July – The Soft Scarf

"Alright, now that you got the correct colours together, you simply put them in here and put the fabric softener and detergent. Detergent in here and softener in here."

"Ah… what if I change the weight of the clothes or even the type of detergent."

"Just check the measurements and directions on the box and bottle."

Weiss continued to explain Ruby the laundry, how to decide the settings and so forth.

After a few minutes, the two looked at 'Ol Bessie' the washing machine in triumph as they both watched the machine start up and rock slightly from its old age not being able to keep up quietly with the spins of the clothes inside.

Weiss scratched her head and awkwardly stated, "I guess we now just hope nothing explodes."

Ruby nervously chuckled as she too noticed the washing machine probably should be retired really soon.

After returning the bottle of fabric softener and washing detergent back on their proper places on the shelf above the machine, Ruby and Weiss exited the laundry room and both plopped onto the seats in the living room, Ruby on the large beanbag and Weiss on to the couch beside it.

Ruby stretched her hands over her head, "Mmh, so… laundry… cooking… some of my cleaning supplies… anything else?"

Weiss looked up to the ceiling for a moment in thought, "… I think we covered all the basics. And to your credit, you are not completely hopeless."

Ruby let out a sarcastic laugh, "Ah, appreciate the thought Weiss."

Weiss throat bubbled out a chuckle as she let her hands fall to the side, the palm of her left hand feeling the wrapping of a package she had left on Ruby's couch earlier. She tucked the gift under her arm and stood up, rubbing her hands together, "You know, the weather is getting cold around here…"

Ruby let her hands drop and looked curiously up at Weiss, "Hm?"

Weiss cheeks became dusted with a light pink blush, "… Just move over you dolt."

Ruby raised an eyebrow as she shuffled to the side, a blush also ghosting upon her cheeks when Weiss delicately placed herself beside her. Due to the nature of the beanbag, they caved together in the middle, now shoulder to shoulder.

There was a beat of silence that passed before Weiss spoke up, "That washing machine of yours… it is quite old. Ancient I might add."

"Yep, I guess 'Ol Bessie' is really too old now."

Weiss chuckled, "Ah, Yang and her silly nicknames for things… maybe we should go out and get a new washing machine for you."

Ruby giggled at Weiss remark about Yang as she began to agree, "Yeah, we definitely-"

The brunette stopped halfway in her sentence before she turned to face Weiss, "W… we? Like both of us… shopping for a new washing machine…" Ruby cleared her throat, "It's a nice thought Weiss but I don't think I could afford one right now, I've gotta save up a bit more and I'll get it."

Weiss shook her head, "Nonsense, I would of course be getting that washing machine for you."

Ruby stuttered, "W… what?! No Weiss, that is too much."

"It really is not Ruby… I think we both know that I am on the… rich side of the social ladder."

"Nice of you to remind me of that Weiss."

"Ruby…" Weiss turned to face Ruby, her hands clutching onto the wrapped package on her lap, "I… I don't think you have realised it but, you have done a lot for me in the past months of me adjusting here and having someone to talk to… so let me just do this for you."

Ruby warily looked at Weiss, "Hm… I'm not agreeing still but we can go have a look so I can see which model I should aim for. Maybe later today?"

Weiss smiled, "Alright sounds like a fine plan…" After another moment of comfortable silence, she felt her face bloom red as her attention was drawn back to the wrapped object in her lap. "Um… actually… Since it is quite cold outside… I think you should wear this when we go out later then."

She took the gift and pushed it into Ruby's arms, looking off to the side shyly as Ruby began to inspect the gift.

Ruby's palms began to sweat slightly as she held a gift that she could not believe she was getting from Weiss… "Oh… thank you Weiss." She said in an uncharacteristically meek voice.

Weiss zapped her attention back to Ruby at the reaction.

Ruby looked up at that moment as they then locked eyes, both looking away as they blushed.

"Um… I'm gonna open it now."

The living room was filled with sounds of wrapping paper being ripped slowly apart, as the sound of a soft fabric unfurling accompanied Ruby's gasp.

"It's… It's so soft!" Ruby said, as her thumb glided over the knitted scarf. Her mouth gasping in awe she admired the article of clothing. It was knitted with the softest material she ever felt, the wool going through gradients of white of red, the light pink in between peeking in some spots of the scarf. However, at the end corner of one side of the scarf, there was an intricate red rose sown into the scarf, a white thread outlining it to allow the rose to stand out.

"Weiss… it's beautiful." Her thumb brushed over the rose, "Did… did you make this?"

Weiss was suddenly fiddling with her long untied white hair, a lock being twirled around her left hand's index finger, "P… possibly." She then instinctively hid her fingers, in which a few were patched with Band-Aids.

Ruby eyed the movement from the corner of her eye. Weiss then cleared her throat to move her friend's attention from her hands, "So… I'm hoping you… like it?"

