Weiss stared up at the ceiling of her room, her expression unreadable. She'd been staring for a good twenty minutes, unmoving except for the occasional twitch of her muscles. Her date with Ruby had come to a happy conclusion two days ago, and she'd gone to bed that night happier than she could ever remember. Now, enough time had passed to where she could reflect on what all had happened, and she wasn't all that happy anymore. It felt like she had shoved herself off the edge of a cliff, and she was just falling, falling, falling... until the disastrous repercussions from what she had done caught up with her, at which point she'd hit the ground with a disgusting splat.

She'd felt such a thrill of self-satisfaction after the end of their date. They'd even kissed! What could be better than that? Well, nothing, because now she realized how horrible a mistake she had made. They'd probably go on another date because the first one had gone well, and should that one continue the pattern, then they'd go on more. Eventually they'd realize that they worked well together and they'd go steady. They'd be girlfriends, and the life she had so carefully crafted for herself would burn down in front of her.

How could she have been so completely idiotic as to let Ruby consume her like this? Now she'd trapped herself within two different lives that could never coexist with each other. Her friends were so different than the people in Ruby's life. They'd never approve of her choice in a dating partner. She'd known that, but she'd deluded herself into thinking that it'd be okay. Somehow she'd led herself to believe that she could work towards a happy relationship with Ruby without any of her friends - besides Pyrrha - knowing. They'd find out, and they'd laugh at her. She'd be ostracized from the groups she tried to hold so much sway over.

Worse than that would be the reaction from her family. She shuddered and curled into herself just thinking of the apoplectic rage her father would experience when he found out who she was dating. There clearly wasn't much money coming from whatever job Taiyang had, which meant there wasn't anything the family could give that would be worthwhile to her father's company. The company that she wouldn't be able to give an heir, as she and Ruby obviously could never have children. Adopting would never be acceptable to her father. A true heir had to have Schnee blood.

Going down this path guaranteed that she would never get the approval from her father that she so desperately craved. The moment he found out about this, she would be stricken from the will and removed as the heir to the company. God damn Whitley would be the next heir, and she already could see the smuggest smile a human being could possibly make on his face when he heard how much of a disgrace she was to the family name.

She could make a compelling argument, saying that who she chose to date didn't compromise her ability to lead the company into a prosperous future. That wouldn't matter, though. Her father and Whitley would stand against her, and no one else would defend her. The last time her mother had said anything against her father was so long ago that the memory was fuzzy at this point. As for her sister, the one person she'd truly trusted when she was young, she wasn't there anymore. She'd joined the military to escape her father's wrath, which left all those burdens on Weiss's shoulders. She still held a grudge against Winter for abandoning her like that, leaving all of the family's hopes, dreams, and anger on her. The occasional two minute call wasn't enough of a replacement for a sister she so desperately needed right now.

Tears were already streaming down her face, staining the sheets around her head. She thought she was over the constant crying, but there was something about life with Ruby that made them come unbidden. There was always something negative lurking beneath the surface, no matter how happy she felt the previous day, and it was always her fault. Why was she so god damn stupid? Winter should've taken the burden of being the Schnee heir and let her get through high school in peace.

It wasn't Winter's fault. She knew it wasn't, but it was just so frustrating. There was no 'best of both worlds' situations. It wouldn't feel this bad if her crush for Ruby had been low-key, but no: it was extraordinarily powerful. That crush had consumed her entire being, and had left her in dire straits. If she stayed the course that her family had laid out for her, she'd never want for anything. All her needs would be taken care of, and she'd always have more money than she knew what to do with. She'd run a very successful company, with her face on business magazines. Hell, she'd probably have her own Wikipedia article.

That life didn't include Ruby, though. It couldn't, and that would mean a life of bitter loneliness. She'd marry some rich guy, because her parents expected it of her, and she'd give them the heir they wanted. How could she love any other person when her feelings for Ruby were so strong? Could she even look her child in the eye knowing that their conception wasn't out of love, but of duty? She'd end up being just like her father, and her child would just end up being her. That child would hate her.

