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"And they lived happily ever after." The little brown-haired boy, Ruskin finished his tale and gave a look at his friend to see whether he liked it or not. The other boy, Charles, was lying in bed and he was sick. It was nothing serious, just a simple cold and he was close to being fully recovered, but it was better if he didn't do anything, just rested. And just like these times, Ruskin entertained him by telling him stories. It was normally Charles who did the same before Ruskin fell asleep - Charles liked telling tales and he had the gift of being able to make anything believable - but he was usually satisfied with Ruskin's stories as well. But it was clear for Ruskin from the other boy's displeased expression that he currently didn't have high opinion on the story.
"You didn't like it." Ruskin noted with disappointment. He hated to cause disappointment to Charles, the only person he loved and who meant more than anything for him in the world. It was Charles' family who took him in from the street for Ruskin's skills when it came to pickpocketing people, but only Charles really cared about him and this was mutual. "Why didn't you like the tale?"
"Oh, I liked it." Charles reassured him and because he sounded genuine, Ruskin felt relieved. At the same time, now he didn't understand what his friend's problem was. "It is just the end what didn't fit my taste." Charles added before Ruskin could start wondering.
"The ending?" Ruskin blinked. "But the story concluded with a happy ending!"
"It did." Charles nodded. "And this is exactly my problem with it. I wanted to hear the bad end."
"Bad end?" Ruskin repeated. He sometimes had no idea what was in Charles' mind and he was troubled by this. After all, how could he make the other boy happy if he doesn't know what he needs to do for it?
"I see that you don't understand." Charles noted and stopped to cough for a moment. "Let me explain it to you." He said and his strange, golden gaze that Ruskin loved so much shone up. Ruskin didn't say anything, he just watched his friend and listened. He liked listening when Charles was talking. He was smarter than anyone Ruskin ever knew and he was also so bright when he gave a speech.
"The thing is, I don't want anyone to get a happy end - only you and me." He stated and Ruskin's breath got cut away from the confession.
It was not what surprised him that his friend could be malicious. As he felt that no one loved him other than Ruskin, Charles liked causing harm to others. Ruskin was not bothered by this. He knew that even if Charles was evil, he would follow him to the end of the world. But the fact that Charles talked about the happy end as something he only wanted for himself and Ruskin brought joy into Ruskin's heart. He could feel that he was important for Charles and this was what made him the happiest in his life - aside from seeing his beloved friend happy.
"The rest of the people don't deserve it." Charles added and he tilted his head, flashing a playful smile at Ruskin. "What do you think of it? Do you think that I am mean?" He asked, waiting for Ruskin's answer.
Ruskin shook his head. No matter what Charles did, Ruskin never thought of him as mean and he loved him just the same.
"No. And I don't care about the rest of the people." He noted and not caring about his friend's illness, he passionately hugged the other boy. "I just want to have that happy end with you."
"We will definitely get it." Charles said and sank into Ruskin's embrace. "But I will make sure that no one else will."
His voice carried a threatening promise, but Ruskin didn't get scared. He just held his friend's body stronger and finished his tale with the right ending.
"And they suffered like they were already in hell for the rest of their lives."