Hamilton One Shots

Run Away

Requested by: AngelaLogic
OC: Clayton Rhodes

The air whistled in the distance as the sunlight of a new morning began shining down on the city, one so silent, yet energetic, letting all its people flood the square. Another day began just like any other, with the exception of an unfamiliar face sweeping through the crowds.

"Pardon me," a timid, young woman persisted, forcing her way through groups of people, and around boxes for trade. While she struggled to keep up ahead of the continuous flow of townspeople, her fragile demeanor and expression assisted her along the way.

Almost fifteen years of her life had gone by without any reminder of the place she wandered through now. It remained in the back of her mind, as a flash of color and landscape, but never in vivid detail. Yet now it was before her eyes again.

She had run away. Left everything behind, her family and pride, but most importantly, the friends she'd held close since what felt like the beginning of time.

Although it seemed unlikely, finally being home again sent a chill down her spine, and made her heart beat a little faster. Fresh breezes of cool air whistled against the curves of her dress, as she picked up her pace.

But even after all those years spent away from home, losing contact with the people she loved most, Clayton knew this was only just the beginning of a whole new life.

"Madam," she heard faintly from afar suddenly. Turning her head towards the gentle slur of words, Clayton laid her eyes on a particularly handsome man.

She noted the fine detail of his paler complexion and the way the crook of his neck sliced up along to his jaw, and all the little details in between. No, you're getting ahead of yourself, don't start, she impatiently thought.

"Sir," she replied, curtsying respectively. He hesitated a few steps ahead of her, tipping the front of his hat forward. Fiddling with the gold buttons on his uniform, he smiled.

"You seem lost, miss." The man stepped closer, his shoes scuffing against the cobblestones. "I wondered if you needed my assistance to find your way to wherever it is you're heading."

Clayton straightened the ruffles on her petticoat, blushing to herself. "Why yes, it would be of assistance. I've only just arrived here, so it would take some getting used to the arrangement before stationing myself."

Her breath hitched in the back of her throat, and she swallowed to give a grin of approval to the man. "I would think it to be improper if we set off without introductions. Clayton Rhodes, sir. It's my upmost pleasure."

Another whistle of wind blew past them, almost making the hat on his head fly off, but he grabbed it seconds before it dared to. "Ah, you can call me Gilbert. I'm proclaimed as the Marquis on other circumstances but-"

"Won't you tell me how you got that title then, sir?" Clayton took his outstretched in hers, beaming brightly. Drawing her closer, Lafayette let out a soft chuckle, starting to tell the story to her.

That was just the start of a whole other story that was to happen between those two unlikely suspects of something even greater.

For the following weeks, Clayton stayed closed with the Marquis, staying with him during the coldest nights, and acquainting herself with his likes and dislikes. She felt lucky to be in love with such a man, and to be falling in love back where her life started.

However, amidst the romance, Clayton lost sight of the fact of who was watching. Many of her friends left the city after her disappearance, and the start of their own lives, but one found his way back in particular.

Leaned up against a wall of a local shop, John Laurens observed the connection between his new and old friend. He heard whispers from some of the older town folk that the Rhodes girl returned, but it seemed to be nonsense.

Only it wasn't.

With her hand linked with Lafayette's, the crystal gleam in her eyes, it couldn't be anyone else but her. As beautiful and enchanting as she'd always been, Clayton had somehow made her way back to her hometown.

John knew the people who once remembered her were far gone from the city, but one man hadn't distanced himself. He'd been distraught when she ran away, and still was haunted by the reminder of that tragedy.

He deserved to know of her arrival, so John intended to tell him personally.

"I have no business to be on your doorstep, since we haven't corresponded for years, but listen. You remember Clayton Rhodes? Well, she's back, and more flirtatious than ever, with our very own Marquis de Lafayette."

The man listening to John in the doorframe froze. He hadn't expected this to show up on his doorstep, but he didn't mind. Clayton. A deep breath left his lips and he finally answered with, "Tell me where she's staying."

Only minutes later did Thomas Jefferson find himself striding up to a familiar house to confront his old friend. He could feel the air being sucked out of his lungs the closer he got, knowing that if she was truly in there, years worth of answers would be made.

Clayton happened to be leaving her lover's house at that second, which was perfectly timed. She immediately caught sight of Thomas and almost tripped over the edges of her skirts. "Oh, I-"

"Why did you leave?"

Thomas stormed across the cobblestone path to where she stood, his eyes welling up with both tears of frustration and sadness. "Why did you leave?!" He forced the question harder, not believing that she was physically in front of him, and not a memory in the back of his mind.

"You want to know something, Thomas," she stated calmly, flinching as he practically flung himself at her. "Do you know what's the one thing that never gets old, but fades after a while of being worn out too long?"

"You're questioning me now, huh? Not the time for riddles, Clayton. Do you know how worried we all were for you? And how-"

"Life here," she murmured, catching him off guard, and making him stumble for some sort of reasoning. Clayton smiled gently, stepping past him just barely. "It's always been my hometown, the birthplace of who I am, but the place where I realized that moving on doesn't hurt."

"All those memories from childhood just wore me out like some stone being shined until it sparked. I'm here to start a new life, and put the past behind me. Understand?" Clayton didn't give him much choice in a response, because only a second later, she was heading off down the street.

Jefferson's mouth opened in shock. He looked down at his hands, and then brought one up to his mouth and wiped that astonished gape off his lips, with the back of his hand.

If one thing was for sure, it was that Clayton Rhodes was officially back in the city. And she was there to stay, with no intention of looking back at the past she made for herself.

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A/N: Thank you AngelaLogic for requesting this! Really liked the idea, so I do hope you enjoyed it. Apologizes for it taking a while!