*Read Word for Word If you want your questions answered*
* = A Voice Over of Cassette.
Sentences like this = A Small Recap.
Read in Light Mode for easier understanding.
Nini
I turn my head and grin at Ahmed, letting go of his hand.
"There he is.." He says, fixing my hat for me. "Keep contact with me okay?"
"Of course, thank you."
I give him one last fist bump before grabbing my suitcase and making my way over to the figure. He was shaking and I couldn't tell why at all.
I sit beside him with a small smirk on my face. He flinches as I put a hand on his.
"Handsome...it's just me." I state. I look at the child in the seat carrier beside him and can't help but smile. I lean back in my chair.
"I-I know..I just..I didn't know it you'd really be here. I saw Ahmed but he was..suppose to be here."
"Ouch," I snort, "come on, that's a bit rude of you."
"I'm sorry." he forces a chuckle.
"Not happy to see me?" I question.
"What? No..I'm..shocked an- and..I'm really happy to see you baby."
"PFT."
"Really? All I want to do is hold on to you and not let go, I really mean it." His voice was genuine.
"Well, once we're there you can show me whether you mean it or not."
He snorts and in the corner of my eye, I can see him slightly playing with Athena.
"I will. Did anyone follow you?" We both keep our heads straight ahead, not even looking at each other.
"No. I checked, we're all good." I wipe my sweaty palms on my black jeans.
He grabs my hand once more and squeezes 3 times.
"I'm sorry I made you do that," he says quietly. We continue to keep our heads straight.
"It's okay. Everything's done for a reason. I've missed you though."
"I've missed you too." He sighs, "are you sure you want to do this?"
"Risk my future so I can be in yours?" He finally looks at me, but I keep my eyes straight. "Never been more sure."
He chuckles a little bit, causing me to do the same. "I didn't think this would work out," he says, "but you're here."
"I'm not slow darling. I knew you were hiding something from me but..I didn't think it would be this. I'm not disappointed though..not at all."
"I didn't know how else to tell you." He leans back, "it was a risky way but I thought I explained it well enough in that little cassette."
"You did," I agree, "it was a little hard to believe but..I got it quickly."
*Flashback* (Moments)
"Ricky's alright. I'm well, how about you?" Ricky says as his hand falls into my dress pocket. I feel him drop something inside, slightly weighing it down. (CH.92)
I slightly shake at the touch but quickly calm myself. He won't hurt me, I shouldn't think like he would.
"Sorry," he whispers in my ear, "listen, think, and decide. All in the quiet please."
I give him a slightly confused look, but I soon put a hand in my pocket. It felt like some dvd almost. I look down into my pocket and gaze at the small cassette.
"Keys, right pocket." He pays his attention back to Jaxon. I try to process his words as I reach behind him, taking out the truck keys.
I put on my coat and head outside. I pull the cassette out of my pocket and take it out of its cover before examining it. Listen..think and decide? What does he mean?
I unlock the truck and go into the drivers seat. Of course he knows that the truck has a cassette player.
I breathe out a shaky breath as I put the cassette in and wait for it to boot up. I fix my jacket and rub my hands together. Okay, maybe it was colder than I anticipated.
"Hey." Ricky's voice comes on. It was raspy and would cut out every now and then. "Uhm, it's like..2 AM in the morning and I can't sleep. Maybe that's not important but you can't blame me. You just called us toxic and I don't really know how to react to that."
I begin questioning why he made this. Is he just ranting to me or something?
"But I don't blame you. I'm a jackass. I'm different than the old Ricky you know..and I'm sorry, but I'm mostly sorry that I'm telling you this the way I am right now. A cassette. Sort of feeling like Hannah Baker right now but..I'm not necessarily dead right now. So that's cool."
I shuffle in my seat and wait patiently. I notice that the player says that this cassette is 7 minutes long.
"You're right. I'm hiding something and it is the reason why I've been straight up lying to your face, but please believe me here." I hear some shuffling in the background. "Sorry if you hear that. I'm sitting outside and it's kind of cold."
I snort and roll my eyes.
"So, Skye. You know her..y'know..the bitch. I've been seeing her because..she's..she is pregnant."
I feel my heart drop.
"What?.." I say quietly to myself. The cassette goes on, not letting me think.
