Townsville High
~I've chosen the pairs, and for those saying 'same pairs' I'm trying to keep it pairs that aren't dating, because it's not about romance, it's about getting to know the people they don't talk to much. I hope you like it, and thanks for reviewing!~
Chapter 24 - Secrets and Fears
Last Chapter - Bubbles and Boomer became exclusive, causing conflict with Maxine and Tyler. Blossom tried to figure out who donated the kidney to Bubbles, &Buttercup and Butch started to see each other in a different light.
~This isn't my best written chapter, but I don't think it's that bad.~
Bubbles felt someone shake her gently. She moaned before opening her eyes and seeing Boomer. She had stayed at his last night so they could go to school together. It was nice waking up to his face, now she knew why Maxine and Brody wanted to live together so fast.
She smiled up at him. "Good morning, boyfriend."
"Good morning, girlfriend." He kissed her lightly as he sat down on the couch she had slept on. He said she could take the bed, but she insisted on taking the couch. She sat up and ran a hand through her blonde hair.
"Brick's making breakfast, want some?" Boomer asked.
Bubbles gave him a look. "If Brick's making it, no thanks. I'm going for a shower." She said, standing up. Boomer chuckled and turned the television on as Bubbles wandered upstairs. Brick strolled into the living room with a plate of bacon for Boomer.
"Where's our favorite tiny blonde?" Brick asked as he handed Boomer the plate. Boomer smiled and took it, setting it down on his lap.
"Shower." He replied with a mouth-full of bacon. Brick was already dressed for school, of course, but Boomer decided to leave it till the last minute. Brick sat down on the other couch.
Brick turned to Boomer. "Do you think that Tyler and Maxine will ever get over you two dating?"
"No." Boomer sighed. "I think Maxine will, she's just trying to do what's best for her family. Tyler, I don't think so. Bubbles cheated on him with me, nothing can justify that."
The red-head nodded. "Yeah, just give him time. You know Ty, once he's not the centre of attention anymore, he'll realise what's important."
"I guess so. I'm gonna go get dressed." Boomer said before walking to his room. Brick started watching TV. He was so excited to just get to school and see Blossom. He realised after she ran away, that every moment counts.
Ten minutes later, Bubbles walked in the living room, fully dressed in a pair of sky blue skinny jeans, a dark blue shirt and white heels. She smiled at Brick and sat down on the couch, stealing the remote off him and changing the channel.
"Who watches the news in the morning?" Bubbles laughed before changing the channel. Brick rolled his eyes but smiled and turned to her with an obvious expression.
"Most people."
She shrugged. "Utonium's aren't like most people."
"You got that right." Brick laughed.
The gang were in their Social Studies class. Their teacher, Mr Briggs, had a special assignment for the class today. He turned to the class, but most of them weren't paying much attention. Buttercup was trying to sleep, but finding it hard because Butch was insistent on talking to her.
Mr Briggs dropped a large dictionary on his desk, causing all of the students to either jolt up or turn from their conversations to look towards the front.
"Class, today we have an assignment, and I need you to be all paying attention. Now, I'm going to put you all in pairs, and each pair will get a piece of paper with questions, and you will all answer them and get to know each other. This assignment is to break out of your comfort zone, and in trust your fellow classmates." Mr Briggs said.
Buttercup rolled her eyes, not liking this assignment already. She was silently praying she would get paired up with Butch, she was already out of her comfort zone around him. Blossom seemed happy about the assignment, but everyone else was already bored.
"Blossom, you're with Butch." The two glanced at each other and shrugged, seeming fine with it. Buttercup was prepared to throw her book at Mr Briggs, she wanted to be paired with him. Now she had to talk personally with someone else.
"Maxine, you get Boomer." Maxine scoffed and glared at Boomer, who was avoiding eye contact. She was mad at him too, and now she had to spend the whole class with him? She wasn't pleased.
"Brick, you're paired with Bubbles." Brick and Bubbles smiled at each other, pleased with the pairing.
