Brick

Love.

You know, from back when I was born, I had always believed that it never existed. Throw my bad and evil nature aside. To me, love didn't exist even in the hearts of the best person on the face of the earth. Basically, in every single relationship, there was always a gain for both parties, be it innocent things like comfort or more self-centered things like financial stability. So, in every relationship, everyone just conceals their self-interests for being with that person through that blanket called love.

Let's take for example, a family. Is there really love among the members or are they together due to a mutual obligation? The parents created the child so they have to raise it. In return the child takes care of the parents in their old age as compensation for their efforts all those years ago.

I didn't love my brothers back when I was much younger. I stuck with them just because they were my brothers and we were a team. If I had to choose between love and hate, I would say that I hated my brothers more than I loved them. To be honest, I couldn't stand them. They were wimps.

I guess I don't have to explain why Boomer was a wimp to you. It's pretty obvious. Butch was a different story though. He was just too scared of me. He might have been the bravest among the three of us but he just could never meet my eyes or rebut anything I say even if he strongly disagreed with it. He was my shadow. He was my dog.

He didn't love me. He adored me. He wanted to be like me.

Boomer didn't love me either. I bet if he was strong enough, he would have beaten me up.

Still, everyone had their breaking point. Twelve years down the road, my blue brother called it quits and ditched his two older brothers. I wanted to go after him but how would that look? It'd just be me admitting that Boomer was important to me. It was plain uncool.

Apparently, to Butch, coolness didn't matter. The moment he realized that I wasn't going to lift a finger to go look for him or even give a fuck about where our blue-eyed baby brother went, his older brother instincts kicked in and for the first time, he stood up to me, gave me a punch in the face and left.

It was only when I was all alone did I realize that I was feeling a deep hole in my heart, like the two of them had just taken a spoon and stolen a spoonful or muscle out of it.

Alright, bad imagery, I admit. I'm not exactly the literary kind, you know. I'm not like my little pink counterpart.

But if I had to be really honest, even if I didn't believe in it, I wanted to know how it felt like to lie to myself and conceal my true emotions with that blanket called love. Perhaps I did believe in it but chose not to just to deny my longing to be loved. My fathers never loved me. They loved my power. They loved my ambition. They loved my drive. They didn't love the redheaded little kid who was born out of a toilet bowl along with his two brothers from snips, snails and a puppy dog tail.

I wouldn't be surprised if HIM was even repulsed by the idea of us.

I guess it was the image and reputation I built for myself. It was due to the superiority complex I had nurtured in myself that made me believe that I could survive by myself and stopped me from going after Butch, or even Boomer for all that matter.

One year down the road and I regretted every single thing. But there was no way I could go looking for them anymore. I doubted that they even wanted me back. I didn't know if they were even together but Butch said he was going to look for Boomer. For the sake of what used to be our team, I hoped they were together, or at least, in touch.

Now eighteen years of age, my life had officially lost all ofits excitement. I had grown out of the childish desire of seeing explosions and hearing people scream. I stole and fought not because I wanted to but because I needed to. No one was going to give me a job. I had no education. Plus, my background as a criminal didn't help either.

My powers were still there but it had been ages since I used them. I hadn't flown ever since I saw Butch fly away from me. I hadn't relied on my super strength ever since I beat up a big bald gang leader in a street fight and got myself five hundred bucks. I didn't see the need to. My body had enough strength and stealth for me to survive even without my powers.

But it got tougher the moment people realized that they were no match for me. No one fought me in street fights anymore. I could try and kill all of them but it would be asking for too much trouble. Those people had countless of minions under them and they had associations in other cities and towns as well. If I killed a group, more would come. If they cooperated with big time organizations, they'd have weapons as well. It would attract the attention of the police and soon enough, the girls.

I couldn't take on the girls alone. I had to lay low.

I managed to find myself shelter in an abandoned apartment complex in the more run-down corner of town. It was home but I absolutely detested it. Who even enjoys living with pests and bugs in the first place? I found a discarded mattress in an alley and brought it back as well. For the past half a year, that had been my refuge from the cruelty of the streets and the world outside.

There hadn't been a day that went by without me wondering about everyone who played a part in my past. My fathers. My brothers. My enemies. If I had been alone from the start, I wonder how I would have ended up.

While I was walking home one day, I caught sight of a rather familiar face. No, take that back, I caught sight of five familiar faces- green faces, to be exact.

The Gangreen Gang had grown appearance wise in the last twelve years. Now in their late twenties, all of them had grown a little taller, were much buffer (except for Big Billy- dude was still fat as ever) and had completely changed their sense of fashion to resemble a bike gang of some sort. Ace also had a slight beard. Snake seemed contented with his goatee.

What threw me off was that they had pinned an old lady against the wall and had a gun pointed at her. The poor old lady was shivering and I feared that she could have died from a heart attack. I mean, it's scary enough being attacked by a gang of bikers, much more green ones.

