A/N Enjoy the chapter, there's an important A/N at the bottom.
~Shout-out to ArtC on this one. Their story 'Ice Cream And A Rose' got me hooked on the Ruby x Neo (Cookies and Cream) ship. Read it and you'll see what I mean. Now
Chapter 13. Agony
The bitter cold began to bite at her skin as she walked aimlessly through the park. She hated Fall, let alone Winter. Every aspect seemed so depressing. From the sub-zero temperature, to the shorter days, and watching everyone around her ease into the holiday spirit.
After stopping off at home, Cinder walked down to the park. The same park that she used to find endearing and fun. It was much smaller now, with the suburbs expanding into half of its territory. She didn't mind the change much -so long as her favorite 'spot' remained.
The sun had almost completely set, but it was still only quarter-after six in the evening. One of the many aspects of Fall that she hated so much.
The dark-haired girl pulled her black-and-red leather jacket tighter over herself and continued to march forward. She slowed her pace however as the path neared the river bank, giving the place a solemn stare as to why she came here;
To reminisce.
Thoughts of a greater time when life was simpler. Not better -but simpler.
Cinder wanted nothing more than to erase the disgusting image of Blake's lips on Ruby's, but no matter how hard she tried; it kept coming back. Ruby had made her feel something she'd never thought possible;
Love.
But just like always, it seemed fate had a bone to pick with the girl. Trying to get her to finally give up.
Today might've been the last straw.
Upon seeing them engaged like that, Cinder fought the urge to fight back and go for Blake, but fight or flight kicked in and the she picked the latter over the former. It wasn't all in cowardice however, it was her way of stalling -hoping that Ruby, in the time she was given, would explain what happened and smooth things over. But Ruby couldn't come up with an intelligible answer, and that crushed any and all hope Cinder had left.
It was, and still is, difficult for her to get over the fact that Ruby could do that.
She shook the thought off and sat down at a bench a few meters from the shallow river, her body shivering occasionally. Straightening her hair from the breeze, her thoughts rewound to giving up.
Was that all that's left?
To quit?
She had every reason not to. But as she slowly reminisced in the park surroundings; memories of past failures came to mind. One in particular that still haunts her to this day...
'SLAM!'
"Hey, hey, sis easy on the car. It may be used, but it's still mine." Roman attempted to assure his little sister. Cinder didn't respond, the young girl hastily tossed her bag in the backseat and climbed in next to it. Right from the get-go Roman realized Cinder had another awful day.
It pained him to see her like this. Only two weeks into the third grade and she was already getting bullied. His gaze drifted to the rear-view mirror, and upon seeing his own reflection; he felt even worse.
Still dressed in his causal suit from a recent consultation with Beacon University officials. The school wasn't a joke; and took only the best students from qualified high schools. His attendance at the school in the new year was bittersweet. Beacon would set him up for life, but it meant leaving home, leaving family.
Leaving Cinder.
She's a smart young girl, but was subjected to bullying in and out of school. It jaded her down to a quiet girl, and into someone who just ended up taking it. His big brother prowess proved futile as numerous efforts to cheer the girl up -or scare the bullies off- didn't work.
But that doesn't mean he can't try.
Tilting the mirror back a but, Roman connected his dark green eyes with the saddened ones of his sister. "Hey." Roman tried to grab her attention. She perked up a little at his voice. "Why don't you come sit up here." He stated.
"W-What? But Mom and Dad never-"
"Well I'm your brother. And when they're not around; I'm in charge. Now C'mon." He gestured with a wave. Cinder bestowed an adorable smile before hastily climbing out of the backseat, and rushing over to the passenger side door.
Cinder dutifully opened the door and settled into the seat. Roman smiled a bit, surprised at how tall his sister had gotten.
Not saying a word, Roman slotted the car in drive and quickly pulled out of the school's roundabout. The beat-up sedan drove onto the road, but in the opposite direction of their house. Cinder barely had enough time to buckle in, before looking up at her brother with a confused expression.
"Uh, where're we going? The house is that way." The girl with short ebony hair pointed out.
"Relax kiddo." Roman cackled. "We're not going home just yet."
