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Chapter Text

At the beginning of the year, Gina received one of the best news of her entire dancing career. She was added as one of the newest dancers on the hit show Dancing with the Stars. She had no idea who her celebrity partner was going to be as of yet, but she was excited and optimistic. No matter what happened, she wanted her debut to be flawless. She wanted to win. Everyone told her to just enjoy being on the show, that newbies rarely went far.

“Girl, I’m just happy that I get to style you for the show.” Kourtney stated with a proud smile. “Don’t move.” Kourtney reminded Gina as she pinned the dress Gina had on. Kourtney and Gina knew each other for several years. Having known her since high school, Gina had since grown to love her like a sister. “You know this opportunity is not just about you, right?”

“It’s not?” Gina asked as tried to remain still to avoid getting poked by one of Kourtney’s needles.

“She’s right, Gina! It’s about the tercet we formed back at East high.” Ashlyn interjected without looking up from her phone. Gina shot her other best friend a smile as she tried to remember what life was like before she met her best friends.

“I have to hear this. Explain how my biggest career moment is about the tercet?” Gina asked with a chuckle. “Ouch!” she yelped just as Kourtney slightly poked her with the needle.

“Sorry, I told you not to move.” She winced before stepping back and looking at her finished look. “You are going to slay, Gina! I think this is my best work yet.” Kourtney stated with a proud smile. Gina posed as she looked at the silver sequined flapper dress. She wasn’t sure what the theme of the season was going to be as they decided to go all Marvel top secret with the theme that year. She allowed Kourtney to surprise her with a look and she decided to go with a roaring twenties look.

“Yessss, Gina!” Ashlyn exclaimed, finally looking away from her phone to admire the dress. “Kourt, you really outdid yourself with this dress.

“You really did, Kourt. I…don’t even know how I will repay you for this.” Gina admired the dress then slightly swayed from side to side.

“Just go on that show and dance your little heart out.” She replied as she unzipped the dress and helped Gina out of it. “And make sure to tell them that this a Kourtney Greene original.” Gina shook her head knowingly then quickly slipped into her sweats before jumping onto her bed.

“I’m nineteen and going to be on Dancing with the Stars in a Kourtney Greene original!” she squealed before rolling over to look at her best friends. “I’m probably going to keep saying that till the finale.”

“Oh, you think you will be a finalist?”

“Uh yeah, I’m going for gold you guys.” Gina admitted before propping a pillow up from underneath her as she began to list out her plans. “I’ve already started changing my diet, my workouts and sleep schedules. No more weekly tv show binges. No more weekend club hopping and most definitely…no boys.” She smiled at her friends as they both shared a concerned look between them. “What?”

“I’m just wondering if you’ve told EJ that we’re getting Gina 1.0 back.” Ashlyn stated wondering what this meant for her cousin and her bestie.

“She has a point, Gina. Does EJ know that Gina 1.0 from junior year is back again and kicking him to the curb?”

“I already broke things off with him.” She mumbled.

“Wait, what?”

“When did that happen?"

“The week after it was announced that I would be on the show.” Gina finally admitted before sighing at the look of shock from both of the girls. “He thought that maybe we could make it work with all my training and his coursework. And I told him that maybe wasn’t going to work for me.”

“Wow, Gina.”

“I guess that explains why he seemed a bit out of it during our families Sunday dinner last week. I’m shocked he didn’t say anything to me.” Ashlyn responded. “Now that I think about it, it was odd that he kept asking me if the tercet was hitting up clubs recently.”

“Poor EJ, I bet he was broken hearted.” Kourt added. “Even though I was there when he dated Nini, I can admit that he was really into you, girl.” Gina struggled with breaking things off with EJ. When she told him of her decision, he had the saddest look in his eyes, but he didn’t push her to reconsider. She did wonder if she would have reconsidered if he did put a bit of a fight, but he didn’t. So, she went home and cried instead.

“Don’t make me feel horrible about it. It was already hard enough of a choice for me.” Gina stated before standing up and making her way over to her cell phone. “I cried all the tears that I had to cry. I already built my bridge and got over it.” Gina was not over it completely, but she knew it was for the best. They were heading in two different directions, and she had to let him go.

“Well, I know one thing, when you’ve made up your mind there’s no pushing you out of it.” Ashlyn stated before changing the subject. “So, have they told you who you will be dancing with? There’s been rumors running around…”

“Yes, girl, spill tea.” Kourtney interjected. “I’ve been looking everywhere for the scoop, but people are being so secretive about this.”

“I have no clue, Kourt.” Gina responded as she began to scroll through her emails. “Honestly, I don’t care who I get. I’m going to whip them into shape and win. No apologies. No prisoners.” Gina made her way back to her bed and smiled at the email she’d been waiting for without noticing her friends smiling at each other.

“Gina 1.0.” both girls stated before giggling at each other.

“No freaking way!” Gina exclaimed before standing up and reading the email again.

“What happened?”

“I just found out who my partner will be.” Gina stated as she slowly sat down in disbelief. The girls made their way over to her. Ashlyn leaned over and read the email from Gina’s hand then stared at Kourtney before looking at a shocked Gina. Kourtney reached over to take the phone from Gina’s hand and read the email to herself.

“Ricky Bowen?” she asked as if she hadn’t just read it. “Wait, do they mean Richard Bowen? From that one made for TV movie on Disney that we used to watch back in high school. The bad boy Ricky Bowen from Better Nate than never, Ricky Bowen?” Gina couldn’t believe she was being assigned to someone she used to watch on tv. She thought that she would get a has been from before her time. Not someone who was always being talked about on the rumor mills. Everything she ever knew about Ricky Bowen she learned without her wanting to know it. He was going to be a challenge for Gina for sure. Especially if what they say about him was true.

“One can say that the stakes have never been higher.” Ashlyn stated as she eyed a speechless Gina. “I guess I will say it. The stakes have never been higher.”

-*-*-
Ricky remembered getting off the phone with his manager and publicist after they told him that he was going on Dancing with the Stars. He did not want to go on the show. He wanted to continue working on his album and auditioning for shows. Sadly, due to his checkered past and misunderstood lifestyle, he was being blackballed in Hollywood. Now he was in his managers office trying to talk them out of it. He grabbed his lighter from his pocket and pulled out a cigarette then quickly lit it before taking a slow drag of it. He paced back and forth in the small office while his agent explained that he needed it.

“In order to clean up your image, this show is something that you have no choice but to do.”

“I just want to make music. I don’t even read the comments. I don’t care what people are saying about me online.” Ricky admitted as he eyed his publicist and manager.

“Well, you need to care just a little bit, Ricky.” His publicist Jennifer stated. “We got them to pair you with someone that America would immediately love. With her as your partner, you will become America’s sweetheart…adjacent. They will think you’re sweet.”

“I am sweet.”

“They don’t know that.” His manager Mr. Mazzara stated matter-of-factly. “According to twitter, you’re a Disney has been that does drugs and parties all the time.”

“I don’t do drugs.”

“You missed almost all the parts of that sentence, Ricky.” Jennifer quipped. “The point we’re trying to make is, sweetie, you need this show to boost your album.”

“Exactly.”

“All you need to do is go on there and dance. All you need to do is last long enough to boost the album. Two weeks is just enough time to do that.”

“Just two weeks?” Ricky asked as he thought about it long and hard. It had been a while since he danced, and he was not good at it back then. He just knew he’d be even worse now. Choreography was not his strongest talent. Hell, he would probably go as far as not naming it as a talent at all.

“You can even write a song and air it.” Jennifer stated knowing that would be the thing to really get him interested. “Just imagine dancing on the show live to one of your songs.”

“I don’t dance though.”

“Corbin Bleu said that too.”

“Didn’t he lose?”

“Not the point.” Mr. Mazzara quickly responded. “All you need to do is dance half decently to last two weeks max. Don’t say anything to the media, avoid the clubs, avoid all types of drama…”

“That’s easy for you to say.” Ricky retorted. “What am I supposed to do for those two weeks of putting my life on hold?”

“Dance, record your music and after one week maybe two weeks, you can lose on purpose and get back to life as it was.”

“Fool proof plan.” Jennifer stated with a smile. Ricky looked between the two and took one last drag of his cigarette before putting it out. He hated every part of this plan, but he figured it couldn’t hurt if it was to boost his album. Long as he was able to work on his music he truly didn’t care what was happening around him.

“I guess.” He added with a deep sigh. “Who’s the girl?”

“Gina Porter.” Jennifer stated before pulling out her cell phone to show a video of Gina dancing in one of her viral TikToks. He eyed the video then glared at Jennifer before rolling his eyes.

“A TikTok dancer? Are you guys serious?”

“She’s not just a TikTok dancer, Ricky. That’s just the first thing I found when I googled her.” Jennifer added before searching again then finding a better video of Gina performing on a stage. “Is this better, your highness?” Jennifer asked before handing Ricky her cell phone. Ricky grabbed the phone reluctantly and watched the video before suppressing the awe that wanted to jump out of him. She was talented and she was pretty. This wouldn’t be as hard time as he thought.

“She looks decent.” He stated blandly before handing her the phone. “Two weeks, right?”

“Do you speak another language that I can say that in that would make you stop asking that?” Mr. Mazzara asked in annoyance.

“I just want to make sure it’s just two weeks.”

“Just two weeks. Three, maybe four weeks…” Jennifer paused as Ricky glared at her. “Three weeks max.” she finished. Ricky didn’t care what they said. He was only lasting two weeks. He was going to try his best the first week then just completely bomb the routine on the second week. As long as he got to perform one of his songs, he didn’t care how long he lasted on that show. Whatever the case was, he was going to still be Ricky Bowen by the end of this.

Chapter Text

Today was the day that Gina would finally meet her dance partner for the show. The week prior they recorded the pro dancers opening number and she got to meet some of the returning dancers. To say that she was nervous would be an understatement. She was happy to meet all the dancers that she looked up to, but she needed them to know she was here to win. She wasted no time planning and researching all things Ricky Bowen the minute she found out about him. She spent weeks prepping, working out, dieting and deep diving into who he was based on what she could find online. Sure, she knew about all the rumors and his bad habits, but she need to know more. Almost as if most of his life was removed from the internet, she struggled to find anything other than his interviews and other people talking about it. That was until one night she stumbled on an old video of him on YouTube on his keyboard singing Don’t Stop Me Now. This brought chills to Gina as she remembered making a YouTube video of herself dancing to the same song that same year.

“If that’s not a sign…I don’t know what is.” She muttered to herself. She immediately knew that they had to recreate this for their first dance. She looked up videos of Ricky dancing, just to see if he could even move. “He’s not bad. A bit stiff but not bad.” She told the producers her idea just to make sure she didn’t waste time creating choreography that would not be useable. She prayed that Ricky would be able to do it because she was not willing to change it and was not going to relax on making it perfect. She prayed that Gina 1.0 didn’t come out looking like a bully once the show aired because she aimed for perfection at all times.

“Gina, that looks amazing. I’m loving this idea.” Ashlyn shouted from Gina’s phone after watching her perform the dance without a partner. “Have I mentioned how much I love being able to see the behind the scenes of The Dancing with the Stars?”

“You’ve only mentioned it twice a day.” Gina responded before wiping the sweat from her face then laughing as she took a swig of her water.

“You don’t think it’s too hard of a choreo for the first time?” Ashlyn asked with a slight look of concern on her face.

“Come on, Ash, you know me. I go big or I don’t go at all.” She reminded her bestie proudly then quickly noticing production making their way to her. “I’ll let you know how it goes. I think I have to go get ready for the intro recording.”

“Okay Hollywood!” she sang before they both hung up.

Gina made her way over to hair and make up and continued to go over the routine in her head. It was already about nine in the morning, and she was told that after her intro is recorded she would be meeting Ricky in the dancing studio. She looked over what she was instructed to say for her intro and tried to memorize as much as possible. From what she saw from previous intros that she looked up, they never really used much for the pro dancers, so she knew to skim it.

“Alright, Gina, this should be quick and painless.” The director instructed. Gina took a deep breath and made sure she sat straight and poised.

“I’m Gina Porter and I’m nineteen years old.” She stated with a bright smile. “I’m originally from Utah but because of my dancing career I moved to L.A. a few years ago.” They paused her several times to say the exact thing multiple times before they allowed her to continue. “My mom said I danced before I could walk so the minute I was able to walk she put me in training. This is my first season on Dancing with the Stars, and I can’t wait to show you all what I’ve spent my entire life training on.”

“You did your intro as if you’ve been doing it for years.” One of the pro dancers stated as she made her way out.

“You think so?” Gina asked bashfully.

“Oh, I know so.” He responded before extending his hand. “I’m Carlos by the way, I don’t know if you remember meeting me at rehearsal.”

“Gina Porter.” She responded and shook his hand. “I remember you. You were my favorite from last season. I almost stopped watching after you lost.” Gina admitted.

“Hey, you win some, you lose some.” He responded walking beside her. “And in my case, I just keep losing. I am hoping that this year I at least make it to finale night.” He added with his fingers crossed. Gina crossed her fingers as well even though she was already seeing Carlos as her immediate competitor. She was happy to see that he was just as nice as he seemed on the edited show. “So, I heard your dance partner is Ricky Bowen. Are you ready for him?” he asked as they reached her studio. Gina made her way towards the door then looked back at Carlos with a grin.

“You should ask if he’s ready for me.”

“Oooh, I can tell we’re going to get along very well!” Carlos exclaimed before making his way to his studio. Gina made it in the studio, hoping that Ricky would already be inside but instead it was just some of the camera crew. By the time she came from the dressing room, Ricky was still not there yet. She took the time to stretch and go over what she’d say when he finally made it.

“I grew up in a household where being on time was just second nature. So, when it comes to patience, I don’t really have much of it.” Gina said as she looked at the camera just as the door swung open and in walked Ricky with his shades on. An immediate smell of cigarette smoke and throb rushed in causing Gina to scrunch her face. She quickly fixed her reaction just as the camera zoomed in on her face. “Hey, you must be Richard Bowen…I’m G…”

“Please call me Ricky.” He stated cutting her off and removing his shades. “My parents don’t even call me Richard.” He added. Gina wanted to respond that it wasn’t her fault that he was given the name that should’ve been given to his grandparents instead, but she didn’t.

“Nice to finally meet you, Ricky Bowen. I’m Gina Porter.” She extended her hand towards him and watched as he looked at it for a minute before shaking it. She had to admit that seeing him up close made her notice that he was better looking in person. His light brown curly hair peeked from beneath his baseball cap and with the lights from the camera crew his brown eyes looked a bit hazel. “We have a lot to go over. Want to jump right in?”

“Cool. Where can I go change?” he asked before adjusting the strap of the duffel bag he brought with him. She pointed towards the dressing room then watched as he walked over to it. She looked over at the camera with an expressionless stare then shook her head before stretching again.

Once he came back out she made him do a couple stretches as well. She held in the laughter that wanted to escape out of her when she noticed how much he struggled with just the simplest stretches. She decided it was time to see if he could loosen up a bit. She made her way over to change the music that was being played then turned to face him with an encouraging smile.

“Before I show you what I have planned for our first performance, I think we should try to loosen up. And see what kind of moves you got.” She walked over to where he was still seated and extended her hand to help him up. He looked at her hand again as if touching her hand was a problem. He reached up and took her and grunted as he got up.

“Uh…you want me to just dance to this?” he asked as he pointed towards the speaker as it played Moves like Jagger. She leaned against the mirrored wall and crossed her arms as she waited to see what he would do. He looked over at the cameraman and smirked before doing a simple two step. Gina studied as he stepped smoothly to the beat. Then he began to wiggle his arms and hopping on every other foot.

“You call those moves?” she retorted then changed the tune to an old song by Billy Joel. He quickly turned to look at her in shock and smiled for the first time as she danced towards him. “What?”

“I didn’t think someone like you would listen to Billy Joel.” He admitted and danced along side of her. Gina rolled her eyes but continued to dance despite what he just stated.

“And what do you think someone like me listens to?” she asked and watched as he made his way over to select a new song. She doubled over with laughter when he put on Whitney Houston Dance with Somebody. “Oh, wow way to box me in, Richard Bowen!” she stated causing him to grimace at her saying his full name. They continued to let loose till the song was over. Gina watched as Ricky huffed and puffed gasping for air as he chugged his bottle of water.

“I need a break.” He pleaded before collapsing against the wall. He needed to adjust some of his bad habits if they were going to win. Before they parted ways she knew she had to send him her rules for success.

-*-*

Once their break was over, Ricky sat back and watched as Gina showed him what she had planned for their first show. Watching her dance, he had to admit that she was crazy talented. He wasn’t sure why she thought he could do half the things he was watching her do, but he was in awe of her performing it. He’d already been there since before his third cup of coffee and fifth cigarette. He was tired and winded, and she looked as if she was floating. He wondered if she already completed her intro video and if she struggled with it like he did.

“Okay, so all you have to do is read this script that the writers wrote for you.” Ricky looked at the script in confusion. He always knew reality tv was fake, but he thought he could at least be real on his own intro.

“Is there a problem with me just speaking off the cuff?” Ricky asked as he skimmed the script he was given. “I mean, this stuff is about me. I already know me.”

“We get that, but we went over all of these details with your publicist and this is what we feel will help engage the audience. You don’t have to read it verbatim. You can put some life into it.” The producer instructed. Ricky stared at the script and decided to try and improvise most of it.

“Hi, I’m Ricky Bowen and I’m mostly known for being on Disney Channel’s Better Nate than never but some of you may know me for my music.” He shot a winning smile as he tried to remember what else the script told him to say but the director yelled cut. He was told to give more of what was written. Ricky tried to stick to the script without messing up then tried improvising, but the director kept cutting him off. Finally, he found a good balance between the two to finish it off.

“Let’s try and get this done, eh? Let’s pick off from people knowing you from your music.”

“I’m not known for my dancing, but I think I can move. I come from Disney and it’s kind of one of Mickey’s rules that you have to have some rhythm.” He chuckled as stated by the script even though he found the statement corny. “Yes, I was told that my partner will be Gina Porter. I’ve seen some of her TikToks…the girl can move.”

That was earlier that morning. He was already tired of all of this, and it hadn’t been two weeks yet. The only positive side he could see in all of this was that Gina wasn’t a chore to look at and she seemed kind of fun. He continued to watch her explain each part of the choreography till she reached the end. She walked over to him and placed her hands on her hips then smiled.

“So, do you think you’re ready to learn the first eight count?” she asked as he continued to look stunned and winded. She extended her hand towards him and widened her smile as he slowly took her hand.

“Uh, yeah, sure.” He responded.

“I, uh, don’t want to weird you out or anything…” she took a deep breath and looked his way. “Once I heard you were my partner I looked you up…”

“Here we go.” Ricky mumbled. He wondered if she believed everything that she read. She probably did. Everyone believed the rumors.

“I found a video of you playing Don’t Stop Me Now…back when you were younger.” She admitted then handed him her phone. “The crazy thing is that I also made a video that same year dancing to that song. Crazy, right?” she asked as Ricky just stared at his younger self.

“Wow!” If he could just go back in time and tell him what was to come, prepare him then maybe things would’ve been easier.

“Are you okay?” Gina asked as she noticed his demeanor change. He quickly adjusted himself and handed her the phone before positioning himself.

“I’m good.” He replied. “Let’s do this.” Gina quickly put her phone away and began showing him the first eight count. She stood in front of him and placed his hand on her lower back then held his other hand before straightening his back.

“Don’t slouch.” She instructed as he stiffened up straight. “Loosen up but don’t slouch.” She added helping to show what she meant. “Keep your eyes on me…we’re going to start with your left foot stepping back.” She guided him slowly while continuing to adjust his stance. “Don’t slouch. Guide me but follow what I am telling you to do.”

