Common Sense • drivers license

10 ~ Pizzas & Promises

How does the theater gang decide to kick off their summer?

Started: September 23, 2021
Finished: April 3, 2023

I started theorizing and thinking about how S3 was going to go and began writing this before S3 was even confirmed. (I don't really remember when the trailers and announcements came out now though.)

This story came from my wish list of moments/scenes.
(S3 was definitely better than S2 yet did not save the series [not by a long shot]. Tim needs to clone Olivia and give us the Rini ending we deserve.)

I have not posted in over three months, so without further ado, let's get started on my version of the theater gang's summer!

🍪🍪🍪

Everyone gathered at Slices after a long day out in the sun. Summer had started a few days ago, and the gang was enjoying as much of it as they could.

Nini was going off to LA to see what she could do with her music (all thanks to Gina), but she decided to put it off, so she could enjoy the summer vacation a little.

It's been... eventful. She and Ricky still haven't talked much, but they both want to deep down; they're just afraid. They're in each other's lives right now (kind of), and it felt like an awkward game of chicken.

Gina and EJ were... a thing? It's hard to tell. Gina said they're not official yet, but that she wants them to be. EJ was a totally different person with her; it was amazing to see his change from only a few months prior. They were still scared though, scared of properly opening up to people.

Big Red and Ashlyn were... still them. There haven't been many changes with them. Well, other than the fact that Ashlyn still hasn't found a proper place to hang the sign he made for her. It was huge and had to be close to an outlet in case the batteries died; she didn't want to have to take it off the wall every time it died.

Seb and Carlos are much more... open with each other. Instead of hiding or pretending, words were used much more. Seb is learning to find his voice and express his opinion out loud instead of confusing himself in his head, and Carlos is doing the same.

Kourtney and Howie were... something. It was confusing. Much like EJ and Gina, they haven't confirmed anything (as far as everyone is aware). Nini has asked Kourtney, which has led to nothing so far.

Anyway, back to Slices.

"Dude where are you?! Everyone's waiting." Big Red had called Ricky maybe five times, and he was still missing.

"I'm on my way! Chill! By the way, it's kinda difficult to be on a phone call while skateboarding!!"

"Where have you been? You've been MIA the whole day!"

"Eat some pizza to calm your nerves," he said, rolling his eyes. "You can start without me."

"Whatever."

Ricky had strangely been more distant from the gang lately, and it was quite noticeable. Originally, Big Red thought it had something to do with his parents since he hasn't talked with his mom since spring break. But Ricky wasn't moping around like he usually would be in these situations. He was... happy.

It was a strange kind of happiness. Strange in the sense that it just didn't make sense. He was spending more time at the skatepark too; well... that's what he claimed.

Big Red thought it might be a girl, but Ricky still seemed a little hung up on Nini, so if there was another person involved, Big Red wasn't sure if it was true feelings for someone else or just a distraction.

A few minutes later, the bell hanging above the door rang, and Ricky walked in. "Finally!" Big Red exclaimed, approaching him. "What took so long?"

"Well, I had to stop every time you called, so that caused a bit of a delay."

"45 minutes late because of a few calls? You need better excuses."

"Cut me some slack." Ricky pushed past him and to the array of pizza boxes laid out.

The redhead just raised a brow. What's up with him recently?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They gathered around a few booths, probably scaring off some customers in the process, but they were so high from the start of summer that they didn't care.

EJ's phone rang, so he stepped away. While he was at a farther distance, Ashlyn leaned closer to Gina and said, "So... how's that going?"

"It's... going. We've had one date so far, so now it's... it's a waiting game."

"Uh uh," Kourtney said. "If you're ready, go ask him. It's not like he'll say no."

"You think?" She had a beaming smile.

"Yes," Nini encouraged. "I don't see why not."

Gina playfully rolled her eyes. "Fine. Not here though. It's got to be alone."

"Of course. Go get him, sis," Ashlyn said, nudging her shoulder. Gina had a bright smile as she looked over at EJ, who was coming back to the table.

"Good news," he said to everyone, "I think we just got admission for summer camp!"

"Yay!" everyone cheered. EJ was arranging for everyone to go to Camp Shallow Lake since he wanted to share his love of camp with everyone else; plus, it felt like their high school time was flying, so he thought it would be a nice idea if they did something more on the younger kid side.

"When do we leave?" Seb asked.

"Um, three-ish weeks... I think. I'm waiting on an email confirmation that our spots will be available, and that should give me a date."

"I'm so excited!" Carlos gushed. "I definitely need a break from the chaos that this last semester has brought."

"Yes," Ashlyn agreed. "I don't think I've ever felt so stressed." Big Red gently rubbed her hand.

"Don't forget to send me pictures," Nini added.

"Of course," Kourtney said. "It won't be the same without you, but I'm so proud!" she beamed, hugging her.

"Thanks, Kourt. I am gonna miss this."

"Before you go," Ashlyn added, "one more girls' night?"

"Yes!" they all said.

"When?" Gina asked.

"Don't know yet."

Everyone continues talking and chowing down on pizza. Eventually, they were still there well past closing time, and Big Red's parents had to kick them out. "I love you all, but you seriously need to leave now," Mrs. Red half-joked. They whine and groan for a moment before complying.

As they begin to walk toward the door, Ricky approaches Nini. This could be really stupid but oh well; it's not like I have much else to lose. "Hey, do you have a second?"

"Oh, uh, sure. What's up?" She begins fidgeting with her rings.

"I, um..." The words he had just memorized were disappearing. "I just wanted to say... that..." Nini patiently waited for him to gather his words. "I'm sorry," he mumbled shyly.

She tilted her head. "For what?" In her peripheral vision, Nini saw Kourtney stop and try to watch them from the edge of the window outside, failing to be completely hidden.

"I, uh... I just wanted to say that... I miss you." Before she could object to anything, he added, "A- And before you say anything, I know where we stand; I do. I just... I can't throw away the last twelve years of my life," he confessed. "I've confided in you when I don't feel comfortable with my dad; you know things about me that no other soul does."

He expected her to have stopped him by now, but she didn't, so he kept going. "I still want to be your best friend at the very least... if you'll let me." He whispered the last part, afraid he came on too strong. Even if this was selfish, he didn't want to imagine his life without her. He couldn't.

Nini bit the inside of her cheek to avoid making a noise. She'd be lying to herself if she tried to just put everything in the past. It was impossible. Especially with the guilt from how they ended things. It wasn't necessarily bad terms, but it's not like they acted like they were still the best of friends.

Ricky became anxious when she didn't say anything and took that as her answer. "I understand if this seems selfish or... or if you just want to try and make a new name and life for yourself. Please just tell me."

She then realized she hadn't spoken yet. "Yeah," she muttered, which came out as more of a slight sob. "I say we try... something. But... how?"

"Well, um... we have some time before the whole summer camp thing and you going off to LA." A small smile suddenly grew on his face. "Wait, I have the perfect idea."

Nini smiled; he looked like a kid gazing at all his candy on Halloween night. "Which is?"

"The arcade. It's simple, easy, and we used to go all the time. How about when we're both free, yeah?"

"Yeah, I-"

"I hate to break this up," Mrs. Red interrupted, "but it's time to leave now." She began ushering them to the door.

"Sorry about that," both teens said at the same time. Once they were on the sidewalk, Ricky said, "Text me when?"

"Of course." The curly-haired boy smiles at her and then takes off on his skateboard while she heads toward the parking lot around the corner.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Are you sure this is a smart idea?"

"What could go wrong?"

"What could go right?"

Nini had gotten a ride home with Kourtney, and she of course asked what the hold up was. "Why are you saying it like it's a bad thing?"

"Nini, this isn't your first rodeo. It's actually the 50th."

She's being dramatic. "Kourt, don't look at it like that. Look, even if you disagree with this, I miss him," she muttered more to herself, "and this could be a way to have some closure."

"Nini, you're putting yourself in the very position you felt stuck in in the first place! You're setting yourself up for disaster."

"Kourtney! Please just let me handle this. It's not like we're doing everything together. This is just one little thing."

"Yeah, and it'll only lead to another then another and another and another and-"

"Ok, I get your point! I'm sorry that you disagree with me, but I'm not sorry for missing him. It's not my fault that I do. So much of my life so far has had him in it, and I can't just toss that aside and pave a new way and pretend like he doesn't exist! Call me crazy all you want; this is my decision."

They don't talk the rest of the way to their neighborhoods.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I thought you said you were done."

"I never said that."

"You sure?"

Ricky called Big Red because he wanted to vent about his little conversation with Nini. "I never said I was done, but that I was done... chasing her around."

"Is that not what this is?"

"No! We're just hanging out as friends. I proposed-"

"You what!?!"

"You didn't let me finish!" Ricky whisper shouted, not wanting to wake his father. "I proposed that we go to the arcade. It's something we used to do all the time, and there's no restaurant dinner involved, so it can't be looked at like a date."

"So a... 'not' date?"

"Precisely."

"You're gonna regret this."

"How? I want my best friend back."

"First off, ouch. Secondly, you're gonna fall for her again."

Again means to have stopped and started back... "Look, whether or not you disagree with this is not my main concern. She said yes; that's all I care about."

"Fine, whatever." You're gonna regret this. "Next question: why were you so late tonight?"

"I lost-"

"Better yet," Big Red cut off, "where have you been the whole week!?"

"I lost track of time," Ricky said simply.

