Alright, now that holiday fics and commissions are just about over with, I'll try to get back to consistently updating this fic! Thanks for waiting!
This chapter is dedicated to tehwinslow! Thank you!
Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.
Chapter 4. Disheartened
It was a little difficult for Blake to get all the way down the staircase as she was.
She watched the excited bobbing of Ruby's hair, the little sway of her skirt, and almost got distracted and tripped over her own two feet.
Calm down! she cried to herself. This... isn't really a date. It can't be. It's just a pleasant coincidence. We just both happen to be going to the same place at the same time. That's all.
She realized that thinking about it that way made her less nervous.
By some miracle, she managed to make it down the stairs. Ruby had paused at the bottom to wait for her, her bright smile almost blinding.
Blake's heart rate kicked up a little as she successfully stepped onto level ground once again. The Faunus girl plastered on a tiny smile of her own in an effort to hide her nervousness about the situation.
She wasn't sure if her acting was good enough to convince to Ruby, or if the brunette was simply too kind to say anything, but Ruby seemed delighted by Blake's presence.
Ruby slid in closer a step. It was all Blake could do not to tense and squeak in surprise at her sudden proximity. Ruby kept her voice low as not to disturb the people reading.
"Thanks again for joining me, miss! I'm sure you must be super busy with your own schedule though, so if it's too much trouble, don't feel bad about ditching me!"
Blake frowned and promptly shook her head.
"N-No, not at all," she assured. "I don't have much of anything to do today, actually. I could never just..."
Run out on you.
That's what she'd wanted to say, but she trailed off, remembering how she'd done just that the past two times she'd been here. She let out a sigh.
Way to go, Belladonna...
But before she could let the guilt cover her again, or before Ruby could grow concerned, Blake's mind went off on a small tangent.
"Oh, s-sorry, could you wait for me for a moment?"
Ruby presented her with a puzzled look that quickly changed back into a smile.
"Sure! I'll be right here!"
"Thanks."
With that, Blake hurried off towards her spot beneath the staircase. The little jog allowed her a moment to herself, to run off a few of the jitters and catch her breath.
Thankfully, she hadn't just run over here for no reason other than to have a moment alone. Blake had left her tea cup from the cafe on the little table before, and now retrieving it was her excuse to leave Ruby for a bit and get her bearings.
As she reached for the small tea cup, her fingers were shaking a little, and she very nearly dropped and shattered it. Only her quick, panicked reflexes saved the quaint little cup and her pride.
Blake pulled the undamaged cup close to her stomach and shook her head to clear it.
Just... Just act natural. Like you did upstairs. I don't know where that confidence came from, but it'd be nice to have some of it back right now. Maybe that was just a fluke...
With a soft groan, she turned back to Ruby, knowing the girl's break time probably wasn't terribly long, and she didn't want to waste any more of it. Blake returned to the patiently-waiting brunette with the big smile still on her face.
"Oh, thank you!" Ruby said kindly.
Blake's ears flattened in confusion.
"For what? I haven't done anything."
"But you have! Good golly, miss, I can't tell you how sloppy the people on the second floor can be. They always forget to clean up their garbage and return their coffee mugs to the cafe, even though they've gotta walk right past it to leave the library! So it's really nice to see people cleaning up after themselves!"
Blake's ears slowly lifted, though she felt her cheeks getting warm as the two of them continued to walk.
"You... shouldn't have to thank me. It's common courtesy to put things away when you're finished with them. Like returning a library book. It's our responsibility to take good care of it when it's in our possession, and then return things in a timely manner without damage.
"You shouldn't be thanking me for doing what's common sense. I should really be thanking you and all the other staff who are made to clean up after forgetful or lazy people."
She didn't know where the sudden stream of words came from, but she was amazed at herself.
Blake wasn't much of a talker, unless she was extremely comfortable around the other person – usually she could gab to her parents at dinnertime or her neighbor Adam if they ever bumped into one another. And sometimes she might talk in-length to Velvet at the cafe.
But to strangers? Even if she didn't like thinking of Ruby that way, she hardly knew her beyond her name and smile.
