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The first pebble barely even made a sound. It was just the tiniest of noises as it bounced off her window, not even enough to make her stir.
The second one… also wasn’t much, though it was still harder than the first one. It at very least managed to wake her up, even if she was still right on the edge of falling asleep again, but still! Progress!
Now the third pebble, that one connected hard enough to wake Bottle up fully, its dull thud echoing through the dark room. For a moment she just laid there, unsure of what to do. Surely she was imagining that. Who in their right mind would be throwing stones against her window at - she glanced at her bedside clock - 1:30 in the morning?
But no, a few moments later another one thudded against the glass, bouncing off harmlessly. It prompted her to sit up, ignoring her tiredness and desire to just go back to sleep. Whoever was trying to get Bottle’s attention was persistent, if nothing else.
She waited for a bit longer, in hopes that maybe that would make them give up, but no dice. Another pebble bounced off her window. So instead she securely wrapped her warm blanket around herself, a fleeting attempt to preserve her coziness, before she shuffled over to the aforementioned window. Another pebble, the final one, bounced off as she pushed it open.
Leaning outside slightly, Bottle squinted at the darkness covering the fields. There was definitely someone down there, their silhouette glowing in the moonlight, but any certain features were swallowed by the lack of light. Still she was able to recognize a few things, as they were short and wide, their build rather boxy and- dammit, it was Treasure Chest, wasn’t it?
She leaned down a bit further and yeah, now she could see it. The rounded top, the way he held himself just a bit unsure, even the tiniest bit of the nervous look she’d grown accustomed to. It almost made her smile, hadn’t it been for her leftover annoyance. Shouting down at him in the quietest way possible, she asked, “Treasure Chest, what are you doing? Do you know what time it is?”
She could see as he shuffled from one foot to the other, another tell that he was nervous, as he hesitated. “I… I’m sorry,” was the first thing he said, his voice cracking slightly, “I know it's late, and you’d probably be rather asleep but I-” He cut himself off, turning and looking at or towards something she couldn’t see. “I really want to show you something.”
Bottle felt sceptical. “But why now? Can’t it wait until daytime?” “Well, no,” was his response, “it's kind of a nighttime-exclusive thing?” She raised an eyebrow, her curiosity slowly outweighing her irritation. “What is it then?”
“It’s also supposed to be a surprise?” was the answer she got instead. And not going to lie, while she still felt peeved she was just a bit curious.
“… I mean, as long as it doesn’t take too long.” Down on the ground, she could see the other perk up. Discarding her warm, comfy blanket on the bed, she made her way down to the front door of the girls cabin, where her ally was readily waiting for her, rocking back and forth on his heels. Now that they were face to face, Bottle was able to clearly see how his face lit up when she stepped outside. It made her feel… some sort of way, and she almost turned away in embarrassment.
“Alright Captain,” she addressed him instead, a slight smirk on her face, “lead the way.”
What followed was a rather lengthy track through the forest as they walked towards the mountain by the edge of the competition grounds. Her eyes lingered for a bit as they walked past the waterfall, but ultimately she chose to keep up with Treasure Chest as he started to climb up the hill.
It was honestly exhausting, not to mention she was still so so tired. Whatever was up there better be good. Finally the other hefted himself over the last edge, before turning around and offering Bottle his hand, happy as he could be with that damn cute smile still on his face. “Here, I promise you’re going to love it.”
Bottle on the other hand felt a bit sceptical after that track.
“Treasure Chest, I trust you, I really do, but I can’t imagine what could possibly make this… worth it…” just as she was saying those last few words he pulled her over the ledge. They were up really high, so high in fact that the field, Gold Ingot’s office, the cabins, everything looked so small from up here. But that wasn’t what captured Bottle’s attention. No, up above them in the night sky she could see thousands upon thousands of brightly glowing stars, more than she had ever seen in her life. A beautiful white veil was painted across the inky darkness, only complementing the stars in their beauty, and Bottle felt all her thoughts come to a halt. The scene looked as if it had been ripped out of a painting, or maybe a picture book. It was almost overwhelming.
Eventually she was pulled back out of her awe as her companion spoke up again. “Do you like it?” he simply asked, his tone shy. He didn't make eye contact with her, stubbornly keeping his eyes trained in the night sky. That at least gave Bottle a bit of privacy as she grappled with her words, trying to find an acceptable, non embarrassing answer.
