Cowboy Down

Part 2

Branch was overjoyed. He was going to take the bandage off the next day and it was Poppy's day off, meaning the pink queen was going to stay in the bunker with him all afternoon. That morning, she had woken up to help him with the swimming and as soon as they were done having breakfast, she left to take fresh clothes from her pod.

The survivalist was ordered to stay on the couch until she came back and he apprehensively saw that she took her laundry with her. He wondered if she was insulted that he had cleaned her clothes last time… or perhaps she didn't like how he folded them? What could he have done wrong that she wouldn't want him touching her laundry again?

Poppy made sure he had cupcakes, chips, coffee and water on the side table so he wouldn't need to move around until she returned. Always thoughtful, his girlfriend also made his bed and left some cards and books within reach.

So, theoretically, Branch wouldn't have to move for a couple of hours. His foot was comfortably up and completely painless.

A sip of coffee and a few flips of pages filled with poems later, Branch had a feeling something was off inside the lounge room. Lifting his eyes from Shakespeare's Sonnet 18, he growled in suspicion and scanned the walls and the floor, internally begging for it not to be Cloud Guy with another one of his pestering jokes.

A small yellow cloth caught his attention right on the hall that led to the bedrooms. Poppy probably had dropped something while she was carrying her laundry away. Since the mystery was solved, Branch returned to his book. 'Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?' One blink and his eyes set on the yellow cloth again.

Suddenly, a thought flashed in his mind: what if it was her panties? The tension built up like steel. Last time he accidentally threw her panties inside the washing machine, not knowing that it was inside her pajama's pants. He had felt like he had invaded the most sacred part of her privacy and there was nothing he could do, but iron and fold them.

And, aside the embarrassment, he wondered what Poppy looked like wearing them. Only them.

That was beyond the decency line and Branch mentally scolded himself for thinking of his girlfriend like that. It was a dangerous thought. Once he opened that door, there was no turning back. Hugs weren't enough anymore and if he allowed his thoughts to go down that path… no! He had to stop himself. Poppy certainly wasn't ready for that step, yet.

And was he?

It was all too new for him. A few years ago, he knew nothing but fear, anger and anxiety provided by - now their good friends - the Bergens. He never even thought about hugging someone. His arms and hands were strictly used to set up traps and tear Poppy's invitations apart. But the new feelings were just too good. He could think of nothing for too long without wondering about her hugs, how he wanted to run his hands over her body, to feel her lips, her skin and dive his nose into her hair and breathe her.

Oh, to the Hair with it!

Not as carefully as he should, Branch stood up and hopped in one leg until he reached the intriguing yellow cloth on the floor.

Each jump provided him a memory from the previous days.

She had slept inside the bunker for exactly six nights. On the first one he was in too much pain and got knocked out with medicine, but he made an effort to wake up early to go to his private sauna. Only, he had forgotten how Poppy was obsessed with achieving the best score at everything she did. If she was playing the nurse, she was going to be the perfect nurse and she helped him through his morning routine.

Another jump.

The second night Branch wasn't in an excruciating pain and he was able to sleep without painkillers. It made him a light sleeper and he noticed how she woke up not long after midnight to drink some water. He pretended to be asleep just when she passed by his room and carefully opened his door to check on him.

One more jump and he was able to hold himself up against the wall.

The third night he couldn't hold his bladder and had to go to the bathroom. He quietly made his way out of the bedroom to relieve himself and couldn't help but peek inside her room while he passed by. Branch made a small note - in his defense - that the door was fully open like it invited him in.

His breath caught in his throat when he saw her.

Poppy was laying on her back, her blankets were halfway on the floor. One arm was raised to the side of her head and the other was stretched out. It was a warm night so she was wearing a pair of pajamas shorts and a yellow top. That top was raised, exposing her dreamily pink skin. And her glossy lips were slightly parted, breathing softly.

Of course, he had trouble peeing after that and he caught himself dreaming about her sleeping exactly like that, only in his bed, by his side.

One more jump.

