#And flying out for a wedding can be SO expensive.
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not according to plan | hjs
summary: your ex-fiance is getting married and everyone you know is going to be there. when he calls to ask if you're coming, you accidentally mention a boyfriend. which would be fine, if you weren't very single. thankfully your best friend comes through with the perfect solution when he sets you up with a friend of his. what could possibly go wrong?
pairing: joshua x f.reader
genre: fake dating, strangers to friends to ?? | fluff, slight angst, smut
rating: explicit, minors DNI
word count: ~22.1k
notes/warnings: johnny suh as the ex-fiancee (sorry, he's not great in this), other idols born in '95 used as background characters, mentions of past cheating, food & alcohol, lots of "dates", reader is referenced as coming from a rich family, mention of being an escort (minus the sex?)
smut warnings: making out, multiple smut scenes (kind of, it could be a continuation), multiple orgasms, teasing, they're both v obsessed with each other's bodies, protected sex, fingering, nipple play, oral sex (f. receiving), scratching/marking, squirting, overstimulation, use of lube, i think that's it (but let me know if it's not)
author's note: this fic is dedicated to the lovely @shuadotcom, i'm so sorry it took me literal months to finish fake dating!joshua but here we are anyway. i'm not sure how this one got so away from me either lmao. banner credit to the beautiful @wongyuseokie who (again) did this very last minute. thank you to @wonwussy & @kwanisms for the mid-fic beta. thank you to @wooahaeproductions, @horanghater, @cheolism, & @hannieween for listening to me talk about this and helping with things like petnames & dates.
taglist at the end (& join my permanent taglist here)
“It’s fine, it’s been years and I’m over it. Plus, I’ve been seeing someone anyway and he’s great. So I wasn’t ignoring your invite,” you say without a second thought.
It’s just a stream of consciousness. The lie comes flying out of your mouth faster than your brain can process it. That’s exactly what it is, too. A lie. You’re not seeing anyone and haven’t been in a serious relationship since the person on the other end of the call broke your heart.
“Oh, wow, sorry, I didn’t mean to…well, I didn’t know. My mom didn’t say anything when she said she had spoken to your mom about whether or not you were coming to the wedding,” Johnny says with a little bit of ramble.
“You know how my mom can be, I haven’t had the chance to tell her yet,” you deflect.
“I’m happy for you, then,” Johnny says.
“Thanks, I’m happy for you, too,” you force out. Somehow, it doesn’t sound like the lie you know that it is.
“So, it’s not weird, then? I mean our moms are best friends, so the rest of your family is all going to be there. A lot of your friends will be there. I know you haven’t RSVP’d yet, but…” Johnny starts.
“Nope! Not weird at all,” you utter, hoping that your voice sounds even. “It’d be weirder if I wasn’t there, right?”
“Probably, yeah,” Johnny says. “That’s great, though. Do you want me to mark you down as a yes? I can even add a plus-one, if you want to bring your partner.”
“That’s so thoughtful, but I wouldn’t want to put you out. I know how expensive weddings can be,” you say and try to sound sincere.
“No, it’s no issue, actually. We have a few extra seats that we left just in case we forgot someone or didn’t know about someone’s partner,” Johnny presses. “So we’ll see you both there?”
“Yeah, you will,” you hurry out. This conversation needs to be over.
It’s only an hour after hanging up with your ex-fiancee that your mom calls to tell you she can’t believe she had to hear it from Mrs. Suh that you’re dating someone. Which includes a whole lot of deflecting and promises about when she can meet this mystery man. Another twenty minutes after you hang up with your mom, you get a pointed text from your younger sister. The two of you haven’t ever been all that close, so she shouldn’t be surprised that you haven’t mentioned him. She made her side pretty clear when she maintained her friendship with Johnny’s new fiancée. That new fiancee, a close friend of your sisters, also just so happened to be the girl he cheated on you with. So, she can hardly expect to have a close sister bond. Yet, she seems oddly suspicious that she didn’t know you were seeing someone seriously.
Your quiet Saturday afternoon turns into a full blown headache all thanks to one call from the asshole that you really thought you left in the past. Of course, now is the perfect time for him to pop back up. Now, when you’re even between any sort of casual sex. Now, when you don’t even have someone that you can call up to pretend to date you. This is going to be one of the worst calls that you have to make when you have to admit you made it all up, that you will absolutely not be showing your face at the wedding, and you will also be changing your name before moving away.
For now, you do the only thing that you can think of doing. You call the only person that can give you any perspective on this whole fucking disaster.
“Well hello,” your best friend answers.
“Jeonghan, I fucked up,” you say without preamble.
“This is gonna be good,” he responds.
“I just got off the phone with my mom,” you begin.
“What did she want?” he asks, knowing that it won’t be anything good.
“Well, you know, to talk about this new boyfriend of mine,” you continue.
“You haven’t dated anyone in forever,” Jeonghan chuckles.
“Thank you for that,” you snark. “And then, of course, I get a text from my perfect sister wondering why she’s also just hearing about this boyfriend of mine.”
“Why do your sister and your mom think you’re dating someone?” Jeonghan asks.
“Oh, well, you know. Johnny called today,” you offer.
“Fuck that guy,” Jeonghan interjects.
“He wanted to know why I hadn’t responded to his wedding invite and assumed it was awkward because I was single, so I told him I was seeing someone,” you finally finish.
“For fuck’s sake,” Jeonghan says into the silence and you can imagine his face.
“Right? My life is a fucking mess and now Johnny thinks that I’m bringing my boyfriend,” you groan.
“I’ll start planning the story for why you suddenly left town,” Jeonghan says.
“For real, my life is over,” you whine.
“What are you gonna do?” Jeonghan asks softly.
This is really why you called him. Jeonghan is a shithead, sometimes, and he can be a bit of a chaos demon. He also can be a bit of a schemer, especially when it comes to winning a game. But, he’s unfailingly kind and caring to the people he holds dear. He absolutely hates getting into any kind of real conflict with his friends. There’s that whole side to him that honestly wouldn’t hurt a fly and always has a way to comfort. That’s the side that you get now.
“I don’t know,” you answer, voice just as quiet. “I’m just…I don’t want to let him win, you know?”
And Jeonghan does know. You’ve been friends since before you started dating Johnny. Even though he never liked him, Jeonghan supported you in your relationship. When Johnny proposed, he called your other friends and set up the best engagement party anyone could ask for. From the outside, nobody would ever know that he hated your partner. Honestly, he’s the best friend anyone in the world could ask for.
Before he got around to setting up the bridal shower, which he’d been quietly planning for months, your whole world turned upside down. Johnny cheated, had been cheating awhile, actually, and Jeonghan was there to pick up the pieces. Somehow, he was the only one that seemed to make it better, probably because he didn’t want to act like things were okay when they weren’t. It was easy to cry in front of him, easy to be vulnerable, easy to just let the process play out so you could heal. Even though he never liked Johnny, he also didn’t say he told you so. This had never been something that crossed his mind.
“Okay, you’re gonna hate it, but I have an idea,” Jeonghan says.
“Those are never comforting words coming from you,” slips out of your mouth.
“Usually I’d yell at you, but…” he trails off.
“I swear, if you’re about to say that we pretend to be dating like some romcom, I will hang up the phone,” you warn.
“First of all, that’s rude, I’m a great boyfriend,” Jeonghan says.
“I never said you weren’t, Hannie, you know I think you’re gorgeous,” you sigh.
“That’s true, I am,” Jeonghan says through a laugh.
“But, I also know you remember what an unmitigated disaster it was when we fucked,” you point out, earning an even louder laugh.
“Wow, and here I thought that it was actually great sex,” he says.
“I’m not gonna keep stroking your ego, I already admitted you were gorgeous. I don’t need to praise the sex, too,” you declare.
“Stroking my…come on, you’re making it too easy,” Jeonghan points out.
“Funny, because I remember you being the easy one that night,” you say, finally managing to get a shot in.
“I hate you,” Jeonghan snorts.
“I know,” you answer. “Didn’t you say that you had an idea?”
Jeonghan clears his throat. “Right, yeah. Well, I know this guy and maybe he can help you out.”
“What is he, an escort?” you snort out.
“Do you want my help or not?” Jeonghan asks.
“Yoon Jeonghan, are you about to set me up with an escort?” you challenge.
“No, of course not, just trust me,” he says.
Just trust me might be the three most terrifying words that could come out of Jeonghan’s mouth, especially when you’re not usually on the receiving end of his schemes. It’s not like you have much choice, though. The wedding is in six weeks and you have to find a solution, fast. So, what choice do you have other than trusting your best friend? How could this go wrong?
You still think this is a terrible idea, yet agree to meet Jeonghan’s friend, Joshua, anyway. Apparently, he’s somewhat new to the area, doesn’t know many people, and is incredibly easy to be around. There’s no mention of why Jeonghan thinks he might be willing to pretend to be your boyfriend. A part of you wonders if your friend even told him, but he’s not that cruel. So, whatever the case, Joshua must at least have some idea of what he’s walking into.
Several days pass between the nightmare of a call from Johnny and you actually meeting Joshua, which only adds to your anxiety about whether or not this is going to work. Johnny is asking for a name for the seating chart and for dinner selections. Your mom wants to know when they’ll be able to meet this new boyfriend before the wedding (because “meeting him for the first time at a wedding is gauche” and we wouldn’t want that). Your sister is convinced that he doesn’t actually exist since you haven’t posted him on social media. That you can at least answer to say that not everyone posts their entire life online like she does. It doesn’t seem to allay her suspicions, though.
Then, there’s the fact that you’re actually meeting Joshua for the first time at dinner. All you wanted was to go for coffee, yet he insisted. You couldn’t exactly press the point. Not when you’re planning to ask this stranger to pretend to date you just so that you can avoid the embarrassment at your ex’s wedding. On top of that, because Jeonghan really is a demon at his core, you don’t know what Joshua looks like. Don’t know who to look for. Which leads to you doing the only sensible thing and showing up 5 minutes late for dinner, hoping that he’ll already be at the table when you get there.
It works.
When you give the reservation name at the host stand, you’re immediately led back to a table. Without even thinking about it, you smooth your hands down the front of your dress, looking for a small amount of comfort in this situation. It’s not even that you struggle around new people, this is just…well, it’s a lot. It’s out of anyone’s comfort zone. Whatever you’re expecting, it’s not the man sitting at the table the host leads you to. He nearly stops you in your tracks.
His black hair is perfectly styled down to the pieces on one side that come down over his forehead. The black dress shirt he wears is open at least one button too many, but he makes the exposed chest look work in a way models would envy. Even though his pants are black as well, he makes it look classic and effortless, rather than too dark. That’s all without even acknowledging the soft smile on his face. This man would break a thousand hearts without even saying a damn word. While you’re appreciating him, you miss the way his eyes rake over you appreciatively. Miss the way his eyes trace your curves and the way the dress clings to you.
In one fluid motion, he’s standing up to greet you, a gentle kiss placed on your cheek. Is it weird if your knees are a little weak? Well, even if it is, there’s nothing you can do. You’re completely captivated.
“You must be Joshua,” you say. Brilliant, you think. That’s obvious.
“It’s nice to meet you. Jeonghan had nothing but good things to say,” he answers with another smile as he pulls your seat out for you.
“I feel like he hardly told me about you,” you respond. Joshua raises a perfect eyebrow at that.
“Then why did you agree to go out with me?” Joshua asks.
“Go out with…is this a date?” The question comes tumbling out.
Joshua’s eyes widen in genuine confusion. “Is it not?”
“What, exactly, did Jeonghan say to you?”
A lot and nothing at all, it turns out. Joshua tells you about how he’s somewhat new to the area, which you knew. About how he met Jeonghan through work, kind of. They work in the same building doing very different things and happened to run into each other getting coffee a handful of times before Jeonghan introduced himself. The two had hung out several times, something Jeonghan had not really mentioned, and gotten to know each other over drinks more than once. The very first time, Jeonghan had mentioned you and Joshua admits immediately being intrigued without pressing for more information.
In any case, Jeonghan talked about you pretty freely, a fact that’s hardly surprising. Before Joshua texted you, Jeonghan had mentioned, in what Joshua calls an offhand way, that you were sick of dating the same people. According to Joshua, through Jeonghan, you were looking to possibly be set up. (Read: Jeonghan thinks he’s crafty and isn’t going to come out and tell this man what you’re really looking for. Typical Jeonghan, honestly. You know that “offhand comment” was anything but. And you had the audacity to think Jeonghan would have to tell Joshua what he’s getting into. Rookie move.)
Now you’re in a bit of an awkward situation because this man is honestly gorgeous, one of the prettiest humans you’ve ever met. And, already, he seems like he might be sweet with a pretty good sense of humor. It’s just…well, you’re absolutely not looking for a relationship and this is the last person you want to get involved in your mess. Thankfully, you get a moment to catch your breath when someone comes by to take a drink order and suggest an appetizer. It’s just enough time for you to talk yourself into telling Joshua the real story.
To his credit, he only looks mildly surprised as you outline your whole situation, inform him that yes, Jeonghan does know all of this, and clarify why you didn’t actually realize it was a date. It’s hard to miss the way his eyes seem to sparkle a bit when you also admit that he’s absolutely stunning in a way that hurts your feelings. Easier to miss is the way his face barely falls when you say that you’re not actually looking for something right now. Interesting.
“So that’s the whole thing and now that I’ve embarrassed myself in front of you, I’m sure you’ll understand if we never see each other after tonight,” you finish.
“How am I supposed to go to a wedding as your boyfriend in a matter of weeks if we don’t see each other after tonight?” Joshua wonders.
“I…what?” you sputter out.
“Well, sure, we need to work out a few details, but I’m game,” Joshua says with a shrug.
“I’m sorry, I think I’m just really confused?” You don’t even have food yet and this is already the most interesting date you’ve been on, possibly ever.
“I, uh, may have left a part of my past out when I was sharing what Jeonghan knew about me,” Joshua says. “And honestly, I can’t believe I didn’t catch it or that he did this. I’d be mad if I wasn’t so impressed by how crafty it was.”
“I’m going to need you to connect some dots for me,” you admit. “Oh and also never tell Jeonghan you appreciate him being crafty. His ego is too big as it is.”
“The first time Jeonghan and I hung out, we went out for drinks, got a little wasted, and I told him about how I got through my university studies without any debts,” Joshua says, pausing long enough for someone to set the appetizer down. “He’s observant, Jeonghan, I’ll give him that. He noticed I had designer clothes, shoes, that kind of thing. And he noticed I didn’t pay attention to the prices of the drinks. So I made a vague comment about being lucky to have found a way through my studies without taking out loans.”
“I’m sure he asked you about that, he loves it when he thinks there’s a scheme,” you note with a smile.
“You’re right about that,” Joshua agrees. “So I, well I told him. When I was in school, I met this woman out one night and she paid me to go to events with her. She wanted, and these were her words, ‘someone young and hot’ with her. And the next four years, that’s what I did. I let people pay for me to go to events with them. Never more than that. I was clear that I wasn’t selling sex or anything, just company.”
You lean back in your seat with an appraising look. “An entrepreneur from the beginning.”
“Hey, no judgment,” Joshua says. All you can do is smile.
“I’m not judging, that was really smart and you’re obviously attractive enough for it,” you acknowledge.
“Thank you,” Joshua says. It doesn’t have the air of cockiness Jeonghan’s answer would. He actually seems sincere in accepting the compliment.
“But, I’m still not going to pay you to pretend to be my boyfriend,” you say, even if it’s a bit reluctant.
“I wasn’t asking you to,” Joshua shrugs. “You don’t have to pay me.”
“Why would you offer to pretend to do something like this? You don’t even know me,” you point out.
“No, I don’t. But, you seem like a good person. And I like Jeonghan, he’s nice…” Joshua says, stopping when you try to cover a scoff.
“Nice?” you question when you’re caught.
“Wrong word choice,” Joshua dismisses. “He seems like the kind of person that’s a loyal friend, like he would go into battle to protect you. Like someone you can actually trust.”
“He is all of those things, yeah,” you admit.
“And if those things are true, then him holding you out as his best friend means you’re probably all of those things too,” Joshua reasons.
“I try to be,” you agree.
“Plus, Jeonghan did mention you had seriously dated someone that was pretty rich, so I figure it’s probably the guy getting married and it’ll be a nice wedding,” Joshua says with a smile. The joke is obvious by the look in his eyes.
“It’s interesting that he mentioned Johnny, that’s my ex, being rich,” you idly comment.
“Is he not?” Joshua wonders.
“Jeonghan is a lot of things, but he’d never lie to his friends,” you answer first. “So, yeah, he is. Well, his family is at least. His mom and mine run a lot of events together, like galas and shit. That’s how we all know each other.”
“Are you rich, too?” Joshua wonders. There’s that little twinkle of something in his eyes again, but there’s also sincerity.
“I’m still not paying you,” you retort.
“Fine,” Joshua agrees.
You roll your eyes. “Okay, so what’s the plan?”
There’s a weird world’s colliding feeling to having both Jeonghan and Joshua in your apartment. But, Jeonghan doesn’t like to be left out of things. Once you told him that you and Joshua both knew about his scheming, he offered to help in any way he could. Which is likely just so he’s included. You’ll take what you can get. Now, it means that he and Joshua are sitting on your couch, scrolling through pictures on Joshua’s phone to decide what to include in an instagram post. That’s the first step you and Joshua agreed on. If you’re going to sell this whole fake relationship, then your sister actually is right. There has to be some sort of proof of it online. Which also means that your post has to talk about how you’ve been keeping it quiet and just enjoying getting to know each other without any pressure. Jeonghan takes credit for that, even if you got there on your own.
“I think I like this one,” Jeonghan says and turns the phone around to show you.
“Why that one?” you ask.
“Why not? Don’t you like it?” Joshua worries.
“I don’t know, I feel like my hand is doing something weird,” you point out.
“You look great,” Joshua assures you.
“Oh, ew, you’re not really dating,” Jeonghan complains.
“You do know you’re going to have to stop saying that, right?” you ask.
“Maybe I didn’t know either,” Jeonghan shrugs.
“No, I’m with her, you’re her best friend and you definitely would’ve known,” Joshua agrees.
“Why are you on her side already?” Jeonghan whines.
“Because she’s cool and she’s not the one who knew what I did in college and set me up,” Joshua says with a laugh.
This is how it’s been going for the last hour. You’re not really much for putting a lot of effort into your posts, so this all feels like too much. But, you know that it’s important for it to feel real and it’s important to get it right. You’re honestly pretty happy to just let the guys take the lead and go with the flow of it all. There are going to be plenty of opportunities for you to take the lead. You’re going to take your breaks where you can.
(That had also meant not putting up too much of a fight when Jeonghan told you to bring multiple outfits with you. Or when you had to change your hairstyle and makeup between the photos so it looked like they hadn’t all been taken the same day. Honestly, this was so much easier for Joshua. Then again, he’s the one doing you a favor. So maybe you can let him have it.)
After you finally get your couple pictures posted, and get a flurry of messages ranging from surprise to congratulations, you move onto preparing Joshua to meet your parents, your sister, and her husband. Jeonghan is actually a lot of help with that because he’s been around them a lot. Well, he’s helpful after he tries to scare Joshua about how intimidating it’s going to be only to give up when Joshua is unbothered. He’s so calm about everything that it’s actually kind of nice to be around. And he has no problem firing back at Jeonghan, which is really fun to watch.
You go through what your parents are like, what they do both for work and as hobbies. Joshua perks up at the mention of your dad loving music and sometimes spending his weekends just exploring new venues. It seems like there might be more to that, though you don’t press when he waves it off. It’s different when you talk about your sister, two years younger and already married. Not that you’re dying to be married or even care that she got married before you. That’s always seemed like a weird societal expectation, anyway. What does it matter when anyone gets married? If it’s their right person, then it makes sense. You being upset over your failed engagement really doesn’t have anything to do with your sister’s marriage, despite her instance it does.
It becomes obvious that you’re losing Jeonghan’s attention when you turn down his request to start playing games or watch a movie. It’s not that you don’t want to do those things, it’s just that you have a lot to cover in far less time than you realized. Sure, the wedding is still weeks away. What’s not weeks away is your first dinner with your family. That’s going to be around the corner. The least you could do, you figured, was plan a time before posting pictures on instagram. So, Jeonghan asks if it’s okay to leave and you almost sigh in relief. This will be easier without an extra person.
“Not to pry, but what’s the deal with you and Jeonghan?” Joshua asks when you settle back on the couch with a glass of wine.
“What do you mean?” you ask.
“I don’t know, I feel like I was picking up on something,” Joshua shrugs.
“We’re really just friends,” you assure him.
“Sometimes those are the best…” Joshua starts.
“Don’t,” you cut off. He worries for a second before he realizes you’re smiling. “We did try. Not so much a try, I guess, but we slept together maybe 6 months after Johnny and I broke it off and it just wasn’t it.”
“You and him slept together?” Joshua questions.
“Is that weird for you?” you ask.
“No, it’s just interesting that you’re still so close,” Joshua observes.
“I guess,” you say with a shrug. “He’s great, obviously attractive, but we just, I don’t know. I didn’t feel anything. Neither did he. So, staying friends seemed like the right choice.”
“Interesting,” is all Joshua says. “Have you dated anyone seriously since Johnny?”
“Not that seriously, no,” you admit. “I’ve gone on dates with different people and some of them stuck around for a bit, but nothing serious.”
“Not finding the right people?” Joshua presses.
“I just haven’t found anyone that made me feel like Johnny did at the beginning or even like I did when he proposed,” you say.
“I can understand that, even if I don’t really get it. You’re gorgeous, anyone would be lucky,” he says smoothly. You cover a blush with a slight eye roll.
“I guess that’s why most of my close friends will also believe that I kept a new relationship on the low. They saw me post-Johnny and have seen me try to date,” you share.
“Yeah that’s good for us, at least,” Joshua agrees.
“What about you, though? When was your last relationship?” you ask.
“Ah, well it’s been a little over a year,” Joshua says.
“Bad ending?” you wonder. You’re not sure why you press him on it.
“It wasn’t great,” Joshua says with a chuckle. “She, uh, well she decided that she just really would rather be with one of my friends than with me.”
“I’m so sorry you went through that,” you say, suddenly sorry.
“No, no, it’s fine,” he says. “She didn’t actually cheat on me, but she had started getting close to him and sharing everything with him.”
“Arguably worse, in my opinion. Emotional cheating is still a thing,” you say, trying to offer comfort.
“Thank you,” Joshua says. His eyes are soft and full of care. “And, like you, I have dated since then, just nothing worth talking about.”
It’s an easy transition from that into talking about your backgrounds. Like speed dating, except somehow more intense. You learn Joshua’s birthday, his parents names, that he’s an only child, and where he grew up. Nothing is too small and you joke about taking notes before you actually go to get a notebook. Joshua tells you his favorite color and his favorite food, tells you about his favorite memories, favorite places where he grew up, and favorite places he’s found since moving here. There’s a way that his face lights up when he talks about his friends that’s drawing you in. You tell him the same. That all feels a little surface level, which you point out. If this is going to work, it has to be deeper, more serious.
That’s when something seems to almost break down. Joshua suggests that you tell each other the deep stuff, the things that you don’t always admit to someone you’re dating. Or, maybe you admit it and don’t get into the reasons why. When Joshua goes first and admits that he’s happiest when he’s playing his guitar, even if nobody else is listening, his whole face changes. It’s like a completely different version of him. He’s got an open face as it is, that hasn’t changed, but you realize maybe he’s a little guarded behind the smile as well. Maybe there really is more depth than he wants anyone to realize. Maybe this is going to be more interesting than you thought.
“Can I hear you play?” you ask. His face is adorable with his eyes full of surprise.
“You want to hear me play?” There’s an emotion you can’t place when he looks at you.
“I love music, too, Joshua,” you say softly. “I’d love to see what you’re passionate about.”
“Oh, well, I usually play at this acoustic night on Thursdays at a coffee shop downtown,” Joshua tells you.
“You do? That’s so cute!” you say before second guessing it. He looks away like he’s a little embarrassed and you worry for a split second.
“I’d love it if you came by,” he says.
“It’s a shame that we can’t say that’s where we met,” you admit.
“Wait, that would be a good idea, actually,” Joshua says and you smile.
“It would be, but I also know events like that. It’s always a similar crowd so I’m sure someone will know that I’ve never been,” you reason.
“Fair point,” Joshua concedes.
“Why don’t we just say we met on a dating app?” you suggest and Joshua pulls up his face. “Okay, I know apps are lame and honestly, I don’t use them much. But, think about it. That’s the perfect reason why we didn’t bring it up until now, we didn’t want to answer the ‘where did you meet’ question by saying an app.”
“Okay, yeah, I do actually like that because it’s easy and it doesn’t feel like a wild story,” Joshua says.
“What about your parents?” you ask. “Do we need to make plans to meet them if you’re also posting about me?”
“We can figure that out, but they live pretty far away so it would probably just be over FaceTime or something,” he says.
“I also understand if you don’t want to do that because we’re just pretending,” you suggest.
“No, it’d be cool to have you meet them. Even if the relationship isn’t real, I’d like to be friends for real, so that’s not a total lie,” Joshua reasons.
“I’d like to be friends too,” you agree. “How long have you been living here, now?”
“Oh, um, like 8 months?” Joshua says like a question.
“I was figuring like a month or two with the way Jeonghan talks about you,” you laugh.
“You’ve been friends with him for years, you’re not actually surprised,” Joshua points out.
“Okay so now I guess we have to figure out when we started dating,” you comment.
“And everything else, but we can do it,” Joshua says.
You’re a little nervous sitting on your couch waiting for Joshua to show up. Even though you offered to pick him up for dinner with your family tonight, he insisted on being the one to drive. Of course he’s right on time, which you’re already realizing is a trait of his. He’s even a gentleman when he opens the door for you, just like he pulled the chair out the first time you met for the date-not-date. As you put your seatbelt on, you notice that there are a few things in the backseat.
“What’s all that?” you ask as he slides into the driver’s seat.
“Flowers for your mom, a bottle of scotch for your dad, and a cheese board for your sister because you said they just moved and she likes to host,” Joshua lists off as if it’s nothing.
“You did not have to get things for all of them,” you point out.
“Of course I did, but I also wanted to. I’m trying to make a good impression,” he says, making your heart a little light.
“That’s so kind,” you whisper out.
“Oh, I thought of something else,” Joshua shifts. You’re worried you made him uncomfortable until he speaks again. “Are you a pet name person in relationships?”
That makes you snort, something that would embarrass you in any other situation. It’s not the first time he’s heard it, though. “That depends on what you want to call me.”
“That’s a dangerous way to say that,” Joshua answers. His eyes are still on the road, yet you don’t miss the way he reacts.
“I don’t like overly cutesy names,” you say to diffuse a little bit of the moment. “Like, I don’t know, if you want to call me sugarplum or honeybunch or something like that, please don’t.”
“You’re just giving me ideas to take away my fun,” he pouts.
“Well, what were you thinking of calling me? Or are you even a pet name person?” you ask.
“I do like them,” Joshua says. “I’m not sure that I have a go-to or anything. For you, I might say angel or possibly darling.”
“I think I prefer angel, if I’m allowed to pick,” you say after a moment.
“Of course,” Joshua replies. Studying his face, you’re looking for a hint of mocking or insincerity, but there’s nothing to find. This is just him.
“Do you want me to use a pet name for you?” you wonder.
“I’d happily take one, no pressure, though,” he says.
“I’ll have to think about it,” you tell him. “Something generic like babe doesn’t feel right.”
“Are you saying I’m special?” Now you can hear the light teasing in his voice.
“I take it back, any more compliments are going to go to your head,” you huff out.
As you get closer to your parents’ house, you start to bounce your knee with an excess of nervous energy. It’s not until Joshua reaches a hand out to take one of yours that you’re even sure you’re doing it. There’s something calming about it, though. Nothing about him reaching out feels like he’s trying to stop you, just show that you’re not alone in this. Which is more than welcome. The last person you brought to meet your parents was Johnny. Given how that ended and why Joshua is around in the first place, it’s not exactly the most comforting thought.
Once you pull up to their house, you take a deep breath. It’s only to settle your rising nerves, but it also serves to give Joshua enough time to come and open your door. Even though you’ve told him that he doesn’t need to be this sweet, he insists. Without saying a word, he holds out a hand to help you out of the car. Instead of dropping your hand once you’re out, he uses it to pull you into him and wraps his arms around you. There’s this immediate sense of comfort, like you have actually been dating for months. You inhale his cologne without meaning to, something warm and woodsy.
“It’s going to be fine, parents love me,” he assures you when you pull away.
“I don’t doubt that,” you say, releasing the breath you were holding and your tension with it.
“So come on, my little granola wrapper, let’s go,” Joshua says as he lets you go to get the gifts out of his backseat.
It takes you a full few seconds to register what came out of his mouth. “I’m sorry, what did you just call me?”
“Is that not the one?” he asks, eyes alight with some kind of mischief.
“I’m not going to encourage this,” you huff.
“Whatever you say, jellybean,” he throws out casually.
The second you step into the house, you see exactly what Joshua means. Your mother is fawning over him in a matter of seconds, your father is making plans to show him his records, your sister’s husband is asking when they can go out for drinks, and your sister even holds back the snark. All during the course of the pre-dinner drinks and largely, you think, due to the gifts that Joshua brought. He had a reason for the meaning behind the type of flowers for your mother, a favorite musician who swore by the scotch for your dad, and even bought the cheese board from a small business that customized things.
Dinner comes along and you still feel like you’ve barely said anything with Joshua masterfully steering the conversation. He even makes it sound good that you met on an app, with his improvised story of wanting to meet people in a new city. According to him, he wasn’t expecting to meet someone like you and was done for the second he saw you sitting at dinner. It’s something real, that you met him for dinner the first time at a fancy downtown restaurant. And you realize you never actually asked what his impression was that first night. More than once, you catch yourself watching his profile as he talks to one of your family members. Everything about him is at ease and you wonder if it really is all fake. Not that you think anything about him is disingenuous, he’s just really good at making people like him.
The only hiccup doesn’t come until your mother is pulling out dessert. According to your sister, she’s got an excellent pie in the refrigerator that you simply have to try. You’re about to say something when Joshua beats you to it.
“I don’t think my little sugarplum likes fruit pies, but it sounds amazing and I’d love a piece,” Joshua interjects smoothly.
Your sister nearly spits out her drink, whether it’s at the nickname or him speaking up for you, you’re not sure. In any other situation, you would scold him for the name, but you’re a little stunned he remembers you don’t like pie. It came up once in a rapid fire of likes and dislikes.
“You’re right, she doesn’t,” your sister agrees. “I’d almost forgotten.”
(That’s when you’re sure it was another of your sister’s tests. Trying to catch you in some kind of lie about your relationship. But, it doesn’t work and you feel a little victorious for that.)
The doorbell rings through the house and you look to your mother, silently asking if she’s expecting someone. It’s unusual for them to have company calling this late on a Friday night. It’s usually reserved for dinners with friends or family or galas. Unsurprisingly, your mother doesn’t seem to know who it could be, but disappears to answer the door all the same. When a voice drifts through from the hallway, you freeze on the spot.
“I really just came by to drop that off for my mom, I didn’t realize it was so late. I’d hate to intrude on dessert,” the guest says.
“Nonsense, you’re not interrupting,” your mother insists.
“I saw an unfamiliar car, so I figured you might have guests,” he says as they come through the doorway into the living area.
Your heart stutters a little in your chest, feels heavier for seeing him. Somehow he looks taller and broader than the last time you saw him. He’s wearing his hair shorter and he looks more mature, somehow, like he’s seen so much more of the world than when you were together. Which is probably true, if you think about it. It’s been a couple years and that means he’s had more time working with his father.
“That would be my car,” Joshua says, getting to his feet immediately and extending his hand. “I’m Joshua.”
“Johnny,” he answers and shakes Joshua’s hand. Yet, his face looks a little tense and his eyes mostly stay on you.
“It’s just family,” your mother shares, though Johnny can obviously see that himself, “since our darling daughter finally brought Joshua around to meet us.”
“I’m glad she did, dinner was wonderful and the company was even better,” Joshua says with a smile at your mother. She nearly blushes at his compliment.
“Oh, hush,” your mother says with a wave of her hand. “I was just getting some pie if you’d like to stay for a piece, Johnny. Although, I’d hate to keep you from home.”
Joshua sits back down next to you, a little closer than is strictly necessary, and puts his arm along the back of the couch behind you. You feel safe pressed up against his side like that. Johnny clears his throat when he looks away from the pair of you. “Gabby has been out of town all week, actually, so I’m going back to an empty home anyway. I’d love to stay for a piece of your famous cherry pie.”
“Great!” your mother says and disappears off into the kitchen.
“What’s got Gabby away?” your sister asks.
“Just a conference,” Johnny answers. “There was a final banquet tonight and she’ll be home tomorrow.”
“She’s busy, away this week, bachelorette next weekend,” she says offhand.
“Keeping tabs on when everything is?” you ask of your sister. She looks at you like you’re crazy and Johnny looks awkward.
“No, I was invited to it,” your sister answers evenly.
Before you can even answer, Joshua is speaking up. Probably sensing your discomfort. After all, you hadn’t gotten to tell him that Johnny’s fiance is friends with your younger sister. They had gone to school together and been close. Stealing her sister’s fiancée doesn’t seem to have impacted the friendship.
“You must be excited with the big day getting so close,” Joshua says. He moves his arm from behind you so that he can take your hand on your thigh. It makes you look down at your hands before glancing at him, only to find his gaze on you already. It also means you miss the way Johnny follows the movement.
“Uh, yeah, I mean, I’m definitely excited. It’s just been a lot of planning,” Johnny says.
“I bet,” Joshua says. “Thank you so much for inviting me, I know how stressful changes can be.”
“It’s no problem, I’m happy you’ll both be there,” Johnny says.
With almost a practiced subtlety, Joshua squeezes your hand. There’s so much in that one movement. A reassurance, a reminder to breathe, a reminder that he’s there, a promise that everything is going to be okay. Your heart hurts seeing Johnny sitting in the living room so casually as if nothing happened, but it doesn’t hurt as much as you expected. Maybe that has something to do with this impossibly kind, completely idiotic person next to you. You also can’t help the way your gaze lands on him. Just in profile, at first, before he senses your look and turns to you with a dazzling smile. It’s like there’s nobody else in the world but the two of you.
The conversation shifts slightly when your mother comes back in with a tray full of pie slices and your father comes back with whatever record he was looking for to show Joshua. Just like that, you survive your first in-person interaction with Johnny. Actually come out of it feeling like you might be able to handle this. The smile you send Joshua while he’s eating his pie is so fond that you’re not even sure who you are.
“I can’t believe you didn’t call me last night,” Jeonghan says in lieu of a hello.
“Hello to you too, I’m good, thanks for asking,” you retort.
“Greetings are for people who remember their best friends, not for people who send a single sentence recap after bringing their fake boyfriend home to meet the family,” Jeonghan states immediately.
“That’s a very long rule,” you note.
“Deserved, though,” Jeonghan says.
“I was tired, Han, it was a long night,” you explain.
“A long night where your ex showed up,” he reminds you.
“That actually wasn’t so bad,” you admit. “Joshua made it feel pretty easy.”
“Oh did he now?”
You don’t have to be in the same room as Jeonghan to hear the expression on his face when he says that. “It was just easy, Jeonghan, nothing more than that.”
“What did your parents think?” he asks, switching gears.
“They loved him, like actually loved him. My mom was enamored and kept calling him handsome. My dad was talking about music with him and making plans to go check out some acoustic music venue. Even the ice queen couldn’t find anything to fault him for,” you share.
“She’s less of an ice queen and more of a mean girl and a bitch,” Jeonghan adds.
“You said it,” you mumble.
“I mean, come on, who thinks it’s okay for their friend to sleep with their sister’s fiancé? And then stays friends with the girl?” Jeonghan gets really defensive with this. He would ride for you to the ends of the world, which you do love. Just not today.
“I don’t wanna relive that whole thing, it’s done and over. Nothing to do now,” you say, weariness seeping into your voice.
“Would you want to do anything about it?” Jeonghan asks.
“What do you mean?” You answer the question with a question.
“Like would you want to go back to when you were with Johnny?” Jeonghan asks.
You think about it for half a second. “No.”
“That was fast,” Jeonghan comments.
“What’s there to go back to? He made his choice and I’m fine, honestly. It was weird seeing him and hearing him talk about his wedding, but it wasn’t as bad as I thought,” you say.
“Is that because of your Prince Charming?” Your best friend, always doing the most, puts this question into a sing-song voice.
“He’s not a Prince Charming. You’re so annoying,” you scoff.
“I don’t know, he sure seems to be saving you,” Jeonghan presses.
“I can’t with…” you start, trailing off at the knock on your door.
“Who’s there?” Jeonghan asks.
“No clue,” you answer, getting off your couch to go see.
“I bet it’s Prince Charming,” Jeonghan laughs out.
“Would you fuck…” you begin as you open the door to find the very subject of your conversation on the other side, “off.”
“I’m right aren’t I?” Jeonghan is nearly shrieking with glee.
“Sorry, gotta go,” you say.
