Reconnect

Flashback II

When Rue came out from the bathroom, She found Cole, sitting on the bed, trying to convince Lacey to wake up. "Lacey," Rue called out, "I'm out now, go get ready before i throw my pillow at you." Lacey, still tired, plopped down from the bed and begrudgingly left the room.

The three of them, after Lacey had finally gotten ready, walked through the city in search of a place to eat. Rue was actively searching for cafes nearby on her phone and Lacey, still tired, treaded closely behind them. Rue had found a place that had many good reviews and showed it to her friends. Lacey had made up her mind once she saw how delicious their croissants looked. There was no turning back now.

After they had placed their orders, the trio decided that it would be nice to sit outside. It was an offaly beautiful morning that day. The sky a perfect blue, not too hot, not to cold, flowers blooming in the bushes around them, and there was Rue. She was by far the most beautiful thing he'd seen this morning. Lacey grabbed her phone from her back pocket and started taking photos of their food. "Alright guys, lean in for the photo," she yelled enthusiastically.
"I thought you were tired," Rue let out a large bright smile that left Cole speechless.
"Just shut up and get in the picture!" The two obliged and smiled as Lacey took the photo. "See, that wasn't so hard," Lacey mumbled and Rue rolled her eyes at her.

After they had finished eating, they went on a stroll downtown to look at the different shops. Rue stopped and gazed at one of the shops windows, admiring all the dresses on display. "They're gorgeous..." Cole looked inside, but no matter how hard he tried to look, his eyes were fixated on Rue, until he felt a sudden tug on his arm. Rue had grabbed his arm and rushed inside the shop, full of excitement. Cole followed her obediently and smiled.

Cole had never been inside a shop that its only contents were filled with clothing and accessories meant for girls before. He had not a clue of what he was meant to be doing in such a store, so he just watched. Rue was looking at the dresses that hung on one of the racks by the windows. "Im gonna go to the restroom, ill be back in a bit," Cole said and Rue answered with a quick nod.

When he was heading back from the bathroom, his eyes darted to a necklace hanging limply on one of the jewelry stands. The necklace was a small heart, which was surrounded by roses. He imagined Rue wearing it and knew he had to buy it.

He stuffed the gift in his jacket pocket and walked back over to where Rue was standing. When she saw him, she welcomed him back with a warm smile. Rue held two dresses in her hands. "Im torn between two dresses," she said "I really need help deciding which one i should buy."
Cole glanced at the two dresses. In her right hand, she held a baby blue dress with lace detailing on the bottom, and in her left she held a short pink dress with small frills that ran from the waist down. "You should get the pink one," he answered as his face grew red.

When they walked out of the store, Cole brought out his phone to check the time, but he was greeted with dozens of missed calls from their friend, Lacey. "Oh shit," he whispered.
"What happened?" Rue questioned him.
"Lacey." The two of them had forgotten all about Lacey as they were too busy shopping. Cole called Lacey and without wasting a second, she picked up immediately and started yelling at him.

They told Lacey where they were and shortly after the call they could see her stomping towards them.
"You guys are dead!"
"We should probably run," Cole whispered, and they took off, racing towards the hotel.

They ran a lot faster than Lacey, which allowed them enough time to run into their room, with just a few minutes to spare. "Let's hide," Cole said, taking Rue's hand and guiding her into the bathroom. He helped her step into the shower and closed the curtain once they had both entered. It was a small shower, and they were both uncomfortably close. Cole could feel Rues hot breath hit his neck as she whispered to him.

"Quiet." Both of them were a blushing mess. Cole was trying to focus, but was quickly distracted by the sounds of his own heart pounding quickly against his chest. Once the hotel room's door slammed open, the two quickly held their breaths, scared that their breathing would give away their hiding place.

"There you two are- wait... Where are they?!" Lacey hissed, as she looked around the room, only to find that Cole and Rue weren't there. "ugh," she grumbled, stomping out of the hotel room to go search for them somewhere else. Cole and Rue let go of their breath as they laughed together. Rue rested her forehead on Cole's chest as she laughed. "Well, at least we lost her," she giggled softly. "Thats true," Cole laughed, smiling down at her. Being close to her was all he wanted. Her laughter shook his heart to where he felt butterflies in his chest... As cliché as it sounds. His hand tried to reach up to brush through her hair, but he quickly resisted himself to do so. He wanted nothing more than to stay like this forever, but he knew Rue wasn't ready for this type of commitment."No... We're just friends, and besides, my feelings for her is just one-sided," he thought, letting out a painful grin. "Uhhh, I think I actually have to use the bathroom now," he laughed nervously. I'll be out in a second."Rue laughed as she exited the shower and made her way over to the door. "I'll find us a movie to watch while we wait for Lacey to get back." "Alright, sounds like a plan," Cole said, smiling gently at her as he closed the bathroom door to give himself privacy.
It was only a few hours later when Cole woke up, with Rues head resting upon his shoulder and Lacey sprawled out over half the couch. It was nights like these he cherished. He wanted to stay here forever, in his safe place.