My eyes focused on Jaune as lunged with Miló, while Akoúo̱ covered my front. Jaune was unphased and raised Crocea. As Miló met with his shield, it glowed white, rapidly growing in strength at the point of contact. Miló was held in place as my weight bore down upon him. He drew a smirk and roughly thrust his shield forward, knocking me backwards. I flipped in the air, sticking my landing. I stared him down, Miló at the ready. I gave a small laugh and lowered my weapon and he responded in kind with a light laugh as well.
"You're getting better with your semblance Jaune," I said walking towards him.
"Well I have a good teacher," Jaune said. The distinct sound of a stomach growl echoed in the arena. He smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. "You want to get some lunch?" he asked.
"Um, sure," I said hesitantly, my face feeling warm. We left the practice field and headed towards the dining hall. I know that all of JNPR eat together, but hearing Jaune ask me made me felt kind of romantic, just like he asked me on a date. I could picture it, a sunny day, a verdant green hill, a blanket spread out underneath an oak tree. Jaune and I were sitting eating a simple meal, Jaune feeding me portions of a sandwich.
"Pyrrha?" he asked me. I snapped out of my daydream and saw that we were at the cafeteria. We passed through the doors and walked into the hall. Ren and Nora were already at our normal table, eating together, like I wish Jaune and I did. We walked up to the counter to get our food, and I noticed an unfamiliar aura nearby. I looked around and saw a rather large man standing in a corner of the room He wore large glowing gold armor, colored in red and black, and a permanent scowl. He was the source of the strange aura. It was abundant, it was amazing that I could feel it this far away. It was a strong gold, specked with black.
"You ready Pyrrha?" Jaune asked me. I shot my head back toward him as he held on to two trays.
"Yeah," I said grabbing one of the trays. We walked over to our usual table, Nora in the middle of one of her rants.
"And then we could apple picking; no, tree picking, then we could have our own orchard and we can have all the apple pie ever and we can become billionaires!" she prattled on. Ren just sipped at his drink, tuning her out.
"How did the training go?" Ren asked.
"Another notch towards finding my semblance," Jaune said. Jaune was getting ever closer to finding that out, the past weeks doing good work. His aura only grew stronger and he could manifest it around his shield. I felt a torrent of aura rush by me. I looked to the left and saw the armored man marching toward the door, eyes pierced and ringed with darkness. His aura blazed harder, rushing over his body as if a fierce gust of wind. I looked back to see where he had come from. At their usual table team RWBY sat together, Ruby laying against Weiss's shoulder and holding her hand. Blake and Yang sat in the same chair, Blake in Yang's lap. Yang's eyes followed the man out the door, pierced and angry, as if they had both spoken a horrid slight against the other. That can't be why he's upset, can it?
"She's gay?" Jaune asked randomly. I looked back and Jaune was staring at RWBY as well. "I guess that explains why she said no to the dance."
"Or maybe she doesn't like you," Ren said. Nora's eyes darted toward the door, her face worried and she stood up.
"Hey guys, I gotta go do something," Nora said. "Sorry for running out like this." She ran out the door in a rush. It was suspicious, even for Nora. It was never easy to read her, but it was strange to see her so nervous. Of course I could figure where she would be at any given time. I went back to my meal, sure I would see her again tonight.
I rested in my bed, back in my normal gear, classes having long since ended. I did the same thing I always did at this time; I thought about Jaune. Why Jaune, why can't you see me? What do you see in Weiss? Can you not see my feelings? Why can't I tell you? Why am I so scared to tell you? The door slammed against the wall of our room, Nora rushing in after it.
"There you are!" she yelled. "I was looking everywhere for you."
"What do you want Nora?" I said sitting up.
"Jaune was looking for you," she said.
"Strange, this late, or why he wouldn't wait till curfew," I said jumping off the bed. I grabbed my weapons and walked towards the door. My arm was suddenly trapped in the vice of Nora's grip.
"You have to tell him Pyrrha," she said seriously.
"What?" I asked her confused.
"He thinks you want to do some training down by the lake," she said. I realized the meaning in her voice. "Because I told him."
"Nora, I won't, I can't," I told her, my heart heavy.
"You have to Pyrrha," she said letting go of my arm.
"I know he doesn't like me like that," I said, hiding my nerves. "So why tell him?"
"And what if he does?" she asked me. "Jaune is so oblivious he can't even tell that you like him."
"Nora," I said my voice breaking. "I just can't take the rejection." My shoulders fell. She walked up close to me.
"And what if he doesn't reject you?" she asked. "What if, after finally realizing you like him, he understands his own feelings? And even then, at least he knows. Wouldn't it be better for him to know and not reciprocate than to live your whole life without even having to opportunity for a yes?" I dropped Miló, and fell into Nora, tears overwhelming me.
"I'm scared," I cried. "I've face thousands of Grimm, won several tournaments, and just the thought of telling Jaune how I feel fills me with more afraid than anything else I have ever done." Nora pulled me close and gave me a tight hug. "Why? Why do I feel this way? Why is this what brings me to my knees?"
"It's okay Pyrrha," she reassured me. "It's okay to be afraid. But the only way to overcome those fears is to face them." She shifted her hands onto my shoulders, wiping the tears from my eyes.
"Thank you Nora," I said, wiping away the rest. "No offense, but this is little out of character for you."
