Chapter 15

Two days left.

Two days, that was all the time Jaune had left with his family... for now, anyways. He'd always imagined the day he came home, but in his mind it was with disappointment and a letter of termination. Never had he imagined the position he was in now... A powerful soon-to-be huntsman, one who could finally live up to his family name... one with all the pain his father never wanted him to bear.

He wouldn't change his decision if he could, but he began to understand his father's vehemence against him living this life.

He sighed, running his fingers along on the edge of his burgundy coat. His family wanted to go out and celebrate with what little time they had left together. Taking a trip to get out of the house and spend some time as a family. At the end of the day, it was his mother having business to attend to in another town south of Gourd, but they wanted to make the most of it. It would be a four hour car ride and they'd spend the night there before heading back in the morning. After that, it was pretty much straight to the bullheads to head back to Vale... back to Beacon.

He ran his hand through his hair, slicking it back before tying it into a pony tail. Finally, he sighed. Staring at himself in the mirror, his weak smile reflected back at him. He turned on his heel and left the bathroom, walking down the hall for a moment before knocking gently on Blake's door.

"It's just me." He spoke softly against the door.

There was a moment of silence before it cracked open in front of him.

"Hey." Blake locked eyes with him and pulled it open the rest of the way, letting him slip in and shut the door behind him.

"Hey, how are... you..." His words slowly began to trail off as his eyes began to move down the length of her form.

She was dressed almost entirely in black. Both her thin leather jacket and white tee were cropped, leaving her stomach bare. Just beneath she wore a thin skirt over her black and purple leggings, and a pair of heeled boots to finish it off. He glanced back up and locked eyes with her own. Black eyeliner, purple eyeshadow, and a thin layer of gloss painted her lips.

"Do I look alright?" She lifted an eyebrow, finding his dumbfounded expression in place of what she expected to be a response. "Jaune?"

"S-sorry." He snapped out of it, his cheeks turning red. He reached out and rested his palm on her shoulder. "You look beautiful."

"Thanks..." She took a breath, reaching out to fix his collar gently before resting her head against it. "You look nice, too."

He tilted his head up and nestled his chin against her hair, looping an arm around her waist, holding her against him for an extended moment of silence and comfort.

His heart fluttered.

Pounded, even. It was the perfect moment, straight out a cheesy romance film, the perfect moment for him to say those three words he wanted so desperately to say. Yet, he couldn't bring himself to do it. Too soon, too much? He tried to make excuses, but he knew why he couldn't, he didn't want to lose what they had. Blake was distant, he considered himself lucky to even have her this close... to even think of the possibility of ruining that?

"We should get going... before we... erm... Before I get distracted." He nudged her, pushing her gently away from him, conceding to himself.

"Right..." She glanced away, and for a brief moment he caught a look of disappointment in her eyes.

He felt a little bad, but he didn't linger on it, instead leading her out of her room and downstairs where they met up with the rest of the family.

"There's the lovebirds." Jaune's father shot him a smirk as they entered the main room.

"Dad..." Jaune groaned at his antics, rolling his eyes with a faint chuckle. He'd shrugged off the light teasing from the man, but a glance towards Blake had shown that she hadn't. She had turned her gaze elsewhere, a frown on her lips.

"Apologies, apologies." He repeated, shrugging simply.

Silence ensued for an uncomfortable moment, the blonde boy trying to find anything to say to make it less... awkward.

"You're rocking the ponytail, Jaune!" His twin sister, Joan, had cut in. It was a weak attempt to clear the uncomfortable air, but he appreciated her for it nonetheless.

"Thanks, thought I'd try something new since my hair is getting so long." He smiled awkwardly, combing his fingers through the tail on the back of his head. Though not necessarily uncharacteristic of her, Blake was silent. He had a bad feeling about silence, though. She felt... off. Clearly, he wasn't the only one to recognize her discomfort, as Joan had also seemed to take notice. She offered the faunus a concerned glance, but it wasn't met with anything in return.

"Well, kids." The father cut back in, cutting into the conversation suddenly. He shared a glance with the rest of his daughters, then back to Jaune. "I hate to cut your talk short, but we should get going, your mother is already outside. You know how she can be when she gets impatient."

"Believe me, I do." Jaune chuckled heartily, reaching over to take Blake's hand. She hadn't even taken notice of it, tensing slightly when she felt his fingers grasp hers, albeit gently. She stared at him for a moment, and he stared back with concern. She smiled weakly, taking a few steps to be directly beside him. "Ready to go?" He spoke quietly to her.

"Mhm..." She hummed, leaning her head against his shoulder for a brief moment.

The car ride into the inner town of Gourd was short. Jaune had even walked the same distance not too long ago to get food for Blake and himself. That being said, the silence made the drive feel that much longer. He was hoping that this trip would be a little more involved, but he wouldn't complain as long as it meant he got to spend time with his family... the same family he hadn't seen in years until now. He took a deep breath, turning to face Blake who sat directly beside him, face turned away and gazing out the window. With ten people, they had to split the drive between two cars, with the two of them sitting in the very back of the family car, there was more than enough space for her to distance herself. Roads were sparse in most areas, but Gourd and the areas surrounding had been known for an abundance of them, the surprising lack of Grimm paved way for the region to build and maintain actual infrastructure.

