Love (And Other Difficulties)

With the Time We Have (Oscar Pine)

Oscar was incredibly perceptive.

It's not a skill he'd ever recognized in himself before Ozpin had crash landed into his life, but it was one he was beginning to appreciate. There were more obvious things that he didn't need to be observant to understand but there are other things, like the dynamic of Ruby's team or other interpersonal relationships within the group. He noticed the subtle little things that made their group dynamic unique, he noticed the romantic tension between Ren and Nora (which he happily kept to himself, as there were other more pressing problems to think about), and the fact Jaune's team seemed to have a hole in it (not likely caused by the romantic tension of the aforementioned teammates).

There were other things he noticed that were far less useful when it came to becoming part of the group.

He noticed that you were cute. He noticed that you were friendly and welcoming, always willing to answer his questions despite how confusing the situation was for you, too. You were honest and you laughed at his poorly timed jokes and you spent all of your free time with him assuring that he was comfortable and settled in the group and-

He could go on for days.

The time he got to spend with you would be cherished endlessly, and though he greatly feared what would happen when Ozpin fully took over and he was no longer just 'him', he tried to enjoy the moments with you he had. He'd become quite adept at handling situations calmly as they came to him
while still keeping an optimistic spin, knowing that he couldn't stay so weighed down by his worries that he no longer moved forward at all.

He really had to take the leap and just ask you what he'd wanted to.

"Do you, uh, want to take a walk?" Oscar had a weird way about him, that he could sound so confident while also stuttering in the same sentence... He was still cute, though, and sweet, so you couldn't deny his request even if there was an awkward tension between you. You thought he might have a crush on you but you hadn't wanted to seem so full of yourself. There was still something odd about a grown man technically being inside of him so you hadn't tried to think too deeply about what may happen between you and Oscar, but...

What was the point of worrying about a future that may never come?

"I'd love to take a walk with you! Let's take the garden path, I heard it's beautiful at night!"

The silence between you is comfortable even if the unspoken tension continued to hang in the air, with it being clear that Oscar had other things on his mind. You had helped and explained as much as you could to him whenever he came to you with questions, even the simple ones you were sure he could've figured out himself, but you could sense there was something else he wanted to ask. Perhaps it wasn't related to the mission at all. Maybe that was
why he was so nervous.

"Are you okay, Oscar?" He inhaled sharply; apparently, he wasn't the only perceptive one.

"I... I was just wondering..." He was glad that Ozpin was silent in his head now as the older more experienced man probably would have laughed
at Oscar's awkward attempts to initiate... Well, what was he trying to initiate here? He hadn't really thought that far, he just knew that he, "-wanted to hold your hand?"

"Huh?"

"I want to... Can I hold your hand? It's alright if you're not comfortable with that."

"No... It's fine. Don't want you to stray too far away from me." You reached your hand out for him to take and, despite this being his suggestion, he seemed nervous. He'd never held hands with anyone before let alone someone he had a huge crush on, this moment was almost scarier than the future they faced if Salem won.

Almost.

His fingers intertwine with yours almost too smoothly, like they were meant to fit together this perfectly, and Oscar had never felt so anxious in his life. He feared his hands would grow clammy or he might vomit on you due to how long he'd waited to do something so bold, but he managed to hold
it all inside and keep himself relaxed (at least on the outside).

"Your hands are pretty cold." You squeezed his hand and out of reflex he squeezed back. "Is this just a ploy to warm them up?"

Your smile caused his entire mind to blank, but he managed to stutter out a response when his brain finally responded, "Ha ha, you got me!"

But you didn't let him go.

The walk continued.

This felt like confirmation. This felt like you knew about his feelings and that he knew about your feelings and that nothing else mattered now because it was just the two of you. There was nothing else in the world to worry about because Oscar was out, alone, with the person he had a crush on and
they were now holding his hand and he would never forget this moment for as long as he lived.

He wanted to have more with you, so much more, but if this was all he could have... he could probably die happy.