Chapter Text
I rub the side of my arm as Ragatha lies out her blanket, fluffing up the soft pillows that sit at the head of the bed. It's like she's preparing for royalty to stay here, but it's just me…It's sweet though. I've learned that nothing stops her from going above and behind for those she cares for.
"There we go!" The ragdoll beams at me and presses her hands together in glee. I chuckle and sit on the edge of the wooden bed that stands against the center of the wall.
"Now, where did I put that sleeping bag…" I hear her mutter, opening up her closet. "Huh? Sleeping bag?" I raise a brow, standing up. "For who? Don't tell me you're using that for yourself." I say, my brows furrowed slightly.
"Oh! Well, you deserve the bed. You've been through so much lately and it would just be selfish of me to deny you of that! I'm sure it'll help you a lot more than the sleeping bag would!" She says, looking concerned. Like she's doing everything in her power to make me happy. Does she think I'm gonna leave or something?
I sigh. If Gangle was here, she would lose her mind over this. The one bed trope, it's the oldest thing in the book. I chuckle softly at the thought, shaking my head.
"Put that up. You're sleeping up here with me." I smile, lying down on one half of the plush bed.
"H-Huh..?! But..but that's—it's okay, really! I don't mind at all, you don't have to do that!" Ragatha waves her hands erratically, her face as red as a tomato as she lowers herself to the ground. I can't help but let another laugh escape, gazing up at her. "Oh, come on. I won't bite. I want you up here." I tell her as I roll on my stomach to look down at her sitting on the floor with the sleeping bag.
I reach my hand out to her with an easygoing smile. I want her to know that I want her. Wait. Wait no. That's not what I meant. In a friends way.
She hesitates before she takes my hand in her own, slowly standing up.
She pauses at the side of the bed as if I'm going to change my mind. I nod reassuringly at her and I watch her swallow nervously.
I scoot back over as she lies down next to me, the color of her face matching her hair.
"That's better." I say and set my head down on the pillow, lying on my side and facing her.
"Comfy?" I ask her as she slowly nods. I've never seen her so silent before. She looks so nervous and on edge, it makes me worry.
"Hey." I reach out for her cheek and she gasps, her eye widening.
"We're just having a sleepover, right? Nothing crazy." I tell her, my voice as quiet as a whisper. Ragatha looks into my own eyes and nods. "Yeah…Sorry, I don't know why I'm like this right now." She looks down as if disappointed in herself, a nervous chuckle coming from her lips.
"Don't apologize. You have nothing to be sorry for. It's just us and I'm not going anywhere." I say, caressing her face.
"Y-Yeah." The ragdoll says, a small smile forming on her face at last. Finally, I get to see it again.
I hesitantly remove my hand and I can tell she misses the contact. I fight back the urge to reach right back out, but it's best to not rush into anything right now. She's probably just flustered.
I reach over to the nightstand and pull the string of the lamp, making the light turn off. "Night, Ragatha." I tell her, lying back down next to her.
"Goodnight, Ribbit." She says, her voice a sad whisper. I frown at her tone and scoot a little closer.
I hear a warm hum escape her lips before we both close our eyes.
~Pomni's POV~
I run my hand over Jules's ears, watching the TV as the other relaxes her head on my lap. Her arms are around my waist and she's lying in between my legs. I smile softly as I notice her tail shaking, subtly flicking in a circle. It's become such a common attribute to notice of her, but it's always so damn cute when I get to see it.
"Do you think Rags and Ribbit are into each other?" Her words suddenly interrupt my stare, making me shake my head. "Wha—Huh?" My brows raise. I skipped one breakfast!
"I dunno, like..they have this vibe going on." She says, adjusting her head on my lap. "It's pretty obvious, but neither of them wanna say anything." I feel her shrug against me.
"Jesus, just how much did I miss…?" I shake my head, leaning my head against my palm, elbow pressing into a pillow.
"Well, Kaufmo's been…worse." Jules sighs and I feel her grip tighten slightly on me. I can sense her anxiousness, a frown spreading to my face.
"Hey," I cup her cheek, making her look up at me. "I'm sure it'll be fine. I mean, we've gotten this far with all the abstractions. He'll be alright." I say, rubbing my hand over one of her eyes, feeling her lean into it.
The rabbit processes my words, setting her head back down against my hips. I can tell Kaufmo's state has been taking a toll on her. She definitely feels a load of guilt from their past together. There's not much we can do but wait. It sucks, but interfering may just kick us right back to square one.
I watch her space out, a remorseful look on her lost in thought face.
"Hey, come here. I can tell you haven't been sleeping." I tell Jules, getting more comfortable in a laying position rather than a sitting one. I click the TV off and toss the remote aside.
She climbs up to level with my face and stares into my eyes before she buries her face in my neck. I chuckle and hold her close. "Rest your eyes for a bit. I'll be right here." I tell her, kissing the top of her head.
"I caused this." She whispers against me. I can barely hear it, it's like it just cracked out of silence. Almost like she was telling herself more than she was telling me.
"Jules, stop." I furrow my brows slightly and place a hand on the back of her head. "You just…" I sigh. I can't lie to her and say that she didn't at least play a bit of a role in Kaufmo's abstraction, but I also can't bring myself to say it.
"Let's not think about that right now, okay? I can see the guilt eating you alive every day. It won't do any good thinking about it." I go back to running my hand down the back of her head over and over again. "We need to just stay strong for him, okay?" I whisper and she nods after a few seconds.
"…I don't deserve you." Jules tightens her grip on me, my heart breaking at the added pressure. "Yes, you do. You just don't know how to accept your new self yet. You've changed." I reassure the rabbit in my arms and she seems to relax slightly. Thank goodness…
"I love you, y'know that?" I tell her, kissing the side of her head. "..I love you too." She whimpers against my neck, sniffling.
I frown and repeat my movements against her skin, trying to ease her into turning her mind off for a little while and getting some rest. It's been breaking her apart and I don't want her to end up slipping back into her old ways.
It's a comfortable silence, her trembling form slowly finally unwinding and coming down from its panic.
I don't notice she's fallen asleep until I her quiet snores escape her and I chuckle. Adjusting the blanket over us, I get comfortable and close my own eyes again.
Things are going to be just fine as long as we have each other.