A/N: Sorry for finally posting after 1.5 months, eek. Hope you like this chapter featuring another conversation between Blake and Yang!

Tap tap.

Blake felt two taps on her shoulder and whipped her head around.

"Blake! Fancy seeing you here!" a beaming Yang came into view. Crap! I was wrong - she does want to talk to me even after the party, but I look so dishevelled today! Blake chided herself for being too lazy to put on her makeup that morning.

"Oh, uh, hey Yang! Yeah, I just finished lunch and I'm going back to my dorm now. What about you?"

"Same! I'm heading to the Frangipani dorm. Which dorm do you stay in?" Yang asked.

Blake's heart was thumping in her chest at 120 beats per minute. She wasn't sure if she should tell Yang the truth that they stay in the same dorm, but also didn't want to lie about such a detail. It could lead to a slippery slope, having to spin up more lies to cover the previous one.

"What a coincidence, I stay in Frangipani too. What are the odds?" Blake replied.

"Wow, that's so cool! It'll be great to see you around since we live in literally the same building!" Yang smiled, excited at the prospect of having more opportunities to bump into the mysterious raven-haired beauty. It was rare that someone had this effect on her. Despite numerous boys (and some girls) throwing themselves at her, Yang hadn't found herself attracted to any of them.

Blake blushed at Yang's words. Does that mean she wants to see me...? Realising that she had been staring, Blake quickly cleared her throat and stammered, "Uh, y-yeah, sounds good! Always good to have a friendly face around."

As the pair boarded the bus and sat next to each other, Yang piped up "By the way, there's a dorm party coming up to celebrate the end of exams, are you planning to go?"

"Oh wow, sounds fun," Blake paused awkwardly, thinking to come up with a quick excuse but deciding that it was better to tell the truth,"Uh… actually, I don't think I'll go. I've never been to any of the dorm parties," Blake mumbled sheepishly.

"Oh don't worry about it! I know sometimes the parties can get too wild," Yang dropped her voice into a whisper, "Between you and me, I'm not all about parties either. Sometimes I wish I could just hang out with a small group of friends chatting and playing board games instead of always socializing with throngs of people in the same room," Yang confided. Wait, what did I just say? I've only met Blake and I'm already revealing too much!

Blake was surprised at Yang's admission, and lowered her voice to protect Yang's privacy, "Cool. I've always thought you liked going to parties, you seemed like you were in your element at the party last night. Thanks for sharing that with me Yang," Blake smiled genuinely, "So, what else do you like to do besides playing board games?"

Yang blushed, slightly embarrassed at revealing this side of her, but it was so easy to talk to Blake that she couldn't help sharing more about herself, "Well, I go to the gym thrice a week, but honestly, I only do it to maintain my figure… I know it sounds strange but I feel like I'm expected to look good all the time. I don't actually like going to the gym," Yang paused, hesitating at admitting the next piece of information, "To be honest, my only consolation there is my workout playlist on Spotify. There's one song on there I really love. It's by a singer who isn't very well-known, but her lyrics just speak to me, and her voice - gosh, she's got such a distinct and beautiful voice that I could listen to all day. You should check it out! Here, have a listen," before Blake could respond, Yang plugged her earphones into her Sony phone and handed them over to the raven-haired girl.

"If only there was a place for me to be me…"

Blake's eyes widened in shock. Wait, wasn't that the opening lyrics of her own song, My Own Place?! Why was Yang listening to the song she released years ago?! Blake's thoughts were frantic, was this Yang's way of calling me out, that she recognizes my voice?!

After a 3 minute self-induced anxiety attack, the song finally ended ("I'm right here in my own place...") and Blake handed the earphones back to Yang and forced a smile which looked more like a grimace, "It sounds lovely. I didn't realise you liked introspective songs," Blake commented as they alighted from the bus and walked towards Frangipani dormitory.

"Heh, normally I prefer rock songs, but this song spoke to me in a way no other songs ever did. It was like the singer was singing directly to my soul, cliché as it might sound. Have you heard of this artist Nightshade before? I tried searching online for more of her songs, but I haven't been able to find other songs from her," Yang mentioned dejectedly.

Well… spoiler alert, I am Nightshade but no way am I going to admit that to Yang. How can I possibly tell Yang that my dream to be a singer-songwriter was crushed by my abusive, manipulative ex? Blake's thoughts swam in her head as she struggled to come up with a response.

Yang continued, "Also, this might sound strange to you Blake, but I've been hearing this girl singing in the shower on my floor and her voice sounds pretty similar to Nightshade's. Maybe it's just a coincidence but… I don't know, Nightshade's voice is pretty unique. Hey, since you live in the same dorm, have you heard or met this singer before?"

Blake's heart rate shot up and she could hear the blood pounding in her ears. She wasn't ready to let Yang figure out her true identity! Feeling self-conscious and slightly panicked, she slightly lowered the pitch of her voice and said, "That does sound strange. And no, I've not heard of this artist before. Her song is lovely though, it's so different from the banal pop we have nowadays. It's something I would listen to as well. Great recommendation, Yang." The pair entered the lift in their dorm and pressed the "18" button at the same time.

"No way!" Yang exclaimed, "You stay on the 18th floor too? How have we never met?"

Blake chuckled sheepishly, "I, uh, don't really hang out in the common rooms. I'm normally cooped up in my room studying or reading." I hope she doesn't think I'm an anti-social loser, Blake thought to herself.

"Same, I only occasionally pop in the lounge to say hi, most of the time I'm in the Real Estate faculty or in the gym. That's so awesome that we are neighbours though! We should hang out sometime!" Yang beamed, "Oh hey, do you want to grab dinner tonight at the dining hall?"

Blake's heart sped up upon hearing Yang's invitation, "Thanks for inviting me Yang, but I'm pretty swamped right now with all the studying. I was thinking to just grab a sandwich and eat in my room," Blake replied. Seeing the dejected look on Yang's face, she quickly added, "I'll be happy to have dinner with you next Monday though! If you are available…" she trailed off, nervous for Yang's reaction.

"Oh yeah, sure! That sounds great! I stay in room 18-24, you can come visit me anytime!" Yang glanced at her watch, "I gotta go now, I have a meeting with my groupmates soon. Nice talking to you Blake! See you around!" With that, the energetic blonde dashed off to the other end of the corridor, leaving Blake dazed.

Did she just invite me to her room…? Blake blushed, unable to contain her feelings. She's just being friendly, she probably does that to everyone. Blake sighed as she headed off to her room, 18-02, unable to shake off her thoughts surrounding Yang. Wait… Why do I keep thinking about Yang? Weiss already warned me about her… Oh crap.