Blake assumed she'd only ranted a bit because the topic had been one she felt strongly about, the injustices of lazy people who felt like the staff and workers of a place were their slaves. Waiters and waitresses had it bad enough, hence Blake's own adamant refusal to ever apply for such a summer job. She'd never understand those kinds of patrons anywhere.
By this point, she and Ruby had reached the tiled cafe area, and soft, calming music reached Blake's ears. They perked up again to their full height now as she let the tunes relax her.
Ruby seemed a little shocked at the discourse just now, and the Faunus quickly dipped her head.
"Sorry. I-I didn't mean to sound rude or anything..."
"Rude? Miss, that was the total opposite of rude! It makes me so happy to know there are people out there who respect us workers! Sometimes, it's easy to forget."
Blake's heart sank a little.
"Then... I'm sorry there must be so many rude patrons that you forget that."
But Ruby shook her head, her smile never fading.
"But there aren't many rude people, really! At least not here. Maybe in retail or something, but not here! They're few and far between. And it's the nice, kind people like you who make the job all the better, miss! So thank you!"
That beaming smile again.
Blake almost swayed, but she got away with making it look like another step into the cafe. Thankfully, Ruby changed the subject now.
"Oh, boy! Chocolate-chip cookies, here I come!"
There was no one on line right now, so Ruby quickly made her way over to the counter. Blake followed a little more slowly, still cradling her tea cup, thankful that it gave her hands something to do.
Velvet was there, standing tall and ready for her work as ever, her ears held high and proudly. The second she recognized her customers, a smile appeared on her lips.
"Hello, Ruby!" she greeted. "Oh, and Blake! You're here again, too!"
"Yes," the other Faunus said. "I just wanted to return this." She placed the tea cup onto the counter.
Velvet nodded and reached for it, carefully taking it into her hands. She called out for her companion, the dog-Faunus named Canela, and handed her the cup so she could take it back to their kitchen to wash it. Velvet turned back to Blake with as pleasant a smile as ever.
"Thank you so much as always, Blake. You never fail to return our things."
"Don't mention it."
During their brief conversation, Ruby had been deciding what to order. Now, as Velvet turned to her, she was ready for the question.
"And Ruby," Velvet said. "Here for your lunch break? What can I get for you?"
"Hiya, Velvet!" she grinned. "I think I'll just have the usual, please!"
"You've got it," she chuckled.
At that point, another of the cafe's workers appeared from the door that led back to the kitchen. As Canela scurried away, tail wagging at the prospect of washing Blake's cup, another girl emerged.
Coco was Velvet's girlfriend, and the cafe's only human worker. Past her dark sunglasses, she flashed a smile to both her customers.
"Hey now, what a sight for sore eyes. Blake's here and Ruby, too? You guys on a date or somethin'?"
Her comment had Velvet almost shrieking as she lunged at her girlfriend, pushing a palm to Coco's mouth.
"Coco!" she scolded. "That's none of our business!"
"Aw, you're no fun, Velvs. I mean just look at the way they're blushing-"
"Coco!"
"Alright, alright." Coco relented, dipping her head in apology.
Velvet let out a withering sigh and shot Blake an apologetic glance before getting back to her work. "Help me please, Coco!" she hissed to keep the other girl from taunting their customers more.
Coco shrugged and smiled as she turned her back and attended to her girlfriend.
For Blake, the past several minutes had felt unreal. She'd almost blacked out after everything Coco had said.
The human girl had always been fairly blatant with her thoughts, never thinking all that much before she spoke. She was quick to resolve – and win – any disputes with nagging customers or people who gave the staff a hard time about not working quickly enough. She was viciously honest when she needed to be, and although this incident hadn't been spoken with ill-intent, it had still been fairly tactless.
Blake couldn't even look at Ruby. She just glanced nervously around the room, pretending she hadn't heard Coco speak at all.
Ruby was more confused than upset, and there was something else bugging her that took precedence in her mind at the moment.
But for poor Blake, it was all she could do not to run for the exit again.
Not again! she wailed to herself. Just a little longer. I didn't even get to thank her yet! All I did so far was apologize to Ruby, but I never actually thanked her for holding onto the book, though. I can't leave today before I've done that...
Blake took in several deep breaths and tried to steel herself.