“Uh okay.” He stammered.

“We’re going to start off slow but once the beat kicks in that’s when you will twirl me, and we will begin to jive.” She stated before tilting his head back up when he began to look down at his feet. “Keep your eyes on me.”

“Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. Let’s start again.” She guided him back to the center of the room. “Let’s try this. I’ll show you what you should do with me.” She placed her hand on his lower back then held his hands and guided him effortlessly around the room. “Now, let’s see you do that.” She instructed. An hour later, and they had finally gotten the grasp of the beginning of the song. They hadn’t even began the jive yet and he was already winded again.

“Can we take another break?” Ricky asked as he gasped for air. “I need a cigarette.” He added causing Gina to glare at him. “What?” he asked as she walked over to turn the music off.

“Do you want to win this?” she asked. He wanted to tell her that he really didn’t care if he won or not, but she didn’t wait for him to respond. “If you keep smoking and getting winded every two steps we take, we’re not going to win.” She added then pulled out her cell phone. “What’s your phone number?”

“Excuse me?”

“Your number? Or your socials. I don’t care, I just want to send you something.” She stated. Ricky mumbled out his phone number then pulled out his phone to see what she sent him. “You need some discipline if we’re going to win this. Gina Porter doesn’t lose. I’ve never lost on anything, and I don’t plan on losing now.”

“What’s this?” Ricky asked even though he could clearly read that they were a list of things that he needed to cut out of his diet and routine. First thing on the list was that he needed to stop smoking and drinking coffee. “I can’t even drink coffee? Are you insane?”

“Trust the process, Ricky.” She responded. “Tomorrow I will bring you a shot that will replace the coffee.”

“Wait, what?”

“I will bring your lunch. We’re going to start eating clean.”

“Whoa, what?”

“And we will go to the gym at five in the morning starting now.”

“Okay so, you are crazy.” He responded instead.

“Crazy is going to get us that Len Goodman Mirrorball!” she responded proudly before winking at the cameraman. “We’ll reconvene tomorrow. I also sent you a video of me doing the choreo that you need to perfect. You can practice at home. Oh, and make sure you get enough rest.” Ricky stared at the girl then looked at the camera.

“What?”

Chapter Text

Later that night, Gina wasted no time jumping into prepping everything. As she prepped the lunches for their week, she replayed rehearsal in her head trying to see where they could improve. They didn’t get to the hard part of the choreography due to Ricky getting winded easily. And her having to constantly correct his posture. She kept reminding herself that she needed to be patient. He was not a professional and he was trying his best. Unfortunately, Gina only knew how to expect one hundred percent delivery when it came to learning anything. She was in deep thought when she heard the sound of her doorbell being rung. She quickly washed her hands then glanced at the clock, wondering who would be visiting her this late knowing she gave herself a curfew.

“Who is it?” she shouted before looking through the peephole in shock to see a bouquet of flowers. She opened the door and displayed a look of shock. “E…EJ…what are you doing here?”

“Uh…I know I should’ve called.” He stated slightly stepping forward then smiling widely. Though he was smiling, Gina could still see the sadness in his eyes. He missed her. If she wasn’t as busy as she was, she probably would miss him as well.

“Yeah, EJ, this is not a good time. I kind of set a curfew for myself for visitors.”

“Oh, sorry, did I interrupt you with something?” he asked then peeked behind her as if he’d find someone inside. Gina rolled her eyes and sighed before shaking her head.

“No, I’m just prepping for the week, you know.” she stated before looking down at the flowers in his hands. He noticed her gaze and immediately extended them to her. “You got me flowers?”

“Yeah, I know you like having fresh tulips and I wasn’t sure when you last got some from me.” She looked at the flowers and took a sniff before tilting her head to look at him before stepping aside.

“Come in. You can help me prep, I guess.”

“Oh goodie…I remember the last time I helped you prep for that audition. I don’t know if you remember, I was really good at cutting the fruits just the way you liked.” He stated as he took off his coat and made his way to the sink to wash his hands. Gina eyed him and forced a smile on her face. She knew what he was trying to do. She needed to remain firm and not fall for his tricks.

“Yeah, I remember. I also remember coming home one day to you eating them with Ashlyn.” Gina quipped as she placed the flowers in a vase then added water to it. “These are actually really pretty, EEJ.”

“Only the best for my Gina.” He quickly responded. They shared a silent glance before EJ tore his focus away to begin cutting the fruit. “So, how was your first day? Did you make any friends?”

“I sure did, Dad.” Gina responded then made her way over to start seasoning the salmon she had prepped for the kale salad she was going to pair them with.

“I’m serious.” He laughed and looked her way. “I saw the announcement and promo for the show.” He added then paused to place the fruits in a bowl. “Your partner is that kid from all those rumors…Richard something?” Gina eyed him and chuckled knowing that he already knew who her partner was, and he probably looked him up. One of the things they both had in common was that they always deep dived everything.

“He likes to be called Ricky, apparently. Ricky Bowen from that Disney show. He also has music out. I listened to one of them and I have to admit, he’s talented.” Gina stated before wiping her hands and grabbing her phone to play one of his songs. “Listen to this.” She played Set Me Free and continued to finishing cooking while glancing over at EJ to see what he thought.

“Hmmm, it’s catchy.”

“Yeah, I think he was tired of all the rumors being spread about him.” She watched as EJ nodded to the lyrics. Gina reached over to turn it off. “Training today was a bit tough, but he seems pretty cool.” There was a chilling silence that hung between the two before he spoke again.

“So…you like him or something?”

“Whoa, EJ, I just met the guy. I don’t have a thought about him either way. I just don’t like to let rumors set my opinions on a person. That’s all.”

“I get it but sometimes rumors have some validity to them. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“I’m a big girl, EJ. And I’m just dancing with the guy. It’s my job.” Gina reassured him as she finished cooking and began packaging the meals. “Trust me. Nothing is going to happen between me and Ricky Bowen.” Gina also wanted to remind EJ that it was none of his business, but she was not in the mood to argue. Especially over something that wasn’t even happening. So, she quickly change the subject. “I do think I made a friend with one of the dancers. Do you remember Carlos?”

“I think I remember you talking about him. Which one is he?”

“He’s one of the younger ones but he’s married to that Broadway singer Sebastian Smith.” She added then grabbed the fruits from him. “If not, I will at least have Kourt there. She’s doing my make up and styling me too.”

“Ashlyn told me you were going to try to get her on an episode to sing. She’s quite excited about it.”

“Well, she needs to hold her horses ‘cause I haven’t even asked if that’s something that I can do. I simply told her that I would try.”

“Well, in my opinion, I think she has it in the bag then. You always work hard for the people you care about.” EJ reminded her before he walked over to give her a hug. “I don’t want to overstay my welcome. I just wanted to check in on you and make sure that you’re good.” Gina hugged him back then walked him to the door.

“I appreciate it, EJ.” She stated with a smile. “Drive safely.” She stated before closing the door behind him. She knew this transition to them being just friends was going to be tough for him, but she needed him to know that this was a one time courtesy. She quickly sent him a text message reminding him of her curfews that she set for herself. Just after she hit send and placed the phone down, it chimed causing her to double back. “That was quick.” She said to herself expecting a text from EJ but shocked to see a message from Ricky instead.

“Hey, I just want to let you know that I am taking this seriously and will be at the gym bright and early tomorrow.”

-*-
Ricky made it home sore in all parts of his body. His fingers were even sore, and he was limping but unsure why. He remembered training back when he was at Disney. They were long training days, but no one was as tough as Gina was with him today. And it was day one. Then she added the list of rules to it. Ricky was just not sure if he could commit to it. He soaked for hours and scrolled on his phone to read emails and catch up on things he missed while he trained. Before he could even respond to one of the emails he received from his publicist he received a call from Mr. Mazzara and sighed before answering it.

“What I do, now?” Ricky quickly stated.

“I’m just calling to see how the first day went.”

“Oh, Benjamin, I didn’t know you cared.”

“Yes, you did. It’s my job to make sure that things go smoothly.”

“Well, I’m currently soaking in my bathtub. Every part of me in pain and I was paired with a drill sergeant.” Ricky responded. “Get this. She gave me a list of things that I can’t do during training.”

“Well, Ricky, you have to know that training would lead to some sacrifices.”

“Sacrifices?” Ricky scoffed. “Let me forward this list to you.” Ricky forwarded the list then listened as he read it to himself.

“This list sounds reasonable, Ricky.”

“You know I need at least three cups of coffee before I can even say good morning to people. And don’t get me started on the smoking part. She wants me to just stop cold turkey.” Ricky ranted. Benjamin listened without interrupting then remained silent causing Ricky to pause. “You there?”

“Yeah, just checking to see if you can quit the show before it airs. Maybe there’s something on here that will give them enough time to get Gina another partner.”

“What are you talking about? I’m not quitting. I’m just venting.”

“Oh, it just sounded just how you sounded when you vented about Disney.”

“Are you serious right now? That’s not even the same…”

“It is the same. Things get tough and require more out of you and you run.” Benjamin interjected reminding Ricky of how he normally dealt with things. “You can’t be upset when people notice a pattern of you not finishing things that you started when things get rough. You’ve never fully committed to anything.”

“I’m committed to my music.” Ricky retorted. No one could ever say that he wasn’t fully committed to his music. It was the one thing that brought him peace.

“Are you though?”

“I am.”

“So, you’re willing to do anything to make sure you have a successful music career?”

“I am. Why are you asking that like I’m not willing to do anything for my music?”

“Because you’re in a tub right now crying about not being able to smoke and drink coffee.” Benjamin responded causing Ricky to fully shut down. “I’ve looked into Gina Porter; she has fully committed to everything she’s ever done so I would listen to her if I were you. She’s good for your brand. If you’re fully committed to your music career as you claim, all you have to do is prove it.”

The rest of the evening, Ricky couldn’t get what Mr. Mazzara said out of his head. Each time he wanted to grab a cigarette; he would just hear him mocking him. Telling him that he didn’t care about his music career. His body was still a bit sore, but he hated it when Benjamin was right. So, instead of smoking he decided to practice. He played the training material that Gina gave him and began practicing the steps. Each time he’d slouch he’d hear her yelling at him to fix his posture and to look up. Once he went through enough of it without many mistakes, he paused it then sent Gina a text message. He laid flat on his sofa and looked at the screen.

“I just need to last two weeks or win this thing.” He muttered to himself as he stared at a paused Gina on his screen. He fell asleep soon after.

-*-
The next morning before the sun could rise, Ricky was up and craving a cigarette and coffee, but he resisted. When he got there, Gina was just pulling into the parking lot. She jumped out of her car with a bright smile spread across her face when she saw him. He couldn’t for the life of him muster out a grin. Not without two cups of coffee and maybe one long drag. He parked his car and slowly stepped out of the car and watched her bounce over to him.

“Good morning, Ricky!” she exclaimed and immediately handed him a small bottle.

“What’s this?”

“Your alarm clock.” She sang before pulling another one out for herself. “Cheers.” Ricky eyed the shot strangely but decided to follow suit.

“Cheers.” He opened the bottle and watched as she chugged it all down with ease. He took a deep breath then did the same before almost throwing it all back up. Gina immediately began to laugh as she watch him try to keep it down. “What the hell was that?” he asked as he coughed and wiped the tears that came from his eyes.

“Here, chase it with this.” She chuckled as she handed him a bottle of water. Ricky eyed her suspiciously but took the bottle of water anyway. She doubled over in laughter as she watched him chug the water down within seconds. “You’ll be fine, Ricky. Come on, let’s get the workout part of our day started.” She led him into the gym that she was shocked to find was practically empty with the exception of some of the camera crew setting up.

“Seriously, what was in that shot?” Ricky asked once they were inside. Normally it would take several minutes for the espresso to wake him but after the shot almost choked him he felt a boost of energy.

“Just a wellness shot with a splash of ginger, turmeric, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar and a splash of honey to help with the bitterness.” She replied while beginning to stretch.

“That had honey in it?” Ricky asked as he began to stretch as well.

“Yours did.” She responded. “I figured I’d start you off easy.” She stated with a smirk before getting up then extending her hand towards him. “You ready for a light jog before we dance?” she asked as she helped him up.

“Let’s do this.”

They did their light jog before heading to the studio to practice the rest of the routine for the opening group number. Ricky was happy to see the other celebrities were struggling to grasp the steps just like he was. The group number was upbeat but not as challenging as Gina’s choreography was. He wondered if they just knew that they needed to go easy on the celebrities. He also wondered if the other professional dancers were going easy on their partners. Once practice was over they took a quick break which allowed him to talk to some of the celebrities that were there.

“Please tell me that I’m not the only one that’s struggling with all of this?” Ricky asked as he looked over at the two that were near him. One of them he knew of very was a singer known only as Jet. The other one near him was not a girl that Ricky was familiar with.

“I don’t know. I’m loving everything about all of this.” She responded.

“Of course, you love this. You love torture.” Jet quipped.

“Don’t pay attention to my brother.” She stated before extending her hand towards Ricky. “I’m Maddox. Actress from a sitcom that didn’t even get a second season.”

“Uh…what show was that?” Ricky asked as he shook her hand. “I’m Ricky Bowen by the way from…”

“Everyone knows who you are and where you’re from.” Jet interjected. Ricky wasn’t sure if he was annoyed or if this was just his personality. He didn’t have to think long as Maddox quickly read Ricky’s expression.

“Jet has no manners. That’s why he talks that way. Again, don’t pay him any attention.”

“Noted.” He responded. He was going to ask another question but lost his train of thought as he watched Gina talking to one of the professional dancers. He watched her giggle and felt himself smiling as if he knew what she was laughing about. Jet immediately caught sight of what he was looking towards and leaned towards Ricky.

“You got Gina Porter as your partner, huh?”

“Uh, yeah, seems like everybody knows her but me.” Ricky stated tearing his eyes away from her just as she looked over to him.

“Oh yeah, she’s tough. She was featured in a friend of ours music video last year. I was shocked to hear she was joining the show.” Maddox added. “I can’t wait to see what you guys do on the show.”

“You’re not nervous?” Ricky asked as he looked at the siblings. They both looked at each other before they shrugged.

“This is all for fun for us, but I say ask us again on opening night.” Maddox responded. “Hey, it was nice meeting you though. Looks like breaks over.” She added as they both parted. Ricky took a deep breath and made his way over to where Gina was ending her conversation.

“Speak of the devil.” The dancer stated as he eyed Ricky. “Hey, I’m Carlos, you’re Ricky, right?” he asked but didn’t allow Ricky the chance to respond as he continued. “Gina was just telling me that you’re killing it today.”

“He’s exaggerating. I said you impressed me a bit. I didn’t think you’d grab their choreo as quickly as you were.” Gina quickly corrected.

“Well, that choreo is easy compared to what you have…”

“Carlos, we have to go.” Gina stated cutting him off and dragging Ricky away. “Uh what do you think you’re doing?” Gina asked once they were inside of the studio. Ricky wasn’t sure what he did wrong, so he just shrugged and looked back at the door as if the answer would be there. “Carlos is the competition.”

“I thought he was your friend.”

“He can be both my friend and my competition.” She replied. “Let’s get started. We have a lot to cover. I want to at least get through the entire dance today. We don’t need to worry about if it’s perfect yet.” Ricky watched as the smile that she had on her face just moments before slip away and drill SGT. Gina clocked in. “You ready?”

“I think so.” He mumbled as she stepped in front of him. He quickly fixed his posture and positioned his hands the way he remembered from what she showed him. He wasn’t too sure, but he could have sworn a smile tugged the side of her lips. She was impressed with him and that gave him an extra boost of confidence.

“Remember slow and guide me.” She stated as Ricky kept his eyes on her and took the step with his left foot then slowly guided her around the room. “Twirl me slowly then dip me twice.” She instructed as he did it effortlessly to the music just as the beat dropped. “Now kick. Kick. Slide back twice. Kick kick…jive and now come back to me. Good, Ricky, keep your eyes on me. Kick. Yes!” Ricky was proud of himself; he was keeping up with the music and hadn’t look down more than once. In his head, he was counting every step. “Fast kicks, Ricky! Keep up with the beat! Don’t stop me now, jive!”

“One two three kick, turn, slide, dip, two three, kick. Kick. Kick Jive.”

“Alright now, back to slow, and twirl. Now pose.”

“Did I do it?” he asked as he watched her stand to face him.

“You’ve improved a lot since yesterday. We still need to work on your jive and your jazz hands that you keep doing. I think for now I’m going to work on your kicks. Then we will move to the jive.” She stated without looking his way. Ricky didn’t care he was just proud that he was able to do the dance completely.

“I stayed up till like two in the morning practicing.” He stated proudly then wished he hadn’t said anything when she looked back at him. “What?”

“Did you not read my rules to success? Getting a good night rest is one of the biggest things that help with your stamina and energy.”

“I think I did just fine despite not doing one stinking part of your commandments.”

“Excuse me?”

“You’re excused.” Ricky quipped back. He wasn’t understanding why she was suddenly upset. He did damn near everything on that stupid list. If he was honest, he was already tired of that damn thing, and it’s only been a day. “I don’t get what’s the big deal. I did almost everything on that list.”

“You know what…let’s take a fiver.” She stated and before he was able to react she was out the door. Once the door closed he finally remembered that there was a cameraman in there and he made sure to zoom right in on Ricky. Ricky knew she was making a big deal out of nothing, but he also knew that he was probably not making them look good. He looked up at the ceiling and rolled his eyes as he could just hear Benjamin Mazzara telling him he needed to go apologize. He followed behind where he assumed Gina went. He found her seated just outside on the ledge just staring off into the distance.

“Hey G…” he said softly waiting on her to respond or look in his direction. When she didn’t budge he walked over and sat next to her.

“Look, I know I can be a bit of a hard ass…”

“This is important to you. I get it.” He interjected causing her to finally look his way. “I will do better with the list. I just wanted to do better today.”

“And you did.” She admitted. “You actually impressed me.” Ricky couldn’t help the smile that immediately spread across his face once he heard her say that. He wanted to keep impressing her. He got up and extended his hand towards and waited on her to take it.

“Wanna teach me how to jive and kick then?”

“After we eat lunch. I made us salmon and kale salad.” She took his hand and got off of the ledge then walked backwards just to smile at him.

“Yum.” He responded unenthusiastically.

“Trust me, you will love it.”

Chapter Text

Ricky and Gina continued to work hard for the next few days preparing for opening night. Ricky tried his best to hide how nervous and irritable he’d become since he began to follow Gina’s rules. He felt great for about a day, but he slowly started to lose the momentum he had for their second day. Though he tried to hide it, Gina was definitely noticing it and going even harder on him during training. This caused several days of them arguing and walking out of the studio. It had gotten to the point where even Kourtney had to say something the day she came in to measure the two of them for their outfits.

“Okay, Gina, you know I love you, right?” Kourtney asked as she watched Ricky storm out of the studio. Gina glared at the door then forced a smile on her face as she leaned down to hug Kourtney.

“Aww, love you too, Kourt…”

“You need to chill on Ricky a bit.”

“What?”

“I get you’re all Gina 1.0 on yourself but you’re a professional dancer…and he’s…” she trailed off with the wave of her hand. “He’s Ricky Bowen. He’s trying his best.”

“I know he’s trying his best.” Gina replied with a sigh before shrugging. “If I’m being honest, he’s kind of been all over the place. On day two he was on it then the next day, he was just cranky and disoriented.”

