Blossom had arrived at Concrete Rose Studios at 10 am, well before dress time. Over the past two weeks, she and Brick had been working diligently to finalize the details for the photoshoot. With her being a model and employee, she wanted to be there early to make sure everything was good to go for the day. All models have been informed of the requirements upon arrival. Dress comfortably, come plain, be prepared to listen, and have no social media or personal photos. Kamari had flown in yesterday to make the shoot, so no stand-in models were needed. Blossom wondered how Brick would fare being in the campaign and running the shoot. She strolled into his office with her clipboard.
"All sets are confirmed, and external locations are ensured to be discreet. A reminder email and text have been sent to all models. Hair and makeup will be here by noon, and the styling assistants are steaming the garments. All that's left is the photogra—" She finally looked up from her clipboard, and sitting across from Brick's desk was none other than Boomer Jojo.
She tried to stop the frost from slipping through her nostrils, she truly did. But fuck, he had two kids with her sister and she was the only one who picked up the pieces with her. Boomer was too flaky for her liking when it counted, and only for her sister's sake did she not maim him on sight.
"Blossom," Brick eased in, sensing the tension in the room. "You know my brother, Boomer." She released a curt hmmph. "He will be overseeing the shoot today since I'll be modeling. The company wanted someone who could be trusted to do the job, and well, he's got an artistic eye."
Her mask of professionalism was hanging on by a thread, and she knew her displeasure was visible given the way Boomer fidgeted in his chair and failed to meet her gaze.
"Welcome to the team, Boomer." She said with more callous than a true welcome. She shifted her attention to Brick. "Is there anything you need me to do?"
Communication between them had been tense and objective. They were the epitome of progress, but the air was thick with their last interaction. The two were sticking to Blossom's plan of distance. Her with feigned disinterest and Brick with thinly veiled disdain.
"When hair and makeup get here, I want you in the chair first. After that, BC and Princess, then everyone else. Don't let them get too crazy with the look; this is about the clothes." His tone was didactic, but this is what worked for them.
"Why not have the brides go first?" She inquired, scribbling the order on her clipboard.
"Because I need you," his facade crumbled slightly, and Blossom gripped her clipboard tighter. Brick had a way of saying things in a certain vibrato that shook her to her core and settled like the weight of hot rocks against her spine, startling her, melting her, and aligning her. She didn't even know if he did it on purpose or if it was these frivolous moments that made the sensation so raw. An innate reaction to him regardless of the circumstances. She hated it.
"If your hair and makeup are done, you'll be more able to assist the shoot. I would've got you a stand-in for this, but it appears we've run out of members in the inner circle." He nodded to Boomer, the last person guaranteed to keep their mouth shut about the campaign.
"Right, well, they'll be here in thirty minutes, so I'll make myself useful." She stalked out of his office and narrowly succeeded in not slamming the door shut.
She headed for the break room and leaned against the counter, holding the coffee pot. She didn't need the stains on her teeth before the shoot, and she certainly didn't need the caffeine for her nerves. She pushed away and sat at the circle table in the middle of the room ruminating over the clock. It was going to be a long day.
Hair and makeup went well, and it was nice to see everyone in one place after so long. Kamari and Princess shared a long embrace. The two had been a part for so long, and Kamari and Princess shared a good cry at the memory of Mari's late husband and Princess's cousin, Dom Louis. They decided to include a memorial table in his honor, as well as for other departed family members. BC vowed to include Bunny and her unintentional co-maker, Mojo Jojo, who passed after becoming tender to the girls in the face of his brain tumor.
"It's a shame he didn't let the Professor treat him after his first remission," Butch interjected. "But after those long treatments in Cityville, he simply didn't want to do the fight over."
Blossom pursed her lips, remembering a humble, drunken Saturday night/Sunday morning in her dorm where Brick confessed why he left Townsville Senior year. Mojo had been on the fritz back then, and it trickled into Brick's treatment of her. It wasn't until Mojo's diagnosis that Brick saw how his illness was affecting them all. It was a priority that Mojo got help, and he wanted to be there beside him. It was a lot to put on the girl who was struggling to uphold her queen bee status and their relationship. She and Brick locked eyes for a fleeting moment across the room.
Everyone was dressed to the nines in record time, and the shoot began at Concrete Rose on schedule. Boomer was unsurprisingly good. He and Bubbles did share undeniable artistic talent, but seeing him in work mode brought out a minute of respect for the Blue Ruff. He commanded the room and gave directions efficiently to achieve the best results. His coaching was understandable and innovative. He was encouraging as much as he was critical.