"We have to be-"
"Hey, what'd I say earlier?" Roman cut her off. "What'd I say earlier?" He repeated with firmness.
"That... you're in charge?"
"Exactly."
Cinder smiled widely before focusing her attention to the suburban street ahead of them. Any hurt feelings dwelling from her day at school were easily washed away with just a few words from him. Somehow... someway, he'd always manage to raise her spirit from whatever low it was in, and back to its previous norm. More often than not, Roman would always lend a hand -even if it meant getting into trouble.
As they drove, the both of them didn't say a word to each other. Cinder knew better than to ask where he's taking her, as any and all questions would be left unanswered. Roman didn't speak on purpose, wanting to keep his sister in suspense as to where they were going.
So in silence; they drove. As they did; Cinder's expression sunk back to its previous low. Roman stole a glance at her, he really didn't want to see his sister so down -but what he had in mind made the situation a little less tense.
A few minutes of a silent drive led them to a large park a little ways from their home. The park sat on the banks of a small river located at the edge of the suburbs. Beyond it was a larger forested area, flanked by two open fields.
Roman pulled the sedan to a halt in a parallel parking spot just off to the side of the street. The silence in the cabin continued as he watched Cinder slowly soak in the sights. The park itself filled the young girl with mixed emotions, some good and some bad. The place was like a getaway from everything else. Everyday after school she used to go there. Open grass, swingsets, trails -all of it.
But the reason she'd go there in the first place was the upsetting part.
The 'getaway' was from the bullying she'd receive at school, or the sheer fact of not having to go home right away and avoid the constant belittling from her parents, even if it meant getting an even bigger punishment for being home later than she should. If it meant an extra hour or two of being outside her dingy basement room; she'd take the risk.
Be that as it may, looking at the park now; Cinder didn't feel so bad. Eventually the kids who picked on Cinder would follow her there, and if they didn't do that; they'd be waiting for her. Seeing no other option, the young girl stopped going to the park, and wandered aimlessly around the neighborhood until her feet were sore. With Roman now with here: the girl felt ten times safer. A feeling of reassurance washing over her.
Still without words, Cinder hastily opened her door and stepped out of the car. The warm September weather fit the situation perfectly. It wasn't scorching hot, and the cool breeze that drifted through the tress kept things fresh and calm.
"Here we are." Roman beckoned, he took a deep breath before addressing his sister; except she wasn't there... "Cinder?" He darted his head around and surveyed the area. "What the...?" He paced around to the passenger side of the vehicle and continued to look around.
"Hey!" He heard a familiar voice call out. The orange-haired teen glanced to the source and rolled his eyes at what he saw. At the bottom of the small hill next to the parking zone was Cinder, waving her small arms as fast as they could.
"Crazy kid." He laughed. Roman dogtrotted down the slope and caught up with her. "I didn't know you could move so fast." He joked. Cinder frowned and hit him in the shoulder. "Agh, I'm hit! Save me!" He pretended to look hurt. Cinder choked up in girlish laughter and pointed at him. "Pfft Y-you're so stupid." She continued to point.
"Gotcha!" He shouted, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and putting her into a playful headlock. "Agh, no! P-put down, ahah, put me down!" She squirmed in his arms. Seeing as it was enough, Roman let her go, and the girl immediately got into a defensive position.
"Relax Cin." He patted ruffled her dark hair. "Now if you'll follow me; I've got a surprise for ya." He finished with another gesture before walking ahead of her. Stepping forward he knew the lack of a second pair of footsteps meant only one thing;
"Yagh!" He heard Cinder roar from behind. He grinned a little as a sudden weight was added to his back, lurching him forwards. "Go go go!" Cinder pointed ahead.
Grasping onto her legs Roman shot her a wavering grin. "Adjust your arms." He said. Cinder obliged, but halfway through the adjustment, he charged forward. "Ack!" She screamed, almost falling off. Cinder quickly regained her grip and clung for dear life.
"Not funny!" Cinder shouted.
"I said adjust your- owh!" Roman cut himself off as Cinder began flicking the back of his head. "Faster!" She continued to flick.
"Agh, hey- alright, alright! You win." He submitted to his eight year old sister.
