Chapter 4. Dress

All of this silence and patience,

pining in anticipation

My hands are shaking from

holding back from you

All of this silence and patience,

pining and desperately waiting

My hands are shaking from all this

Say my name and everything just stops

I don't want you like a best friend

Only bought this dress so you could take it off

Take it off

"It was me. It's my fault."

Buttercup had turned slowly towards the boy by her side, her eyes wide and incredulous.

"I had no doubt at all, you little scum" the PE teacher stared at the young boy with bloodshot eyes; if he could have killed him, he probably would have. But Mr Johnson was terrified by their powers, so he would usually keep his distance. He moved his upset gaze towards her, making her flinch. "And you, Buttercup Utonium, you should just leave him be. He'll only lead you down his same bad road. The apple never falls far from the tree, right, Jojo?"

"Right, sir" Butch replied with a smug smirk, showing him he couldn't care less about his words. But Buttercup could see something in those emerald eyes. A strain of anger, pain, delusion.

The answer made the teacher burst into a pleased laugh which accompanied him as he walked towards the main building of Pokey Oaks Middle School. "I'll see if the headmaster agrees on suspending you for a few days. Again."

As soon as Mr Johnson was out of sight, Butch turned and kicked hard a piece of the basket hoop of the outdoor court of their middle school, which was now lying destroyed on the ground. They had been playing as hard as usual, but Buttercup had overdone it, slamming the basket with all her force and therefore decreeing its end after years of honourable service.

"Butch, why did you…" Buttercup managed to say. Why had she stayed silent?! Why hadn't she protested?! Why hadn't she… protected Butch?

"'Cuz he wouldn't have believed you anyway" Butch smiled bitterly as he kicked the remains of the basket far away, his hands in shorts. He was slightly shorter than her; she would always tease him for that and he would always get terribly mad at her. She had bet that he was too short to win against her at basketball; so, after the end of the lessons, they had zipped out of the classroom and directly to the basketball court to have their challenge. Which had ended in tragedy, as usually happened when they were doing something together.

"I… I'm sorry. I'll go inside and tell him the truth" Buttercup mumbled with a low, upset voice. She was 11, she was enough grown up to realise a mistake when she would make one.

"Don't. It's okay. It's the same for me" he just shrugged "I'm used to it. People always think I'm the one to mess things up and most of the time they're right. So, shut the fuck up and spare yourself an ass-kicking from your Pop" he then smirked, his usual smug smirk, showing off his chipped canine – a trophy of one of their fights. "Anyway, you're right. But just wait, I'll outgrow you in no time and then I'll kick your ass off in every sport!"

Buttercup woke up with a start, sitting on the bed in that apartment that she had come to know very well. She was sweating and her breath was heavy. Why that memory? Why now?

She ran her hands through her dishevelled hair, shutting her eyes tight. She knew why.

She felt a sudden moan at her side and Butch opened an eye, yawning. "Butters, what the fuck…" he mumbled, still half asleep.

"You're a jerk" she huffed as she laid down by his side, snuggling against his broad chest underneath the sheets of his bed. He did outgrow her, eventually. And she couldn't be happier about it.

"Why… I was just sleeping…" he snivelled as he turned towards her, pulling her closer with an arm and burying his face in her hair. She inhaled his scent and he pressed her against his naked, bulky chest.

"Because… you're a jerk. Always have. Always will."

He chuckled softly against her head. "Thank you, babe".

She let her hands slide along his naked back, crossing it with soft caresses and light scratches, following the lines of his well-defined muscles, of his shoulder-blade, of his spine. There was a scar there, right in the centre of his scapulas. They never got scars, because their super bodies would heal in no time. So, that should have happened after. She didn't linger there, but moved along his spine, tracing soft scratches with her green-painted nails.

He groaned lightly against her hair, squirming a little in her embrace. "Butters…" her almost reprimanded her.

"Thought you'd like it".

"I do, but…" he pressed his hands against her lower back, pushing her even closer to his body, brushing his hard erection against her lower belly. "It's hard… to resist you".

She snickered and let her hands squeeze his ass – God, it was so toned that it almost her fingers. "Maybe you shouldn't resist me".

"You know how I feel" he fretted as he buried his face in her collarbone, snuggling his nose against her neck, making her shiver from head to toe. "I don't deserve you" he blew against her skin.

"That's bullshit, Butch" Buttercup tried to sound angered, but she failed miserably as she was too aroused in that moment. "Do you think I wouldn't want you anymore just because of your powers?"

"Uh, are you saying you want me?"

Buttercup lightly bit his shoulder, making him flinch. "Need proof?"

She felt him gulp nervously and then he lifted his face from her collarbone, brushing his cheek against hers, his two-days stubble itching against her skin.

She held him closer against her body and she felt his breath against her ear, hot and fast. Her hand slid again along the scar and she sensed him stop for a second.

"Butch… did it hurt? When they took your powers away?" she dared to ask, a low whisper.


That evening, the wind quite strong. It ruffled his hair as he cautiously entered the building, a hoodie over his head, looking around suspiciously.

Brick inhaled deeply and cleared his throat, before entering the apartment he had come to know too well. He knew he was in there too, he had heard his voice thanks to his super earing from across the corridor. For a moment, he had thought to just run away, but then, he officially didn't have any reason to. So, he had gathered his courage and made his glorious entry into Bellum's loft, closing the door behind his back and raising nonchalantly a hand to greet the man at the centre of the creation of everything: of the girls, of Mojo Jojo and therefore, indirectly, of the Rowdyruffs.

"Professor" Brick nodded at him lightly, moving closer to the sofas where he was sitting with Sara. "Ms Bellum".

"Welcome Brick, we were waiting for you" Sara pointed to the armchair between the two sofas on which she and the Professor Utonium were sitting, facing each other.

"Mh" the Professor simply grunted and that sound made Brick's hair on the neck stand up.

"Is the place safe?" Brick asked immediately, looking around suspiciously.

"Yes, the security system you and the Professor created together seems to be working perfectly" she smiled as she poured some black coffee in a cup to the young boy.

"I've merely given him a couple of suggestions" Brick tried to act humble, hoping to gain a look from the Professor. Which didn't arrive.

Ugh.

"You ought to give us a couple of updates on the girls, Brick" Sara sighed heavily. "We know that Buttercup has been seeing Butch in Citiesville, lately. And if we know, I'm pretty sure Darwin knows as well. Plus, Citiesville is his sister's territory."

Brick simply shrugged. "I don't see the problem. Butch hasn't crossed the border of Townsville, he's still powerless. He shouldn't represent a problem."

"He can be used against Buttercup" Sara protested, a worried expression on her face.

"That would go against my agreement with Darwin. He promised that if Butch didn't leave the town, he would be left in peace. He wouldn't dare." Brick replied quickly, sipping at his coffee.

"In case Darwin still trusts you" the Professor finally spoke, an edge of irritation in his voice.

Here he comes.

"Why wouldn't he?" Brick eyed the man at his right with a suspicious look, his hands buried in his black hoodie, his red eyes seeking his daringly.

"Blossom still shows no intention of leaving for university" the Professor shrugged "Nor to leave the city at all. I thought it was your job to convince her."

"I've been trying, but she's been incredibly stubborn about it. Plus, she's not stupid, she understands there's something going on. Until we tell her the whole truth about the situation, I highly doubt she'll leave the town."

