Clickbait
Chapter Five
BumbleBY
Yang's offer was still on Blake's mind as she worked, the day seeming to pass incredibly, painfully slowly. On the face of it, it didn't seem like such a bad offer, she thought, squeezing the trigger on her cordless impact a few times as she picked it up out of her toolbox.
It buzzed quickly in her hand, and she nodded to herself, satisfied as she plucked out her half-inch socket. Snapping it onto her impact, she walked over to where a concrete breaker was set up on stands, elevating it off the floor a few feet to limit how often she had to bend over.
It wasn't such a bad offer at all; she got to hang out with the attractive blonde, learn something about what Weiss and the girls were doing, and potentially stare at Yang in skimpy clothing. Where was the downside?
Her impact made short work of zipping out the four bolts holding the inspection cover onto the body of the breaker, and she set them aside in a magnetic tray that was stuck to the top of the breaker body. Peeling the cover back, she set that aside as well, setting her impact down and peering into the inspection port.
Almost instantly she spotted the issue, honey colored hydraulic oil seeping from a silver fitting. It was a slow leak now, with the lines depressurized, but she was willing to bet that it was one hell of a shower when the lines were pressurized to 2,400 PSI.
Reaching into her back pocket, she withdrew an adjustable thumb wrench. Quickly spinning the adjustment wheel, she stuck her arm inside the inspection port and slipped the wrench around the fitting until she felt the jaws slide into place. Giving it a sharp tug, the fitting broke loose, and she quickly spun it off, trading her wrench for her fingers as the fitting loosened.
The sharp acrid smell of hydraulic oil reached her nose and made her grimace, the slimy feeling coating her fingers as oil poured out inside the case.
"I swear Weiss is giving me these jobs on purpose, now." She muttered. "This is such grunt work."
With a clacking of metal, the fitting finally reached the end of the threads, falling off and clattering to the bottom of the case. Pulling her arm out, hydraulic oil running down her wrist to her elbow, Blake moved to the front of the breaker case and slowly pulled out the damaged hose. Her eyes roved over the exposed hose, vigilant for any other damage. There was a potential that the hose could be reused if the fitting was all that was damaged, but the owner of the hammer was pretty tight-lipped on what had caused the leak, so she suspected the hose had been snagged or pulled on- it was most likely garbage.
There! She caught a glimpse of shiny silver amongst the black rubber hose, and she examined the damage carefully. It seemed there was some abrasion on the hose, wearing out the protective rubber coating and revealing the inner steel braiding. This hose was trash.
Pointing the loose end into the drip tray beneath the hammer body, she inhaled deeply before sighing, impatiently waiting for the last remnants of hydraulic oil to drain out before she scrapped it.
Once the dripping slowed, she curled the hose up and tossed it into a bin in the corner of the shop with all the other defunct hoses. Glancing at her hands, which were covered in thick black grease and dark amber hydraulic oil, she groaned as she felt her nose begin to itch. Reaching up, she used the least-filthy part of the back of her hand to scrub at her nose and cheek, relieving her itch as she walked back toward Weiss' office. Pushing her way inside, she dropped into her chair across from Weiss, observing the girl as she spoke politely on the phone to an unknown person.
"Yes, of course." Weiss spoke, nodding to herself as she tucked her phone against her ear with her shoulder. Glancing up at Blake, she exaggeratedly rolled her eyes, pointing to the phone, and Blake grinned.
"Yes, of course." She repeated again, making a 'hurry up' motion with her hand.
"Alright, sounds good. It'll be ready tomorrow." A pause. "Absolutely. Thanks for calling."
Weiss dropped her phone onto it's receiver, leaning down to rest her face in her hands. Taking a moment to breathe, she sat up and leaned back in her chair, studying Blake carefully.
"You look disgusting." Weiss spoke by way of greeting.
Blake examined her dirty hands and arms, then nodded. "So I am."
"And you smell worse."
Blake tilted her head to the side at that, returning Weiss' careful gaze.
"Well, you are the one who keeps assigning me these dirty jobs. It's just as easy to give it to someone else, and let me do yard operations."
Weiss reached over and picked up a pen, scribbling some notes down in the margins of the paper in front of her.
"Yard ops isn't a full-time gig, and I need someone I can trust on these repairs."