“Hmm, do you think it’s because you cut off his coffee intake?” Kourtney asked as she jotted down the measurements. “I don’t know if you remember that one week at camp where I couldn’t have my daily Starbucks and completely lost it on Dewey Wood. I had a massive headache for like three days.” She added while massaging her temple. “Oh and, remember, how I told Howie I couldn’t date a smoker and he tried to quit for me only to give me the ultimate ick. I think him smoking is what made him chill.”

“So, you think I was wrong for making him cut everything off cold turkey?” Gina asked as she stepped down from the podium and sat on the ground to stretch.

“No, I’m not necessarily saying that exactly. You meant well.” Kourtney responded before looking down at Gina. “Where you went wrong is you didn’t take into account that there were going to be some side effects to him quitting cold turkey.” Gina knew Kourtney was right and made a mental note to try to be a bit more patient when Ricky returned. “Just cut the guy some slack.”

-*-
Ricky stormed out of the studio again for the umpteenth time that week. He debated again if it was even worth dealing with her barking orders at him at all times. Then he’d hear every person that ever doubted him in his head and powered through it. Today was harder though since it was the day before the premiere, and he was messing up more and more. He was off coffee, eating her clean meals, drinking her daily weird shots, not smoking, and going to bed at a decent hour. Ricky didn’t work well that way. He delivered best when he only had four hours of sleep and four cups of coffee with a cigarette to match. Only good thing that had happened that week was that he made a friend in Jet.

“What’s this your seventh storm out today?” Jet asked as he watched Ricky pace back and forth. “If the pacing is part of your choreo tomorrow, I’d say you’re getting the highest score tomorrow.”

“Funny.” Ricky glared at Jet then pulled out a cigarette and just placed it between his lips.

“Uh…if Gina sees you…”

“Dude, I don’t care! She’s not the boss of me!” Ricky exclaimed then sighed as he removed it from his lips. “Plus, I’m not lighting it. I just miss the feel of it. Today’s been a lot.”

“Yeah, dude, you seem on edge.”

“I’m messing up a lot and she’s just freaking barking at me. Kick! Kick! Kick! I’m tired of kicking.” Ricky responded as he stared at the cigarette between his fingers. “I just need her to freaking back off a bit, you know?”

“No, I don’t know.” Jet replied getting up as his break was over. “This is obviously very important to her and she’s new to the show. She’s trying her best to get a person that could barely do the two step to dance like a professional.”

“Hey, I can do the two step.” Ricky interjected looking over at Jet.

“And if you end up winning, you’re the one that gains recognition. She gets to, what, potentially return for a new season to try all over again. You need to see how lucky you are to have her as a partner ‘cause you could have ended up like me with Lily.” Jet stated before making his way back to his partner. Ricky stared at the cigarette in his hand and tossed it in the trash then made his way back to Gina. Once he walked in they both just looked at each other in complete silence as Kourtney looked between them.

“Well, I guess that’s my cue to head out.” Kourtney stated as she gathered her things. “I will add the finishing touches to your performance outfits tonight. We have a big day tomorrow.” She sang as she walked by Ricky. “See ya, Ricky.” She smiled his way then looked back at Gina before sneaking out.

“I like her.”

“Yeah…” Gina responded as she got up and met with Ricky halfway. “Hey, can we…”

“Start over?” He stated finishing her sentence then smiling widely when she nodded. “Yeah…well, no, we’ve made a bit more progress since then. That would suck big time.”

“Right…you’re right.” Gina admitted before stepping forward and turning on the music. “So, uh, one last dance to end the day. Cool?” he smiled and placed his hand on the small of her back before taking her hand with his other.

“Cool.”
*-*-
The day had finally come, and the studio was a buzz. Gina was in hair and makeup and hadn’t seen Ricky since earlier that morning when she gave him his morning dose of the wellness shot. She was dressed in her roaring twenties dress that Kourtney made for her but covered it with a robe to protect it till it was time. Producers had already advised that they would be dancing second, which was a bit of a dead spot. If they didn’t do well they could end up being forgotten by the end of the night.

“You’re going to kill it, Gina!” Kourtney stated before placing a calming hand over hers. “You’re not alone, remember? I’m going to be out there cheering you on. Ash is out there…and EJ came as well.” She added with a slight roll of her eyes causing Gina to giggle. “Your support system is always here.”

“I kinda wish my mom and Jamie could’ve made it but I’m happy my sisters will be here.” Gina stated before hugging Kourtney.

“I’m sure they will be watching and cheering you on as they watch from whatever hotel they’ll be in.” Kourtney added. “And if that doesn’t make you feel better, my mom is out there too.” Gina smiled, loving how Ms. Greene always played honorary mother to the tercet but nothing tops having her own mother show up for her. Even if it were just the one time.

On the other side of the wall, Ricky was pacing as he tried to remember the choreography for the opening number and the one that Gina created. He prayed that he didn’t mix up the two live on TV. He knew his parents were out in the crowd with Miss Jenn and Mr. Mazzara. He’d performed in front of an audience multiple times before, but this was different. So much was riding on this.

“Hey, you good, bro?” Jet asked once Ricky stepped out of his dressing room and into the hallway that they had all the celebrities waiting to perform the opening number.

“I feel like I’m about to split in half.” Ricky confessed then rubbed his sweaty palms on his pants. “Have they brought out the dancers yet?” Ricky asked as he scanned the faces in the hallway.

“You mean Gina?”

“No, I meant what I asked.” Ricky lied. He most definitely meant Gina. He needed a pep talk or something because his nerves were fried.

“Yeah, sure. I don’t see Lily anyway.” Jet replied rolling his eyes. “It looks like they separated us by gender ‘cause I don’t see my sister, but I see her partner Carlos right over there.” Jet pointed towards where Carlos was standing and speaking with another dancer just as the sound of applause erupted. “The show is starting.” Ricky took a deep breath then turned just in time to see Gina stepping out and making her way over to him.

“Wow!” he exclaimed and allowed a smile to spread as she made her way to him. “Hey, G! You look amazing. Are you ready to do this?” he asked even though the person that needed to be asked that was him. She smiled back at him then stood next to him before reaching for his hand.

“It’s now or never!”

“Thank you everyone! I am excited to be back in the ballroom for yet another season of amazing dancing. This is Dancing with the stars and the opening number.” The host announced as the lights dimmed. The sound of the Greatest Show began to play as Gina immediately went into her professional pose. They started to walk out to each side of the stairs that faced the audience. As each pair made their way to the center to do their small bit of choreography, the host announced their names.

“Carlos and his partner Camp Shallow Lake’s star Maddox!” Ricky watched nervously as Carlos spun Maddox around and landed the choreography with ease. “Mack Alana and his partner TikTok star Dani!” Gina looked over at Ricky and gave his hand a squeeze reminding him that they were next. He licked his lips and took a deep breath before stepping out with her. “Our newest dancer, Gina Porter with her partner Disney star and pop star Ricky Bowen!” he spun Gina around then dipped her before spinning her once again to finish out the choreography. The rest of the opening number was a blur and went by so quickly he couldn’t even remember if he did the choreography the way it was intended.

“What a rush!” Ricky exclaimed once they all were in the back during the commercial break.

“Yeah, so we go on second which is practically as dead as going first. I don’t want to add more pressure but like…”

“We have to kill it. I know.” Ricky stated finishing what he knew she was about to say. He knew going in he said he would do his best. Then he’d relax if they made it another week but after hearing the audience, he slightly wanted to do better than that. And after looking at the smile on Gina’s face, he knew he couldn’t disappoint her.

“Hey, Ricky, are you okay?” Gina asked when she noticed he looked a bit pale. “Look if I’m putting too much pressure on you, let me know.”

“No, I’m good. I just don’t want to mess up. That’s all.” He responded. Gina looked around at the other pairs and noticed a small section that was secluded. She took his hand and guided him there then looked around to make sure no one was seeing them there. “Um what are you…”

“Look, you got this.” She reminded him and firmly looked into his eyes to show that she truly believed this. He felt a weird sense of relief immediately after seeing how much she believed he could actually do this. “I know things have been rough these past few days, but you didn’t quit and that means a lot.”

“You saying that means a lot.” He admitted.

“I’m going to let you in on something that I learned early on from one of my teachers.” She stepped closer to him and gave his hand a squeeze. “Acting as if you know what you’re doing leads others to believe that you know what you’re doing. You’re a great actor, Ricky. It’s time to put on a show, okay?” Ricky was preparing to tell her how much he appreciated her dealing with his mood swings but one of the producers spotted them and interrupted them.

“Hey, we were looking for you two. You’re up next after the commercial. Go get into wardrobe.”

Ricky and Gina both made their way to their dressing rooms and quickly got into the outfit for their number. Once they made their way to their positions in front of the audience during the commercial, she looked over at Ricky and mouthed to him that he got this. He gave her a quick nod then pulled his focus as the show returned from commercial and the host announced them as the next performers.

“Tonight, I’m gonna have myself a real good time.” Once the music started, Ricky slowly walked over to Gina and took her hand. “I feel alive.” he slowly placed his hand on the small of her back then looked at her hand to slowly interlock his fingers with hers. “And the world I’ll turn it inside out, yeah.” He took a slow step back with his left foot then slowly dipped her from left to right. “I’m floating around in ecstasy.” He slowly guided her towards the center before stepping away from her. “So, don’t stop me now, don’t stop me…” just as the beat dropped Gina and Ricky both grinned as they both fell in line with the choreography.

“I’m gonna go, go, go, there’s no stopping me.” Ricky made his way over to her and held her hand as they begin to spin around and kick like he’d never kick before. “I’m burning through the sky, yeah, two hundred degrees. That’s why they call me Mr. Fahrenheit. I'm travelling at the speed of light.” Ricky proudly smiled as he nailed the jive and kick. He noticed a spark in Gina’s eyes when she noticed, which gave him another boost of energy. “I wanna make a supersonic woman of you!”

“Hey, hey, hey,! Don’t stop me! Don’t stop me, ooh, ooh, ooh!” They parted ways and clapped to the beat towards the audience and the judges before returning back to each other. “If you wanna have a good time, just give me a call. Don’t stop me now. Yes, I'm havin' a good time! I don't want to stop at all.” Ricky spun Gina around then pulled her back towards him as they stared intensely at each other till the music ended and the audience erupted. Gina jumped into his arms and squealed with delight before they faced the judges.

“Ricky! Gina! Look at me!” Bruno shouted to get their attention. Ricky was gasping for air, but he didn’t remove his arms from around her waist as he looked at Bruno.

“Lay it on me, Bruno.” Ricky responded before looking at Gina.

“Gina, before I get to Ricky, I have to say…” he stood up and clapped. “Way to wake us up. You had us hopping. You had us shouting. Phenomenal choreography. Very energetic!”

“Thank you, Bruno!” Gina smiled proudly.

“And Ricky, you came out kicking! You were not afraid to Jackie Chan that entire choreography. I did not expect those types of kick from a singer that relied solely on the two step when they performed.”

“Gee, thanks?” Ricky wasn’t sure why everyone kept saying that all he knew how to do was the two step, but he hoped it ended soon.

“I have to agree with Bruno. You both shocked me. Gina, I half expected you both to come out here fighting after we saw the footage of your rehearsals.”

“We have a lot of passion. That’s all.” Gina responded to Carrie Ann. “Ricky and I both wanted to do well tonight.”

“I have to also add that the chemistry between you two…woof. I can’t wait to see what else you got for us.” Carrie Ann stated finally.

“You both did amazing. Ricky, you can add dancing to your talents now.” The guest judge stated as the audience applauded again while Gina and Ricky were guided towards the back room to hear their scores. They held hands and listened as the studio played a soft drum roll.

“Now for the scores.” The audience immediately went quiet as they waited for the numbers to appear before them. “First score. Nine! Second score. Eight! Third score. Eight! With a total of twenty five out of thirty. Highest score so far! Don’t go away, Ricky will now spin for their next dance style that they will do and then when we return we will watch Mack Alana and Dani do the Paso Doble.”

Gina and Ricky were both shocked at their scores. Ricky was still in shock as he spun the spinner, while Gina silently prayed for contemporary. It was her favorite to choreograph for and she already had some ideas that she feels would be easy yet powerful. Ricky looked over at Gina as the spinner began to slow down and spin right past contemporary and landed on the Viennese Waltz.

“The Viennese Waltz.” Gina stated with a frown then quickly plastering a fake smile as that was one of the dances she was not too fond of. She was going to spend the entire evening coming up with a concept that would top the score they received today.

“What’s the Viennese Waltz?” Ricky asked. “Is it hard or something?”

“Make sure you vote for Ricky and Gina so that we can see this amazing pair dance to the Viennese Waltz!”

Chapter Text

The following week of training was different for Gina and Ricky. They were more relaxed with each other, and Ricky had grown accustomed to Gina’s antics. After they finished the week at the top of the leader boards, Gina knew they needed to keep the momentum. In order to do that, she knew she had to push the both of them beyond their comfort zone and that meant they need to fully commit to the Viennese Waltz. She invited Kourtney over for the first day of training so she could understand what she needed for their performance outfit.

“So, what’s this Viennese Waltz and why is there a blow up doll in the corner?” Ricky asked before pointing over to the doll Gina brought in for him to train with. She chuckled and brought the doll over to him and handed it to him.

“The doll is for you to train with because the idea I have for the choreo this week starts with you and I dancing with just the thought of the other.” She explained and giggled when Ricky looked at her confused. “The concept of the dance is that we both are in our respective hotel rooms and imagining that we are dancing with each other. Finally, you get the gumption to come to me and dance with me.”

“So, I have to dance with the doll on stage?”

“No, you will be dancing with nothing, but I need you to learn the choreo as if the doll aka me…was dancing with you.” She explained then sighed when he still looked confused. “Let me demonstrate.” She smirked as she turned on the music. Bruno Mars Versace on the Floor began to play. “I feel that in the beginning, you can start out on the piano, then make your way to dance in front of me like this.” She began showing him the steps and looked over at him. “I will be on my side dancing as well and when I face away, that’s when you will come and ‘undress me’…”

“Wait what?”

“Did you not see my air quotes?” Gina quickly responded. “That’s when my girl, Kourt here, will make a dress that changes when you unzip it.” She pointed to Kourtney. “Are you seeing what I’m seeing?”

“Yeah, girl, I’m following, and I already have an idea for something extremely flashy and sexy.” Kourtney added as she showed that she had already began drawing.

“I still have no idea what’s going on, but I trust you.” Ricky responded as he watched Gina demonstrate the choreography once again.

“The beginning is the simplest part of the choreography, but it might be the hardest because you really have to hold up your posture without having me there to help you. And you have to really act as if you can see me but not see me at the same time.”

“I think I understand.”

“How do you feel about singing this on the show?”

“That’s the easiest part of all of this.” Ricky admitted as he took the doll from Gina. She helped position his posture before guiding him towards the rest of the choreography. “I’m supposed to hold her here? Is she ticklish?” In the corner, Kourtney watched the two and smiled as she noticed their constant giggling.

“She’s not ticklish, Ricky.” Gina giggled. “She’s a professional.” They both giggled again but continued to complete the choreography as if no one else was in the room with them. “Now this is when you will ‘undress me’ and run your hands from my neckline to my right hand…like this.” She showed him how to do it and paused as she took his hand. There was a brief silence between the two of them till Kourtney dropped her bag by mistake.

“Oops, my bad y’all.” She excused herself as she grabbed her things. “Don’t mind me. I’m going to go get started on everything.” She quickly made her way towards the door before giving the camera a knowing look.

“Is this when I spin you?” he asked.

“Yes, remember your posture.” She responded adjusting him. “This dance can be…uh…seductive and we have to kinda sell on the idea that we are seducing each other.” She showed him the next steps and explained each move to him. “We have to practically float with this choreography. And here, you will just glide your hand up…” Gina paused to clear her throat before looking at him. They held each other’s gaze for what felt like an eternity before Gina snapped out of it and stepped away. “So, yeah, it’s an intense choreography. Are you ready?”

“Uh, yeah, do you mind if I take a quick break before we begin?” Ricky responded as he darted towards the door before she could even respond.

*-*-
Ricky walked out of the studio and grabbed a bottle of water to calm himself down. He leaned against the wall and smiled when he noticed Jet walking out of his studio. He was happy to see someone he could speak with to get his mind of the dance routine. After getting word that he and Gina were safe to perform the following week, he’d made a mental note that this should have been his last week. He wasn’t going to give his all until he saw her smiling with a friend of hers after the show ended. That small moment change the trajectory of all of Ricky’s plans.

“Uh Gina, I wanted to introduce you to my parents.” Ricky stated as he guided her over to where his parents were waiting. “This is my dad and my mother…” the smile that was on his face quickly turned when he noticed that his mother brought her boyfriend Todd to the show as well. “Oh, and I guess she brought Todd, her boyfriend.” Ricky added with a grumble as Gina eyed him for being rude.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Bowen.” Gina stated as she shook both of their hands. “ and Todd.”

“You can call me, Lynn. I haven’t gone by Mrs. Bowen in years.” She corrected before placing her arm around her boyfriend Todd. Ricky glared at the gesture but softened when Gina gave his back a soft rub.

“You must be so proud of Ricky. He was a delight to train.” She lied. Ricky looked over at her and smiled knowing he was everything, but a delight then forced a laugh when his father quickly joked that he didn’t believe it.

“Gina, you don’t have to lie to us. We know our Ricky.” He quipped. “If anything, it just shows how great of a teacher you are because you made him look like a real dancer out there. The most I’ve ever seen Ricky do is this move.” His father stated before doing a slight two step.

“Whoa, who keeps spreading that rumor?” Ricky asked as everyone laughed.

“But seriously, thanks for doing this with our son. I’m sure your parents are just as proud as we are.” Lynn stated before looking around then back at Gina. “Are they here? I would like to shake your mother’s hand.”

“Uh…no, my mother couldn’t make it. She travels a lot, so I rarely see my mother. I only have a few of my friends that could make it.” Gina responded and her demeanor changed.

“Wait, G, are you serious?” Ricky asked as he reached for her hand and held it. “I didn’t know that about your mom.”

“I’m okay. I don’t talk about it so you wouldn’t know.” She replied before giving his hand a gentle squeeze and she immediately excused herself causing Ricky to watch as she walked away.

“She’s really a nice girl.” His mother stated as she walked away.

“Yeah, she is.” Ricky admitted and smiled as she hugged her friends. She had a lingering hug with one of the men in the group that made Ricky feel slightly weird. “Uh, be right back. I’m going to go meet her friends too.” He walked up just as Gina was letting go of the hand of the guy she was just hugging. She looked between Ricky and her friend awkwardly before she introduced them.

“Ricky, hey, uh…let me introduce you to my friends.” She smiled and pointed towards Kourtney as if Ricky hadn’t already met her. “This is Kourtney, you know, and this is her mother, Ms. Greene.” Ricky forced a smile as he kept a lingering one on the male friend that she wasn’t mentioning just yet.

“Nice to meet you. Your daughter’s amazing. She made us look amazing.” Ricky added as Kourtney smiled with pride.

“This is my other bestie, Ashlyn. You’ve heard me talk to her on the phone at times.” Gina added as Ricky shook her hand. “And this is her uh cousin, EJ.” She finally said. Something about the way she introduced him made him feel that she was leaving something out. Especially when EJ eyed her suspiciously before shaking Ricky’s hand.

“You’re very lucky to have her as a partner. Trust me you don’t want to lose her.” EJ stated as he looked at her lovingly. If Ricky wasn’t sure of their history he could read it bluntly in the way EJ was looking at Gina at that moment.

“I don’t plan on losing her.” Ricky remembered responding to her and ever since that moment he started to feel that he needed to last a bit longer on the show.

