A commission for overseerorm! This is the prequel fic to Ice Cream In The Winter! A little Baked Alaska for Valentine's Day this year!
Again, Normal Life AU.
Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.
A Walk In The Park
It was in the winter when Yang fell head over heels.
She'd often take Zwei for walks around town, sometimes heading to the marketplace to enjoy the fresh scents of produce and bread, and other times taking the more scenic route of walking through the local park.
Naturally, since it was the coldest season of the year, Yang found a bit of difficulty getting up and venturing outside into the cold mornings, especially when there was snow coating the ground.
Like herself, other people bundled up in coats, hats, scarves, and gloves, and only went outside on the coldest days when it was absolutely necessary, like to buy food or shovel snow. The frigid weather meant fewer people in the marketplace, but even fewer in the park.
Of course, Zwei loved the snow, and oftentimes Ruby would tag along with them on the walks to play with him. Yang would sit on a cold bench and watch them tire themselves out, which would then mean she would have to carry Zwei back home in her arms and continuously ensure Ruby wasn't falling asleep on her feet.
She didn't realize exactly when, but at one point or another, Yang began to notice they weren't the only ones who enjoyed the park even in the coldest weather.
Of course, there were always at least a few other people there as well - parents playing with their kids, couples holding gloved hands and taking walks, and so on. But she did notice that there were never the same people every single day.
Except for one.
Yang first noticed her on a particularly cold morning. Ruby and Zwei were romping about in the snow, tossing and biting snowballs respectively (though Ruby took an occasional bite every once in a while as well).
Yang had cleared off her usual bench and adjusted herself to the chill, hugging herself in an effort to preserve her natural body heat. She did her best to focus on her little sister and their dog, on how energetic they somehow managed to be, pretending she could feel their movement and the resulting heat it produced for herself.
That was when she noticed the girl sitting alone at the picnic table about two dozen yards away. The whiteness of the colorless snow made anything colorful stand out, but somehow Yang had failed to notice this girl until now.
Her appearance was peculiar to say the very least.
She was quite small of stature, probably about Ruby's size, or perhaps even a bit smaller. Her hair was a twist of brown and pink swirls, and even from this distance, Yang could tell her eyes were the same way.
But even more puzzling than all of that was how she was dressed.
She wore simple white pants, brown boots, a pink blouse, and a small white bolero over that.
But nothing more. No gloves, no scarf, no hat or coat.
But perhaps most shockingly of all was what she was doing.
She was sitting there at the picnic table, presumably reading a book or tablet-
-with an ice cream cone in her hand.
Yang's jaw dropped down in disbelief of what she was seeing.
How is she not freezing to death?!
She was baffled. This girl was dressed and acting as though it were a hot summer day, not the middle of January.
"I mean, to each her own, but like... wow..."
She was so amazed by this girl that she didn't realize she'd been staring at her now instead of at Ruby and Zwei. Therefore, when a squeak of "Yang, heads up!" filled the air, she was a little too slow in turning.
She got a harsh face-full of snowball.
"Ugh! Ruby, c'mon!"
"Sorry! I said 'heads up'! Though it really should be 'heads down' cuz then the person would duck instead of looking right into the ball, y'know?"
"Yeah..." Yang spat snow out of her mouth and wiped her face. "Ugh, whatever... Are you guys ready to head back home?"
"Yeah, I think so! Zwei's so tired he can't even waddle anymore. I'll carry him this time!"
"Alright, thanks."
Yang got up from her seat and stretched herself out a bit, trying not to look back at the peculiar girl who was happily licking her ice cream cone not too far away.
Ruby had picked up Zwei and was spinning him around and cuddling him, dusting the snow off his paws and ears. She ended up noticing the other girl on her own.
"Whoa! That girl's eating ice cream in this weather? That's hardcore! Now I want some too~"
"At least wait until we get back home." Yang ruffled her sister's hair and chuckled.
With Zwei cradled in Ruby's arms and Yang's arm wrapped around her sister, they headed back for home.
