09.12.2016
This was not how she had planned to apologize, not at all. Bonnibel had started running right after seeing Marceline approach. Why would she do that? And why in god's name did she run after her? Marceline couldn't stand that she was always acting so… childish in front of that pink haired brat. And now, she even got hurt because of her childish behavior. Seeing the same pink haired girl holding her bloody knees, with a pained expression, that anger that was there just a second ago was… gone. She didn't hear the cars driving past them, didn't smell the fast food restaurant right next to them, and didn't even realize that there were other people gasping in shock. She only saw the girl on the street, which was injured because of her… immature behavior.
"You… idiot…" She still needed to catch her breath though. "You... okay?"
Instead of giving her an answer, the girl on the ground just showed her the scraped hands. "This… sucks."
"Does it hurt? Can you walk?" Marceline didn't know why she asked. Was she feeling guilty? Maybe.
Bonnie looked at her, eyebrows raised in surprise. And for just a moment, the sharp yet itching pain was forgotten. Is the same rude and arrogant Marceline that chased me through the city, asking me if I'm okay?
Then, she noticed that she had said nothing so far. "Y-Yeah, looks worse than it is, I think. Burns like hell, but nothing too bad." She finally answered awkwardly, while slowly trying to get up. Her knees hurt, and the walk home would suck, but that was just how it was. Complaining wouldn't help anyone, and she was still doubting the other girl's sudden interest in her well-being, so why bother.
Seeing the girl slowly get up on wobbly legs, left a strange feeling of unease in Marceline's stomach. Does she really want to walk home like that? How stubborn can she be?
Bonnibel was obviously still in a lot of pain, even Marceline could see that, as the other girl was only barely being able to make steps forward, while drops of blood were starting to make a trail on the street. In of itself, it was a wonder that she didn't trip again. The unfamiliar feeling Marceline was feeling, was quickly transforming into a cramping sensation.
"For fuck's sake… Wait!"
"It's fine, really. My home is not far from here, no problem." Bonnie said, not even looking back at her.
"I said wait!" Marceline repeated herself, this time with a sterner voice. It worked. The injured girl stopped and turned around.
"Can't whatever you want from me wait? It may not look like it but This… This should get cleaned as quickly as possible." For some reason Bonnibel didn't to admit that it hurt.
Instead of responding with words, Marceline did the only thing she could think of. She squatted down in front of her.
"Uhm?..."
"Get on already!"
"You mean?..."
Not being a person with a lot of patience, the black haired girl, awkwardly tried to force Bonnie to a piggyback-ride. She pushed her squatted self against the other girl's legs, and while standing up, she pulled Bonnibel with her.
"J-Just Wha-" Not wanting to fall over, Bonnie grabbed her shoulders. The pink haired girl inhaled sharply as her injured knees and hands rubbed against the fabric of Marceline's clothes.
But it seemed like the other girl didn't even notice that. "Where do you live."
"S-Stop this! Everyone's staring." Was it really so hard for her to not get attention for the weirdest things?
"Should've thought about that, before running through the streets as if a killer was after you."
"Well…"
"Shut it." To Marceline's surprise, the girl on her back did as commanded. "… I still need to know where I should carry you."
She didn't want this. She didn't want this at all. She would rather clench her teeth through the pain than to get embarrassed like this, but Bonnibel could tell that the black haired girl was serious about this. Would arguing for another hour bring either of them anything? She knew the answer already. Then, a wounded hand moved past Marceline's right, faintly stroking against her ear on its way, to point down the street. "This way."
And like that, the two girls made their way through the street, while of course getting weird looks from most bystanders. Until now Bonnie hadn't thought much about not wearing shorts, as the sun had been burning down on them for the past few days, but now she was wishing for something, anything else. Feeling someone else touch her thighs was… uncomfortable. She knew that it was not just the September sun that was burning up right now.
At least her shampoo smells amazing. Strawberry?
Marceline, on the other hand, thought that the pink haired girl was… heavy. Not in a mean way, Bonnibel wasn't out of the norm heavy, but still carrying another person was exhausting. But to her surprise, the girl on her back wasn't just heavy, but also… soft. Irritatingly soft.
What does she eat to have… skin like that? A seriously weird thought popped into her head, but she quickly pushed it away, instead focusing on not falling over herself.
