A/N: Blake is a little bit out of character in this chapter, but only for plot purposes. In other news, I am running a somewhat similar story on Wattpad at story/31962620-after-all-these-years?utm_source=widget&utm_medium=link_copy
And remember that the more reviews on a story gives that one priority for updating.
Chapter Nine: New Hurdles
Yang read through the paragraph explaining linear systems four times before slamming the textbook shut in frustration and flopping on her back. "Fuck this. Why do I need to know this anyway?"
"Need to know what?" Blake inquired, walking into the room. She peered up at her roommate, who lied flat on the top bunk.
"Nothing." Yang discreetly slid her algebra two textbook under the covers. "Just some math stuff."
"You want some help? I've got all A's in pre-cal."
"No," Yang snapped quickly. "I mean, uh, I think I can figure it out myself. Besides, I'm sure you have a lot of homework too."
"It's fine, really. What do you need help with?"
"I said I can figure it out."
"Okay, okay. Do you at least mind if I study with you?" Blake didn't wait for an answer before popping up onto the top bunk, several books in hand. Upon taking her place at the foot of the mattress, the dark haired Faunus accidently knocked the concealed hardback off the bed and down to the floor. "Sorry. I'll grab it."
"No, don't-" Yang called out just too late. Her roommate dropped down and clutched the book in both hands.
"Yang? Why do you have an algebra two book?" The blonde returned the question with silence. "Is this Ruby's or something?"
"You'd think that." The agrivated brute stared out the window, refusing to make eye contact with the Faunus. "I guess I couldn't hide it forever." She finally brought herself to look Blake straight in the eyes. "I never finished algebra. In high school, I just barely scraped by. I'm lucky they didn't hold me back over it."
"But this school-"
"-Is for really smart kids. I'm only here on a sports scholarship because the school was disparate for good players. I know I'm idiot; I've gotten pretty good at hiding it."
"Please don't say that about yourself. You're really smart."
"I am a college freshman and I don't understand high school freshman math."
"Yang, last week, Beacon Academy's soccer team sent Mistral home in tears because you wrote half the play book. That takes serious brains. I know I couldn't that." Blake pulled herself back onto the bunk and took Yang's hands in her own. "Math may not be your strong suit, but you're still a really bright girl. On top of that, you have a million other qualities that would make any guy the luckiest in the world to have you."
'Or girl... Wait. What?' Blake thought to herself.
"Thanks Blake. I needed that." The fiery blonde wiped away a few tears which her roommate failed to notice. "You're not so bad yourself." Looking into the cat's golden eyes, Yang felt a strange feeling deep in her chest like an enjoyable smack from a hammer. "Hey, you want to do something tonight?
"Like a date?"
"What? No. Nothing like that. Of course not. I just meant that it's Friday evening and we could do something fun; maybe we go into the city and do a little sight seeing. I haven't gotten to see Vale much since I got here."
"That sounds fun and all, but I have a lot of homework-"
"You were going to help me with math, so don't try and get out of this. You always stay in the dorm, even on weekends."
"That doesn't really sound like my kind of-"
"I don't want to drag you out of this room, but I will if I have to."
"You won't," Blake stated sternly. Yang met this opposition with swift brutality. The blonde stepped to the floor and gripped her roommates leg tightly. She tugged hard. Blake's clawing and grabbing at the bed sheets proved futile attempts at remaining a loner as her body slid closer and closer to edge of the colorless bed. "No!" She shouted as the blonde ripped her from the mattress. The momentum, which Yang could not stop, carried both girls to the ground. They sat up in an awkward position with Blake sitting in her partner's lap whilst facing her. With her roommate now wrapped soundly in her arms, the brute glance over at the set of bunk beds and noticed a long, black ribbon snared on the metal frame of the higher bed. About that time, a pair of stiff, fuzzy objects tickled her cheek.
"Um, Blake?"
"Yeah?"
"Why do you have cat ears?"
Blake felt the top of her head to find the bow missing and her formerly concealed animal appendages exposed and brushing against the soccer player's face. After the sudden realization and clarification of the scenario, tears began to well up in the faunus' eyes. She tried desperately to hold back the oncoming water flow, another exorcise in futility.
"Please don't cry," Yang pleaded as the dam in her roommate's eyes shattered, allowing a river of tears and self-hate pour out like an avalanche. "Blake..." Seeing only one way to calm the girl down, Yang pressed her lips against those of the faunus gently, but noticeably. The stream down Blake's face came to a halt as she figured out what the blonde had done. She returned the kiss happily until Yang broke the contact. The faunus leaned in, hungry for more, but Yang had pulled away. Still on the floor and wrapping up a certain enigmatic, dark-haired loner, "It was the only way to make you stop crying."
"What? But I'm-"
"A faunus? I don't care." Yang smiled reassuringly. "You are flawless and no cute pair of cat ears changes that. The only thing about this that bothers me is your hiding it from me."
"Th- thanks Yang. I just thought-"
"That I hate faunus and wouldn't like you if I knew the truth. I've heard it all before. Trust me, by my side is the safest place in the world to take that bow off. Now come on, Blakey, we're going out whether you like it or not." And with that, Yang stood and helped her partner to her feet, The partner pair walked out to the Vale's downtown hand in hand.
