𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌𝐒 | rini & jolivia oneshots

picking up bottles with you

-

They remain in the hotel room even after the party is over, cleaning up all the glitter and Polaroids that have been dropped on the floor during the course of the last four hours. 

He knows her parties are always a little insane, no doubt word of mouth from her best friend Kourtney. Small gatherings became massive bashes, the entire room possibly becoming a crime scene of the night's events. Besides, if he wouldn't stay here to help clean up, who would?

It's been a few months since their breakup. He could remember barely a year ago when the mood of the afterparty was much more enlightened, both of them stealing kisses and procrastinating on the task at hand of picking up the bottles littered across the floor. 

Now, look at where they are a year later. He's next to her, both of them silently picking up bottles, the air between them thick with unspoken words. 

She wants to say something, but every time a word begins to tug at her lips, she finds a way to push it back. They were strangers living side by side, in the most painful way possible. She could recognize his laugh, the familiar sound of his voice anywhere she went. The memories of last year, him squeezing her hand three times in the backseat, midnight kisses, would hold on to her forever. 

Another hour passed with the silence, thicker than a knife. Finally, he grabs his jacket and prepares to leave, before she calls out to him. 

"Hey, Ricky?"

"Yeah?" It's the first time she's spoken to him all evening.

"I just wanted to say...thanks for staying after. I appreciate it."

He gives her a genuine smile, the first time she's seen him do that in a while. "Anytime, Nini."

Nini.

The old nickname sends her heart beating erratically as she walks over to him and gently places a hand on his cheek. She doesn't know when or how it happens, but she finds the familiar taste of his lips against hers. 

When they pull away, the smiles on their kiss-swollen lips tell each other everything they need to know. "Do you want to stay?" she asks hopefully. 

"I'd like that very much," he replies. "Happy New Year, Nini."

"Happy New Year, Ricky."

- 

I hadn't even planned on writing this, but somewhere between finding out that it was legal to marry your brother-in-law and that your mother would probably murder you just because you wouldn't convert to Catholicism, eh, what the hell. Also, fuck the patriarchy (talking to you, Ancient Rome.) 

Keep reading. Keep writing. Keep dreaming. 

-V