The soft sounds of crickets chirping, the night wind blowing through the air, people snuggled in their beds. This was the perfect night to stay in bed and sleep peacefully. Rumor, however, slowly opened her eyes as she looked at her surroundings. She slowly sat up to see she was back home, in her bedroom. Ezra must've taken me home.. She thought.
Rumor fell back onto her bed and stared up at the glow in the dark stars planted on her ceiling. Her mind wandered back to the lavender haired boy. Ever since Atlas and Sean told her about the possibility of liking Ezra, she hasn't stopped thinking about it since. She was conflicted to open herself to him but she never wanted to get broken hearted. That's exactly what happened to her dad.
Then she thought back to, who knows how long ago, when they were at the falls. Before she drifted off to sleep, she felt a soft pressure on her head and heard a whisper saying they promised. She knew the boy replied back but what was bugging her was the pressure. Although rigid and chapped, it was soft and smooth upon making contact with her head.
Ru couldn't figure out what it was but then she wandered in daydream land. What was soft on the body part but can apply pressure in an instant? The girl thought and thought about it until the only thing that drew a mark was lips...
Rumor shot up from her bed as she putted the pieces together. A peck? Like a lip peck?! From Ezra?! She panicked. The more she thought about it, the more the picture started to show. From their little moment back on the ship to him holding her close back at the falls. These were some of the 'romantic' signs like how her dad explained when he met Mori.
Could it be that..Ezra likes me? I'M SO STUPID! Why didn't I see it before?! But then what would that make me? She continued her thought. Never once has she denied the boys comfort and every single time she was with him, there were moments that made her heart stop quite a few times. And all those times she constantly thought about how he was or what he was doing...
The teenage girl gasped super loudly as she felt herself hyperventilating. "I...I like him...I like Ezra!" She muttered to herself. What would he think? What would he say if I just confessed to him?! Oh my gosh what would Kanan think... Her thought process stopped.
Suddenly she leaped from her bed to her clock. The time read 1:30 AM. The sun was barely in line of sight as she gazed outside. "Oh no! I forgot to ask what was Kanan's decision!" She whisper-yelled as she quickly put on her hoodie. Wait! It's almost 2 o'clock in the morning! They won't be up! But then again, Hera does always work late! She thought.
Ru groaned impatiently. "I'm sure they're up! Gotta get to Kanan!" She said to herself. The girl grabbed her sneakers and the spare house keys as she sneaked her way out the house. Ru locked the door and put the keys away until she felt something soft in her right pocket. Rumor took it out and revealed it was the star plushie.
She smiled down at it and held it close to her. Maybe I can give this to Ezra? She thought. A loud shock of thunder shook the grounds of the neighborhood. The girl gasped as she hastily put the keys and the plush in her pockets. "No time to think! Have to get to them!" She said to herself and ran into the night.
The roars of the thunderclap made the ghost crew uneasy. Everyone was getting ready and packing all of their supplies up. As Zeb, Sabine, and Hera stored the boxes of tools, all three noticed the Jedi master not doing anything. "Hey Kanan? I would really like it if you can put the medpacs in the med bay instead of just standing there?" Hera asked.
"I will. Just worried about Ezra. He hasn't come back yet." Kanan said as he knelt down to pick up one of the boxes. Zeb chuckled. "What're you talking about? Here comes the kid right now!" He said. Kanan turned around as he saw the teenage boy ran through the grassy area.
Kanan, Zeb, and Sabine met him half way whereas Hera stayed back on the ship with Chopper. Ezra put his hands on his knees, gasping for air. "Why were you running?" Sabine asked. "'Cause..You said we were leaving after I came back." The boy struggled to get out a sentence.
"We still have to pack a few things before leaving this planet. We might leave before the sunrise is at its peak." Zeb explained. Ezra sighed as he remembered that that would be the last time he might see Rumor. The boy saw the looks on everyones faces. "I can't believe we're just leaving Ru here. Huh.. I was started to like the feeling of having a little sister around." Sabine sighed.
Sabine was paining a new art in her room until she heard shuffling behind her. The young woman turned around and saw Ru and Veto peaking out from behind the wall. Sabine chuckled. "Hey Rumor." The teen lost her foot and hastily grabbed onto the wall. "H-Hey! Uhh whatcha doing?" She stuttered.
"Oh~ just making some new art." Sabine replied. Rumor walked closer as she examined the picture. "Hmm..What about if you added something like this?" Ru grabbed the spray and started to draw a little explosion. The mandalorian smirked at the added art. "That can go great with this!" She said and added two people.
The two artist stood back to admire their masterpiece. It was two stormtroopers running from an explosion that had Zeb's face in the smoke. "Nice job kid!" Sabine said and the two high fived each other. Just as the two exited the room, Zeb entered. Rumor looked at Sabine and asked, "Wait I thought that was your room?" Then loud shouting erupted leading the two girls to run off.
Zeb scratched the back of his head. Thinking back at spending time with the girl, he'll miss her too. "Yeah..Who else will help me scare off Chopper? Her and V." The lasat chuckled.