"Okay, I think I see it now," Blossom whispered into Bubbles' ear while they posed at the Centennial.
"Eyes off my man, bitch," she grits quietly through a smile as the camera flashed.
"Great emotion in the eyes, Bubs!" Boom critiqued. "Keep that up in this next shot."
Her favorite shoot location was The Basement. The location was nearly untouched by time and maintained the essence of their youth. The once plain concrete walls were now covered in graffiti from their last show. The rickety paint-splattered pallets were now nailed to the floor, a monumental centerpiece of the location. It was here where she could not deny Princess's talent and her thirst for freedom in a world that wanted to paint her a villain. She was proud to witness and be a part of it.
The final location was at Southside Park & Memorial. A monument to the (assumed) dead mogul of Townsville, Basilio Morbucks. Princess and BC posed in front of his statue, the golden hour illuminating their features and his bronze face. These were the most romantic of the shoots. Everyone was paired off with who they'd be walking with. Kamari and Butch, Bubbles and Mitch, Blossom and Brick. Kamari and Butch had undeniable chemistry. The two had begun to look cozy early on in the shoot, to everyone's surprise. True to her word, she married Princess's cousin the moment she turned 18, and the two fled Townsville and didn't look back. When she lost Dom two years ago, she swore she'd never find love again. Never say never.
Now, it was Blossom and Brick's turn to stand in the golden glow of romance, and Blossom was struggling to fight the look of apprehension on her face. To gaze at him lovingly meant she would require herself to look at him lovingly, and that was a gateway of emotions she was not willing to feel. She could look at him and remember every happy moment and everything sacred between them, but if she allowed that, then the memory of who she transformed into after his absence would follow right after. She could not look at him and show him exactly how he destroyed her. The pain he caused when he let her walk away.
"Oh, for fucks sake, this isn't working!" Boomer exclaimed with a rub of his temples. "You two look as in love as a pig and a butcher!" ("Hey!" Butch protested, barely audible from across the street.)
"Try to get your fucking shit together and then we'll regroup." He sneered before walking across the street to the others.
"Is it really that terrible to stand next to me, you can't even fake it?" Brick's defeated voice carried away from her direction as he made his way to the railing.
The park overlooked the river that flowed between Townsville and Cityville. The water was murky and slow, but during the light of the hour, it took on a beautiful golden hue. Because of her, they were missing a perfectly good shot. Dejected and guilty, she followed him and rested her head in his direction on her folded arms against the rail.
He was so handsome. His hair was perfectly tapered, and his beard was sharp and clean. His perked nose was littered with freckles; his bothered, thick brows pulled forward over his beautiful amber, downcast eyes. She knew the taste of his terse lips that were yanking a scowl. She could feel the rejection radiating off of him. This was his livelihood. A job that he expressed that he needed and was even grateful to her for, and here she was jeopardizing his career and her sister's wedding simply because she was afraid to feel. Afraid to be honest with herself and him. Yes, it was terrible. Because just standing next to him, having to look at him and not pretend, was a terribly brave thing to do. Was she a coward?
"It's terrible because when I stand next to you, I can't fake it." She admitted softly. He flicked his eyes in her direction then quickly back to the river.
"If only you knew how this time without you has truly been," her throat became tight, and she rapidly blinked away the tears forming in her eyes. No point in ruining good makeup before the shoot is over. "I can't look at you and feel that again."
"You blame me," he said, not as a question, more as acceptance. A silent defeat.
Blossom let out a shaky breath. "I miss you, but we're far from the people we used to be, and I can't go back to the past."
Brick straightened his back and turned to her fully. He looked at her openly. So much unsaid, yet so much felt in his crimson gaze full of questions, determination, and another word that fully embodies being seen and cared for by someone. A desire to read and annotate her unread chapters he could not be a part of yet played some part in the narration. He missed her, too. Not just the girl he knew but the journey of the woman he let walk out of his life. He didn't want to miss another second.
"But we're here now," he placed his left hand on the right side of her face, forcing her to fully rise and look at him. "And we're not the people we used to be. I've missed you; I miss you still."
She looked back at him, dazed, bottomless, and cracked open. A flawed dam, no match for the waves of emotions he brought out in her. Weak boundaries, like sand in a forest fire. Their feelings were way too deep not to sink in, like the iceberg to the Titanic. There was nothing less between them than terrible, brave disasters. A look that longs to hold onto each other.