With a quickened pace, Roman gave Cinder a piggyback halfway across the park. The two of them coming to a stop at resting bench overlooking the river bank. Roman allowed for Cinder to hop off his back and sit down on the bench. He looked down at her and heaved a heavy -out of breath- sigh. "I'll... be right... back." He panted.
"W-What?" Cinder's expression sank a little.
"No worries, just wait here. I'll be back, I promise."
Roman watched Cinder sink back in the bench, content with his reassuring reply. As he strolled of to get the 'surprise', his mind got hooked on Cinder again. From the moment they entered the park, her spirits had seemingly been lifted. But by just saying 'I'll be right back' earned him a quick glimmer of sadness still residing under her mismatched happiness.
He's tried to get her to talk about it, but each attempt is a failure, and if anything; Cinder is more closed than she was before. University is closing fast, and he doesn't even want to think about how she'll be without him. Roman would ask his parents for help when it came to a lot of things, but whenever Cinder was brought into the equation, their helpful attitude would disappear.
But that doesn't matter right now. All he wants is for Cinder to open up a little.
As Roman fetched his 'surprise' Cinder quietly sat on the large mahogany bench, she watched the river flow gently, and giggled at the ducks that splashed about. It almost felt like her bad day was non-existent. Roman had gone out of his way to do all of this without so much as a thank you. She knows how busy Roman is with school and such, so getting to spend time with him -especially like this- was just... awesome.
The best brother you could-
"Hey, told you I'd be back." Roman proclaimed. "Got something for ya." Before she could even address him, a waffle cone topped with two scoops of her personal favorite; Cookies and Cream. She looked up at him with beaming eyes.
"Well go on, take it."
She grapes the cone and immediately went to town on it. Roman cracked up laughing and sat down next to her. His own mint chip cone in his hand.
Silence befell them once more as they ate, the soothing sound or nature as the backdrop. It didn't take long for Cinder to be finished and with that Roman decided it was best to start talking.
"Cin?" He asked.
"Yes?~"
"What happened at school today?" His tone dropped to cautious and meaningful.
"I... I don't..." Cinder's mood sank again.
"Just tell me what happened, I'm going to-"
Cinder knew better than to not tell him at this point. "They... bullied me again." Cinder began to stare at her lap, not wanting Roman to see her tearing up already.
"Who did?"
"A-All of them, they make... fun of me." Cinder emphasized the word 'fun' with a glum kick of her sneakers. Roman placed a hand on her shoulder, "What did they say?"
"T-They, made fun of my eyes. S-Said that they're a stupid color, s-so I must be stupid too..." Roman didn't know what to say until she heard Cinder sniff, and saw her desperately trying to wipe the tears away. He reached out his arm and pulled her into a light hug, soothingly rubbing her right arm.
"O-One of them pulled my hair, h-he called me... ugly and said everyone hates me..." Her tears fell with every word.
"Hey, come here," Roman embraced the small girl as she sobbed quietly. "Don't listen to them."
"But they're right!" She shouted, reeling back from his grasp. "E-Everyone hates me..."
"Stop it, that's never true." Roman said with near aggression. "You're the coolest person I know."
"But-"
"They're stupid to think a unique eye color like yours is stupid. They're just jealous because you're cooler than them." He explained.
It still didn't get to her. "I don't..."
"No." Roman gently cupped her chin and turned her attention towards his own. "You know I'm going to soon right?" She reluctantly nodded. "Than I need you to promise me something."
"W-What?"
"You need to be strong, okay? Don't let anyone treat you like that. I'm leaving soon, and I need to make sure that when I'm gone; my sister is okay. Those kids... they're the stupid ones." Roman explained. "Promise me that okay? That you'll stay strong?"
"Yes, I will." A new found drive arose in Cinder. Out of everyone -even her parents- Roman was the one who truly cared, and stuck around. Even when no one else would. She remembered the countless movies he'd skip out on with friends, because she was feeling sick, or lonely. He always got her the best birthday gifts, and was there whenever she needed him.
"Okay." She affirmed again. "Promise."
