#lol we can watch Netflix at our own places and chill together through screen :)

[edwardslostalchemy]

To us here on tumblr, it is like really normal to watch stuff together through discord and other apps and we're like fine with it, that's how we bond. I've watched series and movies with friends and it was a fun time. But i introduce this idea to people outside of tumblr and they think I'm weird or I'm nuts like why would you watch things like that? And the answer is I don't have to go to your house for us to watch a movie at 2 am lmfao. Literally, it is so convenient.

[asthmark]

❝ comfortable ❞ l.mk

synopsis → “oh, i’m mark. mark lee.” he gives her a lop-sided grin, reminding you of a high school boy. the kind you would have a crush on.

word count → 3k

a/n → instead of admitting to the fact that this has been in my drafts since october what if i just said i was watching superm interviews and got inspired.. would anyone believe that??? anyway superm on the ellen show was a fever dream lol

your leg bounces nervously as your makeup artist touches up your look and you stare at the tv screen in anticipation. you were finally making your television debut. you knew you were blessed for the wonderful opportunity, especially for how new you were to the music industry.

you had started like nearly every other artist; posting covers on youtube. these were well received and gained a good amount of views and likes but your career really took off when you began creating original content. every time you would release a single, it would make it on the trending page thanks to your growing fanbase and exposure to the general public, who seemed to like you. soon enough, requests to interview you whether it be on radio, tv, or magazines were high and, thanks to your managers, you found yourself in los angeles, backstage in a studio, waiting for the ellen degeneres to introduce you to her live audience and thousands of viewers at home.

“don’t move so much, miss l/n,” the woman trying to apply your highlighter comments. “you’re smudging your makeup.”

you force yourself to sit still as you apologize. “sorry. pre-show jitters.”

the woman smiles, emphatically. “i understand, sweetheart. i would be nervous too.”

you’re quiet for a moment, debating if you should continue conversing with her. “can i be honest?”

she hums as she dabs a beauty blender into your cheek. “go ahead.”

“i am so nervous that i’ll mess up or say something stupid. the only thing close to an interview i’ve ever done was a q&a on my youtube channel. and at least i could edit stuff out then.” you huff. “if i make some kind of mistake on my tv debut, my career will be over before it even started.”

“well, think of it this way,” she says. “you went from a moderately popular youtube channel to the ellen show. that doesn’t happen for no reason. there are people out there who really admire you.”

you chuckle in disbelief. “it’s crazy to think about people actually wanting to see me. i still can't believe it.”

she giggles, softly. “they know there's something worth seeing.” at seeing your small smile, almost as if you were barely realizing your own star status, she laughs. “you seriously gotta wake up, girl. you’re famous!”

you smile at her, finding humor in her words. “thanks for the wake up call.”

you both direct your attention to the tv placed backstage that broadcasted what was happening on stage. you listen in to ellen’s monologue as she tells jokes and addresses current topics. before long, there’s a knock on the doorframe. you half expect a staff member to let you know that you’ll be on soon but instead you hear a quiet, “hello?”

you and your makeup artist both turn to the boy standing in the doorway. he's wearing a black jacket paired with dark, ripped jeans held up by a belt. he goes to bow, then remembers that korean etiquette does not apply and decides to wave as a greeting instead. you reciprocate the gesture. he stands with only one foot inside the room, almost as if he’s too polite to enter without being given the okay.

“did they send you to get your makeup done?” the woman who had done yours says.

he nods. “they said something about concealer and bb cream, i think?”

she smiles. “yeah, it’s basic stuff. come on in. what’s your name, dear?”

“oh, i’m mark. mark lee.” he gives her a lop-sided grin, reminding you of a high school boy. the kind you would have a crush on.

“well, mark lee, i’m lily. i’ll be doing your makeup, making sure you look pretty for the cameras.” she motions to you. “i'm just about done here so i’ll be right with you.”

“okay, thank you.” he shuffles in, his eyes glued to you and you hold his stare. he nods, a wordless greeting as he settles in next to you. in return, you throw up a peace sign and he smiles at your casual behavior.

“you know what? somebody used all the setting spray. i’ll be right back, i’m just going to steal some from my co-workers.” with that, lily darts out of the room.

it’s pure silence between the two of you until you spark conversation. “i didn't get to introduce myself but i'm y/n.”

“i know,” he responds, quickly. “i'm kind of a fan, actually. i mean, it’s practically impossible to not be. you’re all over the place. especially with the new single you dropped... which is a bop, by the way.”

you smile at his simply-worded praise. it was a nice switch up from the professional reviews you received from critics. “that’s so cute. i’m honored.” you miss the way mark’s ears turn slightly pink at your words. “but enough about me, what do you do, mark?”

“oh, me? i’m in the k-pop scene.”

you hum. “that’s a good genre to be in. which group?”

“right now i’m promoting with superm, it’s kind of like a side project. but originally, i’m in a band called nct.”

you lean forward at hearing the familiar name. “nct? as in, nct 127?”

mark’s eyes light up. “yeah! you know us?”

you nod, enthusiastically. “oh my god, yes! you collabed with ava, right?”

“we sure did. are you guys close?”

“i help her write lyrics sometimes.” you lower your voice down to a whisper for dramatic effect. “i wrote the chorus to ‘sweet but psycho’.”

the way mark’s jaw drops is almost comedic. “no way! that song got her famous, dude!” his lips curve into a playful smirk. “just because of that i’m gonna have to get you in the studio.”

you return the mischievous look. “is that a promise?”

“i’m back!” lily announces, giving mark no time to respond. she gives no warning as she spritzs you with the bottle she had gone to retrieve.

you cough, choking on the mist. “no heads up?”

“sorry, dear. you’re on in two minutes, no time to waste.”

you feel a chill go up your spine. it was finally time.

mark nudges your arm. “you okay?”

“a little nervous.” that proves to be the biggest understatement of all time because in reality your heart is doing somersaults.

“hey.” you stare at him, his brown eyes boring into you. “you’ll be fine. there’s nothing to worry about. you got this!”

you smile at his words of encouragement. he cared about you and you find that your heart is pounding for an entirely different reason now.

“i'll be here to cheer you on while you’re out there and i’ll be back when you’re done to tell you how amazing you did, okay?”

you nod.

“now get out there!”

“well, we have a great show for y’all today,” ellen says, clasping her hands together, having just finished her monologue. “i mean, it’s always great but the exciting thing is we have two musical guests today.”

the audience that cheered wildly is shown on screen. you almost forget about the knot in your stomach when you see some people in the crowd wearing shirts with the cover art and quoted lyrics of your last single.

“i see you guys are ready so, without further ado... let’s get started. our first guest is a soloist who has made quite a big name for herself in such a short period of time. she currently has three singles on the billboard charts, her most recent music video is number one trending on youtube, and she has a new ep coming out soon. here for her television debut, please welcome y/n l/n.”

you walk out from behind the stage, a huge smile on your face. the crowd screams and you wave to them until your hands become too occupied hugging the hostess who greets you with open arms and a proud smile. once the hype dies down and your entrance music fades out, you take a seat, opposite of ellen.

“how have you been y/n?”

“amazing,” you respond, letting your hands fall neatly in your lap.

“and why is that?”

you sigh, wistfully. “everything has been going so well for me lately. i mean, i feel like all these doors are opening up for me all of a sudden. i think i finally made it.”

“you’re just barely realizing that?” ellen exclaims.

you laugh, along with the audience. “kind of, yeah. it just all happened so fast.”

“is there an experience that comes to mind where you finally realized how famous you are?”

you try to think for a few moments before your eyes light up. “okay so, i was at a mcdonald’s like, last month and i went through the drive thru and ordered some nuggets and fries. so, i pull up to the window to pay and it’s around 2 a.m. so the cashier guy is super out of it, like he’s not even paying attention to me. finally, he goes to grab my card and he gets a good look at me and just freezes. like, full on shuts down. so i ask him if he’s okay and he nods so i try to hand him my card again but he goes, ‘no, you’re famous, you don’t have to pay’. and in that moment i just knew.”

“hold on, pause,” ellen announces, dramatically. “you’re telling me that you have been nominated as artist of the year, gained over ten million followers on social media and made your national television debut but the thing that really made you say ‘wow, i’m famous’ was a couple of chicken nuggets?”

“ellen, c’mon,” you begin, seriously. “it was a twenty piece.”

“oh, well, that changes everything,” she says, playing along with you, as the audience erupts into laughter.

the rest of the interview goes smoothly, running on jokes and sarcastic energy. you discuss your young age (thus resulting in some of your baby pictures finally being revealed to the world), millennial culture (the crowd went wild when you explained terms such as netflix and chill to ellen who claimed she didn’t understand yet her sly smirk said otherwise) and your upcoming ep (that you would be giving a sneak peek of later on in the show).

you continue chatting once the commercial break is announced and ellen showers you with praises, commenting how young talent never failed to amaze her, although it did make her feel old. you get to thank the hostess and tell her how much you appreciated her sweet words and the opportunity she had given you before the crew is dragging you backstage so you can prep for your upcoming performance.

you’re greeted by a “that was awesome!” and a high five one you get backstage.

you flash mark a full smile. “couldn’t have done it without my hype man.”

just then lily walks in to touch up your makeup.

“and my hype woman!”

she just rolls her eyes and chuckles as she reapplies gloss to your lips. 

“seriously though, y/n. why did you have to be so perfect? the bar is all the way up here now.” to emphasize his point, mark raises his arm as high as it will go.

“hey, i only tried hard because you’re up next. you’re a hard act to beat, mark lee. i mean, you’re charismatic, charming, witty; basically every talk show host’s dream.”

he scoffs yet you see how he avoids your gaze, your compliments obviously flattering him to the extreme.

a staff member walks by, cutting your conversation short. “y/n, you’re back on in one. superm is on right after.”

you and mark turn back to each other, speaking the same two words at the same time.

“good luck.”

ellen introduces you again, only this time you hold a guitar and stand in front of a microphone once you’re back on the stage. you perform a never before heard song but judging by the roaring applause and standing ovation you receive by the end of it, it’s another successful hit.

you bask in the amazing response and then you’re ushered backstage for the last time. you catch sight of the staff placing more seats on the stage as you exit and you smile eagerly, knowing exactly what’s to come. you search the hallways for your new friend, hoping you can catch him before the show goes back on air. you’re almost about to give up when you hear your name being called.

you lock eyes with mark who stands a couple feet away, barely hidden from the audience’s view. even from where you stand you can tell he has a nervous smile on his face. you jog towards him and to your surprise, he envelops your figure without a second thought. in return, you tentatively wrap your arms around him.

