Swept Off My Feet- Rini Fanfiction

Would It Mean Anything To Me?

WARNING~~ Long Chapter
*Ricky*

"I love you."
Nini quickly turned around.
I let out a nervous laugh.
"I've loved you since the first time you picked up your ukulele and wrote a song about clouds. A silly, little song about clouds. I love you."
It all just kind of came out, but it felt good because I've kept it inside for so long.
"And that night in your room..." I continued.
"I meant to say it. I meant to say it!"
I couldn't believe that I was spilling my entire heart out to her right after our big performance.
"And I've kicked myself every day since then because I didn't say it. But I do...I love you."

"Ricky!!" someone shouted.
I quickly opened my eyes.
"Oh thank god. Kinda thought you were dead for a second," said Big Red.
I tried to sit up but was stopped by a massive pain in my head and I winced.
"Yeah, you may not want to do that. The school nurse said you had a mild concussion," he told me.
I looked around and I was in my bedroom, laying in my bed.
"Why am I home?" I asked him.
"They had me drive you home because you couldn't stay at school and your dad couldn't come home from work," Big Red explained.
"Thanks," I said and closed my eyes.
"No problem. Although it's almost 2:30. Nini should be here any minute," he said grabbing his backpack.
I opened my eyes. "Nini's coming over?" I asked him.
"Yeah. She couldn't leave school to see you so she told me that she would as soon as school ended."
I smiled at the thought that she wanted to check in on me so badly.
"Actually, she's here now. That's my cue to leave. Hope you feel better, Ricky!" He said and  patted my shoulder.
"Thanks, Big Red," I replied as he left.
I looked over at my beside table and grabbed my phone.
As soon as I turned it on, my head started to pound.
Probably not smart to look at your phone while you have a concussion.
"Hey, Ricky," Nini said in a soft voice, entering my room.
"Hey," I said, trying to sit up again, but failing yet again.
"It's okay," she said coming over to me. "You don't have to sit up."
She sat down on the edge of my bed, taking a good look at me.
"You're very stupid," she said.
I closed my eyes and smiled at her.
"So, are you okay?" She asked me.
I opened my eyes.
"I think so. My head just hurts. And I'm pretty sure I messed up my left eye," I told her.
"Yeah, Big Red told me you have a mild concussion. And you did mess up your eye. Both of them actually," she said, laughing quietly.
"What?" I asked.
I opened the camera app on my phone and looked at my face.
"Ah, dammit," I whispered.
Both of my eyes had huge dark purple circles around them.
My lip was busted and bleeding and I had one large scratch going down my nose.
I also looked really pale.
Perfect.
"Hey, I don't think you look any less attractive. You stood up for me and I can't tell you how much that means to me," Nini said.
I turned my phone off and looked at her.
"No one can talk about you like that," I told her.
"Especially since he doesn't know you. You're perfect the way you are, you understand me?"
She smiled and reached her hand up to play with my hair, which I had to admit felt really good.

*Nini*

I had to clean up his face.
Every time I looked at it, it made me really sad that he went through this to defend me.
As I ran my fingers through his curls, I told him, "I'm going to get some stuff to wash up your face, okay?"
"No alcohol?"
"No alcohol," I stated, smiling.
Ricky hates putting alcohol on cuts he had because it stung too bad.
He could get into an intense fight but couldn't put a little alcohol on a cut.
I got up and went to his bathroom and filled a small bowl with water and soap.
I also added some rubbing alcohol.
I know what you're thinking, but he won't even know it's in the mixture because he'll just think it's the soap that's making it sting.
Plus, his face had to be cleaned.
Then I grabbed a washcloth and went back to his room.
He was sitting up at the end of his bed.
"Ricky!" I scolded.
He turned to face me. "I'm sorry, but I had to sit up."
I sat down next to him and sighed.
"You never do what you're supposed to," I told him.
"I know," he replied.
I dipped the washcloth in the soapy mixture and wrung it out.
"And it won't sting?" He asked as I brought it up to his face.
He winced.
"Yeahhhh, it might because of the soap. Just hold still and it'll be over quicker," I explained.
I gently rubbed the washcloth over his face, making sure to wash away the blood from his lip.
"See, it's all done," I smiled.