Ricky couldn’t stop being awkward around Gina since he realized he had a bit of a crush on her. He wasn’t sure if he liked her because of the way EJ looked at her or if he just liked how awesome she was. He’d never met anyone as determined and disciplined as Gina. When he watched her dance, he’d lose focus because she completely amazed him. She was amazing to him, and he wanted to know more but wondered if it was wrong for him to develop feelings for her so soon.

“Dude, did Gina get you mad already?” Jet asked as he joined Ricky against the wall. “If she keeps upsetting you like last week, you guys might just win this thing.” He teased.

“You know, you get funnier and funnier each day.” Ricky responded without a smirk as he kept his eyes on the studio door.

“So, what did you do now to make her make you upset?” Jet asked causing Ricky to glare his way and roll his eyes at him.

“I’m not upset. I’m just taking a break. We’re learning this intense choreo and it’s just…” he paused as he tried to think of how much he could or should say to Jet. “It’s just a lot.”

“Oh God, are you already falling in love or something?” Jet asked jokingly then doubling over in laughter when Ricky eyed him without denying it. “Yoooo…tell me you’re joking?”

“I didn’t say a thing.”

“You really didn’t have to say a thing. It’s been like…what…a week.” Jet responded still laughing then stopping mid laughter when Kourtney came walking by them.

“Ricky, is Gina still in there? I forgot my phone when I ran out of there.” Kourtney stated then stopped to acknowledge Jet standing near him. “Oh, hey Jet!” she flashed a bright smile his way then turned it back to Ricky when Jet didn’t respond.

“Yeah, she’s still in there, Kourtney.” Ricky replied then smiled when she walked off and entered the studio. He turned towards Jet and smiled wider. “You were saying?”

“Who was that?”

*-*-
Training that week was completely different for Gina. She already knew that things would be intense due to the nature of the choreography but for some reason Ricky was acting weirder around her. She wondered if it had anything to do with how sensual the dance was, but he began acting differently when they worked out as well. Every morning, he would be very talkative, which was new, and asking her a lot about herself.

“So, why don’t you ever talk about your mom or your dad.” He asked out of nowhere one day. “Oh, and the other day, Kourtney said you had a brother. How have you never talked about them?”

“Uh, well I have a brother, not had. He still exist just not in my life I guess.” She responded solemnly. “My mom works for disaster relief and is constantly traveling so she doesn't have time for me.” She replied and noticed the sympathetic look Ricky was giving her then quickly added to fix that. “It’s okay. I’m fine. I’ve dealt with that all my life. I’m used to it.”

“What about your dad?”

“He died in the army when I was like two, so I don’t even know him.” She remembered explaining to him then changing the subject. “Are you ready to hit the full choreo one more time.” The following days, he continued to ask more, and she tried her best to redirect his attention every time.

“So, you and that EJ guy…”

“What about him?” she asked as she adjusted his posture and looked at him as he waited on her to continue. “He’s my…friend.”

“Friend?”

“Yes, I’ve known him for a long time.” She added as she guided him towards the rest of the choreography. Gina could tell that Ricky wasn’t buying what she was selling so she decided to just tell him that they dated. “We dated but we decided that it was best for us to be friends instead.”

“He doesn’t seem to agree with that.”

“What?” Gina asked knowing that Ricky was actually speaking truthfully. Because since the opening night. EJ had increased his visits. He respected her visiting hours, but he still came around almost nightly just to spend time with Gina. “EJ and I are just friends. Nothing is happening there.” This continued all week, they’d workout, he’d interrogate her then she’d redirect his attention again. They’d rehearse and then he’d take the opportunity to grill her some more.

“So, when’s the last time you saw your mother?” Ricky asked and smiled when Gina sighed then looked up at the ceiling as if the date was written there.

“Uh…I think it was two years ago, when I graduated high school.”

“Has she ever seen you perform?”

“Of course, she’s my mother.” Gina responded. “She used to go to all my recitals but once my brother moved away, she got the job with FEMA and kinda just stopped.”

“Do you miss seeing her in the crowd cheering you on?”

“Sometimes.” She replied with a shrug. “I know that what she is doing is important work and she can cheer me on from wherever she is.” Gina remembered saying before redirecting him again.

That was a few days ago, and the night of their second performance had arrived and Gina needed their head in the game. They practiced Ricky unzipping her dress to show the new one underneath to make sure that it worked as she envisioned. Kourtney worked really hard on this dress and was proud that she was able to execute exactly what Gina wanted. The flashy bedazzled dress had a small string that Kourtney showed Ricky so that he knew where to pull to unzip it and cause it to turn into a flesh color sparkly dress.

“Kourtney, you outdid yourself!”

“Don’t forget to give me a shout out.” Kourtney responded as she made her way out and winked at Jet when she noticed him standing in the hallway with his partner Lily.

“Are you ready, Ricky? We got the middle slot. It’s better than first and second but we still have to give it one hundred percent.”

“I’m ready.”

“Let’s put on a show!” she stated before raising her hand and smiling when he gave her a high five. They made their way towards the back area where most of the dancers were waiting and watching the others perform. Gina continued to practice the steps in her mind, she needed to prepare herself for being seductive Gina. She needed to get into character. She reached over for Ricky’s hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze as they announced their names. She watched Ricky walk over to the piano before making her way to the center of the stage and posed.

“Last week, we watched these two wow us with an electric Jive performance. Now let’s give it up for, Ricky Bowen and Gina Porter dancing to the Viennese Waltz.”

“Let’s take our time tonight, girl.” Ricky sang after playing a couple notes on the piano. Gina began the choreography, with the lights on her and making slow subtle steps. “Above us all the stars are watching.” She twirled than extended her leg above her head then slowly brought it back down before slowly walking towards Ricky as he sang the last line. “No, you won't need it no more. Let's just kiss 'til we're naked, baby!” then made his way down towards her as they continued to play the song. Without touching her, they both waltzed around the dance floor. “Versace on the floor.”

“I unzip the back to watch it fall, while I kiss your neck and shoulders.” Ricky reached for the string and pulled on it and smiled as the dress turned into the flesh colored dress beneath it. The crowd erupted as Gina leaned into him. He stared down at her before slowly running his hands down from her neck to her midsection to take her right hand. He spun her away then back to him, pressing her closely to him, with their eyes closed, lips close enough to share a kiss, they swayed to the music.

“Girl, you know you’re perfect from your head down to your heels.” Gina slowly went down into a straddling split as Ricky swept her around before lifting her back up and turning her to face away from him. “Ooh I love that dress, but you won’t need it anymore. No, you won’t need it no more, let’s just kiss till we’re naked, baby.”

“Versace on the floor.” He swayed from behind of her as Gina reached up and placed her hand on the side of his face. She spun around and gave one last seductive smile, lingering just close enough to kiss him. She looked at him just slightly beneath her lashes and was impressed with his acting because she thought that he looked as if he was inching closer than what they rehearsed. She shot him another smile before pushing him gently then walking off the stage.

The audience erupted with applause as Gina walked back over to Ricky. He was still stunned in place when she gave him a hug before they could walk over to the judges. The rush of the audience still clapping and the fact that all three of the judges were standing up and applauding them made Gina feel overwhelmed. She reached over to hold Ricky’s hand and grinned when he elected to interlock their fingers instead.

“Oh my God! Ricky! Ricky Bowen, where did you find all that passion?” Carrie Ann asked as she sat down to give her commentary. “That was the sexiest Viennese Waltz that I have ever seen!” she exclaimed as the audience applauded again. “And also, Gina, that dress? When he pulled the string I thought you were having a wardrobe malfunction.”

“You can thank Kourtney Greene for designing it. All I told her was that I need my dress to transform, and she did this.” Gina stated before allowing Ricky to twirl her.

“Kourtney Greene, we need to talk after the show.” Carrie Ann added before fanning herself. “Look, I didn’t think you guys could top last week but you came out and showed out!”

“Enough, it’s my turn now!” Bruno shouted causing the audience to laugh. “That dance was created for the two of you. When I think of the Viennese Waltz going forward, I will think of Ricky and Gina!” Bruno stated. “Carrie Ann said something about chemistry last time and I have to say I see it now. I am sold!”

“Ricky Bowen, did you feel like your acting skills are helping you display the passion and chemistry that you’ve been displaying with Gina?” the guest host asked. Gina smiled and looked over at Ricky as he looked back at her and tried to respond.

“Uh yeah, she’s uh…she’s a great partner and she’s taught me how to bring all of my acting skills to the table.” Ricky responded causing Gina to look at him weirdly. She’s taught him a lot of things but the way he was looking at her on the dance floor, that was not something that could be taught.

“Now for the scores.” Ricky and Gina made their way to the back room and held hands waiting for their numbers to appear. It was completely silent as they played the sound of a drumroll. “First score. Ten!” caused the audience to erupt once more as they got the first ten of the season. Gina placed her hand over her lips in shock as she looked over at Ricky. “Second score. Nine! Third score. Nine! With a total of twenty eight out of thirty. The first ten of the season! Don’t go away, Ricky will now spin for their next dance style. Then when we return we will watch Maddox and Carlos will show they do the jive.”

Ricky walked over to the spinner and looked over at Gina as they waited for the results of the spinner. Gina was still holding his other hand as it finally slowed down and landed on Contemporary. Gina was so happy to finally get contemporary that she jumped into Ricky’s arms. She knew he had no idea that she’d been waiting for it or what it meant to her. She also knew that this would be the best time to get Ashlyn to sing for them on live tv if they made to next week.

Chapter Text

Training with Gina was getting better and better for Ricky. He no longer felt agitated or annoyed and storming out had become a thing of the past. He couldn’t even remember the last time he placed a cigarette between his fingertips, and he’d started looking forward to going to bed early. Getting to know her was helping him understand her more which made him become even more attracted to her. The crush he’d developed during the Viennese Waltz had grown and now he found himself eagerly looking for ways to make her happy. Before they began rehearsing for that week, he’d had a chat with Ms. Jenn seeking her help with something special.

“Good morning, Ricky!” she sang. “What are you doing up so early?” she asked but didn’t wait for him to respond. “I’d been meaning to call you but thought I’d wait till after rehearsal. Is Gina there?” Ms. Jenn asked as she typed on her computer and looked over briefly.

“No, I actually beat her here for the first time ever.” Ricky responded then looked at the time before sending Gina a text message to see where she was.

“She’s already rubbing off on you in a positive way. I love it. I knew she’d be perfect for you.” She stated before clapping with excitement. “So, listen, I’ve spoken with the producers on getting you to sing one of your own songs on the show and they love the idea. Especially since you’re doing so well, and they loved hearing you sing on the last show.” Ms. Jenn smiled proudly. “Have you thought about which song you want to sing?”

“Yeah, I wanted to sing Do it All Again but I’m thinking maybe writing something special for the show or repurposing a song.” He paced and checked the phone to see if Gina responded. “I don’t know. I have a lot on my mind that I want to express through music, you know.” He added before scratching the back of his neck. “Speaking of things that are on my mind. I need a favor from you?”

“Make it quick. I have a couple more calls I have to make before my morning meetings.”

“Would you be able to help me find someone if I gave you just their name and nothing else?” Ricky asked just as he watched a car pull up. He watched Ashlyn and Kourtney step out of the car and then noticed EJ stepping out of the car to make his way to open the passenger door. He felt his stomach flip as he watched Gina step out of the passenger side. He watched as the two shared a lingered hug once again.

“I’ve never done it before but send me the name and I will chat with you later on what I find.” Ms. Jenn replied.

“You’re the best.” Ricky replied blandly as he hung up without removing his eyes on Gina and EJ. Ashlyn and Kourtney were already making their way over to him while Gina stuck back and continued to talk. “Hey Kourt! Hey Ash, are you guys good?”

“Horrible morning.” Kourtney responded then rolled her eyes.

“Gina’s car just stopped right at the gas station and wouldn’t start. Thankfully my cousin came to the rescue.” Ricky tried to force a genuine smile on his face, but it was too late. Ashlyn had already noticed the look of annoyance in Ricky’s eyes.

“That’s awesome! Who doesn’t need a handsome superhero to swoop in and save the day?” he asked trying to mask his obvious annoyance. “She could have called me but lucky for her EJ was able to do it.” He asked himself in the hopes that they didn’t hear it, but Ashlyn heard it and chuckled before looking over at Kourtney to see if she heard it as well.

“Interesting.” Kourtney muttered before smirking back at Ashlyn.

“Are you coming? I think Gina might chat with EJ for a bit.”

“We’re already running late.” Ricky mumbled but followed Ashlyn in with one last look catching Gina looking his way. She waved but Ricky pretended to not see it.

*-*-
“I got your car towed to my mechanic.” EJ stated as he watched Gina wave towards Ricky. Gina awkwardly put her hand down when she realized that he probably didn’t see her waving. She reached into her purse to grab her spare car keys and handed them over.

“Thanks EJ, I don’t know how I’ll repay you.”

“G, you don’t have to repay me. I’m just happy you called me.” EJ admitted. Gina initially wanted to call Ricky, but Ashlyn reminded her that EJ would know what to do with the car. When he arrived he had no clue what to do with the car, but he offered to get it fixed, which she declined, and he insisted. “I’ll bring it over the minute it’s fixed.”

“I should probably…”

“What time do you need me to pick you up?” he asked pulling her back in. “I can swing by to get you all later. It’s no big deal.”

“Eej, you already have a lot on your plate. I can uber home.”

“G, seriously, it’s no big deal.” He quickly responded before reaching for her arm to pull her in closer. “I should be done with everything before the sun sets.” He added then smiled at her warmly. Gina thought about it and decided it would be no issues since the girls would be with her. “We’re still friends, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, let me show up for you…as a friend.” Gina hated having to depend on anyone for anything. Her entire life she came through for herself. She felt lucky to have friends like EJ, Ashlyn, and Kourtney.

“Okay, I’ll send you a text when we start wrapping up.” Gina finally responded. “If you feel you can’t do it, let me know so I can just grab an uber home.”

“I will but trust me. I will be here with bells on.” EJ promised before watching her walk away. Gina practically hopped her way to the studio. Even though her car broke down in the most embarrassing way, she felt so happy to know what it felt like to depend on someone for once.

*-*-*
Once Gina made her way in, Ricky noticed she was in a good mood. For someone that was a stickler for being on time, he wondered if her mood was due to EJ. The more he thought about it the more awkward he made their session. He couldn’t even full appreciate the effort she put into their new choreography. She explained that she wanted it to be emotional for the both of them. She even tried to ask him for ideas that she could incorporate so that he’d be a part of it, but he just couldn’t get his head in the game.

“Let’s take a quick five while I try to figure out the middle part of this choreo.” She announced and before she could ask him anything else he was already out of the door. “How are we back to moody Ricky again?” he heard her ask just as the door closed. He was happy to find Maddox and Jet talking as he made his way over to them.

“I need to be saved from my partner.” Jet whined. “Is it frowned upon if I pray that we get the lowest score and booted out this week?”

“Do you want Lily to slice up your tires?” Maddox asked and chuckled when Jet took a minute to think about it. “Either way, we’re getting down to the wires. It’s down to just the five of us. I think we were assigned the toughest dancers.”

“Carlos really wants to win this, huh?” Ricky asked as he leaned against the wall.

“They all want to win this but if I’m honest, I think it will come down to you two.” Jet admitted. “Carlos and Gina seem similar.”

“Speaking of, can the two of you chill this round?” Maddox asked. “If you guys score above us this week, I’m pretty sure Carlos will make me run drills.”

“Seriously? I thought Carlos liked Gina?”

“He does. He says it’s friendly competition.” Maddox replied causing Ricky to chuckle at how right Gina was. They were more alike than any of them knew.
*-*-

Gina wasn’t sure what was missing with the choreography because in her head it fit perfectly with the music. Sadly, when they danced it, she couldn’t feel the connection. She wondered if it was the choreography but as she danced with Ricky and he avoided looking at her, she figured it was him. He was behaving awkwardly around her all of a sudden and she wanted to know what happened. She decided to see if her friends had an idea because she couldn’t put her finger on it.

“It makes no sense. I thought we got each other now and no longer had to deal with his mood swings.” Gina added once Ricky had left the studio. “I’ve been patient and a bit more lenient just like you told me to be.” Gina added. Ashlyn and Kourtney both looked at each other before looking over that cameraman. “What was that look you just shared?” Gina asked. “Am I missing something?”

“It seems you’ve fallen into what I like to call the Bermuda Triangle.” Ashlyn stated before high fiving Kourtney.

“Now, see, girl, I like that. That’s exactly what this is. Bermuda Triangle fits perfectly, better yet a Scalene triangle.” Kourtney added with a giggle.

“Wait…a what now?” Gina asked looking confused between the two girls. “What does geography and geometry have to do with anything going on here? And explain it slowly, those were my worst subjects.”

“Well, I say Bermuda triangle because you seem lost at the fact that Ricky has a bit of a crush on you.” Ashlyn stated then shook her head to the look of confusion on Gina’s face.

“Ricky? No! He’s just acting. None of the emotions you are seeing is real. You have to remember he’s an actor.”

“He’s a Disney actor. He doesn’t have an Emmy, Gina, relax.” Ashlyn retorted. Gina had to admit she questioned some of the ways he had looked at her during some of their performances, but she truly felt it was an act.

“And I’m saying scalene triangle because he’s not the only one with a crush.”

“Okay, now hold on! Are you saying I have a crush on Ricky now?” Gina asked then remembered the cameramen were still in there. “I am simply doing my job as a professional. Remember?”

“Yeah okay, but I was actually talking about EJ. That hug this morning was…something.” Kourtney added. “And Ricky definitely saw it and felt a way about it. Scalene. EJ likes you; Ricky likes you…and you…”

“She likes both but in different ways?” Ashlyn jumped in and looked over at Gina waiting for a response. Gina was not going to admit to developing a crush on her partner or her ex-boyfriend on national television.

“Look, Ricky is attractive but again we are acting. Also, if you both have forgotten one of my rules was no boyfriends.”

“You can make all the rules you want. The heart wants what it wants.” Kourtney reminded Gina just as the door to the studio opened and Ricky walked back in.

Rehearsal for the two continued to be awkward and ended just as awkwardly. Ashlyn left about an hour into it to go practice with the band and Kourtney left not too long afterwards. Gina couldn’t get their words out of her head as they rehearsed. She suddenly couldn’t even look at Ricky and as the end of the evening was nearing she began feeling nervous about riding home with EJ. Both of the girls said that they didn’t plan on staying as late as Gina did, which left her and Ricky alone. Instead of just asking Ricky what was the reason behind his mood change, she continued to try to fix the choreography on her own.

“Something is just missing. I don’t know what though.” Gina mumbled before walking over to her phone. “I think we will just reconvene tomorrow. You can head home.” She stated and sent a message over to EJ then waited for him to respond. It immediately said read, then it looked as if he was typing then it just stopped. “I’m going to hit the showers before my ride gets here.” She figured by the time she was done that EJ would have responded or made his way to her.

“Uh, yeah, same. I’m a bit ripe.” He chuckled then made his way to the locker rooms. When Gina came out she checked her phone to see that EJ said that he needed an hour and that she didn’t need to worry that he’d be there. The message was sent more than thirty minutes ago. Gina felt a bit let down and upset with herself for allowing herself to believe that she could depend on someone else.

“Stupid.” Gina muttered.

“What’s stupid?” Ricky asked startling her. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” He stated placing his hand on her shoulder.

“You scared the hell out of me! What are you still doing here?” she asked as she placed her hand over her heart.

