A/N:

I just wanted to say a massive thank you to everyone who has reviewed this fic so far – I honestly didn't expect this much feedback, especially with so many lovely, positive comments! I really appreciate them, and I hope you all continue to enjoy my story :)


Once the two of them entered the cottage, Rose offered the man a seat at her kitchen table while she collected her now-cold hot chocolate mug and disposed of it in the sink. She then set about making tea for both of them, by placing teabags into two new cups as the kettle boiled. Meanwhile, the man perched contentedly on his chair and glanced around the room, smiling. He appeared to be at peace, though Rose couldn't fathom why; his car had just broken down at night, after all. This thought caused a question to surface in Rose's mind, which she immediately verbalised.

"Where will you stay tonight? No offense, but I don't really want a stranger staying in my house overnight."

Swivelling around in his seat, the man's smile dropped and his gaze accessed a new level of intensity as he stared deeply into Rose's eyes. "Is that who I am? A stranger?"

Rose shifted with only a hint of discomfort under his gaze. "Well, by definition, yes. I don't exactly know you – we've only just met! You haven't even told me your name yet."

"Oh!" The man's sincerity instantly disappeared. "I haven't, have I? How rude of me. Is that who I am – rude? Do you think I'm rude, Rose?"

"Of course not!" Rose was vaguely confused as to why she leapt to the man's defence so quickly, but she didn't think too much of it. "What is your name, then?" She prompted when he showed no sign of replying.

"Ah, yes! Sorry, I'm really not good at this, am I? My name's John. John Smith." He beamed up at Rose, who was now pouring out the boiled water into the mugs.

"Sugar?" She asked.

"Hm?"

"Do you take sugar? And milk?"

"Oh, yes! All the trimmings for me, thanks. Though I suppose they're not really trimmings, since it's not exactly a Christmas dinner. Anyway, yeah! Three sugars, and milk." John babbled, clearly feeling slightly nervous, though he wasn't sure why. He never got nervous around people. Then again, he had just met Rose, so he supposed she was different, maybe.

Ignoring his continual speech, Rose addressed the actual answer to her question. "Three sugars? Isn't that a bit unhealthy?"

"Nahh. If it tastes good and makes you feel happy, then go for it, that's what I say." John winked cheekily, although his message was certainly an important one.

"Oh, I'd love to see you tell my mum that." Rose smiled and spoke half to John, half to herself, while she topped up the teas with milk and sugar.

"Why, what would your mum say?" John asked out of innate curiosity. Picking up the tea mug, his gaze flicked down as he sipped at the liquid.

Cradling her own drink, Rose settled down into the chair opposite John. "She'd say that's a load of rubbish. Well, not exactly – of course she wants to eat chocolate and ice cream and all that stuff she likes. But my mum really tries to keep healthy and in shape, she's into those silly fad diets and what have you. I don't think they do much, but they make her happy. I suppose that's what matters, in the end."

"Oh, absolutely!" John enthused. "She sounds great, does your mum. Have you got any other family, then?"

Rose took a sip of tea before answering. "There's my mum and my dad, who live nearer central London – they need to, since my dad runs a tech company. He comes up with all sorts of inventions, in fact he's going to this big corporate meeting up in Scotland soon. My mum was actually just telling me about it on the phone when you arrived."

"That's brilliant! What does your mum do for a living?"

"She works side by side with my dad most of the time. He's good with the inventing and technical side of his work, but he hasn't got a clue with paperwork or social relations. That's where my mum helps – she fills the gaps in his knowledge." Rose's eyes twinkled; it was obvious she loved her parents dearly, and enjoyed speaking of their success.

"Sounds like they make a great team." John smiled. "What about siblings?"

"Don't have any. Then again, Mickey is sort of like a brother to me. He's a friend of mine, has been since childhood. He even moved to the countryside with me, but he's living in the town centre with a couple of flatmates. My mum always says we should date, but…" Rose glanced down, biting her lip.

"But you just see him as a friend." John finished, studying her expression carefully.

"Yeah. It's funny, we used to say we were boyfriend and girlfriend back in primary school. I really do like Mickey. I suppose I'm waiting for someone else." Her gaze met John's. They maintained eye contact for a few silent moments before Rose changed the subject. "Anyway, enough about me – what about you? Have you got any family?"

"My parents passed away a few years ago."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Rose replied sympathetically.

"Ehh, you don't have to apologise. It's not like it was your fault, you didn't know them." John spoke matter-of-factly, although it was evident, judging by the look in his eyes, that he missed and still grieved for his parents. However, he soon snapped back into his cheery persona. "Got a brother, though. Mind you, I've no idea where he is."

"Long-lost brother?" Rose inquired.

"No, I do know him. The 'lost' part is debatable though, in both physical and figurative terms. After our mother died eleven years ago, things got quite difficult in our house. Our father didn't take it well, and his state of mourning didn't exactly help the family stick together. We grew apart, drifted. My brother wasn't the same, he struggled to cope. So he left. One day, he just up and went, moving someplace far, far away from home. I assume he's still there, he hasn't contacted me since. When our father died four years ago, he didn't even turn up to the funeral. I often wonder about my brother – how can I not? I'm the eldest of us, it's always been my duty to look out for him and care for him. I can't help but feel as if I've let him down." John's expression was incredibly pained as he recounted his family history, particularly when he spoke about his brother. A regretful tinge tainted his gaze, and this sadness was reflected in Rose's eyes.

"It's not your fault." Rose reassured him, reaching over the kitchen table to place a hand over his. "No one can predict how people will react to loss. And it was your brother's choice to leave, you probably couldn't have stopped him. Don't be so hard on yourself, eh?"

Smiling appreciatively, John placed his other hand on top of Rose's and squeezed it. "Thank you, Rose. You really are fantastic."