I started walking towards them, hands in my hoodie's pockets and ears strained, activating my initially dormant powers. I could hear them crisp and clear. I stopped and focused my attention on them from across the small street.

"Give us all yer money and we'll let ya go," Ace sniggered, pushing the barrel of the gun harder against the lady's neck.

"I-I-I s-spent it all on… T-The turkey I was going to make for my family," she replied, stammering yet talking like a bullet train.

"Take the turkey, Boss. Big Billy like turkey!" Big Billy giggled (well, I assumed it was his equivalent of a giggle) and clapped his hands. A maniacal grin spread on Ace's face.

"No! No! Please! I bought it for my grandkids. It's Thanksgiving today. Have some mercy!" the woman begged, clasping her hands together.

It was Thanksgiving, huh?

It didn't seem to worry Ace at all as he pushed the gun hard against the lady and eyed the bag that she clasped in her hand. I knew his gang was pathetic but I didn't expect it to be that bad. I suddenly felt sorry for the old lady and for her grandkids who were waiting at home for her to return and cook dinner for them. Then they'd most probably sit around the table and laugh and talk as they had their hearty dinner.

She had a family waiting for her.

Before I even knew it, my legs started moving of their own accord and I was walking towards them. I stopped a distance away.

"Seriously, you guys, why don't you pick on someone your own size?" I asked.

Ace turned at me with a raised eyebrow, obviously not recognizing me at all. I didn't blame him. My brothers and I had gone missing from the world of crime for a while already. And it wasn't as if he had actually seen me in real life either. If I wanted to though, I most probably could get out some kind of memory.

"What're you gonna do about it, kid? You're one boy against five men," he scoffed, moving away from the woman and crossing his arms.

Looking down on little Brickie, are we?

I grinned and clenched my fists. "Well, I'm going to kick your asses of course," I replied.

Ace faked a yawn and turned to Big Billy, nodding towards my direction. Big Billy grinned and he started running towards me. I took a deep breath and held my fists outwards, spreading my legs to balance myself better. My aim was to protect the woman, not fight. I had to make sure I kept an eye on her.

Just as Billy neared me, I sidestepped and stuck my leg out, letting him trip over it and fall to the ground. I swung my other leg. My heel landed right smack in the mid of his spin, making him cry out in pain. I didn't bother about him. I rushed towards Ace and punched him in the face. Someone jumped on me right as Ace fell and I immediately flipped him over to the ground, kicking him hard (it was Lil' Arturo by the way and he wasn't so little anymore). Grubber and Snake glared at me and run towards me, together. Ah whatever. I had two fists so I let each of them have one.

It always confuses me till now how those five ever managed to deal with the girls. They were weak and pathetic. If my brothers and I had problems fighting the girls, they stood no chance against them. Not to mention, I knocked them out without using any of my powers.

I turned to the old woman. "Are you okay, Ma'am?" I asked politely.

"Yes, thanks to you young man. Why don't you come over to my house for some turkey?" she asked back.

As appealing as it sounded, I knew it wouldn't be right for me to barge in. She didn't look as if she had much food in the first place and I didn't want to burden her.

"Thank you very much but I have to decline that," I replied.

"Sure you do. I bet your family is waiting for you as well, young man," she said. "Your family must be so proud of how brave and well-mannered you are."

Brave and well-mannered? I almost laughed out loud.

I nodded and the lady started scurrying off. I looked down at the five of them again. Ace was struggling to get up.

"Damn, what are ya, kid?" he asked, holding onto his bleeding nose. "You punch like a fucking Powerpuff."

They didn't recognize me and I wasn't so keen on revealing my identity either. I turned my trusty red cap around so I could hide my eyes with it (as far as Townsville knew, the leader of the Rowdyruffs was the only one who had red eyes) and I shrugged.

"I'm just a kid who lives on the streets," I replied.

"So are we," Ace snapped. He looked like he was about to say more but three shadows suddenly appeared and his eyes grew wide. He stared right above my head and I immediately knew what- or who- was behind me. Ace scrambled up, helping his team up as well, before they started running off. Big Billy pushed past me, making me stumble forwards, deeper into the darkness of the alley. I looked behind and I saw the Powerpuff Girls, armed crossed and mouths turned to smirks.

"Well, they're as cowardly as usual," Buttercup sighed. "There goes my action."

"But BC, we just had some action with that monster in town," Bubbles complained. "I'm glad this nice guy over here dealt with the Gangreen Gang!"

"Yes, kind sir, we formally thank you for your help. That was some fighting you got there," Blossom commended.

I shifted uncomfortably and looked away, letting my hat shield the rest of my face. "It was no problem, really," I sighed.

"Really? You gave them a good beating though!" Buttercup replied. "It was cool as hell!"

"Thanks, I guess," I said with a shrug.