But Yang made sure to steal one last glance at the cute girl sitting alone enjoying her ice cream.
From then on, Yang noticed the girl every day.
She seemed to be the only one other than Yang herself who came to the park regularly. Yang even stopped going to the marketplace some days, and stuck solely to the park, just to catch a glimpse of that colorful hair.
Whenever she went alone and Ruby stayed at home, Yang would sometimes walk Zwei a little closer to the picnic tables. She didn't want to act strangely and get too close for fear of freaking the poor girl out, but Yang was simply curious about what she was doing other than enjoying a sweet, freezing treat.
She'd stolen enough glances now to see that she was using a tablet and pen – drawing.
So that meant she came out here every day in the freezing cold, wearing nothing but a thin layer of clothing and lapping at cold-tasting ice cream to draw.
Yang had to wonder what, but she wasn't bold enough to ask.
She wasn't really bold enough to get within ten feet of the girl, for that matter. She didn't want to appear weird or intrusive.
But on the days Ruby came with her to play with Zwei, the days when she sat on her bench a good distance away, Yang often found her gaze traveling over to the picnic tables even more than it rested on her sister now.
That girl was just... so pretty...
Yang wanted to know more about her.
On one occasion, Yang saw the girl do something different than what she normally did.
She put her ice cream cone aside, balancing it on the table so it wouldn't topple over, and put down her tablet pen. She tapped the screen a few times, likely to save whatever drawing she'd been working on, then sat with her hands in her lap for a moment.
Yang could just faintly hear the muffled sounds of a voice, probably from a video call, though she couldn't make out exactly what it was saying. Which was for the better, since she never intended to eavesdrop.
But she was a little excited to get to hear what this girl sounded like.
Yang concentrated a little harder, again trying not to stare, flashing a quick glance back at Ruby to make sure she wouldn't be caught ogling the girl.
Yang imagined a small, polite voice to match her stature, maybe a little high-pitched.
But she was very surprised to hear no response at all.
Rather, she saw it.
The girl at the picnic table lifted both of her hands up before her chest and began to sign back at the person on the other end of the video call.
Given that Yang could hear the other person's voice speaking rather fluently, she could assume that person wasn't deaf or hard of hearing.
So that meant...
The girl signed back quickly and expertly. Yang had taken a course on sign language in a previous semester of college, so she ended up unintentionally eavesdropping after all.
The girl signed to the other person:
'I'm not cold, you know that. I'm fine. Just doing the usual.'
Yang felt guilty for intruding, even at this distance, but she was also rather impressed with herself that she'd recognized, remembered, and had still been able to interpret the sign language.
But that's not the main point here, she reminded herself. The main point is that she's got someone worrying about her. So she really doesn't mind the cold, huh? And I'm guessing she's mute. That's a shame. I kinda would've liked to get to hear what her voice sounded like... Wait, what the hell am I thinking? Yang shook her head vigorously and smacked her cheeks to wake herself up. Crap, I really am crushing on her...
Again, she checked to make sure Ruby was distracted with Zwei before watching the other girl for a bit longer.
Her face lit up with silent laughter a few times, and the sight of her smile sent Yang's heart fluttering.
The girl playfully signed things like 'None of your business, old man!' and stuck out her tongue teasingly. Whomever she was communicating with on the other end was certainly close to her and someone who cared for her.
Yang couldn't help but smile as well as she watched the girl sign 'Goodbye.' She then tapped her tablet a few more times to get back to her drawing screen and picked up her ice cream cone for a few more licks.
Yang might've let her gaze linger a little too long this time. Because a second later, the girl looked up.
Directly at her.
Yang reacted like some kind of thief who'd been spotted trying to stuff something into her pocket. She quickly conjured up a fake coughing spell, unceremoniously burying her face in her sleeve and hacking away until she started coughing for real.
She turned away quickly, hiding her face which was probably more red from embarrassment by now than from the cold. She made enough of a scene to catch Ruby's attention. The brunette looked up from where she'd been making an igloo for Zwei, a speck of snow on her nose.
