Second Chances (Ricky + Nini)

chapter 17 - i think i kinda you know

[a/n : Thank you for 1k !!! Hope you guys are enjoying this story.]

It's been a month since Ricky saw Nini. They FaceTimed almost every day, and they text all the time, but it's not the same. Lately, she'd been especially busy with her project, and she didn't call or reply his texts as often. Ricky always wanted to support her though, so he never said anything. But deep inside, there was a certain fear in him, that maybe she was growing out of their relationship, growing out of him.

Earlier today, he had texted Nini the usual "good morning," and tried to call her, but by lunch time she hadn't responded and the call went straight to voicemail. But they made plans earlier in the week to FaceTime tonight, so Ricky texted her again.

Ricky : Hey, I know you're busy, but let me know if we're still on for tonight ok? I miss you so much, can't wait to see your face.

Ricky sighed. He wasn't sure why he even bothered texting, because he knew she would probably forget and just cancel again. She had been cancelling their FaceTime dates since Monday, and Ricky was getting worried. She seemed to be pushing herself hard at work, and Nini had a tendency to take care of everything and everyone but herself. He hoped she was okay. There's also another part of Ricky that was disappointed, because Nini would probably forget what tomorrow was.
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Nini was drowning in a sea of papers. She was proofreading, approving proposals, finalizing budgets for the YAC project, and basically everything else you could think of. She didn't actually have to finish everything right this second, but it was Ricky's birthday tomorrow, so she was going use the ticket from Ricky and surprise him. His birthday fell on a Friday, so Nini had to take a day-off and finish all her work by tonight. She'd even packed her bags and brought them to work, because she suspected she would be working late, and she was going on a red-eye flight, so she would have to leave straight from work.

She was getting frustrated with all the papers and decided to take a break. She checked her phone for the first time today and her eyes widened when she realized it was 9pm. She was supposed to call Ricky tonight at 8, but she got so caught up with work she forgot to cancel. She opened her messages to find a dozen from Ricky, the last one read : call me when you get this. i'm worried.

She felt so guilty that she'd been canceling and ignoring him all week, but his birthday did fall on a really busy time of the month. She called him hoping he wouldn't be too upset, smiling when he picked up after one ring.

"Hey, stranger." Ricky's voice was soft and sad. Nini hated that it was because of her.

"Hey, you." Nini said, "I'm so sorry I missed our date, babe. There's just so much going on right now, and I have to finish everything by the end of the week. I completely forgot. I'm so sorry."

"It's okay. I know your work is important." Ricky was always so supportive of her.

"I know. But you're more important." Nini said, hoping he knows how much he's worth to her. "I should've called. I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you. I promise."

Ricky laughed, "You don't have to keep apologizing, Neens. I get it. Are you still at work?"

"Sadly.. yes." Nini said.

"Well please go home soon, okay? It's getting late. It's not safe."

"I'm a big girl, Ricky. I'll be okay." Nini said defiantly.

"I know you are. And I know you can take care of yourself. This is more for me, okay? I just worry about you a lot. Plus, you need to rest at some point."

"I know, babe. I'll head home soon, I promise." Like home home aka Salt Lake City, she thought to herself. "And we can FaceTime on Saturday, okay? We'll spend time all day if you want."