PLEASE READ AUTHORS NOTe AT THE END IT IS VERY IMPORTANT!!!
"Hi," Stacey says playing it cool as she reaches her hand out to shake his.
"Nice to meet you," he says politely as he shakes her hand. Oh, his voice has gotten a bit deeper.
"Like-wise," Stacey says back. She gives me a small nudge with her elbow before I realized I had been starring at him this entire time.
"Oh um hi, I'm Lana," I say holding my hand out. God this was weird. He shook it and I felt goosebumps rise along my arms. His warm skin against mine was something I longed for. It was brief but it was enough for now.
"You seem familiar, do I know you from somewhere?" he asks me and I choke up a bit.
"I don't think so," I answer shortly before pulling my hand away from his. I took in his features. He had gotten taller and more muscular. His hair was longer and his skin seemed clearer. His voice had more rasp to it and his eyes looked more hazel. He also seemed more tan, even standing next to Freya's dark complexion.
"Shall we dance?" Freya says holding her hand out to me and I smiled before taking it. I hesitate to move.
"You wanna come?" I ask Stacey and Ruel simultaneously. Stacey nods her head and grabs onto my other hand.
"Nah I'm gonna go get another drink, catch you later," Ruel says and walks away. I shrug it off trying not to think about him, even though it was impossible. Stacey, Freya and I dance for another 20 minutes before I decide to get another drink. I was so tipsy and my head was spinning but I needed something to soothe my nerves. I entered the door to the kitchen but two-step in the doorway and I tripped over my own feet. Before I could react, I realized I had been caught by someone. I stood back up and stabilized myself before looking at them. Oh.
"Fancy seeing you again," he says as I noticed his arms were still wrapped around me, holding me up as I was swaying for the alcohol pulsing through my blood.
"Thank you for that," I say slightly laughing, trying to cover my embarrassment.
"No worries love," I breath hitched in my throat. I have heard him say that in so long. I didn't realize how much I missed it until now. I looked into his eyes. Something was different. Something was off. He didn't seem the same.
"You should probably sit down," Ruel says as I stumble a little more.
"But I want another drink," I say pouting like a child. This makes him chuckle and my heart leaps out of my chest. I missed that too.
"You don't need any more alcohol in your system, now come on." He says grabbing my hand and leading me out of the kitchen. I focused on the warmth of his hand on my own. It felt so nice. He was really in front of me. He was holding my hand. He thought nothing of it of course but I needed this. He doesn't remember me. He doesn't know me. He doesn't know my last name yet I know his middle and last name, his birthday, his favorite color, his childhood dog and his entire family. I knew so much about him but he knew nothing about me. It would've sounded like I was a stalker if I told anyone this without any context and if I told him, he would freak out. For now, I had to act like I didn't know who he was. I had to act like I was meeting him for the first time in my life. I had to act like the only thing I knew about him was his first name and that I didn't love him and miss him with every inch of my skin and bones. I was so lost in the thought of him that I didn't register we were now seated in the living room again. I look toward his face and to my surprise, he was already looking at me.
"You seem so familiar..." he trailed off. I was so drunk at this point my mind was clouded. I just kept drinking to rid the thought of Ruel and I going back to the way we were. To my dismay, the alcohol only made the thoughts more prominent.
"Yeah you do too," I mumble quietly, almost as if I didn't want him to hear me, but he did.
"Weird." He states before looking ahead of him. I look over to see Stacey and Freya dancing with the people around them. I felt bad about Stacey and Luke. I shouldn't have ruined their relationship.
"Ruel?" I ask him, my eyes not leaving the site of Freya and Stacey on the dance floor. They looked so carefree. So happy.
"Do you remember me?" I blurt out. I said it before my brain could even register the words rolling off my tongue.
