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Leafy regretted everything.
She regretted stealing Dream Island from Firey out of petty spite, she could never make up for that. Her actions 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥𝘯'𝘵 be justified. She was an awful person, and if it wasn't for her all the BFDI contestants would be happily living on Dream Island. It was stupid, but she thought her and Firey were friends. She thought he cared and saw that her demeanor wasn't her fault. she thought he saw that there was more to her than that. But apparently he didn't, he was the same as everyone else, and it hurt being abandoned again. Especially in a way that was so painfully isolating.
It was actually her fault for being so crushed, she should have expected Firey to be nothing different. But fuck did he mean a lot to her. Maybe she liked him more than any of her other friends, any other friend she'd had. Or maybe he was just the first real friend she had. up for interpretation.
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The ground was hot, and she felt sick from having only eaten Yoyleberries for the past few weeks, she was scared. More than anything though she was lonely. Everyone hated her. or at least she had thought everyone hated her, why did Firey save her?? What could she have possibly done to be worth that. Her redeeming qualities were far outweighed by her bad ones, and oh autumn did she have a lot of bad qualities. Pushing people away was one of them, she had been taught that the only reason people are ever nice to you was because they wanted something back, and that you must always pay that deed back with at least as much intensity. She internalized that.
Now she was in this stupid debt to fucking Firey, who probably just pitied her and didn't want her blood on his hands. her metal blood now. but seriously, she had to find some real food, and maybe somewhere to stay. And for now she'd try to forget about chlorophyll-forsaken Firey and his self-saving acts.
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Months had gone by, and leafy was used to living on her own. she had walked the 2,762 miles to the nearest Robot-Flowe Food-For-Yourself grocery store (she was branching out too, with the help of Basketball).
Luckily she didn't run into anyone she knew from her past and got her stuff and left without a hitch. It wasn't really a surprise she'd chosen to leave Yoyleland, even if the journey all this was was more than tiresome. She 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 about staying, maybe waiting for the no-doubt latest contestants for whatever to arrive on some sort of challenge. But it was unclear they'd even want to speak with her, and none of them deserved her help anyways. Since they never even cared enough to come and find her themselves. Plus none of them had stood up for her against Firey!! She was underappreciated.
And did she mention she was sick of eating nothing but Yoyleberries? It felt so good to finally have some real food, she'd stockpiled a bit since she didn't know when she'd next go out again, and headed back 73 miles to an abandoned house-like building she'd spotted on the way here. It was as good a place as any. Having such a buffer zone between any sort of competition grounds was no coincidence either. She'd just have to try her best not to die since no one would know to recover her. If they 𝘩𝘢𝘥 known though they would surely be glad to recover her right away though, she was sure.
One of the things she'd purchased at the store (her definitely very heavy grocery bags in hand as she walked for days, it sucked aphids but being metal and all the weight of the bags wasn't a big deal, so that was a plus.) was some yeller tomatoes, so that she could finally shake this metal weight and feel light again, she also missed being green.
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She hummed to herself as she packed away all her items in her newfound home. The walls were cracked and the ceiling was leaky, but there were dozens of cabinets and a running faucet by some miracle, so she definitely wasn't complaining. It was a perfect place, especially compared to none at all, and things were finally looking up!!
................. . . .. . .
Later that evening, as she was relaxing on an old couch that she'd found--basically still in perfect condition and cleaner than you'd think--and eating a cup-o-noodles,--she'd bought hundreds--there was a knock on the door. It startled her, since of course she'd not been expecting any company, but she wasn't doing anything wrong by being here, and she was nothing if not polite so she answered it.
Think of her surprise when she saw fuckass fucking Firey at the door. Glowing slightly in the sunset, an anxious look on his face. Maybe she shouldn't have answered it. He made eye contact with her for a second, dawning a more shocked look before looking away and suppressing it. What did he want? And how did he know she'd be here?
Just as she had those thoughts, he spoke, it was jarring to her his voice, she hadn't really realized how quiet it was before that, but his voice cut through like a knife.
"Leafy! Can we talk?" There was an edge to his voice, like he was trying to hold something back, but she couldn't tell what. Her stomach flipped. Figures, he came all this way and he can't even be direct with her.
"Um, yeah sure, I guess." Leafy spoke nonchalantly. What on Battle For Dream Island could he possibly want to talk about?? She was trying to cover up her own anxieties, telling herself that this was no big deal. Inside though, she was freaking out, a little bit. What could Firey want?? Could this be what brings them back together? Leafy acted, for all her talk, like she didn't care, but oh her gardener she'd dreamed of this moment where Firey would finally apologize to her, apologize for ignoring her, for being so cold (metaphorically) to her, 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝘿𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙢 𝙄𝙨𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙙. Yes, and she would graciously forgive him for all of this. Because, she's Leafy; she's so nice. Not at all because deep down she feels guilty for everything that happened and has been completely alone, hated by everyone, and she desperately wants the companionship of another object. Especially Firey, her best friend--𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘦𝘳 best friend, seeds, she was never going to get used to that. And now (hopefully) she didn't have to!!!!
