3. Of Future Plans and Friends in love

Her hand was small. So very small. And her fingers were thin and delicate. How was it possible for her to punch so hard with those tiny hands she had?!

Butch sighed and took a new, clean sheet from the wardrobe. He only had fresh sheets because Buttercup would drag him to the laundry every now and then; since she had started to stop by him and to stay overnight, she had demanded for his room to be at least decently clean. At the beginning she would force him to clean it together, then after a while he had learned how to keep it in a decent state before turning it into a pigsty again. Plus, the laundry. And the new sheets they'd bought together. And she had claimed a whole drawer for herself. Butch took a look around his room: the desk, the chair, the little furniture there was, the posters on the walls… his and hers things and clothes and photos were mixed everywhere. And here she was, sleeping in his bed again. Since when had his room become their room?!

Buttercup mumbled something in her sleep and curled up under the sheet. It was the last they'd bought together, Butch thought. They had been at the mall during summer and they had found this hilarious sheet with sharks and fish and it was so funny they had decided to buy it because it would have totally suited the room and… God, they were practically a married couple! A married couple without consummation of marriage! That was the worst! And the worst part was that he'd been barely aware of that for a long time. Butch grunted and sat at the foot of his bed, his back towards Buttercup. He looked at his hands – his were rough and callous, even though his fingers were pretty long – and his nails were extremely short and ruined, because he kept on picking at them. Stupid fingernails. It was all their fault. He stole a quick glance at Buttercup's lime green fingernails, her hand resting on his pillow. He gave them an almost offended look and turned his gaze away. They weren't long, not really, just a little longer than the tip; the manicure was perfect, even though Buttercup complained about Bubbles' insistence on manicuring her hands once a week, he was pretty sure she liked having perfect fingernails; one of the few girly things she would have never admitted to like. Butch had never given a real fuck about her fingernails, not until the day he'd realised they actually existed.

It had been during the last basketball match of the year: they were about to lose to Citiesville team again, but he had played the best 10 minutes of his life and managed to score the final winning three points right before the end. Citiesville had obviously protested, but after his coach had shown them his blood analysis showing he had been filled with Antidote X, they had clammed up and had gone back to where they belonged. He had felt great, incredible, a fucking basketball God; it had been even better than taking down monsters. Buttercup and his friends were jumping like crazy from the tribunes and he really couldn't wait to go back to them, because he wanted to celebrate with her. He had been stopped by his teammates and coach, they'd had a big party in the locker room, he had drunk half of the champagne bottle the coach had bought, but he couldn't have helped but think how much he had wanted to be outside with his friends. When they'd finally freed him, Buttercup had been outside with the others, his friends, his brothers and her sisters, everyone was waiting for him and as soon as he had gone out, they had started cheering and whistling. He had started his usual boasting show, but unexpectedly Buttercup had run towards him and had jumped into his arms, like a crazy koala, screaming how much he'd been great and what a kickass he'd been and a lot of other things he couldn't really figure out because he had suddenly felt her fingernails digging softly in his neck as she embraced him. That had been the end. Or the beginning.

Butch scratched his neck lightly, the point where he had felt her fingernails that time. It still felt as if it burnt, as if Buttercup had left a scar on his skin. As if she had injected something into his veins that had awakened a fire he wasn't able to extinguish. He remembered that his heart had started to beat faster and faster and he had felt like choking. As soon as Buttercup had left his arms, she had smiled at him full of pride and joy and she had said something, but he couldn't hear anything, he could only think how much he had wanted to kiss her. And that was how he had spent the last three months of his life. One day Buttercup was his fucking best friend, the next day he couldn't get over how much he had wanted her. At the beginning he thought it might have been just one of his fixations, that as soon as he'd gotten her, he would have got bored: the idea had totally terrified him, because that would have meant ending their friendship because of his stupid dick. But then, at the swimming pool party, she had kissed him. And then, she had ignored the fact. At the beginning, Butch had felt a mix of emotions: on one side he had felt relieved; after getting what they'd wanted, maybe his hormones would have calmed down a bit and he could have gone back to be the usual prick he was with her; on the other hand, he had felt pissed off; why was she just ignoring it?! It had been an amazing kiss. It had been more of a heavy make-out session actually. The best make-out session of his life. It had been as if their bodies were meant to stick together, she fitted perfectly in his arms and the kiss had been…

"Butch…?"

Butch snapped out of his daydream and turned towards Buttercup, who had just woken up. She was looking around the room with a confused expression, scratching her messed up hair – she had tied it up in a ponytail for the party, but after the flight and the nap, it was now a shapeless mass of black hair.

He smiled slightly and got up, poking her front teasingly.

"Good morning, my lady"

"Oh, fuck off, you shithead" Buttercup grumbled, massaging her front "Why are we here? What the fuck…"

"I've taken you here because taking you home in that state wasn't really a good idea. You were so fucking drunk you've barfed even last Thanksgiving lunch" Butch snickered as he sat by her side. "Chemical BC?"