“Oh no, no, no,” Jeonghan tries.
You’re stepping aside to let Joshua into your apartment. “I’ll see you tomorrow for brunch.”
“Let me know if I need to add one more to the reservation,” Jeonghan says.
“Goodbye,” you say with an eye roll Jeonghan can’t see, but will surely hear. You hang up as soon as he also says goodbye.
“Jeonghan?” Joshua guesses.
“Unfortunately,” you confirm.
“I hope I wasn’t interrupting,” Joshua says. It’s nothing like when someone says it out of forced courtesy. He actually seems like he’s making sure he’s not intruding.
“No, not at all, I just wasn’t expecting you,” you admit.
“Sometimes that’s the best time to come over,” Joshua says with a shrug.
“Does that mean you have a plan?” you wonder.
“Yup,” Joshua says.
“Gonna tell me what it is?” you ask.
“Nope,” he says with a concerning smile, popping the end of nope. “Go put on something comfortable but with layers. And we’re not going hiking or anything like that.”
An hour later, you’re pulling off the road in an area you’ve never been to, even with as long as you’ve lived here. The views are instantly enough to take your breath away. You can see the whole city below you, all the bustle of traffic and skyscrapers. Somewhere, you know there are people rushing to and fro, too busy to stop and appreciate what’s around them. Straight ahead, you can see the way the low clouds glide around, splitting around the very tops of the buildings. It’s beautiful and it also makes you realize just how small you are.
While you’ve been appreciating the views in front of you, Joshua has been gathering his supplies from the trunk. By the time you turn around, he’s laying a blanket and basket down on the ground in front of the car.
“Is this…did you set up a picnic?” you ask.
“I wanted to show you this place and figured some food might be nice,” he says with an easy smile.
“That’s so sweet,” you say earnestly.
You settle on the blanket next to him and look through the food he’s pulling out. There are some of your favorite things and some things you’re not even sure you’ve seen before. Somehow, though, you feel like they might become some of your new favorites. He even brought plates and he sets about putting one together for you to pick at.
Joshua tells you about how this is his favorite place and he found it completely by accident. He loves being down in the city and around all the people, but there’s something nice about seeing things from this perspective too. It’s like he can just disconnect for a while. Turn off his phone. Read or listen to music. Just be totally alone. It’s how he works through a problem or gets the perspective he needs.
“I can’t believe you’re sharing it with me,” you admit and his eyes light up with his smile.
“I just thought, after last night, you might appreciate having a place to get away from it all,” Joshua says.
You want to say something, anything, really, to acknowledge what Joshua just said. Try to say something. Your throat doesn’t want to cooperate, it seems. Your brain, either. In fact, all you can manage to do is turn away to hide the tears. Joshua is observant, though. He doesn’t say anything, just pulls you into his chest and runs his hand along your back. He quietly soothes you as you cry out a lot of emotions you didn’t even realize you were experiencing.
And something about him comforting you, this near stranger who doesn’t actually owe you anything, sets you off more. In the early days of your relationship with Johnny, you know it was good. It must have been. Surely, it was more than a relationship between two people who had known each other for years with families that were intertwined. You don’t remember it anymore. Don’t remember him ever holding you like this without even knowing what was wrong. Don’t remember him taking you on a date like this just because he thought you would enjoy it. Since you haven’t seriously dated anyone since the break-up, he also feels like your only frame of reference. That makes you sad for an entirely different reason. Who loses it over someone just being a little kind?
“I’m so sorry,” you finally say when you manage to pull yourself together.
“For what?” he asks.
“For just crying like that and being such a mess,” you say.
Joshua shakes his head. Moves his hand up to your face and waits for confirmation that it’s okay. When you nod, he gently wipes the tears from under your eyes. “You have nothing to apologize for. What you’re going through with your ex, most of us could never even imagine that kind of pain.”
“But still, you barely know me and here you are trying to be kind and all I can do is cry,” you say.
“First of all, I think last night and the food I put together show I’ve actually learned a lot about you in a short time,” he says and you have to laugh at that. He’s right. “Second, I’m just happy you feel safe enough with me to cry. It’s not healthy to hold all that in. You’re not in this alone.”
That brings you up short more than anything. He’s right, again (an annoying habit, if you’re being honest). You don’t feel any hesitation around him. Nothing to stop you from crying if you feel like crying. That’s unusual, to say the least. Normally, you’ll do anything to avoid anyone seeing you emotional. But, this man you just met is different. He’s safe. You’re not sure how or why, but you know you can trust him.
“Are you free tomorrow for brunch?” you ask. Joshua gives you a quizzical look for a moment at the sudden topic change.
“Yeah, why?” he asks.
“I just need to send one quick text and then I want to do what you said you normally do here. Disconnect from the world and just appreciate the afternoon,” you say and find yourself smiling along with his smile. He really is so beautiful.
You: add one to the reservation for brunch tomorrow and i’ll call you tonight when i’m home
You switch your phone into Do Not Disturb before the response comes and turn all your attention back to Joshua.
Over the next couple weeks, Joshua slips seamlessly into your life and your existing friendships. Some of them, like those closest to you that come along to the Sunday brunches, know the whole story. It’s not like they would believe you had kept a relationship secret for that long, anyway. And it’s good to have a few extra sets of eyes and ears helping to sell the story. Other friends get the same story that your family and Johnny got. It’s not that you don’t trust them, you do. It’s more important to keep the circle of people who know the real story as small as possible, though, so that it actually succeeds. All your friends adore him from the second they meet him. The only surprise is how well Jeonghan seems to be adjusting to sharing your time. He wants to give you a hard time, yet he doesn’t.
You meet all Joshua’s friends and coworkers, too. It feels way easier than it should the first time you join him and his coworkers after work for drinks. They spend most of the time giving Joshua a hard time that he’s kept you to himself for so long. It’s easy to fall into step and you find that you do know him a lot better than you think. So, it’s just as easy for you to jump in when they’re giving him a hard time. He pretends to be annoyed, but you can tell by the way he smiles that he likes it. It’s one of those genuine smiles that makes his eyes bigger and brighter. Everything just feels…easy. Like this whole thing wasn’t actually a bad idea after all.
Your favorite part might be the first time you got with him to an Open Mic Night and get to see him play. He’s got that easy kind of confidence on the guitar. Like he knows he’s talented, but not in a cocky way. It’s his singing that catches you off guard. His voice moves over the notes with an ease that makes you wonder why this isn’t something he’s doing for a living. He’s got this way of pulling you into songs that you don’t even know. And he’s so kind with the people that show up just to see him play. They all seem just as happy to meet you and know that he’s happy.
There’s only been one part that’s been difficult. Not difficult, exactly, but not as comfortable as some of the other things. While you and Joshua talked through anything and everything to prepare to start a fake relationship, you covered comfort levels with physical affection. You both say you’re comfortable with physical touch, though he seems to seek it out more than you do. That includes at least some level of PDA as a couple. You’ve never really been one to just randomly make out with a partner in public, but you’ve never been shy about expressing affection either. It was fine, when it was all theoretical.
In actual practice, it’s been a little more difficult. The first time Joshua had pressed a kiss to the side of your head while you were out with people that didn’t know it was fake caught you off guard. It shouldn’t have, he asked before doing it and you confirmed it was fine. What you hadn’t been entirely prepared for was how it would feel when he did it. Or how it would feel that he was so casual about it, like it was the most normal thing in the world. Like it wasn’t making you rethink everything in your life.
Tonight, you’re hanging out with friends at Hyejin’s house. You and her have been friends since before you even started school. So, she knows what’s really going on with Joshua. Your other friends there, though, are mostly not in on it. Which is fine. You’re shockingly comfortable with the song and dance.
It’s not actually fine.
It starts the same as any other time you’ve been out somewhere with him. You’re sitting close together on the couch, thighs pressed together, with his arm behind you along the back of the couch. Periodically, his fingers play with the sleeve of your shirt. It’s an absentminded habit and you’re used to it. He’s usually keeping some sort of contact with you in a very subtle way. You learned right away that he did like physical touch, but it was rarely something obvious. One drink in and his affection got a little more obvious. Arm wrapped firmly around you. More kisses pressed to the side of your head.
Two drinks in and it changes again. He removes his arm from around you in favor of holding your hand. Playing with your fingers while he’s having other conversations, like he doesn’t even realize. Hand squeezing your thigh. Or tracing patterns into the material of your pants. Head dropping down on your shoulder when he’s not talking to someone else. And it’s definitely not fine. You’re nursing your drink, but even if you weren’t, his constant presence would sober you. Since you’ve just finally finished your first, you think maybe a second is a good idea.
It’s not. Joshua gets another drink, his third, and you decline. Instead, you stick with the water you’ve been drinking since you couldn’t even finish your second. You want to be able to respond, whatever happens. Respond to whatever new form of affection unlocks with this next drink.
“I hope you stick around, you’re my favorite of the partners that we’ve met,” Mimi announces to Joshua when he plops back down next to you.
You’re glad that you hadn’t taken a sip because it would’ve come out immediately. Mimi has been a friend for a long time as well, and you love her, but she doesn’t know the truth.
“Don’t I know it,” Joshua agrees, earning a lot of laughter.
“Have you met Johnny yet? I know you’re going to the wedding,” Taehyung wonders.
“Yeah Johnny showed up magically the night I brought him by to meet my parents, sister, and brother-in-law,” you say, regaining some composure.
“I think you traded up,” Joshua says, eyes laser focused on you.
You’re not so lucky this time and you just took a sip. You nearly choke. “Do you?”
“Definitely,” Joshua insists.
“I agree,” Jimin says and Mimi elbows him in the side. “What?”
“You’re going to the wedding,” she says.
“So? He’s a fucking tool,” Jimin shrugs off.
“Are you all going, then?” Joshua asks.
“A good portion of us, yeah,” Hyejin says. “Family connections, you know?”
“I wasn’t invited,” Mimi pouts.
“Want to come?” Taehyung asks and Mimi laughs.
“Tae, my love, you can’t just invite people,” Mimi says and shakes her head.
“I have a plus-one,” Taehyung says with a shrug. “I think we all knew I wouldn’t make it to the wedding in my relationship. But, Johnny still thinks I’m bringing someone.”
“Damn, okay. I’m in,” Mimi says.
“I’m not going either, my family ties weren’t enough to get an invite,” Jeonghan says without any sorrow in his eyes.
“That’s because of what you said to him after the break up,” Hyejin interrupts with a laugh.
“I don’t remember saying anything that bad,” Jeonghan shrugs, and examines his finger nails to show how little he cares.
“Remind me to show you what he said some time, it was fucking gold,” Hyejin says to Joshua.
“Do you have it saved?” you ask.
“I should have it framed, honestly,” Hyejin says. “Get you a best friend like Jeonghan, for real, for real.”
“Hey, that’s my best friend, get your own,” you joke.
“That’s a shame you won’t be there though, Han, I could’ve used the familiar face,” Joshua says.
“Like you’re going to be paying attention to anyone but your date,” Hyejin teases.
“Can you blame me? I still can’t believe how lucky I got,” Joshua says without any hint that he’s pretending. It makes your heart skip a couple beats as you try to catch your breath.
“Ugh, I’m so single,” Mimi whines.
“Maybe not after the wedding,” Hyejin teases.
The conversations devolve from there into separate, smaller chats. Joshua is back to tracing patterns into your leg. Without warning, he pops his head up and places a quick peck on your lips before dropping his head onto your shoulder again. He’s so nonchalant about it that you’re not really sure it even happened. You’ve kissed a couple times like that, quick pecks in public. But, it’s always been when you’ve talked about it. It isn’t until you look up to meet Jeonghan’s eyes that you know it all really happened.
Joshua, unaware that he’s just turned your world a little upside down, moves his head to look at you again. “You’re beautiful, you know.”
It’s barely a whisper and you know he’s not drunk. He’s not sober either, though. And you’ve had drinks around each other before. He’s just never been quite so glued to your side or free with the compliments. You’re also not usually so singularly focused on him. A fact that doesn’t go entirely unnoticed.
“Thank you,” you whisper back.
“I’m kinda hungry,” he continues in a bit of a whine.
“Well you were the one who thought skipping dinner was smart,” you tease him.
“But my little honeybunch,” he teases back. You snort and miss the way several of your friends watch the interaction because they know how you are about weird pet names.
“Try again, sweetheart,” you answer.
“Sweetheart, I like the way that sounds,” he says, distracted.
“Just a little longer and we can leave and get something to eat,” you say and he sighs.
“Fine,” he concedes and kisses your cheek, just barely a whisper away from the corner of your mouth.
About half an hour later, you say your goodbyes. Despite your suggestions, Joshua continued drinking instead of switching to water. It’s as fine as it can be, though. He’s just an affectionate drinker. He wraps an arm around you, slipping a hand into your back pocket so that he can whisper thanks again. You do your best to shrug it off and let him drape his arms around your shoulder instead.
The car ride is quiet, initially. You pick a playlist that he made for you after you first met. Something he seems to enjoy. You’re nearly back at his place when he says that he doesn’t have anything to eat. But, luckily, there’s a place around the corner that he loves that’s still open. He manages to place an order on the app, gets something for you as well, and pays before getting there. All you have to do is walk in.
“I hope you’ll come in and eat with me,” he says when you get back into the car.
You’re not really sure how to tell him that you don’t want to. Not because you don’t want to spend time with him. Or that you don’t appreciate him ordering something he knows you’ll like. No, it’s so much deeper than that. It’s that you don’t know if your heart can handle it. You’ve got a couple more weeks of this and your heart is taking a beating. All of this is fake. It’ll be over after the wedding. But, the compliments don’t feel fake. The kisses don’t feel fake. The affection doesn’t feel fake. Your heart racing is real, oh so real. You don’t need anyone to tell you that you’re in way too deep.
None of that comes out, though.
“Sure, sweetheart,” you say and hold your breath for a second. You hadn’t meant to say that when it was just you.
Joshua smiles over at you. “Really do like that.”
Does he know what he’s doing to you? Can he hear your heart hammering in your chest? Can he hear your breath catch? Does he know how insanely beautiful he is? Or that he’s all the more beautiful because he’s so unfailingly kind?
Probably not, because he gets distracted and starts singing along as the song changes. It’s welcome, but also a little devastating. His voice cuts through you in a way you’re still very unprepared to handle.
After another few minutes, you’re at Joshua’s place. He springs back into action and tries to open your door for you, even though you’re the driver. He settles for taking hold of your hand as he walks to his door, only reluctantly dropping it when he gets to the door.
His apartment is familiar to you, it has to be for this to be believable. So, he sets the food out and you grab plates. You grab a couple waters from the fridge while he takes the food over to the couch, bypassing the table. You sit next to him, leaving enough space between you that you’re not touching. Hoping he doesn’t think anything of it.
It’s useless, apparently, because he slides over to press into your side.
What’s worse (not that you thought that was possible) is that he picks things off of your plate and gives you food off his plate. Tries to feed it to you, actually, and pouts when you don’t let him. It takes everything in you not to beg him to be gentle on your heart. He doesn’t even seem to realize what he’s doing to you as he smiles and jokes. Doesn’t seem to think twice about playing with your hands or his hand on your leg or any of the things he usually does when you have an audience. There’s nobody here to see and he’s not usually this touchy when you’re alone. Maybe it’s the drinks.
“I like your friends a lot, you know,” he says out of nowhere.
“They like you, too,” you assure him.
“What about you?” he asks.
“I’d assume they like me as well,” you laugh out.
“No, I meant me. Do you like me?” he asks, eyes big and vulnerable.
Please, Joshua, I’m begging you. Be gentle with me, you think so loud you’re worried he might hear.
“I’m actually a little sick of you,” you joke.
“But, but,” he begins and dramatically throws himself in your lap.
“You’re the worst,” you say without any bite. Your hands find their way into his hair, softly running through the strands.
“That feels nice,” he says softly. “Can I just stay like this? I’m tired.”
“Of course,” you whisper.
“You’ll stay with me?” he asks, sounding like he’s about to drift off.
You’re sure he won’t remember any of this. Not because he’s drunk, but he’s on the edges of sleep. So, you answer in a whisper. “Always.”
Maybe he’s not the one that needs to be careful with your heart. Maybe it’s you that needs to be careful. You know that you could walk away. That you could just remind him that this is all fake and there’s nobody around to see now. That’s not what you do. So, maybe you’re just as much to blame.
Sunday
Joshua: thanks for taking care of me last night
Joshua: idk why the drinks hit me so hard
Joshua: when did you leave?
Monday
Joshua: is everything okay? Did i say something stupid?
Tuesday
Joshua: i don’t wanna sound clingy but are we still getting together at your place after work?
Somewhere, in the back of your mind, you know that you need to respond. You know that what you’re doing isn’t fair to anyone. It’s not like Joshua can somehow read your mind to realize you’re spiraling. It just feels a little paralyzing. This is a weird limbo of knowing you might be in over your head, but still believing this is all fake.
Jeonghan: hey dummy i know you’re ignoring joshua so i’m coming over tonight
Jeonghan: i told him you’ve been busy at work and i haven’t heard from you either but we have some talking to do
Leave it to Jeonghan. You had almost forgotten, with how well you’ve gotten to know Joshua, that it was Jeonghan who introduced you in the first place. Of course he would text your best friend when he couldn’t get a hold of you. Does that make you feel better? Not really, you think, because it feels like a real relationship in a way. Oh well, you can talk about it with Jeonghan. If he shows up, that is.
And he does, less than an hour later.
“I’m here,” he announces when he comes in the door.
“Thanks for knocking and giving me the chance to pretend I’m not here,” you call back.
“Your car is outside and you have your location turned on,” Jeonghan says.
“Right,” you answer as he comes through the hall holding a bag from your favorite take out place.
“At least I come bearing gifts,” he says.
“You’re an angel, do you know that?” you ask and reach for the bag.
Jeonghan snorts. “I’m gonna remind you of that the next time you call me a demon.”
“Well, Lucifer was a fallen angel,” you reason with a shrug.
“I hate you,” he says.
“I know,” you answer.
Jeonghan busies himself with taking out the food and making sure you have napkins. Tells you what he wants to drink when you get up to go into the kitchen. Calls for you to grab some utensils as well. By the time you sit back down with him, he’s flipping through a streaming service trying to find something to watch. It’s not at all what you’re expecting and you just let it happen. The two of you have been friends long enough to know you should just let things play out.
With some mindless show on in the background, Jeonghan talks about work and your friends and everything else that’s been going on the past few days. Like it’s been weeks since you last saw him. Mostly, he talks about how Taehyung has been blowing up his phone asking for advice about Mimi, which is actually news to you. Sure, you saw him ask her if she wanted to go with him to the wedding. What you had not expected was for him to actually be interested. Which he is, if his messages to Jeonghan are anything to go by. It’s been everything from advice about talking to her to what kinds of things she might like as a surprise. They would probably be cute, you think.
“Yeah, well, sometimes feelings catch us off guard,” Jeonghan says when you admit your surprise.
Damn. Did you really walk right into that?
“True,” you admit, knowing that’s the best answer you can give.
“Talk to me,” Jeonghan urges.
“About what?” you ask to buy more time.
“Joshua,” he says.
“There’s nothing to talk about,” you state. That makes him fix you with a look.
“Clearly there is or you wouldn’t be ignoring him,” he says.
“We’re not really dating so I don’t owe him constant updates. I’m not ignoring him. I just have other shit to do,” you say without looking at him.
“Would you like to be?” he asks. That does make you turn to him.
“Like to be what?” you ask, though you think you know.
“Really dating him,” Jeonghan says.
It’s a crossroads kind of moment. You could say that you don’t want that. That would be a lie, though, and Jeonghan doesn’t like it when you lie. Can always tell the second you say something that’s not true. The truth is that you’ve spent nearly every moment since that stupid night at Hyejin’s place thinking about what you actually feel for your fake boyfriend.
“I don’t…know,” you say slowly and earn a smile because it’s not a lie.
“I was there the other night too, I saw the way it all played out,” he says.
“I mean, does it matter? This is all fake and soon, it’ll be over,” you say.
“Of course it matters and it’ll be over soon? Please,” Jeonghan scoffs. “I know he’s told you that he wants to keep you in his life after Johnny’s wedding. So, what? You’re just gonna be like okay, that was fun, let’s never talk again?”
“I don’t know, maybe,” you say quietly.
He rolls his eyes. “Try again, buttercup.”
“It doesn’t matter. He doesn’t like me like that, he’s just nice,” you say, avoidant as ever.
“He looks at you like he’d give you the moon if you asked for it,” Jeonghan snorts out.
“He’s just nice, Han,” you disagree.
“Maybe,” your closest friend concedes, a rare move for him. It feels weird all the same. “Whatever it is, text him back. He misses you and I don’t want to hear anymore about how he’s worrying he upset you.”
“He’s been worrying that he upset me?” you ask. Your heart constricts at that.
“Yeah, for some reason he actually likes your company,” he says. “Can’t relate.”
You smack Jeonghan on the arm. “Says the man who shows up at my place unannounced when I ignore him for a day.”
“No, I was just bored,” he argued. “And you’re way too stubborn to sort out your shit on your own.”
“I’m not stubborn, but fine, I’ll text him,” you relent.
“Now,” he says.
“What?”
“Text him now so that I know you actually did it.”
You roll your eyes at him, but pull your phone out anyway. Angling it away from Jeonghan so that he can’t see your screen. He’s such a nosy brat sometimes.
You: hey, i’m sorry. It’s been really busy and i had a lot on my mind
You: wanna do something tomorrow?
The response comes right away and you ignore the smug look on Jeonghan’s face as you quickly make plans. If Jeonghan was anyone else, he would probably just let you be since he ultimately got what he wanted. But, he’s not anyone else. And he’s as caring to his friends as he is calculating when he wants something. So, he’s not doing it to be cruel, not at all. He just wants you to consider what you’re actually feeling.
You’ll never tell Jeonghan how much you appreciate him talking everything through with you. Never tell him how good it feels to get all the thoughts out of your head. To his credit, he’s not smug and he doesn’t tell you that he’s been right about your feelings all along. He just listens, supports you when you need it, and encourages you to keep thinking through everything that’s going on.
As a make-up for slightly ignoring Joshua (over your own internal freak out), you take him to dinner at your favorite restaurant. It’s this tiny little hole-in-the-wall that people seem to walk past. The kind of place where you couldn’t overspend even if you tried because the couple that owned it just wanted to share good food. The kind of place where they know everyone by name. It makes you feel instantly at ease.
Joshua doesn’t say it, but he also kind of can’t believe you wanted to show him some place that meant so much to you. All he could do was watch, with so much fondness, as you spoke to the couple about everything under the sun. Watch as you turned slightly red when they scolded you for taking so long to bring Joshua by. Smile as you promised the both of you would be back. Despite trying to pay, you beat him to it. Even leaving a massive tip because you insisted the couple had undercharged you. They made a big show of not wanting to take the tip and you only reminded them the cash would stay sitting on the counter. You weren’t taking it back either.
You don’t really think about it when you take a picture of you and Joshua to upload on Instagram. At least, you try not to. Later, when you’re home and winding down for the night, you pull the picture back up. It’s amazing just how happy both of you look. You don’t need to read the comments to know that you’ve never looked so happy in your life. Every part of you wants to pull back again. It’s overwhelming. But, Jeonghan’s voice plays in your head and instead you push past. Make more plans that could break your heart. You have to just trust that he won’t.
It isn’t until the weekend that you’re able to see him again because your schedules didn’t quite match up. That doesn’t stop him from calling you at night, though. Insisting that he wants to know how your day was, even if you can only spare a few minutes for a call. (Which never ends up being the case. You fall asleep on the phone with him twice. His voice is just so soothing when it’s all deep and soft.)
Again, Joshua tells you the date is a surprise. He can be a little bit of a demon, when it suits him. Sure, he likes to pretend he’s not. That he’s above the chaos. Then, he does something like this and he can’t really escape it. But, he’s so sure he knows what you like that he’s positive you’ll enjoy the date. You remember how that chat had gone, too. You were ready to go to sleep, but unable to say goodnight.
(“I have our next date planned,” Joshua says, voice soft to match the calm of the night.
“What is it?” you wonder.
“A surprise,” he answers.
“What if I don’t like it?” you ask back.
“You will,” he assures you.
“You sure seem to think you know me,” you joke.
“Yeah, I do. Don’t worry, you’ll like this too,” he says.
There was no point in denying it. That confidence sent a bit of a shiver through you.)
It turns out that the date is at a winery where you’re painting with wine. You have to ask him to say it again because you’ve only ever heard of wine and paint classes. Painting with wine is entirely new to you. It sounds fun, though, and you know how crafty Joshua can be, have seen all the projects around his apartment. So, even though you’re definitely not that artistic, you’re excited to see this as well.
Admittedly, by the end of the session, your painting isn’t bad. It was a bit weird to use wine in that way, but they let you drink as well. Which makes it a lot easier to just go along with the idea of painting. Joshua’s painting, on the other hand, is beautiful. Not for the first time, you think his talents might be wasted at an office job. You’ve seen the bracelets he makes and now you’ve seen him paint. You’ve heard him sing and play the guitar. He’s impossibly artistic in a way that should make you jealous. Instead, it just makes you more endeared to him.
You snap a picture of him and his art when he’s not looking and upload it before he can even realize it. It’s only when a notification goes off on his phone that he realizes. He doesn’t even say anything, just gets a sparkle in his eyes that makes you weary immediately. He’s busy tapping away on his own phone before a notification sounds on yours. Maybe you weren’t the only one to steal a candid shot if the picture of you laughing with a glass of wine in one hand and a paintbrush in the other is anything to go by. It’s the caption that really ruins you, though. Just a simple “think I’m addicted to her light”. It’s so simple and also so much sweeter than yours. You fight through the urge to run away.
Which lasts until you get home from dinner. It was the perfect date, truly. Joshua always seems to know exactly how to plan out a day so everything works. After sipping wine and painting, he took you to one of his favorite restaurants. Nothing too pretentious, just kind of unassuming. The kind of place where you get good food and even better conversation. It’s (mostly) easy to keep your mind off the way your heart keeps racing.
When you’re back home, you’re not so lucky.
Back home, alone in your apartment, there aren’t any distractions. Nothing to stop your mind from all the ways that it can sabotage your own happiness. Nothing to stop you from thinking about how nobody, not even Johnny, has ever planned out such thoughtful dates for you. Nobody has ever taken the time to really know you like Joshua. Even if you won’t admit it, he knows you better than anyone you’ve ever dated. Which is terrifying, since this is all fake. And he hasn’t even known you that long.
So, you do the rational thing and you pull back again. Answer his texts so that he doesn’t send Jeonghan over to figure out what’s wrong, but don’t make solid plans. Talk a lot about a work project that you really need to get done ahead of schedule so that you’re not stressing leading up to the wedding. And you throw in some easy suggestions in the meantime so that it still seems like you’re making an effort.
Lunch on a work day so that it has a set ending time. Which still tugs at your heartstrings a bit because he takes a longer lunch just to meet you closer to where you work.
An event where your parents purchased a table for charity because he’s in high demand with your family around. And he can’t be as affectionate.
His Open Mic Nights, but with the excuse that you can’t stay too late because of your project and he should stick around with his friends. You’ll get home safely.
Small little things that keep you around him and keep up your conversations while still giving you time to breathe. You’re sure that you’re pulling it all off. And then, the wedding is around the corner. The finish line is in sight.
You: I’m not going to the wedding
You: you don’t have to come pick me up
Joshua: what are you talking about?
You: i’m not going
Joshua: but it’s literally in a few hours?
You: yeah and i don’t wanna go, so you’re off the hook
You: thanks for everything, but you don’t have to pretend anymore
Even if you know you’re being a little petulant, you don’t really care. This whole thing was supposed to be about protecting your heart. Protecting your pride. Not showing up to your cheating ex-fiance's wedding alone and looking like some kind of loser. It was not supposed to be about your heart getting clobbered anyway. So, you’re doing the only logical thing you can think of. Ignoring your problems. Avoiding both the wedding and Joshua. What you’re not prepared for, though you should be, is the knock that comes at your door half an hour later.
Joshua is on the other side of the door and your heart actually stops. He’s got his tux on and his hair styled back off his face. His eyes are soft as they take you in, noting that you have your hair and make up done. Though, you’re still in your sweats. You got at least that far before you decided this was a stupid fucking decision.
“Can I come in?” he asks when you don’t say anything.
“Sure,” you say and step aside.
“You look like you’re getting ready,” he comments once he’s inside.
“I was, until I texted you,” you answer. “Speaking of, why are you here?”
“Because we had plans,” he says.
“Yeah to go see my ex-fiance marry the girl he cheated on me with. Oh, and for you to pretend to be my boyfriend so I didn’t look pathetic,” you say with a huff.
“You’re not pathetic. He’s an asshole,” Joshua says. He doesn’t swear often, so it catches you a little off guard.
“Well, whatever, you don’t have to go. So, I’m not really sure why you’re here,” you say.
“You’re being so cold. What’s going on?” Joshua asks and reaches out to you. Instead, you duck away from his touch.
“Nothing is going on. It was stupid to care what Johnny thought or to try and save face somehow,” you say.
“It’s not stupid. He hurt you and you didn’t deserve that,” Joshua urges.
“You really don’t know me that well. Maybe I did deserve it. Maybe I was awful to him and he had no choice,” you say.
“We both know that’s not true,” he says.
“Do we?” you challenge.
“Yes, we do,” he presses. “There is nothing you could do that justifies cheating instead of just breaking it off. But, I also know you didn’t do anything wrong. Jeonghan and I talked about it.”
“You spoke to Jeonghan about my relationship behind my back?” you question.
“What is going on? We’ve been hanging out for weeks and getting to know each other. I just wanted to know more about someone I was going to be helping. And I like knowing you,” Joshua says and you have to look away. You don’t need the reminder of how much time you’ve spent with him.
“Yeah, sorry about all that time we wasted. I’ll pay you back for the tux or anything else you had to buy to pretend to date me,” you say and he looks genuinely confused.
“I don’t…want you to pay me back for anything. It wasn’t a waste of time. I did this because I wanted to,” he says.
“Yeah, well, you don’t have to pretend anymore because I’m not going to the stupid fucking wedding. It was a really bad idea in the first place,” you say.
Joshua clenches his jaw and looks away. Like maybe he’s frustrated. “What is going on? Do you still have feelings for him?”
“For who? Johnny?” you ask, so insanely caught off guard that you forget you’re mad.
“Yes,” Joshua says tightly.
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” you bark out.
“Well? You’re being really weird and now you don’t want to go to a wedding that we’ve been planning on,” he starts.
“Yeah, which should make you happy, since you don’t have to pretend to be my boyfriend anymore,” you say.
“Because you’re still in love with Johnny,” Joshua finishes like he hadn’t even heard you.
“Oh my god,” you nearly scream. “I’m not fucking in love with Johnny. This isn’t about him.”
“So, you don’t want to go to the wedding and it has nothing to do with him? That doesn’t make any sense,” he says.
“No, I don’t want to keep doing this,” you say, gesturing between the two of you. “I don’t want to keep pretending to date you when I -”
You clamp your mouth shut. Unable to believe that you almost blurted out how you feel.
“When you what?” he challenges. “What? Is it that bad being around me? Is that it? Are you just sick of me? Ready to toss me aside?”
You laugh bitterly, not even able to appreciate the irony in the situation. “No, Joshua, I don’t want to toss you aside.”
“Then, what? What am I supposed to think when you’ve been pushing me away for the last couple weeks? And I have to act like I haven’t noticed all the ways you’ve kept me at arm’s length since we went to the winery. Why did you just decide, literally today, that you don’t want to go to the wedding after all?” he asks, rambling. He’s pacing in front of you. “Why are you trying so hard to get rid of me?”
“Because I don’t want to get hurt!” you blurt out. “Because I don’t want to go to my fucking scumbag of an ex’s wedding where everyone is going to be giving me these looks of pity or focusing on my relationship with him when all I want is this.”
“This? What?” he asks, coming to a stop.
“This, Joshua, you and me. Having this just all be pretend is breaking my heart. I can’t keep doing it. It was supposed to keep me from getting my heart broken. It sucks and I hate it and I just wish it wasn’t pretend. I don’t want to go to the wedding and have you be so sweet and kind and caring when I’m going to know it has an expiration date. That it’s all just been for show,” you admit. You turn away, clutching your arms around your center because you’re so tired. And so exposed. So vulnerable. It’s awful.
The tears won’t stop, so you don’t notice how Joshua has closed the space between you until he wraps his arms around you from behind. Pulls you back against his chest and presses a kiss into your hair.
“So, let’s stop saying it’s pretend,” he whispers.
“What?” you whisper back.
He turns you in his arms so that you’re facing him and gently brushes away the tears. “Let’s stop saying it’s fake. It doesn’t feel fake, does it?”
“No,” is all you can manage.
“So, it’s not fake and we’re not pretending,” he says.
“But,” you start to protest.
“I knew I was in trouble, really deep trouble, as soon as we left your parents’ house. I was just waiting for you to catch up,” he says as he gently runs a thumb across your cheek to wipe away a tear . Your eyes go wide.
“That was barely a week in,” you say and he just shrugs. “And I’d dumped all my bullshit on you.”
“I think that’s actually what made me like you so much,” he says. “It was supposed to be fake and we were trying to get to know each other well enough to pull it off. But, instead, I just realized you were actually perfect.”
“Perfect? I was broken,” you joke and he shakes his head.
“No, you’ve been hurt. Who hasn’t? You’re also strong, kind, funny, a fiercely loyal friend, and one of the most beautiful people I’ve ever met, inside and out,” he says.
“That’s so, you’re so sweet,” you say and try to hide your face. He doesn’t let you. “You like me?”
“I’ve liked you the whole time. I did think it was a date, after all,” he says. “And do you think I’m that affectionate with everyone?”
“We were pretending,” you argue.
“I wasn’t,” he argues back.
“Our closest friends thought you were,” you disagree.
“And was anyone else there in my apartment when I was still being affectionate?” he asks.
“Well, no, but…” you start.
“I heard you say always,” he tells you.
“You did?” you ask, sure that it’s been your secret this whole time.
“We don’t have to go to the wedding. But, if it’s just because you don’t want this to be over with me, then it’s not going to be over. I’m yours for as long as you want me,” he says so earnestly it nearly makes you blush.
“Careful, you might get sick of me,” you joke.
He puts a finger under your chin so he can look you in the eyes. “I’ll say it again. I’m yours as long as you want me. I won’t get sick of you.”
“I…” you start and don’t know where to go. So you do the only thing you can think of and kiss him. It’s clear he’s a little caught off guard, but he recovers quickly. His arms wrap around you to hold you tight against him. It’s the first time you’ve really kissed him and you’re so screwed because he really is perfect at this too.
“So, do I get you for the rest of today?” he asks.
You take in his tuxedo again, for real this time. Appreciating how well it’s tailored and how amazing he looks. With a sigh, you say, “you know, it’s a shame to waste such a nice tux.”
“Are you…I thought we weren’t going,” he stutters.
“I’m probably gonna have to fix my makeup in the car, but why not? I want to show off my super hot and very real boyfriend,” you say and watch him choke on air.
“You can’t just say…” he starts.
“Damn, sick of me already?” you tease.
“You know I’m not,” he answers and moves to follow you.
“No, no. You don’t get to see me changing. I’ll be back out in a second,” you say.
You’re in the middle of shimmying into your dress when you realize that you do still have a lot to talk about. A lot to figure out. This whole situation has been unusual, though, so it probably makes sense that there isn’t a template. Once you have your shoes on, you walk back into the living room, prepared to say something, only to find Joshua speechless.
“You look…” he starts.
“You’ve seen the dress already,” you say and smile.
“Not on you. Not in person. You look amazing,” he says and crosses to pull you into his arms. “Are you sure we have to go?”
“Yes,” you say and swat him. “But, I do know we have a lot to talk about.”
“I’m not in a rush,” he says and allows you to step away.
“We might need to be in a bit of a rush,” you say, checking the time and gathering all your things.
“Let’s go, then,” Joshua says and offers his arm.
The wedding passes in kind of a blur. In truth, you barely even register Johnny or what he’s doing beyond the actual ceremony. The reception is so massive that it’s easiest just to focus on the people around you. Especially when you’re at a table with your friends. Thankfully, you’re not at a table with your parents or your sister. It does mean, though, that you’re sitting next to Hyejin, who has definitely realized that something shifted between you and Joshua. So, she’s trying to sneak in a question any time she can. Which is hard, given that Joshua is more attached to you than ever. And Hyejin doesn’t want to draw unnecessary attention to you. All you manage to let her know is that it’s real now and that you’ll fill her in after the wedding. (You’re also thankful that people seem to be cooing over Taehyung and Mimi since they’re the shiny new topic.)
It’s also nice to have Joshua there because he’s a built in way to excuse yourself from any conversation that you don’t want to be part of. It’s easy to just say you’re going to go back to the table. Or, in the case of a good song coming on, he’ll be quick to drag you to the dance floor and away from whatever conversation you’re stuck in. He’s a good dancer, too. You don’t miss the way Hyejin catches your eye when the first slow song comes on and he pulls you close to him. But, that’s a conversation for another day. All you wanted was to appreciate the way his hand felt on your lower back or your hand felt in his.