All that made it seem like choosing Ruby was easy, but it wasn't. Being with Ruby would be easy, at least. She liked being around Ruby, as friends or otherwise. Talking with her wasn't a chore, and there was a connection between that she could feel every time she came to mind. She wanted to be with Ruby, which wasn't something she said lightly. Nobody else had ever made her feel this way, and she didn't want those feelings to end.

What kind of life could they lead, though? Being cut off by her father would mean she wasn't going to be awash in money. She wouldn't be able to get a job at the company, much less be in line to run it. Her life would be just as bereft of monetary means as Ruby's. They wouldn't be able to afford any of the things she'd just expected to have in her life. What kind of job could she get if not via nepotism? How could she pay for college if her ability to get a scholarship was compromised? She didn't even know how to take care of herself! They'd have to live the rest of their lives in Ruby's house, paying rent to Taiyang like complete losers.

She'd be such a burden on Ruby. Only now was she realizing how truly selfish she'd been. She'd pushed and pushed her feelings, awkward as they might have been, on Ruby until they finally felt comfortable with each other. All of that just to have her stand beside a world that she couldn't belong to. A place where she wouldn't be accepted. Now she had completely screwed herself. There wasn't going to be a happy ending now. No matter which direction she chose, something bad was going to happen. She didn't know what to do.

Her stomach churned, making her feel as if she was going to throw up. What was she going to do? She couldn't just lie in bed for the rest of her life and pretend that there wasn't a huge, life-altering decision to make. The thought that immediately came to her mind was to try and live both lives. As impossible as it may seem, maybe she could make it work. She'd live her normal, popular girl life, have her friends and be the heir her father wanted - or at least tolerated. In the shadows, however, she'd have Ruby, someone she could come home to and enjoy life with in secret.

But... she couldn't do that to Ruby. When she originally asked her out, that seemed like a perfect plan. She wouldn't have possibly imagined that going wrong, but things had changed. Her feelings for Ruby were stronger, but it wasn't just that. She saw her as more of a real person with real feelings: not just some hired hand she'd call when she needed to stare at her creepily or cuddle for a few minutes to de-stress. To even think of going out with Ruby and keeping it a secret from the outside world... That was low, even for her.

With a sigh, she sat up and wiped the tears from her eyes. Though she tried to summon up the mental strength to figure out a solution to her problems, she was at a loss. This time, she had nothing. It didn't matter that she was a Schnee, and a Schnee always had a solution to their problems. Being a Schnee was the problem in the first place!

How was she going to tell Ruby? What was she going to tell her? She didn't know. Even at her most confused, she'd always been able to figure something out when it came to Ruby. It wasn't always a good decision, but it was something. Now she was completely stumped. All her smarts and riches were useless in trying to solve her most damning conundrum ever.

She was still falling, and she was so terrified that when she hit the ground, nobody would be able to pick her back up.


School was absolutely torture now. It was difficult to concentrate on her classes when her mind was filled with thoughts of Ruby, and the decision she had to make. The thought of having to choose between the world she'd grown to love and the world she depended on was beyond stressful. She made herself stay behind in class so that she didn't risk bumping into Ruby in the halls. It was too difficult a task to pretend that she was doing fine.

At least she didn't have to explain herself around her friends. They didn't care what she was feeling, as long as she was still rolling with them. She found a sort of perverse solace in hanging around with them, where she didn't have to feel conflicted by worries or morals. When lunch came around, she sat with them and temporarily deluded herself into believing that things were they way they used to be. Before all the love and complications that had become a staple of her life.

"It's weird, right? Where'd she even get those clothes?" Weiss shook her head slightly, realizing that she'd been spacing out. She'd sat down for lunch with her friends, but she'd immediately lost herself in her thoughts. Now she didn't have any clue what they were talking about. Not wanting to admit that she wasn't listening, she took a bite of her sandwich and hoped that she'd be able to discern what they'd been talking about.

