Chapter 30 - Incorrect Assumptions
Ruby was shaking in her leather seat. There was just too much excitement in that moment to not act like a little kid hopped up on candy bars. Not that Yang wouldn't make fun of her for doing it anyways, regardless of the fact that she too had a nervous twitch in her leg. For once, Ruby could claim to be the more experienced of the two. They were sitting in one of Weiss's limousines, but a different one than had picked Ruby up for her competition. It was still so cool to Ruby that her bestest friend in the whole wide world had a fleet of limousines at her disposal.
Not that she was Weiss's best friend after all.
Apparently, she was 'different'. Whether that was a good thing or not still confounded her and Yang wasn't being very helpful when she asked. Something about the two of them needing to figure it out for themselves. And how Yang had promised herself not to get too involved in that part of her life.
Yang was always butting in when it came to her friends, or lack thereof. What made Weiss so different? Ruby could only shrug at that inner question. If she knew the answer to that, she wouldn't have needed to be asking Yang about it in the first place. All that she knew, was that she enjoyed spending her time with Weiss and hoped it didn't end soon. Regardless if she could find out anything more about Weiss's mystery competition winner, or if Weiss could find her music pin.
But now, under the excuse that they were coming over to help look for her missing pin, they were on their way and nearly arriving at Weiss's home. The grand Schnee estate.
It was just as big as she remembered it.
She smiled as Yang's jaw dropped at the sight. She let out a musing whistle of appreciation, sticking her cheek up against the car window to get a better view.
"Don't say it," Yang said, rolling her eyes.
"I wasn't going to say anything," Ruby sing-songed in reply.
"Good."
"Is that the face you make when Blake-"
"That's it!" Yang shouted, spinning around, and tackling her little sister off the seats.
Ruby burst out in laughter as the two wrestled across the limousine's pristine floor, feet kicking up dirt onto the couch cushions and denting the black plastic armrests.
They didn't notice the limousine stopping, nor their chauffeur holding open the door for them. Nor did they notice Weiss Schnee and Blake Belladonna standing right outside watching as the two tussled.
"Ack- Yang! Stop pulling my hair!"
"Then stop trying to bite me."
"That's cuz you bit first!"
"A lick isn't a bite!"
"It is too!"
"It's so not-eep! Oh, hey Blake. Weissicle."
The two stopped immediately, both frozen in shock, their arms and legs entangled at strange angles as they looked back to their two friends outside the vehicle.
"We'll pay for the damages?" Yang tried.
Weiss snorted a very unladylike snort. "You couldn't afford the cleaning, let alone damages. Welcome to the Schnee Estate. Please, make yourselves welcome."
Yang left the limousine first with an awkward backrub and light chuckle. Giving her girlfriend a quick peck on the cheek and hug, the two said their quick hellos.
Ruby dashed out of the car, wrapping herself tightly around Weiss in a happy hug. It took a moment, but she could feel Weiss's own arms move in around her body, completely the gesture. Something about the position they were in just felt so right to Ruby. She leaned her head on Weiss's shoulder, feeling her friend's rapidly beating heart pound against her chest. All she could think about was how nice it felt to be hugging her. It was like Yang's hugs, but better. Not that she would ever tell that to Yang. Or Weiss.
But, was Weiss getting warmer?
"Ahem," Blake cleared her throat.
Forcefully, Weiss pushed Ruby away, holding her at arm's length.
"Ah… hello Ruby. I-it's great to see you again. And talk to you, even though I, we, you… hi," Weiss's ramblings finally came to an end, her face turning crimson.
Ruby raised an eyebrow. "Are you alright? Are you feeling sick?"
Ruby attempted to feel her friend's forehead, only for said friend to step back, holding onto Ruby's hands with her own. Almost immediately, their fingers intertwined, bringing about a deeper blush on Weiss's pale face.
"I'm alright Ruby! Calm down. I'm feeling just fine."
"Okay, erm-good!" Ruby squeaked out.
The moment of silence between the two of them was interrupted once more by Blake. Weiss looked at her best friend and forced herself to drop Ruby's hands.
"Hey Weiss?" Blake asked lightly, "Do you remember that conversation we had? About your painting?"
"I do… and?"
"I don't think your plan of keeping silent is going to work."
Weiss's scowl descended into an unhappy sigh. "Rip it off like a band-aid?"
"Rip it off like a band-aid," Blake affirmed with a quick nod.
Weiss scowled under her breath, but shook her head, knowing that Blake was right. Ruby's silver eyes were piqued with a gentle curiousity. And she could only see the nervousness reflected in Weiss's bright blue ones.
"Ruby, why don't we go somewhere to talk alone. There is something… important I need to tell you."
As the two girl's walked away, Ruby could only hear a short snippet of Yang's conversation with Blake.
"Is it what I think it is?" Yang asked.
Blake shook her head sadly, "if only things were that simple."
Weiss's bedroom was nothing like Ruby was expecting. Truthfully, even she did not know what exactly she was expecting, but what she was seeing was definitely not that. Ruby had thought Weiss, being as rich as she was, would have as many things as possible in her room. There was the giant bed, which she did expect, but there weren't any posters, or paintings. No television set nor video game systems. The desk on one side of the room was there, but it was empty. No knick-knacks, or papers, or pens to clutter up the space. No computer or laptop. There wasn't anything in Weiss's room which screamed out "This is Weiss".
To Ruby, Weiss's room looked more like one of the guest bedrooms she had seen in Miss Fall's home. Not of a girl who had amazing interests and such a fun personality like Weiss.