The camera flashed, breaking the moment. "There it is!" Boomer exclaimed. "Now do you think you guys could do that again or—"
Blossom couldn't flee the scene fast enough. Her heart was racing, and she was struggling to catch her breath. She stumbled into the nearest location and headed straight for the bathroom. He was too much, she was too much, they were too much. Her heart couldn't take it to endure him over and over again. A feeling that swallows her whole, and leaves her no room to breathe in the pits of hell as she burns for him. Over and over again. To stand next to him isn't just terrible, it's torture. The good and the bad of the past all feel the same now.
"Blossom?" She hardly registered Bubbles' voice as she passed her on the way into the stall, but Bubbles saw her face.
She gripped Blossom's arms to keep her from fleeing and frantically looked over her shell-shocked, silently sobbing sister. Blossom was so deep in her thoughts she could barely register her emotions. "Blossom!" Bubbles repeated more alert now. "Tell me what's wrong!"
Blossom took in a shuddered breath and locked her eyes on Bubbles, returning to reality. She caught a glance of herself in the mirror next to her. The sleeves of her dress were askew; her hair was blown back by the wind in her haste, and her face and eyes were glassy and smudged with mascara running down her cheeks. She couldn't tell if she looked terrified or terrifying.
"Blossom!" Bubbles repeated again, bringing her sister back to earth once more. Then she broke.
She crumpled against the floor, and Bubbles sucked down with her. "I'm not brave!" Blossom wailed. "I can't do this; I don't want to feel. I don't want to love him anymore!" She gasped through the sobs wracking her body. "It feels like it's gonna kill me, make it stop, please. I can't do it anymore, Bubbles, make it stop!"
Bubbles pulled her sister in closer and wrapped herself tightly around her body, rocking slightly, gently kissing the top of her head. "I'm so sorry, Blossom," she whispered. "But I can't make it stop."
Blossom pulled out of her embrace with a pained expression. There was so much between them in that one look, in those few sentences, and the only thing she wanted was to not have to face whatever it was. There had to be a way to stop it. The feeling was too heavy, too unpredictable; it could lead her to ruin once more. She thought she had control of it but now…
Bubbles gently took Blossom's hands into hers and gave them a hard squeeze. "This isn't something you get to control, Blossom, and I know that's scary for you, but there's nothing any of us can do about it."
"I've wanted to choke this feeling out. Strangle it, suffocate it, but it breathes, Blossom. It beats, it marches, and I swear to you, it is the worst monster I've ever faced. I'm not hardcore enough for it. Sometimes you have to surrender. Love conquers all; you can't beat it."
Blossom hung her head in defeat but not yet willing to feel it. "What if I can't accept that?"
Bubbles let out a sigh. "In my experience, this monster will break every leash and chew any collar you try to put on it." She lifted her sister's chin. "If you try to tame it, it will eat you alive."
Blossom hiccuped and nodded forcefully, trying to wrap her mind around surrendering to her emotions and what that would actually look like. What course of action she needed to take to move forward with… well, she didn't know. She didn't know how to not plan for control over the situation.
"Ponder over what and what not to do later," Bubbles pulled her up off the floor. "We're in Raven's bathroom. BC and everyone are already downstairs, ready to tell everyone about the first iconic solo performance they had in high school. Pull it together, I'll see you down there."
Bubbles left the bathroom, and Blossom got started on doing just that. She dapped away the mascara and dropped cool water into her eyes to soothe the redness. In theory, she should feel more embarrassed. She ran away from her ex after she admitted to still having feelings for him. Definitely not something college her or even high school her would've done. The truth is up until she got her heart broken, she was never afraid of Brick Jojo. Now she was terrified of him, and she didn't know how to love him like this. Open, fluid. She was no longer in control of the situation. It's like she fell harder after he left. Maybe she was crazy, or if nothing else, fighting some kind of obsession. You're rationalizing your emotions, just feel them. Surrender. Her mind whispered to her, pulling out old notes from her psych class. If only it were that simple. How does one feel, and not think?
She exited the bathroom after cleaning up and made her way to the hidden cellar in the loved cafe. She did not frequent Raven's back then given its colorful clientele, but over the years the establishment was a pillar of culture in the Southside. She found her seat at a velvet-covered round table with the rest of the ladies in the campaign. BC and Princess held hands on stage, gazing lovingly (and sultry) at each other.
Princess dragged the vintage microphone in front of her. "This is where I realized I had lost my mind." She told the tale of the ages.
Thanks for reading!
*If you want to know the story of Raven's Cafe, read chapter 7 in my other fic of the same universe, Rotten Kingdom.