The door slowly shut behind the three, as they stood in complete silence. Their heads were flooded with questions, as they tried to grasp at everything that just happened. But instead, they began to walk, walk back towards the city and away from the clubhouse.

It was Fries who broke the silence first.

"Poisoned." He uttered, his eyes filled with shock and disbelief,

"She was poisoned."

When she head this, Pin didn't dare look up from the ground. She rubbed her wrists, as she squeezed her eye shut to prevent a tear from slipping down her cheek, not wanting to show any kind of weakness towards Fries.

"Poor Ruby...I always knew that she was just...annoying, but..." he sighed.

"She didn't deserve this. At all."

Coiny glanced over at Pin, and then looked back up at Fries, his eyes shimmering sadly.

"What are they gonna do now...?" He whispered pitifully. Fries looked down, as he rubbed his forehead, his face exhausted and worn out.

"Well, knowing how the Freesmarter's...and Ruby, are...they're gonna do a full-out funeral. Golf Ball might perform an autopsy on her body before anything else, to see how she was poisoned."

"But how do you know she was poisoned?" Pin interrupted, still staring down at the pavement. Fries looked at her.

"Listen. Since I started to work on my garden, I had to learn about the things that could go into a garden, and what couldn't. I had to learn about poisonous plants so, if there's one in my garden, I can get rid of it." He took a breath.

"I learned about the weeds that could grow, I learned about the way my plants could die, especially in conditions like this. I learned about poppies and sunflowers, but what intrigued me was the poisonous flowers. Those symptoms she had...were eerily similar to...lilies of the valley flowers?" He thought for a moment.

"But this wasn't an accident. Someone...she....is after all of us. They're hunting each and every one of us down, staring with the frail and weak..."

Pin held her breath.

"And finishing...with the toughest."

Coiny clenched his fist, and mumbled angrily. He shut his eyes as he felt tears sting in his eyes, as he began to remember the dumb flame that he wanted to...apologize to. The small commotion caught Fries's attention, as he raised an eyebrow towards the small coin-creature.

Pin broke out of her staring, and carefully let her hand wrap around Coiny's hand, letting her warmth melt and permeate away into him. This seemed to calm him down, as he loosened up, and gave her a small, sad smile. She returned the smile, and looked up, as the three continued to trudge back towards the city.

———————————————————————————————————————————————

"Ruby?"

Book knocked gently on the door, as she stood patiently, a tray of food in her hands. She waited for the gem to open the door, and speak, but, as in the words of everyone who has tried to speak to her..

No response.

Booked sighed, as she put the tray down, putting her hand on the doorknob.

"Ruby, I'm coming in now...it's just me, ok?" She reassured. She turned the doorknob, and slowly let the door creak open. Light bursted into the darkened room, as the gem laid in her bed, covered in her blankets and sheets. She hasn't moved from that spot for at least five hours now.

Book quietly walked over to her bed, and sat on the edge of it. She looked over at the heap of blankets.

"Ruby?"

Nothing.

She scooched closer, as she gently put a hand on Ruby's leg. This made the gem twitch, as she grumbled angrily.

"What do you want." She growled. She snatched her leg up, hiding it in the large pile of blankets that was already hiding the rest of her. Book sighed, as she looked down.

"I..." she paused.

"I brought you...food..." she looked back over towards her.

"You have to eat, I'm starting to worry about you..."

"Then stop it." Ruby replied coldly. Book looked down, as she slowly got up from the bed.

"...I'll bring your food inside. Try to eat a little...it'll help you feel better." She walked over, and brought the small tray inside. She placed it on the nightstand beside the bed, as she began to walk out.

"..Book..."

Book turned around, at the sudden quiet voice that called her back. She slowly approached her, looking down at the sheets.

"Yes?"

"...What did she tell you."

Book tilted her head a bit, a slight confusion digging up in her mind. She came a bit closer, so she could hear what she said once more.

"Pardon, uh...what?"

"What did Fl...." Ruby's voice trailed off as she grumbled and shook her head.

"What did she tell you."

"O-Oh..." She rubbed her arm.

"Well...she..uh...apologized to me, about..what happened before, you know..." she lied for a bit, feeling a bit scared to tell Ruby what she really meant. She took a deep breath.

"And...she wanted...me to...take care of you, when she..." she whispered.

Ruby's eyes were now fixated on Book, tears already pouring out of them and spilling all over her red sheets. She clenched her sheets tightly, as she felt many emotions rush through her darkened mind. Is she hurt? Happy? Angry..?

Book shook her head, as she began to walk out.

