If one had asked Ruby, she would have said it was too good to be true.
Invited to live in the home of three kind, gorgeous women who had all simultaneously fallen for plain, boring her? Surely not. That was something out of a book, books that Ruby didn't have the money to buy or the time to read.
But it was real. This was reality. And she couldn't be happier.
After Ruby accepted Blake's proposal to move in, Weiss immediately set about creating a timetable to get Ruby's belongings out of her old apartment. Pyrrha found herself sighing good naturedly at the woman's immediate no-nonsense attitude, and Blake made quick work of ushering Ruby out of the room as Weiss muttered to herself about gaps in her work schedule so she could assist in the process.
"You should probably just take it easy for today, Ruby. We want to make sure that cut on your head won't have any lasting effects. So, you will be on the couch for today." Blake said gently, but firmly, not really leaving any room for argument from her…girlfriend?
That word. It made Ruby pause. Was that what they were now? Like…all four of them? Together?
She inwardly groaned. This really was too much.
It was a hard concept for the girl to wrap her mind around. She hadn't expected to have one girlfriend, let alone three. But, despite her confusion, there was an undeniable warmth that settled in her chest whenever she thought about it. Whether by themselves or all together, Pyrrha, Blake, and Weiss made her warm inside.
So, she let Blake deposit her on the couch without much of a fight, throw a blanket across her lap, and watched as the dark-haired woman sit herself next to Ruby, an arm thrown over her shoulder.
"We all decided to use one of our sick days to spend the day with you. Just to make sure you're okay."
"…you didn't have to do that." Ruby mumbled, embarrassed.
Blake just smiled. "Ruby, at some point with us you'll figure out that sometimes people do things not because they have to, but because they want to." She said, rubbing Ruby's arm.
Ruby didn't say anything. She just stared at Blake, like the concept of doing something because of a want was foreign to her. Blake sighed and pulled Ruby closer.
"You'll learn. I promise."
"I guess…"
Behind them, Pyrrha was clearing the dining table of breakfast, lightly warning Weiss that she expected some help washing the dishes, to which Weiss replied with a small hum as she looked over her work schedule.
Listening to the sound of clinking plates and glasses, Ruby cautiously leaned her head on Blake's shoulder. She sighed a bit in relief when Blake simply squeezed her shoulder. She was already feeling more at home here than she ever did at that apartment. There was air conditioning. Windows. A couch.
People. That was the most important part.
And then a thought came to her mind that she had never thought of voicing until this small moment of silence.
"So…how did you all get to know each other?" She asked quietly. A light chuckle escaped her lips. "I guess I'm a little late asking that."
Blake hummed. "Well…I guess things just kind of worked out by chance. It wasn't anything special or out of the ordinary. We all just sort of…ran into each other."
A lovely chuckle interrupted. "More like I physically ran into Weiss and she was too awe-struck to yell at me for it." She leaned her head back into the kitchen. "Isn't that right, Weiss?"
"That's not what happened!" Weiss screeched.
"It's definitely what happened." Blake deadpanned, to which Ruby snorted, much to her delight.
Ruby raised a happy eyebrow. "What?"
Blake chuckled. "Pyrrha was out for a jog and hit Weiss. Imagine a very stoppable force meeting a very immovable object." She said, gesturing to the muscular, well built, tall Pyrrha and the petite, slim, short Weiss. It didn't make it hard for Ruby to visualize. "According to Pyrrha, Weiss fell flat on her ass. She was about to start screeching, as Weiss does, when she caught sight of Pyrrha's oh-so-lovely muscles, because, honestly, who wouldn't?"
Pyrrha laughed again and pressed a kiss to Blake's head. "You flatter me."
Blake blushed before clearing her throat.
"So those two hit it off from there."
"Oh…" Ruby said simply. "Well, how did you meet them then?"
Weiss harrumphed. "Blake, for all her teasing, physically ran into us because she was on her phone and not paying attention to what was in front of her."
"I was talking to a client!"
"You spilled hot coffee on my dress!"
"I said I was sorry!" Blake shouted back, a delighted, amused smile growing on her face.
"That doesn't get coffee out of a white dress!"
Pyrrha sighed. "We all happened to be at a coffee one day. We were all in line and, as Weiss said, Blake was on her phone with a coffee in her hand. When Weiss and I walked it, she bumped into us and spilled coffee on Weiss."
"Weiss actually did yell that time, but my striking good looks and charming demeanor won her over." Blake said, a fake haughtiness in her tone.
Weiss sighed. "Well…she's not exactly wrong."
"Love you, babe!"
"…love you, too." The white-haired woman mumbled
Ruby actually laughed at that one.
The dynamic between the three women around her were so natural. Blake's good-natured teasing getting Weiss' dander up with Pyrrha serving as the gentle mediator. But despite the banter, the feelings were obvious. The kisses, the blushes, the "I-love-yous". It was so warm, so genuine, so…beautiful that it almost threw Ruby for a loop. Once again, the alien environment was one that Ruby almost had a hard time understanding it.
The anxiety and self-doubt that so often plagued her mind came rushing forward again.
It scared her a bit. Not only that she felt so out of the loop, but also for another very real possibility.
Was Ruby going to be part of this now?
What if she did something wrong? What if she didn't fit neatly into this relationship?
What if they couldn't bring themselves to actually love her?
What if they left her like everyone else did?
A finger bopped her nose, and she blinked.
"You're stuck in your head, aren't you?"
Pyrrha was inches from her face, an understanding grin gracing her features.
"Oh…uh…yeah, I guess."
"Ruby." A sterner voice injected itself into the conversation.
Ruby followed Weiss with her head as she strutted into the room, stopped in front of the coffee table, and placed her hands on her hips.
"If this is going to work, and believe me, I really want it to, communication is going to matter. We don't expect you to tell us everything, obviously. Some things you need to work out yourself and we understand that." She raised a finger. "But! If something comes up that you can't solve on your own, you come to us, understand?"
"Um…uh…" Ruby sputtered.
"What she's trying to say, in her own Weiss way…" Blake laughed a bit at the indignant scoff that came out of Weiss. "is that we know that this is new for you. It's been a long time since you've had a connection like this, and we understand that it'll take some time to adjust."
Pyrrha reached out and placed a hand over Ruby's. "But we're here for you. Like Weiss said, we want this to work. We're all very fond of you, Ruby. There isn't much you could say to or ask of us that we wouldn't understand. We're here to help. You just have to ask."
Ruby surprised herself when she didn't hesitate to nod.
"I guess…I'll just need some time to think. This just all seems like a lot right now. But…I promise I'll let you know."
The redhead in front of her squeezed her hand momentarily before leaning forward and kissing Ruby on the forehead.
Blood rushed to Ruby's face, much to Blake's amusement.
"That's for making me blush at the mall." Pyrrha said with a wink.