Blake gestured Weiss. "Oh trust me, I can make sitting in the loader and playing on my phone a full-time gig."
"Mmm, I believe it." Weiss acknowledged. "However, I'm not paying you to do that."
"Worth a shot," Blake acquiesced.
"What did you come in here for, anyway?" Weiss asked, gesturing to the filth on Blake's arms. "Besides getting my office dirty, anyway."
Blake shrugged. "I just wanted to see how my favourite best friend was doing."
Weiss leaned back in her chair, glancing at her computer screen.
"Favourite best friend? I'm your only best friend, it's not optional for me to be your favourite." Glancing up at the raven-haired faunus again, her eyes dilated slightly as something caught her eye.
"And how the hell did you get dirt on your face?"
"Itchy nose." Blake stated matter-of-factly.
"Unreal."
"Y'know, you're awfully antagonizing for someone who is very clean and wearing a lot of white." Blake said, lifting her arms and making grabbing motions with her hands.
"Belladonna, don't you dare." Weiss' tone was stern, and she eyed the faunus distrustfully.
Lifting herself up from her chair, Blake leaned over the desk that separated them and reached out for Weiss' crisp, clean white shirt.
"Blake!" Weiss shrieked, leaning back in her chair as she tried to shy away. The noise was enough to make Blake pin her ears back flat against her skull, but still she laughed at the terrified expression on Weiss' face.
"I'm coming for you, Weiss!" Blake snickered, lifting one leg up and placing a knee on the desk. Pushing herself up, she leaned toward Weiss as Weiss scooted backward, holding her hands up in front of her as if she could ward off the girl without somehow touching her.
"Blake, I swear to God if you touch me, I'll scream!" Weiss warned, holding up a finger.
"Too late!" Blake grinned, trapping Weiss in the corner of her office. Extending her fingers, she reached out-
"Whaaat is going on in here?"
Blake froze at the sound of the voice, and her and Weiss turned toward the office door at the same time, caught off guard as none other than Yang herself was peering into Weiss' office, a sly grin on her face.
"Uh." Blake was at a loss for words, looking back and forth between Weiss and Yang.
Weiss glanced at Blake, then, seemingly satisfied that the faunus was paralyzed, slowly relaxed, reaching up to straighten her tie.
"Hello, Yang. Nice to see you again." She greeted, running her hands through her hair in an attempt to smooth it.
Yang let herself into Weiss' office, leaning against the wall as she studied Blake, one knee up on Weiss' desk, hand still outstretched toward the flustered looking girl.
"Whatcha doing, Blake?" Yang asked, a teasing sound to her voice. "A little lunch hour hanky-panky with your girlfriend?"
Blake's ears laid flat against her skull as she shook her head, pushing off Weiss' desk and falling to her feet.
"Uh. No. Nothing like that." Her face burned, and she couldn't meet Yang's gaze as she reached out to straighten the papers that she'd scattered across Weiss' work surface. Instantly, Weiss hissed sharply, freezing Blake in her tracks as Weiss pointed at the greasy fingerprints she was leaving across the otherwise flawless white paper.
"Blake! Come on, don't worry about it, I'll tidy up." She gently chided. Blake bit her bottom lip, letting her hands fall to her sides.
"Well... what brings you around here, Yang?" Blake found her voice and some semblance of thought as she looked up at the blonde through her bangs, willing the heat across the back of her neck and in her cheeks to fade.
"Actually, " Yang shrugged coyly, her hands in her pockets. "I came here for you, Blake."
The faunus pulled a face, looking confusedly at Weiss. "Me? Why? And how'd you even find me?"
Yang pulled a hand from her pocket, gesturing toward Weiss.
"I texted Weiss, she told me where I could find you, and what time you normally take lunch. Thought we could hang out for a bit, if you weren't... busy." There was a teasing tone to her voice, one that made Blake flush anew.
"We aren't busy." Weiss firmly stated, somehow keeping her composure even as the tips of her ears darkened almost imperceptibly. Blake only saw the hint of embarrassment because she knew what to look for, but she was sure that to Yang, Weiss came off calm and assured.
"Great!" Yang nodded enthusiastically. "What do you normally do for lunch, Blake? Mind if I tag along?"