"If we tell her the whole truth, there's no way she'd ever leave the city" Sara sighed as she sipped at her coffee.

"Plus…" the Professor added as he cleared his throat with an annoyed grunt "you're not really helping with it, Brick."

"Pardon?"

"You know very well what I'm talking about" the Professor insisted, his tone more nervous.

"I don't think so" Brick tensely denied.

"Your relationship with my daughter. That's what I'm talking about" the Professor put the cup of coffee he was holding in his hands down with a thud, making both Brick and Sara jump on their seats.

"How do you—"

"Call it a father's instinct" he growled "In which of your brilliant plans striking up a relationship with my daughter sounded like a good idea?! Especially when we want her out of town as soon as possible?!"

Brick stood silent for a few seconds, biting his lips. "In no one. I'm… sorry, but I couldn't help it. I tried, but…"

"Seems like you haven't tried enough" the Professor snorted as he folded his arms, looking at him with a look of admonishment.

"I know it may sound surprisingly, but she's been quite… persistent too" Brick snapped but couldn't help lowering his gazing at his feet. He knew the Professor was right. So damn right.

"It isn't a surprise at all" the Professor sighed, rubbing his hands on his eyelids "she's been so heartbroken for months when you disappeared into nothingness. The only hope I had was that her wounded pride would have got the upper hand against her feelings. But I know her…. we all know her. She's too good and smart to let negative emotions won over."

Brick clenched his fists against his knees. "I know… but…" he bit his lower lip "I'll convince her eventually. I promise this thing won't get in the way." He glanced over at the Professor, who was looking at him with sceptical eyes. "I'll protect her. I swear. I swear I will…"

Ms. Bellum clapped her hands to draw their attention towards her. "Okay, gentlemen. End of the first round. Let's go back to the initial topic. Buttercup. Does she know about Butch? How much?"


Butch stood silent for a few seconds. He felt her heartbeat – and her boobs – pressing under his chest, only a t-shirt he had lent her to divide their naked skins. Her hot breath caressed his collarbone and her tiny fingers kept on tracing the line of his scar, lying there between his scapulas – he had almost forgotten about it.

She was asking about the things he had sworn to keep secret. But then again, she already knew most of it. And he was tired, so tired of spending his life alone in that shithole. Having her by his side had been like coming back to life. He loved her so much, despite denying it himself for that whole time. Now it was no longer possible. An undeniable feeling. Buttercup was the only good thing in his life in that very moment. Probably, the only good thing he had ever had. That's why he had risked everything for her, to make her happy, to make… him worthy of her. Failing miserably, as usual.

"Yes, it hurt. It fucking hurt" he replied, his voice calm and deep as he recalled those moments. "I think they must have injected all the fucking Reagent X they had into my shitty veins."

He had already told her, Bubbles and Boomer about the Reagent X on that night in which he had snuck in Townsville. The motherfucking red liquid Darwin had created starting from Antidote X. A cure against your disease, that's how he had called it.

Fuck you.

"You know, he told me he would give me a free pass to Citiesville. My crimes would be condoned. I could start a new life as a normal human being" Butch drew a deep breath "It wasn't not having my powers any longer, honestly. Here in Citiesville, they would have been more or less useless. Yeah, I miss flying. I fucking miss it. I miss the speed. The risk. But most of all…" he paused as he pushed her up a little, to look into her beautiful, clear, green eyes. "I missed you. I missed us. I missed my brothers. I missed my life there. I fucked up. I fucked up so badly I can't even…".

Fuck.

His voice sounded broken. His eyes were stinging, somewhat.

Stupid dimwit. Sucker. Fuckhead.

She bent against him and kiss him fiercely, suddenly, her tongue pushing his lips open to meet his. He kissed her back, pushing back that strange drops of water that were menacing to make their unwanted appearance in his eyes.

She then interrupted the kiss, staying here against his face, their noses brushing. "I'm sorry for bringing that up. It's only that…"

"Just ask, Butters. I don't wanna keep anything from you. Not anymore."

"This scar on your back… and… Bubbles told me that… when she had met you at the station, you were covered in bruises" she looked at him, a serious gaze in her eyes.

"Yeah, well… they had to check if the Reagent X had worked" he simply replied with a shrug and he felt her tense in his arms.

"Butch…"

"I got ten stitches on that back cut, a couple of broken ribs and yeah, several fucking painful bruises practically everywhere…" he said and saw her face writhe in anger, so he added jokingly "…all thing I had already experienced thanks to you, right?" he chuckled merrily.

None of that matter anymore. Not anymore.

She was there with him, again. Even if he no longer had his powers. Even if he wasn't like her anymore.

On the night of the revelation, he had been terrified. Terrified of losing her again. And for good.

"You're a…"

"A jerk, I know, I know" he put a lock of her dark hair behind her ear, then caressed her cheek with two fingers, her lips, so full and soft.

"Why…" it was her voice now the one to be almost broken, her eyes teary "Why didn't you call me? Why couldn't you tell me you were here? You knew I would've kept the secret! You know I would've!"

"I know" he silenced her, rubbing his thumb of her trembling lips "but I was terrified you would have got so mad at me. That you would… no longer want to have anything to do with me. I was no longer your… frenemy. I couldn't have been that anymore."

"It's like I don't have any other fucking human friends in the world, right?!" she snapped back, punching his chest lightly. So considerate of her.

"I didn't want to be that. I don't want to be that. A human friend. That's not what I want to be, for you" he whispered seriously, looking straight into her eyes.

"Then be my something else" she blurted, trapping his face in her hands.

"That's what I wanted to be. Your something else. That's why I wanted so desperately the money to buy you a birth— ouch" he complained as she pressed his cheeks harder, to make him stop talking.

"That only makes you a jerk. With or without superpowers" she was angry now. "I didn't need any gift. I really didn't. You knew that. I can't forgive you for throwing everything away for such a silly thing!"

His chest throbbed in pain. He knew that very well. He knew that he was a fucker. A fucking loser. He had always known.

"But still…" she whispered, leaning her head down, towards his chest. "I've always ignored it. Your pain. The pain of being cut off by society. By adults. The pain of not being seeing for who you truly were. Of being considered a forever criminal even though you were trying your best. I didn't help you, never" he flinched when he felt her hot tears wetting his chest "I knew you were trying hard to live a normal life. And I saw how people would treat you. And I never ever did anything to help. That time with Mr Johnson, when I destroyed the basket hoop, I should've… I should've…"

He put his hands under her armpits, pushing her up on his hips with all his strength to look at her in the eyes. She was startled. She probably thought he was basically an earthworm by now, but he had been working out hard. Yes, he couldn't stand a chance against her, but he was pretty strong for being an average human, anyway.

"We were about to fuck. How did this all happen?" he protested with a frown. "Can you just quit with your guilty bullshit and go back to the part where you were trying to seduce me?"

"I wasn't trying to –! Butch!" through the faint light coming from his window, he could see that she was red like her sister's ribbon; she tried to punch him, but he moved her aside, throwing her on the bed and launching himself on top of her. She pushed him back fiercely, but controlled her force perfectly.

How lovely.

"Get the fuck off, Butch, or I swear I'll make you fly again! Out of the window!" Buttercup snarled, but she couldn't hide a grin.

"Before I go, I really need this t-shirt back. It suits you, but it's my favourite" he smirked smugly as he whispered against her lips.

