Chapter 10: oh shit

"Cake!" Fionna called as she approached her site, but it didn't matter how loud she called. Cake was snoring on one of their lawn chairs, her body splayed out like she just dropped there and slept. Drool was trickling down her cheek, and her mouth was wide open. Fionna shook her head and shook her chair to wake her.

"Cake!"

"Wah?! What's going on?!" She snapped awake instantly.

"Cake, I'm freaking out right now," Fionna said.

"Huh, girl what happened?" Cake asked with concern.

"I…I dunno! It just happened and I'm going crazy now!" Fionna cried, her face petrified with shock.

"What happened? Just spit it out!" Cake demanded. Fionna opened her mouth to speak, but promptly turned red and closed it.

"No! I can't, I'm too embarrassed," she squeaked as she covered her face in her hands. Cake frowned and crossed her arms.

"Fionna, is anyone hurt?" She asked through clenched teeth.

"No, of course no one is hurt!"

"Then why are you freaking out?" She demanded to know.

"I…I'm too embarrassed. I barely even admitted it to myself," she stammered.

"Dude, just tell me. I won't laugh or anything," she promised. Fionna sighed and uncovered her red face to look up at her.

"I…" she paused. "I may or may not have some…certain emotions for a certain person." Cake blinked and furrowed her brows.

"What? I don't get it," she said. Fionna groaned and looked up at the tent and took a deep breath.

"I kinda like…" she mumbled the rest under her breath, too quiet for Cake to hear. Cake rolled her eyes and leaned back in her chair.

"C'mon girl, stop beating around the bush and just tell me," she urged. Fionna took another deep breath before squeezing her eyes shut as she spoke.

"I like Marshall!" She admitted. Cakes jaw dropped.

"What did you say?" She questioned jumping forward in her chair.

"I-I said I like Marshall," she repeated. Cake grinned.

"Girl, I already knew that, but I was not expecting you to admit it any time soon!" She squealed and threw her arms around Fionna.

"Oof! Cake!" The blond whined as she nearly squeezed the life out of her.

"Mmm, girl! When did ya find out? When did you tell him? Oh, tell me everything!" Cake ordered while trapping her tighter in her grip.

"Cake! Let me go!" Fi choked.

"Oops!" Cake loosened her arms and let Fionna go with a sheepish giggle. "Sorry."

"It's okay."

"But seriously, you have to tell me everything! When did you finally admit it to yourself?"

"Well…I dunno it was weird. We were just talking and I just kinda…liked talking to him. I-I liked it when he was being obnoxious, and I didn't find him irritating, and…"

Fionna trailed off, too humiliated to continue her sentence. He had been so close to her, she couldn't stop thinking about that night. That one mistake he said he wouldn't mind making again. Does he still feel that way? Or was it just a one time thing that lead in to the morning? And did he feel the same when he was so close to her? Did her scent drive him just as mad as the feeling of his body pressed against hers? She could still feel the callouses on his hands explore her body, and press in to her palm not five minutes ago. This was too much…

"Fionna? What else?" Cake asked frantically shaking her shoulders.

"Huh?"

"And…what else?" She reiterated.

"Oh, and…a-and his v-voice. It didn't drive me insane when he talked. I kinda…just wanted him to continue talking forever," Fionna admitted, her face turning more pink than red and a smile starting to spread on her lips. His voice…it was so curt yet smooth. Everything that came out of his mouth usually made her cringe, but now it made her happy. The way his words worked together made her want to talk to him all day.

"Awh, you really like him," Cake grinned. Fionna blinked out of her day dream and frowned.

"Cake, don't patronize me," she sassed. Cake laughed.

"Sorry. Sorry. It's just I haven't seen you crush on anyone for a long long time," she said.

"Gah! It's not a crush! That makes it sound so fucking elementary school. I just…like him. That's all."

"Mm-hm, and how does it feel?" Cake questioned.

"Terrible," Fionna grumbled and placed her head on Cakes lap. She laughed again.

"Oh yeah, you don't like liking people. I forgot," she chuckled.

"Whatever, Cake."

"So when you gonna tell him?" Cake asked. Fionna whipped her head back up from Cakes lap and shook her head vigorously.

"No. No. Noooo, I am not telling him about this. And neither are you, okay?"

"What? Why not?"

"Because then he'd know!"

"But, that's the point, Fi."

"I don't want him to know!"

"Well then how are you two gonna get together?" Cake challenged putting her hands on her hips.

"We're not! Simple as that!" Fionna answered. Cake tsked and rolled her eyes.

"Yeah right, I bet by the end of this whole 24 hour thing you two are gonna end up doing something. I'll probably find you fuckin' in the bathroom or something," she said. Fionna turned beat red.

"C-Cake! That is not gonna happen!" Fionna insisted.

"Whatever, don't try an' fool me. I remember that night walking back from the bathroom to find him sucking on your mouth like a popsicle," she snarked. Fionna gaped at her description.

