Flowers in the window (r.v.d)

chapter ten

The song for this chapter is 'No light, No light' by  Florence + the machine if you want to listen to it while you read. Enjoy :) 

My mother had called again. She'd been a mess, her shrill voice echoing through the phone like a banshee as she spilled all her feelings out to me in drunk slurs. So, naturally, I'd spent the night comforting her while organising for someone to take care of Tahlia. And the aftermath was a  massive fucking headache and severe sleep deprivation. 

 With a groan, I pressed my fingers against my temples, the pounding of my headache causing me to wince. I breathed in the fresh air, focusing on the gentle humming of the bees as they flittered around me. 

"Aster." 

I jumped in fright, swirling around with a gasp. And there he stood with his false smile and rosy lips.  The olive of his eyes were accentuated by the golden light streaming over us. 

"What're you doing here" I said gasping for breath, the adrenaline still rushing through me from the fright I'd received. I'd been so lost in my own thoughts I hadn't even noticed his presence. 

"I guess I'm just looking at life" Ruel shrugged sauntering to my side. He wore flared light-wash denim pants paired with a white vintage tee and a hugely oversized open cardigan which matched the flowers behind him with the multitude of colours it held. A frayed book hung from his pocket, the pages yellow with age as per usual. We began walking, side by side, our footsteps rhythmic and our voices unheard. 

"May I show you something?" Ruel said suddenly, his voice gentle, musical, soft, as it drifted through the silence. I nodded. 

And after 15 minutes of following his powerful figure, he halted. Peering over his broad shoulders, my jaw dropped. He turned to me, his expression smug and smirking as he took in my disbelief.   

"This," He drawled "is the Blue Void. It doesn't have an end, doesn't have a bottom. And the water is like silk against your skin" 

In front of me lay a lake so large it didn't fully fit in my vision, the deep blue colour rippling slightly in the summer breeze. It had to be the most beautiful sight I'd ever seen. Whoever knew there was such a brilliant thing so near to Paris.... especially so close to us. 

"Well, come on then" Ruel drawled holding his hand out for me as he began purposely striding down the hill and towards the void of blue colour in front of us. I gripped his callused fingers tightly, the cool metal of his rings contrasting with the heat of our skin. It was so private, so silent it was almost as if we were the only two in this world. Oh, how I wish it were true. 

As we reached the edge of the lake,  Ruel dropped his hand from mine suddenly as if he'd been branded and turned away from me. I said nothing  as he threw his cardigan onto an embarkment a few metres away. I said nothing as he ditched his white tee and was left in his low rise denim jeans. And just as I was about to say something, he was gone, his silhouette surrounded by the shimmering blue of the water as he dived in. And he didn't come up. 

"Ruel come back" I called laughing as the ripples of water from his entrance nudged the shore gently. Nothing. Not a single ripple. 

"Fucking asshole" I murmured under my breath. Peeling my dress off, I felt the sun tingle against my skin, the cool summer breeze kissing my pale skin. And I leapt through the air and into the blue void below me where the water was surprisingly warm and well... blue. Propelling myself further under the surface, my lungs stained and the heavy weight of the water pressed against me from all sides. I couldn't... I couldn't hold my breath any longer. I pushed myself towards the surface, the cool air kissing my face as I gasped for breath. I was alone in this blue void. Alone. The tall-legged boy had vanished. He'd been overwhelmed by the void.