Buttercup snorted. "Yeah. I was pissed off."

"Because of Peyton?"

"I don't wanna talk about it" she moaned as she buried her face in her hands. "Tell me that I've just imagined Blossom been there with me."

"Nope. She totally was. Fuck my life, she was holding hands with Brick! I can't believe them. I've bet with him this morning that if he got to fuck her, he'd win 50 bucks and look at the shithead. Not even 6 hours to get what he fucking wanted!" Butch complained as he lay on the bed over Buttercup's legs.

Buttercup raised her brow and smirked. "He tricked you. They've been fucking for a while now."

Butch shot up and looked at her in disbelief. "Wait, what, really?! Why didn't you tell me earlier?!"

"It was just an intuition. I've got the proofs I needed just today. Poor Butchy Boy."

"Holy shit… that motherfucker!"

There were quite a lot of people at the party. That was why Blossom preferred to stay at home, reading a good book or watching a movie when she felt too tired or had been studying all day. Lately also staying in bed and snuggling with Brick had been a very appreciated pastime.

But that night Robin had insisted so much on them coming to Mike's party and Blossom had managed to convince Brick pretty quickly – she had discovered that after-sex Brick was a very accommodating person, which turned out to be a very useful weapon.

But now he had been gone for half an hour, leaving her there alone and sulking. She had already talked to all their friends, greeted an awful number of acquaintances, Mike and Robin had disappeared among the guests and she was trying to act all indifferent and tough, but truth be told, she felt terribly worried. She kept on imaging all sorts of scenarios where Brick was taken away from her once again by that FBI agent, leaving without saying a word, sent on a dangerous and important mission of which she wasn't allowed to know anything.

Blossom snorted: she needed to do something different from staying there as a poor Penelope waiting for her Ulysses to return. She placed her empty glass on one of the tables with a vexed thud and went to the bathroom indoors. She was approaching the door when she heard a burst of girly laughter coming from the toilet. Blossom sighed and rolled her eyes as soon as she recognized the voices of Madison and the other cheerleaders of the school. She was ready to turn on her heels when she unwillingly heard the name of her boyfriend spoken by those coquettish voices and her body stopped naturally, sharpening her super hearing to get what they were talking about.

*cackle*

*cackle*

*Indistinguishable girl noises*

Madison: yeah, I mean, poor Brick *cackle*

Jade: well, Blossom is really pretty though, and they look good together…

Madison: yeah, looking good and not scoring? Like, please. He's so hot, he totally needs someone who knows what to do with a bed apart from sleeping *group cackle*

Hilary: or studying or reading! *group cackle*

Madison: in case he gets bored I can totally propose to fill in the missing practice! Good he's so hot, he's totally wasted on her! *approval noises*

Blossom felt something explode inside her chest, her cheeks turned red and something left her lips, a noise very similar to a growl. Why did all people think that about her?! Only because she didn't go around the school making out with Brick against every (visible) wall, it didn't mean she was made of stone. She was just a reserved person and she really thought some things were better left for private moments. She closed her punches and stomped her foot when she realized that a very shocked Mitch was blocked at the entrance of the kitchen on her left, with a total freaked out look on his face.

"Have you just growled, Bloss?" he asked with a smirk.

Blossom frowned and looked at the bottles he was holding in his hands, like a thief who had just snatched them from the kitchen and was ready to run away.

"You shouldn't be drinking those. You're underage." She reprimanded lamely, crossing her arms. She didn't really feel like giving him a telling-off. She was feeling totally down and just really wanted to go home. With Brick. Who was nowhere to be seen. As she thought about it, she could feel her expression crumbling down and suddenly felt Mitch's hand on her shoulders.

"Hey. I don't know what's going on, but if you want, I can give you something that will cheer you up a little."

"I don't drink. Also because it's useless since we hardly get drunk at all."

"Not with my invention."

"Your what?"

"It's called Chemical BC" Mitch smirked slyly. He left all the bottles on the kitchen counter and took out a small, half empty little bottle from his backpack. The little liquid left shone of a lime green.

"What the… what is that?!"

"My invention for Buttercup. Just a couple of drops of Antidote X she's given me mixed with absinthe. Not enough to take your powers away, but enough to get you drunk in ten minutes."

Blossom gaped and looked at him totally astonished. "I can't believe it. So that's how she always manages to get drunk so fast!"

"Call me a genius" Mitch smiled, proudly.

"Or a criminal"

"So, you want it or not?"

Blossom bit her lower lip, giving him an annoyed look. She then heard again the cackle of laughing girls coming out of the bathroom. "Just give it to me."

Buttercup opened her drawer in Butch's dresser. She had conquered it after an epic fight at the videogames: it had been awesome, one of her favourite victories. She looked inside and sighed. There she found her Butch's favourite t-shirt. He had stopped wearing it and he would keep it stored in there, clean and ready for her to use. She took it out and started to undress as soon as she heard the shower turning on and Butch's speaker starting to play his ear-splitting music.

