euphoria. [ rini au ]

chapter nineteen.

Nini eyed the bagel on the plate being pushed under her nose, letting her gaze float across the table to see multiple sets of eyes staring back at her. they were daring her to push it away. They were daring her to make them force feed her. Her mother's look was even, almost nonchalant, while Ricky looked stubborn and E.J. looked about ready to eat it himself, despite the pile of toast on his plate and the banana in his hand.

Sighing, she reached forward and ran a finger over the excess jam dripping down the side and brought it to her mouth. She didn't want it. It wasn't nerves, like Ricky kept suggesting and it wasn't her being moody because her mother would be at the airport while she ran her final race of her high school career. It definitely wasn't because she thought E.J. would enjoy it more than her, although the probability of that happening was high. It was because she had asked Ricky to toss some cereal in a bowl with some skim milk and he had decided to become a chef in her kitchen.

"Ricky, I'm buying you a dictionary," she said flatly, still staring at the object that she willed to disappear.

"Neens, eat the bagel. It's better than cereal. Cereal won't stay with you until lunch," he replied.

"Neither will this when I throw it up on the track in two hours," she snapped, her patience cut short by the cluster of people and the doorbell that signalled more. "I just want cereal. It's tradition. Cereal for breakfast and veggies for lunch and fall asleep before dinner."

"Neens, that is a horrible tradition," he told her, slipping his arms around her shoulders while Dana went to answer the door. "Don't you want the yummy goodness of a sesame seed bagel?"

"Not particularly," she admitted, stating the obvious while E.J. smiled around a mouthful of mushed bananas. If Ricky couldn't understand her lack of appetite before, surely he should understand that no one could eat after seeing that sight.

"But I made it with love," he said pouting as he dangled a piece in front of her.

"I'm sure you and the toaster did, but that doesn't mean I like it," she said, drawing out words through her gritted teeth. "If I eat it, will you stop hovering? If I throw up, you're on vomit duty," she added when he nodded with a smile.

"Deal," he readily agreed upon as she took a reluctant bite.

"What's a deal?" Mike Bowen asked as he entered the kitchen, followed by Lynne, the Caswell's and Dana.

"Ricky and Nini agreed to take turns cleaning up each other's puke," E.J. informed the room, not seeing the glances that the adults shot the two teens who were glaring at their friend.

"And that's the end of eating the bagel," Nini declared, pushing it away.

"Yeah, I don't blame you there," Ricky admitted, getting up to make her cereal.

Nini felt the butterflies resume in her stomach as she watched him reach for a bowl, his t-shirt revealing an inch of golden, toned abs that disappeared as he bent inside the fridge for the milk. Still watching, she didn't notice how one hand absently drifted to her cheek to support her head as she angled her gaze to follow his every move. The butterflies intensified and they had nothing to do with her race or winning or eating. They had everything to do with the way his hair fell in his face and the way his forearm muscles flexed as he slid the cereal in front of her. Shakily picking up the spoon, she tried to focus on anything else until she could finish breakfast, but his arm along the back of her chair and the close proximity to his heated skin ruined the chance of that so she let the shivers crawl up her back and choked down her cereal.

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There was something completely enthralling about watching her from the stands, Ricky realized as he leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. He only saw her as if she was the sole person on the turf, although once in awhile they would include E.J.. Her hair hung in its thick braid down her back, the ends tickling the number taped on her back.