"Maybe her sister stole them. You know she's got sticky fingers," Emerald remarked. Several of the girls giggled, but Weiss didn't join them. She had a bad feeling that she knew who they were talking about, and she didn't like where this was going. "Maybe we should report her to the police. We wouldn't want menaces like her in our school, right?"

"You're just saying that because you want to see her in handcuffs, perv." Coco smirked, eliciting more giggles and causing Emerald to blush.

"Hey, shut up! I don't swing that way, assholes." Emerald stuck out her tongue, taking a large gulp of her drink. "I just care about the sanctity of our school." Weiss wasn't feeling very hungry anymore. She was pretty confident that they were talking about Yang, and usually she'd be all over this conversation. Now that she had feelings for her younger sister, it suddenly didn't seem appropriate to say anything. Even if she could be a lumbering oaf sometimes.

"Yeah yeah, whatever." Cardin spoke up, putting a hand on the table with a devilish grin. "Let's be real, though. Ruby's pretty hot when she's not dressed like a hobo. I'd hit it." A couple of the other guys nodded in agreement. "Maybe she should get Yang to steal clothes for her more often." Weiss felt her blood begin to boil. At that moment, she wanted to punch Cardin in his smug face for saying that about Ruby. It was so damn tempting...

"Once a loser, always a loser." Arslan shrugged, prodding Cardin in the shoulder. "You've got bad taste, pretty boy." Cardin just laughed, high-fiving Neptune as the conversation started to drift elsewhere. It stuck in Weiss's mind, though. She couldn't let it go. Hearing them talk about Ruby in such a sexual manner made her furious. How dare they talk about her like that! Only she could think those things about Ruby. No one else!

She wasn't very talkative for the rest of lunch. Not that she'd said anything previously, but stewing in her own anger wasn't very conducive to conversation. It wasn't until lunch was about to end that the topic at hand suddenly swung back to Ruby, and this time she couldn't hold back. That was the thing that finally pushed her over the edge.

"I don't care what you say, Arslan. If Ruby's really that hot, then I'm definitely gonna ask her out. I think I've got a chance." Ugh, Neptune... He'd ask out a mannequin if it was hot enough. Of course he'd think he had a shot with Ruby. She knew that he didn't have a chance in Hell, but the thought of him even going up to Ruby with those intentions made her lose her cool. She couldn't stand the thought of them horning in on her territory like that, even if they didn't know that it was her territory. And to do it just because they thought she was hot now? In the clothes that Weiss had bought her? Again, how dare they.

"Get real, Neptune. You don't have a chance with her." All attention was brought to her now, but she was too deep in her anger to realize what she was doing. "Don't you have any other airheads in the school to hit on?"

"Uh, yeah, but so what? Are you gonna ask her out or something?"

"No! Don't be ridiculous!" She knew she was blushing. Why did they all have to be staring at her? Now she realized what'd she done, and that just made things worse. She'd popped off without thinking of the consequences again. Lately that had meant she'd said something stupid or insensitive in front of Ruby, but now she'd potentially blown her cover in front of her friends. Oh God... "You need better tastes." She hated saying that, now that she knew anybody would be damn lucky to call Ruby their girlfriend, but she needed to cover her tracks. If she made it convincing enough, hopefully they wouldn't suspect her.

Anything else she might say would probably bury her in the grave she'd started digging the moment she opened her mouth. Hurriedly packing her half-eaten lunch away, she turned on her heel and left without another word. There would have to be a good amount of damage control to do later, and honestly she wasn't sure how she would be able to do it. She was already doing her best to burn everything she'd worked so hard for to a crisp.

With lunch still a few minutes from ending, she decided to take solace in the library. She'd be able to spend those few minutes in peace and quiet, which might just give her time to think of an answer to her world-consuming problems. Or maybe just to ruminate on how miserable her life was going to be, one way or the other. Sitting at a table away from the front windows, she put her head in her arms and shut her eyes.

