Guardians of Elemental Magic (G.E.M.)

Chapter 12 : Tears

A/N: I'm glad you're back! So... I cringed, a lot, when I wrote this chapter XD but I hope you guys will bear with my lack of talent in writing anything romancy >.< I'm so excited though because the next few chapters are my favourite by far, and I hope you guys will like it too! So please bear with me until the next chapter!

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Marcus' POV

I carried Ruby back to her room. She was exhausted from all her crying earlier, although she is still crying right now. To be honest, I've never seen Ruby cry before, but I'm glad that I get to see this side of her that nobody else knows. I laid her down on her bed before sitting down next her.

"You feeling better now?" I asked her in a gentle voice.

"Yeah," she nodded. "I'm fine," she said in between sniffles.

I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her into a hug. "I'm sorry I made you cry," I whispered. "I promise I won't do it again," I said as I gently patted her back.

She hugged me back and shook her head. "It's not your fault. Stop blaming yourself all the time," she said with a hint of anger in her voice.

"Right, sorry," I apologized. "By the way, how much did you hear of my conversation with Austen?" I asked, wondering if she had discovered my feelings for her.

Ruby sniffled again and looked up at my face. "Well, I heard you talk about not being able to protect my brother, and that that was the reason why you can't tell me your feelings." She paused for a few seconds. "But I already know your feelings for me without you needing to tell me," she continued. "I know you love and cherish me like your own sister, and that you try to fill up my brother's role in his stead. I know all of this without you needing to tell me."

I winced and then chuckled. "Right," I said as I pinched her cheek. She can be so dense sometimes.

Ruby rubbed her cheek where I just pinched her. "That hurts you know," she complained with a pout. My heart started beating faster just looking at her cute expression. "And I told you to stop treating me like a child."

I chuckled at her child-like complaints and playfully pinched her cheeks again. "Then stop acting like one," I said with a grin on my face. She frowned and slapped my hand away, but I just kept going back to pinch her. Our short game of cheek-pinching ended when Ruby lost her balance and fell back onto her bed, just as I was reaching towards her. Losing my balance as well, I fell on top of her.

I quickly got up on my arms to remove my weight from her body. I looked down at Ruby as she opened her eyes. My heart was pounding like crazy. Our faces were so close to each other; I could kiss her right now if I wanted to. I moved my hand to cup one side of her face, and started stroking her cheek with my thumb. "I love you Ruby," I said, my face quickly becoming red. I mentally hit myself for saying that, but I couldn't take it back now.

Ruby stared back at me with her pitch black eyes. She smiled. "I know," she whispered. My heart was now racing even faster. Does that mean she feels the same about me? "I told you just now that I understand your feelings for me didn't I?"

Her words pierced right into my heart. She thought I meant I loved her as my sister and a friend. Although that's true, I love her more than just that. I chuckled and got up from on top of Ruby and sat back down on her bed. She really is so dense. I guess that means she doesn't feel the same way about me. Does she have someone else that she likes? Was it that Earth boy, Austen?

Feeling a tug on my sleeve, I looked down at Ruby. "What is it?" I asked her in a kind voice.

"Will you sleep here tonight?" she asked with a completely straight face. My face flushed. "Sure," I replied, as we both got beneath her blanket. I mean, we do sleep together sometimes, but that doesn't stop my heart from pounding like it's trying to win a race. I turned to face Ruby and pulled her into my chest.

"I wish we could go back," she whispered suddenly. "Back to the times when my father was still king, and when my brother was still here. Back to when the three of us were always playing hide and seek in the gardens. But that's not possible is it?"

Iplayed with her hair. "No," I whispered back. "We can't go back to those times.But we can continue living so that we can live the future that we want." Rubynodded, as she snuggled against my chest, and fell asleep.    

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-Raven