"You sure? It's not because of someone?"

Ricky's heart stopped. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, don't play dumb. I know you. Now, who's the girl?"

"There is no girl!" he insisted.

"A guy? I had my guesses, especially after-"

"No! Look, there isn't anybody. I'm not seeing anyone and probably won't for a while, kay?"

"Ok, sure. Whatever you need to tell yourself."

"Red!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning, everyone joined a group FaceTime call to figure out what they were doing. "Ok, so what's the plan?" EJ asked eagerly.

Kourtney shrugged. "I was hoping you'd know."

"Carlos, you have a pool, yeah?" Ashlyn asked.

"Mhm, why?"

Gina raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean why? It's summer. Ask your parents if we can use it, duh."

"It'll be fine. Be here in an hour?"

"Are you sure?" Nini asked.

"Yes!" he insisted. "It's not like you guys would trash my house. It'll be fine."

They nod excitedly until Seb says, "Wait, where's Ricky?"

"Oh, I'm convinced he's seeing someone," Big Red blurted without thinking, "but you didn't hear that from me."

"Really?!" Kourtney asked.

Realizing what he's just said, Big Red quickly adds, "Uh, gotta go. See you guys soon." He closes out the call.

One by one, everyone slowly leaves. Nini breathes deeply and stares at the black screen for another minute. Despite how irrational it was, one thought stood out from the rest: he... has... a girlfriend. It's not like she had any real proof, but Big Red didn't seem like a completely unreliable source.

That news hit her a lot harder than she would've liked. He deserves this, she tells herself. For the next five or so minutes, she tried convincing herself that she was happy for him, that it was only right that he tries to move on.

Despite the reasons she gave herself, she could only be persuaded of one thing: that he deserved happiness. But that doesn't change the fact that she wishes it could've been the two of them in that position.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pool time rolled around, and Carlos's driveway slowly filled with cars. His parents were cool with it, especially since it wasn't like he was having tons of strangers over.

Ricky was the last one to arrive, as usual now, and the first person he saw was the brunette that hasn't left his mind once in the last decade.

She was laughing at something Ashlyn had said and looked absolutely sexy as hell, her swimsuit shaping her body perfectly. He didn't understand how one person could hold so much beauty. He wished he could just go up to her like he used to and kiss her breathlessly with the hopes of-

"Bowen, catch!" Ricky's knocked out of his daze when he hears EJ shout.

On instinct, he jumps back out of the way of a flying soda can. "Dude!" he shouted, picking up the now blown-up can. "Why'd you do that?! And why a full one!?"

"Because I thought you were looking!" It was true; he was looking out into the backyard, so EJ's presumption was reasonable. Ricky sighed at his friend's stupidity and walked over to grab a cup, pouring the remnants of the busted can into it.

Nini saw him from the corner of her eye and tried to keep her head forward. That doesn't mean she didn't see him at all. He had shown up shirtless with swim trunks on, ready to just jump in the pool. She presumed he had a change of clothes in the drawstring backpack that only managed to highlight his arms and torso.

His back was to her now, but now that he's put his backpack down, she could very clearly see his muscles moving whenever he hugged someone. She continues daydreaming about the definition of his muscles as well as how he could easily just-

"Nini!"

She's knocked out of her head by Gina. "Hmm?"

"You're staring," Kourtney pointed out.

"Nervous?" Ashlyn added.

"Nervous for what?" she asked, drinking from her water bottle to hide the red in her cheeks from being caught. At least it was hot out, so she had that excuse.

"Fine, we'll ignore how you're staring at the curls with legs," Kourtney commented, making Seb choke on his drink from the new nickname, "but only for now."

Meanwhile, a similar conversation was happening on the other side of the pool. "Lay off, would you?" Ricky kept repeating.

"We would if you'd take your eyes off her," Big Red said.

"C'mon, get the music started," he said to change the subject.

"We're trying," Carlos answered. "Found it. High School Musical 2." He hit shuffle and Fabulous was the first one.

"You know that this soundtrack will only last about 30 minutes, right?" EJ asked.

"Well, you can pick the next one when this finishes then."

EJ takes Ricky's drink from him and says, "Ok, Bowen, since you're clearly moping-"

"Am not!"

EJ ignores him. "-it's time to focus on something else."

"And that would be?"

"How you're about to be tackled."

"Tackled by wha-?"

EJ lunges at him, and they both plunge into the pool, scaring the girls. When they surface, Ricky's wiping water from his face and coughing. "Dude!!" he screamed. "I wasn't ready for that!"

"That's the point!" EJ exclaimed with a smile. "Plus, I gave you a warning; you knew it was about to happen."

"No, not really."

"What part of you're about to be tackled went over your head?"

"The part where I didn't get a chance to hold my breath and ended up getting tons of water up my nose!"

"You're gonna have bigger problems than water in your nose." The two teens looked up, and Kourtney was scolding them with water dripping from her hair.

"Don't blame me!" Ricky tried defending. "It was his idea!"

"Carlos!" she called. "Where are those water guns again?"

"Oh, the garage!" he answered.

"Thanks!" She turns back to Ricky and EJ in the pool. "Be right back."

Once Kourtney walked off, Gina said, "Good luck, you two."

EJ opened his arms and encouraged her to get in too, "C'mon, it feels great."

"Ok," she agreed, "but no splashing."

"Promise."

Gina set her stuff down and slowly stepped down the few stairs. "God, it's cold."

EJ slowly approaches her to avoid accidentally splashing her. "That's why I always jump in," he laughed, pulling her into his arms.

Soon everyone was in, and Kourtney came back and threw a bunch of water guns into the pool. "Jeez, that place is not organized at all."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After many hours, everyone began to look like raisins, and the sun was going down. Carlos began kicking people out of the pool but at least let them use the bathroom to change.

As she was coming out of the house, Nini ran straight into Ricky. "Sorry," they both blurted at the same time.

They laughed at their clumsiness before he said, "I'm just gonna-" and nodded to the inside of the house.

"Yeah." Nini stepped out of his way, so he could go inside. She goes back outside to double-check that she had everything.

"You ok?" Kourtney whispered to her.

"Yeah, why?"

"Are you still hanging out with Ricky?"

"Yeah."

"So... when?"

"I don't know. A few days probably."

"Why do you seem so calm?"

"Because I already told you. This isn't that big of a deal."

"Well, you've definitely learned something over the years. That almost sounded believable."

Nini rolled her eyes. "Kourt, I'm fine."

"Right now."

She scoffed with a smile. "Whatever."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few days pass, and Nini is staring at her closet, trying to find something to wear for the arcade. She had to keep convincing herself that it didn't matter and that she shouldn't stress over something as silly as an outfit because it was just two friends hanging out. That phrase echoed and ran through her mind the whole time she was scavenging through her closet.

Kourtney was the only one that knew unless Ricky told someone else. Nini could safely bet that Big Red probably knew but doubted anyone else did.

Kourtney advised that if Nini was serious about this being just a friends' thing, then she shouldn't think or put tons of effort in when it came to her appearance. She ended up choosing her lucky East High hoodie (something she'd normally wear when lounging around the house) and jeans. Not necessarily something for a date, even if she often wore stuff like this for their old dates.

But because she's Nini, she still had to text Kourtney and ask. Kourtney could already tell what path this was taking but didn't bother to say anything since she knew Nini most likely wouldn't listen.

Once she was dressed, Nini looked at herself in the mirror one more time just to go over everything again. I guess we're doing this.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"If you're so insistent on this being a 'not date', then why have you called?"

"Because... I can't think straight right now."

"Or ever."

"I heard that."

"It's not like it's a secret."

"You're not helping either."

Ricky called Big Red because he was stressing out over this... hang out. "Dude, you keep saying this is you two going out just as friends, so why do you care what you look like?"

Ricky pulled at his hair in frustration. "Red, I need this to go well. I lost my best friend. I-"

"Once again, ouch."

"You know what I mean. A piece of me will always be with her. But she's still a huge part of my life that I just can't say goodbye to yet. I... I can't lose her for good."

He looked like a lost puppy. Big Red groaned, knowing where this was heading (and feeling slightly guilty for pushing him). "Ok, I get it. What do you need help with?"

*Arcade*
The time finally arrived. Nini and Ricky agreed to meet at the arcade rather than pick up the other. It also gave them an excuse to prolong any awkwardness.

Nini arrived early because she was nervous, but the first car she noticed was Mike's truck. He's scared too? She could see him in the driver's seat on his phone. She parked a few spaces down from him and got out of the car. The movement made him look up and see her.

Ricky set his phone down and got out of the truck to meet her. "Yo, Nini!" he called. Her head snapped up, and she also put her phone away. His eyes quickly glanced over her outfit as she walked to him; he grinned at the hoodie. "Ready?"

As ready as I'll ever be. "Yup." They walked in and didn't know where or how to start, which made them both feel very pathetic since they have been coming here almost since they could walk.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Come on. It's a classic."

"You should know by now that I'm not good."

"Please."

Ricky was trying to persuade Nini to play the giant two-player game of Pacman with him. "Fine, but I'm not going to last long." They both scanned their game cards, and it started. They grew comfortable after the first few games, and the night slowly evolved into a feeling that was simpler and less stressful, which they were both thankful for.

"The only thing is we don't need to eat the bigger dots at the same time," Ricky said, already seriously engrossed with the game.

"I know how to play, genius. I'm just not great."

