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She didn't quite understand where she was or how she got there, but she didn't really care about it. She felt no uneasiness. She felt quite calm, in fact. This place was unknown, but not uninviting.
As she slowly wandered across the vast white space, she felt it was strangely familiar. Not as if she'd been here before, mind you, but instead as if she was meant to be here at some point. This place belonged to her. It, and the nothingness in it, was all hers.
Every step she took seemed to be in the right direction. She knew she was being lead somewhere, and she was ecstatic to find out where. Her feet moved unconsciously, pulled like a magnet, and with every second the expectation as to what she'll find got larger.
Then, she saw it. A figure in the distance. Something. Someone. Her objective. What she's meant to find. The blurry shape got less so with every erratic step forward, and her legs threatened to give in to the excitement and run as fast as they could.
And that's when she recognized the figure that was getting nearer.
An old friend.
She woke up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cake at Stake is oddly exciting when you're not the team in danger. Barf Bag is obviously sad at the possibility of friends leaving, but there's a sort of thrill to knowing you're, at some level, dare she say better than others.
She would never say that out loud, though.
Barf Bag liked to think she was one of the more grounded contestants. Definitely not weird like David or Dora, nor did she let just one of her traits completely define her like Golf Ball or Flower do. She was just normal. There were few that she could say the same about.
She tried to surround herself with normal people and live a laid-back normal life; of course, this didn't apply during contests, where she got as into the competition as anyone else, but the rest of the time she just hung around with her friends and did what felt right. And that was fine by her.
An ear-rupturing screech interrupted Barf-Bag's thoughtstream. She covered her ears, feeling sorry for whoever had received the scream from Four. Cake at Stake may be fun, but the hosts sure as heck weren't.
She moved her eyes around the crowd watching the event. A lot of people were gathered, and everywhere she looked were familiar faces.
In her time at Battle for BFDI, the Ice Cuber had established a couple of relationships with other people, be it in the form of friends, allies or enemies. A friend, Gelatin, was sitting next to her, joking about something with Naily, and she could see Lollipop, that mouthbreather, trying to sell a spray can of some sort to Gaty.
Some things just never change.
Then, right next to Lollipop, she spotted her. The person she was meaning to avoid today.
Just sitting there.
Doing nothing special.
Yet, she couldn't take her eyes off her.
Barf Bag didn't need to fill her head with confusing thoughts, but after seeing that person, something compelled her to. Why would she dream such a dream? What did it mean? Should she do something about it? No, it was better if she just cut it off and-
Taco was looking back at her.
"Crap", the once vomit-filled girl muttered. Now it would be weird if she didn't go over to talk.
Heck, it's gonna be weird anyways.
Regardless, she stood up. It's just a friendly chat, right? No need to mention the weird dream she had, and how it made her feel, and how her perception of Taco changed slightly for some reason. No need at all.
Barf Bag walked with haste and determination, then sat in front of her hard-shelled friend. And then she panicked. She had no idea what to say.
They hadn't talked in a while.
"Hey".
"Hi".
Awkwardness kicks in. Taco looks around, nervously. Barf Bag fiddles with her hands. She's not sure why she came here; she has been getting along perfectly fine not talking to Taco. They used to be close, but with BFB and all not so much anymore, and that's okay, right? It happens. She could have avoided all of this. It was just a stupid dream.
But now she's here, and she's got to say something.
"So... how's it going with your team?"
Last time they talked, the topic was that. It also had Taco mentioning how they don't talk as much anymore.
Taco seemed glad that the other had asked that, judging by her smile. The mood lit up a little.
"I talked with Book. It's really all better now! I finally feel like I'm part of the team, y'know?"
"Seriously? That's good. I'm glad for you.".
Barf Bag smiled. Taco was fitting in, and knowing that made her kind of giddy.
"Well, it's sort of thanks to your advice, actually", Taco confessed. "What you told me last time we talked, it really helped. So, uh, thanks for that".
The bag grinned. "I told you you'd thank me".
A warm feeling formed inside her, even when the hot spring water had been cold for days. She liked it.
"Heh, I guess you did", Taco chuckled.
This conversation was going well, surprising Barf Bag. It was easy talking with Taco. It felt natural.
Why did they ever stop?
There was a small silence between them. But it was comfortable.
"Hey, can I ask you something weird?" The bleh member broke the silence.
"Uh, yeah, sure", Barf Bag answered.
"Why'd you come over?"
Barf Bag froze. Heat drained from her body. She didn't expect a question like this. She kind of assumed that Taco was thinking the same as her, that there was this silent agreement that what they were doing was the right thing to do, even if it could've just not happened with no repercussions. It didn't warrant any more thought.
Right?
"Since, well", the shelled contestant said, "I was kind of wishing you would when I caught you looking, and, to be honest, I was surprised when you did".
"Oh. I guess I just... felt like I should, right?"
Taco smiled earnestly.
"Well, I'm happy you did".
They fell into a silence again.
"We should talk more", suggested Barf Bag.
"Yeah".
If they had their suspicions before, now they were certain that they were both feeling the same thing.
And there was silence, but they both knew what it meant.
"Contestants! It's time for today's challenge". Four's announcement halted the reunion. The Team Ice Cube contestant wasn't sure how to feel about that.
"Oh. I guess I better get going", Barf Bag excused herself. "We'll talk tomorrow, okay?"
Taco said her goodbyes and Barf Bag rejoined her team. The rest of the day went by in a flash.
Wacky happenings and competition distracted Barf Bag, but she just couldn't shake her mind off from the encounter earlier. It wasn't really a big deal, but she was sure it'd change things. Into what, she wasn't certain. But it would probably be good.
When she fell asleep that night, her heart was heavy and her mind was cloudy.