"She is pregnant and yes, I'm the father. Me, Richard Bowen. I figured it out a month ago. Skye has been following me just to tell me that she was going to give it up for adoption but I don't want that." He sighs, "I'm going to keep the child. The child..is a girl."
He slightly laughs in a, I'm guessing, happy tone. I was still finding my way to process everything.
"Me and Skye had gone through names the last time I saw her, except today doesn't necessarily count. Athena. That's her name and I couldn't love it more. She's due soon. Skye is now 9 months pregnant. Athena is coming real soon Nini."
I hear tapping in the background. He was probably tapping his foot.
"I'm asking for a lot, I know, and that's why I don't have the guts to tell you face to face, and I apologize, but I also can't tell you face to face because we're not safe. By the time you get this, you would have already seen Will and Jaxon."
Now. He's talking about now..and he knows the 2..god. Is this right? What?
"You know that Jaxon lives in Chicago. He's with me, they both are. I met Jaxon in Chicago and we grew close into things that we shouldn't have. Right now you're at a party. Your family party and though you may not know, they're people watching you. People from Chicago that know Kant and Lachlan are here."
I find myself looking around in discomfort. I felt unsafe in a matter of seconds.
"Nini," he snorts, "I want to raise this child with you. I can't lie to you anymore, I really can't. And I know that this is a lot to process, especially in a cassette but just know that if you don't want to..I understand. I also need you to understand though. You cannot talk to me about this face to face. When you walk back into the apartment or where ever you went, I'm going to ask how you're feeling. Tell me the truth, but don't say anything about this pregnancy."
"Hey are you okay? You look a little distraught."
"Uh, I am a little but other than that, I'm fine."
Skye? Pregnant? Ricky? Father.
The fuck?
"I'm genuinely telling you, do NOT talk to me about this. I'm telling you like this for a reason. If you want..to do what I'm asking..please listen to this plan. Just know, I understand if you don't want to because no matter what I'm doing or where I am, I still love you. Plus if you don't want to, you sort of have to follow like half of the plan because it's for both for our safety. Also..Nini...when I'm telling you to act as normal as you can when you walk in..I mean it. Talk like you have no clue, react to every new thing going on...act normal. People watch our every move and for the plan..I want you to do this..IF you want to stay with me in San Diego..yes, that's where I'm going. UCLA just isn't right for me right now. Here is the plan."
(still In flashback btw)
I take a heavy breath as I walk into the police station.
*"First, on the back of this cassette cover is a taped flash drive of Lachlan..yes Lachlan, admitting that his parents set your house on fire. Jaxon was disguised as a police officer when Lachlan came in to see Kant. He led him into the meeting room and while doing so, he set a recorder on him. We didn't know what we would find but..at least your family gets some clarity. Still..act like this is some new news. Talk to me about it afterwards as much as you can as if you were actually shocked."*
"Hello," the desk worker says, "how can I help you?"
"Hi, so recently my family's home has been set on fire." He raises a brow at how calmly I say it, "and I actually have some evidence that can help with the case."
"I-.." he grabs a pen, "sure what is it?"
*"Once you finish with that..we'll go back to normal for a bit. Celebrate that Lachlan's parents are in jail and you guys have some closure and maybe enjoy our Christmas time together."*
I have a hand on her waist as she has one on my shoulder. Our free hands hold onto each other.
"How are you feeling?" I ask quietly as we continue to lightly sway.
"I'm okay. How about you? You ready for UCLA?" She lays her head on my chest.
"I'm good..and as ready as I'll ever be my love."
The music continues to fill our ears and force our movements. I rest my head on hers and grin. I hold her tight against my body. (Ch. 94)
*"Once that happens, we will be leaving for UCLA, I can assure you people will be watching on that plane as well. Here...I'm going to need your top notch acting skills because only you will be going to UCLA."*
"If I stay on this plane," I say, "then there's going to be a much bigger disturbance than my loud voice. So I suggest you tell that pilot of yours to either turn around, or find the closest fucking stop." (Ch.76)
*"You'll be stopped at Las Vegas. Get off of the plane, take both of our luggage and get out of the airport. Your next flight fully back to UCLA will be a day after. The ticket will be in the same envelope as the letter I gave you for Christmas."*
"You really made me one huh?" I grin. I open the envelope and take out the letter. The ticket lays inside, causing me to put the envelope under my leg, the ticket inside.