"I know this is all too much, but...please, try to eat something...for her..."

And for me.

She slowly made her way back towards the door, but something suddenly made her pause. She felt...hypnotized. She turned around, and looked back towards Ruby, and with a heavy heart, she whispered,

"I love you Rub-"

Her eyes widened as she slapped her hand over her mouth. As soon as she saw the covers moving, she quickly ran out and slammed the door behind her. She quickly scrambled out of the clubhouse, and stood by the door, her hand clutching her chest. Sweat dripped down her cover as she slowly let her trembling hand touch her lips gently, as she stared down at the floor.

She couldn't believe she said that.

She SHOULDN'T have said that.

"Ohh gosh..." Book began to fan herself with her free hand, as her heart began to pound harshly in her chest. She made a mistake.

She looked around, looking for ANYONE she could speak to and vent to, but...

Aha!

"ICY!" Book cried out, as she dashed over towards the small cube. She carried a bag in her mouth, filled with a couple of food items, before she was tackled by Book. Small cans and boxes spilled everywhere, as Book hugged Ice Cube close, crying. Ice Cube looked up at her.

"Book? What happened?" She asked, concern in her tone of voice. Book wiped her eyes and look down at her small friend, shaking.

"I told her- I told her I loved her!" She buried her face into Ice Cube, sobbing.

"THIS WAS THE WORST TIME I COULD'VE TOLD HER!"

"Book, breathe." Ice Cube wriggled free from her grasp, as she looked at her friend. Her eyes were widened and filled with regret, as she quickly let out panicked breaths. Ice Cube took slow breaths, and soon, Book began to follow, her panicked breaths becoming longer, and slower.

"That's it..." she whispered.

Book shook her head, as she covered her face with her hands.

"I made a mistake....." she whispered pitifully.

"Now, Book..." Ice Cube frowned.

"Not everything you do is a mistake...how about we just call it...happy accidents?"

"I- Wait."

——————-

"Hey Coiny?"

"What?"

"Do you remember....back in season one..when I mentioned how I liked you?"

Coiny's eyes widened as he slowly scooted away from Needle, a nervous feeling sitting in his chest. Needle noticed, and rolled her eyes.

"Relax, you dummy, I'm not gonna steal you or anything."

Coiny sighed as he went back, continuing to walk around the city. The two usually did this back when everything wasn't...as chaotic as it was right now. A friendly stroll between two pals, something the two always enjoyed to do together.

"Anyways, I just have to apologize about that." She laughed a bit, as she put a hand on her face in embarrassment.

"I was so weird."

"Hey!" Coiny frowned, shoving her a bit. She stumbled back a bit, laughing.

"I didn't mean it that way!"

Coiny's frown slowly turned into a smile, as she continued to laugh. She crossed her arms, and looked around the quiet city, letting the cool air swiftly blow on her.

"Well, for starters, I forgive you." Coiny chuckled, as he looked ahead.

"Only because I may have had the same feelings for you back then."

"YOU WHAT?!" Now it was Needle who quickly backed away, her hand poised in the air, ready to strike a slap if he dared to do anything. He backed away, his hands raised in mercy.

"Woah, easy there Needle, I'm not gonna 'take you away', I'm with someone, remember?" He crossed his arms. Needle grinned nervously, as she put her hand down.

"Haha...Sorry."

Coiny rolled his eyes, and looked at her.

"But yeah, I did have those feelings for a while, but as we got more into the game, they just slowly...vanished. I was more focused on winning and slapping Firey all of the time." He casually explained, as he leaned against a large building. She nodded.

"I totally get you. When I was eliminated, I started hanging out with TD more, and we eventually became close friends!" A wide grin began to grow on her face, her eyes shining with joy as she mentioned Teardrop.

"She's really...Sweet. Understanding, a great listener, and she has a calming aura around her..." she sighed dreamily.

"Soft hands...pretty eyes...soft..lips...."

By this point, Coiny was smirking as he watched a blush grow on Needle's cheeks. It was only a matter of seconds, before Needle snapped out of it, and stared down at Coiny, her eyes widened in shock.

"How much of that did you hear." She asked, lowly.

"Enough for me to go over AND TELL HER FOR YOU!" He laughed evilly, as he began to run towards the forest. Needle shrieked as she quickly ran after him, her face already burning with blush.

"COINY, DON'T YOU DARE!" She screamed out, as she continued to run after the small coin. He quickly dodged all of the branches and rocks, as he began to dart around trees to try and confuse her. He looked around, and then he decided to roll down towards the TLC, which was nearly in sight. His heart pounded from the adrenaline as he went on his side and began to roll down the hill, the world spinning around him.

