.
"I would like my girlfriend to not ignore me, please." Ricky pouted. "You didn't even greet me."
Nini wanted to kiss that pout off his face, but instead put her hand up in the air.
"What?" Ricky asked confused.
"Gimme five, Curly!"
"Who are you and what have you done to my girlfriend?" Ricky high-fived her uncertainly and interlaced his fingers with hers. She laughed and turned around, but he didn't let go of her hand, spinning her around in one swift move, and pulled her towards him in one swift move. His lips met hers in a searing kiss that made her head spin and completely forgot that she was at the airport with Red and Ashlyn. Their eyes locked and she leaned forward to kiss him again, this time savoring the moment, appreciating how soft his lips were against hers, how his hand gripped her waist so perfectly like it belonged there, the way he smelled like freshly brewed coffee and tasted like brownies. She was so in love with this man that if he ever asked, she would marry him on the spot.
"Lovebirds, let's go!" Red shouted.
"Come on, babe." Ricky put an arm around her and walked with her.
________
The timer dinged signaling that it was time to take the turkey out. Ricky and Nini were in the middle of a movie, but Nini jumped up and rushed to the kitchen soon as she heard the sound.
Ricky heard the clanging of pots and pans, and a loud yelp from the kitchen. Worried that Nini might have hurt herself, he decided to check it out for himself.
"Baby, you okay?" Ricky said as he entered the kitchen.
"Yeah. I'm fine, totally fine." Nini said in a very non-convincing way. She had her hand hidden behind her and her face was contorted in pain.
"Let me see."
Nini shook her head.
"Nina. Let me see your hand." Ricky insisted and she finally relented.
He gingerly took it in his hand and examined the wound. She'd clearly burnt her hand when she took the turkey out of the oven.
"Okay, you put this under cold running water, while I get the first aid kit."
He got an ointment and some bandages and wrapped the wound up. But soon as that was over, Nini was jumping up again to finish the meal.
"Hey, not so fast Neens.." Ricky said. "Let me do the rest, okay?"
"No. It's fine, you should continue watching the movie, I can do it."
"Single-handedly? Pun intended by the way.."
"Everyone's coming in 30 minutes, Ricky. I gotta set the table and put everything out."
Nini said looking slightly frustrated and impatient.
"Okay, we'll do it together. I'm helping you. We'll get it done faster."
Nini nodded and walked to the kitchen with Ricky following behind. His girlfriend was moving at the speed of light and in a matter of minutes plates, forks, spoons and knives were out.
"Whoa. Slow down Lightning McQueen! What's gotten into you?" Ricky asked. "Neens, relax, it's just dinner with our friends."
He took her by the shoulders and made her look him in the eye. She was stressing over this dinner unnecessarily and he didn't want her to hurt herself again. He knew she could take care of herself perfectly fine, but she always did everything on her own, and she needed to take care of herself sometimes.
"It's not just dinner, Ricky. It's my first Thanksgiving in New York. And everyone's gonna be here. Everyone for one reason or another can't be with their family, and I really just wanna make it special for them." Nini admitted. "I know EJ, Gina and Kourt are just my work friends to you but they're family to me. All of you are. I don't have family anymore, so you guys are all I have, and I want everyone to feel loved and cared for tonight."
"Hey, I get it. I promise you everyone is going to have a good time. Everyone knows how much you care because you show it every single day." Ricky took both her hands in his trying to calm her down. "Your family is my family, alright? Just let me help you, babe. We're a team. You need to be taken care of too. Let me take care of you for once, okay?"
"Okay." Nini nodded and smiled. "Thank you. Can you please grab the peas and put it in this bowl?"
Just like that they got to work and soon dinner was ready, and their guests started knocking on the door.
_________
Everything was going well, even though Red and Ashlyn just met her work friends for the first time, they just kind of clicked together. Kourtney was catching up with Red, reminiscing their college days. Ashlyn got along really well with Gina, and EJ was showing Ashlyn photos from Gina's performance earlier this month. She noticed her boyfriend was distractedly rolling the peas around on his plate, while Bob sat down beside him ready to devour anything that fell off the table. He was on the other end of the table so she couldn't really reach him.
"Hey Babe, could you help me with dessert, please?"
"Yeah. Of course." He got up and met her in the kitchen. "What kind of pie are we doing?"
"We have apple and pecan. But I actually just wanted to give you this." Nini said wrapping her arms around him. "You look like you need a hug."
She felt him sigh in her ear and she would love to stay like this forever, but they do have guests over.
"I'm so sorry. I know you were looking forward to spending the holiday with your mom."
"Yeah. It's okay though. I'm a little sad but as long as you're here I'll be okay."
"I'm here for you. Always." Nini caressed his cheek with her non-injured hand and kissed him softly, making him flutter his eyes in bliss.
"I love you." Ricky smiled. "Now let's get these pies on the table!"
As they ate their pies, Ashlyn proposed that they go round the table and talk about what they're grateful for.
"I'll start us off. I'm thankful for new and old friends." Ashlyn said.
"Amen to that. I'm grateful for my job, without which I would never have met any of you guys." Gina looked around the table but her eyes lingered on EJ.
"Well... I'm giving thanks for all of you. I know some of you just met each other, but y'all are my family whether you like it or not. So, thank you all for being there for me at my best and worst. True friendship is rare, and I'm so glad to have found it in every single one of you." Nini said.