“This is- this is incredible, I’ve never…” She looked up again, “I've never seen anything like this before. How did you find this?” Her knees felt weak, prompting her to sit down lest her legs gave out from under her. Treasure Chest on his part didn’t comment on it, instead joining her on the damp, dewy grass.
“I found it after the first challenge,” he told her, “you know, the team captain one.” His words carried a certain degree of exhaustion in them. “I couldn’t sleep so I took the time to look around the area, without anyone breathing down my back. I… I originally wanted to save it as a surprise for my team, after the competition ended, but…” He trailed off at the end. There was no need to say it, they both knew.
Bottle simply hummed in response. “Why show me though? And why now?” she asked.
He didn’t respond immediately. Silence settled over them as she gave the other the time to articulate his response. Instead she focused on the sky, trying to ignore the butterflies buzzing around inside her. This scene, what it made her feel, she couldn’t really describe it. Though a small part of her almost wanted to call it romantic.
“I guess I just didn’t want to wait anymore,” Treasure Chest eventually said. She looked over at him. He was staring down, playing with the grass. “Especially now. Especially after everything…” Bottle frowned, before grabbing ahold of the hand digging in the ground. It wasn’t a calculated decision, as it surprised both of them, but neither moved to let go again. “You know I’m not going to leave, right?”
Treasure Chest refused to meet her eyes. “You can’t promise that.” She tried to respond, to argue but he continued. “Even if you don’t leave willingly, with the way the show’s going there’s just no way to know how long we have left. One of us could get voted out next challenge and- You mean a lot to me. I wanted you to see this, and I don’t want it to be a one time thing.” He squeezed her hand, running his thumb over her knuckles. "Something something, using the good silver every day.”
Finally he looked up at her, and they both had to pause as their eyes met. There was so much love in his gaze, stealing all her words right out of her mouth. Well, almost all her words, as four tumbled out clumsily and against her will.
“Can I kiss you?”
It was barely a whisper. One could’ve easily overheard in the late night wind, if they hadn't been looking right at her. A startled look spread across Treasure Chest’s as he stuttered, “I- what?”
Now it was Bottle’s turn to avert her eyes, embarrassment coursing through her like wildfire. “Or- I mean- I didn’t mean-” She tried to pull away, but was met with resistance as Treasure Chest only grabbed her hand tighter. She didn’t dare to look at him. Because surely she had just ruined it, whatever this was. Misinterpreted his words, his actions and she screwed it up, she screwed it up again and now Treasure Chest was going to leave her, just like-!
A hand was placed over her cheek, snapping her out of her spiral as well as urging her to look up. Doing so she found that the other had moved closer, their faces only inches apart. His eyes, while also filled with sadness, still held the same amount of love as before. Maybe even more.
Carefully, as if she was made out of glass (ignoring the fact she was), Treasure Chest leaned in. Their lips only touched briefly, the sensation light as a feather, but still making her feel like someone had lit up a firework inside of her.
He pulled back again, adoration written all over his face while unshed tears shimmered in his eyes in a way that rivaled the stars in the sky. She felt her own stinging as well.
“You’re amazing," he said next, his voice dripping with affection. “You’re so amazing and you don’t even realize it. If I could somehow show you how amazing and great you are, and how much I-” He cut himself off at the end, instead choosing to pull her closer, pressing their lips together again, firmer this time but still impossibly soft. Then he started to laugh, watery giggling bubbling at the back of his throat as he started to pepper Bottle’s face with more and more kisses. The sensation, as well as her elated feelings, prompted her to start laughing as well, a feeling of utter delight filling both of them despite the tears.
Wrapping her arms around Treasure Chest, she flopped over, pulling them both to lay down in the grass. It was only then that they noticed that something else had joined the stars in the sky, dozens of fireflies lighting up the area around them. A comfortable quiet settled over the two as they took their time to simply take in the moment, closer than ever before. It was only after some time of staying wrapped in each other's arms that Treasure Chest pulled her even closer, nestling into her side.
“I love you,” he quietly whispered against her. It made something inside Bottle, something underneath all the emotions and the excitement and the giddiness, settle into place.
This time it was her turn to pull him in, to place another kiss on the other’s lips. It caused him to squeak and her to smile in a way that felt right.
That was right.
“I love you too.”