Caleb's POV
"So this is Leo's idea of romance?" She asked once the damned cake was safely tucked into the refrigerator and away from the sight.
It was difficult to convince Ruth to not click a picture of it and post it on some social media, but once I threatened to leave a mushy, embarrassingly long comment filled with hearts and kisses emoticons on that post, she relented.
"Yeah. No. Actually, I don't know if it was romance he was aiming for, or was just trying to get a rise out of me." I sat in my chair, trying to make a dent in the stack of pancakes as Ruth sipped her coffee.
"And the flowers?"
"That was all him too. My idea of romance is not so flashy." I admitted, once I finished chewing.
She tilted her head and replied, "what's your idea of romance then?"
Her cheeks were flushed again, but this time it didn't seem like it was weather's doing.
I stared at her for a moment, then got up from my chair and walked up to the side table that held the extravagant bouquet in question.
I held her gaze and plucked a single rose from the bunch, then dropped onto one knee next to her chair, making her eyes widen in surprise.
"This is my idea of romance," I stroked the flower on her rosy cheek, then dragged it onto her lower lip. I paused there for a moment holding it against her lips, then placed a light kiss on the other side of the rose.
"Flashy and generalized display of affection feels too impersonal to me. Subtle and personal, that's my kind of romance. Got it?" I murmured, then presented the rose to her. She took it, looking dazed. I couldn't stop myself from leaning in and stealing a soft, suckling kiss from her but she sighed and pulled away.
"Got it," she replied softly, before blinking once and coming out of her trance. I stood up, and walked back to my chair again and she cleared her throat.
"So, what's your favourite colour, other than black?"
*
We spent the rest of the morning and most of the afternoon swapping mundane information about ourselves while keeping a safe distance from each other.
Ruth insisted on making us lunch since I had made her breakfast and we had delicious Danish omlette while watching the storm rage outside, sitting side-by-side on her spare chairs near the window.
The closest we dared to come to each other was her leaning against my arm and watching the raindrops beat against the window panes, but even though I had wanted to, I didn't pull her any closer or initiate anything more than a few loving pecks on her forehead.
It wasn't that my craving for her has reduced even marginally, or that I wasn't determined to see through what we had started.
It was just that spending these moments with her felt more precious than any other physical act. The way her eyes would light up when she would discover something new about me, or disclosed something about her, would make my heart flutter in a weird way.
It was a heady feeling, a new experience. And I felt greedy, wanting to relish this feeling of not having to worry about heavier realities a little more. It was our moment. A safe bubble away from the world.
"So, wait. You really used to get anxiety attacks in flight?" She asked, peering over her shoulder to look at me while she finished up cleaning the dishes.
"Yeah, and cars too. But you already knew that," I replied from my place where I was leaning against the kitchen counter opposite to her. I was willing to keep distance with her, but not willing to stay that far away.
"Not 'knew'. You shared that information with me while getting intoxicated on a plane and simultaneously drugging me. How do you expect me to believe anything you tell me in the face of those facts?"
"Hey, I was just trying to help."
"By drugging me? Its illegal. And immoral."
"Sue me, Brooke."
She snorted, then continued on her line of questions. "So how old were you when these attacks stopped?"
"Around when I was 12, probably 13. But everyone else believes it was after the acc—" I stopped short just as her phone rang. It was a perfect timing too, to make me realise what I was about to say.
She dried her hands and made a universal gesture of 'just a sec.' I smiled at her absent-mindedly, but my mind was elsewhere.
I had never talked about that accident to anyone. Not to Leo, not to the numerous psychiatrists that I saw over the years, and certainly not to my father. It was partly because even the mention of that time made me break out a cold sweat and shiver. And partly because I still had no idea why I reacted the way I did.
It wasn't easy to let people see just how insane I was to be tortured by an incident that I didn't even remember. All I knew was that some buried instinct told me to not scratch that scabbed wound, and so I never did.
But today I was about to mention it so casually as if I was about to talk of the weather forcast. Was it The Ruth Effect? Or was it my feelings, my trust for her that made me so comfortable with her that I was unknowingly about to share one of my darkest memories with her?
Or was it just that the scabs I was so afraid to scratch were all healed by now and I just never realised it? I suppose it was a possibility considering I didn't even remember why I had them to begin with.