“I wanted to make sure you weren’t left here alone when your ride got here.” Ricky admitted. Gina stood a bit stunned to hear him say this and couldn’t help the smile that crept up on her face.

“Do you mind giving me a ride home?”

“Yeah, sure.” He replied before guiding her towards where he parked his car.

*-*-
Ricky was happy that he decided to wait on her. The smile on her face was everything he needed to reassure him that it was a great idea. He initially waited to make sure she was safe but also to make sure that EJ saw her with him before he picked her up. He mentally thanked EJ for not showing up as he watched her put in her address in his navigation system. “Oh, you’re not too far.” once they got on the road, Ricky wasted no time to interrogate her.

“So, what happened to your ride with your friend?” Ricky asked causing Gina to sigh loudly before looking his way.

“I don’t even want to talk about it.” She replied and immediately switched the focus back to him. “And, since we’re here, do you wanna tell me what was going on with you today?” Gina asked before shifting in her seat to face him. “Felt like Ricky 1.0.”

“I, uh, have a lot on my mind today.” He responded honestly. “My publicist wants me to perform a song for the show and I can’t figure out which to do.” He wasn’t entirely lying as his album was always on his mind but lately Gina had begun to take up a lot of space.

“Are you stuck between how to start or where to start?”

“Uh, I guess both.”

“Well, I have a few hours before my curfew. If you feel up to it…we can try to solve both our problems.”

“Sounds like a plan.” He replied then continued the drive to her place. Once they made it to her place, Ricky looked around at the pictures she had in her living room then picked up one of her posing with Ashlyn and Kourtney on a stage. Gina came out of her bedroom dressed in a tank top and shorts then made her way over to where he was still looking at the picture.

“That’s the Tercet. The first performance we did as a group. We sang a song Ashlyn wrote. It was super fun.” She explained before sitting down on her sofa. Ricky placed the picture down then made his way to sit next to her before grabbing his guitar.

“So, you can sing too? Is there anything you can’t do?”

“I can’t play the guitar.”

“Want to learn?” he asked handing the guitar over to her. She stared at it as if it were the scariest thing she’d ever seen then looked at him and smiled. “Don’t worry, it only bites if you like that.” Ricky quipped before inching closer to her than smiled when she grabbed the guitar. “Put your hands here and here.” He showed her a few chords then changed the subject. “Once you learn this, you will be able to say you can do everything.”

“Well, not everything, I can’t get this choreo to work the way I see it in my head.” She responded with frustration. “I was so happy when we got contemporary. I thought, okay, this is easy I know exactly what we will do but it’s just not clicking.” She admitted and continued to allow him to guide her fingers to the right chords. He looked into her eyes for the first time that day and lost his train of thought immediately. They stared at each other in silence for what felt longer than a minute before she finally looked away.

“What do you think is missing?” he asked finally snapping out of it. Gina sat and thought about it for a brief moment before looking up at her ceiling then back at Ricky.

“I still think it’s missing…you.”

“Me? What do you mean?”

“The dance tells my side, but it hasn’t really touched your side of things.” Gina placed the guitar down then grabbed her phone before sitting back down next to him. She handed him one of her earbuds then played the song Because of You. “Close your eyes. Tell me what you think when you hear this song.” He closed his eyes and listened to the lyrics and envisioned seeing his parents fighting right before the divorce happened. He envisioned him asking his parents to fight for what they had but instead his mother left. He remembered always thinking that she took the easy way out. He opened his eyes to notice that Gina’s eyes were closed as well. “Stop staring at me.”

“I wasn’t…” he lied then smiled when she opened one eye to look at him.

“What comes to mind when you really listen to what she is saying?” she asked closing her eyes once again.

“This song makes me think of fear.”

“Fear?” Gina asked as she opened her eyes and looked at him eagerly waiting for him to explain. He closed his and took a deep breath before telling her things he’d never said out loud to anyone before.

“Because of fear I’ve lost a lot of things. My parents divorced and didn’t even fight to stay together out of fear. Because of them, I feared putting myself out there, not wanting to get hurt like I saw my dad get hurt. So, instead of facing most of it, I run from it all. Because of fear, I am afraid.” He finally opened his eyes and forced out a nervous chuckle. “I don’t know…”

“That was…everything, Ricky!”

“Yeah?” he asked in shock at her response. “Is that what you hear when you listen to it?”

“Not exactly, which is why I knew this choreo was missing something.” She responded then placed her hand on his. “It was always missing you.” She added.

“What do you hear when you listen to it?”

“Well, I guess after hearing what you heard it’s made me realize that I’ve always heard fear as well. I think the way that I am is stemmed from how my family is never really here for me. I have always just handled things on my own because I can’t rely on anyone else.” She smiled and blinked away a tear that Ricky could tell wanted to escape but she pushed it away with her smile. “I’m okay…”

“You don’t always have to be. It’s okay if you’re not okay.” Ricky quickly interjected then pulled her in for a hug. As he held her and felt her wrap her arms around him he finally gave in. He knew there was no question that this crush of his had nothing to do with EJ. It had nothing to do with anything but the connection that the two of them had. He also knew he wanted to be a person that she could rely on and that she would be the person he runs towards from that moment on.

To be continued

Chapter Text

The next morning, Ricky and Gina woke up to the sound of her cell phone ringing and knocks on her front door. They both stirred, before blinkingly opening their eyes to see that they had fallen asleep on her sofa. Ricky nervously chuckled as he watched Gina jump up and grab her phone then making her way to open the door. He started to gather his things and smirked when he remembered the moment he noticed Gina had fallen asleep. Her head rested on his shoulders, and he decided at that moment that he was not going to move muscle.

“Hey, what are you doing here?” he heard Gina ask.

“I’ve been kinda calling you and when you didn’t answer I figured I’d just…” EJ stated walking right in and pausing when he noticed Ricky grabbing his guitar. “Uh, am I interrupting something?” EJ asked as he looked between Gina and Ricky.

“I’m actually on my way out.” Ricky replied then paused to place a kiss on Gina’s cheek. “Thanks for…helping me out.” Ricky added before looking at EJ and smiling. “EJ.” Gina remained stunned standing between the two as he walked by her.

“Richard.” EJ responded as he watched Ricky walk out. “Seriously, Gina, care to explain?” Ricky heard EJ ask just as the door closed.

“Not even a little.” Was the last thing he heard Gina say before he jumped into his car and made his way home to prepare for the next day of rehearsal. Even though they’d only had a couple hours of sleep, Ricky felt the night was worth it. After they bonded over their parents, Ricky and Gina finally nailed the middle part of the choreography. Then before they fell asleep, Gina listened to Ricky sing one of his songs that he wanted to add to his album. He’d only just made it to his place when his cell phone rang displaying a picture of Ms. Jenn’s caller id picture.

“Make it quick! I’m actually running late today.” Ricky stated immediately after answering the call.

“Are you just making it to the studio?” she asked as she heard the sound of him slamming his car door.

“No, I’m just making it home.” He responded. “I gotta shower quick before heading there for rehearsal today.”

“You know what, I don’t even want to know where you were. Just tell me you didn’t do anything you’d regret?” Ms. Jenn asked causing Ricky to grin as he thought of the moments he shared with Gina. “You know what…never mind. I have good news and good news. Which one do you want first?” she asked as Ricky fished his pockets for his keys.

“Uh, I’m feeling lucky. Give me the good news.” He replied making his way in and setting his bag down near the door.

“So, I spoke with the producers, and they are actually going to let you open the show on finale night. Even if you don’t win…but seriously Ricky, you got a lot of offers coming in solely based on how great you’re doing on the show.”

“Okay, so I need to figure out what song I want to showcase soon, huh?”

“Exactly! So…chop, chop!” Ms. Jenn responded. Ricky made his way to the bathroom and began brushing his teeth as she continued. “We need to meet and talk about these offers with Benjamin asap.”

“Okay, what’s the other good news?” he asked with his mouth full of foam.

“Yes. Remember that person you wanted me to find for you? It was actually easier than I thought it would be. I might look into become a private investigator.” She joked. “I’m still waiting for a response from one of them, but I am sending you the details as we speak. I already prepped them for you.” She added just as Ricky’s phone dinged. He looked at the information and smiled. His day just kept getting better and better by the hour. He grabbed his phone and made the call.

“Uh, hi, I’m Ricky Bowen. You spoke with my publicist Ms. Jenn…”

*-*-*
Gina hated running late especially twice in a row. She hated being in a rush. She also hated that she allowed herself to fall asleep even though she enjoyed waking up next to Ricky. Not only did she hate those things, but she also hated that EJ had to see it and was now in her face about it. Ricky kissing her cheek before he left didn’t help things at all, so she had to be a bit harsh to EJ to save face.

“What happened to your curfew for visitors?” EJ asked as he followed her to her bathroom. “I guess that rule only applies to me.”

“EJ, I didn’t purposely break the curfew.” Gina responded then pulled her hair into a tight bun. “And also, my choice to break a curfew that I set for myself is none of your business. I don’t have to justify it.”

“And the kiss?”

“It was a cheek kiss. Relax.” She replied rolling her eyes as she began to brush her teeth. EJ stood at the doorway and just watched her as she avoided making eye contact with him. After she spit out the toothpaste he stepped back as if he was going to leave but hesitated before turning back towards her.

“Do you have feelings for him?” he asked as she finally looked at him through the reflection of the mirror. Gina wasn’t sure how to answer that question without hurting things between them, especially when she wasn’t fully sure of her own feelings. She was still thinking of how to answer the question when he sighed and pulled out her keys from his pocket. “Your cars fixed and parked outside.” He placed the key down on the counter then walked out.

“EJ…” she called out but only heard the sound of her door opening and closing behind him. “I don’t have time for this.” She mumbled to herself then continued to quickly get herself ready for the day.

The rest of the week, Gina couldn’t get the words EJ and the girls stated out of her head. Before then, she was always able to get into character and just do the dance but now things were different. Now, she couldn’t look into his eyes without feeling butterflies. Now, she couldn’t hold his hand without feeling a shiver up her spine. Now, when he made a joke she’d find herself doubling over as if it were the funniest thing she’d ever heard. Gina knew the answer to EJ’s question by the night of their performance and she needed to figure out what she would do about it. Was she going to push it away and adhere to the rules she set for herself and finish out the season? Or would she allow herself to given to the feelings she felt brewing from within?

*-*-
“Welcome back to this weeks episode of Dancing with the Stars! Do we have a show in line for the viewers at home and the audience in the studio tonight!” the hose exclaimed as the dancers prepped for the night. Ricky watched as Gina spoke to Ashlyn while Kourtney checked her dress one last time. Out of all the dresses Gina wore, Ricky had to admit that this was his favorite. It wasn’t as flashy as they other ones but seeing her in all white made Ricky think of seeing her in a wedding gown.

“Slow down, bro.” Ricky muttered to himself then smiled when he noticed Carlos heard and saw exactly what he was looking at.

“Be careful, someone might think you have a little crushy crush.” Carlos sang then laughed when Ricky tried to pretend as if he wasn’t just staring at her. “No need to hide it.”

“Am I that obvious?”

“To me, yes, ‘cause I have amazing straight-dar.” Carlos responded before waving over Maddox. “Hey, trust me. No one would fault you. People fall in love with the dancers every season.” He added before patting Ricky on the back. “I have the death slot this episode. Wish me luck!”

“Good luck.” Ricky muttered as he watched Carlos and Maddox walk out to open the show with the first performance of the night.

“Hey, are you ready to put on a show?” Gina asked walking up to Ricky from behind. He looked over and smiled. He’d become used to her asking that question before they went out. “We got the last slot tonight. Closing out the show for the first time means we have to really deliver.”

“Is there ever a moment where we don’t have to deliver?” Ricky asked as they both watched Carlos and Maddox performance.

“They’re really bringing it tonight.” Gina admitted then rubbed her hand nervously. Ricky reached down to hold her hand then gave it a slight squeeze.

“Gina, we got this.” He reminded her. They watched as each couple went out and completed their dance for the week. Everyone was bringing their A game, and each score was nearing a perfect score, and Ricky could feel Gina getting more nervous as they watched. He wanted to remind her that they made an amazing work of art together, but he knew that it wouldn’t matter. They had to go out and deliver for her to finally relax.

“Please put your hands together for our Gina and Ricky dancing contemporary to Because of You sung today by Ashlyn Caswell!”

“Mmmm.” Ashlyn hummed.

Spotlight shined on the both of them as they stood in position waiting for Ashlyn to begin singing. They both took their places with Gina standing a couple paces behind Ricky as he faced the audience. She prayed that they were able to do the choreography in sync as they rehearsed it. The beginning of the choreography hinged on how well they could do the same moves without looking at each other.

“I will not make the same mistakes that you did.” Ashlyn sang as they took their first step. “I will not let myself cause my heart so much misery. I will not break the way you did. You fell so hard.” They both leaped then smoothly fell to the ground before rolling around then reaching up to nothing. “I’ve learned the hard way, to never let it get that far.” Ricky walked back towards Gina, while she danced past him. He leaps towards her and pulls her back. “Because of you, I never stray too far from the sidewalk.” Ricky then tries go in the opposite directions, but this time Gina pulls him back. “Because of you, I learned to play on the safe side, so I don’t get hurt.” Gina pushes him down lightly, before running towards him preparing to leap in his arms. “Because of you, I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me…” She holds herself back as Ricky dances away from her instead. “Because of you, I am afraid.”

Ashlyn continued to sing and watch her best friend dance the choreography she’d watch them practice numerous times. This time, they delivered the moves in a way that caused a tear to fall from her eyes. If anyone knew about Gina’s struggles to trust anyone, it was Ashlyn. She smiled as she watched Ricky guide her steps while standing behind her and her slowly allowing herself to trust him. Ricky and Gina parted ways and completed the beginning of the choreography but this time they faced each other. From where she stood, Ashlyn could see that both Ricky and Gina were allowing their tears to flow. This time when Gina ran towards Ricky, he remained in place and caught her when she leaped. He held her close and gazed into her eyes before hugging her tight as the song ended.

“Because of you…because of you.” Ashlyn sang then swiftly wiped away the tear that fell from her eyes. She stepped off the stage as Ricky and Gina made their way over to the judges to hear their comments. Ricky reached over to hold her hand and gave it slight rub with his thumb as they listened to the audience applauding.

“What a way to end the night.” Carrie Ann stated as she dabbed a napkin to the corners of her eyes. “You’re both lucky I have waterproof mascara on right now.”

“Yes, Ricky!” Bruno interjected. “You and Gina were so in sync that I almost forgot that you weren’t a professional dancer. Your leaps were light, moves were swift, and your story was thought provoking.”

“I agree with Bruno.” The guest judge added. “It seemed that you both got a bit emotional during the dance as well. Was that acting or was there a story behind the choreo?” he asked looking over at Gina.

“Ricky and I actually worked on the choreo together this time.” Gina admitted with a smile. “I wanted us to be able to vividly display the emotions behind the lyrics.”

“For me, I tend to run away whenever things get tough or doesn’t go my way. I’ve never fought for something that I wanted because I never seen it growing up.” He admitted. “The choreography was therapeutic for me and helped me realize that I don’t need to run anymore.”

“And I realized that I tend to feel like I can’t rely on people being there for me. Ricky made me realize that the song is about fear and how we let it dictate what we do. That I can fall because I have people that love me that will catch me or help me up.” Gina added before looking at Ricky with a proud smile then looking back at the judges.

“That was beautifully executed. Well done!” Carrie Ann stated before standing up and applauding them. Ricky and Gina smiled proudly as the rest of the judges stood before the audience stood and applauded them as well. Once the applauds died down, they both made their way towards the back room to get their scores.

“The judges scores are…” they looked at each other and gave each other an encouraging smile as they listened to the drumrolls. “First score…ten!” Gina placed her hand over her lips in shock. “Second score…ten!” she looked at Ricky in disbelief as the next score was revealed. “Third score…ten! The first perfect score of the season!” Gina leaped into Ricky’s arms as he swung her around and hugged her tight. “Make sure to vote to keep your favorite duos in the game. Return next week as we learn of the final four that will be performing two numbers each. One freestyle performance and one dance style that the duo has yet to do.”

After the show ended for the evening, Ricky made his way over to where he felt Gina would be. He had a surprise for her and wanted to gauge if the surprise was overstepping. Once he turned the corner, near the girls’ dressing room he bumped into EJ walking away with Ashlyn. Ricky was prepared to receive a glaring stare down from EJ but instead he looked heartbroken. Ricky gave them a quick nod but instead of walking off, EJ stopped to talk to him.

“Ash, do you mind giving us a moment?” EJ asked as Ashlyn eyed the two nervously.

“Uh, yeah, I see Maddox over there. I’ll wait for you by the car.” She replied before looking at Ricky. “You really killed it tonight, Ricky.”

“You were amazing too.” He responded as he watched her walk over to Ashlyn then faced EJ. “Uh, can we make this quick. I have to talk to Gina about something important.”

“Yeah, this will be quick.” EJ responded before clearing his throat. “This is actually about Gina…”

“Is she okay?” Ricky asked cutting him off and looking towards the end of the hall. EJ looked back down the hall as well before looking back at Ricky.

“She’s fine…I just wanted to say that I can tell that something is brewing between you and Gina…”

“Yeah and?”

“Gina’s amazing…”

“I know that.”

“She’s tough…”

“Is this going somewhere?” Ricky interrupted as his patience was growing thin.

“She’s also very sensitive. She may try to hide it but she cares deeply.” EJ finished. “If she let’s you in and you let her down, it will truly hurt her.”

“I don’t plan on hurting her.”

“You may not plan on it, but you just confessed to being a runner. She doesn’t need a runner. She needs someone that will show up and stick around.”

“Someone like you?” Ricky retorted. “Can you remind me who showed up last night when she really needed it?” EJ shifted then took a deep breath before shaking his head.

“Yeah, I had my chance, and I blew it. Just don’t start something that you know you can’t or won’t fully commit to.” EJ finally stated before walking away. Ricky looked back at EJ then continued his way over to Gina. He only ran when things were tough, and things were not tough with Gina. She made sense to him. She pushed him in the right direction. He was running towards her now and had no plans of running away like he’s used to doing. He planned on confessing to her about how he felt once he was able to put his words into a song. He was pretty positive that he could convey his feelings to her easily if he had to sing them. Once he made it to the dressing room, he stopped when he noticed that she wasn’t alone.

“Hey, G, do you have a minute?” Ricky asked as they both looked over at him. “Uh, Jamie?” Ricky stared at his surprise standing in front of Gina a day earlier than he had planned.

-to be continued...again...-

Chapter Text

After receiving the first perfect score for the season, Gina felt overwhelmed like never before. Not only because it was the first perfect score, but because she was the youngest and newest on the cast. She placed a lot of pressure as there were a lot of pressure already placed on them for leading on the leaderboard since the show began. Though she was freaking out on the inside, she placed a humbled smile on her face as Ashlyn and Kourtney came in to congratulate her.

“Gina, that dance brought me to tears. There’s no way you guys don’t win that Mirrorball!” Kourtney stated as she hugged Gina. “It’s one thing to watch you during rehearsals but when you and Ricky perform…” she paused to raise her hand as if she was praising in church.

“Ah-men!” Kourtney added as she made her way over to hug Gina as well. “Watching it as I sang on national television, mind you…did I thank you for that yet?”

“No, I should be thanking you.” Gina responded. “I hope you both know based on what I said out there about never having anyone to rely on that you two were excluded. I never mean the two of you. You two are the sisters I always wished that I had.” She added before the girls went in for a group hug. “I will always be grateful for the two of you. Trust me.”