"Ok," he chuckled, "just making sure." They played for a while, and Nini only lost her last life five minutes before Ricky did. "See, that wasn't so bad," he said.

She smiled at him. "What next?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. You can pick."

They walked around for a minute until Nini saw Mario Kart. "Let's place a bet on a race," she said, gesturing with her hand.

Ricky smiled and said, "Name your price."

"Winner chooses where to eat and loser pays."

He smirked. "Deal." They both swiped their cards and chose their characters. Nini chose Princess Peach while Ricky picked Metal Mario. "Bowser's Castle," Ricky said because it was one of the higher-level tracks, scrolling over and selecting.

"Doesn't matter," Nini said. "You're losing."

"Oh, you're gonna eat your words."

"No, I won't since I will be choosing where to eat."

Now that the track was chosen, it was time for the cars. Power-ups and cars spun around the screen like a three-in-a-row game, and the player could stop it whenever, randomizing the set. Ricky and Nini both hit the button at the same time. "Ooh, I love this car," Ricky said. It was just a giant pie on wheels.

Of course, he does. "I have a better forward attack though," Nini bragged.

Ricky glanced over at her screen. "You got the triple golden shells?"

"Yup." She looks at his set. "They definitely beat the golden bedpan."

"It's not a bedpan!" Ricky defended, knowing she says this every time.

"What is it then?"

"A flying saucer."

"Hon, that's a bedpan. Saucers don't look like a giant dog bowl."

"Whatever," he scoffed. "Doesn't matter what you think it is; you're losing this race."

This banter continued as they waited for the game to load. Once it did, they were both prepared as the countdown started.

One thing that felt off was that playing required two feet to drift (one on the brake and the other on the accelerator), which was strange for obvious reasons. Ricky screwed up his drift timings a few times, making Nini laugh and allowing her to pass him.

"Lost your touch, Bowen."

"Shush, it's only the first lap, Sal-Robs."

"Yeah, of two." Ricky got lucky and managed to catch up with her. She glanced over at his screen for a split second to see how close he was, and he somehow passed her in that moment. "How the-?"

"Sucks to suck, doesn't it?" he teased. She huffed, not giving a real answer. They both crossed the starting line, and the number in the corner changed to say Lap 2/2.

At the next line of mystery boxes, Nini smirked when she got her triple golden shells. "You're about to eat your words." She launched one, but he activated his shield by drifting, avoiding her frontal attack.

"You must've forgotten about that feature," he said cockily.

"Not quite," she mumbled, focused.

When Ricky reached level three in the drift, he let go to get the boost. As he did, Nini timed it so that her second shell would hit him while he was defenseless. Ricky saw the warning on his screen but didn't act fast enough and spun out of control for a moment, seeing her fly past him. "Are you kidding me!?" He looked over only to see her smirking proudly.

"Sucks to suck, doesn't it?"

Unfortunately for Ricky, the power-up he had right now was going to be shot backward, and he knew there wasn't another line of boxes, so all he could do was hope that she would somehow mess up, which he also knew was unlikely.

Nini crossed the finish line, a gold 1st appearing on her screen while a silver 2nd came on his. "Ha! That is what you deserve!" she gloated.

Ricky slumped in his seat. "Ugh!" he groaned. "You're never gonna let this go, are you?"

"No, no I will not."

They stayed for another hour before finally going to get something to eat. "Ok, where do you want to go since you won?" Ricky asked as they walked to their cars.

"In N Out," she answered.

"Your wish is my command. Let's go!" They both got into their separate cars and began driving away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They sat at the farthest table from the counter or any other people. Ricky ordered a hamburger with water while Nini had a milkshake and fries; it was what they got almost every time, even after Ricky has admitted several times that he felt guilty that she couldn't get a meal here and just a snack. (He did smile though when he saw her grab a second straw.)

They were laughing and talking absolute nonsense, the conversation topics jumping from one thing to the next. "I'm not kidding," Nini laughed. "Which is why I'm scared now."

"God, that sounds like a mess."

"It was. You didn't hear it from me though." Nini just finished telling Ricky about the first time Ashlyn did Big Red's nails; turns out he was allergic to something in it.

"I mean... what are the chances of being allergic to nail polish?"

"The same could be said for makeup, and I've had my fair share of problems."

"Oh yeahhh," Ricky nodded. "God, I remember the first time that happened."

Nini groaned yet with a smile. "Ugh, don't remind me."

"Well, now I have to."

"You really don't."

"Your face and eyes were so red; you looked like Candace after wild parsnips."

Nini just glared at him. "Thank you for that."

"You're welcome," he replied with his signature childish grin.

They continued eating for a while and still stayed just to talk after finishing the meal. "I'm surprised you chose here," Ricky said.

"Why?"

"Well, I figured you'd be mean since you won."

"You know I'm not like that. Plus, I felt that it fit with the theme of the arcade."

"Yeah, it does."

They finally decided to call it quits when they saw the time. When they went out to the parking lot, they stood in front of their cars for a minute. "I had fun tonight, Ricky."

"Yeah... yeah, me too. We should do it again."

"Definitely."

Nini's phone buzzed, and she frowned a little when she saw it.

"What?"

"Nothing," she answered. "Just Moms."

Ricky nodded knowingly. "I'll see you... whenever."

"Mhm."

He opened his arms first, and she gladly stepped into his embrace. Nini felt a chill go down her spine from his touch; it was strange and familiar to be in his arms again. Ricky felt her shiver and held her tighter; she smiled and did the same, making him grin too.

When they finally parted, Nini mumbled, "Goodnight, Ricky."

"Night, Neens."

They got into their respective cars and began driving down the road. Nini smiled the whole time, loving that they could at least talk to each other again. She did feel guilty though; it's not like they turned into mortal enemies after breaking up, but the more she thought about it, the more she felt like everything up to this point was her fault.

Ricky felt thrilled; he thought he had screwed up so badly with her, but things were looking up now. (He left the lot a little after her just so he could make sure she got home safe.)

They continued like this for the next week. Everyone would come together for something for most of the week. Then Ricky or Nini would suggest another activity for just the two of them to do for one of the days.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was finally the girls' night that they had been thinking about since that first day at Slices, and Kourtney was biting her tongue to keep quiet about Ricky. She wanted to ask Nini so badly what was going on and how she was feeling about all of it, but she had to overpower her gut feeling of this ending in disaster.

Nini had been giving her bits and pieces about the dates (or not dates) but had been refraining from sharing everything since she knew her friend was still hesitant about the idea.

"I think," Kourtney began, "that we should talk relationships."

"Gina first!" Nini voluntold.

The girl's face flushed, and her jaw dropped. "Why me!?"

"You know why!"

Her face became even redder. "What do you want to hear?"

"Please tell me you two have had at least one more date?" Ashlyn pleaded.

"Well... yes."

"How was it?" Kourtney pried.

Gina became fidgety as she remembered the event. "He's just... so sweet. He's been working so hard on himself to be better, and I think it really shows." The other three were awed as they watched their friend swoon. He had grown tremendously, and it was clearly paying off.

"Well, you two deserve it," Ashlyn added. "Where in the world did he get the idea that you saw him as a brother?" she laughed.

"Wait, I didn't tell you guys?" They all shook their heads. "Apparently, Jamie said that he was thankful I had a 'brother figure' since he rarely visits, and EJ just went with it instead of talking to me."

Kourtney jokingly rolled her eyes. "Ugh, men."

"Hey," Nini added, "at least they're together now, and we get to nag her with questions!"

Gina rolled her eyes with a smile. "Alright, alright. Point made. Now, who's next?" Everyone was silent, not wanting to volunteer themselves. "Ok, I choose Nini," Gina announced.

Nini groaned and got red in the face already. She had an idea of what was going to be asked. "Why me!?" she complained first.

"Because you made me go first!"

Nini started picking at her nail polish while she waited for the dreaded question.

"Wait, but I want to know about your plans for LA first," Ashlyn interjected.

Thank you, Ash. She didn't have an answer, but she was glad the topic switched. "Oh, um... I'm not sure yet. I just know that I've been stuck in this weird writer's block stage recently, so I'm honestly kind of scared of going out there. I mean... there are obviously other things to do in California than just this music thing, but... yeah," she rambled. "Oh, my moms are attending some reunion, so yeah... there's that too."

"Well, just know that Jamie is the best there is," Gina reassured.

"Yeah, other than the fact that he thought EJ was a brother to you," Ashlyn laughed.

"Yes, and I will murder him the next time I see him. Well, I'll let him produce your album first and then pop his head off."

They all laughed at the joke, and Kourtney was the first one to revert the subject. "So, Nini... any... relationships on the horizon?"

Her face turned red once again; she didn't know how to answer and glared at Kourtney. The truth would lead to more questions, and they would definitely be able to see through it if she lied. Either way would not work in her favor. "Um... I mean... I guess you could say that."

All three of them looked at her intently as they waited for her to elaborate. "Well," Ashlyn pressed, "who is this mystery man?"

"Or woman," Gina added. "No judgment."

Nini laughed yet could feel all the panic traveling through her body as images of her ex flashed through her mind. "Umm... well..."

Kourtney was on the edge of her seat as she waited for her oblivious best friend to admit her feelings. Ricky's name was on the tip of her tongue, and she was so tempted to just blurt it.

"Let's start here," Nini began, "nothing romantic is going on."