Buttercup threw her clothes on the chair – it was their clothes hanger – and wore the t-shirt, which was long enough on her to work as a dress. She suddenly felt her nipples hardened against the fabric and the fact that it was very loose-fitting made her feel, for the very first time, self-aware of being practically naked underneath it. She shook her head vigorously: she'd been in that room hundreds of times, she had slept in his bed, sometimes with him even, another hundred; she'd almost always worn his t-shirts, why was she starting to feel anxious about it right in that moment?!

Buttercup grunted and sat with a jump on the bed: there, both of their mobile phones bounced. She took her phone as she read Bubbles' worried messages, but her eye moved quickly to Butch's phone. She gave a quick glance towards the closed door – both the shower and the music were still on, she could hear Butch singing under the stream – and she quickly grabbed his phone. She unblocked it easily – she basically knew all of his passwords at that point – and was ready to go check on his private chats when she suddenly stopped.

What the hell am I doing?!

She let out a loud growl and threw the phone under his pillow, ruffling her hair in a heat of rage, her bare legs crossed as she floated over the bed.

What was going on with her?! She bit her lower lip and exhaled a deep breath, trying to clear her mind. Okay, she had to be totally honest with herself, she had already done that a few other times – usually when there were some girls hovering around him. Sometimes she had really, really wanted to cancel some of their messages so that Butch would have never read them – but then again, she had just been a good friend, trying to avoid him any heartbreaks or delusions. Those were just stupid chicks with just no real interest in him, nothing worth losing his time on. Right? …right? That had been the real reason, right? She was just checking on him. Because he was big and stupid and horny and needed somebody to watch over him. She'd just been a good friend. That was all. But with Peyton… she had felt somewhat worse. Because she had seen Peyton was a fine girl. A pretty one and she totally looked nice and serious and… she had started to freak out. Buttercup had started to wonder if he had ever taken her home. Had Peyton been where she had? On his bed? Had she touched his things? Had she noticed her presence in his room? Buttercup's things were scattered everywhere. Those thoughts had been painful and had tortured her during those last nights. And all that suffering for what? She didn't even like boys! Peyton had tried to find new friends at school and Buttercup had treated her like shit for some unclear reasons. Well, the reason was now clear. She had been forced to admit it. And looking back at her past, at her secret actions, at her attempts to keep other girls away from Butch, the plain unvarnished truth was that she had been a very, disgustingly jealous person.

Butch opened the door and saw Buttercup hovering over his bed.

"Hey, what are you doing?!"

"Sulking" Buttercup mumbled, turning her mobile phone in her hands and finally floating down.

"Yeah, I noticed that. What are you doing wearing my t-shirt, I mean" he snickered as he dried his hair with a towel.

Thanks God he's dressed, at least, Buttercup thought. "I'm staying over for the night. I don't wanna see my sisters."

"Yeah, well, one of your sisters has threatened me to bring you home, so that's what I'm gonna do!"

"I've already written to Blossom and apparently it's ok if I stay" she said and frowned as she read her sister's message "she wrote okay with three hearts after it. Ugh. Strange."

"Ugh. Cringe." He threw the towel on the chair. "Are you sure she really wrote that?"

"I don't know. I guess. Written in black and white, sent by Blossom's number, so I'm in the right" Buttercup shrugged and threw her phone under the pillow. "Maybe she's in lovey-dovey mode after Brick's return".

"I'm still wondering where the fuck he goes every time, that fucker" Butch sighed as he sat on his desk. "And since when he's fucking your sister!"

A few moments of silence passed.

"Is it okay with you if I stay?"

"Why should I say no?"

"I thought you were upset. You know, with all… Peyton's issue and shit." Buttercup grumbled, lowering her head.

"It's fine. I've been a dickhead as well; I could've told you earlier. Let's just get over this" he shrugged.

"Yeah" Buttercup agreed.

A few moments of silence passed again and she saw Butch taking some videogames from the desk, choosing which one to play. His hair was still damp. His stupid, sexy, wet hair.

"When did you meet her?" she suddenly asked.

"Mh?"

"Peyton, I mean… when did you…"

"Oh. I don't remember… last winter, I think… I was at the West Park at night to buy some pot and I saw a group of idiots harassing two pretty girls and ya know, big hero Butch made his entrance and saved the day before bed time. Well, saved the night. Before smoking weed. Whatever." He smiled his usual idiot smile and Buttercup couldn't help but smile in return. She felt her heart skipping a beat. Stupid, useless heart.

"They were… Peyton and Rylee?"

"Yep. They were still together. Big delusion for Butch, I hoped I could've killed two birds with one stone and instead…" Butch threw away the videogames with a distressed expression and Buttercup laughed.

"Too bad for big hero Butch" she laughed and looked at her hands. "What happened to them?"

Butch shrugged. "You know, they went to that posh, Catholic school for girls only and apparently Rylee is kinda part of a big, rich family with some kind of reputation and shit like that… they got caught together at school and well, apparently Peyton took all the blame and she was kicked out. Rylee cried for a bit to her rich daddy, made him believe it was just a misunderstanding and that Peyton had been imagining things, and started dating a rich dimwit of her father's choice and that's the end of the story."

