The gang returned to the dorms, and Blake immediately crawled into her bed after getting back to the room. She wasn't particularly tired, but she wanted some time to just lay there and think about what she planned on saying to Weiss, and how exactly to say it more than anything. She had her book open to make it look like she was reading, as well as to stop the flow of questions coming in from her teammates about how she could lay there doing nothing all afternoon. Yang had returned from the library already, saying she'd gotten bored, which gave Blake the idea of going and talking to Weiss now. The library would be a nice, quiet place where they could talk in private, it seemed perfect.
"I'll be back. I'm going to check out a new book in the library," Blake said after a long while, finally getting out of her bed.
Ruby looked over, confused, "Really? Didn't you just get that one last night?"
"Yeah, but um... it's not as good as I thought it would be."
"If you're sure," Ruby shrugged. "Hey, maybe while you're there you can ask Weiss for some study help. I saw you didn't do too well in some of your finals last semester."
"I suppose that couldn't hurt," Blake said as she started toward the door. "I'll see you guys later."
"Alright, have fun!" Yang called out as Blake closed the door behind her.
I really hope I will, Blake thought as she started the walk across campus. It was a beautiful day out, which gave her a bit of a boost as she rounded the corner and entered the library. Okay, if I were Weiss, where would I be?
Her search didn't take long, and she found Weiss sitting alone at a rather secluded table near the back of the east wing. She took a deep breath and started to walk over. She hadn't had one on one time with Weiss after the team had found out about her being a Faunus, and while Weiss had seemed to be alright with it after the incident at the docks, Blake was still afraid there would be some awkwardness between them. With that in mind, she wanted to act as well behaved as possible to keep Weiss in a good mood. After all, the subject she was about to delve into could have some pretty nasty consequences if things didn't go according to plan, or weren't handled with the appropriate care.
"Hey, Weiss," Blake warmly greeted her before taking a seat at the table. "How's studying going?"
"Um... alright I guess?" Weiss replied with a quizzical expression. "You seem rather... happy. Not that that's a bad thing, but you've been acting very moody lately."
Blake shrugged, "Well, it's hard to stay that way when it's such a nice day out. But anyway, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind going over some stuff from last semester with me?"
Weiss' surprise only grew, "Really? You're coming to me for help?"
"Well... yeah," Blake said shyly. "You're the smartest person I know."
"Oh, well... thank you. I suppose I can lend a hand. What class are you reviewing for?"
"Professor Oobleck's."
Weiss rolled her eyes, "Maybe if you didn't spend every class doodling in your notebook you'd know more about what's going on."
Blake ignored the comment and got straight into reviewing the material. In truth, she had struggled a lot with Oobleck's class, so getting a little extra help now was actually needed. After about fifteen minutes though she was starting to get a little restless, and decided to take Pyrrha's advice and test the waters. She let Weiss get back to her own study material for a few minutes to build up an awkward silence that she was more than happy to break when she felt that enough time had passed.
"So Weiss, any guys grabbing your attention lately?" she asked, taking Weiss by surprise.
"I beg your pardon?" the heiress asked. "What brought that up?"
Blake shrugged, "I dunno, just girl talk. We never really hang out, so I figured why not? So, any special guys? Or girls?"
"Excuse me? What do you mean girls?"
"I mean exactly that. I didn't want to assume anything, just in case."
"Oh," Weiss replied, giving her a somewhat sceptical look. "Well, if you must know, I don't have time to worry about things like relationships right now. School is simply too important to lose focus on, especially with classes starting up so soon."
Well... I guess that's not a no on liking girls... Maybe she's not interested in relationships now, but that would mean I could have a shot once the semester gets underway and calms down .
"Fair enough, I suppose," Blake replied. "Although you can't spend every waking moment studying, as much as I'm sure you'd like to. So... just out of curiosity, you never said no to being into girls."
Weiss shot her a glare, "Of course I'm not into girls! That's just... wrong!"
Blake's face instantly fell, and she felt a darkness rushing through her body at the heiress' outburst. It had been the response she'd expected from the start, and even though she'd tried to prepare herself for it, it still hurt more than she imagined it would. The sheer revulsion to the idea was also equally as painful.
"Oh, alright..." she said quietly, looking down at the table. "I didn't know you felt that way about it..."
"Wait, are you...?" Weiss asked, and Blake nodded. "Oh, I um... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—"
"It's fine," Blake interrupted, quickly standing up. "I'll let you get back to studying. Sorry to disturb you."
Weiss frowned, already wishing she could take back what she'd said, "Wait, I didn't mean it like that!" Blake didn't stay to hear what Weiss said next. She took off running, and didn't stop until she reached the campus gardens. She sat down on a bench behind the cover of a few pine trees and started to cry. In the far back of her mind there was a small relief in the fact that Weiss' comment about her sexual preference is what looked to have triggered this episode, but that was of little comfort right now.
I can't... I... Fuck! In two sentences she crushed any idea of us ever getting together. Shattered it like a fucking pane of glass... I guess that's why we call her the ice queen... Damn it, why did I listen to Pyrrha? I don't feel like I have closure, I feel... hopeless...
"Blake?" a small voice said off to her right, making her jump. She turned with watery eyes to see Weiss walking over to her. "Look, I'm sorry about what I said. I didn't know. Are you alright?"
Blake nodded and wiped her eyes as Weiss sat down beside her, "Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry about it, everyone's entitled to their opinion."
"Blake, I'm sorry," Weiss said sincerely, shifting awkwardly in her seat. "I have nothing against people who are homosexual, it's just... sometimes I say things I don't mean. My family is very conservative with their views on issues like this, it's just the way I was raised. It's the same reason I acted the way I did when we found out you were a Faunus. I'm sorry, I truly am. I didn't mean to offend you."
Wow, it would take something like this to actually get any emotions out of her. I can't be mad at her though, it's not her fault. And this is probably the only apology I'll ever get from her, so I may as well take it.
Blake smiled weakly, "No hard feelings." She opened her arms for a hug, and was surprised when Weiss willingly came in to give her one. She sighed with content as she savoured the moment, then took a deep breath through her nose and smiled at the smell of the heiress' vanilla scented shampoo. "Sorry I ran out like that. You're a good friend, and I shouldn't have overreacted. Anyway, I think I should head back to the room now. I'm guessing you want to get back to studying?"
Weiss shrugged, "Actually, I think I'm alright for now. Do you mind if I walk back with you?"
"Not at all," Blake replied as the two stood up and began their walk back to the dorm.
Okay, I guess it didn't turn out as badly as I thought it would. I think I might actually have that closure Pyrrha was talking about. Maybe I can actually start to get over her now. I wish I didn't have to... but... I guess some things just aren't meant to be.