“great job,” he murmurs, breath fanning your ear. “i really did cheer you on.”

“i’ll make sure to do the same.” you hesitantly pull away from his embrace, holding him at an arm’s length away. “go get ‘em.”

he gives you a determined nod and you watch him rush on stage, the audience’s wild cheering increasing. their energy didn’t fade once throughout the interview and just as you had suspected, mark was doing wonderfully. he clearly thrived in interviews; his awkward, boyish nature enchanting everyone in the studio, yourself included.

ellen crosses her legs and clears her throat. “so, i have to ask you something, you know, for the fans.”

the group leaned forward in anticipation, awaiting her next words.

“are any of you dating?”

the crowd released noises of amusement at hearing the very personal question. you can’t help but feel intrigued although you knew ellen has always been quite the invasive person. you watched as the seven boys looked around at each other, unsure what to say but before their silence can become suspiciously long, mark ends up taking the question.

“why are you always so curious about this, though?” he blurts.

the audience absolutely eats up his response, cheering at his bluntness. even you find it humorous, shoulders shaking with a chuckle. that’s definitely gonna become a meme, you think.

“it’s my job!” counters ellen. “why are you so defensive?”

the crowd is very responsive to ellen’s rebuttal, ‘ooh’ing in amusement.

mark’s silence only pushes the hostess to continue teasing him.

“does it maybe have anything to do with y/n?”

your smile drops. had she seen you two? you’re not sure why you feel so exposed; after all, you had just been talking.

ellen’s lips adorn a sly smile at mark’s stunned reaction. “you seemed to be getting very comfortable with each other backstage.”

the black haired male stumbles over his words before he gets a semi-coherent sentence out. “we just, um—we just met.”

“oh really? you two looked like you had known each other forever.”

mark chuckles breathlessly, eyes glued to his lap, obviously at a loss for words. ellen stares at him expectantly so he mutters, “i like making friends.”

ellen, the audience, and even some of the band members laugh at his response.

“well, i’m sure there’s a lot of fans out there that wish they were your ‘friend’.” her tone makes it clear she doesn’t buy his excuse but she prods him no further, instead turning to stare into the main camera. “when we get back superm will be performing their title track ‘jopping’. during the commercial break, please feel free to place your bets as to how long mark and y/n will remain ‘friends’.”

the camera pans to mark for a couple seconds; his ears are bright red and his cheeks are dusted light pink, his makeup doing nothing to help hide the blush. his eyes dart around, anxiously and then they cut to commercials.

you shake your head, smiling at the entire situation and just how big of a dork mark was.

you attentively watch superm’s two performances, eyes mostly glued to a certain rapper. you sit patiently in the makeup room, waiting for mark to return backstage so you can congratulate him but he never appears. you try to conceal your disappointment, even when lily enters the room, smiling brightly.

“well, the show’s over, doll.” she removes her makeup stained apron and glances at you as she places it on a nearby rack. “hey, why the long face?”

you stare at your reflection in the mirror, no longer bothering to hide your pout now that your frustration had been made known.

“you did great, if that’s what you’re worried about. just ask mark.”

“he left,” you mumble. “i thought i’d be able to catch him before he left and we could… i don’t know, talk a bit more? i just really—” you trail off.

“like him?” lily suggests, too loudly for your liking.

your head snaps towards her, eyes wide, only confirming your feelings.

“don’t worry, dear, you can say it. i won’t tell ellen,” she jokes.

you sigh and slump down in your seat. “yeah. i like him.”

“well, then, i have good news for you.”

you half-heartedly hum, allowing her to continue.

she waves a piece of crumpled paper in front of your face. you grab it from her, staring at it curiously.

“what’s this?”

she nods her head at it, encouraging you to find out for yourself. “open it and see.”  

you obey, unfolding the tiny item. your eyes struggle to read the words inside but if you squint, they become clearer.

please call, me i would love to become closer ‘friends’.

(xxx) xxx-xxxx

it’s mark btw :)

you can’t contain your smile at the cute little note.

“he’s adorable,” you say, mostly to yourself but lily audibly agrees.

“he ran into me as he was leaving and begged me to deliver that message to you. which reminds me, i’m supposed to let you know that he wishes he could have stuck around but his schedule is ‘crazy tight’ so he had to ‘dip’. his words not mine.”

you nod, grin widening. “thanks, lily.”

“my pleasure. nothing like young love.”

you give her a glare although it’s all but threatening.

she folds her arms, teasingly. “so, are you going to give him a call or what?”

you’re sure she sees the phone in your hand and the way your fingers press the numbers on the keypad, excitedly but nevertheless, you decide to answer.

“i’d be crazy not to.”

[bittywitches]

Baby Girl | G.D [Part Two]

Part One

A/N: Sorry for taking an extra day to post this 😬 Brief summary in Part One! Thank you for reading <3

Warnings: Insinuating smut?? I think suggestive is the word lol ; Asthma 

Word Count: 5.3K

“What are you doing??”

“Hold still!”

“No, stop!”

“Look, I searched it up, and apparently honey helps! Now stop moving!”

You groaned, finally letting Cameron grab you and hold you steady while she tried to smear some honey onto your burn. 

“Ugh, this is gross.”

“Shut up, it’ll help.”

Ethan walked into the kitchen, holding a phone in his hand. “Hey, Cam, I think Angela called-”

He looked up to see what you both were doing, and immediately furrowed his eyebrows.

“What did I just walk in on.”

Cameron rolled her eyes. “Get the fuck out of here.” She snatched the phone away from him, and he shrugged, walking back out to the living room.

Cameron checked her missed calls and tapped on your sister’s name, bringing the phone up to her ear.

“Hey! You called me?” 

You heard your sister’s voice mumbling. Cameron looked over to you.

“Is your phone dead? Apparently she tried calling you.”

“Oh shit, I forgot I shut it off so I wouldn’t be distracted. My bad.” She nodded at you, repeating the same thing to Angela.

“So what’s up?” Another series of mumbles, but you were able to make out her saying ‘sorry’ a few times.

“Oh, don’t even worry about it. She’ll be fine. Yea, okay. See you later.” She brought her phone down from her ear, now licking the remaining honey off of her finger tips.

“She said she’s gonna be a bit late to come pick you up. Apparently there was a mix up with one of her clients and she accidentally delivered the wrong cake to the venue.”

“Oh.. okay.” You glanced up at the clock, the time already reading 8:30pm. “Do you know when she’ll be coming?”

“She said she might be a few hours.”

“Oh, you know what I can just take the bus then-”

“No, you can stay here as long as you need.”

You bit your lip. “I don’t wanna impose…” 

“Shut up, you’re fine.”

“Cam this isn’t even your house.”

“Well when I’m staying here it might as well be.” She could see you were still tense however, and sighed. “You know I’d call you an uber, but you never seem that comfortable going in those.”

You crossed your arms. “Sorry..”

“No, stop.” She grabbed your arm, pulling you into the living room. 

“Cam-”

“Shut up! Just sit.”

You looked up at the room, seeing the twins sitting on opposite sides of the coffee table, staring at the both of you with blank faces because of your sister’s outburst.

Your eyes went to Grayson, who was staring at you with an expression you couldn’t identify. He was relaxed on the couch, an arm draped lazily over the back with his phone in the other hand. He tilted his head at you, raising an eyebrow at your stunned expression, only causing your nerves to go even more haywire. You desperately wanted to just walk over and sit yourself down in his lap, grab his face and kiss him again. Oh, how you needed to feel his lips once more, how you ached for his hands to roam your body. You couldn’t-

“Angela’s gonna be a bit late. That alright with you guys?” Cameron asked, sitting herself down next to Grayson on the sofa, much to your relief but also a bit to your disappointment, nonetheless snapping you out of your daze.

“No problem,” Ethan said, patting the seat next to him on his couch, an inviting smile on his lips. You had to take a second to reroute your brain,  but you grinned at his welcoming demeanour, gently placing yourself down next to him. Your eyes shot up quickly to meet with Grayson’s, finding that his eyes were already on you, a gentle smile on his lips. His calm expression was disturbed however, when Cameron shook his shoulder, trying to ask him something.

You turned away from his gaze quickly, looking back over at Ethan. “Sorry, I don’t want to disturb.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it.” He turned a bit in his seat, so he was facing more towards you. “So, Caltech, huh?” He asked with a friendly smile.

“Yep.” You returned it, relaxing a bit. You liked being around Ethan, at least you’d deduced that from the limited amount of interactions you had with him. It felt easy being around him, and you just felt like you could be comfortable in his company.

“Excited to graduate?”

“Oh, definitely.” He raised an eyebrow at you, and you added: “Not that I’m sick of high school or anything; Just ready to get it over with.”

He chuckled. “Yea, I can understand that feeling.”

“Yea?” You fiddled with the end of Grayson’s sweatshirt. “You were tired of senior year too?”

“Well, no.” you tilted your head at him, and he cleared his throat. “Gray and I actually dropped out freshman year.”

Your eyes widened a bit. “Oh..” you began, but he rushed to cut you off.

“Don’t think we’re just a couple of dumbasses though,” He laughed. “Don’t worry, we did graduate. Just didn’t go to physical school.”

“Ohhh.” You said, nodding your head. 

“Yea. Because of that we were actually able to get our whole directing thing going for us.”

“You guys direct?” You said, intrigued.

“Yea, nothing too big though. Short films, small documentaries, ads and stuff for bigger companies… that kinda stuff.”

“Wow, that’s really cool!” You said, and you meant it. “So you’ve got your own company?”

“Pretty much, yeah.”

“Dang. You guys are so young too.. That’s so cool.”

He laughed. “Yea, well, it is pretty cool to do stuff like that for a living.”

“So, anything I might’ve seen?”

“Uhhh… probably not to be honest.” He paused. “We do have this Youtube channel where we post some of our personal projects.”

“Oh?”

“Yea. We go by the Dolan twins.”

“‘The Dolan Twins’.” You repeated to yourself. “I like it. Has a nice ring to it.” You scrunched your eyebrows together. “Feel like I recognize it.”

“Maybe. There was this one music video we did a while back that got pretty popular. Hawaiian Party?”

Your eyes lit up. “Yea! I’ve seen that! I really liked the music video for that song-” Your head whipped around back to him. “You guys did that??”

He grinned “Yep.”

“Oh my god, you guys are so talented! That video is so good!”

He shrugged, waving his hand at you. “Stop, you’re embarrassing me.”

“No, seriously. It’s really good. And you guys are so young!”

“You keep saying that. And says you, Miss ‘high school senior’.”