"Yang? You okay?"
Yang had trapped herself with the real coughs now, and weakly nodded her head.
"Y-eah, I'm f-uh- fine! Just peachy!"
Ruby and Zwei both tilted their heads to one side.
"If you say so..."
They continued playing after that while Yang calmed herself down from the coughing fit. For several minutes, she kept her eyes glued on her little sister, refusing to risk looking back at the other girl.
But of course, the temptation was too great. She cast a quick glance her crush's way, expecting her to have gone back to drawing or eating.
But Yang ended up making direct eye contact once again.
Shit-!
Immediately, she stood up as an excuse to look away again.
"Uh, Ruby! I think we should head back now!"
Her sister was carving out a little hole in the igloo for Zwei to fit into.
"Awww, but Yang, we didn't finish yet!"
"It'll still be freezing tomorrow. You can finish then, yeah?"
"Okaaay."
Scooping up Zwei, Ruby returned to her sister's side.
Together, they began walking along the sidewalk, taking the same path home as always. Yang didn't look at her crush again - not now. Even though she really wanted to...
"Yang?"
"Huh?!" She nearly jumped out of her skin when Ruby addressed her. Her sister almost slipped because of Yang's sudden reaction.
"Geez, Yang! Why're you so jumpy all of a sudden? Just because you like that girl-"
"W-What?!" Yang could feel her soul leaving her body.
Ruby sighed.
"Uhhh yeah, it's like, totally obvious, Yang. You stare at her every day like a weirdo."
Zwei barked in agreement.
Yang froze in place, feeling the color drain from her face.
"Oh my god, shut up! No way was I that obvious, right?"
"Uhhh..."
"Oh my god. Not only did she catch me staring, but you, too?"
"Kiiiinda."
"I'm so dead."
"Nawww, of course not, silly! You can have a crush on someone. It's not a crime!"
"But she saw me gawking at her!"
Ruby took a second to chuckle at the word 'gawking' then urged Yang to continue walking again.
"She saw you looking at her?"
"...Yeah..."
"So that means she was looking at you too, right? At least she noticed you! And maybe she was staring, too! Maybe she's interested in you, Yang!"
"Ha, yeah right..."
But there was some merit in what Ruby was saying.
The girl had looked back at her at least twice. Maybe it was because she thought Yang was a weirdo who needed to be avoided.
Or maybe... she really was interested like Ruby said.
"Well... either way," Yang mumbled. "I'm gonna try not to stare tomorrow... I hope she'll still be there and I didn't scare her off today..."
Ruby squeezed Zwei with one arm and her sister with the other.
"I'm sure she will be!"
Luckily for Yang, Ruby was correct.
Despite copious amounts of worry on Yang's part, her crush was exactly where she always was the next day. She was dressed lightly, holding an ice cream cone, and was as unfazed by the cold as always.
As soon as they saw her, Ruby started nudging Yang with her elbow and mumbling "I told you so" and Yang tried to swat her away.
Their sibling squabble ended up turning into a snowball fight, with Zwei darting around every which way and jumping up in between them.
Yang put up a good fight, but she was more of a tickling champion. Snowball fights had always been Ruby's stronghold, and so Yang was defeated before very long.
After she'd surrendered and retreated to her usual bench, Ruby and Zwei found the igloo from yesterday and continued working on it.
Today, Yang had brought her phone along so she could look at that instead of creeping out her crush. But even though her eyes were focused on the screen, her mind was still filled with thoughts of the girl.
I wonder what she's drawing? Does she work on the same piece every day, or draw different things? And where does she even get the ice cream? It looks professional, so she probably didn't bring it from home. What kinda place is even selling ice cream in the winter? She's gotta be their only source of income in these months...
She played mindless games on her phone and sometimes took pictures of Ruby and Zwei or of the scenery.
The first time she dared to look over at the picnic tables, she nearly froze in place. Literally.
The girl was looking right at her, and even from this distance, Yang could see the unique colors of her eyes.