Blake shrugged. "I wouldn't mind at all." Gesturing to the door, she held up her hands. "Mind if I get cleaned up first, though?"
Yang pushed off the wall by the door and stepped aside, motioning for Blake to lead the way.
"By all means, Blake!"
Blake glanced once more at Weiss, who seemed now to be pointedly ignoring her, gaze focused on her monitor.
"Alright... well, see you later, Weiss." Blake studied the woman for a second until Weiss glanced up, finding her gaze.
"Of course. See you later, Blake. Nice to see you again, Yang." With that, Weiss' focus returned to her monitor.
Blake lead the way, striding through the door and heading back toward the shop. Yang followed, and as Blake pushed the shop door open, she was greeted by one of the other workers that frequented the shop.
"Oop! After you." The blond stepped aside, gesturing for Blake and Yang to enter first.
"Thanks, Jaune." Blake stepped through the doorway, and Yang followed close behind.
"Oh, hey Jaune!" Blake spun on her heel, nearly colliding with Yang, who laughed and stepped aside as she apologized.
"Hmm?" Was the questioning response.
"After lunch, do you mind fabbing up another breaker hose? I'll email you the specs."
Jaune nodded, juggling his keys in his hand. "Absolutely. Soon as I see the email, I'll get right on it."
"Thank you! Have a good lunch."
Jaune waved, and disappeared through the doorway.
"I just need to wash up, then I'm all yours." Blake held up her hands for Yang to see, and the blonde nodded. "Sounds good to me!"
It didn't take long to scrub the grease and oil from her hands and forearms, and when she emerged from the bathroom, Yang was standing in the middle of the shop, head on a swivel as she looked around at all the equipment that must be absolutely foreign to her.
"Alright, I'm clean now."
Yang turned around at the sound of Blake's voice, subtly looking the girl up and down before a grin stretched across her face.
"What?" Blake asked, glancing down at herself. "Did I miss something?"
Yang tapped her nose, and winked.
"Wha-?" Realization struck, and she sighed. "Ohh, I forgot to wash the dirt off my face, didn't I?"
Yang waved it off before crossing her arms under her chest. "It's totally not distracting at all," she teased, "I wouldn't worry about it."
Okay, Blake thought, Engage operation 'don't look like an incoherent idiot in front of Yang'.
Folding her hands behind her back, she leaned slightly toward Yang, perking her ears up straight and tall.
"So, Yang, what do you want to do?" She asked lightly.
Yang seemed taken aback for a second, eyes flicking up to her alert faunus ears before dropping back down to make eye contact with the faunus.
"I didn't really have any solid ideas..." The blonde admitted with a wry grin. "I wasn't even sure you'd be free, or even want to hang out. Figured maybe you had your own thing going on for your lunch break."
Blake took a second to admire the beautiful lilac color of Yang's eyes as she formulated a response.
"I don't mind spending time with you, Yang." The faunus answered smoothly, internally congratulating herself for not tripping over her words for once.
"Why don't you show me around your shop?" Yang gestured around herself.
"Well, it's not 'my' shop, to be honest." Blake shrugged, "But yeah, I can give you a quick tour."
Blake began walking over to her toolbox, which stretched up to nearly above her head, and gestured lightly to it.
"This is my primary source of debt and regret," Blake joked, waving a hand at all the drawers.
Yang's eyebrows climbed into her hairline, doubt creeping across her face.
"Seriously?"
Blake slid open one of her drawers, and pointed at a single tool.
"This one torque wrench alone was $480." Blake slid her finger over to another, much smaller instrument. "This hundred tooth three-eighths drive ratchet was $150."
Yang winced. "That's... almost seven hundred dollars and you've pointed out two tools in one drawer full of tools, and there's like, what... " Yang took a step back and quickly counted all the drawers in her box. "Twelve drawers? That's insane!"
Blake nodded, sliding a finger appreciatively along her impact socket set. "They're expensive, sure, but good quality. Buy once, cry once, as they say."
Yang laughed at that, running a hand through her long, unruly mane of blonde hair before pulling it over one shoulder.
"I've never heard of that expression before."
Blake shook her head. "I wish I'd never heard of it, either," she joked.
"So what are you working on today with all of your expensive tools?" Yang asked, shifting her feet and taking a step closer to the faunus. Blake took a second to admire the blonde's tall stature, breathing in through her nose and basking in the gentle hint of her perfume.