I turned away from my staring spot above the sink to look at Ruth, still lost in thoughts. She stood some distance away from me in the living room with her phone pressed to her ear and her back to me.
I took a moment to admire her from a distance, especially when she was unaware of my attention on her, and had to admit that she certainly had an effect on me, some places more than others.
And I had no doubt in my mind that I loved and trusted her, more than anyone else I had ever known. But did I trust her enough to tell her things that I had never dared to share even with myself?
And more importantly, did she love me enough to stick around after listening to the mess that was my mental and emotional state? I didn't know that yet. Not consciously, atleast.
I watched her massage her temples with one hand and grip her phone tight with her other as she spoke to someone in a low voice and blinked out of my reverie.
So lost in my thoughts I was that it took me more than a few moments to notice the tension that had settled in her shoulders. Whoever she was speaking to was clearly distressing her, and my protective instincts woke up.
Who the hell was making her so uncomfortable that she was practically twitching with restlessness? I pushed away from the counter I was leaning on and started towards her. I was all for letting her have her privacy and all, but if someone was harrassing her then I'll—
"As you wish. Bye." She disconnected the call and turned just as I came close enough to listen to her. I paused a few feet away from her and she blinked in surprise to find me standing suddenly so close to her.
"Everything okay?" I asked, watching her slowly pull herself together.
"Yeah, everything is okay. Why won't it be?" There was a slight tightness in her smile that wasn't there earlier.
"That looked intense," I gestured towards her phone that she was still gripping a little too tightly.
"Family. They are always a little intense, aren't they?" She shrugged, but I could still see some tightness in her shoulder. But before I could probe any more, her phone rang again.
"And speaking of family," she turned her phone towards me as she spoke, showing Leo's name flashing on her screen, before she answered.
"Hey Leo!" Ruth smiled broadly, eying my scowl at her cheerful greeting. She listened for a moment, then raised her brows in surprise as she looked up at me.
"Yeah, he is right here," my scowl deepened when she giggled at something Leo said again, and took a seat on the arm of one of the chairs before replying.
"Alright, if you're sure," she looked up at me as she tapped something on her screen, and a moment later Leo's voice boomed through the speaker.
"Hey, lill brother. Long time, no word," I walked around Ruth while rolling my eyes at his words and plopped down on the same chair that she was leaning against.
"What do you want, Leo?" I replied as I pulled Ruth down from her perch on the arm and onto my lap.
Her weight settled deliciously against me and I relished in the way she squirmed in her seat and got comfortable without a slightest bit of hesitation.
"Just wanted to know a couple of things, brother O' mine."
"Then know them, and get lost again," I grumbled as I held onto Ruth's waist and nuzzled against her cheek and hairline softly.
She sighed and moved, and the movement made her slip off my lap a little, making me hold onto her more firmly.
Leo was cutting into my time with Ruth, and I wanted to get rid of him as soon as I could possibly manage.
She really felt perfect on my lap, and in my arms, fitting against my body like a matching piece of puzzle. The thought was enough to distract me away from Leo's question but then he spoke up again.
"Alrighty then. Ruth, did your friend ever made it back alive from her adventure?"
I tensed at his question, having totally forgotten about Shy. For all I knew, the poor girl was roaming the streets in this weather while we were warm and cuddled up in here.
I lifted my head to look at Ruth's reaction, but she stayed calm and relaxed as she answered.
"She isn't back yet. But she is alive and left a message on my phone at noon to wish me for my birthday and warned that she will be coming home by evening."
"She is? She did? She wi—, I mean, cool then. Moving on."
Leo sounded relieved and for once, I felt like we were on the same wavelength. But that didn't mean I was going to let this opportunity slip by.
Sufficiently reassured about Ruth's friend now, I focused my attention on more entertaining things, like getting a rise out of my cousin.
"Why Leo, do I have to get used to sharing a spotlight with Shy from now on? Is looking out for me and only me no longer your singular goal in life anymore?"
Ruth snorted then caught hold of my shoulder as she slipped off from my lap a little again, and I moved to adjust her more securely in her spot while playfully winking at her. That playfulness, however, got wiped off when Leo spoke again.
"Aw, don't be jealous, ma boy. It's not like I've forgotten you. Now, tell me lill one, are you still wearing that same, unwashed knickers that you've been wearing since yesterday morning?"