When it was finally time to leave, Joshua led you out of the event, arm around you to guide you. Neither of you were drunk, but you had still hired someone to take you to and from the wedding anyway. A gift from your parents to appreciate you “doing the right thing” and coming to the wedding. For the sake of the families. It made you roll your eyes at the time, yet you’re thankful now. It would be far better than having to take an Uber or trying to get a room at the hotel (and risking seeing everyone else staying there the next morning). The ride home also gave you the chance to talk. Really talk. Neither of you cared much that someone else was driving (and he had the partition up, anyway), as you talked about your feelings honestly for the first time.
As it turned out, you had a lot to say. Both of you. You hadn’t been nearly as good at hiding your feelings from Joshua as you had been at hiding them from yourself. He had hoped you were going to admit them to him after that night at his apartment. Instead, you avoided him. Yes, he knew that you had been avoiding him. You also weren’t very good at picking up on the signs he dropped about his feelings for you. He admitted that he could have just said something, but he was trying to be subtle so he didn’t scare you off. Trying to let his actions speak through more affection. You admit you were scared to think it was anything more than it actually was. Scared of your feelings. Scared of getting hurt again. Joshua completely understands that and admits that he’s a little scared, too, because you’re definitely more important to him than he was anticipating. He’s also confident that you can work through it together. It gives you a feeling of hope. Makes everything about you feel lighter. You see that relief reflected in Joshua’s eyes when they scan yours.
The car pulls to a stop and he gets out first. He holds his hand out to help you out of the car. You’re not really sure what comes over you.
“Come up with me,” you ask, but it’s more of a statement.
He hesitates, conflicted. “I don’t know if I should.”
“Why?” you ask, clearly confused.
“I don’t know if I’ll be able to leave,” he answers and you smile.
“Then stay,” you shrug, “at least for breakfast.”
Without waiting for him to respond, you turn and head for the front door of the building. It means you miss the way he freezes in place, but you can guess at that by how long it takes before he catches up to you. He’s unusually quiet and still beside you as you go up the elevator and then behind you as you unlock the door.
“I’m gonna go change,” you announce after you drop your keys by the door. You look back at Joshua, appreciating him in the tuxedo one last time. “I’ve got some clothes in the spare room that should fit. They’re Jeonghan’s ”
You take the opportunity to breathe for a second, to let it settle in that you asked Joshua to come in with you and stay the night. Then, you set about changing out of your dress. Carefully clean your face free of the make-up. Brush through your hair and twist it back off of your face. Once you’re in comfy clothes and bare faced, you head back out into the living room. It’s odd that you don’t even feel self-conscious about Joshua seeing you like this, you’re instantly comfortable.
Joshua’s back is to you in the kitchen. When he turns around, you see that he’s put together a little platter of snacks. You also were right, the t-shirt and shorts he picked out seem to fit him well. Jeonghan is a little slighter than Joshua, but he wears most of his clothes on the baggier side.
“Thanks for the clothes,” he says when you both meet on the couch. “I was worried when you said you had spare clothes they were gonna be from an ex or Johnny or something.”
Your laugh is sudden and clearly catches Joshua off guard. “I wouldn’t have kept any of Johnny’s clothes. I gave them all to charity.”
“I’m sure he was thrilled with that,” Joshua laughs.
“They made a killing reselling them,” you laugh in response. “Wanna watch something?”
“Sure, you pick,” he says.
You start clicking through your saved list to find something that the two of you can watch. Once you settle on something, Joshua motions you over. Even if you want to pretend you’re considering it, you can’t. Every part of you wants to be close to him. When you slide over, he pulls you in tighter to his body and you fit like you always belonged there with him.
If you thought he was physically affectionate when he was pretending, it’s nothing compared to now that he knows you’re both in this. He has one hand running along your arm or the other along your thigh. Sometimes he reaches out to take one of your hands. Other times he presses kisses into your hair. It’s pretty clear right away that he’s not paying much attention to the show.
If you’re being honest, you’re not really either.
Everything is distracting. The way his fingers on the bare skin of your arm raises goosebumps. The way his kiss in your hair makes your eyes close in appreciation. The way he squeezes your thigh and short circuits your brain.
You can’t help it. You turn your head so that you can look at him. He caresses your cheek, so gentle. Runs his thumb across your lip. You’re holding your breath, just waiting to see what he’s going to do. When you feel like you’re going to go a little bit insane, his hand moves to the back of your neck and pulls you in. It’s exactly like the first kiss before the wedding. At least, at first. It’s gentle, but full of so much desire. It’s also slow, like there’s no rush to any of it.
The position is really uncomfortable, though. You shift your legs so they’re draped over one of Joshua’s. He doesn’t miss a beat. It just allows him to pull you closer. There’s something incredibly intimate in kissing him like this. There’s this weird contrast of desire and comfort. It’s heated, but also a little lazy. Like you have all the time in the world. Which you do, you think, now that you’re being honest about your feelings.
When Joshua pulls back from the kiss, you chase his lips for a second before realizing that he’s pulled away. The way he looks at you nearly melts you into the couch.
“I don’t want to assume where this is headed, but maybe we should take it to the bedroom?” he asks. It’s cute, the way he’s a little shy. Like you didn’t invite him in to spend the night. Yeah, you’re in way over your head. At least it seems like he might be too.
You pull your legs back so that you can stand up. His eyes track your movements as you reach your hand back to him. He accepts it without a word and lets you lead him to the bedroom. Even if he’s seen your bedroom before, this feels different. You’re waiting for him to look around, but his eyes are glued on you. Joshua even waits for you to lead him all the way to the bed, so you direct him to sit on the edge.
Once Joshua is seated, you step between his legs and tilt your head down to kiss him. He wraps his arms around you so that he can pull you against him. There’s barely any space between you. It sends a little bit of a shiver as his hands run up your back and back down. The touch is gentle and caring. Like he’s trying to put everything he feels into it. Something about it just makes you feel so insanely safe.
He’s the one to break the kiss again, but this time it’s to move back onto the bed and grab your hand to pull you along with him. It’s easy to just follow suit and get comfortable laying next to him, bodies facing each other. The kissing picks up when your lips meet again. Joshua kisses you breathless with a passion you’re eager to explore. One of his hands rests on your hip, casually sliding beneath your shirt and caressing up your side. You press your body further into his and capture his moan with a kiss. It feels like you���re a bit drunk off each other.
When Joshua’s hand moves back down, you take the chance to throw your leg over his hip, allowing you to press further into him and feel how this is turning him on. Part of you knows that he’s still waiting for you to set the pace. Or that he wants things to be a little slower. So, you help him out and roll the two of you over so that you’re straddled on top of him. Putting his hands on your hips, you lean over to kiss him again. In this position, you can also grind into his lap. You delight in how he’s already getting hard beneath you, enjoy the way his hands grip the soft flesh of your hips.
He pulls back and looks at you with blown pupils. “Baby, please don’t tease me.”
“No silly pet name?” you tease him.
“Not when you’re getting me this turned on like a horny teenager,” he whines.
“You mean like this?” you ask, injecting as much innocence as you can when you slowly drag your clothed pussy across his dick again.
Joshua throws his head back, eyes squeezed shut, and grips you tighter. “Yes.”
“So you don’t like it?” you ask, grinding a little more.
“Fuck,” he hisses out. And somehow that’s the thing that almost breaks you. Why is that one swear so hot on his lips?
Without saying anything, you sit up a little bit, still making sure you’re straddling Joshua, so that you can pull his shirt off him. Your eyes go wide because you’ve never seen him shirtless. You’ve seen him in well fitted suits or shirts, but this is entirely different. His chest looks like it was sculpted by an artist. All your attention is on your fingers running along his chest and you don’t see the way it makes him a little shy.
His hands reach for your own shirt, playing with the hem like he’s asking permission. So, you move his hands aside and pull it over your head, leaving your skin bare as well. You watch him drink you in, feeling almost empowered by the desire you see in his eyes. He pulls you back towards him so that he can get one of your breasts into his mouth. The way he teases your nipple with his tongue has you clenching around nothing. You can feel how wet it’s making you and try your best not to squirm when he moves from one breast to the other.
“I need you,” you utter.
“I need you, too,” he says against your skin. His hips buck up into you almost involuntarily.
You slide off of him and pull your shorts down and he gasps that you don’t have any underwear on. It isn’t like you were expecting anything, you just wanted to be prepared. While he’s still a little drunk on the sight of you fully naked, you help him discard the rest of his clothing. The sight of his cock springing free, precum leaking out, has you wanting to get your mouth on him.
But, you’re realizing, what you really want is to feel him inside you. After so much tension and wondering, you just want to have this moment together. You want to be as close as two people can possibly get. You want all the intimacy and to be able to see his face. It’s this thought that pushes you back to the bed to lay with him.
Joshua repositions and runs a hand down your body. Lets his fingers run along your thighs and tease their way up to gather some of your wetness. Your eyes close as he runs a finger up your slit. It’s such a little amount of contact and it makes you moan anyway.
“Damn, are you this wet just for me?” he asks and presses a kiss into the first bit of your skin he can reach.
“I want to feel you,” you admit. Joshua makes you press a finger into your pussy, but you stop him. Confusion takes over his features.
“I thought…do you not want this?” he asks.
“I do, but I want…I want all of you,” you admit. “I want to feel you deep inside of me. I want to be completely ruined by you. I want to come together.”
“Shit,” he hisses, hand stilling against your body. “On one condition.”
“What’s that?” you ask.
“I want to taste you soon,” he says, pressing a kiss into your shoulder.
The thought of him between your legs makes you shiver. It’s almost enough to forget that you want this first time to be together. “Deal.”
“Do you have condoms? I wasn’t exactly expecting…” he says, trailing off.
“That drawer,” you say and point.
He rolls himself off of the bed to open the drawer. You’re not sure why you expect his hands to be a little unsteady when he rips open the wrapper and rolls it onto himself, but he’s so calm. Maybe it’s just you that’s a little nervous. At least, that’s what you think until you catch the look on his face. It has to be the same as yours, naked want mixed with a little bit of uncertainty. Everything else has been so easy with you, what if this is where it goes wrong?
“Just lay back,” he urges you, voice calming any lingering nerves. His voice drops to a whisper, like the next statement is just for him. “You’re so beautiful, every single inch of you.”
It makes your heart constrict in a way that you’re not really prepared for. It would be nice if your feelings could stop flooding in all at once like a dam breaking. It’s overwhelming. You do as he says, though, and lean back against the pillow. Joshua gently spreads your legs apart and takes another moment to appreciate you. He can’t seem to help himself from running a finger along your entrance.
Even though he would fully be within his rights to tease you, he doesn’t. He lines himself up at your entrance and looks to you for final confirmation. All you can manage is a nod. You know he wants to hear you, but you can’t bring yourself to form the words. So, he accepts the nods and slowly presses into you.
“Fuck,” you hiss as you adjust to him.
“Are you okay?” he worries.
“Feels good,” you say with a slight whine. “It’s just been a bit.”
He presses the rest of the way into you and then stills so you can get used to him. It’s really overwhelming. Not just because you’re finally feeling him inside of you. More so because he’s looking at you with more adoration than you’ve ever felt in your life. Like this is it for him. Like you’re it for him. It’s too early to be thinking of love, but you really don’t know if anyone has ever loved you so completely. You think he’s probably it for you too.
Once he finally starts to move, you know it’s going to be over entirely too fast. He starts with slow thrusts, testing what you want. You dig your fingers into his arms as a way to ground yourself. To anchor yourself to him and in the moment. When he picks up the pace, your mind goes entirely blank. It’s just the right speed. While you love the hard and fast fucking, there’s something so much more intimate about this kind of in between speed.
“God you feel so good,” he whines as he snaps into you again. “So tight and perfect.”
“You’re so - oh my god,” you moan out, unable to finish the sentence as he hits you just right.
Joshua moves one of your legs so that it’s over his shoulder and presses further into you, hitting deeper than you were prepared for.
“Fuck, Joshua, holy shit,” you scream out.
“Love the sound of my name on your lips,” he manages as his thrusts pick up pace.
You want to respond that you love saying it, want to say anything, but the thrusts are entirely too much. As if it wasn’t already too much, Joshua adjusts again so that he can press his thumb against your clit. He rubs circles in time with his thrusts and you think that you might see stars. You throw your head back, eyes pressed shut.
“Look at me, baby. I wanna see you when you come,” he urges, his own voice sounding ragged.
Despite wanting to focus on the pressure building between you, you do as he asks. Your eyes meet his and it’s that look that makes that coil snap. You’re coming hard and digging your fingers into whatever you can find to release some of the tension in your body. This might be the best orgasm you’ve had.
When you come back to this plane, Joshua has stilled inside of you. One of his hands gently caresses your face as he mumbles quiet praises. It’s so impossibly tender.
“It’s okay, sweetheart, you can move,” you assure him.
“Thank fuck,” he mumbles.
His pace now picks up to something fast and hard with one of his large hands anchoring your thigh to his body. Your hands grip any part of his body that they can reach and you relish the way he hisses when your nails drag patterns down his skin. Marking him so that he belongs to you. Just as you belong so completely to him.
It seems impossible but you can feel the tension building low in your stomach again. His thrusts are so hard that you feel like his cock might split you open and something about it just works for you. You hadn’t thought anything about him would translate to this kind of hard and fast sex, but it’s somehow better than you could have imagined. With him so focused on chasing his own high, you rub circles on your clit to bring yourself over the edge again. You tumble over the edge for a second time just as Joshua’s thrusts get erratic. You do your best to take over the rhythm before slowing down.
Joshua collapses on top of you, cock still buried in your pussy, and sighs. His weight on top of you feels like the best security you’ve ever had. Your hands find their way into his hair, gently stroking and scratching his scalp. As he comes back around, he presses his head further into your hand.
“Hey,” you say when he looks up at you.
“You’re perfect,” he responds and you can’t keep the smile off your face.
“You were pretty perfect yourself,” you say.
“Am I too heavy, I could…” he starts and you pull him tighter against you.
“Don’t you dare,” you warn.
He doesn’t say anything, just nuzzles his face into your neck. But, you know that you can’t stay like this forever. So you don’t protest when he gently pulls himself up and gets out of the bed. You’re right behind him, leading him into the bathroom so that you can get both of you cleaned up.
After getting cleaned up, dressed, and doing your respective night time routines, you and Joshua are settled back into your bed (on top of a fresh set of sheets). Although you’ve never been much for falling asleep cuddling, you can’t imagine leaving any space between you and him. When he wraps himself around you, all you can do is smile and settle deeper into his perfect chest. Honestly, every inch of this man is perfect and you’d be annoyed if you weren’t so helplessly attached to him.
And it’s the best sleep you’ve gotten in a long time. You wake up with his chest pressed into your back and his arm still wrapped around you. It sounds like he’s still asleep based on his breathing and so you’re just considering slipping out of the bed. He moves in his sleep and pulls you tighter against him, making you feel that he’s semi-hard again. You press back against him, almost testing if he’s really asleep.
He’s not.
Joshua’s hand, already against the skin of your stomach and underneath your shirt, moves further up to your breast. His hand squeezes your breast and then he brushes his thumb over your nipple. Your body responds to his touch embarrassingly fast, which only seems to spur him on. He’s got your nipple between his fingers before you press back into him again, wiggling your ass against his dick without pretending you’re doing otherwise.
“Good morning beautiful,” Joshua says in a raspy voice into your ear.
The warmth of his breath along with the pressure of him rolling your nipple between his thumb and forefinger has you suppressing a moan. In the quiet of the morning, he hears it anyway. He removes his hand from your breast and you want to pout at the loss of contact. That is, until his hand works down between your legs, roughly grabbing hold of your pussy through your shorts. He runs his middle finger through your folds, likely feeling the way your shorts are getting soaked through already.
“Feels like someone might have woken up ready,” he says into your ear, voice sinfully low. His finger is still slowly teasing you through the damn material of your shorts. Somehow that makes it feel hotter.
“I wonder why,” you retort, undermined by the way you squirm under his touch.
“Do you want me to stop?” he asks and stops his movements.
Your hand immediately moves to his. To guide him back to your cunt. “Please don’t. Want to see what those hands can do.”
His mouth is still by your ear, so you hear the dark chuckle and feel the air tickle you. He moves your hand aside along with your shorts as he slips his hand inside the fabric. His middle finger resumes the previous pattern almost lazily. You’re about to ask him to stop teasing you when he presses a finger inside you suddenly.
“Fuck,” you nearly scream.
“Is someone a little sensitive?” he teases. He’s a fucking demon and you would gladly sell your soul so he didn’t stop.
The way he pumps his finger inside of you is entirely too slow. But, when you try to meet his rhythm, he stops. Just when you think you might actually die, he inserts a second finger. It makes your back arch, pressing your ass further against his now very hard cock. He hisses and pulls his fingers out from you. As you’re turning over to adjust your position, you see him insert his fingers into his mouth. Holy shit. He really is the hottest man you’ve ever met.
Instead of letting you carry on in any way, he pushes himself up and repositions. You’re not really sure what he’s doing until he reaches for your shorts to pull them off. His focus is on you, silently asking for permission again. All you can do is nod.
“Told you that I wanted to taste you,” he reminds you once your shorts are off.
“Are you sure…” you start to ask before he cuts you off.
His head snaps up so he can meet your eyes. “I’ve been waiting to taste you for weeks.”
That shuts you up pretty effectively. What can you really say in response to that? Anything you might have said dies in your throat as he licks a messy stripe up your folds. He quickly settles, using one hand to keep you spread open for him, and licks into you. It’s all you can do to keep your eyes on him as his head bobs between your legs. You thread your fingers through his hair to keep him in place even though you know he’s not going anywhere. (And okay, maybe it’s more to ground yourself to him than anything else.)
It shouldn’t be surprising that his attentiveness translates this well, but it is a little surprising how well he seems to know your body. The way he knows just when to switch from licking into your cunt to flicking his tongue over your clit. The way he knows when he needs to add a finger and then a second. The way he can tell everything your body needs before you even realize it.
By the time he pulls himself up your body, he’s got you nearly panting from the build up. The kiss he presses to your lips is sloppy and a little desperate. Like you’re both totally fucked out. His fingers inside you keep a relentless pace as he hooks them, hitting that perfect spot.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” you yell out, breaking the kiss. Your whole body feels like it’s on fire in an entirely different way from the night before.
There’s nothing in the world but Joshua and the way he coaxes everything out of you. The way he has you squirting on his fingers. You’re not even sure if the praise coming out of your mouth makes any sense and you’re definitely not sure what he says in return. It’s all you can do just to appreciate the moment.
You think that you’re going to get the chance to get your mouth around his cock now that he’s given you another mind blowing orgasm. But, by the time you get your breathing under control, you see that he’s rolling a condom from your drawer onto himself. He pulls you to the edge of the bed so that your legs are hanging off. It’s instantly stronger than you’re expecting from him and pulls a gasp from you.
Without even thinking, your legs fall open. Joshua seems to have found a bottle of lube, too, and spreads it over his cock. When he lines himself up at your entrance, you expect him to ease in like the night before. He doesn’t. He snaps his full length inside of you in one motion and you’re so overstimulated, but it feels so good.
“Fuck me, Joshua, oh my fucking god,” you say and clench down around his dick.
“Shit, that feels so good,” he hisses.
“You feel so good,” you moan.
“You have no idea,” he answers and starts thrusting.
It’s a complete haze from the moment you hear his skin slap against your own. Every coherent thought leaves your head. There is nothing in the world but you and him and the way you make each other feel. He leans over your body, crowds your space. Steals sloppy, desperate kisses. Praises you constantly and in broken sentences. It’s all you can do just to hold on, so sore and so unable to stop.
Your hands grip into the sheets around you that are completely rumpled. You try everything to keep your eyes on Joshua’s face. Memorize the way he looks when he’s concentrating. Appreciate how totally gone he is because you’re sure it’s the same look you have. Delight in the way his eyes get even wider when you clench your pussy around him.
It feels a little like he’s using your body to chase his own high, except there’s total comfort in that. All you want is for him to feel as good as you do. All you want is for him to get that release, especially since you haven’t been able to get your mouth on his cock yet.
“Harder Joshua, please. I know you’re close,” you beg and he obliges immediately.
Even though you’re trying to meet the rhythm, you can’t. It’s too erratic and too unpredictable. So you pull him down to you again and kiss him. Slip your tongue inside his mouth and let the kisses get as sloppy as they need to. You feel how close he is and only kiss him harder. He breaks the kiss for the last few thrusts, groaning as he comes. You’re right there with him.
(Later, he tells you that he’s never seen anyone hotter than you when you come. It would make you embarrassed in any other situation. But, you realize that you’ve never been with anyone that’s come close to him, so maybe it’s okay to accept his praise. Maybe you deserve it. Maybe this is the person that you’ve been waiting for.)
Now, you really do have to get up and clean up. As tempting as Joshua’s offer to shower together is, you don’t want it to turn into shower sex because that’s just not sexy (or practical). Neither one of you can seem to guarantee keeping their hands off the other. Instead, you tell him that he can use the shower in your guest room. It’s fully stocked and there are still more spare clothes in there. He insists that he should get some laundry going because you must be running out of clean sheets and you definitely made a mess.
With Joshua cleaning up some around the house, you’re the first out of the shower and dressed. Pleasantly sore in the kind of way you really enjoy. You’re sitting on the couch and scrolling through your phone, trying to decide if you want to order food or just cook what you already have. Before you can make a decision, there’s a knock at the door. It’s impossible to guess who it could be. Even Jeonghan wouldn’t bother you like this. Although he’s been texting asking for an update after you told him you finally got your shit together, he wouldn’t show up like this.
When you open the door, you’d give anything for it to just be Jeonghan. Instead, you see a face that you’ve been seeing entirely too much lately.
“What are you doing here, Johnny?” you ask with a heavy sigh.
“I need to talk to you,” he says.
“Why?” you ask.
“Come on, don’t be like that,” he pleads.
“Johnny, it’s the day after your wedding. What the fuck are you doing on my doorstep?” you ask, arms crossed.
“Are you really going to make me do this in the hallway?” he asks.
“I don’t see any reason to invite you inside,” you retort.
“It’s about your, uh, boyfriend,” Johnny says a little awkwardly.
“Joshua?” you ask because that actually piques your interest a bit.
“Can I come in?” he asks.
“No. What about Joshua?” you ask.
“This is really awkward. It would be better if we were sitting down…” Johnny starts.
“My little honeybun, is everything okay?” Joshua asks from inside the apartment. He must be out of the shower.
“Babe, we talked about the pet names,” you remind him as he joins you at the door.
“Oh, uh, I wasn’t expecting him to be here,” Johnny says.
“I’m her boyfriend, so I know why I’m here. What are you doing here?” Joshua says without hiding any disdain.
"Are you really her boyfriend, though?" Johnny challenges.
You stiffen almost imperceptibly, but Joshua must notice it because he wraps an arm around you protectively. "Of course I am. Why are you here?"
“I needed to talk to her,” Johnny says stiffly.
“About you, apparently,” you say with your eyes on Joshua.
“Right, so can you give us a minute?” Johnny asks with his eyes on Joshua.
“No, he can’t. If you have something to say, just say it. Then you can leave us alone,” you say.
“Fine, if you really want it to be like this, fine,” Johnny says. “I knew he looked familiar when I saw him at your parents’ house with you. It just took me a while. I ran into him at a couple of functions back when I was in college and traveling all around for my dad.”
“Okay? And? I’m sorry, but I’m not sure why I care,” you say even though you know where he’s going.
“He was always with older women,” Johnny presses.
“Can you just make your point so we can get back to our day?” Joshua asks.
“Fine,” Johnny says, irritated. “The whispers were that women paid him to come to the events with them. That he was selling himself to them.”
You actually snort at the phrasing. It takes you several seconds to compose yourself. You wonder what the point of Johnny doing this and if it’s his way of trying to keep you on the hook. Then you realize that you don’t really care what he does. For the first time in forever, you’re genuinely happy.
“I’m glad you think this is funny,” Johnny says.
“Not that it’s any of your business, but I know how Joshua helped pay for his education. And like why am I going to give him a hard time over seizing an opportunity? There’s nothing wrong with profiting off of someone wanting his company platonically,” you say.
“You’re assuming he wasn’t also sleeping with them,” Johnny says, a little stubborn.
“No, I’m not assuming. I know he wasn’t because we’ve talked about this. He told me all about it without even being prompted. And unlike certain people in my life, I have absolutely no reason to doubt him. I know I can actually trust him,” you say. “It was also years before we met. We’ve all got history.”
“Nice dig,” he says.
“It’s not a dig, Johnny. Not everything is a slight,” you say with a sigh. “Where does Gabby think you are?”
“What?” Johnny asks.
“Your wife,” you clarify. “Where does she think you are?”
“Oh, well, that’s not important. I just said I had some errands to take care of,” Johnny says and you roll your eyes.
“We’re done, Johnny,” you say.
“Wait,” he says as you’re moving to shut the door. “I know I fucked up, but…”
“There’s no buts. Not anymore,” you say. “Maybe there was a point where I’d want to hear the buts and the apologies and all that. I’m happy now, though, and you can’t even tell your wife that you came to see your ex-fiancee the day after your wedding.”
“It’s not like…” he starts and you start to close the door at the same time.
“It’s exactly like that. Goodbye, Johnny,” you say.
The second you close the door, you feel a giant weight lifted off you. You just feel tired. It’s obvious that there aren’t any feelings there anymore, so him pretending he cares as a pretense to see you just feels irritating.
“Are you okay?” Joshua asks, eyes raking over you.
“Yeah, I’m good,” you say.
“You sure?” he asks.
“Yeah, really. I think I knew when I saw him at my parents’ house that time you came over for dinner that I was completely over it,” you say. “I’m sorry he tried to bring something like that up or make it a big deal.”
“I don’t care. It’s like you said, I did it and I’m not ashamed of that,” he says. “But, uh, I really wanted to thank you.”
“For what?” you ask.
“For defending me and for saying you trust me,” he says. It makes you a little shy for a second, so you look down.
“Oh, well, it’s not a big deal,” you say.
Joshua closes the space and tilts your chin up to look at him. “It’s a huge deal to me. I know we started pretending, but trusting me means the absolute world.”
“You make it easy,” you admit.
That seems to render him a little speechless as well because all he does is pull you into him in the tightest hug he’s ever given you. Your body fits into his like a puzzle piece. Which sounds sappy, even if in your head, and you don’t actually care. It’s the safest and the happiest you’ve ever felt.
“What?” he asks when you pull away.
“Nothing, I just think this is going to work,” you say.
Joshua smiles at you, that genuine smile he saves for when he’s at his happiest. “Yeah, I think so too.”
i hope you enjoyed this fic! let me know your thoughts 💕
tag list: @aaniag, @gyuminusone, @crepecakeu, @tinyelfperson, @dokyeomkyeom, @amoryeonjun, @miriamxsworld, @hongrizoon, @klecksstorys, @sunflowergyeomie, @straykidswhoo789, @holistic, @vanishingboots, @babybae-shisui, @matchahyuck, @sonybear40, @kimseokgen, @hyneyedfiz, @miujunhui, @graybaeismytae, @hyucksrealm, @livixxn, @sharonxdevi, @coupsystar8, @sana-is-ms-rmty, @pyeonghongrie-main, @naajaeminsgf, @beomesbabe, @magicshop913, @deletingthekisses, @lissiesykes (strikethrough means i couldn't tag, check your settings!)
#joshua smut#joshua fluff#joshua angst#joshua x reader#joshua x you#joshua x y/n#joshua fic#joshua fanfic#seventeen smut#seventeen fluff#seventeen angst#seventeen x reader#seventeen x you#svt x reader#svt x you#svt smut#svt fluff#svt angst#svthub#kvanity#joshua imagines#joshua scenarios#seventeen imagines#seventeen scenarios#svt imagines#svt scenarios#ksmutsociety
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Just got back from my friend’s wedding :’) I think it says a lot that I was the only high school friend that showed up
#TBF the others in our friend group back then live in different states now#And flying out for a wedding can be SO expensive.#But yeah idk it just meant a lot to me :’)#And my friend (the groom) was SO happy to see me. And his family was too#That made me really glad 🤧#The fact that he invited me to come at all also says a lot I think#And you know what maybe I cried on the way home in the car but that’s nobody’s business but mine!!#I’m very very happy for him. And his wife is SO sweet and so pretty#It’s just weird yk? Cause in high school I liked this guy SO much#Like I daydreamed about getting married to him some day#So seeing him marrying someone else felt very weird lol#Bittersweet mostly#Sorry this is super embarrassing LMAO but it’s not like I’m ever going to tell this to his face.#I know they’ll be very happy together and I’m so so glad he found someone that fits together with him so well#He’d better come to MY wedding tho. In the future. LOL#Shima speaks#It was a very ‘saying goodbye to your first love’ kind of thing.#Even after I confessed to him in high school (and got rejected) I never really stopped liking him#Like I just never got over it I guess. Even tho I KNEW nothing would ever come of it#Idk sometimes it’s hard to let that stuff go! It’s hard to stop liking someone after you liked them for so long and so strongly#I want to say I’m over it now but considering I was crying in my car:#Well. JFJSJMFMSMSNN#I know I don’t feel that way for him anymore like as a fact but. Idk it was weird—#Again bittersweet. I think I just needed a second to process and really let it sink in#Goodbye to my high school fantasy //waves a handkerchieff#Also MAYBE I saw them be so happy and was like. Why can’t I have that with someone. HUH#Leetle jealous. I need to find me a someone *squint emoji*#Anyway rant over wedding was good I’m just an idiot ;)
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How goes the time travel fic?
On hold while I may or may not have covid (probably from the holidays) and also half a gallon of epoxy resin to use before it goes bad (definitely from the holidays), but I'll put some words to paper right now just for you 🥂
Today, I made a mushroom pyramid :)
#Resin's expensive man#Once I use up this gallon (which was like $60 after a half-off coupon) I'm not getting more#I got it to preserve my bouquet from my friend's wedding which turned out great but man. Didn't expect these costs#No wonder stuff like my pyramid would be like $50 on Etsy#Anyway once I get back to writing it'll still be a little slow since I'm simultaneously writing three documents:#the fic the outline and the timeline#Later on when the timeline spreadsheet and the outline are done it'll hopefully be quicker#Thank you for thinking of my work <3#It's pretty magical to remember I can press some buttons and strangers the world over think it worthwhile enough to ponder#Not my art#inquiry#anonymous#Take the Long Way Home#Also the maybe covid thing: I am definitely sick. My test was negative.#My whole family is sick. They all came back negative EXCEPT my dad. However he gets out the least??#Surely me flying through the Atlanta airport in holiday rush should've done it. Or my brother traveling home on the train#Or my mom going to way too many pub Christmas shows. Any of us. But my work-from-home dad??#I dunno. Maybe some test was wrong but I'm on the upswing and don't have anywhere to be so not too important WHAT it is now
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I hate that travel is so expensive it's awful
#like. idk i grew up traveling#not flying but like. we had a large tent and wed go out for a couple weeks and just camp around#and then we got a (used) pop-up camper and wed go on almost 3 week long roadtrips hitting national parks and cool areas#which ik isnt everyones way to vacation but we all loved it#ive been to almost all 50 states now#and its fucking hard to get out of south texas to go anywhere its like over 12 hours from where i live to oklahoma or NM#and we can generally keep food in our camper which cuts back on costs if we cook the majority of meals (with 5+ ppl)#and we have camping gear and expenses which im not counting in costs but do count towards the trip#and that its usually during summer and my father (then unemployed) and my mother was able to get all those days off to do these trips#but like. idk#if you have the chance to travel you should#i live in texas#and [redacted city] which is a small city but generations of families live here and DONT#- LEAVE EVER (its a little culty but eh) and soooo many ppl dont ever leave texas#bc its hard#and its easier to get to other states if you live in like. tge northeast us or europe or whatever#but there are so many cool and pretty and interesting places for whatever youre interests are#idk#small rant ig#also gas prices#crazy in some places im used to like. less than $3 a gallon so anything above like. $4 is crazy to me#one good thing about south texas ???#nightjay blogging
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We've been so many people together, I don't know which version to display at The Event.
#wedding planning#its been twelve years#it's just a party#but a very expensive party#and weve never really been the party type for long#we'll stop by to dance if there's good music#but were over here like two hummingbirds picking out a feeder: any will work#we wont sit at it long anyway#but there are real flowers we'd rather spend that money on tasting#but the truth of it is that we moved away from our families for good reasons as soon as we graduated college a decade ago and#i think all six of our parents want the validation of our wedding so they can happily continue to repress all the rightful reasons we left#why would we give them that when all we wanted for ourselves was peace and freedom that others dont have to ask for or run away to find#neither of us know who we're validating anymore so we're probably going to plan an elopement instead#we promised them a wedding but we didnt promise theyd be there and one of them refused to come anyway#i liked making them come to me for once after ten Christmases of flying back home#but now im just... I've been cut loose like a fraying thread and I've never been happier or more content.#there is no conclusion yet#there's just the feeling of apathy and rage#its brave of us to want to get married after them in the first place#this all started because picking out aesthetics was hard lol#i guess its time for another talk about how we want to be married but its annoyingly hard for two neurodivergent brains#we love to dance but not in the middle#we can do paperwork but the rounds of chores required makes us both pause#okay#im done now#this was cathartic
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Lord Husband (Chapter 3)
Cregan x reader
A/N: reader is me today
word count: 1,287 words
Last chapter
Series Masterlist
It’s been weeks since the betrothal and your mother hasn’t stopped trying to get you to bond with Cregan, but it has been to no avail. She’s only managed to get you into a room with him a handful of times since the surprise breakfast and you’ve become more cunning in your avoidance of her and your future lord husband. Though, one thing you can’t avoid is a direct summons to the Queen’s chambers. You decide to don her favourite jewels around your neck for the visit in hopes of quelling her, what is likely to be, pure rage.
“Your Grace.” You say respectfully as you enter her solar. She looks at you and you can’t read a single emotion on her face.
“You have a fortnight.” She says simply.
“A fortnight until…?” You look at her, confused.
“A fortnight until you go to Winterfell.” She replies and then takes a sip of her tea like the words weren’t going to shatter your soul.
You look at her, appalled. “You jest.” You say back to her. It isn’t a question.
“I do not. You ought to begin packing your things.”
“But we’ve hardly begun courting!” You try to justify in an attempt to prolong your stay in King’s Landing.
“You’ve been courting near two months.” Rhaenyra says. “And you’ll spend at least a month on the road.”
“On the road?” You ask in disbelief. “I cannot fly there?”
“I’m not sure how much I trust that you will reach the intended destination.”
Silence.
“Why must I?” You ask softly. “I have no need to wed. You have five sons; that is plenty of heirs. What is it that one child stays unmarried?”
“Some traditions must be followed.” She says, her eyes filled with sorrow for her only daughter.
“Then what use is it that you’re the Queen?” You ask, a bite in your words.
“Things are different when you’re a woman. Perhaps if I wasn’t the first queen of Westeros, the rules could be bent a bit more but they cannot. Not with how things are right now.” She speaks tenderly. You understand her meaning and there is an uncomfortable silence as you ponder her words. She walks over and grabs your hands so she can hold them in her own. You tug them away gently.
“Alright.” Is all you can say, just enough for her to see that you understand, that you agree. You curtsey to her. “Your Grace.” You say formally before swiftly walking out of the solar. You don’t greet a single noble as you make your way to your chambers, keeping your head low. You don’t care if they think you’re impolite. You’ll likely only see these people a handful of times after you’re sent away in two weeks to be wedded bedded and bred.
Ser Steffon Darklyn, your protector, greets you when you get to your door. “Princess.” He bows politely but you just push past him, surprising the man.
You hyperventilate a little bit when you enter the room and you clutch your stomach. You’re upset and nervous but most of all, you’re filled to the brim with boiling hot rage. Rage that you have to be married, rage that you have to move thousands of miles away and, at the pit of your stomach, fear towards the fact that your mother may not be as all powerful as you once thought she was.
You take a glance towards a very expensive looking ornate vase. You don’t think twice as you hurl it across the room and watch it hit a wall before it shatters into a million pieces. Ser Steffon is in the room before you have a chance to blink and is grabbing your arms before you have a chance to destroy a very lovely portrait of Queen Rhaena. You’re glad he stopped you; you adore that painting.
“Get out.” You breathe out the words.
“But princess-”
“I said get out!” You shout at him and this time he obeys you, deciding that you aren’t likely to destroy any more priceless artifacts.
You throw yourself onto your bed and unceremoniously scream into your pillow. You then curl yourself into a ball and begin to sob.
~~~
You spend 30 minutes crying and sulking before you hear a knock at your door.
“I’m unavailable at the moment.” You call out, hoping it is simply a servant with tea or something who will leave right away.
In walks Rhaena. You know at the very least her and Baela heard your meltdown, with their rooms being the closest to yours and all, and you wonder to yourself if they discussed who would be the one to come speak with you. Rhaena is much better at pep talks.
“I could have been dressing.” You say to her.
“We used to swim naked together all the time on Dragonstone.” She replies, a hint of a smile gracing her lips.