"Over here," Blake motioned to the middle of the shop, taking a few strides in that direction to lead Yang over to her task at hand.
"Super simple job today, a damaged hose replacement on this concrete breaker." She spoke, indicating the massive chunk of metal propped up on two stands.
"So... at the risk of sounding dumb, a concrete breaker is just a thing that breaks concrete?" Yang asked lightly.
Blake nodded, ears swiveling to take in the sound of the shop door opening and closing on the other side of the shop.
"Absolutely. Or rock. Or even tightly compacted ground. Or frost." She said.
"Interesting." Was all the blonde had to say, leaning over and peering into the open inspection hole that Blake had been working on. Wrinkling her nose as the scent of hydraulic oil wafted up to her, Yang quickly leaned away.
"You don't have to lie, it's not that interesting." Blake chuckled lightly.
"That's quite a... ferocious smell."
Blake nodded, reaching up and flipping her hair over her shoulder. "You get used to it. It's actually not that bad, really."
Yang looked around, seemingly noticing another factor of the shop that Blake worked in.
"Everything around here looks really heavy."
Blake nodded. "It is."
"How's your back? Surely this work can't be easy on your body."
Blake made a hesitant sound in the back of her throat.
"There's definitely some days where you just have to manhandle big heavy chunks of steel, but for the most part we can move everything we need to with the loader." Blake gestured over her shoulder to indicate the machine parked outside.
"I see." Yang's tone indicated that she didn't really see.
Blake snickered at that, reaching up to run her hands through her hair. "Have you eaten?" Blake asked. Sweeping a hand behind her toward her toolbox, she indicated her lunch sitting atop it.
"I have snacks, if you're hungry."
Yang perked up a bit at that. "Oh? What kind of snacks?"
Blake began sauntering back to her toolbox, once again clasping her hands behind her back. Yang fell in step beside her, and Blake surreptitiously halved the distance between them. Not quite rubbing shoulders, but close.
Reaching up to grab her lunch kit, she pulled it down, sliding out one of her tool drawers and plopping her kit atop it. Unzipping the top, she flopped it open and pulled out two hard plastic containers.
"Dunkaroos." She offered sheepishly. "Weiss buys them and keeps her cupboards stocked with them for me."
Yang's eyes shone with ill-concealed mirth as she accepted the snack, peeling off the lid and setting it aside.
"Do you know how long it's been since I've had these?" Yang asked, dipping a chocolate cookie into vanilla frosting.
Blake raised an eyebrow questioningly, taking a small bite of her cookie sans frosting.
"Like, years, at lea- wait! You can't do that!" Yang pointed at the plain cookie in Blake's hand, aghast.
Blake shrugged. "Ehh... I like the cookies plain."
Yang's eyes narrowed slightly. "And what do you do with the frosting?"
Blake avoided Yang's gaze, shoving another cookie into her mouth.
"Tell me you don't waste it!"
"I don't." Blake hedged, mumbling around the food in her mouth.
"Well?"
Blake held the container up to her mouth, miming the action of licking.
"I spoon it out with my tongue, and eat it." She admitted, embarrassment flooding her body as Yang stared at her, expression unreadable.
"That-what?"
Blake nodded. "Every time, since I was like, ten years old."
"I need to see this atrocity."
Blake winced. "Absolutely not."
"I'm not leaving until you do, actually." Yang crossed her muscular forearms under her chest, shifting her weight from one leg to the other as she pushed her hip out.
Blake's ears laid flat against her hair, drawing Yang's eyes up for a moment before they returned to meet her gaze.
"Now that you've made me weirdly self-conscious about it, I'm gonna pass." Blake set her container down on her lunch kit, wiping the crumbs from her hands.
Yang laughed at that, unfolding her arms momentarily to run her hands through her hair and push her bangs back out of her face.
"Alright, how about a compromise?" Yang asked, dipping another cookie into her frosting. "If you give me your phone number, I won't watch you lick up your cookie frosting."
Blake stared at her for a second, but the blonde was nonplussed, returning the stare with a smirk on her face.
Trying to downplay her elation at the request, Blake wordlessly held out her hand. On the inside, however, she was practically screaming with happiness.
