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auspicious-manner · 7 months

Note

maybe a little morris delancey x ballet dancer!reader and him getting all soft when he sees her perform up on the stage?

oh i am ALL for this. as an ex-dancer, this was a dream to write! i tried not to include too much terminology so it wouldn’t get confusing.

so sorry this took so long, life has gotten very busy being back at university. but i’m trying to keep up as much as possible!

fem reader x morris delancey

warnings: none

mike taglist: @diorgirl444

Tough

•

“whaddya say to spendin’ the night with me, pretty girl?” your boyfriend, morris delancey, asked as you walked down the streets of new york city, hand in hand. the sun was just beginning to disappear behind the horizon, lighting the city up in an ethereal orange glow.

you leaned your body closer into his arm. “as lovely as that sounds, i got a show tonight.”

in order to make some extra cash to survive in new york, you got a job at medda’s theater performing three shows a week. when asked what special talents you had in your interview, you told medda that you had trained in ballet since you were young, but given that you barely had enough money to keep food on the table, you couldn’t afford pointe shoes despite being trained on them.

on the spot, she offered you a deal; typical performers performed one to two shows a week, but if you could handle it, she’d give you three shows a week and take the cost of the shoes out of your pay every other week. to you, that deal sounded like a dream come true.

morris never came to your shows, he always said he had “business to attend to” on the nights you performed. you weren’t really sure what that meant, but you could assume it had something to do with harassing those newsie boys that you felt a bit of sympathy for. he always claimed he was too tough to be seen watching a show in a theater.

morris threw his head back dramatically as you both walked. “you’re always at that theater. we never get to spend time together anymore.”

you smiled playfully. “you know, you could come to my show tonight since you keep avoidin’ it like the plague. what’s it gonna hurt you, morris?”

he thought about it briefly. “i could take a night off, come watch you do your little thing. how about that?” morris asked, half joking.

you immediately burst into a grin, ignoring the fact that he sounded a bit sarcastic with that proposal. all you’ve ever wanted was for your boyfriend to come watch you do what you do best. “that sounds perfect.”

unbeknownst to you, morris didn’t exactly want to see your show. sure, he loved you and would do pretty much anything you asked him to, but his idea of a fun night wasn’t going to a theater to watch a boring show with a bunch of old people. but seeing how you beamed at the idea of him finally coming to watch you made him feel like the only thing worse than going would be not going.

you stopped walking so you could stand in front of him, his tall stature standing over you. “the show starts at 7. you promise me you’ll be there?”

morris hesitated before nodding. “wouldn’t miss it for nothin’.”

you stood on your toes to reach up and give him a soft kiss. “i have to start getting ready. i’ll see you there?”

he put his hands on your hips, pulling you close. “of course.”

you whispered an okay before removing yourself from his grip, as much as you didn’t want to leave. you weren’t far from the theater, and when you got there, you found that you had approximately two hours to get fully ready and warmed up.

your dressing room was small and compact and below ground level. it was the only room medda could provide you, but you were thankful to even have a dressing room. there was one small window near the ceiling that provided a small look into the streets of new york city.

as you applied your stage makeup, you heard a light tapping coming from the window. you frowned, as hearing rhythmic noises directly against the glass was uncommon. you pulled your chair over to the wall, standing on it and further standing on your tip toes to pull the small curtains away to find a smiling morris on the other side of the glass. he was laying on his stomach so his head was level with the window.

you tried to contain laughter as you unlocked the window. “are you crazy?”

the window was far too small for him to climb in, so he just kept his head close to the opening as you looked up at him on top of the chair.

“i might be, but i’m just glad i finally found the right room. knocked on a few other windows, them ladies did not like me doin’ that.”

you giggled. “what are you even doing here? i told you to come for the show, not to my dressing room window.”

he shrugged before saying, “i wanted to wish you good luck, that’s all.”

you looked at him knowingly. you knew your boyfriend, and he didn’t go through all of this just to tell you about something you didn’t even really need.

“nice try. what’s the real reason you’re here?”

morris looked up, seemingly embarrassed. “where do i sit when the show starts?”

you paused. “i know sittin’ may be difficult for you, morris, but luckily for you there’s this new invention i think you’ll really love to try. it’s called a chair,” you said sarcastically.

he rolled his eyes playfully. “sweetheart, you know that’s not what i mean,” he said, his thick new york accent prominent. “where am i suppose’ to go? front row, back row, balcony? i don’t know how any of this stuff works.”

“as a matter of fact, i actually let miss medda know you were comin’ for the show, so she has a box reserved just for you.”

morris was reluctant to come at first, but now he was simply curious to discover what occupies so much of his girlfriend’s time. he wanted to make sure he could get the best view possible.

he put his head through the window, and you stood on your tip toes to meet him with a kiss. “i’ll see you after the show?”

he nodded. “of course. break a leg,” morris started, going to stand up but turning around to the window again. “but not actually. don’t actually break a leg, please.”

you laughed, holding his hand briefly through the window as he began to leave “i won’t!”

after he left, you finished getting your makeup on and got into your costume. every week, medda throws together a new theme for your performances, and this week she went with a forest theme. you were wearing all forest green costume that made you look like a fairy. your makeup fit the occasion too, and jack kelly’s painted props and artwork set the backdrop for your show.

about ten minutes before showtime, you stood backstage once the first act finished and your props were being moved behind the curtain that separated the stage from the audience.

your performances never lasted long; they were apart of some other, bigger show within the theater. but you drew in lots of crowds as you were becoming a household name. critics raved about your performances, and people came to medda’s theater specifically for you.

normally, you were a pro at keeping your nerves in line. the build up to the shows didn’t make you nervous anymore after weeks of doing it. but tonight, knowing morris was somewhere out there watching your every move made you immensely nervous. you weren’t just performing for a crowd tonight, that you could handle. you were performing for someone. your someone.

“miss Y/N, you’re shaking,” medda said behind you as she put her hands on your shoulders. you turned around; you were too in your mind to notice the shaking.

“sorry medda, just nervous, that’s all.”

you turned around to meet her, seeing a confused and unbelieving expression on her face. “you? nervous? i don’t believe it.”

you shrugged in response. she tilted her head, still questioning you, then you could tell her expression changed in an instant. “oh, i know why you’re nervous.”

you shook your head. “no you don’t.”

she smiled playfully, hitting your shoulder lightly. “oh yes i do. it’s because that delancey boy is out in the audience getting ready to watch you, isn’t it?”

you couldn’t hide the blush on your cheeks now. you didn’t even have to say anything; medda knew.

her tone changed, and she leaned in close. “don’t get distracted, kid. believe me, i’ve had my fair share of men in my life. but don’t let any man get in the way of you doing what you were born to do. you’re a natural at this, you have nothing to be nervous about.”

you took a deep breath. she was right. you knew exactly what you had to do. you nodded, and she backed away.

she smiled. “let’s get this show moving!”

medda walked out on stage in front of the curtain blocking the set, and that was your cue to get in your place on the props.

morris sat out in the audience, waiting anxiously for your presence on the stage. he had the perfect view from where he was at in the audience, and he held his breath waiting for the show to start. he couldn’t care less about the speech medda was planning before you went on, he just wanted to see you up there.

“i know many of you have come from far and wide to watch this next performer do what she does best. i would rave about her, but i’ll just let her dancing do the talking. up next to take my stage is the one and the only, Y/N L/N.”

medda bowed and walked off stage, and morris watched as the curtains fell away and he saw your figure in the darkness laid on a prop that was painted to look like a tree stump.

the lights came on, and the music began. morris watched as you slowly and gracefully worked around the prop, acting as a mythical creature in a forest. his eyes stayed locked on you, not entirely sure what he was watching, but enthralled nonetheless.

you stood on top of the tree stump, going up en pointe and holding your balance in an arabesque, your arms stretched out to your sides.

you glanced into the audience, still holding your balance, searching for morris. you couldn’t find him, but you ignored your heart thumping erratically in your chest as you brought your other leg down to leap off of the prop, sending your legs soaring out.

morris watched in awe in the audience. he liked to think of himself as tough as nails, and he frowned upon himself showing emotion. but, it was becoming harder and harder to uphold that facade as you continued moving around the stage. he knew you must have been talented to have your own show like this, but never in a million years would he have guessed you would be like this.

the turn sequences were your least favorite part of your shows. you were more of a jumper, you loved the feeling of soaring through the air. along with that, you were flexible, and you had tremendous balance for kicks. you were able to hold your leg impossibly high like it was nothing. but turns were a different story.

you began your prep, and as you did, you spotted morris in the audience, right in front of your vision. your heart began to race even more, and you saw as he smiled, knowing that you had just seen him.

in order to prevent yourself from getting dizzy, you used morris as your spot during your turns. you were turning fast, but as you kept your eyes locked on him, you were able to hold your balance en pointe. it felt like you and him were the only ones in that theater.

morris kept his eyes on you as you spun around and around on the very tops of your toes, a small gasp escaping his mouth. he had never seen anyone do something so quick and difficult while simultaneously having so much grace and fluidity.

after nailing the turns and flowing seamlessly out of them into the next section, you forced your eyes to pull away from his.

not only was morris awestruck by your movement, he was drawn into your storytelling. anyone in that room could see you were on an adventure through the forest, and he felt as if you were taking him along for the ride.

after what felt like hours but somehow not enough time, morris watched as you retreated to the back of the stage, hitting one last pose on the faux tree stump before the lights went dim.

the crowd immediately erupted as the curtains drew to a close, but morris stayed in place. he couldn’t quite process exactly what he just saw, but he was upset that it ended so soon. he could have watched you up there for hours.

when the curtains closed, you got off your prop and headed backstage as medda announced the last act of the night. another successful show, you thought to yourself.

as you sat backstage taking sips of water, you felt a presence behind you. before you could turn to see who it was, a voice spoke in your ear. “well if it ain’t the most talented girl i’ve ever seen.”

you stood up from your chair, seeing a smiling morris who had a singular rose in his hand. before you could jump into his arms and give him a bone crushing hug, he got to you first, wrapping his arms around your waist and picking you up off the ground.

“you were amazin’ out there, Y/N.”

you pulled away, the biggest grin you've ever had on your face. "you really think so?"

"i know so."

you rolled your eyes. "you're a big softie and you know it."

he smiled sarcastically, setting you back on the ground and lightly pinching your cheek. "any more of that and we're done, silly girl."

you giggled, and only then did you remember the single rose in his hand. morris looked down, almost as if he had forgotten about it too.

"oh, yeah, uh… this is for you. for being so beautiful up there," morris said, immediately getting shy. you bit your lip, holding back a giddy grin.

you stepped closer to him and stood en pointe to give him a kiss on the lips. "it's lovely, morris. where did you get it? you didn’t have that earlier," you asked, taking his hand in your free one.

"i took it from the bouquet that the guy sittin' next to me had."

you blinked at him before sighing. "of course you did."

#mike faist #mike faist imagine #mike faist x reader #mike faist fanfiction #newsies x reader #newsies imagine #morris delancey

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auspicious-manner · 7 months

Note

Inspired by the challengers trailer release, can you write one where Mike is anxious about the trailer for his new movie coming out and the reader calms him down? Thanks!

still upset that we won’t be getting challengers until next year 😭 but blonde mike is so superior omg i can’t wait for that movie to come out

also, i rewatched outer banks and realized that i could probably write for outer banks as well! i’m not sure if it’s something i’d want to focus my page on like mike, djats, newsies, etc, but i’d love to try writing for it! if anyone has any requests for obx stories, i’d love to write for pope, john b, jj, or rafe when i open my requests again :)

female reader x mike faist

warnings: anxiety, panic attack?

mike taglist: @diorgirl444

Breathe

•

you’ve been waiting years for mike to finally become a household name. he became known in the theater world first, and west side story boosted him into a more mainstream audience. but this movie was going to be the one to catapult him into the fame you always knew he was destined to get; he was in a movie with zendaya, one of the biggest stars of this generation.

the morning of the trailer release, you opened your eyes after sleeping in mike’s bed to find mike sitting up at the edge of the bed, looking off into space melancholically.

“mike?” you asked softly, dazed from sleep. you sat up when he didn’t answer, rubbing your hand on his bare back. “mike?”

this time he turned his head to the side to look at you, and you remained behind him, your hands on his back.

“good morning, Y/N,” he asked, putting a lazy kiss on the side of your head. “did you sleep well?”

you nodded. “i did. you?”

mike didn’t react right away, but you could tell the answer was no. he looked into your eyes for a moment before looking down at his hands in his lap.

“are you okay? are you sick or anything?” you questioned, adjusting your body so you were sitting next to him on the bed. you knew this behavior was abnormal for him.

“no, no, it’s not that,” he said, trailing off as he put on a shirt. “i’m fine, i promise.”

you didn’t fully believe him, but you knew it was better to not pressure him to talk. “okay, i understand,” you said gently. you stood up, standing in front of him. “how about i make you a nice breakfast to celebrate the big day?”

you held your hand out in front of you, and he took it, standing up to meet you. he flinched a bit when you mentioned the big day, but he quickly put on a smile. “i’d love that.”

you wanted to treat mike as much as possible today. today, his life and yours would drastically change. it was the trailer release day for mike’s new movie titled challengers. it was going to bring a lot of new attention to mike, and there would be a lot of eyes on him, especially since he’s playing opposite zendaya.

it was clear that something in mike seemed off leading up to the day of the release, but you brushed it off as general nerves. hell, you’d be nervous too if your life and fame was going to change in an instant. you wanted to make him as comfortable as possible, and support him as much as you could.

“how do pancakes sound?” you asked, collecting ingredients from around the kitchen. when there was no reply, you turned around to see mike zoning off, his mind engulfed in thoughts.

“mike?” you asked, him snapping out of his daze.

“what? oh, sorry, pancakes sound good,” he said, forcing a smile.

you continued, frowning. “mike, are you sure you’re fine? you’re acting strange.” you paused, breaking eye contact for a moment before looking at him again. “and please, don’t lie to me.”

he looked like he was debating on speaking. you put down the ingredients in your hands and looked at mike from across the counter, putting your full attention on him. without using words, you were willing him to tell you what was wrong.

he sighed. “i…i’m scared,” mike finally said. his eyes remained down at his cup of coffee.

“and why is that?” you asked, leaning onto the counter. you asked despite already knowing the answer.

he looked up at you, and he clearly knew that you knew the answer. “you do realize everything is going to change after today, right?” mike asked quietly.

you shrugged. “i mean, yeah, but part of our lives will still be the same.”

“but that’s just it, it won’t be the same,” he said, his voice growing slightly louder. “it can’t be the same. there’s going to be more attention on me now, more eyes watching my every move. our every move.”

you knew exactly what he meant. everything would change after today, but there were certainly positives to it.

“well, i know one thing that won’t change,” you stated.

“what?”

you smiled. “us.”

mike finally smiled back. your purposefully cheesy comment didn’t affect him in the way that you wanted. “yeah, i guess so.”

you finished making breakfast, with mike in a slightly better mood than he was before. he remained quiet, however, and it was evident that he still had so much on his mind.

mike had never been good with expressing his emotions to you. he made it his responsibility to keep you happy, and if he was down, he knew you would be too. he knew if he tried to keep a front that he was always okay, you would eventually believe it. but, little did he know that you weren’t as naive as he believed you to be. you saw he was stressed.

after eating, it was getting closer and closer to the release time. it was going live at 11am, and zendaya was planning on posting the trailer to her instagram. it was 10:45am.

you and mike sat down on the couch, your phone in hand. you opened your phone and left it on instagram, planning to refresh the home page when 11 o’clock hit.

mike looked pale. he wouldn’t look you in the eye, and he seemed more tense than ever. you sat in an uncomfortable silence for a few long minutes.

“mike, are-” you began several minutes later before being interrupted suddenly.

“what if this doesn’t go the way we wanted it to?” he asked, not truly looking for an answer from you.

“well, it-” you started again before being interrupted once again.

“in a few minutes, my life will never be the same ever again, Y/N. neither will yours. if this movie doesn’t sell like it should, my career is ruined. if it sells, then i get more jobs, and that’s just more opportunities to potentially fuck up whatever i have going for me. i’m going to be watched at all times, and so will you. one wrong move and it’s all over.”

he was breathing heavily at this point, almost hyperventilating. it looked like he could have a full blown panic attack at any moment.

“i-i don’t want to put you through that,” he said, running a hand through his hair nervously. his voice remained stoic while his body was panicking. “i just… i don’t-”

it was your turn to interrupt him. “hey mike?”

he paused, turning to you confusedly. “yeah?”

“breathe.”

mike froze briefly, and you rested a hand on his back. he kept his gaze focused on your eyes, almost as if just by looking at you, you were anchoring him and keeping his thoughts steady.

you felt as his back slowly rose as he took a deep breath, and you did it with him. you both just gazed at each other and breathed until mike’s demeanor was not one of fear, but calm. full calmness took over him for the first time in who knows how long.

“better?” you asked gently.

he nodded before hugging you. “i’m sorry for acting weird recently. i just got so lost in my thoughts, i couldn’t think straight,” he sheepishly said into your shoulder.

“i don’t blame you, mike. it’s scary, i know.”

you looked down at your phone, which now said 10:59.

“it’s almost time,” you said while sitting up, bringing mike with you. he still seemed nervous, but it was a healthy type of nervous, the kind that feels more like excitement than anxiousness.

he held your hand, and you gave him a reassuring squeeze. when the time on your phone changed to 11am, you breathed in and refreshed your instagram page.

immediately, a new video showed up under zendaya’s account, and you and mike watched the new trailer together, smiling. he was glad to be watching now, and you snuck a glance at him as he watched the trailer. you could tell he was proud of himself.

when it finished, he looked at you, a wide grin on his face.

“i’m so proud of you, mike,” you said, knowing that those words were still an understatement. just to fuel his ego, you paused before adding, “you’re the coolest person i know.”

he laughed and leaned in, kissing you softly. “i’m glad you think so.”

#mike faist #mike faist imagine #mike faist x reader #mike faist fanfiction

51 notes · View notes

auspicious-manner · 8 months

Note

Hi, could I request mike faist x reader where they meet through mutual friends and at first reader is a bit sceptical about him, because he is an actor and she thinks he must be full of himself but gradually she gets to know him and she falls for him, getting to know how humble and kind person he in reality is.

hi guys! i turned my requests off for the time being, just because i have about 7 drafts i need to work on right now and any more might make my head explode. as soon as i get caught up though, i’ll open them up again :)

fem reader x mike faist

warnings: insecurities?

mike taglist: @diorgirl444

Charming

•

“what would you say to a blind date? i know a guy,” your friend alyssa asked smugly.

you had met alyssa while in college at nyu, and remained close friends after graduation. you had even recently moved in together into a small apartment. you were the introvert to her extrovert, the quiet to her loud. she pulled a lot of guys, and you didn’t, and you had accepted that. it was just the way it always had been.

you scoffed. “alyssa, i love you, but your taste in men is horrible. i don’t trust you to set me up with anyone.”

you were sitting at a coffee shop with her, and she leaned across the table. “Y/N, your love life is nonexistent. you need some action. trust me, i went to high school with this guy. he’s super nice, you’d like him.”

you tilted your head knowingly. every time alyssa has tried to introduce you to a guy, he was either never your type or was never interested in you. things never went well when she set you up with guys.

you knew you definitely needed help with relationships, though. you had never been in a real relationship, and it’s been years since you’ve been on a date. for a while, you were fine with that. you had bigger and better things to focus on anyway. but, you also felt ready to date again. alyssa was your best friend, and that’s sometimes enough, but you were ready to find a boyfriend. you were ready to find your other half.

you sighed. “okay, fine, you win. but if this doesn’t work out you can’t say that i didn’t tell you so.”

alyssa smiled wide. “thanks Y/N! i promise you, this one is different. he’s not the typical guy i’ve set you up with before.”

you rolled your eyes. “yeah, sure.”

she had planned the date for you: you were to meet the mystery man down town at an italian restaurant at 7pm on friday night.

“lyss, whats the dress code for this? do i have to dress nice?” you asked after getting out of the shower, wearing your robe. alyssa sat on your bed, smiling complacently.

“semi-formal. i want you to look hot and put together, but not pretentious.”

you giggled. “okay, fine. whatever you say.”

you did your wavy hair routine and applied curl cream, gel, and mousse before diffusing your hair. it laid over your shoulders, your natural waves looking lively and bouncy.

you did a light makeup look, only applying mascara, a bit of eyeliner, blush, highlighter, and a nude pink lipstick.

“i have the perfect dress for you,” alyssa said, pulling a dress out of her bag.

your eyes widened as she held it up. “are you serious?”

“try it on!”

you went into the bathroom, slipping the dress on. it was a small, black cocktail dress that stopped midway down your thigh. it hugged tightly around your curves, and the long, black mesh lantern sleeves accentuated your arms.

you walked out, and alyssa’s jaw dropped. “Y/N, you look hot.”

“don’t you think this is a little…” you looked down at your dress. “much?”

“not at all,” she replied, placing a silver necklace on your chest to match your dangling silver earrings. “you look ready for a date.”

you sighed. “if you say so. you seem to know best.”

she grinned. “that’s right, i do know best.”

as alyssa drove to the restaurant, you tried to get as much information as possible. “can’t you tell me anything about this guy?”

“his name is mike.”

you laughed. “thanks lyss, that tells me so much,” you replied. “what if this guy’s a murderer or a real dick and you’re just throwing me head first into danger?”

alyssa threw her head back. “he’s not, Y/N! i know this guy, he was always great. give him a chance, okay?”

you pulled up to the restaurant right at 7. “if this ends badly, i think i’m going to have to find a new best friend.”

you opened the car door as alyssa lightly shoved you. “that’s what you always say, and i’m still here.” you stepped out onto the street, getting one last “good luck!” before you closed the door and nervously walked into the restaurant.

the restaurant was dimly lit, but lively with customers. you walked to the hostess stand, your heart beating out of your chest.

“hi, is there a mike waiting here yet?” you asked apprehensively.

the woman smiled. “yes, i’ll show you to your table.”

you followed the woman to the back of the restaurant, where you rounded a corner into a private room. at the table was the man said to be mike.

immediately, you thought he was, surprisingly, very handsome compared to all the other guys you’ve been set up with in the past. he had chiseled and defined features, and bright blue eyes. his body was bulked like he worked out often, but not entirely ripped. he had a dusty, brunette head of hair that was neatly combed. he gave you a smile, and you had no choice but to smile back.

“i’m assuming you’re Y/N?” mike asked. when you nodded as you sat down, he reached out a hand for you to shake. “i’m mike faist, it’s great to meet you.”

“it’s good to meet you too.”

he looked down at the table before looking up at you again. “i’m not used to doing things like this, so i’m sorry if i seem a little rusty.”

you moved your hand as if you were brushing something away. “don’t worry about it, i am too. it’s been a long time since i’ve been on a date.”

a silence fell over the table, and you searched your brain for conversation starters. “so, um, what do you do for work?”

mike smiled like he had expected this question, and looked away briefly. “i’m an actor.”

you nodded. “that’s really cool, actually. what kinds of things have you booked so far?” you asked, not expecting the answer you were going to receive.

new york was the city of dreams, and there were a plethora of aspiring actors and performers in the city. you assumed he was one of them, looking for a way to make ends meet.

“oh, you know,” he started, shrugging. “just a few broadway shows, a few off broadway shows, a few movies and tv shows, the works.”

your jaw dropped slightly. you firmly believed all actors of mike’s caliber had only their best interest in mind. they were full of themselves, pretentious. they would do anything to keep their fame. you should have known this guy seemed too good to be true.

you nodded, amused. “no kidding,” you started, resting your chin on your hand. “tell me everything,” you said sarcastically.

your smiled was probably a dead give away that you were trying to get him to walk right into your trap. you wanted him to keep going about his career so you could rub it in alyssa’s face, once again, that her playing matchmaker was never going to work.

“well,” mike started, looking unsure. “my work can wait for some other time, it’s not all that interesting to most people. i want to hear about you. what do you do?”

your smug smile fell. you didn’t expect him to be more interested in you than he was in himself. “oh, yeah, um,” you said, caught off guard. “i own a small coffee shop, a few blocks from time square.”

he nodded, a real smile on his face. “awesome, maybe i could get a coffee from you some day while you’re there.”

you smiled against your will. this guy was probably used to charming people to get what he wants. “you can certainly come and visit me someday.”

mike smiled. “i just might have to.”

you couldn’t help but grin back. there was a short, comfortable silence before it was interrupted by the waiter coming by to take the orders.

after the waiter left, mike turned back to you. “i don’t know what you were planning for the check, but don’t worry about it. i have it covered, this is my treat.”

“it’s fine, i know you’ve got a lot of money from all this acting you’ve been doing, but i can cover my own.”

mike shook his head. “that’s not why i want to cover it. it’s the right thing to do, that’s all.”

at this point, you were trying to find reasons to dislike this guy, but you couldn’t come up with any reasonable ones yet. he was totally different from what you expected.

mike lightly scrunched his nose. “why do you have that look on your face?”

you sighed and looked down at your hands in your lap, your fingers nervously fidgeting. “because i’m trying to come up with reasons why i shouldn’t like you.”

mike looked at you confusedly, but with a curious look that prompted you to keep going. “i’m used to these blind dates going south very quickly, and that hasn’t happened like i thought it would, and now i don’t know what to do.”

mike’s confused glares went to sympathy. “i’m glad i can be the different one for you.”

you lightly blushed. you decided to let your rough exterior fall around him. “that’s enough about me, tell me about you.”

he grinned. “well, i have a play coming up that i have to start rehearsals for soon.”

you tilted your head. “no kidding! that’s really cool, actually,” you replied, genuinely meaning it.

the rest of the night at the restaurant, you and mike continued having conversations about your lives, passions, and everything in between. it felt oddly liberating, because you were so used to only ever having one person to talk to, and that one person talked about herself most of the time.

it got to the point where the restaurant had to tell you two to leave, because you were sitting there for so long and the restaurant was closing.

“can i give you a ride home?” mike asked as you walked out of the restaurant.

“i would love that.”

he opened the passenger door of his car as you got in. you were trying to hold in a giddy smile; against your better judgment, you really liked mike.

“thank you for tonight, mike. i really enjoyed getting to know you,” you said as he drove into the streets of new york city.

“always. let me know if you want to do it again,” he said with a grin.

you laughed. “i might just have to take you up on that.”

mike glanced at you while he drove, then looked back at the road. “it’s been a long time since i’ve enjoyed a date this much.”

you were full on smiling at this point. “i’ve never even had an enjoyable date until now.”

he glanced at you, but for longer this time. “okay, you win.”

when he pulled up to your apartment building, you both looked at each other.

“do you think we should…” you said, trailing off. “do a lap around the block?”

mike nodded. “yeah, definitely.”

he drove slowly around the block as the two of you continued talking, and then he pulled up to the building again. “should we…?”

“keep going,” you answered.

he made another lap around the block, your endless conversations continuing, and finally you both decided that was enough and he parked the car in the lot. you both got out, and he stood in front of you. he towered over you with his height as you looked up at him.

“you have my number, right?” you asked him.

he nodded. “i’ll let you know what days i’m free to do this again.”

you bit your lip. “i’m sorry for being kind of an asshole at the beginning of the night. i was hesitant to let my guard down, i was going into tonight thinking it would be a disaster and i was hoping i could tell alyssa that her plan failed once again.”

mike looked down at your hands, and hesitantly took your fingers in his. your heat rate immediately picked up.

“you don’t have to apologize. i didn’t think it would go well either. until it did,” he said with a laugh.

you stood on your tiptoes and planted a small kiss on his cheek. “thank you again, mike.”

he wrapped you in a welcoming hug. it was comfortable, and you felt like you could live in that moment forever. you never thought this would be happening on one of alyssa’s blind dates.

