Second Chances (Ricky + Nini)

chapter 23 - i thought we had more time

[a/n : thank you for continuing to read this story. 3.1 K !! I'm trying my best to finish it before october, but we'll see.]

Nini was playing tug of war with Bob when her phone vibrated. It was a FaceTime request from Red. She let go of the toy, much to the Labrador's dismay, and immediately picked up her phone. 

"Oh thank God you picked up!" Red said out of breath. "This is an SOS." 

"Hey. What's going on? Everything okay, Red?" Nini asked suddenly panicked too. "Is it Ricky? Is it Ashlyn?" 

"Nononono. It's nothing like that." Red calmed her down slightly. "Sorry, maybe I should take it down a notch. Everyone's fine, Neens." 

"Okay, so what's got you all panicky, Red?" Nini pulled out one of her dining chairs and took a seat. Bob followed her and lied at her feet. 

"I need your help, Nina. You're the only one who can help me." 

"What is it? You know I'd do anything for you." 

"You have to say yes." Red begged. "Just promise me you'll say yes?" 

Nini thought it was a bit odd that Red would make her say yes without actually telling her whatever it was he needed. But Red was her oldest friend besides Ricky, and she trusted him with her life. 

"Yeah. Of course." Nini said playing with her hair. Red's whole energy was making her nervous. "Now just spit it out, man." 

"IneedyoutohelpmeproposetoAshlyn." Red said in one breath. 

"Something something Ashlyn.. all I heard was Ashlyn. Slow down and breathe, skate rat." 

"I.. need you to... help me... umm.. propose to Ashlyn." 

Nini squealed so loud making Red take off his earphones. She has literally been waiting for this moment since Redlyn begun way back when. The two were perfect for each other, and she can't believe Red was finally proposing, especially after their conversation last month. 

"Red!!! I'm so happy for you! I can't believe it's finally happening." Nini grinned so wide that Bob was looking at her funny. "What happened to all that crap about not being ready and waiting for the perfect wedding?" 

"I guess recently we've been talking a lot about it and we realized we both just really wanna be with each other." Red explained. "And if we waited for the right moment it would probably never come. Plus, Ashlyn basically said she didn't want a big wedding, she just wanted an intimate ceremony in her parents backyard with all of our friends and family. So I figured why wait any longer." 

"Aww. I'm so happy for you guys. I promise I'll help you with whatever you need." 

"Thank you. That means a lot to me, Neens." Red beamed. "So I was thinking... that I would propose to her in New York. Those tickets you gave us... maybe we could get together for a little friendsgiving weekend, and I could propose then?" 

"That sounds perfect, Red." 

"I just need some ideas and I need your help to pull the whole thing off." 

"Anything for you. We'll figure something out. Don't worry. There's about a thousand ways to propose... especially in New York City." 

"Thanks, Neens. I can't believe I'm doing this. It feels surreal." 

"Does Ricky know?" Nini asked. She and Ricky had a competition when Red would tell them secrets, both of them wanted to be the first to know. Currently Ricky was ahead of her by one point, but Nini argued that it was only because she'd moved to New York so Ricky was more accessible to Big Red.