The Book Thief | Don't Leave Me

An Outing

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Because of my impatience, I haven't checked for errors, so if there are some please let me know :)

Chapter 10

Rudy's POV

The day had started with me and Liesel laid out on the lounge, reading. Honestly I could've stayed there in peace, especially since I wasn't reading. I was really watching Liesel. I watched her chest rise and fall, and made my breathing in sync with it. She'd bought an English translated book, to get used to reading it rather than German. I love how she'd point words out to me, fascinated by the similarity between the two languages, as if she were a young child learning to read.

I was happy where I was, until papa came in telling us to go outside. He has a point though; we hadn't come to visit Germany, just to live our normal life in a hotel reading.

So Liesel and me left the hotel room with a jacket and pair of gloves, and proceeded in direction of many stores that we could spend hours in to look at everything.

Liesel had taught me to notice the colours of events, so here is today. The sun was out with a cold breeze that spring day. The sky was blue of different shades, along with puffs of white and a distant whistle of the quiet, steady wind. Green was returning to the land and trees, as the wind blew away the dead leaves and twigs that had fallen to the white roads the previous month.

I suppose you wouldn't really call it a holiday, more like visiting your long-distant family. This visit was like visiting a new part of town, a place you've never been; as Germany is a fast progressing country, so there are many new things to see now that the streets had been cleared.

She had her arm linked with mine; avoiding the memories by looking into every store we passed - the best distraction. We hardly spoke as we went into each shop to look at things.

I took a moment, just staring over at her as she inspected items upon shelves. She spotted me staring and started giggling, raising her eyebrows.

"What?" I asked confused.

"Your face!" She chuckled.

That laugh of hers, "My face?"

"Ja." She giggled.

I smiled back, looking myself for a little gift to buy Liesel.

We stopped at a café and we each bought a kaffee, and sat at a table by the window. She had her hand out on the table, fiddling with my fingers and interlocking our hands together.

"Where do you want to go?" I asked for the first time since we were in the newsagent looking at gifts and books.

"I don't know." She said looking back at me, taking her eyes off our hands. "Just keep walking around the city?" She suggested.

I on purposely didn't answer her, but stared into her dangerous eyes instead.

"Rudy?" She said to grab my attention.

"Sorry, I got lost in your eyes." I grinned.

She looked down hiding her smile. Aww she's cute when she does that! "I love you."

"Love you too." She said.

We left the café and continued walking, feeling the air turn cold as we stepped outside.

"Your breath smells, like coffee and mint." She said.

"Well that started as an insult." I looked over at her.

"That's true." She smiled back.

We followed the street, going nowhere in particular. Our eyes followed all the street signs, as my mind trailed off once again.

"Rudy," Her voice interrupted my thoughts. "Rudy look." Her voice was hurt.

There weren't any more shops around, but more just a regular street of houses. I looked around and saw the church. My mind switched to the faces of our lost family and friends of Himmel Straße. "Did you-um, want to go in?" I felt awkward asking.

She didn't reply, but instead walked in direction of the graveyard. She stopped at the gate and said, "I should've bought flowers."

She's so stupid sometimes, it makes me laugh. "It's fine." I said leading her down the stone footpath.

I was quite nervous coming here, because I didn't know how Liesel would react. We haven't been here in years, not since the week we left on our journey to Australia.

Finding their grave, I could see that Liesel was fighting the urge to cry. "We can come back another time when you're ready if you like." I said.

"Nein, I'm fine." She said, kneeling in front of the grave of her foster parents.

I kneeled next to her, taking her hand. I kept silent and stared ahead and the gravestone, eyeing the letters that spelt Rosa and Hans Hubermann.

She rested her head on my shoulder and took in a deep breath of the cold air and I watched as she breathed out. I had my arm tightly around her, the other stoking her German blonde curls.

She still wasn't crying, but I could tell by her uneven breathing that she was trying really hard not to.

"It's okay to cry Liesel."

She turned her head to hide in my shoulder while she cried. I kissed her hair fighting my own tears coming on. I mostly felt hurt just seeing her cry.

In my head I pictured what it would be like if the bombing never would have happened. Liesel has had so much loss in the last eight years, it made me feel guilty. My own tear fell, and the wind made it's wet trail feel colder.

"I'm sorry Liesel."

She swallowed, "It's not like you can help it." She mumbled looking down at her lap.

"I wish I could." I said. I took a breath in and added, "Imagine that bombing never happened; if we were in Australia with your Papa teasing us with Max." I saw her smile at the thought and that made me feel better already.

"Oh they would never stop." She smiled.

I wiped her tears away for her. "Okay?"

"Ja."

Some people asked me some questions about past chapters. To clear things up, it does snow in some regions of Australia and Liesel did move to Australia, it is mentioned at the end of the book.

If you have any questions or requests for me, feel free to ask them in your comment or PM me, I reply to everyone!