It didn't take long for her to feel like she was caught in a powerful vortex, eyes going wide as she spun around and around without an end. She felt like she was having an out-of-body experience, watching herself get flung around a seemingly-endless cyclone. The wind was slamming any noise she may have tried to make right back down her throat, and it was suffocating her. Then the wind ceased entirely, and she was falling, falling, falling...

Someone was shaking her, and her eyes flew open with a start. Sitting up, she looked around wildly, finding herself still in the library. She looked up to find Blake staring down at her with a slight frown on her face. Realizing quickly that she must've fallen asleep, she pulled out her phone and checked the time. To her horror, lunch had already ended. She was now over fifteen minutes late for class.

"Oh no, oh no oh no oh no. I've never been late to class before!" She jumped up out her seat, kicking her foot against one of the table legs. "Augh!" Yelping in pain, she fell back into her seat, the force nearly sending it - and her - toppling over. She would've gone down too, if it wasn't for Blake grabbing the chair and pushing it back up. Great, now she was being saved from further embarrassment by Blake. She couldn't deal with this. It was too stressful. She was another inconvenience away from screaming, bursting into tears, or both. Was this what it was like to completely lose control over your emotions?

"Slow down, princess. You're going to end up in the nurse's office before you get to class." She smirked briefly, but went back to looking almost realistically concerned. "What were you doing in here anyway? Don't you eat lunch with those awful people you consider friends?"

"They're not-" She stopped herself, unable to finish what was now sounding like a complete lie. Her friends really were acting awful, and... and she'd acted the exact same way before. Except for the sexual tinge to the conversation, there was little difference between all the rude things they'd been saying and what she'd said in the past. She'd been the ringleader more often than not, hadn't she? God, she was... she was so awful... "They're..." She couldn't finish pretending to defend them, choking up as the urge to flee - not only the library, but the entire school - rose within her.

"Did something happen between you and your friends? Because you look like you're about to cry." When Weiss didn't respond, Blake sighed and guided Weiss back to her chair, forcing her to sit down. "Looks like I'll be your tough love therapist again."

"I don't need a therapist," Weiss shot back, though she didn't make a move to get back up. She needed to make it to her class before it became way too late. Surely her reputation would give her a pass on being late. She had a good relationship with all of her teachers, but she didn't want to go to class. Any attempt to pay full attention in class would be a wasted venture. In her current state, she was completely useless.

"You're lucky I don't charge you. I'm sure you could afford it." Blake rolled her eyes and took a seat next to Weiss. She really didn't feel like Weiss was worth the effort, but she remembered how happy Ruby had been after their first date. Well, after she'd finished scolding the two of them for spying. She was starting to get the feeling that Weiss was going to be in Ruby's life a lot more, which meant that she'd be in Yang's life by extension, and, by further extension, her own. This was for them: not for herself, or for Weiss. "Does this have something to do with Ruby?"

"What makes you think it has something to do with Ruby?"

"Because everything that involves angst in our little circle of dysfunction seems to tie back to Ruby." Well, wasn't she sharp? Like a stupid, god damn tack. "I hope this isn't another thing that's going to involve her getting hurt. You've done enough damage to her, don't you think?"

"I know that! I'm not trying to hurt her!" She whispered angrily, glaring at Blake. "I'm just... It's..." She didn't know how to explain what was going on without spilling every miserable detail to Blake, and she didn't feel comfortable revealing all of that to her. They weren't close enough for that. "You don't understand, okay? You can't understand. I need to get to class."

"Oh no you don't. No more of that. The last thing we need is to have either of you continuing to dance around whatever issues you have." Her expression softened, her hand gently squeezing Weiss's shoulders. "Let me tell you something I've learned from being with Yang. Trying to hide your troubles for as long as possible will just make it hurt worse when it eventually comes to light. Believe me, I know. You want things to go well with Ruby, don't you?"