After a good while, their surrounding started to change. The nice big streets, full of talking people and all kinds of stores, slowly transformed into a residential district. Lots of big cold rundown buildings. One could tell that the interior of these buildings, wouldn't look much different. Bonnibel could tell that the girl that was carrying her was getting more and more uncomfortable the further they went. At some point, she couldn't bear the awkward silence any longer and said: "I- ehm… I'm sorry."
A sassy response was trying to fight its way past Marceline's lips, but this time she wouldn't give in to her inner brat. "It was partially my fault."
"Well… Yeah, I guess it was?..." She didn't expect the other girl to suddenly be so mature.
"By the way, can you tell me how long it will take till I can drop you off?" It wasn't just the physical exercise she had enough of, although she was drenched in sweat by now. But what bothered her way more than that was that this part of the town… it reeked. Ooozten was a big city, and not even Marceline had been everywhere yet. Now she knew that there were parts in this city she didn't need to see. This area just seemed… sad. She could smell the urine on the walls, and the only color all the buildings were painted in was an emotionless cold gray.
"Are you really planning to bring me to my doorstep?" Bonnibel answered hesitantly.
The other girl couldn't see how Marceline rolled her eyes. "After getting this far, might as well carry you all the way."
"You really don't have to…"
"So, where do I go next?" She simply ignored Bonnie's last statement.
"... To our left, up the stairs, on the first floor."
After overcoming the last few steps of the stairs, each of them felt like climbing a mountain, Marceline had finally reached her goal. Yet again out of breath, she slowly let the girl on her back get off. Holding onto the railing next to her, Bonnibel then tried to stand on her own again. It still hurt, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it was when she first fell. She then looked up to the girl standing next to her, and their eyes met.
"N-Not gonna lie, this was pretty impressive, carrying me all the way-" But then Bonnie noticed something. "Ah, shit I'm so sorry."
Caught off guard by the sudden apology, Marceline simply quirked an eyebrow. But before she could say anything, her blouse got grabbed by the other girl, and now she could see what Bonnibel meant. Her black blouse had blood stains all over it. That was… bad. She really didn't want to be seen with blood all over her when she came back home. Her dad would be angry with her once he heard that his daughter had run after a girl, just to apologize for something as insignificant as being rude. You're an Abadeer, so act like one! She could hear his voice in her head already.
"Let me wash it for you, that is the least I can do! I already feel like shit for getting carried like some princess."
"What? No!" She quickly denied the proposition, without having a good reason for it. Suddenly, she just didn't want to get involved with the other girl any more than she already had. Why did I insist on bringing her to her doorstep then?
Bonnie rolled her eyes on that. "You can wear one of my larger shirts, I didn't plan on you running naked through the streets."
Marceline took a deep breath. No, she wouldn't start a fight again. "That is thoughtful of you, but I think I-" But before she could finish her sentence, the door of the apartment swung open, and a beautiful woman looked at the two of them. Even before either of them said anything, she could tell that this was Miss Buchholz, Bonnibel's mother. Aside from the blonde hair color and the deep dark circles under her eyes, the two of them were nearly lookalikes.
"I knew I heard my daughter!... Oh, my god, honey look at you!" She stormed past the black-haired woman. "What happened? Are you okay? Does it hurt? We need to disinfect your wounds immediately!"
"Chill out mom, I'm okay." Bonnibel's wore a smile, which Marceline had never seen on the other girl's face. It seemed so… warm. "I ran too fast and tripped. Was my bad really. Sorry."
The young Abadeer had been in this situation many times before when she was younger. She knew what would happen next. Are you out of your mind? Why would you act like that? I'm disappointed in you! She couldn't help but grab her own arm awkwardly, while her eyes fell on the floor. It wasn't just Bonnie's fault, so maybe she should say something before it was too late?
"You always used to stumble when you were younger." What was that? She couldn't hear any annoyance in the adult's voice. Instead, the older Buchholz was… Was she giggling? What is so funny about this? She got hurt because we were acting like kids!
"I guess I only grew, but never grew up huh?" Bonnie retorted, with a chuckle in her voice as well.
"Still my big baby. But in all honesty, please don't let that become a habit." She said a bit more serious.
That's it!? No scolding? No yelling?
"Naa, I thought about it on the way back, but I think I like my knees without scratches all over them just a little bit more."
Clarabel just rolled her eyes on that, but then her green eyes noticed the girl standing awkwardly next to them. "And who is this?"
"That's-"
"I'm Marceline, a classmate of your daughter. Nice to meet you." She retorted in her best 'business voice'.