And all of that was preposterous, of course, she's not 'lonely', she's fine, and she doesn't feel guilt, she's just too nice. Nice people know they're nice, and they don't feel guilty for other not-so-nice people. Yeah. She had gotten so deep into that thought, she startled again to realize that Firey was 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦, in her 'house',--she only found it earlier today but still, all her stuff was here! Even if those items were few and far between--and god, did that couch always look so run down and grimy? with him sitting on it, it was such a jarring sight she wondered for a second if she was imagining it.
Infact, with Fireys warm orange glow cast upon everything, and lets be honest, the fact that she wasn't alone. Unable to lie to herself. It made everything look...worse. the counters were cracked, water damage evident in the swells of the wood, the celling had giant cracks in it that would surely prove to be a problem should literally anything arise. her groceries were less a stock and more rations, walls peeling and metal rusted. The windows were either remaining shards of glass in the frame and on the floor or gone all together, she suddenly felt ashamed, embarrassed to be staying here in such filth. Even when it had hours ago looked like paradise.
Just then a cold breeze blew in, the sun now nearly all set. She shivered, hard, shaking like--well, you can imagine. It was definitely warmer in Yoyleland, she wasn't used to this, and she didn't have any blankets either, not thinking of it beforehand.
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Firey noticed from where he'd been uneasily sitting on the couch. She'd shut the door behind him, but had just been standing awkwardly in her own house ever since. Maybe 'house' was a strong word, it was more like a rundown shack or shed, no 'Dream island,' that's for sure.
He'd be lying if he said it wasn't a depressing situation. Leafy had looked like she'd seen a ghost when she first opened the door. and now it's like she didn't know what to do, which was fair, he did just kind of show up here, but it had been a few minutes and he was getting pretty uncomfortable. Maybe he shouldn't have come here.
𝙒𝙝𝙮 did he come here?? Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeell, Leafy had always meant a lot to him--her 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 meant a lot to him, yeah, and while he wasn't wrong for not letting her into Dream Island, it wasn't a serious thing, at the time he had just wanted to wait and have a talk with Leafy. maybe(just maybe) it was a little extreme? and okay, maybe part of this was his fault.
Even though she was the one who stole Dream Island from him. And being here did not at all mean he forgave her for that.
But they deserved to at least talk. maybe he had missed her annoying, overly positive, presence a little bit. Still it's not like he liked her, unlike Leafy he had other good friends. And that's all Leafy had been to him, a friend. ............. . ............
When he saw her shiver, he felt bad. Even for everything she had done, she didn't deserve this. He felt bad for her, and that's why he invited her to huddle around him. (Only reason, for sure, just pity, that's the feeling he felt. Yup.)
"Ugh---Leafy, just come here," He looked away as he said it, his face feeling a little hotter that usual. Either way, it seemed like it snapped Leafy back to reality. 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦 she was gonna be a pain in the ass about it though.
She huffed, offended. "Really Firey?? I welcome you into my home and you don't even hesitate for a moment before you start making demands of me. Would it have extinguished you to throw in a 𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦?? I'm fine right here, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶." Even in her disheveled and sleepless state, Firey couldn't help but think of how pretty she looked, less vibrant than normal, but man she was beautiful.
"--and how did you even get here anyways? How did you find me? Were you stalking me? Firey that's seriously creepy and not ok, you should know--" At some point he'd stopped listening to her, but at this he interjected.
"I was not stalking you, Leafy! I knew you were here because I used the leafy detector! Do you seriously think I'm some crazy stalker?? Really Leafy?" Annoyance filled his tone. He was still mad at her, and this was the first real interaction the two had had, of course it had to be off to a bad start. Leafy was 𝘴𝘰 petty, why was he here again??
She shrunk back before remembering herself and arguing back more. She honestly hadn't spoken to anyone in quite a while, and it seemed she was doing everything wrong now. Why did he come here??
Firey lost his resolve when he saw Leafy recoil like he'd hurt her, guilt flashed through him and he remembered why he was here. He didn't want to fight anymore, and he didn't want to hurt her, that was never his intention. They were going to talk. He sighed
"Look, Leafy, I'm sorry. Would you please come here? I can see you're cold."
The fact that he apologized shocked her, eyes widening. She did have a tendency to come off strong, and 𝘮𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦 just 𝘮𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦 she was being a little defensive.
And oh my Firey she 𝘸𝘢𝘴 cold.