“Gina was referring to me. Unlike the two of you, I’m the only one that’s let her down recently.” EJ said as he stepped in quietly with his hands behind him. The girls looked to him then at Gina and quickly excused themselves leaving her alone with EJ. “Hey, G.”

“I, uh, didn’t think you’d show up after…”

“Contrary to recent beliefs, I show up for my people.” he interjected with a wave of his hand. “I at the least try to show up.” They both fell silent for a quick moment before he continued. “I’m sorry I let you down.”

“EJ, you’ve always shown up for me in more ways than one and I appreciate your…friendship.” She added before sighing. “What I said out there was aimed mostly at my family.” If anyone other than the girls understood the Porter history, EJ was definitely one of them. He’d been there for her at times when they’d drop the ball on her and left her with no one in her corner. She often wondered if that was one of the reasons that she began dating him but as a couple they had flaws. He over promised things and caused her to have her hopes up plenty times only for him to have to make an excuse for it not happening.

“It was slightly about me too though, right?” EJ asked as the both of them chuckled. “I knew it.”

“Just a little bit.” Gina responded with her thumb and index finger displaying just how much. “I was still upset when I made the choreo.”

“I get it. I’m sorry though, seriously.” EJ responded just as Gina’s phone rang displaying a picture of her hugging her mother during her graduation. “Tell her I said hi for me.” EJ stated excusing himself as she answered it.

“Hey mommy.” Gina nervously waited to hear her mother’s voice. It was obvious that she was calling because she watched the show. Which meant that she heard what Gina said.

“Hey sweetie.” She responded somberly. Gina slowly sat down and stared at her reflection in the mirror as she waited for her mother to speak again. “Are you still at the studio?”

“Yes, I’m just packing up to leave. Everyone keeps coming in to talk to me, so I haven’t really finished packing.” Gina rambled as she got up to finish packing.

“Yeah, I have been watching every episode, baby. You’re doing amazing. I am…so proud of you. I hope you know how much I want to be there to support you…”

“I know, mommy. What you do is important.”

“You’re important to me too, baby.” She quickly reminded Gina then sighed. “Since I couldn’t make it, I sent you a…consolation prize of sorts.” She giggled.

“Did you send me a teddy bear?” Gina asked as she remembered that one of her mother’s favorite gifts to send her was always a teddy bear. Gina had a huge collection of teddies at this point in her life due to it.

“No, she sent me.” Gina heard from behind her and turned in shock to see her older brother Jamie standing at the door. He still looked the same though younger her used to look up at him due to him being taller than her back then. Now, she toward over him.

“Jamie?” Gina stared at him in shock then placed the phone on speaker. “Mommy, it’s Jamie.”

“I know, Sweetie! I’m going to leave the two of you to talk. Call me when you get home, okay?”

“Okay, love you!”

“Love you too!”

“I know you would’ve rather mom…”

“Stop it!” Gina stated cutting him off and jumping to hug him. He catches her but almost stumble back into the wall with her.

“Hey, watch it! I may be your big brother, but I don’t know if you realized I stopped growing and you’re not my little sister anymore.” He joked as they hugged. “What are you like…six foot or something?”

“I see you still have jokes.” Gina chuckled as they walked over to the couch that was in the room. “I can’t believe you’re here. Were you able to catch the show?”

“Yes, seeing it live is a whole different experience.” He replied. “I’ve been watching from home every weeknight.”

“Well, it’s only live on Tuesday nights, but that means the world to me that you’ve been watching.” Gina responded without even doubting anything that Jamie was saying.

“Yeah, I know you feel like you don’t have family supporting you, but you do.” Jamie stated referencing what she stated live. Gina wasn’t sure how to respond to that, so she remained silent as he continued. “I’m going to try to be a better big brother from now on.”

“I’ll try and be a better sister.” Gina stated as they both got up and hugged again. “Did you have to fly in for the show?”

“No, I actually live not too far from here…” he stated but stopped when Ricky came in asking if he could have a moment with Gina then pausing when he saw Jamie.

“Uh, how do you guys know each other?” Gina asked looking between the two of them. Ricky looked as if he was completely confused with seeing Jamie but Jamie on the other hand was all smiles.

“Oh, Ricky Bowen’s manager called my people to work with him on his newest single that he’ll be performing on the show.” Jamie stated. Gina suddenly wondered if working with Ricky was the real reason that he showed up at all.

“Yeah, I can’t wait to get started.” Ricky replied as Gina smiled between the two. “I, uh, guess, I’ll talk to you another time and let you have time with your brother.” He states giving Gina a lingering look before turning and leaving her with Jamie. Although she was happy to see her brother, she did want a moment alone with Ricky. She figured they’d make the time another day.

*-*-
Several days later, Ricky and Gina never got that chance to talk like he wanted. Even though he couldn’t say how he felt, he showed it with every glance. Despite the warnings he received from both Carlos and EJ, Ricky continued to flirt with Gina. During the Paso Doble, which was supposed to be an intense dance routine where they would be serious, he kept her giggling. She spent most of the time reminding him that they needed to deliver angst. He remembered her saying that they needed to give enemies to lovers.

“We have to do the Paso first but the second one is a freestyle and I picked contemporary.” Gina said with a smile. If Ricky remembered correctly, he kind of dug the contemporary style. “For the contemporary, I was thinking of telling the story of a confessed love.”

“What?” Ricky asked. Gina confusingly looked his way before walking over to turn on the music that they’d use for the performance.

“This song is based on a person loving someone and finally confessing their love.” She explained. “I want this dance to start with you standing behind me and holding my hands. And we’d dance the beginning of the choreo this way until the confessional part where you’d turn me like this.” She demonstrated Ricky spinning her around. “Then for the rest of the choreo we’d remain face to face.” She smiled then walked over to Ricky and extended her hand to him. “Ready?”

“Yeah, I’m ready.” Ricky responded as he slowly took her hand and gave her a spin before pulling her close. “Start the music over.” He smiled as she stared back at him. He picked up the beginning of the choreography with ease and then slowly he began to freestyle something completely different.

“What are you doing, Ricky?” Gina asked but allowed him to lead as she playfully followed along with his steps. He dipped her before pulling her back up slowly till they were face to face.

“I watched a video of my parents first dance when they got married.” He confessed as he twirled her around. “They looked so in love.” He pulled her back towards him. “They danced to Shania Twain From this Moment. I guess that was like the biggest wedding song of the time.” He added with a slight smirk.

“And you memorized the dance?” She asked as he continued to guide her around the room then twirling her once again then dipping her before pulling her back up.

“No, I’m just making up stuff to keep you close now.” He confessed as he held her closer. He noticed her looking at his lips and took that as a sign. He smiled when she slowly closed her eyes and admired how pretty she looked before he remembered the cameras were still recording. He placed a kiss on her cheek instead then cleared his throat. “Uh, show me the choreo again.”

“Yeah…let’s get back at it.” Gina cleared her throat as well and avoided looking at him and the camera. “Five, six…five six seven eight.” He kept up with her for every step and mentally decided they needed time away from the cameras. He did not want their first moment to happen in front of all of the viewers. He was just a tad happier knowing that she was not going to object to him kissing her. That bit was really good to know.

“Do you have plans after rehearsal today?” Ricky asked once they were on their last run of the choreography. For the first time since he placed the kiss on her cheek, she looked directly at him and smiled.

“Not that I know of…why?”

“I have a studio session tonight. Wanted to know if you wanted to see how I make my bacon.” He replied as they both went in separate directions to drink from their water bottles.

“Do you normally hit the studio after we rehearse?”

“No this is new. Your brother sent me something he worked on and I’m finally putting some of my words to it. I have to finalize it and get it to the producers for approval since I will be performing this live on finale night.” Ricky watched as she thought it over then shrugged before smiling at him.

“I guess I can spare a few hours to see what you put together. Let me hit the showers and we can head over there.” She stated before grabbing her things and leaving the studio.

Moments later, they both drove over to the recording studio. Ricky was prepared to sing his heart out and then make his move the minute the opportunity came. He was not letting the night end without Gina knowing that he was seriously interested in her. He pulled into the parking lot and watched as she pulled up a few cars away from him. He waited on her to catch up to him before they both made their way to the building.

“This is my second home.” Ricky stated before holding the door for her and allowing her to walk in. She looked at him then scanned the room before following him to the elevator. They stood awkwardly apart as the elevator made its way up. Ricky mentally went over different ways that he could confess his feelings or make his move as they walked into the recording room.

“This is my first time in a recording studio. I might get the urge to sing too.” Gina stated. “Get my Mariah Carey on.” She joked.

“You should. I bet you sound amazing.” Ricky responded then laughed when Gina looked at him. “What? I’m serious!” he exclaimed as they both chuckled.

“You’re serious about what?” they both stopped when they noticed that Jamie was already in the studio waiting for Ricky. He was starting to not like how Jamie was constantly interrupting the moments he wanted with Gina.

“Jamie, oh my God!” Gina exclaimed before hugging her brother then looking at Ricky. “Did you plan this?”

“Nope.” Ricky responded before nodding his head towards Jamie. “Trust me I had nothing to do with this.” He mumbled under his breath.

“I like to pop in and see how artist like the beats I produce. Just in case they might need me to tweak something here and there.” Jamie admitted then smiled over at Ricky. “Are you ready to kill it, killer?”

“Sure.” Ricky responded then made his way to the booth. Once he was in the booth, he eyed Gina as she smiled at him proudly and gave him two thumbs up. He got himself in the zone and tried to ignore Jamie constantly interrupting every moment to tell Ricky to change something that he was doing. Each interruption felt as if he didn’t trust or like the way Ricky sang his songs. Which was a way that had worked for Ricky his entire career, but because Gina was there he tried it Jamie’s way. Once the evening was over, Ricky walked Gina out to her car and leaned against it not wanting the night to be over.

“That was amazing, Ricky! You and my brother just kind of clicked in there.” Gina responded as she lingered near her door.

“He’s pretty talented.” Ricky really wanted to tell Gina that he was getting on his last nerves, but he was just happy that she didn’t notice it. They stared at each other silently till she rubbed her arms for warmth from chilly night.

“It’s a bit chilly tonight.”

“Here, take my jacket.” He offered and placed the coat around her before rubbing her arms for warmth as well. “Is that better?” he asked looking into her eyes as she stepped closer to him.

“A little bit.” She replied with a bold flirtatious smile. Ricky reached to place a strand of her hair behind her ear then slowly allowing it to caress her cheek then tilt up her chin. To Ricky, it all happened in slow motion as he was able to finally place a soft kiss on her lips then leaning back to look at her. She smirked at him then pulled him back towards her with a deeper kiss. “Goodnight, Ricky Bowen.” She smiled before sliding into her car.

“Drive home safely, Gina Porter.” Ricky stated before giving her car a tap then slowly stepping backwards away from her car. He watched her drive off before turning to make his way to his own car. He practically wanted to skip over to his car but decided to just savor the moment. He slowly lost the smile that was on his face when he noticed Jamie waiting for him. “If you’re looking for Gina, you just missed her.” Ricky stated as he reached the door of his car and opened it.

“I saw you with her.”

“That’s a bit creepy. Don’t you think?” Ricky asked as he placed his guitar into the passenger seat before turning to look over at Jamie.

“I’m her brother. It’s not creepy. It’s protective.”

“Is it, though?” Ricky quipped before leaning against his car and folded his arms. He needed to hear this from the guy who was never really a part of Gina’s life suddenly being protective.

“It is.” Jamie replied. “I know all about you, Ricky Bowen. I know all about your type and Gina has no clue, so I have to protect her against guys like you.”

“Guys like me? You don’t know anything about me.”

“Everyone knows about you, Ricky.”

“Everyone thinks they know about me.” Ricky retorted. He was getting tired of everyone assuming things about him, but he was at his wits ends with everyone telling him he shouldn’t pursue Gina.

“That may be so, but I don’t plan on letting Gina take that chance on you. She’s headed towards great things, and she doesn’t need you to anchor her down. As her brother, I’m just not letting that happen.”

“I find it funny that you suddenly want to be her brother. You seem to have forgotten that I am the reason you showed up at all.” Ricky reminded him. Jamie shook his head as if he had forgotten and suddenly remembered.

“You want people to believe you’re not as bad as the media portrays you to be so I can bet on you not telling Gina that.” Jamie responded before shoving his hands in his pocket. “Just finish out the season, sing the song we wrote then go back to being TMZ’s favorite reckless boy.” He smirked smugly then turned to walk away as Ricky stared in frustration.

Chapter Text

“I kissed Ricky Bowen.” Gina muttered to herself as she drove home. She touched her lips lightly as she could still feel his lips lingering on hers. “Gina, you kissed Ricky Bowen!” she stated a bit louder as she stared at her reflection in her rearview mirror. “What happened to no boys? No distractions?” she asked herself as she pulled her car into park then made her way inside. As she prepared for bed, she continued to say it to herself and chuckle at the thought. “So, what do I do now? Do I see where things will go with Ricky or tell him it was a mistake?” she asked herself as she rested against her pillow and pulled out her phone. “If it was a mistake, why did it feel so right?” she asked herself before finally allowing herself to dose off.

The next morning, Gina woke up bright and early to make her way to the studio. She still didn’t know what she would do when she saw him. She told herself that she wouldn’t act any different than how she’d been acting. “I kissed Ricky Bowen.” she said before shrugging as if it meant nothing. “It was just a kiss.” She mumbled to herself as she pulled into the studio parking lot. “It was a one time thing.” She added before she looked over to see Ricky pulling into the parking lot next to her.

“Oh God, I want to kiss Ricky Bowen again.” She added with a sigh before getting out of her car and making her way over to him. She reached into her bag to grab his wellness shot that she still made him then handed it over to him with a smile. “Good morning, ready to do it? I mean get to it?” Gina stated then mentally cursed herself for flubbing.

“Yup!” he responded curtly before grabbing the shot and popping it open then downing it without waiting on her to grab her own. Gina wasn’t sure if he was just being grumpy due to how early it was, but he normally waited on her to open hers. She disregarded this and opened her own before drinking it then making their way inside. They worked out in complete silence, both thinking of what the kiss meant to the other. Gina hoping that the kiss didn’t set them back as Ricky was awkwardly more silent than normal.

“Hey, are you okay?” Gina finally asked once they made their way to the studio to begin rehearsing. She thought she’d be the awkward one between the two today, but he was acting like the person that regretted the kiss.

“Who me?” he asked instead then shrugged her off. “Yeah, I think I’m just nervous about performing tomorrow. I haven’t had to memorize two choreos since the premiere.” Instead of looking her way, he immediately began stretching. She wasn’t sure if he was being honest with her, so she instead began to stretch as well.

His awkward behavior continued the next day. It was the night of the performance and Gina wasn’t sure what was going on but decided to deem the kiss a mistake. If he was going to act as if it didn’t happen then she would do the same. Kourtney immediately noticed the difference between the two and addressed it.

“Is everything okay with you and Ricky?” Kourtney asked.

“Uh yeah, we’re good.” She lied then sighed before sitting next to Kourtney and looking her way. “Honestly, I don’t know.” She admitted. “Do you remember the whole Bermuda Triangle thing?”

“You mean the Scalene Triangle?”

“Yeah…I guess. I started to think you were right and then he just…” she stopped when she noticed the door opened and one of the producers walked in.

“We’ll talk about it later.” Kourtney quickly stated as she eyed the producer suspiciously. They guided Gina to a confessional room where she knew they were going to ask her about why things were awkward between her and Ricky.

“Ricky has a lot on his plate so adding two dance numbers for him to learn and he’s recording…” she paused as she thought about what to say. “It’s just a lot so it seems like that’s affecting the mood inside of rehearsals.” She smiled thinking that she avoided them asking if there was something happening between them. She quickly lost that smile once they went straight for the jugular and asked if they were beginning to fall for each other. They also stated that the fans had already dubbed them as “Rina”.

“Oh wow, I, uh, guess we are really performing out there. I am happy that the fans love us together as a duo…” she paused as she tried to select her words wisely. “We are just good friends. Anything else that you all see is just part of the performance. Trust me, there’s nothing going on there. We’re selling the story. Vote Rina, I guess.”
*-*-
Ricky hated hearing Gina speaking with the producers. When they questioned him, he remained as vague as possible, not denying nor confirming anything. Slightly because he had no clue where things were for the two of them. Ever since he spoke to Jamie, he began putting a bit of a distance between them, so he knew it was his fault that she was feeling the way she felt. Yet, he couldn’t quiet the inner voice inside that was telling him that maybe there wasn’t anything there. Maybe she was just putting on an act. He also reminded himself that it was probably for the best that nothing else happened between them. If all he has around him is negativity and TMZ drama, wouldn’t it be selfish of him to bring Gina in on that? Those were the thoughts he had as he made his way towards the stage for the night.

“Hey Ricky!” he heard Gina shout from behind him. He continued to walk but slowed down his steps as he mentally prepared to mask the fact that he heard her just a second ago. “Do we need to do a quick practice run before the show?”

“Nope.”

“Are you sure? We go on right after Jet and Lily…”

“We have to deliver. I know.” He responded and kept walking even though Gina was no longer walking beside him. Once he realized that she was no longer walking with him. He paused briefly wanting to allow her to give him her favorite pep talk but deciding to keep walking towards the hall where all the dancers waited. Once Jet and Lily were done receiving what could have been one of their best scores to date, Gina came over and stood silently next to him. He could feel that she was no longer looking nervous. She instead looked as if she was ready to rip his head off. “Time to put on a show.” He muttered to himself as Gina made her way out after the commercial ended.

“Dancing the Paso Doble with his partner Gina Porter, it’s Ricky Bowen!” the announcer announced as the camera panned towards Ricky and Gina posing on opposite sides of the dance floor.

Once A Dancer’s Heart began to play, Ricky and Gina began dancing towards each other. Gina moved her skirt around as Ricky made his way over to her. They stared at each other with an intense glare that was practically screaming that something was going on between them. He took hold of her right hand then gripped the side of her skirt before ripping it off causing Gina to twirl. She pushed him, then danced away from him as he followed behind her and pulling her back to him. They continued to glare at each other as they danced across the dance floor. They continued to dance towards the center of the dance floor where she’d push him one last time causing Ricky to fall flat at the last line of the song. They immediately stood side by side and not holding has they normally did while they waited on the audience applause to end.

“Whoa! Talk about tension.” Carrie Ann stated jumping right at them. “What’s going on guys? Even right now…” she pointed towards them. “I can cut the tension with a knife. Is this the act that you were talking about in the confessional clip that we saw?” she asked looking at Gina. Ricky stood stiffly next to her with his hands held behind him.

“Uh, yeah, I explained to Ricky that the Paso Doble is intense, and he delivered on the intensity. He’s a great actor as we’ve learned.”

“Ricky, you can relax then. Seems like you’re still in character.” She added with a chuckle, but Ricky remained as stiff as he was but forced a smile.

“That dance style was just…a lot.” He finally responded then looked over at Gina and took her hand in his. “Gina and I are great at putting on a show.”

“I guess I am just used to a different vibe from the two of you.” She responded with a shrug. “I wasn’t really a fan of this one…sorry.” She apologized as the audience booed her. “I have to be honest.”

“I disagree with Carrie Ann.” The guest judge quickly interjected causing the audience to applaud. “I loved the intensity that you both brought to the dance. It was giving Mr. and Mrs. Smith vibes when you would glare but still dance in sync. I get the vision.”

“Ricky! Ricky!” Bruno stood up and began to applaud him. “You came out and got into character the minute you hit the dance floor. You matched Gina’s glare. It was almost as if I watched the two of you argue with every stare off.” Bruno added before sitting back down. “Gina, you delivered again with this choreography. I can’t wait to see the next performance from the two of you.”

