"Red, I have no idea what to do." Ricky paced back and forth, running his hands through his hair, "She won't listen. How can I tell her that girl forced herself on me if she won't listen?"
It had been days. Ricky had refuted the rumors that he was with that crazy fan that kissed him, but Nini still wouldn't answer his calls or see him.
"Ricky, sit down, you are making me dizzy." Red said, though he was the one spinning around in a swivel chair, "I have an idea."
"You do?" Ricky asked, surprised.
"I get them sometimes." Red said defensively, stumbling around as he stood, "I'll be back."
"Where are you going?" Ricky asked.
"I'll be back" Red repeated, leaving the house.
Ricky shook his head.
"He's my best friend, but he's plain nutty." Ricky said before returning to his earlier occupation, staring at a picture of Nini.
LINE BREAK
Kourt knit her eyebrows together when her doorbell kept going off. Sighing, she got off the couch and made her way to the door. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" She yelled to the person behind the door. She was shocked when she opened the door and saw Big Red standing there pacing back and forth.
"What do you want Red? I'm working." she told him, frustrated at the amount of times he rang her doorbell.
"We gotta get Ricky and Nini back together. They're like-peanut butter and jelly, Mac and cheese, and-I'm hungry."
"Red!" Kourt reached up and snapped her fingers in front of his face, "Focus!"
"Oh yeah. Kourt, we gotta fix this." he said.
"No we don't gotta do anything." Kourtney said. "That bastard broke my best friend's heart by cheating on her."
She turned away from him, but suddenly there were hands on her shoulders and she was twirled around.
"But Kourtney, that's just the thing!" Red shook her, "He didn't cheat on her!"
Kourtney scoffed and walked back into her living room, leaving a confused Red waiting outside of her door. She came back seconds later and shoved the magazine with the pictures of Ricky kissing another girl into Red's hands. She pointed to the picture of Ricky and the floozy he was kissing.
"Then what is this?" she asked.
"A magazine."
"No Red! The picture! Of Ricky kissing another girl. A girl who is not Nini!" Kourt shouted.
"That girl forced herself on him. He really likes Nini." Red said.
"Right. A picture is worth a thousand words." Kourtney shook her head.
"What about a video?" Red asked, pulling his phone out of his pocket.
"What do you mean?" Kourt said suspiciously.
Red handed her his phone and she pressed play on the video.
"Just watch." he said, his cheek pressed against hers.
"Thank you Vancouver!" Ricky shouted.
Suddenly a girl jumped one the stage.
"I love you Ricky Bowen!"
The girl kissed him. He shoved her away.
"Get off me! Security!" he shouted.
But the girl ran off.
The video ended and Kourtney handed the phone back to Red, silently.
"Ricky didn't cheat on Nini." Kourtney said in shock.
"He would never do anything like that." Red said seriously. "Will you please talk to Nini? Ricky's been going insane."
"I will." she said.
"Great!" Red exclaimed, and then pulled her into a quick hug before running off.
Kourtney shook her head at the redhead, sighing and closing her front door going back to work. She'd talk to Nini later.
LINE BREAK
"Hey Kourt." Nini said as her best friend walked into her apartment.
"Sure, come on in. Make yourself at home." Nini chuckled as Kourt threw herself on the couch next to Nini. Kourtney laughed, "You know I will, girlie."
Nini was in the process of telling Kourtney about a lesson she taught today at the music store when Kourt interrupted her.
"Listen Nins, I think you should hear Ricky out." Kourt said bluntly.
"What! Just the other day you were calling him a rat-bastard." Nini said, confused.
"Girl, I am your best friend. I'm calling in the last of my five yearly favors." Kourt said.
That was a deal they made when they were teenagers. Nini's favors usually had Kourt doing something like community service. Kourt's usually landed them in trouble.
"Kourt, please." Nini said.
"Nope, I'm cashing it in."
"Your last favor?" Nini asked.
"Call him." Kourt stood, "I gotta go. But you need to hear him out." She said, pointing at Nini and raising her eyebrows.
Nini sighed. "Okay, okay. I'll talk to him. I promise." Nini told her best friend.
LINE BREAK
Nini sat in her car for about 20 minutes contemplating on what she would say to him when she talked to him for the first time since the scandal. Finally, she sighed and got out of her car, confidently walking up to his front door. Nini rang the doorbell, nervously.
"Nini!" Ricky said when he answered the door.
He tried to touch her, but she stepped back.
"You have five minutes." she said coldly.
"That's all I need."
So he told her the same story Red told Kourtney and showed her the video.
"I would never cheat on you Nini." Ricky took her hands in his, "It's you I care about."
Nini stared at their joined hands. Then she pulled her hands away.
"I'm sorry Ricky, but I can't do this." she said.
"No, Nini, what are you talking about?" Ricky panicked.
"Do you know how much it hurt seeing that picture?" she said, "I don't ever want to feel that again."
"I am so sorry you felt that way." he said, trying to hug her.
"Ricky, no." she pushed him away, "You were never supposed to break my heart. But you did. And the only way to avoid that is to not be with you or anyone else. I can't feel that way again."
She started to walk away. Ricky grabbed her arm.
"Nini, please."
She shook him off and ran from the house, tears streaming down her face.
She was doing the right thing.
_______________________________
😬