Buttercup shivered and hugged herself. "Ugh… I can't believe there's still people like that around… poor Peyton. Now I feel even worse for treating her like that."

"Yeah, don't worry, I've already talked to her about you. She's figured out everything on her own."

"Well, she'll be fine with us, at least."

"Yeah, totally. I hope you can become friends, she's funny, you know. Well, not as funny as you, obviously." He laughed and jumped off his desk. "Do you wanna play something?"

Buttercup shook her head. "No. I've still got a little headache. I just wanna lie in bed and die."

"Well, I'll let you die on your own, then" Butch said as he went towards the door.

"Wait! Where are you going?"

Butch stopped without turning towards her. He hesitated for a moment.

"Butters… I guess… I mean… I think our sleepovers together are… done." He heaved a suffered sigh. "I mean… I can't sleep with you… any longer… like this."

Buttercup blinked in disbelief and time seemed to be suddenly slowing down. His hand on the door knob. His back at her. Why wasn't he looking at her? What was that sigh? What was happening?

"Butch, no… I—" Buttercup could feel the words choke in her throat. She didn't want him to reject her, she didn't want him to leave her alone. She needed him more than anything else.

"Butters… I know I've been joking about what I feel for you for a while now, but it's starting to hurt… to really fucking hurt… if you don't want to stay with me it's okay, but I need to get over it, and if you just keep on staying around I—"

Butch suddenly felt Buttercup hands around his waist, her face pressed against his back.

"I know. I'm sorry. Stay. Stay with me, Butch."

His hand let go of the door's handle.

How many people were there at the party? And how big was Mike's house?

Brick grumbled lowly as he pushed through the people, looking for Blossom everywhere. That unexpected encounter had taken him more time than he had intended to. FBI and its stupid, total absence of common sense. Intercepting him outside of a crowded party? Really?! Blossom was right to be upset and she would have been right if she had decided to fly home. She'd probably been right all the time. Brick sighed and rubbed his temples: he was fucking up again. Things with Blossom were finally going great, they had managed to keep at bay their quarrels and their misunderstandings and there he went again, messing everything up. With the only good thing that had ever happened to him.

He took out the phone, ready to call her, when he suddenly felt a little finger tapping at his shoulder. Brick turned to find a very worried Bubbles and a smirking Boomer.

"You should come with us."

What Brick saw in front of his eyes left him half shocked and half… he didn't know what.

Blossom was sitting on the edge of the swimming pool talking to Mitch and his friends; she was all smiles and sometimes she would laugh with an annoying, ringing, high-pitched laughter that he had never heard her do.

"I think she's drunk. I don't know what or when that happened, honestly, I saw her just fifteen minutes ago and she was totally fine." Bubbles sobbed with a worried expression on her face.

"Where the hell have you been by the way?!" Boomer asked, looking at his brother's frown.

"Not your business. Thanks for bringing me here. I'll take care of this." Brick dismissed them quickly and jumped highly over the whole swimming pool, landing at Blossom's side, Mitch and his friends looking at him in awe.

"Am I missing all the fun?" Brick asked her, crouching by her side with an amused smirk.

Blossom turned around and her eyes sparkled with joy. She threw herself against him, her arms around his chest. "Oh my God, you're back! You're not gone to some Area 51 or Roswell or… or…"

"I'm not planning any trips to New Mexico for now, no." Brick sighed. He knew she had been worried all this time. He couldn't really blame her for drinking that much. He quickly let one arm slip under her knees, lifting her up in his arms. "Guys, thank you for entertaining my girl. But we're leaving now."

"Welcome back Brick and have a safe trip!" Mitch waved his hand as he saw Brick soar in the sky with Blossom in his arms.

After a quick trip, Brick landed in the parking, letting Blossom sit on his car's hood and standing in front of her.

He looked at her with an inquiring frown, but she just smiled and threw her arms around his neck. He could smell a very strong type of alcohol; the same smell Butch would have after a wild night with Buttercup.

"I'm soooo happy they didn't take you awayyy!" she slurred against his chest.

"Yeah, yeah" he patted her head slackly "I've told you I wasn't going anywhere."

"Whyyyy were they hereee?!"

"He just wanted to renew their proposal of joining them after school and he's given me the money I've slogged to earn."

"Oh noooo don't goooo!"

"I won't. At least, not soon. I was considering of going to university first."

"Not even after university, please." Blossom moaned, hugging him tight. "I don't want you to do this…"

Brick sighed and slowly caressed her back. "Blossom, you fight crime and monsters every single day of your life. What's the difference?"

