Yang awoke to Neo playing with her hair. The smaller girl picked up her locks and moved them over Yang's face before letting them drop. The blonde blinked, pushing her away slightly and sitting up. She felt like shit, for many many reasons.
"Quit it," she muttered, running her eyes. "God, I want to throw up."
It was mostly because of the hangover but Neo didn't seem sympathetic, shooting Yang a look of disdain and concern for her sheets. Yang pulled the sheets up, covering her modesty despite how pointless it was at this stage.
"I can handle it, don't worry. Would like to shower though."
Neo raised her eyes brows with a hungry smile.
"Alone."
Her face deflated and Neo pouted dramatically. Then she let the sheet she was holding drop and Yang realised too late she was staring. Giggling silently and her point proven, Neo covered herself again before leaning over and picking up her scroll. Then she frowned suddenly and only when she turned the screen to Yang with an inquisitive but annoyed look did Yang realise it was her scroll and not Neos that she was holding.
And it was a picture of Coco.
Her eyes widened for a moment as she stared at her ex-girlfriend and then anger took over and she reached out to snatch back her phone.
"Give that back."
Neo leaned backwards, pulling the scroll away and keeping it out of reach. Despite her smaller arms she was just able to stay out of range. Her smiled twitched in triumphant but there was an edge to it with the discovery of Coco.
"She's not around anymore, okay?" Yang snapped. "She doesn't matter."
The lie seemed to satisfy Neo, who relented tossing back the scroll which Yang caught. She slid out of the bed, keeping her front facing away from Yang as walked over to her wardrobe. Yang looked away knowing that Neo wanted her to stare. She wouldn't give her the satisfaction again that easily.
In any case, Neo seemed to be in a good mood, taking a pink silk dressing gown from the wardrobe and covering herself. She then leaned downs pulling some more clothes out of the bottom and tossing them at Yang. They landed on the bed and Yang blinked in surprise as she recognised them.
"You kept these," she said, staring at an old outfit of hers. "That's not creepy at all."
Neo ignores the jab, instead raising her hands over her chest and making a heart with her fingers. Then she walked over the door to her ensuite, vanishing inside. A few seconds later, Yang heard the sound of the shower.
Sighing she stared down at the scroll in her hand and the picture of Coco still displayed. It was from one of their boat trips together, Coco had always loved taking her out and how often do you get the chance to do anything like that.
Yang had taken the picture when Coco had been focused on driving, but she had noticed by the third. Yang had dated people before who would have hated that, acting embarrassed or annoyed that they weren't ready. Coco wasn't like that. She had just smiled and struck a pose without missing a beat. She was effortlessly confident, that's why Yang liked her.
There was the sound of tapping on wood and Yang looked up to see Neo standing at the bathroom door again. She was giving her a sultry smile and raised her hand, gesturing for Yang to come join her.
Swallowing, Yang put her scroll away, making a mental note to change the password, lest Neo jealous again. Then she got out of bed and followed Neo to the shower.
Yang didn't know what Neo's dad did and getting an answer from Neo herself was never going to happen. Part of that was probably legal reasons. All she knew was that he was very rich and doted on her constantly. It was not surprise she was such a brat. What Neo wanted, she got, and woe betide anyone who ever told her no.
As such, it was no surprise to Yang that Neo still didn't work. Having a job would get in the way of Neo enjoying herself and so, it was unacceptable but her aversion to normal life was useful. It meant Yang didn't have to go anywhere during the day by herself.
Neo was happy she was around though, and that meant Yang was to be showed off. Who exactly to, Yang didn't really know either. Again, Neo didn't have friends and didn't really seem to want them. Yang supposed she was just being shown off to the world at large. How flattering.
Still it meant a free breakfast, so Yang didn't really care. She hadn't eaten yesterday, and the nights of clubbing had caught up to her. She was tired, a rest might be nice.
So, they walked down the pier, mercifully on the other side of the docks from Beacon to some breakfast diner. Neo walked happily, Yang on arm and her parasol resting lazily on her shoulder, shading her and only her. Somehow the height difference only ever inconvenienced Yang.
The Sun glared down on them and all in all, Yang was grateful to get into air conditioning. It wasn't a particularly busy diner, it being a week day and close to noon and soon a young waitress walked over to take their order.
"The usual then," she said to Neo, receiving a nod in reply. "And for yourself darling?"
Yang scanned the menu briefly before deciding.
