Untitled Red Beauty fic
*Just projecting my heart onto my favorite characters, no big.*
Belle frowned slightly when Ruby froze in the hug she had given her friend. "Red?" she asked slowly.
Red put her bag down and sighed. "Belle…" Red frowned in thought as it seemed like words were hard to come by. "I need to talk to you about something."
"What?" the librarian asked.
"Us. Our… Friendship. I would love to pick up where we had left off a year ago, but… I don't think I can."
"Red?" Bell asked again. Her breath left her and she swallowed as she prepared herself for the werewolf's explanation.
"The woman you befriended was… Was…" Red closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, holding it for a few seconds before she blew out. "Was truly madly deeply… stupidly… in love with you. That- That person knows better, but it affected how I was with you, how we were together. And I- I know that I was wrong to think that maybe you felt the same way, if only a little bit, but…" Red brought a hand up to rub her forehead, and then her fingers trailed over her eyes. "If we're to be friends again, you must understand that because I know better now, the way we are together will be different, don't you see? I can't be that person anymore, and I don't know what that will do to us- as friends."
There was a silence then, and any bravery Red had was not enough to make her lower her hand from her face, or she would actually begin to cry. "You… weren't wrong."
"No?"
"I just- I had-" Belle tried to explain. "It was a bad time."
"I understand now. I know things must have only gotten worse after I left, but I-"
"You were going through some tough times too. I don't blame you for that. I understand that this is something you need to do for yourself, and for your heart."
Red's hand dropped then. She nodded with a watery smile.
"I am sorry," Belle offered, knowing that it just wasn't enough, that nothing short of kissing her as she once wanted to do a year ago would be enough right then.
Red shook her head and brought her hand up in a halfhearted dismissal. "It'll be fine, just- you know…"
"Yeah," Belle said, even though she wasn't sure if she really did. "I'm… I'm really glad you are back, Red." The waitress nodded, and bent down to pick up her bags again. "I missed you."
"And I you. Everyday." Red hesitated, as if to say something else but decided against it. She nodded in dismissal, and then continued to walk down the main sidewalk to Granny's.
