10-4-10

1:17am

Summary–Romance is already a tricky topic, and the girls learn from first-hand experience...if you want something to happen, you need to make it happen. A chapter for each pairing of Blossom/Brick, Buttercup/Butch and Bubbles/Boomer.

Disclaimer–I do not own The Powerpuff Girls, which belongs to its respective owner(s) and is only being used in a fan-made, fictional story.

xoxo

Title–Do the Don'ts

Chapter 1–Take the first step (Buttercup/Butch)

By–Moon Prynces

xoxo

They had been circling this issue for weeks. Teasing each other, daring the other to make the first move.

Buttercup wasn't one to talk about her feelings at the drop of a hat. It wasn't like she didn't have feelings though – she just chose not to let the whole world know everything (or anything).

And for once, instead of this (slightly) paranoid nature helping protect her from unworthy people, it was ruining a relationship that had yet to begin!

A relationship she wasn't sure she wanted, but even so she wanted to be able to make that choice herself.

So if she kept up this way then it would all fall to pieces before she could make that decision.

Not that he was any help either.

Him. The one with whom she was still considering having a relationship with.

Butch grinned across the lunch table at her, not saying a word.

Buttercup rolled her eyes and pretended to ignore him. She was waiting for her sisters to come and fill up the silence.

Seriously though, it was obvious for weeks now that there was some attraction between them. It had to be something in the air, because since they'd all returned from summer break for junior year things had been...different.

"Are you done staring?" Buttercup asked him, without glancing his way.

"Are you done looking so delectable?" he asked back.

She had to fight the blush at such a perverse compliment. No one talked to her like that. It felt so awkward and...uncomfortable.

But then Buttercup smirked and turned to stare at him point-blank, and caused Butch to freeze in surprise.

"Well, if you really feel that way," she started, leaning halfway across the table between them. And just as she assumed, he leaned closer to her as well. "Then do something about it."

Then she pulled back and crossed her arms over her chest, still smirking.

Butch blinked a moment, still thinking about how close her lips had been and the voice she had just used on him.

But soon he was pulling away too, back in his seat and grinning. "Begging isn't attractive, you know."

Buttercup gritted her teeth at his words. "Yeah, like I would ever beg for anything from you."

And that was how a lot of conversations went these days. It always seemed like they made progress, only to have both parties pull back and wait for the other to make a move.

After a month and a half of this Buttercup now knew what sexual tension was.

She hated it. She hated him.

Why couldn't he just admit how he felt so she could do the same and then they could move on to the obviously fun parts?

Maybe he enjoyed torturing her. Maybe he never intended to follow through with anything they ever said. Maybe...he thought she wasn't really worth more than a few flirtatious lines.

It was these kinds of thoughts that made Buttercup hate herself most of all.

Why did she care so much about what he thought of her anyway? Why did he talk to her like that, or look at her that way, at all? But most importantly, why was she wasting her time waiting on him?

It was lucky for her that around the time these thoughts began to surface she made a crucial (and slightly rash) decision after class on a Thursday.

The lesson was over. People were gathering their things and leaving.

And Butch walked over to her desk, as she was just sticking the notebook in her messenger bag, to greet her.

"Hey Butterbabe," he said nonchalantly.

The new nickname had her eyes widening in shock before she looked up to his grinning face. At which point her eyes narrowed and she grabbed him by the shirt, dragging him out of the classroom (that was once again being filled with students).

"Hey, what're you doing?" Butch questioned, a little afraid she was going to beat him into oblivion. He knew she didn't agree with (what an understatement) the various terms of endearment he came up with.

Buttercup didn't listen as she pushed him into a door and then beyond it inside a heavily tiled room.

"Uh..." he started, looking around, "Did you...need to use the bathroom?"

"Shut up, Butch," she said with a brow raised seriously. Then she checked the stalls to make sure no one was lurking around.

When she sighed and turned to see him standing there, he quirked a brow of his own, waiting for an explanation.

"I–" she false started.

For once Butch didn't chime in with something sly and insulting or devious and perverse.

So Buttercup swallowed her pride, let down her barriers and just said it.

"I like you," she said frankly, though still looking a bit nervous. "And I'm done playing these games. And I'm done waiting for you to do something about it. So...I am."

Buttercup was proud at the look on his face, caught off-guard.

She added something after a moment of thought. "They say the girl should wait for the guy to do everything but you know what? Screw that."

"Me too," he finally said. And Buttercup had to admit it was worth making the first move just to see him squirming and looking embarrassed. "I mean– I like you too."

There was a pause as everything began to sink in.

Then, she laughed out loud as he sighed in relief with a wry smile of his own.

xoxo

10-4-10

8:49pm

An old bff of mine once said I was a "closet feminist" and she might be partly right. So that's why it's painful to think that the Powerpuff Girls somehow fell into that trap of waiting for the guy to do something first. But we're all a little afraid to take the first step sometimes, right?

Honestly I don't feel like this story is anywhere near my best work. I am definitely off-kilter, and it shows when I try to write.

The next two chapters are done and I'll post again in a few days.

Also, that story for Bubbles/Boomer that is supposed to follow "On Top" isn't going anywhere. It's taking a while to come together but I'll try again soon.

Thanks for reading.

10-5-10

10:03pm