"H-he wasn't-"

"GIRL! Are you blind? He is so fucking in to you! You pretty much have him wrapped around your finger."

"I-I doubt that…I mean, I doubt he thought much of it in the first place. He was tipsy, so he wasn't thinking clearly and neither was I," Fionna argued timidly. Cake chuckled.

"He barely touched his second beer. I only saw him take like two sips, and he wasn't even finished with his first when I ordered the second round. That boy just used it as a decoy so you'd think he was too out of it to realize it," Cake informed her. Fionna nervously played with the tips of her pony tail, twirling her golden strands around her finger and letting them unravel. She doubted it. He did smell strongly of alcohol, and she faintly recalled him bringing back more beer after they had their fun.

"Still…I don't think we should be a thing," she persisted.

"What? Why?"

"Well, just think about it. We don't go together. We're like polar opposites. He's too crazy, and obsessive, and loud. I doubt we would go good together, I mean look at me! I'm just a plain Jane and he's a hard core punker with a tattoo parlor. It's like oil and water, or ketchup and blue berries," she explained.

"I see what you're saying, but you're forgetting that opposites do attract. If you were both plain everything would be boring. If you were both adrenalin junkies you'd be dead. So what if oil and water don't mix? You can still use both to make a cake, and who's to say blueberries couldn't use a little tang? You gotta get out there girl! You've been plain and Jane long enough," she urged and jolted her shoulders.

"Cake!" Fionna whined. Cake once again rolled her eyes and spotted Marshall making his way to his own site.

"Speak of the devil," she muttered to herself.

"Huh?"

"Fionna, why don't you just hang out with him during this whole 24 hour thing and see how it is. Test the waters a bit, and if by the end of the day you're still doubting it you don't have to," she offered.

"I…guess that wouldn't be the end of the world, just a day with him," she murmured.

"Great, he's like right here so go," she said quickly.

"Wha-? Ah!" Fionna was shoved over by Cake before she could even get the word out. She ended up doing a backwards summersault in to the poll of their open tent, and falling over in to the space between hers and Marshall's site.

"Oof!" She groaned as she tried to make sense of the position her body was in. All she knew was that she was on her back, but her foot was stuck on the poll and her ass was in the air. Oh great…

"Uh, Fionna?" She opened her eyes and wasn't surprised to see Marshall standing in front of her. She signed.

"Hey," she greeted.

"You need some help?" He asked.

"Nope. I'm perfectly fine," she grunted as she untangled herself and stood up.

"Did Cake just shove you over here?" He questioned looking over at her.

"Um, kinda. She just sorta pushed me," Fionna explained and shot a glare back at her best friend. Cake grinned in response and Fionna rolled her eyes before turning back to him.

"I see…is there a reason she pushed you?"

"Um…" Fionna hesitated, and then spoke. "Not really. She kinda just did."

"Well then, that doesn't sound pleasant," he said with a smirk. Fionna wanted to punch herself because that smirk made her want to jump him right then and there.

"It really wasn't," she agreed and rubbed some dirt from her shin. Marshall smiled as he watched her brush the dirt from her pale skin. She looked so much lighter compared to him.

"Wow, you must wear a shit ton of sunscreen all the time," he said as she rubbed more dirt from her knee. She looked up at him.

"Yeah. My skin burns, never tans," she told him. "What about you? Always spending your time in the sun?" She asked noticing how tan he was next to her.

"Oh, no. I'm actually the palest in my family," he replied.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah…I'm half Mexican, and like everyone is either born tan or tans super easy. So I kinda stick out on my dad's side," he explained.

"Oh, wow. I never would've guessed you're Hispanic," she said as she finished scrapping of the dirt.

"Yeah, but at least I'm not as pale as you," he teased with a grin. She tried to frown, but only ended up trying to suppress a grin with her arms crossed.

"Whatever man, sorry that I'm allergic to the sun," she responded playfully. He laughed.

"Well if you're so allergic to it, get out of it," he said tugging on her arm and leading her under his tent. She giggled and sought shelter from the deathly rays with him.

"Is that why you were so warm during the challenge?" He asked. "You were seriously burning up."

"Y-yeah, that and just competition gets my heart pumping," she answered as he turned to his paint station.

"I feel you. That and your annoying micro-managing really got my blood pumping," he snarked and smiled at her.

"Oh please, without it we wouldn't have won," she reminded him. Marshall was silent for a few moments, getting lost in running his damp brushes over his fingertips. He bit his lip still smiling slightly and unable to stop.

"Marshall?"

He quickly snapped out of whatever he was in and looked over to see her standing closer to him and looking up at him.

"Uh…yeah, you're right," he stammered. She looked up at him for another moment before looking down at his paints and brushes. He watched as her eyes scanned the melted cakes and messy mixing pallet. Her gaze hovered over the jar of misty water, and lingered over the rich colors that were untainted by mismatched hues.

"Would you like one?" He asked. She looked up at him quickly, like a deer caught in the headlights.

"Huh?"