Sunday, February 9th
Ever so lightly and fluently, her hands plucked away at the strings of the guitar. With every note passing between her fingers, she melted away into the calming atmosphere she was creating. It was easy to get lost in a trance of flowing melodies like this.
WIt was always a question in the back of her mind, something she asked herself constantly: Why was she most a peace when playing music. It never seemed to matter the instrument, just that she was playing, creating, feeling the music.
Music was her constant in life. Her only healthy coping mechanism. Her getaway. No matter the circumstance, this was always something she could rely on. With music, she could take complete control, determined every little aspect. She could play old or new melodies or change them. It was her choice. The extravagant feeling when she perfectly played a rift she had worked so hard for. Or timed a new add on at just the right time. That was bliss.
She let the music fade out into nothing. Throughout her entire session, she had not once ruined it with hums or words. The audio ambiance didn't need it to express exactly how she felt in that moment.
With a final breath, she allowed herself to release the guitar from her grip, placing it up against her bed frame.
Reality was now catching up with her. She had so much to worry about. So many things to do in such little time. It truly felt as if she couldn't breathe with all of this stress. That's why she needed this time by herself, away from it all, including Bonnibel.
It then occurred to her that she promised to hang out with Phoebe. Not that it wouldn't be fun, just that she had homework from music history and chemistry that she had yet to work on. Though, Bonnie could help with the chemistry portion later. Even though Bonnie was taking a whole different kind of chemistry, Water Chemistry 4801, she figured Bonnie was smart enough to help her out. Music history, however, was a bitch to deal with.
Alright, she told herself. You can do this.
Forcing herself up, she managed to go into the bedroom, taking her large music history book from the stack of reading material just from this semester alone. Seven in total.
By the time she was done reading over the chapters and filling in what she needed to in her essay, two hours had already passed.
Bonnie wouldn't be back home from work until 10. So she'd have to wait to do chemistry until that night or the next morning, not that she minded putting it off. She was a master of procrastination after all.
There was only one other thing she had to do.
The phone rang obnoxiously as Marceline waited for her co-worker to pick up.
"Hello?" Was the obvious answer.
A wave of anxiety suddenly overtook the rocker in the realization that she didn't even know what she would ask. "Hey, it's Marceline." The greeting came out too awkwardly forced. "Uh...Did you still want to hang out or..." There was a loud shuffling noise in the background. "Am I calling at a bad time?"
"No, not at all. I was just about to text you."
"Oh, okay cool. Do you want to meet somewhere or..." Marceline ran a hand through her hair in hopes that it would calm her down. "Sorry, I don't really remember the plan. Long night and all that."
There was another shuffling noise from the other end of the phone, making Marceline think that she was busier that she claimed she was. "It's okay. I didn't have that great of a night myself. So we can do whatever."
"Sounds good then. Send me your address and I'll drive to wherever."
"Okay. See you soon."
"Mhm." The line dropped.
God, that was so painfully awkward. Maybe this was a bad idea.
The rocker shook the thought out of her head, insisting to herself that everything would be fine. It had to be.
Did all she want to do is wrap up in blankets on the couch and eat leftover pizza while sulking? More than anything. Sure, maybe the night before was an absolute nightmare and she had every right to cancel, but this was a new day and she refused to let Ash ruin it.
Marceline grabbed her keys from off her desk, clutching onto them in hopes of overcoming her anxiety. With a breath she pushed herself forward to her next adventure for the day, immediately regretting her decision to go forward with her plans instead of taking a much-needed rain check.
Phoebe burst into laughter. "What the hell, Marceline."
The childish pout came naturally onto Marceline's features. "Hey, don't laugh. Clowns are fucking scary. Lot's of people agree with me, you know."
Phoebe smiled brightly. Her smile reminded Marceline a lot of Bonnie's in that comforting sort of way. The only differences were the small number of freckles that sprinkled lightly across her cheeks and the way her caramel eyes sparkled in the brightly lit cafe.
"Maybe to a child."
The rocker sipped at her coffee, noticeably easing. "I'm a child at heart then. Oh fucking-" She cursed as she realized that she had spilled some of her coffee smack dab onto her the middle of her new shirt.
