𝒓𝒚𝒂𝒏'𝒔 𝒑𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘

BEFORE EITHER OF US could say a single word, I engulfed the boy into a large embrace.

His lengthy arms wrapped around my waist firmly. Louis pulled my body closer to his. Wrapping my arms around his neck, his signature scent flooded my nostrils. I had to stand up on my tippy toes slightly from him being taller. He crooked his head farther into my neck.

"Your hair smells good," Louis muttered, causing me to laugh. I don't know if I was supposed to hear that or not.

My bare legs were swarmed by the outside wind from us standing in the doorway. Chill bumps planted all across them, causing me to shiver, but that was my least care in the world.

The two of us rocked back-in-forth playfully. I could feel him rub the back of my head.

Louis grabbed ahold of me tighter and tighter. Tapping his back slightly, I tried signaling him that I couldn't breathe. His laugh breathed against the top of my head.

His body against mine felt warm surprisingly, considering the outside weather wasn't the hottest. It felt cozy though. I don't recall ever hugging Louis other than one time before, but I already fancied his embrace.

The pit in my stomach grew larger. I felt anxious, yet thrilled since he was here.

Before we both tore apart the hug, I felt him pick me up off the floor lightly and twirled us in a circle. A small chuckle left my lips and I unwrapped my arms from around his neck.

Louis' arms left my waist before he closed the door we were standing in a few seconds ago. It caused my body to start to warm up from the thermostat being so high. I pulled my dress down my thighs, once again, being self conscious slightly.

His outfit was more formal than what he usually wore around me. It contained a beige plaid blazer, with a white button-up underneath. He left a few buttons open though, which made it easier to see his thin silver chain wrapped around his neck.

"You're such a dork," I joked making Louis laugh. "I should've known you were going to come." He rolled his chestnut eyes at me.

The boy towered over me, since he was 6 ft and I was a little under 5'4. He smirked at me and put his hands into his front pockets. "Your mum knew the entire time." I raised my eyebrows.

My mind was confused, considering my mother has never been the best secret keeper. Along with my father as well. That includes Christmas presents, trip surprises, etc. They get too excited too early and end up telling us. It's quite amusing really, but they try their best and that's all that matters.

I already knew she was jumping up and down in excitement for keeping it for God knows how long.

"That doesn't sound like my mom."

He snickered and shook his head at me.

My ignorant self should've known though. My parents have acted too suspicious recently, of course, and Louis has been sort of distant. I'm usually smart enough to put two and two together, but not this time.

His brunette messy hair flowed across his forehead whenever he shook his head.

"Are you ready?" I raised my eyebrow once again, but nodded "yes" anyways.

Even though I started to warm up, wearing a dress wasn't the best plan. But, going upstairs to change into an entire new outfit sounds tiring. Or to even grab a jacket. I would rather be chilly.

The two of us opened the front door, and the wave of Californian breeze washed upon our bodies. My Converse shoes tapped against the wooden porch.

And just as I thought, my mother had the front porch railing decorated with white Christmas lights. There was a faux light-up red and green presents at the bottom of the steps. On almost every window, there was some type of wreath with red and black plaid ribbons wrapped into them. My mother had to make sure it was the most wonderful time of the year at the Darr Family Farms.

But, most likely, she wasn't even half-way finished.

Louis quickly ran up towards a familiar turquoise Chevy pick up truck parked in the gravel driveway. I furrowed my eyebrows and followed behind him.

He cleared his throat, "I sorta met your grandfather 10 minutes ago and he insisted we drove his truck." My lips formed into a smile. The boy opened the passenger side door open for me, jokingly.

"I'm being a gentleman for once, hurry, it's cold." He tapped his feet against the gravel dramatically.

Laughing, I hoped into the truck I remember riding in ever since I was a little girl.

Whenever Louis informed me that my grandfather insisted on driving it, I was quite surprised. Considering his famous blue Chevy is his pride and joy. My family is convinced he loved it more than his own blood children. So, him wanting Louis to drive it is honestly an honor.

"Thank you, Mr.Partridge." I added, receiving an eye-roll from Louis in return. Before he closed the door, he bowed dramatically at me.

I took a seat, buckled up, and crossed my legs. I sat in the middle leather seat. Since sitting in the actual passenger seat would be too awkward and I liked being in the middle anyways. A few seconds went by and the driver's side door opened to Louis.

"Since when do you know how to drive?" I teased. He sat down and I felt his thigh touch mine.

"Since I got my license, you smartass." Louis retorted, pulling on his seatbelt as he switched on the ignition.

He drove off, leaving my family's home behind in the process. The sound of tires driving against the gravel whistled throughout the air.

I didn't ask too many questions as to where we were going.

Mostly, Louis was a good driver. Better than how my brother drives, or how I drive honestly.

The truck he borrowed looked as if it was brand new, even though my grandfather purchased it around the time he met my grandmother. It looked as if he cleaned it every single day since he bought it. That wasn't the case however. He just took really good care of it and it's something I admired.

In about 20 minutes, I recognized the part of my county we were in.

We didn't stay on the highway for much longer. I was guessing the place Louis was taking me, he hadn't been to before, considering he had a gps on his phone in placed in his lap.