"What?" he asks confused. My head snaps to look at him. My emotions were bounds to overflow at any moment. I was so happy to see him again but god I felt miserable that he didn't remember me. I felt awful that I came between Luke and Stacey, even if I hate Luke I have no right to come between their personal lives. I thought about my parents and how they are probably sitting at home worrying, but not doing anything to reciprocate the worry. I knew they cared about me, just not enough. A sudden thought popped in my mind and I don't know whether it was the alcohol, adrenaline or both but I felt like I needed to do this. Yeah, it was the alcohol.
"Ruel, can we go somewhere?" I ask and he seemed even more confused than ever.
"Where?" he asks me.
"It's a surprise." I simply state before getting my phone out and getting an Uber. Ruel didn't seem to mind and I was glad, but part of me worried that he was trusting me. As much as it hurts to admit, he doesn't know me and I could be out to murder him right now. I stand up suddenly and the blood rushes to my head, causing me to stumble a little. Much to my pleasure, Ruel stood up soon enough for me to stumble into his chest. His arms reach for my waist as I slip from his chest to the floor, but he catches me just in time. It takes me a minute to register it before standing up straight and gaining my composer. Again.
"Thank you. Again," I say blushing and he gives a quick 'you're welcome'. We head to the dance floor to get to the front door. I tell Stacey I could Uber to her place or something and she nods before I say goodbye to Freya and her. We walk outside and the cold air pricks my skin. I didn't mind though; I'd always preferred the cold overheat. Next thing I knew, the Uber had pulled up and we were in the back seat, each of us in silence starring out to the world.
"So where are we going?" Ruel asks me breaking the silence that filled the car.
"As I said before, it's a surprise," I say looking at him.
"I can't believe this," he says and rolls his eyes.
"I can't believe you. I'm surprised you're putting your trust in a total stranger." I say, the thought of him not knowing me ever so vivid in my mind.
"Me either honestly," he says with a small smirk. I could tell he was also drunk, just a lot less than I was.
"So why are you in this car with a stranger?" I ask him as I smirk slyly. This alcohol had made me flirtier and daring.
"Because for some godforsaken reason, I trust you."
-
The car comes to a halt at our destination and I thank the driver before getting out. Ruel follows shortly after.
"Where are we?" he asks me and I turn to face him.
"You'll see." I simply answer and headed down the small path. I was praying this would work. If it didn't, I don't know what my explanation would be to make him understand why I brought him here. The tree's surrounding us had tones of green and yellow but it was hard to see anything since the only source of light was the small moon peeking through the thick trees. I heard Ruel's footsteps follow behind me and I finally stopped walking. He came and stood next to me as I looked at the sight before us. There is was. In all its glory. The playground. My playground. OUR playground.
"What is this?" he asks me, still confused.
"This Ruel was our childhood," I say, not even daring to look at him. I walk toward the large yellow slide I remembered too vividly. I looked at all the scratches and marks the hundreds, if not thousands of kids had made. I crouched down behind it and I saw it. After all these years, there it was. Not once scratch nor mark had come close to it.
"Come here," I tell Ruel. I hear his footsteps approach closer until he was standing next to me.
"Look," I say pointing at the markings under the slide. He crouches down next to me and follows the direction of my arm with his eyes.
"We we're 5 when we made this mark. I know you don't remember but I do. I remember this day like it was this morning. It was the first time we had ever come to the park and our parents were having a picnic right there." I say pointing to the bench, a few meters away from the playground.
Flashback
I chased him. I ran as fast as I could but I couldn't keep up. He was so tall compared to me. I thought he was 7 when I met him. He's really pretty. I laugh as I run over to my mummy and she smiles at me as I ask for some water.
"Bub I'm bored come tag me!" I hear him say from far away but I was so thirsty I didn't care. I almost drank the whole bottle. I hear his footsteps become louder and the next thing I knew, he was next to me.
"Why'd you stop chasing me?" he asks me sadly and his lip pouts.
"Because you're too fast for me," I say shyly.
"Oh," he says and grabs my hand.
