The Actor's One & Only

Chapter 18

Cameo by Sir Sean Connery as Mr. Richards.

"She reject ya?" Mia enquired, finding him sitting there all glum and long-faced. "No...I didn't even get the opportunity to ask er. She got rather...uh, moody." he replied, without looking up. He pondered for a while, looking up as her friend literally knocked some sense into his head. "Oi, what was that for?!" he growled, as she whacked the back of his head with a flick of her palm. Unlike Ruth's playful whacks, Mia's whacks sounded like the crack of a whip and the effect they left on one's skin was more or less the same as the lash inflicted by a whip. "As all cliched love stories go...I think I must go after er now, eh? " he read her mind, getting off his arse with a groan, once the effects of the whack had worn off.Here he was, pushing down his hatred for the heroes of the very genre he hated, acting like those cliched characters he hated. Ready to brave rain and hailstorm and all other obstacles to pursue his beloved, he set out. He ran outta the doors of the school, his converse making a squishy noise as he skidded to a stop on the slippery, dewy lawn outside. Fortunately, he was able to hail a passing taxi.  "I never thought I'd say this, but Noah an' I can handle the kids. Just go after her, mate...ooh, he's already gone!" Mia offered in an uninterested tone, stopping short on noticing his absence.
Ruth had pedalled furiously, leaving the school far behind as she'd ridden home, vanishing into the darkness. Was that the whole reason he'd come down to Scotland? Just so he could whisk me away to London, so that his career could run smoothly, while I would have to abandon my own? she'd thought to herself, each time her feet hit the pedals and home came into view. She'd lied, after feeling cornered by his proposal. Mum had quit her job long ago to look after dad. He was in good hands, but daddy's lil girl that she was, Ruth couldn't bring herself to part from his side. And here, the man she loved was asking her to part ways forever. Unbeknownst to her, he was also on his way to apologize.
She rushed upstairs to her father as soon as she reached home. Her mum was in the kitchen and no-one was with daddy to tend to him. "Good evenin, daddy." she greeted in a sombre tone, worryingly checking his drip, cleaning up his tray of half-eaten food before sitting beside him. He motioned to a lever attached to the bed which she pulled up, so he could see her better. He was too weak to sit up, so the lever did that job for him.
"Ruthy, ya seem awfully sad, more than usual. Ya ok, love?"  he enquired, cupping her sweaty face with a trembling hand.  "I'm f...fi..no, actually, I'm not, daddy. It's bout me an' Jack. He wants me to move to London with im." she replied, unable to lie to him. "Like, actually move in together? I remember when yer mum an' I were live-in partners. I wasn't as sick as I am now, plenty o' energy..." her old father recounted, with a reminiscent, impish grin. "Daddy! If yer gonna be inappropriate, wait till I've left the room, yeah?" she scolded, disgusted halfway through his sentence. "Point is, it was the most fun we had. So, what'd ya tell im? Ya goin?" Mr. Richards demanded to know.  "Daddy, ya actually want me to go?" she cried out in disbelief. "Why not? Ya love im, dontcha? He's a nice fella. Goes a bit overboard with all the flair an' costumes sometimes, but he's, overall, a nice bloke. An' he takes care o' my Ruthy. That's all that matters. Forget bout me an' my bleedin health. I'm strong like my daughter." the smiling old man gave her his blessing. She didn't know what to say, only leaning against his feeble chest to embrace him. "Oh, daddy...!" she whispered, a smile spreading across her previously distraught face, brightening up on hearing him. "Get outta my hair, love...well, outta whatever's left o' it, anyhow!" he joked, eliciting a giggle from her. She looked up on hearing a noise like  car pulling up outside.
"Golly!" she exclaimed in surprise, pulling aside the curtain as she peeped out the window. There he was, the man whom she'd loved and left behind, paying the taxi driver before he made his way to the stoop. "What?" Mr. Richards enquired from his bed. "He followed me ere. He's standin down there, daddy." she replied, even more surprised as she squinted to look at the glittery object that he pulled out of his coat pocket. "So, that's the real reason ya came down to Scotland!" she muttered under her breath, trembling with excitement while he contemplated popping the question. Maybe, I should just apologize an' leave it at that! The moment's gone, anyway. He thought to himself, putting the ring away as he prepared to ring the doorbell. He didn't want to be shot down again, but he hoped she'd forgive him for before. He regretted asking her that question without considering her feelings and not giving her time to prepare herself.