He gave her his smile that was basically his signature. Roman reached over again and pulled her close, bringing them shoulder-to-shoulder. "Ignore those jerks. If they don't take the time to get to know you; than they're not worth getting upset over. One day, you'll meet someone. Someone who will do anything to be with you."
"Okay!" Cinder's mood did a 180 again. Her sudden happiness spread to Roman who gingerly grinned back. This time however, he felt like he had finally got to her. Making a lot of the anxiety of his leave disappear.
"Hey, and you never know, maybe you'll find love perhaps?" Roman joked, tightening his grip.
"Eww." She squirmed, trying not to laugh.
"Alright we should go, Mom and Dad probably have dinner waiting." Roman stood up, beckoning her to follow.
"Okay, but only if..." she trailed off. Cinder bound up from the bench and jumped onto Roman's back again.
"Alright, come on."
Years Later...
"Where'd she go?"
"Oh who knows. Probably to go kill her -disgusting- self."
"That's a bit harsh."
"Whatever, let's get outta here."
Cinder gasped as she let her held breath go, her heavy pants turned into dry coughs as her lungs gasped for air. Regaining her composure, she hesitantly stepped off the toilet in the girls washroom and exited the stall. She sighed upon noticing the now vacant room. "Thank God..." she muttered.
The dark haired, high school freshman walked up to the vanity mirror, and eyed bore into herself. It was basically routine at this point. Three weeks into her first year at Sanctum High: and a familiar
All thanks to her optimism again.
Things were going great in her first week. She hadn't made a ton of friends, but the the group she hung out with were nice, cool people. One of the girls, by the name of Melanie, was the one Cinder spent the most amount of time with. They'd do a lot together, or rather, everything together. For the first time, in a long time, Cinder felt she could finally trust someone again.
She had told Melanie that she prefers girls over guys, but wasn't sure about it yet. And the very next day: rumors of the 'Lesbian Freak' were heard all over the school. Most students paid her no mind, but the select few who did; immediately excommunicated her. Those who didn't treat her as an outcast, antagonized her to no end.
She confronted Melanie and her friends about it, and they brushed her off with a 'Don't know what you're talking about, freak'.
And the days after were just like today;
Fear.
In the beginning she'd try to fight back, getting into fights regularly. But when she'd beat one person; five more would be waiting for her during off school hours.
Fight or flight became the most prominent aspect of her life.
Today was one of those days. She stand up to one student, and three more would come looking for her. It was a close call today, but she made it. The ebony-haired girl continued to eye herself in the mirror.
Hating every bit she saw.
From her physique, to her uneven hair. Cinder hated it all. "No wonder..." she continued to look, an angered pain slowly rising inside her. "N-No wonder they call you freak." She muttered aloud. "Look at you." She said a little louder. "Who in their right mind would want to be around you!" She shouted. Hysteria taking host to her mind. "T-They're right! You really are a freak!" Her eyes began to water over. "A fucking freak!"
"Why..." she sputtered. Cinder backed herself against the far wall of the washroom and slid down it. The distressed girl brought her quivering knees forward and buried her face in them.
"I'm s-sorry Roman..." She felt as if their promise had been broken.
"What'd I do to deserve this..."
######
It was the last promise she'd made to Roman. To this day his hopeful and ambitious smile was engraved in her memory. The smile he'd use to fill her with determination to make things better.
Numbed by the cold, Cinder stood up from the bench and began the dark walk back home. She'd chosen to handle her emotions the way she knew best;
Look them up and throw away the key.
######
Filled with unsettling anger, Ruby Rose stormed home from school. She didn't know what to make of this situation, where Blake -her best friend- would do something like that. She was able to put the pieces together fairly quickly. It was simple; Blake did it out of jealousy. Ruby still doesn't know how Blake found out about their relationship, and furthermore, Blake would never do something like that.
Outside of jealously.
Blake wasn't the jealous type, but give her the wrong impression; and her deeper personality will gladly shine through.
The Faunus girl usually keeps to herself, but Ruby had noticed an increase in time the girl wanted to spend with her, but brushed it off as 'Just being friends'. Up until today, Ruby had placed the most trust in her raven-haired friend -even more so than her own sister. They'd known each other since Ruby's junior year, and we're considered very close.