"Just some porridge please," she said before adding. "And some hot chocolate."
"Whipped cream?"
"Is there any other way?"
The waitress smiled before leaving them to make their order. They sat in silence until their drinks arrived. Yang wasn't in the mood and Neo, well... well the first words said were when Yang thanked the waitress for her hot chocolate.
The woman had obviously liked her (or since she knew Neo, felt bad) and had loaded the drink with cream and marshmallow. It was nice, even if it left whipped cream on her nose. Sighing, she stared out of the window, staring out into the ocean, lazily stirring her drink.
Neo was distracted by her milkshake and a rather childish thought occurred to Yang.
"Hey babe," she said, and Neo looked up. "You want some?"
Neo smiled her approval leaning forward for Yang who chose that moment to flick a marshmallow threatening to fall off the glass. It bounced off Neos cheek who jumped with surprise and Yang laughed as Neo scowled at her.
"What? You said you wanted some?"
Remaining unamused Neo glared at her with a look that demanded an apology. When Yang just smiled back, she folded her arm and leaned back. Yang rolled her eyes, beginning to get annoyed herself.
"Oh, come on, it was just a joke. You've done way worse to me." Neo remained unmoved. "I'm not apologising over a joke so stop being a bitch about it."
Yang met her gaze, stubbornness refusing to let her give in even as Neo raised an eyebrow, warningly. When Yang still did nothing, Neo stood up and ang blinked.
"Wait where are you going?"
She didn't reply, simply picking up her parasol and moving to stroll out. As she past, Yang felt her race and she grabbed her arm.
"Don't leave," she whispered, staring at the ground. "Please..."
Neo held her ground expectantly, not leaving but not sitting back down either. She remained unsmiling, challenge in her eyes and they both knew what she wanted. After a few more seconds of silence, she made to move again.
"I'm sorry," Yang blurted out. "I shouldn't have done that. You're not a bitch I am. Please don't go."
Neo smiled, leaning forward and running her hand through Yang's hair. Turning around she traced her hand over Yang's cheek before sliding back down into her seat and returning to her milkshake.
They didn't speak again until the food arrived. The waitress had sprinkled some coco over Yang's porridge. She tried to stir it away.
"Yang!"
She blinked as she heard Weiss's voice, looking up and seeing the small girl marching towards her. Yang's eyes flickered towards Neo who had perked up at Weiss's arrival and Yang felt herself irrationally panic a little. She tried to calm herself down. It wasn't like Neo could do anything.
"Weiss," she said quickly. "What are you doing here?"
"Going to work, you know that thing you used to do?" Weiss eyes sparked with annoyance. "What are you doing?"
"Having breakfast."
"Don't give me that after the stunt you pulled last night."
"What are you taking about?"
"What am I talking about? I'm talking about getting Sun to drop you off at your 'uncles' only Blake didn't recognise the address." Weiss seethed. "She was phoning everyone trying to find out where you were."
"Sorry I got you woken up."
"Seriously? Look Yang we have tried to be supportive and we get you're going through a tough time but clearly giving you space isn't working. I'm done enabling your little pity-" Weiss stopped ranting, noticing Neo smiling up at her for the first time. "I'm sorry who are you?"
"Her names Neo," Yang said, regretting it immediately. "Look just, I'm fine okay. Just tell everyone I'm fine."
"Oh, you're fine? Why didn't you say so? I guess I was worrying over nothing and Ruby was crying down the phone over a silly misunderstanding."
Yang's anger rose and died as Weiss mentioned her sister. She flinched under Weiss's icy gaze and fidgeted with her spoon.
"Is she okay?" She said softly.
"Call her and find out," Weiss snapped before sighing. "Look Yang, please just come home before you do something you regret."
Too late.
"Look Weiss, I'm fine. Just tell everyone I'm fine okay. Tell Ruby not to worry. Make sure she stays at school. Tell her to have fun. I'll talk to her soon."
"I'm not lying to her for you Yang."
"I'm not asking you too." Yang wasn't sure if that was a lie. "Look Weiss, please just go before-" she paused. "Just go."
It was a hesitation that didn't go unnoticed by either girl as Neo raised an eyebrow at Yang and smiled. Thankfully, Weiss didn't notice that, too focused on her friend.
"Before what?"
"Before you're late."
There was a long silence as Weiss stared down at Yang, trying to get a read on the situation. A couple of times, Yang saw her piercing blue eyes dart towards Neo who just smiled back. Yang thanked whatever god was out there that Neo didn't choose that minute to act out.
