Status: Unfinished and won't be updated.
Time After Time
Ninth
Three days later, Gustav told Rose that he felt good and strong enough to go back live in his own. Beside, the reparation of his house was almost finished, so they agreed that he can go back tomorrow. Rose felt slightly sad and also angry to think that she couldn't have Gustav in her place again, but then she knew that she was also happy to know that he was healthy again.
On the afternoon, after they checked how was the reparation going, they walked home with Lestat ran around their legs. Rose was in a pretty good mood to know that at least that Granny Flat was now a decent place to live.
"Do you know where to buy good and cheap fruit and vegetable? I'll show you where when you're feeling better," said Rose.
Gustav chuckled, "I'm completely healthy now."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. I'm completely fine. I'm healthy and I'm happy… now that the house won't make me ill anymore."
Rose didn't reply. That wasn't exactly what she expect to hear. And that might showed clearly on her face, because then Gustav, who opened the door for her, said, "Rose, when I said I'm fine, it means I'm fine. I know that you're a very kind person, but… really… I'm okay. It kind of worries me to see you look at me as if I'm about to break and you need to prevent that to happen…"
"I'm not… I'm sorry… I'm sorry if that discomforts you…" Rose could feel her face getting red all over again.
Gustav smiled, "That's alright. Think about yourself as well, okay?"
Rose nodded and he ruffled her red hair a little. She felt like she just skipped one heartbeat when he did that and glad to notice that Gustav didn't really see (or maybe didn't really mind) with her smiling too much or having her face getting red all the time.
That night, after the finished two plates of spaghetti, they decided to spent that night sleeping in different sofa in the living room. Gustav hated that idea as first, but then he said that it's okay for only one night. After Rose turned off all the lamp on the house, they could only see each other's silhouette by soft moon light that shines through the window.
Lestat was making funny sound in his sleep and both Gustav and Rose chuckled.
"Was he always like that?" Gustav was still chuckling.
Rose chuckled, "Almost every single night. It makes me feel comfortable and safe, though."
"Why is that…?"
"Because… because you can hear that you're not alone. Like when I'm staying at my friend's house, I'm actually comfortable when I heard someone is snoring. I know they're alive and they're there… so… you know."
Gustav mumbled. He sounded sleepy, "I see…"
"Mm hm," Rose was mumbling as well.
For a while, all they could hear was the sound of wind brushing the trees outside.
"Hey Rose…?" he called her name and she smiled in the darkness. She always felt special when he pronounced her name.
"Yeah?"
"Do you know that if you're open up too much, people can fall in and hurt themselves?" 1
"What…?"
"I don't know…" he didn't sound sleepy anymore. "But I think there's a considerable probability that you will get hurt a lot if you care too much about someone else. You don't wanna get hurt, do you?"
"N-no… I guess?" Rose didn't exactly understand where was this going. She felt as if she knew something, but there was something missing. Something that she wasn't quite understand yet. Something might lead her to understand why Gustav was sad. She had stopped thinking to change him into happy person. No one can change someone else. You can help them, understand them, but change is something they decided themselves.
She asked abruptly, "Did I hurt you, Gustav…?"
"What? No… I'm just worried about you, you know?"
Gustav? Worried about me?
"What are you talking about? I think I'm happy, I'm fine."
"That's why…" she could hear him sighed. "That's why I don't want you to fall in and hurt yourself."
Then she knew that he was talking about him. He was indirectly told her that there was some part of him that might get her 'fall in' and then she might get hurt. But Rose hated the idea. He was so sad. He made her so happy. So what's wrong with returning the favor? How could he be so sad and so kind that he could still be worried about someone's else when she could clearly see that he was holding a pain?
Rose was about to ask, 'What if I wanna fall in and get hurt? What if I can help you?' but she was afraid that those words will send Gustav away from her. She wanted to cry again, but she resisted the temptation to cry.
"… thank you, Gustav," Rose whispered.
She could hear Gustav smirked as he said, "Good girl. Now you need to get your beauty sleep."
"What beauty sleep?" Rose chuckled. "… good night, Gustav."
"Good night, Rose."
She turned her back on him and held back her tears. That night, she dreamt about the words Gustav said to her a few days ago.
'Do you know who I am, Rose?'
'Well… you're Gustav.'
'Just Gustav?'
1 'If you open up too much, people can fall in and hurt themselves.' taken from "I Wrote This For You: The Beautiful Trap", accessed 28/12/2012, http://www.iwrotethisforyou.me/2012/03/beautiful-trap.html
On the afternoon, after they checked how was the reparation going, they walked home with Lestat ran around their legs. Rose was in a pretty good mood to know that at least that Granny Flat was now a decent place to live.