“That when then.” You say wistfully.
“That was hardly two years ago.” She says softly as she walks a little closer to you and sits on the edge of your bed. Your sister is seemingly waiting for you to speak up first.
You say nothing.
“It’s good to talk about what ails you.” She reaches out to rub your back. You know she’s right.
“Jacaerys should be married first. He is the heir.” You whisper out.
“I know.”
“That’s it?” You ask incredulously.
“What do you want me to say?”
“Say ‘yes, sister, everything that is happening to you is completely unreasonable and we ought to fly away to Old Valyria and never return’.” She giggles slightly.
“Are you so keen to find out what made Aerea go mad?”
“You know what I mean.” The joking tone is gone from your voice.
“I understand how you’re feeling and you have a right to be upset about it.” Rhaena says softly. “But your situation cannot be changed.”
“I don’t want to be forced into coming to terms with it.” You say sternly. “And you could never understand. You’re marrying Lucerys, who you love, and you’ll live out your days in your mother’s ancestral home. I’m marrying an irritating man who I couldn’t give a rat’s ass about and i’ll live out my days in a frozen wasteland while my dragon slowly deteriorates in the cold.” Your sweet sister looks a bit put off by your words and slightly hurt by your tone but she doesn’t take it personally.
“My only wish is for you to be happy.” She retracts the comforting hand from you. “And you’ll never be happy if you don’t make an effort with your betrothed. Baela and I are lucky to be marrying Jace and Luke but you could also do plenty worse than Cregan Stark. He is kind and dutiful and, i’d say, plenty handsome. Many girls end up a lot worse off than you.” She grabs your face in her hands. “He’ll care for you.” She wipes a few tears from your eyes and just looks at you for a moment before standing. “Sleep well.” She says before leaving you to your thoughts. She always knows the right time to leave.
She is correct, you suppose. There are plenty worse men than your betrothed. Some would even call you ungrateful for not appreciating him. Those same people would call you dim for squandering your chance to select your own husband and you almost wish now that you could turn back time but it isn’t your fault. You never would have expected that your mother would do to you what her father did to her. You aren’t stupid for hoping she would understand. After all, she was once also just a teenage girl.
taglist (comment to be added): General: @valeskafics @urmomsgirlfriend1 @girlwith-thepearlearring @darylandbethfanforever9 @lovellies @juhdoche @papichulo120627 @watercolorskyy
Lord husband: @feyres-fireheart @possiblyafangirl @hb8301 @marihoneywk @youn-jo @velvet-spider @janelongxox @ninastyless @nyctophilic0vitnir @m-a-s-h-k-a @delicious-xx @weepingfashionwritingplaid @happinessinthebeing @betelrus @joliettes @black-swan-blog27 @mxtokko @valeridarkness
#lord husband#cregan stark#cregan stark fic#cregan#cregan x reader#cregan stark x reader#cregan x you#hotd#hotd fic
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a series of (un)fortunate events | l.mk
summary. it’s been months since you've seen mark in person. when you have no choice but to be around him because of a wedding, you start to feel as if fate likes to see you suffer.
or, alternatively:
maybe fate just wants to see you happy.
pairing. rising actor!mark x fem!reader, feat. hyuck and ryujin
words. 9.4k
genre. exes to lovers; fluff with lots of angst sprinkled all over
warnings. reader has anxiety, honestly she’s a little bit miserable but i think we can forgive her for that, alcohol consumption, i asked my friend what the agents name should be and we both thought linda would be funny (sorry if your name is linda), cliche kdrama drunk scene bc i can
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you were frozen in time. mind completely empty. the literal embodiment of ‘not a thought behind those eyes’. it took a solid 45 seconds of ryujin calling your name before you snapped out of it and looked at her again through your phone screen. she was frowning at you and you couldn’t help but mutter under your breath a small, “shit.”
clearing your voice you apologized with a smile this time.
“i knew she’d react like this,” ryujin said to the other person sharing the space on the phone screen.
“i know… look,” donghyuck said to you after turning away from his now fiancé. “i told mark that he’s my best man because he’s my best friend, but i also told him to try and keep his distance. we both want the both of you there for us.” donghyuck was pouting a little, probably because he always got his way when he did that but you were mostly looking at ryujin. she was happy and you could tell, but her eyes were worried for you. and who were you to ruin this time for her?
“oh, of course babe. i can handle this, no worries at all!” you forced the smile to meet your eyes, hoping she’d buy it. she didn’t. but she admired your bravery in the moment and didn’t press you further.
“i’ll let you know the details, you’ll have to fly back home so don’t worry about the dresses or anything. i’ll take care of that for you!” she chirped.
“ryu, no! if i’m the maid of honor then i should help with this stuff!” but ryujin was already waving her hand dismissively.
“just focus on getting here, it’s going to be expensive enough to get plane tickets, let alone the back and forth. so we’ll make it one trip for the wedding and i’ll facetime you for everything.”
“at least let me plan the bachelorette party,” you argued. and ryujin smiled brightly at that.
“i wouldn’t dream of taking that away from you.”
after a few more minutes of honest congratulations and eye rolls for donghyuck, you hung up the phone and you sat back on the couch while you stared at the picture that was the home screen. running your hand through your hair, you sighed heavily. the picture of mark leaning against the short wall of the ice rink as he was laughing hysterically was staring back at you, the moment captured during your one year anniversary date. you had fallen while ice skating and he spent the first two minutes laughing before he pulled himself together to help you up. you had been recording at the time and it was your favorite picture.
even though it had been two months since you had left, you still didn’t have the heart to change it. just like you didn’t have the heart to fall out of love with him. this wedding would be the second hardest thing you’d have to do.
the first will always be the night you left.
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you took everything that you had originally thought back. this would absolutely be the second hardest thing you’d ever have to do.
when ryujin sent you the seating arrangement for the wedding and let it slip that you’d have to walk with mark down the aisle, you nearly cried.
you did cry, actually.
luckily you knew where the letters were on your keyboard so you were able to type out a ‘sounds good to me, babe :)’ without actually seeing since your watery eyes were making the keyboard all but disappear.
you angrily brushed them away, getting so frustrated with your emotions and scolding yourself because you would have to get this under control in three months time. you still didn’t understand the rush of the wedding but it wasn’t your wedding to plan therefore you had no say in the matter. shaking your head you went back to your laptop to search for plane tickets to korea when the late night show’s host saying mark’s name caught your attention and you quickly whipped your head up to watch the tv.
“tonight we have with us, the up and coming star whose debut movie will be releasing this friday, mark lee!” the audience clapped and the thought of reaching for the remote to turn off the tv did not cross your mind; the idea of getting to see him aside from the random magazine cover made your heart ache but in that moment you wanted to brave the ache if only to get to see a smile from him.
mark walked on the set and waved at everyone, a bright smile on his face that you had been waiting for. his blue blazer complementing his black hair, and you couldn’t help but think about how handsome he looked. you were far too entranced to tell yourself to turn it off now.
“so!” the host said, clapping his hands together as mark took his seat adjacent to him. “welcome to the show.”
mark nodded along, “thank you for having me.”
“the pleasure is all ours, isn’t that right?” the host said to the crowd and they began the applause all over again. you noticed mark’s ears turning a little pink and you knew he was getting a little overwhelmed with the love from strangers.
“your debut movie dive into you, your very first role as an actor nonetheless, was making waves,” the host paused with a raised eyebrow while the crowd - and mark - laughed at his pun; then continued, “of the sundance festival. how did it feel to win awards so soon after wrapping up production?”
mark smiled and nodded along in answer, “it feels like it’s not real honestly, but also like my hard work has finally paid off. i never really thought i’d be here. i never thought i’d get to see this part of my dream come to pass but here i am. i can’t help but feel nervous, but also excited, you know? the director, cast, and crew were all welcoming and amazing to work with. i’ll truly remember this moment forever, and be grateful for it.” the host nodded along with mark as he answered his question at length, and then as he spoke the hosts lips pursed and he began tapping his chin.
“you said something very interesting just then, mark,” the host commented and mark raised an eyebrow at him suddenly looking around trying to figure out what it was exactly that he had said, as if the audience could help him find it.
“what? did i accidentally cuss and not realize it?” mark gave a nervous laugh and you couldn’t help but smile at his awkwardness. you were happy to see that although he had achieved his dream, he was still the same mark.
“oh no! and besides. it’s late night tv, you’re allowed to cuss here and there,” the host laughed a little before leaning forward on his desk and mark leaned closer as if they were going to share a secret.
“what i was curious about, and i’m sure what everyone else at home is curious about as well, is what you meant exactly by ‘this part of my dream’? what’s the other half… or whatever fraction of your dream that hasn’t come true yet?”
and mark’s eyebrows rose, “ahhh, that…” he hesitated while he scratched the back of his neck.
“i just meant… um, i just meant that the other part being that i wish that my- my friends were able to be here and celebrate this milestone with me.” mark was lying through his teeth, you could tell because as he said the word friends, his nose scrunched a little and that was always how you knew he was either lying or withholding something. but these people wouldn’t know that about him, and the shows host accepted the answer immediately. his face gave a look of understanding and almost concern.
“oh yeah, you came from korea for this movie, didn’t you?” and mark nodded in answer.
“yeah, they’re all back home supporting me but it’s okay. my best friend is getting married in a couple of months so i’ll be able to celebrate then with them in person!” and the host grinned widely at mark and then the camera.
“well that makes me happy for you, mark, truly! oh, and it looks like that’s all the time we have for tonight. everyone go watch dive into you when it releases in theatres this friday!”
the credits began to roll and mark was shot smiling and clapping, leaning over to say something to the host that the camera mic didn’t catch as the show ended. seeing his smile and being happy like that made the heart ache worsen, and you rubbed at your chest trying to ease the metaphorical pain. you weren’t sure if you were ready to see him. you weren’t sure if you’d be able to keep it together for this whole thing.
but for ryujin, you’d try.
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fuck this. you couldn’t do it.
you really really couldn’t do it.
after landing in korea you connected to the wifi of the airport only to receive one message from ryujin.
5:50 pm my baby 👭: mark will be picking u up from the airport, hyuck and i had last minute kinks to work out for the wedding but i’ll come and get u tonight for the bachelorette party! i’m so sorry 😞
she even had the nerve, the audacity to send the sad emoji but all you could do was feel your heart racing from anxiety. so you quickly typed back in a panic -
that’s ok! i can just take a taxi, no need for mark to come!
but she answered immediately as if she were waiting for your response, and her only message was, “he’s already there!”
and you were going to fucking kill her. you were absolutely going to murder her before she even got the chance to step one toe down the aisle. you didn’t even bother responding to the text, your anxiety and frustration making an uncomfortable mix in your chest and if you weren’t already thirty seconds from a panic attack, your phone buzzed again and with sweaty palms you checked it.
6:05 pm ml 🐯🥰: ryujin gave me your new number, sorry if this is weird. but i’m outside in the blue car, take your time though.
6:06 pm ml 🐯🥰: this is mark, btw
you internally screamed as you read the message over and over again, the contact name being another thing you also didn’t have the heart to change like your wallpaper, truly thinking you would never see it pop up again. you abruptly sat on the nearest bench as you waited for your checked luggage to arrive at the baggage carousel, the people who were standing around you edged further away from you. flashing you concerned looks at your apparent mental break down, but you could hardly even blink. you felt your heart rising in your throat and you tried to breathe through your nose and out through your mouth.
you tried slowly counting to five.
you tried breathing in for a few seconds and breathing out slower.
as you sat, you tried every calming technique you could think of.
it wasn’t until an elderly lady placed a gentle hand on your shoulder causing you to jump slightly and she gave you a kind look.
“everything is going to be okay,” she said as she gently rubbed your back and then just… walked away. the sudden appearance and disappearance of her making your panic halt in an instant in the distraction.
then the carousel whirred to life, and you had to rush over to haul your bag off of the moving belt before you had to wait for it to come around again. you really should have let it circle around a few times, but that idea came to you after you had already set the suitcase on the ground.
the kindness from the older woman, and the knowledge that you would be able to thoroughly murder your friend in a few short hours helped you to steel your nerves as you exited the airport and quickly found the blue car mark was driving.
it was easy to spot because he was literally leaning against it while he stared at his phone. you hesitated a moment, taking him in and god did he look good in those jeans and that sweater. the thoughts getting away from you before you could stop them but immediately scolded yourself.
steadying yourself with a quick breath, you rolled your suitcase up to the trunk and he jerked his head up at the sudden movement.
“oh, hi. i was waiting for a response from you- but, uh, um, here! let me get that.” he said quickly as he reached for your bag to help you heave it into the trunk but you put your hand up to stop him, taking a step back to create space.
“it’s okay,” you said, a little too curt with him. “i can do it myself.” and mark instantly deflated, your heart jumping at the need to fix that look.
no, you scolded yourself and internally forced your heart to still. he’s not yours anymore.
you made sure of that.
mark stepped back and let you lift up the heavy suitcase yourself, dropping it ever so gracefully in the trunk. you closed it and tried not to make eye contact as you moved around mark to get into the passenger seat. when you shut the door you couldn’t stop yourself from looking in the side mirror to see him frown and he shook his head at himself. you breathed a sigh of relief out. the ‘ripping off the bandaid’ part over and done with.
he got in to his side of the car smoothly, and you prepared yourself for an awkward silence the entire ride to the hotel.
“we’re staying at the same place, so that’s cool!” mark said casually, trying to create some form of conversation, of peace. you didn’t respond to what he said, instead opting for a different approach.
“you didn’t need to come and get me,” you said quietly as you stared at the passing cars on the road.
“i wanted to,” he said just as quietly, and you flinched internally at what sounded like sadness. he said your name, and then hesitated. after a few moments of silence, you saw his reflection in the window shake his head slightly as he decided against saying whatever it was.
“never mind.” was the last word uttered of the drive.
the tension weighed heavily on your already wounded heart.
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fate had it out for you. she must really enjoy screwing you over. because what you kept thinking would be the hardest part… kept continuously turning out to absolutely not be the hardest part, as if she were taunting you.
exhibit d:
“what do you mean my reservation was canceled?” you asked the hotel concierge for the third time in a row, causing her to sigh in frustration at you, finally cracking her happy persona she had to wear for her job.
“ma’am, i really don’t know how else to explain it to you. it says here it was canceled, and your room was already booked by someone else.”
“well unbook it!” you insisted, all but yelling out at that point, completely fed up. “i didn’t cancel my reservation, so it must have been a system error. isn’t there anything you can do to fix this?”
“i’m sorry,” the woman said again. “we’re fully booked for a wedding that’s taking place in a few days.”
“i-“ you paused pinching the bridge of your nose tightly, taking a moment to deeply inhale. you were going to have to google better calming techniques. “i. know. because i am in that wedding!” you hissed between clenched teeth and when the woman reached for the phone in fear, to call what you presumed was the security, mark stepped in suddenly. he leaned against the tall counter, and his sudden closeness made you jerk your head up to make eye contact with him.
“i booked a suite with an extra bed, it may be a little… um, awkward but the bed is yours if you want it.” his ears were turning red, but his voice sounded genuine. as if he truly meant his offer and god you wanted to crawl into the nearest hole and never come out. knowing your options were limited to this or staying with your parents who lived two hours outside of the city, you really didn’t have any other choice.
fate was absolutely fucking with you just because she could, was the only thought on replay as you were getting ready in the bathroom for the bachelorette party that night. considering you had slept on the plane, you weren’t tired yet and you figured you’d be able to sleep off the jetlag with a nice hangover before the rehearsal dinner the next evening. putting the final touches on your makeup, you looked at yourself in the mirror.
you could do this.
you could do this.
you could do this.
you repeated those three sentences like a mantra to yourself over and over, trying to give yourself the confidence to leave the room and be in the same space as mark again, but it seemed like the universe had different plans as your inner musings were interrupted.
“you look… really pretty.” he said in the entrance of the bathroom, his body blocking the only exit from the room. you looked down to avoid the eye contact in the mirror he was giving you, and muttered a quiet, “thank you.”
he paused a moment more before saying your name, for the second time since you had seen him, and hearing his voice saying your name in that way as opposed to the first time… it almost made tears spring to your eyes.
“i just wanted-“ he started, but for the first time since you had been told of this wedding, something (because it definitely wasn’t fate) decided to take pity on you and give you a break because at that moment you got a text from ryujin.
9:45 pm murder victim (1) 🔪: here babe!!
and you instantly sighed in relief. cutting mark off from what you were sure he had spent the last hour building up the courage to say, you turned on your heel and said, “ryu’s here! gotta go.”
you brushed past him to exit the hotel room, not even noticing that you had forgotten the door key on your way out.
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it was three am.
or maybe four.
you weren’t sure.
you spent the first twenty minutes of the night scolding the hell out of ryujin in the back of the uber and she just took it with a grin.
“and just what is so funny?” you huffed at her, crossing your arms and allowing your brows to stay furrowed.
“it’s almost like the universe is telling you to get back together.” she sang, and wiggled her eyebrows at you. you threw your hands up in exasperation, drawing eyes from the driver through the rearview mirror. giving a slight bow of apology to him you turned back to ryujin only to roll your eyes at her.
“no, the universe likes watching me hit a newly discovered rock bottom. we’re not getting back together and i’m sure he’ll be happy to have me gone once your wedding is over.” ryujin only shrugged and you didn’t hear it when she muttered, “i wouldn’t be so sure.”
when the uber dropped you off in front of the first club of the night, your sour mood dispersed in a second as you headed inside.
you and ryujin, along with her other bridesmaids in her party, heejin, yeji, and jimin had bounced from club to club and you had thoroughly drank your cares away. you were no longer thinking about how fate was a bitch. you were no longer thinking about the doom and gloom you were feeling.
you were no longer thinking about mark.
except that last one was a lie because he was the only thought that occupied your brain through the night, so much so that ryujin had to cover your mouth with her hand to stop your rambling about him.
but as the dawn crept closer and closer, all of you were calling it quits. yeji had lost a shoe somewhere along the way and jimin had left thirty minutes before, taking a whiny yeji with her; heejin was finally getting into her uber after ten minutes of drunkenly explaining that no, she wasn’t in the building the street over, and yes the gps was actually wrong. it just left you and ryujin as you waited for donghyuck to come pick you up, knowing he was on standby for the designated driver role of the morning. ryujin held your hand and affectionately laid her head on your shoulder. you copied the action and turned so you could hug each other and sway back and forth, the scene cute if not for the fact that anyone watching could tell that you were both heavily intoxicated if the giggles coming from you both after each dramatic sway were any indicator.
“you know everything is gonna be okay,” she slurred a little too loudly in your ear and the phrase made you think of something but you couldn’t quite remember what it was.
“i know,” you giggled at her, grinning brightly and you both squeezed each other tighter. you couldn’t remember in that moment what needed to be okay.
“hey, that’s my future wife! if you wanted her you should have proposed first!” you both turned to see donghyuck smiling widely, as he leaned across the center console to be able to tease you both out of the passenger window. you answered by sticking your tongue out childishly at him and ryujin answered by kissing your cheek with a loud, exaggerated smack, leaving a red stain on your cheek from what was left of her lipstick.
“i could have had her years before you even knew her, and i’ll have her years after you. remember that!” you said while pointing your fingers at your eyes and turning them on him. he rolled his eyes and sarcastically mimicked your response before motioning for you both to get in the car.
the drive back to the hotel was quiet and for the first time that night you checked your phone.
11:03 pm ml 🐯🥰: hey, i just noticed you left your keycard to get back in the hotel
12:00 am ml 🐯🥰: i’ll sleep with my phone off of silent, just call when you get back and i’ll let you in
2:15 am ml 🐯🥰: please be safe, let me know if i need to come get you
your heart fluttered at his messages and you drunkenly smiled at how he still cared. you covered your mouth to hide your smile but the sober one in the car didn’t miss the way your eyes lit up in a way that neither he nor ryujin had seen on you in five months. he could only smirk to himself as he drove, promising to himself to tell ryujin about what he saw the next morning.
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you stumbled your way down the hallway, stopping and taking off one shoe as it was rubbing your foot painfully. then after a few steps you realized how silly it was to walk with one heel on and you clumsily leaned against the wall to pull off the other shoe. arriving to the door, you giggled at the idea of getting to call and talk to mark.
mark was here, with you.
you were here, with mark.
something you’d never thought would happen again and it made your heart soar. giggling again at that thought you pulled out your phone. hitting the call button, he picked up after the third ring and you sighed as you leaned against the door frame, allowing it to hold you up.
“hello?” his voice was raspy from sleep and it made butterflies erupt in your stomach.
“hi,” you giggled once more, and you internally smacked yourself this time.
play it cool or don’t talk yourself into sounding like an idiot, you told yourself.
“hi,” he parroted back to you. “are you okay? do i need to come get you?”
“yeah, can you please?” and you heard rustling through the phone.
“okay, i’m on my way. where are you?” he didn’t hesitate. he didn’t even sigh. he didn’t seem annoyed by having to help you. he seemed… almost happy in the way he said his words. as if you could audibly hear the smile. but maybe that was the alcohol letting you hear what you wanted to hear. you heard him walking around in the hotel room through the phone, and saw a light flick on from the little sliver of a gap under the door.
“on the other side of the door,” you smiled, laughing a little harder at your own joke and the door jerked open to reveal mark in all his sleepy glory. shirt wrinkled and hair sticking out at in odd directions. his relief, however, made way to his smile and he couldn’t help but stare down at you for a moment… but you, you were definitely still drunk. and who needs inhibitions to tell you not to do something anyways? not you, that’s for sure.
“my pretty maaaark!” you sang, as you threw yourself against him, or well, fell against him would be a better term for what happened.
he froze at the sudden affection from you, arms raised at awkward angles above your body before allowing his arms to lower and hug you back gently.
“i’m so sleepy, mark.” you slurred against his chest and you nuzzled your cheek against it, thinking about how soft this shirt was. he huffed a small laugh and pulled you further into the room so he could close the door.
“okay, let’s get you to bed then. c’mon.” and he helped you walk (in reality he half carried you) towards the shared bedroom.
“mark,” you called his name again softly. he glanced down at you and he noticed you were already looking up at him, arms still wrapped around his waist.
“mm?” he answered as he navigated you finally over to the bed.
“i’m so happy,” you said to him and somehow, fate again you assumed - that bitch - you simultaneously tripped over your own drunk feet and tumbled back onto the bed. your arms that were still wrapped around his waist gave him no choice but to fall with you, or well, on top of you. he caught himself instead of crushing you, an arm on each side of your head, caging you in.
he looked down at you and your body acting off it’s own accord by gripping his shirt tightly at his waist. you couldn’t help but stare at his face for a few long seconds, eyes going from his eyes, up to his hair, down to his lips, back to his eyes, and then back to his lips one last time.
“and why is that?” he asked, bringing you back to the moment before you tripped. and although your eyes had drifted back up to his eyes, he noticed that yours started to slowly flutter closed, as if you were fighting sleep but the alcohol was winning. your bright smile you gave him while you were thinking of the answer made his heart beat fast, but the words you said next made it stop entirely.
“because i get to be here with you, even if it’s just for a moment. i missed you so much, my mark, all marked in my heart.” you laughed softly again at your own joke, referencing back to a pickup line he had given you that made you say yes to his first request of a date. he couldn’t help the melancholy feeling that overcame him as he looked down at your sleeping form, the alcohol finally taking you from awake to asleep within seconds.
“i’m happy too,” he whispered though you didn’t hear it.
if only you knew how happy he actually was.
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the next day, you surprisingly slept well considering it was 3 o’clock in the afternoon and you were still in your clothes from last night. the curtains were drawn tightly as to not let any light in, and you groaned at the headache that pulsed behind your eyelids. you knew the room was empty based on the the silence and you were grateful for it as you felt embarrassed by your actions the night before. why the hell would you say that to mark? if you wanted him to hate you, well, you were doing a damn good job of solidifying that. you searched for your phone amongst the blankets and pillows to check your messages.
11:15 am murder victim (2) 🔫: mark said earlier that you forgot your key, hope you ‘got in’ okay ;)
11:30 am murder victim (1) 🔪: hi babe, how’s the hangover? the rehearsal is at 5. text me when u get up, ily 😘
11:47 am ml 🐯🥰: i put tylenol by the bed with some water, i would have ordered you food but didn’t know what time you’d be getting up. see you later
your heart gave way at the kind gesture as you flipped on a light switch and squinted at the brightness, quickly finding the medicine and downing it in one go to quickly turn off the light again.
maybe he wasn’t hating you like you thought.
you gave yourself thirty minutes to try and let the headache lose the battle with the medicine you took and finally rolled out of bed to take a shower, doing everything you could think of to keep mark and his never ending kindness off of your mind. you got ready in record time, and somehow made it to the rehearsal on time with five minutes to spare.
you ran through the wedding fairly quickly, and you most certainly did not blush as mark took your arms in his to walk you down the aisle for the practice run. besides that, you didn’t get a chance to look at mark until it came to dinner with the wedding party for the night.
fate, and you couldn’t say you were mad at her this time, had allowed mark to sit next to you during dinner.
“so mark,” yeji had said as she stuffed a piece of broccoli into her mouth. “what’s it like being famous now?”
he groaned in answer. his hand moved ever so slightly to the right and his pinky was suddenly touching yours. your eyes widened but you didn’t move your hand away, allowing his hand to rest next to yours. it felt like something from middle school when you would get excited over your crush, your eyes laser-focused on where you were connected.
“i mean, of course i’m happy to have found success in it.”
success.
that word alone sent you back to The Moment five months ago.
success was all that you wanted for mark, you were happy to watch him as he acted on set. with the way his schedule had been lining up, you hardly saw him. so when you suggested that maybe you could spend the day with him on set while he worked, he didn’t say no to you. it made you happy that he made you feel like he was fitting time in with you even if he was insanely busy.
you missed spending time with him, and you really… just… missed him. his absence making your worries and self doubts grow more eminent but you were both usually good at communicating so it wasn’t a constant worry, but the worry was there all the same.
mark had just left you to begin another scene, leaving you sitting in his chair that was off to the side and you couldn’t stop your eyes from following him around the room, watching his interactions with his cast mates.
a body landing into the chair next to yours caused you to jump and you turned to see his manager sitting next to you, leaning to the side to be just on the verge of invading your space. she was a stone faced woman, perfectly presented down to the red polish of her nails.
you had only met her a few times but she seemed… nice enough. you couldn’t deny that she worked hard to get mark solid chances and auditions so you appreciated her as mark did.
the situation at hand made you uncomfortable for some reason though, your gut telling you to move away from her.
you didn’t listen.
“so,” his manager began slowly, not making eye contact with you, instead her eyes were following mark as yours had been doing moments before.
“so…?” you prompted when she didn’t begin speaking right away.
“we need to talk… and i’m taking the initiative because mark’s too kind and won’t do it.” this caught you off guard entirely. mark was keeping something from you? you were both good terrible secret keepers with each other and this seemed so unlike him.
but, you thought, his manager was with him when you weren’t so maybe…
“oh…” you said, and finally his manager made eye contact with you. the cold stare she was giving you sent shivers down your spine.
“look, sweetie. this… this relationship you have with mark. it isn’t working.” and she patted you on the shoulder as if this were good news. “it isn’t going to work for his image or his future. you know you’re holding him back from the future he could have. the future he deserves. why do you want to burden him any further than you already have?” she asked, voice dripping with a sense of sweetness that screamed condescension.
you stilled at that instantly. the thought that you may have been the problem the entire time you were together… that you were the reason as to why he couldn’t get auditions… you would be lying if you said it hadn’t crossed your mind.
“but mark never said…” you argued weakly, playing with your fingers all while trying not to make eye contact with the woman sitting next to you.
“of course he wouldn’t, dear. he knows you’re too… fragile.” she sneered at the last word, her disdain for you being glaringly obvious as the conversation carried on. your anxiety made you fragile? mark had talked about you to her?
when you didn’t respond right away, mind racing, mark’s manager stood up.
“if you want to be selfish, and ruin his chances at success then that’s fine. just know any future failures would be on you. if you truly loved him, you’d do this for him. you’d leave.” her voice changed sharply within that sentence, the word selfish becoming a thicker blanket on top of burden in your mind and it was like you couldn’t breathe.
the anxiety stemming from the words she had just said - the fears you had been harboring for months, the thoughts that you had been smothering like a fire in the back of your mind suddenly roared to life, and the sudden heat was too hot for you to handle in the moment.
the idea of mark possibly resenting you in the future for things you knew were out of your control, it shook you… and it was minutes of spiraling into yourself before you realized that his manger had been long gone and the director had called cut.
mark stopped by where you sat for a brief moment to tell you that he had to go to the the hair and makeup trailer and he would be back soon. the fact that he didn’t tell you that he loved you with a quick kiss like he usually would being the final nail in the coffin for you in believing every word.
you got up and left the set that day, going to your shared home with mark and realized there wasn’t much that you wanted to take anyway. your heart was shattered and everything you’d take would only remind you of him.
you had packed a suitcase, and sat for a long time contemplating if you wanted to leave a letter but then ultimately decided that if he was already feeling burdened by you, you’d be doing him a favor by not making it hard on him. or well, any harder.
allowing that memory to play all the way through for the first time since seeing him made you feel as if reality had punched you in the stomach, and it sobered you up quickly. the heavy weight of your anxiety was back and it settled on your chest. the bubble of happiness you felt at the slightest touch, at the first sight of him after being apart from him for so long… all gone in an instant.
remember you’re the burden, you did this for him, you chided yourself sadly in your head. you were the reason why you both were estranged.
you gently moved your hand away to rest it in your lap. mark cut his eyes to you suddenly but you missed the glance and you missed the way he was still looking at you as he said, “but i’m just happy to be here with you… with all of you again.”
he tore his eyes away from your face to look at yeji and she smiled knowingly, eyes darting from mark to you. the room felt small to you then, almost suffocating. the sudden appearance of someone to the table brought you to the present.
“dessert will be coming out soon,” the waitress said to ryujin.
your appetite was gone entirely, and you had to get out of there. you leaned over and whispered in ryujin’s ear that you loved her but you were heading up to the room. you felt the tears were coming, because reality was the bitch this time instead of fate.
the kindness mark was showing you during all of this was making your heart ache and it was bringing up the pain that you desperately fought off for five months. excusing yourself from the table, you told everyone goodnight and made a beeline for the elevator that would take you up to the room.
stepping inside and punching the floor number, you hit the close door button frantically and bit your lip to try and keep the tears from coming as long as possible. the doors were almost closed when a hand suddenly blocked it and it opened again, revealing mark and he stepped inside, awkwardly coughing at the dramatics of it all.
you stepped to the side of the elevator and didn’t look up from your fingernails that you played with to avoid eye contact at all costs. the awkward tension filled the elevator thickly and you could feel mark’s stare boring holes into the side of your head. when the elevator finally dinged with the arrival of your floor, you’d never felt more grateful for the annoying sound.
all but running from the elevator, you headed to the room only to realize that, fuck, yes you were actually staying in mark’s room and no, he wasn’t riding the elevator for fun. his steps sounded behind yours and you pointedly didn’t say a word to him as you both entered the room. his presence didn’t deter your tears that had been threatening to spill, in fact it only made them more prevalent and it was taking all that you could do to not let them fall. the click of the door being shut made you flinch a little in anticipation of what came next, and mark cleared his throat.
“so, um…” he began, hesitating while trying to find the right words on how to approach this before continuing. “i think - i think we should talk. you said something’s last night and it… it really has me confused and i just need, no, i deserve an explanation.” when he finished his sentence his words sounded pained.
you did guess that you owed him an explanation.
but you didn’t want to give it to him.
the same way you felt you deserved one as well, but you didn’t want the confirmation.
“i’m sorry, mark.” you said, voice barely above a whisper. and it was the only thing you had to say in that moment, anything over three words and your voice would have cracked. you kept your back to him as you walked over to the bathroom and shut the door, not wanting to see his face during this.
you really were a coward, you thought.
you heard mark approach the other side of the door and stop.
“you’re- you’re sorry?” he asked, and then with a hint of sarcasm, he finally decided to bring up the biggest and obvious elephant in the room. “you’re sorry for what? leaving or are you sorry for what you said last night? are you going to tell me you didn’t mean it now?” and you could only shake your head even though he couldn’t see.
“all of it.” you choked out.
“all- ha, all of it?” his laugh was dry. your silence was answer enough.
“you left me. you left me without an explanation. without a single note and then you changed your number! i thought you had just left the set but i came home to find you gone. what could i have possibly done that would have deserved that? what did i do?”
“it’s…” you started from the other side of the door, tears falling at the desperation in his voice. but mark was on a roll, months of pent up frustration and sadness finally boiling over.
“you were there with me and then you weren’t and you hurt me, y/n. you absolutely broke my heart, you know that? i almost quit the movie entirely.”
“if you had, then it would have been for nothing.” you cried from the other side of the door.
“what are you even talking about?”
you flung open the door suddenly, mark taking in your tear stained face, your eyes red and bloodshot.
“i left you for you, mark.”
“i don’t-.”
“you said i broke your heart, but i broke my own first. i left you for you!”
“i never asked you to do that!”
“you didn’t have to! she did it for you. i left so i wouldn’t hold you back anymore. i was holding you back, i was burdening you, i was keeping you from the successful career you worked so hard to achieve.” you placed your hand on your chest and took a deep breath, “i admit that i was a coward in not waiting, but i couldn’t handle hearing the confirmation of it all from you. so i did it for you, i left so i wouldn’t be selfish.” you spat out the last word like it was poison, the word that had been torturing you these past five months, all while pointing your finger at mark as if to drive home your point.
“she-? you… selfish? what the hell are you even talking about?” he asked, eyebrows fully drawn together in confusion. you scoffed.
“don’t act as if you hadn’t talked to her about me. about how you couldn’t tell me any of this because i was fragile.” your mouth twisted with that sentence, and your emotions didn’t know whether to be angry or sad. so you continued to cry because, yeah, that would cover all the bases.
marks mouth clicked shut as things started to come together in his mind. pieces falling into place and then he was suddenly livid.
mark was silent for a moment, his lips pursed and his eyes thunderous - you could only assume that fury was directed at you considering his eyes never left yours, and you swallowed nervously.
“y/n…” mark started slowly, his voice dropping dangerously low in his anger, “who exactly do you mean when you say the word ‘she’?”
you hesitated a little, never knowing mark to get this angry.
“your… manager.” you murmured and mark’s jaw clenched, and you felt your anger dissipate entirely as his took over. as the seconds ticked on, you watched as mark reached into his back pocket and withdrew his phone, he only broke eye contact for a second to click the name he was searching for and he brought his eyes back to yours. your eyebrows drew together in confusion.
who would he be calling during the middle of the argument - and finally you heard it when the other person answered the phone and you could recognize that sickly sweet voice anywhere. your jaw dropped and you made to stomp away when mark used his other hand to gently hold onto your arm, pulling you a bit closer than you were before to stand in front of him.
“mark, honey, i’ve been waiting for you to call! how’s korea? you just have to tell me all about it.” she asked loudly through the phone and you frowned at the way she spoke to mark.
“korea’s fine,” he chirped politely as if his eyes weren’t telling you otherwise. “my family is well, the wedding is going as planned, and linda, you’ll never guess who i ran into!”
“oh do tell, you know i love the gossip.” she laughed through the phone and you saw mark’s eyes darken.
“y/n.” the anger in which he said your name, but it not being directed at you, was both a relief and worried you at the same time.
the deafening silence from her end was answer enough for mark.
“and she told me the funniest story,” snark dripping from every word, “hilarious actually. but i think i’d rather hear it from the horses mouth, you know?”
“look, mark, sweetie, i’m sure she misunderstood or she must have been confused by our conversation that day, i only meant to tell her-“
“what?” mark interjected. “tell her that she was burdening me? holding me back? that i called her fragile? i think that’s exactly what you meant.”
she hesitated before answering, but her answering tone was the same as she used with you that day.
sweet condescension.
“well, yes. she was bad for you,” she said shortly.
“oh no, i disagree entirely. i think the one bad for me, was in fact, you.” and she sputtered on the other end of the phone and you couldn’t help the small upturn of your lips to hear her at a loss for words, the smile not going unnoticed by mark if the softening of his eyes were any indicator.
you realized in that moment how you let your anxiety and self doubts ruin something that was perfectly fine to begin with.
linda scoffed, the haughty sound coming in loud through the phone’s speaker.
“oh, please. you’ll thank me someday when you’re big and famous, dating some supermodel. someone at your level of fame.”
mark was silent, his eyes taking in your face and he knew how hard hearing things like this must have been for you. he knew of your insecurities, and he thought he did his best to reassure you but he realized the one time it mattered most, he let it slip through the cracks.
he realized his lack of presence in that moment ruined what you both had.
linda took his extended pause as agreement with what she was saying.
“see? you know that i’m right. anyway, mark, honey, let’s-!” mark cut her off mid-sentence.
“no, what i know… is that you’re fired.” he said calmly, and your eyebrows raised and your eyes widened and you opened your mouth to argue - yes, you hated the woman but she had helped him with his career. mark lifted the hand that had been gently holding your arm to place a finger on your lips, effectively shutting you up with a smile on his face.
linda screeched through the phone, an abrasive noise that sounded awfully like a dying cat.
