Now this is mostly a Weiss/Yang story, but there is a wee bit of Ruby/Blake as well~
Thanks to mortxlitasi for their support!
Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.
Chapter 3.
For the next week or so, Yang made up excuses to stop by the bakery on her way home, even if it meant walking the few extra blocks.
She didn't mind walking there at all, and the weather was clear every time, making for an enjoyable saunter around town.
But even better than the weather and the homely scent of the shop itself was the girl who greeted her each and every time.
After their first few meetings when the initial awkwardness had finally started to fade, the two of them found it much easier to smile and start conversations, not just about food, but about their everyday lives; the weather, how business was flowing, how their mornings had gone, and things like that were popular topics between them.
It became Weiss' habit to slip Yang an extra cookie or muffin to enjoy as a free snack, and she herself always took an extra dollar or two out of her own pocket and put it in the register to cover the cost.
Luckily, there wasn't anymore tripping on either of their accounts – unless falling head over heels counted.
Both suffered that fall, and they told themselves as much, but neither knew how to handle it in conversation with the other.
And for now that was fine – they could be happy with this relationship as salesgirl and customer.
Yang always managed to stop by during Weiss' lunch break hour, when only a few or no other customers were around. The bakers in the kitchen in back hardly ever emerged into this part of the shop, so Weiss and Yang essentially had the place to themselves.
Sometimes, Yang would sit at one of the little tables and nibble on the treat Weiss had given her for free, simply enjoying the atmosphere of the place.
And every day for the rest of the week, the blonde girl went out of her way for Weiss – not only in walking there, but in dressing up a bit as well. She was always certain to look as nice as possible after a one-hour kickboxing lesson.
Even on the weekend, Weiss was there at the shop, opening it at the same hour of the morning and closing at the same hour of the evening.
Yang didn't have kickboxing on Sundays, but she simply told her parents she was going for a walk to the bakery.
Ruby had been obsessing over a new video game, so once again, Yang lucked out in going to see Weiss alone.
But after that first week was up, so was her privacy in terms of seeing Weiss.
Ruby had noticed the changes in Yang over the past week. Her parents didn't really notice because they trusted Ruby and Yang to do whatever they pleased when walking around town during the daytime.
But every morning when Ruby offered to stop by the bakery herself and spare Yang the walk there, her older sister denied the offer with something like "Nah, I'll go. I needed to stop by that other shop next door," or "I can do it. Zwei needs more food, so I'll stop by the pet store and then swing by the bakery" and things like that.
Ruby made her offer again this morning, and wondered what Yang's excuse would be this time.
"Yang," she said. "Want me to go to the bakery today?"
"Hm?" That had been another thing; every time someone addressed the blonde, she'd smile and hum at them as though her mind had been in another world. "Nah, it's alright. I wanna check out the jewelry store nearby so I'll go."
Ruby looked her sister up and down.
"Okay..."
Yang had definitely been a lot more spacey recently, and Ruby wondered if she should address that. But she decided against it for now for fear of upsetting her sister, and decided instead on a different plan of action.
Once the two girls had eaten and headed out of their house, they hugged as always before waving goodbye.
Blake arrived within minutes to fetch Ruby, and called out a greeting to Yang who was already starting down the opposite sidewalk. Yang waved back with a big, lazy swing of her arm that even Blake found a bit peculiar.
"What's gotten into her lately?" she wondered.
"So you noticed, too," Ruby observed. "I wish I knew..." As the pair began to walk toward town and their waiting ceramic lessons, Ruby began to explain things to Blake. "Yang's been acting weird for this whole last week. Whenever someone asks her a question, she never hears it the first time, and she's always distracted. She almost walked into a wall last night!"
"As much of an idiot as she can be sometimes... even that sounds a bit extreme for her," Blake commented. "Is she getting sick?"
"That's what I asked her a few days ago, but she said no. And, I mean... she's still going to kickboxing classes every day, and she comes home all smiley and happy. She doesn't seem exhausted or anything like that. But I think she's been having trouble sleeping lately? Like, usually, she just flops into bed and that's it, but recently I can hear her moving around for like an hour before she's finally out."
"Is she eating?"
"Yeah. She eats the same as ever. But even at dinnertime conversations, she seems kinda distant. Like her body's there but her mind's not." Ruby looked down at the sidewalk before her, shoulders slumping as she sighed. "Do you think I should talk to our parents about it? I'm a little worried..."
Blake could tell as much. By means of comfort, she wrapped an arm around the girl's shoulders and rubbed her back gently.
"I don't think you have to be that concerned," she said. "Yang's a big girl who can take care of herself. It doesn't really seem like anything's wrong, right? At least, not in a bad way. When did all of this start, anyway?"
"...About a week ago," Ruby confessed. "She started going to the new bakery on the way home. And even after I said I would do it 'cause it's closer to my route, she always said she was fine with doing it."
Hearing that made Blake's eyes go a bit wider, and the lightbulb finally went off in her head.
"So... you're saying Yang started acting weirdly right at the same time as she started going to the new bakery?"
"Yeah... I think so."