The fourth night wasn't so eventful, but he noticed a certain routine in her sleep. She'd always wake up in the middle of the night, then drink water, then she'd check on him. That night, specifically she approached his bed and put a hand on his forehead. Branch knew he didn't have a fever, but he wondered if she did because her body was so hot that her hand nearly burned him. He mentally noted that her body heat would increase considerably in her sleep.

One last jump.

The fifth night Poppy told him she would be home late so she made sure he had everything he needed to go to sleep. He asked what it was so important that she'd cut her hours of sleep short and she merely said she needed to show support to a trollstopian citizen. In the morning, during their swim, she said Minuet was amazing at Mouth Guitar and her lack of sleep was totally worth it.

And Branch did notice his hurt foot made her change her routine completely. Poppy never complained about helping him with his swim, but waking up so early was challenging. He noticed she had dozed off standing up against the counter the other day, with a cup of coffee in her hand. There was a night when she slept on top of her blankets while waiting for him to finish bathing.

Branch had to show how much he appreciated what she was doing for him.

He reached his goal. Bending down, he picked up the yellow cloth, balancing himself in one foot. Blushing as soon as he saw it clearly, he confirmed that it was her panties.

He studied it for a while. The fabric was a bit different than her regular clothes. It was colder, lighter… and incredibly arousing.

Pondering about what he should do with it, he looked at her bedroom. If he placed it inside, she'd never know he actually saw them… or maybe he should just throw them in the laundry basket along with his own clothes and do what he did last time. The unmistakable scent of strawberries invaded his nostrils, sending him to a thrilling hormone ride.

"What are you doing?"

His soul left his body for a second. Poppy stood right behind him, looking puzzled and blushing. Branch was caught holding her panties close to his face. His mouth dropped open in mortification and he could barely mutter a few stuttered sounds without actually forming any comprehensible word.

"... are you… sniffing my underwear?"

Death seemed a reasonable escape from that situation. He considered running for his life and hurting his foot all over again. He expected a slap for perverted actions or even a huge break up. So, he closed his eyes and waited for the unavoidable punishment.

Only, Poppy was the most considerate troll he had ever known. He felt when she approached and picked her panties from his hands. For a long time, nothing else happened so he ended up opening his eyes to see her feeling as nervous as he was.

"Let's pretend it never happened," she offered and he let go of the breath he was holding without even realizing. His body tingled painfully and he couldn't meet her eyes. Poppy continued, with her tone somewhat quieter than usual. "I came back wondering if you'd like to go for a swim again."

Too shaken up to think properly, Branch could only nod. His body stood stubbornly still, slowly riding out the shock of being caught. He barely noticed when Poppy disappeared inside her bedroom, carrying a big bag and shortly returned wearing her usual yellow bathing suit.

Oh, frosting, Poppy in a bathing suit didn't help his case. He did notice as she shyly approached, feeling oddly cold, and placed herself by his side, with his arm around her shoulder like she did since he had gotten hurt.

"Are you going to swim, too or are you just going to sit on the edge?" Poppy asked with a hoarse voice and Branch frowned, suddenly sobering out of his dancing hormones. Her hair was damp and her skin was so cold that it looked pale. He immediately connected the dots: it was probably raining outside and she wanted to swim to warm up.

"I'll just sit on the edge," he replied, wrapping his arm around her tighter, so he could provide a little heat.

Silence fell between them. Poppy didn't say anything, not even when Cooper dashed out of the sauna, laughing and dripping water everywhere. The funk troll's good morning went unanswered. Branch just growled about the mess and the Queen frowned at the sudden intrusion.

It was the first time the survivalist actually saw Poppy getting upset with a friend and he couldn't help but compare the girl before they became friends and the girl he was dating now. When she was a Princess, she barely cared about his privacy when she invited everybody inside his bunker… but now… she seemed to mind any kind of intrusion.

Branch quietly watched when she jumped inside the hot water and swam around for a few laps before relaxing and floating.

They had grown so much alike. He noticed she'd sip her tea or coffee in a similar way he did. That worked both ways. He had been acting like her, too. Branch felt like he needed to talk more and meet the other tribes. He was socializing more and he wasn't suffering through it.

