I own nothing. Enjoy!
Brick started out into the wild space dumbfounded. He sat on the bottom steps of Townsville City Hall with a wet, tissue paper clinging onto his mouth nursing the wound.
Blossom had abandoned Robin minutes ago, much to her disappointment—she really wanted to try out that restaurant. Instead, Robin stayed behind to help the injured Brick. The mouth wasn't so bad, but she could tell it was his heart that in the most pain.
She sat next to him wondering what he was thinking about; she didn't know if she should say something or….
"How old is she?"
Robin jumped a bit at his sudden question. She barely registered what he had said. "E-Excuse—what?"
"How. Old. Is. She?"
He was talking about Rebecca. "She's four."
Four.
Four years.
He had missed four years' worth of a growing child.
Brick missed first words, first steps, first birthday.
He missed first missing tooth. He missed bicycle rides. He missed kite flying, learning to tie shoes, even the stupid girly shit, like tea parties and dolls—he didn't care, he missed ALL OF IT.
Four years he could never get back.
Robin saw how Brick was taking this bit of information. His body was rocking, fists clenched and unclenched, his leg hopping in place. His face was hard with his mouth shut tight, probably stopping himself from shouting obscenities into the wind. His eyes set on hard stare in the direction of where Blossom ran off to.
Brick was quiet, which made Robin nervous.
"So…you went to Stanford, right—?"
"Four years?! Four fucking years, and she didn't have the nerve to tell me?!"
Robin held her hands up in defense. "Woah! Okay. Let's just calm down."
"You can fucking calm down! How in the hell can she just…have a kid—my kid, and not tell me?!" He tossed the tissue paper on the ground violently as he stood up.
Robin shrugged in her spot. "Well, she is the mother. And frankly…you weren't there. It's only fair."
"Fair to me?!"
"No!" Robin stood up a step getting a high level over Brick. "Fair to Rebecca! And Blossom, for that matter! After what you did—what you said to her, really messed her up!"
Brick rolled his eyes and turned his head away, not wanting to hear this, but Robin pulled his arm and forced him to look at her.
"Almost every night, Blossom would come to my house and cry over you! She'd spent hours debating on whether or not she was good for you or wondered if she was being punished for cheating on Dexter with you. Blossom is the strongest person I know, and to see her pouring her eyes out over a selfish asshole like you, broke my fucking heart!" Robin's eyes became teary in the memory, but she kept them at bay to give Brick a piece of her mind. "It took us months—MONTHS—for us to convince her otherwise. Then she realized she was pregnant, and I prayed to God it wasn't yours."
Brick stayed silent listening to Robin's monologue. A part of him agreed with that last sentence.
"But like I said, Blossom is a strong person. She doesn't need you poking your nose around in her life."
"Rebecca is my kid too. I have every right to see her—"
"And what? Tell her 'Hey, guess what? I'm your dad, but don't get your hopes up. Your mom and I were just having fun!'"
"We were just having fun. It's not my fault you got your little hopes up."
If Robin were a man, he would punch the shit out of her. She reminded him of the words he said to Blossom, and that felt like a stab to the heart.
Instead, Brick grabbed her arm and rough pulled her down a step, on his level. "Listen! I don't have time to be talked at! What we did, it's in the past, and it'll stay there, got it?" Robin glared back at him. "Now, you're going to tell me which way Blossom ran off to, or else you're going to be sorry."
"Why? So, you can break her heart again? Fat chance! Now, I suggest you let me go, because I work for some very powerful lawmakers, who would love to throw a west-side, punk like you behind bars!" Robin didn't enjoy threatening people with her position, but a situation for this called for it.
Brick didn't care for her position, not in the slightest, but it wasn't worth making a sense. Eventually, he released her arm. Robin huffed and picked up her bag.
"I don't have time to fight you or prove anything to you. Just tell me where Blossom went and let me talk to her." Brick demanded, but Robin never let up of her glare. Brick stared back with a serious face. "I'm not going to hurt her. I swear."
