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He plucks the guitar and the melody echoes through the room, taking his time to think if it feels right and if it suits the lyrics.
A knock on his door interrupts his thoughts and the boy with curly hair quickly throws his guitar to his side, a pillow above the lyric book and a fake grin on his face, “Come in!”
But it’s just Big Red, his best friend of many years who shows up at his door unannounced like Ricky’s home is his.
“Oh, it’s you.” Ricky can finally breathe now, a hand on his chest because what if it was Gina? The song is not done yet, she cannot know yet that he is writing the perfect and most romantic song ever for her, it has to be done.
“Geez, you used to be more excited to see me.” The red haired boy sits on the bed where the other one is, “I wonder if you react like this when Jet comes around.” He takes a suspicious look, “Dude, what are you hiding?”
“N-nothing,” the pillow sinks on the bed, “Back up, you’re jealous of Jet?” It’s a way out of the previous conversation. And Jet will not replace Big Red, just add another guy to their small group. Ricky knows they will find a way to connect even though they are polar opposites.
“Is that… a lyric book?” It’s too quick, the guy grabs the book faster than Ricky could move, “Oh my god, YOU ARE FINALLY WRITING A SONG ABOUT GINA!”
"HEY!!!!! It’s not finished yet.”
"Oooh, the bridge is really good though,
You're all I'll ever want
You're all I'll ever need
You're all I've ever dreamed of having.”
Ricky Bowen was never a guy of many words. He simply wrote them down hoping it would find a meaning with chords, melodies and a guitar. And most of the time, it would work.
When his parents split up, he wrote a song.
When he started to feel like a real theatre kid, he wrote one about knowing what home is like. Not a real place, not a real thing that you can touch with your hands. It’s about the people, the feeling, the moments.
And now when he thinks of the word heaven, he thinks of Gina.
“I always heard there was a heaven
I never knew if it was true
But darling ever since I met you
I know that heaven is you
Heaven is you, heaven is you.”
To think that a girl who switches places can take your heart with her, wherever she goes. It’s cliché how he was so afraid of changes, how he couldn’t even face the reality in front of him and now the one who he cares the most is her.
He always heard stories about soulmates, about a love so innocent and breathtaking that it could sweep you off your feet. The kind of love where you would do anything to make this person happy, even if they are intertwined with someone else.
For him, Gina was that kind of love.
The type to make him wait for her, even if it takes an eternity. The type of love worth waiting for, worth fighting for when the time is right. And it was right this time, when she confessed that he wasn’t a maybe, months ago. He never forgot that speech, she has a way of speaking that makes him charmed. As if he was charmed by an angel.
For Ricky, Gina is heaven.