"He's coming around the corner!" She whispered shouted, running towards Zeb. Rumor hid behind the wall where Zeb was. The girl turned to her dog, who was hiding in plain sight. "V you ready?" She asked. The mechanical dog nodded. Suddenly, the loud disproportion of mumbles grew louder.
The two saw Chopper rolling his way through, being completely oblivious to what's about to happen to him. All of a sudden, Veto jumped out and started barking at him, making Chopper jump ten feet in the air. Zeb and Rumor starting rolling on the floor, laughing at the scared robot. "Nice job Ru!" Zeb said. "But it was all your plan dude!" The girl said, laughing.
As the two beings thought back on their memories, Kanan couldn't help but reminisce as well. Even though he didn't like the outcome of this plan, he still felt hurt that he'll leave this girl all alone again. "Speaking of Rumor, did you told her the truth?" The ponytailed man asked. The padawan deeply sighed as she shared his head. "No..I couldn't tell her." He confessed.
"I know it's going to be difficult, leaving her here. But I don't want to be the one responsible if she gets badly injured or worse." Kanan said. "But Kanan, we both know that this will make things worse. Can't we just stay for a few more days?" Ezra asked. Hera returned from the med bay and jumped into the conversation.
"I'm sorry Ezra but Commander Sato wants these files A.S.A.P! I've already made contacted with the rebellion to meet us right as they entered the star system." Hera said. The boy still felt a remorse, despair and sadness wash over him.
Kanan could sense the boys feelings. That's when he realized that Ezra didn't told her the truth and his true feelings towards the girl. He walked towards where Ezra stood and placed a hand on the padawan's shoulder. "I'm sorry with how the way things are Ezra. And I wish we could change all of it. I really do. But you should've told her when you were given the chance." He said.
Ezra sighed in frustration as he yanked free form the masters grip, turning away from the others. "I wanted to tell her Kanan! I really did! But we went on about how she was tired of being lied to and how she couldn't completely trust anyone! I never wanted to be the one to hurt her but if she found out that we were gonna leave her she wouldn't-"
"You're leaving me?"
The teenage boy gasped as he looked straight up. There, stood in the pale night, was the other padawan, panting for a breather. She stared on at the group and then the ship, all the boxes being stored, every single tool that was used to help fix the ship gone. The air grew thick of tension. No one mustered a breath, fearing for what the next move will be. It lasted for some time until Ezra spoke up. "Rumor I-"
"I'm guessing the 'reconsideration' was lie huh?" She asked. Again no one dared say anything, feeling the sense of guilt wash over them entirely. "I guess that answers my question." Ru said as she slowly turned around before looking back. "Be sure to use that cloth I gave you awhile back. Might be of good use since there's not much I can do with it..." She trailed off and ran away from the ship.
Ezra reached out like he was close by her but fell limp. The boy turned back at Kanan. To which the older man nodded.
Ezra ran after her, hoping to set things straight. The boy ran and ran until he heard the sound of nearby keys jiggling. "Rumor! Wait up!" He called out.
"YOU PROMISED!" The girl yelled as she ran as fast as she could but struggled to catch her breath. She stopped midway to take a breather but that moment was taken away as she felt a strong push knocked her off her feet. She tumbled over until she felt both of her hands above her head and her legs stuck to each other. Ru looked up to see Ezra, straddling her, hanging onto her desperately.
Rumor struggled against his hold as she thrashed herself around violently. "Let me go!" "Please! Listen to what I have to say!" He begged. Tears started streaming down her face as she continued to fight back against him. "I am not listening to anything you have to say!" She shouted. "I wanted to tell you! Back at the falls! But you went on about how you'd be hurt! If I were to leave you!"
"And you thought giving me false hope was the best option?!" She yelled. "YES! Because I knew that if I told you then that it'll make things worse!" "It already is worse!" She cried out more. The two fought back against each others grip and rolled around again until it stopped when she was pinning him down, holding his hands beside his head, straddling his waist.
Thunderclap shook the ground as the pitter patter sounds of raindrops was heard around the two teens. "You did exactly what everyone else did! You lied right to my face! I wanted to believe you. I wanted to believe that your words were genuine but I guess I was wrong!" The girl now shouted at the person below her. Rumor glared down at the boy as he had the face of guilt. He didn't try and fight back but just looked above him at her eyes.
"I trusted you! I had faith that things would be different! But it didn't! It never does!" She yelled. Ezra didn't move a muscle. He listened to every single word she had to belt out. "You're like everyone else! But I wanted to-" The girl abruptly stopped and just stared back at him. I can't...I thought he was different.. She thought to herself. Feeling the anger and frustration boiling inside of her, she buried her face into his chest and screamed and cried out in rage.
Rain and thunder came crashing down onto the two teenagers. Ezra, still not moving, listened to her howls and cries echoing into the dark night. The girl wanted nothing more but to punch him in the face or torture him 'til the sun rises but she couldn't bring herself to hurt him. Instead, she continued to let out her breakdown on the boy.
