sun without rain - rini

love can make you crazy.

nini lies there, arm still wrapped around his waist. it's early, no sunlight to be seen. in the darkness, ricky thinks.

about the hitting. the yelling. the fact that his parents forgot. it feels like his chest is closing up. disappearing. soon, he finds it hard to breathe. "ricky! what's wrong?!" nini yells. but his chest keeps closing. "ricky!". tears fall from his eyes and nini wraps herself around him. "breathe, baby. it's okay" she says, guiding ricky's breathing. they lay together, intertwined. nini holding ricky close to her. she kisses the side of his forehead and he falls into her, looking up at her face. nini wipes away his tears. "ricky, you're gonna be okay. i'm gonna be here". ricky takes nini's hand in his own. nini was the one person who could comfort ricky. she just understood him.

ricky fell asleep in her arms. when he woke up, nini was still there, holding him "hey", she whispered. she brushed her hand through his hair. it was a calm quiet morning, nini's moms had left for a business trip.

"i don't feel good about this carol ! he's physically and mentally broken. we shouldn't leave him here, even if it's just for a day" "dana, he has nini. you know how much she loves him. i've already talked to her, she knows what to do. nini knows him better than anything else" "i know i can trust nini, but he needs trusted adults with him?" "dana, we've called them. ricky is going to be fine. he's staying here unless they can find any family. they can't hurt him anymore" "okay, i need to stop freaking out. they're going to be fine. are you sure they're going to be fine?" "yes dana, we are going to miss our flight, cmon"

"moms had to go to LA for work, they'll be back tomorrow" she says, getting clothes out from her dresser. "where am i supposed to go?" nini walls over the edge of the bed, sitting on the corner. "ricky, they're trying to find some family for you to live with, but for now you're stuck here with me. she laughs, a smile creeping on rickys face. "what do you want for breakfast? i can make pancakes, or eggs? your choice love" she says, heading into the bathroom.

ricky lies there for a while, observing his breathing patterns. he gets up and walks into the bathroom, where nini is drying her hair. he hugs her from behind. nini turns around and their lips meet, yet again. when they part, nini pulls ricky into a tight hug, wrapping her arms around her. they stay there, in each other's arms. they head downstairs, hand in hand. "nins, can you make pancakes? they're my favourite" ricky asks, "of course" nini replies, heading to the pantry to grab all the ingredients. ricky sits on the kitchen counter, watching the small girl mix and flip and scoop like her life depended on it. nini sets a large plate down on the counter in front of rickey, topped with ice cream, banana and honey. "thank you" he says, giving her a kiss as she grabs her own plate and sits down on the barstool beside him.

as they eat, an awkward silence fills the air. "nini?" "yes" "what are we?" "what do you mean? you're my best friend!" nini says, jokingly. "best friends don't just make out with each other" "we aren't just best friends ricky, you know that. i love you. remember when i used to tell you about my dream guy?" "yeah. tall, curly hair, brown eye- oh" "yeah, you never caught on" she laughs. "well, do you want go out with me nins?" "of course i do, i always have" she says, kissing him again. "what about your friends? what are they going to think. everyone's going to find out and when they do, they're going to ask themselves; why the fuck would someone as perfect, and smart as nina salazar-roberts, stoop down to the level of loner, richard bowen" she laughs, and he places her hair behind their ears. "ricky, i don't care. i'll do whatever i can to be with you. people talk, but that's life. we can't change life, but we can make it a hell of a lot better".

they finish their breakfast and nini washes the dishes. "let's go driving" he suggests "where?" "i don't know, maybe to the mountains, or the lake. anywhere other than the city" "okay, i'll grab my stuff" nini says, walking up stairs. she returns a few seconds later with both ricky and her jackets, and her bag. she grabs his hand and they head out the door. "let's go then, drive off into the distance"

and ricky did just that. they drove for hours on end, before stopping outside a small brick house. "what's this?" the girl says, confused. "the house where my life turned to shit"

**
a speaks!
hey guys, chapter 2 is up! hope you liked it. just a quick plug lol, if you haven't, you should go read my two other stories, called wondering and bowen family pharmacy, i'll be updating them very soon ! anyways i hope you like the rini banter in this chapter, hoping to dive deeper into that in the next chapter.

stay home and stay safe guys ! i love you all x