"Then get it back. If you can."


Brick closed the door behind his back with a slam. Another day of being told off by other two people. And then he had to change again in his stupid smartass outfit and had to see Darwin again. Another pain in the ass. Another reprimand. Very cool.

And another night in that shitty luxury apartment. He knew that there must have been something wrong with him, for hating the wealthy life he was living, but he hated it. It was all fake, all things he couldn't care less about. All people of whom he couldn't care less. They weren't what he really wanted. What he really wanted was…

He jumped, startled, when Blossom ran towards him from his bedroom.

"Welcome back!" she smiled sweetly, almost like… a wife waiting for his husband to come home. He shook his head at the thought, giving her a shocked look.

"What the fuck…?"

She pouted. "You were the one who gave me the key to your apartment! You said I could come here whenever I wanted!"

"It's not about that. It's about…" he pointed at the long gown dress she was wearing, his mouth wide open.

"Oh, this?" she smirked as she turned in her pale pink tulle dress. The deep V-neck of the elegant dress stopped right above her bosom. The top part was sleeveless and the thin straps and the bodice were embroidered with flowery lace. The gown went down wide to cover her legs, all made in simple tulle, at the end of which small embroidered flowers made their appearance, right at the rim of the dress.

She looked like a princess or… a bride. He shook his head again.

"Do you like it?" she smiled, expectantly.

"The fuck? Are we getting married?" he asked, looking at her jokingly. That day was seemingly endless and… absurd. Maybe he was just having a long, confusing dream. It must have been his REM sleep's doing. He was quite sure of it.

"You'd like to?" she asked, an amused smirk on her lips.

"It depends. Shall we live with your father? Because that's a big no, in case."

"I thought we'd live here, in this luxury apartment, forever parasites of Mr Darwin" she smirked as walked closer to him.

"That would be a freaking nightmare… I'm awake, right?" he asked her with an exhausted gaze.

"Brick? Is everything alright?" she suddenly asked, noticing his exhausted face.

"Yeah, it's just… what the fuck are you doing dressed like that, anyway?!"

"I just wanted to show you my Prom dress, calm down!" she scowled as she crossed her arms on her chest, annoyed.

"Ah… ah. Right. the Senior Ball" Brick realised with a frown, rubbing his temples as he leant against the wall.

"Since you won't be there to see it, I just wanted to show it to you. I'm so glad you don't really care about it."

"Hey, wait a sec…" he sighed as he took his jacket off. "Who said I won't be at the Prom?"

Blossom turned towards him with wide eyes. A sparkle of hope in them. "Will you come?"

"I certainly won't be going to the Prom of that shitty private school I'm signed up in" he muttered as he moved towards Blossom. He took her hand in his, making her spin for him as she laughed delightedly.

"I'm sure they'll be devastated without you" she chuckled. She seemed to be in a good mood.

"They don't even know who I am" he smirked "I've already finished all my exams with flying colours. I'll come back only to get my diploma and sayonara to all."

Suddenly Blossom's smile faded, leaving room to a gloomier face. "It's sad that we won't be able to graduate all together". So much for her good mood.

Brick frowned and then drew a deep sigh. "It's useless to think about it now. If only Butch… no, it's doesn't really matter."

"Will you tell me about you, him and Darwin?" she asked cautiously, searching for his crimson eyes.

He met her pink, doe eyes. "Not yet" he whispered harshly, pulling her into his arms with a tug. "But… there's no fucking way I'll let you go to the Senior Ball with somebody else."

"Really?" she jumped in his arms, looking at him hopefully.

"I might ask Darwin if I…" he then stopped, halfway, biting his lip. The menacing gazes of Darwin and Professor Utonium came to his mind. "Blossom. You really need to tell everybody you're going to university. Everybody wants you to go. Darwin aside, your father and Ms Bellum really care about it too."

"How do you know?" her expression turned suddenly serious as she slowly pushed him back, leaving his embrace.

"I just do" he shrugged "I also want you to go. If I just tell Darwin you're leaving this autumn, I'm sure he won't have anything to say about you and I going to the Prom together."

"Well, I don't wanna go" she snapped nervously, turning her back to Brick and crossing her arms.

Brick exhaled in exasperation. "Whyyyyy! Why do you have to act like this!"

"Because I'm tired of everyone telling me what to do with my life and how to do it! It's my life, I won't let anyone decide for me!" she stomped her foot, nervously. "I won't be controlled by them and I don't care what Darwin wants me to do! I'm not you!"

Brick flinched at hearing those angry words coming from her lips, but he saw she immediately had turned towards him, crashing herself against his chest. "I'm sorry Brick, I didn't mean to…"

But she was right. How could she know what had happened, why he was really doing what he was doing? But if he told her, then everything… no, he still couldn't say anything yet.

"I won't be going. Neither to the university nor to the ball" she said suddenly, as she moved her hands towards the zipper of the dress on her back.


He didn't really waste time.

The fucker.

Butch had slid his broad hands under the t-shirt and took it off with one pull, making her shiver and cover her bare breast with an arm.

"Butc—" her protests were transformed into a moan when she felt his tongue travel along her stomach, circling her belly button in slow turns, his hands digging firmly in the flesh of her ass.

Buttercup let her hands slid from her breasts down to his hair, grabbing at it as she squirmed under his touch. They followed his head up on her abs, his tongue tracing a line from her navel up to her breastbone. His fingers started to pinch and caress one of her nipples, slowly, torturing, while his tongue took care of the other one, sucking at it and biting it lightly. Buttercup moaned as she threw her head backwards, opening her legs wide when she felt his fingers drive into her wet flesh, in and out, already knowing what to do to please her. But that wasn't enough. It no longer was. They had been foreplaying for too long those days and she couldn't take it anymore. Now that he had finally revealed why he didn't want to go further, she understood that she was the only one who could unblock the situation. She moved her hand towards his hardened bulge, squeezing it hard as her fingers wrapped around his length, making Butch groan against her nipple, as he gave it a small bite, making her squirm. Her hand slipped under his underwear, caressing his tip slowly, in circles, making him shudder as she felt her fingertips slightly sticky; he stopped working on her nipples with an almost pained moan, and she caught the occasion to push him away from her and then down on the bed, straddling on him. She nudged her mound against his erection and a low, feral growl came directly from the back of his throat. His fingers dug in her butt cheeks and she smirked delightedly as she bent down on him, taking one of his lips between her teeth.

"Buttercup…" he growled lowly as she lowered his pants and his underwear, freeing his pulsing cock.

"Don't worry, I'll be gentle" she grinned smugly as she licked his lips slowly.

"Mh, yeah, but…" he lingered for a second, caressing her cheek thoughtfully "…you sure you want it this way? Won't it hurt?"

Buttercup froze for a second as she realised she was almost forgetting that that was her first time. She was so frustrated and aroused that she wasn't really thinking about it. Were they really going to do it? Would it hurt? Like, hurt a lot? Did he have a condom? How was she even starting from the top?!

Butch probably had to notice her sudden hesitation because he asked "Are you sure you want to go on? We can sto—"

"No, I'm fine. I want it. I wanna do it. With you. Definitely." She replied quickly with a little pout. But something was bugging her: why the hell had she decided to stay on top?! She had no idea of how to go on from that moment on. She was starting to panic, her body was tensing and that couldn't be a good thing.