“you can’t fire me, you ungrateful d-.” and mark hung up the phone, tossing it onto the counter of the kitchenette behind him.
you swallowed thickly now at the sudden silence that fell over the room. mark moved his hand from your lips to wipe the tears that had ran down your face earlier and you avoided eye contact with him then at the gentleness of his hands.
“mark, i…”
“you said you loved me, so you left. did you stay away because you loved me too? change your number for the same reason?”
you nodded, “i thought i would be making it easier for you…”
“do you still love me now?” your eyes snapped back up to his. you decided to be truthful.
“i can’t do anything but love you.” mark’s smile at your answer ignited butterflies in your stomach.
“and i…” he said stepping closer into your space, reaching down to hold your hand in his as he brought it to his chest, his heartbeat a steady rhythm that you could feel. “i have no choice but to love you.”
you felt tears well up again in your eyes at his admission, and you bit your lip to try to keep them from spilling over.
“you still… are you still in love with me?” your voice quivered, and you cleared your throat trying to tame the burning sensation that came with holding back your tears.
“without a doubt.”
“well, if you really do love me… if you love me like i love you then…” you looked between his eyes to his lips, and as you blinked the tears you had been holding back fell. and mark tilted his head, his playful smile making you smile with him through the tears.
“then kiss me.”
mark didn’t waste any more time, one hand tangling itself in your hair and the other cupping your jaw tenderly and you melted into the kiss, wrapping your arm around his neck and pulling his body flush against yours. five months of anger and sadness and longing pouring out in the movement of your lips. you were crying still but the tears were more out of happiness this time and mark continued to kiss you through it. he pulled away, resting his forehead against yours, lips centimeters from yours, his breath hitting your lips and you closed your eyes, both of you breathing heavily. his voice was soft when he spoke.
“five months spent wasted because i didn’t reassure you enough, i’m… i’m so sorry, y/n.”
“and five months gone because i was too afraid to talk to you… i’m sorry, too.” and you opened your eyes to see he had tears in his eyes this time and you let out a small laugh.
“did you miss me that much?” you joked softly, eyes shining with the happiness that you had pushed down finally seeping through.
“shut up,” he groaned and swept in to kiss you again.
that night, neither of you slept alone in your separate beds.
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the next day found you and mark, surprisingly (to everyone else) friendly, almost flirty, with each other and it didn’t go unnoticed by everyone else in the wedding party. ryujin walked down the aisle to an overjoyed donghyuck and the proceedings went on without a hitch.
the reception was loud, and a bit wild as after the first dance, no other slow song was played. ryujin and donghyuck made it feel like you were clubbing, and if you danced with mark a tiny bit provocatively, no one seemed to notice or care.
during one of your breaks from dancing while you stood near one of the tables, you felt a hand tap on your shoulder and you turned to face them. once you saw their face, your jaw dropped.
“it’s you!” you couldn’t help the gratitude that laced your voice.
the old lady from the airport stood there, the wrinkles from years of smiling showing proudly on her face.
“see, i told you everything would be okay, didn’t i?”
you nodded, smiling and you couldn’t help yourself when you leaned in and gave the woman a hug.
“grandma? you know y/n?” it was mark’s confused voice that came from over your shoulder, coming behind you to rest his hand on the small of your back.
“oh, not really…” she gave you a secret smile, and continued, “but mark, dear. do tell ryujin and donghyuck it was a beautiful wedding for me, i’m sorry but i’m too old to stay up with the younger crowd nowadays.” she patted mark on the arm and said goodnight to you both, leaving you with a wink. mark looked back and forth between you and her and you only shrugged in answer, and you pulled him back out to the dance floor with a smile.
eventually, the night had to come to an end though, but not before the traditional throwing of the bouquet. you were pulled onto the floor with the other bridesmaids and the second ryujin tossed the flowers over her head, the other girls dispersed leaving you to be the only one standing to catch it. you were confused at first but when ryujin gave you a knowing smile, you couldn’t help but laugh at their group effort. and so you turned around to find mark smiling at you and clapping at the edge of the crowd, and you smiled brightly at him as if he hung the stars himself, newfound confidence in every step as you walked up to him.
you threw your arms around his neck and kissed him fully in front of the guests who remained, mostly the small group of friends who all knew each other well. mark wrapped his arms around your waist and lifted you slightly off the ground, while your friends cheered dramatically behind you.
breaking the kiss you smiled at mark before he set you down, and both you and mark turned and caught sight of ryujin and donghyuck sharing a highly triumphant high five.
it all clicked then, every step had been planned by your cunning best friend… and you couldn’t even be mad anymore.
how could you be, when it all turned out to be okay?
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epilogue:
you sat at the table of celebrities like you belonged there, no longer feeling as if you were the misfit amongst them.
a year and a half had passed since ryujin and donghyuck’s wedding and with it came changes.
all of them, you could say, were good.
you battled your anxiety and won… well mostly won, you still had your moments but the second you called mark for reassurance, he was there in an instant with gentle words of affirmation, which you discovered was your love language.
you and mark got married six months after donghyuck and ryujin did, and mark’s reasoning was sound in his opinion.
“i spent five months apart from you, and i think i’ll die if i have to do it again. so i’m locking you down, babe.”
you couldn’t argue with him on that.
and now this moment, the moment where upon hearing mark’s name being called you stood up and cheered, clapping a little louder than the famous people next to you. mark kissed you quickly before running up on stage to receive his award.
it wasn’t an oscar… yet.
but the golden globe would do.
his speech went as he rehearsed with you in your bedroom in the off chance he won. being nominated was enough for him, he had said but you encouraged him to have a speech prepared, just in case.
you had no doubts he would win tonight.
you were right.
his speech was coming to an end, something you could quote with him word for word, until you heard him derail from what he practiced beforehand.
“and i just wanna say the biggest thanks of all to my wife. who, without her, only half of my dream would have been achieved,” he gestured the award to you and the smile he wore was lighting up his entire face. “without you, this wouldn’t matter at all to me. so this one’s all for you, babe. thank you.”
you stood and clapped again, accepting mark back to his seat with an excited hug.
fate - well, ryujin - may have had it out for you, but it was okay in the end.
and you could honestly live with that.
#gimmehyuck#masterlist#nct 127#nct 127 au#nct#nct dream#nct dream au#mark au#mark lee#mark lee au#mark lee fic#mark lee x you#mark lee x reader#mark lee x y/n#mark lee fluff#mark lee angst#technically?#this made me fall for mark so hard ngl#he’s so precious
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Suit Shopping
Prompt by @shinekocreator : "Hear me out: the batsiblings going suit shopping with Dick. Fluffy engaged birdflash. Maybe something around planning the wedding. Also some batsiblings being siblings"
A/N: I had a random burst of inspiration at 10 pm and suddenly wrote this whole this lol
Words: 3006
LMK IF I SHOULD MAKE A PART 2!
TW: None, I think. It's all pretty fluffy. Lmk if I missed smth
“I still think he’ll look prettier in purple,” Steph holds up her phone, showing an image of a bright purple suit. “Like, look at that! All it needs is some glitter.”
“Tt.” Damian scowls at her. “Everyone knows weddings are supposed to be black-and-white.”
“Yeah, the purple looks like the Joker,” Jason points out, nodding. “But hear me out: Red.”
Damian shouts again in protest, basically jumping on Jason. The two start fighting, pulling each-other’s hair and yelling.
“You sure you want them to help, Rob?” Wally shakes his head, his arms wrapped around Dick’s waist as the pair stands just a few feet away, looking at the Bats trying to kill each other.
Dick sighed, resting his head on his boyfriend— no, fiance’s shoulder. “They’re not really giving me a choice, honestly. But this’ll be fun, I’m sure!”
Wally chuckles. “Yeah, Bart and Barry are insisting to come shopping with me, too. So is Iris, actually.” He pulls away from Dick after placing a sweet kiss on his lips. “I’d better get going. Have fun!”
“You too!” Dick smiles as he watches his beloved speed off— he is the fastest man alive, after all. Then Cass walks up to him, gesturing to Damian, Steph, and Jason, then pushing her right hand towards the webbed part of her left in the sign for “annoying”.
He just chuckles, shaking his head. “Just have to wait for Duke and Tim, now, huh?”
Cass smiles and points behind him— where Duke has just entered the living room through the Batcave. “Hey, D,” He waves his hand in greeting as he walks up to them. He gives Damian and Jason— the latter of who is now pinning the younger against a wall with a gun raised— a long look. “What is going on?”
Cass just makes the “annoying” ASL sign again.
“DUKE!” Steph suddenly jumps on him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. “I am so glad you’re here, you’re the only sensible one in this house! Which color do you think Dick’s suit should be?”
She shows him three photos— one exquisite, expensive purple suit made of leather, and two cheap thrift-store black and red suits.
Duke hesitates, carefully extracting himself from the blonde. “Uhh… Don’t you think Dick should decide? It is his wedding.”
“Thank you,” Dick says, pulling Duke closer.
“Heathens, all of you,” Steph shakes her head, disappointed.
That’s when Tim finally enters through the front door— being carried by Kon. Tim quickly jumps out of Kon’s arms, beet red, when he realizes his siblings are already here, and watching. Jon trails after the pair, instantly brightening up when he sees Damian.
Damian stops fighting with Jason just to greet Jon. Suddenly, the young Super flies into Damian, wrapping himself around the Bat, yapping away excitedly.
Everyone in the room freezes.
Oh no, poor Jon is so dead… Dick thinks.
Then.
Damian awkwardly raises his arm and pats Jon on the back, half-hugging him.
Jon pulls away in a second then runs to Dick. “Is it true? You’re getting married? How does it work? Are you excited? Where’s your ring? When’s the wedding? Are you gonna have a b—”
“Woah, woah there!” Dick laughs a little, showing off his ring— a thin gold strand with a Robin on it. “Yeah, I’m engaged to Wally. You know, Flash.”
“WOAH…” Jon’s eyes are wide with awe. Damian pulls him away, tutting.
“Tt. You must be real naive if you don’t know how weddings work.”
“Whatever, man, I just wanna go to the mall.” Jon smiles and shrugs.
Dick smiles back, proud of his Baby Bat for making a good friend. “So,” He claps his hands, getting everyone’s attention. “None of us will be flying to the mall, just FYI. Now, there’s 9 of us here, but one car can only fit five, so we’ll need to take two cars.”
“Um, actually,” Jason stood, twirling keys on his fingers. “I’m taking my motorbike. And only Blondie’s allowed to come with.”
“But this is a family bonding opportunity, Jay!” Dick protested. “We can all—”
“I have a bike,” Kon said suddenly, looking at Tim hopefully. “I can just fly back and get it here. Then we can— uh…”
Tim blushes. “Yeah, yeah, that’d be perfect.”
Kon flashes a smile, and flies out the window.
Dick sighs. I guess that leaves no other choice.
“Okay, the rest of you, come on,” Dick heads to the garage, watching with a soft smile as Damian, Jon, Duke, and Cass pile into his car. While Jon and Damian bicker over who called shotgun first, Cass quietly slips into the passenger seat.
God, Dick loves his sister.
He flashes her a smile, letting her turn the radio to a station to one that plays 60’s ballroom music— she loves music with no words.
He hears the moment the boys realize Cass has taken the seat— they fall quiet, and get into the back, squeezing against Duke, who was peacefully sitting by the window.
He grins, hands on the steering wheel, ready to set off.
They all meet again in the mall’s carpark. Jason and Steph are discussing something about the parking being ridiculously overpriced, Damian’s explaining to Duke how cars work (Duke’s trying hard not to say “I know”), Cass is still listening to ballroom music, Kon’s encouraging Jon to get piercings…
“This is the quietest they’ve all been together, isn’t it?” Tim pipes up from beside Dick, making the older man jump.
“Jesus— Tim, how’re you so quiet?” Dick took a breath to steady himself.
“Years of stalking Batman and Robin paid off, I guess,” He shrugs. “I need coffee.”
Before Dick can reply, Tim walks towards the others, and shouts, “Okay, people. Here’s how it’s gonna go:”
Dick’s brows furrow. “Wait, you’re planning this—”
“There are too many stores, and not enough time. So we’ll split up into groups, find and buy any and all suits we like— in size M, or US 40—”
“—You know my size?”
“—forget about the price, Bruce is paying, and meet back at McDonald’s at 6pm. Jason and Steph, go with Dick to the east wing of the mall. Cass and Duke, go to the west wing. Kon and I will take the north, Damian and Jon to the south. Got that?”
Dick was stunned for a second when everyone easily agreed and split up— they must’ve discussed this before. Slightly dazed, he let Jason and Cass lead him away, to the east entrance of the mall.
Damian walks through the mall, heading straight to the information desk, where a directory of all stores is put up. His eyes scan the shop names and their descriptions, analyzing each one. After all, Grayson deserves the best of the best.
Suddenly Jon appears beside him, vibrating with enthusiasm. “Where do we go first?”
“Nordstrom.” Damian replies, his eyes landing on the name of the store. “Anything there will easily outshine every suit any of the others manage to find.”
“Oooh, that sounds so fancy!” Jon’s eyes widen in awe.
“It is. Not that a farmboy like you could understand it.” Damian turns to face Jon.
“At least I’m not a crazy trust fund kid who’s going to buy, like, 20 suits just so Dick has plenty of choices,” Jon shoots back, undeterred.
“At least I’m not a 12-year-old who thinks math is hard.”
“At least I don’t have Mommy or Daddy issues.”
"At least I'm a man of great intelligence and taste, while you are a farmboy that talks to birds."
"Hey, those birds were awesome... and at least I talk to them... you just sit around being brooding and quiet. The most noise you make is when you're complaining."
“At least I am not a naive boy who thinks the world is sunshine and rainbows!”
Jon crosses his arms. "Yeah, and at least I'm not a brooding snob who's afraid to express his feelings, so he hides behind sarcasm and snarky comments."
That one shuts Damian up.
“So,” Jon puts up a radiant smile again, hand pointing into the air. “To Nordstrom!”
“It’s right there.” Damian points behind Jon.
Jon moves so he’s pointing towards the store. “To Nordstrom!”
Tim and Kon’s hands find each other as soon as they part with the rest of the group— enjoying this feeling of being so close to one another. They head straight to the first clothes store they find, searching around for a suit.
“Hey, Tim,” Kon calls, picking up a red and blue Superboy-themed crop top, complete with leather lining and metal studs. “This would look cute on you.”
Tim blushes. “Kon, we’re looking for a suit!”
“But just buy this too,” Kon encourages, smirking. “Trust me. I can really imagine you in this.”
“And nothing else.” The words escape Tim’s mouth before he can think, and he suddenly slaps his free hand over his mouth. “Um, forget that. Please.”
Kon’s cheeks turn slightly red, but he puts the top in their shopping basket anyway. “So. Um. Suits.”
“Yes,” Tim says awkwardly “Suits.”
The two find a section of the store for formal clothing soon enough, and start rummaging around for something Dick might like.
Everything seems wrong— too formal, too stiff, too not Dick.
“What if we buy a few of these suits, then paint them?” Kon suggests.
Tim turns to face him, thinking. “Good idea, but the only one of us that can paint well is Damian— and we’re competing against him.”
Kon’s brows raise. “Wait, we’re competing against Damian?”
“We’re competing against every other ‘team’ we split up in,” Tim explains, skimming through racks of blue-gray suits. “Damian and Jon, Duke and Cass, Steph and Jason.”
“Oh,” Kon nodded along. “So, how does it work?”
“We all find the best suits possible and present them to Dick, and the team whose suit Dick picks wins.”
“And Dick has no idea about this competition.”
“Helps him be a neutral judge.”
“Uh-huh,” Kon chuckles. “You Bats and your secrecy…”
“Coffee,” Tim says suddenly, turning to leave the store. “We’re not gonna find anything here. Might as well get some coffee. On me.”
Kon smiles, taking Tim’s hand again. “As you wish, babe.”
Then his eyes widen. “Wait, we have to buy the tank top first!”
Duke watches as his sister prances around the store, looking at the different dresses. They’re in a designer boutique (whose manager didn’t believe they were actually here to buy something until they flashed Bruce’s credit card).
He chuckles as Cass picks up a soft pink dress, holding it to herself and standing before the mirror. “It looks lovely, really.”
Cass smiles, and gives it to the manager to add to their cart, just like the many other dresses she did so with before. It doesn’t matter that they’re here to buy a suit— if Cass likes something along the way, she can very well buy it.
Then she finds another princess gown— this time, pastel purple, with shiny sequins and sparkles.
“Yeah, Steph’s gonna love seeing you in that,” Duke grins teasingly. Cass blushes sightly, then hands it over to the manager..
“Also, where are your best suits? Something flashy, not formal and plain.” He asks one of the assistants.
“Oh, yes, I’m sure yellow and black would look great on you, Mr. Thomas,” The assistant replies politely, starting to lead them to a corner.
Duke tries not to cringe at the mention of him in black and yellow. “Um, it’s for my brother, actually. We have his measurements, but is it possible to get it custom-made without him actually being here? It’s a bit of a surprise.”
“Of course,” The assistant nods, leading them to a row of racks filled with rolled-up sheets of fabric. “It would take longer, but you can custom-pick every piece of fabric, every decoration, even talk to our design specialist to make it perfect. It would usually take a few weeks, but for you, we can get it done in just two days, I’m sure.”
Cass walks up to them. “Blue.”
“Of course.”
“Like the night sky. With shining stars, if that’s possible.” Duke adds.
“Do have a chat with the design specialist I mentioned, Mr. Thomas and Ms. Wayne.” The assistant smiles politely. “Shall I check out the six dresses you bought, meanwhile?”
Duke nods, smiling. “Yes, please.”
This was definitely going to be better than the others’ suits.
Steph pulls Dick along by the hand as they both laugh, running through the clothes store. Jason walks behind them, clearly amused but pretending to not care.
“OOOH, pick this!” Steph shoves another bright purple suit into Dick’s hands. He gives her a look.
“Steph… I don’t like purple! I want something blue!” Dick looks around, making sure no one’s eavesdropping, hen whispers, “Nightwing blue!”
Steph pouts. “What do you think, Jason?”
“Red.” Jason replies, looking through some suits. “But if we wanna win, we gotta give him what he wants.”
Steph frowns slightly, but agrees.
“Wait, wait, wait,” Dick holds his hands in front of them. “What do you mean ‘win’?”
Both of them freeze. Then Steph replies awkwardly, “Uh, win your heart, of course!”
“Yeah,” Jason adds, his tone dry. “Prove we’re your best siblings ever.”
Dick blinks. “Steph’s not a sibling. She’s dating our sister and she used to date our brother.”
“Potato, Potatoh,” Steph puts on the fakest smile ever, steering Dick away towards the blue-coloured suits. He goes along, confused.
As they peruse through the suits, Steph and Jason exchange glances, silently communicating their plan. They need to find the perfect Nightwing blue suit to win Dick over. They scan through the racks, occasionally holding up a suit for Dick to inspect.
“This one?” Steph asks, holding up a suit that's more on the navy side.
“Nah, too dark,” Dick shakes his head.
“What about this one?” Jason suggests, pointing to a suit that's a bit too light.
“Too bright,” Dick dismisses it.
The trio continues their search, but nothing seems to meet Dick's standards. Steph starts to feel a little anxious— they need to find something soon if they want to win the competition. Just as she's about to suggest going to another store, Jason spots a suit tucked away in the corner.
“Hey, check this out,” Jason calls out, pulling out a suit in the perfect shade of Nightwing blue. It's sleek, stylish, and has just the right amount of sophistication.
Dick's eyes light up as he examines the suit. “This... this is it.”
Steph grins triumphantly. “I knew we'd find the perfect one!”
Jason nods in agreement. “Let's grab it before someone else snatches it.”
They quickly make their way to the checkout counter, excitement bubbling within them. As they pay for the suit, Jason can't help but feel a sense of satisfaction. Not only did they find the ideal suit for Dick, but they're also one step closer to winning the competition.
With the suit in hand, they head towards the designated meeting spot at McDonald's, eager to show off their find and see what the others have come up with.
The group rendezvouses at a particularly large booth in the mall’s McDonald’s just at 6 pm. Everyone’s carrying shopping bags— Damian and Jon are carrying three each. They settle into the booth, arranging themselves comfortably, excitement evident in their expressions.
Dick, seated at the head of the table, can hardly contain his curiosity. “Alright, everyone, let's see what you've got!”
“Not right now!” Duke shouts suddenly, and Cass nods along. “Cass and I have customized the perfect suit for you but it’s going to take two days to make, so, just to be fair, we’ll present our find in two days.”
Damian scowls. “Why should we waste our time over your fault?”
“It’s not a fault, it’s a—”
“It’s not fair,” Tim chimes in. “We spent so long—”
“GUYS! Guys,” Dick interrupts them before the argument gets too heated. “This is my suit, so I make the rules. I choose that we wait for Duke and Cass’s suit to be ready. I kinda wanna see it.”
Duke leans back, relieved, and Cass wears a smug smile on her face, as if saying, “Ha, I win!”
It makes Dick wonder, again, what exactly the competition is about.
“Well, let’s at least get some food, if we’re not doing show and tell,” Kon speaks up after a long beat of silence. Everyone agrees (for the first time ever), and place their orders quickly.
Once their orders arrive, they dig into their meals eagerly, savoring the taste of fast food after a long day of shopping. Dick watches with a fond smile as his family enjoys their meal, feeling grateful for their presence in his life.
After they finish eating, Dick leans back in his seat, feeling content. “So, what now? Do we head back home?”
“Nah,” Jason shakes his head. “Let’s catch a movie or something. There’s that new action flick playing at the cinema.”
Steph’s eyes light up. “Ooh, that sounds fun! I’m in!”
“I’m down,” Tim adds, nodding in agreement.
“I suppose it could be entertaining,” Damian mutters, though there’s a hint of excitement in his voice.
Jon looks around eagerly. “Can I come too?”
Kon slings an arm around his shoulders and pulls him away. “Nah, not this time. Let’s leave the Bats to their boring plans— you and I can go get you some piercings!”
“Um,” Jon pauses, hesitating. “Mom and Dad will not be happy, Kon.”
Kon just smirks and ruffles his little brother’s hair. “I know. Pissing off Clark to make you cool— It’s gonna be so worth it!”
The pair walks away from the Bats, waving goodbye, after Kon places one last kiss on Tim’s lips. The Bats leave soon, too, heading down to the cinema, arguing over who the best Green Lantern is, for some reason— and Hal Jordan’s currently winning over Guy Gardener.
Dick laughs and shakes his head, listening to their banter.
God, he loves his family.
LMK IF I SHOULD MAKE A PART 2
#dick grayson#jason todd#tim drake#damian wayne#cassandra cain#stephanie brown#kon el kent#jon kent#batfam#fanfic#batman#birdflash#dickwally#timkon#stephcass
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it was paradise | n. romanoff
about me | series masterlist | natasha romanoff masterlist
pairing: professor!natasha romanoff x collegestudent!reader
chapter nine | chapter ten: all the love we unravel
chapter summary: you couldn't tell when mrs. romanoff became natasha romanoff; the woman who'd laugh with her friends, or kiss you in an empty parking lot. when did the big, bad, mrs. romanoff who you prayed would take you off her radar, became nat, the very woman you'd beg to look at you. when had the hatred turn to all this?
warnings: curse words, fluff; public displays of affection, platonic relationships, cheesy. unedited.
a/n: im sorry it took so long!!!! this was initially much much longer. but i had to cut this part in half. i had to sneak in this bit of fluff in the story, i think we all deserve it. but anyways, natasha and reader's relationship is just so <333333
"oh fuck off, romanoff!" tony yells when natasha steals the last bit of popcorn. the boys complain after him, clint taking a forgotten piece to throw at natasha. natasha expertly dodges even when facing away and walking back to her small kitchen.
you took a handful of your popcorn and threw it at tony, "hey, don't talk to my woman like that," you laugh, but not as loud as thor did when he joined in and threw a handful from your bowl at tony. and thus begun the ruckus in natasha's apartment of you and thor teaming up against tony in a popcorn war; clint and steve laughing at how tony tries to hide behind his swatting arms, and bruce trying to avoid the flying pieces of popcorn.
"fine. no college fund for you then," tony declares after you ran out of popcorn to shower him with, "and don't expect me to pay for your expenses the next time you visit."
thor chuckles, giving tony a big slap on the back on his way back to his spot on the carpet. "i'm only helping the girl," thor says, "don't talk to her woman like that."
"oh let him have his fun," clint interjects before bringing his bottle to his lips. "he knows romanoff won't do anything to him because y/n's here."
"shut up, katniss," tony hissed, dusting off the popcorn from his hair, "i'm not afraid of romanoff."
"you saying something, tony?" natasha says from the kitchen just a few steps from where you were inside her open floored apartment.
"no ma'am," tony salutes, and you all broke out in laughter.
natasha returns with a fresh bowl of popcorn, setting it down on the coffee table near the foot of the bed. "you guys are cleaning that up," she says, dropping herself down to the spot next to you.
"hey, y/n started it," tony insists, but natasha only chuckles.
"well, she did say not to talk to her woman like that, didn't she?"
tony stood up abruptly, pointing a finger at natasha who left no space between the two of you. "i'm sensing favoritism," he pushed. "this is unfair. i'm calling a for a vote."
"oh, sit down tony," natasha waves him off. she began picking the few pieces of popcorn stuck on your hair before bringing your forehead up to her lips for a soft kiss.
you swooned.
"i feel cheated on," tony sits down defeated, "can you see this, i can't do that now can i."
"you can always book us that trip to the bahamas," natasha laughs, still looking at you while holding either side of your face close to her own. she places another kiss on your forehead, then your nose, then your lips. and then she stares at you for a moment more before letting you go.
"did anyone get this on video? we need this for blackmail," clint says. "the big bad romanoff secretly a softie."
everyone coos.
"agent romanoff is in lo~ve," tony adds on.
"the wedding shall be held in asgard!" thor yells.
"i'm not paying for the space travel,"
"you own the ship though..."
"gas cost money, bruce."
"see, steve gets it."
you and natasha shared a laugh. enjoying the interaction between the five. if you didn't see them in their best tuxedos earlier, you would've forgotten how half of them were professors and the others, massive billionaires.
of course, earlier, that was all you could see them as: mrs. romanoff's big shot friends who you are terribly far from impressing.
"so what does your mother do?" steve asks breaking the silence after you'd all settled down on the table right at the center of the expensive restaurant tony book you in.
"oh, i—," you looked at natasha for a second, afraid almost that what you'll say next might turn her friends off. way to get on a bad side of people you're trying to impress is to tell them your mother is a drug addict. by then, every attempt you make at getting on their good side would only receive pity. "i don't have one," you resorted.
silence.
you feel natasha's hand on your thigh. she soothed it. and then she leaned in to whisper, "i'm sorry. they could be invasive," she tells you. "i'll tell them off later."
you were thankful the waiter came in to save what was filled with them avoiding your eyes and clearing their voices. you hadn't heard what everyone got. just that they all ordered a complete five course meal with fish, meat, vegetables, and everything else.
you were supposed to order next. at least, after almost a year of dating natasha romanoff, you'd grown accustomed to always ordering first, but this time she doesn't let you.
she ordered first.
"i'll take the oysters on half shell please," she started, looking at the menu. "then the shrimp cocktail too."
"any salads?"
"no, actually. maybe just the caesar salad for me," natasha's hand never left your thigh. in fact, if continued to soothe over your exposed skin. "then maybe pan seared scallops and steak tartare," she looked at you. "rib or strip?"
you stuttered for a bit, at lost for words when you realized that she was ordering for you too.
you didn't know what you wanted. you never really do. you always end up somewhat regretting your order every time you and natasha go out.
but in a hurry, you just utter a, "strip."
"great. i'll take the new york strip, braised short rib. and for sides, just the baked mac and cheese for the girl please," she smiled at the waiter and you swore he melted when he had to force his eyes off her and to his little notepad.
and you can't help but smile.
"did you want anything else?" she asks, looking intently at you but you just smiled and let your nose touch hers. you see her cheeks grow red. "what was that for?" she smiled.
she was never used to public displays of affection. even something as little as your noses touching, or your eyes looking a second longer than it's supposed to into hers. but of course, neither should she. something as destructive as your relationship should be kept a secret. even the smallest touches.
but at times like these, when you're neither alone nor allowed, but you still sneak in those rare moments of affection, she swears, she falls much much deeper.
"okay enough of that, the boy here is getting nervous," tony interjects, making you giggle out of the small bubble you and natasha had encapsulated yourselves into.
"i think you're getting nervous too, tony," clint laughs but he knew enough to stop when natasha shot him a sharp glare.
you smiled, soothing over natasha's hand that remains on your thigh before taking a glance at the waiter who was only standing there awkwardly staring at natasha, then at the hand you hold over hers.
that's right, stare at everything you will never have.
steve clears his throat. "uh, any drinks?"
"we—uhm—we actually offer—uh, we only offer wines in bottles for service. other drinks; cocktails, mocktails, vodka, everything else you can get from the bar."
natasha prepares as soon as the boy finishes, "vodka for me, and one mocktail. what are you having, boys?" she asks.
"isn't—isn't y/n going to like something with alcohol too?" bruce asks. you would actually, but before you have any time to say anything, tony beats you to it.
"exactly. give the girl a break, agent. she's not a kid," tony protests in your place.
natasha only chuckles, fixing the napkin that she took off her lap neatly on the table, "i think i know what's good for her, don't i, y/n?"
"boo!!!!!! give the girl a drink," tony still stands. "give the girl a drink!"
"no. we're riding my motorcycle home, and i'm not having her fall off my bike," she says firmly, almost like a silent command.
but you still insist. you looked at her with pleading eyes, extending your arm to hold her fingers. "i want a drink, please," you say. "i won't fall off, i promise."
"give the girl a drink!" tony chants but natasha's eyes stay on you, her smile, daring, but firm.
she leans against your ear, her lips softly grazing your lobes, and her arm supporting her weight through her grip on your waist. you shuddered. "come on, dear. won't you listen to mommy? mommy knows best, doesn't she?"
you were aware how exposed you were. in front of her friends. being at the very middle of the packed restaurant as tony claimed was the best table because of the sofa seats, tony, bruce and clint sitting across from you and nat who were the only ones on that side because steve decided to sit on an extra chair at the head of the table. you were surrounded by people, covered by a few friends who even then you didn't expect natasha would be so open with.
you almost wanted to complain. i'm only meeting your friends, what if they say we're too physically affectionate in public and it turns them off? what if they're reminded of wanda and billy, the very people we're betraying while we're doing this in front of them?
but you couldn't. this was one of the very rare times when you get to enjoy her physical affection, in public which was terribly off-brand of mrs. romanoff. this was one, if not the only moment when you don't feel hidden, when you felt normal, when you felt seen by the world. when you satisfy the small hidden part of yourself that craves for the domesticity of public relationships.
"i think she really likes you."
you hadn't realized she was gone until only the memory of her breath against your skin remain. and you remembered you were with her friends.
you looked up. within the 30-45 minutes of knowing these people, you've come to learn that tony is a very bullshit person. he's the joker, the one who would bullshit his death by making it into anything but serious. maybe through his narcissism, or sarcasm, or jokes. that's what makes him charming. other than, of course, his billions of dollars net worth.
"you think?" it sounded coy but you were serious. you had to know. did she really like you? or was he bullshitting you? would he build this up into a joke, a thing to make fun of natasha when she comes back?
no. because he chuckles, and it was more genuine than even his smiles. and for the first time he looks away, and it took him a few seconds before looking at you again, "you know, romanoff called me last week. told me she wanted us to meet her girlfriend," he let that sink into you for a moment before he raises a finger, "you know, one thing about romanoff. she never calls me," he says. "she calls clint, tells him everything. she meets with steve. but that's between them. romanoff and i—we have a more eye-to-eye kinda thing. she came and visited me once, nobody knew i had a child by then, we look at each other for one second, and she understood the entire life i built beyond stark industries," he wasn't looking at you again. he was looking over your shoulder, unmoving. "when she called me first of all, i knew it was serious. group serious sort of thing. and then she told me she wanted us to meet her girlfriend? i dropped everything in my lab."
your mind still processed what he meant. actually, it was so far from that. you were stuck on the image of natasha visiting tony. or meeting up with steve. or telling clint everything. the little things that makes natasha further from her life as mrs. romanoff, or as wanda's wife, or as billy's mother, or as your secret girlfriend, and closer to just being herself, natasha romanoff, it sticks to you. and it remindes you that beyond the labels, beyond the titles, the names. that she was just natasha romanoff before all of these.
"natasha dated a few people, but none that we actually heard of," steve clarifies, but tony quickly took his spot.
"we knew about rogers and romanoff. they had a will-they-won't-they going on for a bit until she got together with bruce. of course that's something we just found out during a party when his face fell into her boobs—"
you choked.
and so did professor banner.
"she never told us anything. we know what we see, and the rest, well—who knows."
"actually, we didn't know she was married to wanda until three years into the marriage," clint adds.
your eyes widen at that, choking for the second time but this time on your glass of water. "what?" you ask. "you weren't invited?"
clint laughs, "oh no, we were invited."
"wanda invited us," bruce says.
"she invited us through text. she didn't specify who was getting married so we always just assumed she's either remarrying vision or she's marrying a new man," steve continues. "we assumed the latter."
"we've always been a vision fan, so we didn't go in case she was actually getting married to someone else," clint notes.
tony laughs in somewhat a bitter tone, but still humorous, "mind you, we had group night outs, phone calls and we texted all throughout those three years that she could've told us she'd gotten married to a mutual close friend."
"she didn't. and three of us works with both her and wanda at the university," clint losens his tie and slouches slightly against the couch. "we found out when wanda invited us for thanksgiving and said natasha should be preparing the table so we all came assuming natasha was only there to help."
"plot twist, she's married," bruce finishes.
there was a silence between your shared glances of natasha just talking to the bartender while being handed two drinks.
"you take care of her, okay?" tony says. his voice had zero pitch to it. it was low, and lazy, and sincere. "romanoff, spent decades taking care of us. you know, when we're sick, heartbroken, happy, drunk, sad, in trouble. she picks up after us. she holds us together. and she still does to this day," he looks up at you. "do us a favor, take care of her. i think you're the only person she'd let take care of her."
"what are you whispering about," natasha asks, setting down your drinks, just in time for your meals to arrive. she looks at you while sitting down, and bringing the napkin to her lap again, "do you still love me?" she sets both hands on your thigh, completely facing you. "whatever these idiots told you aren't true. do you still love me?"
you giggled. "i was hoping it might be true, actually," you say.
"this," tony interrupts. "this is true."
natasha rolled her eyes upon realizing that what he said might not be anything that would jeopardize the relationship you two have. she lands you a kiss on the forehead before fixing herself to her seat, and assisting the waiter in distributing the first round of meals.
"hello, friends!"
natasha doesn't tell you much about her friends. but she's told you enough to know where they live, and what her relationship is with them. you know one of them lives very far away.
this must be thor.
he came in late. he entered with much energy, immediately pulling you into a hug. you were sure he would've carried you right out of your seat and spun you around if natasha hadn't got out in time to make way for you.
he still picked you up and spun you around nonetheless, "oh is this the girl?!" he said. "look at you! you're a lot prettier than nat described you."
you'd gotten dizzy. your world spun, perhaps because of this giant man that spun you around like a kid with his doll, or maybe because natasha told them about you. she told them, like how you used to with billy over the guy you had a crush on in middle school. she told her friends about you.
"okay, okay, please stop. she's getting dizzy," natasha's voice faded into your thoughts as thor slowed down. natasha was already standing behind you, ready to catch you the moment thor sets you down, and she did. you fell limp into her arms as the world tried to catch up. "i swear to god, she's not going to make it out of here alive with you doofuses."
while everyone stood up to give thor a hug, natasha had her hands loosely wrapped around your waist, and her chin on top of your head while she holds you still to recover from the unsteadiness.
"so i see the problem," you hear thor say behind you. you turned around, still within the warm hold of natasha romanoff. "romanoff's smitten."
you blushed a little.
"am i—am i allowed to say that or will i be in trouble?" thor speaks when natasha doesn't, looking at the others for backup.
"you won't. y/n's here. we're basically untouchable," barton says, laughing.
that's how you spent most of the night—laughing. you slowly started easing into the group. they were laughing hard, and so were you. a lot of times, they were making fun of natasha, the others, they were asking about your life.
everything was light. and you noticed how they were smart enough not to put you in a spot where you'd have to mention either wanda or billy.
you see a glimpse of natasha's past through them. they were her family. you pieced that together after a few of their stories.
natasha was almost silent all-throughout, aside from the occasional protest when tony makes fun of her, or the rare interjections of when she feels they'd gone too far with you.
but because of all the laughing, you hadn't realize natasha cutting your meat for you, and taking the vegetables off your meal until she subtly switched back your plates which you hadn't notice was switched in the first place. you feel her constantly returning glances, checking on you, watching you. and when you ran out of the mocktail she got for you, you see her silently go off to get you another one.
"natasha, i'm okay. sit down and talk to your friends," you tell her softly when she comes back with another glass for you. this time, you take her hand that's been holding your thigh the rest if the night, and held it with both of yours on top of her leg.
