Heyyy guys sorry so long, but I've been living out my summer and I'm so glad I could bring you this. Thanks to evreyone here you are such good writers and I love you all and this is for you!
It took me a couple blocks of walking, to realize that this was probably a really stupid idea. How was I going to find her? There were no clues, no note, no nothing. All I had was a ticket stub to Russia from Gnomes R Us Travels. What was that? How was I supposed to get there? Suddenly, things were looking really bleak. I wanted to turn around, but that meant having to face everyone after giving up so quickly. I didn't want to do that. Cressida meant more to me than that, but how could I find her, and why did she leave? What did I do wrong?
I sat down, dejected. I wanted to clear my head of all my worries. I wanted a plan or something to work with. I wanted...someone. So I wouldn't have to be alone.
Suddenly, as if summoned, I heard a voice.
"You lost, my good chap?"
I looked up to see a gnome riding a bassat hound.
"Looking for someone who ran away." I explain.
"Who or what are you looking for?" He asked, getting off the dog, who promptly flopped down.
"A girl. Her name is Cressida Redbud, and she uh, has reddish hair, and it's kind of long and she was wearing..green I think and she had a red hat." He nodded at me.
"She might have gone to Russia." I say, knowing how crazy that sounds. I hold up the ticket stub.
"All I have is this."
The guy takes a closer look. "Well, I think I can help you sir." He tells me, his dark eyes scanning the words.
"How?" I ask, feeling hope for the first time since this began an hour ago.
"I sold her the ticket."
I can't belive it. "You-wait, what?"
He nods knowingly. "Yup,yup, I sold a ticket to a Cressida Redbud. Pretty girl. Seemed upset though."
"How long ago was this?" I shout.
He raises his eyebrow. "About two hours ago."
"I need to follow her." I say matter-of-factly.
"You her boyfriend or something?"
"Sort of, it's a long story, but I need to go after her. I'll buy a ticket."
He pulls out a binder. "That'd be the express trip around the world."
"Around the world?" I ask, incredulosuly. "What about Russia?"
"Well of course, she will be visiting Russia, but she also gets to see Paris, Italy, China, Australia, Peru, Puerto Rico, Africa, America, and the North Pole." He drones. I know that this is super crazy, but I buy my ticket.
"Sold." I say, handing him Lord Redbrick's money. "Can I get on the same plane or train or whatever as her?"
The man, Pete, as I now know, shakes his head. "Alas, no. But if we get on Bowser here, we can get there to catch the next one, if we hurry."
We get on Bowser, and he kicks the dog, like a racehorse, and then we are racing through the streets of London. The wind is pelting at my cheek, and I feel like my hat is going to blow off my head. I'm glad my ticket is secure in my back pocket, because I need both my hands to grab Pete's back, because for such an old dog, Bowser is running pretty darn fast.
"WOAH!" Pete yells, and the dog halts, nearly throwing me forward.
I slide off him, and look at my bearings.
"Where are we?" I ask, wrinkling my nose at the sour smell of gasoline.
Pete brushes himself off. "The busiest subway station in London. It's the best way to get to France."
"France?" I ask, to clarify. Before I can even respond, we are moving, dodging feet and big suitcases and everything is loud and busy and Pete is hustling me towards a train.
"Hurry!" He calls. "You could miss it!"
The train begins to move, and I run after it, desparate. I reach out and grasp on to the caboose. I hear calls and farewells but I am too busy clutching the train in agony to notice. I thrust myself up onto the observation deck. Slowly, I relax as I realize I am safe on the train. I watch as Stratford-Upon-Avon grows smaller and smaller. After a while, I turn around and push at the door, and it finally opens and I tumble gracefully inside.
The inside of the train, is dim but there are many windows. I am standing at the end of a red velvety aisle. There were people sitting in huge chairs, and I realized I needed somewhere to sit out the trip. I find a niche behind a giant suitcase. I'm not sure how I will know I am in Paris but I'm already here, and what can I do? I sit in a corner hidden behind a potted plant. It isn't first class luxury traveling, but I can take it. I set my knapsack down behind my neck, for a decent pillow and I slouch against the wall. The ground is moving underneath me, taking me closer to Cressida and there is commotion but somehow I close my eyes and drift off.