She suddenly felt his hands on her hips; he pulled her down again with a soft push, standing over her on his elbows. She looked at him with a glint of gratitude, turned off by his sudden badass smile. "Don't worry, I'll be gentle."

"You better be, smartass" she smiled softly as she watched his arm stretch towards the drawer of his night table, taking out a condom.

He opened it with his teeth and then he lowered himself on her belly, starting to kiss it to distract her from his fumbling with the rubber.

She shut her eyes and drew a deep breath, trying to relax her body, feeling Butch's fingers meeting her wet slit again, caressing it once again, slowly, carefully, making her squirm at the touch and under his sweet kisses, her body finally starting to loosen up again.

He then came up again, pressing his bulked-up body against hers, pressing his chest against her breasts, taking her mouth in his, his tongue sliding inside her, caressing the back of her throat, deep into her. They broke the kiss only when they needed to catch their breaths and Butch looked deeply into her light green eyes with a gaze full of an incontrollable lust. "Butters, I can't resist anymore…"

She didn't reply, she only latched onto his neck with her arms, her hands running through his hair, and opened her legs wider, letting him slid against her wetness, and then, with a sudden push, she felt Butch finally meeting her, entering her, joining their bodies together. A shrill escaped her lips as she felt a sudden stinging pain, but she didn't really care. Their souls had always been very close and now that their bodies were finally closing the physical distance too, she felt a sense of completeness filling her up.

"So tight" he growled hoarsely in her ear, moving slowly as she felt her squirm in his arms. "Hurts?"

"A little" she groaned lightly, protesting as she clung to him "Fuck, you're too big!"

"Don't fucking say that or I'll come in two seconds!" he laughed softly with a shuddery breath, clenching at the sheets under his hands.

She then felt him going back slowly and pushing forward again. And again. And again. Her shudders of pain slowly became little moans escaping her lips, her nails dug into his shoulders, her legs tightening at his sides. His breath was heavy and ragged against her ear, low feral growls escaping his throat every now and then, intensifying as his pace started to accelerate. Suddenly everything was pure frenzy, sweat, moans, scratches; her body had started to follow his pounds, dancing to the rhythm of their desires. And then, out of the blue, it hit her like a wave, crushing suddenly against her lower belly, sending her mind explode in a million sparkling colours, her voice shouting out senselessly. Her eyes shone with a strange glow, her whole body swept over by that intense feeling of pleasure she had never felt before.

His thrusts were still frantic and wild inside her and when she squeezed him hard, Butch let out a strangled cry, his muscles corded under her touch, his manhood twitching and swelling inside her.

His eyes, for a quick second, glimmered with an eerie dark green light, meeting hers. She flinched for a second: what was that glint?

"Fuck" he exhaled as he crushed on her, his breath heavy, snuggling against her collarbone. "God… Fucking hell… fucking… amazing, babe… Fuck."

"Yeah…" she whispered as she closed her arms around him, caressing his shoulder, full of her scratches some of which slightly bleeding.

She stared at the white ceiling over her head as the sound of April rain showered outside the window. The intoxicating feeling of her climax was still lingering in her body and yet she couldn't stop thinking about that strange glint she had seen in his irises.


How could she have been so wicked?! Telling Brick something so mean?! She knew that he hated, hated having to follow Darwin's orders. She hated it too.

Suddenly, that dress was starting to feel too tight. Too stupid. She was there thinking about the ball when she was sure Brick was living a nightmare. A nightmare in which, she was sure, she and her sisters were involved. And all she could think of was his reaction to seeing her in that stupid, stupid, stupid dress.

"Blossom…" she heard Brick whisper behind her back as she nervously fumbled with the zipper of her dress. He stopped her hands with his, as he entangled his fingers with hers in a slow and sweet movement. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to… blackmail you. I'll come to the Ball with you, if you want me to. I won't care about Darwin's opinion. And soon I'll be able to tell you the whole truth. Just… swear to me that this is what you really want. That you aren't giving up university only because you're being stubborn and want to disappoint Darwin. Just swear me this. He has already fucked up too many lives and… I won't allow him to ruin yours as well. I just won't" he sounded exhausted.

Blossom felt something in her stomach clench and Brick's lips brushed the nape of her neck as his fingers left her hands to move slowly towards the zipper of her dress. He started to slowly unzip it and she felt suddenly restless, a strange feeling tingling in her guts.

"I was thinking of going to Stinford University. I'll be able to commute there from Townsville. It's…"

"It's an incredible idea" he whispered in her ear, making her squirm as she felt the zipper trailing down her spine, leaving her naked shoulder exposed. She couldn't help but gasp when she felt his lips kiss her nape, moving downwards as he left a trail of kisses along her spine. "I'm glad you wore this before the Ball, otherwise it would have been hard for me to hold back" he added as he raised to take the right strap in his teeth, letting it slide over her shoulder. She moaned as he started to suck at the tender skin of her bare shoulder while his hand let the other strap slip down as well. Brick's lips moved along the line of her right shoulder to reach her neck, where he started to leave another hickey as his hands sneakily slipped under the unzipped bodice, cupping her breasts in a sweet grasp.

"Brick…." She moaned as she leant back against chest, her head bent backwards on his shoulder as his tongue left the hickey to trace the line of her profile, arriving at her ear.

"We shouldn't ruin the dress, though" he whispered smugly as his hands left her breasts to push her dress down. It plopped down at her feet with a brushing sound and she stepped out of it as Brick took it up, putting it delicately on the seatback of a kitchen chair.

When he turned, he noticed that Blossom had zipped to take his working jacket from the hanger and had put it on, looking at him with her cheeks completely flushed.

"There's nothing I haven't already seen, you know that, right?" he asked her with a knowing grin.

"I know, b-but…!" she protested as she embraced herself in his jacket, the smell of cigarettes and aftershave filling her lungs.

Brick zipped rapidly towards the lights and turned them off, becoming a shadow in the darkness. "Is it better now?"

"Y-yeah…" she whispered as she felt him reach for her; his hands slid underneath the jacket, wandering along her naked body covered only by her lace panties and she held onto his black shirt, slowly unbuttoning it before realising he was still wearing his necktie.

"I hate this thing… even though he looks hot on you, it reminds me of a collar…" she snickered as she started loosening it.

"I hate it too. And I don't need this shit to look hot, I always am" he whispered in her ear as he slipped a hand in her panties, caressing slowly her already wet flesh. "And you seem to know it well."

"Mh, yeah…" she squirmed against his chest as she felt his fingers skilfully probing her most hidden part.

His other hand went to his loosened tie, taking it off as he let it slide along his neck. "But it can be useful" he whispered mischievously.

His hand abandoned Blossom's panties and she sensed that Brick's tone in his voice. The tone he would have when he was up to something wicked. He suddenly pushed her down on the chaise lounge part of the sofa, leaning on her, letting his jacket slide off her shoulders and leaving her naked body completely exposed; he then took both her wrists and put it over head, quickly tying them together with his necktie.

"Brick…" she reprimanded him, giving him a jokingly warning look through the dim light which was entering from the wall windows by their side.

He only replied with a lustful leer, his confident grin leaving her no escape. His eyes glinted with a dimmer crimson light which made her shiver in anticipation. She suddenly felt like a prey with nowhere to run. She looked at his hunter taking his shirt off and unbuckling his belt as he bent on her, blocking her tied wrists with a hand over her head, using the other as leverage. He then kissed her, the way he knew she liked it, slow and intense at the beginning, wild and deep as they went on and their bodies started to need to be attached to each other.