"Of course I do! I wouldn't put in so much effort into trying to atone for what I did in the past if I didn't." She groaned and slumped back in her seat. Blake clearly didn't understand. Then again, she hadn't explained anything, instead just saying that Blake wouldn't understand. Couldn't she just understand without knowing? Was that so hard? "I don't know what to do, okay? I just... I don't know what to do..."

"Look, if you're not going to talk to me about it, then at least tell Ruby. I know it's probably tough for you to swallow your pride and admit whatever this is to her, but it'll be better for you if you do. Ruby's a nice girl, Weiss. She seems to like you now, for whatever reason. If you don't think that she would understand, then you two won't be dating for long anyway." Why was Weiss so damn stubborn? It made it really difficult to feel sorry for her. She did feel sorry for her, though. A little bit. She felt more sorry for Ruby, though. If those two ended up becoming girlfriends, it'd be absolutely chaotic.

"I want to tell her. I... know that lying isn't ideal. What if she gets upset with me again?" She stared at the table, wringing her hands. "I... I don't know if I can do this." Nervous wasn't the right word to describe how she was feeling. There likely wasn't a word in the entire dictionary to properly explain it. She was scared, though. That was an appropriate-enough word. She was scared. Terrified. Afraid. Etcetera, etcetera.

"I think I have a solution." Weiss looked up, for a moment actually believing that Blake had an actual solution. "You talk to her after school, and tell her whatever it is that's bothering you. Tonight, I'll call Ruby to see if you talked to her about it. If not, I'll make sure she badgers you endlessly until you do. How's that sound?" Weiss stared at her, horrified.

"That's... That's a terrible solution!" She should've known better than to trust that Blake would come up with something useful. This was akin to blackmail! Blakemail. Oh god, that was awful. "Unbelievable... You're blackmailing me in my time of need."

"Not everything's about you. Ruby deserves to know whatever it is that's bothering you, since it obviously has to do with her. Are you truly trying to be a better person for her sake, or are you just playing her so you can get in her pants?" Blake narrowed her eyes at Weiss. It was something she'd been wondering about for awhile now. Maybe poor, innocent Ruby was being deceived by Weiss so that she could have some sort of easy fun. She didn't want to believe that even someone like Weiss would do that, but she had to make sure.

"Excuse me?! I would never do something like that! Ruby means more to me than just some quick lay! Don't you dare say that to me again!" She stood up and glared down at Blake, shaking with rage. Just because she'd been a jerk didn't mean she'd stoop so low. It incensed her that Blake would even voice that kind of a concern out loud. Besides, why would she act like a player and hit on Ruby when she was still a virgin herself? ... She was glad she didn't say out loud.

"Just had to make sure." Blake didn't rise up to Weiss's anger-fueled challenge. She was used to this, having dated Yang for this long. Her blonde firecracker had a tough time keeping her emotions in check, so she'd already seen the enraged side of her before. She'd dealt with the pitbull: she could deal with the chihuahua. "So, are you going to talk with her?" That threw cold water on Weiss's red-hot anger, bringing a noticeable slumping to her posture.

"I... guess I have no choice." She sulked, knowing that she needed to do this, but she didn't like being blackmailed. Picking up her bag, she pushed her chair out and walked around the table. "I have to get to class now. I..." She fumbled for the right words to say, but couldn't come up with them. "Thanks, Blake," she mumbled, hurrying for the entrance. Hopefully she could pass off that she had been feeling unwell to the teacher.

"You're welcome, Weiss." Blake watched Weiss leave the library, lightly shaking her head. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if Ruby and Weiss ended up getting together. It was perhaps a tad egotistical, but she liked being the most calm and the most sane one in their little rag-tag group, as it were. Would anyone really blame her for trying to get a bit of a pick-me-up?