"Do you know where to buy good and cheap fruit and vegetable? I'll show you where when you're feeling better," said Rose.
Gustav chuckled, "I'm completely healthy now."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. I'm completely fine. I'm healthy and I'm happy… now that the house won't make me ill anymore."
Rose didn't reply. That wasn't exactly what she expect to hear. And that might showed clearly on her face, because then Gustav, who opened the door for her, said, "Rose, when I said I'm fine, it means I'm fine. I know that you're a very kind person, but… really… I'm okay. It kind of worries me to see you look at me as if I'm about to break and you need to prevent that to happen…"
"I'm not… I'm sorry… I'm sorry if that discomforts you…" Rose could feel her face getting red all over again.
Gustav smiled, "That's alright. Think about yourself as well, okay?"
Rose nodded and he ruffled her red hair a little. She felt like she just skipped one heartbeat when he did that and glad to notice that Gustav didn't really see (or maybe didn't really mind) with her smiling too much or having her face getting red all the time.
That night, after the finished two plates of spaghetti, they decided to spent that night sleeping in different sofa in the living room. Gustav hated that idea as first, but then he said that it's okay for only one night. After Rose turned off all the lamp on the house, they could only see each other's silhouette by soft moon light that shines through the window.
Lestat was making funny sound in his sleep and both Gustav and Rose chuckled.
"Was he always like that?" Gustav was still chuckling.
Rose chuckled, "Almost every single night. It makes me feel comfortable and safe, though."
"Why is that…?"
"Because… because you can hear that you're not alone. Like when I'm staying at my friend's house, I'm actually comfortable when I heard someone is snoring. I know they're alive and they're there… so… you know."
Gustav mumbled. He sounded sleepy, "I see…"
"Mm hm," Rose was mumbling as well.
For a while, all they could hear was the sound of wind brushing the trees outside.
"Hey Rose…?" he called her name and she smiled in the darkness. She always felt special when he pronounced her name.
"Yeah?"
"Do you know that if you're open up too much, people can fall in and hurt themselves?" 1
"What…?"
"I don't know…" he didn't sound sleepy anymore. "But I think there's a considerable probability that you will get hurt a lot if you care too much about someone else. You don't wanna get hurt, do you?"
"N-no… I guess?" Rose didn't exactly understand where was this going. She felt as if she knew something, but there was something missing. Something that she wasn't quite understand yet. Something might lead her to understand why Gustav was sad. She had stopped thinking to change him into happy person. No one can change someone else. You can help them, understand them, but change is something they decided themselves.
She asked abruptly, "Did I hurt you, Gustav…?"
"What? No… I'm just worried about you, you know?"
Gustav? Worried about me?
"What are you talking about? I think I'm happy, I'm fine."
"That's why…" she could hear him sighed. "That's why I don't want you to fall in and hurt yourself."
Then she knew that he was talking about him. He was indirectly told her that there was some part of him that might get her 'fall in' and then she might get hurt. But Rose hated the idea. He was so sad. He made her so happy. So what's wrong with returning the favor? How could he be so sad and so kind that he could still be worried about someone's else when she could clearly see that he was holding a pain?
Rose was about to ask, 'What if I wanna fall in and get hurt? What if I can help you?' but she was afraid that those words will send Gustav away from her. She wanted to cry again, but she resisted the temptation to cry.
"… thank you, Gustav," Rose whispered.
She could hear Gustav smirked as he said, "Good girl. Now you need to get your beauty sleep."
"What beauty sleep?" Rose chuckled. "… good night, Gustav."
"Good night, Rose."
She turned her back on him and held back her tears. That night, she dreamt about the words Gustav said to her a few days ago.
'Do you know who I am, Rose?'
'Well… you're Gustav.'
'Just Gustav?'
1 'If you open up too much, people can fall in and hurt themselves.' taken from "I Wrote This For You: The Beautiful Trap", accessed 28/12/2012, http://www.iwrotethisforyou.me/2012/03/beautiful-trap.html
♠ ♠ ♠
A little note here. You don't have to read this if you don't feel like it and you might not agree to this, but the reason why I didn't make them suddenly bonded and Gustav is happy pretty quickly is because I'm not very happy when there's a story where someone can "change" someone else's condition pretty easily and or quickly our without proper timing and or strong, logical reason behind that. Of course, in real life, you can't really change people. But I believe that basically, people are people. Everyone would be happy to be loved. They just have different kind of circumstances in their life.