Pov 3rd person
??? : " Blake? Blake?! Blake!!!!! "
Three repeated, increasingly louder cries echoed through the bookstore. However, it was only the third cry that managed to wake up Blake, who was absorbed in her thoughts , whie subconsciously she continued her work . Crouching over the lowest shelf , she sort the new books from the box lying next to her.
Tukson: "Welcome back. You really zoned out, I see. I've been calling you for a good minute, but you didn't answer. I thought something had happened to you."
Tukson said, looking at Blake with his arms crossed under his chest. Blake, who had finally returned to reality, could only look at him with a blank expression on her face. At that moment, she had trouble fully understanding his words.
Tukson: " I wanted to ask you to take over the cash register for a moment because I'm going out for a bit. However, seeing how lost in thought you were a moment ago, I think you should first correct what you've done here."
Tukson said this time with feigned irritation, looking with some amusement at the books stacked spine to the shelf . And after glancing at the books still in the box to see their titles. To his even greater amusement, It turned out that these books should have been on a different shelf.
Just after these words , Blake finaly snapped out of her reverie . Now fully understanding the implications of Tukson's statement , she silently looked at what she was doing. And indeed, not only had she arranged the books backwards . With the spine against the shelf, leaving only the whitespace visible.
But what's worse, she had taken the correct books out the shelf and placed them in the second box, only to put the wrong ones in their place. So not only did she take away the good books and replace them with bad ones, she didn't even arrange them properly.
The realization of what she had been doing unconsciously and the fact that she had been caught, called out, made her cheeks flush with embarrassment, which contrasted sharply with her cold, calm mask. However, closing her eyes and taking a breath, Blake calmed down. She had already done it, so the only thing she could do when she was caught was to apologize.
Blake: "I... I'm sorry, Tukson, I drifted off for a moment. I'll fix it right away "
Said Blake, genuinely embarrassed, immediately gathering the misplaced books from the shelves into the box next to her. Then, quickly and efficiently, the books that should have been there, but which she had taken to put in the other box, were returned to ther shelves.
Tukson: "Don't apologize, it's not the end of the world. Besides, there aren't any customers who would mind anyway... Just try to focus. Because this isn't the first time today that I've seen you completely absent-minded. "
Tukson said with a sincere warning that contained more concern than resentment. When he had said what he wanted to say, he sigh at the lack of customers. Looking around the empty store and then at the empty streets outside the window. Meanwhile, Blake put the last book back in its place, thus correcting her mistake.
But in her mind, she felt embarrassed. And that was because she knew she would have to check everything she had done, as she had only now realized that she had been working on autopilot for some time now , without paying attention to what she was doing . However, despite this , her face, which had returned to normal since the last blush , remained calm, betraying nothing of her thoughts .
Blake: "No . Lack of customers mean anything, I still messed up. Not only did I show up late, but I'm also daydream all day and waste time. "
Blake said apologetically, pausing her work to lower her head in a clear display of fatigue while running her hand through her hair. Looking at Blake, who had been in a bad and sarcastic mood since morning , but over time, she became even more and more tired and confused, Tukson sighed and shook his head. Something was wrong. And it was obvious that the girl was thinking about something and couldn't stop.
Tukson : " Instead of apologizing, maybe you could finally tell me what's distracting you so much today. You've been great employee so far. You never seemed like the type to drift off like that. But today it's happened again. Something's clearly going on."
He said, finally getting to the point. He could see that something was really going on with Blake and that something was bothering her all day. Her outburst right after arriving at work, something that was completely out of character for her, already showed that something was wrong. She had been nervous and stressed from the begining od her job .
Something he decided to completely ignore at first because, well... She's a woman, and women are like that sometimes. Especially in "these days." However, one does not ask or discuss such things. But over time, he noticed that this was completely outside the scope of such matters. It was closer to paranoia than a simple hormonal imbalance.
And even if he didn't care personally, it affected her performance at work. Consequently, it also became his problem. However, apart from the fact that it affected Blake's work, Tukson cared enough about her to be concerned. And honestly, being around someone like that can affect everyone . Especially since they were both fauns. Their animal instincts were coming out. When one animal is nervous, the rest of the herd gets nervous too.