Ruby beamed, "Of course I do!" Her mouth morphed into a grin as she looked down at the scarf, her heart slowly starting to speed up.

With excitement and gratitude in her veins, she let out a squeal under her breath and took Weiss into her arms, bringing the girl into a strong and warm hug, "I absolutely love it Weiss, you are amazing."

"They were pretty hush-hush about it, so I really did not know what I was exactly getting myself into." Yang started, her voice relaying through the speakers of Ruby's laptop.

It was later in the day and Ruby was on her bed as she video called her sister and Blake through Facetime.

"Is there anything about the show you can tell us, sis?" Ruby questioned excitedly, as Yang chuckled and Blake rolled her eyes in amusement through the pixilation of the screen.

"Like I mentioned before, I can't reveal or say anything! You'll just have to watch the show when it comes out next year."

Ruby grumbled in disappointment as Blake asked another question, "How have they been treating you then?"

Yang's image looked up briefly in thought, "Well, firstly they are being fair and are some of the nicest people on the planet." She gave a grin at the thought. "Also, since it was my first HUGE acting job, the stars who are playing the main characters have been giving me tips and advice. It's like one big family!"

"That great Yang!" Ruby chirped.

"Wait a moment." Blake added, "HUGE acting job. You mention it being your 'breakout' role but what is the… nature of your role exactly? Minus the spoilers you have to hold back."

"Um… Okay, I guess if I'm pretty vague I can talk about it." Yang said after pondering of the question with a tapping of her chin, "So… right now we are filming the pilot of the series, so I thought that I was gonna be some one-off character that was only relevant in the main characters introductions and stuff… But it turns out that I apparently am going to be a reoccurring character! I was always wondering why my agent was so ecstatic about this role, so now I know."

"Hold on." Ruby interrupted with her eyes gleaming, "So this role… can be possibly permanent for the time being?"

There was a slight delay, as Yang received the question. However once she did, she wore a huge grin on her face, "Depending on the fate of the character and the entire series, yes… I might be on this show for the long run! Well until it ends of course."

Blake and Ruby both cheered in delight.

As their cheers died down, Yang looked hesitantly towards the camera, "So… are you okay with this Ruby? You do know that I won't always be back there now since I've got to travel overseas much more."

Ruby smiled and gave a gentle nod, "It's all fine Yang, I don't want to be in the way of your dreams. Anyways, I will say that you going overseas for the time being has gotten me to even spend more time with Weiss!"

Yang's mouth grew into a smirk as she leaned into the arm of her chair, "Oh, is Ruby getting her game on now that her big sister is no longer there."

Ruby blushed red, "N-no! Nothing like that! I just like hanging out with her as usual! Yeah, I got a crush but I'm not going after her while she is a relationship."

Yang hummed suspiciously as she gestured to the plushies behind Ruby on her windowsill, "Then what about those two?"

Ruby looked back to see the Feebas plushie and Kirby plushie sitting side by side with the back of Weiss' house as the backdrop through the window. She looked back at Yang with a meek smile, "Those two are there so I can live my crush vicariously through their closeness."

Yang groaned as she reeled back, Ruby no longer being defensive about her crush had resulted in all the teasing fun being taken out as the brunette went along with it.

Blake took over from Yang's groaning, "Speaking of which, I saw you and Weiss spent the day together, I was wondering how it went."

Yang perked up to at least hear how Ruby's day went whilst the younger sister's eyes bulged from her head, "Wait what? How did you know?"

"I saw you guys at the shops a few hours ago."

"Oh, was my little sister on a date?"

"Shut up Yang."

"Oh, there was a little bite in her tone."

Ruby rolled her eyes at her sister's antics, "New York seems to not have changed you." She let the comment simmer for a moment before she gave into the curious stares of Blake, in which Yang also formed. "So… what has been happening over the past few days is that Weiss has been teaching me how to maintain myself. Ya know, without needing to rely on Yang… so I've been living more independently recently."

Blake let out a small clap and cheered as Yang let out a 'whoop' in delight, "Yeah Ruby! That's great" The older sister exclaimed, "I'm so happy you are taking control of your life! I was slightly worried that you won't survive."

Ruby arched an eyebrow, "Slightly?"

Yang nervously laughed, "Ah… I made Blake promise to keep an eye of you…"

"Yang!"

"Hey, don't mind me! Blake didn't even keep up her end of the bargain."

Blake shrugged, "I didn't really need to, cause I knew Weiss would make sure Ruby would be fine."

Yang eyed Blake's side of the screen, "Hmmm… You are right. But more importantly, what have you two been up to then?" She directed to her sister.