But just like that, one single action tore everything down.
"When I see her..." The crimsonette internally seethed. Her destination wasn't her apartment. And it definitely wasn't Cinder's place. The girl made a steadfast pace to Blake's house which resided in a higher scale neighborhood a few miles from her own.
The cold temperatures didn't faze the girl as she turned onto Blake's street, eyeing each house intently. Silver eyes narrowed on the home of her so-called 'friend', a larger home with a single level in the front and a small double level in the back. Upon seeing an empty driveway; Ruby sighed a little, "Just me and her."
The crimsonette trotted up the black driveway, up the porch, and right to Blake's door. Despite the cold freezing cold, her skin was flustered in a mix of anger and anxiety. With some hesitation, she banged on the cold glass door.
To her left she saw Blake look trough the front bay window, and saw the fear immediately rise in those amber eyes. Blake sidestepped from view and opened the door.
"R-Ruby, I-"
"I'm coming in." The younger girl brushed past her without consent, and stepped inside. Ruby quickly took in her surroundings. The room was dim, the TV was on, and it looked like Blake had just finished eating. She turned to the girl in question, and shot her a deathly glare. Her Faunus 'friend' was clad in dark blue jeans and a black, long-sleeved sweater.
"Ruby let me-"
"Stop." Ruby spoke, "Why... what... how..." she struggled to get the words out. "You k-know. Right?"
"Yes, I... have. I saw you two kissing in the hall after gym class. Ruby look; I'm sorry okay. I-I had no idea she woul-"
"Blake don't lie. P-Please don't lie." Ruby's words began to tremble. "You planned... it out, I k-know you did."
"Ruby please..." Blake pleaded. "I-I... when I saw you two in the hall it looked so... forced, like you didn't want it." She explained.
"So you think the girl who helped me, twice! Would do something like that to me? The same girl who has done more for me in 3 months, than you have in 2 years, would treat me that way!?" Ruby shouted.
Those words hit Blake like a ton of bricks. Ruby had every right to say them too. Truthfully, Blake hadn't done much for Ruby over the years, sure they hung out a lot, but that still doesn't measure to what Cinder has done for Ruby.
"You know what you've done?" Ruby questioned. "You s-should'nt say sorry to me, Blake. Am I upset? Yes. But Cinder is probably... d-destroyed right now, and..." Ruby trailed off, tripping over her own words. She turned to face Blake, tears pooling in her eyes, "I'm scared Blake." She choked out.
Blake stood there, her body frozen as Ruby showed her just how much she cares about Cinder. The intense guilt made a pit in her stomach, as she tried to figure out what to say.
"Ruby I had no idea."
"Of course you didn't! No one ever does..." She still fought back her tears. "I love her Blake... and I thought that today was the day she'd finally open up to me."
The Faunus girl's head sank to her lap, the full force of Ruby's words sinking in.
"Now I'm worried Blake, she won't answer my calls or my texts, s-she's not home..."
It was the most painful sight Blake had seen, Ruby stood there completely motionless, trying her hardest not to sob over something she can't control.
"But I can."
"Ruby I'll talk to her... tell her the truth, a-a-and everything." Blake almost begged. Her crimson-haired friend didn't say a word. Instead she made a brisk pace for the door. Blake reached out to stop her, but Ruby lashed back and stepped outside the house, slamming the door behind her.
Blake felt disoriented at how fast it happened. It was a typical 'Ruby' move. Leaving the choice of 'doing the right thing' with the person she had conflict with.
Just like always; it never failed. Painfully guilty at this point, Blake watched Ruby saunter down the street from the window.
"What was I thinking." She internally cursed.
Cinder would probably kill her, but it was time she did the right thing amongst this mess.
######
Following day -End of period 5
"Don't forget; your group assignments for this week. I expect to see all of them on my desk by Friday." Port announced from his desk. He watched his intelligent pupils depart from their desks and pour out of the classroom.
All except one.
Ruby was the last to gather her things, and leave her desk. But she approached his desk rather than the door.
"Is there something you needed Ruby?" He asked whilst easing the chalkboard.