"He seems kinda shy…" Bubbles chuckled. "I wonder if he's cute…" The last part was said much softer, more to her sisters than to me but I caught it anyway. For some strange reason, I didn't mind if she found me cute, which was strange, considering she was a Powerpuff.

Had I gone soft the past year? I guess I had…

"Bubbles, is that really how an attached girl should be like? I don't think so," Blossom sighed under he breath. She fixed her eyes on me and smiled widely. Even while glancing from under my cap, I could seem some form of radiance that sparkled off from her smile and I realized that Blossom was really pretty. Bubbles was cute. Buttercup was hot. Blossom was… I don't know… Even pretty seemed like an understatement.

Shit, what the fuck was I thinking?

"What's your name?" Blossom asked.

I swallowed. "It's not important."

"It's not important? Come on," Buttercup laughed. "You're really shy, aren't you?"

As much as it hurt my masculine ego, it was better that my identity was still kept a secret. I didn't need the girls interrogating me or beating me up.

"I-I guess so…" I murmured. "I… Really should go. It's late and I'm tired."

"Yeah, you should," Blossom agreed. "Where do you live? Do you want a lift or something? It's the least we can do since you helped us and the old lady."

I was about to answer when two dark streaks lit the sky, stopping by the girls and revealing two very familiar face. Oh shit. I could hold my cool around the girls but there was no way I was going to successfully keep my identity a secret from my brothers.

"Damn, where'd you girls go?" Butch complained. "Boomer and I finished evacuating the city for you and we realized that you girls were gone."

Buttercup pointed at me. "Bubbles wanted to come here to flirt with this guy that saved an old lady," she said. What the fuck? Why did she point me out? I immediately took a few more steps back, deeper into the darkness. But I was sure it didn't help much. The five of them had x-ray vision.

"Bubbles!" Boomer whined, making the blonde girl giggle.

"Hey, don't you dare flirt with my future sister-in-law, you bastard!" Butch yelled playfully, obviously directed more to Bubbles than me.

My brothers were acting so familiar with the girls that it knocked the breath right out of my chest. Did they really feel more comfortable with the girls than they were with me? The answer came immediately. Of course they did. The girls were nice people that didn't ever judge people by their backgrounds. I wasn't even surprised that they welcomed by brothers with open arms.

But there I was, their own older brother, who had once taken advantage of their weaknesses to assert my control over them.

I needed to leave.

Not really saying another word, I turned my back on them and started walking.

"Do you really think I don't know who you are?" I heard Blossom call out to me. I stopped but I didn't turn back. I stood there and when it was obvious that I wasn't going to say anything, Blossom sighed. "Why're you hiding? You were never one to hide from me, Red." Using the old nickname she had coined for me back when we were ten, she made a lump rise in my throat. I glanced back, still hiding with my cap. Everyone else looked confused.

"You got the wrong person," I murmured, though the way my voice cracked betrayed the truth.

"I'd recognize my biggest rival's fighting style anywhere," she sighed. "I only know of one person who'd use such a dirty trick like tripping in a proper fight."

"Bloss, what's going on?" Buttercup asked. "You know this guy?"

"Of course I do. All of us do… Isn't that right, Red?" she asked sweetly.

Alright, that did it.

Without a second glance back, I started running off. I knew the alleys at the back of my hand. I would be able to escape pretty easily.

"Hey wait!" I heard Blossom cry out as I turned into a corner and got deeper into the maze of the alleys. Just as I thought I had escaped from her clutches, I felt a weight push me down. I fell face flat into a puddle of murky water. My cap fell off my head and lay beside me. I was flipped over to lie on my back, facing Blossom who had me pinned down on the floor.

"It's been a while, Brick," she said smugly.

"Blossom!"

Blossom glanced backwards as I let my eyes move towards the group that was approaching us. Blossom released her grip and floated up to her feet. I got up and took my cap. It was soaked in dirty, smelly water and as much as I had already gotten my hair wet from it, the thought of putting that on my head didn't appeal to me.

Boomer and Butch froze the moment they saw me, loss for words. After a brief glance over everyone, I fixed my eyes on the floor.

"Woah," Buttercup breathed. "I'd never expected Brick to save a poor old lady in distress."

"It was unfair on her part. She didn't have money and she had mouths to feed at home," I replied as an excuse. I wasn't really going to admit that I had pitied her and that I had not wanted her to get hurt because that would mean that her grandkids would lose her. I didn't want them to go through the heartache of losing family.

"So why didn't you follow her for a free dinner?" Blossom asked with a raised eyebrow. The smugness was yet to vanish and I longed to claw out that expression of hers.

"My dinners are always free," I scoffed. I jabbed a thumb at myself and smirked at her. "Criminal, remember?"

"A criminal who saved the poor old woman. How nice…" Bubbles cooed, making Buttercup chuckle madly.