"Go to im, then." she heard her father call out, feebly.  "D'you want yer mum to be the first to answer the door, eh? Ya know she doesn't approve o' ya goin out with an actor." he reminded, as she hesitated. There was a long pause before she reached for the doorknob and turned it.  "Yer right. I should be the first face he sees. Alright, I'm goin."  he heard her voice from the hallway, before she enthusiastically ran down the narrow staircase in order to answer the door.
"Oi, ya! Listen, I'm sorry if all that felt rushed back there. I just...I know we've only been a couple for...well, not very long. But we've been friends for longer than that...an' to me, I mean, our relationship...it felt longer than our friendship...? Oh, bollocks! I'm not very good at this...not without a script in my hand, ya know? I haven't even rehearsed...!" he mumbled apologetically, grinning vibrantly on seeing her face. "Kissin doesn't require much rehearsal..." she found herself say. Lord knows where that cheesy dialogue came from, but it seemed to put jittery Jack at ease.  "Well, these lips are leaving town soon. Care to join em?" he was quick with a cheesy dialogue of his own. "I'd love to." she accepted his proposal to move to London, wrapping her arms around him and gently pressing her lips against his as she took him up on his offer for a snog as well.
"An' then, there's the other thing..." she whispered, pulling back but keeping her eyes glued to the coat pocket where the ring lay. "What other thing, Ruth? An' what's he doin ere?! I thought I'd ask ya to stop seein im, Ruthy? Remember I warned ya bout these celebrity relationships fizzlin out?" she frowned on hearing her mum cut in, firmly. Mrs. Richards was fond of Jack, but wasn't overly fond of his friendship with her daughter slowly blossoming into something more entirely. One couldn't accuse the lady. The fault lay in the articles and magazines she'd read regarding the hookups and breakups in the world of Hollywood! She'd a stereotypical view towards the lifestyle led by celebrities now. She didn't want her daughter entrapped in such a relationship. "I know, but we're not Angie an' Billy Bob, kay, mum? An' ya may think that we're movin too fast...but, I sorta like this pace." Ruth spoke her mind. "I'm yet to find someone who doesn't go by everythin they read in the tabloids." Jack grumbled. "Ya already have. She's standin right in front o' ya, waitin for ya to adorn er finger with that ring yer hidin away in yer pocket there!" Ruth took him by surprise, stretching out her hand impatiently with a nod of approval. He was taken aback by her act of clairvoyance as she waited for him to slip the engagement ring on, before her mother protested further. He patted at his coat pocket before the ring emerged from it. She graced him with another kiss soon enough, sighing in satisfaction on feeling the cold metal upon her ring finger.
  "Love, this is a humongous step. I mean, bein his friend...An' bein his wife...they're two entirely different, seperate things, ya know? There's a whole new level o' commitment an' everythin! Can't ya just go back to bein besties again? I preferred it that way. That way I wouldn't have to clean up remnants o' the heartbreak later!" there arose obvious protests from a concerned Mrs. Richards, who widened her eyes at this sudden proposal. Ruth invited him in, giggling as her lovelorn fiance immediately swept her up in his arms. "Oh...I think we're wayyy past that, Mrs. Richards!" Jack revealed saucily, gazing into the future Mrs. O'Donnell's eyes as he carried her upstairs, ignoring her mum's protests. "Is everyone in yer family a worrywort?" he teased, as the shocked lady continued to call out behind them.  "Apart from daddy...everyone else is! Now, kiss me, ya fool!" a blushing Ruth ordered, pulling him in for another passionate snog.
"Oi! Come outta there this instant, ya two! We need to talk this o'er before rushin into anythin!" they heard the relentless woman pound at the closed door once they'd made it to Ruth's bedroom. In response, Ruth peeked out, hanging a sock off the doorknob as she addressed her wide-eyed parent with a goofy grin.  "Mum, keep it down, yeah? We don't wanna be disturbed, kay?"  Ruth requested, mischievously slamming the door in her face and squealing as Jack eagerly reached out from behind, grabbing her by the waist and losing no time in seductively luring her away from the door. Poor Mrs. Richards threw her hands up in despair, deciding it best not to bother with her daughter's liaisons any longer!