Hours later I wake up in that horrible stupor. I'm extremely disoriented on where I am and I rub the sleep out of my eyes. Suddenly I remember, and for a second I wonder if I slept through Paris! I jolt and look around anxiously. A voice next to me startles me,
"Hello? Are you okay?" I look around and a girl-gnome is sitting next to me. She looks concerned, her dark eyes are skeptical.
"Uh..yeah, sorry, I'm fine. Just wondering if I missed the stop for Paris, it;s my stop."
She shakes her head, "Calm down, buddy, you didn't."
"How do you know?" I ask, not convinced.
She rolls her heavily mascaraed eyes. "It's my stop too.I'm Miranda by the way."
Miranda is small, but I'd be hesitant about messing with her. Her hair is black and streaked with rainbow colors, falling out of her hat. She wears a black halter, leather jacket, tight maroon pants and combat boots.
"Tybalt." I offer.
She nods. "Hi Tybalt."
She turns to her right, "Jace, wake up!" I hadn't even noticed there was someone next to her. A young man groans and pulls his jacket over his ears. "Not now, sis."
Miranda nudges his arm with her fist. "We made a friend, so get your lazy butt up and be nice."
He opens one eye, still in his cowering position. "Hello, I'm Jace. Goodnight."
I don't really know what to say, but Miranda does. She huffs and crosses her skinny arms over her chest. "Sorry, he's such a pain."
"It's fine." I tell her. For a while there is silence, and we sit listening to the hum and steady rhythm of the train moving.
"So why are you going to Paris?" She asks, ending the quiet.
"There's a girl, and I really like her, a lot, but she left me to go on this cross country road trip so I'm going after her and hopefully when we stop in Paris, I'll find her, so yeah." I explain.
Miranda smirks a little. "You know when someone goes away, they want to be alone, usually."
I shrug. " I didn't ask probably wouldn't know much about love anyway."
To my surprise, she laughs. "I like your sass, Tybalt. But I disagree there."
"Really? Explain."
She laughs again. "Like, I'm going to tell you my love life. I hardly know you except you are Tybalt and you're chasing this poor girl across the country."
I raise my eyebrows. "Maybe you don't have anything to tell."
"You're wrong.." She smiles, and I know it's smile that won't tell me.
"Why are you going to Paris? To meet the love of your life?" I retort.
She rolls her eyes again, good naturedly, "I wish. Alas, no. Jace and I are just seeing the world for the thrill of it. He needed to get away and I needed an adventure. My poor sister, Clara. She stayed home with our mother, poor thing."
"Cool." I reply.
"Yeah, you know London was pretty nice actually. Are you from there, because you sound like it."
I lean my head back, trying to suppress a headache. "Yep. I'm from London." I reply.
"What city? I probably visited it."
"Stratford-Upon-Avon. Not much there to see." I tell her. She nods, "There was a Shakespeare statue?"
I shrug. "I don't go out much."
"Too afraid?"
I scoff, "Nah, just things are always busy in my garden so I never have the need." I can tell she doesn't relate. So I inquire, "Where are you from?"
"America. More specifically Missouri."
"Never been there." I comment.
"Yeah, it's not the most exciting state, and I make fun of it, but if anyone besides me insults it, I get mad and it gets messy." She inspects her nail.
"I've never been to America or Missouri." I explain;
" It's not all it's cracked up to be, but then what is? Home is home, and even if it sucks, it's still home and you don't really ever leave."
"What if you were homeless?"
"Then you're lost. I don't know." She laughs and leans back. I think of my home. Sure, it isn't the easiest place for me, but Miranda is right, it's still where I grew up and I'm suddenly very homesick. I cannot dwell on my sorrow for long because the train suddenly halts and I hear the announcer calling out. Miranda shoots up, grabbing a dazed Jace.
"That's Paris, c'mon."
I follow her, filled with adreline, because so much could go wrong and I could lose track of Cressida forever. Together we weave in and out of people's feet. I'm wondering how we aren't going to get trampled by the large humans, or worse-caught!
