p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"emA/N: span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif;"A quick take on what a more complicated and conflicted goodbye between Ricky and Gina might have looked like at the end of season 1 if the show wasn't on Disney. /spanI never really proofread so apologies for /emem_br /br /emRicky turned around as he heard someone coming in behind him. He's a little surprised to see that Gina is still here. He figured she'd already be on her way to the airport. He feels something tug at his heart when he hears her quiet 'hey.' It was such a small, stupid thing but it hurt knowing he'd never hear it again. Not in person anyway./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Gina takes a couple steps closer to him. "You were amazing out there, Ricky. I mean, Breaking Free." If tonight proved anything, it was that Ricky still didn't feel worthy of being a theater kid and she wanted to do what she could before she exited his life forever to help him gain that confidence./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Um, guess so." Ricky tries not to smile at the compliment but he can feel it breaking through. He'd impressed the great Gina Porter./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Trust me. I'm a theater person. You guys made some magic." Gina swallows the lump in her throat as she pushes away that the reason for that magic was Ricky's feelings for Nini and hers for him. That was a can of worms that didn't matter anymore./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Yeah, it was, uh- it was actually good to kind of get something right for once." Ricky glances down as he realizes who he's talking to. Gina was good at literally everything. "I guess you have that feeling all the time."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I don't do anything right the first time, Ricky. My thing is that I just keep pushing and I never quit." She can already feel her voice start to waver and she hates herself for being so emotional about this. It was meant to be a simple goodbye to make up for ghosting him the first time she left. She'd just been worried about protecting herself but seeing all the missed texts and calls made her realize that she'd probably fed into his abandonment issues. She was another woman in his life leaving him behind and it breaks her heart because she'd never wanted to be someone who hurt him./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I know you don't." Ricky inches closer to her as he sees her eyes get watery. He can feel the tension in the air now but he has no idea what she's about to say and it's definitely causing a bit of anxiety. More than anything though he just wants to stop her tears./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He can hear her breathing become uneven and it makes something tight in his chest. It's like a vice grip on his heart and she hasn't even said anything yet. "So, um, I guess I just want to say that-" Her breathing gets worse and she refuses to make eye contact with him. He wants so badly to reach out and wrap her in his arms but the dog tag hanging around his neck feels as heavy as a brick. He can't help bouncing on the balls of his feet as he fights the urge to take her into his arms. "I'm so sorry. This is so stupid I don't know why I'm crying."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She finally makes eye contact with him again and he can't help but take another step toward her. "Say it." He's terrified of what she's going to say but he needs to hear it. This isn't an unknown he'll be able to live with./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I wouldn't quit on us if I wasn't moving away." Ricky bites his tongue at her words. God, if only she'd found him a half-hour earlier, he'd be able to speak freely. To tell her how much she meant to him, how much he wished she wasn't leaving, how much he'll miss her. But he was with Nini and it would definitely be crossing a line because it wouldn't be just in a friendship way. "So now, I'm going to give you a really tight hug, and then I'm going to walk away with my head held high. Okay?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Okay." His voice comes out far more quiet and whispery than he intended but that's probably due to the tears he's fighting back./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She closes the last few steps between them and he buries his face into the crook of her neck. He can smell the lavender coming from her hair and feel her fingers dig into his back as she holds onto him. He makes sure to place his hands by her shoulder blades but it's like his hands have a mind of their own because within seconds they find their way to her lower back. He can feel the sting of her nails digging through his shirt when she tightens her grip almost like she was afraid he'd let go. He impulsively tightens his arms around her waist, pulling her closer. He was absolutely not going to be the first one to let go./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He feels her breathing start to get more uneven against his neck and her body starts to shake the tiniest bit. She was crying again. Without thinking twice about it he turns his head to press a kiss behind her ear. It lasts barely a second but he knows immediately that he broke so many boundaries with that one choice. Despite the way she momentarily stiffens he keeps his forehead pressed against her neck and his arms around her waist. He worries that she might pull back now, ask him what the hell he was thinking but she melts back into him./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"It's like a war raging in his mind as he clings to her. He'd broken the promises that he just made to Nini minutes earlier and the fact that Gina has no idea he's back together with her doubles the guilt swirling inside him. He'd really fucked this up but it was so hard to hold back, to not tell Gina how much he cares about her and how he wishes he didn't have to give up on them either./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He loves Nini, he really does but he can't deny how attached to Gina he feels. It was crazy to think how important she'd become to him in only a couple of months. He knows in his soul that what they have is special and different from anything he'll ever find with anyone else. He tries to console himself with the thought that it's not like Gina would get in the way of his relationship with Nini. She was leaving, moving across the country, and if he knew her as well as he thought he did, she wouldn't be keen to keep in touch with him. It would hurt too much./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Finally, he feels her slowly start to pull away from him. He grabs onto her tighter because he's not ready. He'll never be ready for her to walk out of his life. He hears her whisper next to his ear, "You need to let me go, Ricky."