We arrived to a private beach, a place that I recognized dearly due to my parents taking my siblings and I to it multiple times when we were children.

Louis drove into parts of the sand, which is most likely illegal but since it was 8:56 at night and no one was around, I figured we were fine.

Switching off the ignition, he looked over at me. "Don't get out!"

The boy quickly opened his driver's door, closing it soon after. After a few seconds, I watched the passenger's side door open once again. I rolled my eyes at the boy.

He opened his arm, signaling me to get out.

"You're literally a dork." I confirmed, causing Louis to laugh. I hopped out of the truck, trying not to make my dress rise in the process. "Thank you."

Nodding, he lead me to the bed of the truck. The boy opened the tailgate, almost jamming his fingers in the process.

My eyes averted to the thick blankets and pillows placed behind him. A little relief went over me, since the ocean breeze made my cold body 10x worse.

And I hopped up on the tailgate, Louis following in my footsteps.

"Thank you for coming." Moving my eyes over to him, I watched him grin at me.

The smell of ocean water and breeze lingered throughout my nostrils. The atmosphere that surrounded us was so calming, yet my heart was still beating so fast from nervousness. I watched the peaceful waves wash back in forth from the shore.

Even though it was winter, the beach in front of us was still beautiful as ever. This season was my close favorite, even though I didn't get to see its true colors while living in California. Louis is truly lucky, with him living in a place that shows winter's full abilities.

"I was going to come the entire time, ya know?" Louis spoke up, resting his hands on either side of him. I giggled quietly, shaking my head. "No, but I'm glad you did."

My attention went back onto the shore in front of us. The dark sky above us shined down, making the calming waters gleam brightly. The sky was full of stars, making the appearance so much better.

Clearing his throat, he admitted, "Do you wanna know why I actually came though?" I turned my head back at him, his eyes were planted on the sky.

"Because I'm amazing, of course." The British boy rolled his eyes at me, along with giving me a laugh. Shaking his head, he took a minute to think about what his next words were going to be.

"Well yeah, of course," I watched him grab a blanket from behind us and set it in his lap. "But, I realized some things."

Raising my eyebrow, I took a pillow and set it behind me. I laid back onto the cold metal truck bed, which was uncomfortable but the pillows and blankets made it somewhat better. He turned his head back at me, his lips formed into a small grin.

I felt him approach me softly. He rested his body next to mine, our shoulders touching in the process. My eyes scattered to the thousands of stars that watched over us. Each of them weren't the same shape or didn't have the same brightness.

The moon was brighter than what I've ever seen before. It was almost too bright for my eyes, but I loved looking at it.

"What's that?" I questioned him. The only sounds I could recall were the waves rolling into the shore, and his heart beating so fast I was convinced it was going to pop out of his chest. "That I was a dick to you."

Accidentally laughing, I quickly covered my mouth with my hand a little too hard. Louis chuckled as well. I shook my head at him, even though he probably couldn't see.

"No, what do you-"

He interrupted my comment, "Don't even fib, it's true. Millie made me realize that me talking about Claire constantly was probably annoying or hurting you."

The girl beside me gulped loud enough for me to hear it, but I don't think that was her intention. Resting my hands under my head, I waited for her response.

"Why would it hurt me?" I could practically feel her grinning at me, even though my eyes weren't on her. My mouth became dry and my mind went empty. This girl was such a tease, she knew what she was doing.

Moving my head towards her, her eyes were already on mine. I already knew my face was flushed, but I don't know if she could tell or not due to the dark sky above us.

I shrugged my shoulders at her, "I don't know, I was just saying-"

Her amusing laugh ended my nervous statement.

"I was joking, Louis." I knew she was, but the girl beside me made me so anxious that I watched every sentence I spoke to her.

Honestly, this nervousness never happens when I'm around girls, even Claire. I'm usually the most extroverted person people knew, until it came down to Ryan. Which was confusing and I didn't know the answer why.

Considering she's the one of the only people I truly trust, I brought up the courage to inform her about the past events with Claire. I should've told her sooner though honestly. But, since I'm with her in real life, side by side, I felt safer.

I muttered out of the blue, "I let go of Claire, finally. She came to my house and I blew up on her, which probably wasn't the best thing to do but I couldn't control myself." A quiet gasp entered my ears. I felt her eyes burn through my skin practically.

"That's a good thing, right?"

Looking over towards the girl once again, I nodded my head "yes." A smile curled into her lips. "I'm proud of you." Ryan clapped her hands quietly.

I couldn't help but smile at her, hearing the words "I'm proud" over something like this warmed my soul. Especially when it came from the one girl who's opinion started to matter the most to me.

Even though I definitely didn't listen to her opinion beforehand.

Most likely if I paid more attention to the corrections Ryan gave me, I wouldn't be as hurt from the torture Claire put me through. She was only trying to help me, but I ignored it. And I continued to try to beg the blonde to love me and be there for me.

Coming into the acting industry, I wasn't scared of falling in love before. I thought that girls were pleasant enough to not use me for my account numbers or my popularity points. It's sad I even have to worry about it, but I've started to worry about it more since meeting Claire.