"I see..." Keeping her arm around Ruby to support her as they walked, Blake devised a plan. "Alright," she announced. "We'll get to the bottom of this today. So don't worry, okay, Ruby?"
They paused outside of their ceramic workshop building. Ruby looked up into Blake's kind golden eyes and nodded.
"Okay. Thanks, Blake!"
Blake hugged her softly for reassurance. Ruby always felt better when Blake hugged her.
A moment later, they broke apart, though Blake kept her arm around the smaller girl.
"Now don't worry about your idiot sister, okay? Let's enjoy our lesson and we'll figure this out later."
Ruby nodded again as she followed her inside.
Yang was on cloud nine today.
The sun was up, the sky was bright blue, there was a nice breeze in the air, and she was just feeling exceedingly rejuvenated as she sauntered downtown to her kickboxing class.
Once there, she had a great workout, worked up a bit of a sweat, and overall had a good time exercising before retreating back to the locker room to change.
She washed up in the bathroom as always, using a small towel she'd brought along to clean the sweat off her arms, legs, and collar before making sure she smelled and looked halfway decent.
There was an extra bounce in her step today as she headed out the doors and back into town, bound for the bakery.
When she reached the end of the block, she spritzed on another bit of perfume for good measure before crossing the little street, the scent of freshly-baked bread already filling her lungs.
But just before she saw the sign for the shop, she heard a voice.
"Yaaaang!"
She'd been humming to herself with her eyes closed in her merriment, but the second she heard her name, they shot open.
Just ahead of her on the sidewalk were two familiar figures – none other than Ruby and Blake.
Yang quickly straightened up and tried to play it cool as she headed for them.
"Uh, h-hey guys!" she said with a wave as she approached them. "Why are you comin' this way? I mean, your ceramic class is a few streets down so-"
"We just wanted to go to the bakery with you today!" Ruby explained.
"Right," Blake added. "Since you seem to enjoy it so much." Her tone and eyes were suspicious, though not in a mean way, but a curious one.
Blake and Yang had been close friends for years, and even now, the blonde could read the unspoken message in her gaze:
Your little sister's worried about you, idiot.
Yang grinned sheepishly.
"Oh, is that so? Haha then yeah I, uh... y'know what, on second thought, I'm kinda beat after today so I'll skip the bakery."
She was about to turn on her heel when Blake reached out to grab her arm.
"Well, you already walked all the way here, Yang," she reminded her. "So you're saying you literally can't take three more steps into the shop?"
Yang sensed a bit of a challenge in her voice, and she turned back to the pair.
"I, uh-"
"Come on, Yang!" Ruby beamed. "It'll be fun! Blake and I haven't been here yet and we wanna see what it's like!"
Yang swallowed loudly enough for Blake to hear it. But the dark-haired girl didn't let go of her wrist as she all but dragged Yang inside.
Lavender eyes flashed nervously up to the counter; as usual, she didn't see Weiss right away, but knew she was sitting down to enjoy her lunch.
Ruby was already marveling at the place.
"Whoa! It's so cute! Look at the wallpaper! And the doilies on the tables are so pretty! And ooooh my gosh look at the cookies they have!" She raced over to the display case in front of the counter and leaned over it like a child at an aquarium exhibit.
It was indeed Ruby's excited voice that pushed Weiss into action. Yang watched as her familiar white ponytail became visible when she stood, showing her back briefly as she dusted off her lap of possible crumbs. Then, she turned to face them with the voice and smile of an angel.
"Good afternoon, Yang!" she said.
Clearly, Weiss had known it would be her arriving at this hour, but hadn't expected her to have company. In her excitement to see Yang, she hadn't even registered Ruby's unfamiliar voice until now.
Yang blushed a little as she met Weiss' gaze.
"Hiya, Weiss!"
For Blake and Ruby... everything made sense automatically.
Blake looked from Yang to the girl behind the counter and back again. With the puppydog eyes Yang was ogling her with, the obvious beauty of the white-haired girl, the fact that they were already on first-name basis...
Everything was clear as day.
Blake came to the realization silently, and her lips couldn't stop themselves from curling up into a wide, knowing smile, her gaze meeting Yang's mischievously.
Ruby was much more vocal about it though.
"Oooooooohh..." she said. "I get it now! Yang, you like-"
"The food they make here!" Yang yelled, rushing over to slap a hand over her sister's mouth. "Oh gosh, yeah haha you know me, Ruby. I can't get enough of their cookies and stuff. You know how good they taste, right? Of course you do. I bring 'em home for ya every day, hahaha."
She rambled, saying whatever words came to mind, hoping no one – especially Weiss – had noticed where Ruby had been going with her sentence.
The blonde quickly whipped around to face Blake, her eyes pleading:
Please don't embarrass me in front of her!
Blake read the message easily, and she could assume Yang had already embarrassed herself alone in front of this girl enough times in the past week. Blake could agree she probably didn't need any more mishaps.
Blake nodded to ensure she understood, though she kept the smug smile.
Yang knew she'd be in for a world of teasing afterward, but she'd bear it if it meant these two kept their mouths shut here and now in front of Weiss.