"N-No just wondering of there was any extra work I could do." The crimsonette explained.
"Of course there is. Though you already have an exceptional grade in my class; why the extra work?"
"No reason." She nodded.
That was a lie.
As Port dug through the heaping stacks of paper on his desk, Ruby mulled over the real reason why she took the extra work.
It was a simple stall. A stall so she'd avoid Cinder.
Ruby was worried from the start, as Cinder hadn't shown up for class in the morning. Normally Blake would be her go-to for information like that, but talking to her wasn't the most desirable thing right now. Her abrupt leave at Blake's house yesterday was an attempt to deeply emphasize her point, and hopefully push the girl into doing the right thing.
Instead, Ruby got Cinder's whereabouts from a nice girl on the Volleyball team named Neo, who she had the awesome pleasure of meeting. Neo told her that Cinder showed up late to practice, without her gear. Neo even said that Cinder looked like she hadn't slept at all last night, and that coach Goodwitch told her to leave.
The crimsonette assumed Cinder had went home, but soon found out Cinder did in fact stay. They crossed paths in the hallways after lunch. Ruby tried and tried again to get Cinder to say something, but it was to no avail as the ebony-haired girl shot her a blank stare and brushed her away.
Ruby had cursed herself for being such a coward through it all.
That would change today.
She purposely showed up to last period History five minutes late to avoid another awkward run-in. And upon seeing Cinder's expression when she walked in; Ruby felt like she was being pushed closer and closer to the edge of a cliff.
Was this really it? Was their relationship truly over?
She sat through the entire class thinking that. Occasionally she stole a glance at the older girl. Cinder's face was completely stoic, but her sharp movements were incentive enough to show she was either really angry, or really upset.
Now, after the bell had rung, Ruby used the 'extra assignment' as an excuse to stall again. Wanting nothing more than to avoid another awkward situation. Each interaction made Ruby want to scream at her cowardice, and sob at her inadequacy to deal with these kinds of situations.
"Ah!" Port proclaimed. "Here you are." He stapled a set of papers together and passed it to Ruby. "That's all I've got." He grinned under his mustache.
Ruby meekly nodded back and slowly backed out of the room, sighing to herself in the now empty hallway.
All that was left was to walk home, alone, all thanks to her-
"Hey, Ruby!" An acute tone called out. Ruby swiveled around and locked eyes with the familiar pink and auburn-haired girl from earlier. Neo was walking up from behind her, a stack of textbooks in her hands.
"Oh, hi Neo." Ruby blanched.
"Wanna give me a hand with these books? They're freakin' heavy." Neo kindly asked with a laugh. Ruby gave an affirmative nod and grabbed the top half of the stack from Neo's hold. "Ah, thanks. Teach is making me do all these little errands for detention. I miss class once and he's all over me for it." The shorter girl remarked.
Ruby responded with a forced smile and continued to look ahead. Neo took note of the crimsonette's spaced-out mood, "Is everything all right Ruby?" She asked with sincerity.
"I... I don't want to talk about it." She sighed.
"Ruby you can-"
"No, Neo. I'm fine. Let's just... wait where are we going?"
"To the library to return these, and sign them back in." Neo nodded to the textbooks.
Ruby took the opportunity to stall even more. "Well, let's... go." Ruby glanced around. "Neo?" She turned behind her to see Neo eyeing her intently. "You coming? Neo?"
"Is your sister available by any chance?" Neo asked out of the blue.
Ruby's eyes widened at the random question, she's pretty sure Yang doesn't even know who Neo is. "No, she's been dating Weiss for a while now. Sorry."
"Dang." Neo sighed. "A girl can try I guess. Now let's go." She smiled and walked past a dumbstruck Ruby.
Meanwhile...
As the stampede of students passes her by; Cinder made a slow pace to the car she shared with Mercury in the parking lot. The weather outside was subsequently better than the previous day. It was still cold, but the sun hung high in the sky, keeping the temperature in check.
She'd been on edge all day. When she'd passed Ruby in the hall she wanted to just talk to Ruby and work things out.
But she couldn't, she couldn't swallow her pride and try to work things out. Instead she held back her emotions, slowly nearing the familiar point of instability.