Returning John's smile, Rose was only too happy to leave her hand where it was. Yet again, the two of them spent a few moments with their gazes locked together. It was clear they very much enjoyed each other's company. Eventually, Rose reluctantly pulled her hand away so she could pick up her mug and have a drink. John did the same.

"So," Rose began. "Have you got a job?" She was eager to know as much as possible about the man she had chanced upon.

"Not at the moment." John admitted. "I tend to pick up work in various places while I'm visiting different towns and cities. It's unpredictable, but that's what I like about it."

"Are you, like, on a road trip or something then?"

"I'm just travelling. I love the feeling of it – being free, floating about, not getting involved in anything, just dipping in and out of all these brilliant cultures and experiences… It's the trip of a lifetime, and the best part is that it never ends unless I want it to." John's voice adopted a dreamy tone while he described his lifestyle. Although he was still seated in Rose's kitchen, he seemed so distant from reality. His mind was clearly in a different place, a different world altogether, yet his narration paved a road down which Rose was journeying with him. She felt his every word as if it was something she herself had lived through. Whether it was John's storytelling skills, or Rose's imagination, a combination of the two, or neither of them, Rose felt connected to John in a way she'd never known before.

Taken aback, and a little worried about the way she felt, Rose mentally shook herself out of her reverie. Despite the element of wistfulness to her tone, her reply was still conversational and natural. "I wish I could live like that."

"Why don't you?" John asked, genuinely not understanding how Rose could possibly be unable to live the way he does.

Rose thought for a moment. "Well, there's money, for starters – I don't have enough of it to travel. I've got a job, too, that I can't just leave…"

"Oh yeah, I forgot to ask! Where do you work?"

"A department store in town. I just got promoted to assistant manager." Rose spoke humbly, though there was an undeniable glint of pride in her eyes.

"Brilliant!" John exclaimed, grinning.

"Anyway, I couldn't resign from a job I just got. Then there's other commitments, like my family and friends, and looking after this house. Once you've got into a routine, it's difficult to get out of." Rose pointed out.

"What is it with us humans and our routines, eh? We do the same things, day in, day out, never questioning it, never even considering any other way of living. It's healthy to break routine every now and then. You never know, you might end up like me, and renounce routines forever. If you want to travel, if you really want to go out there and see amazing things, then do it! Nothing's stopping you, not really. Nothing can stop you. The world is your oyster, Rose."

For a moment, Rose believed him. Something she was quickly learning about John was that it's easy to get caught up in what he's saying and forget reality. His inspiration was overwhelming. But as soon as Rose glanced at her mug containing tea that would soon be going cold, she was brought back down to Earth. "No… No, I couldn't. One day, maybe. But now isn't the right time, I think. What about you? What made you decide to travel? Why do you do it?"

"Why?" John laughed. The answer was an absolute no-brainer for him. "I love it! And now that I'm living this way, I can't imagine anything else."

"Doesn't that scare you?" Rose asked excitably. "Not having a routine, not even knowing what the next day will bring?"

"Oh yes. That's the best part!" John grinned, almost manically.

"You're mad!" Rose giggled.

"Yeah, I think perhaps I am. But I'd rather be mad than boring, any day."

John's last words actually made a lot of sense to Rose. She couldn't deny feeling inspired and motivated after listening to him talk, although she still couldn't shake off her ingrained concept of realism. Therefore, she asked John something that concerned her slightly.

"Do you have a home, John?"

Now it was John's turn to think. "Home… I'm not even sure what that means to me anymore. I did have a home, a long time ago. But not for a while, now. If by 'home', you mean a house, then no – I sold my house to travel a few years back. Do you know, I hadn't really thought about it."

"So you don't have a house? Where do you sleep then?" Rose was shocked.

"In the car. It's great, just me and good old Travis!" John added when he saw how alarmed Rose looked.

However, she still wasn't convinced. "It must be uncomfortable. Not having a proper bed and all."

"Plenty of people have to cope with less." John made a valid point. "Besides, I've grown quite used to it."

"Are you sure you'll be alright sleeping in your car tonight? 'Cause, like I said before, I'm not really sure about you staying in my house overnight, if that's okay."

"Of course it's okay! I understand where you're coming from, no worries." John smiled to reassure her. "You've been very hospitable this evening already, it'd be rude of me to ask for more."

Despite John's gratitude, Rose still felt a little guilty. "Tell you what, I'll bring down some spare blankets and pillows for you. I know you said you're used to it, but I still want you to be comfy."

"You don't have to-"

"No, I insist." Rose smiled, though she spoke firmly so that John couldn't refuse. She stood up from the table, and noticed they'd both finished their cups of tea, therefore she picked up the mugs and deposited them in the sink. Then, she began to head upstairs to search for items to make the car more comfortable.

While Rose collected pillows and blankets, John washed the mugs (including Rose's hot chocolate mug from earlier) and dried them with a tea-towel. Rose thanked him when she returned downstairs, although her voice was muffled by the extensive amount of blankets, duvets, and pillows she was carrying, piled up in front of her.

"Here, let me get them." John picked up the load and removed it from Rose, placing it on the landing floor. "Thank you so much for all this. You're a star."

Smiling at his compliment, Rose grabbed the house keys off the kitchen counter and inserted them into the front door. She checked the time as she did so. "It's still only half past eight – do you want to stay in for a bit?"

"Only if it's okay with you."

So, John stayed in Rose's cottage for another couple of hours. They chatted about anything and everything, and watched some telly in-between until they got tired and John went out to sleep in the car. The more they talked and spent time together, the more they both enjoyed each other's company. There was no doubt that Rose and John were connected, and this connection was only ever going to grow.