"Jump!' I hear Miranda call, and I do, bracing myself for a smash. I land, amazed to be alive and not cracked. I mean, you can still see the old cracks but I'm in one piece and that's good news.
I pant and take in my surroundings. Already, the unfamiliarity makes me uncomfortable and I think, France is such an odd place. The realization hits me-how do I find Cressida?
"I need to get to the group ahead of us." I mutter.
MIranda jerks her head around. "I can help you!"
I am suprised. "Really?"
"Yeah, didn't I tell you? Jace and I are pros at this trip! We've gone around the world at least four times! I know how we can get you there! C'mon!"
I follow them and Miranda continues talking. "So, usually we'd go to this tulip garden hotel, but since you need to catch up to the group ahead of us, we are going to skip the french tulips and make a beeline for the Eiffel Tower."
"Wait." I say, "What about you guys's trip. I'm like, all for you helping me out, but I don't want your trip to get all deferred because of mine, cause then I owe you and that's not going to be right."
Miranda chuckles. "I've done this trip plenty of times! The excitement of jazzing it up, is great for me and Jace too."
"Okay." I reply. "You lead the way."
Miranda manages to track down a French speaking gnome and get proper directions. We travel in the basket on the back of a bike, until we get there, and when we do I am shocked. The Eiffel Tower is huge! I gape at it, amazed.
"It's so big!" I whisper to myself.
Miranda shoves me back into reality. "Isn't it cool? Gets me every time!"
I nod. "Be on the lookout!" She warns. "They should be here somewhere! Just look!" I scan the bottom, middle, and top and no luck. Suddenly, the elevator at the bottom opens and I see a group and sure enough hidden in the back of the bunch, is Cressida. My heart speeds up to see her and I have an urge to run to her. But I don't. I hang back and watch, feeling stupid and suddenly afraid. I know how unpredictable Cressida is. What will she say when she sees me? Will she be happy or sad? Glad or mad? Instead of trying to get her attention, I just stand there feeling frozen.
Miranda nudges me, "Are you gonna do anything?"
"Uh.." I flub, wiping sweat from my forehead. The group dissapears and I sag my shoulders. I wanted to hit myself because I had lost Cressida. Miranda lays her hand on my shoulder.
"It's alright, you were a little scared." She tells me. " Although I didn't expect it from a big guy like you."
"Haha." I reply, looking at my boots.
"Relax." She says. "Tonight, they'll be at an opera house, so you can talk to her there."
"Really?" I ask, hopefully.
"Yup. We'll skip the Louvre to go to the opera, it'll be totally great!" MIranda explains.
I smile gratefully. "Thanks guys!"
We walk around Paris and I try to focus on the sightseeing aspect of my trip. I can't help seeing every single fun thing and imaging Cressida and I having a blast. Miranda and Jace are good tour guides, and we manage to get around pretty well for gnomes in a human city. Finally, the sun begins to set, casting everything in an orangey glow and we make our way into the opera house. It's amazing! The ceilings are lined with shining mosaics and we find a nook at the top to watch the performance far out of the human eye. The music starts and Miranda becomes very entranced but I can't help looking everywhere to see if I see Cressida. Then, I do. There she is, her eyes distant, in a balcony across the theater. She doesn't even see me, but all I see is her.
"Cressida!" I call.
MIranda swats me. "Ssshhh. You'll have to go over there and talk to her." She whispers.
"Okay!" I whisper back.
I get up, trying to be calm and quiet. i slink along trying to find her balcony. I poke my head in one, no Cressida. Another and then another balcony where she is not. I peep into one, and there in the far corner, she is. I step in softly trying not to bump into people as I get to her. She doesn't notice any of the fuss however. Her head still faces the stage and she sits, erect. I slide into an empty seat next to her, and she doesn't even look away from the actors.
"Hello." I say, my voice low and soft.
She turns to face me, her long hair flipping out of her eyes. I hear an audible gasp and her eyes grow wide.
"Tybalt?" She exclaims loudly, causing a few shushes and glares in our general direction.
"Yes, it's me." I reply, staring into her eyes.
"What..what are you doing here?" She asks, biting her lip.