“of course, Y/N.”

you pulled away, and waved goodbye as you walked into your building. you noticed mike didn’t get back into his car until he knew you were safe inside. before walking to the elevator in the building, you stood against the wall, smiling to yourself.

when you had finally made it upstairs, alyssa had opened the door to the apartment before you had a chance to get your key out of your pocket.

“how’d it go?” she asked breathlessly, a wide smile etched on her face.

you sighed. “i hate that you might be right about this one.”

you met up with mike two more times after that, and feelings were definitely building between the two of you. you spent most of your free time calling or texting mike, and flirting while playing mario kart and imessage games. at first, you worried the connection you were building wouldn’t translate in person; but it did.

you thought it would bother you that mike was somewhat of a celebrity. you expected to hear all about his work and his extraordinary life as a famous performer, but he rarely talked about that side of his life with you. he always made sure to make it about you, even though you wouldn’t mind hearing about his work every once in a while. now you just found it cool that he was doing what he was doing. but, he didn’t want your relationship to be entirely covered up by his work, which you appreciated.

on your fourth date, mike took you to an art museum within new york city, and you dressed classy for the occasion.

you walked out of the doors to your apartment building, where mike was also dressed classy, leaning against the hood of his car.

he looked you up and down, his eyebrows raising. “well, look at you.”

you blushed. “look at yourself.”

mike looked down, then looked back at you. “we clean up nice, don’t we?”

you smiled and stood in front of him. “we really do.”

you got into his car, and as mike sat down in the drivers seat, he instinctively reached for your hand, leaving his palm up on your thigh. you grabbed it, your heart feeling like it was about to explode. it felt right, despite only knowing him for less than a month.

you got to the museum, and mike opened the passenger door for you, letting you out of the car.

upon walking in, the art on the walls and the displays were mesmerizing. your eyes lit up at the beauty on the walls, and you caught mike staring at you from the side, lightly smiling.

“what are you smiling at?” you asked, turning your head to face him as you walked.

he shrugged. “you. i like seeing you excited.”

you blushed and covered your face with your hands, suddenly embarrassed. “god, you were staring at my horrible side profile.”

mike stopped you from walking by stepping in front of you. he grabbed your wrists gently, taking your hands off your face for you. he held your wrists still, scanning your eyes with his.

“you have one of the prettiest faces i’ve ever seen, Y/N. believe me.”

you bit your lip and nodded timidly. he let go of one wrist, but took your other hand in his as you continued to walk.

“my side profile has always been one of my biggest insecurities.”

“why?” mike questioned, squeezing your hand a little tighter. his touch felt reassuring.

“i don’t know, i guess i just think my nose is too big, and my jaw is kind of square, and my teeth aren’t perfectly straight,” you told him. it was true, your side profile was one of the things that made you most insecure. “there’s nothing i can really do about it though.

his thumb gently rubbed the back of your hand. “i don’t know if my opinion counts, but i think you could fit into any one of these art pieces here.”

you giggled, stopping again and standing in front of him. your bodies were close, and if you made one more move, you could easily plant a kiss on his lips.

you placed your hands on his chest, looking up at him. “you always know how to use your movie star charm to make me feel good.”

mike smiled, taking your face in is hands and leaning down to give you the most euphoric kiss you could ever think of.

“i only do it for you, sweetheart.”

#mike faist #mike faist imagine #mike faist x reader #mike faist fanfiction #mike faist riff

121 notes · View notes

auspicious-manner · 8 months

Note

Hi! I was wondering if you could write about Billy dunne, there isn't a lot about him. Him and the reader have known each other since they were kids but dont really interact much and Billy is so crazy about her but the reader hasn't ever considered romantic feelings for Billy. He wants to impress her and win her over bad. Basically follows what happens in canon except there is no cheating drama, its just drama between Billy and reader. I don't know how clear this is but thanks i appreciate it!

what's with my djats stories being so long?

sorry this took so long to get out, i started to lose motivation for it after i realized the idea in my head would make this WAY longer than it needed to be. sorry if the end is a little rushed 😭

female reader x billy dunne

warnings: drug use

It Was Always You

•

pittsburgh didn’t have much to offer anyone looking to explore the music scene. there were no big opportunities, and limited ways to get noticed. the six, formerly known as the dunne brothers, needed to move out of pittsburgh to somewhere they could make it. somewhere like california.

and you were the reason they got there.

you lived in the same neighborhood as billy and graham and went to school together, and you were the same age as graham. you and graham were friends, not great ones, but friends nonetheless. despite you being a friend of his brother, billy couldn’t help but keep a watchful eye over you.

even since you were in middle school, billy had some kind of adoration and fascination with you, and you barely knew of his existence. if you were taking a walk through the neighborhood, billy was at his window watching. you always knew it wasn’t in a creepy way, it felt different than that. you couldn’t tell what it was that made him watch you, but you felt flattered more than anything.

when you caught word of graham wanting to start a band with eddie, warren, chuck, and billy, you knew you wanted in. even though music was not your specialty, you could do other things.

during one of the band’s first rehearsals in billy and graham’s garage, you walked over to scope out the band. billy noticed you first, and his eyes widened a bit. graham noticed you shortly after.

“oh, hey Y/N.” graham started.

you smiled and waved. “hey graham,” you said, looking around at the rest of the boys. “and warren, eddie, chuck, and…” you said while giggling, trailing off when you got to billy. he looked at you like he was waiting for something important. “billy, right?”

you thought you saw him sigh of relief, but he covered it well. he smiled at you and reached out his hand. you took it, and noticed he held on for a few extra moments. “yeah, i’m billy dunne, graham’s brother. it’s good to meet you, Y/N.” after he released your hand, you noticed he never broke eye contact.

“what brings you here?” warren asked, taking a sip from his water.

“i actually had a question for you guys,” you said, suddenly getting nervous.

“let’s hear it,” billy told you.

you took a small breath. “i was, uh-i was wondering if you would consider letting me be apart of the band. i’m not musical in any way, so i don’t expect to be in the band, but i’d love to be apart of it some other way.”

the band stared at you, not in a threatening way, but like they were considering it. they couldn’t decide what to make of you.

“what, you want to be our groupie or roadie or somethin’?” eddie asked.

“actually, i was thinking manager.”

the group made surprised expressions. billy stepped forward to you. “why should we let you be our manager?”

“well, for one, i’m very organized. i can keep everything on track and on schedule with the band. i’m also very persuasive, and i could get you guys a lot of gigs for good money. and although i can’t play music, i know a lot about it. i’m also good at photography, and can get some good shots of you guys.”

the band once again considered you. you felt small under their glares, but the harshness was broken by billy’s smile. “you got the time for us?”

you smirked. “always.”

billy bit his lip. “welcome aboard.”

you smiled wide. you couldn’t believe they actually took a blind chance on you. you half expected them to turn you down.

“wait, aren’t we going to talk about this?” eddie asked.

billy annoyedly turned to eddie. “you guys put me in charge, so i call the shots, and i say she’s in." he paused, turning to warren. "warren, count us in,” billy said as warren began counting. billy sent you a wink as they played, and you noticed eddie rolling his eyes.

you grew closer with everyone in the band. graham quickly became your go to guy, and you became best friends. warren was like your annoying brother that you constantly got fed up with but loved regardless. eddie acted like he didn’t like you as the band’s manager, but you were always the first one to call if he needed help with anything. you never really grew close with chuck, but you tolerated him and he tolerated you. your relationship with chuck didn’t matter much, since he left the band early.

billy, however, felt different. you could tell something was off about him. you rarely talked, but it always seemed like billy had something to say to you that he never let out. it always felt like he was hesitating around you, and he wanted to make sure you were watching him during your performances. it was clear to everyone in the band that you had some sort of hold on him.

over the next few years in pittsburgh, you lined up gigs at proms, weddings, and graduation parties for the band. you adored what you did. you got the thrill of watching your friends perform and the crowd cheering without the stress of playing. also, you felt like you were good at what you did. you always knew how to be timely, organized, and respectful, all qualities which made you fit to be their manager. you also used your photography skills to take up close photos and videos of the band performing and practicing, which you would later use to advertise for the band.

after chuck broke the news to the band that he would be leaving, he went back into his house, leaving your disheveled band down a member.

you could tell billy was thinking hard. with his brown furrowed, eyes pointed to the ground, the rest of the band waited for his direction. then, out of nowhere, he grabbed your wrist and took you out of earshot from the boys.

“billy, what’s this about?” you said, keeping your voice low. you knew there was a reason billy pulled you and no one else aside.

“i need your help. i don’t know what to do,” he said, avoiding eye contact.

“why’d you need my help? i mean, you have graham, you own brother. i’m sure he’d know-”

billy looked up into your eyes sharply, and you immediately stopped talking. “i trust your opinion more than anyone else’s, Y/N.”

you nodded. you glanced at the band, who was clearly trying not to watch the sight unfolding in front of them. when you looked at them, they turned away quickly.

“eddie’s gonna hate us, but i think he should switch to bass,” you suggested.

billy slightly smiled. “you think?”

you nodded. “yeah, you just need to stay focused on being a great leader for this band. i wouldn’t want you straining trying to figure out bass while also trying to be a kick ass front man.”

billy blushed and bit his lip to suppress a smile, then patted your shoulder. “you’re too nice to me.”

you both walked back to the band, who was anxiously awaiting the solution to their problem. when billy broke the news, eddie scoffed, bluntly saying, “no, absolutely not."

“which one of you came up with that idea?” eddie continued. it seemed like one wrong move could completely set him off.

billy stepped up. “it was me. i-”

the band was only beginning. you couldn’t let their relationships already fall apart before the band even gets big. you knew billy was trying to take the blame for you, but it wasn’t necessary.

“it was me.”

his eyes softened at you. he seemed almost offended that you gave up his role as rhythm guitarist, but since it was you, he knew he couldn’t blow up at you. you were too beloved by the band.

eddie rolled his eyes. “for how long?”

you and billy looked at each other smiling. “we owe you one, eddie.”

not long after eddie switched to bass, you were opening for the winters. as you watched the winters perform on stage, you noticed graham eyeing the blonde keyboardist singing harmonies.

you nudged his side. “make a move.”

graham looked down at you before looking back at her. “i-what do i say?”

you shrugged. “i don’t know, compliment her music or something,” you paused. “make small talk. she’s cute, graham, you can do this.”

you smiled at him before walking away to talk to eddie. however, you felt a pair of eyes burning into your side, and without looking, you could tell billy was the culprit.

after the winters’ set, you caught the keyboardist shortly after she got off stage. you introduced yourself as the manager of the dunne brothers.

karen smiled at you, introducing herself before walking away. before she could, you decided to help graham out a bit.

“graham dunne, the guitarist of our band, really liked your sound.”

she turned around to look at you. “yeah, we’re good at what we do.”

you amusedly grinned. “he didn’t just like the band’s sound, he liked yours. you should go talk to him,” you said before winking and walking away.

not long later, as you were helping the band set up, graham came up behind you. “Y/N, we talked.”

you looked over your shoulder and saw him grinning from ear to ear. you couldn’t help but laugh to yourself, and you turned around. “earlier, i may have… told karen that you liked what she did on stage. i don’t want to take all the credit for your interaction with her, but,” you said, pausing slightly. “i definitely contributed.”

graham’s jaw fell slightly, and he began laughing. before you knew it, he picked you up in his arms and gave you a big hug. you giggled and wrapped your arms around his neck as graham thanked you, and your eyes drifted outwards where you saw billy’s eyes staying locked on your hug with his brother.

after their set, you billy caught up to you backstage. “hey, Y/N,” he started. you could tell he sounded a bit nervous.

you turned around to meet him. “billy, what’s up?”

he looked around to make sure the rest of the band wasn’t near. “so, you and graham?” billy asked. he sounded apprehensive, and almost stern. he looked everywhere but at you.

you squinted. “what do you mean?”

billy shook his head. “i saw that hug earlier. and not just that, y-you’ve been with him a lot. which, i don’t really mind, i just want to know. i don’t want the band to be ruined by this.”

you stared back at him, and all you could do was start laughing. he looked at you, a bit dumbfounded. “what’s so funny?”

“you, billy. you’re funny,” you said, walking closer to him. you watched as his cheeks grew red. “there’s nothing going on between graham and i, seriously. he’s like a brother to me, i wouldn’t dream of looking at him romantically. besides, he has another lady in mind.”

billy looked down at you, wanting to believe you. “okay, i get it,” he said with a slight smile.

you lightly placed a hand on his chest. “i wouldn’t dream of ruining this band,” you said before walking away. you couldn’t see the giddy smile creep onto billy’s face.

from that point on, billy’s mood around you seemed to lighten. he always had a way of making you notice him. you began to get the vibe that this was all on purpose, that he wanted you to compliment him or give him attention. you wondered if he ever looked at you romantically. sometimes, billy’s odd behavior around you could only be excused if he was interested in you. you couldn’t decide if you were interested in him, but you didn’t want to be involved with a member of the band. things could get too messy.

after meeting rod after the night opening for the winters, the band made the decision to move out to california.

you loved the band, and would do anything for them. but, moving out to los angeles on a whim was risky. you knew they could go the distance, but you were being expected to leave your entire life behind to start a new one. besides, with the new move, they needed you to be an even more present manager than you already were. sure, you could handle managing an up and coming band from pittsburgh. but you felt less than qualified for the job of a big time manager of a growing rock and roll band on the infamous los angeles music scene. someone else could do better and take them farther, and they deserved it.

one day, shortly before they left, you expressed your thoughts to the band. you sat on the floor in billy and graham’s garage as the band stood by their instruments.

“guys, i don’t know if i’m coming with you to california just yet,” you said quietly, looking down at your hands. you could feel the glares of the boys burning into your body.

“what?” graham asked.

you stayed quiet, and heard shuffling footsteps come closer to you. a tear fell from your eye, and you tried your best to hide it. “i-i have to leave my life, my family. which, i can do it, but what’s the point?” you looked up to find the band hovering over you, concerned. “i don’t know the ins and outs of music there like i do here. i’m afraid i won’t be able to take you guys all the way.”

billy stepped closed, and bent down to meet you gaze. you noticed that he still seemed to tower over you, despite him meeting you on the ground.

“Y/N, don’t think for one second that we don’t need you,” billy said. “you’re the only one we can see doing this for us.”

graham bent down next to billy. “you’re like our sister, and you’ve done so much to help us grow. you can keep doing this. we all know you can.”

staying standing, warren nodded at you. “we can’t do this without you. don’t quit on us now.”

even eddie agreed. “you make us better, Y/N.”

billy took your hand in his as another tear escaped your eye. “what do you say?”

you couldn’t leave these guys. even if you were the reason they failed in the future, at least you failed with them. they were your family.

you smiled to yourself. “okay, you’ve convinced me.”

billy smiled, and with the hand that still held onto your fingers, he pulled you into his arms, wrapping you in a hug. you were taken aback by this change of character, as he very rarely showed affection like this to anyone. you hugged back, leaning your head on his shoulder.

before you knew it, warren wrapped his arms around the side of you, then graham joined the party. finally, eddie did too. for a few moments, you all stayed in that position, with you in the middle of the group hug. that was when you knew this was where you were meant to be.

a few days later, your belongings were packed and loaded as you climbed into the back of the warm, cozy van while the rain poured outside.

“look who it is!” warren exclaimed as you sat down. eddie stood outside packing the luggage onto the top of the van.

billy smiled widely at you. “i’m glad you’re coming.”

you blushed at his sincerity against your will. “me too.”

the road to california was long, but the building excitement in that van was infectious. everyone knew something big was coming.

upon arriving in los angeles, the band contacted rod reyes and built their first connection in the music world. with rod’s help, he gave you the number to contact filthy mcnasty’s on the strip and gave you another piece of information; karen’s phone number.

“graham, i have a surprise for you,” you said excitedly, dragging out the “you”.

“what?” he asked, confused.

you smiled. “i got karen’s number.”

not long later, you moved into a shabby house with the band in laurel canyon, and recruited karen sirko to be the new keyboardist for the dunne brothers. along with the new edition came a new venue to play in on the strip.

there, you saw billy really begin to fall in love with his music and performing. the way he interacted with the audience, and with you, was electrifying. you found yourself getting flustered if he sang to you while onstage, and you questioned why you felt so strongly. you didn’t have feelings for him, at least you thought. the butterflies in your stomach as he looked at you while singing on stage were trying to tell you something different.

one day, after billy came home with the legendary teddy price’s business card, you had sealed a deal to play for him, and the energy was beyond exciting. they played for him as you watched, and you kept getting those butterflies in your stomach as billy performed. they were getting harder and harder to ignore.

after teddy named the audition a success, the pure joy in the van afterwards was infectious. as the band drove away, you and the band were giddily laughing and hugging like children. billy was the first one you hugged.

you wrapped your arms around his neck first, and you could feel him get caught off guard for a moment, but he soon reciprocated. your heart felt like it was going to pop out of your chest.

“i’m so proud of you!” you said to billy as he squeezed you tighter. you pulled away from each other, faces red and smiling. your arms lingered on each other, not fully pulling away.

“we couldn’t have done it without you, Y/N,” billy said over the commotion.

one night, after a gig at filthy’s months later, the band finished playing and walked out onto the strip. you saw billy and teddy talking, and when you walked over to them, you heard the words you’ve been waiting to hear forever.

“if the label agrees, we’ll get you in the recording studio.”

billy stepped back, shocked. he looked at you, then back at teddy. “shut up.”

teddy shrugged. “it wasn’t all me. Y/N has been on my case about this deal for a while now. if it weren’t for her, this might not be happening.” that was true, the past few months was a pain trying to get teddy to budge on a deal.

billy looked at you. he had the widest smile you had ever seen, and in that moment, you thought you’d never seen anyone more handsome. he wrapped you in a hug, picking you up from the ground and spinning you as you giggled. you didn’t even care that he was drenched in sweat.

he put you down and tried to go hug teddy. he turned to the band, who was confused at the commotion. “guys, we’ve got an album!”

the boys jumped up, running to you and teddy, enveloping you both in a sea of hugs. teddy wasn’t as fond of hugs as you were, but you welcomed them sweat and all with open arms.

billy had always considered you vital in the band, but during the first album sessions, you were involved more than ever before in creative decisions. billy was running the show, but he trusted your opinion just as much, if not more, than teddy’s. given that billy wanted you involved in the music just as anyone else, it made your interactions much more intimate. you found yourself spending a lot of alone time with billy.

one night at the house after a long day in the studio, you and billy sat outside and drank some beers. your chairs were facing in, and it took some effort to not longingly stare at him.

“how do you like it so far? i mean, the album?” billy asked you nervously, looking down.

you smiled to yourself and bit your lip. “you’ve been wanting my approval more and more recently. what’s that about?” you asked, leaning back in your chair. “you’ve always been looking for my validation, but i never thought much about it until now.”

billy took a deep breath in. he looked like he was contemplating something, and he took a sip of his beer before looking at you again. “do i really have to say it?”

you furrowed your eyebrows slightly. prompting billy to start, he closed his eyes before talking again. “Y/N, i think i may be in love with you.”

your heart seemed to fall into your chest. you’ve had suspicions for a long time now, but you had always assumed you were looking too far into it. you thought that was just his personality. until recently, you had never even considered him romantically. it wasn’t until he really starting honing in on his craft that you saw a side of him that you could potentially like.

“billy dunne in love with me?” you asked playfully. you couldn’t believe it.

“i know you don’t feel the same, and i’ve accepted that. maybe it’s the alcohol talking, but i’ve been pining over you for as long as i can remember. i value your opinion because your ideas and thoughts are the only ones that truly matter to me.”

the heart beat in your chest sped up. you felt your face grow red and you hoped billy couldn’t see how absolutely flustered you were. you took a sip of your beer.

billy then waved his hand like he was brushing his thoughts away. “forget it, this was all stupid. i shouldn’t have said that, i’m sorry.”

your eyes softened as billy looked away, embarrassed. you scooted forward, gently placing a hand on his knee. “billy,” you started. he reluctantly turned to face you. “i want to explore where this could go.”

he smiled at you, a wide and endearing smile that made you immediately grin back. “i’ve waited a long time to hear that.”

after that night, it didn’t take long for you and billy to become inseparable. the band eventually caught on to what was going on, no one had to explain your feelings to anyone; everyone seemed to know. the often caught you making out in secret in random places in the studio.

after recording the album, it was time to go on tour. you and billy started dating after the first show on tour, and you were truly happy for the time being.

however, a lot of that initial glee faded as the tour continued, as the band was heavily using drugs and alcohol to escape the pressures of the tour. billy seemed to take it especially hard. most nights, he would do a line of coke right on stage and finish the show by washing everything down with alcohol.

“billy, don’t you think you should… slow down a little?” you asked gently once you were back in your hotel room. billy was opening another bag of coke.

he looked at you. “this is rock and roll, Y/N.”

you sighed. you were worried for him, everyone was. “you’re not yourself, billy. this isn’t the billy that i know,” you said, your tone getting harsher. when he looked away back to his bag of coke, you walked over to him.

“look at me,” you said, standing in front of him between him and the coke. he obliged, and blankly stared back at you.

it hurt you to see him like this. he was falling apart at the seams. “don’t fucking blame this on rock and roll. you’re addicted, billy. you have a problem. you better clean up your goddamn act soon or i-” you stopped, your voice cracking. tears were forming in your eyes. “or i can’t be with you any longer.”

billy blinked, almost unfazed. after a few moments, he nodded.

you looked up at him and shook your head. “clean yourself up.”

after that night, billy tried to cut back, but he always found his way back to the drugs and the alcohol. for a while, it was okay. he only did a line before a show and kept his alcohol for after the show. you still didn’t like his heavy consumption, but at least he was making an effort for you and your relationship.

then, just as it was getting better, it got worse again. he was fully addicted now, and was stumbling all over the stage. he couldn’t hold notes in the songs, and the band looked between themselves, confused.

“Y/N, what are we going to do with him? karen asked after a show, leaning into your ear as you watched billy open a bottle of vodka. you stared as tears fell down your face.

“there’s only one thing to do.”

you forced billy into your car, giving the band members hugs before you drove off.

“w-where are we going?” billy asked, dazed.

a tear drop fell on your leg as you drove, and billy’s eyebrows furrowed.

“you know where,” you whispered.

“Y/N, i’m sorry.”

“i know you are," you replied numbly.

you heard billy sniffle, like he was also crying. you couldn’t bring yourself to look at him. “i can’t live without you. you’re all i ever wanted, and now i’ve thrown it all away.”

you bit your lip as you suppressed your tears. “i know.”

you pulled up to the rehabilitation center, and got out of the car with billy. you stood in front of him, close to him. he looked down at you with melancholy, and you looked up at him.

“take care of yourself, okay?”

he nodded. “i-i’m sorry, Y/N.”

you nodded as the tears fell harder. you were leaving behind one of the greatest things that has ever happened to you.

you turned away before you could hesitate and headed back to your car as you watched billy enter the front doors of the center. when he was out of sight, you broke down, releasing the sobs that were hiding in your body.

the rest of the tour was cancelled, and back at laurel canyon, the band wasn’t sure where their future stood. not having billy around had left a hole in the group, and you fell into a pit of depression not having him around. the band tried their best to cheer you up. whether it be graham offering to play games with you, or warren buying you useless knickknacks, or even just crying on karen’s shoulder, you appreciated their efforts but you couldn’t seem to get billy off your mind.

when you got the call two months later that billy was coming home, you felt excited and scared all at the same time. you were looking forward to having him back, you needed him. but confronting everything that had happened seemed too overwhelming.

graham brought him back to the house, and he got out of the car to greet the band. warren showed him his mustache he had been growing, and eddie showed billy his bass he had built. karen squeezed your hand before going up to billy and hugging him.

you stood behind the rest of them, afraid to make an appearance. billy was trying to look for you, and when warren noticed, he stepped away so you were visible to billy.

you could tell billy was feeling the same as you were. you watched as guilt flashed across his face, then nervousness, then eventually, relief.

you stepped forward at the same time, and he wrapped you in an endearing hug. it felt nice to be in his arms again.

“i’m never letting you go again,” billy said into your hair. “i’m staying clean for you.”

you pulled away so you could look at him, your arms still loosely around each other. “you get one more chance, dunne. one more slip up and whatever this is is over.”

after settling into normalcy again, you felt like you were getting to know billy all over again. you were rediscovering why you began to like him in the first place. you missed him.

not long later, you watched as graham angrily stormed out of the room with billy in it. you frowned and peered into the doorframe, finding billy with his head down.

“what’s wrong?” you asked, sitting down next to him. you placed a hand on his thigh, and he stared at it.

“i’m quitting the band, Y/N,” he said quietly.

your jaw fell slightly. “what?”

billy scooted away from you. you could tell he was emotional right now, and was pushing you away not because he didn’t want you there, but because he didn’t know what else to do.

“i love music, but i can’t keep doing this. there’s too much temptation, and i can’t go through that again. i can’t lose you again.”

you softened. billy was willing to do anything for you, but this was one act of selflessness that you couldn’t let him get away with.

“billy,” you started. “you’re the strongest person i know. i trust you. i’m not going to let you quit on this band because of me, you’re just getting started. please, at least think about staying. i won’t be able to do this without you.”

he continued looking down. he paused, and you could tell his hard exterior was crumbling around you. “i’ll think about it.”

and he did. only a few days later, he came to the band with a new song in a new direction that he was ready to get recorded. it was a beautiful song that he called honeycomb, and when he first played it for you, you had some thoughts.

“it’s good,” you said, nodding your head as you sat down on the couch next to billy.

“but…” billy asked, sensing your hesitation.

“it’s missing something.”

billy squinted, a devious smirk forming on his face. “like what exactly?”

“i don’t know, it just sounds too… hopeful, maybe?” you said.

billy looked at you with genuine confusion. “what’s wrong with having hope?”

“nothing, nothing at all, it’s just-” you paused. “no one wants to hear a song about hope. people like to hear things that are messy, and dark, and imperfect.”

billy rolled his eyes and kissed your cheek. “Y/N, you know i love your opinions, but i think you’re wrong about that one.”

you giggled. “i can guarantee teddy will tell you the same thing when you get it recorded.”

“is that a bet?”

you smiled. “hell yes it is.”

then you shook on it, and as it was, you ended up being right. in the studio, teddy told billy it was a good song, not a great one, and you and teddy had a new artist come in to sing vocals on the track named daisy jones.

billy was less than welcoming at daisy’s arrival, and they clashed over everything. billy wasn’t informed that daisy had changed his lyrics, and he stormed out of the studio, taking you with him by the wrist.

“billy, what the hell?” you said as you stumbled behind him, finally coming to a stop when you were outside.

“i can’t fucking believe this, Y/N, you and teddy are ruining my song by adding daisy. it’s not supposed to be a duet, and it’s suppose to be about hope,” billy said harshly.

“daisy adds more layers to that song whether you like it or not. she makes it better, and it gives the song a story.”

“no, she’s not. i wrote a beautiful song, and it’s being taken over.”

billy was frowning, and you stepped forward so you were right under him. at this point, you were frustrated too.

“stop being so fucking stubborn, billy. your ego is getting in the way for the success of this song. we’ll record it daisy’s way, and then we’ll record it your way, okay? we can decide which one sounds better later.”

billy paused, and looked down at you. you could see his harsh eyes soften a bit, and then he nodded his head.

you never did record it his way.

with look at us now came a rush in popularity and invitations to perform at festivals. at the diamond head festival, you saw for yourself the magic on stage that was billy and daisy together. daisy wasn’t a want, she was a need. that is, until billy made a particularly snide remark about daisy to the news following their performance.