Ow, she loved kissing Brick. He made her feel so full, so hot, so… alive. After Brick's disappearance, she had tried to go out with that Finnish exchange student. He had kissed her one day and the experience had been so awful that it had almost traumatised her. She had to keep repeating her first kiss with Brick in her mind to send away the feeling that having a boyfriend sucked. When he had finally kissed her again, she remembered why she loved kissing Brick. And their kisses danced in unison, as they had always known each other, as if they were meant to be like this forever, naked and together, his boiling hot skin against hers naturally colder, his perfect abs brushing and pressing down her body. She was the Commander and Leader, but she had to admit that she only wanted to stay under him in that very occasion. And that she wanted to stay with him. Of that, she was naturally sure. It wasn't just a teenage crush, she felt it deep within her soul. She and Brick were the same, and yet opposites; but they were undeniably connected to each other. Their souls were. Yes, she was sure of it. Brick was her soulmate.

Plus, he knew what and how to do it. She didn't really want to know why he was so good at sex, but she liked to think it had all been just training. On the other hand, she felt terribly clumsy in everything, but he didn't really seem to mind at all. He moved her the way he wanted to and he seemed to know better than her what she liked.

She moaned with a shudder as she felt his manhood brushing against her wet slit, beginning to press slowly to enter inside her. She threw her head backwards, moaning and twitching as she felt him filling her, sparks of pleasure shaking her stomach, her hips, her legs, which he had put to rest on his shoulders as he pushed himself deeper into her. Being unable to hug him made her feel somewhat frustrated; she tried to lift her hands but he promptly pushed them back on the sofa, leaning over her, whispering in her ear with a low, hoarse whisper "where are you running, Miss Commander and Leader?"

"Briiiiick!" she groaned, trying to free her wrists, but then he started to thrust inside her, his breath rapid and heavy, and all she could think of was trying to muffle the screams coming from her throat, but without her hands it was an impossible task.

In that position, also, she could feel Brick's thrusts pumping into her frenetically, shaking her body and her insides roughly, passionately, ferally. No, screaming was definitely the only option.

"Fuck" Brick growled lowly from the back of his throat and he bent down on her, grabbing her hips to pull her onto him with a straddle.

Her tied hands fell behind his neck as she tried to hug him closer, brushing her nose against his; being on top made her feel a bit uncomfortable, knowing she hadn't that much of experience, but she kissed him intensely as she felt his hands helping her down on him, his fingers guiding her hips to meet his thrusts. She moaned in his mouth, unable to hold back, a small stream of tears falling along her cheeks.

"So good… don't… stop…" she whimpered against his shoulder, causing a low growl to come from deep within his chest. He pushed her down again, this time letting her legs closed around him, burying himself completely into her, as she dug her teeth into his shoulder as she tried to suppress her cries. His rhythm increased, pushing into her harder, faster, tougher; until she couldn't take it anymore and, with her irises lighting up with a dim pink glimmer, she buried the loud scream of her climax against his shoulder, her body shaking and squirming against his; as she clenched around him, she felt him shudder and moan against her hair, his own pleasure releasing inside her.

Brick then slid his lips to her forehead, kissing it sweetly, and then down on her lips, for a quick peck, followed by an alluring smirk. "Again?" he breathed heavily.

"Again."

The night was going to be very long.


Blossom sighed as she looked down at her laptop. She felt Buttercup staring daggers at her back, sitting on her bed as she put on her nail lacquer at the other side of the room. Hanging from the closet, their dresses for the Prom were hanging, perfectly ironed and ready to be worn. Bubbles had already taken hers. The redhead decided to close her laptop and move to the kitchen's table, ignoring her sister's nasty stares. Buttercup was so mad at her and she knew she was right. She had desperately been trying to tell her about Butch for almost a month, about all the horrible things he had to suffer and she had just ditched her in every possible way; she had promised Brick to hear everything from him when the time was right, so she didn't really feel like breaking that promise. Buttercup had insulted her hard for that, accusing her of putting Brick before her own sisters. But she was right. That was what she was doing. She was being selfish. And she didn't feel like giving in.

Blossom sat at the kitchen's table and put down her laptop, opening it in front of her pink eyes. She had to choose what to do with her future. It was May already. School was practically over and the Senior Ball was that evening. Everyone was waiting for her decision: which university will she be choosing? She already had. Stinford was the choice. Excellent university, not even an hour from Townsville. She could commute every day and never leave her hometown. Still. She looked at the blank form in front of her eyes. The title of the object said: "Deferral of enrollment". And then she felt it. Again. Throbbing in her chest, taking her breath away for a second. That familiar feeling she had always had with her since her birth. At the beginning, when she was just a child, she believed it was just a strange feeling everybody would experience sometimes. As she grew up, she had started to realise that it was something unique. Something she alone possessed. A kind of special superpower of hers? She couldn't really tell. It was a strange feeling, halfway between nausea and a sudden throb of anxiety. An omen that would start to clench her chest whenever something important was about to happen. She had felt it clearly a few hours before the boys were created by Mojo Jojo for the first time. It had happened some time before facing Him for the first time. Before the appearance of that giant monster that had destroyed a good part of Townsville and they had risked to be defeated. The time the boys had been resurrected by Him. When she was in middle school, that omen had made her so self-aware that as soon as she had noticed the Professor stumbling with a heavy breath, she had immediately taken him to hospital, saving him from an imminent heart attack.

She had felt it again as soon as Brick had zipped away from her, after that first fateful kiss.

And there it was again. Stronger than ever. Her omen. Screaming inside her chest two simple words: don't go.

She took a deep breath and then closed her laptop, rubbing her eyes.

She could wait.

She had to wait.

That feeling of uneasiness told her so. And she wanted to trust it as she always had.

In that moment, she heard Bubbles finally going out of the bathroom. She looked somewhat pale and tired, even though she had spent hours putting on her make-up and adjusting her Prom dress. Blossom goggled at her dress: a royal blue satin long dress, with a sweetheart neckline highlighting her prosperous bosom. Simple spaghetti straps held up her breasts while a strip of cloth right under the bosom helped in underpinning it. A thigh-high slit on the soft, wide skirt generously showed her left leg and her high heeled stiletto shoes, made of silver glitter.

"Erm… where are you going?" she asked, looking at her sister suspiciously.

"To take my Prom Prince" the blonde replied with a lot of self-confidence, a light fire of the good ol' hardcore Bubbles burning in her eyes.

"Isn't he coming here to pick you up…?" Blossom asked her with a worried smile.

"I don't want him to meet Brick. SO I'm going to meet him at his apartment" she said as she gave herself a last look in the mirror.

"And you!" Bubbles suddenly turned towards her sister, pointing a finger at her and giving her a menacing hardcore stare "You better talk to Brick and force him to tell you the truth and then ask BC for forgiveness. TONIGHT. Okay?!"

"O-Okay…?" Blossom almost flattened against the table, intimidated.

"Good girl" Bubbles nodded, before zipping towards the door, her dress fluttering behind her.

"Poor Boomer" Blossom chuckled lightly and then sighed as she threw her head back, against the seatback of the chair. "A blue dress… Boomer's colour. And a very sensual one. She's really gone hardcore, mh?"