"Buttercup, you're with Brody." Buttercup sighed but smiled at Brody anyway, not wanting to offend him. She and Brody didn't talk much, except when they were in boxing class or out at a party.
"Tyler, you're paired up with Heather." Oh dear. Tyler rolled his eyes and glanced at Heather, who was fuming. He guessed it was better being paired with the ex that warned Bubbles about him rather than being paired with Bubbles herself.
They all stood up and collected a piece of paper from the desk. They paper said that they could go outside to do this, and most of them did, but Buttercup and Brody decided to stay in the classroom, better privacy that way. Buttercup sat down with Brody sitting in front of her and she held the paper up.
"Okay, so the first one says 'Tell each other an embarrassing fact.'," Buttercup said as she read aloud from the small white piece of paper. Brody didn't need to think hard about it, he already had one in mind. He braced himself for laughter before answering.
"..My middle name is Alicia." Buttercup looked at him with a blank expression for about five seconds before bursting into laughter. Brody regretted telling her now, but he had to do what the card said. Buttercup stopped for breath only to start laughing even harder.
"What!?" She cried between laughs.
Brody sighed. "My mother wanted a girl, then when she found out I was a boy, she made my middle name Alicia. My dad thought it was funny, I do not."
"I do!" Buttercup laughed hysterically. Brody narrowed his eyes in frustration before sitting back in his seat with his arms crossed. Buttercup finally stopped laughing to wipe the tears from her eyes.
"You're turn." Brody pushed before she could start laughing again.
"Okay..I um..I used to sleep with a blankly." She paused. "Until I was fifteen."
Now it was Brody's turn to laugh. Buttercup narrowed her eyes dangerously at him as he doubled over, holding his stomach as he laughed. Buttercup punched him in the arm, but it didn't stop him.
He chuckled more. "Oh my god!"
"Shut up, Alicia." Brody stopped laughing and glared at her, annoyed. She smiled at him before bringing the paper back to her face to read the next one.
"The next one is, tell them your biggest fear." Buttercup said, staring blankly at the card. She really didn't want to tell Brody, she found it hard telling Butch, never mind anyone else. She took a breath before speaking.
Buttercup looked in his eyes, and hesitated. "I'm afraid to fall in love." Brody furrowed his brows at her, confused. She sighed and put the paper down on the table.
"I never believed in love, then I started to believe it more and more each day. I see Blossom and Brick, and they're so in love, and it's real. I know it is. I'm just scared that if I do one day fall in love..it won't be how I expected, and I'll end up wishing I never felt it, you know?"
"Yeah, I guess I get that. Love is a tricky thing, I mean just look at Tyler." Brody said. Buttercup felt more comfortable around him now that she told him that. She nodded at him.
She smiled. "You go."
"Okay, well the only person that knows this is Maxine and Butch, but I have hemophobia. It's a phobia of blood. It sounds crazy, but even the thought of blood creeps me out. Maxine's really supportive about it, but I don't think I'll ever get over it."
"I didn't even know that existed. It sounds horrible." Buttercup frowned. She knew something new about him, which was the whole point of this assignment. She felt sorry for him, and she didn't do that for a lot of people.
He shrugged. "I'll get by. So, what does the last one say?" Buttercup looked down at it and bit her lip. She looked back up at him and fixed her eyes on his.
"Tell them a personal secret." Buttercup replied. Brody didn't need to think about this one either. He already knew exactly what to say.
"Before me and Max started dating, I didn't believe in love either. I didn't believe in love at first sight, then I remembered how I felt when I first met her. When I fell in love with her, I realised how real it was, and I can't imagine life without that feeling anymore." He smiled at her, she smiled back.
Buttercup put the paper down. "What does it feel like? Love?"
"It's amazing." He grinned. "The sun is brighter, songs are louder, life is better. You put all your trust and hope into one person, and it feels like you're connected to them forever."
The dark-haired girl smiled. "It sounds pretty great, Brody."
"So, what's your personal secret?" He asked curiously. Buttercup thought for a few seconds before deciding. She smiled to herself, and looked right at Brody.