"That… this… is shady and… you're far away, I'm in Townsville… it's different…" she raised her swinging head to look at him with sad eyes. "And… I don't want to spend my life waiting for your return with our three children worried for their father who God knows where he is and what's he's doing and what will you tell them that you work I don't know as a pilot or something which is stupid because we can fly and you're so intelligent you should totally do a different kind a job a job which can really value you which doesn't imply you going away to New Mexico to fight I don't know what—"

"Woah! Woah! Stop your stream of consciousness, Virginia Woolf!" Brick put a hand on her mouth to stop her uninterrupted stream of words. "I don't what you're talking about, I mean, isn't it a bit too soon to worry about such things? And plus, three children?!" Brick snickered.

Blossom blushed deeply. "I-I just thought… you know, since we're three and three… that three would be a niiiice number!"

"Well, you're the one who will have the hardest part in doing them, in comparison mine is gonna be rather short and funny so… it's up to you, really" Brick chuckled, looking for his mobile phone. Where was it when he needed it? He totally had to record this for her sisters to see as soon as she sobered up. And for their three future children, for sure.

"Weeeell but you'll have to help meee raise them, that's the hardest part!" Blossom pouted, still clinging on to him.

"Yes, yes, don't worry, considering that they're gonna have half of my genes and yours, this is gonna be definitely easier than handling Butch and Boomer; Huey, Dewey e Louie will already be smarter than them at birth. Where the fuck is my phone?!"

"Oh no!" Blossom complained, moaning dramatically. Brick startled.

"What?!"

"I want at least a giiiiirl" she pouted, still grabbing his shirt.

Brick felt for the first time the need to laugh in her face but he resisted the urge, biting his inner check very hard. Her face was so funny and the situation was so hilarious that he kept wondering where the hell his phone had gone.

"Yeah, yeah, you know what? Three girls, Charlotte, Emily and Anne, that's even better. No role model father needed, easier to handle. New Powerpuffs for the future generations." He fumbled with all his pockets.

"No!" Blossom jumped on her feet, crossing her arms. "They need names starting with the same letters!"

"Eer… okay, sooo…" Brick said as he opened his car door, looking gropingly for his phone. He found it and took it out with a triumphant smile. "So, Lily, Lola and Lulu?" he said, ready to record her, but soon his smile died when he saw his screen going off because of the low battery.

Blossom laughed again her drunken annoying, ringing, high-pitched laughter. "You're so silly! Let's go back home, I feel soooo sleepy!" and she jumped on the passenger seat, falling asleep the moment her head reached the headrest.

Brick sat woefully at the driver's side, looking at the black screen of his phone, and sighed. "Lily, Lola and Lulu will never forgive me for not recording their mother in this glorious moment of her life".

Butch had turned and had embraced Buttercup tightly. He could feel everything about her: her little body fitted so familiarly well in his arms, her heartbeat hammered in her chest, her breath was quickened.

He started to caress her back lightly, letting his lips get closer to her ear.

"I don't wanna force you, Butters. I just wanna set this clear. If you don't feel like it, then we can just—"

"It's not that I don't feel like it" she protested, her voice a little shaky "It's just… that it's fucking terrifying, Butch. It's not like you're some random boy, you're… you're… my best friend."

Buttercup mumbled softly, plunging her face against Butch's chest, talking against the fabric of his undershirt as she tried to hide her face, her trembling voice. "And we are the Greens" she went on "and we usually do stupid things and fuck up pretty much everything. And I don't want us on the list of our screw-ups. Because if you become my boyfriend and then we fuck up, then I'll lose both my boyfriend and my best friend, and I don't want it. I don't wanna lose this, whatever this is. And I know, I know that I'm a hypocrite, because even if I push you away, I can't help but be jealous all the time. And I know you're suffering as well, but I'm… stuck. I don't know how to get out of this—"

"Okay, okay, calm down" he said as he scooped her up and put her on his bed heavily. "Too much thinking for the Greens tonight!"

Buttercup wanted to reply, but managed only to blubber something incomprehensible. She sat with her legs crossed and her hands pressed firmly against her knees, looking down at the sheet with the sharks and the fish. She felt Butch moving closer and suddenly he kissed her pouting lips lightly. It was a very chaste, sweet kiss, but it managed to calm her down. He interrupted the contact as soon as he felt her breath slowing down and her tense body relaxing.

"I guess you don't give a fuck about what I said before" she grumbled, but he could feel her blushing through the dim light of his room.

"Nope. I just think… we can do things in our own way."

"Like what?"

"Like… if I'm not your boyfriend than the problem doesn't exist."

"If you're thinking about being friends with benefits, you can forget about it."

"Nah. I was thinking something like…" he smiled slyly, caressing her ruffled hair "…like what we already are. Best friends in love. That's it."

"That's stupid" she smiled.

"That's a Greens' thing. It obviously is" he snickered as he lay down on the bed. Then Butch glanced up at her and smiled sweetly. "I'll always be your best friend, Butters. No matter what. And I'll always be in love with you, I'm pretty sure of that. So, even if in the future we won't be together for some kind of reason, I'll never cease to be your best friend in love."

