Apricots - Ruel Van Dijk

Chapter 14 - Yay

Ruel's POV

When will I ever have the nerve of your skin?

When will I tell the difference between what we are and what we used to be?

I sat on my bed staring blankly at the wall. It was about the only thing that passed the time at the moment. I didn't want to touch my phone. I didn't want to see photos of myself in the city. I knew it would just make me want to throw the phone at the wall. Why was I so stupid to think running away could've worked?

I sighed, running my hands through my hair, damp from the shower I had taken a couple hours ago. It was 6 in the morning now. I hadn't slept the entire night. So by 1am I knew I wasn't going to fall asleep, so I took a shower. But that didn't help, so I kinda just sat back down on my bed and stared at the wall again. I wanted to die.

I was confined to my room, which at first sounded better than chores, but it was so painfully boring that I would've preferred to work my ass off with those stupid royal duties.

I flipped back on the bed just as I heard a sharp knock on the door. Yay.

"Come in," I grumbled, not really in the mood to talk, but knowing I had no choice. I sat up again as the door creaked open. I gazed over to the door to see a short figure standing there. I let go of a bit of frustration, realising it was Stella. I still didn't want to talk, but talking to Stella was better than talking to mother or father.

As she stepped carefully into my room, I couldn't help but notice a glimmer of excitement in her vibrant blue eyes. I knew from that moment on she was desperate to know what life was like outside the castle. And I knew she knew that I knew. I watched as she sat on the seat next to me, staring eagerly at me. I shifted uncomfortably, still not speaking a word. I didn't want to have to say any more than I absolutely had to. Even though Stella was my sister and my best friend, I was still processing these events myself. I could barely articulate them in my head, I wasn't sure what I was going to properly say.

"Did you meet a girl?" she asked, sounding quite bored from what I could hear. I whipped my head over to face her rather obviously, seeing her eyes looking unamused. I stared at her wide-eyed.

"H-how did you-?" I scrambled to get the words out of my mouth. Even though she knew me better than anyone, it was still strange she knew I met a girl through me staring boredly at a wall.

"I know you Vincent, you never act like this," she blew air out of her lips, again rather boredly.

"Like what?" I queeried, genuinely curious as to how I was acting any different to before.

"Bored...like you just had the adventure of a lifetime and now castle life isn't good enough. I mean it never really was, but you used to find some of the stuff we do interesting," she thought out loud. I just sat there, knowing what she said was absolutely right. Ever since I'd gotten back here, I couldn't help but realise how utterly mindless every task around was. It was all just plain boring.

"So, tell me about her," she perked up, laying her head in her hands contentedly. I just sat there, bewildered. I didn't know what to say or where to start. Do I tell her the whole story, or parts, or nothing? I knew she wouldn't tell mother or father, but I still didn't know whether I wanted to tell her.

"There's not much to say other than I fucked it up and then left," I muttered, the words escaping my mouth before I could think. I gazed up at her face, which was now scrunched up in an unamused expression.

"You didn't tell her you're a prince did you?" she sat back off her hand, sighing. I shook my head.

"It didn't seem like a good idea. When I met her, she was just so real. She treated me like a normal person. I didn't want her to feel like she had to treat me like royalty you know? And then some woman she was close to told me she wasn't too keen on our family, so I didn't tell her," I spoke what I was thinking, mostly just saying it so it made sense in my head. "But when I left, I realised I should've just told her I was a prince to begin with. It would've been better to have let her know than to lose her all together."

I buried my head in my hands, fully aware of the somewhat sympathetic look on Stella's face. None of what I said would have made much sense without an explanation of what happened, but I didn't have the heart or the energy to do that right now. I was grateful that she didn't push it any further.

"What was her name?" Stella asked quietly.

"Teliah," I replied simply, not really thinking much about what I'd just said. I didn't know what I was saying to be honest; I had no idea what I was doing. Logic didn't seem to be a thing at the moment, I was going out of my mind. Or was I? I couldn't even think that and be sure about it.

"I can't say it will be okay, because I don't know if it will be. But I can say that if you need any help, I will try my best," Stella said reassuringly. I looked up and gave her a weak smile. I in confusion watched her face morph as she looked out the window. Her warm smile turned sour. "Who is that?" she stated, her eyebrows crinkling together in worry. I whipped my head around to where she was looking. My eyes went wide.

Fuck.

a/n

i am back, i apologise chapters have been slow, i havent been very motivated lately:/

but yeah treat yourself noicely please and remember to eat and drink and sleep:)

3/2/22

- Bri:)

Word Count: 1046