After a pause, Robin let out a groan and put her hands on her forehead. "She's going to kill me…" She mumbled. "She couldn't have gotten far. She's probably at the Block Café around the corner."
Brick began taking some steps down before stopping again. "Robin." He said catching her attention again. "Look. I'm sorry, okay? When you lost your dad and find out you have a kid in a short amount of time, a lot of emotions run by. I didn't mean to grab you like that." He didn't bother to wait for her reply before descending down.
Blossom tapped on the brick wall rapidly. She really needed a cigarette right now; it had been so long since she had one, and seeing Brick's face again, after five years, ignited her urge to smoke the stress away. She didn't bother going in the "Block Café". She lost her appetite completely.
Blossom paced the sidewalk and pulled her hair wanting to scream so bad, but she wasn't going to. How dare he can think he can just waltz in, all sexy and irresistible as he always been, and even so much as utter her daughter's name?
She took a deep breath and exhaled calmly.
She wasn't going to deal with him—he wasn't worth her or Rebecca's attention. Blossom just got this job as a secretary to Townsville's City Attorney. That was not an easy position to land for someone as young as her. Blossom busted her ass to get this job, and she wasn't about to let Brick and his new, bad boy tattoos to ruin it!
Blossom did this for Rebecca, and nothing was going to stand in her way.
"BLOSSOM!"
Speak of the devil and here he was.
Blossom turned around to see her baby daddy running toward her. She didn't bother to ignore him and simply leaned against the wall. "What do you want?"
"I want to talk. About what happened. About Rebecca—" He quickly blocked an incoming fist directed at his face. "Stop, okay?! Stop hitting me for asking questions about our daughter—whom you never told me about!"
"And why should I?! So, you can disappoint her and break her heart too?! Rebecca is better off never knowing you in the first place!"
"That's bullshit, and you know it! What will you say when she asks who her father was?"
Blossom got in his face. "She doesn't have a father. Simple as that."
Brick clenched his fist and barred his teeth. "You wouldn't dare—!"
"Try me!" She countered. "It's not like it's going to make much of a difference! You never gave a damn about me! All you saw in me was a great way to pass time and have a little fun! So why in the fucking hell should I let you to see my daughter?!"
"Well maybe it would have been nice to know that I had kid—huh? Have you even once considered that, you selfish bitch?! That informing me of my child was even remotely considerate to you?! FOUR YEARS, BLOSSOM! You hid this from me for four—fucking—years! You never once thought about how I would feel or what I would do—"
"Yes! Because it's all about you! And you call me selfish?! I didn't tell you because I didn't want to tell you! After what you said—"
"That was in the past. Get over it! And last time I checked, you were the one who got their hopes up for a relationship that wasn't going to happen. So don't start pointing fingers at me when you got your emotions involved."
At this point, Blossom became red in the face. "You're a fucking asshole, Brick Jojo! I should have never involved myself with a prick like you! The only good thing that ever came out of this was Rebecca, and you don't deserve her! Four years wasn't long enough for the likes of you!" She screamed at the top of her lungs.
Brick hadn't realized how hard he was clenching his fist until he felt his palms bleed. "Listen up, pink-eyes," Damn, he hadn't used that nickname since middle school. "I don't give a shit if you hate my guts for the rest of my life,"—lies— "but you are NOT going to keep me from seeing my child. Not informing me of her, doesn't make it rightfully so! Have you ever thought that I want to father my own kid?! No—you didn't—"
"Get over yourself!" She scoffed.
"—you were being selfish! Like you've always been!"
"I don't need to hear this shit from you!" She began stomping away in a—
"Just like how you thought you could have me and Dexter at the same time!"
—and turned around to deliver strong punch to his face. This time, she didn't sim for his cheek but landed square in his eye. The force of the punch surprised both of them—Brick being caught off guard while Blossom being blinded by her rage—as well as the bystanders were listening to their yelling and screaming. By the time Brick fell flat on the ground, wondering how in the hell Blossom got so strong, two police officers showed up.
