The morning after, Yang woke up to an empty bed. She could hardly remember anything beyond the feeling of Blake's skin against her own. The brawler looked over to the clock on the nightstand and realized that she had slept particularly late. And although the space next to her was void of the raven-haired girl's presence, the smile never left Yang's face. She got out of bed and realized that somewhere along the way she had actually managed to get into her pajamas. Clad in a pair of grey sweat pants and a baggy orange shirt, Yang made her way into the kitchen. Weiss was attempting to read through a cookbook while Ruby furiously stirred up some sort of concoction in a bowl.
"Good afternoon, Yang." Weiss said without looking up from her reading.
"Yang!" Ruby exclaimed as she continued to violently turn the whisk around in the silver bowl she clutched in her other arm, "We're making cookies!"
"Cookies?" Yang chuckled.
"I don't think the recipe called for so many bags of chocolate chips, Ruby… We only made enough dough for a single batch of cookies." Weiss pointed out as she set the book on the countertop and looked down at it.
"Cookies can have as many chocolate chips as you want! Besides, there's no such thing as too many chocolate chips." Ruby corrected her.
Yang's eyes trailed to the three empty bags in the kitchen that must have housed chocolate chips at one point, "So, what's the occasion?"
"Oh, there's no occasion. Weiss promised me last night that we would make cookies if I slept in the living room with her!" Her sister responded.
The blonde lifted her eyebrows and looked at Weiss, who was smiling smugly as she pretended to carry on reading. The heiress knew full-well what had happened between her teammates. She'd even gone so far as to give them their time alone together. Yang would have to thank her later. For now, she'd just play along.
"The living room? Did you guys watch movies?" Yang questioned.
"We turned one on, but I don't remember anything after that," Ruby giggled.
Weiss looked over at Yang, "She passed out. I was up quite late."
"Ah," The blonde nodded, "Where's Blake?"
"Sun came by and took her out for coffee." Ruby answered as she pulled the whisk out of the bowl.
Yang felt her heart drop into the pit of her stomach. Weiss turned around and went about fetching a tray for the cookies to be put on. The brawler tried to convince herself that it was fine. After all, there was no way that Blake would be on a date with Sun after a night like the one they'd shared. There was no reason for her to worry.
"Probably to help with the hangover." Yang said out loud, as if still trying to persuade herself that that was the situation.
"Maybe! She seemed fine when she left!" The team leader chirped back as Weiss set the tray down before her, "Did you spray the pan?"
"Yes, I did. Unlike you, I'm following the instructions given by the recipe book." The white-haired girl responded.
"I'm just being thorough, Weiss." Ruby replied as she began to dollop masses of her cookie mixture onto the tray.
"Right," Weiss dismissed.
Yang began to tune out their back and forth as her mind doubled back to the fact that Blake was out with Sun again. Had she changed her mind about her feelings for her? Had she regretted everything that was said and done last night? Had she lied about reciprocating Yang's feelings in an effort not to hurt her? The blonde wanted to go chasing after her, but she quickly dismissed the notion. Her stomach was in knots and she wanted to write it off as mere overthinking. It still nipped at the back of her mind, as much as she tried to push it down—And with good reason.
Blake didn't even remember. She didn't remember any of the words they'd exchanged, any of the kisses they'd shared, or anything further. It didn't take Yang very long to figure that out. It was as if the conversation had never taken place between them. The same unspoken tension existed that had plagued the pair before. This time, the only difference was that Yang knew something Blake didn't. Every single word they'd exchanged with one another that night was as real as it could be. Every kiss, every touch, every look they gave each other was so incredibly real. How could Blake forget all of that? What's more, how could she have said and done all of those things in the moment if they weren't the thoughts and feelings she had when she was sober?
On the one hand, she couldn't blame her teammate. Even Yang hadn't built up the confidence to tell Blake her true feelings without the aid of alcohol. At least, though, Yang knew her limits. Apparently Blake did not. The days had turned into weird, prolonged bouts of self war that would never come to an end. Yang would fall asleep at night and awake only to pick up right where she'd left off prior. It was taking a toll on her. The vicious circle of knowing Blake's true feelings and trying to work up the courage to talk to her only to remember that she would probably be alarmed to know the truth was unbearable. Weiss had begun to notice her teammate's distress and after a long day of training nearly two weeks later, she pulled the blonde aside.
