takes place after the first movie !!
~~~
Branch was crashing at Poppy's for a sleepover, and she had left to go to the bathroom real quick. Left to his own devices, he felt the boredom creeping in. Without Poppy's usual buzz of energy around, he scanned the room, looking for something to kill time with.
And then his eyes landed on Poppy's diary.
Curiosity getting the better of him, Branch hesitantly reached out for Poppy's diary. He knew he shouldn't invade her privacy, but the temptation was too strong. Flipping it open, he found himself immersed in the pages filled with Poppy's thoughts and secrets. He hadn't read much as he'd just been flipping through. But then, the bathroom door opened and a familiar shriek was heard.
"GAH WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR DOING?!" She screams, and rushes over to him. She tried to grab it from his hands. He was obviously not going to go into her secrets like that, but he decided to tease her a bit. He held the book up high and grinned.
"Just checkin' out some of the old secrets." He said, jokingly. He would never ever do such a thing, but just wanted to get a little reaction out of her. Quick Poppy-Branch playful banter. She jumped up to try and get it, but failed.
"No-! I- gah! Give it back!!" She said, jumping. He refused.
"Not yet- Just, I wanna check out who your into." He says, and flips through. Poppy's eyes widen.
"No- Branch, please, I'm serious." She says, jumping up. He only holds it further out of her reach. His eyes lit up,
"Found it! God damn, this is a lot! "He has no idea, but someday... someday..." He took a moment to look from the diary back at her. 'Hmm, someday I might tell him how much I like him. But not today. I would die of embarrassment...'" He read on, Poppy felt her face heating up.
"NO!" She shrieked, as she covered his eyes with her hands. He held them back with one hand. She was so screwed. She knew he was just playing around, and she'd done far worse pranks on him. But, some part of her really hated the idea of him reading her diary. Her eyes began to build up with tears.
"BRANCH STOP IT I'M SERIOUS!" She screamed, her voice broke. Tears were formed in her eyes. Luckily, she wasn't the only one who heard the emotion in her voice. His grin immediately faded, and he immediately shut the diary.
"Hey- wait, cmon, Pops- I-I was just messing with you. Please don't cry..." he pleads. He put his hand on her cheek. She grabbed the diary out of his hands and turned away from him. His gut wrenched. "Poppy.. You know I'd never tell anyone. I-I was just joking. I didn't actually read it." He said, putting his hand on her shoulder.
"I know you wouldn't but it really wasn't funny." She mumbled. He sighed softly,
"I... I get it. I crossed a line. I'm really sorry, alright?" He gently squeezed her shoulder to emphasize his apology. "Are you okay?"
"No." She muttered. He frowned. Shit. He'd really screwed up. Bad.
"I'm so sorry Popifer. I really didn't want to hurt you." He said, feeling worse. She shrugged.
"Whatever, it's fine." She said, placing her diary down.
He felt terrible. "I know it isn't fine, you don't gotta say it is." He thought for a moment. "I... I have an idea. Are you down?"
Poppy raised an eyebrow. "Which is?" He grinned, and grabbed her hand. He sprinted outside with her. "W-Wha? Branch! Wait- where are we going???" She called out.
"Trust me!" He led her to a secluded spot in a nearby field. The grass was soft and green, and butterflies were flying around. There was a little bit of a breeze making the grass sway. She smiled,
"Branch, I.."
"Shhh." He gently put a finger to her lips to make her stop talking, then put his other hand on her cheek. Her cheeks turned pink as she locked her deep fuchsia gaze with his soft baby blues. He couldn't resist taking a moment to appreciate her beauty—her beautiful face, the smooth locks that framed it, her lips. Pulling her in closer, he kissed her and wrapped his hands around her waist. Her eyes went wide, but she shut them. He kissed her again, and this time, he started to pull her body, pressing her close to him. His hand was in her hair, while the other went to her waist. He knew that he shouldn't be doing this right now, but with how upset she had been, he just wanted to make up for it. Her hands found his neck and her entire world seemed to stop. Her lips, so soft and sweet, sent sparks through him, igniting fireworks in his chest and causing his stomach to flutter. Holding her tightly against him, he drew her even nearer. This moment, something he'd yearned for endlessly, felt nothing short of amazing now that it was finally unfolding. Once they broke apart, a soft gasp escaped her lips. He laughed, their breath a little rapid. He was still holding her close and looked down at her with a smile.
"You don't know how long I've been wanting to do that..." He spoke quietly. She softly giggled. "So, does that... make me forgiven. For reading your diary?" He chuckled. He didn't expect her to be angry still, since the kiss went well, but he just needed to know.
"Yeah, you are." She said, playfully rolling his eyes. He sighed in relief. "I mean, I was a little upset but eh, I guess it wasn't that deep."
"No- you were so right for being angry with me. I should've stopped when you said so." He said. She smiled at him.
"Yeah. Well, anyway- it's you." She said. He looked confused.
"Huh?"
"You're the guy! That I was writing about."
"Seriously??"
He looked dumbfounded. Well, obviously since she'd kissed him back so passionately she obviously had the hots for him. But, for some reason it was weird hearing it from her. Not like a bad weird, more like a exciting type of weird.
"Yeah! I just- I don't know, I was worried. That you wouldn't feel the same. I mean, after all, we were just best friends." She says, rubbing her arm.
His smile grew even more. "Well... it's definitely a relief to know that you feel the same way."
"That makes two of us." She giggles, as she kissed him again. He returned it passionately.
I mean, it was kind of fucked up that he read her diary. But thank goodness he did.