Tukson : " In the morning, it was about getting to school, but now ? I doubt that's still the issue. I think I've explained well enough why you don't need to worry about it, so... What's the matter now , kid ? "
Tukson asked, honestly, without being nosy , while looking at Blake, who was still crouching . Then she raised her reddened, tearful , depressed and stressed eyes and looked into his . But even though she looked at him, her hesitation was clear. Unable to bear his gaze, she immediately hid her head back in her knees. She didn't want to complain, she didn't want to talk. And Tukson knew that's how she would be. Too proud and stubborn for her own good.
Tukson : " Come on Blake , right now, I'm not talking to you as your boss, but as your friend. So get it off your chest. If not to me, then you should talk to Lappland. Unless there's something going on with her... I don't know much about matters of the heart, especially between two... Girls, but if you don't talk to anyone about it, whatever's bothering you will eventually wear you down. It will simply overwhelm you. "
He said it with sincere advice and a slight joke. Hoping to irritate Blake by calling Lappland her girlfriend. Something that, judging by their previous behavior, should irritate her. After all, Blake was clearly trying to play dumb. But he could see and feel the tension between them. It was too obvious. Silly talk like "we're just friends" wouldn't work here.
Although at the same time he honestly felt that he shouldn't pressure her to answer . But he did so anyway . He simply cannot look at it and ignore it. That's why he asked . He simpli hope that it would help somehow. And apparently, it touched something in Blake. She didn't deny Tukson's accusation about her relationship with Lappland, not after promising not to hide it anymore. At the same time, she didn't comment on it.
Instead, her head was filled with confusion, which she finally decided to let go. And so , Blake listening to him, finally broke down . Raising her head she looked at Tukson. . Her face was painted with unease and a certain amount of paranoia . It didn't look well.
Blake: "I really don't want to think about all this, but I just can't help it. There's too much going on. So much has happened, and not even a day has passed. I can't keep up anymore... My parents, White Fang, Adam, Sienna... The situation is going to explode and I'm worried. School, my identity, Lappland's identity. "
Blake began with a trembling voice, and her words began to flow like water. The dam had truly broken, overwhelming Tukson's understanding. Despite this, he did not stop her, but rather tried to grasp the situation. And unfortunately, from what he understood, he understood nothing.
Blake : " I don't know if I'm being hunted by Adam's people. Or rather, will Lappland be pursued by them? Will White Fang consider her a traitor when they find out she is alive? Will Sienna try to stop them? She will certainly do so, but won't that make everyone angry? Now there's this situation with Lappland... I feel like everything is falling on my back and crushing me."
Blake spoke quickly, without pausing , without breathing or without explaining anything, which in itself revealed the confusion and anxiety hidden within her. And Tukson , he didn't understand most of what she said. But he understood at least one of her worries . As for the rest, there is not enough detailed information.
And in this one matter , he couldn't help but understand her. He himself had been paranoid about a possible manhunt for him after he left white fang . He heard about how deserters were being rounded up. He was worried that as a former member, the same thing would happen to him. So he spend months looking over his shoulder and tensing at every shadow. Even after settling down, every faunus he saw caused an adrenaline rush.
And besides that, Blake was clearly troubled by event more than just that. He didn't understand everything, but looking only at Blake and Lappland's identities and their plans, many questions answered themselves. He could only imagine the stress Blake was under. And now, apparently, something has happened to her parents. And frankly, with all that mess, Tukson lost his confidence in comforting Blake.
As for Blake . The truth was that Blake, who hadn't had much sleep, was really having a hard time coping with the whole mess that was her current life. In the morning, she was too busy and too tired to think or understand the significance of that night . Then they visited the doctor and her thoughts wandered to the mystery of Lappland's body condition. So it was only on her way to work and after arriving at work that Blake really had time to think about it all.
And it all came at once. Not one thing at a time, but a whole bunch of shit. And not small things. But huge ones. It's about the stability of White Fang. It's also about the safety of her parents. And, consequently, about the entire island they are responsible for. It's about her home. Besides, there's her whole stupid plan and how to fit Lappland into it. Which, to be honest, she didn't think about like an idiot, she just did it. And now she was hit by an emotional roller coaster, love and other emotions she felt after yesterday's confrontation with Lappland.