My Slime

03. Hurricane Rico

The familiar hum of Gigi's phone vibrating on the nightstand pulled her out of a deep sleep. For a second, she didn't want to open her eyes. The weight of last night—the dinner, Rico's return, the awkward tension between him and Chris—still lingered in the back of her mind.

She groaned softly, reaching for her phone without looking. The screen lit up, revealing a flood of notifications: Instagram tags, DMs, texts, and—of course—another blog post with her name splashed in bold across the headline.

Gionna LaRue Joins Chris Brown on the West Coast—Couple Spotted at Exclusive LA Dinner Party 💃🏾

Gigi's stomach twisted. She hated how everyone knew her government name. Furthermore—it hadn't even been twenty-four hours since the dinner, and already, the internet was running out. Her heart raced as she skimmed through the comments, some fans excited, others picking her apart.

Who is she tho? She don't even look like his type.

So are they really together orrrr.... ?? Cause I never see Chris claiming her. 😭

Gigi ain't even that cute. But Chris look happy, so I guess it's cool.

Yall some haters!!! Yall say yall never see CB with a black woman & now that yall see him with a black woman all yall do is tear her apart!! Yall know damn well Gigi ain't ugly!

It's her body for me 😮‍💨 I don't blame him

She swallowed hard, the anxiety creeping in like it always did when the world dissected her every move. It was happening so fast. Too fast. Her relationship with Chris had started out as something private, but now? Now, it was everybody's business.

As she scrolled through the comments, she could feel her heart racing faster. She hadn't even processed everything that happened at the dinner. The way Rico had shown up with Nikki on his arm, making that cryptic comment about secrets, all while Chris sat there, calm on the surface but tense underneath. And now? Now the blogs were exploiting her all over again.

Gigi sat up in bed, her hands trembling slightly as she set her phone down. She needed a break. She needed to breathe.

Chris stirred beside her, his hand instinctively reaching for her waist as he pulled her back into his chest. "You good?" he mumbled, his voice still heavy with sleep.

"Yeah," she whispered, though she wasn't sure if she believed it. "Just... the usual." She didn't want to burden him with her worries, not when she knew he had his own. But Chris, being Chris, could always sense when something was off.

He opened one eye, glancing at her through the dim light in the room. "You checkin' them blogs again?"

Gigi bit her lip. "I mean... kinda hard not to when they won't stop posting us."

Chris sighed, propping himself up on his elbow. "G, you gotta stop lettin' that shit get to you. It's gon' drive you crazy. People gon' talk regardless. So let 'em." He reached for her phone, locked the screen and placed it face down on the nightstand. "The only thing that matters is what's goin' on between us. Fuck what everybody else think."

She nodded, knowing he was right but still struggling to push the anxiety aside. "It's just a lot, Chris. I didn't expect any of this, and last night with Rico—"

Chris's jaw tightened slightly at the mention of Rico's name. "Don't worry about Rico. He made his move last night, and I already checked him. He ain't gon' pull no funny shit as long as I'm around."

Gigi looked into Chris's eyes, seeing the seriousness in them. He was always protective of her, but something about last night had shifted things. The way he'd kept his arm around her, always watching Rico, always making sure she knew he was there. It was comforting, but also a reminder that things between her and Chris were no longer just theirs. The whole world was watching now, waiting for something to go wrong.