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He shakes his head against her neck but pulls away from her cause he knows she's right. He can't bring himself to pull away completely, just enough so that they can look at each other. He catches himself staring at her lips before snapping his eyes back to hers. Fuck, that's not an option. He can't kiss her. That's a big no. He'd already crossed too many lines. He lets out a shaky breath as he watches her eyes flick down to his lips this time. There's a consuming ache in his chest now. When she meets his eyes again he breaks. He brings one hand up to cup the back of her neck and leans in. He hovers over her lips for a moment, giving her a chance to push him away, tell him no, but she closes the gap between them and he hates that it feels so good, so right. He breaks away from her when the need to breathe becomes a problem. He rests his forehead against hers though and keeps his eyes closed. Fuck, fuck, fuck. He opens his eyes to find her already staring at him. He can see questions in her eyes but there's also warmth and yearning and desire. It's intoxicating so he leans in for one last kiss. He'd already majorly fucked up, what was one more?/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"This time it's less gentle, there's more teasing, more of a push and pull between them. He pulls away with a ragged breath and this time meets her eyes right away. She's breathing heavily as well and he shakes his head as he takes in her expression. There was shock and disbelief and exhilaration. He's pretty sure his face is showing something similar./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I, um-" He blinks as he racks his brain for something to say. He absolutely couldn't tell her about Nini. Not after that./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She shakes her head and cuts him off with a soft, "It's okay." She takes a deep breath and pulls away from him even more. "I have a flight to catch."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Ricky licks his lips as she takes the final step away from him. His arms fall to his sides. They feel unnaturally cold. The tightness in his chest from earlier is back but worse. It's a shooting pain that causes his breath to catch. His voice is rough as he tells her, "I'm gonna miss you."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Gina gives him a small, sad smile. "Goodbye, Ricky." She leans in and kisses him on the cheek before swiftly pulling away and turning around. It feels like all he does is blink and then she's gone./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Gina takes a couple steps closer to him. "You were amazing out there, Ricky. I mean, Breaking Free." If tonight proved anything, it was that Ricky still didn't feel worthy of being a theater kid and she wanted to do what she could before she exited his life forever to help him gain that confidence./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Um, guess so." Ricky tries not to smile at the compliment but he can feel it breaking through. He'd impressed the great Gina Porter./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Trust me. I'm a theater person. You guys made some magic." Gina swallows the lump in her throat as she pushes away that the reason for that magic was Ricky's feelings for Nini and hers for him. That was a can of worms that didn't matter anymore./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Yeah, it was, uh- it was actually good to kind of get something right for once." Ricky glances down as he realizes who he's talking to. Gina was good at literally everything. "I guess you have that feeling all the time."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I don't do anything right the first time, Ricky. My thing is that I just keep pushing and I never quit." She can already feel her voice start to waver and she hates herself for being so emotional about this. It was meant to be a simple goodbye to make up for ghosting him the first time she left. She'd just been worried about protecting herself but seeing all the missed texts and calls made her realize that she'd probably fed into his abandonment issues. She was another woman in his life leaving him behind and it breaks her heart because she'd never wanted to be someone who hurt him./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I know you don't." Ricky inches closer to her as he sees her eyes get watery. He can feel the tension in the air now but he has no idea what she's about to say and it's definitely causing a bit of anxiety. More than anything though he just wants to stop her tears./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He can hear her breathing become uneven and it makes something tight in his chest. It's like a vice grip on his heart and she hasn't even said anything yet. "So, um, I guess I just want to say that-" Her breathing gets worse and she refuses to make eye contact with him. He wants so badly to reach out and wrap her in his arms but the dog tag hanging around his neck feels as heavy as a brick. He can't help bouncing on the balls of his feet as he fights the urge to take her into his arms. "I'm so sorry. This is so stupid I don't know why I'm crying."