Phoebe could only laugh at that point.
Although Marceline wasn't the happiest about her ruined shirt, she was just glad Phoebe was having fun. Not that she wasn't. In fact, she was actually enjoying herself more and more as the day advanced.
Marceline pulled the t-shirt off, revealing a dark grey undershirt. Thankfully the undershirt wasn't ruined by the mess she made. Suddenly Phoebe's laughter stopped and Marceline was forced to look up at the girl who was watching her.
"Do you always wear a tank top under your shirt?"
That's an odd question, The rocker thought, pulling her shirt off of her arms before placing it onto the table. "Yeah, I'm a klutz so it's pretty much a requirement."
Phoebe gave a nod and went silent, looking out the window, and Marceline could clearly see her eyes sparkle with the sun's gaze.
What just happened?
"So, uh," Marceline tried breaking the sudden intensity in the air. "Would you like to skate? There's a skatepark not too far from here."
Phoebe's head snapped back to look at Marceline. "You skate?"
Marceline gave a small smile. "Yeah, I always carry a longboard in my car and I think Marshal's is in there too. He won't mind if you use it." She paused a moment. "I'm assuming that means you're up for it, right?"
The redhead nodded silently, her hair flopping with her every movement. "I haven't in a year or so, but I'm down for anything."
"There's a windy road by my house that few cars drive on, if you're actually up for it."
"Sure, that'd be great."
"You ready?"
A confident smirk appeared on the other girl's face. "Always."
"A politician?" Marceline asked with one of her eyebrows raised in confusion."Why out of everything, a fucking politician?"
After coffee, the pair ended up walking around downtown Berkley. The chatter of busy restaurants and stores livened up the already chill atmosphere. The sun was already beginning to set, regardless of it only being late afternoon. She decided that she hated the winter sun for that. Marceline's presence made up for that. When she looked off into the sunset with a starry look in her eyes, Phoebe couldn't help but feel warm.
Phoebe was the quiet type. Always had been since she was little, but that didn't mean she wouldn't stand up to authority or confrontation.
When she was young she would always play as a monarch. Her father always told her that she would end up having the exact authoritarian mindset that he had. From that day forth she decided to be as caring and understanding of a person as she possibly could be, just to spite him.
Looking back now, she most likely would have ended up on the same path regardless of her father's words.
Phoebe shrugged, a small smile displayed on her thin lips. "I realized I didn't want the world to be run by the corrupt. And I learned pretty quickly that if you want change, you have to be the change. S,o I hope to become president someday."
When Marceline bit her lip in thought a cold chill shivered down Phoebe's spine. Thankfully Marceline was too oblivious to notice. What was she thinking in that brilliant mind of hers?
Finally Marceline gave a nod. "Well with how everything is going right now, you might actually be the first woman president twenty years down the line." She sighed. "Hell, I'd vote for you."
"You don't know my views yet." She pointed out, jabbing a finger into the other girls shoulder.
Marceline laughed, taking the poking as a playful gesture. "You got me there." She placed both hands deep into her pocket. "I'm tempted to get another coffee, but every place around here is packed."
"Well where did you park?" The red head asked, inching to a closer proximity of the taller rocker.
Marceline shrugged. "I'll be honest, I don't remember. Maybe around the pizza place on Pearl?"
"That's a mile that way." Phoebe pointed to the left.
"Damn," Marceline glanced down at her phone. "I should probably get you back home."
Phoebe tried not to look hurt, in fact she wanted to hang out longer. But she wouldn't force her to do that.
"Alright, whenever you're ready."
"Let's head that way then."
The walk was silent for a minute and it was starting to make the red head anxious.
"You had fun, right?" Said suddenly.
Phoebe looked up at her. "Yeah, of course. Why do you ask?"
She shrugged. "Just making sure. I'm usually more fun than this."
"Even more fun than you were today?"
Her comment seemed to lift Marceline's spirits a little bit. "Yeah, something happened last night."
"What happened?"
"I had an unwanted visitor. An ex asking to get back with me. Had the audacity to kiss me in front of Bonnie."
"Really? What a douche."