Meanwhile, while walking to her class, Weiss pulled out her phone and sent Ruby a quick text: 'Can I come over after school? I need to talk to you.'


She wasn't ready to have this conversation with Ruby. Each minute she spent behind the wheel driving to Ruby's house didn't make her feel any more prepared. She wished that she hadn't even thought of this terrible decision that she had to make. If she hadn't illuminated herself, she could've gone on in blissful unawareness. She could've gone on more dates without this cloud of worry following her around. This was the one contingency that she had no plan for. Maybe she should revisit that 'jump off the nearest bridge' idea...

She reached Ruby's house, but she didn't go in immediately. Letting the car idle, she stared through the windshield and tried to compose herself. Didn't she want to make things work with Ruby? Wasn't this the most emotions she'd ever felt about another person in her entire life? As much as she hated admitting that Blake was right, Ruby deserved the truth. Taking a deep breath, she shut the car off and got out, walking with heavy steps to the front door. She was so nervous.

She wasn't the only one. Through the guise of text, Ruby could pretend that everything was fine. It wasn't, though. Seeing those words - 'I need to talk to you' - set alarm bells off in her mind. That was never good. Whenever someone said that, it meant they needed to talk about something serious. Something that would probably upset her. What was it, though? She'd been so worried that she kept calling Yang until her sister finally picked up.

"Ruby, I am in the process of removing Blake's pants, but my own pants keep ringing with all your calls." She heard a hiss of protest, obviously from Blake. "This had better be super important, because I have to get back to practice soon."

"It's extremely important!" There wasn't much time. Not only did Yang have to get to practice, but Weiss might be here any minute. "Weiss texted me and said she needed to talk to me. No smiley face or anything, and-"

"Does her phone even have the ability to make a smiley face? I don't think I've ever seen her smile." Yang chuckled, unable to resist.

"Yang! That doesn't matter! This isn't good! It's gonna be about something serious, I know it is. What if she didn't actually like our date, or she thinks I was a bad kisser? She might be coming to break up with me, and we aren't even dating yet!" Ruby was letting her mind run wild with disastrous outcomes. "Yaaang, help me! What do I do?!"

"Ruby, it's Blake. I'm sure whatever she's coming to talk to you about, it's because she trusts you enough to tell you. Just hear her out, but it's up to you how you want to deal with whatever she tells you." Well that was a surprise. She hadn't expected Blake to speak out for Weiss. Well, sort of. "Are you going to be okay, Ruby?"

"Yeah, I think so. I hope so, anyway. Thanks Blake." She smiled to herself, appreciating what Blake had told her. Blake always had good advice to give, and she was happy that she could count her as a friend. Hopefully this wouldn't end up being as bad as her mind was trying to make her believe.

"Alright, good. Now, I'm putting my pants back on, Yang."

"Aww, but Blake! We've still got a minute left!" Ruby hung up at that point, her cheeks turning red. She definitely didn't need to hear that. Unfortunately, that meant she had to wait in silence, by herself, for Weiss to arrive. The more time she had to herself with nothing to do, the more antsy she got. She ended up pacing around the entire house, going into each room and randomly sorting whatever she could find. She even considered starting up a video game, but she couldn't imagine it would take Weiss that long to show up.

Still, after ten minutes, she was starting to wonder, and wonder turned to worry. Perhaps she needed to call Weiss and see if she was still coming over. That was too paranoid, though. Besides, it'd be a distraction if she was still driving. She was driving herself crazy waiting for Weiss to show up, though. Any longer and she would truly lose it.

Thankfully, it wasn't long before there was a knock at the door. Ruby hurried over, nearly slamming into the door in her haste. She looked through the peephole, seeing Weiss standing there. Even through the small hole, she could tell that she looked nervous. It was written all over her face. That didn't make her feel any calmer. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and invited Weiss inside.

Weiss stepped inside, hoping she looked a lot calmer than she felt. She looked around, wondering if anybody else was home. This wasn't something that she wanted anyone else listening in on. It was a private conversation between herself and Ruby. "Is anybody else here?"