"Hey! Break it up!" Brick was roughly lifted off the ground—a gesture he was used to with the police—and was met with striking green eyes.
Brick rolled his eyes. Of course, Buttercup was cop. Did he expect anything less? No.
He pulled his arm out of her grasps and cradled his swollen eye.
"Brick Jojo." Buttercup folded her arms over her navy, blue uniform. The smirk she wore for a second dropped to a frown. "Welcome back home, and you're already picking a fight with my sister? How long as been? Four years?"
He really hated that number.
"You're a cop now? Suits you." Brick tried not the sneer. He simply chose to avoid her locked glare and glanced at her partner: Oh…it's Mike Believe. He remembered he had a few classes with Believe, but he never really talked to him. He was quite the daydreamer; surprised to see him in a police uniform.
Mike gave him small, shy wave. Brick didn't reciprocate, and instead set a glare on Blossom. Yeah—she was still pissed.
"Care to explain what the issue is?" Buttercup demanded placing her hands on her hips. She looked at Blossom and Brick, but it was clear she was talking to Brick.
Brick shook his head. "No. There ain't nothing wrong here. We're just catching up. Right?"
Blossom said nothing. Her fist was burning red clenched to her side ready for another strike. Her chest was rising and falling, her body reeling back from another adrenaline-fueled attack. She glared at him—daring him to say or do anything that would piss her off. She was ready to fight, but he knew she wouldn't risk it with law enforcement next to them.
"Well, since we don't have a problem, then I suggest we stay out of trouble. Brick." It was Buttercup's turn to sneer. She wasn't happy Brick was here either.
"How's your eye?" Officer Believe asked.
"Fine. Thanks." Brick replied curtly. Brick could feel it starting to swell.
"How long will you be staying in Townsville?" Buttercup questioned stepping between him and Blossom staring him down. "I figured you would be here for your father's funeral."
Brick smirked. "Where did you hear that from?"
She frowned. "Answer the question."
"I was planning to leave here, but…." His blood red eyes set their sights on rose pink ones. "Something came up. Turns out I'll be staying for a while."
Normally, seeing her furious expression would make Brick smile, but instead, it upset him further. He didn't bother to hear anything else Officer Utonium had to say and walked away from the group. Buttercup didn't bother to stop him. Mike hesitated but stayed put like his partner.
The instant Brick turned the corner, Blossom cracked.
She screamed surprising Buttercup, Mike and the civilians around them. At first, Buttercup thought it was because her sister hurt her hand, but the louder Blossom wailed, Buttercup understood that pain was from somewhere else.
"Blossom! Blossom! Calm down!" Buttercup shook her sister to snap out of it.
"Why is he here?! And you knew?! Why didn't you tell me?!" Blossom demanded.
"So you can have another mental breakdown over him? Hell no! Blossom, you're over him! Don't let him get to you!"
Blossom shook her head sadly. "…. I thought I was over him…" She took a deep breath. "But you're right. I don't need him in my life right now, and he's not setting foot near Rebecca ever. I'm going to make sure of it."
"ARE YOU FUCKIN' KIDDING ME WITH BRO?!"
"PREGNANT?! YOU GOT BLOSSOM UTONIUM PREGNANT?!"
"I HAVE A NIECE?!"
"Man! You lucky pops ain't here no more, or else he would've beat the shit outta you!"
"Yeah…no shit."
Brick had been nursing his black-eye with a cold beer bottle at his family's bar, The Green Chimp, while listening to his brothers getting on his ass from what he just told them. They were just as surprised as he was, and of course, they were not happy either.
He walked in the bar with a swollen eye, his brother asked him what happened, and he told them truth: "My baby mama beat the shit outta me."
Rebecca. Her name had been racing through his mind all day, and perhaps for the rest of his life.
Rebecca. That was a good name; strong, honorable, respectable. What was her middle name?
Rebecca Utonium, obviously. That hurt his heart.
