Bread And Citrus (ch2)

Just a quick note, right now it's summertime in the fic! Weiss is taking summer classes at her college, but Ruby and Yang don't have school. They're just doing some things for fun around town (ceramics and kickboxing, respectively).

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.

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							Chapter 2.

A typical day for Yang had usually consisted of stopping by the local bakery to pick up some snacks for herself and her little sister Ruby.

While Ruby was busy with her ceramic classes, Yang would head to the other side of town for kickboxing classes.

Yang was the one who passed by the old bakery and had always stopped in to purchase some cookies or brownies or whatever else Ruby might've requested that day. But after the old bakery had closed up and moved locations, there had been a devastating three entire days where Yang had come home to her little sister empty-handed.

They were forced to survive off the store-bought cookies their mother brought home, which weren't bad, but could never compare to freshly-baked.

And it also wasn't often their mother had the reason or ingredients to bake them cookies of her own; that was usually saved for special holidays or occasions.

Therefore, those past three days had been a little less sweet, until Yang had heard news about the other bakery in town. Hence why she had been the one to visit, despite the fact that it was on the opposite side of town from her kickboxing classes.

In truth, this other bakery was closer to Ruby's ceramic lessons building, but Yang had decided to walk the extra few blocks across town to see what this other bakery place was like.

And boy, had she been impressed.

The shop itself was a quaint little place, spotless, tranquil, and with the alluring scents of freshly-baked bread and cookies on the air. She was able to smell the place a block away as she'd headed there.

But the store and the extensive menu hadn't been the only things she was intrigued by.

Upon walking in, the girl behind the counter had made Yang freeze up a bit, but not in a bad way at all.

Her long hair was the purest ivory, her crystal-blue eyes like tiny pools of the sky itself, her welcoming smile enough to make Yang stutter and stumble over the words and structuring of basic speech.

She'd ordered food a million times before, in-person, on the phone, or however else, and Yang had never once suffered an issue in speaking to the other person.

But there was just something about this girl at the bakery that had struck a perfect chord.

Yang had never believed in the phrase 'love at first sight,' though, and even now, she told herself it was probably just all in her head.

And yet, the way she'd stumbled over her own two feet like a moron on the way out proved otherwise.

She'd been so flustered and embarrassed at herself that she'd hurried out of the shop without even looking back at the girl – if she had, Yang feared she would've revealed the heavy blush on her cheeks.

Even as she had hurried home that evening with the boxes of food in her arms, Yang's heart had been thumping, but not because of the physical exercise. She could tell this was for a different reason.

Upon arriving home, she'd been met with an exuberant Ruby who had jumped off the couch and squealed in excitement the second she'd smelled cookies. She'd hugged Yang and thanked her profusely and excitedly led her to the kitchen so they could have dinner with their parents, and then start on the desserts.

Yang had been a bit quieter than usual during supper, more focused on her own thoughts and daydreams.

And even as she'd laid down in bed that night after wishing Ruby sweet dreams, Yang's own dreams were filled with a white-haired girl.

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The next morning, as the sisters were preparing for their days, Ruby bumped Yang's hip with her own to get her attention.

"Hey, so I heard that new bakery place you went to is kinda close to my ceramic school," she said. "So if you want, just show me where it is and I can stop by from now on! I'd love to see it, and it'll be a lot easier if I'm the one going so you don't have to walk aaaall the way there from kickboxing."

Yang had been subconsciously dressing herself in one of her nicest shirts and a flattering pair of shorts when Ruby had spoken.

"Oh... um..." Yang cleared her throat and bashfully ran a hand through her hair as she desperately tried to come up with an excuse. "I, uh... I gotta go by that way to hit another shop today, so I'll go to the bakery again. It's no trouble, so don't worry about it, Ruby."

"You sure? Well, okay then! Just make sure you buy yourself an extra cookie as a reward for walking all that way!"

Yang's shoulders relaxed a little bit – she'd be able to stop by the bakery again today. She could only hope the same girl would be there behind the counter.

She was in the middle of spraying on a bit of perfume when her sister spoke up again.

"Um, Yang? Why are you putting perfume on before your kickboxing class?"