The audience applauded as they watched them walk off to await the judges scores. Once they reached the back room, Gina pulled her hand back as they listened to the drum roll. They nervously waited on the scores as they rolled in.

“First Score…seven! The lowest for the duo so far.” The host announced. “Second score…ten!” waiting on the final score felt like an eternity but Gina forced a smile on her face once it was announced. “Third score nine! Giving Ricky and Gina a totaling score of twenty-six. Hopefully they can get a better score when they return to do their freestyle piece.” Once they went to commercial, Ricky walked off needing to get air but not knowing that Gina followed behind him.

*-*-
“You wanna tell me what’s going on?” Gina asked catching Ricky off guard as he turned to find her walking right behind him as they exited the studio.

“You tell me.”

“Me?” Gina asked as she stared at him in confusion before stepping closer to him. “I thought we had a good time at the studio.”

“We did.”

“You kissed me…”

“Well, we kissed each other.”

“…and now all of a sudden you’re just being…”

“Can we just talk about this another time.” Ricky interjected again cutting her off as he tried to walk back inside.

“You know what…no…we can either talk now or never again.” Gina replied firmly standing in front of him. “Is this you going back to your old ways of handling things?” she asked. She watched as he looked away from her and sighed as if he was preparing to get whatever it was off his chest. “You said you weren’t going to run anymore, remember?”

“G…” he began then looked towards a person walking towards the entrance of the building, causing Gina to turn and look to see Jamie entering the studio on his phone. “I can’t do this right now.” He responded. Gina stared at the studio door then over at Ricky before mentally kicking herself for allowing him to kiss her.

“Fine. If that’s what you want.” She stated then turned to head back into the studio. She could hear him saying G once more as she turned to look at him and walk back into the studio. As she enters she notices Kourtney talking to Jet towards the end of the hall. She made her way towards her to see if they could talk when she overheard Jamie in one of the rooms. She leaned back to listen once she heard her name being said in the same sentence as Ricky’s.

“Trust me, mom, not telling Gina that Ricky was the one to invite me was a great idea.” He paced but continued to speak on the subject with no shame. “I feel I came just in time. I told him to not even try to mess with Gina’s future. No, I didn’t get to meet EJ…maybe I can get her back with him…” Jamie stated before pausing when he noticed Gina had walked. “Uh, let me call you back mom. Yeah, I gotta call you back.” He quickly hung up the phone. “How much of that did you hear?”

“I’m so stupid.” Gina scoffed. “I wanted to finally have a big brother so bad that I ignored the flashing red lights that were telling me you never cared about me.”

“Gina, I do care about you.”

“If Ricky didn’t call…you and mom would have never…”

“That’s not true. Mom has always watched you.”

“But…you never watched, huh?” her voice cracked as she tried to hold back the tears that wanted to escape. They never had a relationship to begin with. She wasn’t sure why she was shocked.

“GiGi…”

“Don’t…don’t call me that.”

“Look, I know I suck as a big brother, but I am trying to be better. I’m here trying. And that whole thing with me talking to Ricky about leaving you alone shows that. I just want to protect you from guys like that. He is bad news.” It finally all made sense why Ricky was acting the way he’d been acting.

“Jamie, who I date is none of your business.” Gina turned to leave but stopped and looked back at him. “If Ricky truly was as bad as you’re trying to make him seem, he wouldn’t have gone out of his way to force you to care about me.”

“He didn’t force me, Gina, you’re my sister. I do care about you.” Jamie stated.

“I really hoped that you did but I guess I’ll never know what that feels like.” She added before stepping out of the room. Gina felt tears forming in her eyes but knew she needed to snap out of it as she made her way towards hair and make up for their second performance.

*-*-

“You said you wouldn’t run away, remember?” Ricky heard Gina’s words as if they were notes from a pied piper calling him back to himself. He watched as she walked back into the studio and mentally told himself to quit being a coward. He slowly decided to head back inside only stopping when he overheard her talking to her brother. He hated hearing her voice crack when she asked if Jamie ever watched her before Ricky invited him. So, instead of continuing to eavesdrop he continued down the hall to get into prepped for their final number of the evening.

He watched as Jet and Lily finished their Tango as their freestyle and getting a standing ovation from the audience and judges. After they received a seven for the previous performance, Ricky needed to step up and give Gina the perfect score she deserved. He stood nervously until he saw her coming down the hall in a dress that looked like a wedding gown. His mouth flew open to say wow, but nothing came out. She smiled at him genuinely before saying:

“Let’s put on a show.”

“Dancing a freestyle contemporary for their last performance of the night, Gina Porter and Ricky Bowen!” The announcer announced as the camera panned over to Ricky standing behind Gina while holding her hand over her chest.

“All my life I waited for the right moment to let you know I don’t want to let you go.” Ricky and Gina both made long strides across the dance floor without letting go of each other. Ricky gazed at Gina as she looked over at him and followed his steps. “But now I realize there’s just no perfect time to confess how I feel. This much I know is real.” He spun her lightly then brought her back to the same position. “So, I refuse to waste one more second without you knowing my heart.”

“Baby, ‘cause I don’t need anything else but your love.” Gina spun around as he pressed her close and gazed into her eyes before dipping her slowly and continuing to spin with her. “Nothing but you means a thing to me, I’m incomplete.” Ricky spun her once more than held on to her as if he was desperate to have her near. “When you’re not there, holding me, touching me. I swear all of the rest could just disappear.” Gina did her most infamous move of slowly extending her legs above her before collapsing into Ricky as he lifted her slightly off the ground. “Each day and night that I kept this a secret. It killed me, it’s time to share what I feel inside!”

As the final note was sung Ricky allowed Gina to slowly slide back down while they remained just a kiss away from touching. He held Gina so close that he could feel her heart beating against him as he stared into her eyes. A smile tugged the corners of his lips as she looked back at him in the same manner that she did when they rehearsed this. He felt himself wanting to close the gap between them but stopping at the sound of the stadium. The sound of the audience erupting with applause with the lights brightening back caused them to finally snap back to reality. They both smiled widely when they noticed all of the judges were standing up as well as the audience.

“All I can say is welcome back!” Carrie Ann stated before applauding the both of them again. “This is the Rina I fell in love with. I don’t think I ever want to see the both of you angry with each other. Even if it’s all an act.”

“I don’t know what she’s talking about. You both have been giving us everything. It’s giving romcom! I feel like I just watched Ricky run through an airport to confess his love.” The guest judge added.

“Gina! Gina!” Bruno shouted as the audience began to applaud again. “You have transformed Mr. Bowen into a phenomenal dancer. Your storytelling on the dance floor is nothing short of exemplary.”

“Thank you, Bruno.” Gina responded before smiling at Ricky.

“Ricky and Gina, I’m letting you know right now, that dance will get millions of view on YouTube. I already see it.” The guest judge added.

“Alright, give it up for Ricky and Gina as we all wait to hear what the judges decide to give them.” The host stated as Ricky and Gina walked towards the back room and listened for the drum rolls. “First score…ten.” They both looked at each other and interlocked fingers as the rest of the scores rolled in. “Second score…ten. Third score…ten. Ending the night with a total score of fifty-six!” Gina leaped into Ricky’s arms as he spun her around. “Come back to watch the final performance from Maddox and her partner Carlos. Make sure you vote for your favorite freestyle and favorite duo to help your favorite duo make it to finale night next!”

Chapter Text

The night of the finale had finally arrived. Gina was proud that despite everything that they went through, they’d made it to finale three. So much had happened since the night they performed last, and she couldn’t wait to hear finally which of the three finalist was going to win that Mirrorball. She looked around at everyone preparing for their last performance together. She found herself smiling as she noticed Ricky finally seeing her after being apart most of that day. She was happy with everything that transpired between them. She thought back to the beginning of the week when the professional dancers arrive for rehearsals on their finale night opening number.

“I can’t believe I made it to final three finally.” Carlos stated as they wrapped rehearsals. Gina wanted to tell him that she couldn’t believe that he hadn’t won yet, but Lily decided to interject instead.

“Not going to lie, Carlos, I am shocked you made it too. Kudos to you.” Lily stated patting him on the back as he glared at her. “I knew for a fact that this would ultimately come down to me and Gina. So, the person in third place is interchangeable, I guess.”

“Excuse me? Carlos is one of the best dancers on the show. What are you talking about?” Gina stated before looking over at Carlos. It was clear that what she was saying was definitely getting under his skin as Carlos recoiled.

“Best dancer is pushing it. He’s a good performer and he got lucky with Maddox but be for real. Even the viewers have commented that this is going to come down to the two of us.” Lily added. “Me, because…come on, just look at me.” She shrugged smugly. “And you, because of that thing you’re faking with Ricky.”

“Wait what? What are you talking about?” Gina asked as she looked between Lily and Carlos nervously.

“She’s probably talking about all those Rina comments. Some people are talking about the two of you hooking up and others are saying that its all for votes.” Carlos responded.

“I hope you’re not desperate enough to use Ricky for votes.” Lily stated before walking away from the duo.

“I think she’s just trying to psyche us out.” Carlos added then placed a comforting hand on Gina’s shoulder. “Don’t listen to her.”

Gina watched as he walked away as she remembered the night after their last performance. She’d made it home still feeling sad about how things went down with Jamie but not being able to stop thinking of Ricky. She couldn’t believe he was the one to reach out to Jamie. People had done nice things for her before, but this was top tier and every time she thought about it she felt butterflies. She was at home moisturizing before bed when she received a call from Ricky.

“Hey, G, did I wake you?”

“Ricky, it’s not that late…but I was prepping myself for bed.” She replied. “What’s up? Are you just leaving the recording studio?”

“I, uh, yeah and no.” he replied then she heard the sound of his door closing. “I was supposed to go to the studio to prep for the finale but took a slight detour.”

“Yeah?” Gina asked then smiled when she heard her doorbell. “Is that you at my door?” she asked then made her way to open the door for him. The minute she opened the door to see him standing there with his guitar strapped to him, she felt the butterflies fluttering again. They hung up their phones and just smiled at each other for what felt like an entire minute.

“I know it’s after visiting hours, but I had this song that I couldn’t get out of my head and it…” he paused as he stepped forward. “…it, uh, reminded me of you.”

“Oh.” She uttered as a smile tugged the corner of her lips. She stepped aside and allowed him to come in before following him towards the living room.

“I’m not actually done writing it because every time I think of the hook I can’t stop thinking about what…” he shifted as he watched her sit down next to him. “I mean, who, this song is about.”

“Uh, okay, do you want me to help you write it or something? I’ve never written a song before, but I guess I can give…”

“No…” Ricky interrupted before taking in a deep breath. “I just want you to listen.” Gina felt those pesky butterflies again as she watched him strum a melody on his guitar. “I can’t tell you just how far I’ll go…” he smiled before standing up and walking around the sofa. “For a while I didn’t know if you would be there waiting for me when I got back home.” He continued to sing as Gina listened intently to the lyrics. “I’m scared of what we’re gonna be…you’re my Evergreen.” He nodded. “If I mean to you, what’d you do to me?” he sang it once more until he was standing in front of her.

“Ricky…”

“I know I struggle with finding the right words to say if it’s not on a melody. And I know I gave you a hard time with everything, but I feel that you’ve made me want to be a better person.” Ricky added before placing his guitar down then looking her way. “I guess I’m trying to say that I like the person I’ve become because of you.” He finally admitted. “That’s what I couldn’t get out of my head.” Gina slowly stood up and stared into his eyes before placing a soft kiss on his lips. She smiled at him before kissing him once more and wrapping her arms around his neck.

Gina remembered by the time he had left that they had continued to kiss as if they wouldn’t see each other the next day. She remembered that he joked that if they kept kissing that the sun would rise, and he’d miss the curfew that she set for the both of them. They held hands at the door, kissing once more before she finally said goodnight to him. He made it a couple steps away from her before he ran back and scooped her up for one more kiss.

“One for the road.” He added. Gina watched him walk away before closing the door and leaning against it.

She went to rehearsal still thinking about kissing Ricky, so hearing Lily’s warning continued to play on Gina’s mind. Gina wanted to win because they performed the best. She was not using Ricky and she couldn’t believe people even considered that. She decided that if they kept things between the two of them that they could win fair and square. She hoped that Ricky would understand and that it wouldn’t affect anything with the show.

*-*-

Ricky was ready for the show to be over. In the beginning, he only wanted to last two weeks then he fell for Gina, now he wanted her to win. Between his meetings, recording and rehearsals, he was getting tired by the day but each night he’d drive over to Gina’s, and he’d remember it was worth it. Gina relaxed on the visiting hour rules which made him happy. He remembered the first day he spent without seeing her that she practically jumped in his arms when he came over that evening.

“Glad to see you missed me just as much as I missed you.” Ricky said as he walked into her place while still carrying her in his arms. He placed a kiss on her lips then kick the door closed behind him. “I had such a busy day today. I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but I missed the wellness shot today.”

“I’m rubbing off on you.” Gina said with a proud smile.

“You are.” He admitted before placing another kiss on her lips then allowing her to drag him over to her living room area. “How was rehearsals without me?”

“A bit boring. No one stormed out.” Gina teased then smiled when Ricky rolled his eyes. “Actually, it was a crazy day today, but I wanted to talk you about something.”

“Yeah? What about?” he asked wondering why she suddenly sounded serious. He prayed that she didn’t remind him how important her curfew was during training.

“I was wondering if we can keep all of this between…us.”

“All of this?”

“I just wondered if we could keep us a secret until the end of the show.” She explained before reaching for his hand. “You know how much I want to win, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, I want to win because we danced the best…not because people are wondering if we are real or not.” Gina responded as Ricky tried to wonder what brought this on. “Just until the show is over.”

“We keep this between us for the next few days?” he asked as she looked over at him with pleading eyes. If he could make it on Dancing with the Stars for all the weeks that he had done then a couple days in secret shouldn’t hurt. “If I can still come over and kiss you like this…” he leaned over to place a kiss on her lips. “I think we have a deal.”

That was nights ago, and Ricky found himself looking forward to the end of the night when he got to go over to Gina’s to relax. He kept it a secret most days with the except of one day that he pulled a quick one. He kissed her goodnight when he walked her to her car then looked around to make sure no one was around. Most nights when he came over they’d make out, while other nights they cuddle, and she’d tell him tales of all the places her mother took her.

By the third evening, Ricky could tell that Gina definitely missed her mother more than she let on. The morning before their last rehearsal, he decided to give Gina’s mother a call. She never responded to him when he initially reached out, but he assumed it was because he only sent an email. He had her phone number so he decided it was time he told her how important it would be if she made it to the finale.

“Terri Porter speaking.” She answered in a tone that lead him to understand why Gina seemed like a drill sergeant.

“Uh, good morning, Ms. Porter, I’m Ricky Bowen. Gina’s dance partner on…”

“I know who you are Ricky.” She interjected. “What can I do for you?” she asked with annoyance dripping off of every word.

“For me, nothing if I’m being honest…this call is about Gina.” Ricky retorted.

“What’s going on with Gina? Is she okay?”

“Uh, no, she’s fine. Gina is strong.”

“She’s my daughter…I know she’s strong.”

“Yeah, well even though she’s strong she still needs her mom.” Ricky responded. “I know Jamie has probably made you believe crazy things about me, but this isn’t about me. It’s about Gina. She misses you... she needs you.”

“Not that it’s any of your business but Gina and I talk every day.”

“Seeing you there is a whole different animal, trust me. My parents were there at opening night and it was obvious that she wishes you were there as well. All I’m saying is that it would mean the world to her if you showed up to support her on finale night.” There was a brief silence on the phone to the point that Ricky had to look to see if she hung up. “I had my publicist send you tickets for finale night. You can decided to use it or not.”

“Thanks for your call, Ricky.” Ms. Porter stated before they hung up. Ricky wasn’t sure how the call went but he was hoping that she would show up despite how it went.

*-*-
Finale night was finally here! Gina and Ricky hadn’t seen each other all day. Gina was in hair and makeup to prepare for the opening number. Ricky was busy preparing for singing live to open the show that they would be dancing to open the show. Gina sat nervously as Kourtney did her make up and gave her the run down of all the things she’d missed.

“Girl, while you’ve been stuck in ‘Rina’ land…”

“I have not been stuck in Rina land.” Gina quickly interjected. Kourtney rolled her eyes but continued to do her make up.

“Yeah, sure, but like I was saying that while you’ve been training…life has been happening around you.” She continued with a smile. “I think Ashlyn has a crush on Maddox and I think Maddox is into it.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I saw them talking real hush hush a few weeks ago. Now whenever anyone says Maddox, Ashlyn giggles and starts talking really loud. It’s been a whole thing, girl!” she added with a chuckle. “Oh, and I met with Carrie Ann. She wants me to design a dress for a fundraiser that she’s going to attend next month.”

“Kourt, that’s amazing!” Gina responded before giving her hand a squeeze. She loved that the girls were right that this opportunity was a huge steppingstone for the tercet after all. Gina wanted to hear what else she missed but they were interrupted when Jet stepped into the room.

“Hey, Gina!” he stated with a knock on the door that made both girls look his way. “Uh, Kourt do you have a minute?” Kourtney looked over at Gina then back at Jet then shyly smiling at him.

“Yeah, I just finished.” Kourtney responded then gave Gina a hug. “I’ll see you out there.” She added then stepped out of the room. Gina walked over to her phone to send Ricky a text message when the sound of a knock made her look over.

“Hey baby.” Gina couldn’t believe her eyes when she saw her mother standing in the doorway. She immediately dropped her phone and ran to hug her mother. “Gina, baby, don’t mess up your makeup. You look so beautiful. I haven’t seen you looking like a ballerina since your junior recital.”

“Sorry, mommy. I can get Kourt to fix it before I go on.” She stepped back and checked out her make up in the mirror. “What are you doing here?”

“You didn’t think I’d miss my daughter’s biggest moment on live television, did you?”

“I didn’t think you’d get approved to leave on such short notice.”

“I…” she paused and cleared her throat. “Ricky called me.” She added causing Gina to look her mother’s way in shock. “He’s quite the determined guy, isn’t he?”

“He’s a good guy, mom.” Gina added with a nod.

“He might be, and your brother and I almost ruined things trying to protect you. We see that now. I hope you understand that we just care about you.”

“I know you care, mom.”

“Jamie does too. He just shows it in a weird way.” Her mother replied. “Either way, let’s focus on tonight. I can’t wait to see your performance tonight. Ricky got me a good seat next to his parents he mentioned.” She added before placing a kiss towards Gina. “Love you baby girl.”

“Love you too, mommy.” Gina stated before pulling out her phone to send Ricky a message then decided she’d rather kiss him to thank him for getting her mom to come.

*-*-
“You’re watching Dancing with the Stars.” The host announced with a bright smile. “Boy do we have a treat for you all for this finale. Before we learn who will win the Len Goodman Mirrorball, we have Ricky Bowen performing his rendition of Somewhere Only We Know with the professional dancers dancing a ballet routine. Ricky stood at the center of the stage as the spotlight shined on him and dimmed everywhere else. Once he began to sing the light flashed and on the dancefloor showing Gina, Val and Lily at different spots standing in front of male dancers.

“I walked across an empty land. I knew the pathway like the back of my hand.” He tried to focus on Gina as she danced elegantly. “I felt the earth beneath my feet, sat by the river and it made me complete.” He watched her dance partner lift her as she did a split mid-air. “And if you have a minute, why don't we go…talk about it somewhere only we know?” he closed his eyes and imagined he was dancing with her instead as he sang. “This could be the end of everything. So, why don't we go somewhere only we know? Somewhere only we know?”

