𝐑𝐄𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐒 [a rini au]

one shot: home this christmas

based on the song "home this christmas" by justin bieber (feat. the band perry)

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8:07 am

december 25th – christmas morning. salt lake city, utah, was covered in a thick layer of snow, one of the first white christmases in years. the air was frigid, intense enough to filter inside homes and let families know that the long awaited holiday was finally here. nina salazar-roberts didn't need the greeting, though. all the girl had to do was breathe the eight am air in order to recognize the arrival of her favorite holiday.

the brunette was always one to awaken early on christmas morning, ever since she was a kid eagerly anticipating opening the presents santa had left for her the night before. despite that childlike excitement fading with the years, nina was still an early riser on the 25th. perhaps it was the natural joy in the air, or the comforting smell of her mother's annual peppermint tea swimming underneath her bedroom door. but, whatever it was didn't awaken the girl today. instead, it was the overwhelming yearning for ricky bowen's arrival that afternoon yanking nina out of her bed bright and early.

it was hard enough for nina to deal with adjusting to her new life in boston, massachusetts. her freshmen year at boston university was definitely one filled with unbeatable memories and experiences, but increasing the distance between her and her boyfriend was the hardest thing to acclimate to. nina hated every minute of the semester that she had to go without seeing ricky in the flesh, but with every one that passed, she knew she was one step closer to getting to hug him once again – on christmas day.

it didn't take much convincing for nina to get ricky to visit her over her winter break in salt lake city. ricky had grown to love nina's neighborhood, and of course he would drop anything in a heartbeat to see her after months of deprivation. the two lovebirds made an intricate plan for ricky to road trip to salt lake on christmas morning after spending christmas eve with his own family. he was recruiting big red, carlos, and seb to join him, the other three friends ecstatic to see nina again as well. it would be just like old times, and ricky would get to make up for time lost with his girlfriend for the rest of the time she would be home for break. the plan was full proof with no room for error.

after enjoying a peaceful morning with her moms by the christmas tree, the family exchanging gifts with infectious smiles, nina excused herself to make an important phone call. the girl scurried into the anteroom, navigating to her boyfriend's contact and pressing the facetime button. she paced with a growing grin on her lips, skidding to a stop when his adorable face appeared on her screen.

"good morning, baby!" ricky sang, his phone clearly secured in a holder on his dashboard. his eyes flicked off of the road for a minute to catch nina's. "we're well on our way!"

nina pursed her lips together as her cheeks flushed red. "i'm going to see your cute face so soon," nina still couldn't comprehend what awaited her. "oh, and good morning."

"no love for us?!" nina heard carlos yell from the backseat, the boy popping into frame.

"yeah, nini. i'm offended, frankly," red chimed in from the passenger's side as seb nodded along from beside carlos.

the girl laughed airily. "good morning, boys," she greeted them with a cheesy wave. "i'm excited to see all of you! what's your eta?"

ricky kept his eyes steady on the road. "should be a few more hours, but we'll definitely be there before dinner."

"that sounds perfect," nina nodded, thinking ahead to the christmas dinner being hosted at her house later that evening. every year, the salazar-roberts' hosted christmas dinner, and when nina mentioned to her mothers that ricky and his friends would be visiting, they couldn't have been more persistent about wanting them to join in. "my moms are dying to see you, hollywood. they'll probably sit you at the head of the table."