“billy, are you crazy?” you asked when you had a private moment after the interview.

billy seemed confused. “what are you talking about?”

“billy!” you exclaimed. “you could have been a little nicer to daisy in that interview.”

billy looked at you, shocked. “i was! i couldn’t have been nicer! seriously Y/N, what’s the big-”

“the big deal is that daisy makes you better. she makes all of you better. you didn’t even give her any credit for the song.”

billy stepped closer to you. “it was my song.”

“daisy wrote the part that everyone remembers.”

billy paused. “she will ruin us.”

you shrugged. “you’ll never know until you try.”

for a while after that festival, things went back to normal, but you knew your work with daisy wasn’t done. you and billy were throwing a house party, and you invited daisy to try and work out the bad blood between the two. getting them to work together was not an easy task, but by the end of the night, they found common ground. it didn’t take long for daisy to be formally invited into the band.

you noticed daisy and billy continued to be unwilling to work together, despite all your efforts. finally, teddy sent billy and daisy away to write material together, and the pair didn't come back until the night time.

as the band recorded let me down easy, you could tell something special was building. as billy sang into the microphone, you hoped he would catch your eye so you could give him a proud smile, but his eyes stayed locked on daisy. you didn't think much of it at this point.

billy and daisy found their groove, and the two would walk into the studio after a day of writing laughing and giggling like children. you remembered when billy would do that with you. now, it seemed like a distant memory.

"karen, can i ask you something?" you asked karen once when you were the only two in the lobby of the studio.

"anything," she replied, putting out her cigarette.

"do you think something is off will billy? like, with me?" you asked sheepishly.

karen frowned. "what do you mean?"

you looked down. "he hasn't been the same since daisy has been in the picture. i rarely see him anymore, and when i do, he's not all there," you said. "and i felt so involved in the last album. i was involved in all of billy's decisions, and now it's daisy. should i be worried about..." you trailed off. "you know?"

karen looked at you, her eyes softening at your worried expression. "i know what you mean. billy's a great guy, Y/N, and i think you can trust him. if you're worried, i would talk to him sooner rather than later."

you nodded. "i'll see if it gets any worse, and if it does, i'll talk to him."

you hated that things were getting worse between the two of them. you could tell he was hiding something, and a part of you always knew that those two had some type of connection. they had to, for the sake of the music.

you tried to trust them and let him run off with daisy, knowing that they made each other better. but you knew he wasn't telling you something.

you didn't realize how far along their connection was until daisy and billy stormed out of the studio while recording more fun to miss.

you followed them out, a few paces behind them, to make sure everything was okay. as soon as you stepped out onto the pavement, you watched as daisy yelled something at billy, close to his face. then, you watched as billy pulled daisy closer, leaving a kiss on her lips.

you gasped, and the two immediately broke and turned to look at you. billy went as pale as a ghost, and you stood horrified.

"Y/N, this isn't-" billy started, walking closer to you.

you put up a hand, stopping him in his tracks. "don't."

billy paused. "daisy, can we get some privacy?" he asked sternly before daisy hurriedly made her way inside.

"can i explain?" billy asked quietly.

a tear ran down your face. "what is there to explain? i know what i just saw."

billy nodded understandingly. "i know, i know what this looks like, and i'm sorry. but truthfully, there's absolutely nothing going on between us."

you laughed. "you call that nothing?" you asked, raising your voice. "you kissed her, billy! and god knows what else you've been doing behind my back all this time. there's a reason you came out here to do this, so i wouldn't find out."

billy put his hands on your shoulders. "there's nothing of substance between us. this is all an act, we're building our connection so fans can see it and believe it onstage. that's what the fans want. please believe me, there's nothing between us. there never was, and there never will be."

you shook your head, tears streaming down your face harder. "and you expect me to believe that?" you asked quietly, walking away into the studio.

you had locked yourself in a storage closet for some privacy, and you could tell the band, minus billy and daisy, was looking for you around the studio. you sat on the floor crying, thinking about all the times billy left you to be with her.

you felt so stupid for letting this happen. you should have known something was off. you couldn't believe what billy did, but you couldn't believe that you fell for him the way you did. this should have been expected.

suddenly, you heard a faint voice from outside the door, down the hallway. "daisy, we need to talk."

footsteps. "don't tell me what i think you're going to tell me," she replied.

"we were a mistake. we never had anything, and we never will."

a pause. "you're a big fucking liar, you know that?" daisy asked him.

"Y/N is the one i love. she's the one i will choose every time."

"so that kiss just now meant nothing?" daisy asked, getting angrier. "you did that just so i'd sing like that on the album?"

"i did what i had to do," billy said, matching her tone. "this is all an act, for the music. we had to build chemistry so the fans will believe it. none of this is real." there was a pause before billy spoke again. "i refuse to lose Y/N. not again."

there was another long pause, before a loud "fuck you" and the sound of daisy's heels walking out of the studio doors.

your heart was beating fast after hearing that exchange. you wanted to trust the man that you had grown to love again.

you quietly unlocked the door, stepping out and finding billy down the hall. he looked at you and his harsh features softened when he saw your tear stained face. "hey, i've been looking all over for you," he said sweetly.

you stood in front of him, and he put his hands on the sides of your face, forcing you to look him in the eyes.

"i'm so sorry, Y/N. for all of this. temptation got the best of me, and i lost sight of what i wanted and needed. you're it for me, and you always have been. even before you knew i existed, i knew i wanted you and no one else."

you rested your forehead on his, briefly staying quiet. "never do anything like this ever again, okay asshole?"

billy smiled. "you have my word."

you kissed him, and it made you forget everything that had just happened. you could tell that he truly meant what he said to you through a single, meaningful kiss.

he made all of your worries dissipate in an instant.

#billy dunne #billy dunne x reader #graham dunne #daisy jones fanfic #daisy jones and the six #warren rojas #eddie roundtree #daisy jones and the 6 #karen sirko

141 notes · View notes

auspicious-manner · 10 months

Note

Can i request newsies era mike trying to cheer up the reader on a bad day?

a year ago today, i uploaded my very first story on tumblr :,) i’ve written on other platforms before, but when i made this account a year ago, i was hoping for a fresh start. i didn’t know if people would like my writing, but i told myself it was worth a shot. and it’s been so worth it.

to everyone who reads my stories, interacts with it, follows me, and sends in request, i thank you. i write for you guys, and knowing that i’ve made others happy is truly such a gift. in honor of my one year anniversary, enjoy this mike story! it seems only fitting that i upload a mike story exactly a year after i uploaded my first mike story 😁

also, i recently got a request for a taglist for my stories! if any of you want to be added to my taglist for any of my stories/fandoms, pls just let me know! i never thought that would be something people would be interested in, so i never proposed it before 😅

fem reader x mike faist

warnings: sickness, accidents

mike taglist: @diorgirl444

Unlucky

•

the universe was clearly against you. there could be no other explanation. every event leading up to the show on this particular day led you one step closer to full fledged insanity.

you and mike were in newsies on broadway at the same time. he was one of the delancey brothers, an understudy for jack, and a newsie. you were a bowery beauty, nun, and an understudy for katherine. given that you and mike were so close and had the same schedule, a month prior you two had decided to move in together.

mike was your comfort person. you weren’t dating, but you weren’t friends. you were somewhere in the middle with him, but the two of you had never actually talked out your feelings. you both seemed to be happy with where you were.

on the fateful morning, you woke up and immediately sat up in your bed. your throat was scratchy. you frowned, immediately thinking of the worst. you took a sip of water and the pain was worse. not only that, but you were shivering under the weight of three blankets and a hoodie, and you felt like your head was going to split open at any second.

you had a fever.

you laid back down, groaning. you had a show tonight, and it was an important show. you had friends and family from out of town coming to support you, and they had been planning this trip for weeks.

“mike!” you called out, your voice slightly hoarse. there was no reply.

“mike!” you yelled a bit louder, your hands immediately going to hold your throat from the pain.

finally, when he didn’t reply again, you rolled over to get your phone to call him. he answered, almost annoyed. “Y/N, what do you want?”

“where are you?” you asked.

“i ran out to the store.”

you coughed gently. “are you still there?”

“no, why?”

you sighed, closing your eyes. “i’m sick and i wanted some cold medicine.”

there was silence for a few moments. “oh, are you okay?” mike asked, his tone immediately switching from one of annoyance to one of genuine concern.

“i’m fine, i just need to get better before the show starts tonight,” you replied, putting a hand on your forehead. you were burning up.

mike sighed. “you shouldn’t go on tonight if you’re sick, Y/N. it’s not worth it.”

“my family and friends from home are coming tonight. i absolutely cannot miss this.”

mike paused, like he was thinking about what to do. “okay, fine, i’ll go back to the store and bring you home some medicine.”

“thanks mike, see you soon.”

you hung up the call and laid your phone on the nightstand by your bed. after another fifteen minutes of zoning out, you came to the conclusion that there was no use in laying around being miserable all day. you figured that if you got up and made yourself useful you’d feel better.

you gently sat up, and slowly moved to put your feet on the floor. the cold hardwood beneath your feet made you even colder than you already were. you walked to the kitchen, feeling more fatigued than you ever had before. even though you weren’t hungry, you got out the ingredients to make an omelet. you were so focused on your cooking skills that the rest of the world faded into silence, but it also could have been the fact that you couldn’t hear because your sinuses were clogged.

as you were flipping the omelet in the pan, you heard a loud “boo!” in your ear and someone gently shoving you. you gasped, accidentally touching the side of the burning pan with your fingers. you yelped in pain and threw the pan back down on the stove, turning around to see mike with a grin on his face. however, the grin quickly faded when he saw not only your burnt fingers but also how sickly and pale you looked.

“mike, what the hell?” you croaked, holding your fingers as you walked to the freezer to grab some ice. it felt like the tips of your fingers had burned off.

mike put down his plastic grocery bag on the counter. “dammit, Y/N, i’m sorry. i didn’t realize you were this bad,” he said sadly.

you rolled your eyes, the coldness of the ice counteracting the burns on your fingers. “did you think i was kidding about being sick?”

“no, i just didn’t know you felt that terrible,” he paused. “are you sure you can perform tonight?”

you nodded. “i can’t miss it.”

mike gave you a look like he didn’t believe you, and that he didn’t like your stubborn decision. you both went silent before mike stepped closer to you, glancing at your burnt fingers. “now i feel bad for scaring you.”

you couldn’t help but crack a smile at mike. even though he scared you and caused you to burn three fingers, he always knew how to make you smile. “you should feel bad. my fingertips are in pain.”

you finished making your omelet and took some of the medicine mike had brought home. you planned to take some more medicine shortly before the show.

after the cold medicine kicked in and your fever was suppressed, you actually felt relatively okay. in order to convince yourself that you were better, you agreed to go to the park with mike for some fresh air.

walking around central park with mike was good for your soul. you loved the fresh air and the nature of it all, but having mike by your side made it so much better. as often as he got on your nerves, he was your best friend. he made you giddy and excited, and every time he complimented you after a show it would make you nervous and give you butterflies. he knew it did too, thats why he kept doing it; he liked making you flustered.

you layered on jackets in the brisk autumn air, as you still had a leftover chill in your body from your sickness.

“how are you feeling? better?” mike asked as you both walked.

“yeah, a lot better, but i know when that medicine wears off i’m going to feel like crap again. and wrapping my fingertips has made them feel a little bit better,” you said, glancing at your fingers that were wrapped in a thin layer of gauze and medical tape.

“is there anything i can do? you know, to help?”

you smiled to yourself. “no, mike, thank you though,” you said quietly and sweetly. “having you here is enough.”

mike blushed lightly, putting an arm lazily around your shoulders. “stop being so sappy.”

you continued like that for a while longer, with you under his arm enjoying the park around you. not long later, mike told you he was going to run to the bathroom, and you told him you’d wait by a tree for him.

as you waited, you people watched everyone around you. you thought about how everyone there had their own stories. their own lives. just as you were sick and preparing to perform in front of your closest friends and family for the first time, these other people had their own life problems to attend to, and no one would be the wiser. it was oddly peaceful knowing that there are so many stories being written around you.

suddenly, you were pulled out of your daydream by a soccer ball being kicked into the side of your head. you may have been people watching, but the kids playing with the ball seemed to come out of nowhere for you.

you held the side of your head and groaned as the sound of small footsteps approached you. “sorry, miss,” a little boy’s voice said as he grabbed the ball and ran back to his friends.

not long later, mike came back and saw you sitting against the tree, rubbing the side of your head.

“are you okay?” mike asked, reaching down to help you stand.

“some little brats kicked a soccer ball at my head,” you groaned. standing up made you feel a bit dizzy.

mike gently brushed the part of your head that was hit, and you winced. “god, Y/N, today is just not your day. that’s definitely going to bruise, let’s get you home.”

you walked back to your apartment together, and rested until it was time to head to the theater. you packed a backpack with everything you might need and you and mike headed off to the subway station.

as you boarded the subway, you tripped over a small ledge on the edge of the subway and began to fall, but luckily, mike was in front of you and you caught yourself on his back. you hoped no one noticed, but as you looked around, the people already sitting down were staring, and an old man snickered at your misfortune.

mike maneuvered himself so he was behind you, guiding you to an open spot. “what was that about?”

you were on the verge of tears. “i’m so unlucky today.”

mike hesitated before grabbing your hand and squeezing it tight. “hey, just think, tonight is going to be a great show, you have family and friends in the audience,” mike said close to your ear. “soon enough, everything that’s happened today won’t matter.”

you nodded. “i just hope the show goes well.”

you both arrived at the theater, checking yourselves in and preparing to head to your separate dressing rooms. before you parted ways, mike pulled you aside and brushed a strand of hair out of your face with his fingers. he could tell you were nervous.

“you’ll be just fine, Y/N. i’ll see you soon.”

in your dressing room, you unraveled the bandages over your fingers, and the skin was raw and tender. you weren’t exactly sure how to cover it for the show, but you dabbed some skin colored makeup onto it in hopes that it would be unnoticeable.

you looked at yourself in the mirror; you really did seem out of it. your head hurt, you fingers hurt, and your cold medicine was beginning to wear off. you reached into your backpack to find the medicine and you took it, hoping for some type of relief.

not long before the show started, you warmed up your voice as you got your costume on. there was a knock at the door and you yelled “come in!” to whoever it was. the door swung open and you found mike in his newsie/delancey costume and makeup. you always thought he looked so good in his costumes.

“how are you feeling?” mike asked, walking up to you. you were in your nun costume, so you didn’t seem as flattering as you would have liked.

“well, my fingers are sore, my head hurts, and my ego is bruised from almost falling earlier. but at least my medicine is working,” you said sarcastically. you tried to play it off as something funny, but inside you were a nervous, painful wreck. you were trying to fake it ‘til you made it, but mike saw right through you.

his blue eyes softened, and he rubbed your shoulders comfortingly. “i know you’re nervous, and i know you are having a rough day. but breathe, and stay focused. you’re the most talented person i know. you can get through this.”

you closed your eyes and breathed out. he instantly made you feel better. the cold medicine helped to an extent, but mike was your ultimate cure for all ailments.

“will i see you after the show?” you asked. a lot of times, mike was able to leave the theater earlier than you after the show, and more often than not, you liked to chat with everyone and stick around for longer. you didn’t mind that mike never seemed to hang around much after the show.

“you’ve got friends and family to see, so i’ll probably head home right after. is that okay?” he asked gently, like he didn’t want to be the next thing to set you off.

you nodded understandingly. “of course, mike. i’ll see you during the show.”

mike smiled and patted your shoulder before heading out.

the show began, and you waited in the wings for your first scene. your first scene was during carrying the banner, where the three nuns feed the newsie boys.

as you went out on stage, your mind seemed to be in a blur. you felt like you couldn’t concentrate. the goal was for muscle memory to kick in, and you didn’t have to worry about anything. sadly, it didn’t, and during your part of carrying the banner, your voice cracked due to your sickness, and it felt sharp and out of place against the angelic voices of the other nuns.

your eyes widened, and you prayed nobody heard it despite it being insanely obvious. you fought the urge to cry onstage.

at the end of that segment, you headed off the stage and had no time to think about your mistake before hurriedly getting into your bowery beauty costume. you wanted to go home. you wanted to be with mike. at this point, you didn’t even care to see your friends and family from out of town. there was only one person that mattered.

you got into costume and looked at yourself in the mirror. you tried to pull yourself together, since you had friends and family in the audience that undoubtedly saw your screw up. you had to bring it back.

as your time approached for the scene in medda’s theater, you waited in the wings, trying to calm yourself down. you tried your hardest to ignore the pain on your head and your fingers.

finally, it was time to go onstage, and everything was going just fine. you didn’t want to get too confident, however, because you had a feeling if you did it would all come crashing down again.

you got through your bowery beauty scene in one piece, with no mishaps. you were feeling better mentally and physically.

you waited in your dressing room for curtain call, and as you walked out on stage to take your bow, you raised your arm and smiled into the crowd. as you brought your arm down to bow, your arm hit the back of your wig, and it slid down over your head. you quickly and nervously attempted to cover your mistake, and you slid the wig back up before walking to the back of the stage.

that seemed to be the last straw for you. a stray tear escaped your eye and you hoped no one saw. this was the worst day possible. you had friends and family in the audience and you wanted everything to be perfect, but it was far from it. you felt like crap, your head and fingers ached, and you were embarrassed. as you watched mike take his bow on stage, you wanted nothing more than to be comforted by him. you needed him by your side.

however, nothing was ever that easy, and you still had to get out of makeup and costume and talk with the people that came to see you all while holding back the tears that were inevitably going to come out.

you took off your costume as fast as possible, avoiding conversations with your other cast mates at all costs. there was only one that you needed.

you met your friends and family by the stage door, and they congratulated you on your performance despite it being subpar. you tried to keep the conversations to the minimum. when you finally felt like you were on the verge of a full fledged breakdown, you excused yourself, telling them you were tired and needed to go home. you thanked them for coming before turning to the direction of the station and never looking back.

on your ride home, you kept your mind free of thoughts in order to keep the intrusive ones away. you knew if you kept thinking about what went wrong, you’d go crazy.

finally, at last, you arrived at your apartment and unlocked the door. mike was sitting on the couch, practically ready to doze off.

“mike, you could have gone to bed,” you said quietly.

he stared at you like that was a dumb thing to even consider. “i was waiting for you to get home.”

at that moment, you felt your heart melt. throughout everything that had happened, mike was your one constant. he was the calm within the storm of events that unfolded throughout the day.

you broke down, and began to cry. mike sat up on the couch and held out his arms. “oh, sweetheart, come here.”

you obliged, and sat down on the couch next to him. almost instinctively, you leaned into his body, resting your head on his chest. he wrapped both of his arms around you comfortingly, and he placed his hand on the side of your head. as you laid in his arms, you just cried.

“i wanted everything to be perfect today. first i got sick, then i burnt myself, then i hit my head, and then i tripped on the subway,” you swallowed, trying to talk clearly despite the tears. “a-and the one thing i could control, the one thing i could save, i fumbled. i messed up twice on stage.”

mike rubbed your head gently. “i know, Y/N, i’m sorry. i know how important this was. if it makes you feel any better, i barely noticed your mistakes.”

“i-i’m not sure how,” you said, sniffling. “they were pretty bad. i’m just…embarrassed.”

mike sat up, causing you to come with him. part of you was sad that you had to leave the comfy position you were in. mike looked into your eyes briefly before lightly placing his hands on either side of your face.

“Y/N, we’re performers. we make mistakes. trust me, there’s so many people even in our company that have made worse mistakes. take me, for example,” mike started, breaking eye contact briefly. “remember when i got my leg stuck in a chair during king of new york?”

you giggled. “y-yeah, i do. you turned so red.”

mike smiled. “there’s that signature Y/N smile again.”

you blushed, and mike used his thumbs to brush away stray tears. he removed his hands from your face and held your hands. “we all have off days. you’re the strongest person i know, and you got through today like a champ. you may not be happy with yourself, but i’m always proud of you, mistakes and all. do you understand?”

when you looked down, you noticed he was rubbing the tops of your hands with his thumbs. “yeah, mike. thank you, genuinely. if it weren’t for your help today, i probably would have exploded.”

mike grinned, and you went back to your position on the couch in his arms. to you, it felt like nothing mattered and nothing would matter ever again. all you could see in that moment was you and him.

mike laughed. “if it weren’t for me, your fingers wouldn’t be sore right now.”

#mike faist #mike faist imagine #mike faist x reader #mike faist fanfiction #mike faist riff #newsies imagine #newsies

47 notes · View notes

auspicious-manner · 10 months

Note

welcome back! just some simple domestic fluff with mike faist and famous reader! get to this whenever you feel like it! lots of love<3

thank you for the kindness! <3

i’ve missed writing for mike! also have you guys seen the new challengers trailer AHHHHH IM SO EXCITED IT LOOKS SO GOOD!!! i have a few challengers themed mike stories in my inbox/drafts, so expect those somewhat soon ;)

also it’s been a long time since i’ve written a fluff fic, so sorry if this sucks lol

fem reader x mike faist

warnings: anxiety and mentions of depression

Worthy

•

you loved nearly everything about your life. being an actress, singer, and now a writer has given you more confidence than anything else.

you started as an actress. ever since you were little, you would put on shows for your entire family with costumes and scripts. they weren’t simple either; you would perform full dramatic monologues, emotional scenes, and romantic moments with your stuffed animals. your mom didn’t have to hesitate putting you into acting classes.

into your teen years, you booked commercials and small roles in children’s shows. then, right when you turned eighteen, you got your big break when you gained a major role in a movie alongside some of hollywood’s biggest stars, directed by none other than steven spielberg.

from there, business offers and acting gigs flew in. everything seemed to be happening all at once. it was all so overwhelming. but fame is what you wanted, right?

that’s what you thought, at least. as a child, you glamorized the picturesque hollywood starlight life. you wanted everything from the glitz to the glam. you didn’t realize that being famous came with this sense of dread that one wrong move could end your entire career. you felt unworthy of being in the spotlight all the time. so, in order to keep those intrusive thoughts from rearing their ugly heads, you kept so busy that not even a single thought could even cross your mind.

you knew you could sing, and you began writing songs and releasing music. you even went on a north american tour. then, when the tour slowed down, you wrote a novel. you kept so busy that you lost track of who you really were. what you felt you were meant to do.

sure, you had success and had more connections and fans than anyone could dream of. but what did it matter when you felt so alone?

you began closing yourself off. the limelight was making you anxious, and you couldn’t bring yourself to be seen in public in the state you were in. it all felt so hopeless. you considered living of the grid and going incognito in order to escape the expectations placed on you. for months, you stayed as hidden as possible, and it only made things worse.

being a long time friend of steven spielberg at this point, he sent you a personal invite to the premiere his new film west side story. you almost threw the invite in the trash. the thought of going out on a red carpet again and seeing all of these faces with bright, flashing cameras was out of the equation for you. yet, you missed the feeling of being dolled up. you missed feeling pretty.

when the big night came, seeing yourself in the dress that you had picked out didn’t feel real. you felt like you and not you all at the same time. your mind was conflicted; you knew the glam of hollywood was what made you happy, but since it had been so long since you have felt that way, you felt oddly out of body.

it was a long, off white dress with a leg slit and a completely open back. the dress had sleeves that stopped just below your shoulders, and it hugged your body tightly but not uncomfortably. your wavy hair fell onto your shoulders neatly in a half up half down, your curtain bangs framing your face. for the makeup, you tried to keep it relatively natural, and you didn’t want to draw too many eyes. you paired the look with some heels and a purse.

looking in the mirror, you tried your hardest to feel positive. you looked beautiful, you felt beautiful, yet something still felt wrong. maybe it was because you had no one by your side if you got anxious. as far as you knew, you would know one person there.

the car sent to pick you up took you on a ride through new york as your heart rate quickened. when you arrived at the scene, the bright lights and red carpet gave you chills.

after walking into the crowd, it didn’t take long to find steven. he pulled you aside into a fatherly hug. it felt good to be near someone as familiar as him.

“Y/N, long time no see!” he said excitedly as you hugged him.

“it’s been a while, hasn’t it?” you replied, pulling away.

“what have you been up to? knowing you, i’m sure it’s something great!”

you smiled, trying to create a facade. “oh, you know, a little bit of this and a little bit of that,” you said while nervously laughing. you couldn’t tell steven spielberg that you’ve been in a slump and that the most productive part of your day is waking up and making something to eat.

“i’m excited to see whatever you have up your sleeve,” he said, going to your side and taking your arm. “now, there’s someone i’d like you to meet.”

he guided you through the crowds, and you kept close to him. everything was becoming overwhelming.

you approached a man with his back turned to you. “Y/N, meet mike faist. you two could have a lot to talk about.”

the man turned around, and the first thing you noticed about him was that his eyes seemed to be glowing. they were brighter and bluer than anything you’d ever seen. they were absolutely stunning. upon further inspection, you realized that you recognized him from the posters for the movie, and knew he was playing riff.

he smiled at you, almost as enthralled with you as you were with him. he held out a hand, and you took it gently to shake it. you hoped he didn’t feel the sweat building on your palms. “Y/N L/N, it’s lovely to meet you.”

you grew flustered. “how’d you know my last name?”

mike looked taken aback. “doesn’t everyone?” your smile fell slightly, and mike noticed. “i’m a big fan of your work. your songs, your movies, and i recently started reading your book too. you’re amazing at everything you do.”

steven patted your shoulder before walking away, leaving you with mike. mike had a presence about him that made you feel welcomed and seen. it’s been a while since you felt that way.

“so, mike, what else have you been in?” you asked, wanting to know more about his work. he knew so much about yours, and you felt a little embarrassed that you didn’t know more about him.

he smiled and looked down. “i was a newsie in newsies on broadway, and i covered jack kelly. i played connor murphy in dear evan hansen on broadway, i was in a tv show called panic, and a lot of other stage and film work.”

you nodded, squinting your eyes slightly. “you know, i’ve seen both of those shows on broadway, and i didn’t realize until just now that that was you.”

he laughed. “am i not memorable?”

you giggled in return. “i don’t think it’s that. i just think i’m missing a little part of my brain.”

you and mike continued to talk about your respective careers. you noticed that he was so easy to talk to, and that he listened to and hung onto every word that you would say. it gave you butterflies, and you wondered what was wrong with you.

sadly, you remembered you’re at mike’s movie premiere and he had to do interviews and talk to other people besides you. you could tell he wanted to stay with you, but knew he had other obligations. before he left, he said, “we’ll see each other again before the night is through.”

you’ve had plenty of men try and charm you, with the efforts always falling flat. you’re no stranger to keeping your feelings under control and learning to not date in hollywood. it was too easy to be played by the wrong guys. but, your heart was telling you something different about mike. he made you more nervous and giddy than anyone else ever had and you barely knew him. you started to forget about the fact that you’ve been a hermit battling with your mental health for the last few months.

you caught up with a few old friends from the industry that you had recognized in the crows before it was time to go to a private screening of the film.

you watched as everyone funneled into seats in the theater next to their plus ones and friends. you stood back, scoping the area for empty seats. you felt frozen as all the seats seemed to fill.