This time, Kourtney couldn't help the small scoff. Nini eyed her best friend, wondering what she was thinking. "Something wrong, Kourt?"

"You can't tell me nothing romantic is going on!" She looked regretful the moment the sentence fell from her lips.

"You know something?" Gina questioned.

"It's Ricky," Nini finally blurted. The whole room fell silent. Nini started feeling self-conscious about it; she knew she shouldn't, but the emotion was too powerful and overtook her logic.

"You've been seeing Ricky again?" Ashlyn wondered.

Nini nodded. "Yes, but-"

"I thought you were done with him," Gina added.

"Look, we're just friends hanging out," she explained. "We don't even act anything like a couple when we're together."

"Well, it's not like you two acted like complete friends before dating," Kourtney commented.

Nini rolled her eyes at the remark. Might as well add this to the rising criticism. "I miss him, alright?" she admitted. "And I don't see a problem with trying to fix us. I haven't had a proper conversation with him in what feels like fucking months," she snapped, "and I'm not going to feel sorry for talking to him."

The other three were silent, letting her words sink in. Kourtney felt the most guilty for her opinion since she's been kind of harsh, but she has already witnessed this show twice; it was too predictable now. She's just gonna have to learn for herself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ricky pulled back the shower curtain and realized that he forgot to bring a change of clothes with him. Great, now I have to go out into the cold air. He wrapped the towel around his waist and went to the door, only to still be in the bathroom. Huh?

He continued to pull on the knob, frustrated that it wouldn't open. "Dad!" he shouted. "Dad, the door's stuck again!!"

"Ricky?" he heard from the other side.

Oh no... Fuck no. "Nini?"

"Uh, yeah."

"What are you doing here?"

"You texted me to come by and hang out."

Right... "Can you get my dad?"

"He left for work already."

Shit. "Ok, um... can you go to the kitchen? There should be a set of small yellow screwdrivers in a junk drawer."

"Ok, got it." He heard her leave.

Of course, something like this has to happen now.

It didn't take long before she came back. "You said yellow, right?"

"Mhm." Ricky was embarrassed by what was happening right now; here he was, trapped in his bathroom (because it made complete sense that the door would become stuck for some reason when the room got too steamy), half-naked, and waiting to be saved. This is definitely a low point in my life.

"Ok, what now?" Nini asked.

"Take one of the larger ones and align it with the middle of the hole in the knob. A little fidgeting and it should hopefully unlock."

"Just curious, how many times has this happened?"

He chuckled, leaning on his arm on the door and then his forehead on his arm. "Too many. As you can tell, this isn't exactly a resemblance of a five-star resort."

"Hey, don't discount it yet. You just haven't had enough good memories here."

"Well, this certainly isn't helping."

He watched the knob move slightly as Nini struggled to undo the lock. "Is this the only way to do it?"

"It's the only one that works so far. If you can think of something better, be my guest."

A few more minutes go by, and Nini can't tell if anything is working or not; it's not like she could see down the knob. "How does your dad do this?" she murmured, trying a different screwdriver. She's already cycled through all of them by now.

"Nini," Ricky mumbled.

"Yes?"

"I'm getting cooold," he whined like a child who was losing patience waiting for food.

"Are you not wearing clothes?"

"No," he answered sheepishly. "I forgot."

Nini giggled at his adorableness; he sounded so shy for some reason. "Really?"

His head perked up. "Are you making fun of me?"

"Not directly."

"That wasn't a no."

"It also wasn't a yes."

"You just said yes!"

"Not in that way!"

He smiled. "What other way is there? Yes means yes."

"You're putting words in my mouth, and you know it!!"

Ricky chuckled. He always loved teasing her this way; every argument was always childish and technical (Ricky always being the nit-picky one just to push her buttons). Still, they both smiled in the end without fail every time. "How's the lock coming?"

Nini heard something click. "Got it!" she exclaimed, shocked that it was finally unlocked. She quickly twisted the knob to make sure and pushed the door open, surprising him.

"Ow!" Since Ricky was standing right in front of the door, she had accidentally slammed it into his toe.

"Oh my god!" she yelled. "I'm so sorry; I didn't realize you were standing so close."

"It's fine," he gritted. "I'm not bleeding... I hope." He began to lift his foot up to examine his toe before remembering that he was only in a towel. "Uh... c- can I get past you?"

Both their faces became red. "Mhm, of course." As he approached his room, Nini probably stared at his torso for longer than she should've.

She has seen him shirtless before (obviously), but years of skating can apparently do wonders; she has adored him her whole life, but his physique was definitely a bonus. Her eyes followed the droplets of water that would come from his hair and slide down his back, making trails that she wanted to-

Nini heard the drawer of his dresser shut, knocking her out of her daze. She had to practically pick her jaw up off the floor before he could notice. After he grabbed his clothes, he shyly walked past her again into the bathroom to change.

Once the door closed, Nini finally let out a breath and fanned her face with her hand. God, he's hot as hell. That damn boy will be the end of me.

It was only a few minutes until he came back out. "Sorry about that," he said. "I don't know why the door does that."

"It's fine," she reassured. "So what do you want to do?" He was wearing a black muscle tank with a hood and gray sweatpants... those gray sweatpants. Nini thought he looked like a movie's whitest white boy yet still undoubtedly hot. Granted, the outfit showed off all the right places. All of them. Her eyes wandered for a good second before snapping back to his.

Ricky held his mouth in a straight line as he watched her gaze; it gave him a slight confidence boost. "I don't know; I didn't really have a plan," he said, flopping onto the bed.

"Um, well... there's always TV," she proposed. His wet hair was oddly attractive too.

"Yeah." He grabbed the remote off his nightstand. "Netflix sucks now though."

Nini chortled and nodded. "Tell me about it. They won't stop canceling all the good shows."

"Yes!"

"Like, how does something like Riverdale have so many seasons?" she ranted. "I know it's different platforms, but my argument still stands!"

"I don't get it," Ricky shrugged. He opened Netflix and scrolled through the top 10 list first.

"Nothing horror," Nini said, watching each of the titles fly across the screen.

"Here," he said, passing her the remote. "I'm gonna go start a bag of popcorn." He swiftly went down the hallway and to the little kitchen. Nini took the remote and started browsing through the comedy section, not knowing what else to do; it was always their default genre.

As she was scrolling through the shows and movies, Nini heard a buzzing noise. She tore her eyes away from the TV and saw Ricky's phone face down on the bed. She knew better than to read anything, but her curiosity was winning the battle over reason.

She flipped it over just to see who was calling, hoping that would shut her mind up. It did the opposite, and her heart fell all the way down to the depths of hell when she read the name on the screen: Lily.

The contact photo was a selfie of the blonde and Ricky. Nini couldn't tell where they were, but she figured they were alone since everyone else seemed to agree that she was sent from the devil himself.

His phone eventually stopped ringing, a missed call notification taking its place. But the texts then came in:
Sorry for canceling tonight. I got into a fight with my mom and got grounded for today (she's so dramatic lol)
What about Friday?

That first message made her heart sting and her brain burst into flames. Was I the second choice? Here she was, sitting on his bed and thinking they were working on their relationship when he was initially supposed to be somewhere else tonight. Was he going to be that bored tonight and just felt like texting me?

Nini heard the microwave beep and quickly flipped his phone back over, returning her eyes to the TV. (Her mind was only on those damn messages though.) Ricky rounded the corner, and she refused to look at him.

"Find anything yet?" he asked, already starting to eat and glancing at the TV.

Nini bit back her anger. "Nope. Too indecisive."

She watched him from the corner of her eye. He grabbed his phone off the bed to put on the nightstand yet stopped to read the screen. Nini saw him unlock his phone and quickly type something short before setting his phone to the side.

He couldn't have gotten more than two words out (maybe three). Ricky set the bowl between them and continued eating.

Nini was in much more of a sour mood after seeing those messages. That must be the new girl Red was suspicious of. She's the reason he's been skipping out on hanging out with all of us. She had to bite back her scoff. Her brain burned the more she thought about it. He can do whatever he wants; we're not together. We're exes for a reason.

"Can you find something?" she asked, tossing the remote in his lap. "I'm going to the bathroom." Without giving him the chance to say anything, Nini scurried down the hall and to the bathroom, almost accidentally slamming the door shut.

Ricky didn't question anything and picked up the remote. While he tried to find anything to watch, he heard his phone buzz. He peeked over his shoulder to the screen and saw Lily's name appear. He quickly snatched the phone off the table and read the text.

Ricky debated telling her. He wanted to be honest but knew it didn't really concern her either. Oh, what the heck? It's not a big deal. He began typing before overthinking could stop him and hit send without reading it over: I'm hanging out with Nini

Ricky saw the read receipt appear and wondered why she wasn't saying anything.

Meanwhile, Nini was still in the bathroom. She had splashed her face with cold water multiple times because she was starting to feel worse and worse about herself and her relationship with Ricky. We're exes for a reason. This is practically my fault anyway; I pushed him away.

Once she felt like she had hidden away long enough, she went back to Ricky's room. "Did you find anything?"

"Nope," he said, popping the P. He was on his phone now. "Still have no clue."

Nini plopped next to him and grabbed the remote that he had abandoned. "Well, I guess we have no other options." She peeked over at his screen while scrolling and saw he was just watching skating videos.

Ricky looked past his phone screen and saw her open Disney+. She went straight to the watchlist, and he knew what was coming. "Niniii," he groaned, his hands falling away from his view.