"So, where's that winning sword I've heard so much about? I want to see it and see how it's different from mine. There were so many great ones I don't know how you picked the best one. Especially if they also added in space for dust like mine. I bet my trigger mechanism is better though. Unless they were a master… but mine's probably still better," Ruby rambled along as she paced Weiss's room, taking in the lack of sights.
Weiss giggled lightly. "I bet it was. This would all be so much easier if I had just chosen you as the winner, than that-" Weiss let her emotions calm down, knowing she was riling herself up into a fervor. "Boy."
"So you figured out who it was that made your sword?"
"No," Weiss shook her head. "I'm still looking for him, but he's making it quite difficult to find. My parents' too, by keeping the sword with them, but that's a whole other topic on its own. And enough talking about him. I wanted to talk about you."
"Me?"
"No! I -er, I mean us. Or me, you. I don't know!" Weiss leaned against her bed-frame, clutching at her temples.
"Weiss?" Ruby asked, reaching for the elder girl who was locked in her own mind, her thoughts vocalized but without any direction.
"Why did it have to be you? I couldn't keep it together for a single week once Blake told me. And I'm shaking?" Weiss let out a fake laugh, "of course I'm shaking! I didn't want to tell her. I don't want to! It can't happen. Not ever. Not if I want to get what I want in life. But, but…"
Weiss sighed and looked up at a nervous Ruby. Her frown softening into a gentle smile as she gazed into her good friend's mercury eyes.
"Whenever I'm around her, I can't let these feelings go. Ruby, I-" letting out a shay breath to calm her nerves, she started again. "Ruby, I never wanted to tell you this. Because whether or not you feel the same, it will just hurt the both of us. It will hurt me."
"I never want to hurt you!" Ruby interrupted, hopping towards her and grasping onto both her hands. "Whatever you need me to say, I'll say it. Promise."
"No!" Weiss shouted, ripping her hands away. "This isn't some fairy tale where we can get everything we want. Ruby, I- Ruby I like you."
"I like you too!"
Weiss scowled, "Ugh! You complete imbecile! Ruby. I like you. More than a friend. Romantically."
As Ruby opened her mouth to speak, Weiss interrupted her, placing a cold finger on her lips. "I don't want to hear it. Whatever you may say, it will only make things worse. There is no response you can give that won't shatter my heart."
"But Weiss-"
"-No, you don't get to speak. Y-you can't. Want to know the reason I hosted that weapons competition? It was to free myself from my parents. From their perfect match they had set up for me. I don't want to be forced to date him, let alone marry him. And I have one chance to get out of it. One. If I want to be able to lead my parents' companies freely, without being subservient to whatever man my parents like as their real successor, I have to date the winner of that competition.
"I have to. I don't have a choice in that matter. By god! I hate that Rose! Don't you see Ruby?" There were tears streaming down her face.
"Wei-"
"Can't you see? It doesn't matter what my heart feels. I can choose a few days of happiness, before it gets stripped away from me by my parents, along with any chance of living my life independently. Or, I can force myself to give up on love, settle down with a man I haven't yet met, but already truly despise, and have the faintest of chances to be free to live my life."
"Weiss, I-"
"It doesn't matter what you say, Ruby. This is the way it has to be. It doesn't matter."
Weiss was sobbing hard, eyes red and tear lines running down her perfect cheeks.
"Ruby, I can't do this any more. I can't be friends with you anymore. Not when my heart already feels like it's breaking in two. But, I have to say this. At least once. Once before I lose you forever."
"Weiss-"
"Hush," Weiss scolded, not letting Ruby interrupt her stream of thoughts before she could finally say what she had been wanting to say for longer than she even knew.
"Weiss, please!" Ruby shouted, her voice cracking with desperation.
"Ruby, just stop. Please." Weiss grabbed the younger girl's shoulders, quieting her from her endless and senseless ramblings. Ruby's cheeks were bright red and stained with tears of her own and her eyes flicked away from Weiss's unable to look her in the eye.
"Y-yes, Weiss?" She said timidly, lip trembling in a way which made Weiss want to kiss her then and there. She wanted to desperately but knew that if she had any hope of saying what she wanted to, it would have to be said first. Kissing her, would never happen. It broke her heart to think about.
"Ruby, a-at first I disliked you. I disliked you quite a lot in fact. Hated you even. You spilled paint on my clothes and they were completely stained. They're still stained I might add."
"Weiss, you're rambling as bad as me," Ruby giggled sadly, placing her own hands on Weiss's shoulders and sniffling away unshed tears.
"Right, yes. But then I got to know you. You were this hyperactive girl who just wanted to make her sister happy. You were so… honest. Honest in everything you did. From the work you like to do with your hands, to your words, to how you wear every emotion you have on your sleeve. I was disconcerted at first. I had never met somebody so completely truthful before. I thought it was a front. A lie just to get me to lower my guard. But when I found out it wasn't, I… I fell. I fell hard. For you. A-and I know that I'm supposed to be waiting to find my mystery builder. That idiot of a Rose. I know that I don't have long left to find him before I have to go on a date with Cardin and have him declared the winner of that tournament, but I just don't want to.
"I want you, Ruby Xiao Long. Even though it's impossible. I want you, Ruby Xiao Long."
Weiss stepped back and shut her eyes, taking in a large breath, exhaling it all slowly. When her eyes opened, they were filled by pools of liquid mercury.
So close to the big reveal!
Dragonqueen1993 - I know! Those crazy lovebirds.
Read and stayed - I read your review and a song immediately popped into my head that would have fit so well into something Weiss would sing about Ruby. I kinda do want to turn that into a one-shot some time in the future.