"Fine," Weiss said shortly. "But this isn't over Yang. You can't keep shoving your problems forever. You're going to have to talk to her eventually"
"I will. Please tell Ruby I'll phone her when I can."
Weiss sighed turning and walking away out of the store. She paused, almost out of earshot before saying quietly.
"I wasn't talking about Ruby."
The rest of the breakfast passed by without further incident, thankfully. You never really knew when Neo was involved. Sure, she tried to pester Yang a little, curious about who Weiss was and she seemed to finally be starting to wonder why Yang had turns up again in the first place.
Yang managed to avoid most of it. Weiss was just the newest worker and that's all Neo needed to know. Who she used to be didn't matter and Weiss didn't deserve whatever cruel game Neo would almost certainly come up with if found out Weiss was a Schnee.
As for why Yang was here, she lied about that too. She felt lonely and had just wanted someone she could rely on. She didn't mention Coco, just playing to Neos ego and it seemed to work.
The sad thing was it was kind of true. She could rely on Neo. She wasn't going anywhere, she was never going to leave her because Neo loved having Yang. It wasn't proper love but maybe that's all Yang deserved. She drove real love away.
Neo payed for breakfast and Yang left the tip Neo had no intention of leaving. The waitress had been nice to her after all.
And now they walked. Not really going anywhere but with nowhere really to go. Neo was happy at least, practically skipping as they went. She didn't have a care in the world. Part of Yang envied her for that. To just not give a damn and simply enjoy herself instead of feeling this emptiness that sat inside her.
"Yang."
Her heart stopped. For a moment she swore it did. It had to be a mistake or maybe she had simply misheard. But she had heard it right and so had Neo if the tightening of her hand had been any indication. Slowly she turned, catching Neos glare as she did.
And there she was. Blake stood a little away from them, her expression unreadable. Her hands were clenched at her side as she started to walk towards them. Yang moved almost without thinking, taking a step forward before feeling Neos hand grip her arm.
"Get your hands off of her!"
Neo did what she wanted, Yang had never seen her do anything otherwise. But the way Blake spoke, she probably hadn't even realised she had let go. All Yang knew was that she was released, and she wasn't going to waste the chance. She couldn't let Neo near Blake.
She rushed forward to meet her... to meet Blake and just try and do something.
"What are you doing here?" Yang said. "How did you- Weiss told you."
"You're damn right she did. What the hell are you doing? You're back with Neo," Blake hissed. "I'm not letting you do that to yourself again."
"She's not that bad."
"Not that bad? Yang she's a psychopath."
Neo coughed, not to protest, just to remind them she was there. Blake just ignored her while Yang's heart pounded in her chest.
"What do you want Blake," she asked. "I'm told Weiss and I told Sun. I'm fine. I don't want any of you around. Just forget about me and leave me alone."
"I'm not going to do that Yang. Maybe once I would have. I would have blamed myself, I would have panicked, and I would have ran. But I'm not that person anymore. I'm not going to let you destroy yourself and I'll be damn sure that I won't let her destroy you either! I've been there," Blake paused for a moment and swallowed.
"I can't let you do this. So, if you won't talk to me, you can talk to anyone else. But please Yang, let me take you home."
Amber eyes looked up at Yang pleading with her to see reason. Yang hesitated, unable to meet her gaze. She should say yes, she knew that. So many of her friends had been worried about her, reaching out to try and help her. She was hurting them so much.
This was why she should stay away. Yang was poison. She just hurt people, no matter what she tried to do. Why was she like this? She didn't them. She deserved Neo. Glancing away from Blake, she turned back to Neo who smiled at her, her eyes emotionless. This was what Yang deserved.
And then she felt someone grasp her hand. She flinched turning around slowly and staring at the ground. Blakes hand reached out to her, lightly grasping Yang's chin and tilting her up to look.
Swallowing, Yang met Blakes gaze, Amber eyes filled with concern. Those were eyes that cared about her.
So slowly, she nodded, and Blake smiled.
"Okay," Yang almost whispered. "Okay."
It was like a weight had been taken off her shoulders, just by saying the words. Emotions and regrets she had been trying to squash down and repress were released threatening to overwhelm her but somehow, she managed to hold herself together.
Blake squeezed her shoulder reassuringly and Yang took her first step forward and then remembered Neo just as she grabbed her hand.
