❛ been drowning in that sea
of broken vows. ❜
⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯
"SO WHAT IS THIS?" Ronnie inquires, sniffing the unpalatable scent of the pile of food that sat on her plate. She was sitting down at the round table, observing as River stood at the stove whisking some undetectable ingredients together.
River chortles, finding amusement in her hesitant manner. He picks up the spoon and places a small amount of the food onto another plate, grabbing it and sitting in the chair athwart from hers. "It's Lentil - Squash stew. I picked up the recipe from a cookbook I read awhile back and I've been making it ever since." He explains, grabbing ahold of his spoon and helping himself to the delicious meal.
After their small, informal dispute earlier the two of them reconciled and River set aside his worried concerns. They proceeded through their conversations—which he was grateful for because he would've never forgiven himself if their friendship ended because of his insecurities.
They just sat in the living room on his couch, talking for hours about any topic that came to mind; mostly about their childhoods. He learned that she was an older sister to two younger brothers, her mother worked at a law firm while her father practiced as a dental hygienist. He was ashamed to reveal his background—their lives transcended so differently, she came from wealth and a stable family while he on the other hand did not.
Ronnie, however entailed him that he could share only what he felt comfortable with her knowing. She knew that it obviously was a sore subject to him that he at the moment didn't want to divulge too deeply into. He had a long history - that he wasn't sure she could handle. Not now.
So he only informed her about the minimal details; them moving around a lot, him having to share his bedroom with his siblings, the unfortunate bullying he encountered in school and of course, his decision about becoming a vegan.
Her curiosity about his eating choices enabled him to cook up a meal for them to eat. "You can cook too, is there anything you can't do?" Ronnie retorts jovially, grasping the cold metallic silver of the spoon and scooping up a small portion of the stew.
"Oh believe me—there are a lot of things that I'm unskilled at but living by yourself for almost five years, you kinda have to learn how to adapt. You know?"
She smiles, shaking her head inwardly as she picks up another piece of steamed carrot. "I've been living alone for three years and I still do not know how to cook anything besides spaghetti. I basically live off of takeout."
"Well. Maybe I could come over sometime and give you a lesson?" He offered, peering over at her and instantly taking notice of the widened smile that beamed on her lips. He had to divert his eyes away because the way that she was staring at him made his heart flutter and his palms sweaty. She was undeniably beautiful without trying to be and that, in ways, was going to be one of River's biggest challenges.
"Yeah, I'd love that."
Dinner concluded with them engaging in small conversations. They were done and the two of them—much to her protest cleaned up the kitchen together. Ronnie offered to do it herself as a courtesy since he cooked dinner but he refused, stating that there was no way he was going to allow a guest to clean up.
Now, tired and full from earlier activities, they were sitting on the couch again this time with their attention glued to the television screen. A movie was playing, some horror movie that Ronnie suggested. He sat on one end of the couch with his feet propped up against the coffee table. A few feet beside him sat Ronnie.
River was so engaged into the movie albeit horror movies wasn't his favorite genre that he didn't notice the quiet shivering of Ronnie's body and the chattering of her teeth. "Are you cold? Do you need a blanket?" He gets up and retrieves a blanket without waiting for a response. He disappears down the hall and returns with a blanket, draping it across Ronnie's lap before plopping back down on the couch.
"Sorry." She mumbles, wrapping the warm blanket around her body, offering him a sheepish smile. "I get cold very easily."
"It's okay." He replied.
♡
One hand propped against his head while the other rested in his lap. His eyes were still gazing at the screen, focusing on the movie that played in front of him. It was quiet, other than the sounds coming from the screen. He looks out from his peripheral vision—sneaking a quick glance at Ronnie.
He shifts his eyes away, hurriedly after seeing her glance in his direction. It shouldn't be this awkward for him, they were only watching a movie and she wasn't even sitting close to him yet he couldn't help the nervousness that transcended into his body.
He felt jittery—he'd never had a girl over at his apartment before let alone at this late of an hour. He was getting nervous again which meant that sooner or later he was going to start stuttering or do something else that would only end up embarrassing him again.
"River?" She calls after him, staring at him with worry creasing in her pupils. "You okay?" It still amazed him how she was always the one that took notice of the simple things; like knowing if something was bothering him.
"Yeah. Yeah, just thinking about something that's all." His poker face must've not been too convincing because at this, Ronnie reaches forward and grabs ahold of the remote. She presses pause before shifting her body towards his.
"Are you sure? I mean I don't want to pry or anything but if you need to talk, I'm here to listen." She informs him, surely. He nods because he knows it's true they've only held a handful of conversations with one another but each time they have, she was always attentive—listening and not being judgmental. River told her a few things that he never told anyone else, not even Teddy. But this - his secretive and still developing crush on her was something that he could never tell her about.
"No, I know. But I'm good, I promise."
He could still see that she was still hesitantly debating if she believed him or not but ultimately she had decided to let it go and returned her focal attention back to the movie. River exhaled a relieved breath, grateful that she didn't pressure him into revealing his truth.
It wasn't until the middle of the movie 'til he started to be consumed with timidity again. River was sitting there, attempting to pay attention to the movie when he felt Ronnie's body begin to shift over in his direction. She moved closely towards him until her body presses against his, their knees brushing slightly. Her head rested against his shoulder.
She peers up at him, gazing through her long eyelashes. "Is this okay?" She whispers lowly, as if she were afraid of speaking too loudly.
River gulps thickly, managing to respond with a nod of his head not yet trusting his mouth to form coherent words at the moment. She looks at him with another smile before turning back to the screen. She was so close to him—her body against his, warm, small. She smelled incredible like vanilla and her hair; thick and raven tickled at his nostrils.
He tried not to acknowledge the fact of how perfectly her body seemed to mold against his, it fit like it was made just for him. Which he thought sounded stupid and slightly creepy. But God, just having her so close to him like this with her head secured against him made him oddly feel—at peace and he never wanted this moment to end.