“follow me,” a voice said close to your ear before taking your hand and walking with you down the rows of seats. you noticed it was mike and you smiled to yourself.

he took you close to the screen, but not too close, and sat down with you. you sighed. “thanks for saving me back there, i was getting stressed.”

mike tilted his head. “you’re from around here. you’re used to red carpets and screenings, aren’t you? i didn’t think this would stress out someone as experienced as you.”

he was right, it shouldn’t have stressed you out. you were so used to hiding away for so long that this all felt new to you again like it did when you were eighteen.

mike noticed your expression change, and he turned to you. “i’m sorry, i shouldn’t have said anything. but you’re worrying me a bit, is everything okay?”

you tried to brush it off. “i’m fine now, really. crowds just get me anxious-”

“i’m not just talking about tonight,” mike said, leaning in towards you. “the world has caught onto your unprecedented disappearance from the public eye. that can never mean anything good. are you sure you’re okay?”

you bit your lip, holding back tears. it was one thing to keep everything to yourself and pack it away and never confront what you’re actually going through, but to hear someone else say it put it into perspective for you. you had completely lost track of your vision and goal in life. you had lost track of you.

mike put his hand on your leg comfortingly, taking the silence and the glossy tears hidden in your eyes as a sign that you weren’t okay. the silent support he sent was exactly what you needed in that moment. a stranger was the person you least expected to comfort you.

before you could both think to say anything else, steven appeared at the front of the crowd and gave a speech, followed by the showing of the movie. every time mike appeared on the screen, you got chills. he was amazing. his performance made you hate riff yet feel some kind of empathy for him. that was due to mike’s spellbinding performance.

occasionally, you would feel mike’s eyes glance at you when important scenes came up. it’s almost as if he wanted to see your reaction. he wanted your approval.

then, after two and a half short hours, the movie ended, and the theater erupted in applause. everyone stood on their feet and you did the same, small tears running down your cheeks. you looked at mike, and his smile dropped when he saw you.

“why are you crying?” he asked.

you sniffled. “it was so amazing. you were so amazing.”

mike turned red, and he reached down to envelope you in probably the best hug you’ve ever had. he had the widest grin, and it wasn’t just from the movie.

you and mike traded numbers, and from that night on, you became inseparable.

mike awoke something in you that hadn’t been seen in a long time. he made you feel inspired at motivated and comfortable. you hid yourself away from the world in fear that the public would turn on you, twist your words into something far from the truth. mike dispelled those feelings for you; you felt like yourself again around him.

after the night at the premiere, mike made the first move in wanting to talk to you. you face timed each other for hours each night, staying awake into the early hours of the morning just talking about anything and everything.

you went out for a coffee date a week after the premiere, and it seemed clear to both of you that there was more to be discovered than just a friendship.

as you were walking through central park with mike, keeping your head slightly down as to not attract any unwanted eyes, you boldly brushed your hand against his, letting it linger for a moment. his hand moved away, but creeped back into place when he realized what you were doing. he slowly grazed his finger tips against yours as he walked, and he reached his fingers out and your hand fit neatly into his. you continued to hold hands for the rest of your walk.

when you arrived back at your apartment, you both sat down on the couch, your bodies turned inwards to face each other.

“i feel like i’ve know you my whole life, but its only been a week,” you said quietly, looking into his eyes.

mike smiled lightly. “i’ve never clicked this fast with anyone.”

you both paused, and mike hesitated before he spoke again. “can i ask you a question?”

you nodded, and he went on.

“there’s always been so much speculation about your love life in the media, and dating rumors and whatnot. i don’t like believing anything the media says, but i want to hear it straight from you.”

you smiled to yourself. the media liked to pull things that weren’t actually there and make up stories for fun. you’ve never actually had a real date since you’ve been in the business, let alone a relationship.

“i haven’t found anyone worthy yet.”

mike nodded, scooting closer to you. you could tell he was aiming to put his arm around you, but hesitated to see your reaction. you leaned in, telling him without words that it was okay, and he rested his arm around your shoulder as you laid close to each other. you immediately felt comfortable under his arm.

“i admire you, Y/N. i always have. i like that you know what you want, and that you know yourself. that’s a really great quality to have.”

you blushed, but your happiness faltered. you leaned your head back on his arm. “yeah, i guess. too bad i haven’t felt that way recently.”

mike looked at you, frowning. “why? if you don’t mind me asking.”

you weren’t typically the one to open up quickly to strangers. but mike felt different. he wasn’t going to judge, or make you feel bad about yourself. he was comforting.

“i’ve hid myself away from the world because i’m scared. i’m so insanely scared of messing up and having the whole world turn on me. so, i did the only thing i could think to do. i locked myself away in hopes that it would help,” you giggled nervously. “it didn’t do shit.”

you were smiling at your own misfortune, but mike stayed somber. “i’m sorry, Y/N, that’s awful.”

you shrugged. “yeah, but i did it to myself.”

mike sat up, tucking a piece of hair behind your ear. you froze under his touch. “the world needs your brilliance. don’t be afraid, there’s so many people ready to guide you and protect you from anyone trying to take you down. i’m here for you, i promise.”

you bit your lip, unable to say words. mike was so incredibly kind. all you could do was whisper a thank you.

mike put his arm back around you, and you leaned into the couch together. “if there’s anything i can do to help, let me know,” he said quietly.

you leaned your head on his shoulder, looking up at him. “you already have.”

mike smiled, turning red. “you’re cute.”

you felt complete. you hadn’t known mike for that long, but he filled a part of your soul that had been gone for a while. he made you feel liked again when you couldn’t like yourself.

you sat up and looked at him. your faces were only a few inches apart. at the same time, you leaned in, and your lips grazed each other before interlocking. it felt euphoric.

you pulled away, remaining close, and you smiled at each other. “you’re the most talented person i’ve ever met,” you whispered to him.

mike lightly placed his hand under your chin. “that means a lot coming from you. i love everything you do.”

you leaned in again, feeling your old self coming back again. you felt renewed. mike made you feel like the star you are again.

you rested your forehead on his. “thank you.”

mike tilted his head slightly. “for what?”

“for making me feel worthy again.”

mike smiled lightly, then gave you a short but sweet kiss. “never forget that you’re beautiful and wanted.”

a small tear escaped your eye. mike was everything you needed. you almost felt in denial that someone like him could be making you feel this way because you were so used to men not valuing you. you were moving fast with mike, but it felt right. you were never one to believe in love at first sight, but this was pretty damn close.

you leaned into his side again, and his hand rested on the back of your head. you could get used to this.

#mike faist #mike faist x reader #mike faist fanfiction #mike faist imagine #riff #mike faist riff

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auspicious-manner · 11 months

Note

uh hii a request for graham dunne where you’re apart of the band and billy like dismisses your input and graham didn’t defend you to you do all the way back to your hometown and graham goes to get you and you have an emotional reunion where he apologizes please

this one ended up being long again lol i’m sorry. also my writing isn’t what it used to be, i’m a little rusty. i really liked this one though!

fem reader x graham dunne

warnings: billy being a bit verbally abusive, brief mention of smoking

The Guitarist

•

working with billy dunne was both immensely rewarding and ruthlessly difficult. he was controlling and overly picky, and had to always have the last say. but, then again, that’s why you all were as good as you were. billy demanded the best and nothing less.

even though billy was the band’s main stressor, it helped to have someone by your side that was better at navigating around billy’s traps. for you, that person was normally graham. your rock.

as a female bassist, you drew the eyes of many people in both positive and negative ways. to many, you were progressive and unique. to some, a woman bassist in a rock band seemed wrong. luckily, the six seemed to lean more towards the majority most of the time.

living in florida for your early years of life turned you into the sun kissed, constantly tan beach bum you now identify as. as lovely as waking up to the ocean and smelling the salty air every morning was, there wasn’t a future for you there. the music scene was subpar, and you knew you needed a change of scenery.

with little money in your pocket, you moved to bright and beautiful california in 1974 with nothing more than a dream. living out of hotels and playing guitar on the streets for extra cash became your new normal.

walking down the strip, you noticed a band seeming to fill the headlines of every big name venue lining the road. both the troubadour and whiskey a go go had a headline showcasing a band called the six. seeming as the name was everywhere, you went into the troubadour one night to see what the hype was about.

upon entering, up on the stage was four boys and one girl. you laughed to yourself, thinking the name of their band wasn’t necessarily fitting but it made them stand out. it was unique. there was a blonde girl on the keys, guiding the rhythm of the songs with her smooth notes. there was a curly haired drummer in the back adding the heartbeat to the music, and a dirty blonde bassist keeping pace. the front man had a voice like velvet and was wild on stage, likely because of the immense drugs in his system. you could just tell he wasn’t well. and then, on the other side of him, was a bright eyed, curly haired guitarist that played tough solos like it wasn’t nothing. he seemed at ease on stage, and you were instantly a fan.

that performance caused you to go out and find the band’s debut album titled seven eight nine. you listened to that album on repeat, and despite your best efforts, your ears kept wandering deeper and deeper into the sound of the guitarist’s killer licks. based off of what you remembered from the show, you pieced together who on the cover played what instrument. you stared at the faces on the album, your eyes always darting back to the blue eyed guitarist. something about him was electric.

as far as you could tell, the names of the individual band members weren’t clearly printed on the album anywhere, and you didn’t want to dig to find their history. to you, the mystery made it fun. you had no predispositions about anyone and no outside factors influencing the way you perceived the music. you wanted a pure relationship with music, and you did just that with the six’s music.

months passed, and you learned how to play most of the songs off seven eight nine on both guitar and bass. you knew that record like the back of your hand at this point. you could pick up the notes on the record and play it back, and you did that for every song.

one day, your heart skipped a beat when you saw a flyer on the strip for auditions to be apart of the greatest band in the world; the six.

the flyer called for a new leading man, and although you clearly weren’t masculine, you went anyway, thinking the worst they could do is say no and the best is that your name gets on their radar. at that point, you didn’t even consider being added to the band. you were there for shits and giggles.

on the day of the audition, you arrived at a quaint home in the beautiful laurel canyon. you strolled up to the house wearing your best boots and bell bottoms with a crocheted halter top and flower shaped sunglasses. your layered, voluminous hair fell over your shoulders.

you saw the group that you had been idolizing for months now in person, sitting in the garage of the house. they hadn’t spotted you yet, but you saw the beautiful blonde that you knew to be the keyboardist, the newly mustached drummer that you recognized from the album cover, and the long haired bassist. the guitarist that truly drew you in was out of frame for you, since he was further in the garage.

you approached the garage, and the drummer’s eyes fell on you first. his look of confusion made the rest of the band turn their eyes to look at you, and you kept your eyes down behind your tinted sunglasses, nervously questioning why you decided to audition for your current favorite band.

then, as you rounded the corner, the boy that you had been pining over aesthetically was staring at you with the same look of confusion, but with more wonderment in his eyes. he seemed unsure, yet impressed, and you couldn’t help but crack a smile seeing your favorite guitarist in the flesh.

before the band could stop you, you set down your guitar and bass cases and went up to the microphone.

“i’m Y/N L/N. i’m a huge fan of all of your work, by the way,” you said into the microphone, lifting your sunglasses so they rested on top of your hair. seeing the boy’s perfect oceanic eyes without the shading of the sunglasses made your heart flutter even more.

you practically watched the band’s ego inflate after that comment, but the long haired bassist of the band quickly went back to his familiar look of confusion. “i’m sorry, but i-”

before he could turn you away, you interrupted him. “i know you called for just guys for this audition, but i couldn’t help myself. i can play guitar, i can play bass, and i can sing a bit too. i have no expectations of being added to the band, i just want to get my name out there,” you swallowed and looked down at the pavement before looking up again. “can i play for you?”

the band looked between each other, talking with their eyes.

“you said your name was Y/N?” the girl asked. she stood up, approaching you slowly. you nodded, hesitant. her thick english accent caught you slightly off guard.

she held out her hand. “i’m karen sirko, i play the keys.”

you smiled and took it, shaking it. you tried not to get too carried away and come off as crazy. “i know, i’m a huge fan of your work.”

karen smiled gently before taking a seat again. the rest of the band looked at her, almost as if they were searching her for answers.

she caught sight of the boys and looked back at you. “she’s already up there, i say we give her a shot. why the hell not?”

you smiled when the rest of the band didn’t protest. “the flyer said to prepare look me in the eye for the audition, but i wasn’t sure if i should learn the bass track or the guitar track, but i do know both,” you said nonchalantly into the mic. the band smiled in amazement, and your eyes quickly darted to look at the boy you’ve been idolizing, whose eyes were never leaving yours. you quickly flicked yours away to prevent the blush from growing too rapidly on your cheeks.

you counted yourself in and started from the second verse.

“i got a wicked on

let me stretch your ears

put down your broomstick, baby

gonna look like a witch”

you focused on playing the bass through the verse, and keeping your voice steady despite the excitement in your soul. keep it contained, the guitarist is watching.

“and I know you don't mean it

i know you don't mean it

because you can't”

going into the music break, you switched from your bass to your guitar as quickly and as seamlessly as possible. the awkward silence when you switched instruments could make anyone cringe. you immediately wondered why you decided that was a good idea.

you started the guitar solo now, mimicking the guitarist’s riffs and licks cleanly. you looked up briefly, and the band seemed to be oddly shocked, especially the bright eyed boy in the corner, who paired his shocked expression with one of astonishment.

you finished the song with a repeat of the chorus, and after you strummed the last note, you looked at the band, hopeful. they seemed impressed with you.

“damn, eddie, she plays your own bass lines better than you!” the drummer said while laughing, nudging the long haired boy’s arm. you now found out a second name; eddie the bassist.

eddie playfully nudged the boy back, before stopping and thinking. he had gears turning in his head. “actually, you’re kind of right.”

the band tensed up, looking at eddie. they clearly didn’t know what he was going on about. you stood awkwardly watching the scene unfold.

“think about it, guys. i was never great at bass to begin with,” eddie said before standing up and walking next to you. “i started on guitar. Y/N-your name is Y/N right?” he said, stopping. you nodded, and he continued.

“Y/N seems a lot more experienced at bass than i am. we could add her to the band and i could go back to rhythm guitar. it’s perfect. what do you say?” he asked excitedly.

“adding her won’t solve our problem, though; we need a frontman still,” said karen.

eddie scoffed and smiled. “guys, i can do it.”

the band looked at each other, almost doubtfully.

you stepped away and gave eddie the mic, and you boldly and anxiously sat on the ground next to your favorite band member. he turned to look at you, a red tint on his cheeks.

“you said you’re a fan of ours, Y/N?” he whispered while eddie played.

a tingle went up your spine when he said your name. you didn’t even know this boy’s name, and he was already giving you butterflies.

“yeah, why?” you asked.

“i think i’m now a fan of you.”

you bit your lip to keep back a giddy smile. “i’m graham dunne, by the way,” he said, holding out his hand. you took it in his and let it linger. “i-uh-” he stammered, getting butterflies from your touch. “i play lead guitar, and my brother billy used to be the frontman before he left.”

“you’re really talented,” you told him, your faces not far from each other. his colorful eyes seemed to keep you paralyzed.

graham seemed to get flustered. “so are you.”

eddie finished, and the rest of the band looked at each other and shrugged. you and graham were sitting in the corner of the garage, however, stifling laughs and glancing at each other because both of you didn’t even listen to eddie’s audition.

the drummer sighed. “it’s the best we can do. is Y/N in then?”

graham turned to look at you before standing up and reaching his hands down to help you stand up. “i say yes. she’s an asset, she’s versatile, and she’s better at bass than eddie.”

you blushed. he saw that you were blushing and he put an arm around your shoulders. at that point, you nearly melted.

eddie, now the new front man for the six, smiled proudly. “let’s do it.”

after getting the offer to move in with the band, you wondered how you got so lucky. you were apart of your favorite band and you were flirting with your favorite guitarist and most beautiful boy you had ever seen on a daily basis. what could be better?

sadly, the honeymoon phase of your arrival didn’t last long. the first time you met billy on the night you moved in, he wasn’t totally thrilled with you presence.

billy and his wife camila saw you sitting on the couch in the house with graham and karen. eddie and warren were sitting on the floor, and graham had his arm resting nonchalantly around your shoulders. you felt the happiest you had ever been until you heard the front door swing open and you laid eyes on the man you recognized from the album cover.

he squinted at you, clearly confused. “is this your new girlfriend, graham?”

graham turned his head and grew red. “no, um… not quite…” he said, trailing off nervously. he seemed to do that a lot around you, like he had to carefully choose his words in order for you to like him. it made you smile.

“she’s our new band member. billy, camila, meet Y/N. she’s our new bassist and background vocalist,” graham finished, removing his arm from around your shoulders.

billy looked oddly smug. however, you noted that camila seemed to be the exact opposite. “you added a new member to the group?” billy asked, an aggressive tone building.

eddie frowned. “well, yeah. billy, you’re out of the band now. why should it matter to you?”

billy looked offended, and like he was ready to fight your arrival in the band. but you watched his expression turn when he realized eddie was right; he was out of the band.

graham saw how uncomfortable billy looked. “she’s really talented. she can sing, and she’s trained on bass. she’s better than eddie, actually. that’s why we added her and moved eddie to lead.”

billy looked pained. but, the band was right. he had no control over what they did anymore.

for a while, that was the energy in the house. billy never did warm up to you, he merely tolerated you because you were close to his brother. you and camila, however, hit it off right away, and oftentimes camila would get frustrated with billy for not being more open to your spot in the band.

graham quickly became your second half. being in a band of mostly boys would be intimidating for any girl, but graham took extra care to make you feel right at home. he seemed to be spending more time with you in his room than anyone else. sometimes you created music together, and sometimes you just talked. a lot of times, your late night talks turned into accidental overnight sleepovers.

obviously graham was one of your best friends. you didn’t want to process that it could be anything more than that, though. for months, there was evident flirting going on, but you had no clue if his intentions were to be playful or thoughtful. you didn’t see any good reason to think about your every interaction more than you already were. you knew if you thought too much, you’d eventually spiral.

then, on the night of the christmas party, billy came back to the band with a new song. much to eddie’s dismay, he was no longer the frontman for the six.

that night, graham pulled you aside into a hallway. “what’s up graham?” you asked, your heart rate picking up. due to the tight nature of the hallway, he seemed to be towering over you, your bodies only a few inches apart. you didn’t need to be that close, the hallway wasn’t that narrow; you both just wanted to be that close.

you watched him swallow nervously. “since it’s, uh, christmas, i wanted to get you something.”

you blushed, and a wide smile spread across your face. your grin made graham beam in return. “graham, you didn’t have to. money is tight right now.”

he nodded. “i know, but you’re worth it. billy doesn’t see your talent and potential, but i do. i wanted to give you something that showed my appreciation for you joining the band,” he said before pulling a small box out from behind his back.

you laughed to yourself. “god, graham, you’re making me blush,” you said, taking the box. “you must sweep girls off their feet with that charm.”

he shook his head. “i don’t get a whole lot of girls. i have my eye on…someone else.”

immediately after he said that, your body seemed to freeze. there’s no way he could be talking about you, right?

you bit your lip and untied the ribbon on the box. inside was a silver bracelet with charms of your favorite flower: sunflowers.

“oh my god,” you breathed, taking the bracelet out of the box and holding it up to the light. “graham, it’s beautiful. how did you know i loved sunflowers?”

“i remember you mentioned it once during one of our talks,” he looked towards the ground smiling, almost as if he was reminiscing on the moment. “i can help you put it on.”

you gave the bracelet to graham and you held out your wrist. gently, like he wasn’t trying to hurt you, he grabbed your wrist softly and brought it closer to him. the warmth of his skin against yours gave you the chills. you could feel his calluses from his guitar on your wrist. he wrapped the bracelet around your wrist, securing it place with the clasp.

graham held your hand in both of his, bringing your wrist closer to his face. “it looks great on you.”

“thank you. i love it so much,” you said lightly. you looked up at him, and he looked down at you, proud of himself for making you smile like that.

“i have something for you too,” you said, feeling a rush of confidence.

“what is it?” graham asked.

you hesitated before leaning up and kissing his cheek before turning down the hallway and walking away. graham stood dumbfounded, and he knew he never wanted to forget that feeling.

with billy back in the group, teddy believed that a collaboration with the band and a singer songwriter named daisy jones could really take everything to the next level.

the day of the studio session, a red headed girl confidently strutted into the studio.

“daisy?” you asked softly, unsure of how she would react to you.

she turned around, giving you a brief smile. “i’m Y/N, the bassist. it’s great to meet you,” you said, holding out your hand.

daisy took it. “it’s good to meet you too,” she replied, her smile growing a bit wider. she seemed eager to meet someone new.

you let go of her hand, spying graham watching the interaction closely. you walked towards the door to meet up with him, and when you opened it, he was already there.

“you already makin’ new friends?” graham asked, looking down at you.

you shrugged. “i’m being nice. she doesn’t know anyone here, i wanted to make her feel comfortable.”

graham laughed and began walking with you with his arm around your shoulders. then, he put you into a soft head lock before ruffling your hair.

“you’re a cute little social butterfly.”

the band began recording the instrumental track for look at us now, and you had some ideas about how the bass lines could go.

“hey billy?” you asked, approaching him. he stoically turned to look at you, waiting for you to say something.

“i-i was wondering if i could try some of my own ideas for bass. i think what i can do will add a lot to the song.”

he stared at you blankly. “and why would i let you do that?”

your eyes widened. “because, whether you like it or not, i’m good at bass. i don’t need you directing me on how to do my job at every second. this record is all of ours, and i should be able to contribute what i want.”

billy grinned smugly. he stood up, making his authority clear by towering over you. “Y/N, you may not know this since you’re still pretty new, but this is my band, and we do as i say. got it?”

just as you were about to comply, you heard graham speak up. “billy, just give her a chance to do her own thing,” he said, walking up behind you. billy squinted, finding it odd that his own brother was standing up to him. “she’s experienced, she’s not a newcomer on the bass. just give her a chance.”

billy glared at graham, then glared at you. “maybe some other time.”

and thats how things went for a bit. look at us now quickly rose in popularity, and during the rehearsals for the diamond head festival, tensions with billy got so much worse.

denying your input on ways to improve songs is one thing, but billy routinely put you off to the side and ignored you. you didn’t seem to exist in his eyes, and you never once got recognized by him. the only time he saw you was when he scolded you for playing something wrong, and then telling you that you didn’t belong in the band. it grew to be extremely detrimental. the rest of the band was easily influenced by billy, and even they started to follow suit and make you feel inferior.

but through it all was graham. he stayed by your side and never let you fight alone. he was your biggest supporter and biggest cheerleader.

one night after a particularly rough day of rehearsals, you were laying next to graham in his bed, your head resting on his shoulder. you both lay looking at the ceiling in a comfortable silence.

“graham?” you asked quietly. you tried to hide the cracks in your voice.

“yeah?”

“why does your brother hate me?” you asked.

graham shuffled a bit, and he turned on his side to look at you. you readjusted and turned in so your faces were only a few inches apart. he saw that your eyes were glossy with the beginning stages of tears, and he used his hand to brush away the strands of hair falling into your face before resting it neatly on your jawline.

“he doesn’t hate you,” graham started, never breaking eye contact. “he just doesn’t understand you.”

“he’s had plenty of opportunities to get to know me and my story. he doesn’t even want to acknowledge my contributions to the band. i just want to know what i did wrong to get on his bad side.”

“no, sweetheart, you did nothing wrong,” graham said, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear. he blinked slowly, like he was trying to think of an answer. “billy doesn’t like to share. he’s a total control freak. and when people try to challenge his authority, he feels threatened.”

you nodded. graham looked away before turning onto his back again and using his arm to pull you closer to him. “i don’t like when he says those things to you either. i know it hurts you, and when you hurt, i hurt.”

luckily, the darkness of the room concealed the red growing on your cheeks. he swallowed before continuing. “i don’t know why he’s so dismissive. you’re talented and confident, and you have great concepts for these songs. he doesn’t realize that you make us better.”

he rested a hand on the back of your head. “thank you for being my best friend,” you said, your eyes briefly flicking down to his lips.

he didn’t notice. “thank you for being my best friend.”

after that night, you hoped things with graham would pick up on their own. although you had slept in the same bed before and always looked for ways to lean your head onto his shoulder, that night felt different. the way he brushed your hair back with his hand. the way he carefully tucked the hair behind your ear. the way he rested his hand on the side of your face. it felt so intentional.

but if anything, things got worse between you two. he seemed more distant than normal, and you wondered if he saw you as only a friend. you knew asking could potentially ruin the friendship you have, so you decided not to press it. it was better to be his friend than nothing at all.

even though look at us now was quickly becoming the song to define the summer, you thought it had even more to give. it was missing something you could have delivered with the bass track you wanted to do. billy, however, ruined this for you.

the diamond head festival arrived, and you saw the crowd from the sides of the stage. you felt like you had finally made it after years of working your ass off.

you ran out on stage with the band, playing songs from the band’s previous album. the crowd loved it, but they absolutely lost it when daisy came onto the stage. warren began the beat to look at us now, and you began to feel bored.

when it got to the chorus, you made a spur of the moment decision. you played the track you were fighting for all along. it wasn’t drastically different from the original, but it was enough to notice if you knew the song inside and out like the band did. you tried to block out the confused glares from the rest of the band, but more importantly, the death stare billy gave you. however, despite taking a risk, the crowd loved it.

after finishing the set, you all went off stage. you were smiley until you heard the voice you had been dreading all day.

“Y/N, what the hell was that?”

you turned around to find billy who seemed to be fuming. the rest of the band lingered a few paces behind him, watching the scene unfold.

“what do you mean?”

he rolled his eyes. “don’t fucking play dumb. you know what you did.”

“billy, i-”

“you ruined my song that i wrote. i told you time and time again that this is my band. i make the rules. i don’t know what’s wrong with you, but you can’t seem to follow simple directions.”

“can i fucking explain myself?” you said, raising your voice. “you have dismissed my contributions and talent from day one and treated me like fucking garbage. in fact, i would even go as far to say that graham is the only one here that truly values and listens to my opinion. i’m a real member of this band, billy, and no one seems to recognize me,” you tried your hardest to contain your composure, as angry tears threatened to build at any moment.

billy switched his attention to graham. graham began to say something before billy cut him off. “what is your obsession with her? you always seem to come to her defense. graham, you always used to be on my side on band matters, what happened? tell me right now if you two have something going on. i don’t like secrets”

graham froze under billy’s harsh gaze, and you looked at him desperately. you needed his support now more than ever. he sorrily looked at you before shaking his head no. the tears began to drop.

billy’s tone of voice went from one of aggression to one of disappointment. “you could have screwed the entire song up, Y/N. the rest of the band doesn’t seem too thrilled with your improvisation either.”

“but it sounded good, didn’t it? the crowd enjoyed it, and it worked. it added even more layers of complexity to the song,” you looked to the band, who was avoiding any and all eye contact. you felt lonelier than you ever had before. you were losing a battle that was doomed from the beginning.

you picked up your bass case. “i did what i had to do to prove i wasn’t just a puppet in the billy show. to prove i’m more than the piece of shit you all make me out to be,” you choked down a voice crack. “i was just trying to help.”

you turned the opposite direction and walked away, trying not to look back at anyone else. you felt so betrayed. not only did none of the band come to your defense when you were being consistently torn down by billy, but the one that stuck by you through it all went mute. and he denied any romantic possibilities between the two of you, which absolutely broke your heart.

you thought you were home free to a taxi when you heard your name. upon turning around, you found daisy running after you.

“honey, what’s wrong?” she asked, noticing your tear stained face. without asking questions, she brought you in for a hug, and you almost melted into her arms as the tears fell. it felt good to have a friend again.

“what happened back there?” she asked, pulling away. she held you at arms length, searching you for answers.

“i tried to stand out. i tried to make everyone else notice me since i’m always the forgotten one in the band. i did my own bass line, and it worked, but i was just punished for it. and the one person who made me feel wanted, who saw me as the musician i am, who made me feel beautiful absolutely broke me.”

daisy hugged you again, and you tried to control your infrequent sobs. “i loved what you added. it was so deep and rich. fuck them if they can’t see your talent. i see it.”

you nodded and pulled away. “thank you. but… i-i don’t think i can stay here. it’s too painful for me. no one seems to have my back in that band.”

daisy nodded understandingly, yet gloomily. “where are you going then?”

you sniffled. “i don’t know, maybe home? not the house in the canyon, but my home in florida.”

another taxi pulled up, and you took your case in one hand and daisy held onto your other hand. together, you walked towards the car. trying to make small talk, daisy asked, “where at in florida?”

