Bubbles wanted to scream. She'd enforced the shadow ban on Boomer, successfully hindering anyone who wanted to get close. However, Blossom's warnings and her own worries prevented her from getting any closer to him than she already was. She hadn't dared to tell Blossom that her cravings for Boomer were getting stronger every day. After that first taste, she'd barely managed to stomach any other blood, often going through the day still hungry. This is gonna be a problem sooner or later. But how am I gonna eat if all I want is Boomer?
It had been a little over a month since Blossom relaxed her rules, and Bubbles was almost at the end of her rope. She couldn't stand being away from him, but she also didn't trust herself around him anymore. She closed her locker with a sigh, debating whether or not to go to her sister. At least then we could make a plan to handle this together.
"Why have you been avoiding me lately? Did I do something?" Bubbles rolled her eyes to the heavens, cursing whoever was in charge of her life. Did they like putting her in difficult situations? She turned to Boomer, the picture of ignorance.
"What do you mean? I haven't been avoiding you." He ran a hand through his hair, frustrated at her avoidance. He grabbed her wrist, dragging her to a secluded corner. Bubbles took stock of her surroundings, her brain screaming that this was a bad idea.
"Why'd you bring me here?"
"Tell me why you've been avoiding me." Bubbles frowned, still pretending she didn't know what he meant.
"Just because we don't spend every moment together doesn't mean I'm avoiding you. You've gotten full of yourself Boomer Jojo." He ignored her teasing, his hands curling into fists at his side.
"Stop avoiding the subject and just answer me Bubbles. What's going on?" She stopped smiling, cursing him in her head. Can't he just let this go?!
"I was avoiding you because I've been busy. You're not my only friend last time I checked. I don't need to be all over you 24/7." He blushed, relaxing his stance.
"I mean yeah, but we haven't hung out at all lately. You barely text me anymore either. I just...miss hanging out with you..." His blush got stronger, flushing his ears completely. Bubbles wanted to shriek at how adorable he was being. She stepped forward, closing the distance between them. He looked at her shyly, but then sobered. He cupped her face, getting closer to stare at her. Bubbles blushed, trying to move her head back.
"What's wrong with your eyes?" It felt like cold water splashed over her. She ripped her head from his grip, moving to take off. Boomer grabbed her wrist, concern written all over his face. He said something to her, but she couldn't hear it. She was panicking, which also caused her to have less control over her urges. That small voice that had been whispering to her for weeks appeared, urging her to finally take what was hers. She pulled on her captive wrist, ignoring the voice.
"Nothing's wrong with them Boomer. Now let go before I make you let go." Boomer, even more concerned with how odd she was acting, refused to let her go.
"Bubbles...just tell me what's wrong-" She turned to look at him, and his words died in his throat. Her eyes were a dark crimson, and she was looking at him like he was a freshly served steak dinner. She stopped fighting him, crowding him against the hall. Class was still going on, so there wasn't much traffic in the halls. And even if there were, hardly anyone came to this side of the school. She gripped his arms, leaning forward and opening her mouth. Just one bite won't hurt.
"Bubbles?" Bubbles froze, the fear and uncertainty in his voice clearing her head. No matter how bloodthirsty, a vampire's mate had the power to knock some sense back into them. She released him, stepping back and covering her mouth. Boomer was still stuck to the wall, struggling to understand what had just been about to happen.
"I'm so sorry...I'm so sorry." Bubbles blasted through the ceiling in her haste to get away, flying straight home. Boomer absentmindedly brushed debris from his hair, looking up at the hole she made.
"What...?"
Blossom was exhausted. She hadn't avoided Brick like she usually did, but trying to hang out with him was overwhelming her. She kept thinking about how good he looked shirtless, and then beating herself up for objectifying him in her mind all day. So not healthy...
She bumped into Boomer on her way to the parking lot. The youngest Jojo looked shell shocked, so she placed a hand on his shoulder to get his attention.
"Boomer? You okay?" He whirled around, latching onto Blossom.
"Blossom. Bubbles she...she...the ceiling..." Blossom wanted to pull out all of her auburn locks. If it wasn't one thing, it was another. She felt like she had just handled the last problem between the blues, and there was already another?!
She resisted the urge to massage her temples, instead giving Boomer her full attention.
"Walk with me and tell me what's wrong." Boomer nodded, following her to her car. She leaned against the driver side door, while he gestured wildly in front of her. And with every word, he seemed to gain more steam.