Boomer coughed a little as he looked himself in the mirror. He had opted for a navy-blue suit with black trim, blue bow tie and black shirt. Black like his mood. He was feeling like shit. It wasn't what he wanted, not what he expected it to be. Their last year prom. He and Bubbles had been crowned Prince and Princess of the Prom the previous year and it had been an amazing night. Their first time too.

The next month, his brother was gone. And all that nightmare had started.

He punched the wall suddenly, creating another crack to be added to the series he and his brothers had made during the years spent in their shabby apartment.

"Shit…" he mumbled to himself, running a hand through his perfectly combed hair.

He couldn't understand what was wrong with him. Butch had told him the whole story, had taken on himself the blame for silencing Bubbles and still he couldn't help but feel betrayed. Feel guilty. Maybe he could have helped him. Maybe… if she had told him…

And then, he intended to play hard to get at the DolceFragola when he had seen her with Robin. He wouldn't have imagined her reaction, her refusal to go back with him. He had been such a jerk. He had tried to call her twice, but she hadn't answered her calls. But that was what he had wanted, right?

What did he want for real?

When two weeks before he had seen that fucking jerk of Joey Finklemeyer asking Bubbles if she wanted to go to the Prom with him, he hadn't been able to resist the urge to zip right between them to stop him. Joey had babbled embarrassedly that he thought that they had split up and they had looked at each other, without knowing what to say. Boomer had simply replied "I'm taking her to the Ball" and that was it. He and Bubbles hadn't texted to each other for the whole two weeks until yesterday when she had written him that she would be coming to his apartment on her own, to avoid putting him in any unpleasant situation.

In that moment, he heard her knocking on the door and he was shaken off his thoughts. He cleared his throat as he nervously adjusted his bow tie and then moved towards the entrance. He opened the door of his apartment slowly and he almost got a heart attack.

Wow.

She was gorgeous and…sexy. A whole different story from the previous year's pale blue princess dress. And her hair wasn't tied up in an intricate hairstyle like the other Prom, but they were let down on her shoulder, a golden cascade of blond waves, with only a half messy bun combing her upper hair back. He gulped nervously.

"Hi Boomer" she greeted him, forcing a tense little smile.

"Hey Bubbles…" he smiled softly "…you truly look gorgeous. I can't lie."

She stiffened at hearing those words, shooting him a shocked look, to which he immediately replied.

"No, no! I didn't mean it to be a gibe… you know… I just wanted to… compliment you and…" Boomer exhaled with exhaustion "I'm a mess. I'm sorry, Bubbles."

"It's okay. You look handsome too." she answered in a low voice. "Can I come in?"

"Sure" he gestured the inside of the apartment, letting her in as he closed the door behind their backs, mentally insulting himself for being a jerk.

He wanted to break the silence and say something else, but he needed a moment to concentrate. He felt that the tension between them could only become worse if he only opened his mouth again. They hadn't talked or been alone for weeks and the awkward situation was killing him.

"Boomer" he jumped as he heard her speaking first. Her voice low, her eyes low, her body tense. He hated that situation. He hated it. "I'm sorry for what has happened with Butch. I truly am. I don't know if I have acted in the correct way but… it's too late to think about it now" she stopped, her teary eyes meeting his "But I swear I won't be lying to you ever again. I've been missing you terribly these days…" she mumbled, her voice broken "…but the reason why I told you those things that day in front of the DolceFragola and the reason why I've been avoiding you ever since… it was because… that day, Ace told me that Devon Darwin wanted to see me and that, if I refused, I would have put you in danger."

"What…? What the fuck does he want from you, that son of a bitch?!" Boomer flinched as he heard her words. A crushing sense of nausea pressed against his chest as he worriedly looked at her.

"I have no idea, because I decided not to meet him whatsoever. I told Ace that if Darwin wanted to have anything to do with me, he should've told Blossom. On the other side, I don't know what to do with that threat to you. I've been thinking of telling Brick, but then again, I didn't want to worsen the things between us." A small tear slid from the angle of her eye, but she quickly and carefully dried it, careful not to ruin her make-up. "So, here I am, telling you the truth. I'll act as you want me to do… Boomie. I won't lie to you ever again."

Boomer gritted his teeth as a mix of feelings overwhelmed his chest, but as he looked at her, at his beautiful, innocent angel crying in front of him, there was only one thing that crossed his mind.

"I want you to stay with me. Forever." He said suddenly, taking aback not only her, but himself as well. He sighed and took her hand to kiss it sweetly.

"B-Boomie…" she gasped as she closed her hand around his.

"I can't keep feeling frustrated and denying what I really feel inside forever. Yes, I was deeply hurt because to me, you're the most important person in the world, together with my brothers. And I really felt betrayed by all three. But I get that you were all just trying to protect me… and I'd probably have done the same for you, Bubbles. I'll do anything to protect you, just like Brick is doing all sorts of absurd things probably just to keep us all safe" he smiled at her, sweetly bringing her hand on his heart, over his shirt. "I'm yours Bubbles, I'll forever be. I don't know what kind of life I'll be able to give you, but I'll do anything to make you happy."

Bubbles's eyes filled with tears again and she couldn't help but latch her arms around his neck, with a little whimper.

"I don't know if my words make sense to you, Bubbles. But that's what I want. And I want our families to be happy. I don't know what that Darwin is plotting, but I'm convinced that we should face this problem together. All the six of us. Dividing us has been his main strength. Let's bring that shithead down, this time as a team." He smiled as he kissed her head sweetly. "Tonight I'll tell Brick everything. Maybe I'm just being naïve… but after all, I'm the dumber than the dumbest!"

"Oh Boomie… I think your idea is the best one. And I'm sure Brick will listen, because I think he must be exhausted by the whole situation at this point" she smiled as she tried to dry her eyes and save her perfect make-up. "He needs the back-up of his family."

"Yeah. He'll probably know why Darwin wanted to see you" Boomer added, still worriedly ruminating about it.

"I'm pretty sure he just sees me as the weak link of the group and wanted to try to use me. But he's wrong" she smirked delightfully as she leant closer to him, her forehead brushing against his.

"Oh, he can't even imagine how much" he smiled as he gave her a sweet kiss.

It remained sweet for a very brief moment, because after all that time without her, that kiss had a somewhat intoxicating effect. He felt the need to deepen their contact by letting his tongue slide sweetly against her lips, which parted immediately to let him enter her mouth in a familiar yet passionate encounter. Their tongue knew each other too well and their lips had been starving for their kisses. His arms wrapped around her waist briskly, bringing her into an almost painful hug.

"Mhh… Bubbles…" he mumbled against her lips "…we should stop otherwise…"

"Otherwise…?" she smiled naughtily as she bit his lower lip.

"Otherwise, my brand new trousers might explode" he huffed as his hands pressed against her bottom, pushing his erection against her thigh.

"You know why I decided to change model of dress so drastically this year?" she murmured in his ear "Because this one is much easier to take off".

"I don't know if I can be so patient" he murmured gravelly as he pushed her against the kitchen island – the only table in that small flat.

Boomer brushed his lips against the skin of her shoulder, letting the thin strap fall along her arm, and then his head plunged between her soft breasts as his hands reached to massage them with slow movements. Bubbles moaned loudly, throwing her head back, as Boomer lowered the other strap too, leaving her breasts completely exposed to his ravenous touch.

"Boom..ie…" Bubbles whimpered as she felt him kissing her nipples greedily, playing them with his tongue as he fondled them with his hands.