"No, it's just us." Ruby led Weiss to her bedroom, letting her inside before shutting the door. Both of them were a bundle of nerves, and they could see it in each other's eyes. Knowing that the other was just as nervous wasn't a comfort, though. It only seemed to make them more nervous. Ruby went over to her bed and sat down, turning her attention to Weiss. "Wh-What did you want to talk about?"

"Yes, well..." Weiss came over and sat next to Ruby, but she couldn't look at her. "While you know that I have feelings for you... Strong feelings, I might add... there are certain complications you need to be aware of." She took another deep breath, willing herself to continue. "We've only gone on one date, so we're not actually in a relationship together. However, I feel it's appropriate to inform you that this isn't as simple as I would like it to be." She stopped herself, realizing that she was accidentally speaking like this was more of a business issue. "I'm... I'm sorry, I'm not explaining this right..."

"There's... something wrong with us dating?" Ruby swallowed thickly, feeling like she was right to believe something was wrong. Weiss really was going to break up with her, despite them not being a couple. She wasn't even sure how to feel about that. Yes, she wasn't ready to fully commit to a relationship with Weiss, but she'd been feeling like they were closer to one than she'd ever thought possible. It'd only been one date, but she'd had a great time. She... She wanted to go on another one, with the hope that Weiss would continue to prove that they'd make sense as a couple.

"No! I mean, yes, but no! I mean... Ugh, it's complicated." Weiss groaned and hid her face in her hands. "It's so complicated..." She could tell by Ruby's tone that she wasn't happy with the implications from what Weiss was saying. Though she'd known that this would be really difficult, it seemed as if it was even more difficult than that.

"What's complicated, Weiss?" She put a hand on Weiss's shoulder, trying to seem more calm than she felt. Thinking back on her argument with Weiss on the clothing incident, she had a feeling that this was similar to that. Things weren't as black and white as Weiss may have wanted them to appear. There was something - or multiple things - that were the cause of these 'complications', and she had to find out what they were. Getting upset wouldn't help right now.

"Everything! I really like you, Ruby, but I don't know how we can be together. We run in completely different circles, and I thought it'd be okay. I thought I could make it work, but I don't know how anymore! My friends wouldn't approve of you, and they'd ostracize me if they knew we were together. I'd lose all my power in the school, and I'd be a nobody!" She tried to take another deep breath, but she couldn't do it. All her breaths were shallow, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to hold her tears back. God, she'd never cried this much before. It was so unbecoming of her.

"Those don't sound like really nice friends." Ruby could barely get the words out. She could feel familiar feelings of frustration bubbling up inside her, and it made her sick to her stomach. It sounded like Weiss was trying to say her reputation was more important than her, and it hurt. She could've believed that to be the case before, but not now. Not after they sat together after that awkward dinner. Not after Halloween, or after their date. She... She couldn't jump to conclusions yet. Weiss still had trouble with her words being hurtful. Maybe this was one of those times she was doing it on accident. She was planning on being very upset and hurt if things kept going in the way that they seemed to be going, though. She had her sad emotions on standby just in case.

"No, they're not. I... I can't even defend them now, and it makes me realize how awful I've been. Especially to you." Yup, the tears were falling now. She stopped talking, trying to will them back into her eyes, but even she couldn't make gravity bend to her will. She would have to talk with Isaac Newton about this... "It's not just them, though. There's... there's also my family."

"Oh." That made things a lot more real. She should've known this would involve Weiss's family. Though she knew almost nothing about them, she knew that Weiss's dad had hit her, and so she automatically knew he wasn't a good guy. Nobody who hit their own child could be good. "What... What about them?" She felt like she knew where this was going, but she had to ask, to make sure.