“Hey!” You shoved his shoulder, and he laughed. “You guys are actually doing stuff. You’re like, out there, creating things. That’s really cool.”

He rubbed his shoulder, but a smile was plastered on his face. “Thanks, bookworm.”

“Please don’t call me that.”

“I think it suits you.”

“I don’t like it.”

“Would you prefer Wise girl?”

“Bookworm it is.”

“Hey, do you guys wanna watch a movie?” Cameron interrupted you both.

“Sure, why not.” Ethan responded, and you nodded your head in agreement.

“Cool.” She grabbed the remote, and started scrolling through the most popular section on Netflix. “Tell me if you see anything interesting.”

“How about that one?” Grayson chimed in, stopping Cameron’s hand when she hovered over the one he liked.

“Aight. E, can you turn out the lights?”

“On it.” He jumped up from his seat, rushing over to the turn off the switch while Cameron started the movie. He quickly scurried back, falling back down on the couch beside you.

“Wanna share a blanket?” He whispered to you as the intro began playing. 

You nodded slightly, so he bent around the side of the sofa and pulled out a large, fuzzy cotton blanket. He threw it over the both of you, making sure you got most of it.

“You good?”

“Yea, thanks.” You replied, smiling. However, after returning your attention to the screen, the dark, moody tone of the film worried you a bit.

“Is this a horror movie?” You questioned.

“Yea, is that an issue?” You heard Grayson’s rough voice say. It wasn’t a problem, per se, but you weren’t really too fond of horror movies, considering you got spooked incredibly easily. But you didn’t want Grayson to know that.

“N-no, it’s fine.” You faltered, bringing the blanket up and over your shoulders.

“You okay? We can change the movie if you want.” Ethan interrupted, giving you an understanding look that immediately eased you.

“No, it’s seriously fine.” You fumbled, giving him a thankful smile still.

“Okay..” he could tell that you were bluffing, but didn’t wanna embarrass you.

“Shut up, the story’s starting!” Cameron scolded, making you all turn your attention back to the movie.

You were fine for most of the beginning, feasting on the popcorn Cameron had given you so you had something to focus on. When the real scary stuff started happening, though, you were really on edge, jumping at every little sound. At one point, you flinched so hard when you heard Cameron drop the remote on the floor you’d nearly knocked the blanket off of both you and Ethan.

“Hey, hey, chill out.” Ethan whispered with a chuckle, going to grab the blanket at both of your feet. 

“Ah, sorry..” you mustered, gripping tightly onto the blanket he handed you.

“Jeez, relax, bookworm.” He rubbed you shoulder gently, trying to calm you down. “S’just a movie.”

“I know..” you sighed, relaxing into his side as he continued to rub your arm. “Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize, just stop spazzing out, you big baby.” You smiled, thankful for his joking attitude to take your mind off of the movie. 

The rustling movements on the other couch caught your eye, and your eyes drifted over there to see Grayson’s hooded eyes pierced right at you. His jaw was clenched, hard. The look his dark brown pupils were giving you scared you more than anything in the movie you’d seen so far. You turned away, focusing back on the television. 

What‘s he looking at me for?

...

“Did you fall asleep?”

Your eyes shot open at the sound of Cameron’s voice, but you groaned when you saw her cocky expression.

“No,” you objected, naturally going to rub your eyes before pulling your arms down quickly. “I just...”

“I think it might be past her bed time.” Ethan interjected, returning from the kitchen with a mug in his hand, and you narrowed your eyes at him as Cameron chuckled along with him.

“Can’t believe you got so tired you slept through a horror movie.”

“Shut up, Cameron.” You groaned, shoving at her shoulder.

“Fine fine.” She yawned. “Honestly I can’t blame you, that was a shit movie anyways.” She yelled that last part, turning back towards the kitchen, and you could hear Grayson’s gravelly voice groan.  “Next time pick a better movie, dumbass.” She said as Grayson appeared from behind the wall, an annoyed look on his face.

“You said you were okay to watch it.” He pointed out, crossing his large arms against his broad chest.

“Whatever.” She turned her attention back to you. “Angela called me again. Said she might be here in a half hour or so.”

You nodded. “‘Kay.” You grabbed your phone, checking the time. It read 11:40. “You should go to bed, Cam.”

“You don’t want me to wait with you?” She rubbed your shoulder reassuringly.

“I’ll be fine.” You assured her, and she gave you a thankful smile.

“Good.” She got up, stretching her arms up and above her head. “I really would stay with you, but I am so fucking exhausted.”

“Didn’t you just make fun of me for falling asleep?” You retorted.

“Hey, there’s a difference between being tired and falling asleep. I’m stronger than you.” She chuckled, then bent down to give you a hug. “Okay, see you tomorrow?”

“Yea, okay.”

“I think I’m gonna head in for tonight too.” Ethan added, stifling a yawn. 

You nodded, standing up as he walked over to you. 

“Glad we finally got to meet, Y/N.” he said, and he leaned in to give you a tight squeeze. 

“Yea, me too.”

“Alright, good night hon.” Cameron said, leaving her for her room, Ethan following suit.

“Gnight guys.”

You plopped back down onto the sofa with a sigh. You looked up, seeing Grayson standing before you with a stone cold expression.

You cleared your throat. “You’re not going to bed?”

“No, not feeling tired.”

“Oh... okay.” You mumble, your hands fiddling in your lap. Why did you have to be alone with him? Why did he make you feel like this?

“So,” he finally said, breaking the silence, and sat down next to you. “You and E getting pretty close?”

“Uh..” you rubbed your shoulders. “Sure.”

His jaw tightened again.

“I-I mean, not really. I just met him today.”

“What, so we’re not that close?” He leaned in suddenly, his face now just inches from yours. “We just met today, didn’t we?” His hand came up to gently caress the side of your cheek.

“I-I...” all you could focus on was the feeling of his hot breath on your lips.

He leaned in closer, the tips of your noses touching, his eyes burning with longing, and yours in turn with need. You closed your eyes, and you felt like his lips were almost brushing yours..

He smirked. “M’just teasing, baby girl.” He let go of you, causing your eyes to flutter open as he got up from the couch and walked back over to the kitchen, leaving you astonished and tense. Reaching for his body that was already gone.

Why did he have to do this? Why play with you like this? Why did he have to make your chest pound? You craved him, you needed his lips and his warmth and his scent and his hands and-

“Do you want something?” Grayson stopped before disappearing into the hallway, looking back over at you.

You practically choked, panicking as you wondered how he could tell what you were thinking.

“W-what??”

“To eat. Like, dinner? Did you have that?”

“Huh? I- Ohh..” you realized, calming down from your outburst.

He chuckled. “Why’re you so on edge?”

You, you wanted to say, but shook your head. “Sorry.. tired.”

“You have to stop apologizing for everything, sweetheart.” He hoisted his arms up onto his waist. “M’gonna make some avocado toast, want some?”

“I’ve never tried it before.”

“What??” His eyes widened at that. “Okay, we are going to rectify your mistake right now. Cmon.” He grabbed your hand, pulling you up abruptly, your nose getting buried in the thin cloth of his T-shirt.

“Gray-“

“Come onnn.” He dragged you to the kitchen by your wrist, and you eventually gave up trying to break away from his hold, following him.

“Okay, c’mere.” 

“W-“

He grabbed your waist suddenly, causing a small yelp to leave your lips. The warmth from his hands spread through your body, but it was short-lived, since he let go as soon as he hoisted you up onto the kitchen counter.

“You better prepare your tastebuds, because this will taste so good.” He leaned up and over you to get some bread out of the cupboard. 

You brought your hands together to clasp them in your lap. You watched as he threw a few slices of bread into the toaster oven, then went to grab some avocados from the fruit basket.

He looked so cute and homey in his sweats, now cutting the avocados in half and removing the pits. You felt like he was your boyfriend, making you breakfast in the morning. You blushed at the thought.

“Hey, sorry if it seemed like I was forcing you to watch that movie.” He peered up at you as he scooped the flesh into a bowl. It appeared that he had been thinking about that for a while, because you could see his shoulders relax after saying the words out loud.

“You know, if I’m not supposed to apologize for things, you shouldn’t either.”

He smiled at that. He brought the bowl over to you, setting it beside you on the counter top. “Can you mash this?” He asked, handing you a fork.

“‘Kay.” You took it and placed the bowl in your lap. Grayson walked over to the toaster oven, gently opening it to see if the bread was finished. He took another fork from the drawer, and carefully took the pieces of bread out of the oven and placed them onto a plate beside it.

“So..” you began, becoming uncomfortable in the silence. “E was telling me about your guys’ directing n stuff.”

“Oh yea?” he replied, now reaching up to a different cabinet.

“Mhm.” He shuffled over, and sprinkled some salt and black pepper into your bowl. “I think it’s really impressive.”

“That’s sweet of you.” 

“I-I mean, I’ve only seen one of your projects but…” He raised an eyebrow at you. “I really liked it.”

He shook his head, smiling. “Thanks.”

He brought the plate over, which had slices of bread that he had lightly rubbed garlic onto, and two shakers with sesame seed and red pepper flakes in them. 

“Here.” He took the bowl from you, and grabbed the spoon he’d left on the counter, scooped up some of the flesh and smeared it onto the toast.

“You sure this is supposed to taste good?” You asked, fiddling with your fingers. “Looks kinda weird…”

“Ok, if you say something like that again I’ll have no choice but to be mad at you.” 

“Well, I definitely wouldn’t want that.” You tittered.

His mouth dropped open a bit, a little surprised. “Were you just being cocky right there?”

“Nooo,” You pulled some loose strands of hair behind your ear, giggling.

“Wow. Never thought a little girl could actually have an attitude.”

“Hey!”

“Alright, my bad.” He laughed, finally sprinkling the shakers over the toast. “Okay, here, try it.” He lifted the piece of toast up carefully, feeding it to you.

You took a bite, not expecting anything out of it, but it actually turned out to taste a lot better than you expected. “Wow, this is really good.” You admitted, your mouth full.

“I told you.” He grinned.

“Mmm gimme another bite.” You mumbled, leaning in to chomp down on the bread in his hand again.

“Hey, slow down.” He chuckled, setting the toast down on the table. You swallowed, giving him an affirming hum of approval. 

“Oh, hey.” His hand suddenly came up to your face, surprising you. He leaned in a bit as his thumb swept across the bottom of your lip. “Bit of avocado.” He muttered, bringing his thumb up to his lips to lick it off.

You suddenly became incredibly aware of everything going on right now. Aware of the constant beating in your chest that just wouldn’t settle down. Aware of Grayson’s hovering hand next to your waist. Aware of his hazel eyes lingering on yours. Aware of his baby pink lips.

