Chapter 58 Thank you
CHAPTER 58
Thank you
The night air was cool and gentle as Leo and Ruby stepped out into the garden. Soft lights lined the pathway, casting a warm glow over the neatly trimmed hedges and quiet open space. The faint sound of insects and distant city noise blended into a calm rhythm, making everything feel slower… softer.
Leo didn’t let go of her hand. Not even as they walked further away from the house.
Ruby noticed how he held her hand tightly, they walked in silence, their footsteps slow and unhurried against the stone path. The earlier tension in Leo’s shoulders seemed to ease slightly with each step.
Ruby glanced at him. “You really had a long day, didn’t you?”
Leo exhaled quietly. “You can tell?”
“You look like you’ve been thinking too much.”
He let out a faint chuckle. “That obvious?”
She nodded. “Very.”
Leo looked ahead for a moment before speaking again. “Meetings, people talking too much. Decisions that shouldn’t be complicated… but I'm happy I'm here.”
Ruby tilted her head slightly. “That sounds exhausting.”
“It is.”
She squeezed his hand lightly. “You don’t always have to carry everything alone.”
Leo glanced at her. “I’m used to it,” he said.
“That doesn’t mean you should be.”
He didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he slowed his steps slightly, as if considering her words.
Ruby continued softly, “You don’t always have to be strong, you know.”
Leo stopped walking as Ruby turned to face him. He just looked at her, like he was trying to understand something deeper than her words.
“Do I look like I don’t want to be strong?” he asked quietly.
She shook her head. “No.”
“Then?”
“You just don’t have to be… all the time.”
Leo’s grip on her hand tightened slightly. “You talk like you understand me.”
Ruby smiled faintly. “Maybe I do.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”
“You’re not as complicated as you think.” Leo scoffed lightly.
“That’s debatable.”
She stepped a little closer. “You’re just… guarded.”
“And you’re not?”
Ruby laughed softly. “I am.”
“Then how can you say that?”
She shrugged lightly. “Because I see it.”
Leo studied her again. The way she said it so simply, so honestly made it harder to dismiss.
After some time, he sighed quietly.
Leo looked at her for a moment longer than usual. “You care about me?” he asked.
Ruby blinked. Her heart skipped, she hadn’t expected that. But she didn’t look away at the same time and the words came out .“Yes.”
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He slowed his pace as they reached the quiet end of the garden, where the lights were softer and the night felt more private. The air carried a gentle stillness, it felt like the world had narrowed down to just the two of them. She noticed the shift immediately, she was so happy to be around him that night. It wasn’t just that he had stopped walking, it was the way his hand slipped from hers and the way his expression changed. He looked serious, more than usual, and it made her heart skip in anticipation.
When Leo turned to face her and said, “Ruby, I have to tell you something,”
Ruby’s thoughts moved faster than her emotions could keep up. She felt a sudden rush of expectation, her heart beginning to pound as she instinctively believed she knew what was coming next. All the moments they had shared, the lingering glances, the quiet confessions, the closeness they had built, came flooding into her mind. To her, those moments had been leading somewhere, building toward something unspoken but deeply felt.
In that fragile state, she expected him to confess his feelings. She had prepared herself for it without even realizing. Her posture softened, her eyes fixed on him with quiet hope, and her lips parted slightly as if she was already ready to respond. There was a warmth rising in her chest, a mixture of nervousness and excitement, as she waited for him to say the words she had begun to believe in.
But instead, Leo simply said, “Thank you.”
The words caught her off guard. That didn’t match her expectations, and after the realization, her mind struggled to adjust. The anticipation she had built didn’t disappear instantly, it lingered, creating a small but noticeable pause in her reaction. He continued speaking, unaware or perhaps ignoring the shift in her expression. He thanked her for coming into his life and explained that she had changed things for him in ways he hadn’t expected.
As he spoke, Ruby’s expression subtly changed.
On the outside, she maintained a soft smile, trying to match the tone of the moment. But internally, there was a quiet drop in her emotions, not quite dramatic or overwhelming, but enough for her to feel it. It was the kind of feeling that came when expectation met a different reality. She wasn’t hurt, but she was disappointed in a way she hadn’t prepared for.
He described how his life had been before she came into it, quiet, predictable, controlled. Now, he said, things felt different. Less lonely. Ruby listened carefully, understanding that what he was saying was meaningful. For someone like Leo, expressing even that much was significant. His words were sincere, and they carried weight.
But they weren’t what she had hoped for.
Ruby responded gently, thanking him as well, though her words were lighter, less revealing. She chose not to express what she had been expecting or how she truly felt in that moment. Instead, she kept the conversation going, not wanting to disrupt the calm atmosphere between them.
There was a brief silence afterward. There eyes locked, she looked away first, subtly creating a small distance, both physically and emotionally.
When she suggested they head back inside, her voice was calm, but it carried a quiet desire to move away from the moment before it deepened further. Leo agreed immediately without questioning it, and they began walking back toward the house.
Ruby kept her composure, wrapping herself together, though her thoughts continued to rephrase on what had just happened.
She realized, in that moment, that she had expected more from him than he was ready to give.
And perhaps, more than he even realized. By the time they stepped back into the house, the warmth of the interior greeted them, but the unspoken tension remained beneath the surface. Leo noticed her quietness and asked if she was okay, and Ruby answered simply, saying she was just tired.
It was easier that way.
The conversation ended there, but the moment stayed with her. Not because of what was said, but because of what wasn’t.