“cocoa beach. it’s beautiful there,” you replied, distracted for a brief moment.

you placed your case in the trunk and looked at daisy. you asked the driver of the taxi if he had a spare pen and paper, and he did. you wrote your address and phone number down and handed it to daisy.

“if you are ever in the area or need anything, give me a call,” you told her. you wished you could have gotten to know her more before your untimely leave from the band.

she smiled brightly. “good luck, Y/N. be safe.”

the taxi took you to the hotel to pack your belongings, and then it took you to the airport where you bought a one way ticket to florida.

you arrived at the airport in florida at about four in the morning, exhausted from the travel. you grabbed your luggage before finding a taxi.

on your plane ride from hawaii to florida, you had a lot of time to think about you and graham. it’s okay if he didn’t feel the same, but he felt like more than just a friend. he dropped subtle hints about liking you as more than a friend, yet he denied any romantic affiliations despite the flirting that stopped feeling just platonic a long time ago. it hurt you like crazy.

as much as you missed graham, you couldn’t stay somewhere where no one was willing to stand by you. you knew you did the right thing, but your mind kept wandering to graham. your heart wanted to see him, but your mind told you otherwise.

the cab took you to your childhood home. you paid the driver and he sped away. you bit your lip and apathetically approached the door. when you knocked, it took a moment before you saw your mom in a robe and her slippers for the first time in a long time.

she yawned, then fully took notice of you and then tilted her head slightly when she saw you. “Y/N, what’s wrong? if i would have known you were coming, i could have made arrangements, i-”

you cut her off by dropping your belongings and hugging her. you needed quiet support. she hugged back. “do you want to talk about it?”

you shook your head no and headed to your old bedroom. the walls were a light pink, and you had band posters all around the room. it was painful to see, as it reminded you of your band.

you didn’t bother changing into pajamas. before laying down, you noticed you were still wearing the beautiful sunflower bracelet graham had gotten you. a small tear slipped out of your eye as you slid the bracelet off. you set it on your dresser before laying in your old bed and falling fast asleep.

the next morning, you woke up at noon, and felt no desire to leave your bed. you wanted to be melancholic, and you wanted to be alone. every so often, your mom would stop by to bring you food and water, knowing that you needed time to decompress. she didn’t know what was wrong, but she knew something bad must have happened.

you tried your hardest to focus on anything but the events that unfolded the day before. all of it was too painful to revisit. the one thing that normally brought you peace and serenity, music, now hovered in your mind as a dark memory.

you lit a cigarette from the pack still hiding under your bed from when you were a teen. you didn’t smoke that often, but today it seemed dire.

a lot of the day was spent sleeping and reflecting. you weren’t sure where to go from here, but that was a problem for another day.

at about ten o’clock that night, just as you were about to fall asleep, a knock sounded at your bedroom door.

“Y/N?” your mom’s soft voice spoke from the other side of the door.

“yeah?”

“you have a visitor.”

you sat up. no one knew you were here except for daisy. “i’m coming.”

you opened the door and saw your mom. “who is it?” you whispered to her as you walked down the stairs.

“he says he knew you in california.”

as you pieced together what that could mean, you arrived at the bottom of the staircase and saw graham, looking disheveled and tired.

“oh my god,” you mumbled. your heart sank, and your undeniable feelings for him were brought to the surface again. “how did you know where to find me?”

he sighed. “daisy told me i could find you here.” you thought about the immense effort he had to go through just to see you again. he paused then stepped closer to you. “Y/N, we need to talk.”

you looked at your mom nervously. she could tell this was the source of all that you’ve been through the past few days. you nodded, and your mom went further into the house for privacy.

“let’s go upstairs.”

graham followed you to your room, and you closed the door behind you. you sat on the edge of the bed as graham looked around at the band posters.

“you’re, um, a fan of the doors?” he asked, looking at your poster of jim morrison on the wall.

“yeah, they’re one of my favorite bands.”

“y-yeah, me too,” he stuttered, looking down. he looked up and took note of the way you fiddled with your thumbs nervously and avoided eye contact. he could see that you were trying to come to terms with the way your involvement with the band and him ended. he knew that you were hurt.

graham sat next to you on the edge of the bed. “Y/N, i’m sorry about what happened at the festival. billy was way out of line for saying those things, and he had no right to speak to you like that. i-”

“graham, why are you here?” you asked bluntly. he seemed taken aback. “you know that’s not the reason i’m upset.”

“i’m here to apologize. i feel awful about the way billy treated you.” something about his statement still seemed off.

“billy’s words hurt, yes. but it hurt more watching my band stand by and watch as i get shit on time and time again and to have my best friend who always has my back stay silent.”

graham sunk a bit. he knew you were right.

you scooted away from graham. “i was so embarrassed. i still am. i really thought we had something, but i learned the truth the hard way.”

you paused and turned your body slightly inwards so you were facing him more, your head still lowered. “just tell me what it was that i did wrong. what i did to make everyone turn against me, even you. especially you.”

graham took your chin in his hand and lifted your head so you were looking him in the eyes. “Y/N, you did nothing wrong. believe me. i blame myself for the way the band treated you. i could have and should have done more to prevent this,” he said. he broke eye contact for a moment while he hesitated about saying something. “and i-i wasn’t being totally honest with billy when i denied what we had.”

you had been waiting to hear those words for a long time now. you so badly wanted to hug him and forgive him, but part of it didn’t seem completely genuine.

“you’re just saying that to make me feel better,” you said, pushing his hand away from your chin.

“i’m telling the truth,” he said in a low, almost sensual voice before cupping your face in his hands. his thumbs gently ran over your cheeks as a few tears spilled out onto your face.

“i was scared to admit it, Y/N. i was scared to face my feelings. and i was scared to tell the truth to billy in front of the band, because i hadn’t even come to terms with it. i started pulling away from you during rehearsals because i couldn’t face my own emotions. but now, i’m not afraid.”

he leaned his forehead onto yours. “i like you, a lot. not just in the friendly way, i like you. i always have. ever since you auditioned for the band, i’ve admired your talent and your ability to be outspoken and absolutely everything about you. as soon as i saw you running away, i knew i had made a mistake. i couldn’t imagine surviving in this band without you by my side.”

he paused to catch his breath as your tears fell onto your legs. “i’m so, so sorry. i’m sorry for being an idiot and caring about what billy thinks more than your feelings. i want this. i want you.”

“graham, i can’t go back,” you said, lifting your forehead from his. his hands remained on your cheeks and your faces remained close. “no one but you wants me there. i’m going to get torn apart again.”

“no you won’t” he started. “i’m going to protect you forever and always. the band will too. i talked to all of them, and they said they were too afraid to defy billy in the moment when he was in that state. they feel awful about this too. please, come back. we need you.”

you paused before leaning in and putting a long awaited kiss on his lips. he smiled against you, and you put your hands on his chest. this was everything you had ever wanted.

you pulled away giddy, despite the emotional moment you two had just shared.

“okay, i’ll do it. but only because you’re my favorite guitarist and i’m kind of a super fan.”

graham laughed happily and scrunched his nose, wrapping you in a tight hug. you both fell onto the bed laughing, tangled in each other’s arms.

graham kissed the top of your head. “i’ve been wanting to be like this with you for a long time.”

#billy dunne #daisy jones and the six #warren rojas #warren rojas x reader #camila dunne #graham dunne x reader #graham dunne #daisy jones fanfic #billy dunne x reader

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auspicious-manner · 11 months

Note

heyy!! a request for graham dunne where you’re in a secret relationship and you tell everyone that you’re together by kissing on stage 😈😈😈 please and thanks no pressure 😽😽

THE WAY I YELPED WHEN I SAW THIS IN MY INBOX IM SO EXCITED AHH looks like my tags found the right audience! i have a few more djats prompts other people sent in thank you all sm 🤭

also this ended up WAY longer than i wanted it to be oops, hope y’all like slightly longer stories

also i glossed over a lot of big events within the show because i just wanted to get to the point lol.

fem reader x graham dunne

warnings: some substance abuse

Crazy For You

•

before there was daisy jones and the six, there was just the six. before daisy jones was the leading lady of the band, it was you.

way back in the pittsburgh days, you never knew what was going to come your way when you moved into the empty house right next to the dunne brothers. you knew they caused a racket every time they decided to host a band rehearsal, and it took every ounce of patience left in you to not storm over there and demand them to clean up their sound.

then on one fateful day, your world changed forever. as you were taking the garbage out, you sang at last by etta james to yourself, not thinking anything of it. you got lost in your own voice.

then, your trance was broken when you heard a scuffle of feet coming from your left. your head whipped to the side, and you saw one of the dunne brothers in his driveway listening to you with a smile.

“oh god, that’s embarrassing,” you said, turning your head the opposite direction.

you heard a laugh come from him, but you kept your eyes away from him in embarrassment.

“you have a lovely voice,” he said. you braved looking at him once more, and he was smiling at you. the boy looked to be about your age.

“thanks, but it’s really nothing. i’m not trained or anything,” you replied sheepishly.

“i’m Y/N, by the way,” you said, walking over to him with your hand extended.

he met you in the middle, reaching out and taking your hand. “i’m graham. graham dunne.”

you blushed a bit when he held onto your hand for longer. “nice to meet you graham dunne.”

he nodded, and your hands released. there was a pause in the conversation before graham began again. “do you like rock and roll?”

you smiled. “yeah, i do. i play some guitar. why do you ask?”

graham was now gently blushing. “i-i’m in a rock band, and i play guitar too. maybe sometime you can stop by and watch us rehearse.”

you bit your lip slightly. “i know you’re in a band.”

he looked taken aback, and you realized how insane that sounded. you quickly backtracked, looking down. “i didn’t mean it like that. i just knew you were in a band because i’ve heard you before. like, rehearsing from my house.”

he smiled understandingly. “did you like our sound?” graham asked. he was wringing his hands nervously.

you decided to mess with him. “yeah, you sounded okay,” you said jokingly.

graham rolled his eyes. “maybe if you stop by someday i’ll play better just for you.”

the blush in your cheeks creeped back into place. “will do.”

graham gave you his phone number, and only a day later, invited you to a rehearsal at their bandmate’s house.

after your interaction with graham the previous day, your mind was flooded with little thoughts of him. the way his hand lingered on yours. the way he blushed when you talked. the way he smiled lightly when you blushed. something about graham dunne made your heart race, and you barely even knew the guy.

you felt the need to dress nicely for this. you wanted graham to be impressed. you put on a pair of jean shorts paired with a halter top and a jacket.

you met at a boy named chuck’s house. the band was already setting up in his garage, and graham smiled when you arrived.

“hey, you made it!” he said excitedly, running over to greet you.

you grinned. “i’m glad to be here. where should i sit?”

“let me introduce you to the band first.” graham gently placed his hand on your lower back, walking with you further into the garage. you hoped he didn’t feel the shiver going up your spine under his touch.

“guys, this is Y/N. she’s billy and i’s new neighbor. Y/N, this is warren, chuck, eddie, and my brother billy,” he said, pointing to each of the members. you took note of how warren, chuck, and eddie seemed to be yours and graham’s age, around sixteen. billy, however, was older. without even knowing the band, it was clear he was the one in charge. he seemed to be the most experienced.

the band smiled at you. billy stepped forward slightly. “it’s good to meet you. i hope you like what we play.”

graham placed you slightly off to the side of the band, and you sat down on a box in the garage. the band finished setting up their equipment, and discussed billy’s new song he had just written for the band to play.

as the group figured out their chords, your eyes were locked on graham. you watched the way he effortlessly played his guitar, and how clean and crisp his notes were. to you, nothing was more attractive than a man who could play guitar.

after running through the song multiple times, the band knew something wasn’t working. “maybe it’s just the song. i think we should just-” eddie had started before being interrupted by billy.

“there’s nothing wrong with the damn song. i know what i’m doing. graham, try speeding up the chorus a bit, and warren, lengthen your fills just a bit more, see what that does. let’s run it again.”

everyone seemed to roll their eyes at billy’s orders before warren counted them in to begin again. once again, it was a failure; it just didn’t sound right. it was missing something.

“eddie, man, what are you doing back there? you’re changing chords and everything,” billy said, frustrated.”

“i’m doing nothing wrong! this is your song, you should know how to fix it!” eddie exclaimed back. the entire band was now arguing, and before you could even think about it, you were standing up and speaking.

“it needs a harmony.”

the commotion stopped, and all eyes were on you. your face grew hot due to the intense gazes falling onto you. you gulped nervously.

“what?” billy asked.

“it needs a high harmony in the chorus. to, you know, go with billy’s voice,” you said timidly.

billy scoffed. “what would you know?”

graham stepped up to billy. “Y/N’s got a great voice, i’ve heard it. she could do the harmonies.”

billy raised an eyebrow at you. you looked between all the band members before speaking again. “i don’t want to intrude-”

warren spoke up. “i think it’s worth a shot. we’re desperate for something to work at this point.” he pointed at you with his drum stick. “you know the song?”

you nodded. graham set up another microphone stand next to billy’s, and you stood behind the mic. you suddenly regretted speaking up at all on matters that didn’t ever pertain to you.

warren counted it in again. billy got through the first verse, and you focused on your breathing. don’t mess up in front of graham.

he got to the chorus, and you added a layer of your light voice on top of billy’s. you saw out of the corner of your eye billy turning to you, a look of amazement in his eyes. it was working. it sounded phenomenal. although you couldn’t see it, graham was watching in awe. he got chills watching you from behind. before you even knew it, the song ended, and the band erupted into wide grins and loud cheers.

and just like that, you were in the band.

billy didn’t like sharing the spotlight, and quite frankly, you weren’t a fan of it either. however, billy put up with it because he found your harmonies necessary to certain songs and you were close friends with his brother. you stuck to mainly harmonies and, when chuck left and eddie took over bass, you took control of rhythm guitar.

throughout the band’s beginnings in pittsburgh, graham quickly became your best friend. you spent most of your time with him, and he spent most of his time with you. despite being friends, he still gave you butterflies any time he glanced at you. you always wanted to impress him. however, there was a very real possibility that he didn’t get those same butterflies.

the band found more and more gigs in the area, and billy’s girlfriend camila was now traveling with the pack. you two quickly got to know each other and became fast friends.

things began moving in a blur when warren bought a van and the band decided to move out to california. for you, deciding to move was an easy choice; the only part of pittsburgh that brought you any sort of joy was this band. you wouldn’t be caught dead staying in that city without them. and, as the cherry on top of the cake, camila was coming too.

the van arrived in front of your house and billy and graham’s. rain was endlessly pouring, and you only noticed this after you had dragged all of your belongings out the door onto your front porch. your one and only jacket was tucked away into one of your suitcases.

graham looked back at you from the van, his curly hair flattened under the rain. he saw you eyeing the downpour, and ran up to your door.

“what are you doing?” you asked.

he took his jacket and held it above your head for you to take. as soon as you did, he took your suitcases and began walking to the van. you smiled wide at his manners.

you stayed dry under graham’s jacket, and you were encompassed by it’s smell. it smelled like him.

you watched as graham tied your bags to the top of the van. “do you need help?” you asked.

“nope. go get dry in the van.”

“are you sure?” you asked.

he laughed. “Y/N, yes, i’m positive.”

unbeknownst to you, graham would do anything to keep his girl safe and dry, even from just a bit of rain.

graham wasn’t great with expressing his true feelings. it was easier to tuck it away and forget about it rather than exploring it. that’s how he felt about you. he had some complex thoughts about you, ones he was hesitant to call a crush. he tried his hardest to keep these feelings at bay, but it was getting increasingly harder for him to control.

after many long nights on the road, sleeping next to graham in the van and totally swooning over him at every second, you arrived in sunny california.

the band’s new house barely deserved to be called a home. but, given the circumstances, it did it’s job. you took the room that the boys claimed was haunted, even though it wasn’t.

not long after settling into california, a keyboardist named karen sirko joined the band. she also quickly became a close friend to you. camila, karen, and you became your own girl group.

over the next months, you had gigs on the strip, and you felt like you were finally making it. you started drinking and smoking more than ever before, and performing on stage gave you a rush. and, not to mention, performing alongside graham was pretty great too.

then one night, while on the infamous first tour, you and graham got wasted at a party with the band.

with all the alcohol and other drugs in your system, you felt bold enough to speak your mind.

“graham, can i ask you something?” you said, trying not to slur your words. the other guys and karen were talking up girls and having their own side conversations through the blaring music.

he turned to you. “what’s that?”

you took a deep breath. “am i crazy?”

graham paused before giggling. “what is that supposed to mean?”

you couldn’t help but laugh too. “do we have something? or am i just imagining it and i’m out of my fucking mind?”

graham’s smile dropped. his eyes squinted as he stared at you. he was thinking hard. “wait…what?”

you rolled your eyes. “for god’s sake graham, i like you. i don’t know if you like me, but i need to know if you feel the same way or if this is all in my head.”

he looked away and nodded. you expected the worst. when he remained silent, you knew you had just messed up probably the greatest friendship in your life.

without saying a word, graham looked around the room and took your wrist, walking away and dragging you with him.

“graham, what the hell?” you asked. you tried not to stumble as he walked. he took you outside behind the building. “look graham, i’m sorry i said that. i should have known you didn’t feel the same, and i-”

before you could finish your sentence, graham spun you so your back was against the wall and his lips were on yours. his hands slowly moved to the sides of your face.

you both pulled away. “woah,” you whispered.

you began making out again, only rougher this time. graham pulled his lips away, resting his forehead on yours. “let’s take this back to my room.”

the next morning, you woke up in a different room than your own, the bright sunlight shining through the window. you felt disoriented. you groaned, a splitting headache causing your body to freeze.

you rolled over, seeing graham sleeping next to you in bed. you quickly sat up, instantly regretting it due to the increased pain in your head.

not only that, but you looked down to see your bare breasts out. then, you noticed you had no underwear on.

“holy shit!” you exclaimed loudly before clasping a hand over your mouth, realizing graham was still sleeping. he rolled over, not waking.

you remained frozen where you sat. i just banged graham, you thought.

you took your shirt that laid disheveled on the floor and put it on, along with your underwear. however, when you got to your pants, the room began to spin due to your hangover and you tripped, falling to the floor with a loud thud.

graham sat up. “what the hell was- holy shit,” graham said, stopping what he was saying as you stood up from the ground.

you sighed. “i said the same thing.”

“what are you-” he began before widening his eyes. “oh my god i remember.”

“did we really sleep together?” you asked, already knowing the answer.

graham nodded. “i think we did it more than once.”

you thought about it. “actually, i think you’re right. was it two times?”

graham contemplated again. “no, it was three.”

“was it…?” you trailed off. then, it hit you. “oh my god you’re right. it was definitely three.”

graham slipped on some boxers under the blankets. “well, what does this mean? for us?”

you sighed. you walked over to the bed, facing him. “i don’t know. i know what i want, but what about you?”

he began to speak, but stopped. then a small smile appeared on his lips. “if i’m being totally honest, Y/N,” your heart raced at the sound of your name. “i’ve liked you from the moment i heard you singing in your driveway that one day. you’ve had a hold on me ever since.”

your heart felt like it skipped a beat. you couldn’t help but laugh like a middle school girl with her first crush. “i feel the same way about you.”

graham blushed. “everything about you is attractive to me,” he started. “your voice, your guitar, your body, your spirit, everything. i’ve kept these feelings about you private, even to myself, from the moment i met you. but now i know that what i feel is real.”

you smiled, slowly leaning in. you placed your lips onto his, and you gently rested your hands on his neck. you pulled away, your faces still remaining close to each other. you giggled. “i was okay with our friendship, but this is so much better.”

collectively, you both decided to keep this information from the band. they didn’t need to know. and more importantly, you didn’t need rumors to get out to the press about your relationship. you knew that you’d be framed as the tag along of the group, only there because of graham. so, it stayed a secret.

and you played the secret very well. no one suspected a thing besides a close friendship. even then, both of you agreed to tone down being near each other around the band in order to keep suspicions low. after the devastating first tour, karen and camila had even tried to ask you about your friendship with graham and why it seemed to be dissipating.

your answer? you just weren’t as close as you used to be. in reality, you were much much closer.

you were sleeping together at every opportunity. in one of your rooms back at the house, in bathrooms at the studio, everywhere you could.

but there was substance to it too. it wasn’t all sex. you had your deepest moments with graham. you would stay wide awake into the late hours of the night just talking about anything and everything. with your head laying on his bare chest and his arm slung around your shoulders, everything felt perfect despite the rough patch the band was in.

then daisy came along.

teddy believed the band needed a strong female vocalist to lead the band alongside billy, and that wasn’t you. you didn’t take offense to it, you knew your voice was better suited for harmonies and softer songs rather than belting out rock songs.

with the addition of a new person in the band, your spot at the mic next to billy was taken, and you were moved next to graham with a mic. secretly, you were happy because this meant that you could exchange meaningful looks even more than before.

your first time playing live with the new setup was in hawaii, and you took your place next to graham. graham leaned into your ear while on stage. “you look beautiful today.”

warren began the drum beat of look at us now. you tried to contain your smile. “you’re distracting.”

as the song built into the guitar solo, you watched as graham went mad on the strings. the sound rang clearly, and you realized how much you had been missing when you were standing next to billy on stage. you glanced around the stage. all of them were gleaming and playing their hearts out. it was beautiful to see for the first time and you proudly smiled to yourself.

graham finished the guitar solo, and he looked up at you when he finished almost as if to see your reaction to what he did, and get your approval. you nodded at him, a proud look in your eyes. you felt yourself falling in love with this boy more and more every day.

you went back to the hotel after the electrifying performance, and you heard a knock at your door. upon opening it, you found a smiling graham.

“so, how’d i do?” he asked.

you couldn’t help but grin, and your eyes flashed to his lips before tugging him into your room by his shirt and crashing your lips against his. graham felt taken aback, but not unwilling. he found his footing before pulling away briefly to lock the door, going right back into it. he led you to the bed, where you laid down on your back as graham towered over you.

you began unbuttoning his shirt, and he began to lift yours off. when he had just slid your shirt off, a pounding knock came from your door.

the two of you quickly pulled away, and graham grabbed his shirt before scooting away from you to the other side of the bed.

“uh-coming! give me-um… a few seconds!” you shouted, putting your clothes back on. you turned on the tv, so it looked like you and graham were doing nothing more than watching shows together.

“no worries!” daisy’s voice rang out from the other side.

you looked at graham, eyes squinting. “daisy?” you mouthed to him. he shrugged, knowing nothing more than you. you were just surprised to hear her voice, since you hadn’t had all that much time to talk one on one.

you finally felt relatively put together and unlocked the door, revealing daisy.

“hi, come in,” you awkwardly told her, opening the door wider for her to step in.

“thanks Y/N,” she stopped partially in the room. “oh, hey graham.”

graham waved happily. you rolled your eyes at his cuteness.

“so, i have a proposition for you,” daisy asked, looking at you with intention. “let me know what you think.”

you sat down at the edge of the bed. “sure, let me hear it.”

“i feel weird taking your role as the female vocalist of the group. i know you said you really didn’t mind, but i want to offer you a song on the upcoming album.”

your eyes widened. it was a sweet offer, but practically impossible. “that’s very nice of you daisy, but i can’t write songs.”

she smiled. “that’s why i’m here.” she looked at graham behind you before continuing. “even graham could help with the musical arrangements. if you’re down for that, of course,” she said to him.

“yeah, i’d love to.”

“but wait,” you started. “there’s no way in hell billy will allow this.”

daisy smiled again, more mischievous this time. “we can deal with him,” she said, motioning to herself and graham. “if we write a damn good song, he’ll have no choice but to add it to the album.”

it would be nice to hear your voice on a record without billy’s overpowering voice drowning yours out. the offer was tempting.

“what the hell, let’s do it.”

daisy got her song book out, and graham left while you two came up with the words.

“so, you and graham?” daisy asked with a smirk.

your face went white. “us? no, we’re just friends. nothing more.”

daisy huffed, not believing it. “right.”

you laughed. “daisy, i’m being serious. there’s nothing going on.”

“okay, sure. so you opening the door looking completely a mess only to find graham looking equally as guilty on your bed meant absolutely nothing?”

you looked down, biting your lip. “don’t tell anyone.”

she laughed. “i knew it.”

after discussing what the song was going to be about, you decided you wanted it to be a love song. about graham. you wanted the song to have the feeling of being on top of the world, floating on a high like you feel with graham. eventually, you two came upon a name: clouds.

daisy began writing ideas for lyrics while you tested out new melodies. after about two hours, you had an acoustic version of your own song. you didn’t think you’d be this excited about it.

the song started off light and soft, with only piano and vocals at the beginning. as the song progressed, the energy built representing the excitement of being with him, and there was a guitar solo reserved for graham in the middle.

“Y/N, this is a damn good song,” daisy told you.

upon arriving back in california, graham asked you about the song as you were walking into the studio. “it’s coming along,” you answered, not wanting to give too much away.

“that’s all?” he asked.

“yeah.”

he stepped in front of you, stopping you in your tracks. graham looked down at you, searching your eyes for answers.

“you’re not telling me everything.”

you giggled. you stepped closer to him, putting a hand on his chest. “you’ll see,” you said quietly, almost seductively, walking past him. although you couldn’t see it, graham got flustered. you always knew how to rile him up.

going into the studio, daisy met up with you first.

“you ready?” she asked, referring to proposing the song to billy.

you nodded, following daisy to where billy was sat.

“we have a song for you,” daisy bluntly said to billy.

he looked between both of you. “what?”

“we have a song that we wrote together that we want on the album,” daisy told him.

billy scoffed. “no. we write all the songs, and besides, Y/N just does harmonies. i’d like to keep it that way.”

he began to get up. “it doesn’t have to be,” you said. “it’s just one song. let us at least play it for you and the band, see what you think.”

he paused. if it were just daisy, he would have denied the song again. but, billy had a soft spot for you. “fine. make it quick.”

the band gathered around you and daisy, who was on the piano. you shot graham a wink, and he lightly blushed.

“this song is called clouds,” you said into the microphone. you noticed teddy watching from behind the rest of the band.

daisy began playing the piano and you began to song. your light, airy voice filled the room as you tried to not focus on the harsh pairs of eyes staring you down. the song was almost psychedelic, sending everyone in the room into a trance. you got lost in your own voice.

as you approached the chorus, you began playing the guitar, picking up the pace of the song. you happened to glance over at graham, who was beaming from ear to ear. he knew the song was about him.

you left an open slot in the music for graham’s future guitar solo, and you gestured to him to make it clear. the song wrapped up, and you looked up from your guitar. the band stood looking at each other, in awe. the only sound was a disembodied round of applause coming from teddy as he walked towards the band. they all turned to look at him.

“let’s get that song recorded.”

as the studio crew set up all the necessary equipment needed to record, you took a walk through the halls of the studio. as you passed the door to the storage room, a hand grabbed yours and pulled you in. you didn’t even have to look at who it was; you knew it was graham.

he closed the door and placed a long, sweet kiss on your lips. when he pulled away, his hands brushed away your hair on the sides of your head and fell lightly on either sides of your jawline.

“you are fucking incredible. i’m so proud of you,” he said, wrapping you in a hug. you giggle and hug back.