"Yes?"

"Seriously?"

"Yes."

"But why?"

"Why not?"

"But-"

"What happened to you being a theater kid?" she teased, pressing play.

"Yeah, but-"

"No buts."

Ricky sighed and finally looked at her. "Neeeens," he whined. The opening to High School Musical started.

"You're the one who auditioned to be in this musical and chose to participate in another one," she countered.

"Yeah, but you literally only use this for revenge."

Nini shrugged. "Well, now that you have discovered your musical side, you can appreciate it more." Ricky huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. Nini glanced over and saw his bottom lip sticking out too. "You're such a baby."

"Nuh-uh!"

"Just watch the movie, you man child." She had a small grin on her face as the opening scene began to play.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They were almost done with the movie; it was onto the scene where Troy and Gabriella are both running to the auditorium from their respective events.

The time that this movie has been playing has been way too awkward for either of them. They would have the occasional comment here and there, but it was mostly a strange silence.

Nini was nearly as active as she normally would be during a musical. Ricky kept trying to start a conversation to make the weird atmosphere disappear, but she would shut him down, saying to focus on the movie. It's not like this is some brand-new thing, he thought. He couldn't tell if she was giving him the cold shoulder or if she was just that in love with the musical. If it was the first, what did he do wrong?

"You know what's weird about this movie?" he said, trying once again to engage with her.

"It's a musical Disney movie. There are going to be a lot of weird things."

"Yeah, and I can suspend belief enough to watch it."

"And you couldn't for The Greatest Showman, which I am still bitter about."

He chuckled and continued. "But that's not what I'm talking about. This scene when they're about to sing Breaking Free... it's a callback. We don't even get to see the actual musical within the musical!"

Nini thought about it and then nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Hmm... that is odd."

"Do you even remember the name of the musical?"

"Uh... definitely not."

"And how confusing would it have been if they had shown even the smallest bit of it? I mean, our production was a train wreck enough; what if Miss Jenn had to somehow include this too?"

Nini chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, I mean... we had too many character swaps and a whole bunch of other stuff went wrong to risk adding another factor."

Ricky could tell she was relaxing a bit and debated asking her if there truly was something bothering her. "Stand up." He hopped out of the bed, confusing her.

"What?"

"Get up."

"Why?"

"To dance."

Nini tilted her head. "Ricky Bowen wants to dance?"

"Hey, I've played two leads." He paused the movie and stood by the TV waiting for her.

She giggled and eventually caved. "Fine. If you insist."

"I do."

Ricky pressed play and allowed the number to begin. He looked at Nini and started mimicking the movements of Troy while singing. There wasn't tons of space in his room, but he was determined to make it work.

We're soaring, flying
There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach

Nini couldn't fight the smile on her face and joined him.

If we're trying
So we're breaking free

You know the world can see us
In a way that's different than who we are
Creating space between us
Till we're separate hearts

But your faith, it gives me strength
Strength to believe
We're breaking free

Nini had to hold in her laughter to keep singing as Ricky almost perfectly imitated Troy.

We're soaring
Flying
There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach
If we're trying
Yeah, we're breaking free
Oh, we're breaking free

Can you feel it building?
Like a wave the ocean just can't control
Connected by a feeling
Ooh, in our very soul
Very soul, ooh ooh

Nini blew a raspberry at how much he was dedicated to this bit. "You did not just do that." What has gotten into him?

"Did it and proud."

Rising till it lifts us up
So everyone can see
We're breaking free

We're soaring
Flying
There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach
If we're trying
Yeah, we're breaking free
Oh, we're breaking free

Running
Climbing
To get to that place to be all that we can be
Now's the time
So we're breaking free
We're breaking free

More than hope, more than faith
This is truth; this is fate
And together we see it coming
More than you, more than me
Not a want, but a need
Both of us breaking free

Ricky extended his hand to her, hoping she would take it for the spin. She smiled at him and then held on.

Soaring
Flying
There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach
If we're trying
Yeah, we're breaking free
Breaking free

We're running
Ooh, climbing
To get to that place to be all that we can be
Now's the time (Now's the time)
So we're breaking free
Oh, we're breaking free

You know the world can see us
In a way that's different than who we are

They were both trying to catch their breaths, not expecting that to be as challenging as it was. "I'm surprised you know it that well," Nini mumbled.

Ricky just nodded, also panting. "Yeah, I, uh... I studied pretty hard for my audition."

"Well, it worked."

They were standing so close to each other just as the musical characters were; neither knew what to do now. The sound of the music faded away as they honed in on each other.

Ricky missed moments like these. He wanted to goof off with her again; he wanted to text and call about anything and not second guess himself before every sentence; he wanted that level of connection where they were always comfortable with each other and didn't need to do anything; he wanted her.

Nini was becoming increasingly distracted by his features the longer she looked at his face. She missed the times when they could be alone and not feel awkward or pressure; she wanted to be able to go to him about anything; she didn't want to worry about what could happen to their relationship each time they saw each other; she wanted her childhood friend back; she wanted him.

"I'm sorry," he whispered without thinking.

Nini was knocked out of her trance. "Sorry for what?" she wondered.

He could feel the heat rising in his face. I said that out loud? "I, um..." He didn't know what to say. He didn't want to make her feel weird again since she had been distant from him for the last hour or so. "I- It's nothing," he murmured.

"Are you sure?"

No. He wanted to be honest with her... to actually express himself and tear down this stupid wall that he had unknowingly built. "Mhm," he nodded, slightly grinning. You stupid fucking brain. "I'm sure."

Nini smiled at him, his hazel eyes making her whole body turn to mush. He's cute. She wrapped her arms around his neck, throwing him off.

Ricky reciprocated the hug. "What's this for?" he wondered.

He felt her shrug. "Just 'cause."

They stayed like that for a minute. His hand began to rub her back, something she always adored. "Thank you," she muttered against his shoulder.

He chuckled. "For what?"

"For being in my life."

His heart melted, and he held her tighter. "I wouldn't have it any other way. I'm so grateful for you."

They were both smiling like idiots as they stood in front of his TV. Their hearts were beating crazily as High School Musical faded into the background.

When they finally pulled away, their faces were much closer (if at all possible). Nini's eyes flickered all over his face yet stayed at his lips the most. (She was sure she saw him do the same.)

They both began leaning in, secretly wishing and dreaming this would happen again. Their noses brushed, and Nini swore she could feel his heartbeat pickup from the pulse point on his neck.

Right when they could feel the other's breath on their own face, a loud ringing broke the trance. They both awkwardly stepped away from each other and looked at the ground; Nini began playing with her rings, and Ricky put his hands in his pockets, rocking on his feet.

"I should probably..." he said, pointing at his phone.

"Yeah," she nodded and stepped out of the way, so he could get to his nightstand.

When Ricky picked up his phone, he saw the screen and cursed under his breath: Lily. He glanced over at Nini from the corner of his eye and saw her looking at the ground. He answered the phone, trying to be semi-discreet. "Hello?"

"Hey!" she responded cheerily. He moved the phone away from his ear and rapidly turned the volume down.

"Hey," he said in a quiet, questioning tone.

"I'm on the way to In N Out to meet up with a couple of friends. Wanna join?"

"Oh, um... now really isn't a good time."

"Are you sure? It's unlike you to turn down an In N Out burger."

"Well, I actually just ate." Not a total lie; he did eat a lot of popcorn.

"I mean, it's not like we have to eat tons. Definitely a handful of fries though."

"Look, I'm in the middle of something else right now. I'll catch up another time."

He heard her sigh, and his shoulders slumped; he felt a little guilty. "Ok. I'll see you soon then."

"Alright. Bye." Ricky hung up before she could get another word in. He tossed his phone onto his bed and ran his hand through his hair.

"Trouble in paradise?"

He turned around and grinned to try to cover up the awkwardness. He shrugged in response. "I wouldn't call it that."

"The trouble or paradise part?"

I don't know. He just shrugged again.

Nini knew exactly who he was talking to; it was quite obvious from the start. She wanted to ask so badly if they were truly a thing, just to confirm her suspicions and get it out of her head. (It probably wouldn't leave her head, only eliminate one question and spiral into other ones.) "Do you wanna talk about it?"

"Not really," he waved off. "It's not that important."

The atmosphere once again turned thick and tense; neither knew what to do. "What, um... what made you want to dance?" she wondered.

Ricky once again turned red. "I don't know. You just... You seemed upset over something... and that was the first thing that came to my mind."

Nini blushed from how well he knew her. "I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me."

"I always will."

She turned full crimson now. Nini's phone went off this time and broke the silence. "Moms want to know if I'm joining them for lunch." She looked up at him, silently asking.

"I'll walk you down," he offered.

Nini exited his room first, hearing his footsteps close behind her. When they made it to the door, she turned back to face him. "I had fun today," she said, mentally slapping herself. You're so stupid. That is the most generic thing you could've said.

"Yeah. I've missed these times." And silence returned.

"You're coming to Slices on Friday, right?" Nini asked. It would be the last time all of them would be together for the summer. Her plane to LA would take off the following Monday, and everyone else would be taking a road trip to Camp Shallow Lake.

"Wouldn't miss it."

"Ok. And please show up on time, not Ricky time."

"I will; I will. Promise," he swore, holding his pinky out.

Nini giggled at his childishness. "I'll see you there then."

"Hellooo??" He gestured to his pinky still in the air.