She let her hand slip on his crotch, the fabric stretched against his erection; just with a light caress, Boomer squirmed with a suffered moan.

"Bubbles…" he almost roared as she jumped off the table, turning her back against him as she lay on the counter, raising her butt as she tried to pull up the skirt of the dress.

He eagerly helped her, lifting up the fabric to reveal her sexy blue lace panties.

"I like this colour" he whispered in her ear as he unzipped his trousers, pushing her down towards the counter. "You look good in blue…" he whispered as he licked her naked spine, making her whimper.

"Mh… thanks… Boomie…" she moaned as she felt his fingers playing with her clit, caressing her already soaking wet slit.

"And I'm sure…" he rasped as he put his hands on her hips, holding her still as he rubbed his erection against her sweet spot, ready to enter her "…that blue looks good in you."


Buttercup blew out the last puff on her cigarette before putting it off. She was sitting on the edge of the roof of the school building, watching all her schoolmates coming inside all dressed-up and smiling. She looked around with a grimace: what the fuck was she doing at the Senior Ball? Wearing that stupid one-shoulder velvet short dress made her feel uncomfortable. She wanted it short because well, in case of fight she needed to be able to move freely. Her sisters insisted for it to be bodycon and she agreed, it definitely made her body stand out. Also, her legs looked a little longer in it, whereas long dresses made her feel like a garden gnome. But what was the sense of it, if Butch wasn't there with her? All that make-up and frill just to show off in front of her friends?

But he had so insisted in her going to the Prom, because it would have been the last of her life. They had skipped the one of the previous year – she had left Blossom all on her own – because he had asked her to spend the night together smoking weed, drinking and watching the stars and she had agreed. She couldn't have imagined that he was plotting to rob a bank the next day with the Greengang.

So, probably he was somewhat feeling guilty about that and wanted her to enjoy at least this year. Even though Blossom wasn't alone this time since she had made her entrance together with Brick, shocking basically everyone – what was that sudden coming out in public?!

Buttercup snorted once again and decided not think about what the fuck her stupid sister was doing with that shithead of her maybe-boyfriend.

Commander and Leader my ass.

She just wanted to hide in her car and spend the rest of the night in the parking, but her car…

Butch had said he was considering going to the Ball of his own Citiesville school too, and that made her feel a fit of wrath in her stomach, even though they had agreed on going on their own, without partners, but still. She had to lend him her car for the occasion, too, because he insisted so much. If he only dared to bring another girl in her own car…

What the fuck is wrong with me.

She practically roared out in a fit of stress and decided it was time to make her appearance in that shitty ball, just to see Brick and Blossom pasted together, a public middle finger to Mr Devon Darwin. Or maybe not.

Buttercup floated quietly on the roof towards its back, so that she could see the backside school garden as she watched Brick silently leaving the gym where the party was being held, quickly zipping towards a shadowy corner. She held her breath when she saw Ace coming out of the shadows, handing Brick a red piece of paper folded in two. She sharpened her hearing as much as she could to grasp what they were murmuring to each other and she could only distinguish three words: Reagent X… warehouse… believe…

She flinched as a heavy breath escaped her lungs. She immediately crouched down because she was sure Brick had heard her. She managed to reach the party just in time as she saw with the corner of her eye that Brick had zipped on the rooftop, probably checking if someone had been there spying on him.

And she most definitely had.


Blossom was exiting the decorated entrance of the gym when she met Buttercup, right in front of her.

"Commander and Leader" she greeted her drily.

"Buttercup…" she sighed, her face showing all her regret. She didn't like being in bad terms with either of her sisters.

"Where's your boyfriend?" Buttercup asked her, crossing her arms defiantly.

"He went out for a smoke" she replied with a serious gaze, not ready to give in to her sister's provocation.

"Oh, really? How nice. It must be lovely being there with your boyfriend, you know, the Senior Ball, dancing together…"

"Stop it, Buttercup. First of all, he's not my boyfriend…"

"Well, fuck buddy, whatever."

"He's not my…!" Blossom flushed, taking her sister by her arm and dragging her as they withdrew in a corner of the garden. "Buttercup, I know you may be annoyed by the situation but…"

"But what? Weren't you supposed to be super secretly fuck friends? What about his best friend the holy Mayor?" she almost roared like an enraged tiger.

"Buttercup. He has permission to be there with me. He told Darwin it's to keep an eye on us…"

"As if Darwin is really buying his shit anymore. C'mon!"

"Buttercup… I know you're angered because Butch can't be here tonight, but—"

"You don't even know why he can't be here with us! You don't know a shit about what has happened to him and yet you're here drooling all over Mr Double Agent over there—"

"Buttercup. That's enough" suddenly his low, calm, menacing voice echoed behind their backs, getting them both goosebumps. It was one of the strange effects of Brick's voice, especially when he was upset: it was… naturally intimidating.

Blossom saw her sister turning towards him and approaching him cockily, a smug grin on the corner of her mouth.

"Hello Mr Bludgeoner" she said arrogantly as she took the rims of his jacket's roll lines, fixing them jokingly. Buttercup then poked at the pink flower in Brick's breast pocket, the same as Blossom's corsage on her wrist, fixing it too inside the pocket with delicate movements. "Beautiful choice of vegetables" she smirked, defiantly.

Brick slapped her hands away from himself with annoyed wham, glaring at her with a menacing look. "Buttercup, get ahold of yourself" he scorned at her, his tone harsh. "I know you're hurting for Butch, but I'm doing what I can to help him. Believe me."

"Yes, when exactly? Before or after banging my sister? Or is banging her part of your great plan to help Butch?"

"Buttercup, that's enough!" Blossom intervened, pushing her sister away from Brick. She could feel the tension between them growing too much.

"He's my brother. Stay the fuck out of it" Brick hissed eventually at Buttercup, getting away from her and glancing at Blossom. "I'll be waiting inside." He whispered harshly before leaving the two sisters alone.

"Butter—"

"I'm going for a walk" Buttercup hissed back, as she turned her back with her fists clenching, before she rushed towards the exit of the school.


He was trying his best to "smile" – not to sulk at least – and act as if the night could go flawlessly, but inside he was raging. Not only because of Buttercup's tantrum, but especially because of Ace.

Brick snorted deeply as he lent against the wall of the gym, his hands in his pockets, nodding towards Blossom every time she turned to give him worried glances. She was talking with Robin and Mike Believe and a group of her friends in the middle of the dancefloor, but he had decided that participating in the social life was a bit too much. Being there was already something he had never imagined he could do. But the previous year he had been eaten alive by guilt at his denial of admitting he wanted to bring Blossom to the Prom and not bringing her had been one of the things he – incredibly – regretted the most. Love was such a pain in the ass.

So there he was, wearing his best suit, his favourite red shirt and without any necktie – he had categorically refused to wear one on his free time. And Blossom was gorgeous that night, her pink dress practically shining on her, her long hair half braided on her head and then combed in a low tail that made her hair fell on her shoulder in a stream of waves. The only thing ruining her look was her half worried half sad expression. It shouldn't have been that way. He had to tell everything sooner, he knew that. At least, to make her solve her problems with Buttercup. But he had hesitated because he felt he was close, so close – so close to that fucking Reagent X. But Darwin's strange accommodating behaviour when he had told him he would be accompanying Blossom to the ball and then the recent meeting with Ace had made Brick's beliefs crumbled down.