This time Ruth burst out with laughter and slipped around on my lap rather uncomfortably. I held her steady and glared at her in warning, then turned to growl into her phone.
"Bite me, asshole."
"Not until you've atleast taken a bath, love. Haven't put dirt in my mouth since second grade."
"Ew, you used to put dirt in your mouth in second grade?" Ruth wrinkled her nose.
"We are boys, Ruth." Leo replied, as if that explained everything, and then continued onto me undistracted.
"Tell you what Caleb, you go home, take a bath, basically try to resemble a human again and then we'll talk more about it, yeah?"
I opened my mouth to tell him just where to shove his advice, but Ruth spoke up before I could.
"Now that you mention it, you really have been smelling like a stale beer barn, instead of your usual intoxicating scent, Caleb." Her eyes sparkled with mischief as she said this, and for a moment, I let it slide that they were both ganging up on me.
"So you think my normal scent is intoxicating?" I gave her a contemplating look and tightened my grip on her waist. But before she could answer, Leo butted in again.
"Out of all the things that you could have been doing while being all alone in a house, you guys have chosen to sniff each other. Lovely."
"Fuck off, Leo. I don't need to go home to shower. Just send me some clothes so I can shower and change here, and I'll be fine."
"I'm sorry, but did you mistake me for your manservant? The best you can hope for is me sending you a car to chauffeur you to your house where you can pack yourself an overnight bag while Ruth does the same at hers. And then—"
"Wait, a minute. I pack an overnight bag? For what?" Ruth cut his indignant speech off and voiced the same question that I had in my mind.
"Now that's a surprise, honey." Leo sounded satisfied, as if he had us exactly where he wanted us to be. "Think of it as a birthday gift from me, yeah?"
"Another one? I don't know if it can top the cake, Leo." Her words made me roll my eyes again. I didn't want to go anywhere else.
I knew for a fact that this place, our bubble, was more than enough to keep me content for a few centuries, but no matter how much of a fight I put up against Leo deciding the course of our evening, the sparkle of excitement in Ruth's eyes had already made the decision for me.
"By the way, thanks a lot for that," I barely refrained from cussing again at the mention of that damned cake, but Leo defended himself nonetheless.
"What? You said you hate chocolate. Anyway, this is the least I could do to be in a running, what with Caleb gifting himself to you and all."
"Watch it, Leo." my voice held a clear warning, especially when I saw pink tinge Ruth's cheeks at his choice of words. Call me crazy, but I didn't relish the thought of Leo, or anyone else, making Ruth blush like that.
"I wish I could, Caleb. Now, your car will be there in 10 minutes." Leo was unfazed, being totally used to my volatile threats by now.
"Wait, I never said yes, Leo."
"Probably because I never asked, Caleb. And while you're at home, try and find your damned phone, and keep it on you. Its annoying when I can't get a hold of you with a single tap of my thumb."
"You suddenly seem like the bossier one out of the two, Leo." Ruth observed with a hint of surprise in her voice.
"I'm also the better one out of the two, if you're comparing, honey. Oh, and remember to pack safe and be safe, kids. Its always wise to keep some handy, yeah?"
"I swear to God—"
The line went dead before I could finish my threat and for a moment we were left to stare at the each other in silence.
I had no idea what was going to happen tonight, or where Leo had planned to send us, but his words had done the trick.
The comfortable vibe we had going on the whole day was slowly dissipating and a delicious tension was filling in between us again.
Suddenly, Ruth snuggled up against me on my lap felt too intimate, instead of sweet and lighthearted gesture that it had felt like a few minutes ago.
I swallowed hard, as I tried to think of something to say just to fill the deafening silence that suddenly blanketed us, but came up dead.
Now that the idea of what tonight could bring was firmly planted in my hand, I was having difficulty in just looking at her without heat flaring up in my belly
And I knew that Ruth felt the same nervousness that I did, because when the loud noise of door getting pushed open suddenly sounded, she jumped hard and tried to get off my lap at the same time.
And in her hurry, she slid off my lap and onto the floor on all fours, just as Shy stepped inside the house, looking like a drowned cat.
"Ou—."
"Ru—"
Shy paused on the threshold, taking in my body's awkward bent over position over Ruth's to catch hold of her while she was on the floor, stuck on her hands and knees in the tight space between coffee table and the chair, and raised her brows.
"Bad timing?"