And before you knew it you were both leaning in, smashing your lips together, arms connecting with bodies all at once.

Your arms went up and around his neck, one of your hands tangled up in his long hair while the other held the back of his neck. His hands immediately went to your waist, as if they were longing to touch you and were being restrained until this moment. He pulled you closer to him, sliding you up to the edge of the counter so he could press his body up against yours. He pushed his sweatshirt up a bit higher, and he slipped his warm hands under your tank top. 

The overwhelming warmth of just Grayson against you caused you to moan into his lips, your arms now roaming his broad back. While before, your kiss had been deep and intimate, this one was hot and fueled by lust. He pulled his lips away from yours only to press them firmly against your cheek, under your lips, your chin, leaving a sloppy trail down to your neck. 

“Ohh..” You moaned, your hands drifting down to grip his neck, causing him to growl into yours. You gasped when he teethed at your sensitive skin, making your nails dig into his neck. He trailed down further, nipping at your skin before resting at your collar bone, where he gently pressed a kiss to your burn, getting a taste of the sweet honey, emitting a sigh from you. But he then moved to the other side of you, sucking on your chest. Your eyes widened when you realized, he was planning on leaving another bruise there.

“G-Gray…” you stuttered, your hands going to cup his face, but he kept going as if he hadn’t heard you, his hands sliding up your back as he did so.

You loved it, but you were scared he would actually leave a mark. “Grayson..”

His lips finally left your skin, and he straightened up to look at you. His dark eyes locked on yours, filled with desire. 

“I want you so badly.” He leaned back in to kiss you, and his lips made you feel like you were walking on air.

“Mmmm..” You hummed into his lips.

He pulled away, but pressed his forehead against yours, his loud breath filling the room. He bit your lip, and your glossy eyes were mesmerized by his lustful ones. You were intoxicated by him. He leaned closer into you, and you left a soft “oh” escape your lips when you felt him press up against the inside of your thigh. 

“G-Grayson...” Your face flushed. He bent down to nibble at your earlobe.

“Let me make you feel good.” 

Your core was throbbing almost as fast as your heart pounded in your ears. God, you wanted him. You wanted him bad. But it would be wrong… and were you even ready?..

His hands drifted down your back. He gently dipped his fingers under the waistband of your sweatpants. You gripped his biceps, burying your face into his shoulder.

You couldn’t…

But when you felt his fingertips graze against the edge of your panties, you absolutely lost it, blood rushing to your face.

“Ohhh..” You groaned into his shoulder, but finally pulled away to look at him, eyes matching his. 

“Okay.”

That was all Grayson needed to hear for him to grab your ass cheeks and hoist you up onto his waist. You yelped, folding your legs around his waist and wrapping your arms tight around his neck. You gasped because you could feel him in his sweats, and your crotch was basically resting on top of it. 

“Ohh fuck-” but before you could get anymore embarassed, he connected your lips again, his large arms supporting your weight as you felt him begin to walk out of the kitchen.

He walked into his bedroom, kicked the door closed with his foot, and then pressed you up against the door. 

“M’gonna make you feel amazing, baby girl.” He kissed your lips, then went to kiss your neck again.

“Oh god, please.” You pulled at his hair, making him growl again.

“Fuck, C’mere.” He carried you over to his bed and lowered your gently onto it, gnawing at your lip while doing so. He bent over you, kissing you so passionately you genuinely could not think straight. He crawled over you, his hands traveling up under your tank top, finding the edge of your bra. You swore he could feel your heart pounding in his fingertips.

“Is it okay if I-”

“GRAYSON!”

You jumped, shrieking at the sudden voice you had just heard. 

Oh my god, who was that? Did you just get caught? What on earth were you doing-

“GRAYSONNN!”

“You have got to be FUCKING kidding me.” Grayson groaned, lowering his head onto your chest.

It was Cameron.

Your chest heaved. “I-I thought she had gone to bed?”

“Apparently not.” He grumbled, getting up and off the bed. “Lemme go deal with her, okay?”

“...’Kay.” you nodded, watching him walk out the door, and then gently close it shut. 

You sat there for a few seconds, staring so hard at Grayson’s door it felt like you could burn a hole through it. Grayson’s door. And you were in Grayson’s room. 

...You were in Grayson’s room.

“Oh my god.” You held your head in your hands. What were you doing? What the FUCK were you doing? Were you seriously just about to have sex with Cameron’s brother? Your heart started pounding louder than before.

Badum. Badum.

“Oh god, oh god…” You pressed a hand to your chest, trying to calm yourself down. But what the fuck were you thinking? Were you seriously thinking about losing your virginity to this person you didn’t even know?

Badum badum

Had you lost your mind? You were in no state to make this kind of decision for yourself. You were still in high school! What the fuck did you know about sex-

Badum badum badum

And what did you plan on doing, really? Were you just going to sit there while Grayson expected you to do something? You would embarrass yourself completely, you didn’t know how to do this-

Badum badum badum badum

He’d realize you weren’t able to do this, and he’d look at you weird, god you’d never be able to show your face to him-

Badumbadumbadum

You’d never be able to show your face to Cameron again, Hell you’d never be able to be seen by any of them, jesus christ you were not ready for this-

Badumbadumbadumbadum

“No, no, no…” You held your head, cradling yourself, but the pounding in your ears was only getting louder and louder-

Badumbadumbadumbadum

“No, please,” You got off of the bed, trying to clear your head. You could see where this was heading, you could already feel it-

Badumbadumbadumbadum

“No, stop,” You looked around the room, trying to focus on something, but your eyes landed on the mirror, immediately going to Grayson’s sweatshirt you were wearing.

He’s never gonna want that back now, not after you’ve worn it.

“Nonono NO!” You frantically pulled the sweater over your head and threw it onto the bed, pressing your back up against the wall farthest away from it, as if it was poisonous. But now your legs were shaking, and you had to press your hands to the wall to keep yourself from falling over. Sweat trickled down your forehead, and it felt like, the room was turning fuzzy?

Badumbadumbadumbadumbadumbadumbadum

“Fuck, no, jesus,” You could feel your chest tightening. Your back ached. You tried to breathe in, but it only came in short bursts. You started coughing and wheezing, but your only thought was:

I have to get out of here.

You followed the wall until your fingers felt the cold doorknob, twisting it and throwing the door open. You turned so fast to get out of the room your head started spinning, and your shaky arm had to grip onto the door frame to keep yourself from face planting into the floor. Your breaths were coming even shorter now, and all you knew was that you needed to get to your bag. You pushed yourself to walk as fast as you could before you smashed into a broad chest.

“Where’re you going, baby girl?” Grayson smirked.

badumbadumbadumBADUMBADUMBADUM 

“G-G-Gray-”

His cocky grin immediately faded as soon as he saw your red, sputtering face. “Oh my god, Y/N, are you okay??”

You gripped onto his biceps to steady yourself. “I n-nee-d-” You started wheezing even more, and Grayson gripped onto your elbows tightly the more worried he got. “M-m-y inh-h-haler,’ Your legs finally gave out, and you toppled over into his chest. He grabbed your body, trying to keep you upright. 

“Y/N are you having an asthma attack??”

You tried to nod, and he could feel you move your head against his chest. 

“Jesus, fuck- Where is it??” He pulled you away from him, gripping your shoulders. “Y/N, where is your inhaler?”

“Ba-ag-- c-couch-”

“Okay, I’m going to get it, okay? I’m coming back,” He propped your shoulder up against the wall, and rushed to the living room.

Your chest hurt so bad, and you could barely breath. Your legs gave out once more, and you sank to the floor, your hands flat against the cold hardwood to try and keep yourself up.

“I GOT IT! I got it, I’m coming-” Grayson appeared in the hallway again, and seeing you on the floor only added to his fear. “No no no Y/N I’m here, I’m here!” He ran to your side and dropped to his knees. 

“Y/N I got it, look up at me, come on,” He popped the lid off of your inhaler, shaking it while he propped you up with his other arm. Your eyes were hazy, sweat all over your face.

“Here, here, open your mouth for me.” You did just enough so he could place the nozzle within your lips.

“Okay, I’m gonna count to three and you’re gonna breathe in, okay?” You nodded.

“One,

Two,

Three,

Breathe.”

You inhaled, and a split second afterwards Grayson pressed the button. You let out a big sigh, the pain in your chest easing.

“You’re okay, Y/N.” Grayson gently wrapped his arms around your shaking shoulders, rubbing your arm soothingly. “You’re okay.”

Finally your breathing gradually slowed down. When you realized that you really were okay, that was when the tears started to pour down your face.

You trembled, crying into your hands as you stayed curled up in Grayson’s arms. 

God, you had made such a fool of yourself. 

“Y/N? Y/N, are you okay?” he pulled you up to see your face again, his worry increasing again. 

You shook your head, small sobs escaping your throat. “I’m so sorry.” 

Now Grayson looked angry. “Hey, look at me. Look at me.”

He tilted your chin up so his eyes met his. “You NEVER have to apologize to me, okay?” He wiped the tears off of your face with his thumb. The horrified look in your eyes hurt him so much, so he took you up in his arms again, letting you rest your head against his chest as he stroked your hair. “Never.” he whispered. 

You bit your lip to stop any more tears from flooding over, balling up his t-shirt into your hands. You buried your face into the cloth, inhaling his scent that calmed you down more than you thought was possible. 

You both stayed there for a while, two bodies sprawled on the floor, entangled in each other. But before you knew it your cell phone was ringing from the living room.

“Oh.” You said, pulling away from him. You looked at his eyes. You’d seen them fueled by so many different emotions already, but now they were gentle. Kind. Loving.

“I-I should get that.”

“Right.” Grayson let go of you, letting you get up and walk to the living room.

You turned the screen over. It was your sister.

You took a deep breath before answering. “Hey!”

“Hii, I’m outside.”

“‘Kay. Be out in a minute.”

You shut the phone off, throwing it into your bag with the rest of your stuff. You sighed, running your hands over your face and hair as you exhaled. You slung your bag over you shoulder, and turned around to see Grayson standing there, as if waiting for you. 

“Um..” You sniffled. “My sister’s here.” You gestured towards the door.

“Oh. Okay.” Grayson scratched the back of his neck, but he didn’t move from his spot. He didn’t know if he should. Or if he could.

“Well… Bye.”

“Bye.” You walked over to the front door, gently turning the knob and pulling it open as quietly as possible. You turned back one last time to look at Grayson, who gave you a small smile and waved. You couldn’t return the smile, but you waved back to him, shutting the door closed behind you.

You exhaled.