"What's going on with you, Yang? Your head seems more in the clouds than it did before." Weiss demanded to know, "And not only that, but if anything, it feels like you and Blake are talking less than ever."
"I, uh," Yang stumbled over her words and awkwardly shrugged her shoulders.
Weiss simply wouldn't take that for an answer. The white-haired girl snatched up Yang by the wrist and began dragging her off toward the locker rooms in the training hall. After entering the girls locker room and hurrying to the far end that was empty, Weiss came to a halt. She pointed expectantly at the metallic bench that spanned the length of the aisle and Yang sat down, already feeling defeated. The Schnee girl folded her arms in front of her chest and tilted her head.
"Well?" She prompted.
Yang tried to form the words, to no avail, "Blake and I… We…"
"You what?" Weiss urged, her brows knitting together.
"Well, first we just talked to each other and I told her how I don't like her being around Sun so much… And then we kissed and…" The blonde could hardly believe that even now a confident chuckle floated past her lips, "You know."
The heiress could hardly resist the curling of her upper lip as she shook her head, "Spare me the details, thank you… I don't understand, then. Did she change her mind?"
"That's the thing," Yang continued, "I don't know what happened. I woke up the next morning and she'd already left with Sun."
"Do you think she doesn't recall any of the events from the night before?" Weiss inquired.
"I mean, that seems like the most reasonable thing I can think of. I'm too afraid to ask her about it, though."
"So, we're back at square one, hm?" She lifted a brow at Yang.
"It sure as hell seems that way," Yang sighed.
Her teammate gave a bit of a hum as she thought to herself, bringing a hand to her chin, "I'm just having a hard time understanding exactly how this could be the case. I mean, didn't she wake up beside you?"
"I don't know. The last thing I remember is—"
"I told you to spare me the details," Weiss warned, covering her ears as her cheeks turned red.
Yang stood up and pried her hands away from her ears, "The last thing I remember is getting back into bed with her."
The smaller girl pulled Yang's hands off of her wrists and gave her a look of distaste. She brushed off the skirt of her dress before clearing her throat and righting herself. Yang watched in amusement as Weiss prepared herself to continue speaking.
"Anyway," She began, "I know it's scary, Yang, but I feel like the only option you have is to talk to her about it. If I address her about it, she'll probably run off or be absolutely mortified."
Weiss had a point. Blake was easy to overwhelm and her first instinct was almost always to avoid facing things head on until she was forced to. Albeit annoying, Yang understood that everyone dealt with their issues in different ways. While the blonde typically opted for punching her way through things, Blake typically chose the route that would lead her furthest away from the issue. The only problem was that even building up the courage to talk to Blake initially was rough. The brawler couldn't do it without some alcohol in her system and endless pushing from Weiss. How was she supposed to work all of that bravery back up? Such a task seemed far too overwhelming to try to face again. Yang was willing to do anything for Blake, but the fact that she had gone out with Sun after that night's events felt like a kick in the head.
"Weiss, I…" Yang started, fumbling for her words, "What if she doesn't even want to be with me? What if it would be too weird for her? It seems like all she wants to do is be around Sun…"
The white-haired girl glared at her, "Yang, that's ridiculous. You guys are inseparable. I don't think this would change anything. And who cares if she wants to hang around Sun? Prove to her that you're the right choice for her, Yang! Assert yourself!"
"You know what? Yeah! I will!" The brawler declared as she got to her feet, a fire in her eyes.
"There's the Yang I know," Weiss smiled, pleased with the reaction she was able to elicit from her teammate.
"Thank you, Weiss," Yang said as she pulled the smaller girl into an embrace, "I won't let you down!"
The blonde began to hurry out of the locker room, as if refilled with energy and encouragement. Weiss only gave a shake of the head and a giggle. The Schnee girl walked out of the locker room shortly after, happy to see Yang motivated and with her head back in the game.
Nothing was working. It had been several months since they had confessed their feelings for one another and nothing was working. Blake only had eyes for Sun, now. The two had been officially going out for five months. He came around the RWBY dormitory more than Yang ever wanted him to. He spent a lot of time with her best friend. It was like she belonged to him now instead of belonging to Yang… Not that she ever truly belonged to Yang anyway. The huntress-in-training slammed a fist into the punching bag as hard as she could, her teeth sinking into her bottom lip as she did so. She seemed to have a laser focus on the punching bag in front of her. Yang had been in the training hall for hours and had been walloping the punching bag like it had personally done her wrong.