"If your dinner's always free, why'd you look like a refugee?" Blossom asked.

"Perhaps I am."

"Really? From what?" she sniggered.

I fixed her with a long, hard glare. "Reality."

Blossom nodded, as if satisfied with my answer and she turned to my brothers. I dared a peek at them, their frowns immediately making me cower back. I should go. I tightened my grip on my cap and started walking forward.

"I should go… I'm tired and I'd like to sleep. It's nice seeing all of you. Farewell," I said, with a nod at Blossom. As I walked past my brothers, I suddenly felt a tight grip on my arm, stilling me.

"You're gonna let us go again?" Butch asked quietly. "You cool with that?"

I swallowed. They were happy, weren't they?

"Yes," I croaked as I tried to pull my arm out of Butch's grip, though to no avail.

His grip tightened and he spun me around to face him, grabbing onto my shoulders, his fingers digging into my bone. Butch was only a few inches taller than me but with those muscles of his, he seemed to tower over me. Obviously, he wasn't living on the streets like I was. I guess Boomer and him either moved in with the girls or got their own apartment, a real decent one.

Months of scarce junk food with no proper nutrition could have been enough for me to stand up against ordinary human beings but there was no way I could stand up against my brother who was obviously growing up well. I glanced at Boomer from the corner of my eye and gulped. There was no was I could stand up against him as well.

"You're a bad liar, bro. You've always been," Butch snarled. "I guess you never change. Even that fucking ego of yours is still larger than my guns."

Right… Pretty cool analogy you got there, bro.

"Butch, I'm tired. Let me go," I complained, trying to wiggle out of his grasp.

"You might be fine being alone but I'm not letting you go," Butch growled. "I thought that when I left, it'd teach you that you really need us and that you'll come find us. Do you know how long Booms and I have been waiting for that day?"

I didn't want to talk. I wanted to sleep.

"Let me go, Butch, please," I whined.

"No."

"I don't need you guys around, goddammit. I'm fine on my own," I snapped.

"Yeah, says the one who looks like he just came out of the deepest pits of hell," Butch sighed. "Come on, dude, just admit it."

"I want to go home and sleep!" I growled, allowing my old authority to seep back into my voice. "You guys left me. There's nothing more between us."

"Yeah? How about our blood?" Boomer spat, finally speaking up.

"You guys betrayed me," I snarled.

"You betrayed our familial love," Boomer snarled back.

"Bullshit," I hissed. "Love doesn't exist. Familial love? Don't give me that crap! Where were our so-called fathers when we were growing up? What love did they have for us?"

"They're not our real fathers, Brick. They're just our creator and resurrector," Butch sighed. "Surely, you know that. Aren't you supposed to be the smartest among us?"

"You know what, Brick?" Boomer sighed. "For someone with no parents, you really are a spoilt brat. I'm done with you. Let's go, Butch."

Boomer started floating off and Butch's eyes widened. ""Hey! Wait! He's still our brother, you know!" he yelled out.

"You can keep him! He's no brother of mine!"

I watched as Boomer zoomed off, leaving behind a dark blue streak that eventually faded off to the darkening black sky. Butch gave me one last pleading look and I turned away from him. Boomer had said it out loud. He had officially renounced his relation with me.

It was obvious. It was hopeless.

"Him or me, Butch… It's your pick," I said. I glanced at him and saw his face hardened. Butch didn't say another word as he started floating upwards. After fixing me with a long, despaired look, he vanished into a long trace of green. I watched as he left, a sudden heaviness weighing itself down on me as he flew away.

"Did you just do that?" I heard Buttercup gasp behind me. "Someone tell me he didn't just chase them away again!"

I didn't turn to them, which seemed to aggravate the girls even further.

"Brick, you're such a meanie!" Bubbles whined and I heard the soft thump of her stamping her food on the ground.

"I'm going home. I'm tired," I murmured, before walking away. The girls didn't follow after me and I was glad. I wanted some time alone. I needed the time alone.

Never had I thought that I would have felt so small in the presence of my brothers, knowing that they were much bigger and stronger than me and could beat me into a pulp if they wanted to. Even if it was just a mere few minutes that I had felt so intimidated by them, I realized why Boomer had decided to leave in the first place. I didn't like the feeling that was surging through me as I looked at Butch earlier on, fearing that in his anger, he might swing a fist right into my nose.

No wonder they left…

"Fuck this!" I yelled the moment I was safe in the refuge of my home. I swung my fist outwards, slamming against the wall and leaving a small crater-like hole in the wall. I watched some debris and dirt fall off the edges of my imprint and onto the ground. It fell beside a roach, before it scurried off as if in fear of its life.

"You know, punching a wall and almost scaring a poor cockroach to death isn't going to get your brothers back," I heard a familiar sigh behind me. I scowled. Trust Blossom to stalk me all the way back just to annoy the hell out of me. I turned and glared at her.