She giggled and locked hers with his.

"Nothing like Red's family pizza to commemorate a moment," Ricky noted.

Nini nodded too, not knowing what else to do. She extended her arms, and he did too; they wrapped their arms around each other once again and held on securely. This hug wasn't nearly as long as the one upstairs but still held a similar weight.

When they pulled away, Nini dropped her arms first. "See you Friday, Ricky."

"Yeah... see you."

She smiled at him one more time before finally leaving. Ricky watched her car go down the street and waited until she was out of his sight.

He heaved a deep sigh, letting his body relax a bit more. He was always comfortable around Nini, but everything was different now. Their relationship has gone through so many labels that he wasn't sure what to do with himself now. He hoped that maybe this time apart would help put the awkwardness in the past.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This was it: Friday, the last day everyone would be in the same room for at least a month.

Everyone was gathered at Slices for one last night together. The restaurant was slow enough from the late hour that Big Red was able to talk to them; he still had to go back and work whenever an online order came in though.

Well, almost everyone had arrived; Ricky was late yet again. No one was surprised anymore by his absences, but they were hoping he would at least come to this one. Nini felt the most disappointed; she wasn't going to see any of them in person again until August. He promised.

She kept watching the door and window, hoping he would show up at least before all the food was gone. Every time the bell above the door rang, she would immediately look up, wishing it was him. Kourtney rubbed her shoulder, telling her to not focus on some boy and to enjoy the night. That was the problem though: he wasn't just some boy; he was Ricky fucking Bowen.

Nini debated texting him to ask where he was but decided against it. If he wasn't going to show, it's not like she could change his mind.

She was on to her second slice of pizza, distracting herself with the purposefully awful karaoke that Ashlyn and Gina were doing. "Talk about dying cats," Carlos laughed.

"That's the point!" Gina hollered into the mic. Once their song was over, everyone began to argue about who should sing what next.

"Ok, we need a good song to balance out the universe," Carlos declared.

"Ok, mister choreographer, what do you have in mind?" Kourtney retorted.

Carlos began to list off only High School Musical songs, which did not surprise anyone. He made it through the whole soundtrack of the first movie and was about to begin naming the second when Ashlyn mumbled, "Oh my god."

"You seem surprised," Seb said questioningly.

"Yeah," EJ agreed. "High School Musical is practically in our blood."

"No, not that," she said in a hushed voice. "That." She nodded her head toward the entrance, and everyone else's jaws dropped: Lily and Antoine walked in.

"What the hell are they doing here?" Gina wondered.

"Kick them out," Kourtney demanded, nudging Big Red.

"I can't do that!"

"Why not?"

"Because they're potential paying customers." Speaking of which, his mom then called him back to the kitchen for an order.

"They haven't paid just yet," Gina countered.

Nini was silent as she looked at the pair. She didn't know why they were here of all places. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom," she murmured, slipping away from the group.

She entered the two-stall bathroom and went to the sink to splash water on her face. She knew what her feelings were toward the infamous blonde: jealousy. Nini believed her emotions were ridiculous though; it was selfish for her to feel this way when she knew Ricky deserved happiness (no matter where he found that).

Nini stood at the sink, not wanting to go back out there. She then chuckled dryly at her own actions. You're overreacting; they're most likely here just to get food. After all, it is the best pizza in Salt Lake. She washed her hands because they were feeling sticky from the pizza (totally not stalling).

While she had her head down, she heard the door open behind her. Out of the corner of her eyes, there was the devil herself. Nini pretended not to notice her, waiting for her to go into one of the stalls before turning around and quickly leaving... but that didn't happen.

It would've been much more awkward had she kept washing her hands, so Nini ended up stopping and grabbing paper towels, trying to ignore the girl's strange behavior. It didn't work though. "What do you think you're doing?" she blurted.

Great, now I have to actually talk. Nini turned and only then realized how small the bathroom was. "Hmm?"

"Why are you hanging around my boyfriend so much?"

Ah, so the rumors are true. Nini didn't feel like wasting her breath with this conversation. "I have no idea what you're talking about." She tried to leave, but the small space made it easy for Lily to block her path.

"I know exactly what you're doing. Ricky's been canceling on me all the time now. You had your chance with him, kay? Now back the hell off."

Talk about crazy. "Lily, whatever problems you two are experiencing have nothing to do with me. You should talk to him about that." Nini bumped her shoulder on the way out, swinging the door open to escape.

She was halfway across the restaurant when she heard, "I know you still love him!" behind her. Everyone turned to look at the two of them; they were lucky it was late and that this outburst had no strangers in the audience.

Nini rolled her eyes and turned. "What?" she questioned, irritated beyond belief.

"You have plenty of motivation. You still love him and can't stand the fact that he's moving on so easily without you."

"The hell?" Gina blurted.

"Girl, what are you on?!" Carlos hollered.

Even Antoine looked confused. Mrs. Red then came out from the back and handed Antoine a pizza box. The teen thanked her and then left, going around the corner of the building (most likely to where a car was).

Nini knew that what she was saying was partially true; she was embarrassed though to be so envious. She went for the simpler approach though, not wanting to stoop to the blonde's level. "What Ricky does with his life does not concern me at all. Just get your food and leave us alone."

"Really? Well, I think you'll all be quite thrilled to hear that Ricky's not going to Shallow Lake," she informed.

"What!?"
"Huh?!" Everyone had different reactions, but all were along the same lines.

"What are you talking about?" Nini asked.

"He has accepted my parents' invitation to join us at our lake house for our annual jet skiing trip." She proceeded to fake a gasp. "Was this information withheld? Silly me for revealing early."

"Can I slap her yet?" Carlos whispered.

"I mean, you know how he is," she said to Nini. "You know... not the greatest when it comes to... saying how he feels." Lily twirled her hair and took a step closer to Nini.

Nini just wanted a massive sinkhole to open and swallow the entire state of Utah.

Lily lowered her voice for only Nini to hear. "After all... he just wanted someone who didn't want space from him."

"You know what? That's it!" Nini screamed. "Congratulations, Lily; you fucking won. You're with Ricky. I am very aware of the fact that we are no longer together. It's a pain to know that it's because of me and my own shitty actions. But guess what? Where he finds happiness has nothing to do with me. The fact that you felt the need to gloat really shows the kind of person you are."

Kourtney quietly clapped her hands at her best friend's outburst, and a few others whistled.

"And another thing," Nini continued. "I don't know what mask you put on with him, but the tiny ounce of gold that he sees in that black hole you call a heart won't matter anymore when he hears about this little stunt. If you've just decided to come down here to brag, that's a whole new level of pathetic."

"Says the one still chasing after someone who's taken."

Nini was absolutely speechless; she wasn't sure how to counter her accusations. "Listen here, you pretentious blonde bitch, you have some nerve-"

The following ten seconds seemed to happen in slow motion: everyone gasped as Nini fell backward, knocking over a chair and hitting the back of her head on the floor; nobody even realized Lily had raised her fist.

Everyone bounced out of their seats, going to Nini's side and not believing what they just witnessed. "What the hell was that for!?" Gina confronted, standing directly in front of Lily.

EJ was the first one to help her sit back up. Nini had a hand over the left side of her face and the other on the back of her head; one eye was shut from the impact, and her left cheek stung. "Oh my god, you're bleeding!" Seb shrieked. Big Red grabbed a napkin and handed it to EJ. He gently pressed it against her face where the cut was, and she winced.

"Come on," Kourtney said, reaching for her hand. Nini slowly stood up, feeling a little dizzy. She was quickly rushed into the restaurant office, and Kourtney slammed the door shut.

A huge screaming match broke out; everyone sounded like they were saying gibberish and nonsense. There were a few intelligible comments:

"You're a crazy psycho!"
"What did she ever do to you!?"
"What the hell is that perfume? Shit?!"

Due to all the screaming, nobody heard the bell on the door ring. "Hello? Hey? Hey!?!" They all turned around and saw Ricky standing in the doorway confused.

Lily was the first to break away from the crowd. "Oh, thank goodness you're here," she said like a damsel in distress, immediately going to his side and grabbing his hand.

"What's going on here?" he asked, looking between the blonde and his tremendously angry friends.

"What's going on is this asshole just started going on a bitch rant and then punched Nini square in the face!" Carlos explained.

"You did what?" Ricky said, stunned. He dropped her hand and stared at her.

Lily opened her mouth to speak, but Ricky beat her. "You know what? Forget it; I don't want to hear it. It'll just be a waste of time. Get the hell out!" he shouted, pointing at the door.

"Richie, wait, I can-"

"I don't want to hear some bullshit excuse. You hit one of my best friends."

"B- But she was trying to get between us... and break us up," she tried defending.

"Break us up?" Ricky had the most dumbfounded look on his face. "We were never even together! Now get - the fuck - out!!"

Lily was completely speechless. "You dick," she spat. "Have fun with a bitch who won't appreciate you." She turned and finally left; they watched until her car was totally gone.

Ricky looked like smoke was gonna come out of his ears. When he turned back to the group, he only then realized that Nini wasn't standing there too (and Kourtney). "Where is she?"

Everyone simultaneously pointed back to the office, not saying a word. Ricky blew past everyone and to the door.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Kourtney was digging through the cabinets while Nini sat on the desk. "Ah, I think I found it," she said, holding a box. She took a tissue out and went to clean her friend's face. Nini flinched and winced but eventually let Kourtney touch her face.

