Second Chances (Ricky + Nini)

chapter 41 - i say that i'm through but this song's still for you

That night, Ricky left before Nini was up and about, they didn't really talk about it, but things seemed to go back to normal ... or as normal as Ricky and Nini could ever be anyway.

They worked hard on their project for the past few weeks and remained friends. Except for the times that Nini would catch Ricky staring at her for too long, when he thought she didn't  notice. She also noticed that it was always just Ricky and Nini, even though Ben and Ethan were part of the team. She didn't mind though, she loved spending time with him... anyone could tell she was smitten.

She didn't dare look him in the eyes though, she was afraid of two things :
1. He might accuse her again of "looking like she loves him"
2. He might find out that she actually really does.

"Hey, you wanna take a break?" Ricky asked. "You look like a zombie..."

"Yeah, that tends to happen when you work a full time job and have a side project..." Nini yawned. "I'm not tired though, I'm almost done with these, so I'm just gonna press on. You go ahead though."

Ricky chuckled at her stubbornness. "Okay. I'll go and get us dinner while I'm on my break."

"Okay." Nini said still not taking her eyes off her work. But not long after Ricky left, she ended up drifting away and falling asleep on the piles of paper.
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When Ricky noticed his ex-girlfriend asleep with her head on the desk, he quietly set the food down on the kitchen counter, and gently nudged her, but she remained asleep. He took a moment to just look at her. He'd been stealing glances because he didn't want her to feel weird or pressured to be with him. He'd tried to avoid looking at her for too long, but she was just so breathtaking that his eyes always inevitably found themselves staring at her longingly. Even when she was asleep on the desk and in her sweats, she looked perfect.

Ricky tore his gaze off her before it turned creepy, and gingerly scooped her up in his arms. He lay her down on the sofa and put a blanket over her. He didn't realize what he was doing, it was like a reflex, but before he knew it he was hovering over her and kissing her forehead. He immediately pulled away and retreated to the dining area, hoping she didn't notice. Thankfully, it seemed that she was extremely exhausted and fast asleep.

He hated that he couldn't just kiss her, or hold her hand, or embrace her like he used to. Even a side hug has become slightly awkward. Mostly because he was afraid he'd cross a boundary and possibly lose her forever. Ricky sighed and focused on eating dinner instead.
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Nini woke up from a much needed nap and realized that she was on Ricky's couch. She tried to remember why she was here. They were doing their project... she checked her phone to find that it was 10 pm. She immediately jumped up from her position.. scaring Ricky in the process.

"Oh no! I've got so much to catch up on!" She didn't even realized the curly haired figure approaching her until he was in front of her.

"AH! Ricky what are you doing. Don't sneak ip on me." Nini said. "And why didn't you wake me-"

"Shhh. Relax." Ricky took hold of her flailing arms and made her sit back down on the sofa. "I think you should take a break."

"I did! And now it's 10, and if we don't get this done today, we'll never meet the next deadline and your book will be published late-" She started rambling.

"My book will be just fine. We can miss a deadline it's okay. We can work on it tomorrow. Why don't you have some dinner?" Ricky said walking towards the kitchen to grab her some food. "You should've told me if this was too much for you. I don't want you to be overworked."

He came back with a plate full of Nini's favorite Filipino dishes. "You didn't?!" Nini said.

"I did. I know you've been working hard, so I thought I'd get you something special for dinner." Ricky said. "Look, Neens, I'm your boss right? I asked you to work this project.."

Nini nodded while taking a bite of her food. "Well. As your boss. I demand that you take the night off, okay?"

Nini was about to protest, but Ricky gave her the look. Nini knew she would get a lecture if she protested, so she kept her mouth shut. She really did need a break anyways.

When she finished eating, they sat out on the balcony and Ricky poured some wine. "You've quite a view up here... this place is a bargain."

"Yeah. It's not great in the daylight, but at night... when everything lights up... it's amazing." Ricky said taking a sip. "You know why I ended up taking this place?"

Nini shook her head. Ricky stood up and motioned for her to stand beside him. "You see that bit of green over there?" He pointed.

"Yeah. That's Brooklyn Bridge Park isn't it?"

"Yup. That's where we had our first date ... when I came here to get you back." Ricky chuckled. "Look where we are now.. again... I guess I'm a big believer in second chances.."
[a/n : its in chapter 13 if you forgot]

Nini didn't know what to say so she just kept quiet and drank her wine. They stayed quiet for a while, Ricky not wanting to push her into anything. But then he retreated indoors, and came back with a guitar.

"Let me play you something..." He starts strumming. "Something you wrote actually."
(Ricky plays a slow rendition of The Best Part)

His voice was smooth and silky, but sometimes
marbled with coarseness as he battled his own emotions. Nini had missed this. Spending time with him doing nothing. Him singing to her. Playing that guitar of his... that's when she realized that's not his guitar. That's her guitar.
Nini felt her eyes well up with emotions. She'd wrecked that guitar because she knew it was the end of their relationship. But now they were here again. She and him.

"Here. It's yours." Ricky said. "I saw it when I stayed at your house the other day ... and I just ... I got you this guitar... it's like the foundation of our relationship. I had to fix it."

"I was angry and sad." Nini recalled, taking a seat. "I'd been waiting for you for months, and you'd been calling me every now and then. But you never came. And then you told me you were going on a date... I just lost it. I figured it must be me."

Ricky shook his head and held her hands.

"I thought... he isn't afraid of ruining her life. he has no problem calling me... so he probably just doesn't want to come. I thought to myself 'it's really over' "

"Is it over ?"

Nini couldn't answer.

"Look at this guitar... It was wrecked when I found it. I thought it was beyond repair." Ricky said. "But I found a guy who fixes instruments, I told him I want the original wood preserved, I didn't want this guitar to lose it's identity. I watched him work it was like he pieced together all the broken pieces, he made it new. Sure there are some things he couldn't fix, he had to replace the wood, like over here... on the neck."

He guided her fingers to the neck of the guitar where she could feel it come together through different pieces.

"He fixed it, Neens. It was completely broken, but look at it now. It makes perfect music. All the cracks and the damage just added to its character. It can be fixed.." He wasn't talking about the guitar anymore. "We can be fixed."

"You could've thrown this guitar away, but you didn't. You kept it in that room." Ricky's lips were mere inches from hers now. "I think you couldn't find it in your heart to throw it away. You care too much. You couldn't let it go, because it means something to you."

"We mean something to you." He said gesturing to the both of them. And then Ricky
took a leap of faith and leaned in.

He kissed her soft lips, and he wanted to cry because he'd missed this so much. Missed her so much. And then she was kissing him back, and it was like the whole world stopped. But then he felt her hands on his chest pushing him back, and he saw it in her eyes. Regret. Fear. Confusion.

"I have to go. I'm sorry." Nini stood up and ran out of the loft. Leaving Ricky alone and breathless in his balcony.
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