"Huh?" Yang looked down into her hand at the bottle and shook her head. "Oh, right." She gathered her bag of workout clothes that she would change into once she'd made it to the building, and instead slipped the perfume into that.

Ruby watched her with puzzled eyes.

"Yang? Are you feeling okay? Ever since last night, you've been a little... out of it."

"Who, me?" Yang chuckled. "I'm fine, I'm fine. Just a bit excited that we finally found this other bakery place to go to!" she declared.

She wasn't lying either, though Yang was excited for different reasons than just the food.

But as the person who was excited about the food, Ruby assumed her elder sister was too, and she felt she understood Yang's sudden ditziness.

"Ooooh, okay. Well, as long as you're not getting sick, that's good!"

Their mother called, and Ruby darted down the stairs for breakfast. Yang grabbed her bag and followed a bit more slowly, mumbling to herself.

"I think I am sick, Ruby," she admitted. "Totally lovesick."

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After breakfast, Yang and Ruby parted ways as they headed on their short walks to their respective classes.

Ruby met up with Blake, a classmate of Yang's during the school year, but a classmate of Ruby's during the summer. She took the ceramics lessons as well, and was a common guest at the Rose-Xiao Long household.

After Blake had greeted them good morning, Yang gave her a brief hello hug before seeing the two of them off together.

She felt a lot better in always knowing Ruby wouldn't have to walk by herself, and though Blake didn't always talk much, she was a good listener to every excitable thing Ruby had to say.

Yang herself headed off in the opposite direction for her kickboxing classes.

She passed an assortment of small shops along the way, including several delis, antique shops, and thrift stores. The air was warm again today, and the breeze of the passing cars was welcomed.

When she arrived at her building, Yang greeted her classmates and teachers before heading straight to the changing room.

She shed her nice clothes that she'd selected this morning, and folded them neatly before packing them away into her bag. She'd never been one to care much about appearances – people always just told her she was beautiful no matter what she was wearing.

But this was one of the first times Yang had deliberately gone out of her way to dress nicely, and in the back of her mind, she knew exactly why.

But she could think about that later.

For now, she changed into her workout tank-top and shorts, gathering her hair to tie it into a ponytail. Then, along with some of her female classmates like her friends Pyrrha and Nora, she headed to class.

The class was only an hour long, but after somewhat rigorous warm-ups and various, intense exercise routines,and  then the actual lessons themselves, Yang was always left a little breathless.

But as she limped back into the changing room to fish out her bottle of water and chug its contents down, she realized that now she'd be doing what she'd been anticipating all morning. With her class over, now she could head out.

She scarfed down a granola bar, eager to get going. In fact, she was so eager that she only bothered to eat half of it and stuffed the rest back into her bag so she could get moving sooner.

She was sure to deodorize thoroughly and wash her hands and face in one of the bathroom sinks. There weren't any showers here, but Yang would do the best she could to eliminate the sweat and grime of her workout.

Once she was satisfied, she peeled off her sweaty clothes and tossed them into her bag, now exchanging them for the softer, more comfortable materials of her yellow blouse and white shorts. She released her hair from its strangling prison and used a small hairbrush to smooth it out, untangling the knots to the best of her abilities. She spritzed on a bit more perfume before wishing her fellows goodbye and heading out.

By now, the sunlight was strong overhead, so Yang set a slower pace as to not make herself sweat again. She kept to the shady areas beneath the overhead balconies of the shops, and avoided the street and the dust that flew up from passing tires.

And even as she walked like this, she realized she had never been so mindful about walking home before in all her life.

Typically, she would trudge back with her hair still a mess and only try to straighten up a bit when she'd enter the old bakery to order some food.

But never before had she put in this much effort and perfume.

Who am I kidding? I've totally got the hots for that girl. And it's only been one day! Goddamn, I've got it bad...

She passed by the street that would've taken her home, and continued onward toward the newfound bakery. As she'd hoped, the same warm scent of bread reached her nose and filled her lungs.

She quickened her pace just a bit until the shop was in sight, its door wide open and welcoming her inside.

But before she entered, Yang paused again, reaching into her bag and pulling out her hair brush to smooth out her mane one final time, then spritzing a bit more citrusy perfume onto her collar.