"I want that feeling, more than anything. I want to smile for no reason like Blossom does when she sees Brick, and I want to feel happy when the at the worst times like Max does when you're around." Buttercup smiled uncontrollably. Brody smiled back at her and nodded.
"You will, one day, you just don't realise it yet."
Buttercup grinned.
"Tell them an embarrassing fact." Boomer said as he read from the paper. Him and Maxine were in the gym where they held Maxine's boxing class. She crossed her arms at Boomer before tilting her head and smiling sarcastically.
"I used to think you were a decent guy." Her face was blank, and Boomer realised just how upset she was. He sighed and crossed his legs as they sat on the floor beside the punching bags and training equipment.
Boomer looked down. "Okay, so mabey I deserve that. Anyway, mine is, I feel like everything bad that happens in our group is somehow my fault."
Maxine raised her eyebrow. "That's not embarrassing."
"But it's a fact." She shrugged, not really caring what he had to say either way. Boomer looked down at the paper and back up at Maxine. She was looking right through him, like he was invisible to her.
"You have to tell me you're biggest fear, and this time tell me something real. That's what this assignment is about." Boomer said. Maxine sighed and thought about it for a few seconds. She turned back to Boomer.
"My biggest fear is losing the last shred of family I have left." She replied bluntly. Tyler was all she had left, and that's why she was acting so mean and..unlike herself. She had to protect him or risk losing him.
Boomer nodded. "For what it's worth, I get why you're mad at me and Bubbles, but I didn't steal Bubbles away from Tyler. You can't help who you like."
"I know that, but you still lied and went behind his back with Bubbles, who was still his girlfriend at the time. Just tell me your stupid fear so we can get this over with." Maxine crossed her arms and looked away.
Boomer sighed. "Okay, I'm afraid of dying. I came so close and then I realised how scary death really was, and now I'm afraid of it." Maxine's expression softened. She straitened uncomfortably and glanced at Boomer, her usual sneer now gone.
"That's pretty scary." She said in a quiet voice. Boomer nodded and looked down at the paper for the final question. He bit his lip and glanced up at Maxine.
"Personal secret." He said. Maxine sighed, hating that she had to share a secret with him. Still, she decided to go first and get this whole thing over with. She crossed her arms and avoided eye-contact.
Maxine frowned slightly. "I think that me and Brody moving in so fast is going to affect our relationship, but I've never told him because of how happy he is." She glanced back at him. "I guess no relationship is perfect, right?"
Boomer nodded at her question. "Yeah. Well, my secret is, I've always envied Tyler. I mean I've known him since I was just a kid and he's always gotten everything he wanted, and I always wanted a sister, and now he has an amazing one. Look, I know what I done was horrible, it just felt nice to for once get something I wanted, the girl of my dreams."
Maxine looked down at the ground, taking it all in. On some level, she knew he was jealous of Tyler, he did get everything. Boomer didn't realise what a horrible childhood he had, so he didn't understand as well as Maxine did, but he still had the right to feel envious.
"I'm sorry for being..lets face it, a bitch." She laughed shortly. "I'm just looking out for Ty, but I was wrong to shut you and Bubbles out. I've been friendly with him for like two weeks, I have no right to act like this. The truth is, Tyler needs you. He isn't going to get back to that new version of himself unless you make him know he can trust you again." Maxine explained.
Boomer nodded. "I know, Max. I'm going to prove it to him, I just need to get the chance. I'm sorry for what I did to him, and you are forgiven for being a bitch." Boomer and Maxine laughed, and hugged each other. They smiled at each other and stood up, ready to go back to class.
Blossom and Butch were in the cafeteria, sitting at one of the tables near the back. Butch was so anxious the get this assignment over with, because he didn't expect anything to come out of it. He already knew what he needed to know about Blossom, and vise versa.
"So, okay, the first question is tell me an embarrassing fact." Butch said. Blossom thought for a couple seconds and turned to Butch. Her back stiffened and her mood fell.