- - - - - - - - - -

tags: @yourkidsfavbabysitter​ @melodiesforari​ @coxxkaty​ @pumkiinpasties​

[huttons]

Never Really Was Enough, Pt II

word count: 3.9k

warnings: talk of homophobia, off-screen character death

summary:  When Eva moves to Raleigh, it wasn’t a happy occasion. She needed to get away from her family and moving across the country was the quickest way for her to accomplish that. As she finds her place in Raleigh, she finds a new family with people she never expected to (especially with a certain red-headed hockey player).

authors note: written as part of FandomTrumpsHate for @antoineroussel​ <3

pt. one | ao3 link

~ ~ ~

“You can keep as quiet as you like, but one of these days, someone is going to find you.”

By the time November rolls around, Eva feels like she’s finally settled into Raleigh and can finally think of it as home. It’s a good feeling, one that she wasn’t expecting at first. But work has been going extremely well and she’s got a few friends now.

There still hasn’t been any word from her family, and while it isn’t surprising, it still hurts that they don’t care enough to reach out to her, especially with the holidays coming up. Eva is complaining about this when Sammy brings up the fact that the Canes are doing a Thanksgiving get-together in a couple of weeks.

“I just know that you won’t be going home, and Patrick and I can’t afford to go visit either of our families right now,” Sammy explains. “And don’t offer to pay for anything again. Just because you have the money for it doesn’t mean you need to spend it on us like that.”

“I know, I just want you guys to be happy,” Eva says. “But…if you really think that they would be okay with me coming, then yeah, I’d love to come.”

“Seriously, it’s not that big of a deal. It’s just a ragtag group of people who don’t have anyone else, so you won’t be out of place.”

“In that case, count me in. I was honestly expecting to spend Thanksgiving by myself, so I think I can handle hanging out with y’all.”

“Eva, did you really think that we would have you spend the holidays by yourself?”

Eva shrugs. “I mean, you guys have family, so it’s not like I was expecting for you to hang around here. And it would have sucked, but I wouldn’t have minded too much. I didn’t celebrate with my family too much anyways once I left for university.”

“That’s shitty,” Sammy says, bringing Eva in for a short hug.

“Yeah, but I got used to it, with it just being my brother and I for a while.”

“Well, consider us your new family. You’re going to be stuck with us forever.”

“I guess there’s worse things out there.”

~ ~ ~

Once the holiday party rolls around, Eva has baked what feels like a million different desserts. Sammy had been insistent that she didn’t need to bring anything, but it’s been a long time since Eva has been able to bake for a large group of people. Besides, it helps get her mind off of her nervousness of seeing Dougie again.

It’s not like she has a crush on him, but he’s exactly her type and if they continue to run into each other, then it’s something she has to get figured out. So, she bakes until she’s unsure of how she’s going to be able to transport it all. Surely there’ll be at least a couple of people who’ll be bribed into helping in exchange for extra dessert.

Once Eva arrives at the house that’s hosting the event, she texts Sammy to bring a couple of people to help her. As she looks at the cakes, cookies, and pies she made, Eva is starting to think she’s made it painfully obvious that she’s been stress baking. But she shrugs it off, knowing that they’ll all probably disappear by the end of the night.

“Jesus, how much did you end up baking?” Sammy asks, a bit of shock in her voice.

She looks over to see that Sammy has enlisted Dougie for help, and Eva is really wondering why this has to be the first time she’s seeing him today.

Eva shrugs. “You said there were going to be players here, I figured they could finish it all.”

“You’re not wrong there,” Dougie replies. “I’m sure we’ll find a way to eat everything, even if we shouldn’t.”

“Well, that’s good,” Eva says. “Let’s get going because this might take a couple of trips.”

When the three of them walk into the house, they’re greeted by a small group that’s hanging out in the living room. Within seconds, they’re there to grab the desserts from their hands, taking them to the designated table.

“Wow, where was the offer for help earlier?” Sammy snorts.

“You didn’t tell us what it was for,” one of the guys replies.

Sammy just rolls her eyes, before heading back out to Eva’s car to get the rest of the desserts. Dougie and Eva trail behind her, laughing as they head out.

“So, couldn’t fly back home?” he asks Eva.

“Oh, she could afford it, but she decided she would rather be stuck with us instead,” Sammy interjects, giving Eva an out from having to explain.

“It’s a decision I’m starting to regret greatly,” Eva says flatly.

Dougie lets out one of his infectious laughs as they get to her car. The walk back is quiet and once they’re all back, Eva gets swept up into conversations with some of the office staff that recognize her from the last two events. She’s a little sad she doesn’t get to see much of Dougie, but it’s probably the best if she doesn’t want to fall halfway in love with him.

Before she knows it, Eva is feeling full and tired. The day passes in a blur, but she feels more content than she has in a while. In a way, it almost felt like the holidays with her family, before everything turned out for the worse. As she gets ready to head out, Dougie comes over to say goodbye.

“Sorry we didn’t get to talk much today,” he says apologetically.

“It’s not a big deal, I get that you’re popular around here,” Eva replies jokingly.

“Still, I’d been hoping to talk to you a bit more. I was wondering if you’d feel comfortable exchanging numbers?”

And, well, Eva can’t say no to that. So, she ends up leaving with leftovers that will last for days and a new number in her phone. She isn’t really sure if anything is even going to come of it, but she can’t help but to hope that they’ll at least become friends. When Eva gets home, she flops on her bed and opens up a new message with Dougie.

Debating what to say, she simply texts, I hope you got a chance to try something I made today, I wasn’t expecting people to like them so much lol

Once she sends it, she just whispers, “Why the fuck did I send that ? It sounds like I’m fishing for compliments now.”

Only a few minutes later, he texts back, I think you definitely made enough for me to grab something in time 😉 you did good tho, def worth breaking my meal plan for

Oh that’s good then

Dougie doesn’t reply, and Eva decides she doesn’t want to come off as desperate for attention, so she doesn’t send anything back. Feeling a bit weird about the whole thing, Eva tosses her phone on her nightstand, then pulls up Netflix and falls asleep binge watching tv.

The next week passes by in the same routine that Eva has grown used to. She doesn’t hear much from Dougie, most of their conversations are just her congratulating him on playing well. As much as she doesn’t want to admit it, Eva is a little disappointed. When they exchanged numbers, while she wasn’t expecting them to become close, it would have been nice for there to be at least a little substance to their conversations.

“Look, he’s just someone who appreciates talking in person more,” Sammy says when Eva complains about it.

“Is that you hinting that I need to invite him to hang out in person?” Eva asks, scrunching her nose in disdain.

“Hanging out with Dougie isn’t a bad thing. He’s a pretty chill guy and doesn’t expect you to talk all the time. The dude is huge into museums and shit. I know Raleigh isn’t known for having those, but it’s worth going to.”

“Wouldn’t he have already gone to them if he likes them so much?”

“Yeah, but I doubt he’s gone with anyone. Hockey players aren’t much on casually going to museums with their bros.”

“I guess you’re right. And he won’t think this is like…a date or anything, right?”

“No, he’ll just take it as the two of you going to a museum, nothing more. He’ll probably appreciate the company.”

“Fine,” Eva groans.

“Again, if anything happens, I’m taking all of the credit.”

“I really hate you right now.”

“Love you too, Eva.”

~ ~ ~

Dougie seemed ecstatic going to the museum with Eva. He basically confirmed what Sammy has said, that nobody was keen on going to any of the museums with him. So, on a rare Saturday that he has off, Dougie is dragging Eva to the Natural History Museum. He’s excited about the exhibit that they have on display right now, which is something about puzzles.

“So…is it like a history of puzzles?” Eva inquires, as they walk up to the museum.

“No, it’s all about brain games and engaging with the exhibit,” Dougie explains. “It’s all about being hands on.”

“Oh, that should be fun then. No wonder you seem so excited about it,” Eva replies.

“You should be good at them too, since you’re an engineer.”

“Just because I’m an engineer doesn’t make me smarter than anyone else. It’s not my fault society acts like I know more.”

Dougie just laughs. When they get to the ticket office, Dougie buys Eva’s ticket before she can do anything. She just rolls her eyes, and doesn’t say anything until they’re off to the puzzles exhibit.

“I can afford to buy my own ticket, you know. Engineering is lucrative enough for me to be able to buy my own ticket,” Eva says.

“Yeah, but I’m a hockey player, which is even more lucrative.”

“But have you considered that being a hockey player isn’t forever?”

“I’m one right now though, and that’s what matters.”

“Oh my god, I can’t believe I wanted to hang out with you willingly today,” Eva groans.

Dougie laughs loudly. When they walk into the special exhibit area, they both freeze as they take it in. He was right about it being an interactive puzzle exhibit, but apparently failed to notice that it seemed to be for young kids. Parents were standing around, watching their kids run through the mazes.

“Well, at least you’ll be able to solve them now,” Eva jokes.

“Is that a dig at my intelligence?” Dougie replies, faking offense.

“Maybe,” Eva says, a lip tugging at her lips.

“I’m sorry this was a bust, but do you want to take a look around at the other exhibits?” he asks.

“Sure, sounds good to me.”

And that’s how the two of them spend the rest of the morning looking around. As interesting as it is, Eva is more excited about being able to spend time with Dougie. He’s so much more down-to-earth than she was expecting and Eva feels her crush on him growing larger. While that isn’t what she was hoping for, she supposes there are worse people to have a crush on.

“Are you up for getting lunch together?” Dougie asks as they leave the museum.

“Yeah, if you let me pay for it,” Eva retorts. “Let me spend some of my money.”

“That’s supposed to be my line,” Dougie protests.

“Well, too bad,” she says, smiling widely.

“Fine,” he groans. “I guess I can let you get away with it this time.”

They end up going to a small café only a few blocks away and grab a small table in the corner. Conversation flows easily as they eat their lunch, and Eva finds herself enjoying herself a little too much. Besides Sammy and Patrick, it’s been a long time since she’s found someone she genuinely likes hanging out with. Sure, she hangs out with James and other coworkers on those late nights in the office (or diner), but it’s not the same thing.

“I had a good time,” Dougie says, as he walks Eva back to her car.

“Yeah, me too,” Eva replies. “We should do this again. I’m sure I can hang out during the week, as long as I make it up during the weekend.”

“You don’t have to do that for me,” he says, frowning. “I’m sure I can find some more weekends at some point.”

“It’s really not that big of a deal. I’ve had to come in during weekends before, it’s not an unusual experience.”

“If you’re sure…”

“Dougie, I wouldn’t be offering if I wasn’t sure.”

“Okay then,” he says, smiling softly.

