off limits ✧ zb1 applyfic

✧ seventy six

Ever since his sudden realization, Ricky had barely been able to think straight. The idea of liking someone, sincerely, was so foreign to him he had no idea what to do next. Was he supposed to come right out with it? Or maybe flirt a bit with Vicky to make sure she would get the hint? Maybe he was supposed to play hard to get... Or investigate to find out if she felt the same way. There were too many options laid out before him, and somehow, none of them sounded good. To Ricky, dating had always been easy, something he barely ever put any thought in. It turned out, when real feelings were involved, things were a whole lot different.

Though he was rarely one to seek advice, it seemed this specific problem of his would never be solved by his brainpower alone. And so, he sought someone out, in hopes it would make things clearer in his head. Granted, the first person he'd thought of was far from a good choice. Audrey, despite being his older sister, had even less experience with love than he did. He'd never seen her infatuated, had never so much as heard her compliment anyone. Chances were, she would have no valuable advice to give him. Still, he went to her, knowing she would listen to him.

Ricky did not bother to knock on her bedroom door, knowing she would probably not hear it anyway. What he saw when he entered the room confirmed his assumption: Audrey was sitting on her bed, her sketchbook on her lap and a plethora of coloring pencils sprawled out on her bed. Completely engrossed in her drawing, she did not even move as he entered. She had been a little strange lately, but it seemed inspiration had struck her again. That was at least reassuring.

"Hey, Audrey?" he called, closing the door behind him. She did not look up. "I, um, need advice on something."

Audrey was always a little slow on the uptake, so he waited a few seconds. But a reply never came, as she furiously slid her pencil against the rough grit of the paper, a scratching sound bumping against the walls. This was quite unusual, Ricky thought. How could she not have not only seen him enter, but also heard him speak? Whenever Audrey was too absorbed into something, it often meant she had worries she wanted to forget about. As if exhausting all of her energy would shut down her ability to think about the things that preoccupied her.

Well, Ricky was preoccupied too. "Audrey!" he repeated, a little louder.

This time, his voice finally got through to her. She flinched, and her pencil almost slid out of her grip. It was as if she'd removed headphones, except the music in her ears was a thousand thoughts. As she turned to face Ricky, blinking slowly, he couldn’t help but wonder what was going on with her. And, well, if he could help. After all, he was about to ask her for advice. It was only natural to repay the favor.

"Oh, hi," she said, still in a daze.

"What's with you? You're so weird lately."

Her lips quirked up in discomfort, almost imperceptibly. "Am I?"

She was not doing a very good job at pretending she was okay. Even though she often kept her emotions in check, locked under layers and layers of protection, Ricky had known her long enough to see right through her. She was wearing that same pinched, embarrassed expression as that time.

"Yes, you are. Remember when we went shopping last time? You barely bought anything." For Audrey not to find some piece of clothing to obsess over, something had to be seriously wrong. "Not to mention, when we got coffee with Taerae and Narae, both you and he were acting strange."

Bingo. At the sound of Taerae's name, Audrey's entire body seemed to tense up. She swallowed soundly, her eyebrows knitting together in an attempt at feigning indifference.

"Did something happen between you two?"

Maybe they'd fought about something. Maybe she’d pestered him to do another runway or photoshoot or whatever for her, and he'd refused. Maybe she’d accidentally insulted him with all of her tactlessness. Ricky wouldn’t have had to form so many hypotheses, if only Audrey had replied right away. Instead, she bit at her lower lip, her eyes flitting all over the room, as if looking for an escape route.