"I still talk to my dad sometimes. I know he can't hear me, but sometimes when I'm just in my house I'll sit and have a conversation with one of his pictures. That's pretty embarrassing." Blossom said as she nervously played with her hands and looked down at them.
Butch frowned. "That's not embarrassing, Bloss." He noticed her mood not lifting and decided to do his embarrassing fact.
"I can't really dance." Blossom looked up at him. "I mean, I told Buttercup I could but I only dance like an idiot to make her laugh, but honestly, I'm the worst dancer you'd ever meet." He chuckled.
Blossom laughed slightly, her mood getting brighter. She had a feeling he wasn't faking his idiotic dance moves, but she thought it was very sweet that he said that to Buttercup, to make her laugh.
"I can't dance too well either, don't worry. What does the next one say?" Blossom asked.
Butch started to read. "Tell them your biggest fear." Blossom knew instantly what her answer was. She had always had just one true fear, and no one really knew about it, but it was pretty obvious.
Blossom looked away. "One of my sisters dying. That's why I got so freaked out when Bubbles was dying and ran away. It's always been my worst fear." Butch nodded, he had a feeling that's what it would be.
"Mine is rejection." Blossom narrowed her eyes at him. "I hate being rejected."
"Butch..you didn't tell her, did you?" She crossed her arms and tilted her head with a skeptical expression plastered on her face. Butch stiffened, feeling the uncomfortable feeling. He twiddled his thumbs and looked away.
"I told Buttercup about our talk last night, but I didn't tell her the whole conversation."
Flashback;
Butch sat on the couch, waiting for Buttercup to get out of the shower and get dressed. Blossom was watching TV with him to keep him company. They hadn't said a word to each other, then suddenly Blossom turned to him and decided to speak.
"So, you're staying again, huh? You do that a lot lately." Blossom said, making conversation. Butch turned to look at her and nodded with a shrug.
"Guess so." He replied casually.
Blossom smiled. "Buttercup told me about your kiss, or should I say, both of your kisses. How long have you had feelings for my sister?" Blossom asked. Butch shooshed her, to make sure Buttercup wouldn't hear them.
"I don't have the F word." Butch whispered.
"What, feelings?" She smirked.
Butch sighed. "No, I don't have feelings for anyone. She's my best friend, that's it."
"I don't know if you're trying to convince me that or yourself. Look, I know you like her, you don't have to admit it. I personally think you should go for it." Blossom smiled. Butch furrowed his brows at her. He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes quizzically at her.
"Really? You think I should just tell her?" Butch asked, finally admitting some feeling. Blossom grinned at him and nodded. Butch looked away and thought about it, smiling.
"Life's too short, I think we all know that now. Just ask her out, the worst thing she can say is no."
Butch nodded. "You're right."
Blossom looked at him with a slightly sad and dissatisfied expression. She knew he was just as bad at saying this stuff as Buttercup was, so it wouldn't be easy telling Buttercup how he felt. Butch looked at her and shrugged slightly with sorrow, he was disappointed in himself for not telling her last night.
"Why didn't you tell her?" Blossom asked curiously as she straitened in her seat.
Butch sighed. "It's not easy telling your best friend, who you've been trying to convince you have no feelings for, that you have feelings for them." Blossom nodded in understatement. She knew what it was like, after all, she told Brick she had feelings for him.
"I think you just need to find the right moment to tell her, and that moment wasn't in her bed last night." Butch laughed at her remark. He glanced down at the paper to read the next question and get on with the assignment.
"The next one, is tell them a personal secret."
Blossom smiled. "I want to be a teacher when I'm older. So I can teach kids not to make the same mistakes, someone to look up to, and to make my dad proud."
Butch smiled back. "I think you'd be a good teacher, mabey too strict, but hey, that's what the kids need." Blossom laughed along with him and shook her head.
"What's yours, and be honest!" Butch wasn't comfortable saying it to Blossom of all people, but he had a feeling he may aswell get it out now, or never. He began to twiddle his thumbs again.