As she neared the lot, her phone hummed in her pocket. She pulled it out and read the on-screen notification.
/You can take the car, I'm heading out with Em. Don't do anything stupid :p/
She rolled her eyes at Mercury's text, but was a relived that the car was all hers. She came upon the sedan and quickly climbed inside. As she did so, the girl spotted something peculiar on the white SUV next to it. A nice silver-scuffed dent in the SUV's door, most likely from Mercury's carelessness when he drove them here that afternoon.
"Moron." She blanched. She leaned forward in her seat and got a glimpse at the emblem on the side of the car. Land Rover. Meaning expensive. Meaning time to get out of dodge.
She hurriedly buckled in, started the car, and cranked the radio. Just as she was about to pull out; the voice on the radio stopped her.
'Coming up next is 'Do I Wanna Know' by everyone's favorite: The Arctic Monkeys. Right here on 106.3, Pulse FM'
Cinder stopped. It was her favorite song, or rather, her favorite group. Indie Rock being her favorite genre, Cinder slowly sank in her sear as the music kicked up.
She cranked the volume, slowly getting lost in the lyrics.
The station played song after song, the dark-haired girl cranking the volume louder and louder with each passing rhythm.
The music was a good place to lose herself in, to clear her mind of its worries, and bring her to-
'BANG BANG BANG!'
Cinder cut the volume, and looked to the source of the banging. Standing there, was an impatient and angry Weiss, tapping on the glass furiously. Cinder narrowed her eyes and rolled the window down. "Can I help you?" She hissed. Not in the mood to play nice.
"You can, by telling why there's a dent in the side of my new SUV? Oddly enough it's got the same paint marks as your car, so..." Weiss quipped.
Not giving the rich girl a chance to move, Cinder jutted her door open 'accidentally' tapped Weiss with it. The girl stammered to the side and glared as Cinder stepped out with her. "You imbecile, can't even say 'excuse me'." Weiss spat.
Thoughts of the first day reigned in Cinder's mind, her current confrontation with Weiss was like dejavu. She felt her body tense up at the word 'imbecile' but managed to keep her emotions in check. "Look Princess." Cinder mocked. "It wasn't me who 'damaged' Daddy's car like that."
"Oh look, you have nerve. Bra-vo." Weiss emphasized her point with sarcastic clapping.
Cinder gritted her teeth in vexation of Weiss' comment, clenching and unclenching her fists. She watched the white-haired girl pace to the rear of the SUV and opened the trunk, completely ignoring Cinder.
Cinder herself eyed the lot around them, the time she spent in the car must've been long, as the lot was almost entirely vacant. Her eyed went back to Weiss as she chucked something into the trunk and slammed it shut. "Don't look at me like that -why're you so weird?"
"Coming from a no good snob? That's hardly a compliment." Cinder joined the girl at the back of the SUV.
Weiss reeled back again. This time with much more vehemence. "God, who raised you? I feel sorry for the ones who had the misfortune of being your parents."
Cinder froze completely. All sounds drowned out. The only thing she could hear was those words echoing in her mind.
That was the last straw.
With as much anger, and hatred as possible; Cinder clocked Weiss directly in the jaw. The force sent the smaller girl back against the rear of the SUV. The girl shrilled in pain and fell to the ground. "Agh, what was tha- Ergh! Ow!" Cinder didn't let up, am followed the first hit with a kick to Weiss' rib cage. She gasped pain as blood started to seep from her lips, tears forming in her eyes.
"Do you know what it's like?" Cinder trembled. "To be me?" She kicked Weiss again, watching as the crimson fluid seeped onto her dress jacket.
"I... please, just stop, it hurts." Weiss begged.
Cinder grabbed Weiss by the collar and hefted her back up, pinning the girl to the SUV. "Hurts? Just like the girls used to do to me!" Cinder kneed Weiss in the gut. Weiss' reminded her of all the bullies she feared over the years, her repressed memories slowly coming forward.
"How do you think I feel, hm? I've suffered, for too damn long. Letting people like you... hurt me."
"W-What i-is this about?" Weiss sobbed, trying to pull herself together.