Buttercup remained silent for a moment. She was pretty sure her heart had stopped beating. Did the things he had said even make sense? But even if they didn't, she couldn't deny the fact that her chest was clenching like it had never done before. Was she really giving in to his mushy sweet talk? Oh, but his smile was so… so… and his hair was still damp… and… his eyes were…

"Well, you know what Butch… tonight, you win" Buttercup sighed and threw herself over the boy's body.

He didn't have the time to reply because her lips were already on his and this kiss was very, very, different from the previous one. Nonetheless, it was a familiar contact, something she had already got to know quite well during their swimming pool make out. That time, Butch was cold and tasted of alcohol, pool chlorine and something both sweet and minty. This time, his lips were hot and she could taste shower gel together with that sweet and minty flavour again. Was it the taste of his toothpaste? Maybe his chewing gum? Or maybe it was just his taste. It was Butch.

As soon as her tongue caressed his, Buttercup was shaken by a delighted quiver that made her bend down against his body, looking for his heat. She felt Butch's hands grabbing her butt cheeks, pushing her closer against him; she wrapped her arms around his neck, plunging her fingers through his thick, damp hair. When her fingers brushed against his neck gently, she felt Butch moan slightly against her lips, his body suddenly shaking. Buttercup bit his lip firmly, pushing her already soaked panties against his hardened erection, which was pressing against his shorts. She rubbed there slowly while she traced deep lines against his neck's skin with her nails; Butch groaned gravelly while he pushed his head backwards, interrupting the kiss. Buttercup smiled delightedly as she started to learn a lot of new interesting reactions of her new non-boyfriend.

"Do you have a thing for scratches on the neck, Butchy Boy?" Buttercup chanted maliciously as she softly scratched his nape.

"Fuck…" he could only pant with a sigh, quivering under her touch.

Buttercup felt a sudden shudder as she felt his erection pulsing against her wet sweet spot and she unintentionally dug her nails deeper in his nape's flesh, making him groan. She started to rub herself intensely against him, following her own rhythm and the little waves of pleasure that were pervading her at each stroke. She felt Butch's hands grabbing her thighs, stabilizing her position and her rhythm, and she couldn't stop staring at his face, his eyes closed, his white teeth sinking in his lower lip. She felt very self-aware for a moment, her heart lurched as she realised the effect she was having on him; the sensation of pleasuring him was nearly enough to make her climax. Suddenly, though, Butch sat up, hugging her tightly and pushing his face against her collarbone. She felt Butch shudder against her body and a deep, hoarse groan came from his gasping mouth.

Buttercup smirked and bit her lower lip, mischievously. "Mh. Butch? Have you just…?"

"Fuck. Off." He managed to gasp, slightly out of breath. He shoved her down on the bed, pushing her by the shoulders, and looked at her from above. "You're always running a million miles per hour, goddammit. Now we're doing things my way" he frowned and then bent down to kiss her again.

This time, it was a slow, intense, deep kiss. His tongue encountered hers slowly, touching it and then fleeing, licking her lower lip and nibbling the upper one, then forcing its way through her lips again. Buttercup moaned against his mouth and arched her back lightly as she felt his hands sneaking underneath her (his) loose t-shirt; his open palms travelled from her warm thighs, up to her hips, her trained abs and stopped just under her breasts, tracing their lower line slowly, making her squirm under his touch.

"Buuutch…" Buttercup groaned against his lips, unable to hold that slow, sweet torture.

He smirked and let his long fingers reach her swollen nipples, playing with them with light and measured movements; meanwhile, he bent his head and started kissing her neck, her chin, her collarbone, biting and sucking at her skin, leaving a line of hickeys all over. He could feel Buttercup raising her hips to meet his, her lower parts aching for a contact, and he sneered against her ear.

"Someone's impatient, mh?"

"Buuuutch… fuck you… you're making me die… pleeeease…"

"Please what?" he fleered, looking into her lustful eyes.

"Please do something! Something! I don't know what, but please!" she snapped at him, throwing her head back angrily.

"Yes, ma'am!" he snickered and shot downwards, his hands suddenly moving to her inner thighs as his palms pushed them wide open. He let his long finger slid along her soaked panties, putting a little pressure as it passed over her most sensitive part. Buttercup moaned loudly as she grabbed the sheets under her with both hands and arched her back a little.

Butch smiled but gulped quietly as he let his fingers sneak under her black panties, meeting her wet flesh and starting to caress it gently, his movements matching her expressions and her moans.

"Oh God, Butch…" Buttercup sighed with pleasure, her eyes half closed "…kiss me…" she almost begged him.

"Okay" he sneered mischievously and as Buttercup stretched her arms towards him, he bent down instead and kissed her most secret, wet spot, teasing it with his tongue as his finger started to dig deep slowly inside of her.

Buttercup couldn't help but cry out, forcing her hand on her mouth to muffle her loud moans and shrieks. She had already been very close during her rubbing session with Butch and the sweet treatment she was receiving – for the first time in her life – made her totally lose control over herself. As she felt a second finger penetrate her, her hand left her mouth and grabbed hard the pillow, as she arched her back and let out a loud shrill that made Butch stop.