"Get lost. Haven't you ruined enough already?" I grumbled, sliding my hands into my pockets.

"Me? How did I ruin anything?" she asked, genuinely shocked and somewhat upset. "I tried to help you reunite with your brothers. Do you know how much they're missing you?"

"Sure, Boomer misses me a lot," I scoffed. "Face it, Blossy, between my brothers and I, there is nothing anymore."

"Come on, Brick. You miss them. You want them back. You know that as much as I do," Blossom snapped.

Of course I want them back but I can't just go there and ask them to come back to me. It would be embarrassing to no ends! Plus, with Boomer's current anger, I figured that even if I begged (which I never would), there was no way he was going to accept me again. My brothers were gone from my life and they were never coming back. If it was anyone's fault, it was definitely mine. That, I wouldn't deny. But at the same time, weren't they at fault for not doing anything to change me as well? If they didn't like it, why didn't they say something?

But they did try to do something…

I shook my head at my conscience and returned my focus to reality, to Blossom. I realized that both of us had been silent for a while. Since I was so deep in my own thoughts, I hadn't even realized that I was staring at her. In fact, our eyes were locked on each other's.

She was the one who broke the silence. "You know, it was actually all three of your faults'," she said, making me wonder if she could read my mind. Heck, she was my counterpart, she'd probably knew the way my mind worked. If I had to be honest, she was most probably the one who knew me the best in the whole world.

"Whatever. It's over now," I muttered, turning around and walking towards my bed. I pulled my hoodie off me and threw it aside. It was stinking from the dirty water anyway. My t-shirt underneath stank a little as well but it wasn't as bad. I needed to find a way to get a shower though. My hair felt gross. I hoped it rained…

"You're an ass. Your brothers love you. They love and miss you so much and you're not giving a fuck about them. Do you know how Boomer used to cry, saying that he misses you? Do you know how emotional Butch get whenever they talk about you? Do you really not care about the only two people in the world who genuinely love you?"

"Love me?" I spat, whipping around to face her, my sudden loudness and anger making her jump. "Don't fuck with me! There's no such thing as fucking love!" I stared at her as she blinked at me, first in confusion and then in what looked like realization.

"So that's it, huh?" she murmured. "No one's ever cared for you and showed you love so you just labelled it as a non-existent entity?"

"It doesn't exist! If it did, why did my brothers leave when they love me so much?" I challenged.

"Maybe, they left because they love you and wanted to teach you a lesson so that you'd become a better person," Blossom pointed out. "Come on, Brick, just trust me. Go back to them."

"No! They don't love me! There's no such thing!" I growled at her. But as I stared into her pink eyes, I felt my resolve crumble. There was something about her eyes at made my head spin and my heart race. Blossom blinked at me and started walked forwards. She reached out and took a strand of my hair, twirling it around her finger.

"You don't really believe that, do you?" she asked softly. I frowned and nodded. Blossom continued staring at me, her eyes pulling me deeper into some form of trance, making me lose control of myself. Without my consent, my head began shaking.

Blossom smiled at me, her hand moving to my cheek. She pulled me closer and I suddenly felt a spark of self-consciousness ignite in me. Why was she so close to me? She had never been so close to me unless she was trying to kill me… Her eyelids fell close and she tilted her head. She rose on her tiptoes, pulling me forward until our lips met.

Holy shit… Was I kissing a Powerpuff?

My thoughts were soft in my head, just like soothing whispers, and I started to listen to them.

Close your eyes. Pull her close.

I closed my eyes and wrapped my arms around her waist. Blossom's lips were soft and smooth, as opposed to my chapped and cracked ones. Her body was much smaller and softer than I had expected it to be. Even with my somewhat malnourished body, I towered over her. It was hard to believe that up will we were about ten, we were exactly the same height and size. Blossom felt so fragile in my arms and although it sounded so absurd, I was afraid that I would end up hurting her.

And as quickly as it had started, it ended. She pulled away from me roughly, putting some distance between us. She turned away from me, crossing her arms.

It amazed me how I wanted her to come back and let me kiss her more. I couldn't believe how much I just wanted to hold her. It actually hurt when she pulled herself away from me. It hurt almost as much as Boomer and Butch leaving hurt me.

"Bloss?" I managed to croak out the moment I found my voice.

"I'm sorry," she sighed, turning to face me. She chuckled a little and flashed me a smile that was simply begging me to pull her into another kiss. "You stink."

The amount of relief I felt the moment she said that made me sigh and I ran my hand through my hair. "There isn't a shower here…"

Blossom raised her eyebrow and walked over to me. She placed her hands on my chest and tiptoed so that her mouth was at my ear. "There's a shower in my house, you know," she whispered. She pulled back slightly and her eyes locked on mine. Her pink eyes were twinkling in amusement and her mouth was pulled into a provocative smirked. Her index finger was tracing light circles through the thin fabric of my tee on the left of my chest. I was pretty sure that she could feel the thumping of my heart against her hands.

