the flaw in being perfect - rini au

sixty five

"Nini," Ashlyn stops Nini right after school.

Nini turns to her, surprised.

Most people have been returning back to normal in speaking to her, though she still hears murmurs of confusion when Ricky wraps his arm around her.

"There's something I need to tell you."

Nini bites the inside of her cheek.

"Can we talk?"

Nini sighs. "Yeah. Yeah, we can."

Ashlyn looks relieved. "Come with me."

Ashlyn starts off down the hallways and towards the classrooms, heading to the empty robotics room. Nini follows.

The two settle awkwardly into desks.

"I shouldn't have ignored you when you needed me," Ashlyn starts.

Nini averts her eyes to stare at the wall instead.

"The real reason..." Ashlyn trails off, really not knowing how to say this. She clears her throat nervously. "Someone told me you didn't want me around. And, um... I know now that they were wrong, but... I still shouldn't have listened."

"Who?" Nini asks without looking.

"EJ."

Nini honestly didn't expect that one. She feels her stomach lurch. "So he's always had bad intentions," Nini realizes. "God, I'm such an idiot."

"No, no, wait. Nini, you're not an idiot. He just took advantage of the situation. I don't know why he told me to stay away. I just assumed that you two were getting closer through football and cheer and that you were opening up to him."

Nini sighs. "It took me much longer than it should have to realize there was something off about EJ."

"He's my cousin. I've known all my life and I still didn't catch it," Ashlyn reminds her.

Nini finally looks to Ashlyn. "I'm sorry I stormed out of the cafe like that."

"I'm sorry I didn't have the guts to tell you what happened."

The two share a small smile.

"I've missed you," Nini tells her.

"I've missed you, too," Ashlyn tells her.

"Can we just go back to being friends now?"

"I would love that." Ashlyn laughs. "So... What's up with you and Ricky?"

Nini feels her face heat up. "We're dating."

"He's nice. He tags along when I hang out with Red a lot. He's definitely... Not like the other football boys."

Nini half smiles dopily. "Yeah."

"You really like him, huh?" Ashlyn asks.

"I've never felt something like this before," Nini pours. "He's just... I don't know, when he smiles I feel like no matter how my day has been, it's okay because he's happy. I just find myself wanting to be good for him since he's so good for me."

Ashlyn's smile grows. "That's great, Neens. Truly."

"What about you? Kourtney's been nervous to talk to me about you, so I don't know all that much there," Nini swiftly changes the subject.

"Oh, it's going fine, I think."

"Just fine?" Nini prods.

"Yeah," Ashlyn sighs. "We've just gotten... Comfortable? It all happened so fast and I sort of wish we'd taken it slower. I barely know her."

"Ash..." Nini trails off. "You should tell her that."

Ashlyn shrugs. "I will when things calm down a bit. It's been kind of hectic."

"Things are calming down now," Nini reminds her. "I'd talk to her about this sooner than later, if I were you."

Ashlyn cocks her head at Nini. "How is it that we haven't talked in over a year, yet you still know what I need to hear better than anyone?"

Nini smiles softly. "Because, deep down, we haven't changed all that much."

Ashlyn lets out a breath of laughter. "Yeah. I guess so."

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nini and ash are talking again!! how do we feel about that??

-jenna