“i can’t wait for the world to see that you’re more than just a harmony.”

you pulled away, and his hands rested on your hips. “i have something to tell you.” you said quietly.

his smile fell just a bit. “yeah sure, what is it?”

you bit your lip. “if it wasn’t obvious in the song… i love you.”

he paused before he kissed you again, more passionately this time. he rested his forehead on yours, his hands still on your cheeks. “i love you too, darling.”

during the aurora sessions, you and graham continued to date in secrecy. while the rest of the band was recording their parts, you two would sneak off and do other things together. sometimes those other things involved unprompted sex, other times it was just sitting and talking, with your arms wrapped around each other. either way, every time you’d come back, daisy would nudge your arm playfully and knowingly.

daisy was a good friend to have. she kept your secret locked away, and showed no signs of revealing it to the world. you appreciated her help and guidance.

you and the band recorded all the songs on aurora, and even had your own cover shoot. it felt surreal to finally make it big, after all the trials and tribulations of your band’s early years.

then, when the album released, it was instantly a massive hit. you were on radios, tv, billboards, everything all at once. hearing clouds come on the radio for the first time almost made you cry tears of joy. that was your song, for your graham.

then, it was time for another tour. a bigger, more controlled one than last time. you all knew to not screw this one up like you did the last time. this one was too important to waste.

then, the morning of your first performance on tour, you and graham got into your biggest disagreement yet. you had a few arguments before, but this was so much more intense . this hurt more.

that morning, you were walking through the halls of the hotel, on a mission to find graham before the big night. when you approached his room and saw his door partially cracked with voices coming from it, you walked over to it to see who was there with him. it was warren and eddie, smoking a joint with graham talking about clouds.

“that’s a killer song she wrote with daisy, who do you think it’s about?” warren asked, removing the joint from his lips.

eddie spoke up. “she’s never talked about being in love before. maybe it’s not that deep, and it’s just a song.”

“or maybe it’s about you, guitar boy,” warren said while laughing, hitting graham’s arm.

“i don’t think so. there’s nothing going on between us.”

good cover graham.

“well, you two are good friends, right?” eddie asked him.

graham tilted his head. “sort of. we used to be pretty close in the early days, but not so much anymore. she’s a little clingy. i mostly talk to her when i have no one else to talk with. we’re friends, but not all that close. at least, not like we once were. if that song is about me, i don’t feel the same way.”

what he said didn’t feel like a cover like his previous statement did. that felt real. and it cut deep. he called you clingy? he said you weren’t very close? a cover for your relationship is one thing, but he blatantly denied a real friendship in front of the boys and made you seem like a fool for falling for a boy that didn’t like you back. tears built in your eyes, and you couldn’t decide if you wanted to run and hide or face him.

before you even thought about what you were doing, you pushed the door open with a creak as all three of them turned to face you, a singular tear falling to the floor.

“ah shit,” warren mumbled.

“Y/N, i-what are you doing?” graham asked. he instantly knew you heard everything.

you began to speak, but couldn’t find words. you just shook your head and ran down the hall, back to the safety of your room. you locked the door behind you and leaned your back against it, more tears spilling out as you heard footsteps approaching the door.

“Y/N, i’m sorry, let me in. i need to explain,” graham said from the other side.

“you can’t take back what you said, graham. i heard it, it’s out there, and now i look like the idiot. does that make you happy?” you replied.

“no it doesn’t. you make me happy. i said those things so they would get off my case. i was covering us up. i-”

you opened the door, face to face with him. his heart seemed to shatter at the sight of the tears still stuck to your cheeks.

“that didn’t sound like a cover, graham. it’s one thing to deny our romance, but another to deny our friendship all together and paint me to be the naive, pesky one. you made me look stupid, and now those boys are going to tell the rest of the band what you said.”

graham frowned. he knew he messed up. he looked down, avoiding your harsh gaze.

you sniffled. “and you can’t even look me in the eye.”

you shut the door again. you eyed the alcohol sitting on the desk in your room, and opened a bottle of beer. you downed it, preparing to open another one.

leading up to the performance, you avoided all your bandmates in efforts to save yourself from the embarrassment that graham caused. the word was probably out to all of them now about what graham said; warren can’t keep secrets for the life of him.

you drank a few more beers and took a few pills to get you through the day and night. they took away the pain graham had caused. looking at yourself in the mirror, you had a full denim jumpsuit on that came up around your neck into a halter top. you left your hair down and wavy and added dramatic grey eye makeup.

backstage shortly before you went on, graham came up behind you. “can we talk?”

you made no eye contact. “about what?”

“…about earlier.”

“what is there to say? it seems like you said everything you needed to say to warren and eddie.”

he rested his hand on your bare shoulder. his touch gave you the chills like it always had. “i’m so sorry, Y/N. i genuinely didn’t mean to hurt you like that. i didn’t even think about what i was saying, i just said it. i didn’t think about the consequences like i should have. what can i do to make you not angry at me?”

you paused. every ounce of your body wanted to take him back and hug him, but your mind said otherwise.

you finally turned around to meet his glossy eyes. “prove to everyone that you want this.”

the band ran onto the stage, beginning their first ever setlist on their new and improved tour. despite the still sour mood you were in, the adrenaline with the crowd and the traces of drugs running through your veins made you smile. you felt like a goddess. throughout the show, you felt graham’s gaze periodically fall onto you, and you tried your hardest to ignore it. you were living in the moment and didn’t need him as a distraction.

then, your time came. it was time to sing clouds in front of a full auditorium of people. luckily, your adrenaline was stronger than your nerves.

daisy spoke into the mic. “up next, i would like to introduce the backbone of this group, the glue that holds us together, and one of my very best friends. she adds the most beautiful harmonies to all of our songs, here is Y/N L/N.”

daisy bowed down, shuffling to the back to give you the mic. before you reached the mic, she gave you a quick but supportive hug.

you handed billy your guitar, and stepped up to the mic as the applause died. seeing the faces in the dim crowd made you more nervous. you felt graham’s eyes burning into your back.

“hello, everyone,” you said slowly. you talked methodically. “this song is for anyone who is in love.” you thought about your own experience with love, and the overwhelming love you still felt for graham.

as karen started the piano, your mind was brought back to graham once again. you just wanted everything to be okay like it used to be. but you knew you had to see the effort from his part. he needed to somehow dispel the image he created of you being the clingy, lonely girl of the band who was helplessly pining over the guitarist. it was up to him now.

you rvoice started, crackly at first, but soon finding the rhythm of the music. your vision for this song was to make who ever heard it feel like they were high in the sky, laying upon the soft clouds. to hear it all coming together live on stage was ethereal. you knew it was working.

the song picked up, and the drums, guitar, and bass sounded behind you. it sounded magical, but maybe it was just the drugs and alcohol.

you glanced behind you to see daisy playing the tambourine next to graham, who kept his eyes on you throughout his entire guitar solo. the crowd roared, but all you saw and heard was graham. you lightly smiled at him, and he smiled back. he was all that mattered in that moment.

the song finished, and you stepped to the side of the mic, taking a large bow. before you could turn to get your guitar from billy, footsteps sounded behind you and a hand was on your shoulder, turning you around. it was graham.

“graham, what-”

before you could say anything, graham took your face in his hands and tilted your head up. “i’m going to prove it to you and everyone else.” as you began to speak again, he leaned down, laying a long kiss on your lips. the crowd went wild. although you couldn’t see it, the jaws of everyone in the band besides daisy dropped, who had a proud smirk on her face.

when you two pulled away, his hands fell to your waist and you held his forearms.

“are you crazy?” you asked playfully.

he smiled. it felt like only you two up on the stage. all you saw was him and his bright eyes and curly hair. “crazy for you.”

#daisy jones and the six #djats series #graham dunne #graham dunne x reader #billy dunne #billy dunne x reader #warren rojas x reader #warren rojas #daisy jones fanfic #karen sirko #camila dunne

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auspicious-manner · 11 months

Note

Welcome back! I look forward to seeing your stories again! Please know that there is no pressure to post often or to take every request you receive. You do you! x

this is so sweet omg 😭 thank you so much! people like you make all of this worth it for me. i can’t wait to get back to writing, making people happy is what i love to do.

send in those requests! as a reminder i’m doing all of the fandoms i’ve done before (mike, panic, wss, newsies, etc) but i’m now doing daisy jones and the six and i’m super excited about it. i really look forward to writing new material, especially djats because my mind has been flooded with that show recently lol.

hopefully some of my followers have seen that show or this post reaches the right audience with the tags, because i reallyyy want to start writing for that show :)

#daisy jones and the six #mike faist #mike faist x reader #djats fanfic #graham dunne x reader #graham dunne #warren rojas x reader #warren rojas #billy dunne #billy dunne x reader #camila dunne #karen sirko #daisy jones fanfic

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auspicious-manner · 11 months

Text

…this feels all too familiar.

well i’m back lol. let’s see how long this period of motivation lasts this time

i have about 10 story requests in my inbox that i have yet to touch, and since i’m craving a new start, i’m only going to do the requests that truly interest me and i believe will fuel my motivation to write, rather than hinder it. i’m sorry if you sent in a request ages ago and never get yours posted. this is what will work best for me.

same goes for my future stories. i love love love that so many people send in requests, but i’m going to be a bit more picky about which ones i actually write, so i can spend more time focusing on certain ones being great rather than having multiple short, mediocre stories.

on the other side of things, i checked and i have 100 followers! thank you to everyone who has stuck around, it means the world to me that so many people enjoy my content.

even more news… i have another fandom to write for! its pretty unrelated to mike faist/panic/newsies, bur hopefully i’ll add some tags and this will reach the right audience lol. i am now writing for daisy jones and the six! i absolutely adored that show, and i’m specifically going to be writing for billy, graham, and warren. send in those requests!

to those that are still reading, thank you for being so patient during my frequent and longgg hiatuses. i appreciate it greatly.

#daisy jones and the six #daisy jones fanfic #graham dunne #graham dunne x reader #warren rojas #warren rojas x reader #billy dunne #billy dunne x reader #mike faist #mike faist x reader #djats #djats fanfic #camila dunne #karen sirko

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auspicious-manner · 1 year

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hi! i love your stories, can you write a race x fem!reader where race and a couple of other newsies run from angry customers, hiding in a theater, and the performer completely entrances racetrack, dudes lovestruck?

i delayed posting this until today because IT’S BEN COOK’S BIRTHDAY YAY!!!

i love that boy with all my heart. he’ll forever be my racetrack. enjoy this race story in honor of ben’s 25th bday :))

female reader x race

warnings: none

Natural Talent

•

it was just an average day of paper selling for the group of newsies. the temperature was right, the sun was shining, and the air smelled like money. jack, race, albert, jojo, and finch could all feel it that day.

oddly enough, they all kind of liked days where the headline was boring. they could make up their own exciting headline to sell to the masses, and they could create their own storylines. race liked to contribute to the creativity of making a storyline, not necessarily coming up with his own dramatic headline. as a desperate newsie, that was a skill that he should have been born with.

as the day was coming to a close, it was time to amp up the selling tactics even more in order to get through every paper.

“papers, get ya papes here!” race yelled to the roaming citizens of new york city. not a single new yorker batted an eye or looked in his direction. race’s shoulders fell, his eyes turning into a sad puppy dog look. why couldn’t he make up a good headline?

jack rolled his eyes and scoffed, snatching the paper from race’s hand. “sing ‘em to sleep why don’t ya. this is how you do it, racer.”

jack stepped forward, and coughed to clear his throat. “homeless shelter set ablaze by angry city goers, biggest story of the year! you heard it here first, folks, get ‘em while they’re hot!” he yelled. a small line formed in front of him, and he took the coins graciously and handed them to race.

“how’re you so good at doing that, jack?” race asked, dumbfounded by jack’s natural ability to sell.

“he’s jack kelly, that’s how,” jojo said next to race.

“well i know that, i can see him.”

“it takes years of practice,” jack started after getting through the line of paper customers. “you’ll get better sooner or later. but for your sake, you better hope its sooner.”

albert stood next to the boys. “i’ve sold all my papes for today, i’m gonna head back to the lodging house. see you all soon,” he said, beginning to walk away.

“hey, this newspaper says nothin’ about a fire! what are you boys on about?” an old man yelled, waving his paper in the air furiously.

“he’s right! is this how you steal money from innocent women like me?” a lady said, coming up behind the man. they had rallied together a small crowd of angry newspaper customer, and the newsboys froze.

jack turned to albert, who had began walking away. the rest of the boys carefully shifted their glances towards jack for guidance.

the angry mob began approaching them, and the newsies slowly backed away.

“newsies… make a run for it!” jack screamed, taking off in the other direction. the boys all followed, and the angry mob took off in their direction.

jack took hold of albert’s arm as he was running, taking him along with the boys.

“man, i’se just wanted to get back to the lodgin’ house! why do i have to be apart of this?” albert whined to jack as his legs continued to run.

they ran far, hoping to lose the crowd of men behind them. jack led the boys through the alleys and back streets of new york, but it was no use.

jack turned to race, who was closest to him. “we need to split up. racer, take the boys to medda’s theater. the crowd wants me, so i’ll lead them away and meet you there. okay?” he whispered, barely out of breath and not breaking a sweat. race looked at him in awe.

“yeah… no problem,” race heaved, picking up his pace to lead the boys as jack swerved around another corner.

why’d he have to leave this up to me? race thought. do i look like leader material?

he whipped around to see the boys behind him, and that was it. the crowd had followed jack, and all race could hope for was that they didn’t catch up to jack.

the group approached the back door of medda’s theater, and they quickly ran inside and shut the door behind them. they had found themselves in the wings of the bright stage.

“where’d jack go?” finch asked in between breaths. the group leaned against the door, looking out into the theater ahead of them. it looked like a show was just about to start.

race lowered his voice. “jack was going to lead the crowd away. he wanted me to take you all here.”

jojo frowned. “jack put you in charge? for what reason?”

race shrugged, unsure of the answer himself. “beats me.”

“you boys gettin’ into trouble again?” a lady’s voice called out, causing the boys to snap their heads around. it was medda with a knowing smile on her face.

“hi miss medda,” albert said, still regaining his breath.

“where’s jack?” she asked, suddenly getting worried.

“he’ll be back here soon, he was leadin’ away the angry mob followin’ us,” race said maybe a bit too nonchalantly.

medda rolled her eyes. “i don’t even want to know what mob was following you kids this time. while you’re here, you better stick around for the show. i think it outta be something you boys would like,” she said with a grin. she winked before heading onstage as the curtain rolled up, revealing the audience.

the boys took a seat backstage mere inches away from being visible to the audience. race’s eye caught a girl on the other side of the wings, who glanced shyly away when she noticed he was staring. he wondered who it was.

“now, folks, prepare to be wowed by this next act. at only sixteen years of age, her talent is beyond what anyone would expect out of her tiny frame. she’s new to my theater, but i hope you all will give her a warm welcome. introducing the fabulous Y/N L/N!”

the crowd cheered, and the lights went down as medda ran off stage and the girl in the wings slowly walked out to the microphone. she had a certain poise and way of carrying herself that kept race entranced.

the lights lit the room up again, and race carefully watched the girl onstage. he came to the conclusion that this was the girl he had made eye contact with just moments before.

the music began, and it was a song he didn’t recognize. he watched as the girl gently swung side to side, her long velvet dress and her long, straight hair swaying with her. Y/N settled herself back to the center of the microphone, and she began to sing.

race noticed that her voice wasn’t very operatic, which he enjoyed. it was warmer, and had different nuances and layers that was new and refreshing to his ears. Y/N carried herself elegantly, and race could tell that she trusted her instincts while singing. she was very beautiful to look at, and even more beautiful to listen to.

to race, it looked like she wasn’t even nervous, and she didn’t have to think too hard about what she was doing. she was a natural.

race was so focused on this mysterious girl that he didn’t even notice jack had arrived and was sitting behind him. he placed a hand on race’s shoulder, and he turned his head around.

“i think i lost ‘em,” jack started. “who’s that?” he asked, pointing to the stage.

“her name is Y/N. she’s a new performer at medda’s, and she’s absolutely stunning.”

jack laughed at race’s comment, but he was cut off by medda.

“will you boys just relax and watch the show?”

“sorry miss medda,” jack whispered, scooting away from race.

race’s eyes fixated on the girl singing once again. if he were in a cartoon, he’d have hearts in his eyes. the world around him seemed to fade, and it felt like the only ones in the room were him and Y/N. is this what love at first sight feels like?

race made sure to soak in every word she sang, for he didn’t know the next time he’d be able to see her perform.

when her last note rang out, the noise happily lingered in race’s ear. the room went silent before an eruption of applause began. he slowly clapped, still coming down from his high.

Y/N walked off stage towards the boys, and race’s heart rate quickened. she immediately went to medda’s side without giving the boys a glance.

“she was somethin’, wasn’t she?” jojo asked rhetorically.

“her voice was beautiful,” albert started. he looked over at race, who was still lost in his own world. a smirk appeared on his face. “how ‘bout you, race? what’d you think of the show?”

race didn’t reply.

“racer!” jack yelled as loud as he could without being disruptive. race blinked and sat up before turning around.

“what? what did you say?” race asked quickly.

finch laughed. “did you like the show? seems like you grew a little attached to that girl.”

race looked over to the girl who was still speaking with medda.

“yeah, i liked it. i liked it a lot,” he replied back sheepishly, still staring at Y/N.

the boys looked between themselves, all thinking the same thing.

“race, i can’t keep watchin’ you admire this girl from a distance. go on and talk to her,” jack said, standing up and reaching his hand down for race to take.

race looked up, wide eyed. he took it and reluctantly stood up. “i don’t know if i can.”

jack smiled. “sure you can!” he exclaimed, wrapping his arm around race’s shoulder and guiding him to medda and Y/N. race was mortified.

the pair stood by the girls, and Y/N turned her head to look at them. she gave them a small smile, before medda began to introduce the boys to her.

“Y/N, this is jack and racetrack,” medda said, pointing to them. jack waved, and race kept his eyes focused on the girl.

“i’ll leave you kids be, i need to greet the audience. my work never stops,” medda said while laughing, walking out of the wings to go walk around the theater.

jack and race looked back at Y/N, who was beginning to look a little awkward.

“you sounded great out there, kid. i’ll leave you and racer by yourselves, he’s the one that wanted to talk to you. see ya later!” jack exclaimed before patting race’s back and walking away.

race stood in front of the girl of his dreams appalled at jack for leaving him alone. he’s never had experience with girls, how was he supposed to handle a conversation with one as gorgeous and as talented as her?

her waiting and compelling eyes stayed locked on race, and he turned his head to meet her gaze.

“i-i’m race,” he asked nervously.

she playfully smiled. race took note of the way her nose crinkled a bit when she grinned.

“i’ve heard,” she started. “i’m Y/N. i’ve never heard a name quite like racetrack.”

he sighed. “it’s just a nickname.”

there was an awkward silence.

“you were amazing out there. i’ve never heard a voice so beautiful in my life,” he said, filling the void.

she turned red. “gosh, you’re too kind,” she said shyly, looking down. “before i went on, i believe you were the one i saw from across the stage, right?”

race was shocked that she even remembered a small detail like that. “yes, that was me. i didn’t think you’d ever take notice of me.”

she shrugged and stepped a bit closer. “why not?”

race’s heart rate picked up, and he looked down at the girl. “you quickly looked away when i saw you. but not only that, i’m a newsboy, you’re a talented singer, i didn’t think it’d ever work.”

“i’m sorry about that, i was just nervous,” Y/N began. “maybe you need to rethink us working, race,” she whispered. the backstage lights caught her eyes just right, and they sparkled with a newfound feeling of intrigue.

race stared down at her, unsure of what to do next. “you’re really pretty,” he said, breathless.

she blushed again. “you’re cute.”

now it was race’s turn to get all red. his moment of bliss was interrupted by the guys coming up behind him.

“excuse us, miss,” albert said behind race. “we need to take our boy away for a few minutes. it’s newsboy stuff.”

the boys dragged him away, and he looked behind him to see Y/N confused. race closed his eyes, feeling defeated.

“what was that for? i was getting somewhere with Y/N!” race exclaimed.

“we just wanted to ask you how things were goin’ over there,” jack asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

“it’s none of your business. i’m gonna go back over there, and you guys aren’t going to interrupt me ‘till i’m done. you hear?”

“…so it is goin’ good?” jojo said. race rolled his eyes and left the group of boys.

“sorry about that, they’re a little distractin’ sometimes,” race said, coming back to the girl.

“it’s quite alright. where were we?”

race thought about it for a few moments. “i’m not sure.”

Y/N laughed. “that’s okay, i forgot too.”

“how’d you get into singin’? you could be makin’ it big with a voice like that,” race said, sparking up conversation. he liked flattering Y/N, because every time he did she would smile like she didn’t already know she was amazing.

“as a little girl, i would sing whenever i felt any kind of emotion. my mother loved it. then, when my parents died, i was living on the streets. i used singing as an escape.”

Y/N looked down. race’s expression softened at the sight of her.

“i sang to make money. then, miss medda discovered me and took me in. she gave me lessons, and a place to earn money. and thats how this all started.”

race raised his eyebrows. “i’m sorry to hear about your parents. i lost mine a while ago too.”

Y/N sighed. “it’s alright, i-”

she was interrupted by medda telling her there were important people in the audience that wanted to meet her.

race felt his stomach drop. “i don’t want this to be the last time i see you,” race said sadly.

Y/N bit her lip. “it won’t be. stop by tomorrow night for another show. we can talk some more then.”

race nodded. “i will. i sell papes a few blocks down, you can stop by there durin’ the day if you want.”

she nodded. “i just might have to.” she stepped closer and stood on her toes to place a gentle kiss on race’s cheek. “goodbye race.”

race felt like melting right then and there. his heart felt like it grew. “goodbye Y/N.”

#ben tyler cook #newsies x reader #newsies imagine #race newsies #racetrack newsies #racetrack higgins #newsies fanfiction #newsies #race x reader

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auspicious-manner · 1 year

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I’m in a Newsies Broadway phase rn, the songs keep playing in my head. can you make one where it’s just the cast of Newsies and the reader messing around?

AFTER OVER TWO MONTHS FINALLY ANOTHER UPDATE!!

as i finished writing this, i remembered how much i missed writing :,)

anyway, i’ve been stuck in my newsies bway phase for like a year now oopsies. do i regret it? nope, not at all. also, i’m going to assume this means the real life cast and not the actual newsboys!

female reader x newsies cast

warnings: none

Leap of Faith

•

for Y/N, being apart of the original broadway cast of newsies was a once in a lifetime opportunity. with all of the amazing doors the show has opened for her, there also comes the band of idiot boys the show comes with. sometimes, they annoyed the hell out of her. other times, they were little presents wrapped in a bow gifted to her by the theater gods.

in the show, Y/N understudies katherine and plays the only female newsie. which, being surrounded by boys every day, subjects her to some bullying from the boys. not serious bullying, of course, but playfulness. it also didn’t help that she was one of the younger cast members in the show, which subjected her to even more prodding from her fellow newsboys.

Y/N arrived to the theater two minutes after she was supposed to be there. she liked being fashionably late, but when she arrived late, she had to watch out for the boys who were looking at her every move. they seemed to always be watching.

“surprise!” a voice yelled as a pair of arms wrapped around her waist and spun her around. she gasped, not sure who took hold of her. she whipped her head around to find mike faist with a devilish grin, who set her down.

“god mike, what was that for?” she asked.

he shrugged. “you were late.”

she rolled her eyes and contained her laugh. “you are just something else.”

she walked towards the direction of her dressing room as mike followed her like a puppy.

“hey mike?” Y/N asked as she continued walking with mike still on her tail.

“yeah?” he replied.

“why are you following me?”

“i don’t know, i’m bored,” he said, picking up his pace so he was walking next to her.

“hey Y/N,” ben fankhauser said, joining the pair as they walked to her room.

“we’re really just getting the gang together to have a party in my dressing room, aren’t we?” she asked with a sigh, not expecting an actual answer.

“yep.”

she got to her room, and jeremy jordan was sitting in her seat alongside kara lindsay in their shared room.

“look who finally decided to show up!” jeremy said, casually leaning back into the seat and throwing his arms up.

Y/N’s jaw dropped. “i was two minutes late!”

jeremy stood up and stood in front of her. “that’s two more minutes you could have spent here,” he said, pointing a finger. Y/N rolled her eyes playfully as jeremy walked past her and patted her shoulder. “i’ll see you all later!”

jeremy left the room, leaving ben, Y/N, mike, and kara. however, their small group didn’t last for long, because andrew keenan-bolger and tommy bracco popped their heads into the room.

“are you guys having a party in here without me?” tommy asked before inviting himself in.

Y/N put her head in her hands. “i can’t believe this is actually happening, i just want to get dressed,” she said, hearing kara giggle in response.

“we’re forcing a party against Y/N’s will because she was late,” ben replied.

tommy laughed. “thats my kind of party.”

“but doesn’t that punish kara since they share a room? kara was here on time,” andrew suggested, resulting in a nod from kara.

“you’re right, we’ll come back when kara’s done getting ready, for her sake,” mike said, leading the boys out. “this won’t be the last time you see us.”

the door closed, and Y/N basked in the silence. “god, they are so annoying sometimes.”

she got her costume that was hung up in the closet. it was a traditional newsies outfit, with capri pants and a long sleeved shirt with a vest around the front.

“as annoying as they are, they must really like you if they mess with you that much. they wouldn’t do this to someone they weren’t fond of,” kara said, applying her makeup.

“i guess you’re right,” Y/N said, changing out of her clothes out of view from kara. “they’ve just got a strange way of showing it.”

the girls worked on getting ready together, and kara dragged out her process because she knew as soon as she left the room, it would be taken over by boys and Y/N would be subject to dealing with them once again. but, she couldn’t avoid it any longer, and she grabbed her essentials and walked out to get her wig placed, but not before wishing Y/N good luck.

as soon as kara rounded the corner and disappeared out of sight, tommy bracco walked past her door, made eye contact with Y/N, and called down the hallway for mike.

“you boys are just relentless, aren’t you?” Y/N asked, applying the last of her makeup.

“don’t be late next time,” tommy said as mike and ben came into her room.

“you guys would have done this even if i wasn’t late, lets be real.”

ben shrugged. “maybe. we only do it because you’re easy to mess with.”

“gee, thanks,” she replied sarcastically.

“have you warmed up yet?” mike asked, sitting next to her. she continued looking into her mirror as she twisted her hair onto her head in order for it to fit under her newsies cap.

“no, you?” she asked.

“nope. the guys and i were just about to stretch, do you want to join us?”

Y/N looked at mike, and then tommy. “i’m not going to be bullied by the rest of you if i do, right?”

tommy raised his eyebrows. “not anymore than normal.”

Y/N considered it. “okay deal, i’ll be ready in about five minutes.”

she finished clipping her hair and slipped it under her signature newsies cap. she met up with the boys in the room where they always stretched before each show, and ryan steele led them through some ballet at the barre to warm up.

given the fact that Y/N was the only girl newsie, she was hidden in the back for most of the show. she was fine with that, because all of the other boys were incredible, and it was technically their show. however, the boys rallied behind her and had the choreographer give her her own small solo, and it was during king of new york. tonight was the first time she was performing the new move. she had to leap off one of the tables in a full middle split, and if she didn’t warm up her legs properly for that move, she could seriously injure herself. in fact, she almost did once during rehearsals, and the boys constantly made fun of her for it. unbeknownst to them, Y/N was beyond nervous to debut this borderline dangerous stunt, especially since she almost broke an ankle doing it in practice.

“hey Y/N, don’t forget to do your splits today. we wouldn’t want you injuring yourself again,” tommy said, passing her briefly.

she was on the ground rolling out her ankle. “you guys just love to nitpick every little thing i do wrong.” as much as she loved the boys, their constant berating sometimes messed with her confidence.

ryan breslin sat next to her, a caring look on his face. “we only do it because we like you. we wouldn’t do it if we weren’t your biggest fans. we know you’ll kill your solo tonight.”