Tonight in particular was difficult. She had been sitting on the couch with Ruby, getting ready to play board games with she and Weiss when Sun had arrived. He was all gussied up with his stupid white button up shirt that wasn't even buttoned all the way. His hair was done all nice and he was wearing dress pants for once. He even ditched his sneakers and had on a pair of clean shoes. Yang nailed the bag in front of her with a wicked right hook as she thought back on the thought of him. He'd told them he was there to pick up Blake for their five month anniversary dinner. Of course, almost as if on cue, Blake had emerged from their shared bedroom looking absolutely breathtaking.
She'd ditched her little bow, her cat-like ears sitting proudly atop her dark tresses. Her hair was pulled into an elegant looking bun with a few loose strands of hair hanging around her face. She was sporting a gorgeous, charcoal colored gown that complimented the shape of her frame so nicely. Yang had had to peel her eyes away from the girl, but not before noticing the shine in her eyes that she had seen once before—The look that she had given her on that fateful night. Now was different, though. Now that look was for Sun. The mere thought of that sickened the brawler, even though she knew that she was supposed to want Blake to be happy. Looking back, Yang felt stupider than ever… Blake had never told her she loved her. The blonde had completely surrendered herself to the faunus, revealing her feelings and wearing her heart on her sleeve. Blake hadn't even said it back.
Another devastating punch was dealt to the bag as it began to swing back and forth with a surprising amount of momentum, the chains that held it in place rattling loudly throughout the empty training hall. Yang didn't even know what time it was anymore. All she knew was that she was angry. She was so, so angry. Releasing her bottom lip from in between her teeth, she began to throw punch after punch at the bag. It was continuously knocked back as she could feel her face and body heating up. Before she knew it, her mouth was open and she was yelling nearly at the top of her lungs. Small puffs of dust surrounded her knuckles as she buried them over and over again into the punching bag. With a final punch that could have been enough to shatter bone, the bag swung back drastically far, coming unchained and collapsing on the floor with a thud unlike anything Yang had ever heard.
The brawler stood there, chest heaving and forehead coated in sweat as she stared down at the punching bag. Her breaths were ragged and uneven as she tried to collect herself. The light in the training hall flickered briefly above her and was enough to draw her attention away from the floor. Her eyes met the mirrors at the far end of the room and she noticed just how terrible she looked. Yang's hair was more disheveled than it had ever been in her life, there were bags under her eyes, and she looked so… Empty. The blonde slowly sat down on the floor, her back pressed to the punching bag as she pulled her knees upward. She couldn't bear to look at her reflection any longer. Yang buried her face in her hands as she tried to collect her thoughts.
She'd lost. It wasn't even a game and she'd lost. She'd lost Blake, and to Sun Wukong, the one person in the world that she couldn't possibly accept defeat from. And yet, she had. It felt like it had been over before it even started. The things that Blake had said to her that night, the things that they'd done… It felt like none of that mattered. It seemed to her like perhaps all Blake had wanted was a convenient fuck all along. She didn't seem the type to seek out something like that in the slightest, but what else was Yang to believe? They'd never spoken about it since. It was like Blake wouldn't even give her the time of day since she and Sun had started going out. Weren't they supposed to be best friends? Yang had fallen asleep every night with the thought in her mind that she would give anything to have things back the way they were.
The girl wasn't one to have regrets. Everything that she did served a purpose, everything that she did was something that she meant. Confessing her feelings to Blake had been so monumental and terrifying, yet so genuine and long-awaited. Unfortunately, it was the one thing she was beginning to regret. What was the point of all of it? Was the night they'd spent together even worth it in the end? A part of Yang always told her that it was, but another part swore up and down that it wasn't. She'd practically lost Blake entirely. All the raven-haired girl seemed to see was Sun Wukong… That was all she wanted to see. Tears began to nip at the blonde's eyes and it only took a matter of seconds for her to begin bawling. Yang wasn't typically the type to cry, but she couldn't deny how good it felt to finally get all of it out. Her frame shook with every sharp inhale that she took, tear drops streaming her face. The brawler folded her arms atop her knees and rested her forehead against them, staring at the ground as she sobbed.
'Maybe in another life, huh?' Was the only coherent thought that continued to bounce around the inside of her head.