Needle, however, had her ways. She's a fast runner; the fastest in the city. She managed to quickly follow Coiny's path, and quickly caught up to him as he began to roll down the path. She growled as she began to run even faster, her heart pounding the adrenaline through her body. She could see him, he was right there!

She's getting close, she can stop him...

Suddenly, Needle quickly stumbled over her foot and fell, her body slamming onto the ground below her. She cried out from the impact, feeling her ankle throb harshly in pain.

At this point, Coiny had stopped rolling, and was now at the TLC. He was far ahead of her, and he smirked with pride as he gently knocked on the large, metal wall, hearing it echo through the air.

"Who's there?" A deep voice rang through the box. Coiny's face lit up with pure ecstasy.

"Blocky! Is that you?!"

"Coiny? Dude, it's been so long! How have you been?!" The voice quickly rushed over towards the wall, where Coiny was standing. Coiny leaned against the wall, sighing.

"Things have been getting out of control here, man. A lot has happened, and it's just exhausting, but also a bit..." he paused.

"Scary."

"Are you talking about what happened with Firey?" Pen's voice chimed in, as he went over to the side where Blocky was put.

"Well, yeah, there's that, but; hey, how did you know about Firey?" Coiny raised an eyebrow, as he leaned into the wall.

"Well, a while ago...more like, days ago, Tennis Ball came by and asked if Rocky was near. He wasn't, as after asking what was wrong, he explained what was going on."

"Did he find Rocky by the way?" Pen asked, as he sat down.

"The poor dude was freaking out about him, he's like...his kid or something."

Coiny's face dropped, as he sat down on a soft patch of grass, clearing his throat.

"W-Well, uh.." he stuttered.

"We...found him..but...he was gone..."

"Gone?" Eraser's voice was heavy with concern.

"You mean....dead?"

"...Yes." Coiny replied quietly.

Small whispers began to echo through out the box, as the eliminated contestants began to chatter about the deaths of Firey and Rocky.

"Not only that..." Coiny added on.

"But..Woody was found as well, slaughtered and really beaten up, and today, Flower fell ill, and she...died." His voice went quiet at the mention of Flower.

Panicked whispers and mumbled began to erupt from the TLC as multiple voices began to shout.

"Murder!" Cried one of them.

"We have to escape! They're coming for us!" Another one yelled.

"Escape?! We can't escape, then it'll be easier for them to get us next!" A voice growled.

"Alright, Alright, calm down." Coiny patted the metal walls gently, as the fearful chatter began to come to a close.

"TB and GB are trying their best to figure out what's going on, but as of right now, we're just keeping an eye out for-"

"YOU!"

Before he could even cry out, Needle tackled Coiny over, and slammed a hand over his mouth angrily. He was kicking frantically as he had his eyes shut in fear, trying to push her off of him. She growled angrily, as she lifted her hand, and gave him a clear slap across his face.

"YOU ARE HORRIBLE!" She screamed out.

"COMPLETELY, UTTERLY HORRIBLE!"

Coiny quickly scrambled back, as he held his stinging cheek.

"Needle! Needle I didn't even say anything, calm d- woah, what happened to YOU?" He suddenly noticed her ankle, which was swollen and red. She grunted angrily, as she dragged herself over to the TLC, giving it a specific knock. She made a small rhythm with seven knocks, and she slowly slid down, letting her back rest against the metal wall. A few moments passed, before small, rushes footsteps were heard.

"Needle?" A light, yet broad voice was heard.

"Is that you?"

"Eggy....." Needle gasped, feeling a sudden rush of pain from her leg.

"Where's...Teardrop...."

A moment of silence was heard, before another pair of footsteps was heard, quickly running towards the wall. The same rhythm of knocks came back from inside, as Needle gasped.

"TD!! WHAT DID COINY SAY?!" She cried out, feeling her cheeks glow with blush and embarrassment.

Silence passed once more, before Eggy spoke out.

"She said that..'He only told us about what has been happening so far, with everyone dying and such'."

Needle let out a sigh of relief, as she put her hand on her forehead. Coiny slowly approached her, as he began to examine her ankle.

"She asked if you're alright, Needle." Eggy exclaimed. Needle waved her hand tiredly, as she shook her head.

"N-Nonono, I'm fine-"

"Ok! I think I can pop it back into place Needy!" Coiny placed both of his hands on her ankle, and gripped it hard.