Y/N smiled. breslin was always one of her favorite boys to talk to. “you’ve all got a funny way of showing it.”

then, she felt arms loop under hers, pulling her up to her feet. Y/N turned around to find mike’s tall stature standing behind her.

“what are you sitting on the ground for? we have stretching to do!” he exclaimed, patting her arm.

she ignored the nagging fear in the back of her head and went to join the rest of the cast.

the group got together, and they started their stretches at the barre. Y/N made sure to take extra care in stretching today, because she had this persistent fear of the leap.

after the barre, they got into a circle and did their standing stretches, before moving to the floor and further warming up their hamstrings and hips.

Y/N did her splits, avoiding eye contact with the rest of the boys around her. she could feel their judgmental gazes on her head. she was in that position for so long that she didn’t even notice everyone else around her had gotten up.

someone had nudged her with their foot, causing her to flinch and look up. “hey, your legs are going to get stuck in that position if you don’t get up,” ryan steele said.

Y/N moved her legs, and used ryan’s hand to help herself stand up. “sorry, i was just thinking,” she said, still looking down.

“about what?” aaron albano said, joining the two.

“i’m worried about my leap during king of new york. what if i fall and embarrass myself?” she asked quietly.

ryan breslin came up behind her, and put an arm around her shoulders. “if you do, then the audience will forget about it and move on.”

Y/N looked down again. “i’m not worried about embarrassing myself in front of the audience. i’m worried about embarrassing myself in front of…” she looked at the faces around her. “…you guys.”

the ryan’s and aaron softened their expressions. “you don’t have to worry about that, we have your back. you’re talented, Y/N, and you can do whatever you put your mind to,” breslin told her, his arm still around her shoulders.

she smiled. “i know you guys would be supportive, but who knows about thing one and thing two over there,” Y/N said, gesturing to mike and tommy.

“they just like giving you a hard time,” aaron said. “if you want, steele and i can help you run the leap a few times before we go on.”

“yes please,” she said, giving breslin a short hug before walking with aaron and steele to an area backstage.

she did her leap shakily off the table, taking in all the corrections that she could from ryan and aaron. as she was about to go again, Y/N saw out of the corner of her eye breslin pulling mike and tommy off to the side. the two boys seemed to have a fallen expression, and their eyes glanced her way.

“don’t wear yourself out too much. just remember, turn out your hips and use your leg muscles to control the landing. you got this,” aaron whispered before walking away with ryan.

tommy walked over to her as she worriedly looked out onto the stage. her mind felt cloudy.

“hey, Y/N, you okay?” he asked, standing next to her.

she nodded. “yeah, i’m fine.”

mike walked up and stood on the other side of her. “you don’t look fine.”

she noticed mike’s tone had completely shifted. he was so loud and bursting with energy just minutes earlier, and now he sounded like he had just been given bad news.

Y/N felt like her body was going into autopilot. “i’m just nervous, that’s all. i’m okay.”

tommy took her hand gently, and mike took her other hand.

“we give you hell a lot, and we like to make jokes, but just know that we’re always in your corner, okay?” tommy said sincerely. Y/N looked down, her brain fog beginning to clear a bit.

“i don’t want you to think that we would ever intentionally bring you down,” mike started. Y/N knew where this epiphany had came from; it was breslin. “all of us love you, Y/N, and although our joking comes off more serious than we intend sometimes, we’ll always support you.”

she nodded. “so, breslin told you guys i was worried about subjecting myself to even more embarrassment from you guys if i screwed up my leap? you guys probably wouldn’t have even known i was panicking about this solo on the inside if it weren’t for him. i’m not as dumb as you think i am,” she replied quietly, releasing their hands. Y/N tried to walk away, but mike caught her arm and stood in front of her, his hands on her shoulders.

“he let us know our jokes were going too far, and that they were masking our friendship with you. we all support you, and believe in you. trust me when i say that we all want you to succeed.”

Y/N noticed mike’s eyes never leaving hers. she was at a loss for words.

the show began, and the three scrambled to get into their places backstage. from the wings, she watched as jeremy and andrew started the show off.

as she went on for “carrying the banner”, she briefly forgot about her fear while onstage. the number allowed for her and the boys to mess around freely, and it still looked like it was apart of the show. every show, Y/N and andy richardson would do their handshake, and during this show, andy lingered by her for a bit longer than normal. she felt his support, even while they were in character. word travels fast between the boys, and she could sense that all the boys now knew she was worried.

while onstage, her constant fear of the leap had faded, but every time she had a moment to herself, it was back again.

during intermission, Y/N went to her secret spot backstage that she knew no one would find her in. it was a secluded hallway in the depths of the nederlander, and she sat down on the floor, feeling her heart rate quicken.

“Y/N, what are you doing here?” a voice asked. she looked up and saw andrew keenan-bolger.

“how’d you know i was here?” she asked, confused.

“this isn’t just your spot, you know. i come here sometimes too.” there was a pause. “are you okay?”

she sniffled. “yeah.”

he shot her a knowing look, and Y/N nervously laughed. “no.”

andrew sat down next to her. “i’ve heard that you’re nervous for king of new york, is that true?”

she nodded. “i just don’t want to fall and hurt myself and disappoint everyone. you guys wanted me to have this part in the show, and i don’t want everyone to think i can’t do it.”

andrew gently rested his hand on her leg. “you’re our little sister, Y/N. the boys fought for you to have this solo for a reason.”

the lights flickered, signaling the show was about to start.

“you need to go. make yourself proud, not us. we’re already proud of you. you got this!” he said, helping her stand up. she smiled, always feeling comforted by andrew.

she got back to her spot just in time. she could tell the boys were afraid to approach her in a time where Y/N’s focus was being challenged.

they went onstage, and the curtain pulled up. Y/N noticed there were a lot of people in the audience, judging her every move. the number began smoothly, and she forced a smile on her face. she danced as well as she could despite her entire body shaking.

the time had come, and she got on the table. okay, remember what aaron said, she thought. hips turned out, soften the landing.

she leaped, repeating the corrections in her head. she felt like she was soaring. when Y/N landed, her ankle stayed stable, and the landing was as clean as can be.

Y/N gave a bright and real smile to the audience, hearing the boys cheer behind her. she ran to the back of their formation, and she felt mike grab her arms tightly from behind. she turned her head, to look at him, and she saw that he was more excited for her success than she was.

the rest of the show flew by, and after the curtain went down at the very end, tommy ran up to her and trapped her in a hug. before she knew it, all the boys were coming up behind her, and she was suffocated in the middle of a big newsie group hug.

when Y/N couldn’t breathe anymore, they stepped away. jeremy came up behind her and patted her back.

“we’re proud of you, kid.”

back in the dressing rooms, mike stopped by hers after kara had left.

“we’re okay, right?” he asked quietly.

Y/N spun her chair around to look at him, and she nodded. “why wouldn’t we be?”

“i don’t know,” he started. “i thought that you didn’t want to be friends anymore. you seemed really upset with me today.”

she turned to him and took her hair out of her newsies cap. it flowed down her shoulders, and she liked feeling like herself again. “i love messing around with you guys, i really do. just not to the extent to where my confidence falls because of it. you’re my best friend, mike. i wouldn’t be able to fully function every day if it weren’t for you.”

he smiled, and went behind her chair and turned it around again so that Y/N was facing the mirror, with mike looking at her through the mirror.

“just don’t be late again, yeah?”

#mike faist #newsies #newsies x reader #newsies imagine #davey newsies #race newsies #newsies fanfiction #jeremy jordan

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auspicious-manner · 1 year

Text

hey guys LMAO i’m so sorry i disappeared 😭 life just got SO crazy and i lost track of writing. but good news!! my motivation is slowly but surely coming back so expect some new stories soon (and by new i mean the ones that have been sitting in my drafts/requests for months).

because i’m going to work on catching up on all my stories i’ve neglected, requests will be closed until further notice! hopefully i’ll get through some of these sooner rather than later and i can get some new ones in!

that’s all, thank you guys for sticking around even when i disappear for months at a time :)

#mike faist #mike faist imagine #mike faist x reader #mike faist fanfiction #panic on prime #mike faist riff #dodge mason imagine #dodge mason #dodge mason x reader #riff x reader #newsies #newsies x reader #newsies imagine #riff fanfic #riff imagine #riff lorton #jack kelly #jeremy jordan #ben cook

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auspicious-manner · 2 years

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ngl I keep coming back each day to read your stories, they are really good! can you do another story on newsies era mike faist and the reader? thank you :)

thank you so much, it means a lot :) even though i don’t update daily anymore, lol. although, i was better about it this week, and it only took me 6 days to update instead of 7, go me! small improvement!

female reader x mike faist

warnings: none

I’m So Tired

•

“dude, open the door!” a voice sounded from the outside of Y/N’s apartment door.

“gosh, give me like five seconds!” she yelled back as she finished packing her backpack to head to the theater.

there was a long pause. “it’s been longer than five seconds!”

she grabbed her bag and flung the door open to find an impatient mike looking down at her disheveled state.

“my goodness, you are insufferable.”

mike raised an eyebrow. “i’m insufferable? you’re the one who has made us behind today. we’re going to be late because of you.”

Y/N walked out of her apartment and turned to lock the door. “we’re going to be just fine, stop being so dramatic.”

Y/N and mike had a very close bond. after being cast in newsies together, with mike as morris and the understudy of jack kelly and Y/N as hannah and a bowery beauty, they became best friends due to constantly being together. every day, they would commute to the nederlander theatre together. mike lived further into the city, so he would drive his car to Y/N’s apartment building, park it in the street, and together they would take the subway.

with mike being a year older than Y/N, a lot of their debates resulted in mike trying to act as an older figure to her, with her firing back and saying something snarky like, “you’re not my dad”. given the fact that both of them had a dry, sarcastic sense of humor, their personalities fit together like two puzzle pieces. not only that, but their relationship was full of constant play-flirting that both of them though was based strictly off of friendship.

“i’m going on as jack today,” mike told her as they walked down the busy streets of new york.

Y/N yawned. “no kidding? that’s cool.”

mike sighed. “you could have just told me you didn’t care.”

Y/N quickly looked at him, realizing her yawn came off the wrong way. “i didn’t mean that sarcastically, really. i didn’t have time to make coffee today and i barely got any sleep because my neighbors dog was screeching all night,” she stopped walking, resulting in mike also coming to a stop. he stared at her sunken eyes. “i’m so unbelievably tired.”

mike nodded and continued walking. “i get it. if it makes you feel any better, we’ll share at least a little bit of stage time today since i’m going on as jack,” he said with a hopeful grin.

“ugh, that does not help my mood.”

the pair continued to the station, safely got on the subway, and headed off. on the subway, Y/N’s eyes began to flutter as if she was fighting off sleep. she’s pretty sure at some point she actually did manage to fall asleep on the short ride to their stop.

“are you… sleeping?” mike asked when he saw her head slumped to the side. he pushed her arm gently and she shot up.

“are you okay? i don’t think i’ve ever seen you this tired,” he asked her with real concern.

“i’m fine, i promise. i just didn’t get a lot of sleep, that’s all.”

mike stared back at her, not fully believing it. he put his hand to her forehead. “you feel a little warm. do you have a fever?”

“who knows, i might,” she started, being interrupted by a yawn. “i’ll just take a nap in my dressing room before i have to get ready, then i’ll be brand new.”

mike sighed. “Y/N, you are one tough cookie.”

they got off at their stop and walked into the beautiful nederlander theatre. sometimes they still couldn’t believe they did this for a living. the feeling of walking into the empty theater never changed, even after performing hundreds of shows.

they signed in and separated to their dressing rooms to prepare. she got to her shared dressing room early and was able to squeeze in a short hour of sleep before being awoken by her cast mates.

“Y/N, if you don’t get ready now you’ll never be ready in time for the show,” kara lindsay said, leaning over the girl sleeping on the small couch. she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and sat up.

“this is going to be a long night,” she murmured before getting up and sitting in front of the mirror. she began to pin strands of hair tight against her head in order to prepare for her wig to be placed.

“what’s wrong with you today? you seem off,” kara asked as she did the same thing as Y/N.

“is it really that noticeable?” she asked, resulting in a nod from kara.

“i slept horribly last night, and i think i’m coming down with a cold. i’m just so tired.”

“just think about how rewarding your sleep is going to be when you finish the show tonight. you just have to get through two hours, and you’re free to sleep,” she consoled.

Y/N nodded and yawned. “i guess you’re right.”

she continued getting ready with kara and the other girls who played the nuns and the second bowery beauty by her side. she was friends with kara and merely acquaintances with the girls, but her only close friend out of the entire cast was mike. she hated to admit it, but she almost thought there was something more seriously flirty between the two of them. something beyond the nonchalant play flirting.

as if kara was reading Y/N’s mind, kara cleared her voice and began to speak. “you and mike are together a lot. do you like him?”

Y/N froze. was she going to admit her feelings for mike to kara?

“what? no. we’re just friends, nothing more,” she said, clearly not believing her own words.

kara smiled. “the way you guys look at each other and blush as if on cue isn’t something friends just do. when you guys finally realize there’s something more, give me credit,” she stated confidently before going to the wig room to get her wig placed.

Y/N sat contemplating what kara said, and looked at the three other girls to her side that were too engrossed in their own conversations to really listen to hers. she sat back in her seat and continued her hair, the conversation never leaving her mind.

after completing the process of pinning her hair back and doing her makeup, she got her first wig placed and her hannah costume on. after she was completely ready and waiting for her first call, she laid back down on the couch and closed her eyes.

there was a knock outside the dressing room door. she heard it in her sleep, but didn’t have the energy to answer it.

the knock sounded again, but instead of stopping afterwards, whoever it was came in.

“i-Y/N, are you sleeping again?”

Y/N sat up and saw mike in his jack kelly costume, standing over her.

“yeah, i was sleeping,” she replied, dazed.

“you’re not okay to do the show tonight, you never sleep before we go on like this. you should have called off,” mike said, sitting down next to her.

“i can do it. it sucks, but i’ll be fine. it’s just one show, and then i’m free to sleep in as long as i please tomorrow. i promise i’m just fine, pinky swear,” she said playfully, holding out her pinky.

mike glared at her before rolling his eyes and interlocking his pinky with hers. “i’m trusting you on this one.”

everyone was called to the wings, and mike stood by Y/N. she felt his glance lay on her, but she ignored it and looked onstage where the final props were being set up. she could hear the bustling audience beyond the stage.

mike placed an arm around Y/N’s shoulders, causing her to lean in and rest her head on mike’s shoulder. she could have easily fallen asleep right there.

it was mike’s turn to go on. “good luck buddy, you’ll be great,” she said, patting his back.

“you too, Y/N. don’t fall asleep out there!” he whispered before running to his place.

the show actually went smoothly, to Y/N’s surprise. the roar of the audience gave Y/N a boost of energy, and she was mostly able to get through the show. however, she noticed that any time she sat down in one of pulitzer’s chairs onstage, sleep threatened her again. along side the sleep issue, she felt her cold symptoms beginning to worsen, and her throat became scratchy and her nose was beginning to get stuffed up.

while being one of the bowery beauties, mike and Y/N got at least a few minutes of indirect stage time together. when the show allowed, they made eye contact and Y/N would look back at him, dazed with both tiredness and admiration for her friend.

towards the end of the show, Y/N watched mike perform onstage, and he was magical. he was captivating, and talented, and she wanted nothing more than to watch mike perform for hours. he ran off stage, catching her eyes staring directly at him.

“you okay?” he whispered, leaning close to her ear.

she yawned in response. “all good.”

he laughed before running off. she smiled to herself, feeling oddly giddy. mike was her best friend, why was she feeling excited at mike recognizing her?

finally, after a tiring two hours, it was time for curtain call. Y/N felt like at any time, her body would collapse under the weight of her heavy eyelids coercing her to sleep. she took her bow, and grinned when mike came out on stage as jack kelly. every time he went on as jack, Y/N’s heart fluttered with pride. she wasn’t exactly sure if it was normal for her to feel this strongly about a friend.

she retired to her dressing room, undoing her costume, hair, and makeup as quickly as possible. it took her longer than expected, though, due to her drowsy and slow movements.

all of the other girls finished before her, and she was left alone in her room. she was on her last task: unclipping her head of hair.

“oh gosh, i can’t do this,” she mumbled, resting her head on the table in front of her. luckily, before she could fall asleep at her table, mike barged in the door.

“hey Y/N- oh do not tell me you’re sleeping again,” mike said, standing behind her.

“not this time. i was close,” she lifted her head up and looked at mike through the mirror in front of her. “i just want to go home. i don’t even have the energy to take my hair out of the clips.”

mike thought about it, hesitated, and spoke up. “if you want me to, i can unclip it for you. you can rest your head for a little bit and i’ll get your hair done, okay?”

Y/N blushed. “would you?”

mike smiled back. “anytime. now, head down.”

she rested her head on her arms in front of her, and dozed off into a very light sleep. she knew mike was still talking to her, but she couldn’t decipher it or reply.

mike patted the back of her head. “all done,” mike exclaimed. “now, if you don’t hurry, we’ll miss our ride and i don’t think you want that.”

Y/N stood up slowly, finding it hard to walk due to her exhaustion. they made it outside of the theater, and she knew she wouldn’t be able to walk the few blocks to the station.

“mike?” she asked softly. matching her energy, he turned around and gave her a gentle look.

“what’s up?” he asked.

“c-can you carry me?”

mike tried to hide his red cheeks. “yeah, of course, but just this once. you’re crazy if you think i’ll be doing this for you every day.”

Y/N laughed and jumped on his back. “don’t worry about it, i won’t ask again.”

she got herself situated in a piggyback position on mike, and he carried her to their station. she rested her head comfortably on his back, and the sound of his breathing quickly lulled her to sleep. the only time she was awake was when mike set her down at the station and when they arrived at their destination. on the subway, she rested her head on mike’s shoulder and took a power nap.

Y/N instinctively got onto mike’s back again after they got out of the station, and he carried her all the way to her apartment door.

“i’ll get you settled inside, and then i’m going to head out,” mike said as Y/N unlocked her door.

“you can stay. your shoulder and back was comfy to sleep on,” she said, surprising herself with how bold she was being.

“are you sure? i don’t want to interrupt your sleep.”

Y/N stopped in the middle of her bedroom as mike told her this. “dude, i literally fell asleep on you multiple times tonight. you help me sleep,” she replied.

“if you say so,” he said, smiling lightly.

they got into bed, and unbeknownst to the other, they were smiling at the thought of sharing a bed together.

Y/N laid her head on mike’s chest, and he placed his arm around her.

“is this okay?” she asked, not wanting to overstep her boundaries.

he grazed her shoulder with his fingertips. “it’s perfect.”

“goodnight mike,” she said, already half asleep in his arms.

“goodnight Y/N,” he whispered back. she swore she heard a small “i love you” from mike, but before she could decide if she did or not, she was passed out cold.

#mike faist #mike faist imagine #mike faist x reader #mike faist fanfiction #newsies #newsies imagine #newsies x reader #jack kelly

240 notes · View notes

auspicious-manner · 2 years

Note

the reader is walking her dog when none other than Mike Faist happens to walk past and he asks if he can pet the dog and what its name is and all these questions and then the two of you end up going for coffee together or something?

mike + dogs + fall = perfection

female reader x mike faist

warnings: none

Strangers

•

Y/N couldn’t believe the magic of waking up in the beautiful new york city. she had been living in the city for a month now and she still couldn’t wrap her head around it. something about the hustle and bustle of the city and constantly seeing new things excited Y/N beyond compare.

she woke up as usual and stared out the window at the sun completing its rise above the skyline. she thought there was nothing better the world could offer her. she was beyond in love with her life.

but, then she remembered something better when she heard the sound of four little paws tapping across the floor over to her side. she smiled, and turned to pet her dog named buffy.

buffy was Y/N’s pride and joy. she loved buffy to death. she got her when buffy was still a little puppy, shortly before Y/N moved out to new york city. buffy had been by her side through every major change in her life, and throughout all the chaos, Y/N saw buffy as her one constant.

since buffy is a toller, she requires a lot more exercise than Y/N can normally provide. every day they go on walks around the block, and every few days she treats buffy to a trip to the dog park. despite her best efforts to keep her dog’s energy at bay, she’s still a handful.

“hi puppy!” she exclaimed, bending down to ruffle the dog’s head. “how are you this morning?”

she asked the dog questions knowing very well that the dog would never respond. still, she asked them. when buffy rested her head on Y/N’s legs, she considered that the answer to the question.

Y/N didn’t have anything she needed to do today. this would be the perfect time to take her puppy to her favorite place in the entire world: the local dog park.

she got dressed into a comfy beige sweater and a pair of jeans, while clipping her hair back with a claw clip, with her curtain bangs falling to the sides of her face. she found buffy’s collar and leash and clipped it around her neck.

“are you ready to go?” Y/N asked, holding onto the leash tightly. the dog trotted to the door, prompting a small laugh from her. buffy guided her down the stairs and out the door of the apartment complex into the brisk autumn air.

they walked through the neighborhoods, spotting other dog owners having similar mornings to their own. buffy being the excited dog she always was became thrilled any time another dog passed by. Y/N had to use all of her strength to hold the dog back.

finally, they approached the park and entered through the gates. she unclipped buffy’s leash from her collar, allowing the dog to run freely within the safety of the fencing. Y/N sat on a bench and placed her airpods in her ears, thoroughly enjoying the beautiful fall day.

after buffy finished running in circles to get her initial energy out, Y/N pulled out a pink rubber ball from her purse and threw it into the distance. buffy skidded in a circle and sprinted near the opposite side of the fencing to retrieve the ball. as buffy brought it back, Y/N approached her to meet the dog in the middle.

“okay buff, drop it,” Y/N said in her baby voice that she used around her puppy. buffy obeyed, and Y/N picked up the slightly slobbery ball.

“go get it!” Y/N yelled while throwing the ball. buffy ran to keep up with the ball, but came to a sharp halt when the ball flew over the top of the fence and to the outside of the park, nearly hitting a man walking down the street. buffy stared at the ball that seemed to be in reach for her, yet so far.

“oh shit,” Y/N mumbled, running over to the fence. she watched as the man who was stopped by the pink ball pick it up off the ground, looking around to see who the owner was. his eyes locked onto the dog peering at him through the fence.

“did you throw this?” the man asked, referring to Y/N. he turned the ball around in his hand as if he had never seen one before.

“yes, i’m so sorry. i was just-” Y/N began frantically.

he laughed. “you’ve got quite the arm. you somehow managed to throw this ball over the fence from halfway through the park. how’d you do it?”

Y/N’s tense features softened when she saw he wasn’t angry. “i played softball in high school.”

“i can tell,” he began. he bent down to meet the dog who was curious about this stranger. “this your dog?”

“yeah, her name is buffy. she’s a handful,” she said with a smile.

“buffy. i like that. let me guess, she’s a toller?” he asked, petting part of buffy’s head that was now poking in between the rungs of the fence.

“how’d you know?” she asked, impressed with his dog knowledge.

he looked up at her. “i know a lot about dogs. i grew up with them my whole life.”

after she had calmed down about accidentally throwing a half slobbery ball at a stranger, she took in his appearance. his hair was a lighter brown that rested softly on his head, and his sharp blue eyes complimented his brunette hair. he was quite tall, yet she could tell he had a build under his warm clothes. he had airpods in just like her, which seemed to fit just right with his sculpted jawline. she thought he was very cute.

Y/N smiled to herself. “what’s your name?”

he stood up. “mike. what’s yours?”

“Y/N.”

“well Y/N,” he started, leaning on the top of the fence. “you’ve got a pretty name.”

she blushed. “thank you.” her attention was brought down to buffy, who was standing on her hind legs to greet mike. “you know, this is a little weird for buffy. she’s normally pretty shy around strangers, but she seems to really like you.”

mike tilted his head playfully. “are you just saying that to make me feel special?”

Y/N shook her head. “i swear i’m not. she’s not even used to my parents, let alone a stranger.”

“well, is buffy used to your boyfriend?” he asked sincerely.

“there’s no boyfriend for her to get used to,” she said, nervously biting her lip. “are you or your girlfriend dog people? maybe buffy smells dog on you.”

mike laughed. “i don’t have a girlfriend. at least, not yet.”

Y/N tried her hardest to hide the obvious blush that crept onto her cheeks. she tried to play it off as the cold air making her red.

“i’m getting cold out here. if you want, do you maybe want to go get some coffee?” she suggested.

she thought she saw a hint of blush on mike’s face as well. “i’d love to.”

Y/N attached buffy’s leash to her collar once again, and together her and her puppy walked to the gates of the park. she silently whispered to buffy that she was sorry they couldn’t stay and play longer.

mike was there, waiting for her at the gate when she arrived. he opened it for her, and the dog guided her out. “it’s nice to see you in front of me without a fence in my way,” mike said.

“you’re tall, you could have easily seen me,” Y/N said back.

“yeah, but you’re kind of short,” he said, resulting in an eye roll and a laugh from Y/N.

mike took off his jacket. “you said you were cold, do you want this?”

at first, Y/N only pretended to be cold to make an excuse for her obvious blushing cheeks. but, now that she thought about it, she actually was cold.

“okay, but i don’t want you to go cold,” she said.

“no worries. the cold doesn’t really get to me. besides, i’ve still got a flannel on.”

they went silent, but luckily mike was able to break the awkwardness. “how old is buffy?” he asked, looking at the dog who was happily walking in front of them.

“about eight months. i got her when she was only four months old. then, three months later, we moved to the city together.”

mike looked at her, shocked. “you’ve only been here for a month?”

“yeah, why?” she wondered.

“you probably don’t even know the best coffee places around here. let me guess, you still go to starbucks because you’re afraid to venture out and try something new for once, right?”

Y/N looked shocked, because he was right. “…yes.”

“exactly. come on, i’ll show you the best place to go around here.”

he took a turn, causing the girl and her dog to follow him as they headed deeper into the city.

“i’m trying to be spontaneous here, but i just realized we don’t even know each other. you’re not a murderer, right?” Y/N questioned. you can never be too safe as a woman in a big city.

mike laughed. “i’m not, i promise. i have better things to do than kill people. but just so we’re on the same page, you’re also not a murderer right?”

“nope. just a girl with a dog.”

they made it to a small, hole in the wall coffee shop called “caffeine club”. the inside was decorated with plants and small fairy lights, and it had a small and cozy seating area in the corner with bookshelves to sit down and read.

“hi mike!” one of the workers said, prompting a wave from him.

“is it okay if my dog is in here?” Y/N asked. the worker looked at buffy who was laying on the ground, being very polite. after a mere few seconds in the shop, buffy had already made herself comfy.

“she’s very well behaved, it won’t be a problem,” she said sweetly. Y/N knew she was going to like this place. the pair chose a small table right next to the window.

“i’ll get my usual, claire, and if you can, get a lavender latte for Y/N here. it’s my treat.”

“oh mike, you don’t have to do that. i’m willing to pay for my own.”

mike shook his head. “don’t worry about it. i suggested this place, so it’s only right if i pay.”

“thank you so much, genuinely. i’m excited to try the latte, i’ve never had a lavender one before.”

mike smiled brightly. “it’s amazing, i’ve never had anything like it.” his smile faded slightly. “i didn’t even ask you if you liked lattes, i’m sorry.”

“don’t worry about it. luckily for you, lattes are my favorite form of coffee.”

not long later, claire came out with the drinks. “here’s yours, here’s the lavender latte, and i even got a little treat for the puppy here,” she said, giving buffy her own cup of whipped cream. she quickly began to lick the cup clean.