She didn't know how to react. She'd been caught staring again.
Surely that girl would call the authorities on her soon.
But before Yang could throw herself into another fake coughing fit, it was the other girl who did something first. Once she'd made eye contact with Yang, the girl took a timid lick of her ice cream cone, then hid her mouth behind it. She lifted up her free hand and gave a small little wave.
Yang sputtered.
Had... had she just-
"U-Uh, um-"
But before she could comprehend what had just happened and muster the courage to wave back, the other girl looked away and started drawing once more.
Yang was dumbfounded. Not only had the girl's gesture been completely unexpected, but also it had been incredibly adorable.
God damn it... I think I like her even more now... With a sigh, Yang buried her face in her hands. I have it bad...
She'd thought that incident was just a fluke, just her crush being nice and waving to her as she'd do for anyone else.
But as the weeks progressed, Yang started to make eye contact with her more and more often, and receive more and more little waves or smiles.
Clearly, this had turned into more than just the kindness of two strangers. Now it was obvious there was another interest between them.
But both were far too shy to act.
The girl at the picnic table would always hide her face and quickly look away after seeing Yang, as if seeing her once was all her heart could handle for the day.
However, since Yang had taken an interest in her much earlier on, she was feeling bolder now.
So she formed a plan, and as the designated day approached, she informed Ruby of it as well.
On one of the last snowy days of the season, as they were walking home from the park with Zwei at their feet, Yang got Ruby in on it.
"Okay listen," she whispered. "I'm thinkin' of going to talk to her-"
"Finally!" Ruby had been waiting for her sister to make a move for nearly a month now.
Yang slapped her palm over her sister's mouth.
"Shuush! Geez... Anyway, I'm gonna need your help for it."
Ruby quickly struggled free of Yang's hand.
"Oh, sure! Absolutely! Anything you need, sis! Just tell me the plan!"
And so she did. Ruby listened as they walked, then told Yang it was "really lame but also really cute."
"But-" she added. "I like what day you decided. That's perfect, Yang."
"Ya think so?"
"Of course! There's no better day of the year to try and get your crush to talk to you than Valentine's Day!"
"Yeah... and hopefully the snow will have stopped by then so I can wear something nicer."
"Don't worry, Yang! This is gonna be great!"
Yang gulped.
"I hope so."
In early February, the snowfall began to dwindle.
By the second week, there was only a small coating of white frost still blanketing the grass, but for the most part, the first bits of color hard returned to the world.
Yang and Ruby had come to the park every day with Zwei, and every day, Yang's crush had been where she'd always been, eating ice cream.
And now, Valentine's day was upon them.
As it drew nearer, Yang steeled herself more and more.
Until the morning had arrived.
That day would be extra special.
Yang had toiled over which outfit she could wear that was cute but still seasonally appropriate. She'd decided on a cream-colored sweater and some comfortable pants, and had made sure to brush her hair extra today, along with spritzing on some perfume.
They stopped by a local florist first, which was very busy considering what day it was. Pinks and reds and whites filled the store, flowers and toys and chocolates. Yang had to stop Ruby from buying a box of chocolates for herself.
"Stick with the plan, will ya?" Yang chided her. "If I get a date, then I'll buy you some chocolate, okay? That's the deal."
"Hmm..."
"What? You really don't have faith in me, do you?"
"No, no, of course I do! Just not 100%!"
"Gee, thanks..." Yang heaved another sigh, feeling her confidence waning. "Whatever, just stick to the plan, okay?"
"Right, got it!"
Ruby waited with Zwei as Yang purchased a single red rose at the counter, and then turned around to face her sister.
"Alright! Let's give this a shot! Should be as simple as a walk in the park."
"Yeah!"
Ruby was more excited about performing her role in this than she was about actually seeing Yang succeed or not. But of course she still wanted Yang to succeed.
They ventured to the park together. The air was much warmer now than it had been in previous weeks, but was still a bit chilly.
But despite the frost still coating the grass, today seemed to be filled with a warmth all its own. People were spreading love all around, going for walks, holding hands, giving presents and surprises.