At the beginning of our relationship, she was an angel you could say. Her follower account was about 24k on Tiktok, which wasn't a huge amount but still a lot. The girl seemed sweet, innocent even. I fell in love with her charm.

As months went by, I found myself being saddened a lot more than I did before. The reasoning of that was because of the manipulative girl who I thought loved every bit of me like I thought I loved her.

Obviously, that wasn't the case though.

But, as soon as I met Millie, she brought me out of some of that sadness. The filming of Enola Holmes was enjoyable, but still in the back of my mind cascaded with thoughts about the dumb blonde.

I'm starting to work on myself more and more. Even though I've technically "let go" of her, I haven't let go of that pain that's deep down inside.

"What are you thinking about?" Ryan questioned me, bringing me out of a trance. Biting my lip slightly, I tried answering her.

Clearing my throat, I stated, "I get so lonely I forget what I'm worth."

I felt her scoot closer to me. My glance didn't leave the airspace.

"Staying with her was easier, Ryan. I felt if I told her what she was doing wrong, she would blow up on me and not want to be with me anymore," I mumbled. "But she still didn't want to be with me either way, so I couldn't really do anything, so-" My statement was ended by me snickering.

Ryan laughed along with me, but her laugh soon ended. "That's why I didn't tell you I was upset." I raised my eyebrow. My attention moved on her instead of the sky.

The look I gave her was filled with confusion, which signaled her to finish her comments.

Sighing, she sputtered, "I was upset, kind of, but I wasn't going to tell you because I didn't want you to be upset."

My heart saddened slightly. I wished I realized my wrong-doings sooner, way sooner.

"Why would I be upset from you informing me what I'm doing wrong? There's nothing wrong with that, Ryan." Her face dropped from me raising my
voice sort of, which wasn't what I was planning on doing. "Cause not every teenage boy is mature like you, Louis! It's weird actually talking to a guy who acknowledges what they wrong."

A sigh left my mouth.

I didn't know if she was upset, because if she liked me, or if me venting about Claire constantly was annoying. Either way, I was sorry and I wanted her
to know that.

"Let's stop talking about it, it's your birthday. It's not about me." Ryan rolled her eyes.

I stammered, "I'm sorry." The girl's lips formed into a small grin. "I know."

No matter how many times I could say sorry, none of it could change how bad I hurt her. But, I hoped I made it up to her slightly by coming and staying for the rest of the month.

Teasing, I smirked, "I wouldn't just fly to another continent for anyone, ya know?" Ryan smiled harder than ever, her dimples deepening in the process.

Talking to her make me feel as if I was painting my
emotions on her blank canvas. The girl was such a great listener, and I admired her for it and hoped I was just as good as her one day.

I couldn't help but smile whenever I was around her. It was hard not to.

My heart was beating so fast. I hoped she couldn't hear it, but from us being so silent she most definitely did.

I noticed her body was slightly shivering. I didn't have any clue how she was wearing the outfit she was wearing because of the current weather, but I'm not complaining.

Her dark brunette hair cascaded down the front of her dress. The length stopped beneath her chest. The color looked magnificent against her tan skin. But, her skin was covered in goosebumps and I was a little worried.

I brought up the courage to ask her, "Do you want my jacket?" Her eyes started to slowly close. "It's okay, I have a blanket."

Nodding, I brought my attention back up to the sky. A shooting star shot across the sky, earning a
gasp from Ryan.

A few seconds went by and she finally gave in.

"Okay, give me the jacket-" "Okay, okay."

I slipped my blazer off my arms, sending a shiver down my spine once the cold air hit me. I still had my long sleeve button-down on though, I'll be fine.

Ryan sat up and slipped my over-sized blazer on her
body. Me being scrawny, but somewhat bigger than
her, the jacket looked big on her. It caused me to laugh.

She sunk back onto the metal tailgate beside me. I watched as she cuddled up between blankets and my blazer as well.

Surprisingly, she rested her head on my shoulder slightly. I returned the same thing and rested my head on hers.

"Happy birthday, Ryan." Ryan hummed in response.

She spoke, "Thank you, bestie." I playfully scoffed at her.

The small friend-zone joke did poke at me, but at that point I deserved it. No matter what happens, us liking each other or not, I'll always want her in my life. That's something I know for sure.

My eyes started to become heavy. I closed them, the sky full of stars still being on my mind.

Even though we had our differences, and our similarities, when the sun was set we were nothing but kids sleeping under the same stars.

𝑮𝑹𝑨𝑪𝑬 𝑺𝑷𝑬𝑨𝑲𝑺!
THIS CHAPTER IS SO
LONG PLEASMENE
and idek if i like it or not so😛
i've rewritten this like 3 times
and i have a few questions

1. do you like this??

2. is this too much flirting? ik they
need to be intimate at this point, but
im scared its too much considering ryan
was upset with him like a day agoHDJD but
we're already on chapter 28 and they haven't even
kissed yet so its a bummer

I RLLY RLLY HOPE YOU GUYS LIKE THIS
i love youuu and thank you for 14k!! 🤍🤍