There was a murmur of awes across the room. EJ yelled "Love you, Neens!"
Red spoke next, "I'm grateful for this New York Trip. (Thank you, Nini.) It's been really great, and I think it's gonna be a very memorable trip, especially because my lovely girlfriend is here."
Red gave Nini and Ricky a secret look, because he was clearly talking about the upcoming proposal.
"Real smooth Red." EJ said. "But I have to say, that I'm really thankful for my girlfriend as well. You're amazing, G. And I have to give credit to Nini and Kourtney who introduced us."
"You're welcome, Kourtney always knows what's best!" Kourtney chimed in. "I am so grateful that the year is ending soon and the holidays have started. Your girl needs a break from all that work."
Everyone laughed and it was finally Ricky's turn. He knew exactly what (or who) he was grateful for.
"I'd like to thank the person who inspires me to be brave. Everyday, I wake up and wonder what I did to deserve her. She is forgiving, kind and takes care of everyone around her. She is my rock, and I honestly don't know what I'd do without her. She is also the reason we're all here tonight. I love you so much, babe."
From the corner of his eye, Ricky caught Nini smiling and wiping a tear.
"To Nini!" Red raised his glass.
"To Nini!" Everyone else followed suit.
Under Nini's chair, Bob whined loudly.
"Aww, come here Robert, we're grateful for you too, buddy." Nini said picking up her pup.
The sight warmed Ricky's heart and he promised in his heart that he would do anything to keep that smile on her face.
_____
Afterwards, the plan was put into motion. Red would ask everyone if they wanted to take a walk around the city, because he was "too full" from dinner. Ricky and Nini would join them while Kourt, EJ and Gina stayed back to put up some decorations so they could party later. Initially, Nini was gonna do the decorating while Ricky would walk with the couple to take photos of Ash and Red.
But Kourtney pointed out that it would look weird if Ricky went without her, he would basically be a third wheel, and she offered to help. Gina overheard the conversation and assured Nini that she and EJ would help out too.
"Anybody wanna walk around the city with me?" Red asked casually. "Need to get all that turkey out of my system."
"I'll go." Nini said. "But only if Ashlyn comes with."
"Anything for you Neens." The girls linked their arms together.
"I'm gonna go home and call my mom actually." Gina said.
"I'll walk you home." EJ chimed.
"I'm out too. I have an early morning tomorrow, gotta pick up my cousin from the airport." Kourt said.
"Richard, you're coming too. I don't wanna third-wheel the love birds." Nini said winking at her boyfriend.
"Yeah right... you guys are usually more lovey-dovey than us." Ashlyn said.
"Not tonight we wont be.. ." Ricky muttered under his breath.
"What ?" Ashlyn asked.
"Oh I just said, we better give the extra keys to Kourt to lock up." Ricky said.
Thankfully Ashlyn didn't ask anymore questions and they went on their way. Nini stayed back to check on Ricky to make sure he brought the camera in his bag, while Red took Ashlyn's hand and distracted her.
They walked and walked until they reached the subway, Nini casually hinted that they should go to Times Square while they're out. When their train arrived at the station Nini and Ricky pretended to be extra PDA so that Ashlyn would think they just wanted some privacy. But in reality they were trying to keep their distance so Red and Ash could have their moment.
Everything was planned out. Ricky had found a spot where he would take the photos, Nini was their time keeper, so she would give Red the code when it was time.
"Hey Red, wait up!" Nini shouted. That was code for 3 minutes.
Nini could see Red fidgeting in his boots, just waiting for the surprise to show up. Ricky and Nini walked super slowly to stall. At last Nini's alarm rang and she pretended to take a call. It was code for 30 seconds.
"Hey Ash, look up!" Red said nervously.
The big billboard flashed with Ashlyn's name.
"What? What did you do, Biggy?" The girl said looking at him.
"Just keep looking, okay. I've always seen your name in lights, Ash."
The words changed to : Will you marry me ?
"W-what?" Ashlyn cried almost instantly, when she turned to her right, Red was down on one knee with a ring box opened. "What is happening?"
"Ashlyn. I've been thinking about this moment since I met you. I'm a simple guy. I'm not smart or rich or good looking, but I love you. I wanna be with you forever and if you'll let me, I'll take care of you for the rest of my life."
Ashlyn bent down so she was level with him. "I love you so much, Red."
"Will you marry me, then?"
No surprise she said Yes. Nini leaned her head on Ricky's shoulder, watching the couple have their moment. She wondered if Ricky and her would make it that far. Would they get married one day? Have kids? She found herself blushing a little, she'd gotten ahead of herself.
Suddenly, Ricky's phone rang breaking her out of her trance. It was an unknown number, and Ricky slipped away to take the call. But he was behaving rather oddly, as though he didn't want her to see. Before she could wrap her mind around it, he was back, and smiling.
"What's got you all happy?" Nini asked.
"Can't say. Top Secret." he smirked.
Nini shoved his shoulder. "Come on.. tell me .."
"Nope. You'll know when it's time." Ricky saif ruffling her hair as if she was a dog. "Now c'mon let's get these lovebirds to their party!".
Nini decided to let it go for the moment, and enjoy the night with her newly engaged best friends.
_______