It was a very warm, happy day.
Yang wanted to make herself a part of it.
As soon as the picnic tables were in sight, Yang paused.
"Okay. Remember what you have to do?"
"Yup! Easy!" Ruby grinned. "Zwei, you just hang back for a minute and wait for me, okay?"
The corgi gave a bark of confirmation.
Seeing them getting excited about the plan motivated Yang a bit as well. She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down, reminding herself that this was her big chance. Ruby even gave her a pat on the back.
"You got this, Yang!"
The blonde nodded slowly.
"Yeah... I got this." She took another minute to review the simple mental script she'd come up with for this, then straightened up. "Alright. It's all yours. Make sure to be quick."
"You know I will!"
Yang handed her little sister the red rose, and then they split up and started walking.
Ruby moved at a brisk pace with Zwei at her heels, keeping the rose to her side as to not make it too noticeable. She casually skirted the picnic tables, passed them, then turned around, keeping an eye on Yang who was now approaching from the other side; Ruby was behind her sister's crush now, while Yang was nearing from the front.
Yang went slowly, not trying to draw any attention to herself. She glanced at her crush, busy on her tablet, and then up at Ruby. Her sister was in position.
Now it was all up to Yang.
She took another deep breath as she got closer with every step, swallowing now so she wouldn't have to when she needed to speak.
She was just a few steps away now...
Two...
One...
"Oh, excuse me?"
With a polite smile, Yang paused right beside the girl enjoying her ice cream.
She looked up, her bright brown and pink eyes so much more beautiful at this close proximity than Yang had ever imagined they could be.
The best part was that recognition flashed in her gaze immediately. She knew who Yang was, and the blonde even thought she might've seen a bit of excitement in those mismatched eyes. She was also clearly surprised, and maybe even a bit nervous judging by how wide her eyes got as they found Yang's.
The girl placed her tablet and ice cream down and lifted her hands up.
'Can I help you?'
It seemed she was about to fret about whether or not she'd need to write her words rather than sign them, but Yang quickly assured her.
"No," she smiled. "I'd just wanted to tell you you had something in your hair. May I?"
The other girl was very puzzled, and perhaps even disappointed. Had she been expecting something else from Yang? They were about to find out.
Nonetheless, she gave a nod, permitting Yang to touch her hair.
As Yang slowly reached forward in the gesture to remove something from the girl's hair, Ruby made her move. She darted forward as quickly and quietly as the breeze itself, and handed Yang the rose over the unsuspecting girl's shoulder. As soon as Yang had grasped it, Ruby hurried off as swiftly as she'd come.
Now, Yang pulled the rose seemingly out of the girl's hair, watching her eyes grow even wider.
"Oh, haha, wow! How'd that get there, right? Well, you might as well keep it!" Yang offered the rose to her with a grin, looking calm and suave on the outside, even though she was a nervous mess internally.
The other girl was baffled, looking first up at Yang, then at the rose, then behind herself, and back at Yang. She had no idea how Yang had pulled it off, which meant her plan had worked.
The rose was still unclaimed, however, so the smaller girl signed with nervous hands.
'Thank you. Um...?'
"Yang," she filled in for her. "The name's Yang."
'I see. Well, why don't you have a seat for a minute? My name is Neo.' She then reached out and accepted the rose with a smile and a wink.
Yang couldn't believe this was happening.
It was really really happening.
As Neo took a breath of the rose, then gently placed it on the table, Yang took a seat across from her.
Little did she know that this day would be the start of a beautiful relationship.
They began communicating, talking and signing and smiling, conversing casually, but not without a little flirtation added in.
Yang caught sight of Ruby giving her a thumbs-up a good distance away.
In the back of her mind, she promised to buy her sister a box of chocolates later.
A/N: So I saw this kind of idea on a video and as soon as I was asked to do a prequel as to how Yang and Neo met for Ice Cream In The Winter, I thought "perfect! I have to use that rose idea!" I think this worked out well~
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