"So I went to her locker to see why she was avoiding me, but she wouldn't answer me so I pulled her to a more secluded place to try talking to her there, but then her eyes started turning red, and she pushed me against the wall," I didn't mind that part so much though. "But when I asked her what was going on she blasted through the roof and my head's been hurting for awhile now like I feel like this happened before but I can't remember and Bubbles was acting so weird so maybe you know-"
"OKAY. Maybe breathe first?" Boomer inhaled obediently, not realizing he'd said all of that in one breath.
"I'm sure Bubbles is fine. Are you sure her eyes turned red?" Boomer huffed, glaring at her.
"Yes! Her eyes...turned...red..." Blossom smirked as he walked into her trap all on his own. Boomer blinked languidly, the memory wiping itself from his mind the longer he stood there.
"Now this is a combo I never thought I'd see." Blossom smiled as Butch walked over, wiping the smirk off her face. She'd finished just in time, but she would need to talk to Bubbles when she got home.
"Butch." He flashed her a cheeky grin, throwing his arm over Boomer's shoulder.
"Blossom. Always a pleasure." He looked between the two, noticing Boomer was still acting kind of strange. Usually his brother would throw his arm off, but he just stood still like a statue.
"Well if you two don't need anything else, I'll be leaving." She opened the car door, moving to climb in when Butch spoke up.
"Is Brick not keeping you entertained enough?" Blossom almost choked, fighting off the blush rising to her cheeks.
"Brick? Why're you bringing him up?" Butch let go of Boomer, instead invading her space to whisper conspiratorially.
"I'd hate for my poor brother to be heartbroken when he finds out you fancy old Boom instead." Blossom sputtered, looking the picture of offense.
"What?! I do not-!" Butch pulled back, shrugging as if he didn't understand the issue.
"Why else would you two have been staring at each for so long?"
"I like Brick! Boomer and I were just talking-" Blossom cut herself off, frowning when she realized she'd been played. Butch smirked triumphantly, grabbing his brother.
"Well then, my mistake." The two walked away, leaving her to curse as she peeled out of the parking lot.
Butch threw Boomer into the back of his truck, sliding into the passenger side door.
"Well?" Butch rolled his eyes, but his good mood didn't fade.
"They were just talking. Next time find out yourself." Brick didn't respond, turning out of the parking lot and ignoring his brothers for the ride home.
"Bubbles!" Blossom slammed the front door, jolting Buttercup. Buttercup took one look at Blossom's face and wisely kept silent, following the eldest Utonium up the stairs. Bubbles cracked the door to her room, still torn between confessing or playing dumb. Blossom didn't give her much time to decide, pushing the door open and barreling inside.
"What have you done?! This is the second time I've had to clean up your mess. I've warned you countless times, yet you refuse to listen to me! Now look at you!" Buttercup poked her head inside, gasping when she spotted her baby sister. Bubbles's eyes still blazed red, and the veins around her eyes burned blue under her skin. Her fists were clenched, but her body seemed to be refusing to look at her. Blossom sighed, yanking Buttercup inside and closing the door.
"How long has it been?"
"...since the night I bit him."
"You won't last much longer, but you can't feed from him now. You'll definitely kill him." Bubbles nodded, past the point of pretending.
"It was fine at first, but the more time passed the better he looked and the more I was aware of his blood coursing through his veins. If I hadn't left when I did, I don't know if I would've been able to hold myself back. I can't see him anymore, but I also don't know how much longer I can keep myself in check."
"Okay, we need a new game plan. There's no time to say I told you so now. Buttercup." Buttercup straightened at the authority in her voice.
"Go to the Jojo's and get some blood from Boomer. I don't care how you do it, but be quick about it. If Butch or Brick try to interfere, deal with them. We need to feed Bubbles before she loses it." Buttercup nodded, opening the window and taking off. Blossom left the room, returning with a pitcher.
"You won't like this, but I need you to eat something." She waited until Bubbles opened her mouth, pouring some of the blood down her throat. Bubbles gagged but drank it nonetheless. When she finished it all she wiped her mouth, her eyes flickering between normal and vampiric. Blossom frowned, setting down the pitcher and pushing her toward the bed.
"We may have to hook you to an IV for the time being. Wait here." Bubbles nodded, closing her eyes. She waited until the door closed behind her sister before sneaking off. I've eaten, so it should be fine now. I just wanna make sure he's okay.