At last, she straightened up and walked into the bakery.

Just like yesterday, there was no one else here in terms of customers, and Yang assumed this was a slower business hour, considering it was already after lunchtime now. The music was playing pleasantly, but there was no one behind the counter that she could see right away.

But as she stepped in and started walking toward the glass display cases to peruse the treats below, Yang noticed movement from behind the counter.

To her joy, the same girl from yesterday was there, standing up from a chair in a hurry as she put down what appeared to be a lunch bag. She swallowed quickly, coughing into her elbow a bit in her haste before she was sure to address Yang.

"Welcome to Schnee's Bakery. What can I get for you?"

Yang felt a lot of things in that simple instance when their eyes met.

First, there was the guilt at walking in on this girl when she'd been on her lunch break, and suddenly enough to almost make her choke.

Second, was the recognition of the other girl's voice, her captivating eyes, and her pretty face.

And thirdly was the giddiness that came when she realized this girl remembered her, too.

Yang's heart was already fluttering, and it took her a moment to speak, though it wasn't a reply to Weiss' automated, salesperson question.

"Uh, hi," the blonde said. "I'm here again today." Her eyes dropped just a few inches to look over the name tag on the girl's apron. "Weiss..." she mumbled under her breath. "How perfect."

But the other girl had thankfully only heard the first part of Yang' sentence.

"I can see that, " she said. "I'm glad you decided to visit us again. I'm sorry for prying, but are you quite sure you're alright? That was a rather nasty fall yesterday."

Yang felt the blood rush to her face instantly as the embarrassing memories were brought back to light. If there was any relief from it all, it was that Weiss wasn't mocking her about it – she was genuinely concerned that Yang had hurt herself.

"Uh, yeah. I'm all good, haha, don't worry," the blonde said. "I do kickboxing so a little fall like that was nothin'."

"Really now?" Weiss said, intrigued. "Kickboxing? That sounds awfully brutal. Did you just come from a lesson, if I may ask?"

Yang could tell the girl's curiosity was getting the better of her, and she was temporarily putting aside the formal lines of a salesperson to a customer to instead engage in casual conversation.

"Yeah," Yang nodded.

"And yet you look so nice," Weiss murmured.

Yang perked up at those words; Weiss had noticed all the effort she'd put into her appearance. For whatever reason, that made her grin even wider.

But in her excitement, she spoke without thinking.

"Not as nice as you look!"

There was a beat of silence, and for a minute, only the background music passed between them. Yang's smile fell instantly.

Oh my god, what did I do? That was way too soon! We've only just started talking! I'm just a customer!

But before she could convince herself that she'd ruined every ounce of potential this thing might've had, Weiss cleared her throat.

"...Thank you," she said. "Sorry, I was... just a bit shocked. It's not often I get complimented on my appearance, considering I'm just a bakery salesgirl."

When Yang looked up again, she could see a faint dusting of pink had spread across Weiss' cheeks. She felt her jaw go a little slack and forced herself to look away, lest she start drooling.

"Yup. Totally smitten," she mumbled.

"What was that?"

"U-Um!" Yang quickly spun around to face Weiss once more. "I s-said um... r-rolling kitten! Yeah, haha at the pet shop a few blocks down. I saw this kitten in the window just kinda rollin' around and he was so cute, y'know?" She laughed nervously, putting a hand behind her head.

Weiss gave her a puzzled look for a second before she smiled again.

"I see. I've yet to pass the pet shop. I'll be sure to look out for the rolling kitten when I do," she assured. "Now then, is there anything I can get for you today?"

"Oh, right!"

Yang placed her order for a loaf of bread her mother had asked her to pick up, and then requested a bag of chocolate-chip cookies and a slice of strawberry cake.

As Weiss prepared everything for her and put the food into separate baggies, she addressed Yang once more.

"This bread is for your parents, I'm assuming?"

"Huh? Yeah."

"And you said your sister gets the cookies, right?"

"Usually."

"So the cake is for you, then?"

"Nah, that's for my sister, too."

"I see..." Weiss finished placing the cake slice into its little box and sealed it up. "Have you eaten since your kickboxing lessons?" she wondered.