"you heard the girl romanoff, sit down," tony agrees.
you were aware that these little moments between you and natasha were in front for everyone to see, and bask in. but you couldn't help it. you leaned against her, your head on her shoulder and your arm tangled with hers as you waited for desert.
at the end, what was supposed to be your last solemn night alone with natasha, became a loud one with her friends when they all decided to come over her apartment.
they all shared a car, going off first while you and natasha takes a moment to yourselves when you walk through the parking lot to her motorcycle.
you were silent, and walking so painfully slow as if you don't want it to end.
you spent the entire week together. alone. while you did have classes, your girlfriend was a professor, so was most her friends. she had you excused for a week, getting your work sent through her. while she was on a leave.
there's never a gap between the times you have to spend with billy, and the times she has to spend with wanda. but this week, with billy's research, and wanda's inability to leave the house without her son for long periods of time, you found your window.
natasha lied; said tony invited the group to the bahamas with their families. she knew wanda won't be able to come because billy won't. so she just "brings" you.
and just like that, you had one uninterrupted week of just you and natasha.
"did you have fun tonight?" she asks, stopping you to face her so she can wrap around you the coat you refused to wear when you left her apartment. you hadn't realized she carried it with her though.
"mhmm," you say with a smile, beginning to rock back and forth on your feet like a child. her hands found yours to hold. "i had a lot of fun with you and your friends."
"they weren't too much?"
"i feel like they'd get in trouble if i say yes."
"your intuition is spot on."
you laugh, "nope, they weren't too much then."
you fall into silence. comfortable, soft, kind. you watch the way the breeze blows the strand of hair away from her face. then it falls back, so you took it upon you to do a better job and tuck it behind her ear completely.
she smiled at you, holding your hand against her cheek now, warming up your cold hands from the heat of her skin.
"i want to stay like this forever," she tells you.
you weren't religious, but every day you thank the lord for every moment when you get to feel the bumps on her skin, or see the mole on her cheek; when you get to feel her lips twitch into a smile, not see it behind her office desk, or in front of the rows of people you're sitting behind of, but through the kiss that you share the moment her office door closes, or the last person leaves her classroom.
you weren't sure when all your hatred turned into love, when you started searching for her in every crowd, when you silently prayed for her praises, when avoiding her glances became begging for her gaze. when did you seek for her warmth beyond her approval? when did you chase for her recognition besides her dismissal? when did you thirst for her touch aside her praise?
the lines between hating her, and loving her was a blur. all you know was that one day you prayed you'd stop being the one student she saw, then the next praying you'd be the only one she'd look at.
"stay with me forever," you tell her.
she was a secret. she was forbidden. she was the sin you've been engaging in for a year.
you weren't religious, but every day you thank the devil for every moment when you get to feel the curves of her body, and the mounds on her chest; when you get to feel her tongue on your skin, or her hand between your legs. never in front of wanda, or billy, or anyone, but in every moment when one of them turns back, to every time they look lovingly into your eyes unaware of the touches under the table, or behind the counter.
you thank the devil for inventing sin.
praise the devil for every bite you take of your forbidden apple for god hadn't thought about the paradise you'd find in hell when he sent your ancestors outside his heaven.
you kissed her, basking in the taste of sin, and hell, and your home through the saliva that coats your tongue.
"i love you."
#ath: natasha romanoff series (wasn't midnight rain)#ath: natasha romanoff#natasha romanoff#natasha romanoff x reader#natasha romanoff x you#natasha romanoff imagine#natasha romanoff smut#natasha romanoff fanfic#marvel#marvel fanfic#mcu#mcu fanfic
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The Back Seater and the Baker || Chapter 5
[Bob Floyd x f!OC]
Overview: Bob hasn't seen Haley Nichols since he was fifteen. But when Haley shows up out of the blue with one sentence that throws Bob for a loop – "I'm turning thirty in two weeks, are we still on?" – all of the feelings from their childhood return. Bob never thought that Haley would remember the marriage pact the two made when they were just kids, even if he never forgot. So what happens when Bob falls all over again for his childhood crush? And what will Bob do when he discovers the real reason she came back to capitalize on the pact is to secure her inheritance and save her bakery from bankruptcy? Will he believe Haley when she confesses that she loves him, too?
Pairing: Robert "Bob" Floyd x OC [Bakery owner Haley Nichols]
Tropes: Marriage pact
Chapter summary: Haley and Phoenix go wedding dress shopping; Bob and Peanut have a conversation about sex; the Daggers throw Haley a bachelorette party
Warnings: Cursing, angst, alcohol, mention of vomit
Word count: 2.8K
Series masterlist here; previous chapter here
You looked up from a pile of fabric samples. “I can’t pick.”
Phoenix shot you a look over her champagne glass. “White.”
You rolled your eyes. “They’re all white, Natasha. It’s a wedding dress.”
“The venetian lace is gorgeous,” the saleswoman said, holding up a gauzy square.
“Too expensive.”
“There’s always satin.”
She said it like it was trash and not already too expensive. “Let’s see some satin options,” you said. The saleswoman bristled but rushed off when Pheonix trained her eyes on her.
“Fuck her,” she said and you laughed, settling back into the chair and taking a sip of champagne. “OK you’re drinking, but I’m going to ask you again. Are you pregnant?”
“I promise I’m not,” you replied.
She raised an eyebrow. “Find that hard to believe given the timeline.” She meant the fact that the wedding was in a week.
You shrugged. “We’ve never slept together.”
Phoenix did a spit take, champagne flying everywhere across the cream carpet. You tried to stifle a gasp that barreled into a laugh until the two of you were dissolved in laughter. “Oh, my God, the boys are gonna have a field day with that one.”
“Just hasn’t been the time,” you replied.
“What’s the rush?” Phoenix asked. “If there’s no pregnancy. What’s the rush?”
The truth sat, sour, on the tip of your tongue. Was that where sour was felt on the map of taste buds? Either way it filled your mouth, threatening to swallow you whole. You could tell her. You could tell her and the wedding would be off and you would go home with nothing but a bruised ego and a foreclosure on the way.
But that option also left Bob heartbroken. It would leave you heartbroken, too. Because as much as you didn’t want to admit it, you were falling for Bob Floyd, all over again.
“I love him,” you said simply. This time, the truth was sweet. A rush of rainbow on your tongue. A fizzy, familiar feeling. Warmth. “I always have.”
“I’ve watched Floyd go through a lot,” Phoenix said, her dark eyes never leaving yours. “But if this is what breaks him, I’m not sure there’s going to be a way to glue him back together. So don’t break his heart, Haley. He has a big one. Too big. He loves too much and too fast and too well. So God, don’t hurt him.”
“I won’t,” you whispered.
***
“You want deviled eggs as an appetizer?” You stared at Bob, mouth agape.
He nodded. “They’re my mom’s specialty.”
“Oh. That’s um…”
Bob laughed. “You can veto, Haley. It’s your wedding, too.”
“Thank God,” you whispered. “I’m sorry, but veto.”
“Are your parents flying up?” he asked.
“Um, no, they’re not.” You didn’t have the heart to tell him that your parents weren’t really involved in your life anymore. That no one besides Calvin even knew you were in San Diego. That the bakery was failing. That you were going to marry Bob to solve all of your problems. “Grandma Lee is coming though.”
You had called her the night before and explained that you were getting married. You hadn’t invited her: that she had done herself.
If my only granddaughter is getting married, I need to see it with my own eyes, she had said. When you had protested, she added, Do you want the money or not?
Bob frowned. “Grandma Lee, really? I thought you two didn’t get along.”
You shrugged. “That was a long time ago, Bobby.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
The two of you were silent for a moment. You felt sweat start to prickle at the base of your neck, between your breasts. For a few days, Bob had ridden the high of a successful mission once they were back on land. It was that euphoria that had colored everything, that had made him agree to the marriage. But you worried that once those rosy glasses faded, he would realize how obscene it was to marry a complete stranger. Someone he barely knew.
He cleared his throat. “Want to go out for dinner? I was thinking Mexican.”
“I think we should have sex.”
Bob looked like he was choking. Every inch of his face went pink and then a deep red, cheeks puffed out, eyes wide.
You actually leaned forward, pressing one hand to his leg in concern. “Bobby? Are you OK?”
It took a second, but Bob let out his breath, blue eyes still searching yours frantically. “What did you just say?”
You removed your hand, anxiety settling into the swell of your stomach. “I mean, we’re getting married,” you whispered. “Shouldn’t we at least do it once?”
“Peanut,” Bob whispered, his voice rough and sandy and hitting every note perfectly so that goosebumps rose on your arms and legs. “I’ve thought about making love to you a million times.”
“But?”
He shook his head slowly. “That’s what I want, honey. I want it to be special. Not something we do to get it out of the way. I want you to want it. I want this to be the last time someone new undresses you for the first time.” Bob leaned in, trailing one thumb over the corner of your mouth, down your cheek, fingertips sliding to the tops of your breasts, grazing the exposed skin where your shirt stopped. “I don’t want anyone else to ever touch you like this,” he murmured. “You’re mine, Peanut.”
“Bobby,” you whispered, gripping both sides of his face with your smaller palms. “I’ve always been yours.”
And then your lips were on his, one of your legs slung over his lap until you were straddling him, the heat of Bob’s body burning against yours, his hands groping greedily over your back, pulling your hips flush with his, a small, pathetic whine exiting his lips as his hips tilted up to meet yours. “Haley,” he rasped, pulling back, lips pink and raw. “Honey.”
“Hmm?”
“Let me take you out,” he whispered. “Not Mexican food on a couch. Not pizza on the floor or beer at the beach. A real date. Let me take you home and make love to the woman who is going to be my wife.”
You leaned back, threading your fingers through the hair that was curling up at the tops of his ears. “OK, Bobby,” you replied softly. “You have a deal.”
“That’s the first time I’ve said that,” he said.
“Said what?”
“My wife.” He smiled. “It sounds good, doesn’t it?”
“Yeah,” you murmured, watching the light twinkle in his eyes and feeling a sadness sweep over your organs., “it does.”
***
“Peanut?” Bob’s voice was far away on the phone. “Are you there?”
“I’m here,” you said, standing in front of the mirror, smoothing down the sides of your dress. “Where are you? Our reservations are in twenty minutes.”
“Honey, I’m sorry.” There was a loud bang in the background. “Flight emergency. Bradshaw and I got called back to base.”
“Oh.” You couldn’t help the disappointment flooding every single one of your pores. You looked around the room at the candles you had bought, and the bag filled with tissue paper on the dresser that had a new set of lingerie in it, specifically for later that night. There was also an entire can of whipped cream in the fridge and a bottle of prosecco. “That’s OK.”
“It’s not,” he said. “That’s why Phoenix is on her way to pick you up.”
“Oh, Bobby, I’m not really in the mood to go out without you.”
“Haley? Sorry the connection is terrible. Listen, I have to go up in the air, I’ll text you when I’m grounded. Bye!” The line went dead. You sighed, kicking off your heels, tossing the phone on the bed just as the doorbell rang, two harsh dings followed by a loud knock.
“Fuck, coming!” You practically tripped on your way to the door, tossing it open, a frown lacing your features. “Jake?”
In the doorway, Jake grinned, white teeth blinding against his tan. He leaned one hand against the door frame. “Hi Princess. Grab some shoes.”
You shook your head, walking inside, and Jake followed you, shutting the door softly. “Not in the mood, Hangman. I’m just going to wait until Bobby gets home.”
He chuckled and you turned around with a frown. “Sweetheart,” he drawled, “it’s a trap. This is your bachelorette party. Now put on some shoes and get that fine ass in the car. Phoenix is waiting for us.”
“Bachelorette party?”
“Didn’t think we could let you get married without one final night of debauchery, did you?” he asked. “Shoes, Nichols. Purse. Condoms if you’re feeling frisky.”
You groaned, heading into the bedroom and slipping on your stilettos, grabbing your small shoulder bag before reappearing in the hallway. Jake was nowhere to be seen. You rounded the corner into the kitchen where Jake had the fridge open, his head stuck inside.
He straightened up, holding out the can of whipped cream with a raised eyebrow. “Making pie?”
“Fuck off,” you muttered and he laughed, placing the can back in the fridge and closing the door. “Let’s get this over with.”
“That’s the spirit,” Jake replied, holding open the door. “After you, Mrs. Floyd.” Your heart skipped a beat. You looked up at Jake, eyes wide. For a second, the two of you stood in silence in the doorway to Bob’s house, practically frozen. You were worried Jake could see the reservation in your features.
And then it passed. You stepped out the door into the breezy evening air. “I’m going to ask you one favor.”
“I make no promises.”
“No shots with gross names like blow job or slippery nipple.”
Jake cackled, opening the passenger door for you. “It’s your night. We’ll play by your rules. At least, to start.”
You slid into the seat of his Jeep and groaned.
***
Charleston was bachelorette capital, aside from Nashville, so you were more than familiar with the flocks of women parading down King Street in pink sashes and swaying to the beat of invisible pop songs.
What you hadn’t expected was your own bachelorette party to be made up of five aviators, four of which were men. Coyote, Hangman, Rooster and Payback all sat at a table wearing pink furry boas drinking margaritas while Phoenix did a lap on stage with one of the drag queens.
“You’re next,” Bradley said, tipping his head toward the stage.
You groaned. “Absolutely not.”
Phoenix climbed off the stage, brushing back her dark hair, not an ounce of sweat on her face. “Come on, Princess, you’re the bride, it’s a must.”
“I’m so going to rat on you guys to Bobby!” you shrieked as a man dressed as Dolly Parton dragged you onto the stage. The brightness of the lights hit you just as the dagger’s cheers filled the air.
“Hello Darlin’,” Dolly said, thrusting a microphone in your face. “Your friend over there said you’re a bride-to-be, is that right?”
You scowled down at Phoenix who cheered shamelessly. “Yes.”
“What’s your name, sweetheart?”
“Haley.”
“And what’s your fiance's name?”
“Bobby.”
“Well, dear, I think we need to sing a song for Bobby in that case.” She took a deep breath. “If I should stay // Well I would only be in your way.”
Dolly pressed the microphone beneath your chin. Somehow the words floated out of your mouth as the cheers from the squad grew. Even the heat of the lights softened and you found yourself swaying with the music. For the first time in a long time, there was a courage that bubbled to the surface. Maybe it was the two Long Island iced teas that Phoenix had poured down your throat. Or maybe it was the fact that despite the circumstances, you knew that Bob Floyd was the one.
Out of everyone, it was Bradley who got so drunk that the six of you were thrown out of the club. That’s how you ended up at Phoenix’s house at three in the morning eating cheeseburgers on the floor wearing a sequined ball gown she had pulled out of her closet and insisted you wear while Payback tried uselessly to scrub the pink paint off of his chest that read Bride Tribe in loopy lettering.
“It’s not coming off,” Payback whined, tossing another crumpled paper towel on the ground in a huff.
Jake cackled. “Told you not to write it so big, Nix.”
Phoenix popped a french fry into her mouth and then laid back, head resting against Jake’s thigh where he sat pressed up against the couch. “He deserves it. Remember when he puked at my thirtieth?”
“Don’t say puke,” Bradley moaned, looking slightly green around the gills.
“Party pooper,” Phoenix tutted.
“What if when I have a baby it comes out wearing glasses?” you asked, the drinks finally hitting you.
“Have to have sex to get pregnant.”
“Phoenix!”
“Oh shit.” She rolled over and buried her face against the shaggy rug. “Sorry!”
Jake grinned like a Cheshire cat. “Wait, you and Floyd haven’t banged yet?”
You groaned, tossing yourself against the floor next to Phoenix and kicking her with one bare foot.
“That’s excellent,” he muttered, practically to himself as Bradley scuttled onto his knees, stumbling up into a semi jog toward the toilet. The sound of the door slamming was followed immediately by violent sounds and you winced.
“Fuck,” Payback said, shaking his head. “That’s on you, Nix.”
“Why am I to blame for everything?” Phoenix demanded. “It’s Haley’s bach party, she’s the instigator!”
“Oh my God,” you said, shaking your head. “I see why Bobby likes you so much.”
“I see why he loves you,” she replied, brown eyes wide. You were stunned. Natasha was many things. The life of the party. Fearless, bordering on reckless. Demanding, in the best way. Formidable. But this was the first time she had shown a sliver of approval. It radiated through your body like microwave rays. “I mean it,” she added.
“Thank you.”
Just then, your phone rang on the coffee table. You reached for it, pulling it down as Bob’s contact flashed on the screen. “Haley?”
“Hi,” you whispered, standing up and stumbling into Phoenix’s room at the end of the hall. You sat down on the edge of her bed, closing your eyes. The room was spinning. That was worse. You opened them again, wider, the yellow light from the lamp burning your retinas. God, you needed a taco.
“Just wanted to make sure you got home OK,” Bob said softly.
“I’m with Phoenix and the team.”
“I know,” Bob replied. “I thought it would be nice.”
You frowned. “This was your idea?”
“I wanted you to have a fun time,” Bob said quietly. “Something different, a little out of the ordinary. Life is serious, Haley. But you don’t have to be. Not everything is life or death.”
Bob’s words forced tears to spring at the corner of your eyes. It wasn’t the tequila and it wasn’t the impending hangover. It was the fact that even in your drunken haze, you knew you weren’t good enough for Bob Floyd. A man who cared so much, so deeply. A man who would lay down his life for yours without thinking.
The man of your dreams.
“Bobby,” you whispered, the truth sour at the tip of your tongue, begging to be spilled.
“Get some rest, Peanut,” he said quietly and you swallowed the truth back into the bitter pit of your stomach. “I’ll pick you up in the morning, OK?”
“Alright.”
He paused, but the line didn’t go dead. You sucked in a breath. There were two things that you and Bob had yet to do as adults. The first was obvious: have sex. The second, less so.
You had yet to say you loved each other.
You did. That was, without a doubt, the truth in a sea of lies. You had loved Bob Floyd since you were a little girl in the low country. You had never really stopped. But it felt different, to say it now. When so much was riding on the two of you. When the future was almost within grabbing distance.
“Goodnight, Bobby,” you murmured.
He sighed. “Goodnight, sweetheart.”
You flopped back against the bed, clutching your phone to your chest. As you closed your eyes, the light beyond your eyelids started to swirl.
The last thing that crossed your mind before you passed out into a drunken delirium was how devastated Bob was going to be when everything was said and done.
And how broken you would be, too.
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#bob floyd fanfiction#bob floyd x reader#bob floyd#bob floyd fluff#robert floyd x reader#robert bob floyd#robert floyd#top gun imagine#hangman top gun#top gun fanfiction#top gun maverick imagine#bob floyd imagine#bob floyd x you#bob floyd x oc#jake seresin fanfiction#bradley bradshaw#bradley bradshaw fanfiction#jake seresin fic#payback#natasha phoenix trace#phoenix top gun
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ALL THESE WORKS HAVE BEEN PRIVATED AND SHALL BE REPOSTED ON @cl16version
─ F1 GRID
★ who were they written by ─ headcanon
summary ─ what if formula one drivers were written by real people? who would have created them? let's find out.
★ burn marks ─ series masterlist
summary ─ when playing with fire, you are bound to get burned, lucky for jae-eun she was born to breath it, and she is bound to leave a mark.
─ ALEX ALBON
★ none
─ CARLOS SAINZ
★ none
─ CHARLES LECLERC
★ famous s/o ─ headcanon
summary ─ charles is famous, but what if he had a s/o who was equally as famous (if not more) how would that play out?
★ = purple ─ social media au
summary ─ the shocking reveal of Y/N L/N's and charles leclerc's relationship saw all f1 drivers enter what fans call the 'great conversation' as the chelsea star turns all drivers into part-time footballers and marries one in the process.
★ red + blue ─ social media au
summary ─ after the champions league final, red and blue finally unite after chelsea's star player Y/N L/N reveals that she is in a relationship with scuderia ferrari's golden boy charles leclerc.
─ DANIEL RICCIARDO
★ I only date cowboys ─ social media au
summary ─ after his departure from mclaren the aussie honey badger spends some time soul-searching with his hot cowgirl girlfriend and laughs as his former team struggle while he and Red Bull spend a lovely weekend down at the ranch, preparing a surprise.
─ ESTEBAN OCON
★ none
─ GEORGE RUSSELL
★ none
─ LANCE STROLL
★ none
─ LANDO NORRIS
★ be mine officially? ─ blurb
summary ─ romance was never lando's speciality, but he will try and make any important moment special just like today
★ dating ln4 ─ headcanon
summary ─ what would it be like to date everyone's fav papaya boy? let's find out
★ the stages of pregnancy ─ headcanon
summary ─ lando loves children, but how would he fair with children of his own? let's find out
★ shut up karen! ─ social media au
summary ─ lando norris and Y/N L/N are on a top-secret date at one of their favourite restaurants, and a wild karen appears out of nowhere and starts causing chaos. and the video of Y/N going off on the woman reveals the couple. Iconic shit.
─ LEWIS HAMILTON
★ flash of anger ─ blurb
summary ─ lewis is a jealous man. it was common knowledge. just like how the grass is green, and the sky is blue. it is also common knowledge that angry sex is the best type of sex.
─ MAX VERSTAPPEN
★ small wedding ─ headcanon
summary ─ max's life was full of glitz and glam, but what if he wanted his special day to be private? here's how it would go
★ defender from day one ─ social media au
summary ─ Y/N hamilton and max verstappen always have due to their similar age, but no one ever thought much of it and wrote them off as friends. but with tensions flying high between max and lewis their friendship is put under scrutiny, and there big secret is exposed.
★ happier than ever ─ social media au
summary ─ after breaking up with charles leclerc six months ago, singer and songwriter Y/N L/N is back and happier than ever after teasing a new album and hard launching a new boo. Her ex's rival max verstappen, safe to say karma is a bitch.
★ manifestation boo ─ social media au
summary ─ it turns out max verstappen is indeed a spiritual person, especially when it comes to the manifestation of his current relationship with former disney star Y/N L/N. as he spared no expense from crystal to candle, yes, they do work apparently.
★ project menace ─ social media au
summary ─ everyone and their dad hates max's father, so you can imagine how happy people were when he finds a new family in the alonso's. as the dutch driver starts dating the daughter of fellow driver fernando alonso, and cause chaos in the process.
★ sea & sand ─ social media au
summary ─ max is good at driving. that is clear. too bad his skills in surfboarding are limiting , as his girlfriend Y/N L/N shows in a series of Instagram posts and tweets before dropping a bombshell in true chaotic aussie fashion.
─ MICK SCHUMACHER
★ none
─ PIERRE GASLY
★ photo desire ─ social media au
summary ─ the witch hunt continues as the internet close in on the identity of Y/N L/N muse, as the fans are now convinced it is none other than pierre gasly. with a soft launch and a ring on their fingers, they truly prove to be better than romeo and juliet.
★ photo feelings ─ social media au
summary ─ famous photographer and intent sensation Y/N L/N's new series "my feeling for you" has everyone talking about who could her secret muse could be. with everyone from harry styles to lewis hamilton being mentioned. That last guess wasn't too far off.
─ TOTO WOLFF
★ none
─ SEBASTIAN VETTEL
★ story of you & me ─ social media au
summary ─ the wait is finally over Y/N vettel's long-awaited movie adaptation of her book 'two souls one whole' is set to be released in two months. showing the beautiful love story of two lost souls that met at a bar in spa in 2007.
─ YUKI TSUNDOA
★ arabian nights ─ social media au
summary ─ yuki is finally in his adventurous era, as he takes a seemly spontaneous trip to the arabian desert and, in the process, is linked with an arabian heiress. Only to announce their engagement by the end of the week. leaving the intent struggling to keep up.
─ ZHOU GUANYU
★ none
─ OTHERS
★ none
© STARSANOVA, 2023. all rights reserved. do not steal, repost, translate and/or claim these work as your own.
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The collectivel group of Yuus (an Exasperation of Yuus?) have been put through the wringer lately, might I suggest pranks at the expense of villainous embarrassment?
(Corvid Prompts is a writing prompt blog that has a lot of Hero/Villain/Vigilante story ideas. Many of which encourage writers to break out of a typical plot for such genres. I got this idea from them.)
Since they all work under the same League, what petty pranks would the villainous groups pull on each other for the hell of it?
Who would send a goat (or other farm animal) to another hide out to as a reminder to an unfortunate (but funny) goat related incident that happened in the past?
Another incident where during another League thing out of town/country where a pair (from different groups) had to pretend to be married to get out of a mess? What jokes are made for the lack of "wedding" and subsequent "divorce"?
Who fills the entire lair of a villain with plastic balls as disproportionate retribution for taking the last muffin?
You don't need to write anything, but just imagine the insanity? Can you imagine Yuu in any form just exasperated?
Thank you for the ask, dear anon!
Well, Poison Queen’s already pulled the “prank” of attempted love potioning, though that did backfire rather spectacularly on him. Epel would like to say he’s good at pulling them, but Vil’s usually easily able to avoid them. He’s had much more luck with the other rookie minions though!
Rook pulls a prank every time he says he’ll fight White Neige.
Royal Flush would never be caught dead indulging in something as puerile as a prank!… But if he makes the appropriate suggestions to his minions and just so happens to leave plans for them around? Well. He can hardly control everything they do, now can he?
Ace and Deuce are the best at following those and tag teaming to ensure they work, while Trey and Cater specialize in innovating to cover any potential pitfalls. Ace also pulls pranks on Deuce and the rest of Heartslabyul regularly, but woe betide him when his seniors decide that he’s had enough fun, and team up with Deuce for some payback.
Leona loves stealing whatever he can get his hands on from his rival supervillains. If they have it, he wants it, for no other reason than ruining their day when they realize it’s missing. Unsurprisingly, “whatever he can get his hands on” usually ends up being “Yuu the Reporter”.
Ruggie has a very similar mindset, in that he’ll only pull a prank if there’s something physical he gets out of it in return. Usually food.
Jack will not mastermind pranks, because he is a Good Boi. Doesn’t mean he won’t join in on one someone else has thought up.
Azul considers himself too professional to “pull a prank” as the kids say, but he will gladly point Jade and Floyd at his inconveniences dear colleagues and watch the sparks fly.
Floyd has an abiding fondness for large quantities of anything small, plastic, and loud. Jade prefers noxious, brightly colored substances that are a pain to wash out of clothing or architecture.
Kalim is the master of accidental pranks! He genuinely doesn’t mean to get people soaking wet or make their food too spicy or tea too sweet! But if everyone is laughing, he’ll laugh with them!
Jamil doesn’t do pranks. Jamil does retaliation.
One of the small joys of Idia’s life is getting one over on these Luddite normies. If he just wants a quick pick me up, a virus that constantly plays an annoying song on loop or hides files is always a fun way to spend the day. If he’s feeling vindictive, mass ordering insects or livestock to be sent to their lairs is an old favorite.
Ortho will also gleefully participate in his Nii-san’s pranks!! They’re so fun!! However, if Idia hasn’t gotten enough nutrients or fresh air recently, Ortho’s not above pulling a prank or two of his own…
Malleus once tried to prank a NRC conference by balancing a bucket of water on the doorframe. He had no way of knowing that Yuu was going to be sneaking in to eavesdrop and would end up getting drenched.
Lilia isn’t allowed to prank anyone anymore. Not when his pranks verge on the level of psychological warfare.
It’s very, very rare, but Silver occasionally pulls pranks by falling asleep somewhere inconspicuous and summoning inconvenient wildlife to his location. No one ever suspects he can do it on purpose.
Sebek has tried to pull pranks before. He gets too impatient and always accidentally spoils it before the payoff.
Jade and Trey have had to fake getting engaged at least once in order to avoid getting found out as minions during a Fae Incorporated(TM) sponsored gala.
Trey has also had to pretend he was married to Rook in order to maintain cover at another, completely separate event.
Jade and Rook like to tease poor Trey about his “infidelity”. Floyd once tried to beat up Trey for his brother’s honor.
Trey still isn’t quite sure whether he was serious or not.
#twisted wonderland#twst#supervillain au#trey clover#jade leech#rook hunt#vil schoenheit#epel felmier#riddle rosehearts#cater diamond#ace trappola#deuce spade#leona kingscholar#azul ashengrotto#floyd leech#kalim al asim#jamil viper#idia shroud#ortho shroud#malleus draconia#lilia vanrouge#sebek zigvolt#twst silver#Yuuken is the pranking master
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buzzed
pairing: marc spector x fem!reader
description: marc is lucky enough to accompany y/n to her cousin’s wedding, and even luckier to be the one to take her home. (this is sister fic to 'tipsy' but can be read as a standalone)
warnings: no smut but definitely nsfw, alcohol consumption, swearing, talk of weddings
words: 3.1K
date posted: 27/02/23
The wedding was beautiful, in the unreasonably expensive, terribly stuffy kind of way. Marc tried his best to not show it too much on his face, but this wedding was the exact opposite of anything he wanted to have if–when he and Y/n finally settled down. He’d decided that he didn’t want anything big, hell, he’d be happy with a quick visit to the courthouse before a weeklong honeymoon on a beach somewhere. But he knew that wouldn’t fly with Y/n, or more specifically, with her family, so he would settle with a small ceremony and reception before he got to steal her away.
He did have to compliment the newly wedded couple on their choices of His and His cocktails; Y/n’s cousin opting for the classic negroni, while his new husband made the much more intricate choice of a fruity white sangria, both of which Y/n had taken great pleasure in sampling before she kicked off her shoes and took to the dancefloor.
Marc enjoyed seeing her this free–it was something he got to see all too rarely. Her job had been a consistent thorn in the boys’ side since she’d gotten her most recent promotion. As the tour supervisor at a tour company based in London, Y/n figured that she would have been able to explore her chosen field of history on an everyday basis, though she was sorely disappointed when she discovered that she rarely would get to interact with the centuries of conflict and victories that the city faced when she was jammed into a smothering hot office and berated for making any complaints or requests. Steven had been the first to encourage her to hand in her notice of resignation, but he was very heartily supported by his alters, who both promised to support her until she was able to get back on her feet. Jake would then remind her that she’d earned her Master’s degree for good reason and would soon enough be drowning in job offers–a fantasy, which they were all aware of, but the boys were more than willing to say whatever she needed to hear when she needed to hear it.
Right now, Marc was willing to tell her that she was dancing wonderfully and that she wasn’t being stared at like she had two heads by most of the other wedding guests just to see her smile just as she was for just one moment longer. The cocktails that she’d drank caught up to her quickly; her cheeks burned hotter than usual, eyes hooded, and a smile appearing lazy on her face as she whirled around the dancefloor with various relatives.
Marc smiled to himself, ignoring the other who pushed past him to lean on the bartop as he quickly became entranced by her. She halted on a moment’s notice, the flowy shirt of her dress fanning and twisting itself tightly around her hips before falling limp once again. Her body turned quickly as her eyes scanned the crowd, first falling on his empty seat at their assigned table before they began to flicker across the room hurriedly. A calm expression crossed her features once she finally picked him out of the crowd, only lasting a moment before the grin returned and she began her beeline towards him.
He began forward through the crowd to shorten her journey, dropping his now empty glass on a random table as he passed. She stumbled into his arms with enough force to cause him to take a step back, giggling to herself as she wrapped herself around him snugly.
“I was just looking for you,” she slurred slightly, gazing up at him with a starry look in her eyes, “Thought you left me.”
“Leave you?” He scoffed, hands rising to rest on her waist to hold her steady, “Baby, you gotta give me a little more credit here, I’m not that stupid.”
She laughed, leaning closer and nudging her nose into his a bit more roughly than she would have had she been sober. He did his best to hide any surprise on his face, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead.
“Come dance with me,” she tugged his wrist, “I love this song.”
“I know you do, but you know I’m not much of a dancer.”
She frowned, “Marc, please?”
“You don’t want me up there, I’ll end up crushing your pretty feet. Why don’t you go dance with your aunt again, huh?”
“I can’t,” Y/n whined, voice lowering into a whisper, “She’s such a bitch.”
He let out a loud huff of amusement because, though he’d not voiced his opinion because Y/n had always had a good relationship with her aunt, he wholeheartedly agreed.
“Please?” She begged his, grasping at the lapels of his jacket and shaking him lightly, “If you do, I’ll–” Y/n tucked herself against him as she whispered breathily into his ear, painting a foggy image in his mind of what she could offer in return.
The tips of his ears burned in arousal, breathes deepening as his grip on her waist tightened. She snorted at his physical response, ripping herself out of his grasp and slowly backing away from him towards the dance floor, seductively shaking her hips to the beat as she did. He scowled at her playfully, remaining rooted in his place.
Pursing her lips, she slowly turned, continuing to move her hips from side to side. Marc groaned to himself, but still didn’t take any steps towards her.
If you don’t, Jake grumbled to him through the reflection of the glossy window pane next to him, I most certainly will.
The song had changed to one of a slower beat with hard bass to support it. Marc already knew that, combined with the light push of the alcohol in his bloodstream and the way that her body moved along with the melody, he stood no chance, his feet already moving before he was even fully aware of it.
His hands landed on her hips while she had her back turned, pressing his chest against her back snugly and pausing her movements. She smiled at him over her shoulder, tilting her head back to press a kiss to his jaw.
“I knew you’d break,” she smirked knowingly up at him, glazed eyes twinkling with mischief, “Well, you or Jake. Steven’s not much of a dancer.”
Marc smiled, sliding his flattened palms around to the front of her dress and smoothing them along the plush of her belly, “You know us better than we do. It’s scary.”
“I bet,” she hummed, turning in his arms to wrap her arms around his neck, “But it’s not as hard as you might think, you all have a tell.”
“Oh yeah, what’s mine?”
“Well, then you would stop doing it, huh?”
“Or maybe you could learn to have some more faith in me, baby.”
“I’ll do that when you two start telling the truth every once in a while.”
“Two?”
“Steven snitches on you two every chance he gets.”
Kiss ass, Jake grumbled.
There’s nothing wrong with wanting to be honest with our girlfriend, Steven defended himself, though it did nothing to stop Jake’s verbal assault. ‘Sides, I’m the one who she wants around when you twits do something stupid.
Marc shook his head, ignoring their bickering as he brought himself back into the present, heart clenching as he took in the dreamy stare that watched him so closely.
“Are they fighting?” Y/n whispered, trying to not make her boyfriend seem crazy in front of her relatives.
“When aren’t they?” He joked, “Jake called Steven a kiss ass.”
“Well he’s not wrong,” she shrugged, turning her gaze to the impossibly clean window pane along the edge of the dancefloor, “Steven, baby, you know I love it when you kiss my ass.”
A cough forced its way out of Marc’s windpipe with force, a result of a laugh that he had not been physically prepared for. He cleared his throat, “Do you now? What about me?”
Y/n scoffed, “You don’t kiss my ass. You quite literally do anything but.”
“I would if you really wanted me to,” he leaned closer to rest his forehead against hers, his voice lowering to get his message across.
The muscles in Y/n’s face tightened as she realised the meaning of his words, shaking her head at him as she began to giggle nervously, “Maybe someday. You’d have to give me a little warning ahead of time though. If we’re doing that, we’re doing it right.”
“I wasn’t aware that there was a right and a wrong way.”
She shrugged, “Well, I mean there’s a right and wrong way for the other stuff, at least there is for me.”
“I guess so,” he nodded, “Wait–what’s the right way?”
She chuckled, “Trust me, if you didn’t already know, we wouldn’t be here right now.”
One of his palms smoothed down the small of her back, pausing at the curve of her behind and massaging the flesh within his meaty paw.
“You’re starting to sound a little superficial there, baby. You saying that you’re only with us for the sex?”
She shook her head, “No, no, of course not. Steven is so smart and sweet, and he’s very funny. Jake's got this sexy little mysterious thing going on, plus he’s very romantic. And you…” she paused, a small smirk growing on her features, “Well, maybe I’m with you for the sex.”
He dug his fingertips into her flesh a bit harder, feeling her warm skin pool out between his thick digits. She squirmed in his grasp, pressing herself closer to him than she would have been comfortable with had she been completely sober, but did not ask him to remove himself.
“That so?”
“You’re very talented,” she hummed, raking her fingertips down the back of his neck, “Grumpy, sometimes a little mean, and you hog the blankets, but talented all the same.”
“Well maybe me and my talents will go elsewhere,” he loosened his grip, preparing to let her go and watch her scramble to be closer to him once more, though she didn’t even give him the chance.
Fingers curling around the lapels of his jacket, she held him in place, “Elsewhere… as in our hotel room? Because I wouldn’t exactly be complaining.”
Marc laughed, “Maybe, maybe not. I might need some convincing to stay, now that I know that I’m just some glorified booty call.”
Y/n leaned forward, pressing her forehead against his own while refusing to break eye contact. His breathing laboured as she invaded his personal space even more so than she already had, watching through hooded eyes as she nudged her nose against his playfully and tugged her bottom lip between her teeth.
“I could convince you. You wanna go to the bathroom?”
Marc broke his facade, bursting out laughing at her question as she fell victim to her own giggles. The pair must have looked foolish–standing in the middle of the dancefloor, neither of them actually dancing and just laughing maniacally at one another and acting as if no one else in the extravagantly decorated ballroom even existed.