Blake was on her side, but-
"Hi, there!" Ruby had slipped away from Yang's grasp and bounded up to the counter to speak to Weiss. "Did you know? My sister's been acting really weird all week. I think she likes you!"
A soundless scream flew from Yang's lungs as though she'd been punched in the gut by a world-renown boxer.
There were three options: one – to leap forward and grab Ruby in a headlock, two – to turn tail and flee out the door and never come back, or three – to pass out right then and there from sheer humiliation.
Whichever option ended up happening, Blake was bracing herself and holding Yang firmly; even she was a bit miffed that Ruby had spilled the beans so quickly and right in front of Yang's crush.
The girl named Weiss simply stared at Ruby, utterly baffled. She blinked and cleared her throat, and Blake could tell the only reason Yang hadn't passed out or ran away yet was because she was waiting to see the response.
Weiss took a breath and tried to calm herself; this girl's declaration had sent her heart pounding into overdrive, but she needed to stay professional.
"Really, now?" she said a little softly. "That's nice to know. I like your sister, too. Now, is there anything I can get for you?"
There was a lot to take in just then.
Yang went with the third option and went limp in Blake's arms, turning around and burying her face in her friend's shoulder.
"Oh my god Ruby, oh my god-"
She didn't know if she wanted to strangle her sister or kiss her. Blake patted her back gently, struggling to hold her old friend up.
"Well..." she mumbled. "Didn't you hear? At least she likes you, too-"
Just reminding Yang of what Weiss had said a minute ago had her swaying all over again, and though Blake seriously did consider dropping her for a second, ultimately she struggled to keep her on her feet.
In the meantime, Ruby had already gotten over the blatant confession from Weiss and was darting around the shop, excitedly telling Weiss everything she'd like to buy. She watched eagerly as Weiss gathered everything into little baggies for her. Ruby then pulled out her own wallet and paid for everything with a bright grin on her face. She thanked Weiss before gathering the bags into her hands and strutting eagerly out the door.
Yang wasn't even fully conscious until she realized they were outside once again. The breeze woke her up a bit, as did Blake's motion of pushing her down onto a bench.
"Gosh..." the dark-haired girl sighed. "I can't believe you almost passed out."
"I can't believe Ruby-" Yang wailed. "Ruby, you little- I'm gonna-"
"Oh, here!" Ruby – who had been happily munching on the cookies she'd bought – paused for a second to reach out a napkin-wrapped brownie to her sister. "That girl Weiss said this was for you! For free!"
Yang slumped against Blake's shoulder and very nearly fell off the bench, but she accepted the treat nonetheless.
"She... probably thinks I'm a creep now..." Yang mumbled. "I mean, I've only known her for a week! And I mean, I've been crushin' on her since day one, but like... what if she's just super uncomfortable around me from now on? I don't want that..."
Blake could tell her friend was really conflicted about this. So she opted to rub Yang's back for her a little bit.
"That won't happen," she said. "Didn't you hear? She said she likes you, too."
"Yeah, but she probably just meant it in like a customer kinda way. She probably likes all her customers. I don't think she meant it like that..."
Blake didn't like seeing Yang so downtrodden like this, so she did all she could to try and make her feel better.
"You don't know that," she said. "How many of her customers do you think she smiles at and calls by their first name whenever they walk through the door?"
Yang sighed again, tearing off a bit of her brownie and popping it into her mouth with a shrug.
"I dunno..."
Blake frowned, and even Ruby paused in her cookie-eating to scooch closer to Yang's other side, pressing against her.
"Yang?" she whimpered. "I'm... I'm really sorry if I screwed up with that. I wasn't thinking and I kinda just blurted everything out and now I've ruined it for you..."
Yang heard the wobble in her little sister's voice and quickly straightened up, slipping an arm around her back.
"No, it's alright, sis. Don't worry about it, 'kay? Enjoy your cookies."
Blake tapped the blonde's shoulder to get her attention.
"Do you want us to stop by here again with you tomorrow? In case it gets awkward between you and Weiss?"
Yang thought for a moment before shaking her head.
"Nah, it's alright. Whatever happens between us tomorrow, I wanna deal with it head-on. I'll see if she's acting differently or says anything to me."
"Yeah," Blake nodded. "Who knows? Maybe' she'll have forgotten about all of this tomorrow."
Yang gave a grin and nodded.
"Yeah!"
She knew she herself wouldn't forget, but the hope that maybe Weiss would was what caused her to stand on her own and pull the other two up with her. She slung an arm around them both and together the trio began making their way back toward their homes.
As she had been for the past seven nights, Weiss was all that was on Yang's mind that evening and as she lay in bed that night.
And little did Yang know that she was on Weiss' mind as well, and was responsible for every skip of her heart and every blush on her cheeks.
They'd just have to wait until tomorrow to see if they could sort things out.
A/N: I tried something new with this fic - a quick, blatant confession early on. I hope it's a change of pace for you guys!
Ch4 preview: Weiss carried a textbook under her arm instead of her lunch bag, and her stride was a little shorter than usual as she walked through town.
Had it not been for the friendly greeting of the old lady who ran the flower shop, Weiss might've walked down the wrong street...
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