"Don't call me NEEDY! And what are you-"

A loud crack echoed through the air, as Needle let out a loud scream. She gritted her teeth, as tears began to pour down her cheeks, more pain erupting from her leg. Coiny winced.

"Sorry Needle..." he whispered.

At this point, frantic knocks were coming from the TLC. The knocks became louder and louder, before they began to turn into loud bangs.

It was Teardrop.

"T-Teardrop..." Needle took a breath.

"I'm okay-I-I'm okay..."

The knocking died down, as TD turned towards Eggy.

'ASK HER WHAT HAPPENED.' She frantically signed.

"She asked you 'What happened', Needle." Eggy translated.

"O-Oh-" she felt a blush bloom on her cheeks.

"I- Um.."

"She decided to race me to the TLC, and I managed to beat her! Only because she...tripped, and uh..her ankle.." Coiny chuckled nervously. A moment passed, before Eggy snickered.

"She said 'If it weren't for the metal walls that were keeping her in prisoned, she would've killed you Coiny'."

Coiny sighed, before he looked back up at Needle, concern shining in his eyes.

"Hey, are you feeling okay...?" He whispered. Needle looked at him, exhaustion painted all over her face. There were still tears of pain that dropped down her face, but Coiny gently put a hand on her cheek, wiping her shining tears off of her stained cheeks. Needle sighed, and looked down at the grass below them, plucking a few blades off of a small patch.

"I...It still hurts, but, I can manage." She grumbled. Coiny smiled, as he put an arm around her.

"Well, at least I didn't- you know-"

"Shut UP!" Needle interrupted him, angrily. Coiny snickered, as he looked back at her ankle.

"Oh, and Coiny?"

"Hm?"

A loud slap echoed through the air, as Coiny yelped in pain.

"Don't call me NEEDY!" She cried out angrily. Coiny sighed, before he rested his head on her shoulder. She rolled her eyes, but stayed still, letting him rest on her shoulder. They stayed that way, watching the wind blow against the grass, the blades swiftly flowing with the breeze.

"Coiny?"

The voice made both of them jump, as they looked over to the source of the voice.

Pin.

Coiny quickly scrambled up, brushing himself off nervously.

"P-Pin!" He grinned.

"H-How long have you been standing there?"

Needle face palmed. Pin stared at him, and then stared down at Needle, her eye empty and foggy. Coiny let out a sigh.

"L-Look...this isn't what it looks like-"

"No."

The sudden tone sent chills down Needle as she watched Pin closely. She shook her head frantically, as she scooted back a bit.

"Pin, I swear, w-we weren't doing anything wrong-"

"No."

Coiny looked at her, confusion hanging heavily  over his mind.

"What?"

A smile slowly stretched over Pin's face, as she looked at the two.
A...odd smile.

"No. It's okay." She gritted through her teeth, oddly calmingly.

"I promise it is perfectly fine."

Coiny mentally sighed in relief.

"I was just here to tell you that I made some cake, if you wanted any." She continued to stare at Needle.

"IF. You wanted any."

The three stayed in a heavy silence for a minute, before Pin swiftly turned around, and began to walk off.

"I'll be at my place! Come find me if you need me." She let her hand ball up into a fist, as she turned back a bit.

"Have, 'fun', you two."

And with that, she walked off, disappearing into the woods. Coiny felt his hands beginning to tremble, as his heart began to race.

"Needle, we- I- have to head back- please-"

"Hey." She put a hand on his shoulder.

"Go ahead. I'm...sorry about this, I'm sorry about all of this. Just go, before she explodes again."

She gave him a kind smile.

"Besides, I can make it back myself. I'll be okay."

Coiny looked at her, feeling himself calm down.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I'm gonna be fine, you're gonna be fine..."

A apparition slowly faded in besides Needle, mimicking her every move. Coiny's eyes widened as he suddenly became as still as a statue.

Needle opened her eyes, as well as...

Flower.

They both smiled, blood trickling down Flower's chin.

"We're going to be fine."

—————————————————————————————————————————————————-

Ahh, mistakes, aka, happy accidents

Anyways hellooooo

I hope you all are doing okay today!

Let us bless the awkward gays because honestly???? Me too sis

Welp! Here we are. In this....kind of a cliff hanger ? But not a cliffhanger. Maybe? Possibly.

Also!! I have a headcanon that Needle visita TD a lot since she's in the TLC, and yknow. I feel like TD speaks in sign language, so while Needle is visiting, Eggy translates what TD is saying to Needle. She doesn't mind; it's entertaining.

Anyways, enjoy part 22 of the story!!

See ya later!

~ice