"Woah. That was a nice scream." Butch said as he looked at her and licked his fingers with a delighted smirk.

"Fuck… you…" Buttercup managed to whisper, her eyes teary and her mind still dizzy with her orgasm. She heaved a sigh and closed her eyes with a soft moan.

Blossom woke up with a groan, looking at the familiar ceiling of her room. She frowned for a few seconds, confused: why did her head feel so heavy? And why was her stomach writhing?

"Good morning, Princess Puffbucks" Brick greeted her with a teasing voice. He was sitting at her desk, skimming the book she had been reading lately and that used to rest on her night table. "Boring as hell" he sneered.

"It's a nice love story, nothing too sophisticated, yeah, but I needed something easy to get some sleep." Blossom pouted.

"Indeed, it is suitable for sleep" he snorted as he launched the book away and flew by her side.

Blossom rubber her temples. "Oh my God, what happened?"

"Don't you remember?"

"No… nothing at all…"

"I knew I had to record everything" Brick groaned, crossing his arms.

"Record what?! What happened?! Oh my God. Mitch made me drink something disgusting and then… what happened then?!"

"You got drunk. I don't know, with some kind of mixture Mitch has made with Chemical X and alcohol. And you were all cheerful and giddy. A delight for the eyes, I swear."

"Oh. My. God." Blossom whispered, covering her face in shame. "Tell me I didn't do or say anything strange."

"Nah. I came to rescue you just in time." He shrugged and added with a calm tone "Then you started lamenting about the fact that you didn't want me to leave for New Mexico and that you didn't want to stay at home alone with our three children, which, by the way, we kinda decided are gonna be three girls named Lily, Lola and Lulu."

Blossom looked at him totally flabbergasted.

"Are you… joking… right?"

"Does it sound like something I would make up?" he snickered and she covered herself with her duvet.

"I want to sink through the floor. Right now." She whimpered.

"Why? It was one of your funniest moments. I regret not recording it for posterity."

Brick received a pillow in the face as a response and laughed softly.

"Hey, come out of bed." He whispered sweetly as he reached for her. Blossom popped her head out of the sheets, still pouting. "I'm sorry for leaving you alone at the party."

She bit her trembling lip and got up, leaning her forehead against his chest, as he closed his arms around her waist. "I'm sorry I've acted like a stupid brat. I don't know what happened to me."

"But I do." He sighed. "I don't know why that idiot had to come tonight to give me the money for my services. But FBI agents never act in comprehensible ways, anyway."

"I know you're doing it for a noble reason and I really don't have any motives to complain about you working for the FBI, but I can't really think about it straight. I don't know why I always feel so anxious."

"I guess that's normal. I mean, you were right. Tonight you've told me it is a shady job. And it is. Undoubtedly. I'll never be able to tell you anything about what I'm doing or where I'm going… so I do understand why you're feeling anxious about it."

"And— and… I-I don't know why I said t-those things about the future and the… you know… children… it's not like I have any pre-made plans or anything, I-I mean…!"

Brick gave her an unconvinced glare. "Nobody believes you, Blossom."

"W-Wha…!"

"Oh, come on. Like I don't know you. I bet you've already had your future perfectly planned." He smirked, challengingly.

Blossom scowled at him. "I-I did…! Before I fell in love with you! Then you've messed everything up!"

"I did? Really?" he sneered, cancelling the distance between their faces. "I thought you've said you wanted to have three children with me."

"W-Well… T-That's what I'd want, but it's just a… a… you know, a possibility, a naïve dream, nothing that can't be changed. I mean… I guess that, in real life, a couple should discuss together what they'd want for their future. If you want a future with me, I mean." Blossom blushed deeply as she lowered her eyes, looking at her writhing hands.

Brick looked at her in silence for a few minutes. "You're always overthinking a lot of things, aren't you?" he sighed and looked at the ceiling. "Honestly, I've never thought about the future. My brothers and I weren't supposed to have one, so I've never really bothered myself thinking about it. But I guess that since we've got closer, we Rowdyruffs and you Puffs, things have changed quite a lot. I mean, the other day Boomer was babbling about saving money to buy a cottage near the lake with Bubbles, where they could live with their five children!" he frowned with a sigh and Blossom laughed merrily "And well. If I really have to think about it now, I guess… that time has changed its meaning since we've got together. You and I, I mean. I think… yeah, I think you… make me want to have a future, after all."

"Oh Brick… this is… one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard." Blossom sighed sweetly. "Every once in a while, you manage to say things that can leave me speechless…"

Brick smirked. "I know. That's how I've managed to have sex with you."

Blossom blushed deeply and threw all the pillows she could find against him, making him laugh. "You idiot!"

"Hey, let's make this straight, no lake cottages and three is the very maximum number of brats I'm going to endure!"

"Just stop it, you silly!" Blossom laughed as she zipped after a very quickly fleeing Brick.