It took her a moment, but she finally turned back to Ruby, ears flicking nervously. She cleared her throat, trying to sound casual.
"S-So, um... what's your 'usual', if you don't mind my asking?"
Ruby perked up as Blake addressed her.
"Oh! It's a large chocolate-chip cookie, a chocolate-chip muffin, a brownie with whipped-cream and a strawberry, and a large chocolate shake!" she listed off happily.
Blake nodded slowly.
"That sounds really good..."
"Are you gonna get anything, miss?"
"N-No... I'm fine. I had some tea and a muffin earlier."
But when she paused to think about it for a minute, she realized she'd have nothing to do during all the time while Ruby ate. She quickly changed her mind.
"O-On second thought, Velvet?" she called softly. The rabbit-Faunus' tall brown ears twitched as she turned around expectantly. Blake bit her lip as she made a request of her own. "Could you add another tea to that order, please?"
Velvet smiled.
"Of course, Blake! Just one moment, if you will."
"Oh, I see how it is," Coco mumbled as she grabbed Ruby's food from the display case. "Little Blake's gonna have some tea as an excuse to stick around longer with Little Red, huh?"
"Coco!" Velvet hissed at her again, and this time silenced her with a firm kiss. Coco actually blushed for a second, though it was hard to catch with her shades covering her eyes.
Blake felt herself blush again as well as she witnessed the two girls bantering, and even Ruby's eyes went a little wide. From her spot, Blake's ears caught Velvet's chiding words as she pulled away.
"Coco, I'm going to have a talk with you later."
"Y'know, it's so cute how you seem to think kissin' me like that is a punishment, Velvs."
"You hush! Please just give them their food and let them be!"
"Alright, alright," Coco sighed again, though she seemed infinitely happier to place Ruby's food on the counter now.
It was evident to Blake that she was finished teasing Ruby and herself now. Coco was much more eager for the lecture Velvet was going to give her in the kitchen, no doubt.
"Here you are, Little Red," Coco smirked. "One large chocolate-chip, one muffin, and one brownie." She placed each item onto a small tray as she named it, then slid the tray over to Ruby's side of the counter.
"And here's your milkshake," Velvet said, just as she put the lid on the cup. She handed it to Ruby and then hurried off to fetch Blake's tea. "And here you are, Blake," she said upon her return.
"Thanks, Velvet!"
"Thank you."
"And I'm discounting you both," Velvet informed them as she typed everything in on the register. "One dollar each. Coco can pay the difference."
"Jeez, you're so mean to me, Velvs."
"Because you were so rude to our customers."
"Alright, guess I deserved that one."
Velvet rang up their respective totals for them. Ruby dug into her skirt pocket and pulled out her wallet, then handed Velvet the money. With the discount, Blake only needed to pay one dollar.
Velvet thanked them both and nudged Coco so she'd do the same. Blake and Ruby both thanked them again as well.
Ruby then picked up her tray of goodies, clearly eager to dig into the sweets.
Blake made sure to grab a few napkins to hold around her tea cup, lest the direct heat irritate her sensitive skin.
The two of them turned away to select a table to sit at, but behind herself, Blake could hear Velvet's sweeter-than-honey voice turn disapproving now as she scolded Coco more.
"Now then, I'll need to have a word with you in the back!"
"Oh man, I'm so scared, Velvs~"
"As you should be!"
After that, Blake quickly tuned out and tried to focus on her own predicament.
Alright, this is it. I'll thank her and then-
"Oh, shoot!"
Ruby's sudden exclamation had the Faunus girl jumping, and her tea nearly spilled. Blake turned to the girl quickly.
"Wh-What's the matter?"
Ruby put her tray of food down onto the nearest table so she could smack a palm to her face.
"I completely forgot! There's a staff meeting thingy today at one!"
Blake glanced up quickly to the clock on the far wall. They had no more than five minutes until that time.
Her heart dropped to her toes.
Ruby turned to her and all but threw herself forward into a huge apologetic bow.
"I'm so sorry, miss! I completely forgot! I didn't mean to cause trouble for you! And I'm sorry, but I've actually gotta go right now! I'll probably just take my food with me... B-But I'm so sorry for having to leave you like this! And there was so much I'd wanted to talk to you about, too..."