On Eva’s drive back to her apartment, she feels herself smiling stupidly. She really enjoyed being around Dougie and the thought of them hanging out again warms her heart. When she gets back to her apartment, Eva notices that Dougie has already text his schedule for the next couple of weeks. They manage to find a time for them to get dinner the following Wednesday. No matter what Eva thinks, she keeps saying that it’s not a date.

~ ~ ~

By the time Wednesday rolls around, Eva is freaking out. While she knows that it’s not a date, she still wants to make a good impression. Sammy is teasing her about it, but helps calm her down.

“Look, you said that it’s not a date, so just wear what you would wear if we were getting dinner,” Sammy says.

“Right, of course,” Eva whispers.

This helps her settle on a casual outfit, and Sammy soothes her a little more before heading out. Dougie sends her a text not too much later telling Eva that he’s waiting outside her apartment. When she heads down to the curbside, she looks around, trying to find him. She hears a honk from a car nearby, and sees Dougie waiting inside.

“You know, I didn’t picture you driving a Yaris ,” Eva teases. “It’s smaller than I was expecting.”

Dougie snorts. “You’re not the first person to say that. But it was the only rental they had when I first came here and I got attached to it.”

“Only you would get attached to a car,” Eva jokes.

“Why is it that you always find something to tease me about?”

“Well, it’s not like you make it that hard.”

“I feel like I should be more offended than I am.”

Conversation continues to flow in an easy banter as they head to the restaurant that Dougie had picked out. It’s a small family owned Hawaiian place that has been around for a while, with great recommendations. By the time that they get there, Eva is feeling much more at ease than she had earlier in the evening. Dinner continues in a similar fashion, with small jokes and talking about what Eva does.

“So, I can come to you with computer issues?” Dougie asks.

“I guess I could try,” Eva replies. “But that’s more IT than engineering.”

“Thought I would ask anyways,” he says. “So, uh, I wanted to ask you something.”

“Uh, yeah?” Eva replies, a bit confused.

“So, um, I know that this might seem sudden, but I was wondering if you might want to go on a date sometime?” Dougie asks hopefully.

“Oh, Dougie, I…” Eva starts to say.

“Was I reading this wrong?” he replies, face falling.

“No, no, it’s just…let me explain,” Eva says, sighing. “I’m openly bisexual and while I figure that you probably have no problem with it, because you seem like a great person, but…I know how bad the sports community is about this kind of thing. And while I’m sure things might be fine; I also know that people go digging for things.

“I had a girlfriend back in university and I still have pictures of us on my Instagram together. We’re still good friends and those are still happy memories for me. I don’t want to have to hide that part of me and while I might be overreacting…I need to look out for myself, Dougie,” Eva explains. “So, while this isn’t a no, I do need to think about it. And I need you to think about it too, because if people end up talking about it…”

She feels like she laid herself completely bare, letting Dougie see more than she was planning on. But…Eva thought about this over the last few days, and wants to let her concerns be known. Dougie seems to still be processing the news, taking time to consider everything. She appreciates that he isn’t rushing to an answer.

“While I can’t say that I really get it, because I don’t, I understand why you would be nervous,” Dougie says, measuring his words carefully. “I’ll wait for you, though. I know that we honestly don’t know each other all that well, but I know that you’re worth waiting for.”

“Thank you,” Eva whispers. “It’s a lot to take in, I’m fully aware of that, but it’s something that I’ve been thinking about.”

“Oh, so you’ve been thinking about going on a date with me?” Dougie jokes.

Eva blushes. “Was that not obvious?”

“It’s just nice to get a little bit of validation.”

Eva just rolls her eyes. The rest of dinner continues in a comfortable silence, Dougie obviously processing everything that he was told. It was obviously a lot for Eva to trust him with everything she told him, so he decides to let her set the pace of what happens next. He doesn’t want to push her too much.

“We can still hang out if you want to,” Eva says softly, as they walk back to Dougie’s car.

“Yeah, I would like that, if you don’t mind,” he replies. “Even if we decide dating is off the table, I still want to be your friend.”

Eva smiles at this, and it helps ease her a little bit. Things are comfortable on the drive back to her apartment, and before she heads out, she gives him a tight hug. Once she gets up to the apartment, it feels like it’s only a few minutes later than Sammy is knocking on her door to get all the details.

“He asked me on a date,” Eva says.

“And?” Sammy asks, raising an eyebrow.

“I told him I would think about it. I just…I don’t want to have to hide my sexuality again, that’s why I moved down here to Raleigh. No matter how much I like him, if he can’t handle me not hiding it…I don’t want to date him,” Eva explains. “And I’m honestly not sure if I could handle shitty comments either. Like…I know it’s not all that likely, but there has to be a few people that’ll say something .”

“That’s shitty that you even have to think about that,” Sammy replies, hugging Eva briefly.

Eva shrugs. “It is, but it’s the reality of the situation.”

“Do you want to date him though?”

“Yeah, he seems like a great guy. If we didn’t have to think about all of this, I would have said yes in a heartbeat.”

“Then I think that’s something to remember,” Sammy says. “Well, I’ll get out of your hair, I just wanted all the deets right away.”

Eva snorts. “Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate it.”

“You always have me and Patrick, no matter what.”

Eva gives Sammy another hug before she leaves. Sighing, Eva gets ready for bed and mulls over everything that happened. She wants to say yes, wants to text Dougie about it, but she knows that she has to think about it more seriously now. And so does he, and Eva prepares for the minor heartbreak if he decides that she’s just not worth the trouble. But whatever happens, the end result will be worth it.

The more she thinks about it, she feels like she could handle whatever happens as long as Dougie is okay with it. Having his support would mean a lot to Eva, and as long as things don’t get too bad, she feels like she can handle whatever happens. Besides, it’s not like she’s a player that’s coming out, so things shouldn’t be nearly as bad.

A couple of days pass before Eva gets a text from Dougie that just says, I was wondering if we could meet up to talk about what’s going on?

Yeah, but could we do it at one of our places?

I could come to your apartment. I feel like you’d feel more comfortable there

Oh, yeah, that would actually be nice. Are you free any time tomorrow?

I can come over in the evening, once you get off work? I can bring dinner.

See you then 😊

Time seems to either go too fast or two slow. Eva barely remembers anything that happens at work the next day, and James doesn’t ask if she wants to work late, seeing that she’s a little bit out of it. Once she gets home, Eva paces aimlessly around her apartment, unsure of what to do. When she hears a knock on her door, she practically runs over to open it.

Dougie is standing there, with a bag of takeout. Whatever it is, Eva guesses that it isn’t meal plan approved. But she considers that with the conversation they’re having tonight, a bit of junk food won’t be too bad.

“Uh, come on it,” Eva says, stepping to the side to let him in. “You can set this down in the kitchen.”

Once he’s set down the food, Eva leads him to her living room, and they both take a seat down on the couch. It’s quiet for a moment, neither really knowing what to say. She’s unsure if she wants to go first, since her answer depends on what he’s thinking.

“So, I’ve been thinking about it a lot,” Dougie says. “And I can only imagine how hard it was for you to tell me what you did. You being bi, it’s a big part of who you are, but it’s not going to impact how much I want to date you. I want to date you because you’re an amazing person and that hasn’t changed. I know that it could turn out badly because people are shitty, but…we can figure that all out together. Admittedly, I don’t know what I can do to support you, but whatever that looks like, I’ll be there.”

“Thank you,” Eva whispers. “I’m still a bit scared, it’s hard not to be, but I want to date you. You’re a good person and I feel like things could be good between us.”

“So, you want to date me?”

Eva snorts. “Yeah, I think I could do that.”

Dougie smiles brightly, then it dims a little. “Does this count as our first date?”

“I don’t see why not,” Eva says, shrugging.

“This isn’t how I imagined it going,” Dougie replies, scrunching his nose. “But I guess there’s no time like the present.”

“I admire your positivity.”

Dougie laughs, and Eva smiles brightly. It’s good to hear his laugh again, and Eva gets excited thinking about how she can hear it even more now.

“You know, I think your laugh is my favorite part of you,” Eva says.

“You’re really picking my laugh over my dashing good looks?” Dougie asks, feigning offense.

“Unfortunately,” Eva sighs.

There’s still so much that Eva has yet to tell Dougie, about why she left home and why she’s scared for people to find out about them. But there’ll be time for that in the future, and she doesn’t want to ruin the moment.

[dreamscript]

monsta x hyunwoo - 4187

4187: for the number of messages it takes for him to realize he’s in love

normalverse. one wrong text sent the right way.

To put it bluntly, the first message is amistake. Really, you swear. You’d meant to send a message to Hyunbin,your coach, but stupid Messenger and the stupidnew features resulted in you accidentally selecting the wrong Hyun-guy: Hyunwoo.

You: Hello! Sorry, I am unable to make practicetomorrow due to family complications. Hope that’s okay.

Hyunwoo: Wow, I’m really sorry to hear that :( hope urfam is doing alright!

Hyunwoo: Wait

Hyunwoo: What practice

You blink atthe screen, confused, until you check the name and realize your mistake. Fuck.

And, to makematters worse:

Hyunwoo: Wait

Hyunwoo: Who are you o__o

Yeah, no, fuck–quickly,you unlock your phone, go into the app, copy-paste the message you sent to Hyunwooand send it to Hyunbin, and then go back to your “conversation” with Hyunwooand–and–succumb to embarrassment and an anxious awkwardness. Luckily, rightas you fall into the depths of morbid embarrassment, he at least has thedecency to remember you, sort of. You actually didn’t know you were friends onFacebook…until, well, now.

Hyunwoo: O wait I remmeber you! We were in the same mathclass last year

Hyunwoo: remember* fuck lmao

Flustered,still beyond embarrassed, you send him a blubbering, apologetic reply.

You: omg i’m so sorry! That was meant for my coachHyunBIN… and yeah haha last year we did trig in that freezing room together

Okay, maybe, hopefully,it didn’t come out sounding too bad. It’s all about keeping it cool. And casual.Because really, he could’ve said worse things; he at least sounded mildlyconcerned. Up until he actually well, registered the message.

Hyunwoo: oh lol i thought that was kinda strange. It’schill lmao (like our classroom bc who the fuck puts on ac in the winter i’mstill mad af about that) what sports do you do

Hyunwoo: also i actually hope your family is fine didn’tmean to sound shallow there i just saw “family complications” and yeah

He’ssurprisingly friendly. And not dismissive. Which is, well, peculiar, becauseyou’re pretty sure 99% of the time these situations usually just end up in ashort, dismissive conversation. And that’s that. But as far as you can tell,he’s actually trying to… get to know you. Or something. Whatever–an extrafriend isn’t going to hurt.

