In the Bedroom Again

When Buttercup returned home from Mike's, she tidied up her room a little and briefly considered reading the chapter on chemistry she'd been assigned. She was too tired to take everything in, and a little preoccupied besides. Buttercup wondered about that painting. If Mike knew about how Buttercup had felt, would she have found her face in the background of that painting?

Bubbles lived a seemingly endless cycle of love and joy, though sometimes love hurt. She gave and gave and gave, and Buttercup had received a lot of that. Sure, Bubbles had enjoyed herself in the process, but she could get that anywhere else. But Buttercup had wanted even more. She imagined herself in that painting with a hungry look in her eye, as though she wanted to suck all the goodness out of her sister and leave her dried and withered.

No, it was a stupid fantasy, her thinking she was actually in love with Bubbles. Just a stupid overreaction. It would have been selfish of Buttercup to voice those feelings to Bubbles; to put her through that would have been unforgivable.

Around seven o'clock, Buttercup couldn't keep herself out of bed. She stripped down for the night and crawled under her covers, still rumpled from that morning. She pulled the covers over her head to block out the light and looked forward to getting some good sleep for a change.

However, before she slipped away, her mind still drifted again and again to Bubbles, and she found herself awake and contemplating. Buttercup still wanted to tell Bubbles how much she really loved her, albeit as a sister. She wanted to give something back and show Bubbles how appreciated she was. Every time she tried to put her thoughts aside and decided to worry about it tomorrow, but before long she was thinking about it again.

Rather than driving her to tears, however, she just chuckled softly and muttered to herself, "You're a sad, sad little girl. You know that, right?"

After what seemed like hours, Buttercup heard a soft knocking at her door. She poked her head out of the covers and checked the time. It was only 7:53 P.M.

"Come in," Buttercup asked, even as she used her powers to peer through the door and wall to see Bubbles standing alone outside, looking uncertain. Bubbles could have done to same to see that Buttercup was sleeping, but the sisters had long ago learned to respect one another's privacy better than that.

Bubbles opened the door and paused, probably seeing the dimness of the room. She pushed it open a little more and stuck her head through.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't sure if you were asleep, so... Good night."

Buttercup spoke up before Bubbles disappeared. "No, Bubbles, wait. Come on in."

Buttercup sat up and smiled, gathering her covers about her. Bubbles looked concerned about something, and Buttercup didn't want to turn her away. Besides, maybe she could just have that stupid conversation she was playing out a thousand variations of in her head and get some sleep.

Bubbles opened the door wider again and leaned in. "Are you sure?"

Buttercup nodded and folded her legs under the covers, patting the spot on the bed where they were.

Bubbles smiled and slipped inside, closing the door behind her. She sat down, crossing her legs as well, but left her legs hanging off the bed. Facing her sister, Bubbles said, "I just wanted to apologize one more time for what I said at Mike's today."

Buttercup started shaking her head at "apologize." "Don't worry about it."

Bubbles looked straight ahead for a while, seeing her reflection in Buttercup's mirrored closet doors. After a little while she blushed and asked, "So you really liked the painting? Or were you just being nice to Mike?"

"No, no, I liked it. I kind of agree with it." Buttercup paused. "You're probably too good for this world."

Bubbles laughed. "Yeah, right... But thanks, anyway."

"So, that must have been an...interesting sketch. I don't remember you mentioning any of that when you talked about Mike with me."

Bubbles blushed again. "You once asked if we ever did anything. When I said 'no' I know that's not what you had in mind." Bubbles pulled her knees up to her chest and buried her head in her arms. Voice muffled, she continued, "Besides, it's embarrassing that some guy has naked sketches of me. He could've picked worse."

Buttercup chuckled and leaned forward, turning to sit beside Bubbles and putting her arm around her shoulder. "Mike's not just 'some guy,' and you have nothing to be embarrassed about." Buttercup hesitated only slightly, deciding that what she was about to say wouldn't be that weird coming from just a plain old sister. "Besides, I think you looked very pretty in that painting."

Bubbles lifted her head up to gaze shyly at her sister, blushing. "You really think so?" With her face so near, Buttercup finally noticed how close they were and felt a twinge of modesty with the covers having fallen to her waist.

"Uh...yeah. You're a very pretty girl." Despite herself, she blushed a little as well.

"Aw, Buttercup," Bubbles said, obviously touched. She wrapped her left arm around Buttercup in a sideways hug. "That's a very sweet thing for you to say."

"Well, you always say such nice things to me," Buttercup said, feeling her face grow hotter despite her efforts to convince herself this was just a typical friendly conversation between sisters. She could do no more than stare at the floor while she spoke. "I just want you to know that you really mean a lot to me. I think you're an awesome person, and I appreciate everything you've done for me."

Bubbles offered another squeeze. "Hey, what are sisters for?"

Buttercup smiled and looked up, seeing the two of them in the mirror. Bubbles in her dress, lying her head on Buttercup's shoulder and smiling at their reflection. Buttercup in a sports bra, her hair already messy. Her heart skipped a beat, and she suddenly found it hard to swallow.

"I love you," Buttercup said, automaton-like, hardly aware of the words.

"I love you, too, Buttercup. So are you really going to come with me to Mike's tomorrow, too?"

"Sure," she said.

"I'll be sure to grab some lunch for three, too. You'd better get some sleep, though. You look like you can hardly think straight."

Bubbles kissed her sister on the cheek and rose from the bed. "Good night again," she said as she grabbed the door knob.

"Yeah. Good night," Buttercup said, finally leveling out again.

Then she was alone again, waiting for her heartbeat to settle. She continued to stare at herself in the mirror for several minutes, taking in the outside even as she once again wondered what really lay inside.

Fortunately, this time she was asleep within the hour.