Holy fuck…

"So, what do you say? Do you want a shower or not?"

Blossom

I woke up in to find myself in a tangle of my own limbs as well as Brick's. I was lying on my side, my back to him as his arm draped across my waist with his body pressed against mine. It wasn't the first time I had slept with someone but I was a long time since the last time I spent a night with a guy. Perhaps, about two years.

I wondered if it was Brick's first time. I mean, he did seem a little unsure of himself, which was weird, considering that he was Brick. I prayed hard it wasn't. It would seem entirely weird (to me) if I had unknowingly stolen his virginity, which is strange because it's normally the guy who is experienced and would go around stealing girls' virginities. I've read enough romance novels and watched enough chick flicks to know that. Plus, Brick did seem like the player kind of boy…

I thought Brick was still deep asleep as I wiggled out of his arms but before I could crawl out of bed, his arms wrapped around me and pulled me close to him. I felt him kiss the back of my head.

"Mornin'," he greeted, his voice sounding so husky that it took a lot out of me not to jump on him for a repeat of last night. I felt my cheeks reddened at the thought and I immediately cursed in my head (I never cursed out loud- never). Seriously, it has been years and that stupid crush of mine showed no signs of fading.

I didn't actually know when I started to have a thing for him but I'm guessing it was about the time when puberty started kicking in. You might be surprised but puberty did wonders to him. He grew a lot and he's now much taller than me. His face lost its baby roundness and was now well chiseled out. Coupled with those high cheekbones of his, his squared jaws and smooth tanned skin complemented his blazing red eyes. His long hair was now cut short enough to be hidden under his cap, just like back when we first met. But without his cap, his bangs fell into his eyes, shadowing them nicely and giving him a sexy mysterious aura.

His looks weren't all. His thoughts matured a lot as well. His battle plans got more elaborate and thought-out. He started to pose a harder opponent for me to fight- someone who was indeed a challenge to me. Physical fights aside, he was well on par with me intellectually as well. When we weren't swinging our fists at each other, we were engaging in a battle of wits.

But I guess, there was still that part of him that was immature as ever. He never seemed to ever let go of his ego.

I wish I could say I felt sorry for him but I didn't. His selfishness hadn't just left him in the grasps of loneliness. It had also pushed his brothers almost to the point of depression. It's a wonder how they were managing without him, yet living with thoughts of him forever consuming their minds.

But at the same time, I pitied Brick because he never received or understood love. Boomer and Butch loved and looked up to him. He was their idol. They let him boss them about. They let him control them. But they never stood up against him till far too late. They got their act together only after he had fully convinced himself that love didn't exist and that even if he did, he was never going to receive any (or perhaps, he believed he didn't deserve it). Maybe if Butch and Boomer had let him known his value to them and actually treated him more like a brother than a leader, maybe this would never had happened.

Was it really too late to try and fix their relationship?

"What's wrong?" Brick murmured. "You've gone all silent without even wishing me a good morning."

"No… I was just wondering if last night was your first," I lied.

"I live on the streets, Blossy. Do you think I've never had sex before?" he chuckled.

"Well, you seemed a little shy and uncomfortable yesterday," I admitted.

Brick laughed and I felt his hot breath against the skin of my neck, making me tremble from the closeness between the two of us.

"Well, perhaps it's because yesterday was a genuine… Experience with someone… Proper," he replied, pausing occasionally to choose appropriate words. For someone who grew up on the streets, I had to say he did a pretty decent job.

"Well, thank you," I replied.

"No, Blossom. I should be thanking you," he replied, tugging on my arm to turn me to face him. He flashed me a weak smile. "It's been so long since I've been able to sleep in a proper bed with a proper room."

"Why don't you stay here then? I mean… Butch and Boomer also live here," I murmured.

Brick blinked at me and his eyes went wide for a short moment- a very brief moment- before he frowned. With a roll of his eyes, he got up and started gathering up his clothes.

"Brick!" I hissed.

"I can't believe you'd go that far just to get me in the same house as the two ungrateful bastards!" he snapped, pulling on his clean pair of jeans that he had brought along with him. He flashed me a disgusted look and continued looking for his t-shirt.

"You really think that way?" I cried out. "Oh come on, I brought you here because I want you here!"

Brick flashed me a withering look. "You want me here? Yeah right. I won't believe it, Ribbons. There's no way you brought me here because you want me. And to think that for a moment, I made myself believe that…" He stopped, fixed me with a gaze that I couldn't identify and turned his back to me.

I had a feeling that he was about to say something important before he stopped himself. I knew that if I didn't get those words out, I would regret it. I got up, ignoring the fact that I wasn't clothed, and walked all the way up to him. I gently took his hands that were by his side and leaned my forehead against his back. Brick stiffened but made no attempts at pulling away.