"God, I'm a wreck," she mumbled. She looked at her hand and was amazed by all the blood.

"That was quite the show," Kourtney commented. "I'm really impressed. You need to keep that side of you on hand at all times."

Nini chuckled. "Well, at least we won't have to deal with her for a while."

"Here, hold this." Kourtney stood behind her and carefully searched the back of her head. "Good news: I think it's just your face that has blood."

"I guess that's a positive," Nini said, looking at the tissue in her hand before pressing it back against her face.

They both jump when they hear a knock on the door. "Who is it?" Kourtney hollered.

"It's me... Ricky." Kourtney looked at Nini, unsure if she should open the door. Nini nodded, and Kourtney went to open the door.

Ricky looked breathless when he was allowed to enter. His eyes fell on Nini immediately. "Oh my god." He approached her, and she gave him a small smile.

But Kourtney stepped in. "Listen here, Bowen," she said, walking toward him and poking his chest. "That little girlfriend of yours has some nerve to barge into our place," she lectured, continuing to back him up, "and start screaming her damn head off. On top of all that, her devil side broke through and decided to punch our friend in the face. I don't have the energy to care about what you do with your life, but you better keep that fucking maniac out of ours! Do - you - hear me!?"

Ricky was now pinned against the door with Kourtney screaming in his face. "Mhm," he nodded, "understood."

Kourtney moved away from him and took a deep breath. "Now, I'll leave you two alone for a moment because there are some obvious things that need to be said." She opened the door and then left.

Once she was gone, Nini burst out laughing while Ricky still looked terrified. "What the hell happened?" he wondered. He relaxed now that she was gone.

Nini's laughter calmed down, as she grabbed another tissue to press to her face. "Long story short, I hope you will take Kourtney's advice and keep that... blonde bitch away from us."

Ricky chuckled; it wasn't every day he heard Nini Salazar-Roberts curse. "Well, after that little... moment, I definitely won't be talking to her again."

"Yeah, Kourt's the best."

"And scariest."

"She and Carlos are the moms of the group."

Ricky went to sit next to her and put his hand out, silently asking if he could help. Nini handed him the tissue, and he started pressing it against her face; she hissed from the pressure. "Sorry," he mumbled, focusing.

"It's fine. It needs to be done."

"I'm so sorry about Lily. I yelled at her to leave, and I hope she took the hint about forever."

"Are you... are you gonna stay with her?"

"No," Ricky answered instantly. "We were never even together in the first place. I mean... she would occasionally call our hangouts dates, but I didn't know how to correct her without it getting too awkward, and I guess she interpreted that in her own way. And she brought up the idea of actually dating a couple of times, but I wasn't really looking for something like that; I said that too."

Nini couldn't stop the grin on her face. "What did you even see in her though?" she blurted. Ricky's hand stopped moving on her face, and she felt a little embarrassed. "Sorry, that was a little blunt. I-"

"Don't worry about it," he said. "To be honest... I don't know. We started talking a little more once the musicals were over, and I guess... she just seemed a lot more chill compared to when all the competition stuff was going on."

Nini just nodded and listened; she obviously had her own thoughts on the blonde and knew the others' opinions. "Is she the reason you've been so late to everything?'

Ricky sighed, and she knew the answer. "Yeah, kind of. Looking back now, I think she did that on purpose. I would tell her that I needed to leave, and she always wanted to do 'one more thing', which always turned into more."

"And tonight?"

"She said she left some makeup thing at my house, and I was waiting for her to show up before finally giving up and just coming here. I'm glad I did." Ricky took the tissue off her face and carefully examined the spot. "Jeez, what did she hit you with?"

"Knowing her blood, it was probably a real diamond ring."

Ricky grabbed one of the bandages and gently applied it to her cheek. Once it was on, he muttered, "I'm so sorry, Nini."

"It's not all your fault."

"But she shouldn't have done that. What were you all even saying for it to go that far?

Nini swallowed nervously as she recalled the comments:
"You still love him and can't stand the fact that he's moving on so easily without you."
"After all... he just wanted someone who didn't want space from him."
"Says the one still chasing after someone who's taken."

Nini didn't know what to say; she was frozen as all of Lily's words swirled in her head. She is knocked out of her thoughts when she feels a hand on her face. She recoils a little, not expecting it. "What are you doing?"

"Y- You had tears on her face," Ricky answered, continuing to catch them with his thumbs.

She hadn't even noticed. "She's right," she squeaked.

"What are you talking about?"

"Lily. She's fucking right!" she shouted, abruptly standing and beginning to pace.

Ricky remained on the desk and watched her. "Right about what?"

"You and us a- and me and... ugh!!"

Nini put her hands over her face and shook her head; she could feel more tears coming. Ricky removed her hands from her face and lifted her head up by her chin. "Talk to me. What happened here?"

She melted into his touch. "I'm sorry," she murmured.

"You have nothing to be sorry for. What she did was uncalled for."

"I'm not talking about today."

"Th- Then what? Has she done this before?"

Nini shook her head and started tearing up more, but she figured there was no other way to say it. "I... Oh god," she huffed. "This is so pathetic."

"Anything you have to say is important," he reassured.

She sniffled a few more times while looking into his eyes. Fuck it. "I... I love you, Ricky," she confessed. "I have for years, and I probably will for the rest of my life. It's so selfish for me to say that though because I screwed us up-"

"What? Hey, no. You don't have to put it all on yourself, ok? I..." Here goes nothing. "I was afraid of us breaking up when you got back from YAC because we hadn't seen each other in person in so long, so I panicked and wanted to spend every literal second with you," he rambled quickly. "You deserve time to yourself too."

"But that's just it! You thought you were doing the right thing, and I just... I kept pushing you away."

Ricky pulled her to his chest and tenderly stroked her hair; she wrapped her arms around him and held on as if her life depended on it. "I love you, Nini," he whispered.

Nini pulled back just enough to look him in the eyes. "Really? Even after the shit show that was this semester... and today?"

He chuckled. "Yeah... always." Ricky brought a hand up and wiped her tears with his thumb. "I will always love you."

They stared at each other for a moment, and they both knew what the other was thinking. "Ricky..." she sighed. "We can't. We shouldn't."

"I- I know." He moved the hair out of her face and tenderly rubbed her cheek with his thumb. "Doesn't mean I don't want to."

Nini smiled softly before letting out a small sob. "I wish. I really do. God, I love you so much."

They stood in the hug for another minute. They both knew this moment was worth so much more. Ricky kissed her forehead, and she grinned against his chest.

Nini pulled back just enough to see his face again. She lifted her hand and wiped his face with her thumb. "You're crying now too?"

"I guess so."

They stared at each other for a few seconds before Ricky mumbled, "I know what we just said but... one more?"

Nini nodded, already getting on her toes. "One more."

They met in the middle for a sweet kiss, and fireworks went off in both of them. The small moment had so much: all the love, passion, heartbreak, and everything else in between.

When they pull away, their foreheads are pressed together, and they have beaming smiles on their faces. "So... what do we do now?" Ricky wondered.

"I don't know."

He nudged his nose against hers, making them both giggle. "I just don't want it to be so awkward that we don't talk."

"Do you think we'll ever get this right?" Nini asked.

"Someday... I promise."

"I hope so."

"Nini... what are we?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. Best friends for now?"

He smiled and squeezed her hand, glad to at least have that relationship back. "Ready to go back out there?"

"If we must."

The two exit the office, and all eyes (not so secretly) turned to them. They ignored it though and sat together. "How are you feeling?" Seb asked Nini.

"Much better now," she answered.

"Please tell me you're done being with blonde Satan?" Carlos directed at Ricky.

"1010%. I didn't know she was capable of this."

"Where have you been?" Gina blurted.

"With her!" EJ pointed out. "How could you not know!?"

Ricky shrugged, now feeling embarrassed. "I don't know. She seemed cool when we talked."

"You're pronouncing it wrong. The word is bitchy," Kourtney corrected.

Everyone laughed, and his face became redder. "Alright, alright, chill. Let's just put all of this behind us when we go to Shallow Lake."

"I can't believe you were considering not going," Ashlyn added.

Ricky didn't have a response for that one and just stayed silent.

"Ok, let's quit with the finger-pointing," Nini said, "and enjoy this night together." She put her hand on his thigh and leaned more against him.

"Simps," Carlos coughed. The two ignored him though, and Ricky squeezed her hand.

They all stayed huddled around that booth for an hour before finally beginning to clean the area up.

Nini was at the drink machine getting a refill when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She smiled when it turned out to be her curly-headed boy. "Hey," she said, putting the lid on her cup.

"Hey... so... can I ask you something?"

"Uh, sure," she said, confused. Her heart started beating faster.

"Great."

He started rocking on his feet, and she actually heard him accidentally crack his knuckles. He was clearly getting nervous about something. Adorable.

"Do you wanna... maybe... sleepover at my place? You obviously don't have to," he quickly added. "I just... really like that we're on the same page and wanted to know if you were up for a night like when we were kids. If it's too weird, I completely understand," he rambled.

Nini giggled at his shyness; her own bashfulness slowly disappeared as she realized what he was asking. His face was quite red now though. "Sure," she nodded.

"Wait, really?"

"Mhm. I think it'll be nice to do it again."

