Apricots - Ruel Van Dijk

Chapter 8 - One night

Ruel's POV

I'm getting sick, can't see the floor

Am I something to miss? Do you want this anymore?

*

I walked slowly up the hill behind her, a smile burning on my face as I watched her zestfully run up the hill, collapsing on the concrete at the top, my jacket swirling around her. She looked so happy. It was almost as if roaming around London in the very early hours of the morning was one of her favourite things to do. I didn't blame her for that though, there was something peaceful about it. Most of the time night-time was unsettling for me, but night in the streets here was nice. Quiet, dark, comfortable.

I strode up slowly behind her, sitting beside her on the concrete. It was a clear space she was sitting on, a field of green on either side of us. It was quite random actually, there were houses to the left and right of these fields, but there was just about 20 metres of green space. I gazed over quickly at her, curious as to what was so special about this spot. She was staring directly into the sky, a wide smile on her face. She seemed to look at the sky a lot.

"Look up," she said softly, not moving from her position. I did as she requested, joining her gaze at the sky. And I immediately understood why she took me here. The sky looked wider from where we were sitting, not hidden by the houses. And due to their being no artificial lights for a while, you could make out some of the stars. I had never really seen stars like this before. Being cooped up in the castle, you only really saw 2 or 3 of the brightest stars of the night. But here, there were thousands twinkling gently against the darkness, almost as if they were fighting for their spot to be there.

I stared up in awe for a few more moments before I heard soft rustling. I looked instinctively over beside me to see Teliah amongst the grass, gazing down at something with a sweet smile on her face. She caught my glare and tilted her head in a kind of 'come here' way. I obliged, awkwardly standing up and walking quietly next to her. She acknowledged my presence and pointed down at the ground. I looked to where she was pointing to see a patch of bright purple flowers.

Hydrangeas.

I smiled, recognising the flowers I had seen the night before. Flowers were one good thing about being a royal, you saw a lot and smelt a lot. They were in the garden, used as decor, at weddings, everywhere. I never seemed to get given any though, that was more of a prince to princess thing. Hydrangeas were always my favourite, not that anyone took note of that. I gave the flowers to my potential spouses, not the other way round.

"Here," Teliah said suddenly, snapping me out of my reminiscence. She had a bright smile on her face, her glimmering white teeth illuminated by the shine of the moon. I looked down to her hand, seeing she was holding 3 hydrangeas out to me. "You aren't really supposed to pick them, but these were on the ground and in perfect condition. It would be waste to leave them there."

"I suppose so, thank you," I smiled back at her, taking the small bunch of flowers from her hands. She stood there for a moment, just staring back at me, while she made an expression I hadn't seen before. The smile was gone now, but it wasn't a frown upon her lips, it was more or less neutral. Her eyes were wide, an unfamiliar glimmer in them. And her cheeks were tinged a pink, from what I could see. Is she blushing, or is it the moonlight playing tricks on me?

About a moment later, she seemed to realise she had spaced out and gently shook her head. The tinge to her face disappeared as she walked away from me, out of the grass and onto the footpath. I followed behind her, curious as to where she would take me next. We walked in silence down the concrete, anxious to start a conversation, but neither knowing what to say.

"Soo, how long are you planning to stay here in London?" she asked, glancing over to me. Fuck. I hadn't thought about this part. How long was I going to stay? How long would I make it before someone found me? Where was I going to sleep? I couldn't tell her I was a fucking prince on the run. "Are you okay?" she asked after a minute. I must've looked all fuck-frightened.

"Y-yeah fine," I stammered, plastering a nervous smile on my face. I was an idiot. She wasn't stupid, she was going to know something was up. I guess I could tell her I didn't know how long I was going to stay. A vague story would work. Then I'm not technically lying, but she wouldn't hate me either. "To be honest, I don't know how long I'm going to stay. I wanted a different life, so I came here."

That worked. It was true, but didn't reveal too much.

"Where are you staying?" she asked, eyes curious. Fuck. I stayed silent. I stared back at her curious brown eyes that were slowly morphing into concerned ones. There was no way of getting out of this one. "Ruel, don't tell me you're sleeping on the side of the fucking road," she said seriously, stopping to look up at me.

"I just...haven't gotten that far yet," I shrugged, being truthful. I really just hadn't worked that out yet. "I'll work it out," I attempted to reassure, but it ended up sounding careless.

"You know, that's exactly what I said when I was living on my friends couches," she folded her arms across her chest, as I smiled awkwardly. "Alright, well I'm not letting you sleep on the street. You can crash at mine for now, and we'll work out if you want to buy a place or just stay in a hotel later."

I just stood there, unsure of what to say. This girl I had met the morning of this exact same day, barely making enough money to buy herself food, just offered for me to stay at her house for literally nothing. Teliah was for sure something else.

"I can't accept that," I shook my head. I couldn't. I couldn't live off of this girl who could barely make a living for herself. And I couldn't make her and her property a target for paparazzi and people looking for me. If my parents found me at her house, they'd blame her. That just wasn't fair.

"But I can't let you sleep on concrete. I'm not sure if you've ever done that before, but that shit ain't comfortable," she joked, attempting to win me over with humour. I didn't react, wanting to stand my ground. "One night. Please?"

I thought about it for a minute. If I didn't take it, I'd just be wandering around London for a night without a clue where to go. But if I accepted, I could endanger her reputation and just her in general. But one night. One night couldn't do anything, right?

"Alright fine, but just one night," I sighed, giving in. She grinned. "Now I believe I have more of London to see," I changed the subject quickly, not wanting to get teased. 

"Oh did you think we were going straight home?" she kept the grin on her face. Well I suppose I was going to get teased anyway. "Not just yet fancy pants, we still have way more to see!" she giggled, grabbing my hand and tugging me down the footpath. For once, I was the one struggling to keep up. I chuckled in response. This girl was going to drive me insane.

a/n

ello luvs, i apologise for the wait on the chapter, been a lil busy lately. eep i am happy to say ruel liked my insta postttt, you're welcome for that random piece of info. 

i dont think i released a chapter before gui was released, soooo i also wanted to say go stream that it deserves attention:)

I LOVE YALL SO MUCH GO BE AWESOME AND STREAM GUI AND EAT FOOD AND BE NICE TO YASELF

19/12/21

- Bri <3

Word Count: 1410