Ru cried louder by the second as the raindrops filled the air. She lifted her head up and stared back at the boy. The look of guilt still present on his face as she said, "You did this to me!" The girl shut her eyes tightly as she can. Ezra felt her grip loosen as the strength in his wrist return to him. "Y-You did this-! I thought you would be there for me! But you're all the same!" She cried over and over again.
Ezra felt the tear from her eyes crash down on his cheeks. No words can be expressed as to how guilty he felt. Because in a way, she was right. He did this to her. He made matters worse by lying to her that she'll come along with the Ghost. If he had told her the truth back at the falls, maybe she would've taken this a little bit lighter.
He stretched his hand up to her cheeks as she continued to cry. Finally, he felt his fingers made contact with her cheek. Ru silently gasped as she opened her eyes. The girl gazed down at him, seeing a river streaming down the side of his face. "I never wanted to hurt you..I never wanted this to end..I..." The boy sniffled.
"I'm so sorry Rumor...I'm sorry..." He trailed off. The girl, still crying, looked on at the boy. If we're not seeing each other again, better late than never... She thought. The girl moved his hand away from her cheek as she leaned down to his face.
The girl stopped mere centimeters from his forehead as she stared back at him. Ezra was still completely oblivious to what was happening as he continued crying silently, keeping his eyes shut. A few tears drop from her face collapsed onto his cheeks once more. Rumor groaned in frustration as she closed the gap between them.
Ezra's eyes widen as he felt a soft pair of lips on his ones. The boy looked up to see Ru's eyes shut tight. Ezra didn't know exactly what to do. This is his first kiss after all and he shared this moment with someone he truly loved. He slowly closed his eyes as he let his emotions and movement overtake him.
His lips moving in sync with hers. His hands made his way to her waist, pulling her body closer to his. Whereas his other hand rested on the back of her head. Rumor cried more as she kissed him back with more passion, resting her hands on both side of his face. The two teenagers kissed for as long as the rain came crashing down, knowing this might be the last time they'll ever feel like this.
Just as the moment began, Rumor pulled and backed away from him. Rapidly, she stood up and looked down at him. Meanwhile, the boy was still in daze as he sat up slowly and look at her. He touched his lips, tracing the cracks of where her lips were placed. Finally, Ezra looked up at the girl but she glared down at him while her breathing became faster.
"Rumor-" Ezra was interrupted as she threw an object at him. He looked down to see it was her star plushie that she sometimes carried around with her. Looking at the star, he thought back to a memory from before when they were on good terms.
Rumor hummed as she played around with the tiny plush. Unbeknownst to her, Ezra looked over her shoulder as he stared at her. "What's that?" He asked earning the girls attention. Rumor smiled. "This was a gift from my dad before he left. Him and Uncle Mori thought of it as a memento after telling me about the stories in space." She said.
"Even though it's something I treasure, I don't think I see myself keeping something like this." She questioned. The boy raised his eyebrows as he stared at the star. "But wouldn't you treasure it even more since it's a gift from your dad?" He asked. The girl looked back at him, biting the inside of her lip.
She sighed and grinned back at him. "You're right..If I don't want it anymore, I would want you to have it. Think of it as a souvenir from my planet to you!" She said. Ezra chuckled, resting his elbow on his knees. "And what would it be a souvenir for?" He asked. Ru feigned a thinking expression.
After what felt like forever, Rumor wrapped her arm around Ezra's shoulder. "That you met me!" She laughed.
Ezra came back to reality as he stared back at her. He stood up from the ground and turned towards the distressed girl. Rumor, still glaring down at him, clenched her fists and turned away from him. "Goodbye Ezra." She muttered before running away, leaving the padawan behind in the rain.
Standing alone in the thunderstorm, Ezra was completely still. So many things happened in the last minute that he couldn't begin to process what went down. One moment he was arguing with his friend/crush. Next thing he knew, he had his first kiss with his friend/crush! The young rebel looked down at the star as it caught a few pellets of water, staining the material.
Ezra hadn't felt this lost since his parents died. He thought that him and Rumor would be a thing. He believed that they would become Jedi knights together. He hoped that they both would take on the galaxy together. But in a world he lives in, there is no such thing as a happy ending. Putting the star plush in his pocket, Ezra walked somberly away and back to his home.
Meanwhile, Rumor ran through the rain as she saw her house was in sight. She made it under her garage and stopped for a rest. The whole way through, she did not stop crying one bit. Knowing she might wake up her grandparents, the girl silently cried as she put a hand over her mouth.
Ru buried her head into the concrete floor as she hit the ground with what little strength she can muster. A whimper could be heard, echoing off the garage walls. Rumor looked up and saw V walking towards her. The girl sniffled as she held her arms out for the dog with welcome arms. Veto saw nothing in his way as he jumped into her arms, snuggling into her neck. Rumor cried into his metallic body as she quietly sobbed.
At that moment, the two teenagers were broken. Nothing but a husk of their former self. Both knew how much they meant to one another but was shackled down to the ground by the cold hard truth. One who felt betrayed after so many deceptions in her life. The other who felt regret for not being able to own up to his honesty. Both teenagers wanting the belief that all of this was just some messed up illusion but they both knew that this was the harsh reality that they live in.