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She finally makes eye contact with him again and he can't help but take another step toward her. "Say it." He's terrified of what she's going to say but he needs to hear it. This isn't an unknown he'll be able to live with./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I wouldn't quit on us if I wasn't moving away." Ricky bites his tongue at her words. God, if only she'd found him a half-hour earlier, he'd be able to speak freely. To tell her how much she meant to him, how much he wished she wasn't leaving, how much he'll miss her. But he was with Nini and it would definitely be crossing a line because it wouldn't be just in a friendship way. "So now, I'm going to give you a really tight hug, and then I'm going to walk away with my head held high. Okay?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Okay." His voice comes out far more quiet and whispery than he intended but that's probably due to the tears he's fighting back./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She closes the last few steps between them and he buries his face into the crook of her neck. He can smell the lavender coming from her hair and feel her fingers dig into his back as she holds onto him. He makes sure to place his hands by her shoulder blades but it's like his hands have a mind of their own because within seconds they find their way to her lower back. He can feel the sting of her nails digging through his shirt when she tightens her grip almost like she was afraid he'd let go. He impulsively tightens his arms around her waist, pulling her closer. He was absolutely not going to be the first one to let go./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He feels her breathing start to get more uneven against his neck and her body starts to shake the tiniest bit. She was crying again. Without thinking twice about it he turns his head to press a kiss behind her ear. It lasts barely a second but he knows immediately that he broke so many boundaries with that one choice. Despite the way she momentarily stiffens he keeps his forehead pressed against her neck and his arms around her waist. He worries that she might pull back now, ask him what the hell he was thinking but she melts back into him./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"It's like a war raging in his mind as he clings to her. He'd broken the promises that he just made to Nini minutes earlier and the fact that Gina has no idea he's back together with her doubles the guilt swirling inside him. He'd really fucked this up but it was so hard to hold back, to not tell Gina how much he cares about her and how he wishes he didn't have to give up on them either./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He loves Nini, he really does but he can't deny how attached to Gina he feels. It was crazy to think how important she'd become to him in only a couple of months. He knows in his soul that what they have is special and different from anything he'll ever find with anyone else. He tries to console himself with the thought that it's not like Gina would get in the way of his relationship with Nini. She was leaving, moving across the country, and if he knew her as well as he thought he did, she wouldn't be keen to keep in touch with him. It would hurt too much./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Finally, he feels her slowly start to pull away from him. He grabs onto her tighter because he's not ready. He'll never be ready for her to walk out of his life. He hears her whisper next to his ear, "You need to let me go, Ricky."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He shakes his head against her neck but pulls away from her cause he knows she's right. He can't bring himself to pull away completely, just enough so that they can look at each other. He catches himself staring at her lips before snapping his eyes back to hers. Fuck, that's not an option. He can't kiss her. That's a big no. He'd already crossed too many lines. He lets out a shaky breath as he watches her eyes flick down to his lips this time. There's a consuming ache in his chest now. When she meets his eyes again he breaks. He brings one hand up to cup the back of her neck and leans in. He hovers over her lips for a moment, giving her a chance to push him away, tell him no, but she closes the gap between them and he hates that it feels so good, so right. He breaks away from her when the need to breathe becomes a problem. He rests his forehead against hers though and keeps his eyes closed. Fuck, fuck, fuck. He opens his eyes to find her already staring at him. He can see questions in her eyes but there's also warmth and yearning and desire. It's intoxicating so he leans in for one last kiss. He'd already majorly fucked up, what was one more?/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"This time it's less gentle, there's more teasing, more of a push and pull between them. He pulls away with a ragged breath and this time meets her eyes right away. She's breathing heavily as well and he shakes his head as he takes in her expression. There was shock and disbelief and exhilaration. He's pretty sure his face is showing something similar./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I, um-" He blinks as he racks his brain for something to say. He absolutely couldn't tell her about Nini. Not after that./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She shakes her head and cuts him off with a soft, "It's okay." She takes a deep breath and pulls away from him even more. "I have a flight to catch."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Ricky licks his lips as she takes the final step away from him. His arms fall to his sides. They feel unnaturally cold. The tightness in his chest from earlier is back but worse. It's a shooting pain that causes his breath to catch. His voice is rough as he tells her, "I'm gonna miss you."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Gina gives him a small, sad smile. "Goodbye, Ricky." She leans in and kisses him on the cheek before swiftly pulling away and turning around. It feels like all he does is blink and then she's gone./p