Blinking, Yang turned catching Blakes eyes as they blazed with fury, but she managed to hold her back.
"No, I'll talk to her. I brought her into this..."
Blake seemed to want to protest but held her tongue even if she was still shaking. Yang tried to smile, doing her best to reassure her though she wasn't sure who she was trying to convince. She stepped forward pulling away from Blake slightly, so she and Neo could talk.
"Neo," she began. "I'm s- I I shouldn't have come back to you. It was a mistake. I don't know what thinking."
Neos hands clenched around her parasol but Yang continued despite how hard it was to meet the girls furious gaze.
"You're bad for me Neo, you always have been. I tried to use you to make me feel better, but you don't want that. You want something to-" she heard her voice crack. "-to play with. I can't be that again. Goodbye Neo. This time, for good. Good bye."
She turned around and back to Blake letting out a shaky breath. Blake gave her a small reassuring smile, but it was enough to make her feel just a little bit more whole again.
"No," Neo said.
Yang turned just in time to see Neo swing her parasol up and towards her face.
Smack
She blinked, staring dumbly at the parasol as it sat a few inches from her face, shaking. Neos eyes were contorted with fury, her muscles strained as she tried to take back control of her weapon.
But Blakes grip was strong. Yang hadn't even seen her move but here she stood, in front Yang having caught the blow with one hand. She was looking down at Neo and Yang couldn't see her expression. But she could see Neos and she saw it change from anger to fear.
Crack
Neo let out a shriek of pain, collapsing onto her knees and clutching her newly broken nose. Yang stepped backwards in shock as Blake cracked the parasol over her legs, snapping it in half.
"If you ever go near Yang again," she hissed. "I will fucking kill you."
She threw down the pieces, shaking slightly before looking up at Yang.
"Sorry, but she was going to hit you..."
They took a taxi back to Yang's house. It wasn't all that far away but Yang wasn't sure if she could handle the walk. They didn't really talk either. There was only one thing they could talk about and it wasn't a conversation to be had in the back of a taxi.
Blake payed when they arrived, and Yang promised to pay her back. They walked up to the front door and Yang braced herself when she heard the barking. Sure enough, her keys didn't make the lock before her dad threw open the door.
She didn't know if any of the words she said were audible before she was sobbing into his chest and he was telling her it was okay. He brought her inside and they talked in the kitchen while Blake sat patiently in another room. Zwei ran around Yang's legs, whining sympathetically while Yang just tried to say she was sorry about everything.
"Excuse me Mr Xiao Long," Blake said, and Yang wondered how long she had been standing there. "But can I talk to Yang... alone."
Taiyang hesitated.
"Look Blake I appreciate you for bringing Yang home but..."
"I know but it's important. Please."
"It's alright Dad," Yang said. "I'll be alright."
Her Dad paused again, the moment stretching into a minute before he slowly let her go from his embrace. She smiled, trying to convince him it was okay all while her own heart pounded in her mouth.
They went upstairs, the Yang leading the way and when they got to her room, Yang made sure Zwei stayed outside. Despite what she might say, Yang knew that Blake was still nervous around dogs.
She clicked the door shut, letting her head rest against it as she worked up the courage to turn around. Blake didn't rush her, she appreciated that. She just waited patiently, sitting on the bed until Yang was able to sit down next to her.
"Sorry about the mess," Yang said looking around her tip of a room. "I uhh, haven't really been here all that much."
Stating the obvious. What a great start.
"It's fine," Blake said. "I liked that about you. You didn't let little things keep you down. Back in school whenever we had a project due, I would stress out for hours, but you could calm me down. It was just one test, what's the worst that could happened."
"Yeah but you're the reason we got any good grades at all."
"Please, you're the only reason I got through chemistry."
Yang smiled.
"I just kept hoping we could get to explosions if I stuck at it." She sighed. "School was so simpler. I kinda miss that. It felt like I was working towards something."
"You feel lost."
It wasn't a question.
"Sometimes. It's like everyone has these big plans or dreams. Even Rubys at college now. And I'm just still here but I don't know what else to do."
"You don't have to be," Blake said. "You could do a lot Yang. I know you could."
Yang didn't say anything to that and silence fell back upon them until Yang finally just said it.
"I'm sorry I kissed you. I shouldn't have done that."
"No," Blake said without judgment. "Probably not."
"And I'm sorry I told you I love you."
At this point Blake shook her head.
"Don't be. Not for that. I'm sorry I didn't notice how much I was hurting you."