"I promise I'll go a bit slower if you come to catch me." He says and I think of something.
"You're it," I tap his shoulder and bolt as fast as I could, giggling at how smart I felt.
Flashback over
"That day was one of the most fun days I had when I was little," I say, tears forming in my eyes. I get up from my crouching position and walk over to the bench. Ruel sat there, processing. Thinking. I sat on the bench, doing the same thing. The only difference was tears kept dropping out of my eyes every few seconds. I saw out the corner of my eye he had gotten up. He was walking over to me slowly. I had time to gain my confidence a little before he stood before me.
"Lana?" he said like he had realized something. That's when my heat sparked. I flicker of hope went off in my body.
"Hi Ruel," I say as I look up to his eyes. I really hoped he was thinking the same thing I was. I see his facial features change. I see his pupils dilate and his mouth that was pressed into a confused thin line form into a smile.
"Lana." He grins and in one stride he was picking me off the bench and hugging me as he spun us around. I felt like I was in a fairy tale. Like I was dreaming and I prayed that I wasn't. I prayed that I wouldn't wake up to the sound of my alarm and realize none of this happened. Ruel placed me back down onto the bench but he didn't let go of me. He stood there between my knees as we embraced each other's warmth. I was ecstatic. Happy was the biggest understatement.
"Fuck I missed you," I mumble into his shoulder and I feel tears brim my eyes. He pulls back slightly but only enough for our faces to be in front of each other. His arms didn't leave my waist.
"How much do you remember?" I ask him, in hopes that he would say everything. Unfortunately, it wasn't that simple.
"I don't remember everything yet but I'm sure I can. I remember seeing you in the hospital and I remember not remembering you and the look on your face. God the look on your face was heartbreaking. I remember the party. Not all of it but some parts. Some parts are vivid and other parts are blurry as fuck. I remember all the nights I spend over. All the time we spent together. All your witty comments and snarky remarks. I remember small things but it's better than nothing." He explains as we stare into each other's eyes. The smile never left my lips. God, I felt so happy. This is the happiest I've felt in so long.
"You wanna know the thing I remember most?" he asks me and I nod.
"Of course," I say scanning every inch of his face. Just as I look back up to his eyes, he speaks again.
"The thing I remember most is that I without a doubt, unconditionally and uncontrollably am in love with you Lana and I never in my entire life want to lose you again," he says softly and my stomach felt like it just did a whole 360. I immediately lent forward and our lips touched. It was soft yet needy. Fireworks felt like they were going off around us and I felt like I was in a Disney movie.
"I love you the most," I mumbled against his lips before kissing him harder. The skin of his lips on mine the thing I miss probably the most. Our lips fit together like jigsaw puzzle pieces. It wasn't just our lips, but our bodies. Our personalities. Our lives. Everything fits together perfectly. I was happy and content unlike I had been for the past year and for the first time in so fucking long, I felt complete. Like he was my everything. Like I hadn't been through all this traumatic shit. Like we were no longer just friends.
the end.
a/n: holy shit. that was it. that's the end of this book. NOW before you all start getting salty at me for ending it so suddenly I have good news. IM MAKING A SERIES OF BOOKS!! I have decided to continue the storyline after this but I felt like this would be the best time to finish the first book.
before I go I would like to ask a few questions:
What was your favorite part of the book?
Who was your favorite character and who would you like to see more often in the next book?
Were there any parts you disliked or felt as if it got a bit boring?
What are some things you would like to see in the next book/how do you think I could improve the next book?
the last thing I would like to say is thank you to everyone single one of you who have read this book all the way to the end. I appreciate your kind comments even if you don't think it means much, it does to me. it would be amazing if you could read my Harry Styles fanfiction 'Safe' that is about the daughter of one of the world's biggest drug cartel leaders and her bodyguard.
I will update you when the next book comes out and what it is called but until then, thank you all and have an amazing life. Au Revoir!!