"Oh my, so polite. And you brought my foolish child back to her den?"
"It was really nothing."
"A Buchholz always pays kindness back with kindness. But why are we standing outside for this? Why do you not come in? I just finished cooking. It's our treat."
"That's really not necessary, I-"
"And I still gotta clean your blouse." Bonnie added quickly.
The older Buchholz just now noticed the stains. "Oh no, you can't walk the streets with blood all over you, young lady. Bonnie probably has some shirts that will fit you."
Was this a joke? A fully planned mastermind of a joke? Why did either of them care about her? But she didn't have time to complain, as Miss. Buchholz was already pulling her inside the flat. She hated the fact that she wasn't resisting at all.
The first thing she noticed, once they were inside, was the smell. Maybe it was just the extreme contrast to the outside she had to bear until a second ago, but the smell of food instantly made the black haired girl gulp. The next thing was that the flat was cramped. Books, comics and toys were all over the place, so that she had to watch her steps. Clarabel led her through the tiny corridor, which had doors to both sides, straight into a room which was a mix between a living room, and a kitchen, which was the source of the amazing scent. Everything here was so chaotic, but for some reason, this mess of a flat had an appeal to it, which Marceline just couldn't explain at all.
"Neddy, I thought I told you to move your comics and toys into your room!" The mother suddenly yelled through the apartment.
A young high-pitched voice answered a mere second later. "Sorry, I'll do it in a second!" And yet again, the grown woman wasn't angry at all. Why? He obviously didn't do as told? How can he become a working adult if he can't even clean up! You should scold him! She thought to herself while furrowing her brows.
"Sorry for the mess. I would love to say it doesn't look like this usually, but…"
"N-No, I'm not bothered by this at all." Did she say that to Clarabel or to herself? The older woman copied her daughter's warm smile from before perfectly, before heading into the kitchen part of the room to prepare the dinner for the four of them. Not knowing what to do, the young Abadeer simply walked back into the corridor.
What am I doing here… I'm intruding a poor family, eating their food, and letting them clean my clothes, and for what? This is stupid. I really should get out of here. But she didn't say anything. At first, she thought that she was just feeling very uncomfortable, but the more she saw of this family, the more she understood that it wasn't just discomfort she was feeling.
Bonnibel suddenly appeared right next to her, handing her a black shirt, while holding disinfectant spray in the other hand. "This should fit you. It looked like you like to wear black."
Marceline blinked a few times before her mind found its way back. "T-Thanks…"
Bonnie then pointed at the bathroom door, while saying: "Just leave your blouse on the pile."
Marceline quickly changed out of her stained blouse, throwing it on said pile of other clothes, and into a plain black shirt. Once she stepped outside again, the pink haired girl was already waiting for her in the corridor.
"I know, my family can be a bit much, just don't mind them."
"No, you have a very lovely and kind family." She said, yet again with the same voice, she always used while working in her dad's company.
"Why are you acting like this?"
"W-What do you mean?"
A pair of green eyes looked at her closely for a few seconds, but then Bonnie simply said:
"... You know what never mind. Don't worry, you don't have to eat with us, I'll just tell my mom that you needed to get home or something."
"I…" Was that what she wanted? To go home? Why did that word feel so cold and distant all of a sudden? "Thanks."
"No worries. Your blouse will be dry in two days probably."
"Sure." She had totally forgotten about that pricey piece of cloth already.
The pink haired girl moved past her, into the kitchen. Seconds later, she could hear Clarabel's voice yelling out of the kitchen: "Just wait for a second, Marceline! I've got an idea."
A few moments later, the mother came around the corner, holding a small plastic box full of food. "Take this! You can give it to Bonnie, after eating it."
"You really don't have to do this…"
"Yes, I do. You saved my little girl. I wish I could do more for you, I really do."
"I didn't save her, I just helped."
"Is there a difference?" Clarabel retorted, giving the younger girl a wink. Marceline didn't like how that made her feel. It made her feel jealous of Bonnibel.
"Didn't you need to go? Bonnie told me your mother is waiting. Don't let her worry too much, will you? And give her my thanks for raising such a kind child."
"...I… I will. G-Goodbye."
Once Marceline was finally outside, she went down the stairs, around the corner she came from, and then once she was sure that she was out of sight, she started crying.
And after all of this, Marceline hadn't even managed to apologize to Bonnibel for yesterday. She just stood there, all by herself, pressing her gift against her chest, and cried.