When Branch returned from his spaced-out mind, he nervously gulped. Poppy was laying on a stone, with her back turned to him. There was no way he could avoid noticing how beautiful she looked with many curves displayed like a portrait. He had to kiss her. He had to find the courage to ask and then just sweep her off her feet and touch her lips with his.

She pushed herself up with an elbow and twisted her body around to reach a towel on the floor. Unblinkingly, Branch watched when her muscles stretched, displaying how flexible and deliciously inviting she was.

He went into a contemplating state that endured most of the afternoon. He noticed how she tied her hair up in a bum, looking sexily messy. She had slipped on jeans shorts and a blue top and cooked a mouthwatering macaroni for lunch. He had never noticed how pretty she looked when cooking.

Most of the time she talked about what she was learning about the other tribes. She insisted he had to know more about the Rock Trolls. She had a feeling he'd love them, especially Demo, who had seemed much more open about other cultures than Val.

Hearing the male troll's name, though, made Branch imperceptibly frown. He did remember when he heard Demo referring to Poppy as 'adorable' and it annoyed him. Somehow, Branch felt he was the only one who could give her cute nicknames. Frosting… he was getting possessive. It was really bad because she was the queen, meaning she belonged to the community. He couldn't be possessive. He didn't have the right;

"I will talk to Cooper about the constant visits," Poppy said, not looking up from her scrapbook. They had been sitting in the lounge room. Branch had a book up to his face, but he hadn't turned a page in several minutes. Poppy was on the floor, cutting the same character for the past hour.

"What?"

"It's not right that he shows up out of the blue every time," turning around, Poppy rested her arm on the couch, right by his side, while still sitting on the floor. With one delicate finger, she traced his leg until she reached the bandage on his foot and contemplated it for a while. "I know you value your privacy."

"You're right." Branch closed his eyes to feel the excitement rising with the innocent touch of the tip of her finger. "But I want to be part of the community. I haven't seen other trolls locking their homes."

"You're different…" Poppy said with a smile. "You're special," he could pinpoint the moment the word made her reflect on what happened to him. Raising his hands in panic, he tried to block what he knew that was coming. The crushing guilty was there before he could do much about it, "Oh… hair Branch. It's my fault you got hurt!"

"What? Of course not!"

"You were right!" standing up, Poppy paced around the room, tapping her finger on her chin a few times. "I say you're special, but if I tell that to everyone then it means nothing to you."

"It means a lot, Poppy, don't worry about it." He laughed, fruitlessly trying to break the tension that was obviously clouding up above her head.

"No, no…" she spun around, quickly sitting by his side and grabbing his hands with hers. "You must realize I do think you're an outstanding troll, Branch," he could sense the desperation in her voice as she continued, "You're not just very important to the community, you are a remarkable troll and I value you so much."

The survivalist was stunned into silence. An excited tremble ran through his body as her hands slid up his arms to clasp behind his neck as she leaned forward to touch her forehead with his. They were so close… her lips were merely a whisper apart.

"You don't have to prove yourself in a rodeo or anywhere. If you want to stay inside it's okay and if you want to meet other trolls it's okay as well. You taught me so much and I'm a better Queen because of you. If that's not being special, I don't know what is."

That was his cue. His heartbeat was so wild he felt his ears pumping. With a shaking finger, Branch lifted her face, angling her lips up. He saw the way her mouth slightly parted and the smooth shine on her lower lip. Her eyes fluttered close and he felt her quiet intake of breath.

"Hey, guys, have you seen my hat?" Cooper yelled, jumping into the lounge room with a maniac laugh.

Poppy and Branch quickly flew apart, both ending up in each side of the couch, looking incredibly red.

"Oh, look! It was in my head the whole time!" And a few more laughs and two cupcakes later, Cooper tap danced his way to the elevator. "Thanks for the help!"

Branch could barely say anything to his flustered girlfriend. Quiet and frustrated, Poppy returned to her scrapbook and he lifted the book to his face once again, not being able to focus on the story, but with his mind running with several curse words that he could never dare to voice out loud.