That was a good question. What was this all about? Her parents, the hate, the grief. Or was it Ruby, or Blake, or...
Blake.
"You probably had the whole thing planned didn't you! You, Ruby, and Blake." She spat at her.
"I have no idea what- agh!" She was interrupted by another blow. She crumpled to the ground again. Sobbing in pain and confusion. "P-Please, just stop..." Weiss whimpered.
Once more Cinder picked Weiss up, pinning her to the vehicle. "Stop? No. Things never stopped for me, s-so..." her eyes began to water. "The pain never stopped..."
More and more repressed memories came through. The pain of Roman's death, the pain of her abandonment, the pain of Ruby...
It all poured out as Cinder continued to lash out at Weiss. Her body going into a meltdown. "I've suffered..." she screeched at Weiss. She was finally letting it all out.
She landed another hit on Weiss, the girl retched in pain, "Cinder, stop... I'm sorry." She pleaded.
"No one was ever sorry!" She was openly sobbing at this point, hysteria ruling her actions.
"Cinder."
It felt good to let it all out.
"Cinder!"
She didn't care anymore.
"CINDER!"
Her thoughts became interrupted by a familiar -innocent- voice crying out. She continued to ignore it however, and readied herself to continue with Weiss. Before she could hit the terrified girl once more, a pair of arms latched onto her wrists and yanked her back. "No!" She screamed, flailing in the sudden, strong grasp.
"Cinder it's me." The voice said again.
The ebony - haired girl lessened her squirming. "Cinder I'm here, it's okay."
She froze for a second.
Ruby?
Cinder shuffled in the grasp, and came face to face with her endearing Red. A look of extreme worry tugging at her features. "R-Ruby."
"What the hell happened!?" A fourth voice called out.
Ruby glanced at the hurt Weiss to the now approaching Neo. Immediately she took action. "Neo, take care of Weiss." She ordered. The multi-colored grill responded, checking over the downed girl before grabbing her phone and calling 911. "She's hurt pretty bad." Neo remarked.
Cinder twisted to gaze from Ruby, and over towards Weiss and Neo.
She trembled at the sight. What she'd just done slowly slinking in.
"I'm sorry..." she mumbled. Her focus went back to Ruby. "I-I'm sorry... I didn't mean to." She lamented.
"Cinder, I..."
"Ruby, it wasn't... I didn't mean to-" she latched onto Ruby and sobbed into her shoulder. "I'm sorry."
Ruby begrudgingly pushed Cinder back, her silver eyes locked onto the pained but beautiful saffron of Cinder's. "Cinder, I..."
"R-Ruby..."
"I..."
"..."
"I love you."
A/N I'm doing the note here because this one is massive. This chapter really kicked my ass over the past few days. After ending 'Transgression' my inspiration took a massive hit, and this chapter took way longer for me to do. But that leads me to my second point; you guys.
Whenever I'm at a loss for inspiration, or just feeling down, I look at the story stats and immediately think: "Wow, how lucky am I?" 17,299 views, 149 reviews, 130 fav's, and 202 follows. You readers are my driving force to keep going. When this project started, I'd never thought it would get this much of a following. Seriously. You readers are some of the most supportive people I've met. Even those who just read. For you to kindly leave a review or a follow is just amazing. I get PM's from you guys just saying "Hey you're doing good, I love the story." And honestly that just makes my day.
I want to also extend my gratitude to those who keep me company on Skype while I do this. Arieko, Clockpop, Jackie, Karla, Not Akatsubaki, Operator Blake, you guys are the best Internet friends ever.
Also a big thanks to Sharon (S. Parzival) for keeping me motivated to type, and for being a good friend who I wish I'd met sooner. You rock :).
To rwbybomb21, aboywhowantedtobegod, neodova, Serenity Saviour, Spartan10007, Slen D. Man, OneirosTheWriter, Cormag Ravenstaff, caduceus4611, Weiss Schneezed, for being constant reviewers of this story.
And to anyone else I missed, the guests, and even those who don't review. I appreciate, and love all of you. Thanks for reading the chapter, and I'll see you next week.
THANK YOU!