Marceline nodded. "I shot him."
Phoebe's eyes became really wide, snapping over to the slightly taller girl walking beside her. "What?"
"Well...attempted to. The clip was empty, but I did pull the trigger."
"My God, Marceline." The redhead looked appalled.
Marceline's eyebrows knitted. "He wouldn't leave." She started to become defensive. "Anyways, it just has me bothered."
"I would have done the same thing, you know. But then again, I would have loaded the gun." She joked, playfully hitting her arm.
The rocker forced a smile. "Trust me, I won't make the same mistake twice."
Saturday, February 15th
Bonnie found it really weird that Marceline had asked her to meet her at Simon's house. She wasn't sure what this was about, but she complied to her demands and arrived on time at the front door. She knocked with no answer.
She started to think that maybe she should walk in, but she didn't feel comfortable enough with Marceline's family to do that. Okay, yes she stayed there for fall break...and winter break...and she had a key, but she still decided against it.
Bonnie's body jolted as a strange darkness encased her vision.
There was a calming hush as a familiar voice captivated her. "It's just me, babe." A melodic voice reassured her.
"What are you doing?" Bonnie asked, letting her heart calm.
"It's a surprise-don't peek." Marceline warned, brushing Bonnie's hand away as she tried to move her hand. "We're going for a walk."
Though Bonnie trusted Marceline a lot, she wasn't sure how she felt with her leading her every step. What if she decided to play a joke and she ran into something. Should she have been so paranoid?
Bonnie couldn't help but ask, "Where are we going?"
The rocker shushed her girlfriend, pressing a kiss awkwardly on her shoulder as they walked. "It's a surprise."
"Well obviously."
"Don't ask questions, baby," Marceline cooed in her girlfriend's ear as they began to walk. "You'll ruin the surprise." She kissed the bare part of her neck from behind her and she felt as if she would collapse.
Bonnie found it completely unfair of how Marceline could affect her emotions so easily while it was so hard to affect hers. Or maybe Marceline just played it off well.
The walk was mostly silent and Bonnie didn't feel afraid of Marceline's leading as she always gave direction before something suddenly appeared in her path. But it wasn't as if she had much choice on whether to trust her or not since she was blocking her vision completely.
"Are we almost there?" She finally asked. "We've been walking for a good ten minutes or so-"
"Don't exaggerate. We're here." She shushed, finally taking her hands away from her girlfriend's face.
It revealed a cliffside overseeing the ocean with trees guarding the light where they stood. The sun was starting to set and an array of colors filled the open air, taking Bonnie's breath away. The clouds blurred in the distance as if they were smudged onto a canvas, but no less beautiful.
"Valentine's Day is stupid," Marceline said suddenly, taking Bonnie's attention off of the beautiful scenery. Bonnie immediately noticed that Marceline was dressed in slacks and a red button-down shirt; the top button left undone in a casual manner. Bonnie tried to shoo away the devious thoughts invading her mind. "So, instead of doing gross cliche romantic stuff on a busy Friday, I decided to do gross romantic stuff completely unrelated to it the day after."
Bonnie couldn't help but smile and approach, letting her arms lay delicately around her girlfriend's strong shoulders.
"I appreciate this a lot."
Marceline smile was soft. "Anything for you, Mi'lady."
They shared a kiss before Marceline led Bonnie to the blanket set on the grass a safe distance from the cliffside underneath a large oak, the biggest of all the trees in the area. They both sat down, Marceline wrapping her arm around Bonnie lovingly as they set their gaze onto the beauty before them.
"You know, when I was younger, Marshal and I would come up here and watch the sunset until dark. Simon would make us come home for dessert, but we came out here every night without fail."
Bonnie wondered if that had to anything about her father's absence. It looked as if Marceline was finally about to open up to her, but Marceline didn't continue.
"May I ask something?"
"Yeah, anything."
Bonnie noticed her voice was low, almost like when they first met. Was she warning her not to ask?
"You never talk about your mother."
Marceline's arm moved from Bonnie's shoulder to her lower back, her hand dangerously gripping her side. Bonnie knew better than to be scared of her girlfriend, especially after what happened with her ex. She wouldn't hurt Bonnie.
