Deprived

A while later still, Buttercup woke to a soft knocking at her door. It was faint. Uncertain. It seemed a miracle to her that it had stirred her from her sleep. She didn't feel that tired, though. Thinking about what might greet her tomorrow, it had been hard to find sleep, and it seemed she hadn't gone deep enough to become groggy yet.

If only she'd held off one more day, tomorrow would be Saturday instead of Friday and she'd have another excuse to stay out of public. The only support she would get would be a brief respite at lunch, and she'd have to start her day off sitting in the very front her history class, as she had sat ever since she'd first set foot therein and realized she was sharing the class with the Ass of Asses, Mitch Mitchelson.

First thing in the morning she'd be wondering about the people staring and talking behind her back. Right now, she didn't mind so much dealing someone right in front of her, whatever they wanted.

Well, close enough to in front of her, anyway. Buttercup focused her gaze to see who was knocking and was mildly surprised to see Blossom standing there. Her sister shifted a little nervously, eyes flitting about the hallway and at the door. She raised her hand to knock again, but Buttercup spoke before she did.

"Come in, Blossom."

Blossom stopped with her knuckles drawn back, mouth hanging open slightly. After the brief hesitation she lowered her hand and ever so slowly, quietly, and gently turned the knob. Buttercup was a little worried, now. It wasn't like Blossom to be so...timid? Was that the word?

Maybe. But it wasn't just timidity. She seemed lost, somehow. She at first poked just her head around the door. "Buttercup, can I come in?"

Buttercup resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Managed not to point out she'd said "come in" already. But she couldn't suppress a brief twitch at the corner of her mouth as she fought off a smirk. "Yeah."

Buttercup slid backwards, sitting up and leaving plenty of room for her sister on the queen-sized bed. She realized as she did so that Blossom might not be so comfortable even sitting on a bed with her now, and decided not to pat one of the empty spots. If Blossom decided to take one, she was welcome to it. But if that sort of stuff is what was bothering her in the first place...

Blossom nodded and slipped inside, squeezing through as though opening the door an inch more than absolutely necessary would sound some alarm. She did indeed take a seat on the edge of one corner on the foot of the bed. She looked at the edge of the floor, where it met the wall shared by Bubbles's and Buttercup's rooms.

"Buttercup, can I talk about something?"

Buttercup's body shook as three soundless chuckles rocked her. She hoped her sister hadn't noticed.

"Of course, Blossom. Anything I can do for you, just ask. I mean, Bubbles and you are better about talking about stuff, but--"

Buttercup was startled. Blossom actually laughed. It sounded troubling, though Buttercup, not too good at reading people, couldn't pinpoint it better than that.

"Now I know how I must make you girls feel, sometimes. I would talk to Bubbles, but I feel like it would just turn into an argument. Like she'd try and bring me over to her way of thinking."

Buttercup frowned slightly and shook her head, though her sister wouldn't see the gesture. "I don't think that's true. Bubbles is good at listening." Quickly, she added, "Not that I don't wanna talk to you. I mean, if you want to talk to me..." Buttercup slowed to a halt, uncertain what to say next. She really wasn't good at this sort of thing.

Blossom turned her head to face her, though Buttercup was sure the position must have been uncomfortable. "Buttercup, when did you realize you were in love?"

Now she really didn't know what to say. "Umm...what?"

"When did you realize you were in love--I mean really in love--with Bubbles? What tipped you off? It must have been something."

Buttercup drew her knees up to her chest and stared at the covers, subconsciously closing herself off from the awkward conversation. Not that it would have been awkward if Blossom weren't so...not herself.

"I guess it was maybe... Well, at least I started wondering after the first night we went out to talk this summer. She made me feel...so comfortable, you know?" Buttercup looked up and was slightly discomfited to find Blossom hanging on her every word, though she wasn't apt to analyze any of it.

"Anyway," Buttercup continued, returning her gaze to the faint, soothing pattern of her comforter, "I horsed around with her a little. Not anything weird, just playing around. Normal stuff, you know? Be we stumbled, I plowed into her, and caught her before either of us hit the ground."

Buttercup paused, analyzing the moment in her mind and struggling to find the words to describe it. She spoke slowly, deliberately. "I'm not sure why, really. I mean, we've all hugged each other before. Stopped each other falling when we get knocked out and stuff. But this time holding her was...different, somehow. I couldn't really finger it right then, but holding her like that, hovering over her... I mean, I was holding her and... I guess, like, she was just limp. Not even floating herself. Just trusting me to keep her from falling. I don't know if that's it, either. Maybe it was a bunch of things."

Buttercup looked up, dismayed. "I'm not helping much, am I?"

Blossom opened her mouth, paused, smiled, then said, "No, I think that's just fine. Bubbles really wants me to try to understand this. Because we've always kind of understood each other, you know? I guess... I don't know. I... I don't know." Blossom shook her head and smiled. "Sorry. I guess this is what I get when I try to have a talk like this when I get tired."

A thought struck Buttercup then and she sat a little straighter. "Blossom, you don't think someone might have really be listening right now, do you?"

Blossom scrunched her eyebrow, seeming to think hard about the simple, albeit unanswerable question. "I guess it's too late to worry about that now." She paused. "Maybe it's wrong to keep this from everyone. I don't know." She relaxed her face and took a quick, deep breath. "I hope not. But I'd really better go to bed. And let you get some sleep, too. I think we've all lost a little too much sleep lately."

"No kidding," Buttercup mused. When Blossom started for the door she finished, "Anytime, okay? I mean, any time you want to talk."

Blossom turned, smiled back, and nodded sharply. "'Kay. Thanks, Cuppo."

Buttercup continued smiling after Blossom disappeared behind the door. Until a sudden thought struck her and she scrunched her eyebrows.

"Cuppo?" she muttered to the empty room. "Where'd that come from?"

But she put the thought from her mind and tried again to find bliss in sleep.