"It's not your-"
"Yes, it is," Blake insisted. "I tried to blame Sun, Nora, Weiss and Ren for not telling me but honestly what could they say? I used to think I was so clever. I'd watch Jaune and Weiss walk around oblivious to Pyrrha and Ruby and the entire time I was worse."
"It wasn't your problem."
"It should have been. You're my best friend and in a way, I do love you too. Just not in the way you want me to."
"I- I know."
Blake hesitated for a moment, unsure of how to proceed before placing her hand on Yang's.
"Yang, can I ask you something?" She nodded. "Since... it happened. Who have you thought about, me or Coco?"
Looking up Yang blinked. She didn't understand the question and her confusion must have been obvious on her face. Blake winced.
"I'm sorry, it's just... please think about it."
"I guess... I was scared about losing you," Yang said. "Well I guess I was scared about losing all you."
"What about Coco?"
"I-" Yang swallowed. "I thought about a lot of things. I haven't felt like that for anyone in... I don't know when."
"You loved her."
"Yeah..."
She brushed her eyes. Why did she end it that way? What must Coco have thought of her? Why couldn't she have just done right? Why did- She felt Blakes hand on hers and looked up to her concerned face.
"Yang?"
"Huh?"
"You were breathing fast."
"I was?" Blake nodded, waiting for her to continue. "I was thinking about how we ended it. I did it wrong."
God that sounded lame.
"It's not too late to talk to her."
"Yeah it is. Her job pressured her to move quickly. She's already moved."
"We do have scrolls Yang," Blake said with a small smile. "I know it's not the same, but you can talk to her. Or message her if you aren't up for a phone call."
Yang smiled slightly.
"Yeah, I suppose I could," she said before frowning. "But why are you asking about her?"
"Because you loved her," Blake hesitated again, trying to work out how to continue. "But those feelings you have for her, is that how you feel about me?"
Yang couldn't answer and after waiting a moment, Blake continued carefully.
"You don't love me Yang," she said gently. "You love an idea of me."
"What?"
"I know I'm sorry and I shouldn't be telling you how you feel but after everything you just said. The last few days weren't because of me. It was because of Coco."
"We've been friends for so long," she continued. "And you've supported me through so much and I've tried to help you when I can."
"You have."
Blake smiled sadly.
"Obviously not enough. You wouldn't have missed all this like I did."
"Blake..."
"You're not in loved with me. You're lonely. You're scared, and I do want to help, but I can't be what you want me to be. I'm sorry..."
Her friend looked away from her, ashamed and guilty over what she'd said even as Yang looked at her. What she was saying made sense, even if Yang wasn't sure if she believed it.
"Don't be sorry," she said. "I don't know how I feel about you. I don't know if you've noticed but I'm kinda a mess right now." Blake laughed slightly, rubbing her eyes a little as she did. "But there's one thing I'm sure about Blake. I don't want you to ever not be my best friend. I don't want to lose you, any of you."
"You won't Yang," Blake said pulling her into a hug. "We won't let you."
They talked for a while longer before Blake finally left. Then her dad came in and Yang talked more. It was tiring for both of them. She could see her dad was angry with her for how much she'd put him through but relief that she was home seemed to override it.
Eventually he let her go, saying he would run her a bath and make dinner. It had been a while since Yang had eaten proper food. She lay on her bed exhausted and still thinking about Blakes talk. About how she felt and what she had said...
Yang rolled over picking up her scroll and flicking through her contacts. She paused on the name, her finger hovering for what felt like an age. Then she swallowed and typed out a message.
Coco
I'm just messaging to see how you are. Sorry I didn't do it sooner I've just been going through some things.
It's not your fault and I'm feeling better now. Just a had a lot more issues than I thought I guess...
I'm sorry I ended it the way I did. You meant a lot to me and I hate that I ruined it at the end. I know I'll always remember our drives together and I hope that you will too.
I hope things go well for you. Actually, I know they will. You're going to do amazing things. Just when you are designing million-dollar Adel dresses, make sure to remember to name one of them the Yang dress
Yang sighed as she sent the message, putting her scroll on her bedside table. It didn't really feel like enough, but it was all she had in her right now. God, she had a lot of people she had to talk to soon.
But she could do that later. For now, she just needed to rest. Yang closed her eyes and let exhaustion finally overwhelm her, falling asleep alone in her bed.
And for the first time, in a very long time, that didn't seem so bad.