The upbeat music began to slow, and the other dancers on the floor paired off into a slow dance. Marc easily recognized the song; he’d heard Y/n singing it countless times in the shower, while she was cooking, and even sometimes in her sleep. She wouldn’t necessarily classify it as her favourite, but Marc was positive that it was a pretty damn close second.
“Hang on, baby,” He spun her into his arms and held her tightly to his chest, hands settling on her waist as he began to move the both of them into a slow, simple, side-to-side motion, “Just one more dance.”
She nodded softly in agreement, resting her forehead on his shoulder, “One more dance.”
They stayed like that for the majority of the song, swaying side-to-side lazy while they remained entirely wrapped up in one another’s arms. Occasionally Marc would nuzzle his nose into her hair or press a soft kiss to her temple, and she would respond each time with a squeeze and a kiss of her own pressing into his shoulder.
“You know I love you, right?”She whispered as she pulled back slightly, staring up at him as if he’d hung the stars in the sky, “I love all three of you the same, you guys know that, but right now I’m just–”
“I know,” He silenced her with the gentle press of his lips to her own, “I know baby. We all do.”
Tell her I love her too.
“Steven says that he thinks you smell weird and snore. Babe, I think you should dump his ass, personally.”
Steven blubbered out a protest, all strung together and slurred as he struggled to make a solid threat to the man who currently had control over their body.
She frowned, “Tell Steven that I love him too, and that he’s quickly becoming my favourite.”
There was a beat of silence before she spoke again, “This is really nice and all, but I think I really just want a small little thing for our wedding.”
Marc chuckled, “Our wedding? I didn’t realise that I’d asked you yet.”
They hadn’t explicitly spoken about the prospect of marriage yet. Of course, she had spoken to all three of the boys about what kind of future they had envisioned for themselves, and all three had enthusiastically told her that she was certainly in it, but marriage was a complicated thing in itself, not to mention how it would fair when one woman had married three different men who all shared the same body.
Would she marry Marc? It technically was his body to begin with, but Steven had controlled the body probably just as long as Marc did, all things considered, and Jake would never allow such an argument to persist without throwing his own cap in the ring. Perhaps they could be common-law, so none could be considered to be any more of her husband than the others–one small ceremony to themselves where all three boys would have the chance to read their own vows and kiss you as their wife for the first time. Regardless, Marc was simply glad to hear that she had been thinking about their future together.
“You haven’t, yet,” she hummed in amusement, “Jake got pretty close a few times though.”
He shook his head, “I know, asshole never stops thinking about it. If he had it his way, he’d have Steven and I locked away in the back of our mind so that he could have you all to himself.”
She raised her brow, “Not such a bad idea… maybe if I didn’t love you all so much.”
Marc smirked at her, placing a careful peck to her lips. Neither spoke another word, simply swaying side to side along with the melody, eyes locked on one another and entirely ignorant to anything else that may have been going on around them.
As the song came to a close, Y/n fluttered her eyelashes up at him, eyes glittering under the ambient lights above as she whispered to him, “Marc?”
He hummed in response.
“Take me to bed?”
He resisted the small smirk that edged its way onto his face, squeezing his fingers tighter around her waist as she trailed her hands up the front of his chest, working soft patterns into the fabric of his suit. He leaned closer to her, his voice meeting her ears in a low grumble, “Go say goodbye and meet me at the door, I’ll grab your coat.”
Marc Spector was nothing if not efficient, making his way through the crowd with expertise that only an enhanced individual might have, finding his way to the coat check area while making sure that Y/n was always within his line of sight. He watched from the corner of his eye as she hugged each of the grooms, then one of her aunts, and endured an uncomfortably long and wet kiss from her uncle who had been cut off by the bartender. He slipped a five into the palm of the young man working the coat check and took off, stealing Y/n away from her family members before they had a chance to stop him.
Y/n giggled at him, slipping her coat on with ease and allowing him to guide her out through the front doors and cross the street to the hotel that they were staying at. Once they were in the privacy of the moving elevator, she made quick work of unbuttoning his jacket so that she could slide her palms across his firm midsection and pressed herself against him as she began to nip and kiss up the expanse of his thick neck. He groaned under her touch, leaning his back against the wall and gliding his own palms around the back of her neck to pull her in for a long, passionate kiss.
She sighed into him, pushing her hips forward to rock against his own and giggling girlishly as she bumped the tent that had begun to form in his pants. He hissed at the contact, hands pulling her face away from his own so that he could stare directly into her eyes.
“How are you feeling, baby?”
“I think you already know how I’m feeling.”
He rolled his eyes, “I mean, are you sober enough for this? You had a lot to drink today.”
She shrugged, “No more than you.”
“I’m also not a lightweight.”
“Oh please,” She scoffed, swatting his chest lightly, “I’m a little buzzed at most, I’m totally fine.”
“You’re sure?”
Y/n grinned, stepping away from him as the elevator doors slid open. She slowly backed away from him, turning on her heel and calling out to him over her shoulder, “I can always take care of myself, if you don’t feel up for it.”
#moon knight#moon knight x reader#moon knight imagine#marc spector#marc spector fic#marc spector x y/n#marc spector x reader#mcu
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Can I pls pls plssss get some fluff with how the THH boys would propose and what the wedding would be like???
THH Boys proposing and wedding headcanons
Yay!! Not only do I have a husband, but today I received a message from the most blessed anon saying how much they adore byakuya and my writing, so I found this one to do for them!! This one goes out to you!!
update: hey guess what's up it's me posting again sorry I've been partying. can everyone whisper under their breath "mod souda and the guitarist he likes are going to go on a date" thank you i miss my husband i want to see him again. manifestation.
currently playing: massage asmr videos on youtube because i'm obsessed
✯✯✯✯✯
-Mod Souda
✯✯✯✯✯
Byakuya Togami
❤ When he proposes, he makes it something magnificent. I imagine it will be either at an elegant ball somewhere in royal Europe, else somewhere more local, but it has to be somewhere where he is one of the main attractions, and somewhere royal n elegant.
❤ Not that he worries about you saying no, he is actually 90% positive you will say yes. The 10% is if he spontaneously combusts before the day comes.
❤ Byakuya is not going to go down on one knee for you.
❤ He is instead going to lean into your ear, holding you and looking at you as if you are a deity, and ask you politely. You've almost never heard his voice so soft.
❤ You almost doubt his intentions. Is he being hyperbolic? Is this some way the high society talks?
❤ The engagement party is very traditional and very expensive. You are the center of attention almost the entire time, it got a little frightening, especially when some of the attendees have like 100,000x your salary.
❤ Imagine that ring though ohhh my god.
❤ And the wedding can literally be anywhere but he asks that it's an inside wedding and that the place looks baller asf. But you can pick the city / country. If you're indifferent, then his family will probably enforce that it takes place in a shrine, and he'll go along with this.
❤ Beyond his usual black suit, I think he will wear a light gray one with black underneath, just to make the distinction.
❤ I know most weddings are invite only but this one is literally invite only like no +1's or anything and you gotta show your invite before you sit down.
❤ He will fly your family [birth or otherwise] to come and attend, and he will pay for seamstresses and shit to make them the most beautiful outfits.
❤ He high-key wants a theme, but he is going to be like "oh yeah, my lover requests that..." as if he isn't the one with the idea. He doesn't want to appear as a bridezilla even as the groom (is that just, an asshole?).
❤ He scolds the seamers a lot, I feel like this is just a given.
❤ I don't think there are any recordings of the wedding, and the wedding photographers are only for like the posed photos, not the actual ceremony, and maybe the reception.
❤ Live music!! Very traditional music.
❤ The wedding lasts a long time and at first, it was very serious, having minimal smiles, but once everything went on, it became very joyous. It became a celebration.
❤ There were flowers all over the head table, and every time you see those flowers anywhere else it reminds you of your wedding.
.
Hagakure Yasuhiro
❤ He will sit inside, whether a building or a car, and watch the fire from Omizutori festival, seeing it from the distance. He takes it as a bit of good omen.
❤ He will worry about it like HELLA and he will rely on his mom to calm him down.
❤ His mom has a very important part in this entire thing. She is giving him the most advice she can possibly give and she is trying to help him to the best of her abilities. Sometimes she has to grab him by the shoulders and shake him.
❤ He will be getting down on one knee for you. He will not be making eye contact with you because that's too scary. He will also probably speak too quietly at first.
❤ I think he's do it either at a shrine or some other place he feels he is most comfortable.
❤ The engagement ceremony is simple, it's just his mother meeting some of your closest people, whether it's your family or those you consider your family.
❤ His mother is so like happy with this entire situation, even if it's not too obvious. I feel as if if you've been hanging out with his mother then you can really notice how more delighted she seems about the situation.
❤ The wedding has colors of neutrals. I feel as if it's going to take place in a forest, like a thick forest.
❤ His hair will be tied up and it'll look so cute!! He'll have his little glasses on, too.
❤ A lot of fairy lights, the wedding site is going to have beautiful golden lights.
❤ He isn't too worried about things such as catering or music, so you can come up with ideas on that.
❤ He wants a dance floor, though. He wants somewhere where the two of you can share that stereotypical romantic moment.
❤ The dining room table is stacked with movies that involve weddings. He just wanted to see what the average wedding is portrayed as. Studying, almost.
❤ Give him a bunch of kisses because goodness is he so anxious.
❤ ^ This is mostly because he wants to look dressed up. Plus, Togami is gonna be there, too, and he doesn't want that guy to make him feel insecure about his dressing.
❤ After the wedding, alone in a room with you he will just sit down, pull you into his lap, rest his face against your back and start to cry.
.
Hifumi Yamada
❤ The proposal will be surrounding something that you like. He listens to like everything you say and keeps mental notes of things you like and don't like. This is mainly because gift-giving culture is something he takes very seriously, obviously as a fanfic creator, but it proves to come handy.
❤ Do you like amusement parks? He will propose to you there. Do you like hiking? Any sports? Anime conventions? National parks?
❤ And the ring will be whatever color you want - he doesn't care about social rules when it comes to your happiness.
❤ Tbh I think he'd let you pick out the ring.
❤ But as he is proposing he is so so so worried about whether you'd say yes or not. It's not about if you love him, it's about if he thinks you consider him someone you'd want to spend the rest of your life with.
❤ He tries to be kind, and considerate, and even a person you'd consider a husband, but there is always an insecurity about what you might be secretly thinking about him.
❤ When you say yes, he gets more excited than you.
❤ His engagement party is shared with his sister and those close to you. His sister is very much like him, though she is a lot friendlier to strangers.
❤ The actual wedding he will like beg to have anime influences, and it depends on your answer.
❤ He loves you so much that if you say no, he will respect it, except not really because he's gonna sneak something (like a anime girl pin on his tux).
❤ He highkey wants some aspects to be pink, because that's almost his comfort color. He turns to Princess Piggles in time of need.
❤ Pink table cloths maybe.
❤ Tbh knowing him like, listen, you could rent out a room at an anime convention right and have the wedding there, and there will be his fans there to support you guys. That is a plausibility.
❤ He just wants the wedding to have a sense of community. He's had a hard time interacting with people, especially when it comes to telling if they're being nice or not, so having a group of people who he knows wants to be there for him is all he asks for.
❤ And also he wants to see you dressed all formal. He's gonna make that the image that appears on the back of his eyelids.
❤ I don't think he knows how to dance so the First Dance will be interesting.
❤ But no matter what, he is going to have such a blast during that mf wedding like he is so happy to be there with you.
❤ He might start wearing a badge that says I'm married.
.
Makoto Naegi
❤ His idea of a proposal is a classic one. He wants to go classic incase he gets bad luck from trying to think out of the box.
❤ It'll probably be under a cherry blossom tree, or even a mistletoe if you're a fan of Christmas.
❤ He will take your hands in his and tell you how important you are to him and how special you make him feel.
❤ He is always affectionate, but those words were a little too affectionate for him. When he got down on his knee you finally realized what it all was for.
❤ He was actually a bit nervous around you saying yes.
❤ Actually as he was proposing to you Kirigiri was lurking like in the shadows from far away.
❤ The engagement party is very traditional and very expensive. You are the center of attention almost the entire time, it got a little frightening, especially when some of the attendees have like 100,000x your salary.
❤ Pretty ring!
❤ He doesn't have a set idea for a wedding, but he has fantasized about getting married to you since he's fallen in love with you so he has some idea.
❤ He's kinda a push-over though so your opinion overweighs any of his.
❤ His suit is going to be a pale color! Not black.
❤ And he wants you to invite as many people as you like. He wants to meet all of your friends and family (and he will be nervous as shit as he does so).
❤ He wants you to meet all of his friends, too! You've been a handful of them, but the Hope's Peak graduates are always all over the place internationally.
❤ He is the one that crafts the menu and organizes the playlist.
❤ Maizono is in the back of the ceremony just recording it on her phone.
❤ ^ She'll perform a song for the two of you, too.
❤ His friends literally liven up the wedding so an insane level. There is never a second where there isn't something going on. The distractions give enough time for you and him to exchange a few kisses.
.
Ishimaru Kiyotaka
❤ He is literally pissing himself crying at trying to plan this.
❤ He is planning everything about the day, and he swears if something even goes the littlest bit of wrong he's going to have a panic attack.
❤ It's at a shrine. He helps you go up the steps and the entire time he is like shaking. You can tell he is obviously going to piss himself.
❤ Every "what's wrong?" gets combatted with him dramatically brushing it off.
❤ Nothing is wrong, he says. Everything is going right.
❤ His hands are shaky. More than anything, he is worried you're going to say no, and he is worried that you don't want to live your life with him - a nuisance.
❤ He rehearsed what he is going to say. He speaks it clearly - he is good when it comes to things like that, rehearsed speeches.
❤ He is not very slick about his intentions, though. You catch on, and to you it's the matter of whether you let him finish or not.
❤ The engagement party is very traditional and very expensive. You are the center of attention almost the entire time, it got a little frightening, especially when some of the attendees have like 100,000x your salary.
❤ Puts his entire life and soul into that ring.
❤ He wants the wedding to be at a shrine. He thinks it's a beautiful location, and he wants good fortune to come to the two of you.
❤ The suit is one the two of you will pick together, and this is just because he was too nervous to pick something you didn't like. The two of you went suit shopping together.
❤ His family monitor who you invite. Backround checks and the such are mandatory.
❤ But whoever you invite are 100% coming to the wedding, and his family can ensure that.
❤ The wedding stresses him out, and you'll need to reassure him and remind him that the two of you have luck on your side.
❤ "Everything will be okay."
❤ And everything was okay! Nothing bad happened, which he is more than happy about. the reception.
❤ His family enjoyed the wedding, which is another major plus for him. That was something that stressed him out, too. The positive appraise and the fact that they sent your family off with smiles and pleasantries is something that hammers in the fact that his life with you is going to be perfect.
.
Mondo Oowada
❤ Ishimaru is in his ear telling him to do something fancy and not something whimsical, but that just isn't who he is.
❤ When he proposes to you, it's like when the two of you met for the first time. He was so anxious, he was fidgeting with his own fingers, and he could hardly control the levels of his voice - he was blushing and yelling.
❤ So yeah, it's just like that ^.
❤ A lot of "so fucking uhhhh".
❤ It's either a stolen ring or like a lifesavers.
❤ He will propose in the darkness of the night, maybe under a streetlamp in a place for from the city. He's not the type to get down on one knee. He's going to hold your hands and ask with an unsure voice.
❤ Zero eye contact. Zero eye contact.
❤ When you say yes, you need to give him a big hug. He deserves it so much. Free him.
❤ The engagement party would probably be skipped, which is something completely not a casual decision, but he is settling with letting you visit his brother's grave with him.
❤ The two of you have a reserved seat for him at the main table, too.
❤ A lot of the detailing stuff is very timid, he doesn't care about what the wedding looks like as long as you are happy and as long as it's not in hot weather.
❤ The ring is something he does put consideration and time into btw like he wants it to be gorgeous. That ring is how people are gonna know that you are his.
❤ Yeah he's kinda against an outside wedding like that shit is gonna annoy the shit outta him with the weather and bugs and stuff.
❤ His suit is something he takes seriously, too. He wants to look dapper. Maybe a low ponytail if he's feeling affectionate enough.
❤ Omg tin cans tied to the back of the bike.
❤ He is going to be hella nervous to meet your friends. It's gonna be like, almost as nervous as he was to propose to you.
❤ He wooulldd prefer if the wedding was themed more dark colors, or if the music he likes played. He'll sneak something in.
❤ His gang will be attending and that just adds to the whole aesthetics of the place.
❤ If some of them are in bands he's going to let them play.
❤ He's surprised at how long weddings last. He thought he was just going to put the ring ons and eat and get it done with.
❤ He has such a fun time hanging out with you in the formal clothes. He feels like a prince.
.
Leon Kuwata
❤ Would probably propose in front of a bunch of people.
❤ I think naturally he's going to be nervous about it, but that doesn't mean he isn't confident in your relationship. He knows you love him, so that means you'll marry him, right?
❤ Thank god the answer was yes.
❤ I literally cannot imagine him doing it anywhere else other than his games.
❤ Which can be a bit embarrassing for you but hey. Romance.
❤ He proposed with such passion and belief, it was impressive. He put so much love into those words and that ring.
❤ Engagement party very sweetening. Kanon isn't too happy but.
❤ The thing he is worried about is picking out the perfect ring.
❤ He is going to try to do something different with his hair. One of the attempts is to pull it back but he doesn't find much appeal in that. Taming it is kinda hard.
❤ Leon in a black suit with a cute red bowtie. He might have a goodluck flower on his breast pocket too.
❤ Can one of the wedding photos include his guitar.
❤ He's picking the wedding music and it's not going to be wedding appropriate. He also tries to be very formal but after like two hours he loses the ability.
❤ There are many photos and recordings of the wedding. He wants to remember every second of it, it's the most beautiful thing to him. (And he likes looking at the photos of you the most)
❤ After awhile he's going to treat the wedding as if it's a party. This is either going to be the funnest shit or the most stressful shit.
❤ "Please don't hurt yourself Leon."
❤ Stands on a table to make an announcement.
.
Chihiro Fujisaki
❤ The proposal is going to be a cute little program. He is going to watch you interact with it, and he's going to have a shy blush on his face the entire time, waiting with anticipation for you to reach the end.
❤ He will lean on your shoulder, too.
❤ He is going to cry out of happiness, too. The joy and excitement will be incredibly overstimulating.
❤ He waits to buy a ring until after the proposal. He wanted to wait until you said yes.
❤ When the two of you are engaged, he sleeps so close to you that you feel as if when you wake up, he'll have melted from the body heat.
❤ The engagement party is very casual. It'll be a small event, especially since he doesn't want to be around too many people at once. He is going to be extremely kind to all of your family.
❤ Whenever people ask how he proposed, his eyes light up as he explains his entire thought process.
❤ For the wedding, he ties his hair back. The amount of compliments he gets really helps with his confidence, and he spends a long time making sure that people will look at him with admiration in their eyes.
❤ He is going to need help picking a suit though because he doesn't have like any experience in that sort of thing.
❤ One of the sentences in his vows is relating to being secure in the fact that he will not hesitate to protect you. He's always worried that he is too weak, but now everything feels at ease.
❤ He really wants a neutral-colored theme. He likes the casualty mixed with the professionalism. He wants the place to be friendly and calming yet not straying enough to be considered a party rather than a wedding.
❤ There is not going to be a lot of people.
❤ Oh my god imagine how excited and happy his dad is going to be. His dad has always been a sweetheart to you and he is the weddings number one supporter.
❤ ^ He cries during it.
❤ The wedding isn't going to last longer than it needs to. The two of you will have a bunch of fun after the ceremony no matter what, though.
#byakuya togami x reader#yasuhiro hagakure x reader#danganronpa#x reader#leon kuwata x reader#wedding headcanons#chihiro fujisaki x reader#mondo owada x reader#kiyotaka ishimaru x reader#makoto naegi x reader#hifumi yamada x reader#danganronpa headcanons
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"Strawberry" Part One
Word count: 6,749
Chapter One
“Are you sure you can’t drive me to the airport in the morning?” I asked Kenneth wearily. I knew he was reluctant to allow me to go to Nashville for Riley’s bachelorette weekend. He says he’s worried about my safety, but I know the truth is that he doesn’t want me to go out without him, especially with a group of girls.
He groaned, “I have to be at work by 8 a.m. and your flight leaves at noon. I’m not sure if you know how time works but–”
“My plane leaves at 2 p.m. I have to be there by noon,” I interjected before he finished his insult.
“Whatever. Either way, I can’t swing it. Just drive yourself or get one of your friends to give you a ride,” he said as he shut the bathroom door in my face.
He knows good and well that Riley and our other friends live hours away in other states. Everyone got out of this town the second we graduated college. Well, everyone except me. Kenneth took over his father’s business so I stayed behind too. I don’t resent him for it; I love my small town. I love that my family is no more than 15 minutes away in every direction. I love my job and my students. I love my simple two-bedroom home where I spend most of my evenings alone with Sassy, my border collie. I love my comfortable life. But I hate that my best friend since middle school took a marketing job that required her to move 738 miles away from me.
Life sometimes gets lonely when your closest friends are your coworkers who are old enough to be your parents. Finding a teaching job in this small town was easy because I went to school here. My classroom is the same classroom I once sat in to learn 9th grade English; now I am on the other side of the desk.
When Riley asked me to be her maid of honor, I cried tears of joy… and jealousy. Kenneth and I have been together since we were 16 years old. Although we celebrated our 10-year-anniversary in August, we were quickly approaching the two-year-anniversary of our engagement. Riley met her fiancé less than a year ago; yet, I am the one putting on a bridesmaid dress before a wedding dress.
“Can you turn off the light?” Kenneth’s question snapped me back to reality. I looked at the piles of folded laundry on my side of the bed with my barren suitcase next to them.
“I’m still packing,” I said.
“Well, some of us don’t get to go to Nashville. Some of us have to go to work to help fund a trip we don’t even get to go on,” he responded.
Ouch. Yes, it’s true Kenneth is the breadwinner. His father’s business is lucrative and Kenneth does well for us. He has asked me to quit my job time and time again since he can support us financially. Everyone knows a teacher’s salary isn’t much to brag about, but I still feel pride in bringing home a paycheck every month. I love my job too much to quit. It’s already lonely in the evenings; I can’t imagine staying home all day by myself too.
“You know I booked the cheapest flights I could find. Everyone else is flying in together and I am arriving a day early because tomorrow’s flights were more expensive than–”
“Turn off the light!” Kenneth snapped.
I collected my laundry piles and tossed them into my suitcase before shoving it to the floor. I guess I will have to finish packing in the morning after he leaves for work. I put my phone on the charger, turned off the light, and climbed into bed. Sassy jumped into bed to sleep by my feet, our nightly routine. She has always been my protector. I am going to miss her so much while I am gone, but I am looking forward to this miniature vacation. I haven’t had a trip to look forward to since my senior year of college. Kenneth is always too busy with work for us to have a vacation together. He doesn’t like to fly but he also gets car sick. If anywhere I wanted to go required more than two hours on the road, count him out. Plus it will be nice to see Riley again. I shut my eyes and tried my best to fall asleep. I am used to going to bed angry. Anger is like melatonin to me at this point. But the excitement and longing kept me awake. I pulled my headphones out of my nightstand and connected them to my phone. I scrolled through my Spotify playlists until I found one to soothe me to sleep. I selected “Boyfriends” by Harry Styles and the irony wasn’t lost on me as I drifted off…
Chapter Two
I collected the parking ticket from the machine as I drove into the airport’s economy lot. I found a spot closest to the entrance, but I knew I was still going to have to walk a billion miles. The economy lot is furthest from the airport but it’s the most affordable option. I wanted to save every dollar I had for this trip, so I figured it was a small sacrifice. I parked and started to collect my things from the trunk of my car. I grabbed my carryon suitcase and hung my purse on its handle before I started my trek to the airport. Anxiously double-checking every item on my pack-list in my head, I walked through the double doors of the airport. I made my way up to security and got in line behind what seemed to look like the entire population of my town. Luckily, the line moved fairly quickly as I approached the TSA agent’s desk. I placed my luggage on the conveyor belt, removed my sandals, and emptied my pockets.
The large woman in the TSA uniform waved me through the body scanner. “Come on through, sweetie.”
I stood on the yellow marker and held my hands above my head. I knew I had nothing on me that would set off any alarm, but this moment always made me hold my breath.
“You’re good, sweetie. Have a good day,” she smiled as I breathed a sigh of relief. I collected my things and scurried off to the side to put my shoes back on. When I grabbed my phone from the security tub, I noticed that I had two missed calls from Kenneth.
I called him back as I tried to make my way through the crowd, pulling my luggage behind me. He answered on the first ring.
“Why didn’t you answer my calls?” he asked with a bit of anger in his tone.
“I was going through security. I couldn’t be on my phone,” I explained.
“Well, I only have so long of a lunch break and I wanted to check in before you got on your flight. What time are you set to land again?” he asked.
“3:30 p.m. for the hundredth time,” I sighed.
“Ok, you need to text me as soon as you land,” he commanded.
“Sure thing,” I replied.
“Alright, well I’m gonna get back to work,” Kenneth said.
“Hey, don’t forget to give Sassy a treat after she goes outside because that’s what she’s used to. Oh, and don’t forget that she likes to have dinner at–”
“I’ve owned the damn dog just as long as you have. You don’t have to give me instructions,” Kenneth cut me off.
“Can you send me pictures of her throughout the day? I’m really going to miss her,” I pleaded.
“You’re going to miss the dog more than me,” Kenneth scoffed.
I thought about that comment for a moment as I approached my gate. I glanced over the TV screen to verify my boarding time.
“Wow, you don’t even deny it,” Kenneth said.
“I’m sorry. I got distracted by my gate. It’s really busy here. I will text you when I land. Please send me pictures of Sassy. I will keep you posted. I love you,” I nearly lied into the phone.
“Love you too,” he said halfheartedly before ending the call.
While pulling my belongings behind me, I found a spot to sit down in the waiting area of my gate. The airport seemed to be a madhouse, but it looked like my flight wouldn’t be so crowded after all. There were more empty seats than I expected. I checked the “Nashville Babes” group text on my phone. I’ve had the notifications silenced for weeks because I can’t stand getting notified every 10 minutes. I asked Riley to text me separately if there was anything I really needed to know. I hate that I appear to be an unsupportive maid of honor, but seeing my phone light up constantly throughout the day–and night–has been a nightmare for my anxiety. Riley knows and understands that I get overwhelmed easily. She took charge of planning her own bachelorette weekend because she knew I would get stressed out. I still feel guilty about it, but she assured me that she truly wanted to plan it. I wasn’t going to argue. She’s always been the most supportive and constant person in my life. I hate that I am secretly jealous of her when I should be reciprocating the support.
“Now boarding Group A!” the airline attendant announced over the gate’s speaker. I checked my boarding pass: Group C. Once again, I took the most affordable option on the cheapest flight I could find. Being last to board on Southwest meant that I am doomed to a middle seat between two strangers. I just hope that whomever I get stuck between put on deodorant today. When I say I’m looking forward to a vacation, I mean I am looking forward to a break from 15-year-olds’ body odor. One of the many drawbacks of being a teacher.
“Excuse me,” a man in a white sweater and khaki pants said as he tried to shuffle by me. I thought he looked funny wearing both a baseball hat and sunglasses indoors. That doesn’t look suspicious in an airport. I moved my things from his path and he headed to board the plane. So he’s in Group A… This guy has money. Well, maybe not. He is flying Southwest after all. I’m sure I could have booked Group A tickets, but I didn’t want to ask Kenneth for any more money than I already needed. This trip was fully funded by me and I was proud of that. Well, until Riley picked the most expensive Airbnb in Nashville. I almost fainted when I received her Venmo request. I was grateful she didn’t charge me extra for staying one night by myself since I had an earlier flight. I swallowed my pride and asked Kenneth if I could have an extra $400 to add to my savings to help with my portion of the bill. He gave me the money with no issues, but he has enjoyed holding it above my head every chance he’s had.
Once I heard the announcement for Group C, I grabbed my things and headed to stand in line to board. I glanced at the Nashville Babes group text: 80 missed notifications. I cleared it from my phone as I opened the Southwest app to show my boarding pass. Once I was scanned in, I headed through the hallway to board the plane. I stepped on the aircraft and gazed over the heads of strangers who were all avoiding eye contact. I knew they were all pleading to themselves that I wouldn’t take their middle seat. The flight wasn’t too packed, but there were no empty window or aisle seats left. Wonderful. I scanned the rows once more looking for any open overhead space when I noticed someone’s eyes locked on me. Eyes that I hadn’t seen before; yet, a face that looked all too familiar. The Group A stranger had removed his sunglasses and was staring at me. I started to move down the aisle when he whispered to the guy in the row with him. Whoever he was, he looked angry receiving whatever news he just got. No chance I want to sit between a bickering couple. I located a row nearby filled with two women who looked rather normal. I went to lift my luggage to put in the overhead space when the Group A stranger grabbed my suitcase.
“Allow me,” he said with a smile that displayed the tiniest of gaps between his unusually white teeth. But rather than placing the suitcase in the compartment I had decided on, he placed it in the compartment above his row.
“Would you prefer the window seat or the aisle seat?” he asked.
“What happened to the man who was sitting with you?” I answered his question with a question.
“I asked him to sit elsewhere. I figured you’d prefer a better spot,” he smiled that smile again.
Bewildered, I responded: “I’ll take the aisle.” No way would I be confined to the window seat with this strange man trapping me in. I needed an escape route in case he was a pervert or something.
“Perfect. I love to watch the clouds anyways,” he said as he shuffled into the row. I followed suit but sat to keep an empty seat between us.
“Why didn’t your friend just sit in the middle if you wanted to give me a good seat?” I asked confusingly.
“That’s my–um–assistant. He can stand to sit elsewhere for the short flight since I see him all of the time. I’d prefer to sit next to someone more pleasant anyways,” he joked.
God he’s adorable. A little too forward but adorable nonetheless.
“Well, I appreciate you doing that for me. I figured I was going to have to sit between two strangers, but an aisle seat is definitely a welcomed surprise,” I said.
I opened my phone to inform the Nashville Babes that I had boarded and would be landing in roughly an hour and a half. I completely ignored the hundreds of messages that came before mine. I was about to put my phone on airplane mode when I received a private text from Riley.
Riley: “You ok?”
Me: “Yes, of course. I’m so excited to see you! Get ready to lose oxygen from my hug when I see you tomorrow.”
Riley: “Just checking. Haven’t heard from you in a couple days. Let me know when you land and when you make it to the Airbnb. Safe travels, love.”
I sighed as I read her message over and over. I smiled and held the message down to “love” it before searching through my purse to retrieve my headphones.
“Already getting the music out and we haven’t even heard the safety instructions yet. I think you need to pay attention,” I heard the adorable stranger say.
“There isn’t much I can do if there were an emergency. Knowing that I need to breathe oxygen through a mask that will drop in front of my face is all I need to know,” I said with a laugh.
“Just make sure to put your own mask on before you help me with mine,” he said.
“Who says I would help you?” I turned to him and asked.
“I helped you with your luggage. I helped you get an aisle seat. The least you can do is help me breathe,” he said with a smile that displayed his perfect teeth again.
I laughed and replied, “Ok, well I am not banking on there being an emergency, so no need to worry.”
“Does anyone ever bank on an emergency?” he asked. Smart ass.
I rolled my eyes and placed my headphones in my ears. I opened my Spotify app to find the playlist I downloaded to prepare for the flight.
“Who are you listening to?” the stranger asked. I am beginning to wish I had sat between the two women after all. Not having to play 20 questions with this guy would have been worth sacrificing the extra space I had in this aisle seat.
“Nobody yet as I literally just opened the app,” I responded.
“Can I give you a song suggestion?” he asked.
“Um… I guess?” I replied questioningly.
“May I?” he asked as he reached for my phone.
“I’m not giving a stranger my phone,” I said with a shocked expression to my tone. The nerve of this guy.
“What am I going to do? Run off with it? You’ve got me trapped in,” he smiled showing that cute, tiny gap again.
“No thanks,” I said as I went to start my music.
Suddenly, he unbuckled his seat belt and stood up from his seat. I stared at him wide-eyed as a flight attendant stopped by our row to say, “Sir, please stay seated and buckle your seat belt.”
He waved to the irritated attendant and displayed a soft smile as he sat in the middle seat beside me. Immediately I was hit with his fresh cologne scent that made me crave more as he started to buckle the seat belt. You have got to be kidding me.
“What are you doing?” I somehow yelled and whispered simultaneously.
“Please let me pick a song for you to listen to. Then I will leave you alone. I promise,” he said with a slight pout to his lips. God, his lips. How did I not notice those yet?
“Give me your phone in exchange,” I said with an air of confidence in my voice.
“Ah, so she’s smart and she’s beautiful,” he said as he reached into the pocket of his khaki pants. I tried to hide the blush that I could feel warming my cheeks. I couldn’t remember the last time I received a compliment.
“I’m not unlocking it, but I will let you hold it for ransom,” he said as he held his phone out to me. I took it from his hands as his fingers brushed against mine. I felt an immediate rush of energy run through me as our hands briefly touched. What was that? I handed him my phone and watched as he typed the words “Greta Van Fleet” into the search bar in my Spotify app. He made a face that almost seemed disappointed, and then clicked to download the band’s complete playlist. He attempted to hand my phone back to me, and I stared at him confusingly as I reached for it. I was too busy watching him with my phone; I never even glanced at his lockscreen. Before I gave him back his phone, I tapped the screen to see what his background was. On display was a photo of a crowd of lights, but the photographer must have been standing on the stage when they took it. There had to be thousands of phone flashlights in this one photo. It reminded me of tiny stars in the midnight sky.
“I took that picture, ya know?” he said with a proud smile.
“Are you a concert photographer?” I asked.
He let out a wild laugh and then glanced down at my phone’s screen, “It’s almost finished downloading.”
“I thought you said a song suggestion. A. One. Singular. Not a whole playlist,” I said.
“I mean… I wanted to give you options,” he said.
Waving his phone to him I asked, “So, is this crowd picture from this band’s concert?”
“Yes,” he said, like there was more he was wanting me to ask. I decided to have the upperhand and gave him his phone back without asking another question. I watched my screen as the playlist was nearly completely downloaded.
“I’m Josh,” he said like he was annoyed that I hadn’t asked for his name yet.
“Hi, Josh,” I replied disinterestedly.
“And you are…?” he asked.
“I’m about to listen to this playlist,” I said with a matter-of-fact tone.
“Smart, beautiful, arrogant…” he muttered under his breath.
“I’m going to pretend that I didn’t hear that,” I said as I put my headphones in. “You can move back to the window now.”
“We are about to take off. If I stand up, I’ll cause a scene and then we’ll be delayed. Then I’ll probably become a flight risk and be forcibly removed off of the plane. Everyone would be recording the fiasco and posting it online. Let’s just avoid all of that and I’ll stay seated here,” he said with a smirk.
“You have quite the imagination…” I said hiding my smile.
“I’m sacrificing a coveted window seat for you. I hope you know that,” he replied.
“I never asked you to change seats,” I said.
“No, but you didn’t object either,” he responded with a smug expression on his face.
Once the playlist completed its download, I switched my phone to airplane mode. I sighed in frustration and scrolled through the playlist to view the songs. Whoever this band is, they have quite a discography. I wanted to ask him which song I should start with but I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction. I scrolled until the title “Trip the Light Fantastic” caught my eye. Intrigued, I selected the song and tilted my head back to listen to it. Before I shut my eyes, I noticed Josh was staring at my phone to see which song I chose first. I closed my eyes and relaxed as the lyrics danced through my ears. I have never heard anything like this before. I was so entranced in the music that I didn't even realize we were now speeding down the runway about to take off. The music, plus the feeling of lifting off the ground, was nearly overwhelming in the best way possible. I felt like I had stepped into the song itself. When the song ended, I didn’t want to open my eyes. I wanted to stay in this moment for as long as possible.
“What did you think?” I heard Josh ask as I removed my headphones.
“Wow,” is all I could formulate. My thoughts ran wild and I wanted to describe the feeling I just had, but I couldn’t put it into words.
“What did you think about the guy’s voice?” he asked.
“The dude is talented as hell. I just wish I could understand everything he sang,” I said.
There was that wild laugh of his again. “Yeah, I think the band receives that criticism a lot,” he said with a shrug. I truly wanted to listen to another song, but I didn’t want him to know I was so interested in this band. I guess one could call me stubborn.
“While I love to share music with new people, I’d love to talk some more if that’s alright with you,” he said sheepishly.
“I feel like you would talk to me even if it weren’t alright with me,” I said sarcastically.
“Smart, beautiful, arrogant,” he repeated. I playfully pinched his arm.
“Hey!” he exclaimed as he rubbed his arm.
“I let it slide the first time. I wasn’t going to let you get away with it again,” I said.
“Now that I’ve been physically assaulted… Are you going to Nashville for business or pleasure?” he asked.
“I’m attending a bachelorette party,” I said.
“For you or someone else?” he asked, looking down at the dainty ring on my finger. The same ring that has been without a wedding band companion for nearly two years. The same ring I wanted to leave inside the jewelry box before I left my house this morning.