"Really?" Yang asked, reaching into her pocket and pulling out her phone. "I didn't think you'd go for that."
"Well, it's a pretty good compromise, all things considered." Blake accepted the unlocked phone, and navigated her way to the contacts. Entering her name and her number, she handed the phone back.
"Besides," She added, "I'm always down to talk." Blake smiled up at Yang, inwardly pleased at how well today seemed to be going.
Yang held her gaze for a moment, seemingly studying her, then glanced down at her phone. Saving the contact, she locked her phone and slid it back into her pocket.
"Well, Belladonna," Yang gestured around, "What else can you show me?"
Blake rolled her eyes playfully as she grabbed a few more dry cookies from her Dunkaroos container and began walking away from her tool box.
"Don't call me Belladonna," Blake chuckled lightly. "That's what Weiss calls me when she's annoyed with me."
Yang's eyes widened slightly, but she took it in stride. "Noted." The blonde nodded to herself as she fell into step beside the faunus.
Together they meandered back over to the breaker, where Blake leaned against it and folded her arms under her chest, not so subtly lifting her breasts up and pushing them together. It was a cheap trick, but Blake wasn't above flaunting herself for a girl as pretty as Yang. If the blonde was enticed, however, Blake couldn't tell, because gorgeous lilac eyes held her own the entire time.
"Hey Blake?" Blake was pulled away from Yang's captivating gaze by Jaune's voice, and she looked over to see him standing by the door to the shop, some sort of wrap in one hand and his phone in the other.
"Not to rush you on that hose email, but I just got word that I have to make a parts run this afternoon. Are you waiting for something from Weiss, or can you send it to me now?"
"Oh, sure, Jaune." Blake pushed off from the breaker, unfolding her arms as she made her way back across the shop to where her laptop was sitting atop her toolbox.
"Getting your steps in walking back and forth, huh?" Yang followed beside her, curious to see what she was doing next.
Blake half-heartedly shrugged. "Probably the most exercise I'll get all day." Pulling her laptop down, she set it on her open drawer next to her forgotten Dunkaroos. Flipping it open, she waited somewhat impatiently for it to boot up. Once it did, however, it was a quick copy and paste of the hose diameter, length, pressure rating, coupling type and size, and the purchase order from the customer into an email for Jaune for tracking. Firing that off, she closed her laptop once more, tossing it back up on top of her toolbox.
"Did you CC Weiss on that?" Jaune asked from across the shop, glancing down at his phone as it vibrated with the reception of her email.
Blake shook her head. "She already knows. You can forward it to her, if you like, though."
Jaune waved it off. "Nah, it's fine." Shoving his wrap into his mouth, he pointed in the direction of the hose-making machine in the corner. Mumbling something that sounded vaguely like, "I'll get started on that now," he turned and made his way over to the machine.
"Is that all you need to do to wrap up this machine?" Yang asked, gesturing back at the concrete breaker behind them.
Blake nodded. "I suspect so. I'll do a quick check of the grease fittings, make sure they're not seized or broken, but other than that, it's ready to be sent out the door once the new hose is installed." A vibration in her pocket distracted her from what she was going to say next, and Yang paused as Blake reached into her pocket to pull out her phone.
"Mmm. Weiss." Blake murmured, opening up her messages. It was a succinct one, short and to the point.
Manage your lunch time wisely. Something else has come in that needs attention before the end of the day. Don't let Yang distract you from getting your work done. Check your email shortly.
Glancing up at Yang, an apology already on her lips as she tucked her phone away, she was beaten to the punch by the blonde.
"Guess I should let you get back to it, huh?" Yang asked, sounding almost a bit reluctant to leave.
Blake certainly didn't want her to, sharing her sentiment.
"Yeah... but, you have my number now. And I'm usually free for lunches at the same time every day, so... do with that information what you will."
Yang nodded slowly, walking toward the shop door that lead back to Weiss' office, and the parking lot beyond.
"Alright. Well, have a good day, Blake! I'm gonna say bye to Weiss before I take off. See ya!"
With a wave, Yang left the shop behind, seemingly draining the air of energy and causing Blake's shoulders to slump.
"Lame." The faunus muttered. Picking up her abandoned Dunkaroos, she forlornly stuck her tongue into the frosting, already missing the blonde's presence.