Seemingly begrudgingly, she sighed and came and sat down next to him, closer to the other end of the grimy couch. But Firey new Leafy well, and he saw as she softened her resolve. Part of him was disappointed she'd chosen to sit to far away. Obviously she can't lean against him or anything, she'd be set ablaze, but it would be nice if he could at least kind of feel her presence, and it showed she was still mad. She's petty, its one of the things they had in common, and it's what made this so difficult.
"Leafy, y'know you can sit closer, just--obviously--not 𝘵𝘰𝘰 close," he tried to laugh, awkwardly, and it didn't work. The rooms air was still heavy, and dark, and thick with tension.
"Well, I don't know if I want to yet, Firey, what do you have to say." Leafy looked at him, finally making eye contact, expectantly.
"I--Leafy are you expecting an apology right now?? You have to know that I'm not the only one here in the wrong!!" He was trying to keep calm but her words had caught him off guard, his voice angrier than he meant it.
Leafy made an audibly offended sound again, "Firey you're the one who came here and i only stole Dream Island from you because you wouldn't let me on!! Everyone 𝘣𝘶𝘵 me, Firey!! Do you understand how isolating that is?? Coiny and Flower but not me!!" She whipped around to look at him after that, getting more and more worked up as she spoke, after seeing the expression on his empty face she continued, answering her previous question.
She sighed "of course you don't, you had other friends, and you won. Why would you even take the time to 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 about what it was like for me. Sure, you can yell at me, I don't think i even care anymore,"
Her walls, that she'd built so high, finally cracked and crumbled along with her expression, "maybe I do deserve it, I've had to stay in Yoyleland alone for 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘴 because everyone hates me now! Even though most of them did before too, but 𝘺𝘰𝘶." She was pointing at him, full of everything she'd been suppressing since the events that lead her here, unwanted tears welling and falling from her eyes, moving away again as she drew in a shaky breath.
"You hurt me the most."
Firey was shocked. His own expression reflecting that and how bad he felt for what he didn't even realize Leafy was going through. Alone. Yeah, stealing Dream Island was bad, but he can't honestly say he thought she deserved that, she wasn't fully in the right, but he could definitely see where she had been coming from. And he was upset at himself for how ignorant he had been, he should've come here sooner. Well--come to her sooner. No matter what he had to make this right. So he drew in a breath, thought about what he was going to say first, and tried.
"Leafy, I am 𝘴𝘰 so sorry," She had been curled in on herself, fat tears still falling and sniffling, but she jumped at that. Firey--though he desperately wanted to comfort her, gave her space, and she needed, 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘥, to hear this. "I had no idea how you were doing--I should've checked in earlier, then we could've talked, and you wouldn't have been so alone. But I was mad, and i didn't take the time to think about you, or what it must have been like. You're right."
"Leafy, you mean a lot to me, still, and there's clearly still a lot we have to talk about, but I'm here for you. I'll listen, and I don't blame you, Leafy, you didn't deserve any of that. As your friend I should have seen that sooner."
After he'd said everything he looked to her to gauge her reaction, and she was staring at him. Eyes wide and expression almost blank, sitting up, still crying. He was starting to get nervous when she suddenly moved closer to him, as close as she could without getting burnt, she grabbed his hands--part of him she could touch without danger, back when they were friends on the show this was largely how they showed physical affections, since hugs didn't really work, they'd hold hands. Now it was his turn to be surprised, and his face felt uncomfortably warm, which it usually didn't. Then she spoke, her voice raw from crying, almost whispering.
Holding his hands tight, she said; "Firey I'm really sorry too, it wasn't fair for me to steal your prize like that. I had just always thought Dream Island would be something we could enjoy together." Being so close to him now she could feel his warmth, and she wasn't scared at all of getting burnt, if she did, the almost-contact was worth it, 100%. Her face aglow, it was so nice, being close to anyone. But it meant so much more that it was him. She felt her face flush chlorophyll green, not cold anymore.
"Our friendship matters a lot to me too, and you know...for what its worth...I'm really glad you came here. Thank you Firey, for everything." She said earnestly.
He blushed hotter, looking at her cute green face, it was dark now. He cleared his voice before he spoke. "So......Are, we good?"
Leafy smiled before answering, "Yeah, we are. As long as we're also good to you, we're good to me."
He rolled his eyes playfully at her answer, but he respected it. "Yeah, we're good, Leafy, thanks for opening up."
They were both sitting comfortably, enjoying eachothers presence again, hands still touching in the dark room.
"So, you staying the night?" She asked him.
"Well, we are pretty far away from anything else, so I guess I am." Firey said, "we can find you someplace better to say tomorrow, and don't worry, you're not going to be alone anymore."
"Thanks, Firey, I missed you."
"I missed you too, Leafy, goodnight."
"Goodnight, Firey." Their voices quiet, and you know what? It was a good night. Best one she'd had in a while, feeling warm with Firey beside her. Nothing else mattered.
She wasn't alone.