*Ricky*

I could tell that Nini wasn't herself.
She would be all peppy and trying to make me laugh but today while she was over here, she looked like something was bothering her.
"Are you okay?" I asked, as she put the washcloth back in the bowl.
She smiled. "I'm fine."
Yeah, no. Whenever Nini said 'I'm fine,' she most definitely not fine.
"Nini..." I said, taking her hand.
She sighed.
"Do you believe it?" She asked me.
"Believe what?"
"What he said. What Alex said, I mean," she continued.
"About you?" I asked.
"Yes! That I'm too short, too skinny. I'm not qualified to play a sport. I'm just a theatre nerd."
I couldn't believe that she actually listened to that ass.
"No. Not at all," I told her. "Nini, I think you're absolutely perfect just the way you-"
"You're just saying that," she said, looking away.
"Why would I say it if it wasn't true?" I asked her.
"Because you're trying to make me feel better. But you know what, Ricky? Trying to make me feel better doesn't hide the fact that what Alex said is true."
I didn't realize how much he affected her. If only she could see herself in the way I saw her.
"Nini, what he said wasn't true by a long shot," I told her, turning her shoulders so she would face me.
"You're not too short. Your height is one of the many things I love about you. You wanna know why?"
"Why?" she said.
"Because I can give you forehead kisses and it wouldn't be awkward," I said, smiling.
Nini laughed, and I was relieved that it made her a little more happy.
"If you were taller," I told her.
"I wouldn't able to do that."
She smiled and gently pushed my arm.
"And the fact that he said you were too skinny just shows how messed up he is. There are no words in the entire world that can describe how perfect you are," I told her, earning a small smile, her eyes brimmed with tears.
"I think about you and your features every day, Nini."
My headache was getting really bad since I was sitting up, but I kept talking.
"Alex doesn't know how soft your hair is. He doesn't know that you hate jello. Or that when you're nervous, you speak in a vague British accent. He doesn't know that you always wear yellow checkered vans, or that you play the piano, ukulele, and guitar beautifully. He doesn't know how stunning your eyes are, or how cute your smile is."
She looked like she might cry.
"Alex doesn't know that you love to paint your nails pink, or that you wear contacts because you don't like the way you look with glasses on, even though to me, I think it's the most adorable thing ever."
She had to wipe her eyes.
"Most importantly, he doesn't know you. So why listen to a guy criticize you when he knows nothing about you?" I asked.
Nini threw herself into my arms, and we both embraced each other tightly.
Not going to lie, it hurt. My body was still super sore, but I didn't say anything. I just hugged her back even tighter.
"Ricky..." she said, pulling away. "No one has ever said something like that to me."
"Well somebody needed to say it. You need to know how special you are. Not just to me, but to everyone else."
She hugged me again.
"Do you believe me now?" I asked.
She nodded, then pulled away from the hug.
My head was pounding really hard and I felt like I might pass out.
"Do you, um...mind if I lay back down?" I asked her.
"Oh my gosh," she said, wiping her eyes and helping me lay back down.
"I'm so sorry, I would have made you lay back down after-"
"Hey," I told her. "Stop worrying. It's okay," I smiled.
Her body relaxed a little bit and she stood up, picking up the bowl and washcloth.
"I should um...get going," she said, walking over and kissing my cheek.
"No, wait," I said, stopping her.
"Can you stay? Just at least until my dad gets home? It won't be long and then-"
"Of course, Ricky." She smiled, putting the bowl down on my bedside table and walking over to the other side of the bed and laying down next to me.
I lifted my right arm up so she could lay down on my chest and I wrapped my arm around her.
"I don't want you ever to think that you don't have any worth, okay?" I told her.
"You know you really helped me, today," she said. "I've never felt this good about myself before."
"You should feel like this every day," I said and leaned over to kiss the top of her head.