“It’s for my best friend Riley,” I said with a sadness that I couldn’t hide like I normally do.
As if Josh sensed the change in my mood, he completely turned his body to face mine. I could tell that he positioned his head to get me to look at him. I locked eyes with him and it was like I could actually see the wheels in his head turning.
“How long will you be in Nashville?” he asked.
“For four nights. I had to take two days off from work, but I’m looking forward to it,” I said with a forced smile.
“You don’t sound like someone who is excited to attend a bachelorette party,” he said.
“It’s just a lot, but I am excited for Riley,” I said trying to convince the both of us that I really was excited.
“What do you do for work?” he asked while continuing to hold eye contact. As I stared into his dark brown eyes, I studied the long lashes that I would kill to have.
“I teach 9th grade English,” I responded.
“Smart, beautiful, arrogant, and a world changer. A difference maker. One who shapes the minds of our youth. You’re a hero to our doomed society,” he said. I felt my cheeks redden as I processed the way he just described my job. I don’t normally feel appreciated at work, not even at home. It felt good to have someone remind me of my purpose.
“Sometimes I feel like I’m just a glorified babysitter,” I said with a nervous laugh.
“You should never feel that way. I think you have one of the most important jobs in the world. I’m just a concert photographer,” he said with a tone that I couldn’t quite place.
“Thank you. I appreciate it,” I said, finally giving into a real smile. I watched his eyes fall to my mouth and I could feel a million butterflies in my stomach. Why does he have such an effect on me? I shook the thoughts from my head as I opened the Southwest app to see how much longer our flight had. A little over one hour to go with a stranger who makes me feel better about myself than anyone has in years. Maybe I should take a nap.
“What’s on the agenda for your bachelorette weekend? Bars and strippers?” he asked with a smile.
“Definitely the strippers. That’s a necessity,” I responded with a smirk.
“Well, when I’m not taking pictures at concerts, I happen to moonlight as an exotic dancer,” he said returning the smirk I gave.
“I’m sure you make more money taking pictures,” I said biting my lip.
“First you physically assaulted me and now you’ve verbally assaulted me,” he said.
“I’m sorry,” I said, covering my face from the embarrassment of inadvertently insulting him.
“No, you’re right. The crowd usually pays me to keep my clothes on,” he said tilting his head down in shame. Unlikely.
“What’s your stripper name?” I asked. Before he could answer, the plane suddenly dropped in altitude. I heard screams from the rows behind us. I gasped and grabbed his hand before shutting my eyes. The turbulence was over quickly as everyone seemed to breathe a sigh of relief at the same time. I slowly opened my eyes to realize everything was ok. I didn’t realize I was still holding Josh’s hand until he asked, “Are you ok?”
“Yes, sorry about that,” I said as I quickly jerked my hand back to my lap.
“No need to apologize for the hand-holding. It was nice while it lasted,�� he said with a wink.
“Who was the first person to cross your mind when you felt the plane drop?” I asked him in a serious tone.
Without hesitation, he responded, “My mom.”
“Tell me about her,” I said.
“She’s the most important person on the planet,” he said looking at his hands. “She has given up so much for me and I hope I make her proud.”
“I’m sure you do,” I said while trying to swallow the lump in my throat. I’m not sure if my nerves were shot from the temporary panic or if his sentiment was getting to me.
“Who did you think of?” he asked.
“Honestly… I thought of myself,” I admitted with shame.
“Really? Elaborate on that,” he said as I could tell he was giving me his full attention.
“I’m sure I sound narcissistic, but I thought I was about to die without having lived, and then I’d leave a legacy of nothing behind,” I said with a sigh.
“I know I don’t know you. Shit, I don’t even know your name. But, I can tell that your death would most definitely leave an impact on people,” he said.
“Nothing like discussing death with a total stranger,” I said with a light laugh.
“Death doesn’t scare me. I know it’s not the end. I just enjoy my life and the love I can give to the world while I’m here in my physical form. The love I provide won’t leave when I fade away,” he said. I stared at him like I just heard one of the most philosophical phrases come from another person’s mouth in years. He’s insightful and adorable.
“I got that from a song, by the way. It’s on the playlist I downloaded to your phone. Don’t be too impressed,” he said with a laugh.
“Ah, plagiarism,” I said.
“That’s actually my stripper name,” he said with a smirk.
“Now I definitely know you aren’t making any money,” I said, trying not to laugh.
“How about I give you a glimpse of my routine and you tell me what I can do to improve my shtick to make more money?” he asked.
Stunned by his foreward remark, I immediately felt guilt running through my veins. This is the most flirting I’ve had since high school. I’m not used to this sort of attention. I looked down at my hands in my lap.
“I’m sorry if that was too much. I–” Josh began to say.
“No, no it’s ok. I was just worried I wouldn’t have enough money in my purse to get you to keep your clothes on once you started,” I said stifling a giggle.
“Alright just kick a man while he’s down,” he said as he clutched his hands over his heart. He threw his head back acting like he was wounded and I eyed his neck. His adam’s apple protruded, making me feel weak.
“I wonder if there is a doctor on board to help you,” I said sarcastically looking around the plane.
Suddenly he rose out of his seat and shouted, “Is there a doctor in the house?”
Completely stunned, I stared at him with wide eyes. I cannot believe he just did that. I watched a flight attendant quickly make his way over to our row. Oh my God.
“Sir, are you having a medical emergency?” the flight attendant asked him. Next to the attendant stood Josh’s assistant, the angry man who changed his seat earlier.
“No, no, I am ok now. Sorry for the alarm,” he said, trying not to laugh. His assistant rolled his eyes and quickly returned back to his middle seat. I’m sure he is used to Josh’s antics by now. The flight attendant gave a displeased look to both of us before walking away. I felt like I had just received punishment for a crime I didn’t do. Guilty by association.
“That was so not funny!” I exclaimed with a sigh.
“I can’t help myself sometimes,” he said with a smile. This dude is nuts.
“You’re a lunatic,” I said, getting my headphones back out.
“No, wait. I am sorry,” he said. “I’ll move back over to the window seat and leave you alone,” he said with a sense of shame in his voice. I put my headphones in as I watched him change seats then position his body to where he was looking out the window. I was no longer in his line of vision. I opened my Spotify app and his Greta Van Fleet playlist was there. I hesitated. I wanted to listen to another song but I also wanted to block this guy from my mind and listen to my own music. Against my better judgment, I selected “Light My Love” from the playlist. I closed my eyes and listened to one of the most beautiful songs I had ever heard.
Chapter Three
I was six songs deep into this playlist when I felt someone tap on my arm. I reluctantly opened my eyes for I was enjoying being in a complete and utter trance of this band. Josh looked sheepish as I removed my headphones.
“Do you care to let me out to use the bathroom? I really need to stretch my legs,” he said. Without responding, I shifted my body and moved my legs into the aisle to give him a clear walkway. He shuffled past me and I got a whiff of his cologne again. He smells so damn good. Maybe I’m being irrational for giving him the silent treatment. I’m 26-years-old but I’m acting like I’m 12. I decided to act more civil once he returned to our row. I don’t want to look too anxious, but I couldn’t help but watch the bathroom door awaiting his return. After what felt like an eternity, I decided to do something irrational. I can be crazy too. I took my headphones off and left them in the seat as I shoved my phone in my jeans pocket. I stood up and started to make my way to the bathroom to check on him. As I got closer to the door, it opened and he exited. I wanted to retreat back to my seat from pure embarrassment, but there was nowhere to turn. He looked up at me and scrunched his eyebrows together like he was confused. As he should be. I decided to try to play it off that I needed to use the restroom rather than run back to my seat like I desperately wanted to. As he moved past me, his body brushed against mine and I felt every nerve from my toes to my scalp tingle. I felt like I could no longer breathe. I made my way into the tiny bathroom and stared at myself in the mirror. “Get it together,” I said aloud to my reflection. I took a few deep breaths and made my way back to my seat. I made the mistake of looking at him because his deep brown eyes were once again locked on mine. A shiver immediately ran through me. I sat back down in my aisle seat and tried to think of something to ease the awkward tension.
“What has been your favorite song off the playlist?” he asked, breaking the silence.
“That’s difficult to say. I have genuinely loved all of the ones I’ve listened to so far,” I said with a smile. His cheeks almost looked like they were a new shade of pink. Was he blushing? I quickly added, “Thank you for sharing this band with me.”
“Thank you for listening,” he said back with a smile. I bit my lip as I felt like the awkward tension was over. However, a new tension was forming.
I checked the Southwest app and realized we were set to land very soon. I put my headphones back in my purse as a sign that I was ready to talk to him. He picked up on my cue because he quickly switched seats again. His cologne hit me and if I hadn’t been sitting, I may have collapsed. He buckled his seat belt just before the overhead light signaled us to do so.
“What’s the first thing you and your friends are doing tonight?” he asked.
“Actually, I am flying in a day earlier than everyone, so I have the Airbnb alone until everyone flies in tomorrow,” I said. I suddenly realized that I shouldn’t have told a stranger that I was going to be staying alone in an unfamiliar city, but the words had already left my lips. Stupid, stupid, stupid.
“Really?” he said as he sat up straight in his seat. I nodded but then looked away. I can’t believe I just overshared this information with him.
“If you’d like some company…” he said quietly. I quickly turned my head back to him. I was dreading another night by myself, especially without Sassy. Riley said I could FaceTime her tonight, but I didn’t want to bother her while she finished packing and getting her stuff together. I was going to use the time to decorate the place before her arrival anyways.
I stammered, “Josh, I–”
“How about dinner? I can take you to some of my favorite places in town. What do you like to eat?” he asked with a big smile. The idea of not being alone was tempting and as frustrating as he had been at times, I really did enjoy his company.
Before I could give him an answer, I felt our plane touch the ground as we braced for a complete stop. This was always my least favorite part about flying.
“I really need to decorate the Airbnb and unpack. I’d like to get settled in rather than go out. Plus, I don’t have a vehicle,” I finally responded as the sounds of seat belts unbuckled around us.
“If it’s not too forward, I could always come over and cook for you. I can bring some groceries and wine, or whatever else you’d like to drink. I can even help you decorate. You can’t spend your first night in Nashville alone,” he said.
I mulled over his offer as people around us began to stand up and form a line in the center aisle as they collected their luggage from the overhead compartments. Josh appeared not to be in any hurry to leave, nor was I.
“Fine. But I want to text your full name, picture, vehicle description, and phone number to Riley in case I go missing,” I said with a matter-of-fact tone.
He laughed nervously and then said, “Give me your phone.” I put in my passcode and handed it to him. He stared at my background, a picture of Sassy and me, before opening the contacts app. “I’m giving you my number so you can text me your address when you’re ready for me to come over to cook you dinner,” he said as he was typing. I watched the plane empty row by row until it felt like we were the last two remaining on board. I noticed his assistant standing in the aisle waiting on Josh. “I think you’re going to get an earful when you get off the plane,” I said, eyeing the angry-looking man.
“I usually do,” he said with a smile as he passed my phone back to me. I glanced down at the contact name that read Plagiarism with the winky face emoji. I covered my mouth as I laughed loudly.
“Ahem,” we both heard his assistant clear his throat as he began tapping his foot impatiently.
“Ok, I think it’s time to go,” I said as I grabbed my purse and stepped into the aisle to let him out. While Josh exited his seat, he stood so close that I could smell his delicious scent again. I watched him open the compartment and get our luggage out. He lifted the handle of my suitcase and handed it to me. I smiled at his kindness, avoiding eye contact, because I had about all that I could stand.
We made our way down the center aisle following his assistant off of the plane. Before he stepped inside the airport, I watched as he put his sunglasses back on. Weird.
“I’ll be anxiously waiting for your text,” he said to me as he pulled his hat down a little further over his face. Before he walked away, he said, “I’ll send you all of the info you need for Riley when I hear from you,” with a wink.
I made my way down to ground transportation and requested an Uber to take me to the Airbnb. I sent Kenneth a text to let him know that I had landed, but I texted Riley that I was going to call her ASAP. I needed her advice now more than ever. I knew I was treading in dangerous waters by allowing that adorable, frustrating, sexy, funny, crazy stranger to come over, but something made me want to be around him. I may be in too deep, but I’ve always been a strong swimmer.
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Chapter 3: Time of My Life
Life Eternal Series
Eddie Munson x Rockstar!POC!Reader
Word Count: 5.6k
*Masterlist, Series Warnings, Additional Series/Reader Info, and Posting Schedule.*
Chapter Warnings: Slow Burn, Domestic Duo
“You excited, man?” Steve asks while he drives. Eddie scoffs.
“Excited feels like an understatement. I get to go to New York AND visit the best person ever? Yeah, there's no words to describe.” Eddie replies happily.
“Hey!” Dustin pipes in from the backseat. “Best person?” Steve rolls his eyes at Dustin.
“Dustin, Sometimes, when a man loves a woman-”
“Woah!” “Woah!” “Woah!” Dustin and Eddie shout over each other simultaneously. Steve smirks.
“No one said anything about love.” “I don't wanna get that talk from you!” They talk over each other again. Steve scoffs in disbelief.
“You're joking, right? Helen Keller could see what's going on here.” Steve says to Eddie, ignoring Dustin. “You two have been talking on the phone damn near daily for months, and now that rockstar is inviting you on an all expense included, paid trip to visit them at their house in New York.” Eddie rolls his eyes at Steve's correct assumption. “Don't act like you aren't pining over her. Did you forget I was there when you two talked for 4 hours straight at a bar where all of your respective friends were, yet you ignored everyone around you? You can thank me for the help at your wedding.” Steve dismisses. Eddie couldn't ignore the thumping in his chest. Steve wasn't all wrong. He was definitely crushing on you, hard, but he be damned if he admitted that right now. It was too early to call. He was falling too hard too fast. If he were to get rejected…
“Oh, mind your business, Steve. Eddie hit it off with a famous rockstar who sees his talent. This is a great opportunity for him! He gets to see the Big Apple AND write music for a rock album that's bound to be album of the year!” Dustin exclaims, only adding to Eddie's racing heart.
Dustin and Steve continue bickering as they drive up to the Departures curb. Steve throws the car in park and gets out with Eddie, Dustin not too far behind. Steve opens up the trunk, still bickering with the kid. Eddie grabs his suitcase and guitar case from the trunk. “Will you two shut up already!” Eddie yells, grabbing their attention. Dustin's expression changes as he focuses in on Eddie, and he rushes in to engulf Eddie in a hug. It shocks Eddie at first, but he is soon to give in and return the hug. “Don’t forget to bring me back something.” Dustin says. Eddie chuckles and pats his back.
“Will do, little man. Will do.” They pull away from each other, and he and Steve make eye contact.
“I’m not hugging you.” Steve says, holding up a hand and turning his head. Eddie rolls his eyes with an amused scoff.
“Whatever, pretty boy. I wouldn’t want to mess up your hair.” Steve rolls his eyes. “Thanks for the ride.” Steve softens and shakes his head.
“Don’t worry about it. It’s my job as chauffeur.” He shrugs. Steve gets taken off guard as Eddie gives him a quick side hug, before running off into the airport.
“See ya!” Eddie calls back, waving as he disappears into the building, Dustin waving wildly in return.
Eddie gets through TSA as quickly as possible. Since he was flying out on a Wednesday afternoon, the airport was near empty. As he sits at his gate, awaiting for his plane to board, he pulls out his old walkman. He would sometimes get looks when he pulls out the thing, but since his van only reads tapes, using Wayne’s old walkman was most efficient so he wasn’t buying doubles of every album he listened to.
He digs through his backpack, finally reaching what he was looking for, Cydonia’s debut album, Martian. He smiles at the tape, running his thumb over the cover art. Ever since your concert in Indiana, he has been listening to your two albums religiously. It was almost addicting. He loved the sound of your voice. He loved how your music introduced him to new sounds. Listening to your debut album intrigued him. It was a message for all those who were at the bottom of the food chain. It was a call to let your darkness shine, and he already proudly wore the word ‘Freak’ on his back. It would have definitely been his anthem in his high school days. His music induced trance was slightly broken when he noticed the gate doors open and the attendant started calling out for those to board.
Eddie collected his carry-on, his tattered red and black backpack, and stood to start boarding. He was one of few on the plane. As he made his way down the aisle, everything just became more and more real for him. He was suddenly struck by a hard pounding in his chest. His first time flying anywhere was going to the festival performance with metallica. That time he had Dustin to distract him. This is his first time flying solo, and he was really starting to feel his anxiety peak. He gladly sat in an empty row, halfway down the plane, and took a window seat. He figured sitting by the window would make him feel less suffocated. As soon as he was seated, he turned on the little fan above him and closed his eyes, leaning back in his seat, gripping the arm rests. He started taking big deep breaths and focused on your voice in his ears. He gripped the arm rests until his knuckles were white and squeezed his eyes harder when he felt the plane rattling during take off, but as soon as they were in the air and everything became near weightless, he relaxed a bit. He held the thought of seeing you in his mind to keep him calm. Eventually, he opened his eyes again and dared to look out the window, met with a serene view of the sun dancing along the clouds. He started to smile to himself. ‘I’m on my way, Superstar.’
》》》
As soon as Eddie landed at Newark, he felt like he was able to breathe normally again. He quickly filed off the plane and made his way to baggage claim. As he rode down the escalator, he was met with a sight he didn’t expect. In the middle of the floor was a hooded person with sunglasses on holding up a black poster board with red writing on it. ‘Eddie Munson (aka Rockstar)’ it read, and you were holding it, a smug grin on your face. Eddie smiled widely, deciding the machine was moving a bit too slow for him and began quickly walking down. “Pick up for Eddie Munson?” You said in a dramatically deep voice as he got a little closer. Eddie laughed and took four large steps over to you, wrapping his arms around your waist and lifting you up into the air, spinning around with you in his arms, causing you to shriek in surprise. “My glasses!” you yelled as they fell off your face and to the floor with a clack.
“Hey there, Superstar.” He laughed out, finally setting you down. “I wasn’t expecting to get picked up by the one and only.” He says with a big, happy smile. You scoff with face offense.
“I’ll make sure to send a limo next time.” Eddie shakes his head.
“No, I quite like getting to see you first thing.” He squats down to pick up your dark sunglasses. Instead of handing them back, he slides them onto his own face, grabbing your hand and leading you over to his baggage claim terminal.
“Excuse me, sir. I kind of need those.” He ignores you. “Okay, but it’s your vault if we get mobbed.” You respond, causing him to chuckle. He shrugs.
“It’ll be good practice for the,” pauses to turn around and hold up his hands, wiggling his fingers, “zombie apocalypse.” he finished in a deep, dramatically ‘spooky’ voice. You roll your eyes with an amused expression. He smiles and turns back around to search for his guitar and suitcase. You quickly miss the warmth of his hand as soon as it’s gone. You watch as Eddie waits and scans the circling conveyor belt for his luggage. You stand back not wanting to get in the way of others searching. As you wait with crossed arms, two teenage looking girls are walking passed, one of them lifting their head from the magazine they were both gawking over. She does a double tak, slapping her friend’s arm several times before nodding in our direction. You watch on through the corner of your eye, knowing what’s coming.
“Hi, sorry,” One of the girls with tricolor hair, dyed pink, purple, and blue, looked up to you with starstruck eyes, “You’re the lead singer of Cydonia, right?” You look to the other girl who had glasses, dyed black hair, and a pink, white and blue pin on the strap of the backpack on her shoulder.
“That’s me.” You say with a small smile. They look to each other for a moment, trying and failing to contain their excitement.
“Oh my gosh, we saw you in concert last year when you performed at Terminal 5-”
“You guys were awesome-”
“We love you music-”
“You inspire me so much-”
“You are a queer icon-”
“We love you-” They talk over each other, back to back. You chuckle, holding up a hand to slow them down.
“Thank you for your support. It means a lot.” You smile. They squeal like little piglets.
“Can we get a photo with you?” “Can you sign my CD player?” They say, again talking over one another. You chuckle and nod.
“Sure.” The girl with the dyed hair reaches into her crossbody purse for her disposable camera as the girl with glasses reaches in her large hoodie pocket for her CD player.
“I can take the photo for you.” A voice interrupts, Eddie. The girls look over their shoulder at him, looking at each other with a look, then both nod their heads.
“Yes, please!” They say simultaneously. You look at them suspiciously, wondering what that look was for before they turn to stand on either side of you, readying for the photo. You drape your arms over the smaller girls’ shoulders, and they lean in to hug your middle “Oh my gosh, you smell good.” “I knew it!” they say over each other, causing you to shake your head and chuckle at their antics. Eddie brings the camera up to his face. You can’t help but think how cute it is when he scrunches his face up to peek through the lens. It brings a genuine, soft smile from you.
“Say cheese!”
“Cheeeessseeee.” The two girls repeat, causing your smile to get bigger as you release another small laugh through your nose. Eddie snaps the photo. He lifts his head quickly to raise up two fingers.
“Another one just in case.” They stay holding your middle in a hug, but instead of smiling, you scrunch your nose and hold up rock-and-roll signs with your hands. The two girls do their respective ‘funny faces’, and Eddie snaps the second photo. “Nice.” He lowers the camera and the two girls release you, backing away a little. The one with glasses brings up her silver CD player and a red sharpie to hold in front of you. You grab the sharpie from her and help hold the CD player stable in her hand. You do a quick autograph.
“Can you also sign my magazine?” the tri-colored hair girl asks, holding up a copy of the same magazine you caught Eddie with all those weeks ago. You nod, giving her a ‘no problem’ and signing your name on the cover. They both struggle to hide their excitement.
“Thank you!” They both repeat over and over.
“No problem. Have a great trip or welcome home.” You smile as they give goodbyes and walk away holding onto each other. You look at Eddie. He has a smug look on his face, eyes hidden by your dark sunglasses.
“Don’t look at me like that.” You roll your eyes. “Let’s go.” You turn, and he just smiles, grabbing his things, jogging to meet up with you.
As soon as you both make it outside, Eddie is greeted with a crisp gust of wind through his curls. It’s chilly but sunny out. He follows you across the few lanes to the parking lot. Once in the parking garage, he lifts the sunglasses from his eyes and uses them to push back his bangs. You lead him across a few isles. In the middle of the empty lanes, away from the few cars parked closer to the entrance, sat a shiny, black beauty that is a-
“1967 Ford Mustang Fastback?!” Eddie nearly drops his guitar. You smirk, your back to him as you continue to walk to the backside of the car, unlocking the trunk. You look over to him. Eddie still stalled a few feet away from you.
“You comin’?” You tease. He scoffs, speechless.
“No fucking way this is your car.” He says in disbelief, starting up his walk again, closing in on you by the trunk.
“No, we’re stealing it. I actually pickpocketed those girls earlier.” You quip sarcastically, popping open the trunk.
“Well, in that case, can I drive?.” He quips back, stowing away his luggage into the empty trunk.
“No.” He pouts, and you both round the car and get in on your respective sides. Eddie is equally entranced by the all black interior as he was the exterior, “Can you even drive stick?” He whips to look at you, clearly offended.
“Can I even drive stick?! What do I look like?!” You laugh at his dramatic response. “I drive a ‘78 van for god’s sake.” He turns in his seat and mutters to himself, “‘Can you drive stick?‘ Pfft.” He mocks. You continue to laugh, turning over the ignition. Eddie takes your sunglasses off his head and puts them on the dash.
“Okay, okay. Sorry. I shouldn’t have poked the bear.” As soon as the car starts, the song you were listening to on the way to the airport continues. Eddie’s eyes nearly pop out of his head.
“You listen to Slayer too?! Jesus Christ I’m gonna combust.” He reaches for the grab handle above his window. He looked like he was going to pass out, sinking down into his seat. You laugh.
“You are so dramatic, Eddie Munson.” He pulls himself up, sitting properly.
“I was rejected from drama club for being too good, you know. That’s why I had to start my own cult.” He wiggles his brows.
“I doubt it was for that reason.” You scoff, a small smile playing on your lips. “Yet, I believe it.” You shrug. “Eddie Munson, the theater kid reject.” You say, lifting your hand and gesturing as if reading off a sign. He plays fake hurt, clutching his invisible pearls.
“Never have I.” He says in a posh, feminine accent. You laugh at his forced accent.
“Alright, Queen Elizabeth. Let’s go.” You both buckle up before you switch gears and start pulling out of the parking lot.
》》》
On the drive to your home in Nyack, you ensure to take the ‘long way’, going through the city a little bit. Eddie spent the entire two hour drive looking out the window in awe. The drive was silent between you two, the only noise being your music and the humming of your engine. It was nice. Eddie’s childlike wonder brough the magic back to New York. Not even the bits of traffic you hit could dull the mood.
When you were on the open freeway, leaving the city, you were able to speed up a bit. Eddie made an off-handed comment about how sexy the car sounded, bubbling a laugh out of you. You exited off the freeway early, again, not bothering to take the quickest route as you silently let Eddie sightsee through the car window. When you’re finally pulling into your neighborhood, Eddie speaks up. “Ho-ly shit.” He sighs, gaping through the front windshield. “This is where you live?” He asks breathlessly. You let out a soft chuckle.
“Yeah, not too bad, is it?” you ask rhetorically.
“It’s alright.” He fires back with a smirk, playing along. You spare him a quick glance. He goes back to watching the beautiful houses go by. “Not gonna lie. I mean, I didn’t know what I was thinking, but I wasn’t expecting this.”
“What? Were you expecting a 5 story, 200 bedroom luxury castle?” You ask. He scoffs.
“I don’t know, but this is even better.” He looks over to you, “It fits.” he says with a small smile, staring at your smiling profile for a few seconds too long. He turns his focus out the window as you turn into your driveway. “It’s nice, obviously expensive, but cozy.” The barrier separating your driveway from the street was a long row of trees that created a natural gate around the property. You drive in a little, passing through an actual gate, metal and gothic. The house could finally be seen in all its true glory.
The old stone driveway led to a two story, brick house with red accents and black shutters. The house was in the middle of a five acre lot surrounded by a thick, tree fence. The old brick structure stood strong, slightly overtaken by the nature around it, vines climbing up the walls. The lot itself was well-maintained but not artificially manicured. Clearly someone cared for the land, but they ensured not to kill the native vegetation around it for the sake of neatness. It was far from cookiecutter. It was unique and well-loved. It fits you well.
You drive up to the top of the long driveway, parking your prized vehicle in the two car garage next to the house. Though it was an obvious post-construction addition, it was clearly made to replicate the historic home’s aesthetic. “Home sweet home.” you say as you unbuckle your seatbelt, Eddie unbuckling soon after. You open your door and make your way to the trunk of your car. Eddie gets out of the car and looks out the open garage door and takes in the view of the front half of your property. Jesus, this place was amazing. The pop of the trunk lock grabs Eddie’s attention as you open the lid and go to grab his bags.
“Ah ah ah!” he stops you. “I’m a big boy. Let me get it.” You raise your hands in surrender and back up a little. “What kind of man would I be, letting you take my bags.” You shake your head.
“Okay, fine. I get it. I was just trying to be a gentleman.” you let out a soft laugh. Eddie shakes his head as he loads himself up with his backpack, tattered suitcase and solid guitar case.
“Not on my watch, superstar.” he tilts his head and gives you a big grin. You roll your eyes and close the trunk door.
“Yeah, yeah. Let’s get inside.” You close the garage and lead him to the side door. The side door opens to an enclosed, glass corridor that attaches to the house. You open the door that leads inside, holding it open for Eddie. It leads straight into the kitchen. The kitchen kept the same cohesive aesthetic as the outside of the house, dark, warm, cozy. “I’ll show you to your room, and while you settle in, I can start getting dinner ready.” You smile at him over your shoulder as you make your way around the kitchen island and into the open living area. You then lead him down a hall next to the set of stairs leading the the second floor. There are four doors down this hall. One at the end of the hall leading to the back yard, on to the left, under the stairs, the guest bathroom, you acknowledge. The first door to the right is the guest bedroom, where Eddie will be staying. The bedroom is huge compared to his back at home. It’s at least worth two of his bedroom plus an ensuite. “Here we are.” You say with arms wide open as you walk through the door. You walk further into the room, Eddie standing by the door. You spin and face him with your open arms. “This is you.” You drop your arms to your sides with a smack, before looking over to the bed. “I put on fresh sheets and blankets. Even got you some new pillows. I don’t have guests that often, so I hope everything is okay.” You say a bit shyly and shrug. Eddie walks in to rest his guitar case on the nightstand next to the bed and drops his backpack. He then rolls his suitcase up to the empty space next to the nightstand and rests it against the wall. He steps back and walks around the room in awe. “Well…?”
“This place is amazing.” He sighs out. He chuckles and then focuses his attention on you. He gives you a big smile from across the room before running and diving onto the bed. He bounces a few times from his hard landing then lays on his side, bending one of his legs up and resting his head on one hand. He wiggles his brows at you with the same goofy grin on his face. You shake your head with raised brows and a small laugh. Eddie then plops back, spread out over the king sized bed. He sighs heavily, “This is amazing. I don’t know how to thank you.” Your smile grows, and your eyes find the ground below your feet.
“No need. You’re here to help me, remember? It’s the least I can do.” Eddie pops up to rest on his elbows, but you continue before he protests. “I’ll be out in the kitchen cooking us dinner. Make yourself at home, rockstar.” You turn to walk out the door, “Let me know if you need anything.” you call out over your shoulder, disappearing around the corner. Eddie continues to watch the spot where you once were. He smiles to himself before plopping back down.
“This is the best day ever.” He whispers to himself before cloning his eyes, accidentally dozing off.
》》》
“Eddie?” You call out before rounding the corner to his room. You stop in your tracks when you notice him sprawled out, exactly where you left him. Soft snores echo in the room, causing a subconscious smile to break out on your face. You walk up to the bedside with soft footsteps. “Eddie?” you say softly. He stirs a bit in his sleep. You reach out to shake his shoulder, and he pops up. You jump back, startled. “Eddie.” He whips his head to look at you with wide eyes. You smile and let out a small laugh. “Dang, there goes my surprise attack.” You say sarcastically. He raises a brow.
“Can’t sneak up on me.” He says with a yawn. You let out another small laugh and push him.
“Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say. Dinner is ready. I hope you’re hungry! I brought you some house slippers.” You lift up a pair of dark gray slip-on shoes and place them on the floor next to his luggage. “I hope they fit okay. Now, wash up and get changed into some PJs. We’re having a chill night. Sunset looks amazing in the sunroom right now.” You turn to walk out.
“Yes, ma’am!” Eddie calls back as you round the corner. He hops up off the bed and walks over to his suitcase. He lays it out and opens it up, pulling out some black pajama pants and a Blastoff Festival t-shirt he got from the night he met you. Eddie stands and goes into the ensuite to change and wash his hands. He splashes some water on his face to rid himself of any evidence of his nap. You had an entire guest basket of toiletries next to the sink. He smiles at how thoughtful you are. He spots a new pack of black, silk scrunchies and pops one out its packaging, throwing his wild hair into a bun at the crown of his head.
Eddie walks out of the room, down the hall, and rounds the stairs, heading to the kitchen. You could be heard rummaging around and grabbing dishes. He just about enters the kitchen right as you’re exiting. Thankfully, you both catch yourselves before running into each other. “Holy fuck.” You breathe out a little laugh as your heart starts to calm. Eddie looks down at the plates in your hands with wide eyes.
“Holy Shit!” You laugh nervously, not knowing how to take his reaction at first. “You made this!?” His gaze switches to your wide, innocent eyes.
“Yeah?” You laugh out.
“This looks amazing!” He takes a big whiff, “And it smells even better!” A huge smile forms on his face and you give him a proud smile, blushing ever so slightly.
“Thank you.” You reply with your head held high.
“Here, let me help you.” He says and goes to reach for the plates but you move them away.
“No, no. I got these. Grab the drinks?” You say with a small smirk. He drops his hands and bites back a smile. He makes his way around to the two cups and larger glass jug that waited on the kitchen island. You wait for him in the archway as he grabs everything else and starts following you. You lead him to a room at the back of your house, on the opposite side of the stairs than his room. You pass through the door frame that leads to the open space and gently place the two plates on the table. Once again, Eddie pauses for a little after walking into the new room, taking it in.
The walls and ceiling were all panes of glass like a greenhouse. Inside, there are a few plants littered around and a comfy looking couch in the middle with a wooden coffee table just in front of the couch. In the corner of the room was a plush sofa chair that had a small table next to it and a pretty, royal blue, semi-acoustic guitar leaning up against the table. Due to the time of day, the sun was setting perfectly over the trees and field that is your yard. It creates a warm glow in the room. The sight is surreal, ethereal, calm. “This is like my safe space.” You break his trance. “Especially this time of day.” His eyes find you. You’ve taken your seat on the couch and were waiting for him to sit down next to you.
You had a soft smile and were looking up at him with the most warm eyes. The warmth of the sunset made you glow. Eddie nearly dropped everything he was holding at the sight of you, finally taking you in. Half of your hair is tied back with a few shorter pieces falling onto your face, the rest cascading down your back. The sun brought out the lighter shades in your hair and the richness of your skin. The slightest bit of mascara and eyeliner you had on was now a little smudged, smoking out around your eyes. You had changed from your airport clothes to black and dark gray, plaid pajama pants and a black, pullover hoodie that was about 3 sizes too big. You had taken off your slippers to sit cross legged on the couch, revealing a pair of brightly colored, patterned socks, the best contrast to your outfit. You pat the empty spot next to you. Eddie smiles wide and quickly makes his way over.
He sets down the cups on the coasters you have out and takes it upon himself to pour your drinks. “I hope you don’t mind just sitting and eating. I don’t have a TV in here.” Eddie shakes his head, still holding his smile.
“I don’t mind. We can just talk and eat.” He places the glass container down and smiles over to you, infecting your face with a big smile. You nod in response before breaking eye contact and looking down at the food. You reach down to grab your plate and silverware.
“Bone apple teeth.” You say before digging in, Eddie laughing and doing the same.
You two talked for hours even after you finished eating, well after the sun went down. You went back and forth talking about everything, as you normally would. Eventually, you both started talking about music and the album. It was clear you both had similar tastes in music, but one thing that neither of you weren’t expecting was the understanding you both had about what you wanted to write. Every idea, every concept you went back and forth on was never shot down. You would build up on each idea and create a story. “I am not letting you let that fantasy, Lord of the Rings inspired album slide under the rug.” Eddie said, holding up an accusing, soapy finger. You shake your head and laugh, drying the freshly cleaned dish in your hand.
“I don’t know how, but I promise I’ll make it happen.” Eddie goes back to rinsing off the last dish. “But, you have to keep your half of the bargain and actually release your own music.” You say raising a brow at him. He tilts his head and hands you another dish with a wide grin.
“Anything for you, baby.” He teases. You take the dish, biting back your smile as your cheeks burn. Eddie rinses out the sink and runs his hands under the water a final time before turning the faucet off and drying his hands. Eddie turns to lean his back against the counter, and you put down the final dish as you finish drying it. You look at the clock, and it’s almost midnight. You turn back to him. He still held a cheesy grin on his face.
“We should probably call it a night, hot shot.” You say, leaning on your arm that rests on the edge of the counter. He sighs dramatically and rolls his head.
“So soon?” He pouts. You smile a bit at his childish antics.
“Well, We have a busy day tomorrow. I don’t want you complaining about being tired while we work.” He groans and lifts himself up, leading the way around the island and out the kitchen.
You walk him to his bedroom door. “If you need anything, my room is at the top of the stairs, first door on the left.” You lean against the door frame, resting on your shoulder. Eddie stops from walking any further into the room and turns to face you. He places a hand just above your head on the door frame, leaning against it. He looks down at you with a small smirk.
“Dinner was amazing. Thank you, dollface.” You cross your arms and roll your eyes.
“‘Dollface’? Really?” You look back up to him with a less than impressed expression but biting back a smile. He shrugs, his act not wavering in the slightest.
“Heard Steve say it. I should’ve known it wouldn’t work on you.” His smirk grows into a grin. “But, seriously, thank you. Today has been amazing. I love getting to spend time with you, especially in person. You’ve definitely given me a night to remember.” His honesty makes your heart flutter, releasing your smile from its cage.
“I’m glad. You’re stuck with me for a whole week.” You scrunch your nose. Eddie finds it absolutely precious. You turn to walk away, “See ya in the mornin’!” You say without sparing him another glance. He watches you make it to the top of the stairs before yelling back.
“Goodnight, superstar!” He smiles up to the top of the stairs.
“Goodnight, rockstar!” You shout back before your door clicks closed. Eddie continues to smile up at the stairs for a few seconds before making his way into the room, closing the door behind him. He sighs happily and looks around the moonlit room letting his happiness build. He then jumps, punching the air with a huge smile on his face. He wants to let out a loud yell to release the pent up energy he has, but he restrains himself. He quickly makes his way over to the nightstand and turns on the bedside lamp, illuminating the room in a soft warm light. He reaches down to his backpack and grabs his tattered notebook and a pen. He jumps onto the bed and situates himself to lay on his stomach. He flips through a few pages of words and doodles to get to a blank page and starts writing furiously.
“Hey, girl, I’m in love with you.”
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