…he’s alsokinda cute.

But.

You: idk! It makes me mad

You: esp bc my friends and i sit on the radiators inthe mornings and sometimes its warm but most of the time its fucking freezing @admin why

You: and thank you!! Haha it’s actually fine. Familycomplications = my pet is having surgery and i need to be there lmao but mycoach gets kinda strict with excuses so yeah

Hyunwoo: ah i know that feel

//

The thousandthmessage is a meme sent from you to him involving student problems and medievalart pieces.

Okay, so maybeit isn’t really a message message, but still, sending memes to one another is asign of a deep friendship. It is, undoubtedly, a step forward from the whole“shit-wrong-person” debacle a while back.

Hyunwoodoesn’t respond immediately–it takes him some time to and you don’t mind–soyou decide to lounge around, contemplate turning on Netflix to watch the latestHouse of Cards. The last few episodes have been pure eviland savagery and almost seem a bittoo real.

Hyunwoo: lmao me

Hyunwoo: have you seen that one smosh post where theycompiled a bunch of snapchat art memes those were hilarious lemme find them

//

Message numbertwo-thousand-and-ninety-three is a three-paragraph rant sent from him to youregarding parents, school, and life in general. You’re not sure how exactly torespond, so you’re stuck in between letters and words, typing and retyping andjust trying not to say something bad on accident. A part of you is scared thatyou’ll destroy the trust between you two.

Finally, youmanage to send something out. It’s a mere sentence, but it’s okay becauseyou’re sending him message after message, everything broken down into smallbits and pieces as your thoughts come to you one by one. Soon enough, theentire screen is filled with positive messages from you, his negative oneshaving been pushed up.

He doesn’t sayanything particularly meaningful or memorable, and maybe you didn’t either, sinceexpressing strong, positive emotions over text has always been difficult. Butwhen you meet him at school his smiles are brighter, he sidles up to youcloser, and he opens heart up wider. And that’s how you could tell that changeswere happening.

//

“Yo dude, Hyunwoo,it’s your turn to judge,” Minhyuk says, shoving him on the shoulder. Startled,Hyunwoo drops his phone onto the carpet, thankful that they’re all seated onthe ground (rather than standing in the kitchen). “What’re you even looking atanyways?”

“He’s textingsomeone,” Hyungwon replies, sounding tired. “Anyways, go.”

“Who? Is it agirl? Ohmygosh what were you guys talkingabout?” Minhyuk suddenly seemsmore invested in Hyunwoo than in the card game.

“Uh,” Hyunwoosays. He awkwardly flips a card off the deck, faceup, then picks up his own setof seven cards. Rifles through them. Places one down. “Stuff.”

“What kind ofstuff?” Eyebrow wiggles. Hoseok snickers at something whileChangkyun and Kihyun look extremely uninterested, shuffling through their owncards.

“Nothing,really.”

“But you’vebeen on your phone ever since you came in here!”

And, beforeHyunwoo can even blink, Minhyuk’s snatched up his fallen phone, triumphantlyclutching it to his chest.

“Now you gottatell me! I’ve taken your phone hostage.”

“W-What?!”

“You like her,don’t you?”

//

He? Likes you?

Hyunwoo buriesinto his mattress, resting on his elbows with his phone clutched between hishands. What does it even mean to like someone? What’s the difference between aromantic versus a platonic crush? It’s so hard to distinguish at times. Onemoment, you think it’s romantic–but then the next, you may realize it’s muchbetter being friends with the person rather than being their partner…only for the reverse to happen later. And so the cycle goes.

You: yo wanna get some pizza later

Hyunwoo: idk

He’s too busythinking for pizza. Unfortunately.

You: …okay

You: dude r u okay? You’ve only been sending one wordanswers

You: is something wrong?

So. Now thekey is to pinpoint his own feelings. You? And him? It’s not something he hasn’tthought about before; rather, he just hasn’t really factored in the wholefeelings thing in. Imagining going out on a date with someone is an entirelydifferent concept from imagining being in an emotional contract ofsorts.

Hyunwoo sighs,groaning into his sheets.

Hyunwoo: actually

You: ?????!

Hyunwoo: I need to tell you something…

drabble game: numbers | closed

[anotherhelplesshamiltrash]

We'll Figure It Out

Anthony x Reader

Notes: Reader is the newest member of Hamilton and quickly develops a friendship with Anthony, though both of them secretly want more. Per usual, I write this with all respect to Ant, Jasmine and their relationship as this is purely fictional. Enjoy! (Ps: this my second request! I was so sure no one would read these things lol - sorry it took so long!)

Word count: 3525

Warnings: mentions of sex (uuuuuh) and making out, I guess.

You have walked by the Richard Rodgers Theater several times before, but somehow, it seemed to have doubled its size now that you were standing in front of it. “The opportunity of a lifetime. There’s no time for second doubts” you reminded yourself before walking in. Your eyes wandered for a moment, unsure of where to go, until you spotted the signature ponytail of the man who’s taking Broadway by storm.

- (Y/n)! Welcome! - he smiled at you, giving you a quick embrace.

- Hi, Lin! It’s great to be here. - you made sure to call him by his first name, since he corrected you on the phone a few days ago (“Oh please, Mr. Miranda is my dad. Call me Lin”).

- Everyone’s at the stage to warm up so we can stop by to introduce you and then I’ll give you a tour of the theater. - he pointed to the right direction, waiting for your response.

- Sounds awesome. - you smiled at him and the two of you made your way through various flights of stairs.

As soon as you reached the stage, you had to take a moment to admire how grand the venue is. In fact, you were so fascinated by the scenario that you didn’t even notice how some people turned their attention towards you, not even the talkative curly haired guy who suddenly lost his train of thought.

- Guys, I’m happy to introduce you to (y/n), the newest member of our cast! - Lin announced with a smile to the group of artists in front of him.

- Hi! - you smiled, waving your hand for a moment and regretting it immediately.

They shared a small laugh, your nervousness probably reminding them of their early days in the production. A dark haired woman with rosy cheeks suggested that they went around the room, introducing themselves by name and their character on the show. With an unanimous nod, she began.

- I’m Phillipa, but everyone calls me Pippa. - she said with a kind smile - And I play Eliza.

One by one, they put names to the faces and you were thankful for their enthusiasm. It was only a couple of introductions later when you noticed a certain pair of green eyes that haven’t left your direction since you walked in. “Of course he’s looking at you, you’re the new kid, that’s all” you thought to yourself.

- Hi, I’m Anthony and I play John Laurens and Philip. - he simply smiled at you and you could feel your face getting warmer. Oh god, breathe.

Once everyone had spoken, Lin walked you around the theater as he promised, showing you everything from the dressing room area to the orchestra pit. And while everything was so foreign and there was a lot to memorize, you were as excited as ever. However, you still had two weeks of rehearsals before your Broadway debut, so while everyone was performing, you were enjoying the show from the wings. Your eyes lingered on the man passionately rapping about the end of slavery, an involuntary smile gracing the corners of your mouth.

- Do you ever have food here? - you take a look at the fridge, finding only a couple of beers and a large bottle of ketchup.

- Only when my parents visit. - Anthony replies from the couch - I’m surprised you haven’t gotten used to it yet.

- Oh well, a girl can dream. - you close the fridge door and turn around to look at him. - So, pizza?

- Always. - he grins, making you roll your eyes with a small smile.

It’s your day off, you have good company and, soon, pizza. What’s there to complain about? Sure, you initially had a crush on Anthony, but he quickly became your closest friend in the cast and that’s great. You’re happy to be friends with him, which is what you remind yourself when he decides to rest his arm on the back of the couch over your head, sitting a bit closer than usual.

- How I Met Your Mother? - he asks, scrolling though Netflix.

- It would take forever to choose an episode. I feel like watching a movie.

- True. Remember Me?

- Too heavy. Amélie?

- We saw that last time.

The debate continues for a moment, until you come across the animation section and a particular movie catches your eye.

- Mulan! - you shout excitedly at the same time. Mulan it is.

You start the movie, laughing at the jokes you’ve heard countless times. When the first song begins, you look at each other with bright eyes, silently agreeing to sing along to every word. He even gets up from his seat, trying an interpretative dance that makes your stomach hurt from laughing too hard. He then takes your hand and starts jumping and dancing around the room with you, both of you singing and laughing. It’s only by the end of the song that you realize how close you are. His hands firmly on your waist, yours on his shoulders. You’re still smiling, looking straight into his beautiful green eyes. You’d gladly get lost in them. His gaze flickers from your eyes to your lips for a second and you lean forward. He does the same. Eyes closed, his lips ghosting over yours, when the bell suddenly rings. You jump away from each other, breathless.

- That’s the pizza. - he points to the door, walking towards it with a shy smile. Maybe you’re not over your crush after all.

Now with the pizza in hand, you continue watching the movie, though not as close as you were before. You sing the next song without leaving your seat. Everything feels a bit awkward for a moment, until I’ll Make a Man Out of You comes up and you have no choice but to belt the lyrics, laughing with the same intensity you had at the beginning.

Almost a week later, you’re making your way towards the bright yellow lights of the theater, just as you did two months ago on your first day at Hamilton. You’re no expert of the theater community, but you’re certainly more comfortable with your settings than you were before. You even managed to make friends all the while, especially Anthony, becoming inseparable after a few days of being on the show. You’d hang out together at work, sharing funny videos and even occasional naps on two show days, and on your free time, going to the movies or playing video games at his place. You never seemed to get tired of each other. In fact, you had just placed your bag on the ensemble dressing room when you hear a familiar voice:

- Yo, (y/n)! - you turn around to find Anthony with his phone in hand and a smile on his face.

- Ant! What’s up?

- There’s this new Netflix series coming up and it sounds awesome. Check this out. - he hands you his phone, a YouTube video on the screen.

- Wow. It seems really cool. - you hand back the phone after watching the short video.

- Right?! We should totally binge watch it when it comes out.

- So you’re basically planning to Netflix and chill? - Morgan teases with a raised eyebrow on the other side of the room.

- What?! How.. why.. what? We’re just gonna watch the show - he stumbles with his words, blushing furiously.

- Besides, you’re supposed to “Netflix and chill” while watching something boring and The Get Down sounds awesome. - you try your best to sound cool, despite the heat on your cheeks. Morgan raises her hands in surrender, clearly holding a laugh.

- Of course it’s gonna be awesome, I’m in it! - Daveed suddenly shows up at the door with a conceited look on his face.