Ruby played with the end of the ends of the scarf she wore around her neck as she started, "So, she started by giving me cooking lessons… in which she says I'm actually catching on pretty quickly. And then she's been teaching me how to properly separate colours and cool and neat tricks to clean and organize the house. Oh yeah, by the way I stole one of your shelves from your house… Gosh, I didn't even know Weiss had some sort of rebellious side like that. But she did justify herself as it was in reason and you were my sister so everything canceled out? But anyways she even gave me this scarf! Gosh she made it herself and everything. Like, I saw her trying to hid her fingers with the Band Aids but I saw and knew she tried so hard! But then after that Weiss…"

As Ruby started to ramble about her day and Weiss, Yang and Blake both glanced at each other's screens on their own computers. Blake raised an eyebrow in the predicament of the situation as Yang made kissy faces to the camera.

"And then, like, behind my back she bought that washing machine."

"Hold on a second sis! She bought you a washing machine!"

Ruby awkwardly scratched the back of her head, "Uh, I told her it was all fine and she initially agreed to but… after we went and talked to all the sales clerks and chose a model, she went ahead and bought it."

Yang mouth just dropped as Blake's eyes widened, "So… what are you going to do about it?"

Ruby twiddled her thumbs, "Well, she insisted so much so I just decided to keep it. And about the payment… she just said it would be nice to spend more time together."

Yang's expression then morphed into one of sly teasing, "Ah, so it seems that Weiss has got the game instead."

"Yang!"

"Wait Ruby, I just realised you mentioned that you stole the shelves? I didn't see you at the house."

"Well, me and Weiss thought it would be fun to be all sneaky and that."

"Weiss and fun? Once you the ice princess from the tower, I guess she does thaw out."

"No Yang, I think Ruby is just influencing her too much… is it bad that I'm not concerned that you basically broke into the house?"

"Blake, didn't you forget that I have the keys-"

Ruby was interrupted by her mobile phone as she heard its chime from her beside table, "Uh… wait a minute guys…"

Ruby looked at the text message she received, letting out an 'eep' in surprise as her she grew a bashful smile on her face. After replying to the text she moved back to her laptop, in which Yang reacted.

"Oh, someone's got a lovesick smile on her face. Did Weiss text you?"

Ruby rolled her eyes as she brought the laptop from her bed and placed it on her table in the room. Ignoring Yang's question, she puffed up her cheek to stifle her grin, "As…as a matter of fact, it was. And she just invited me over for dinner so I'm going to leave now."

"I'll see you tomorrow Ruby."

"Alright sis, bye! Hope you have sweet dreams!"

"I'll see you too Blake. And I'll talk to ya later Yang." Ruby said as she waved to the camera and ended her part of the call.

However, Yang and Blake were still in the video chat…

Once Ruby left, the two waited a few moments before they both started to react to all the information that helped link the dots in their heads. Yang started gasping loudly while she messed with her hair, trying to comprehend the facts (such as a new washing machine). Blake on the other hand had her had a quieter reaction as she looked down and nodded blankly as she too tried to absorb the information.

After a minute passed, they both calmed down considerably.

"So… Weiss made a scarf for Ruby… that's cute."

"Yang… Weiss bought her a washing machine. That is just commitment, despite how rich she may be."

"I know Blake, and she's spent her whole day today with Ruby… If my memory serves me right, she should have work today. She literally took a day off just to help Ruby."

Yang and Blake paused for a moment, afraid to address the elephant in the room. Yang took the leap.

"So… there's something there. Like between them…"

Blake cautiously stepped with her words, "… Maybe… Well definitely on Ruby's side. She still has that unrequited crush on her."

Yang looked up and pondered, "… Is it really unrequited? Cause despite how 'friendship starved' Weiss was in her early life, anyone would know that friend's don't act like that around each other."

Blake's eyes widened, "Oh god, it is requited."

Yang grinned, "I knew this would happen!"

Blake eyes became down casted as she remembered the entirety of the situation between her two friends, "But they don't know… especially Weiss."

Yang sighed, "Of course they both don't know, they may as well be living in a fanfiction."

"Mhmmm… but isn't this getting more delicate. If they don't handle this right, I don't know what would happen."

"Ugh." Yang stated flailed on her bed for a moment before stilling.

"Well, we gotta see where this goes then."

Author's Note:

Happy New Year everyone! Thank goodness we passed 2018! It was… lets just say… no one would be exactly missing it… BUT despite all the messiness of 2018, we did get some good things out of it! Such as 20gayteen, some great movies and even anime! Like for me, out of 2018 what I would likely remember it for is:

Movies – Infinity War, Into the Spider Verse, Black Panther, Crazy Rich Asians, Love Simon… (there's definitely more but I don't want to list every movie I basically watched)

Shows – New seasons to some of my favourite shows like Wynonna Earp, RWBY, The Good Place. New shows as well and so much more! (also don't forget that dramatic cancellation and pick up of Brooklyn Nine-Nine)

Anime – Violet Evergarden, A Place Further Than the Universe, Aggretsuko, Bloom into You… here too is so much more!

And for me personally, I actually graduated! That is something I'm proud off!

So let me pose you a question… Instead of negativity, what were some good things from 2018 that you experienced?

But, that'll be all from me so… I'll see ya'll in the next chapter!