"I know," she said sheepishly. "I guess Ren is rubbing off on me."
"I thought you've known him your whole life?" I asked her. "By this point all that could be rubbed off has."
"Actually, He and I have been getting a little closer in past few weeks," she explained. "It just slowly got more serious and I guess now we're together." I smiled and placed my hand on her shoulder.
"I'm happy for you Nora," I told her. "I guess I have to get closer to Jaune now."
"Be honest with him okay?" she asked me. I nodded and rushed down to the lake.
The sun set against the horizon, a beautiful orange glow tinting the sky. I saw Jaune standing at the docks, staring at a small boat in the water.
"Pyrrha, I have been waiting for you," he said. "Is this what you wanted to show me?" He pointed to the watercraft. It was a simple speed boat, two seats at the bow and a row of seats wrapping around the stern.
"No, not really," I said. I however considered, it we be quite romantic if we were out on the lake and I gave my confession. "But maybe we should check it out," I said playing along. Jaune smiled and the two of us stepped on the boat. I shifted my weight as the craft swayed in the water. My feet clanked against something. I took a quick look and saw several telescopes and cameras lying around, as if the boat was abandoned. Jaune rushed to the driver's seat and plopped down, forcing the weight of the boat forward. I caught myself on the back of his seat.
"Pyrrha, are you seeing this?" He asked. I walked forward, taking the passenger seat. The sun had but a sliver left in the horizon. It was a beautiful sight, a perfect opportunity.
"Jaune," I said standing up. "I need to tell you something; something important."
"What is it Pyrrha?" he asked standing up as well.
"Jaune, I," I tried to say before the boat lurched forward and Jaune and I were tossed toward the back of the boat. The boat sped forward for several seconds until a small burst erupted from the ship's engine. The boat coasted a little further before stopping. I pulled myself up, and saw Crocea Mors deployed into the controls of the machine. Jaune pulled himself up as well grabbing onto his weapon and retracted the shield. Smoke billowed over the bow as Jaune rubbed the back of his head.
"Well, I must have triggered the shield to go off," he shrugged. We both looked at the throttle controls, a large gash bisecting the module. I looked out on the water. We were far out on the water, the shore barely in sight in the dim light of the night. Jaune opened one of the back seats and sifted through pulling out a blanket. "Here, you need it more than me," he said draping it over my shoulders. I pulled it tight over me, bracing myself.
"Jaune, what I was going to say," I slowly spoke, my knees shaking.
"Oh, I'm sorry I interrupted you," he said. "I mean, I guess I did worse than interrupt you didn't I?"
"Jaune I like you," I choked out, gripping tight on the blanket.
"What?" he asked confused; his eyes wide.
"I said I'm in love with you Jaune," I said more serious. He shifted his weight back, milling over my confession.
"Since when?" he asked me.
"Since the forest, since after I pulled you out of the tree," I said. He rubbed the back of his head, searching for the words to use.
"Well, that's, that's something," he rambled. "I don't know what I should say." His voice sounded uninterested; like he didn't care I confessed my love. I knew this was a bad idea. I knew he would reject me. I could feel tears well in my eyes. Then he asked a question that I didn't expect. "Why would you like me? Of all the great and strong guys here, why would you pick some grunt like me?" I sifted through my mind of all the things that reminded me of Jaune.
"You, you are the quirkiest, most clumsy guy I have ever met," I said. "but somehow you always keep going. It doesn't matter if you make a fool of yourself, you just brush it off. And when you stood up to Cardin, I felt like you finally were able to be yourself. You, you just make me feel safe, complete, you have this drive for something great, even though nobody else cares." He stood dumbfounded.
"Wow," he said. "Really? I, I never thought anybody cared that much about me. And you've felt that way this whole time?"
"Yes," I said. "every time we were training, on a mission, anything, I was worried for you. And even when you asked Weiss," I choked. "When you asked Weiss to the dance, I was heartbroken, heartbroken that you didn't choose me."
"Well I guess Weiss doesn't like me," he said. "Or guys for that matter."
"Well, I think the only girl she likes is Ruby," I said. "But, I just felt like I needed to say that Jaune. I needed you to make sure that you knew." I exhaled, a pregnant pause following. "I'll go see what I can do about the engine," I said turning around to the bow.
"Are you asking me to be your boyfriend?" He asked. The blanket dropped off my body, my heart skipped, shock filled my body. My knees shook, and I turned back to him, tears welling in my eyes.
"Yes," I said. I grabbed his hands. "Yes, Jaune will you be my boyfriend?"
"I'm not sure," he said. "I mean, I how would I do that; being a boyfriend?"
"This," I said, pressing my lips against his. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and buried myself into him, taking him in. His arms wrapped around me, pressing me tight against him, and I felt secure in his embrace. He kissed back, pushing at me, fighting for control over the kiss. I broke the kiss after such a long yet short time, and stared into his eyes, warm streams falling down my cheeks.
"Pyrrha, why are you crying?" he asked. I buried my face into his shoulder, taking in his warm woody scent.
"Thank you Jaune," I wept. "I'm so happy, thank you." he pressed me tighter in response, while I cried tears of joy into his shoulder. I lost myself in his pleasant scent, quietly lulling off to sleep, finally safe in his strong and warm arms.