"Of course. I keep my word." He smiles at me. (Ch.94)
*"I'll be in contact with William as he is the only person who watches out for our safety whether or not you want to go through with this."*
"Yo, Richard?" I look to my side, seeing William with a small grin on his face. "Hey."
"Shit, hey. How you've been?" I take a sip of my water.
"Well. Keeping low like you asked." He looks around, making sure Nini isn't looking at our direction. "You think it's gonna work?"
"It's whether or not she's caught on. I pray she has."
"It's better if we just take it as a surprise." He notices Nini looking at us. "I..she's looking. I should go."
*" While you are in Las Vegas, Get a hotel. Stay there and order take out. Please eat by the way. The people watching you will most definitely get bored and since you're in Las Vegas..they'll begin gambling. I know that's scary, knowing someone is watching you while you are alone, but they won't act on their thoughts I can assure you."*
I sigh as I unlock the hotel door. I shut it behind me and lock it. I quickly drop everything before closing the blinds and doing a small check over of the room.
*"Go to sleep and rest. In the morning, leave for your flight. Bring everything to UCLA and stay in UCLA for 2 week. I'm going to cancel my phone but I want you to keep trying to contact me. They're watching your phone and everything. Text our friends about us..and know that I told them about everything. They're playing along."
I sit down on my bed and pull out my phone. I begin texting the Darling McHarling's group chat.
"Hey guys..Um..have any of you guys received text messages from Ricky?" I text. (Ch. 86)
*"Skye, by now, has probably given birth. Here, I just need to sign forms and just meet my..child. God that's so weird to say. Uh, when Skye is discharged from the hospital and Athena is in my hands, I'll be heading to the airport 2 days after. I won't know when you are in Salt Lake so I'll have 2 friends in contact with me."*
*"Jack,"*
"Hey Rick!" I hear someone say.
"Hey man!" Ricky responds. I take my eyes off of the lanterns and to Ricky and the guy he was talking to. "How are you?"
"I'm great. Who's the lucky girl?"
I find myself blushing.
"Someone amazing, that's who." (Ch.61)
*"Before you leave UCLA, you'll be leaving at night. Go the lanterns and tell Jack you are leaving. He'll say something that you will understand."•
"Jack," I hoist my bag over my shoulder, "I uh, I'm going."
He steps off of the ladder and gives me a smile.
"Alright," he says, "I'll send the rest of your stuff to San Diego. I don't know why Ricky is making it so hard on himself."
I laugh. "Yeah, I could've just met him in San Diego, but..I'm just glad he told me."
"Me too. I wish you guys well. It's just for a moment though right. Some things happen in just a moment."
"Just For A Moment." I grin. "Yeah."
*" and Ahmed is who you'll meet with next."•
"You didn't have to do that," I say with a grin as he hands me the lantern.
"I know." Ricky answers. He waves bye to the guy who gave him the lantern. I wave him both a hi and bye. Ahmed..that's his name. (Ch.61)
*"Jack will tell Ahmed that you left for Salt Lake. Ahmed will already be stationed at the Salt Lake Airport for you. I think if I time everything right, we'll be fine. Ahmed will take you to a hotel room that he bought. You won't make any purchases when you're back in Salt. Just to be safe. You'll pose as a couple and you will stay together until I contact Ahmed that I'm heading to the airport."*
"Don't worry," Ahmed says as we walk into the building, "everyone here in the lobby are friends of mine. They're watching out until we get inside."
*"Then..we'll meet up in the airport. I'll have Athena and all of my stuff ready for Chicago. Ahmed will follow you but from a distance. Dress up all black, a hat will do you good. Then that's when we go to San Diego. We won't sit next to each other on the plane and that's for a reason."
(Around Right Now)
"I'm glad you understood. Come on," Ricky says, standing up letting go of my hand. "Sit ap-
"I know." I state, getting up. He picks up Athena in her carrier and begins walking. I follow behind him, another smile crosses my face as I make eye contact with the child.
*" We'll sit apart in the plane. I made sure to get us a layover flight. We'll be stopping in Arizona. There, I have 2 friends dressed in all black as well. Amanda, the Tim Hortons worker and of course, EJ. Though yes, we don't look the same, the Chicagoans don't care. As long as they hide they're faces, the people watching us will not care and continue to watch EJ and Amanda."*
I keep my hat on as we stop. The flight abruptly lands and I find myself waiting patiently for the get go of allowing us to leave.