- See? Another reason why you can’t Netflix and chill to it: Daveed is in it. - you turn to Morgan’s direction, earning a laugh from her and Anthony while Daveed dramatically gasps with a hand on his heart, though he ends up joining the rest of you with a grin.

Soon it’s time to warm up and rehearse before the matinee, the whole cast ready to enjoy their day off tomorrow. While the ensemble practices a specific choreography, the lead actors have a few extra minutes to prepare for the show on their own.

 Meanwhile

- So, Ant.. what’s your deal with (y/n)? - Daveed asks him out of the blue while they’re hanging out in his dressing room.

- What? There’s no deal with (y/n). She’s my friend. - Anthony replies with as much confidence as possible, though he wishes his answer could be something else entirely.

- C'mon, dude! We’re your best friends. You can tell us. - Oak reassures him.

- I just.. like to be with her, okay?

- Then why aren’t you with her already? - Daveed asks with curiosity.

- Cause.. we’re friends. And I don’t wanna mess that up. - Anthony looks down, his friends sharing a knowing look.

- So, did y'all watch the game last night? - Daveed asks the group.  

After the show, feeling sweaty and tired, you head straight to the ensemble dressing room, ready to leave. As you’re about to close the door, Jasmine appears.

- (Y/n)! What are you up to, girl?

- Today? I’m just gonna go home, binge watch something, take a bath, that kind of thing. Why?

- Weeeell, now that you asked, a bunch of us are going out tonight and I was hoping you’d come along. - she tilts her head, a slight pout on her lips.

- I’m so tired, Jas..

- Pleeeeeease? - she uses her puppy eyes as a last resort. Damn you, puppy eyes!

- Okay. But you’re gonna have to help me get ready cause I have no idea what to wear.

- Done and done! Meet me in my place at 8! - she grins before going on her way, leaving you to wonder how you got yourself into this.

A couple of hours later, you find yourself at Jasmine’s place with Pippa. Renee was also supposed to be there, but one of her kids wasn’t feeling too well and she decided to skip this one.

- So, what are our options here? - Jasmine asks with the intensity of a general in battle.

- I’m settled for this matching top and skirt, but I’m gonna need your help with hair and makeup. - Pippa responded promptly, both of you laying on Jasmine’s bed.

- And I brought this crop top, these two skirts and this dress. I’m lost, I never go to these things. - you sigh.

- These are not bad.. oh, this dress is cute. So flowery! - Pippa sits up straight to look at your options.

- That’s the problem, Pip. It’s not a picnic. We’re not going for cute. - Jasmine rules out the outfit.

- Wait, what are we going for? We’re just meeting people from the cast. - you sit beside Phillipa, a bit confused.

- But Anthony is part of the cast and I know for a fact that he’s going tonight. - she raises an eyebrow with a mischievous look on her face.

-  So? I see him everyday, it’s not a big deal. - you furrow your eyebrows with your arms crossed in front of you.

- True, which is why tonight requires something special. Come on, I see the way you look at each other. We both do. - she looks at Pippa, who nods in agreement.

- It feels like you should be together, don’t you think? - Pippa asks softly.

- I don’t know.. I really like him. But we almost kissed once and everything felt so awkward afterwards. I don’t want to risk everything. - you confess.

- The problem is not the kiss. It’s the almost. Trust me. - Jasmine reassures you while holding your hand - It’s time for this struggle to end and tonight is the night.

- So.. what do you have in mind? - you ask quietly, which is all they need to start working on you.

Two hours later, you’re on your way to the club. Pippa wearing her matching top and skirt, Jasmine in a bodysuit and jeans, and you with a tight lace dress that showed off your curves, courtesy of Jas. Bold, yet elegant. Definitely something that you wouldn’t wear on a regular basis, but with the heels and the red lipstick, you felt oddly confident. Soon enough, you’re at the club, making your way towards the group of loud performers you know and love. Anthony’s mouth drops slightly open when he sees you, which you take as a good sign. Maybe your feelings could be reciprocated after all.

- Girls! Good to see you! - Lin shouts over the music, which is loud, but thankfully not to the point where you can’t hear each other. - Wow, (y/n)! Looking good tonight, are we?

- It’s only thanks to these two. - you indicate to Jasmine and Phillipa with a smile.

- Let’s get something to drink. - Jasmine points to the bar, where the three of you head to.

Each of you drink a shot of tequila to loosen up a little and you decide that’s enough for you, as you don’t want to get really drunk. You go back to the group, talking for a couple of minutes with Carleigh and Thayne. Just as they head to the bar, Anthony shows up.

- Hey! You look.. amazing. Just amazing. - he exclaims over the music and there’s a hint of alcohol in his breath but he’s clearly not drunk.

- Thanks. You don’t look so bad yourself. - you smile with confidence, aware of how different you look from your usual self.

He’s about to say something else when a remix of Hotline Bling comes up and Jasmine pulls you to the dance floor. The majority of the group had already been dancing, so you feel at ease joining them. At first you’re dancing with Jasmine, then Thayne, and lastly Groff. As you switch between having different dance partners and dancing by yourself, Anthony and Daveed have their sights on you from the bar.

- Honestly, if you don’t make a move, I will. - Daveed says firmly.

Anthony takes a shot and walks straight to the dance floor.

He offers you his hand just as that popular song from The Weeknd comes up and you gladly take it. You dance together for hours, varying from really dancing, as the Broadway performers that both you are, and just goofing around. A remix of another overplayed song begins and this time, dancing with him, the lyrics hit you a bit harder.

I thought that I’d been hurt before. But no one’s ever left me quite this sore.

Your rhythm gradually slows down, until it’s just the two of you practically slow dancing while everyone else is jumping around.

And now that I’m without your kisses, I’ll be needing stitches.

You’re as close as you were that day at his apartment. His hands on your waist, yours on his shoulders. He leans over, eyes closed, and you do the same, meeting him halfway. Like a wave hitting the shore, his lips crash onto yours, gentle and desperate at the same time. Your hands move to his hair and he tightens his grip on your waist, pulling you even closer. He tastes like alcohol and you’re sure you taste the same. You melt on his embrace and the feeling of his lips against yours. There’s just you and him. Everything else fades away. When you finally reach for air, his forehead touches yours, eyes still closed while a smile appears on both of your faces. You slowly open your eyes, afraid that it might be a dream. He smiles even wider looking at you. You suddenly hear applause and cheers and you turn around to find your fellow castmates high-fiving each other, some even with their phones out. You rest your head on his shoulder and laugh at how insane this moment is.

- Alright, TMZ, that’s enough for you. - Anthony raises his arm to the group, who laughs and puts their phones away.

You keep dancing through a few more songs, but when it becomes more making out than dancing, you know it’s time to go.

- Bye, guys! - you wave to the group quickly, a giant smile on your face.

- Bye, lovebirds! - they reply in a chorus, leaving you to wonder if they rehearsed it before.

Hand in hand with Anthony, you wait for your Uber, breathing into the chilly air of the city. You end up kissing again in the backseat of the car, his hands rest on your thighs, sending shivers down your spine. The poor driver has to clear his throat to get your attention once you arrive. You walk to his apartment hand in hand and when he closes the front door, he pulls you closer and presses you against it, kissing you again, this time rougher and needier. Your hands are on his hair again, pulling it lightly. He places his hands on your thighs and, letting your body move on its own, you wrap your legs around his waist. He carries you to the couch, carefully dropping you off. He sits down, pulling you with him so you’re sitting on his lap. He kisses you intensely, as if he’s out of breath and you’re the only source of oxygen in the room. Soon you’re lightly grinding against him, making him moan against your lips. When both of you reach for air, he starts kissing your neck.

- Bedroom? - you suggest, breathing heavily.

- Bedroom. - he looks up at you, his eyes dark with lust.

You stand up and he follows you, his fingers intertwined with yours as you make your way towards his bed. When you do, you turn around to kiss him, feeling your heartbeat echo through your whole body. His hand moves to the clasp on your dress and stops there, stepping away from your embrace to look at you first. Consenting with a nod, his lips are on yours again, the taste of alcohol slowly fading. He then leads you to the bed, laying on top of you. His hands travel around your body while you unbutton his shirt. Anthony breaks the kiss to toss it on the floor, giving you a moment to catch your breath. He pauses for a moment, his chest rising and falling quickly, to take a look at you. He lets out a small laugh at how surreal this moment is.

- I can’t believe we’re gonna do it. - he laughs against your neck in between kisses.

- I know, right? - you smile with him. A week before you barely kissed and now there you are.

- I’ve always had a crush on you, you know? - his eyes sparkle with happiness, fingers gently caressing your cheek.

- What?! Shut up! I had a crush on you! - you exclaim a bit too loud.

- Well, I know for a fact that I had a crush on you since the minute you walked into that stage with Lin.

- Wait, really?

- Really. - he smiles, leaning over to kiss you once more. - The problem was that I’m apparently awful at keeping secrets. I’m telling you, I almost told people so many times.

- Really? How? - you ask, curious to know more.

- I think it was mostly small details, you know? Like commenting on how beautiful you look or how good you smell or whatever you said that made me laugh and, I mean, these are fine on their own, days apart. But all the time? Suspicious. - he’s now resting his head on his arm, laying on his stomach.

-That’s so sweet, Ant. But you should have said something to me, who knows what could have happened if I knew sooner.. - you play with his hair, all your affection reflected in your eyes.

- We figured it out. That’s all that matters. - he smiles brightly - Wait, does that mean we could have been doing this for months?!

- Yep. - you laugh and he joins you, the sound making you feel at home.

The night is spent sharing stories of how you’ve felt about him and vice versa, times you almost revealed your feelings to someone else in the cast (though, let’s face it, everyone knew), weird dreams involving each other that you felt too embarrassed to share before, and just retelling good stories of your adventures. You move around in bed, sometimes facing each other side by side, or sitting, or him resting his head on your lap. You share secrets and childhood stories that neither of you had the chance to bring up before. Bad habits and hopes for the future. You don’t even notice falling asleep, only waking up to the sunlight slipping through the curtains and his arms wrapped around you.

- Good morning, sleepyhead. - you smile when his eyes open, so close to him you could count his freckles.

- Good morning, babe. - he smiles back, his voice still raspy. - I can’t believe we didn’t have sex. The guys would crucify me.

- We have plenty of time ahead of us. - you laugh with him - In fact, we have a whole day to do whatever we want.

- Hmm so what are we thinking? Pancakes? - he pulls you closer, your legs still intertwined, and you hum in response.

- We’ll figure it out as we go. - you look into his eyes, your words possibly meaning a lot more than just your schedule for the day. He kisses you softly.

- Hey, (y/n).. wanna watch something boring?