"What?" I urged. "What did you make yourself believe?"

"It doesn't matter…" Brick's voice was soft and raw and it made my heart ache for some reason. He was just so tired of everything that it made it seem like he had given up completely on life. I worried myself for a moment. What if he really had?

"Leave it be," he sighed, as stubborn as ever. I tightened my hold on him in response, pushing my body against him.

"Please Brick," I murmured. "Just say whatever it is you want to say. I won't judge you…"

Brick let out a long sigh. "Last night, as you slept beside me, I made myself believe that you actually like me. Can you believe that? You liking me? A hero and a villain. Who am I kidding?"

"No one," I replied. "Because I do like you… Very much, actually."

"But that's against nature," he complained.

"Well, your brothers are dating my sisters and I don't see anything going wrong with the world," I replied. "Come on, give us a chance."

Brick stared at me hard and I could tell from his eyes that he knew that I wasn't referring to just the two of us. He knew that I wanted him to give everyone else a chance, to let him give us a chance to let him integrate into society just as his brothers have done, to let him move on from everything that had been plaguing him.

"No," he whispered, but his face betrayed his tire emotions and I knew his resolve was crumbling bit by bit as time went on. I reached forward, pressing my palm against him cheek. Brick let out a choking sound that resembled a sob much more that he obviously wanted it to. He closed his eyes, tilting his head downwards. "I'm fine alone... I'm fine alone..." he recited, his words losing their meaning as he went on.

My hand wandered to the back of his neck and I pulled him close before letting my other arm wound around him as well. Brick gasped and I tightened my hold.

"Has anyone ever done this?" I murmured into his ear. Brick didn't say anything but he shook his head. I pulled him closer, if that was even possible. "There is goodness in the world Brick, even in the most evil of criminals. Even super villains like Mojo and HIM has a humane side to them. Trust me, I've seen them before. And I know that there's goodness in you too."

"Blossom, I-"

"Give me a chance to prove to you that love does exist," I cut in, pulling away slightly only to look at him, yet still keeping my arms wound around his neck.

We looked at each other and with that, all of his resistance and pretense crumbled, leaving his weak and vulnerable self exposed to the greatest enemy he had ever know in his life. He shook his head with a tear or two falling out of his eyes.

"I miss them, Blossom," he said with the meekest voice I had ever heard from him. "I miss them so much. I think about them everyday. God, I want them back, Blossom. I want my baby brothers back."

"Why don't you just go up to them and be honest?"

"I can't, Bloss. There's no way... How can I go back after all I've done to them?" he snapped, though it sounded a lot more like a cry of despair.

"Well, you never know till you tried," I admitted, pulling away from him and moving over to pull on my clothes. Brick watched me in silence, most probably- hopefully- deep in thought over what I just said to him.

"Do you think Boomer'll forgive me?" Brick asked.

I remained silent as I pulled on my clothes and eyed him from the corner of my eye. I kinda pitied his brothers. I realized that Brick, although he was their older brother, knew nothing about them. If he knew them well enough, he'd know that Boomer would be the easier one to deal with. Boomer was the most emotional out of the three of them. When he gets pissed, he gets really pissed. But he also had a softer side. I was sure that if Brick did apologize, Boomer would forgive him without hesitation.

"Yeah, he will," I finally replied. Brick groaned and ran his hand through his hair, looking up and sighing. He walked to me and took both my hands.

"Would you stand by me?" he questioned. I blinked at him, hesitating. Sure, I did want to see the boys reunited and all but, was it fair on his brothers?

No, I shouldn't doubt it. There was no greater happiness I could give to him, or his brothers. Reuniting them was something that had to be done.

They're brothers, for god's sake!

Brick reached forward to tuck a strand of my hair behind my ear. He took a deep breath and let it out, turning to look up at the ceiling. "I'm so scared, Blossom. I've never been so scared in my life," he whimpered.

I took his face in my hands and pulled him to look at me, to match our eyes to each other. "Look, Brick," I sighed. "Everything's going to be alright. You just need to have faith in yourself."

I felt a shiver run through him and I pulled him in for another hug, which he welcomed gratefully. I had never seen the leader of the Rowdyruffs so weak and vulnerable before and it made my heart ache to see him in that state. He was supposed to be Brick, the cool one that never let anything get in his way no matter what.

"Blossom, what do I do if they don't want me? I don't want to continue with my pretense anymore, not after you'd made me discard it," he said.

"Don't worry, just leave it to me," I said. The confidence in my voice, though fake, soothed him and he calmed himself down. He pulled away from me and took a deep breath.

"Alright. I'm ready."

We didn't have to look much for his brothers. It turned out, for some strange reason, both of them were standing right outside my room, with unreadable expression. I heard Brick mutter a curse under his breath and it was apparent from his face that he was so close to taking off. I immediately grabbed his hand, squeezing him lightly to soothe his raging nerves.

