𝐑𝐄𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐒 [a rini au]

seventy-four

"so, yeah," ricky smacked his lips, quieting his guitar before leaning it up against the couch. "that's all i've got so far."

across from him, sitting in an armchair, was gina porter. she wore a captivated grin following ricky's rendition of the song he was preparing for her upcoming movie sequel. after he finished, her nose scrunched in admiration as she popped up from her spot and took over the remaining couch space next to the singer. "i am obsessed," she gushed, crossing her legs. "do you have a title?"

ricky shrugged, placing an arm around the back of the couch. "i think if i go with that, i'll use 'sweetheart.' it was the first thing that came to mind."

"definitely matches the hearts theme of the movie,"
gina agreed, ricky relieved to hear her approval. "i'm a fan!"

"i'm glad," ricky lightly chuckled, reaching to grab the final slice of decadent pepperoni pizza from the cardboard box on the coffee table. while he took the first bite, he could tell gina was looking to segue the conversation based on the way she shifted her weight on the couch.

"so," her voice trailed, ricky eyeing her while chewing. "who inspired the song? can i make an educated guess and say nini?"

ricky paused his eating, almost choking on the pizza. "well," he swallowed quickly, clearing his throat, "i think the lyrics tell a story that we all can relate to. love is universal, after all."

gina pursed her lips. "hm. alright," she gave in, knowing well that he was definitely lying in some way. "she seems cool, for a regular girl and all."

the boy shot gina a side eye. "what do you mean?"

"that wasn't supposed to be an insult," gina quickly backtracked with her hands defensively in the air. "i just mean that she seems to fit right in with the hollywood lifestyle."

"i guess so," ricky intently pondered the claim.

gina had more to say, though, for her energy didn't change. "have you thought about how far you want to take things with her?"

ricky froze at the question, but gina continued anyway. "look, you can't fool me, ricky. i know you have some feelings for her, and that's all well and good, but if you ever wanted to really date her, it could be a little hard, you know?"

"i-i mean, it wouldn't be horrible," ricky responded meekly. "i don't know what i want to do yet, but if i did date her one day, what would be wrong with it?"

"nothing morally," gina assured, "but it's just a bit challenging, right? all the press would come after you, and, hell, she's already dealing with crazy fans now. you wouldn't want bad press if her entire life story came to light. it could hold you back."

ricky truly was flabbergasted. he wanted gina's argument to go in one ear and out the other, but he was digesting every word. "you're destined for so much success, ricky. i just wouldn't want you to lose sight of that if things didn't go as planned."

while gina stared at him with unbothered empathy, ricky's heart skipped a thousand beats. in hopes to derail the conversation, the boy stood up, tugging at his shirt to remove it of its wrinkles. "i, uh, i appreciate the advice," he mumbled, "but are you up for some dessert?"

"oh, always!"

as gina headed to the kitchen to snatch a store-bought cookie ricky purchased, the songwriter hung back. after regaining his composure, he was about to join her, but a buzz from behind him pierced his thoughts. he turned around to the coffee table, a sigh escaping his lips at what lit up his phone. unsure of how he would even be able to speak logically at that moment, ricky shook off the caller and made his way to the kitchen as well.