“And if you have a minute, why don't we go.” He smiled as he felt her near him as he continued to sing. “Talk about it somewhere only we know? This could be the end of everything.” He slowly opened his eyes and watched as all three of the girls were floating around and twirling effortlessly. “So, why don't we go? So, why don't we go? Ooh, oh-oh Ah, oh! This could be the end of everything. So, why don't we go somewhere only we know? Somewhere only we know?” he smiled as he watched Gina, and the girls prance over to him as he sang the last note.

“Stay tuned after these commercial when the final three couples dance their final performance of the season to see who will the Len Goodman Mirrorball!”

Once the show went to commercial, Gina and Ricky made their way to change for their performance since they would be going on second. Ricky wanted a moment with her before they hit the dance floor but with them being pulled in different directions, it was obvious that it wouldn’t happen. He did notice Gina’s mother sitting next to his parents in the audience and wondered if Gina saw her as well. Either way he was happy that she came and knew Gina would be ecstatic about it.

“Bro, I asked Kourt out and she said yes.” Jet stated as he walked over to where Ricky stood to watch Carlos and Maddox perform.

“Congrats dude.” Ricky responded then fist-bumped Jet.

“Thanks! Now you just need to go public about you and Gina.”

“What? Gina and I are just…” he stopped midway through when Jet glared his way. “How did you know about us?”

“You both just look so happy this week.” Jet teased then chuckled when Ricky’s face softened. “I’m kidding, I saw the two of you kissing near her car like three days ago while I was in my car.”

“You’re such a jerk.” Ricky rolled his eyes and sighed when he noticed Gina walking his way. He was always in awe of every look she wore.

“Oh yeah, you guys are doing a great job keeping this a secret.” Jet joked then walked over to hug Maddox as she came off stage.

“You look amazing.” Ricky stated as Gina approached him. She blushed but didn’t say a word as their eyes spoke for them. “Are you ready to put on a show?”

“That’s my line.” She chuckled then made her way to stand near him as the announcer announced them as the next performers after the commercial.
*-*-

The show returned from commercial with Ricky and Gina on the dance floor waiting for the announcer to announce them. Ricky stood centerstage while Gina stood a couple steps next to him. This was going to be their final dance. The one to win it all but also to end this journey that started it all. She looked over at Ricky and smiled knowing that they were ready to perform their hearts out.

“Performing the Foxtrot, Ricky Bowen and his partner Gina Porter dancing to All About Us.” The announcer stated as the music began to play. Ricky walked over to Gina and extended his hand to her as she took it in hers.

“Take my hand…I’ll teach you to dance. I’ll spin you around, won’t let you fall down.” He twirled her around before pulling her towards him. “Would you let me lead? You can step on my feet. Give a try, it’ll be alright.” They both smiled when she stepped on his feet and allowed him to complete the beginning of the choreography. He spun them around then slowly lifted one of her legs as he continued to spin them.

“The room’s hush hush and now’s our moment. Take it in, feel it all and hold it. Eyes on you. Eyes on me. We’re doing this right!” Gina turned and wrapped his arms around her then closed her eyes as he guided her across the dance floor.

“Lover’s dance when they’re feeling in love. Spotlight shining its all about us.” Ricky spun her slightly then bent her backwards slowly as the audience applauded. “And every heart in the room will melt. This is a feeling I’ve never felt but…it’s all about us.” He slowly brought her back up and they slowed down the pace of the dance as they floated cheek to cheek.

“Suddenly, I’m feeling brave. I don’t know what’s got into me. Why I feel this way. Can we dance real slow?” He held her close as they took a sidestep then twirled together. “Lovers dance when they’re feeling in love. Spotlight shining, it’s all about us.” He dipped her one last time and slowly brought her back up until they were within a breaths distance of each other. “It’s all about us.”

*-*-
Due to it being the finale, they didn’t have to wait on judges and scores. The votes had already been decided at that point. They made all the couples stand together on the stage as the announcer went through who was going to be in third place. Gina looked over at Carlos then at Lily as she stood proudly between them. Ricky interlocked fingers with Gina and slowly stroked her hand with thumb. He could feel her nerves as the announcer explained that this was the closest the votes have ever been.

“Oh, it’s in the bag.” Lily stated proudly.

“The couple in third place is…” the judge paused as the audience roared. “Jet and Lily!” Once the name was announced the audience became louder than before. Gina looked over at Carlos as they both stood stunned. “Maddox and Carlos…Ricky Bowen and Gina Porter, please join me on the dance floor.” They slowly made their way down as the sound of the audience slowly died down. “One of these two couples is about to win it all. After weeks of intense training and competition, it’s time for the final result. No matter which of these two that win tonight…history will be made. Both couples being the youngest duos of the shows history.”

“Oh my God.” Ricky heard Gina say as she held his hand tighter.

“And the youngest winners of Dancing with the Stars are…”

Chapter Text

5 years later.
Gina and Ricky sat patiently as they allowed the producers to put on their microphones. This was their final interview in promoting their new movie that was due to hit Netflix. Gina never thought she would leave the dancing world to jump into the movie industry, but she wanted to move on from Dancing with the Stars. Ricky on the other hand, was ready for Gina to leave that world. He struggled a lot with watching her dance with a new partner year after year. This was her first press tour for a movie, and he could tell she was nervous as he reached over to give her hand a squeeze. After the night was over, he hoped she would be all smiles.

“Let’s put on a show.” He whispered softly.

“We haven’t had to do that in a long time.” Gina responded with a chuckle as the interviewer walked in and sat in front of them.

“Ricky…Gina…Let me just say before we get into it…” she paused then leaned forward. “I’ve loved the both of you since Dancing with the Stars. I was one of those ‘Rina Shippers’ that were constantly tweeting about you both. I didn’t just love the two of you together, but I really loved every dance you both did.” The interviewer stated with a shy giggle. “So, if I seem like I’m fangirling…I am!”

“Well thank you for that. It probably helped us get as far as we did.” Ricky stated then looked over at Gina to see if she’d agree. She smiled and nodded but didn’t utter a word as she continued to massage the palm of her hands.

“Well, let’s get started.” She cleared her throat then turned her attention to the camera. “This is Vine Entertainment! I’m Emmy and I am here with Ricky Bowen and Gina Porter from the new movie Enchanted Love coming out on Netflix next week.” She smiled and turned her attention to them then greeted them again. “Thanks for coming and allowing me to dive into everything that is Rina! You don’t mind if I call you both Rina, right?” she asked and looked directly at Gina who still hadn’t said a thing.

“Uh…sure it’s fine. We’re both individually Ricky and Gina but Rina is what made you all get to know us. So, it’s fine.”

“Awesome.” Emmy replied then continued without missing a beat. “As we all know, the two of you met on the hit show Dancing with the Stars. For those out there that are new to the world of Rina, can you tell us about that experience?”

“Uh, do you want to…” Ricky asked giving Gina a reassuring smile as she cleared her throat.

“Um, sure, as you said, I met Ricky on Dancing with the Stars. At the time, I was new to the DWTS cast and…” she looked over at Ricky and chuckled. “I don’t want to speak for Ricky, but I was a bit of a Drill Sergeant…”

“She was…”

“Guilty.” She smiled with a slight shrug but continued. “I was always competitive and wanted to win and make history. Then I heard I was paired with Ricky. I didn’t let that sway me or change how I dealt with the show or how I worked with him.”

“Did you two hit it off immediately?”

“Not even slightly.” Ricky responded. “I didn’t want to be there. I had no discipline and Gina was full of discipline. She had me drinking these nasty shots every morning…”

“He loves those shots now.” Gina interjected proudly.

“Love is a bit of a stretch.” He scoffed. “But she’s a bit right. I can’t get my day started without it now.”

“It took us a week to really get along and find our groove.” Gina admitted.

“So, at which point did you feel that you were going to be a finalist?”

“It took me three weeks, but I think Gina went in thinking we would be the final three.”

“I wanted to win. Period!” Gina responded as they all chuckled.

“So, how did you feel when they announced the winner of the Len Goodman Mirrorball?” Emmy asked. Ricky looked over at Gina and remembered how it all went down.

“And the youngest winners of Dancing with the Stars are…Maddox and her partner Carlos!” it all felt as if it were happening in slow motion. Ricky hugged Gina then she made her way over to hug Carlos. She whispered in his ears that he deserved it. That she was proud of him. She wiped the tears from his face then placed a kiss on his cheek. She hugged him one more time before pulling away from him and looking for Ricky. Ricky remembered seeing her walk right by everyone that wanted to hug her and make a beeline to him. He walked briskly over to meet her halfway and smiled when she cupped his face then kissed him.

“Everyone remembers the kiss that went viral.” Emmy stated cheerfully while Gina blushed. Gina remembered that she was not thinking when she kissed Ricky. She also didn’t think the cameras would be on them since there was confetti everywhere and people crowding the stage. She thought the focus would have been on Maddox and Carlos. She apologized profusely to Carlos, but he did not care. He was just happy that he finally won.

“We thought we were off camera, and we were happy that we could finally just enjoy being with each other without all the scrutiny of the competition.” Ricky responded.

“Carlos deserved that win. Hands down. He’d worked so hard the years prior, and I remember how devastated I was that he kept losing. I wanted to win but I knew he deserved it.”

“Well, the following year, you won and then won once more. How did that feel?” she asked Gina then looked over at Ricky. “How did you deal with seeing her dance with a new partner?”

“It was a struggle for us at first. The relationship was rather new. Ricky was on tour after releasing his album. We were practically dating via zoom.”

“It was an adjustment, but I feel like it brought us closer together as a couple.” Ricky added. “And then we watched one of our friends get engaged.”

“Jet and Kourtney?” Emmy asked. “Jet was third place on DWTS and wasn’t Kourtney your best friend from high school? She was part of your tercet with Ashlyn, right?” Emmy asked as if it wasn’t something she already looked into. “One of my sources told me that Ashlyn married Maddox the following year?”

“Uh, yeah…” Ricky responded. “Yes to all of that.” He looked over at Gina as she looked back at him perplexed.

“Wait…how did you know about the tercet? That’s not something we talk about to anyone.” Gina admitted with a chuckle. “Who is your source?”

“Oh Gina, I can’t reveal my sources.” Emmy responded with a giggle before continuing with her next question. “Let’s talk about Enchanted Love. I saw the trailer and without giving spoilers, can you tell us what this movie is about?”

“Uh yeah…the movie was directed by a good friend of mine…”

“EJ Caswell, right? Sources tell me that he was your boyfriend prior to going onto Dancing with the Stars?” Emmy asked as she smiled between the two. Gina knew that this was coming and looked over at Ricky as he smirked at her. At the beginning of the relationship, Ricky was not a fan of EJ but when EJ began dating one of the dancers from the show, Val, he slowly warmed up to him. He warmed up enough to allow EJ to direct a music video for one of his songs that he had Gina in as the love interest.

“Yes, we dated briefly but we are all friends now. EJ also directed Ricky’s video for his song Drunk off Your Love.”

“You won a Grammy for best video and best song on that, right?”

“Exactly! So, we already had history there.” Ricky replied. “The movie is set with me playing a college kid that creates a video game that becomes enchanted. Gina plays Via, which stands for Virtual Intelligent Avatar. He spends all his time creating her and one day she comes out of the game, and he has to protect her and guide her through the real world. Except she ends up kinda protecting him.”

“Do they fall in love?”

“Well, love is in the title but it’s kind of misguided.” Gina adds then looks over at Ricky mischievously. She loved it when she found out that it was not just a regular romcom but instead she was the villain in the story.

“We don’t want to spoil it. You have to watch it when it comes out on Netflix to see what happens.” Ricky quipped.

“In the trailer, it shows Gina in the middle of an action sequence as she sort of saves you from getting beat up. How much did you have to train for that?” Emmy asked looking over at Gina.

“Yeah, I had to train six months prior to even getting the script at a private dojo in L.A. The training was excruciating.” Gina admitted.

“She came home in so much pain that I felt so bad for her.” Ricky lied as Gina stared at him before shaking her head.

“He laughed at me.”

“No, I…”

“You laughed at her?”

“Yeah, he teased me and mocked how I walked for an entire week.” Gina responded.

“I laughed maybe once…or twice…three times max.” Ricky lied again. “Wait in my defense, you have to tell her how I gave you a massage…”

“He did give me massages…” Gina admitted before adding. “And chuckled while he did it every single time.”

“Oh, Ricky, that’s not a good look.” Emmy replied trying to stifle a giggle as she looked at the two. “You do know that Gina is known as the People’s princess, right?”

“Tell him, Emmy!” Gina added before facing him and crossing her arms. He shook his head before raising his hands to surrender.

“Well, if it will make the people happy, they can watch till the end credits and see how many times I tripped or fell on set.”

“Oh, true. I don’t know what was going on because he’s usually not the type to trip but on the set he kept ruining scenes because he was falling. He got hurt more than his stunt double.” Gina added with a chuckle. “Also, can I brag that I did about sixty percent of my own stunts.”

“Yes, she probably would have done more if they weren’t afraid she’d hurt herself. She has a scar on her knee where she did a stunt that was supposed to go to the stunt double. She had to get like ten stitches.” Ricky admitted.

“Okay, so this is definitely not a love story.” Emmy added with a chuckle. Ricky and Gina looked towards each other and shook their heads before nodding then shrugging.

“It’s all up for interpretation.” Gina responded. “You might see it as an action film, another might see it as a comedy because there are some comedic moments and then the next person might see it as a love story. You have to watch it to figure out what you feel it is.”

“I can’t wait to watch it!” Emmy exclaimed. “So, what can the fans expect next for the two of you? Any other projects?”

“I’m currently working on my next album. You all can look out for more on that soon. I can’t really go into details yet. And Gina…” he turned to face her proudly as he waited on her to respond.

“I have a couple things in the works, but the only other thing I can mention is that I will be starring in another movie where I will be playing a princess. It’s called the Pirate Princess. It puts a new twist on the Rapunzel story with a bit of Mulan. Instead of being taken by Gothel, I’m kidnapped by a pirate captain. Because the ship only allows men, the Captain shaves my head and tells everyone I’m a boy.”

“Whoa! So, you plan on shaving your head for this role?” Emmy asked in shock. When Gina first read the script that was one of the things that worried her about accepting the role. She was relieved to know she wouldn’t have to do that.

“No, the child playing the younger version of me is a boy. They actually have a boy playing the character until I come in. I play my character with long locs.” Gina added. “I already did a fitting for my wig, and it is heavy but looks so cool.”

“That is amazing, Gina. Do you plan on ever returning to dance?” Emmy asked. This was a question that Gina asked herself when she finally decided to quit DWTS. After she won her third time, she no longer had the passion to compete on the show any longer and her contract had ended. She took that opportunity to bow out on top.

“I still dance. I just don’t do it for the world anymore. I only do it for this guy here.” She added before patting Ricky on the leg.

“I’m a lucky guy.” Ricky replied as he continued to look at her proudly. “But don’t let her fool you guys. She still dances on that TikTok app even though not many people still use it.”

“That’s the point.” Gina quickly responded with a smile.

“You two are the cutest. Are there any plans in the works for the two of you? I wouldn’t be a true shipper if I didn’t ask if you two have discussed marriage or kids?” Emmy asked eagerly. Gina hated getting this question because they only asked it when she was involved. None of Ricky’s interviews ever asked if he wanted marriage or kids. She had no clue if Ricky ever thought about marriage since he had to deal with his parents divorcing. She knew he loved her but had no clue if he wanted marriage. Sure, she had thought of it. Especially when Kourtney and Ashlyn both got engaged but they had been so busy, it just never came up.

“We’ve never really discussed it. Being booked and busy kinda makes it hard to dwell on things like that. I think we have time to think on it though.” Gina replied before looking over at Ricky. He looked pensive but then forced a smile at Emmy.

“Well, I want to thank you both for taking the time to sit with me today. I know the press tour has been exhausting. I can’t wait to see and support all the projects you both have down the road.” Emmy stated with a warm smile.

“Thanks for having us.” Ricky replied.

“I hope you both didn’t mind any of my questions. I really am a big fan.” Emmy added as she gave them both a hug. “Do you guys have any plans after this?”

“Yeah, we’re meeting our friends for a small dinner party.” Gina responded. Gina honestly wanted to go home and rest, but Ashlyn insisted that she had one dinner party to celebrate Gina’s movie. Last thing she wanted was to disappoint the people who constantly showed up for her when she needed them.

*-*-
The back of the limo ride to the dinner party was extremely quiet. Gina wondered if she should ask Ricky what he thought about marriage and children. Ricky wondered if Gina saw him as marriage material. He knew a while ago that he wanted to marry her, but they really just couldn't get the timing right. After she left DWTS, he thought that would have been the perfect time but then Jet and Kourtney got married. The following year Ashlyn and Maddox got married. Before he knew it, they’d been together five years, and he was still holding the ring he bought after she won Dancing with the Stars.

“Hey G?” he looked over at her as she stared out the window. She turned to look at him and smiled softly when he reached over to interlock his fingers with hers. “You were amazing today.”

“You were too, Ricky.” She responded softly then turned to look out the window again. He normally could read her like a book but her face as pensive as it looked was expressionless. He gave her hand a squeeze and pulled her closer to him.

“You know I love you, right?”

“Ricky…” she smiled at him then placed her head on his shoulder as she stroked the top of his hand with her other hand. “That’s the one thing I have always been sure of.” He smiled and placed a kiss on her head as the limo pulled into the parking lot of the party.

Once they arrived, Ricky helped her out of the limo then walked in as Gina took a deep breath and smiled at him. Once the door opened, she immediately noticed the candles that were lit down the hallway. As they made their way into the hall, she was handed a rose from each member of the staff that she walked by. She smiled and looked over at Ricky then noticed one of the staff handing him a guitar. They opened the door, and she noticed her mother and Jamie standing towards the back with Ricky’s parents.

“Ricky? What’s going on?” She asked with a smile tugging at her lips. She looked over at Kourtney, Ashlyn, EJ, and Carlos as they looked at her with tears in their eyes. At that moment, Ricky began to play a tune on his guitar as he guided her towards the center of the room.

“There’s a house on the hill with a view of the town, and I know how you adore it.” Ricky sang as she smiled at him nervously. “So, I’ll work every day through the sun and the rain until I can afford it.” He walked over to where her mother and Jamie stood and smiled at them. “Yeah, your friends may think I’m crazy ‘cause they can only see, I’m not perfect.” He looked over to Gina and shrugged. “But I swear I’m perfect for you.” He gave Jamie and Terri a warm smile before walking towards Gina. “And there’s no guarantee that this will be easy. It’s not a miracle you need, believe me. Yeah, I’m no angel, I’m just me.” He stood before her and smiled proudly. “But I will love you endlessly. Wings aren’t what you need, you need me.”

“Ricky.” Gina muttered as a tears fell from her eyes as she listened to her friends join in and singing with Ricky.

“Yeah the ink may stain my skin, and my jeans may all be ripped. I’m not perfect but I swear I’m perfect for you.” He gave her light smile before getting down on one knee then pulled out the ring he’d bought for her. He cracked the ring box opened and looked up at her waiting to see her response. “Gina Porter, please say you’ll marry me and put on a show with me for the rest of our lives?” Gina looked at Ricky and gave him a quick nod before pulling him up to kiss him. Everyone in the room applauded before making their way over to applaud the newly engaged couple.

A few months later, Ricky and Gina were married. Gina went on to win an Oscar for her role as the Pirate Princess which gave her more opportunities in film. Ricky worked on a song with Jamie and won the both of them another Grammy for his album. The following year Gina and Ricky settled down and welcomed twins Abigail and Adrian.