"That's not a question." She joked, giving a laugh before it died down to silence. "I wish there was something to tell of her though. I don't remember much."
Her eyes were fixated on the sunset ahead of them, obviously holding back every emotion that was begging to be let out. Regardless, her face stayed stoic and unrelentingly stubborn.
"What do you remember of her?"
Bonnie didn't often pry, but after this long of knowing each other, not once has her mother ever been brought up in conversation. Marshal only mentioned it once, a month earlier at the new years eve party, but besides that, no one talked about it.
"Simon said she was-"
Bonnie gently forced Marceline to look at her directly by pushing her jaw in her direction with one finger. Her eyes wondered on anything beside Bonnie.
"What do you remember?"
She finally made eye contact, still trying her hardest not to show any emotion, just to keep Bonnie distant. But it wasn't working. Her eyes teared up.
"When I really think about it, she's a lot like Kei. Same terrible fashion sense. Terrible sense of humor. Extremely independent. Loyal. This really beautiful curly brown hair...I used to tell her all the time I wanted her hair." She paused a moment to look at the sunset and wipe away her tears. "I have her eyes." She could only say it in a hushed voice. "That's why I get upset when you bring it up."
"I'm sorry."
"You would have found out sooner or later."
Marceline tried to laugh but it only made her feel more empty. Light circles rubbed onto her back from Bonnie's open hand. It was comforting, more than her girlfriend could imagine.
"She always sang to us. But..." Marceline's jaw clenched in pain. "That's in the past."
Bonnie didn't press on, even though there were so many questions running through her mind, she didn't dare to ask. At least not right now.
With streams flowing down her flawless cheeks, she asked. "Hey Bonnie?"
"Hm?"
Marceline kept looking out at the sunset with a sudden smile. "I'm really glad I met you. She would have really liked you..."
Bonnie couldn't help but smile. "I sure hope so."
Thursday, February 21st
It was late, the only light in the house was the tv flickering between each movie scene. Bonnie didn't recognize the movie. Then again she wasn't paying that much attention to it.
The only thing she could possibly give her attention to was Marceline's heavy breathing. It wasn't keeping her up in an annoying way, just that she couldn't concentrate other than the realization that she was starting to fall in love with her. And how scary of a feeling that was.
What she had felt toward Marceline was very different from what she felt about crushes and temporary love interests in the past. She felt complete when Marceline was around. And it didn't have have to be anything special. They didn't even have to sit by each other. Just being in the same room as her made her feel a peace.
Adjusting to living by themselves wasn't that hard at all. It actually felt normal.
Was this love or was this infatuation? Was she the only one that felt this way? Was it obvious to Marceline? Or to anyone else?
Her heart started to race when Marceline began to stir in her sleep. She hoped her girlfriend wouldn't somehow be able to hear her thoughts, even if she was sleeping.
No, this had to be infatuation. She hadn't even known Marceline a year, so she couldn't love her. It was impossible...right?
Then again...
No! She snapped at herself. You are not in love. It's a new relationship, of course I'd feel like this.
She jerked her body suddenly away from her girlfriend, waking her partner up in a panic.
"Is everything okay?" She asked groggily, realizing Bonnie was faced away from her.
Bonnie didn't answer.
Marceline, thinking her she was asleep, cuddle up against her, wrapping her arms carefully around her. "I had a dream about you." She muttered, half asleep.
Bonnie listened carefully, but didn't move. She didn't want to give any indication that she was awake.
"And you got onto me when I was cussing at Marshal. It was so like you." She sighed into Bonnie's neck, her warm breath rolling down her back. "I realized something...I..."
But Marceline didn't continue. She had fallen asleep mid sentence.
Review Time!
IAmTheTrashPanda: I love reading other fics to see how I can improve. Also, I'm super sorry you have a bum ankle. I have a bum elbow from when I broke it, when the weather changes it hurt super bad. So my prayers go out to you my dude. P.s. I hate Ash too, also Braco.
D3nsei: Drama Alert.
howdoyoucomwupwithausername: Over whelmed with my writing? That's a new one.