"I worry that if I tell Buttercup how I feel, she'll stop talking to me." Butch answered. Blossom looked at him with a blank face. She sighed and put her arms on the table, leaning forward.
"Buttercup isn't like most girls, but you probibally know that. She isn't going to be happy when she finds out you lied about not having feelings for her, but if she has them back for you, it'll be fine. If you really like her, you'll just have to take the risk." Blossom replied. Butch thought about it, and realised it made perfect sence.
"I guess you're right. You would make a pretty kick-ass teacher." He laughed. Blossom smiled and the two got up to head back to class.
Bubbles and Brick sat outside the school, in the school grounds. They sat on their group's usual bench. Bubbles began to read over the questions, and had a feeling this would be a good assignment for everyone. She wanted to get to know these people more, and it seemed like everyone just needed an hour to do that.
"Embarrassing fact, go." Bubbles said.
Brick smirked. "I can't whistle."
Bubbles laughed a little. "Everyone can whistle!" She laughed more. Brick tried to whistle but failed, a lot. She shook her head laughing and rolled her eyes as he kept trying.
"Okay, so mabey you can't! Anyways, mine is, when I was like ten I had an imaginary friend." Brick raised both his eye brows and smiled wide. She did used to be the baby of the group, it wasn't much of a surprise that she had an imaginary friend.
"You don't still have one do you?" Brick joked.
Bubbles giggled. "Totally, he's sitting right beside you." She said sarcastically. They both laughed for a while before returning to the next question. Bubbles started to read it aloud.
"Okay, the next one is, tell them your biggest fear." Bubbles thought for a second. "I guess mine is that I'm not good enough." Brick raised his eyebrow.
"For what?"
"All of this. Your brother mostly. I mean, he went crazy over me, I just don't think I'm good enough to be with someone that cares that much about me. I don't think I'm good enough to have all of you as friends, I always betray you like with Tyler and Maxine. My fear is not being good enough, that's all there is." Bubbles said, still smiling. It was funny how she could be saying something so meaningful and sad yet be smiling, it reminded him of Maxine.
Brick smiled. "You are good enough, Blue. Boomer couldn't find anyone better, and for Tyler and Maxine, their just mad and upset, but you're still good enough to be their friend, and I know one day you will again. Only a matter of time."
Bubbles grinned at him. "Thanks, so what's yours?"
"Commitment." Brick answered uncomfortably. "I have these commitment issues, and I decided to ignore them because I'm so desperately in love with Blossom. I still feel like it won't go anywhere, but I hope it will."
Bubbles frowned slightly at his answer. It must have been hard seeing her and Boomer falling in love so quickly, and Maxine and Brody moving in together, when he was feeling like he and Blossom had no future. Bubbles felt sorry for him.
"You and Bloss are definitely going somewhere, just being in love is like the biggest commitment." Bubbles replied. Brick nodded, realising what she was saying. He knew somewhere in the future he would be committed to someone, he just didn't know who at this time.
Bubbles looked down at the paper. "The last one is we have to share a personal secret. Mine is..I haven't actually said it yet, but I'm in love with your brother. Hopelessly and happily in love. Shh, don't tell." She grinned. Brick grinned back at her, happy with that answer.
"I won't, but you should. It would really make his day." Brick smiled.
"So tell me your secret, and it needs to be a really good one!" Bubbles laughed excited. She loved sharing secrets, but it always seemed better with someone you didn't know well. Brick's face went soft and serious, and Bubbles knew he was about to say something big.
Brick looked at her with a crucial and intense look in his eyes. "You recovered so fast because someone gave you a kidney transplant, and I know who it was."
Bubbles' eyes widened.
Excitement, forgiving, understanding. Everything this chapter needed. Hope you all enjoyed it, and got to see a different side to each character, because that's what this chapter was all about!
Next Chapter - Bubbles finds out who pretty much saved her life, and it's not who she would have thought. Maxine tries to get Tyler to forgive Boomer and Bubbles. &Butch will try to get closer to Buttercup.
~Pleaaase review:)~
Allie Peirce