He grinned. "Ok. Ok, great. D- Do you just wanna ride with me? O- Or how did you get here? I- I mean-"

Nini chuckled and stepped closer to him. "Are you feeling ok?" She lifted a hand to his face and felt his cheeks and forehead. "You're kinda warm."

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine."

"Let me just tell Kourt, and then we'll head there."

He nodded at her as she stepped away. Ricky let out a long breath after she was gone. He jumped when someone else slapped his shoulder. Big Red was at his side now. "Dude, what was that? You look like a mess."

"I can't help it." He peered over at Nini, and Big Red thought he was going to turn into that melting face emoji. (He was this close to just slapping him.)

"Well, don't get your heart broken... again. Or hers."

"I don't want to hurt her again. No promises about myself though."

"Well, are you guys giving it another try?"

"No, we're just friends right now."

"Do you think you'll go down that road again?" Long story short: yes.

"I don't know. I just don't want to be in that weird place again where we can't even talk to each other."

"Yeah, that was kinda awkward for all of us."

"Thank you for your encouragement," Ricky deadpanned.

Nini came back over to them with her usual smile. "Ok, ready to go?"

Big Red looked at them skeptically but said nothing.

"Yup," Rickly replied. "See you later, Red." The two walked out of the restaurant and to the small parking lot.

Ashlyn walked to Big Red and asked, "What was that about?"

He chuckled and just answered, "Simps."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When they arrived, they began setting everything up as if it was another regular movie night. There was something different about this one though. It was more comfortable in a way.

Nini was in the kitchen waiting on the popcorn to finish in the microwave while Ricky was trying to find something to watch. He wasn't sure what to play this time though, and he was oddly nervous about choosing. Disney was the obvious choice, but that wasn't specific enough and didn't help narrow down his options.

While he was still scrolling, he hadn't noticed that Nini was now in his room until the bed creaked. "Let me guess," she started. "You can't find something?"

"Nope."

"Just choose a musical. It's the simple solution."

He was browsing through the classics and saw Beauty and the Beast. "Ok... so you know how I used to poke holes in musicals?"

"Mhm, why?" she questioned. "Please don't try to ruin another work of art. You legally can't now that you're a theater kid," she added quickly.

He chuckled and said, "I won't do it while something is playing."

"Oh god."

"Ok, hear me out."

"No," she deadpanned.

"Belle starts to fall for the Beast while in his castle," he continued anyway.

"Right."

"But she's forced to be there because he won't let her go."

"Still correct."

"Is that not a creepy case of stockholm syndrome? In a children's movie!"

"You are missing the entire point!" Nini hollered. "The message is that she chose him for his character over Gaston, who is designed to be the picture-perfect person on the outside."

"Ok, but... she's a prisoner who falls for her captor. That's the literal definition of stockholm syndrome."

She playfully rolled her eyes. "Just play the damn movie."

Ricky chuckled and flopped onto the bed next to her and instantly grabbed a handful of popcorn. He almost knocked it over, and Nini squealed, catching it just in time. "Ricky! Watch out."

"You sound so surprised."

"Such a child," she mumbled. He retaliated by flicking popcorn at her. "Point proven."

Nevertheless, he kept doing it, even if she was trying to focus on the movie. She tried ignoring it as one does when a child is seeking attention, but he was stubborn. Out of nowhere, she grabs the pillow she was leaning on and slams him in the face.

She laughed at how confused and dazed he looked. "Oh, it's on." Ricky tackled her, nearly knocking over the bowl once again.

He trapped her underneath him, tickling her sides. Nini was laughing so hard to the point of crying. "Ri- Ricky! St- Sto- Stop!!"

"You brought this on yourself!"

Nini definitely did not have the strength to get him to stop. She did manage though to move her body enough to try to use her weight to her advantage. However, she failed to realize how close to the edge of the bed they were. Both of them ended up tumbling off with her landing on top of him. The laughing died down as they caught their breath, and their faces quickly turned red when they realized the position they were in. "I'm sorry," Nini murmured.

"It's fine. You've got a great view of my double chin from that angle."

She laughed at the comment and hid her red face in his chest. His grin became wider since he could feel her laughter. Nini got off of him and lent him a hand. He sat back on the bed first and noticed she was hesitant.

"What's wrong?" he wondered.

Nini couldn't come right out and say that she now felt somewhat awkward after the little fall. She muttered, "Nothing," and went back to sit next to him.

Ricky could tell she was tense, but he wasn't sure what to do out of fear of running her off. "Are you sure?"

"Mhm," she nodded, focusing back on the screen.

Ricky slowly reached a hand out to her; she saw it from the corner of her eye. "Talk to me," he practically begged. He paused it while she thought.

Nini internally slapped herself. Here I am again shutting him out when all he's doing is trying. What the hell is wrong with me? "I really... really wish we could go back to how we were," she quietly admitted.

"When?" he asked.

"Before high school," she clarified.

"I mean... we're trying right now. Doesn't that count for something?"

Nini finally looked at him, and her heart was breaking and melting. "I don't deserve you," she mumbled. Embarrassment washed over her as she realized she spoke her thoughts.

Ricky's face turned red, and he moved closer to her. "We both have our problems," he shrugged. "Nobody can say we didn't try though."

Nini grinned and chuckled dryly. "When did you get so good with feelings?"

Ricky smiled back. "Since I fucked up the relationship with the most important girl in my life." He slowly put his hand over hers, beaming when she didn't pull away.

"Look, Ricky... I know we said we're just friends right now... but... I just want to say again... that I love you."

Ricky beamed so much that Nini saw lines near his eyes. He held her hand with both of his and kissed her knuckles. "I love you too. You know I do."

He fixed his sitting position and opened his arms for her. She gladly leaned against him and put an arm over his torso. He grabbed the remote and resumed the movie, loving that his favorite girl was back in his arms (even if they were a little rocky for now).

Nini could hear and feel his heartbeat; she was glad to know that his was going as fast (if not faster) than hers. Another thought crossed her mind, and she didn't want to hold it in this time. "Ricky?"

"Hmm?"

"What do we do... if we try to just be friends... yet we love each other too much to see other people... but it's also not our time? I hate to admit how jealous I was when Lily was saying you were together-"

"Hey, don't put yourself down for what happened today. I mean... I'd probably have the same reaction if... you started seeing someone."

She looked up at him and said, "You wouldn't punch someone in the face, right?"

"No, of course not," he chuckled. "Maybe throw a basketball at them," he murmured.

Nini giggled and held him tighter. "I'd prefer if we avoided all injuries."

"Deal."

It's quiet between them as they resume the movie. It plays for another fifteen minutes before the conversation continues: "Seriously though," Nini began, "I'm sorry about us."

"Nini, you don't-"

"Please let me finish." He gripped her hand tighter and waited for her to continue.

"I'm so sorry, Ricky. I'm sorry for not telling you until the literal last minute that I was going to Denver. I'm sorry for letting you think you were the only reason I came back from YAC; I mean, you were part of it, but I should've just told you everything. I'm sorry about our stupid fight at Slices. And I'm sorry for... just not talking to you. I was so hard on you for not being able to tell me you love me, and now here I am fucking everything up all over again!"

Ricky remained silent, wondering if she was going to add anything else to her venting. "A- Are you ok?"

"Physically or emotionally?" she chuckled.

"Either."

She shrugged, and he held her tighter. "Well, as long as we're being honest... I didn't want you going to YAC. God, I was so angry with myself for not saying those stupid three words; I thought the spring semester was our chance to truly start over. But that would've been selfish; I couldn't ask you to stay."

Nini chuckled dryly against his chest again. "What kind of mess are we?"

"I don't know. But is a communicating mess an improvement?"

"I suppose."

"Then I'd say we're one level above a hot mess."

"C- Can I ask one more thing?" she stumbled.

"Sure."

"What are your thoughts on... a relationship right now?" She quickly added, "I mean in general."

He shrugged. "I'm not sure. For me... I don't think I want a relationship right now. This past year has been quite the rollercoaster."

Nini chuckled and agreed. "Yeah, definitely."

"Where do you stand?"

"Same as you. We should just... have some space and think about ourselves right now."

Ricky kissed the top of her head. "I'll always think about you."

She playfully scoffed. "You're so damn cheesy."

"You love it."

She turned to look up at him. "It's what makes you you."

Ricky brought a hand up to her face and moved strands of hair away. "One more before we focus on ourselves?"

"Mhm, one more."

Nini sat up to reach him easier, and he continued to hold her face. Each kiss felt heavier after the previous; there were just so many emotions flowing between them. Their hands lingered when they pulled away.

"I think it's safe to say that I will never feel this way with another person," Ricky grinned.

Nini giggled and blushed madly. "I know for a fact that I won't."

🍪🍪🍪

Does this make any sense considering it took me so long to write? I don't know!

I honestly couldn't even tell you why this took me so long to write. I think partially because I was focusing on my multi-chapter books instead for a while since I didn't have an upload schedule for this.

Also, every time I thought about working on this again or had an idea, I would either think, "You know what? I'd rather watch TV," (since that doesn't require much or any thinking), or I would add the single idea I thought of and then close the tab and not go back for days or weeks.

Hey, at least it's finally out.

I needed to give myself a deadline to meet or else it was never going to be finished. When I saw that today marks three years since the Common Sense music video, I made my decision.

HAPPY THREE YEARS TO COMMON SENSE!!

This is the first song I ever listened to of his, the first song he posted on Instagram, and his debut single. What an incredible track.

15591 words

Published April 21, 2023