God, I am so crazy for doing this. I hold onto my phone and stand up. Everyone stands up as well and I couldn't find Ricky for a second, but then see Ricky standing up not too far behind me.
*"In Arizona, we will grab our luggage separately, but if you notice..the luggage's we grabbed are not ours. They are look alike's and full of random shit I found. EJ and Amanda have our real bags. They got it before us. We will meet them individually. You will meet Amanda in the middle of the terminal."
I subconsciously look behind me before continuing to drag my suit case. I look around for a girl in black with a blue suit case.
*"Under your black clothes are completely different clothing. Any of you choice, but once you find Amanda..take off your black clothing as you switch suit cases."*
I finally find the girl I was looking for. We both make eye contact and begin walking towards one another. I drag my suit case with one hand and use the other to unzip my black sweater. I let go of my suit case for a split second as I take off my sweater completely. We get closer to each other and as we begin the small switch, I wrap my sweater around her suit case. In one swift motion I take her suit case and she takes mine, and just like that, I continue on in the airport.
I take off my hat and place it in the trash can that I just happened to walk by. I look at the sweater wrapped around the suit case that made it look completely different than before and smile. I had worn a plain yellow t-shirt. I tuck the shirt slightly into my black jeans and take my hair out of its pony tail. I ruff it up a little bit and continue on into the airport.
*"while you are doing that, I'm switching with EJ. Doing the exact same thing as you are, except EJ has a empty baby carrier heh. Quick and Easy my Love. That's what you need to be in this situation."*
I hold my suitcase tightly before heading into the bathroom. Noticing that no one was around, I quickly kick off my shoes and take my phone out of my pocket before taking off my pants. Underneath, I had black nike running shorts. Though my outfit did not match, it was for the better.
I grab my jeans off of the ground and open up my suit case. I stuff the jeans inside and quickly zip it up as I grab my shoes. I slip on the white Nike's and quickly braid my hair into a one sided braid before dragging my suit case out of the bathroom.
*"Then that's when we're free. No worries of anyone watching us. EJ and Amanda have quickly spread out into the airport, completely away from each other, going into completely different flights. Just for a moment, take a breath. You did it.*"
I find myself smiling as I begin walking to the gates. I close my eyes and take a deep breath.
*"Here, you'll meet me at Gate C, and once we're on the plane..know that we did it."
I see Ricky sitting down. He was in Blue shorts and in a plain white muscle shirt. Athena even changed, from a red onesie to a striped blue and white one, matching Ricky.
He smiles when he sees me, and I do the same. I quickly walk over to him as he stands up. Almost immediately, I wrap my arms around his neck and connect my lips with his, doing everything I can to show the emotion I wasn't able to give for 2 weeks.
I hold onto him tightly and end up wrapping my legs around him as he had pulled up on my thighs. He keeps an arm around me and one carrying Athena in her little carrier.
My hands trail up to his hair and pulls on it slightly. His lips dance with mine and as excited as I was to do something else to him, we were in the middle of an airport and his daughter was in his hand so..that wouldn't work our well.
We pull away and rest our foreheads against one another. About to say something, I notice a small tear running down his face.
"Hey.." I say softly, "what's wrong?" I wipe the tear off his face.
"Thank you..so much." He uses his one hand and pulls me closer to him, his head resting on my collarbone. I tighten my legs around him.
"Anything for you.." I kiss the top of his forehead. "We're here baby. We're in San Diego."
"We are...god I really thought it'd just be me and her."
"Never. Also, please don't keep stuff from me, or at least for that fucking long."
He snorts. "I promise. Oh, say hi."
He puts me on the ground and takes Athena out of her baby carrier.
"This," he bounces her around with a small grin, making me get one of the biggest cases of baby fever ever..which is not surprising since..that's his daughter. "Is Athena. Athena meet Nini."
I slightly laugh as he hands me her. Her smile lights me up.
"Hey gorgeous.."
THAT IS THE END OF MEETING ME HALFWAY
THANK YOU FOR READING!
Fun Fact: Nini was actually going to die from the gun shot and half of this book was just going to be a wanted dream in Ricky's mind who was also to be put in a coma. Luckily I'm nice and went with my plan B :)
ANY FINAL THOUGHTS OR WORDS ON THE BOOK?