Blake's heart fluttered, a mad drumbeat in her chest as she shakily put her teacup down as not to drop it.
"I... I'd wanted to... talk to you too..." Her voice actually wobbled, and tears sprung up. But she quickly wiped them away, not wanting to make Ruby feel bad. "But I... I understand. I know this is important for you. I just..."
Awkwardly, she took a step back.
She'd been so... so happy at the thought of having lunch together with Ruby, talking to her more.
Now everything just hurt.
Ruby slowly lifted herself up again, straightening her back. She could see the hurt in Blake's eyes, and Blake could see that Ruby was just as dismayed as she herself was.
"I'm really, really sorry, miss! I'm gonna make it up to you, I promise! If it's okay with you, how about we try this again tomorrow? Or the next time you're here? I've got my lunch break from 12:30 to 1:30. I-If you can come find me, we can maybe... try again tomorrow? And there's no meeting or anything tomorrow, I swear!"
Blake swallowed down a thickness of sorts and tried not to sniffle. The fact that Ruby was just as upset about this development as she was at least let Blake know that the girl had been equally as excited about having lunch together with her.
At the very least, that made Blake feel a little better.
And Ruby had even suggested trying again tomorrow, and that meant she truly wanted to spend some time with Blake. Had Ruby just shrugged this all off and never made an attempt to see her again, Blake would have been utterly crushed.
But at least with this, there was still hope, right?
So she nodded and put on a smile.
"Yeah," she mumbled. "Yeah, I... I can do this again tomorrow. I can... I'll come find you again, if that's alright."
Ruby's face lit up.
"Really? Oh, thank gosh! I'm so happy to hear that, miss! Cuz I really really wanted to just talk to you about some things. I got really excited thinking about it."
But before Blake could wonder what she meant, Ruby changed her train of thought.
"Oh, and y'know, now that we've got this planned for tomorrow, I'll be ready and I won't waste a second of our time! I promise, miss! Just come find me, okay?"
Blake blinked slowly, trying to keep the tears back.
"Okay. I will. I promise... Ruby."
The brunette let out a small gasp at the sound of her name. Her lips curved upward into a huge smile, bigger than any Blake had seen on her thus far.
"Thank you so much! Then I'll see you tomorrow, miss!"
With that, Ruby whipped around, grabbed her tray of food, and hurried off out of the cafe.
As Blake watched her go, she realized she'd never even told Ruby her name.
She was alone in the cafe now – no other customers, and Velvet, Coco, and Canela were in the kitchen. Only the slow-paced music kept her company now.
Blake dejectedly picked up her napkins and tea cup and carried them over to the farthest table, in the corner away from any windows or doorways. She placed her things down and sat heavily on the cushioned chair, her hand bag slipping down off her shoulder.
She didn't know what she was feeling.
Overwhelmed was probably the best word. She didn't know if it was more by good feelings or bad feelings.
Blake rested her elbows on the table and buried her face in her hands, trying to calm herself a bit. Her heart was still racing, leftover nerves from the date she'd almost had with her crush.
She knew she'd get to see Ruby again tomorrow and redo all of this.
She should've felt hopeful, happy, excited. She knew that.
But she was just so devastated by the foiled plans of today.
Things had gone almost perfectly until the last few minutes. She was upset for reasons she really couldn't explain.
Her bottom lip trembled, and she bit into it.
And without fully understanding why, she cried.
The more she tried to look on the bright side of things for tomorrow, the more she recalled the frustrations of today.
She tried to be happy about tomorrow. She really did.
But it just couldn't happen.
She cried softly, using a napkin to wipe her face and blow her nose.
For a long while, she simply sat there feeling sorry for herself, fully aware of the fact that doing so would accomplish no good, but unable to stop herself.
She whimpered in the corner there, her mind a jumble of thoughts and words, until her untouched tea had gone cold.
A/N: It's just not her week, poor Blake. We've all had days like this, right? When life's been dropping us and dropping us, then offers to help us back up, only to drop us harder. Sorry these chapters all keep ending on a hopeless note, but honestly, such is life sometimes, isn't it?
But patience is a virtue. See you in chapter 5!
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