Rebecca Jojo—but after that vicious attack from mama bear, that wasn't going to happen anytime soon.
His mind was centered around Rebecca. Who was she? Who does she look him? Does she have any of his features? God help her if she has his eyes.
Is she smart? At four, she should be in kindergarten. Does she like it?
What does she like to do?
What are her favorite foods?
Brick slammed his beer bottle on the counter angrily.
He wasn't angry at Blossom for keeping him away from their daughter. He broke it off before they could become something more; something great, something wonderful. But he was stupid. There was never going to be happy relationship between them; all they wanted was sex. There is no future in that. This wasn't a feel-good, happy movie: cheating, fuck-buddies don't get a happy ending, especially with each other.
He didn't deserve someone like Blossom.
"Perhaps some outside force would drag her down into a life she doesn't deserve."
Brick thought he was going to drag her down.
"A life in the slums scrapping by on whatever she could find does not suit her, don't you agree?"
But he had already done that and worse.
He altered the course of her life without knowing.
She probably gave up her scholarship to Yale and stayed in Townsville. He could remember their conversations together about her leaving Townsville for good. He remembered how much she hated this city and would do anything she could to leave. Now, with a baby, Blossom had to stay longer than she had anticipated.
That was his fault.
The image of her heartbroken face haunted his mind every time he closed his eyes.
"Look babe. You were just an easy fuck."
He was so stupid.
"We could never make this work."
He hurt her, in more ways than one.
"It's not my fault you got your little hopes up."
And he was never going to see her or Rebecca again.
"Bro? Are you okay?"
Brick looked up to see Boomer staring at him with concern. His stinging eye brought him back to the real world and Brick put his lukewarm beer bottle back on it. "I'm fine."
Boomer knew he was lying. "What are you going to do?"
Brick gave his brother a look.
Boomer shrugged and began cleaning a glass. "I mean—if I were you, I would try to make things right. I would want to do anything to be in my kid's life, even if Bubbles hates me—I MEAN BLOSSOM! I meant to say Blossom!" His slip up nearly caused him to drop his glass. "Um….yeah…so try to get on Blossom's good side?"
"After the beatdown she gave you, I think it's gonna be a while before you can get near her." Butch countered.
Brick shook his head. She hated his guts. She doesn't want anything to do with him; if that was what she wanted then…
"No. I want to see her. I want to see Rebecca. I don't care if Blossom hates the ground I walk on, I don't want my daughter growing up thinking that her father never wanted to meet and see her."
"So… how do you plan on doing that?" Boomer asked.
Brick thought about it long and hard, until he looked at Butch. "Mitch and Buttercup are still dating, right?"
Butch's eyes darkened as the mere mention of the two made him want to punch something. But he learned how to control his emotions. "Yeah. Why?"
Rebecca didn't like school.
The kids were mean to her. They picked on her because of her eyes. They were bright red, and that was not normal. She tried to be nice to them, but everyone either ran away from her or push her away. If she cried, they would pick on her more.
She told the teachers on them, but it wouldn't work out well.
The way they treated her was so odd; like they were talking to a baby. The teachers would talk to the other students and tell them to stop, but that was about all they would do.
Rebecca didn't understand.
They would push her around because she was smaller than the others.
Her teacher would call on her when other students couldn't answer a question correctly, and she answered it right, the other students would get mad at her.
She didn't get it.
Was she supposed to say the wrong answer?
Rebecca wanted nothing more to cry.
But she couldn't cry.
She promised her mommy she had to brave.
And being brave meant facing her bullies head on.
But she just wished she knew why her eyes were so weird.
Sometimes, she hated them. She hated her eyes and all the trouble it caused her.
Rebecca used to like school, but now, because of her freakish-red eyes, she hated school.
She wanted nothing more than to stay at home with mommy, grandpa, Auntie Buttercup and Aunt Bubbles.
Aw Poor Becca. Poor. Blossom. Poor Brick.
BunnyKoi Says: "You've been running through my mind all day."