"I came to find you!" I tell her. She begins to reply, but we are cut off by more glares and shushing.
"Let's go outside. We can't talk in here" She says. I'm not sure how she feels to see me. I can't tell if she is happy, grateful, sad, angry, or maybe she doesn't care.
"Lets go on the roof." I offer. She follows me up and out until we are on top of the grand opera house, with an unmissable view of the vibrant sunset against the majesty of the Eiffel tower.. In the background, we can hear the swell of the orchestra and the voices of the singers wavering above it all.
"What are you doing here?" She repeats.
"I told you!" I exclaim. "I came to find you and bring you back, or at least know why you stood me up and ran away!"
Guilt crosses her face and she turns away, folding her arms against her chest.
"It's not you." She states, placidly.
"What is it then?" I retort.
She looks to the side, not meeting my eyes. "It's me."
"What?" I scoff. "You left because of yourself? Than why didn't you just leave yourself behind?"
She doesn't even smile. Cressida sighs and watches the sunset. "I don't want to hurt you, and that's all I do."
"I don't care. In fact, I understand. But I'm willing to risk it for you. I would love it if you broke my heart." I tell her honestly.
"Why do you even love me?" She wonders to me.
"Let's see," I count on my fingers. "You're pretty, smart, witty, kind, caring, and a thousand other things."
"Are they a thousand other good things?"
"Yes." I say, certainly.
She sighs, and moves in closer and I move towards her, until we are facing each other. She looks up and me, and I gaze at her and she closes her eyes and I lean down,and than suddenly she pushes me away, two hands on my chest.
"No!" She cries.
"What?" I stammer
"Stop!" She begs.
"What?" I ask again.
"You shouldn't love me! I'm not going to let your life be ruined by me." She yells, backing away.
I step towards her calmly and she steps farther away.
"Cressida, I told you I-"
"Just let me go!" She cries.
"No!" I shout. "I've come this far, I'm not going to lose you."
She shakes her head, and in a blink she is climbing down the opera building, her legs shaking.
" Stop! You're going to fall." I yell. She looks up, her eyes determined.
"I won't, but if you try to follow me, I guarantee you will." She grits her teeth I am about to reply but then suddenly Cressida's hand slips off the brick and she screams and tries to latch back on, but she slips and falls backwards.
"CRESSIDA!" I yell.
She falls into the Seine River with a splash. I prepare to go after her, but someone lays an icy hand on my shoulder.
"Slow down there, Prince Charming."
I turn around trying to get out of her grip, but she is strong. "Miranda?"
She tightens her grip. "Don't go after her."
"But I have to!" I protest. "I love her, and I need to save her before it's too late!"
"Just give her space."
"She;s dying! Drowing in the river!" I scream finally breaking free, but she grabs me again.
"I don't think she died." Miranda states. I look where she is looking and sure enough, a waterlogged skinny girl, with long dripping hair, slinks into the shadows in a blink.
"We need to go after her." I pant.
"No." Miranda argues. "You need to let this girl go, and go dreams aren't worth chasing."
I let her lead me away, feeling defeated. What would I do with my life? Would I ever forget Cressida and would I ever stop loving her? Could Miranda be wrong about dreams, and is that all Cressida and I will ever be?"
I sing, wondering if she'll ever hear me.
Say something, I'm giving up on you
I'll be the one, if you want me to
Anywhere I would've followed you
Say something, I'm giving up on you
And I am feeling so small
It was over my head
I know nothing at all
And I will stumble and fall
I'm still learning to love
Just starting to crawl
Say something, I'm giving up on you
I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you
Anywhere I would've followed you
Say something, I'm giving up on you
And I will swallow my pride
You're the one that I love
And I'm saying goodbye
Say something, I'm giving up on you
And I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you
And anywhere I would've followed you (Oh-oh-oh-oh)
Say something, I'm giving up on you
Say something, I'm giving up on you
Say something...
Will Cressida and Tybalt ever reunite? What will happen next? TIme will tell! Read, Review, Suggest, and be your usual awesome selves! LOVE YOU ALL- xoxoxoxoxo carrie or lorelibele54