Yang was a bit taken aback by the question, but she gave an answer nonetheless.

"I... had half a granola bar before I started walking home," she recalled.

Weiss held her gaze for a brief moment before going back to the display cases. She used a napkin to pick up a brownie and brought it over to the counter before reaching it out to Yang.

"Here," she said.

The blonde blinked up at her in surprise.

"Huh? No, it's okay. I don't need a brownie."

"I wasn't asking if you did," Weiss huffed. "Just take it. It's on me."

"Wh-What?"

"Go on. It's no trouble, I assure you. You need to eat something more than just a granola bar after something as energy-consuming as kickboxing." She leaned out a bit more to offer Yang the treat.

A little dumbfounded, the blonde slowly reached up her hands to accept it from those delicate fingers.

But before she could, something happened.

Weiss' weight seemed to betray her as she was leaning over the counter, and a sudden slip of her foot sent her falling sideways with a yelp.

"Ah-"

"W-Whoa!"

Without really thinking, Yang reacted instantly. She rushed forward to reach over the hard countertop and wrap her arms awkwardly around the girl's torso to steady her. She squeezed tightly, pressing close to Weiss over the counter, her abdomen pushing against the hard marble. But her collar and neck were cradled softly against Weiss'.

Yang was frozen for a few seconds with Weiss in her arms, her heart still pounding at the suddenness of it all.

But once she was sure Weiss had found her balance once more, Yang quickly released her.

"S-Sorry about that!" she said, stepping back. "I just- I didn't think and I-"

"No," Weiss sighed. "Don't apologize. Thank you. I'd just finished cleaning the floor back here and there was a wet spot... and I slipped."

Yang could see that Weiss was rubbing her stomach a bit with her free hand, the other having still managed to keep hold of the brownie.

Yang's eyebrows furrowed.

"Are you okay? Did you get hurt?"

"Oh!" Weiss quickly dropped her hand from her stomach. "Not at all. I'm alright. Though if it hadn't been for you, I'm not sure what might've happened..." She easily could have hit her head against the cash register or the edge of the nearby display case.

Yang realized as much as well and shuddered.

"You sure?"

"Yes..."

Their roles from yesterday had been reversed, and both girls found it a bit comical now that they were sure the other wasn't injured.

"Anyway," Weiss said, clearing her throat once more. "Please take this as well." She handed Yang her brownie – a little squished now – and pushed the other bag of the rest of her order toward her.

Yang accepted everything and paid, though Weiss was sure to return the extra dollar the blonde had tried to slip her.

"As I said, the brownie is on me," she said. "Consider it thanks for saving me just now."

"Alright..." Yang nodded. "Then... if you're sure you're okay, I'll-"

"Oh, hold on a moment, if you wouldn't mind!" Weiss blurted out. "I... I mean if it's alright with you I'd... like to know your name. I-I mean just so I can greet you properly if you decide to come again."

Yang's heart started thumping all over again.

"It's... Yang," she said with a small smile.

"Miss Yang," Weiss repeated.

"Ugh, wait no-" The blonde put a hand up. "We're about the same age, right? So drop the formalities. It's fine. Just call me Yang."

"If you're sure..." Weiss nodded. "Yang."

The kick-boxer felt she could've done a backflip out of excitement.

"Yeah, perfect!" she said. "Then I'll see you tomorrow, Weiss!"

The white-haired girl was about to be surprised at having her name used, until she remembered her name tag.

With a small wave and an even smaller smile, Weiss returned the words.

"See you tomorrow, Yang."

That night, Yang wasn't the only one dreaming about the girl in the bakery shop.

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A/N: Things are speeding along, aren't they? It's amazing how a few literal slip-ups can help move things along at a reasonable pace. (And I like the last line because 'the girl in the bakery shop' could mean either of them, depending on whose perspective we're looking from~)

Ch3 preview: "So... you're saying Yang started acting weirdly right at the same time as she started going to the new bakery?"

"Yeah... I think so."

"I see..." Keeping her arm around Ruby to support her as they walked, Blake devised a plan. "Alright," she announced. "We'll get to the bottom of this today. So don't worry, okay, Ruby?"