It was Brick the one who caught her instead – even though she gladly let him do it – and he shoved her against the closed door of her room, kissing her sweetly and blocking her wrists against the wood.

She opened her mouth immediately, her tongue sliding against his in a very well-known contact, a familiar yet exciting rhythm that she'd never get tired of dance.

Blossom let her hands slid under his t-shirt, tracing very light lines over his skin, making him quiver against her. She then reached for the edge of his jeans, following the belt towards the buckle and he suddenly interrupted the kiss.

"Blossom… you naughty girl, you know we can't…" he whispered against her lips, his voice gravelly "…our siblings might be here any minute…"

"And dad's downstairs… I know… but…" she sighed, kissing him back almost fiercely, her arms closing around his neck and pushing him towards her.

"Fuck…" he groaned, letting his hands slip under her tartan skirt, caressing her soft thighs, feverish to reach her underwear.

Suddenly, they heard a loud yawn coming from right behind the door and a familiar voice called. "Blossom, honey, are you here?"

How come they didn't hear her father approaching?! Had they been so involved?!

"Er… yeah, Professor, here I am!" Blossom sang as she opened the door and hid Brick behind it.

Her father stood there with a sleep-deprived expression on his face. He yawned heavily and smiled sweetly at her. "I'm glad you're home early. Where are your sisters?"

"On their way home" she smiled lovingly. "You should go to sleep, I'll stay up and wait for them. Don't worry."

"Uh… yeah, I guess I'll ask you to do me this favour, I'm dying to get some sleep." He stretched as he reached for her forehead to kiss it lightly. "Goodnight, Blossom."

"Goodnight, Professor!" she smiled sweetly as she closed the door.

Brick appeared by her side again, looking at her with a perplexed expression, his arms crossed. "Honestly, after seeing how easily you've lied to your poor father, I've changed my mind about having three daughters."

"I didn't lie, I've just omitted the fact that you're here." She smiled mischievously.

"An entirely insignificant detail for a father."

Blossom smiled innocently and winked at him.

"I want to go back to the original idea of Huey, Dewey and Louie. Really."

Buttercup opened her eyes and stood there for a moment, looking confusingly at the ceiling of Butch's room. She was under the duvet and she could feel Butch sleeping at her side, lying on his belly, his arm around her waist and his face buried in his pillow. She twisted slightly and realised her panties were really wet and the memory hit her hard. She still felt a little weird down there. She tried to recall everything that had happened probably a few moments before – minutes? Hours? – and turned towards the boy.

"Oh my God. Butch. Butch!" she shook him vehemently "Butch! Wake up!"

"Mhhh…"

"Butch! You shithead! Wake up!"

"Mhh… what…" he mumbled and lazily opened one eye to look at her.

"Butch. Have we fucked?!"

"Mhh… no… nearly…"

"Nearly?! Oh brother. No, no, we can't just leave the work unfinished!" she protested. She realised she had practically passed out after climaxing. How could she! How embarrassing!

"Mhh… another time…"

"Another what?!" she fussed. "Don't you wanna fuck with me, Butch Jojo?!"

"Yeah, but… there's time… no hurry… come back to sleep…" he grumbled against the pillow and shot out an arm from underneath the sheets, took her head and pushed it down.

"You'll regret this, Butch, I swear" Buttercup pouted, but nonetheless snuggled under his arm and lay her head close to his sleeping face. She felt his breath on her lips, his sweet and minty flavour again, and closed her eyes, smiling happily.

Bubbles stood on her tiptoes as she deepened her kiss and dug her hands in Boomer's hair. She knew they had to be quick, her dad might have still been up and he could have been at the door waiting for her to come back. They interrupted the deep kiss with a series of lighter kisses which made Boomer smile against her lips and they laughed light-heartedly.

Suddenly, they felt something falling down from her room's window and they both jumped, alarmed. They soon saw Brick zip off towards the parking lot, but he stopped, turning towards them. His hat and clothes were all messed up and he totally looked taken aback.

"Hi" he greeted tensely "Er… if you need a lift, I'll wait for you" he told his brother.

"Um… yeah, why not. I'm coming in a minute…" Boomer replied, bewildered.

Brick waved at them and zipped off to his car.

Bubbles and Boomer exchanged a look, speechless.

Bubbles started. "He looked…"

"…in a hurry…"

"His t-shirt was…"

"…inside out…"

"…do you think Blossom and Brick have…"

"…yeah, it totally looks like it."

Bubbles shuddered. "Oh my God. I hope they haven't used my bed! Mr Octi was there! He might have seen everything!"

"Well. We'll use your sister's bed next time."

"Yeah. Time for some Blues' payback." Bubbles raised her hand and Boomer gave her a high-five.

[to be continued…]

Notes:

Sorry for the delay! I've been on holidays! Thank you everybody for your kind reviews!

I hope I haven't disappointed you with this chapter, let me know what you think. :D

And you should vote, Lily, Lola and Lulu or Huey, Dewey and Louie? xD