"I'm the heir to my father's company, Ruby. He would never approve of me dating below my status, and the fact that we could never produce an heir... He would disown me. If I'm no longer next in line at the company, I don't know what I would do. How am I supposed to take care of myself? How would I take care of you? I'm useless without my name!" She tried to wipe her tears away, but more kept falling to take their place. Her voice took on a higher pitch as she struggled to get more words out. "I'll never earn my father's respect... He won't ever love me..."

"You... You want his respect?" Ruby was completely baffled by that. Why would Weiss want the respect of a man who clearly didn't respect her? She couldn't wrap her head around that. "But he hits you, Weiss! He doesn't treat you with respect! Why would-" She grit her teeth, knowing that yelling at Weiss wasn't going to make this better. "Is what your father and your friends think more important than what I think?" She didn't want to go there. It felt petty, but she couldn't help it. They... They wouldn't work out if other people's feelings about their potential relationship came before their own feelings about it. Her feelings about it: what it could be. Or... what it could've been.

"No. No, it's... it's not like that. You mean everything to me." She blushed, not having expected to say that, but it was out there now. "I... I mean, maybe that's too much. We're not dating, but... but I care about you. I know how this sounds. It sounds rude, and... and selfish, but this is my life. I don't know anything else. I don't know how to be anyone else. What if I end up losing everything? I'm nothing without my name. I'm just... no one."

"You're not no one, Weiss. You're... well, you're Weiss." Ruby laughed, a brief moment of levity in a very serious situation. "I don't care about who your friends think you are, or what your father wants you to be. I care about who you are. You're not like them. Sure, you're stubborn, and you sometimes say mean things, but you want to change. You want to be a good person, and that's the Weiss I've come to like spending time with. That's the Weiss I agreed to go on a date with. I... I can see myself being with you. At some point. If... If you feel that's what you want as well."

"I do. So much." Weiss hadn't looked at Ruby the entire time they'd been speaking, but she finally turned to look at her now. It was a bit hard to see her through the tears, even though they were sitting right next to each other. "Ruby, I'm scared... Things are going to go south in my personal life from here on out, and I don't know what I'm going to do. I won't have anything left..."

"That's not true. You'll have me." Ruby smiled, feeling her own eyes starting to mist up. "You'll have me and Pyrrha, and Jaune and Yang and Blake. My dad too!"

"I don't think Jaune, Yang, or Blake are going to be greeting me into their lives with open arms." She laughed ruefully, shaking her head slightly. "I've been awful to them too. You're the only one who doesn't hate my guts."

"That's not true! I mean, it's... kinda not true." Admittedly, it'd be tough to bring them around on Weiss, especially Yang. It was worth it though. Weiss was worth that effort. Hopefully she was worth that effort in return. "They'll come around, though. They'll see how much you're improving, and they'll like you just like I do. I mean, not exactly like I do. They probably wouldn't kiss you or anything." She blushed, thinking about the kiss they shared on the porch.

"Good. I don't want their lips anywhere near mine." She huffed, then fell back into the vortex of worry she seemed to have established permanent residence in. "I want to be with you, Ruby, but I don't want to lie to you anymore. I'm scared, and if I end up getting disowned, I'm going to be a burden on you. A physical and an emotional one. Haven't I already punished you enough?"

"Taking care of you wouldn't be a punishment. It's not the same thing as what you've said about me before." She laughed nervously, but it didn't get a response out of Weiss. Back on that serious train, she took Weiss's hand in her own and squeezed it tightly. "You may feel that you're no one without your family name, but it's not true. If you feel scared, then I'll be there for you. If you feel lost, then I'll be there for you. You're not alone, okay? I want to be with you, for wherever this crazy relationship of ours takes us. I don't need your wealth or anything. I only want you. Do you want me?" She held her breath, waiting for a response. When she felt Weiss squeeze her hand back, she felt a wave of relief rush over her body.

"Yes." Weiss wiped the rest of her tears away with her free hand, smiling the first genuine smile she'd been able to manage all day. "Yes, I want you."