"Brick, what are you doing here? I thought you were too cool to get involve with others?" Boomer asked, the sarcasm in his voice making me wince. I couldn't even imagine how much it would have hurt Brick. Brick remained silent and Boomer groaned softly. He turned to me. "Blossom, don't you think you deserve a better guy?"

I felt Brick tighten his hold on my hand and I sighed, turning to give him a knowing look. Brick wasn't looking at me, or his brothers. He was just staring at the ground, his head turned to a side.

"Brick," I hissed, tugging on his arm. He glanced at me, his eyes tried and distraught.

"I can't do this," he replied.

"Yes, you can… I know you can and I know you want to."

"Yeah, Brick," Boomer added, his voice losing its hostile tone. "Just say it and we can go back to the way we used to be."

"NO!" Brick yelled, looking at the younger Ruff. "Don't you get it? I don't want anything to be the way it used to be? No way in fucking hell am I going to let myself treat you guys like trash. You're my brothers and I'm sorry I never respected that… I was a douche. And I still am a douche. I'm the shittiest leader and sibling in the whole of the universe. I'm supposed to be Blossom's counterpart but there was no way I was like her at all. You're tough like Buttercup, Butch, and Boomer, you're innocent and polite like Bubbles. But I'm nothing like Blossom. I'm not smart. I'm not responsible. I can't even take care of myself, let alone my two younger brothers. All I knew was to hide my pathetic self behind a mask- a mask that turned everyone against me. You guys don't know what's it like… And yet… You still left me… You never understood me and you just blamed me for your despair… Couldn't you guys have tried to find out why I acted in a way?" Brick's outburst lost its energy as the words spewed out of his mouth, his thoughts morphing into mindless rambles. By the end of it all, his voice had been reduced to merely a sob. "I'm sorry, you guys… I really am…"

Boomer and Butch stared at him, blinking alternately. Boomer cleared his throat. "So all along, this fight hadn't been with us, had it?"

Brick shook his head.

"It was all within yourself," Butch murmured.

"Yeah," Brick said.

"Come here," Boomer sighed, holding his arms out to his side. Brick hesitated but he stepped forward, looking away. Boomer chuckled and he lunged at his older brother, throwing his hands around him. "I knew you'd come around some day."

Butch smiled at them for a moment before he joined in as well, hugging his two brothers tightly. "Man, I never thought I'd ever see Brick cry over us," he laughed. He tousled Brick's hair, making the redhead, amidst his tears, grin widely.

"Fuck, I love you guys," Brick whispered.

Boomer and Butch glanced at each other over Brick's head and grinned. "Awww, Brick!" they both cooed.

I'd never thought I'd say this but the Rowdyruff Boys are officially the cutest trio of brothers I had ever seen in my life. I watched as they laughed and hugged and I sighed in amusement. I had never seen them so happy. Even with the mess the three of them were in, I caught Brick's eye and some sort of telepathic message got passed between us- something, which I believed Brick was still yet to learn how to say it in words.

You know, Brick, I kinda might have been in love with you from the start.

Aw, seriously, guys... I just don't know how this even came about. I was just wondering, to be honest, all the while, where did the RRB stay? With HIM? Did they get some apartment somehow? Did they just live on the streets? So I was there trying to imagine them on the streets. Then I realized that really, they wouldn't survive. Like, Brick was such a big fucking dick to Boomer that if I was Boomer, I would have left in Day 1. Secondly, Butch lacked a personality. He lacked his own free will. I swear I found him to be Brick's extra shadow and his black hair doesn't help. Really, have you ever seen Butch do anything? He just adds on to whatever Brick says or do. Basically, I realized that the RRB could simply be called Brick and his minions. The group centered around Brick, which honestly was what made them great. Because the girls could be easily split if you knew how to but that wasn't something I could see with the boys.

But once into their teenage years, I don't think the boys will be able to stand Brick bossing them about anymore. I mean, they're tough too, right?

So I couldn't help but wonder, what would happen if Brick was ditched by his brothers?

And this is the first time I'm trying this out for my story. In both my other stories, the boys are really close. So close.

And I am so so so sorry for not updating TBABIT (holy crap what a cool sounding acronym). I really want to but I'm kinda having a writer's block here. I dunno. Should I delve into Ted right away or should I go into Brick and his sudden unexplainable recovery. I really don't know. If you guys think of anything, please don't hesitate to suggest. PM me or leave a review. I'm open to suggestions. Right, so look forward to more of my works. I promise you'll see more of me this year, just I'm not so sure how frequent (A-levels are coming ;_;). Hahah. Have a nice day people.

Do fav and review. You can follow if you want to but this is the end of this thing. I'm sticking to a strict oneshot thing for this, unlike the cancer story.