Ace. That dumbass was a mystery. A wild card. He had to be in a very similar position to his own and he had to know it very well. They both had found themselves trapped in Darwin's scheming just to protect their brothers and they both had done some dirty work for the Mayor. When Ace had called him a few minutes before, asking him to meet him in the garden, Brick was left dumbfounded. He had met him and Ace had simply handed him that red note.

"This is what you've been looking for."

"…Reagent X?"

"An entire stock. In the warehouse by the Stadium."

"You truly believe I'd go there? This sounds like a nice big trap."

"You decide, big boss."

"Why'd you give this to me in the first place?"

"Just as I said brah, you decide whatdya do with that red thing".

And he had left. Why help him in the first place? Nah, that sounded like a total trap. A trap set especially for him. And if they were trying to get rid of him, that meant that Darwin had decided Brick's time with him was officially over.

Fucking hell.

He knew the Professor was right; he didn't have to get involved with Blossom so much. Now all his efforts were being blown away. An entire year of suffering gone wasted.

Super fucking hell.

Suddenly, he flinched as he felt a light touch on his shoulder and then he turned to meet Bubbles and… Boomer. He hadn't seen him in forever.

"Hey bro" the blond smiled at him, reaching out with his hand towards Brick.

Brick closed his hand around his forearm, greeting him back, biting his lower lip. "You look great, Boom."

"Yeah, you too. Too sulky for a Prom, maybe."

"Just smile more, you're here with my sister and she's absolutely stunning!" Bubbles thrilled out loud so that Blossom could hear in the middle of the dancefloor; in fact, she did and she zipped quickly towards the small group.

"Bubbles!" Blossom reprimanded her, her cheeks flushed.

"But it's true Blossy, you're a total hottie tonight!" she embraced her tightly; she seemed to be in a good mood.

"Ow, such a lovely family reunion. I've been longing so long for this!" suddenly said a boy behind their backs.

They all turned to meet this strange guy, wearing a very anonymous black suit; his long, brown hair totally looked fake and… he was wearing sunglasses. In the middle of the night.

"Just who…" Boomer asked as he looked at the dude with a disgusted frown.

Here it was. The final disaster of the night. The cherry on top of his disasters.

"Oh, for hell's sake… Butch, what the fuck are you doing here?!" Brick barked at his disguised brother.

Boomer, Bubbles and Blossom all flinched in surprise – how could they be so dense?!

"Yes, it's nice to see you too Brick!" Butch laughed lightly as he adjusted his sunglasses on the nose.

"Oh, bro!" Boomer embraced him.

"Yo, dimwit, how's the party been without me?" Butch hugged him back.

"Butch, you shouldn't be here!" Blossom exclaimed in a low voice, her tone alarmed.

"Naaaah, don't worry, nobody will notice me!" he replied smugly.

"Yeah, totally unnoticeable" Brick snorted as he rubbed his temples.

"Where's Butters? I've planned all of this just to surprise her!" Butch added, looking around himself with an amused smirk. "I'd also forced her to lend me her car!"

"Oh, we've seen her when we've arrived at the party" Boomer said.

"Yes, she was reading a strange little red note just outside the gates. She said she was going to be back soon." Bubbles added, thoughtfully.

"A WHAT?!" Brick winced as he started searching nervously inside his breast pocket. The red note Ace had given him had disappeared. "THAT LITTLE… FUCK!"

"Brick, what's the matter?!" Blossom asked, instantly alarmed.

"We gotta go. NOW!" he commanded, zipping outside the building, immediately followed by Blossom.

Bubbles, Boomer and the disguised Butch all exchanged a puzzled look.

"Boomer, you gotta give me a lift" he said to his brother.


Bubbles, Boomer and Butch landed a few moments later than Brick and Blossom, who were arguing about what was going on.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?!" Blossom shouted at him, nervously.

"Care to update us?" Boomer frowned.

"Buttercup has taken that red note from my pocket, but I'm pretty sure it's a trap set by Darwin" Brick curtly explained as he quickly looked around himself "WHERE THE FUCK IS THE WAREHOUSE BEHIND THE STADIUM?!"

"If it's the one where they stock the shit for the great events, it's just th—" Butch started to explain, but he couldn't finish his sentence because a big explosion shook the air and the ground, right behind their backs, and an echo of screams and yells started to arrive from the stadium right nearby the detonation.

Brick zipped as fast as he could towards the smoke of the conflagration, followed by the others, and landed in front of the ablaze warehouse.

"BUTTERCUP!" Blossom screamed, ready to throw herself into the fire, but Brick stopped her with his arm.

"I'm going in. You stay here, you'll ignite instantly with this dress. Just blow the fire out from outside!" Brick told her, before launching himself into the flames without waiting for a reply.

"BUTTERS!" Butch shouted, ready to follow his brother inside, but Boomer and Bubbles stopped him.

"Where the fuck you think you're going?! You're powerless!"

"I KNOW, BUT—"

"Powerless…?" Blossom replied in a whisper.

Bubbles looked at her seriously and nodded slowly. "Darwin took his powers away. You'd know if you only had listened to BC."

Another small explosion from the inside made them all flinch and Blossom drew a deep breath, blowing iced air against the blaze, putting it out at the least in the frontal part.

After a few minutes, Brink zipped outside the fire, holding Buttercup in his arms. His jacket and trousers were a little burnt up, while Buttercup was copiously bleeding along her left leg and from the right shoulder.

Brick put her down in front of the others, holding her head up. "BC! Buttercup! Wake up!" he shook her lightly.

Buttercup opened her eyes, slowly, coughing a little. "It… was… a… trap… for Brick…"

"I know. That's why I wasn't planning on visiting!" he hissed at her.

"They… shot me…" she muttered, her face twisted in pain.

"You're not healing, though" Brick noticed as he looked at her injuries with a frown.

"Is it…?" Butch asked worriedly as he bent on her, caressing her hair back from her forehead.

"Yeah, looks like it" Brick replied, biting his lower lip. "We gotta take her to the Professor!"

"No, to the hospital!" Blossom panicked as she bent by her sister's side.

"No, they'll be looking for us, I'm afraid" Brick said seriously "We gotta hide to a safe place."

"But…"

"No buts, Blossom. This is a fucking declaration of war, you get it?!"

"Brick…" Buttercup held her closed fist up towards him, opening slowly her palm to reveal a small bullet in her hand. Her palm was deeply bruised, but the bullet seemed to be intact. The main body of the bullet was transparent and a red liquid was dancing inside the pod. "Is this… what… you were… looking for…?"

"Holy fuck, BC" Brick took the bullet delicately in his hands as he kindly left Buttercup in her sister's arms "…good job" he whispered as his eyes sparkled while looking at the red substance inside the bullet.

"Make it count… shithead."

Even in my worst times

You could see the best of me

Flashback to my mistakes

My rebounds, my earthquakes

Even in my worst lies

You saw the truth in me

And I woke up just in time

Now I wake up by your side

My one and only, my lifeline


Hi everyone!

I know it's been a while, but it really took me quite a bit to write this chapter. I wasn't really convinced up to the last minute, but I think I made it work out somehow. Well, the first part is somewhat PWP but well, these sweethearts got so little action in the last chapter that I needed to give them some in this one.

Hope to hear your opinions about it 3

To the next update!