Y/N took a sip of her latte. “this is fantastic!”

claire smiled thankfully. “i’ll leave you two be.”

“was i right?” mike asked, taking a sip of his coffee.

Y/N took another large sip. “you were so right. this is incredible.”

“i knew you’d like it. i haven’t had anyone to take to this place, and i just knew you were the perfect candidate,” mike said.

“how’d you know i was perfect? we don’t even know each other.” she asked.

mike shrugged. “do you want to change that?”

Y/N smiled, liking where this was headed. “i do.”

#mike faist #mike faist imagine #mike faist x reader #mike faist fanfiction

116 notes · View notes

auspicious-manner · 2 years

Note

Hi! You’re such a fantastic writer!! I was wondering if you could maybe write a story where Riff survives the rumble, but needs medical attention and the reader is there to comfort him. (If it’s not too much to ask) Thank you!

thank you! i appreciate it so much ❤️ i love writing for my boy riff

fem reader x riff

warnings: injury, talk of wanting to die/death, weapons

Death Wish

•

“happy rumble day, Y/N,” riff said excitedly as he came out of Y/N’s small bedroom and into the kitchen where Y/N was preparing breakfast in the middle of the afternoon.

“you know i’m not a fan of this, riff.”

she kept her back to him, and he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around the tops of her shoulders.

Y/N was the complete opposite of riff. she wasn’t even sure how she fell in love with him in the first place. they had opposing views, as she was constantly promoting peace between the two gangs in the city. but, they did have something in common. Y/N was outspoken, and brave, and stood up for herself. she was a good girl who liked bad guys, because bad guys brought out a fiery personality in her. and riff fit that definition perfectly.

riff squeezed Y/N’s body a little tighter. “come on girly, you know me. i’m going to be safe. those sharks can’t lay a finger on me,” he said quietly, kissing the back of her head before stepping away.

“i know you, you can hold your own. that’s not what i’m against. i don’t like the idea of this rumble in general,” she stated.

riff’s calm demeanor was growing into an impatient one. “it’s necessary. this is our turf, and no one gets to come into this city and steal what we worked so hard to build.”

Y/N noticed a complete switch in his tone. he went from being sweet to being sharp all in a matter of seconds. she turned around to find riff’s cold eyes fixated on her own.

she walked closer to him, and he looked down at her. “the sharks can’t steal land that was already previously stolen.”

riff frowned, his accent getting thicker with every word. “we were here first.”

“were you?” Y/N replied sassily.

riff’s playful side smile came back once more. “why are we arguing? i love you, and you love me, and you’re making me breakfast,” he said, wrapping his arms around her waist. Y/N couldn’t help but fall into his trance. “we can agree to disagree.”

she rolled her eyes. “fine. that’s not going to stop me from trying to prevent this though.”

“i know it won’t.”

Y/N went back to her spot at the stove and continued to cook the meal. she finished it up, and split it into two for both her and riff. they sat down together at the small table, awkward silence thick between them.

“what time do you have to go tonight?” she asked, breaking the silence.

“it starts at midnight in the salt shed,” he replied.

“are you worried?” Y/N questioned quietly.

riff shook his head. “no. the sharks can’t do anything to me and my boys. we have the upper hand.”

she knew it was better to stay quiet than fight riff again, so she silently nodded her head and continued to eat. eventually, they finished eating and they cleaned up their messes.

“i’m going to go out, gotta see my boys before the big night,” riff said, smiling to himself. he stepped closer to her. “i’ll see you tonight, right?”

Y/N nodded. “yeah, i’ll meet you before you go to the shed,” she said back, her voice almost monotone.

riff rested his hands on her hips. “good,” he replied before placing a loving kiss on her lips. “see you later.”

he excitedly ran out the door, and Y/N watched as her one love walked out of her apartment to go make the most stupid decision he’s made yet. which, considering the amount of dumb decisions he’s made, truly says something.

she didn’t have the greatest feeling about tonight. maybe that was just because she was prone to excessive worrying. regardless, something didn’t feel right about what riff was doing. she tried her hardest to ignore the gut feeling that was making it’s presence known.

Y/N tried to keep herself occupied for the rest of the afternoon. her anxious thoughts kept her from going anywhere, so she decided to release her crowded thoughts into deep cleaning the entire apartment. it was long overdue, and she figured keeping busy would help calm her racing mind. by the time she had completed her task, it was nearing six o’clock. she decided to go out and meet riff at his jets group spot in the city.

she took a walk in the cool summer air as the sun began to fall behind the skyline. she arrived at the spot, and her quiet footsteps alerted baby john.

“riff, you’ve got a visitor,” he stated, causing the rest of the jets to flick their eyes to whoever it may be.

riff rounded a corner, and Y/N took notice of his appearance. he looked like he was ready for war in his vest covering his cream colored shirt, and his icy eyes widened when he saw her. she wondered why riff was so surprised, until she glanced down and saw a gun in his hand. he quickly slid his hand behind his back to hide it.

“Y/N, what are you doing here?” he asked almost frantically, stepping closer to her. every few steps he made, she would take a step back.

“riff, why the hell do you have a gun?” she asked, her voice cracking. “what do you think you’re going to do with it?”

“it’s just a precaution, darling,” he reassured, trying to calm her down. she shook her head. “the sharks are bringing heat, so i gotta bring heat.”

“oh yeah? and what happens if you get hurt? you and your boys are going to shoot them? what if they take your gun and shoot you?”

“that’s not going to happen, Y/N, i know what i’m doing,” riff said back, dropping the gun and finally approaching Y/N. he held her shoulders tightly.

“please riff, don’t do this,” she said in response, her eyes brimming with tears.

riff sighed. he considered it, but eventually removed his hands. “i’m going to bring it, but i won’t use it. okay?”

Y/N wasn’t happy with that either, but she nodded nonetheless. she felt a little bit better knowing riff wouldn’t be using it.

riff kissed her forehead. “the boys and i are goin’ out soon. i’ll see you when the rumble is over, yeah?”

“yeah. i love you,” she said quietly, resting her head on riff’s chest. his calm heartbeat immediately relaxed her. he wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

“i love you too, girly. it’ll be over before we know it.”

Y/N left, not sure what to do with herself in the meantime. she decided that since she wanted to be awake when riff came home, she would take a short nap back at her apartment. she walked home without a sound, and immediately went to her bedroom and went to sleep.

before she knew it, her body shot up out of bed and she checked the clock on the wall, which read 11:30. she paced around the room a little bit, and came to the conclusion that she couldn’t wait at the apartment for riff to come home; she had to see him.

Y/N threw on a sweater and hurriedly walked out the door, running down the streets to the salt shed. she kept a close eye on her watch, knowing that the rumble would start at midnight.

as she approached the shed, she heard the familiar sounds of footsteps down the pavement, and she spun around a building to hide from the jets. she held her breath as she watched the boys prepare for war and wait outside the shed. riff didn’t look like the sweet boy she knew and loved, he seemed almost animalistic.

then, right as her watch showed her that it was midnight, the boys walked in, and she knew the sharks had arrived. Y/N made her way closer to the shed when she knew the coast was clear, but on her way, a figure ran past her vision.

she tilted her head, and ran closer. that’s when she saw anybodys trying to get into the shed.

“anybodys!” she whisper yelled, catching their attention.

“Y/N, what are you doin’ here?” anybodys asked, catching the closing shed door.

Y/N ran up to the door. “i’m here for riff.”

Y/N always liked anybodys. she knew riff and the rest of the jets wouldn’t let anybodys in the gang, and quite frankly, they treated him like garbage. if Y/N caught this behavior, she would try her best to put a stop to it. anybodys was a great friend to her.

“it ain’t safe for you here!” anybodys whisper yelled back.

“i gotta be here, i wouldn’t be able to live with myself if i wasn’t.”

anybodys finally gave in, and together they slid under the door and gently closed it, hiding together behind a pile of salt. not long later, the door began to make noises from the outside, as if someone was trying to get in.

Y/N and anybodys sunk further down, until tony and chino slid their way under the door as well. she knew tony didn’t want the rumble to happen just as much as she did.

her eyes then stayed fixated on riff. Y/N could see from a mile away the reckless abandonment that was ever present in riff’s demeanor. he was prepared for anything.

“why are they talking so much?” Y/N asked to herself quietly. then, she watched as riff slid tony his gun. at least he was keeping his word.

they all talked more and more, and tony shared some words with bernardo. she couldn’t make out what was being said.

then, bernardo sent a punch to tony. Y/N gasped, and covered her mouth. tony didn’t fight back. bernardo flung his fists repeatedly at tony as the sharks and jets simultaneously yelled.

tony quietly said something to bernardo, and a full out brawl started between the boys.

“i can’t watch,” Y/N whispered, not being able to pry her eyes off the sight in front of her.

tony pinned bernardo and sent punches as the boys roared. then, as bernardo was nearing a blackout, he stopped. Y/N knew tony didn’t want to fight. he stood up and saw the outcome of what he was doing.

Y/N looked away for a split second, and when she turned around, bernardo and riff had knives in their hands and were eyeing each other.

“oh dear god,” she whispered. her face went pale as she watched riff.

she could tell riff didn’t want to do this anymore. there was fear in his eyes that wasn’t there before. bernardo and riff were afraid of each other.

they swung around the knives like it was choreographed. tony caught riff, leaving his back open for attack from bernardo. Y/N felt like yelling to tony to let him go. riff struggled to get out of his grasp.

then, he freed himself and turned around right into bernardo’s knife, which impaled him in his upper leg.

Y/N screamed. she didn’t care if she was caught at this point. she heard anybodys exclaim her name, but her world went silent. she came out behind the salt pile when she saw riff fall to the ground. tony took the knife and in return stabbed bernardo.

Y/N gasped again and took a step back. the room froze, confused as to what had happened. in a matter of seconds, two rival gang leaders lay injured on the ground, one being sprawled out dead.

Y/N ran into the action, and her footsteps alerted the group. their shock didn’t last long, for red and blue lights began to shine in through the windows.

the boys scattered, and tony backed away slowly, realizing what he had done.

“Y/N! tony! we have to go, now!” anybodys yelled trying to stop Y/N.

she ran to riff’s side and bent down next to him. he was still alive, but losing a lot of blood.

“Y/N… w-why are you here?” riff asked quietly.

“don’t talk about me, i’m here to help you, okay? we’re going to get you out of here.” she rested her hand on his cheek, and riff gently held her wrist.

“i can’t walk. you can’t get me out of here yourself. besides…” he took a deep breath in. “you’ve got company coming. you need to go now, Y/N.”

she began to cry. “i’m not leaving you riff,” she looked up to see anybodys ushering tony out.

“anybodys, tony! help me get riff out of here!”

tony left, and anybodys hesitated before running to riff’s side to help Y/N.

“Y/N, don’t do this. you’ll be caught,” he said again.

“you’re an idiot if you think i’m going to leave you here to die,” she fired back. she took off her socks and quickly tied them into a makeshift tourniquet to wrap around his leg. the pair stood him up on his good leg and he wrapped his arms around Y/N and anybodys’ shoulders, and together they hobbled out of the shed just in the nick of time.

anybodys and Y/N guided him into an alley not far from the shed, but far enough to stay out of the eyes of the police. they laid him down against the wall as he faded in and out of consciousness. “stay with me riff, please!” Y/N said as anybodys sent her a look. “thank you anybodys, i owe you one. i can take it from here,” she said hurriedly. anybodys nodded before running off to find tony.

“i’m going to fix you up, okay?” she told him frantically. luckily, she brought her purse which contained gauze, alcohol, and tape.

“y-you’re not a nurse,” riff said quietly.

“i know i’m not, but i’m not going to leave you alone to die. i can’t.”

she used the tourniquet around his leg to dab up the blood after untying it, and then she took the alcohol out of her purse and poured it over the wound. riff grimaced and squeezed Y/N’s arm tight.

she finished it off by wrapping it in gauze tightly and taping it down. “this won’t last you long, you need stitches.”

“we gotta wait until the heat dies down, Y/N. they’ll know this is from the rumble,” he pleaded.

“riff, we can’t wait any longer. that gauze can only hold you off for so long. i know the people that work the emergency room, they know i don’t get involved with the rumbles. it wouldn’t make sense for me to even be at the rumble. trust me, i know what i’m doing. they won’t know a thing.”

riff rolled his eyes, complying with the plan. Y/N helped him stand, and they hobbled a few blocks away to the nearest emergency room.

they walked in, and immediately the nurses took action. they took riff back and got to work on fixing his wound. Y/N knew them, for her mom actually used to work with these ladies in the same emergency room.

“how did this happen?” one of them asked, writing on a clipboard. riff looked to Y/N for an answer.

“um…he was getting ready for the big rumble tonight. when him and one of his gang members were practicing, he accidentally jabbed him in the leg before the rumble even began,” Y/N said, hoping the excuse was good enough. “riff just now decided to tell me.”

“he wasn’t at the rumble?” the nurse asked. Y/N shook her head.

“looks like your buddy got you pretty deep there. Y/N did everything right though to take care of you,” one said to riff, peeling away the soaked gauze to unveil the wound.

“we’re going to go get the equipment we need to fix him up,” another said before all of them piled out of the room.

“i don’t want to get stitches,” riff said as Y/N pulled over a seat next to him.

“you would have died, riff. it’s kind of a miracle you’re still here. the stitches are going to save your life.”

“what if i didn’t want to be saved?” riff said loudly, causing Y/N to be taken aback.

“what?” she questioned.

riff avoided eye contact. “why do you think i wanted you to leave me there? my death wish was obvious to everyone but you, Y/N. i kept it from you because of this exact reason. i always knew the outcome of today, i was supposed to die.”

tears formed in Y/N’s eyes. “riff, i-”

“what do i have to live for? tony’s no longer a jet, i’m losin’ my territory, you deserve better than me, so what do i have?”

Y/N took riff’s hand. “you have me. i don’t need anything better.”

riff finally made eye contact with her. he squeezed her hand back, and tears formed in his eyes as well. “you’ve been there for me more than anyone else, and here i am treatin’ you like shit.”

“i don’t care, riff. i’ll always love you regardless of anything. i love you more than you’ll ever know. i couldn’t bear to lose you today.”

riff smiled and rested his hand on Y/N’s cheek. “i don’t deserve you.”

the nurses came back in and gave him pain medications while also numbing the area around and in his wound to prepare to stitch it up.

“i’m scared, Y/N,” he said quietly. she went to the free side of the bed and took his hand.

the nurses quickly stitched him up, and riff pressed his eyes closed the entire time. he held on to Y/N’s hand tightly.

“all done!” the nurse said, stepping away from the bed. “we’ll keep you here for a while longer to monitor you and make sure everything is okay, but you should be able to leave later tonight.”

they thanked the nurses and Y/N and riff were left alone again.

“thank you for not giving up on me,” riff said, admiration in his eyes.

“i would never.”

#mike faist #mike faist imagine #mike faist x reader #mike faist fanfiction #mike faist riff #west side story #riff fanfic #wss riff #riff lorton #riff x reader #riff imagine

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auspicious-manner · 2 years

Note

Hi, could you write a bit angsty mike faist x reader where they are in relationship and reader thinks that she isn' enough pretty/fit for him, because he is a dancer and an actor? And mike comforts her about that?

i’m sorry for the slow updates, life has been so busy but i’m still around, just working at a slower pace!

this story was a hard one for me to write. not because i had writers block, but because i related deeply to some of the content in this one. i’ve struggled with body dysmorphia, overthinking, and anxiety before, and this story resonates with me and probably so many others as well. i wanted to approach it in a way that would make me feel comforted if i was actively struggling with these issues.

female reader x mike faist

warnings: anxiety, body dysmorphia, harassment from men, rude comments about body, panic attack

Perfect to Me

•

as humans, we have complex emotions and moods that sometimes seem to make zero sense whatsoever. sometimes they can be positive feelings, like love and joy. sometimes they can be negative, like jealousy and resentment. however bad or good, these emotions make us human, and are completely normal.

at least, that’s what Y/N told herself everyday. she hoped that if she kept repeating that mindset in her brain, it would start to become the truth. her mind was intricate, and her thoughts would sometimes spiral out of control. these thoughts only elevated when she met her boyfriend. all day every day, she was a conflicting mix of proud and in love, while also being down and disappointed.

Y/N couldn’t begin to find the words to describe her boyfriend, mike faist. he was everything to her. he had made a name for himself, and he was the epitome of a triple threat. she had met him shortly after he joined the cast of “dear evan hansen” on broadway, and they quickly became close. a year later, they began to date, and since they made it official two years ago, Y/N had an ongoing inner battle with herself.

mike was a star. he was the most talented person she knew. and Y/N? she didn’t think of herself as anything more than just a girl. every day, she questioned why mike chose her out of the millions of girls he could have had.

she lived with him in new york city, and worked as a paid intern at the headquarters of an up and coming fashion company. when her schedule allowed, she would visit him while on set or at a stage production of his.

one morning, she had to wake up early for a business meeting at the office, and the alarm on her smart watch woke her up at exactly six in the morning. Y/N’s eyes shot open, and she saw that mike was still fast asleep at her side. she slowly wriggled her way out of his grasp as to not wake him, stopping every few seconds to make sure he was still asleep. finally, her feet touched the cold wood below her and she peered outside her apartment window to see the sun rising above the city.

she went to the bathroom and glanced over her average features in the mirror. her once defined facial structures were starting to fall, her hips were wide, her stomach wasn’t completely flat, and her arms were looking extra big today. Y/N sighed, her feelings weighing heavily on her conscience.

she got dressed for work, putting on a tight skirt with a long sleeved blouse tucked in. she looked over herself, and saw that the fabric closely hugged her curves.

Y/N tried to sneak around mike who was still sleeping as best she could. however, when she dropped her phone on the ground in the bedroom resulting in the loudest thud possible, he shot up from bed.

“are you okay?” he asked groggily. “i heard something fall.”

Y/N frowned. “sorry mike, i just dropped my phone.”

“are you leaving?” mike asked, still squinting at her as his eyes adjusted to the morning light.

“yeah, but i’ll be back around four today.”

“okay, i’ll be home at about six. have a good day at work,” he said as Y/N walked over to the bed and leaned down to give mike a kiss.

“i’ll try. you have a good day too.”

“i love you, Y/N.”

“i love you too, mike,” she responded before leaving.

she walked out of the apartment complex and down the streets of new york to the office where she worked, which was only a few blocks away. she entered the building, being greeted by the smell of coffee, fabric, and paper. Y/N went straight to her boss’s office to collect her tasks for the day.

she knocked on his door gently before hearing a grisly “come in” from the other side. she opened it and saw her boss, named henry beauford.

beauford wasn’t known for being a kind boss. he often subjected his workers to unpaid overtime and overworking, and was unnecessarily harsh on those who worked every day to make his company grow. Y/N was afraid of him, considering one wrong move would have her blacklisted from any other fashion company in new york.

he had old, sunken eyes, and a taste for stylish suits. his hair was fading from a dull brown to a light grey, and his cheek bones remained chiseled despite his age.

beauford looked up from his desk and eyed Y/N. “good morning. i have to start our meeting in roughly…” he started, glancing at his watch. “ten minutes. go get me and anyone else here that wants coffee some coffee. i want my usual.”

Y/N nodded and quickly left the room, making her way to the coffee station on the second floor. on her way, she got four more orders to make.

she began pouring the hot coffee into cups, but was interrupted when she felt a tap on her shoulder. she turned around and saw a coworker of hers named jesse.

jesse was constantly talking to her and flirting, despite Y/N’s best attempts to shoo him away. she mentioned to him that she had a boyfriend multiple times, yet he still went after her. she was not in the mood to deal with the likes of him today.

“hey Y/N, how has your morning gone?” he asked smoothly.

“just fine, thanks jesse.”

he paused. “tomorrow night, i was going to go out to dinner with friends, but my date flaked on me. i need someone by my side for the dinner, want to come with me?” jesse asked with a smile.

“no thank you.”

“come on, i’ll pay,” he persisted.

“i said no,” Y/N said, harsher this time.

jesse’s smile fell. “i’m surprised your boyfriend hasn’t broken up with you, you aren’t necessarily all that beautiful. he could do much better, and you know it. but you’d be perfect for me. i don’t need a perfect girl.”

Y/N’s eyes widened. she knew jesse was right; mike could do so much better. however, hearing it aloud was a whole new feeling for her.

“i-i’m going to go deliver my coffees.”

she ran off, leaving jesse in the dust. she made her rounds in the office, taking her time delivering the coffees to the various employees. finally, on her last stop, she made it to beauford’s once again.

she knocked, and when the familiar “come in” sounded, Y/N entered to find beauford and jesse having a conversation. as soon as she stepped foot into the room, their eyes fell on her in a cold as ice way.

“i-is something wrong?” Y/N asked nervously, resting the cup on his desk.

beauford looked her up and down. “yes, actually. there is,” he started. jesse was smiling devilishly at the look on Y/N’s face.

“jesse brought to my attention that your outfit isn’t exactly… office appropriate,” beauford stated.

Y/N squinted her eyes. “what? this is perfectly within the dress code.”

“the clothes themselves are, but they hug your body a bit too tight. we can see all of your curves.”

Y/N looked down. she wasn’t big, but she definitely was not skinny. the curves on her stomach and hips were what she was most insecure about, and her clothes apparently highlighted the natural curvature of her body too much.

she wasn’t having any of it. “so if a skinny girl wore this outfit, it would be okay?”

“precisely. that’s why i’m going to send you home for a few days to hopefully get rid of a few of those curves.”

Y/N’s face fell from a look of anger to a look of pure horror and embarrassment. tears welled up in her eyes, and jesse sent her a sly smile. he was behind all of this because he was tired of being rejected.

at this point, her mind was completely torn on what to do. half of her wanted to fight it, give them a piece of her mind. then again, she wanted this job. it was her dream to design clothes, and this job could get her there.

Y/N gulped, trying to ignore the lump in her throat and the red on her cheeks. “okay, i’m sorry. see you in a few days.”

she turned around and walked out, holding back the tears that were trying so desperately to make an appearance.

as Y/N walked home, it felt like the streets of new york were spinning. her mind was dazed, and it felt like that until she unlocked the door to her and mike’s apartment and closed herself inside.

when she made it inside, she burst into tears. she had never felt so humiliated, torn down, and embarrassed. and the worst part was that she knew what they said was right.

Y/N ran to the bathroom and viewed herself in the mirror. her curves were very much present, and her puffy eyes added to the disillusion that she was anything less than beautiful. she continued sobbing and slid her back against the door.

her breathing was becoming irregular, and her tears slowed when she began to hyperventilate. she reached for her phone to call mike, but there was no reply.

“mike, please!” she yelled, trying it again. her heart rate quickened, and she continued gasping for air.

she tried and tried again, but stopped when she remembered that mike probably didn’t want anything to do with her. she was nothing, and he was something. he shouldn’t have to console Y/N in a moment like this.

she laid down on the floor, hoping to stop the pain in her chest and her headache. the panic attack made her feel like she needed to pass out. then, Y/N felt her body disassociate until everything went black, and she was out cold.

Y/N’s eyes slowly fluttered open, and she saw the ceiling above her. she felt the cold tile underneath her body, and she couldn’t remember why she was laying on the ground. however, she felt like she had a long, much needed nap.

she checked the time, which was five o’clock. she couldn’t believe she had slept for that long.

she knew that mike would be home in an hour. when Y/N saw a message from her boss about what day she would be coming back to work and missed calls from mike, all of what had happened in the morning came flooding back to her.

her lip quivered, and she gently cried once again. this cry wasn’t a panicked, heart-wrenching sob like her previous one was. this one was slower, more melancholic.

she sat her back against the wall and cried it out. she thought about how much she hated her appearance, and how much she felt like a disappointment compared to her boyfriend. she almost felt it’d be easier to break up with him before she got even more attached to someone she knew she shouldn’t have.

the time flew by, and before she knew it, the familiar sound of mike unlocking their apartment door came from outside the closed bathroom door. Y/N’s tears halted for a moment before continuing when she heard his footsteps.

“Y/N, i’m home,” mike announced, worry already present in his voice. Y/N tried to give a reply, but no words came out.

“Y/N? where are you? i received so many missed calls from you today.” he questioned.

finally, Y/N croaked a harsh “in here.”

the footsteps quickened, and there was a knock at the door before mike pulled open the door. he looked around and saw a hunched over Y/N pressed against the wall, still in her work clothes and eyes puffy from crying.

“oh my god Y/N, what happened?” mike asked, bending down in front of her. the concern in his voice made Y/N begin crying again. he placed his hands on her arms comfortingly.

Y/N sighed and stood up. mike stood up too, and she turned her back to him.

“what’s wrong? did i do something?” he asked, his voice getting more confused by the second.

she shook her head. “n-no. it’s not you, it’s me.”

mike frowned. “what-?”

“today at work, a male coworker of mine was fed up with me not giving him a chance. he went to my boss, and he made up a dress code rule and sent me home to lose a few pounds. all because my outfit hugged my curves too tight.”

mike turned red with anger, and his face scrunched up. “that’s it, those men can’t treat you like this. that’s ridiculous.”

mike’s face softened when he realized there was something deeper going on. “Y/N don’t let those men get to you. they don’t know what they’re talking about.”

“but the thing is they’re right,” she exclaimed, mike’s heart breaking with every word. she took a pause. “they’re right. i’m not as skinny as i could be, i’m not all that pretty, and i’m boring. and you? you’re amazing. you’re doing big things and i’m just kind of… there. you can do so much better, mike. so much better. you deserve someone good.”

mike stared back at her, and Y/N swore she saw a glimmer of tears in his eyes. he stepped closer to her. “is that really what you think?”

Y/N nodded and cried harder. “yes.”

mike wrapped her in a hug, but she didn’t hug back. she loved the feeling of being close to him, but the more distant she could be, the easier it would be to break things off.

mike pulled away, his arms lingering around her. he took his hands and wiped away her tears.

“mike, i don’t want to grow more attached than i already am. you need to go find someone else, i’m holding you back,” she pleaded.

mike pressed his hands against her cheeks and tilted her head up to make her look him in the eyes.

“i fell in love with you for a reason. do you know why?”

Y/N shook her head, and mike continued. “i fell in love with you because i didn’t like the idea of being with someone just like me. i like having a humble, regular girl. you aren’t flashy, you aren’t loud, you’re simply you. and that’s enough for me.” he removed a hand and gently used his other thumb to rub her cheek.

“but i-”

“let me finish,” mike interrupted. “you’re ambitious, brave, strong, cool, smart, and so much more. you complete me and ground me more than anyone. you keep me sane in the busiest of times. you help me so much more than you’d ever know. i need you, Y/N.”

“are you sure?” she asked innocently.

mike smiled. “i’ve always been sure. you’re perfect in my eyes, sweetheart, and i’ve always known you’re the one for me. you’re beautiful inside and out.”

“who told you i was perfect?” she asked, a small smile on her lips.

“no one had to tell me. you just are.”

Y/N leaned her head into his chest and cried some more. mike rested his hand behind her head, and wrapped the other one around her back.

she sniffled. “i’m sorry.”

“for what? you have nothing to apologize for,” mike consoled.

“i’m sorry for being obnoxious about this. today just sucked, really bad.”

“it’s my job as your boyfriend to keep you happy, safe, and comfortable. i would do this for you at any time,” he said quietly, trying not to cry in response to Y/N’s endless tears.

they stayed in their hug in the bathroom until Y/N calmed down. for her, she needed this love, and she couldn’t fathom the thought of breaking things off with him anymore. he was her rock.

#mike faist #mike faist imagine #mike faist x reader #mike faist fanfiction

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