Theatre Geek - (R.B.) - Chapter 12: Chapter 12

"HEY NINI!"
Nini glanced up at the voice and sighed when she realized it was just Ricky. Of course it was him, he was practically one of the only dude's who talked to her ever since her supposed break-up with EJ. She wouldn't call it a split, really, it was more like a temporary break. For more reasons than one, however, that's a concept Ricky would have trouble understanding.
She smiled slightly in his direction, but kept her gaze on the wooden basket in her hands. It contained a surprise for Julia that she planned to give the girl on her way to Julia's home. On the night of the homecoming dance, she fell a bit sick, probably because of almost drowning in that horrid rain that night. It's the least she could do for a girl that was one of the nicest she'd ever met.
"What're you holding?" His voice was still cheerful, indicating that he didn't really take the hint that she was uncomfortable with him around. He too glimpsed at the hamper and opened up his mouth to speak again, but was interrupted by Nini.
"It's a present for someone." Ricky furrowed his eyebrows momentarily, wondering who it could be for. There was quite a possibility that it was for Kourtney, as Nini often gave random gifts of kindness to the girl when she was dating him. Or perhaps it was—he frowned—EJ.
"Oh, who?" His voice came out more pleading than curious, and he cursed himself for feeling desperate.
"Julia," Nini shut her locker and fastened in her lock. She prepared to walk away from him, or more like she hoped he would just leave her be. At least for a little while.
He laughed nervously, wondering what Julia of all people had done in order to catch the attention that he so truly desired from Nini. "What's up with her?"
She glared at him. "Does something have to be 'up' in order to show appreciation for someone?" She questioned, catching him off guard.
"No, of course not," he answered. "I just...I didn't know you two hung out."
"It's not something you always need to be aware of, Ricky. I don't need to tell you who I hang out with all the time."
He raised his hands up defensively, a chuckle escaping his mouth. "Sorry, I—"
Nini budged past him towards the main entrance. She had enough of him for one day, he could just be so clingy sometimes. She didn't realize how toxic he actually was for her until after breaking up with him. All she could think about now was the adorable new girl she had befriended the week before.
"You really didn't have to, you know," Julia began as soon as she let Nini in through the door. She set down the picnic basket on her kitchen table before making her way to Nini.
"It's the least I can do," Nini smiled, sitting down on the comfortable couch in the living room. "Plus, you weren't feeling well yesterday so I thought I'd drop by."
Julia filled two glasses up with fruit punch before bringing them to where Nini was sitting, handing the girl a glass. She was about to say something but noticed a distant look on Nini's face, a troubled one.
"Is something the matter?"
"No, it's fine," she replied, bringing back her kind smile.
Although Julia knew that something was bothering the girl, she didn't implore further. Instead, the two just caught on as usual and spent the next few hours just catching up with whatever they did during the day.
Nini realized that she needed to get something off her chest. Since Kourtney wasn't really around much because of her other extra-curricular commitments, her next best bet was talking to Julia. She knew the girl was a great listener, and that's exactly what she needed at the moment.
"You know how I broke up with EJ, right?" Nini began and set the empty glass onto the coffee table in front of her.
"Yep?"
"Have you ever felt like there's a lot of things pushing you back from becoming who you really want to be?"
Julia anticipated the deep question but she didn't say anything, she just gave Nini a small smile. "Yeah, all the time," she finally responded. "It feels really different. Almost as if you wish to just be completely left alone."
The corners of Nini's mouth twitched upwards just a bit. "Exactly. I kind of just want to take a little time for myself. To find my own common ground and love myself instead of relying on someone else for affection all the time."
Julia noticed the way the girl's eyes welled up with tears. This was a very sensitive topic for Nini, she could tell as much. It made her feel like what she said was something she had been holding back for a long time. Way too long enough.
"I don't know," Nini blinked away her tears, not wanting to get emotional so soon into their lively conversation. "EJ's a great guy, he really is. He helped me realize my true potential in a lot of different ways...but he just—he's done a lot of things that have hurt me, I just don't think he's genuine..."
She continued: "And then there was Ricky. My first real friend. We come from many years of friendship, and I'm thankful for that. But he didn't value what was happening between us. And I kind of realized that it's probably best I just move on."
Julia yet again didn't respond, she just embraced Nini in a tight hug which meant that although she couldn't really understand her feelings, she knew that Nini just needed someone to help her through this tough time in her life.
Julia pulled away because an idea perked up in her mind. "How about you write a song? It might help you to recognize your true feelings. I know how much you love to sing, so—"
She didn't get to finish as Nini enveloped her into another hug, mumbling a thousand forms of 'thank-you's' as she did so.
And then the two friends just happily sat together for the rest of the evening. Julia offered to help with the song-writing to which Nini happily obliged. In those moments the two got along, they realize that their little friendship had just begun.
Little did the girls know, however, was that Ricky was waiting outside of Julia's house holding a bouquet of flowers.