With so much on his mind all of a sudden, he sighed, letting his head collapse on Blake's shoulder. Again, she tensed, but made no indication or effort to push him away. After a few moments, she sank as well, an exhausted breath escaping her lips as she looped her arm around his back.

"You feeling alright?" She whispered. Though she hadn't turned to face him, her words were the first she'd spoken since they'd left the bedroom almost half an hour ago.

"Not really, no..." He shrugged, lifting his hand to the small of her back, resting it gently against the back of her shirt. "You?" He hadn't asked, but he could tell something was off with her, even if she hadn't wanted to talk about it. Regardless, he'd give her space if she didn't.

"No, I don't think so." She shut her eyes for a moment, finally readjusting to turn and face him.

"Anything you want to talk about?" He lifted an eyebrow, stroking his thumb in a circular motion against her back.

"I should." She averted her gaze. "...but I don't want to."

"Hey." He smiled softly, slipping two fingers beneath her chin to turn her face back to his. "I'm not here to push you. Whenever you're ready, okay?"

She swallowed, eyes widening slightly and lips parting in a slight bout of shock. After another brief moment, a soft chuckle escaped her lips, and she sniffled. Then, she let out an exasperated sigh, turning back to face the window and lean her head against it.

"Thank you." She whispered.

He didn't respond to that, not verbally anyway. He just continued to thumb over her back, letting his head rest on her shoulder once more. Silence filled the air of the car once more, and that silence persisted for quite a long time. Thirty minutes, if he had to estimate. Though he was two rows back from his dad, who was driving this car, he could still hear it when he turned on the radio to a quiet setting. He wasn't complaining, though, the soft background music was relaxing, it added some life to the stale air. At some point, Blake had fallen into a light sleep, her eyes shut and breathing soft against the window she leaned on. Though he had noticed, he was rather tired himself, and despite the slight knot he felt in his stomach from the constant rumbling of the car, he found enough comfort against her to drift off as well.

When he had come to, they were stopped. He must've slept the entire ride away, cause they were where they need to be, in the city of Alabaster. His eyes fluttered open and he sat up, looking around as he took in reality once more. He yawned and nudged Blake, he barely had to touch her for her to wake up, eyes opening and locking against his own.

"Hey." He smiled.

"Hey yourself."

"Sleep alright?" He reached out, brushing the backs of his fingertips against her cheek.

"Sort of." She shrugged, sitting herself up as well. "I've never really been in a car before."

"A lot of people haven't. Especially for you since, no offense, Menagerie isn't exactly known for it's infrastructure." He shook his head, taking a deep breath. "Even central Sanus has it's issues. Grimm tend to move to the south, since we're up north there's a lot less of them. Add that to easy access to resources and, well, I'm sure you can connect the dots."

"Kuo Kuana may not be the same as it is here, but it's nice. Localized, everyone knows each other, everyone gets around." She smiled weakly as she reminisced. "It's nice here, too, but I miss home sometimes."

The conversation fell silent and the two them moved forward, making their way to the car door to step out, stretching their legs for the first time in a few hours. He looked around, taking in the scenery of the somewhat familiar city. He'd been here before, usually for his mother's work trips, as they were now. Still, a wave of nostalgia hit him, it had been a long time. It didn't take long to note that the building they were parked by was the front door of a large hotel, a few men looking ready to help with their bags. It was only a one night stay, so they didn't have much to bring upstairs.

"Fresh air feels nice." Blake took a deep breath. "Being cooped up in that car for hours wasn't exactly my definition of comfortable."

"Hah, you'll never get used to that one." He nudged her with a chuckle.

"Not so bad if you're there." A smirk developed on her lips.

"That's cheating." He blushed, folding his arms.

Suddenly, a voice cut into their casual exchange, a large hand falling on Jaune's shoulder, his father's.

"Come on, you two." He chuckled, motioning towards the door. "We've got to get checked in. After we do, your mother has business to take care of downtown, and I'm gonna take the kids to the arcade. You're welcome to tag along, but I get the feeling it's not quite your scene."

"An arcade? Not my scene?" He lifted his eyebrow. "Do you remember who you're talking to?"

"Fair enough." The stockier man laughed. "You've still yet to beat me in a game of Fatal Kombat."

"Oh you're on, old man!" He nudged his shoulder with a competitive glare. "Twenty bucks says I take the victory home."

"Easy there, don't get too ahead of yourself. We've still got a hotel to check into and things to unload. Then we can discuss how much lunch money you'll be losing."

"You mean how much you'll be losing?" He lifted a cocky eyebrow.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night." He rolled his eyes.

The conversation ended there, but Jaune didn't miss the soft smile that Blake held while watching them banter. He slipped back to stand beside her, giving her a curious glance.

"Everything alright?" He looped an arm around her.

"Great." She nodded, leaning into him. "Come on, let's get inside."

This chapter was supposed to be longer, but to be honest I've been a bit desperate to get something out. Hope you enjoyed, and leave a review! Criticisms are always welcome. 3